2017 Alumni Board Faculty & Student Awards

In recognition of their outstanding achievements in leadership, teaching, innovation, and community engagement, five deserving individuals were presented with CAL Alumni Board Awards at the annual CAL Alumni Board Faculty & Student Awards Reception hosted by the College of Arts & Letters on April 1. This year’s award recipients include: Paul Varg Award Ellen McCallum McCallum is a Professor in the…

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Theatre Production Showcases Interdisciplinary Work

Much work from College of Arts & Letters students, faculty, and alumni has gone into the Williamston Theatre’s current production – Michael Gene Sullivan’s adaptation of 1984 by George Orwell. Kirk Domer, Chair of the Department of Theatre, on the set of "1984" at the Williamston Theatre. Kirk Domer, Chair of the Department of Theatre, was the set designer for the play. Several…

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Expanding Theatre Skills Through Audiobook Narration

Once considered just for the blind, audiobooks are the fastest-growing format in the book business today, giving the acting field a new way of expressing itself. Christina Traister recording an audiobook for Brillance Audio. Finding a place in this billion-dollar industry are Christina Traister, Associate Professor of Acting and Movement at MSU, and Emily Sutton-Smith, who received an M.F.A. in…

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Helping India’s Most Marginalized to Find Their Voices

In her native country of India, Kamini Prakash, 1994 Ph.D. in German Studies alumna, advocates for people who lack one of life’s most basic necessities: access to clean, safe bathrooms.  Much of India lacks toilets, running water, and sewer systems, and about 550 million of the country’s nearly 1.3 billion people relieve themselves in alleys and streets, alongside rivers, and elsewhere,…

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From Ph.D. to Successful Comic Book Writer

A life-long lover of films and graphic novels, College of Arts & Letters alumnus Greg Wright is using his Ph.D. in Contemporary American Literature and Film from Michigan State University as a successful comic book writer. The author of the graphic novels Wild Bullets and Monstrous first considered writing screenplays after earning his Ph.D. in 2007, but soon discovered he enjoyed writing graphic novels…

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Alumna Named Director of Programs for Big Ten Academic Alliance

Philosophy alumna Katherine Galvin is the new Director of Programs for the Big Ten Academic Alliance, effective January 3, 2017. In her new role, Galvin leads a team of professionals in support of programs such as the fiber-optic network linking member campuses; the acclaimed Academic Leadership Program; and large-scale research collaborations in traumatic brain injury and health equity. In addition, she…

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Alumnus Experiences Many Cultures Through “Epic” Job

After graduating with a major in English and an emphasis on Creative Writing and Film Studies, MSU alumnus Dakota Morgan was unsure what he wanted to do with his degree. He was accepted and attended law school for a year, but then learned about Epic, a healthcare software business located in Madison, Wisconsin. He applied for a position with the…

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Recognized Worldwide, Theatre Alumnus Got His Start at MSU

Theatre alumnus Bernard White is recognizable worldwide from having performed extensively on stage, TV and film. The veteran actor has had a long and successful career, spanning more than 30 years, which can be traced back to his time as an undergraduate student at Michigan State University. It was at MSU where he took his first acting class, performed in…

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Recent Alumna Completes Mural for MSU Program

A full-size mural for Michigan State University’s newly introduced Undergraduate Entrepreneurship and Innovation program is the work of recent Studio Art alumna Mia Serafini, who graduated in May 2016 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and Graphic Design. Serafini was selected to paint the mural after being invited to submit a proposal, which included a sketch and a…

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