Project HOME Co-Founders Return to Saint Joseph’s as Inaugural Mission Fellows

Last December, Saint Joseph’s University alumnae Sister Mary Scullion, R.S.M., BS ’76, H ’88, and Joan Dawson McConnon, H ’24, stepped down from their leadership roles as co-founders of Project HOME, an organization that empowers individuals to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty, and to live their fullest potential. Their careers of uplifting underrepresented communities, however, are far from over.

Sr. Mary and Dawson McConnon have returned to Saint Joseph’s as the inaugural Executive Fellows in Mission Programs, endowed positions funded by supporters of the nonprofit leaders’ work and the University’s Jesuit mission of social justice and engaged citizenship. Having created one of the country’s most effective organizations to eradicate poverty, the pair will mentor students to become leaders of human-thriving work, while enhancing the University’s efforts with community-based nonprofits.

“We are honored and delighted that Sister Mary and Joan have decided to make Saint Joseph’s their new home. They are the best examples of living the mission of Jesuit, Catholic education out loud,” says University President Cheryl McConnell, PhD. “With over three decades of wisdom and inspiration to share with our students, they will empower our University to make a direct impact on our city, region and nation.”

The fellows, who founded Project HOME right here in Philadelphia, have devoted their lives to service and ministry. Their transition to the city’s only Jesuit university is a natural extension of their work.

“Our time with Project HOME was such a blessing and I look forward to continuing our mission at Saint Joseph’s,” says S. Mary, the alumna who was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in 2009. “The University is deeply rooted in the communities we serve, and now we have the opportunity to engage and mentor the next generation of student leaders as we continue working toward meaningful societal transformation.”

The pair have already been busy putting their experience and connections into action in neighborhoods most impacted by chronic affordable housing shortages, substance use disorder, and limited access to education and employment. Just this semester, they’ve mobilized students in the Haub School of Business to transform their classroom knowledge into real-world impact.

“Business students are helping set up a financial system for Mother of Mercy House. They have a very basic accounting system that needs to be retooled and strengthened,” says Dawson McConnon, who is also an adjunct accounting faculty member at the University. “It’s an opportunity that becomes a transformative experience for the students, the St. Joe’s community, the nonprofit and the community they serve.”

The fellows are also working through existing structures like the Faith-Justice Institute — which organizes service-learning opportunities — and the Institute of Clinical Bioethics — whose Health Promoters program provides vital healthcare to vulnerable populations — to strengthen their mission-critical work.

“There’s an OT-based program in Connecticut that we’d love to model in Kensington, which would give OT students valuable practice experience,” explains Dawson McConnon, referring to the Health Promoters’ wound care clinic, which helps individuals battling substance use disorder. “There’s amazing work being done to address this tragedy, so we’re trying to build relationships, share knowledge and best practices, and build capacity through the lens of a nonprofit. It’s about building connections, and sometimes they happen in the smallest way.”

In the future, the fellows will look to leverage the research and education arms of the University to make an even greater impact in areas like social policy work informed by faculty research and expert consulting for effective community organizations. They’ll also collaborate on certificate programs that will introduce Project HOME’s approach to community thriving and development.

“It is such a wonderful gift for our University community to have them on campus mentoring students, sharing their expertise and guiding us to fulfill our obligation to work with communities across Philadelphia for a more just common good,” says Rev. Daniel Joyce, S.J., BA ’88, vice president of mission programs. “Joan and Sister Mary are helping the St. Joe’s community put our faith into action.”

Going forward, the fellows hope to harness the values and expertise of the entire St. Joe’s community: students, faculty, staff and alumni alike. 

“The only way we heal, become whole, is by interacting with each other,” says Dawson McConnon.

The University is raising $5 million to fund the fellows’ work, and thanks to the generosity of a handful of leadership donors, is nearly halfway to that goal. To support the work of the Executive Fellows in Mission Programs, visit us online.
 

About Project HOME and the Fellows

Since the founding of Project HOME in 1989, the 501(c)(3) has grown from a day shelter program in a community center into nearly 1,000 housing units and two businesses that provide employment to formerly homeless persons. The organization is widely acclaimed for its multifaceted approach to keeping people housed, including community-based health services, mental health and addiction treatment, adult education and after-school programs, employment programs at Project HOME’s social enterprises, and an alumni program. 

In recognition of their work, both S. Mary and Dawson McConnon are recipients of numerous awards, including the Philadelphia Citizen Lifetime Achievement Award and The University of Notre Dame’s Laetare Medal. Their work has been recognized by The New York Times as “a national model to end homelessness,” and their Project HOME leadership has been declared as one of the 16 most efficient and innovative nonprofits ever known by The Philanthropy Roundtable. 

Being at Saint Joseph’s is a homecoming for both Sr. Scullion and Dawson McConnon. Sr. Scullion is a graduate of the Class of 1976 and a former member of the University’s Board of Trustees. A current adjunct professor of accounting, Dawson McConnon is also the parent of two Saint Joseph’s graduates and the spouse of an alumnus. Both Project HOME co-founders are recipients of honorary degrees from the University.