Bachelor of Individualized Study

This George �鶹��Ƶ alum mapped her future

Katarina Benson — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 21:21:58 +0000

This George �鶹��Ƶ alum mapped her future Katarina Benson Thu, 11/20/2025 - 16:21

In 1998, Brennan Collier, nee Snyder, graduated from �鶹��Ƶ—and used it as a springboard for everything that came next. She walked off campus with two BA degrees: one in geology, a tried-and-true science path, and the other in environmental science, a program she built herself when the existing offerings didn’t quite match her ambitions.

Collier wasn’t chasing diplomas—she was focused on impact. That same year, she locked down a certificate in environmental management, a fast track to the tools and know-how she’d need in the field. Internships and agency employment followed, giving her a front-row seat to the evolving world of environmental protection—exactly where she wanted to be.

Collier. Photo provided

After increasingly successful positions with public agencies, Collier is now senior vice president of strategic sales and part owner of ATCS, a Virgina-based engineering consulting firm that works with regional public and private clients in transportation planning and roadway design, traffic engineering studies, construction management, and other aspects of transportation infrastructure. You have probably traveled on a roadway in Northern Virginia whose route was determined by her research.

The Chantilly, Virginia, native began her journey in higher education at North Carolina State University, transferring closer to home to George �鶹��Ƶ as a sophomore to enroll in the geology program.

"I fell in love with earth sciences in ninth grade,” she said. “And I wanted to do something in environmental science, which was emerging at the time.”

With no environmental science bachelor’s program available—it is now—she worked with counselors in the Bachelor of Individualized Study (BIS) program to select courses across the campus to satisfy her goals.

Two of her professors were particularly inspiring: Geology professors Julia Nord and Richard Diecchio, both now retired. “They really helped me fall in love with what I was doing,” she said.

Also inspirational was a 1998 winter break to the Caribbean, where she performed geological field work at the Bahamas Environmental Research Center on Andros Island. The university was then a partner with facility located on a largely undeveloped island.

“The experience has definitely stuck with me,” she said, “and I appreciate how George �鶹��Ƶ was giving back to the community there, especially the young children that would follow us around curious as to what we were doing and why.”

In addition, she was “really lucky to be able to find some internships and part-time positions by just being in the Washington, D.C., area while I was in school,” she said, referencing George �鶹��Ƶ’s proximity and access to key institutions in the nation’s capital.

She landed a paid position with Reston, Virginia’s U.S. Geological Survey, where she worked on one of the very first Geographic Information Systems. “I actually digitized the state geological map of Virginia [while a student].”

She also worked with the Environmental Protection Agency in environmental compliance and, as she was finishing up her degree programs, she found a part-time position with the Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT) Northern Virginia District. That experience turned into a full-time job after graduation.

Each of these positions equipped Collier with the skills she continues to use today.

“[VDOT] is where I learned to study the environmental impacts of road and bridge projects, from wetland delineations to obtaining permits to looking at endangered species that might be at risk.”

Collier was the consultant deputy project manager for the Environmental Impact Statement required for the widening of Interstate 64 from Richmond to Hampton in Virginia, a popular highway leading to military bases and beach destinations along the Chesapeake Bay. It’s been 14 years since she started the environmental study and the project, currently under construction in segments, is valued at around $1.3 billion.

“I remind myself as an environmentalist that I’m doing good in the industry in trying to shape some of the decision making so that roads are placed where they need to be,” she said. “We’re not going down the middle of farms like we used to in the early 1950s and ‘60s when they built the original interstate.”

In fact, she frequents the I-64 corridor as she travels from her home in Richmond to her beach house in Cape Charles, Virginia.

“I annoy my 14-year-old daughter all the time because I point out things,” she said. “I say, ‘Hey, you see Camp Peary over there? Do you know the historic significance? [It was a CIA spy school.] Do you know why they felled the trees to widen the road and just left them there? That’s because of the time-of-year restrictions for tree clearing to protect threatened and endangered bats.’

“It’s nice to drive through that and know I had a piece of it, even though it was a small piece.”

Topics

Alumni

College of Science

Bachelor of Individualized Study

Lifelong learning turns into a bachelor’s degree for this first-year �鶹��Ƶ student

Sarah Holland — Tue, 10 Oct 2023 17:37:41 +0000

Lifelong learning turns into a bachelor’s degree for this first-year �鶹��Ƶ student Sarah Holland Tue, 10/10/2023 - 13:37

James “Jimmy” Stewart has always had a passion for learning.

During his 10 years serving in the U.S. Army, Stewart took classes at various colleges based on where he was stationed. His transcript boasts coursework from universities across Europe and the United States, though he never formalized a degree program. “I was initially focused on technology and law courses that were related to my role in the army—which was doing technology for the Judge Advocate General Corps (JAG), the law firm for the Army,” he said. “But also took a few core courses, like history, just in case.”

Stewart left the military during the dotcom boom of the late 1990s. His experience allowed for a smooth transition to a civilian career in the technology sector, working his way up to senior-level positions at national nonprofits and law firms. “I knew that not having a degree would always be a challenge to get employment,” he said. “With my certifications and the number of years of experience, I was able to get into the sector. But it has been a limiter; I’ve had to look for positions that prioritize hands-on experience as opposed to degree experience.”

When his 11-year-old daughter started showing interest in college, Stewart saw an opportunity to demonstrate the importance of higher education by finally getting his bachelor’s degree.

_{“I used to live across the street from �鶹��Ƶ Square, and my wife is a �鶹��Ƶ alum, so �鶹��Ƶ was the logical first choice,”}
_{he said. “I want her to see that if her dad can do it, she can do it, too, when it’s time.”}

Stewart enrolled in the Individualized Study Program in the School of Integrative Studies in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), with a concentration in leadership and strategic communications. The Bachelor of Individualized Study (BIS) at �鶹��Ƶ is designed for nontraditional students who are starting or returning to college after previous careers and life experiences. BIS took Stewart’s career and military experience, as well as his certifications and previous college courses, and converted them into credits that apply toward his degree; he started �鶹��Ƶ this fall with 77 credits.

“I was always worried that getting the degree wouldn’t fit into my other responsibilities as a husband, a father, and employee,” he said. “But when I worked with my academic advisor to map out the degree, I thought, ‘Wow this is achievable!’ I only wish I had done it sooner.”

Stewart hopes to keep his daughter engaged by showing her his coursework, talking about his classes, and pointing out �鶹��Ƶ wherever they go—like on the Metrobuses. “I want her to keep being excited with the idea of college, keep thinking of college as the next step,” he said. “I want to be a role model for her.”

Start your �鶹��Ƶ journey

Topics

Students

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

School of Integrative Studies

Bachelor of Individualized Study

Veterans

Strategic Direction

Unexpected path leads �鶹��Ƶ grad to academic excellence and a new perspective

ckearney — Mon, 08 May 2023 13:41:08 +0000

Unexpected path leads �鶹��Ƶ grad to academic excellence and a new perspective ckearney Mon, 05/08/2023 - 09:41

�鶹��Ƶ has been part of Heather Moss’ life for as long as she can remember—she even has pictures of herself on campus at only a few weeks old. Growing up, Moss watched as �鶹��Ƶ expanded, becoming the vibrant and diverse community it is today.

Patriot father and daughter duo: Bennett Crandall and Heather Moss. Photo by Sarah Holland/Office of University Branding

Her father, Bennett Crandall, BIS ’06, worked on campus as a bookstore manager in the 1980s when Moss was a baby. When Moss was in high school, her father enrolled in classes at �鶹��Ƶ to complete his degree through �鶹��Ƶ’s Bachelor of Individualized Study (BIS) Program.

Now, Moss is about to graduate from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences’ BIS Program herself, with a 4.0 GPA and as the recipient of two prestigious academic awards. The BIS faculty and staff nominated Moss for the School of Integrative Studies (SIS) Outstanding Graduate Award, an award given to graduating students who have greatly contributed to the life of the college and university. Recipients of this award embody the values and teachings of SIS and show the promise of using what they’ve learned to make the world a better place. Because she is graduating with one of the top GPAs in the BIS program, Moss will also receive an SIS Academic Excellence Award.

Given her �鶹��Ƶ roots, it might seem like following in her father’s footsteps was something she always planned, but her journey—one of determination, hard work, and grit—was not one she had predicted. When asked about the accomplishment she is most proud of as a student, she said earning and keeping her 4.0, adding, “Never in my life did I think those words would ever come out of my mouth.”

Immediately following high school, Moss attended Radford University. She left before completing her degree, returning home to Northern Virginia uncertain of her next move. She started working at �鶹��Ƶ part-time at the Aquatic and Fitness Center on the Fairfax Campus, picking up any shifts that she could.

Eventually, she got a full-time position working at the front desk of �鶹��Ƶ’s Office of University Events, where she was promoted to a student scheduler position. Moss loved it, but she couldn’t shake a nagging feeling about not completing her degree.

Moss recalls the pivotal moment when her husband, whom she was dating at the time, asked what her long-term goals were. Without hesitation, she said she needed to complete her degree. He replied with an enthusiastic, “What are we waiting for; let’s do it!” That was just the encouragement and support she needed.

Heather Moss and her father, Bennett Crandall, outside The Hub. Photo provided

Moss signed up for classes at Northern Virginia Community College to raise her GPA, applied to �鶹��Ƶ’s BIS program, and started classes in Fall 2020.

“I was not a good student in high school,” she said. “In my first go-round in college, I was a terrible student, terrible. I hated school. But I thrived in this program. I've found what I'm passionate about.”

Her father is immensely proud of her academic achievement. “I know from experience the challenges involved with deciding to go back to school later in life and while raising a family,” Crandall said. “Heather deserves all the credit in the world for making that decision. Thanks to the BIS program, we are a proud �鶹��Ƶ family.”

Designed for adult learners, �鶹��Ƶ’s BIS Program allows students to create interdisciplinary concentrations to meet their own educational needs for professional advancement, career change, preparation for graduate school, and personal satisfaction.

“CHSS changed my life,” Moss said. “It changed so many things for me, but mainly how I look at myself.”

One of the first classes BIS students take is BIS 301 Adult Learner Transition, a class designed to help adult learners develop skills and plans to overcome challenges of completing a bachelor's degree as an adult. Moss credits this class, taught and developed by Janet Ha Poirot, term assistant professor and associate director of academic services in BIS, for setting the tone for her education at �鶹��Ƶ.

“Janet taught us how to re-evaluate ourselves, and that you are not less valuable because you don’t have a degree. It totally changed the way I looked at myself,” she said. “I never put myself out there because I was really scared of being rejected because I didn't have my degree. Just working toward it gave me all this confidence that I didn’t have before.”

Poirot served as Moss’s faculty mentor for her senior capstone research project, for which she conducted interdisciplinary research on the important issue of teacher burnout and how the pandemic has added layers of additional stress on elementary school teachers. She said Moss’s positivity has been an inspiration.

“Heather is a wonderful student, dedicated to academic excellence and has been such a champion of BIS, uplifting many students in the classroom as well,” Poirot said. “I’ve been impressed with her excellent research work, diligence, and commitment and I am excited for her bright future.”

As far as what’s next for Heather, she plans to continue working for CHSS, where she is the assistant director of Events and Community Engagement. She's eager to foster relationships with BIS alumni and grow the BIS alumni chapter. Eventually, she’d like to get her master’s degree. On graduation day, she’ll walk away with two prestigious academic awards as her husband, parents, and almost-2-year-old daughter cheer her on.

Topics

Students

Graduation

Bachelor of Individualized Study

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Request Information

Learn about the BIS Program at �鶹��Ƶ

Bachelor of Individualized Study

This George �鶹��Ƶ alum mapped her future

Topics

Lifelong learning turns into a bachelor’s degree for this first-year �鶹��Ƶ student

Related News

Topics

Unexpected path leads �鶹��Ƶ grad to academic excellence and a new perspective

Topics