All-Girls Environment Encourages Authentic Conversation for Lisa Boris
This week’s Feature a Teacher is Lisa Boris. She is Regina Dominican’s Campus Minister and a Theology Teacher. Read below to find out more about Lisa and religion at Regina Dominican:
How long have you been at Regina Dominican? I just started my second year.
What did you find most rewarding in your first year teaching here? The strong sense of community. Students and faculty at Regina are so willing to help each other with anything and it makes coming to Regina Dominican every day worthwhile.
How does Regina Dominican’s all-girls community impact discovering one’s faith? The single-gender environment allows students to be more open and authentic in their faith. Students are able to focus on learning, living, and discussing their faith. The all-girls environment allows them to explore and discuss in depth topics and issues facing women in the Church.
How does faith prepare students for their future? Faith helps prepare students for the future by helping to form values and helping students become compassionate, loving people who know that they are never alone; God is always walking with them. It gives students hope that even when things are tough, they are always loved.
How did you choose this year’s spiritual theme “Walk With Me”? I thought it would be worthwhile to have a theme based on a quote from St. Dominic or St. Catherine of Siena, so I was trying to find a quote we could pull just a few key words out of. As I was reading over quotes from them, “you are my companion and must walk with me” really stuck out because it is so simple, so powerful, and so relevant to everyone in the school. “Walk with me” is a theme that everyone-Christian, non-Christian, student or faculty, etc- can connect with in some way. Its a challenge to all of us to embrace our differences, try to understand the other, be open to journeying with someone else and allowing others to join us. It is an invitation from Jesus to walk with Him-and He walks with the poor, the outcast, the lonely. We can all do the same.
How have you used this theme in your theology classes and when planning our school masses? This theme will be used at every Mass this year-who is Jesus walking with in the Gospel? How can we follow that example? At the Faculty Mass on the Feast of the Assumption (August 15), the faculty was challenged to walk with Mary-a nurturing, loving mother who was always walking with Jesus. With Jesus right beside us, we can share love and compassion with our students. At the Back to School Mass on August 31, students were challenged to, as it says in the Gospel, “Stay Awake” and notice those who needed someone to walk with them; to stay awake and recognize when and where God is walking with you.
The freshmen class just went on their first retreat with you, why are retreats so important at Regina Dominican? Retreats are important at Regina Dominican because they allow students to dive deeper into their personal relationship with God. This reflection is not done for a grade, but for each student’s personal growth and development. Each class retreat is based on a different one of the four Dominican pillars and allows students to think about how to live out that pillar in their life. Having a set day or days of retreat, instead of just a 45 minute class period, allows for deeper, distraction free and stress-free reflections.
Is there a “favorite” retreat for you to lead? and why? That’s a tough one. I really love different elements of them all. I love how in depth and prayerful Kairos is, the connection between wholeness and holiness we talk about on the junior retreat, the reflection on service and justice at the sophomore retreat and getting to know the freshmen on their retreat.
