A special person.

Schweniger: Class is now in session

There are a lot of special people at Steds, but there happens to be one special person who doesn’t live there nor never will. This person’s name is Maureen Schweniger ’19 from PE. Maureen is special and special to the hall as she doing something unique; something near and dear to the hall’s heart, working at Lakeview Secondary School, a school run by the Congregation of Holy Cross and closely connect with the Center for Social Concerns. Lakeview Secondary is also supported by the Hall. Before she left, I had the opportunity to speak with Schweniger.

StEd: Maureen, tells the readership a little about yourself.

Schweniger: My name is Maureen Schweninger. I'm a senior - who recently graduated! - who majored in theology and sociology. I am from Dublin, Ohio, and I lived in Pasquerilla East on campus. Confession: going to Sted's Yacht Dance during my sophomore year was one of the highlights of my ND experience! I'm now preparing for independent post-grad service with the Congregation of Holy Cross from July 2019 to December 2020.

StEd: You could be going to a lot of places after graduation, but why are you going to Uganda?

Schweniger: I'm going to Uganda because I had a very powerful service experience last summer through the Center for Social Concerns. I lived in community with Holy Cross there while I taught English Language at Lake View Secondary. I fell in love with those kids seriously, and I soon found myself in a quasi-counseling role by the end of the summer where I spent 12 to 14 hours at school daily.

StEd: What is one of the more challenging aspects of your work at Lake View High School? 

Schweniger: One of the more challenging aspects of my time there was figuring out how to balance the needs for a "ministry of presence" in the boarding school setting where 1,000 students each deserve one-on-one attention to their concerns. It was also hard to realize the students' poverty and significant struggles to pay minor tuition balances, especially at the primary school level.

StEd: What do you wish people knew about the work that you will doing?

Schweniger: I wish people knew that the Congregation of Holy Cross is a lot more than just Notre Dame, or even just the United States. Holy Cross schools are making a huge difference in students' lives around the world, and the work that I will be doing in Uganda - campus ministry, small group facilitation, and informal counseling - will be especially focused on providing the education of the heart which can be difficult to provide in an understaffed school setting.

To help this very special person from Steds, Maureen Schweinger, then click HERE!