Cura Personalis

One of the central tenets that animates the Georgetown approach to education is cura personalis, a Latin phrase meaning “care of the whole person.” The idea of cura personalis, rooted in the Jesuit tradition, is borne out in all aspects of the Georgetown University College of Arts & Sciences experience.

What does that mean?

You’re more than a mind. You’re an individual with unique talents, dreams, and passions. Our long-held Jesuit tradition of cura personalis means a profound care and responsibility for one another, attentive to each person’s circumstances and concerns and gifts.

It means that the university is committed not just to your academic achievement but also to your mental and physical health, your spiritual growth, and your development as a citizen of the world. All of our faculty, staff, coaches, and other representatives you meet will consider you as a whole person, which we believe fosters a healthy and vibrant university community.


Cura Personalis Stories

Students in the new space: Community Space, New Home for Student Equity and Inclusion Office

News Story

Georgetown Unveils Community Space, New Home for Student Equity and Inclusion Office

At the center of the design and layout of the new space is Georgetown’s value of cura personalis, or care for the whole person. Eleanor JB Daugherty, vice president of student affairs, says that she hopes students will embrace the new space as one that is inviting and embraces every aspect of students’ identities.

January 18, 2024

News Story

Student-Run Ambulance Service Celebrates 40 Years of Caring for Fellow Students

Georgetown Emergency Response Medical Service, or GERMS as it is affectionately called, provides free, around-the-clock emergency services to the campus and surrounding Georgetown neighborhoods of Burleith and Foxhall. GERMS is run entirely by undergraduates. And this year, its members and alumni marked their 40-year anniversary as a club that’s now intergenerational.

December 7, 2023

News Story

Award-Winning Composer Honors 272 Enslaved People Through Hip Hop and Liturgical Work

Carlos Simon is an award-winning composer and musician. He’s the composer-in-residence at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and has written concert music and film scores. In 2018, his album, “My Ancestor’s Gift,” was featured on Apple Music’s “Albums to Watch,” and in 2021, he received the Sphinx Medal of Excellence, an award that recognizes outstanding classical Black and Latinx musicians.

February 28, 2022