Thanks for taking the time to let us know how you’re doing! To begin, can we tell our readers how many years you spent at BU?
I spent four years at BU as an undergrad.
Where do you currently live?
I currently live in Washington, District of Columbia.
Where do you work and what position do you hold?
I work as a research assistant at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, “a nonpartisan not-for-profit institution that identifies and shepherds discussion on key science and technology issues facing our society. Based on these discussions, we develop impactful science and tech policy options and ensure their implementation at the intersection of business and government.” (That’s from their website.)
I am a research assistant on both private and government projects assessing economic factors that play into the development and advancement of technology in both public and private applications.
What type of work have you done up until now?
The majority of the work I have done up until now has been policy or non-profit work, predominantly in the fields of social issues and the humanities, but recently with economic and scientific foci.
Now that you’re a few years past graduation, looking back what would you say have been the benefits of your Core education?
Core taught me to think critically, to examine texts from every angle and to listen not only to one argument but many. It taught me to work and to befriend people who are wildly different from me, and to revel in and enjoy that difference. It’s what makes the Core as a whole such a strong program, the diversity of interests and experiences of both the faculty and the students. It taught me to read, not just read but hear and understand the texts. It introduced me to new ways of understanding people than I knew before. It taught me empathy, and trust, and teamwork. Small classes taught me how to debate and discuss and make salient contributions. Core taught me to listen to others, to make them feel heard and appreciated. It educated me on how to be educated, and how to teach others in an effective way. I carry all of these lessons with me every day, not day goes by when I do not think and feel grateful for the time I spent in the Core Curriculum, both while I was taking the course and afterwards when I worked in the office.
What book did you encounter in the Core that impacted you the most?
I’d say that The Odyssey or Dante’s Divine Comedy impacted me the most. I read both in high school but didn’t have the perspective to really understand them. The Core professors taught them in a whole new way, and I think Dante and Odysseus’s journeys really mapped on to how I viewed myself as journeying and growing through my years and experiences in college. Undergrad is the right time to read those texts and it made them extra impactful.
What do you miss more about the Core office?
I miss my friends in the Core office, students, staff, and faculty alike. There was a comforting air of acceptance, intelligence, and whimsy that permeated every Core discussion, lecture, event, etc. It hangs like a pleasant ether in the office, and even after I graduated I would stop in just to get a sense of that feeling. Everyone was always on the verge of some type of discovery, reading some article, translating something. I miss feeling like I’m on the edge of some wonderful discovery when I walk into class (or work) in the morning. Every day in the Core feels fresh and I miss that. But overall, I miss the people. Core has some of the most dedicated, genuinely interested and encouraging faculty, staff, and students of any place I have ever learned or worked. It’s incredible and I miss it every day.
Anything else you want to share?
I would sell parts of my soul to have the chance to come back and exist in the Core community like I had never left. My time spent in Core was one of the happiest times of my life to date, and I think that ranking will continue into the future.
Chloe, pictured here “throwing looks.”
If you’re so inclined, you can bother Chloe on Twitter: @chloehite29
ARE YOU A CORE STUDENT OR ALUMNUS INTERESTED IN WORKING IN LOBBYING, POLICY, OR POLITICS IN WASHINGTON? IF SO, SEND THE CORE STAFF AN EMAIL, AND WE’LL FORWARD YOUR MESSAGE DIRECTLY TO CHLOE SO YOU CAN DO SOME NETWORKING.
