This year marks my 26th doing student affairs work in Jesuit higher education. I have been fortunate to serve three institutions–10 years at Loyola Maryland, 11 at Seattle University, and currently in my 5th at the College of the Holy Cross–and experience first-hand how Ignatian spirituality and the Jesuit charism manifest similarly and uniquely at each institution. I was drawn to student affairs because the work is a good match for my gifts and skills and accompanying young people into adulthood is an incredibly rewarding way to contribute to society. I stay in JHE because this is the environment that feeds me spiritually, so I can fully live out my professional vocation.
I grew up in Virginia, outside of Washington, DC. I was born into a practicing Catholic family and was raised Catholic. And my own conversion to seeking an adult’s relationship with God–one that I could call my own rather than the one my parents shared with me–began shortly after I graduated from college. I had a deep desire to truly learn about the Catholic faith, which I did while working at a girls’ Catholic school. Learning about the faith and understanding it as one’s own are two different things. My journey eventually led me to work at Loyola Maryland, where I found resonance with Ignatian spirituality and the Jesuit outlook. I had found a spiritual home in a way that confirmed me in my Catholic faith in a much deeper, more satisfying, more real way than what I experienced as a teenager through Confirmation.
So, there you have it. As I have progressed in my career, I’ve taken on different leadership roles and responsibilities and have contributed to my field through writing (mostly about meaning-making) and volunteer leadership. I volunteer in my community, and I lector in my home parish. I am able to do these things because of the love and support of my husband and our daughter. I’m grateful for what I think is a pretty blessed life.