Students collaborate on a strong desire to cultivate their voices, experiences, and perspectives through connection, leadership, and professional growth.
StoryLab, a student-led club launched in 2025 within JHU’s Advanced Academic Programs division, brings together graduate students across disciplines to use narrative as a tool for leadership, communication, and career growth. Through workshops, performances, and peer support, members build the confidence and clarity to share stories that inspire, inform, and influence – shaping both their academic journeys and professional futures.
“People across pathways want to communicate more effectively, improve public speaking, or perform better onstage,” said StoryLab president Matthew Giombetti. “They’re not just communication students.”
While still a new organization, membership has grown to more than 70 students representing areas of study from communication and leadership to applied economics, museum studies, science writing, and the liberal arts, reflecting strong student interest in expanding opportunities for expression and connection across disciplines.
Classmate Jussarang (Ju) Lee, now vice president, quickly took on leadership responsibilities after joining by designing the club’s logo and expanding its web and social media. “I think people want to tell their stories because they want to connect,” Lee said. “Hopkins students all have incredible and diverse backstories. Storytelling breaks down barriers and builds real relationships.”
The club hosts workshops, informal gatherings, and campuswide events, including sessions on using storytelling to advance careers. It recently partnered with The Moth, an internationally recognized storytelling nonprofit in New York City known for live story slams and public radio programs, for a guided storytelling workshop. An end-of-semester hybrid story slam is already in the works creating additional platforms for students to share their voices.
StoryLab also emphasizes thoughtful, responsible storytelling. Leaders encourage students to share meaningful experiences while avoiding material that may be retraumatizing – stories that heal, not harm.
“We talk about using ‘scars, not wounds,’” said Giombetti. “Stories that are emotionally resonant but healed. It takes a lot of courage to be that vulnerable, but you realize other people share those same emotions and experiences. It’s great to be able to facilitate and encourage students to explore that deep emotion and step forward to tell their truths.”
And while creativity is central, StoryLab’s mission is also deeply practical. Storytelling is seen as a transferable skill that extends beyond the classroom into real-world impact, helping students communicate data, pitch ideas, lead teams, and connect with clients.
Upcoming programming reflects that focus. The club is collaborating with a fellow JHU student group, HopCommNet, to host a free improv workshop led by DC Improv, designed to strengthen active listening, quick thinking, and public speaking skills.
Looking ahead, Giombetti envisions StoryLab operating like a practicum, partnering with nonprofits and companies to help them tell their stories more effectively. “Organizations are doing amazing work, but sometimes they struggle to express the heart of what they do,” he said. “Storytelling helps them gain clients, donations, and impact. We’d love students to be able to do that work in the real world.”
What began as a student-driven experience traces back to a classroom idea that responded to student interest and momentum.
“I suggested we create a space where students could keep practicing storytelling beyond the Introduction to Storytelling course I teach,” said MA in Communication Assistant Program Director Shari Ross Altarac. “So many wanted a place to share and improve their skills, so I approached one of my students, Matthew Giombetti, with the idea. He took it and ran with it, and StoryLab was born.”
For Ross Altarac, who has taught for three decades, the club represents something deeper. “Coursework teaches the brain science behind storytelling and how it impacts audiences,” she said. “StoryLab takes it one step further and empowers and validates storytellers by giving them a platform to grow and connect. I feel so blessed to see my students bring this vision to fruition and showcase this strong culture of storytelling at Hopkins because stories help people feel seen in a way nothing else can.”