Tuesday, June 9, 2026
Early afternoon on May 8, 2025 (San Antonio time), the world heard, “I am a son of Saint Augustine, an Augustinian.” In the days that followed, my curiosity led me deeper into learning about Saint Augustine and his teachings of interiority, restless hearts, true happiness, unity over uniformity, and love for the poor. One year into his papacy, Pope Leo XIV continues to model these Augustinian values while calling on Catholic institutions to respond faithfully to the realities of our time.
Last week, I joined a group of Catholic higher education presidents for the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities (ACCU) Rome Seminar, where we explored a suite of timely topics relevant to our sector. It is abundantly clear that higher education is undergoing profound transformation. Change is occurring in student expectations, technology, workforce demands, demographic realities. All the while, the pace of change continues to accelerate.
What struck me most was that regardless of institutional size, location, endowment amount, focus, or relative strength or fragility, every one of my presidential colleagues is navigating significant institutional transformation. The challenges might appear different from campus to campus, but the reality is shared: institutions that wish to serve future generations must continually evolve to meet the needs of their time. This observation strengthened a conviction that has continued to emerge at OLLU in our time together. Transformation is stewardship. It is our obligation to continually align our mission, programs, operations, and student experience with the realities of the world our students will inherit.
We, too, will continue to embrace transformation and evolution as we steward OLLU and position our institution for a bright tomorrow. Our work around Focused Differentiation, operational excellence, student success, and institutional sustainability is rooted in our shared commitment.
In our private audience with His Holiness last week, Pope Leo acknowledged both the importance of our ministry and the challenges facing Catholic education. He reminded us that Catholic institutions “are called to be a living environment in which the Christian vision permeates every discipline, and every interaction.” Those words resonated deeply with me. They remind us that our mission is not preserved by being static. Rather, it is strengthened when we continually renew how we live it.
In closing, I respectfully share with you two photos from our time with Pope Leo, and I pass along his blessing which he asked that I carry to each of you: “I cordially impart my apostolic blessing, which I willingly extend to the people, the communities, and the institutions you represent.”
Please remember that you are a gift to our university and to the world. The future of OLLU will be shaped by the talents, creativity, dedication, and faithfulness of our community; by you. As we continue this important work together, may we embrace transformation as an act of stewardship and a faithful response to the needs of our time.
With prayer and with gratitude.
Yours,
Abel A. Chávez, MBA, Ph.D.