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Ben Mitchell

Ben Mitchell
Mechanical Engineering '06

Ben Mitchell grew up in a devout household in the central Upper Peninsula of Michigan where emphasis was placed on helping others. He traveled with his father to places such as Kenya and Peru on short-term medical missions. When he was in Kenya, a missionary explained that engineers have the greatest potential to influence the largest number of people. During high school, Ben participated in a youth mission trip to Tijuana. A result of the mission trips, his family decided to adopt three Vietnamese children when he was a junior.

All of these experiences had a great influence on Ben’s outlook on life. He decided to major in mechanical engineering and enrolled at Lake Superior State University. Near the end of his senior year, he decided to volunteer for the Peace Corps to help others.

His two-year commitment began in the fall of 2007 and took Ben to Burkina Faso in western Africa. He resides in the village of Tansila, population 3,000, approximately 10 km from the Mali border. His host organization is the local cotton growers union. It works cooperatively with other villages to improve and expand their production techniques. He serves as an agribusiness advisor as a part of the Small Enterprise Development program which helps create market linkages and assists with the advancement of business skills.

English Language and Literature

Emphasizes the humane letters and language study.

Hands-on

Degrees

Featuring small classes, lots of reading, many opportunities for writing and research, and supervision by faculty who know their students, the English programs emphasize the humane letters and language study.

Every year, the English Department holds the Osborn Poetry Contest and the Fiction Short Story Contest. Submissions are due at the beginning of February, with the winners announced in March.

Career Descriptions

A sound liberal arts education is a satisfactory and soughtafter preparation for many vocational and professional areas: communication, industry, government and teaching.

Editor — Develops original fiction and nonfiction for books, magazines and trade journals, newspapers, technical reports, company newsletters, radio and television broadcasts, movies and advertisements.
Technical Writer — Puts scientific and technical information into readily understandable language. Prepares operating and maintenance manuals, catalogs, parts lists, assembly instructions, sales promotion materials and project proposals. Plans and edits technical reports and oversees preparation of illustrations, photographs, diagrams and charts.
Public Relations Director — Handles media, community, consumer and government relations; political campaigns; interest-group representation; conflict mediation; or employee and investor relations.
Elementary or Secondary Teacher — Teaches subject matter relevant to the English language and literature to diverse learners, grades K-12.

Average Starting Salary of LSSU Graduates*

$19,430
$26,213

Note: These figures include students working on their Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction

Well Prepared

LSSU has a great reputation for placing English Language and Literature students in graduate and professional schools, such as:

Wayne State University

Have a Question?

*Based on survey of 2004-2006 LSSU graduates

Paramedic with Honors...

Geoff Girolamo,
Honors Nursing
Grosse Ile, MI

Geoff works as a paramedic for Kinross EMS. During holidays and school breaks he works in the Detroit metro area for Medic One Ambulance and Hart Medical EMS as a paramedic for both agencies. [ more ]