CLASS OF 2009 | 2015 | ISSUE 2
Your fellow classmates have been busy earning degrees, publishing works, traveling, and getting married—read below for more details!
Kwabea Osae-Kwapong just received her MBA from Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business.
Rachel Berkowitz graduated from the Illinois College of Optometry in May. In July, she will begin a one-year optometry residency at the Boston VA healthcare system in Brockton, Mass. She is sad to leave Chicago, but is looking forward to reconnecting with old friends and Wes alum in Boston!
For the last three years, Jake Abrahamson has been writing and editing for Sierra, the magazine of the Sierra Club. His piece on solar power in rural India will appear in The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2015, to be released in October.
Seth Halpern graduated with honors from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. He purchased a condo near Dupont Circle and is now working in new product development at Privia Health.
Laura Masulis moved and took a new position at MassDevelopment working on the downtown revitalization of Springfield, Mass.
Sara Deniz Akant’s first book of poems, Parades, was published by Omnidawn in Oct. 2014, and a full-length collection, Babette, is forthcoming from Rescue Press this November. She’s also the author of chapbook titled Latronic Strag, published by Persistent Editions in April 2015. She mostly lives in New York and plans to begin a PhD in English at the CUNY Graduate Center this fall.
Mike Repplier is a booking producer at ABC News, securing competitive interviews for Good Morning America and digital platforms. He recently traveled to Germany to cover the German wings plane disaster. Last November, he ran his first NYC marathon and is currently deciding whether to train for this year’s race… or if the summer would be better spent drinking sangria on the beach.”
Daphne Schmon finished directing a feature documentary called Down to Earth, which follows Venezuelan Ernesto Gainza on his journey to achieve a Guinness World Record for skydiving with the smallest and fastest parachute in history. Trailer available here: seek-films.com/project/down-to-earth/
Keiko Hamano writes, “I am in my second year of practicing as a certified massage therapist. After receiving my initial training I went on to complete an additional course in neuromuscular massage therapy. My education and experience in massage has exposed me to a whole new world of health care practices. This has sparked my interest in complementary and alternative medicine, especially chiropractic and acupuncture. I have been accepted into the doctor of chiropractic program at the Southern California University of Health Sciences in Whittier, Calif., and I’m starting courses in September. I’m also hoping to complete a masters’ of acupuncture and oriental medicine as well. I am passionate about providing holistic health care options to people suffering from pain or disease. I believe in the power of these fields on their own, but feel the best way for me to serve others is through a multi-disciplinary practice. Looking forward to taking the next step on my journey of helping others through health and wellness!”
Megan Nash and Charlie Kurose ’10 were married on June 6 in Chicago. They were thrilled to celebrate with so many of their Wesleyan classmates: Chris Goy, Graham Immerman, Catherine Kast Stickney, Erik Underwood, Jenny Ajl ’10, Abby Blake ’10, Dan Charness ’10, Chris Foley ’10, Matt Nestler ’10, Jamie Pesuit ’10, Rachel Schwerin ’10, D Williams ’10, Julia Heffelfinger ’11, Zoe Jick ’11, Rick Maynard ’11, and Sophie Sadinsky ’11.
Finally, Paul Edwards will be going to Germany with a grant from the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD, German Academic Exchange Service) for his dissertation on the reception of jazz culture in interwar Germany.
Thanks to those who submitted notes. Please keep them coming in!