Tania Volosen
Campus Missionary

My college journey started at UT Dallas, where I studied Accounting. Those first couple of years were filled with loneliness, spiritual wrestling, and a lot of questions about what I was really doing with my life. I grew up going to church, but stepping into college meant I had to decide for myself what it looked like to follow Jesus. It was during my sophomore year that everything began to change when I got plugged into FOCUS. I got plugged into a small group, started studying the Bible one-on-one, and caught a vision for what my experience could be. Maybe college could be more than just classes and a diploma. Maybe it could be a time where my faith came alive and I could help others meet Jesus too! As a student, I was deeply invested in by both peers and pastors who walked with me, prayed for me, and helped me see God's heart in Scripture. I was invited not just to be a disciple of Jesus, but shown how to be a disciple-maker with Jesus.

After graduating, I spent a year working in the accounting field, but I couldn't shake the sense that God was calling me back to campus. I had encountered Jesus in such a real and personal way during my time at UTD, and I knew He was still at work on college campuses. Since 2023, I've been serving as a campus missionary here in the DFW area (at Collin Community College and SMU). It's been such a joy to walk alongside students in this formative season of their lives!

SMU is a place defined by ambition, prestige, and achievement. Students here are driven, talented, and high-achieving, and yet beneath the surface, many are wrestling with the same deep questions I once had: Who am I really? Does my life have meaning beyond my résumé? Is there something more? The cultural pressures of success, appearance, and status can make it hard for students to slow down long enough to hear the voice of God. But He is pursuing them just the same. By God’s grace and through the support of ministry partners, I get to walk with students in the middle of that tension and point them to a Jesus who isn't impressed by their GPA or their family name, but who loves them and offers them life to the full with Him.

With a campus full of thousands of students from around the world, the harvest field at SMU is full and the need is real. Thank you for prayerfully considering partnering with me in bringing the hope and good news of Jesus to this campus!