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Wheeling Jesuit University

Contact: Rev. James Fleming, S.J.
University Vice President and Chief of Staff
(304) 243-2224, jfleming@wju.edu

James E. Brogan Jr.
Director of Campus Ministry
(304) 243-2168, jbrogan@wju.edu

 Mission statement

Educating Men and Women for Life
The Jesuit traditions of educational excellence and service to others guide all the programs at Wheeling Jesuit University. By integrating learning, research, and economic development with classical knowledge and Christian revelation, the University seeks to foster competence, creativity and innovation throughout and beyond the campus community. Graduates of the University enter the world of work with socially responsible goals, a lifelong appetite for learning and the desire to make our universe a better place.

Educating Men and Women for Leadership
To model the Jesuit concern for regional and global neighbors, the University welcomes people of all creeds, races and nationalities to share in the intelligent pursuit of excellence. The University promotes close student-faculty contacts and encourages students to develop their full potential for leadership. Through a grounding in the liberal arts and, above all, example of Jesus Christ, the University endeavors to produce intelligent, moral leaders who will champion the Jesuit values of faith, peace and justice. Wheeling Jesuit envisions a dynamic leadership role for the University in the lives of its students and in the world at large.

Educating Men and Women for Service With and Among Others
In its faculty and students, its research and outreach, the University is national and international. Yet as the only Catholic institution of higher learning in West Virginia, Wheeling Jesuit also values its distinctive mission to the immediate area, educating local men and women and returning them to enrich their own communities. Wheeling Jesuit University firmly believes its graduates will enter the professional world prepared to use their God-given talents not solely for personal fulfillment but as men and women in service to others.

Organizational Structure for M&I activity

Mission and Identity at Wheeling Jesuit University is under the direction of the University Vice President and Chief of Staff (hereafter UVP) who reports directly to the university President. Both the UVP and the Director of Campus Ministry serve on the President's Cabinet which includes all senior administrators. The following offices report to the UVP: the Director of Campus Ministry which includes the Service for Social Action Center (SSAC), the Director of the Appalachian Institute (AI), and the Director of Human Resources. The responsibility to promote Mission and Identity is shared structurally across campus by means of the Jesuit Identity Team, comprised of representatives of the Jesuit community, faculty, administrators, staff, and students. This team, facilitated by the UVP, advises him/her on mission and identity endeavors and provides opportunities for employees to engage the mission.

The UVP is a member of the Jesuit community; the rector of the Jesuit community and other Jesuits are members of the Jesuit Identity Team. Campus Ministry provides spiritual opportunities (retreats, liturgy, faithsharing groups) to campus, especially to undergraduate students. The promotion of justice and service opportunities are chiefly the responsibility of two offices: the SSAC and the AI. The SSAC promotes service and service leadership among students by providing service opportunities locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. The Center also administers the Arrupe scholars program, funded by a grant from the Jesuit community, which provides scholarships to students committed both to weekly, ongoing community service and to providing service leadership to their peers. The AI, founded partly in response to the Appalachian Catholic Bishops pastorals on Appalachia, investigates and raises awareness about the economic, environmental, and health issues of the region; the Institute also celebrates the culture and spirit of the Appalachian people. The Institute provides immersion experiences for students and employees of WJU and of other Jesuit schools to engage in service and to advocate for the Appalachia. Human Resources provides orientation on the mission and identity of WJU to new administrators and staff.

Orientation Programs

All Resident Assistants and Luceats (freshmen mentors) participate in a week-long training organized around principles of Jesuit education, culminating in a commissioning prayer service facilitated by Campus Ministry. Freshmen Orientation includes a presentation from Campus Ministry, and all first year students take part in Make a Difference Day during which they complete a half-day of community service, concluded with theological reflection. We initiate the new academic year with a Mass of the Holy Spirit. Human Resources provides an introduction to WJU’s mission and identity as part orientation for all new staff and administrators. New Faculty are oriented by the Academic Dean.

On-going educational programs (Lectures, Seminars, Conversations, etc.)

The Jesuit Identity Team sponsors lunchtime discussions in order to foster discussion and build community among employees around the university’s Jesuit identity and mission. Topics are drawn from popular Jesuit sources (like Conversations and America magazines) and are open to all employees. Lunch is provided.

The Student Government Association, in collaboration with the Jesuit community, sponsors a week during the spring semester devoted to Ignatian heritage. The week is geared to students and includes lectures, socials and prayer on Ignatian themes.

Campus Ministry periodically hosts Thirst, an informal discussion in our on-campus pub, at which guest facilitators foster discussion on a variety of topics – hook-up culture, homelessness, mathematics -- all within the Ignatian theme of “Finding God in All Things.”

Integration of M&I into curriculum and academic programs

Course integration: First-year students are invited to explore the mission of the University through a presentation on St. Ignatius. The one-credit course for undecided students includes a presentation on Ignatian decision-making. Service-learning is a component of courses across the curriculum, e.g., in Physical Therapy, Professional Education, Psychology. Course offerings explicitly addressing mission and identity include: The Philosophy of Jesuit Education, Philosophy of Peace and Justice. The Laut Honors program emphasizes the academic inquiry and integration expected of a graduate of Jesuit University.

Awards: The Magis award is given by Campus Ministry to the senior(s) who best promote the spiritual growth of campus. The “Unity in Faith” is given to the senior(s) who best promote the religious diversity of campus. The Gloriam Award is awarded every spring by the SSAC to students of each class for outstanding leadership, service and academic excellence. Each year the University faculty and administrators award the Swint and Woomer award to the man and woman in the senior class who best exemplify the principles of a Jesuit education: academic rigor, a commitment to faith and justice, and a life marked by generous service to others.

Spiritual Exercises/Retreats

Campus Ministry provides and continues to develop Ignatian-focused retreats for students and employees. All off-campus retreats use Lantz Farm, a University facility, which has capacity for 36 retreatants and staff.

For students: Campus Ministry offers several off-campus retreat formats for students each semester, including the Freshmen Overnight and the Kairos Retreat for upperclass students.

For employees: Campus Ministry facilitates faithsharing groups for employees which meet for a semester or year and use a written guide based on the Spiritual Exercises. Campus Ministry administers an on-line questionnaire to solicit feedback from participants.

For all: The Time Out Retreat offers an in-depth experience throughout Lent, designed to encourage student, faculty and staff participation in ongoing prayer and other retreat opportunities and spiritual direction. Campus Ministry has also offered, or collaborated on, retreats tailored to specific groups, e.g., athletic teams, faculty, administrative departments.

Publications, Audio-visual materials developed and/or used

WJU uses materials from the Institute for Jesuit Sources, the On-line Ministries at Creighton University, Jesuitresources at Xavier University, “Conversations” and “America” magazines, and other print and on-line publications.

Other

WJU sponsors a unique living opportunity for upperclass students dedicated to service, faith and justice. The Mother Jones House, a collaboration between WJU and the Laughlin Memorial Chapel, a social-outreach center sponsored by the Presbyterian church, is an intentional Christian community for upperclass WJU students devoted to community service. Each year, four to eight students live together with a house mentor in East Wheeling, an impoverished neighborhood in downtown Wheeling. In addition to maintaining their fulltime academic load, these students commit to weekly community service in the neighborhood, spiritual development including retreats, and other community-building activities.

Updated: 1/10/11