Clint Springer, PhD, associate professor of biology, director of the Institute for Environmental Stewardship and director of the Barnes Arboretum, has dedicated his career to advancing sustainability and environmental advocacy. 

When Pope Francis published Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home, the first papal encyclical focused on environmental stewardship, it resonated deeply with Springer and many others committed to sustainability. The encyclical emphasized the moral responsibility of caring for the planet, reinforcing the idea that environmental issues are not just scientific concerns but moral and social justice imperatives.

In response to Pope Francis’ call, Saint Joseph’s University committed last summer to becoming a Vatican-designated Laudato Si’ University. Supported by a guiding coalition, this initiative is part of a larger effort to integrate sustainability into the University’s operations, curriculum and community engagement. With the planning phase nearly complete, Springer and the coalition are preparing to launch key initiatives in fall 2025, turning this commitment into action.

Q: What is Laudato Si’ and why is it important?

Clint Springer: Laudato Si’ is a teaching document that educates the Catholic Church and its followers about climate change and environmental degradation, including resource depletion, destruction of ecosystems and loss of biodiversity. A key focus is how these issues disproportionately affect the poor and marginalized. By publishing this document, Pope Francis elevated environmental stewardship as a fundamental pillar of Catholic social teaching.

Five years after its publication, a Vatican-sponsored group launched the Laudato Si’ initiative, which provides a framework for institutions, including universities, to adopt more sustainable and Earth-friendly practices. 

Q: Why do you think Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si’?

Clint Springer: We are at a critical crossroads. Climate change and environmental degradation are already causing major disasters, from wildfires in California to catastrophic flooding in Appalachia — one of the most impoverished regions in the country. These environmental crises hit the most vulnerable the hardest, making action urgent.

The effects of environmental degradation extend beyond natural disasters. Food safety is compromised, as seen in recalls of spinach and ground beef linked to contamination. These issues will only escalate if we fail to take immediate action. We are in a crisis. 

Q: How does Laudato Si’ align with Saint Joseph’s mission, and what has been done so far?

Clint Springer: From the start, our guiding coalition recognized that this initiative is mission-critical for Saint Joseph’s. If implemented thoughtfully, it aligns perfectly with our values of critical thinking, ethical decision-making and social justice.

Since announcing our commitment, we have conducted a comprehensive assessment of sustainability efforts across campus — not just recycling, but how we assign contracts, what we teach, the research we conduct and the service projects we support. This process involved extensive community feedback and input.

By summer 2025, we will have a formal sustainability plan ready, with implementation beginning in the fall semester.

Q: What are some of the biggest goals and objectives you have and how can people get involved?

Clint Springer: Our biggest goal is to cement the principles we’ve laid out in Laudato Si’ throughout all aspects of the University’s culture and charisma.

Some initiatives are already underway. Sister Thea Bowman Hall will be a LEED-certified building and one of the largest in Philadelphia to run entirely on geothermal energy. The Frances M. Maguire Art Museum will host a Laudato Si’-themed exhibition this summer, inspired by this movement.

For students looking to get involved, the Green Fund is a student-led group working to implement new sustainability initiatives on campus. However, at this stage, the best way for the community to contribute is to learn about Laudato Si’ and adopt its principles in daily life. Even small changes in how we live can amplify our collective impact.

To learn more about Saint Joseph’s Laudato Si’ initiative, visit sju.edu/laudato-si.

In order for student-athletes to compete at the highest levels, they need to be supported by state-of-the-art facilities to enhance their training, performance and overall well-being. 

Enter: The Maguire Athletic Center.

The Maguire Athletic Center is an ultramodern training facility for Saint Joseph’s University’s student-athletes that finalized its first phases of construction in December 2024. This included the completion of its men’s and women’s basketball training facility, an expansive indoor turf field, a track and field training mezzanine, and land training room for the rowing teams. 

The facility immediately opened for use and a handful of St. Joe’s varsity teams — men’s and women’s soccer, lacrosse and cross country/track and field — moved right into their new respective locker rooms. 

This renovation was made possible by James J. Maguire, BS ’58, his late wife, Frances, H ’14, and The Maguire Foundation. The ribbon cutting to officially open the complex will be on May 1, 2025.

Basketball Training Facility

A critical aspect of the Maguire Athletic Center project was the dedicated, identical men’s and women’s basketball practice facilities. The original Casciato practice gym had one full practice court that was primarily used by the men’s basketball team, while the women’s team generally practiced in Hagan Arena. Now, each team has its own full developmental court with identical features, like dedicated AV walls for reviewing drills and game film.

Each practice court boasts direct access to the exclusive basketball strength and conditioning and sports medicine areas, which are equipped with HydroFlow recovery tubs, a private exam room, ample space for a variety of treatment methods, and offices for the certified athletic trainers and performance coaches who are deeply involved in each student-athlete's training, prevention and recovery needs.

Salter Track and Field Mezzanine

St. Joe’s nearly 100 cross country and track and field student-athletes now have a dedicated space to meet, warm up, train and engage in critical recovery exercises. This space is also equipped with AV to allow student-athletes and their coaches to review tape from meets and games and work on their techniques.

Hagan Indoor Turf Field

The space that formerly housed the Athletic Center pool was completely transformed into an 11,000-square-foot, real-feel synthetic turf field. This new amenity serves all Division I sports year-round, especially benefitting the lacrosse, soccer, baseball and softball programs.

Rowing Land Training Room

The rowing team’s new land training room accommodates 30 ergometers, or “erg” machines, and stationary bikes. The land training room is loaded with a mechanical system to ventilate and cool the space steadily throughout the day to keep rowers at the top of their game.

The Maguire Athletic Center’s renovation will be complete by the end of the fall 2025 semester, with the remaining work to include an updated weight room and athletic training room for all student-athletes, golf lounge with simulators and a wellness space. Access to the Maguire Athletic Center is one of many benefits student-athletes experience at Saint Joseph's that makes it possible for them to reach peak performance. It also enables Saint Joseph’s Athletics to compete with its peers in the Atlantic 10 Conference when it comes to recruiting, developing and retaining the best student-athletes for the University's Division I teams.

When Saint Joseph’s University announced its $300 million SOAR campaign, financial aid was a top priority. Scholarship and financial aid funds are powerful. They change lives for the better and directly improve both the caliber of the student body and the quality of the overall academic experience. 

The SOAR campaign has since crossed over the $200 million mark. Of the funds raised thus far, more than $68 million has been directed toward financial aid. Since 2017, the University has increased the number of endowed scholarships available by 30.3%, with 84 new endowed scholarships being introduced through SOAR alone.

But numbers only tell part of the story. To fully understand the way SOAR is making a difference at SJU, scholarship donors and the students they support were asked to talk about how these funds have changed their lives – from both perspectives. 

James W. Barrett Scholarship 

Awarded to a student who attended an Archdiocese high school

Donor: James W. Barrett, BS ’64

Recipient: Lauren Greer, BS ’28

Q: What does providing/receiving this scholarship mean to you?

Barrett: There is no greater gift than the opportunity to pursue a college degree. The statistics are staggering — in today’s world, a college degree means a significant difference in lifetime income, job prospects and, most importantly, a greater appreciation of what impact learning will have on the rest of your life.

I wanted to help someone have the same educational opportunity I had at St. Joe’s and this scholarship ensures I can provide this support to a deserving student.

Greer: Receiving this scholarship has given me the opportunity to attend a private, academically strong school that I would not have been able to — or may have been more difficult for me — otherwise. This scholarship means I can enjoy not only college itself but, more so, the career path of becoming a physician assistant without the added stress of financial burdens holding me back.

Edward J. Brady Scholarship 

Provided every year to a student who is heavily involved with the Faith Justice Institute

Donor: Joseph Forish, BS ’75, and Marie Ward Forish, BS '75 (deceased)

Recipient: Daniel De Lude, BS ’25

Q: What impact has Saint Joseph’s had on your life?

Forish: At St. Joe’s, I learned to think critically and to challenge conventional views. I stretched myself – intellectually, emotionally and spiritually, and it changed my life profoundly. Were it not for the scholarship aid I received myself as a student, I would never have been able to attend St. Joe’s and get my degree. Funding this scholarship is my way to “give back” and to allow others to experience the benefits of a St Joe’s education in much the same way I did.

De Lude: SJU has had a huge impact on my life over the past four years. It has opened my eyes to social, economic and environmental justice issues and given me practical – although not easy – ways to make my own impact on these complex problems. Saint Joseph’s Faith-Justice Institute has allowed me to find a community of like-minded individuals who all strive to affect change through global charity and justice.

Mary Lou Finlayson Quinlan Scholarship 

Awarded to junior or senior students who were asked to write an essay about how they have been empowered by women in their schooling or home lives

Donor: Mary Lou Finlayson Quinlan, BA ’75, H ’07

Recipients: Sophia Borrello, BS ’25 (answer below); Katie Kulha, BS ’25; Malak Sebti, BS ’25; and Renee Fosco, BA ’26

Q: Harkening back to the essay question for this scholarship, how have you been empowered by other women?

Quinlan: My entire career has been guided, powered and energized by women — colleagues, bosses, employees — and certainly, more than a few good men. Women expect so much of themselves and I always wanted to rise to their expectations and exceed them, and then to
turn to the next woman on the ladder to transfer my hopes and energy to her.

Back in 1975 when I graduated, we were pioneers in a new land – only the second class of women to graduate from St. Joe’s. I intentionally chose SJU because I knew I was headed for the corporate world where I’d be working alongside men and I wanted my college experience to mirror that. It prepared me to feel comfortable being the only woman in a room, the first woman in a position. Breaking through barriers with grace, humor and persistence was second nature to me thanks to the Class of ’75.

Borrello: The women in my life have empowered me since day one to pursue my dreams and strive for an expansive education. Since childhood, my mother and grandmother have challenged me academically until I flourished into a self-motivated student who expected nothing but success, because they had ingrained that mindset in me. For that, I am forever grateful. Since being a student at SJU, my female friendships and mentorships have challenged me to take on challenging projects, explore new disciplines and be independent in all of my endeavors. I look forward to empowering the women in my life and growing the network of support that I established here at SJU as I embark upon medical school at Sidney Kimmel Medical College this summer.