University of Arkansas

Classical Studies Majors and Minors

1983-2012.

[created June 11, 2010; latest revision: 1 August 2012]

(Please send corrections and updates to dlevine@uark.edu)

1983

George H. (BA CLST 1983)

B. Dan O. (BA CLST 1983)

After graduation I got a law degree and worked for Walmart, and in 2000 I returned to the U of A and earned an MBA in Finance. Then I went to work for Fujiflm where I am now the Vice President, Team Leader for the Walmart/Sam's Club Team for Fujifilm. 

I've always cherished my Classical Studies degree from the U of A. And I know it has paid rich dividends to my career over the years. Not only did it instill in me a vast appreciation for the greatness of the Roman and Greek civilizations-an appreciation that I still cultivate today as I'm presently reading "Gates of Fire" a novel about the battle of Thermopylae-but also greatly improved my use of language. When I took the GMAT for the MBA program I scored in the 97th percentile on the verbal portion of the test. Of course the Latin I learned in the program also made law school a little easier. Looking back on my education and career I wouldn't change a thing, especially the Classical Studies degree.

1984

Clark L. (BA CLST 1984)

Classical Studies opened a whole new world of study to me that I had previously been almost completely ignorant of.  My initial motive in pursuing a degree in CLST was to enhance my understanding of the broader historical context of the culture and history of the Bible.  That goal was realized to a far greater extent than I had anticipated.  Not only did I get a great launch into the journey of learning Greek, both the classical as well as the koine of the New Testament, but I also gained much from various historical perspectives that opened up to me as I progressed through the CLST curriculum.  I appreciated the exposure I got to the flow of world and western history all the way from the courses I took in ancient history right through to the courses in Medieval and Reformation History so capably taught by Dr. Anne Vizzier.  Of course, the opportunity to learn from and interact with Dr. Levine was a privilege for which I will always be thankful as well.  I benefited greatly from his insight and from the lively discussion that he consistently managed to arouse in every course he taught.  With the contribution my studies in Classics made to a stronger grasp of Biblical understanding I was able to move on into grad school and then beyond that into the 20 years of experience in Christian ministry I’ve enjoyed since then. Many thanks to Dr. Levine and the capable staff of the CLST program at the UA!

John T. McG. (BA CLST 1984)

I was fortunate enough to land the editor's job at a newspaper called the Glacier Reporter in Browning, capital of the Blackfeet Nation, back in 1992, and I've worked there ever since. While I live with the Blackfeet and their culture is my primary interest, the white culture, both within and outside the reservation boundaries, had and continues to have a direct impact on the people here, and the historic development of Classical culture is forever part of the picture being painted daily.

I entered Classical Studies intending to understand just how the clash of cultures in the New World evolved. I was at first interested primarily in Indian culture, but soon realized the opportunity available to me through Classical Studies in understanding history on "the other side of the ocean."

I would never guessed how useful everything I learned in CLST was to be in the future, at the very least in finally grasping how to write and speak publicly (I also got a lot of very practical training in those areas from Dr. Clare Farrer at the University of Illinois - I think she's at Chico now), but additionally, CLST provided a framework that helped describe the matrix of relationships that exist where I now live and that are intimately involved with the work I do.

I would have to say the main reason I began with CLST at UA at the time I did was pretty much a result of meeting and coming to respect Dr. Levine, both as an academic mentor and personal friend. I continue to be surprised and pleased at how unexpectedly the course material I studied so long ago features now in my daily life.

Francis R. (BA CLST 1984)

1985

Zelda (I.) G. CLST BA 1985.

I graduated with a double major in Classics and English, and then earned an M.A. in Classical Studies at the University of Washington, where I taught several classes, including 1st year Latin.  I got married to one of those former Latin students, and 19 years later we are still enjoying the US Navy life while living in Carmel, CA with our 4 children .  We have been fortunate to have lived in many places including Japan (twice), England, Spain, Texas, Florida and Washington State.   

While in Japan this last time, I taught English classes.  My knowledge of English grammar (much of which came from learning Latin via Wheelock) made me a much more effective teacher.  I'm also pretty good at crossword puzzles and can intimidate my husband with my vocabulary - he tells me that  I can speak 'pretty good.'  

 I came to Classics late, as a Junior in College, and only because I absolutely fell in love with Latin.  I love Classical Studies because it encompasses multiple disciplines and provides a basis for understanding so much of our culture and heritage.   I like learning things and "connecting dots" - Classical Studies  is where it begins as far as I am concerned. 

S. Janan (H.) C. (BA CLST 1985)

I taught high school Latin for years and it paid my bills. To ask how it impacted my life is better answered by my students. They are the test of the worth of my degree. These are just a few that responded to me in one day. I also know Lela is a Classical Archeologist, Brian got a BA in Classics and is now a lawyer in D.C., Dylan is working on his Ph.D. in Classics. [Note: to see the testimonies of Janan's students, click here.]

 

1986

Michael J. (BA CLST 1986)

Camille S. (BA CLST 1986)

1987

Pat B. (BA CLST 1987)

Ed F. (BA CLST 1987)

Marty W. (BA CLST 1987)

1988

Lynn S. (BA CLST 1988)

I got my BSEd in Secondary Education with majors in Latin and French, and was one class short (an excursion to Greece!) of a B.A. in Classical Studies; I could not cough up the bucks for the trip, alas!  I started in on a Master's in Comparative Studies in Latin and Ancient Greek, but abandoned the pursuit in the second semester.  Since then, I have worked in Massage Therapy, in which I found it easier to learn all the terms for bones and muscles because of my studies; I have played lots of Scrabble, expanding my vocabulary through techniques of scrutinization I learned from Daniel; I have worked in retail sales in Natural Foods/Vitamins, where, again, there was plenty of opportunity to examine long words.  

 Over the years, I have had the opportunity to encounter a wide array of people in work and personal settings, and have been better-prepared to deal with them because of my Classical Studies, which has given me the scope to look backwards and see how little humanity has really changed.  I think that Classical Studies helps us learn how to avoid putting people in "boxes," which never seems to work well anyway; if we wonder why folks stray out of their boxes, we really only need look backwards to see the tendencies which are still innate.

 I am currently cleaning houses and doing cat-sitting, scrutinizing labels of cleaning products; I am in a church choir, where I felt very much at home immediately because I could pronounce the words already;  I have had to deal with hospitals, doctors, and physical therapists in recent years in conjunction with my elderly parents, and that has gone more easily because of my past studies; I have several cats, and veterinarians don't have to translate for me.   I am happy and productive in my life as it is now, and  I carry the general feeling with me daily of "Thank God I had that background!" 

1989

Joe C. (BA CLST 1989)

Nadine H. (BA CLST 1989)

I am now Head of Reference Services at Bartlesville Public Library and am in charge of both the Reference and Local and Family History Departments. Since getting the classics degree, I taught art, both at the public school and college levels, from 1989-2005. In 2005 I changed careers, and am now a Reference Librarian at a Public Library in Oklahoma. When I have time to make art, I continue to incorporate Greek art, especially that of the Mycenaeans, into my work.

Eric J. (BA CLST 1989)

I currently work as Vice President for Legal Operations for a software company in Silicon Valley. My company is comprised of about 70% engineers, 10% computational linguists, 1% Classical Studies people (yours truly), and 19% other (economics, etc.). I will say, at least among the executive branch in the company (as well as the linguistics group), nobody would consider that a classical studies degree could come cheaply.

Classical studies most certainly helped me maximize my potential in many areas. It helped me to solidify my understanding of my place in the world, to be able to analyze problems, to think clearly, to think creatively, to write, to feel connected to the past, and to know what the subjunctive is. Besides, it was a total blast.

The good news is that there need be no compromised tradeoff between good learning, good technology, and good business.

Steve Jobs once said, "I would trade all of my technology for an afternoon with Socrates." (Newsweek, October 29, 2001). Of course that was before he invented the iPhone. Maybe he wouldn't trade that. And maybe the iPad is more important than Socrates. I wound certainly trade my iPhone for an afternoon with Socrates, even if Socrates wasn't at his best in the afternoon; but why would I? I can read Socrates on my iPhone, even in the original Greek. If I had a Droid I could read Socrates on that too. I am not particularly dogmatic about my handheld devices.

Look around any strong technology company and you will see people with vision and advanced broad-knowledge running the place. Companies are microcosmic civilizations. They are political and social. They require budgets and infrastructure. They rise, decline, fall, transform, and abort. You cannot fully appreciate them by graduating from what can be considered tantamount to trade school. Yes I mean Engineering and Business, among other fields. Yet I do live in the real world too, and I understand the need to know a trade. The trick is to add happiness to success.

Majoring in Classical Studies maximized my potential for success in almost all of the most important aspects of business and technology. In addition to helping me solidify my understanding of my own place in the world, it empowered me to be able to analyze and solve complex and complicated problems, to think clearly, to think creatively, to write, to feel connected to the past, and to follow my passion as well as my mind.

Best of all, majoring in Classical Studies was as fun as it was satisfying.

Finally, an anecdote. When I fist started looking for a job in NYC after graduation, I interviewed at an old, white-shoe law firm in midtown for a research position. As I entered a stuffy office in anticipation of being brutally interrogated, a blue-haired woman stood up quickly from behind her desk and shouted, "arma virumque cano!" I gleefully opened my arms and responded, "Troiae qui primus ab oris Italiam fato profugus Laviniaque venit litora". I got the job.

Christine P. (BA CLST 1989)

I attended Classics Graduate School at the University of Cincinnati, including work at the site of Troy. I spent two years in Spain as Fulbright Fellow and a scholarship recipient of the Comission de Intercambio entre los Estados Unidos & Espana. Now a Food & Beverage professional in New York City, and am Chair of the American Institute of Wine & Food New York, a non-profit whose mission is educate adults & children about what they eat & drink. From De Natura Prandiae to Alimentum (a literary journal), the Classics have fed me well.

Linda (L.) T. (BA CLST 1989)

Somehow, I ended up in Accounting! I've worked for 16 years for a box company. I still have every book that I purchased for my CLST degree, though, and I'm still reading! Perhaps one day, I'll publish a novel based around the search for Alexander's Tomb.

1990

Susan (K.) P. (BA CLST 1990)

I work as a Technical Assistant at the University of Arkansas.

Mark R. (BA CLST 1990)

For some time now I've been engaged in a very interesting Neo-Latin project, working on The Dialogues of Luisa Sigea by Nicholas Chorier. I'm collaborating on it with a retired publisher from Madrid. He was the head of a scientific publishing house and founded the Spanish-language version of Scientific American. He was dissatisfied with the Spanish translations and prepared one of his own. And since the final dialogue, entitled Fescennini, hasn't been translated into English before, I felt obliged to set to work on it. It's 100 pages long and I've gotten about 75 of them in reasonably good shape.

Although I've never had a job to which my degree was relevant, I remain an eager reader of Latin literture. For a number of years now I've mostly been exploring Latin works from the Renaissance and early modern periods (hooray for Google Books). It's been a wonderful experience reading Erasmus and Janus Secundus and Giovanni Pontano.

And though I'm just a dabbler, I can see that for serious students of Renaissance humanism, a thorough knowledge of classical literature and the classical languages is absolutely vital. If you're trained in the classics, the world of the humanists is bright and shiny, which otherwise must remain opaque. This is one of the many benefits of a classical education for which I am deeply appreciative.

Raymond W. (BA CLST 1990)

What prepared me to pioneer Internet service, Web development, and Distance Education in Arkansas? My bachelor's degree in Classical Studies.

1991

Brett B. (BA CLST 1991)

I am a business manager in e-commerce for AT&T. I couldn't have gotten this job without my Classics degree. I have gotten so many interviews because of my unique and intriguing  educational background. It has opened a lot of doors.

I've had no problem getting a job with my Classics degree. In interviews I have to explain what a degree in Classical Studies is, and then in the ensuing silence that follows I add, "Yeah, when I graduated from college the only thing I was qualified to do was conquer the world". My Classics degree has allowed me to stand out in the job market, and not a single employer has viewed it as a negative, quite the contrary: like wearing a pair of horn rimmed glasses, employers assume it means I'm smart.

It's been said that the most unnerving notion of pursuing a degree out of high school is that you are going to base the rest of your life on the decision of an eighteen year old. In that respect I was lucky. I went to college not knowing what I wanted to study, but I knew I wasn't looking for vocational training and that I wanted to be taught to think critically. This thinking critically is a typical buzz phrase for any liberal arts degree, and it's not untrue, but my Classics degree has given me so much more.

Cato the Elder has taught me to be persistent, Alexander the Great has taught me to go all out, and Caesar has taught me to watch my back. But most importantly, I was taught aesthetic analysis. Life, people, things are quite intriguing and often beautiful if you open your mind and accept what they have to offer. My education at the University of Arkansas, the experience, the Classics, was the perfect preparation to love and experience life, and to succeed.

Sylvia G. (BA CLST 1991)

I didn't plan for my Classics degree to be a springboard to a graduate degree in medicine, law, education or anything esle. My reason for studying Classics was love of the field - PLUS, I was at an enviable stage of my life when my domestic duties were under control and I had the leisure to indulge my interest in Classical Studies.

Then I got to thinking: there's no compelling reason why a person of any age (with an interest in Classics) shouldn't/couldn't double-major (or at least minor) in this field. What better opportunity than on a college campus to explore a personal interest such as this? Even if one doesn't plan to devote one's life to the field, by formal classroom experience one learns the important points to look for and where to find them. One needn't be fluent in Greek or Latin to appreciate ancient literature. I still cry every time I re-read "Pericles' Funeral Oration" in English - but before we translated it in class, I didn't know if it was an oration of Pericles' funeral, an oration given by Pericles, or what.

Michael J. (BA CLST 1991)

Jennifer (S.) L. (BA CLST 1991)

I graduated from Notre Dame Law School in 1994, spent a few years doing litigation work that included arguing before the United States Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit and working on Supreme Court briefs, then another few years as a judicial clerk in the United States District Court.  

Classical Studies was an important complement to my studies in early American history and Constitutional Law.

1992

Pierce O. (BA CLST 1992)

I graduated from Dental School and now practice periodontics in Northwest Arkansas.While I don't use much of my BA studies directly, the "justified true belief" (knowledge) I gained has allowed me to have a greater cognitive process. I have enjoyed having a broadly based education. I wish I could go back and learn some more.

1993

Mary N. (CLST minor, 1993).

I have taught public middle school in both California and Arkansas. I have just finished teaching three years of 8th grade humanities, integrating English and Social Studies. In California the students are tested in the spring of the 8th grade over 6th, 7th, and 8th grade curriculum. Since 6th grade is ancient cultures and societies, 7th is medieval culture and societies, and 8th grade is U.S. history, my background in classical studies has really helped me to be able to review the foundation the students learned in 6th gradfe and tie the beginnings of civilization to where we are now. I was lucky enough to travel to Greece and Italy in the summer of 2006. It was such a fabulous trip. Seeing Greece and Rome was a highlight for me - and many of our studies was brought to life.

Jason P. (BA CLST Honors, 1993)

I have worked as a church organist and Latin teacher, but recently changed career paths when I opened The Vermilion Bay Yarn Company, a venture that I very much enjoy. My shop has become a meeting place for people of all walks of life -- among whom are also several active and retired philologists and historians. So, needless to say, discussion of things Classical has remained part of my life. And of course, I continue to read my Latin almost daily.

1994

Joy C. (BA CLST 1994).

I am an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of West Alabama. At the University of Arkansas I completed a double major in psychology and classics -- psychology for practical reasons and classics for passionate ones.

To explain what classical studies did for me, I have to mention what I brought to it. I was bright but untested as a student, deeply shy and fresh-off-the-farm, and with very limited experience of literature or the world. I was jaded about school-just going through the motions. These were the classes that reawakened me to the fact that I loved to learn. Material that was three thousand years old, completely new to me, and at the same time as familiar as my reflection in a mirror gave me a deep respect for history and a sense of continuity with it.

Classics classes, regardless of size, were the most collaborative and collegial of undergraduate classes. No student of classics is "dead weight" - expect the most intriguing cast of characters. And Drs. Levine and Fredrick are top-notch instructors who love what they do.

Of course the specific things that I learned flow through my work and life today, too. I teach history of psychology, a discipline which grew from a foundation in the philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. My psychology of women class is peppered with references to Richlin and Pomeroy. And my garden is full of classically-relevant plants like violets, Roman hyacinths, antique roses and Laurus nobilis, all meticulously labeled with their full Latin names.

Laura L. (CLST Minor, 1994)

I'm a professor of Late Ancient Judaism at Duke University, so I guess you could say my Classical Studies minor was pretty important; for five years, I was even appointed in a Classics department (at Middlebury College) because that was where Hebrew was located, and it was part of a kind of "Ancient Mediterranean Cultures" approach to Classics. At the UofA, I primarily took Latin courses, which were always fascinating, as well as a fabulous honors seminar on the ancient novel. Still models of pedagogy for me when I teach! Latin helped me learn almost every other language I've studied (mostly Semitic languages) quickly--not because Hebrew, Aramaic, or Ugaritic are related to Latin, but because Latin gave such insight into the way languages WORK (and into the terminology used by all classical grammars). It also has helped me work through articles in various Romance languages.

As important as the linguistic resources I learned through the Classics department, so were the critical thinking and textual analysis skills: reading a culture into life through its ancient texts and artifacts; learning to uncover subsets, puns, and double-meanings, and to never trust my first response to something as a satisfactory one; and understanding the vast variety of ways ancient writings could be approached, and how to synthesize different approaches into a whole that made everything richer. It's work I still do today, even if the texts (still ancient) are in other languages.

So, yes, I don't think I'd be sitting where I am now without the fabulous foundation I got from the UofA Classics program!

Erin (H.) P. (BA CLST 1994)

After completing my CLST Bachelor's at UA, I went on to earn a Master's degree and taught Latin to middle school students. I went back to school to become a certified teacher and ended up as a Certified Public Accountant instead

Don't let this surprise you. Accounting is a language very similar to Latin. They both have unique vocabularies and grammar or rules that structure how you use those vocabularies. Accounting was a breeze after Virgil.

I am thankful every day for my degree in CLST. Aside from the personal satisfaction of reading beautiful literature in its original language and having the best vocabulary on the block, majoring in Classics started me on an enjoyable and rewarding career path.

And I can tell you that the companies where I worked as an accountant were thrilled to have a number cruncher who was a good writer as well. Because all CLST students master the English language, right? I became the go-to proofreader in my last firm.

Now that I have kids, I take on a few accounting jobs each month and spend lots of time at home. I am also a photographer who blogs about photography. My CLST training is apparent even in this hobby. My blog readers find my tutorials easy to understand thanks to my good grammar. And some of my images reflect the influence of classical art and archaeology.

Rebecca (P.) T. (BA CLST Honors, 1994)

I am currently Associate General Counsel for International Employment at Walmart. I went to law school after graduating with my Classical Studies degree, and then practiced with a private firm, Blackwell Sanders, in St. Louis, engaged in employment litigation.  Six years ago, I joined Walmart as an in-house attorney. 

In the St. Louis firm I was listed on an experts list as a specialist in Latin and Ancient Greek (I actually had to translate something from Latin once -- students can actually use it in the "real world"). Anyway, I got a call right after the list came out from one of our founding partners who saw my name. He called to tell me that he had majored in classical studies at Harvard around 1930 and that one of his friends had recently published a new translation of the Iliad. Thus, Classical Studies gave me an "in" with important people at my law firm!

Luther W. (BA CLST 1994)

I work for Verizon designing/creating database interface software. I have basically been turning my ability to write and to learn a little computer program into a paying job.

I'm more proud of the fact that I'm still reading a little Greek in my spare time, and pursuing an interest in philosophy, as time allows.

1995

Mark B. (BA CLST 1995):

I am a high school Latin Teacher at two schools in Ft. Smith. I hope that I'm able to introduce teenagers to Latin for many years to come.

I caught my great enthusiasm and dedication from Dr. Levine and Dr. Fredrick. As hokey as it sounds, I'm as thrilled and excited in year thirteen as I was on day one.

Robert M. (BA CLST December 1995):

I earned an MA in History with a focus on Middle Eastern history at the University of Arkansas, and then went to Emory University where I began work in a PhD in West and South Asian Religion, specializing in Arabic and Islamic Studies. I am now writing a dissertation on the development of madrasahs in medieval Cairo.

I'm currently working in the History Department at John Brown University as an instructor. I'll be promoted to assistant professor after I complete my dissertation.

Van S. (BA CLST 1995)

John W. (BA CLST, 1995)

I was recently appointed the Director of Columbia University's Burke Library, which is the largest theological library in the Western Hemisphere, with extensive special collections of rare Greek and Latin manuscripts and books. I also serve on the faculty of Union Theological Seminary in New York City.

I received a Ph.D. in Religion from Emory University, a M.L.I.S. from the University of South Carolina, and a M.A. from the Divinity School at the University of Chicago.

My courses in Latin and Greek at the U of A with Dr. Levine and Dr. Fredrick have proven the most useful to my professional career, providing an essential foundation for much of my academic writing, teaching, and daily interactions with researchers at Columbia University. Most importantly, my vintage Eta Sigma Phi t-shirts keep me clothed on the weekend!

1996

Josh G. (BA CLST Honors 1996, MA Comparative Literature/Classics 1998)

I am currently teaching 6th through 9th graders at a public charter school in St. Paul, Minnesota. I have taught Latin first as a lecturer at the university level, and then to younger students, from 6th to 12 grades, at both private and public schools.Teaching has been a fabulously fun and fulfilling career for me--not only do I find the language and world of the ancient Romans fascinating, but I love being able to impart my knowledge of and enthusiasm about this subject to my students!

And it all started when I was an incoming Freshman, bewildered by the array of classes I could take at college, and on a whim I decided to take Latin. I studied first under Dr. Daniel Levine and then under Dr. David Fredrick--and what a difference a teacher can make! It was through them that I began my life-long love of Latin, a love that I carry to this day. Gratias vobis ago!

Jennifer H. (CLST BA Honors magna cum laude, 1996)

After two years in graduate school at Columbia, I entered non-profit publishing at the University of Chicago Press, working first in the biological sciences and the history of science (where my Latin training was frequently essential). After five years I became the acquiring editor for books in the physical and mathematical sciences. This past February, after a decade in publishing, I left to join my girlfriend's successful business, Thriftgeek, a resale shop in Chicago that focuses on recycling vintage items and promoting green practices.

Michelle H. (CLST BA 1996)

I live in Tallahassee, Florida, where I'm a curator at the Museum of Florida History. After graduating with a BA in Classics and Anthropology, I entered the MA program in Anthropology at the University of Arkansas. After that, I was accepted to NYU's Tisch School of Arts, where I received a Master's in Cinema Studies. I worked in television and in the corporate world for a while, then at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale in the Education Department.

Kristina H. (CLST BA 1996)

1997

Julie R. (CLST minor, 1997)

David S. (CLST BA 1997)

After graduating with a double major in Classical Studies and English, I got my law degree from Washington University in St. Louis.  Once out of law school, I moved to Chicago to work for the City of Chicago's Department of Law litigating civil rights cases.  Three years later, I took a job at a private firm specializing in commercial insurance coverage disputes. 

(Major) Jeffrey S. (CLST Minor, 1997)

I am a major in the US Air Force, and am grateful for learning the importance of languages in Classical Studies. The principles I learned at the University of Arkansas have helped me as an officer in the Air Force. I am currently studying an East European language in Washington, D.C. in preparation for my upcoming position as a Military Attaché Officer. Having a background in classical languages has helped me to learn this difficult, yet wonderful language.

Tanya S. (BA CLST Honors,1997)

I got a fellowship to study archaeology at the University of California, Berkeley, and excavated at the site of Nemea, Greece for several seasons.

1998

Matthew H. (BA CLST Honors, 1998)

I finished the Classics PhD at the University of Michigan (and an MA in Classical Archaeology before that), and stayed as a lecturer doing intensive Greek in the Spring semester.This fall, I am going to Tufts in Boston for a year teaching archaeology. I have been working on a reconstruction of the Sanctuary of the Great Gods on Samothrace and digitally mapping the site, expect to do one or two more seasons to finish the mapping. I have excavated at the Agora, Corinth, Pompeii, Gabii, and Samothrace.

Michael J. (BA CLST, 1998)

I teach History at Northwest Arkansas Community College. Studying the classics was one of the best academic decisions I ever made, and I definitely want other people to consider it.

Dawn (H.) J. (BA CLST Honors, 1998)

I got a Masters of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) at the University of Oklahoma in 2001. I worked in a public library for a while before going into semi-retirement. I look on my years at the U of A as some of the happiest of my life.

Amy L. (CLST minor 1998)

I graduated from the University of Arkansas with a BS in Chemistry and a minor in CLST.  I went to graduate school at The University of Kansas and studied analytical chemistry.  I graduated with my Ph.D. in 2005 and went to work in the pharmaceutical industry.  Studying the classical arts and history was a welcome and interesting escape from my science classes and labs.  The critical thinking I learned from examining and translating texts and discussions of powerful cultures long gone has applied not just to work but in everyday life. 

Chad S. (CLST BA 1998)

1999

Sara C. (BA CLST 1999).

Jeff C. (BA CLST Honors, 1999)

I work for University of Arkansas Computing Services.

Brent C. (BA CLST 1999)

Chad K. (BA CLST 1999)

After finishing a double major in German and Computer Science and then spending a couple years as a full-time computer programmer, I made the decision to both start my own I.T. consulting business and to go back to study for a degree in Classical Studies.

I felt (and still feel) that the Classical Studies degree would assist me in becoming a more well-rounded individual and help satisfy my desire for more language study. The Greek and Latin classes were some of my very favorites at the university level that I have taken. Drs. Levine and Fredrick have such enthusiasm for the subject matter that it is simply contagious.

After completing the Classical Studies degree, I finished a Master's Degree in Comparative Literature, using Latin, Greek, and German for my languages and literatures. Currently I am working part-time towards finishing a doctorate in Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies with the same concentrations.

I have made such very dear friends and had such wonderful experiences in the program. I would not trade my Classical Studies degree for anything in the world. In my humble opinion, everyone attending college should consider getting at least a minor in Classical Studies, or ideally double-majoring.

Although my primary work continues to be in the I.T. field, I do still occasionally tutor Latin students, and the one item on my résumé (for I.T. consulting / programming contract work) that I am constantly asked about the most is the Classical Studies degree. Employers in all fields seem to be very impressed that applicants have the gumption, the self-discipline, and the depth of thought both to study Latin and Greek at an advanced level and to understand the important ideas willed to us by the ancients.

Stephanie M. (BA CLST 1999)

Megan T. (BA CLST Honors, 1999)

I was 17 when I nervously told my parents I was going to major in history. I didn't think they'd take it well, and I was right. First they laughed; then they got scared. “How will you make a living?” they shouted. “Do you expect your sisters to pay all your bills? Do you like McDonald's so much you want to work there for the rest of your life?” We fought over it, but I won. A semester later when I added classical studies to the history major, we fought some more. As rebellious youths go, it wasn't very impressive, but to me it was a hard-fought battle.

Now, 17 years later, I am the Director of Training and Development at a multimillion dollar company based in Chicago's West Loop.

The last time I was home, I showed my parents a demonstration of some of the products we offer our clients and explained to them how we save our clients' money. I tossed around terms like “ROI,” “cost drivers,” and “XML” like a pro. When I finished, my mom looked at me, puzzled, and said, “This is all very impressive, dear, but why did they hire you?”

It was a valid question. I had no degrees beyond my B.A. when I was hired, I've never even considered trying for an MBA, and I have not so much as a single credit hour in a business class to my name. How did I get this job?

The key was that I was able to demonstrate a skill set that my company was sorely lacking: the ability to think critically about a topic. I would be hard-pressed to think of another field where students are expected and required to critically consider and evaluate the material in every class every day. No course allows room to simply memorize and regurgitate. A classics student's daily homework is to make judgment calls based on the evidence at hand and justify their decisions to their instructor, whether they are defending their translation of an ancient text or writing a paper evaluating the audience and purpose of a painting on the wall of a Roman house. What they do daily for four years of school is what I do daily now in a director position, and what the rest of the management staff up to and including the CEO do as well.

I never intended to become a part of the “business world,” but I am immensely grateful that I have a degree in classics as my safety net. Outside of all this business stuff, I also recently returned to school to get my MS in Library and Information Sciences. I'm having some success here and even have had an article published in a peer-reviewed journal, which pretty much rocked my socks off. I don't know if I'll stay with my company when I finish, or if I'll pursue a career in a library, but either way I'll be using all the thinking skills I first learned back in Kimpel Hall.

2000

Kelly G.-L. (BA CLST 2000)

After leaving the UofA I got a Masters in Classical Archaeology from Florida State, during which I spent a summer in southern Italy on a survey.

For the past 8 years I've been teaching Latin at a Catholic High School in Chicago. I'm the only Latin teacher here, so I teach Latin I-IV, and I love it! I got my teaching certification in Latin through National Louis University. I have a pretty healthy program with around 100 students total in 6 classes. We have a Latin club (banquets and festivals, t-shirts, watch and make movies, watch and put on plays, painted a mural on our wall, etc.). I've spent one month independently travelling Italy, and led a few student trips abroad: Greece, Italy, and next year "Roman France: Paris and the Provence."

I will always hold dear my time spent at the UofA, and in the Classics Department!

2001

Brandon B. (BA CLST 2001)

Benjamin C. (BA CLST 2001)

I earned an MA in History at the University of New Orleans, and spent the next four years on a fellowship at the University of Florida doing PhD work in American History. After I left, I got my current job as an analyst at the Florida Public Service Commission, primarily doing work in renewable energy policy.

Marina S. (CLST Minor 2001)

I am now a registered architect and have my own business as an Architect and Architectural Illustrator. I plan to instill a respect (and I hope a love) for the Classics in my own children.

I minored in Classical Studies while I earned my degree in Architecture from the University of Arkansas. Understanding Latin helped me to better understand the classical orders of  Architecture as well as to relate to the buildings I studied in Rome and throughout Italy (walking through Pompeii and other Roman ruins takes on a completely different perspective once one has read the Satyricon).

My Latin gave me a broad base from which to draw all my areas of interest, including biology and history; I was also able to learn Italian and Spanish, the latter of which I still use every day as I raise my children in a bilingual household. I find myself often thinking back to my days in the University, remembering Latin phrases and vocabulary that strengthen my own use of the English language.

Jonathan S. (BA CLST 2001)

I graduated from law school, where I met my wife. We live in Searcy, Arkansas, where we practice law together.

I have argued before the Arkansas Court of Appeals in Little Rock. With the plethora of Latin embedded in the law, I still am able to lean on my roots.

Shonda T. (BA CLST Honors, 2001)

I recently became a Candidate for the PhD in Classics at the University of Michigan, and plan to finish my PhD dissertation soon. I recenmtly participated in the Gabii Project archaeological dig and gave a paper at the annual meeting of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South.

Quin T. (BA CLST 2001)

I got a Master's in Architecture from the University of Oregon, did graduate coursework in 'conservation of building' through the University of York (UK), followed by two seasons of excavation/documentation in Pompeii with the Anglo-American Project Pompeii, and a season of excavation in Orvieto with the University of Perugia. I pacticed architecture in Portland, Oregon before returning to Fayetteville, where I am currently practicing architecture with a local firm.

Steven W. (BA CLST 2001)

There have been several jobs that I have gotten in part because I had an undergraduate major in Classics. Below are the ones in which the people hiring said they did so in part because of the major in Classics.

In 1994 I taught a New Testament Survey course at Remington Business College. To satisfy state requirements, the students had to have some type of social studies course, and they chose New Testament Survey.

I taught Western Civilization, New Testament Survey and World History at The University of Memphis, Mid-South Christian College and Shelby State Community College. Also, while in Memphis, I worked for a tutoring service tutoring in German and Latin. Incidentally, it paid forty dollars an hour and I enjoyed it very much. I met a lot of interesting people. I was surprised how many wealthy people wanted tutoring done for their kids. Also, I was a part-time lay minister at a small congregation. Even though they were a small group, they preferred someone who had knowledge of New Testament Greek.

In York College in Nebraska I taught Ancient History and Western Civilization. I also taught Western Civilization at Northwest Arkansas Community College, and two, six-week long, courses on New Testament Greek and the formation and canonization of the New Testament at the Episcopal Church in Fayetteville.

In addition to these things, learning Greek has enabled me to actually read things like the New Testament in the original language. That alone was worth the major. Someday I would like to read the Septuagint. I would tell anybody getting a Classics major that there are jobs out there, especially if one is willing to move to a major metropolitan area.

Blaine Q. W. (BA CLST 2001)

I've been the State Folklorist and Director of the Florida Folklife Program since November 2010.  One of the country's oldest state folklife programs, FFP is based in the Division of Historical Resources, in the Florida Department of State.  I direct all of our core annual programs and special projects.  I live in Tallahassee, Florida. After a two-year hiatus from school, I entered the Curriculum in Folklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where I continued my research on blues and African American expressive culture. I completed the MA, writing my thesis on memory, Robert Johnson, and folk revivalism. From 2006-2010, I was the Managing Editor of Sing Out!, a folk and world music magazine founded by Pete Seeger, among others, in 1950.

Yasmin W. (BA CLST 2001)

A degree in Classics teaches one how to think, a skill all employers desire and a skill that undoubtedly aids one throughout life. But, more importantly, a degree in classics is pure fun -- where else can one learn about bullae (a special necklace worn only by upper-class Roman boys), read Ovid's Metamorphoses in the original Latin, and understand that "baccalaureate" comes from the Latin word for cow?

While I may not overtly use my Classics degree in my work, I better understand grammar (ablative absolute, anyone?), more quickly comprehend words I've not encountered before, and completely relish intellectual challenges. My background in Classics has guided and shaped my worldview and outlook: I've named my cat and dog from mythology (Aegina and Zephyr, respectively), consciously tried to visit Roman ruins and museums with classical objects in them whenever I've traveled, and even incorporated Catullus and Ovid into my wedding ceremony, which I wrote.

I truly believe I would not be where I am today without my Classics degree and I fondly look back on my time learning from Drs. Levine and Fredrick, attending Eta Sigma Phi parties, and spending a Saturday at the Greek theater reciting, in its entirety, the Iliad. Classics ensorcells all who cross its path and, in return, a Classics degree prepares one to fully appreciate all of life's riches.

2002

Dave D. (CLST Minor, 2002)

I got a Ph. D. in Communication, and am now a Professor of Communication Studies at Rider University. I have previously taught in American Samoa for the US Department of Education, and at Yale University.

Mickey L. (BA CLST 2002)

I've made a career in the natural products industry and am currently the Western Regional Sales Manager for an Austin-based supplement company that is among other things, the world leader in super fruit juices such as Acai or Goji Juice.

I'm of the belief that a strong background in the classics is essential to compete in the marketplace and in academia. Not a day goes by still, that I am not confronted with a classical reference in popular culture, media, church, business, of general reading. And when I was in college, it just seemed that everything - history, literature, anthropology, biology, architecture - channeled back to the classics. As a student of the classics, I just loved the fact that not only was I able to read and have access to primary sources, but that I was actually able to translate them myself!

Those countless hours of translation promoted discipline, critical thinking and reinforced my vocabulary by 10,000 fold. With the increased vocabulary, I am able to pick up virtually any book and read with little to no use of a dictionary. In fact just the opposite, as I am often critical of the author's choice of words. Moreover, the translation skills and vocabulary provide a gateway into other languages like Spanish and French.

But the best part of learning the Classics at the University of Arkansas is the access to the students and teachers with whom you study. TA ARISTA The best, the best of the best. Honors students, Fulbright scholars, PH.D candidates, doctors, dual and triple majors, Oxford educated professionals, future lawyers, futures pastors, future teachers...

For me the ultimate experience was my last class, a graduate level class, with fewer than 10 students, that focused on the translation of the Bible. At one point we made comparisons to the King James version, the Douay-Rheims, the Vulgate, and Greek Septuagint and to Hebrew text.

As an adult, my strong background in the classics gives me the confidence and ability to successfully compete every single day in the business world, it provides me ammunition for nearly limitless teachable moments as a parent, and it holds me togther like a rock in social settings like church.

Classical Studies provide infinite opportunities, and I wouldn't trade my classical education for anything in the world, well, except maybe for world peace.

2003

Josh C. (BA CLST 2003)

I got the Mster of Arts in Teaching, and took a couple of classes (including Super Latin) in the summer of 2006. I then worked as a substitute teacher for a year. My first full-time teaching position was in Crossett, a small town in south Arkansas. After a year there, I moved back to Fayetteville and took my current job at West Fork.

I work at West Fork High School teaching Civics and World History. I love my job, and every now and then I get the chance to speak a little Greek, just to satisfy the students' curiosity.

Mara D. (BA CLST 2003)

I went to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , where I got a master's degree in Library Science in 2005. Then, I moved to Pittsburgh, where I was a librarian at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. I also got some publication credits to my name, which is very exciting. I'm a book reviewer for the Library Journal, and my first short story was published in the Thoroughbred Times in March, 2010.

I've recently moved to Cleveland, where I'm the College Archivist/Reference and Instruction Librarian at Ursuline College, a Catholic liberal arts school. I take care of the archives and all preservation concerns for the college, as well as staff the reference desk and teach information literacy skills to various classes and faculty. I'm working closely with the art therapy and history/political science departments. I've been in Cleveland for a little over two months now, and I'm really enjoying it. The college is fantastic.

Tony N. (BA CLST 2003)

I'm working as a Loss Mitigation Specialist at Citigroup. I received a Master of Accounting and Finance degree from Keller Graduate School of Management. For four years I was working with Fry's Electronics. As a sales associate I was named Top Profit Producer and as a supervisor I was commended as a top performance supervisor. Now, I'm taking some more IT classes at community colleges to complete the Texas CPA examination requirements. I also reserve some of my time for community volunteering. Last year I went to a middle school and taught students finance.

With my journey so far, I would say that learning Classics has positively assisted my judgment and perception a long way and through difficult situations. Even in my current job position, I have been quickly adapting to the changing environment in the company fairly well and my manager has been evaluating my performance as well above average. Since starting my current position, I have volunteered to be a Voice of the Employees representative. In that capacity I have been facilitating communication between associates and management and promoting teamwork cohesiveness. I could imagine that I would be more successful had I also taken a major in business along with Classics as an undergraduate, but I couldn't imagine how well would I have been in my life and career without my foundation in Classics. Long live Classics! (....Got Latin?)

Nathan S. (BA CLST 2003)

Since graduating, I've received an M.A. in Religion from Westminster Theological Seminary and just graduated [2010] with a J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. I'm studying to take the bar exam.

Jackie (M.) W. (BA CLST 2003)

I work at Fayetteville High School in the Special Education Department for English/History. I am happy with my position; I joyfully read some the old classics and miss our discussions about mythology!!

Spencer W. (BA CLST 2003)

After graduating I took an internshipwith the North Little Rock Times to learn to be a newspaper reporter. After three months I was hired on by the Maumelle Monitor. I spent three and a half years there,working my way up to be an editor for both papers. Then a former coworker, editor of a new publication of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette called SyncWeekly headhunted me away.

Sadly, my Greek and Latin are underutilized and somewhat rusty, but I do have my degree to thank for what I consider to be the highlight of my portfolio, an analysis of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ that I totally knocked out of the park. Of the hundreds (maybe thousands?) of stories I've written, it is my favorite.

2004

Rachel (B.) F. (BA CLST Honors, 2004)

Following graduation, I moved to Little Rock to attend medical school at UAMS where I  quickly put my Latin skills to use in the anatomy lab.  Where does one find the levator labii superior alaeque nasi?  Right where one would expect to locate a tiny muscle that elevates the upper lip and the wing or flared part of the nose!  In the summer of 2005, I married my sweetheart, Sammy. When we stopped at the British Musuem during our honeymoon, I shared with him fond memories of the Greek Odyssey 2001.  I was also able to visit Rome and Pompeii with my family where I served as the unofficial tour guide and official translator of all Latin inscriptions.  

In 2008 I received my MD and began work as a Psychiatry resident at UAMS and in 2010 I moved back to Northwest Arkansas to complete my residency training at Northwest Medical Center in Sprindale.   While I don't explicitly use my classics training every day, I think that my background gives me a different perspective on medicine and mental health care than that of my peers-- no one else in my program wrote an honors thesis on ancient aphrodisiacs!

 In June 2012 I will complete my residency in psychiatry.  I have accepted a position at Pat Walker Health Center where I will provide psychiatric care for our students at CAPS and the medical clinic. I am very excited to be returning to my alma mater, and, of course, to keep calling the hogs!!

Hunter G. (BA CLST 2004)

After leaving the U of A, I got marriedand moved to Dallas where I started graduate school at Dallas Theological Seminary. After four more years of Greek and Hebrew, I graduated with my Masters of Theology. That same year, I took a job back in Cabot, AR where I became the Pastoral Intern. Since then, I have been doing a myriad of things such as preaching, teaching, studying, counseling, praying, and shepherding the people that God has blessed me to put in my care. Another thing of great importance was the birth of our first son.

I still am keeping up somewhat with my Greek. Not as much as sometimes, I feel I should, but hopefully enough for me to be faithful to both the New Testament and the Septuagint when textual difficulties and nuances arise.

Jacob L. (BA CLST, Honors, 2004)

I've earned the MA and PhD degrees in English Literature, and I recently defended my PhD dissertation (Tools for Tomorrow: The Utopian Function in Middle English Literature, 1350-1420). I'm working on a few articles, and will start as a Lecturer in the fall at the U of A.

Joe R. (BA CLST 2004)

After my Classical Studies degree, I earned an MBA and was awarded Outstanding Student in my class and inducted into Phi Kappa Phi and Beta Gamma Sigma honor societies.

I consider my Classics degree to be invaluable and earning it was an unbelievably enriching experience. The skills required to learn Latin and Greek are great preparation for any further study, and the knowledge of both languages' vocabulary and both cultures' history and literature have greatly improved my ability to understand our own society and its relationship to the world. I hope that my children will consider an undergraduate Classics degree as the foundation of an excellent education, regardless of the careers they might think of pursuing.

Jerry S. (BA CLST, 2004)

I completed a J.D. at Albany Law School, a M.A. in Public Affairs and Policy from the State University of New York at Albany (the Rockefeller College), and currently serve as General Counsel for a technology company in Washington, D.C. More importantly, my wife and I are enjoying our two sons. And we'll be teaching them Latin and Greek early.

2005

Sena (M.) B. (BA CLST Honors, 2005)

After I graduated, I married and moved to England where I lived for two years. I worked for the local government coordinating interpreters and translators before I became a stay-at-home mom. Then we moved to Chicago where we bought a house and are getting ready to add another little dear to our family. After this baby is born, I am planning to get certification in dental hygiene.

Don B. (BA CLST Honors 2005):

I am in the Universitsy of Minnesota Classics Ph.D program. I'm passed my preliminary exams and plan to defend my dissertation(on the Greek Novel) in the spring of 2013. I have had the chance to teach first-semester Latin and Virgil (fourth-semester Latin). And I did finally teach Greek! I have also enjoyed outside teaching opportunities, volunteering to teach New Testament Greek at my church, and leading an Ancient Novel seminar for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute through the UM, which is aimed at providing learning opportunities for retirees.

Evin D. (BA CLST, Honors 2005)

I am a freelance writer with a focus on sports. I have a weekly column for the central Arkansas weekly Sync. I will also soon be writing articles for the monthly magazine Arkansas Life. In late August, I will return to Turkey to be a freelance Associated Press reporter covering the World Championships of Basketball. I recently won a national award for obituary writing. The New York Times recently published my articles on the deadly flooding on the Little Missouri River.

Jason K. (BA CLST 2005)

I am about to take the position of Assistant Dean of Students at a classical charter school in Indianapolis. After graduating from the University of Arkansas in 2005 with a B.A. in Classical Studies and Anthropology I participated in an excavation in northern Syria directed by Dr. Jesse Casana of the University of Arkansas' Department of Anthropology. I then attended the University of Colorado - Boulder where I earned my M.A. in Classics and participated in another season of excavation in Syria. I worked for a short while for a private archaeology firm in Ohio. I'm finishing my fourth academic year (2012) of teaching Latin at Herron High School, a classical charter school in Indianapolis. I've taught Latin I, II, III, and IV during my time at the school. When the school year is done I'm going to transition from teaching Latin to being the Assistant Dean of Students at the school. We have one of the largest Latin programs in the Midwest, with 650 students at the school and all enrolled in Latin next year.I often slip into Greek mode with my students and tell them stories of Dicaeopolis and lazy Xanthias.

Michael M. (BA CLST 2005)

After graduation I enrolled in the PhD program in History at UA, and am currently researching and writing my dissertation titled "The Responses of the Roman Imperial Government to Natural Disasters: 29 BC-180 AD". I work as an instructor in the UA History Department where I taught Western Civilization 1 for two years and will teach Honors World Civilization 1 in 2010-2011. In 2009 my wife and I had the privilege of traveling to Rome, Naples, Ostia, and Capri.

The Classics motivated me to return to college after completing a Seminary degree in 2000, and they remain the central focus of my academic and professional life. Knowing Greek and Latin are not only vitally important to reading the New Testament and studying Greek and Roman History, but learning those languages has made me a better communicator of ideas by increasing my English vocabulary. In addition, learning Greek and Latin has helped me to think critically and logically.

Sara S. (CLST Minor, 2005)

Erin (P.) T. (BA CLST 2005)

I am working for the federal government doing research, information management and some project management. After graduation, I earned a Master's of Library Science at the University of Maryland's College of Information Science (iSchool).

2006

Josh A. (BA CLST Honors, 2006):

I finished my MA in Theology at Fuller Theological Seminary and am now working on my second MA in Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology. And I'll be applying for PhD programs in philosophy next year. I've taken Hebrew to help me in Septuagint study down the road.

I've written some entries for the Revised English Version New Testament Commentary (publication forthcoming, ed. John Schoenheit). I also published an article in Sower Magazine: "Treasure in Heaven and Peace on Earth." The Sower. Nov.- Dec. 2007: 24-25.

Danis C. (CLST Minor, 2006)

I am currently finishing up my third year of medical school at Weill Cornell Medical College in Manhattan. I have decided to go into pediatrics, and will be applying to residency next year as I finish up my MD. During the year between undergrad and medical school, Drew C. (also a UofA grad) and I were in-country coordinators in Belize setting the Belize study abroad program for the University of Arkansas and Peacework. It was fantastic!

Our Classical Studies parties are still some of my favorite memories from undergrad.

Jason C. (BA CLST Honors 2006)

The best thing about studying Classics is...everything!  I've found that my training in the classical languages and history has been a huge help and blessing to me since I began them at the U of A several years ago now.  After starting with Latin and Greek, I had a strong foundation for pursuing other languages.  I've since been able to learn German, as well as studying some French and Aramaic, and even picking up a little Thai on the side.  In fact, my wife and I are planning to move to the Middle East next year and learn Arabic, and I am confident that my Classics background will be really helpful there, as well. 

Learning the history has been a great help, too, in interacting with people from all over the world, as well as understanding my own cultural heritage.  As others on this page have mentioned, I've found the language and history background especially helpful in my study of Biblical literature and history.  For the past 6 years I've been serving with a campus ministry, working at several campuses across the state of Arkansas and now at Rice University in Houston.  I get to dialogue with students about matters of faith, religious and non-religious students alike.  The broader education and background I got in studying Classics has been invaluable at every point in my journey, and I very much trust that it will continue to be.

Mary F. (CLST BA 2006)

What has Classics done for my life? Firstly, my Classics degree from U of A allowed me to be accepted into the Ph.D. in Literature program at the University of Notre Dame - where I have been allowed to focus on the literature of the Classical and the Roman Imperial period. Secondly, during the course of my education at Notre Dame, I have been sent to an international conference on the Ancient Novel at Lisbon, Portugal. I have also accompanied my Roman history classes to the excavations of Hadrian's Wall in England and examined antiquities at the British Museum. I traveled to Rome with my Literature and Empire class where we examined imperial monuments, inscriptions, and art from the period of the Roman Empire. This fall I will be speaking at the World History Association's conference on Byzantine and Ottoman Civilization where I will be presenting on the influence of the Alexander Romance on Byzantine Apocalyptic and the Koran. While in Istanbul, I will of course be viewing the Theodosian Walls, Hagia Sophia, etc. and visiting the architectural, anthropological, and art museums. Traveling is, needless to say, a huge bonus.

I have found that studying Classics is not only fun in and of itself, but also offers a surprising joy each time you discover for yourself another fascinating piece of the puzzle that is the ancient world. I have found that meditating on antiquity - especially the ancient Greek and Roman world - has often given me deep insights into current events and current historical or socio-cultural trends. I have realized how much our culture is at once the same and different to that of the ancient Greeks and Romans. As the ancestors of the Greco-Roman world, it becomes clear to me that we have options of various historical paths that could either align us with the history of the Roman empire or divorce us from it. In a world that is becoming more and more divided, exploring how the ancients solved their problems and how the ancients were able to make alliances with various peoples, presents us ultimately, I believe, with hope. It is this joy and hope that comes from studying Classics that carries me every day in my quest for knowledge and understanding.

Bryce H. (BA CLST 2006)

Currently I am working on my Masters of Divinity at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City, MO. I am also pastoring two small United Methodist Churches in the towns of Grenola and Moline in Southeastern Kansas.

My studies at the University of Arkansas really prepared me to do the work that I am doing now. My ultimate goal is become ordained in the United Methodist Church. I feel my classical education really has benefitted me.

Sophia L.-H. (BA CLST 2006)

Grant R. (CLST BA, Honors, 2006)

I just got a job as an attorney with a technology firm in Little Rock that specializes in providing software for employers to administer benefits to their employees.

I received my JD at UALR Law School, and often make mention of my Classics classes...like the 'I'm a sesquipedalian' pencils or the fact that the word 'school' comes from the Greek word for leisure. I really did enjoy Classical Studies classes and appreciated the faculty's sense of humor, passion, and humility.

Aaron R. (BA CLST 2006)

After graduating from the U of A I went through a period of soul searching and restless wandering. I spent time working at Sears using my language skills to hawk electronics to Spanish speakers. I moved back in with my parents and worked as a substitute teacher in the Cabot School District. While serving in this capacity I found my true calling in life: to serve the youth of our state. Fortunately enough, I was able to convince my wife that she indeed should marry me and we were wed in the summer of 2007. After that I worked commercial construction and substitute taught in North Little Rock in order to pay for my Masters of Arts in Teaching at UCA. I graduated with my MAT in 2009 and used my history background to teach World History classes at NLRHS - East Campus.
In 2010 I took a position teaching AP European History and AP Art History at my Alma Mater, Cabot High School, in Cabot, AR. I worked two years in that capacity making the most of my classical background to discuss the beautiful works of Phidias, Myron, and Praxiteles. I didn't leave out two of my favorites, Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles, and certainly didn't forgo discussing the erotic nature of feet with my AP students. I am proud to say that I had a number of my former students attend the U of A and I have pushed everyone of them to enroll in either Latin or Greek and to spend at least a summer abroad in Italy, Greece, or Turkey. The lessons gained from both my classroom instruction and my ability to study abroad benefited me greatly in my instruction of AP European History and I have the greatest appreciation for Giorgos and his tutelage in modern Greek history.

I begin my new job as Director of GT and Advanced Programs in July of 2012. I am now serving as an administrator and find that the skills I developed as an officer of Eta Sigma Phi are serving me well. I count myself fortunate that I had the ability to study and grow under the faculty of the Classics department. My wife, Ann, and I have two wonderful children. She rolls her eyes at me as I teach them the Greek words for their clothing and items around the house. I do this because I know they will benefit in the end from a love of all things Hellenic.

John S. (BA, CLST, 2006)

I served as a U.S. Peace Corp Volunteer in the Philippines from 2008 to 2010.  I taught English and Education courses at the College of Teacher Education, University of Antique, on Panay Island.  Now I'm in New York, pursuing a M.S. in Global Affairs at New York University.  I'll graduate in May 2013.  For the past year, I've worked for the renowned development economics William Easterly at the NYU Development Research Institute.  Also, this past year I was honored as the winner of the Brussels Forum Young Writers Award for an essay on the future of the transatlantic relationship.  My research focus at the NYU Center for Global Affairs is the role of frontier economies in international affairs, particularly in Southeast Asia and in East Africa. I continue to cherish my classical education; the discipline allows me to take the long view and put current events into a larger context. Though I am very happy in New York, I miss Fayetteville.  

Ronnie S. (BA CLST 2006)

I joined the ranks of Teach for America. I am teaching World Literature (English II) in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Chris S. (BA History, 2006)

I finished with a History degree, but most of my classes were within the Classics department. Since graduating I have been in Seminary where I was actually able to test out of Greek because of Dr. Levine's and Dr. Fredrick's teaching abilities. But that has not stopped my studies. I have since gone to Greece to study Modern at the Athens Centre, I have done translations of Medieval Greek poetry for a forthcoming book, and am applying for further studies in advanced linguistics and Greek grammatical studies. It is an understatement to say that taking Greek at UARK simply changed my life. It has given me direction to pursue something I have become immensely passionate about. Thank you so much Professors, I now want to become a Greek Professor myself.

Andy T. (BA CLST, 2006)

I'm currently the Director if Information Technology for a small company in Washington, DC. We offer services to non-profits and political campaigns so that they can organize and campaign online more effectively.

I am, sadly, not using my wonderful degree directly. I do feel, though, that it is invaluable and I do use it in some way, every day. I've always been very much a lover of technology and have wanted to work with computers for as long as I can remember so, I'm definitely doing something I enjoy. My return to the IT world was basically my return to what I was doing before I went back to school at the UofA.

Joshua W. (BA CLST 2006)

2007

Carol Anne B. (CLST BA 2007)

I am a Certified Professional Resume Writer with my own company where I also get to work on web site copy writing/editing projects (more creative writing, which I really enjoy). I am so thankful for my degree and that I majored in something that I love (despite the naysayers!).

After graduating, I was on the hunt for a job that would allow me to stay home and take care of my son. I can proudly say that my liberal arts degree in Classical Studies enabled me to achieve that goal, as it caught the eye of the right person at a recruiting firm who needed help writing resumes. She figured that, with my degree, I must have a good grasp of language (and that I had done my fair share of writing in college!) and offered to mentor me in the art of resume writing.

Sarah F. (CLST Minor, 2007)

Having completed my M.A this spring, I'm currently preparing for my preliminary exams at Brown University in the American Civilization Ph.D. program and will soon prepare a dissertation proposal.

Although my research interests lie within twentieth-century American urbanism and urban history, I can easily trace the genesis of those inclinations to a CLST summer study abroad trip to Italy, led by Dave Fredrick and Josh Garvin. It was particularly while touring ancient and renaissance Rome, Florence, and Pompeii that I recall I began interpreting cities differently. In those cities--and of course with the expert guidance of Dave and Josh--I think it was easy to see demonstrations of power and authority.

Where previously I'd just been awed by the architecture, longevity and dimensions of a place, I began seeing in the framework and architecture and monuments of a city the way that governing bodies and planning officials might attempt to control and conscript populations. Drawing from that way of looking at a city, I became curious about cities in the US, particularly those in the southern and southwestern parts of the US. I came home from the trip and wondered where one might locate nationalism and American exceptionalism in the urbanism of the south and Sunbelt. Where are the spaces that demonstrate power and authority? Whose power and authority do they demonstrate? And power and authority over whom or what? 

That trip was a major turning point for me, and I'm so grateful that I received and took the opportunity to go and experience what has become, in my mind, the first of many lessons in urban studies. 

Brent H. (BA CLST Honors, 2007)

I am at the Ohio State University in an MA/PhD program in Ancient History [2010] with full funding; a privilege for which the credit is due to my education in the Classics.

There is a saying used by vocation coaches, "Do what you love and the money will follow." This had an impact on my mindset as I proceeded through college and made my choices about my degree. I stumbled upon the Classics and fell in love with the ancient world. To me it only made sense to do what I loved. At the time I didn't realize that what I loved would prepare me so well for work outside of Academics.

Since graduating in 2007, I have been working as an all-star cheer and tumbling coach. My time spent studying Ancient Greek and Latin and their respective societies, provided me with skills that set me apart from all of my co-workers at the gym. My language experience taught me as much about English grammar and syntax as that of Greek or Latin, and the exercises in paper writing and creative projects which are an essential part of an education in the humanities have proved invaluable in everyday tasks at work ranging from creating flyers and ads to parent/athlete handbooks or agendas.

While a degree in Classics is not a vocational degree designed to prepare one for a career as a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, I whole-heartedly believe that it prepares individuals to be productive members of society by developing critical and even creative thinking and refines the tools necessary for the expression of those ideas and am deeply grateful for mine.

Chris J. (BA CLST, 2007)

I am right at the end of my first full year teaching high school - physics and calculus and the like - back in Texas [2010]. I try to work in a bit of classical learning when it fits: I remember a student commenting on "the upside-down y" when we discussed either wavelength or half-lives, so I tried to impress upon them the gravitas of the lambda with a quick discussion of the dread it once held for the enemies of Sparta.

Kris M. (BA CLST 2007)

Geoffrey R. (BA CLST, 2007)

I am currently in graduate school at John Brown University, getting my Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy/Community Counseling. I received a graduate fellowship that pays for my degree and also provides me with a job on campus. I'll finish up the program, and then hopefully move on to attend school for a PhD in a related field. I've logged over 300 hours of direct client contact, helping individuals of all ages, including families, marital couples, and premarital couples. I absolutely love seeing clients and watching them grow, develop, and change.

I still enjoy getting into my New Testament in Greek, though I'm not as sharp as I once was.

Miranda S. (CLST Minor, 2007)

Matthew S. (BA CLST 2007)

Sarah (B.) V. (BA CLST Honors, 2007)

I work at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art as a Collections Assistant. I've had the wonderful opportunity to work with works of art on a daily basis and have learned quite a bit about starting and running an art museum. We will be moving to Berkeley this fall. I'll be looking for another job at that point. This summer we are traveling all over the globe.

2008

Keenan C. (BA CLST Honors, 2008)

I attended the American School of Classical Studies at Athens Summer Session in 2009, and am now a Technical Assistant in the University of Arkansas department of CAST (Center for Advanced Spacial Technology).

James C. (BA CLST, 2008)

After graduation in May 2008, I began working for Wycliffe Bible Translators, a faith-based organization that translates the Bible into minority languages and works toward other language development goals. In July 2008 I started working on an M.A. in Applied Linguistics at the Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics in Dallas, TX. In November 2009 my wife and I moved to Bulgaria. We are currently learning Bulgarian in preparation to work among the Roma people. Update May 6, 2011: I just accepted an offer from the University of Chicago Divinity School (MA Religion).

Kirsten D. (Ph.D. CLCS, Classics 2008)

I am in a tenure track position in the Classics Department at Augustana College in Rock Island, IL, I have a couple of small publications coming out -- an article on Anita Huffington in "Amphora" ("Classics Rewritten in Stone: The Art of Anita Huffington") and one in CJ ("Epic Echoes in 'High Noon'"). I am still the Area Chair (this might be my tenth year!) at the Southwest Texas Popular Culture Association's annual conference. I also published a review recently, and have a couple of other articles out for consideration.

Teryl H. (BA CLST Honors, 2008)

After graduating with my degree in Classical Studies at the U of A, I began working as the Coordinator for Academic & Residential Programming for the Gifted & Talented Scholars program at the University of Arkansas. In that position, as well as in my current position as an Academic Counselor for Upward Bound, I am responsible for making sure that our junior high and high school students have an enriching academic, social, and cultural experience here on campus during the summer. Of course, I always advocate placing our young students in Latin classes, because I know how valuable it is to have that language foundation. Just the other day, I was able to substitute for one of our teachers--imagine my excitement when the students gleefully told me their Latin names and asked what mine was. They showed me how they had started writing their names transliterated in Greek letters at the top of each homework paper, and they volunteered discuss their reading passages from The Odyssey. It was rewarding to see this new generation so excited about the Classics.

 I enjoyed my time in the Classical Studies department immensely. To put it simply, our professors are top notch. Each one demonstrates creativity and excellence in the art of teaching. Slacking off was never tolerated in the Classics department: we were pushed to do our absolute best and to truly learn the subject matter. There aren't any professors that I respect more than Drs. Levine, Fredrick, and Pappas! 

 I am currently working on an M.Ed. in Higher Education while working full time. My undergraduate career in the Classics department gave me MORE than enough preparation for graduate school and beyond. I will always be fiercely loyal to the U of A Classical Studies department.

Jason L. (CLST BA 2008)

Jasmine M. (BA CLST Honors, 2008)

I am currently pursuing my M.A. in Comparative Literature / Cultural Studies at the U of A while continuing work on the Digital Pompeii Project (http://pompeii.uark.edu). I also work as a Technical Support Assistant at CompuCom in Bentonville, AR.

Daniel M. (BA CLST 2008)

I am currently pursuing my Master of Arts in Teaching.

Jessica P. (BA CLST 2008)

Office of Study Abroad, University of Arkansas.

Alexandra S. (BA CLST 2008)

John T. (BA CLST, 2008)

I graduated in 2008 with degrees in Classics and History (Honors) and promptly presented myself at the University of Virginia to pursue a Ph.D. in history, specifically early medieval with a focus on Anglo-Saxon and Carolingian monasticism. My MA thesis dealt with the institutional history of an unknown monastery in Northumbria and I plan to write my Ph.D. dissertation on foundational narratives and imaginings on male and female religious institutions, ca. 700-900, with a possible emphasis on uses and misuses of sacred space. To make myself useful, I serve as a TA here at UVa, leading various discussion sections in courses like The Birth of Europe, Anglo-Saxon England and Renaissance Italy.
The Latin (and Greek!) training I received at Arkansas is self-evidently crucial to everything I pursue in this particular career path. Without training from Alex Pappas, Daniel Levine, Josh Garvin and Dave Fredrick, I wouldn't have put together the linguistic hardware to do what I do. When I have a bit of free time--or even when I don't--I enjoy delicious beer, the St. Louis Cardinals and Mad Men reruns.

2009

Jimmy C. (BA CLST 2009)

Sarah D. (BA CLST 2009)

John H. (BA CLST 2009)

I have been starting a sort of independent study. I've been buying a lot of English translations of classical authors, Plato, Euripides, Sophocles, Aristophanes, etc. Mostly what I have been concentrating on is a translation of the Greek and Latin Bibles. Beyond that, I have been accepted into the University's Undergraduate German Program, and am looking forward to studying four more languages.

Alyson K. (BA CLST 2009)

Rachel L. (CLST Minor, 2009)

Nicolas M. (BA CLST Honors, 2009)

I attended graduate school at Vanderbilt University, where I earned an MA. I now teach Latin at a private school in Houston, TX.

Emily (N.) M. (BA CLST Honors, 2009)

I am currently pursuing my M.M. (master's in music) in flute performance at the University of Oregon. I have found that my studies in the Classics at the University of Arkansas have helped me very much in the academic aspect of music. The Classics department has given me a greater, more open-minded perspective of the world and has also enabled me to do some of my own Latin translations for music history papers!

As an undergraduate double major in Classics and music, it was sometimes challenging to balance class work, music rehearsals and homework. It was worth it, however, because now I am prepared for the intense academic environment of graduate school! I would recommend Classics as a second major to any undergraduate studying anything, especially those who intend to go to graduate school.

Jordan S. (BA CLST Honors, 2009)

I am currently working at Weldon, Williams, & Lick, Inc. (Printing and Designing) in Fort Smith for the summer. We are moving to Tucson in July and next year I plan on entering their classical studies masters program. I'm really excited about the move!

Daniel S. (BA CLST 2009)

I earned my MA in Geosciences at the University of Arkansas in 2012..

Nathan T. (CLST Minor, 2009)

I am currently in medical school at University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. In general, a knowledge of Latin has been beneficial in medical school because it is impossible to know every disease or anatomical term, but when you have a strong background in Latin, it is often possible to break even obscure terms down and guess their meaning.

More importantly, however, as a physician, I will have to have a good understanding of human behavior. The most rewarding part of studying the Classics was trying to uncover the thoughts and beliefs behind works of art and literature. By learning how the Romans saw sexuality, sickness, and society, I realized that there are systems of belief and logic different from my own.

Michelle Z.-S. (BA CLST 2009)

After graduation, my husband and I traveled to Europe, spending time in Germany, Italy, and Greece. We were lucky enough to visit Rome, Pompeii, Delphi, and Athens. During our tour of the Ancient World, I had the opportunity to use the knowledge I had gained as a Classical Studies major and helped out some fellow tourists.

In January '10, we welcomed our first baby, a beautiful little girl, and since then I have been a stay at home mom. Although I am no longer in school, I continue to study and learn all I can, since, if anything, being a student of the classics has made me a philomath!

2010

Justin A. (BA CLST Honors, 2010)

I had a one-year internship at my church in Central Arkansas, teaching Koine Greek and training to be a pastor. I am now a geaduate student at the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston, MA.

Drew A. (CLST Minor, 2010)

I am a medical student at the UT Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, and will be glad to speak to anybody who is considering studying Classical Studies and being pre-med at the same time. Update: May, 2011: It's not uncommon for me to sit in my Dallas, TX, apartment and look out the window at the buildings and asphalt and allow my mind to drift back to quiet and earthy Fayetteville.  Among its many charms was the jewel of it all - the University of Arkansas.  And there I swam in the rich and deep waters of a broad education in the arts and sciences.  I remember H2P and English classes, chemistry and philosophy, Spanish and economics, but Greek maintains a special place of its own in my amygdala, the brain's seat of emotion (medical school hasn't been totally useless), and I am especially cheered when I find an Hellenic pearl in daily life. 

David B. (BA CLST 2010)

James G. (BA CLST Honors 2010)

I work at a retail electronics store in Fayetteville, Arkansas and am thinking of returning to the U of A to study comparative literature.

Melody G. (BA CLST, Honors 2010)

I am preparing to enter a graduate program in literature in Cambridge, England.

Lauren H. (BA CLST Honors 2010)

Meg M. (BA CLST 2010)

I am teaching Latin at Little Rock Central High School.

Matthew N. (BA CLST, Honors 2010)

I just graduated with my MA in Classics from the University of Kansas with a 4.0 (May, 2012). I am about to start the American Academy in Rome Summer Archaeology Program and dig in Pompeii for the summer which will be awesome! Then I am actually coming back to Fayetteville for a year before I go on to my PhD program in archaeology.

Billy Q. (CLST Minor, 2010)

Studying Latin has helped me immensely with my major in English. Almost all the poets and authors I've read in my Classical Studies classes have had some relevance in my understanding and analysis of English literature, whether it's Shakespeare's indebtedness to Ovid or T.S. Eliot's allusion to Petronius in The Waste Land. Furthermore, Latin has helped me in the enervating process of studying for the GRE verbal section. I only wish that I had had the foresight as a freshman to also major in Classical Studies.

Noel R. (BA CLST 2010)

I worked for the Ozark Literacy Council in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and now am training to be a nuclear engineer for the US Navy submarine fleet..

Alex S. (BA CLST Honors, 2010)

I am a graduate student in Texas Tech's Master of Arts Program in Classics..

Cass T. (BA CLST 2010)

I received a Fulbright grant to teach English in Turkey, following this, I shall attend graduate school in creative writing.

2011

Sarah G. (BA CLST Honors 2011)

I attend Harvard University's Master of Arts program in Theological Studies.

Seth J. (BA CLST 2011)

I attend Law School at the University of Arkansas.

Tucker L. (BA CLST 2011)

I attend Law School at the University of Arkansas. I will teach Biblical Greek to Sudanese refugees in Egypt.

2012

Brandon H. (BA CLST 2012)

Tristan J. (BA Honors CLST 2012)

Tyler J. (BA Honors CLST 2012)

Michael "A." L. (BA CLST 2012)

Sami (S.) M. (BA CLST 2012)

Bailey S. (BA CLST 2012)

Kate T. (BA CLST 2012)

Samantha T. (BA CLST Honors 2012)

Derek W. (CLST Minor 2012)

Greg G.

Not a CLST Major, but offers the following:

I have served in Christian ministry as a chaplain in a hospital, in a camp setting, and as a Student Pastor in churches. My brief background in the Greek language has served me well as I have sought the communicate what the ancient world was like, and as I have studied the Old and New Testaments. I have found my understanding of Greek of great value to me in my ministry.

My two semesters of Greek helped instill in me a passion for teaching and learning, and a love for language.I did not get a BA in Classical Studies, although I wish I had. I took Greek 1 and 2. I will be forever indebted to the program in Classical Studies for instilling in me a love for language and for ancient cultures. It has served me over the years.

After graduating, I went to seminary, where I was required to take New Testament Greek 1 and 2. Of course, after taking Dr. Levine's Classical Greek, NT Greek was a breeze!