Interview with Grace Flautherly ’23 Psychology and Gender Sexuality and Intersectionality Studies Double Major From: Portland, Maine
What kind of relationship does Connecticut College have with our host city, New London? I work as a driver for the College’s Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy, shuttling students to their volunteer jobs in the area. I spoke with Grace Flautherly about her volunteer experience with Safe Futures in New London.
I ended up declaring film studies as my major early on in my time here at Conn which has inspired me to pursue some memorable experiences. For example, a couple weeks ago I was asked to document Flo Rida’s set at the Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, CT, on behalf of Respective Collective, an NYC-based production company. My friend MJ, who coincidently lives in the same residence hall as I do, was also brought on because of her experience in concert photography–something that Respective also needed for the event. This ended up being one of my favorite concert cinematography gigs because of the energy that Flo and his team brought to the venue, as well as having grown up listening to a lot of his music. The venue was about an hour away from campus which called for a nice drive. MJ and I caught a nice sunset during the trip. We both agreed that it was really cool to have been able to do this because of our passion for both live concert photography and cinematography; it truly felt like we were living our dream careers for a day.
When I was accepted into the Toor Cummings Center for International Studies and the Liberal Arts (CISLA) in the fall of my sophomore year, I never thought I’d be forced to search for my international internship (which is a traditional part of the CISLA program) during a global pandemic. I also did not think I would be doing a remote internship. I was excited about furthering my Arabic language skills during my study abroad semester in Morocco and then a summer internship, also in Morocco, where I would be strengthening my professional linguistic skills. However, Covid-19 forced me to change my plans.
Is it possible to still have camel moments in your senior year?! By your second week at Conn you will know (and probably will have heard it said a million times) what a camel moment is. We define this as a time (in my case, many times!) that you felt and knew you were meant to be part of this community. For some, this happens before they even begin their first-year. For others it happens at the end of sophomore year, and for me they happen all the time. I had yet another camel moment this fall when I was introduced to a camel alumna who has taken the time to not only help and guide me through the graduate school application process, but has gotten to know me on a more personal level. Ida is a student working towards her doctorate in clinical psychology — the same path that I will begin in the fall of 2021.
Since I was young, I have had a summer job to help pass the time and make some extra money. Last summer, I was accepted into a fellowship with Condé Nast. I was beyond excited because not only would it be my first professional experience for a large company, but it also required me to relocate to New York City, where I have always wanted to live.
Brett Stirling ’21 is majoring in Economics and minoring in Finance and Government at Conn. He is a member of the Entrepreneurship Pathway and is also a member of the Connecticut College men's ice hockey team.
It was a Sunday morning in early July on the southeast side of Hong Kong Island. I jumped on the MTR (the subway) and headed toward Tsim Sha Tsui, one of the busiest districts in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Upon arrival, I noticed the MTR was a little more crowded than usual. Thinking perhaps it was just a busy Sunday, I continued on my trip to the Ladies’ Market in search of a knockoff designer belt that my younger sister was in desperate need of. After spending an hour bartering with the locals and sweating in the Hong Kong heat, I decided it was time to lick my wounds and head back to Aberdeen, on the southwest side of Hong Kong, for the afternoon.
I started working when I turned 15 years old as a hostess at a Chinese-American restaurant and as a camp counselor at the YMCA Sports Camp. Although I really appreciate this work experience, which helped me learn many valuable skills, it was just the beginning of my professional career. Since then, I have graduated high school, completed three years of college and tried many positions in various fields as I continue to search for the best career path for me.
Not very long from now, I’ll be walking down this street every day! Source: Wikipedia
In March, I accepted a position as a patron services associate with Creede Repertory Theatre (CRT) in Creede, Colorado. But I still haven’t figured out how to explain to announce to all of my friends and family that I’m doing this. Perhaps it’s that I’m going through a phase where I barely use social media right now. I’m only logging into my Facebook account a few times a week, and I don’t feel like writing a self-congratulatory post about my future.
Connections matter. The line has retained relevance my entire life. From the day I entered the workforce at age 17, my mom emphasized just how far a connection can take you in life. Little did I know I would end up at a college where connections are integrated into the fabric of the school’s community. In both the curriculum and Conn’s career office, faculty and staff highlight the value of a connection: academic connections, such as cross-listed classes or concepts; employment connections, such as your mom’s co-worker’s cousin. Connections can be big or small but how you utilize them determines their importance.
Last spring I began my search for a summer internship. I was studying in Vienna for the semester, which meant I was unable to meet potential employers for in-person interviews. I applied to several historic preservation organizations, which is something I am interested in pursuing after I graduate, and was offered an internship with Connecticut Landmarks, an organization based in Hartford, Connecticut, that runs several historic properties around the state.
Sitting across from David Grann in my Narrative Nonfiction class.
Recently, a dream of mine came true. Acclaimed author and journalist at The New Yorker David Grann (‘89) joined us in our "Narrative Nonfiction" class. Being able to speak to a writer for The New Yorker was a cool opportunity, but what made the day special was being able to sit with an author and inquire about their entire writing process. When reading, I often compile a long list of questions in my head asking why the author decided to make the decisions they made. The list usually stays unanswered. However, that particular day Grann answered certain questions I’d been eager to know, such as: what does the organizational process look like when writing about a subject laden with so much historical background? My classmates and I also asked him to talk about how he became a writer and how one knows what path to follow in such broad industry. Blanche Boyd, the writer in residence at Conn and the professor of my writing class, assigned The Lost City of Z by David Grann for us to read over spring break. Though not typically the kind of thing I read—a story about adventure, disease and death in the Amazon—I enjoyed this fast-paced tale. It made me want to ask questions.
Pictured here: me, the rather optimistic “lost” tourist and Hadassah, my roommate who dressed as a gypsy. We were celebrating Purim in Israel, which is like a Jewish version of Halloween.
I got bit by a travel bug during my semester abroad in Haifa, Israel. It happened during the flight home to New York as I looked through the pages of my passport. These pages felt empty and I wondered when I would be able to stamp it once more – perhaps numerous times.
I’ve written before about my plans to study away from Conn. Next semester I will be studying at the IES Abroad Vienna Music Program in Austria, but right now, as I enter into the final days of the fall semester, I’m focused on completing my obligations at Conn and making plans for the future. One major part of my pre-study away planning process has been the Office of Career and Professional Development’s Junior Year Action Plan. The plan helps me prepare for the College’s funded internship program next summer.
Guest Blogger Maggie Newell ’19 of Lexington, Kentucky, is a film studies and environmental studies double major. She is the senior fellow for waste reduction in the Office of Sustainability, a representative for the Class of 2019 on Honor Council, and the treasurer of the women’s rugby team.
I love properly sorted waste. My passion for recycling began at a very early age. I was in the recycling club in elementary school, and in middle school I made a fairly embarrassing video with my mom to enter into the Green Team Kentucky Video Festival*...we did not win. At Conn, I have gone on to bigger and better things. I am the Senior Fellow for Waste Reduction in the Office of Sustainability. The Waste Reduction Team works with the campus community to expand and develop programs that will help the College reach its goal to reduce waste generation on campus by 5% by 2018. Needless to say, I know what goes in which bin. As someone “in the know” who cares about recycling I try to spread this information. I hope to steer others down the right path and to the right bins. I’ve gotten mixed results.
Sharon Van Meter ‘20 of Hebron, Connecticut, is a history major anda religious studies minor at Connecticut College. She is the co-marketing director of Wig and Candle, Conn’s student-run theater organization, the social media manager of Cadenza, Conn’s literary and arts magazine, and a student advisor.
Pictured Uncle Harvey and Myself – he calls me “little peanut"
My Uncle Harvey Abramowitz inspires me. To me, he is more than his email signature URGHA (for those who maybe outside our small, close-knit femily*) that stands for Uncle-Rabbi-General-Harvey-Abramowitz. In over 75 years, my uncle has held many careers. But if you ask me he is the most proud of his time as a rabbi and the connections he’s made throughout his life. To some he is their rabbi and an aid during a time of loss. To others he is the man about his small town of Huntington, Long Island. If you ask me, he is my mentor who enjoys bowls and bowls of my Aunt Joanie’s signature “savory” cottage cheese while we write together. He would write sermons and I would write my blog posts! Except now, he has traded writing sermons for assisting me in figuring out my next chapter as he relaxes during his.
Preparing to supertitle the final show at The Kate.
Recently I had the opportunity to supertitle a production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni for Stonington-based Salt Marsh Opera (SMO). This means I was in charge of projecting translations of the opera’s lyrics, which were sung in Italian, above the stage so the audience could understand what the singers were saying. Supertitling an opera is an extremely challenging task that I’m glad I had the opportunity to perform. It requires following along with the singers, conductor and score through almost the entire performance while projecting the correct title at each prescribed moment. It’s almost like playing percussion in an orchestra because of the precision required in being on cue and in sync with the rest of the performers. Needless to say, the intense concentration needed for the three-hour performances made it a very exhausting but fulfilling task.
One of the lovely pictures that I took of Glimmerglass’ Alice Busch Opera Theater while eating breakfast one morning.
As I’ve mentioned previously, this summer I was the public relations intern at The Glimmerglass Festival, an internationally acclaimed summer opera festival near the Otsego Lake in Cooperstown, New York. Glimmerglass presents four fully staged operas each season and many other events including recitals and lectures. My internship had many responsibilities, especially after the season began. I wore many varied hats including assisting with media communications and being the point person for the lost and found.
This past summer, I had an amazing opportunity to write program notes for the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra (ECSO), a professional symphony orchestra that performs at the Garde Arts Center in downtown New London. Program notes are typically blurbs in the programs classical music concerts that tell the audience the history of the music they’re about to hear, and what they should look out for when listening to it. Through my work with the symphony, I’ve been able to make important professional connections and learn more about the world of arts administration, all while writing about and listening to some great music.
Most incoming first-year students are excited about the idea of new classes, new friends and new experiences. One of the last things on their mind is the process surrounding a prospective internship or (yikes) a job down the line. Finding a job was the last thing on my mind too but, luckily for first-year students at Conn, the College begins the process for us right away.
