Sprin 2023 Class Letters

Class of 2011 Spring Class Letter
Dear Class of 2011,

By the time you’re reading this, we hope that spring has sprung and that you are anxiously awaiting the arrival of this letter. 

If you missed the big announcement, after nearly 10 years, President Sean Decatur will be leaving Kenyon. He will be moving on to become the new President of the American Museum of Natural History in New York, starting in April 2023. Developed through input from alumni and others in the Kenyon community, the presidential search committee has assembled a leadership profile that outlines the qualities sought in Kenyon’s next president. For the latest on the search, visit kenyon.edu/presidentialsearch. The announcement of our 20th president will come later this summer.

In other college news, Oden Hall — named for Kenyon’s 17th president Robert A. Oden, Jr. from 1995-2002)  — opened in the spring as home to faculty from sociology, political science, history and philosophy. Anthropology is also represented with a dedicated laboratory space and Kenyon’s Center for the Study of American Democracy will also call Oden Hall home. Oden contains more than 50 offices for faculty, is fully accessible and houses a 280-seat auditorium, bridging the gap between the capacities of Rosse Hall and the Community Foundation Theater in Gund Gallery. 

Planning for our bicentennial in 2024 is underway! If you have an idea for a special project (e.g. any creative event or collaboration that would add excitement to the bicentennial year!) for the College’s 200th birthday celebration, you can apply for funding by emailing bicentennial@kenyon.edu. 

Alumni are actively connecting on the CDO’s Kenyon Career Connections group on LinkedIn. It’s a space to share career-related opportunities and resources or promote career and continuing education discussions to the Kenyon community. We encourage you to check it out if you haven’t already!

Up next for many Kenyon alumni is Reunion Weekend May 26-28, which should be a celebration to remember, as always. Then on to our yearlong bicentennial celebration! There will be many opportunities for alumni to  participate, so stay tuned. We hope you will carve out some time to make it back to the Hill to celebrate our alma mater’s big 200 in whatever way feels meaningful to you. 

Hope to see you soon, 
Rachel & Sam

P.S. Quick update on our class gift! If you recall, we purchased a wooden swing as our class gift back in 2011. It was originally hung behind Leonard overlooking the Lowry Center. Due to construction of new dorm buildings on South Quad, we worked with the facilities department to find a new permanent home - right next to Ransom on Pierce Lawn! We have heard it is well loved and enjoyed by the students. 

Upcoming Events for Alumni
Save the date for these upcoming events for alumni taking place online and on the Hill.
  • Virtual Alumni Town Hall
    Our Reunion Town Hall with Acting President Jeff Bowman and others will take place Thursday, May 11 via Zoom.

  • Reunion Weekend
    All alumni are invited to join us on the Hill May 26–28.

  • Homecoming Weekend
    Join us for athletic competitions, festivities and alumni volunteer meetings on the Hill Sept. 29-30.
Visit kenyon.edu/alumnievents to register for the events above and view our full alumni event calendar.

Class Agents

Class agents are your connection to campus. To learn more about becoming one, contact Annual Giving Operations Coordinator Terry Dunnavant via email.

• James Asimes
• Rachel Berger
• Prita Kidder Carroll
• Mathew Cowlin
• Laura Kirschenbaum
• Victoria Lederer
• Kara Pellegrino
• Sam Reichenbach

Class of 2011 Spring Notes
Ayesha Akhtar: This February we welcomed our second son, Ayaan Noah Nehar, into our family. Our toddler Aidhaan is slowly learning how to share the spotlight. Joseph ’10 and I are still based in the Bronx, NY but sometimes we dream of moving to a rural place outside the city.

Danielle Bishop: Still living in Barcelona, working as a researcher and project manager for EU cultural and educational projects. I recently had the best time catching up with Doug Wieand over two weekends in Barcelona and Perpignan, France. If anyone else finds themselves in Barcelona this year, I'd love to meet up or offer recommendations! :)

Rachel Bucey: I am the most successful Kenyon alum and I’m killing it. I am a senior VP at W Promote, and if you don’t know what that is, I feel sorry for you. I’m getting married in June on a vineyard (yes, you should be jealous). My Tesla is white hot (just like your jealousy). I have the best and most beautiful Kenyon friends, who may or may not have written this note. Xoxo

Elana Carlson: Greetings from Hudson, New York! This Fall, I relocated to Upstate from Martha's Vineyard after it was clear there was not a sustainable way to run the business I started, Fantzye Bagels & Suppers. Also, a housing crisis, etc. etc. I love it so far! I'm in closer proximity of many Kenyon Alums. Fingers crossed, I will be opening up a brick and mortar location for Fantzye up here in 2023 -- stay tuned and Alumni Magazine Editors, where is the feature? Someone told me recently in jest it's because my donations are not substantial enough.

Lauren (Brady) Crook: Hi! I recently met up with training partner Hannah Saiz ’13 in Boston over coffee to talk about jobs (she's here coaching the Boston University men and women's swim team!), daily inspirations, our time in and out of the pool this year, and obviously butterfly. I am still working as a PICU RN at Boston Children’s Hospital and expecting my second baby any day now. Hannah and I shared excitement for my son's love for the water.

Ashley Gray: I was recently promoted to Collections Archivist at Berklee and also celebrated ten years living in Boston! I'm looking forward to lots of long-awaited Kenyon mini-reunions on the calendar for 2023.

Lucy Hughes: Hello old friends! I always love reading everyone’s notes and yet have procrastinated on writing my own for 12 years. I am enjoying life in Seattle working as a pelvic floor physical therapist. I finished my doctorate in 2017, residency in orthopedic manual therapy in 2021, and specialization in pelvic health just this past year. Now I am looking into integrating mental health and somatic therapy into pelvic health physical therapy services with a focus on sexual trauma and birth trauma. I got married last year to the nerdiest man in the world, we bought a little townhouse, and this year we are expecting our first baby! We had such a good time at the Kenyon reunion. Even though so much has changed and will continue to change in Gambier, I suspect that hardcore nostalgia will always hit me right in the gut. Take care, everybody!

Victoria Lederer: Hey 2011! Always enjoy seeing what everyone is up to. I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead. I'll be running the Boston Marathon on April 17th and hopefully connecting with a few Kenyon friends while there. Then I get to jet off to Spain for 12 days for a work trip. Otherwise, I'm eager for spring and summer weather to arrive to get to spend more time outside on my bikes.

Alison Lynn: I am very excited to announce that I got married on March 4th in Collingswood, NJ to my now-husband, Dan. Many Kenyon friends were in attendance including Hally Wolhandler and Remy Bernstein ’13, Susannah Rosenfield ’12, Rachel Oscar, Molly Botnick ’13 and David D'Altorio ’12, Kelly McPharlin ’12, Rachael Polton, and Emma Rhodes ’07. Perhaps most meaningfully, my freshman and sophomore year roommate, Taylor Lenci was our amazing wedding photographer. Thank you, ResLife for the best random assignment I've ever gotten! We'll always have McBride 215.

Sam Mashaw: I graduated with my MSW from Smith School for Social Work in August of 2022, and I have begun my work as a clinical social worker supporting clients via telehealth in Connecticut.

Casey McKone: I am loving life in Cleveland. From beers with fellow Kenyon grads, working as a nurse practitioner, fixing up my house and playing with my dog… life off the Hill continues to be full of possibility!

Chad Kurylo and Lindsay Means: We’re several alumni updates late, but we got married in California in March 2022, surrounded by many Kenyon friends. Since then, we’ve moved to Salem, Massachusetts; Lindsay is the events manager at Beacon Hill Books in Boston—Kenyon authors, please reach out! —and Chad works with life sciences companies, large and small. We look forward to meeting more Kenyon alumni in the Boston area!

Jamie Miller: Talofa Class of 2011! Greetings from the South Pacific. I hope this message finds you well! As a brief update, I am currently serving as an Assistant Attorney General for the U.S. Territory of American Samoa, in Pago Pago, where I act as general counsel for several government departments, including homeland security, port administration, and procurement. Should your travels take you to the southern hemisphere, please look me up and I would be delighted to show you how to husk a coconut!
Jon Myers: Caiti Boucher and I are in Arlington VA with two kiddos.

Laura Paul: In July 2022, I started a new job as a research agricultural economist with the US Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service! It's a fully remote position, so in June 2023 I'm moving from Delaware to Durham, NC. I look forward to seeing all of the Kenyon folks in the triangle!

Ryan Poh: I got married to my wife, Shannon, in Jackson Hole, WY in November. Was honored to have fellow Kenyon alum Brandon (Don Bentli) Ventling, Dr. Beau Calcei, Dr. Mark Sullivan and Miguel Barrera standing next to me.

Melanie (Papai) Szucs: My news is that I am starting my own counseling practice! It is exciting and scary to be starting my own business, but it is a good next step in my career. And yes, my Golden Retriever Luna will still work with me every day as a therapy dog!

MaryElise Topp: We are grateful to announce the addition of a human baby to our goat farm this January! Baby Maya was born peacefully at home on January 14. She joins our six dogs, 42 goats (including 12 kids born this spring!) and 50+ chickens as the newest resident of Purple Goat Gardens in Austinburg, Ohio. There's always a lot going on but snuggling baby goats, (and now, cuddling a baby baby), makes it all worth it! Kenyonites are always welcome to drop in when you're in the area!

Peyton Ward and Jim Hatzopoulos ’10 welcomed their first child, Lawrence, in November.
Read notes from the Class of 2010 and the Class of 2012.
Read notes from faculty.
Support Kenyon
Help make our class notes even better in the next class letter, submit a note at any time via kenyon.edu/class-note-form.
Kenyon College
105 Chase Avenue, Gambier, OH 43022