Reed College Magazine Spring 2024

REED MAGAZINE

TRUE ALTITUDE

From her thesis at Reed to the remote wilds of Alaska, bush pilot Lana Tollas ’19 has always found a way to take flight

ONE WEEK. INFINITE POSSIBILITIES.

ELECTIONS, POLITICS, AND (DIS)INFORMATION:

Election year 2024 is pivotal for the United States. Attend seminars and workshops featuring faculty and Reedies who are at the front lines of elections and political processes in an age of information overload and disinformation.

REUNIONS 2024 | JUNE 6–9

ALUMNI COLLEGE | JUNE 5–6 reunions.reed.edu

Join your fellow alumni on campus for a spectacular weekend full of traditions, class revelry, and more. Plus—if your class year ends in a 4 or 9, you have a quinquennial anniversary to celebrate!

REED MAGAZINE

Spring 2024 Volume 103, No. 1

EDITOR

Katie Pelletier ’03

ART DIRECTOR

Tom Humphrey

WRITER/EDITOR

Britany Robinson

CLASS NOTES EDITOR

Joanne Hossack ’82

REEDIANA EDITOR

Robin Tovey ’97

GRAMMATICAL KAPELLMEISTER

Virginia O. Hancock ’62

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Lauren Rennan

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND COMMUNICATIONS

Sheena McFarland

Reed College is an institution of higher education in the liberal arts and sciences devoted to the intrinsic value of intellectual pursuit and governed by the highest standards of scholarly practice, critical thought, and creativity.

Reed Magazine provides news of interest to the Reed community. Views expressed in the magazine belong to their authors and do not necessarily represent officers, trustees, faculty, alumni, students, administrators, or anyone else at Reed.

Reed Magazine (ISSN 08958564) is published quarterly by the Office of Public Affairs at Reed College. Periodicals postage paid at Portland, Oregon.

Postmaster:

Reed Magazine

3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. Portland, Oregon 97202-8138

503-777-7591

reed.magazine@reed.edu www.reed.edu/reed-magazine

From the Editor

What’s in a Nameplate?

I didn’t know much about the history of calligraphy at Reed when I was a student in the early aughts, though its legacy still swirled around. I’d heard something about there having once been classes and world-class calligraphers here. And there was beautiful lettering in frames and cases in the library that I often paused to look at during the long hours I spent there. But it wasn’t until I came back to Reed as a staff member that I really noticed it everywhere—in flyers, exhibitions, Reunions themes, Paideia classes, and the steady archival use of Lloyd Reynolds’s [English and art 1929–69] papers. The Calligraphy Initiative at the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery—the brainchild of Stephanie Snyder ’91—had revived the practice on campus in 2012. Students and alumni were attending weekly scriptoria, adorning the campus trees with weathergrams, and in all the years I’ve been here, I don’t think that an issue of Reed Magazine has gone to press without a mention of calligraphy or Lloyd Reynolds somewhere within.

What had seemed to me to be a dusty tradition when I was a student was in fact quite alive.

When we were taking a close look at our nameplate for the magazine during the redesign process, sorting through fonts and styles, we saw a great opportunity to draw on this heritage. Our design team reached out to Gregory MacNaughton ’89, coordinator of education, engagement, and the Calligraphy Initiative, and asked him to collaborate with us on lettering. Generously, he did, penning the distinctive capital R that we are proud to share on the cover of our newly redesigned magazine. This collaboration and resulting nameplate honor not just Reed’s calligraphic heritage, but all the meaningful threads that run through Reed’s history and tie together its community.

Thank you to all of you who filled out our survey, made comments, or took the time to write an email during our redesign. Your feedback was thoughtful, heartening, and crucial. Based on what we learned, we plan to focus the coming issues on material that speaks to the interests and preoccupations you shared with us. We want to tell authentic stories of alumni and students solving problems in their own lives and in the world. We want to illuminate the impacts that Reed and Reedies are having locally and globally, in small and large ways. And, we want to dig into the big issues with Reed thought leaders: faculty, alumni, and students who are applying their minds to rigorously question, test, investigate, solve, find meaning, and contribute important knowledge to the world. To me, these capacities are the strongest thread that unites all Reedies.

—Katie Pelletier ’03, Editor

14

Inclusive Excellence

President Bilger sits down with Dean of the Faculty Kathy Oleson and Vice President and Dean of Intitutional Diversity Phyllis Esposito.

By

Sheena MacFarland

16

Turning Points

On the path to professional fulfillment, sometimes we need a big change.

By Britany Robinson

24

True Altitude

From her thesis at Reed to the remote wilds of Alaska, bush pilot Lana Tollas ’19 has always found a way to take flight.

By Chris Santella

32

Big Topics for Young Readers

Stories of British colonialism come to life in Prof. Natarajan’s Hear Our Voices.

By Laura Atkins

View from the cockpit on short final approach coming in to land at Barrow airport in Utqiagvik, Alaska.

Mailbox

Eyes Wide Open

I just watched the film Riders on the Storm in the article “Changing the Lens” [December 2022]. Wow, it takes something we see every day, but are blind to, and makes it compelling. Homelessness through the eyes of a young adult. I rolled my eyes when I read the introduction. By the end of the film, my eyes were wide open.

BRUCE ANTELMAN ’79

NEW YORK, NY

Missing Letters

I received the latest issue and noticed there wasn’t a Letters to the Editor feature. I enjoy “hearing” alumni voices and the details that we get hung up on. Where did it go?

TRACY WEBER ’95

PORTLAND, OREGON

Editor response: The letters to the editor section is one of my first stops when reading any magazine, but we have been getting fewer and fewer. Please write!

Class of ’23

When I first began receiving Reed Magazine, alumni listed in the class notes under “Class of ’23” were vigorous octogenarians. These people had enjoyed cocktails with F. Scott and Zelda and woken up to the long hangover of the Great Depression. They recovered in time to eat fascists for lunch, then spent a long summer

afternoon building a postwar juggernaut. In the early evening they had to decide whether to shoo the hippies off their lawns, or bring lemonade to their tents. I was honored to meet a few of them at a soiree. Amazing people.

Now the “Class of ’23” is full of equally amazing people, dauntlessly facing the challenge of saving our planet from the mess left by the first Class of ’23 and the rest of us since.

My question is, is it time for our Class Notes to list class years in four digits? Maybe not. I am finding the realization that the life cycle of institutions exceeds that of individuals to be poignant, just now.

ALEX LEVINE ’88 TAMPA, FLORIDA

In Memoriam

My heart broke learning of the death of Jeremy Stone ’99 [March 2023]. We served together on the alumni board, and Jeremy was instrumental in transforming the Reed Career Alliance. His sharp mind and quick wit always made the work more enjoyable.

I will miss Jeremy’s unrestrained giggle (if you ever heard it you know what I’m talking about), his unique ways of building community (often bacon based), and his joy, pride, and love when speaking of his daughter Ellie.

KRISTEN M. EARL ‘05 PORTLAND, OREGON

Riders on the Storm, a short film made by Outside the Frame, a nonprofit teaching filmmaking and storytelling skills to houseless youth founded by Nili Yosha ’07.

PHOTO BY ASH ADAMS

THE FRAME

ABOUT THE COVER

Lana Tollas ’19 pilots a Cessna Caravan over northern Alaska in December.

Photo by Ash Adams.

Little Prairie on Campus

In October, students, staff, and faculty added nearly 100 native plants to a prairie restoration site on Reed’s campus. Camas prairies once blanketed much of the Willamette Valley, and the bulb of the plant was an important food source for Indigenous inhabitants of the region. Today, just a tiny fraction of those prairies remains. The event was put on by Reed Camas Prairies, which educates about the cultural significance of camas, tribal food sovereignty, and restoration efforts. The project, launched last summer with funding from the Social Justice Research and Education Fund in partnership with Science Outreach, will offer future opportunities to care for the plants through their first year.

PHOTO BY TOM HUMPHREY

Lasting Impact on Reed

After 26 years of leadership, Hugh Porter departs.

When he arrived at Reed, Hugh Porter noticed that when asked what was distinctive about Reed, alumni sometimes pointed first to the social culture.

This was not the way he saw it.

“What really is distinctive about Reed is the way the academic program is arranged: with dedicated faculty and a curriculum that is a steep climb rather than a downward slope of intensity,” he says. He wanted alumni to more deeply appreciate Reed’s intellectual impact, and to celebrate and support the college’s remarkable academic strengths.

Porter, now Vice President for College Relations and Planning, has spent 26 years dedicated to finding innovative ways to further Reed’s mission and secure its longevity. His success has led to numerous advancements in the breadth and depth of Reed’s

academic program, substantial increases in student financial aid, and critical funding for changes to the built environment. He also planned and spearheaded the largest fundraising effort in Reed’s history, which concluded in 2012 with more than $203 million raised.

“Hugh has had the incredible capacity to dive in, care, and support out-of-the box solutions,” says Trustee Jane Buchan. “He is a true Reedie in terms of dealing with the ‘what’ and looking behind issues for productive solutions.”

In addition to being responsible for the college’s fundraising, Porter oversees advancement, alumni relations and volunteer engagement, communications and public affairs, conference and events planning, institutional research, and the Center for Life Beyond Reed.

From 2018 to 2019, he served as interim president and helped recruit a new president. In this role he was especially buoyed by interactions

with students, who are—as he frequently reminds colleagues—“the reason we’re here.” When a group of students organized a Renn Fayre softball team called Hughes on First, he naturally joined in. Due to the no-strike limit, he was able to engage in long conversations with students on the field—often while waiting at first base, of course.

In 2019, Porter took over the responsibility of institutional planning, and during the pandemic, served as cochair of the COVID19 Risk Assessment Group, working tirelessly to ensure the safety of all on campus.

Porter holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in music history from Yale University. He is an accomplished cellist, and, in his post-Reed life, plans to apply his skills to collaboration and challenges of a different sort, like ensemble music performance— which is a very Reed thing to do.

—Katie Pelletier ’03

Porter has served under Presidents:

Steven Koblik [1992–2001]

Peter Steinberger [2001–02]

Colin Diver [2002–12]

John Kroger [2012–18]

Audrey Bilger [2019–]

“Hugh has been a trusted colleague and valued member of my leadership team. I have personally benefited greatly from his wisdom, grace, depth of institutional knowledge, and friendship.” —President Audrey Bilger.

The Risograph Has Arrived

The risograph is not a cool-looking machine. It’s big and blocky and gray, calling to mind an office copier. Indeed: invented in Japan in 1958 for office use, it fell out of favor as the photocopier rose. But what the risograph makes? That’s very cool. With rice bran inks that verge on fluorescent and a process that’s precise yet unpredictable—essentially a cross between stencil duplication and screen printing—the risograph has seen a surge in popularity in recent years among artists, zine makers, independent publishers, and designers, all drawn to the way the machine pairs a DIY aesthetic with automated efficiency.

“It’s a collaborative process between you and the machine.”

—Charlotte Applebaum ’27

Now Reed has its own risograph. Visual Resources Curator Chloe Van Stralendorff proposed the acquisition last year, and the risograph arrived in June. Van Stralendorff, who runs the Visual Resources Center (VRC), wanted an outlet for students that would be creative and experimental as well as practical.

“I just knew we needed one,” she says. “Reed has this interest in zines, in comic books, in DIY posters. The risograph seemed like the right fit, and I felt students would respond to it really well.”

She was right. Student visits to the VRC multiplied over ten-fold. Van Stralendorff also partnered with Ann Matsushima Chiu, social sciences librarian and curator of the Reed Zine Library, to offer two risograph workshops led by Portland artist Timme Lu. At the first, held in November, a dozen students created collaborative collages and then inked them into vibrant pieces of art. Lu will return for another workshop in March—just a few days before the first Reed Zine Fest, a library-organized celebration of zines and other indie publications. Van Stralendorff collaborated with studio art faculty to incorporate the risograph into coursework, too. In the fall, students in Art Professor Daniel Duford’s Making Graphic Novels class and Professor Michael Stevenson Jr.’s Drawing in Many Forms class all undertook risograph work. “It’s a collaborative process between you and the machine,” says Charlotte Applebaum ’27, likening it to the experience of placing an unfired piece of pottery into a kiln. For each new color of ink the paper needs to be reloaded, which means the layers don’t line up perfectly. According to Stevenson, surrender is part of the lesson.

—Rebecca Jacobson

it—a miniature plane, that is. The impact from the yellow model Piper Cub left no mark on the cross-laminated timber beam it hit this fall. The plane and its remote aviator have yet to be reunited, however.

In its annual contest, Helium Comedy Club named sophomore Cameron Peloso ’26 Portland’s funniest person. He was the contest’s first Gen Z winner.

The Quest received a best of show award for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Reporting at the 2023 National College Media Conference in Atlanta.

Reed is home to the only nuclear reactor in the country staffed by undergraduates, a distinction highlighted in a recent episode of the Atlas Obscura podcast.

PHOTO BY CORNEILA SOMA PENN ’24

Guest Artist Timmy Lu with Visual Resources Center Curator Chloe Van Stralendorff.

Under the Microscope

Winning photo from annual Developmental Biology Image Contest sheds light on development and survival.

The embryo in this image belongs to a chicken strain known as an Easter Egger for the blue-and-green color of its eggs. To observe a chicken embryo, you must first crack the egg into a salt solution, remove the albumen—what we would call an egg white—and carefully peel the embryo away from the yolk.

The image was taken by mounting the embryo on the stage of a dissecting microscope, then holding a smartphone over one of the eyepieces. No longer concealed by its shell, the embryo’s heart visibly beats, pumping blood, with its head and brain oriented toward the top, and the heart tucked under its head. The membrane and blood vessels that circle the embryo provide nutrients and oxygen to support development and remove metabolic waste. In my Developmental Biology (biology 351L) lab, we study the genetic, chemical, and physical forces that influence embryo formation. This one is surprisingly resilient: as long as it is kept hydrated, covered with egg albumen, and supplied with a calcium source, it can carry on developing. The heart will continue to beat.

—Kaya Green ’25

National Science

Foundation to fund Prof. Nicole James’s research on chemistry

instruction

Chemistry education researcher and materials chemist Prof. Nicole James [chemistry] has won a grant from the National Science Foundation’s Building Capacity in STEM Education Research. She will receive $340,808 to research best practices in science education. The funding will support her project “BCSER: Identifying the Foundational Concepts and Skills of Materials Chemistry,” which will provide insights to help educa -

tors support STEM students in interdisciplinary endeavors.

James knows from experience that contemporary science curriculum often fails to meet the needs of students who hope to pursue interdisciplinary work, whether it takes the shape of materials chemistry, environmental chemistry, or another field of study. Introductory courses cannot cover all of these subdisciplines, which means educators often face the choice between

prioritizing either breadth or depth when planning first-and second-year chemistry courses.

“Sometimes if we teach more, they learn less,” James says. This dynamic, she says, is partly due to historic approaches to science curriculum that date from the 1950s. Even if schools want to upend these curricular norms, change comes with its own complications, including difficulties for students seeking to transfer or pursue exchange programs.

So if they want to recruit students to pursue and thrive in interdisciplinary fields, what’s a science educator to do? “If I have one week to present a case study, which is it going to be?” James says. That is: Which scientific skills and concepts are most widely used in interdisciplinary chemistry work? How can those topics be taught in a way that helps young scientists take what they know and apply it in a context they’ve never seen before?

The grant-funded project will explore these questions through interviewing chemistry postdocs about the concepts and skills they use in their work. James will also devise, execute, and analyze a national survey. Throughout all of this, Reed students will have a role to play: they are contributing to the theoretical faming of the study, interview collection and analysis an more—perhaps with an end result that benefits future students like them. —Katie

Pelletier ’03

PHOTO BY NINA JOHNSON ’99

Digging In

Anthropology students excavate on Reed’s campus in search of its lost history.

Sifting through layers of soil in the canyon, students aimed to learn more about earlier use of the land where Reed now sits. The students were taking Prof. Alejandra Roche Recinos ’s Anthropology 311: Archaeology of Reed this fall, where they were introduced to the hands-on work of archaeology: surveying, mapping, documentation, excavation, artifact identification, and artifact interpretation.

It wasn’t all dirty work, however. The course focuses on familiarizing students with the steps that happen before and after the dig, as well as the legal, ethical, and logistical requirements of fieldwork. They honed skills communicating with stakeholders and invested institutions.

They visited the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Historic Preservation Office and the Oregon Historical Society, and through this research they learned that the spot where they’d proposed to excavate had once been the site of a house that was demolished when Crystal Springs Farm was donated to Reed. “One of the inhabitants of the house was actually a Reed alum from the 1950s.” said Prof. Roche Recinos. “Our developing research questions focus on finding more out about this house, its inhabitants, and their relationship to Reed.”

This fall, their efforts yielded some gardening-related materials, construction materials, lots of plastic, and part of a squirrel jaw.

“All of this seems to date within the past 20 years, and we’ll see what we recover next semester!” said Roche Recinos. —Katie Pelletier ’03

POSTCARD: DEITIES IN LUKANG

Prof. Alexei Ditter [Chinese] spent six months in Taiwan on a Fulbright Scholar grant. Here he shares a glimpse of his time there—on a trip to Lukang, a hub of culture and history.

When my Taijiquan (tai chi) teacher, Serge Dreyer, offered to play tour guide on a visit to Lukang 鹿港, a small town on the west coast of Taiwan, I jumped at the opportunity. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Lukang had been an important center for trade and one of Taiwan’s largest cities. Today it is best known for its preservation of historical buildings and a flourishing culture of local religions. One place where these intersect is in the

use of talismans (fulu 符籙). These appear in both private spaces (above entranceways to homes) and public ones (on light posts, telephone poles, or exterior walls), and are used to protect people from evil. When multiple talismans appear in close proximity to one another, they suggest that an accident or death occurred at that location.

At Lukang’s famous Mazu Temple, we encountered a religious procession composed of multiple groups, each representing a different folk deity. Each group would escort its deity into the temple courtyard and have a performance. These involved chanting and music; in one, four Nezha danced together to Korean pop songs.

—Professor Alexei Ditter

FIND THESE STORIES AT: reed.edu/reed-magazine

“It is one thing to be passionate, but how you decide to articulate that and show up makes a difference,” said Trustee Emerita Adrienne Nelson. She and two other Reedie Oregon Supreme Court justices, Bronson James ’94 and Christopher Garrett ’96, told Reedies about their paths to becoming judges in a panel organized by the Reed Legal Network. By Amanda Waldroupe ’07

Meet Reed’s new trustees: Susan J. Sokol Blosser MAT ’67, Larry Abramson ’80, and Tina Sohaili-Korbonits ’07 joined the board earlier this year. Each brings unique experience and expertise to the board.

Paideia 2024: Despite the snowand ice-covered roads, students, staff, and alumni were still able to come together for this year’s celebration of learning. Instructors led classes from as far away as Croatia and as close as a few hundred (slippery) feet from their dorms. Check out what we learned. By Faolan Cadiz ’25

In a recent interview, the late Prof. Nicholas Wheeler ’55 [physics 1963–2010] recounted to the Lake Oswego Review giving J. Robert Oppenheimer a tour of Reed’s campus. [See also In Memoriam.]

The Los Angeles Times published a letter by Sharon Toji ’58 on the subject of the liberal arts education. “I’m 87, still working, and proof of the value of college humanities,” said the pioneer of accessible signage in the U.S.

PHOTO BY NINA JOHNSON ’99

Beyond the Great Lawn

Come in!

Juno Brewery

“We thought it would be fun to own a bar,” says Jason Marks ’84. If you stop by Juno Brewery in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the fun part will be evident. You might come in for a hopping happy hour or be lured in by the sound of live Latin music and join a salsa lesson. You’ll almost certainly spot the owners, Jason and his wife, Maxine, who are frequently pouring pints or serving food themselves. Jason says this retirement project has been fun—but it’s also “a huge amount of

work.” When he decided to open a brewery in 2021, he imagined himself sitting in the corner with his friends, watching customers come and go. The “retirement” endeavor has been much more hands-on. The work is hard, but as a result, Juno Brewery has become a local favorite.

Jason studied sociology at Reed before getting his law degree at the University of New Mexico. He practiced law for nearly two decades. When it came time to retire, he struggled with the idea of not working. He says the brewery has made it possible to “retire,” because he gets to keep working, but on a hobby he really loves.

He partnered with experienced brewers to devise the recipes that come together in large fermentation tanks, visible from the bar. “We do the basics well,” he says. But to fully appreciate Juno’s beer, you really need to be in their space.

“We have a family-run vibe,” says Jason of the high-ceilinged, airy brewpub. Their focus on fostering community here has brought in local artists to feature work on the walls and gallery, and meetups for various groups, including Reedies and the Sierra Club. Outside there’s a large patio, a popular destination in the summer months.

Jason and his wife enjoyed dancing

REEDIE BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Coming June 2024: Reunions and Alumni College

REUNIONS: June 6–9

Relish all that you love about Reed(ies) during Reunions weekend. Join your fellow alumni on campus for a spectacular weekend full of traditions, class revelry, and more.

ALUMNI COLLEGE: June 5–6

Elections, Politics, and (Dis)Information Election year 2024 is pivotal for the United States. Its long process will dominate the media and have profound implications for the country’s future. Attend seminars and workshops led by faculty and Reedies who are at the front lines of political processes in an age of information overload.

Come to one. Come to both. For more information see reunions.reed.edu.

Connect with Reedies

ALUMNI CHAPTERS

Want to connect with Reedies in your area? Reedies can share their joys and passions with each other through creative events and fun gatherings.

REED CAREER ALLIANCE

prior to opening Juno. But in opening their space to Latin dance nights, they’ve embraced the art form. It’s an activity that customers are really excited about, and the owners love it, too.

At Juno, Jason’s interests in beer and building community have blossomed into a space where people—including the owners—can explore something unexpected. “There’s a very Reed spirit in forging ahead into new, completely different things,” he says. —Britany Robinson

To find more Reed breweries, or other Reedie businesses, or to register your own, see iris.reed.edu/directory/reedie_businesses.

Support fellow alums in developing careers through virtual and in-person events, professional and affinity networks, peer mentoring, and other alumni-led initiatives. Reed alumni may well be other Reedies’ secret weapon in navigating the working world.

COMMITTEE FOR YOUNG ALUMNI

The Committee for Young Alumni (CYA) helps young alumni connect, continue their intellectual journey, and collaborate in their post-Reed lives in meaningful and relevant ways. Consider joining the committee if you graduated from Reed fewer than 10 years ago.

For more information about any of these opportunities, please call alumni relations at 503-777-7589 or email alumni@reed.edu.

Reedies gathered in January at Juno, a brewery, cafe, and art space in Albuquerque, New Mexico: Loline Hathaway ’59, Lucas Caudill ’22, Orion Lee ’23, Saba Goodarzi ’20, Nancy Burns ’88, and Ahza Cohen ’57.

PHOTO BY ADRIA MALCOLM

Continuing to Walk the Path of Inclusive Excellence at Reed

President Bilger sits down with the Dean of the Faculty Kathy Oleson and Vice President and Dean for Institutional Diversity Phyllis Esposito.

BY SHEENA MCFARLAND

Deep intellectual curiosity. A voracious appetite for learning. Multidimensionality. These are all aspects of the Reed College experience that connect students and alumni across time. And as Reedies continue to change, so too does Reed College. As the college works to be ever more inclusive and welcome students from a variety of backgrounds and lived experiences, Reed continues to evolve to create an experience that is accessible to every student accepted to the school.

To do that, Reed has centered inclusive excellence as the driving force behind its mission.

“Reed College has always been on the leading edge of academic excellence, and inclusive excellence is a defining feature of academic excellence,” said Reed College President Audrey Bilger

She recently sat down with Phyllis Esposito, vice president and dean for institutional diversity, and Kathy Oleson, dean of the faculty and professor of psychology, to discuss inclusive excellence and its importance at Reed College.

Esposito pointed out that schools typically take one of three

approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion on their campuses: embracing a multicultural perspective, tallying diversity through numbers, or inclusive excellence. Reed has chosen to take the inclusive excellence approach because it is a practice informed by theory that connects to and reflects Reed’s institutional mission.

Education researchers Damon A. Williams, Joseph B. Berger, and Shederick A. McClendon define inclusive excellence as the “strategic pursuit of balanced diversity objectives, repositioning diversity and inclusion as crucial to institutional excellence and quality.” Inclusive excellence has been at the heart of Reed’s strategic planning and academic pursuits for the past several years.

Reed continues to become a more diverse place, opening access to a wider variety of students from more backgrounds than ever before. The richness that comes from such diversity creates community cultural wealth. Bringing in new perspectives, ideas, and attitudes makes for a greater intellectual feast because of the more varied flavors of the ingredients.

“For anyone who might imagine that there’s some tension between rigor and inclusivity and diversity, we know that is not the case,” Bilger said. “In fact, the best pedagogy is inclusive pedagogy. The best campus is an inclusive campus.”

Oleson agreed, pointing to the Center for Teaching and Learning, which was established in

2014 and reports to the Office for Institutional Diversity. That center was purposely designed to support faculty in taking a more inclusive approach to their teaching—in learning new ways to ensure that students are thriving in their classrooms, and that their curricula highlight the breadth of knowledge that exists across cultures.

“Excellence has always been at the core of Reed’s mission,” Oleson said. “And to be truly excellent, we need to be inclusive.”

Excellence can sound like a destination, but it’s actually a process that requires scaffolding to allow everyone to build toward that goal together.

“The reason that this becomes a framework, and not a set of slogans, is because we believe it’s integral to what makes the college amazing, and what will continue to allow the college to thrive in this century,” Bilger said.

Esposito agrees that it is essential to take a scaffolded and evidence-based approach to inclusive excellence for it to continue to be at the heart of the work Reed does. That means being able to adapt to an ever-changing world.

“Context matters, and situation matters. We can be nimble in that we will be present with the students that we receive in the context in which we find ourselves,” Esposito said.

Inclusive excellence serves as a launching point for further work and continuous improvement. It is important to gather both quantita-

tive and qualitative data and then to embrace evidence-based practices.

That can then lead to a continuous improvement process that allows Reed to identify key priorities that can lead the campus community to the creation of specific goals.

The campus community came together to create Reed’s powerful, aspirational diversity and antiracism statements (written in 2009 and 2017, respectively). Continuing to move those statements from an idea to a practical reality is the

path Reed has been walking, and the next steps emphasize even more the need for further strategy and actions.

Bilger acknowledged that the statements are something Reed has embraced, and that it is important to continue turning those highlevel statements into practical work and to start to measure outcomes.

“These are more than just words, they’re commitments. And commitments require action and strategy and planning,” Bilger said.

Part of that commitment has come and will come from alumni, who through their advocacy, volunteerism, and engagement with the college can assist in creating a welcoming environment for students.

“Alumni have contributed and will further strengthen our mission of inclusive excellence by believing in the best for this college and believing in the ongoing evolution of Reed in the 21st century to meet the needs of today’s students,” Bilger said.

PHOTO BY NASHCO: LEAH NASH & CHRISTOPHER ONSTOTT

Dean of the Faculty Prof. Kathy Oleson [psychology], President Audrey Bilger, and Vice President and Dean for Institutional Diversity Phyllis Esposito met to talk in January.

Turning Points

On the path to professional fulfillment, sometimes we need a big change.

By Britany Robinson Illustrations by Melinda Josie

“It doesn’t seem like you’re passionate about this work.”

Aaron Good ’01 was taken aback. No, he was not passionate about managing a server infrastructure to push videos of sneakers to iPads in retail stores. Who would be? He was capable and he worked hard. But the person interviewing him for a new position at Nike, where he’d already been employed for 13 years, was right. He was not passionate about his work.

In that moment, he realized he wanted to be.

The term “The Great Resignation,” was coined to describe the wave of workers who quit their jobs or were looking for new ones in 2021. After the collective trauma of millions of deaths, the closure of countless small businesses, the resignation of so many parents (moms, mostly) from the

workforce to care for their kids, and innumerable impacts that continue today, a shadow was cast over how and why we work. The answer, for many, was to go searching for something new.

As quarantines lifted and business slowly returned to normal, 41% of the workforce was considering leaving their current employer, according to Microsoft’s Work Trend Index report for 2021. Of those considering changes, 46% planned to make “a major pivot or career transition.”

Things have settled down a bit since then—as far as the job market is concerned. But there will always be people looking for something new—something better—when it comes to work. According to a 2023 survey of 2,500 U.S. workers, one in four was looking for a new job. While a majority will

stick to jobs in the same field, changing careers completely isn’t uncommon; 29% of workers will change fields at some point after college.

The allure of shedding your title— your identity, even—for a new endeavor didn’t start with the pandemic. There have always been people who break away from the straightline career trajectory for a greater purpose, passion, or paycheck. And there are those who are forced to do so, as a result of new technologies, layoffs, and all sorts of industry-specific crises.

In the late 19th century, for example, if you were a knocker-upper (someone hired to knock or throw something at windows to wake the inhabitants for work), you would have soon found your job made obsolete by the invention of the mechanical

Turning Points

alarm clock. Today, if you’re a journalist, then you’re attuned to a steady stream of layoffs and the folding of so many publications.

Artificial intelligence is today’s career saboteur. According to 2023 data from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, AI replaced nearly 4,000 jobs in just May.

Losing a job ranks as one of life’s most stressful moments, alongside death and divorce. It can also, in the right circumstances, present opportunity.

“Getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me,” Steve Jobs ’76 told the graduating class of Stanford University in 2005. “The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.”

That’s easy to say when you’re a billionaire. For others, the “lightness of being a beginner” is often heavy with student debt and time away from loved ones to earn a new degree or start a business.

And yet, so many find it’s worth it.

The weekend after Aaron’s interview, he went to a coffee shop with a notebook and made a list of the things he did care about, narrowing them down to mental health, housing, hunger, literacy, and the environment.

Surrounded by the hum of coffee shop conversation, Aaron committed himself

Sarah Kliegman ’02 majored in biochemistry and molecular biology, becoming a researcher and faculty at liberal arts colleges, including Reed. But she yearned to be closer to the issues she studied.

calls from people in crisis each shift, he thought, Well, if I can handle this, I can handle being a mental health counselor.

Aaron found the work of helping individuals immensely rewarding, so he applied to graduate school at Portland State University, where he specialized in clinical rehabilitation counseling. He completed his first year while he was still working fulltime. In the sum-

Sarah, like the wildflowers, was still part of this community, and it was being polluted by a greedy corporation. She felt called to join the effort to hold those companies accountable, and to make sure they cleaned up the damage.

to pursuing work in one of these areas.

Before leaving Nike, he tested the waters of various career options through volunteer opportunities, first by wading into the literal water of the Sandy River delta, where he trained to lead riparian restoration teams. He also started packing food at the Oregon Food Bank, cleaning books at Oregon Children’s Book Bank, and building houses with Habitat for Humanity. Lastly, he started working at a suicide crisis line. After doing that work for a while, answering 4 to 15

mer before his second, Aaron was riding shotgun when the driver of their vehicle fell asleep; Aaron grabbed the wheel just before they careened off a winding road. Surviving what he’s sure would have been a fatal car crash, Aaron decided it was time to go all in, to quit his job and focus on school.

Today, he’s a therapist providing mental health and career counseling in Portland. About 65% of the clients he meets for career counseling are mid-career and looking to make a big change.

“It’s a process that starts with a simmering dissatisfaction,” writes Herminia Ibarra, author of Working Identity Ibarra argues that people living and working today will face accelerated technological change and more working years, which result in a more circuitous path than the straight line to retirement followed by past generations. We have more time, and more reasons, to change our minds.

That “simmering dissatisfaction” can be the energy that pushes one to reassess, to explore new options, to return to the thing you’ve always known you loved. That simmering can also feel like fear or uncertainty, like losing control, a feeling that might force you to take the wheel and change directions.

Sarah Kliegman ’02, at 10 years old, knew the pristine alpine lake was a lie. She was sitting next to her parents in a gymnasium filled with neighbors and community members. At the front of the room, Battle Mountain Gold Company was telling the residents of Okanogan County, Washington, that if they were allowed to develop a large-scale, openpit gold mine, there would eventually be an alipine lake at the top of Buckhorn

Mountain. But Sarah had seen pictures of Butte, Montana, where a mine similar to the one being proposed left behind a pit full of water so acidic that to this day, it kills birds that land on its surface. “I knew Butte was like, one of the most polluted places in the country.”

The town was split, with many people standing fervently against the mine while others were excited by the promise of new jobs and a boost to the local economy.

Those opposed, who included Sarah's parents, spent the following years untangling a web of fine print, combing through massive environmental impact statements to find and expose all the ways in which the mine could hurt their town. The Okanogan Highlands Alliance (OHA) formed to organize the opposition.

Sarah was studying at Reed when the courts finally ruled against the mining company, citing the likelihood of massive environmental damage. Having seen the disruption caused by the proposal for so many years—how it forced so many working-class folks in the region to sacrifice their time and energy in fighting one of the largest gold mining operations in the country—Sarah wanted to help in her own way. She was majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology at Reed, to better understand the science behind mining’s impact on surrounding ecosystems.

She was especially interested in remediating mine pollution. Prof. Arthur Glasfeld [chemistry 1989–2022], her thesis advisor, suggested she focus on metal-dependent DNA-binding proteins, which are important factors in this process. Upon graduating, she felt as though she’d barely scratched the surface of this topic, but she was hooked on the science—the process of understanding, at a molecular level, what was happening to the environment.

After graduating, she got a job doing biochemistry at OHSU. The work there was not related to metals or mining. And she quickly realized something about herself.

“I was willing to struggle and fail when it was something I really cared about,” she says. “But when it was a

subject I didn’t have a personal connection to, I was a lot less willing.”

Sarah stuck with it. After earning her PhD at the University of Minnesota— where she did get to focus on how metals could help degrade pollution in groundwater—Kliegman taught as a visiting professor of chemistry at Reed from 2014 to 2016, then at Claremont McKenna Colleges.

Teaching brought her a little closer to the reasons she cared so much about science. She loved sharing her passion with students, especially when she was able to connect the lessons to important environmental issues, like the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. But she was often frustrated by the distance between studying science and protecting precious places by using science.

“I needed to have my hands in the dirt,” she recalls.

Sarah visited Tonasket in the summer of 2017, the time of year when the pine trees smell of butterscotch. She says not many people love this little corner of the world. But she does. When asked why, she pauses and takes a deep breath. Sarah’s words turn poetic when she talks about home.

“I love it for the way the little creeks dance off the mountains; for the way the light filters into those shady, mossy places along the creeks; for each of the characters from the plants to the pollinators in the riotous wildflower meadows and the unique role each of them plays in their community.”

Sarah hadn’t lived in Tonasket since 1998. Now, she learned, there might be a really good reason to come back.

At this point, her father had been serving as executive director of OHA for 25 years. He wanted to retire soon. But there was still important work to be done.

Back in 2000, a grassroots effort had stopped the gold mine from moving forward. But just two years later, corporate mining interests renewed their efforts to develop a mine in the heart of the Okanogan Highlands. OHA again worked tirelessly to fend them off, but eventually the difficult decision was made to settle with the company, and an underground mine

Caressa Gullikson ’91

MAJOR Anthropology

CAREERS

Technical recruiter to chiropractor

It was the late ’90s, Y2K. They thought the grid was going to go down, and there was a huge push to retrofit aging computer systems. That’s how I started doing recruiting work. I did it for over 10 years. It was good money, so it was hard to walk away. But I worked all the time and got really burned out. I was about 40 at the time, and a triathlete. I was keenly interested in how physical movement and exercise affect quality of life. I woke up one morning and thought, I could become a chiropractor! I knew I would take a financial hit, but there’s more to life than money. I started grad school in 2013, at 43.

Reed trains you well for difficult academic experiences. While grad school was challenging, being away from my kids (aged 10 and 13) was the hardest part. They stayed in Ashland; I was in Portland. I commuted back and forth every other weekend. I saw them as much as I could, but I really missed them.

I’ve now been working as a chiropractor professionally for eight years. My greatest joy is improving my patients’ ability to return to doing what they love. When treatments have an instantaneous effect, it’s very rewarding. People will be in tears, they’re so grateful.

Turning Points

was developed. Operations began in 2008, but the robust protections they’d agreed to proved futile. Water monitoring revealed problems almost immediately, and violations worsened for years. The mine released sulfate, chloride, and nitrate, as well as arsenic and metals like copper, zinc, and manganese, polluting the local groundwater. It stopped operating in 2017, but destructive water violations continue today.

Sarah, like the wildflowers, was still part of this community, and it was being polluted by a greedy corporation. She felt called to join the effort to hold those companies accountable, and to make sure they cleaned up the damage.

“That water runs in my blood,” she says.

When it came time for Sarah’s father to retire, she could take his place at OHA, and continue that work.

She asked herself, could she leave her teaching job to head up a nonprofit, sacrificing the financial security of a career she'd been building for years?

“It’s too late!” she told a friend. “I’ve invested too much time in becoming a researcher and an academic.”

Her friend didn’t hesitate to respond: “It’s never too late.”

Sarah considered the option for two years. When she thought about leaving academia, she thought about what she enjoyed most about teaching. She loved helping students make connections between fundamental chemistry concepts and real-world environmental issues like climate change. As a final lecture of the semester at Claremont, she dove into the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, connecting everything they’d learned about oxidation, reduction, and acid-base chemistry to the real-world tragedy of a community without clean drinking water. But that was just a handful of lectures. “I felt like I was 20 steps away,” she says, of the issues she felt were most urgent. “And I wanted to be one or two.” She now had the opportunity to step directly into what she cared about most.

After the birth of her child, Sarah felt ready to return to the Okanogan Highlands. She accepted a position as co–executive director, an arrangement that allowed for a healthy work-life

balance for both Sarah and her counterpart. It was a chance to be part of building a strong community, to prioritize clean drinking water and a healthy environment for generations to come. It felt right. It felt like home.

Leah Lockwood ’92 was working as a paralegal when she bought her first home at 25. She knew it would be a long journey to see its full potential. Purchased for just $50,000, the house needed major renovations. Leah didn’t know much about houses at the time, but

“I thought I could do anything. That’s what you think when you’re young.”

as a young, recent graduate with a degree in American studies from Reed College, she thought she could figure it out.

Three decades later, she would earn her master’s in architecture and begin a new career. But just like the house, it would take a lot of tearing down and rebuilding, and many years of trying new things, first.

Leah grew up backpacking and rafting with her parents. She’s always felt most at peace in the outdoors. But she was also a bookish, high-achieving child, who developed the assumption that to be successful meant becoming a doctor or a lawyer. So. That’s what she would do.

At Reed, she majored in American studies, with firm plans to become a lawyer. But those four years were difficult.

She recalls being in classes full of brilliant students. “I was smart. But I wasn’t brilliant.” Suddenly not being the smartest kid in the room was distressing, and she had to work extra hard to keep up. Bouts of depression followed. Depression runs in Leah’s family, but she suspects all that time spent cooped up studying, and the pressure to keep up with her classmates, were contributing factors.

After graduating, she got a job right away as a paralegal.

She liked the challenge of the work, but the environment felt combative. Everyone was always arguing. When she left the office each night, she was relieved to go home and work on her house. She loved the physical labor and the satisfaction of slowly seeing her progress. The house was becoming a home, one nail at a time. And it

Leah Lockwood ’92 discovered a passion for building things when she bought a fixer-upper house while working as a paralegal in her twenties. At 50, she completed a master’s in architecture.

occurred to her: if she could remodel her own house, perhaps she could work on others, too.

In 1995, Leah quit her job as a paralegal to become a contractor—without any formal training. Whatever she didn’t know how to do, she’d teach herself.

“I thought I could do anything,” Leah recalls, laughing. “That’s what you think when you’re young.”

She wasn’t entirely wrong. She got work right away, painting and doing finishing work. Eventually she went to Portland State for a second bachelor’s degree in architecture, and for the next decade she worked on designs for homes, restaurants, and bars. But most of her work was limited to writing reports; the program wasn’t accredited, and she still wasn’t a licensed architect. That would require graduate school, then accumulating enough hours to earn her license and passing final exams. She had two young children at the time, so continuing with school didn’t seem feasible.

In 2008, the economy crashed; suddenly no one needed or could afford new construction. Leah lost her job, and without a license her options for architecture work were limited. With two kids, she had to figure something out, fast.

Leah knew the bar business well, from working on designs. She loved craft beer. And she was always looking for a place where she could enjoy a pint and also bring her kids. Maybe she could run a pub?

In 2010, she went for it and opened a family-friendly beer bar, and then another the following year. The social atmosphere of the bar business engaged her extroverted nature as office work never had. Managing her teams and keeping customers happy was hard work, and the long hours were tough while parenting, but overall “it was a huge success,” she says. Then her dad got sick.

Leah’s parents owned a winery in Northern California, and now her dad couldn’t work. They needed help keeping the business afloat. So Leah moved her family to Humboldt County, so she could take over. Again, she hit the ground running, tripling the winery’s business in mere months. The outdoor tasting room was regularly packed, and they were

producing more wine than ever before.

In 2017, she sold the Portland pubs; they were just too hard to manage from a distance. For a couple of years, the winery was thriving. Then came the pandemic.

Leah had 18 weddings booked for the upcoming season; they all had to be canceled. “We had a very successful, profitable business that came to a screeching halt.”

Suddenly there were no wine flights to pour or events to plan. Instead, she spent long days alone in her car making deliveries. Her life, once full of customers and staff, went quiet. It was just she and her family; the rows of grapes outside of their home sitting quietly, ripening while the world retreated.

In the years Leah lived at her parents’ winery, people would often tell her she was lucky to live in such a beautiful place. “But I found it to be very lonely and strange,” she says—especially after lockdown. “What I really wanted was to be around people.”

The pandemic gave Leah time to think about what was most important to her. What did she really want to focus her energy on? Community came to the forefront.

She enjoyed running the pubs because they brought people together. But the alcohol and the customer service angle didn’t feel right. Slowly, in the quiet of lockdown, two seemingly disparate things came together for Leah. She missed building things. And she missed people.

She wanted to build things that brought people together.

Aaron Good, the former Nike employee who became a therapist and career counselor, often counsels people who are having a crisis of purpose. “They’ve gotten to a point where the work they’re doing isn’t fulfilling anymore. Or the mission that got them there no longer seems relevant.” But starting from scratch can be a huge commitment. Part of Aaron’s intake process with new clients is to break down the financial risk versus reward of changing careers. What is the minimum they need to earn to

Tom Shieber ’86

MAJOR Physics

CAREERS

Telescope technician to National Baseball Hall of Fame curator

I was a telescope technician for UCLA, studying helioseismology at Mt. Wilson Observatory. You’ve heard of earthquakes. Well, helioseismology is basically the study of “sun quakes.” I was living on a mountain in Southern California and had a blast studying the sun.

In the mid-1990s, just half a dozen years after the web was invented, I created a website for the telescope where I worked. I really enjoyed creating and maintaining the website. Meanwhile, having always been interested in baseball history, in my free time on the mountain I did a lot of baseball research. Then everything came together in the late 1990s when a friend at the National Baseball Hall of Fame reached out and said, “Hey, we have a job opening as webmaster.” Happily, I got the job, eventually became a curator, and now head the museum’s curatorial department.

Not too many folks will pay you to study baseball history. Frankly, there are more jobs as a major league baseball player (hundreds each year) than a baseball researcher or historian. So, when I got that lucky break, I had to take advantage of it. I had to give it a try.

I loved what I did on the mountain in Southern California, working in astrophysics for over a decade. And now I’ve been at the Baseball Hall of Fame for a quarter century, having made my avocation my vocation, which is pretty great.

Turning Points

make ends meet? What’s their target? What kind of training or education will they need to pursue this new path, what will it cost, and how can they get it done most efficiently? Could they continue working their full-time job while going to school? Can they save enough to cover a period of unemployment?

In 2021, Leah enrolled in a two-year program to earn her master’s in architecture at the University of Oregon and moved her family to Eugene.

She made it work financially by assessing her expenses and cutting everything that didn’t seem absolutely necessary. She canceled streaming services, stopped eating out, and downsized to a small rental home, in walking distance to her kids’ schools and the University of Oregon.

Leah recalls how the light in the fridge flickered, glaringly, and most of the blinds were broken. The paint was peeling and the rooms were small. But she spruced it up with fresh paint, lots of artwork on the walls, and some flowerpots in the front yard.

Other challenges related to being a student again at 50 (her next oldest classmate was 26) proved more significant.

Instead of the perceived intelligence gap that vexed her as an undergraduate, there was a very real age and experience gap between Leah and her classmates. The other students knew their way around the software they’d work with in their program. That was all new to Leah. But she had on-the-ground experience with both design and construction. Her hands knew how to build many of the structures her classmates were drawing.

“Reed taught me to work really hard,” she says. She felt behind on the technical side of designing, but she knew how to study and how to learn new things.

Also, Leah had a purpose. Along a meandering path from one job to another, from contractor to pub owner to winery manager to graduate student, she had collected knowledge about herself and the impact she wanted to have on the world.

The time Leah spent living in her parents’ home while she managed their winery had convinced her that the way

Aaron Good ’01 worked at Nike for over a decade before deciding he wanted to have a greater impact on the world through his work. He’s now a therapist and career counselor in Portland.

we build houses is not conducive to our lives. Watching friends face challenges with aging parents who needed increased assistance, too, led Leah to think more about housing options. She started considering architecture as a way to make people’s lives easier and more sustainable.

have privacy. She thinks a lot about the dramatic increase in autism diagnoses in the last few decades. The housing available today is not conducive to parents who need to support grown children who are neurodivergent or living with disabilities. Also, she tells me to consider the homeless people suffering

“We’re not shooting to be 100% sure of something.”

In June of 2023, Leah graduated with her master’s. She is now working on accumulating enough hours to earn her architecture license. Every week, she flies somewhere to inspect a new commercial building and file a report. Once she has her license, she will focus on infill housing.

Existing neighborhoods, to Leah, are full of potential to become more communal and house more people while reducing the environmental impact of individual homes. Building smaller houses on existing lots creates more supportive living environments, where parents can move closer to their grown children and grandkids, or vice versa; where people can live together and share resources, but also

from addiction or mental health crises. What if they had friends or family who could have offered them housing at earlier signs of trouble, before they were living on the streets? Better housing design has the potential to improve the lives of so many. Leah is determined to be a part of that.

Some loans were needed to pay for grad school, but Leah taught classes and her teaching stipend kept her debt minimal. She’s not too worried about paying it off, because she’s confident she’ll find work doing what she really wants to do.

“If you’re able to adjust your life, and you’re able to pick up and move to do the thing you want to do—you’re going to figure it out,” she says. “You just need to be creative.”

“We’re not shooting to be 100% sure of something,” says Aaron. When clients are in what he calls the “exploration phase” of their career change journey, they’re often ambivalent about which direction to take and how.

A career change doesn’t have to mean quitting a job for something entirely new. There are often small steps one can take in the direction of a more fulfilling career. Maybe you stick with the same kind of work, but in a different industry that is more aligned with your values.

For instance, Sarah Kliegman didn’t really stop being a teacher and a scientist. Her days as co–executive director of OHA look very different from her time as a researcher or a professor. But she applies her knowledge in science daily.

“I’m so glad I became a scientist first.” Sarah says her background makes it easier to connect the dots, to teach people about what happened in the past and what can be done to make things better.

Aaron recalls a speech delivered at convocation his freshman year at Reed. “They told us we would all do amazing things like cure cancer and save starving children,” and that struck him as unrealistic. Even as an enthusiastic freshman, he worried they were being set up for disappointment.

But Aaron concedes that eventually, he did feel that pull to do something bigger. After 13 years at Nike, “I was like, all right, I guess I do need to save the world.”

From majoring in anthropology to the years at Nike and the time spent questioning and researching what to do next, Aaron says he’s happy with the decisions he’s made along the way. They all led him to a place where his work has a snowball effect. When he helps people get even a little closer to work they care about, each one of them can go on to have a positive impact on the world. Maybe they’re not curing cancer, but they might be happier. They might make people around them happier. They might work harder at a task that ultimately makes someone else’s life a little better. Or, maybe, they will go on to save a little corner of the planet.

When Sarah moved back to Tonasket, she knew it was the right decision. “When I came home and didn’t have to leave in a couple of weeks, I felt so at peace.”

In 2020, OHA filed Clean Water Act lawsuits in U.S. District Court against Crown Resources Corporation.

“Our community will not stand for the pollution of our waters,” wrote Sarah in a press release. “The mine has not taken sufficient actions to either investigate the fate of pollutants at the site or to clean up the pollution. This lawsuit is intended to impel the company to clean up their mess.”

In 2022, a federal judge ruled that Crown Resources, the owners of Buckhorn Mountain gold mine, had indeed violated the Clean Water Act— thousands of times. The penalties are yet to be determined, but will likely be in the millions of dollars.

When Aaron works with recent graduates, they’re often “freaking out” about what they’re going to do with their lives. They see their friends getting ahead, and they worry they’ll fall behind or make the wrong decisions.

“I try to normalize those feelings,” he says. And he encourages them to just take the first steps, without worrying too much about the direction.

Reed seniors who meet with advisors at the Center for Life Beyond Reed are encouraged, similarly, not to focus too much on the particulars of first jobs. The “purpose-driven advising model” at CLBR instead emphasizes purpose.

“We know this generation is probably going to change careers a couple of times,” says Shania Siron, assistant director of career and fellowship advising at CLBR. “We want students to have the skillset to be reflective of what matters to them.”

Aaron emphasizes that first jobs are about building confidence, not necessarily picking a path to be stuck on for the rest of your life. And then, he says, you can shape your purpose and direction along the way. “There’s a tremendous sense of relief to hear that you definitely don’t have to have your professional life mapped out at 21.”

ALWAYS LEARNING

Tanya Ignacio ’91

MAJOR Theatre/dance CAREERS

Journalist to midwife

I was in my mid-30s, and I wanted to have a child. But I wasn’t earning enough for a comfortable life as a parent. And I was sick of the weekly grind of journalism. I went to a Reed reunion and ran into a nurse-midwife; she told me about her job, and I thought, I think that’s what I want to do. So I started looking at programs. I worked through the prerequisites. I got waitlisted at OHSU the first year I applied, and then I got in.

While I was in my master’s program, my partner and I split up. It was challenging to be a single parent while getting my master’s and being on call. I didn’t completely know what I was getting myself into. But nursing school was super cool. And the more I did, the happier I was.

Now I love my job. I don’t get bored. I get overwhelmed sometimes, but that’s normal. Now I’ve been a midwife since 2009, and I still learn something new all the time. People come in and ask a question and it’s like, I’ve never heard that question before. Let me go figure it out.

Are you a professional seeking a new job, changing career paths, or need graduate school advising? Reed's alumni network of career coaches and the Center for Life Beyond Reed can help.

See www.alumni.careers.edu to find out more or to volunteer as a career coach.

TRUE ALTITUDE

From her thesis at Reed to the remote wilds of Alaska, bush pilot Lana Tollas ’19 has always found a way to take flight

By Chris Santella

Adams

Photos by Ash

“Want to see some bears?” Lana Tollas ’19 asks from the pilot seat of the single-engine De Havilland Beaver aircraft that’s carrying three friends and me toward Pegati Lake, some 100 miles southeast of Bethel, Alaska. Which is to say just west of nowhere.

“Sure!” we speak into our headsets. Lana eases back on the throttle and banks the plane to the left. A thousand feet below us, a mama grizzly hustles her two cubs along, alternately moving forward and stopping to make sure they’re keeping up. She eventually guides her charges into the creek, out of sight.

“Sometimes we’ll see moose or caribou here,” Lana adds as she climbs the Beaver out of the Eek Valley, back on track for Pegati. “But mostly it’s grizzly bears.”

This is less than comforting news, as my group is about to embark on a nine-day river float with just six cans of bear spray and our limited wits between us and Ursus horribilis. But it’s not our first rodeo.

Nor is it Lana’s.

It was not a direct route that brought Lana to the Alaska tundra. She was born in San Diego, but her mother moved her and her sister to Kenosha, Wisconsin, when she was four, seeking a quieter

environment for the girls to grow up in. There was a small airport near their house, and Lana was drawn to it, wanting to meet some “good, grounded midwestern people.” It was there that she eventually learned to fly. “I didn’t have a dad growing up, but I joined a flying club. Suddenly I had a whole bunch of male authority/dad figures in my life. Since my mom is of Indian descent, I felt like a bit of an outsider. Being involved with the flying club was a way to become part of things,” Lana told me in an interview some months after our flight.

Lana’s first flight in the cockpit was at age 16. She would fly once a week with her instructor. “I found it hypnotizing—it still feels that way. When you’re learning how to turn, it feels like the world is turning, but you’re staying put. I fell in love with that feeling. It was amazing.”

Flying was also a way to gracefully steer clear of the party scene that was popular with a lot of her peers. “When the other kids were getting ready to party, I told them that I had to head

in, as I was flying the next day. That wasn’t considered lame; the other kids’ response was, ‘Wow, that’s so cool.’”

However, Lana didn’t thrive in high school. “My school did not encourage a culture of curiosity, and I had poor grades,” she recalled. In fact, she was kicked out senior year and worked at Starbucks fulltime. Lana’s mom gave her a book called Colleges That Change Lives; it was organized by region, and she looked through thinking about the places where she might want to live—St. John’s in New Mexico, Reed in Portland. “Everything you hear about Reed says it’s a self-selecting place, very intellectual. I had good test scores and essays. I think my poor grades put traditional colleges off. But Reed saw some potential.”

Lana was a pure math major her first two and half years at Reed, and loved it. But somewhere toward the middle of her junior year, she hit a wall. “It was the first time I found myself at the edge of my capabilities, and I couldn’t push through. But I realized that there were skills I had that involved an intuitive human understanding that were

less applicable in math, but could find application in a different discipline— like economics.”

Soon Lana found herself in a macroeconomics class taught by Jeff Parker [economics 1988–2020]. “Sometimes it went well for Lana, sometimes it didn’t,” he told me. “But she decided it might be more fun than math, so she signed up for macroeconomic theory, the most difficult course in the department—even though she’d completed few of the prerequisites. She nailed it. Her energy and passion were inspiring. There was no question that she should be an economics major, even though she was making this call in the second semester of her junior year. She got it done.”

With the help of an alumnus, Jon Farr ’93 (who’d also studied under Parker), Lana was able to build her thesis around her interest in flying. Farr was working with a company called FlightStats (now Cirium) that had accumulated massive amounts of data on every flight in the world. “It wasn’t entirely clear what thesis might emerge from the data set,” Parker said, “but

there was an opportunity. And Lana seemed like a great match, as she had both the quantitative skills and a statistics background.” Ultimately, they decided to look at the following question: when there’s a weather delay/cancellation/airport closure, how long does it take flights to recover to being on time? “We thought of the variables— the capacity of a given airport to add additional flights by runway capacity; where can you squeeze a flight in?” Parker added. “She built a model using data from a dozen airports, and it was a monstrous task. There was no computer system on campus big enough to crunch the data; we had to set it up in the cloud.”

Weekly flights around greater Portland helped Lana keep her sanity her senior year. She had a standing appointment every Tuesday morning with an instructor named Frank Parker in Vancouver. (Technically she already had a private pilot’s license; insurance required an instructor on board.) “I’d go to Vancouver, and we would hop from grass landing strip to grass landing strip

all morning. There are a bunch in southwest Washington.”

Her thesis work led to job offers as an aviation consultant. She packed off to O’Hare in Chicago for a nine-to-five desk job. It was soul-killing. “I knew it was going to be bad after the intellectual high of college, doing my own research,” she said. “But it really sucked.” It led to one of the most questionable decisions of Lana’s life: at the height of COVID, she quit a stable job, bought her own plane (a Super Cub PA-12), and became a flight instructor in northern Illinois.

“I worked a few side jobs in the Chicago suburbs in addition to my analyst job, and budgeted tightly, with no drinking and no meals out,” Lana said. “Between my three jobs and help from my mom and uncle, I was able to buy the little three-seat plane—about the same cost as a modest car.” She moved into a hangar, bringing an Instant Pot and a box full of books and clothes. She split her time between apprenticing as an aviation mechanic and teaching, when she had a student. “At the time, I was living at one airport and working at another. I

The town of Utqiagvik (formerly known as Barrow) pictured a few days before the winter solstice. In Utqiagvik the sun sets on November 18th and rises again on January 23rd. The 67 days in between are lit by a few hours of indirect light, which illuminates the coastal plane upon which Utqiagvik lies. The Arctic Ocean can be seen beyond the lights of town in the background.

was commuting to work by plane; it was 45 minutes driving, only 15 by air!”

Then she began looking north.

The old saw used to go that America’s outliers—psychologically, politically, whatever—rolled towards the nation’s edges, with California and Florida being the most likely spots for them to collect. One could make the case that, at least on a per capita basis, even more heretics make their way to Alaska, where an independent, individualistic approach to life is often a necessity, not an indulgence. Want to eat this winter? Better net some salmon and shoot a moose for the freezer. Need to fire a woodstove? Better get in some wood. A lot of wood (one homesteader website recommends about eight cords, or 24,000 pounds if the logs are dry).

But if your passion is flying light commercial aircraft, Alaska is not such an odd place to set up shop. Alaska boasts over 665,000 square miles. That vast area is served by roughly 14,000 miles of public roads, providing access to about 20% of the state. Be it a small city like Bethel (population 6,264), a Native Yup’ik village like Quinhagak (population 776), or a wilderness river like the Kanektok (population zero, if not counting bears), the only way in and out—particularly in the summer season, when rivers are not frozen—is by bush plane. Pilot opportunities abound, especially for those who are willing to commit to flying year-round. The work is constant, and pilots can quickly accumulate the flying hours they need to attain higher levels of certification, which translate to higher rates of pay and expanded flight opportunities.

Lana saw an Instagram job post calling for flight instructors in the winter of 2021. They wanted instructors who could teach on planes outfitted with skis and then floats. She got the job and moved up to Talkeetna (about 100 miles north of Anchorage). It wasn’t a good fit and didn’t last. Float season had begun, and everyone had finished their seasonal hiring. What now? She started making calls. Her persistence led to her first commercial flying job, out of Bettles (population 25), up in the Brooks Range. She was essentially the office

lady, fueling planes and loading them. She was allowed to fly planes that had wheels so she could get on insurance. “That was my first exposure to the Beaver,” she added. “They promised I’d be flying planes the next year. Becoming a pilot is a game of accumulating hours. You have to keep paying your dues.”

The following winter brought her to Bethel —a major aviation center for western Alaska, as the city serves as a supply center/social services clearinghouse for many of the region’s Yup’ik villages. “It’s very rare to get a flying job in Alaska without putting in a winter in Bethel,” Lana observed. She estimates that 75% of professional pilots in Alaska have worked out of Bethel at one point or another in their careers. One of her first first commercial winter flights (with a Cessna 207, notoriously harder to fly in instrument conditions) has stayed with her. “It was dark and snowing when I took off. I could see a big storm coming in; I was almost immediately in whiteout conditions, so I was flying using instruments as opposed to flying visually. As I was white-knuckling my way back to Bethel, I was thinking that I was really having to work for this. It wasn’t like summer flying.”

Nearly all the winter flights involve the transport of mail, supplies, and villagers. In the summer, recreational visitors—mostly anglers and hunters—are added to the mix, and the Beaver, outfitted with floats, takes on greater importance. “Beaver pilots are a dying breed; it’s hard to find pilots with experience,” said Justin Essian, owner of Papa Bear

Adventures, an outfitter based in Bethel. “Word of mouth is the best way for outfitters and pilots to connect. That was how I met Lana. She had a good attitude and outgoing personality. Since she had experience piloting a Beaver, it helped lower our insurance costs. And she really wanted to be in Alaska. That’s important, as I want people who want to be here. It’s hard work, long hours. But you’re going to be treated well, and you’ll be part of the family.”

“I have to say that I was a little skeptical about hiring a woman as a pilot.” Essian told me. “Not because of Lana’s flying skills, but because of the physical portion of the job. You have to lift 120pound rafts, 150-pound moose quarters. But I figured that if she has the skills and fit the general bill, she’ll figure the moving-heavy-things-around part. As long as the job gets done, I don’t care how it gets done.” And she did. For an entire summer prior to working with Papa Bear, her only job had been to load and unload rafts. In the off-season, she lifts weights. In other words, she was fit and quickly proved her mettle.

Alaska bush pilots are legally required to have 10 hours of rest daily, which means they are on call to fly up to 14 hours a day. Lana’s summer days begin at 8 a.m., getting the airplane fueled and ready to go. Most days, she’ll fly out two or three groups of guests. That means loading the Beaver (capacity is up to 1,200 pounds), flying to the lake or river where the guests will start their trip, and potentially picking up another group that’s coming off one of

Lana stands on the ramp at the Deadhorse Airport in -25°F after loading her airplane full of cargo and passenger baggage. She started the morning in Fairbanks, flew a scheduled run from Fairbanks to the native village of Kaktovik, and then to Deadhorse. She will end the day in Utqiagvik, where she will work for two weeks before returning home to Fairbanks.

Opposite: Lana loads passengers onto a Cessna Caravan for a scheduled flight from Deadhorse (Prudhoe Bay) to Utqiagvik via the native village of Nuiqsut.

the rivers Papa Bear serves. It’s usually an hour out and an hour back, plus loading and unloading. Pilots are paid a day rate. “This discourages pilots from making any bad decisions about trying to fly under poor conditions for money’s sake,” Essian added.

Moose hunting season may be the most trying for bush pilots; it’s certainly the messiest. “I single-handedly flew out 24 moose,” Lana said. “The Beaver can fit 2.5 at a time. We have tarps down in the plane, but once the quarters are unloaded back in Bethel, we have to hose everything down with bleach and hot water. I do the same for myself.”

Do angling and hunting guests second-guess her judgment? Occasionally. “Sometimes there’s a guy who thinks he knows more about this than I do. You can easily get frustrated with the

masculine world I work with. But I try to laugh it off. If I’m going in to pick up hunters that I didn’t drop off, I’ll show up in my hot pink raincoat, and wear lipstick. The hunters see a Beaver land in the middle of the backcountry. I love the look on their faces when I step out: ‘All right boys, let’s get that moose on board.’ The moments when I do a good job in pink make up for any chauvinism.”

There’s a fair bit of downtime if you’re an Alaska bush pilot, especially in the winter. Lana makes hers as productive as possible. She reads a good deal and has been working on a novel, the fictionalization of the life of Reed alumna Joann Osterud ’68, who went to Reed in the 1960’s and later became a stunt pilot and Alaska Airlines’ first female pilot [In Memoriam, December

Lana fills the Cessna Caravan with jet fuel at the Fairbanks Airport before her scheduled departure at 9 a.m. The sun will rise at 11 a.m. in Fairbanks.

The expansive Chandalar River extends below as Lana flies from Fairbanks to Kaktovik. These wide river valleys are used by Alaskan pilots like roads to navigate within mountains, rivers defining the lowest and most hospitable terrain.

2017]. “When I was at Reed, there was lots of civil unrest,” she noted. “It was similar for her. In a way, I’m telling a familiar story.”

While flying around the bush may not be in Lana’s long-term career plan, she hopes to ride it out as long as she can. “I worry that we’re getting close to the end of manned bush flying in Alaska,” she opined as Pegati Lake came into view during our flight. “The National Park Service [which oversees 54 million acres in the 49th state] is trying to make access into parkland more humanpowered. The Beavers are old; the last one was built in 1967 [and only 1,657 Beavers were manufactured by De Havilland Canada]. We keep them working, but they won’t last forever. There’s also a push for more autonomous flying. There’s already a Caravan that flies

autonomously. Within my lifetime, the jobs I’m doing won’t exist.”

Lana can easily imagine graduate school in her future. Her economics background and statistical skills would certainly lend themselves well to a career in natural resource management or environmental policy. But right now, flying is a great way to spend a day, getting paid doing something she loves.

“I think there’s a perception that all Reed students go on to become professors,” Jeff Parker reflected when we spoke about Lana. “But I think her story is an excellent example of the range of interests Reed students have beyond the classroom. They go in a lot of different directions following those interests. Given her adventurous nature and passion for flying, it’s not hard at all to think of her as a bush plane pilot.”

We touched down gently on the lake, and Lana motored us to the shoreline where two other members of our party, who’d flown in the night before, were pumping up our rafts. A few minutes later—after unloading our coolers, dry bags, fishing gear, and beers—we gave the Beaver a push to deeper water. Lana fired up the single prop and motored to the middle of the lake. Reversing her direction, she opened the throttle and soon was in the air, cheerfully waving as she sailed above us toward Bethel for her next flight out.

Chris Santella is the author of 26 books, including the "Fifty Places" series from Abrams. A regular contributor to The New York Times and Washington Post, his first novel—"Belgian Flats"—will be published this summer by Lyons.

Big Topics for Young Readers

The stories of British colonialism come to life in Prof. Natarajan’s Hear Our Voices.

When a publisher approached Reed Prof. Radhika Natarajan [history] to write a children’s book about the British Empire, she hesitated. She was busy working on her monograph for publication at the time, a key step on her academic journey. Additionally, she wondered if other historians would take her seriously if she wrote a children’s book.

“Did I want to spend time on this?” she wondered. But given the absence of a children’s book on her subject of expertise, Natarajan decided to say yes. Writing about history for an audience of children presented a unique opportunity. “It just felt too important to pass up.”

at Reed that way. “My classes focus on movement, and not just of British people around the world, but of colonial subjects who were traveling around the empire and shaping it, whether through labor migrations, through diplomacy, or whatever else.”

Then she had to figure out how to translate the complicated topic of British colonialism for young readers. Hear Our Voices: A Powerful Retelling of the British Empire through 20 True Stories is the spectacular result. But the road to publication wasn’t easy. Natarajan had to educate her publisher along the way, in order to craft an honest and nuanced book that children would want to read.

UK publisher Quarto conceived of the project after the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. They saw a gap in the history market: a book about the British Empire from the perspective of those living underneath it. Quarto found Natarajan through Twitter, drawn by her scholarship and her role as chair of comparative race and ethnicity studies, or CRES, at Reed. Coauthor Chao Tayiana would work on six entries from Africa, and Natarajan took on the rest.

The publisher initially asked Natarajan to organize the book geographically by country. Her response: There’s a reason she doesn’t teach her classes

The selection process presented another challenge. The publisher initially proposed categorizing these figures as either for or against the British Empire. “I disagreed with that for two reasons. One is I felt like we were including these figures because their personal stories revealed something more significant about the British Empire and how it worked. And the second is that it became incredibly problematic for certain kinds of historical moments.” For instance, the publisher wanted stories of Native people who supported the U.S. in the American Revolution. However, Natarajan pointed out that most Indian nations supported the British, understanding it as a more strategic alliance to maintain their own sovereignty. “Any of these stories should be putting the interests of the individuals, their communities, and nations first and not just reducing them.”

For Natarajan, the goal was to show the overlapping themes and experiences of subjects of the British Empire over time and geography. Quarto ultimately came on board, and Natarajan was able to approach the book with her goals intact.

Then came the biggest challenge of all: telling the story of each figure in a way that would engage nine- to twelveyear-olds. To support the research process, Natarajan hired Reed students Zoe Lee-DiVito ’23 and Betsy Wight ’23. They created portfolios for each figure, and Natarajan immersed herself in original writings when they existed. This helped her find a narrative arc for each 600-word entry.

Natarajan turned to members of her children’s writers critique group in Portland for help in shaping the stories for a young audience. They encouraged her to focus on motivations, points of view, and descriptive details. “That’s not what historians think about,” says Natarajan. “[It] took a bit of imaginative work, while also wanting to really be true to the history.” Natarajan says this was the biggest writing challenge she’s faced. But it was worth it.

The final product is filled with engaging narratives and lush illustrations. The book opens with introductory material about the British Empire to lay the foundation for the 20 first-person accounts. Profiles include historical figures like Nanny (ca. 1680–ca. 1750), a Jamaican freedom fighter; Lin Zexu (1785–1850), who attempted to stop the British opium trade in China; William Cuffay (1788–1870), a leader in the Chartist movement in the UK; Sophia Duleep Singh (1870–1948), the daughter of the last Sikh emperor, who fought for women’s suffrage in Britain; and Kwame Nkrumah (1909–72), a Ghanaian revolutionary and politician.

The book also shows how people living in British colonies all over the world were connected by similar experiences and histories. Mohandas Gandhi (1869–

Hear Our Voices by Radhika Natarajan & Chao Tayiana, illustrated by Alexander Mostov (Wide Eyed Editions)

PHOTO BY LAUREN LABARRE

Prof. Radhika Natarajan

1948), for instance, learned tactics to resist British control in India from suffragists in the UK. Historical context boxes expand on diverse topics, including Indigenous sovereignty, partition, residential schools, and assimilation.

“I hope that children will see that you don’t have to share identity with someone to feel like you share a struggle with them or that your stories are connected,” says Natarajan. This sentiment underscores the book’s intent: to get young readers excited about history and to show them that ordinary lives can have extraordinary impacts. “I think the most important thing is that you’re not telling these kids, things were bad, and now they’re good. But that [throughout] history, people thought about their conditions, as individuals, as communities, as nations. And they thought about how they could change them. Sometimes they were successful, and sometimes they weren’t. I don’t think the people in the book were all heroes, but they are all people who did things.”

Natarajan hopes the book will help young readers to think historically, and to consider how each person’s actions can lead to collective change.

“You can’t just reduce everything to struggle and violence and oppression,” Natarajan says. “There has to be space for joy, too.”

In this time when the teaching of history faces book bans and restrictions, books like Hear Our Voices become critical tools. As Natarajan puts it, “[I]n our political moment right now there is a battle over the past.”

Natarajan believes it’s important for young people to understand history so they can better understand issues in the world today—issues that often seem overwhelming, even to adults. But stories give us what Raymond Williams called “resources of hope.” Hear Our Voices helps children understand that many people’s actions brought us to this present moment. When we learn about these histories, it becomes clear that every one of us, individually and collectively, has the power to shape the future.

—Laura Atkins ’92

Pages of Hear our Voices are filled with lush illustrations, like this detail from a spread featuring the story of Nanny, a freedom fighter and leader of the Jamaican Maroons. ILLUSTRATION

Reediana

Edited by Robin Tovey ’97

Zelda Popkin: The Life and Times of an American Jewish Woman Writer

Through the writings of his grandmother Zelda, historian Jeremy Popkin ’70 explores the experiences of the children of Eastern European Jewish immigrants and of the first generation of American women to gain the right to vote. Drawing on a rich variety of sources, including her articles in magazines ranging from the American Hebrew to the New Yorker, Popkin pays tribute to this adventurous journalist and novelist. (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023)

The Papers of Andrew Jackson: Volume XII, 1834

Dan Feller ’72 is the editor of this volume, his sixth on Jackson’s presidency, which covers events surrounding Jackson’s formal censure by the U.S. Senate in 1834. Feller is also Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Tennessee. (University of Tennessee Press, 2023)

Empire of Objects: Iurii Trifonov and the Material World of Soviet Culture

In this comprehensive overview of Trifonov’s work, Benjamin Sutcliffe ’96 considers an author whose fictional oeuvre reflects many contradictions of the USSR’s history and “the paradoxes of a culture that could neither honestly confront the past nor create a viable future.” (University of Wisconsin Press, 2023)

Faith in Mount Fuji: The Rise of Independent Religion in Early Modern Japan

As Mt. Fuji evolved from a venue for solitary ascetics into a well-regulated pilgrimage site, artisans and merchants generated new forms of religious life outside the confines of the sectarian establishment. Janine Anderson Sawada ’74 highlights how the thinking behind the grassroots phenomena of new Fuji devotees carved out enclaves for subtle opposition to the status quo. (University of Hawai‘i Press, 2022)

If Not Him

The latest collection of poems by Charlotte Gould Warren ’59 is about family, grief, and “a love all the sweeter because it contrasts sharply with a difficult childhood.” (SFA University Press, 2023)

Structural Inequality: Origins and Quests for Solutions in Old Worlds and New

A seventh book by Roger Norton ’63 contains extended narratives for 10 countries where he worked in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Asia. Norton argues that meaningful economic development relies upon identifying the structural origins of inequality and collaborating closely with local counterparts. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022)

The Téuta’s Child

This debut novel by Stuart Ullman ’70 is a story of loss and redemption set in the Neolithic period, during a climate crisis that occurred nearly 8,300 years ago. Having retired after 38 years as an economist and engineering project manager in the U.S. Navy, Stuart is now pursuing a lifelong interest in writing. (Independently published, 2022)

Integrating Racial Justice into Your High-School Biology Classroom

David Fastovsky ’77 and his former doctoral student Dr. David Upegui, a high school biology teacher, published this manual for teaching equity through evolutionary biology. It provides scientific and historical context to help students develop a meaningful understanding of human biotic “diversity” and the relationship between science and racism. (Routledge, 2023)

oh orchid o’clock

A third book of poetry from Endi Bogue Hartigan ’94 “speaks the language of the clock as a living instrument, exposing the sensory impacts of our obsession with time . . . as lyrics wind through histories like a nervous system through a body.” (Omnidawn Publishing, 2023)

STRONG Product Communities

Melissa (Feineman) Suzuno ’02 is the coauthor of a book that draws on expert interviews, hands-on experience, and survey data to explore how product teams can encourage peer learning, both in the workplace and in broader professional settings. (Independently published, 2023)

Research Design in the Social Sciences: Declaration, Diagnosis, and Redesign

Graeme Blair ’06 and his coauthors have written a guide to evaluating research design across the social sciences. An essential tool kit for the life of a project, it covers planning and realization of design to the integration of results into scientific literature. An associate professor of political science at UCLA, Graeme works primarily in Nigeria, often in partnership with government, civil society, or international organizations. (Princeton University Press, 2023)

Into the All Empty

This debut poetry collection by Susan Lynch ’10 includes works from her creative thesis at Reed, Ethics for Invisible Worlds, and titular MFA thesis.Touching on themes of loss, regret, and loneliness, these poems “deftly interweave physics and quantum theory, awakening the reader and sparking transformation.” (Chatwin Books, 2023)

Syncing

Cartoonist Quinn Amacher ’13 published an adult sci-fantasy graphic novel in which a flooded community struggles to deal with the sudden emergence of a telepathic, human-eating mold. (Secret Room Press, 2023)

Spirited Ink: Reed College Student Perspectives on Chinese Ghost Stories and Supernatural Tales

This book project showcases a remarkable collection of 38 articles, featuring both creative and analytical pieces, authored by 15 students who participated in the CHIN/LIT 330 course Chinese Ghost Stories and Supernatural Tales, taught by Prof. Jinhui Wu. It received recognition from the Social Justice Research and Education Fund in Reed’s Office for Institutional Diversity, and the project enjoys sponsorship from the Reed library and the support of the Chinese department. (Pressbooks, 2023)

We

Can’t Go Home Again

Biting and relatable, Kate Christensen’s latest novel grapples with midlife, trauma, and climate change.

Home is a tenuous place in Welcome Home, Stranger, the newest novel by Kate Christensen ’86 And not just in the clichéd way of the rom-com protagonist returning from big city life to face the absurdity (but also the sweetness) of her small-town upbringing.

Yes, Rachel (an environmental journalist who fled Maine for D.C.) does run into the married ex-boyfriend she might still love, after coming home for the first time in many years, following the death of her mother. And yes, they do lock eyes across the table of a dinner party, their enduring chemistry simmering beneath the surface of awkward conversation. (His wife is there, too.)

But there’s more darkness than sweetness here. Kate leans on familiar tropes of the can’t-gohome-again narrative, but then charges past clichés. She writes with stinging honesty about midlife, childhood trauma, and existential dread on the macrolevel, a can’t-go-home-again crisis for all living things on a warming planet.

“I feel like a veritable lunatic,” says Rachel. At the awkward dinner party, she avoids the food and sticks to sparkling water. “I’m the woman who knows too much to eat anything, thanks to a man who never actually wanted me.”

Rachel’s ex-husband was a scientist for the FDA. He loves Rachel and only wants to protect her from things like “bisphenol A-tainted canned tomato sauce with glyphosate-soaked wheat pasta,” but he left her for a man and is now dying of ALS. Their relationship remains the healthiest one in her life.

Finding romantic love is often central to the “home again” nar-

rative, but the most interesting relationship in this story is the one between Rachel and her sister, a stay-at-home mom who is furious at Rachel for not coming home sooner, while their mother was dying. Rachel and Celeste share similar scars from their dead mother’s narcissism, but they’ve coped in opposing ways and must excavate some truths about themselves and each other in order to heal.

In Welcome Home, Stranger, characters are allowed to remain flawed and flailing. Rachel is both, but she has enough self-awareness to allow read -

ers access to the big picture beyond her personal problems: our world is changing in terrifying ways, and there’s nothing we can do about it. “It’s too late for algae; ice analysis is only confirming the presence of a terminal disease; and geoengineering is insane, desperate, and dangerous,” she says. “It’s too late to do anything with all of this information scientists have been gathering and analyzing.”

In Welcome Home, Stranger, we’re not asked to hope for happy endings. There is beauty in the crumbling.

—Britany Robinson

Class Notes

Edited by Joanne Hossack ’82

1954 70TH REUNION

Julie May is still taking ballet classes at 90. “Creaky but I love it.”

1955–58

Unforgettable . . . that's what you are.

1959

Caroline Miller recently had an essay on how to write a memoir published in the magazine Women Writers, Women’s Books. Caroline’s memoir, Getting Lost to Find Home (see Fall 2023 Reediana), was called “fascinating, thought-provoking, entertaining, and ultimately inspiring” by Midwest Book Review.

Charlotte Warren’s latest poetry collection has been published by SFA University Press. (See Reediana.)

1960

Come to reunions . . .

1961

Lynne (Barnes) Small writes, “No one from the class of ’61 is young any more, but I’m grateful to be still rolling along. I left mathematics behind (except for the people) when I retired. Now, for the last 12 years, I’ve been a docent at Torrey Pines State Reserve in San Diego. There I’ve found almost a second ‘career’ coordinating a group that removes nonnative invasive plants.”

1962

Peter Gladhart writes, “Still on the right side of the grass! Hope many of my friends and classmates are too.”

Carol Hurwitz and Stephen Shields were among members present when comedian Nato Green ’97 entertained the Democrats of Rossmoor in Walnut Creek, California, in August.

1963

Dr. J. Howard Shafer writes, “My wife Jacquette Ward and I live in Santa Clara, California. We hike and bike and I ski. After living a total of 65 years in the USA (not all at once), I became a US citizen.”

1964 60TH REUNION

Graham Seibert’s family of seven (three kids, wife, in-laws) has been in Kyiv throughout the war. Graham blogs about it on Substack.

1965

. . . and bring your guitar!

1966

Congratulations to Joan Bresnan, who was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2023! Joan has previously been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the British Academy, and other learned societies. She also received the Association of Computational Linguistics Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. Joan is currently Sadie Dernham Patek Professor in Humanities Emerita in the Department of Linguistics at Stanford and a senior researcher at Stanford’s Center for the Study of Language and Information. Her research uses theoretical models to explore how languages vary and the cognitive sources of this variation.

Galen Cranz , though retired from full-time teaching, is still busy! “I remain active in that I continue to publish in the area that I call Body Conscious Design and I am an advisor to one last PhD student at Berkeley. This qualifies me as a professor of the graduate school. I am continuing to teach in an independent international course called Moving Boundaries that takes students and faculty to see the work in situ of an important architect (e.g., Siza in Iberia, Barragan in Mexico, Aalto in Scandinavia) for two weeks while considering the role of the human sciences, including neuroscience, in architecture.”

Judy Hendershott MAT ’66 and her husband John Munch took part

in a 25th wedding anniversary celebration of Polish friends in July in Zakopane in the Tatra mountains of Poland.

1967

John Cushing received the Delivery Driver of the Year award from Store to Door. He delivers groceries to the homebound and food boxes to the food insecure. He also finished the Portland Half Marathon.

Laura Frader retired from fulltime teching, deaning, and department chairing in 2020 and is now in her second career as a full-time painter, making frequent trips to the PNW to visit grandchildren!

1968

Howard Rheingold and friends are building a time machine! See https://pataphysics.us/.

Roger Norton ’s seventh book on economic development was recently published. (See Reediana.)

1. The grandson of Howard Rheingold ’68 navigates through time.

2. Comedian Nato Green ’97 (center) entertained the Democrats of Rossmoor in Walnut Creek, California, in August. Among the entertained were Carol Hurwitz ’62 and Stephen Shields ’62.

3. John Cushing received the “Delivery Driver of the Year” award from Store to Door.

1969 55TH REUNION

Joe Scott (né Fuller) is accepting applications for positions in his crewe and entourage, having achieved the pinnacle of literary accomplishment, publication in the October 30 issue of the New Yorker. Haters will sneer that what was “published” was merely a letter to the editor, but for Joe it is sadness enough to realize that, like Alexander, he has no more universes to conquer. You may find him weeping softly into his PBR over that. We intend to buck up his resolve by pointing out that he has not yet been interviewed by Terry Gross or made it to the cover of the Rolling Stone Where there is life, there is hope!

1970

Terry Boyarsky’s latest Russian Duo project was a collaborative concert at the Maltz Performing Arts Center in Cleveland, Ohio, with music and theater. Among other pieces for singer, viola, balalaika, and piano, Terry and her musical partner translated a Chekhov short story and arranged Tchaikovsky’s “The Seasons—June” for balalaika, viola, and piano.

Jeffrey Kovac has been elected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society. The program recognizes members who have made exceptional contributions in physics research, important applications of physics, leadership in or service to physics, or significant contributions to physics education. Each year, no

more than one half of one percent of the society membership is recognized by their peers for election. In 2023, 153 Fellows were selected and recognized for their contributions to science. His fellowship citation reads: “For innovative, scholarly, multidimensional, and persistent contributions to scientific ethics and ethics education along with numerous thoughtful contributions on other complex issues at the interface of science and society.”

Jeremy Popkin has published a new book. (See Reediana.)

At long last, David Raich plans to retire in January 2024. “It’s been quite a run, and Reed sure helped prepare me for the constant technology changes along the way. Starting from an IBM 1620 in the Eliot Hall basement in the summer of 1966, with Prof. John Hancock, Prof. Tom Dunne, Prof. Joe Roberts [see In Memoriam], Alan Ackerman ’68, Andrew Kurn ’70, and too many others who are no longer with us as well as many who still are, the journey has remained intriguing. My current gig as a database engineer with Arena Solutions began in early 2012 as they advanced from a recent startup to one of the keystone ‘cloud’ products of PTC. Sonia and I now look forward to having more time for extended travel and other projects.”

David Toliver helped his wife, Ginny, self-publish her memoir, Make Friends, Make Peace: A Memoir of Family, Travel and Hospitality

(available online in print and as an ebook from major booksellers). In it, David says: “My three semesters at Reed were the most formative of my years in higher education. There I acquired a progressive outlook on life that has remained a core value ever since.” Ginny and David will have been married 50 years this coming June!

Stuart Ullman has published a novel! (See Reediana.)

1971

Daniel Barraza writes, “Thanks to the Reed community for giving me the strength to tell the FBI that targeting innocent women and children with nukes makes me uncomfortable. The FBI responded by denying top secret clearance. At the time it seemed to be a stupid thing to say but now I am glad I said so.”

David Comfort had his writing in three international philosophy and theology journals last year. His essay “Self Consciousness” appeared in The Philosopher and “Vengeance Is Mine!” was included in the Montréal Review . In the December/January issue of Free Inquiry, his piece “Jesus, The Gospel Disharmony” was published. He is the author of The Rock & Roll Book of the Dead and other nonfiction.

1972

Martha Allbritten ’s update: “Happily living in Roseburg with my wife and golden retriever.”

1. Not Joe Scott ‘69’s unpublished memoir, Red Diaper Baby Blues

2. Russian Duo, Terry Boyarsky ’70 & Oleg Kruglyakov, in Ohio in October.

3. Richard Levine '70 and son Nathan Levine collaborated on the calligraphed internal title page of their recent book (see Fall 2023 Reediana). Richard notes, "The legacy of my Reed teacher, Lloyd J. Reynolds [English and art, 1929–69], is alive and well!"

Class Notes

Dan Feller has released the final volume of The Papers of Andrew Jackson. (See Reediana.)

In October, Eric Ladner drove down to Portland from Tacoma to attend the Calligraphy Initiative Tea.

1973

David Perry recently caught up with Peter Mars ’82 at an art opening in Chicago and sent us a picture.

1974 50TH REUNION

Janine Anderson Sawada’s Faith in Mount Fuji was published by the University of Hawai‘i Press at the beginning of 2022. (See Reediana.)

1975

John Penney was presented with an Award of Recognition by the Detroit City Council for his role as a “Jazz Pillar” in the city. He continues to host a weekly program on public radio WRCJ in Detroit, and has been a fixture at the Detroit Jazz Festival for over 35 years.

Jim Sogi and Sarah Smith ’76 have lived in Hawaii for 42 years and have a beautiful garden. Jim writes, “I have been hydrofoil surfing, downwind foiling for the last 3 years. We ski winters in Alaska, Japan, New Zealand, Antarctica, and Canada. We have four beautiful grandchildren and two successful, wonderful children. We recently visited beautiful Hood River in the Columbia Gorge for a downwind foiling trip, driving down from Alaska through Skagway, the Alaska Ferry, Eastern Washington.”

1976

Helen Lessick’s studio art and public art practice continues. Her art and science residency at PLAYA in Summer Lake, Oregon, is scheduled for October 2024. “I will build on my 2022 art and ecology research and installation in the Blue Mountains of Australia, exploring soil and root recovery from high intensity forest fires. I’m part of a group show at Edward Cella Art and Architecture

Gallery, and continue public art consulting with the City of Inglewood to build cultural treasure.”

1977

Barbara J. Anello is wrapping up five years working with the staff of APSARA Authority, National Authority of Preah Vihear, National Authority of Sumber Prei Kuk, under the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, in a U.S. State Department program, English Language Fellows. The staff recently celebrated the addition of the 10th-century urban complex of Koh Ker to UNESCO’s List of World Heritage sites. Barbara writes that capacity development for the UNESCO World Heritage sites in Cambodia is essential, especially at this pivotal moment when so many looted national cultural treasures are being returned to Cambodia from museums and private collections, many in the U.S.

David Fastovsky writes, “Unexpectedly, I got old. My students stayed young for the 36 years that I taught geosciences (paleontology, sedimentology, and Earth history) at the University of Rhode Island, but I gradually became aware

that I was not subject to the same alchemy. So in December 2022, I retired.” On another note, David and a colleague recently published a book, Integrating Racial Justice into Your High-School Biology Classroom “We’ll know it’s a success if it gets banned from public school libraries in Florida!” (See Reediana.)

1978

Reunited, and it feels so good

1979 45TH REUNION

Kelly Doyle is testing out slogans as he plans to run for Portland City Council. “Pondering Pathways for Portland” or “Younger than Joe Biden.” Kelly is still an attorney in Portland, Oregon; 2024 is his 40th anniversary as a member of the Oregon State Bar. “‘Interesting’ to be 67 and running for work.”

Bruce McQuistan’s son Tarn is currently digging into his research in the Reed physics department. “During a break in June, we spent a week in Silverton, Colorado, napping, hiking, and skiing. After our digital music patents failed to gain traction, I’m spending time building a little shack out back, the #dreamshack.”

1. Staff of National Authority of Preah Vihear and APSARA National Authority on a site visit with research and conservation classes through the English Fellow Program, at Prasat Linga, Koh Ker, Cambodia. Photo by Barbara J. Anello ’77.

2. David Perry '73 catches up with Peter Mars '82 ("the one who looks like an artist").

3. Karen Greenbaum-Maya ‘73 wrestles with the mozzarella.

1980

Recent grads Yulia Kornikova ’23 and Josh Klein Valente ’23 teamed up with old-timer Matthew Lawrence this summer at the nineball league at Sam’s Hollywood Billiards in Portland. The three enjoyed comparing notes on Reed’s beloved pool hall. “For me, it was one of the few places on campus where I could connect with fellow introverts,” Lawrence recalls. “I spent more time there than in the library—and I’m not ashamed.” This past January, Matthew, an Episcopal priest, retired as canon for spiritual formation at Portland’s Trinity Cathedral; meanwhile Yulia and Josh are launching their careers in oceanography and cybersecurity, respectively.

1981

Now our Homer jokes are understood

1982

Willa Casstevens retired from teaching this summer and now is scholar in residence at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa, for 2023–24. Willa’s household includes two cats and a 25-yearold umbrella cockatoo.

Michael Mills and Terri Williamson ’83 spent the first two weeks of November visiting Paris, with a couple of day trips to points beyond. They saw the sights, ate well, drank plenty of coffee and wine (not at the same time!), and visited booksellers along the Seine whenever the November weather allowed them to open. In years past the pair has traveled together to Greece (2017) and New Zealand (2019), as well as on shorter domestic trips to visit family and friends. “But somehow we never remembered to submit Class Notes for any of those. (Oops!)”

Mark Johnson Roberts has been given the American Bar Association’s Stonewall Award, which recognizes legal professionals “who have effected real change to remove barriers on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression in the

legal profession and the world, nation, state and/or locale.” The award was presented at the ABA Midyear Meeting in Louisville in February. Mark is a past president of the Oregon State Bar and a past cochair of both OGALLA, Oregon’s LGBTQ+ bar association, and the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association. After a long career in family law and appellate litigation, he retired in 2019 as deputy general counsel to the Oregon State Bar. Mark lives in Southeast Portland with his husband, Jay Roberts. They celebrated 40 years together in July.

1983

Kelly Locklin just retired from 30 years of teaching middle and high school history/aocial studies/civics (AP Government). Writing in July, Kelly was looking forward to taking a September vacation for the first time since 1991.

1984

40TH REUNION

It's our rosy-fingered dawn

1985

Karen Belsey writes, “While at Reed I cultivated skills and resources that have served/supported me personally and professionally for decades. Now, as I serve as a host for Reed international students and work in the DEI field, I want to make certain that the wide range of growth opportunities that I experienced are still available, but to students with a broader array of lived experiences.”

1986

Your magazine is back on

1987

Lisa Nakamura is spending the current academic year as a visiting professor in the School of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, where she will complete a book on women of color and their contributions to the Internet and help convene a scholars’ theme year on Platforms. Writing in August, she noted that her family, including two standard poodles, planned to take their trawler, the Grace Lee Boggs, from Michigan to New Jersey along with a rotating crew of friends.

1. Set way back in the middle of the trees, the #dreamshack is a little ol' place that Bruce McQuistan '79 is building.

2. Matthew Lawrence ’80, Yulia Kornikova ’23, and Josh Klein Valente ’23 team up Sam’s Hollywood Billiards in Portland.

3. Michael Mills ’82 and Terri Williamson ’83 in front of Old Town, St. Malo, Brittany.

Class Notes

1988

So send some class notes to the home of your Great Lawn!

1989 35TH REUNION

In July, Kevin Hendrickson graduated with a master of music in film composition from the Pacific Northwest Film Scoring Program at Seattle Film Institute. The intensive one-year program focused on composing, orchestrating, and conducting film music utilizing live players. Kevin writes, “It had been a dream of mine to earn a music degree ever since I dabbled in music theory as a sophomore student of Mario Pelusi [music 1982–89]. I remained a physics major, but composed music avidly through the 1990s and eventually found work in television animation. This masters program was very challenging for me, and I thank my friends (especially Matt Giger ) and my family, Eileen, Luke, and Logan Hendrickson for helping me through it. The techniques and theory I learned gave me insight into orchestral scoring, as well as rock and pop music composition. I hope to use this degree to continue work in television animation, and to find new work in the video game industry.”

1990

Several years ago, Stephen Scholz left academia, changed careers, and started working as a producer for Free Range Games. In October, the company released Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria. “Living the dream,” writes Stephen. Indeed!

1991

Bob Sallinger recently left Portland Audubon after 30 years with the organization and started a new job at Willamette Riverkeeper; he also started his own conservation nonprofit, Bird Conservation Oregon (www.birdconservationoregon.org).

1992

David Kehoe ’82 tipped us off that there was a good interview with Lena Phoenix and her husband

Steven Sashen, cofounders of Xero Shoes, on the podcast How I Built This with Guy Raz.

1993

New words from Merriam-Webster: webmaster, web page, website, and . . . blue screen of death!

1994 30TH REUNION

Endi Hartigan ’s third book of poetry was published in 2023. (See Reediana.)

Ray Wells took office as chapter president of Public School Employees of Central Washington University, SEIU Local 1948 chapter 411.

1995

David Tourzan is still a public school teacher in Ashland and on the board of Rogue Valley Farm to School. He also volunteers for Rogue Valley Mentoring.

1996

Kristi Hansen, Missy Rohs, Judy Ridenour, and Laura Stokes joined Molly Todd at her family cabin on Lake Superior in Lutsen, Minnesota, for a week of hunting (mushrooms) and general adventure. Hannah Campbell ’95 wanted to join but was detained by “The Man”* for economic reasons. The cold (lake water) and the heat (in the sauna tent) did nothing to dampen spirits. The Milky Way put in an appearance, as did a stinkhorn and a lawnmower from Florida. The tiny but mighty wildlife was cutthroat, as were the card games. Loons were kept neatly in rows. Spa night resulted in near rashes and fresh ink. Beer may have been a factor. Zero work was completed due entirely to connectivity issues and not at all to lack of motivation. Satisfying discussions were had on topics from kayaking to axe throwing to relocation dreams. Much appreciated relationship advice was provided by Ole and Lena. Yo mama’s many exploits and limitations were thoughtfully considered. Geriatric issues were a hot topic that came in flashes. A fun time was had by most. [*Apologies for the use

of the common sexist terminology. It is not to be inferred that a woman or person of any gender could not be at the heart of the soulless machine keeping us all down.]

Benjamin Sutcliffe has published a book on the work of Iurii Trifonov. (See Reediana.)

1997

Nato Green entertained the Democrats of Rossmoor, including Carol Hurwitz ’62 and Stephen Shields ’62 , in Walnut Creek, California, in August.

Steve Mansoor was awarded the American Society for Clinical Investigation’s Donald Seldin~Holly Smith Award for Pioneering Research in a virtual ceremony on August 8, 2023. This award recognizes early-career physician-scientist leaders with the legacies of two ASCI members, Drs. Donald W. Seldin and Lloyd H. “Holly” Smith Jr. Steve is an assistant professor at the OHSU School of Medicine and a practicing cardiologist; his research involves using structural biology to address cardiovascular health.

1998

Galen Longstreth is writing poems for babies, making zines, and being a supreme antibias kid lit book nerd, and is grateful for her Reed friends Julia, Randi, Mark, and Adam. RIP Josh.

1. Kevin Hendrickson ’89 conducts his final master’s degree project, “Seaside,” at Seattle’s Bastyr University in July. You can hear it at http:// kevinhendrickson. com.

2. Every union leader needs an axe handle. Ray Wells ‘94 customized his.

1999 25TH REUNION

Karin Melnick is off to Europe!

“After 14 happy years in the mathematics department at the University of Maryland, I am moving with my binational son to Luxembourg and joining the Mathematics Department at the University of Luxembourg. I have enjoyed my time with the wonderful Washington, D.C., alumni chapter and would be glad to connect with Reedies in or around my new home.”

2000–01

Always too busy turning the century around to drop us a line . . .

2002

Matthew Sorg has started a psychotherapy practice located in Seattle that specializes in treating trauma and PTSD.

Melissa (Feineman) Suzuno is the coauthor of a new book published in October. (See Reediana.)

2003

Brooke Carlson writes, “Some ladies and I had an excellent time getting together in Asheville, North Carolina, this May, and I have a picture to prove it!” The ladies included Stephanie Cason and Emily Rosenblitt. “It was the first time the four of us were all together in 20 years!! & a makeup for a pandemic-delayed vacation.”

John Saller married Erin McMahan last year with a raft of Reedies in attendance. The wedding was held on the fall equinox in Sawyer, Michigan.

2004 20TH REUNION

Inaugural Awards Awards award event held in London, sponsored by Awards World magazine.

2005

Because awards.

2006

Graeme Blair ’s book Research Design in the Social Sciences was published by Princeton University Press in August. (See Reediana.)

2007

Rhiannon Killeen married Andrew Kurland in July 2023, in Charlottesville, Virginia. The couple had a small wedding with 30 guests, followed in September by a honeymoon in Albania.

2008

Your infinity scarf is adorbs!

2009 15TH REUNION

Sophia Frank gave birth to Francis Aurora Belleveau in August 2023. Sophia recently moved back to Minneapolis to become an assistant professor of clinical psychology at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

We learned on LinkedIn that Kendall Taggart and coauthors won a Loeb Award last year for investigative reporting for “Profit, Pain, and

1. At the fall equinox wedding of John Saller '03 and Erin McMahan: Van Butsic ’03, Dan Hunter-Smith ’77, Mike Rosen ’04, Dan Gidycz ’06, Daniel Swift ’03, John, Erin, Kasia Bartoszynska ’04, Gemma Petrie ’04, Jennifer Carroll ‘03, Andy Bruno ‘03, Rine Boyer ‘04, Erik Cameron ‘05, Harold Gabel ‘03, Molly Dodge ’04, Ligaya Beebe ‘03, Lewis Meineke ‘07, Colleen Duffy ‘05, and Peter McMahan ‘03.

2. Jessica Galatz, Stephanie Cason '03, Emily Rosenblitt '03, and Brooke Carlson '03 get together for the first time since the pandemic!

3. It's matching tattoos for Judy Ridenour ‘96, Missy Rohs ‘96, Kristi Hansen ‘96, Laura Stokes ‘96, Molly Todd ‘96

4. Mrs. Foster, a kindly Minnesota forest librarian with plenty of opinions, very much approves of those tattoos.

Class Notes

Private Equity,” their series on KKR’s takeover of a business running group homes from people with disabilities. This was the last investigation the group published at now-defunct BuzzFeed News.

2010

Susan Lynch’s debut poetry collection, Into the All Empty, includes poems from her Reed creative thesis, “Ethics for Invisible Worlds,” as well as her MFA thesis. (See Reediana.)

2011

Selorm Fefeti , now residing in New York, finally tapped into his creative side and launched a fashion line (https://fefeti.com/) with his father, who is based in Ghana. The mission of Fefeti is twofold: to revive the traditional craft and artisanship of kente in their hometown, Agotime Kpetoe, in Ghana, and to bring the Ghanaian fashion cultures to NYC, a place Selorm has called home for the past decade.

Zara Weinberg and Kayleigh Stevenson ’10 celebrated their love and their community in sunny Oceanside, Oregon, in June with a number of beloved Reedies in attendance. The ceremony was performed by Matt Hagen, and a beautiful rendition of “This Must Be the Place” was performed by Juliet Shafto ’13 on the ukulele.

2012

A proclamation: “We’re married!” On July 1, Francis Dieterle and Kate McCully ’13, surrounded by friends on that sunny afternoon in Paris, signed some papers and had a party, with Richard Aldersley ’13 and Adélaïde Calais as witnesses.

2013

Quinn Amacher has published an adult sci-fantasy graphic novel. (See Reediana.)

2014 10TH REUNION

Jaye Whitney Debber and Garnett Puett ’13 welcomed their first child in July.

Miranda Lyons-Cohen received her doctoral degree in immunology in December from the University of Washington.

Joseph Vincent and Dieter Mackenbach got married in October, with Shannon DahlkamperSmith as the officiant.

2015

Cybele Brandow would love to have you check out her new website and online publication, Little Cosmic Missives (www.littlecosmicmissives), where she sends out transcriptions, descriptions, and recitations of received visions, dreams, and poetic dictations.

Elizabeth Grace and Dylan Whitlow eloped after thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail together from May to November 2022. They

hit the trail the same week that Liz finished her PhD in physics.

2016

Creepy clown panic starts in South Carolina, spreads across country (no political allusions intended).

2017

Katherine Rogers and Neil Johnson (2013 exchange student) were married in September in Boise, Idaho. Katherine and Neil met at Reed in 2013 and spent several years together between the West Coast and the UK. They now live together in Santa Cruz, California. Katherine is pursuing her PhD in literature at UC Santa Cruz, and Neil is pursuing his PhD in labor history at UC Santa Barbara.

1. Zara Weinberg ’11 and Kayleigh Stevenson ’10 celebrate their love! Back row: Mike Ossiff ‘11, Matt Hagen ‘11, Zara, Dan Lidral-Porter ‘11, Nia Heffelfinger ‘12, Greg Lawrence ‘12, Erik Swanson ‘11, Front Row: Jayne Gervich ‘09, Allie Werner ‘10, Ilsa Kirby ‘13, Kayleigh, Juliet Shafto ‘13, Jean McMahon ‘11, Sarah Jacoby ‘11, and Alice Newton ‘11.

2. At the wedding of Katherine Rogers ’17 and 2013 exchange student Neil Johnson, a circle of Reedies formed to close the night out with a sing-along of "Heaven" by the Talking Heads

3. Francis Dieterle ‘12 and Kate McCully ‘13 were married in Paris! Richard Aldersley ’13 and Adélaïde Calais were witnesses.

2018

First super blue blood moon since 1866 hidden from Reedies by clouds

2019 5TH REUNION

Arthur Garrison and Michaella Joseph have become the JosephGarrisons! They were married by a friend in Craryville, New York, in August. Arthur and Michaella met in the first month of freshman year in front of Ladd and Abington in the Old Dorm Block. Michaella convinced Arthur to major in linguistics, they studied abroad in France together, and they shared the same thesis adviser (much love to Kara Becker and all the ling profs!). Since graduating they have adopted a cat and moved to New York City, and Michaella has become a registered nurse. For

their nuptials they were joined by fellow class of ’19 Reedies Grace Martin, Camille Trautman, Julia Gatenio, Chiara Boisseree, Kyra Boisseree, Rod Driver, Manamaya Peterson , Melanie Baker , and Sam Timm.

Gatlin Newhouse placed 23rd out of 581 experienced students in the National Cyber League’s Individual Competition in the fall. He is currently studying for his MS in computer science at Portland State.

2020

Carolyn Walworth and Jacob Cutshall got engaged over tacos in Tucson, Arizona, in July. The couple got together four years ago during their senior year at Reed. Carolyn is pursuing her JD at Duke University while Jacob is in the third year of

his PhD program in condensed matter and atomic-optical-molecular physics at the University of Arizona.

2021–23

We miss you already!

Class notes are the lifeblood of Reed Magazine.

1. At the Joseph-Garrison wedding, left to right: Sam Timm ‘19, Manamaya Peterson ’19, Rod Driver ’19, Sabra Duarte, Julia Gatenio ’19, Michaella Joseph-Garrison ’19, Arthur Joseph-Garrison ’19, Grace Martin ‘19, Luke Miller, Chiara Boisseree ‘19, Melanie Baker ’19, Kyra Boisseree ’19. Photographed by Camille Trautman.

2. Selorm Fefeti ’11, cofounder of fashion line Fefeti, models one of his brand’s signature outerwear pieces, the Dehyeε (Akan for “royalty”) trench coat.

3. Joseph Vincent ’14 and Dieter Mackenbach ‘14 got married!

4. Classmates Kerry Sherman ’09 and Devin McGeehan Muchmore ’09 joined Sophie Frank ’09 at her baby shower.

5. Carolyn Walworth ’20 and Jacob Cutshall ’20 are engaged!

We rely on you to tell us what's going on! Tell us about births, deaths, weddings, voyages, adventures, bizarre encounters, transformation, astonishment, woe, delight, fellowship, discovery, mischief, reflection, or whatever else has been occupying your time recently. Photos are welcome, as are high-res images.

Notes can be emailed to reed.magazine@reed.edu; submitted at iris.reed.edu, via form link in Reedie News or sent via mail. Reediana submissions are published on a rolling basis as space permits. Please note that we edit class notes for length and content.

Edited by Britany Robinson

Trustee and Advocate for Equity and Unity

Linda G. Howard ’70, Trustee

September 14, 2023.

Linda Howard ’70 [alumni trustee 1988–92; trustee 1993–2023] was a natural leader and an outstanding scholar and public servant. As a lawyer and an advocate for equality and social justice, she was known for bringing people together and for holding truth to power while also seeking common ground.

Most recently Linda served as general counsel and vice president of legal affairs for Landmark Worldwide, a professional growth, training, and development company.

Her dedication to Reed extended far beyond her graduation in 1970. For 34 years, Linda was an active member of Reed College’s Board of Trustees, where she championed increasing diversity among faculty and students and tirelessly held the college accountable, insisting on data and strategy to guide it forward. Linda was a long-standing member of the Student Life Committee, serving as committee chair from 1996 to 2008. She was also an important member of the Budget Policy Committee. For nine years she served on the alumni board and led the New York alumni chapter committee. As a member of the President’s Commission on Student Life, Linda coauthored a 1993 report laying out a path for improving the student experience. She also participated in the Alumni of Color Affinity Group, and she generously shared her expertise with fellow alumni as a career coach and mentor. In

1988, Linda became the first recipient of the Babson Society Outstanding Volunteer Award, Reed’s highest recognition for its volunteers.

“It was my privilege to work with Linda Howard in my roles for the college over the past 25 years,” said Hugh Porter, vice president for college relations and planning. “Linda was an effective advocate for Reed’s

students and for the adoption of policies and practices that would attract, engage, and support a more ethnically diverse campus population. Her admonitions had such an impact because of the power of her arguments and her unwavering commitment to Reed’s educational mission. Also, never has a strong advocate been more fun to encounter. I will miss her.”

Growing up in Ettrick, Virginia, where her father was a biology professor at the historically Black Virginia State College (now Virginia State University), Linda was immersed in academia at a young age. After her elementary school let out, she would walk over to the biology department to sit in the back of her father’s class and listen to his lectures. Linda’s

mother also worked on campus, first in the college-run elementary school and later as a math professor. Being raised in an allBlack community of academics was a “different and delightful upbringing,” said Linda in an interview with UVA Law.

In an oral history recorded by Reed, Linda recalled feeling disappointed at the end of each school year—she wouldn’t get to study all summer. This voracious appetite for education continued throughout her life. In elementary school, she looked forward to having homework in high school. In high school, unimpressed by her experience with homework, she longed for more rigorous academic pursuits. “I wanted to immerse myself in something,” she said in the oral history for Reed. While studying in Switzerland during her junior year, a classmate told her that Reed College was a place where you could do that. She’d never heard of Reed, so she ordered a catalog to investigate, then set her sights on Oregon.

Linda started as a political science major and switched to mathematics as a sophomore. Her years at Reed were a time of social and political upheaval— the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Senator Robert F. Kennedy took place while she was a student. “The simplicity of math, in the context of the turbulence, appealed to me,” she said.

As a sophomore, she served as chair of the social affairs board. The first Renn Fayre, originally called “The Reed College Annual Renaissance Fayre,” was born from her idea and execution—although Linda called the present iteration “a different animal.” She was enamored with her Hum 110 class, taught by Prof. Thomas Price Zimmermann [history

1964–77], and she wanted to pay homage to the shared experience of Reed’s cornerstone class with authentic Renaissance revelry; Linda wore a flowing dress she’d made in the style of the Moors. “I wanted to bring people out of their dorms and onto the lawn, [so] that we could actually be a community together for a day.” She was also the lead singer in a rock band at Reed. “We thought we were the Rolling Stones.”

In the middle of the Black Student Union takeover of Eliot Hall in 1968, she was elected vice president of the student body. She’d been a key player in the protest, but suddenly, as her mother pointed out, it was her responsibility to act in the interest of all students. So Linda resolved to get the faculty to vote yes on the BSU’s demands as quickly as possible. She achieved this through the clever organization of twoon-two conversations with BSU members and faculty, starting with the most agreeable to their cause, then pairing those they’d convinced with more skeptical subjects. Gradually, faculty members were convincing other faculty members to vote yes on establishing the Black studies program. Unfortunately, the program was short-lived. But Linda never stopped pushing for more diversity and equity among students and faculty at Reed.

to begin her studies at the University of Virginia School of Law. In her second year, after noticing her classmates seemed divided along social lines, she became the first Black and first woman president of the law school student body—hoping to foster more unity. After successfully petitioning for alcohol to be allowed in Clark Hall, she organized a St. Patrick’s Day party for faculty and students, where they served green beer. “It was really bringing together the law students and the faculty in a social common-

“I wanted to bring people out of their dorms and onto the lawn, [so] that we could actually be a community together for a day.”

LINDA HOWARD ’70 ON BRINGING THE FIRST RENN FAYRE TO LIFE

ality such that everyone had a sense of belonging,” said Linda in an interview with UVA Lawyer. She loved law school and excelled in both oral and written arguments, advancing to the semifinals of the school’s prestigious oral competitions. She graduated in 1973.

President Jimmy Carter when she received an offer to become an assistant professor of law at The Ohio State University. She took the job to teach evidence, legislation, and sex-based discrimination. Three years after being tenured at Ohio State, she departed to serve as legal counsel to Hunter College President Donna Shalala. Linda wrote Hunter College’s first sexual harassment policy and worked with President Shalala on an affirmative action program that dramatically increased the number of professors of color. She later became a civil rights lecturer, touring New Zealand, India, and Japan. In a questionnaire for the class of 1970’s 25th reunion, Linda described her career as “indulging my every fantasy about work.”

Linda had wanted to be a lawyer ever since childhood; in third grade she noticed she had a knack for settling playground disputes. Days after defending her thesis, “A Discussion of the Contributions of Évariste Galois to Galois Theory as Related to the Solvability of Polynomial Equations by Radicals,” she flew back to Virginia

After graduation, Linda worked for the U.S. Department of Transportation as a staff attorney in D.C. On her first day she found a photo of President Richard Nixon, whom she disliked, hanging on her office wall. She promptly removed the photo and tucked it away in her bottom drawer. But someone put up a new photo the next day, and the next. Linda kept taking them down. “I kid you not, I had at least 50 of them in my drawers by the end of that first year.”

After that first job in politics, Linda worked as a legislative aide for former Senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX). She was on the White House staff under

Linda had a private law practice in 2007, when she wrote The Sexual Harassment Handbook: Everything You Need to Know Before Someone Calls a Lawyer. Men, she believed, were too often left out of conversations surrounding workplace harassment. She wrote the book “to create a common ground on which a conversation could be had. I wanted to provide a new context.”

In all of her work, Linda saw the nuance through the noise, and she often credited that perspective to her time at Reed. In her commencement address to Reed’s class of 1997, she said her years as a Reed student taught her to “engage with people whose beliefs and experiences are different from my own, and I gained a profound respect for the other fellow’s point of view.” She concluded her remarks by encouraging students to “listen, learn, converse, engage, be unreasonable, and have outrageous, extraordinary lives!”

Memoriam

Pediatrician Saved Lives with “Political Medicine”

Abraham B. Bergman ’54 November 10, in Seattle, Washington. Flame-resistant sleepwear, poison-control packaging, and bicycle helmets are all safety measures that have saved countless children’s lives, thanks in part to Abraham “Abe” Bergman. The influential pediatrician and public health advocate dedicated his life to protecting children through medicine and policy reform.

Abe was born in Seattle and brought up with a strong sense of service, rooted in his family’s Jewish faith. “Worthwhile” was his family’s guiding principle—to do things that are worthwhile, like helping others. In 1950 he graduated from Garfield High School, then followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Elihu Bergman ’50 , and attended Reed. Abe studied biology and wrote his thesis on metal radioisotopes in mouse melanoma with Prof. Alan M. MacEwan [biology 1951–55] advising. Abe would later tell people he went to Reed because he loved basketball, and it was the only place where he was good enough to play; for two years he was coach of the junior varsity team. His senior year, Abe performed in the chorus of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance, an experience that made such an impact that Abe organized a multigenerational production as part of the 50th reunion for the class of ’54.

After graduating from Reed, Abe earned his medical degree from Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve

University). He was a pediatric resident at Boston Children’s Hospital and then at St. Mary’s Hospital in London. Upon completing his medical training, Abe returned to his hometown of Seattle, where he joined the faculty of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine and practiced at Seattle Children’s (then known as Children’s Orthopedic Hospital). He was director of outpatient services for 19 years, then moved to Harborview Medical Center, where he was chief of pediatrics from 1983 to 2005. He served on the faculty of the University

of Washington School of Medicine until 2016, when he was named professor emeritus of pediatrics upon retirement.

Abe began studying sudden infant death syndrome when it was still known as crib death. Despite being the number one cause of death in children under one, it was largely misunderstood and the cause unknown. Parents often carried a great deal of guilt and shame, compounded by the involvement of law enforcement in many cases. In the 1960s and early ’70s, Abe was president

of the National Foundation for Sudden Infant Death, a grassroots group that supported parents who had lost children to SIDS. They sought to destigmatize SIDS and raise money for research, which led to the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Act of 1974. While the cause of SIDS is still a mystery, deaths have decreased dramatically.

In 1985, Abe partnered with trauma surgeon Dr. Cliff Herman to create the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center. He was also involved in the campaign to promote bicycle helmet use.

Abe’s family said that among his long list of accomplishments, he was most proud of building and running a park in the Central District, known as the Seattle PlayGarden, which has allowed thousands of children with all types of abilities a safe place to play over the years.

Abe called his combination of clinical practice and policy work “political medicine”; over the years he was very successful in lobbying for children’s health and safety on Capitol Hill. He served as a passionate witness for many issues, sharing the stories of patients and families who had suffered from preventable incidents. In 1967, Abe brought Washington state Senator Warren G. Magnuson to the burn unit of Seat-

“I’ve always believed I could affect more lives in the halls of the legislature and city council than I could in a doctor’s office.”

ABRAHAM BERGMAN ’54

tle Children’s Hospital, showing him children who were badly burned when their clothing caught on fire. Abe later showed the charred nightgown of a two-year-old to a Senate

subcommittee, sharing how it had ignited next to a space heater, burning over 85% of her body.

“You senators are in a position to save far more lives than physicians,” he told them.

In response, Congress toughened and broadened the Flammable Fabrics Act to require more flame-resistant clothing.

“I’ve always believed I could affect more lives in the halls of the legislature and city council than I could in a doctor’s office,” he’s quoted as saying in a 1989 article from the University of Washington’s Health Sciences News

Abe drafted and successfully lobbied for the Poison Packaging Act, which dramatically reduced childhood deaths from poisoning. He also initiated the bill creating the Consumer Product Safety Commission and was instrumental in the work to fluoridate water in King County.

In 1970, Abe proposed the idea for a National Health Service Corps, a federal program to support doctors, dentists, and nurses who spent time working in low-income communities. Abe enlisted medical students to lobby key members of Congress in their home districts, and he personally went to West Virginia to put pressure on Representative Harley Orrin Staggers, whose district was one of the neediest in the country. President Nixon signed to establish the National Health Service Corps later that year.

Abe is survived by his eight children: Anna, Ben, and Matthew Bergman; Sarah Bergman Lewis; Becca Bull; and Pavel, Eugeny and Yulia Fiala. His youngest three children were adopted at different times from orphanages in Russia. Dr. Bergman is also survived by six grandchildren.

Physics Professor

Penned

Inspiring Lecture Notes

Prof. Nicholas Wheeler ’55 [physics 1963–2010]

October 7, 2023, by death with dignity after suffering from terminal bladder cancer.

“With his beard and brown three-piece corduroy suit, Professor Wheeler seemed the perfect image of an Edwardian physicist,” recalled a former student in a Reed Magazine article about Nicholas Wheeler, A.A. Knowlton Professor of Physics. Wheeler’s reputation as a brilliant professor who inspired students with elegant lectures was even more intriguing because of his origin story: He came to Reed first as a student.

Working as a paper delivery boy in The Dalles at the age of 12, Wheeler learned of the atomic bomb when he delivered the front-page story. The enormity of the event captured his curiosity. “My interests diverted from surgery, music, and art to figuring out how the atomic bomb worked,” he said. At 14, he decided he wanted to be a physics professor. During high school, he taught himself calculus and was selected as a finalist in the Westinghouse Science Talent Search for a Wilson cloud chamber that he constructed. He traveled by train to Washington, D.C., where he met President Truman and many distinguished scientists. In 1951, he graduated from The Dalles High School as valedictorian.

Wheeler landed at Reed College thanks to both drive and naivety. When the time came to consider college, Wheeler did not apply to Reed but instead

wrote a letter to inform them of his impending arrival. “I thought going to college was like going to Klamath Falls on a bus; you just bought a ticket. I wrote to the college and said, ‘I’ll be coming. Please send me a scholarship.’” The approach worked; Wheeler received the John S. Schenck Memorial Scholarship, one of the college’s oldest scholarships, reserved for residents of The Dalles.

In 1955, a 19-year-old Wheeler was asked to give J. Robert Oppenheimer a tour of the Reed College campus. The famous physicist was, according to Wheeler, unimpressed by what the star student wished to discuss. “I asked Oppenheimer, as we were walking along, when did he suppose physics would be mature enough to deduce the numbers that appear in the equations of physics?” Oppenheimer seemed to reject the notion of his question, and Wheeler would later come to understand why. But this youthful curiosity would live on in his approach to teaching. Wheeler aimed to teach with thoughtful clarity, to rid explanations of convoluted jargon, and to

help all students understand the concepts at hand.

As a student at Reed, Wheeler also played the double bass in Arthur Fiedler’s Boston Pops Orchestra. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in physics, Wheeler attended Brandeis University, where he earned his PhD in 1960.

His passion for music stuck with him. A National Science Foundation fellowship with the theoretical division of CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, allowed Wheeler to also study cello at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève. He met his first wife, Karin, in Geneva. Wheeler went on to play cello in the Portland Opera for 10 years.

In 1963, Wheeler was invited to join the Reed faculty as a theoretical physicist. What he thought would be a short-term engagement suited him well. Wheeler discovered he loved teaching, and for 47 years students were captivated by his teaching style. When students first caught sight of his lecture notes—his handwriting was like an authoritative yet friendly font—they asked if he’d be willing to distribute copies. From then on, he copied

and distributed these meticulous notes with each class, replacing textbooks with his own approach to physics. “I can’t stand up in front of a class of bright kids without having thought my way through the subject and written it out in my own idiosyncratic way,” said Wheeler. “I find the process of preparing for class exciting; I always did.”

Wheeler didn’t just inspire students in the classroom. He motivated them to use physics to better understand the world.

“I often left his lectures galvanized to further understand the advanced concepts he presented,” said Frank Morton-Park ’10. “For this I would turn to his lecture notes, which expounded the concepts with insightful clarity while motivating me to explore them in detail.” These notes were so popular among students that all 26 volumes have been digitized and made available through the Reed Library website.

Physics and music remained cornerstones of Wheeler’s life after retirement, as he continued contributing to research and playing his handmade harpsichord, which took him 25 years to complete. He also enjoyed hiking, fine woodworking, classical music, and playing the stand-up bass, cello, and piano.

In 2014, several alumni who studied under Wheeler, including Geoffrey Baldwin ’62 , Ellen Mickanin ’74 and Wesley Mickanin ’74, Michael Fehler ’74, and Steven Auerbach ’66, honored his impact by contributing to a scholarship in his name.

He is survived by his wife, Oya; his children, Tanja and Colin; his stepchildren, Idil and Ty; his first wife, Karin; and his grandchildren, Wren, Talya, and Mila.

Reed’s Longest Serving Faculty Member

Taught Math for 62 Years

Prof. Joe Roberts [mathematics 1952–2014]

August 31, 2023, in Portland.

Prof. Joseph Buffington Roberts [mathematics 1952–2014] passed away encircled by the love of his wife and children. He was nine days shy of 100; his family notes that he was 99.975342465753425 years old. Joe arrived in Portland in 1952 as a 28-year-old newly minted professor, and retired 62 years later at the age of 90 as Reed’s longest-serving faculty member.

Born September 9, 1923, in Albany, New York, Joe moved early in life to East Cleveland, Ohio. With his mother at work each day as editor of Ohio Motorist magazine and his father absent, Joe learned early on how to spend time alone. He wandered East Cleveland’s empty lots, abandoned fields, train tracks, and industrial yards, and scrambled up piles of trash at the dump, salvaging treasures like liquid mercury, the weight of which he and his friends rolled in their hands.

During his freshman year of college at Case Institute of Technology (now Case Western Reserve University), the United States entered World War II. Joe received an educational deferment and in 1944 graduated with a degree in industrial chemistry. Within a month of graduation, he was drafted into the army. Though at first sent to Texas for basic training, he was pulled away from his group and sent to Ohio

State University, then to Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, then to Lamy, New Mexico, only to arrive finally at Los Alamos National Laboratory on, as he always remembered, “the day President Roosevelt died,” April 12, 1944.

He spent the next 17 months at Los Alamos working in radiochemistry as part of the Manhattan Project. He never shared details of this time with his family, but he made clear his work implicated him in the destruction caused by the atomic bombs the project developed. “Most of the scientific community,” he recalled, “wanted the government not to do it, not to drop it on a city or anything, but to give a test somewhere, showing what could be done.” These wishes were not heeded.

acquaintances. Marguerite Cohen ’75 , a former student and at the time a third-year OB-GYN resident, changed her call schedule to attend. Joe spent the whole evening talking to Marguerite, and, as the party came to a close, asked her to dinner the next night. She said yes, and remarkably he ate a salad that night to impress her. The next day was the fourth of July, and because Marguerite was on call, Joe

He set about changing the math curriculum to instill in students an appreciation for the elegance of the basic elements of mathematics.

PROF. JOE ROBERTS

After the war, with the help of the Gl Bill as a returning veteran, Joe became a non-degree-seeking student at the University of Chicago. He went on to earn a master’s degree from the University of Colorado and a PhD from the University of Minnesota.

Joe met Marian Howell while living in East Cleveland, and she moved to be with him at Los Alamos. They were married, and in 1952, Marian and Joe welcomed their first child, Mark. Daughter Katy (Katherine) was born in 1953, and a second daughter, Ruth, arrived in 1955. Though Joe and Marian separated in 1973, Marian remained a part of Joe’s extended family until her passing in 2006.

On July 2,1983, Joe held one of his renowned parties, bolstered by homebrewed beer and the eclectic company of professors, students, Reed “hangers-on,” and

traveled to her hospital and they watched fireworks from the top of the parking garage. They spent the next 40 years together. Joe and Marguerite married in August 1988. They welcomed their first child, Sam, in 1989, when Joe was 65, and their second son, Nick, in 1993, when Joe was 69.

Joe’s field of study included number theory and combinatorics. At Reed, he set about changing the math curriculum to instill in students an appreciation for the elegance of the basic elements of mathematics. The first-semester introductory math class was devoted to the construction of the real number system, deferring the study of calculus or combinatorics to the second semester. And to legions of Reed juniors and seniors in the humanities, he taught Math 300, also known as “Poet’s Math,” a course designed to satisfy the school’s math requirement.

He spent many sabbaticals and summers abroad, teaching math in India, Tanzania, Nova Scotia, and the United Kingdom.

He rode his bike to work, and then, as he grew older, rode the bus until his retirement in 2014.

Joe authored three books in mathematics: The Real Number System in an Algebraic Setting (W.H. Freeman & Co, 1962), Elementary Number Theory: A Problem Oriented Approach (MIT Press, 1975), and Lure of the Integers (Mathematical Association of America, 1992). He also translated and edited several Russian math texts, including The Solution of Equations in Integers by A. O. Gelfond (Golden Gate Books, 1961).

Outside of work, Joe relished the outdoors. Family vacations were spent camping around the Northwest. He

to get physical education credit for it. He was a stalwart advo cate for the trees on the Reed campus.

remained in impeccable health despite hardline positions on “no vegetables” and “salt on everything.” He was a devoted parent to his young boys, working at night with Sam as his gift for mathematics blos somed, and attending every one of Nick’s home basketball, baseball, football, and lacrosse games throughout middle and high school.

forced to experience the frail ties of the human condition in ways he’d skirted during his first nine decades. From 2017 on, strokes large and small and illnesses in between diminished his ability to engage with the world as he once had. This did not stop him from sending Nick frequent handwritten letters. A final one of these letters, found after his death, was started just six days before the stroke that would claim his life.

rafted the Clackamas, Grand Ronde, and Colorado Rivers, and canoed the Bowron Lakes circuit in British Columbia. He cycled from Portland to Montreal in 1973. He climbed most of the mountains in the Cascade Range, including, as legend has it, Mount Hood and Mount St. Helens in the same day (when the latter was 1,000 ft taller than it is today), as well as Mount Kilimanjaro in East Africa. He played squash at the Multnomah Athletic Club in Portland, and enjoyed racquetball well into his 70s. Joe and Marguerite spent a month cycling around Europe and the UK in 1985. He helped bring juggling to Reed, and worked

from his loss and what it means to live without him perennially at his desk, in his big brown chair, “shuffling papers,” or fall ing asleep in the midmorning light, the cats and dogs orbit ing his calm, constant presence. He is survived by his wife, five children, two grandchildren, steadfast Reed colleagues, and the hundreds of students who remember him lovingly as the best teacher they ever had.

—Contributed by Marguerite Cohen ’75

Joe’s spouse, Marguerite Cohen, and family and friends have come together to establish the Professor Joseph Buffington Roberts Scholarship to further his legacy and support a student with financial need.

History

Prof. Taught Students to be Thoughtful Citizens

Prof. Raymond Foster Kierstead Jr. [history 1978–2000]

September 13, 2023, in Portland.

Born in Portland, Maine, on August 31, 1934, Ray attended Bowdoin College, graduating summa cum laude in 1956. After a formative Fulbright year in Paris, he returned to the United States and enrolled in Northwestern University as a graduate student specializing in French history. It was in the history seminar for first-year graduate students that Ray met Marilyn, his wife of 65 years. He received his MA and PhD from Northwestern University in 1959 and 1964.

Following his time at Northwestern, Ray taught French history at Yale University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Catholic University of America, and finally, in 1978, he took a permanent position at Reed College where, in 1993, he was named the Richard F. Scholz Professor of History in recognition of his intellectual leadership. Ray was the author of one monograph, derived from his dissertation, titled Pomponne de Bellièvre: A Study of the King’s Men in the Age of Henry IV (Northwestern University Press, 1968). Working with his wife Marilyn as cotranslator, Ray also edited and translated an important collection of essays by other historians, published as State and Society in Seventeenth-Century France (New Viewpoints, 1975).

Ray’s long-standing desire to teach at a liberal arts college

similar to Bowdoin meant that he quickly felt at home at Reed and with its students. His courses on early modern French history, with a special interest in social and cultural history, soon became legendary, and he was also an integral part of Reed’s unique humanities program, helping to guide its evolution and reveling in the pedagogical opportunities it afforded. Ray was a gracious, unpretentious man with deeply embedded Maine roots and the accent to go with them. Although a serious scholar of early modern France, Ray’s greatest pleasure was as a teacher.

Over his 22 years at Reed, Ray made a profound impression on numerous undergraduates. One former student, now a professor of American history, recalls that from the beginning, “Ray was a brilliant and funny teacher—there was never a dull moment in his classes, no matter how many dull students turned up.” Many other former students of Ray’s also attest to his keen intellect, his excellent sense of humor, and above all else his kindness, generosity, and openness to working with everyone, even the “clueless freshmen” who occasionally blundered into his upper-level history classes. His challenging courses were a high point for many students at Reed, and inspired quite a few to major in history and in a number of cases to eventually become professional historians themselves (including one of the authors of this text). Ray could be profound in the classroom—a former student reports that he is still grappling 25 years later with Ray’s observation that “the function of ideology is to conceal reality.” Ray could just as easily be funny: in a 2004 lecture on Apuleius’s comedy The Golden Ass , Ray brought down the house when

he only half-jokingly observed, “Food is far more interesting, and not as complicated, as sex.”

Ray’s advanced courses on the Annales school, the Ancien Régime, the French Revolution, and early modern family history were many Reed students’ introduction to the real work of studying history, as well as their first exposure to a bookcase’s worth of great historians of early modern France, including Marc Bloch, Fernand Braudel, Richard Cobb, and Albert Soboul, among others. While skeptical of modern social theorists such as Jürgen Habermas and Michel Foucault, Ray was more than willing to engage with their works when students expressed interest in them.

expectations, and making your teaching meaningful for them makes your own life exciting.”

Former Reed president Steven Koblik wrote, “For those of us who are dedicated to the life of the mind and to first-class undergraduate education, Ray Kierstead stands as a beacon of wisdom and thoughtful teach-

“Reed students are demanding. They have expectations, and making your teaching meaningful for them makes your own life exciting.”

PROF. RAYMOND FOSTER KIERSTEAD JR.

ing.” In 2002, the Bowdoin College Alumni Association presented Ray with its Distinguished Educator Award.

In a profile of Ray published in Reed Magazine (August 2000), Patti MacRae wrote: “Ray Kierstead’s love of teaching revolves around the belief that the acquisition of knowledge is part of becoming a civilized being and a thoughtful citizen.”

“Reed students are demanding,” he once noted. “They have

Ray retired from Reed in 2000 but remained an active part of the Reed and Portland communities for years afterward. At Reed, he continued to lecture in the humanities program and maintained friendships with many of his former colleagues. A keen observer of humanity and its foibles, Ray’s wit, wry sense of humor, and wisdom made him a valued

mentor and friend to many of the scholars and teachers who followed in his footsteps. Ray loved to talk about books and tell stories, doted on a series of beloved canine companions, and was known for his martinis and fine taste in local restaurants. Above all, he was utterly devoted to Marilyn and their children and grandchildren.

Linda Lierheimer ’81 , another former student who is now a professor of French history, sums up the feelings expressed by many who passed through Ray’s classes: “He was my mentor and had a huge influence on my life. He gave me my love of French history and was the reason I went to graduate school and became a professor and historian. I still think of him all the time. An amazing man, teacher, and scholar who, I like to think, lives on through all the students he mentored and taught.”

Karen Atiyeh ’47

June 19, 2023, in Portland, Oregon.

Karen was the daughter of Edna J. Wennerberg of Portland and Ole Vedvei of Norway. Her grandfather, Daniel Wennerberg, arrived in Portland from Sweden in 1869. Beginning in 1925, Karen spent part of every summer in Seaside, a tradition that continued into her 90s. After graduating from Lincoln High School, Karen attended Reed and graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in sociology.

Karen met her future husband, Edward Atiyeh, on a blind date in 1944 while he was home on leave from the army. Ed was taken as a German POW in December 1944, and it was not until March 1945 that the family received word from the Red Cross that he was alive. They

were married September 6, 1947, at Trinity Episcopal Church and spent 70 years together.

Karen was a dedicated volunteer interested in the restoration of historic buildings. In the 1960s, she donated furniture built by her grandfather to the Pittock Mansion. She later served as president of the Pittock Mansion Society and was a board member for many years. She was active on the boards of the Scandinavian Heritage Foundation and the Old Church, where she helped raise money for restoration projects. For over 20 years, Karen met weekly with five friends in a group they called the Knutty Knitters.

Karen was a creative, talented gardener who enjoyed entertaining in their beautiful home; it was Karen and Ed’s delight to be surrounded by loved ones. Her warmth and natural hospitality endeared her to a large circle of lifelong friends.

Karen is survived by her children, David Atiyeh, Linda Anderson, and Bob Atiyeh.

Betty Jo “BJ” Fennell

Van Gelder ’50

June 1, 2023, in San Rafael, California.

Betty Jo was born in Holdridge, Nebraska, and graduated from high school in Redwood City, California. She spent three years at Reed before earning her BA in English from UC at Berkeley. She was a fifth grade teacher in Oakland at the time she met her future husband, architect Walter Benjamin Van Gelder. BJ and Walt moved to Marin County, where they raised their four children. They were married for 53 years, until the time of Walt’s death.

An only child, BJ was predeceased by both parents, her

stepfather, her husband, her stepbrother, and her daughter, Amy Dorrance Van Gelder. She is survived by children Mark Enno Van Gelder, Holly Fennell Guzman, and Cory Louise Van Gelder.

Marjorie Daum Floren Columbus ’51 August 25, 2023, in Portland, Oregon. A “park baby,” Marjorie was born in Yellowstone National Park as the third of six daughters. When she was young, her family moved to northeast Portland, and she attended Highland Grade School and Jefferson High School. She spent time at Reed College and Oregon State before graduating from the University of Oregon with a degree in journalism.

Marjorie married Myron (Joe) Floren and raised five daughters as a stay-at-home mom in Hillsboro and then in Portland. Following her divorce, she worked as a writer and editor at Reed and then at Oregon Public Broadcasting. One of Marjorie’s daughters appeared in The Possessed , the 1977 made-for-TV supernatural horror film starring Harrison Ford that was shot on Reed’s campus. In 1990, she married Costa Columbus. When she retired five years later, she enjoyed time with her grandchildren, daughters, sisters, and everyone’s partners. She and Costa traveled, camped, and canoed throughout the West and volunteered at their church and local elementary school and senior center.

Marjorie spoke French and Spanish, and her travels over the years took her to Europe— where she worked briefly as a cook at a Paris pension—as well as Japan, southern Africa, and Mexico. She traveled to Costa Rica, Hawaii, and Trinidad and Tobago for birding.

Master OF Arts IN Liberal Studies

“As a MALS student, I was able to rigorously study topics that truly excited me and to talk about problems that matter with others who care deeply.”

— LIBBY O’NEIL MALS ’19

In Memoriam

Marjorie was predeceased by her sisters, Barbara Merklin, Dorothy Thomson, Audrey Waldorf, and Patricia Mongomery. She is survived by her husband; daughters Terese Floren, Brooke Floren, Celia Heron, and Marcia Waugh; sister Miriam Selby; and seven grandchildren, including Riley Waugh ’21

Kenneth M. King ’51

September 16, 2023, peacefully in Ithaca, New York.

Ken was born in Hastings, Nebraska, and spent his childhood in Minnesota and Portland. He studied physics at Reed; his thesis, “The ‘Near-Neighbor’ Effect in Cosmic Radiation,” was written under Prof. Kenneth E. Davis [physics 1948–80]. He went on to earn a PhD in theoretical physics at Columbia University. In New York he met the love of his life, Elizabeth Barrows; the two had been together for more than 66 years at the time of his death.

Ken’s deep belief in the power of education and information sharing pervaded his professional life in the computer field, particularly in academic computing. He served as vice chancellor of university systems at The City University of New York during the 1970s, where he helped manage New York’s financial crisis. In 1980 he became the vice provost in charge of computing at Cornell University. While there, he brought a supercomputer to Cornell and was part of the group that helped create NSFnet, a precursor to the internet. In later roles he continued his work to expand NSFNET and to secure additional funding for the development of the internet.

Ken also felt strongly about the importance of serving his community. He served as councilman of the Third Ward in Englewood, New Jersey, and on

the local school board. In these roles, he was a champion for the underserved, the poor, and the disenfranchised. He also made a great impact on several environmental conservation projects in Englewood.

An adventurous spirit, Ken loved to travel. He and Elizabeth explored the world together, visiting nearly every continent, including Antarctica and the Svalbard Islands near the North Pole. He was an avid golfer and lifelong fan of the Mets, Jets, and Giants. He seemed to have a story or a joke for every occasion and was an engaging public speaker. He was very fond of challenging puzzles and games and amazed his family one Christmas by solving a Rubik’s Cube on his first try.

He is survived by his wife, and children Charles, Lisa, Katherine, and Donald.

Malcolm Klein ’52 August 1, 2023, peacefully, after a long illness.

Renowned criminologist and prolific author Malcolm “Mac” Klein was known for his extensive and impactful research on street gangs. He was a pioneer in developing the field of comparative criminology.

Mac was born in Westchester County, New York. He earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Reed, writing his thesis, “A Three-Fold Classification of Social Norms,” with advising from Prof. William Griffith [psychology 1926–54]. After graduating, he went to Boston University, where he earned his master’s and doctorate in psychology.

Mac taught sociology at the University of Southern California from 1962 to 1998, at which point he became an emeritus professor. An internationally recognized criminologist and scholar of youth gangs, Mac

founded the USC Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) in 1971.

In his more than 40 years of research on gangs, Mac focused on their structures, processes, correlates, and mapping. He moved sociological concepts of group dynamics—cohesion, integration, and attachment—to the center of analysis of youth groups. Mac famously showed and explained how and why most of the state’s intervention strategies had unintended results. Mac and SSRI won millions of dollars in grants and trained many students who went on to become wonderful scholars. He was an early adopter of translational research—the goal of which is to move scientific discoveries more quickly and meaningfully into practice that directly benefits human health—working with community organizations and government agencies, locally and internationally.

and Control (1995) and The Street Gangs of Euroburg (2009). His work made USC a top center for the study of crime and delinquency through the time of his retirement in 1998.

Renowned criminologist Malcolm Klein ’52, researched gangs for over 40 years. He famously showed and explained how and why most of the state’s intervention strategies had unintended results.

Mac moved to Los Angeles in 1960; he called LA home for the rest of his life, but his favorite place was always his family’s cabin in the Adirondacks.

Mac was predeceased by his first wife, Terry Friedman Klein; and his daughter Leigh. He is survived by his second wife, Margaret (Margy) Gatz; and his daughter, Laurie.

Raymond C. Mjolsness ’53

September 13, 2023, in Mays Landing, New Jersey.

Mac organized the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s Advanced Research Workshop and served as the principal investigator for the Eurogang Project, comparing youth groups across the U.S., England, and European countries including Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Russia, Holland, Belgium, France, and Slovenia.

The American Society of Criminology awarded Mac its highest honor with the Edwin H. Sutherland Award in 1990; he was also elected president of the society that year. The Western Society of Criminology honored Mac with the Paul Tappan Award in 1995 for his “outstanding contributions to the field of criminology.”

Mac authored 19 books, including The American Street Gang: Its Nature, Prevalence,

Ray was a theoretical physicist and applied mathematician. He was known as a patient mentor and insightful collaborator, and was a longtime member of the theoretical division of the Los Alamos National Laboratory. He was also an excellent trombone player.

He was born in Chicago and spent parts of his youth in St. Louis, Missouri, and Helena, Montana. He studied physics at Reed and wrote his thesis, “A Linearized Treatment of Electric Networks and Lines,” with advising from Prof. Jean Delord [physics 1950-88]. earned a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford; during his time in England he studied trombone in London with Sidney Langston of the Royal Academy of Music. He went on to

complete a PhD in mathematics/physics at Princeton, where he met his future wife, Patricia.

Ray and Patricia moved to Los Alamos, New Mexico, and raised three children while Ray worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory and published dozens of scientific papers on plasma physics and related topics. His other interests included chess, finance, running, geopolitics, and his Norwegian heritage. He owned and read an extensive and ever-growing collection of books and was a regular visitor at the Mesa Public Library.

Ray spent the majority of his adult life in Los Alamos, with the exception of short forays into academia, notably a brief stint on the astronomy faculty at Penn State, where he did theoretical cosmology. He brought the family back to Los Alamos in 1969, just in time for the moon landing. Later in life he moved to Enumclaw, Washington, where he kept reading despite health challenges.

He is survived by his children, Eric Mjolsness, Ingrid Kadrmas, and Kirsten VanderHoeven.

Arlen Quan ’54

June 10, 2023.

Arlen was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1933. His father was born and raised in China, and in 1935, the family moved back. On July 7, 1937, the second Sino-Japanese War began; Arlen remembered hearing sounds of airplanes bombing the city. His mother was notified by the consulate to return to the U.S., so she boarded a ship with her children and landed in San Francisco. His father wasn’t able to immigrate to the U.S. until the mid-’70s— about 38 years later. During this time there was a limit on how many Chinese could immigrate each year, no matter the circumstances.

Arlen attended regular school as well as Chinese language school in Portland. He worked at a photo shop in high school, where he learned a lot and discovered a passion for the art. He earned his bachelor’s degree in biology at Reed, where he also pursued photography. One of Arlen’s photos, of President-Elect Duncan Smith Ballantine, was featured in an article titled “Reed’s Choice” in Time magazine’s June 1952 issue. (Arlen’s sister, Eulia Quan Mishima MAT ’72, also attended Reed.) Arlen continued his education, earning a doctorate at the University of Oregon Medical School. Then he was off to Sacramento County Hospital for an internship in which he rotated through different services, including obstetrics, where he delivered many babies.

Arlen served in the U.S. Air Force from 1958 to 1960. There he chose to focus on psychiatry. After serving, he returned to Portland, where he completed his psychiatry residency and fellowship at OHSU. He stayed on with the psychiatry department for the next 18 years as a professor. He then started a private practice, which he continued for 25 years.

Arlen met his wife, Peggy Cure, through a mutual ski buddy. They were married for 53 years and had three daughters.

In 1996, he and his family moved to Olympia, Washington. He worked for the next 12 years for WIRB, an independent review board that evaluated documents used in clinical trials.

Arlen was an avid skier who loved deep powder and steep runs. Together, he and Peggy taught their daughters to ski, and hitting the slopes became a beloved family activity. He also loved to run and frequented the trails through the west hills of Portland. In Olympia, he enjoyed running along the country roads. He is survived by his wife, Peggy Quan; his sister, Eulia Quan Mishima, and his daughters, Jennifer, Sara, and Molly.

David L. Stone ’57

October 14, 2020, in Berkeley, California. Born in Santa Monica, California, David studied history at Reed. His thesis, advised by Prof. Frank Smith Fussner [history 1950–75], focused on Henry Ireton, a 17th-century English general in the Parliamentarian army during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. David also received degrees in theology from Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, California. He married his wife, Carol, in 1960, and worked in the Episcopal ministry and as a building inspector for the city of Berkeley.

David was passionate about gardening, family life, woodworking, and working with the Vietnamese community. He is survived by his children, Stephen Stone, Jonathan Stone, Rebekah Stone, and Paris DeShong.

Edward C. Muecke ’53

August 29, 2023, at his home in Quogue, New York.

Edward was born in Coburg, Germany, to parents Maria and

Hugo Muecke of Portland, Oregon. His grandfather, Gottlieb August Eduard Muecke, pioneered hops farming in the Willamette Valley and was one of the founding members of San Francisco’s Bohemian Club.

At Reed, Edward studied chemistry and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1953. For his thesis, he examined sulfur metabolism in yeast, advised by Prof. Arthur Livermore [chemistry 1948–65]. He went on to earn his doctorate at Cornell University Medical College, where he was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society.

Edward began his career as a clinical physician and researcher in the field of urology, completing an internship and residency at New York Hospital and earning a fellowship from the Carnegie Institute. After serving a two-year tour of duty in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, where he held the rank of captain, he returned to academia and pioneered new surgical techniques in embryological urology. His published research in the Journal of Urology has been cited over 140 times. He was chief surgeon and head of urology at New York Hospital before leaving to launch his private practice, New York Urological Associates. Upon his retirement at age 85, he was granted the title Professor of Clinical Urology Emeritus by the Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

An avid mountaineer and alpine skier, Edward honed his outdoors skills in the Cascades, and later in the Austrian and Swiss Alps. He enjoyed family trips in the blue Chevy Nova to Williamsburg and to find covered bridges. His original recipes were mostly successful, and his architectural genius led to many magical gingerbread house extravaganzas and to the

Arlen Quan ’54

In Memoriam

construction of a model train village in his basement.

Edward loved animals (especially his cocker spaniels, Maggee and Snoopy, and his cat, Pumpkin); a wide range of music, from Mozart to Neil Diamond to Loretta Lynn; and making up silly characters and voices.

He was predeceased by his daughter, Joan Christiana Muecke. He is survived by his wife, Virginia Marie Robertson Muecke; his daughter, Anne Muecke Somlyo; and his son, William Edward Muecke.

Paul Kaufman ’57

September 27, 2023, in Walnut Creek, California, of natural causes.

Paul was an award-winning television producer, filmmaker, and author.

Born in New York City, Paul grew up in San Diego, California, where he bodysurfed and excelled in academics and athletics. A musical prodigy and gifted pianist, during World War II he entertained American troops at local USO shows. “The soldiers wanted to see Betty Grable and dancing girls, but first they had to sit through this little kid in a suit and tie, singing ‘On A Wing And A Prayer’,” he recalled.

In 1946, Paul moved to Europe with his family, where

his father directed the American Joint Distribution Committee’s efforts to relocate thousands of Holocaust survivors. While his parents were saving lives, Paul attended Swiss boarding school, which he found miserable but also led to a mastery of downhill skiing and fluency in French and German. The bombed-out cities of postwar Europe made a vivid impression on Paul and sparked his lifelong interest in the relationship between the individual and the social and political world. Returning to the states, he excelled academically, attending UC Berkeley, then Reed, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in political science, and Columbia University, before embarking on a wide-ranging intellectual life.

As a writer and producer at New York’s National Educational Television (NET) station in the 1960s, Paul advocated for the airing of uncensored combat footage from the Vietnam War, leading NET to break a media embargo against images of American troops under fire. He produced a series of films on subjects including the war, education, and urban and cultural issues. Paul was in Memphis hours after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whom he was scheduled to interview. Paul stayed and filmed as Memphis erupted in chaos, and the footage was incorporated into his NET film on violence in America. Television took Paul across the world. He shared a bagel with Jackie Onassis, gave his cab to Eleanor Roosevelt, and caroused with British war hero Tony Bartley.

In 1969, Paul and his wife, Rhoda, moved to the Bay Area with their two young daughters. The Kaufmans didn’t stay married, but Paul loved being a father. He took his daughters

on many adventures and was present for every childhood dance, theatre, and music performance.

Paul was part of a small group of activists and intellectuals who helped finance the publication of Ernest Callenbach’s influential novel Ecotopia. In a note about Kaufman, Callenbach wrote, “One of the great lessons I have learned from Paul is that saving the world must be done with a light heart.”

Paul served on a presidential commission for the Carter administration, designed to produce guidelines to protect public broadcasting from political interference. As a senior research associate at Stanford, Paul worked with engineers to integrate human subjectivity into computer system design. He wrote often about the challenges of verifying truth and reality in the emerging digital era.

In 1989 Paul won a George Foster Peabody Award with Bill Moyers for The Public Mind, a series that explored the impact of mass media and propaganda on democratic societies. In 1993, Paul wrote and produced The Creative Spirit, a series on the creativity of everyday life, which was awarded a CINE Golden Eagle.

Paul championed a philosophy that mindfulness, compassion, and service were essential aspects of ordinary, everyday life; in 1997 he cowrote the book Gifts of the Spirit, which examines religious and spiritual traditions across the world, finding commonalities between them. His film Chalice of Repose —made with his daughter Jennifer—explores the work of music thanatologist Therese Schroeder-Sheker and won first prize at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Daffy for President , an illustrated guide to American

democracy that he co-created with Chuck Jones, was published in 2004.

In later years, Paul lived near Point Reyes Station, California, where he would greet visitors with a brief tune on the accordion. His final unpublished book, illustrated by John Canemaker, was written with his freewheeling mix of wit and wisdom and features characters who personify Paul’s ideas about the internal and civic life of the individual.

Paul is survived by his daughters, Karen and Jennifer.

Allen T. Unsworth ’60 March 27, 2023.

Allen grew up in Berkeley as an only child. An economics major at Reed, he wrote his thesis, “The Quantity Theory of Money: A Theoretical and Empirical Reexamination,” under Prof. Arthur H. Leigh [economics 1945–88]. He earned an MA in economics from the University of Chicago, taught at Penn State, and then moved to Washington, D.C., to work on the House Budget Committee. He eventually became an economist with the Department of Commerce.

Allen loved the personal freedom Reed offered. He valued the broad historical and cultural perspective he gained during his years on campus, as well as the discipline. He took piano lessons as a student and was involved with various music experiments as well as faculty poetry readings.

After retirement, Allen spent more time with his dog at his country home, where he had two and a half acres. He collected antique furniture, rugs, old economics books, and prints from the 16th through the 18th century. He enjoyed attending the opera, the symphony, and Shakespeare plays.

David Alan Goldfoot ’64

October 8, 2023, in Austin, Texas.

Born in Portland to Maurice and Mildred Goldfoot, David grew up with his older sister, Nadene, in a multicultural community. At age 10, he broke barriers by becoming the first Jewish child to be named Prime Minister of Portland’s Junior Rose Festival. In 2003, his lasting influence on his community was honored when he was knighted as Sir David Goldfoot of Rosaria.

As a teen, David spent a summer as an American Field Service (AFS) exchange student in Germany and developed a lifelong interest in foreign languages. He became fluent in German and Dutch and studied Spanish and Greek as well. He majored in psychology at Reed. A few months after graduation, he married Heather Birnie, also from Portland.

After David completed a PhD in medical psychology at the University of Oregon Medical School (now OHSU), he and Heather moved to The Netherlands, where he conducted postdoctoral research in reproductive endocrinology at Erasmus University in Rotterdam. David began his career as a research scientist at the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, where he authored or coauthored more than 25 papers. Later, he retrained in clinical psychology and cofounded Mental Health Solutions in Madison, Wisconsin. He was a widely respected psychologist who specialized in working with individuals with anger problems and sexual addictions.

In addition to his clinical work, David’s computer skills made the clinic run smoothly with innovative programs that documented clients’ progress. After retirement in Austin, Texas, he developed

smartphone apps to help individuals with behavioral addictions.

David was curious and always looking for new challenges. He learned to play the dobro, made videos for the Learning Activities for Mature People program at the University of Texas as well as for special occasions with his many friends, and taught his Austin community to play poker. He supported Lorraine Broll, his second wife, in her quest to turn Texas blue.

David and Lorraine enjoyed exploring Europe, South America, Southeast Asia, and the Caribbean islands. He loved to visit Germany and Austria so he could speak German with family and friends. David was a devoted father who taught his children to love learning and to treat all people equally. Upon his passing, a friend recalled how David lived the Reed traditions of rigorous scholarly inquiry, uncompromising professional integrity, and community involvement.

David is survived by Lorraine; children Joel, Josh, and Michelle; “AFS Russian daughter” Marina; and sister Nadene.

Christopher Getman MAT ’65

July 9, 2023 after a brief illness. Born in Syracuse, New York, Chris lost his father in World War II at the age of three. From that time on, the cultivation of meaningful relationships became a defining mission in his life. He did this as a devoted husband, loving father, loyal friend, joyful teacher, community organizer, generous philanthropist, patron of the arts, zealous athlete, energetic practical joker, passionate server of good causes, and relentless advocate for anyone who needed it. Though he had a reputation for mischief, he never strayed from his strong moral compass.

Chris earned a BA in English at Yale University and an MAT from Reed. He taught at the Hotchkiss School in Connecticut for five years before returning to New Haven to work for the Yale Alumni Association and to coach football and baseball. The move back to New Haven marked the beginning of a lifetime of dedication to both Yale and its surrounding community. He was a top fundraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for more than 30 years and winner of that group’s Hope Award, as well as the longest-serving board member of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. He was involved with numerous other organizations, including the Special Olympics, United Way, and the Connecticut Fund for the Environment. Throughout his adult life he was also a resolute blood donor, donating more than 21 gallons by the time of his death, despite many surgeries that interrupted his routine. One of his greatest delights was being the keeper of Yale’s Handsome Dan bulldogs for more than 30 years.

Chris loved his work for the ways it allowed him to connect with people, bring them together, and share his infectious curiosity, passion, and humor.

He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Evelyn (Toddie), and daughters, Sheila, Hilary, and Julia.

Janet L. Robertson MAT ’69

October 22, 2023, in Decatur, IL.

Janet was born in Decatur, Illinois, and in her youth excelled as a violinist and competitive swimmer. She earned a BS in zoology from the University of Illinois and an MAT from Reed. Janet taught high school in Oregon for three years before pursuing a master’s degree in biology from Illinois State University. She then worked in agricultural research and in a variety of other jobs, including as a substitute teacher and as an optician.

Janet made several trips abroad, snorkeling in Mexico and seeing the sights of Ireland. She enjoyed being an aunt to her nieces and nephews. She loved gardening and took pleasure in giving away jam she made from the raspberries she tended in her backyard. She loved all animals, especially cats.

She is survived by her brothers, David and Bruce.

Elaine Alannah Murphy MALS ’70

September 27, 2023, in Nanaimo, British Columbia.

Elaine was a lifelong learner, a lover of music and art and animals, a respected teacher, a successful acupuncturist, an avid gardener, and a good friend to many. At

David Goldfoot ’64

In Memoriam

Reed, she wrote a MALS thesis titled “The Psychology of Academic Underachievement.” She was predeceased by her parents, Elaine and Dave Murphy, and by her younger brothers, Darcy and Mike. She is survived by several cousins.

James Andrew McConnell ’71

July 14, 2023, in Cerillos, New Mexico. Jim came from a remote wilderness valley in the North Cascades of Washington. Accessible only by boat or float plane at the head of the 55-mile-long Lake Chelan, the subsistence community of 21 lived without electricity or telephones. Many, including Jim’s family, lived without running water. His parents, Grant McConnell ’37 and Jane Foster McConnell ’36, were mountain climbers, skiers, and early environmentalists. As a child, Jim backpacked with family friend Ansel Adams and watched him work: “Frame and light, Jim, frame and light.” In the last phase of his life he devoted himself to nature photography.

When he was six, Jim’s family moved to Chicago’s South Side, where his father resumed his academic career at the University of Chicago. The family later moved to Uganda, the most exciting period of Jim’s childhood. Returning to Chicago on the eve of Uganda’s independence, Jim attended University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and spent a year in Austria studying languages and competing in ski races.

Jim studied anthropology at Reed and wrote a thesis titled “Original Chickens” under Prof. Gail Kelly ’55 [anthropology 1960–2000]. He later served as a crisis counselor and worked for dean John “Jack” Dudman ’42. Jim held many different jobs over the course of his

life, including ski coach, alpine guide, prairie dog wrangler, and screenwriter. He was a counselor for street gang members in East Los Angeles and a business consultant in Melbourne, Australia. He was proud of the fact that he’d slept on the ground on five continents, and he was a kind, caring, and loyal friend.

Jim moved to New Mexico by accident and fell in love with the region, its people, and its light. He turned to nature photography and produced stunning, close-up shots of coyotes and ravens. His longtime friend Diane LaPorte is now setting up a foundation to preserve his photographic legacy and love of the natural world.

Paul Bigman ’71

June 29, 2023, in Chicago, Illinois, of natural causes.

Paul was born in New York City, and his childhood was spent in Hell’s Kitchen, close to his grandmother Miriam (Mollie), who had a great influence on him. When Paul was in fifth grade, his family moved to Washington, D.C., where he graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in 1967. He was active in the civil rights and antiwar movements at a young age; he was 11 or 12 when he attended his first civil rights action with his father.

Paul earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Reed; his thesis, “An Attempt at Regional Integration: The Case History of Kenya, Uganda, Tanganyika,” was written with Prof. James Mureithi [Black studies 1970–76] advising. After graduating, he spent three months traveling to Western Europe, Israel and Palestine, and East Africa. He went on to study law at the University of Chicago for

one year, then at DePaul University, where he concluded that he did not wish to become a lawyer.

In 1975, Paul worked on staff in the Black studies program at Portland State University, then as director at the National Lawyers Guild Chicago chapter. From there, Paul served as a paralegal for Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation, then as law librarian at Stateville Correctional Center. He also worked as a research associate at Chicago Law Enforcement Study Group and the John Howard Association of Illinois.

In 1984, Paul answered his true calling to become an advocate for the labor force of America’s working class. His tireless advocacy as a labor organizer helped legions of workers. From 1984 to 1993, he worked as a labor union organizer and representative in the Chicago area for the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union, followed by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, and then the United Electrical Workers Union. During this time Paul met the love of his life, Beverly “Bobbi” Polzine. In 1997, Paul and Bobbi relocated to Seattle, where he became an organizer for International Longshore and Warehouse Union, and a western regional field organizer for Jobs for Justice, followed by a variety of other union organizing positions. In 2017, he retired to care for Bobbi, who passed away later that year.

During retirement, Paul stayed active with volunteer work and political campaigning. In the months preceding his death, he was mentoring Amazon workers. Paul wrote a series of Facebook posts he called “In the History of Struggle,” telling stories of the unsung heroes, rebels, and rainmakers— especially those in the labor

movement—who made their mark “ad bonum populi.”

Paul was determined to make the world a better place. He would volunteer, protest, or march, and whatever resources he had were given without hesitation. Paul met every endeavor with unwavering integrity, stamina, and passion. He accepted imprisonment rather than compromise his opposition to war and regarded his criminal conviction as an honor.

Paul enjoyed theatre and dance productions, hiking, jazz music, reading, intellectual banter, and any connective interaction with babies—be they humans or animals.

Shortly before his untimely death, paraphrasing Biblical and Talmudic texts, Paul posted: “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

On September 30, 2023, the Seattle City Council proclaimed the date to be officially recognized as Paul Bigman Day. The proclamation states that “Paul Bigman was a tireless, fierce, generous organizer for justice, often called the conscience of the labor movement in Seattle.”

Paul is preceded in death by his wife, Bobbi, and his sister, Laura Bigman. He is survived by his stepdaughter, Rebecca Hansen; and stepsons, John and James Polzine.

Russell A. Boyles ’73

October 20, 2023, in Beaverton, Oregon, of Alzheimer’s disease.

Russ was born in Tacoma, Washington, the second of five children born to Loren and Patricia Boyles. He grew up exploring the woods around his family home in Federal

Way. In elementary school, Russ became fascinated with the guitar, beginning a lifelong love affair with rock and roll.

Russ was an outstanding student, graduating from Federal Way High School as class salutatorian in 1969. He received a full scholarship to Reed, where he studied mathematics and became the first in his family to earn a bachelor’s degree. After writing his thesis on Fourier series, with Prof. Raymond Mayer [mathematics 1974–2002] as his advisor, he went on to receive his master’s and PhD in mathematics and statistics from UC Davis.

Russ loved the Northwest; after a stint as a scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, he took a job that brought him home to Portland. He worked for several years as a statistician for Precision Castparts Corp., then at a government institute in Wellington, New Zealand, before launching his own consulting practice in 1995. Russ continued his consulting career, serving clients throughout the country and in Europe and Asia, until his retirement in 2015.

Throughout his academic and professional life, Russ followed his passion for music. For 50 years, he played lead guitar for bands ranging from blues and rock and roll to jazz and country. He even played in a Johnny Cash tribute band, formed specifically to perform for inmates across Oregon prisons.

Russ met his wife, Michelle, on a blind date in 1983, and they were married in 1986. Their daughter, Amalia, was born in 1990. Their small, happy family enjoyed many trips together, including living for three years in New Zealand. Once back home, they pursued more adventures with dear friends and family, especially

with his niece, Katy Boyles. In addition to music, Russ loved hiking and the outdoors, food and wine, action movies, corny puns, and dogs.

Russell was preceded in death by his parents and his older brother, Robert. He is survived by his wife, Michelle; daughter, Amalia; sister, Sue Carol; and brothers, Randy and Ron.

Kristie Lee Dinkel ’79

May 2, 2023, in Portland, Oregon.

Kristie Lee Dinkel, known to her loved ones as Kris, was born on November 11, 1955, in Anchorage, Alaska. Kris spent her early years living next to the experimental farm run by the University of Alaska in Palmer, where her father worked as a research assistant. After a brief stint in Ames, Iowa, the family moved to Fairbanks, where Kris graduated from Lathrop High School.

At Reed, she earned her bachelor’s degree in French and wrote her thesis, “Love and Destruction in the Novels of Marguerite Duras,” with advising from Prof. Margaret Blades [French 1976-77]. The lifelong friendships she formed at Reed remained strong until her passing. After completing her studies, Kris embarked on a memorable journey through Europe, staying in youth hostels. It was a seminal experience—one which she looked back on with pride and awe at her younger self.

Kris eventually settled in San Francisco and began her career in software technical writing. She excelled in her field, working for various startups, including Frame, Adobe, and Lucid. Kris’s talent as an editor and manager was evident. During this period, she developed lifelong friendships, both with coworkers and Reed alumni, whom she referred to as “the Reedies I didn’t know at Reed.”

In 1997, Kris took a position with Microsoft and moved to Seattle, where she met the love of her life, Mitch Cline. They shared a deep connection and were married.

Kris had a passion for artistic expression through dance, sewing, beadwork, cross-stitch, and knitting. Her whimsical creations included beaded aquarium fish, knitted sushi platters, and buttered toast.

Later in life, Kris learned to play the mandolin and tenor guitar. She often performed with friends at a local tavern. Kris and Mitch enjoyed bluegrass festivals during the summer months, where they would camp with friends and play music late into the night.

Kris was known for her big, generous laughter, her love for the world, and her unwavering support for civil rights, gender equality, and LGBTQ+ rights.

She is survived by her mother, Bonnie; her sister, Deb; her brother, David; and her husband, Mitch.

Laura Cooper ’84

June 15, 2023, peacefully, after a brief illness. Laura grew up partly in Greece, attending the Arsakeio School in Athens, and graduated from Minnesota’s Breck School, where she played varsity basketball and threw discus. Determined from age nine to be an attorney—she studied political

science at Reed—Laura did internships in juvenile justice in high school and college and volunteered in the juvenile justice system in Washington, D.C. She graduated sixth in her 1989 Brooklyn Law School class, magna cum laude, and was articles editor of the law review. She was a securities litigator before moving to the enforcement arm of the New York Stock Exchange and later to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, where she also organized professional development for attorneys. She loved her work.

Laura was also a superb cook and loved to prepare and host inventive and elaborate meals and dinner parties for friends and family. She traveled extensively in Europe, Central and South America, and North Africa. Her other passions and talents included photography, calligraphy, gardening, and enjoying New York City’s cultural life. The project that brought it all together was restoring, renovating, and furnishing her Brooklyn rowhouse with her custom cook’s kitchen, garden oasis, and objects from her travels. She proudly participated with her neighbors in the Prospect Lefferts Gardens house and garden tour.

Laura is survived by her mother, Nancy J. Kelly, and her sister, Gigi Cooper.

Kris Dinkel ’79

Laura Cooper ’84

In Memoriam

Ian Alexander “Xander”

Twombly ’87

August 12, 2023, at home, of cancer. Xander was born in Pomona, New York, where he spent his formative years with his sister and brother. He attended the Rockland Project School, an alternative school where he readily applied his sense of humor to both academics and nonacademics alike. His family moved to Tiburon, California, in 1976, where he attended Sir Francis Drake High School.

Xander studied physics at Reed and met his first wife, Janet Rowe Twombly ’89. He went on to complete a PhD in computational neuroscience at Johns Hopkins, where he also worked as a research associate. During this time, his first child, Alistair, was born. After Janet fell ill with leukemia, the three moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to be closer to family, and Xander began his career as a research scientist, working in biological and computer science with an emphasis in virtual reality, immersive reality, and neural-inspired control systems. He received patents while at NASA for his work in immersive telemedicine with 3D-interactive medical diagnosis imagery and for his hardware and software design of high-resolution, immersive, virtual environments for interactive training in biological sciences.

After Janet’s death, Xander married Alison Capps Minard and gained a stepdaughter, Mikayla. He and Alison had a son, Keegan. Professionally, Xander went on to work in quantitative analytics, financial research, and digital intelligence. His sense of humor was rivaled only by his brilliant mind.

Xander is survived by his wife, three children, father, sister, and half-sister.

Adam Masaki Joy ’89

June 10, 2023, in Salem, Oregon, hit by a truck while bicycling.

Adam was fatally struck on his bicycle while training for the 200+ mile Seattle to Portland ride. Born in Okinawa, Japan, Adam emigrated with his father, Alfred Peter Joy, and mother, Masako Joy, to Portland, Oregon (his father’s first home), when he was five. He lived the rest of his life in Portland. Adam graduated from Parkrose High School, then earned his bachelor’s degree in physics at Reed. His thesis, “Energy Czars and Hot Boxes,” was written with advising from Prof. Mary James [physics]. After Reed, he went on to earn a master’s in teaching from Lewis and Clark College.

Adam held the first degree (Shodan) of the black belt in aikido; he was a faithful student and teacher, and he served as the president of the Okinawan culture society Oregon Uchinanchu Kenjinkai.

Whether he was dressing up as Rasputin, teaching kite design, observing creatures in an Oregon coast tide pool, gazing at constellations through a telescope, or hunching over test tubes, he lived a life of extraordinary learning and service. He served as a science explorer at OMSI, and he taught at the Alberta Science for Kids program, in the Portland Public Schools TAG program, and at Pegasus Summer Programs at UC Irvine for gifted youth. At OMSI, he was an enthusiastic science demonstrator, especially when it came to physics demonstrations.

After earning his MA in teaching, Adam taught mathematics and science at Vancouver Discovery Middle School, then at Vancouver School of Arts and Academics. He received many grants and special funding for

advanced study in research in math and science education, including geology, biology, and STEM. He coauthored book chapters and conference presentations about innovative, experiential, arts-infused, and multicultural STEM education.

Adam is survived by his sons, Nao and Ryuu; his sons’ mother, Narumi Joy; and his mother, Masako Joy.

Eric Lessard ’97

October 10, 2023, in Gainesville, Florida, after living with Lyme disease for 19 years. Eric was born in Montreal, Canada, to Elizabeth and JeanClaude Lessard. Moving frequently in his childhood, Eric grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan; Durham, North Carolina; and Jacksonville and Gainesville, Florida. He graduated from Gainesville’s Eastside High School in 1987.

At Reed, Eric studied anthropology and wrote his thesis, “Rebel Catechists in Kongo and Guatemala” with advising from Prof. Vassos Argyrou [anthropology 1994-95].

He worked as an organizer for the International Hotel and Restaurant Workers Union in Los Angeles for several years before joining John Brown and Associates, a criminal defense private investigation firm. He then spent time working

around the U.S. and internationally, including Mexico and China, exposing the skulduggery of government agencies; for years he focused on working for defendants in a prison riot case.

Whether it was exploring jungle ruins in Central America, jumping freight cars in the Northwest and Mexico, or snowboarding in the California mountains, Eric pursued adventure. He returned to Gainesville in 2016 and continued investigative work for lawyers until he became too ill. Tirelessly researching Lyme treatments, he remained stoic and brave through many setbacks. He was proud to achieve Master Mason status in the Gainesville lodge, and joined the Morocco Temple of the Shriners in Jacksonville.

Eric is survived by his parents, Elizabeth McCulloch and Joe Jackson; his father JeanClaude Lessard; and stepsisters, Arianah Jennings and Leah Newsom.

Forthcoming obituaries:

Constance Collier ’45, Thomas Conway ’48, Edward Kessler ’50, Burton W. Onstine ’54, Robert (Bob) Hall ’55, Ronald A. Laing ’56, Elizabeth Adamy ’58, Joan Holden ’60, Sue Taylor ’60, Priscilla Laws ’61, Colleen Kelly ’75, Joe Niski ’83, Kevin Regan ’87, Shannon Dailey ’88, Ravindra Yatawara ’90, Arav Hanspal ’25

Adam Joy ’89

Eric Lessard ’97

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Object of Study

Looking versus Seeing

How do images and objects function? How do they mediate what we see and experience? What do the presumptions of an art-historical practice bring to bear on interpretations of visual material and built space? These were just a few of the questions students pondered in Art 551: Theories of Visuality, a master of arts in liberal studies (MALS) course that explored how interdisciplinary approaches to art have changed the parameters of our critical study. Prof. Dana Katz [art] provided a selection of methodologies, and through those we examined

the phenomena of cultural production, consumption, and reception, considering the implications of assessing style and value.

During a week dedicated to “the embodied environment,” the class discussed readings on Japanesestyle gardens and the Western imagination, and took up topics of translation, invention, and even sonification. We shared impressions of our individual visits to the Portland Japanese Garden, and each student presented audio, video, or photographic recordings of their emotional

response to the physical experience. While each person had a different sense of which sites were most exhilarating, unsettling, or calming, we all agreed that our reactions were informed by nuances of light, sound, scent, and scale—elements that changed as we moved through the landscape and felt the weather or the vibe of the crowd. Thinking about what constitutes natural vs. intentional, chance vs. cultivation, illuminated how much the essence of art, and the meaning we ascribe to it, is in constant flux.

—Robin Tovey ’97

PHOTO BY SCOTT WEBER

“Reed’s need-based aid means that everyone gets an equitable opportunity to learn. Financial aid has really allowed me to explore and experiment with what I wanted to do, from anthropology to costume design.”

—LIZ ORGAN ’24 anthropology major

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Angie Guerra ’24 leads a hands-on workshop on fingerprinting techniques and history at Paideia in January.

PHOTO BY LAUREN LABARRE