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When it comes to work and family, young people today have a dizzying array of options available to them. Yet they also face a deafening barrage of contradictory voices, competing cultural scripts, and copious amounts of judgement, no matter what choices they make. Many still see the “family track” as being fundamentally opposed to the “career track.” How do you balance a desire for a meaningful career with a desire for marriage and family life?

Whether you’re an undergraduate beginning to think about life after college, or scholar pursuing graduate studies, or recent grad. navigating professional life–what steps and approaches can you be taking now?

In the spirit of our ongoing investigation this semester into meaningful work and vocation, the Witherspoon Institute will be hosting a dinner and discussion with Serena Sigillito, editor of Public Discourse and 2019 Robert Novak Journalism Fellow at the Fund for American Studies. 

Where: Whelan Hall, 16 Stockton Street, Princeton
When: Wednesday, Oct 2nd 6pm-7:30pm

Ana Samuel, Research Scholar of the Witherspoon Institute and Academic Director of Canavox is moderating a panel discussion hosted by the James Madison Program in American Institutions and Ideals at Princeton University on “The Digital Attention Economy: Overcoming Distraction and Thinking for Yourself.”

Panelists include Antón Barba-Kay, Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Catholic University of America; Mark Bauerlein, Professor Emeritus of English at Emory University and Glenn Harlan Reynolds, Beauchamp Brogan Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Tennessee College of Law.

For more information and a video of the discussion, please visit the event page here.

This fall, we are pleased to announce our seminars on Facing Life’s Challenges, Finding Life’s Meaning, and Lyric Poetry. These seminars form part of the Institute’s efforts to assist the next generation of scholars in reflecting on truly human questions.

For more information about each of these seminars, visit our Academic Year Seminars page.

Serena Sigillito, Editor of Public Discourse, journal of the Witherspoon Institute, was one of six journalists awarded the 2019 Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship by the Fund for American Studies in September. This prestigious, year-long program allows writers early in their careers to pursue projects they otherwise would be unable to research and report. Today, the Novak Program has awarded 141 fellowships to promising young journalists who are climbing the ranks as groundbreaking reporters, editors, editorial page writers, columnists and authors. Novak Fellows have gone on to become leaders in their field as Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters, editors of national magazines and authors of best-selling books.

Serena’s project is entitled “Women’s Work: How Modern Moms Find Fulfillment in Caregiving and Career Building” and she plans to publish it as a series of essays. Through in-depth interviews, polling, and academic research, Serena will explore the innovative strategies mothers can use to flourish both at home and in the workplace. She will also highlight the ways that employers can capitalize on the strengths of the mothers they employ, analyze the benefits and limitations of various public policy proposals, and report on the benefits offered to hourly vs. salaried employees of companies in the private sector that market themselves as being family-friendly.

Serena describes her project this way: 

My project begins with a simple premise, but one that has become radically countercultural: men and women are different, and they want different things. This is especially true in parenthood. Given mothers’ intense psychological and biological bonds with their young children, they tend to want different things from their careers than men do—and that’s okay. 

I agree with figures like Sheryl Sandberg who believe that we need to break down internal and external barriers to success, but I think she gets the ultimate goal wrong. In her view, we should work for a world in which 50 percent of companies are run by female CEOs and 50 percent of stay-at-home parents are men. In my view, we should work for a world in which families are supported, and mothers can grow professionally and personally while still spending substantial amounts of time with their children when they are needed the most. If we let parents freely choose, I don’t think we’ll end up with a perfect 50-50 split. Instead, I have a hunch that more mothers will choose flexible, part-time working arrangements that allow them to spend more time at home.

Strong families are foundational to free, thriving societies, and Serena’s work will uncover ways to promote the flourishing of mothers and their children. Stay tuned for Serena’s essays, several of which will be featured in Public Discourse.

Maura Shea, the new Manager of Student & Alumni Affairs of the Institute, was recently chosen as a 2019-2020 Fellow of the Leonine Forum, a program that supports young professionals in living out the Social Teaching of the Catholic Church:

Through a competitive application process, Leonine Fellows are chosen from the emerging generation of promising leaders in the public and private sectors. During a year-long program of intellectual and spiritual seriousness, the Leonine Forum educates these men and women in the core tenets of the Social Teaching of the Church and its practical application. Fellows join a larger community of Leonine Alumni and leaders committed to integrating those teachings within their professional and civic lives.

For more information about the Leonine Forum, visit their website.

The Witherspoon Institute is pleased to welcome three new members to its staff:

John Corrales, Manager of Marketing & Communications, is a Texan native who new resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and son. His eight years of professional experience comprise work in journalism, marketing, advertising, and social media for The New York Times and Yuengling Brewery. His journalism has appeared in The New York Times, The Houston Chronicle and The Odessa American. 

Maura Shea, Manager of Student & Alumni Affairs, is a native of Boston, Massachusetts who has taught in Louisiana, Colorado and Texas. Maura is a 2019-20 Fellow of the Leonine Forum in New York City.

Susannah Keiderling, Office Manager, is a native of upstate New York and received her undergraduate degree in Business Admin from SUNY Ulster. Since graduating she has worked in accounting for Church Communities International. She has also spent several years volunteering overseas. 

We are excited to have them join us!

For more information, visit our Staff page.