Alumni: Elaine McArdle

She wanted to work at Rolling Stone magazine after graduation. She couldn’t figure out how to make that happen so she went to law school, graduated and practiced law for a year but didn’t like it much. So she went back to her calling—journalism.

Elaine has been a journalist now for more than 20 years, and has reported and written on everything from law and politics to health. She has won a number of awards, including the Massachusetts Bar Association's first-ever "Excellence in Law-Related Journalism" award, and awards from the Associated Press, the American Bar Association, and the New England Newspaper Association. She now writes for the Boston Globe, the Boston Globe Magazine, Boston Magazine, Harvard Law Bulletin, and many others. Elaine has also worked as a staff writer and editor at the New Bedford Standard-Times, Lawyers Weekly USA and a freelance writer. Her latest accomplishment has been co-author of The Migraine Brain: Your Breakthrough Guide to Fewer Headaches, Better Health, with Carolyn Bernstein, M.D.

But her career as a journalist almost didn’t happen…coming to Centenary was a fluke.

"It was a very fortunate fluke," Elaine said. "The summer after my sophomore year at another college, I took organic chemistry at Centenary with Dr. Hanson. I fell in love with Centenary and transferred here for my junior year."

When Elaine arrived on campus, she became editor of the Conglomerate newspaper, a position she held for three semesters. The position was so interesting and so much fun that it set her on the path toward journalism. And, according to Elaine, it was also the great liberal arts education that gave her the foundation and skills to be a more learned interviewer and writer. It was the opportunities at Centenary that propelled her on her career path.

"I was able to join KSCL radio as a deejay and the Conglomerate newspaper staff as soon as I arrived, and to participate in all aspects of student life," she said. "We had remarkable access to any of the administrators or professors. You could knock on the President’s door and talk to him about ideas for the school or any concerns you had. It was a wonderful sense of belonging to a community where people cared."

Her studies also prepared her for the rigors of law school at Vanderbilt. In the classroom, students, she said, always received a lot of attention from professors who really cared whether we were learning and who pushed them to learn more.

"The entire Centenary community genuinely cares about you and your educational and personal development. You are never just a number. In a world that can feel alienating, you always belong at Centenary. It’s comforting and reassuring."

And that comfort and reassurance, she said, continues to this day.

"I know Centenary and the people there support me in anything I do, which gives me the confidence to try new things. When my first book, The Migraine Brain, was published last fall, the school held several events including a book signing and television appearances. I’m really grateful for that kind of support."