Syracuse, N.Y. – In September 2016, Le Moyne College Assistant Vice President and Director of Athletics Matt Bassett accepted an invitation on behalf of the College to attend "Sport at the Service of Humanity," the first global conference on faith and sport.
 
The conference, which took place at The Vatican from Oct. 5 to 7, 2016, was described as "a gathering of global leaders and influencers from the world of faith, sport, business and other relevant organizations - to discuss, in partnership, the interconnectedness of Faith and Sport and to explore the scope of limits of the combinations." The invitation to participate came with the blessings of Pope Francis.
 
"I am extremely humbled and honored to have received this invitation on behalf of the College and the athletic community I represent," said Bassett when he received the invitation. "I believe the spirit and intent of this conference aligns perfectly with what we have developed here at Le Moyne as our 'Inside the L' program is a highly distinctive and intentional-values driven culture that is deeply rooted in the 500-year old traditions of Jesuit, Catholic education. We aspire to live and to share those values as a community, through athletics each and every day."

Under Bassett's leadership, the Le Moyne athletic community in 2011 began considering the question, 'What does a distinctly Jesuit intercollegiate athletic experience mean and what does it look like in action?' In the fall of 2013, the department formally partnered with Dr. Matt Davidson from the Institute for Excellence and Ethics to enhance the materials and tools used to assess program outcomes.

"Matt and his team have played a critical role in the success of our program," added Bassett. "He is now fully embraced as a member of our Dolphin family."
 
"As a Jesuit institution, we seek to develop men and women for others, who are committed to social justice and service for the greater good," said David McCallum S.J., vice president for mission integration and development at Le Moyne. "Under Matt's leadership, those involved with athletics at Le Moyne - from students to coaches to administrators - are dedicated to living the Jesuit mission through their actions, words and deeds." 
  
Launched in 2011, the guiding principles of Inside the L are:

• Excellence with integrity
• Tough love and total care of each person in mind, body and spirit;
• Leadership, service and love of neighbor -- everywhere, all the time;
• Spiritual beings who seek and embrace the sacred; and
• Transformational love and a commitment to be the change.

 
 
More information about the Sport at the Service of Humanity Conference at the Vatican can be found here: http://sportforhumanity.com/2016-conference/

After the conference at the Vatican, Le Moyne Athletics was also invited to attend the 'Sport at the Service of Humanity: A Regional Conference on Faith and Collegiate Sports' hosted by Villanova University from June 7 to 8, 2017. Representatives from 28 colleges, universities and other organizations gathered together to engage in discussions about how sport and faith can be used together to develop the "whole" student-athlete.
 

More information regarding the Sport at the Service of Humanity Conference at Villanova can be found here: https://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/mission/SSH/2017.html