Katie Hill: English/Russian Studies

Katie Hill came to ECU with a cello and a plan to major in music. Then she had the chance to go to Russia through the ECU Scholars Program the summer after her first year. Those six weeks in Saratov, 450 miles southeast of Moscow, changed everything. "I just fell in love with the place," she says.

Upon returning to school in the fall, she changed her major. In addition to majoring in English, she worked with faculty mentors to create an interdisciplinary degree in Russian Studies, allowing her to double major.

Katie spent six months studying in Russia on a David L. Boren Scholarship in 2003. She was recently recognized by the Pitt County Alumni Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for her outstanding scholastic achievements. After graduation this spring (2004), Katie plans to enter a graduate program in Applied Linguistics. She is ECU's first Multidisciplinary Major with a concentration in Russian Studies.