Team from Peer Jesuit Institutions Visits SLU as Part of Review of University's Mission

ST. LOUIS – Saint Louis University wrapped its year-long institutional process of discernment with an on-site peer visit this week. The visit was conducted by colleagues from three peer Jesuit universities.

The three-person team was chaired by Mardell A. Wilson, Ed.D., provost at Creighton University. Wilson served as the Dean of the Edward and Margaret Doisy College of Health Sciences at SLU from 2014 to 2020. Additional reviewers include Daniel R. J. Joyce, S.J., vice president of Mission and Ministry at Saint Joseph’s University, and Michael Serazio, Ph.D., professor of Communication at Boston College.

The Mission Priority Examen (MPE) is a self-led process intended to reaffirm a Jesuit university’s commitment to its Catholic, Jesuit mission and the ways the University might continue to live out the mission in the future. The Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) and the North American Jesuit Provincials have established the MPE for Jesuit colleges and universities in the United States and Belize, a process requested by the Superior General of the Society of Jesus. 

“The four days with the peer review team were a tremendous experience of the shared commitment to SLU’s mission, and the interaction with the four members of the team was meaningful, valuable, and hopeful,” said Virginia Herbers, director of mission formation at SLU and MPE steering committee co-chair. “Thank you to all who showed up for those sessions.”

The MPE process was launched in December 2023, at the invitation of Thomas P. Greene, S.J., provincial superior of the Central and Southern Province.

Read more about the MPE process

The MPE process is grounded in the examen, a practice of Ignatian reflection, and invites the campus community to reflect upon areas of strength in embodying SLU’s Jesuit, Catholic identity and opportunities for deepening SLU’s mission. SLU last conducted the MPE in 2018-19.

Saint Louis University

Founded in 1818, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious Catholic institutions. Rooted in Jesuit values and its pioneering history as the first university west of the Mississippi River, SLU offers more than 15,200 students a rigorous, transformative education of the whole person. At the core of the University’s diverse community of scholars is SLU’s service-focused mission, which challenges and prepares students to make the world a better, more just place.