About Us

Fr. Carsten P. Martensen, S.J.

 

Melissa French

 

Katie Rausch

 

Claire Seibert

 

Maggie DeGennaro

 

Katharina Carella

 

Steph Elowson

 

Molly Mattingly

 

Steve Pysnik

 

There are many people working behind the scenes to make the Catholic Community great. These are just a few of the important leaders in our community.

Fr. Carsten P. Martensen, S.J.

Director of Campus Ministry

How blessed I am to have been assigned as the new Catholic chaplain at Ithaca College!

Just to let you know, I am a Jesuit (member of the Society of Jesus) priest. Last year I was on sabbatical studying theology as a non-degree, audit, graduate student at the University of Notre Dame. Prior to the sabbatical, I was the pastor of St. Anthony Church in Oceanside, NY, and before that I served in campus ministry at Northern Illinois University, Fordham Preparatory School and Saint Peter's College.

The year ahead will be challenging and exciting. I look forward to celebrating and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with you--I look forward to praying, developing skills, building community and serving not only the students, faculty and staff of Ithaca College, but also the poor and lost and lonely all around us.

Let me know how I might assist and serve you. And together, let us share who we are and what we believe--let us share God's love--with all whom we meet!

Melissa French

Ministry Assistant

After 3 1/2 years as a student volunteer and intern in the Catholic Community, I have decided to work full-time for the community!  I graduated this past December with a degree in Television-Radio, and will be spending the spring semester helping to plan and organize various events.  I am very excited to be able to put all of my time and effort into the Catholic Community this semester!

I'm always up for visitors to the office...so stop by between classes and say hello!  We can talk about classes, CC events, or even the latest episode of American Idol (if you ever want to talk Idol...see me.  I could talk for days.)  You may notice the large number of stuffed orange cats in my office...that's because I happen to have an orange cat named Cory (named for Cory Matthews of Boy Meets World...hey, I'm a TV major who grew up in the 90s) who deserves to be honored with as many orange cat things as possible!

I'm so glad to be working here full time, and I can't wait to see what we can all get accomplished this semester!

Katie Rausch

Catholic Community Co-Chair

Hi! My name is Katie Rausch. I am proudly from Buffalo, NY and a Sophomore Journalism major. I am so excited to be a co-chair of the Visioning Team this year and looking forward to a great semester. I love movies, traveling, and hanging out with friends.

Claire Seibert

Catholic Community Co-Chair

Hi! My name is Claire and I am a senior Physical Therapy major. I'm from Towanda, Pennsylvania, a small town near...not really anything. I love to run, play frisbee, read books, sing, listen to music, play badminton, knit, study human anatomy, bake cookies, watch movies, hike, swim, and just be outside. I love being Catholic! Let me know if you ever want a ride to daily Mass, someone to pray the Rosary with, or someone to pray for you!

Maggie DeGennaro

Catholic Community Co-Chair & Intern

Hi! I'm Maggie DeGennaro.  I'm from Hockessin, Delaware and am a sophomore Television-Radio Major.  I am a Catholic Community Co-Chair, Intern, and I work in the office upstairs.  In addition, I help plan Growing In Faith and Taize Prayer.  I love hanging out with friends, Bruster's Ice Cream, and The Arcade Fire.  I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone at all our events this semester!

Katharina Carella

Intern

Hey there, I'm Katharina Carella and I'm a sophomore mathematics and psychology double major.  I'm from Glenwood, Maryland, which is an incredibly rural town between Baltimore and Washington, D.C.  I am one of the Catholic Community Interns, and I am chair of the Lock-In Committee.  I'm also on the Appropriating the Faith Committe and am active in Music Ministry.  I like playing piano, playing RISK, and spending time with friends and family.  And, of course, laughing is one of my favorite pastimes.  I'm excited about being on board this semester and I look forward to seeing you all around at our many events!

Steph Elowson

Intern

Hi everyone! I'm Stephanie Elowson, a senior double major in Business Administration (Marketing) and Integrated Marketing Communications from Sparta, NJ. I am one of the Catholic Community Office Interns and Social Committee Co-Chair, and I can't wait for a great year in our community. I love to dance, volunteer, meet new people, be involved in clubs all over campus, and most importantly spend time with my friends and family. Can't wait to see everyone at Mass and our social activities! 

Molly Mattingly

Music Ministry Co-Director

Hi! My name is Molly Mattingly. I'm from Third Lake, Illinois, a little town between Chicago and Wisconsin. I play piano as a junior double major in Music Education and Music Theory. At IC's chapel, I'm one of the Music Ministry Co-Directors and Liturgy Co-Chairs, as well as a lector. I love going to activities at Catholic Community like lock-ins, retreats, Holy Grounds sessions, and Music Hour. I also love camping, reading, and watching movies with friends! I hope to see you at Mass! 

Steve Pysnik

Music Ministry Co-Director

Hi, I'm Steve Pysnik, one of the co-Music Ministry directors for the Catholic Community here at IC. This is my second year as co-director and I am very excited to be working with Molly in this awesome ministry! Just so you know a little bit about me, I am a Senior with a major that has a rather long title: Music in Combination with an Outside Field (my outside field is biology). In addition to Music Ministry, I am also a co-chair of the Appropriating the Faith and Retreat Team committees. If you'd like to get in touch with me you can send me an email at spysnik1@ithaca.edu. Hope to see you all soon!