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July 2024
Dear Faculty, Staff and Students in the Klingler College of Arts & Sciences,
July has always been a special time for me, probably first and foremost because it’s
my birthday month. I love the long, sunny days and the opportunities to get outside
and enjoy nature. I find it easier to focus on fundamental ideas this month because
my calendar is less jam-packed.
This year, July brought an extra dose of goodness as my husband and I were able to
spend time on retreat at the Benedictine Peace Center at Sacred Heart Monastery in my home state of South Dakota. Our Jesuit colleagues
regularly go on retreat and the rest of us could learn from their example. For those
of us fortunate enough to have circumstances that make a retreat possible, it is an
amazing chance not really to get away but to go more deeply into what matters most.
As Joan Chittister OSB writes in her wonderful book Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, “Benedictine spirituality calls for depth in a world given over almost entirely to
the superficial.”
The Peace Center is very “South Dakota” from the way I remember the state as a child:
wide-open prairie landscape with a river and lake nearby; comfortable, unassuming
beauty; kind-hearted people who welcome others without making a fuss. The Sisters
of Sacred Heart are extensively involved in their wider community, as teachers, health
care professionals and in many other areas. In recognition of their contributions,
the town of Yankton, S.D. recently named them Citizens of the Year. We joined the
Sisters for daily prayers and for meals. Just being in their presence suggests what
a holy experience it can be to take part in a vibrant intentional community. A plus
is that, over the years, several of these Sisters have pursued graduate study at Marquette.
I’m so grateful for the hospitality we experienced during our visit with them.
I hope that all of you found some measure of respite during the annual Gift of Time
this month, whether you spent it in Milwaukee or elsewhere. Back on the home front,
the second half of July was lively. As Milwaukee hosted the Republican National Convention,
many of us pivoted to remote work. Thanks to everyone for your patience with the extra
security and measures taken to welcome RNC guests to campus and the surrounding area.
Meanwhile, planning for the Securing Our Future initiative continued apace. By the end of July, our dean’s office colleagues and
I will have had two opportunities to meet with the Securing Our Future Steering Committee.
The thoughtfulness of this group has been much in evidence. I am confident that we
will chart a strong path forward to fulfill the ambitious goals of Marquette’s 2031
Strategic Plan while keeping our operations financially sustainable and discovering
ways to invest in key initiatives. Planning is an ongoing process and we will continue
to adapt according to our shared vision.
As we balance the many activities that call for our attention and look ahead to the
end of summer and the start of another academic year, I invite us to keep in mind
Joan Chittister’s teachings about the holiness of the everyday. She writes that “if
we are not spiritual where we are and as we are, we are not spiritual at all” and
“daily life is the stuff of which high sanctity can be made.” May it be so for us!
As always, please feel free to contact me with questions, concerns or suggestions. I appreciate hearing from you and exploring
ways we can all work together for the common good.
Dr. Heidi Bostic
Dean, Klingler College of Arts and Sciences
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