Learning and Networking: NetVUE Events | October 2023

NetVUE will host the premier national gathering on vocation and calling in higher education in Atlanta on March 21–23, 2024. The lineup of plenary speakers and concurrent sessions was recently announced at the link below. Because the Conference is funded through NetVUE dues, each member institution can send a three-person team for a nominal registration fee of $200 per person, which includes all conference meals and two nights’ lodging. Up to two additional team members can attend at a higher cost. Registration will open in October so we recommend identifying who among your campus teams will attend; the conference fills quickly! In addition, if your campus is doing exceptional work related to vocational programming, consider proposing a campus-based session at the conference. Priority will be given to proposals for sessions involving more than one institution, so please be in contact with colleagues on other NetVUE campuses to begin brainstorming! 

Meghan Sullivan, O’Brien Collegiate Chair and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, will deliver the Thursday afternoon keynote address, “Called to Understand and Advocate for the Common Good”.

Darby Kathleen Ray, Harward Professor of Civic Engagement and Professor of Religious Studies at Bates College, will guide small groups through Friday’s roundtable plenary, “Hunger, Hubris, and Community Engaged Learning.

Walter Earl Fluker, Dean’s Professor of Spirituality, Ethics, and Leadership at the Candler School of Theology of Emory University, will provide the closing address on Saturday: “Called to Ethical Leadership at Intersections Where Worlds Collide.” 

A group of scholars whose work appears in the forthcoming NetVUE volume, Called Beyond Our Selves: Vocation and the Common Good (Oxford UP), will present at a conference at Baylor University in October. Geoffrey Bateman (Regis University), Christine Jeske (Wheaton College), and David Timmerman (Carthage College) will be joined by Erin VanLaningham, editor of the volume and director of the NetVUE Scholarly Resources Project for the panel titled “Higher Education, Vocation, and the Common Good.” The conference, “Called Together in an Age of Discord,” is part of Baylor’s Institute for Faith and Learning.

Proposals are currently being accepted for NetVUE’s newest grant program, which provides support for Fostering Leadership for Communities of Faith. These grants provide up to $40,000 over two years; proposals are due by December 15. For eligible member institutions, it is a perfect time to begin thinking about grant opportunities. NetVUE will soon invite proposals due in April for two continuing grant programs: one-year Professional Development Awards of up to $15,000, and three-year Vocation Across the Academy Grants that can provide funding of over $100,000 (including a donor match). NetVUE will also be announcing a new grant program designed to help institutions support students who are considering future leadership roles in faith communities.

If you are uncertain about your institution’s eligibility for these grants, please contact Lynne Spoelhof, director of NetVUE operations, at lspoelhof@cic.edu or (616) 632-1060.