Katie Nowak is a sophomore economics major from Detroit, Michigan. Nicknamed “Superwoman” by her roommate, Kellie Corwin, Katie is secretary of records for the Student Organization Funding Committee (SOFC), a Peer Leadership Consultant (PLC) within the Student Programs Office (SPO), and social coordinator for BC’s equestrian team. In her spare time she does side activities such as attending Smart Woman Securities meetings. As if that were not enough, Katie has taken on yet another responsibility: applying to host the 2014 National Jesuit Student Leadership Conference here at BC.
This past summer, Katie had the amazing opportunity to attend the NJSLC at College of the Holy Cross. She applied through SPO as a representative of PLC and SOFC, filled out an application demonstrating how passionate she was about attending the conference, and was accepted.
The 2012 NJSLC was attended by 26 out of the 28 Jesuit universities throughout the nation, with around 350 student leaders gathering together to be taught how to learn, lead, and serve with Jesuit ideals in mind. The theme of the conference was “Live the Mission,” and focused on the three Jesuit questions: Who am I? Who do I want to become? Who shall I be for others? There were a host of speakers, including Jesuits, and leadership seminars that were taught by students for students. Some topics of the seminars dealt with incorporating the outside community (for us, Chestnut Hill and greater Boston) into our learning experience, being a team player, effectively delegating, and so on. Aside from the lectures and seminars, Katie found that NJSLC was a great opportunity to network among fellow student leaders. She, personally, had the chance to see how other schools allocate funds and was able to examine their financial breakdown in order to see if SOFC could incorporate some of these other universities’ ideas.
Leaving NJSLC, Katie was inspired. She had spent a week with students who were excited about leadership and their future; they were constantly working hard to better themselves, their schools, and their communities. And, they were doing all of this within the Jesuit tradition of compassion and kindness. Being around these inspirational, motivated, and excited student leaders, Katie, along with Teddy Raddell and Maria Ireland (also sophomores), decided to put in a bid for BC to host the 2014 NJSLC.
The three started working on the bid in August and submitted the 21-page document in September, complete with letters of support from Dr. Rombalski, SOFC, Chris Osnato, and other offices across campus. They also just recently received a recommendation from the Holy Cross board to host the conference. The Jesuit Association of Student Personnel Administrators (JASPA) will review the bid and recommendation and (hopefully) approve their bid within the week.
Katie, Teddy, and Maria are slowly starting to plan and organize in anticipation of approval. Katie is the logistics chair, Teddy is the events chair, and Maria is the education chair. The co-chairs hope to host all 28 Jesuit universities and have 450 attendants. They have chosen the theme “First to Love,” based on the Jesuit prayer:
Nothing is more practical than
finding God, than
falling in Love
in a quite absolute, final way.
What you are in love with,
what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.
It will decide
what will get you out of bed in the morning,
what you do with your evenings,
how you spend your weekends,
what you read, whom you know,
what breaks your heart,
and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.
Fall in Love, stay in love,
and it will decide everything.
As logistics chair, Katie will have to figure out the budget for the 450 students, find sponsors, determine registration fees, transportation and hospitality, and work with multiple departments on campus, including dining. She is excited for this great opportunity for BC leaders, and cannot wait to show other Jesuit universities what BC has to offer.
HC BC wishes Katie, Teddy, and Maria the best of luck in getting approval from JASPA, and cannot wait to see what more they have planned for the 2014 NJSLC.