Catholic University Selected to Host 2022 Opus Prize Award
Image Courtesy of Opus Prize
By John Diaz
The Opus Prize Foundation, a faith-based foundation, prides itself on recognizing unsung individuals or organizations who combat social issues in their communities. The foundation awards the Opus Prize laureate with one million dollars and the other two finalists with $100,000 so that the recipients may use the award to further inspire and promote their humanitarian efforts.
Each year, the foundation partners with a Catholic university to host and present the award, as well as to help select the winners. In November, the Opus Prize Foundation selected The Catholic University of America to host the 2022 Opus Prize.
This is not Catholic University’s first time hosting this prestigious award. The first time occurred over a decade ago in 2007. The names on the list of institutions that have hosted the Opus Prize include the likes of Notre Dame, Georgetown, and most recently, Loyola Chicago. Partnering with this foundation means a great deal to the host universities because of what the foundation represents and the great cause it supports. Catholic universities across the nation, especially CUA, encourage and challenge their students to constitute the change they would like to see in the world, which embodies exactly what the Opus Award aims to represent.
The Opus Award recipients earn the recognition due to their service to their community and their faith. Community service and faith-based works permeate the CUA community, as indicated by the campuswide days of service that occur multiple times a year. Universities who apply to partner with the Opus Prize see the ceremony as an opportunity to inspire and establish a sense of service within their culture.
The process of partnering with a university, selecting the recipients, and presenting the award is a lengthy procedure. It starts in June when applications for possible Opus Prize recipients are submitted and concludes in the fall of the following year when the host presents the award ceremony. The recipient selection process works by having the partner university carefully nominate several students, faculty, and staff to become ambassadors.
While the deadline for student applications has passed, CUA will pick a few students (either two or three, but other schools like the University of Portland selected as many as six) along with faculty and staff to become Opus Prize Ambassadors. These ambassadors, in conjunction with Opus Prize Foundation Board members, will visit and evaluate some of the Opus Prize finalists in an all-expenses paid trip.
The competition for this coveted position is fierce, but the students who applied are confident in their motivations.
Joseph Nazzaro, junior entrepreneurship and sports management major, said that he applied due to “the opportunity to experience all the great things that people are doing around the world to aid those in need.”
When asked about whether or not he was already aware of what the Opus Prize was before Catholic reached out to the students, Joseph said, “I had never really been exposed to the Opus Prize of anything like it, but I am very glad it has been brought to my attention and I’m excited to potentially be a part of it.”
Once the ambassadors and the Foundation Board complete their visits, a laureate and two finalists are selected, and they are celebrated at the award ceremony hosted by the partner university.
