Scott Wojciechowski '09 '10G came to Lehigh thinking he was going to be a middle school science teacher, but he discovered higher education as a career path he had not previously considered. “Some of the most sustained growth in my life happened at Lehigh due in part to the phenomenal faculty and staff, and I wanted to be part of that network for other students.”
PreLUsion Paved the Way
Participating in Lehigh’s Volunteer Experience preLUsion program, part of the Community Service Office, became a home away from home for Wojciechowski. Carolina Hernandez, assistant dean and director of the Community Service Office (CSO), was the first person who welcomed him to campus, and she has been part of his Lehigh story ever since. Individuals from across the Dean of Students Office, the Alumni Association, the Rathbone Dining Hall staff, the Gryphon Society, and Newman Center were part of his extended family.
“I had such a transformative experience during the volunteer experience that I knew I wanted to work for the Community Service Office,” Wojciechowski explains. “I was one of four first-year students who joined the staff that fall. I had such a blast working with programs like Spooktacular and Parents’ Night Out, but I realized that most, if not all, of our programming was focused on younger, primary grade students. We had built such strong rapport with the kids in the neighborhood. Shouldn’t our programs grow with them?”
Inspired by Possibility
The need to reach middle schoolers, along with his plan to teach middle school, inspired Livin’ La Vida Lehigh. The event focused on slightly older students to give them a “day in the life of a Lehigh student.” As a huge believer in possibility models — people with characteristics that motivate others to pursue their own goals — Wojciechowski wanted local middle schoolers to see themselves at Lehigh.
“Working with Carolina and some other members of the CSO team, we were able to put together our first program that included a classroom lecture with chemistry professor Keith Schray where liquid nitrogen was used to make ice cream, a visit to the dining hall, and a tour of a residential community where students would make their own name tag for their door,” he adds.
Today, Lehigh continues to invite students from four Bethlehem middle schools — Broughal, Northeast, Nitschmann, and East Hills — to live as a college student for a day. The middle schoolers take a class, eat in the cafeteria, visit everywhere from a residence hall room to Linderman Library, and even perform a community service project. Since its launch, the program has expanded to include a separate event for elementary school students.
Community of Caring
“My father died the day before my high school graduation, and his death shaped my life, especially as I moved across the state to start college,” says Wojciechowski, whose doctoral dissertation focused on students who experienced the death of a parent during their college careers. “I am forever indebted to Lehigh because financial aid substituted grants for loans to make it possible for me to stay the course and enroll at Lehigh. There were countless individuals who took such good care of me and modeled the importance of support for bereaved individuals.”
Student life appealed to Wojciechowski because it meant so much to him after his father's death and being on his own at college. He decided to become a Gryphon at Lehigh for two years but had a feeling that he wouldn’t get too far from Housing and Residence Life. He held student life positions at several universities and then went on to pursue a doctorate at the University of North Carolina Greensboro while working full time. In March 2022, he moved back to Pennsylvania to start a new job as dean of student life at Haverford College.
Driven Doers
Wojciechowski says that the Future Makers campaign really resonated with him. “Lehigh folks are doers. They get right to work. Are they wicked smart? Absolutely. But it’s not just about the intellectual pursuit; it’s the ‘So what?’ and the ‘Now what?’ that make the difference. Lehigh’s culture exudes an environment that encourages students to try new things and to run in different directions.”
“Learning is messy,” he continues. “Especially within the expanded independence of a college campus. Are there things that my students do that make me want to pull my hair out? Sure! But are there things that these students do on a regular basis that blow my socks off? Absolutely. That is why I do what I do!”
