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When Jessina enrolled at Cristo Rey Boston High School, she gained more than access to a Catholic education. She entered a community that believed in her potential, introduced her to professional opportunities, prepared her for college, and helped her imagine a future beyond what she had previously considered possible.

Support from the Catholic Schools Foundation helped make that experience financially attainable for her family.

Today, Jessina has returned to Cristo Rey as a Senior Relationship Manager, where she connects students with Corporate Work Study placements, supports their professional development, and helps young people recognize the possibilities ahead of them.

Her journey is a powerful example of how one scholarship can create a lasting ripple effect.

“When you invest in someone like me and those coming after me, you never know where that will take them,” Jessina said. “One opportunity helped change my life tremendously.”

Jessina attended Boston Public Schools and then a charter school during middle school. With encouragement from a trusted mentor, she began exploring several high school options.

Cristo Rey stood out.

The smaller school community appealed to her, as did the school’s distinctive Corporate Work Study Program, which gives students the opportunity to gain professional experience while completing their high school education.

Jessina could not have known at the time just how significantly that program would influence her future.

“I don’t think I would be where I am now without having that experience at such a young age,” she said.

Her family was committed to making a Cristo Rey education possible, but tuition remained a financial challenge. CSF Scholarship assistance helped ease that burden and allowed Jessina to remain in a school environment where she could grow academically, personally, and professionally.

“I don’t come from the most economically advantaged background,” she explained. “My family really had to pull their weight to send me to Cristo Rey. I was grateful for every opportunity that helped me stay and take advantage of everything the school offered.”

For Jessina, the scholarship represented more than financial support. It was a sign that others saw something in her.

“Knowing that someone believed in me enough to support me throughout high school really shaped my perception of myself and how much I could achieve.”

Through Cristo Rey’s Corporate Work Study Program, Jessina’s first professional placement was with the Catholic Schools Foundation.

As a high school freshman, she learned what it was like to work in an office for the first time. She helped prepare mailings, worked with spreadsheets, supported event organization, and became familiar with the responsibilities and expectations of a professional workplace.

The experience helped build skills and confidence that she carried into later opportunities.

For the next three years, Jessina worked at the law firm Jones Kelleher. There, she expanded her professional network, observed depositions and a trial, and gained exposure to the legal profession.

Her supervisor encouraged her to take on new responsibilities and helped her continue developing the skills she had begun building at CSF.

The experience left Jessina with a lasting interest in law, but its broader impact was even greater. At an early age, she learned how to communicate in professional environments, build relationships with adults, ask questions, and explore unfamiliar career paths.

Today, she shares that perspective with Cristo Rey students.

“I tell my students that I don’t know how many high school students get to have experiences like this,” she said. “It is integrated into their school schedule, and it can be incredibly rewarding.”

Jessina’s high school experience also connected her with teachers, mentors, and college counselors who encouraged her to consider possibilities she had not envisioned for herself.

One of those possibilities was attending college outside Massachusetts.

With support from Cristo Rey’s college counseling team, Jessina became a Posse Scholar and enrolled at Denison University in Ohio. She studied  Psychology with a minor in Political Science and graduated in 2023.

“I never imagined myself going to Ohio, and I definitely never imagined going to Denison,” she said. “I had college counselors who supported me and believed in me.”

As a first-generation college student in her immediate family, leaving Boston required courage and independence. Through the Posse program, Jessina entered Denison with nine other students from similar backgrounds, creating an important network of support.

Her time in Ohio ultimately helped her become more independent, resilient, and willing to challenge herself.

“Ohio was not my first choice, but I’m so happy I went,” she said. “It changed who I am as a person.”

Throughout high school and college, mentorship became one of the defining themes of Jessina’s life.

At Cristo Rey, teachers encouraged her to explore interests and opportunities beyond the classroom. She especially remembers her English teacher, Mr. Kauffmann, who transformed a subject she had not previously enjoyed into an area of excitement and discovery.

His encouragement led Jessina to participate in writing programs through Emerson College, GrubStreet, UMass Amherst, and other organizations. She also became involved in projects that used writing to explore social issues.

“Every mentor and every teacher who invested in me shaped who I have become,” she said.

At Denison, Jessina began providing that same kind of support to others.

She worked with America Reads throughout all four years of college, helping elementary school students strengthen their English and math skills. She also volunteered through Big Brothers Big Sisters, something she had wanted to do since high school.

That commitment has continued since graduation. Jessina remains involved with Big Brothers Big Sisters and currently mentors a young person in Boston.

“Being a mentor is something that is within me,” she said.

After college, Jessina worked in social services, including housing reform and a federal reentry program. Her work focused on helping people navigate life following adversity.

She had also gained extensive experience supporting students, as a community advisor in college and through summer programs for high school students with Education First in New York.

When an opportunity arose to return to Cristo Rey as a relationship manager, Jessina felt drawn back to the community that had shaped her.

“Coming back was not something I planned, but I ended up feeling that this was where I was supposed to be,” she said.

Now a Senior Relationship Manager, she helps students secure Corporate Work Study placements and builds partnerships with employers. She also provides students with guidance that often extends far beyond their work assignments.

Students regularly come to Jessina seeking advice about college, careers, finances, and life.

Her perspective as both an alumna and a staff member allows her to connect with them in a distinctive way. She understands what it feels like to enter a professional workplace as a teenager, to prepare for college as a first-generation student, and to pursue opportunities before feeling completely ready.

“I often think about the people who supported me and opened doors for me,” she said. “Now I get to be that person for someone else.”

For donors, Jessina’s story demonstrates that the impact of a scholarship does not end when a student graduates.

The support that helped Jessina attend Cristo Rey also introduced her to the professional world, prepared her for college, connected her with mentors, and encouraged her to become a mentor herself.

Now, the lessons and opportunities donors helped provide are reaching the students Jessina supports every day.

She helps connect young people with employers who may introduce them to a future career. She encourages students to use the resources available to them. She reminds them that asking for help is a sign of initiative—not weakness.

Most importantly, she helps students believe that they belong in spaces and opportunities they may never have imagined for themselves.

“I’m happy that, if I get to change even one person’s life, that is successful,” she said.

Jessina’s advice to current students reflects how she has approached her own journey:

“Say yes to opportunities before you feel completely ready.”

She believes growth often begins outside a person’s comfort zone.

“Ask questions. Introduce yourself to people. Don’t be afraid to try something new,” she said. “The opportunities you take today might not make sense in the moment, but years later, they can prepare you for something much bigger than you could have imagined.”

She also encourages first-generation college students and their families to actively seek support.

“Use your resources and reach out,” she said. “Ask your teachers, professors, counselors, and deans. People are sometimes afraid to ask for help, but if you don’t ask, you don’t know what is available.”

Jessina’s educational journey is not complete.

She is now exploring graduate programs in social work, industrial-organizational psychology, and applied psychology. Her goal is to continue working in education, mentoring young people, and creating pathways for others.

She credits her CSF scholarship with helping establish the foundation that made each subsequent step possible.

“Because of donors, I am still pursuing higher education,” she said. “They were the foundation that allowed me to attend Cristo Rey, go on to college, and now hopefully pursue my master’s degree.”

When asked what she would say directly to the donors who supported her education, Jessina began with gratitude.

“Thank you,” she said. “It is more than financially pouring into someone.”

A scholarship gave Jessina the chance to attend Cristo Rey. But within that opportunity came professional experience, meaningful relationships, college preparation, mentorship, confidence, and a growing belief in what she could accomplish.

Today, she is using each of those gifts to benefit the students coming after her.

“I hope donors know that the opportunity they gave me helped change my life tremendously,” she said. “It has made nothing but a great impact so far.”

Jessina entered Cristo Rey as a student whose family needed assistance to make her education possible. She returned as a leader, mentor, and advocate, now opening doors for a new generation.

That is the lasting power of a scholarship.

Want to help create more stories like  Jessina?

Your support makes stories like  Jessina’s possible. Your support does more than help a student attend school. It helps that student discover new possibilities, build relationships, pursue higher education, and one day create opportunities for others. Donate today to invest in the future of young scholars and ensure more students have the same opportunities to thrive, grow, and give back.