Alumni

Jess Lourey '96 '98: 'Unspeakable Things' No. 1 best seller in Kindle Store

English bachelor's and master's alumna Jess Lourey’s latest thriller, "Unspeakable Things", is currently No. 1 on Amazon’s Kindle store. What an amazing accomplishment!

Inspired by a terrifying true story from the author’s hometown, "Unspeakable Things" is a heart-pounding novel of suspense about a small Minnesota community where nothing is as quiet — or as safe — as it seems.

The book has garnered terrific praise.

 “The suspense never wavers in this page-turner.” — Publishers Weekly

You can get Lourey’s book from Amazon and read more about it and the author at jessicalourey.com. She was also  profiled by the St. Cloud Times.

Jason Tham '11 '14: Winner of the Frank R. Smith award for Outstanding Article In Technical Communication

Jason Tham '11 '14, assistant professor at Texas Tech University, has won the 2019 Frank R. Smith Award for Outstanding Article in Technical Communication for his article "Interactivity in an Age of Immersive Media: Seven Dimensions for Wearable Technology, Internet of Things, and Technical Communication."

This award recognizes the authors of exceptional articles that appeared in Technical Communication during a calendar year. Since 1966, the Society for Technical Communications has paid tribute to the authors whose contributions have made Technical Communication one of the most highly respected journals devoted to the arts and sciences of technical communication. 

The award was presented during the Honors Event at the 2019 STC Summit in Denver, Colorado.

More alumni accomplishments

• Jackie Alderman (M.S. English, 2015) received statewide recognition (one of two awardees in Minnesota)
  as Outstanding Educator of the Year in 2015.
• Current and former students have had success in publishing and editing, including:
  • Jessie Lourey, faculty member at St. Cloud Technical and Community College, has been favorably reviewed by the San Francisco Book Review and the latest of her many books reached No. 1 for Kindle sales in 2019.
  • Bethany Frenette, a recent graduate, was given a 3-novel contract for books with Hyperion publishers in New York. Her first book in the series is Dark Star, which was published with positive reviews in 2012. 
  • Sammi Jones (MFA Moorhead) had her first book, a memoir, published by North Dakota State University Press. 
  • Former creative writing major Gretchen Reuth Marquette published a poem in the August 2013 issue of Harper’s Magazine and also in the summer issue of The Paris Review. A collection of her poetry was published in 2015 by Graywolf Press. 
  • Gretchen Reuth Marquette and fellow student Jeff Davis were chosen as finalists in the St. Paul Sidewalks Poetry Contest. 
  • David Feela published a poetry collection in 2012 and more recently a nonfiction book that was nominated for the Colorado Book Award. 
  • Mary Kasimor published a chapbook in 2013 issued by LRL Textile Series. 
  • Tamara Wudnich published a poem in Lake Country Journal. 
  • Robin Jodlowski received an MFA degree at Pittsburg and has been published in Slate
  • Poems have been published in various literary journals by Anna Martignacco, Jill Richter, Laura Martin Volk, Kelli Hallsten, Chuck Thielman and Sara Wainscott. 
• Regina Eckes went on to work in the Advertising and Promotion Department at Harper and Row publishers in New York City. 
• Kurt Milberger oversees three scholarly journals, a book series, and innovative editorial internships for Michigan State University Press, following his Notre Dame Ph.D.
• Angelina Gutierrez went on to work at Simon and Schuster publishers and also worked as a literary agent at Writer’s House, both in New York City. 
• Jestine Ware works as an editor for Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls in California. 

In the field

Graduates’ job placement [list compiled through student self-reporting to faculty]:

• Jason Tham: Assistant Professor, Texas Tech University
• Donella Westphal: Owner/operator, YourCreativeMN (media) and Jules Bistro with its expanded
  programming in downtown St Cloud
• Heidi Everett: Assistant Professor, Mass Communications, St. Cloud State University
  Jessie Lourey at a bookstore signing event.
• Cody Reimer: Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin-Stout
• Major Michelle Iten, Ph.D.: Assistant Professor, Virginia Military Institute
• Alex Layne: Assistant Professor, English, Metropolitan State University
• Darcy Turner: Assistant Director, Mary Stangler Center for Academic Success, St. Cloud Technical
  and Community College
• Rachel Leonard: City of Monticello, assisting on communication projects with
  telecommunications company FiberNet
• Caitlin (Donovan) Hogan: Financial Planning Support Specialist at AIS Planning
• Alexa Sandbakken: Web Content Editor at PrimeWest Health
• Jana Shepard: English Instructor, Minnesota State Community and Technical College
• Matt Helm: English Faculty, Minneapolis Community and Technical College
• Karl Klint: English Instructor, Florida International University
• Moira Donovan: LRC Director at ITT Technical Institute
• Jennifer Spies: Online Fundraising Specialist, Luther Seminary
• Elysha Gellerman: Government Grants Coordinator, CentraCare Health Foundation
• Jessie Lourey: Faculty, St. Cloud Technical and Community College
• Nicole Evans: Graduate Writing Center Coordinator, St. Thomas University
• Jennifer Hutchens: Writing Center Coordinator and Instructor, Anoka Technical College
• Emily Wiktor: Composition Director, North Dakota State University
• Gregory Brister: Associate Professor, Language and Literature, Valley City State University
• Alex Walter: Assistant Professor of English, Gwangju University
• Holly Hassel: Professor of English/Rhetoric, North Dakota State University
• Kelli Hallsten Erickson: Director, Tutoring and Learning Center, Lake Superior College

Continuing Education

Students have gone on to Ph.D. programs in English or Rhetoric at:

• University of Notre Dame
• University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
• Iowa State University
• Bowling Green University
• Michigan State University
• Texas Tech University
• Purdue University
• Texas Christian University
• Ball State
• Northern Illinois University

Students have gone on to MFA programs in Creative Writing at:

• University of Washington-Seattle
• Chatham University
• University of Pittsburgh
• American University
• Hamline University
• Minnesota State University-Mankato
• Butler University
• Augsburg