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MISSION OF CATHOLIC HIGHER EDUCATION. What are the characteristics of Catholic Colleges and Universities?. Who We Are. More than 200 colleges and universities Fully accredited Serve over 720,000 students Liberal Arts core Large array of Graduate and Professional Programs
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MISSION OF CATHOLIC HIGHER EDUCATION What are the characteristics of Catholic Colleges and Universities?
Who We Are More than 200 colleges and universities • Fully accredited • Serve over 720,000 students • Liberal Arts core • Large array of Graduate and Professional Programs • Committed to carrying on the Catholic intellectual tradition
Mission Makes Identity We have been commissioned by religious congregations or bishops to: • Continue their mission • Engage in teaching and scholarship in the Catholic tradition
Whose Mission? All participate and share the vision and commitment: • Trustees • Sponsors • Administration & staff • Faculty • Students
Not for Catholics only • We need a critical mass of people who understand and will maintain the tradition. • We welcome collaborators who value our vision and our tradition.
What Makes Us Catholic 1. Shared Christian Vision and Goals 2. Reflection in the Light of Faith 3. Fidelity to tradition 4. Commitment to service
Shared Christian Vision Not only the faith of individuals but a way of looking at human existence based on: • The Person of Jesus Christ • The Cumulative Wisdom of the Christian centuries • The Faith of the Catholic community • A shared vision guiding the whole enterprise • Publicly acknowledged, discussed, studied, taught and learned
Content of the Vision Meaning of human life in relation to: • God its source • Jesus Christ as revelation • Other people • Choices in work & career • Private and public responsibilities
Understanding the Vision The vision needs to be studied and lived… • Reflecting on all secular knowledge in the light of the faith and the Catholic intellectual tradition • Bringing the heritage of Catholic wisdom to the questions of our day
Faithful to Tradition Catholic tradition is broad including: • Spiritual and secular wisdom • Ways of life and worship • Treasures of philosophy, theology, art, political & economic wisdom
The Anchors of Tradition Catholic tradition is evolving— held together by: • Common worship • Ways of private & public behavior • Structures of authority • Patterns of continuity • Formulations honed over centuries
Catholic and catholic The link with the Church is not a cutting off from the world but an opening to the world… • Freedom to evaluate critically • Act creatively • Hope for a better future
Commitment to Service Beyond accumulation of knowledge to: • Concern with character formation • Use of talent to serve those in need • Use of education to shape society • Seeking opportunities to change the world
Catholic means “of the whole” Catholic means commitment to: • The Common Good of the world • Being attentive to the least advantaged • Bringing knowledge and skills to better the human condition of all
Our Core Values • The dignity of every human life • Peace, reconciliation, diplomacy • Truly human quality of life for all • Community of truth, goodness and beauty • Based on friendship and solidarity
Our Campuses • We hold by these values • We try to implement them • We try to teach them to all who come
A presentation of the:Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities 200+ colleges and universities linked to an International Federation of 500+ Catholic Universities. For more information, resources, links to member institutions and related associations in Catholic Higher Education visit: http://www.accunet.org Richard A. Yanikoski, PhD, President/CEO Michael Galligan-Stierle, PhD, Vice President One Dupont Circle, Suite 650 Washington, DC, 20036 (202) 457-0650 accu@accunet.org