Q&A
Susan McGalla
VP of Advancement & Strategic Communications
Can you share a bit about your professional background prior to Brophy?
Before joining Brophy, I ran two public companies and had a super fun run with an NFL team. Most notably, I was president and interim CEO of American Eagle Outfitters, where I was responsible for the P&L, the creative direction, our store fleet, and a team of more than 30,000 employees. It was a role I loved because it allowed me to lead people, build a strong culture, and grow a brand that meant something to our customers and the retail landscape. I later managed most of the business side for the Pittsburgh Steelers for five years. Combining business and sports was a blast.
What inspired you to join the
Brophy community?
My son Nico is currently a sophomore at Brophy, and my daughter Lili is right next door as a freshman at Xavier. Last year, my husband Steve and I met Bob Ryan and Fr. Muller at a freshman parent event. I was on my way to continue my journey in business and sports, and God had another plan. I was asked to be a guest speaker in Bob’s vocations class, was totally inspired by those 25 upperclassmen boys, and four months later accepted the role of VP of Advancement and Strategic Communications. We are all about the boys, ensuring they develop into the Men for Others that God wants them to become, and I am honored and humbled to be a small part of that life-changing work.
What do you enjoy most about the work you do here?
I enjoy the people the most. The students, faculty, staff (they have all been unbelievably welcoming!), and families create an environment that feels energetic and grounded. I also enjoy the variety of the work. Every day brings something different and gives me the chance to contribute in ways that help the school move forward. Even though the scale is smaller than what I led in the past, the impact feels bigger and more significant. The work here is incredibly rewarding and a gift at this point in my life’s journey.
What are some of the key priorities of your role?
My role focuses on advancing the external-facing business side of the school so that Brophy can continue to grow and thrive. Coming from the business world, I have so much respect for how well-managed this school is. Our advancement work is just that: we work hard every day to help Brophy and our Jesuit principles move our school into the future, which is changing at warp speed. Key priorities include supporting our vision through the Brophy Fund and ensuring our resources align with the long-term needs of the school. I also prioritize building strong relationships and creating a collaborative environment so that our team can serve students and families at the highest level.
Q&A
Scott Heideman
Head Coach, Freshman Football
Freshmen often talk about you being one of their first experiences of Brophy. How does your role help set that culture?
I obviously do a lot with the freshmen. My primary roles are head freshman football coach, freshman advisor, freshman health teacher, strength and conditioning coach, and I coordinate all the teacher absences and help cover those classes, and Mr. [Pete] Burr and I handle Big Brothers–oh and retreat leader. It’s so fulfilling to walk with the freshmen and have such a big impact in setting the culture. We strive to set the culture that sets those boys up for success in their later years here, so my favorite part is watching them grow from freshmen into Big Brothers and then watching them be able to go on a retreat like Kairos later in their career–just seeing that growth from start to finish.
When you coach and teach, you often mention ‘212 degrees’ and ‘Be that guy, not that guy.’ What’s the message you’re trying to send with those phrases?
There’s an old saying: ‘more gets caught than taught.’ It’s important to walk the walk if you talk the talk because if that quote holds true, the boys aren’t interested in what I say until they know, first, how much I care about them. Number two, if they see me modeling those things that I asked from them on a daily basis, that’s what being ‘that’ guy is. We all know who we should be and all know what not to do. So being ‘that’ guy is focusing on the guy we want to be instead of focusing on the guy we don’t want to be. ‘212’ is just the difference between being good and great. It takes a little bit extra, and it’s something that we all can do a lot easier than we think we can.
What do you hope players take away from the freshman football experience?
I just want them to know that there’s somebody on this campus that loves and cares about them, and it’s not a short-term thing. It’s a long-term thing. I want them to understand their time with me is meant to be transformative and not transactional. Wins and losses are transactions for playing, and it’s more than about that for me.
Q&A
Chad Unrein
English Teacher and Coach
What do you hope a young man gains from his Brophy experience, both in the classroom and in the way he learns to move through the world?”
The go-to idea when people think about flourishing is abundance or the accumulation of wealth or fertility, all the things we usually connect with it. I think there is more to it. Life always has a balance to it, a give and take. I often return to that Greek concept of eudaimonia, which has more to do with satisfaction and purpose. I try to help students see those ideas in the literature we read. And because it is literature, the endings are rarely happy, but the stories help us understand God’s presence in the human experience. I am always asking students where is God in this tragic story? I like when students admit something is hard or when I can see them wrestling with a challenge. I think that struggle is a pathway to real flourishing because it leads to growth. The alternative is a pattern of just telling me what I want to hear, writing a few things down, taking a test, and then repeating it back. I do not think that approach leads to flourishing. Life will have ups and downs. The question is whether you have the skills to withstand the difficult moments. Our students are in a wonderful place now, and when they move into the world, I want them to be able to navigate whatever comes their way.
What habits of mind do you hope students take from your classes?
I think critical thinking and discernment. I’m trying to get kids to read, and reading is almost like a form of prayer. It requires the life of the mind. By building the space for them to read and think critically about ideas, that’s a skill that, again, I don’t think they’re going to become English majors. I want them to, whatever career they go into, to be able to sit back and go through a process of discernment and to be able to really think through something rather than just taking shortcuts or being a follower or maybe choosing the wrong path because it seems to be the popular thing to do.
Is there a moment or piece of literature that always resonates with your students?
The piece that I really like every year is starting AP. On day one, I do not do the syllabus. We do the excerpt from Ulysses. I like to see students struggle with that initially, writing it down, then kind of getting into it and understanding and then relating it to your life in some way. Figuring out what does this actually say? I like seeing what students do. That’s why I ask students to write about their own Ulysses moment. What do you expect? Are you going to rest on your laurels or are you going to sail off and look for new seas, sail off into the sunset and go off on one more adventure?
Q&A
Maggie Lauder
Director of Justice Formation
Can you tell us a little about your role?
I teach in the Religious Studies Department. I’ve taught all of the junior-level courses and teach the honors courses. I also work in the Office of Faith and Justice and I oversee freshman service and sophomore service, as well as our social justice collaborations within the Jesuit Network.
Why is social justice such an important focus for you personally and professionally?
Because it’s what Jesus wanted us to do in terms of participating in the kingdom of God. So for me, it’s part of my own response to my faith and trying to follow Jesus. More practically, I grew up in a very Catholic household and a family that was really involved in the church. But my particular doorway was through more social justice and the outward-looking works of the church. I’ve always been really inspired by the saints who’ve taken really radical steps in how they lived. Inspired by those examples and by communities of people that I’ve met that are really working with people in need or really existing in places that are challenging and speaking to truths that are challenging and that’s always been really inspiring to me.
What is the most fulfilling part of your work with students at Brophy?
I think just building relationships with them and being able to see them pursue an interest and support them in that, especially when it’s something aligned with our faith or with our works of justice in the world, which are my particular areas. I find working with students fulfilling, period. But then, I suppose the most fulfilling is when I get to really get to know them, get to know an individual student and see that growth happen.
How do you see service and advocacy shaping students during their time at Brophy and beyond?
Well, I think many of our students speak to their experiences of service at the end of their journey as something that maybe was eye-opening or transformative or a new opportunity to grow. I think that is really exciting. I think with advocacy, it demystifies some of how our political process happens and the role that we do have as citizens in that. I think it’s very empowering for students to know that they can have a voice, and even if they don’t win a campaign on any particular piece of legislation, it’s part of being part of a movement of people who are trying to continuously better our government.