2013 graduates work on Churchill biography, George Washington Fellows Program
Alex Anderson
Two familiar faces from the class of 2013 have returned to Hillsdale College as employees. Sophia Carr and Soren Geiger both accepted full time positions with the President’s office just weeks after graduation.
Carr, a history and political economy major, had no intention to work for Hillsdale after graduation.
“I actually planned on moving out to D.C., hoping that an internship would have led to a job,” Carr said.
During her junior and senior year at Hillsdale, Carr had worked as a student researcher for the president’s office. When Carr received a job offer to manage Hillsdale’s George Washington Fellows Program last spring, she sat on the offer for two weeks, until she finally accepted it.
“I could not think of a better option than to come work for Hillsdale. This school really touched me, I believe in the mission,” Carr said. “It was one of those things you could not turn down, I just had to go for it and I am happy that I did.”
Carr, a former George Washington fellow herself, currently manages the program. She helps the students with research projects and arranges meetings with visiting speakers on campus. Carr also serves as the recruiter for the Hillsdale WHIP and Semester in DC program, both located at Hillsdale’s Allan P. Kirby Center in Washington D.C.
Geiger, a history major, had the intention of working for the college in some capacity, but was unsure by the time graduation approached.
“I wanted to work for the college in some way. I did not know that was going to be the president’s office,” Geiger said.
Geiger is the research assistant to the president, with the primary purpose of completing the official biography of Winston Churchill originally started by biographer Sir Martin Gilbert.
“A big part of me loves being an employee of the college. I enjoy research as I continue to learn a lot every day,” Geiger said.
Currently, College President Larry Arnn serves as the editor-in-chief of the remaining six volumes of the Churchill documents. Geiger will continue as the primary researcher for Arnn until 2015.
“The struggle can be staying motivated through all the drudgery of the grunt labor that goes into publishing volumes like these,” Geiger said. “But the part I love is the initiation and the creativity to figure out the best way to complete the task.”
Despite their new status as college employees, both Carr and Geiger find themselves reverting back to their old student routines.
Geiger currently lives on campus with his wife, Virginia, where he serves as the new house director at the Suites Residence.
“There is a small part of me that feels the draw to be a student again,” Geiger said. “I lived in Galloway [Residence] all four years, and I recently found myself multiple times turning into Galloway, rather than the Suites where I live now.”
Carr described her new job as a great learning experience filled with new challenges and a lot of emails.
“It is not easier or harder than college, it is just different,” Carr said.
Carr and Geiger mentioned that beyond their daily tasks, spending time in the President’s Office has allowed them to see a more personal side to Dr. Arnn.
“After working with Dr Arnn you realize that he is a real person beyond his role as president,” Carr said. “He has passions outside of what he teaches to his students. Especially his love of football, he really gets into the game, cheering hard for the chargers.”
“I see integrity as a character trait of his much more now that I am working for him,” Geiger said. “Not that it was every lacking before, but now i am able to see that is a great strength of his.”
