After her graduation from Hillsdale College, Stacy (Bryan) Vondra ‘95 didn’t move across the country like most graduates. She simply moved next door.–
“Hillsdale College is more than an alma mater,” she said. “It is part of my life. I think once you have the Hillsdale College experience, nothing matches it.”
Vondra ‘95 is in her seventh year as director of the Mary Randall Preschool on Hillsdale’s campus. Tucked among the trees next to Mauck Residence, the small, domed building is easy to miss. But for Vondra, it is where she makes a difference in children’s lives, as well as a nexus of relationships between students, faculty, and the wider Hillsdale community.
Vondra graduated from Hillsdale in May 1995, and was hired as head teacher at the preschool just three months after graduation.
During her time as a student, she completed her student teaching and received the Outstanding Student Teacher award. She volunteered at the preschool while pursuing a triple minor in english, Spanish, and early childhood education.
Vondra now teaches two education courses and supervises between 30 and 40 student volunteers each semester.
Vondra was inspired to choose Hillsdale by her high school Spanish professor, who was an alumnus.
“I was very well prepared for graduate work because of [Hillsdale’s] rigor,” she said.
As a freshman, however, five hours from her home in Boyne City, Mich., Vondra said she was able to make the transition to college life in part because of Hillsdale’s unique strength: faculty who build supportive relationships with students.
“Dr. Kathy Connor [then director of the preschool] took me under her wing. She was my mentor,” Vondra said. “I still talk with her several times a week.”
In addition to Connor, Vondra said many of the professors who had a memorable impact on her still teach at Hillsdale: for instance, Professors of Spanish Sandra Puvogel, Carmen Wyatt-Hayes, and Kevin Teegarden.
Vondra was active on campus as a member of Student Federation and Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, and still keeps in touch with many of her sorority sisters.
Vondra’s face glows with happiness as she describes her job at the preschool, especially the joy of watching student volunteers interact with the children.
“Working in this building is the greatest place on campus,” she said. “I have an opportunity to work with a wide age range and affect education at many levels.”
About a third of the children enrolled at the preschool are children or grandchildren of Hillsdale faculty and administration. The rest belong to families from the surrounding community.
The preschool curriculum covers nine learning areas including cognition, language, and character development.
“People call it liberal arts for the preschool child,” Vondra said.
For instance, Professor of Chemistry Chris Van Orman recently came down to make “slime” with the children. After a field trip in which the children learned about fossils, a preschooler who found a sparkly rock insisted, “I want to send this specimen to Dr. Swinehart!”
So Vondra made sure he was able to do so.
Vondra said she enjoys impacting college students as well as preschoolers. Today, she said, students who she taught in the preschool are now her college advisees.
“They come to me for their class schedule, and for advice and counsel,” she said. “They’re still seeking guidance at a different life stage. That’s a real treasure. It’s unique and yet so rewarding.”
Vondra received her master’s degree in child development from Michigan State University. She has always had a special interest in how children with language disorders learn, so she is currently pursuing a second master’s degree in speech language pathology.
Vondra sees the preschool as an opportunity for students of any major to gain experience with children. For instance, she said, students majoring in business may want to open a childcare center in a corporate setting. Students majoring in speech or psychology may be preparing for competitive graduate programs in speech pathology or other fields where they plan to work with children.
For Vondra, working with children is not only an aspect of the many ways a person can serve others, but it may open the door to a life calling. When seeking student volunteers for the preschool, Vondra said, she encourages them with her own story, saying: “This could be you!”
Vondra sees relationships as the lifeblood of Hillsdale’s educational experience, something that has not changed since she matriculated.
“Facilities are updated,” she said, “but the heart of the campus is still constant and essential.”
The same supportive network she found as an undergraduate she now enjoys as a member of the faculty and of the community.
Vondra’s husband works as superintendent of Hillsdale Community Schools, and she volunteers in the school system as frequently as she can.
“I’ve always been community-minded,” she said, whether that means working as a reading tutor or teaching Sunday school in her parish.
For college students, Vondra said, the city of Hillsdale may not have much appeal because students tend to look within their college networks for their sense of belonging and to see volunteerism as “reaching out” into a community outside them. But, “When you’re ready to raise a family, it’s what you’re looking for.”
Vondra considers Hillsdale—both the College and the community—her home.
“It’s more than volunteering,” she said. “It’s a sense of belonging, beyond the college.”
sbarrett@hillsdale.edu
