CLASS OF 2019
Sarah Bruns
Field of Study: Literature Track, Minors in Dance and Theology
Book Recommendation: East of Eden by John Steinbeck or The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Monasticism Old and New at Tall Timber with Jerry Sitser, Jan Term 2018
Spirit Animal: I would like to say I’m an elephant, but a lot of people have told me dolphin.
Mikayla Davis
Field of Study: Literature Track, Minors in Mathematics, Spanish, and English Language Arts.
Book Recommendation: C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters.
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: It might be going against the grain, but I loved Core 250. We don’t sit and ponder the nature of the world to the same extent that early thinkers did, so grappling with all the historical and philosophical content through this course was simply fascinating.
Spirit Animal: As much as I’d love to say a bird of some type (I love birds), I am more of a deer.
Dalaney Goodyear
Field of Study: English Language Arts Track, Secondary Education, and ELL (English Language Learners)
Book Recommendation: Ten Thousand Lovers by Edeet Ravel
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Educational Psychology
Spirit Animal: Elderly Golden Retriever
Kassidy Gore
Field of Study: Writing Track with Psych Minor
Book Recommendation: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Edgar Allen Poe with Vic Bobb, Janterm
Spirit Animal: Blobfish
Annisa Hale
Field of Study: Writing Track, with Film and Visual Narrative Minor
Book Recommendation: The House on Mango Street (always a favorite)
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Poetry of Witness
Spirit Animal: Most definitely a deer somewhere deep in cedar tree forests.
Sarah Haman
Field of Study: Writing Track, Minors is Political Science, Editing & Publishing, and Honors
Book Recommendation: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Poetry Writing with Laurie Lamon
Spirit Animal: I am my own spirit animal.
Brianna M. Harper
Field of Study: Track 3 (w/ Secondary Education), Minor in English Language Learners
Book Recommendation: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandra Dumas
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Poe w/ Vic Bob, Janterm
Spirit Animal: Turtle
Elyse Herrera
Field of Study: Literature Track, Editing & Publishing Minor
Book Recommendation: Ta Nehisi-Coates, The Beautiful Struggle or Leif Enger’s Peace Like a River
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Interpersonal Communications
Spirit Animal: Alpine Ibex
Alexandra Jackson
Field of Study: Writing Track
Book Recommendation: Fahrenheit 451
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: 20th Century American Fiction or Poetry Writing
Spirit Animal: Apparently, an owl.
Alli Kieckbusch
Field of Study: Writing Track, Business Minor
Book Recommendation: Catcher in the Rye
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Critical Strategies with John Pell
Spirit Animal: Lhasa Apsa Puppy
Katie Lacayo
Field of Study: Writing Track, Minors in Honors, Editing & Publishing, Speech Communication, and Music
Book Recommendation: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky and Cane by Jean Toomer. Random, I know.
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: EL 349W, 20th Century American Fiction, which was the hardest class and taught me the most, and TH 384, The Bible and Outsiders, which gave me a heart for the least of these.
Spirit Animal: Domestic Cat
Meghan Long
Field of Study: Literature Track, Theology Minor
Book Recommendation: To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Poetry Writing with Laurie Lamon
Spirit Animal: Golden Retriever
Kalani Padilla
Field of Study: Writing Track, Minors in Film & Visual Narrative
Book Recommendation: Blue Horses by Mary Oliver
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Interpersonal Communication
Spirit Animal: Monk Seal
Rip Pahukoa
Field of Study: Writing Track, with General Business Minor
Book Recommendation: The Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Autobiographical Writing with Thom and Creative Writing with Laurie
Spirit Animal: Snow Leopard
Nathan Quick
Field of Study: Literature Track, Minors in Music and Film & Visual Narrative
Book Recommendation: To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: World Cinema
Spirit Animal: Hobbes from Calvin and Hobbes
Lindsey Smith
Field of Study: English Track 3 and Secondary Education with an English Language Learners Minor
Book Recommendation:Citizen by Claudia Rankine
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Teaching Writing and Adolescent Literature
Spirit Animal: Teddy Bear
Chloe Taton
Field of Study: Writing Track
Book Recommendation: Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card or the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: EL 444, Advanced Writing Workshop (EL 447, Shakespeare with Doug Sugano and EL 267, Tolkien are close seconds)
Spirit Animal: Bengal Tiger (the really big ones with paws the size of your face).
Hannah Underwood
Field of Study: Literature Track, Film and Visual Narrative Minor
Book Recommendation: To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: British Culture Through the Arts
Spirit Animal: A Meowl. A cat-owl hybrid.
Amber Van Brunt
Field of Study: Literature and Writing Tracks, Political Science Minor
Book Recommendation: Atonement by Ian McEwan or Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: Probably Fred’s American Drama, or Casey’s Postcolonial Lit
Spirit Animal: Moose
Melissa Voss
Field of Study: Writing Track, Editing & Publishing Minor
Book Recommendation: (This is suppppper hard to decide on and I definitely feel like I’m going to forget something) The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros and Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: (This is also suuuupppppeerrr hard—how dare you make me choose!) Poetry Writing w/ Laurie Lamon probably.
Spirit Animal: A giraffe wearing a scarf.
Rylee Walter
Field of Study: Literature Track with a double major in Speech Communication (no minor).
Book Recommendation: If you somehow escaped high school without reading it, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is incredible!
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: SP313 Advanced Interpersonal Communication
Spirit Animal: The students on the high school debate team I coach told me I am like a moose.
Erin Wolf
Field of Study: Writing Track, Film and Visual Narrative Minor
Book Recommendation: The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra
Best Class Taken at Whitworth: is it cheating if I say my whole off-campus semester in LA?
Spirit Animal: Fennec Fox