|
March Newsletter: Inclusion
- President's Post
- JASPA @ NASPA 2020 in Austin: RSVP soon!
- Survey Invitation: Principles of Good Practice
- Recognition and Awards Committee Update
- Online Enrichment Updates + Webinar Opportunity
- 2020 Five-Year Summer Institute Updates
- March Blog: In memory of Pam Rector, Loyola Marymount University
President's Post
Greetings, Everyone. I know many of us are grappling with the impacts of Coronavirus on our students, our teams, and our institutions. It is a time of worry and uncertainty, and a set of circumstances that can push us to narrow our focus to immediate needs and urgent decisions.
In the midst of this challenging time, I want to call us to broaden our view, and to think about our commitment to inclusion. In addition to that focus, this issue of our newsletter features a poignant testimony to a transformative leader in Jesuit higher education – Pam Rector of Loyola Marymount University. Our colleagues have written a moving and reflective tribute to Pam, and I am grateful to them. In this issue, we also invite you to share your feedback on an important tool for our work – the Principles of Good Practice for Student Affairs at Catholic Colleges and Universities.
Now, on to inclusion. This past November, noted social psychologist and university leader Claude Steele wrote an essay in the Chronicle of Higher Education entitled “Why are campuses so tense?" This thoughtful piece explored the current conditions in U.S. American culture and in our colleges and universities. Steele made an impassioned argument for the imperative to build trust, as a central part of our efforts to heal and to move forward. He also made it clear that this trust-building is the work of everyone on our campuses, regardless of their own identities or positions.
In writing about his graduate advisor, who did not share his social identity, Steele wrote: “A trust emerged: in the mundane, in the research enterprise itself. It began with my adviser’s seriousness — “this is science, not a student project” — and his seeing me as worthy partner. He was optimistic, but with no aversion to giving critical feedback. The shared work, the high standards, the optimism, the clarity of the path forward, and his investment in supporting me on that path — not our shared identity — was our road to trust.”
This is a model for all of us. There is work we can do, and care for our students we can provide, that is based on our own identities and our own journeys. That is very true. Yet there is also work any of us can do for our students, if we take Claude Steele’s model seriously. We all matter. We all have a role to play in this journey of civilizing our institutions for our students and our colleagues. I urge you to keep Steele’s ideas and his call in the front of your mind (and your heart) as you encounter students, colleagues, and others who are part of your campus community. This call may be even more urgent during the time of Coronavirus than in an ordinary Spring Semester.
I wish each of you peace and good health and enthusiasm for your work, and our shared Jesuit mission, in the busy weeks ahead.
Todd Olson, Phd
Georgetown University
JASPA President
JASPA @ NASPA 2020 in Austin: RSVP soon
 It's time to guac and roll! If you're attending NASPA in Austin, don't forget to RSVP and join us on Saturday, March 28 at Uncle Julio’s in Austin. Uncle Julio's is within walking distance of the JW Marriott and Convention Center.
Please RSVP so we can plan for food/drinks accordingly! The deadline to register is March 20.
Additionally, Mass will be offered to JASPA attendees on Sunday, March 29 (time/location TBD) and we’d love to see you there.
Reach out to Jackie Dykes at jkus@regis.edu with any questions or accommodation requests.
Survey Invitation: Principles of Good Practice
Dear JASPA Member,
We know these are busy days for all of us in Student Affairs, however please consider assisting with an important project that advances Catholic higher education. In a historic collaborative venture, JASPA, ASACCU, and ACCU are partnering to engage in a refresh of the Principles of Good Practice for Student Affairs at Catholic Colleges and Universities document.
The original document, along with the diagnostic queries for assessment (see attached PDF), were created by a committed team representing our three associations. This refresh project will be as well, and we need your input.
Prior to March 20, 2020, please click on the link included below (or copy and paste into your browser) to complete the survey feedback tool:
https://neumann.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3eG8PTNab0TVoFL
Your feedback is anonymous and solely will be used to inform the project team. Thank you in advance for your consideration as well as your assistance with this important project. If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Rebecca Sawyer, ACCU, at RSawyer@accunet.org.
Sincerely,
Principles Refresh Coordinating Team
Chairs of the process:
- Fr. Dennis Holtschneider, CM, ACCU President & CEO
- Kathy Byrnes, Villanova University, ASACCU Board Chair
- Todd Olson, Georgetown University, JASPA President
Conveners of the process:
- Sandy Estanek, Canisius College (Representing ACCU)
- Chris Haug, Neumann University (Representing ASACCU)
- Michael James, Boston College (Representing JASPA)
Recognition and Awards Committee Update
As we approach mid-spring semester, we continue to recognize members of the JASPA community who are creating innovative ways to integrate our Jesuit values into student affairs work on their respective campus. The purpose of the JASPA Community Impact Awards are to highlight a program, service, publication or institutional commitment that embodies the values of Jesuit higher education. Awardees are selected monthly to showcase best practices integrating Jesuit mission and identity to inform our student affairs work.
The nomination form for Community Impact Awards can be found here. Nominations for this month are due on Friday, March 20, 2020. If you have any questions about the nomination process or would like to join our committee, please do not hesitate to reach out to Dr. Mark Harrington, Chair of the Recognition and Awards Committee, at harring4@canisius.edu.
The JASPA Annual Awards winners will be announced in July at the JASPA 2020 Summer Institute at Loyola University Chicago. Please be on the lookout later this month for the launch of the nomination process!
Online Enrichment Updates + Webinar Opportunity
Hello JASPA colleagues,
I'm eager to provide you with an update regarding JASPA's Online Enrichment initiatives. As you may know, JASPA leadership has prioritized online enrichment as an essential mechanism for developing of our members' professional competencies and creating space for meaningful connections across our Jesuit student affairs network.
As we look forward to our upcoming gatherings at NASPA in Austin and the Five Year Institute in Chicago, we recognize that these impactful opportunities may not be viable for all JASPA members. Through online enrichment, we will aim to provide similarly connective and inspiring experiences on a more consistent and less costly basis. We will explore unique technological strategies to promote engagement with each other around critical issues in higher education. And we'll also count on the tried and true webinar as an effective way to share expertise across the JASPA network.
To that end, we're excited to announce the following upcoming webinar offering:
The Jesuit University Today: A History in Five Acts
As professionals in Jesuit Higher Education, all JASPA members are invited to consider the unique mission of Jesuit colleges and universities and how each of us might contribute to our shared tradition. Lessons from 400+ years of Jesuit history can be useful in guiding our work today. Join us for a webinar in which participants will explore five key dates (1528, 1548, 1789, 1965, and 1989) that will help them appreciate why the Jesuit University of today has come to be associated with principles and practices like openness, social justice, reconciliation, dialogue, and diversity, and how the story might have turned out much differently!
Thu, Mar 26, 2020 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EDT
Presenter, John T. Sebastian, Ph.D.
Vice President for Mission and Ministry at Loyola Marymount University
We hope you'll join us! To register, please sign up at: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8295692491588001804
Your thoughts, ideas and suggestions regarding JASPA's online enrichment initiatives are more than welcome! Please don't hesitate to reach out to me to discuss.
Jean Griffin
Xavier University
Vice-President for Online Enrichment
griffinj6@xavier.edu
2020 Five-Year Summer Institute Updates
Planning your travel for #JASPA 2020? Check out the schedule overview above to assist you with your itinerary! To view the preliminary schedule online, we invite you to explore the Institute’s website for more details! The entire schedule will be posted later this spring. Be sure to stay tuned to JASPA social media channels for exciting releases!
Registration: Online registration and housing reservations are now LIVE!
Step 1: Update your JASPA Profile.
Step 2: Review Institute housing options.
Step 3: Consider if you will participate in any of the optional Institute opportunities (JASPA Retreat for Women of Color Student Affairs Administrators, Pre-Institute Retreat, Post-Institute Engagement Experiences).
The attached 2020 JASPA Five Year Summer Institute Registration Guide will assist you with the process!
Early Registration: 1/27/2020 - 3/16/2020 | $580
Regular Registration: 3/17/2020 - 4/9/2020 | $600
Various on-campus housing options are available for Institute participants and will be assigned on a first come, first serve basis. Be sure to follow the steps in the Registration Guide for instructions on completing your housing reservation!
Questions?
General questions regarding the Institute can be directed to the Programming Committee
Co- Chairs: Kiersten White & Bennie Williams.
Questions regarding Institute registration can be emailed to Tedd Vanadilok, Logistics Co-Chair.
Questions regarding Institute housing can be emailed to loyolalodging@luc.edu.
March Blog Post: Patrick Furlong and Anthony Garrison-Engbrecht
In Memory of Pam Rector: Called into Community
On a beautiful sunny February day in Los Angeles, hundreds filled Sacred Heart Chapel at Loyola Marymount University to celebrate the life, impact, and legacy of Pam Rector. Pam served the LMU community for over 22 years, including 20 as the founding director of the Center for Service and Action. Through her tireless effort, she helped to revolutionize how LMU shares the mission of the university with the world ensuring that our students become people for and with others. CSA experienced tremendous growth during her tenure expanding opportunity for students to be engaged with their community on and off campus through service and local and global engagement.
Pam’s impact on the university community is only enhanced by her direct impact on the lives of all of those she mentored, supported, and loved. During the memorial, family, friends, colleagues, and community members were invited to consider the question, “Who was Pam to you?” by Patrick Furlong, a close friend and mentee of Pam’s. He shared, “It’s a question a nurse once asked me on a visit to see Pam. To me, Pam was my Boss, sure. I work in CSA. A mentor for 18 years. Pam found me in college and put up with me when I was anything but easy to put up with. Many here can attest to her patience with her project cases, and many also can attest to what a project 18-year-old me must have been. I’d also like to think I am in some small way a testimony to the magic Pam could work on a person. At a time in my life, I desperately needed a mother figure, she was that.”
 Patrick continued by sharing, “That’s who she was to me. But who was she to us in this LMU community? Why did she mean so much to us? CSA has been a place of mourning all week. Students, staff, alums, faculty, all dropping by to cry and laugh with us. So, I have asked that question to people who have come to grieve with us- who was she to you? A few themes have emerged. Pam was compassionate. Students have shared stories of hand-written notes signed with her trademark heart she would draw on all her notes. She was a force of nature.
During the past weeks, a perennial question that has come up is “who were we to her?” When reflecting on the impact that she has made on so many it is hard to not think about the impact that her community, her village made on her. After experiencing some difficulties in putting together a crib, Patrick recalled a conversation he had while sharing his frustration over the chunks of wood and screws. “How did you do this alone?” he asked. “I never did anything alone,” she said. “I always had my village there.”
 If there is one line that sums up Pam, it is this: Pam believed in life none of us should ever stand alone. As Pam stands before God, we know she is not alone. Anthony Garrison-Engbrecht, friend and former colleague, donated his kidney to Pam in January. Before Pam’s passing, he shared a short reflection on why he chose to be a donor. “People asked why I chose to donate. I have typically shared a nonchalant answer ‘because I can’ but it is deeper than that. We are called to be in community with others – to support those in need. I am blessed with a loving family, amazing friends, and colleagues who have given me the gift of life in many ways. I chose to donate because life is meant to be shared unconditionally.” This is what Pam taught Anthony and this is what Pam has shown to all of us. To share life.
What do we do now? Pam was radical in her pursuit of community. Pam is in each of our hearts to comfort us, but she also challenges us: Pam chose community at all costs. Choose community. Fight for justice. Be mission-driven.
Dear Pam, what we would give to hear your laugh one more time or share some perfectly time choice words. But here we are. Give Sister Peg a hug for us all, we still miss her too. And I don’t want you to worry about us. We are going to choose justice. We are going to choose life. Ultimately, we will choose each other the way you chose us. We will continue to build community and to create our village. You made it clear - there really is no choice more important than that.
"Each of us is a word of God spoken only once. We have a word to speak with our lives, and if we do not speak it, it may never be heard." – Sr. Peg Dolan RSHM
Patrick Furlong, M.A., is currently the Interim Director of the Center for Service & Action at Loyola Marymount University. Committed to social justice, equity, and the art of storytelling, Patrick regularly serves as a keynote speaker and contributor on topics related to immersion learning, Jesuit pedagogy, and the value of developing a community orientation.
Anthony Garrison-Engbrecht, Ph.D., former Director of Leadership Programs and LGBT Student Services at Loyola Marymount University currently serving as Senior Advisor and Chief of Staff for the Division of Student Affairs at UC Merced.
|
