Lisa Gutierrez carries a wide breadth of experience in education, having served as everything from a substitute teacher to a school principal. She now brings that deep background to the table at Big Shoulders Fund Northwest Indiana, where she is committed to supporting schools and their leaders as they provide a quality, values-based education to students in the Region.
Big Shoulders Fund welcomed Gutierrez to its team about a year ago as managing director of school success. She splits her time across both Chicago and Northwest Indiana, meeting with school administrators to discuss their challenges and how Big Shoulders Fund can help overcome them.
“I believe that being a Catholic school administrator is one of the most challenging jobs there is,” Gutierrez said. “It isn’t one job – it's six. You never know what you’re going to be doing on any given day. Rare is the person who is equipped to handle all of those different areas, so we come in with our team to help with finance, operations, enrollment and marketing, instruction, curriculum, and advancement.”
She earned a deep understanding of these challenges through a career that almost took a different path. Gutierrez originally enrolled in college as a journalism major, but a volunteer opportunity tutoring elementary students in a high-need school changed her trajectory. She changed her major, finished college, and launched her career as a public school teacher in Illinois. Later on, she moved to Indiana and started a family – working as a stay-at-home mom until she heard her local parish needed substitute teachers. There, she found her calling.
“I just fell in love with that values-based education,” she said. “Over time, you see how it can truly make a difference. The mission is so strong. When a school finds that and lives that mission well, I believe there’s no better education out there.”
That newfound passion led to a decade-long tenure at St. Edward’s School in Lowell. When that school closed, she took a position at St. Casimir School in Hammond, which happened to be the parish where she was married. She taught there for two years before moving into administration as an assistant principal while at the same time earning a master’s degree in administration at the University of Notre Dame. She wanted to take a leadership role where she could make the biggest impact and found that opportunity at Aquinas Catholic Community School in Merrillville.
“I was really convinced that the children in the surrounding communities should have the opportunity for a values-based education,” she said. “Aquinas is right on the edge of Merrillville, bordering Gary, so I thought maybe I could help grow that school by marketing, recruiting, and offering a quality education to students all over the area. I did that and grew that school dramatically over the eight years I was there.”
During her time at Aquinas, Gutierrez saw the student population grow by 100 students from 136 to 236 immediately reaching capacity. She also worked with Big Shoulders Fund Northwest Indiana in 2022 to complete a $3 million expansion project that added room for dozens more students while also making the campus safer and more conducive to learning. Her experience leading Aquinas gave her insight into the biggest challenges facing the Catholic Diocese of Gary schools today.
“Right now, I would say one of our biggest challenges is getting the word out,” she said. “There’s a lack of awareness for some parents about what’s available to them and that they can choose to use their own tax dollars to send their student to the school of their choice. They don’t know that most of the time, our network schools are available to them and their children at very little to possibly no cost.”
In her role at Big Shoulders Fund, Gutierrez and her team act as a comprehensive support system. Once a month, she meets with school leaders and administrators to offer guidance and connect them with resources. Her goal is to alleviate their potential obstacles and provide dedicated expertise in areas that a single administrator might be stretched too thin to handle.
“I’m really gratified when I’m able to take some of the weight off of these school leaders,” she said. “Sometimes a principal will just call me and say, ‘Can I run this by you?’ Being able to take a little of that pressure off them, or sometimes to just be an ear who understands what they’re going through, is extremely satisfying.”
Part of why she loves her work so much is that she’s been in those leaders’ positions. Gutierrez understands both the challenges they face and the deep well of passion they have for their work.
“These administrators are in such an intense position,” she said. “They love their students and their communities so deeply. I say that about all of them because there’s no way someone could do that job without having that deep sense of faith and love for their community. It’s so personal.”
As Gutierrez continues to settle into her role, she hopes to help get the word out about the work Big Shoulders Fund does for schools in Chicago and around the Region and the opportunities that work creates for students and families.
“We’re here to support you,” she said. “Our entire purpose is to open up pathways for students, to ensure that every child has the opportunity for a high quality values-based education. We offer incredible opportunities in scholarship and leadership programming to students. We offer continued professional development for teachers and an abundance of resources and support for administrators. This is a collaboration and a partnership, and it's a privilege to serve.”
For more information about Big Shoulders Fund Northwest Indiana, visit bigshouldersfund.org/nwi.
