Vision and Mission

Vision 

Steeped in Dominican Ethos, Liberal Learning through Foundations, Breadth, Depth, and Integration for Responsible Global Citizenship

We educate one student at a time in the company of others, each unique yet all distinctly Dominican. In dialogue with a Dominican ethos, our students grow as liberal learners through creative and rigorous study marked by solid foundations, disciplinary breadth and depth, and ongoing integration as they aspire to become ethically responsible global citizens. Each student develops an emerging sense of personal and professional vocation through a variety of means, including thoughtful interaction with courses, professors and other students, and intensive advising and mentoring. We encourage students to participate in internships, study away (international and domestic), community-based learning, and undergraduate research, scholarship and creative investigations. Diverse insights coalesce in each student’s distinctive educational trajectory, purpose and plan, as we inspire students to discern the big picture and name their place within it -- to stand somewhere and to stand for something, conscientiously positioned in relationship to the world.

Dominican ethos describes the distinctive character of our university’s culture. It includes an environment of Caritas et Veritas, in which we contemplate the meaning of existence and strive collaboratively for a more just and humane world. It understands that study is at once contemplative and communal. It unites reflection and dialogue as we collaborate in the search for truth. It enables students to develop a sense of care and responsibility for oneself, one’s community, and the wider creation. It fosters trust, tolerance, mutual accountability, and belonging. Students enter into conversation with a Catholic intellectual tradition that affirms the compatibility of faith and reason, a universe marked by both intelligibility and mystery, the sacredness of all creation, the dignity of every living being, and concern for the common good. They acquire basic knowledge about Christianity in its various dimensions, and how it interacts with secular and other religious beliefs, practices and worldviews.

Upon graduation, students educated at Dominican University possess character, knowledge and skills to take informed, ethical action in the world and to influence others for the good.

A Vision for Undergraduate Education

View our Vision Graphic (pdf)

Identity 

Dominican University is a distinctively relationship-centered educational community, rooted in the liberal arts and sciences and comprehensive in scope, known for its rigorous and engaging academic programs, for the care and respect with which it mentors students, for its enduring commitment to social justice, and for the enriching diversity of its students, faculty and staff. Integral to Dominican’s success and distinction are the ongoing exploration, clear expression, and shared experience of its Catholic Dominican identity.

Mission

In keeping with Dominican University’s mission of preparing students to pursue truth, to give compassionate service and to participate in the creation of a more just and humane world, the Rosary College of Arts and Sciences strives to embody a community of learners seeking truth through free and open inquiry and dialogue with a diverse array of persons, places, texts, objects, ideas, and events, past and present, supportive of each learner’s development and committed to using our talents to make a positive contribution to the world. We strive to produce graduates of a liberal arts and sciences program who can think critically, communicate ideas well, orally and in writing, and achieve both breadth of understanding across fields and depth of knowledge in one field.