FLATBUSH — From the outside, 2401 Glenwood Road in Brooklyn looks like just an ordinary, two-story house. But inside, something special is happening, according to Kayla DeWitt. 

DeWitt is the Catholic campus minister at Brooklyn College, where the Glenwood Road house serves as the headquarters of the college’s Newman Center, which is undergoing a revival she and other campus leaders hope will attract new members.  

“There’s a lot of different things that we’re going to have throughout the semester, and I think it’s going to be a fun time for students to experience that,“ DeWitt said. 

Named for St. John Henry Newman (1801-1890) — the British writer, philosopher, and theologian — Newman Centers are Catholic organizations on secular college campuses nationwide that offer students a place to gather to share faith and fellowship. According to the Newman Connection, 585 centers currently exist on college campuses. 

Located two blocks from the Brooklyn College campus, the Newman Center on Glenwood Road offers Mass on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Bible study on Mondays, and is open most days for prayer and contemplation. The center also hosts Catholic-themed parties, like the All Saints‘ Day get-together scheduled for November. 

This semester, the center has been averaging about 20 students a week, DeWitt said. 

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Brooklyn College has had a Newman Center for many years, but it had recently become too secularized, shifting the focus away from its core mission of providing students a place to share their Catholic faith, according to DeWitt, a parishioner of St. Thomas Aquinas–Holy Family Parish in Park Slope. 

“I really didn’t feel at home there,“ she explained. 

The center’s members previously met in a student center on Brooklyn College’s campus. Working with Father Jose Diaz, director of College Campus Ministry for the Diocese of Brooklyn, DeWitt refocused the Newman Center last year and guided it back toward its original purpose. The Glenwood Road building was offered, and members jumped at the chance to have their own building. 

“We want it to feel like a home away from home,” Father Diaz said. “And I think that we’re on the way there.” 

Beyond the center’s spiritual mission, DeWitt is leading an effort to repair and renovate the center. The 96-year-old house needs new floors, doors, and pipes, she said, adding that they will soon be organizing a fundraising drive to pay for the work. 

To help the house feel like a home, volunteers came forward to move furniture and decorate the Holy Spirit Chapel, living room, and other areas of the center. Local churches donated paintings with religious imagery to hang on the walls. 

The goal is to turn the center into a warm and welcoming place that more students will discover as the school year goes on, said DeWitt, a graduate student at Brooklyn College working toward her master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology. 

“I think I really want it to be somewhere where people can walk in and feel like they’re in a second home,” she explained. “And I think having a place that physically looks beautiful can really make a difference, and students may want to stay here.” 

Newman Center members said it already feels like home. 

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“Basically, I found a home here, and it’s great,“ said Agnieszka Wysocka, a Brooklyn College sophomore and the center’s vice president. “Before this, we didn’t have any place where we could come and hang out or even celebrate Mass. 

“Here, it’s our own place.”  

The Newman Center’s revival comes as America’s youth are increasingly turning to faith. According to a Harris poll released on Sept. 24, members of Gen Z are the most likely of any generation to describe themselves as religious — 33% compared to millennials (20%), Gen X (21%), and Baby Boomers (23%). 

The Brooklyn College Newman Center’s immediate objective is to spread the word, DeWitt said. Current members are trying to draw attention to the center in a variety of ways, including maintaining a presence on social media, starting a WhatsApp chat, ensuring the center is listed on student activity directories, distributing pamphlets on campus, and simply talking to fellow students on campus between classes. 

DeWitt admitted to having a particular goal in mind.  

“I hope it continues to grow,” she said. “Honestly, our chapel is pretty small, but I hope we outgrow it.”