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Vision

John Carroll University will graduate individuals of intellect and character who lead and serve by engaging the world around them and around the globe.

Mission

As a Jesuit Catholic university, John Carroll inspires individuals to excel in learning, leadership, and service in the region and in the world.

John Carroll University Catholicity Statement

John Carroll University, founded in 1886, is a private, coeducational, Catholic, and Jesuit university. It provides programs in the liberal arts, sciences, education, and business at the undergraduate level, and in selected areas at the master’s level. The University also offers its facilities and personnel to the Greater Cleveland community.

As a university, John Carroll is committed to the transmission and enrichment of the treasury of human knowledge with the autonomy and freedom appropriate to a university. As a Catholic university, it is further committed to seek and synthesize all knowledge, including the wisdom of Christian revelation. In the pursuit of this integration of knowledge, the University community is enriched by scholarship representing the pluralistic society in which we live. All can participate freely in the intellectual, moral, and spiritual dialog necessary to this pursuit. Within this dialog, in which theological and philosophical questions play a crucial role, students have the opportunity to develop, synthesize, and live a value system based on respect for and critical evaluation of facts; on intellectual, moral, and spiritual principles which enable them to cope with new problems; and on the sensitivity and judgment that prepare them to engage in responsible social action.

In a Jesuit university, the presence of Jesuits and colleagues who are inspired by the vision of Saint Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus in 1540, is of paramount importance. This vision, which reflects the value system of the Gospels, is expressed in the Spiritual Exercises, the source of Jesuit life and mission. To education the Jesuit spirit brings a rationality appropriately balanced by human affection, an esteem for the individual as a unique person, training in discerning choice, openness to change, and a quest for God’s greater glory in the use of this world’s goods. Commitment to the values that inspired the Spiritual Exercises promotes justice by affirming the equal dignity of all persons and seeks balance between reliance on divine assistance and natural capacities. The effort to combine faith and culture takes on different forms at different times in Jesuit colleges and universities. Innovation, experiment, and training for social leadership are essential to the Jesuit tradition.

At the same time, John Carroll University welcomes students and faculty from different religious backgrounds and philosophies. Dedicated to the total development of the human, the University offers an environment in which every student, faculty, and staff person may feel welcomed. Within this environment there is concern for the human and spiritual developmental needs of the students and a deep respect for the freedom and dignity of the human person. A faculty not only professionally qualified, but also student oriented, considers excellence in interpersonal relationships as well as academic achievement among its primary goals.

The University places primary emphasis on instructional excellence. It recognizes the importance of research in teaching as well as in the development of the teacher. In keeping with its mission, the University especially encourages research that assists the various disciplines in offering solutions to the problems of faith in the modern world, social inequities, and human needs.

The commitment to excellence at John Carroll University does not imply limiting admissions to the extremely talented student only. Admission is open to all students who desire and have the potential to profit from an education suited to the student’s needs as a person and talents as a member of society.

The educational experience at John Carroll University provides opportunities for the students to develop as total human persons. They should be well grounded in liberalizing, humanizing arts and sciences; proficient in the skills that lead to clear, persuasive expression; trained in the intellectual discipline necessary to pursue a subject in depth; aware of the interrelationship of all knowledge and the need for integration and synthesis; able to make a commitment to a tested scale of values and to demonstrate the self-discipline necessary to live by those values; alert to learning as a life-long process; open to change as they mature; respectful of their own culture and that of others; aware of the interdependence of all humanity; and sensitive to the need for social justice in response to current social pressures and problems.

Core Values

The University’s core values include a commitment to learning in order to create:

  • An environment of inquiry which embraces Jesuit Catholic education as a search for truth where faith and reason complement each other in learning. In pursuit of our educational mission, the University welcomes the perspectives and participation in our mission of faculty, staff, students, and alumni, of all faiths and of no faith.
  • A rigorous approach to scholarship that instills in our graduates the knowledge, eloquence, sensitivity, and commitment to embrace and to live humane values.
  • A campus committed to the intellectual, spiritual, emotional, and physical development of each student.
  • An inclusive community where differing points of view and experience are valued as opportunities for mutual learning.
  • A culture of service and excellence that permeates every program and office.
  • A commitment to sharing our gifts in service to each other and the community.
  • A campus that responds to demographic, economic, and social challenges.
  • An appreciation that our personal and collective choices can build a more just world.

Strategic Plan

Catholicity Statement