91AV

Why did you choose 91AV?

The main reason I picked Bryantwas because I could major in one school and minor in another. I see myself more as a generalist than a specialist, so being able to go across schools and disciplines was something I was excited about.

How did you decide on team and project management?

I picked team and project management because of my Global Foundations of Character and Leadership course. I was put in charge of a team. It was a really messy team, especially when it was our first year and I didn’t know what I was doing, but I really liked it. Being more of an artsy person, a literature person, I liked the philosophical side of management. Management is about understanding people, hearing their stories, and bringing them together. 

What are a few takeaways you learned from your major?

The number one thing I learned from my management classes is to listen to your team. Then pull from personal experience, because if you want people to be motivated, you have to give them a reason. It all comes back to making other people feel valued and getting them excited about the work they’re doing. Being able to trust your team is required for good management, too — to give up some of your power to your team. 

Tell us about your . 

I knew that I wanted my thesis to be literature-based. I was reading Frankenstein and then saw the stage production. It’s a really cool story, and it stuck with me. But I still wanted my thesis to have something to do with my major. I talked with my thesis advisor, Professor Jennifer Horan, and we came up with this idea of conflict being a big feature of Frankenstein. I thought, how does that work in teams? Combining management and Frankenstein was how I got to this different approach with a management case study.

It was my way of seeing how I can combine things that don’t go together. Maybe in a deeper sense, that’s how I see myself. I wasn’t necessarily the right person to do arts, and I’m not necessarily the right person to do business because I wasn’t very good with accounting and math, but I think I could still be a really good manager. So that might be a little Frankenstein-like, too. We are all these pieces that don’t really go together, but we work.

Why is it important for Bryantstudents to combine business and the liberal arts?

It’s something that I think is uniquely human — to be able to combine these different things and then be allowed to develop them. It’s what’s going to keep us creative and engaged in our work, too. That’s what Bryantis doing.