| Kenyon Class of 2019 Fall Class Letter
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| Dear Class of 2019,
As I sit down to write this letter, I can’t help but recall Kenyon in the fall. I find myself filled with nostalgia just thinking of walking on Middle Path at the onset of the season when the trees have just started to turn and the outside air becomes cool & crisp. By now, the leaves, in all their autumnal colors, have fallen and are blanketing the ground. However, after two years spent away from Gambier, I miss having the ability to run into another member of our class. While it’s only been a short time since our graduation, two years away from our class and Kenyon feels too long! I look forward to the time when we’re all able to reconnect on the Hill. Hopefully it’s before our five-year reunion in Spring 2024, which hopefully will align with the school’s bicentennial celebration.
And what a campus we’ll have to return to! Chalmers Library is [finally] open and beautiful. All four classes are studying together again in Gambier. And there’s even a cohort of first years finishing a semester in Copenhagen! Needless to say, plans are taking shape for an unforgettable Reunion 2022 on the Hill. (Mark your calendar for the weekend of May 27, 2022. All alumni are invited to attend!)
In other exciting campus news, the College has just shared its new strategic plan that will guide its planning and actions leading up to the bicentennial in 2024, as well as in subsequent years. You will be pleased to see it includes core elements like developing a computer science program informed by the liberal arts; enrolling, retaining and graduating a student body that is representative of the talent and diversity of not only of our own country, but also other countries around the world; implementing a holistic approach to health and wellness, with an emphasis on mental health; and expanding its commitment to environmental responsibility.
You have also likely heard the announcement of the Kenyon Access Initiative which will bring more high-achieving students to Kenyon thanks to a $25 million matching grant from the Schuler Education Foundation. Any amount given through this Kenyon Access Initiative will be matched 1:1 and will go to a new scholarship for students from families with limited means and those ineligible for government aid — up to $25 million.
I could go on for pages about these two pieces of Kenyon news, but lucky for you, I don’t have to. Scroll on to learn more about Kenyon’s strategic plan and the Kenyon Access Initiative (and how they fit into our 2024 bicentennial celebration).
As you read about what’s in store for Kenyon’s future, I hope you’ll consider supporting today’s students with a gift to the Kenyon Fund and (if you’re able) making an additional gift to the Kenyon Access Initiative that has the potential to bring 50 additional talented students to Kenyon each year.
Kenyon couldn’t be Kenyon without the involvement and support of alumni like us. As the bicentennial draws closer, I challenge each of you to do a little more than you have in the past to help make Kenyon the special place it is. This could mean becoming an alumni volunteer, attending a sponsored event, submitting a class note or setting up a recurring monthly gift.
Thank you!
Rad Savage, and the rest of the Class of 2019 Agents
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| There's a lot happening at Kenyon today.
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We want you to be a part of it.
The Our Path Forward to the Bicentennial campaign is about building a strong foundation for Kenyon’s third century by growing our endowment and strengthening alumni connections. Get involved by:
Staying connected to Kenyon
You may only be a Kenyon student for four years, but you’re a member of our alumni community for life. The Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement strives to make it easy — and fun — to stay connected. GET INVOLVED
Making a gift
Gifts of all sizes add up: every year, gifts of $100 or less to the Kenyon Fund total more than $250,000. Also, every dollar given to the Kenyon Access Initiative between now and June 2026 will be matched and used to create permanent new scholarship funds to enroll exceptional students with limited resources and those who are ineligible for government aid. MAKE A GIFT
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| Upcoming Events for Alumni
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Save the date for these upcoming events for alumni taking place online and on the Hill.
- Kenyon Women Giving Back
The quarterly event series continues on Tuesday, March 22 via Zoom.
- Kenyon Together
The 36-hour online giving challenge kicks off Tuesday, April 12.
- Reunion Weekend
All alumni are invited to join us on the Hill May 27–29.
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Class AgentsClass agents are your connection to campus. If you would like to learn more about becoming a class agent, contact Parker Subia at subiap@kenyon.edu.
• Kaylin Allshouse
• Clara Altfeld
• Taylor Hazan
• Annmarie Magnus
• Matt Mandel
• Rad Savage
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Taylor Hazan
After a pandemic-induced hermitage in Charlotte, North Carolina, where I watched more television in the span of six months than I had in the last six years, I have returned to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where there are too many Kenyon alums to count! I'm so thrilled to be seeing purple Ks on the streets of Boston. If you're here, please don't hesitate to reach out!
Claire Oleson
I recently signed with a literary agent at Janklow & Nesbit to represent my hopeful-debut novel centered on queerness and rural space.
Caroline Daugherty
I am currently pursuing a Masters in Business Analytics at MIT's Sloan School of Management. I live with Keely Lovato '20 in Boston, MA and we love running together all around the city!
Nathan Grosh
Nathan Grosh just moved to Boston with his girlfriend, Ally Cirelli. He is continuing to consult for the public sector and is going local by working for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Additionally, he is extremely proud of his girlfriend who started her Graduate program in Art History & Museum Studies at Tufts this fall. The two of them are loving the city and are excited to explore it in the coming years.
Jess Kusher
I’ve been told I take the long way to the beach. In 2021 I took Amtrak across the country from Portland, Oregon to the ocean just south of Portland, Maine. Last year during the pandemic I canoed across the state of South Carolina from the foothills of Appalachia to the Atlantic Ocean. I’m currently applying to graduate schools and before this trip I completed my Wilderness EMT training. Let me know if anyone needs an adventure buddy, I’ll bring the first aid kit. Cheers!
Eve Bromberg
I am working as an American History Teacher and College Advisor at La Scuola d'Italia, a bilingual Italian American school on the Upper East Side. In addition, I'm continuing to work on my MA at CUNY's Graduate Center (I have around a year left). I now live in Crown Heights, amongst many Kenyon alums!
Schuyler Stupica
I recently started classes at the University of Michigan Law School and am enjoying life in Ann Arbor! It has been inspiring and energizing to be a part of the vibrant public interest community here, particularly through student groups and pro bono opportunities aimed at addressing injustices in the criminal legal system. I've become particularly involved with a group called MDefenders, which is designed to prepare and train students for careers in public defense. I also went to my first D1 football game! (Although I probably spent more time looking in awe at the sea of maize than I did watching the sport itself).
Samuel Wolf
This year has been an eventful one for me: After much time job hunting I found my way as a replacement teacher in Delaware. Mind you this is a pandemic year, and the hybrid classroom was no place for someone as green as me. After my 6 months I sorely needed to understand aspects of myself and my direction, so I heeded the advice of a Kenyon professor to walk the Camino. Historically a 500-mile Catholic pilgrimage, it was a journey of much personal transformation and self-discovery. I met people who I would never reasonably meet had I stayed on the straight and narrow. I heard stories and had revelations. I saw things and had coincidences that threw doubt into the mind of this skeptic. All this time I contemplated my return. I essentially forgot about an exchange program I had applied to the year before. Out of nowhere the JET Programme upgrades me from a waitlist, and I am suddenly thrown into a frenzy of paperwork in the middle of the wheat fields of Spain. I had to complete important paperwork while conducting myself in Spanish. I personally translated my medical clearance into English. I had to walk 50 miles to get to the nearest printer and doctor. I recall whipping my laptop out and tethering it with my phone next to a stone trough. Yes, the kind which horses drink out of. It all worked out, because I am now in Tokyo, Japan, ready to embark on my next adventure. I don't speak a word of Japanese, and I am eyeing a 750 mile pilgrimage in southern Japan. What a journey life is.
Rachel Cohn
I still happily reside in North Carolina and am working part-time as a public librarian while I finish my master's degree. It's totally my dream job, and I'm excited for whatever the future holds. My Kenyon pin hangs proudly on my work lanyard with all the other artsy/queer/bookish/film ones. My aquatic frogs also happily reside here and are excited for whatever the future holds. In my commute I've discovered how wonderful audiobooks can be, so I'm consuming many more medical thrillers and miscellaneous stories (courtesy of the three library systems I belong to...). I still dream most of writing my own stories, though, whenever I might have the time and rest for that.
Madeline Westover
Madeline Westover began graduate school at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth as a member of the Class of 2023.
Hannah Orbach-Mandel
Hi everyone! I have just started my second year in my Master's of Public Policy program at Brandeis University. I am excited to be back in person learning and am also enjoying catching up with old Kenyon friends in the area.
Devon Musgrave-Johnson
My life took a huge turn this year as I changed career paths in order to become a teacher. I quit my desk job and am now working as a Language Arts teacher at a boarding school called Landmark in Beverly, MA. Landmark is a school for students with language based learning disabilities and it has been an incredible first month getting to know my students. I am also working towards a master’s degree in special education from Boston University. I don't really sleep anymore, but it's worth it.
Molly Cox
I recently had the chance to reconnect with Kate Prince '17 in Washington, D.C., and reminisce about our days on the rugby team. I love living in my neighborhood in DC and making frequent trips to my local farmers market. For work, I run the operations for an art auction house. In my free time, I can be found searching for jobs in foreign affairs, singing Lizzo, and listening to Arabic music on the Metro.
Emma Garschagen
Since fall 2019, I have been working as a professional sailor. As the first mate and boat captain for 59 North Sailing, I lead our crew on offshore sailing adventures and am responsible for the safe operation and upkeep of the ship. We sail a 1991 Swan 59 called ICEBEAR, on which I have logged over 15,000 ocean miles since 2019. In 2022, I will be making my second Atlantic crossing and then sailing far north to the Arctic. When I'm not sailing, I live on the dry land of Boulder, Colorado. Onshore, I work as 59 North Sailing’s creative director, which includes co-hosting and producing their podcast On the Wind Sailing.
Elise Neidecker
No-knead is for kids who went to Denison; sourdough is for the Lords and Ladies. Thanks to Rachel Roux for the solid tips. Find me in Boulder slaying dough with Zach Sawicki ’16 and Morgan Thompson ’17.
Charlotte Smithson
After two wonderful, formational years at a corporate law firm planning events, assisting with technological snafus, and providing legal support to attorneys, I decided in September 2021 to pivot (not exactly unique after a worldwide pandemic) and accept a position in the not-for-profit space with The Nature Conservancy of Ohio. I am excited to use my Kenyon English degree to craft proposals asking our donors to invest their dollars in our lands, waters, and climate. On the side, I am also a council member and event coordinator for a regional hub for emerging professionals called the Columbus Young Professionals Club, which reaches over 30,000 young professionals in Central Ohio to provide leadership development, share community and culture news, and spark important conversations. Through the CYP Club and a group I helped create called Understanding White Privilege & Using Our Voice for Change (UWP), I put together monthly interviews of people in Central Ohio who make social advocacy and justice a daily practice. On a lighter note, I have also been volunteering on-and-off with Columbus Humane for the past two years, and currently I am a dog handler for our volunteer photographers so that we can show off our adoptable canines before potential adopters even come through our doors!
Grant Carr
I left my job in Columbus to start a PhD program at the University of Michigan, because I love working harder for less money! Equally exciting, I bought a second drying rack so that I don't have to pay $1 for the drier in my apartment.
Masen Colucci
Over the past couple of months, I've been permitting with I.A.T.S.E. Local 476 in Chicago, working as a grip and electrician on a few different TV shows shooting in Chicago. I've gotten to work on four different shows and am working towards getting my union card.
Arielle Tooch
I am working as a therapist in Los Angeles, working with college students and writing my dissertation on campus sexual assault and student activism.
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If you missed the chance to share your news for this letter, you can submit a class note at any time via class.letters@kenyon.edu.
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Did you know you can become a member of one of Kenyon's leadership giving societies by regularly making a gift of any size to the College? Benefits include society-specific favors, Reunion Weekend perks and camaraderie with Kenyon’s most loyal alumni. Visit kenyon.edu/societies for more information.
Kenyon is grateful to the following young alumni donors for their generous support of the College, including the Kenyon Fund, during the 2020-21 fiscal year. An asterisk (*) indicates a donor is a member of the Henry J. Abraham Society for loyal and consecutive giving.
Young Alumni Annual Fund Total: $15,905
Philander Chase Society
Donors of $10,000 to $24,999
Class of 2018
Julia T. Wilson*
Bexley Society
Donors of $2,500 to $9,999
Class of 2018
Isaiah Stavchansky
Class of 2021
Jennie E. VanMeter*
Gambier Society
Gifts of $120 to $1,000
(0-4 years post-graduation)
Class of 2017
Gabriel M. Avis*
Connor D. Bingham*
Brooke M. Cheney
Emma W. Conover-Crockett*
Madelyn K. Cook*
Lydia R. Felty*
Claire E. O'Donnell-McCarthy
Julia L. Plottel*
Nathaniel E. Shahan*
Elizabeth R. Siphron*
Elana S. Spivack
Leslie M. Taylor
David W. Thoensen
Emma J. Welsh-Huggins
Class of 2018
Matthew F. Carney
James W. Ernst
Houlder L. Hudgins*
Parker A. Subia*
Class of 2019
Caroline G. Daugherty*
Jack A. Fantini*
Nathan C. Grosh
Emma C. Hood*
Evangeline G. R. Warren*
Linda A. Wittenberg
Class of 2020
Jacob H. Barnett*
Lufeng Chen*
Megan L. Collins*
Jonathan A. Hammond*
William R. Hartman*
Patrick M. Kawakami*
Grace W. Moses*
Class of 2021
Henry W. Biedron*
Kenyon Society
Donors of $1 to $999
Class of 2017
Elizabeth W. Abrash
Zoe E. Andris
Avery D. Baldwin
Alton S. Barbehenn
Ben M. Berliner*
Christiana G. Binkley*
Caroline G. Burley*
Dominic W. Camperchioli*
Theresa A. Chmiel*
Samuel P. Clougher*
Abigail L. Coleman
Kenton J. DeBouter*
Laura E. Duncan
Taylor R. Eth*
Ines A. Forjaz de Lacerda
Kyra A. T. Green*
Nora D. Hamovit
Claire E. Hildebrandt
Guanyu Hu*
Taylor L. Jamil
Meredith A. Krieg
Sarah M. Lloyd*
Emily R. Margolin
Shannon E. Napier
Alexander J. O'Connor
Aubrianna M. Osorio*
Alison T. Pratt*
Henry M. Quillian IV
Seth T. Reichert
Alexander W. Seaver*
Emily K. Top*
Olivia E. Walsh
Julia R. Weinberg*
Class of 2018
Eliza M. Abendroth*
Brooks H. Alderman*
Ian D. Bell
Mary E. Brady*
Benjamin T. Campos*
Susannah D. Davies*
Jules A. Desroches
Meredith Gano*
Elinor P. Horn*
Katelyn N. Hutchinson*
Sarah P. Jensen
Natalie S. Kane*
Maia R. Leeds
Juliet E. Levy
Maya E. L. Lowenstein*
Jack Marooney
John McFarlane*
Juliette S. Moffroid
Madeleine C. Morgan
Nathan J. Novak*
Dana L. Oakes
Katilyn M. Perry*
Clara G. Pinchbeck*
Indigo L. Rinearson*
McKenna C. Trimble*
Joshua R. Walmer
Hannah E. Weingold
Class of 2019
Frances L. Alani
Clara L. Altfeld
Benjamin P. Bassett
Emma A. Braden*
Henry D. Brill*
Rachel I. Cohn
Emily A. Davis*
Alexandria R. Donnelly*
Benjamin W. Erjavac*
Luisa A. Estrada
Gabriella L. Eugenio*
Benjamin S. Gross
Taylor A. Hazan*
Dani N. Huffman
Alexandra L. Kanovsky
Michael J. Lahanas-Calderon
Sam A. Lipscomb
Andrea L. Ludwig
William J. Moran III
Pranav Mulpur*
Rachel N. Nguyen
Michaela N. Orr
Radclyffe W. Savage
Fiona M. Shearer
Sarah R. Sklar*
Charlotte N. Smithson
Peyton A. Thomas*
Lan Anh Tran
Alexandra T. Wilson
Juliana P. Withers
Class of 2020
Gail F. Anderson
Nicholas T. Bennett*
Nicholas V. Culbert
Jacob G. Fisher*
Jessica I. Gorovitz
Sarah M. Griswold*
Patrick F. Hudnut*
Baxter J. King-Epping*
Juexuan Wang*
Eleanor M. Wellik*
Class of 2021
Samantha G. Beck*
Amir K. Brivanlou*
Myanna L. Cook*
Emily N. Criss*
Mary M. Dierker*
Jorge D. Dumenigo*
Phu Duong*
Allegra G. Fass*
Molly W. Folks*
Jonathan Hernandez*
Dresden S. Lonergan*
Makena M. Markert*
Paulina A. Mendez*
Ruqin Mu*
Claire C. Murray*
Olivia G. O'Connell*
Hannah D. Petrich*
Elizabeth C. Quinn*
Andrew J. T. Smith*
Liana M. Valin*
Yang Wu*
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Kenyon College
105 Chase Avenue, Gambier, OH 43022
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