A Franciscan Perspective on Higher Education - David B. Couturier, OFM Cap.
The Association of Franciscan Colleges and Universities has posted a new edition of its journal on the theme of “A Franciscan Perspective on Higher Education” (December 2024).
The result of a conference held in April 2024 by the Foster Center for Responsible Leadership in the School of Business at St. Bonaventure University in Western New York, the Journal offers a keynote address by Dr. Michael J. Naughton of the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, and articles by eight leading scholars on the state of higher education from a Franciscan perspective.
Dr. Michael Gallagher, director of the Foster Center, organized the event and presents an introduction to the volume with the following words:
“This edition of the AFCU Journal is the second Special Edition of the journal I have had the privilege to edit. The articles are a selected portion of the scholarship presented at a conference at St. Bonaventure University on April 19-20, 2024. The conference was hosted by the Foster Center for Responsible Leadership in the School of Business at St. Bonaventure, and the title of the conference was Leadership in Catholic Higher Education; Knowing Our Past to Guide Our Future.
The conference explored the ways in which universities can continue to change and be influential in society. We rediscovered the roots and purpose of higher education, and Catholic higher education in particular, as we face the future amidst a rapidly changing college and university landscape. The keynote address at the conference was given by Dr. Michael Naughton, Director of the Center for Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas, Minnesota, where he holds the Koch Chair in Catholic Studies. Naughton played a leading role in the creation of the “Vocation of the Business Leader”, a document created to summarize the teachings of Caritas in Veritate (charity and truth), Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical on the Christian’s place in business and thinking in economic life.
The “Vocation of the Business Leader” is in the fifth edition now and incorporates several recent teachings from Pope Francis on vocation of business, integral ecology, the technocratic paradigm and the importance of a more just distribution of wealth.
Naughton has taught in the College of Business at St. Thomas, for over 20 years. Author, co-author and co-editor of 12 books and monographs and over 60 articles, his most recent book is What We Hold in Trust: Rediscovering the Purpose of Catholic Higher Education (2021). I am delighted to include an AI generated transcription of Dr. Naughton’s keynote address as the leadoff piece in our journal.
I am grateful to Dr. Michael D. Herley from St. John’s University for lending his expertise in this area. I also include a link to an archived video of Naughton’s keynote. We are deeply grateful to Dr. Naughton for traveling to St. Bonaventure and sharing his wisdom with us. As Director of the Foster Center, I feel particularly privileged to edit this edition of the journal. I am very grateful to the leadership of the AFCU for allowing the publication of a special edition. I am particularly grateful to the peer-reviewers who donated their time to blindly review the selected scholarship submitted for publication. Reviewers should know that I received considerable notes of thanks from authors for very helpful feedback.
St. Bonaventure University has hosted this conference on opposite years of the AFCU Symposium starting in 2019. The conference is on AFCU Symposium off years so as not to detract from our main symposium. The purpose of the conference is to provide an opportunity to present and discuss scholarship and to gather in fellowship and community. The AFCU is now publishing the Journal only digitally in the hope that more individuals will thereby have access to the Journal. Distribution will be to the campus contact, who will then be free to distribute the volume electronically to the campus community.”
The list of articles in this volume is impressive:
Considering the Human Concerns: Pope Francis and Other Catholic Perspectives on AI, Social Media, and Technology - Andrew B. Gustafson, Ph. D. Creighton University
Empowering Students: Service Learning and Servant Leadership - Heather McDivitt, Ph.D. St. Bonaventure University
The Case of Clare College: How to address the crisis in the humanities with a mission-focused core curriculum - Michael Chiariello, Ph.D. St. Bonaventure University.
The Whole Holistically: Mega-Forces, Pope Francis, and Catholic Franciscan Higher Education - David B. Couturier, OFM. Cap. St. Bonaventure University.
A Model of Optimal Investment for Catholic Universities - Benjamin Posmanick Ph. D. St. Bonaventure University and Michael Gallagher Ph. D. St. Bonaventure University.
Teaching Brief: Using TikTok/Video Assignments to Drive Engagement and Understanding in Undergraduate Business Analytics Courses and Beyond - Michael D. Herley DBA St. John’s University.
False Gods and Prophets: Why Promoting Catholic Traditions is Critical to Catholic Higher Education - Mark C. Mitschow, Ph.D. State University of New York Geneseo and Charles J. Coate, Ph.D. St. Bonaventure University
Book review:
Finding Faith in Business: An Economy of Communion Vision. Andrew Gustafson and Celeste Harvey (Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2024). Review by: David B. Couturier, OFM. Cap., PhD., DMin., Associate Professor of Theology and Franciscan Studies, St. Bonaventure University.
Read the volume here.