Feeling Empowered Inside and Outside the Classroom

When Beth Anne Castellano ’22 first arrived at Lafayette, she was looking for her place on campus and for her niche. Not only did she find both, but she’s established relationships that have helped her find confidence and see herself as a leader. 

Beth Anne Castellano ’22 feels right at home when she’s working with numbers.

MAJOR/MINOR: Math (major) and music (minor)

ACTIVITIES ON CAMPUS:  MOSAIC (Making Our Society an Inclusive Community) coordinator; Calculus Cavalry tutor; Kovalevsky Society; Chamber Orchestra

HONORS: Pi Mu Epsilon co-president, Marquis Scholar, CaPA Scholar

It really wasn’t until sophomore fall that I was more situated in the things I was involved in. Since then, I feel like I’ve been able to take on greater leadership roles. I think it was just trying to find things that fit my different interests and parts of my personality.

A DAY IN MY LIFE AT LAFAYETTE: I’m taking mostly math classes a lot of the time, or I’m working on math homework. In non-COVID times, I spent a lot of time hanging out with people in the math common room. I play violin and I’m in the orchestra, so I’ll practice violin, or I’ll go have my lesson or rehearsal. That sometimes provides me with a really good break from my regular math work. I’m also really involved with the Landis Center’s MOSAIC program, where I’m a program coordinator. So, I’ll usually have meetings for that. I coordinate their Best Buddies program, where we work with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and they come to campus and we do events with them. I was also the main person planning the Disabilities Awareness Week that we recently held. 

FINDING BALANCE: Practicing violin definitely helps me to take my mind off of everything and be in touch with my emotions through music. Before COVID, I liked to make time to go outside on the Quad and enjoy a meal with friends. I just did that today, and it felt good to be able to get back to some sense of normalcy, at least being able to be with friends outdoors.

LAFAYETTE’S LASTING IMPACT: I’m thinking of going into a Ph.D. program for math. I feel like the Lafayette Math Department is a hidden gem of the school. When I came here, I wasn’t specifically looking for it. But then once I was here, it became, for me, the best thing that could have happened to me.

SUPPORTIVE PROFS AND MENTORS: I did a research project with Professor Gary Gordon [Marshall R. Metzgar professor of math] the summer after my freshman year. And that got me super excited about how creative and interesting math research could be. I had him for class both semesters after that, specifically my Abstract Algebra I and II classes, which got me really interested in algebra. I learned a lot from him, and the way he teaches makes things really fun and humorous all the time. And, he’s very accessible, so he’s just been a huge mentor, math- wise. And then I’d also add Melissa Ash [assistant director, student engagement and civic leadership], who has been incredibly supportive and helped me with planning our Disabilities Awareness Week. She empowered me to put this whole thing together and made me very confident in my leadership style.

FAVORITE QUOTE: “The world is but a canvas to our imaginations.”—Henry David Thoreau