Our Mission
SLS educates individuals to impact their communities as principled practitioners of leadership, communication, and scholarship.
Our Vision
We will be a renowned school of leadership studies distinctively bridging scholarship and practice for the common good.
Our Values & Commitments
Informed by our Jesuit identity, these values serve as the foundation of our work with students, colleagues, and all those we encounter.
Our Ethos is rooted in the Jesuit Tradition. Our Commitment is to Academic Excellence. Our Leadership is Principled. Our Consciousness is Global.
Jesuit Ethos
Inspired by the life and teachings of St. Ignatius, we are committed to our work through:
- Self-awareness: reflection and foundation for continual openness to learning about ourselves and the world;
- Intellectual curiosity: openness to change and innovations for the purpose of advancing and serving the common good;
- Care for others: as a source of influence—not fear--because individuals thrive in environments where they feel valued and supported; and
- Visionary leadership: inspiring and leading others to discover their potential.
Academic Excellence
We are committed to excellence in every dimension of our work with students and within our professional communities. We actively pursue:
- the creation of challenging and supportive learning environments where students engage with current scholarship, emerging research, and innovative pedagogies in the service of distinctive excellence, transformative learning, and positive organizational and societal impact; and;
- the presentation and publication of scholarship that engages relevant questions and problems in our world.
Principled Leadership
Moving beyond “command-and-control” forms of leadership, we are committed to:
- expression of one’s authentic identity as a foundation of leadership;
- leadership that seeks first to serve, is inclusive, and is committed to the growth of others;
- belief that the capability for leadership exists in every individual, who inherently possesses dignity, curiosity and worth; and
- leadership that is distributed throughout organizations—not isolated with one individual—allowing for greater ownership, contributions and commitment by all.
- continuing our national recognition and internationally renowned work for the practice of servant-leadership, with collaborative work in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
Global Consciousness
As members of a Jesuit institution and citizens of an increasingly interdependent and dynamic world, we are obligated to assist our students in developing knowledge and skills needed to lead effectively in a global context. Therefore, we:
- exhibit and teach intercultural approaches to leading and communicating with groups and local communities whose cultural, social, and material standpoints and experiences differ;
- help students integrate interdisciplinary approaches in their leadership practice; and
- infuse our learning environments with global perspectives, enabling students to experience accompaniment, engagement and develop intercultural competence.
Please note: The School of Professional Studies has been renamed the School of Leadership Studies as of June 2018.
