A Global Partnership Initiative of the Jesuit Schools Network
Dear Global Companions: 

As educators of the Jesuit Schools Network we are invited to engage in our Jesuit mission in a manner that recognizes and celebrates the interconnectedness of our local, regional and world community. JSN Hemispheres sees this work as beginning with a collaboration and integration of all aspects of our local school communities. Please read on to walk this journey with your amazing JSN colleagues.
"To act as a universal body with a universal mission" GC35, D.2 #20
Catharine Steffens
Director of Global Partnerships
Jesuit Schools Network
On our campuses...
I am: A Reflection on Identity, Racial Equity & An Ignatian Response 
I am hurting…
I am tired…
I am frightened…
I am frustrated...
I am confused... 
I am angry…
I am...

Jamal Adams and I am the son of Kenneth Adams, a scholar who grew up in the segregated south, the grandson of Edward Adams, a college professor and college basketball coach before integrating college sports, great-grandson of Charles P. Adams, the founder of Grambling State University. I am also the Director of Equity and Inclusion at Loyola High School of Los Angeles. Given this context and our national reality, I pray that you understand my opening.  It seems we have entered into a tumultuous perfect storm of anger, blaming, and violence. From our stay at home realities due to COVID-19, the genuine economic despair of so many Americans, the continual replaying of the graphic deaths of unarmed black citizens at the hands of law enforcement, and the infighting between the two major political parties in an election year, we find ourselves amid a “social earthquake.” 

As Catholic, Jesuit schools, we are called to be agents of change – to be men and women for and with others.  In the speech given by Fr. Pedro Arrupe, S.J., that gave rise to this terminology, he not only called upon his listeners to commit acts of service but also to dismantle systems of injustice.  This call to confront the very structures of injustice is challenging, yet we cannot let the call’s daunting nature prevent us from taking action. Racism is one of those systems of injustice. Buoyed by the centering of voices of despair demanding that their lived experience be respected and that the proverbial knee is lifted off their neck, the Jesuit Global Community has been called to live our Mission intentionally in the most prophetic way. Pope Francis reminds us of this calling when he challenges Jesuit educators to form “mature people who are simple, competent and honest, who know how to love with fidelity, who can live life as a response to God’s Call, and their future profession as a service to society.” 

It is time to leave what is safe and stand in solidarity with our BIPOC brothers and sisters for a hope-filled future built on the bedrocks of mutuality and kinship—in September of 2019, Jesuit West Provincial Fr. Scott Santarosa asked a gathering of Jesuit leadership in Santa Clara, “are there enough injustices against the people we love to consider flexing our Jesuit muscle again and regularly. The beloved is there before us: the immigrant, the gang member, the hungry, the incarcerated, the single mother separated from her deported husband. Are we offering to the beloved all the gifts we are truly in possession of? Can we also offer our power?” With that as our backdrop, it was an honor this summer to be part of many hands that created Jesuit West’s Collaborative Organizing for Racial Equity Toolkit. I would particularly ask anyone venturing into the toolkit to start with the section entitled, Reflections to Start. This section allows one to begin internalizing proper terms and language, learn about best practices around norm-setting for challenging discussions, and reflect on several questions designed to one’s personal, intrapersonal, and institutional relationship with Racial Equity.  
Good luck and God Bless!
Office of Mission and Identity in an Election Year
The JSEA Preamble advocated in 1970 that: 
“Part of our educational effort should be directed at illuminating the contradictions and ambiguities within this network [of mainstream American values], and consequently at freeing our students from the distorted perceptions of reality engendered by many of these values. More teachers in Jesuit schools…should examine with their students’ common expressions of prejudice and bigotry, some of the underlying causes of violence in our country, the true nature of patriotism, the morality of political and corporate enterprise, etc. Teachers have the daily opportunity to encourage passionate and responsible commitment to social justice. We realize that these are delicate and potentially divisive issues, but we should not therefore neglect them out of fear of disapproval of graduates or parents.” [10-11]
This 45-year-old advice reminds us that remaining true to our Ignatian Identity is perhaps most important in any election year.  Certainly, our Ignatian Identity is the responsibility of all faculty and staff.  Yet, the Office of Mission and Identity usually organizes and empowers the rest of the school in this endeavor.  So, how can the Office do this in an election year?
Perhaps one way is to explicitly empower teachers of all subjects -not just Theology- to approach these conversations in class with questions like these? Another avenue could be using its Administrative influence to better support and defend its faculty if and when the Preamble’s caveat of “disapproval from graduates or parents” arises as a result of these conversations.  An even more ambitious step would be to initiate these conversations among Faculty and Staff, Alumni, and Parents using the recent “Contemplation and Political Action” document published by the Jesuit Conference.  One further way to remain rooted in our strongest asset -the Jesuits themselves- could be to reach out to Jesuits who were ministering in 1970 -the year of the Preamble’s publication, and another turbulent time- to absorb their wisdom.  
Most importantly, the Office can help to guide these conversations in a way that models Christian charity.  Remembering Ignatius’ Presupposition can help us to: 1) assume good intentions, 2) ask clarifying questions when those intentions appear absent, and 3) correct with love when in fact they are absent.  Of course, using this method will likely not involve the Officers’ own opinions.  Rather, it will mean teachers asking students: “How would our subject matter analyze these issues?”  It will mean initiating conversations with adult constituents that offer how things like the lessons of Ignatian Spirituality, Catholic Social Teaching, or Foundational JSEA Documents might approach these issues.  It will perhaps even mean absorbing the “disapproval of graduates or parents” in a way that practices the Presupposition.
Seeking Racial Justice through Theatre and Film at Brophy
At Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix, students are in the process of creating an original theatre and film project, to be shared in November 2020. The devised piece will identify, analyze, and deconstruct the social constructs of Race and Racism and explore ways to be actively Anti-Racist. Students will share stories on-stage and on-screen with a focus on the amplification of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) voices and the dismantlement of racist behaviors and belief systems.
During the devising process, the project team will collaborate with affinity groups and clubs on campus including Black Student Union, Hermanos Unidos, and Advocacy Club. This hybrid format of theatre, film, service, and justice is new to Brophy, and it will be student-driven and student-created. Facilitation from faculty and staff will look more like mentorship and coaching than directing, with a focus on the Jesuit Apostolic Preference of “Journeying with Youth”.
Part of the journey towards racial justice means navigating terminology like White Supremacy, Implicit Bias, Explicit Bias, Covert Racism, and Overt Racism. These words may seem scary at first glance, but there is another way to look at them. When placed in the context of a story, on-stage or on-screen, the audience can “point a finger” at the story events and characters and then enter into courageous conversations with some distance between self and story. Over time, the goal is to then turn the spotlight on one’s self to identify where “the work” is needed. The journey may be uncomfortable at times, but that is what it takes to spark change. In order to truly serve others and seek racial justice for “the Greater Glory of God”, we must go forth and get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Solidarity Across Borders: A Lesson Plan 
Beginning on June 20th, the Jesuit Migration Network of Central and North America launched a campaign called "Solidarity Across Borders”/ "Solidaridad Sin Fronteras." Throughout the campaign, we have shared testimonies of migrants and issued calls to action to encourage greater solidarity with migrants throughout our communities. One such call has been to write a letter to an immigrant detainee. Click on the PDF for instructions and guidance on how to engage your students in writing a letter to an immigrant currently held at an immigration detention facility in the U.S. 

Lesson Plan: Un ejercicio epistolario para empezar el año escolar Para dar inicio a este año académico, tan diferente y sin precedentes, se ha vuelto patente el refrán que la necesidad es la madre de la invención; también, es evidente que la colaboración nos facilitará mucho el trabajo común en estos momentos. Aquí una actividad que se puede modificar para que los alumnos reflexionen primero, y después amplíen su participación comunitaria más allá del aula. | An epistolary exercise to start the school year To start off this school year, so different and unprecedented, the saying that necessity is the mother of invention has become very clear; also, it is evident that collaboration will greatly facilitate our common work at this time. Here is an activity that can be modified so that students reflect, first, and then expand their community involvement beyond the classroom.
Campus Ministry: Faith in Action Challenge Course
As this school year begins, Gonzaga College High School’s campus ministers will be reformulating weekly local service opportunities by developing a Faith in Action challenge course. The challenges fall into 4 distinct categories: Simplicity and Solidarity Challenges, Advocacy Challenges,
Responding to Community Needs Challenges, and Faith Justice Prayer services. The plan draws together elements of a virtual June Justice Week and a variety of ideas gleaned from other Jesuit schools to reconstitute a service and justice formation program for the academic year. This year, Gonzaga’s students won’t be counting hours of service, but challenges completed as they deepen their commitment to do justice. 
 
While some challenges can be completed at any point, others fit within a calendar of scheduled virtual gatherings. During this period of distance learning, those online gatherings will bring students together from diverse classes to build community while putting their faith into action. For example,100 students recently participated in an online Care of Creation prayer service. Similarly, at the end of August, over a hundred seniors attended an advocacy challenge commemorating the March on Washington. In the months ahead, boys will write advocacy letters on diverse issues and develop posters for justice campaigns like that coordinated by Amplifier. As they respond to community needs, they will participate in the JRS promoted postcard campaign, run neighborhood food drives, and send letters to local community partners or residents in the communities typically visited for summer immersions. Simplicity and solidarity challenges will include nights when students make electricity fasts, give up having a bed, or go vegetarian. 
 
Finally, as part of the program, they will attend prayer services facilitated by clubs like the Latin American Student Association or those to be hosted virtually by ISN such as this past June’s summer prayer vigil and other network apostolates. All in all, the reset is opening new collaborative efforts within the school community and otherwise!
#JSNGlobal
Tag your photos with #JSNGlobal and SHARE your universal journeys in & out of the classroom.
And reaching beyond...
The Ignatian Distance Ministry Program: An Opportunity for Service Partnerships between Jesuit Schools
In response to the unique set of challenges and circumstances presented at the start of the COVID-19 quarantine in March, Fairfield College Preparatory School, evaluated their Christian Service program and re-imagined what contributing to the broader community might look like for students given recently imposed travel constraints, both locally and abroad. Not only was Prep’s basic local service program redesigned to adhere to new safety protocols that were implemented to protect all involved, but our global immersion opportunities also had to be reconsidered. Ironically, at a time when justice-minded and service-oriented young men and women are needed most to serve as conduits for change, they are unable to be physically present with their brothers and sisters in need both in their local communities and globally. 

With this irony in mind, Fairfield Prep was compelled to create the Ignatian Distance Ministry (IDM) Program, a fully virtual, mission-centered opportunity designed for students in Jesuit Schools to foster meaningful connections and relationships with their peers in their respective Provinces, as well as with others on the JSN Conference level and around the world. The IDM is intended to educate students in Jesuit Schools on universal global issues by interacting with undeserved and under-resourced populations to the ends that our students are inspired to take action against injustice. The elements of this program provide a unique blend of the Universal Apostolic Preferences, Christian Service, Campus Ministry, and Global Citizenship, in a retreat format. Fairfield Prep offers the IDM as a template for other Jesuit schools to modify, and adapt to their own unique contexts and circumstances during this unprecedented pandemic. Though COVID-19 has hindered the efforts of thousands around the world to directly serve others, the mission and ministry of Jesuit education does not cease; it simply evolves. 
Students Journey in Solidarity During Virtual Border Immersion 
This summer, 10 Jesuit Portland students participated in a virtual border immersion experience hosted by the Kino Border Initiative (KBI). Over the course of a week of virtual meetings, the students were able to converse with migrants, staff members, and residents to learn more about the dangers and realities of life along the border.
In past years, students have traveled to Arizona to experience the border immersion firsthand. Although this year's immersion was transformed to a virtual format due to COVID-19, the students were still challenged with the same three main goals for the experience: Humanize, Accompany, and Complicate.
"We were grateful for KBI's efforts to bring the border to us, so we could continue learning and engaging," said Andrea Casey '97, Director of the Arrupe Center for Justice. "It was an incredible opportunity to come together as an intentional community of students and educators who care deeply about the issue of humane immigration reform."
During the immersion, students heard stories and lived experiences directly from migrants and individuals seeking asylum in the United States. After having the chance to meet and hear their experiences, the students offered acknowledgments of their human dignity through affirmations.
Another portion of the immersion allowed students to accompany a KBI staff member on a desert walk to learn the challenges and dangers migrants face on their journeys. Rather than trying to solve problems or offer solutions, the students were asked to empathize and walk in solidarity with the people they met.
Throughout the journey, the students were also faced with the complexity of issues surrounding immigration. Without the constraints of problem solving, the students encountered and examined diverse perspectives and, ultimately, came to the conclusion that there is no simple answer. "Though it may be a tough, uncomfortable conversation at first," reflected Eliza Collins '22, "we have to be willing to endure the differences of opinion so that we may come together and make real social change."
On the last day of the virtual journey, the students discussed meaningful ways they could bring their experience back to the Jesuit community. As a result, the students hosted a donation drive the week of August 10 to collect high need items for the KBI locations in Arizona and Mexico.
Special thanks to Ella Sohn '22 and Kanthi Karumbunathan '22 for contributing to this article.
Coping with COVID: Intentional Conversation and Discernment during a Pandemic 
The world has turned upside down and it is easy to lose our bearings in this new reality. As the halls became quiet at school, we lost the spontaneous interactions of a supportive community. St. Ignatius knew the importance of conversation and we sought to follow his example in creating a series of formal and informal conversations to stay intentionally connected. The varied formats served different purposes and included online social gatherings, virtual community sessions, support groups for colleagues, and focused discussions on discernment and Ignatian themes. The topics ranged from mental health and flourishing, what it means to be “for and with others in a time of pandemic,” and the relationship between daydreams and discernment. Repeatedly, these conversations led to greater connection. The examination of local Jesuit ministries adaptations to COVID-19 even led to a Zoom dialogue with Jesuits in Chile who were opening their retreat houses to those in need.
More examples are available at the Loyola Office for Mission Youtube Channel. Interested in learning more about the format and facilitation of these conversations?  Please contact Robert Stephan.
La Silla Roja 2020: Protecting Education for Sustainable Lives
Magis Americas launched their back-to-school campaign, La Silla Roja, on September 15th. La Silla Roja is a global citizenship education campaign that uses a red chair as a symbol for the right to quality and inclusive education for the over 260 million children and youth worldwide who are still out of school, highlighting the impact a lack of access to education has on personal and communal development. 
In 2020 La Silla Roja will go further, calling attention to the educational gap that has only intensified in the midst of COVID-19, affecting nearly 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries, as well as the new challenges that have emerged in the context of guaranteeing access to quality education to live sustainable lives in the midst of a global pandemic. Nate Radomski, Magis Americas Executive Director, questions our individual and collective role in responding to this educational crisis. 
To tailor to the current realities, this campaign will be structured as a challenge to be completed in three phases, either online or in person. Magis Americas wants to ensure that both teachers and their students can take action and participate in this campaign by adapting it to their needs and contexts. The challenges will involve investigation, reflection, and action, tapping into students’ creativity to share their newly acquired knowledge with their peers.
Become a part of the movement! Join Magis Ameriacs as we work towards “inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all”.
For more details on the campaign, check out La Silla Roja: Precting Education for Sustainable Lives Presentation and to sign up for the campaign, click here.
2020 Virtual Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice | October 19-26, 2020 
The events of this year emphasize the need to gather as members of a community committed to social justice for continued education and action. From October 19-26, take a stand with the Jesuit network as part of the largest annual Catholic social justice gathering in the United States. Click here to learn more about this year's Teach-In, including the new weekday track for high schoolers! 
Jesuit Education: A Contemporary Map 
The global community of Educate Magis released a new interactive resource, which offers a compilation of the most important documents and events in contemporary Jesuit Education, including their origins, authors and important dates, all gathered in one interactive chronological map of key milestones in contemporary Jesuit education. View and explore the “Jesuit Education: A Contemporary Map” here.
Updates from Jesuit Refugee Service/USA 
Make Walk a Mile in My Shoes virtual! The team at Jesuit Refugee Service/USA has updated their Walk a Mile in My Shoes toolkit to make this refugee awareness exercise virtual. You can find the guide on JRS/USA’s website. From Jesuit High School in Portland, OR, to Gonzaga College High School in Washington, DC, high schools across the country have implemented this exercise as a way for students to learn more about the refugee experience. 
 
Are students looking for an extra challenge while staying active? They can sign up for JRS/USA’s 40 Miles 4 Refugees to raise awareness for refugees and of JRS’s work to accompany, serve, and advocate on behalf of refugees and forcibly displaced persons. The challenge starts on October 6 and lasts for 40 days with the goal of reaching 40 miles by November 14, which is JRS Day, a day to commemorate the people JRS has accompanied throughout our 40 years of service. 
 
Make this a team effort! Perhaps an entire classroom or sports team could sign up for this challenge to reach the 40 miles together. We are open to your ideas! Learn more and register here.
 
Each participant in 40 Miles 4 Refugees will receive a tote bag from Mikono Refugee Craft Shop. There is a suggested registration fee of $40, but we welcome any and all participants! Please let us know if you are unable to pay and reach out to Josh Utter with your questions.
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The Jesuit Schools Network promotes the educational ministry of the Society of Jesus in service to the Catholic Church by strengthening Jesuit schools for the mission of Jesus Christ.