In 2023, St. Olaf College was awarded a grant from the Network of Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) under its Vocation Across the Curriculum initiative.

At St. Olaf the project, entitled Life On Purpose, was managed by the Lutheran Center for Faith, Values, and Community.

From 2023 through 2026, the Life on Purpose project engaged faculty and staff to equip students for vocational reflection and exploration in the classroom, in the workplace, in the co-curriculum, and in extra-curricular activities. Through communities of practice and pilot projects, over 9000 faculty, staff, and students engaged with what it means to live life on purpose for the common good. 

Are you looking to learn more about the communities of practice and pilot projects that Life on Purpose has funded? Read more about them here

Are you looking for resources to help engage students around questions of vocational exploration? Check our our Resource page here or reach out to Peter Carlson Schattauer, Interim Director of the Lutheran Center (schatt2@stolaf.edu).

1. Advancing the implementation of the holistic, developmental, individualized pathway program that the For Every Ole initiative has been charged with designing.
2. Developing and sharing more resources for vocational reflection and discernment for use across a variety of curricular and co-curricular experiences.
3. Enhancing the capacity of participating faculty and staff to provide (1) holistic, developmental, collaborative advising and mentoring, and (2) opportunities for vocational reflection and discernment.
4. Enhancing participating students’ capacity for vocational reflection. Piloting opportunities that will help students gain knowledge and skills that support vocational reflection; in course-based program pilots, the goal is that a majority of participating students will demonstrate meaningful vocational reflection in written work.
5. Increasing students’ sense of belonging. Provide vocational opportunities and/or resources that increase student experiences of feeling valued by and connected to St. Olaf.
6. Increasing student retention. Provide vocational opportunities and/or resources that can be linked to wider efforts throughout the college to increase retention.