Please donate today to help fully reestablish this important regional institution and resource, preserving and recognizing Father Hezel’s legacy of service and scholarship.

Micronesian Seminar (known popularly as MicSem) was founded in 1972 by the Catholic Church in Micronesia to help people integrate faith and life, as rapid modernization brought new social and political challenges to the many small, scattered islands of the western and central Pacific.

For 39 years, MicSem served the people of the former Trust Territory of the Pacific, which now comprises the island nations of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), and the Republic of Palau (ROP), as well as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).

During its tenure, MicSem was directed by Fr. Francis X. Hezel, S.J., first based in Chuuk and later in Pohnpei, where it provided education to the public on contemporary social issues. MicSem produced hundreds of articles, several books, and numerous videos addressing social issues, even as Father Hezel continued his own prolific research, authoring historical and cultural books, monographs, and articles.

Over this period, MicSem built an internationally recognized library that began with a dozen boxes of books on the Pacific and today boasts over 24,000 print titles, 82,000 historical photos, more than 800 videos, and 22,000 audio tracks. When MicSem operations ended in 2012, its library was stored at Xavier High School (Chuuk). Following Fr. Hezel’s relocation to Guam, interest grew in re-establishing the library. MicSem’s physical collection recently made its way to Yap, where a new building was constructed in 2023 at Yap Catholic High School to house the collection.

Relocation has saved the physical assets of the MicSem collection, but the tremendous value of this resource can only come from broad public access to an actively maintained–and expanding–collection that continues to document Micronesia’s living history. To fully reopen, MicSem needs operational resources beyond what can be provided by the high school.

Specifically, MicSem needs to hire and train a dedicated librarian who can collect, enrich, and curate MicSem’s holdings. Equipment must be purchased to allow in-person access to existing audio and video materials, and to provide the hosting and sharing of its digital holdings with off-island users. More importantly, a path needs to be set for expanded digitization and broadened online access.

Father Hezel, in partnership with Yap Catholic’s Father Rich McAuliff, has developed a detailed plan to reopen the MicSem Library, based on a budget of $32,000.

Habele, a US 501c3 nonprofit that serves students in Micronesia, has committed a 2-to-1 match from its own endowment for any individual donations contributed toward the MicSem reopening. Habele will award the raised and matched funds to Yap Catholic H.S. in the form of a MicSem-specific grant for implementation of the preservation plan authored by Fathers Hezel and McAuliff. Any funds raised beyond the budget will similarly support future MicSem operations.

Please donate today to help fully reestablish this important regional institution and resource, preserving and recognizing Father Hezel’s legacy of service and scholarship.