As a Jesuit Institution, it is part of our mission to integrate
the Ignatian values into all that we do. Those values are
listed below with brief descriptions of possible ways of
integrating them into a class, both online and traditionally.
Magis is the term used most frequently to define the spirit of
the Ignatian stance. It is defined as the "spirit of
generous excellence" . A generous helping of anything is a
large or abundant serving of it. Imagine your class with
an abundance of excellence, imagine reviewing each component of
your class with the intention of making it the best it can be to
serve the students. Then imagine intentionally reflecting
on the purpose of your class to determine what components you
may need to develop to further the learning of the students as
they reach toward those goals.
Magis must also be incorporated in the work you ask of your
students. The assignments given them must detail the
specific goals the work is intended to assist them in mastering.
The depth of the work they hand in must reflect the modeling you
give them in demonstrating that excellence.
Discernment is a value but it is a practice as well. It
is the practice of critically questioning the work we are doing
and reflecting on its effectiveness and impact on others.
It is intentionally reviewing our work to ascertain its
effectiveness in reaching the goals we have set.
We are asked to teach this practice to our students.
Through modeling and guidance, we can instill in our
students the practice of looking constructively at the work they
are doing in an effort at making it the best it can be.
I have in the past stifled a laugh when I see the phrase "men
and women for others". It is the by line for the high
school my sons attend. It seems an impossible claim to
state that at an age when students are characteristically self
centered and quite concerned about their image in front of
others, the instructors will craft in them behaviors to do quite
the opposite. And yet it happens. There is a
component in each class that requires the articulation of ways
that the knowledge learned will allow the students to better
serve the community. If they can do this with adolescent
boys, what can we expect, what can we draw on for the college
student? Ask yourself what perspective needs to be pointed
out so that your students will see what effect your class can
have in other realms. How can they use the material from
your class to have an impact on others? You may be
surprised by their answers, and refreshed by the stance of their
Now become a bit more focused. Use the impact you have
found from your class and apply it to a faithful stance, a
stance for justice. How can you offer this possibility to
your students? If your students are working in the area of
business, can they use their skills to assist those in lower
income areas that are trying to go into business on their own?
If your students are soon to be teachers, is there an inner city
school where they could tutor children, or assist the teachers?
The health sciences provide many opportunities in clinics in
poor areas. What bend can your students take that would
use the material and skills you have taught them in a way that
is beneficial to those who normally can't get such services?
Contemplation in action assumes action. We often only
get that far. But it is critical to reflect on what is
being done, the motives for it, the effect it is having, the
sensitivity of the process, the sentiments of those involved.
Contemplation must be carried out in every action to assure that
ours is a compassionate stance, that our motives are self-less,
that we and our students are learning in all this how better to
serve. It is not the action that we will learn from here,
but the contemplation or reflection on that action.
Writing in a journal facilitates this well. Journals can
be shared with partners, with instructors, with mentors in the
field. They can be personal and private with just a
summary statement required every on a regular basis. But however
it is done, the articulation of the learning that comes from
reflecting on the actions is critical to the growth of the
student and the implementation of this value.
What has occurred so far? We have questioned, served
and reflected on that service. We have established a
relationship with those we have served and that relationship has
broadened our experience and enriched us. What can we
recognize in the bond that has formed, in the work we share?
There is a spirit found in companionship, and even more so when
coupled with service to each other. Sensing that spirit
gives us cause to look for it in many places, and in that
looking, we will see it.
How can we provide this for our students? How can we bring
them to see this spirit, so that then they will know to look for
it in other places? We can listen to their questions,
grant them the opportunities to serve, guide them in their
reflections and be present to them. In doing so, we
nurture their growth and find ourselves nurtured as well.