St. Louis University is a Secular Institution, Not a Catholic or Jesuit University
Yes, you read correctly, Saint Louis University is neither a Catholic or Jesuit University. Now I know what you are thinking, that I’ve gone off the deep end this time. Everyone knows Saint Louis University is a Catholic University, right? Well, just hear me out. First, I personally agree with most of you the university is most definintely a Catholic University run by Jesuit priests. So where does this proclamation come from saying the university is secular and not a religious institution? There is a group, which I will reveal in a minute, who are making this claim and doing so in court. The case is on the docket for the Missouri Supreme Court to review on Wednesday February 21, 2007.
Interestingly, the group claiming Saint Louis University is not a Catholic University is…. Saint Louis University! Really, you just can’t make up stuff this good. Saint Louis University (SLU) is saying they are secular and they’ve got at least eight million reasons for trying to convince the court that is the case. Confused yet? Let me help you out but you’ve got to pay close attention because this is a complicated issue.
In short, some years back the city approved a TIF (Tax Increment Financing) plan for the Grand Center Redevelopment Area (itself blighted for some 30 years). Several projects were to be funded with this TIF including the SLU Arena, the old Woolworth Building and the Metropolitan Building. In total, 24 projects were listed within the district totaling some $80 million in TIF funds. Through some clever wording it turns out, critics claim, SLU will get all the area’s TIF money for the next seven or eight years — all going into the new arena, which broke ground last year. This might be as much as $14 million, they claim.
In the United States we have this pesky little provision in the constitution requiring separation of church and state. The Missouri constitution, I am told, goes even further in its wording on use of public money at religious institutions. So the question before the Missouri Supreme court is the use of $8 million in public TIF funds for the construction of an arena at a Catholic university. With $8 million in public tax money at risk, SLU has been quietly arguing in court they are not a Catholic university.
Now, I’m no theologeon but I kinda get the impression from SLU’s mission statement they are indeed a Catholic University:
The Mission of Saint Louis University is the pursuit of truth for the greater glory of God and for the service of humanity. The University seeks excellence in the fulfillment of its corporate purposes of teaching, research and community service. It is dedicated to leadership in the continuing quest for understanding of God?s creation, and for the discovery, dissemination and integration of the values, knowledge and skills required to transform society in the spirit of the Gospels. As a Catholic, Jesuit university, the pursuit is motivated by the inspiration and values of the Judaeo-Christian tradition and is guided by the spiritual and intellectual ideals of the Society of Jesus.
SLU’s argument is their board of directors are mostly lay persons, therefore they are not of any religious creed. Of course, all evidence is to the contrary. Here are some more tidbits from their mission statement page suggesting how they support the above mission, the university:
- Strives continuously to seek means to build upon its Catholic, Jesuit identity, and to promote activities which apply that intellectual and ethical heritage to work for the good of society as a whole.
- Nurtures within its community an understanding of and commitment to the promotion of faith and justice in the spirit of the Gospels.
There are numerous examples of SLU stating they are indeed a Catholic University, these are well cited in the various court briefs that I have been supplied. Here is one from a press release on the arena groundbreaking:
Saint Louis University is a Jesuit, Catholic university ranked among the top research institutions in the nation. The University fosters the intellectual and character development of 11,800 students on campuses in St. Louis and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818, it is the oldest university west of the Mississippi and the second oldest Jesuit university in the United States. Through teaching, research, health care and community service, Saint Louis University is the place where knowledge touches lives.
Interesting, in the same press release SLU makes it sound like the full TIF is being paid solely from revenues generated by the arena:
The Arena will be funded through fundraising, $8 million in TIF funding and bonds, which will be paid off with revenues from the Arena.
If the arena were a single project TIF, such as say a downtown loft building, this would be completely true. But, the arena is part of the Grand Center revelopment area which was expanded to include the site, even though it is a substantial distance away from what we think of as Grand Center.
Basically the incremental increase in property taxes, sales tax and such from redeveloping the district are to be used to help fund projects. The reality is other property owners in the area are involuntarily helping subsidize SLU’s new arena. I was told by one opponent, intimately familiar with the issues involved, that one commercial property’s taxes were reassessed so that taxes increased from $5,000/year to roughly $35,000 per year.
By getting the property taxes raised, on the argument the district has increased in value thanks to SLU and former Alderman Mike McMillan, the owners are helping fund the TIF. Their choices are to pay up or sell. Say you’ve got a great building in the area and you want to redevelop it yourself or sell to a developer. You, like developers throughout the city, look for TIF and/or tax abatement to help make the project feasible. Here is where it gets a bit tricky.
First, you are graciously given a B or C bond on within the TIF. But, the chances of you ever getting any money on this bond are way down the road, after SLU has received their money first. SLU hold a “B” bond which is subordinate to their “A” bond. All other bonds that have been issued are subordinate to both of the SLU bonds which total over $10 million. So say you decide to go foward without a TIF but you want tax abatement to lock in the current (and increasing) property taxes at the current rate. Oh, sorry — no can do. What that means is even if you raise a substantial amount of money to complete a project within the district the property taxes will go up immediately and you’ll be helping fund, with public money, the arena for SLU.
Through a number of ordinances the city has determined that up to $80 million in TIF bonds can be sold. These will be broken down in A, B and C bonds with the A’s getting paid first and so on. SLU’s arena project got the first A bond, worth $8 million. The master developer for the area, Grand Center, Inc headed by former Mayor Vincent Schoemehl, has the authority to increase the bond by up to 30% making the $8 million bond rise to over $10 million. The second bond for SLU at $2.5 could easily go to $3.25 million. If that is not enough, and the tax revenue is there to support it, the Board of Aldermen could simply pass another ordinance to subordinate other bonds and issue another to SLU. SLU’s President, Father Biondi, argued in a deposition the TIF was necessary for the arena:
Q. Is it your opinion that the eight million is a necessity, and, if so, why?
A. Yes. It is a necessity . . . Athletics plays an important role here at St. Louis University. . . Why is an arena important? Because it’s an attractive venue for students from across the United States to come to this campus to be educated in the Jesuit
tradition. [emphasis mine]
They come to be “educated in the Jesuit tradition” at a non-Catholic, non-Jesuit university? I don’t think so.
Several issues are at play here. First, Grand Center has been blighted for decades and has a blanket TIF to aid in redevelopment but all the tax revenue is going to a single SLU project located a good distance from Grand Center. Second, SLU does not need the funds so the criteria used to determine if a project is eligible for a TIF, the “if not but for” test fails. SLU could build the arena without the $8 million in public funds. And finally SLU is a Catholic, Jesuit university and therefore is ineligible to receive public moneies based on the Missouri constitution.
I haven’t told you who filed the original lawsuit challenging the use of TIF for SLU, the Masonic Temple Association of St. Louis. Yes, this is the Masons vs. the Jesuits. Both sides been through a couple of rounds with SLU coming out the winner. The stakes are big and others have submitted “friends of the court briefs” on both sides the issue.
In addition to the above links, here are documents for your review:
- Amicus Brief filed by ACLU of Eastern Missouri supporting Masons, (PDF, 92k, 26 pages)
- Amicus Brief filed by Americans United for Separation of Church & State supporting Masons, (PDF, 2.5mb, 59 pages)
- Amicus Brief filed by Center for Law & Religious Freedom supporting SLU & St. Louis City, (PDF)
- SLU_TIF St. Louis City Brief
- SLU_TIF Masons Appeal
- SLU_TIF Masons Brief
- SLU_TIF Summary Judgement ruling
- SLU_TIF Ordinance 67059
- 10/3/06 – Missouri Eastern Court of Appeals – Opinion
Articles in the Press:
- 12/15/06 – Richard Baron, John Steffen make Grand plans
- 10/25/06 – Grand Debate RFT
- 10/5/06 – MO Court of Appeals gives legal green light to TIF financing for St. Louis University (st. louis daily record)
- 6/5/06 – Eastern District Court of Appeals hears case about new St. Louis University Arena
- 8/12/05 – TIF ruling benefits SLU, not Grand Center Commentary in St. Louis Business Journal by Frederick Medler
- 7/22/05 – SLU Entitled To TIF For Arena Project
- 7/22/05 – Grand Center’s court victory resurrects $130 million in projects
- 7/20/05 – slu – St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Rules Saint Louis University Entitled to TIF Funding for Arena Project
- 6/24/05 – Grand Center suit bumped to state by federal judge
- 5/20/05 – Grand Center scores loan for new A&E home
- 12/17/04 -Â No TIF, no projects, Lawsuit stalls $130 million in development in Grand Center
- 2/27/03 – SLU arena becomes a reality
Most of the above articles are from the St. Louis Business Journal and all of those show a clear bias in favor of SLU and the TIF subsidy. Basically this seems like an unfair deal and it explains why projects such as the Metropolitan Building and the old Woolworth have not gone forward. No TIF for them, no project for us to consume. With both TIF financing and church-state issues all wrapped up into one this will certainly be interesting to see how the Missouri Supreme Court rules on this case.
This is a very misleading post. I don’t have time to get into all of the details now, but if people read the materials posted by UR, it should be clear that SLU is not running away from its identity as a Catholic, Jesuit institution. In fact there is nothing unconstitutional per se about the state giving aid to a religious organization. Instead, the test depends on what the aid would be used for.
SLU is not claiming that it is a secular institution, only that it performs secular functions (such as educating UR’s author). That is why SLU and other “religious schools” receive millions of dollars in state and federal money each year — a practice that has been held to be entirely constitutional.
Unfortunately, whether classrooms contain religious symbols is the not the test for whether state aid can be given to a university.
If UR is going to cite the Missouri constitution it should also cite the decades of case law that have interpreted its words.
This is a tricky issue. I went to a catholic high school, and I remember that they got money from the state to help pay for a new roof…the money just couldn’t be used for the parts of the roof over the chapel. It could be argued that since it is a sports arena, it will be a secular use and public money could be used to pay for the infrastructure. The same can be said for SLU receiving federal money for the new research center…it’s a secular use. As far as SLU not being a catholic university, well I would say it still is but that it is moving away from being so.
Steve said…
“I was told by one opponent, intimately familiar with the issues involved, that one commercial property’s taxes were reassessed so that taxes increased from $5,000/year to roughly $35,000 per year.”
————-
Opponents (and proponents) have a tendency to cherry pick and exaggerate claims to support their case. Given an address, this claim could easily be confirmed, and perhaps other reasons could be offered for a 700% increase in taxes.
This could be a compelling argument against the TIF, but as you have floated it out there, this claim would have to be taken with a grain of salt.
This seems to be a minor wrinkle which could be easily overcome by any number of enterprising St. Louis attorneys.
If SLU were willing to cede fee ownership of the facility, here’s the solution…
Form a separate, nonprofit corporation, not controlled by SLU. The nonprofit then leases the property to SLU for 99 years. SLU becomes the tenant, and the financing is run through the private, non-profit, secular corporation.
Next, sell the naming rights to SLU!
We’re all winners!
^”We’re all winners! ”
That certainly depends on your perspective. Should development of the entire TIF district be compromised for this one project that arguably could be accomplished without it?
The whole idea of offering Tax-Increment Financing to a tax-exempt or not-for-profit entity is pretty silly to me. As a school, SLU’s property is not taxed. As a not-for-profit, SLU doesn’t pay tax on any profit. So why exactly is SLU entitled to any form of subsidy based on taxes paid by the rest of us? Especially at the expense of tax-paying property owners in the area?
This is a real show of chuzpah–and not in the good way.
So, its a sports arena. They won’t hold mass there? They won’t pray at the graduations held there? I don’t want my tax dollars funding catholicism, islam, buddism, taoism or any form of religion. If SLU wants the arena, they can raise tuition or dial for dollars. Taxing me should not be an option.
Of course they will win this battle. The easy argument is that Federal Student Loans pay for kids to attend school at SLU, this TIF could be given the same cover.
SLU split similar hairs back when I worked on the student paper. The context was slightly different, however, they wanted to sell the hospital.
They responded to critics who said they couldn’t sell the property because it was, through SLU as a Catholic institution, the property of the Catholic Church. Father Lawrence Biondi said that was incorrect in that the school was a Catholic institution but the power and control emanated from a lay board.
Thus the university is Catholic–the way Boston is Irish–but not part of the church.
The document with the link SLU TIF Masons Appeal appears to be a ruling about the Summary Judgement. I really like pages 9 through 13 where one of the judges agrees that the case should go before the Missouri Supreme Court, but for reasons other than those cited by the majority.
He really rubs it in that the majority used a New York case to base their ruling, but he rightly points out that this is Missouri. Our constitution is not governed or challenged by New York’s state constitution.
I hope this goes to court, because I can’t wait to see how the Jesuits testify publicly.
“I hope this goes to court, because I can’t wait to see how the Jesuits testify publicly.”
Written trial record, briefs, oral arguments by the lawyers. No Jesuits.
So Steve, are you for or against the project? Because to me it sounds like you are against it. Will you (or anyone else) still be against it when they raise your tuition to cover the cost? Will you still be against it when you walk up the aisle at your graduation there, instead of the Savis center? Will you still be against it when you attend a concert there?
Now I will grant that there are a lot of people out there that think Fr. Biondi is a bully and so on, but there are more people who believe in that man and what he has done for the Mid-Town section. I’ll admit that I’m biased and I’m one of the latter.
Compare that entire area to pre-1987 when Biondi came onboard. The whole area was a crime infested, boarded up area. EVERYONE has benefited from Fr. Biondi’s vision and have rode on the coat-tails of SLU’s success. He could have stayed SLU centered, like many of the other area colleges are, but he (and his minions) are very concerned about the City and, yes, their campus.
Let them have the Arena, they deserve it.
Well Steve, this is one area where we will have to agree to disagree. The area where the arena will sit use to be crime ridden apartments until SLU purchased them a number of years back. Now I will give you that they sometimes have not done a great job of improving their properties (improving, not just maintaining) as I think the Coronado apartments as well.
But again, which is the lesser evil? By that I mean, would the mid-town district improved were it not for the SLU campus improving? Is SLU damned for buying up property that was not safe nor being maintained in order to provide a safe area surrounding their campus?
I don’t see what character the mid town has seen destroyed…the fox and other performance buildings are full, north side of Lindell has plenty of life and activities, Harris Stowe is expanding, etc.
I do agree with you though that I”m not too hip on public funding for a religious institution.
There were a number of articles both pro and con in the student newspaper when the arena and research building were in the planning stages. They make good reading.
It is my understanding that SLU operates both as a Catholic not-for-profit university and as a for profit business. It is also my understanding that these are two separate entities of the same being. The proper entity is used to get what the University needs/WANTS. Further, When applying for grants or funding they often partner with a secular or for-profit organization that may apply on their behalf or may allow them the ability to apply for themselves. For example soon the University will be receiving public safety funding made possible by homeland security grants that they are not elgible for. However they have parntered with STL City Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) and suddenly they become elegible. All SLU has to do is house a CEMA office on its campus. I think this is how they are playing arena thing. Is their partnership with Grand Center enough to qualify them for the TIF?
Weird Steve,
Your search for the truth in a journalistic manner is surprising. Most of us would be oblivious to the knowledge you dig up. Good work.
As a current student at Saint Louis University, I find the idea of our administration using public funds to build that god damn arena absolutely appalling. Yes, the arena will act as a marketing tool for students and be a money factory for the University, but we could have fund-raised that $8M, and not decided that we aren’t “technically” a Catholic institution.
As a Catholic, I came to SLU because of it’s Jesuit-Catholic identity and since day one, I’ve heard that Biondi wants SLU to become the number one Catholic university in the nation. In 2005, our endowment was $750M; in 2006, $847M. Everyone knows that hitting the billion dollar mark makes you a real contender in higher education.
SLU claimed almost $59M in government contributions on its 04-05 tax return. And yes, it is a 501(c)–non-profit, charitable organization whose gross receipts for 2004-2005 were $1,152,824,882.
It’s interesting, because last fall the University announced that they were going to recruit MORE Catholic students for the class of 2011. So much for diversity.
SLU knocked down 12 of the Grand Forest apartments to make way for the arena right when on-campus housing was at a premium. Now, housing is maxxed out at 107 percent–they’ve made the Reinert rooms into triples and are double booking rooms, making students who couldn’t get out of their housing contract but chose to live off campus anyway pay for rooms that other people are sleeping in, and also paying for.
We don’t need that $8M. Midtown needs it. SLU students need an off-campus coffeehouse and a quick non-chain food joint and a place besides Humphreys to hang out at. We don’t need that arena, we need new desks and cheaper books and Metro passes for all students. And we certainly don’t need the 8.5 percent tuition increase Biondi is throwing on us for next year.
Mo- It is worth noting that the Coronado was improved and still owned by Amrit and Amy Gill and SLU had almost nothing to do with it (except of course for providing the market base)…
I disagree that AG, Harris and SLU did a land grab on the Grand Apartments. NO ONE(yelling for emphasis) would be caught dead in that area back then (the 70’s and 80’s). The apartments were run down, and crime and rapes were occuring every day. I worked for SLU back then. I remember when West Pine actually went through the campus and how unsafe it was. Yes, the fences are inconvienent, but they do help keep the students safe and perhaps in time, they will come down (I doubt it, but who knows)
The buildings at the corner of LIndell were a 2 (or was it 3 story) store front which yes, could have been saved, the other corner, where the fountain now sits was a bank built in the late 70’s…not very historic.
Yes there were some buildings lost along Lindell. Many of those were private buildings and it was only in the 90’s that SLU purchased what was left of them, thereby saving them. (The Art Museum) By that time, Crazy Wraps had already came in and the Social Security built that ‘fortress thing’ at the corner in the 70’s. The Coronado WAS a SLU dormitory for a number of years. I remember it well and I was very upset that SLU did not take care of it, but at that time they also did not have 1) the student population to support it and 2) the size of the endorwment it has now. Many of the buildings torn down along Vanderventer were apartment buildings that had been condemned.
When Fr. Biondi came in 1987, the University was recovering from almost going bankrupt. If they had the funds, I would not be surprised if they had moved.
As for comparison to Wash U and the Loop, that really is not possible. The Loop is a private area and only in the past few years has Wash U. started to buy the apartment buildings and such…the Loop is barely within walking distance of the main campus and between the two there use to be high crime as well. In terms of investment in their community, Wash U is years behind SLU.
I will concede that SLU needs a few restuarants and coffee shops in addition to what they currently have, but the Pasta House was on campus and failed, so did another coffee shop. And besides, isn’t that where private enterprise should be stepping in? How loud would the complaints be if SLU went into those lines of buisness? The Moolah is successful, so is Vitos and a number of others. Yet a few have failed as well…that is the market forces at work.
The arena and research center will make the University greater than it is, and it will pull the area around it up as well. I know many current students are upset and think that both are a waste of money, but they are valuable recruitment tools whether they see it or not. And why shouldn’t SLU try and keep the money they spend for rent at the Savis and Scottish Rite?
(The ‘other coffee shop’ failed because it was poorly managed. It was very popular with students. I did not mean to imply that SLU should get into that line of business, but they should try to court such an establishment into moving nearer to campus).
Here’s an excerpt from The University News’ editorial pages, dated 11/09/06:
How did we respond to the accusation that we operate under a religious creed? Did we say, “Yes, SLU is a Catholic university-we operate under a Jesuit mission?” Did we proudly proclaim, “SLU’s Jesuit tradition is not merely an historical phenomenon, but a way of life that guides all university decisions?”
Of course not. Knowing that an admission of faith would be politically damning, we did what any party hungry for millions of dollars would do: We weaseled our way out of the question.
Here’s what the court said, and what we agreed with: “SLU, although a university with a Jesuit tradition, is not a university ‘controlled by a religious creed.'”
Come again? Did Saint Louis University-an institution that constantly touts its status as one of the top five Catholic universities in the nation, an institution that actively recruits Catholic students, to compete with other Catholic universities, an institution that, as Fr. Lawrence Biondi, S..J. insists, will be the best Catholic university in the nation by 2012-just sell its religious identity for $8 million?
Why not take the cheaper route-a kiss on the cheek and 30 pieces of silver?
How can we claim to operate independent of a religious creed when crucifixes hang in SLU classrooms, when the Arts and Sciences core requires nine hours of theology and when our president is a Jesuit priest?
Before taking or leaving this contested chunk of public money, SLU should consider the message this decision sends to the community and re-examine its identity: Are we a Catholic institution, or an institution that just happens to harbor a bunch of Catholics?
I’ve seen mention of an off-campus coffee shop for SLU. What about 6 North? I work nearby and see SLU students there all the time (judging by the sweatshirts, etc).
As far as SLU being secular, I’m suprised Biondi hasn’t appealed to the Pope to be ruled technically not a Jesuit, but pinky swear to kind of sort of act like one when its convenient. When I spent 8 years in what I thought were Jesuit insitutions, I got the impression that Jesuits took vows of poverty and were more concerned about helping poor people than billion dollar endowments. I remember being asked by a homeless person for some change on SLU’s campus and having bicycle cops swoop in from every direction to escort the poor guy outside of the iron gates.
Thank god SLU will have its own Arena though. During my Jesuit education at SLU and SLUH, I worked in a women’s homeless shelter, a state run old folks home where 90% of the people had alzheimer’s, and spent a year working with adolescent victims and perpetrators of sexual/physical/emotional abuse. Often I thought to myself, ‘if only the Billikens had their own arena, these people’s lives would be better.’
I’m not indicting all Jesuits buy the way. The ‘real’ ones I’ve known I still hold up as a gold standard of morality, critical (and free) thinking, and selflessness.
-bch
Summary Judgment, for the record. Unless you’re British, I guess.
Totally right on Steve…but Duuuuh.
1) If SLU is truly catholic, and if catholics are supposed to help the poor and needy, then why has (and is) SLU directly surrounded by some of the worst and blighted areas of the city? Wouldn’t a true Catholic/Jesuit institution never have let the area fail so easily? There are more panhandlers and poor people in the SLU area and (yes this is true i’ve seen it) does a Lincoln filled with priests living a ‘life of poverty’ drive on by a man with a shopping cart at a stoplight?
2) SLU really doesn’t hold up to its Catholic strictness, cus news flash- its a COLLEGE! SLU will take whatever $$ it can get- many of these out of state wealthy kids who got in here with an A in Wallet 101 an a C in Math- and yes they will sleep til 4pm after having using used a condom (oh no!) to have premarital sex (oh no!) and thus miss Sunday morning mass (oh no!) only to study for a test in taught by an openly gay (oh no!) Jewish (oh no!) professor. Maybe then, once the University has knocked down a St. Louis Public School (those kids don’t need an education anyway) can Billy attend a SLU bball game and watch them lose miserably and watch his parents $$ go down the tube.
3) Tenet owns SLU hospital, a for profit organization, but at least there is a chapel and Jesus all over the walls i guess to cancel it out. Next door is SSM Cardinal Glennon, a non-for profit hospital. Both Catholic insitutions.
…right on Steve, but duh. Like anything Catholic or religious, its Catholic when it wants to be. Many Colleges started with religious ties, but that was then…things have changed. But the contributions and improvements that Father Biondi / SLU have made are good, so minus the priest collar and the whatever traditions, its a college and a business. There is a growing amount of diversity and a great knowledge being shared and research being conducted. So no matter what the hell (oh no!) it wants to call itself, Jesuit or whatever, SLU remains a good institution no different than any other college out there. Kids still want to come here to go to SLU, get an education, be something better, do something better for the world, or maybe just get a degree to make money for themselves. At least they can hopefully see that what a University calls itself really doesn’t matter.
The real question Steve is, what mid-evil torture is Fr. Biondi thinking up for you at this very moment?
As a non-St. Louis resident though — I don’t fully grasp the tax issues here or the history. As a college professor at at Catholic related institution I do know that federal funds find there way to my institution as well as many other religious institutions mostly in the way of student loans and research grants. I’d be worried about that if there was a religious test for admission or if generally accepted scientific standards weren’t being followed in the research process but otherwise — supporting student choices and faculty research seems to me to be a worthy public goal. My sense is that you are against this Arena because it hurts the urban fabric potential not because of the funding — but that’s just me reading between the lines.
Public Eye,
The trial I hope for is the one referenced in the last line of one of the links, where Judge Lawrence Mooney, discussing the argument of SLU being controlled by a religious creed, writes, “I hope our Supreme Court orders a trial on the merits of that interesting question.”
Jeff, thanks for the spelling lesson. Can’t say I’m British, just a sloppy speller.
Alright, Steve, this THEOLOGIAN will bite. I write this more as an essay than a response because I feel this concept of Jesuit (and other Catholic) higher education demands such a piece. In this essay, I will mostly address what it means to have a Catholic and Jesuit identity. I will also articulate my experience of Jesuit education. I will conclude with a few thoughts on Catholic Social Teaching and what “Catholics are required to do.â€
First a few questions about your research as I find it quite subjective and ill-informed. Did you, in your quest to ascertain the Jesuit identity, speak to anyone in the Office of Mission and Ministry at the University, like Mary Flick who talks in front of every employee orientation about the importance of Jesuit Catholic identity? Or did you seek out the wisdom of Ron Modras, Dr. Theol who recently wrote, Ignatian Humanism: A Dynamic Spirituality for the 21st Century, and is considered a premiere authority on Ignatian Spirituality? Or did you even bother to pop into the VP for Development and University Relations’ office and ask Tom Keefe what the story was with SLU seeking out funding?
Had you gone and spoken to these individuals (though citing the Mission Statement was interesting) you would have discovered the commitment Jesuit schools have to higher learning. I quote Steve Kuder, SJ who writes that “in Jesuit schools we have both a particular mission and also a unique process, an Ignatian way of proceeding. Some call it the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm, the IPP, based upon St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises. In short: Context, Experience, Reflection, Action, and Evaluation.†Part of that Jesuit way of being includes allowing for participatory experiences for students, faculty, staff, and community.
Back in the early 80s, it was Saint Louis University who saw to it that middle school girls had a place to practice basketball in the West Pine gym. Saint Louis University School of Public Service and Center for Leadership and Community Service encouraged the growth and development of neighboring schools and has a strong partnership with St. Louis Public Schools to provide tutoring and homework assistance. Did the University catechize these children? No, that is not part of the Jesuit commitment unless directly specified as evangelization and only then is it made perfectly clear that a child and their family chooses to be catechized as well as receive basic education and those kinds of endeavors are special projects and not everyday after-school activities as part of this $20,000 grant.
The University strongly promotes the Ignatian ideal, A.M.D.G. “Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam,” a Latin term meaning “For the greater glory of God.” We talk about a community of men and women for others. It’s not a brand emblazoned on the black wrought-iron fences surrounding our community. It IS the Ignatian identity that draws 8,000 students to apply for approximately 1,500 places in the entering freshman class. I hardly think those 8,000 are applying because they want to see if SLU can finally beat Xavier. They apply because they know what Jesuit education is and the importance of a Catholic higher education institution. They also know that Saint Louis University boasts a reputable undergraduate program to prepare students for medical school, law school, seminary, and other post-graduate opportunities. A truly beneficial undergraduate experience does not reside only in the books. It exists because of the access to extracurriculars, athletics, technology, and conversation. A truly great academic institution can only be as great and productive as its students make it to be.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association posts these 2 goals on their mission statement. “The Association through its member institutions, conferences and national office staff shares a belief in and commitment to:
1. The collegiate model of athletics in which students participate as an avocation, balancing their academic, social and athletics experiences.
2. The supporting role that intercollegiate athletics plays in the higher education mission and in enhancing the sense of community and strengthening the identity of member institutions.â€
You can find on the Saint Louis University Athletics website the following statement, “At Saint Louis University, we live true to the Jesuit tradition. When our student-athletes are not providing entertainment in various venues, they are in the St. Louis community sharing the knowledge of their respective sports and providing a bright light in the lives of other.†These student athletes did everything from organize a health fair to diabetes testing to homework help after school to developing a coaching program for schools for a particular sport. In everything these athletes do, they do it “For the Greater Glory of God†(whether they can personally articulate or not, I cannot say) as per the Jesuit identity.
Institutes of higher education whether “public†or “private†cannot easily just be one or the other with monies. Today I’m working on a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded-demonstration-site for asthma; people down the hall have received millions of dollars from the National Institutes of Health, the United States Department of Agriculture, and Department of Homeland Security. The list could go on and on. Is our School of Public Health exempt from this funding because we belong to a Catholic, Jesuit institution? In fact, we are the ONLY Catholic School of Public Health.
As a Catholic, Jesuit institution (as like any college or university) we are obligated to offer our students up-to-date technology (and I would suggest talking to Ellen Watson, VP of Information Technology Services if you want to know what strides the University is taking and has taken to better technology for students), safe and well-maintained fitness equipment, living space, and also to offer a competitive edge for our athletes. The University seeks to build a space with the capacity for 10,000 seats for the showcasing of not just men’s basketball but concerts (instead of getting rained out in front of the Griesidieck complex), circus and family shows, and other non-athletic events. Every week, hundreds of students gather to worship at Saint Francis Xavier (College) Church.
The last and final point I want to make is to address my understanding as a lay theologian regarding Jesuits and the vow of poverty. I cite the Society of Jesus website which writes, “In binding the Jesuits, the vows set them free: free by their vow of poverty, to share the life of the poor, relying on God’s providence, and to use whatever resources they may have not for their own security and comfort, but for service.†The Jesuit commitment to the community is addressed from draft about Apostolic Priority released on the Feast of Saint Francis Xavier, 2005. The Society of Jesus writes, “This commitment transforms what we do day-by- day in education, retreats, and pastoral and social ministry. When we teach, write, and do research, we lead our students to apply themselves and what they learn to become the women and men for others who will dream new dreams, see visions, and work to transform society. When we preach, we connect the Eucharist we celebrate at the table of the Lord to the crying need for bread, equality, and unity among all races, nations, and classes. When we direct the Exercises, we help people to gain the freedom from our culture’s myths, religious stereotypes, and their own demons that will allow them to respond generously to the ways God’s Spirit calls them to loving service and a determined commitment to justice.â€
In sum, I hardly think Saint Louis University has shied away from the Catholic, Jesuit Identity. I am a product of 6 scholastic years of Jesuit theological training and 24 years of growing up in the Ignatian way. Maybe I’m biased but mostly I’m dedicated. I hardly believe that without a strong Jesuit influence (one influence among many) would I continue in my theological studies, public health studies, and being a woman for others. Saint Louis University is an academic and research institution dedicated to its students, faculty and staff to live out the Jesuit mission whether they are athletes needing anew facility, community members seeking free counseling at the Law Clinic, or sorority members scrubbing floors at a local school after a fire, we are all party of a Catholic, Jesuit Institution.
AMDG
Mary E. Homan, BA, Theological Studies, Saint Louis University, MA, Systematic Theology, Aquinas Institute of Theology, MPH student, Saint Louis University
Ms. Homan, I think you missed the point but thanks for the relgion lesson.
Mary, I don’t think Steve–or any of the rest of us, really–have any argument with either SLU’s Catholic identity or the contributions that the Jesuits in particular have made to Western society through their academic tradition. There is no denying that the university, its faculty, staff, and students contribute much to the culture of St. Louis. As a Protestant, I appreciate that these things are done largely without discussion of religion.
However, given that SLU does identify so strongly as a Catholic institution, and requires specific religious identification both for a certain number of seats on the Board and (as of 1967) requiring a Jesuit to be the President, it would seem that funding a University Arena with TIF money is in violation of the Missouri Constitution. (The Federal Constitution does not have the same level of restriction, so their grants don’t fall under this restriction.) Further, I would suggest that in the briefs and press releases from SLU’s allies in the case, if not from the University itself, this historical and moral tradition is actively denied.
Then again, I’m also appalled when we use public money to build more arenas/stadiums period. Bread and circuses …
I fail to see how it is different in principle that your local restaurant tax dollars go to a SLU project vs my Federal Income Tax dollars which are no doubt subsidizing your reduced rate student loans which are paying tuition at a religous affiliated institution. Further, I don’t see how Missouri’s constitution is all that different than the U.S. constitution and clearly the U.S. courts have been fine with Federal Dollars supporting religious institutions in one way or another. In a broader sense — tax dollars go to support a lot of sports venues that argue the venue benefits the community in terms of providing jobs and additional tax revenue via concessions and ticket sales. Here in DC two completed stadiums and one in the works received significant tax dollars and tax concessions — which I found rediculous. I’d rather see tax money support sports arena’s at a University rather than some uber-wealthy professional sports team. Certainly the arena will provide healthy recreational outlets for students as well as good part time jobs. Although, as a college professor, I’d probably vote for more study lounges and student learning resources — and I wonder how would you feel if some of that TIF money went to building more facilities of that nature?
Great post Steve — I’m enjoying this debate and am learning a good deal.
Admit it Steve! You just don’t like basketball that much do you?
jeff – check yourself – awb is neither british or a bad speller: see http://m-w.com/dictionary/judgement – from Merriam-Webster:
judgment
One entry found for judgment.
Main Entry: judg·ment
Variant(s): or judge·ment /’j&j-m&nt/
Function: noun
I don’t think Mary misses the point.
There would be no Grand Center without SLU and the changes it brought about in Mid-Town.
Oh my — my anti-spam word it “religion” Coincidence?
Steve, your last response to my post seems to boil the issue down well — they are useful questions — if it is true that surrounding properties will pay increased property tax as a result of this arena then that perhaps is unfair if they gain no access to TIF funds. But, does their property value go up because the Arena exists? Can they cash in on that?
And I have to say that in the grand scheme of things, paying for part of an college sports arena with public funds doesn’t seem anywhere near as agregious as the $600 or so million that is going to the new Nationals Baseball park here in DC when the schools are crumbling and such, especially considering the Nats do very little for the community. I’m suspecting SLU does a considerable amount for St. Louis in the good Jesuit tradition.
Newsteve – just don’t submit a “Motion for Summary Judgement” to a judge and expect to get away with it.
The Missouri Supreme Court is hearing this today, according to KWMU. For the life of me, I can’t find a single mention of this topic on the Post’s website.
By your phrasing I assume that you think the Grand Center area would be worse off today were it not for SLU? Well, where is the proof? In reality all we can do is speculate about alternatives. But, keep in mind that it was the St. Louis Synphony locating in Powell Hall back in 1968 that got people looking at the area. In the 80s we saw the renovation of the Fox.
And what is Grand Center? Right now it is a failed marketing plan. So maybe you are right, we can connect Grand Center & SLU.
Yes, all we can do is speculate what could have been or not. Would all the development Lewis Reed is touting in his campaigning have happened without him or just an occurance of the natural market forces? We can only speculate. We can speculate till we are blue in the face on a number of (usually) great issues that you raise. But….
Powell Hall in 1968…SLU was already there.
Fox renovation in ’80’s …SLU was already there.
Grand Center….SLU was already there.
Grand Center maybe suffering from a number of issues and I agree with you that one of them is a failed marketing plan. Maybe not failure as in complete failure, but failure to be actionary instead of reactionary, failing to stay flexible, etc.
But..Mary had it right. The Jesuit tradition is strengthened exactly because the Jesuits (SLU, Fr. B, and all) immersed themselves right amoung the poorest, the unjustly served, the oppressed. Wash U., Fontbone, Maryville….all great institutions, but for a student that truly understands the Jesuit mission of service to others and for the greater glory of God, they do not, cannot, get the same immersion without leaving their beautiful, suburban campuses.
SLU has been in the same location since 1818, first in farmland, then the outlaying poor neighborhood, then working class, then upperclass, then poor and desolate area, and now it sees that cycle come around again. All along SLU has remained true to its mission to be of service to others. They partnered with the Fransican Sisters of Mary to build a Medical School and childrens hospital, and their own hospital. They taught members of society when those members weren’t suppose to get an education (blacks, women, etc). They fought the Archdiocese when they needed to be fiscal stewards of God’s gifts and sell the hospital.
What does all this have to do with funding the Arena you are asking by now? Its relatively simple really… 8 million really isn’t that much to the University..BUT…that 8 million frees up 8 million to…you guessed it….service others (and the greater good of Mid-town, the City, the region, and yes, God’s gift of the world.
I would argue that midtown being impoverished has been exacerbated by SLU’s presence, even if now SLU is trying to make things better. I don’t think SLU is any more noble now than in the past, but rather just has more money at its disposal.
People on this blog seem to really have it out for WU. In my view WU has done many good things for its surrounding communities. WU is also one of the largest employers around and is a fantastic place to work. You can’t even compare the level/amount of academic research going on either.
Whats more important? helping people or helping businesses?
If one thinks that SLU is behaving in a selfish way, then why support it with your tuition?
We'r ed hardy outlet one of the most profession
of the coolest and latest ed hardy apparel, such as
ed hardy tee ,ed hardy bags,
ed hardy bathing suits, ed hardy shoes,
ed hardy board shorts ， don ed hardyt,ed hardy tank tops, ed hardy for women,
ed hardy swimwearand more,
ed hardy clothing. We offers a wide selection of fashion
cheap ed hardyproducts. Welcome to our shop or just enjoy browsing through our stunning collection available wholesale ed hardy in our shop.
our goal is to delight you with our distinctive collection of mindful ed hardy products while providing value and excellent service. Our goal is 100% customer satisfaction and we offer only 100% satisfacted service and ed hardy products. Please feel free to contact us at any time; we are committed to your 100% customer satisfaction. If you're looking for the best service and best selection, stay right where you are and continue shopping at here is your best online choice for the reasonable prices. So why not buy your ed hardy now, I am sure they we won’t let you down.