Father Dave Pivonka, TOR '89 President | Franciscan University website

Franciscan University of Steubenville will hold its 30th annual Religious Vocations Fair on Friday, October 10, 2025. The event will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Pope St. Paul VI Event Center in Christ the Teacher Hall.

The fair has been held for three decades and aims to give students and Catholics in the Ohio Valley and beyond a chance to meet priests, religious brothers, and sisters who have committed their lives to the Church. More than 50 dioceses and religious communities are expected to participate this year, representing both men’s and women’s orders.

Father Jonathan St. André, TOR, vice president for Franciscan Life at Franciscan University, said, “This Religious Vocations Fair has borne great fruit over the years in helping everyone involved take one more step in seeking to respond to God’s call in their lives. I am grateful that in the last 30 years, presently, and moving forward we continue to provide opportunities for encounter between our students and brothers, sisters, and priests in this concrete way.”

The Office for Personal Vocation and Koinonia, the university’s priestly discernment household, organize the event each year.

David Schmiesing, dean for Personal Vocation at Franciscan University, added, “The Religious Vocations Fair gives our students and the general public the opportunity to meet and speak with men and women who have heard and responded not only to God’s call to the priesthood or religious life, but also to a call to a particular religious community or diocese. This fair is not primarily about gathering information on different vocational options, but about truly encountering our guests, hearing their stories, and in some cases establishing relationships that will lead to next steps in discerning and living out their own personal vocations.”

Attendees will have the chance to meet members of several orders such as Franciscans, Dominicans, Augustinians, Norbertines, Paulists, Passionists, Carmelites and others. Dioceses represented include Steubenville, Pittsburgh and Columbus as well as the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh.

The fair is free of charge and open to all members of the public. Parish groups, families and individuals considering their vocation are encouraged to attend.