Alumni News
Arts and Culture Beat
Ten years after graduating from Marlboro with a Plan in film and political theory, Michelle Threadgould ’07 is a successful journalist covering the intersection between the arts, culture, and social justice.
“I have always been a collaborative storyteller,” says Michelle Threadgould, a freelance journalist and content marketing manager living in Oakland, California. “I love that arts-and-culture journalism introduces me to artists who are creating subversive work and finding a way to creatively voice resistance.”
Michelle’s path to writing success has not been a straightforward one—she graduated just before the national recession of 2008, when jobs in any field were scarce and jobs for a punk-rock political writer were nonexistent. Along the way she has been a maitre d’, a costume designer for feature films, a magazine intern, a food editor at Gotham Digest, and an executive assistant. In 2011 she applied her costume-designing skills to jewelry design and opened a “rock n’ roll reclaimed jewelry” business.
“I became part of an arts collective, shared a showroom, and eventually opened up a store with five other designers. I believed in my business, I believed in my designs, and I opened up pop-up shops across the country, sold at craft fairs, and poured my energy into making it work. But I learned that without enough capital to invest in it, my business wasn’t sustainable.”
A couple of years ago Michelle wrote a story and submitted it to a contest judged by Ben Fong-Torres, the legendary editor of Rolling Stone and a personal idol of hers. Fong-Torres selected her to read her work at a “Basement Series” event, and buoyed by his faith in her she started to pitch stories to outlets regularly. She also began freelancing as a copywriter. She applied for a music editor position at a local alt weekly in the Bay Area, and the managing editor assigned Michelle her first big feature in eight years. The rest is history.
Last year, Michelle’s piece in the Observer, called “We’re Not Going Anywhere: Growing up Latino and Punk in America,” went viral. She was contacted by several national publications, and started writing more regularly for national audiences. In September she had a feature in Remezcla about Marlboro ceramics professor Roberto Lugo, “the self-proclaimed ‘ghetto potter’ turning classical ceramics into radical art.” After a couple of years writing about the Bay Area, she has become close to all the local music and art editors. She writes for the San Francisco NPR affiliate, KQED, on a monthly basis.
“For Día de Los Muertos last year, I went to Mexico City and worked on my first piece of international, investigative journalism,” says Michelle. “I also sold several pieces related to the vibrant alternative rock music scene there. It was an incredible experience.” She plans to move to Mexico next spring to cover more Latinx (the gender-neutral alternative to Latino) issues. “I never had the luxury of traveling before last year, but now it’s really important to me to travel across Latin America.”
Reflecting on her college years, Michelle says, “I think that Marlboro helped me become an even more critical thinker. The teachers at Marlboro pushed me to be a better writer and not be complacent. Also, two of my best friends are from Marlboro, Amanda Martin (’08) and Laura Baetscher (’07), and we have all become politically minded and committed to our work. Their support has been incredible.”
To learn more about Michelle, go to clippings.me/mthreadgould.
Class notes are listed by year and include both graduates and nongraduates; the latter are listed under the class with which they are associated.
’51
“It has been 65 years since I graduated from Marlboro, and a lot has happened during those years,” says BOB HICKEY. “It all started with my draft notice for induction into the Army a few days before graduation. I eventually became an officer but never received orders for Korea. Soon after my release from the service I enrolled in the Columbia Graduate School of Business, and I received my master’s degree in 1956. I immediately went to work for GE and held numerous positions in six different plants prior to moving to Oklahoma City in 1962 where I met my future wife, Joyce. We had two children and decided to raise them in Oklahoma. I subsequently held several management positions with GE, Honeywell, and other companies. I was also able to become involved in community affairs, including the Chamber of Commerce, Travelers Aid, the United Way, and other causes. In 1996 we attended the alumni reunion and enjoyed visiting with some of my old classmates. I just wish we were in a position to attend some of the subsequent reunions. This year I celebrated my 25th year of retirement, during which I have continued a pretty active life. I continued for some time teaching in the Graduate School of Business at Oklahoma City University. We have also traveled extensively through the United States and Europe. We feel fortunate to have lived long and fulfilling lives.”
“Joan and I have kept up a busy pace of life over the years,” says CHARLES STAPLES. “My hiking abilities for rugged terrain are not what they used to be, but I still enjoy all l can of nature and the outdoors. Our cultural pursuits in Chicago continue, including classical music concerts and the Chicago Art Institute, my alma mater. I continue to volunteer as a docent at the Chicago Cultural Center, whose building I helped to save when the political powers wanted to tear it down. As former precinct workers for the Independent Voters of Illinois, we are dismayed by the prospect of a Trump presidency, and are deciding how we can advance a more progressive agenda. We have used our travels this year to visit friends and family on both east and west coasts, and to enjoy our beloved White Mountains and the different, but dramatic, Rocky Mountains. While doing this, we have attended music festivals, including Marlboro and the Bach Festivals in Winter Park, Florida, and North Conway, New Hampshire. We were able to meet new Marlboro president, Kevin Quigley, and applaud the expansion of an excellent liberal arts experience to more students outside New England, as well as the integration of the graduate offerings into the rest of the college. Yeah for small liberal arts colleges!”
A Generation of Regeneration: Richard Liversage ’51
“People at Marlboro were very fine; I made a good choice,” says Richard Liversage, a Marlboro “pioneer” who studied biology and chemistry with John MacArthur, Sr., and roomed with renowned ecologist Robert MacArthur. Although he officially retired in 1991 after 44 years at University of Toronto’s Department of Cell and Systems Biology, Richard is still writing research papers on his life’s work: amphibian limb regeneration.
“The Swiss biologist Oscar Schotte, my professor at Amherst College where I got my master’s, was interested in exploring whether humans could regenerate limbs, like salamanders,” says Richard. “He wanted to be the first.” Richard did his doctorate at Princeton University under Elmer Butler, another pioneer in the field, on the subject of limb regeneration in larval newts. “When it comes to regeneration, it turns out, nothing works quite like amphibians.”
After Princeton, Richard moved to University of Toronto where they promised to support his continued research program. He taught some undergraduate courses in his first years there, but by the time he was a full professor he was primarily doing research and advising graduate students, many of whom were co-authors of his more than 80 published papers.
I’ve been on the go for quite some time,” says Richard, 92, whose research has spanned a period of incredible growth in the biological sciences. His most recent paper deals with the specific role of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor in appendage regeneration. “Only recently have we been able to look inside the regenerating limb, at the nerve structures and endocrine hormones that influence new growth.”
’65
In January, JAVED CHAUDHRI offered a series of talks in Brattleboro’s River Garden, co-sponsored by Windham World Affairs Council, titled “Islam and Muslims.” Topics included explaining the faith of Islam and what it means to be a Muslim, how a spiritual and social movement morphed into a culture and civilization as it spread across the globe, and the resurgence of Muslim societies in the modern age. A longtime resident of Brattleboro, Javed teaches at Keene State College.
’68
“Spent a few days at PAUL WILLARD’S Farm in Harvard, Massachusetts,” says MARK KLIMO. “Good to see my old roommate and Tim Mayo FS67, who came down from Brattleboro. Always good memories of Marlboro.”
’71
THOMAS TUCKER says, “Visited Fred Gray, saw Veronica Brelsford (professor emeritus), spent time at the college last fall. Felt good to be back in Vermont. Retired from Cathin Gabel School in 2015 after 37 years of teaching woodworking.”
’72
“The last few years have had lots of travel,” says HAROLD ZAKON. “My wife, Lynne, and I spent quality time at the University of Cambridge in the UK and in Munich. Academics is not a bad life. Greetings from ‘Franko.’ Hope life is good for you.”
’73
In September and October, DAVID HOLZAPFEL ’72 and MICHELLE CHASSE HOLZAPFEL had a joint show at Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts, in Brattleboro, titled “Passaggi.” It included works in wood and multimedia, and featured an artists’ talk on October 8.
“Louis Moyse…is one of the most famous musicians you’ve likely never heard,” writes JIM LOWE in a September editorial in the Times Argus, referring to his former teacher and one of the founders of the music program at Marlboro College. “One of a handful of musicians who made Vermont a Mecca for music, this French-born flutist, pianist, conductor and composer last performed here in 1976.” Virtually no commercial recordings of Louis were available until now: a seven-CD set archived and mastered by Jim himself and released by Lyrichord Classical.
BOB DAUGHTRY says, “Artists never die, they just get older, and older…” In July, Bob presented a retrospective of his work in the Whittemore Theater Lobby, including a range of his paintings, drawings, and sculptures created over the years. A student at Marlboro from 1969 to 1971, he has been doing art ever since, and sometimes taking additional classes at Marlboro.
’75
DOUGLAS SMITH reports, “Our children are now all doing well and establishing their lives (or sometimes not). The company we formed (Plymouth Grating Laboratory) is growing and I was able to just step down from the busy job of being president to work on more technical things. We saw ELLEN SCHON last year at a talk at the Fuller Craft Museum and we still keep in contact with our friends in Vermont.”
In October, ALONZO LAMONT, JR. performed his latest play, B-Side Man, at The Tank in New York City. Alonzo is a playwright who’s had his work produced in D.C., Los Angeles, Atlanta, Houston, New York, and Amsterdam. He’s written for network TV, won grants, gotten awards, and been on the big stage, the little stage, and all points in-between. Find out more at zulufits.com.
’76
MELISSA ABRAMS says, “There are several classmates and friends that I would love to hear from, if any of you receive Potash Hill. Please write to 3819 Harbor Walk Lane, Fort Collins, CO 80525 or email missyabrams@aol.com.”
“I had a heart attack this fall and am grateful to be alive,” says JIM NEWELL. “I’m still raising my two sons, Adam (18) and David (going on 14). I’m not ready to leave them. We live in Wisconsin, near Milwaukee. I find myself thinking of Marlboro often.”
’79
“I am very contentedly ensconced in an office in the old Austine School—a lovely old ship of a building—amid the personnel of the UVM Extension,” says REBECCA BARTLETT. “I am part of the administrative apparatus supporting a variety of program staff and faculty in many fields related to farms, food, and community. My office window looks west, uphill toward the pine forest and the sunset. I am learning all kinds of new skills and enjoy being among these dedicated people.”
INEZ MCDERMOTT says, “This is my 17th year teaching art history at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire, a small liberal arts college that isn’t quite as quirky as Marlboro—but enough so to keep me happy and challenged. I’ve also returned to the place I began my professional career and have co-curated an exhibition called ‘Mount Washington: The Crown of New England’ for the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester. It’s a look at the intersection of science, art, and tourism on New England’s highest peak. I’ve been living in Concord, New Hampshire, for the past 30 years, happily married for just as long, and the mother of two kids grown and gone—one a beer salesman, the other a stand-up comedian. Go figure.”
’82
“I’m still teaching at SUNY-Plattsburgh— approaching 30 years,” says SAMUEL WOODWORTH NORTHSHIELD. “I see Tom Ragle once or twice a year, and see Joe Mazur’s name a lot—usually plugging a book.”
ABBY JACOBSON says, “I have been hired recently as the program coordinator for Putney Cares in Putney, Vermont, a small yet active organization which helps local seniors age in place. I help coordinate Meals on Wheels for seniors who are unable to shop or cook for themselves, I help coordinate rides to medical appointments and also to help schedule the many activities that happen within the Putney Cares Activity Barn. When I’m not at Putney Cares, I can be found at Hidden Springs Maple, selling local maple syrup and scooping ice cream at their small yet busy retail store. Would love to see any alumni who are passing through Putney.”
’86
ELIZABETH STEARNS SIMS says, “Joel—my husband for 15 years—and I have moved a bit following my jobs back and forth across the country, and finally landed back west where we both want to be. University of Montana continues to experience its challenges, but I continue to love what I do. Moving to Montana has brought us closer to our foster daughter, and I am a ‘grandmother’ of three great little boys and a soon-to-be little girl—and I’m proud to say her name will be Elizabeth. I am thankful (most of the time) for Facebook, as it has allowed me to reconnect, no matter how peripherally, with friends from the past.”
’90
In September, KIMBERLY WOODBURY joined the science department at St. Johnsbury Academy as a chemistry teacher. Most recently she worked as a chemistry teacher at the Winchendon School in Winchendon, Massachusetts. Kim holds an MAR from the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale University and a PhD in chemical ecology from Cornell University.
’91
CJ CHURCHILL completed his training in psychoanalysis this May at the Contemporary Freudian Society. He also became a Fellow of the International Psychoanalytical Society and a Fellow of the College of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis. He has a practice in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis in midtown Manhattan, www.christianjchurchill.com (next to the NY Public Library), and continues as professor of sociology at St. Thomas Aquinas College. He recently published his article “ ‘Is That All There Is?’: Time, Guilt, and Melancholia in Sleep No More and Macbeth” in the International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies.
’93
“Greetings from Southern California (still) and (sometimes) Marlboro,” says JESSICA O’PRAY. “Matthew and I are delighted that our daughter Emily chose Marlboro College for herself. She’s a member of the Class of 2020 and is absolutely loving Marlboro, her new community, and her classes. We are so happy to have reconnected with many of our own Marlboro friends when we visited campus in October for the simultaneous Parents Visit Day and Alumni Weekend—and look forward to doing it over and over again.”
“My oath did not include running into a gunfight, but it did include protecting the community,” said Vermont State’s Attorney SCOTT WILLIAMS, who was awarded the Carnegie Medal for civilian heroism in November. Scott was nationally recognized because of the heroic measures he took the day that social worker Lara Sobel was fatally shot in the parking lot of the state office building in Barre, Vermont, in August 2015. Learn more.
Sharing a Passion for Marlboro: Hongping Tian ’94
When Hongping Tian graduated from Marlboro with a Plan of Concentration in molecular evolutionary genetics, she could scarcely imagine that she would be back more than 20 years later to support the college as a trustee. With a breadth of international experience, including relevant international programs in higher education, Hongping brings valuable perspective to the board.
“I have great appreciation for Marlboro, both what it stands for in the educational landscape and the worldview that the Marlboro community shares,” says Hongping, who is director of international strategy and development for Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. “I am getting to know a group of people who are all dedicated to Marlboro, and I am thrilled to be among people who share my passion for the college.”
Hongping acquired her doctorate at Harvard Medical School and an MPH from Harvard School of Public Health, where she researched community health financing in rural China. She has worked for the CDC’s Global AIDS program in Beijing, and more recently as the director of health programs for the Yale-China Association. She now develops programs at Harvard in support of its global outreach work and cultivates key relationships with the school’s alumni, foundations, and institutions around the world.
“My experience at Marlboro transformed me and helped me to develop into the person I am today,” says Hongping. “I hope that Marlboro continues to nurture generations of students, and it is with this in mind that I feel deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve Marlboro in the capacity of trustee.”
’95
“Edward and I think often of Marlboro these days as our oldest, Avellana, is in her second year there,” says CAROLYN ROSS.“It has been a wonderful experience for her. Our other two children are 15 and 17 right now. Time flies. We are happy to see any Marlboro friends who happen to come to Salem.”
“I’m excited about my new job,” says ERIK PEARSON. “Starting in November, I will be the senior virtual reality engineer at EMD Serono, the U.S. biotech division of Merck in Darmstadt, Germany. I will lead an innovation team creating VR experiences for the company’s international divisions that specialize in liquid crystal technologies, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and other emerging industries. While the company and role is global, I’ll be based in downtown Austin.”
’97
JENNY KARSTAD says she and JODI CLARK ’95 are “still enjoying life at ‘GreenLeaf Knoll’ and working hard at our life’s passions. Stop by if you are in town.”
AARON TIEGER says, “Still happily relocated to Shelburne Falls, where I have a small private psychotherapy practice (aarontieger.com), in addition to working full-time for a community health center serving the hill towns of Western Massachusetts. I haven’t been writing much poetry for the past few years, though my newest book, Chaos Flowers, is due out by the end of this year from Skysill Press. In my spare time I have been focusing on playing guitar, both solo under the name Errant Tiger (find me on Bandcamp, Soundcloud, and/or Facebook), and with my wife, Rachel, as the band Catbasket (find us on Facebook). I’d love to hear from anyone I’m not already in touch with, particularly if you’re local and/or interested in psychotherapy and/or weird acoustic music.”
’02
In September, TIM COLLINS performed The Bystander, his one-man show addressing sexual-assault prevention, at the Root Social Justice Center in Brattleboro to benefit the Women’s Freedom Center. “I went to college at Marlboro and started writing one-man shows in college, and started touring when I was still a student,” he says in a Brattleboro Reformer article on the event. “I graduated in 2002 and I’ve been touring ever since.” Learn more.
’03
“I’m happy to be back in New England after spending six years in Nova Scotia,” says JONATHAN FRANKLIN. “I finished up my PhD at Dalhousie University in 2015, and am now starting my second year as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, researching new methods of monitoring urban greenhouse gas emissions.”
“I’ve been enjoying being at home in Vermont for a little while before heading back out west,” says JANET ANDERSON. “I’ve been in Washington and Alaska for the last few years, working for the US Forest Service, and have come to think that almost any problem can be solved by spending more time outside. I’ll be back in Washington in January, close enough to civilization that I might actually get to hang out with the Marlboroites out there. Take care of yourselves and each other, read good books, and play in the snow.”
’04
“Excited to hopefully visit the Hill this spring and see freshman Isy Zuniga, who grew up in the church I currently serve,” says QUINCY WORTHINGTON. “It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost 12 years since I was at Marlboro. So much has changed for me, I can’t imagine what Marlboro is like now. I think about how much Marlboro has influenced who I am today as a pastor, a father of four amazing and creative kids, and as a person. I miss smoking cigarettes and swearing with John Sheehy.”
“I identify as an artist first, which is great in this line of work,” says CULLEN SCHNEIDER in an article in the Weekly Packet of Blue Hill, Maine. Cullen is owner of the Fairwinds Florist in Blue Hill, named the best florist shop in Maine by Down East Magazine last year. Cullen was also inducted into the American Institute of Floral Designers in July, a ceremony she calls “pretty cool.”
’05
“Last September, I was ordained as a minister in the American Baptist church,” says JONATHAN ELSENSOHN. “One of my closest friends, CHIP HURD ’03, was there to introduce me to the assembly as well as to deliver the Charge to the Congregation (both of which he did with his characteristic wit). ELIOT GOODWIN ’04 and CHARLIE ISRAEL ’05 both came down to help me celebrate. I also took a position as the senior pastor of the First Baptist Church of Freehold, New Jersey.”
’10
MORGAN INGALLS reports, “JOHN DUNHAM ’05 and I got married in September!”
’11
“As of this year, my amazing partner and I have reached one of our longtime goals and opened a pastry shop in Salem, Oregon,” says JONATHAN JONES. “It’s a big ol’ forest green truck, and I wouldn’t have life any other way. We get to enjoy the nature that we moved to Oregon to experience, make our own hours, and generally enjoy this short life. We have plans for a brick-and-mortar expansion in the next few years, so if any of you other fine people want to financially support a fellow alum I certainly wouldn’t say no.”
’12
“I’m working as a paralegal and doing freelance writing and editing in New York City,” says JACK ROSSITER-MUNLEY. “I also produce a couple poetry podcasts and am the host of a foreign policy podcast, putting my cultural history and international relations study at Marlboro to good use.”
Expanding Representation in Theater: Mercedes Lake ’12
“Plays should be a conversation—not a lecture,” says Mercedes Lake, whose play Taught premiered at the John Cullum Theater in New York in October (see Giving in Action, Winter 2016). “My education at Marlboro taught me that it is more valuable to ask questions than to prescribe answers. This undoubtedly made me a better playwright.”
Mercedes graduated from Northwestern University’s Writing for the Screen and Stage MFA program in June 2016, and her plays have received readings at the Chicago Dramatists and been finalists in the Brooklyn-based Scrap Mettle reading series. Her New York production of Taught was made possible by a competitive grant from the Araca Project, an initiative by the Araca Group to foster young arts entrepreneurs.
“I pitched Taught against a dozen other possible plays,” says Mercedes. “I emphasized that popular culture is a lens through which we can dramatize American ideology, a lesson I learned from Kate Ratcliff and Brenda Foley. The judges loved it.”
Mercedes is interested in connecting historical moments to present phenomena in her plays, and in expanding representation in theater and television. With Taught, a play about weight loss, reality television, capitalism, and the dangers of defining “health,” she wanted to make fatness visible without being confrontational.
“Even in the progressive art spheres, fat people—mainly fat women—are a punchline, if they’re represented at all. By writing a play where fatness and shame are at the forefront of the conversation, I wanted to make it impossible for people to disengage.”
’13
“In spring 2017 I will be starting a master’s in public policy management at USM’s Muskie School,” says MADELYN HOLM. “I am also leaving my current position at the food bank to pursue a sexual health educator job.”
In August, JESSE NESSER’S film Walk With Me: The Trials of Damon J. Keith was featured opening night of the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival. The film tells the remarkable story of 94-year-old, still-serving federal judge Damon Keith, who presided over some of the most important civil rights cases of the last century. Judge Keith travelled to Middlebury and appeared on stage afterwards for discussion.
JOSHUA PETERSEN has been continuing his career as a production designer and director in film and television in New York, where he still lives, as well as in LA, Berlin, and Tokyo. “One film that I’ve art directed, Crown Heights, was accepted into the 2017 dramatic competition lineup at Sundance in January (my second in two years!), as well as a film that I was both producer and production designer for, Boogeyman Pop,” he says. “I’m looking to submit Apprehending Edmund Montrell, a short film that I helmed as director, to the Slamdance Short Film Festival that commences in Park City the same time as Sundance in Park City—really trying to go 3/3 in Utah this year.” Learn more at jpetersenfilm.com.
’14
“I moved into Boston this winter to start my graduate program at University of Massachusetts Boston, studying for a master’s in English,” says MOLLY BOOTH. “I’m currently finishing up my second YA Shakespeare book, Nothing Happened, with Disney Hyperion publishing, and I have a few other secret book projects in the works. I’ve also been volunteer directing for All the World’s a Stage Players, a homeschool Shakespeare theater group in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, and our production of Twelfth Night will go up at the end of March. Lately I’ve really recommitted to my love of Shakespeare, and I’m in such dorky love with the work.” See a November article about Molly in The Boston Globe.
’16
In December, FELIX JARRAR premiered a new piece created on commission for violinist Brendan Speltz and cellist Andrew Janss, the musicians who performed in his opera The Fall of the House of Usher. Titled Mosaic of Myself: A Walt Whitman Experience, the new work was inspired by the tragic shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, and was performed in the crypt of New York’s Church of the Intercession. All proceeds for the event, which included other musical activities and a DJ set, went toward GLAAD to support the LGBTQA+ community.
Graduate and Professional Studies
Management
’06
“Well, still at the same perch, IT Help Desk at Dartmouth,” says GREG PHILLIPS MSM. “There is never a dull day, and very intriguing people to work with each day. And, I found the woman of my dreams. Susie and I have been together now almost three years, living and loving in Concord, New Hampshire, and traveling all over. Off to Thailand in October and back over the pond for winter break. Enjoying life to the full.”
’10
“Carolyn and I have a son, Julian, who is four and loves to swim, cook, garden, and fly to Ganymede,” says JONATHAN CROWLEY MBA. I’ve been working as a major gifts officer for the last four years at Northfield Mount Hermon School, an independent boarding school with a long history of diversity and social justice; a working farm with strong sustainability programming; and a budding mindfulness program. We are moving from Charlemont to Shelburne to be nearer to the Vipassana Meditation Center where we continue to teach courses.”
DAVID YOUNG MSM says, “I’ve been working as the project development manager for Power Guru, Southern Vermont’s premier solar electric system design and integration company, for almost two years. I’ve still got my hands in residential design projects as they come along, specializing in a whole-systems design approach for net-zero energy efficiency, passive house standards, and a permaculture philosophy for natural habitat restoration and building site integration.”
’11
“I recently passed my two-year anniversary as Cheshire County Grants Manager,” says SUZANNE BANSLEY MBA. “My success in this position is highlighted by a $4 million grant that was awarded last week by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to align children’s mental health services. It’s surprising how I use my MBA every day in the work that I do to convene stakeholders, discuss critical community projects, strategize solutions, and seek funding to implement solutions. Most importantly, I’m really happy doing what I’ve always wanted to be doing: improving my community.”
’14
“I continue to participate actively in the Women’s Leadership Circles follow-up group, which has now been meeting for five months,” says JANE NESBITT MDO. “It’s provided a trusting, engaging, and enjoyable setting for ongoing learning and support both on a professional and a personal level, and I relish the relationships that are developed and nurtured.”
’15
“I started in July as the new associate dean and director of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access, Social Justice (IDEAS) Center at Allegheny College, in Meadville, Pennsylvania,” says JUSTIN ADKINS MDO. “This job has taken me away from my beloved Western Mass, but it is a good move and I am thriving here. I am currently living in a first-year student resident hall with my dear cats Kropotkin and Indigo, as we wait to move into our new little craftsman-style home half a mile from campus and have the fabulous black lab Subcomandante Marcos join us.”
Teaching
’11
ANNE KOPLINKA-LOEHR MATS and her partner, Max Bregan, purchased a house this summer in Brattleboro, and are now engaged. Anne is still teaching seventh/ eighth-grade social studies at Brattleboro Area Middle School, and Max is an aircraft mechanic for Gulfstream.
“In August I started my EdD in learning analytics in higher education, with a focus on quantitative design and measurement, at Northcentral University,” says LISA WHALEN, MSIT/MAT. “I’m currently working at Waters Corporation in Milford, Massachusetts, as a senior instructional designer. No new marriages or births, but I did have a rather exciting trip to the Learning Solutions Conference back in March for the eLearning Guild, where I was a speaker for multiple events, including my session ‘Bite-Sized Learning is the New Black.’”
’12
ADAM PROVOST MAT has been promoted to director of the Burlington, Vermont, Technical Center.
’14 BECCA POLK, LAUREN PERLSTEIN, NINA KUNIMOTO ’11, MARESA NIELSON ’13, ANNEKE DUNNINGTON ’15, and COREY SORENSEN ’15, all graduates from the MA in Teaching for Social Justice program, were joined by faculty member Mikaela Simms in creating Indigo Radio, a weekly radio show on Brattleboro’s community radio station. The show seeks to deepen understanding and make connections through engaging others in the local community and throughout the world. Topics tackled so far include the Oaxaca teachers’ resistance, privatization and charter schools, standardized testing, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the Standing Rock water protectors action. Tune in Sunday at noon at WVEW 107.7, or learn more at facebook.com/indigoradiowvew.
’15
LARA NEELEY MATESOL was recently selected to be an English Language Fellow through the U.S. Department of State, a prestigious opportunity limited to highly qualified U.S. educators in the field of TESOL. “Becoming a fellow was a dream of mine ever since becoming an English as a Foreign Language teacher over eight years ago, and even more so after enrolling in the MATESOL program at Marlboro,” says Lara. “I feel that is truly where the process for becoming a fellow began.” Lara’s 10-month fellowship is located in Hyderabad, India, at the Siasat Daily, an Urdu newspaper that aims to promote local literacy, including offering free English language classes for disadvantaged communities.
CORY SORENSEN MATS is now teaching fourth grade at Guilford Central School.
Technology
’06
“I’ve just started my new position as the principal of The Dover School,” says MATT MARTYN MSIT. “I’m looking forward to working with staff, students, and families to spread the wealth of technology wonders I gathered while attending the Marlboro Grad School.”
’07
“I will be teaching a website development course at Community College of Vermont in Rutland this fall semester,” says RONALD PULCER MSIE. “I’m also helping my church, Grace Congregational Church, toward replacing their legacy website with a WordPress site, and improving their workflows and communication by using WP as a content management system. This summer I participated in the Rutland Mini Maker Faire, where I presented a Python Turtle drawing app, in which multiple turtles can be “remotely” controlled from the smartphones of visitors of Maker Faire. It reminded me of doing my MSIE Capstone.”
Former Faculty and Staff
In October and November, retired sociology professor JERRY LEVY presented a series of lectures at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, in Dummerston, Vermont. Titled “Humanism and Progress,” Jerry’s lectures consider the impact of “humanistic communities” on the enduring problems of poverty, war, and ecological degradation.
KEN SCHNECK, former dean of students, was the recipient of an Excellence in Journalism Award from NLGJA, the national association of LGBTQ journalists. An associate professor at Baldwin Wallace University and director of the Leadership in Higher Education graduate program, Ken won first place for excellence in podcasts for producing and hosting This Show is So Gay, a nationally syndicated podcast creating unique dialogue around LGBTQ topics. Learn more.