22nd Fellin Lecture to Focus on "Benedictine Education"

Monday, August 28, 2023

Sister Susan Quaintance, OSBThe 22nd Mary L. Fellin Lecture is coming to Benedictine College with a special presentation on Sunday, September 10, at 7:00 p.m. in O’Malley-McAllister Auditorium on the Atchison, Kan., campus. The Fellin Endowment Fund sponsors the lecture series, presented each year by the Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica Monastery in order to support the liberal arts orientation of Benedictine College. This year, Sister Susan Quaintance, OSB, subprioress of the Benedictine Sisters of Chicago and a former teacher, will speak on “Holy Conversation: Is that the Crux of Benedictine Education?” The lecture is free and open to the public.

In a lifetime of working with all kinds of people, Sr. Susan has learned that the term “Benedictine education,” about which she is passionate, is wonderfully elastic and expansive. She spent over two decades teaching English and Theology at St. Scholastica Academy, the high school for young women sponsored by her community.

For the last ten years she worked in agencies addressing the needs of older adults, first in the Center for Life and Learning at Fourth Presbyterian Church, and then at Comfort Keepers, which provides caregivers to individuals in their homes. She also directs the Heart-to-Heart program, a ministry designed to assist senior citizens remain independent in their homes, at St. Gertrude Catholic Parish.

A longtime member of the American Benedictine Academy, Sr. Susan has been a board member of that organization and was president from 2014-2016. She also serves on the council of the Monastic Congregation of St. Scholastica and sits on the board of the United States secretariat of the Alliance for International Monasticism (AIM U.S.A.).

She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and earned a master’s degree in Theology with a concentration in monastic studies from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota.

The Fellin Lecture series is from a female perspective and past lectures have included:

  • “Common Ground, Uncommon Excellence” by Dr. Carolyn Woo, president & CEO of Catholic Relief Services
  • “Soul Food: Kansas Nuns Teach Journalist to Sit Still, Be Quiet, and Find Home” by Judith Valente
  • “Responsibility of the Artist in View of 9/11” by Sister Diane Couture, SSJ
  • “Benedict, Francis and Thomas: Contributions to Environmental Ethics from a Catholic, Christian Perspective” by Jame Schaefer
  • “Dialogue of Hope: The Future of Catholic Relations with Muslims” by Sandra Keating
  • “Illuminating the Word: The Saint John’s Bible” by S. Mary Irene Nowell, OSB.

Founded in 1858, Benedictine College is a Catholic, Benedictine, residential, liberal arts college located on the bluffs above the Missouri River in Atchison, Kansas.  The school is honored to have been named one of America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report as well as one of the top Catholic colleges in the nation by First Things magazine and the Newman Guide.  It prides itself on outstanding academics, extraordinary faith life, strong athletic programs, and an exceptional sense of community and belonging.  It has a mission to educate men and women within a community of faith and scholarship.

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