Kailie Settles grew up using creative writing as a kind of therapeutic outlet, a way to understand the world around her. Her Transylvania experience has taken that passion to the next level — as an English and writing, rhetoric, and communication double major, on staff in the Writing Center and through her internships in author promotions and web development and copywriting. And through it all, she continues to have time to write for herself, even nearing completion of a draft of her first novel. 

Creating is easier said than done. But at Transy, creativity is a framework. The whole culture encourages creation and participation. It’s all about engagement and collaboration, and creativity itself is the backbone of what’s going on here.

Kailie Settles ’24

Sarah Schaaf always knew that music would be a part of her life. The saxophone player received a music scholarship and won the concerto competition in her senior year. But she didn’t know her potential as a visual artist until she came to Transy. The studio art major and double minor in history and music represented Transy in a statewide exhibition and, ultimately, defined her future path as a children’s book illustrator.

 Seeing how much my art has developed over the past four years gives me a lot more confidence than I had coming into Transy. I’ve always drawn and painted, but I didn’t know if I wanted to do that as a career until I came here and took classes that solidified my path. 

Sarah Schaaf ’19