First-Year
First-Year Spotlights
Meet the firstyear English majors and minors
Audrey White
English major She/her/hers
Chesteron, Indiana
Favorite book: The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
“A fun fact about me is that I’ve been writing since I was three years old. I used to go to work with my mom, and I would have her work as my scribe, writing down my stories.”
Welcome, Valpo English students, class of 2029
by Carmen Hernandez
Sarah Sheets
English Major, Journalism minor
She/her/hers
Valparaiso, Indiana
Favorite book: The Secret History by Donna Tarte
“I have always known that I wanted to pursue Literature at a professional level. This led me to the publishing world and falling in love with the system that provides me with the very books I admire. “
Welcome first-year English majors! We are excited that you are here at Valpo and chose the English department for your studies. Over the next four years, as a part of the English department, you will develop and hone valuable skills, such as communication, critical thinking, professional writing, and close reading. What students find special about the Valpo English program are the relationships made
with fellow students, professors and other faculty members. There are always opportunities to use your English skills outside of the classroom in the Creative Writing Club, The Beacon yearbook, The Lighter literary magazine, The Torch newspaper, or The Lodestar English department newsletter. I am excited to meet all of you and hope the very best for your future at Valpo!
Spotlights
Creative Writing major
He/him/his
Hammond, Indiana
Favorite book: One Piece by Eiichiro Oda
“I enjoy the many different worlds and escapism that stories can give.”
Criminology major, English minor
She/her/hers
Crown Point, Indiana
Favorite book: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
“I chose to pursue an English minor because I love disucssing literature and learning how people interpret books differently.”
English major, Humanities minor
He/him/his
Berwyn, Illinois
Favorite book: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
“Fun Fact: I love basketball.”
Elementary Education major, English minor
She/her/hers
Portage, Indiana
Favorite book: Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
“I have always wanted to be a teacher, and I hoped an English minor would help me learn skills and ideas to help teach my future students.”
English and Spanish major, TESOL and Education minor
They/them/theirs
Roanoke, Virginia
Favorite book: The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
“Fun Fact: I’ve had an essay published.”
Creative Writing and Art major, Secondary Education minor He/him/his
They/them/theirs
St. John, Indiana
Favorite book: The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
“I’ve been writing one poem a day since March 14th, 2023, which is now about 1,000 poems.”
Chloe Gilsinger
Cam Haggett
Jovana Trajanoska
Dashon Gordon
Steven Seibert
Rey Flores
Event Spotlight Events
Dr. Richard Sévère and students host Books & Coffee
This year ’s Books & Coffee lecture series is capped off with an engaging and enriching discussion of Percival Everett’s novel James. Published in 2024, James is a retelling of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn that focuses on Jim, an escaped slave. Dr. Richard Sévère led the discussion along with three students: Zion Gifford, a Studio Art major grad of ‘24, Carmen Hernandez, junior English major, and Sean Korpela, a junior Theology and Ministry major. The students joined forces with Dr. Sévère to deliver a presentation on James to Valpo students, staff, and faculty, as well as many community members. Each covered a different aspect of the book.
Dr. Sévère began the presentation by covering the use of speech within James. He uses excerpts from Vershawn Ashanti Young’s “Should Writers Use They Own English” and James Baldwin’s “If Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What Is?” to emphasize the careful use of language employed by people of color to meet majority group standards. During the process of creating the presentation, Korpela notes that “Dr. Sévère emphasized me [presenting] my personal reading of the text... Carmen [presenting] Carmen’s personal reading of the text... He really makes sure that the students have a voice, especially because students don’t usually present at Books & Coffee.”
Hernandez continued the discussion by highlighting the original story, Huckleberry Finn, and how Jim is written by Mark Twain. During this section, Hernandez built on Dr. Sévère’s earlier points by continuing to cite on Vershawn Ashanti Young’s piece,
by Cam Haggett
specifically the ways race and language are continually intertwined. Hernandez notes, that in preparing in presentation, Dr. Sévère “gives us the confidence that we need and encourages us. He makes sure that we know that our role as students is important, valued, and respected.”
Hernandez also read the first half of Gifford’s presentation, which covers the concept of passing in the novel, across both race and gender. Gifford was unfortunately unable to attend the event; however, Zion “really appreciated that [Sévère] continues to guide me and give me opportunities postgraduation.” Korpela finished off Gifford’s discussion of passing by sharing stories of racial and gender-based passing used in order to escape slavery. He then transitioned into his own topic, which covered some of the more violent scenes in James, as well as the author’s response to attempts to ban James. Korpela closed his section with an engaging video clip of an interview with Percival Everett, in which he describes those who attempt to ban books as “small and frightened people.” Overall, the presenters meshed well together. Zion appreciates “the similarities and differences in our readings” between the involved students.
The talk ended with a brief audience Q&A. The audience had engaging questions on a wide range of topics, including the relationship between James and Huckleberry Finn. Hernandez remarks on the audience’s “inclusive and understanding” reaction to the lecture
Pictured from left to right: Cam Haggett, Jovana Trajanoska, Carmen Hernandez, and Sarah Sheets. Photo by Jovana Trajanoska
John Ruff introducing Dr. Severe, Carmen Hernandez, and Sean Korpela. Photo by Christine Rice
Writers
Jovana Trajanoska Cam Haggett Sarah Sheets
Criminology and English English and Spanish
Jovana is a freshman Criminology major from Crown Point, Indiana. She is part of Valpo Esports’ Varsity League of Legends team. She also loves painting, pottery, movies, and art museums.
Our Writers Our Editors
English
Cam is a freshman English and Spanish major. They are involved in various organizations around campus, like SALT, Sweetwine, Beloved, and Alpha Gam. They also write poetry and creative nonfiction, and are featured in The Lighter this year.
Makayla Scott
Creative Writing
Makayla is a sophomore Creative Writing major. Since Makayla was young, she has always had a passion for writing. Through The Lodestar she hopes to become better at revising and editing. After graduating, she hopes to become an author, poet, scriptwriter, or playwright.
Sarah is a freshman English major with a journalism minor. Her hobbies include spending time outside and with friends and family. She loves all things involving literature, but most notably, reading.
Katie Oehmke English
Katie is a senior English major from Hobart, Indiana. She currently serves as president of the Inklish Literary Society and is a member of the Kappa Phi chapter of Sigma Tau Delta.
Carmen Hernandez English
Carmen is a junior and has served as a writer and editor for The Lodestar for two years. This semester, Carmen is serving as the editor-in-chief of The Lodestar. She also works as an editorial intern for the literary magazine Hypertext. In her free time, Carmen likes to read, listen to music, and hangout with her animals.
Analiese Heissenbuttel Psychology and English
Analiese is a sophomore Psychology and English major. Analiese’s interest in The Lodestar came from a desire to further her skills in writing and editing. She also hopes to learn new editing softwares and leadership skills. Post-graduation, Analiese hopes to work for a publishing company.
We offer special thanks to Edward Byrne for the cover image and Matt Ross for designing The Lodestar logo.