Returning students at Saint Anselm College have probably noticed the changes that are
happening to the Conversatio Program. Freshmen are experiencing a class that looks different to
what the rest of the school remembers about their first year. The pilot program of the revised
Conversatio started in the fall semester, and while many things stayed the same, this semester has
some more notable changes. The first semester was a shared learning experience with the same
curriculum across all of the seminar groups, but this spring has a varying curriculum
class-to-class, though the seminar groups stay the same. The first semester will be similar to the
old program, although there are changes in the syllabus. The Rule of Saint Benedict has been
replaced with Education in the Benedictine Wisdom Tradition, which contains the ten Hallmarks
of the Benedictine education (love, prayer, stability, conversatio, obedience, discipline, humility,
stewardship, hospitality, and community) and explains how these values should be considered in
education. The oral presentation is now also in the first semester. Dr. Scheopner Torres said “So
one of the things that I kept bringing up is: students actually really like that it’s a year long
program, because they like the continuity of it, right? Students, really- they hate the oral
presentations while they’re doing them, but they also find them very valuable, yeah? So in the
pilot, one of the things we kept was the oral presentation. Usually the oral presentation is in the
first or in the second semester; we wanted to make sure that it actually happened, so we put it in
that first semester.”
One of the biggest differences is that for the second semester, students will be able to fulfill a
core requirement. Another change is that the first semester will focus more on the Saint Anselm
community. Students will not only get tours of the monastery, but also tour and have classes in
the Library, the Meelia Center, the Career Development Center, and other places on campus that
help students to enrich their campus and academic lives. When faced with the issue of
complaints about the extra hour of class time spent meeting at these resource centers, Dr.
Scheopner Torres said “we heard that, and we’re definitely taking it into consideration. They did,
in the pilot, have fewer readings to help compensate for that extra hour of class they had.”
In addition to the revisions to Conversatio, the entire core curriculum is also under revision. Part
of these revisions is the addition of ‘Anselmian Journeys.’ According to Dr. Scheopner Torres,
academic advisors will check in with their students to make sure that they are taking advantage
of campus resources and extracurriculars. The goal of Anselmian Journeys is to set up students
with a balanced life and all the resources they need to prepare for their futures after they move on
from Saint Anselm. Dr. Scheopner Torres explained that “We’re really trying to educate the
whole person, right? not just ‘here’s what you’re going to need for your job.’ Really, we really
want to make sure that all of our students graduate feeling confident and in who they are, and if
they don’t know who they are yet, [we want them to] have the tools to continue to figure that
out.”

Dr. Scheopner Torres and the revision committee are dedicated to staying true to the Benedictine
traditions. They are taking the student voice into careful consideration, regularly polling
students, and are always looking for more feedback. Dr. Scheopner Torres said that she would
“love to know how to get more student voice” and would appreciate any comments, questions, or
concerns. The Conversatio program is still under revision, and the staff “don’t know yet if the
First Year Experience is actually going to be a year or if it’s just going to be a semester. We do
know that there’s going to be at least one semester of a shared learning experience” With the
research gathered from the student body and the pilot program, next year Saint Anselm College
will have a brand new class that prepares freshmen for the Good Life both here and for the rest
of their lives.