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Student Recruiters: Inspiring Future Dashers

3/12/2025

by Erin McCarville | Fall Semester 2024 of The Word Magazine

As part of the DSHA Admissions Department, Dashers have the opportunity to become Admissions Student Recruiters the second semester of their freshman year and serve in this capacity for the remainder of high school. To be considered for the role, students fill out an application, sit for an interview where they discuss their experiences at DSHA, and, once selected, help plan and lead a number of admissions and recruitment events throughout the year. These events include: Girls Night In and Future Dasher Night; hosting middle school students during Visit Days; visiting various grade and middle schools throughout the area to speak of their experiences; leading tours during DSHA Open House, and more. A vital piece to the recruitment process, there are currently 186 Admissions Student Recruiters. In return, these Dashers gain valuable experience and confidence with public speaking as they interface with groups of all sizes of prospective students, parents, and school faculty and administration.

All Girls Makes All the Difference

Ana Sofia Phillips, DSHA ’25; Caroline Cahill, DSHA ’26; and Derhue Yang, DSHA ’26, wanted to become Admissions Student Recruiters for the same reason: their love of the all-girls environment. Each Dasher had a unique point of view walking into the halls of DSHA freshman year, and all have come to love their time in high school. Cahill and Yang were admittedly guarded, while Phillips was ready to hit the ground running.

“I was ‘locked in’ from the beginning,” Phillips explained. “I went to DSHA Summer Cool [summer camps] in sixth grade and signed up for one of the science camps. We were doing real experiments and labs at that young grade level, and I remember thinking to myself ‘I could do some serious stuff at this school.’” DSHA is a place that takes girls seriously, and Phillips saw it immediately.

“DSHA is specifically designed for girls,” Phillips said. “We get to see women in leadership positions every day here, and it allows us to realize that women can take on any position we want. It’s empowering to see and be inspired by our female peers,” she shared.

For their part, Cahill and Yang started to love the all-girls environment a few months into their shared freshman year.

Cahill shared, “I was nervous about the all-girls environment and didn’t think I would like it, but it’s been amazing. I was down to the wire between choosing DSHA and the public school near my home, and I always say choosing DSHA is one of the best decisions I’ve made. I want to help others make that same decision.”

Yang spoke of a similar experience adding, “The community at DSHA is so special. It is knowing that you are going to be surrounded by other girls your age that you can lean on for support.”

The three of them wanted to ensure that other young women knew how powerful the all-girls environment could be, and how that environment has allowed them to grow into young women of faith, self-advocates, critical thinkers, communicators, and leaders. Cahill and Yang became recruiters their second-semester freshman year, while Phillips joined her junior year.

Sharing the Authentic Experience

Through the Student Recruiters program, each of the three girls have seen an opportunity to share their authentic experiences with middle school students and help clarify some of the myths and misconceptions of the all-girls environment that they had grown to love so much.

“I know a lot of students are nervous about the all-girls environment and might be close to choosing between DSHA and another school,” Cahill shared. “It’s so important for these girls, especially the ones who are hesitant or nervous about it, to get a real perspective on why DSHA and all-girls is the best. They can only get this from us as students sharing our experiences first-hand, and I wanted to be part of that.”

Phillips and Yang, having remembered a school visit from Admissions Student Recruiter Janie Retzer, DSHA ’23, while they were in middle school at St. Agnes a few years prior, knew how powerful student school visits could be. Phillips stated, “Janie came to visit St. Agnes to talk with our class about DSHA, and that solidified it for me. She spoke of all the different classes and opportunities here, and I knew I wanted to take advantage of it.”

Yang also spoke of Retzer. “Janie was a big push for me to come here. She and her mom [St. Agnes School Choice Administrator Amy Retzer] really reassured me that DSHA would be a great option for me.” She continued, “I went to DSHA Open House to see for myself, and I became certain. Seeing the school, the faculty and staff greeting us and answering questions, the many sports offerings, the language options—it was just amazing to see in person.”

Director of Admissions & Financial Aid Ann Duffy, DSHA ’10, knows how important this authentic student voice is to the recruitment process. “These girls are the best representation of the DSHA experience.” She continued, “We’re basically showing prospective students how they can grow, what they can be involved in, and who they can become—and who better to share that message than the people living and breathing it every day?”

As part of sharing their authentic experience, each of the girls have favorite admissions and recruitment events they love to participate in as part of their role as recruiters. For Cahill, it’s leading the tours of the campus for Open House.

“I love showing new families and prospective students my favorite areas of the school including the amazing facilities, the Commons, and the classrooms. Open House was a big turning point for me, and I know how important that event is for girls on the fence. I wanted to be that genuine student voice leading them through the building,” Cahill shared.

Phillips loves the events for potential future students. “I love helping with Girls Night In or the incoming freshmen events. It’s a time to show the younger girls the amazing community they can find here,” she said.

Meanwhile, Yang favors the school visits and hopes she can help young women feel confident coming here. “Knowing I can encourage these girls to consider DSHA, and potentially come here to experience all of the positive things I have, is so important to me.”

Endless Opportunities for Growth

In partnership with giving voice to their DSHA experiences, these Dashers recognize the endless opportunities for leadership, faith-formation, service, athletics, fine arts, college-prep academics, and more that DSHA has given them. As Phillips recognized years ago at Summer Cool, DSHA takes girls seriously. Phillips, Cahill, and Yang have big goals, and they have felt the support and encouragement from the DSHA community to achieve them, as well as the exposure to different opportunities that made their goals evident to them.

Phillips shared, “I’m interested in pursuing a psychology or neurology degree, and have considered becoming a forensic psychologist. I know DSHA will help me get there.” Phillips shared, “I want young girls to see all of the amazing accomplishments DSHA students have achieved. We have so many impressive recognitions for athletics, academics, theatre, everything. Anything girls want to achieve, they can achieve here.”

Cahill agreed, sharing her hopes to pursue a degree in psychology with the goal of becoming a therapist. “DSHA has shown me what my passions are, and the faculty have encouraged me to dive into them.”

Meanwhile, Yang credited the early exposure to STEM courses that sparked her interest in the medical field, noting she took chemistry her sophomore year. She shared, “I really enjoyed chemistry, and it showed me I can do hard things and persevere. It motivated me, and this year, I’m taking AP Biology and Introduction to Engineering as a result.” Yang hopes to pursue a degree in the medical field and dreams of becoming a biomedical scientist or anesthesiologist.

Yang continued, “I’ve become more comfortable getting help from my teachers and peers. The supportive environment, along with the encouragement to get involved with anything that interests me, has built my confidence in numerous ways.” She shared, “I’ve enhanced my communication skills, and become comfortable asking when I don’t understand and taking advantage of ALPHA [Academic Learning Place for Higher Achievement] time when I need it. There is always someone here to help you achieve what you want.”

Perhaps the most important component of their roles as student recruiters is stressing to girls that their goals are attainable at DSHA, not only because of the environment and support of the faculty but also because of the robust opportunities available to explore. Phillips shared, “I want young women to seriously consider their futures and help them realize the opportunities this all-girls, college-prep, faith-based education will give

them. We talk about the qualities of a graduate [woman of faith, self-advocate, critical thinker, communicator,

and leader], and I watch my peers grow into that here.”

Again, Duffy knows this growth to be true, especially with her student recruiters. This role offers Dashers a unique opportunity to speak in front of large groups of people outside of a classroom environment or assignment. They get to practice public speaking, answering questions on the fly, asking questions of families to understand what is important to them, and communicating with all ages—grade school through parents and school administrators.

“Our students grow in the qualities of a DSHA graduate—most notably as communicators, leaders, and self-advocates,” Duffy shares. “Many student recruiters who go on grade school visits have shared with me that they had never considered speaking in front of a group before high school. Now, because of their time at DSHA and as recruiters, they feel comfortable doing so, are excited about it, and do it well!”

• • •
Get to Know These Student Recruiters

Caroline Cahill, DSHA ’26

St. Robert Grade School

Admissions Student Recruiter
Field Hockey
Ice Hockey
Lacrosse
Student Council Student Ambassador
Dasher Den Leader
Freshman Retreat Leader
Sisters of Culture Co-Curricular Member
Empowerment. Equality. Voice. Co-Curricular Member

Ana Sofia Phillips, DSHA ’25

St. Agnes Grade School

Admissions Student Recruiter
Softball
Student Council (SPRIDE) Committee
SPRIDE Penny Dasher
Sisters of Culture Co-Curricular Member
Empowerment. Equality. Voice. Co-Curricular Member
Handbells

Derhue Yang, DSHA ’26

St. Agnes Grade School

Admissions Student Recruiter
Soccer
Tennis
Student Council Communications Officer
Forensics
Campus Ministry Prayer Coordinator
Asian Student Union, Student Moderator

For more on all things related to DSHA Admissions, contact Director of Admissions & Financial Aid Ann Duffy, DSHA '10, or Admissions & Marketing Coordinator Meaghan Lagore, DSHA '16.

Read the complete story on pages 31-34 of the Fall Semester 2024 Word Magazine here.

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- Derhue Yang, DSHA ’26 (left), and Ana Sofia Phillips, DSHA ’25, lead a school visit at their alma mater St. Agnes.
- Caroline Cahill, DSHA ’26, poses after a school visit at her alma mater St. Robert.