The organizers of the conference on Renewing Mission and Identity in Business Education invited me to offer a description of the efforts made at the University of Dayton to institutionalize its Catholic identity. Until 2006, when I left Dayton to begin leading full-time the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies at the University of Southern…

There are good reasons to be very careful about generalizations about Catholic higher education in the United States. Recall that the 220 or so Catholic colleges and universities are of very different kinds, very different sizes, with different student bodies, and are located in different parts of a country that sometimes have quite different…

This article presents responses from Thomas C. Hunt, James L. Heft, S.M., and Ronald J. Nuzzi to the report of the Notre Dame Task Force on Catholic Education's (2006), "Making God Known, Loved and Served: The Future of Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in the United States." Hunt analyzes the 12 recommendations offered by Notre…

Proposes guidelines for Catholic religious educators to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable theological pluralism, and infallible and non-infallible religious teachings. Considers personal theological competence to be essential in dealing with dissenting ideas in the classroom. (DMM)

Catholic universities face many challenges today. Increasing secularization, faculty salaries, external funding, Catholic identity, academic freedom, and institutional autonomy are among the most prominent. This essay examines the contributions of John Henry Newman to Catholic higher education and argues for their relevance today.

Divided into three parts, this article first describes the impact that historical and sociological factors, especially the weakening of the Catholic subculture and the recent development of "emerging adulthood", have on Catholic colleges and universities. The second part is a discussion of the typical approaches--both strengths and weaknesses--of…

Catholic institutions of higher learning compete mightily for students, faculty, and research dollars with other colleges and universities. Yet, the history and tradition of many Catholic institutions offer a unique faith perspective from which to understand and appreciate the role of the Catholic university as serving the common good. Catholic…

This article explores the relationship between courage and leadership as it applies to Catholic educators. Scripture, literature, contemporary leadership theory, and modern culture are used in the development of an approach to leadership that is both theologically sound and culturally relevant. The author criticizes popular views of leadership,…

The second part of a two-part study, examined attitudes of faculty at Catholic colleges toward various aspects of their institutions, including hiring for mission, and compared them to what administrators had reported about hiring criteria. Found that with a few exceptions, administrators' mission-related hiring concerns are not related to faculty…

Reports on interviews with senior administrators at 12 Catholic colleges and universities concerning hiring practices in light of the institution's religious and educational mission. Found institutions had multiple ways to determine candidates' understanding of and commitment to the institution's mission; preferred practicing Catholics especially…

In an eight-month interdisciplinary seminar at the University of Dayton (Ohio), professional faculty members determined that ethical and religious issues should form an integral part of their research and teaching. Seminar activities, texts used, main points of discussion, and types of questions and research generated by participants are…