Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota has made the decision to no longer host the International Lasallian Research Symposium. Begun in 2012, these gatherings have had a good run, have been both meaningful and enjoyable, and have served the purpose of bringing together Lasallians engaged in higher education globally.
In the past two years, with the many unknowns about the COVID-19 pandemic, we were forced to cancel both the 2020 and 2021 meetings. Further, given the current surge of the Omicron variant and its attendant implications on health, travel, and related challenges, additional issues and concerns are again raised for us and our institutions in regard to shorter- and longer-term planning.
As university leadership stated in a communication canceling last year’s Symposium, Saint Mary’s is continuing to plan for the future, exploring ways to exchange ideas, share practices, and strengthen our networks locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. Specifically, The Very Rev. James P. Burns, IVD, Ph.D., president of Saint Mary’s, has asked the School of Education to begin to explore the design of a possible new conference to ensure the university’s Lasallian identity continues to enrich our pedagogy, scholarship, and practice.