Lauren Dimerc
English Major, Elementary Education

"No significant learning occurs without a significant relationship." -James Comer

Sidra Elvey
English Major, Language & Literature

Konnor French
English Major, Elementary Education

"I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." -Maya Angelou

Lindsay Gibson
English Major, Language & Literature

"Though she be but little, she is fierce" -William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Isabella Haskin
English Major, Secondary Education

Reka Hoving
English Major, Language & Literature

"She recognized that strange happiness that came from loving something without knowing why you did. That strange happiness that was so big it felt like sadness- it was the way she felt when she looked at the stars." Maggie Stiefvater

Brittani Kooiker
English Major, Language & Literature

"We cross our bridges when we come to them and burn them behind us, with nothing to show for our progress except a memory of the smell of smoke, and a presumption that once our eyes watered." -Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead

Don LaMar
English Major, Language & Literature

Ashly Latham
English Major, Elementary Education

Fun Fact: I have 9 different versions of monopoly. 

Angela Maio
English Major, Secondary Education

Be the Change!

Lauren Maus
English Major, Secondary Education

Stay humble, work hard, be kind.

Aubree Oleander
English Major, Language & Literature

Emily Pierson
Master of Arts in English 

"If a book is well written, I always find it too short." -Jane Austen

Alice Pozzobon
Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

"There's some good in this world, and it is worth fighting for." -The Lord of The Rings

Emily Sandborn
English Major, Secondary Education

"Why not go out on a limb? Isn't that where the fruit is?" -F.S

Lauren Smith
English Major, Secondary Education

“Women comprehend not merely with the intellect but also with the heart.” -St. Edith Stein 

Alaina Wierenga
English Major, Elementary Education

Kristie Winslow
English Major, Language & Literature

“You are the Hero of your own Story.” ―Joseph Campbell

Because we were unable to celebrate our graduates at April Commencement this year, English majors in the Class of 2020 were invited to participate in a virtual celebration of their achievements until we’re able to salute them at the special October Commencement ceremony. Our graduates who chose to participate are listed below. (If you are a 2020 graduate who did not receive our invitation to submit your information, please contact [email protected] and we'll be very happy to update the page to include you.)

Whether you chose to submit your information for inclusion on this page or not, please know that the faculty and staff of the English Department are enormously proud of you and all that you have achieved during your time at GVSU. We wish you all the best as you head into the next stage of your lives. You are now Lakers for a Lifetime and we hope you’ll keep us updated with news about your adventures and successes in the future!

Claire Amat
English Major, Elementary Education

"I love working with children. Grown-ups never ask me what my third favorite reptile is" -Unknown

Aimee Ash
English Major, Secondary Education; Math Teaching Minor

Rachel Azure
English Major, Writing Major

Yara Barbosa
English Major, Secondary Education; Applied Linguistics Minor - Teaching

"Got writer's block trying to write 50 words about myself." -An English Major

Sarah Belanger
English Major, Language and Literature

Mackenzie Bush
English Major, Elementary Education

“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory” -Dr. Seuss

Alanna Rheann Campbell
English Major, Language and Literature

I loved Louie the Laker, but for some reason I waited 4 years to get my selfie with him!! I’ll be back Louie!

Abigail Caniff
English Major, Elementary Education

Be a sunflower in a field of roses.

Elinore DeBrule
English Major, Secondary Education

"The world will say to you: What are you going to do? Do not be afraid to say I know I can't do everything but I can do something." -Cleo Wade

Gillian Eisenbraun
English Major, Elementary Education

Chloe Ford
English Major, Language and Literature

Roderick Francis Munro
English Major, Language and Literature

"And you awake and there you are
Not far off from the line before
And just how long did it take for you to understand
Where your feelings stopped and writing began
Convince yourself to take control
Play to the hilt this unlikely role"
-Will You Smile Again For Me?
...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead

Amanda Gabriel
English Major, Secondary Education; Applied Linguistics Minor - Teaching

Hannah Victoria Gallon
English Major, Secondary Education; Applied Linguistics Minor - Teaching

“Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.” - Cormac McCarthy

Emily Gilbert
English Major, Elementary Education

"For though I fall, I will rise again. Though I sit in darkness, The Lord will be my light." Micah 7:8

Bailey Golliday
English Major, Secondary Education

Definitions belong to the definers, not the defined. -Toni Morrison

Devan Gorton
English Major, Elementary Education

It’s my turn to teach.

Kara Helms
English Major, Elementary Education

Sabrina Hochhuth
English Major, Elementary Education

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." -Maya Angelou 

Wendy Hoekstra
English Major, Elementary Education

The distance is nothing when one has the motive.

Emily Ketola
English Major, Language & Literature

Lesley Lobdell
English Major, Elementary Education

Kelly MacKillop
English Major, Elementary Education

"Courage. Kindness. Friendship. Character. These are the qualities that define us as human beings and propel us, on occasion, to greatness." -R. A. Palacio

Cassandra McCraney
English Major, Secondary Education

Ashley Munger (Kippes)
English Major, Elementary Education

"Education is a passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today." - Malcolm X

Ashley Quinn
Master of Arts in English

"Those of us who feel more (and see in darker spectrums) may be sick puppies, but we're also lively puppies. Brave puppies too, because we keep on trucking in the face of everything we know can go wrong" - Stephen King, Danse Macabre

Brittanie Railling
English Major, Elementary Education

Sophie Rickey
English Major

Adventure is out there!

Rachel Rye
English Major, Elementary Education

Kennedy Sauer
English Major, Secondary Education

"Although good teaching uses routines, it is seldom routine. Good teaching depends on sensibility and imagination. It courts surprise. It profits from caring. In short, good teaching is an artistic affair." -Elliot Eisner, "The Kind of Schools We Need", 1998

Paige Spender
English Major, Elementary Education

"Happiness can be found in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light" - Albus Dumbledore

Taylor Stowe
English Major, Elementary Education

“We’re all going through life for the first time.”

Madison Strait
English Major, Elementary Education

“All you need is faith, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust.”

Evan Sturgeon
English Major, Secondary Education

Brianne Tyler
English Major, Language and Literature; Applied Linguistics Minor

It only took me ten years but look mom and dad, I finally graduated! :)

Carly Vaitkevicius
English Major; Applied Linguistics Minor

Anisha M Weeks
English Major, Elementary Education

Tough times don’t last, tough people do.