Career or family. Service or corporate. Even in modern times, many women feel caught between competing demands — committed to succeed in business but called to raise a family or inspired to serve a cause.
With limited hours in the day, something’s gotta give.
Rochelle Healea Sheridan ’03 didn’t accept those limitations. After graduating from Lehigh with a degree in chemical engineering, she began a successful career with companies including Energy Transfer, Sunoco, and Siemens. She married Patrick ’99 and had two daughters, Gabrielle (Gab) and Casey.
As a professional engineer, mom, and wife, Sheridan missed her time on the volleyball court. She had excelled as an outside hitter at Lehigh and longed for everything the game offered. As soon as Gab expressed an interest in the game, she stepped up to coach.
Pass
In 2021, she was presented with the opportunity to coach the girls' varsity volleyball team for Marple Newtown High School in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. As she worked with the teenagers, a fire ignited in Sheridan. She knew she could offer more.
“Junior high and high school are tough,” she says. “Kids change physically and mentally. It really spoke to me, and I wanted to help kids in high school know there was going to be someone who was behind them to cheer them on and willing to listen and help them problem solve.”
“I knew I could make a difference in their lives,” recalls Sheridan. “I love chemistry and have a blast teaching.”
She spoke to her husband and decided to make a drastic career move.
“After 20 years of engineering and being out in the field, I wanted to give back,” she shares. “I wanted to teach for a long time, but I wasn't sure when I should make that change.”
Her calling came at a time when teachers exhausted from the pandemic were leaving the profession.
She says, “There were so many people leaving the job because it had changed a lot. I felt called to do it, and it's really been a blessing.”
She began a one-year master’s program at West Chester University while student teaching at West Chester East High School. She remembers her daughters screaming as she walked across the stage at commencement. “They were so excited.”
Set
With five years of coaching high school volleyball under her belt and a teaching degree in hand, Sheridan settled into a role at West Chester East High School teaching 10th grade chemistry and began coaching the junior varsity team while also assisting varsity head coaches Erin Flynn and Alyssa Garvin.
Flynn and Garvin introduced Sheridan to FFA — “fierce female athlete.” It’s a mantra that encourages the team dynamic on and off the court.
“It’s that person on your team who never gives up,” explains Sheridan. “And realizing that not everything is going to go your way. What defines you is how you handle the things that don't go your way.”
FFA reflects the same lessons she teaches in the classroom: When faced with a challenge, don’t give up. Look for a solution.
“As a chemistry teacher, I'm training people to think outside the box. There isn't a right way or a wrong way but how you approach a situation and what you learn from the times you don't win.”
Sheridan says that taking this approach encourages problem solvers to look for support, as she learned early in her career.
“I had a mentor, John McCabe, at Energy Transfer, an awesome engineering mentor that taught me a lot,” Sheridan recalls, noting that the support was especially helpful for a female in a male-dominated field. “There were a lot of times he didn't have the answer, but between the two of us, we could figure out a solution. I realized I didn't need to take it on for myself. I had a whole team of people to help.”
“I love the team strategy,” she continues. “As a coach, I like being able to run different offenses and teach the girls how to think on their feet. You don't always have to power hit. You can look at the court and see what’s open.”
Hit
As a full-time teacher, coach, and mom, Sheridan still saw a missed opportunity that she didn’t want to lose: continuing to build her knowledge base as an engineer. Fortunately, she was able to continue actively working in the field, logging time for a Houston engineering company, Smith and Burgess, increasing her hours during the summer months when school is out of session.
While the experience lends well to her work mentoring the school’s Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) club, it’s especially useful in engaging kids who don’t identify as STEM students. She explores the things they are interested in and weaves each unit into a storyline with hands-on projects to keep them engaged.
She uses fireworks, testing the flames and making them change colors. “Even kids who aren't into STEM think fireworks are cool,” she says.
“I try to make class fun and hands-on,” says Sheridan. “You try to make it relatable. Last unit, we did this exercise with whole milk and fat-free milk. You put food dye dots in it and touch it with dish soap. I call it ‘The Cat’s Meow.’ Whole milk swirls faster because there’s more fat. I make them explain why and support it with evidence. Then I connect it to the big-picture reason.”
Ace
Last year, a parent approached Sheridan after a volleyball tournament and said how much she appreciated the impression Sheridan and volleyball had on her daughter.
That student, Molly Campbell, remembers being a shy student, timid about getting involved in high school sports. As a freshman, she found herself navigating new buildings with new people and playing volleyball with girls as old as 18.
“I have to be honest,” Molly recalls. “It was a little intimidating.”
She credits Sheridan with changing her mindset, particularly when she was placed on the junior varsity team as a junior.
“I remember thinking about how embarrassing it was to make JV as a junior, and I had several girls make comments to me about it.”
“Whenever I would make a mistake during a game, I would have the constant worry about getting subbed out,” she remembers. “But Mrs. Sheridan taught me to focus on what was in that moment and play your best game.”
“I had no regrets at the end of my junior season, only positive memories,” Molly says. “Being one of the oldest girls on the team taught me to become a leader and to teach the younger girls how to be a role model. Today, I have shifted from a shy and timid person around big groups of people to outgoing and a leader.”
Sheridan was thrilled at Molly’s success.
“I watched as I coached her and gave her leadership roles on her team. She excelled. I gave her positive feedback, and she'd do more.”
“You don’t realize it until someone calls it out,” Sheridan says, recalling Molly’s mom approaching her at that volleyball tournament. “It choked me up because this career switch — from a staff engineer at a plant to a teacher — which people thought was pretty crazy, it's been awesome for my kids, my own kids and my students.”
The confidence Molly gained on Sheridan’s team led her to Kutztown University this fall, where she is studying sports management. She aspires to work as a sports commentator or behind the scenes with a local sports team.
Reflecting on Molly’s growth through high school, Sheridan says, “Junior year, she came back as a leader. She had a renewed focus and would come into my classroom happy. As a senior, she was super confident, and I'm super proud of her. She's one that it was hard not to cry for as she crossed the [commencement] stage.”
Thinking about the past few years, Sheridan says that not compromising what she was called to do has resulted in the greatest reward of all.
“Someone reminded me, ‘It’s neat that you get to do a career that gives back, and you still get to do engineering. I think a lot of times girls feel like you have to choose. You got to do everything you want to do.’”
