Class Notes

Here’s what some of our alumni have been up to…

1988 Nelson Ryland recently won a News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Newscast for his work at Vice News Tonight, a nightly news show produced by Vice Media Group.

2001

Ashleigh Levison is currently living in Denver, CO, while working as a vitreoretinal surgeon and uveitis specialist. In a small ceremony in April 2020, she married her husband, Tony Kaprive, a commercial airline pilot. In December 2020, they welcomed their daughter, Adalynn Harper Kaprive.

TJ Blandford graduated from Furman University in 2006, and Harvard Business School in 2013. He is currently CEO of Woodbine Manufacturing Company. Before returning to Arizona a few years ago, he had lived in 10 states and explored a couple different careers, including as a high school math teacher. He now lives in Scottsdale with his wife, Nakeesia, and daughter, Sedona, and is loving every minute of raising a family in the desert where he grew up. MS history teacher Sheila Marks has been invaluable in helping to collect Class Notes for many issues of The Bridge. In a conversation with Leslie Feldman, Director of Alumni Relations, Sheila shared why she so enjoys reaching out to alumni.

Q: How many students have you taught in your time at PCDS?

A: At this point, I have taught over 1,300 students at PCDS.

Q: Why do you enjoy reaching out to alumni to collect Class Notes?

A: I love reaching out to alums because I love to see where they are in their lives. I also love to reconnect with my former students.

Q: What makes a “good” Class Note? Does it have to be something really big that has happened in someone’s life?

A: A good class note can be a big event in one’s life, like a wedding, birth of a child, or a new job or it can be a small event, such as a group of alums getting together for someone’s birthday or a trip they did together.

Q: How do you feel when you learn about all the things your former students are doing out in the world?

A: I love learning what my former students are doing now because I love to see how much they have changed since 8th grade. I am always blown away by the paths that these alumni are on. I hope that I have had a teensy, tiny impact on their lives, just as they have had on mine.

Would you like to submit a Class Note for the next issue of The Bridge? You can do so at pcds.org/alumniupdate.

We collect many Class Notes each year and cannot guarantee that all submissions will be printed. Class Notes are written in an individual’s own words.

Molly Dean-Chang graduated from The University of Arizona in 2004, and then she received a master’s in social work from ASU in 2009. Molly is a psychotherapist with a private practice in Phoenix. She specializes in maternal mental health, infertility, anxiety/ depression, and PTSD. Her husband, Sam Chang, is a local real estate attorney, and they have a daughter. They love spending their free time hiking, exploring nature, traveling, golfing, and hanging with friends and family.

Michelle Hertzfeld reports, “After PCDS, I went to The University of Arizona for undergrad, and then Indiana University, Bloomington for graduate school. I graduated with dual degrees from both schools—East Asian studies (Mandarin) and environmental policy. After university, I worked for the U.S. Federal Government, first at NOAA and then at USGS, as a Presidential Innovation Fellow under the Obama Administration. I helped start 18f.gsa. gov, which is a federal office that fixes technical problems, builds products, and works to improve how the government serves the public through technology. Since then, I’ve mostly continued to work in the civic or mission-driven technology sector. I’ve also moved around a lot, with significant time spent in China, Indiana, Washington, D.C., and Tucson. Two years ago, I moved to Australia. I live there now in beautiful Wodonga, Victoria (Dhudhuroa/Waywurru country). Josh Wright is the City Manager for the City of Chandler, AZ. He lives in Chandler with his wife, Melissa, and children, Caleb and Hannah.

Katie Thompson is currently living in the state of Washington and loving every minute of her active lifestyle. She works in emergency medicine as a physician assistant, and she runs a small company that specializes in education and empowerment for healthcare professionals on treating survivors of interpersonal violence. “I am also a member of one of the federal disaster medical teams, which keeps me busy. Additionally, I am a masters rower and am looking forward to my first regatta this fall.”

Brian Snyder writes, “After graduating from PCDS in 2001, I attended Brandeis University, where I quit the basketball team after two practices (accepting your own limitations and shortcomings is not easy and will take your inflated ego down several notches). I then spent the next four years wishing I had gone anywhere else for college (including, but not limited to, literally anywhere). I received my law degree from Chapman University—a much better experience for me. (That said, a dean has made news in the last year or so for things that would embarrass most people.) In 2008, I moved back to Scottsdale and have loved being home. I am a Partner at Snyder & Wenner, and my practice focuses on catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases caused by medical malpractice (and other personal injury matters, as well). While I am very proud of the work we do, it can be a little awkward at PCDS get-togethers, as 93.7% of PCDS graduates are now doctors. My wife, Amy, and I have been married for eight years, and we have three kids: Mia, age seven; Noah, age four; and Dylan, age one. I coach Mia and Noah’s sports teams, while Dylan does his best to ensure I never get a full night’s sleep (and that I can never find the TV remote). I consider myself very lucky that I have been able to keep close friendships with many PCDS people—even Jeff Sand ’01.”

Ali Hicks LeClair currently lives just down the street from PCDS with her family. She has been a lawyer since 2008, and she is currently practicing family law at Jennings, Strouss, & Salmon in Phoenix. There she assists clients with a variety of family law issues, including divorce, custody, legal separation, prenuptial agreements, and mediation. She has also been a member of the PCDS Alumni Board for several years now. She and her husband, Ted, were married in 2013. Ted owns a local billboard company (LeClair Calihan) and was also the head coach of the PCDS baseball team. They have three beautiful daughters: Audrey, age 20; Charlotte, age seven; and Anabelle, age four. Her stepdaughter, Audrey graduated from PCDS in 2019, and she is currently a student athlete at The University of Michigan. She plays on the softball team, and they won the Big 10 Championship last year. Go Blue!

Network with PCDS alumni around the globe at pcdsconnect.org

After a detour through Austin for a PhD, Bryan Silverthorn lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife, Sarah. He works as CTO at Angaza, a startup co-founded with his sister Lesley ’01. Angaza has enabled home solar energy for millions of off-grid households across sub-Saharan Africa.

Beri Golding discovered the magical and transformative healing power of yoga while interning on Wall Street. In the post 9/11 era, Beri found herself seeking an outlet for stress relief. As she often tells her students and clients, “Yoga sure does know how to give you a whole lot more than you bargained for.” Initially, Beri didn’t think she was a prime candidate for yoga, due to an old knee injury she endured while jumping on a trampoline with a fellow class of ’01 alum, and the fact that her type A personality knew nothing about the verb “to chill”. Nevertheless, she felt that yoga spoke directly to what her body and heart needed in the post 9/11 climate of downtown New York. Today, Beri is the owner of Be Yoga, LLC, a mobile and virtual healing “studio.” She is a polyvagal informed yoga teacher, body therapist, and “Soul Saver” focused healer and educator. She teaches classes, offers body therapy, and provides “bottom up” trauma informed healing, and she specializes in creating personalized programs for her clientele. Most recently, Beri has been preparing to launch SOLE FLOSS, a self-care device she invented and designed to help people embody a greater sense of safety, comfort, and ease in their bodies, minds, and hearts. The greatest source of inspiration for Beri is her daughter, Rayne, who is loving life as a PCDS fourth grade Eagle. They live in Phoenix with Beri’s fiance, Franklyn (who proposed in the Hava Java parking lot), and their COVID puppy, Duchess, a cockapoo.

2002

Laura Neller Lanigan lives in Houston, TX. She is married to Kyle Lanigan, an insurance executive, and they have a son, Willie, age three. In 2020, Laura launched a consulting business focused on fundraising and development work. Prior to consulting, she served for 11 years as director of alumni affairs for The Browning School in NYC. She is a graduate of Washington & Lee University. Laura sends her best to all at PCDS and looks forward to celebrating the Class of 2002’s upcoming 20th reunion.

Sophie Nye graduated from Grinnell College in 2006. In 2009, she moved to Brooklyn, NY, and for several years worked alternately in travel and education administration, earning a master’s degree in international education from NYU in 2014. Belatedly discovering a love of coding, she started work as a software engineer for a private GovTech company in New York in 2019, and in June 2021, relocated to Sydney, Australia, to work on a large project for them. She anticipates being in Australia for a year or two before returning to Brooklyn.

Nataliya Biskup is a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, with fellowship training in pediatric and craniofacial surgery. She is currently in private practice in Wichita, KS, where she also heads the Cleft and Craniofacial Clinic. She is married and has three rambunctious children who keep her just as busy at home as she is at work.

2003

Simi Dhillon is a practicing primary care physician with HonorHealth Medical Group in Phoenix. At the time of submission, she and her husband, Mandeep, were expecting their first child due in December 2021.

2004

Bryan McLaren shares, “After nearly a decade working on sustainable development and real estate in the regulated cannabis industry, I’ve made it my career mission to help integrate legacy cannabis markets into modern communities through our real estate development firm, Zoned Properties, Inc. I am so grateful to be surrounded by such an amazing team of passionate individuals working to make a meaningful difference in our communities and to have such a wonderful family of my own here in Scottsdale.”

Becky Repko Leon resides in Pittsburgh, PA, with her husband, John. They celebrated nine years of marriage in December. They have two daughters, Parker Rae, age four; and Charlie Mae, age one. John is in management for Cintas Corporation. Becky is enjoying being a stay-at-home mom. They live on Neville Island and spent the last summer boating on the Ohio River. Within the year, they plan to take their girls on their first trip to Disney World.

2005

Kelly Minkin received a degree in molecular and cellular biology from The University of Arizona and then went on to earn a law degree. She has been a local attorney for the past seven years and is currently a partner at The VerStandig Law Firm. Kelly is also a professional poker player and happens to be the top-ranked female poker player on Arizona’s All Time Money List! Kelly resides in Scottsdale with her partner, Landen, and their son, Izaia.

2007

Asher Landay is a producer on the new NBC series LA BREA. When a massive sinkhole mysteriously opens up in Los Angeles, a family is separated after a mother and her son fall into the sinkhole and find themselves in a mysterious primeval world alongside a disparate group of strangers. Asher helped shepherd the project from its initial development all the way through its production in Melbourne, Australia. He’s hopeful for a season two renewal. Asher still lives in Los Angeles with his goldendoodle, Chip, age two; who often has puppy playdates with Lizzie Thompson’s ’07 dog, Truman!

Blake Lewkowitz reports, “My wife, Victoria, and I welcomed our second child, Rory Tancer Lewkowitz, on March 4, 2021. Rory was named after my grandfather, Robert Tancer, and has already provided us with so much joy and excitement. Quinn is loving being a big sister and can’t wait to show off her new best friend, when we can safely do so.”

Ben Shanken is the VP of Growth at Discord. He and his fiancee, Veronica, as well as their corgi, Louie Cheesecake, split time between San Diego and San Francisco. Ben and Veronica plan to marry next year in Sonoma, CA.

Michael Crane lives in downtown Phoenix with his partner, Ash, and cat, Bananas. He is a practicing family law attorney at a small firm in Phoenix. When he is not working, he, Ash, and Bananas like to sit on the couch and watch Star Trek reruns while eating popcorn. (Homestyle Butter from Pop Secret is their typical go-to.) Michael keeps in touch with his old PCDS classmates by losing to them at Fantasy Football.

2008

Ilian Valev graduated from ASU with a degree in finance. After working as an accountant and financial analyst for Honeywell Aerospace, he returned to ASU and graduated (2018) with a law degree. Following a one-year clerkship with the Arizona Court of Appeals, Ilian obtained a job as a commercial finance lawyer for Snell & Wilmer (a large business law firm in Phoenix), where he has been for more than two years. As a commercial finance lawyer, he represents lenders in commercial lending transactions. “When I’m not working,” shares Ilian, “I like to go hiking, play tennis and pickleball, and spend time with my dog, Homeboy. Another fun PCDS fact is that Schulyer Humes ’08 and I are still great friends, and we have been roommates for more than five years now.”

After being admitted to the California Bar, Caroline Lynn opened her own boutique/solo practice while simultaneously stepping into the role of inhouse counsel for LGO Hospitality. In her free time, and as much as possible, she continues to pursue her lifelong passion of equestrian show jumping.

2009 Anne Faber-Inkpen was working as a chief of staff before taking a sabbatical in 2020. She founded an e-commerce start-up that provides at-home baking kits. She lives in Munich, Germany, with her husband, Nick, and cat, Fritz.

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In spring of 2020, Matt Rosenzweig defended his dissertation on the mathematics of quantum many-body systems and subsequently began a postdoctoral position at MIT as a CLE Moore Instructor and Associate of the Simons Collaboration on Wave Turbulence. He spent the fall semester in residence at The Institute for Computational and Experimental Research in Mathematics (ICERM), located at Brown University. Matt shares that when the first snowstorm hits New England, he’ll wonder why he ever left Arizona.

Alex Beller recently moved to Denver after many years in LA. In 2018, he cofounded Postscript, a software business that went through Y Combinator and now employs over 200 people working remotely across North America. In 2021, in a happy twist of fate, Elliot Ginsburg ’09 joined Postscript, as Head of Legal. (Shoutout to Mrs. Mazzolini for seating Elliot and Alex next to each other during senior year calculus.) Time not spent working is time spent snowboarding or cheering on the Phoenix Suns from afar.

2010

Diana Schron is finishing up her third and last year of residency at UCSF orthodontics. She has enjoyed living in San Francisco these last few years and was especially fortunate during the pandemic to have two amazing PCDS alum roommates, Emily Schron ’13 and Austin Ingersoll ’10. Early on in the pandemic, Ted (Diana’s fiancé) moved from NYC to SF, and they found an apartment just down the street from Emily and Austin—which made it ideal for the quarantine pod to get together. Diana and Ted are planning to wed in Phoenix in November 2022, and they plan to remain in the Bay Area for work for the next year or two.

Sophie LaBelle recently completed her master’s thesis on the evolution of baboons and their closest relatives. She is happily living in Illinois with her husband, two poodles, and new daughter, Lucy LaBelle Kryder.

Geri Hormel reports, “In 2013, I founded Almost There: A Mom + Pups Rescue (ATR), an organization specializing in saving the lives of mama dogs and their pups. In December of 2020, I moved ATR into a brand new, stateof-the-art facility built specifically with the nonprofit’s mission in mind. This new facility houses 19 ’Mutternity Suites’ and large indoor play yards for the dogs to get exercise year round. Since reopening in January 2021, ATR has placed over 380 pets in loving forever homes. Almost There Rescue is actively looking for donations, volunteers, fosters, and adopters. They also offer puppy parties for a donation. To learn more, check out the website at, www.almostthererescue.org. My significant other, Hunter Rodgers, and I like to spend our spare time fostering pups, traveling, drinking good wine, and tending to our 50(ish) chickens, four goats, Daisy the duck, Lucy the goosey, and mastiff puppy, Ham.” Madison Boyle reports, “After six wonderful years in Wisconsin, GE Healthcare allowed me to migrate west to Irvine, CA. While in Irvine, I have taken on a commercial finance leader role, where I partner with our sales team and customers across the Rocky Mountain and Southern California markets to ensure that we can improve lives in moments that matter. This relocation has also allowed me to reconnect on a regular basis with fellow PCDS alums, Danielle Dozer ’10, and my brother, Dean Boyle ’15. In 2021, Danielle and I were able to catch a Phoenix Suns game at the Staples Center while the Suns were on their journey to the finals. Go Suns!”

2011

Rachel Epstein lives in Brooklyn, NY. She works in the music industry for The Bowery Presents and books concerts all over the East Coast. She writes, “After the obvious year+ COVID hiatus, it feels wonderful to see the return of live music events in a way that feels safe for everyone.”

After graduating from Southern Methodist University in 2015, Andrew Fennessy moved back to Arizona, and met his wife, Kenndra, in Old Town Scottsdale. They married on March 6, 2021, at Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas. Andrew’s best man was Ivaylo Bahtchevanov ’11. Andrew currently manages a sales team for a data privacy company in the Bay Area and plans to move his family to Southern California in 2022.

After working at the Department of Homeland Security for the past two years, Ashley Sylvester is now an External Affairs Specialist for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in Arlington, VA. Ashley also got engaged to Sutton Truluck on July 4, 2021, and their wedding is set for the fall of 2022. She looks forward to celebrating with her PCDS friends and wants all to know that Katy Rector Stieg ’11 is her wedding planner. In May of 2020, Kathie Zhang received her medical degree (with distinctions in community service, bilingual medical Spanish, and rural health) from The University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson. In July 2020, she started an internal medicine residency at The University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics. She is currently still undecided about whether to remain a general internist or to further sub-specialize (likely in nephrology).

Lauren Sheffield graduated from Fordham University in 2015, and she lived in New York City after graduation. She began her career as a digital editor at Harper’s BAZAAR and continued working there until 2019. She is now living in Austin, Texas, doing marketing and has recently started her own business, a skincare company called Restorva.

Keep up to date with alumni happenings on the Phoenix Country Day School Alumni Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/PhoenixCountryDaySchoolAlumni In 2015, Lindsay Merhege Leonardi graduated from College of Charleston and joined the events industry as a luxury wedding and event planner. She currently plans and designs luxury weddings and corporate events for some of the world’s most successful companies here in the U.S. Lindsay hopes to soon expand internationally. She currently lives in Raleigh, NC, with her husband, Brian and sweet pup, Charlie.

2012

In 2016, Claire Schollaert graduated from Bowdoin College with a BA in biology and anthropology. She then worked as a research assistant at Boston University and completed her MPH there part-time. In 2019, Claire relocated to Seattle to pursue a doctorate in environmental health at the University of Washington. There she studies wildfire smoke impacts on air quality and health across the Pacific Northwest.

On a day between one and three years ago, which may or may not have had weather similar to today, the birds were either singing or eerily silent as James Hobin ’12 and Danielle Marquis ’11 walked to Cambridge City Hall. What exactly transpired that day is known only to them (and at least two other people), but it is rumored that they now pay lower taxes and share health insurance. For more details about this curious affair (or lack thereof), please whisper a secret to your local raven.

After graduating from high school in Eureka, MT, Kaela Ho came back to Arizona for college. While she was a student at Grand Canyon University, she found her Asian and Hawaiian pride through GCU’s PASA (Philippine American Student Association) and GCU’s Hui Aloha clubs. She shares, “In college I also went on several antitrafficking mission trips to Thailand and Cambodia with Destiny Rescue. That’s where I found my love for Asia (and also had my first and only ghost encounter) and my passion to end human trafficking. I am still living in Arizona and am very passionate and vocal about StopAsianHate, antitrafficking awareness, my AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) pride, and abortion rights. Hopefully, in the near future, I will relocate to Hawaii or an Asian country (preferably the Philippines or Thailand), where I hope to do my part in combating child trafficking. In the meantime, I would love to catch up and reconnect with all those in Arizona. I also just recently reunited with PCDS alum, Alex Juneja ’11. It was amazing to reminisce about our PCDS and Tesseract days!”

Devra Hock is currently completing her doctorate in earth sciences and paleontology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Devra is researching the relationship between mammalian traits and the environment and is building a model to apply to fossil sites based on the proportion of mammalian traits in regional biomes. She started this work during her thesis for her master’s (also in earth sciences and paleontology) which she completed at UNL in 2018. This followed her graduation (magna cum laude) from Montana State University in 2015. During her time at MSU, Devra contributed to department research on dinosaur eggshells, participating in an NSF international research group in Hangzhou, China. Since being at UNL, Devra and her advisor have done numerous field work trips to Wyoming. There they collaborate with two research groups from New York to study the evolution of primates in North America. More recently in 2019 and 2017, Devra presented some of her graduate research at the annual paleontology conference in Brisbane, Australia, and Calgary, Canada. Devra is also working in informal science learning in natural history museums and is part of an international research group, which last met in person in Israel in 2019. And, she is contributing an essay to a book on informal learning set to publish in 2023. Devra is also heavily involved with the Association for Women Geoscientists—having served on its international board since 2019—in a variety of positions but currently acting as the communications coordinator on the executive committee. She was just presented with an award from the association’s president for her work on improving the communication of the association, particularly with social media. Outside of her research, Devra performs with and teaches at an aerial studio in Lincoln, NE, and spends her (very limited) free time with her fiance and two cats.

2013

Jackson Murphy is now a lieutenant in the Navy and serves as a supply officer. For the past two and a half years, he was assigned to the USS Cheyenne, a fast attack submarine stationed in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He was in charge of 10 sailors and responsible for all the logistics and food service operations onboard the submarine. During his tour, he spent 394 days at sea, sailed over 70,000 nautical miles, and visited Guam and Japan. Toward the end of his tour, he sailed with the Cheyenne from Hawaii to Connecticut, in preparation for the submarine to head to an engineered refueling overhaul in the shipyard. In September, he left the submarine and moved with his wife and dog to Bremerton, WA, where he is currently stationed at the Fleet Logistics Center and will become certified in acquisitions and contracting.

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2014

Avery Racine is currently an Area Manager for Central Operations at Amazon. Avery shares, “I work with the code team, and we handle many different processes that ensure that the fulfillment centers and other businesses are able to run smoothly. I graduated from ASU, where I made the Dean’s List multiple times. I have also lived in the Bay Area doing software sales. I still spend time doing volunteer work, and during the last few years, I have worked closely with Phoenix Rising For Haiti.”

Nikhita Sachdeva shared, “I am currently finishing up my third year of medical school in New Jersey. COVID has really affected our day-to-day lives and having to experience patient care in the epicenter of it all has been life-changing. My family and I have also started an organization called Wholesome Living and have been gathering supplies for Afghan refugees. Life has been pretty busy, but I wouldn’t change a thing about it!”

2015

Steven Bolden reports, “In 2019, I graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA. After graduation, I accepted a full-time offer from Accenture Consulting to be a data analyst in the strategy practice of the firm. I’ve been there now for two years. I spend most of my free time taking dance classes as well as recording episodes of my podcast ’Candidly Cultured in Corporate America’ with my friend and coworker, Shan.”

PJ Noghrechi shares, “Hey everyone! Since graduation, I completed my undergraduate degree and master’s in healthcare management at The University of Arizona. While completing my degrees, I served as a research assistant at the Center for Management Innovations in Healthcare and was a TA for the MBA/MHM programs at the Eller College of Management. After spending a handful of years down in Tucson, it was time for me to move on to the next chapter in my life. I am currently a first-year doctoral student at The Ohio State University, specializing in health services management & policy (HSMP) through their College of Public Health. I’m stoked to be in a program that allows me to combine all of my academic/professional interests into a specialized degree. It’s definitely been a wild ride to enter this field during the ongoing public health crisis, but I’m excited to see where this journey will take me!”

Bond McGillivray reports, “After I graduated from PCDS, I started down a neurobiology path (basically a biology degree with specialized training and a concentration in neuroscience) at the University of Richmond in Virginia. The research I am most proud of working on relates to diagnosing novel markers of genetic neurodegenerative diseases. Specifically, our principal question was whether genetic markers of fruit fly optical lobe degeneration could be used as a model for detecting Huntington’s Disease susceptibility in human fetuses. My job as an ultramicrotome technician was to slice in half these fruit fly optical lobes and study them for protein (ommatidia) degeneration. Through college, I also found myself very interested in human systems and geopolitics. My professor, Dr. David Salisbury, invited me and a select group of students to venture to Chile to perform novel data research and to run a pilot program test for the United Nations Climate Change Conference. Here we presented our climate-change-related-findings at the inaugural Climate Change Atlas of the Americas in Santiago, Chile. Since graduating from the University of Richmond and landing straight into an unprecedented pandemic, I have taken a bit of a break from academia and moved to Boulder, CO, with my girlfriend, Elise, where I have been amateurishly exploring the world of electronic music production, audio engineering, and audio/visual technology. A little Rocky Mountain hiking and snowboarding here-and-there doesn’t hurt either. I hope to soon begin a master’s track in astrobiology at CU Boulder in order to jumpstart a career in the burgeoning field of astrobiology. I see this as an exciting path to marry my interests and experience in biology with my wonder for space exploration and the destiny of humanity.”

2016

Jessica Sherman attended ASU, where she became a Grand Challenge Scholar with a concentration in sustainability through the National Academy of Engineering. While at ASU, she completed an internship at Arizona Public Service, focusing on electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Her senior capstone project was an ASUled NASA research project which focused on their upcoming Psyche’s Hall thruster plume simulations (launch date in August 2022). She graduated from Barrett, The Honors College at ASU and the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering with a bachelor’s degree in enterprise informatics and a minor in business. Since then, she has been working as a Creative Digital Marketing Specialist at Honeywell Aerospace in Phoenix. Jessica reports that she has the best job. In the mornings, she works on marketing analytics, and for the rest of the day, she travels with the flight crew to document exciting new product testing and developments.

Elle Miraglia graduated from UCLA in March 2020, just a week or so after the announcement that in-person classes would be fully online due the pandemic. She left Westwood with a bachelor’s in communication studies and a self-proclaimed concentration in business/real estate from all the elective classes she took while there. Upon moving home to Phoenix, Elle interned for a private equity group based in El Segundo, specializing in hotel to multifamily asset conversions. A few months later, she received a fulltime job offer at Jones Lang LaSalle. Elle is currently a multifamily/hotel Debt and Equity Analyst, assisting brokers with financing transactions and equity raises. She currently lives in Scottsdale, plays pickleball as much as possible, and hangs out with her pups, friends, and family in her free time.

After graduating from PCDS, Jiahao Jiang attended Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, a well-known hospitality school in Switzerland. Jiahao reports that the school encourages students to gain professional experience before graduation. Therefore, during the past few years, Jiahao has worked with a luxury hotel in Thailand, a French NGO in Cambodia, and an American PR firm in China. These internships led him to a passion for marketing. Currently, Jiahao is pursuing a master’s degree in marketing at ESSEC Business School, Asia-Pacific, and is aiming to build a career in the marketing field in Singapore. During Jiahao’s free time along journeys to some lesser-known destinations in Southeast Asia and Europe, he vividly recalled (several times) what PCDS teachers used to say in his classes. It was during one of those moments when he had the realization that a PCDS education has not only “allowed me to excel academically and professionally but also, and more importantly, nurtured mindfulness and a growth mindset in me.”

After graduating from Southern Methodist University and receiving his degree in business administration and finance, Matt Rosenthal currently works for AT&T in Dallas. He works in the sports & entertainment vertical assisting professional sports teams with their stadium and front office technology.

Natalie Prieb reports, “After graduating from George Washington University in May 2020, with a degree in English and creative writing, I was lucky enough to get a yearlong position as a News Assistant at The New York Times. Even though the job was completely remote due to COVID, I learned so much and had the opportunity to work with some of the best journalists and editors in the industry. This past June, I moved back to the DC area and got a job as a social media curator at The Hill. I’m thrilled to be back in our nation’s capital and am sure that 2022 will be no less crazy a time in political journalism!”

In 2020, Jake Bain graduated from Claremont McKenna with a MA in finance and a BS in economics. He moved to NYC over a year ago and currently works on various hotel transactions across the globe through his work on the Lodging Capital Markets team at Newmark. After graduating from PCDS, Sam Garvin attended Claremont McKenna College where he played basketball for two years and received an MA in finance. Sam reports that CMC was one of the best experiences of his life (even though the last semester was remote due to COVID). While there, he met many of his best friends and also had the opportunity to maintain friendships with other PCDS alumni. Since graduating from CMC in 2020, Sam has been working remotely for Apple in corporate finance and business management roles as part of a rotational program. He has reportedly bounced around between Phoenix, San Diego, and Los Angeles, and he has done some traveling too. More recently, he has moved to San Francisco full-time to—he hopes—continue working in-person (rather than virtual) at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino.

After graduating from Carleton College and receiving a degree in economics, Yash Muley now works for MidCap Financial in Los Angeles. Yash is currently working as an analyst for the Financial Sponsors and Leveraged Finance Group at Midcap, where he provides senior debt solutions to middle-market companies across all industries.

Nicole Thumma is finishing her master’s degree in engineering at MIT with the Marine Robotics Group. This spring, she will remain in Cambridge, MA, and will start work as a software engineer at Pickle Robot Company. Since leaving PCDS, she has continued her involvement in technical theatre and has developed a passion for needlework and beaded art.

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After leaving PCDS, Freya Irani attended the Berlin University of the Arts where she received a bachelor’s degree in music. She now lives in the Milwaukee area and is currently a traveling music teacher in the Milwaukee Public Schools. She teaches violin, viola, cello, and piano and is a substitute violist with professional orchestras in that area. Freya tells us that music is a universal language. “Being involved in musical communities has brought so much joy to my life. And, it allows young people to express themselves, make close friends, and to form lasting connections. Learning music at a young age provides kids with experiences they will never forget. It also teaches vital life skills such as selfdiscipline, collaboration, and dedication. I am grateful to be in such a position in my field—to be inspiring and to connect with others every day,” shares Freya.

After graduating from PCDS in 2016, Jamie Cohen attended Duke University and was able to continue sporting royal blue as she transitioned from an Eagle to a Blue Devil. While at Duke, Jamie completed a major in public policy and minors in both markets & management and policy journalism. During college, she interned at CBS News and at the public affairs consultancy APCO Worldwide. She also played goalkeeper on Duke’s Women’s Club Soccer team, served as a section editor for the main university newspaper, studied abroad in Switzerland, and was an active member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. After graduating from Duke in May 2020, and leaving the Gothic campus behind, Jamie moved to Washington, D.C., where she now works for a strategic advisory firm called The Brunswick Group. She helps to advise clients in the healthcare sector on a range of critical issues. During the weeknights, Jamie teaches yoga at CorePower Yoga and can frequently be found running around the monuments, trying new restaurants with friends, and exploring D.C.’s fun neighborhoods.

Erica Samota attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. She studied biology and then worked in healthcare in Los Angeles. After deciding healthcare was not for her, she enrolled in USC’s master’s program in school counseling with the hopes of becoming an elementary school counselor to help students with their social-emotional skills and academic successes. “Throughout my K-12 schooling, my teachers had a huge impact on my life. As a counselor, I hope to provide a safe space and be encouraging to students, just like my teachers did for me. I recently got married to my college sweetheart, and after finishing my master’s degree, we hope to move towards the East Coast!”

After graduating from PCDS, Daniel Bashir attended Harvey Mudd College. He studied computer science and mathematics, with minors/concentrations in economics and philosophy. He is now working at an AI chip startup as a machine learning engineer. In his spare time, Daniel writes newsletters and pieces for Skynet Today, edits for The Gradient, manages to do plenty of TV watching and reading, and exercises. He reports that he spent a great deal of 2020 working on a book about AI, ethics, and society—a book that he is now in the process of publishing. He is currently living in Mountain View, CA, and is working in Palo Alto.

In May 2020, Mala Bansal graduated from Duke University with a bachelor’s in public policy and a certificate in science and society. She has since moved to Boston to work as an associate at EY-Parthenon, a strategy consulting firm.

In spring of 2020, Jason Greenfield graduated from Amherst College. While there, he studied computer and political science. After graduating, he began working as a data scientist at a cyber threat intelligence company in Boston called Recorded Future. “It’s been a really fascinating experience to work on a team that infiltrates criminal websites on the dark web to gather intelligence that helps our clients protect their organizations, and I’ve even picked up a little Russian on the side. While work has been a great learning experience, I intend to apply to graduate school in the near future and plan to study the intersection between humor and political extremism in digital communities. I will always be grateful for the foundation that PCDS has provided and hope to return to the Eagle’s Nest soon!”

2017 Wally Brown shared, “I recently graduated from Menlo College with a double major in business management and entrepreneurship. I moved back to Scottsdale and am currently enrolled in classes to obtain my real estate license—since commercial real estate is part of my family business. Upon completion of my real estate license, I plan to begin studying for the LSAT.”

In the spring of 2021, Annalise Bracher graduated from Duke University with a bachelor’s in cell and molecular biology, minors in music and chemistry, and a “graduation with distinction thesis” in neurodevelopmental genetics. She is currently taking a gap year while applying to medical school. During this time, she plans to complete a biomedical research fellowship with Underdog Pharmaceuticals at the SENS Research Foundation in Mountain View, CA. She has also joined a community orchestra with plans to keep up with the violin.

In May of 2021, Miles Kohler graduated from Hofstra University with a bachelor’s in history and political science. After spending the pandemic in Phoenix and California while finishing up his senior year in college, he then moved to Seattle, where he currently lives with his partner and their German shepherd, Nova.

In May 2021, Austin Merkel graduated from Texas Christian University with a bachelor’s in political science and in French. He recently moved to Austin, TX, where he is pursuing a master’s in global policy studies at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas. He reports that he is passionate about world travel and global cooperation, and with his master’s degree, his hope is to start his career and make a difference in the field of international affairs and diplomacy. Janae Lewis reports, “Life has been wonderful since high school—between attending university, studying abroad in Taiwan, continuing my volunteer work, and more. In May 2021, I graduated from ASU and am now working as a software engineer in Tempe.”

Aspen Pierson moved to Massachusetts after her eighth grade year at PCDS. She attended high school at The Rivers School. While there, she played on and captained both the varsity women’s soccer team and the varsity Nordic ski team. She is currently in her last semester at Williams College in Western Massachusetts. While at Williams, she has played for and captained the varsity women’s soccer team. Her team has won two NCAA DIII National Championships. Aspen took the fall of 2020 off so that she could return and play for her final season which was this past fall. Outside of soccer, she is a chemistry and pre-med major. Currently, she is writing an honors chemistry research thesis that focuses on natural plasmid DNA transformation. She is also the head of the sustainability committee on SAAC, a student athlete committee, and she has reportedly “absolutely loved” her time at Williams College. Soon after graduating from Williams, she plans to travel to Guatemala for six months to study Spanish and learn about the immigration and health care system there. After that, the plan is to begin applying to medical schools.

Madison Bradford graduated from PCDS after eighth grade. For high school, she attended Phillips Academy Andover in Boston, MA. This past May, Madison graduated from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA, with degrees in accounting and finance and a minor in economics. She currently works for Deloitte in LA, and she recently passed all four sections of the CPA exam. “I am so thankful for all the years I spent at PCDS, and I would not be where I am today without the quality education I received while there.”

Gillian Barfield is currently living in Nashville, TN, where she is pursuing an accelerated bachelor’s degree in Nursing. In May 2020, she completed her undergraduate degree in human physiology at Gonzaga University, where she was also a member of the women’s varsity basketball team. She definitely misses competing on the court, but she is very excited about her current adventure—while enjoying all the country music and good food along the way. After she graduates in December of 2022, Gillian plans to move back to the West Coast to pursue a career in nursing, specifically in a newborn intensive care unit (NICU), while she works on her goal of becoming a nurse practitioner.

In May 2021, Mallory Klinger graduated from The University of Arizona with majors in neuroscience and cognitive science and with an emphasis on cognition. Since September 2021, she has been working on her master’s in applied psychology at USC while also working full-time in the B2B Sales Development Program for AT&T Business. In November, she will be placed in a fiber territories sales executive role at AT&T in Dallas.

Sam Lett graduated cum laude from the University of Southern California with a bachelor’s in business administration and a minor in Spanish. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in accounting with a concentration in data analytics from the University of Notre Dame. His plan is to graduate in May of 2022, and to begin work in the fall.

Alexandra Grounds attended PCDS from pre-K through eighth grade. For high school, she attended Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. She currently attends Columbia University in NYC and works as a professional artist. She specializes in large scale portraiture, with oil paint being her primary medium. Her portraits, often depicting classic iconic females and peers, aim to rework the patriarchy towards equality and female selfrepresentation. As a young woman in our social and political landscape, the discussion of objectification, oversexualization, and inequality has driven some of her most well-known pieces. Her painting is her form of resistance, of activism, and of empowerment— while embracing her own female sexuality. She currently has work displayed at the World Trade Center, the Castello di Ugento in Italy, as well as at exhibitions in multiple galleries nationally. Recently, Alexandra has made her debut as a designer and has introduced her artistry into a new medium. Her paintings now serve as the DNA and inspiration to the designs of her luxury clothing brand: HOUX Art-Á-Porter, which she launched in November 2021.

Divya Agarwal majored in computer science and applied economics at Cornell University. Since graduating from Cornell, she has been working as a product manager at Blackstone, an alternative asset management firm in NYC. She sits at the intersection of business and technology, where she is able to leverage her engineering background in the financial industry. Divya shares, “It has been a great experience working in such a fast-paced environment and handling complex problems on a day-to-day basis. Outside of work, I participate in two non-profits: Room to Read, an association focused on improving children’s literacy globally; and The Kota Alliance, an umbrella organization elevating collaboration amongst women-led start-ups, NGOs, and enterprises. All in all, my drive for innovation at work and my passion for social impact truly all started with a great foundation that was built at PCDS.”

Following her time at PCDS, Georgi Pregulman Fish continued her education and passion for basketball through high school. After graduation from high school, she “took two years to find myself” and then enrolled at the W.P. Carey School of Business at ASU. Currently, Georgi is a college student with two beautiful boys, a loving husband, and a life-changing job. I never expected to be where I am today; all I did was follow my heart and my truth and learned to love myself.

Brittanie Underwood graduated from ASU and plans to work part-time focusing on either clinical or school psychology. Her plan is to pursue a master’s in psychology at Liberty University beginning in the fall of 2022. Outside of her academic and professional worlds, Brittanie reports that she plays the drums, piano, and practices a few other art forms.

2018

Madison Stringer is currently a senior at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in biochemistry and biophysics, minoring in mathematics, and submatriculating to also receive her master’s in chemistry this year. She is researching next generation contrast agents in the Dmochowski laboratory on campus, and she is currently applying to graduate school to pursue a PhD in chemistry to study intrinsically disordered proteins and their role in neurodegenerative disorders.

Rhea Tuli ’18, Sophia Casten ’18, and Jillian Gilburne ’16 met up in Washington, D.C., with their former PCDS Speech & Debate coach, Michelle Hill. Jillian is a Design Strategist at Booz Allen Hamilton. Sophia is currently working in the office of Senator Amy Klobuchar. Rhea is currently interning at a film production company. In May 2022, Sophia will graduate from Smith College and Rhea will graduate from American University.

In May 2022, Kylie Fisher will be graduating from Northern Arizona University with a degree in Archaeology. She has been working on developing curriculum for study abroad programs in Chile.

2019

Julia Hekimian is currently a host for Alternative Nation on 88.7FM WRHU Radio Hofstra University, a three-time Marconi award-winning station.

Kaleab Afework is studying cell biology and genetics at Rice University. He has been engaged in undergraduate research on cancer development and metabolism at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center where he is analyzing behavioral responses to environmental traps in drosophila fly model. Kaleab is also spending his time volunteering at Houston Methodist Hospital and planning events for other juniors in his residential college.

2021

Claire Linos recently completed her first semester of college at Case Western Reserve University in their direct admission nursing program. While there, she has been able to care for patients at University Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, as well as gain amazing skills in the nursing lab each week. She also works for the Case and Cleveland Clinic as a lab assistant at their Health Education Campus.

Jaxon Gonzales is currently pursuing a business degree while in his first year at Seattle University. He is committed to swimming for his school (as a Division I athlete) and is super excited to see how his first swim season and the next three years there will play out— both academically and athletically. In January, a virtual panel of young alumni Zoomed into an US senior class meeting from their respective universities. They answered lots of questions posed by the seniors—from the PCDS-to-college transition, to campus life during the pandemic, to things they wish they had done as second semester PCDS seniors. Special thanks to Jake Rodin ’19, Michael Rosenthal ’19, Willo Wass ’20 and Simone Rawicz ’21 for their time.

Do you have news to share? We are always excited to hear from you. Send details about a graduation, a new job, a birth, engagement, or marriage announcement, a recent trip, a new hobby, or a visit with another alumnus/a (and email accompanying photos) to alumni@pcds.org. We look forward to learning what you have been up to!