Gloria (Quiroz) Pavlik (center) with her husband, Jeff (right), and their children, Maria and Peter, in 2016. |
Name: Gloria (Quiroz) Pavlik
Year of Scecina Graduation: 1990
College/University: Indiana University
Degrees: B.A. in Communications Studies; M.S. in College Student Personnel Administration
Current Position: Director of the Office of Retention and Graduation
Employer: Ball State University
By Beth Murphy, Director of Marketing Communications
After Gloria (Quiroz) Pavlik graduated from Scecina in 1990, she headed off to Indiana University as a first-generation college student, earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. It’s no surprise she ended up working in education, now at Ball State University, where she sometimes runs into former Crusaders who now are Cardinals.
“Being part of the Scecina community helped me to develop a sense of purpose and an understanding that education is the means for improving your future,” Gloria says. “Sometimes I can’t believe that I get paid to help other students develop themselves and build skills for their future in the field of Student Affairs.”
As Director of the Office of Retention and Graduation, her focus is helping students succeed in college. She especially enjoys working with 21st Century Scholar students at Ball State. Indiana’s 21st Century Scholar program assists low-income students, by providing a financial aid award that covers tuition. Pavlik helps them navigate the system at Ball State and connect them with resources so they can be successful at college.
Pavlik describes herself as a “very shy person most of my life.” At Scecina, she broke out of her shell to create her own identity.
“I enjoyed singing with the choir and volunteering at class retreats,” she said. “One of my greatest memories is being part of the cast of the musical ‘Little Shop of Horrors.’ I still have the playbill from that performance.”
Through Scecina’s Honors program, she attended arts and cultural events that she otherwise would not have been exposed to. Those experiences led her to provide extra-curricular programming for her Ball State students and opportunities to hear from inspirational speakers on campus.
Gloria was raised in “a very dedicated Catholic family,” with parents who worked hard to put her, her sister, Maria Quiroz-Southwood ’89, and her brother, Jesse Quiroz ’94, through Little Flower and Scecina. Her parents and brother still live in the Scecina neighborhood. Her mom’s salon, Marcarena, is at the corner of 10th and Linwood. (“I am Eastside proud!” Gloria says) Her dad, she says, still proudly wears her Scecina letter jacket!
Her family and Scecina also taught her the values of social justice, equity and empowerment.
“As a Catholic school, Scecina promotes the pillar of all Catholic faith that all are welcome,” she said. “That is something that has always been important to me, that access and equity be paramount to the places where I live and work.”
Gloria has remained active in charities and in the Church, including teaching Sunday Religious Education for many years and serving as an extra-ordinary minister at her parish.
She and her husband have chosen Catholic schools for their children, who they adopted in 2015. “Their smaller class size, focus on faith and education was the perfect fit as they learned the English language and became true members of the community through athletics, scouts and volunteer opportunities,” she said.
Gloria said she doesn’t get back to Indianapolis as often as she used to, but she drives by Scecina when she does.
“I think it is important to remember where you came from and give back to the community that was there for you,” she said. “One of my favorite recent connections was joining the Scecina Women’s Circle. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be part of a movement that empowers the women of Scecina and also promotes scholarship and giving back to the Scecina community.”