LIFE Objectives and Student Learning Outcomes

The LIFE--Lead and Influence Foundational Education—core curriculum is the required program of courses for all undergraduate students at St. Catherine University. The LIFE core curriculum reflects a commitment to St. Kate’s mission to educate women to
lead and influence, as well as its vision to be respected globally for educating women who transform the world. This mission, rooted in the mission of the Sisters of St. Joseph, is based on three core principles: women, Catholic, and liberal arts.

The LIFE core curriculum provides all students the opportunity to learn from a curriculum that recognizes women’s leadership and builds on this truth: when women do well, the world does well.

Consistent with our mission, vision, and principles, the LIFE core curriculum supports students’ development toward these four objectives:

JUSTICE: Dismantling systemic racism and intersecting oppressions to build a more just world
KNOWLEDGE: Learning about self and a complex world
SKILLS: Developing the skills to confront the issues of our time
LEADERSHIP: Preparing to lead in a diverse complex world.

By completing the LIFE core curriculum, a student will demonstrate the ability to perform these four learning outcomes:

• Apply an understanding of personal mission, social justice, ethical responsibility, and cultural fluency to the exercise of effective leadership 
• Apply the concepts and methods of the arts, humanities, social sciences, and STEM to identify and solve problems
• Apply the skills of research and critical analysis to the ideas, information, and experiences needed to understand and solve problems
• Listen and effectively communicate ideas to expert and non-expert audiences.