Ashley Jost

Interim Director of the Office of Student Affairs
ashley.jost@slu.edu
Ext. 213

Ashley Jost joined the SLU-Madrid campus in January 2023 from the campus in St. Louis, Missouri, which is where she was born and raised. She earned her bachelor's degree in communication from Truman State University, and is working on a master's degree in the same field.

Ashley is a former newspaper reporter, covering mostly higher education across Missouri, but also business, crime and local or state government/politics. After journalism, she transitioned into higher education, working for the University of Missouri and then Saint Louis University's campus in St. Louis.

Sharrad Belin

Office of Student Affairs Assistant
sharrad.belin@slu.edu
Ext. 240

Sharrad was born in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York. He attended Nassau Community College on Long Island, New York, where he received his Associate Degree in Liberal Arts. He later received his undergraduate degree in psychology with a minor in sociology from Queens College, City University of New York. After obtaining this degree, he worked with a team of substance-abuse counselors and on-staff psychologists as a psychiatric attendant at South Oaks Hospital in Amityville, New York for one year. He later attended John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York, where he received his Master's in Public Administration with a specialization in management and operations. Since 1998, Sharrad has worked primarily in the business and finance sector in New York City.

Starting from the position of bank teller at 19 years old, Sharrad eventually elevated to supervisory positions in the world of commercial banking. He has held positions ranging from supervisor to assistant manager and finally lead department manager at Apple Bank for Savings, where he helped implement the company's Depositor Services Department. Sharrad's passion for higher education and personal growth and development inspired him to move to Madrid in January 2018, where he worked as an English teacher for a language academy for more than four years. He joined the Office of Student Affairs team at Saint Louis University in the summer of 2022. 

Paloma Gómez de Salazar

Office of Student Affairs / Wellness Counselor
paloma.gomezdesalazar@slu.edu
Ext. 218/230

Paloma Gómez de Salazar was born in southern Spain, but has always lived in Madrid. She graduated from the Pontifical University of Comillas with a bachelor's degree in psychology.

She has specialization in family and couples' therapy by completing two different masters and is currently studying for a master's in general health psychology at the International University of La Rioja.

Gómez de Salazar has worked in many different areas, including as an instructor at the University Francisco de Vitoria and professor of Catholic religion pedagogy and didactic methods at the University Camilo José Cela. She has taught Catholic religion at Torrevilano School. She also has experience as a counselor in Covadonga Family Planning Centre and as a psychologist and coach in KilosOut, an innovative method of weight loss.

Zahra Ohldin

Office of Student Affairs Assistant
zahra.ohldin@slu.edu
Ext. 286

Zahra Ohldin was born and raised all over the U.S. and has also lived in Argentina and Sweden prior to moving to Spain. While studying at the University of Buenos Aires, she researched the socio-cultural impact of the "Disappeared" in contemporary Argentinian society in the areas of film, community activism, and collective memory. She interned at the Itaú Foundation and the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, and activism and volunteer work has been part of her life ever since. She graduated from Northwestern University with a bachelor´s degree in Spanish Language and Literature and Psychology.

With a background in community organizing and youth advocacy, Zahra began her professional career as a Program Empowerment Director for The DREAM Program while serving in Americorps. She went on to lead summer community programming for children, teaching English to adult learners and working as a liaison to families within schools, as a social media content creator, and as a grant writer.

After moving to Spain, Zahra worked as a preschool and primary teacher in Madrid, continued to teach English to adults, taught dance to children in after school programs and led cultural immersion experiences throughout Spain with summer student travel programs.

Zahra joined SLU Madrid in 2022 working as a receptionist and providing administrative support to the Department of Finance and Operations, and transitioned to the Office of Student Affairs in 2023.

James O'Leary, S.J.

Campus Chaplain
james.oleary@slu.edu
Ext. 279

James O'Leary, S.J., is a native of Chicago. He entered the Jesuits in 1981. After being ordained a Catholic priest in 1991, he lived in Peru, where he worked in popular education and jail ministry. He has been the campus chaplain and a professor of theology at SLU-Madrid since 2007.

César Rioja

Sports Director
cesar.rioja@slu.edu
Ext. 208

César Rioja was born and raised in Madrid. He received a bachelor's degree in physical education from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. For six seasons, César played guard for the Movistar Estudiantes, as a professional basketball team player in the Spanish Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto League (ACB, "the Spanish NBA"). He also played in the Spanish National Team. Since 1999, César has been the sports director at SLU-Madrid, where he is also the current academic advisor for all the athletes registered at SLU-Madrid. César assists all SLU-Madrid students wishing to practice the more than 20 different sports offered at the university.

Victoria Taylor

Office of Student Affairs Assistant
victoriaandreina.taylor@slu.edu 
Ext. 287

Victoria Taylor was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. She attended Queens College, City University of New York, where she earned her bachelor's degree in English literature. After graduating, she worked as an activities specialist at the Science and Medicine School in Brooklyn, New York. Her main role was to organize events and activities for the students after school.

In fall 2013, in search of a new adventure, Victoria set her sights on Madrid and was awarded a one-year teaching grant from the Comunidad de Madrid to teach English to secondary students. She loved the experience so much, so she decided to stay — and taught English in various bilingual schools in the heart of Madrid until 2019.

In June 2022, Victoria earned her master's degree in multicultural and bilingual education from the Teach & Learn Program at the University of Alcalá.

In her spare time, you can find Victoria volunteering her time and services to the arts through Art Spoken Madrid.

Beatrice Torres de Azcárraga

Housing Coordinator
beatrice.torres@slu.edu
Ext. 245

Beatrice Torres de Azcárraga joined the SLU-Madrid campus in February 2023. She was born in Fresno, California and has lived in Madrid for over 20 years with her husband and their two sons. She graduated from the University of Houston-Downtown with a bachelor's degree in business administration-accounting. She has worked as a financial aid and career services advisor for other American universities.  

Carlos Villar

Programs Assistant and Student Residency Support
carlos.villar@slu.edu 
Ext. 239

Carlos Villar Moreu was born in Madrid and has lived most of his life here. He graduated from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid with a bachelor's degree in history. Carlos has worked in different fields throughout his career, from data recording in a financial and legal consulting firm to teaching English and coordinating English teachers for a private academy. He has developed a special interest in helping students achieve their goals and assisting with obtaining the NIE, TIE and other official documents students may need.