Creighton Brown (he/him/his)
Where were you before Carleton? What brought you here?
Before joining Carleton College, I guided Inclusion Initiatives and LGBTQ+ Programs at North Dakota State University and spent over a decade teaching writing and literature courses exploring social and environmental justice at the Universities of Kansas and North Dakota. I am excited to join Carleton because of its strong commitment to liberal arts education along with community and civic engagement. These are values I foregrounded in every course I have taught.
Can you describe what you will be doing here in the CCCE when you start?
As I understand my new position, I will collaborate with my colleagues in the CCCE to support students as they engage in service learning opportunities through ongoing reflection, troubleshooting, and conversation, as well as assess learning outcomes to improve student experiences.
What goals do you have for your work with the CCCE?
I want to create positive and meaningful relationships with Carleton students, staff, faculty, and community members, as well as foster a welcoming and inclusive environment for all with whom I collaborate.
What excites you most about Carleton and the CCCE?
I earned my undergraduate degree from a small, private Liberal Arts college (Concordia College in Moorhead, MN), and after teaching at and working for large research institutions, I am most excited to return to a smaller, student-focused campus. I regularly reflect on how my undergraduate experiences not only prepared me to be a thoughtful and engaged teacher, but also how to translate my pedagogical approaches into designing and facilitating programming and inclusion initiatives.
And lastly, a more fun question: How have you been killing time during quarantine?
During quarantine, I’ve been re-watching past seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race and Top Chef and learning how to knife-sharpen wooden pencils, which is more difficult than it sounds. I also spend much time walking and exploring with my dog, Diego, who is named after Diego Rivera.
Ellie Garran (they/them/theirs)
Where were you before Carleton? What brought you here?
I just finished my MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Minnesota, where I taught undergraduate courses and worked with UMN’s Center for Community-Engaged Learning to develop a course. In the process I learned a lot about Academic Civic Engagement, and I realized it’s the perfect way for me to combine my love for working with students with my desire to work toward social change in a practical way. I’m really excited to keep learning about both of those things in this role.
Can you describe what you will be doing here in the CCCE when you start?
My understanding is that I’ll be coordinating Academic Civic Engagement courses in terms of logistics and technology, liaising with faculty, students and community partners involved in those courses, and coordinating events (whatever that will look like!).
What goals do you have for your work with the CCCE?
I’m hoping to keep expanding my understanding of community and civic engagement in an academic setting, and just keep learning more about being an ethical and useful person.
What excites you most about Carleton and the CCCE?
The staff and the students! Everyone at the CCCE has been so lovely to me in all our interactions, and I can’t wait to be a part of the team.
And lastly, a more fun question: How have you been killing time during quarantine?
I’m knitting a giant rainbow blanket. It’s easy enough that I can do it while I watch TV or listen to podcasts, but has enough changes of color that I never get bored of it.
Alan Zheng ’20 (he/him/his)
What was your major at Carleton? What brought you to the CCCE, and what organizations/clubs were you involved in at the College during your time as a student?
I was a psychology major at Carleton, though I am very interested in film/CAMS and would’ve majored in it if I had more time.
I have always been involved in teaching and mentorship roles. Aside from working as a teacher/teaching assistant during summers, I worked as an OIIL Peer Leader (OPL) in my junior year and have always been involved with it (since I was an international student). As an OPL I have mentored first-year students from international or minority backgrounds, helping them adapt to Carleton.
I wanted to provide support for Carleton students using my past experiences; and I felt the Educational Associate position at CCCE would allow me to provide coaching and mentorship to the various students involved at CCCE.
Also, I was on the Carleton Swimming and Diving team for the first two years as a walk-on, I was part of Carleton’s documentary club, and I was a member of the CSA senate in my sophomore year.
Can you describe what you will be doing here in the CCCE when you start?
I will be mostly working with community-based work-study students. I will provide mentorship, near-peer support, and skill-building for them. I will also assist Sinda, the director of CCCE, on researching and documenting campus-wide civic and community engagement.
Of course, a lot of what I do will depend on how this upcoming fall term turns out to be. Stevie P (or President Poskanzer) recently sent out the email about the campus opening plan for the fall term. There are still a lot of details that will be ironed out about specifics of the reopening. I look forward to helping students or anybody in need troubleshoot and navigate this tumultuous time.
What goals do you have for your work with the CCCE?
I hope to develop good relationships with community-based student workers! (And with everybody involved at CCCE, of course.) I want to ensure that students and other parties involved in the community-based work-study program have an enjoyable experience; and of course, feel safe during the pandemic. As a mentor/supervisor for students, I want to help them explore who they are holistically and how they can get the most out of their Carleton experience.
What excites you most about working for Carleton and the CCCE?
Working with Carleton students! I’m excited to come back after graduating and help people using my past experiences at Carleton. There’s also so much to learn about from everybody at Carleton and I’m very excited about it.
And lastly, a more fun question: How have you been killing time during quarantine?
I’ve been watching a lot of movies, mostly east Asian art-house cinema from auteurs like Jia Zhangke, Ying Liang, mixed in with some anime. I have also been volunteering at the Language and Cognition Lab at Carleton, focusing on an experiment that explores the illusory truth effect on Twitter. Last but not least, I’ve been sleeping over 10 hours every day.