FAIRFIELD, Conn.—Sacred Heart University’s Charles A. Gillespie, assistant professor in the Catholic studies department, is taking on a new role as Pioneer Journey director, spearheading SHU’s efforts to define and amplify its unique educational experience.
Gillespie’s goal is to promote the attributes of a SHU Pioneer throughout the campus and beyond. A new Pioneer Journey committee will work with faculty and staff to create resources about the distinct characteristics and experiences involved in a SHU education. From there, Gillespie will help develop ways for students to put the University’s core values into action, ensure that new and existing staff members understand SHU’s mission, assist local community groups that can benefit from SHU partnerships and share information about Sacred Heart’s goals and achievements with others in Catholic higher education.
“There are some really special things taking place at our University, but we don’t celebrate them enough. We’re not loud and shouting from the rooftops about the incredible happenings at Sacred Heart,” Gillespie said.
Part of the University’s new focus is to ensure that SHU’s unique mission and culture are incorporated into each student’s journey as a Pioneer. A description of the Pioneer Journey has been integrated into the freshman orientation program and its language shared with freshman advisers and embedded in descriptions of some of SHU’s core classes.
“I’m delighted for the University that Dr. Gillespie is taking on this important new role,” said Robin Cautin, SHU provost. “With his inimitable energy and style, as well as his deep appreciation of the Catholic intellectual tradition, Dr. Gillespie will help us articulate what it is exactly that makes the SHU student experience distinctive. We all feel it, but now we will crystallize that experience in a more formalized way.”
As a self-proclaimed lover of language, Gillespie wrote an article for the Sacred Heart University Magazine last semester titled, “The Pioneering Heart,” in which he explored the word “pioneer.”
He wrote, “I think being a pioneer, in many respects, means committing to a life characterized by both reflection and courage. That’s the great balancing act of pioneering: to choose to forge ahead toward somewhere or something undiscovered …”
He also reflected on the connection between courage and heart, and he referenced the history of both words in his piece.
“Courage and heart are connected, and it was enlightening to sort out those ideas as I was writing,” he said.
Gillespie anticipates working closely with SHU’s faculty and staff in his new role as Pioneer Journey director.
“There are some amazing people I haven’t had a chance to meet yet because they may work in a different building or may be involved in another program. I’m looking forward to learning more about the University and collaborating with others from all over the campus,” he said.
With an undergraduate degree from Villanova University, a Catholic institution in Pennsylvania; a master’s degree from Yale Divinity School, which is ecumenical; and a doctorate from the University of Virginia, a public school with no religious affiliation, Gillespie has a diverse educational background.
“I’ve been in three different kinds of university settings, which has really shaped some of my scholarly interests,” he said.
At SHU, Gillespie teaches seminars in the Catholic intellectual tradition and a class of his own creation, God on Broadway, which examines how religious, ethical and cross-cultural themes emerge in plays and musicals. He also is working on a book of the same name, challenging others to raise questions about God and religion’s place in theatre.
It was SHU’s commitment to interdisciplinary classes in the liberal arts and its support for interdisciplinary scholars that attracted him to the University. “SHU has a really vibrant community and a distinct Catholic identity that I was excited to be a part of,” Gillespie said.
Gillespie’s dedication to his work reflects his love of Sacred Heart University. “
I’m really excited every day when I arrive here, and I’m lucky and honored that part of my new role is getting to share that excitement with others,” he said.
