Your generation has come of age in a reality that includes DNA fingerprinting, genome mapping, organic farming and predator drones. Your future is one of guaranteed, constant change. It isn’t something predictable, and could never be handed down to you as a set of neatly written instructions. It will, instead, almost certainly unfold to the exact shape and degree to which you, yourself, are willing to push the envelope. Previous generations pioneered things like power lunches and Casual Friday, and they were called revolutionary. Your generation isn’t going to have it so easy. The good news is that’s exactly how you want it to be. You’ve inherited a future (props to those other generations) of unprecedented opportunity. That’s why, here at Wofford, we wouldn’t dream of locking you into a single path. We’ll prepare you for success in any field or future by teaching you to recognize and embrace opportunity itself. We call it taking chances. Read through some of the examples on the following pages and you’ll catch a small glimpse of how we are helping students just like you create real experiences that connect, challenge, and change lives forever.
Rachel Woodlee
a rhodes by any other name
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Many people know Rachel as Wofford’s sixth Rhodes Scholar. What some don’t know is that she almost didn’t apply for it. She had dreamed of the Rhodes since high school, but at the moment it was within her grasp, Rachel actually started to question whether the prestigious invitation to Oxford was reallythe right dream to begin with. She had just returned to the States after living with a Tibetan family for four months that had left her with a new perspective on life, a different take on ambition, and a new sense of who she wanted to become. Wofford had opened Rachel’s life up to a world of options, and different views of success. She has studied in France, China, Germany, Peru, India, and Belize, was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and captain of the school’s Division 1 volleyball team. She’s interned and apprenticed in law, business, marketing, and even dabbled in broadcasting. Would studying at Oxford help her evolve into the person she wanted to become or would it change her into something she once only thought she wanted to be? Wofford’s president (a Rhodes Scholar himself) and several members of the school’s faculty helped and encouraged Rachel throughout the entire process. In the end, the ability to study Modern Chinese and pursue a career educating Americans and businesses about Chinese culture proved to be a powerful attraction to Oxford. An attraction that, from all appearances, is mutual. Read more about Rachel »
Ron Norman
an anchor away
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What began with a simple phone call evolved into the internship of a lifetime. While serving as Student Government President, Ron was attending the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. Eager to get close to the action, he asked a professor if there were any Wofford connections that might get him behind the scenes. Ron, a finance major with a minor in government, and an interest in broadcast journalism, reached out to Wofford alum and MSNBC anchor Craig Melvin, and he got a lot more than he bargained for. Craig offered Ron an internship as a production assistant on his show, MSNBC Live with Craig Melvin. Travel and living arrangements were made possible through other alumni via LinkedIn. The next thing he knew, Ron was bound for the Big Apple and suited up with Brian Williams and Tom Hanks. He helped investigate stories inside and outside the studio. He also made connections with industry players like Alex Witt and Alex Wagner who have already provided valuable help and advice for his own career.
Jonathan Hanson
a finger on the pulse
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Potentially life-saving and innovative statistical research in a city rich with cultural influences (and a West Iberian Romance language to boot) sounded almost too good to be true for physics and Spanish major Jonathan Hanson. Yet, that’s exactly the kind of opportunity Wofford’s International Program’s office helped land for him when he began his search for a summer internship. Jonathan was able to spend two and a half months at the Juiz de Fora University in Brazil running heart simulations using algorithms based on small CT scans and a type of numerical analysis called adaptive mesh refinement to generate accurate, predictable models of individual human hearts. This method, once perfected, will allow future medical professionals to determine a heart patient’s health and risk using only a small portion of cardiac tissue in a fraction of the time and cost of current methods. Jonathan believes his experience with this process will not only enhance his grad school ambitions, but will also prepare him for future variations of similar models after graduation.
Grace Wallace
a write of passage
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La Boutique du Glacier is a small cafe located in Aix-en-Provence, a city in the south of France, known for the art of Cezanne, and recognized as early as 102 B.C. for the heroism of its women. It was here that Grace found the courage and inspiration to create a business she hopes will change the world. Together with a community of talented artists and artisans, this Homecoming Queen and humanities major launched a startup called WritefullyHis.com. Wofford helped her develop her mission and her business plan, set up a website, and even hosts events for students like her to get their ideas in front of potential investors. Her company sells stationery stateside but contributes proceeds to purchase paper and pencils for school children in a small village in Uganda. By only purchasing supplies crafted by fellow villagers, she provides jobs for the childrens’ parents as well. It’s a cycle of sustainability that she hopes can be scaled to help similar villages around the globe. Read more about Grace 
Asantewaa Boateng
a teen leader
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She is a Palmetto Fellows Scholar, a Charles E. Daniel Scholar, an Impact Scholar, and a recipient of the McKenzie Ann Perry Award for courage in the face of extreme adversity. She’s also a fan of Seventeen magazine. As a young girl, Asantewaa loved learning about fashion and trends from the glossy pages of the iconic monthly. As biology major on a pre-med track here at Wofford, Asantewaa is using the same format to teach girls about a different kind of beauty. Inspired by her parents’ work in their home country of Ghana, Asantewaa is determined to fight a startling trend in this country. Through a mentoring program she created for teens, she discovered that girls here are voluntarily entering the kind of life marked by generations of early pregnancy and lifelong poverty, that so many girls in Ghana are desperately trying to escape. To reach them on a level that parents and mentors simply can’t, she created an online peer magazine, Shout Out Sista! to help girls find happiness in their own skin, encourage them to share that happiness with others, and empower them to do something positive by including role models, homework help, and examples of natural beauty along with fashion, food, and fun advice. An annual business plan competition developed and hosted by Wofford will give her the chance to acquire funding for the site and expand its reach as Asantewaa continues her medical education. Read more about Asantewaa »
Eric Breitenstein a running back thinking ahead } Given that he is the grandson of Appalachian State head coach Robert Breitenstein, who also donated a sizable portion of his time and 180-acre estate to create and run Camp Broadstone for academically gifted kids, it’s really no wonder that Eric Breitenstein is a standout on the gridiron with a love of nature and a heart for helping future generations. The environmental studies major has been called a sledgehammer on the field and one of the best fullbacks in SoCon. He’s a threetime first-team All-American with 5,730 rushing yards and 65 touchdowns in his career and a two-time SoCon offensive player of the year. Eric also holds the SoCon single game rushing mark with 321 yards and was a Walter Payton Award finalist, but his sights are set will beyond his inevitable career in football. Eric chose Wofford for a reason. The high academic standards, and the environmental studies program were perfect preparation for his future ambitions. He plans to capitalize on his connections and collaborations here at Wofford to convert his athletic legacy into a post-career commitment to preserving the environment for others.
Nate Harceg
a world marketer
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Nate Harceg never backs down from anything until he’s given it his all. He’s an intercultural studies for business major who went to college full time while still in high school. Encouraged to study abroad for a year, Nate turned a semester abroad into three years of adventure and professional growth. He enrolled in a master’s level business course overseas, earning an International Management Certificate from the NEGOCIA Business School in Paris. He followed that with five months as a student of global sales for Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies in Shanghai, where he designed and implemented a marketing campaign spanning 40 countries, redesigned production methods and helped modify sales and shipping ratios worldwide. Later, while immersed in a micro finance and entrepreneurship program at Makerere University in Uganda, Nate found time to apprentice with Sesaco Industries where he helped create an export channel to U.S. markets, negotiated a seven-month advertising contract and helped market a successful new soy milk line. Nate credits Wofford’s energy, faculty, and extreme commitment to mentorship for his fearless determination to experience education to its fullest.
Missy Gaddy
a moonwalker
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Wired magazine calls it a ubiquitous enemy. Astronauts describe it as the number one environmental problem‌on the moon. If humans ever intend to expand our presence on its surface, one thing has the power to stop us. Dust. The moon’s corrosive dust is an astronomical terror that NASA wants to control, and Missy, an applied mathematics and computer science major here, was one of a lucky few students chosen to spend 12 weeks at the Goddard Space Flight Center trying to find a way to tame the microscopic beast. Along with students from schools like Johns Hopkins and MIT, Missy researched samples returned to earth by the Apollo 17 mission. They were able to break new ground that challenged previously accepted models for dealing with the pesky particles. Missy credits her professors for helping her identify the internship and apply for funding. They also helped arrange for her to present her findings to national experts at the Nebraska Conference for Undergraduate Women in Mathematics and the Society for Applied Industrial Mathematics Conference in Boston. Missy also received a second-place award for presenting her research at the Consortium for Computing Sciences Conference in 2012.
Xuang Dong
a welcome addition
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Wofford is Xuang’s study abroad. Here from Nanjing, China, he is a math and economics major who credits his studies here in advanced game theory and the opportunity to participate in Wofford’s Venture Business Competition among just a few of the experiences that have prepared him to develop a business plan and launch his own company this summer. As a student here, Xuang founded Wofford’s first Chinese club, Terrier Dynasty, and currently serves as director of the International Affairs Student Partners Corporation where he manages 30 volunteers who segment consumers and internship opportunities to promote the internship-search website zhaoshixi.com. Xuang’s not stopping there. He plans to study abroad for three more semesters in Turkey, Oxford, and Cape Town.
“There are hundreds of paths up the mountain, all leading to the top, so it doesn’t matter which path you take. The only one wasting time is the one who runs around the mountain telling everyone else that their path is wrong.” – Hindu Proverb