In the 1960s and ‘70s, many all-male Jesuit colleges and universities – including Fairfield University – began admitting women for reasons related to both finances and gender equity.

Fifty years later, these Jesuit schools, and all institutions of higher learning, face new crises: increased financial pressures, demands for racial and ethnic diversity, and a diminished role for the humanities. Moreover, the very existence and purpose of higher education is increasingly in question.

In her lecture at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 17, “Add Women and Stir Transform: Jesuit Coeducation at 50 Years,” Susan A. Ross, PhD will argue that the admission of women to Jesuit schools represents an as-yet-unfulfilled vision of transformative education as a moral and inclusive process that is evident in its leadership, curricula, and its contributions to the larger society.

Professor emerita of theology at Loyola University Chicago, Dr. Ross received her BA from Manhattanville College and her master’s and doctoral degrees from the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. She is the author or editor of four books and more than 80 journal articles and book chapters.

Dr. Ross is a past president of the Catholic Theological Society of America, a former member of the Board of Directors of Concilium, and is an associate editor of Theological Studies. She lives in Skokie, IL with her husband William George, their rescue greyhound Maggie, and is a member of the Ignatian Volunteer Corps.

Presented by the Center for Catholic Studies at Fairfield University, the 2021 Bellarmine Lecture will be livestreamed as a free webinar at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 17, and is open to the public. Register to attend at  fairfield.edu/cs.