Class of 2016
"Coming to Caz was like finding a missing puzzle piece."
After taking the PSAT in high school, Michaela Hughes-Singleton received a mailer from Cazenovia College that caught her eye. She attended a fall open house, where she learned that she could pursue her lifelong interest in interior design and participate on the equestrian team, a combination for which the College would be the perfect fit. "Coming to Caz was like finding a missing puzzle piece," shares Michaela.
As a member of the equestrian team her freshman and sophomore years, Michaela found an immediate group of friends, which helped to make her transition to college life that much easier. Almost a third of Cazenovia College students participate in varsity athletics.
Michaela found the interior design program challenging and rewarding, allowing her to build a professional-level portfolio from her innate creative abilities. The color-forecasting industry became the focus of Michaela's capstone project, "Color Clairvoyants: The Mystery of Color Forecasting Revealed." Her research explores the science of color trends, which indicates that the hues which are in vogue result from economic, political and cultural influences. Furthermore, fashion leads the design world in terms of colors.
While an interior design major, Michaela also has a strong interest in English. Her first-year seminar class with Warren Olin-Ammentorp, professor of English, helped to confirm her desire to minor in the subject.
Michaela's interest in literature has a historic orientation, which she was able to combine with her knowledge of interior design via a unique internship as a research assistant for Professor Elizabeth Moore. Michaela was tasked with researching historical information for the redevelopment of a course on American homes. Through her research, she learned about the life of an entrepreneurial farm wife in the early 1900s, which underwent significant changes due to technological advancements such as early typewriters, evolving washing machines and the role of women in the Red Cross during World War I.
Michaela's story shows how a Cazenovia College liberal arts education creates opportunities for intellectual discovery and growth. It also has influenced her professional aspiration to become a museum curator.
As a member of the equestrian team her freshman and sophomore years, Michaela found an immediate group of friends, which helped to make her transition to college life that much easier. Almost a third of Cazenovia College students participate in varsity athletics.
Michaela found the interior design program challenging and rewarding, allowing her to build a professional-level portfolio from her innate creative abilities. The color-forecasting industry became the focus of Michaela's capstone project, "Color Clairvoyants: The Mystery of Color Forecasting Revealed." Her research explores the science of color trends, which indicates that the hues which are in vogue result from economic, political and cultural influences. Furthermore, fashion leads the design world in terms of colors.
While an interior design major, Michaela also has a strong interest in English. Her first-year seminar class with Warren Olin-Ammentorp, professor of English, helped to confirm her desire to minor in the subject.
Michaela's interest in literature has a historic orientation, which she was able to combine with her knowledge of interior design via a unique internship as a research assistant for Professor Elizabeth Moore. Michaela was tasked with researching historical information for the redevelopment of a course on American homes. Through her research, she learned about the life of an entrepreneurial farm wife in the early 1900s, which underwent significant changes due to technological advancements such as early typewriters, evolving washing machines and the role of women in the Red Cross during World War I.
Michaela's story shows how a Cazenovia College liberal arts education creates opportunities for intellectual discovery and growth. It also has influenced her professional aspiration to become a museum curator.