Alumni Updates: Class Years 2000-09
Archive
Below are archived updates for alumni graduating between 2000 and 2010. Visit the main Alumni Updates page for more updates received this year.
Matthew Plassman '06- BA in English- I don't think I've sent this already, but apologies if I have. This past October I made my first short story sale. "I Am Harry Meers" was published on the website The New Accelerator, which releases a new sci-fi short every Friday. Now, I'm currently chipping away at a novel, among other projects, in my spare time. (01/2019)
William Huberdeau '09- BA in English- No longer with Norfolk Public Schools, I am teaching intro composition at Norfolk State University (with a little karaoking DJing and stagehand work at the NorVa as well on the side). Seeking my Ph.D. for a full-time tenure track position within the world of higher ed. Published some photography with Burningwood Literary Journal and Fusion Arts and have recently visited Lamu Island in Kenya for the Summer Literary Seminars writing program. New Honorary Squirrel albums (my band) due on on Spotify within the next a few months. (01/2019)
Philip Clark '02- BA in English- My second book, In the Empire of the Air: The Poems of Donald Britton (Nightboat Books), co-edited with the late Reginald Shepherd, was published in 2016. I was a summer 2018 MacDowell Fellow in nonfiction writing as I continue work on a biography of H. Lynn Womack, gay publishing and First Amendment pioneer. (10/2018)
Matthew Plassman '06- BA in English- Your Homecoming email's timing proved fortuitous. I saw that message and then a few emails later discovered I had made my first short story sale. The New Accelerator, an online sci-fi anthology, found my piece intriguing enough to pay me a nominal fee to hold it as a possibility for publication. No guarantee it'll make the final cut at this point, but it's still an exciting development for me. (10/2018)
Leonidas Lagrimas '01- BA in English (Honors) and Music- In Fall 2018, I accepted a new position as Assistant Professor of Piano at the State University of New York (SUNY)-Fredonia. Prior that that, I completed a Ph.D. in Music Education/Piano Pedagogy at Florida State University. The decision to double major in Music and English during my undergrad years at William and Mary turned out be the best thing for my academic/professional career! The skills I gained from my English degree in research, writing, communicating, presenting, and critical thought/analysis all helped make my graduate work (and the job application process!) so much smoother. (10/2018)
Cass Morris '07- BA in English- Cass Morris is proud to announce the publication of her debut novel, FROM UNSEEN FIRE, an epic fantasy released April 17th from DAW Books. In a starred review, ALA Booklist praised FROM UNSEEN FIRE as a spellbinding tale of political machinations, comparable to I, CLAUDIUS and GAME OF THRONES. This is the first book in a three-book deal. (04/2018)
Scott Bolin '06- B.A. in English- Tethis, a startup I founded in 2012 just raised $17.6 million to bring a technology to market which makes diapers more sustainable. (04/2018)
Heidi Pennington '05- B.A. in English and Hispanic Studies- I am delighted to announce that my first book has been published (April 2018) by the University of Missouri Press. in *Creating Identity in the Victorian Fictional Autobiography*, I analyze how famous fictional autobiographies such as Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre and Charles Dickens. David Copperfield can lead readers to radically rethink the nature of personal identity. Indeed, the literary subgenre of the fictional autobiography illustrates how identity both in and beyond the text comes to exist through fundamentally fictional processes. More information on the book is available here, at the University of Missouri Press website: https://upress.missouri.edu/9780826221575/creating-identity-in-the-victorian-fictional-autobiography/ (04/2018)
Alex Kyrios '09- B.A. in English- Alex is working at the Library of Congress as an editor of the Dewey Decimal Classification, responsible for maintaining the world's most widely used library classification system. (10/2017)
Matthew Plassman '06- B.A. English- I continue to work as an assistant to two of the writers/executive producers of the television show "Modern Family." As they've tried to create their own shows, my bosses have allowed me to participate in their development process. At the same time, I've decided to refocus my own writing on prose rather than scripts. I had one short story garner an Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future contest for the 1st quarter of 2016 (a sci-fi competition). While I send that story around in search of publication opportunities, I have written a couple drafts of a novella and have started what is turning out to be a second novella. (3/2017)
Heidi Pennington '05- B.A. English and Hispanic Studies- This spring I had a chapter published in the collection /Critical Insights: George Eliot/ (Ed. Katie Peel, Salem Press), entitled "Life, Death, and Identity in *The Lifted Veil*: George Eliot's Experiments in First-Person Fiction." (10/2016)
Meghan Perry Whitehead '06- B.A. English- I now reside in Massachusetts with my husband, Christopher ('07), and our two boys. I am using my experience as an English teacher and author to develop a writing center at St. John's Preparatory School. (10/2016)
Juliana Thompson Owen '07- B.A. English and Secondary Education- After graduating from the College in 2007, I taught English at Grafton High School in Yorktown, VA, for one year. Then, my husband Scott and I got married, and I began teaching at Roanoke Rapids High School in Roanoke Rapids, NC, which is where I have been since. In 2015, I changed roles and became a school administrator. I am now an assistant principal at Roanoke Rapids High School. Go RRHS Yellow Jackets and as always Go Tribe! (10/2016)
Caitlin Weber '08- B.S. English and Biology- Both my husband, Sean Cashbaugh, and I were English majors (class of 2008), and first met in a class in the English department! We are currently living and working in New York City. After college, Sean went on to complete his MA and PhD in American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, graduating in May, 2016. I attended Albany Medical College, graduating with an M.D. in 2012, followed by completion of a residency in Family Medicine in 2015. I am currently completing a clinical fellowship and working towards a M.S. in Epidemiology at Columbia University. (10/2016)
William Huberdeau '08- B.A. English- Starting my fifth year teaching English, Creative Writing, and News Production at Granby High in Norfolk. Writing poetry and fiction has awarded me several small publications, reading and panel events, and international writer residencies. I've been to Lisbon, Iceland, Quebec, Istanbul, Costa Rica, and this winter, the western Sahara in Morocco. (10/2016)
Alex Kyrios '09- B.A. English- Alex Kyrios is currently working as an editor of the Dewey Decimal Classification (the world's most widely used library classification system!). He's working at the Library of Congress and employed by OCLC, a library nonprofit based out of Ohio. Previously, he was an academic cataloger at the University of Idaho and the Folger Shakespeare Library, having earned a master's degree in library science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. (10/2016)
Jason James ’02- B.A. in English, This summer I will self-publish my first novel titled "ANOM: Awakening" through Amazon. For me, this is the realization of a life-long dream -- one that I pursued during my time at the College. "ANOM: Awakening" will be available on Amazon starting June 25, 2016. For more information, visit www.jasonrjames.com (4/2016)
Christopher Adams ’08- B.A. in English, after completing an MA in Chinese literature at the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London), I moved to Shanghai on a Fulbright scholarship, to work on playwriting projects. I now live in London where I am the administrator of the London Rare Books School at the Institute of English Studies. My short plays have appeared in London, Birmingham, Dublin, and Shanghai, and my first full-length play will be produced in May 2016. (4/2016)
John Bavoso ’07- B.A. in English and Government, John Bavoso's short play, Adam & Steve, will have its world premiere in Sydney, Australia, on January 23 and 24, 2016, as part of the Short+Sweet Sydney festival. (12/2015)
Aaron Mosby ’05- B.A. in English and American Studies, co-wrote and served as assistant director for a dog & pony dc (http://www.dogandponydc.com/) theatrical production called, "Squares" (http://www.dogandponydc.com/squares) which enjoyed two runs in 2015, the first in May at the Cincinatti Fringe Festival and the other in July at the DC Capital Fringe Festival.
"Squares" is one of dog & pony dc's newest projects, exploring systems of privilege and coded language in the context of playground games. How do you square inequality with the American dream? And how can jump ropes, rubber balls, and sidewalk chalk help us find out? (10/2015)
Peter Baxter ’05- B.A. in English, I am in my second year of teaching English at American Collegiate Institute in Izmir, Turkey. (9/2015)
Michael Tubbs ’01- B.A. in English, was recently selected to lead the communications office at the NASA Shared Services Center at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. We provide administrative support in the areas of Financial Management, Procurement, Human Resources, and Information Technology to NASA's field Centers nation-wide. I have been with NASA since 2006. (9/2015)
Lea Brumfield ’07- B.A. in English and Environmental Studies, moved to Charlottesville and just started a Master's program in Urban and Environmental Planning at UVa, with expected graduation 2017. Currently working with UVa's Institute of Environmental Negotiation. (9/2015)
Sarah Hudgins Nicholls ’03- B.A. in English and M.A. Ed in Elementary Education, I am currently teaching 6th grade reading and language arts in Nashville, Tennessee and am the English department chair. My husband and I just had our first child, a boy, on May 1st. (9/2015)
Amanda Stanley King ’04- B.A. English Literature, After 3 exciting years living abroad in Australia, I've returned to the US. My husband (Andrew King, '05) and I are now living near Knoxville, Tennessee. He's working at Oak Ridge National Lab as a soil microbiologist and I've just started a job as Digital Communications Strategist for Pyxl, Inc. (12/2014)
Will Huberdeau ’09- B.A. English, I'm a writer and a poet and I teach English and journalism at Granby High School in Norfolk, VA.. (11/2014)
Rochelle Zuck ’01- B.A. English, was awarded tenure and promotion to Associate Professor of English at the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she teaches early American literature. (10/2014)
Charlene Smith ’05- B.A. English and Theatre, in 2014, Charlene finished her graduate school education, receiving a Master of Letters and Master of Fine Arts in Shakespeare and Performance from Mary Baldwin College in partnership with the American Shakespeare Center. As part of her MFA work, Charlene was the head editor on a book of essays about the MFA year, "Rogue Shakespeare: Scholarship and Stagecraft in an Ensemble-Based MFA Company." Charlene is currently the Artistic Director of Brave Spirits Theatre in Washington, DC. (10/2014)
Melissa Daniels ’08- B.A. English, in Aug. 2014, I graduated with my M.A. in English from The Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College. I'm so thankful for the ways that the William and Mary English Department Faculty prepared me to pursue graduate school in English through challenging coursework and thought-provoking class discussions. (9/2014)
Alex Kyrios ’09- B.A. English, has been a cataloger at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., after two and a half years in a similar position at the University of Idaho. He's thrilled to be at an institution focused on excellence in the humanities, and appreciates the work English faculty at W&M did to set him on this path. (9/2014)
Carrie Gross Brady '06- B.A. English- After spending the first six years after graduation as an archivist for the Maryland State Archives (not as glamorous as it sounds, but lots of good experiences) and working for a Masters of Library and Information Science at Catholic University, I landed a job as a catalog and index librarian at the Maryland General Assembly's Department of Legislative Services. Hoping to work towards a job in rare books and special collections somewhere in Maryland or DC. I still think fondly of many of my classes and professors at W&M! (09/2014)
Alex Kyrios '09- B.A. English- In July, I started a new job as a Cataloger at the Folger Shakespeare Library! Following two and a half years in a similar position at the University of Idaho, it's great to be back in the world of literature and humanities. (09/2014)
Elizabeth Lathrop '03- B.A. English- I have a tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor of Film at Georgia Perimeter College. My minor at W&M was film. (09/2014)
Matthew Plassman '06- B.A. English- Returned to Modern Family for its sixth season (my fourth) in May, but now as the writers production assistant. (09/2014)
Megan Gallagher Bailey '05- B.A. English- Megan has recently went through a teacher certification program to teach English. While waiting on a job opportunity, she has been working on her writing. She was published this past summer by Occupy Magazine on a local school issue, and is in the final stages of submitting her novel to publishers. In the meantime, she and her husband found out that they have a wonderful baby nerd on the way, due in late April. Gareth Killian is expected to be as brilliant and funny as his parents. (12/2013)
William Huberdeau '09- B.A. English- I just wanted to alert you that I am the graduating class of '09, not '12 as is stated on the website. Please update at your convenience. Otherwise, to add: "He has also accepted an artist in residency position in Olafsfjordur, Iceland for the summer of 2014." (12/2013)
Rachel Olcheksi Doboga '09- B.A. English- After receiving my B.A. in English and M.A.Ed. in Secondary English Education at William and Mary, I became the fifth and sixth grade English teacher at the Congressional Schools of Virginia in Falls Church. I absolutely love teaching, and I never would have realized this is how I am meant to share my passion for books if not for the professors who took the time to help me get to know myself as a reader, writer, and educator. I owe everything to the professors of William and Mary! My big project right now is building the support for creative writing opportunities and publications at my school. Specifically, I am attempting to launch a creative writing blog and literary magazine which will hopefully both be student-run after we achieve some initial organization and editing controls. Also, if there are any authors who are looking for connections to schools, my middle school (grades 5-8) is very eager to arrange author visits and encourage our many enthusiastic readers and writers. Side note: I am writing a novel in my very limited free time, and I would love to connect with fellow writers and alumni to talk about "the craft." Feel free to get in touch about teaching, author/editor talks, or writing via email! (12/2013)
Elizabeth Kalocay Ufkes ’01- B.A. English and Art History, an associate attorney with the Norfolk law firm of Swartz, Taliaferro, Swartz & Goodove, P.C., has been selected as a member of "Virginia's Legal Elite for 2013" by Virginia Business Magazine. Beth was nominated by her peers as one of the best in the profession in the "Young Lawyers (Under 40)" category for the second year in a row. Beth practices in the areas of personal injury law and criminal defense. She and her husband Gordon reside in Virginia Beach and are expecting their second child in December. (11/2013)
Vincent Barr '08- B.A. English- Vincent is the online marketing manager at MongoDB, the open-source NoSQL database. He is interested in startups, growth, and your MBTI. (11/2013)
Lauren Terrill '07 - BA English, French Lauren writes: "I moved to New York directly after graduation to attend NYU's Summer Publishing Institute. After that program and a couple of internships at various magazines, I worked for two years as a Fashion Editor at Niche Media, a luxury regional lifestyle magazine publisher. I've recently switched over to be a Managing Editor at the same company, working on Boston Common, Michigan Avenue (Chicago) and Art Basel Miami Beach magazines, all from our New York City headquarters. (2010)
Camille Thompson '05 - tell us, "I earned a Master's in Library and Information Science from Rutgers in 2007 and have been a librarian at the New Brunswick Free Public Library since earning my MLIS, first as a reference librarian, and since 2008 as the Young Adult Librarian. I love helping teens get excited about books. I especially enjoy the kids who claim they hate reading to start with, and end up coming back to me gushing about the last book they finished and asking for more. It is a very fulfilling job! (2010)
Elizabeth Derby '07 - Elizabeth writes: "I chronicle the pratfalls and heavy questions of the quarter-life Crisis, at doctorderby.blogspot.com. I also log a number of embarrassing of myself to better illustrate the hilarity of the troubling, tremendous condition of life at age 25." (2010)
Meghan (Whitehead) Perry '06 - BA, MA Ed ('07) - Megan tells us, "I completed my MFA in Creative Writing at Emerson College in 2009. Since then, I have published several short stories, married Chris Perry (class of 2007), and moved to northern New Jersey, where I work as a high school English teacher and freelance editor. (2010)
Rachel (Olcheski) Doboga '09 - A few months after graduating, I got married to the love of my life and went on a wonderful honeymoon to Rome. I began my career when I worked as a Public Awareness and Outreach Intern at the Kennedy Center. After my internship, I worked at a learning center teaching English. I realized I belong in the classroom and have returned to William and Mary as a graduate student in the School of Education pursuing my M.A.Ed. I expect to graduate in 2012. (2010)
Kaitlin Farrell '05 - writes, "I graduated with honors from the University of Texas School of Law in May 2010. I am working as a Fellow at the University of Texas Domestic Violence Clinic, which provides legal aid to victims of domestic violence in Austin, Texas. (2010)
Jessica (Miller) Muller '06 - writes that she "completed n M.A. in History of the Book at the University of London and currently working as Education and Communications Coordinator in the International Outreach Department at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, where I travel regularly with medical students to Honduras, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic. I am also taking classes part-time toward a Ph.D. in Instructional Design. (2010)
Matt Shallenberger '00 continues to perform for Blue Man Group in Chicago. In July 2006 he was 
named one of Chicago's "most desirable singles" by Chicagomag.com. Here's his recent photography. (2006)
Julie Griffiths Maxfield '01 served at-risk high school students for three years near Portland, Oregon. She now works at Reed College in Career Services. She's also been working on an MA in American Literature from Portland State and owns a coffeeshop and vintage clothing store with her husband Jason ('02). She says the college setting makes her nostalgic for W&M. (2007)
Maayan Heller '02 completed an M.A. in Print & Multimedia Journalism at Emerson College in Boston in 2006 and has been writing freelance articles on health, fitness, and wellness since 2005. She also works full time as the Communications Coordinator at a private school on Chicago's northside. (2007)
Adam Keith Pfeffer MA '02 is now Director of National Accounts at Time Warner Book Group. He previously worked at Harper Collins Publishers, Perseus Books Group, and Borders Group, Inc. (2006)
Megan Gallagher Bailey '05 has recently started at the Christian Medical & Dental Associations as a web developer. She is currently house-hunting and continues to expand her personal library (hence the need for a big house). (2007)
Joseph Riippi '05 has been working as a freelance writer and advertising copywriter in New York. He has been writing about music and art for several small-run magazines ("available in only the most obscure Barnes and Noble magazine racks") and writing commercials for consumer ad agencies. He won the Farmhouse Magazine Annual Fiction Prize in July, and will begin part-time work towards an MFA in Fiction at the City College of NY in the fall of 2007. His apartment, he notes, is the same size as his room in Monroe. (2007)
Meredith (Kat(i)e) (Brown) Warrington '00 English/Psychology - "I completed my Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition at the University of Louisville in 2008. I am an Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas at Dallas. (2010)
Julie (Griffiths) Maxfield '01 - "After six long years as a part-time student, I finally completed my M.A. in American Literature at Portland State University in June of 2010. My full-time gig at Reed College in Portland, OR, has evolved into a role in the Academic Support Office. I supervise our peer tutors and coordinate the Writing Center in addition to running study skills workshops and working one-on-one with seniors working on the mandatory thesis project. Fun stuff! (2010)
Jasmine Ferebee – '08 I hope this email finds you in high spirits! My name is Jasmine Melahn Silver Ferebee. I am an English and Psychology alum from the College of William and Mary ('08). I am writing you to ask for your help in informing current William and Mary English students, as well as English alum, that I am the founder and editor of RED OCHRE LiT, an online literary journal. My staff and I are looking to publish our inaugural issue Jan 2011. We are currently open for submissions, striving to publish premier, contemporary literature. We are interested in poetry, fiction, nonfiction and short chapbooks. I would appreciate it if you would read about the journal below and consider sending a mass email to my peers about RED OCHRE LiT. We have received a number of national and international submissions, however, nothing would be greater than to review work from my WM siblings! Thanks so much for your time and consideration.
While our primary goal is to showcase the work of experienced authors, we will feature emerging writers in each issue as well. To help give this new population of writers a voice, we will randomly select one individual to interview about his/her journey to publication. We are a multicultural journal and we venerate voices from around the world. We take pride in national and international writers, whose work is both innovative and captivating. We are currently open for submissions. Detailed submission guidelines can be found on the website.
Warm regards, Mimi Ferebee, Editor-in-Chief RED OCHRE LiT www.redochrelit.com (2010)
Steve Kistulentz - My first book of poems, THE LUCKLESS AGE, recently won the Benjamin Saltman Award and will be published on February 1 by Red Hen Press. MacArthur Genius Grant winner Campbell McGrath said this about the book: "THE LUCKLESS AGE captures the wicked energy and anarchic entropy of American culture and so gives voice to an age, a place, a human life. This is an auspicious and heartily welcome debut," while National Book Award finalist David Kirby says, "What a lush book, one that teems with life the way the Amazon Basin does; there's poison everywhere but vitality, too."
More information about my work and the book is available at my website, www.kistulentz.com.
This is a journey that began in David Jenkins' creative writing classroom many years ago (1986 to be precise). After a 15-year career in politics, I was admitted to the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where I was the Joseph and Ursil Callan Scholar, and from there completed my doctorate at the Florida State University, where I was the Edward and Marie Kingsbury Fellow for Excellence in Thought, an award given to the outstanding graduate student in the college of Arts and Sciences. I am currently in my second year as an assistant professor of English at Millsaps College in Jackson, MS.
My work has appeared in many anthologies and literary magazines. Mark Strand selected a poem for inclusion in the 2008 edition of BEST NEW POETS, and Mark Doty included me in the HELEN BURNS POETRY ANTHOLOGY: NEW VOICES FROM THE ACADEMY OF AMERICAN POETS.
In the spring I will be traveling a bit to promote the book and I'd welcome the opportunity to read at my alma mater, and visit with undergraduates considering graduate study in creative writing. Please let me know if there might be an opportunity to do so.
I'd also like to pass along my sincere condolences at the passing of Professor Jenkins. If you think it is appropriate, I'd like to send a short written memorial that could be read at the gathering in December, or perhaps shared with your colleagues. Please let me know. (2010)
Terri (Bendyna) Payne '03 - English and International Relations (Middle East) - Terri tells us: "After law school at Washington University in St. Louis, I went to work for the Federal Government in 2006. I lead the Financial Rescue Unit at the Office of Management and Budget in the Executive Office of the President, where I've had the opportunity to manage such programs as the TARP, financial reform legislation and implementation, and the banking and financial regulators (SEC, FDIC, etc.). In my free time, I still write and work at whittling down my ever-growing reading list. My husband Aaron (also an English alum; now a tax attorney) and I live just off Rock Creek Park with our dog, Charlie. (2010)
Chris Sharp '02 - English & Government tells us, "I am beginning my fourth year as a Litigation Associate at Blank Rome LLP in Philadelphia. (2010)
Tom Campbell '03 - writes: "I worked for 6 years as a grant writer for the New York Restoration Project, and other environmental nonprofits in NYC. Last year, I began working towards a Master's degree in Landscape Architecture at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. (2010)
Elizabeth (Lorge) Collins '04 - writes: “I'm a feature writer at Soldiers magazine, which is the U.S. Army's official magazine and recently received the DOD's Thomas Jefferson Award as its flagship magazine writer. I am also working on my Master's in nonfiction writing at Johns Hopkins. (2010)
Reneta Green '03 English (and Sociology) - "I received my J.D. from Marshall-Wythe School of Law here at William and Mary in 2009. I took and passed the Delaware Bar Exam as well that year. I served as the judicial law clerk for The Honorable Robert B. Young of Kent County Superior Court in Dover, Delaware from September 2009 until August 2010. I am now currently employed as civil insurance defense attorney with the Dover, Delaware firm of Young & McNelis. Additionally, on August 27, 2010, I got engaged!!! 2010 has been a huge year for me! (2010)
Megan (Rudolph) Sever '00 - writes: "For the last seven years, I've been working at Geotimes Magazine and then EARTH magazine, first as a writer and then as the managing editor for the last four years. I live in Portland, Ore., with my husband (who I started dating freshman year at W&M) and our critters - two cats and a dog. (2010)
Kristen (Schaub) Pollard '08 - writes: "I was recently accepted to the Curry School of Education at UVA. I began the 2-year graduate program this fall to get my Master's in Teaching in English Education, with a Virginia license to teach in secondary schools. (2010)
Megan O'Connor – '09 Bachelor English, Art & Art History After interning at James Monroe's Ash Lawn-Highland and then teaching nature-based art with the Lewis and Clark Exploratory Center, I am currently the Education Coordinator at the Museum of the Gulf Coast in Port Arthur, Texas. (2010)
Jennie Carey – '04 Jennie writes: "After graduation, I taught English for 4 years in Annandale VA whileworking in various nonprofits on the side, dancing with DC Casineros, and playing in the Cuban salsa band "Orquesta Ashe" I left to complete earn my masters in School Leadership and School Development from Harvard's Graduate School of Education and now live in Los Angeles working with the Los Angeles Education Partnership to implement community schools strategies and dancing with AfriKSineras. (2010)
Diana Fakhouri – '09 BA English I'll be starting a new job as an Education and Marketing Manager with Junior Achievement of Central VA, a Richmond non-profit, where I will be handling the group's communications and social media applications as well as volunteer management. (10/2011)
Melissa Sutton Higgins – '01 BA English I probably should have updated much sooner, but I completed my MA in Writing (focus in fiction) from Johns Hopkins back in May 2009. I also got married last October (hence the name change)! (10/2011)
Amanda Stanley King – '04 BA English I just recently finished a 6-year position as Marketing & Promotions Manager for Boulder Book Store, one of the largest independent bookstores in the country. It was the most fun that I've ever had at a job--not only did I get loads of free books, but I was also able to work with many of my favorite authors, such as Neil Gaiman, Yann Martel, and the late Brian Jacques. I am now living in Canberra, Australia where my husband (Andrew King, W&M Class of '05) has a post-doc position at The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). (10/2011)
Jessica Baab Crocker – ’06 BA English After graduation, I received an MS in criminal justice from VCU in December of 2007. While pursuing that, I got a job with Circuit City's web fraud team. From there I went to the debit fraud team at Capital One and have recently switched from an investigator to a business analyst in the same department. (10/2013)
Megan Sever Rudolph – ’00 BA English and Geology In August, I hit my 10th year at EARTH Magazine. I worked there for three years as a staff reporter and have been managing editor for seven years. I work remotely from Portland, Ore. Several years ago I began a mentorship program for aspiring science writers who have little to no experience. (10/2013)
Heidi Pennington – ’05 BA English and Hispanic Studies In May 2013 I graduated with my Ph.D. in English and Comparative Literature from Washington University in St. Louis, fulfilling an aspiration that was first conceived in my English classes at W&M. In the upcoming academic year I will be a post-doctoral fellow at Washington University, teaching undergraduate courses in composition and literature. (10/2013)
Brittany McElwee – ’09 BA English Working for Scholastic Inc. as a Logistics Coordinator in New York. (10/2013)
Mary Zagrobelny – ’09 BA English and Sociology I am currently a graduate student pursuing my MA in Theology and Christian Ministry at Franciscan University of Steubenville. (10/2013)
William Huberdeau ’09 BA English Will Huberdeau is now working as a 9th grade English teacher at Granby High School in Norfolk, Virginia. He also teaches Journalism at the school, taking charge of the newspaper and the PBS Student Reporting Labs. (10/2013)
Alexander Stathes – ’03 BA English I received my PhD from the Department of English and Creative Writing at The University of Wales, Aberystwyth in May of 2010. My area of study was Creative Writing and Literary Analysis, and my dissertation focused on psychoanalytic criticism and Jungian conceptions of the collective unconscious. (10/2013)
Erin Shannahan – ’09 BA English After earning her Master of Arts in Arts Management from George Mason University and working for a year in visitor services at the world-famous Ford's Theatre, Erin recently joined the staff of DC's Theater J as Director of Patron Services. (10/2013)
Matthew Plassman – ’06 BA English After four years of paying my dues in the Paramount Studios' mailroom, I've finally taken a step closer to becoming a television writer. On Halloween, I started a new job as a production assistant on ABC's 'Modern Family'. (10/13)
Philip Clark '02 B.A. in English. After graduation, I began a multi-year collaborative project that became the book "Persistent Voices: Poetry by Writers Lost to AIDS" (Alyson Books, 2010), which led to a series of readings in cities all over the country. I've continued and expanded the research into gay and lesbian literature and history that I began at William & Mary, with my most recent essay, about Washington D.C.'s Guild Press and gay male identity formation, set to appear in "1960s Gay Pulp Fiction: The Misplaced Heritage" (University of Massachusetts, forthcoming). I've been invited to give presentations on topics related to this essay at the "Radically Gay: The Life & Visionary Legacy of Harry Hay" conference at CLAGS in New York City in September and at the D.C. Historical Studies Conference in October. (10/2013)
Heidi Pennington '05 B.A. in English and Hispanic Studies. This spring I was thrilled to be awarded one of Washington University in St. Louis' Center for the Humanities Graduate Fellowships for the fall of 2012. I look forward to working with the Center for the Humanities as I complete my dissertation project in English and Comparative Literature that explores the nature and function of fictionality. I expect to receive my PhD in the spring of 2013, and I have William and Mary to thank for giving me the training and sparking my passion to pursue an academic career in teaching as well as research. (10/2013)
