Former Evanston resident and diving champion Shanti Freitas has taken a position as Assistant Director of the Center for Study Away at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn.
Ms. Freitas is a three-time All-American diver. She finished second on the one-meter springboard in the NCAA Division III national championship in 2005 and second on the three-meter springboard in 2008. At Smith she was awarded many athletic honors she was a finalist for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award in 2008.
“I am thrilled to join the team in the Center for Study Away,” she said. “As Assistant Director, I lead CSA efforts in data collection, evaluation and assessment to ensure our services and programs are meeting our mission and identifying student learning outcomes. I also advise on a subset of Macalester Approved Study Away programs, including Macalester faculty-led programs, and work closely with the Study Away Institutional Review Board for students seeking approval for research while studying away.”
After graduating from Evanston Township High School in 2004, Ms. Freitas went to Smith College in Northampton, Mass., and graduated in 2008 with a degree in Sociology, later getting a master’s degree in International Education Policy from Harvard. During college she studied in Ecuador for a semester. “I loved it so much that I ended up living and working in Ecuador for three years after graduation,” she said. “During that time, I worked at a non-profit doing development work in Quito, a small fair trade organization based in Otavalo and a community-based ecotourism site near Tena.” Later, she worked for almost five years at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, managing international and domestic short-term faculty-led programming. “I have also led short-term education abroad programs for high school and college students in Costa Rica, Ecuador and Chile,” she added.
“Through these various intercultural experiences (as well as my own multicultural background), I realize the importance and impact of study away opportunities and am passionate about working across campus to ensure that all students have access to these programs and we continue to offer high-quality study away programs that align with the Macalester mission, values and goals. I truly believe that these programs increase intercultural competence and global engagement, and inspire students to become leaders on campus and in their communities who act with compassion and understanding across difference.”