Meet Our Alumni

We are very proud of our alumni and their successes, especially within their professional, personal, and spiritual lives.

If you are a St. Genevieve alumnus and would like to share your story or know someone else who may, please email stgalumni@stgschool.org.

Joe Towalski

Class of 1982

Joe Towalski currently serves as the Communications Director for the Catholic Diocese of St. Cloud, MN. He and his wife, Dianne, have two children and live in Sauk Rapids, MN. Joe graduated St. Genevieve in 1982 and then pursued higher education at Weber High School, Northland College, and the University of Minnesota. Joe reflects on his time at St. Genevieve: “I received a high-quality, faith-based education from teachers who cared about me as a student and person. It fostered in me a love of learning that I've maintained all my life.”

Patricia Ward

Class of 1978

Meet Patricia, St. Genevieve Class of 1978! Patricia went to Mother Theodore Guerin High School for Girls (now known as Guerin Prep) where she joined the school newspaper and participated in yearbook, theater, Science Club, and French Club. She then decided to pursue nursing at Valparaiso University where she also was the Campus Radio DJ! Today, Patricia works as a critical care nurse in Chicago. She enjoys reading, traveling, and is very involved in the local Traditional Irish music scene, where she plays the bodhrán, an ancient Irish drum, in sessions all over the city as well as Ireland once a year. Patricia encourages St. Gen’s students to participate as much as possible in fun activities to find what they like and make friends! She believes that St. Gen’s gave her a “firm foundation to succeed in a very demanding high school.” Thanks, Patricia!

Andres Sanchez

Class of 2015

Andres graduated St. Gen’s in 2015 and continued his education at Taft High School where he swam and ran cross country. Andres says that “respect, teamwork, and discipline are taught daily at St. Gen’s and are useful in everyday life.” He urges students to try to get involved in different activities to meet more people.

Monica Bermudez

Class of 2002

Meet Monica, who graduated St. Gen’s in 2002 after attending it since kindergarten! Monica went to high school at Noble Street Charter where she was inducted into the National Honor Society and ran cross country, then graduated from Lane Tech. She continued her studies at the University of Central Florida, where she majored in psychology and had an opportunity to intern with the Girl Scouts of America. Today, Monica lives in Orlando and works for Pearson in their Marketing Department, where she helps purchase media for digital advertising and helps manage the department’s analytical data. “Growing up in a Catholic school shaped my future more than I could have ever imagined,” said Monica. “I am grateful to my parents for treating my education like an investment so I did not have to grow up in a school that did not teach the love of God.”

Maksymilian (Max) Nowak

Class of 1998

Max graduated St. Gen’s in 1998 and went to high school at St. Patrick. At St. Patrick, Max was involved in Lasallian Youth Group, soccer, Stryker Robotics club, Spanish club. He was also an active part of the St. Genevieve community as Asst. Youth Group Coordinator, Confirmation/CCD Teacher, and altar server. Max went to Northeastern University for his B.S. in Business and Management, where he studied abroad in Australia and Fiji to learn about international business. After undergrad, Max pursued his MBA at North Park University on the Axelson Scholarship. Today, he works for HBK Engineering, LLC. As a key member of the HBK Engineering power sector permitting team, Max liaises between project managers, engineers, City agencies, contractors, and clients to obtain permits, coordinate and ensure project success. His major responsibility is to maintain up-to-date project status, schedules, and project submittal.

Anthony Acosta

Class of 1995

Anthony graduated St. Gen’s in 1995 and went to Notre Dame High School for Boys on an academic scholarship. At Notre Dame, Anthony played football, baseball, bowling, and was also a Eucharistic Minister. He then continued his education at the University of Illinois at Chicago for medicine on a Military and Illinois General Assembly scholarship. At UIC, Anthony was part of the Puerto Rican Student Association and the Health Oriented Latino Association. Today, Anthony is an Emergency Medicine Physician and an Officer with the Illinois Army National Guard.

Thomas Johnson

Class of 1960

Thomas graduated St. Gen’s in 1960 before continuing his studies at St. Mel High School on a scholarship from Father Tom Fahey. At St. Mel, Thomas was a part of Drama Club, Legion of Mary, and the student newspaper. He was then granted the Christian Brothers Scholarship for Lewis College, where he majored in English and minored in theology and Spanish. After high school, he joined the Christian Brothers (De La Salle) and taught at St. Joseph (Westchester), St. Paul High School, De La Salle (assistant Principal), and Driscoll High School. He has served as Provincial Superior, Regional, and Vicar General and has had the opportunity to visit 44 different countries! Today, Thomas is a De La Salle Christian Brother and the Director of Novices. He says that St. Gen’s gave him a “great and solid education that prepared [him] for the future” and believes that “a strong basic education will pay off in years to come.”

Melissa Jane McGlynn

Class of 2001

Meet Melissa, who graduated St. Genevieve in 2001. After St. Genevieve she attended Notre Dame High School for Girls where her tuition was partly funded by scholarships, but she also gives thanks for being blessed with a Mother who valued the investment of Catholic education. While at NDHS she was a part of Student Government, Irish club, Peer Ministry, Peer Mediation, Liturgy, and Praise Dance. After graduating high school, Melissa continued her studies at DePaul University and Northeastern Illinois University again being awarded scholarships along the way. She majored in Political Science and earned a minor in Gerontology. In college, she continued to pursue Student Government roles and also became a sister of Theta Chi Omega sorority. Today, Melissa works as an Admissions Specialist/Advisor at City Colleges of Chicago, Harry S Truman College. Melissa's advice for current students at St. Gen's is to "stay connect, go to church and get involved. There is an amazing youth community at St. Genevieve. Walking With Jesus Daily, (W.W.J.D.) (...which she leads!) and MAC are an excellent ways to network, grow your faith, share your faith and learn about yourself.”

James Johnson

Class of 1963

This is James, a graduate of St. Gen’s from 1963! After his time at St. Gen’s, James swam, participated in intramural sports, and taught kids in the inner city at Holy Cross High School in River Grove, IL. He studied philosophy at Roosevelt University and practiced Aikido, a modern Japanese martial art. James says that St. Gen’s provided him with a great elementary education which led to career success as Vice President at AT&T. But more importantly, he said St Gen's provided “a rock solid foundation in Catholic education which fed [his] soul in the unchanging principles of a loving God.”

Brendan Day

Class of 2015

Meet Brendan, a proud student of St. Genevieve’s Class of 2015! Brendan continued his education at St. Patrick High School, where he was involved in soccer, bowling, baseball, and band. Even more impressive, he was also class president of St. Patrick’s Student Council! St. Gen’s prepared him well for high school because most of the things he learned at St. Patrick were already covered at St. Gen’s. Patrick said he had “head start of everyone else in the class.” Brendan’s advice to St. Gen’s students is to “pay attention in class and always do your homework!”

Ralph Poznanzki

Class of 1971

Meet Ralph, a St. Gen’s alumnus who graduated in 1971! Ralph continued his education at Lane Tech High School and University of Illinois at Chicago where he studied accounting on an Illinois State scholarship. Today, he is a Certified Public Accountant at David J. Miller & Assoc. LLP. Ralphs believes that st. Gen’s prepared him for life, because it encouraged him to “develop great study habits along with an excellent Catholic upbringing.”

Jessica Rodriguez

Class of 1999

In 1999, Jessica graduated from St. Genevieve and then attended Madonna High School where she participated on the track team and later Notre Dame for Girls. During college, she was a Business Marketing major at Northeastern Illinois University and acted as the Vice President for the Marketing and Management Club. In 2005 she co-founded SureDesign Inc. Marketing Agency and this year she launched Museica's Sip & Paint where she works as an art instructor. On her free time she can be found playing out with her band The Braided Janes. Jessica has fond memories of the teachers at St. Genevieve, who she describes as “all very encouraging, kind and understanding.” Her advice to our St. Genevieve students is: "Follow your heart, dream big and never give up! There's nothing you can't achieve with hard work, dedication and prayer."

Melissa Mendez

Class of 2009

Meet Melissa, an alumnus from St. Gen’s class of 2009! After St. Gen’s, Melissa studied at Pritzker College Prep and competed in the school’s Competition Choir. She is now a senior at St. Mary’s College on the LeMans Scholarship and the Mary Ryan’s Scholarship. She is majoring in social work and minoring in Spanish. Melissa plans to graduate and earn a Master’s degree in social work. Her ultimate goal is to come back home, work for her community, and give back to those who have helped her get to where she is today. Melissa’s advice to St. Gen’s students is to “discover yourself and learn about your faith...Enjoy your experience at St. Genevieve.”

Julene Studtman Kmiecik