Pacifica Stories

This week, we’re excited to highlight Josephine Wilson, one of our passionate math teachers and girls soccer coaches at Pacifica. Now in her second year, Josephine brings curiosity, energy, and a deep love for Jesus into everything she does.

Josephine graduated from Clemson University with a degree in Economics and a minor in Spanish. After college, she worked as a Research Project Specialist at the USC Schaeffer Center, where she co-authored health policy research papers under her maiden name, Josephine Rohrer. Her path took an unexpected turn when God called her to step away from research; a decision she describes as both terrifying and freeing. “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 16:25). Less than a month after leaving her job, she joined Pacifica to help launch The Wolf Shack, which soon led to coaching girls soccer and eventually teaching math.

Though she grew up in a Catholic home, Josephine says her relationship with Jesus didn’t truly begin until college. The loss of a close friend her senior year was a turning point that led her to surrender her life to Christ on a mission trip to St. Louis. “It wasn’t a fireworks moment,” she recalls. “I was so low that I thought I’d give it a shot—and it turns out, Jesus was exactly who He said He was.”

Originally planning to earn a PhD and become a professor, Josephine now sees God’s hand in redirecting her path. “Being yielded to the Holy Spirit brought me here,” she says. “There would be no Pacifica for me if the Lord hadn’t intervened.”

Josephine describes teaching as “such a sacred thing.” She loves watching the spark in a student’s eyes when they understand something new or get excited about what they love. “At Pacifica, I get to talk about Jesus every day and work alongside coworkers who are deeply moved by the gospel and want to invest in students’ lives. It’s a place full of faith, energy, and new ideas.”

Outside of school, Josephine recently married her husband, Micah, and enjoys running, pilates, yoga, thrifting, journaling, and cooking. She once lived in Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria, has a family dog named Sprinkles, and proudly notes she’s never broken a bone (though she’s split her chin open twice!).

When asked what she hopes students take away from their time with her, Josephine doesn’t hesitate:

“Life is short, God is big, and kindness goes a long way. Be people of your word, push yourself to do better than you did yesterday, and never stop being wildly curious.”

We’re so grateful to have Josephine Wilson as part of our Pacifica family. She is someone who lives out her faith with joy, models lifelong learning, and reminds us all to stay curious and kind.