Claire Tedesco

At SJU, Claire took every opportunity to get involved.  Her list of activities at Saint Joseph’s included commitments to Student Senate, the women’s crew team, the resident assistance program and the orientation team. During her first year at the University, she was accepted to the pilot class of the Dean’s Leadership Program, which she says focuses on challenging students to develop themselves as leaders and to apply their leadership skills in the community. 

Just weeks after commencement, Tedesco headed to Boston, Mass. as one of five graduating seniors from across the country who were hired by the Delhaize America’s northeast group. Now, she's an associate category manager at HelloFresh. Her advice for grads? It is not the grades you make, but the hands you shake.” Although I truly believe grades are important, you are never defined by a number. Get in the habit of meeting new people, cultivating your relationships and helping others. Those connections you make will last longer and be more valuable than you think.

Although having a college education is an incredible accomplishment, never think you are “above” someone. If you are lucky, you will work with people that challenge the way you see the world. Always work toward an empathetic perspective. That is often the type of leadership that is respected in the workforce.

A two-time survivor of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and daughter of a breast cancer survivor, Claire knows firsthand the need for resources for families dealing with cancer. She has worked on behalf of MORE, a sleep-away summer camp program for children with cancer and their siblings for years, ever since she benefitted from the program as a child, and is an event chair for Relay for Life at Saint Joseph’s. She hopes to someday start her own nonprofit related to cancer awareness or cancer support – “after I’ve been successful in my business career,” she adds.