Mission and Inclusive Excellence

Mission Statement

Socrates challenges us with the claim that the unexamined life is not worth living.  Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli O.P., founder of the Congregation of Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters, extends that same invitation in his Memoirs when he says, “Let us wake up then … and set out for any place where the need is great and the work is difficult.” The Mazzuchelli Scholars Honors program contributes to the mission of the university by providing talented and self-motivated students with the opportunities and skills they need to become lifelong learners.

Mazzuchelli Scholars engage in this awakening by looking critically at the world around them and responding to the complexity it presents through study, reflection, respectful dialogue, and compassionate leadership.

Statement on Inclusive Excellence

The Mazzuchelli Scholars Honors Program dedicates itself to the self-examination and attendant conversations required to confront racism and promote social justice both on our campus and beyond as we prepare students for a life of teaching and learning. We are responsible leaders in the Dominican University community as we work together towards racial equity. The Dominican University Honors Program commits to:

• Maintaining the ideals of an integrative program of liberal study by broadening the intellectual traditions of Honors course offerings so as to diversify voices and experiences.
• Strengthening the visibility of the program and building a portfolio that demonstrates student well-being, persistence, and belonging. 
• Developing strategies to ensure that the Honors program supports historically minoritized groups in direct and meaningful ways.
• Cultivating initiatives in the classroom and in the community for practicing social justice and in creating a transformative response to racism.
• Supporting student leadership to build and sustain relationships with the Center for Cultural Liberation and to craft a service requirement pivoted on the needs of the community.