After graduating from Kalamazoo College in 1983, Nancy Stevens moved to Colorado to work at a Girl Scout camp. Soon she began hiking “Fourteeners,” Colorado’s numerous 14,000-foot mountains. Her first was Long’s Peak. Her most recent is Grand Teton. Impressive? Yes, especially considering that Nancy has been almost completely blind since birth. Read about this K alumna with “contagious positive energy,” in an Aug. 29 article in the Jackson Hole News & Guide. Keep climbing, Nancy!
alumni
K Professor Takes First Place in Literature Competition
Kalamazoo College Writer in Residence Diane Seuss is the first-prize winner in Mid-American Review’s 2012 Fineline Competition for Prose Poems, Short Shorts, and Anything in Between! Judge Amelia Gray selected Seuss’s piece “I emptied my little wishing well of its emptiness” out of some 1,000 entries. The work will appear in the forthcoming fall issue of Mid-American Review.
K Connection Spans 30 Years in Internship
Cassandra Fraser, Class of 1984, is a chemistry professor at the University of Virginia. This summer she hosted Michael Paule-Carres, Class of 2014, in her laboratory, where he did research for his Senior Individualized Project. “It was kind of scary to contemplate that 30 year gap!” wrote Fraser, who had a good antidote for any mild “gap fear.” The formula included the excellence of the lab work Paule-Carres conducted. “He synthesized and characterized a luminescent polymer that will be used to make oxygen nanosensors for wound diagnostics, tumor hypoxia imaging, and other medical uses,” Fraser explained. And for extra measure, a few funny photos were added. “We took some research group pictures, including some of Mike (right) and me together, the Kalamazoo College chemists. We even attempted to make K’s with our bodies, not so successfully mind you, but maybe it’s the thought that counts.” Mike has returned to campus for the beginning of men’s varsity soccer practice.
K Alumna Lends Flute Virtuosity to Art Project
Marian Heller ’84 is involved with an art project called “Kokopelli Rising,” part of the Burning Man annual art event that will take place August 27 through September 3 in Black Rock City, Nevada. Marian informed the artists about Katherine Hoover’s flute composition “Kokopelli,” (played by Marian in a live performance). Marian will record the piece for the artists to play on site at the art installation in Nevada. And she will attend as well.
Alum Keith Crandall Hired to Direct Computational Biology Institute at George Washington University
Keith Crandall ’87 has been hired by George Washington University to direct its new Computational Biology Institute.
Computational biology combines elements of computer science and biology, and its practitioners develop tools to analyze data generated in researching genetics and genomics, including genetic mapping and DNA sequencing.
Crandall’s research interests have included crustacean biology, biodiversity, and infectious diseases. His B.A. from Kalamazoo College is in biology. At Washington University in St. Louis he earned a Ph.D.in population and evolutionary biology and a master’s degree in statistics. His work at CBI will include an investigation of the impact of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, using gene expression to identify how oil pollutants affect deep sea crustaceans.
Basketball Coach Will Move to Oregon
Rob Passage ’93, Kalamazoo College’s head men’s basketball coach since 2002-03, announced this week that he is leaving to become the athletic facilities and operations manager at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.
“We are extremely grateful to Rob for his hard work, dedication, and commitment to Kalamazoo College,” said Kristen Smith, Director of Athletics, “He was a mentor to student-athletes and coaches, not just in basketball, but in many of our programs. He will be missed, but we wish him all the best in his new position.”
In addition to his head coaching duties, Passage served as the assistant athletic director for operations and facilities and assistant professor of physical education.
“My years at Kalamazoo have been filled with great friends, colleagues, and student-athletes,” Passage said, “K has provided me with so many great experiences since I first stepped onto campus as a student in the fall of 1989. I can only hope that I have been able to positively impact the K community even just a portion of how much it impacted my life. Kalamazoo College will always be a special place to me, but it is time for me to move on to other challenges and opportunities.”
A search for his replacement will begin immediately.
“K” Alum Captures Science Research in Polymer Chemistry on YouTube
Nahrain Kamber ’01 is an associate scientist and solutionist at Dow Chemical Company. She describes her scientific journey on YouTube. Today she applies discoveries in polymer chemistry to the creation of new products for people.
Vic Braden Writes “If I’m Only 22, How Come I’m 82?”
Vic Braden ’51 has written his eighth book, If I’m Only 22, How Come I’m 82. He says at his age, it’s likely to be his last book, but reviewer Jack Neworth (10sBalls.com) hopes that will not be the case.
Smokin’ Poets
Thanks, in part, to Kim Grabowski ’12, the Spring issue of the on-line magazine, The Smoking Poet, features a strong K connection. Grabowski was an intern at the magazine and helped compile an issue that features the work of Writer-in-Residence Diane Seuss ’78 as well as current students and alumni.
The alums include Kit Almy ’89, Lauren Moran ’11, Katie Prout ’09, and John Craig ’11. Current students with poems published in the issue are Nick Canu ’12, Cam Stewart ’12, Rebecca Staudemaier ’12, Kate Belew ’15, and Jasmine An ’15. Maggie Jackson ’11 and Amy Newday had nonfiction published in the magazine. Newday coordinates the College’s Writing Center. And Grabowski’s interview with Michigan poet Laura Kasischke appears as well. Kasischke recently won the Rilke Prize, and she will read works from her new collection, Space, In Chains, on campus this April 16. Chief Editor for The Smoking Poet is Zinta Aistars, who worked for Kalamazoo College for many years.
Goodlander to Perform Traditional Balinese Shadow Puppet Performance
Jennifer Goodlander ’97 will perform a traditional Balinese wayang kulit, or shadow puppet performance, Thursday May 17, 5pm, Dungeon Theatre, Light Fine Arts Building. Admission is free and open to the public.
Wayang kulit is an ancient Indonesian art of shadow puppet theatre that combines ritual, lesson, and entertainment. Goodlander manipulates (and gives voice to) intricately carved and hand-painted puppets, each a unique character with a specific role in a given story.
Many of her puppets were created for her by I Wayang Tunjung, the dalang, or puppet master, in Indonesia with whom she has studied extensively. Goodlander recently joined the faculty at Indiana University as an assistant professor of theatre. During her visit to K, she will meet with students in Professor of Theatre Arts Ed Menta’s Asian Theatre Class.