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If you ask Catherine “Cat” Fragoso how she confronts a challenge, she’ll gently correct you. To Fragoso, the issue lies in the connotation of the word confront: to challenge, square up to, tackle, attack. What if, she suggests, it’s about how we approach a challenge instead?

“I welcome a good challenge or obstacle, for without them we are not growing, listening, and expanding our mindset,” Fragoso says. “For many years in my student affairs profession there have been individuals who do not see eye to eye on a topic or situation. The words ‘confront’ and ‘conflict’ get such a bad rap, but these moments are opportunities to listen and to talk (and yes, listening comes first). My recommendation is to take a deep breath and welcome the invitation to grow.”

Here’s is a refreshing take for such an integral member of Team �԰�����: Cat Fragoso has been named the interim director for Student Inclusion, Engagement, and Belonging, joining �԰����� after serving more than two decades in Student Affairs at Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU), her alma mater. A first-generation college student and transfer student, Fragoso’s professional experience includes student involvement, new student orientation, facility management, and multicultural event programming. At OLLU, she served as a conduct officer, chaired the Student Behavior and Intervention Team, and spent three years as the interim assistant vice president for student affairs. 

And while Fragoso is new to �԰�����, she is not new to the fundamental concepts of inclusion and belonging—two words that, she says, “have been part of the very fabric of my being since childhood.” Fragoso acknowledges her mother as pivotal in this experience. “She has been a caretaker of others for as long as I can remember,” Fragoso says. “The essence of being a person who hosts, cares, and helps others feel included and providing an environment of belonging is something I have witnessed for many years and now proudly have been implementing in higher education professionally.”

Fragoso also finds this pride in her family and her faith. A wife, mother, fisherwoman, Dallas Cowboys fan, and O’Connor High School super parent, you’ll see her family right next to her faith (right next to pictures of her latest Gulf Shores catch) on the walls of her office in the Coates Student Center. She will also be the first to say she does not separate her personal contributions to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) from her professional ones. “As a faith-based individual, I do not separate my beliefs or who I strive to be into two categories,” Fragoso says. “The Golden Rule—treat and do unto others as you would have them do unto you—is a fundamental code that applies in DEIB. To appreciate others, respect others, acknowledge and invite others as you would have them do to you is a part of being mindful of diversity.”

This mindfulness is critical for an institution like �԰�����, Fragoso notes. “Our world, nation, state, and city are ever changing with the good, the bad and the ugly that we see in our society. �԰�����’s institutional values set forth a need to infuse the foundation with DEIB to uphold who we will be as a campus community,” she says. “The strength of �԰�����'s history from what I have learned thus far is that �԰����� is willing to develop, transition, and change. And this is a time in history to recognize, learn, and make change—and above all else, love.”