Whitworth's educational principles are grouped broadly into three categories: The knowledge that students will gain, the skill they will need to work effectively in the world and the faith and values that our community seeks to reflect. These principles are interdependent: together they reflect an institution-wide commitment to provide a Whitworth education in which faith, learning and living are purposefully integrated. As a college of the liberal arts and sciences, Whitworth is also committed to cultivating intellectual development, ethical judgment, helping students comprehend and negotiate their relationships with the larger world, and preparing them for careers and vocations that emphasize lives of civic responsibility and values based leadership.

For more than 450 years, Jesuit education has nourished the minds of scholars around the world by integrating science and art, faith and reason, as well as action and contemplation. In this tradition, Gonzaga University offers students a comprehensive education that explores the human condition, addressing the intellectual, social and spiritual development of each individual. Gonzaga is committed to educating the whole person and preparing students for a lifetime of reflection and effective, ethical decision making.