The Sacred Heart Greenwich Upper School welcomed three alumnae, Ms. Tara Hammonds ’14, Ms. Jen Esposito ’15, and Ms. Shelby Holland ’14, to speak about their different careers October 1.  The alumnae reflected upon their occupations and discussed how Sacred Heart helped them foster academic and professional passions.

Mrs. Meghan Mara Ryan ’01, Director of Alumnae Relations, moderated the panel. She discussed how the virtual format of this year’s event created the opportunity for alumnae in various locations to speak with the community.

“The most exciting part of Career Morning this year is that we were able to connect with alumnae in California, Wisconsin, and even all the way in Gaza,” Mrs. Ryan said.

Each of the alumnae had the chance to speak with the entire Upper School and answer questions from the audience.  The first alumna to speak was Ms. Hammonds.  She currently lives in Gaza, a Palestinian territory, where she works for the Catholic Relief Services.  Her job allows her to combine her love of philanthropy with international development.  In Gaza, she manages and supports programming in emergency response, livelihoods, economic development, and food security.  She discussed how her passion for service work developed in her teenage years while attending Sacred Heart.

“I was very lucky to grow up in a service-oriented household, and that was very much cemented at Sacred Heart,” Ms. Hammonds said.

Ms. Esposito graduated with a Bachelor of Science, in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanicals from the University of Pennsylvania.  Following her graduation, she worked as a Mechanical Designer for Water Technology, Incorporated in Madison, Wisconsin.  She is now the Project Manager of the domestic waterpark group.  In her position, Ms. Esposito enjoys utilizing her technical skills and knowledge to work cooperatively with her team.  Ms. Esposito believes that she enhanced her interest in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) field as a student at Sacred Heart.

“I really liked science and math when I was at Sacred Heart,” Ms. Esposito said.  “Sacred Heart really fostered that in me, for which I am super grateful. The teachers especially helped with that.”

Ms. Holland also discussed her career with students and faculty.  A graduate of Cornell University, she minored in film and received her Bachelor of Arts degree in history.  She now works for Netflix as a Content Strategy and Analysis Associate on the Original Independent Film Team.  Ms. Holland enjoys working for Netflix because it allows her to bring people together through storytelling.  She mentioned that Sacred Heart taught her practical knowledge that she uses in her career and personal life.

“Sacred Heart has been such an important part of my life.  Looking back I learned so much starting off in middle school and continuing through high school, my faith, work ethic, organizational skills, and time management,” Ms. Holland said.  “There has just been so much that I have learned during my time on King Street that I have taken with me.”

Featured Image Courtesy of Mrs. Meghan Mara Ryan ’01