Our campus celebrity this week is the wonderful Becky Barsa! Miss Barsa, a sophomore majoring in Sociology/Criminology, calls Parma, Ohio her home. Becky loves John Carroll and refers to it not as her school, but as her home. She does great things here, including all her services as a member of the Arrupe Scholars program. She is also a student coordinator for the Carroll Ballers and participates in various theater productions.
One thing that is particularly near and dear to her heart is social justice, which is why she is completely pumped for the upcoming Ignatian Family Teach-In that takes place in Washington D.C. This is the second year Becky will be attending, and she cannot contain her excitement. “You get to connect with people from all over and hear amazing stories and hear what people are doing to institute change in their own backyards and around the world,” Becky explained. Compared to our small campus, Washington D.C. can be a little intimidating to some people, but not to Becky. “I thought it would be a great opportunity to expand my horizons. I never expected to be surrounded by so many people who are so passionate about social justice and social reform. I’m used to my cozy John Carroll bubble of social justice passion, but the Teach-In is national, and it includes both Jesuit high schools and colleges, so it pops that bubble pretty fast.”
Becky explained that she takes full advantage of the short time she gets to spend in D.C. “We also get the opportunity to speak to someone who works for Senator Sherrod Brown and Congresswoman Marcia Fudge to advocate for our causes, which is a unique opportunity in itself. I am SO excited to return to Teach-In! It’s such an amazing experience that I definitely plan on going back each year.” It is a pretty inspiring fact to know that the great things we do here at JCU every day get to go beyond our campus boundaries into the real world through our talented students such as Becky.
When Becky isn’t advocating for social justice, she partakes in the typical life of a college student. She does her hours and hours of homework, eats meals with her girlfriends, goes to mass on Sunday, and works her weekend job as a jewelry salesperson. You are guaranteed to spot her smiling face around campus, perhaps maybe even one evening when she is participating in one of her guilty pleasures, walking around campus enjoying the beauty and soaking in the peace and quiet.
All of us at Her Campus wish Becky and the rest of the students going to the Ignatian Family Teach-In the best of luck!