Taking a step forward to strengthen the bonds that have long united CLAYSS with the Marist family, Maria Rosa Tapia, Uniservitate’s global coordinator, participated in the 11th Assembly of the Marist International Network of Higher Education (MINHE), which took place from 28th April to 2nd May at the General House of that congregation in Rome.
Forty people from twenty-two institutions across different countries attended the event, which revolved around two central themes: Marist identity and internationalization. To broaden the understanding of the latter, experiences from international networks of Catholic higher education institutions already working with CLAYSS, mainly through Uniservitate, were shared. Josep Mária, from the International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU), Carlos Cohelo, from the International Association of La Salle Universities (IALU), and Isabel Capeloa Gil, from the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU), delivered engaging presentations.
In one of the assembly stages, dedicated exclusively to internationalization, Maria Rosa Tapia introduced CLAYSS and the Uniservitate global network. She elaborated on the insightful presentation by Father Ezio Lorenzo Bono, Coordinator of the ‘Global Compact on Education’ of the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See. In his talk, entitled Bridges that remain, roots that travel, Bono highlighted the international nature of the Dicastery, which coordinates more than 220,000 Catholic schools and over 700 universities, emphasizing that internationalization should be viewed as a process of cultural integration rather than a simple expansion.
In her presentation, Tapia discussed the bridges built with the Global Compact on Education through the Uniservitate global symposia and shared valuable experiences regarding solidarity service-learning developed by the universities within this Programme. She also highlighted the participation of several Marist institutions, such as the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná in Brazil, which was represented at the event. Furthermore, she described the opportunities that solidarity service-learning projects offer universities for their internationalization efforts. Tapia added that Uniservitate aims to merge the spiritual dimension with the learning process through the students’ educational activities involving community engagement while promoting their holistic education —an objective shared by the Marist network of higher education and all Catholic universities.
At the end of the week, Fabiano Incerti, Dean of Mission, Identity, and Extension and Professor in the Graduate Program in Philosophy at the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná, commented: ‘Having already participated in some MINHE assemblies, I’ve observed how the Network has grown in its Marist and evangelizing commitments.’ He added: ‘Establishing concrete collaborations to develop projects outlined in the strategic plan is an important step for future actions.’
María Rosa Tapia expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to participate in such enriching meetings and to share solidarity service-learning as a cross-cutting proposal to engage head, heart and hands within Catholic universities. She also affirmed: ‘I’m confident that everything shared will lead to the strengthening of fraternal bonds for a better education and a more just and solidarity-driven society.’
