Education by Design

The right side of your brain says, “I want to be a ballet dancer,” but the left side says, “Let’s study astronomy.” That was yesterday. Today you can’t decide between social work and photography. Ever since you were a child, you have had multiple interests, even as friends of yours have confidently pictured themselves as accountants, doctors or engineers since grade school.  

At Eastern, having more than one career interest has not been an obstacle for nearly 200 students who have designed their own major, strategically combining several existing fields of study. The individualized major program has been around for decades and has been used to create majors in everything from metaphysics to sports broadcasting, modern aesthetic communication, cognitive neuroscience and Francophone/Third World studies. 

Sometimes, a graduate’s career path directly follows the major they created as a student. James “Nicko” Winner-Arroyo ’06 is one of those people who is creative and artistic but also loves the science of computer technology. Two years into his Eastern degree in computer science, he realized he could combine his two interests into one major — graphic design and computer science.  

He had been working as a computer programmer, and while he was gaining practical experience, he wanted to do something else. “I was also interested in sculpture, graphic design and visual arts,” said Winner- Arroyo. “As it turns out, vast areas of technology have opened up that mix art with computers.”  

My self-designed major fits my job to a tee. All the skills I was interested in have become super valuable in my job.

James “Nicko” Winner-Arroyo ’06   

Mentored by computer science Professor Gary Rommel, graphic design Professor June Bisantz and his mother, art Professor Imna Arroyo, Winner-Arroyo took courses in PhotoShop, web design and Adobe Illustrator, at the same time he was taking courses in sculpture and graphic design. He also studied abroad for a year at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec.  

“What I loved most about Eastern was how much professors cared about their students, especially if you were clear in pursuing a dream,” he said. “They would give you whatever you needed to explore your interests, and they were passionate about the subjects they were teaching.”  

Today he works remotely for Rackspace Technology, headquartered in San Antonio, TX, as a senior software engineer. His team builds out user interfaces for people who are creating cloud applications. As user-experience lead, his design skills help him maximize the user experience.

Heather Altier ’08 enrolled at Eastern with multiple interests — psychology, biology, film and video production — and initially declared herself as “undecided.” She especially liked documentary film and thought she might end up making educational films about psychology. She realized she could combine the two interests into one degree. With support from Communication Department faculty and former Dean of Arts and Sciences Carmen Cid, Altier created an individualized degree in psychology and video production.  

In addition to coursework, Altier worked on the ETV news team as a technical director, operating the teleprompter, switching cameras and editing stories. Altier also had the opportunity to go on three different global field courses in 2007 — to Mexico, Scotland and China.  

“In China, I was part of a video crew that was there to film the experiences of the students and professors in the group,” she said. “What we found instead were huge cities like Shanghai drowning in pollution, so we did a documentary on pollution in China instead.”  

After graduating from Eastern, Altier worked in the field of infectious diseases and epidemiology for eight years, with jobs at the Connecticut Department of Public Health and later in the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. Eventually she went back to school to earn her Ph.D. in clinical psychology at East Tennessee State University, spending a year’s residency in rehab psychology at the University of Washington in Seattle and working at a trauma center.  

Altier is currently in a post-doctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University. “While my work has moved away from video production, I find that the technical skills I gained in that field come up frequently in my current position,” she said.  

“I learned about animation, graphic design and photography at Eastern, which are very helpful in research papers or posters for research conferences. I can visualize data analysis better, and I find those skills help me tell a story in a concise and compelling way.”  

Michael Teta ’15 enrolled at Eastern originally undecided on what career path to follow. Tinkering with the idea of being an orthopedic doctor, he finally decided on becoming a physician’s assistant and saw his Eastern education as a way to fulfill prerequisites needed to advance to a physician’s assistant (PA) degree. He ended up creating an individualized major in health sciences, which he built with courses in biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy and physiology.  

At the same time, he developed close relationships with Dan Switchenko, who taught exercise science at Eastern for 40 years, and David Yeo, Eastern’s former athletic trainer.  

“I took Professor Switchenko’s courses for electives, and Dr. Yeo gave me a job as an athletic trainer, where I had the opportunity to learn hands-on skills such as stretching, helping students rehab and more,” said Teta.  

“As a PA student, I had to log hours in direct care, and I was able to count my time with Dr. Yeo as part of that.”  

Following graduation from Eastern, Teta earned his degree as a physician’s assistant and has worked for the past six years for the Northwell Health and Catholic Health systems in Long Island, NY.  

Teta has worked with patients in cardiac arrest, patients with respiratory failure, and many others in critical condition. He has worked in emergency rooms as well as intensive care units. He works closely with doctors and patients, prescribing and administering medications, monitoring life support systems, placing patients on ventilators, and performing many other tasks.  

I am where I am today because of Eastern. It is very rewarding to know I am having a direct impact on people’s lives, using the knowledge and communication skills I have acquired.

Michael Teta ’15   

Mia (Black-Graham) Williams ’23 created a major in neuropsychology, blending her interests in biology, psychology and sociology. “I knew when I transferred into Eastern (from out of state) that I wanted to create a major that would fit what I was searching for,” she said.  

Williams wanted her core courses to focus on biology and psychology but also wanted to incorporate Eastern’s neuroscience lab into her major. With the help of her advisor and professors, her individualized major was born. “Dr. (Jonathan) Hulvey allowed me to work as a teacher’s assistant in his biology course, Dr. (Margaret) Letterman was always there to guide me and Dr. (Derek) Laux’s ability to relate even complex matters into situations that were a lot more relatable was amazing,” she said.  

Out of the classroom, Williams attended Eastern’s two-week neuroscience summer program and took an independent study with Hulvey, which allowed her to gain more lab experience.  

Williams currently works at Yale Hospital as a specialty pharmacy liaison. “Although not linked to my current profession, my biology labs have assisted me in more ways than I can count,” she said.  

“My career requires compounding materials using scientific methods, calculations and data analysis. In my previous jobs, I worked in labs that required me to perform tests, read procedures and be able to successfully get results.”  

Students with a true passion for a career that doesn’t fall within Eastern’s defined majors should not be deterred. That’s why the individualized major was created. Students who have that initiative and drive will succeed, and the individualized major is the tool to get them there.

Robert Greene, art professor and individualized major program coordinator 

Allison Brown ’20 designed a major in environmental studies, focusing on hydrology and environmental justice. Hesitant to fully commit to Eastern’s environmental earth science major, Brown said, “While some of the courses piqued my interest, it didn’t feel quite right. I was looking for an environmental studies program focused on solving (humanitarian) issues.”  

Seeking to understand environmental science from an interdisciplinary perspective, Brown’s individualized major included courses in global environmental politics, environmental economics, drinking water management, environmental management, global climate change and geographic information systems (GIS). Additionally, as part of the Honors Program, she included coursework for her senior honors thesis: an environmental fiction novel about New England watersheds.  

“I incorporated concepts I learned from my courses into the characters’ interactions with the land and created maps using GIS to outline the environmental issues the fictional town was facing.”  

In 2021, Brown moved to Boston to pursue a master’s degree in theology at Boston University’s School of Theology. “Sensing a call to ordained ministry in the church, I pursued seminary and ongoing formation to become a priest. While in school, I held a communications and data position at Boston University’s Sustainability Office, keeping my foot in the environmental world. I have dual passions for environmental justice and for church ministry that I have continued to explore in my career.”  

She continued, “My individualized major has prepared me to study a problem from both a nuanced and big-picture lens. In environmental spaces, ensuring equity is just as important as managing the natural environment. Often environmental management work overlaps with social justice. This means that socioeconomics, racism and equity are words at both tables. As such, my degree has prepared me to advocate for better practices that serve the community well.”