The school of education began the new academic year with a full-day workshop at the Rochester campus of Saint Mary’s on Friday, September 16. Dr. Kristin Melley, executive director of Dominican Veritas Ministries, facilitated the sessions.
Beginning with a discussion of the university convocation address by Bishop Barron, the focus of the workshop was the Lasallian Catholic mission and identity of Saint Mary’s and how this inspires the work of the school of education. Topics during the morning session included the ecosystem of Catholic education, its essential characteristics including positive anthropology and sacramental imagination, tradition and development, and the Lasallian charism.
The afternoon included an interactive afternoon session on fostering community with systems thinking. In addition to this activity, shared meals provided an opportunity for the school of education to welcome its newest faculty and staff members. There was an opportunity for all to engage Saint Mary’s mission, vision, and identity document.
Michael Lovorn, Ph.D., dean of the school of education, expressed his gratitude to the active participation of the school of education for devoting time and energy to community building. “Kristin gave us much to think about from our shared history, community and roles within our community to our shared and individual challenges and aspirations as we revisit who we are and what we want to become.”
Dr. Melley has been a teacher, leader, and researcher of Catholic education for the past two decades. She recently served as the leading advisor in the promulgation and preservation of National Standards & Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Schools (NSBECS) Steering Committee. She also co-created and directed the Two-Way Immersion Network for Catholic Schools (TWIN-CS) at Boston College’s Center for Catholic Education.
Dr. Melley serves as an assistant professor in Saint Mary’s new Catholic school leadership program. Under her direction, the Emmaus Leadership Series at Boston College, serving over 140 school leaders in 42 dioceses, provided acting and aspiring Catholic school administrators and board members the training and formation they needed to lead excellent schools.
