For the past 13 years, Brittany Sundberg has with the Honors College, including four years as a honors student employee. For the last nine years, Brittany has worked as the Honors College admissions and curriculum coordinator and data analyst. Her work sits at the intersection of admissions, curriculum planning and data, where she helps manage processes, support program structure and provide insights that guide decision-making. From keeping operations organized to working behind the scenes with data, Brittany plays an important role in the College’s day-to-day work. She values being part of a team that supports student success and strengthens the Honors College as a whole. In this Q&A, she shares more about her career path, her perspective on her work and what keeps her motivated.
Q: What is your role in the Honors College?
As the HC admissions coordinator, I process applications for HC admission and coordinate reviews for consideration with HC leadership and staff committee members; as the HC curriculum coordinator, I work with the HC associate dean to get the honors course offerings into the OSU schedule; and as the HC's data analyst I help manage our data and database projects for reporting and analysis.
Q: What's one project or initiative you've worked on that you're especially proud of?
I'm particularly proud of the work I've done in coordination with HC leadership to create data analysis dashboards to more easily measure benchmarks and progress on important HC priorities. One of my favorite initiatives in the past was the work we did to update our application review process to be paperless.
Q: What kind of questions can you answer from honors community members?
For prospective students, I can answer questions about how to apply to the Honors College and what the deadlines and requirements are. For current honors students and faculty, I can answer questions about where to find the plans for the upcoming honors course offerings and when they may be updated.
Q: What's something you enjoy doing outside of work?
I spend most of my time outside of work playing Dungeons & Dragons or video games. I'm currently a player in two D&D campaigns and I'm running a Descent into Avernus campaign as the GM for a group of four players. As part of doing that, I spend quite a lot of time 3D printing miniatures, terrain and props for the game. I really enjoy learning about both resin and filament printers and I've spent many hours learning painting techniques to paint them with clarity and detail. My husband and I also have two cats and a yorkie, so we love playing and spending time with them, too.
Q: What's a book, podcast or movie that's inspired you or made you think recently?
I've been incredibly inspired by the story in the video game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. It's a work of art in the form of a video game with a story and characters that are both beautifully written and very thought provoking.
Q: If you had the opportunity to work on an HC thesis today, what do you think the theme or title would be?
I am actually slowly working on a second degree while working full time and I plan to write a thesis on the impact and importance of storytelling.
Q: What's one of your favorite memories or moments from working in the Honors College?
Back when we used to send paper letters for HC admission decisions, several of us would gather the hundreds of letters, envelopes and informational pamphlets in the conference room to work on folding and stuffing the letters into the envelopes. It would take us hours, but we'd put on music and it gave us an opportunity to share stories and learn more about each other. While it was some of the most tedious and time consuming work, it was also some of the most enjoyable.
Q: What's something you've learned from the HC community that's influenced you?
This community has taught me the value of continuous learning - to never stop learning, to always be curious, to always explore and to continually push the boundaries of what you think you know.
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