“I've met incredible faculty, staff and students who helped shaped me and my future career endeavors," says Taylor Mullen '22. “I felt so at home in this community and know that these people will be in my corner for years to come.” Meet a few of our CESS Class of 2022 graduates and see how they are beginning their post-UVM journey to make a difference for schools, families and communities near and far.

"I want to make a positive impact on their lives," says Jake Hession '22 about the students he works with as a special educator at Milton High School where he was hired after graduation. See how Jake's educational journey at UVM prepared him to become an inclusive educator for all students.

"The idea of helping to create a violence-free world is really the thing that inspires me on a day-to-day basis," says social work alumna Sarah Robinson G'12, who serves as the Deputy Director of Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. Sarah received UVM's 2022 Young Alumni Award honoring her outstanding leadership and community impact. 

UVM Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) alum Robert Kelly G'96 made history as the first African American president of the Univerity of Portland. “I come to this position with great prayer and discernment," he said of the distinction, "and I don’t take this responsibility lightly.”

"Their curiosity and excitement for life is infectious, and I find great joy in watching their personalities unfold and their knowledge expand,” says Maia Hendrickson '21 about her role as an early childhood educator at Franklin West Supervisory Union in Georgia, Vermont.

"I want to live in a world where students see themselves in the curriculum and the books they're reading," says Monica Desrochers '11, who serves as the recovery coordinator for equity and inclusion in the Addison Northwest School District. For her outstanding leadership in education, Monica earned a doctoral scholarship from UVM while pursuing her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.

After earning her B.S. in Human Development and Family Science (HDFS) in 2019, Claire Crowley went on to earn her M.S. in Counseling Psychology. Now she enjoys her work as research associate at the Research Foundation at CUNY supporting the shift in practice of child welfare programs in New York City.

“I still write and publish with my mentor and former HDFS professor, Dr. Nicole Conroy,” Claire explains. “Our most recent publication came out earlier this year on the conceptual misrepresentations and methodological misapplications of Johnson's typology of IPV (Intimate Partner Violence). Dr. Conroy is the reason I pursued research and a graduate degree in the first place. She opened so many doors for me at UVM and beyond.”

A first-generation college student who earned her Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) at UVM, Briana Martin '11 developed greater interest in mental health and received her Master of Social (MSW) through a Fulbright research grant in Montreal, Quebec. She now serves as the assistant director of advising and diversity at NYU Liberal Studies.

"Allowing students to embrace change, become frustrated, and struggle to articulate what they are going through is an awe-inspiring experience." See how the 2019 Vermont Teacher of the Year Tom Payeur is working to address educational inequities in his culturally diverse classroom at Winooski High School.

“UVM changed my trajectory as a person because I got the opportunity to work with a lot of people who really cared about humanity," says Pahara Senior Vice President Shawna Wells '04. She has spent her career changing the way we educate and support our children. As an executive coach and advisor to senior leaders working towards ending educational and societal inequities, she believes everyone has the opportunity to disrupt the status-quo. 

Learn about Shawna's career trajectory as a leader to improve schools and opportunities around the country through her previous work with as a senior partner and head of the educational equity team at The Management Center.