Phil Lerman, Class of 1977, writer, documentary producer and former producer and co-executive producer of "America's Most Wanted"

When Phil Lerman graduated from Clark, he thought being an English major wouldn't do much for his job prospects. But he was pleasantly surprised to learn that "there is always a need for people who can communicate." Lerman pursued a career in journalism that eventually led to his work as a television producer. His current documentary project follows the lead singer for the Persuasions, a famous a capella group, as he starts his career again to try to achieve fame. Lerman credits Clark with teaching him to think outside the box.

When I left Clark, I moved to Ithaca, N.Y., and started stringing for the local paper, the Ithaca Journal, freelancing for $7.50 a story. It gave me experience and it gave me a foot in the door. The job of Friday-night police reporter opened up for the Saturday paper for minimum wage, which at the time I think was $1.85 an hour, but again it was a foot in the door, a job at the paper, and I wound up three years later becoming city editor of the paper. Then I worked at a couple of other newspapers. The company that owned these papers also was starting up an experiment called USA Today. They asked a number of us to go down and help with this start-up, and I wound up as national editor of the paper.

Then, they were starting a TV show called "USA Today on TV." They asked me to help with that. One Friday afternoon, they asked me to sit in on the writer's desk Monday morning, and I became the head writer there. That's how I made the switch from newspapers to TV. When "USA Today on TV" ended, I'd just gotten bitten by the TV bug. I was in Washington, D.C., and not many TV shows are produced there. "America's Most Wanted" is produced there because when they started it, they knew they needed to work with the FBI. I just happened to be in town and was actually sending a lot of people to them. They had this one job that was a half-TV, half-newspaper position, which was a neat job. I stayed there for a while and was co-executive producer of the show for the last 10 years I was there. Now, I'm working on a book about being a dad. I'm working on a documentary project, and I'm doing some free-lance work. I know it all sounds like a lot of luck and chance‹and there was a lot of that involved, no doubt about it‹but I think there was something else at work, too. What I told the English majors at Clark the last time I visited is that there is always a need for people who can communicate. It is amazing how much of an advantage you have as an English major because you've learned to listen. You've learned to think. You've learned to speak. And, one hopes, you've learned to write.

What was unique about the Clark experience then, and still is now, is that Clark encouraged us to challenge ourselves, to think outside the box, to be different. There was a real sense of acceptance of different ideas, of different ways of doing things, of independent study, and of people who dressed and thought differently. Much more than accepted, it was embraced. That gave me the confidence, as I went on in life, to think outside the box. Because the class sizes were small, it was harder to hide. It brought you much more into the fold, into a more active role. Plus, it was just a fun place to be. It was a fun atmosphere in which to be learning. And you can't make too little of that because it's a challenging time for teenagers. Now, I see it from the other side, as a parent, seeing my step-daughter getting ready to go to college and realizing what a huge, huge step it is and how important it is to be in a place that you like.