Students in the dePaul Leadership Project examine and experiences Vincentian Leadership and Service in Rio de Janeiro.Eleven students and one faculty member accompanied The William and Mary Pat Gannon Hay Vincent de Paul Leadership Project (de Paul Leadership Project) to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, during the December 2005 interim session.
Sponsored in part by DePaul University’s Office of Mission and Values, the Masters in Public Service Management and the de Paul Leadership Project, the trip provided students with an opportunity to examine how St. Vincent de Paul’s charitable work exists at the global level. The trip focused on the heritage of St. Vincent and exposing participants to his legacy in action.
Participants took part in a one-day conference to share ideas and perspectives on leadership and management in non-profit organizations. The conference included lectures on the U.S. perspective of the challenges of non-profit organizations by J. Patrick Murphy, C.M., Ph.D., alternative leadership in globalization by Marco Tavanti, Ph.D., the history of Comite Para Democratizaçaō da Informatica (CDI) (Committee for Democracy in Information Technology) by Rodrigo Baggio and an overview of Associação Brasileira de Organizações Não Governamentais (ABONG)( the Brazil Association of Non-Governmental Associations) by director Ricardo Mello.
Students visited NGOs around Rio de Janeiro that help the people who live in poverty. Highlights of the week included a joint project between Crescer e Viver and Movimentos em Rede (Growing and Living and Movements Through Network, respectively) that teaches children circus skills, and the Degasi Unit, an interim prison for children ages 9-21. Students assisted Ozanamovel, a street ministry for homeless people, delivering services that included serving meals, giving haircuts and providing other outreach services.
Billie Drakeford, an undergraduate majoring in Business and Marketing, says she left the experience with an international perspective and an expanded knowledge of poverty not only in Brazil, but in Chicago and the United States.
Fellow participant David Fadida, an undergraduate in the School for New Learning, says that this program provided him with a means to reflect on his career direction and inspired him to identify ways that he can provide leadership for the common good, especially in the business community. “The Vincentian aspect of the program was amazing
there’s a language of humanity and that is something we experienced the whole week.” “I came back and said, ‘This is what I need to change
and identify things in my life that I want to do better.’”
If you have any questions about the Vincentian Heritage Tour or the de Paul Leadership Project, contact Mary McGuinness at mmcguinn@depaul.edu or 312-362-5522.
