Swenja Granzow
Swenja Granzow is from Hamburg, Germany and began work in Fall 2002 at SVSU on her B.A. degree in Political Science and recently finished her program within four years.
After graduation in May 2006, Swenja decided to take a year off to complete internships that will allow her to gain practical knowledge in a field of special interest for her: art and politics. Swenja will work on a marketing and education program for the Berlin Museum, and also at a research institute at a concentration camp museum in Germany.
While at SVSU, Swenja completed intensive study with her advisor, Dr. Robert Lane, which resulted in an honors thesis project, entitled, “Writing About War to Reconcile with the Past: American and Vietnamese Narratives about the Vietnam War,” a literature project which also allowed Swenja to focus on her primary interest of art and politics.
“I have always been interested in the Vietnam War, partly because my parents were activists during this period of history. But when I began taking classes, I was amazed at how often the topic came up, which is how I originally came up with the idea for my thesis project,” Swenja explained.
“My advisor Dr. Lane is my favorite professor. He has a very structured approach to teaching, and he has really opened my eyes to different ways of looking at the world.”
Swenja was one of the 1,900 students who lived on campus (at University Village), and had plenty of time to become involved in the vibrant campus community. Swenja was one of the founding members of the Students for Political Awareness organization, which is based on campus. In addition, she was President of National Modern Foreign Language Honor Society, and she also worked as a Research Assistant for Professor Frank Dane, in support of his work on the University’s grant-funded Academic Integrity commission.
Swenja also gained teaching experience during her stay at SVSU, by working in the SVSU Writing Center, a resource and tutoring center for students where they can go for additional writing instruction and help with papers for any of their classes.
“I decided I wanted to teach after working in the Writing Center. I served as the Coordinator for all of the Writing Center’s presentations to the students in every section of English 080 and 111. I gained valuable experience because part of my job was to facilitate communication between the College and the Writing Center.”
“Working with professors who teach in subjects other than writing was a wonderful experience. I felt like I made a difference because I got to collaborate with professors on fine-tuning the writing assignments they use in their own classes.”
“The best thing about SVSU is that the faculty talk to you on an equal level. All of the professors in the program have different backgrounds and a variety of approaches to teaching – but all are very skilled at reaching students.”