A New “Lost” Adventure

Kalamazoo College Alumna Laura Livingston-McNellisOne great outcome of the K-Plan is an aptitude for adventure–one that lasts a lifetime, with a concomitant fearlessness of failure. Take Laura Livingstone-McNelis, class of 1989. The English major, theatre arts minor, LandSea participant (who studied abroad in the United Kingdom) has taught in the public schools, owned and administered a bed & breakfast business and, for the past four years, served as the company manager for the College’s Department of Theatre Arts and Festival Playhouse Productions. Next month you can add to that résumé the title: Playwright.

Laura’s one-act play, “Lost in the Shuffle,” has been accepted by and will be performed during the Seventh Annual New Play Festival at the Epic Center in downtown Kalamazoo. Her play will stage on Saturday, February 4, at 2 p.m.

Laura cites three reasons for her adventure into playwrighting.

“I was intrigued by the New Play Festival’s call for plays and thought, ‘Why not try?'” she says. Actually, the genesis of “Lost” dates back several months before that call. As a member of the Lake Effect Writers Guild, Laura remembers a particular meeting the previous winter. “The assignment was to write something with a ‘bit of dialogue.’ I thought, ‘Here’s my chance,’ and began the first draft of ‘Lost’ in January 2016.” So the metamorphosis of “Here’s my chance!” to “Why not try?” constitutes one of three motives driving our nascent playwright.

The second had to do with the seminal event that inspired the play. Laura explains: “The play is about Alzheimer’s disease and its effect on the patient and the family, especially family caregivers. My stepfather eventually died of the disease. I recall during a visit to my mom and stepfather’s house finding in a desk a box with a harmonica. I was familiar with the harmonica because years earlier my kids had given it to my mom and inscribed on the box ‘Grandma.’ But when I saw the box that day the word ‘Grandma’ had been carefully crossed out, and in the painstaking handwriting of my stepfather was  written instead the word ‘harmonica.’

“Often you cannot see the devastation of Alzheimer’s until its late stages. Those early effects can be hidden. And yet already the disease had stolen from his mind–at least intermittently–the concept of possession. In his mind, the box did not contain a grandma; it contained a harmonica, so he fixed it.”

The hiddenness and drama of that discovery in the desk relates to the third reason Laura wrote her play. “Theatre is a community of inclusion, able to inspire empathy and be an agent for change,” she says. “Theatre brings light to issues hidden beneath our inattentiveness, and the effects of Alzheimer’s disease require more light,” she adds.

Her script development continues through the rehearsal process and in collaboration with the play’s director and actors. “I’ve done five rewrites during rehearsals,” says Laura, “and learned a great deal in the revisions.” In her play, Laura is writing movement as much as dialogue. For example, her staging of “shuffling” acquires multiple layers of meaning in this poignant work, as much poem as performance. Launching an adventure takes teamwork, and Laura is deeply grateful to the producers of the New Play Festival, Kevin Dodd and Steve Feffer, for providing the opportunity for playwrights like her to develop their work. Ed Menta has served as her mentor since her college days. “And my family and friends have enthusiastically encouraged my writing,” she adds.

“Lost” may be just the beginning of her writing career. “I have things to say,” she smiles, “and I’m no longer too intimidated to try.” She’s at work on a family book about the power of love. “It’s meant to be read by parents to children, and it focuses on the extraordinary relationship between my mom and my daughter.” The working title is “A Kiss Across the Miles.”

Who knows, though, its genre may morph to a play. As might her second work-in-progress, a memoir based on a nightly diary Laura has kept for 41 years (seriously!)…every night, with no more than a couple dozen exceptions, since she was NINE YEARS OLD.

“I don’t have a working title for the memoir,” says Laura. “It’s shaping into the arc of a young woman growing up with a set of expectations and then having to manage a life direction that diverges quite radically from those expectations.”

Add to this oeuvre a second version of “Lost.” February’s performance (version one) takes about 12 minutes. Laura will expand that to a one-act play of standard length (40 to 45 minutes). Who knows, maybe one day she’ll make it a full-length play.

In the meantime, Rave on, Laura. And thank you for the courage.

Dean’s List Fall 2016

Congratulations to the following Kalamazoo College students, who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or better for a full-time course load of at least three units, without failing or withdrawing from any course, during the Fall 2016 academic term. Students who elect to take a letter-graded course on a credit/no credit basis (CR/NC) are not eligible for Dean’s List consideration during that term. Nor are students who receive an F, NC or W grade for that particular term. Students with incomplete (I) or in-progress (IP) grades will be considered for Dean’s List upon receipt of the final grades. Dean’s List recognition is posted on students’ transcripts. Kudos to the entire group of more than 300 students, and good luck in Winter Term, 2017.

Fall 2016

A  B   C  D  E  F   G   H   I   J  K   L   M  N   O  P   Q  R   S   T   U   V  W   X   Y   Z

A

Azra Ahmad
Bekhzod Akilov
Michelle Alba
Georgie Andrews
Ryan Andrusz
Grant Anger
Hunter Angileri
Jill Antonishen
Mary Beth Arendash
Jacqueline Arroyo
Taylor Ashby
Meredith Ashton
Max Aulbach
Juan Avila

B

Jo Babcock
Sonal Bahl
Benjamin Baldwin
Garrett Barkume
Cameron Bays
Ethan Beattie
Logan Beck
Dylan Beight
Matt Benedettini
Chris Benedict
Kate Bennett
Erin Bensinger
Brigette Berke
Madelyn Betts
Kevin Bhimani
Riya Bhuyan
Daniel Bidwell
Maribel Blas-Rangel
Vanessa Boddy
Sean Bogue
Jake Bonifacio
Georgie Booker
Kennedy Boulton
Emily Boyle
Amelia Brave
Maxine Brown
Molly Brueger
Matthew Burczyk
Mary Burnett
Thaddeus Buttrey
Shanice Buys

C

Kefu Cao
Shannon Carley
Owen Carroll
Charlie Carson
Kebra Cassells
Marissa Castellana
James Castleberry
Sharmeen Chauhdry
Chido Chigwedere
Tapiwa Chikungwa
Emiline Chipman
Youngjoon Cho
Lakshya Choudhary
Iffat Chowdhury
Yoensuk Chung
Chris Coburn
Paige Coffing
Stefan Coleman
Cody Colvin
Carmen Compton
Anthony Convertino
Valentina Cordero
Gaby Cordova
Amanda Crouch
Conall Curran
Peter Czajkowski

D

Mansi Dahal
Addie Dancer
Christina Dandar
Elan Dantus
Nesma Daoud
Mason Darling
Bonnie Darrah
Amelia Davis
Robert Davis
Steven Davis
Ximena Davis
Zoe Davis
Fabien Debies
Joshua DeGraff
Anthony Diep
Cecilia DiFranco
Amelia Donohoe
Nathan Donovan
Anna Dorniak
Tuan Do
Libby Dulski
Trisha Dunham

E

Cameron Earls
Daniel Eberhart
Emma Eisenbeis
Tiffany Ellis
Melissa Erikson
McKinzie Ervin
Amanda Esler
Ihechi Ezuruonye

F

Alex Fairhall
Mario Ferrini
Anders Finholt
Matthew Flotemersch
Steven Fotieo
Rachel Frank
Valentin Frank
Ian Freshwater
Maria Fujii
Lydia Fyie

G

Amanda Gardner
Brett Garwood
Cory Gensterblum
Bill Georgopoulos
Audrey Gerard
Sarah Gerendasy
Camille Giacobone
Joshua Gibson
Jake Gilhaus
Anthony Giovanni
Rachel Girard
Sam Gleason
Beau Godkin
Dominic Gonzalez
Rj Goodloe
Monica Gorgas
Adam Gothard
Janelle Grant
Keenan Grant
Natalie Gratsch
Andre Grayson
Claire Greening
Alyse Guenther
Sapana Gupta
Rebecca Guralnick
David Gurrola
Gus Guthrie

H

Kyle Hahn
Kalli Hale
Emmy Hall
Isabella Haney
Caryn Hannapel
Martin Hansknecht
Maverick Hanson-Meier
Mara Hazen
Kaiya Herman-Hilker
Richard Hernandez
Natalie Hershenson
Sophie Higdon
Addie Hilarides
Sophia Hill
Kento Hirakawa
Megan Hoinville
Mathew Holmes-Hackerd
Aly Homminga
Daniel Horwitz
Nicole Huff
Ayla Hull

I

 

J

Sadie Jackson
Eric Janowiak
Jelena Jenkins
Emilio Jerez Garcia
Hanna Jeung
Ziyu Jiang
Finneas Johnson
Janay Johnson
Monica Johnson
Emily Johnston
Brittany Jones

K

Kyle Kane
Kendall Kaptur
Maria Katrantzi
Alex Kaufman
Greg Kearns
Christian Kelley
Sam Kenney
Christina Keramidas
Jasmine Khin
Benjamin Kileen
Dahwi Kim
David Kim
Eunji Kim
Gyeongho Kim
Judy Kim
Min Soo Kim
Izzy Kirck
Beryl Kohnen
Kate Kreiss
Matthew Krinock
Lily Krone

L

Megan Lacombe
Lauren Landman
Mackenzie Landman
Zoe Larson
Gabby Latta
Madeline Lauver
Sebastian Lawler
Sabrina Leddy
Phuong Le
Joo Young Lee
Kelsi Levine
Joy Lim
Jiazhen Liu
Rosella LoChirco
Shelby Long
Sara Lonsberry
Brandon Lopez
Henry Lovgren
Nick Ludka

M

Elaine MacInnis
Sam Maddox
Madisyn Mahoney
Kayla Marciniak
Cydney Martell
Kathryn Martin
Barthelemy Martinon
Eliza McCall
Kevin McCarty
Katherine McKibbon
Sara McKinney
Ian McKnight
Clayton Meldrum
Ana Mesenbring
John Meyer
Sam Meyers
Danny Michelin
Chelsea Miller
Sangtawun Miller
Zach Miller
Michael Mitchell
Zach Morales
Aidan Morley
Tamara Morrison
Ryan Mulder
Emma Mullenax
Libby Munoz

N

Ravi Nair
Ellen Neveux
Viet Nguyen
Anne Nielsen
Sara Nixon
Jonathan Nord
Emily Norwood
Brooke Nosanchuk
Drew Novetsky

O

Maddie Odom
Eli Orenstein
Michael Orwin

P

Dylan Padget
Daniel Palmer
Karina Pantoja
Yansong Pan
Jimmy Paprocki
Alan Park
Kayla Park
Sung Soo Park
Andrew Parsons
Cayla Patterson
Caleb Patton
Gabriel Pedelty Ovsiew
Songyun Peng
Jessica Penny
Allie Periman
Kaitlyn Rose Perkins
Matthew Peters
Caroline Peterson
Uyen Pham
Brad Popiel
Maylis Pourtau
Sarada Prasad
Tulani Pryor
Zach Prystash

Q

 

R

Erin Radermacher
Ari Raemont
Hannah Rainaldi
Malavika Rao
Zack Ray
Tori Regan
Erin Reilly
Mili Renuart
Dulce Reyes Martinez
Megan Rigney
Meg Riley
Philip Ritchie
Annika Roberts
Scott Roberts
Danna Robles-Garcia
Ramisa Rob
Justin Roop
Orly Rubinfeld
Tim Rutledge

S

Shiva Sah
Sharayu Salvi
Paige Sambor
Danielle Sarafian
Anselm Scheck
Austen Scheer
Faruq Schieber
Natalie Schmitt
Billy Schneider
Hannah Scholten
Jd Seablom
Nori Seita
Rachel Selina
Yeji Seo
Sivhaun Sera
Sharif Shaker
Yu Shang
Will Sheehan
Chase Shelbourne
Riley Shepherd
Gabrielle Shimko
Kriti Singh
Simran Singh
Austin Smith
Ben Smith
Erin Smith
Maggie Smith
Matt Smolinski
Sundas Sohail
Shannon South
Sophie Spencer
Simona Stalev
Gabriel Stanley
Evan Stark-Dykema
Katelyn Steele
Grant Stille
Andrea Strasser-Nicol
Mimi Strauss
Claudia Stroupe
Michelle Sugimoto
Sarah Sui
Caroline Sulich
Vikram Surendran
Shelby Suseland
Matt Suter
Jake Sypniewski

T

William Tait
Maia Taylor
Hanna Teasley
Derek Thomas
Paige Tobin
Alayna Tomlinson
Carolyn Topper
Maddie Tracey
Trevor Trierweiler
Van Truong
Ethan Tucker
Lydia Turke
Matt Turton

U

Lexi Ugelow

V

Adriana Vance
David Vanderkloot
Zach VanFaussien
Natalie Vazquez
Travis Veenhuis
Chris Vennard
Ashley Ver Beek
Allen Vinson
Aiden Voss
Evan Voyles
Anh-Tu Vu

W

Evie Wagner
Sidney Wall
Tim Walsh
Anthony Wang
Hedy Wang
Maya Wanner
Madeline Ward
Jake Wasko
Ailih Weeldreyer
Jack Wehr
Alex White
Sarah Whitfield
Annarosa Whitman
Hans Wieland
Brian Will
Meg Wilson
Madeline Woods

X

Anja Xheka
Cindy Xiao
Sasha Xu
Terence Xu

Y

 

Z

Julie Zabik
Jingcan Zhu

Conference Honors K Student’s Research

Sarah Bragg discusses her research during a poster session at the inauguration of President Jorge Gonzalez.
Sarah Bragg discusses her research during a poster session at the inauguration of President Jorge Gonzalez.

Sarah Bragg ’17 won an award for her poster detailing research on barriers to HIV testing. She presented the poster at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students in Tampa, Florida, this month. Her work was awarded in the conference’s Behavioral Science and Public Health category.

Sarah conducted her research during 12-week summer internship at Morehouse College and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention. She plans to expand the project she completed (titled “Barriers and Solutions to HIV Testing Among College and University Students”) and make it the basis of her Senior Individualized Project. That project will compare the prevalence and contexts of HIV testing at public and private institutions of higher education. During all four years of her undergraduate experience at K, Sarah has served as a Civic Engagement Scholar in the College’s Center for Civic Engagement. She has worked in a weekly mentoring program with young women. She also has worked with Assistant Professor of Psychology Kyla Fletcher on her three-year NIH study on daily HIV risk reduction behavior in African-American partner relationships.

Sarah is earning her bachelor’s degree in psychology with a concentration in community and global health. She plans to pursue a career in public health and, after graduating this June, to apply for a one- or two-year fellowship with the CDC. About the work she did during her summer internship, Sarah wrote: “I was able to use the skills that were cultivated at Kalamazoo College, especially through my work at the Center for Civic Engagement.” The CCE stresses the connection between effective social change and work that applies a social justice perspective. “We do not strive to save the world,” explained Sarah. “We collaborate with communities in an effort to find solutions that are suitable and that ensure the dignity and respect for the community.”

College Celebrates Honors Day

Honors Day soloist Lauren Landman and President Jorge Gonzalez
Honors Day soloist Lauren Landman and President Jorge Gonzalez

Kalamazoo College Family Weekend served as backdrop for the College’s annual Honors Day convocation. More than 250 students were recognized for excellence in academics and leadership in six divisions: Fine Arts, Foreign Languages, Humanities, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Social Sciences and Physical Education. Recipients of prestigious scholarships were recognized as were members of national honor societies and students who received special Kalamazoo College recognition awards. In addition, student athletes and teams who have won Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association awards were feted. The students who received awards or recognition are listed below.

 

 

FINE ARTS DIVISION

THE BRIAN GOUGEON PRIZE IN ART, awarded to a sophomore student who, during his or her first year, exhibited outstanding achievement and potential in art.
Kaiya Herman-Hilker
Qynce Chumley

LILLIAN PRINGLE BALDAUF PRIZE IN MUSIC, awarded to an outstanding music student.
John Bowman
Christopher Coburn
Matthew Peters
Madeline Lauver

COOPER AWARD for a junior or senior showing excellence in a piece of creative work in a theatre arts class: film, acting, design, stagecraft, puppetry, speech.
Quincy Crosby

THEATRE ARTS FIRST-YEAR STUDENT AWARD, given to a sophomore for outstanding departmental efforts during the first year.
Kate Kreiss
Robert Davis
Maren Prophit
Louise Thomas

FOREIGN LANGUAGES DIVISION

LeGRAND COPLEY PRIZE IN FRENCH, awarded to a sophomore who, as a first-year student, demonstrated the greatest achievement in French.
Lauren Arquette
Danny Horwitz

HARDY FUCHS AWARD, given for excellence in first-year German.
Emma Eisenbeis

MARGO LIGHT AWARD, given for excellence in second- or third-year German.
Eric Thornburg

ROMANCE LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT PRIZE IN SPANISH, awarded for excellence in the first year in Spanish.
Kate Kreiss
Daniel Cho

CLARA H. BUCKLEY PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN LATIN, awarded to an outstanding student of the language of the ancient Romans.
Emma Peters

CLASSICS DEPARTMENT PRIZE IN GREEK, awarded to an outstanding student in the language of the ancient Greeks.
Brittany Jones

PROVOST’S PRIZE IN CLASSICS, awarded to that student who writes the best essay on a classical subject.
Danielle Gin

HUMANITIES DIVISION

O.M. ALLEN PRIZE IN ENGLISH, given for the best essay written by a member of the first-year class.
Kate Kreiss

JOHN B. WICKSTROM PRIZE IN HISTORY, awarded for excellence in the first year’s work in history.
Mackenzie Callahan

L.J. AND EVA (“GIBBIE”) HEMMES MEMORIAL PRIZE IN PHILOSOPHY, awarded to that sophomore who, in the first year, showed the greatest promise for continuing studies in philosophy.
Katherine Bennett
Garrett Sander

NATURAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS DIVISION

WINIFRED PEAKE JONES PRIZE IN BIOLOGY, awarded for excellence in the first year’s work in biology.
Min Soo Kim
Cydney Martell
Maggie Smith

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY PRIZE, awarded for excellence in the first year’s work in chemistry.
Meghan Horal

FIRST-YEAR CHEMISTRY AWARD, awarded to a sophomore student who, during the first year, demonstrated great achievement in chemistry.
Anthony Diep
Nicholas Ludka

LEMUEL F. SMITH AWARD, given to a student majoring in chemistry, pursuing the American Chemical Society approved curriculum, and having at the end of the junior year the highest average standing in courses taken in chemistry, physics and mathematics.
Collin Steen

COMPUTER SCIENCE PRIZE, awarded for excellence in the first year’s work in computer science.
Hans Wieland

FIRST-YEAR MATHEMATICS AWARD, given annually to the sophomore student who, during the first year, demonstrated the greatest achievement in mathematics.
Dahwi Kim
Allegra Allgeier

THOMAS O. WALTON PRIZE IN MATHEMATICS, awarded to a member of the junior class for excellence in the work of the first two years in mathematics.
Abhay Goel

COOPER PRIZE IN PHYSICS, given for excellence in the first year’s work in physics.
Kayla Park
Ricardo DelOlmo-Parrado

SOCIAL SCIENCES DIVISION

DEPARTMENTAL PRIZE IN ANTHROPOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY, awarded for excellence during the first and/or second year’s work.
Paige Tobin
Meghan Horal
Hannah Muscara
Adam Edery
Benjamin Smith

C. WALLACE LAWRENCE PRIZE IN ECONOMICS, awarded annually to a economics student who has done outstanding work in the Department of Economics and Business during the sophomore year.
Maria Franco
Hannah Kline
Logan Smith

C. WALLACE LAWRENCE PRIZE IN BUSINESS, awarded annually to a business student who has done outstanding work in the Department of Economics and Business during the sophomore year.
Cody Colvin
Jacob Wasko
Alex White

IRENE AND S. KYLE MORRIS PRIZE, awarded for excellence in the first year’s courses in the Department of Economics and Business.
Christopher Coburn
Rachel Frank
Evelyn Wagner

WILLIAM G. HOWARD MEMORIAL PRIZE, awarded for excellence in any year’s work in political science.
Lauren Arquette

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY FIRST-YEAR STUDENT PRIZE, awarded for excellence in the first year’s work in psychology.
Michelle Alba

MARSHALL HALLOCK BRENNER PRIZE, given by the family and friends in memory of Marshall Hallock Brenner, class of 1955, to be awarded to an outstanding junior for excellence in the study of psychology.
Kyle Hernandez

PHYSICAL EDUCATION DIVISION

DIVISION OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION PRIZE, awarded to those students who, as first-year students, best combined leadership and scholarship in promoting athletics, physical education and recreation.
Jordan Wiley
Amanda Moss
Cheyenne Allyn-White

MAGGIE WARDLE PRIZE, awarded to that sophomore woman whose activities at the College reflect the values that Maggie Wardle demonstrated in her own life. The recipient will show a breadth of involvement in the College through her commitment to athletics and to the social sciences and/or community service.
Malak Ghazal

COLLEGE AWARDS

GORDON BEAUMONT MEMORIAL AWARD, awarded to the student who displays qualities of selflessness, humanitarian concern and a willingness to help others, as exemplified in the life of Gordon Beaumont.
Sarah Bragg
Mireya Guzman-Ortiz

HENRY AND INEZ BROWN PRIZE, awarded in recognition of outstanding participation in the College community.
Sidney Wall

VIRGINIA HINKELMAN MEMORIAL AWARD, awarded to a student who displays a deep concern for the well-being of children, as demonstrated through career goals in the field of child welfare.
Moises Hernandez

HEYL SCHOLARS – CLASS OF 2020

Taylor Ashby
Kento Hirakawa
Matthew Krinock
Samuel Maddox
Shukrani Nsenga
Michael Orwin
Marjorie Wolfe
Julie Zabik

POSSE SCHOLARS – CLASS OF 2020

Iffat Chowdhury
Fabien Debies
Neelam Lal
Madisyn mahoney
Israel Mazas
Joseph Ney-Jun
Melissa Pasillas
Cesar Soria
Gabriel Ugarte
Raphaela Varella

NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLAR – CLASS OF 2020

John Patton

ALPHA LAMBDA DELTA – CLASS OF 2019

Alpha Lambda Delta is a national honor society that recognizes excellence in academic achievement during the first college year. To be eligible for membership, students must earn a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 and be in the top 20 percent of their class during the first year.

Lauren Arquette
Meredith Ashton
Max Aulbach
Katherine Bennett
Kevin Bhimani
Emily Boyle
Moly Brueger
Mackenzie Callahan
Tapiwa Chikungwa
Heeseong Cho
Jennifer Cho
Christopher Coburn
Ricardo DelOlmo-Parrado
Anthony Diep
Emma Eisenbeis
McKinzie Ervin
Alex Fairhall
Rachel Frank
Ian Freshwater
Sarah George
Natalie Gratsch
Claire Greening
Meghan Horal
Sadie Jackson
Min Soo Kim
Mackenzie Landman
Madeline Lauver
Hyunyn Lim
Sara Lonsberry
Nicholas Ludka
Cydney Martell
Abigail McDonough
Jacob Mooradian
Emma Mullenax
Kayla Park
Andrew Parsons
Cecilia Ringo
Skylar Rizzolo
Scott Roberts
Timothy Rutledge
Austin Smith
Benjamin Smith
Margaret Smith
Natalie Thompson
Evenly Wagner
Ailih Weeldreyer

ENLIGHTENED LEADERSHIP AWARDS

ARCUS CENTER FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE LEADERSHIP
Donovan Williams

CREATIVE EXPRESSION IN JOURNALISM
Emiliana Renuart
Maia Taylor

CREATIVE EXPRESSION IN MUSIC
Anna Christinidis
Liam Fries
Joshua Gibson
Kathryn Martin
Boemin Park
Orly Rubinfeld

CREATIVE EXPRESSION IN VISUAL ARTS
Georgie Andrews
Brianna Burnell
Lizi Chinchilakashvili
Nutsa Chinchilakashvili

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
Lakshya Choudhary
Shiva Sah

ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVISM AND SUSTAINABILITY
Aiden Voss
Madeline Ward

MICHIGAN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION (MIAA) AWARDS

The following Hornet teams earned the 2015-2016 MIAA Team GPA Award. Team members achieved a 3.3 or better grade point average for the entire academic year.

Men’s Golf
Men’s Soccer
Men’s Tennis
Women’s Basketball
Women’s Golf
Women’s Lacrosse
Women’s Soccer
Women’s Volleyball

MIAA ACADEMIC HONOR ROLL

The MIAA each year honors students at member colleges who achieve distinction on the classroom and in athletic competition. Students need to be a letter winner in a varsity sport and maintain at minimum 3.5 grade point average for the entire school year.

Michael Allen
Kelsey Adamski
Ryan Andrusz
Elizabeth Arellano
Lauren Arquette
Alberto Ayala
Sonal Bahl
Victoria Beehler
Kennedy Boulton
Riley Boyd
Allie Brodsky
Molly Brueger
Thomas Bryant
Hayley Buckhout
Matthew Burczyk
Janice Burnett
Alex Cadigan
Kathryn Callaghan
Olivia Cares
Charlie Carson
Katherine Cebelak
Madeleine  Chilcote
Cody Colvin
Anthony Convertino
Anna Dairaghi
Christina Dandar
Elan Dantus
Sabrina Dass
Eric De Witt
Ricardo DelOlmo-Parrado
Dana DeVito
Cecilia DiFranco
Mikayla Doepker
Guillermo Dominguez Garcia
Alivia DuQuet
Erin DuRoss
John Dynes
Charles Edick
Emma Eisenbeis
Rachel Epstein
Angelia Evangelista
Kevin Ewing
Andrew Feeley
George Fishback
Matthew Fitz
Chris Francis
Maria Franco
Ian Freshwater
Brett Garwood
Sarah George
Camille Giacobone
Emily Good
Evan  Gorgas
Monica Gorgas
Kyle Hahn
Griffin Hamel
Jordan Henning
Kaiya Herman-Hilker
Kyle Hernandez
Samantha Hicks
Megan Hoinville
Shelby Hopper
Allia Howard
Robert Hudson
Nicole Huff
Julia Hulbert
Jordan Jabara
Clare Jensen
Claire Kalina
Spencer Kennedy
Kelsey Kerbawy
Benjamin Kileen
Dahwi Kim
William Kirchen
Hannah Kline
Emily  Kozal
Stefan Leclerc
Da Bin Lee
Jacob Lindquist
Jordan Loredo
Nick Ludka
Megan Malish
Sarah Manski
Nicholas Marsh
Cydney Martell
Mallory McClure
Alexander McDonnell
Thomas McLravy
Madison Moote
Christopher Muir
Victoria Najacht
Jonathan Nord
Skyler Norgaard
Mackenzie Norman
Andrew Novetsky
Michael Oravetz
Alexandria Oswalt
Dylan Padget
Dana Page
James Paprocki
Bradley Popiel
Nicole Prentice
Megan Riley
Phillip Ritchie
Scott Roberts
Sophie Roberts
William Roberts
Rebecca Rogers
Anna Roodbergen
Keigan Ryckman
Matthew Ryder
Mason Sarosi
Ashley Schiffer
Grady Schneider
Eleanor Schodowski
Aaron Schwark
Cameron Schwartz
Jacob Scott
Lauren Seroka
Sharif Shaker
Claire Slaughter
Grace Smith
Kathleen Sorenson
Sophia Spencer
Vethania Stavropoulos
Mira Swearer
Lily Talmers
Alexander Townsend
Lydia Turke
Elizabeth Tyburski
Kaela Van Til
David  Vanderkloot
Jacob Waier
Kyra Walenga
Jacob Wasko
John Wehr
Alex White
Joshua Whitney
Hans Wieland
Jordan Wiley
Madeline Woods
Sarah Woods
Brent Yelton
Matthew Zhiss

 

Physics Professor Honored with Teaching Award

Statistical physicists Jan Tobochnik
Statistical physicists like Jan Tobochnik rely heavily on computers to explore anything and everything that has lots of parts.

Jan Tobochnik, the Dow Distinguished Professor in Natural Sciences,  has been named as the 2017 recipient of the prestigious Hans Christian Oersted Medal, presented by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). The Oersted Medal recognizes outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics. In connection with the award, Tobochnik will deliver a talk on “The Changing Face of Physics and the Students Who Take Physics” at the 2017 AAPT winter meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. Past winners include Carl E. Sagan, Edward Purcell and Richard Feynman, among others.

Jan’s research interest fall in the area of statistical physics, the  development of computer models that predict behaviors, not only of physical phenomena (like earthquakes and nucleation) but also social situations, such as wealth distribution patterns and traffic jams. Because Jan incorporates his research into his teaching, students get a better sense of what science is all about. “Without my research,” he says, “my examples would be stodgy.” In fact, the award specifically cites Jan’s “lasting impact on the teaching of physics through his contributions to the use of computer simulations to motivate active learning.”

Jan is well known for his series of texts (six) written with Harvey Gould. They cover computer simulation methods at the introductory level and statistical and thermal physics at the intermediate level. In the early 1990’s he was a practitioner of active learning methods, long before it became fashionable, and was busy developing software to assist student learning. Jan’s fluency in computational methods especially in the service of advanced thermal and statistical physics research has informed dozens of publications in refereed journals. He served as the editor for the American Journal of Physics from 2001 to 2011.

Jan was born and reared in Philadelphia, and he remains an only occasionally wavering Phillies fan. He graduated summa cum laude from Amherst College in 1975 with a major in physics. He then went to Cornell University and earned a Ph.D. in physics (1980).

Jan came to K in 1985. In addition to teaching in the physics department he has served as acting provost and interim provost. And every year, in the spirit of the liberal arts advocate that he is, Jan leads discussions on the year’s Summer Common Reading selection, none of which, as yet, have been about physics.

K Professor Receives Lucasse Fellowship

Kalamazoo College Professor Di SeussKalamazoo College announced today that Writer in Residence and Assistant Professor of English Diane Seuss ’78 will receive the 2017 Florence J. Lucasse Fellowship for Excellence in Scholarship. It is the highest award bestowed by the Kalamazoo College faculty, and it honors the recipient’s contributions in creative work, research and publication. Seuss is the 28th person in the College’s history to receive the award.

Seuss was named one of two finalists for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, a first in the history of Kalamazoo College. She is the author of three volumes of poetry, most recently Four Legged Girl, and she has a fourth book of poems forthcoming from Graywolf Press. She is every bit as remarkable a teacher as she is a writer. She is a previous recipient of the Florence J. Lucasse Lectureship for Excellence in Teaching, and many of her students have been accepted into the most prestigious M.F.A. programs in the country. Poetry, she says, holds space for everybody. A ceremony to confer the fellowship for excellence in scholarship and creative work will occur in spring term, and at that event Di will give a presentation, more than likely a delightful hybrid of poetry, story and lecture. The author of this article can hardly wait.

Alumna Prepared for Fulbright Teaching Assignment

Ellie Cannon
Ellie Cannon – Photo by Hein Htut Tin ’17

Next month it’s off to Spain for Ellie Cannon ’15, who feels thoroughly “K-Plan prepped.”

Ellie received an English Teaching Assistantship grant with the Fulbright Student Program. For nine months she will work at a school of commerce in Galicia, an autonomous community in northwestern Spain. She is excited, of course, and grateful, “Over the last five years I received invaluable academic and professional mentorship from college faculty, staff, and alumni,” she said. “Friends and classmates also educated and encouraged me.”

Galicia is one of Spain’s lesser known cultures. The population and local government are bilingual, operating in Spanish and the local language, Galego. Many Galicians identify with Celtic culture, which some attribute to pre-Roman era migration and to a more recent process of adopting Celtic-related tradition.

“I look forward to being a student and a teacher of culture,” said Ellie. “The K-Plan prepared me for both.”

She spent her early childhood in St. Paul, Minnesota, in a neighborhood blended with immigrant, refugee and working class families. When she was in middle school her family moved to a small rural town on the west shore of Lake Michigan, where “I learned about rural and maritime cultures, began to study Spanish, and tutored the bilingual children of dairy and migrant farm workers.”

When it came time to pick a college, K seemed a great option to more deeply develop intercultural competence. “As a first year student and later as a Teaching Assistant, [Professor of English] Bruce Mills’ seminar on autism acquainted me with the idea of neurodiversity,” said Ellie. “The Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement facilitated additional service-learning in Kalamazoo, partnerships that included a poetry club at Kalamazoo Central High School, a bilingual nutrition club at El Sol Elementary, and research for the Kalamazoo County Sobriety Court.” Ellie majored in biology and psychology and earned a minor in Spanish. She shaped her academics–as well as an externship and her Senior Individualized Project–mindful of her burgeoning interest in medicine and public health. “I interned with Dr. Andrew Terranella ’99 at the bilingual Navajo Area Indian Health Service in Arizona,” she said. “My SIP reflected my interest in ecological health, and I collaborated with Dr. Paige Copenhaver-Parry on an investigation that eventually was published in the journal Oecologia (Copenhaver-Parry and Cannon, 2016).” Since graduation she has worked with immigrant families in the Kalamazoo Public Schools Bilingual Program under the direction of K alumnus Scott Hunsinger ’94.

“I look forward to continued intercultural exchange,” said Ellie. “It’s vital. I’ve come to understand that a healthy community is educated, equitable, and medically fit. And each of those components is inextricably linked to diversity and culture.”

Kalamazoo College Spring Term 2016 Dean’s List

Congratulations to the following Kalamazoo College students, who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or better for a full-time course load of at least three units, without failing or withdrawing from any course, during the Spring 2016 academic term. Students who elect to take a letter-graded course on a credit/no credit basis (CR/NC) are not eligible for Dean’s List consideration during that term. Nor are students who receive an F, NC or W grade for that particular term. Students with incomplete (I) or in-progress (IP) grades will be considered for Dean’s List upon receipt of the final grades. Dean’s List recognition is posted on students’ transcripts. Kudos to the entire group of more than 500 students, and good luck in Fall Term, 2016.

Spring 2016

A  B   C  D  E  F   G   H   I   J  K   L   M  N   O  P   Q  R   S   T   U   V  W   X   Y   Z

A

Nana-Yaw Aikins
Michelle Alba
Luis Alves-Diniz
Michael Anderson
Lauren Arquette
Meredith Ashton
Max Aulbach
Esprit Autenreith

B

Dalbyeol Bae
Julia Bartlett
Jade Beauregard
Grace Beck
Victoria Beehler
Andrea Beitel
Hayley Beltz
Katherine Bennett
Erin Bensinger
Hannah Berger
Madelyn Betts
Kevin Bhimani
Allison Bloomfield
Jacob Bonifacio
Maria Bonvicini
Kennedy Boulton
Zoe Bowman
Riley Boyd
Emily Boyle
Emerson Brown
Erin Brown
Maxine Brown
Sarena Brown
Molly Brueger
Thomas Bryant
Hayley Buckhout
Ian Bunker
Matthew Burczyk
Janice Burnett
Erin Butler
Thaddeus Buttrey
Shanice Buys

C

Alexander Cadigan
Robert Calco
Abigail Calef
Kathryn Callaghan
Mackenzie Callahan
Kalyn Campbell
Paloma Campillo
Angel Caranna
Olivia Cares
Raymond Carpenter
Lee Carter
Kebra Cassells
Coral Cervantes
Rachel Chang
Jasmine Charter-Harris
Haroon Chaudhry
Sirui Chen
Yu-Chyn Chiang
Tapiwa Chikungwa
Madeleine Chilcote
Emiline Chipman
Heeseong Cho
Elina Choi
Jennifer Cho
Jennifer Cho
Kanwal Chowdhury
Amelia Chronis
Isabelle Ciaramitaro
Joseph Cleary
Christopher Coburn
Kate Colebrook
Annaliese Collier
Cody Colvin
Quinton Colwell
Anthony Convertino
Hannah Cooperrider
Dejah Crystal

D

Susmitha Daggubati
Elan Dantus
Justin Danzy
Natalie Davenport
Corrin Davis
Robert Davis
Ximena Davis
Cecilia DeBoeck
Timothy DeCoursey
Ricardo DelOlmo-Parrado
Clare DeLong
David Demarest
Dana DeVito
Eric De Witt
Melany Diaz
Green Dickenson
Anthony Diep
Cecilia DiFranco
Margaret Doele
Guillermo Dominguez Garcia
Rachel Dranoff
Elizabeth Dulski
Thao Duong
Alivia DuQuet
John Dynes

E

Daniel Eberhart
Adam Edery
Emma Eisenbeis
Andres ElAmin-Martinez
Tiffany Ellis
Anna Emenheiser
Rachel Epstein
McKinzie Ervin
Michelle Escobar
Lucas Eshuis
Amanda Esler
Andriana Evangelista
Angelia Evangelista
Fiona Evans
Serita Evelyn
Kevin Ewing
Ihechiluru Ezuruonye

F

Rachel Fadler
Alex Fairhall
Brian Farrell
Andrew Feeley
Maria Feijoo
Mario Ferrini
Elizabeth Fiator
Marie Fiori
George Fishback
Emily Fletcher
Joshua Foley
Angela Fong
Delaney Fordell
Monet Foster
Steven Fotieo
Hannah Frame
Christopher Francis
Maria Franco
Rachel Frank
Jakob Frederick
Ian Freshwater
Maria Fujii
Lydia Fyie

G

Delfino Gaspar
Charlotte Gavin
Kathleen George
Sarah George
Carina Ghafari
Mousa Ghannam
Malak Ghazal
Sarah Glass
Samantha Gleason
Daniella Glymin
Abhay Goel
Shelby Golden
Emily Good
Adam Gothard
Emma Gougeon
Connor Grant
Madalyn Grau
Andre Grayson
Claire Greening
Jackson Greenstone
James Grenda
Jena Groshek
Alyse Guenther
Yicong Guo
Sapana Gupta
David Gurrola
Garrett Guthrie
Xueyun Gu

H

Kyle Hahn
Torey Halsey
Robert Hammond
Sara Hanna
Jessica Hansen
Hadley Harrison
Eric Hart
Sarah Hassle
Kelly Haugland
Shannon Haupt
Mara Hazen
Stephanie Heard
Frances Heldt
Ashley Henne
Kaiya Herman-Hilker
Kyle Hernandez
Moises Hernandez
Lucia Herrera
Sophie Higdon
Adelaide Hilarides
Louis Hochster
Gabrielle Holme-Miller
Roger Hood
Shelby Hopper
Meghan Horal
Andrew Horton
Daniel Horwitz
Elise Houcek
Allia Howard
Pornkamol Huang
Audra Hudson
Robert Hudson
Nicole Huff
Briana Huisken
Julia Hulbert
Siwook Hwang

I

 

J

Jordan Jabara
Sadie Jackson
Jaehoon Jang
Eric Janowiak
Alejandro Jaramillo
Clare Jensen
Jon Jerow
YanYan Jiang
Katherine Johnson
Emily Johnston
Brittany Jones

K

Francis Kaguku
Kamalaldin Kamalaldin
Emily Katz
Andrew Kaylor
Jessica Kehoe
Agnes Kemboi
Christina Keramidas
Kelsey Kerbawy
Anthony Ketner
Graham Key
Khin Oo Khin
Benjamin Kileen
Dahwi Kim
David Kim
Hannah Kim
Min Soo Kim
YoungHoon Kim
Savannah Kinchen
William Kirchen
Sai Klein
Hannah Kline
Benjamin Kochanowski
Julia Koreman
Bharath Kotha
Emily Kozal
Katherine Kreiss
Hannah Kruger
Marc Kuniansky

L

Kyle Lampar
Lauren Landman
Mackenzie Landman
Robyn Lane
Jeremy Lantis
Bryan Lara
Madeline Lauver
Andrew Laverenz
Stefan Leclerc
Annelise Lee
Joo Young Lee
Brett Lehman
Omar Leon
Phuong Le
Arianna Letherer
Sarah Levett
Emily Levy
Rachel Lifton
Hyunyn Lim
Jacob Lindquist
Xiang Lin
Kate Liska
Gordon Liu
Yishi Li
Giovanni LoGrasso
Molly Logsdon
Sara Lonsberry
Jordan Loredo
Chloe Love
Chenxi Lu
Nicholas Ludka
Samantha Luna
Liam Lundy

M

Andrea MacMichael
Madeleine MacWilliams
Alicia Madgwick
Sarah Manski
Kayla Marciniak
Guadalupe Marin
Nicholas Marsh
Cydney Martell
Natalie Martell
Alexis Martin-Browne
Elizabeth Martin
Kelsey Matthews
Rose Maylen
Karly McCall
Mallory McClure
Alexander McDonell
Abigail McDonough
Miles McDowall
Aaron McKay
Ivy McKee
Sara McKinney
Ian McKnight
Jordan Meiller
Molly Merkel
Lesley Merrill
Vanessa Merritt
Franklin Meyer
Samuel Meyers
Daniel Michelin
Chelsea Miller
Sangtawun Miller
Zach Miller
Jamie Misevich
Diana Morales-Perez
Zachary Morales
Aliera Morasch
Blanca Moreno
Aidan Morley
Cody Mosblech
Amanda Moss
Chloe Mpinga
Emma Mullenax
Stuart Murch
Justin Murshak
Hannah Muscara
Nkatha Mwenda

N

Victoria Najacht
Jacob Naranjo
Laetitia Ndiaye
Audrey Negro
Annie Nelson
Annie Nelson
Hung Nguyen
Nuong Nguyen
Phuong Nguyen
Mark Niehaus
Anne Nielsen
Naori Nishimura
Lionel Niyongabire
Nicholas Nizzardini
Jonathan Nord
Skyler Norgaard
Mackenzie Norman
Fernando Nunez

O

Kelly Ohlrich
Josiah Olah
Michael Oravetz
Eli Orenstein
Victoria Osorio
Connor Otto
Ty Owens

P

Dylan Padget
Dana Page
Nirmita Palakodaty
Anthony Palleschi
Kayla Park
Andrew Parsons
Khusbu Patel
Ryan Paul
Kaeli Peach
Darren Peel
Elizabeth Penix
Victoria Penman-Lomeli
Jessica Penny
Madison Perian
Kaitlyn Perkins
Lauren Perlaki
Emma Peters
Matthew Peters
Caroline Peterson
Katherine Pielemeier
Emily Pizza
Sarah Pobuda
Bradley Popiel
Maylis Pourtau
Emily Powers
Nicole Prentice
Erika Pueblo
Danielle Purkey

Q

Yilan Qiu
Zichen Qi

R

Sagar Rafai
Andrea Ramirez
Shivani Rana
Malavika Rao
Megan Riley
Skylar Rizzolo
Madeleine Roberts
William Roberts
Marion Robin
Annalise Robinson
Jakob Rodseth
Rebecca Rogers
Anna Roodbergen
Justin Roop
Peter Rossi
Stefanie Roudebush
Wendy Rubio
Brock Rucinski
Timothy Rutledge

S

Amber Salome
Tanush Samson
Christa Scheck
Katharine Scheck
Austen Scheer
Claire Schertzing
Maison Scheuer
Ashley Schiffer
Ashley Schmidt
Natalie Schmitt
Sarah Schmitt
Grady Schneider
Nicholas Schneider
Eleanor Schodowski
Cameron Schwartz
Jacob Scott
Rachel Selina
Sivhaun Sera
Lauren Seroka
Sharif Shaker
Yu Shang
Ke Sheng
Tianqi Shen
Kai Lin Shi
Geon-Ah Shin
Brandon Siedlaczek
Kaylah Simmons
Kriti Singh
Sharon Situ
Claire Slaughter
Griffin Smalley
Austin Smith
Bailey Smith
Benjamin Smith
Erin Smith
Grace Smith
Logan Smith
Margaret Smith
Sarah Smith
Meagan Soffin
Cassandra Solis
Mariam Souweidane
Federico Spalletti
Sophia Spencer
Austin Sroczynski
Honora Stagner
Vethania Stavropoulos
Collin Steen
Ellen Stormont
Marian Strauss
Matera Stuart
Caroline Sulich
Kyle Sunden
Mira Swearer
Collin Sweet
Maya Sykes

T

Kiyoto Tanemura
Hanna Teasley
Diana Temple
Kathryn Thamann
Derek Thomas
Natalie Thompson
Eric Thornburg
Charles Timmons
Mateo Tobar
Paige Tobin
Carolyn Topper
Zachary Tornow
Carmen Torrado-Gonzalez
Brooke Travis
Kelly Treharne
Dakota Trinka
Brittany Trombino
Sydney Troost
Minhkhang Truong
Elyse Tuennerman
Lydia Turke
Shelby Tuthill
Elizabeth Tyburski

U

Eva Ugelow

V

Asha Vadlamudi
David Vanderkloot
Erica Vanneste
Kaela Van Til
Natalie Vazquez
Julia Villarreal
Cory Vincent
John Vinson
Anh-Tu Vu

W

Erika Waalkes
Raoul Wadhwa
Evelyn Wagner
Brigid Walkowski
Emily Walsh
Sean Walsh
Mary Warner
Samantha Weaver
Connor Webb
Ailih Weeldreyer
John Wehr
Natalie Weingartz
Paris Weisman
Kenneth Weiss
Haley Wentz
Alex White
Zachary White
Joshua Whitney
Elijah Wickline
Hans Wieland
Jordan Wiley
Brooklyn Willett
Carolyn Williams
Kiavanne Williams
Rachel Williams
Abigail Wilson
Natalia Wohletz
Camille Wood
Lindsay Worthington
Katherine Wynne

X

Anja Xheka
Jie Xu
Mingyue Xu
Zeyu Xu

Y

Michael Yeomans
Esther Yi
Samantha Young
Adre Yusi
Zixiao Yu

Z

Rachel Zemmol
Dylan Zerki
Matthew Zhiss
Jingcan Zhu

Hornet (and Bee) Artists Feted

Jim Turner
Jim Turner

The Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo has awarded Kalamazoo College Professor of Music Jim Turner its 2016 Award for Arts Leadership-Educator, and the Arts Council awarded Kalamazoo College Alumnus Ladislav Hanka ’75 a Community Medal of Arts.

Turner, who directs the Bach Festival Choir, will be honored as “a recognized leader in arts and education community” whose work has a strong impact on the greater Kalamazoo community through art and creates positive and productive relationships in the community far beyond Kalamazoo College.

Hanka, whose etchings, prints, and drawings illustrate the intricacies and mystery of nature, is honored as a leading artist with a significant body of creative activity, who has received local and/or national acclaim, and has deeply affected the community through art. The CMA award encompasses all art forms–visual, musical, theatrical, literary, performing, multi-Hornet and Bee Artistrymedia, architecture or design. And, in Hanka’s case, collaborations between man and bee. His most recent ArtPrize entry, “Great Wall of Bees: Intelligence of the Beehive,” featured live bees that buzzed and danced and chewed over three rows of Hanka’s etchings—-detailed images of toads, salmon, trees, insects, birds. The bees built honeycomb along the curves of his lines in seeming collaboration that is at times startling.

Turner and Hanka are part of a group that will receive awards on Sunday, July 17, at the Sunday Concerts in the Park in Bronson Park. The event begins at 4 p.m. with the award presentation at 4:30 p.m. The concert and presentation ceremony are free and open to the public. A reception will follow at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts. The reception is free but reservations would be appreciated. Reservations can be made by calling the Arts Council at 269.342.5059.

Kalamazoo College is a Goodwill Partner

K student Andrew Parsons ’19 helps Goodwill student Estefani Rosales with her GED studies
K student Andrew Parsons ’19 helps Goodwill student Estefani Rosales with her GED studies. Photo by Tony Dugal

Kalamazoo College has received the Community Partner of the Year Award for 2016 from Goodwill Industries of Southwest Michigan.

In announcing the award, Goodwill officials noted that “Kalamazoo College has been an invaluable partner to Goodwill Industries of Southwest Michigan and its Adult Education programming for more than a decade.”

K students, working through the College’s Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement provide tutoring support in Goodwill classrooms for adults studying to pass a General Educational Development (GED) test, a credential that’s commonly considered equivalent to a high school diploma.

“K students also offer encouragement to our students and demonstrate that K cares about the well-being of the community at large,” said Scott Goodwin, coordinator of education services for Goodwill Industries of Southwest Michigan. “Over the years, the faces of the K students have changed, but the results remain constant. K students are committed to the students at Goodwill.”

According to Goodwin, one Goodwill student who recently passed her GED exam commented that the biggest reason she was successful was because of her K tutor’s commitment to help her and encouragement that she could finish.

“And she did,” Goodwin said.

“Kalamazoo College’s service-learning programming puts an emphasis on helping educational programming throughout Kalamazoo and the results have been wonderful. We are pleased to honor Kalamazoo College with our Community Partner of the Year Award.”