Matt Alpaugh, project manager for CCMA, said this was the first year the conference was held on a university campus, and he praised the campus ministry team at St. Mary Catholic Center for their help.

Mark Knox, director of Campus Ministry at Texas A&M University, said St. Mary was thrilled to host the conference.

“We as a campus ministry team feel it’s important to give back to the campus ministry community across the country,” he said.

Alison Tate, director of Formation and Spirituality for the Diocese of Austin, also attended the conference as she works with the campus ministry programs throughout Central Texas. The diocese has well established campus ministry programs at some of the largest universities in the state: Texas A&M, the University of Texas, Baylor University and Texas State University, as well as at several smaller colleges and a brand-new campus ministry program at Austin Community College. 

“Campus ministers are called to make space for any student to know and belong in a relationship with Jesus Christ,” she said.

During the pre-conference, Dr. Greg Bottaro, founder of Catholicpsych, explained how secular mental health practices can inform a Catholic approach to mental health.

He discussed Dr. Richard Schwartz’ phrase “No Bad Parts,” saying that “[God] loves all parts of us first, even those parts that are wounded.” Attendees received a pamphlet with tips about responding to various types of mental health situations.

About 210 participated in the conference, which provided many opportunities for encounters with Christ: daily Mass, a holy hour, and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

Father Marcel Amadi from the Diocese of Charlotte was moved by words from the homily at Tuesday’s opening Mass, celebrated by Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota. 

“We should also try to encourage our students to see we are calling them to use whatever gifts or talents they have to build up God’s kingdom here on Earth,” Father Amadi said. As chaplain of multiple campuses in North Carolina, the priest regularly encourages many students to use their gifts.

Keynote speakers included Dr. Ansel Augustine, who discussed working with diverse populations; Katherine Angulo who spoke about accompaniment; Deacon Ed Shoener, who discussed accompaniment of people experiencing mental health challenges; Andrew Robison, who focused on outstanding campus ministries, and Marcel LeJeune, who spoke about bold evangelization.

During her keynote, Angulo discussed accompanying young people instead of inviting them to join a program. “Life is all about transitions,” she said, with most important transitions happening between ages 18 and 30. She pointed out that many young Catholics don’t follow a “linear path” from high school to choosing a college to finding a job, getting married and having children, etc. 

This is even more true with the multicultural church. Currently, more than 60% of Catholics under 23 are Hispanic or from immigrant families. Many feel frustrated from lack of opportunities, and decisions about their lives may have already been made by their families. This is “an invitation for ministries to provide stability,” Angulo said. 

She invited participants to consider the Mary, Our Blessed Mother, as “The best person that has shown us the gift of accompaniment in this Earth.”

The conference also featured breakout workshops, such as Live Vertical’s presentation on evangelizing to high school students, where speaker Michelle Volk explained that “accompaniment is not going to feel productive,” and encouraged campus ministers to spend time with students anyway.

In another workshop, Barbara McCrabb, assistant director for Higher Education at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said, “You don’t have to go very far to find people on the margins.” 

During a workshop on discipleship, Knox explained the effects of accompaniment in St. Mary’s campus ministry at Texas A&M. “[Students] began … doing things not because the church was starting it but because they cared for each other.”

For more information about campus ministry in the Diocese of Austin visit www.austindiocese.org/campus-ministry.