Mrs Konglim is the Executive Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice here at Good Counsel. She is also an alumni of the class of ‘01. She worked in the humanitarian field and with communities all around the world to aid and provide in times of crisis. She helped immigrants and refugees integrate into new communities and made them feel welcomed. Her last humanitarian role was with Save the Children which focused on children’s rights. This week I met and spoke with her about her return to Good Counsel and her plans for diversity and inclusion. 

Q: What drew you back to Good Counsel?

A: “The reason why I came back to Good Counsel was because I am an alumni, and I loved my experience here, but I didn’t see as much diversity when I attended Good Counsel. When I attended my 20 year reunion, I saw how much Good Counsel has changed. I wanted to come back to help support Good Counsel and become a school for everyone to feel welcomed and appreciated.”

Q: What are your plans to enrich the diversity at Good Counsel?

A: “It’s important that everyone at our school feels valued and that they are able to share all the elements of their identity to others. So, I would like to find ways that we can celebrate one another’s cultures and other parts of our identity so that we can learn from each other’s experiences. There are a lot of ways we can do this through events, with what we are learning in the classroom, and conversations that we have with each other. These are just some of my ideas, but I would love to receive input from the student body.” 

Q: What changes have you seen at Good Counsel when it comes to diversity from when you attended? 

A: “Our student population has become much more racially and ethnically diverse. Currently 51% of our students identify as people of color. Our students are also more involved in extracurricular activities, and we have students here that live all over our metropolitan area and even come from countries overseas.”

Q: How do you want to promote inclusivity in a Catholic school?

A: “The beauty of being at a Catholic school is that Catholic Social Teaching teaches us to be welcoming of all people. It also encourages us to stand in solidarity with people who are being discriminated against. So, this enables me to approach this work in a way that I can engage and support people with very complex and dynamic identities while putting our faith in the forefront with what we do.”

Q: What are your expectations and have they been challenged yet?

A: “My expectation is that anyone who considers themselves as a part of the Good Counsel community will want to make Good Counsel a welcoming school for all. Our Xaverian value for this year is compassion, and I expect that everyone in our community should model compassion. As Xaverian school, we should be seeking greater understanding of each other’s cultures. Now, the challenge would be because our school is so diverse we all have a lot of things to learn about each other. So it will take time, but I know that the desire is there.”