Activities of the Society

The Albertus Magnus Society holds an open meeting one Thursday of each month (except December) between September and April. Meetings follow a seminar format and begin with a presentation by an expert on some aspect of the year's theme. The presentation is followed by questions and lively discussion. November's meeting is a public lecture by a speaker with a national reputation. Participants at a luncheon the following day have a chance for more intimate dialogue with the speaker.

Information on topics of interest is supplied through this website, which regularly lists resources, website links, and notices of activities by other organizations. Books and other resources on the themes of the presentations are available through Dominican University's Rebecca Crown Library. 

Leadership

Activities of the Albertus Magnus Society are planned by a steering committee led by co-chairs.

The steering committee includes:

Ann Charney Colmo, professor emerita of political science, Dominican University
J. Brent Friesen, assistant professor of chemistry, Dominican University
William George, professor of theology, Dominican University
Paul Poskozim, professor of chemistry (retired), Loyola University, Chicago
Michael J. Stephen, independent psychologist
Roger Timm, pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church, Riverside
Richard Woods, OP, professor of theology, Dominican University

Co-chairs:

Dan Beach is the Chair of the Psychology Department of Dominican University and has been a member of the university faculty since 1975. He is a licensed clinical psychologist and has served as President of the Illinois Psychological Association. He established the first major in special education and the first graduate degree in education at Dominican University and was instrumental in the development of the Graduate School of Social Work. He is a Fellow of the American Council on Education, a former faculty trustee of Dominican University and is a member of the Faculty Advisory Council of the Illinois Board of Higher Education. He has published in the area of clinical interviewing, standardized test construction and professional development. His current interests include the black-white performance gap in schools and the emerging field of evolutionary pschology and behavior genetrics. Dan can be reached at danbeach@dom.edu.

Hugh T. McElwain holds a doctorate from the Marianum Pontifical Faculty, Collegio Sant'Alessio, Rome, Italy. He is professor of theology at Dominican University, where he also served as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1994 to 2002. Hugh McElwain was Professor of Systematic Theology and Academic Dean of Catholic Theological Union, Chicago and a member of the Institute for Religion and Science, from 1968 to 1972. He has lectured extensively on theology and science, especially in reference to the scientific phenomenology of Teilhard de Chardin. He presented a paper, “Comparing Teilhard de Chardin's The Human Phenomenon with John Stewart's Evolution's Arrow,” at the 2005 Conference “Discovering Fire,” commemorating the 50th anniversary of Teilhard's death. His paper, “A Metaphysics of the Future: Science and Theology, Partners in Dialogue,” was presented at the 2006 Metanexus Conference in Philadelphia (www.metanexus.net/conference2006/papers.asp). Among his other publications are An Introduction to Teilhard de Chardin, St. Augustine's Doctrine on the Just War, Theology of Limit and the Limits of Theology, as well as a chapter in Earth Ethics' Report. Hugh may be reached at mcelwnhu@dom.edu.

Elizabeth McMahon Jeep is associate director of the Siena Center at Dominican University and is a theologian who specializes in religious education and the intersection of psychology with theology. She holds a doctorate in religion and psychology from Chicago Theological Seminary, and a master's from The Catholic University of America. She wrote the first 13 volumes of Children's Daily Prayer, as well as CDP for the Summer, Blessed be God, and The Welcome Table: Celebrating the Eucharist with Children. Dr. Jeep serves on the Archdiocesan Catechist Certification Commission and is on the boards of the Children's Spirituality Conference and the Chicago Coalition for InterReligious Leaning. She is a charter member of the dialogue sponsored by the Archdiocese of Chicago and the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago. She teaches a Sophomore Seminar and occasional courses for Dominican University’s School of Continuing Learning. She can be reached at emjeep@dom.edu.