Q: WHAT CAN I DO AFTER GRADUATING WITH AN ENGLISH MAJOR?
A: ALMOST ANYTHING:
Temi Omilabu (2017) graduated with degrees in English and Political Science and a Master’s degree in Bioethics. While a student, she landed a prestigious summer internship at the White House reviewing letters from the public to President Barack Obama. After graduation she earned a fellowship advocating for women at Global Health Corps in New York City, and is attending law school at Boston University.
Cameron Macaskill (2017) graduated with degrees in English, International Relations and Affairs and Political Science. She is a Princeton in Africa Fellow in Nairobi, where she works in Grants and Reporting for the International Rescue Committee Kenya program.
Rachel Benish Shirley (2005) graduated with degrees in English and Physics, then earned her Master’s in English from CWRU (2008). She taught English in China, then earned her PhD in Nuclear Engineering at The Ohio State University, where she co-managed the installation of OSU’s Nuclear Power Plant Simulator Facility. She is now a Postdoctoral Researcher at OSU.
Brandon Mordue (2011) earned Bachelor’s degrees in English and Political Science from CWRU, then earned a law degree at Harvard University, graduating magna cum laude. He now specializes in Securities Litigation and SEC Enforcement for Jones Day in Cleveland.
Kayla Gatalica (2010) earned Bachelor’s degrees in English and International Studies from CWRU, then earned a Master’s of Education degree from Harvard University. She is now a Program Officer in the Office of Global Educational Programs, in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, where she supports teacher exchange programs that advance US foreign policy goals and contribute to mutual understanding and peace.
Aaron Perine (2016) earned both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English at CWRU and is now a social media coordinator and producer at CBS Sports Interactive in Los Angeles.
Samantha Flinn (2009) also earned a Masters of Fine Arts at Chapman University in 2011 and since has worked at top entertainment companies such as Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Home Box Office (HBO), and ID Public Relations. In 2016, Flinn started Gold Frame Entertainment, a talent management company which represents actors, writers, and producers.
Katie Steiner (2006) graduated with degrees in English and Art History. Katie was a Research Assistant in the American Paintings and Sculpture Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, then worked as a Curatorial Assistant at The Frick Collection in New York City. She returned to Case Western Reserve to earn her law degree in 2017 (graduating cum laude), and is now an associate specializing in business and intellectual property litigation at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP in Cleveland.
Jenna Leventoff (2010) earned Bachelor’s degrees in English and Political Science from CWRU. After interning at the office of Sen. Sherrod Brown and the American Civil Liberties Union in Washington, D.C., she analyzed the civil rights implications of new technologies at Upturn, and is now a senior policy analyst for the National Skills Coalition in Washington, D.C.
Will Oldham (2017) spent the year after graduation at AmeriCorps, where he worked with more than 100 6th, 7th and 8th graders in a math classroom, accruing more than 1,700 hours of service. He is now earning his Master’s degree at the School of Education and Public Policy at Northwestern University.
Brennon Ham (2011) earned a Bachelor’s degree in English with minors in Women’s and Gender Studies, Sociology, and Studio Art. He served as the LGBT Commissioner for the City of Seattle and is now a Health Education Specialist for Seattle Public Schools.
Geoff Wedig (1994) earned degrees in English and Math. In 2017 he won an Academy Award for Technical Achievement for his role in creating special effects software that allows filmmakers to animate faces. He has worked on films including TRON: Legacy, Maleficent, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. He is a Senior Research Engineer for Sony Interactive Entertainment in California.
Emily Garvey (2010) graduated magna cum laude with dual degrees in English and Management from CWRU, then worked for seven years as a middle school classroom teacher in public and charter schools through Teach for America. She is now the program manager for Code Nation in New York City, where she helps equip students in under-resourced schools with coding skills and professional experiences to create access to careers in technology.
Aquene Kimmel (2018) is earning her Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science at Kent State University.
Susie Gharib (1972) is a Senior Special Correspondent for Fortune Magazine. She co-anchored the PBSTV “Nightly Business Report” for 16 years and has received numerous prestigious awards including the Gracie Allen award (anchorwoman of the year). She was named one of the nation’s 100 most influential business journalists and won the Fulbright Award for furthering global business understanding. She now serves on the Board of Trustees at Case Western Reserve University.
Jessica Walters (2008) worked at three nonprofits before starting as a fundraising specialist at Junior Achievement of Greater Cleveland, where she raised nearly $500,000 annually, then spent more than three years as Development and Operations Director. In December of 2018 she was named President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cleveland.
Hunter Overstreet (2016) is a technical writer for RCG Tax Partners in Akron.
Chrismaly Vidal (2018) is an English teacher at EPIK (English Program in Korea).
Enio Chinca (2017) coaches developmentally disabled adults at the Charles River Center in Needham, Mass., providing daily support in physical health, mental health, hygiene and nutrition.
Alexis Crosby (2013) is Operations and Logistics Coordinator at St. Martin De Porres High School in Euclid, Ohio.
Franchesca Rybar (2015) earned a BA in International Studies and a minor in English from CWRU. She was program coordinator for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and is now the Impacts Manager at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
Jasmine Gallup (2017) graduated with degrees in English and Political Science. She is a staff reporter at the Sanford Herald in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina.
Sierra Blanton (2017) is enrolled in the University of Central Florida’s graduate certificate program in teaching English as a Foreign Language.
Jenna Millemaci (2014) graduated with degrees in English and Environmental Studies. She is a Marketing and Communications Contractor at The Sculpture Center in Cleveland.
Stephen Prest (2003) graduated with degrees in English and Political Science. After attending law school he served as deputy chief in the general crimes section of the United States Attorney’s Office and is now an Attorney-Advisor at the U.S. Dept. of Justice, Professional Responsibility Advisory Office in Washington, D.C.
Annie Nickoloff (2016) is an entertainment reporter at Cleveland.com. She recently covered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions from backstage in New York City.
Abigail Pink (2012) worked as a second grade teacher in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with Teach for America, earned a law degree from Harvard Law School, and is now a public defender in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Natalie Chermak (1995) worked as a senior director of advertising at Polo Ralph Lauren and international marketing manager for Tommy Bahama, and as the creative services/marketing manager for Tommy Hilfiger in New York City. She is now a senior strategic project manager at Weight Watchers in New York City.
Brian Ward (2017) graduated with degrees in English and Political Science (and was student body president at CWRU). He is now a business technology analyst at Deloitte Consulting in San Francisco.
Julia Bianco (2016) earned a minor in Creative Writing through the English Dept. while working as an intern at MTV News. She worked as a digital content producer at Cleveland 19 News, then went on to earn a Master’s degree in Television Producing and Writing from Boston University. She interned at Funny or Die and worked on the documentary “The Silent Soldier and the Portrait.” She now works at Odenkirk-Provissiero Entertainment in Los Angeles.
Noora Somersalo (2015) graduated with degrees in English and Chemistry. She worked as a technical writer at IBM in Columbus, Ohio. She is now earning a Master’s degree in Communicative Disorders and Sciences at the University at Buffalo.
Rowan Emily Wixted (2014) graduated with degrees in English and Economics, interned at HarperCollins Publishers and is now an assistant editor at Oxford University Press.
Alix Kates Shulman (1953) wrote the groundbreaking, bestselling novel Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen. When it was published in 1972, the Saturday Review called it “the first important novel to emerge from the Women’s Liberation Movement.” A lauded civil rights and feminist activist, she has since written three other novels including the award-winning Drinking the Rain.
Sarah Jawhari (2013) graduated with degrees in English and Chemistry. She earned her Doctor of Dental Medicine degree at Case Western Reserve in 2017 and is now a dentist at Manhattan’s Best Dental Care in New York.
David Mansfield (2007) earned his law degree from Duke University, and now serves as an attorney for the Social Security Administration, focusing on administrative law, employment discrimination law and disability law.
Alex Ash (2009) graduated with a BA in Art History and a minor in Creative Writing at CWRU and is now a Marketing Operations Specialist at Duo Security (a Cisco Company) in Cleveland.
Cassie Torrence (2016) teaches at Heart for Change in Bogota, Columbia, and will soon join Teach For America in Florida.
Will Allison (1991) is the New York Times bestselling author of Long Drive Home and What You Have Left. He has since taught creative writing in the MFA program at Columbia University and served as a contributing editor of the Brooklyn-based literary magazine One Story. In 2019 he received an Individual Artist Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.
Marques Winick (2016) graduated with honors in English along with minors in Spanish and Business Management. He then entered the University of Michigan Law School (admitted into a class of 300 from more than 5,000 applications), and has clerked for the university’s Office of the General Counsel.
Jessica Kingsberg (2006) is an orthopedic and trauma surgeon in Las Vegas.
Tom Kondilas (2004) worked as a videographer for WEWS NewsChannel 5 in Cleveland and worked in media production for the Cleveland Browns. He co-founded LESS (Lake Erie South Shore) Productions, which has produced videos for clients including The City of Cleveland, Great Lakes Brewing Company, and American Greetings.
Jill Warren (1981) worked as a Staff Reporter at the Indianapolis Star, then Deputy Press Secretary for the Governor of North Carolina. She is now Communications Director for the Office of State Human Resources in North Carolina.
Chloe Farkas earned degrees in Chemistry and English from CWRU. She is a certified genetic counselor based at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.
Tim Lucas (1981) worked as a Features Writer at the Indianapolis Star, and is now Director of Marketing Communications at Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment.
Lisa Chiu (1993) earned her Master’s in Journalism from The Ohio State University, then worked as a freelance writer for national publications. She also worked as theDirector of Marketing Communications for the College of Arts and Sciences at Case Western Reserve University.
Faris Mustaffa (1990) earned his MBA at the University of Melbourne and is now an executive at Petronas oil company in Malaysia.
Shaun Owens (2006) earned his PhD from the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health, where he is now an assistant professor.
Terry Moir (1984) earned degrees in English and History and an MBA from CWRU. After working as a popular on-air personality in Cleveland radio, she has worked as director of Programming and Sales Marketing at WKYC-TV for the past 20 years.
Ryan Edel (2002) served with the Army 82nd Airborne in Afghanistan, earned an MFA from Johns Hopkins and is now a PhD student in English Studies at Illinois State University.
William Claspy (BA ’88, MA ’93) is now Head of Special Collections and Archives at CWRU’s Kelvin Smith Library.
Miriam Goldman (2010) has started a new position as Technical Documentation and Knowledge Manager at Involta.
Jess Slentz (2017) has accepted the position of Director of Sponsored Programs and Faculty Research at Nazareth College in Rochester, NY. She will be creating initiatives for and supporting undergraduate research on campus and doing faculty development and mentorship, particularly for junior faculty developing projects and seeking funding.
Sabrina Herman (2018) is the managing editor at Hermes Press.
Misia Yuhasz (2009) went to Yale Medical School and now works at Bellevue Hospital.
Adam Luhta (2013) is in the MFA program at Ohio State University.
