The Institute for Cultural Engagement (TICE) at CPA encourages students to discover answers to these questions:

What am I curious about?

Who do I want to become?

How do I want to engage the world and community?

The Sojourn platform, a speaker series for all upper school students, was launched this year as part of the program’s offerings in assisting with these questions. A sojourner is a traveler who has overcome trials and tribulations on his journey to purpose. This speaker series introduces students to industry leaders who have discovered passion and purpose in their own lives. These first two impactful speakers provided a powerful introduction to the transformational power of discovering their passion and purpose. 

Dr. Matt McEvoy, a Professor in the Departments of Anesthesiology and Surgery at Vanderbilt University, addressed the upper school student body in October. His primary appointment is in the Department of Anesthesiology where he serves in the roles of Vice-Chair for Educational Affairs and the Program Director for the Perioperative Medicine fellowship. Dr. McEvoy challenged our students to “learn with purpose” and spoke to the restorative power of curiosity in discovering passion. McEvoy’s talk framed work as God’s gift to us - how we co-create with Him and restore brokenness in people, places, and things.   

Named the “Most Influential Photographer on the Internet” by Huffington Post, Forbes and Yahoo in 2014, Jeremy Cowart is an award-winning photographer, artist, and entrepreneur whose mission in life is to "explore the intersection of creativity and empathy." In November, Jeremy spoke to our students about his career and his discovery of passion in giving. He challenged students to a “social media growth mindset-to step away from the trap of comparison and step into who you really are. '' Students learned of Jeremy’s Rwanda project, “Voices of Reconciliation,” where he took photographs of victims and their perpetrators at the site of the tragedy. A survivor in one of Jeremy’s photos wrote a message on his arm: "Love is the weapon that destroys all evil.” Jeremy reiterated, “Maybe if we begin with small acts of grace, we could one day find ourselves practicing radical grace and restoring humanity, too.”

Students will hear from other industry leaders in the spring as part of the TICE Sojourn series.