With all of the planned changes in the coming year, St. Edward’s University is also trying to maintain its Holy Cross Catholic heritage as part of the 2015 Strategic Plan.

“Going toward 2015, we really want to reaffirm who we are,” President George Martin said at the Feb. 23 president’s meeting.

Playing a large role in achieving this goal will be Campus Ministry.

The goal isn’t all about Catholicism. St. Edward’s founders, the Congregation of the Holy Cross, are an international order of priests and brothers with a focus on education.

“Education was the impetus for our Ministry,” Assistant Director of Campus Ministry Larry Atkinson said of the Brothers of the Holy Cross. The Holy Cross tradition is an integral part of the university Mission Statement, Atkinson added.

“The courage to take risks, an international perspective, and the commitment to provide educational opportunities for students of varied…backgrounds,” as the university’s Mission Statement says, are all important components of the Holy Cross tradition.

Incorporating Holy Cross values into education can help students have “the competence to see and the courage to act,” Atkinson said.

“We will not educate the mind at the expense of the hearts…to create a time better than ours,” Atkinson said, quoting founder of the Congregation of the Holy Cross Basil Moreau.

Atkinson said he believes that expanding St. Edward’s into a global campus will help prepare students to be competent but passionate.

Though Catholic in origin, the university’s Holy Cross tradition includes people of all faiths and backgrounds.

“[Holy Cross tradition] was never meant to convert people,” Atkinson said. “It is to encourage people in their own faith journey.”

Campus Ministry serves as a spiritual resource for the campus community, and seeks to make others aware of the Holy Cross tradition through organizing and hosting programs as well as community service projects.

“Campus Ministry seeks to be a welcoming presence within the community of St.

Edward’s University,” Atkinson said. “While our Catholic character informs our role as educators in the faith, we minister to and with peoples of all faiths. Through the formation of heart and mind, in the Holy Cross tradition, we hope to catalyze both personal and communal transformation. Such transformation invites all people into the right relationships with self, others and God. These relationships are expressed through spirituality, service and social justice.”

Though St. Edward’s is a Catholic institution founded by the Brothers of the Holy Cross, Campus Ministry welcomes people of all faiths.

“Each person at St. Edward’s is an essential part of the mission. Therefore, it is important that each person understand where the mission of the university gets its roots and meaning,” Atkinson said.

Atkinson speaks with staff members as a part of his work at Campus Ministry to encourage the incorporation of Holy Cross values into the university curriculum.

“By reminding the staff of what they bring to the mission and demonstrating how they play an important role in living out of the Holy Cross mission, then we can continue to live out our mission in light of the Holy Cross heritage we have received,” Atkinson said.

In addition, Campus Ministry encourages staff and faculty to become involved in their programs.

“We try to include faculty and staff in programs such as ASB [Alternative Spring Break] and as speakers for service and retreats,” Atkinson said.

Atkinson praised President Martin for “recognizing the value” of the school’s Holy Cross tradition, and for “encouraging the living out of the rich heritage.”

“I am thrilled, as are the other Brothers of the Holy Cross, of President Martin’s inclusion of Holy Cross values in the strategic plan,” Atkinson said.

Junior Matthew Norris attended a Holy Cross high school, and he supports the incorporation of Holy Cross values into the 2015 Strategic Plan.

“It allows current students to better understand Holy Cross tradition and education,” Norris said. “Having experienced Holy Cross education for the past seven years has allowed me to develop my personal character and better my understanding of Catholic tradition in society today.”