Angela Batie, one of the newest members of the Saint Louis University community, hopes to continue SLU’s Jesuit mission through her work as a campus minister. ?
After completing her undergraduate in Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Portland, Batie moved to Pennsylvania, where she joined Holy Cross Associates to volunteer in an economically depressed community. Though this post-graduate service program, Batie integrated her Christian faith with community service and communal living. This “community-leadership-development organization taught citizens about their community and gave them leadership skills to take an active part in improving it,” Batie explained.
Batie, originally from Tacoma, Wash., developed a passion for travel while in college, and she has visited more than 20 countries. She studied in Austria for a year as an undergraduate and recently returned from a semester in England. Batie leaves for Puerto Rico in a few weeks to celebrate the fifth year of cancer remission of a close friend.
After her year of service, Batie became an assistant campus minister at King’s College in Pennsylvania.
?”That’s when I first realized that I really felt called to campus ministry work,” said Batie.
In addition to exploring Christian spirituality, Batie appreciates the varying opportunities that music and theatre have to offer.
Throughout her life, she has participated in musical theatre, choirs, vocal competitions and the study of music. While in Pennsylvania, she starred as the lead role of an independent film that was recently picked up the United Kingdom. She is currently looking for outlets on campus to share her musical talents. In addition, Batie said she is “still anxiously waiting to hear from the Broadway producers of the ‘Lion King'” from her audition–five years ago.
In order to better serve the spiritual needs of college students, Batie chose to attend graduate school. With a master’s of divinity degree from Yale University, Batie returned to her calling as a campus minister here at SLU.
During her short tenure at SLU, Batie is “continually surprised and impressed by the level of spiritual depth that students seem to be working on. The thoughts that students have are very insightful and perceptive,” Batie said.
Batie is excited about her newly created position in campus ministry. In addition to mentoring students in the Griesedieck complex, she also helps to foster community growth among the graduate students. Prior to her appointment, a campus minister for SLU’s graduate students did not exist.
Batie hopes to “help people connect with each other and help create a space where people feel apart of a greater faith community.”
She is also passionate about social justice.
“When you are pressed to the margins and haven’t gotten a fair shot at life, it is hard to nurture spirituality,” Batie said.
Batie also fears that some college students do not believe their actions have consequences. Batie, however, operates from the principle that “the decisions that people are making now are shaping who they are going to become tomorrow.”
“Be thoughtful of your decisions and be kind in the way you treat one another,” Batie said.
