Student

Leah Gimbutas

School/Division	Robert P. Stiller School of Business
Programs	Game Production Management Degree
Class	2022
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Delaware

Favorite Class

Corporate Social Responsibility.

How has the Upside-Down Curriculum enhanced your education?

With the upside-down curriculum, I’ve had a huge jump start in marketing myself as a young professional. I’m able to tell potential employers about my interactive experiences with project management and facilitating team work ahead of many other underclassmen.

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

I love participating in the Global Game Jam. It’s an incredibly manic weekend where you make a game with your favorite people, and figure out very quickly if your discipline is the right match for you. For me, it was the perfect sign that I really did love game production.

What advice do you have for students thinking about coming to Champlain for college?

If you have a genuine passion for something, and you want a school to support those goals. Champlain is the perfect school for you. It really is incredible how much focus there is on what major you decide on. Ambition is such an important characteristic for a student here!

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Amanda Girard

Class	2017

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Sadie Goldfarb

Class	2020

Graduation Year

20

Organization

Burlington Code Academy

Title

Community Coordinator

How are you using your Communication degree at your job?

I currently work at a Software Development and UX Design Bootcamp based here in Burlington, Vermont. My job title is Community Coordinator, but that is just part of what I do! In this role, I use the skills I gained through my education at Champlain Collegeeveryday. My bosses are constantlysurprised by the breadth of my knowledge. I do not consider myself to be remarkablywise, as I am still new to the workforce, but I do recognize that the Communicationprogram at Champlain gave me experience in every aspect of my job.
A degree in Communication opens up a world of possibilities for you as you make your move from student to professional.

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Evan Goldstein

Programs	Psychology Degree
Class	2021
Pronouns	He/Him/His
Home State	New Jersey
Study Abroad	Shanghai, China and Dublin, Ireland

Internship

Learning and Development Intern at Capgemini in Shanghai, China

Favorite Class

Abnormal Psychology

What’s the most surprising thing you’ve found about Champlain?

The most surprising thing I have found at Champlain is how easy it is to start a new club. When I was a first-year, I began an a capella group called The Burlingtones. After gauging student interest, filling out the required forms, and getting a faculty advisor, I was able to continue my passion for a capella and singing very quickly. You can create a club for anything, really.

Tell us about your internships!

At Capgemini, I was a member of the Learning and Development Team in the Human Resources department. I designed and hosted English Corners, where I presented PowerPoint presentations about various topics that could benefit coworkers. I helped colleagues enrich their English proficiency through these workshops, as well as through small group sessions with executives. I had the opportunity to display and enhance my creativity, communication skills, and leaderships skills through these initiatives.At the Migrant Access Programme, I was an assistant to the various teachers at the non-profit school. I assisted teachers with academic classes and helped students acclimate to Irish culture. I worked with refugees and asylum seekers from Africa, Latin America, and Europe to help them adjust to changes and challenges after immigrating to Ireland. I was able to work with students from unique cultural backgrounds and enhanced my leadership and interpersonal communication skills through group conversations and presentations.At the Salvation Army, I was an intern who mainly worked with teenagers during teen nights. I supervised and engaged teenagers in education and community enrichment programs like talking about bias and diversity. I got the opportunity to work with individuals I might be interested in working with in my future professional career, and was a positive role model to the teens.

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

I perform at The Grind every Tuesday. I either choose to sing, beatbox, or read a piece of literature in an open mic setting. I enjoy how the atmosphere is very welcoming and nonjudgmental. Anyone can perform whatever they wish to perform.. It is great to be able to sing and to listen to the talent of others.

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Jacob Greeley

School/Division	Division of Information Technology & Sciences
Programs	Computer Networking & Cybersecurity Degree
Class	2028
Pronouns	He/Him/His
Home State	Maine

How did you apply to Champlain?

Early Decision

Why I Chose Champlain

I chose Champlain because I instantly felt at home and welcomed when I first visited.

Ideal Weekend in Burlington

Hanging out with friends, enjoying the water, and walking Church Street.

Favorite Champlain Memory

My favorite memory is my second year. My roommate and I got a six-foot foldable table to play Magic: The Gathering on with other friends! We had such a blast with that table!!!

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

Take a deep breath, enjoy the air, and ask each college what the dining hall food is really like, and what is something fun to do around campus.

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Andrew Griffin

School/Division	Division of Information Technology & Sciences
Programs	Game Programming Degree
Class	2024
Pronouns	He/Him/His

Advice to Students?

Start your work earlier than you think you need to.

Favorite: Book, Movie, Podcast?

Book: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

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Lena Groves

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Filmmaking Degree
Class	2020
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	New York
Study Abroad	Dublin, Ireland

Specializations

Sonic Arts and Motion Graphics

Internship

Intern at Dublin Intercultural Language Service in Dublin, Ireland

Favorite Class

Documentary Filmmaking

What makes Champlain special?

I was particularly drawn to Champlain’s small size. It’s perfect because you get to know the people you’re going to class with, and you become close with your professors and mentors. Those relationships allow you to learn as much as possible from the most inspiring people.

Which was your favorite class at Champlain?

My favorite class was my first documentary class because that’s where I found out about the type of work I want to pursue. I also got to work on my own for the first time, which was challenging but rewarding. My project ended up receiving an honorable mention at the Northeast Student Emmys. It made me realize the impact I can have on people by telling their stories to the world.

Are you involved in any extracurricular activities or clubs?

I’m involved in the Women in Film Club and the annual service trip to Uganda. Women in Film is a great space that inspires women and nonbinary students in a male-dominated field of study. We inspire each other to create change and make the future more inclusive for all people in the industry.
I have also helped with the Uganda Service Trip for three years. It’s a great way for students to learn intercultural intelligence while creating meaningful change and fulfilling relationships through service learning.

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Abi Guertin

Programs	Writing & Publishing Degree
Class	2026
Pronouns	They/She

Why do you want to be a tutor?

I chose to become a tutor because I’ve worked as an editor in many of my writing classes and think my skills will be helpful for anyone looking for another set of eyes on their work.

Advice to Champlain Student?

Find a scheduling system that works for you and stick to it!

Fun fact

I love collecting CDs!

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Genevieve Guimond

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Game Design Degree
Class	2020
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Massachusetts
Study Abroad	Montreal, Quebec

Specialization

Interactive Narrative

Internships

Rooster Teeth in Austin, Texas/Double Stallion in Montreal, Quebec

Favorite Class

Principles of Game Design

How has the Upside-Down Curriculum enhanced your education?

Being thrown into teams and development processes immediately at the start of my college career helped me confirm that game design was something I actually wanted to commit to. Without having hands on experience, I feel like we wouldn’t have the chance to understand our future careers nearly as well, not to mention we wouldn’t be as prepared for professional lives after graduation.

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

There are too many to choose from! One game I worked on in the spring of my junior year was a survival game called Lymantria Dispar. It offered me a fascinating challenge when it came to developing and implementing a narrative that, while it wasn’t the focus of the gameplay, really added to the game and improved replayability. I might have torn my hair out a bit trying to develop a variable narrative based on the order players picked items up in, but I was very proud of my work at the end.

Can you tell us about your internships?

After my sophomore year, I interned at Rooster Teeth as the ScrewAttack Writing intern, which meant I contributed to a bunch of scripts that were being published to their YouTube channel (which is now named DEATH BATTLE!). I was able to write solo pieces even as an intern, and when it came time for me to go back to school they kept me on as a contracted writer, which is something I’m still doing! The fall of my junior year, I went abroad to Montreal and interned with Double Stallion as one of two Game Writing Interns. This meant I got to research for their IPs as well as contribute to not only their games’ story and flavor, but also help out with their social media by writing tweets! If you happened to follow that company and you saw a bunch of cryptic tweets about the enemies from their gam, Speed Brawl, taking over the world… that was the interns!

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Evelyn Gustafson

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Filmmaking Degree
Class	2021
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Vermont

Specialization

Sonic Arts

Internship

Fighting Words in Dublin, Ireland

What made you choose Champlain?

I was drawn to Champlain because of Division of Information Technology & Sciences amazing Filmmaking program, study abroad programs, and internship opportunities. Champlain has a really unique Filmmaking program in that it is very non-competitive and everyone wants to support each other. There’s a great sense of community at Champlain, which makes it a great place to learn and grow as a filmmaker instead of just competing against your classmates. In addition, Champlain has smaller class sizes, which makes your experience personalized since your professors and classmates get to know you well and always want to see you succeed.

What’s your favorite Core experience?

One of my favorite Core classes at Champlain was called Kid Heroes and explored the representation of kids as the protagonists in books, movies, and TV shows. I found this class fascinating, as it taught us about storytelling, examined how kids are represented as protagonists in media, and even explored philosophical questions like what it means to be a kid. I really liked how this class related a lot to my major, but also gave me a chance to work with other students who aren’t Filmmaking majors and who I might not have met otherwise.

What extracurricular activities are you involved in?

I always go to the Grind, which is Champlain’s weekly open mic event. I met a lot of friends there and have performed quite a few times, usually playing guitar or ukulele and singing! One of my best friends and I have been performing together at the Grind since our first year at Champlain!

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Dy’mon Guthrie

Class	2021
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	New York
Study Abroad	Dublin (fall semester)

Internship

Student Teacher at Rick Marcotte Central School in South Burlington, VT

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Dymon Guthrie

Class	2020
Home State	New York
Study Abroad	Dublin (fall semester)

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Sean Harple

School/Division	Division of Information Technology & Sciences
Class	2021
Pronouns	He/Him/His
Home State	Oregon

Internship

Intern at the Emergent Media Center in Burlington, VT

What do you like best about your major?

I think the most valuable and enjoyable part for me has been learning how to use graphing and prediction software to analyze different datasets. My class projects have been the most rewarding, analyzing everything from Chipotle sales to sports statistics.

Can you describe your experience working with the Emergent Media Center?

At the Emergent Media Center, I worked alongside a team of other interns to research, develop, and present our findings on emerging technologies. The topics I learned about in class served as a base for me to build on during my internship experience, which also made it easy to bring the skills I learned in my internship back to class. Because of this internship, I have a fuller résumé, and I already have experience in the workforce, which will put me a step above other applicants.

Are you involved with any extracurricular activities?

I participate in Climb Champlain, our rock climbing club. I enjoy it a lot because it’s a fun, full-body workout, and it fits nicely into my schedule.

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Mae Haslam

Programs	Game Art Degree
Class	2027
Pronouns	Any/All Pronouns

Why do you want to be a tutor?

I love troubleshooting and working with people to solve problems. Game Art is a pressure-heavy major sometimes and solutions aren’t always obvious, so I want to help my peers find good resources and develop useful strategies.

Advice to Champlain Student?

Make lists when you feel overwhelmed by big projects. If you break the monolith up into individual steps, it usually stops feeling so insurmountable.

Fun Fact

I once caught a fish with a soup ladle.

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Lily Haut

School/Division	Division of Communication & Creative Media
Programs	Game Art Degree
Class	2027
Pronouns	She/Her/Hers
Home State	Connecticut

How did you apply to Champlain?

Regular Decision

Why I Chose Champlain

I knew I wanted to stay in New England and was thrilled when I saw Champlain not only offered game majors but had a proven, well-known program. It was in the perfect area, a great size, and seemed like such a tight-knit community when I came to visit. I liked how well everybody knew each other and really felt like I could find my place here. Everything felt like it was falling into place when I came to visit.

Ideal Weekend in Burlington

During a warm and sunny weekend, I’d love to head down to Church Street and go to Phoenix Books. I’d buy something fun to read and buy breakfast and coffee at the Burlington Bagel Bakery. Then, I’d either head down to the lake and read my book, or head back up to Finney Quad and read it there. I’d also like to draw and/or paint. Any time spent being creative is very healing to me.

Favorite Champlain Memory

There are too many to count, but a very fond one I have is from the end of last semester. Two of my friends were making a short film for their final, and they enlisted our friend group to act in it. It was an all-hands-on-deck type of thing and we ended up filming until about 11 PM. We were mostly filming in the Morgan Room in Aiken Hall, and while it was a freezing night, it was one of the funniest and most memorable ones of my time here. I also love going down to Church Street with my friends.

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

I don’t think you’ll ever feel fully “ready”. There’s always going to be a level of uncertainty and maybe nervousness, but it’s totally normal. If you give it your best shot, put your best foot forward, then it’ll be much easier to settle in. Focus on the good things and know that while change can be scary, it can also lead to some of the best moments of your life. Don’t make your fear keep you from making the decision you think is truly right for you.

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