The Catholic and Jesuit Mission and Identity
...anchoring all our endeavors in the Jesuit tradition
Following up on a recommendation that grew out of deliberations during an academic long range planning process, in early 2001 then-President Aloysius P. Kelley, S.J., created the position of University Facilitator for Catholic and Jesuit Mission and Identity.
In seeking to preserve and strengthen Fairfield's defining characteristics, the Facilitator helps raise to conscious awareness a mission which, for nearly 500 years, has sought to:
- Integrate the intellectual and spiritual
- Instill awareness that academic achievement brings with it a responsibility to serve
In the Jesuit tradition, that desire is born of an academic rigor that includes embracing difference, incorporating the best of "the new," examining social systems critically, and becoming directly involved with those who are underprivileged and underserved.
Academic Initiatives for Jesuit and Catholic Mission
During the last 50 years, Jesuit universities have entered the mainstream of American academic life. Faculty achievements and alumni accomplishments have earned Catholic colleges and universities a respected place in the landscape of higher education.
This is especially true at Jesuit universities which have embraced the virtues of critical academic rigor and unprejudiced scrutiny of evidence toward the pursuit of truth and social justice.
Fairfield's Academic Long Range Plan places Jesuit and Catholic Mission and Identity at its center and 4 major objectives have been identified:
- The facilitation and continued integration of all programs and activities related to our Jesuit and Catholic Mission
- An intellectual and spiritual investigation of the Catholic and Jesuit heritage
- A link from this heritage to real world issues of social justice so critical to the teachings of the Church
- An innovative program specifically for students to examine their sense of calling and mission in their personal lives and career choices
Four initiatives have been established to support the objectives:
- Position of Facilitator for Catholic and Jesuit Mission and Identity
- Chair in Catholic Studies
- Chair and Center for Faith and Public Life
- The Ignatian Residential College