Class Notes | 2020s

Greetings from your new Class Secretary! My name is Jane Zhang, a BA ’21, MA ’22 graduate from Wesleyan and a 2L at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. I double majored in philosophy and physics at Wesleyan. As a law student, I continue to explore the intersection of law, business, and technology. This summer I completed an internship with the Legal & Compliance Department at Lindsay Goldberg LLC in New York. In my free time, I love taking ballet classes (a hobby that I started by taking classes with Professor Patricia Beaman), visiting museums, and traveling to different countries. I deeply cherish the people that I got to know during my Wesleyan years. By taking up this volunteer position with Class Notes, I hope to foster new connections within the Wesleyan community. Please feel free to email me with notes and updates that you wish to share.

Here are some updates from the Class of 2021:

Xinyue Zhang has lived in New Haven, Connecticut, for the past two years where she completed a master’s degree in East Asian studies at Yale University. One of the perks of living in Connecticut is staying close to the Wesleyan campus and being able to reconnect with Wes friends whenever they come back to visit! This summer she spent two months in Japan attending a language program in Yokohama and also traveling around the country. She greatly enjoyed eating Japanese hot pots, petting capybaras, and relaxing at local onsen (Japanese hot spring). In the fall she will be starting her PhD in history at Yale, focusing on modern Chinese history as well as the history of science and environmental history. She first discovered her passion for historical research while writing a senior thesis at Wesleyan.

Congratulations to Bryan Chong for starting a new position! Bryan officially joined the labor movement in Connecticut as staff of AFSCME Council 4—the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees is the largest public sector union in the country and represents 30,000 public service workers in Connecticut.

Fengbeiling Wang shared with us her new home, recent career shift, and passions in life: “A lot of changes are happening this bright summer! I just relocated to a hot and easy-living place where crepe myrtle are blooming under the sun—Dallas, it is! While not fully understanding my early career shift from consulting to finance, I am really enjoying the fast pace and data intensity of my job at Goldman Sachs. It is a company with full momentum, efficiency, and diversity. New things happen every day. Meanwhile, I don’t forget about my English literature major at Wesleyan and try to read more and write every week. I also keep learning Japanese with a new teacher twice a week. I cook three meals a day . . .  but I am still not a fan [of] or pro at baking and need more tips on how to make cookies not crumble easily.”

Sarah Lucente wrote: “I am psyched to say that I completed my first year at the Bread Loaf School of English in Vermont this summer! Lots of Wes alumni to find there. :)” Congrats to Sarah!

I appreciate everyone who submitted a note. Please feel free to send me updates throughout the year and look out for new submission requests.

See you next time.

From Clara Babbot-Ward: “I weaseled my way in to creating and running a music curriculum for a school that has never had music before! It turns out sometimes asking for what you want and advocating for what you know could enhance community can work out. I start in the fall— wish me luck!”

From Kush Patel: “I am a few months away from graduating from the Tufts PA program with plans to start a job in dermatology! I hope to travel a bit after I take my boards in January.”

From Lau Maquedano: “It’s been a year since I moved from LA to Madrid and started life from scratch. It was difficult to get my foot in the film industry here at first, and be far from my Wes friends, but I have recently started working at a post house and am loving it. In the meantime, I’m working on an indie short. I’m grateful it was selected in two labs and have attached a production company to help fund it. Looking forward to hopefully shoot it next year!”

From Gabby Bennett: “I’m doing the Chicago Wes Alumni spotlight feature for the Wes Alumni Instagram page.”

From Livia Wallick: “I’ve just accepted a new position at Wesleyan as a major gifts officer! If anyone in our class is ever on campus, please let me know!”

Nikhil Ghosh is switching coasts to pursue graduate studies in NYC at Columbia after working in the software industry in the San Francisco Bay Area.

From Sonja English: “Hey all! Just adopted my first rescue puppy, Moo Moo, who’s already my work-from-home companion. Also, I’ve just started a new role as chief of staff at Ameelio, where we’re providing communications and education technology for incarcerated people and their loved ones—all for free.”

Aysha Khan, Jonathan D. Harber ’86, and Rick Segal ’75 have embarked on a mission to revolutionize education in New York City through a visionary initiative, Runway Green at Floyd Bennett Field. Nestled within the heart of Brooklyn, Floyd Bennett Field is a national park, holding unique historical significance as New York City’s inaugural airport. Today, Runway Green is poised to transform it into an immersive, experiential learning campus. Harber is also the founding chairman of Launch, an expeditionary learning middle school in Brooklyn, and Aysha recently joined to help manage special projects, including the opening of a Launch high school on the Floyd Bennett Field campus.

As for me, I spent most of the summer enjoying all the sunshine and lake water the Midwest has to offer! I was so lucky to spend some time with my senior house roommates at the beach in Massachusetts and with so many other Wes friends during a quick stop in NYC this summer as well! I hope everyone had a great summer and keep an eye out for more emails from me later in fall and winter.

Please send news to your class secretary.

A few updates from classmates:

Bryan Chong works for the Greater New Haven Labor History Association, and worked on Cap the Rent CT, the first sustained campaign for rent stabilization in Connecticut in almost 40 years. Bryan continues to train workers, including student workers, across the country to engage in labor organizing.

Isis Gaddy wrote: “Over the past 18 months, I have lived in two different continents, held five jobs, and started my own business. After graduating from Wesleyan in 2021, I worked as an SEO intern for Zillow. Upon completion I moved to France to participate in the TAPIF program as a teacher’s assistant. During this time, I enjoyed indulging in all things French, including cheese, croissants, and the slower pace of life. However, my time in France was cut short when I received an offer from Bloomberg to join their Planning and Campaign Management Team. Working with the head of business administration, I helped develop new initiatives that were implemented throughout the company and focused on finance management. After my contract was complete, I left Bloomberg to pursue my career in the luxury travel industry.

“Starting with Erina Pindar, the COO of SmartFlyer, I worked to rebuild and launch the EQTR (Equity in Travel) scholarship and internship programs. After completing the internship, I was offered a position in SmartFlyer’s takeoff mentorship program, which provides new travel agents with structure and support as they begin to build their own business in the industry. In less than a year, I have had the opportunity to create an internship and scholarship program for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ individuals, plan domestic and international events for the company, and build my own brand.

“Overall, I am grateful I had the opportunity to continue my passion for languages at Wesleyan, as it has helped me develop professional fluency in in my day-to-day work.”

Taylor Goodman-Leong said: “I have been living in Boston for the past two years and will be graduating this spring from Boston College with my master’s in social work! After graduation, I will be working at the Baker Center for Children and Families as their post-master’s fellow, providing therapy and services for children and adolescents.”

Gayon Yang lives in Irvine, California, and wants to connect with Wesleyan alums in the area! She visits Los Angeles every week, and she’d love to catch up with an alum!

From Saki Ohashi: “I’ll be publishing a book in March of this year, under my pen name Kaki Okumura (secret’s revealed ha ha). It’s called Wa: The Art of Balance because ‘wa’— the Japanese word used to describe Japanese things—also means harmony and represents the value of seeking balance to live a well-rounded life. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun and I’m very excited!”

Lucine Poturyan is running for re-election for her position as District 1 representative of East Hollywood in Los Angeles. She currently serves as the chair of the Outreach and Youth and Education Committees on the East Hollywood Neighborhood Council and looks forward to continuing leadership of the free produce box distribution and community outreach around resources for low-income families.

Isaac Klimasmith and Mariel Baitenmann-Middlebrook got married in July 2022 (don’t worry, we didn’t hyphenate!), with many wonderful Wesleyan folks in attendance. Mariel graduated with a master’s of education from the University of Illinois and is currently teaching bilingual social studies. The Klimasmith pet rat herd continues to grow, reaching a height of eight rats in 2022.

From Sarah Hutcheon: “I started a new position at Abbott as a product transfer scientist. I help facilitate new lateral-flow product development and troubleshoot our current products.”

From Jake Multer: “I’m down in D.C. working as an advocate in the food policy world. Still doing a lot of brewing, ceramics, baking, and Frisbee!”

From Nick Ticali: “I’m still in school to become a PA at the New York Institute of Technology. Softball season is coming up though, so I’m excited to hit some home runs and hopefully secure another championship win. I’m also planning a trip to travel to Italy for a month over the summer, so all good things!”

Maya Layne is still working her way to stardom, currently as an assistant at Vogue. She not only recently celebrated a move to the Bushwick/Williamsburg area but also went on a much- deserved beach vacation.

Jackie Duckett is currently based out of New York and enjoys her job developing greenfield solar projects at EDP Renewables, reporting to a fantastic boss, and fellow Wesleyan alum, David Kane ’92. In her spare time, she’s been training for a half marathon, taking a printmaking class with a friend, and discovering other new hobbies in the city.

As for me, I made my storytelling stage debut earlier this year and read my fourth grade diary in Mortified Chicago’s Doomed Valentine’s Day show that you can watch on YouTube. Now, I’m focusing on defrosting underneath the Midwestern summer sun, eating local Wisconsin cheese, and still working on accepting that I’m no longer a “recent grad.”

Thanks to everyone who submitted an update! As always, feel free to send me updates throughout the year and look out for my submission requests!

Postgraduation, our classmates are doing some amazing things! Thank you to everyone who contributed and congratulations on all that you have been achieving!

Milton Espinoza Jr.: “I moved to Harlem in September and recently started at the Columbia University School of the Arts for my master’s in acting.”

Annie Yu: “I moved to Pennsylvania in August and recently started at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine for my MD. I’m enjoying exploring different areas of health care and also hike in my free time!”

Gabby Roberts: “I’m about to finish my first semester at Washington and Lee law school!”

Yongxi Tan: “I quit my corporate job after graduation to work on my own beauty start-up.”

Nabiha Syed: After realizing chemistry was not her real dream, Nabiha moved to LA to start her own band called Nasty Nabs. She is now a drummer, inspired by our very own Taiko drumming class at Wesleyan.

Julia Nacario: Julia is a community engagement coordinator at Friends of the Urban Forest and also a camera assistant for documentaries on the side. They are able to be their whole self while pursuing both passions of being a community member and storyteller. You can learn more about her career journey by watching this segment: https://www.linkedin.com/video/event/urn:li:ugcPost:6994322128929988608/.

Virginia Sciolino has relocated from Mississippi to Los Angeles, California, where she is a paralegal with the civil rights firm, the PLC Law Group, LLC.

Sarah Lucente writes, “Since graduating from Wesleyan, I’ve become a middle school humanities teacher at Greenwich Country Day School, and spent last year co-teaching with fellow Cardinal and Head of School Adam Rohdie ’89. I’ve also worked on many short films and made my own short film alongside various Wes alums. Stay tuned!”

Kush Patel is halfway through PA school (at Tufts), heading to rotations starting January 2023, and graduating January 2024!

From Nick Ticali: “Life is good. I am now a little over two months into my PA program at the New York Institute of Technology. I have been regularly going to the gym, constantly studying, and spending the free time I do have with the ones I love.”

From Rachel Curran: “After working in Boston for the past two years, I recently drove cross country and moved to San Diego to pursue a new job! The trip itself was an amazing experience, and I am excited for this next chapter on the West Coast!”

Rajendra Amira Leila S. is currently based in Indonesia and has been involved in the musical theater production, Cerita Beda Hak Sama (Different Stories, Same Rights), a musical production focusing on HIV/AIDs that raises donations for two HIV/AIDs foundations: Akar Cinta Kasih Foundation in Bali and Syair Sahabat Foundation in Jakarta. As part of the ensemble and supporting cast, they are excited to share this story in contribution to erasing the stigma of HIV/AIDs in their region. You can find more info on the CBHS Instagram: @ceritabedahaksama.

I’m still in Chicago doing my best to stay warm this winter. Thanks again for all of your updates and look out for another email from me soon!

Dear Class of 2022,

Four years ago, we were Wesleyan frosh learning how to navigate college, both academically and socially, and just trying to find our groove. Today, we are Wesleyan alumni and all in different aspects of our lives trying to find our groove again. I hope that wherever you are, whatever you’re up to, everything is going well!

My name is Tashfia Jilu and I was your senior class secretary last year. I will now be coordinating the class notes for the alumni magazine for the Class of 2022! This means that I will be collecting notes about your life updates, achievements, and anything you’d like to share with other members of the class through the magazine. I can also take picture submissions for the online magazine as well.

A little update from me: I moved to Michigan in July and recently started at the University of Michigan School of Public Health for my master’s in public health in the Health Behavior and Health Education Department. I also work at Michigan Medicine as a patient care tech and am enjoying exploring the coffee shops in Ann Arbor! I’d love to hear about what you’ve all been up to since graduation, so please send over your updates!

I look forward to hearing from you all and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out!

Best,

Tashfia Jilu

We heard from several classmates this time around.

Two classmates are in graduate school: Gayon Yang wrote to say that “I started school at UC Irvine. I’m [getting] my master of arts in the teaching program.”

And Sofia Colorado said, “I am just entering my second year of a PhD program in computational biology in Denver, Colorado. Could not be happier with the program.”

Two other classmates are working and living in big cities: After a year working for the U.S. Forest Service in Washington, D.C., Andrei Pinkus switched over to the nonprofit world in July. He is now a coordinator on the Corporate Climate Solutions Team at Conservation International, working to facilitate business investment in protecting, managing, and restoring nature at scale to limit the worst effects of climate change. He is living in a two-person house in downtown D.C. and making plans to move abroad after a little while longer in the nation’s capital!

And Kiki Vetoulis-Acevedo wrote, “It’s about a year since graduation and I’m currently living in Manhattan and working in immigration law. The Wesleyan-to-New York pipeline is definitely not the road least traveled but being here with so many friends (like my wonderful roommates Luca LaFayette and Lina Marcinczyk <3) made the transition to real world living as easy as it could be. Mostly, I’m writing this because my parents and sister read this magazine, so: mamá, μπαμπά, and Mari, I love you and miss you; thank you for everything!”