Julian A. Elorduy, MET, MA

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My Educational Philosophy

My background in education began as a child, a student and an observer. I come from a family of educators. My great-grandmother authored a mathematics textbook than can still be found in college libraries today. My mother was an early childhood educator and I shadowed her work from a young age. My life has been governed by the rhythms and routines of the school year. As a professional educator, my career began fresh out of college in 2008. I began as an instructional aide and in the summers I would work as a custodian to continue to earn money. I quickly earned a full-time teaching assignment in Catholic elementary school education. While teaching, I became certified, earn a masters degree and I am currently working on a second in Lasallian Education at Saint Mary’s University in Minnesota. I have been a teacher, department chair, program moderator, assistant principal, interim principal and I have effectively served as DEIB coordinator, dean, and EdTech Specialist when those roles were vacant.

At UC Davis, I studied Religious Studies and International Relations. I always tell people that I naively wanted to save the world and to learn how I could dissect the role of religion in sectarian conflict that seemed to plague the world. My coursework helped me understand that the world is far more complex than I could have imagined as a teenager. With humility, I grew a sense of empathetic interest in the dimensions of religion that have developed phenomenologically in response to epistemic and experiential challenges and mysteries. Truth is a fussy subject and authority is a domain fraught with tension. Absolute truth occupies a space that can be managed by God alone. This calling echoes throughout history as people individually or collectivity bear witness to the divine and attempt to give order to its inherent mystery. This tension between order and mystery is what makes religion so fascinating to me.

I grew up in a Catholic household. It was not rigidly Catholic. We went to church almost every Sunday. I was initiated into the church and received the sacraments attending a Catholic grammar school from kindergarten to sixth grade. I grew up wanting to become a priest and a saint. We had a close relationship with our pastor, Fr. Arnold. My mom served on parish council. I was an altar server. I sang in the choir. I existed in a thoroughly Catholic environment.

I think that I received a good education and I learned how to be a good student and a good Catholic boy. My choir teacher, Mrs. Jennings was a powerful influence on my spiritual development as she would pepper her choir lessons with teachings on the saints. Growing up in the Church during the 1990s, I recently realized that music of the St. Louis Jesuits was the soundtrack to my childhood. But an emphasis on discipline and a traditional Catholic understanding of the world started to wear on me. I started acting out in sixth grade. I got in trouble a couple of times for being for acting out. This was unusual behavior for me.

I was a quiet kid. Very quiet. I learned that children were better seen and not heard. I could sit quiet and still through mass and class time and I could stand in line obediently. By sixth grade, I think was starting to snap. Rather than work with the school to address my behavior, my parents thought it might be best to send me elsewhere and save some money. So in 7th grade I transferred to a large three story middle school called Sutter Middle School with approximately 1000 students. To say the least, this was a shock to my sense of self and my view of the world. About seven of us transferred from my small Catholic school to this middle school. Some of us did really well. Some of us just got by and others got off track. I was somewhere in between.

I am grateful for the variety of experiences and environments that have supported and influenced my development. I think that these experience have given me a well rounded perspective that enhances my role as an educator today. Sutter Middle School was incredibly diverse. Sacramento has been called the Ellis Island of the West Coast. There was still the socially connected, affluent group of mostly white students who congregated on the main lawn. These students lived in the elite and affluent East Sacramento neighborhood. A community that is featured in the film, Ladybird. For whatever reason, I did not feel drawn to these students, did not feel welcome by them or lacked the social skills and agency to introduce myself. The rest of the school came from all over Sacramento to take advantage of the school’s strong academic program. My best friends in middle school were Iqram and Steven. Iqram was Egyptian and Steven was Vietnamese. We were a pretty tight group and hung out and played basketball everyday together. For whatever reason, we never exchanged phone numbers. This was before cell phones and email. After middle school, we never saw each other again. I cried on the last day of middle school realizing for the first time that I probably never see them again.

During middle school, I became interested in numetal, skatewear and wearing jnco jeans. I returned to my old school for an event one day and I had so changed that former classmates wouldn’t play or interact with me and just stood around staring. After being forced to wear a uniform for seven years, what did you expect would happen! I see this exploration of freedom happen while teaching high school now and styles that were once considered alternative have now just become the norm. Dress and attire is more about personal freedom than is about identity, values, success or well-being.

In the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) Program, I struggled a bit. Where my Catholic school emphasized rote learning and memorization, the GATE program was about critical thinking, collaboration and discursive learning. I tested well, but I did not do well in the socialized space of the classroom where I was overwhelmed by what people thought of me and who I thought were most attractive girl in the class. I did fine, however, I consider myself blessed to have two years in such a diverse environment. This experience helped me understand that the school setting is a unique social experiment testing biases and enabling an encounter with difference that is necessary for social harmony. While developing knowledge, skills and understandings that will hopefully help us thrive in comes next, we also learn how to exist with people who come from different backgrounds. I have found this to be true. Every experience whether as a student or a teacher, has taught me something that has been useful later on. Maintaining a growth mindset is not optional to me.

After eighth grade, I attended Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento, CA. My father went there in the 1960s and other family have attended the school. I tested into advanced classes, however, my skills in reading and decoding higher level vocabulary did not allow me to be successful in those classes. I remember reading the English texts and looking for the gloassary or trying to find footnotes to give me a sense of the context of what I was reading. This was before an iPad would have enabled me access to a wealth of tools including a dictionary, YouTube videos explaining the plot of a text and websites with summaries and commentary. All of which a current student just confirmed she uses in her Honors English classes. During high school, I used a computer mostly as a word processor or to play Command and Conquer. Our capacity as learners is only as good as our access to the right tool, our agency, sense of self-worth, entitlement, emotional and psychological security, etc.

After Freshman year, I transferred to be “B-Level” or College Prep (vs. Accelerated College Prep) or Regular level courses. These are all different names for the same program that I have seen at Lasallian High Schools. The atmosphere in these classes was far less serious and the students weren’t nearly as academically inclined with a diverse body of students presenting vastly different challenges to teachers. It became clear that this was a space that would be comfortable for me in the sense that I wouldn’t be challenged, I could pass the tests without studying and I could do the homework at the last minute or not at all and still get a fine grade in the class. This would be the withering away of my academic abilities which would cause me to suffer in college. Classes were easy for me. I didn’t have to try very hard and no one asked more from me because by all measures I was doing fine.

It wasn’t until Junior and Senior year that I had two things going for me. First, I met a girl. She was wicked smart and had well-educated, successful parents. As a family, they ate dinner and talked together every night. She lived in a big beautiful house overlooking the Sacramento River. She saw in me that there was something more than I was giving. She listened to me when I talked and showed me how to appreciate nature, music and art. She inspired me to try a bit harder in school too. Her parents cheered me on too. Second, during Senior year I took two college level courses in Philosophy and Logic taught by a teacher at Christian Brothers. This class was transformational because of the content and because I truly felt seen as a student. The teacher, Mr. English, made me feel like the class was important and his passion and attention to each student helped motivate. I ended up getting into UC Davis my best option given by academic background.

Teaching professionally since 2008, I have witnessed many changes in the educational paradigms that guide leadership in making decisions and planning for the future. Effective learning environments should support each student in their unique pathway to success. This can be done by recognizing that learning is a science and teaching is an art. The Science of Learning is a domain of cognitive science that teaches us how the brain learns. The Art of Teaching is a discipline that is responsive to developmental psychology and the exact learning expectations of the content area. In a Lasallian environment it is also a deeply spiritual endeavor.

Research in both developmental psychology and cognitive science should be a primary guide for instructional design. This directly serves two Lasallian Core Principles, Quality Education and Inclusive Community. Designing education around the science of learning and developmental psychology serves inclusion because it is responsive to how the brain functions and the holistic development of every learner. It also tends to serve learners who have significant learning challenges. In a study on retrieval practice (RP) which is a learning technique that grew out of cognitive science, researchers found that “several studies in healthy undergraduates show that “retrieval practice […] RP presents a promising learning strategy for children and adolescents with memory problems after a TBI” (Coyne, 2020). Furthermore, developmental psychology (Erickson, Bronfenbrenner and Gilligan) tells of the important of environment in influencing the development of learners. It also highlights the importance of relationships in human development, an essential component of the Lasallian charism.

Teaching in the 21st century, involves seeing students as individuals through data collection, teacher narratives, and a rigorous analysis of student work. Equally if not more important is seeing students as part of a larger system, network, body, or team which serves a mission or goal that is larger than the individual. In others, students needs to an experience of Communion in Mission.

There is an educational philosophy which aligns with this perspective and it is called connectivism. This theoretical approach recognizes the importance of mental activity to create meaning and places central importance on the experiences of the individual (Ertmer, 1993, 62). Furthermore, “learning must be a way of being—an ongoing set of attitudes and actions by individuals and groups that they employ to try to keep abreast of the surprising, novel, messy, obtrusive, recurring events . . .” (Vaill, 1996, p. 42). This educational theory predicted the increasing reliance on technology that has grown ever stronger in the 21^st century. Connection is one of the most essential elements of the human experience. In a 21^st century school setting, connection is about more than in-person interactions with people on campus. These interactions are combined with on-going interpersonal interaction which occur synchronously and asynchronously 24 hours a day via the internet. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the entire Christian Brothers community to use the network to facilitate learning in new ways and under unique constraints. Through periods of frustration and revelation, our community came together in person and online to persevere throughout this pandemic. Greater than any pedagogical claims, one of the most powerful considerations for connectivism to me is that it compares to St. Paul’s great metaphor of the Body of Christ. Each member serves a vital function in service to the whole. This very Catholic notion is beautifully reflected in the learning environment of a Catholic school. We are called to recognize our unique value as individuals born in the image of God, but this value finds its ultimate purpose in sublimating the needs of the self to serve the greater mission of salvation in climbing the mountain toward the Kingdom of God.

Aside from connectivism, community of inquiry and self-transcendence are essential ingredients to a Catholic educational community. Each of these theories or frameworks have applications in schools and virtually every other setting, personal or professional, that a person may encounter in a lifetime. This is because learning and being are an on-going part of the human experience. The school setting should structurally model and support the sorts of learning that will continue long after diplomas have been earned. Being authentically Catholic also requires an engagement with the world and experiences that transcend notions of the self.

As Yuval Noah Harari states in Homo Deus, human beings are quite divisible into an experiencing and narrating self or a left-brain and right-brain self (2016). If we apply this to human networks and the Catholic Church, we recognize that there are Pauline and Petrine elements in and outside each of us. Elements of great integrity along with the spark of creativity and innovation are essential to crafting a better vision for the future. A school should be a place for integral planning—curriculum, scope and sequence, and assessment tools—but it should also open the door to creativity in departments other than media and performing arts.

We are living in interesting times and have an immediate need for teaching to the greater goal of the salvation. While this task might seem fundamental to the faithful, in our increasingly secular world it falls on deaf ears. I believe that each learner, educator and member of the community is in search of spiritual meaning and growth. As bell hooks says, love is “the will to extend oneself to nurture one’s own or another’s spiritual growth” (1999). Therefore, we must find new ways of teaching eternal truths. So that each member of a Catholic-Lasallian community might understand that when I raise my heart and mind to God, I am both elated and grounded in the awareness that there is great work to be done. I must be called to express my love in action. Catholic Education should be rooted in both empathy and action. All learning needs to be connected to a concern for the world and to a Christian consciousness which directs activity to the empowerment of those most in need.

My understanding of the role of each member of a teaching and learning community is founded on partnership, organization, attentiveness, and care. Teachers are partners in their students’ learning. Administrators are partners with all major stakeholders in creating a coherent vision for the future, because according to George Siemens, “our ability to learn what we need for tomorrow is more important than what we know today” (Siemens, 2004). We should design our classrooms and pedagogy around what students need to know and what learning experiences they need to have.

I believe that teachers should connect learning to students’ core identities and their personal goals for themselves and their futures. When teachers plan and implement curriculum without these social and emotional connections, students become burdened by work that appears tedious and irrelevant to their lived experience. It in effect becomes a source of trauma and disdain for learning, the exact opposite of the goal of education. I understand that developmentally students may not come into high school with a clear understanding of why they are driven to succeed at their level, but I hope that by the time they graduate their purpose is clear and undergirded by their own understanding and faithfulness in the Holy Presence of God.

RESOURCES

Bronfenbrenner, U. (2005). Ecological systems theory (1992). In U. Bronfenbrenner (Ed.), Making human beings human: Bioecological perspectives on human development (pp. 106–173). Sage Publications Ltd.

Erikson, E. H. (1980). Identity and the life cycle. W W Norton & Co.

Ertmer, P.A., & Newby, T.J. (1993). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 6(4), 50-72.

Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice: Psychological theory and women’s development. Harvard University Press.Harari, Y. N. (2016). Homo Deus. Harvill Secker.

Harari, Y. N. (2017). Homo Deus: A brief history of tomorrow (First U.S. edition.). Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

hooks, b. (2000). All about love: New visions. William Morrow.

Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

Vaill, P. B., (1996). Learning as a Way of Being. San Francisco, CA, Jossey-Blass Inc.

Gentleness as a Lasallian Virtue of Special Emphasis in Building Trauma-Informed Schools

Introduction

As a young teacher, one word frequently came up in my observations: “gentle.” This word often left me feeling uneasy and sometimes weak and ineffective, even if that was not the intention. I feel that it might be just in identifying this as a microaggression against traditional expressions of masculinity and power that have traditionally been celebrated in our culture. As a young male teacher trying to establish myself and be taken seriously as a professional, my first reaction was that this descriptor meant I was a pushover. In my experience, teachers around the faculty lunch table often seemed to celebrate asserting their authority over students. It wasn’t until recently that I became aware of research that values sharing power with students. Imagine a school environment that respects and shares power with students—what would that look like?

When I cleared my credential through the California Teaching Commission’s induction program, my mentor teacher described me as a “teddy bear.” I assumed this meant students weren’t afraid of me, and that I lacked authority in the classroom. My classroom, however, was not out of control, and students were accomplishing the learning goals. So why was it necessary to operate as an authoritarian? I laughed off this designation, but it also struck a nerve, leading me to question what it truly means to be a teacher, a man, and an authority figure. Over the next few years, I grew in confidence, but it was never in my nature to take on a domineering role in the classroom. Despite this, I did not feel ineffective. I developed trust with my students and colleagues. A colleague later described me as an empath, which further led me to question what defines master teachers in terms of tone and demeanor in the classroom. What would De La Salle have said about the best approach to classroom management, and how might this be supported by current research? Based on my findings, De La Salle valued gentleness, and current research on adolescent behavior affirms that gentleness creates environments that support student learning.

As the child of an educator, I think my instincts in the classroom were shaped by my mother, who taught preschool and kindergarten for many years. I observed how she operated in her classroom, working with young children. Naturally, working with young people requires a gentle touch. Their innate tenderness calls for reciprocal energy, and when they lose this tenderness, chaos must be met with tenderness. My mother embodied psychologist Carol Gilligan’s perspective, which suggests that acts of nurturance and concern for others are expressions of strength, not weakness (Gilligan, 2009). I never once perceived that my mother, despite all her kindness and gentleness, lacked control over her classroom or that students weren’t learning. More importantly, students were seen, loved, and cared for by a woman who sincerely loved her job, even though she had never gone through traditional teacher training.

As I spent time in her classroom, I saw how she treated students and quietly accompanied them through their emotional episodes. She took special care of students who were considered “difficult” or “problematic.” Her perception of these students was not clouded by harsh judgment or a desire for the convenience of being surrounded only by obedient, compliant children. She likely would have resonated with writer Joan Desmond, who said, “A spirited, unruly student is preferable. It’s much easier to direct passion than to try and inspire it.” I didn’t realize at the time how deeply my passive observations of my mother would impact me, but they helped me understand the value of gentleness and tenderness—qualities that foster a certain type of comforting authority and strength.

A Reflection on the Virtues of a Good Teacher

Let’s reflect for a moment on the most and least effective teachers we’ve encountered. One of the most painful and ineffective experiences I had as a student was in first grade. I have great admiration and respect for elementary school teachers, and as a former elementary school teacher, I understand their demands firsthand. However, my first-grade teacher was anything but gentle. I remember her making a fellow student cry over a spilled jug of juice, despite it being an accident. I also remember being the last to finish a math worksheet, and when I finally finished, she had the entire class applaud me. I remember this to this day, and even as a young first grader, I understood it was a form of mockery and shame. My mother actually worked as her instructional aide during her first few years in teaching. At one point, my mother became so distressed by this teacher’s treatment of the students that she walked out of the classroom in protest, sobbing over the poor treatment of the children. I would describe this teacher as severe—the exact opposite of a “teddy bear.” However, this severity was celebrated in the school. Being strict and resolute in your dealings with students was seen as the ideal environment for “saving young souls.” She may have succeeded in cultivating obedient, compliant students, but something important was certainly lost in terms of child development and integral salvation. As Vince Gowan writes, “Be sure that in your educating you are not manufacturing obedient citizens, but rather unleashing powerful, creative souls.” Sometimes, we are afraid of powerful, creative young people, or at least fail to see the value in what they can contribute to the world around us.

The best teachers I’ve had were patient, loving, caring, and gentle. These teachers saw students as whole people and did not define them by their worst actions or behaviors. Modern psychology teaches us that all behavior is communication. We are called to be the still point in the learning environment for the “children entrusted to our care.” Furthermore, polyvagal theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges and expanded by Dr. Deb Dana, helps us understand how concerns for the nervous system can support student learning and educator well-being. Polyvagal theory explains how our autonomic nervous system responds to stress, safety, and connection, and how neural pathways influence behavior, emotions, and physiological states (Dana, 2018). I believe this theory and its clinical applications should be a compulsory component of teacher education programs. I recall hearing phrases like “don’t smile until Halloween” early in my career, which now seem absurd. If we must enforce student behavior through fear and intimidation, we are failing to engage students in a way that serves their learning experience. We are also creating environments where learning becomes a chore, and school a burden. According to Dr. Dana, “Your regulated state is your biggest teaching tool” (Dana, 2021). Leveraging this tool is key to being a whole person in an ever-changing world. Self-regulation allows us to return to a calm state when triggered, which helps facilitate connection and resolve. This focus on self-regulation also benefits educator well-being.

I firmly believe that educator well-being and student well-being go hand in hand. Students enjoy learning from teachers who enjoy teaching, and joy should be at the heart of our mission to serve young people. As child development researcher L. R. Knost states, “When our little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it is our job to share our calm, not join their chaos” (Knost, 2013). As a parent of young children, I find this to be true in my own life. It is challenging, however, and developing regulation is greatly supported by ongoing practices like breathing exercises, meditation, reflection, journaling, and general health and well-being practices such as exercise and diet. These practices go beyond implementing a mindfulness program—they are about leveraging our understanding of the nervous system and facilitating mind, body, and soul maintenance. Thankfully, our Lasallian spirituality places salvation at the center of our mission: “While it is important to educate children, what is much more pressing is the need to love them” (Gowmon). This love extends throughout Lasallian learning communities and extends from the grace that flows through the trinity. We are stewards of God’s grace and the objects receptive to this grace are each other, supported with love in our care for our students and each other.

A Focus on Gentleness

As a Lasallian educator, I believe that gentleness brings us into closer union with God and Christ. As De La Salle writes, God “directs all things with wisdom and with gentleness” (De La Salle, 1714). By embracing gentleness, we achieve goodness, sensitivity, and tenderness without sacrificing strength, much like God’s providential care for His creation. According to Saint Mary’s Press, “Gentleness restrains our fits of anger, smothers our desires for vengeance, and helps us face with a calm soul the misfortunes, disappointments, and other trials that can happen to us” (SMP, 2024). Gentleness flows from agapic love, which calls us to love without harsh judgment and without selfish motives. I believe that gentleness also respects students’ agency. If we don’t force desired behaviors, we are not demanding a ritualized performance from students. I find the subject of performance in child development fascinating. Some educators demand a certain performance in the name of decorum and civility, and while students can learn to comply in a specific way, this often reflects the dorsal vagal state—Porges and Dana’s most primitive state, which is marked by immobilization. This state, I feel, denies students access to integral salvation and liberation—defining qualities of Lasallian spirituality (Link). Performative compliance and obedience are not regulation, nor do they support learning for real-world engagement. Learning for the real world requires maximizing students’ agentic capacities—capacities necessary to respond meaningfully to the ever-changing world. This meaningful response is tied to their integral salvation and liberation. Salvation and liberation are not about learning to be “good”; they are about actively engaging in the world, responding with heart and mind to the needs of the poor and vulnerable. This concern for students’ agency is reflected in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. As child development consultant Dr. Alfred Kah Meh Pang writes, “This turn to children and childhood in contemporary theology points us to the need for an anthropology of relational belonging that holds out a space for children as agents. […] How we see children as one of us, belonging to God, is at the heart of what it means to educate toward their flourishing in faith” (Pang, 2021). This approach to respecting students’ agency requires adults to step back and leave space for students to step into leadership and power-sharing. How can we invite students into conversations about what and how they are learning? How can they help us design policies that govern our classrooms? I believe that this approach leads to increased relational belonging and more positive associations with the school. The more positive students’ experiences are, the greater incentive they have to return energy and resources to the school as alumni.

Gentleness is a virtue that deserves special recognition, especially for male educators in a world that often doesn’t celebrate gentleness in men. However, gentleness, non-violent communication, and regulation are key aspects of being male in the 21st century. Though early in my career I did not celebrate this quality, I have since learned to appreciate it. I must note, however, that I do not always embody this quality. I have moments where I get frustrated with students, and certain behaviors from my own children sometimes drive me crazy. In those moments, I embody the most normalized male emotion—anger. However, this is part of the ongoing work I do to support my regulation, hoping that as I grow in this area, I will have more to share with students.

Resources

Dana, D. (2018). The polyvagal theory in therapy: Engaging the rhythm of regulation. W.W. Norton & Company.

Dana, D. (2021). Polyvagal practices: Anchoring the self in safety. W.W. Norton & Company.

De La Salle, J. B. (1996). Memoir on the beginnings. (C. B. Manship, Trans.). Lasallian Publications. (Original work published ca. 1714)

Gilligan, C. (2009). In a different voice (p. 128). Harvard University Press.

Knost, L. R. (2013). The gentle parent: Positive, practical, effective discipline. Little Hearts Books.

Pang, A. K. M. (2021). Whose child is this?: Uncovering a Lasallian anthropology of relational belonging and its implications for educating toward the human flourishing of children in faith. Journal of Religious Education, 69(1), 91–106. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40839-021-00134-w

Saint Mary’s Press. (2024, August 8). The twelve virtues of a good teacher.

The Twelve Virtues of a Good Teacher

Confronting Morale in Lasallian Secondary Schools Through Radical Belonging and Empathy

Abstract

This paper explores the issue of morale in Lasallian secondary schools and argues that the spiritual vitality of the Lasallian charism can be a source of renewal through a radical commitment to belonging and empathy. Drawing on personal experience, Lasallian documents, and contemporary theological sources, the article examines the vocational identity of educators within the charism of Saint John Baptist de La Salle. The 43rd General Chapter’s call to co-responsibility with the laity, the kenotic spirituality of the French School, and the communal imperative of “Together and by Association” serve as key theological anchors. Central to the paper is the idea that educators, like students, must be “wholly-made” through relational and institutional care. Lasallian schools must move beyond the mere implementation of programs to a systemic and spiritual embodiment of inclusive community. As educators grapple with the aftermath of global and personal trauma, the paper calls for school leaders to create cultures of trust, purpose, and transformation. In doing so, Lasallian institutions can reanimate their founding vision as spaces of human and spiritual flourishing—places where salvation is made visible through radical love, relational fidelity, and educational mission.

Author Biography

Julian A. Elorduy has served in Catholic Education since 2008 and in Lasallian Education since 2014 in roles ranging from janitor to Interim Principal. He is currently a religious studies teacher at Justin-Siena High School in Napa, California. Previously, he served at Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento.

Elorduy is pursuing his second master’s degree in Lasallian Education at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. He also holds a Master’s in Educational Technology from Boise State University and dual bachelor’s degrees in Religious Studies and International Relations from the University of California, Davis.

Keywords: belonging, morale, empathy, kenosis, asceticism, laity, human wholeness

Introduction

This article is adapted from an assignment for the Master of Lasallian Education program at Saint Mary’s University, Winona. The prompt invited us to articulate our own interpretation of Lasallian spirituality, grounded in our experience as educators and students of the program. The following is a meditation on this passage from The Teacher’s Saint by George Van Grieken: “Lasallian education has the school as its setting, the teacher as its focus, and the salvific potential of education as its inspiration.”¹ I first encountered this quote during the COVID-19 pandemic, when I was asked to present to the Board of Trustees at Christian Brothers High School, Sacramento—founded in 1876—where I serve as Department Chair for Religious Studies. In preparing the presentation, I realized how much I had internalized the mission of Lasallian education, having both attended and worked at a Lasallian high school. My father also attended this school, and I have formed some of the most meaningful trusted adult relationships of my life within this community. Yet despite this deep connection, at the time, my official formation in the Lasallian tradition was somewhat limited, and I struggled to articulate the charism in a way that I felt was sufficient to the task I had been assigned. Seeking help, I reached out to Charlie Legendre, AFSC., who generously shared a collection of quotes from the Founder and Lasallians across RELAN. That resource remains a cornerstone of my ongoing formation. I celebrate him as a model of Lasallian spirituality and virtue. The quote above struck me as radical. In my experience, teachers did not always see themselves as central to the spiritual life of the school. There seemed to be much work to do. Teachers must be affirmed and empowered to recognize themselves as the heart of Lasallian spirituality. The transformative, salvific role of education must be proclaimed boldly. It is a beautiful and animating tenet of the Lasallian charism. Perhaps I sound naive, but a perspective “fresh as morning dew” can be powerful. My central thesis is this: Lasallian communities should respond to the universal desire for human wholeness. As living manifestations of the Body of Christ, schools ought to offer a taste of heaven on earth. This is accomplished through a systemic approach to cultivating a sense of radical belonging and an empathetic vision of schools as spaces for human development, not merely academic achievement.

The 43rd General Assembly: An Ascetic Vision for Lasallian Education

In my classroom, for many years, I posted this truism, “It is often difficult to be honest with ourselves.” The 43rd General Chapter of the Lasallian Brothers modeled this honesty, proclaiming that the Lasallian educational mission is shared in co-responsibility with the laity.³ This development, while liberating, carries risks: the potential dilution of Lasallian identity and an urgent need for lay formation. The Lasallian notion of Together and by Association, emerged from a clarity of vision. Emboldened by the ideals of Spirit of Faith and Zeal for Service, Lasallian schools embody Communion in Mission. Adopting an ascetic perspective urges ongoing reflection on our attachment to reality. These defining qualities invite us to see reality as God sees it, with clear eyes focused on the poor and marginalized. As Alvaro Echeverria, FSC, notes, “Association for the educational service of those who are poor… involves excluding no one and being concerned principally about those who are excluded.”² I describe Lasallian education as defined by a “joyful seriousness”—work that is serious and rich with purpose and meaning directed at the salvation of soul and also filled with unbounded joy. This requires a Christ-consciousness: a mystical understanding of our interconnectedness.

Lasallian-Catholic spirituality is ordered towards finding a place for each member of the community to confront reality which natural results in tending to the needs of the poor and marginalized. As Brother Michel Sauvage, FSC., wrote, it is the Spirit that sends us to confront injustice with hope and power.⁴This spirituality is rooted in kenosis, or self-emptying, which does not negate the self but orders it toward the service of the Kingdom.

Lasallian Spirituality and the Pursuit of Human Wholeness

The Christ of the Gospels is other-oriented, radically empathetic, and transformative. A Lasallian school faithful to its Catholic identity does more than maintain sacramental rituals; it becomes a center of agapic living. This means the community exists and is organized to serve the spiritual, psychological and emotional needs of all members. As Sr. Ilia Delio puts it, we are all “wholes within wholes.”⁵ Lasallian communities should cultivate wholeness in adults as well as students. This wholeness is a prerequisite for the salvific potential of education to be realized.

De La Salle, moved by the needs of his time, was drawn into the salvific power of education by grace and a spirit of faith. If we are to be wholly made, we must affirm our shared humanity. Scott Sorvaag, EdD, describes Lasallian leadership as rooted in a commitment to human wholeness.⁶ Lay educators need formation and care, both spiritual and practical.This is not separate from divine grace but is an expression of it. While we are called to kenotic, self-denial, our vocation can and should also nourish us. The French School of Spirituality emphasized kenosis so that we may be filled with Christ. The vocational dynamic at the heart of Lasallian philosophy must be animated by Spirit, Zeal, and Communion. Without this spirit, the Rule tells us, we become “dead members” of the community.⁷

De La Salle evolved a revolutionary spirituality centered on educators. Following pioneers like St. Francis de Sales and Mary Ward, he developed a charism that makes educators co-workers with God. According to the International Council for Lasallian Association, Lasallian spirituality is inherently communal. It cannot exist apart from Together and by Association. According to the International Council for Lasallian Association and the Educational Mission in Rome:

“Lasallian spirituality is oriented toward community. It is lived in the spirit of faith and zeal together in communion for mission, or better said, in association for the educational service of the poor. Lasallian spirituality cannot be lived or understood without reference to “together and by association.”⁸

As our ministries evolve, especially with the growing role of laypersons, we must ask how this spirituality translates today. De La Salle responded to early modernity; we respond to secularity, urban poverty, and fragmentation. His words still challenge us: “You are co-workers with God… and the souls of the children whom you teach are the field that He cultivates through your labors.”⁹

But who tends the adults laboring in those fields?

Programs such as formation, DEIB initiatives and professional learning communities all play a role. Yet we need deeper inquiry into their effectiveness. In conversations with educators across RELAN, there is a clear and unifying commitment to the mission. There is also an opportunity to deepen adult relationships grounded in that mission. Our students and educators must be seen, named, and affirmed in their journey toward wholeness. We must meet that yearning with the transformative power of Lasallian-Catholic education.

An effective Lasallian philosophy for leadership must reflect on how leaders, in collaboration with all stakeholders, can support lay professionals. We are called to be co-responsible stewards and guarantors of the mission.⁹ This means integrating a vision of belonging and human flourishing into leadership itself. We must seek a culture of care where all community members experience love, wholeness, and growth.

Lasallian Educators and the History We Have Lived

We are living in the shadow of collective trauma: the pandemic, school violence, global and domestic conflict, and economic instability. These realities have reshaped how we view mental health and educator and student well-being. We should also recognize the personal burdens our lay colleagues carry: aging parents, parenting, financial stress, and more. Lasallian education cannot eliminate these burdens, but it can continue to cultivate a climate of care and essential belonging.

Professional development should be designed with wholeness in mind. We must reject “othering” and instead build communities around Inclusive Community and Respect for All Persons. Belonging cannot just be a value—it must be systemic.

John A. Powell of UC Berkeley reminds us:

“Structural belonging requires mutual power, access, and opportunity… Operationalizing belonging means all groups contribute to the evolution of that to which they belong—transforming the container itself.”¹⁰

In this vision, belonging is transformative. The crises of our time can erode that sense of belonging and wholeness and the pressure to succeed, limited support, and cultural anxiety lead to burnout. We must reignite our Christian and human-centered identity. Every Lasallian deserves a place in the shared pursuit of wholeness. In accordance with the quote above, honoring Inclusive Community and Respect for All Persons means respecting the agentic power of the individual and empowering all groups to contribute to the container of Lasallian education.

Conclusion

Lasallian communities are defined by their recognition of God’s love-centered holy presence. While we already strive for this, growth is always possible. As Br Jeffery Calligan, FSC. writes, our faith is in “a God who challenges distinctions… and calls for an uncompromised wholeness.”¹¹

Love does not mean avoiding conflict. Authentic community includes disagreement, shared problem-solving, and trust built through humility. As Frederick Douglass observed:

“Without conflict, no victory.”¹²

To continue to respond to reality with ascetic clarity we must foster growth, take risks, and model vulnerability.

Gratitude should guide our response to the Lasallian tradition. Relationships are central to the mission. From leadership to the classroom, the pursuit of wholeness must shape our educational paradigm. The Declaration on the Lasallian Mission tells us:

“The pedagogy of fraternity makes us brothers and sisters among all. The educator becomes the older sibling who walks alongside the student in autonomy and care.”¹³

Lasallian pedagogy is rooted in deep listening. Our students and colleagues yearn to know the whole of reality and to become what is genuinely good. To pursue the Lasallian ideal of Communion in Mission, we need “to promote solidarity and collaboration among members of our community, as well as develop a greater sense of openness to all persons, especially to those in need.”¹⁵Faith, when it meets reason, reveals the deepest truths of the human experience. This spirituality is not defensive or rigid, but creative, dynamic, and faithful to the Gospel. By untangling the knots of cultural decline and fear, we become bearers of light in a world tormented by injustice.

Being Lasallian is not a checklist. It is an encounter—a way of being in relationship, in service to the mission. It affirms the relational nature of Lasallian education and demands that we make space for wholeness, creativity, and grace. In the end, our creative fidelity to this mission is what brings salvation to life. May we all have a meaningful encounter with the charism of Saint John Baptiste de La Salle in a way that is defined by a joyful seriousness ordered toward collective salvation for all.

Acknowledgements

Thank you Professor Michael Hahn for your encouragement as an instructor and advisor. Thank you to Charlie Legendre, AFSC for your inspiring commitment to the Lasallian Charism and your help with my “homework” several years ago. Thank you to the many Lasallian mentors and colleagues I have been blessed to have in my life, especially Tom English, Rolf Schumann, Thomas Guro and Mary Alice Spinelli.

Bibliography

George Van Grieken, The Teacher’s Saint: Saint John Baptist de La Salle, Patron Saint of Teachers (Washington, DC: Christian Brothers Conference, 2019).
E. J. Miller, “Together and by Association,” RELAN, June 9, 2014, https://lasallian.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Together-and-by-Association.pdf.
Brother D. Muñoz, “Some History,” La Salle 46th General Chapter, 2020, https://fsc46gc.lasalle.org/algo-de-historia/?lang=en.
Ibid.
Ilia Delio, The Unbearable Wholeness of Being: God, Evolution and the Power of Love (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2014).
Scott Sorvaag, “The Nature of Lasallian Leadership,” AXIS: Journal of Lasallian Higher Education 12, no. 3 (2021), https://axisjournal.org/2022/01/20/the-nature-of-lasallian-leadership/.
Ibid.
CIAMEL (International Council for Lasallian Association and the Educational Mission), A Conversation for the Lasallian Family: Deepening Our Identity (2020), https://www.lasalle.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/EN_Lasallian_Family_CIAMEL_web.pdf.
Kurt Schackmuth, De La Salle’s Journey: One Commitment Leads to Another (John Johnston Institute at Lewis University, Summer 2024).
Jean-Guy Rodrigue, Meditations by John Baptist de La Salle (1997).
Democracy & Belonging Forum, “Democracy & Belonging Forum,” 2014, https://www.democracyandbelongingforum.org/faq (accessed December 2, 2024).
Jeffrey Calligan, “Lasallian Spirituality,” AXIS: Journal of Lasallian Higher Education 5, no. 3 (2014).
Frederick Douglass, “Self-Made Men: An Address Delivered in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, March 1893,” in The Speeches of Frederick Douglass: A Critical Edition, ed. John R. McKivigan and Julie Husband (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2018), 414–453, https://doi.org/10.12987/9780300240696-022.
Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Declaration on the Lasallian Educational Mission: Challenges, Convictions and Hopes (2020), https://www.lasalle.org/en/declaration-on-the-lasallian-educational-mission/.
“Spirit of Faith,” Green Guide 2016, De La Salle University, accessed [insert date], https://www.dlsu.edu.ph/green-guide/values.html.

A Lasallian Educational Philosophy Centered on Whole-Making

A paper written for the Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota Masters of Education – Lasallian Education program.

A Framework for Lasallian Formation

Justin-Siena High School Draft of a Framework for Lasallian Formation based on the Pilgrim’s Handbook

The Lasallian Charism

A presentation given to the Christian Brothers High School Board of Trustees.

Reflections on Tuesdays with Morrie Inspired by a Student

We are finished read yet again, Tuesdays with Morrie, a book about living well through the art of dying well, ars moriendi. As many times as we have reflected on whether we should replace this book and remove it from the curriculum, we just can’t quite find a book that adequately captures so many of the life lessons that a semester-long class on the mystery of suffering and death should cover. “Love each other or perish,” Morrie often quotes from the poet, W.H. Auden. And this kind of summarizes the whole message. It’s never too late to live with love for self and other, as long as you have life, but it’s recommended to get started as soon as possible.

Ok, so I do not need to summarize any more of the book here. But I do want to share a meaningful criticism of the book that I was introduced to me by a student. That student put to words something that had bothered me about this book for a while, but I could really put my finger on it. Mitch, the author, and the narrator goes from being a successful sportswriter to being an even more successful human interest writer. While he does communicate that he is transformed by Morrie’s words he rarely makes himself vulnerable in a way that shows a true change. His weakest and most human moment is abandoning his dream of being a pianist. I suppose I just want to say that I also feel that while this book captures many of the lessons for living that appropriate for the course. Mitch in the whole of his career and efforts as a human seems interested in painting himself as a hero of sorts. He does a great many good things for people and I would diminish that and I feel we should hold these people up as an example of how to be. But I think we also need to be careful when trying to celebrate the idea that we are all called to be heroes. We can easily be heroic small ways too and to be a hero we do not need to be perfect. We can be flawed and difficult.

Disaffiliation: Losing My Religion

The Draft of a Talk on Disaffiliation: Part 1

Hello All,

I am truly grateful to be able to speak to you today. I understand that this is valuable time spent in your classrooms and the last thing you want is another useless bit of PD time. So, I plan to make this as useful and to the point as possible. Please bear with me as I reflect on some meaningful professional and formational experiences that I encountered last month. The first was a meeting with SFNO district schools’ religious studies chairs and the second was LA Congress. Both of which had some meaningful and overlapping themes connected to Pope Francis’ recent document Christus Vivit, a gift to young people and the entire people of God. However, it seems that only adults engaged in ministry are reading this document, sadly.

My first slide yes has to with LCAP, but let me just say that this topic certainly has value way beyond LCAP, though it could be said that the district is considerate of this and that explains why such a thing was included in the process. We are here to discuss the value of Catholic identity for us all and how to expose that value to our students. Considering how diverse the definitions of Catholic Identity may be, let us work with a definition that is as broad as all of creation.

To be Catholic, while meaning universal can also be broken down into its parts according to the Greek meaning kata holos = according to or pertaining to the whole. And if we were to acknowledge as does John Paul II, that the mission of the Church, and of Christ the Redeemer “is still very far from completion.” And, in fact, he goes on to say, “ that this mission is still only beginning and that we must commit ourselves wholeheartedly to its service.” (Redemptoris Missio). So, let us know that our Catholic identity can never stand for something that is fixed in time or be described as something complete or finished, to which, the unformed must snap to. Our Catholic identity should be described in a way that describes the “on the way” nature of this mission. Accord to the Franciscan Friar, Daniel Horan our Catholicity describes our process towards “whole making.” This means that we must continue to engage with the changing reality of the circumstances surrounding our students’ lives.

And considering that our primary ministry is saving the souls of the students entrusted to our care, we should be especially dynamic and robust in our response to this “not-yet-ness.” Looking at this quote from Papa Frank, how can we, as an agent of the Body of Christ, “above all, reflect Jesus Christ.” Especially considering how bleak some of the numbers concerning Catholic identity among young people look today.

As we look at this data, yes, the teenage years are formative period, but many young people are coming to us with a sense of disaffiliation that began as young as 5 years old.

A Message to My Students on This Election Day From 2016 That Still Applies Today

What I was taught by well-meaning California educators throughout my years set me up think that progress was inevitable and that it occurred in a logical and linear way. No matter how much you intellectually disarm racism and bigotry it does not mean that it is extinguished. Being aware of discrimination does not create equality. Dramatizing the story of the victims of various moments of injustice throughout history does not equate to a policy that is righteous and it certainly doesn’t mean that people won’t repeat the errors of the past. Becoming aware is only the first step. Performing the works to create the change and right the wrongs is the next logical movement. Listening to people’s stories and understanding their experiences creates a moment where you can transcend your own experience to relate to another.

Unfortunately, we have a great number of people in this country who see their own struggle as severe enough to support the persecution of others. I do not believe that these people are evil, but they must be challenged in some way and exposed to a great hardship that denies them the opportunity to see that the rhetoric that is racist and xenophobic hurts us all. And I truly want to understand that position. I want to know how you can be in a place that allows for people to be treated like animals by the party you support because you feel disenfranchised.

The only thing that matters at this point is to carry on without apathy. Do not enter into the future with only a concern for your own well-being. Do we really want to be that sort of nation? Despite the despair caused by the election realize that a great number of people did vote for that which is not defined by hate and bigotry. In those people, we can find solidarity. Maybe we need to band together to have a discussion about important issues and find ways to achieve certain goals for all of society rather than assume that because we think we are right the world will follow. I do not think that our society is completely broken? Do you?