10-08-2019

KU Becomes Part of „Jesuit Worldwide Learning“

From this winter semester, the KU will be part of the "Jesuit Worldwide Learning" educational program, with which the Jesuit order is opening up access to higher education for talented young people in refugee camps and crisis regions around the world. At the start of the program, 31 young men and women in Herat and Bamyan (Afghanistan) and the Kakuma refugee camp (Kenya) will be enrolled as students at the KU. They will complete teacher training through a combination of online courses and personal support on site. Lecturers from the Faculty of Religious Education/Church Education will accompany the students remotely and evaluate their performance. After successfully completing the six-month course, they receive the "Learning Facilitator" certificate from the university. This makes them multipliers in their environment, enabling them to accompany other people in their learning via Jesuit Worldwide Learning.

"This offer takes into account the fact that digitalization is not only changing teaching, but also learning. Many more students will follow, as the demand for teachers is very high in many parts of the world. On behalf of JWL and the students, I would like to thank President Gien and the faculty for this promising collaboration," said Fr. Peter Balleis SJ, President of Jesuit Worldwide Learning. In addition to the KU, the program's university partners include the Munich School of Philosophy, Georgetown University in Washington and the Catholic University of Nairobi (Kenya). "As a Catholic university with a focus on teacher training, we have a global responsibility for education and want to use the opportunities offered by digitalization to train teachers beyond borders in war and crisis zones," explains KU President Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gien.

The International Jesuit Refugee Service has been offering study programs in cooperation with US Jesuit universities since 2010. Three years ago, the "Jesuit Worldwide Learning" program was established as an independent initiative that aims to involve universities from all over the world. The program includes a bachelor's degree, IT and English courses as well as further training in youth social work and learning facilitation.

In support of "Jesuit Worldwide Learning", a benefit concert will take place at the KU on Sunday, October 13: The a cappella male choir "Merry Gentlemen" under the direction of South African opera singer Laurence Gien invites you to a Sunday matinee starting at 11 a.m. in the Holzersaal of the summer residence (Ostenstraße 26, Eichstätt, 1st floor). The audience can expect a musical journey with works by Schubert, Mahler, Joel, Pracht, Rheinberger and Wagner. Admission is free, but donations are requested for the benefit of JWL.

Further information: www.jwl.org.