Saginaw Valley State University Roberts Fellows

09/12/2019

We already have 4 people signed up to be on the first Roberts Fellows alumni trip to China! Are you thinking about coming? Spouses, partners, and friends are welcome to be part of this trip! Join this webinar with Drs. David Nichols and Brian Thomas!

08/07/2019

Are you a Roberts Fellow who is interested in returning to Asia? We are pleased to announce the first official Roberts Fellows alumni trip to China, led by Dr. David Nichols in May of 2020. Follow this link (https://www.efcollegestudytours.com/professors-trip/2257409SM) for more information on how to sign up. Spouses and partners are welcome to join this group, which will intersect with the trip by the RF21s.

Beijing: The City Experience

05/06/2019

As the RF20s prepare to head to Asia in less than one week, don't forget that you can follow them through their daily blog. They have already started to post introductions to themselves! https://robertsfellows.livejournal.com/

05/06/2019

It was amazing to see so many SVSU Alumni from Roberts Fellows classes 1 through 21 together in one place this weekend!

04/18/2019

Alyssa Cozad participated in the 17th class of Roberts Fellows and taught K-12th grades in Hemlock and Midland during the following Fall semester. After graduating from Saginaw Valley in December of 2016 with a degree in K-12 Art Education, Cozad began to search for a career. Without her training in the Fellowship, Cozad believes that navigating the uncertainty during this time period would have been much more difficult. Over the summer in 2017, Cozad volunteered with Royal Family Kids Camp, a Christian camp for children from hard places. In the fall, Cozad started a full-time academic advising position with the Stamps School of Art & Design at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. In this position, she works with college students who are navigating an interdisciplinary program that allows them to chart unique paths for their futures. She facilitates a faculty-student mentorship program and coordinates trainings surrounding LGBT+ allyhood, campus sexual assault, and gender-based violence.

As a Roberts Fellow, Cozad was inspired to reflect on and tackle difficult questions to find out what exactly she wanted from her future. She was empowered to change her career trajectory from the k-12 classroom to higher education because she loved the unique combination of education, art, and empowering spaces that are created on college campuses. Cozad found it important to explore her identities and values and to consider how she could impact the world through leadership and collaboration. Cozad discovered that she was particularly enthusiastic about the role of mentorship in navigating life’s unexpected challenges and successes. Friendships made across the globe in China, Taiwan, and Japan continue to be a source of joy and connection for Cozad and she looks forward to visiting Asia again soon.

04/18/2019

Following his year in the 14th cohort of the Roberts Fellowship, Marlin Jenkins graduated from SVSU and entered a Master of Fine Arts program at the University of Michigan. Here he was a Civitas Fellow which involved collaborating with the non-profit Inside Out Literary Arts to help middle schoolers in Detroit understand poetry. Jenkins continued his education and currently teaches writing and literature full time at the University of Michigan. At Ann Arbor's teen center, Neutral Zone, he helps young writers develop their fiction-writing talents. Throughout this time, Jenkins has been publishing his works of poetry and fiction in literary journals.

Jenkins finds that the Roberts Fellowship was instrumental in the progression of his career because he learned how to set realistic goals and make meaningful change. He uses skills that are practiced in seminar every day and includes Roberts Fellow readings in his students’ curriculum. During his time in the program, Jenkins explored the boundaries of classroom learning and reached new heights of personal accomplishment. Journaling helped Jenkins set personal goals and parameters, while the service project fostered community collaboration. Jenkins learned that combining classroom experience with real-world issues can produce lasting, positive outcomes.

Although the Roberts Fellowship prepares students for professional success, Jenkins has found that the program provides students with a unique opportunity to step back from concentrating on their career goals and focus on personal growth. As students take steps in their personal growth, professional success follows naturally. Jenkins advises all former fellows to be kind to their past and present selves when evaluating their experience in the program and remembering their journey since.

04/18/2019

After his year in the seventh cohort of Roberts Fellows during the 2005-2006 school year, Andy Suszek graduated from Saginaw Valley and went on to law school at DePaul University. Entering the job market, Suszek was caught in the height of the recession and settled for working in real estate law for three years. Finally, he found his current location working with BARBRI Bar Review, a legal education company that teaches students how to pass the bar exam. Previously, he specialized in teaching property law, and he currently instructs constitutional law.

During his time in law school, Suszek noticed differences between himself and other students. With his background in the Roberts Fellowship, Suszek was able to think more critically about ethical issues. He came away from the program with confidence that he could perform on the same level as his most intelligent peers. Discussing difficult problems with his cohort and interacting with local leaders were the highlights of the weekly seminars that Suszek refers to as “thought experiments.” Because of the rigorous practice tackling tough problems, Suszek does not fear problem solving or accepting difficult assignments in his professional life.

Suszek believes that the most valuable piece of programs like Roberts Fellows is the tight-knit network it leaves in its wake. He knows that the strong network of Fellows across the country are always willing to help and support one another. He is grateful to have been a part of the Roberts Fellowship, and is a testament to the lifelong benefits of being an SVSU alumnus.

04/18/2019

Jason White was a member of the sixth cohort of Roberts Fellows during his senior year at SVSU. After graduating in 2004, he attended Syracuse University College of Law before graduating and passing the Bar Exam in 2008. For six years, he served as the Assistant District Attorney in Broome County, New York, where he worked with anything from misdemeanors to felonies. In 2014, he was appointed Special Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Albany, New York where he prosecuted social security fraud and identity theft cases in federal court. In 2019, he transferred to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Cleveland, Ohio.

Growing up in a small town in Michigan, the Roberts Fellows Program allowed White to shift his mindset to an international focus. He learned to appreciate diversity in a way that he did not understand before being selected as a fellow. In his day-to-day life, White encounters people from a full spectrum of backgrounds and experiences, and he has improved his communication skills by having the courage and willingness to interact with people different from himself. Developing an understanding of individuals unlike himself allowed White to become better at his job and more enriched as a person.

White maintains that the Roberts Fellowship is more than a superficial study abroad experience. He believes that the lessons he learned abroad and throughout his year as a fellow set him apart from others and increase his marketability. The fact that he was a Roberts Fellow remains on his resume and comes up in almost every job interview he has had. Through his interactions with SVSU’s President and administrators, White learned from a young age how to network, and he currently leverages this ability in his career.

04/11/2019

Kevan Umberfield was in the ninth cohort of Roberts Fellows during the 2007-2008 academic year. The following year, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Math and a Bachelor of Arts in History. As a self-taught computer programmer, Umberfield became a software developer right out of college. He moved up the ranks for four years before moving to Denver, Colorado in 2013 to pursue a career in business analytics. He managed information technology and analytics for a company with high growth. Umberfield was recently promoted to Vice President in 2018.

In his line of work, Umberfield has found that one of the most difficult skills to find in new employees is the ability to combine communication skills with advanced technical skills. Umberfield believes that he learned this skill from the Roberts Fellowship program. The fellowship taught him how to communicate as an effective leader. Surrounded by a high-achieving group of students, his pursuit of excellence was nurtured. As a result, he gained skills that would supplement his technical skills and lead to his later success. In the Fellowship, he also learned to be confident interacting with successful leaders and to communicate with figures of high authority. In his current position, he regularly interacts with CEOs and industry leaders.

Professionally and personally, Umberfield’s exposure to Asian philosophies and culture as a fellow encouraged him to explore and continue expanding his horizons. He is grateful to the Roberts Fellows program and to SVSU’s Study Abroad Office for making travel opportunities available to undergraduate students. In Umberfield’s opinion, the Asian trip and the seminar courses are a great way to build friendships and encourage support among students while expanding their horizons and preparing them to be successful in the real world.

04/05/2019

After careful review of a pool of outstanding candidates, the Roberts Fellows Selection Committee is pleased to announce the 21st class of Roberts Fellows:

Mia Berlanga
Tyler Boylen
Joshua Cianek
Imani Clark
Alina DeVoogd
Vincent Frank
Joseph Harvey
Arianna Jones
Tyler Sadilek
Justin Weller

Please join me in welcoming them into the program.

04/04/2019

A recent graduate of Saginaw Valley in May of 2018, Biochemistry major Bradley Hunt had a life-altering experience in the Roberts Fellowship during his senior year. Hunt was well involved on campus and had mapped a clear career path to becoming a physician. However, interacting with other motivated students highlighted Hunt’s feeling that he lacked passion for his goals. After a period of feeling lost, Hunt reevaluated his goals and came up with a new path for his professional life that made him excited for the future.

Instead of rushing to enter then medical field, Hunt’s exposure to other fields inspired him to explore other avenues before committing to graduate studies. Hunt recently spend time doing graduate work at Ming Chuan University in Taiwan and has returned to the United States to continue exploring potential options for graduate school and career pathways.

When evaluating his Roberts Fellowship experience, Hunt emphasizes that the most important lesson he learned was introspection. Hunt has learned to carefully question his decisions and constantly evaluate his happiness to live a more purposeful and passionate life. He considers himself a well-rounded professional who is comfortable with the unknown. Experiences such as encountering diverse peoples, functioning in professional environments, and practicing public speaking have given Hunt the flexibility to tackle any situation.