Dear JSN Companions: 

You, our JSN educators, continue to amaze us with the love, care and incredible experiences you offer your students and each other. This issue begins with concrete plans for innovative ways to dialog, lesson plans for engaging with the new encyclical Fratelli Tutti, an asynchronous virtual exchange how-to, and a global scholars program in a virtual world. We continue with hiring for mission, conversations with colleagues across the JSN, an exciting interactive graphic that integrates our important documents, and new opportunities from our JSN partners. The issue closes with an inspiring Mohawk prayer from Canada's Loyola High School, home of some students who are Mohawk. Please take your time to read and download the linked plans, examples and activities for use as the opportunity arises. All of the authors' emails are linked to their names if you would like to reach out directly for more information.

If you have an experience to share that connects students, or faculty and leadership, beyond the doors of your classroom please send to Hemispheres to share with your colleagues across the Jesuit Schools Network!

"To act as a universal body with a universal mission" GC35, D.2 #20

~la directiva del Consejo de Estudiantes

CSI Ideas that Inspire was an initiative created by the Student Council of 2016-2017 as a forum for Puerto Rican leaders to present their perspective on various topics affecting today’s youth. Recognizing the different challenges that young people face daily, the Colegio San Ignacio 2020-2021 Student Council decided to revive this project. 

This year we have had an added adversity with the global pandemic. We needed to be innovative to provide different activities for the student body, as well as the community. CSI Ideas that Inspire provided us that opportunity. Utilizing technologies such as Streamyard, has allowed us to present our speakers to a much broader audience through social media. The topics of our presentations, chosen by the student body, include Ignatian leadership, social entrepreneurship, racism, mental health, education, and sustainable development, among others. Presenters can expose their ideas on the given topic, followed by a formal interview conducted by one of the members of the Student Council who then interweaves questions from the audience. 

We invite you to participate in our monthly discussion. Access our first two CSI Ideas that Inspire following these links: https://youtu.be/VSRrMHSusII, https://youtu.be/LUZdDwW4LAY. The next CSI Ideas that Inspire is December 3^rd, 2020 4:00PM (EST). Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @colegiosanignaciopr #csiconsejo.

~MegAnne Liebsch

Our world seems increasingly divided—on social, economic and political lines. In his recent encyclical, “Fratelli Tutti,” Pope Francis calls Catholics to break down these barriers through reconciliation and genuine encounter. That’s a tall order, so we’ve created a “Fratelli Tutti” Dialogue Guide to help. Developed by Marianne Gallagher and Cappy Russell of Georgetown Preparatory School, this resource from the Jesuit Conference can help facilitate meaningful conversations about the pressing issues facing our world. The first half of the guide, which is available now and linked below, offers opportunities for prayer, discussion and action, as well as a lesson plan for educators. Stay tuned for the second half of the Dialogue Guide in January of 2021!

~María Paz Campos 

At St. Louis University High School, we have strengthened our commitment to collaborate with the globalized world despite the current travel restrictions imposed by the pandemic. Foreign language teachers are taking advantage of online platforms to connect and interact with communities abroad, giving our students a real opportunity to use their foreign language beyond the classroom. We have accomplished this by using Flipgrid, a video discussion platform that provides enough flexibility for teachers around the globe to collaborate with each other and invite their students to engage in online discussions by posting video replies.

As a Spanish teacher, I have been using Flipgrid in my classroom for the past three years with great results. When planning my instruction this summer, I decided to connect with Ignatian educators abroad via Educate Magis to continue to use Flipgrid to collaborate with Jesuit schools around the globe through virtual exchange programs. This is how I met David Chamorro, a Chilean English teacher at Colegio San Ignacio Alonso de Ovalle and Marlene Fajardo, English teacher at Liceo Javier Guatemala. After exchanging a couple of emails, we quickly realized we all shared the same goal—to create a safe and flexible space for our students to develop their communication skills and global competence beyond the constraints of the classroom.

~Teresa Di Vita-Geremia & Pierre Chavez

Since the inception of our Global Education program, we have looked to develop initiatives that did not require students to leave Fordham Prep in order to make connections across borders and increase their global awareness. And so, in an academic year during which international travel will not be possible, we have developed a Global Scholars Program. This program will give students the opportunity to explore and engage with the world from their home city-or more specifically from their homes! We were very mindful of developing a program that could grow and flourish in a hybrid, or even remote, learning year. Our goal is that this program will help students fulfill the Grad at Grad call to be open to growth, intellectually accomplished, and most of all, committed to doing justice, in a time where movement- not simply around the globe- but within our own cities and towns, is limited. Through the different facets of this program, and leveraging the technological resources available, students will become more competent global citizens, realizing that they can be agents of positive change in this world.  

Global Scholars will attend Round Table Discussions on social justice issues led by experts, and with a focus on the Universal Apostolic Preferences. The Global Scholars will participate in an extended virtual exchange with students from Jesuit partner schools around the world; and, in teams, they will research and lead school-wide awareness campaigns based on causes with special significance to them. 

We are excited to offer our students this meaningful and enriching opportunity to connect with, grow, and become men of action with others throughout the world during a time when many are feeling isolated and helpless due to the pandemic. Click below to see some unique student application submissions:

My grandmother used to say, “If you live long enough you will see just about everything.” And while that statement was difficult to believe when I was thirteen, at fifty-three the statement feels more than accurate. To say 2020 has been a bizarre year is an understatement. This year alone, we ushered in a pandemic, witnessed the murder of an unarmed black man, restructured primary and secondary education to accommodate distance learning, experienced the most divisive time in American history since the civil rights era, and elected the first woman of color as Vice President of the United States.

Those recent events are important because they will forever shape the lives of our students. As important are our relationships with students and how we help them make sense of the world. As I complete my first year, I’m wholeheartedly convinced that Saint Ignatius High School is where the mission happens. This is where Christ and his love for us is understood, relationships are built, minds are developed, personal and professional goals are established, and boundaries are explored. The mission can simply be thought of as formation. As an educator and behaviorist, I can’t help but consider the point in which academic excellence and formation intersect - Cura Apostolica – in other words, “care for the work” and why the people are so very important. This multi-dimensional concept, from my vantage point must be understood in its totality (e.g., brick and mortar, business, and people). The building and business components, often perceived as cold, ensure the sustainability of the institution. However, equally important, or some would say even more so, are the presence and relationships of PEOPLE! In my newness I am not confusing the care of these people “Cura Personalis” with their sheer presence. People, when steeped in the tenants of discernment (Jesuit Spirituality), foster a deeper commitment to connection, respect, inclusion, equity, and love for humanity in a way that elevates mission and creates a sense of belonging.

I believe at Saint Ignatius High School we understand “Cura Apostolica” which is why hiring, or inviting the best colleagues to join our efforts to meet our Grad-at-Grad goals is important to us. We know we are only as successful as those who model God’s love for our students. In the midst of all the changes in the world, Saint Ignatius High School found itself, on several occasions, in the position of hiring faculty and staff.  In each instance, as we embarked upon the hiring process I couldn’t help but recall exactly why I accepted the Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion position: mission. During our recent hiring cycle we amplified our commitment to mission by adding cultural competence to our existing search   for character and curricular expertise – 3 c’s (character, curricular expertise, and cultural competence). I believe I’m coming to understand that mission lives in the actions (or lack thereof) of the people in a community. Because the ability to sustain the mission’s authenticity is connected to people, I would suggest one of the more difficult aspects of Cura Apostolica is ensuring the organization has the right people.

When we hire the right people, we uniquely position ourselves to make explicit, for students, the relevance of Jesuit education in the 21st century. Students come to understand that believing or espousing a religion is not enough; they must live, and most importantly, act upon their faith – PRACTICE. The right people are those who help our student embrace and apply diversity, equity and inclusion to the tenants of Catholic Social Teaching. If we are successful, we will witness the maturation of Grad-at-Grad to include graduates who are not only intellectuallycompetent but also culturally competent. Graduates formed in faith who are culturally competent are what the world is waiting for; they literally change the dynamics of world engagement (sorry to be so cliché). For the record, cultural competence is not exclusive to any race of people, but it can be found in many people of faith, people who feverishly work to discern and act on the will of God.

Tag your social media posts with #JSNGlobal and SHARE your global journeys in & out of the classroom.*

*Recent posts from all hashtags are currently hidden within Instagram to prevent the spread of possible false information or harmful content related to the election. We apologize to anyone whose #JSNGlobal posts we may have missed!

UAPs, A Living Tradition, Global Citizenship, Rio Action Plan...how do all our Jesuit Ignatian documents work together? Start exploring this interactive graphic from the Secretariat of Secondary and pre-Secondary Education, Rome and Educate Magis. More information to follow in the upcoming months.

~Tim Sassen

As the COVID-19 pandemic became an established, non-transient reality in March of this year, the Jesuit Schools Network sought a means by which to keep our educators connected - sharing questions, ideas and challenges amid the times. The result was the creation of our Virtual Coffee Shop series, which launched on April 1, 2020. Since then, the JSN has hosted over three dozen of these videoconference sessions, welcoming educators from numerous roles in our school communities. The initiative has been platform for companionship and the exchange of best practices and innovation across our network, and it has proven that, even though zip codes and local circumstances may differ, the focus on care for students and community members is common to all our schools.

~Josh Utter

Are you planning for upcoming activities? Be sure to check out JRS/USA’s updated Walk a Mile in My Shoes toolkit which includes tips on how to make the experience virtual. Also, take a look at We Don’t Walk Alone which is a virtual exhibit to learn more about the stories of people experiencing displacement. It’s a great resource to prepare students for Walk a Mile. Please reach out to Josh Utter with any questions. 

Looking for a guest speaker? Josh is also happy to speak to students about the work of JRS and the global refugee crisis. Do you have a specific global region or population you would like to focus on? Josh will work with you to identify resources or speakers to support your lesson planning.

Join the New Global Ignatian Retreat "Accompanied by the Spirit of Healing" from Tuesday December 1st to 15th. There will be weekly session of a 20 minute presentation and 25 minute group discussion. To find out more about this Retreat please click here!

Invite your students to connect and share the Joy of Christmas in a number of ways! You can choose to take part by - connecting and sharing through a live Connected Classroom (Dec 3rd)

- or having your students’ share their Christmas joy through a drawing, painting or poem. (Dec 4th) For more information please click here!

A music teacher from the Jesuit school Leone XIII in Milan is looking to organize an online musical twinning with students overseas of 12-13 years old. If you are interested please reply here.

Schools in Spain and in the US shared reflections submitted by their students as part of Global Student Project "My Return to School During COVID-19". Read the stories here

This Christmas season, join the Ignatian Solidarity Network in prayer, reflection, and action through two campaigns. Register here!  

Advent Simplicity Challenge November 29-December 24

As we prepare our hearts for Advent, join the Advent Simplicity Challenge. Learn ways to care for people and the planet and to live simply in a season that is normally filled with mass-consumption.

Virtual Posadas: Encountering Hope

Don't miss your chance to access ALL 2020 Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice content, now through June 2021. Catch keynotes, breakout sessions, and more! Register here and use code JSN15 for a discount on registration

Thank you to Loyola High School, Montreal Canada for the beautiful Mohawk prayer. Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us.

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