Rosemary helps a student at Learning with Leaders in February 2024
Rosemary (she/her/they) is parting ways with FuturesNW to embark on an exciting new adventure. We had the pleasure of having Rosemary on our team since December 2023 as the Post-Secondary Pathways Program Assistant. On their next journey, Rosemary will be traveling to Scotland to complete her Masters of Science in Environment and Development at the University of Edinburgh.
Before joining us at FuturesNW, Rosemary already held a wealth of exciting life experiences. Their passion for learning, social justice, the outdoors, and travel has led to many adventures both abroad and around the US. Just this past year, she graduated in International Relations and Postcolonial Studies at Franklin University Switzerland.
From the very beginning, Rosemary became a very beloved part of the FuturesNW team. Some of her primary responsibilities included planning workshops, creating presentations, and coordinating guest speakers for the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) program. She also provided Financial Aid support for students both online and at Financial Aid events across local high schools. They expressed that their role at FuturesNW has strengthened their skills such as public speaking, group facilitation, and classroom management.
What drove her work at FuturesNW was her passion for working with students who have gone through similar processes and experiences. One of their favorite parts of their role was getting to demystify life after high school and open students' eyes to different pathways. Her extensive knowledge and experience in navigating life after high school has left an enormous impact on students’ lives.
She says she is most proud of being part of the team that guided the community through the 2024 FAFSA season. It was a huge highlight for her to help so many families navigate the FAFSA through such a chaotic and difficult time for families.
“I am really proud of the fact that my home community has so many awesome advocates for students who face systemic barriers to higher education. I am overjoyed that I was able to contribute to this team!”
Rosemary and FuturesNW team enjoy a team dinner at Övn Wood Fired Pizza
Rosemary and Sage play “Dufflepong” at Flatstick Pub at a team building event
Rosemary says what they will miss the most is getting to work and interact with the FuturesNW team, whom she described as “passionate, knowledgeable and supportive”. She fondly recalls the smaller moments, or “little things,” like carpooling to events with coworkers and attending team meetings.
One of their most cherished memories of working with students was in her volunteer role at the Spring 2024 Learning with Leaders surgery technology workshop. They relayed how incredible it was to watch students engage with the material and to hear how inspired they felt after participating. Another favorite memory of theirs was their first team building event at CreativiTea when it started thunderstorming. She said she left that evening with an overwhelming sense of community and strengthened connections with her teammates.
We will miss so much about Rosemary—their thoughtfulness, creativity, calm energy, and compassion, especially as we navigated the FAFSA this year.
Rosemary, we feel so fortunate to have gotten to know you over the past year. We’re so proud of you and can’t wait to see where your amazing skills and gifts take you!