FDB ADMINISTRATIVE ASSESSMENT FORM

Candidates Name: Eric Castro ___________________________

Administrators Name: Patrick Lynch ______________________
1. List or describe the candidates Retreat Commitments the past five years.
Eric has regularly directed the September Kairos retreats, served as an adult leader
on June retreats (2011 and 2012), and began to accompany Freshmen as a
CURA leader. Moreover, Eric provided additional support on the Kairos music files
and technical support for several years. He handled all purchasing and ensured
basic compliance with copyright laws.
2.
Please comment upon the candidates strengths as they apply to her/his
contributions to spiritual formation.
Eric has worked with several different Kairos spiritual directors over the years. All
regularly comment on how he manages the team well, and helps all of the logistics
run smoothly. He regularly provides constructive feedback on how to improve the
program. Erics teams regularly stay connected to him; the student leaders that
work with him regularly connect with him and seek his support well after the
retreat. Eric also regularly engages in the offerings of Adult Spirituality most
notably the Mens Prayer Groups and Arrupe Evenings. Moreover, Eric completed a
condensed version Exercises this Fall. Erics commitment to engage in Spiritual
Formation informs his work and contributions to the school. He provides excellent
and generous service that supports the Gospel values and mission of our school.
3.
Please comment upon the candidates areas of growth with respect to her/his
responsibilities to spiritual formation.
I support Erics desire to go deeper in the areas of growth that he has
identified. Eric wants to deepen his contributions to the Kairos program while
respecting the delineation between Retreat Director and Spiritual Director roles. His
desire to have a deeper understanding of spiritual direction should inform and
enhance the formation of Kairos teams and may influence his approach to some
limited aspects of CURA. Similarly, intentionally using an equity and inclusion lens
as he develops some culturally responsive lesson plans for WHII should enhance his
levels and departments work in ongoing curriculum review. This desire will
hopefully deepen as he participates in the Diversity and Inclusion Group (DIG).
Finally, developing a more nuanced understanding of the Churchs tradition of the
primacy of conscience will help Eric and the school as we struggle to remain faithful
to our role in the conscience formation of students. Critically engaging our tradition
and the challenging issues of our time will continue to be crucial work for our
community.

4. Please comment upon the candidates reflection and six-year plan for
contributions to spiritual formation.
The concrete actions that Eric identified align and effectively address the
aforementioned goals. His reflection provides context for the Board and includes a
balanced and honest appraisal of his work. While engaging his plan, Eric should
regularly discuss with colleagues and mentors about his investigations and
document his progress with EIT reflections and the midterm check in. A book such
as Fr. William Barrys Finding God In All Things will hopefully be a promising place
to address his desire. Fr. Barry consciously notes the complexity and limitations of
spiritual direction that I hope Eric will find helpful. (Brian OKeefe used to use
salient passages of this book to train our June leaders.) I encourage Eric to discuss
his readings with a colleague or Jesuit who has regularly engaged in spiritual
direction.
Similarly, it was exciting to hear his reflections on his engagement with the
WHII curriculum. I trust that he will find some lessons with which he will heighten
the opportunities for cultural responsiveness. As he designs lessons with a focus on
equity and inclusion and questions of conscience, I recommend that he consult with
respected colleagues, the Office of Equity and Inclusion and seek both formal and
informal feedback from students appropriate to his revisions.
Finally, I hope that Eric finds inspiration in the essays on conscience in Not Less
Than Everything. The editor has compiled a variety of thinkers who note historical
figures whostruggled with the tension of their conscience and the teaching
Magisterium of their time. Jesuit schools have always defended the primacy of
conscience and provided a space for Catholics to critically engage their faith. We
need Ignatian pedagogues who embrace those tensions today and choose to lean
in as we discern the most courageous response to the issues of our time. Eric has
followed that instinct by participating in the Arrupe Seminars and raising important
questions concerning SIs fidelity to its tradition and mission.
5. Please include any additional comments or reflections about the candidate.
As Eric returns to full time instruction in the classroom, I hope that this FDB
process provides him the chance to reflect on his contributions to the school and
rekindle the primary work of accompanying students in their spiritual formation
through the integrated efforts of the classroom, co-curriculum, and Campus
Ministry/Community Service. He has served not only our school but the larger field
of education by asking critical questions about the intersection of students and the
multi-media paradigm shift in which we live. Eric has led discussions amongst
educators about the responsible use of technology and how we bridge the digital
divide. With any paradigm shift, it raises major concerns about which there are not
clear answers. However, Erics commitment to critically engage these questions has
served our students and colleagues well. While we will continue to need his voice in
this area, I look forward to him being able to focus more on other areas again,
especially the primary relationships within our Jesuit school. I hope that the Board
appropriately acknowledges that Eric engaged critical issues of Mission and Identity

these past six years, and support his desire to vigorously address those as his daily
work shifts back to the classroom.
Questions for the Candidate:
Please provide some context for the Board about the formation process for
Kairos leaders. How do you hope a deeper knowledge of spiritual direction
might inform your work?
What are some areas that you hope to explore in WHII curriculum through an
equity and inclusion lens? How do you hope to enhance the cultural
responsiveness of this course?
While respecting your privacy, what are some areas of conscience that have
caught your attention these past years in discussions with colleagues and
students? What were some of the more pertinent topics that resonated with
you in some Arrupe Evenings?
Suggested Recommendations:
I support Erics plan to critical engage a book such as Finding God in All
Things, and recommend that he discuss his reading with an informed
colleague or mentor. He should document his reading and conversations in
his EIT reflection and/or meeting with the APF.
I support Erics plan to design lessons that heighten the cultural
responsiveness of WHII, and recommend that he seek formal and/or informal
feedback from colleagues and students. He should document his efforts in his
EIT reflection and/or meeting with the APF.
I support Erics desire to seek inspiration from historical figures of conscience
through a book such as Not Less Than Everything, and recommend that he
discuss his reading with an informed colleague or mentor. He should
document his reading and conversations in his EIT reflection and/or meeting
with the APF.
Suggested Commendations:
I hope that the Board will commend Eric either formally/informally for his
generous contributions to the Kairos programs, especially the ongoing
mentoring that he provides his teams. The September director, in particular,
has challenges and opportunities. There is a significant time crunch to form a
team well, and long haul with which to follow up. Eric does both extremely
well.
I hope that the Board will commend Eric for the significant reflection and
guidance that he has provided our community in the midst of a major
paradigm shift in going one to one. In particular, I am grateful for the lens of
equity that he encouraged the school to bridge the digital divide amongst our
students.
I hope that the Board will commend Eric for his participation in the offerings
of Adult Spirituality. From engaging an abridged version of the Exercises to
the Mens Prayer Group to Arrupe Evenings, Eric has engaged the call to
deepen and model our spirituality. In particular, I am grateful for the
questions that he has asked of presenters that tied their insight to our work.