Meet the president of the Graduate Student Council and learn what she hopes to accomplish this year

Graduating with a bachelor’s degree from Case Western Reserve University in 2023, much of Elise Rolston’s undergraduate experience was shaded by the COVID-19 pandemic. While the pandemic limited her ability to engage as socially as she’d have liked, the university still came to feel like home for the Leesburg, Virginia, native. When it was time to enroll in a master’s program, she knew it had to be at CWRU.

Now a third-year student in the Master of Social Work and Master of Business Administration programs, Rolston is making up for lost time as a leader in the graduate community. During the 2025–26 academic year, she will serve as president of the Graduate Student Council (GSC).

Rolston joined GSC alongside friends in her first year of graduate school. During her second year of her master’s programs, she became the vice president of student life and was inspired to continue making an impact on the campus community.

“After being on the executive board last year, I knew I wanted to take on the challenge of being in charge of the organization. I wanted to push myself to do something outside of my comfort zone,” Rolston said. “I also knew there would be more opportunities to advocate for graduate students at a higher level as president, and wanted the chance to leave my mark on CWRU.”

Outside of her coursework and GSC, Rolston also is an assistant residential community director with Upperclass Experience. 

Learn more about what Rolston has in store as GSC president this year.

Answers have been lightly edited for clarity and length.

1. What interested you in pursuing social work? What about business?

I knew I wanted to be a therapist but didn't know which degree to pursue. After doing some research, I learned about the social work field and all the different things you can do with the degree—I knew I wanted to go for it. Since I knew I wanted to own a private practice one day, I added on the MBA to learn the business side of things. 

2. Why did you decide to pursue them both in tandem? How do you think they complement one another?

Doing both degrees together saves time, as it's only a three-year program. It also allows me to learn about the business side of social work while I'm doing my clinical experience.

3. How do you hope to use your degrees in the future?

I have two main paths that I want to take. I was able to do an amazing internship last summer at a large consulting firm, which does a lot of work in the public sector. My social work knowledge allows me to understand projects and bring a new perspective there. 

I also want to work as a therapist, eventually owning my own practice! 

4. Do you have a particular area you'd like to focus on (i.e. children and families, mental health)?

My concentration is Mental Health with Adults, but I want to work with people of all ages. At my current internship, I have been able to see both children and adults, and I enjoy working with a wide variety of individuals. 

5. Have you had any particularly rewarding or special moments that have come out of your studies?

My first-year internship for social work was at a high school, working with teens who had missed a lot of school, typically after being hospitalized for suicide attempts. Seeing the growth in them after returning to school was super special. My last day, they wrote me a very sweet card and tried to guilt trip me into staying with them, which showed me just how much of an impact I had on them. 

Another rewarding aspect of that internship was that none of the kids we worked with re-attempted suicide, which is very rare and really showed that what we were doing was helping. 

6. What do you hope to accomplish this year as GSC president?

As GSC president, I want to increase the support that we give to graduate students. I want to fund more professional development opportunities, provide more groups with funding for events, and have more information sessions for graduate students about resources they can access. 

I have also noticed that not all graduate students know what GSC is and what we do for them, so I want to increase awareness of the organization throughout the graduate student body. 

7. What would you like graduate students to know about you and your leadership?

I pride myself on being a very approachable person. Whether you see me around campus or at a GSC event, I want everyone to feel comfortable coming up and talking to me. I want GSC to truly be a "voice of the people" and want to hear directly from constituents about what they want and how GSC can help them.