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The first Global Education Conference of Ursuline Educational Services drew 150 Ursuline educators from 20 countries to The College of New Rochelle in New Rochelle, New York, USA, in June.

UES Global Conference 2014

 

The educators celebrated their common heritage and shared values as followers of St. Angela Merici. The Conference was also the occasion for them to share their collective wisdom and experiences in Ursuline education and to strengthen (or in some cases begin) collaborative relationships among Ursuline schools and Ursuline educators around the world.
Enthusiasm permeated the event, as reflected in the following comments:
“Wonderful conference – exceeded expectations. So impressed with the ease and comfort of the bonding that took place immediately.”
“This has been an enriching professional and personal experience.”
“What a rich tapestry of Ursuline leaders – what a wealth of experience – so wonderful to share and learn!”
The prayers that opened each day’s session reflected the global nature of the conference. Delegations from the various countries led the prayer reflecting their cultures/countries. The proclamation of scripture, the hymns and prayers were offered in the many languages spoken by the attendees. The Conference culminated in a Eucharistic liturgy. Magdalena Pedroso de Padula, a delegate from Caracas, Venezuela sent this comment in a letter to her “dearest sisters and friends in Saint Angela”: “Our ending mass in every language made my soul rejoice.”
A highlight of Friday morning was a slide show composed pictures of St. Angela sent in from all parts of the globe followed by candid shots of the participants, who represent St. Angela today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQQLTg8eEpc
Each of the speakers who addressed the assembly brought home from her/his perspective essential aspects of Ursuline education. Ann Garrido opened the Conference with “The Spirituality of Administration.” Even though her reflections were directed primarily toward those who are engaged in the ministry of administration, the unique combination of practical directives and wisdom she offered was inspiring to everyone.
She concluded her presentation by recounting a conversation with a woman whom she admires a great deal. This woman is a generation older than Ann who has made significant contributions to the field of education. In answer to Ann’s questions, “What gives you the greatest hope? What keeps you going?” she replied, “knowing that there is a new generation like you who are still finding energy in the ministry. When I feel discouraged, I remember you are there.” Ann couldn’t decide whether to be flattered or alarmed. “I keep going because she keeps going, but she keeps going because I keep going. This seemed to be a perilously fragile arrangement for the church of the future.”
Then she came to the realization: “That is the way the ember of hope has always been fanned throughout history. Sometimes you carry me and sometimes I carry you. And together we give each other the strength to keep doing what we do.”
Mary Virginia Orna, OSU, connected the value of a liberal arts education with St. Angela’s vision. Sister Mary Virginia made it clear that St. Angela did not found any schools but rather bequeathed the unique characteristics she left her Company: adaptability, openness to innovation, willingness to dialogue with different cultures and response to the needs of the times and of the Church led to the Ursulines’ becoming involved with the ministry of education.
The Ursulines developed a basic curriculum and approaches to that content based on the values counseled by St. Angela and sound pedagogical insights. These concepts were developed in the Reglements formulated in the late sixteenth century and were in harmony with the fields of knowledge and the techniques for acquiring that knowledge that form the basis of liberal education.
Sister Mary Virginia emphasized that every stage of schooling should prepare students for becoming wise, knowledgeable and virtuous. This is a challenging endeavor in the twenty-first century, when knowledge can be confused with “looking it up on Google.” Ursuline traditions give educators a model to follow even today. Adaptability, discernment, questioning, debating, critical thinking of all aspects of our culture, all combined with the love of an educator whose concern is for the students, are the tools that distinguish Ursuline education.
Mary-Cabrini Durkin reflected on St. Angela as a Wise Guide on the Path of Life. While focusing on Angela’s spiritual wisdom, she also recognized educational implications of that wisdom. In fact, Mary-Cabrini stated unequivocally that the only way to be an authentic Ursuline educator is to imbibe and integrate Angela’s guidance and spirit. An Ursuline educator is one engaged on a personal spiritual journey that integrates awe, Scripture and a relationship with Christ.
In her presentation, Mary-Cabrini developed three key points – Angela’s wisdom, Walking a path, and Life: earthly and heavenly. Angela’s wisdom was a gift of the Holy Spirit and her desire to belong to God alone led her to “invent” a way of life for women in the world, the Company of St. Ursula. Being in relationship with the God who loved her and loves us all creates this spiritual family where the members “love one another and nourish and foster a new generation,” Mary-Cabrini told the participants.
In bringing her presentation to a close, Mary-Cabrini again reminded the participants that Angela tells us to look to Jesus Christ for truth about life. That message is that God loves us. Angela teaches us love, and addresses these words to the teachers: ‘the more you esteem them, the more you love them, the more you will care for and watch over them.’ This is the love that is manifested in the life of an Ursuline school.
In her presentation on Thursday morning, Diana Stano, OSU, applied Mary-Cabrini’s reflections to Ursuline education today. Acknowledging the position of Catholic schools as the backbone of the Church and the major source of future parish leaders, Sister Diana challenged the participants with the responsibility that is incumbent upon them. Hiring well-prepared teachers with up-to-date pedagogy and the ability to use technology appropriately are essential as is reinforcing the family unit and instilling timeless values in the next generation. To be truly Christian, schools must be models of community, where individual gifts are valued and shared for the common good.
With those comments as background, Sister Diana challenged the participants to prepare their students to be engaged in “collective advocacy.” Preparing students to stand up for the rights of those made poor by society and to work towards right relationships for all God’s people is what Ursuline schools should undertake today to be faithful to the vision and charism of St. Angela.
After time for table discussion, Sister Diana concluded her presentation by reminding the assembly that as present-day leaders in Ursuline education, they have an advocate watching over them and that she promised to be “always in their midst helping your prayers.”
The challenge of addressing the assembly on Friday morning belonged to Brother Raymond Vercruysse, C.F.C., whose presentation was entitled; “Seeking to Extend the Kingdom to the Ends of the Earth with a Great and Longing Heart.” Brother Raymond encouraged the participants to not lose their passion for Ursuline education, a passion that is alive and dynamic. This passion, he stated, is a gift to our global Church.
Catholic schools play an important part in the Church’s mission of evangelization. He reminded the assembly how much they owe to the earlier generations of Catholics who made great sacrifices to establish Catholic schools, noting in particular the role played by the Ursulines, on whose shoulders they stand today.
To be effective in this mission, the school forms an educating community, where the life-giving values of Jesus are taught and lived. This community fosters the total development of its students and leads them toward service. The education the school offers must be relevant, helping the students to connect their faith and their daily lives. By doing this, the school generates hope, which Brother Raymond stated is “the great distinguishing feature of the most desirable Catholic school.”
In addition to the five major presentations, Bill Simmer of Independent School Management addressed the group on the Centrality of Faculty Culture. He underlined the importance of faculty culture by citing two supporting facts. The research this company has done indicates that faculty culture is the number one variable in
• recruitment to private independent schools
• student performance and faculty job satisfaction.
Wednesday afternoon the delegates participated in discussion groups, based on topics suggested by the participants when they registered for the conference. A striking conclusion from these discussions was that despite cultural differences, all the schools share common challenges as they endeavor to inculcate the charism of St. Angela into the life of their schools.
Dinners and tours of the two local Ursuline schools, the Academy of Mount St. Ursula in the Bronx and The Ursuline School in New Rochelle, were two evening highlights. Participants enjoyed delicious dinners, tours of the schools and entertainment by students whose musical accomplishments were extraordinary.
Local Ursuline sisters were invited to join the participants for dinner on Tuesday evening at The Ursuline School.
A boat ride in the Long Island Sound and optional tours of various places of interest in New York City rounded out the evening offerings. All enjoyed the camaraderie that was part of both.
As participants departed for home, the farewells were accompanied by talk of when would we be gathering together again. We are happy to report that the South Africans have expressed an interest in hosting the next Global Education Conference in 2017.
Ursuline Educational Services is grateful for the generous support of our sponsors who helped make the Conference possible:
• Anonymous Foundation
• Ruth J. and Robert A. Conway Foundation
• Independent School Management for sponsorship of Sunday’s Opening Reception
• Voyager Travel Inc. Euro-American Tours for sponsorship of the morning coffee breaks
For those interested in reading the full texts of the major conference presentations, they are available on the UES website under Resources. http://ursuline-education.com/resources
Because of a commitment to her publisher, Ann Garrido’s presentation is not posted on the website. Her book, Redeeming Administration, is available on Amazon.

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