Hometown
Long Beach, CA

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Loyola Marymount University, Business Marketing

Current Position
Campus Minister for Faith and Justice and Loyola Marymount University

At the CSTM, I have been fortunate to get involved with various aspects of the community. Being a non-denominational Christian it has been great to engage in ecumenical dialogue. In questioning aspects of my peers' beliefs, it encourages them to formulate their own understanding of various practices, as well as allowing me to share about my religious culture and beliefs. Through attending Mass, prayer services, and praise and worship adoration nights, my understanding of the Catholic faith has been enriched, and I have enjoyed adopting specific aspects to my own faith.

Through the integration of theology and ministry, the CSTM provided me a framework and training to effectively minister and best care for those I encounter. Through various internships, campus ministry involvements, and practical learning opportunities, the CSTM prepared me to enter the world of ministry feeling equipped and excited to accompany college students.

Hometown
Greenwood, Indiana

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Loyola University Chicago, Theology

Current Position
Chaplain, Loyola University Chicago Health Sciences Campus

In my year of service accompanying students from low-income backgrounds, I was challenged to acknowledge the ways in which mental health, race, sexuality and other identities play a significant role in one's spiritual development. In seeing the need for holistic ministry, I found my way to the MA/MSW dual degree program. While the CSTM offered the rigorous theological education I needed at the foundation of my ministry, the social work degree provided me with the language around mental health and trauma and the counseling skills to better support, accompany, and minister to people.

At the intersection of theology and social work, I grew in my identity as a minister becoming more confident in my ability to address important issues of social justice, identity formation, and trauma healing. With the MA/MSW dual degree, my ministry has become about creating spaces of radical inclusion and true belonging in which all those I minister to can feel loved, included, and authentically themselves, not in spite of, but because their identity is beloved by God.

Hometown
Westminster, MD

Undergraduate Institution and Major
University of Delaware, BA in Environmental Studies

Current Position
Director of Faith Formation, St. Ignatius of Loyola Church, Chestnut Hill, MA

CSTM Community
Community was at the heart of my experience at the CSTM. As a Graduate Assistant, I spent a lot of time in Simboli Hall in addition to my classes each week, and some of the most wonderful people I met during my time happened because of this. I enjoyed stopping in at the Service Center to chat with Mary Magennis and the other GAs, in between classes and at Repast with other students, meeting with professors during office hours, and talking with folks at the front desk at the TML. No matter where I went in the CSTM, a kind soul was there to greet me with a lovely conversation. These were moments of grace for me and reminded me that God is truly present in the people around us.

My Experience
The Practice of Ministry with Youth & Young Adults with Dr. Theresa O’Keefe solidified my desire to work with youth and young adults in a ministerial setting, and challenged me to reevaluate my own understanding of how young people learn about and understand their faith. This class gave me the tools and a lens to better understand how youth learn and grow developmentally, socially, and relationally in their faith.

Why CSTM?
CSTM offered me a chance to explore different aspects of theology and ministry in a time where I wasn’t sure what area of ministry I wanted to work within. The relationships I developed, conversations held, and classes during my 2 years of studies expanded my worldview of my faith and what it means to be Catholic. This was also a space I felt comfortable enough to ask deeper questions of myself, particularly related to my sexual orientation. The CSTM gave me the tools and lens of social justice to grow as an individual and see myself as a minister in service to a larger community.

Hometown
Milwaukee, WI

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Marquette University — B.A. in English/B.A. in Spanish Language and Literature (minors in Theology and Political Science)

Current Position
Associate Professor of Christian Ethics, Xavier University

Why CSTM?
STM opened my eyes to a depth and breadth of theological inquiry I never knew was possible. Each person I encountered was so deeply invested in serving the church. The diversity of the CSTM community helped me appreciate what it means to be catholic and Catholic; I learned so much from every classroom discussion, the feedback I received from professors, and the opportunity to work as a GA in BC Campus Ministry. My education at CSTM opened the doors that helped me pursue my deepest desires, personally and professionally, in service to the academy, church, and society. 

My Experience
Every professor invested in me; they showed me cura personalis, offered warm support, and meaningful challenges. They shared their passions with me and helped me discover new horizons in theology, moral formation, and its pastoral applications. I am still connected with many CSTM classmates, professors, and staff; one classmate is a godparent for my son. In addition to providing me an ideal preparation for my profession, my time at BC CSTM forged bonds that I will savor for the rest of my life. If pressed, I'd say my favorite class was Richard Lennan's course on The Church -- it almost made me want to be a systematician instead of an ethicist. My very first course was his Foundations of Christian Theology class and right away I knew: I am exactly where I want to be, doing exactly what I want to be doing. (It's also hard to pick against class with Dan Harrington. That was truly extraordinary.) 

Hometown
El Paso, TX

Undergraduate Institute and Major
Boston College, Philosophy and Political Science

Current Positon
Ph.D. Student in Systematic Theology, University of Notre Dame

Community
I experienced community at the CSTM in the classroom and in the chapel. I was always most struck and astonished by the way the community at the CSTM both studied and prayed together. Pope Francis says that the best theology is done on our knees and I think that the CSTM really embodies that on a communal level.

Why CSTM?
I knew I was considering a Ph.D. from before my time at the CSTM, but I was not sure how or what. The M.T.S. program at BC is flexible and allowed me to engage deeply with multiple different topics and subjects. I was able to build my own project that I was then able to use to get into Ph.D. programs, including Notre Dame. Professor Hosffman Ospino's mentorship on my Master's thesis is, to this day, one of the most important building blocks for me in my professional and personal vocation.

Most Meaningful Experience
My time at the CSTM was marked by a personal growth in my own vocation as a Latina Catholic minister and theologian. It was at the CSTM, through my relationships with peers and professors, both from Latin America and Latine from the US, where I came to understand the broader implications of my being bilingual and how that intersected with my interests in Theology and my own baptismal vocation. I worked at Formación Continua, the Spanish-speaking Continuing Education, and also got to engage in events such as masses for Our Lady of Guadalupe, altar building for Día de muertos, and bilingual preaching and liturgies.

Hometown
Gaithersburg, MD

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Loyola University Maryland, English

Current Position
Associate Director of Campus Ministry for Liturgy and Music at Loyola University Maryland

Why CSTM?
Attending CSTM was a transformative experience for me; I now recommend it enthusiastically to any of my students who are considering pursuing a life of ministry. At CSTM, I benefitted from robust academic preparation, deep spiritual formation, compassionate professors and staff, and a vibrant community of students from around the world.

My Experience
When I first came Accepted Students' Day at the CSTM, I knew within a few hours that I was going to attend this school. Why? The word that I kept hearing over and over again in my info sessions was: community. And my experience lived up to this promise: the community of students, staff, and faculty at the CSTM are unmatched. From lively discussions in the classroom, to making friends with students from all around the world, to vibrant formation and recreational activities, the community at the CSTM made me feel at home right away. I graduated from the CSTM with lifelong friendships and colleagues in ministry, connections that will benefit me personally and professionally for many years to come. 

Home City and Country
St. Charles, MO

Undergraduate Institute and Major
Saint Louis University, Theological Studies & Philosophy

Current Position
Theology Teacher, Loyola Academy & Instructor, Loyola University Chicago

My Experience
As someone moving across the country to attend the CSTM, the Community was absolutely central to my experience. I made lifelong friends and connections that continue to support me in both personally and professionally.

Hometown
Ringoes, NJ

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Georgetown University, Justice and Peace Studies

Current Position
Staff chaplain at Brigham & Women's Faulkner Hospital and St. Elizabeth's Medical Center

CSTM Community

One of the most important sources of community I found was my M.Div. cohort, specifically the lay students. For the first one or two semesters, we had almost identical schedules so we could really rely on each other for academic support.  I also became very close with my coworkers in Campus Ministry. 

Even now, much of my community continues to stem from my experiences at the CSTM. I regularly spend time with a few friends I made at CSTM and half my bridal party is comprised of classmates. One of Jesuits in my cohort is even celebrating my wedding mass. At work, I continue to find CSTM alumni everywhere, which makes me feel all the more at home. I'm so grateful for the many communities I was and still am a part of thanks to the CSTM.

My Experience
One overarching theme that stands out to me still are the experiences I had with women at the CSTM. Professors like M. Shawn Copeland (now Professor Emerita), Melissa Kelley, Sister Meg Guider, and Colleen Griffith were all individuals that made me feel seen and empowered both in and outside the classroom. Hearing Sr. Guider tell me at the end of my synthesis exam that I had learned to “think theologically” was simultaneously one of the proudest and most humbling moments of my degree. The relationships I built with women classmates were, in large part, what sustained me during times where self-doubt threatened to get in my way (and God’s way).

Why CSTM?
Generous financial aid and access to on-campus jobs reserved for CSTM students made it possible for me to even consider moving to Boston and pursuing the M.Div. 

The most impactful way in which the CSTM worked and still works for me was helping me find my way into a career in healthcare chaplaincy.  The connections I made at CSTM were such a huge part of what helped me get into a CPE residency after graduation and even the jobs I hold now. The CSTM played a huge role in helping me discern and pursue what I now consider my vocation.

Hometown
Los Angeles, CA

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Loyola Marymount University, Psychology & Theological Studies 

Current Position
Religious Studies Department Chair at Marymount High School, Los Angeles

Why CSTM?
There are countless reasons as to why the CSTM worked for me however what stands out is their practical approach to graduate studies in Theology. Especially with the M.T.S. degree, studying theology often times stays in the theoretical. Now as a high school teacher, I frequently hear my students comment on how Scripture and/or Tradition can at times seem obsolete. Therefore it is my job to challenge my students in seeing how compatible our Catholic faith is with what is transpiring in our world today. I owe this skill to what I learned back at the CSTM.

Community
Thursday liturgy and lunch! This would often times be the highlight of my week. It was both a formative and restorative time set aside as an opportunity for worship and connecting with my peers and of course, free lunch! Who doesn't love a free lunch?

Home City and Country
Newtown Square, PA

Undergraduate Institute and Major
University of Notre Dame, English

Current Position
Campus Minister for Liturgy, St. Louis University

My Experience
I had the company of wonderful peers, lay and Jesuit, in the classroom, in special projects like clericalism discussion groups and planning creative liturgical experiences, and in Gaudete, our LGBTQ+ student group. I also made dear friends, who picked me up from the airport after job interviews, prayed for me on retreats and pilgrimages, and goofed off with me for non-theological movie nights. These moments of joy sustained me through the piles of books and papers to write. To this day, my former classmates will pick up the phone to talk through a tough pastoral conversation, fact check an obscure liturgical question, or just catch up and laugh with each other.

Most Meaningful Course
Sr. Meg’s Ecclesial Ministry course served as a wonderful capstone for my MDiv. With a class of almost entirely lay students, we grappled with what it means to be lay people going forth to work in the church plagued by clericalism. I was asked to write an integrative theology of ministry paper, and found that when asked to write it down, my theology of ministry was really about how I spend my days, and with whom I spend them, about being proximate to those on the margins.