Job titles: Most recently Geographic Information Systems technician. Also, associate professor, social sciences; human services program coordinator; interim associate dean, School of Behavioral and Social Sciences; and department chair, psychology and social sciences
How many years have you worked at Saint Mary’s? 30 years
What do you enjoy/have you enjoyed most about teaching? Lasallian teaching has provided me with an opportunity to follow my own curiosity about all the ways the sacred shows up in the world. Lasallian teaching is rooted in community, so together and by association, we invite learners and other new members to discover and cherish the transcendent in every person and academic discipline. The invitation spans every space and activity — living, dining, worship, recreational or competitive sport, study and research, artistic or scholarly creativity. In teaching I enjoyed most those moments when a learner or colleague experienced a deep shift from invited to belonging.
How do you hope you are remembered/what will you most be remembered for? I try to abide in a deep conviction that we are here — in this life, in this world, in each moment — to be in relationship with each other, with all who have come before and those who will come after. I hope learners and colleagues recall the spoken and unspoken messages that they belonged, that they mattered, just for who they are, and that nothing they might do or fail to do could change that. I hope also that they can bring a spirit of generosity, or at least charity, when recalling times my real self fell short of my aspiration.
What are you most proud of from your career? Together, we truly have awakened, nurtured, and empowered learners to embrace and direct their talents toward the common good. Most of my work was with learners in the human services program and social sciences broadly, but like most faculty, I also had the opportunity to support learners across all majors in their general education courses. Across the spectrum, alumni live, serve, and lead with servant hearts in their families, workplaces, and communities. Especially in human services and social sciences, alumni lean into challenges and opportunities in public policy, behavioral and occupational health, nonprofit management, education, and spiritual community. They initiate and navigate change with courage. They humbly and competently gather evidence to inform their actions. They hold space for diverse views and experiences. They strive to live authentically, pursue advanced degrees and professional credentials, change careers, and grow through their own suffering when life’s hurts hit close to home. They live with curiosity and love generously. It has been a privilege to walk a few steps with each of them under Saint Mary’s umbrella.
Within Saint Mary’s, in 2007, I participated with Drs. Richard Tristano (Winona) and Roxanne Eubank (Minneapolis) in the inaugural International Lasallian University Leadership Program in Rome. Inspired by our experience, we envisioned an open-access, peer-reviewed academic journal as a means to animate and nourish a network of Lasallian scholars across disciplines and geographic borders. With the leadership of Brother William Mann, FSC, and Sister Judith Schaefer, OP, we founded AXIS: Journal of Lasallian Higher Education (2009).
What are your retirement plans? This summer I will spend time with family, play in the dirt, and finish a couple of certifications. In autumn I will transition to new work in the health and helping professions. Folks can still find me on LinkedIn.
What will you miss the most? All of the learners I’ve worked for, and many colleagues, provide models of how to move on from Saint Mary’s. All seem to involve carrying forward what we cherish most. Whatever our reasons for leaving, and whatever our next steps, the way forward reverberates in the final verse of our Alma Mater, penned by Dr. Patrick O’Shea:
Hail, Saint Mary’s, shining beacon,
Of La Salle’s community,
Send us out forever teaching,
Love and faith and unity.
Ave, Ave, Ave, Maria.
