Written by Stephanie Gordon
Growing up in Mount Blanchard, Ohio, Stephanie Umphress Maxwell, ’96, knew nothing about Hillsdale College. That changed when she attended a Summit Ministries camp in Colorado at age 16. Intrigued by the College’s unique characteristics, Stephanie wanted to learn more.
“When I went to that camp, they talked a lot about college preparation and the importance of knowing what you believe and being able to defend that,” Stephanie recalled. “I talked with the president of the camp, and he told me there was a great college right in my backyard—Hillsdale.”
Stephanie was so fascinated by the College’s mission and the fact that Hillsdale didn’t accept any federal funding, that upon returning home from camp, she read one of former President George Roche’s books. “I learned Hillsdale was different from other colleges,” said Stephanie. “You’d think to a 16-year-old girl, these things wouldn’t really matter, but they did to me.”
Stephanie also appreciated the emphasis on the traditional liberal arts and the fact that students didn’t have to sign a statement of faith. “Unlike other schools, you had to own your faith at Hillsdale,” she said. “It felt more genuine to me.”
In 1992, Stephanie made her way to Hillsdale. She majored in English and double-minored in Spanish and religion, saying that at that point in her life, she knew what she wanted to study versus what she wanted to do post-graduation. Stephanie belonged to multiple academic honoraries and Lamplighters and also served as vice president of her class. But, above all, Stephanie said one of the things she loved most about her Hillsdale experience was the relationship between professor and student.
“Dr. Debi Belt was my advisor, and we became really good friends,” Stephanie said. “She respected my views, and I respected hers, and I found her to be so great. I appreciated talking to her about life, and that’s one of the many things I love about Hillsdale.”
During Stephanie’s time as a student, she became certified to teach at the upper school level. After her graduation in 1996, she student-taught at nearby Pittsford High School in the fall. With her student teaching complete mid-school year, Stephanie planned to substitute teach and seek a full-time teaching job in the spring of 1997. But that didn’t quite go as planned.
Commitment and Hospitality
“Vice President for External Programs and Communications Ron Trowbridge approached me and said there was a temporary, six-month-long job available for Hillsdale Academy marketing,” she said. “The school was still in its early days, and I had zero experience in marketing, but I thought, ‘Why not!’”
Stephanie thrived in her new role, which became permanent after the six months, and even began ghostwriting for President Roche. She also began working on the Hillsdale Academy Reference Guide (the K-12 initiative at that time). “I also worked closely with Vice President for Institutional Advancement John Cervini,” she said. “The next thing I knew, I was traveling to meet with headmasters from around the country, working with groups of people who were starting schools. And, suddenly, Dr. Trowbridge asked me to be the director of advertising for the College’s new capital campaign.”
She also started event planning for the College’s National Leadership Seminars (NLS). “Looking back, I was so young and really had no experience, but I was given some amazing opportunities to learn new skills,” Stephanie said. “I got to plan galas and handle the logistics for Margaret Thatcher events, among many other things.”
On a personal level, Stephanie explained that it was “not cool” to live in Hillsdale as a recent graduate. “I was one of the only single 20-somethings here in this community,” she said. “That was lonely and hard. My mom encouraged me to reach out to my elderly neighbor and start having people over for dinner.”
And so she did. Hospitality would become a big part of Stephanie’s life. “I would have dinner parties with such an eclectic group of people,” she said. “There would be 50-year-old hippies and college professors and people who worked in other departments. It was very random, but it was a way to be around people and get out of myself.”
In 2002, Stephanie met Jared Maxwell, ’00, through mutual friends. “Jared was teaching at Jonesville Community Schools, and I had my work at the College. In 2005, we married. We thought we wanted out of Hillsdale to be closer to family, but the Lord had other plans.”
The couple remained in Hillsdale, and in the spring of 2008, Jared and Stephanie welcomed their first child, Kate. “It was a Friday, and I knew I was in labor,” she smiled. “I worked that whole day because we were preparing for an NLS in NYC. I went to the hospital that night and had Kate the next morning.”
After Kate’s birth, Stephanie became a stay-at-home-mom. Four years later, they welcomed a son, Luke. While her children were little, Stephanie started reading essays for the Admissions Office. “It was the perfect job, and it was flexible with the kids,” she said. “It also allowed Jared and me time to serve in the church.”
The Maxwells started attending College Baptist Church in 2007. Stephanie quickly took over the Adopt-a-Student program. Eventually, Stephanie became a deacon, and Jared an elder. The couple also teaches the high school Sunday school class and leads the youth group with a cohort of Hillsdale College students.
“Trust and respect can really only develop through meaningful relationships,” she explained. “Working with the youth at our church has allowed us the privilege of getting to know kids on a personal level and hopefully teaching them something about how much they are valued by God. I think the thing I love most is that we get to invest in people, and there’s no greater investment than that.”
New Beginnings
With both Kate and Luke getting older, a first-grade teaching opportunity at Hillsdale Academy presented itself to Stephanie. “Jared had asked me, ‘What about that job?’”
Stephanie said she had no plans to teach early elementary students. “But, then I thought, after being a mom, there are two things I really love about that age: the development of literacy and character. The impact you can have as a parent or teacher on a child is huge in terms of soul formation and learning how to read.”
She taught first grade for three years. “I don’t know if I could have done that job without being a mom first,” Stephanie explained. “I loved that job, but I realized that if my priorities were God, family, friends, and everything else after that, the way I was spending my time was not reflecting my priorities. My family was getting my leftovers. It was the hardest decision I’ve ever made, but it has absolutely been the right thing.”
The Right Balance
Currently, Stephanie works part-time as an academic counselor through Hillsdale’s Academic Services. “If a student needs coaching on developing better time management skills, or learning how to study for a midterm, or mapping out a major and their schedule for the next four semesters, that’s what we do,” Stephanie explained. “It’s not just academics, it’s also working on the emotional, spiritual, and physical aspects of life. In some ways, it’s life coaching and counseling. There are students who come to see us every week. It’s great accountability and combines so much of what I love.”
For Stephanie, her current job still involves teaching, and she loves the one-on-one aspect of the job. “I like being able to talk about a paper and then pray with a student,” she said. “It’s a huge privilege, and I’m so grateful that I get to do this job and still take on all of our commitments to our church and at home.”
Stephanie loves that Hillsdalians get to grow alongside other people in a personal and intimate way. “There’s a loneliness epidemic that is sweeping the country,” she said. “Statistically and factually, it’s happening. Hillsdale is a unique spot where that isn’t happening. It can be messy at times, but we were created to be in community. There’s a blurring of groups where kids from multiple schools know each other and interact with each other, and Jared and I feel so glad that our kids are getting to grow up in this environment.”
Kate is now a rising freshman at Hillsdale College, and Luke is entering the eighth grade at Hillsdale Academy. Outside of church duties, family, and work, Stephanie loves being able to go out her front door and go on a walk in the country.
Stephanie’s path has taken many different turns, but, through it all, it has been her determination, her heart, and love for others and the Hillsdale community that have helped forge her path.
“One of the priorities for Jared and me has always been hospitality,” she concluded. “Hospitality has looked different in the different seasons of our lives, but this is our community involvement. I feel like this is a big part of who we are as a couple and as a family. This is our ministry at home and in the community.
“It’d be hard to ever leave the community you love; you can’t replicate that.”
Stephanie Gordon, a lifelong Hillsdale native, is the managing editor of Virtue and Valor: The Official Blog of Hillsdale College. She is married to chiropractor, Dr. Matt Gordon, and has three children – Eloise, Flora, and Jack. She enjoys baking, floating on Baw Beese Lake, Detroit Lions football, and breaking a sweat at the gym.
Published in July 2026
