Student

Ted Schwinden

Class	2011

Graduation Year

’11

Organization

Muck Rack

Position Title

Account Management Director

How are you using your Communication degree at your job?

I currently oversee the Account Management team atMuck Rack. Based in New York City, Muck Rack is a software as a service used by PR professionals all over the world to identify journalists and establish relationships. A key part of my job is to work closely with PR teams of all sizes to help set them up for success at various levels.
At Champlain, particularly with Nancy as an Academic Advisor, I learned the importance of establishing professional relationships, open communication and dependability, all of which set me up for success in my client-facing career.
At Champlain, the smaller classes and more individualized attention helped me discover my path forward as a Mass Communications graduate. Attending Champlain gave me the preparation and confidence to move from Vermont and join the New York City media market where I have been for the past 8+ years.

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Emma Seidenberg

School/Division	Robert P. Stiller School of Business
Programs	Business Administration Degree
Class	2022
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Rhode Island

Internship

Cheese and Wine Traders, South Burlington, VT

Have you worked on-campus in either a part-time or work-study position? What relevant life skills have you learned?

I have had the opportunity to work in many different positions at Champlain during my time here as a student. I have been an Orientation Leader since my second year. This position really changed my path at Champlain. I have met so many amazing people over the last few years during my role as an Orientation Leader, which gave me a sense of community at Champlain. I also work for Champlain’s Marketing Department as a Social Media Content Creator. This role has honestly changed my life. I am now pursuing marketing roles in content creation after college because of this position, which I had never considered before. This job gave me a passion for photography and really allowed me to be creative and have fun.

What do you like about your professors at Champlain?

The professors at Champlain really want to see you succeed. Countless times I have reached out to professors that I didn’t even personally have in class to gain some guidance on something, and they were always happy to help. Not only are they your teachers, but in some cases, they are friends who help craft you into the person you are today, and they deserve so much credit for that

In what ways do you think your internship experience will give you a competitive advantage when it comes to getting a job in your field after graduation?

My title was the Marketing and Outreach Intern; I ran Cheese & Wine Traders’ social media including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I had many opportunities to collaborate with local brands like Citizen Cider, Zero Gravity, Pickled Pink Foods, and more with giveaways and tastings. My internship with Cheese and Wine Traders was a highly competitive role. I went through a few interview rounds and beat out many people who were much older than me. This gave me a lot of confidence going into job searching post-grad and has shown me that the skills I have obtained the last four years at Champlain are helpful. I was told in my interview how professional I was considering I was still in college.

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Riley Seith

School/Division	Robert P. Stiller School of Business
Programs	Marketing Degree
Class	2022
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Massachusetts

Internship

Fuse Marketing, Winooski, VT

How has your Champlain experience prepared you for your future career, both in and out of the classroom?

The Marketing and Event Management courses I took in my first years helped me feel confident in my career aspirations, which has made me eager to learn and appreciative of the opportunities I have. My early experiences in internships and major-specific courses, as well as other experiential learning opportunities, give me a huge head start in my industry and will help me be successful after graduation.

What extracurricular activities are you involved in? What do you do/why do you enjoy them?

The extracurricular that I am most involved in is Stiller Women in Business. I am the Vice President of the club, and I love coming up with creative and engaging ways to empower women on our campus. Stiller Women in Business is open to all students, even non-business majors and those who don’t identify as female. Everyone will end up in the professional world after graduation, so it is important to prepare everyone for that world, and especially to bring awareness to how women are represented professionally. Stiller Women in Business has changed a lot recently, and each semester is designed with the mission to be inclusive and benefit students by featuring events such as our speaker series, professional seminars that count as InSight milestones, our Semi-Annual Networking Event and more!

What’s the most surprising thing you’ve found/didn’t expect about Champlain (or your experience here) so far?

I didn’t expect to have the opportunities I have had and to be as professionally ahead of the curve as I am. I feel confident in my ability to get competitive internships and think outside of the box. I would never have expected to start an entrepreneurial venture and present it to Senior Vice Presidents at Samsung in my first year at college, but connecting students with outstanding opportunities is a part of the Champlain experience.

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Haley Seymour

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Class	2023
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Vermont

Specialization

Journalism

Internship

Publishing Hub Project through the Emergent Media Center

What extracurricular activities are you involved in? What do you do/why do you enjoy them?

I am currently the Editor-in-Chief of The Crossover, the online student newspaper at Champlain. It can be a lot of work at times, but it is very rewarding. I have a strong passion for journalism, as well as providing the truth and information to people who need it. I also love writing for The Crossover and enjoy discussing what’s going on at Champlain with my other staff members.

What projects have you worked on in classes that you’ve found particularly rewarding?

I really enjoyed working on The Well through my Magazine Publishing class. We actually published an online magazine, and it felt so good to see it come together at the end of the semester. I loved participating in The Well because Magazine Publishing was set up more like a newsroom rather than a class. Of course, we still had assignments and everything, but we all worked together to achieve one final goal: the magazine. I was delegated as a writer for the team, and I got to work with the editing team frequently to make sure my pieces were the best they could be. There were three teams: editing, writing, and design/marketing. We all had different tasks, and we knew how to use the other teams to complete those tasks. I feel like I genuinely know how teams work when publishing a magazine after taking that class.

How did your classroom work prepare you for your internship experience?

I was involved with the Publishing Hub Project through the Emergent Media Center during the spring 2021 semester. Our goal was to inform and get more people across campus involved with student-run publications like The Crossover, Chivomengro, and Willard and Maple. We spent time gathering information about who is currently involved with the publications, who knows nothing about them, and who wants to be involved but doesn’t know-how. From there, we devised a strategy to get publications more widely known around campus. Tanya Lee Stone asked me to take part in this project because of the work I had done so far in college, including my position at the Editor-in-Chief of The Crossover. My classroom work also allowed me to better understand different types of writing, as well as understanding deadlines and necessities for my work, allowing me to be a better intern.

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Robin Shafto

School/Division	Division of Information Technology & Sciences
Programs	Computer Science & Innovation Degree
Class	2018
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	New Jersey

Internship

MakerLab Technician at the Emergent Media Center in Burlington, VT

Post-Grad Job

Software Engineer at LORD Corporation in Burlington, VT

What first drew you to Champlain College?

I loved that Champlain had a maker space that students from every major and year could use. You could even use it for personal projects! I loved the idea of a school that would offer that, and a student body that would make use of it. I wanted to go to a school with those kinds of students.

Now that you've been in the Computer Science & Innovation program for a few years, what is your favorite part of it?

I love how passionate all of my peers are! Everyone has so many personal side projects, so even when we finish our homework, we’re still coding. The program is definitely challenging, but I never feel like I’m doing busy work.

Did you have any experience working at any of Champlain's Centers of Experience?

I work at the Emergent Media Center®, and my job often overlaps with my classes in really exciting ways. I build physical components and write code for games and other interactive experiences. I have learned a lot about working on a team, and I’m much better now at figuring out new platforms and languages without classroom instruction.

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Molli Shuker

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Game Design Degree
Class	2023
Pronouns	She/They

Advice to Students?

Taking care of yourself is your first priority, everything else will follow.

Favorite: Book, Movie, Podcast?

Book: Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Inspirational Quote?

“A sword wields no strength unless the hands that holds it has courage.” – Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

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Aster Shultz

Programs	Game Art Degree
Class	2029
Pronouns	They/Them/Theirs
Home State	Massachusetts

How did you apply to Champlain?

Early Decision

Why I Chose Champlain

I was drawn to the Game Art program at first, but fell in love with the campus and community after coming to a fall open house.

Ideal Weekend in Burlington

Farmers’ market in the morning! Followed by the Burlington Vintage Market and coffee from Brio Coffee Roasters. In the evenings, my friends and I love to go to Al’s French Fries for cheap, delicious burgers and milkshakes.

One piece of advice for students going through the college search process

Find a place with a community you want to be a part of!

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Rebecca Shute

Class	2017

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Michael Silverio

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Game Design Degree
Class	2023
Pronouns	He/Him/His

Advice to Students?

Block out time for work each week and start working on assignments as soon as they are assigned, no matter how far the due date.

Favorite: Book, Movie, Podcast?

Movie: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Inspirational Quote?

“A delayed product is eventually good, but a rushed one is forever bad.” – Shigeru Miyamoto

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Jaskaran Singh

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Filmmaking Degree
Class	2023
Pronouns	He/Him/His
Home State	Vermont

Favorite Class

Advanced Cinematography

Internship

Production & Camera Intern at Class Four Co. in Burlington, VT

Tell us about your internship!

I am a Production and Camera Intern at Class Four Co. I help with most of the production-related work during gigs and in-house shooting. I had opportunities to learn new equipment, meet new people from the industry, and learn industry practices such as speaking with clients, getting paid by the gig, and other industry fluency.

What do you like about your program?

My major is intimate enough that my professors and classmates know who I am, and can help me be who I want to be. That is probably the best part about Filmmaking at Champlain College.

How has your Champlain experience prepared you for your future career, both in and out of the classroom?

Champlain has turned me into a very hungry person. Champlain offers lots of opportunity, and it gives me so many chances to navigate lots of possibilities for my future.

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Colin Skaarup

Programs	Game Programming Degree
Class	2028
Pronouns	He/Him/His

Why do you want to be a tutor?

I want to see my peers succeed and achieve their dreams!

Advice to Champlain Student?

It’s easiest to study when you make it a consistent habit.

Fun Fact

My favorite movie is Spider-man: Into the Spider Verse.

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Jessica Skavicus

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Graphic Design & Visual Communication BFA Degree
Class	2025
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Massachusetts

Favorite Class

Introduction to Typography

So far, what classes, projects, subjects, or experiences have been most meaningful or impactful? What action or change have they inspired?

The classes that have been the most impactful were Digital Image and Art History. In Digital Image, not only have we learned how to properly take a picture and edit it, but also what message we want to communicate through the photo. For instance, we had to take photos of people for a project, and we needed to convey an emotion. In order to do that, we needed to think about camera angle, how we would edit it, and the relationship between the environment and the person. While in Art History, we learned about different works of art and how they have influenced culture and public opinion regarding certain people or events.

What have you gained from Core? Has it changed your perspective?

I’ve gained a lot of knowledge from other students and their stories have changed my perspective about how our society should change. These stories helped me understand events, stories, and feelings that I would not have experienced. My favorite Core class is IDP: Fake Meat. I learned so much about how the U.S. is consuming meat at an alarming rate and how fake meat is a solution.

What does success mean to you?

Success for me is creating a strong portfolio and resume, and getting employed in a design firm that I can integrate into, but remain individualistic.

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Erika Skorstad

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Class	2021
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	New Jersey
Study Abroad	Dublin, Ireland

Specialization

Creative Writing & Literature

Internship

Study Breaks Magazine, San Antonio, TX (remote) and GenZ Publishing (remote)

What do you like about your program?

I’ve had many incredible experiences in the Professional Writing program. The wide variety of writing classes I’ve taken have allowed me to hone in on what I’d like to do in the future; Publishing in the 21st Century has provided me insight into the many different paths and jobs in publishing. For my Capstone project, I’m curating a food-themed literary magazine. I feel that I can do this because I have that extra understanding of the publishing process and Division of Information Technology & Sciences roles. Through my interactive narrative classes, I’ve created an interactive mystery experience that takes place across multiple media platforms. Not only have these projects provided me with valuable experience, but they also make excellent portfolio pieces.

What’s your favorite Core experience?

For my music class in Dublin, we sang traditional Irish songs and played instruments-my favorite was the tin whistle. We even attended performances in pubs. For the final, my boyfriend and I sang a duet of “Falling Slowly” from the Irish movie Once.

Have you worked on-campus in either a part-time or work-study position? What relevant life skills have you learned?

I work as a staff writer for the CCM News Hub and Weathervane. In this position, I’ve had the chance to interview people and practice active listening and sniffing out a story. With the articles I write for Weathervane, I’ve learned to adhere to tight deadlines. I’ve sharpened my communication skills; in addition to communicating with professors and students I interview, I work closely with the managing editor and editor in chief of Weathervane on revisions and ideas about the direction of the magazine. Now, I’m more comfortable collaborating with others, regardless of hierarchies.

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Jon Smith

Class	2025
Pronouns	He/Him/His

Piece of advice to students?

Do your work early in the morning if possible.

What's your favorite book or movie?

Movie: Good Will Hunting Book: Game of Thrones Series

Inspirational Quote?

“Work hard in silence let success be your noise.” -Frank Ocean

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Jack Snyder

School/Division	Robert P. Stiller School of Business
Programs	Marketing Degree
Class	2027
Pronouns	He/Him/His
Home State	New Jersey

How did you apply to Champlain?

Early Decision

Why I Chose Champlain

I wanted to go to a smaller college, and the Marketing program is good here, and that’s what I was very interested in when applying for colleges.

Ideal Weekend in Burlington

If it’s sunny, going to Church Street, or going around town with friends. If its rainy, snowy, or storming, staying inside and hanging out with friends.

Favorite Champlain Memory

Being chosen to play on the Volleyball travel team.

One piece of advice for students going through the college search process

Know what works best for you. If you thrive more in classes with 20 or less people, then Champlain is the perfect place for you to thrive!

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