Student Commencement Speaker Reflects on Being a Muslim at a Catholic College

When Waqarun Rashid '09 came to Saint Anselm College, she found she had something in common with the Benedictine monks on campus.

Both express their faith in what they wear.

The monks dress in traditional black monastic habits. Rashid, a practicing Muslim, wears a headscarf and modest clothing.

“We represent our faith physically, but the true representation happens in the way you speak, in how you respect others, in how you act,” Rashid said. “I always felt that I was with other believers because they are so humble, so devout in their faith.”

Rashid, a senior biochemistry major from Salem, N.H., spoke about her experiences at Saint Anselm College’s May 16 commencement. Her talk focused on the struggle to bring social justice to the world – reflecting a value she says Islam and Christianity share.

Rashid is the only Muslim in her class, and one of five at Saint Anselm. As a senior, she was president of the Muslim Student Association, which formed in 2004. This year, the association had 13 members drawing non-Muslim students who wanted to learn more about Islam.

In the classroom her Muslim background became an opportunity to challenge what her peers thought and believed, especially in the two-year humanities program, known as Portaits in Human Greatness, that is mandatory for all students.

“I always felt like I was odd man out,” Rashid said. “There were these students who… raised in Catholic schools. I’ve always been one to be questioning, to try to get them to think more outside of the box.”

Her studies also helped her understand how her faith related to her chosen profession – medicine. During a humanities unit on Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, Rashid examined Victorian-era debates about religion and science. She concluded the two are more compatible than not.

“One needs science and religion, she said. “Science needs religion and religion needs science.” Those two things – science and religion – will come together in her career. This fall Rashid will enter the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in Rochester, N.Y., where she will pursue two degrees: a Doctor of Medicine and a doctorate in biochemistry, molecular and cell biology. Rashid will be a scientist, but it is her faith and what her faith teaches about social justice and caring for others that motivates her to help those who are sick.

Rashid wants to focus on diabetes and obesity-related diseases.

A toy doctor’s kit her parents gave her first stirred her interest in the field, but it was her visit to Pakistan, where her parents were born, that confirmed her interest in being a doctor. In Pakistan, Rashid remembers seeing people suffering from illnesses that could be easily treated back in the United States.

Once she finishes her graduate studies, she wants to return to the southeast Asian country.

“That’s one of my hopes and dreams – is to get back to Pakistan and give back to the people who need help,” she said.

Rashid will miss Saint Anselm College where she said she always felt accepted and at home.

“I never had any hate crimes or anything negative done to me,” she said. “I respected what it meant for them to be Catholic and they respected what it meant for me to be a Muslim.”

This story originally appeared in the May 15, 2009 issue of the Union Leader and is reprinted with permission. An audio recording of Waqarun Rashid's remarks to the Class of 2009 is available below. The text of her speech can be found here.

Game Time: SIFE Present at Nationals

Hundreds of miles from campus, Saint Anselm College’s SIFE chapter prepares to introduce Philadelphia to a taste of Benedictine hospitality.

Sharply dressed in matching blue shirts and black suits, the team resembles seasoned business professionals as they huddle outside the presentation room. Moments before game time, co-president Tom Cullen offered final words of encouragement and Dr. Fitzpatrick led a team cheer.

Rooted in business etiquette, SIFE competition is highly structured. The team has exactly 24 minutes to describe the chapter’s service projects and impact in the local and international community, followed by a brief question and answer period.

After the team introduced themselves to each of the 12 judges, Cullen began the presentation, describing the demographics of the Saint Anselm College community.

The presentation touched on projects such as Pennies for Peace, micro-lending, the Relay for Life, and the winter warm coat drive. SIFE’s endeavors raised over $10,000 to construct a school in rural Afghanistan, provided loans for struggling entrepreneurs in developing nations, supported the American Cancer Society, and collected second-hand coats for poor children, respectively.

Each student spoke with conviction, emphasizing the chapter’s commitment to establishing sustainable projects and lasting relationships with the community.

Additionally, the team highlighted future projects, such as next year’s partnership with Heifer International, supporting a holistic approach to combat hunger around the world.

Nick Provost ’10 described SIFE’s significance around campus, mentioning SGA’s recent appropriation, Crier articles, and the paparazzi (yours truly!) shadowing the team during the team’s adventure in Philly.

Outside the presentation room, the weight lifted from the team’s shoulders is evident. The team agrees their execution could have been sharper; yet, they continue to hope the judges will acknowledge the scale of their projects and the chapter’s progress.

Although the presentation is complete, the day is far from over. The group scoped out the competition and checked out the career fair, before heading to the opening rounds awards ceremony.

After wearing restricting heels and ties all day, the SIFE team is already salivating, dreaming of dinner.

Read about the SIFE team's first day in Philadelphia and their win at regional competition.

Additional photos are available on our Flickr photo sharing site.

Crunch Time in Philadelphia; SIFE Prepares for Competition

"We can advance," repeats SIFE faculty advisor, Dr. Fitzpatrick, as he observes his team. National competition, the day Saint Anselm College's SIFE team has spent the year anticipating, has finally arrived.

Around 1 p.m., the team will present their SIFE projects in front of a group judges, hoping to advance to the semifinal round of competition for the first time in the chapter's history.

Crowded into a hotel room, the group continues to polish their presentation. To an outsider the scene may seem chaotic, but after spending a day with the St. A's SIFE team, I know better.

Each team member understands his or her specific role during the presentation. Michael Conley '10 continues to tweak the PowerPoint presentation, adding pictures and bullets from SIFE's recent Maxed Out: Credit Card Debt and Financial Literacy Symposium, while Will Combes '10 prepares to present in his first SIFE competition. The rest of the team perfects their oral execution.

Dr. Fitzpatrick observes the group rehearse the presentation, reminding the team their projects convey the extraordinary success of the young chapter. "We are so far ahead of where I thought we would be 3 years ago." SIFE's membership on campus has grown to over 40 members. In accordance, the team continues to launch new projects.

The team's projects positively affect local communities in the Manchester area, such as Junior Achievement Titan, a program designed to engage high school students in the practice of business ethics and entrepreneurship, while Pennies for Peace supports the Central Asia Institute's mission to educate children in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The SIFE team's broad range of projects, their widespread impact, and their sustainability demonstrate the chapter's growth. Dr. Fitzpatrick is optimistic the team's efforts will be acknowledged with the opportunity to advance.

After a brief trial-run, he encourages his team to "Dial it up a notch," reiterating his mantra "We can advance."

Read about the SIFE team’s first day in Philadelphia and their win at regional competition.

Additional photos are available on our Flickr photo sharing site.

Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) Compete in Nationals

While most Saint Anselm College students have packed up their dorm rooms and moved home for summer break, the college's SIFE team is taking in the sights, sounds, and tastes of Philadelphia, Penn. as one of 137 colleges qualified to compete at SIFE's 2009 National Exposition.

I, Jenn Goonan, senior English major and former communications intern, have joined the Saint Anselm group on their trip to Philly to capture all the action as it happens. Check back throughout the next two days to hear all about the group's competition or check out the photos on Flickr.

The team of eight, Thomas Cullen '09, Christine Connolly '09, Nick Rich '09, Meredith Shepard '09, Katie Bruce '10, Nick Provost '10, Will Combes '10, and Michael Conley '10, led by faculty advisor Dr. Thomas Fitzpatrick, will be in Philadelphia May 10-12 competing against colleges and universities from around the country.

Arriving Sunday, the team spent the day touring the City of Brotherly Love, checking out Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the Eastern State Penitentiary, the Philadelphia Museum of Art's infamous steps (the same steps Sylvester Stallone ran up in boxing movie Rocky), and of course, the group had to indulge in the one and only, Philly cheese-steak.

After touring the city, the team joined thousands of college students at the Philadelphia Convention Center for the annual Rally of Champions. Mike Conley, junior business major from Hopkinton, N.H. represented Saint Anselm by carrying a Saint Anselm College sign across the stage behind the New Hampshire state flag.

During the rally, SIFE also acknowledged the faculty advisors, including Dr. Fitzpatrick.
Various speakers energized the students, including SIFE Alumnus of the Year Mr. Tony Dickinson of Wells Fargo & Co. Dickson encouraged students to network and accept failure as a learning experience. The rally's keynote speaker, the Honorable Edward Rendell, governor of Pennsylvania, opened the exposition, noting the students' accomplishments and wishing them luck.

The trip is about more than sight-seeing and networking though, and the group is presenting Monday at 1 p.m., so Sunday evening was all about preparation and perfecting their presentation.

Although everyone appeared on edge as they worked out the presentation's kinks, adjusting to describe new projects and new results, Provost promised "Tomorrow will be like clockwork."

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Sarah Gingerella '10 is New Holmes Scholar

Sarah Gingerella, of Oakdale, Conn., was named the Fr. Bernard Holmes, O.S.B., Scholar for the 2009-2010 academic year at Saint Anselm College, President Father Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B., announced.

The award provides Gingerella with a full tuition scholarship in her senior year at Saint Anselm, where she is studying international relations. Gingerella, who is also earning certificates in Spanish and Russian Area Studies, wants to perform humanitarian service after she graduates.

“I want to be able to help people in a practical way,” she says.

The Holmes Scholar is the senior who best exemplifies the values of the late Father Bernard, a former president of the college. The winning student must have a strong academic record, exhibit leadership, and demonstrate a commitment to service and the life of the college.

Gingerella is a flutist who plays in the college’s student jazz band and flute choir. She helps teach English to immigrants and refugees in the English for New Americans program, and she works to build awareness of human trafficking as part of the student-founded Slavery Still Exists program. Last summer, she studied Polish history, language and literature in Krakow.

She also is on the retreat team of campus ministry and works in parish outreach, offering retreats to young people about to be confirmed.