Mission & Culture
The Office of Mission & Culture preserves and enhances the distinctive educational mission and culture of the University and its Catholic identity in all facets of academic and social life of the SHU community.
Sacred Heart incorporates the goals of social responsibility and social justice into the curriculum, campus events and student activities. The work of the Office of Community Engagement is at the heart of the overall mission of the University, which comes alive as students develop into socially conscious members of society. Through our programs, Sacred Heart University “embraces a vision for social justice and educates students in mind, body and spirit to prepare them personally and professionally to make a difference in the global community.”
Campus Ministry fosters the spiritual development of Sacred Heart students, faculty and staff. Members of the SHU community come seeking to enrich their relationship with God and are guided by our student leaders, campus ministers, interfaith chaplains and sisters. All are welcome in their search for the divine.
The challenges we face in today’s world call us to increase opportunities and spaces where students can engage their hearts in mind, body and spirit. We yearn for authentic and inclusive avenues of peace and prayer, intentional reflection and ongoing conversation. Together we can inspire our students, faculty, staff and community to make a direct and lasting transformation to our society and for ourselves.
The Pioneer Journey connects the dots across the SHU student experience. Everything is connected by our distinctive and unique mission and culture.
Preparing for Tomorrow's Opportunities
With your investment, Mission & Culture will continue to help our students, faculty and staff find purpose.
Retreats
Campus ministry retreats provide opportunities for students to grow in relationships with one another and to experience their faith in a new way. Gifts to the campaign allow access for all students, regardless of their financial situation, to get involved in campus ministry and share our Catholic faith and mission in an approachable and relatable way.
Service-Learning
The Office of Community Engagement offers four global service-learning programs each year. Gifts will help create a scholarship fund to benefit minority and/or first-generation college students. These opportunities allow students to engage with community leaders and important social justice issues in a global capacity.
Enrichment
Gifts to the campaign can foster faculty and staff spiritual and professional growth. The continuation of our impactful Presidential Seminar and the Faculty Conversations series help the mission of the University come alive through the lives and teachings of our faculty. These and other new programming for faculty and staff will set SHU apart from its peer institutions by fostering meaningful dialogue and concrete action for how we live our Catholic intellectual tradition inside and outside the classroom.
Improving & Expanding Facilities
As Sacred Heart expands, we are dedicated to enhancing our Catholic, ecumenical and interfaith presence with renovations and additional prayer spaces on the Park Avenue and West campuses, the Center for Healthcare Education and our Dingle, Ireland, campus.
We need to maximize the potential of a great architectural blessing to our campus: the Chapel of the Holy Spirit. It has served as the heart of our campus for 14 years, and we hope to name the organ and a renovated lower-level space in honor of those helping to keep our spiritual heart beating.
The past few years made it abundantly clear that we long for human connection, especially young adults. Building space for retreats, workshops, seminars and a new outdoor labyrinth and prayer garden will provide our community places to gather and reflect.
For more information, contact:
Paul J. Sutera
Senior Vice President of University Advancement
203-396-8086
suterap@sacredheart.edu