The narrow stairs leading up to Dr. Jann Lacoss’ office are lined with colorful pennant flags from countless colleges and universities. Opening her office door, I was met with a similarly bright and warm atmosphere. I caught Dr. Lacoss still in the midst of unpacking and settling into her new office. Despite the boxes lining the corner of the room, her shelves were already full with a Lego set of the Roman Baths—which she got to see in person this summer —and a teddy bear version of Albert Einstein from the 1980s who sported a pink and yellow Hawaiian lei.
It turns out that her office truly reflects the variety and diversity of her interests.
Over the summer, while Dr. Lacoss was busy with work, her previous job in International Admissions at Caltech introduced her to what she describes as “the geekiest thing ever:” the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO). This year, the IMO took place in Bath, England. Dr. Lacoss met top math students from all over the world and saw them solve “almost unsolvable” problems. Besides witnessing some of the most innovative and complex discussions in the math world, she also explored England with her son, a recent graduate from Carleton College, who was studying abroad in Cambridge.
Dr. Lacoss’ PhD in folklore made her explorations even more interesting. “I love seeing rituals, and I love ethnography and learning how people live at a certain time and what’s important to them,” she said.
While her Masters in Russian and PhD in folklore might seem to lack ties to her current position, I’d beg to differ. From my 45 minutes with Dr. Lacoss, she empathized with my situation as a confused high schooler almost immediately. By flipping the script and asking me a few of her own questions too, she kindly alleviated some of my fears about college admissions I wasn’t even aware I had.
Dr. Lacoss estimates that she has read 80,000 college essays, so she has a deep knowledge of the adolescent experience. She ultimately wants to help students “find the right place for you to grow, not just survive, but thrive and really grow into who you should be.” As our conversations unfolded, I discovered more and more impressive hobbies and talents of the new college counselor. At one point, Dr. Lacoss pulled out two massive books. One had a lengthy chapter that she had written, analyzing the folklore motifs in Harry Potter books one through four. The other was her equally large 685-page PhD dissertation. The dissertation was written in equal parts English and Russian and is about Slavic children’s folklore, scary stories, and rhymes. When she’s not writing, Dr. Lacoss spends her time perfecting her Algerian Couscous and stew recipes, learning how to use a Samurai sword, crocheting baby sweaters, and building Lego sets. Dr. Lacoss used to leave crocheted goodies around Caltech’s campus to brighten students’ days and said to keep an eye out for another secretive crochet project in the coming months.
One thing we all can learn from Dr. Lacoss is to always be open to trying new things—in her own words, “Whatever you do, make sure you enjoy it.”
