More than 750 members of the
university community have journeyed to Vincentian France since 2000,
when DePaul began guided study tours of sites associated with St.
Vincent and St. Louise. The trips are designed to prepare lay people to
carry forward DePaul’s Catholic, Vincentian mission and have been an
integral part of recent strategic plans, including the latest one, Grounded in Mission.
“The experience further cemented in me that we are not just
employees showing up to a worksite,” says Victoria Van Kirk, assistant
director of Housing Operations. “We are a community connected to a
larger purpose, mission and commitment to serve.”
DePaul President, A. Gabriel Esteban, Ph.D., traveled last June with the
Vincentian Mission Institute
cohorts from DePaul, St. John’s University and Niagara University. He
says Vincent’s leadership and administrative approach made a significant
impression.
“I learned so much on the trip,” he told managers in the Leading
People at DePaul program. “St. Vincent was a gentle leader, and he often
advised others on how to lead in a positive way. In this regard, I
consider myself to be a gentle leader. I listen. I reflect. I trust my
top advisors and appreciate their expert recommendations.”
Before enrolling in the VMI, Dorothy Kozlowski, interim dean of the
College of Science and Health, was not aware of the Church’s or Pope
Francis’ stance on scientific topics such as climate change and
biomedical research.
“I was very surprised when I read '
Laudato Si,' an
encyclical letter that translates to ‘On Care for our Common Home,’”
she says. “This letter demonstrated a significant understanding and
respect for science as well as a call for us to be mindful of our impact
on our home, the earth. I think this is something science students at
DePaul should be aware of as part of their education.”
Participants in the two-year VMI program complete a research paper
and project advancing the university’s mission in some way. Kozlowski’s
cohort is indexing the many educational opportunities available to
students, faculty and staff who aim to ensure DePaul’s defining
characteristics are preserved and shared with future generations. The
team expects to identify ways to spread this knowledge at all levels of
the university.
Regularly noted is the Rev. Edward Udovic, C.M.’s, understanding of
the history and politics of 17th century France and his ability to
convey it during tours.
“Fr. Ed is a great historian, and the Vincentians emphasize that
St. Vincent de Paul was a Catholic priest first and foremost,” Dr.
Esteban says.
Father Udovic’s descriptions of the gender and power dynamics of
the era also gave Dr. Esteban a deeper appreciation of Vincent and
Louise’s interdependence, such as Vincent’s support of Louise’s
experiment in gathering young women together to serve the poor. This
effort led Louise and her followers to the foundation of the Daughters
of Charity, the first successful community for women to serve unbound by
the restrictions of the cloister.
“Since returning from the trip, I’ve also shared information about
Vincent with people outside the university,” says Scott Gabbert, a
senior academic advisor in the School for New Learning. “They were
marginally familiar with the root of DePaul’s name, but don’t know who
Vincent was and how his life has meaning today.”
Inside the university, the institutional Climate Survey has
indicated high levels of mission understanding and resonance among
employees. However, there is room to improve because those levels are
not consistent across all groups. The strategic plan includes new
efforts to deepen our commitment to our Catholic and Vincentian
mission.
“I’m no longer thinking of my work as work ‘in this moment,’ but
instead as a connection to what Vincent and Louise did and would have
expected,” Van Kirk Pride says. “I and my VMI colleagues have an
obligation to share our broadened perspective with others through our
work.”
So is the trip to France simply the best perk in higher education
or does it have a lasting impact on participants and their jobs at
DePaul? Gabbert is in the latter camp.
“The most profound portion of the trip was visiting the parish in
Folleville where, on January 25, 1617, Vincent’s life began to change
after his sermon,” Gabbert says. “To stand where he stood and imagine
what happened leading up to that day, with the conversations he had with
Madame de Gondi about ‘What must be done,’ and how all of that still
has meaning today at DePaul University, resonates most with me. What we
do on a daily basis has its origins on that day and in that humble
location.”
By Denise Mattson / October 18, 2018