A sure sign that the new school year is upon us is to see the new faculty members settling into their offices. This academic year, we have 17 from all five departments joining us. I hope you will welcome each one as you have opportunity.
In additional to the onboarding for new faculty members provided by the University, we have added a program specific to Mendoza to help our faculty members — new and not so new — better understand our distinctive mission as part of a Catholic research university. The Mendoza Faculty Mission Project (MFMP), co-chaired by M&O adjunct distinguished professor Anne Tsui and myself, explores how the College’s teaching and research program reflects the principles of Catholic Social Teaching and the mission of Notre Dame.
The mission project has three underlying premises:
- The principles of Catholic Social Teaching – the intrinsic dignity of every person, solidarity and subsidiarity – are universal (or “catholic” with a small “c”), oriented toward serving all people and society as well as advancing general human flourishing.
- The mission of the University can only be accomplished in a community where everyone can contribute, i.e., within a community with genuine diversity and inclusion.
- The principles of Catholic Social Teaching have a distinctive place at Notre Dame as stated in the University’s mission statement: “As a Catholic university, one of its distinctive goals is to provide a forum where, through free inquiry and open discussion, the various lines of Catholic thought may intersect with all the forms of knowledge found in the arts, sciences, professions and every other area of human scholarship and creativity.”
MFMP plans a series of activities through the year to encourage discussion and the opportunity to learn more about Notre Dame and how the principles of Catholic Social Teaching can be applied to business. We also bestow the Mendoza Faculty Research Award to research from each of the five academic departments that fulfills the mission of Mendoza research contributing to the common good.
If you are interested in learning more about MFMP or participating in its activities, please contact Anne Tsui (atsui@nd.edu). I hope you that you will consider participating in one of our activities.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn