Three School of Education students — Anna Bitonti, Molly Gerrish, and Heaven Williams — were recently recognized as spring 2026 “notable grads” by UW–Madison’s Office of Strategic Communication.
Following are their profiles, written by Gayle Worland:
An animated film on top of two majors
“My time at UW–Madison was defined by expanding my relationship to art,” says Anna Bitonti, who is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in art and English with a focus on creative writing. “What made my experience here unique was the number of art forms I was able to move through: painting, creative writing, animation, and design, and how each one opened unexpected opportunities for me.” As a visual artist, Anna participated in many gallery shows on campus and worked with the Wisconsin Union, where she served as a marketing and graphic design intern and designed the visual identity for the Wisconsin Union Directorate’s 2025–26 season.
A large-scale public installation she created for WUD won an honorable mention from the Association of College Unions International’s “Steal This Idea” competition. Outside of classes, Anna served as lead animator for “Bittersweet,” an independent animated film created by a team of artists across the country and that premiered at the Madison Film Festival. The film went on to screen at the National Film Festival for Talented Youth and the L.A. Animated Film Festival, among others. Anna completed a semester-long creative writing thesis, developing a 150-page fiction manuscript that she plans to expand into a full-length novel. On campus, “I never felt confined to one medium or identity,” she says. “UW–Madison helped me build momentum by saying yes to opportunities that continue to push me into real-world creative environments.”
Understanding grief, and helping others find their way
Molly Gerrish belongs to a family of Badgers: Her husband, son, and two daughters are either alums, current undergraduates, or incoming students at UW–Madison. Molly herself has a PhD in early childhood education and is a professor at UW–River Falls, with 18 years of experience in higher education. Her own journey to further her studies at UW–Madison, however, was complex: She began work toward a master’s degree for professional educators just months after her daughters’ father died in a tragic accident. “Returning to higher education as a nontraditional student to join the MSPE program was overwhelming and a bit humbling,” she says. “However, I made a deliberate choice to show my children and myself that we can do hard things, even in the face of profound challenge. My decision to attend UW–Madison was a meaningful step on a healing journey as a mom trying to navigate the one thing every parent dreads — having to save their children from pain — and as a professional seeking to add to the body of knowledge that might help others facing their own mountains, whatever they may be.”
Molly chose to write her master’s thesis on the impact of grief on the higher education experience, “with the hope of better supporting students like my daughters — students navigating loss, transition, and uncertainty while trying to persist and succeed,” she says. She’s now working to create a grief-informed professional development program for faculty and staff and hopes to develop a student-forward grief program. “We never truly know what someone else is facing, and that realization has reinforced how much the way we show up for one another, both in academic and personal spaces, matters,” she says.
Creating a flourishing community for ASL
“She is one of the most engaged, motivated, and involved students I’ve ever met,” says Holly Fosher of the School of Education Career Center about Heaven Williams. Throughout her UW–Madison career, Heaven could often be found signing American Sign Language as the co-founder and president of Badgers Sign, the first ASL student organization on campus. The Kenosha, Wis. native also served as co-president of the Health Promotion Health Equity Learning Community while simultaneously interning at the Wisconsin Department of Public Health’s Birth to 3 Program, the Morgridge Center for Public Service, and the centers for Pre-Health and Pre-Law Advising. As a Badger Volunteer team leader, Heaven has tutored students at Madison East High School in ASL. She is a recipient of the Tom Shick Award, given to students “who have maintained a high academic standing and who have demonstrated an intellectual vigor and concern for racial equality.” UW–Madison gave her a place to develop her interests in ASL and has been her “dream school” since she was little, says Heaven, who is receiving a bachelor’s degree in health promotion and health equity, with certificates in African American studies and disability rights and services. Why Wisconsin? “Because of the Wisconsin Idea,” she says. “We have humility, empathy, and the encouragement to be relentlessly curious, which is really beautiful.”
Learn more about UW–Madison’s spring 2026 notable grads.