[Tony Sholander]
[Sholander Caption]
[Jesuits at Santa Clara Today]


"'From the heart' signaled how Jesuits were to deal with others in their preaching and every other way and also how they hoped individuals and groups would respond to them and their message - from the bottom of the heart."

~ John W. O'Malley, S.J.
Professor of Church History
Weston Jesuit School of Theology
Cambridge, Massachusetts

More than 50 priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus make up the Jesuit community at Santa Clara. The Society of Jesus does not own the University. While the bylaws stipulate that the president must be a Jesuit, the institution is governed by a Board of Trustees composed of a diverse group of women and men, the majority of whom are laypersons.

Santa Clara Jesuits teach in the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Law, and the Leavey School of Business and Administration. Others serve in the University's administration, Campus Ministry, Eastside Project, Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, and student residence halls. The Jesuit commitment to intellectual, moral, and spiritual values continues to be an important influence in shaping the kind of university Santa Clara is and aspires to be.

However, the current Jesuit contribution is not only academic and administrative. The Jesuit faculty and staff receive salaries commensurate with their professional training and experience. The salaries of these individual Jesuits are paid to the Jesuit community, which donates a significant part of its income each year to the University for student financial aid. In addition, Jesuits play a prominent role in the University's fund-raising efforts. In all of this, Jesuits work together with lay colleagues to sustain the Jesuit educational tradition.