About

The Office of Mission and Ministry

The Office of Mission and Ministry contributes to the development, animation, and coordination of the University-wide process of maintaining and promoting the Ignatian heritage, the Catholic identity and the Jesuit mission of the University. In keeping with the mission, the office will develop programs and initiatives which engage students, faculty, administration, staff, directors, regents, alumni and donors in the understanding of our religious identity and commitments. In addition, the Office of Mission and Ministry will serve as a locus for service to the Catholic Church and the Society of Jesus, as well as supporting University-based programs which encourage interreligious understanding and dialogue.

Rev. Kevin O'Brien, S.J.

Vice President for Mission and Ministry

Rev. Kevin O'Brien, S.J. (C'88) has been serving as Vice President for Mission and Ministry since August, 2011. For three years prior to his appointment as Vice President, he served Georgetown as Executive Director of Campus Ministry. As Vice President for MIssion and Ministry, Father O'Brien oversees robust campus ministry programs on three campuses, a dynamic Mission and Pastoral Care program at Georgetown University Hospital, and serves as the University's liaison to the Woodstock Theological Center.

As the senior leader for Mission and Ministry, Fr. O'Brien is responsible for the development and delivery of programs that promote the Catholic and Jesuit character of Georgetown among faculty, staff, students, alumni and University governing boards. These programs represent a variety of mission-focused activities, seminars, retreats, and immersion experiences including numerous events to advance interreligious understanding among University constituencies.

Fr. O'Brien is closely involved in the development and coordination of programs that foster the formation of lay colleagues in the Jesuit spiritual traditions. He also serves the University on the Executive Committee, the Student Affairs Issues Committee, the Board of Regents Mission and Ministry Committee, and provides executive leadership to the Calcagnini Contemplative Center development project and the Dahlgren Chapel renovation project.

Before returning to Georgetown in 2008, Fr. O'Brien served as Associate Pastor at Holy Trinity Church in Washington, D.C. He has taught philosophy and ethics at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, and assisted in the Office of University Mission and Ministry at Fordham University. He has had extensive experience in both University and community ministry and is a published scholar and lecturer in Georgetown's Department of Theology.

Fr. O'Brien holds a J.D. from the University of Florida, an M.A. in Philosophy from Fordham University, and a Masters of Divinity and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the Weston Jesuit School of Theology. Before entering the Jesuits, Fr. O'Brien practiced law as corporate litigator and taught social sciences in a Catholic high school.

In addition to his role as Vice President for Mission and Ministry, Fr. O'Brien lives as a Jesuit in residence in Copley Hall and teaches a popular, second-level theology course, "The Church in the 21st Century." Locally, he serves on the board of the Washington Jesuit Academy, a middle-school for boys from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Spirit of Georgetown

A Jesuit institution, Georgetown is grounded in a 450-year-old educational tradition inspired by St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus. Today, as a consequence of this long tradition, we can identify a number of characteristics or values that inspirit our University and that are referred to in our University Mission Statement, our institutional documents, and our iconography. The following values and definitions will help you to understand what makes Georgetown such an inviting and distinctive educational community. And just as Bishop Carroll welcomed Georgetown students from various religious and cultural backgrounds, we hope that whatever traditions you bring to this University community, you will find here values that you can appropriate in your own distinct way. Read more...