McKenna Smith
Coordinator of High School Youth Ministry
515-964-3038 ext. 134
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McKenna Smith started as the Coordinator of High School Ministry at OLIH in September 2025.

She is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, but has lived across the US and in Manchester, England. She holds undergraduate degrees in Criminal Justice and Political Science, and completed her masters in Theology in 2024. In September 2025, McKenna became a Mercy Associate and completed her year as a Mercy Emerging Leader, where she was the youngest ever fellow and only American in her cohort. 

McKenna has worked in and around ministry in some capacity for more than a decade. Some of her favorite roles include her time working in a women’s prison and a long-term care home for men with Korsakoff's Dementia. She has also worked in college campus ministry and as a high school teacher. Each position has given her perspective and joy. She will be the first to tell you that ministry was never the plan, but she wouldn’t change it for the world. 

In addition to her role at OLIH, she is also a college professor and course developer for St. Joseph’s College of Maine. She currently teaches a course on the intersection of Catholic Social Teaching and Criminal Justice. 

In her free time, McKenna enjoys going for hikes and visiting state parks. She loves to travel and will happily tell you stories and show you pictures from her trips. McKenna loves being near the ocean, especially when she is deep sea fishing. She also tries to go to as many concerts as possible. She saw Jimmy Buffett more than 40 times (including twice in Paris, France)! The fastest way to her heart is to join her for service projects.

Some quick facts about McKenna are that: she is a Green Bay Packers fan (after meeting them 3 weeks before they won the Super Bowl in 2011 - BJ Raji & Clay Matthews are her favorite players), she says a weekly rosary with her friends from around the world via Google Meet (in English and Spanish), and she loves to bake (gluten free) goodies! 

She really loves Ankeny and is so grateful to the OLIH community for welcoming her with open arms.