The de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture welcomed a cohort of 50 leaders working to build and support a culture of life both nationally and internationally to its annual Notre Dame Vita Institute, June 9–14, 2024.

The Vita Institute is an intensive intellectual formation program at the University of Notre Dame that invites participants to study the fundamentals of life issues with world-renowned scholars across a range of disciplines, including social science, biology, philosophy, medicine, theology, law, communications, and counseling. The lectures led participants to explore the ways in which various fields intersect in building and supporting a culture of life.

This summer’s program was the final edition presented by O. Carter Snead, whose 12-year tenure as director of the de Nicola Center closed at the end of June. During the course of his directorship, nearly 600 leaders participated in the weeklong program at Notre Dame, with more than 500 additional participants attending sessions conducted outside Notre Dame at the invitations of the Archbishops of Los Angeles, New York, and Houston-Galveston.

The 2024 faculty included Maureen Condic (University of Utah), Jacqueline Rivers (Harvard University), Francis Beckwith (Baylor University), Dr. Christina Francis (American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists), Mary O’Callaghan (University of Notre Dame), Diane Desierto (Notre Dame Law School), and 26 doctors, lawyers, professors, and pro-life luminaries. Much of the week focused on how best to support women, children, and their families in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s demise following the Supreme Court’s 2022 landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

Vita Institute attendees came to Notre Dame for a week of fellowship, formation, and prayer from across the United States, in addition to participants from Canada, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, and Poland. Participants included medical professionals and students, pregnancy center staff, abortion survivors, religious sisters, teachers, legislators, and many other individuals who are passionate about promoting the cause of life from conception to natural death.

Snead stated that his final Vita cohort was “a fantastic array of leaders and practitioners representing all corners of the culture of life movement around the world, coming from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives, but all with a dedication to caring for mothers, babies, families, and communities in ways that recognize and celebrate the dignity of all human life.”

The de Nicola Center will host the next Vita Institute in June 2025.