Blog submitted by student, Esther Hartzell ‘17
Albertus Magnus College offers such a wonderful opportunity for all of its students. As a Catholic college, set in the Dominican tradition, it offers opportunities that focus on the four Dominican Pillars. One that I have focused on a lot over my years at Albertus is service. As an English major in the Education program, I have experienced great opportunities to further not only my academic growth, but also my growth as an individual. One of the experiences offered to me was an Alternative Spring Break at Benincasa Community, a house of hospitality in Manhattan, New York. While on this trip, I learned more information on how to be a teacher as well as how to build community and to commit one’s life to service.
During my stay at the Benincasa Community, I learned what Maya Angelou meant when she referred to a woman she knew as “the measure of what a human being should be.” I met wonderful people at the community, one in particular is named Sean. He is an individual who has committed his life to service and teaching. After school days, he helps out at soup kitchens and is one of three people who run the house of Benincasa that offers homes to people who need it. He had initially wanted to be a priest, but decided it would conflict with his passion to be a teacher. He explained to me the importance of a teacher in a young person’s life and how much teachers truly impact their students. I discovered this firsthand when I observed him teaching at his high school in the Bronx. The students respected him, admired him, and looked up to him. He treated each individual with respect and held high expectations for all of them.
My stay at Benincasa, in addition to all that I have learned through my education classes here at Albertus, has molded me into the teacher candidate that I am today. I understand that a teacher has an opportunity to not only teach the new generation about reading, writing, math…etc., but to teach about life and the beautiful facets of it. Every story I read, I think of how I can relate it back to service and giving back to the community. I hope to inspire my students to see that they are a tiny thread, in a giant woven canvas. It is my hope that if my students see themselves in relation to everyone else in the world, that they will discover empathy and will want to commit themselves to serving the community.