Happy New Year, ’15s! Let’s dive into some exciting updates to ring in 2024.

Mandy (Martin) Major and Austin Major ’14 welcomed their new baby girl, Harper, in May.

Emily (Reeves) Nicholson and Caitlin Nicholson ’12 welcomed baby Cora Faye Nicholson in September.

Haley Shaw graduated from the Tuck School of Business in June. A week later she married Thomas Fitzgerald on the coast of Maine after getting engaged in Woodstock, Vermont, in 2021. They are now back in the Boston area!

An update from Elizabeth Trager: “Charlie Edler and Elizabeth Trager got married in Rumson, New Jersey, on August 19! Abby Absatz officiated. Wedding party was Dartmouth strong and they were surrounded by many fellow Dartmouth couples—including Hayley Collins (who married Ross Collins ’14 in October 2022), Frances Peisch (who married Andrew Peisch ’11 in June 2022), Avery McCann (who will be marrying Daniel Eisenson ’12 in September), Christine Ward, Libby Buttenweiser (who married Jeffrey Kolovson ’10 in September 2022), Colleen Scanell, Samantha Schiff (marrying Matt Fox,also in the wedding party, in November 2023), Lindsay Berger Zaharchuk, Daniel Slavin, and Matthew Gilbertson. Go Big Green love!”

From Gabas Maldunas: “For the past couple of years I’ve been playing for my hometown basketball club, Panevėžys Lietkabelis. Every year we have finished second or third in Lithuania and competed the against the best teams in European basketball. This summer I got the chance to play in the World Cup in the Philippines. We beat team USA in the group stage and ended up finishing sixth in the world.”

Ari Koeppel and partner Alex St. Romain ’14 recently moved to D.C. for jobs with NASA and the U.S. Department of Justice, respectively. They ask that if you’re in the D.C. area, please reach out, they’re in need of friends!

Yesuto Shaw recently moved to the Bay Area after graduating from business school at Kellogg last spring and would love to reconnect with any ’15s in the area. He also recently started a company called Opto Financial that offers a financial management app that uses behavioral psychology to help young adults hit their financial goals.

Jimmy Boldt is a cellar intern at Bedrock Wine in Sonoma, California.

Deby Xiadani is the new artistic director of the Rockwell Theater in Somerville, Massachusetts.

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Happy holidays, ’15s!

Bridget Shaia D’Angelo,Th’16, and husband Chris D’Angelo ’16 welcomed a son, Anthony Dominic D’Angelo, in August. His middle name is in honor of the Dominican friars who run the Catholic Student Center at Dartmouth, where Bridget and Chris met. The family resides in Apex, North Carolina—“the peak of good living!”

Margo Cox and Eddie Harvey got married in July 2023 on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. They were lucky to have many Dartmouth friends from the classes of 2012 through 2017 in attendance to celebrate. They are grateful for the random housing assignment that placed them on the same Choates floor freshman year!

DaVeon Smith graduated with an M.S. in finance from UT-San Antonio in May.

Annie Fagan recently started a new role as a marine extension associate for Maine Sea Grant. Annie’s work focuses on aquaculture (sea farming), which in Maine means growing shellfish, seaweed, and finfish. Annie was previously working in research and development at a shellfish hatchery. At Sea Grant she’s leveraging research, education, and outreach to support growers, scientists, regulators, teachers, students, and the public as aquaculture plays an increasingly important role in communities along the coast. If you’re in Maine or you’ve got aquaculture questions, please reach out!

Cameron Price and his wife, Laura, welcomed their daughter Jade Elizabeth Price on February 1. She was 5 pounds, 15 ounces. She is rocking her Dartmouth onesie and the Big Green indoctrination has already started. Cameron and Laura are currently living in Aliso Viejo, California, enjoying the SoCal sun and time at the beach.

Rebecca Xu married Michael Kwa in November 2022. Their maid of honor and best man were Daisy Yan and William Zhu, respectively, with many other Dartmouth alums in attendance! The couple have now moved to Boston, where Rebecca is an anesthesiology resident and Michael is a dermatology attending.

Congratulations to our classmates! As always, feel free to share your updates with us at 15classupdates@gmail.com.

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Elena Karis and Randall Reynolds (UVM ’14) got engaged in April while snowboarding at Copper Mountain Resort. They met through a dating app in October 2020, only to find they’d both been working on the same street in Hanover for months. The couple resides in White River Junction, Vermont, and looks forward to a Vermont wedding next year. In the meantime, please welcome Randall to the Dartmouth family as he begins his Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Thayer this fall!

Funmi Badejo is graduating from Creighton University School of Medicine and moving to Chicago to start an obstetrics and gynecology residency. 

Aaron Ellis graduates in May with his Ph.D. in cultural anthropology and food studies. He will be the first Black male to graduate with a Ph.D. in anthropology from Indiana University and will have his degree before he turns 30! Congratulations and happy birthday to Aaron!

Zach Queen isfinishing eight years of active duty service in the Marine Corps in June. He will pursue an M.B.A. at the Northwestern Kellogg School of Management starting in August.

Lorenzo Carlisle isoperations lead at Fair Square Medical, a startup that is simplifying Medicare and empowering seniors across the country. Forbes recently wrote about the company’s $15-million Series A financing. Lorenzo was recruited to join Fair Square by Ben Schenk, a fellow alum of Dartmouth and Bones Gate.

Asher Mayerson recently left his job as a consultant at BCG, where he worked with U.S. regional banks and global corporate and investment banks on climate finance, to work at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where he is helping to design and implement a $27-billion grant program that will leverage additional private capital for clean energy and clean air investments across the country.

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Class of 2015, it’s hard to believe we’re approaching eight years since graduating from our beloved Dartmouth. We’d love to hear about your summer plans, and hope you have the opportunity to visit Hanover—or one of your classmates from these updates—along the way!

Almost 10 years after meeting on his orientation trip, Kevin Francfort married Amy Couture ’14 on the shore of Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire, this past June. The two live in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and are always eager to see fellow Dartmouth alums in the area.

In March Will Hogan married Shannon Brits in Massachusetts, with many ’15s in attendance. Will and Shannon live outside of Pittsburgh, where Will is doing his medical residency.

Peety Kaur and David Wylie were married in July 2022 in Fairlee, Vermont.

Elena (Zinski) Brog and husband Logan welcomed their son, Eoghan Christopher, in February in Washington, D.C.

Hilary Johnson finished up her Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at MIT and moved to the Bay Area to work at Lawrence Livermore National Lab in the Space Program. Say hi if you’re in the area!

Evan Landau is currently working at Google as a research manager for hardware products. This semester he also opened up an academic chapter of his career teaching as an adjunct professor at NYIT School of Architecture + Design in New York City. On the side he is continuing freelance and independent initiatives related to carbon removal, sustainable manufacturing, and local cleanup programs.

Several alums were in attendance at a birthday bash for Jordan Terry held in Washington, D.C., earlier this year. Attendees included Janelle Bullock, Ester Cross, Shweta Raghu, Frances (Buren) Pierre, Dominick Pierre ’14, Aleschia Hyde ’12, Kayasha Lyons ’12, and Brian Sylvester ’05. A good time was had by all, including after dinner dancing to hits from our Dartmouth days.

Deby Xiadani received a year-long (2023) residency at The Rockwell theater in Davis Square and is producing a comedy show the last Friday of every month. See it if you’re in Boston!

During the winter Kelsey Stimson visited her trip leader, Eric Waskowicz ’13, in Denver to hunt for groundfruit. In March Kelsey moved back to Los Angeles for a new job. She would love to reconnect with Dartmouth folks in the area.

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Class of 2015, congratulations to our classmates celebrating personal achievements, life events, career milestones, and travel adventures from 2022!

Adam Fishman and his wife, Allie, welcomed baby boy Aiden Arthur Fishman to the world on August 15 in San Diego. They are making their home in Coronado, California, now.

Tasha Bock and her husband, Stephen Scruggs, welcomed their first baby, Bay BockScruggs. They took her home from the hospital on Christmas day and are soaking up newborn snuggles despite the sleep deprivation.

Matt Fox and Sam Schiff got engaged in February and moved to Miami in August after Sam graduated from business school in May. 

Samuel Black was born to be a ramblin’ man and has predictably moved once again. He has relocated from Mile High Denver, Colorado, to sunny San Diego. He works for a nonprofit public health research and training organization. Who knows where he’ll end up next. He certainly doesn’t.

Molly Reckford spent 2022 between Boston; Princeton, New Jersey; and Sarasota, Florida. She won the Henley Royal Regatta and competed in the 2022 World Rowing Championships, placing second in the lightweight women’s double sculls. Molly visited Hanover for Homecoming and joined the Wearers of the Green. She is on her way back to Sarasota for winter and spring training, with her sights set on another international regatta circuit with Team USA this summer.

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

It’s almost time for our seven-year reunion! Save the date! The class of 2015 will meet in Hanover the weekend of July 15 to 17. In lieu of our five-year, the class council is putting on this self-organized event. We are so excited to see you all there.

On to classmate news: Felicia Wilkins graduated from the University of Louisville School of Medicine with her M.D. in May and is pursuing a residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Ambroise Decilap recently moved to Boston and was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar. He picked up skiing and can now make it to the bottom of blue runs without falling.

Alec Carvlin wrote a book, How to Bake a Universe, which was published by Norton’s in March. This whimsical and informed debut picture book takes a leaf from a cookbook to show readers how the universe came into being. Available for purchase now on Amazon. 

Aylin Woodward started a new role as science reporter at The Wall Street Journal in New York, where she covers space, dinosaurs, our human ancestors, and everything in between. Send her tips!

Sarah Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Happy winter, ’15s!

Abby (Thornburg) and Nathaniel Schmucker welcomed a daughter, Martha Charlotte Schmucker, on September 6.

Ellen Plane and Alison Su ’13 were married on September 5 in Nobleboro, Maine. Annie Fagan officiated, and many other Dartmouth friends were there to celebrate!

Adam Fishman married Allie Sharp in Coronado, California.

Julia Weber started at Vanderbilt business school in August. She says, “I am loving Nashville, and looking to go into healthcare technology post-M.B.A. I worked with B2B healthcare technology clients before business school and am looking to stay within the industry while switching functions.”

Evan Landau has been managing his own independent industrial design consulting business full time for about a year and a half now. He shared: “During the past few months one of the products I’ve designed is officially patent pending, and three others have gone into production. I’m also currently working on a grant from a carbon capture and utilization research group to experiment with adding carbon material derived from the air into 3-D printing material. The grant’s goal is to provide a proof of concept of a new way to mass manufacture carbon-negative products.”

Kelsey Stimson has moved to New Orleans and would love to see familiar faces if you’re ever in town for a visit.

Sarah (Lucas) Ruhland, 450 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; sarahlucasruhland@gmail.com

Brett Szalapski and Kirsten Seagers were married on June 19 in Los Gatos, California, surrounded by family and friends, many of whom are also Dartmouth alums.

Chase Schoelkopf has moved from California back to the Philly area to start his small animal surgery residency.

Valerie Orellana just moved down to Boston for law school and is excited to reconnect with classmates. Valerie is also the newly elected Dartmouth Association for Latino Alumni (DALA) secretary. Please reach out to dala.execboard@gmail.com if you’re interested in joining the DALA community!

Sarah Lucas, 450 Folsom St., Apt 2102, San Francisco, CA 94105; (307) 413-3055; 15classupdates@gmail.com

Dartmouth women’s rowing alumna Molly Reckford and her rowing partner, Michelle Sechser, qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in May after winning all three of their races at the 2021 World Rowing Final Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Samuel B. Black made the decision to relocate his talents to Denver. He will be living “Rocky Mountain High” and working for an urban health center.

According to Kelsey Stimson, “Abbey Schmitt, Katie Varieka ’17, and I met up in Fort Myers, Florida, to scope out retirement homes for post-Covid life. The trip was uneventful. Katie tamed a wild horse galloping in the Florida waves. Abbey tussled with an alligator and escaped by telling him the good news about environmental, social, and corporate governance investments. I opened up shop as a local caricature artist.”

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Moulshri Mohan completed her master’s in public health at Harvard University in 2019, following which she has been working on health and social protection at the South Asia office of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). Her favorite books that she read during the pandemic were In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado and Nimona by Noelle Stevenson.

“After freelancing as an industrial design consultant for some time, I officially started a business. Landau Design LLC is a full-scope industrial design practice that specializes in early-stage concept development, ethnographic user research, and sustainable manufacturing. During the past few months I’ve worked with clients such as Google, Canon, Kraft, and a variety of startups,” shares Evan Landau.

Adam Fishman,along with Don Stephan ’17, launched a new startup called Onora. Onora is a one-stop shop to do something about the climate crisis. They recognized that most people know global warming is a huge issue, but many are unsure how they can realistically help. Onora makes it easy by giving you clear action steps, so you can do your part and see your impact in changing the world. Use referral code “ONORA1” and they’ll plant an extra tree when you join.

Jordan Aré shares, “My wife, Jasmin Matos-Aré, and I have welcomed our son, Jaxon Lucas Aré, to the world on January 26. We are excited and thankful for our wonderful blessing!”

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

As I write this column 2020 is coming to a close; however, reading it you will be well into the second month of a new year. With it comes good news, renewed hope, and excitement for a return to what I’m sure will be a forever-different “new normal.” Along with these things to celebrate is wonderful news from our classmates below!

Emily (Reeves) Nicholson and Caitlin Nicholson ’12 tied the knot in a small backyard wedding in Ithaca, New York, on September 5, 2020. The wedding was full of Dartmouth folks: Caitlin’s parents, Claire (Rehnberg) Nicholson ’86 and Sean Nicholson ’86; Emily’s bridesmaids Eileen Goodwin, Lily (Albrecht) Bowdler, and Meghan Hassett; and the couple’s good friends Perrin Brown, Megan Bogia, Katie Bonner, and Katie (Niedt) Arn ’12. The newlyweds now live in Chicago with their puppy, Zeus.

Two ’15s proposed to their now fiancées, within seven days of each other—Nick Lombardi in Huntington Beach, California, and Bo Patterson in Greenville, South Carolina.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

I had the joy of visiting Hanover a few weeks ago to show around a friend who is applying to Tuck. While Covid prevented us from showing her some of our favorite indoor locations—Sanborn, Sherman, a basement full of friends and a competitive game of pong—we reveled in sharing the plethora of outdoor ones—Ledyard, the Gile fire tower, Occom Pond. In a strange time it is comforting to revisit the places we love, even if they are not quite the same as they were. I feel similar joy in sharing the stories of many of our fellow ’15s in this issue.

From Adam Schneider, “I will be completing my service on active duty in the Navy in October. I will eventually be pursuing a joint J.D./M.P.P. at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and Georgetown Law Center beginning in the fall of 2021. Until then I am taking a gap year to travel across the West hiking, climbing, skiing, and visiting the many Dartmouth friends I haven’t seen since joining the Navy!”

Kelsey Stimson passed the Colorado Bar exam and celebrated by learning to whitewater kayak in Charlemont, Massachusetts.

Writes Keta Burke-Williams, “While at Harvard Business School (where I’m a second-year now) I founded a niche fragrance brand with my sister called Aspen Apothecary! Aspen Apothecary is a Black, Indigenous, and people of color-founded niche fragrance apothecary. We create clean, vegan, CBD-infused perfumes.”

Justin Sha is running for mayor in Fremont, California. He has been endorsed by the teachers union and is on a roll. To learn more, visit http://justin4fremont.org.

During Labor Day Weekend Frances Buren and Dominick Pierre ’14 got engaged, after he surprised her while she was home visiting family! Frances and Dominick live in Washington, D.C. (she moved from San Francisco in 2017), and are excited to start planning for a spring 2022 wedding. Go Big Green!

Luke Katler is proudly one of the producers of Broadway’s Slave Play, which just made history when it was nominated for 12 Tony awards—the most in Tony history! Tune in to the Tony Awards (on a to-be-determined date) to support!

Bo Patterson is getting married in April and will have an all-Dartmouth wedding party of Alex Park ’14, Kirby Schoenthaler, Matt Parisi, Matt MacDowell, Thomas Olson, and Jay Graham.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Lorin Paley and Rob Collier ’13 are excited to announce their engagement! “We are eager to celebrate with friends and family whenever such celebrations become feasible. We are living in Park City, Utah, and are keeping busy with biking, gardening, and western adventures.”

In June Robbie Bhattacharjee got engaged to Christine Lu ’16. They met during their time on campus in 2012 and dated for seven years prior to getting engaged. They currently reside in N.Y.C. with their mini Australian shepherd, Pippa.

If you asked Brett Teplitz and Shelby Schrier where they met, you’d hear two different stories. According to Shelby, the two met at the Dartmouth Co-op during Dimensions Weekend, when Brett decided to strike up a conversation with the charming girl behind him. According to Brett, who has no recollection of this interaction, the two met as freshmen floormates, the greatest decision Dartmouth housing could have made. Coming full circle, after eight years of dating, Brett proposed to Shelby in August where their journey actually began—in line at the Co-op, Dartmouth clothes in hand. They can’t wait to celebrate with family and friends and embark on this new journey together!

Sarah Hammer graduated from Princeton University with a Ph.D. in chemical and biological engineering in June and moved back up to Hanover this summer to start a postdoctoral research position at the Thayer School of Engineering. If you’re visiting Dartmouth or passing through New Hampshire, reach out to catch up!

And from Evan Landau: “In May I graduated from the industrial design master’s program at Parsons School of Design in N.Y.C. and have been sticking around the city. Since then I’ve founded an independent industrial design practice—Landau Design Strategy + Consulting—and have been keeping busy working on product design, brand strategy, and ethnographic user research projects with a variety of clients and partners, including a Dartmouth alum. Despite the uncertain times, it’s been exciting and rewarding to go into the design field as an entrepreneur. In other but related news, the brand UncommonGoods has picked up one of my original product designs to license, which should start selling later this fall!”

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Mariah Claw writes, “Two things. First, Black lives matter. Second, with the removal of the weathervane from Baker Tower, many Indigenous students and alumni (including myself) have expelled a collective: ‘It’s about damn time.’ The decision to remove the distasteful iconography from the highest point in Hanover comes only after decades of hard-fought battles to have the Indian mascot eradicated from campus. Given the widespread call for institutions to commit to antiracist policies, it is pertinent that the Dartmouth community push Phil Hanlon to go beyond measures of performativity. While removing the weathervane is a tiny step in the right direction, it means nothing without the banning and condemning of Indian head logos, a holistic investment in Indigenous students, and sincere ownership by the administration for the way Dartmouth has upheld systemic racism by dismissing the concerns of Indigenous students. Instead of continuing to (re)issue statements such as ‘The institution is tremendously proud of its historic, although sometimes flawed, commitment to welcoming and educating its accomplished Native American students.’ Dartmouth owes its community, especially prospective students, a truthful discussion of how Eleazar Wheelock betrayed Samson Occom’s trust to benefit white, wealthy, cisgendered men. Too long, didn’t read. Dartmouth College is not beyond racism and settler colonialism; it was built on and is steeped in violence and pain.”

Deby Xiadani is bouncing between Brooklyn; Hoboken, New Jersey; and Cambridge, Massachusetts; directing comedy; hosting fundraisers; studying for the MCAT; and teaching fitness—all of course, virtually! She says reach out if you’d like to fitness or coffee together!

In May Hannah Seulgee Jung graduated from UCLA School of Law with a J.D., specializing in international and comparative law coupled with public interest law and policy. She is currently working as a research and advocacy fellow to the UN special rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism. She would love to (re)connect with anyone, including students interested in antiracism work specifically and international human rights work broadly. She can be reached at hannah.jung.15@dartmouth.edu.

Adam Schneider was promoted to the rank of lieutenant on June 1 and continues to serve aboard the warship USS Manchester as the navigator. After separating from the Navy at the end of the summer, he will be pursuing a joint J.D./M.P.P. at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and Georgetown Law Center. He can’t wait to see all of his friends back in Boston and D.C.!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

As Covid-19 tests our fortitude, Dartmouth friendships and alumni accomplishments continue to bring us humor and inspiration. I sincerely thank everyone who contributed to this issue’s Class Notes.

Ethan Canty will be finishing up his time at the Penn State College of Medicine this May, graduating with a dual-degree M.D./M.P.H. He will then move to Portland, Oregon, to begin a pediatrics residency at Oregon Health & Science University in June. He is excited to return to the West Coast and be close to family and loved ones. He also hopes that everyone is able to remain safe and healthy during this time!

Libby Fairless will graduate from Yale School of Medicine with an M.D. this May. After a virtual graduation ceremony she will move across the country to Spokane, Washington, for her first year of residency at Sacred Heart Hospital. In 2021 she will begin further training in the field of ophthalmology back in her home state at the University of Oklahoma. She wishes everyone good health and hopes to see many classmates at reunions in 2021!

Since June 2015 the original “Cenobites in Central”—including Alec Marchuk, Sam Yoder, Paul Champeau, and Henry Franco—have spread across the United States, covering a geographical region roughly the length of Sweden. Never ones to waste a good crisis, they’ve been reconvening regularly online through virtual movie nights, cybernetic cocktail hours, workouts, and game sessions. Most recently, the government labeled them all as “nonessential,” which sounds bad but is basically just the non-recording option of the working world.

Liz Morse and Andres Isaza are currently getting their M.B.A.s from Wharton.

Patrick R. Campbell and Rona Sun will be classmates again when they begin at the MIT Sloan School of Management this fall.

Shelby Schrier will be attending Harvard Business School.

Brett Teplitz matched in urology at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and will be starting his residency this summer.

Kishan Ughreja is working hard as an intern in emergency medicine at Northwestern. We thank him for all his hard work on the frontlines!

Laura Bergsten is graduating with her Ph.D. in particle physics next month. For the last two years she has been doing research at European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN, and living in Switzerland. While there she’s explored the Swiss Alps through hikes, ski trips, and bike tours, sometimes in the company of other visiting alumni. 

Weijie Lin is working as a resident physician at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, the public hospital of Stanford University affiliates, in the Bay Area. She was working in the ICU when Covid-19 cases started coming in and shelter-in-place orders were being announced. She is now working in inpatient wards.

As always, keep sending any updates you’d like included in the DAM to 15classupdates@gmail.com. Can’t wait to see you at the College next summer for our delayed five-year reunion!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

This is our final issue of Dartmouth Alumni Magazine before our five-year reunion in June. Enjoy the updates and don’t forget to mark your calendars for our five-year reunion June 19-21 in Hanover for some in-person updates from classmates!

Josh Wang and Diksha Gautham got married November 9, 2019 in Houston! The couple had a fusion Indian-Chinese wedding and now live in San Francisco.

Since her last update, Meghan Hassett won the state senate campaign she managed (it was too close to call for weeks after election night!), then started working with the Union of Concerned Scientists and became certified to teach yoga. After living in five states since graduation, she’s loved calling Chicago home and is thrilled that pals such as Emily Reeves live there now too! Meghan got engaged last June to Max, a Chicagoan who she originally met in North Carolina getting out the vote in 2016. After doing long distance for the first three years of his Ph.D. at Notre Dame, Meghan, Max, and their ridiculous kitty YoYo (he has a lot of extra toes) are finally moving in together this month! Last summer they took their first big trip together gallivanting around the Swiss and Italian Alps with Laura Bergsten. Meghan can’t wait for reunions to introduce Max to her favorite Dartmouth spots: the lodge, the river, and the Theta basement.

Aaron Pellowski and Sean Schultz ’12, who originally met at a Dartmouth student event about cyberbullying, have moved in together and are living in the Govalle district of Austin, Texas, where Aaron works as a high school Latin teacher and Sean is enjoying an exciting career in e-commerce. They wish their best to all their friends in their respective classes.

Grant Sparling got engaged to Kaylin Lindsay Smith in December 2019. They are planning to be married in Canada during the summer of 2021. Please wish them well!

Eli Derrow is currently in his first year at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and will be in Boston at Bain & Co. this summer for an internship.

Elena Karis would like to announce that Adria Brown, her former roommate and current platonic wife, will graduate with an M.S.W. from Washington University in St. Louis this spring. Adria awaits news of summer internship placement but hopes to return to New England to be closer to Elena. The two celebrated their eighth “friendiversary” (and ninth “Galentine’s Day”) in February.

This year Kelsey Stimson hosted her annual home-written murder mystery party, which Abbey Schmitt (starring as Hannah Solo, a smuggler of illegally pirated movies), Maria Sperduto ’14(starring as Bonnie Blue Booty, an heiress with a suspicious past),and other Dartmouth folks attended. Kelsey graduates from Yale Law School this May and is moving to Boston to clerk at the federal courthouse.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Happy spring, ’15s! As the seasons change we have bright news of engagements, marriages, and classmates following their purpose.

Logan Brog married Elena (Zinski) Brog in October in Washington, D.C., with many Dartmouth friends in attendance. Zuo Ming Koh, Piotr Dormus, Xin Yi (Mary) Peng, Madison Pauly, and Rianna Starheim ’14 were in the wedding party. 

Calandra Jones finally moved out of her hometown in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to downtown Detroit, where she hopes to reorient her life with purpose.

Diksha Gautham and Josh Wang got married November 9 in Houston. They were freshman floormates and started dating freshman fall. Last November Josh proposed on top of a glacier in New Zealand. They now live together in San Francisco. 

In July Kevin Gillespie got engaged to Iman AbdoulKarim ’17 in Nice, France. Iman and Kevin met during their time on campus in 2014 and dated for three and a half years prior to engagement. They currently reside in N.Y.C. (Brooklyn, to be specific) with their Eskimo poodle Kingsley.

Zuo Ming Koh got engaged to Chi Mai ’16 at Storm King Art Center, New York, in October 2019. The wedding will be this fall.

This year Joana (Garcia) Sosa married Freddy Sosa in April. They (and their dog) live happily in northern Illinois, where Joana works as a college counselor through the Schuler Scholar Program. This is her fifth year in the program as an employee and 11th year as a Schuler scholar!

John Conley and Kathryn MacNaughton got engaged in December in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. They met senior year at Dartmouth and live in San Francisco. The wedding will be in June 2021 and they are looking forward to having lots of Dartmouth friends in attendance!

Samuel B. Black is living his best post-Dartmouth existence in Tempe, Arizona, and says he continues to be “that bitch.”

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Luke Katler officially became a Broadway producer this fall of the groundbreaking and controversial Slave Play, an exploration of the dynamics of biracial couples as a metaphor for America’s legacy of racism. The play opened on October 6 to critical acclaim and will be playing at Broadway’s Golden Theatre until January 19.

Julia Weber, Erica Normandin, and Matt MacDowell attended Oyster Fest in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, in October, when they enjoyed the sunsets and unusually warm weather and Matt tried his first oyster. They were there with a larger crew of Dartmouth people and were happy to represent the best class ever.

Lilly (Fleischmann) Ganong and Ryan Ganong ’13, Tu’20, were married in September in Chatham, Massachusetts, where they celebrated with many of their Dartmouth friends and teammates.

Jon Miller is finishing up medical school at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and is currently applying to psychiatry residency programs across the country.

Florence Gonsalves is releasing her second book, Dear Universe, in May, two years after her debut novel, Love & Other Carnivorous Plants, was hailed by School Library Journal as “a must-have sharp, powerful, and witty immersion into the complexities of…mental health.”

From the back cover: “Dear Universe, Sorry for interrupting you with my presence, but I’m wondering if you could have my back for once. I recently had a massive chin zit and a period stain you could see from space and my boyfriend kissed someone else and also my dad is dying faster than usual. If you could show up during my last English class so I can graduate and like achieve my potential or something, I’d appreciate it.” It’s senior year, and Chamomile Myles has whiplash from traveling between her two universes: school (the relentless countdown to prom, torturous college applications, and the mindless march toward an uncertain future) and home, where she wrestles a slow, bitter battle with her father’s terminal illness. Enter Brendan, a man-bun- and tutu-wearing hospital volunteer with a penchant for absurdity, who strides boldly between her worlds—and helps her open up a new road between them.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Updates this issue have far exceeded a need for introduction. I am excited to share some wonderful classmate news from ’15s ’round the girdled earth.

Sean Gupta started residency training in neurosurgery at Washington University in St. Louis/Barnes-Jewish Hospital. 

Eli Derrow will be attending the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in the fall. 

After completing his master of public policy at Duke University this past spring, Tyler Stoff started a new position in Washington, D.C., as policy and research manager at the American Council on Renewable Energy.

Alec Ring, Luke Katler, and Deby Xiadani produce and host a monthly comedy show about all things food called Good Cooks! at The Tank theater in N.Y.C. The show features tastings, comedy of all kinds, and interviews with professionals from the world of food such as chefs and sommeliers (including Jimmy Boldt).

Carla Yoon spent two years working in refugee humanitarian aid in Egypt and Uganda after graduating from Dartmouth. She is now back in school, pursuing a joint J.D.-M.P.A. program at Harvard Law School and the Woodrow Wilson School.

In March Taylor Luckadue Garcia was blessed with the birth of her beautiful baby girl, Daisy. 

Kevin Francfort got engaged toAmy Couture ’14 during a hike in New Hampshire earlier this year and look forward to getting married in 2020.

Annie Oppenheim is moving to Aspen, Colorado, to continue her work as a middle school teacher.

Colin Quinn and Ari Koeppel recently moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, where they have begun science Ph.D. programs at Northern Arizona University. Together with Singer Horse Capture ’17 and Alex St. Romain ’14, who are also in Arizona, they welcome visits from any ’15s or other Dartmouth folk looking to enjoy beautiful northern Arizona. If you’re in the area, let them know!

Emily Reeves and Caitlin Nicholson ’12 met at Theta in 2015 and got engaged this past December. There were two proposals, since each wanted to pop the question to the other. They’re getting married at a winery near Ithaca, New York, in 2020. Emily is also excited to start Kellogg School of Management in Chicago this fall.
Bridget Shaia married Chris D’Angelo ’16 in October in her hometown of Richmond, Virginia, with many Dartmouth friends of all classes in attendance. Bridget and Chris first met at Dartmouth’s Aquinas House—the same building where Bridget’s parents met 35 years earlier. Bridget and Chris now live in Boston, where you can always find a pint of Morano gelato in their freezer.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

With photos from their five-year reunion flooding my Instagram feed, I talked to several ’14s about their time in Hanover while at a wedding I attended just a week after the festivities concluded. Though several cited an initial hesitation to answer the impending “What have you been up to since graduation?” question, each said they fell right back into place in Hanover with a feeling that little had changed. That feeling of home is something I look forward to feeling each time I drive across the Connecticut River to Hanover. As we get closer to June 2020, I eagerly look forward to our own reunion and the class of 2015 falling back into place.

In the meantime, let these updates from our classmates remind you of the love and accomplishments the ’15s brought to campus in fall of 2011 and continue to share with the world.

Aaron Ellis and Autumn Brunelle are still residing in the tropics of Bloomington, Indiana. Aaron is currently writing his dissertation—the last step in his Ph.D. quest, and working as an academic adviser at Indiana University (IU). Yes, his dissertation is still on craft beer. Autumn hopped aboard the IU train and was recently accepted into the dual-degree master’s in public affairs and environmental science graduate program at the O’Neill School for fall 2020. She recently moved from working at a children’s science museum to working at IU in the environmental school. Autumn and Aaron are also expecting…a 1-year-old puppy named Ollie! Ollie has 3.5 paws, has curly, velvet fur, and loves visitors, so if anyone is desperate to visit Indiana, their home (which is dubbed Chateau BrunEllis) is open!

After her eighth year in Hanover, Grace Sollender graduated from the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth in June. She matched in urology at UCLA and has since moved to Los Angeles, where she will be for the next six years.

Alexa Dixon got married to Alex Welton ’14 in Alexa’s hometown of Islamorada, Florida. They had an amazing celebration on the beach with many close Dartmouth friends in attendance (including bridesmaids Janelle Bullock and Cody Nilsen). The two have been living in Austin, Texas, since graduation and love it!

Julia Kanaam completed her M.Ed. at Harvard, specifically in the arts and education program. She married Devin McManus June 22 in Mystic, Connecticut.

Julia Weber and Shelby Shrier saw Elizabeth Warren at a restaurant in Somerville, Massachusetts, and snuck over to say hello. She offered to take a picture with them and they gladly obliged!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Class Notes this month are full of happy engagements and exciting accomplishments. Thank you to all who shared their news for this issue!

From playing pong in onesies and dancing on tables at pop-punk to new adventures in California with their dogs Zeus and Zoe, Brett Szalapski and Kirsten Seagers have been together for four and a half years. Brett proposed to Kirsten at their favorite winery in Napa, California, and they look forward to celebrating with many friends and family from Dartmouth.

Leandra “Lee” Pilar Barrett happily shared that she recently got engaged to Estela Diaz, Princeton ’14! Estela popped the question with the help of Lee’s favorite band, the all-women’s mariachi group Flor de Toloache. Though both had participated in Ivy-Q, Mellon Mays undergraduate fellowships, and Ivy-Latinx organizing, Lee and Estela did not meet until they were both sent to Texas for an inter-Ivy recruitment trip while both worked as admissions officers for their respective alma maters. The two now live in New York City, where Estela is a doctoral candidate in sociology at Columbia University and Lee is a doctoral student in American studies at New York University.

Blake Osborn and Wills Russell met in a fraternity basement at Dartmouth and got engaged on March 15 in Big Sur, California. Wills proposed during a hike on top of a mountain. They both live in San Francisco and are excited about adopting their first dog and getting married in Austin, Texas, in 2020.

Sarah Byrne will be marrying Robin Overing ’16 in Woodstock, Vermont, this July.

Talia Shoshany and Josh Schoenbart ’16 met at a Friday night dinner at Chabad during winter 2014, when Talia was a junior and Josh was a sophomore. Naturally, they had their first date over Lou’s brunch, and they enjoyed the next year and a half at Dartmouth together. They currently live together in Boston and got engaged in December while on a trip to Paris and London. They will be getting married next summer.

Katelyn Wong will be graduating from medical school at the University of Connecticut in May and will be starting a pediatrics residency at Yale in June.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Despite a legitimate offer to write a haiku about anyone who sent me news for this issue, we are light on updates. On second thought, perhaps that offer was instead a disincentive. Let me know!

The news that we do have is quite lovely; thank you for sharing, Lily!

Lily Bowdler and her husband, Jonathan Bowdler, welcomed a baby daughter in December. The three live in Seattle, where Lily works at Igneous and Jonathan is getting his Ph.D. in history at the University of Washington.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Traditions, updates, and engagements in this issue of our Class Notes! Last issue I asked for contributions of Dartmouth traditions you hold dear or personal traditions with classmates that have endured since graduation.

Back in 2013 Adam Schneider attended lodge prom, which happens every year during Sophomore Summer at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge. This October he attended the alumni version, known colloquially as “sketchy alumni lodge prom” as a continuation of a tradition in which lots of young alumni show up and celebrate.

Aditi Kirtikar and Alexandra Johnson have created a tradition of getting out of New York City for a fall foliage hike every year around the time of Dartmouth Homecoming.

We also have several exciting updates from classmates this issue.

Jordan Ann Craig is a Northern Cheyenne artist based in Oakland, California. As a painter and printmaker, she creates intricate patterns, peculiar geometries, and unique artist books. She draws inspiration from indigenous textiles and pottery, aboriginal paintings, and landscapes. Craig studied studio art and psychology at Dartmouth and graduated with high honors in 2015. After graduating Craig was invited back to Dartmouth’s studio art department as a special instructor for one academic year. She continues her art practice by participating in residency and fellowship programs, giving artist talks, and exhibiting her work nationally and internationally. In 2017 Craig was awarded the H. Allen Brook traveling fellowship to complete artist residencies in communal print shops across Europe. Moreover, she has done artist residencies at Kala Art Institute, Cork Printmakers, AGA Lab, Scuola Internazionale di Grafica Venezia, and the School for Advanced Research (SAR). As the 2018 Eric and Barbara Dobkin Fellow at SAR, Craig studied Southwestern Native American pottery, and produced 12 large paintings examining and re-contextualizing Pueblo pottery design. She has been recently interviewed by The Santa Fe New Mexican, SAR Now, and The Native America Calling Podcast. Her current artist residency brings her to London, where she is textile printing at East London Printmakers. (Read more about her on page 61.)

Nick Joung and Jill Corcoran got engaged December 14 on the water in the North End of Boston. “Currently living in San Francisco, we are so excited to spend the rest of our lives together!” they write. Matthew Ross and Laura Hechtman spent time skiing in New Hampshire during the winter holidays. Their trip included a stop in Hanover, where they got engaged at the spot where they shared their first kiss over Sophomore Summer.

Emily Leede and Marty Gatens started dating at Dartmouth and then spent time in New York City working and living with fellow Dartmouth graduates. They currently both live in Austin, Texas, where Marty attends law school and Emily attends medical school. The two had planned a Dartmouth reunion trip to Thailand with Anka Tezcan and Nish Ravichandran during which Marty proposed to Emily and she said yes!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Despite the Post-It note on my desk at work reminding me in bright pink marker “DAM content,” I’ve been a neglectful solicitor of class updates for this issue. The key outcome of that note was my boss’s boss coming by my desk and saying, “What did the content ever do to you?” My sincerest apologies.

In the time since I drafted the last edition of our Class Notes, news has come out that the Canoe Club will be closing. Students are forbidden from running more than one lap around the bonfire at Homecoming. Joseph Asch ’79, known for his commentary on the College through the website Dartblog, passed away at age 60. Dartmouth hired the first female Division I college football assistant coach. As they say, the only constant is change. Lest the old traditions fail.

On the note of traditions, in this issue we celebrate Dartmouth’s 250th anniversary. Since the celebration has been stretched to well over a year, it feels we will not be too out of line in doing a bit of reflection for the next issue. I received such wonderful thoughts from classmates when we used this space to share memories of time spent at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge and I would love to hear from you again.

In the spirit of celebrating 250 years of the College on the Hill, please share with us a Dartmouth tradition you hold dear or a personal tradition with classmates that has endured since graduation.

In the meantime, as an update on our classmates, Marina Plesons and Amanda Zieselman have continued work on their global health nonprofit, Health Advocacy Innovations, founded while at Dartmouth. Recently they received a major grant from TB Reach, a project of the UN, to support their efforts to improve treatment for children with tuberculosis.

Two people have recently reached out to me about columns they have read here, and I am grateful to them for checking in on our class when they receive the alumni magazine. To both of you, and anyone who flips to our column, what are you up to? Please send your updates, thoughts, themes, or suggestions to 15classupdates@gmail.com.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

As I put together this issue’s column, summer is coming to a close. I hope that each of you had a wonderful few months and that you are looking forward to autumn. Below are a few updates from our classmates. Thank you to those of you who sent in updates, and a heartfelt thank you to everyone who takes the time to read this column.

Evan Landau writes, “I recently published an article called ‘Finding New Meaning in a Career Using the Same Old Tools of the Trade’ about my time interviewing individuals experiencing homelessness in N.Y.C. for a research project. I relate my experience and background in qualitative research to anyone with a career who wants to branch out and do something more purposeful with their professional skills.” The article can be found on Medium.

Logan Briggs ’16, now a medical school student at Harvard, writes, “The HMS Docs Who Lift is a team composed of four, first-year Harvard Medical School students and a Reebok employee (coming from Dartmouth, Harvard, Yale, and Augustana University). We aim to promote well-being, fitness (including, but not limited to lifting weights), and healthy lifestyles across Boston, all while raising money for cancer care and research. We see the Pan-Mass Challenge as an incredible opportunity to live out our passion of a healthy lifestyle and encourage others to do the same while also bringing awareness and fundraising to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and its mission of ‘providing adults and children with cancer with the best treatment available today while developing tomorrow’s cures through cutting-edge research.’

“Accordingly, we have partnered with the Zakim Center at DFCI, a department providing cancer care and pursuing research specifically concerning integrative therapies and healthy living, to further our mission. In setting out to accomplish these goals, our first objective was to demonstrate our commitment to fitness and active lifestyle—and to infuse some fun into our training. We accomplished just that with our official ‘training’ video.

“We have now moved on to spreading our message throughout the Boston medical community in fun and creative ways. Two prominent examples include recruiting 20 Harvard Medical students into a Spartan Race this June and recruiting medical students from Harvard, BU, and Tufts as well as residents and physicians from Boston hospitals to join us in a triathlon.

“Thirty-one members of the HMS Docs Who Lift competed in the Harvest Triathlon. One other Dartmouth grad, Andrew Wong, now studying physics at Harvard, competed with us as well.

“With this triathlon, aside from getting 31 of our peers out and active, we raised more than $600, which put us at a total of almost $22,000 out of our $25,000 fundraising goal for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. It was an awesome event, and I was blown away at how well we did as a team (especially since it was most people’s first triathlon). It was also really inspiring to see one of our teammates, a combat-injured Army vet who lost his legs, and his relay win their division.”

If you’re interested in guest-authoring a column, please let me know! I would love to have some fresh ’15s featured in this space.

As always, please send any column ideas, thoughts, or updates to 15classupdates@gmail.com.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

In College news of late, South House professor and sociology department chair Kathryn Lively is serving as interim dean of the College.

Psychological and brain sciences professor Paul Whalen has resigned from the College, effective immediately, following an investigation of sexual misconduct allegations. Professor Bill Kelley, also of the psychological and brain sciences department, remains under review for similar allegations.

For lighter news, I read the Mirror for “research,” and they are still talking about the long lines at King Arthur Flour, the Dartmouth X, and academic rigor. I’m not sure if this should make you feel young or make you feel sad, but I just thought you should know.

In classmate news, Meghan Hassett moved to Chicago and started a new role as campaign manager for a first-time female candidate running for Illinois State Senate! She’s thrilled to be playing her part in the 2018 midterms. Since starting, she’s met Anne Stava-Murray ’08, who is running for state representative in an overlapping district, and Sean Casten, a congressional candidate in one of the most competitive districts and a Thayer ’98!

I will soon start a new job in Los Angeles, so, as my Uber driver from LAX said, “Welcome to hell town.”

In all seriousness though, let me know if you’re in the L.A. area.

Please email 15classupdates@gmail.com with news, updates, or column ideas, and let me know if you’d like to write a guest column!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

With no updates from our classmates this column, President Phil Hanlon swept in with some perfect timing. The day before this column was due, he announced the Call to Lead campaign with a dramatic email buildup that you likely received.

At my office Friday afternoon I hypothesized with a few alumni colleagues about what the announcement could be. In reality it was much more straightforward than our far-flung ideas of what Phil had up his sleeve—perhaps they had maxed out on academic rigor once we left? The initiative is more aligned with the regular to-dos of a college, with a big financial goal fit for alumni who pride themselves on bleeding green.

To quote Phil, “The Call to Lead gets to the very core of our purpose: to offer students a life-changing model of education where they learn from leading scholars, to support faculty who are conducting research that expands human knowledge, and to immerse our students in a vibrant environment that develops their mind and character and prepares them to be tomorrow’s leaders.” This initiative coincides with Dartmouth’s 250th year, and the community has been busy fundraising, having met almost half of the proclaimed goal of $3 billion.

To get involved, learn more, or see if you took classes with any of the professors who are featured in the 45-second video, visit www.calltolead.dartmouth.edu.

Happy almost-250th anniversary friends!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

After receiving such meaningful responses for the last column about the importance of the Ravine Lodge in the lives of students across classes, I have the privilege to share more stories in this space. Thank you to those who took the time to put their memories into words.

“There’s no denying that the lodge reconstruction process was a painful one for many of us. You know a place is special when so many people in the community feel the life in the building itself. I have a lot of faith in the community to continue fostering a space where people will truly find a sense of place, form relationships that last a lifetime and maybe even learn something deep about their own nature. But it is worth acknowledging that though we gained a beautiful new building and the community remains strong, we did sustain a loss. My hope is that as we all learn to love the new lodge, we remember that there was something unique and powerful in those old spruce logs,” says Carly Wynn.

“For me, the lodge was all about taking a little hiatus from the day-to-day and enjoying some time either with close friends or getting to meet new people. Its welcoming, open and friendly culture was contagious. I’ll also remember hoping the lodge floor wouldn’t cave in from people breaking it down too hard on the dance floor,” says Matt Stanton.

There is a strong history of trail and lodge “Croo” pranking each other, sometimes worse than others. We came back from Croo day to discover that trail Croo had covered the entirety of Croo quarters, even up to the loft, with cups of water. Lodge Croo (a few summers later, in retaliation to a different prank) moved the entire front room of McKinney cabin outdoors, complete with a screen door tied to a tree.

The kitchen porch of the old lodge was a magical place to watch weather. The most spectacular thunderstorms took place around Moosilauke or would vanish into fog. There were beautiful sunsets on autumn leaves. It’s one of the few public places that people would actively stop to admire and comment on the weather for more than small talk.

At one point during the 2014 freshman trips, the power went totally out just before the dinner show. There was no water or electricity. Scrambling for solutions, the Croo discovered that we had members who could play piano and guitar. The entire show was put on a cappella, and we used the gas oven to turn out hot food. The lodge has a wonderful way of bringing out the talent and resourcefulness of the people there.

“The lodge is my favorite place in the world, and my true home at Dartmouth. I’m grateful for the people and experiences (silly and serious) that it brings together!” says Anna Miller ’16.

Finally, in classmate news, Marc Sasso recently got engaged to Andrea Del Conte, a 2015 Harvard graduate.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

In the last issue of the DAM I asked our class to share memories of the Ravine Lodge in light of the new lodge being completed. The lodge is near and dear to so many, and each person had many memories to share. As such, keep an eye out for more stories in the next issue and send me anything that you would like to add! Thank you to everyone who contributed their stories. “Dear Lodge, thank you for all the waterworks. At your hearth is where I fought back tears of both joy and sadness as I addressed my final section of trippees. You witnessed me ugly-cry many tears of pride and gratitude as I thanked my amazing trips volunteers one last time. During my last weeks at Dartmouth I snuck a few tears of love as I sat on your porch holding my best friend’s hand under the light of a full moon. And on your 75th birthday I was moved to tears by the stories that illustrated the spiritual connection that humans can have to a place. Dear Lodge, you make me cry in the best of ways, and I’m excited to stain your shiny new floors with many more of my salty tears,” Peety Kaur.

“After four years of studying, researching, interning and traveling as an undergrad, I graduated from Dartmouth and drove up to Moosilauke for the first day of summer lodge crew. I signed on to work at the lodge because I wanted to be present, to be patient, to be peaceful—at least for a summer. I wanted to spend just a few months focusing on beautiful, tangible, practical and nourishing work. Well, the lodge is not always peaceful, as I soon learned. That summer I baked hundreds of loaves of bread. I helped rescue a hummingbird from the lodge kitchen. I vacuumed cobwebs off the antlers of a taxidermied moose. I played piano on quiet afternoons while guests drank hot cocoa by the fire. I plunged into the freezing water of the Baker River after long nights spent washing hundreds of dishes. I drank coffee with strangers at 6 in the morning, listening to their memories of the lodge and the mountain. I heard about falling in love, raising children, elaborate pranks, lifelong friendships, with the mountain and the lodge as the backdrop for every story. Moosilauke is thousands of miles away now, and the majestic, crumbling lodge that I called home for a summer has been replaced by something safer and sturdier. But every so often, something brings me back to the old lodge for just a moment: a song, a sunrise, the smell of fresh baked bread. The memories will last as long as the mountain,” Claire Pendergrast.

“One of my favorite lodge memories was during Lodgeween, when it was freezing cold outside and we threw a huge costume party inside, dancing and singing on top of the fireplace mantle until I could barely stand or speak. Another was the food fight I started at 15X lodge prom when I threw a dessert pie in a friend’s face,” Adam Schneider.

In College news 2,270 students applied for early decision admission to the class of 2022, setting a new record number of applicants, 13.5 percent higher than last year. On December 14, 565 students were admitted. According to The Dartmouth, 13 percent of early-decision admits will be the first in their families to attend college, 10 percent are international students and 33 percent are students of color. In classmate news Kelsey Stimson and Sasha Dudding are currently attending Yale Law School.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

In October I was fortunate enough to go up to Warren, New Hampshire, for the new Moosilauke Ravine Lodge dedication. I found myself a bit nervous walking up the dirt road to the entrance. There was something about the rush of memories—from the dancing and singing of trips to the calm of stepping into the lodge on a cold evening for a warm meal—and the feeling that they might disappear more quickly now that the lodge was no longer the same. But I stepped down the new path to the entrance and saw friends that I hadn’t planned to see who yelled up to me from below. I saw alumni of all ages sharing in this special moment in this truly special place. I saw that Green Eggs and Ham still had a spot hanging on the wall.

I realized that it may not be the lodge that we saw when we arrived tired and dirty after a few days in the woods. It may not be the lodge where years of Lodj Croos cooked industrial-size lasagna and got shin splits jumping off the fireplace while singing to freshmen. It may not be the same lodge where students spent beautiful, thoughtful terms living and working every day, taking care of the property and serving wonderful food to guests from near and far. And it may not have the same toilets we had to plunge 10 times per day during trips. But I believe that the lodge will forever embody the spirit of Dartmouth, no matter how nice the kitchen is. It will always represent an escape, a place to re-center, recharge and go back into the world reminded of the beauty of nature and the soul-warming taste of a handmade loaf of warm bread.

What I realized most was that I’d love to hear your memories from the lodge. Please send me any stories that you would like shared in this space, and I will be sure to include them in the next issue.

Below are a few updates from our classmates!

Caela Murphy started working at the Endeavor Foundation in New York.

Morgan Illikainen was named an assistant coach for the Dartmouth women’s hockey team. She previously spent a season as the hockey and lacrosse assistant at the Northwood School in Lake Placid, New York.

Jon Xu recently joined the Dartmouth investment office in Boston. Working with the small team managing the College’s endowment has been a tremendously rewarding experience thus far, and he’s looking forward to tackling the exciting new challenges ahead!

As always, please send any updates or topic suggestions my way!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Last week I was hiking in the White Mountains with two other alums and when we met up in the morning we realized that we had unintentionally all worn Dartmouth gear for the hike. Later in the day, when a large group stepped aside to let us pass on a tricky downhill, a man in the group turned and said, “This is the only time I’ve seen Dartmouth pass Princeton.” Comments such as these always strike me as hilarious and unnecessary. Since the day I went to Bed Bath & Beyond for dorm supplies six years ago, when I responded to the “So where do you go to school?” question with “Dartmouth,” I’m met with things such as, “That’s in Colorado right?” or the crowd favorite, “But it’s so cold there!” This phenomenon has come up in discussions with classmates and I wanted to use a bit of this space to provide some comic relief. Below are some of the responses we’ve gotten since we first decided that Hanover would be our home for four years.

“Where?”

“UMass Dartmouth?”

“Is that an Ivy?”

“I’ve heard of it.”

“That’s in Hanover right? Or should I say Hangover?”

“Bet you scored over 34 on your ACT.”

“That’s where Nate Archibald’s dad went!”

“Like Meredith Grey!”

“Is it really like Animal House?”

In College news, Big Green football will play Brown at Fenway Park in Boston on November 10. It is the first time the teams have played a football game against each other outside of their home fields since 1923. In classmate news, check out some updates from ’15s below!

Lindsay Ellis writes, “After a fellowship, I’ve accepted a permanent position at the Houston Chronicle covering higher education in Texas. I’d love to connect with alums in the area.”

Lily Albrecht writes, “I wanted to tell other ’15s that I’m living in Seattle, working for a tech startup called Igneous Systems and that we’re hiring and that I’m getting married this fall to Jonathan Bowdler, a non-Dartmouth grad who is working on a dissertation in American history.”

Alex Stockton writes, “I remember the first time I received the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. It was just after I’d been accepted to Dartmouth. In it there was an article about Rashaad Ernesto Green, a Dartmouth alum who directed a feature film that had just played at Sundance. I cut out that article and pasted it into my film journal. A lot of my friends were going to film school. I was nervous about going to a liberal arts school. This article inspired me and made me feel like I was making the right choice. Later on I met Rashaad and he became a mentor to me. And that film of his that the magazine profiled, when I watched it, it changed my life. I recently wrote and directed an independent feature film titled Transient, about an undocumented immigrant, deported from the only home he’s ever known, who risks everything to make it back over the border.”

Kimberly Strauch and Philip Larie traveled to Madras, Oregon, in August to view the total solar eclipse. Philip proposed under the shadow of the moon and Kimberly said yes before he could finish asking. The two are living together in San Francisco and are looking forward to the next big adventure.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

For this issue I asked our class to send in updates on behalf of their friends. As it turns out, we seem to be more willing to brag about our friends than about ourselves, and the process of gathering updates served as a great way to share information and take pride in our friends’ accomplishments, both large and small. Thanks so much to everyone who sent in updates for this issue!

Adam Schneider recently returned from a West Pacific naval deployment in the South China Sea and off the coast of Korea aboard the destroyer USS Michael Murphy as part of the Carl Vinson strike group.

Sasha Kahan is headed to Columbia Medical School this fall!

Aliza Green recently completed her first year of medical school at Mount Sinai and is researching medical systems in Uganda this summer.

Katie McCormack is working at Seeds of Peace camp in Maine this summer.

Sasha Dudding will be starting at Yale Law School this fall.

Joe Carey was recently promoted to first lieutenant in the Marines and took his first solo flight!

Teddy Bommarito is learning to sail this summer.

Matt Stanton will be starting a one-year premed program at Bryn Mawr College in September.

Holly Harper is starting medical school at Vanderbilt in July.

Kendall Kraus will be starting her second year of law school in San Diego.

Taylor Magnuson is beginning law school this fall in San Francisco.

Aditi Kirtikar, Taylor Malmsheimer and Alexandra Johnson finally moved into a New York City apartment with a couch.

Meghan Hassett recently moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to direct an environmental campaign office to fundraise and build support to secure 51 Senate votes against rollbacks of environmental protections! Her office raised more than $225,000 by the end of June—but the best part is that kayaking on the Huron is just like Ledyard!

Chelsea Mandel is working at New Mountain Capital, a middle-market, private equity firm in N.Y.C., helping start up the firm’s real estate fund.

Tay Luckadue got married!

Gabas Maldunas led his Spanish professional basketball team to a heartbreaking loss in the finals for the second year in a row.

Peety Kaur will be attending medical school at Vanderbilt next fall.

Ayesha Dholakia recently completed her first year of medical school at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Medicine.

Marina Plesons recently completed her master’s of public health at the University of Washington.

Stephanie Sa will be hiking Maroon Bells in Colorado this summer during her break from teaching middle school. Back at school she is starting a girls’ club called the Young Women’s Leadership Group to support female middle schoolers with everything from feminism to body image and is looking for ideas or resources that you think would be helpful!

Emily Kochman recently completed her master of fine arts in screenwriting at Boston University.

As always please send any and all comments, feedback, updates, news or topic suggestions to the 15classupdates@gmail.com and be sure to follow “D_Class_of_2015” on Instagram for deadline reminders and updates!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

In the spirit of recent political and social activism, I asked ’15s to send me their stories from “marching, talking and sharing ideas and dreams.” What I heard were stories of collaboration across years of alumni and participation of all shapes and sizes. Thanks so much to the ’15s who shared their stories for this issue.

Meghan Hassett spent six months before the election directing a nonpartisan voter registration office in Denver, where her office registered almost 18,000 new voters! In the week before the election she was knocking on doors in Charlotte, North Carolina, to get out the vote. Since then Meghan has been organizing with Environment Massachusetts around renewable energy and climate action. In February she was at the statehouse delivering a letter to Gov. Charlie Baker signed by a coalition she built about the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and getting interviewed by the local NPR station and local TV stations about it! She was also candidly photographed in Vanity Fair, HuffPo and The Intercept at the women’s march in D.C. In her words, “I guess you can say this election and its aftermath has kept me busy!”

Caela Murphy joined the hundreds of thousands of people who traveled to D.C. to attend the women’s march in support of the rights of all Americans, regardless of gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or citizenship status. She met up with fellow Dartmouth alumni there at a post-march meetup organized by Emily Fletcher ’13, and traveled back to New York with Una Lee, Maddie Abbott, Sarah Lund ’16 and Becca Burten ’16. Emily Fletcher writes of the meetup: “We had a great turnout of alums from across the decades. And U.S. Rep. Ann Kuster ’78 came—it was awesome to have a Dartmouth alumna in elected office show up and hang out with alumnae and current students.”

Still others participated in women’s marches in their own cities. In Boston Haley Shaw, Stephanie Sa, Sarah Morse and Emily Kochman marched with other ’15s in the city.

Outside of social activism ’15s have been busy achieving great things and beginning new adventures.

In January Sarah Hammer passed her Ph.D. general examination, earning a master’s and Ph.D. candidacy status in chemical and biological engineering at Princeton University. For (at least) the next three years she will be at Princeton conducting her dissertation research, focused on engineering yeast for the production of alternative fuels.

Our Dartmouth College Fund head agents Julia Weber, Maggie Fiertz, Shayn Jiang are launching a podcast for the class. Julia explains, “In 2017 our main project as head agents and members of the senior executive council will be to start a class of 2015 podcast. As ‘adults’ we thought it would be fun to have a 15-minute podcast once a month to hear what our classmates are doing or a brief catchup on the Big Green. We have laid the groundwork and will continue to get it going this quarter. If you have any ideas for podcast names or content or want to host a few, please let us know!”

Please send any stories, news, or updates you’d like to share in our Class Notes to 15classupdates@gmail.com or reach out to me directly via text, email or snail mail.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Since we’ve been gone Domino’s has become legitimate competition to EBA’s and students in Morton Hall left a charcoal grill unattended, causing a four-alarm fire and $4.2 million worth of damage, according to the Valley News. On the bright side, ’15s seem to be doing just fine. 

Valerie Zhao reports that Tobin Paxton recently joined Catalant, the startup where she works. Catalant is a tech startup in the Seaport area of Boston that matches Fortune 1000 companies with elite independent consulting talent. This addition brings the total count of Dartmouth ’15s up to three at an organization of approximately 110 employees. Dartmouth alumni account for more than 10 percent of the company!

Deby Buchness just got back from Mexico City, where she was working on the first Spanish production of Billy Elliot: The Musical. She was assisting the director and helping with both acting and translation. 

Health Advocacy Innovations, founded by Marina Plesons and Amanda Zieselman, was recently featured in Forbes for its work building a low-tech tool that aims to elevate human rights.

Jack Brown recently decided to move to San Francisco to take a role as an engineer at a biomedical firm!

Please continue to send any updates about yourself or friends my way or to 15classupdates@gmail.com and remember to follow our Class Notes Instagram at “d_class_of_2015.”

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

As I write this message on a rainy October evening I can’t help but think about the fact that when you’re reading this, it will be almost 2017. With the fresh start of a new year, I wanted to ask all of you to think about what you’d like out of this column. As our classmates continue to move across the globe, experience ever-changing roles at work and in their personal lives, I find value in continuing to keep a large portion of this space dedicated to their updates. However, I’d also like to push the limits of what we can do here and would love to hear what you have to say.

On that note we have updates and updates about updates for this month’s issue. In an effort to make sharing content easier than ever before, and with the goal of getting increased class contributions to this column, we’ve launched an Instagram. Follow us and tag your picture and memories at d_class_of_2015 and keep an eye out for column themes and chances to share your thoughts and updates. Additionally, we’ve got a brand-new email address for updates, so send anything you’d like shared to 15classupdates@gmail.com. Please don’t hesitate to send feedback on the topics or items you would like shared in our Class Notes.

As for updates from the rest of the class of 2015, here’s the latest on what our classmates have been up to!

Amanda Zieselman and Marina Plesons, co-founders of Health Advocacy Innovations, are preparing to launch their work in Peru, Pakistan and India to improve treatment for children with drug-resistant tuberculosis, in partnership with Partners in Health, Harvard Medical School and Operation ASHA. Their project on early child development, headed by Abby Reynolds ’17, is currently in use in Kenya alongside the work of the Kenya Pediatric Studies Team. Learn more about their projects and how you can support their mission at healthadvocacyinnovations.org.

Evan Griffith was recently promoted to manager of artists and repertoire and media strategy at Gramophone Media Inc., an artist development company based in N.Y.C. and L.A. In his work he is discovering and developing new artistic talent both locally and internationally.

Gabas Maldunas is currently playing for Quesos Cerrato Palencia in the Spanish basketball league, Liga Española de Baloncesto. Gabe Stauber highlights that Gabas has now exceeded 7 feet tall and claims that sets him up to take over as the tallest person to ever graduate Dartmouth.

As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any updates you would like included in this space or feedback about this column.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com
 

A few Saturdays ago I was in Boston on the T with some ’14s and ’15s and ran into a family with the dad sporting a Dartmouth hat. After we successfully conquered the “Dartmouth?” “Dartmouth!” interaction and fell into actual sentences, we chatted briefly about how they were just making their way back from Hanover that day. He then kindly asked us what we do in Boston—to which a reasonable response about our jobs or our lives would have done the trick—and a ’14 replied, “Well right now we’re just looking for some pong!” Among laughter, clarifications about us having actual lives most days of the week and a few suitable jokes we hopped off at our stop. And in hindsight the whole interaction seemed just about right. Elsewhere in the world, ’15s have been at it again accomplishing all sorts of things to make us proud!

John Howard will be starting at the University of Virginia School of Law this fall.

Evan Griffith recently accepted a position in artists and repertoire and artist development at Gramophone Media, a music company based in N.Y.C. He has partnered up with singer Daniel Calano (“Danny Cal”) and has since been producing his new music, music videos and live shows around the N.Y.C. area.

Mariah Claw is a contestant in the 70th annual Miss Navajo Nation Pageant. All pageant events took place in the capitol of the Navajo Nation, Window Rock, Arizona, in early September. The duties of Miss Navajo Nation include the ability to promote the preservation of Diné/Navajo language, culture and tradition, more specifically to advocate for the enduring qualities that identify Diné/Navajo woman as the foundation, strength and keeper of cultural teachings as established by White Shell Woman. This event is well known around the world and Mariah is excited to be carrying the spirit of the Big Green in her latest endeavor!

As always, send updates, thoughts and comments to me any time!

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., Apt. 711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Though I started off this column with the idea that I’d joke about the trials and tribulations of our first year post-graduation with examples of failures and entertaining anecdotes, I received a measly two responses (thanks, you two!). So everyone must really be on top of this whole living-in-the-real-world situation. Congratulations, ’15s!

And as always, check out the great things your classmates have been up to below.

Morgan Matthews will be starting a doctoral program in sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison this fall!

“It’s been a year since graduation and I’m still on the move! These days I’m living on Thompson Island in Boston Harbor and working as an instructor for Outward Bound. Outdoor education is a wild ride but it’s 100-percent worth it so far,” says Annie Fagan. Caela Murphy has been working as a Dartmouth Partners in Community Service fellow at a New York City nonprofit organization started by Heather Halstead ’97. The organization, Reach the World, “makes the benefits of travel accessible to classrooms, inspiring students to become curious, confident global citizens. Enabled by our digital platform, K-12 classrooms and volunteer travelers explore the world together.” This work is a great example of the incredible work that is achieved through Dartmouth’s strong alumni network.

Keep sharing your experiences, stories and news with me whenever you’d like and I’ll be sure to include them here! See you at Homecoming!

Samantha Webster, 11 Phillips St., #5, Boston, MA 02114; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

A milestone in this issue’s Class Notes, with our first engagement announcements in this space—congratulations to these and any other ’15s with big news this summer. Many thanks to all of the ’15s who sent me updates for this edition’s Class Notes—keep sending news and information my way!

Fako Perez and Alex Rubin got engaged in February and have picked July 2017 for their wedding.

Monica Wagdalt got engaged to Mitch Gil this April.

Oncolinx, a life sciences startup cofounded by Riley Ennis and Sourav Sinha ’12, has been selected among 42 teams to compete for more than $1 million in the 16th annual Rice business plan competition. The startup is working on developing targeted cancer therapeutics that destroy only cancer cells, rather than healthy cells, in order to avoid some of the side effects caused by traditional chemotherapy.

Nick Lombardi won baseball’s Kerry Lehane Award Gold Glove award in the Australian State League. He also achieved sixth place in the Neville Pratt Medal for State League MVP.

Valerie Zhao left her banking job in April to work at a startup in Boston called HourlyNerd, where she will be working on a team with fellow ’15 Jack Pinto.

Alex Procton will be attending Columbia in the fall for a master’s in conservation biology.

Feminist Felines, a children’s book written and illustrated by Tash Bock, is now available on Barnesandnoble.com, and a Kickstarter for the book is launching soon.

Have an excellent summer ’15s and, as always, please reach out with any feedback, questions or information about this column.

Samantha Webster, 11 Phillips St., #5, Boston, MA 02114; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

If my group text is any indication, as we approach the one-year mark of alumni-dom, we’ve started throwing around “back when we were freshmen” a whole lot. With talk like that comes a lot of classic catch-all responses, such as the reliable “nobody rages anymore” or the indispensable “things are worse than ever.” And while I couldn’t agree more in most cases, I think it would be helpful to break down some of the recent and not-so-recent Dartmouth changes by the numbers.

During our four years at the College, one badass alum spoke at graduation (we love you Shonda), one house was de-recognized (Alpha Delta, that “live free or go to Dartmouth” sign was top-notch), $2 margaritas at Molly’s were bumped up to $3 margaritas. Speaking of three—R.I.P. 3 Guys, we miss those fried pickles and “tiny-ass muffins”; ’14s, you got out just in time. And on the topic of threes, the presidential power changed just as many times, but who’s counting? And since we’ve left one new fence has been constructed outside of Collis—goodbye, rebellion in the form of jaywalking. One fraternity has been de-recognized (so long Sigma Alpha Epsilon, I remember the days of being indignant about that Rolling Stone article with my freshman floor during fall 2011), two days of Saturday fall term classes have been scheduled, three terms of suspension have been doled out to the Tabard, $4 million has been spent on professor houses for residential communities in the new housing initiative set out by Hanlon.

More updates? More changes? Personal achievements? Personal failure? Anything you want published here, just send my way any time! Keep living the dream ’15s, and don’t forget—nobody rages anymore.

Samantha Webster, 665 Washington St., #711, Boston, MA 02111; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

For this issue of Dartmouth Alumni Magazine we were tasked with thinking about some of our favorite things about Dartmouth. Less than one year since graduation some things are still fresh in our minds and others haven’t yet been romanticized by nostalgia.

Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about trips. While there are those who weren’t fond of dancing with strangers or eating freeze-dried refried beans, there are many who hold trips dear in their hearts, and I for one believe that it is one of the most incredible experiences that Dartmouth offers. To me nothing else demonstrates the awe-inspiring things that a group of hard-working, caring and fun-loving Dartmouth students can achieve—and the potential their work has to impact an entire incoming class of students. I miss with all my heart the dewy mornings on Moosilauke and the flair-filled days of dancing.

Thank you to all of the ’15s who took the time to reflect on some of the things they love most about Dartmouth. Yesuto Shaw: “I love how close the Dartmouth alumni community is. I was worried about not knowing anybody when moving to a new city, but the Dartmouth alumni community in Washington, D.C., quickly came through and I easily became friends with many other ’15s and ’14s in town just because of our Dartmouth connection. I hope this remains true for years to come!

“I loved that everyone and everything you need is just a quick walk away. 

“I loved getting to learn from and form relationships with so many great professors.

“At Dartmouth I met my favorite person on the planet and I will always be grateful for meeting him my first day of campus.

“I loved being able to walk and run on trails every day.”

Alec Ring:“There’s no feeling like a Friday afternoon in Hanover, when you could put off your true priorities for at least 24 hours, and you lived within five minutes of the coolest, most interesting and most fun people certainly I had ever met. It is surely a thrill that breeds some unique shenanigans, conversations, and memories. Damn.

“Dartmouth has been like a second home for me, and the community of people, a second family.

“I love Dartmouth because of the community. It really does feel like home the second you walk onto campus. The friends I made will be my friends for life.”

George Sy:“Some of my favorite things include dancing with my fellow Shebans, playing pong with America’s future leaders, a cappella performances, all-nighters at Novak, spontaneous Lou’s challenges, the Green Key step show and Cutter Shabazz dance parties. The social scene was awesome and accessible, but what I loved was being able to hang out and dance with interesting, diverse and intelligent young people.

“I loved how coming back to campus for Homecoming really felt like coming home.”

And as usual, ’15s far and wide have been doing incredible things.

In September Nathaniel Schmucker and Abby Thornburg Schmucker got married near Hanover. They enjoyed sharing their celebration with lots of Dartmouth friends and community members on the beautiful early fall day. They are now living and working in New York City. 

Mark Funk has been working on a squash documentary that focuses on the squash movement conceived in Boston in 1996 that has since spread to four continents. Mark and his director spent 10 weeks filming in Harlem this fall before moving to L.A. to seek distribution. They began another two-month shoot in January that will take them from New York City to Boston and then to Cartagena and Bogota. The film is being funded solely by donations, and if you are interested in donating please contact Mark at mark.funk@archimediafilms.com.

Carly Carlin and Salman Rajput ’14 designed a tool using Dartmouth research to help you eat better. It breaks your large health goals into small, personalized steps you can take over time. The app just launched and can be found at simplestepsapp.com.

Adam Schneider begins Navy officer candidate school in February. He will be stationed in Newport, Rhode Island, for the 12-week school and then will be assigned to a ship.

Samantha Webster, 11 Phillips St., #5, Boston, MA 02114; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Happy winter, ’15s! It was great to see so many of you at Homecoming a few weeks ago, jumping right back into coffee lines at Dirt, drinks at Murphy’s and chance encounters with old friends on Webster Avenue. I’d also like to point out that it rained at the bonfire the year before and the year after our time in Hanover. Coincidence? I think not. Merely months after graduation so many of you are doing incredible things, and I’m excited to have the opportunity to share them here. Continue to send me anything you’d like published in this space, and keep up the inspiring things you’ve been doing.

Since August Cameron Hunter has been taking part in the Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs in Pittsburgh. During his fellowship he has been working with community development corporations to strengthen youth programs throughout the greater Pittsburgh area.

Valerie Orellana is volunteering in Cusco, Peru, and has crazily run into the Dartmouth advanced language study abroad people and an ’00 at Machu Picchu. “We find each other all over the world!” she says.

Tasha Bock wrote and illustrated Feminist Felines, a book for equal-rights advocates, cat lovers and pun aficionados, both young and old. For more information, check out her site at FeministFelines.com.

Team Friendsy, including ’15s Tasha Wilkins and Dylan Sewell, is launching a new chatroom app this week called Flock. The app will be listed in the App Store as Flock—Chatrooms.

Amanda Zieselman and Marina Plesons founded the global health equity nonprofit, Health Advocacy Innovations (www.healthadvocacyinnovations.org). Their current project is a system to improve pediatric tuberculosis treatment. Currently, doctors must cut each individual pill by hand, as there are no child-friendly drugs available. Health Advocacy Innovations is designing a device to more accurately and efficiently dispense medication and is partnering with the Rwandan Ministry of Health to pilot the system in Kigali. Health Advocacy Innovations is also working with professionals at Dartmouth, Goodwin Procter, Partners in Health, USAID, the Sentinel Project and Children’s Mercy Hospital.

Daniel Calano is pursuing a music career in New York City in production, events and consulting, as well as performing. Check out his single with ’15 producer Evan Griffith and keep an eye out for an EP coming soon!

Samantha Webster, 11 Phillips St., #5, Boston, MA 02114; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Congratulations, ’15s! Welcome to life as alumni. If I learned anything from being in Hanover during reunions this year it’s this: If the ’10s’ ability to party is any indication, we should have no worries about the gravity of life in “the real world”; and we’ll be back to Hanover in no time—this isn’t even close to the end. Until then however it’s my job as class secretary to keep all of you updated on the brilliant, exciting and cool things that our classmates are doing all over the place.

If you have any leads on what your friends are up to or have anything at all to share about yourself, blitz me, Facebook message me or send me a letter—seriously, anytime—and I’ll be sure to include it in the next class notes!

Additionally, we’ll be blitzing out more information and a sign-up link for the ’05-’15 mentoring program. Its pilot program was implemented last summer and was a huge success. This year the full-fledged version will be expanded to include mentors in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

Many thanks to the ’15s who provided updates for this, our very first Class Notes. Keep ’em coming! Here’s what some of our friends have been up to.

Dylan Sewell and Tasha Wilkins are working for Friendsy this summer. Tasha is the new leading user-experience and user-interface designer and Dylan is the lead iOS developer. They’re working on new features and expanding their network.

Karampreet Kaur is directing DOC first-year trips this summer and will be doing clinical research at the Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New York starting in October. Matt Ritter, John Conley, Stephen Malina, Andrew Lindner and Kevin Francfort are traveling through northern Europe, hitting Iceland, Copenhagen, Berlin and Prague.

Chris Gallerani and Emma Orme are acting apprentices at the Williamstown Theatre Festival this summer at Williams College. Chelsea Mandel will be starting work at Starwood Capital group, a real estate private equity firm in Greenwich, Connecticut. Gillian O’Connell is living in Crested Butte, Colorado, for the summer hiking and working and hiking some more, then moving to N.Y.C. in September! Ashley Ulrich spent a few days this summer hiking in the Dolomites in Italy.

Michael Blum was named the “Rising Star Guitarist” by DownBeat Magazine in its 63rd annual critics poll. He recently released his second album and vocal debut, Commitment, which features Dartmouth professor Fred Haas on saxophone.

Samantha Webster, 11 Phillips St., #5, Boston, MA 02114; (484) 356-3678; samwweb15@gmail.com

Portfolio

Alumni Books
New titles from Dartmouth writers (November/December 2023)
Fresh Takes
Blogger Ray Padgett ’09 covers the covers.
The Secret Life of the Brain

Michael Gazzaniga ’61 divulges the inner workings of the human mind. 

Gail Koziara Boudreaux ’82
A CEO on the state of the nation’s healthcare

Recent Issues

March - April 2024

March - April 2024

January-February 2024

January-February 2024

November-December 2023

November-December 2023

September-October 2023

September-October 2023

July-August 2023

July-August 2023

May-June 2023

May-June 2023