Cheri Armstrong: Answering God's Invitation

Mrs. Cheri Armstrong has answered many invitations from God. A wife, a mother, a Catholic convert. A teacher, a mentor, a Board Member, and a fitness instructor. Anyone who has worked with her or been her student can see that she said, “Yes” to God’s gifts of intelligence and wisdom, grace and compassion, and exceptional analytical and organizational skills, all necessary for her work as a NASA and corporate engineer before joining the Strake Jesuit community. Other invitations—and answers—followed: Advisory Leader, Kairos Director, College Application Interview Coach. 

It is likely that when Mrs. Armstrong attended Texas A&M and began her career in Engineering, she could not have envisioned God’s plan for her life: her gradual conversion to the Catholic faith—a seed planted by her father and forged in many Sunday Masses at St. Mary’s Catholic Center in College Station, her moves to Montana and Houston as her husband served in the U.S. Air Force, and the realization that the Catholic Church is home.

After years as a contract engineer for NASA and continued promotions to management positions, she heard God’s call to shift gears entirely to teaching and education. She had been tutoring and teaching between moves and was eager to introduce young people to math, science, and engineering. When her son began high school at Strake Jesuit, God’s invitation was easy to accept.

The same skills that made her an exceptional engineer are also on display in her work at Strake Jesuit. Her attention to detail and straightforward approach to problem-solving are reflected daily at Strake Jesuit. She is careful to meet her students where they are, working with them before and after class to assist them individually. As she did in her engineering career, she proceeds with a clear structure and data but treats all her students with dignity and respect, knowing that young people progress at different rates in their mastery. 

Not only has she been a light to others seeking direction in discernment, but she has also been involved in the Formation and Retreat Program at Strake Jesuit, as an Adult Kairos leader and currently as a Retreat Director. Her engineering experience is evident as she organizes the logistics of the retreat, trains adult and student leaders, and implements the four-day program so that everyone else can focus on God’s time.

You might also find Mrs. Armstrong coaching seniors as they prepare for college interviews, often giving of her time before and after school so that students are ready for tough questions. Her expertise as a manager is a gift she freely gives to nervous applicants who learn from her how to anticipate curveballs and come away more confident and prepared. 

As her colleagues can attest, Mrs. Armstrong’s generosity extends beyond the school day and outside the classroom. She might be leading a stretching class, rehearsing with other faculty and staff for music at Mass or Tenebrae, or taking classes on her own to strengthen her own formation. 

Mrs. Armstrong has taken on every challenge and accepted God’s invitations with careful consideration about how best to answer His call in a way that magnifies others. While there is one fewer working engineer in the industry, the Strake Jesuit community is deeply grateful for her transition to faculty life.