Angela R. Logan, PhD
St. Andre Bessette Academic Director
Master of Nonprofit Administration
Teaching Professor of Management & Organization
Mendoza College of Business
University of Notre Dame
Remembering Your Telos
Five years ago this week, sequestered in our homes due to the COVID-19 lockdowns, the world watched in horror, as for nine minutes and 29 seconds, Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd. In the days and weeks after this senseless act, calls for racial justice and equity sprang up. Protest marches took place, social media avatars turned black, and organizations, including our own, issued statements, calling for a new way.
If you were like me, after the grief, shock, and rage settled, you started thinking about ways to double down on centering the work of justice for your students come Fall semester. I mean: isn’t that why we decided to get in the work of preparing the next generation of nonprofit practitioners, scholars, and leaders? It certainly wasn’t for the money or the fame! (LOL) And yet, even as I began reading King and Giovanni, Morrison and Thurman, I kept wondering: is this the renewal of the movement that my parents participated in during their formative years, or will this be a moment as short-lived as New Coke and BetaMax?
And of course, as predictably as Spring weather in the Midwestern, the resulting movement/moment had its ups and downs, complete with hail, snow, pollen, and tornadoes. The attempts at progress made in Summer 2020 were quickly forgotten by Fall 2020. Interest in transforming systems of oppression quickly faded, amidst the backdrop of a US presidential election, one that was either the most secure election in US history or stolen, depending upon your ideology. The cries of George Floyd for his mother with his last breath were replaced with shouts to hang the sitting vice president as he did his constitutional duty. And I went from being celebrated by students for teaching them the importance of centering belonging and justice in their work, to being called a Marxist Indoctrinator (thinking that may be the next tattoo)!
After untold hours of sweat, tears, primal screams, and cursing, wondering if any of this work was worth it, I was reminded of the ancient Greek word, τέλος. Often used by Aristotle, “telos” loosely translates to “the end, fulfillment, goal, or aim.” In other words, “What is your Why?” When the temps are below zero as I head to campus to lecture, or the pile of grading feels never-ending, those are the moments when I have to remember my telos.
Five years ago, along with our institutions, we were called to remember our τέλος: to prepare the next generation of nonprofit practitioners, scholars, and leaders to, in the words of the prophet Micah, “act justly and love mercy.” Today, in the midst of attacks on our work, our institutions, and the work of our nonprofit partners, through the elimination on diversity, equity, and inclusion, in the name of “merit, excellence, and innovation,” (as though the former does not include the latter), we are once again called to remember our telos. So whether this Summer, you are at the beach, with us at the University of Maryland for the NACC Conference, or anywhere in between, my hope for you is that you are filled to that which you have poured out this year, so that you are able to return to campus in the Fall, refreshed, renewed, and focused on your telos!
The fight continues!
Grace and peace, Friends!
Angela R. Logan
Board President, NACC