Venus Ricks

Venus Ricks, Director of Multicultural Affairs, takes a couple minutes to give us some insight about herself

What is your most marked characteristic?My dimple on my left cheek…first thing that people notice…
What do you most value in your friends?Longevity…I have been friends with the same people for 20 yrs and counting!
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?Over analyzing things
What is your favorite occupation?Bartender…meet lots of people and have stories for days!
What is your idea of perfect happiness?Me, love, good food/drinks and a beach in the Caribbean
In which country would you like to live?Hmmm…not sure.  My first thought is London which is not a country but where I'd like to live outside of the US.
Who are your favorite writers?Maya Angelou
Paul Corrigan and Brad Walsh (writers of Modern Family)
Dave Chappelle and Neal Brennan (Chappelle Show)
Who is your favorite hero of fiction?Not so sure...
Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?Effie White
What are your favorite names?Jael (pronounced Jay-el) from the bible
Morgan
Gabriel

What is it that you most dislike?passing judgement based on hearsay or limited information/ignorance
Which talent would you most like to have? I would like to be able to sing
How would you like to die? In my sleep
What is your current state of mind?Dizzy—im congested!
What is your motto?
Be the exception not the rule.

AND

Come celebrate with me that everyday something has tried to kill me but has failed

Jen Murphy

Jen Murphy, '12, takes time away from her studies as a Business Major in order to fill this out for us.


What is your most marked characteristic?

I’m short

What do you most value in your friends? 

Trust

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? 

I’m not very spontaneous

What is your favorite occupation? 

Interior designer

What is your idea of perfect happiness? 

Being surrounded by family and friends

In which country would you like to live?

USA

Who are your favorite writers? 

Jodi Picoult

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

Harry Potter

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction? 

Lily Owens (Secret Life of Bees)

What are your favorite names?

 Lily, Christopher, Anthony

What is it that you most dislike? 

People who are think they’re better than everyone else

Which talent would you most like to have? 

 Be able to sing

How would you like to die?

I don’t fantasize about my death

What is your current state of mind? 

Content

What is your motto? 
Everything happens for a reason

Teddi Hermes

Double Majoring in English and Sociology, Teddi Hermes takes a break from her studies to give us a little bit of insight.

What is your most marked characteristic?
The ability to make friends with people of all different ages, places and beliefs.

What do you most value in your friends?
Acceptance. So much of the world excepts you to put on masks and be someone that you're not. When I am with those who I consider my true friends I want to know I am accepted for exactly who I am.

What is the trait you most deploreWhat is the trait you  in yourself?
Absent mindedness.

What is your favorite occupation?
Education.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Spending time with those I care about, preferably over a big delicious meal.

In which country would you like to live?
The United States is my home, but if I were to relocate I would most likely return to my roots in Greece.

Who are your favorite writers?
Toni Morrison, Margaret Atwood, Oscar Wilde, Virginia Woolfe, Don DeLillo, Christina Rossetti, Anne Lamott, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Emily Dickenson, Audre Lorde, Bertrand Russel.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Jack from White Noise

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?
Astred from White Oleander

What are your favorite names?
Constance, Medea, Kathyrn, Sophia for girls and Stavros, Judah, Paul for boys.

What is it that you most dislike?
Ungratefulness, crowded spaces and narrow mindedness.

Which talent would you most like to have?
I would love to be one of those people who can easily learn other languages.

How would you like to die?
Peacefully.

What is your current state of mind?
Completely overwhelmed.

What is your motto?
"My life will be better when others lives are better."

Sharon Givler

Sharon Givler, Director of Career Services, takes moment from her duties in order to answer these questions.

What is your most marked characteristic?                  

commitment

What do you most value in your friends?                     

  faithfulness

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?         

   jealousy

What is your favorite occupation?                                 

 symphony conductor

What is your idea of perfect happiness?                      

cultivating the best in others; living out my dreams; being grateful  

In which country would you like to live?                      

U.S.

Who are your favorite writers?                                        

C.S. Lewis, Dallas Willard, Henri Nouwen

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?                              

Jean Valjean

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?                        

Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy March

What are your favorite names?                                       

 Megan, Rene, John, Michael

 What is it that you most dislike?                                     

rudeness – anywhere, anytime

Which talent would you most like to have?                 

to play the piano

 How would you like to die?                                             

peacefully and in the company of those I love

 What is your current state of mind?                              

  content

What is your motto?                                                           

 I shall  pass this way but once; any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show - let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again

Emily Gertenbach

Emily, '11, as an English major and president of Wig and Buckle and Greenblotter takes a moment out of her busy day to fill out the Proust Questionnaire

What is your most marked characteristic?

I am an excessively fast talker with a rather elastic face I'm always stretching into all manner of expressions.

What do you most value in your friends?

Unconditional support and loyalty - I try to give this to all my friends as well - I know I'll do things others wouldn't, but I really value a friend who will support my choices, and be there for me regardless of outcome.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
I have a tendency to get very easily stressed. BUT, I no longer worry a lot, so I'll take what I can get :)

What is your favorite occupation?
Theatre. A blend between acting and writing would be ideal, I'd love to write for/be on something like the Daily Show or the Colbert Report.
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
The ability to travel, good relationships (friends/family/romantic/etc), a warm dog, and a world that never runs out of new music. I wouldn't say no to cute little swedish room setups from Ikea, either.

In which country would you like to live?
Well, I've realized that I am an American, after all, but I'd really like a second home in Scotland.
Who are your favorite writers?
Jane Austen, Harper Lee, Sophie Kinsella/Madeleine Wickham
Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Atticus Finch from To Kill A Mockingbird

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?
Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice

What are your favorite names?
Well, if I were to have kids now (eep!), I'd name them Anastasia (Anna for short), Penelope (Penny for short), and Samuel.

What is it that you most dislike?
I am most adverse to intentional ignorance, blatant hatred, the NYC subway system, and overcooked broccoli.

Which talent would you most like to have?
I wish I enjoyed running, it looks very freeing. Being able to sew clothes (and like it) would be a cool thing, too.

How would you like to die?
Peacefully in my sleep...but most of all, happily. I hope I'm happy when I die. Not that I want to fall over in the middle of a really awesome day, but I hope I'm content with my lot in life at that time.

What is your current state of mind?
Curious. There is a lot of unknown in my life that will all be coming to a point in May...May's going to be a very defining month in my life in many aspects, and the level of unknown is floating around in the back of my mind a lot.

What is your motto?
"You can run just as fast as you want to, but you're stuck with yourself all the time." (It's actually a song lyric, but it really illustrates how I try live my life: I'm ALWAYS going to be with myself, no matter where I move, so I ought to like the person I am and the things I do.)

Jason Kuntz

As Director of Residential Life, Jason Kuntz takes a few minutes out of his day in order to fill out this questionnaire.

What is your most marked characteristic?

Fairness and ability to strike up a conversation with anyone

What do you most value in your friends?

Their character.  They are great people with excellent values.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

 My procrastinating nature.

What is your favorite occupation?

Food Critic

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Being with family and friends during the holidays.

In which country would you like to live?

USA

Who are your favorite writers?

Dan Brown

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

I do not have one.

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?

I do not have one.

What are your favorite names?

 

None come to mind right now.

What is it that you most dislike?

How selfish and impatient we are becoming as a society.

Which talent would you most like to have?

Ability to dance or dunk a basketball

How would you like to die?.

In my sleep
 

What is your current state of mind? 

Looking forward to the weekend since my niece will be baptized.

What is your motto?

Success is how high one bounces after they fall.

Michael Kitchens

A professor of psychology, Dr. Kitchens sits down to answer the questions of this questionnaire.

What is your most marked characteristic?

I tend to get really focused on my interests and devote myself to them. After a time, that interest tends to fade into another, and the cycle repeats itself.

What do you most value in your friends?
Simply that they are my friends and remain my friends. I do a bad job at keeping up with my friends, but somehow continue to have great and very loyal friends.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
My impatience

What is your favorite occupation?
I can't imagine liking a job more than the one I have. I have the privilege to work with great colleagues and students. Also, I get to remain a student by continuing to learn.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
I am the happiest when I am with family.

In which country would you like to live?
Here in the United States.

Who are your favorite writers?
I could easily list several favorite fiction (e.g., 1984, Confessions of a Crap Artist, Gulliver's Travels, American Pastoral, The Great Gatsby...) and non-fiction (Christianity and Liberalism, The Mind of the Market, Stumbling on Happiness, The Left, The Right, and The State…) books, but I don't know that I have a favorite author. I tend to read more non-fiction than fiction books since college, and these tend to be by a number of different authors.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction? 

Sherlock Holmes

Who is your favorite heroine of fiction?

Elizabeth from the children’s book Paper-Bag Princes

What are your favorite names?

Mark and Elizabeth

What is it that you most dislike?
I don't like it when people pretend to be an expert at everything.

Which talent would you most like to have?

a photographic memory

How would you like to die?

peacefully

What is your current state of mind?
tired

What is your motto?

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.” --I Corinthians 9:24-25