Victoria Delgado-Palma 23 offers His Holiness Pope Francis a gift on behalf of St. Kate's: a note of gratitude, a copy of Mary Ann Brenden's book about Our Lady of Victory Chapel, and a Peter Lupori ornament. / Copyright Vatican Media
In August, St. 做厙輦⑹ received the 2024 Uniservitate Global Service Learning Award. Three months later, a St. Kates team of three was in Rome presenting their work to international faculty, staff, students and the Pope.
Global movement promotes service-learning in Catholic higher education, engaging students as community leaders and integrating the work in curriculum and research. St. Kates was one of two North American recipients of the Uniservitate award for ongoing work on , an interdisciplinary project on structural racism within housing and its lasting impacts. WTDN is facilitated by faculty members in collaboration with students in classes, collaborative research, and opportunities through the Center for Community Work and Learning and the Office of Scholarly Engagement.
North American hub awardees receive their Uniservitate certificates, including St. Kates representatives Kristine West, PhD (fourth from left), DAnn Urbaniak Lesch (fifth from left), and Victoria Delgado-Palma 23 (fourth from right). / CLAYSS Uniservitate
Last week, three St. Kates representatives traveled to Rome to attend the fifth Uniservitate global conference: DAnn Urbaniak Lesch, assistant vice president for engaged learning; Kristine West, PhD, professor of economics; and alumna Victoria Delgado-Palma 23, who contributed to WTDN while a student. In addition to the two-day symposium, the St. Kates group also participated in a pre-symposium day-long session facilitated by the with the other worldwide awardee groups from the seven regional hubs.
Delgado-Palma, who is one of the authors of the , presented her as a whole during a student panel.
Through this experience, I have been able to live out the mission of our Sisters of St. Joseph, but I've also had the opportunity to bring in my own experiences and from my community, she shared. Being able to work on a real world project that acknowledges how our history continues to make its presence today is very powerful and motivating for me, and I feel very grateful and empowered to be able to share this project on behalf of everyone who has been doing a lot of work to push our efforts forward.
Left to right: West, Delgado-Palma, and Urbaniak Lesch with the St. Kate's Uniservitate certificates.
Urbaniak Lesch greets His Holiness Pope Francis at the Vatican. / Copyright Vatican Media
West greets His Holiness Pope Francis at the Vatican. / Copyright Vatican Media
The entire Uniservitate Symposium group gathers for a photo. / CLAYSS Uniservitate
The Uniservitate conference included three days of sessions and symposia around service-learning in Catholic higher education.
Delgado-Palma presents the St. Kates Welcoming the Dear Neighbor? work to the symposium. / CLAYSS Uniservitate
An audience with the Pope
Attendees participated in a Eucharist Celebration at the Basilica of Saint Peter, Vatican City on the evening of Friday, November 8. On Saturday morning, the Uniservitate groups had the incredible honor of a private audience with His Holiness Pope Francis. During his address to the groups, Pope Francis shared that the meeting of Uniservitate awardees was of great interest to the Catholic Church, particularly in its focus on service-learning. He called for Catholic schools to implement this philosophy for the worlds sake, drawing on two principles from his 2013 Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium:
First, education programmes should bring students into contact with the realities around them, so that, starting from experience, they learn to change the world not for their own benefit, but in a spirit of service, said the Pope. Second, Catholic education should promote a culture of curiosity, emphasizing the art of asking questions. Let us support young people in this exploration of themselves and the larger world and the generosity born of a passionate heart.
Pope Francis then received the Uniservitate groups, shaking hands with each individual. Delgado-Palma discussed St. Kates WTDN work with him, and presented him with a note of gratitude; a copy of Mary Ann Brendens book ; and one of the ornaments designed by the , faculty emeritus of art.
I was very honored to be able to represent St. Kates at this conference, West said of the Uniservitate experience. The work of the WTDN project has been a widespread effort and the award specifically noted the broad involvement of our community. Everyone who contributed should feel pride in this recognition.
The Uniservitate symposium offered not only recognition for the work of many St. Kates project members, said Urbaniak Lesch. It was an opportunity for St. Kates representatives to learn about campus-community projects taking place at other Catholic institutions around the world, and to network and build connections for potential collaborative work.
It was an incredible experience to be part of such a prestigious and diverse group of educators staff, faculty, and students alike actively engaged in collaborating with their communities to make positive change, said Urbaniak Lesch. I feel so grateful to have had this opportunity, am truly inspired, and will draw on the learning in the months and years ahead.
Hear more in December
In December, Delgado-Palma, West, and Urbaniak Lesch will share back with the community about the Uniservitate experience (open to all).
December 4
4-5 p.m.
Carondelet Village Auditorium
In the meantime, read more about WTDN in the research article published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Urban Health: