Ignatian Faculty Seminars

All newly hired tenure-track faculty are invited. Dr. Jim McCartin is the principal contact, though with the help and support of relevant deans and department chairs.

Faculty members either nearing tenure or recently tenured (in the last few years) who potentially have significant influence on their peers in the years to come. We always strive to have two very senior faculty members able to reflect back on their career in Jesuit higher education.

Faculty are invited to participate in a weekend-long silent retreat at a local retreat house in the NY/NJ area. The silent retreat is meant to provide an introduction to the Spiritual Exercises, a 33-day silent retreat undertaken at several points by all Jesuits in their formation.

Faculty leaders who are deeply invested in the mission of Fordham and have significant influence on their colleagues. Often, if they have been through a faculty seminar on mission, they are seen to be key future leaders of mission.

Participating in Ignatian Faculty Development programs brought my understanding of Fordham's values to life. Serving migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border gave me a fuller understanding of what it means to accompany someone and experience the full value of empathy. Being part of a faculty group during Covid brought to life the need for community and sharing during a collective crisis. Joining a seminar designed to promote critical thinking about our mission was particularly meaningful as it brought home the importance of 'bothered excellence'--a restless commitment to living our institutional values. These programs were transformative for me.

Being part of Ignatian Faculty Development opportunities has not only deepened my interest in Jesuit mission, but also made me a better researcher and teacher. These gatherings have compelled me to read outside of my discipline and reflect with others on how to become more empathic and effective in my work. They have also given me the chance to network with fantastic colleagues across the University, offering so much more insight into why Fordham is the way it is and what makes Fordham a special place.

Ignatian Faculty Development programs have offered me treasured opportunities to consider and confirm why I am at Fordham and what I have to offer my students and my colleagues. Before I joined Fordham, my professional and educational background had been wholly secular, but Ignatian Faculty Development has offered me multiple opportunities to approach, question and orient myself in relation to values and practices such as cura personalis, social justice, reflection and discernment--all while meeting new people from across the University.