When the College of Arts & Letters’ Citizen Scholars Program at Michigan State University introduced the Undergraduate Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities in 2023, the goal was to give students a structured way to translate their study of the arts and humanities into the kind of leadership the world is asking for: thoughtful, ethical, and grounded in community. This spring, two Citizen Scholars became the first to complete it.
Ally Doederlein and Olivia Selcanin graduated in Spring 2026 as the inaugural recipients of the certificate, a multidisciplinary program administered through the Citizen Scholars Program.
“The Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities was a student-driven initiative that we began in 2023,” said Michael Ristich, Director of the Citizen Scholars Program. “The program takes seriously the fact that students in the arts and humanities find themselves in leadership positions. Whether it’s leading a small team or a large organization, students in the arts and humanities are well-positioned to build shared goals, help others recognize their strengths, provide historical perspectives, imagine alternatives, and communicate effectively across audiences. Citizen Scholars do this work every day.”
Across nine credits, the certificate is bookended by two courses: Creating Meaningful Impact (AL 270), which asks students to investigate how the arts and humanities can help make the world a better place, and Advanced Career Strategies for Students in the Arts and Humanities (AL 460), which helps Citizen Scholars solidify goals and prepare their professional materials with support from the College of Arts & Letters’ Excel Network.
In between, students complete the college’s experiential learning requirement — most often through study abroad, supported by Citizen Scholars scholarship funding — along with a semester-long community partnership coordinated through MSU’s Center for Community-Engaged Learning, programming offered by the Citizen Scholars Program itself, and a reflective capstone presentation. Ristich works with each student to personalize the experience. This summer, nine Citizen Sholars are studying around the world.
“Students in the arts and humanities are well-positioned to build shared goals, help others recognize their strengths, provide historical perspectives, imagine alternatives, and communicate effectively across audiences. Citizen Scholars do this work every day.”
Michael Ristich, Director of the Citizen Scholars Program
The program is designed to help students investigate how their knowledge of the arts and humanities can prepare them to lead — whether in classrooms, organizations, or communities, and is open to first-year, second-year, and transfer students in the College of Arts & Letters.
Both Doederlein and Selcanin have shaped the certificate as much as they’ve completed it.
“Ally and Olivia have been important leaders within the program and across the College of Arts & Letters,” Ristich said. “Not only have they been indispensable in helping to shape the program and our new certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities, but they have also accomplished so much during their time at MSU. Both of them bring an infectious enthusiasm and great care for others to their work. I can’t wait to see what they do next.”
Doederlein and Selcanin have taken different paths during their undergraduate education — one toward the wings of an opera house, the other toward a law office — but both leave with the same credential, and the same conviction that the arts and humanities are training grounds for leadership. As the first two graduates of the certificate, they set a model for the Citizen Scholars who will follow them.
Read more about their educational journeys and time at MSU and with the Citizen Scholars Program:
Ally Doederlein
Doederlein graduated in Spring 2026 with a BFA in Stage Management from the Department of Theatre and a B.A. in Management from the Broad College of Business, along with a minor in Arts and Cultural Management. She has been a member of the Citizen Scholars Program since her sophomore year.
“The Citizen Scholars Program brings students together from a variety of backgrounds and majors in the College of Arts & Letters. I never would have met or collaborated with these students had I not joined the program,” Doederlein said. “Even with differing backgrounds, we all have values rooted in the arts and humanities.”
As part of her experiential learning requirement, Doederlein did a study abroad with the Exploring British Theatre program through MSU’s Department of Theatre. She took classes and an independent study comparing stage management practices in the United States and the United Kingdom.
“Living and learning in London for five weeks was an incredibly high-impact experience, and I’m forever changed by it,” she said.
“Dr. Ristich works with students to personalize their certificate experiences to get the most out of the program. Completing this certificate was the culmination of my arts and humanities experiences at MSU.”
Ally Doederlein
For her community engaged learning experience, Doederlein volunteered at the Eastminster Child Development Center in East Lansing, Michigan.
“I love working with kids, and I’m told I’m good at it, so this seemed like a perfect opportunity for me,” she said. “This experience reminded me to slow down in life and find time to give back to my community that I love dearly.”
These experiences within the program helped Doederlein expand her leadership abilities.
“By setting goals and reflecting on a community-engaged learning experience, several presentations, and mentorship opportunities, the Citizen Scholars Program pushed me to the next level of my arts leadership potential,” she said. “Dr. Ristich works with students to personalize their certificate experiences to get the most out of the program. Completing this certificate was the culmination of my arts and humanities experiences at MSU.”
During her time at MSU, Doederlein also has contributed to more than 16 productions and events across campus, taking on roles that include production stage manager, assistant stage manager, show caller, deck manager, assistant musical director, and assistant to the composer. She has worked with MSU Opera Theatre, Wharton Center for the Performing Arts, Orchesis Dance Company, Breslin Student Events Center, and on large-scale corporate events.
She also is a 2026 recipient of the Louis B. Sudler Prize, a top recognition from the College of Arts & Letters for outstanding achievement in the performing and creative arts.
Doederlein plans to spend the summer working for the Santa Fe Opera, a premier opera company in New Mexico, before moving to New York City in the fall to continue pursuing a career in theatre.
Olivia Selcanin
Selcanin graduated in Spring 2026 with a B.A. in English Literary Studies and a double minor in Business and Women’s and Gender Studies.
“I’m honored to be among the first to receive the Undergraduate Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities, and to be one of the first graduates to wear the Citizen Scholars stole,” she said. “Alongside Allison Doederlein, I had the unique opportunity to help set the tone for what this program can represent moving forward.”
Selcanin served as the first president of the Citizen Scholars Advisory Board. She said the Undergraduate Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities stretched her in ways she didn’t expect.
“The process of earning the Undergraduate Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities challenged me to grow both academically and personally,” she said. “Through its requirements, I was pushed to step forward as a leader among Citizen Scholars while engaging in volunteer work and experiential learning. This experience strengthened my confidence and affirmed my ability to lead in the future.
“As an aspiring attorney, I now feel prepared to understand diverse perspectives, think critically, and adapt to new challenges — skills I owe in large part to this certificate.”
“As an aspiring attorney, I now feel prepared to understand diverse perspectives, think critically, and adapt to new challenges — skills I owe in large part to this certificate.”
Olivia Selcanin
During the Spring 2026 Semester, Selcanin interned for the Global Gender Leadership Institute, a virtual collaboration between Michigan State University and Loreto College in Kolkata, India. In this role, Selcanin worked in cross-cultural small groups with student cohorts from MSU and Loreto, India, to examine shared gender-based challenges and build spaces for dialogue, solidarity, and learning. She said she was especially interested in how global perspectives on equity and leadership can inform advocacy and systems-level change.
Also during her time at MSU, Selcanin worked as a fashion writer for VIM Magazine and she was a member of the College of Arts & Letters Leadership Fellows at MSU for which she collaborated with fellow students on initiatives to promote financial well-being within the college community, working under Assistant Dean Ellen Moll.
This summer, Selcanin is joining the Digital Culture in London and Scotland study abroad program offered through MSU’s Digital Humanities Program. In the fall, she will join Schluter & Hughes Law Firm, PLLC, as an Administrative Assistant. The firm specializes in estate planning, elder law, probate, and trust and estate administration, helping families plan for the future and navigate life transitions. The role will allow Selcanin to build on her experience in a legal environment as she pursues her long-term goal of becoming an attorney.
By Austin Curtis and Kim Popiolek
