This past Sunday, the Blue and Gray Tour Guide Society wrapped up interviews to select the Fall 2026 Guide Class. Members of the Recruitment Committee heard prospective new guides share their passion for Georgetown and what excites them about becoming more involved on the Hilltop.
As a senior who has been in Blue and Gray since my freshman spring, these interviews were a full-circle moment. Sitting in an Intercultural Center classroom for several hours straight put me in the headspace to reflect on core memories from my freshman year. Here are moments that have stayed with me throughout my past three years at 37th and O St.
Finding Home on the Hilltop
It only took a few weeks before a group of my friends and I began meeting in the lobby of our freshman year dorm, Darnall Hall, and made the short trek to Dahlgren Chapel for 10 p.m. Mass on Sunday.
I chose Georgetown in large part for its Jesuit identity. When I arrived on campus in 2023, I was still anxious about finding classmates who would share their faith alongside me. Growing up in a Catholic household and family, my religious identity has come to define my life. It’s synonymous with home. I was pleased to discover that all it would take to find someone just like me was introducing myself to my next-door neighbor during move-in and seeing religious icons on her desk. Marie and I have attended Mass together ever since, and our shared Catholic identity is a highlight of our friendship.
The World as My Classroom
If you told me freshman year that I would have the opportunity to go fishing with blue swimming crab catchers off the coast of Jakarta, I would laugh. Nor would I believe you if you said I would be able to follow the steps of St. Ignatius of Loyola across Spain during my sophomore year spring break. A surprise at Georgetown has been the plethora of experiential learning opportunities to unite my interest in global politics and sustainable development. My experience on a fishing boat in Indonesia this past May now looks typical for a Hoya, thanks to the wide array of funding sources and support provided from the School of Foreign Service Dean’s Office.
I am so grateful that three years ago I elected to attend such a forward-thinking school that encourages its students to address the issues of tomorrow. From urban pollution to the intersection of artificial intelligence and public health, my peers and I are studying the policy areas that may “fly under the radar” at other universities and even in the professional world. Georgetown has piqued my intellectual curiosity in ways I could not imagine.
Past, Present and Future Hoyas
I chose Georgetown because the school produces future leaders. While I was drawn to the Jesuit identity and location in the nation’s capital, I enrolled because I had learned how Georgetown alumni go on to solve the world’s most pressing issues and become renowned experts in their field.
Reading about how NBC News White House Correspondent Yamiche Alcindor (C’09)’s time on the Hilltop prepared her for her career sparked my interest in American journalism and led me to discover what else Georgetown academics have to offer. I remember attending the Mass of the Holy Spirit before my first ever day of college, and hearing from an upperclassman in Catholic Ministry about how Georgetown has allowed him to explore his spiritual identity. It’s experiences like those that excited me to see how Georgetown would help me grow as an individual.
My ‘Why Georgetown’ is that I came here inspired by those who have sat in the same classroom seats as I do. It makes me so glad knowing that I‘ll leave the Hilltop alongside friends who will soon become those same people to inspire the next generation of Hoyas.
Being a Blue and Gray tour guide and Georgetown Storyteller provides me the opportunity to share my passion for this school. Looking back on all that I have experienced these past three years, and excited for the last one ahead, I know it may be hard to properly give back to the Hilltop. At least it won’t be hard to stay in touch with those around me, thanks to the memories we have formed along the way.
