Class News - 2000s

Class News - 2000s

2000

Arts & Sciences 5th Reunion
Oct. 14-16, 2005

Ellen Barber ’00 completed her master’s degree in teaching English as a second language at the University of Washington in June 2004. She is now earning a teaching certificate at the university. Before obtaining her master’s degree, Barber lived in China for two years and taught English conversation and literature at a rural teacher training institute. She and her husband, Tom Walworth, are now godparents to a 4-month-old nephew.

Ryan Baxter ’00 has moved to the San Francisco area to work for Sandia National Laboratories. Previously, he lived in Seattle, where he obtained his master’s degree in electrical engineering at the University of Washington. After graduating from Lewis & Clark, Baxter and Zoe Ward ’00 moved to Boise, Idaho, where he took a job with Micron technology. The two plan to marry in 2006, when Ward completes her program at the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Blackwell ’00 is pursuing a master’s degree in anthropology at the University of Oregon. He and fiancée Lisa Baum ’03 live in Eugene.

Laura Brown ’00 lives in Brooklyn, New York, and teaches eighth-grade English and social studies at westside Collaborative Middle School in Manhattan. She completed a master’s degree in education with a focus on middle school education in 2004.

Sarah Caylor ’00 began pursuing her doctorate in art history at Duke University this past fall. Before beginning the program, Caylor lived in New York, where she was a Helena Rubenstein fellow in the Whitney Museum of American Art Independent Study Program in Critical Studies and held a curatorial internship at the Guggenheim Museum. She has had two articles published, one in Afterimage and the other in theOregon Historical Quarterly. Caylor earned her master’s degree in art history, focusing on the history of photography, at the University of California at Riverside. 

Kasey Cordell ’00, after several stints abroad, has settled in Colorado, where there’s plenty of sunshine and rock to climb. She studies and teaches journalism at the University of Colorado.

Mei Fong ’00 is a buyer at SF Party, and she is taking classes at the California Culinary Academy. Previously, Fong was a buyer at Cost Plus World Market.

Román Hernández JD ’00, who practices with Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, will serve on the Access and Affordability Working Group, an Oregon State Board of Higher Education committee that examines issues related to Oregon’s colleges and universities. An advocate for the Hispanic community, he is a board member of Portland’s Hispanic chamber and regional president and board member of the Hispanic National Bar Association. Hernández also volunteers at El Programa Hispano, a pro bono legal clinic staffed and funded by Schwabe, serving Spanish-speaking residents in the Portland area.

Aisha Machtinger Houghton ’00 is earning her master’s degree in social work at the University of Washington. After graduation, she will work for the State of Washington Child Protective Services. She and her husband, Terry, live in the Seattle area.

Sierra Hutchinson ’00 left Arizona in September 2004 to return to West Africa, where she works on curriculum development with the International Foundation for Education and Self-Help. While in Arizona, Hutchinson was substitute teaching, giving class presentations, and reacclimating to American culture. She had recently spent three years in sahelian, West Africa, with the Peace Corps, where she taught English in a public high school and worked on AIDS prevention with community youth and women’s development initiatives. After completing her tour with the Corps, Hutchinson spent four months traveling through West Africa, northern Africa, Spain, and Portugal.

Scott Kennedy ’00 is in his third year at Oregon Health & Science university medical school and will graduate in June 2006. He is married and has two sons, Isaac, 2, and Kyle, 6 months. Kennedy says life could not be any better.

Heather Kmetz JD ’00 has joined the Portland law firm of Sussman Shank as an associate, practicing in all areas of taxation, business law, and wealth preservation planning.

Sean O’Day JD ’00 has been named assistant city attorney for Salem.

Timothy “Tim” Revett ’00 earned an MAT at George Fox University in 2003. He teaches Spanish at Portland’s Gregory Heights Middle School. Recently, Revett enjoyed a summerlong evangelical mission trip to Paraguay. 

Katherine “Katie” Schoeneman ’00 is pursuing her PhD in clinical psychology after earning her master’s degree in the field in May 2004. She is focusing on forensic psychology as it relates to court evaluations of competency to stand trial, insanity issues, and dangerousness to the community. She is also doing research on the risk level posed by those who make threats toward public officials. Schoeneman is eager to escape Nebraska and return to the Pacific Northwest.

Zoe Ward ’00 moved to Boise, Idaho, with Ryan Baxter ’00after graduating from the College. She worked in a veterinary clinic there before the couple moved to Seattle. In 2002, Ward began attending the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She said she loves every minute of the program—except the nonstop studying and tests. She spent the summer with Baxter, who now lives in San Francisco, and the two plan to marry when Ward graduates in 2006.

2001

Andrew Ault ’01 is a member of the NCIC All-Stars, the team that won the 2004 Hood to Coast Relay. The NCIC All-Stars team is made up of alumni of colleges and universities in the Northwest Conference, formerly the NCIC. The team ran the 36-leg overnight relay race in 17 hours, 36 minutes, 8 seconds. This is an hour faster than the speed of the 2003 race winners—also the NCIC All-Stars.

Clarke Balcom JD ’01 has opened his own firm in Portland. He continues to focus on tax and debtor-creditor law, including estate planning and administration, tax law, qualified domestic relations orders, and bankruptcy.

Adam Cornell JD ’01 was appointed by Governor Gary Locke to the Washington Commission for National and Community Service. The commission implements the federal National and Community Trust Act of 1993, which created AmeriCorps. 

Chelsea West Dore ’01 works for Planned parenthood. Her husband, Blake Dore ’01, is in his first year at the law school.

Rebecca Lothringer Holt ’01 is enrolled in the school psychology program at the Graduate School of education. When she’s not in class, she works in the College’s Office of Annual Giving. “Won’t you consider a gift this year?” she asks. Her husband, Evan Holt ’01, is following his dream of creating fine wood furniture. He started his business, Impresario Art, while working as a carpenter for Wine Outfitters and Wixson Woodworks. 

Erik Knight ’01 has lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico, for a couple of years and works in administration at the Santa Fe Opera. Before that, he spent some time as a ski bum. He’s also been fly-fishing, biking, hiking, and so on. Knight may head overseas soon for a new adventure.

Allison “Alli” Machlis ’01 has moved to Urbana-Champaign with her husband, Nate Meyer, to complete her PhD in Renaissance literature at the University of Illinois. She holds a master’s degree in English literature from the University of Idaho.

Ryan Moroney JD ’01 has joined the San Diego law firm of Opper & Varco as an associate. He specializes in environmental cost-recovery actions. 

Cameron Parker ’01 continues to live in Maine and teach science and environmental education to K-12 students at the Auburn Land Lab. Previously, Parker completed two years of AmeriCorps service with the Maine Conservation Corps.

Brian Street ’01 earned his law degree in May 2004. He and his wife, Diane Nickeson-Mendheim ’02, live in Florida.

Amber Vierling JD ’01 is founder and president of Justice for Nature, located in the San Francisco Bay area. Justice for Nature counters environmental violations by serving as counsel to nonprofit organizations and individuals. The organization also aims to uncover environmental violations through its Web site, www.justicefornature.com, where the public may anonymously notify attorneys of environmental violations.

Michelle Young ’01 began attending law school at the University of Denver College of Law this past fall. She spent the last two years as a legal assistant at Portland’s Metropolitan Public Defender working on child welfare cases. Young also paddled on a dragon boat team. 

2002

Sarah Carpenter JD ’02, an officer in the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps, is stationed in Guam through February. Carpenter reports that she is “doing some of everything,” ranging from drafting wills to investigating tort claims to prosecuting courts-martial.

Vikram Chaobal JD ’02 has joined the Anchorage office of Patton Boggs, where he practices energy, telecommunications, and natural resources law.

Lenka Fedorova ’02 graduated from Stanford University in June 2004. She recently worked at the Hoover Institution Archives.

Sean Gehrke ’02 is attending the University of Maryland at College Park, where he is pursuing a master’s degree in the counseling and personnel services department of the college student personnel program. In addition, Gehrke works as an adviser to Student Entertainment Events in the university’s Office of Campus Programs.

Kimberly “Kim” Leary ’02 earned her master’s degree in education at the University of Alaska at Anchorage in May 2004. She and her husband, Brandon Wood, now live in Juneau, where Leary is a secondary mathematics teacher.

Kathy Ludwig MEd ’02, who earned her initial administrator license from the graduate school in 2003, became principal at West Linn’s Sunset Primary School this past fall.

Donna Maddux JD ’02 has been appointed assistant attorney general in the organized crime section of the Oregon Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Division, where she is assigned to the Tobacco Compliance Task Force.

Diane Nickeson-Mendheim ’02 completed her master’s degree in social work in May 2004. She and her husband,Brian Street ’01, live in Florida.

Patrick Ward JD ’02 has been appointed as an assistant attorney general in the torts section of the trial division with the Oregon Department of Justice.

2003

Sarah Alexander ’03 lives in Pueblo, Colorado, where she is a fourth- and fifth-grade social studies teacher at Cesar Chavez Academy, a K-8 charter school.

Johanna Appel ’03 joined Teach for America and teaches math, science, and social studies to sixth-grade students in east San Jose, California. She is also attending graduate school full time to earn a master’s degree in education and her teaching credential.

Daniel Auld ’03 received a merit scholarship from Georgetown University after his first semester in the security studies program. He graduated with high honors in December. While in graduate school, Auld was a part-time intern to the office of U.S. Senator Harry Reid, where he worked on Spanish translation, defense and veterans’ affairs issues, and anything else that got thrown his way.

Lisa Baum ’03 works for the state of Oregon as a social worker. She and fiancé Aaron Blackwell ’00 live in Eugene.

Marjorie Bell ’03 is the accounts receivable assistant at the Harvard College Observatory. She is considering going to graduate school to study higher education and student services.

Anna Bellersen ’03 lives in Bregenz, Austria, where she teaches English to high-school-age students, adults, and children as a William J. Fulbright Facilitated English Language Assistant. She spends her free time hiking in the mountains, riding her bike along the Rhine River, and training in the Poekoelan Tjimindie Tulen style of kung fu. During the summer, Bellersen teaches at a German-language immersion camp in minnesota. She plans to begin pursuing her PhD in American religious history in the fall.

Julia Boehm ’03 began pursuing her PhD in social psychology this past fall. Previously, she worked with Partnerships for Student Achievement through AmeriCorps.

Sarah Budd ’03 is pursuing her PhD in physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is attending school on a full fellowship/teaching assistantship and so far has been a research assistant to a biophysics professor studying the structure of ion channels in membrane cells and a teaching assistant in a quantum mechanics course. 

Christopher “Chris” Butts ’03 is a full-time tutor to English-language learners and a part-time bartender/burrito artist. He lives in Boise, Idaho, where he is improving his Ultimate Frisbee skills.

Amy Collinge ’03 teaches bilingual first grade at Tetulia, a charter school in central Phoenix. She is involved with Teach for America as part of its Phoenix 2004 corps.

Holly Edwards ’03 is a student at the law school.

Matthew Feitelberg ’03 is the geometry teacher and technology assistant at Sunnyside Environmental School. He also served there as a VISTA volunteer, and he says he is “as cute as a button.”

H. Cannon Gerstner JD ’03 has joined the Portland law firm of Wallace Klor & Mann as an associate.

Sarah Greenley JD ’03 has joined the Aldrich Law Office in Portland.

Michael Hanada ’03 earned his master’s degree in public administration with a focus in labor relations at Portland State University in 2004 and is now a full-time police officer for Beaverton. He met his wife while participating in the College’s overseas study program to Scotland.

Sonja Johnson ’03 grows plants and produces seeds for restoration projects and the research of native plants as plant technician for the Corvallis Plant Materials Center.

Daniel “Dan” Knox ’03 is a member of the Marin County Search and Rescue.

Alice Lai ’03 is a customer service agent for FedEx-Japan.

Elizabeth “Lizzie” Lincoln ’03 was an intern at the Guggenheim Museum and now works there part time as a public programs assistant. She also works a few days a week at an executive search firm for nonprofits. Lincoln enjoys living in New York City and says she’s learning a lot about the museum and art worlds as well as about nonprofits. She plans to attend graduate school but has not decided on a field.

Cathrine Magelssen ’03 earned her master’s degree in social and cultural anthropology at the University of Toronto and is now back in Norway.

Regina McConaghy ’03 is working toward her PhD in modern German literature at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. She received a prestigious university fellowship for her first year of study. McConaghy serves on her department’s recruitment committee and was a participant in a faculty research seminar on citizenship and national security through the university’s global studies program. She is also involved in her local union and is active in its graduate student association. McConaghy is a dedicated bicycle commuter, and she says she throws pots in her free time.

Emma Miller ’03, now a student at the law school, is interested in family law and litigation. She volunteers at the family law assistance program in Washington County, where she translates paperwork for Spanish speakers. 

Ryan Monahan ’03 lives in New York City and is a writer for Ralph Lauren Media. In his free time, he works on his music and his book.

Jennifer Morrissey JD ’03 and Paul Hribernick won a habeas case before the Honorable Owen Panner in federal court, successfully arguing that the Citizenship and Immigration Service was misapplying the mandatory detention statute and unlawfully detaining a permanent resident.

Erin Nelson ’03 teaches English through the JET program in Motobu, Okinawa, Japan. Her students are in grades one through nine and are at 11 schools, one of which can be reached only by boat. She will teach on the island for another year and then plans to attend the graduate School of Education.

Stephanie Rayburn ’03 is a graduate student at California State University at Chico. She began student teaching in January and will graduate in December. Currently, Rayburn works with at-risk students at Chico High School. She plans to continue working with such students as she embarks on her career as a high school English teacher.

Alexa Reynolds ’03 is a graduate student in Harvard University’s social psychology program.

Mikal Sherman ’03 has moved to Ukraine, home of the world’s tallest living man. He says he plans to play chess, eat borscht, and sell himself to the highest bidder. “Poka (‘good-bye’) Portland,” he says, “I am moving on to greener pastures.”

Katherine “Kate” Tobin ’03 is proud to announce that she is 65.6 percent done with her master’s degree in international affairs at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. (Not that she’s counting down the days, she says.) Tobin works as a “Beltway Bandit” at the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton.

Camaron Vallepalli JD ’03 has joined the Portland law firm of Johnson Renshaw & Lechman-Su, where she practices family law.

Courtney Caughran Winkfield ’03 began training in June for a program of the New York City Teaching Fellows, which is similar to Teach for America. Through the program, Winkfield teaches English in a Bronx middle school and attends Fordham University for her master’s degree. Her goal is to start a loop-writing workshop at her middle school based on techniques she learned from Senior lecturer in Humanities Susan Kirschner and Instructor in Education Jan Christenson.

2004

Lindsey Chmielewski ’04 is serving as an agriculture volunteer in Guatemala for the Peace Corps. She works with host country nationals to increase food security and sustainable yields of livestock while promoting environmentally friendly practices.

Margaret Forrestal ’04 says she is staying true to the Devo Worm Posse by researching late-stage cytokinesis in the nematode C. elegans at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. She misses the West Coast and her Portland friends terribly.

Casia Freitas ’04 spent three weeks in Chiapas and Oaxaca, Mexico, after graduation and then took life less seriously with a bookstore job in Napa, California. In September 2004, Freitas traveled to Mexico City to work for the institute of International education. “A huge city (30 million people) with high crime and pollution—what more could a girl want?” she asks.