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President's Blog: From the Heart

Every Life a Masterpiece

By Eric F. Spina

Dom Sanfilippo ’16 likes to share a story about Sister Angela Ann Zukowski, M.H.S.H., who ostensibly knows everyone at the Vatican.

“Peering up at Pope Francis sharing the papal balcony with a woman, a bystander in the crowd at St. Peter’s Square asked, ‘Who’s that guy up there with Sister Angela Ann?’” joked Dom, one of her former students.

Behind his quip lies a nugget of truth. Sister Angela Ann, who leads our Institute for Pastoral Initiatives (IPI) with boundless energy and vision, has advanced Catholic higher education globally, making quite a name for the University of Dayton — and herself — over a remarkable four-decade career.

I’m just delighted that she will receive the Monika K. Hellwig Award for Outstanding Contributions to Catholic Intellectual Life at the annual national meeting of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities on Feb. 2. It’s the latest in a long series of honors for the religious studies professor, who accepted the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Medal from Pope John Paul II and was named one of the most influential Catholic educators in the 20th century by the National Catholic Educational Association.

In my eyes, she stands out as one of higher education’s most entrepreneurial educators. In the Catholic Church, she’s a pioneer in using new communication technology to evangelize and educate. And on our campus, she’s simply legendary.

The global reach of her brainchild — the Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation — is enormous. Students in more than 70 dioceses in some 40 countries take online courses ranging from church history to social justice. She also co-directs the Caribbean School for Catholic Communications in Trinidad and teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses on campus.

That is, when she’s not traveling. She also gives workshops, seminars, and lectures across the country and around the world.

When I reflect on her impact on Catholic higher education, one always has to include the legion of UD students she has taught and mentored. Students like Taylor Tovey, a senior education and religious studies major from Flint, Michigan, who has worked side by side with Sister Angela Ann in the IPI for four years.

“Students are truly celebrated each year for the work they are doing before they leave for their next step of life,” said Tovey, who’s a teaching assistant for religion education courses. “I have witnessed IPI being an environment of support and community.”

As a Chaminade Scholar and human rights major, Dom Sanfilippo enrolled in her “Vocation and the Arts” class, which culminated in a 10-day pilgrimage to Assisi and Rome. “It’s such a unique shared experience. It’s an investment in the interior life — a time to slow down, stop, and think about who you are as a person,” said the Chicago native.

Sister Angela Ann has helped Dom frame his life as a vocation. After stints teaching at Chaminade Julienne and a high school on California’s border, he’s now back on campus as an alumni engagement officer.

“Sister taught us that education should be more than just a rote, formulaic computer sequence, but a beautiful painting filled with boldness, spontaneity, and seemingly random encounters,” he said. “She tells us to paint a masterpiece of our lives.”

When Sister Angela Ann accepts the Hellwig Award in Washington, D.C., this weekend, she will remind us of the power of imagination and faith in our lives. And, with a flourish, she’ll apply another bold brushstroke on the canvas of her own life.

(To view a video shown at the award presentation, click here.)

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