Grant to create degree program for Catholic Sisters in Africa

DePaul University's School for New Learning (SNL) has received a $480,000 grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to create the first bachelor of arts degree program specifically designed for Sisters from Catholic religious congregations in Africa. The program will be delivered on-site in Nairobi, Kenya, and its graduates will earn a degree from DePaul University.

"This is an excellent program that truly speaks to the heart of DePaul's mission and that addresses a tremendous need in Africa," said Michael Skelley, program director.

Over six years, $380,000 will be dispersed for project development, faculty and staff training and salaries, and to develop a quality computer lab for students in the degree program. The remaining $100,000 will be allocated for student scholarships.

DePaul's School for New Learning will collaborate with the Institute of Spirituality and Religious Formation at Tangaza College, a Catholic institution co-sponsored by the Congregation of the Mission religious community that also sponsors DePaul. SNL faculty will partner closely with African faculty to design and deliver the courses in the program.

The SNL-Tangaza College four-year program will give African Sisters a range of practical knowledge, in such areas as management and leadership, which they can apply to the real-world challenges they will face in their ministries. It also will provide them with a solid theological and pastoral foundation for their unique vocation in the church and a well-rounded liberal arts education that will help them understand the increasingly complex needs of the people they serve.

Established in 1972, SNL is one of the first programs in the nation created to serve the specific needs of adult learners. It has earned a national and international reputation for its competence-based approach to learning.

Based in Los Angeles, the Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by the late hotel entrepreneur and business leader Conrad N. Hilton, who left his fortune to the foundation with instructions to help the most disadvantaged and vulnerable throughout the world without regard to religion, ethnicity or geography. Along with its related entities, the foundation has total assets of approximately $2.5 billion and, since its inception, has provided more than $440 million to organizations throughout the United States and the world. For more information, visit www.hiltonfoundation.org.

DePaul is the largest Catholic university in the nation and the 10th largest private, not-for-profit university in the United States. A richly diverse population of 23,148 students attends classes on two city and four suburban campuses.