Class Notes

At a time when social media and other forms of digital connection have greatly reduced the number of class notes at other schools and universities, the class notes submitted by Fletcher graduates have remained robust. The vitality of your notes is a testament to the commitment of your volunteers and the strength of the Fletcher community—all the more meaningful at a time when it is more important than ever to stay connected.

class notes by year

FRED BERGSTEN, F62

1962

FRED BERGSTEN and his wife, Jenny, moved to Norfolk, VA, in November to be near their son Mark and his family. They are living in a continuing care residential community overlooking the Hampton Roads harbor, where Fred recently finished third in the community’s annual table tennis tournament (after not playing for more than 50 years!). Fred remains a nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, which he founded in 1981. Polity Press published his latest book, The United States vs. China: The Quest for Global Economic Leadership, earlier this year. It has received several reviews including Martin Wolf’s in the Financial Times and Jerry Brown’s (yes, that Jerry Brown) in the New York Review of Books.

ERNST GEMASSMER, F62

1962

ERNST GEMASSMER is still spending winters in Hawaii and most of the rest of the year in Sunriver, OR, where he is finishing up the last bits of remodeling a house. At age 81, he doesn’t feel that old. He has no immediate plans to move to a retirement home, having looked into that option and decided it would not be his cup of tea.

JANE & FRITZ GILBERT, F62

1962

JANE and FRITZ GILBERT spent most of the summer of 2021 in Vermont, but that was their only long-distance travel. After they sold their house and relocated to a senior living community, adapting to life in a smaller space was a challenge, but they have been mostly pleased. They are thankful for the help they have received from experts and family to ease the transition.

ERIC HANSEN, F62

1962

ERIC HANSEN lives in San Francisco and enjoys the wonderful views from his house with friends. Vaccinated and twice boosted, he plans to travel again. After missing one summer on Cape Cod because of COVID-19 restrictions, he returned in the summer of 2021 and this past one. He planned to stop in Boston and visit Fletcher, which he had not seen in many years. He is so grateful to be healthy and mobile, and to have such a great group of friends on both coasts.

CAROL HURLBURT, F62

1962

Sid and CAROL HURLBURT are living a quiet life following the careers of their two daughters. In May, after several years as a national security analyst at New America, Heather joined the Biden administration as chief of staff to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Holly is assistant dean and executive director for academic excellence programs and a professor of history at North Carolina State University.

BETSY PARKER POWELL, F62

1962

When BETSY PARKER POWELL learned that there were no plans for a 60th reunion for the Class of 1962, she put together a mini-reunion that lasted a day and an evening and was attended by her, PETER HOWELL, and ED HOYT, F62, F64. They had a grand time talking and talking.

HARVEY BURG, F63

1963

HARVEY BURG was a scholar-in-residence for an Anti-Defamation League Civil Rights Pilgrimage to Georgia and Alabama in May. This fall he will present a six-part series of sessions on his generation’s connections to and lessons from the Holocaust. These sessions will deal with the impact of prejudice and racism in our lives.

VIRGINIA CORNYN, F63

1963

VIRGINIA CORNYN has joined the Bionic Club: she had her knee replaced on May 2. She expected to be back in full form in a month or two.

RON GLANTZ, F63

1963

After two years of avoiding COVID-19, RON GLANTZ went to Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia in May.

PAM JACKLIN, F67

1967

PAM JACKLIN, see 1971.

TONY KLEITZ, F67

1967

TONY KLEITZ, see 1971.

SALLY MILLER, F68

1968

SALLY MILLER’s biggest news is the graduation of her first grandchild, Lily, from high school. Lily plans to attend the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. Sally is now serving as a co-facilitator at a 13-week grief recovery program for folks who have recently lost loved ones. Her garden is blooming bountifully, and, in honor of her late husband, Bruce, who was a lawn fanatic, the grass is its lushest ever. She has stayed free of COVID-19. Her only travel has been to Raleigh, NC, to help her sister get through the funeral and burial of her own husband. The sisters married within a year of each other and lost their husbands within a year of each other as well.

PETER OLESON, F68

1968

PETER OLESON and his wife, Luuk, celebrated their 50th anniversary on May 23 by staying at a resort on the island of Lanai. They are now back on Oahu helping their daughter manage her two young children while her husband is at sea with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, examining Pacific coral reefs for the first time since COVID-19.

CHRIS SCHOUX, F68

1968

CHRIS SCHOUX is beyond happy to have her daughter and two granddaughters, Vivi Belle, 13, and Clea Joy, 11, back in the U.S. They are now living in Northampton, MA, after having spent six years in Denmark, where her daughter held a sociolinguistics professorship at the University of Aalborg. At age 80, Chris feels grateful for her life and enjoys participating in volunteer activities and taking classes at her local Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. She was pleased to support a fundraiser, featuring a string quartet playing mostly Ukrainian music, that raised more than $10,000 for Ukraine in May.

KEITH TENNY, F68

1968

KEITH TENNY and his wife, Jackie, took a five-month driving trip around the Yucatan province in Mexico. Some of their favorite stops were the walled city of Campeche, Celestun National Park, Merida, Rio Lagartos National Park, and the fishing camp at Xcalak.

VIVIAN WITKIN, F68

1968

VIVIAN WITKIN shared her thoughts on her battles with breast cancer; the loss of her husband, Jack, who passed away in 2020; and the challenges of purposeful recovery in her recently published memoir, Down on Court Five. Vivian has found that staying alive is a full-time job. She looks for sanity wherever she can find it, and especially in her beloved dogs, books, and—most reliably—tennis matches.

PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P

1969

PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P, died on April 26, a great loss to our class, to Fletcher, and to our nation. He was unique, irreplaceable, and immensely creative, and he leaves behind an amazing legacy. See 1970, 1973, and the Tufts Now article about him.

HANS BINNENDIJK, F69

1969

HANS BINNENDIJK, see 1973.

PATRICK CONNOLLY, F69, F71

1969

PATRICK CONNOLLY, F69, F71, noted that the observance of his 80th birthday in April was the highlight of the year so far, as the rest of the world in Sonoma County, CA, seems to have gone to sleep. He and those around him were bracing for what promised to be another scorching summer, with precious little rain to help out, crossing their fingers and toes that they would make it through another fire season without a catastrophe. But, on the bright side, the Connolly clan has gratefully avoided COVID-19.

CAROLYN SETLOW, F69

1969

With a few others in Litchfield County, CT, CAROLYN SETLOW organized a refugee resettlement program. In April, her team, Washington (CT) Refugee Resettlement Project, welcomed an Afghan family of six who were evacuated from Kabul last August and spent seven months in transit before settling into their new home in New Milford, CT—furnished entirely with donations. The family includes Alibaba Awrang, a master calligrapher; his wife, Gul Ziwar, a talented traditional needle worker and homemaker; and four kids (ages 10, 12, 14, and 15), who have started public school and are learning English quickly. In addition to raising funds, Carolyn and her group recruited more than 50 volunteers to serve on a dozen committees. She encourages all of us to support this effort and will happily answer any questions about it.

NANCY TUMAVICK, F69

1969

In spite of COVID-19, NANCY TUMAVICK has managed to maintain good health and good spirits, as has her family. Her second granddaughter, Hazel, was born in the midst of lockdown and has provided joy throughout. This year, Nancy and her husband, Gary, reinstated their annual February escape to Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic. They also traveled to Chicago for an 80th birthday celebration and to Augusta, GA, to visit Gary’s new grandson. Nancy has fully retired from consulting but invests considerable time and energy in volunteer positions. She stepped down from the board of the USAID Alumni Association in late 2020 but decided to remain in a management role as communications coordinator.

KAREL ZELENKA, F69, F85

1969

After overcoming a bout of COVID-19, KAREL ZELENKA, F69, F85, is heading to Malawi, where he will serve as acting Malawi country director for the Jesuit Refugee Service. This is his latest assignment in a long career of refugee protection and support. Malawi hosts a substantial number of refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, and northern Mozambique.

JOHN CASWELL, F70

1970

JOHN CASWELL and his wife, Wendy, were proud to play father and mother of the bride at their daughter Valerie’s wedding last October 30. Decreased COVID-19 infection rates at the time made it possible to invite family and friends to a fun ceremony and big reception, with dinner and dancing, near the new couple’s home in northern Virginia. Valerie and husband Mark moved to Cairo in the summer for a two-year assignment at the U.S. Embassy; mom and dad get to babysit the couple’s German shepherd back home.

MARY LOCKE, F70

1970

MARY LOCKE, see 1973.

LARRY LOTMAN, F70

1970

LARRY LOTMAN has semiretired from the motion picture business, with only an occasional consulting gig, and is spending his time enjoying his grandkids (welcoming his 11th this year). COVID-19 lockdowns gave him a chance to recoup some health and allowed him to help create a new venture: He’s become a minority owner of World Spirits Ventures, LLC (WSV), the exclusive North American distributor of Victorioso, a super-premium, small batch, artisanal mezcal. He is also the business mentor in residence for WSV as well as for the Mexican distillery of Victorioso, La Herencia, S de R.L. de C.V. Larry joins his classmates in mourning the passing of PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P.

CAROLYN PATTERSON, F70

1970

CAROLYN PATTERSON and her husband, Bill, have been slow to emerge from lockdown because of health issues. Happily, Bill is now well and they celebrated his 81st birthday. Carolyn is recovering from a spinal fusion but looking forward to a trip to gardens in and around Rome this coming fall and hopes to visit Southeast Asia early in 2023.

HARRY PETREQUIN, F70

1970

Having surveyed the global landscape at this juncture of human history, HARRY PETREQUIN’s only suggestion for his classmates and the Fletcher grads who followed them is that they try to abide by poet Wendell Berry’s maxim: “Be joyful though you have considered all the facts.”

ROY STACY, F70

1970

ROY STACY used his lockdown downtime to write and publish his memoir, A Delinquent’s Detour (he was a juvenile delinquent in his teenage years). PAULA STERN, F70, F70, F76, her husband, Paul London, and CHARLES KOVACS read and enjoyed the book.

GINGER DA SILVA, F71

1971

GINGER DA SILVA is still working part time for the Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development, helping out with grandkids (she has four, luckily all in the country), finally enjoying going to films and concerts again, and spending time with friends in her garden. She’s planning a vacation hiking in the French Alps with Fletcher friends PAM JACKLIN, F67, and TONY KLEITZ, F67, F73, and she’s taking a tai chi class. For her, the war in Ukraine is a dark shadow that has completely eclipsed COVID-19 and global warming. She believes the war and its consequences may be with us for a long time and says it’s hard to fathom the disjunction between the peaceful, sunniness of the Netherlands and the violence, death, and senseless destruction in Ukraine.

NIHAL W. GOONEWARDENE, F73, F74

1973

In June, after 15 years, NIHAL GOONEWARDENE stepped down from the Fletcher Board of Advisors. First appointed to the board in 2007, he began service under the chairmanship of the late PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P, and worked closely with former Fletcher deans Stephen Bosworth and JAMES STAVRIDIS, F83, F84, former Interim Dean Ian Johnstone, and current Dean RACHEL KYTE, F02. During this period, Fletcher initiated new degree programs, such as GMAP, LLM, and MIB; expanded its student body; added new fields of study in emergent disciplines, such as cybersecurity and human security; and created a robust executive education program. Nihal’s departure from the Fletcher board follows the departure of MIAN ZAHEEN, F73, F74, from the Fletcher board a year earlier. Nihal will now concentrate on two objectives. First, he is organizing the 50th class reunion next May; he seeks volunteers to help coordinate the event and generous contributions to make an impactful class gift to Fletcher. Second, he is planning a gala event in Washington, DC, in fall 2023 to celebrate the 90th anniversary of The Fletcher School; he seeks volunteers from the DC-Maryland-Virginia area to help.

Nihal and his wife, Chrystal, were honored to be invited by the Ackerman family to the memorial service for PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P, at the U.S. Institute for Peace in Washington, DC, on May 24. They were joined by Peter’s Fletcher roommate HANS BINNENDIJK, F69, F72, his wife, MARY LOCKE, F70, CHUCK DALLARA, F75, F86, Peixin Dallara, VALI NASR, A83, F84, Professor Dick Schultz, and former Associate Dean Deborah Nutter.

KEN SCHOFIELD, F73

1973

KEN SCHOFIELD spent more than 25 years at USAID, enjoying postings to Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Morocco, and Washington, DC, where he oversaw democracy programs for Latin America and helped set up the agency’s Democracy Center. He rose to the rank of minister counselor, ending his career as mission director to the Philippines. After official retirement, he spent three years helping the U.S. Department of State get the PEPFAR HIV/AIDs initiative and foreign assistance budget reform off the ground and another 10 years providing strategic planning for USAID programs. Ken is enjoying full retirement in Bend, OR, with his wife of over 40 years, Gayle. He fills his days with downhill skiing, tennis, golf, and participation in civic groups. He is determined to be at the 50th reunion in May.

FRANK J. YOUNG, F73, F77

1973

Pat and FRANK J. YOUNG, F73, F77, hosted a visit with Chrystal and NIHAL GOONEWARDENE in mid-February, sharing with them a wonderful lunch in Sarasota, FL, where Frank recently took over as board chair for the Foreign Service Retirees Association of Florida. They spend summers in Ottawa, Canada. Recently they journeyed to Morocco, where they spent 12 days traveling 2,500 kilometers from the Mediterranean coast of Rabat to the edge of the Sahara Desert. They tacked on a week in Sheffield, England, to visit Pat’s uncle. Frank recently released a book called 47 Aerogrammes: A Passage Through India, 1969-1970, about a year he spent in South India.

MIKE SIMPSON, F74

1974

MIKE SIMPSON addressed participants in the Geneva Center for Security Policy’s Rethinking Geopolitics and Global Futures virtual event in May. The theme of the event was “Critical Militarization of Space and Conflict Prevention,” and Mike spoke specifically of means to prevent what many predict is inevitable: war in space. He was part of the core seminar team for the International Space University’s Space Studies Program, held this past summer at the Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon. In addition to helping coordinate a core offering of 46 sessions, he was session leader for lectures on space policy institutions, use of space technology to support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and the sustainable use of space.

MARILYN SKONY STAMM, F74

MARILYN SKONY STAMM, F74

1974

MARILYN SKONY STAMM has been appointed by the Tufts Board of Trustees to the Fletcher Board of Advisors for a five-year term. She joins her distinguished classmate LISA ANDERSON, F74, F74. It’s a great honor for the Class of 1974 to have two of its members sitting on the Board. As chief executive of Stamm International, Marilyn has been a successful business leader and entrepreneur in a highly competitive industrial manufacturing sector. She will make her debut at the fall board meeting.

CHUCK DALLARA, F75, F86

1974

CHUCK DALLARA, F75, F86, see 1973.

MARY FRANCES LOWE, F75

1974

MARY FRANCES LOWE heads up U.S. participation in Codex Alimentarius, an international food standards program run jointly by the World Health Organization and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. The program establishes science-based voluntary food safety and quality standards aimed at protecting consumer health and ensuring fair practices in the food trade. It’s a perfect fit for her education at Fletcher and the master’s in public health she later earned from Johns Hopkins: public health and international trade as mutually reinforcing goals!

JOHN MEDEIROS, F75

1974

In the spring, JOHN MEDEIROS, DAVID SLOAN, A74, F75, and BRUCE STRONACH, F76, met up at David’s house in Rhode Island for a nice and relaxing get-together.

LORETTA G. BREUNING, F76, F83

1976

LORETTA G. BREUNING, F76, F83, has shifted her focus after retiring from a career teaching international management. She writes about the core emotional brain that all humans have in common.

BRUCE STRONACH, F76

1976

BRUCE STRONACH has two books coming out this year, Globalization: The Future of Japan and the World and The History of Temple University Japan: An Experiment in International Education. He is spending the fall semester as a visiting professor at the National University of Taiwan and Chung Yuan Christian University in Taipei. See more in 1975.

DENNIS JOHNSON, F79 and and his wife Anne Bernardo

DENNIS JOHNSON, F79

1979

In January, DENNIS JOHNSON retired after a 40-year career in commercial banking in California. Now he is learning how to be retired. He’s married to Anne Bernardo, who is looking to wrap up her long career in legal research and library administration. They have two adult children, one on each coast. They plan to split their time between their homes in California and Delaware and to appreciate the beauty, opportunities, and weather of both coasts.

DORAN HOWITT, F80

1980

DORAN HOWITT remembers OSEI OWUSU as a popular student with a big smile. One conversation stands out in his mind. Someone in a group mentioned the Yoruba tribe of Nigeria. Osei corrected the terminology: “Yoruba society,” he said. In two words, he made plain his philosophy of demanding respect for the precolonial civilizations of Africa. After Osei earned his MALD in 1980, he went to work for the United Nations, and was posted to different locations every couple of years. Sadly, he died of cancer in 1995. Now, his daughter, journalist Nadia Owusu (born in 1981), has written a memoir that is in large part about Osei, focusing on his Ghanaian heritage, his attitudes toward life, and Nadia’s experiences growing up with him in a variety of places. Published by Simon & Schuster, her book Aftershocks has been praised by many reviewers and selected for various “Best of 2021” book lists.

STEVE DEL ROSSO, A78, F81

1981

STEVE DEL ROSSO, A78, F81, see 1995.

DEBORAH BRAUTIGAM, F82

1982

DEBORAH BRAUTIGAM, see 1991.

David Wise, F82's grandchild: Matthew David Wise

DAVID WISE, F82

1982

DAVID WISE welcomed his first grandchild, Matthew David Wise, to the world on January 11, 2022, at Tufts Children’s Hospital. David’s son, Thomas Wise, is the senior recruiting and marketing specialist at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.

JAMES STAVRIDIS, F83, F84

1983

JAMES STAVRIDIS, F83, F84, see 1973.

Nyman Brooks has devoted his career to education, advocating for children with learning disabilities.
1984 Nyman Brooks has devoted his career to education, advocating for children with learning disabilities.

NYMAN BROOKS, F84

1983

After leaving Fletcher, NYMAN BROOKS worked at the CIA for five years. However, his parents, who were on a humanitarian mission in Zimbabwe, were involved in an automobile accident, killing his father and rendering his mother quadriplegic. At that point, Nyman reevaluated the direction of his life and career, resigned from the CIA, and devoted himself to education. He has founded or led several schools in the U.S. and abroad. His main focus has been advocating for children with dyslexia and other learning disabilities.

VALI NASR, A83, F84

1983

VALI NASR, A83, F84, see 1973.

TIM JUDAH, F86

1986

TIM JUDAH, see 1995.

MIKE HAMMER, F87

MIKE HAMMER, F87

1987

In April, U.S. Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo MIKE HAMMER and his wife, MARGRET BJØGULFSDOTTIR, F88, met up in Italy with TOM SMITHAM, F88, who is serving as chargé d’affaires ad interim at the U.S. embassy in Rome, and his wife, Alex. Just like when they were at Blakeley (then Fletcher) Hall, right?

LAURIE MACNAMARA, F87

1987

LAURIE MACNAMARA recently met with Fletcher students, faculty, and staff as a featured speaker through the Fink Distinguished Alumni Speaker Series. She shared insights into how her Fletcher experience has influenced every stage of her career, which has focused on economics, trade, and technology in the public and private sectors in the United States. Laurie especially enjoyed the opportunity for one-on-one mentoring sessions with Fletcher students following her remarks and thanks Professor Josephine Wolff, Dean RACHEL KYTE, F02, and Cory Diamond, senior director of the Office of Development and Alumni Engagement, for the invitation to participate.

JOHN L. ROBINSON, F87

1987

JOHN L. ROBINSON returned to Medford last April to participate in a panel discussion, “Business Diplomacy in the Middle East,” hosted by The Fares Center on the Middle East series. The program served as a prelude to the formal implementation of the John L. Robinson Educational Fund Fellowship at Fletcher, which will grant full scholarships for second-year Fletcher students with a demonstrated interest in commercial diplomacy and business diplomacy between the United States and the Arab world.

JANE B. ZIMMERMAN, F87

JANE B. ZIMMERMAN, F87

1987

Like many people, JANE B. ZIMMERMAN found that the pandemic altered life’s plans. In fall 2021, she left one dream job, as Davidson College’s director of the Dean Rusk International Studies Program, for another dream job, as the managing director of Hunt Alternatives, Ambassador Swanee Hunt’s family foundation. Jane misses her students but loves being in Washington, DC, supporting Ambassador Hunt’s work on inclusive security and amplifying the role of women in peacemaking and peacebuilding. Plus, she gets to hang out with the ambassador’s parrot!

MARGRET BJØGULFSDOTTIR, F88

1988

MARGRET BJØGULFSDOTTIR, see 1987.

TOM SMITHAM, F88

1988

TOM SMITHAM, see 1987.

FARUKH AMIL, F89

1989

FARUKH AMIL is mentoring at the Foreign Service Academy in Islamabad, Pakistan, and remains a senior research associate at the Intellectual Forum, Jesus College, Cambridge University.

KAREN (RADEL) AYLWARD, F89

1989

KAREN (RADEL) AYLWARD, see 1990, 1991.

CONNIE BOUKIDIS, F89

1989

CONNIE BOUKIDIS is in Los Angeles, working, volunteering, and relishing, alongside her husband, their son’s recent graduation from UCLA—and praying for peace.

ANNE DONOHUE, F89

1989

In December, after 25 years of teaching journalism at Boston University, ANNE DONOHUE is retiring. But she’s eager to continue teaching journalism overseas in the future; any leads are greatly appreciated.

BEN DRIGGS, F89

1989

BEN DRIGGS is in Salt Lake City, enjoying being an empty nester, worrying about drought, and happily tossing his hat in the ring as a music producer.

ADAM ERELI, F89

1989

ADAM ERELI is consulting in Washington, DC, and is still married to former Fletcher/Ginn librarian Marina Pastuhova.

CHRIS and JEAN GILSON, F89

1989

CHRIS and JEAN GILSON recently enjoyed riding bikes across Italy, touring around Verona with friends, and visiting Florence with their children. Next year they will start thinking about retiring and becoming tourists year-round!

GLENN GROW, F89

1989

GLENN GROW operates his company, Innovasia, Inc., across Asia and Latin America while living in Sun Valley, ID, with his wife. He enjoys mountain hikes, skiing, and enduro motorcycle riding.

SUSANNE KLEMM, F89

1989

SUSANNE KLEMM recently enjoyed a social event thrown by her firm in Zurich—the first one in ages—and is praying for peace in Ukraine.

JAMES LOEWEN, F89

1989

JAMES LOEWEN is in Goshen, IN, working to convert part of his yard to native grasses and perennials (the badminton court is staying!). Hopefully, the birds and the pollinators will appreciate it.

SETH MOSHMAN, F89

1989

SETH MOSHMAN is in Baltimore, MD, and feeling old, now that his fifth and youngest daughter recently completed her freshman year of college! He has reconnected with CONRAD RUBIN because they both work in the trenches of the capital markets.

GEOFFREY PACK, F89

1989

GEOFFREY PACK enjoyed extended stays in Washington, DC, Costa Rica, and England.

JOSEPH ROUSSEL, F89

1989

JOSEPH ROUSSEL travels to Maputo, Kinshasa, Nairobi, Seattle, and other locales, working with the public health NGO VillageReach. He recently spoke with classmate KARLA BROM, who is starting work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

AMIR SOLTANI, F89, A90

1989

AMIR SOLTANI, F89, A90, trained hard to swim a 10k race across Utah’s Bear Lake in July.

STUART SPENCER, F89

1989

STUART SPENCER is now living in Singapore with his wife, Mieko, enjoying the change of pace after 18 years in Hong Kong.

CLAIRE VAN DER VAEREN, F89

1989

CLAIRE VAN DER VAEREN is in New York, working at the United Nations Development Programme headquarters and supporting countries in Asia and the Pacific.

LINDA J. WANG, F89

1989

LINDA J. WANG is enjoying life at sea as a medical officer aboard a California State University Maritime Academy training ship. On land, she works as an urgent care physician in the San Francisco East Bay Walnut Creek area. She has two wonderful kids in college.

BRUCE AYLWARD, F90, F98
1990 Rich Davis, Stacy (Bernard) Davis, Karen (Radel) Aylward, and Bruce Aylward visited Congress Hall in Philadelphia, the home of the U.S. Congress in the 1790s.

BRUCE AYLWARD, F90, F98

1990

BRUCE AYLWARD, F90, F98, and his wife, KAREN (RADEL) AYLWARD, F89, now live in Reston, VA, five minutes from their son Cal, who is a computer scientist with a government contractor. Karen works with MARK MONTGOMERY in college admissions consulting while also pursuing her interest in textile upcycling. Bruce left Mercy Corps in early 2022 for Apple, where he leads water stewardship projects in the United States and overseas. Along with Cal and their daughter, Rianna, who works for Nike in Portland, OR, Bruce and Karen took a three-week trip to Scotland, where their youngest son, Nolan, was finishing up at the University of St. Andrews. Bruce and Karen also enjoyed a May weekend in Philadelphia with longtime friends STACY (BERNARD) DAVIS and Rich Davis. See 1991 for more.

JOHN COOPER, F90

1990

JOHN COOPER has been named by French President Macron to the grade of Knight of the Ordre National du Mérite (National Order of Merit) for his commitment to French-U.S. relations, in particular his longstanding efforts to preserve and promote the state of Michigan’s French and Francophone heritage. Those efforts include serving on boards of Francophone nonprofits on the U.S. and Canadian sides of the Detroit River, organizing events aiming to reestablish Francophone cultural links across the river, and leading Detroit French history tours. John hopes the award ceremony will be held in October at the Alliances Françaises USA Convention in Detroit.

BUSADEE SANTIPITAKS, F90

1990

BUSADEE SANTIPITAKS, Thailand’s ambassador to Australia, met with MELISSA CONLEY-TYLER, F96, the program lead of Australia’s Asia-Pacific Development, Diplomacy & Defense Dialogue, at the Thai Embassy in Canberra in May. Busadee enjoyed learning about the fantastic work Melissa is doing on Australia-ASEAN relations. Both agreed that diplomacy is still relevant and must be advocated continuously to solve current issues.

Magali Spinther and members of the Classes of 1990, 1991, and 1992 gathered at their class dinner in Boston
Magali Spinther and members of the Classes of 1990, 1991, and 1992 gathered at their class dinner in Boston.

MAGALI SPINTHER, F90

1990

MAGALI SPINTHER, who continues to hold a senior position at Danone in Paris, returned to Fletcher for her 30-year class reunion in May. It was a great weekend to reconnect with the alumni community, feel the school vibe through interesting lectures, and enjoy campus. It was also good to catch up with Denver-based MARK MONTGOMERY and his spouse, LAURA CONTI, F92, as well as Swiss-based THIERRY BUCHS, F91. A reception, organized by AMY SIEGEL, F92, and coordinated by PATRICE DABROWSKI, F92, was held on a rooftop in downtown Boston for the Classes of 1990, 1991, and 1992.

THIERRY BUCHS, F91

1991

THIERRY BUCHS, see 1990.

DAN GREEN, F91

1991

DAN GREEN is back in Seattle after two years in South Africa as director of policy, advocacy, and communications for the Gates Foundation’s Africa team. He has one daughter working in London and a second in Boston, at Northeastern. He’s now director of global content and campaigns.

ED HOYT, F91

1991

ED HOYT moved over to Chemonics International, a major USAID contractor, just two months before the pandemic hit. He leads the Water, Energy, and Sustainable Cities practice and has been involved in landing new contracts for energy programs being implemented in Sri Lanka and Serbia. He recently celebrated his 26th anniversary with Anne and marked 22 years of living in Northwest Washington, DC. His eldest, Didi, 22, graduated from Boston University and Alex, 19, is at the University of Chicago.

ROLAND PEARSON, F91 & YOON JUNG PARK, F91

1991

ROLAND PEARSON and YOON JUNG PARK still live in Silver Spring, MD, and are fortunate that they regularly get to see MARCIA GREENBERG, ALICE SLAYTON CLARK, TED CLARK, A85, F91, F93, MARTHA BRETTSCHNEIDER, STACY BERNARD DAVIS, F90, KAREN AYLWARD, F89, and BRUCE AYLWARD, F90, F98. Roland is the director for the finance and investment portfolio at Palladium, where he leads a working group on racism. In 2021, he completed a three-day 300-mile bike ride, starting in Waynesboro, VA, and ending in York, PA. He also participated in his seventh annual Seagull Century on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and is looking forward to his eighth in October this year. Yoon ended her tenure at SAIS after three years as associate director of the China-Africa Research Initiative (started by DEBORAH BRAUTIGAM, F82). She successfully raised funds to start the new Africa-China Initiative at Georgetown’s School for Foreign Service, where she serves as program director. She teaches in Georgetown’s African Studies Program; won a grant (her second) from the Ford Foundation to continue her work with the Chinese in Africa/Africans in China Research Network; and, in her spare time, beads, sews, and paints. She recently participated in her first group show! Roland and Yoon’s daughter, Siana, 20, is beginning her junior year at Occidental College. And, just before COVID-19, they added a four-legged canine member to the family: Khaya.

DAVID PIERCE, F91

1991

Karen and DAVID PIERCE are now based in the San Francisco Bay Area, where Karen teaches and Dave is the senior manager for business development at Canopy Health. All three of their children (whom they’re sure you all remember as little blond things at Fletcher) are married, and among them they have four children of their own.

JANIS SALLINGER, F91

1991

Family and friends of JANIS SALLINGER, who died in November 2021, are establishing a memorial scholarship fund in her name. If you would like to be involved in this, contact Roland Pearson or Marcia Greenberg.

JAMES (RED) SMITH, F91

1991

JAMES (RED) SMITH lives in Atlantic Beach, FL, less than a kilometer from the ocean. Out back, he looks over a lake with all manner of wildlife, especially birds. Officially retired, Red spent time this year working on several projects for NATO in Germany and in Norfolk, VA. His son Andrew, born while he and his wife, Meg, were at Fletcher, is a second-year resident MD in emergency medicine in Rochester, NY. Their daughter Julia lives in Jacksonville with her husband, Christian, a Navy pilot. Red and Meg are proud grandparents!

WENDY VINCENT, F91

1991

WENDY VINCENT retired from the State Department in early 2020 and is now living in Los Angeles. She has been enjoying being home so very much!

LAURA CONTI, F92

1992

LAURA CONTI, see 1990.

PATRICE DABROWSKI, F92

1992

PATRICE DABROWSKI, see 1990.

ANNA DODSON, F92

1992

ANNA DODSON was honored this year for her pro bono legal work, receiving the National Public Service Award from the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association. A partner in Goodwin Procter LLP’s Private Equity Group, she is the founder of the firm’s Neighborhood Business Initiative, a project that promotes equity and supports wealth creation in marginalized communities in Massachusetts, New York, and California. Anna lives with her family in Boston.

MICHAEL MENDELSON, E91, F92, E93

1992

MICHAEL MENDELSON, E91, F92, E93, has joined a new law firm, Outside GC, as a partner in the Greater Washington, DC, region. Outside GC provides on-demand general legal counsel services. In his spare time, Michael enjoys rugby, outdoor adventures, and learning languages and history.

AMY SIEGEL, F92

1992

AMY SIEGEL, see 1990.

WAYNE WHITE, F92, F94

1992

WAYNE WHITE, F92, F94, is running for a seat as a Democrat for Congress in the Sixth District of Georgia this year.

SELINA JACKSON, F93

1993

In its May issue, Washingtonian magazine selected SELINA JACKSON, senior vice president for government relations and public policy at Procter & Gamble, as one of Washington’s Top 500 Most Influential People. Selina leads a P&G team of more than 60 policy and advocacy experts.

TED JOHNSON, F93, F09

1993

TED JOHNSON, F93, F09, was selected as program director of the Master’s Program in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence at the Heller School of Brandeis University.  

BRUCE KEITH, F93 and KIM BROWN, F93

BRUCE KEITH, F93 and KIM BROWN, F93

1993

BRUCE KEITH and KIM BROWN are moving to Brazil. Bruce has taken on a new position at IFC, working in climate finance across the region. They will be based in Sao Paulo for the next few years, and they look forward to connecting with other local Fletcherites. Bruce can be reached at bkeith@ifc.org. He traveled to Washington, DC, for a work trip recently and met up with several classmates, including JEFF CARLISLE, TANIA CHOMIAK-SALVI, COLLEEN GREEN, JON MILLER, and LUCA SALVI, F94.

CHRIS WENDEL, F93

1993

CHRIS WENDEL and HILARY WENDEL, F94, saw their eldest graduate from Northeastern University in May. Chris has retired from Volta after nine years—and after listing it on NYSE last year. They are moving to Miami Beach for a sabbatical. Visitors welcome!

MELANI CAMMETT, F94

1994

Over the summer, MELANI CAMMETT and DARREN KEW, F94, F02, were both in Belfast for visiting professorships at the George Mitchell Peace Institute at Queens University. Darren teaches at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and Melani teaches at Harvard University. Darren is researching the role that civil society played in the 1990s peace process and since that time in the post-agreement peace efforts. They met each other on the street and learned that they were at the same institute. The funny thing is that they both teach in the Boston area and never see each other there.

RABAB FATIMA, F94

1994

In June 2022, the United Nations appointed Bangladesh’s RABAB FATIMA High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States. She succeeds Courtenay Rattray of Jamaica, who was appointed as the chef de cabinet.

LIZ MCCLINTOCK, F94, F16

1994

COVID-19 didn’t keep some intrepid Fletcher alumnae from meeting. LIZ MCCLINTOCK, F94, F16, and MONA YEE took some time to ski on the Colorado slopes.

GREG MOORE, F94

1994

GREG MOORE, see 1999.

LUCA SALVI, F94

1994

LUCA SALVI, see 1993.

RICK SOLLOM, F94

1994

RICK SOLLOM assumed the position of senior protection officer for the UN Refugee Agency. He is operating from Rzeszow, Poland, on the border of Ukraine.

HILARY WENDEL, F94

1994

HILARY WENDEL, see 1993.

EVELYN FARKAS, F95, F99

EVELYN FARKAS, F95, F99

1995

This summer, EVELYN FARKAS, F95, F99, married Mark Adams. In May, she started as the executive director of Arizona State University’s McCain Institute, which focuses on strengthening democracy, human rights, and character-driven leadership. Evelyn recently met with Fletcher grads STEVE DEL ROSSO, A78, F81, of the Carnegie Institute and TIM JUDAH, F86, whose book, In Wartime: Voices from Ukraine, she highly recommends. She also got together with KUNIKO ASHIZAWA, F97, F05, former ambassador to Ukraine JOHN HERBST, LADEENE FREIMUTH, and RICHARD PONZIO, F97, at a benefit for Ukraine in March.

FERNANDO GONZALEZ SAIFFE, F95

1995

In April, FERNANDO GONZALEZ SAIFFE concluded his five-year tenure as Mexico’s consul general in Michigan and returned to Mexico City to serve as director general for Asia-Pacific at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

DUNCAN HOLLIS, F95

1995

DUNCAN HOLLIS was appointed to the State Department’s Advisory Committee on International Law. Separately, he served as co-convener of the Oxford Process on International Law Protections in Cyberspace, an effort that seeks consensus legal positions on how international law protects against various cyber threats to civilian infrastructure, ransomware, and influence operations. The process has been well received in UN Security Council meetings and other ongoing UN processes. 

MATTHEW LEVITT, F95, F05

1995

MATTHEW LEVITT, F95, F05, launched season one of a new podcast, Breaking Hezbollah’s Golden Rule, which explores Lebanese Hezbollah’s worldwide operations through interviews with practitioners and officials from around the world with firsthand experience countering Hezbollah’s activities.

MAURA LYNCH, F95

1995

During a short sabbatical, MAURA LYNCH traveled to Turkey, Ireland, Colombia, Paris, and Guatemala. In June 2022, she moved to Khartoum to serve as chief of staff of the UN’s special political mission UNITAMS (UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan). See more in 1996.

MEETA ANAND, F96

1996

In New York City, MEETA ANAND is now the senior director of census and data equity at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

RUPA BHATTACHARYYA, F96

1996

In April, RUPA BHATTACHARYYA was recognized by the Partnership for Public Service for her contributions to public service. A former longtime U.S. Department of Justice lawyer and special master of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, Rupa was honored for her service to her country and for her oversight of three separate victims’ compensation funds that distributed nearly $8 billion to responders, survivors, and families of victims of the 9/11 attacks. Rupa is starting a new job at Georgetown University.

MELISSA CONLEY-TYLER, F96

1996

MELISSA CONLEY-TYLER, see 1990.

KAREN COPPOCK, F96

1996

After running a home-sharing nonprofit for the past few years, KAREN COPPOCK has switched over to the public sector and is now working in affordable housing in the San Francisco Bay Area, one of the most expensive housing markets in the U.S.

BATHSHEBA CROCKER, F96

1996

In December, BATHSHEBA CROCKER was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as U.S. representative to the Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, with the rank of ambassador.

MEG DEGUZMAN, F96

1996

MEG DEGUZMAN recently became a judge at the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals.

JASON FORRESTER, F96

1996

JASON FORRESTER, who lives in New York City, focuses on the U.S. federal sector with medical technology company electroCore, which treats migraines, with work in the pipeline to treat conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

ROMY GALLEGOS, F96

1996

In December 2020, ROMY GALLEGOS and his wife were involved in a terrible multivehicle accident near Richmond, VA, and his wife succumbed to her injuries. The following year, Romy left his 32-year career in the military, Foreign Service (DOS), and Civil Service (FAA). He is now in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, where he recently completed a 486-mile walk on the Camino De Santiago, or The Way of St James. It was one of the hardest things he’s ever done. He is physically spent but emotionally renewed. He blogged his entire journey on his Facebook page; send him a friend request to connect. Now heading to Prescott, AZ, he hopes to complete professional pilot training and teach aviation safety, international relations, and national security at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

WENDY GUTIÉRREZ, F96

1996

WENDY GUTIÉRREZ has been in Atlanta for 25 years. She joined BlackRock’s Atlanta office in 2019 as a director in its Client Experience organization. She and her husband are parents to two teenage sons. Wendy had the happy surprise of meeting up with MAURA LYNCH, F95, when Maura was unexpectedly stuck in Atlanta for a night while traveling back to New York. With Atlanta being home to the busiest airport in the world, any other Fletcherite stuck overnight should feel free to reach out!

MARIA LÓPEZ ESCORIAL, F96

MARIA LÓPEZ ESCORIAL, F96

1996

Congratulations to MARIA LÓPEZ ESCORIAL! King of Spain Felipe VI has given her the prestigious Codespa Award for Journalism for Development for her article “An Uber to rent tractors and other ways to revolutionize the agricultural model in developing countries (El Pais).” The King of Spain is the chair of the Foundation of Spanish Development (Codespa), and the Journalism for Development category recognizes work by a professional or group of professionals from the Spanish media (graphic, print, radio, television, or digital) that shows the vulnerability, poverty, or risk of exclusion that people in developing countries face.

DEB MIKESELL, F96

1996

DEB MIKESELL remains at the World Bank, where she’s focused on education-lending projects in the Asia-Pacific region, covering countries ranging from Mongolia to Tuvalu.

JOSH MIKESELL, F96

1996

After eight years of heading up an intelligence and risk assessment function at MetLife, JOSH MIKESELL is starting a new role with a late-stage startup that’s focused on both cyber and physical supply chain risk.

BECKY MOWBRAY, F96

BECKY MOWBRAY, F96

1996

BECKY MOWBRAY is the new president, CEO, and the Samuel Zemurray Chair in Research Leadership of the Bureau of Governmental Research, a nonprofit public policy research organization in New Orleans. When she’s not leading research, Becky and her husband, Mark VanLandingham, are excellent hosts. They welcomed WENDY PHILLEO and TIM HOUSE, who hit Jazz Fest for their 22nd time! Wendy is the executive director of Generation 180, a nonprofit based in Charlottesville, VA, that drives action toward clean energy. Tim is a solutions consultant at Infor, a leading network for supply chain orchestration. They are in their 17th year of living in Charlottesville, with their two high schoolers.

They were joined at Jazz Fest by WENDY GUTIÉRREZ and her husband, Jim Cheeks, and later met up with classmates and Jazz Fest regulars JASON FORRESTER and his two sons and BILL THOMAS, his wife, Lisa Catapano, and one of his three children. Bill has a day job working as a partner in the Washington, DC, office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, specializing in investment management. At night, he plays guitar in two rock cover bands.

KUNIKO ASHIZAWA, F97, F05

1997

KUNIKO ASHIZAWA, F97, F05, see 1995.

RICHARD PONZIO, F97

1997

RICHARD PONZIO, see 1995.

NATASHA NADAZDIN, F98

1998

NATASHA NADAZDIN hasn’t shared an update since July 2021, when she moved from Rome to Kinshasa to serve as the deputy representative of the United Nations World Food Programme. It has been a challenging environment, but one with great opportunities, and overall an exceptional professional experience. In June, her daughter Emma obtained her BA in international law from the University of Maastricht, where she will also pursue her MA. In September, her son, Marco, will start his BA in piano at the Royal College of Music in London, and Sara, the youngest of the tribe, will be starting year 13 at the St George’s British International School in Rome. Natasha hopes to be contacted by other Fletcherites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

MANISHA SHAHANE, F98

1998

MANISHA SHAHANE’s mother began her onward journey seven months ago at 75 years young. Manisha feels like she’s in one of those 1,000-piece puzzles, and every day a few pieces come together. She and her dad attempt not to pull each other’s hair out (except that she is the only one with hair!). She said her mom watches them carrying on from the mantel above the fireplace, probably chuckling at them regularly. Manisha is getting into a new groove and welcomes reconnecting.

KATE THOMPSON, F98

1998

KATE THOMPSON, see 1999.

LAURA DE OTALVARO, F99

1999

LAURA DE OTALVARO will retire from the State Department Foreign Service in September. She is seeking a position in the private sector and hoping to find a consulting application for her international business process improvement and innovation abilities—key Fletcher traits! She’s grateful for the help from fellow Fletcher grads PENNY ANDERSON, SUSANNA CERNOJEVIC, GREG MOORE, A94, and KATE THOMPSON, F98.

TERESA FRONTADO, F99

1999

TERESA FRONTADO has accepted a new job as executive editor for regional news of WAMU, the NPR member station in Washington, DC. She’ll be leading the efforts of the station and running DCist, an NPR website focused on news of the area. She’s excited by the challenge but a little bit daunted by the idea of moving to a new city. She’s hoping that reconnecting with Fletcher friends in the area will help her feel at home sooner. Oh, and did she mention she’ll be an empty nester this fall? Her youngest graduated from high school and will be attending college in Atlanta.

RAZYA KIRMANI, F99

RAZYA KIRMANI, F99

1999

RAZYA KIRMANI welcomed NAHLA RAJAN, F00, who flew to London for a visit. In time-worn tradition (theirs), they made a huge dent in their Harry Potter to-do list. Razya doesn’t know how Nahla managed it over a very, very busy holiday period (schools were off for a week and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations were around the corner), but she bagged two tickets to Harry Potter Warner Studios! It was worth the trip to see the door to the Chamber of Secrets alone, and Aragog was entirely too realistic (for non-Harry Potter fans—is there such a thing?—a giant spider). The house on Privet Drive, however, reminded her of their neighbor’s.

ALLISON KOHLL, F99

1999

Last year, ALLISON KOHLL was promoted to vice president of global sustainability and human rights at Hasbro, Inc. She also had a healthy baby girl, Sivan, her second child, in December 2021, a week after turning 50, upping her game to Level 2 as a single mother by choice.

RICHARD LUNG, A99, F99

1999

RICHARD LUNG, A99, F99, says, “Greetings from the San Francisco Bay Area!” He’s lived there for the past two decades. Earlier this year, he was promoted to vice president/principal global economist at Visa. On the job, he transforms economic statistics and transaction data into insights on current economic trends. Off the job, he has been enjoying exploring the nearby playgrounds with his 3-year-old son, Livingston. A silver lining to all the turmoil of the last three years has been the opportunity to enjoy a second paternity leave.

ANURADHA NARAYAN, F99, N99

1999

After four years with UNICEF’s office in China, ANURADHA NARAYAN, F99, N99, returned to Bethesda, MD, over the summer. The experience of living and working in China during COVID-19 has been all-consuming, interesting, and challenging. She is coming back as an empty nester, as her younger son goes off to college in Boston. Because of travel restrictions, she has not had the chance to see many friends or family and cannot wait to reconnect with friends from Fletcher and the Friedman school.

LEOLA CALZOLAI-STEWART, F00

2000

LEOLA CALZOLAI-STEWART’s recent film, The American Diplomat, aired on PBS’ American Experience in February. She directed and co-produced the film with her partners at FLOWSTATE Films. This project was a labor of love, produced over six years.

JOEY HOOD, F00

2000

The Class of 2000 meets up at Embassy Tunis! If confirmed by the Senate as U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia, JOEY HOOD looks forward to joining Deputy Chief of Mission NATASHA FRANCESCHI.  

MARCUS KING, F00, F08

2000

After nine years as the John O. Rankin Associate Professor of International Affairs and the director of the Master of Arts Program in International Affairs at George Washington University’s Elliott School, MARCUS KING, F00, F08, is moving on to Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, where he’ll be professor of the practice in the environment and international affairs at the newly established Earth Commons Institute. He will continue to build a curriculum in environmental security.

NAHLA RAJAN, F00

2000

NAHLA RAJAN, see 1999.

HASSAN ABBAS, F02, F08

2002

HASSAN ABBAS, F02, F08, wrote an article called “Pakistan’s ‘dangerous moment’: Imran Khan builds a comeback on bashing the U.S.” for Grid.

LISA NEUBERGER, F02

2002

LISA NEUBERGER published a book titled Rebalance: How Women Lead, Parent, Partner and Thrive with two fellow social innovators about their experiences as women leaders, moms, and partners in social impact fields.

Dean RACHEL KYTE, GMAP 2002

2002 GMAP

Dean RACHEL KYTE, see 1973, 1987.

DEBORAH RUIZ VERDUZCO, F03

2003

After five years working at the headquarters of the International Commission on Missing Persons, DEBORAH RUIZ VERDUZCO was appointed to head the program of her organization in Mexico. She is working with a team of DNA scientists, forensic anthropologists, and data experts to assist institutions in Mexico in identifying large numbers of persons who have gone missing in the context of the “war against drugs.” When not working, she spends time in the woods of The Hague with her husband and sweet Labrador dog.

BHUVANA ANAND, F04

2004

BHUVANA ANAND co-founded Trayas, a knowledge-driven public purpose enterprise in India that focuses on regulatory research and policy advisory to India’s provincial governments. She co-authored The State of Discrimination report, documenting every instance of legally sanctioned discrimination against female jobseekers across Indian states.

TARYN LESSER, F04

2004

TARYN LESSER started a new assignment as human rights advisor at the Peacebuilding Support Office, UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, and bought a house in upstate New York. Come visit the countryside!

LAWRENCE W. MEDER, F04

2004

Colonel LAWRENCE W. MEDER was the guest speaker at the laying of the wreaths at the National Cemetery in Danville, VA, on Memorial Day. For Lawrence, it was an honor to recognize our fallen service members. Doing so reminds us to be grateful, he says, for perhaps here on this solemn ground those who gave their last full measure lie in peace. 

APRIL RINNE, F04

2004

APRIL RINNE’s new book FLUX: 8 Superpowers for Thriving in Constant Change launched in English worldwide in August 2021 and is now making its way around the world, with 11 foreign editions secured (and more in the works). In order to sustain a healthy and productive outlook in a world in constant change, the book argues, we need to radically reshape our relationship to uncertainty.

LAURA WILKINSON, F04, N04

2004

LAURA WILKINSON, F04, N04, is still working with USAID as a Foreign Service Officer in the Bureau for Resilience and Food Security, the Center for Resilience (remotely for now, from Alpharetta, GA).

ADAM DAY, F06

2006

Over the summer, ADAM DAY moved to Geneva, where he leads United Nations University’s new Centre for Policy Research office. He is thrilled to be out of New York City, and also to have come out with his first academic book, States of Disorder, Ecosystems of Governance.

BENJAMIN PRESNELL, F06

2006

BENJAMIN PRESNELL was promoted in 2021 and now is the head of Product, Pricing, and Marketing Strategy for United Services Automobile Association (USAA) Credit Cards. He recently led the retail bank’s redesign of the USAA card plastics. Currently, he is leading new product innovation cycles to rethink how newly enlisted service members build credit. On a personal note, he has taken to his adopted home of San Antonio and is quite skilled at the barbecue and smoker. Cold Modelos and the pool are always ready for visiting Fletcherites.

KRISTEN RAINEY, F06

2006

After 33 ZIP codes and an Appalachian Trail thru-hike, KRISTEN RAINEY ended up in Bozeman, MT, where worms ate her food waste while she went skiing. She launched Northstar Sleep School to help individuals and groups make behavior changes in their day-to-day to get better sleep. She also hosts the Northstar Unplugged podcast and enjoyed interviewing classmate BRYAN STEWART about the future of remote work.

GILLIAN SHEEHAN, F06

2006

In 2021, GILLIAN SHEEHAN moved with her husband and kids to Khartoum to serve as chief of staff for the UN political mission United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan. One coup, two COVID-19 lockdowns, and many crisis management meetings later, she is looking forward to a year off in Scotland for 2022-23. Come and visit!

CHRISTOPHE BOULIERAC, GMAP I 2007

2007 GMAP I

After five years as acting Global UNICEF spokesperson in Geneva, CHRISTOPHE BOULIERAC is now director of the Division of Strategic Communication and Public Information within MONUSCO (the UN Peacekeeping Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo), based in Kinshasa.

HELENI MICHALOPOULOU, GMAP I 2007

2007 GMAP I

HELENI MICHALOPOULOU is serving as ambassador of Greece to Qatar, where she was appointed in September 2020.

FABIENNE STASSEN

2007 GMAP II

On May 31, FABIENNE STASSEN celebrated the 10th anniversary of her company, EditOr Proof. In addition to this business, Fabienne runs a nonprofit organization called The Good Times whose mission is to highlight positive news, communicate actions that have led to important achievements, and report on the work of insightful individuals. In March and April, The Good Times published a series on inspirational women who have made a real difference or even altered the course of history. In June, it launched a series on the positive aspects of new technologies. Fabienne started The Good Times in 2007.

CARMEN ARCE, F08

CARMEN ARCE, F08

2008

CARMEN ARCE was awarded a Tufts Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award in March. For the last seven years, Carmen has served as COO of The Partnership, Inc. in Boston, helping advance professionals of color at all levels of professional life. Carmen lives in Watertown, MA, with her 12-year-old daughter, Pilar.

MICHELLE BARSA, F08

2008

MICHELLE BARSA co-authored chapters in a new volume of Untapped Power: Leveraging Diversity and Inclusion for Conflict and Development. Her chapter addresses the need for diversity and inclusion in security sector forces to provide more responsive support in post-conflict settings. She currently serves as the program director for democracy and social identity at Beyond Conflict and recently held senior advisory positions on countering violent extremism at USAID, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Equal Access International.

LAURIE GAGNON, F08

2008

LAURIE GAGNON has been named program director of CompetencyWorks at the Aurora Institute, a national education nonprofit. In this role, she will lead CompetencyWorks, an openly available online resource providing information about K-12 competency-based education.

ERIN HART, F08

2008

ERIN HART started a new position this spring as communications director at Gender Justice, a Minnesota nonprofit that seeks to advance gender equity through the law. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband, Ben, and their two daughters, ages 3 and 6, and would welcome any Fletcher visitors passing through the Midwest.

SARA MONICCHI, F08

SARA MONICCHI, F08

2008

Christian and SARA MONICCHI got married July 30, 2021, in Perugia, Italy, her hometown, after having to move the wedding twice because of the pandemic. They had a wonderful day with their guests, and they appreciated every moment, especially considering that it was unclear until the end whether they could go ahead with it or not.

ALISON MORSE, F08

2008

ALISON MORSE has been living in Swarthmore, PA, since 2013. She recently started a new job as vice president of philanthropic consulting at National Philanthropic Trust. She works with philanthropists on how and where to give their funding, specializing in international giving. She and her husband, Ben, did all the pandemic things: planted a garden, rescued a puppy, and bought a “vacation” house. It’s in Amherst, MA, which isn’t exactly a vacation destination, but near family and friends. She was so thrilled to have SARAH LANCE and JEN WEEDON as her first visitors.

SANDY KREIS LACEY, F09

2009

SANDY KREIS LACEY has started a new chapter in her career as the director of innovation at Perkins School for the Blind. She is creating a technology innovation center for the multidisability, blind, and visually impaired communities. Sandy would love to connect with any entrepreneurs or investors in the disability-tech space. She is also entering her second year of teaching the course Building an Entrepreneurial Venture at MIT Sloan. She is happy to share that she moved to the Berkshires with her husband, Stephen, their daughter (almost 3), and dog (12). The Laceys enjoy lots of hiking and are learning about the night sky with Sandy’s new telescope.

SOPHIE POUGET, F09

2009

In July 2021, SOPHIE POUGET was appointed executive director of the RAJA-Danièle Marcovici Foundation, which advocates for women’s and girls’ rights across the world. The same month, she was nominated by UNHCR as a judge at the French National Court for Asylum. The choice being too difficult, she decided to do both. Days are busy, but that did not prevent her from taking 12-year-old Marie across the Alps for the Tour du Mont Blanc. Now preparing for the next adventure—probably Réunion Island next summer!

CHRISTINA SASS, F09

CHRISTINA SASS, F09

2009

CHRISTINA SASS is launching a new initiative: a way for early stage, diverse, mission-driven founders to have the competitive advantage that high-level executive coaching and management training offers to those who can afford it. Dive In (short for Diversity Investments) will trade equity for coaching and then make follow-on investments in top performing founders. If you’re interested, she’d love to hear from you. Christina remains an active co-founder of Andela, Inc., as chair of the Andela Advisory Council, and chair of the Andela alumni network. In May, Christina celebrated 40th birthdays with SARAH LABOWITZ, CAITLIN MCSHANE, MACKINNON WEBSTER, and Kate Quigely. In August 2021, Christina moved to Nashville, TN, with her husband, Eric Nonacs, and their very curious and talkative 2-year-old daughter, Georgia Emmylou Sass Nonacs.

2009 Joanna Watkins and her husband, Scott, completed the Cape Argus race on their tandem bike during a trip to Cape Town
2009 Joanna Watkins and her husband, Scott, completed the Cape Argus race on their tandem bike during a trip to Cape Town.

JOANNA WATKINS, F09

2009

In September 2021, JOANNA WATKINS, her husband, Scott, and Silas, age 2, moved to Johannesburg, South Africa. With the World Bank, Joanna’s now covering governance projects for Southern Africa, making lots of short regional trips between waves of the pandemic. They’re living next to a working dairy farm, so Silas loves everything that moos!

JOSIANE TIYA, GMAP II 2009

2009 II GMAP

Since 2012, JOSIANE TIYA has been working for the United Nations Peacekeeping missions, United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). She started out in Darfur as a civil affairs officer, working for six years on prevention of conflict and reconciliation. Since February 2018, she has been working for the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) as the head of the Reconciliation and Dialogue Unit in the Civil Affairs Section. She provides support to the government with the establishment of local peace committees in 14 prefectures. She also supports the return of refugees and internally displaced persons and organizes intercommunity dialogue among Muslims and Christians.

BEKA FEATHERS, F10

2010

BEKA FEATHERS published her second book in June. Why the People is a nonfiction graphic novel that examines different forms of government and asks what it is about democracy that makes it so appealing to so many people around the world.

SAURAV JUNG THAPA, F10

2010

SAURAV JUNG THAPA joined The Trevor Project in March 2022 as senior manager of international expansion. He is excited and humbled to play a leading role in Trevor’s work to prevent LGBTQ youth suicide around the world by providing crisis counseling services.

TARA LEUNG, F10

2010

TARA LEUNG and her family completed a sabbatical year in June 2022, which comprised six months in Cambridge, England, and six months in Moshi, Tanzania. They enjoyed living outside the U.S. for the first time in seven years, meeting new friends, and introducing their children to new cultures and contexts. They are happily back in Salt Lake City now and would love to welcome visitors.

CHES THURBER, F10, F15

2010

CHES THURBER, F10, F15, lives in DeKalb, IL, where he’s an assistant professor of political science at Northern Illinois University. Last year, he published a book based on his Fletcher School dissertation: Between Mao and Gandhi: The Social Roots of Civil Resistance.

Elise Crane's Daughter and Son

ELISE CRANE, F11

2011

ELISE CRANE and her husband, Andrew, welcomed daughter Emmeline Virginia Riedy in February 2022, making 3-year-old Oliver a proud big brother. Elise is still with the State Department and planned to return to DC this summer to manage sports diplomacy exchanges. She looks forward to catching up with Fletcherites in the area over the next few years, even as the rhythm of life has changed from daily happy hours to surviving toddler tantrums and collapsing into bed at 9 p.m.

ADELA RAZ, F11

2011

ADELA RAZ, Afghanistan’s former ambassador to the United States, was one of the recipients of the 2022 Fletcher Women’s Leadership Award. She directs the Afghanistan Policy Lab at Princeton University.

RYAN KELLEY, F12

2012

RYAN KELLEY became a partner at Greenberg Traurig LLP, a global law firm, where he practices corporate law in venture capital transactions and mergers and acquisitions. Ryan lives in the Washington, DC, area with his (very supportive) wife and two sons.

SERHAT CUBUKCUOGLU, F15

2015

In April, SERHAT CUBUKCUOGLU passed his thesis defense at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and received a doctoral degree in international relations.

MATTHEW GRUBA, F15

2015

Lieutenant Colonel MATTHEW GRUBA has retired from the U.S. Marine Corps following more than 20 years of active-duty service. His last assignment was with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency in Fort Belvoir, VA, where he led the agency’s Crisis Operations Response Team. He will begin law school at the University of Maine in the fall.

GAUTHAM RAVICHANDER, F15

2015

GAUTHAM RAVICHANDER, see 2016.

2015 U.S. Arts Envoy Pauline Yang was interviewed by Africa Independent Television
2015 U.S. Arts Envoy Pauline Yang was interviewed by Africa Independent Television.

PAULINE YANG, F15

2015

Classical pianist PAULINE YANG was named a U.S. Arts Envoy by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. She traveled to Nigeria for an 11-day tour at the invitation of U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria Mary Beth Leonard.

AMEYA ASHOK NAIK, F16, F16

2016

In December 2021, AMEYA ASHOK NAIK, F16, F16, took over from GAUTHAM RAVICHANDER, F15, as head of policy and advocacy at eGovernments Foundation, a nonprofit that leverages open-source software to build local government capacity in India. He continues to teach policy analysis as a faculty fellow at the Takshashila Institution. Ameya is now based in Bangalore and hopes to run into more Fletcher alumni when they visit the city.

MATTHEW MERIGHI, F16 with his wife, Mayra and their second daughter

MATTHEW MERIGHI, F16

2016

MATTHEW MERIGHI and his wife, Mayra, welcomed their second daughter, Alessandra Sofia, on May 2, 2022.

EITAN PAUL, F16

2016

EITAN PAUL completed his PhD in public policy and political science at the University of Michigan and, over the summer, became research manager for the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at MIT.

2016 GMAP Janine di Giovanni presents her book to the Pope
2016 GMAP Janine di Giovanni presents her book to the Pope.

JANINE DI GIOVANNI, GMAP 2016

2016 GMAP

JANINE DI GIOVANNI is a senior fellow at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, where she teaches a seminar on human rights, humanitarian intervention, and proxy wars. Her ninth book, The Vanishing: Faith, Loss, and the Twilight of Christianity in the Middle East, was published in December. Salman Rushdie described it as “a tragic portrait of a disappearing world, created with all of the great Janine di Giovanni’s passion and literary grace.” Since leaving Fletcher, she was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, the International Federation of Women Journalists’ Courage in Journalism Prize, and, for her career-long collection of writing about war and its effects on civilians, the American Academy of Arts and Letters’ highest prize for nonfiction. She is directing a United Nations’ Democracy Fund project on transitional justice in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen and does consultancies for UNICEF. Janine lives with her son, Luca, in Manhattan and is working on a new book about war crimes called EVIL. She is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a global affairs columnist for Foreign Policy and for The National in Abu Dhabi.

FELIPE GONCALVES MORGADO, GMAP 2017

2017 GMAP

After serving in the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General in 2021-22, FELIPE GONCALVES MORGADO has taken up a new position as Global Head of Strategic Planning of the United Nations Global Compact. The Global Compact is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, promoting partnerships between the private sector and the United Nations.

HOLLY KIRKING LOOMIS, GMAP 2017

2017 GMAP

On a detail assignment from the U.S. State Department beginning this past summer, HOLLY KIRKING LOOMIS has been named executive director of the U.S.-Afghan Women’s Council at Georgetown University. The council amplifies the voices and determination of Afghan women as they seek to sustain their rightful place in Afghan society and the future of their country.

CUTLER DAWSON, F18

2018

CUTLER DAWSON is working in management consulting with Sia Partners in Washington, DC. He is serving as a manager, supporting consumer banking clients. Sia Partners offers a blend of AI and design capabilities, augmenting traditional consulting.

ANDREW KIMBALL, F18

2018

ANDREW KIMBALL left his role working under the Massachusetts undersecretary of energy and climate solutions to join Deloitte’s Energy Reform Practice, where he’s serving as a senior consultant on a range of energy transition-related projects. He relocated to Washington, DC, this summer and looks forward to connecting with former Fletcher classmates.

SASHA LIPTON GALBRAITH, F18

2018

SASHA LIPTON GALBRAITH is working with the International Organization for Migration in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, responding to humanitarian crises throughout the country with emergency shelter assistance. Please get in touch if you’re passing through Ethiopia!

ASIA LISIECKA, F18

2018

ASIA LISIECKA is joining the European Union diplomatic service headquarters in Brussels in July as a team leader in contract, budget, and finance.

RAFFI MNATZAKANIAN, F18

2018

Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy, the gift that keeps on giving: RAFFI MNATZAKANIAN got the opportunity to take command this year and has been putting his Fletcher lessons to use teaching and leading young Army officers in a complex world. He misses all his classmates dearly and knows they are out doing good in the world.

NELSON TAMAYO, F18

2018

In November 2021, NELSON TAMAYO arrived in Angola for his first overseas assignment as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State. He serves as vice consul at U.S. Embassy Luanda.

Karen and Theodore Taylor, F18

KAREN & THEODORE TAYLOR, F18

2018

KAREN and THEODORE TAYLOR welcomed their second daughter, Arden Grace, on March 24, 2022. Annika Rose, born in January 2020, is thrilled to help out with her big-sister duties.

JULIETTE DEVILLARD, F19

2019

JULIETTE DEVILLARD now lives in the U.K., where she has founded London Climate Connection (LCC), which has grown to become London’s largest climate networking scene. Juliette plans on leaving her full-time job to continue building out LCC and explore gaps in the U.K.’s climate-tech ecosystem. Exciting times ahead!

KUDRAT DUTTA CHAUDHARY, F19

KUDRAT DUTTA CHAUDHARY, F19

2019

KUDRAT DUTTA CHAUDHARY was appointed as the co-chair of Women’s March San Francisco. She also recently became a dog mom to Oakley.

JOELLE RIZK, F19

2019

In February 2022, JOELLE RIZK became the digital threats advisor at the International Committee of the Red Cross, based in Geneva.

SAM SCHLEIPMAN, F19

2019

SAM SCHLEIPMAN is living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where he is the business development manager for World Hope International. He is also happy to be a tour guide at Angkor Wat for any Fletcher friends!

AMBARIN SULTANA, F19

2019

After a year of unexpectedly working in the banking sector in Toronto, AMBARIN SULTANA is pursuing a master’s degree in critical urbanisms at the University of Basel and has relocated to Switzerland after months of remote studying and visa issues.

YOSHIKO TOKUCHI, F19

YOSHIKO TOKUCHI, F19

2019

YOSHIKO TOKUCHI moved to Lesotho from Egypt in the beginning of 2022. She’s working in this beautiful country as a social policy officer in the UNICEF Lesotho office.

EMILY PREY, F20

2020

EMILY PREY works at the New Lines Institute in Washington, DC, an organization that published a landmark report in May on genocide in Ukraine. She co-authored the report, which was endorsed by more than 30 of the top legal and genocide scholars in the world. Emily was interviewed about the findings on CNN with Isa Soares.

JEREMY GWINN, F21

JEREMY GWINN, F21

2021

In June, JEREMY GWINN completed his tour at U.S. Embassy Baghdad in the Office of Security Cooperation-Iraq. Next stop is the Pentagon, and he can’t wait to see his Washington, DC, Fletcher friends!

JD KRISTENSON, F21

2021

After a career spent in the Navy, JD KRISTENSON intends to retire next year to pursue management consulting. He aspires to work for McKinsey, Boston Consulting Group, or Bain, and welcomes assistance from anyone in the Fletcher family who can help him achieve that goal. Until then, standing invitation for anyone passing through Hawaii (Oahu): Drinks are on him!

BEN MORSE, F21

2021

On the volunteer front, BEN MORSE is on the Bloomfield, NJ, Board of Education, busy getting students back into learning mode. Remote learning was an oxymoron for many students, so it’s great to be working on solutions. Professionally, looking at oil markets for S&P Global, it has been interesting to say the least. Good luck to all in these upside-down days!

ZUHRA HALIMOVA, GMAP 2022

2022 GMAP

ZUHRA HALIMOVA co-authored chapters in a new volume of Untapped Power: Leveraging Diversity and Inclusion for Conflict and Development. She was an observer with the Inter-Tajik Dialogue, a Track II diplomacy effort that brought together factions from the Tajik Civil War until the signing of the 1997 peace treaty, and her chapter emphasizes the need for inclusion of diverse groups and voices in peace accord implementation.

IN MEMORIAM

Ambassador Phyllis E. Oakley, F57
January 22, 2022
Washington, DC

Isabel A. Dalsimer, F58
February 17, 2022
Alexandria, VA

Mark C. Lissfelt, F58
February 15, 2022
Hingham, MA

Stanley A. Taylor, F61
January 15, 2022
Provo, UT

Thomas R. Van Dervort, F62
April 14, 2022
Murfreesboro, TN

Rusty Mae Moore, F64, F64, F69
February 23, 2022
Pine Hill, NY

Thomas R. Burns, F66
February 10, 2022
Chesapeake Beach, MD

Peter Ackerman, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P
April 26, 2022
Washington, DC
see 1969.

Kevin M. Harris, F81
December 25, 2021
Menlo Park, CA

Jose Santiago “Chito” Sta. Romana, F87
April 19, 2022
Manila, Philippines

CLUB NEWS

The Fletcher Club of DC gathered nearly 50 classmates and friends at Franklin Hall in May

WASHINGTON, DC
The Fletcher Club of DC gathered nearly 50 classmates and friends at Franklin Hall in May for their first gathering in person since the pandemic started. Many thanks to those who made the effort to reunite.

GENEVA
The Fletcher Club of Geneva held a virtual fireside chat on “The Geopolitical Impact of the Ukraine Crisis on International Affairs: A German, EU, and Global Order Perspective” on May 16. The featured speaker was Ambassador RICKLEF BEUTIN, F01, director-general for crisis prevention, stabilization, peace building and humanitarian assistance in the German Federal Foreign Office.

The Fletcher Club of Georgia held a lovely dinner on April 9th

GEORGIA
The Fletcher Club of Georgia held a lovely dinner with PETER ACKERMAN, F69, F71, F76, A02P, F03P, club members, their significant others, and some education leaders in Georgia on April 9. (For a tribute to Ackerman, who died later in April, see 1969.)

The first virtual Fletcher Incoming Admits welcome party was held in April and lasted about three hours

SHANGHAI
Organized by JAY DONG, F00, and DAISY LIU, F99, the first virtual Fletcher Incoming Admits welcome party was held in April and lasted about three hours. Fletcher alumni shared their insights with and addressed questions from incoming 2024 Fletcher students. Topics included memorable teachers and events, life on campus, selecting classes, internships, planning careers, living in the Boston area, dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, and American culture.Thanks to all Tufts and Fletcher alumni volunteers for making this first Fletcher Incoming Admits party a reality: YAN BAI, A09, F16, N21,BRIAN CHIEN, F05,MAGGIE HU, F22, JANICE LIU, E18, XINYUAN TIAN, F19, YUANDA WANG, F19, YAO WU, F18, and FANG ZHANG, F19.

FLETCHER WOMEN’S NETWORK
In April, the Fletcher Women’s Network organized a joint networking event with the student group Fletcher Women in Business. The FWN also co-sponsored a women’s leadership event with the Tufts Financial Network featuring Dean RACHEL KYTE, F02, discussing “The Climate Imperative.” The FWN Steering Committee has openings for leaders. If you’re interested, write to fletcheralumnae@gmail.com.

FLETCHER WOMEN’S NETWORK, BOSTON
The Fletcher Women’s Network, Boston, hosted its annual Graduation Tea during Fletcher’s Reunion Weekend.

FLETCHER WOMEN’S NETWORK, MAINE
The newly formed Fletcher Women’s Network, Maine, has 36 members. It held a Zoom networking event and a brunch in the spring.