Presentation of the Project ServU at the Conference of the Consortium of Catholic Universities (CCU) in Rome.
What is the Consortium of Catholic Universities (CCU)?
The Consortium of Catholic Universities (CCU) is made up of 10 Catholic Universities from across the globe. Its main goal and vision are to create and sustain a scholarly community that addresses the most pressing needs of the world and the Church. The work of the Consortium is unified on research themes set for a two-year period. It gives the possibility of sharing institutional best practices regarding challenges and opportunities of higher education.
The 2024 CCU Conference
From July 31 to August 2, 2024 the University of Notre Dame Rome hosted the Consortium of Catholic Universities 2024 conference.
Prof. Dr. Alexander M. Danzer, Prof. Dr. Rowena Roppelt and Olha Mykhailyshyn represented the KU at the conference in Rome. The delegation was headed by our Vice President for International Affairs and Profile Development, Prof. Dr. Klaus Stüwe.
The focus theme of the 2024 CCU conference was “Catholic Universities: Standing in Solidarity with Partners and Peers in Conflict Zones.”
The intention of the organizers of the conference was to explore two main questions:
1. What are important ways universities, especially Catholic Universities, through teaching and research, can contribute to cross-cultural dialogue that strengthens resilience and nurtures peace in conflict zones?
2. What are good and best practices, especially by Catholic Universities, for expressing solidarity with partners and peers in conflict-impacted zones?
Presentation of the ServU projekt at the 2024 CCU conference
The topic of the ServU project is very closely related to the topic of the conference. Developing the methodology of service learning (SL), the project pays the main attention to the implementation of SL precisely in the conditions of war and after war recovery. And this subject matter is not only theoretical. The experience of communicating with Ukrainian universities, with which we cooperate within the framework of the ServU project, proves that the SL methodology acquires additional development and distribution precisely in the conditions of war and post-war reconstruction. This teaching approach allows universities in war-torn territories to continue a stable educational process at a high academic level, thus, relatively speaking, to keep students in the classrooms. For students, SL provides an opportunity to be useful here and now, to combine studying at the university with activities valuable for others. In addition, SL in the conditions of war is often a certain psychological tool, helping students to feel a connection with their communities, both within the university and of course outside of it.
Participating in the conference offered not merely a platform to present the project and elucidate to the academic community the significance of this research and the support for universities in war zones. It also provided a valuable opportunity to engage with representatives from universities external to the project and, via their inquiries, refine the focus on certain research questions.