In preparation for the on-the-ground immersion experience, immersion participants engage in a quarter-long cohort program learning about the complex historical, social, economic, and political realities of the communities they are to visit. Over the years, students have traveled to West Virginia, Belize, Nicaragua, Ecuador, and Mexico, among other places, to learn from and serve alongside marginalized and vulnerable communities with whom we have long-standing relationships. Each program draws on the wisdom and richness of Ignatian Spirituality. In passing through the cycle of experience, reflection, analysis, and action, students gain skills for critical reflection and for integrating their experiences into their vocational discernment. All students - undergraduate and graduate - are welcome to apply.
Learn about the complex issues surrounding immigration, just housing, and border relations between the United States and Mexico while cultivating relationships with and working alongside community members in Tijuana, Mexico. Our partner organization, Esperanza International, works within communities to support families in building dignified housing. In addition to spending their days working with families to build homes, in past years participants have had the opportunity to visit a shelter for migrants passing through Tijuana on the way to the United States, to spend time at the border wall learning about the issues and policies surrounding it, and to visit local community health initiatives, among other activities.
The Appalachia Immersion in Wheeling, West Virginia is a partnership between Seattle University Campus Ministry and the Appalachian Institute. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about the history, culture, and challenges of communities in Appalachia through the lens of environmental justice.
Our immersion to Vancouver, Canada is a crossover program that bridges Campus Ministry's Social Justice and Multifaith programming areas. Participants spend the weeks preceding the immersion trip learning about different faith traditions and their presence in the Seattle area. In Vancouver, students visit multiple communities of worship, explore a variety of religious expressions, and see firsthand how diverse communities living in one small area learn to work together for the common good.
Learn more about the Interfaith Immersion in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Each fall, Campus Ministry sends a cohort of students to Washington, DC for the Ignatian Solidarity Network's Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice. This weekend of learning and advocacy brings together students from Jesuit high schools and colleges across the country to learn about and advocate on behalf of communities impacted by a diversity of contemporary social issues in the United States and beyond through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching. This is an excellent opportunity for students to plug into the broader network of efforts within the Ignatian network to put faith into action.
In the 2019-2020 academic year, Campus Ministry will be offering an Seattle Urban Plunge. This program is a hybrid offering that bridges Campus Ministry Retreats and Social Justice Immersions. Students will have the opportunity to get to know some of the people and organizations working creatively at the forefront of social change in Seattle, to stay off campus together in the city, and to unpack complex social issues and their roles within them in community.