#  Graduate Profile: Alexander John Paul Lutz, MTS ’25  

 



GRADUATE PROFILE

### Alexander John Paul Lutz, MTS ’25 

 

“In the fall, I will be starting my MA in Eurasian, Russian, and East European studies at Georgetown’s Walsh School of Foreign Service.”



 



      ![Headshot of Alexander John Paul Lutz in front of a European city](/sites/g/files/omnuum5526/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-05/AlexanderJohnPaulLutz_0.jpg?h=c52fd246&itok=axPDAj4a) 

 

 

  

 



 

 

 

 

 

### Memorable Moment

I have many fond memories of bell ringing up in the tower of Lowell House. I was particularly glad to be able to ring Jean Sibelius' Finlandia hymn on the 125th anniversary of its premiere—not just as a commemoration of Finnish independence from Russia, but of all peoples' struggle for liberation from empire.

### Favorite Class or Professor 

I really enjoyed Prof. Hempton’s course, “Christianity at the Crossroads,” this past spring. The theoretical framework upon which it hinged—networks, nodes, and nuclei—has already proven invaluable to my work, and will continue to inform the way I think about patterns of transmission and transformation well after graduation. I also got a lot out of the independent study I did on the nation, nationalism, and Orthodox Christianity with Prof. Stang, and loved taking courses beyond the Divinity School on Soviet and post-Soviet history, politics, and culture with Prof. Jones, Prof. Bolton, Prof. Colton, and Prof. Martin.

### Message of Thanks

I would, first and foremost, like to thank all of my loved ones—my grandparents, parents, siblings, friends, and girlfriend—for their unwavering support. I would also like to extend my gratitude to my mentors, guides, and advocates, both here at Harvard and elsewhere in the world (from the American South to the South Caucasus). In particular, I am deeply grateful to Stephen Jones, David Gushee, Eimad Houry, Chris Grant, and Malkhaz Songulashvili, without whom my academic, professional, and personal formation would have been impossible. Finally, I would like to thank the Program on Georgian Studies—including its current director, Natia Chankvetadze, and my Georgian language teacher, Mzia Shanava—for providing me with so many invaluable opportunities and resources to further explore all things to do with Georgia during my time here.

### Future Plans

I will be heading down to Washington, D.C. shortly after graduation to work with the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission). In the fall, I will be starting my MA in Eurasian, Russian, and East European studies at Georgetown’s Walsh School of Foreign Service. Beyond that, I hope to continue to work to promote democracy, human rights, religious freedom, and just peace in the post-Soviet space.



 



 

 See also:- [ Graduate Profiles 2025 - MTS ](/featured-feeds/graduate-profiles-2025-mts)