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Conversations That GUIDE the Journey
VWU’s Career and Vocational Summit elevates career mentorship in shaping students’ professional paths
University News | January 28, 2026
Have you ever wondered how the people you admire—professors, mentors, or professionals—found their way to where they are today? What challenges shaped their journeys, and whether there is a single “right” path to follow?
These questions were at the heart of Virginia Wesleyan University’s Career & Vocational Summit, the culminating event of the GUIDE Program (Guided Understanding of Individual Discernment and Vocational Exploration), established by The Athenaeum: Center for Exploration & Discovery along with Career & Professional Development.
The GUIDE program is a professional development initiative designed to enhance career and vocational development opportunities for undergraduate students by equipping faculty and staff to serve as effective mentors. The program was made possible through the NetVUE Professional Development Award Grant.
By fostering meaningful dialogue between educators and students, the program emphasized the integration of vocation, career exploration, and the liberal arts mission of the University. “The primary goal of GUIDE was to help faculty and staff engage students in more enriching conversations about vocation,” said Alice Jones, director of career development at VWU. “It’s about understanding how career development, purpose, and curriculum can be intertwined.”
Faculty and staff were introduced to the program during the summer, with a kickoff event held in Fall 2025, followed by two additional sessions throughout the semester.
The first session featured guest speaker Dr. Deirdre Egan-Ryan from St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, who led an engaging, interactive workshop focused on storytelling as a tool for vocational discernment.
The second session centered on a guided book study of “At This Time, and In This Place: Vocation and Higher Education,” edited by David S. Cunningham. The discussion encouraged faculty and staff to reflect on their vocational journeys and gain insight into how to meaningfully share those experiences with students.
The program culminated in the Vocational Summit on January 21, a January Term event designed to support first- and second-year students as they explore questions of vocation, career pathways, and meaningful internships.
The Summit opened with a keynote address by Dr. Justin Klassen, professor of theology & religious studies at Bellarmine University in Louisville. Dr. Klassen, who teaches courses in philosophical theology and religious ethics, brought thoughtful insight into the intersections of awe, moral formation, and the search for meaning.
In his remarks, Dr. Klassen argued that vocation should not be reduced to picking the “right” career, but understood as a way of living meaningfully in the present.
He described how students often feel crushed by expectations—from parents, tests, and culture—that there is one predetermined path they must follow. Drawing on stories from his classroom and his own life, Dr. Klassen explained how reframing vocation as a question of “how you live and love others” can free both students and faculty to see themselves as whole human beings, not simply future job titles.
“Educating for vocation means humanizing ourselves, and it also requires us to treat our students as human beings,” he said, emphasizing the importance of creating space within higher education for students to ask deeper “why” questions about who they are becoming.
The event concluded with a symposium-style poster session, open to students, featuring faculty and staff participants who shared personal vocational reflections inspired by the earlier GUIDE sessions. The posters highlighted diverse pathways, challenges, and moments of discernment, reinforcing the idea that meaningful careers are rarely linear.
Faculty and staff presenters included: Hannah Carmona, April Christman, Sarah DeRosa, Andrea Grant, Rebecca Hooker, Katie Harrington, Alice Jones, Katrina Lawal, Stephen Leist, Crit Muniz, Annika Quick, Sara Ryan, and Arin Shatto.
Faculty and staff posters are now on display in the Athenaeum in Hofheimer Library, offering the campus community an opportunity to engage further with these stories and conversations.
“With the support of this grant, VWU launched a ground-breaking faculty and staff development program that will elevate career and vocational mentorship across campus,” Jones said. “This program empowered our faculty and staff to foster an environment conducive to vocational readiness, professional success, and overall student well-being—an investment in the long-term retention and success of our graduates.”
Looking ahead, the Athenaeum Center and Career & Professional Development are continuing to seek new ways to connect students and faculty, including the launch of an Employer Development initiative supported by a new Impact Grant.
Learn more about The Athenaeum: Center for Exploration and Discovery at VWU.