Allison's Life of Questions Leads her to enFocus
I got this job by asking questions.
I blame my mother. She has always told me, “You’ll never know until you ask,” and while she was not wrong… I don’t think anyone anticipated where those questions would take me.
‘Don’t they have tornados in Indiana?’
When I was 11, my parents told me we were moving to South Bend, IN from New Jersey. My first question was about the impending doom, and the subsequent patetic fallacy of the weather I’d only seen from the lands of Oz. I was assured by the adults that we would not be living in tornado zones. Yet, there I was, on the 4th day of school, hunkered down waiting out a tornado. While the pathetic fallacy may have been lost on me at the time, the unpredictability of moving to South Bend was a critical juncture for the direction of my life path.
‘Can I learn multiple instruments?’
My interest in music came from my father, and lucky for me at that. My joy of listening to music and talking about it with my dad turned into a true fascination of how it worked. My interest was only catalyzed by a series of wonderfully dedicated and joyfilled music teachers and directors. By allowing me to learn multiple instruments, band directors, choir conductors, and clarinet instructors kindled in me a fire that took me all around the state for camps, competitions, and concerts. I met people from all over Indiana and grew to appreciate the kindness and hospitality of Hoosiers. I went on to pursue a music theory and history degree at Saint Mary’s College with a second major in Religious Studies and Theology. I was able to use my knowledge of instruments from my gradeschool days and my interactions with other people through music, to lead me to academically study beauty and humans more deeply.
‘Can I apply for the honors program?’
My high school experience was filled with classical studies, Socratic debate, mock trial meetings, and my creativity and questioning tendencies. During the brutal time of college applications and acceptances, there was endless chatter about progress and lack thereof. A couple of my classmates received invitations from Saint Mary’s College to apply for the honor’s program. Even though I did not receive the invitation, I reached out to the director of the program and expressed my interest. By offering to meet with him to discuss my interest, I was asked to apply. Being part of the Saint Mary’s Pilot Honors Program, which focused on global citizenship, helped broaden my perspectives academically, and the people I surrounded myself with.
‘How can I apply for the Oxford program?’
Before I matriculated at Saint Mary’s College, I emailed the director of the Oxford study abroad program to ask how I could make sure to be prepared for the Oxford program. I came right after school on day, in my tartan uniform and asked a myriad of questions to ensure I was choosing the correct classes to support my application. He was confused by my outfit choice, expecting me to be a current SMC student. This conversation started my path to Oxford where I would unknowingly spend almost a decade indulging in the city of dreaming spires.
‘Can I have your vote?’
During my time at Oxford I had the sheer gumption to run for election to represent the graduate students to the trustee board of the University, to the UK government, and charities. Running a campaign while completing a masters degree was grueling, requiring an overexertion of social interaction, calling in favors, and understanding how transparent to be as a human. I won the election with the most votes cast for the position since they began tracking that statistic. This allowed me the exhausting privilege spending the next year representing post-graduate, international, and visiting students, and students who are parents. This experience allowed me the opportunity to help establish a new post-graduate college at Oxford for the first time in over 100 years, help create and implement the University’s strategic plan, as well as write, lobby for, and help pass policy changes reversing centuries' old policies. Moving into a full time position working for Oxford University and its colleges allowed me to work on governance, policy, and engagement. Starting as a practitioner and moving to developing policy helped me to ensure that I was leaving behind a better student experience than I had myself. When the Covid-19 pandemic was upending student life, I was able to jump in to coordinate student life, build virtual communities, translate constantly changing international policy, and provide support for students from over 89 different countries.
‘Where can I have an impact?’
When I was looking for another professional opportunity, I began to ask trusted advisors where I could work to make an impact. The answer was consistently enFocus.
And that’s how I find myself here. By no means a linear path, but one which granted me experience in difficult conversations, prioritizing and lobbying for what makes a difference in other people’s lives, synthesizing complex systems and information into digestible pieces, and the importance of community. The ability to be rooted in a community, helping impact those around you, and even further–a field in a constant effort to leave things better than we found them was a mission that resonated with me. First, I have to get to know my community and their needs more intimately, and the best way to get to know someone or something–is to ask questions.
