Maria’s primary responsibility is the concept and development of all of the communications materials for College Advancement, including brochures, online appeals, slide shows, and videos. Amazingly, she also finds time to contribute stories to the online magazine and to be involved in many of the day-to-day projects that crop up.

She graduated from Kirkland College (the late sister of Hamilton College), where she was a German major, and she received an MFA from The University of Iowa Nonfiction Writing Program. She also participated in the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference. She’s been a stand-up comic in New York, an environmental marketing writer in Seattle, and a chamber music impresaria in San Francisco. Some days, she’s all three of those things at once right here in Vermont.

“I like strong Anglo-Saxon words. Also, I demand the embargo of these hackneyed words and phrases: empower, excellence, win-win, and paradigm shift.”