0:00 - Cicily Shaw: Creating a space where everyone feels welcomed and heard, and that everyone’s Stonehill experience is respected and celebrated, even if you graduated 40 years ago or 50 years ago, has been pretty rewarding. 
0:16 - Liam Dacko: Hello and welcome to Stonehill Stories, the official podcast of Stonehill College! I’m your host, Liam Dacko, Class of 2016. I’m pleased to introduce our listeners to Cicily Shaw, Class of 1997. In addition to her work as Stonehill’s Alumni Council President, Cicily also leads with empathy as Co-Director of College Counseling at Thayer Academy in Braintree, Massachusetts. During our conversation, she explores what it was like attending Stonehill as a first-generation student, discusses her pursuit of a doctorate at Northeastern University, and offers tips on getting involved with our alumni community.
0:50 - Liam Dacko: Can you tell me, how did your Stonehill journey begin? You know, what sort of attracted you to the College? 
0:55 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, absolutely. So, I went to Brockton High School, which is literally right down the street. And when I was a junior, they had a visit program where they were really trying to get some students from the local public schools to come and visit campus. So, I came with several classmates, fell in love with the campus. And it’s interesting because it was my top choice school when I was applying to college, but I actually didn’t initially submit an application to Stonehill because I was told, unfortunately, by my school counselor that Stonehill wasn’t going to be a realistic college for me, even though I was I felt a strong student and I had taken strong courses, advanced level courses, which actually fuels the work that I do now as a school counselor. 
1:43 - Cicily Shaw: So, I actually didn’t apply until pretty late when there was a little bit of an intervention with a school counselor at my previous high school, who noticed, like, “Wait a minute, I thought Stonehill was the school that you were interested in.” I was like, “Oh, it was, but I was told that, you know, it wasn’t going to be a viable choice for me.” And he ended up taking my application, my whole file and worked with me. And at the time, Brian Murphy was the dean of admission. And I was able to come to campus and meet with Brian, talk about, kind of, my aspirations and goals. I submitted an application, obviously, the rest is history. But, you know, as a first-gen student, that is something that really sticks out to me, and being told, even though I felt I was academically qualified, being told, you know, this probably isn’t going to be a good choice for you and then ultimately getting in kind of has really fueled the work that I do with students. 
2:38 - Liam Dacko: Fast forward a little bit to when you actually got on campus, and you started classes here. How did being a first-gen student sort of impact your Stonehill experience? 
2:48 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, you know, I feel like, when I got to campus, being a first-gen wasn’t an issue for me. I did have to learn kind of the hidden language that sometimes students who have parents that have gone to college already have, you know, some knowledge of, but I was a pretty outgoing person in high school. And I always befriended administration at every school that I went to, even from elementary school. So, when I got when I got to Stonehill, it was no different. I just, you know, found the adults on campus that, you know, I felt like, okay, that’s a person I probably should get to know. That’s a person I probably should get to know. Even like being strategic about my work study job. I worked in Student Affairs, which was an amazing opportunity because you really get to see the inner workings of the College and get to know, you know, faculty and staff on a different level. So, I actually didn’t have a lot of issues as a first-gen student coming here because I felt like the adults that I reached out to were super supportive. 
3:50 - Liam Dacko: When you were a student here you majored in healthcare administration. 
3:53 - Cicily Shaw: I did. I loved it. I’m not doing it right now. But no, I absolutely loved the major. I’m sorry, I kind of cut you off. 
4:02 - Liam Dacko: No, it’s okay. I was just sort of wondering, you know, what led to the pivot to your counselor role now? And how would you say that major, even though it’s different from what you’re doing now, how has it sort of impacting your current career? 
4:15 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, absolutely. So, I was a healthcare administration major. When I was here, I had some great internships. I actually really utilized the resources in Career Services. So, I was able to get a few internships but nothing really to me, like, stuck, like, “Oh my gosh, I love this work.” I ended up, when I graduated, my first job out of college was working for a durable medical equipment company. And I remember I had a mentor here in Admissions, Duane Sparks, who worked in Admissions at the time. He had called me maybe like a month or two after graduation just to check in. So, we kind of talked through, you know, what is…“If you could, you know, map out your perfect job, what would it be?” I said, “You know, I understand every job has its kind of desk work. But really, if I could travel a little bit, that would be great.” 
5:07 - Cicily Shaw: So, he had proposed the idea of getting into college admissions, everything that I had done on campus, really mirrored what you kind of do in admissions. So, I was an RA, I was a tour guide, I was an orientation leader, I was in student government. So, there were all these different things that I really enjoyed doing as a student, that I was like, “Wait a minute, I can transfer that into an actual career.” So, I ended up interviewing for a job at Lesley University and got the job. And that’s how I started my career in admissions. 
5:40 - Cicily Shaw: So, I actually started on the college side, working in admission. I worked in admission probably for about seven years, and then really wanted to kind of slow down. It was a lot of travel, like 12 weeks in the fall, eight weeks in the spring. And really wanted to slow down a little bit and work a little bit more intentionally with students where, you know, you work in college admissions, you’re working with students, but it’s…you have so many students that you’re working with. I really wanted to work what they call “on the other side of the desk.” So seven years in, I ended up working, changing jobs to a private high school in Boston, and worked there for 18 years, developed their college counseling program, because it was a brand new school that had opened probably two years prior to me joining and then recently moved two years ago to Thayer. 
6:29 - Liam Dacko: I imagine, you know, in the roles you’ve had, you’ve, in addition to interacting with students, you interact with a lot of parents. What do they come to you for? Are there certain things you’re kind of regularly walking them through? 
6:42 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, I think the process itself, right. So, it’s funny, you know, whether they’re first-gen, a first gen family or a family that has a long history of, you know, aunts and uncles and parents and grandparents that have gone through college, they still are, like deer caught in headlights. “We don’t know. This is our first child.” Or, you know, just navigating the process and understanding…the admission landscape is so, really…it’s shifting, right. So, what people thought of admission probably 10 or 15 years ago is very different now, especially post-COVID. So, really just helping families navigate the landscape. You know, “Should we do testing?” “Should we not do testing?” “Should we visit campuses?” “Should we not visit campuses?” “When do we do that?” Help with essay writing, help with list creation. Right, so, helping students figure out what are some good choices for them as they think about college.
7:38 - Cicily Shaw: Those are typically the questions that, you know, families will ask. Also, you know, “How do I get my child to talk to me?” Because a lot of times students don’t necessarily inform their families about, you know, what they’re thinking about as much as they do with us because they’re at school, you know, eight hours a day. They’re in our offices meeting with us regularly. So, we kind of have that inside knowledge that sometimes parents are a little bit left in the dark about.
8:05 - Liam Dacko: What would you say is the number one thing that students and parents can do to ensure that they’re prepared for the college admissions experience? 
8:13 - Cicily Shaw: I think communicate. Honestly, communication is key, and just being able to set goals. And also, for families, or parents, or guardians to allow their child to dream a little bit. That’s one of the hardest things, but it all comes down to communication, just being able to communicate. 
8:34 - Liam Dacko: Now, you recently pursued another degree at Northeastern University. So, the admissions process, the tables sort of turned on you. What was that experience like? 
8:44 - Cicily Shaw: Oh, my gosh. Okay, so it’s actually funny. So, my last school that I was at, I was applying with those seniors, right. So, I was in the application process while they were applying, and I had applied to three schools. I was denied at one, waitlisted at one, and, obviously, accepted, and the school that I was waitlisted at was the school I really wanted to go to. And that’s like, “Ah, I feel your pain.” So, it really helped me to be a little bit more…not that I’m not empathetic, I think I am, but to really see like the kind of ups and downs that students go through, the amount of research that you’re putting into it. It wasn’t my first degree, but this one felt different as I was going through the process. It just allowed me to really communicate with students, and then, you know, when they didn’t, you know, realize or they didn’t get into a school that they wanted to, or they were waitlisted, and I was like, “I was waitlisted too. Let’s talk about this and really share some of those emotions.” 
9:45 - Cicily Shaw: And they’re real, they’re real emotions. And you know, for my doctoral program, like it’s a doctoral program, so you’re you've kind of gotten to a place where you should be pretty comfortable with yourself academically and you know where you’re at, but even imposter syndrome setting in and saying, “Wow, was I not good enough, you know, for these other schools?” I know that that’s not the case because I’ve been doing this work for like, almost 30 years. But it’s hard. It’s hard to like, face rejection, or questions, right? Like, okay, “I’m kind of in limbo. Am I going get in? Am I not going get in?” And then learning how to accept the school that you’re going to go to, and just embrace that. And really, you know, get the most that you can out of that experience. 
10:29 - Liam Dacko: What was it like juggling, you know, a full-time career with your schoolwork? 
10:34 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, it’s funny. So, all of my other degrees, I worked full time. So it wasn’t…it didn't feel different. So, it’s like, I look back on it now, and I’m like, “Oh, my gosh, how in the world did I do that?” But I feel like I’ve been pretty strategic and intentional about the programs that I’ve applied to, and you know, the degrees that I pursued, that it feels natural. I’m not going to say it wasn’t hard. But you know, you just kind of communicate with your employer, let them know, hey, look at the time that you’re applying. So, I didn’t communicate after I got in. I said, “I’m thinking about applying to this program,” so that I can make sure I had the support, going into the program. And making sure, you know, schedules if I needed to leave a little bit early to take a class, that there wasn’t going to be a lot of push back there. So, just making sure you’re mapping out and that worked for me.
11:29 - Liam Dacko: To pivot our conversation a little bit, outside of your career, in your free time, you serve as president of Stonehill College's Alumni Council. And, you know, how did that sort of come about? Did you run for the role? 
11:41 - Cicily Shaw: I did run. Yeah. So, to be on the Alumni Council, you’re nominated. So, I was nominated to serve on the council. And I’d served on the council for that year. And towards the end of the cycle, I was informed that I was nominated to run for president. I was like, “Okay, I’ve only been on here for a year, but okay.” So, yeah, I said…well, I asked, Anne Sant, who’s the Director of Alumni Engagement, you know, “Can you tell me a little bit more about the role?” And she told me responsibilities and timeframes and all that. It’s a three-year commitment. I was like, “Okay.” I talked to my husband. You know, he’s kind of my confidant. I was like, “What should I do?” He’s like, “I think you should run.” And I was like, “Okay, I think I’ll run.” So, yeah, I did give a speech to the council. And, you know, they voted, obviously, in the affirmative. So, it’s been a really great and rewarding experience. 
12:37 - Liam Dacko: Reflecting on the experience of your tenure so far, what are you sort of most proud of that you’ve accomplished? 
12:45 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, I think, you know, the Alumni Council is so multigenerational. Like when I walked into my first meeting, I was like, “Okay, we have people graduated, like, in the 70s. And then people who graduated two years ago.” Right, so being able to create a space where everyone feels, and I hope everyone agrees, whoever hears this, but you know, that creating a space where everyone feels welcomed and heard, and that everyone’s Stonehill experience is respected and celebrated, even if you graduated 40 years ago or 50 years ago, has been pretty rewarding just to be able to see the vast range of graduates. 
13:28 - Liam Dacko: Now, what are some ways that alumni no matter, you know, their age or when they attended Stonehill, what are some ways they can get involved? 
13:37 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, absolutely. Email me, email Anne Sant. No, seriously, we really would we love, you know, alum getting in contact with us to say, “How can I get involved?” We have several committees that they could join. So, they wouldn’t necessarily be on the Alumni Council, but they could be a part of Alumni Programming. So, we have a Programming Committee, we have a Scholarship Committee. We have the GOLD Committee, which is Graduates of the Last Decade, so if students graduated in the last 10 years, and I know they’re trying to, you know, increase membership there. There’s the Awards Committee. So, there’s a lot of different ways that, you know, alum can get involved, as you know, without joining the council, and I think once they get their foot in the door on a committee, then if there’s an interest for them to join the council, they can do that as well. Reunion, volunteering, there’s a lot of different opportunities to volunteer at different programs. 
14:33 - Liam Dacko: That’s great. And, you know, I hope people listening are able to, you know, take advantage of that. We have such a great community here. So, you know, the more people we can get involved, the better. 
14:44 - Cicily Shaw: Yeah, absolutely. 
14:46 - Liam Dacko: Thank you for listening to Stonehill Stories. This podcast is produced by Jill Goddard and Liam Dacko of Stonehill College’s Office of Communications and Media Relations. Intro theme composed by Associate Professor of Music James Bohn. Outro theme composed by Philip Pereira. Graphic design assistance provided by Colin Spencer. To discover more about Stonehill College, visit our website at Stonehill.edu.