Holding Us Together: Joel Crawford ’22

The eminent German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe asserts that “a great person attracts great people and knows how to hold them together.” Joel Crawford, President of the Class of 2022, is a great person holding great people together. 

Joel leads wherever he goes—on the football field as a star running-back, in the classroom as a standout student, as head of the Black Student Union, as Class President. He’s the total package, and as I write these words, he’s received admissions offers from Harvard, Yale, Notre Dame, Columbia, and many other top flight schools, ultimately selecting Harvard University. He’s the man. 

On the football field, he’s not the biggest guy out there, but he has perhaps the biggest heart. Anyone who has seen him play knows how impressive he is, eluding frightful defensive linemen twice his size with his unique combination of finesse and grit. He has rushed for over 2,000 yards over his career at Jesuit. Most notably, he received the Scholar Athlete Award from the Touchdown Club of Houston—among the most prestigious awards for local student athletes. 

Former and current football coaches are quick to highlight Joel’s strength of character. For Mr. Klay Kubiak, former SJ head coach and current San Francisco 49ers assistant, Joel “is one of the humblest and hardest working young men” he has had the opportunity to work with. Current Strake Jesuit head coach, Mr. Donovan Fikac, quotes the Ignatian Prayer for Generosity in assessing Joel’s unique humility and servant leadership: “One of Joel’s greatest qualities is his selflessness. He embodies the idea ‘to labor and not to seek reward.’” 

In considering how Strake Jesuit has helped mold him into a leader and a Man for Others, Joel remarks that “there is no better feeling than knowing that you have made someone else’s life a little bit brighter.” He always seems to wear an expression of inner calm on his face, and his eyes broadcast optimism to the world. The challenges of his day are numerous—a long daily commute from Cypress and the existential dread that every Houston freeway driver knows all too well, rigorous AP coursework, and juggling his multifarious extracurricular responsibilities. But Joel is up to all these challenges, unflappable in the face of pressure. He’s the kind of guy you want to be around in times of adversity. 

Mrs. Schuffenecker, who has worked with Joel in Student Council and in AP English Language last year, notes that Joel “has something that you can’t teach or imitate. His ability to connect with others and effect positive change fills one with hope for all that he will do and become.” Mr. Matt Kubus noticed Joel’s exemplary qualities as a Freshman in English I. He affirms that “Joel knows, as all great Strake Jesuit students know, that it’s the combination of God’s plan and his own character that will determine his life. His character, mighty, affords him limitless potential; it’s up to God to handle the rest.”

The rest is going to be exciting indeed. Expect more greatness from Joel.