Julia Rohde '21 Receives Teaching Residency Fellowship from UPenn

Throughout their time at Oberlin, Julia Rohde '21 always knew that they wanted to be a teacher. Now, Rohde is applying their love of interdisciplinary learning with a fellowship in the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.

For the next two years, Rohde—a history major with minors in comparative American studies, gender, sexuality, and feminist studies, and the education concentration—will teach middle and upper school English at Riverdale Country School in the Bronx, New York, while simultaneously earning a master’s in education through UPenn’s Independent School Teaching Residency. Throughout the residency, Rohde will work closely with a mentor at Riverdale—where the head of both the middle and upper schools are Oberlin alumni. 

“I'm incredibly grateful that I attended a liberal arts school where I could explore many different academic interests without focusing solely on a future career,” says Rohde, who is from Valparaiso, Indiana. “As an English teaching fellow at Riverdale, I will get to share my love for interdisciplinary learning with students. I didn't major or minor in English at Oberlin, but virtually all of my courses engaged with the discipline and made me a better writer and reader. I am excited to show students that your courses should overlap, and you can make connections across disciplines.”

At Oberlin, Rohde tutored with America Reads and the Ninde Scholars Program; was a writing associate for English for Speakers of Other Languages; and served as a Peer Advising Leader. Rohde also was involved in teaching middle school sex education in Oberlin and worked in the children's department of the Oberlin Public Library through the President's Public Service Fellowship, in addition to being a member of the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association for four years. 

Following the fellowship, Rohde hopes to continue teaching.