Center Valley, Pa.--Twelve DeSales University students begin a year-long national leadership development when they attend a three-day retreat in late August as part of the 2009-2010 “Catholic Hero’s Journey” of the Salesian Leadership Institute (SLI).
In its fourth year at DeSales, the program is sponsored by the Salesian Center for Faith and Culture and is made possible through a grant from the Ryan Family Foundation. The program was created in collaboration with the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI), in Exton, Pa., and has been customized for the University to incorporate various elements of Salesian spirituality.
During the retreat, students will be guided to discover their own special gifts and talents and learn how to apply those talents in ways that maximizes the impact of their efforts. Following the August retreat, students will then participate in 10 monthly meetings with fellow participants on the DeSales campus, part of the program’s support network with which they can share their experiences and challenges and motivate each other to achieve their goals.
All students participating in the SLI program will enter their junior year at DeSales in the fall. They are as follows: physician assistant majors Mary Kate Boylan of Doylestown, Pa., Elizabeth Wenck of Allentown, Pa., and Chase Schaeffer of West Lawn, Pa.; communications majors Kevin Enright and Laura Fehrle, both of Philadelphia; also from Philadelphia, Stephanie Chrzanowski, a nursing major; sport and exercise science majors Alex Brown of Nazareth, Pa., and Melissa Gilroy of Shohola, Pa.; Justin Campanelli of Langhorne, Pa., a marketing major; Megan Montchyk of Bellmawr, N.J.; and Elizabeth Valk of Birdsboro, Pa., an elementary education major.
The Salesian Center
Established in 2000, The Salesian Center for Faith and Culture’s mission is to promote the interaction of faith and culture, in a mutually beneficial engagement, through academic initiatives that focus on the authentic integration of social concerns and gospel values. The Salesian Center supports intellectual activity in research studies, dialogue events including public forums and lectures and partnership programs. For information about The Salesian Center for Faith and Culture, click on the Salesian Center icon on DeSales University's home page at www.desales.edu or call 610-282-1100, extension 1244.
CLI
Founded in 1991, CLI is an organization of lay Catholics whose mission is to build Catholic leaders for today and tomorrow. It offers leadership-development programs for priests and seminarians; young adults and university students; and parish, diocesan, and apostolate staff. Since 1991, CLI has helped more than 7,000 Catholics reach their God-given potential as leaders and Christian witnesses in their family, workplace, community, and church. CLI is headquartered in Immaculate Conception Hall at St. Joseph-in-the-Hills, Malvern Retreat House, Malvern, Pa. For more information on CLI, call 610-251-3750 or visit the institute's Web site at http://www.catholicleaders.org/.