Enriching Faith-Based Higher Education: UIW Faculty Member Elected to the National Board of the Lilly Network for Church-Related Colleges and Universities

The University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) has many remarkable faculty members that represent the institution at local, state and national levels. From the Nest and beyond, the impact of the Incarnate Word community can be felt near and far.

Amongst these notable faculty members is UIW Associate Professor of English LuElla D’Amico, PhD, who was recently elected to serve a four-year term on the National Board of the Lilly Network for Church-Related Colleges and Universities.

Founded in 1992, the Lilly Network for Church-Related Colleges and Universities (formerly the Lilly Fellows Program) is an organization that “fostered ongoing conversation about church-related higher learning and developed leaders in church-related colleges and universities” (thelillynetwork.org). To support its efforts, the Network sponsors conferences and events, oversees three fellowship programs and offers numerous grants for member schools.

D’Amico first got involved with the Lilly Network while working at a university before joining UIW, where she was paired with a new faculty mentor through a Lilly-sponsored mentoring program. Later, as UIW faculty, she was given the opportunity to attend a Lilly Network conference on ecumenism — the effort to foster unity and understanding among different Christian traditions — at Hope College. She found the experience to be transformative and enlightening learning how faith can be meaningfully incorporated into scholarly work, teaching and service in higher education. She later became UIW’s Lilly Network Faculty Representative.

“Since becoming a representative, I’ve attended the conference annually, bringing back ideas and models that help us both align with and thoughtfully distinguish ourselves among institutions with similar Christian missions,” noted D’Amico. “The Lilly Network has been an ongoing source of vision, encouragement and practical inspiration for our Mission-centered work at UIW.”

D’Amico has been involved in a number of Lilly-associated initiatives and projects at UIW, including developing a Lilly-funded initiative called “Dreaming the Mission,” a two-year program that supports mid-career faculty as they pursue professional development while designing mission-centered projects.

This month, D’Amico was ecstatic to learn that she would be further involved in the Network as a member of National Board of the Lilly Network for Church-Related Colleges and Universities.

“It truly feels like a dream come true,” expressed D’Amico. “To now serve on the Board feels like a profound honor and a natural extension of the gifts I’ve received. I’m excited to contribute to conversations about the future of Christian higher education at a national level, and to help strengthen the network that has given so much to me and to institutions like UIW. I’m especially grateful for the opportunity to give back — to help other faculty and campuses find the same support, inspiration and resources that have meant so much in my own journey.”

In her new role, she hopes to deepen her understanding of the present challenges and opportunities facing Christian higher education and help institutions live their faith commitments by helping them form new creative programs. Above all else, she hopes to serve with generosity and vision.

“I hope to help the Lilly Network remain a place where faculty and institutions are encouraged not only to sustain their missions, but to imagine them anew for the twenty-first century,” stated D’Amico.

Congratulations, Dr. D’Amico!