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| December 6, 2023 |
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Opus Prize 2024
Dear Members of the Santa Clara University Community, I am pleased to share the exciting news that Santa Clara University has been selected by the Opus Prize Foundation to host the prestigious 2024 Opus Prize. This prize is an annual award that recognizes leaders and organizations that champion faith-filled change through their work to address the world’s most persistent social problems. The $1 million prize and two $100,000 prizes represent one of the world’s largest faith-based awards for social entrepreneurship. We are grateful to partner with the Opus Prize Foundation on this year-long effort, which we have themed “Faith Makes Wonders Work.” This theme underscores faith as a driving force for positive and creative change in the world. The goals of the Opus Prize align well with Santa Clara’s Jesuit mission to produce men and women for others, and with our Silicon Valley-influenced goal of producing students with entrepreneurial, problem-solving mindsets. Hosting the Opus Prize will enable us to engage our entire campus and our surrounding community in identifying, nominating, visiting, and ultimately hosting on campus three “unsung heroes” as finalists for the Opus Prize. Opus Prize Week, Nov. 11-15, 2024, will be an exciting week of events, activities and engagement with the finalists, culminating in an awards ceremony at which the Opus Prize Laureate receiving $1 million will be announced and two finalists awarded $100,000 each. Please read the University news release for more information. A Catholic Tradition For nearly 20 years, the Opus Prize Foundation has selected a Catholic university to host the Opus Prize, with a goal of not only expanding the humanitarian efforts of the recipients, but also inspiring the next generation to consider pursuing lives of service. Past Opus Prize laureates have hailed from places like South Sudan, Congo, Haiti, and the U.S., to name a few. Their works have spanned peace-building in war-torn nations, renewing communities ravaged by crime or disaster, or educating highly marginalized populations. Each drew upon their faith traditions to sustain innovative solutions to seemingly insurmountable challenges. In September, I appointed representatives from across campus —students, faculty, Board of Trustees, and staff —to serve on our Opus Prize Oversight Committee, co-chaired by Alison Benders, vice president for mission and ministry, and Molly McDonald, chief of staff to the President. The Oversight Committee will handle the multifaceted process behind the Opus Prize— including selecting prize nominees; facilitating jury review and selection of finalists; identifying ambassadors to conduct diligence visits to finalists’ sites, and planning the Opus Prize Week celebration. I want to thank all of the committee members for their ongoing work building up to Prize Week next year. To learn more about the committee’s work and opportunities to get involved, please check out the Opus Prize 2024 website. The Opus Prize lifts up people and organizations who have accomplished extraordinary things for the good of humanity. By embracing this opportunity, we hope to shine a light on what’s possible in this world, and how faith indeed makes wonders work. Sincerely,
2023-24 Opus Prize Oversight Committee Alison Benders, Vice President, Mission & Ministry, Co-Chair
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| Office of the President |
Santa Clara University |
