The New Yorker

Alexandria has been at San Juan Diego Catholic High School (SJDCHS) since her freshman year. Currently just she, her Mother and Father live at home, but she has two older brothers who’ve already started lives and families of their own in New York. Alexandria loves to do outdoorsy things, like camping and seeing outdoor concerts, which is a big thing here in the Austin area. She has also sung in the school talent show for the past three years and is heavily involved in many organizations at SJDCHS such as Student Government and the National Honor Society.

Apart from her home and school life, Alexandria has strong ambitions as an environmental lawyer for her life after SJDCHS “I took AP environmental science and was really passionate about the environment. I knew that I wanted to be a lawyer and then I found out that I would be able to combine the two.” During her junior year, Alexandria began working at McGinnis Lochridge and Kilgore LLP, a law firm in the Austin area, and is now employed at Graves Dougherty Hearon and Moody in downtown Austin. Her duties include secretarial work, filing, scanning, and other administration duties. “During my time at Graves Dougherty Hearon and Moody, I was given the opportunity to have lunch with four different lawyers. I spoke with them about their jobs and the colleges they went to. Being able to actually work in a law firm just reaffirmed what I wanted to do.”

Alexandria speaks highly of the staff at SJDCHS. Teachers such as Mr. Applewhite [Environmental Science] and Mrs. Zebrowski [former Theology teacher] have been major influences in her decision to pursue a career in law. “The senior seminar class has been extremely helpful. Mrs. Liu assisted me through the entire college application process including financial aid applications.” Alexandria has applied and been accepted to colleges such as St. Edward’s University, The University of the Incarnate Word, and Hofstra University. “Although I’d like to leave Austin to travel and experience other cities, I eventually want to end up back here to start a family and enjoy life.”

All From A Teacher's Inspiration

This week’s student blog features senior Dorris, who is the eldest in her family and will be the first in her family to attend college. Dorris grew up with her mother, grandparents, and little brother. She has been at San Juan Diego Catholic High School (SJDCHS) since her freshman year. After being accepted into various charter schools in Austin, Dorris ultimately decided that SJDCHS was the best choice for her. “It was a big change, from going to a school with so many students to a small community. I was nervous my first day because I didn’t know anyone, but people quickly showed me they cared and there was just the sense of family once everyone got to know each other,” Dorris says of her first year at SJDCHS.

Dorris’ decision to come to SJDCHS was based on the Corporate Internship Program (CIP). During her time in the program, she has worked at Texas PTA, Dell Children’s Medical Center, and University Medical Center Brackenridge in the HIM (health information management) department. “Working in the Corporate Internship Program has taught me to be more social and helped me with my communication skills. In turn I’ve been able to make public speeches which will help me in my career.”

Before Dorris’ came to SJDCHS her mother didn’t understand why she wanted to go to a Catholic School. However, she began to see her daughter grow at SJDCHS which also caused a big change in her family. Her entire family began going to mass and started to grow more in their Catholic faith. “I believe I led my family to grow more in their faith which in turn helped us become closer as a family.”

Dorris has already been accepted to Sam Houston State University and plans to pursue a degree in criminal justice to become an investigative detective. She attributes her decision to study criminal justice to Mr. Speer, a math teacher at SJDCHS. “I was always naturally good at math. Mr. Speer taught me that there was a lot behind math that most people couldn’t see. He explained to me that math is putting a bunch of variables together, finding the solution and thinking rationally, which is what a detective does.” Dorris has much gratitude for Mr. Speer for pushing her towards her major in college because she now has developed a passion for it. Dorris is also awaiting reply from St. Edward’s University and wants to ultimately work for the CIA or FBI.