Generations V(OCATIONS) Biographies
For November 13, 2025 Webinar:
Generations (V)ocations
Panelists:
- Dr. Ansel Augustine
- Fr. Robert Boxie
- Fr. Joshua Johnson COMING SOON!
- Sr. Josephine Garrett, CSFN
- Tyler Hunt
- Dcn. Michael Parker COMING SOON!
- JaVaunda Parker COMING SOON!
Moderators:
- Leighton Batiste COMING SOON!
- Shaylyn Cothron
Dr. Ansel Augustine is an Emmy-nominated producer, award-winning author, and nationally recognized Catholic leader. He currently serves as Assistant Director of African American Affairs for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and formerly directed Black Catholic Ministries in New Orleans and Cultural Diversity Outreach in Washington, D.C. Dr. Augustine sits on the boards of St. Michael’s College, the National Black Catholic Congress, and the Congo Square Preservation Society. He teaches at Xavier University of Louisiana, Loyola University New Orleans, and the Graduate Theological Foundation.
With over 25 years in ministry, Dr. Augustine began as a youth minister at St. Peter Claver Church in New Orleans, helping rebuild after Hurricane Katrina. He has served in campus ministry, prison outreach, and national Catholic organizations. His publications include The African American Catholic Youth Bible, Leveling the Praying Field, and Praying with Our Feet. His documentary Black Faith Matters (now Black and Catholic) earned an Emmy nomination.
Dr. Augustine is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the Knights of Columbus, and the Knights of Peter Claver. He volunteers with the Mardi Gras Indian Council and Backstreet Cultural Museum, and serves as Chaplain for the National Hip Hop Museum. Learn more at www.holyhotboy.info.
Fr. Robert Boxie III, a native of Lake Charles, Louisiana, is the Catholic Chaplain at Howard University and leads the Sr. Thea Bowman Catholic Student Center in Washington, D.C. A priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, he also serves on its vocations team, helping guide future clergy. Ordained in 2016, Fr. Boxie previously served as parochial vicar at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Largo, Maryland.
Before entering the priesthood, Fr. Boxie earned a chemical engineering degree and a second major in music from Vanderbilt University. He taught English in France before completing a J.D. at Harvard Law School. He clerked for a federal judge and practiced law in D.C., discerning a deeper calling. His seminary formation began at Theological College (Catholic University of America) and continued at the Pontifical North American College and Gregorian University in Rome.
Fr. Boxie is passionate about faith, justice, and education, often speaking on racial healing and Black Catholic identity. He’s an avid runner, tennis player, classical music enthusiast, and lover of sacred art. His ministry blends intellect, compassion, and cultural awareness, inspiring students and communities alike to live their faith boldly and authentically.
After powerfully encountering Jesus in the Eucharist as a teenager, Fr. Josh Johnson dedicated his life to becoming a wholehearted disciple of Jesus Christ. Ordained for the Diocese of Baton Rouge in 2014, Fr. Josh has dedicated his priesthood to inviting all people to become saints in their walk toward eternity.
Fr. Josh is well-known for his popular Ascension podcast Ask Father Josh and he has written several books with Ascension, including the best-selling Pocket Guide to Reconciliation (co-written with Fr. Mike Schmitz), Pocket Guide to Overcoming the Seven Deadly Sins and the Pocket Guide to Adoration.
Fr. Josh is the Director of the Blessed Stanley Rother Propaedeutic Seminary House of Formation, as well as pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus parish. He can often be found praying the Rosary and walking in the neighborhoods of his parish with his seminarians, inviting those under his pastoral care to become intentional disciples of Jesus Christ.
Sr. Josephine Garrett, CSFN is a nationally certified counselor, Catholic speaker, author, and religious sister with the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Born and raised Baptist in Houston, Texas, she earned a bachelor’s in political philosophy from the University of Dallas and entered the Catholic Church in 2005. After a decade as a Vice President in banking, she began religious formation in 2011 and professed final vows in 2020.
Sr. Josephine holds a master’s in clinical mental health counseling and specializes in trauma care for children and adolescents. She serves in private practice in Tyler, Texas and is EMDR-trained and ADHD-certified. Her ministry blends mental health, spirituality, and accompaniment, offering healing and hope to those navigating life’s challenges.
She is a board member of Life Teen and Walking With Purpose, and a sought-after national speaker, having addressed audiences of up to 25,000. Her podcast, Hope Stories, explores resilience and grace in everyday lives, and her books include Hope: An Invitation and Wilderness Within, a Lenten meditation journal.
Sr. Josephine’s work is rooted in the belief that every person is a gift. She invites others to encounter God in the margins and live lives of deep purpose and joy.
Tyler Mackenzie Hunt is a proud Baton Rouge native and passionate advocate for justice, equity, and faith-driven service. A 2023 graduate of Louisiana State University, she earned dual degrees in Political Science—Race, Gender & Equity—and African & African American Studies. Tyler currently serves as a missionary with Vagabond Missions, a national Catholic apostolate dedicated to inner-city youth evangelization, at her home parish, Sacred Heart of Jesus, under the guidance of Dcn. Michael Parker and Fr. Joshua Johnson.
Her missionary journey began in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she served as an AmeriCorps VISTA member with Kinship Community Food Center, addressing hunger and systemic inequities. She led training and recruitment efforts rooted in Catholic Social Teaching. Before discerning her call to mission work, Tyler interned with the Office of Governor John Bel Edwards and became a distinguished Governor’s Fellow, presenting a capstone on expanding small business access to state contracts.
Tyler’s commitment to community has earned her numerous honors, including the LSU Esprit de Femme Student Leadership Award, NAACP Leading Legacy Image Award, and MLK Jr. Humanitarian Award. She remains deeply engaged in local justice initiatives and offers her gifts to her parish, diocese, and the universal Church with joy and purpose.
Leighton Batiste, a proud Riverdale, GA native, is the inaugural Grand Knight of Council 413 at the Lyke House Catholic Center, serving Atlanta’s HBCUs. A Morehouse and Georgia State MBA grad, he blends Catholic values with a dynamic career in sports and media, specializing in content creation and brand partnerships. A lifelong Catholic, Leighton is committed to uplifting Black communities through faith, service, and leadership, embodying the mission of the Knights of Peter Claver with vision and purpose.
Shaylyn L. Cothron is a proud member of the Centennial Class of Xavier University of Louisiana, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry with minors in Biology and Theology—an academic blend reflecting both scientific rigor and spiritual inquiry. Her passion for faith, scholarship, and justice led her to Yale Divinity School, where she is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Religion with a concentration in Black Religion in the African Diaspora.
Shaylyn’s academic journey is rooted in a deep commitment to exploring the intersections of race, faith, and liberation theology. At Yale, she engages in critical theological reflection and community-based praxis, contributing to conversations that uplift Black religious traditions and challenge systemic inequities. Her work is informed by her grounding in Catholic theology and her lived experience as a Southern Black woman navigating both scientific and spiritual spaces.
Known for her intellectual curiosity and leadership, Shaylyn is part of a growing movement of young scholars shaping the future of theological education and ministry. She is passionate about building bridges between the academy and the Church, and between tradition and transformation. Shaylyn continues to embody the Xavierite mission of promoting a more just and humane society through faith, service, and scholarship.