Campus Ministry Hosts ACSLHE Conference: A Tapestry of Spiritual Traditions
Rev TauVaughn Toney, Protestant Chaplain (seated far left), moderating a panel featuring Campus Ministry chaplains and staff.
On February 3, Campus Ministry at Georgetown University was one of three hosts for this year’s gathering of the Association for Chaplaincy and Spiritual Life in Higher Education (ACSLHE). The annual conference took place from February 2 to 4 across the campuses of Howard, Georgetown, and American Universities in Washington, DC.
This year’s theme—Howard, Georgetown, American: A Tapestry of Spiritual Traditions—reflected on the rich and diverse expressions of faith, spirituality, and moral inquiry that shape these institutions. Howard, Georgetown, and American each bring distinct histories, traditions, and commitments to justice. Together, they weave a shared story—one of accompaniment, advocacy, and deep care for the communities they serve.
“It was a privilege to host the ACSLHE Conference at Georgetown,” said Rev. TauVaughn Toney, Protestant Chaplain and the Georgetown University conference organizer.
“The three universities, with their unique histories of serving their communities’ spiritual needs, coming together as a ‘tapestry of spiritual traditions’ in our nation’s capital is a reminder that the work we do requires diversity and collaboration—that we are not alone,” added Rev. Toney.
Campus Ministry welcomed over 200 chaplains and directors from universities across the country. The conference provided a space for these professionals to come together, learn, and engage in meaningful conversations around faith, tradition, and their roles in supporting students’ spiritual and emotional well-being.
Rev. Cara Rockhill, Georgetown’s Episcopal Chaplain talking with conference attendees.
Fr. Mark Bosco, S.J., vice president of Mission & Ministry, welcomed the delegates to Georgetown, inviting them to embrace the Spirit of Georgetown. “Here at Georgetown, our Jesuit tradition calls us to cura personalis—care for the whole person,” he said. “It is a commitment that resonates deeply with the work that we do: creating spaces of hospitality, offering pastoral care, advocating for justice, and helping students wrestle with life’s great questions of identity, purpose, and hope.”
To illustrate how Georgetown lives out these commitments, Rev. Toney moderated a panel of Campus Ministry’s chaplains and staff. “The weekend was a full-circle moment for me because so many people who have poured into me from every chapter of my adult life were represented at that conference,” he said. “It made me think about the next generations of chaplains and spiritual leaders that I may be accompanying now—those I may be helping equip for their own callings,” Rev. Toney added.
Panelists covered a range of topics from creating spaces where students can engage with faith—spaces where students can feel they belong, even if they don’t fit perfectly into traditional faith structures, to confronting institutional history and traditions and teaching students to understand that their desire to create positive change is not separate from their faith but deeply connected to it.
Conference attendees in conversation.
Overall, the conference was a powerful reminder of the critical role that chaplains play in university life. They are not just religious leaders but also guides, listeners, and advocates, helping students navigate a complex world where faith, history, and personal identity often collide. The hope is that by creating these spaces of dialogue, chaplains can help students heal, grow, and find their paths toward meaning, belonging, and purpose.