Service Award

Joshua D. Hale, Comm ’95
Chicago, Ill.

As president and CEO of the Big Shoulders Fund, Joshua Hale has dedicated his career to the Jesuit ideal of cura personalis, care for the whole person. The Big Shoulders Fund helps kids in need in Chicago and Northwest Indiana achieve their dreams through access to a quality, values-based education.

Josh’s Marquette education led to an opportunity to volunteer with the Jesuits in the Marshall Islands for two years. After that, he served as a member of the management team for the original Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Chicago, which led to the national expansion now known as the Cristo Rey Network. From these opportunities, Josh internalized the Jesuit concepts of magis and men and women for others and tries to live out these values to their fullest.

He finds continued fulfillment in his career, because he gets to be a part of an impactful mission that brings together so many committed partners — students and families, educators, communities, supporters, etc. — to ensure more and more talented and deserving children from under-resourced and underrepresented communities find pathways to brighter futures. He also sees a parallel between Marquette and the Big Shoulders Fund: people support the mission of both organizations because they want to Be The Difference.

How did Josh, who grew up near Boston, arrive at Marquette? He had family friends who were proud Marquette alumni, so his dad suggested visiting Marquette. Although Josh was not excited about a trip to Milwaukee, his dad insisted and encouraged him to think on a larger scale and to stretch his horizons by going someplace completely new and different for college. In addition to loving every moment at Marquette, Josh’s time on campus accomplished what his dad predicted and turned out to be a life-changing experience.

Fun Facts:

Name a Marquette faculty or staff member who had an impact on you, and how.
I fondly remember working for the Service Learning Project (SLP) just as it was starting. The SLP sought to link service experiences in the community with classroom content and curriculum. Ms. Bobbi Timberlake was charged with building out this vision. While the program has since grown and received national recognition, those early days required her leadership in recruiting professors to link their classes with this program, attracting nonprofits to think about how engaging Marquette students could grow their impact, and enlisting students to participate. I had a front-row seat in watching Bobbi build out this program, and I learned many lessons from her entrepreneurial spirit that I continue to draw from today.

What is one of your favorite Marquette memories?
I was a junior in 1994 when Marquette went on a run in the NCAA Tournament. The highlight was on March 20th when Marquette beat the Kentucky Wildcats, who were seeded third and ranked seventh in the nation. Winning that game meant that Marquette went on to the Sweet Sixteen. The campus erupted with exuberance and, almost on cue, students poured out of dorms, apartments, the Union, and pubs and filled Wells Street, eventually running all the way to the lakefront. I love seeing Marquette succeed in all aspects of its mission, but the basketball team has a special spot in my heart!

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