Faculty Spotlight: Kirsten Russell

After careers in Massachusetts, Switzerland, China and Pakistan, History Instructor Kirsten Russell has returned to New Hampshire, the state she was raised in. Russell brings her expertise from a plethora of professions—from agricultural development work for Cyrus Eaton World Trade to food policy analysis at Harvard’s Institute for International Development—to the table.Russell originally began her international career in China, where she worked on agriculture and animal husbandry projects throughout rural China. Though she had traveled before, Russell had a desire to live abroad and learn the language of a new country. “I was based in Beijing but my work required me to travel throughout China to observe agricultural practices and design new production methods.”During her time in China, Russell witnessed startling economic growth which added to her own research. “If you look at Shanghai in photographs, there are all of these fabulous buildings now,” she said. “However in the 80s, when I lived there, the Pudong section of Shanghai was mainly pig farms, which we conducted research on. There was an amazing transformation that happened.”After living in China, Russell returned to the states and spent time working for Harvard’s Global Equity and Institute for International Development on top of pursuing graduate studies at Cornell University. For her dissertation, Russell planned to connect back to her experiences in China and write about the economic impact of change in Chinese dietary patterns.She was on a flight to China to begin her research when the government response to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests broke out. Her plane stopped in Chicago and Russell returned to Cambridge where began working on a different research project, which led her to living and working in Pakistan.Post Pakistan, Russell worked briefly in East Africa and then changed her career path to teaching. Russell began to teach at Newton South High School in Massachusetts and then Collège du Léman, a high school in Switzerland. Though she was no longer engaging in research, her occupation still entailed plenty of travel. “I worked in a program called Modern Global Communities in which students could travel with adults in a fashion not too dissimilar from Exeter’s programs to Cuba and China.Though she did not teach until later in her career, Russell believes that her interest in history stemmed long before formally teaching the subject. “History was a personal interest— I’m especially interested in looking at how we got where we are today and coming up with explanations. Sometimes, the economic research that I did provides tools to help with this analysis,” she said.Her extensive background in a plethora of topics will benefit Exeter’s curriculum, History Instructor Betty Lu-Hill said. “She's had an impressive career both in economic policy and in social studies teaching, and she's already taught versions of many of the courses we offer at PEA,” she said. “That experience is helpful to our department because there are many different courses that she's qualified to teach in the realms of history and economics.”Russell’s fervor for history has made an immediate impact on the Academy’s campus, according to lower Saylor Garland. “Her expertise has come in handy when I was figuring out what history class to take this winter and finding one that best fits me,” Garland said. “Ms. Russell has such a neat background and I feel like any questions I have she will be able to answer—she just seems wise.”In addition to her knowledge in and outside of the classroom, Russell has shown sensitivity and empathy, according to Garland, especially in a meeting to discuss adjusting to the Academy. “The first couple weeks for me here were really tough—I didn’t have any friends and I was homesick,” she said. “The impact of meeting with Dr. Russell was very relaxing and she was so nice; I really felt like I could talk to her. After that, things got easier and I started to feel less lonely. She continues to check to see how I’m doing and really makes an effort to help me if I need it.”For faculty, too, Russell is a stabilizing force. “PEA can be a frantic place, but in every meeting and encounter I've had with her, she brings a calm, soothing presence,” Lu-Hill said. “Her contributions in meetings are gentle but matter-of-fact, and when she speaks everyone really listens.”History Instructor and Faculty Mentor to Russell Aykut Kilinc described their professional relationship as almost a role reversal. “My relationship with Ms. Russell is different because she came here with a lot of experience. Most of the time I feel like she is my mentor,” he said. “She is a very insightful, thoughtful, well organized and approachable human being.”Russell’s advisee, prep Sami Smith, connected with Russell both in her dorm, Bancroft Hall, and during advisory. “She always wanted to help everyone and she takes time out of her day to help you,” she said. “[At the beginning of the year], she bought us all our favorite ice cream flavors. Her whole apartment is very African-themed and she’s very culturally involved.” Kilinc noted Russell’s ability to connect with students. “I visited a few of her classes and she has an amazing relationship and connection with her students which I don’t think I was able to establish for a few years when I first got here,” he said. “She is an impressive person.”Perhaps this seamless transition to the Harkness table can be attributed to her approach to the table. “For everybody that sits around the table, I look forward to hearing their contribution and I also want to find what is it that I can offer them to help make something clearer or take a discussion to another level,” Russell said. “I want students to engage, be kind and curious—to never assume they know more than everyone else in the room, but also to know that they have something valuable to contribute.”