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10 Questions with Evanice Cirelli, Admissions Administrator

Evanice Cirelli P’12 is the admissions administrator at the Shuman Admissions Center and was previously a complement in Johnson House, Eaton Cottage, and Morehead House. Cirelli is originally from Brazil and has lived on campus for over 20 years. She has worked in admissions for the past 13 years and is the first face that welcomes visiting families to Andover.

1) What is your favorite part about your job?

Everything is different. My days are never, in the years I’ve been here, never boring. I’ve never had the same day, and every day is different. I look forward to every morning, to dress up and come over here to do my job and welcome the families because I’ve met so many people from so many different backgrounds. There is a lot of diversity, and I think that’s what makes Andover very unique. To have a person here that relates to them, who’s from Brazil and speaks many different languages and can communicate with people, makes it very interesting. I love this job, and I have people asking me if I’m tired or bored. No, because every day is different—completely different.

2) You mentioned you speak many languages, which languages specifically?

Portuguese is my primary language, but I speak Spanish, Italian, and French.

3) Outside of Shuman Admissions Office, what is your favorite part of Andover?

The community. The community makes you feel very connected because you can see the diversity of the student body, the staff, and the faculty. And the buildings are beautiful. The whole campus is very unique, and I feel very at home here.

4) What is the environment like working at Shuman?

We work together as a team, and we make sure that everyone that comes here is treated equally, and that the families get the most out of their visits.

5) How does the atmosphere at Shuman change during different parts of the year?

Right now, we are at a very high peak of visitors, but after March, because we don’t have as many visitors, there is more paperwork and things that we have to do. That’s the main difference between different parts of the year.

6) What is your favorite place in the world?

I think I’m fascinated by Portugal. When I visited Portugal for the first time, I felt that I was [at] home. The Portuguese discovered Brazil and it happened in [Salvador], the capital of my state, Bahia. Walking in the streets of Lisbon was the same as if I was walking in my town. The history, the architecture, the culture, and food, brought me back good memories of home. I love art and history and Portugal is a country with a lot of that.

7) What is Brazil like?

Brazil is a very warm place and the people are very happy. Because the sun is out 365 days a year, they are all outside. We are very family-related, and friends and family are the most important thing for us. We celebrate everything and we dance a lot, which is a big part of our culture.

8) What do you enjoy doing during your free time?

I’m a painter and an artist. I do a lot of oil paintings and [I] paint porcelain because I love art. I also swim, [do] yoga, pilates, and run. I try to be busy, especially during the winter.

9) Do you have any background as an artist?

I self-taught myself because back then it was difficult to go to college for that. I instead studied social service, but I’ve always loved to paint. 

10) Aside from art, what do you mainly like to do?

I love to hike and run. I’m actually about to hike Machu Picchu in April.