Jesuit Higher Education Faculty Seminar (JHEFS)

Short Program Description:

Creighton University’s Jesuit Higher Education Faculty Seminar (JHEFS) is a yearlong mission formation experience for faculty designed to deepen engagement with the University’s Jesuit, Catholic mission. The Seminar provides a structured opportunity for faculty to explore Ignatian spirituality, Jesuit education, and the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm (IPP) in a collaborative learning community. In 2025, JHEFS was integrated with the AJCU Ignatian Pedagogy Certificate Program, enabling participants to earn the certificate while engaging in Creighton’s expanded formation model, which includes additional reflection, immersion, and retreat components.

Program Goals/Intended Outcomes:

1. Deepen faculty members’ understanding of Ignatian spirituality and Jesuit educational heritage, fostering integration of mission and identity into teaching, scholarship, and service.
2. Engage the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm (context, experience, reflection, action, evaluation) as both a personal and professional framework for discernment, learning, and decision-making.
3. Strengthen community among faculty across disciplines, cultivating a shared commitment to Creighton’s Jesuit, Catholic mission and the formation of students as persons for and with others.

How long does it take to complete the program?: Multiple days

Total Program Length: One academic year

Key University/Other Partners: Division of Mission and Ministry; Schlegel Center for Service and Justice; Creighton University Retreat Center; participating colleges and schools across Creighton University.

Funding Source(s): Office of Mission Engagement

Stipends Paid or Other Participant Benefits: Stipended, Release Time, Travel Expenses Paid, Other

Other Stipends: AJCU IPP Certificate; faculty facilitators each receive a $2,000 stipend for assisting in leading the program.

Program Material 1: JHEFS 2025-26 Schedule

Program Material 2: JHEFS IPP Module 2_Foundations of Jesuit Education

Program Material 3: Fall 2025 Participant Reflection

Program Material 4: AJCU Ignatian Pedagogy Certificate Program

Program Material 5: JHEFS Hopes & Concerns Summary

Lessons Learned:

Merging JHEFS with the AJCU Ignatian Pedagogy Certificate program has strengthened faculty formation with coherence and depth. Faculty value the opportunity to experience Ignatian pedagogy as learners while reflecting on how to integrate it into their teaching. The retreat and community immersion elements are especially impactful, fostering both spiritual reflection and practical mission engagement. The primary lesson has been the importance of balancing academic rigor with personal reflection and relationship-building.

Assessment Data:

Faculty feedback indicates that participants find JHEFS transformative in how they understand their vocation as educators. In a mid-year survey, participants cited enthusiasm for deepening their knowledge of Ignatian and Jesuit traditions, connecting mission with academic work, and building relationships across campus. The main concern was balancing Seminar participation with teaching and administrative responsibilities.

One participant reflected: “There is enough in this week’s reading to fill a course. Exploring how a person changed the way they feel, learn, or react through reflection is a deeper layer I want to explore. The goal is to create as much of a spiritual learning environment as we do an intellectual one. I love the idea that education transforms habitual patterns of thought.”

Please Provide Any Other Information:

Participants who complete all six AJCU Ignatian Pedagogy Certificate modules along with Creighton’s expanded formation components receive both the AJCU Ignatian Pedagogy Certificate and Creighton University recognition. The program culminates with a retreat focused on the “Six Characteristics of Ignatian Spirituality” and presentations of participants’ final integration projects.