Recent Posts

A Network of Possibilities

Posted on September 13, 2017October 16, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

Clarke Waldrop ’14 Clarke Waldrop, who graduated with a theater degree from Transylvania University in May, is proving that premise wrong in her career with the National Geographic Channel in Washington D.C. Clarke is associate producer of ad sales creative, creating on-air promos for the channel’s programming and advertisers. And she credits her Transylvania education for helping her land her first job in TV. “Transylvania opened up doors for me,” she says. “It didn’t matter that I didn’t have these classes that students at other schools may have taken—Transylvania taught me the skills that I could apply to any job. It gave me the writing skills to be able to write these scripts, and I’m learning very quickly, which I think Transylvania taught me, as well.” Clarke’s position has her integrating promotions for the shows that air on the National Geographic Channel and NatGeo Wild with specific advertisers. So she might create a spot highlighting the latest blockbuster movie and the NatGeo show “Alaska State Troopers” by figuring out how to meld the two into one 10-second piece. “I like the creativity of that,” she says. “It’s challenging me because I not only have the freedom to write creatively about the shows, but I’m challenged to put the brand in, as well. I love being able to work with editors and designers and production houses.” “Transylvania taught me the skills that I could apply to any job. It gave me

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Career Preparation

Posted on September 13, 2017June 19, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

More Than Money Transylvania is a leading advocate for the liberal arts, so it makes sense the university would prepare its future grads for more than just a high-paying job to keep up with the Joneses. The school’s career and mentoring programs provide skills and experiences that are not only desired by employers—increasing the likelihood of a nice paycheck—but also those that help the grads find personal fulfillment both on the job and off. “In working with students as they select majors and investigate careers, we want to examine their values, skills, personalities and interests as well as learn more about the world of work,” said Mike Nichols, a psychology professor and career counselor. Transylvania facilitates real-life career experiences that can show students pathways they didn’t even think possible and free them from self-imposed limitations such as: I’m an accounting major so I should be a CPA. (After all, the “liberal” in “liberal arts” is derived from the Latin word for free.) Through programs such as the 100 Doors to Success mentoring initiative and internships (academic or otherwise) facilitated by the university’s Career Development office, students travel beyond the Transy bubble to learn about an array of career possibilities—often stepping outside their comfort zone. “It’s like Baskin Robbins: 31 flavors,” said Susan Rayer, director of career development. “Taste test. Go out and see what you like to do.” It’s not likely Rayer will let this ice cream sit around long

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Business as Unusual

Posted on September 12, 2017June 19, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

Pioneers Never Settle Whether it’s ride-sharing or mixology or apparel, students are making their way into a huge variety of fields in a fluctuating job market. What is it about Transylvania that encourages its graduates to find success in arenas that are not always in line with their degrees? Why won’t these students settle for business as usual? You’re sitting in the middle of a pristine lake, surrounded by evergreen trees and picturesque, snow-capped mountains. Look up, and the red-orange sky begins to turn a vivid blue; look down, and you can see a school of fish nipping at the surface of the calm water. To your right, you hear the sound of a train chugging around the perimeter of the lake, a long trail of black and gray smoke following behind. As you watch it move steadily past, it begins to turn left, making its way impossibly toward the water and toward you. Suddenly it hits the shoreline, kicking up a huge wake and picking up speed as it comes directly your way. You start to look around, wondering if you should move or whether this is just a trick of the imagination. As the engine gets closer, your pulse quickens—it’s right on you—and as you brace for the impact, the train explodes into a flock of birds, darting past you in an overwhelming swarm. You have just had your first experience with the awe-inducing, sometimes disorienting, technology of virtual reality.

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Unlearn Fear + Hate

Posted on September 12, 2017June 19, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

An Intervention Into the LIfe of a City Through Art Professors Kurt Gohde and Kremena Todorova have ventured from the corner of Third and Broadway to create art projects that are far from what you might associate with Transy. Their new project, Unlearn Fear + Hate, also takes shape off campus—for instance, as a metal halo bearing the message attached to the 21c Museum Hotel in downtown Lexington. But the saying was so powerful and timely that Transylvania incorporated it into the very fabric of this academic year—from endowed lectures to an embroidery project. Todorova, associate professor of English, didn’t want unlearn fear and hate to become just words that students occasionally heard about something going on “out there”—a noble idea, of course, but not terribly meaningful to them. Gohde, professor of art and chair of the Fine Arts program, was on board with that. “We’ve never done anything where the whole campus community was involved, and that was a really exciting idea,” he said. The theme ties into a dialog happening on the national level—and into the university’s overall calling, said Laura Bryan, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the university. “These conversations and activities are consistent with the mission of the liberal arts education.” Jeremy Paden, associate professor of Spanish and Foreign Languages program director, is helping thread Unlearn Fear + Hate through Transylvania’s academics. This effort raises important questions. “As an institute of higher learning,

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Amazing Opportunities

Posted on September 12, 2017October 16, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

Stevie Morrison ’15 Connecting with the neighboring North Limestone neighborhood led Stevie Morrison to her graphic design career. Stevie Morrison ’15 refers to “random opportunities” when talking about her progression from a diffident high school senior growing up on a horse farm in Seymour, Tenn., to the confident college grad who cycled through France to make art and is now striding into a full-time job at Bullhorn Creative. But what Morrison calls “random” seems more like a combination of her motivation and a series of connecting the dots—or what she calls Transylvania’s “amazing opportunities on and off campus.” On campus, Morrison found a curriculum that interested her and informed her art. “The general electives at Transylvania definitely influenced the things I’m making art about. That wouldn’t have happened just taking art classes.” Transylvania has shaped the way I see and analyze things. It’s made a huge impact on my life. A studio art major, she also wanted to be doing more than art. She found this possible at Transylvania. “Transylvania is in such a unique location in the city and in this neighborhood,” she explains. “There is a community of open-minded people here.” Courses like Community Engagement Through Art, taught by professors Kremena Todorova and Kurt Gohde, opened her to possibilities outside of campus. Connecting with the Lexington community and the burgeoning North Limestone neighborhood brought her new ways of thinking about her art and introductions that would lead

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