Alumni Advice
Thankful for Continuing Education at the University of Vermont, Part 2
Several years ago, when my son was in kindergarten, he came home with an art project that was a thankful turkey. In each feather, he listed what he was thankful for and of course, being a six-year child, he wrote in comments such as ‘I’m thankful for my family, dog, monster trucks, and videos.’ I […]
Thankful for Continuing Education at the University of Vermont
How often do you pause and think about something that you are grateful for? Paying attention to how you feel, especially things that you are grateful for can put a positive spin on your day and lead to better mental health. According to a study published on gratitude in the Journal of Personality and Social […]
Elliot Kennedy on Breaking Down the Barriers in LGBT Healthcare
Photo: Elliot Kennedy, left, with Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell Elliot Kennedy JD, realized as an undergraduate that advocating for the LGBT community provided a sense of purpose and fulfillment. The 2009 alum—who helped guide and implement the availability of preferred names in the student information system at UVM—is now the Senior […]
Alumni Advice: How Scott Switzer Found His Niche in the Tech Start-Up Scene
Scott Switzer ’92, co-founder and chief technology officer of Authenticated Digital, has made a name for himself in the competitive world of start-ups. We talked to the UVM College of Engineering and Mathematical Science alumnus about working in business and technology, starting companies from scratch, and finding success. You have been involved as an advisor, […]
Alumni Advice: Danielle Fleury Finds Farm to School Success in the Northeast
Burlington’s progressive values are what first attracted Danielle Fleury to UVM. It wasn’t long after she arrived on campus that she became personally interested in local food systems. While taking an environmental studies course at UVM, she first learned about food as an environmental issue. Later on, while studying abroad in France her junior year, […]
Alumni Advice: Eva Antczak Creates Inspiration at the Google Food Lab
Eva Antczak ’07 is program manager of the Google Food Lab, a platform for people in food policy, farming, corporate food service, healthcare, technology, corporate food companies, and academia to use their knowledge to solve pressing food system issues. We talked to Eva about her senior thesis on Vermont cheesemakers, managing the Google Food Lab, […]
Alumni Advice: Calley Hastings Finds the Sweet Spot in the Specialty Food World
A decade ago, Fat Toad Farm started out as a simple experiment in homesteading. Calley Hastings ‘07 and her family hand-milked a French alpine doe named Jupiter in their Brookfield garage to make goat’s milk caramel sauce for friends and to sell at the local farmers’ market. Back then, the family never dreamed they would […]
Alumni Advice: Michael Banyas on the Rewards of a Career in Public Health
Michael Banyas ’03 is currently a lieutenant commander (LCDR) in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS), one of the nation’s seven uniformed services, and a public health analyst in the Bureau of Primary Health Care within the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. We recently spoke to the Washington, […]
Alumni Advice: Brendan MacKenzie on Creating Strategies for Success
By Sarah Tuff Dunn Brendan MacKenzie ’04 was raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, by a firefighter father and a nurse mother, not realizing how meaningful those role models would be for a financially oriented future. “I came from a blue-collar family, so I didn’t have a whole lot of exposure to the business world while […]
Alumni Advice: Russell Hirschorn on Technology, Meatpacking & Managing Careers
By Sarah Tuff Dunn Russell Hirschorn has plenty of talking points on his résumé—meat-packer at B. Rosen, webmaster at Bedbathstore.com, and systems analyst at Hess Corporation—before his current seven-year stint at Polaris Management, which provides management and technology consulting services to life sciences companies. But there’s one that really stuck with recruiters since he graduated […]
