Dominican Inter-Provincial Studentate Conference
October 10th, 2007 by Fr. Pius, OP
On the weekend of October 6 and 7, the Studium at the Priory of the Immaculate Conception played host to the first Dominican Inter-Provincial Studentate Conference. The Studia of the other American Provinces — the Provinces of St. Albert the Great (Central), the Holy Name of Jesus (West) and St. Martin de Porres (South) — selected representatives to travel to Washington, DC for this first annual conference. In total, ten students from the other Provinces joined us here in Washington.
The intent of the Conference was to allow the students from throughout the United States to meet each other. Being Dominicans, the intention was not merely social. Rather, the Conference also focused on a particular academic theme. For this first year, the theme of “Bioethics” was chosen. Rev. Nicanor Pier Giorgio Austriaco, OP, assistant professor of biology from Providence College, came to the Studentate to discuss the “bio”, i.e., the science regarding embryos and the beginning of life. For the “ethics”, we were please to welcome Dr. Joseph E. Capizzi, Ph.D, associate professor of moral theology at The Catholic University of America.
Next year, another Province will act as the Host Studium, and students from the Province of St. Joseph will be selected and sent out for a weekend in Oakland, CA, St. Louis, MO, or San Antonio, TX (the locations of the Studia of the other Provinces).
