As Miss Anna Hotop stepped down from the position of Campus Minister, two blessings appeared. Mr. Mike Finucane and Mrs. Megan Niedringhaus-Hill took over the job as Campus Ministers and the St. Joe community has welcomed them with open arms and open wings.
Finucane was previously a theology teacher at Christian Brothers College High School (CBC) where he taught theology and a God-talk class. Both were favored by Mr. Finucane but he preferred world religions because he learned and grew more. He values diving into other cultures and identities to understand the world better and have a greater connection with others.
The switch over from teacher to campus minister was nerve-racking for Finucane because he thought he was going to lose the intellectual aspect of teaching. Fortunately, this worry did not come to life because he is always on his toes and thoroughly thinks through everything he does such as planning retreats. He enjoys the fact that he is still able to resort back to what he has learned over the years as a teacher. He also mentions that collaborating with other students is one of his favorite aspects of his new job.
Mr.. Finucane expressed the difference in the all-girls environment.
“The conversations are so different; boys would always talk about video games,” Finucane said.
Conversation is just one of many differences in the all-girls environment. Mr. Finucane notices that the St. Joe students are more willing to step up in difficult situations and get involved in different things around the school.
There to give a helping hand in any situation, Mr. Finucane is always seen with a smile on his face. Mr. Finucane is a valuable asset to the St. Joe community and all students and faculty are blessed to have his presence at the school.
Mrs. Megan Niedringhaus-Hill is also an extraordinary gift the school has received this year. She is a St. Joe Angel and graduated in the class of 2009. She continued her education at Loyola University of Chicago where she majored in English and Secondary Education. She then received her master’s degree in Theology and Religious Education from Saint Louis University.
Before her life at St. Joe, Mrs. Niedringhaus-Hill stayed at home with her children, Gus and Ceci. The last two years she spent with her kids she was also a birth doula. This means that she would support and advocate for women and their families while pregnant and through the birthing process as well.
Mrs. Niedringhaus-Hill loves working at St. Joe and enjoys the energy throughout the school every day.
She believes an all-girls education is valuable at such an influential time in a girl’s life. “I think there’s so much value in an all-girls education, and the safe space it creates for our students to grow and learn in an authentic way that you really can’t find anywhere else,” Niedringhaus-Hill said.
Both Mrs. Niedringhaus-Hill and Mr. Finucane have already influenced the lives here at St. Joe with the hard work they put in every day. Campus ministry’s home-like feeling has brought all girls in to be their true selves amid crazy times. These two new campus ministers added beautiful blessings to the St. Joe family.
