Faculty Formation | The Seelos Institute
The Seelos Institute Faculty Formation initiative offers spiritual and intellectual formation for Catholic educators.
What do we offer?
- Regular formation for Catholic school faculties in the Kansas City area
- Monthly or weekly schedules available
- Direct instruction in the faith for the teachers
- Space and opportunity for prayer
- Space to reflect on how the faith shapes our understanding and practice of Catholic education
- Opportunity to grow in friendship with people on your own faculty
Summer in-services/retreats for educators and administration
Topics available include:
- Foundations in Catholic education
- Evangelization/discipleship
- Catechesis
- Moral formation in the school
- Christian anthropology
- How to provide faculty formation for your school
Why would this be appealing for my school?
The Church teaches in her documents on education that ongoing formation is an essential aspect of the life of teachers. The strength and vigor in the faith and intellectual life of our faculty is the normal instrument that Christ uses to reach his students. Our formation seeks to provide a space to do what we as teachers fell in love with doing: pursue the Truth and encounter the Word made flesh.
What does the Church say about formation for our educators?
"The preparation and ongoing formation of new administrators and teachers is vital if our schools are to remain truly Catholic in all aspects of school life. Catholic school personnel should be grounded in a faith-based Catholic culture, have strong bonds to Christ and the Church, and be witnesses to the faith in both their words and actions. The formation of personnel will allow the Gospel message and the living presence of Jesus to permeate the entire life of the school community and thus be faithful to the school’s evangelizing mission."
Upcoming Events - Faculty Formation
The Religious Potential of the Child: The Pedagogy of Sofia Cavalletti and how it inspires Catholic Education of all levels.
In this two-day in-service, we will read and discuss some of the most helpful and beautiful aspects of Sofia Cavalletti’s approach to Catechesis and education. As Catholics, we know that how we teach is actually driven by what we understand about he human person and the human nature that God imparted to us— Sofia Cavalletti is a beautiful example of what this can look like. It will be inspiring for teachers of any level but will be especially helpful for teachers of younger grades.
When: June 10-11, 2025, from 8:30 am-3:00 pm
Cost: $200 per person (scholarships available).
Includes lunch for both days
Where: Donnelly College
Register for these dates here.
The Pedagogy of God Part II: The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Principles of Catechesis
Join us for a series, the second installment of reflections on the vocation of catechesis and the principles that inform our craft. All levels of experience are welcome. This is for directors of religious education, Catholic schoolteachers, parish catechists and school of religion teachers. Please register by May 20.
Required text: The Catechism of the Catholic Church, with indexes.
Dates: June 22 -23, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: Donnelly College
Registration information is coming soon.
Questions about the Faculty Formation classes? Contact:
Sebastian D'Amico, Faculty Formation Coordinator at sdamico@donnelly.edu
Our Philosophy
The Blessed Seelos faculty formation program has three goals: To grow in friendship with the Jesus, friendship with each other and to reflect on how these first two impact the vocation of the teacher.
By Friendship with Jesus, we mean to grow in our knowledge of Jesus that is both theological and spiritual as preserved for us in the tradition of the Catholic faith of the last two millennia. This seeks the inherent unity between the doctrine of the Church, the Sacraments, the Moral life and the life of Prayer as expounded in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It also includes the true Philosophy that is implicit in this Theology that is the refining of the human mind unto wisdom which is Jesus himself.
By Friendship with each other, we mean to grow in our relationships as faculty within the schools. To be friends means to be looking at a third thing side by side another person. A Catholic school is first and foremost a community of friends seeking to know and love the LORD and the world he made. Our work as teachers is based on this experience of leisure in the truest sense where we contemplate the world that God has made in all of its aspects. It also means having time together as humans to enjoy each other’s company and pray for each other.
By The Vocation of Teacher, we mean all the aspects of the life of being an Christian educator that are enriched by the previous two elements. Our understanding of Jesus, the Church, the human person, the nature of reality all shape a particularly catholic view of education. This can be very practical but it starts by simply seeing the most profound truths that make up the role of the Catholic School.
Example of our work
Need more information about Faculty Formation? Contact:
Faculty Formation Coordinator
Facilitator of Faculty Formation
Facilitator of Faculty Formation
Facilitator of Faculty Formation