By Daniella Zoller
Each year, the English Department puts on our annual Chowder Fest event. We encourage students to join us in indulging in a bowl of hearty soup along with conversations with our successful alumni. This fall, our speakers include Gloria Potts, Rose Wine, Christina Walcott, and Mahi Taban.
Leading up to the event, two of our speakers, Gloria and Rose, have given us a glimpse into their experiences and expertise, providing thoughtful advice and insight.
Rose Wine (they/she/he) is a creative and community-centered nonprofit professional based in Central Massachusetts. They serve as the Marketing & Development Coordinator at African Community Education (ACE), capture portraits, weddings, and events through Rose Wine Photography, and promote local media and transparency as a camera operator for Rutland Community Television. Rose also holds leadership roles as Chair of ONE Worcester and Secretary of Legendary Legacies.
When asked what the most fulfilling part of their career is, Wine shared their experience working with the 2024 ACE Gala. Wine referred to this event as a core memory in their ACE career. They’ve been co-leading this gala with their boss for several years now, and they mentioned that while the ACE Gala is a lot of work, it’s also incredibly important to the organization’s sustainability. In the 2024 Gala, Wine truly saw how their work comes together and makes a significant impact.
“During the 2024 ACE Gala…we experienced an incredible moment at the end of the Gala’s fashion show, which features ACE students wearing custom clothes from the ACE Sewing Program and our friends at Eldior Sodeck Design. A group of three Haitian students walked the red carpet, performing a dance for their walk…they were cheering, screaming, and chanting, “HAITI! HAITI! HAITI!” Their joy and energy were absolutely incredible.”
Seeing the joy in these students was influential in itself, but Wine truly saw the meaning when one attendee later approached them and “said how the kids’ energy in that moment made it feel like [they] could move mountains.” Wine mentioned that they experience many vulnerable, authentic moments in their job, and the 2024 ACE Gala really helped to capture the gratitude and meaning that comes along with being a part of ACE’s community.
As a student, Wine had no idea that this position would be a career option for them. They explained that their very supportive boss created the position for them. Wine started as an ACE volunteer in 2016 in their first year at Clark. In 2017, they then became a part-time English Language Learners (ELL) Teacher. In 2019, they got invited to be an intern with ACE, and that internship ultimately turned into their current full-time position. Wine stated that this job is incredibly rewarding for them, especially when working alongside such an impressive and talented boss. Wine also loves the creative freedom that they have in their position, and they feel as though they can grow at their own pace while constantly learning and improving.
Wine’s advice? Use your studies as an opportunity to dive deeper into yourself and the world.
Their time as an English major helped them find their voice, values, and direction. They say to use the texts that you read (both in and out of class) as a chance to explore yourself and your interests. Share time with your professors and mentors – analyze stories, improve your writing, talk about life. Your degree is an opportunity to learn more about who you are as a person and how you want to interact with the world.
Gloria Potts (she/her) received her MFA in creative writing from American University. She writes fiction and non-fiction, and has been published in The Hooghly Review, Whistling Shade, and others. She is the Institute Coordinator at the Alice Coonley Higgins Institute for Arts and Humanities and works part-time at Tidepool Bookshop.
Gloria shared that working in a humanities institute is a “real treat” because she gets to use her “analytical mind to provide the scaffolding for very cool projects and programming” and see the results firsthand. She also loves being around creative and thoughtful people, and her position at the Alice Coonley Higgins Institute for Arts allows her to do just that.
Potts’ creative writing degree is incredibly applicable to her job. She says that her MFA has helped her in two ways – functionally through writing and effective communications, but also collaboratively when working with others and providing productive feedback. A lot of Potts’ work has to do with communicating instructions, ideas, and operational information. Her creative writing background allows her to do this work without sounding robotic. She is able to show respect for her colleagues and other writers while communicating important information.
In addition to honing your craft and writing skills, Potts would also like to emphasize the soft skills that come along with getting a humanities degree. Students studying Creative Writing and English are learning how to be leaders and effective team members, which is a major asset in any field. Potts recommends learning how to market yourself based on these skills, and to learn how to advocate for the importance of these skills!
Mahi Taban ’21 (she/her) integrated her passion for literature and politics with her double major in English and Political Science. After college, she completed an AmeriCorps year of service with Reading Partners, a non-profit organization aimed at combatting the child literacy crisis. She then received her J.D. at the University of Virginia School of Law. Mahi has since returned home to the Bay Area, California, and now works in the Complex Litigation and Investigations Group of a global law firm.
Christina (Tina) Rose Walcott (she/they) is currently working at Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School in Providence, Rhode Island as Teach for America 2025 corps member. She graduated with a master’s in history from Clark in 2024 and a double major in English and History in 2023. During her time at Clark, Tina was a peer mentor, orientation coordinator, club leader in a cappella and honors societies, and perhaps her favorite role was as an English department student office assistant. Tina is very fond of the Clark English department and happy to be returning to English house for Chowder Fest!
Come to the English House this upcoming Tuesday, November 4th, at 5pm to hear them talk more about their experiences! We recommend coming prepared with a few questions for our speakers, especially if you’re interested in their line of work.
We hope to see you soon!
