Since “A Nation at Risk” in 1983, the “problem” of education in
the United States has occupied a prominent space in the media, in the
halls of government, and in the lives of those most involved in schools.
Through experiences of parents, students, teachers and administrators
who have sought to live out a spirituality of communion, Education’s
Highest Aim examines contemporary education in the light of a way of
life rooted in love of neighbor, and presents the effects when such a
value is lived out across a spectrum of educational milieus.
“Here is an educational philosophy, a pedagogy and a practice grounded
in the vision of unity, in a spirituality of communion. It is one that
invites students, faculty, staff, administrators and families to work
cooperatively for the development of the whole person. This is an
educational aim of the highest order worth working together to achieve.”
Anthony J. Cernera, Ph.D.
President of the International Federation of Catholic Universities
Education’s Highest Aim
will be valuable for anyone interested in
understanding and improving education — teachers’ groups; school
administrators; university courses in curriculum, instruction, or
educational foundations; parents’ organizations; developers of public
policy.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Michael James
earned his bachelor’s degree in Theology and
Psychology from the University of Notre Dame and a Ph.D. in Educational
Policy Studies from Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. James also held
a number of administrative, teaching and research positions at the
University of Notre Dame and Indiana University. He was the senior
student affairs and enrollment management officer at Mount Marty
College, South Dakota before serving as Vice President for the
Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Washington, DC.
James is currently a Fellow in the Center for Catholic Education at
Boston College where he directs the Institute for Administrators in
Catholic Higher Education, teaches in the Higher Education program
graduate concentration in Catholic University Leadership, conducts
research and lectures on Catholic university leadership and mission, and
is a co-editor of the journal, Catholic Education. James also serves on
the boards of Ministering Together and the Conference for Mercy Higher
Education.
Thomas M. Masters
holds a bachelor’s degree in English and
Philosophy from Lewis University, a master’s in English Literature from
DePaul University, and a Ph.D. in Language, Literacy, and Rhetoric from
the University of Illinois Chicago.
He has taught English at the Leyden High Schools, Franklin Park, IL;
humanities at Lewis University; rhetoric and composition at the
University of Illinois Urbana and at the University of Illinois Chicago;
and in DePaul University’s Multicultural Urban Educator program. He has
lectured and published widely concerning the history of writing
pedagogy and has worked with a variety of educational reform initiatives
through the Focolare Movement’s Education and Unity. He is editorial
director for New City Press.
Amy J. Uelmen
holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies and a
J.D. from Georgetown University, and an M.A. in Theology from Fordham
University. She currently serves as the director of the Institute on
Religion, Law & Lawyer’s Work at Fordham Law School where she
teaches and writes in the area of Catholic social thought and the law.
She has lectured and published widely on how religious values might
inform the practice of law and how principles of dialogue might inform
debates about religion in the public square.
She is a frequent contributor to the Focolare Movement’s monthly
magazine,
Living City.
By: Michael James, Thomas Masters and Amy Uelment
Paperback: 152 pages
ISBN-10: 1565483367
