The Center for Faith, Action and Ministry (CFAM) recently appointed Sister Jacinta Kioko as assistant director for ministry and spiritual formation at Saint Mary’s College. The role is intended to guide students within their spiritual formation and integrate them further into their personal faith.
CFAM’s assistant director for justice and solidarity Sarah Neitz mentioned how Kioko’s experience in ministry and theology through her studies and experience make her an exceptional person for the position.
“I think one of the things that we were really excited about with Sister Jacinta was her experience with interfaith ministry," Nietz said. “She has a doctorate in theology, and has done really impressive ministry work in Africa, as well as in the US."
Kioko said her interest in Saint Mary’s is rooted in the College’s general mission of helping students grow spiritually and feel like they belong through campus programs.
Kioko also spoke about the various roles and experiences she has undertaken in her career.
“Apart from just studying about theology, I have been hands-on about different cases in ministry, pastoral ministry and working with diverse groups of people," Kioko said. “I’ve also worked with Muslims in Tanzania, and just seeing that diversity of people working together as one, regardless of their religion and regardless of their backgrounds, is something that I think has really helped me grow and it prepared me for my position here."
One of her responsibilities as assistant director is to work closely with students through organizing retreats, one-on-one sessions, assisting those of different spiritual backgrounds and helping students in their faith.
“Since I began, some of the students who have come here just talk about how they are doing in their academic work, and I encourage them, and how important the academic work is to their spirituality also. How it’s important to integrate the two, and not to forget to do so as those two aspects are important in their lives,” Kioko said.
She is hoping to use small student-led groups to help students share about themselves and listen to each other’s faith journeys through a receptive environment.
Kioko not only looks forward to working with students, but also collaborating further with faculty members across a variety of divisions within CFAM.
“Here, in CFAM, we work as a team, so there are different ways of interacting and collaborating with them. We work together to prepare for their services, including the St. Francis Fest this Friday,” Kioko said.
At Saint Mary’s College, she wants students to feel like they are part of a community larger than themselves and that they can find a home.
“Since I stepped my foot here, I never felt like I didn’t belong at Saint Mary’s. I hope that is what I’m going to do. To help the students also feel that they belong,” Kioko said.
