One Evangelical's Thoughts on Joining the Faculty of a Jesuit College

Kevin Hula, Ph.D.
Department of Political Science

Before I came for my interview at Loyola College, I imagined a faculty consisting largely of Catholic priests and brothers. Instead, I found a faculty as diverse in backgrounds and traditions as any I had seen at a public or private university. There are some "real live Jesuits" on campus, but from my perspective as a Protestant member of the faculty, the key to Loyola's heritage as a Jesuit College is a living tradition.

The Jesuit tradition at Loyola links tolerance and respect for different perspectives with an expectation that faculty and students will engage each other on a deep intellectual level that moves beyond the text book. These principles take several forms. The Jesuit ideal of caring for the whole person-including intellect, emotions, and spirit-encourages members of the Loyola faculty to move beyond a superficial level in their interact with students, both inside and outside the classroom. Faculty members are free to develop their own niche in this college community. Opportunities abound for members of the faculty to mentor students, helping them to integrate the curriculum into a body of knowledge rather than a list of discrete courses. Other faculty members advise student organizations or even develop an on-going relationship with a floor in one of the Loyola dormitories.

There is a spiritual side of the College that sets it apart from public universities. While Loyola is inseparably linked to the Catholic religious tradition, a faculty member is completely free to partake or not partake in the spiritual facets of the College. To dispense with some of the myths that I was asked about by my friends from graduate school when I joined the faculty here: No, you do not have to be Catholic to teach here. The faculty is actually diverse. You do not have to start classes with a prayer. I always start by saying the rather quirky phrase, "and a very happy good morning to all of you." You do not have to attend Mass. I happen to be a practicing evangelical and attend a Presbyterian church, but many of my colleagues do not belong to any organized religion. Last, you do not have to teach from a Catholic or even a religious perspective. You do need a commitment to intellectual integrity, tolerance for diverse opinions and traditions, and a heart for stimulating and challenging the minds of your students.

Those disclaimers aside, there are many opportunities available for those interested in participating in the spiritual life of the campus. I have found great reward in participating in student retreats, speaking from time to time at a weekly interdenominational service, and advising the campus Christian fellowship group. College is a time when students ask the big questions of life, and it is a joy to participate in the wide-ranging and penetrating dialog in which they naturally engage. On a Jesuit campus, those opportunities can be frequent and quite stimulating.

Teaching at Loyola has opened more professional doors than I could have imagined before joining the faculty. As a political scientist, Loyola's close proximity to Washington, D.C., is a great boon for my research on public policy and lobbying. Interview-based research with national policy makers is possible less than an hour's drive from campus. Furthermore, among the academic institutions in the United States, the Jesuit colleges have traditionally been the most supportive of research and writing in political philosophy and theory. Stemming from the Jesuit commitment to the pursuit of intellectual excellence through reason, this support has resulted in superb faculty coverage across a critical subfield in our discipline that has been cut back at some public institutions. I'm sure my colleagues in other fields could relate similar experiences in their own departments.

The intangible benefits of teaching on a campus with a Jesuit heritage are significant for anyone with a commitment to teaching, a desire to interact with students on a personal level, and a commitment to the pursuit of intellectual excellence.