The Retort

Jen Gross: a Nontraditional Student

January 28th, 2011 by Bailey Martin Of The Retort Staff

Jen Gross doesn’t see herself as a typical college student; she’s very unique just like most of the students at MSU Billings. Jen is originally from Billings and she’s planning on graduating this spring with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies. She is very involved at MSUB and within the community. At MSUB, Jen ran All Lives with Liberty, a student group which promoted animal rights and the vegan life style at MSUB, for two years.

She also is involved in politics as a member of the College Democrats and in January, she went to Helena with other students to testify about the importance of funding higher education. In the community, Jen’s volunteered with Planned Parenthood, Montana Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club, Footloose Montana, and other groups.

Jen says that what she likes the most about MSUB is that it has surprised her. “As a younger person I always wrote it off as ‘too small and conventional’ to open any doors toward a more worldly perspective and life path. Three years later I am happy to say I was wrong!”

“My experiences at MSUB have gone above and beyond my expectations,” Jen says. She’s traveled to three national conferences where she has represented MSUB as a speaker. Jen’s spoken twice at animal rights conferences in Minneapolis and once representing MSUB Honors Students in Missoula at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research.

She’s also been able to use the Honors Program to modify the interdisciplinary Environmental Studies program to fit her academic interests which Jen describes as “eco-feminism, animal rights, and social justice.” Jen says that she has to thank Dr. Lisa Kemmerer because her classes were life changing for her and she’s always encouraged Jen to speak and to share what she knows.

When asked what she likes most about Billings, Jen replies that she likes the city’s “unique setting in the High Plains of Montana. We are fortunate enough to have such beautiful natural features as the Rims and the Yellowstone River, not to mention mile upon mile of rolling prairie until you literally run into any of the outstanding mountain ranges around us.”

Currently, Jen works as a childcare provider for Teen Success of Montana and she says “Taking care of multiple infants and toddlers is by far the hardest job I have ever had.” Working there has also given her a better perspective on the amount of hard work that mothers and childcare providers do. She’s also interning at Hilltop Public Solutions, a political consulting firm, where she’ll be doing research on environmental policy for one other firm’s clients.

Jen says she is applying to St. Cloud State University and she plans on getting a Master of Applied Science in Social Responsibility. When asked where she wants to be in 10 years, Jen says “While I am young and energetic I expect to be working in the trenches, on the ground as an activist, putting my academic training to practical use.”

She eventually wants to receive her doctorate and teach at the college level, but right now she sees herself “working at the intersection of domestic violence and food justice.” For anyone else who is interested in this, Jen recommends a book edited by A. Breeze Harper called Sistah Vegan.

Jen thinks “the most important thing in life is to maintain balance” and she says she often struggles with this. “Energetic, enthusiastic, passionate, positive, and principled” are the five very fitting words Jen says she’d use to describe herself.