Leah Pan: Building and Maintaining Relationships in My First Quarter at Cristo Rey San Jose
As a member of the LSB Community Fellows program, I’ve been given the amazing opportunity to work at Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School (CRSJ) as an Advancement Coordinator for events, marketing, and donor relations. So far in my experience, I’ve loved getting challenged to learn new skills and tools such as social media strategies, Canva, and website development to help strengthen CRSJ’s social media presence. I’ve also been able to apply my previous skills to assist with their donor database and improve my communication skills with my manager. This is my first time working closely with a non-profit and academic organization, and it’s been exciting and fascinating to learn about the work that everyone puts in towards the same goal – to create the best experience for the students. I have been welcomed by the Advancement team and have learned so much about CRSJ and its Corporate Work Study Program and the school’s impact on the San Jose community.
Working at CRSJ has exposed me to the amount of hard work that is put into their donor relations and how much effort the team puts in to discover, engage, and maintain relationships with these donors. This experience has really emphasized the importance of maintaining relationships and forming genuine connections with others in business and has made me think more about ways I can maintain relationships in my own network as well. Getting exposure to their donor database and seeing how the team stays updated on every donor regardless of how much they give, I appreciate and admire the hard work that CRSJ puts in to ensure that everyone the school interacts with feels valued and each student has the opportunity to gain experience.
As I continue my work with the Advancement team at Cristo Rey, I hope to engage more with the students and learn more about their experiences through my projects. I want to be exposed to more of the San Jose community and learn about how CRSJ has helped these students achieve their academic and career goals. As I engage more with the students, I hope to be a resource that they can turn to for advice on applying for college and advice for transitioning to college as well. Within the Advancement team as a Fellow, I hope to continue to create genuine relationships with my manager and coworkers and gain confidence in my skills and my ability to motivate others to success. This experience has reminded me of the importance of relationships with others. Working with such a hardworking and passionate team, I’m looking forward to connecting with people from different backgrounds and different ages and gaining a new perspective on life outside of the Santa Clara University bubble.