Dec 8, 2002 - Mount St. Mary’s College has been awarded a five-year, almost $2 million grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., to engage students, faculty and staff in a theological exploration of vocation, as well as their callings to service and leadership.

The $1,999,191 grant will be used to enhance current programs and create new opportunities for the college community to explore vocations – primarily to service and leadership. The program, titled: A Vision for Vocation: Toward Our Third Century, will also support Mount students in developing the skills, attitudes and commitments they need to serve as leaders in the church and society.

Mount St. Mary’s was one of 39 colleges and universities to receive a grant – part of Lilly’s $80 million commitment to the theological exploration of vocation. In all, more than 300 institutions of higher learning submitted proposals.

"For nearly 200 years, the Mount has prepared the next generation of leaders for the Church, the Republic and the professions," said Mount St. Mary’s President, George R. Houston, Jr. "The Lilly Endowment, Inc. has provided the Mount an opportunity to reflect upon our current programs and develop a vision to strengthen the exploration of vocation within our core curriculum, lay ministry programs and campus activities.

"We must encourage each other to grow in holiness, discern our vocation, have the courage to accept it and the commitment to fulfill it," Houston said. "We sincerely thank the Lilly Endowment, Inc., for its commitment to the Mount community and our programs."

The grant proposal includes:

• The establishment of development workshops for vocation in the Mount’s core curriculum;
• Service learning opportunities to increase student participation and community involvement;
• Co-curricular and extracurricular programs to explore vocation through lecture series’, campus retreats, peer ministers, and service volunteer fairs;
• Lay ministry programs and scholarships specifically designed for students seeking a certification in lay ministry.

Additionally, the grant provides an opportunity for the Mount to fulfill its mission more completely, said Carol L. Hinds, Ph.D., college vice president and provost.

"Part of the mission of the college is ‘to deepen understanding of our faith and its practice in just and compassionate engagement with the world,’ " Hinds said. "The successful completion of this project will enrich the lives of students, faculty and staff by helping them consider how their faith commitments relate to the ways in which they want to live their lives."