A Mission-Driven Campus and Community
At Georgian Court, our values guide us to build a more just and compassionate world.
The Office of Mission Integration
The Georgian Court University mission statement and Mercy core values inform all aspects of institutional and student life. The Office of Mission Integration works with Campus Ministry and the Unity Council to provide meaningful opportunities and experiences that represent three themes: the whole person, the common good, and community engagement and service. Together, we recognize the importance of a holistic education where learning is ongoing and purposeful, and where individual students, faculty, and staff are always part of something bigger than themselves. As a member of this university, you have a stake in determining what kind of place it will be.
We hope you'll join us in becoming a compassionate, inclusive community dedicated to our Sisters of Mercy heritage.
Mission Statement
Georgian Court University, founded by the Sisters of Mercy of New Jersey in 1908 and sponsored by the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas since January 2007, provides a comprehensive liberal arts education in the Roman Catholic tradition. The university has a special concern for women and is a dynamic community committed to the core values of justice, respect, integrity, service, and compassion, locally and globally.
Georgian Court University provides students with:
- A curriculum broad enough to be truly liberal, yet specialized enough to support further study and future careers
- An environment for the entire university community to grow through shared educational, cultural, social, and spiritual experiences
- The will to translate concern for social justice into action
Mission Principles
In order to promote and support our mission and the charism of the Sisters of Mercy, we ascribe to the principles below — guidelines that help us create a welcoming campus and a passionate student population ready to collaborate and serve the communities around them.
We cherish our Catholic and Judeo-Christian heritage. We hold that the Catholic Tradition needs to remain at our core and animate us in mission, while affirming that it needs to be engaged in vigorous ecumenical and interfaith dialogue. We acknowledge the Catholic Intellectual Tradition as a fearless pursuit of truth, beauty, and wisdom.
We celebrate the charism and mission of our founders, the Sisters of Mercy. We find joy in the all-embracing hospitality that is the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy. Our vision and energy are fueled by mercy and compassion, which compels us to service and the promotion of social justice and the common good. We strive to set an example of the Mercy way to newcomers and visitors to our community.
We are witness to an authentic, inclusive Catholicism, which embraces the human dignity of all. We promote a vibrant multiculturalism that contributes to the richness and vitality of our living and working together. We welcome people with a diversity of faith and belief systems, as well as those with no particular faith, and provide faith formation and service opportunities for students, faculty, and staff of all faiths in their quest for human flourishing and a purposeful life. We shun narrowness that divides and isolates, and we avoid proselytization or any attempt to convert a person from their own faith tradition into another. We consider it inappropriate to use misleading, harassing, untrue, or slanderous language about the faith of others, and we respect the privacy of others in religious matters.
Mercy Core Values
We're committed to the Mercy core values of respect, integrity, justice, compassion, and service. These values are the roots from which Georgian Court University's activities, decisions, and behaviors flow.
Respect — We reverence the dignity of all persons and all life as gifts of God and strive to promote community in our world.
Integrity — We believe that fidelity to moral principles, honesty, and sincerity is the basis of trustworthiness in all encounters.
Justice — We believe the ordering of right relationships with all persons and all creation is fundamental to our advocacy for structures that protect the vulnerable.
Compassion — We embrace the joys and sorrows of others to whom and with whom we minister, and we are moved to action in solidarity with the human community.
Service — We joyfully extend our energy and resources on behalf of the poor, sick, and uneducated, working to relieve misery and address its causes wherever possible.
Sisters of Mercy Critical Concerns
The Sisters of Mercy were founded out of a deep concern for persons who are poor. Today, that commitment is focused on five critical concerns, addressed through personal and institutional choices, advocacy with legislators and government leaders, and corporate engagement.
Immigration — Believing firmly in the dignity of every person, we work for just and humane immigration laws in the United States, address policies that push people to flee their countries, and examine the global impact of immigration.
Racism — We believe racism is an evil affecting us all. We work to recognize and dismantle institutional racism in order to become an anti-racist, multicultural community.
Women — Through our university and legislative advocacy, we give special attention to women's education, health, and spirituality.
Nonviolence — We work for peace through prayer, education, and personal and communal practices of nonviolence, and legislative advocacy to reduce armed conflicts, abuse, and violence.
Earth — We believe in the need for the sustainability of life, supporting both a lifestyle and legislation that acknowledge everyone's right to water and the need to address climate change.
Service and Volunteerism
Showing mercy and care to those in need is foundational to the GCU experience. We believe that individuals are all persons in relation — inherently connected to each other and to the world and everything in it. That's why we stand in solidarity and take action to serve the community. At GCU, you'll participate in a spirit of volunteerism that helps you become a better ally and advocate.
A few ways our community puts that into practice:
- Campus Ministry service trips, including a 2022 Habitat for Humanity build that put GCU students on the job site constructing a new home
- First-year orientation service projects, including a meal-kit packaging event for world hunger relief in partnership with Rise Against Hunger
- GCU student-athletes serving as “Christmas Angels,” sponsoring local families in need alongside the St. Vincent DePaul Society
- Julian’s Cupboard, a student-run food pantry addressing food insecurity on campus
- An Afghan Refugee Resettlement Drive organized by Campus Ministry to collect donations and welcome new neighbors into the community
- A mobile food pantry operated in partnership with Fulfill, open to the greater Lakewood community
By the Numbers
A few ways our community puts that into practice:
- 120,000+ total hours volunteered by GCU students, faculty, and staff
- 30 minimum hours required for students pursuing service-learning projects
- 4 global education and study abroad programs focused on community service
Ways to Get Involved
Student Activities — Choose from 40+ clubs and organizations, including many service-oriented groups. There's always an event, workshop, or discussion to get involved in. [Explore Clubs & Organizations]
Service Abroad — Study abroad with purpose through GCU's service abroad programs, doing meaningful work in under-resourced communities around the world — including a 2019 nursing student trip that set up medical clinics in Peru. [Learn About Study Abroad]
Campus Ministry Volunteer Service — Local and international service trips, donation drives, and holiday projects throughout the year. [Learn More]
Mercy Collegiate Society — Grow in Mercy with the support of Campus Ministry and the Office of Mission Integration, through a four-pillar program of social networking, service, spiritual development, and servant leadership. [Learn About the Mercy Collegiate Society]
The UNITY Council
The five critical concerns of the Sisters of Mercy require us to acknowledge and challenge the systemic injustices in our society. At Georgian Court, we aim to celebrate difference, ensure fairness, and increase empowerment.
The UNITY Council represents our strong commitment to the mission and Mercy core values of respect, integrity, justice, compassion, and service. The council includes two co-chairs and ten subcommittees. Together in Mercy, we thrive is our motto — reflecting GCU's larger vision of a social justice that centers the dignity of the whole person.
