Perille shares her excitement for student development work and her interactions with students at critical stages in their academic and professional trajectories. She credits her experience in the BEST program, as well as opportunities through the Sheridan Center and the Brown/Wheaton Faculty Fellows program as having an impact on her career choices and trajectory.

“I find that this co-curricular space is where some of the most exciting student development work is happening. These experiences [fellowships and research] often have a transformative impact on students’ lives,” says Perille.  

On her current position
As the Associate Director for the Office of Fellowships, Awards, and Resources at Georgetown University, I guide current students and alums as they pursue a range of competitive merit-based national and international fellowships, including the Fulbright, Truman, Knight-Hennessy, Rhodes, and Marshall. I also oversee an undergraduate research fellowship, which supports students as they design and undertake an independent summer research project. 

I find that this co-curricular space is where some of the most exciting student development work is happening. Fellowships and undergraduate research fall under the umbrella of high impact educational practices - practices that have been shown to increase student engagement and improve post-graduate outcomes. These experiences thus often have a transformative impact on students’ lives.

In my work, I engage with students and alums at critical stages of their academic and professional development, helping them not only to think deeply and critically about the complex issues on which they hope to work but also to apply and expand their expertise in the service of the greater good. I love the multiple dimensions to this work and the fact that this process of learning and self-discovery doesn’t just benefit the students with whom I work: in working with students across disciplines, I’m constantly learning about challenges and innovations in different fields.

On her time at Brown
When I began my PhD program in History, I anticipated eventually pursuing a faculty position at a small liberal arts college like Colby College, which I attended. I appreciated the close faculty mentorship as well as the creativity and self-exploration that a liberal arts education fosters. 

Yet a few years into the doctorate program, I became increasingly interested in wider discussions regarding “Alt-Ac” careers and the applications of my graduate training to other spaces within and outside the academy. 

My selection and participation in the newly established Brown Executive Scholars Training (BEST) Program was a turning point for me. I found our roundtable seminars with senior university administrators on everything from the shifting higher education landscape to the role of various campus units in serving and educating the whole student to be some of the most thought-provoking conversations. When the program concluded, I looked for ways to gain even greater insight into higher education administration. I contacted and met with an Associate Dean of the College about working in academic affairs, and she in turn put me in touch with Linda Dunleavy, the Associate Dean for Fellowships, who brought me on as a Graduate Fellowship Advisor. 

That turn of events was momentous for me professionally. Mentoring and preparing fellowship candidates was so personally rewarding and intellectually stimulating.  It also allowed me to tap into other interests of mine when it came to developing programs as well as working and collaborating across disciplines. It would be fair to say that the work gave me the same clarity and strength of purpose that I worked to foster in our fellowship candidates! 

As I prepared to graduate from Brown, I specifically looked for academic administrator positions that involved some combination of fellowships and undergraduate research. That search led me to the University of New Hampshire, where I worked for a year before coming to Georgetown.

On how her experiences at Brown have shaped her current trajectory
Brown’s Department of History gave me incredibly supportive faculty mentors who served as models of engaged instructors and erudite scholars. I am indebted first and foremost to Tim Harris and Tara Nummedal but also to others including Robert Self, Lin Fisher, Ethan Pollack, Amy Remensnyder, Hal Cook, and Joan Richards who took a genuine, active interest in our development as thinkers and scholars. They set an example that I strive to emulate in my current work with undergraduate and graduate students.

More broadly, my doctoral training challenged me to think critically and creatively, ask probing questions, and construct a compelling narrative based on synthesis and analysis of large bodies of evidence. In addition, the work of a historian centers on seeking to understand and become a storyteller of the human experience. This work provides perspective and further cultivates empathy - all of which translate well to the work of fellowship advising and guiding candidates not only to become more precise and nuanced in their thinking but also to piece together a persuasive narrative. 

Outside the History Department, I took advantage of the opportunities and resources provided by the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning. The Sheridan Center’s emphasis on reflective teaching and learning helped to shape my approach to working with students and led me to pursue the Brown/Wheaton Faculty Fellows Program. Serving as a Faculty Fellow and teaching an upper-level seminar at Wheaton College in turn reaffirmed my commitment to one-on-one mentorship and the liberal arts experience, both of which are central to my work now.

Finally, I would not be where I am today without Linda Dunleavy, the Associate Dean for Fellowships. It was through working with her that I gained both insight into the world of fellowship advising, and most importantly, an inspiring example of how to draw upon and apply one’s scholarly training to nurturing student development outside of the classroom.

On what is surprising about her current position
One thing that seems obvious now but I hadn’t yet fully appreciated when I was first becoming involved in higher education administration is just how much learning happens outside the classroom. While students develop expertise in the classroom, co-curricular spaces like fellowships offices are where students have the opportunity to explore - and are challenged to consider - the full applications of that expertise. These spaces thus become a laboratory involving rigorous inquiry and interdisciplinary experimentation. And just as I would in designing an academic course, I consider the arc of learning and development in my work with fellowship candidates and undergraduate researchers. 

On missing Brown
The comradery within not only my doctoral cohort and program but also the larger graduate population was really special. There was truly a sense of community. I fondly recall late nights hanging out at the Grad Center Bar or studying with my friends in the attic of the History Department’s Peter Green House. 

On the next five years
Much of my work now is outward-facing, as the fellowships on which I work are external to the university and often support postgraduate research or study. Moving forward, I hope to assume a greater role in building undergraduate research, experiential learning, and leadership development programs within the university setting. I’m excited by the potential of these types of high impact programs to promote sustained intellectual engagement and scholarship across the undergraduate years as well as to develop future leaders capable of tackling pressing 21st-century challenges.

I’m also interested in issues related to equity and access and intend to do more in this area. Within my office, we are attuned to questions such as what barriers exist that inhibit certain populations of students from pursuing and accessing transformative opportunities like fellowships. In the future I hope to take a greater role in developing programming and resources that ensure that students of all backgrounds are able to develop the competencies and academic literacies to excel within and beyond the university.

Advice for current graduate students
Actively seek out opportunities beyond your department to expand your professional and academic toolkit. Embrace an explorer’s mindset. You never know what doors these experiences may open, and in the process, you’ll learn a great deal about the interworkings of the university as well as the practical applications of your own expertise. 

On how her current position has been affected COVID-19
Due to COVID-19, my office has gone completely virtual! We have long used platforms like Zoom to hold webinars and virtual advising sessions for both students and alums, so our transition to a virtual environment has been relatively smooth, all things considered. We are moving forward with our schedule of virtual info sessions, drop-in workshops, and individual advising appointments, and now we’re just thinking more creatively about how to maintain those connections with students, keep them engaged, and make sure that they feel supported amidst these disruptions to life as we know it.

While these are certainly difficult and uncertain times, sometimes moments of uncertainty present a great opportunity to engage in the type of reflection to which I have referred. As funded opportunities off the beaten, traditional path, fellowships may provide the space, time, and resources to gain critical experiences and training; grow as a thinker and leader; and be reinvigorated and inspired towards a set of goals.