Student Profile: Jeff Minkus ’10

Jeff Minkus has always appreciated the balance he has found at Hope between his spiritual, academic, and athletic passions. The balance has led him to continual growth in multiple aspects of his life while at Hope.

“For me, Hope has been a place where I’ve been able to grow passions in a number of different areas of my life. My academic passions of the Spanish language and education have been cultivated at the same time as my spiritual, athletic, and cross-cultural passions,” he says.

As a Spanish-education major, Jeff believes that he is well prepared to become a high school Spanish teacher once he graduates from Hope. “I’m confident in the training that I’ve received to become a teacher. My classes and field placements in local schools have exposed me to situations that I’ll face on a day-to-day basis in the classroom, and I feel that I’ve been well prepared to enter the work force,” he says. “Meanwhile, my upper-level Spanish classes at Hope have focused on the study of Spanish literature and culture to better understand the diverse worldviews of Latin America and Spain while improving my speaking and writing skills.”

In addition to learning in the classroom, Jeff also studied abroad in Argentina during his junior year. “I took classes that were enrolled directly in the University of Buenos Aires, the largest public university in Argentina, with all Argentine students,” he says.

While in Argentina, Jeff learned about other cultures through daily experiences outside of the classroom. “I volunteered at a children’s home for four hours each week, lived with a host family, and had the opportunity to make a number of Argentine friends,” he says. “These experiences broadened my worldview significantly through understanding distinct ways of living. It was a great semester to broaden my horizons in the world and better understand and appreciate other cultures.”

Jeff’s passion for track has also strengthened during his college career. “ Through track, I’ve learned how to integrate aspects of my Christian faith with the discipline and enjoyment of competing. As captain this season, I’ve developed my leadership skills, which will surely help me in the classroom and as a coach later in life,” he says.

Finally, Jeff was mainly drawn to Hope by its Christian community. “To me, Hope was a place where I could exercise my faith in every context of daily life—the classroom, the dorm, the athletic field, and the chapel. The college has not disappointed me in that aspect,” he says.

This profile was written by Christopher M. Lewis, a 2009 Hope College graduate from Troy, Mich., for the 2009-2010 Hope College Catalog.

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