Strengthening Catholic Identity

This series of brochures — also available in a single volume that includes text in Spanish — helps Catholic college and university leaders fulfill their responsibilities related to institutional mission. The brochures may be purchased in packets of 20 for sharing on campus or in the single volume from our online store. 

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Each of the 12 brochures addresses either a leadership position or a particular aspect of enhancing Catholic identity on campus:

• Mission Officers: Today, most ACCU member institutions have a mission officer, who devotes special care to the Catholic mission of their campus. 
• Visibly Catholic: The beauty of campus architecture and grounds, as well as statuary of the university's patron saints and other artwork found around an institution demonstrate an inspiring part of the Catholic view of reality. 
• Boards of Trustees: Boards hold the primary responsibility for preserving and promoting the Catholic identity and mission of an institution. 
• Faith & Reason: In Catholic higher education, the pursuit of knowledge is best accomplished when faith and reason are viewed as mutually illuminating components of discovery.
• Presidents: The calling to a Catholic university presidency is much more than a job in senior administration; it is a role that carries the primary duty to personify, articulate, and celebrate Catholic mission.
• Chief Academic Officers: As the leader of the faculty, the CAO works with the president and mission officer to advance an integrated approach to Catholic mission and identity among the academic staff. 
• Faculty: At the heart of an institution's efforts to advance Catholic identity lie the faculty, who work in front of a backdrop of the centuries-old Catholic Intellectual Tradition. 
• Spiritual and Liturgical Life: Catholic colleges and universities excel at integrating intellectual development with spiritual growth—an area that college students say they are eager to develop.
• Catholic Social Teaching: In response to the social, economic, and political issues of our time, the Church offers a body of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) that can help Catholic colleges and universities in their mission to form students, encourage research, and develop their institutional culture. 
• Student Affairs: At a Catholic college or university, Student Affairs seeks to develop students spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and physically in the context of Catholic values and Christian community. 
• Stewardship & Campus Operations: This brochure offers ideas for campus leaders responsible for human resources, purchasing, investments, and the physical plant to help ensure that campus policies and practices model the Catholic identity of their institution.
• Student Access & Admissions: Admissions offices at Catholic colleges and universities can help their campuses communicate their Catholic identity by reassessing their practices and procedures.

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