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'It gave me baseline writing and logic skills, which have proved valuable in analyzing and presenting business propositions.  Further, it afforded me a perspective into various cultures which proves useful when working with people from other areas of the world.''

''Foremost, my history courses at SLU taught me how to think.  I refined my writing and research skills, which I use in my job every day.  History at SLU taught me how to become excited about ideas, pushing me to dig a little deeper in everything that I do.''

'"Reading history' taught me to absorb a lot of detail in a little time.  While I did not find law school easy, it was less of a struggle for me than some of my classmates who were overwhelmed with the volume of reading in the first year.  History also provided perspective, on people and their cultures, which I believe makes me a more effective lawyer.  My practice has always involved dealing with regulatory agencies, and the lessons of history (the origin of the agency, its mission, the history/background of a particular law or regulation) provides added insight to how you might accomplish something, or achieve a particular result, for your client.  Although one could say it is a by-product of a liberal arts education generally, not just a history major, I also think being interested in what is happening in the world, and being able to put it into context, makes you a 'good interview' -- so essential to getting the job!''

Alumni Profiles

If you are a St. Lawrence University history alumnus and would like to be profiled on this page, please send your comments and photo to:

Rita Hewlett History Department Secretary St. Lawrence University Canton, NY 13617 rhew@stlawu.edu

OR

Judith DeGroat History Department Chair St. Lawrence University Canton, NY 13617 jdegroat@stlawu.edu

We'd love to know what our history graduates are doing!

Ursula Arello-Winston '89
Client Services Manager
ursula.arello@fchp.org

''As a history major at St. Lawrence University, I enrolled in many labor relations courses which focused on the history of the United States’ organized labor movement, including the study of collective bargaining and arbitration proceedings.  My current position as an Account Manager with a health maintenance organization requires that I work with large employer groups, many which have Union employees that actively negotiate their health insurance benefits.   My history degree furnished me with a unique understanding of the strategic issues confronting workers and their unions, and has therefore allowed me to successfully work with employer groups that have Union representation.  I credit my St. Lawrence University history major for granting me with a broad-based comprehension of labor history, and providing me with the analytical skills to understand the larger, theoretical issues confronting workers and employers in the twenty first century.''

Frederick (Rick) Cleveland '94
Financial/Investment Banking

'In preparing for a career in investment banking and finance, my history degree did not teach me how to analyze the financial condition of a business.  It did not arm me with knowledge of how supply-side economic policies should unfold or with the quantitative ability to calculate a required rate of return on an investment  My history degree has actually served a much higher purpose in my career.  Studying history has taught me how to think critically.  It has taught me how to analyze the written word, how to be inquisitive, how to be curious and how to ask one of the most important questions in business:  why?  By studying history, one learns the ability to translate the significance of events and bring meaning to them.  It is surprising how many individuals do not have these skills.  In investment banking, most often seen as a highly quantitative field, the ability to think from a critical perspective and communicate effectively are essential for success.  I know these skills will be imperative to my own long-term successes and studying history has allowed me to develop them.  Most importantly for me, history was fun and engaging.  I left SLU feeling educated about the world.  I have found plenty of time after history to learn the economics of business.''

Colleen Curry '88
Curator
Colleen_Curry@nps.gov

 

''History has always been important to me.  As the child of two teachers the love of history was instilled in me during summer trips that always consisted of visits to historic sites and national parks.  I knew that becoming a history major was what I wanted but I wasn't sure what I could do with it besides teach or study law.  The summer before my senior year at St. Lawrence I was fortunate to get a job as a museum aide for the curator at Gettysburg National Military Park.  It was then I disovered the museum field and knew that I could best use my history degree towards a Masters in Museum Studies (from George Washington University) and a career in museum work.  My St. Lawrence history degree provided me with in depth knowledge of various periods in history and has assisted me in obtaining museum positions at a variety of museums, such as The Hermitage (Home of Andrew Jackson), the Supreme Court of the United States, the Lehigh County Historical Society (Allentown, PA) and, currently, as curator of Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial (a National Park Service site).  The museum field enables me to use my history degree on a daily basis, making it a wonderful career path for history majors.''

 

Glenn King '89
Assistant Attorney General
kinger@nycap.rr.com

''Law is a fluid institution and in order to fully nderstand the state of the law, one must comprehend its history.  As a double major in history and government, I was constantly being taught that in order to understand why a government would choose acertain course of action, one had to understand the cirrcumstances that existed at that time.  In turn, in order to understand the circumstances that exist in any given moment of time requires a review and analysis of the history preceding that period.  The field of law is similar in that it constantly changes to suit changing times and circumstances and to understand why a law exists or why it was changed requires a comprehension of the history preceding its enactment or amendment.  Thus, the appreciation of history that I developed as a history major at St. Lawrence University has helped me more fully comprehend my chosen profession of law.''

Geoffrey Megargee '81
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
gpmegargee@hotmail.com

''Most fundamentally, a history major helped me to hone my ability to work through a problem and communicate my findings.  In all my professional positions – as an army officer, in business, and as a researcher, analyst and writer –  those skills have been absolutely essential to my success.  Seemingly mundane tasks such as taking notes, gleaning information from textbooks, and writing essays and term papers were thus all invaluable parts of my professional development.
      Beyond that, the history major was the first step toward a career as a professional historian.  Of course, few of you reading this will take that path, but for me, the opportunity to carry out research, write, teach, and manage historical projects has been extremely rewarding.  History provides endless puzzles for those who like to solve them, as well as the growth that comes from constant intellectual challenge.''

Jim Schaefer '80
Assistant Football Coach
jaschaef@upenn.edu

''History has always been a deep love of mine that has led me directly and indirectly throughout my life.  This love of History was able to flourish in my years at St. Lawrence.  It was during my college years that I was able to delve fully into areas of history that particularly piqued my interests.  In doing so I learned many valuable lessons that would carry through into my career and every day life... I learned the invaluable lesson of gathering information from a wide range of sources, sorting through this information and forming a concise presentation of my ideas. At St. Lawrence I was also able to study a variety of different people and their cultures and in turn was able to expand my knowledge of the world around me.  My study of history has taught me to be open to other cultures and ideas throughout the world.  This has helped me tremendously in my career as I have found that one of my keys to success has been searching out new ideas from various sources and formulating my own mode of teaching my players how to play the game. 

 

Many alumni indicated that they would be willing to serve as informal mentors to current History majors and minors. Please click here to see a list of those alumni who are in varied career fields.

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