Religion teacher Rachel Harkins is leaving after the first semester to pursue a career in enrollment with the Archdiocese of Baltimore.
Harkins’s new job title will be the Director of Enrollment Management. “In laymen’s terms, I will be an assistant to the superintendent of all the Catholic schools in the Archdiocese,” Harkins said. This is a newly created position that Harkins found on the Archdiocesan website.
Harkins will visit with administrators and admissions committees to go over their plans for enrollment. For example, if she has to talk to JC, she would visit Director of Enrollment Kim Brueggemann and Associate Director of Enrollment Ed Maynard.
According to Harkins, there is a “crisis in enrollment” in both high schools and elementary schools within the Archdiocese all over Maryland. Harkins cites the reasons as economic and the fact that fewer people are going to church.
“The normal base that would come into Catholic schools isn’t there, so my job will be to help fix that problem,” Harkins said.
In the past, Harkins told her students that she wanted to be a principal or a member of the administration at a Catholic school. According to Harkins, this new position is an extension of that dream.
“I’ve always wanted a job in Catholic schools. That’s why I’m here at John Carroll … It’s always been my calling, ever since I graduated [with an undergraduate degree in theology and religious education]. I’ve always felt that I would work for Catholic schools and specifically in Baltimore … I’ve always felt this draw to the home of the Catholic Church, which is here in our city of Baltimore. It’s an honor to be able to help promote Catholic schools here in the very first place that they began in the U.S.,” Harkins said.
Her new position skips over the steps that normally follow a teaching position.
“The normal step process is to be a teacher, then to be a department head, then to be a dean, then an assistant principal, principal, then to move downtown to the Catholic Center. It is quite an honor that I was chosen for this position,” Harkins said.
Being a principal or an administrator could still be in her future, according to Harkins.
“I’m going to miss coming into work every day and laughing. My students make me laugh every day, they make me smile,” Harkins said. “We have a great relationship. It’s been a really wonderful year.”
Harkins will also miss coaching the softball team. “I’ll miss that dedication and that individual relationship I got to have with the softball players,” Harkins said. According to Harkins, she will try to make it to as many games as possible.
The replacement for Harkins is Elise Gower. Gower has an undergraduate degree from Marywood University and a master’s degree from the University of Scranton.
According to Religion Department Chair Joseph Gallen, Gower will take over Harkins’s schedule. However, it is currently unknown who will coach the JV softball team and moderate the Romero Club.
Rebecca Driver is a Copy Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.