Richard J. Cook and Teresa M. Lahti have established an endowment for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity to facilitate faculty-student collaborative work.
Kalamazoo College students participating in faculty-advised research or creative projects now have access to dedicated funding thanks to a $250,000 gift from a couple who previously served as members of the College’s faculty and administration.
The Richard J. Cook and Teresa M. Lahti Endowment for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity was established to facilitate faculty-student collaborative work. The fund provides stipends, materials and essential project-related travel assistance to students engaged in such research or creative activity.
The fund began awarding grants in 2020, providing support to projects as varied as chemistry research related to solar energy production and efficiency, the study of the physical structure of viruses and a poetry collection exploring themes of identity.
“A gift such as this one improves equity for students with financial need who want to take advantage of these collaborative opportunities—particularly in the summer months, when students are also working and saving for the coming academic year,” Provost Danette Ifert Johnson said. “We are so grateful to Richard and Terry for supporting what is often a transformative experience for K students.”
After earning a bachelor’s in chemistry from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton University, Richard Cook joined the faculty at Kalamazoo College in 1973, eventually serving as chair of the division of natural sciences and mathematics. In 1987, he received one of Kalamazoo’s highest honors, the Lucasse Fellowship for Excellence in Scholarship. He was named provost of the College in 1989 and served for seven years in that role before being named president of Allegheny College in 1996. Cook left Allegheny in 2008 and joined Lahti Search Consultants. Today he is a higher education governance and leadership consultant with Cook Leadership Partnership.
Teresa Lahti was the dean of admission at K from 1991-1996, where she helped to lift K’s national profile on the admission stage. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Saint Benedict and completed graduate work at the University of Notre Dame. Lahti began her career at the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University in Minnesota as an admissions counselor and later served as director of recruitment at the University of Miami in Florida and director of admissions at Agnes Scott College in Georgia before joining K. She founded Lahti Search Consultants in 1997, an executive search firm that specialized in placing enrollment leaders at more than 250 colleges and universities.
“We know from firsthand experience the life-changing difference scholarship support and dedicated mentors can make in a student’s trajectory,” Cook and Lahti said. “It is a true privilege to support K’s longstanding commitment to its nationally recognized student-faculty research program. We are confident that future students will benefit from the excitement of discovery through faculty-guided projects as previous generations of students have.”
Kalamazoo College has once again been nationally recognized by the Princeton Review in its popular guide, “The Best 388 Colleges.”
Kalamazoo College has once again been nationally recognized by the Princeton Review in its popular guide, The Best 388 Colleges. The 2023 edition of the book will feature Kalamazoo College among the top 14 percent of colleges and universities in the country and will be available to purchase on August 23.
The Best 388 Colleges, released annually by the Princeton Review, chooses colleges from the nation’s 2,700 institutions based on data it collects from administrators about their academic offerings, and surveys of its students who rate and report on their experiences.
The colleges selected are currently listed on the Princeton Review’s website.
“We salute Kalamazoo College for its outstanding academics and we are genuinely pleased to recommend it to prospective applicants searching for their ‘best-fit’ college,” said Rob Franek, the Princeton Review’s editor-in-chief and lead author of The Best 388 Colleges.
The book won’t rank colleges individually, however, it gives K faculty high marks—95 out of 99—for student accessibility. Students in surveys for the Princeton Review say their professors “present challenging information and generally work to achieve camaraderie with students.” Furthermore, faculty “definitely understand that classes may be difficult and really, truly want to help students learn the best they can.” Professors also view students “as equals and peers and are open to listening to everyone’s ideas in classes.”
In K’s academic profile, The Best 388 Colleges lauds the K-Plan, the College’s approach to an education in the liberal arts and sciences, for an open curriculum in which “students have more time to explore exactly what they want to learn.” That approach allows each student to find their niche quickly in a small-school environment and helps everyone find campus and community activities they care about, the book says.
“K’s inclusion in The Best 388 Colleges is based on how students rate their experiences in classrooms and labs, with their professors, in community engagement and in their extracurricular activities including athletics,” Dean of Admission Suzanne Lepley said. “The idea that K is repeatedly honored year after year through the publication reflects the opportunities available to our students and the quality education they receive.”
The 2023 version of the “Fiske Guide to Colleges” praises Kalamazoo College for its independent scholarship opportunities, academic excellence, experiential education efforts and intercultural experiences.
Kalamazoo College again is featured in a global guide to institutions of higher education that has been trusted by students, families and guidance counselors for nearly 40 years, the Fiske Guide to Colleges.
Edward B. Fiske was the New York Times education editor for 17 years. During that time, he thought college-bound students needed better information in selecting a college or university. He wrote the Fiske Guide to Colleges to help them and updated it annually with an editorial team.
The guide now includes a selective, subjective and systematic look at more than 300 colleges and universities in the United States, Canada and the UK along with indexes that break down schools by state; academic, social and quality-of-life ratings; financial aid availability and acceptance rates.
In the 2023 version, available now, the publication says K students “pursue a liberal arts curriculum that includes language proficiency, a first-year writing seminar, sophomore and senior seminars, as well as a senior individualized project—directed research, a creative piece, or a traditional thesis—basically anything that caps off each student’s education in some meaningful way.”
In addition to senior integrated projects promoting independent scholarship opportunities, the guide praises other tenets of the K-Plan, the College’s integrated approach to an excellent education, including:
Academic excellence. The flexibility and rigor of K’s curriculum provides students with a customized academic experience. According to the guide, professors rate highly for their enthusiasm and accessibility while giving students the individual attention they need.
Experiential education. Students connect classroom learning with real-world experience by completing career development internships or externships, participating in civic engagement and service-learning projects, and getting involved in social justice leadership work.
International and intercultural experience. Students choose from 56 study abroad programs in 29 countries across six continents. The guide quotes a biology major as saying, “Kalamazoo College does study abroad so well that it seems ridiculous not to take advantage of this opportunity. They make it financially accessible and ensure that you won’t fall behind by going abroad.”
“K’s academic terms may be fast-paced and the workload demanding, but students are given the flexibility to pursue their interests through individualized projects and off-campus exploration,” the publication says. “The result is a student body defined by open-minded, global citizens.”
The Delta of Michigan chapter of Phi Beta Kappa celebrated 41 Kalamazoo College inductees from the class of 2022 on June 8.
The Delta of Michigan Chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Kalamazoo College welcomed 42 inductees for 2022 at an induction ceremony on June 8, 2022.
The mission of the Phi Beta Kappa Society is to champion education in the liberal arts and sciences, foster freedom of thought and recognize academic excellence. Founded on December 5, 1776, the Phi Beta Kappa Society is the nation’s most prestigious academic honor society. Around 10% of U.S. colleges and universities have Phi Beta Kappa chapters, and these chapters select only 10% of their arts and sciences graduates to join. Noteworthy members include 17 U.S. presidents, 42 U.S. Supreme Court justices and more than 150 Nobel Laureates.
Congratulations to the students who reached the Winter 2022 Dean’s List.
Congratulations to the following Kalamazoo College students, who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or better for a full-time course load of at least three units, without failing or withdrawing from any course, during the Winter 2022 academic term. Students who elect to take a letter-graded course on a credit/no credit basis (CR/NC) are not eligible for Dean’s List consideration during that term. Nor are students who receive an F, NC or W grade for that particular term. Students with incomplete (I) or in-progress (IP) grades will be considered for the Dean’s List upon receipt of their final grades. Dean’s List recognition is posted on students’ transcripts. Kudos to the entire group.
Winter 2022
A
Shannon Abbott Morgan Acord Kayla Acosta Karina Aguilar Kelley Akerley Shahriar Akhavan Tafti Hashim Akhtar Adnan Alousi Lana Alvey Darsalam Amir Olivia Anderson Paige Anderson Ava Apolo Peyton Arendsen Cameron Arens Alexandra Armin Lora Armstrong Addison Atwater Joshua Atwell Luis Ayala Pena
B
Guenevere Baierle Jenna Bailey Annalise Bailey McKenzi Baker Lindsey Baker Chloe Baker Elizabeth Ballinger Travis Barclay Abigail Barnum Elena Basso Eric Batson Jenna Beach Curtis Bell Maci Bennett Carolyn Bennett Jonah Beurkens Julia Bienstock Ella Black Katherine Black Nora Blanchard Lizbeth Blas-Rangel Noah Bokman Lukas Bolton Zachary Borden Luke Bormann Mairin Boshoven Chelsea Bossert Mabel Bowdle Holly Bowling Haylee Bowsher Aerin Braunohler Austin Bresnahan Lauren Bretzius Penelope Brewer Jamison Brown Shanon Brown Irie Browne Jonathan Brunette Anna Buck Anna Budnick Marilu Bueno Thomas Buffin Kira Burns Christine Burton Benjamin Buyck
C
Jacob Callaghan Grace Cancro Vanessa Cardenas Chloe Carlson Colin Carroll Ashley Casagrande Clare Wren Catallo-Werner Isabella Caza Alexandra Chafetz Iris Chalk Josetta Checkett Lance Choe Benjamin Chosid Gabriel Chung Nicholas Cohee Gabriel Coleman Sam Coleman Quinn Collins Rowan Cook Caitlyn Cooper Kyle Cooper Indigo Corvidae Violet Crampton Lucy Cripe Isabella Cross Lauren Crossman Lillian Crowder Smith Chase Cummins Emma Curcuru
D
Nicholas Dailey Beatrix Damashek Claire Davis Emma Davis-Rodak Zachary Dean Tali Deaner Sophie Decker Julia Del Olmo Parrado Ethan DeNeen Olivia Depauli Laura DeVilbiss Nolan Devine Christopher DeVito Eva Deyoung Katerina Deyoung Sofia Diaz Liam Diaz Alyn Diaz Santiago Kelsey Diekman Caitlin Dodde Brooke Dolhay Susan Dong Rorie Dougherty Amanda Dow Ryan Drew Matthew Dubin Katia Duoibes Hannah Durant
E
Eli Edlefson Jairo Eguia Carter Eisenbach Sara Elfring Adaora Emenyonu Sara English Dean Ersher Samantha Esquivel Justin Essing Sam Ewald
F
Thomas Fales Sabina Fall Jazmyne Fannings Claire Farhi Greta Farley Brady Farr Madalyn Farrey Andreas Fathalla Ava Fischer Morgan Fischer Julia Fitzgerald Mabel Fitzpatrick Jameson Fitzsimmons Isaiah Fleming Payton Fleming Sofia Fleming Daniel Flores Andre Fouque Melanie Fouque Daniel Foura Caroline Francis Janna Franco Emma Frederiksen Nathaniel Fuller William Fulton
G
Aide Gaitan Tracy Galeana Ethan Galler Nikhil Gandikota Nathan Garcia Aliza Garcia Brynna Garden Trish Gatsi Lena Gerstle Johanna Ghazal Farah Ghazal Katie Gierlach Logan Gillis Gabriela Gomez Gustavo Gonzalez-Martinez Nicole Gorder Cameo Green Donovan Greene Lillian Grelak Ella Griggs Westin Grinwis Elizabeth Grooten Lily Gross Natalie Gross Matthew Gu Victor Guerra Lopez Mauricio Guillen Madeline Guimond Zoe Gurney Abigail Gutierrez Stephanie Guyor
H
Sophia Haas Yoichi Haga Sydney Hagaman Emma Hahn Emily Haigh Vien Hang Alison Hankins Garrett Hanson Madeline Harding Eleanor Harris Lucy Hart Isabelle Hawkes Beatrice Hawkins Wallis Hechler Noah Hecht Hannah Heeren Emiley Hepfner Megan Herbst Jennefer Hernandez Maya Hester Ella Heystek Sierra Hieshetter Sam Hoag Bijou Hoehle Jacob Hoffman Garrick Hohm Julia Holt Tyler Horky Cole Horman Joseph Horsfield Molly Horton Hazel Houghton Gavin Houtkooper Sharon Huang Lukas Hultberg Michael Hume Trevor Hunsanger Ian Hurley Madelaine Hurley Megan Hybels Benjamin Hyndman
I
Juan Ibarra
J
Hao Jiang Aaron Johnson Casey Johnson Ryan Johnson Amelia Johnson Logan Johnston Ellie Jones Maxwell Joos
K
Amalia Kaerezi Ash Kaericher Kiana Kanegawa Judah Karesh Thomas Kartes Timothy Karubas Maria Kasperek Lucas Kastran Lillian Kehoe Ben Keith Will Keller Meaghan Kelly Ella Kelly David Kent Roze Kerr Mphumelelo Khaba Anum Khan Mahum Khan Jackson Kiino-Terburg Vivian Kim Si Yun Kimball Lily Kindle Mikayla Kindler Kaylee Kipfmueller Alexander Kish Allison Klinger Steven Kloosterman Ella Knight Molly Kohl Melody Kondoff Cole Koryto Daniel Koselka Marissa Kovac Katherine Kraemer Christian Kraft Nikolas Krupka Kieya Kubert-Davis Celia Kuch Joshua Kuh Koshiro Kuroda
L
Margaret LaFramboise Caroline Lamb Nicholas Lang Kathryn Larick Makalai Lasavath Annmarie Lawrence Madeleine Lawson Grace Leahey Angel Ledesma Dillon Lee Julia Leet Margaret Lekan Alejandra Lemus Sydney Lenzini Ginamarie Lester Marissa Lewinski Sage Lewis Thomas Lichtenberg Sydney Lis Sichun Liu Ava Loncharte Alvaro Lopez Gutierrez Madeline Lovins Teresa Lucas Chloe Lucci Isabella Luke Emily Lulkin Jacob Lynett
M
Deven Mahanti Natalie Maki Andrew Mallon Arjun Manyam Molly Martinez Stephanie Martinez Gracen Martini-Zeller Lillian Mattern Claire McCall Alexia McColl Lauren McColley Grace McGlynn Molly McGrath Leo McGreevy Ashlynne McKee Amy McNutt Crystal Mendoza Sophia Merchant Eva Metro-Roland Gabriel Meyers Luke Middlebrook Jade Milton Camille Misra Lauren Mitchell Anna Modlinski Lina Moghrabi Brooklyn Mohr Jana Molby Aleksandr Molchagin Rachel Molho Raven Montagna Brooklyn Moore Mackenzie Moore Martin Morison Samantha Moss Arein Motan Phumuzile Moyo Elliot Mrak Matthew Mueller Ezekiel Mulder Angeles Munoz Horta Jasmin Murillo Anna Murphy Erin Murphy Madison Murphy Ryan Muschler Braden Mussat Sydney Myszenski
N
Mihail Naskovski Blagoja Naskovski Juan Navarro Abigail Nelson Matthew Nelson Elizabeth Nestle Nguyen Nguyen Char Nieberding Stefan Nielsen Dustin Noble Joanna Nonato Malin Nordmoe Maeve Novotny Haleigh Nower Rohan Nuthalapati
O
Ileana Oeschger Jeremiah Ohren-Hoeft Udochi Okorie Emma Olson Gabe Orosan-Weine Eliana Orozco
P
Ella Palacios Joshua Pamintuan Jenna Paterob Isabella Pellegrom Kaitlin Peot Margaret Perry Scott Peters Michael Peterson Eve Petrie Alexis Petty My-Anh Phan Benjamin Pickrel Isabella Pimentel Megan Ploucha Evan Pollens-Voigt Grayson Pratt Noah Prentice Melissa Preston Lucas Priemer Doug Propson Andrew Puckett Elena Pulliam Mason Purdy Noah Pyle
Q
Luma Qashou
R
Elizabeth Rachiele Savera Rajendra-Nicolucci Julia Rambo Ana Ramirez Leah Ramirez Roman Ramos Marty Ramser Ali Randel Dominic Rascon-Powell Sadye Rasmussen Dawson Read Sara Reathaford Laura Reinaux Silva Oliveira Kelli Rexroad Keegan Reynolds Maxwell Rhames Mya Richter Kayla Ridenour Sheldon Riley Milagros Robelo Michael Robertson Jocelyn Rodriguez Skyler Rogers Lily Rogowski Madison Roland Luke Rop Yaneth Rosas Alec Rosenbaum Panayiotis Rotsios Jacob Roubein Mia Roukema Matia Rourke Tabitha Rowland Sofia Rowland Oliver Rubin Marcus Rucker Charlotte Ruiter Angel Ruiz
S
Richard Sakurai-Kearns Sydney Salgado Hannia Sanchez-Alvarado Leslie Santos Isabel Schantz Vivian Schmidt D.J. Schneider Eden Schnurstein Lia Schroeder Madeline Schroeder Beth Schulman Audrey Schulz Hannah Schurman Camille Schuster Darby Scott Thea Seid Eli Shavit William Shaw Austin Shepherd Riley Shoemaker Cassidy Short Julia Showich Shoaib Siddiqui Elizabeth Silber Xavier Silva Kiersten Sjogren Caroline Skalla Colby Skinner Kyle Skiver Meganne Skoug Ping Smith Owen Smith Grace Snyder Ariana Soderberg Allison Sokacz Larissa Soto Jonah Spates Maxwell Spitler Camran Stack Adam Stapleton Eleanor Stevenson Meredith Steward Abby Stewart Lily Stickley Alex Stolberg Eller Studinger Hannah Summerfield Michael Sweeney Keegan Sweeney Christan Sydney Brandon Sysol Ella Szczublewski
T
Chau Ta Samuel Tagget Rina Talaba Madison Talarico Claire Taylor Olivia Tessin Suja Thakali Abhi Thakur Andria Thomas Kaia Thomas Levi Thomas Michael Thompson Cade Thune Jayden Thurmond-Oliver Sophia Timm-Blow Maria Tolentino Guzman Teague Tompkins Danielle Treyger Mary Trimble Frances Trimble Maria Tripodis May Tun Oliver Tye Annie Tyler
Alexis Valdes Vance Vandermark Emma Van Houten Samantha Vande Pol Hannah Vander Lugt Cameron VanGalder Mitchel VanGalder Cate VanSchaik Anna Varitek Naomi Verne Anna Veselenak Egan Vieira America Vilchis Nathan Vogel Lucille Voss Jessalyn Vrieland
W
Joseph Wade Megan Walczak Andre Walker Audrey Walker Lucinda Wallis Madison Walther Elizabeth Wang McKenna Wasmer Jadon Weber Riley Weber Margaret Wedge Emmeline Wendel Elias Wennen Emerson Wesselhoff Samantha White Tanner White Dylan Wickey Ava Williams Carson Williams Jordyn Wilson Riley Wilson Laurel Wolfe Ronan Wolfe Alexa Wonacott Lydia Wright
An engaging and diverse faculty provides Kalamazoo College students with an experience important in the Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education rankings of the top U.S. colleges and universities.
Another analysis has placed Kalamazoo College as the top-ranked private higher education institution in Michigan as the U.S. Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education 2022 College Rankings list was released this week.
The report places K among the top 22 percent of the nation’s colleges and universities ranked overall with methodology that balances issues such as:
Resources, examining whether a college effectively delivers teaching through its finances, its student-to-faculty ratio and faculty research papers.
Engagement, as determined through the results of a Times Higher Education U.S. student survey, which scrutinizes each student’s engagement with their studies, their interaction with their teachers and their satisfaction with the college experience.
Outcomes, measuring each institution’s value, graduation rate and academic reputation.
Environment, including student, faculty and academic staff diversity, international populations and student inclusion.
The Princeton Review cites Kalamazoo College’s academics in naming the institution among “The Best 387 Colleges.” Photo credit: The Princeton Review.
The Princeton Review is placing Kalamazoo College among the top 14 percent of institutions for degree-seeking undergraduates by featuring K in the education services company’s annual college guide, The Best 387 Colleges.
The schools featured aren’t individually ranked. However, the publication praises K’s academics while giving faculty high marks—95 points on a 99-point scale—for student accessibility.
“We salute Kalamazoo College for its outstanding academics and we are genuinely pleased to recommend it to prospective applicants searching for their ‘best-fit’ college,” said Rob Franek, the Princeton Review’s editor-in-chief and lead author of The Best 387 Colleges.
The Princeton Review chooses colleges for the book, one of its most popular publications, based on data it annually collects from administrators about their institutions’ academic offerings, and its surveys of college students who rate and report on various aspects of their campus and community experiences.
In those surveys, students credited faculty for presenting challenging information and working to achieve camaraderie with students. Students also said the K-Plan—the College’s personalized approach to education through a flexible, open curriculum featuring real-world experience, service learning, study abroad and an independent senior year project—allows them more time to explore exactly what they want to learn.
In extra-curriculars, students said they can find their niche quickly in the small-school environment, allowing most to engage in work they care about.
The Princeton Review’s school profiles are posted on its website, where they can be searched for free. The book is the 30th annual edition and is available for purchase online.
