By Charles Louis Dominguez ’14
THE ROUNDUP
The Alumni Service Corps is a program designed to allow recent graduates of Jesuit high schools and universities the opportunity to fulfill a year of service as faculty members at Jesuit middle or high schools.
This is the third year of the ASC program at Brophy.
The start of the school year brings yet another group of Alumni Service Corps members to campus. In returning as faculty members, the volunteers have adopted a number of responsibilities across campus.
Mr. AJ Arvizu ’09 helps Mr. Ryan Hubbell with service coordination as well as other projects within the Office of Faith and Justice.
“I help with Junior Justice Project, Loyola Project and Freshman breakaways—things of that nature,” Mr. Arvizu said.
Mr. Roger Bond Choquette ’10 teaches a period of Western Civilization, moderates a club, assists the Speech and Debate program and will be helping out with the fall play.
“I was open to teaching a lot of other courses, but I was asked to teach Western Civ,” Mr. Bond Choquette said. “I’d rather do something that there’s a need for than be a superfluous teacher of a subject that doesn’t really need help.”
Mr. Sam Martin ’09 teaches a period of freshman health and works in the OFJ.
Mr. Christopher McKenna ’09 and Mr. James Quinn ’09 both work primarily with students at Loyola Academy. Although they are both active within Loyola Academy, their responsibilities are disparate.
While Mr. McKenna supervises the days of the students and is in charge of driving scholars to and from campus, Mr. Quinn works with the students as the athletic director of Loyola Academy.
Each member of the group brings their own motivation for returning.
“I want to give back as much as I can because I feel like I owe this place something,” Mr. Martin said. “I think everyone graduates from this place feeling like they owe this place something—I want to leave at the end of this school year feeling like I’ve given a sufficient amount back to the community that provided me with so much in high school.”
While every member echoed the sentiment of giving back to a school that has provided opportunities to them, some also viewed it as a growing experience.
“It’s a chance for me to reconcile my responsibilities as a teacher with who I am so that I can grow in the process,” Mr. Bond Choquette said. “What inspired me to come back was knowing that I needed to grow up.”
Resoundingly, ASC members said that the strangest part of their experience thus far has been calling former teachers by their first names.
