CTX Alumni Pursue Meaningful Work

The vision of Concordia University Texas is to be the premier university where the adventure of faith, learning and life-changing experiences leads to meaningful work. But what does meaningful work look like?

Our alumni provide so many wonderful examples of students who use what they learned at CTX to serve others.

Jeremy de Alcala

Double alumnus Jeremy de Alcala (BA ‘13, MBA ‘15) is leveraging the skills he gained at CTX to serve the community of Buda, Texas. Residents of Buda for 18 years, de Alcala and his wife, Melissa, recognized the need for a restaurant with nutritious options.

The de Alcalas launched Green Space, TX, a food trailer that serves nutritious, plant-based foods and juices. They are now working on launching a new tech startup called Cloudbites, an app that connects consumers with local chefs and cooks.

Sara Smart

Alumna Sara Smart (BA, ‘11) is an elementary school teacher in Galveston, Texas. Her commitment to her students extends beyond the classroom. She recently started Books Within Reach, a nonprofit organization that collects gently used and new books to children in the apartment complexes surrounding the school.

Once enough books are acquired, a bookcase is built in a public area and stocked with the new reads. They installed their fifth bookcase in July.

Jessi Sternat

Jessi Sternat graduated with her Director of Christian Education (DCE) degree in 2018. Originally planning to become a church worker, God redirected her path during a CTX mission trip to Cambodia.

They worked with street children every day, which forever changed Sternat’s heart. She explained, “I remember God telling me on the trip, ‘Jessi, you can be the light to the children like this in the rural areas of Austin.’”

God led Sternat to work for the state of Texas as a Child Protective Services (CPS) worker. CPS workers face challenging situations every day, and she credits Concordia with preparing her for the situations she encounters as a CPS worker.

“Concordia shaped me to take the world by storm, and I am able to face every storm that comes my way each day,” Sternat said.

Teddy Vickers

Graduating in 2018 with a BA in behavioral sciences, Teddy Vickers began working full-time for Enterprise and coaching kids in soccer part-time. For five years, Vickers had been praying for God to give him the opportunity to open a soccer academy.

One morning, a man learned about Vickers’s love and skill for soccer, and he encouraged Vickers to open a training facility. This is the sign from God Vickers was seeking.

Vickers recently opened First Touch Soccer Academy, a training facility in northwest Austin. What sets this training facility apart is Vickers’ dedication to developing the whole player. For Vickers, teaching manners and respect is just as important as teaching kids how to score goals.