Mission and Identity Programs at Xavier

AFMIX

The next Cohort of AFMIX begins Fall 2013.

AFMIX Information Session:
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
12:00 - 1:30 p.m.
at the Center for Mission and Identity
Feel free to bring your lunch.

Assuring the Future Mission and Identity of Xavier (AFMIX) is a two-year educational process offering a comprehensive understanding of the Ignatian vision and how it can permeate the classroom and other learning environments. Readings, lectures, and reflection are enhanced by weekly group discussions.

AFMIX VIII commences in Fall 2013. An information session for AFMIX VIII will be held Tuesday, April 9, 2013, 12:00 Noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Center for Mission and Identity. Feel free to bring your lunch.

Day of Service

In support of Fr. Graham's "Vision 2010-2015," the Center for Mission and Identity hosts a service day for faculty and staff volunteers.

Spring 2010
As part of Xavier's partnership with the United Way, Xavier's Spring Service Day for faculty and staff was held on Thursday, May 20, 2010 at United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Cincinnati. More than 45 Xavier volunteers met at 8:30 a.m. for an overview of the day and then traveled to the UCPGC to help their staff do some landscaping and throw a garden party. An opportunity for reflection and lunch were provided back on campus after the morning of service.

Discernment Groups

Through communal discernment, education, immersion and spirituality, groups consider ways to deepen the Jesuit identity across the campus.

Discernment Group III (currently meeting) was charged by President Graham in Spring 2010 and serves as an advisory board to the Conway Institute for Jesuit Education. For participants, click here.

Discernment Group II (currently meeting) was charged by President Graham in Spring 2010 and is a council of associate vice presidents and associate deans working to deepen the Jesuit identity within the campus culture.

Discernment Group I (2007-2009). Xavier's first Discernment Group, comprised of 14 faculty and administrators, were charged by President Michael Graham, S.J. to outline a plan for the future of the Division of Mission & Identity. Click here to see their Report to the President as well as a video about their immersion experience.

Ignatian Retreats

A day of retreat during the Fall Break.

2012 Retreat: The Psalms: A Pathway to Prayer
2011 Ignatian Retreat:: A Walk with Mark (Thursday, October 13, 2011)
Simple Prayer for Complex Living (2010)
Ignatian Spirituality: It’s Not Just for Jesuits Anymore (2009)
Tending Our Gardens (2004)
Finding God in All Things (2004)

The Loyola Program for Staff

The Loyola Program provides an opportunity for hourly staff to meet and discuss mission-driven and professional/personal development topics. For current and past topics, click here.

Manresa for Faculty and Staff

The term "Manresa" refers to the orientation programs specially designed to acquaint new personnel with Xavier's Jesuit heritage. It is offered in two formats each fall semester: Manresa Away at Milford, an overnight, and Manresa on Campus, a three-part luncheon series.

For more information of Manresa, please click here.

Speaking Engagements

Center staff provide mission related presentations as requested. Such presentations can help divisions, departments, or student groups better understand the mission and reflect on how they live it.

Special Events

Celebration of Excellence
An event held every April offering a Presidential recognition of participants in the Center’s major educational programs.

Spirit Celebration
Held in early fall for the entire campus community, this annual mass and lunch celebrates the beginning of the new academic year. Click here for information on the Fall 2012 celebration.

Special Events/Masses
The Center assists the President’s Office and Special Events in coordinating various mission-oriented events, such as the Advent Blessing, Baccalaureate Mass, and Family Weekend.

Specialty Seminars

A variety of mission-related seminars are offered periodically, for instance, the Jesuit Commons (2011), Lenten Bible Study (2011), Understanding World Religions (2007), an Administrators Discussion Group (2006).

Spiritual Companion Training

Through a personal experience of Ignatian spirituality and group discussions, participants become prepared to utilize Ignatian mentoring and facilitation skills.

The Spiritual Exercises

The Center offers an opportunity to experience "God in all things," through a systematic form of prayer and reflection based on the Spiritual Exercises. Contact Br. Darrell Burns, SJ (burnsd1@xavier.edu) for details.
For past participants, click here.

Understanding Our Heritage, Living the Mission

This series provides a brief overview about Jesuit heritage and education. Each section includes a two-minute video, selected readings and reflection questions. We hope that you will find it useful for orienting faculty, staff, and students.

For Xavier faculty, staff, and students, click here.

For Xavier Board of Trustees members,click here.

National and Regional Mission Programs

In conjunction with both regional and national consortiums, the Center for Mission and Identity facilitates participation in the following programs for Xavier faculty, staff, and administrators.

AJCU Seminar on Leadership in Higher Education

With the support of the presidents of the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities, the AJCU offers a program designed to address the many issues facing current academic and administrative leaders and the developing leaders who will guide Jesuit institutions deep into the 21st century.

For a list of past participants, click here.

Collegium

Collegium is a joint effort by 65 Catholic colleges and universities to recruit and develop faculty who can articulate and enrich the spiritual and intellectual life of their institutions. Collegium sponsors annual, week-long summer colloquies for faculty from its member institutions from universities throughout the United States and Canada. The colloquies provide a collegial environment in which participants from diverse backgrounds, faiths, and disciplines can discuss the sources and implications of a Christian academic vocation.
See a list of Xavier Delegates.

Heartland-Delta Faculty Conversations Conference

Each February, this gathering addresses themes relevant to faculty in Jesuit higher education.
See a list of Xavier Delegates.

Heartland-Delta Triennial Conference

Delegates from the 12 AJCU Heartland-Delta institutions assemble every three or four years to critically examine issues in Jesuit education. The most recent was held at Xavier University in May 2010, see here.

The next Conference is scheduled for 2014.

Ignatian Colleagues Program

The Heartland Delta Consortium's Ignatian Colleagues Program (ICP) is designed for academic administrators who are capable of and committed to assuming leadership within the Ignatian spiritual and educational heritage and who will sustain their school's Jesuit, Catholic character into the future. The Program consists of cohort gatherings, online learning opportunities, an Ignatian retreat, an international immersion experience, and a capstone project.

See list of Xavier participants and their capstone projects.

Find out more about the ICP from the participants.

Ignatian Pilgrimage

Coordinated through Holy Cross University, this 10-day trip to Spain and Rome follows in the footsteps of Ignatius Loyola.

For more information on the Ignation Pilgrimage, click here.

See participants from Xavier here.

Lilly Fellow's National Conference

Representatives from the Network colleges and universities meet to consider a significant issue of faith and learning, exchange ideas and practices regarding their mission, and foster the whole range of Network programs and activities.

Lilly Fellow's Administrators' Workshop

In conjunction with the National Conference, the Workshop is for senior administrators from each member university or college of the Network of Christian universities.

National Magis Retreat

A week-long Ignatian retreat for faculty to reflect upon Ignatian spirituality within their personal and professional lives. See the list of participants from Xavier here.

Faculty Focused Mission Programs

The following programs are offered for faculty through the Conway Institute for Jesuit Education.

Mission Academy

The Xavier Mission Academy is funded in part by a grant received from the Lilly Fellows Program by the Center for Mission and Identity/Conway Institute for Jesuit Education to support the integration of Xavier’s Jesuit Catholic Mission through a Xavier Mission Academy. For details, click here.

Educating For Justice

A gift from Dr. Robert McDonald, '55, supports faculty in integrating service and the promotion of social justice into the curriculum through direct student contact with the marginalized. For details see here.

The Ignatian Mentoring Program for Faculty

With a 2004 grant from the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities and the Arts and subsequently endowed by the XU Jesuit Community, the Program fosters a profound understanding of Jesuit education and Ignatian pedagogy through guidance by senior faculty. The learning outcomes are clearly evident within the classroom setting and showcased, by discipline, in Teaching to the Mission.

For a list of Xavier participants, click here.

Taking Time to Think

Supported by a 2009 grant from the Lilly Fellows Program in the Humanities and Arts, Taking Time to Think: Ignatian Principles at Work builds upon the success of the Ignatian Mentoring Program. Faculty in their 5th – 8th year are invited to reflect upon their teaching, scholarship, and personal lives, in both pairs and large group formats, as they move into the next phase of their vocation. For details, see here.

For a list of Xavier participants, click here.