Anna Doherty ’05

Anna Doherty ’05 knew she would major in English and Spanish when she entered Cornell, and she planned to become a teacher.  A call to ordained ministry changed her career path, but she feels her choice of majors served her well.

“My English courses taught me how to do in-depth, focused research and how to write both academically and analytically, skills which have helped me immeasurably in divinity school,” she says. “They also taught me creativity and the art of self-expression, which are important gifts for both the academic life and ordained ministry in particular.”

Doherty plans to complete her masters program at Yale Divinity School in 2008.  Afterwards, she intends to become an Episcopal priest, but would also like to earn a doctorate in church history and teach at a college or seminary.

“Reading medieval mystics in Professor Stavreva’s English Survey I course first allowed me to catch a glimpse of my love for theology and church history,” Doherty says. “She also inspired me to be creative in my academic and professional life and to keep the fun in both.”

Doherty believes a broad exposure to literature provides students with critical insights about humanity and human nature. She says her Cornell education also included a “wide variety of disciplines and perspectives” that enable her to work with people of vastly different cultural and religious backgrounds.

“My Cornell education has allowed me to be both culturally informed and culturally sensitive — skills which are becoming more and more important in an increasingly multicultural and global world,” she says.