Service & Justice
We invite all students to explore what it means to live a "faith that does justice." Here you can find information about various local community service opportunities and ways in which you can work for social justice. You can also find resources to help you continue this journey after graduation.
Immersion Programs
Winter Immersion Program
You will build community at weekly community gathers, bond with a small group - familia - for both semesters, learn about the communities you will encounter, immerse on site during Winter Break, reflect on your experiences, and the further work of justice to which you're are called!
WIP's primary focus is to walk with you as you discern how to live in solidarity with the materially poor and marginalized, especially upon return to campus. WIP is rooted in Ignatian values, human dignity, Catholic Social Teaching, liberation theology, and the building of relationships as we share our humanity. Our hope is to transform minds, hearts, and hands to live out a faith that does justice.
The Appalachian Experience (APEX)
The Appalachian Experience is a Spring Break immersion program that is committed to serving with and for others while learning about the culture and concerns of the people of the Appalachian region. Participants will meet together several times throughout the year for preparation, education, and team-building, all of which lead toward the spring break immersion experience in which they seek to learn, serve, and grow in relationship with the people they encounter.
Weekly Service
SJU Weekly Service is a relationship-based service program grounded in our Catholic, Jesuit tradition and welcoming of all students. We seek to provide our students with an opportunity to experience the reality of our neighbors in the Philadelphia and Camden communities, reflect on their unique calling as agents of change, and develop a lifelong passion of working for justice.
Click HERE to enter our site!
Ignatian Family Teach-in for Justice
Join the Ignatian Solidarity Network's Ignatian Family Teach In For Justice!
Learn, pray, and advocate for justice at the largest annual Catholic social justice gathering in the United States. The Teach-In is a place for members of the Ignatian family (Jesuit institutions and larger church) to be empowered, re-energized, inspired, challenged, and supported by a community that sees faith and justice integrally linked. Now in its 28th year, the Teach-In has a rich history rooted in honoring the Jesuits and their companions who were martyred in El Salvador in 1989.
Each year the Teach-In is followed by an Advocacy Day and SJU sends a delegation of students, staff, and faculty.
Teach In Date: November 15th - November 17th
Meetings: Mondays 6:30pm - 7:30pm
- September 15th
- October 6th
- October 27th - Community Night!
- November 14th
Cost: $60 (scholarships available, please email jm10847173@sju.edu)
Hawks for Life
Hawks for Life is a student organization that works to promote the dignity of the human person from conception until natural death. The group hosts discussions and speakers on numerous life issues such as abortion, the death penalty, euthanasia, human trafficking and more.
Contact Fr. Dan Ruff, S.J. at druff@sju.edu.
Hawks for Just Employment
Hawks for Just Employment Initiative is an SJU student organization that fosters an inclusive campus community that cares for the whole person. We seek to form relationships with workers. We advocate for the compensation of a living wage. Striving to uphold the Jesuit mission of our University, we promote respect and protection of the dignity and rights of the worker.
Interested? Contact campusministry@sju.edu
Post-Graduate Service
Saint Joseph's University hosts an annual Post Graduate Service Fair each fall. Attend to learn about organizations that place volunteers for 1 or 2 years of full-time, post-graduate service in the U.S. and abroad.
SJU Campus Ministry staff welcome you to reach out to us to talk about your discernment about the possibility of post-grad service.
For questions, please contact Eric Thompson (ethompso@sju.edu).
Other resources:
DACA & Students of Mixed Status Families
Campus Ministry desires to foster the spiritual development of Saint Joseph's University students regardless of their immigration status or status of their family.
As a Jesuit university we value the dignity of every person on campus. If you choose to disclose any immigration information with a Campus Minister, please know that information will remain completely confidential.
Contact Tinamarie Stolz at tstolz@sju.edu for more information.
- DACA Resources from the Office of Inclusion and Diversity
- Connect with Saint Joseph's University Immigrant and Refugee Working Group
- Catholic Legal Immigration Network: Know Your Rights When Interacting with Law Enforcement
- Catholic Legal Immigration Network: Search for affiliates providing low-cost legal assistance
- Scholarships resources that do not require citizenship or residency
SJU for Refugees & Migrants
The purpose of this student group is to facilitate education across campus about immigration issues and sponsor drives/provide volunteer opportunities for students to help in the social justice movement. Our work is based in Catholic Social Teaching and Jesuit values to respect and uphold the human dignity of all people. Our long term aim is to provide and sustain housing for refugee families, but we are focusing initially on education and fundraising to build student support, then expanding our efforts to make the Philadelphia area a welcoming place for refugee families.
Interested? Contact campusministry@sju.edu