Almost 20 years after their graduation from the college, Megan James ’05.5 and Ellen Whelan-Wuest ’05.5 have become involved in Middlebury's public life. The pair, who were senior year roommates after meeting through the Middlebury Mischords, a women’s acapella group at the college, have been elected to positions on the Town of Middlebury Selectboard and the Addison Central School District (ACSD) board.
James, a New Jersey native, spent time in California and New York prior to moving back to Vermont to report for the Addison Independent, where she had previously worked right after graduating. A career journalist, she also wrote for the Vermont publication Seven Days. James now works as a content producer for graduate programs at the University of Vermont (UVM).
“I just really loved the community in Middlebury. I don’t know if I would have been able to name that back then, but now I can see that I loved that feeling of connectedness in this small town,” James said.
This sentiment is echoed by James’ decision to run for the town’s Selectboard, of which she became a member six months ago. When one of the two female members of the seven-person board stepped down, she was contacted by Vermont State Senator Ruth Hardy, who encouraged her to run for the position.
James shared that she was hesitant to join the Selectboard initially due to doubts about her ability to properly execute the role, and concern that her role as a local reporter at the time would conflict with her selectboard responsibilities. However, with support and encouragement from Whelan-Wuest and other former members of the selectboard, she chose to take the plunge.
“I had an attitude that I couldn’t do that, I am too busy and not qualified enough, maybe I am not smart enough, and maybe I don’t care in the right way and don’t have the right opinions,” James said. “Now, I know that was just noise and bluster and none of it is true.”
Whelan-Wuest, originally from Chicago, worked in Barack Obama’s senate office following her graduation from Middlebury and ultimately contributed to his 2008 presidential campaign. She also spent some time in New York in the office of a Brooklyn-based State Senator Daniel Squadron before obtaining a Masters of Public Policy from Duke University.
“Having all of those experiences made me realize that I didn’t want to work in politics so much as policy… I got really interested in criminal justice policy and just found my way into that path,” Whelan-Wuest said.
Now, after moving back to Cornwall eight years ago, Whelan-Wuest is the Deputy Division Director at the Council of States Government Justice Center, a non-profit that works on criminal justice policy across the country. Whelan-Wuest also serves as an Addison Central School District (ACSD) board member, a position she won in a 2023 election.
“Public schools educate children, but they also provide kids with food and emotional support,” Whelan-Wuest said. “It just felt like a place to put some of my time and energy to be more plugged into a community.”
She shared that she enjoys working in Vermont politics, having previously worked in big cities like New York and Chicago, partially due to its positive and impactful nature.
“100% the best part was being able to sit down [with community members] and say, what is important to you?… That to me was by far the most energizing and exciting thing,” Whelan-Wuest said.
After her variety of political experiences, Whelan-Wuest believes that the best type of politician is one who can really listen and learn from other people. Both she and James spoke about the internal pressure they faced about forming concrete opinions prior to running for office, and the subsequent realization that while a platform is important, so is keeping an open mind.
“Ultimately, the job you do when you are on any kind of board, whether it is being the governor or selectboard member or anything in between, is you have to work with people. So, you need people who can work together,” Whelan-Wuest said.
She also explained that local politics affects people’s daily lives in tangible ways, despite not garnering the attention that national politics does. From improving wastewater systems to amassing a budget, Whelan-Wuest highlighted the important work that needs to be done.
James and Whelan-Wuest both believe that their four years at the college helped play a significant role in shaping the positions that they hold today, highlighting the relationships that formed during that time.
“I don’t know if I would have gone ahead and done the selectboard thing if it weren’t for Ellen, and Ellen is my friend from Middlebury,” James said. “I feel like the most influential thing I got from Middlebury College were my best friends, and my best friends shaped me.”
Whelan-Wuest said she felt that the rigorous academic environment provided by the college prepared her for the professional world by teaching her a lifelong commitment to learning.
After applying this knowledge and spending time in various cities with different professional roles, the two women believe it is essential that graduating students know that their twenties are a time of discovery.
“If you are lucky, and work hard, and have smart people in your life, you can make mistakes that you can recover from,” Whelan-Wuest said. “You can make decisions that aren’t the right ones for forever, but are okay for now. I just think that finding your way through is an underappreciated process.”
Katrina Schwarz '26 (she/her) is a Senior Local Editor.
Katrina has been a local editor for the three semesters, recently becoming the section's senior editor. She is a Psychology and Italian double major and was a marketing intern at Penguin Random House this past summer.
