Hometown: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Major(s): Theatre education, sociology, and Honors Liberal Arts with a minor in English literature
Campus Activities and Awards: SPU Theatre, Orientation, TA for World Theatre Literature, Sociology Club, The Dendrochronology Project, Haven, Theatre Club.
What was your most impactful class or professor? While I’ve had a lot of impactful classes while I’ve been at SPU, taking Theatre Directing with Prof. Candace Vance was incredibly empowering and encouraging. Not only did we direct individual one-acts, but we developed our own directing philosophies throughout the quarter, building upon each new thing we learned. She challenged us to imagine the type of rehearsal room we wanted to run and the concrete practices to make it happen. I was so proud of the work I did in the class, and I refer to my notes and papers from that class all the time!
What do you enjoy most about your major? In each of my majors (theatre, sociology, and Honors), I enjoy the unique lens they offer and the community I get to practice it with. Being a theatre major provided me opportunities to creatively collaborate and perform with my classmates, while being challenged by our professors to answer the question “Why break the golden silence of the universe to tell this story?” I utilized the same imagination in sociology, where my classmates and I used the sociological imagination to explore everything from school segregation to community development. I always felt like I had a safe space to explore and ask questions in my sociology classes. My honors major gifted me an interdisciplinary community of students who loved to learn and from whom I learned how countless different disciplines approached the same topic.
What are you excited for in your future career? I’m most excited to keep building community through art and learning from each new experience I have! Over the next year I’ll be teaching art camps and directing high school theatre, and I can’t wait to get to know my future coworkers and students as I apply what I’ve learned over the past four years.
How have you grown during your time at SPU? While I’ve grown immensely as a theatre maker and sociologist (I didn’t know what sociology was pre-SPU), I’ve experienced the most growth in the ways my classes have formed me into a better community member, learner, and Christian. Because of the learning and leadership opportunities SPU’s classes and clubs have given me, I’ve grown in empathy, decisiveness, and communication. I feel equipped and ready to stay curious as I learn from and care for my future coworkers and neighbors.
What advice do you have for incoming students? Be open to and take interest in all the new experiences, classes, and people around you, then learn how to say “no” to some things as you start to understand what is most exciting and interesting to you! Once you know what you want more of, don’t be afraid to ask about it or create the opportunity for yourself. The answer is always going to be “no” unless you ask!