2018 Cabrini Story Contest Voting

Please pick one story from each of the four writing prompt categories. Each page includes all stories available for voting within a category.

 

Poll closes at 5pm, March 12.

When I came to Cabrini, I had no way of really knowing just how much of an influence Dr. Amber LaJeunesse would have on me. I had submitted an application to be a part of the Commuter Learning Community as an incoming freshman and I was placed into that community. Amber became my academic advisor and College 101 professor. I must admit, my transition from High School to a University was most definitely a challenge; even with the support from the friends I was making through the LC, I found myself having trouble acclimating to my new surroundings. Some nights I stayed in Jazzman’s Café fairly late to get work done, and Amber would always make it a point to check in with me before leaving for the night. My interactions with Amber became more frequent, and her encouraging words inspired me to engage in more activities. Amber encouraged me to reach outside of my comfort zone and apply to be an orientation leader, student fellow, and steered me towards other amazing opportunities. Today, she is my supervisor for my commuter engagement internship, oversees my position as a student fellow, and continues to encourage me. She pushes me to achieve my fullest potential. She believes in me, even when I lose faith in myself. To me, Amber is a mentor, a coach, and an inspiring person to know. I can say, whole-heartedly, that I do not know where I would be without her constant compassion, kindness, support, and encouragement.

 

- Francesca M., Class of 2020

I still remember her calling me after work hours to try to learn more about me and my status to see how she could best help me. I remember her going out of her way before she even met me to try to help me have access to a college education here in America. I remember her sending me email after email with various outside scholarships that I was eligible to apply for. I remember her calling me to tell me she was doing her very best to explain my situation to the financial aid office. I still remember when I received that acceptance letter in the mail with a financial aid package that was too good to be true. Some would say she was just doing her job, but I would argue that she did more than that. She gave me a path, an opportunity for a future. She is the main reason why I am here. She advocated for me as a student before she even knew who I was. Thank you, Angelica Martinez. I am forever in debt with you for your support and willingness to go out of your way to help me. Thank you, Cabrini for making my dream of pursuing a degree in America a reality.

 

- Fabrine De Oliveira, Class of 2019

I was a member of the Cabrini Dance Team since my freshmen year at Cabrini and in 2008, I was appointed captain of the team. A teammate mentioned that a new professor was interested in helping us as a volunteer coach. As a student run group, I was thrilled to have an adult to help lead the 18 girls on the team. Dr. Michelle Filling-Brown guided us through the creation of a contract, constitution, short and long term goals which included dancing at outside venues and going to our very first competition. She was our voice of reason and reached into her personal network to provide the team with opportunities we otherwise would have never experienced. Michelle facilitated private lessons with Eagles Cheerleaders, Rockettes and Broadway performers free of charge. Michelle was always available in and out of the studio and was a resource for dance and personal matters. Michelle inspired us to make our team better than the year before and was always looking for opportunities for the team. In 2011 Michelle stepped down as our volunteer coach due to a promotion. I found it admirable that she sat the team down and explained the reason for her decision. While we were all upset she would no longer be leading the team we all respected her decision to peruse her life goals. Once I graduated I followed in Michelle’s footsteps and volunteered as coach, and for the past 7 years, the team has been an integral part of my life. To this day, every time I am faced with a challenge with the team, I think of Michelle and how she would handle the situation.

 

- Jackie Marciano ('10, MS'17)

Once there was a little girl who wanted to be a brain surgeon.  Or professional skier.  Her mother said, “you can be anything you want to be!”  She grew up and became a teacher and non-profit business leader.  When she decided she wanted her doctorate, her mother said, “you can be anything you want to be!”  So, she applied to Cabrini’s EdD program.  But suddenly, her mother died.  Her father needed her, but he lived far away & the little girl – now a grown woman – wasn’t sure she could work, take care of her father, and start a doctoral program.  Everyone around her, though, said she could do it. 

So, she started the program and juggled as fast as she could!  Her father was proud.  Her coworkers, colleagues, family, and her wife all supported & encouraged her.  Then, her father died & she wasn’t sure she could keep going.  But her circle of support had grown and now her classmates and professors told her she could do it.  And she believed them.  Today, she believes in herself in a whole new way – even when she’s overwhelmed & exhausted.  Her new friends at Cabrini make her laugh and appreciate each day of this difficult journey.  Her professors, the faculty, & administrators prop her up even as they challenge her.  And she’s learned (Oh, how she’s learned!) so much more than she ever thought she would when she listened to her mother say that she could be anything she wanted to be. 

- Kristin Bowman, EdD Student

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The most memorable moment that I have experienced at Cabrini came in the summer of 2016. I was lifeguarding at the Dixon Center Pool. Not much happens at the Cabrini's pool in the summertime, but on this day Camp Pals came in to use the pool for an hour. Camp Pals is a summer program that focuses on building strong friendships with people that have Down Syndrome. When this group first entered the pool, I was scared to death that something would go wrong. After I calmed down a bit and really watched this group of people, I noticed something extraordinary. I watched a group of people have the most fun I have ever seen, half of them had down syndrome, half of them didn’t, but every single person knew the meaning of friendship. After watching this group in awe for some time, I walked right up to the person in charge and wanted to know more about this organization and how to get involved. Fastforward almost two years and Pals Programs continues to be one of my biggest passions. This year I have become the Pals Ambassador to Cabrini in hopes to help promote, fundraise, and recruit fellow volunteers! PALS has helped shape me into the person I am today. I am also proud to say that Cabrini has shaped Pals Programs into what it is today by being the first college to open their doors to the non-profit organization fifteen years ago.

- Brian Jordan, Class of 2020

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“Los Desaparecidos. Has anyone heard of them?”

“Los what?” asked a student, who moments ago was one of the five people raising a hand to answering the poll of who had taken Spanish classes in high school.

“Los Desaparecidos,” I repeated, proceeding with an explanation of Argentina’s “The Disappeared.”

After covering rhetorical devices in the previous class, I distributed their first essay’s prompt and explained how they were to use what we learned to analyze the provided New York Times article on the event. I previewed the material with them, including a mini documentary, and asked for their reactions. The first-year composition students stared in silence.

A wide-eyed girl in the back burst out, “This is ridiculous! I can’t believe so many people were murdered like that and I’ve never heard about it before in my life. This is so wrong.” Some vocalized agreement, but nearly everyone nodded.

I smiled. I had reached them. Having spent a semester studying the history and then having gone to Argentina with Cabrini’s three-week immersion trip equipped me to answer their roll of questions.

When I designed my course a few months prior, I found myself compiling social justice materials I had gathered from my Cabrini courses. I had been like that quiet girl in the back of the classroom; the events had compelled me to speak, and would eventually provoke me to act. Now, with those same issues, I stand at the front of the room determined to teach much more than composition.

- Sarah Davis ('17)

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To discover the word disponibilita’ and be captivated by its definition during my Cabrini orientation conducted by Nancy Costello has laid an inspired foundation for the baseball program’s culture and direction.  The ideas of availability and selflessness and the willingness to venture outside of one’s comfort zone and normal scope for the betterment and advancement of others serve as enduring guides to the coaching staff and student-athletes in our pursuit of excellence in all facets of our lives.

We proudly display disponibilita’ on the backs of our hats and shirts as constant reminders to conduct ourselves as Mother Cabrini did:  Committed to lives of service to others.  In baseball, having teammates and coaches who empathize, motivate, and celebrate willingly provides an environment that is inclusive, accountable, and vigorous.  We take supreme pride that our conduct athletically, academically, socially, and spiritually drives the flagship for all that is Cabrini University and are quick to shoulder that responsibility.

Some institutions have no vision, some have an imposed vision, but Cabrini University has a shared vision.  This vision of doing things Cabrinian is not isolated to the baseball program, but permeates this campus as members of the university strive each day to give of themselves in the hope that someone else will reap the benefits of their toils.  In an overly transactional world, Cabrini University stands as a prime example of why it benefits more to be transformational and charitable. 

- Nick Weisheipl, Head Coach

Before I began Cabrini in 2014, I was quite unaware of the social issues and inequalities that our country and world face. Due to my classes and experiences at Cabrini, I not only learned the truth about inequalities of the world but also how to make a difference. I have had the honor of learning about Mother Cabrini, who dedicated her life to helping others who faced oppression. I believe it is my destiny to help others and advocate for those who face oppression. It is also my responsibility to speak out against injustices others may face. I have learned about many social issues such as the foster care system, immigration, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, poverty, homelessness and human trafficking. Junior year I became the founding president of Students Against Violence Everyday and began volunteering for Laurel House, a non-profit working to end domestic violence. Senior year I began working as the office assistant to the Center of Children of Trauma and Domestic Violence Education. Last year I took part in a mission trip to West Virginia, (Appalachia) and this year I am going to New Orleans and Ecuador. Occasionally I participate in Campus Ministry’s PB&J nights where students make sandwiches, go to Philly to give them out, and talk with people experiencing homelessness. I recently joined Montgomery Coalition Against Human Trafficking. In 2018, I will be attending graduate school for social work. Cabrini has taught me how to live a life in the name of social justice.

 

- Rachel Maxey, Class of 2020

I had my eyes first set on Cabrini when I was in high school at Sacred Heart Academy in Bryn Mawr, PA. I fell in love with the nurturing, catholic environment, very similar to what I had come from. I was proud to have graduated with a degree in Special Education and Elementary Education.  While at Cabrini, the faculty instilled through their teachings confidence and making a difference in the world. Dr. Girard was one of the most passionate and unforgettable for a lot of us. The fact that all faculty know you by name helps to create a bond like no other.

Eighteen years later, I am no longer in the teaching world but a national director of a youth running program that is estimating over 44,000 participants in 2018! Healthy Kids Running Series is a national community-based non-profit, that provides an inclusive fun five-week running series for ages 2 through 14 that gets kids active, feel accomplished and lays the foundation for a healthy lifestyle. I feel blessed to have the ability to make a different in the world but on a larger scale!

Last year I started thinking about attending a graduate program, something more fitting to my work now. Where else would I go? Cabrini of course! This January I enrolled in the Master of Science in Leadership/Non-Profit Management program. Being a mom of 3 teenage daughters now and an adult, the experience is even more rewarding then it was before! I look forward to what the future holds!

- Tamara Conan-Virtue ('00)

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Growing up with a physical disability my parents always taught me to advocate for myself, in hopes that one day I would be able to go where I wanted when I wanted to like college. I knew it was a possibility, but never realized going away to school would become a reality. After months of anticipation and preparation, I moved into the East Residence Hall as a shy and reserved freshman. Living away from home and without my parents right there, I was now responsible for my own care on top of my schoolwork. Throughout the three years of attending Cabrini, professors, students and administration have given me an opportunity like no other. I am a member of the DAPi National Honor Society, a participant in the LEADStrong program and a Dean’s List student. Cabrini has allowed me to blossom into an outspoken, confident and independent individual. I have had the chance to meet students and connect with faculty who has pushed me to become a better individual. If it weren’t for Cabrini and their mission to “prepare me to become an engaged citizen of the world”, I would not have been given the opportunity to grow into the individual I am today.

 

- Alyson Fisher, Class of 2019

My experience at Cabrini helped me realize that it’s never too late to accomplish your dreams if you’re willing to put in the work. I came to Cabrini to pursue my education at the time when most were throwing their caps in the air at graduation. I was a non-traditional student coming back to school at 23 after completing an enlistment in the military; my teammates called me “pops”. I came to join the basketball program and quickly got involved by working in the cafeteria, working summers with the buildings and grounds crew, as a medical assistant, and in the office of institutional advancement; just to name a few. I was an average student and worked my way up to be recognized academically. I left the military as an enlisted sailor and rejoined as a commissioned officer because of an opportunity to join a commissioning program at a sister school next door. I took advantage of the opportunities that were made available at Cabrini and it propelled me into a life I couldn’t have drawn up myself. The school remains relatively small but has the potential to have a huge impact on your life.  Because of the renewing of my mind while at Cabrini and now in retirement, I am sharing the same hopeful message that it is never too late to achieve your dreams.

 

- Marko Gittens ('90)