From Woodlawn to Williams to CNBC: Kathleen Elkins ’10

Kathleen Elkins graduated from Woodlawn in a class of two. She was part of the first graduating class the school ever produced. Now she is a Senior Reporter at CNBC in Los Angeles.

When Kathleen Elkins graduated from Woodlawn in 2010, she did it in a graduating class of two. The school was young. The curriculum had been built largely around the students who were enrolled. There was no previous class to measure herself against, no established tradition to follow. She and her classmate were, in her words, "a bit of an experiment."

She went to Williams College, one of the most selective liberal arts colleges in the country, graduated summa cum laude with a BA in Spanish, won three Division III National Tennis Team titles, and moved to Los Angeles to work as a reporter. She is now a Senior Reporter at CNBC.

"Woodlawn not only helped me get into Williams, but it prepared me for the fast-paced and challenging academic setting I would face during my four years there."

What she describes as most formative about Woodlawn was not a single class or a specific teacher, though she credits both. It was something harder to name: the environment's effect on her sense of herself.

A Place That Asked Her to Be Herself

"At Woodlawn, you are encouraged to be yourself," she has said. "Being different and unique is actually cool. And growing up in that type of environment instilled in me a level of confidence that has been crucial to my success beyond the classroom."

That confidence did not come from praise. It came from rigor. Woodlawn held her to a standard, and meeting that standard consistently gave her a clear sense of what she was capable of. When she arrived at Williams, she knew. When she arrived at CNBC, she knew again.

What She Wants Current 'Blazers to Know

Kathleen has spoken to current Woodlawn students and is part of the alumni network that the school draws on when students are exploring careers and college options. What she tells them is consistent with what she has written about her own experience: the school is giving you more than you realize while you are in it.

"I am a strong, independent woman and comfortable in my own skin because of Woodlawn," she has written. "Woodlawn shaped who I am today: a confident woman living independently in New York City (she has since moved to Los Angeles) and pursuing a career I feel passionately about."

Williams College '14 · BA in Spanish · 3× Division III National Tennis · Senior Reporter, CNBC · Los Angeles, CA

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