Macalester is not a school that one would immediately associate with religion. In fact, according to the Princeton Review, Macalester is the most “ungodly” school in the nation. But to the people at the Indiana-based pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, the Protestant beginnings of Macalester were very important.

In the summer of 1999, Lilly invited 50 liberal arts colleges with religious affiliations to apply for a $2 million grant to promote the exploration of theological vocations. This posed somewhat of a challenge to Macalester. “People really questioned whether it was right for Macalester to apply for this grant,” said Jeanne Halogen Kilde, the Co-director of the Lilly Project. “We just aren’t a school that is big on religion, especially Protestantism.”

After much consideration Macalester submitted a proposal to use the grant money to “explore how moral, ethical and religious concerns shape our understanding of the work we do” and to encourage on-campus discussion of this issue.

After receiving the grant in December 2001, the Lilly project was established on campus. The Project focuses both on academic and co-curricular endeavors through four focus areas: inside the classroom, beyond the classroom, in the community and religious vocation.

Inside the classroom, the project is making quite a difference. Two new classes, Work and Ethics across Traditions and From Order to Occupation: Work, Status & the Fate of Christian Society in Medieval & Renaissance Europe have been added to the course offerings as part of the project and four more are scheduled to be added next year.

Two student projects are also funded each summer. Juniors and seniors working on projects that deal with some aspect of work and values compete for two $3,000 grants to research for the summer. Susanna Fioratta’02 and Jason Schlude ’02 received the grant last summer. “I spent my summer doing field research on the topic of refugee resettlement. I could have never devoted that much time to research if it hadn’t been for the grant,” said Fioratta.

Beyond the classroom the project’s programs are quite well known, although few may know that they are funded by Lilly. The Lives of Commitment first-year Program, the Sophomore Retreat and mentorship experiences are all organized by the project.

The project also focuses on integrating the community into Macalester. They do this by funding two speakers related to the topic of work and ethics and working on a project researching the history of Macalester. Beginning in 2003, they will also be hosting a symposium on work and religious identity and a gathering with other schools involved in the grant.

And finally, the project helps students explore the religious vocation by funding study away programs, seminary site visits, community service projects and leadership conferences.

This past spring break, a group of eight seniors and Chaplain Lucy Forster-Smith, who is also the co-director of the project, went on a leadership conference to Seattle. The purpose of the retreat was to help students find heart and meaning in their future jobs. “It was a great conference,” said participant Rino Koshimizu ’02. “The timing was perfect because we were all so stressed out about school. It really made us reflect, look forward and re-evaluate our priorities.”

An upcoming program that spans both the academic and co-curricular aspects of the project is this weekend’s Undergraduate Research Conference. With plans to make this an annual conference, the goal is to allow students to share their work with other students on campus. “Nothing like this has happened at Macalester before,” Kilde said. “The idea has been in the works since 1994. It’s a great opportunity for students to hear what their classmates have been doing.”

Despite most students’ unfamiliarity with the project, the program makes an impact. “We may not have a number of students percentage-wise involved in the project,” said Program Assistant Kay Crawford, “but those students that get involved with the project really get into it.”

Despite the fact that the grant will be up in 2004, Kilde hopes that “the project will make an impression on students and the campus and leave the school with some programs that really explore the ideas of work, values and vocation.”