When Jordan Doyle ’26 thinks about what prompted her love for computer science, she remembers a turtle from her childhood. The half-shelled protagonist was the star of a block-coding application that challenged her and children like her to send it across a screen in a number of moves.
“I got into it when I was little because it felt like a puzzle to me,” Doyle said. “I loved puzzles and coding was just a puzzle to solve.”
Since, she has continued seeking puzzles through computer science. Doyle built her interest and knowledge in classes throughout high school, while specialties such as cybersecurity piqued her interest even more. And now, Doyle is anticipating that she will declare a computer science major in the upcoming academic year at Kalamazoo College, where she also plays women’s lacrosse and participates in the Computer Science Society and the Eco Club.
This summer, she is building more technology experience away from Kalamazoo while working alongside a network of cohorts and professionals, thanks to a Women in Sports Technology (WiST) fellowship.
WiST is a non-profit organization that seeks to drive transformative growth opportunities for women in fields ranging from athletics biotechnology to sports gambling. The organization chose 22 fellows this year from 21 schools across the country, such as Duke University, Stanford University and—with Doyle’s fellowship—Kalamazoo College. All of them serve in internships of up to eight weeks with a sports technology enterprise or innovative startup while receiving a grant of up to $5,000, plus travel stipends, if necessary.
Jordan Doyle ’26, a midfielder on the Kalamazoo College women’s lacrosse team, is interning this summer with Sports-Reference.com through Women in Sports Technology.
As a rising sophomore, Doyle is interning remotely from her home in Troy, Michigan, on a software engineering team with Sports-Reference.com, a group of sites that provides statistics and sabermetrics to sports fans.
“They look to democratize data,” she said. “If you look on any of their websites, you’ll see tables full of data for football, soccer, baseball—it’s a bunch of reference sites that can help you find the stats from almost any game. I focus mostly on finding and resolving bugs on the website, as well as doing some testing work and adding a couple of features on my own.”
WiST places interns like Doyle in positions that touch on both technology and sports because women are drastically underrepresented in sports-related and STEM professions, and in STEM majors in higher education. Women comprise only 28% of the workforce in STEM-related careers and just 19% of computer and information science majors in higher education, according to the American Association for University Women. That makes Doyle’s experience with Sports-Reference.com even more valuable to her.
“It’s empowering to know that I’m getting opportunities to move forward in this career path,” Doyle said. “As women we are one of the underrepresented groups and I love having this opportunity to connect with other women who have similar interests so I can see their successes throughout their careers. I love the idea of having opportunities that create change in the world through technology.”
Her Future is so Bright, She Invented Shades
Jordan Doyle’s experience with technology and innovation doesn’t stop at computers.
Doyle was participating in a lacrosse match on a sunny fall day in seventh grade when she grew frustrated with EyeBlack, a substance that rolls on under an athlete’s eyes to reduce glare. The negative experience led her to research visors for her protective goggle, while only finding products for sports such as football and softball.
With necessity being the mother of invention, Doyle made her own visor, designing it with the plastic of a salad container and a clinging shade shield that is commonly put on cars. She worked more in high school innovation classes that helped her design it further, and a meeting with a patent attorney later yielded sketch drawings and a patent.
Since her high school graduation, she’s finalized her initial prototype for Sun Goggles, a project she continues pursuing. Hear more from Doyle in the video here.
Claudia Klos prepares French labs in front of DeWaters Hall in October 2022. She said Kalamazoo had the most beautiful autumn colors she had ever seen.
Claudia Klos (right) with international student and German TA Olivia Machnik at a German department event in May 2023.
“I adored the snow,” said Claudia Klos, a student at Sciences Po Strasbourg who spent the 2022-23 academic year at Kalamazoo College.
When Claudia Klos left France for Kalamazoo College in fall 2022, she was afraid she would be homesick for her parents.
Now, in summer 2023, she has the opposite problem.
“Life got so busy at K, that this void which is created when we leave our home is immediately filled with new discoveries, new people, new friendships, new places and new activities,” Klos said. “Kalamazoo was a great place for me to fill this void from home, so much that now that I’m back home, I feel this void again—a new kind of void that was created when I left K.”
Klos came to Kalamazoo via Sciences Po Strasbourg, which she chose for the same reasons many students choose K: an emphasis on multidisciplinary studies and spending time abroad—a mandatory experience for Sciences Po Strasbourg students.
Born and raised in the western suburbs of Paris with Polish heritage, Klos had never thought she would study in the U.S. due to the distance and expense. When she learned about the opportunity to study at K and work as a French teaching assistant, however, she immediately wanted to go.
“I’ve always loved languages and I really thought it would be a great experience for me,” Klos said. “I think that giving myself some responsibilities would do me only good. I wanted to challenge myself. The financial benefits of being a TA were obviously part of the decision, too.”
Along with two other students from France who worked as TAs at K over the past academic year, Klos had the opportunity before coming to Kalamazoo to meet with Asia Bennett, assistant director and exchange student advisor with the Center for International Programs (CIP), as well as K students who were studying abroad in Strasbourg.
“It was very nice meeting them and knowing that we would see each other on the other side of the Earth a little bit later,” Klos said. “The CIP does amazing work. I felt very listened to, they have very fast answers to your questions, and every step was made clear.”
Before she arrived in Kalamazoo on her 21st birthday in September 2022, Klos was hoping that the French classes for which she was a TA would go smoothly.
“I was also hoping for a year of discoveries,” she said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime adventure so we better not waste it. Those discoveries came with traveling, meeting people and sharing the lives of people we encounter on the other side of the planet, and discovering the life of the student in America to be able to compare it to the life of European students. I was hoping to live this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience to the fullest.”
Visiting international students and French TAs Gabin Wagner, Louis Landreau and Claudia Klos enjoy some sunshine while studying in May 2023.
Visiting international students and language TAs Lena Horl, Gabin Wagner and Claudia Klos commemorate the November 11, 1918, signing of the armistice between the Allies of World War I and Germany. Horl is from Germany, while Wagner is from the Alsace-Lorraine region of France, which was controlled by Germany during World War I, and Klos is from France with family roots in Poland, which observes National Independence Day on November 11.
Dressed up for Monte Carlo in May 2023 are (from left) Lorena Velasco Navarro, Louis Landreau, Gabriela Perez Chapado, Gabin Wagner, Clara Salomon, Laura Reinaux and Claudia Klos.
Her first impressions were that K was charming and very green. She loved the beauty, comfort, common spaces and fireplaces in her dorm, Harmon Hall, and in the library.
Klos appreciated the chance to speak English in everyday life and experience American student life, which she found different in many ways. She was surprised by how students were encouraged to participate in sports and the arts. In addition to attending concerts and shows, Klos participated in intramural volleyball.
“This year made me want to engage myself in some team sports,” she said. “The energy it had at K was amazing and that is something I will remember.”
The residential campus offered another difference from Klos’ life as a student in France, where she had attended a rigorous prep school that demanded the majority of her time and energy.
“My social life had never been as rich as at K, where we were always around people,” Klos said. “We were with people in class and out every day, and actually, I didn’t get tired of it. People talk about social batteries lowering down, which I understand, but I was surprised with not having this problem and being happy to always be around people.”
The close relationships engendered by the residential campus helped Klos learn about herself, grow personally, and develop a more balanced approach to school, rest and life.
“Since I knew that my time at K was limited, the fact that the experience was evanescent made it precious,” she said. “I learned to find a balance because I never thought about doing so before in my life. Before, the academic part always dominated, whereas here, the social dimension of the experience dominated, too, so I needed to manage both. We would have study sessions in the DeWaters Hall basement, and nobody would really advance in book work. Everybody would chat and laugh, and we would say, ‘No, we’re not studying, we’re creating memories!’ This is something we would say ironically, but it was still accurate, and that’s something important I learned from this year thanks to friendships.”
When interpersonal conflicts or difficulties arose, Klos reminded herself that they wouldn’t last long.
“I would think about how lucky I am to be finding myself so far away from home with amazing people in an amazing place,” she said. “In January, I was feeling down, so I started making a list of things I am grateful for. Before sleeping, I would write down something nice that happened each day, even if it was something little. It contributed to making me remember how amazing this experience was despite having troubles.”
Visiting international student Claudia Klos (left), who came to K from France and whose family is Polish, watches Hornet tennis in April 2023 with Kinga Fraczkiewicz ’26, who is from Scotland and Poland, and visiting international student Olivia Machnik, who is from Germany and Poland.
One of those concerns was the consumption of resources she saw in the U.S.
“I had a problem with the air conditioning,” Klos said. “I thought that it was a waste of energy, of CO2 emissions. Also, the fact that the lights were on all the time stuck with me. I noticed contrasting details of everyday life between the U.S. and Europe; for example, there is so much water in the bowl of the toilets. They still give plastic bags everywhere. I’m trying to understand all the differences and I see how American culture assures abundance and emphasizes comfort rather than resources.”
While Klos enjoyed all her classes, especially political science, she was initially caught off guard by the differences between college courses in France and Kalamazoo.
“In the fall term, I was there with my computer ready to be tapping and tapping and tapping, because that is how we do that in European universities,” Klos said. “That was not the case at all. We had a teacher that asked us questions, we’re doing exercises together; it’s not just the teacher giving us this material and us absorbing it. I wasn’t aware that I was supposed to do all these readings for every class, I didn’t even know that there was a syllabus, it was very confusing. But then in spring, I was prepared, and I knew how things worked. Then I really liked this approach of us doing readings, so accumulating some knowledge, and then being able to reflect over that with the professor making the lecture but also having class discussions with us.”
She particularly appreciated how language classes are taught at K (Klos took German in addition to being a TA for French), and the relationships between students and professors. Associate Professor of French and Francophone Studies Aurélie Chatton provided support, openness and a listening ear for all the French TAs. While she initially did not want to take the economics classes Sciences Po Strasbourg required, Klos found encouragement and positive challenge from Department Co-Chair and Edward and Virginia Van Dalson Professor of Economics Patrik Hultberg and Assistant Professor of Economics Darshana Udayanganie.
“I really liked the concept of office hours and the relationship between students and professors,” Klos said. “In France, we don’t feel close at all to our teachers. I used office hours a lot and I’m grateful to every professor for making them. Thanks to these relationships, I could navigate classes more easily. It feels good when professors are demanding because it brings us up.”
International student Claudia Klos poses in front of Stetson Chapel on the way to lunch in November 2022.
International student Claudia Klos (right) attends a K baseball game in April 2023 with Spanish international student and TA Clara Salomon, Laura Reinaux ’25 and Spanish international student and TA Lorena Velasco-Navarro.
International student Claudia Klos (right) braves the cold to attend the Hornets’ last home football game in November 2022 with Spanish international student and TA Clara Salomon and Laura Reinaux ’25.
That balance of challenge and support was evident for Klos in her relationship with Political Science Professor and William Weber Chair of Social Science Amy Elman.
“All of the challenge was rewarded since she got to know us and know our center of interest,” Klos said. “The professors were a big part of my experience.”
Knowing Klos’ interests, Elman recommended her for EP-JMN Summer School, a June program at the University of Salamanca in Spain, where Klos met students from different parts of Europe and learned more about the European Union and various cultures.
This fall, her travels will continue with a September program in eastern France that includes educational seminars followed by opportunities to teach the topics to school children.
“I know that I got into that program thanks to my experiences at K, because I told them, ‘Listen, I’ve been teaching French in the U.S. for one year. I know how to present subjects and to deal with a class.’”
Then, in October, Klos will begin a year of study in Krakow, where she looks forward to living for the first time in the country of her family’s heritage.
“It’s going to be another amazing experience away from France that waits for me,” Klos said. “When one is abroad, everything is an amazement—the most boring streets, the most boring cars and houses for a local person—it is an amazement for a foreigner. I liked taking walks in the cemetery near campus, and it looks nothing like a cemetery in Europe. Just walking in Kalamazoo streets, the houses are so American. The most basic thing is so specific to this country I’m in, and so different from home, even though it’s the same thing. I think that we go back to childhood when we study abroad because we discover new things all the time. The most boring things become amazing, and we have stars in our eyes every time we see the most random thing, the most basic thing. That happens when we go abroad, so I would encourage anyone who is thinking about studying abroad to go for it.”
When significant sports moments are celebrated, fans turn to broadcasters for the words that will help make those moments historic. Zach Metz ’25 doesn’t yet have something like “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!” to call his own, but he’s been preparing to be a broadcaster for years.
“I would always be the kid who turned the volume down on a TV sports broadcast to commentate on the game,” he said. “It’s just a passion I’ve had since I was little.”
You might know Metz as a business major; the voice of the Hornets for Kalamazoo College’s baseball, softball, soccer, basketball, volleyball and lacrosse teams; or a quarterback for K’s football team. But this summer, he’s interning as the play-by-play livestream broadcaster with the Grand Lake Mariners in Celina, Ohio, one of 14 cities with a Great Lakes Summer Collegiate Baseball League team.
“I knew about the Great Lakes league through some of our players at K who had played in it, so I went on the league’s website, and I filled out an interest form,” Metz said. “I said, ‘I would like to broadcast,’ and Dave Maurer, our assistant general manager reached out. I sent him my materials and interviewed, and they offered me the job. I was excited to take it.”
His internship began quickly after K’s baseball team earned a 10-5 victory against Adrian in May, a triumph that gave the Hornets their first outright Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association regular season title since 1927.
“Calling the final out of that game was a lot of fun for me, especially with it being a game we had to win to get the outright title,” Metz said. “Whenever there’s a crucial RBI at the end of the game and you can really put some excitement into it, it’s fun. But I loved knowing that what I was doing at that moment was a small part of what the players and their families got out of it.”
After that, Metz was off to Ohio, where the Mariners are the second-oldest team in their league and are named for being on the shores of Grand Lake St. Mary’s. He stays with the team’s assistant general manager and applauds the franchise for welcoming interns as well as it does.
Zach Metz ’25 is the livestream broadcaster for the Grand Lake Mariners, a Great Lakes Summer Baseball League team in Celina, Ohio.
“Fortunately, this role in this league is pretty similar to what I do in college, so there hasn’t been a lot new to me aside from the players using wooden bats,” Metz said. “I talked a lot to the players on our team. I learned what their pitchers throw. Other than that, it’s not much different from any other game I’ve ever done. It’s finding the stats, putting them into a format that I like and rolling with it.”
Preparing for a game in the summer league involves putting together a packet for each Mariners opponent with their schedule, record, players’ stats, team stats and potential storylines.
“With baseball being slower, there’s more time to tell a story,” Metz said. “It usually takes about an hour for each side per packet in a format that’s easy to read.”
Taking to the road means additional challenges.
“On road trips, we don’t have video for our broadcasts—only the home team does—so it turns into more of a radio broadcast,” Metz said. “In that case, it requires me to prepare more because I need to talk more. I can’t stop and let things play out for a minute because the person listening doesn’t know what’s going on if I don’t talk. It can get a little tiring if the game isn’t going well for the Mariners, but really, I just need to get more preparation done.”
Yet no matter where he roams or where he broadcasts from, K—along with its community—will always be special to him.
Football Coach Jamie Zorbo “has helped me in learning how to approach academics and time management,” Metz said. “Steve Wideen, our sports information director, was the one who got me into broadcasting at K. I talked to him once and he said, ‘Alright, we’ll get you going.’ I did one game and he said, ‘we’re going to keep you.’ And Tanner White, too, another member of the football team who graduated last year was the broadcaster at K before I came here. We were in the middle of football camp once and I happened to get into the same ice bath with him after practice. He immediately said, ‘Let’s talk broadcasting.’ He told me everywhere to go, everything I need to get there, and we worked together for a year.”
Metz is a business major, the voice of the Hornets for Kalamazoo College’s baseball, softball, soccer, basketball, volleyball and lacrosse teams, and a quarterback for K’s football team.
He expects such connections, along with his internship, to be integral to his future.
“When I was deciding between colleges, I didn’t think I wanted to go to K because they didn’t have a set broadcasting or communications program,” Metz said. “But since I’ve been here, the people who helped me get these opportunities to broadcast and propel me forward have been so important. If I had to pick schools again, I’d pick K without a doubt. Aside from the actual education for me as a broadcaster, the connections you make and the people you meet are super important. That’s ultimately why I chose K and I’m thrilled I’m here.”
A record number of 10 recent Kalamazoo College graduates, including six from the class of 2023, are heading overseas this year as Fulbright fellows.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program offers fellowships to graduating seniors, graduate students, young professionals and artists—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—so they may teach English, perform research or study abroad for one academic year. The honor is among the highest the federal government provides in regard to scholarship and international exchange. K consistently has been identified in recent years as one of the country’s Fulbright Top Producing Institutions for U.S. Students.
K’s representatives and their destinations this year are Natalie Call ’23, Denmark; Vincent DeSanto ’23, Austria; Ben Flotemersch ’23, Austria; Sean Gates ’23, Austria; Samuel Kendrick ’23, Uzbekistan; Kanase Matsuzaki ’23, Jordan; Rachel Cornell ’22, Ecuador; Anna Dorniak ’20, Poland; Nat Markech ’21, South Korea; and Garrett Sander ’19, Mexico.
Professor of English Amelia Katanski will also represent K through Fulbright this year as a U.S. Scholar Program selectee in Australia. Katanski will be working with faculty at the University of Wollongong to develop curriculum that will better prepare K students for study abroad there.
Fulbright has provided more than 400,000 participants with opportunities to exchange ideas and contribute to solutions to shared international concerns since its inception in 1946. Fulbright alumni work to make a positive impact on their communities, sectors, and the world and have included 41 heads of state or government, 62 Nobel Laureates, 89 Pulitzer Prize winners, 78 MacArthur Fellows, and countless leaders and changemakers who carry forward the Fulbright mission of enhancing mutual understanding.
Kalamazoo College’s Delta Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa welcomed 42 outstanding seniors into its cohort on June 7, 2023, recognizing their exceptional scholastic achievements across disciplines. With a strong commitment to fostering a love for learning, Phi Beta Kappa honors these new members for their academic ability and intellectual curiosity.
Founded in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society, boasting 17 U.S. Presidents, 42 U.S. Supreme Court Justices, and more than 150 Nobel Laureates among their ranks. The society’s mission is “to champion education in the liberal arts and sciences, to recognize academic excellence, and to foster freedom of thought and expression.”
Acceptance into Phi Beta Kappa is considered one of the highest academic honors a student can receive as the society is known for its rigorous selection process that evaluates students’ achievements across the arts, natural sciences, humanities and social sciences.
As these talented individuals embark on the next chapter of their educational and professional journeys, their Phi Beta Kappa membership will serve as a symbol of their exceptional accomplishments and dedication to the pursuit of knowledge. The Kalamazoo College community looks forward to witnessing their future contributions and the positive impact they will make in their chosen fields.
Join us in congratulating the following students,
Hashim Akhtar of Saginaw, Michigan; biology major, psychology minor, biochemistry and molecular biology and biological physics concentrations
Abigail Barnum of Byron Center, Michigan; biochemistry and German majors
Eleana Basso of Evanston, Illinois; psychology and studio art majors, art history minor
Natalie Call of Cody, Wyoming; biology major, psychology minor
Eleanor Carr of East Lansing, Michigan; biology and computer science majors
Hannah Durant of Grand Blanc, Michigan; English and mathematics majors
Payton Fleming of Olivet, Michigan; business major, computer science minor
Hana Frisch of Morton Grove, Illinois; biology major, anthropology and sociology minor, community and global health concentration
Tristan Fuller of Whitmore Lake, Michigan; business and English majors
William Fulton of Kalamazoo, Michigan; biology major, psychology minor
Zoe Gurney of Ann Arbor, Michigan; economics major, Chinese and mathematics minors, community and global health concentration
Lucy Hart of Evanston, Illinois; biochemistry major, psychology minor
Katherine Haywood of Hastings, Michigan; biology and computer science majors
Ian Hurley of Plymouth, Michigan; biology and Spanish majors
Ryan Johnson of Kalamazoo, Michigan; biology major
Koshiro Kuroda of Kawasaki, Japan; anthropology and sociology and music majors
Claire Kvande of Memphis, Tennessee; chemistry and physics majors, French and mathematics minors
Dillon Lee of Ada, Michigan; biochemistry major
Thomas Lichtenberg of Farmington, Michigan; philosophy and political science majors, mathematics minor
Alvaro Lopez Gutierrez of Lima, Peru; German and psychology majors
Nicholas Lucking of Dexter, Michigan; psychology major, English minor
Aleksandr Molchagin of Borisoglebsk, Russia; business and computer science majors
Matthew Mueller of Charleston, Illinois; psychology major
Erin Grace Murphy of Grosse Ile, Michigan; computer science major, music minor
If you’re not sure what public health encompasses or what its workers do, you’re not alone, and an awareness campaign from a Kalamazoo College class aims to change that.
“This is Public Health at K,” adapted from the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, is being launched by K’s Issues in Public Health class, taught by Dr. Khadija Brumblay.
Students in the class said jointly, “Dr. Brumblay’s class has impacted our perception of public health and public health workers. We hope to expand that understanding to K students to help them realize how public health impacts their daily lives.”
Public health promotes well-being through education and advocacy, protects health through policy and legislation, and prevents illnesses, diseases and injuries. It includes things as varied as speed limit signs, ergonomic chairs, trash cans, sewage systems, vaccine developments and campaigns, water sanitation, mental health prevention, diet and physical exercise education, tobacco taxation and national surveys that monitor health.
Its workers are community workers who visit homes to engage with people, their families and entire communities. They organize education campaigns, develop sexual-education curriculum and cancer screening campaigns. They collect pond and rain water, soil and animal droppings to identify the causes and risk factors for diseases, while predicting and modeling the occurrence and trends of diseases, illnesses and injuries. They promote planting trees and encourage people to use seat belts while driving and helmets while biking.
No matter who they are or what they do, “public health workers are advocates for various communities who work in pursuit of a healthier, more equitable society that prioritizes the well-being of all,” the class said.
About 100 years ago, about half of all the babies born in the U.S. didn’t live past their first year. A century of interventions as simple as hand washing have pushed overall life expectancy from 40 to 78 years in the U.S. That is the might of public health.
Cameron, Danielle, Lizbeth, Jessica, Emma, Sofia, Sophia F., Sophia H, Jonathan, Amelia, Mahum, Vanita, Elizabeth, Sophia L, Onora, Lindsey, Addison, Leslie, Thea, Megan, Nate, Rachel and Hana are students in the Issues in Public Health Class.
These positive trends are observed worldwide. But significant inequities between countries and between communities in the same countries remain due to the socio-demographic, economic and political hierarchies in our societies. In Kalamazoo, infant mortality is much greater for Black children than white children. Equity and access to opportunities are therefore at the center of all public health efforts.
Unfortunately, for the first time in human history, life expectancy is declining due to a combination of deaths of despair such as opioid overdoses, suicides and the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of recent developments, including vaccine hesitancy and reduced trust in science and the medical profession, it is important to pause and appreciate public health for its central role in human health and well-being.
You can help by spreading the word. Talk to your friends, share links and hashtags (#ThisIsPublicHealthatK) from the campaign, and like and comment on social media posts.
As the College’s motto is lux esto, or be light, “public health is the light leading us to a brighter future,” the class said.
Health is more than just a hospital with doctors and shots. Please take a moment to skim this information and gain a better understanding of both the different forms that public health takes on and how they have manifested on our campus. It should be said that you can advocate for further efforts toward supporting any of these forms of public health on our campus. To make changes in the health of this campus, you must first understand it, so we hope this infographic and other supporting information provides some of the knowledge to support utilization and even expansion of public health care at K.
Our Why
This campaign’s goal is to increase awareness and understanding of what public health is and how it impacts all facets of daily life. Public health is the promotion of healthy living by education to prevent injuries and illnesses. How can we impact the attitudes of K students to identify what makes public health important to them at a personal level and then at the community level? Furthermore, this campaign will generate critical thinking of where Kalamazoo College may need help. This will benefit the College’s public health approach. We want to be a part of the larger picture and be a model institution.
The Original ‘This Is Public Health’ Campaign
The This Is Public Health Campaign divides the campaign into three areas: prevention, impact, and equity & justice. Impact is one of its standout qualities and it speaks to the CGHL 210- Issues in Public Health class. Preventing disease and injury starts with education and acknowledging where the inequities occur that lead to health disparities. This Is Public Health campaign is run by Association of Schools and Programs of Health to raise awareness and meet students where they’re at. Various modes of technology and advertisement includes news articles, social media, books, and podcasts. Most resources on the campaign websites are created and promoted by student teams and classes. This Is Public Health centers self-advocacy and agency of students to gain a stronger presence in all areas of public health.
Kalamazoo College STEM-related academic departments are celebrating a banner year as the overall number of current students and alumni receiving National Science Foundation (NSF) graduate research fellowships reaches four, the most since 2016.
The Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) recognizes and supports outstanding students who pursue research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions. A five-year fellowship covers three years of financial support, including an annual stipend and a cost-of-education allowance to attend an institution along with access to professional-development opportunities.
About 2,000 applicants are offered a fellowship per NSF competition in fields such as chemistry, biology, psychology, physics and math. This is the first year since 2013 that two current K students, Claire Kvande ’23 and Mallory Dolorfino ’23, have earned awards. Two alumni also have earned fellowships, Cavan Bonner ’21 and Angel Banuelos ’21.
“The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship is a highly competitive program that is only awarded to about 16% of the applicants, who represented more than 15,000 undergraduates and graduate students across all STEM fields,” Roger F. and Harriet G. Varney Assistant Professor of Chemistry Blakely Tresca said. “Approximately 2,500 awards were offered this year across all STEM fields and the vast majority of them go to students at large research universities and Ivy League schools. It is rare to see more than one or two awards at an undergraduate-focused college, particularly at a small liberal arts school like K. It is exceptional for schools in the GLCA (Great Lakes Colleges Association) to have one award in a year, and four awards is a truly outstanding accomplishment for these students.”
Claire Kvande ’23
Kvande has been a double major in physics and chemistry with minors in math and French at K. She credits faculty members such as Dow Distinguished Professor of Natural Science Jan Tobochnik and Associate Professor of Physics David Wilson, along with a wide range of courses, for preparing her to receive an NSF fellowship.
“I like the nitty gritty of sitting down and figuring out how to approach a problem within physics even though it’s often hard,” she said. “I really like work that is grounded in real-world problems and it’s part of why I’m interested in the subfield of condensed matter. There’s a lot that stands to be applied to technologies that I think could improve our world and help a lot of people.”
Kvande will attend the University of Washington this fall, where she plans to extend her Senior Integrated Project (SIP) work, which examined how charge-density waves relate to superconductivity within condensed matter.
“Superconductivity is a tantalizing physics concept,” she said. “If we could realize superconductivity at room temperature, it would allow us to do a lot with energy saving and revolutionize how we use electricity. There are schools of thought that say charge-density waves would be helpful in achieving that and others that say it would be hurtful. Since we really don’t know how superconductivity works, this is worth investigating so we can hopefully better understand this powerful phenomenon.”
Claire Kvande ’23 will attend graduate school at the University of Washington as a National Science Foundation fellow.
Mallory Dolorfino ’23
Dolorfino, a computer science and math double major, also will attend the University of Washington, where they will pursue a doctorate in math.
“I didn’t really like math until I came to K,” Dolorfino said. “I took calculus in high school and I was just not going to take any more in college until one of my senior friends told me when I was a first-year student to take linear algebra. I took that and Calculus 3 online during the first COVID term and I just kept doing math, so I switched my major. It’s not like other subjects because you can work for hours and not get anything done. That’s frustrating at times, but it’s fun to understand it enough to prove things logically.”
Dolorfino credits several faculty members for their growth and success at K, leading to their NSF opportunity. They include Tresca, who helped students keep track of their NSF application timelines and materials; Associate Professor of Mathematics Michele Intermont, who provided letters of recommendation and application assistance for research opportunities and graduate school; and Assistant Professor of Mathematics Stephen Oloo, who provided invaluable feedback regarding their research proposal and many conversations about math.
Dolorfino remains in contact with a professor they worked with in a math-focused study abroad program in Budapest. The two of them conducted a monthlong research project in algebraic number theory, which is a foundation in applications such as encryption and bar codes. Their NSF application proposes group theory work, which is what she based some research on last summer at Texas State University. They hope their NSF work will help them become a college professor one day. “There are a lot of math institutions on the West Coast and specifically in the Northwest, so I will have really good connections there,” said Dolorfino, who agreed the award is an honor. “I was grateful for the people at K who helped me apply.”
Mallory Dolorfino ’23 will attend graduate school at the University of Washington as an NSF fellow.
Cavan Bonner ’21
Bonner has spent the past two years working as a research staff member in industrial and organizational psychology at Purdue University. His NSF fellowship will take him to another Big Ten school.
“My area of research involves personality development and how personality changes over the lifespan,” he said. “It’s a pretty small sub field and there are only a few doctoral programs where you can study the topic with an expert. The University of Illinois is one of them.”
Bonner further hopes the fellowship will propel his career toward a tenure-track job at a research university. He said K helped prepare him well for that trajectory through a broad range of subjects, not only in psychology, but in adjacent fields such as sociology and statistics. Bonner also credits his experience working as a research assistant for Ann V. and Donald R. Parfet Distinguished Professor of Psychology Gary Gregg, and Associate Professor of Psychology Brittany Liu for training him in skills that he frequently uses in his research work after graduation.
“I was drawn to personality psychology because it provides an integrative framework to study many of the research questions I have about human development, aging and change over time,” Bonner said. “My SIP and research assistant experiences at K helped me realize that I could address these questions from a personality perspective, but my professors also exposed me to so many other fields and perspectives that inform my research. I primarily identify as a personality and developmental psychologist, but ultimately I hope that this fellowship helps me contribute to the broader science of aging and development.”
Cavan Bonner ’21 will attend the University of Illinois as an NSF fellow.
Angel Banuelos ’21
Banuelos, a biology major and anthropology/sociology minor at K, is in his second year at the University of Wisconsin, where he said he studies genetics—specifically the construction of the vertebrate brain and face—under an amazing mentor, Professor Yevgenya Grinblat.
“Live beings are built by cells that are informed by DNA,” Banuelos said. “At the beginning of embryonic development, the cells split into groups. One of those groups is called the neural crest cells. Those cells go on to contribute to a whole bunch of things such as pigment cells in the skin, and cartilage and bones in the face. My project is trying to understand how neural crest cells contribute to stabilizing the very first blood vessels of the developing eye.”
Ultimately, when his graduate work is finished, he would like to steer his career towards education.
Angel Banuelos ’21, a newly-named NSF fellow, is in his second year of graduate school at the University of Wisconsin.
“I would like to bring research opportunities to people who don’t have higher education experience,” Banuelos said. “I would imagine starting with programs for middle schoolers, then high schoolers and adult learners. I want to be part of research addressing community problems and conducted by the people who live there.”
Banuelos credits inspiration for his career goals to the many mentors he had at K. Natalia Carvalho-Pinto, former director of the intercultural center, and Amy Newday, who provided guidance in food and farming justice, served as role models for applying theory to meet material needs.
“In my NSF application, I described meeting community needs as a central component of my scholarship,” he said. “Natalia and Amy are people who literally fed me while I was at K. They saw the student and the human. They handed me books, handed me plates, even welcomed my family. During a very difficult transition to grad school, they were there for me. When I’m a professor, I want to be like them. I’m grateful for the growth opportunities I had at K through the Intercultural Center and food and farming.”
‘It doesn’t happen every year’
Faculty members as a whole across STEM departments are taking great pride in these K representatives earning fellowships as it speaks to the quality of students at the College and their studies, especially as the number of recipients stands out.
“At K, it is exciting when even a single student wins a fellowship, and it certainly doesn’t happen every year,” Professor of Physics Tom Askew said. “It’s special to have four in one year.”
A total of 29 students known for their invaluable contributions to the Kalamazoo College community were honored Friday, May 12, at the annual Senior Leadership Recognition Awards.
The seniors represent talented athletes, outstanding academic performers, members of the President’s Student Ambassadors and student-organization standouts. Here are the honorees:
Litzy Bahena, nominated by Danielle Turner of Residential Life
Violet Crampton, nominated by Hunter Magrum of Residential Life
Kylah Davis, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
Katia Duoibes, nominated by Alison Geist, Teresa Denton, Riley Gabriel and Felicia Ford of the Center for Civic Engagement
Jazmyne Fannings, nominated by Alaq Zghayer of Intercultural Student Life and Jon Collier of Student Activities
Peter Fitzgerald, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
Yoichi Haga, nominated by Noriko Sugimori and Brian White of the Department of Japanese
Kate Haywood, nominated by Pam Cutter of the Department of Computer Science
Isabella Kirchgessner, nominated by Sara Stockwood and Binney Girdler of Environmental Stewardship and Environmental Studies
Claire Kvande, nominated by Jan Tobochnik of the Department of Physics
Milan Levy, nominated by Nat Markech of Student Activities and Alaq Zghayer of Intercultural Student Life
DaShawn Meeks, nominated by Alaq Zghayer of Intercultural Student Life; Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors; and Jon Collier of Student Activities
Crystal Mendoza, nominated by Daniela Arias-Rotondo, Jeff Bartz and Regina Stevens-Truss of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Aleksandr Molchagin, nominated by Alyce Brady of the Department of Computer Science
Maheen Mulligan, nominated by Jon Collier of Student Activities
Justin Negrete, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
Stefan Nielsen, nominated by Jeffrey Haus of the Department of History and Jewish Studies
Gunzi Otj, nominated by Nat Markech of Student Activities and Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
Alexis Petty, nominated by Women’s Soccer Coach Bryan Goyings
Noah Prentice, nominated by Kathryn Sederberg of the Department of German Studies
Andrew Puckett, nominated by Cyndy Garcia-Weyandt of Critical Ethnic Studies
Milagros Robelo, nominated by Alison Geist, Teresa Denton, Riley Gabriel and Felicia Ford of the Center for Civic Engagement
Alex Stolberg, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
Suja Thakali, nominated by Daniela Arias-Rotondo, Jeff Bartz and Regina Stevens-Truss of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Chilotam Urama, nominated by Patrik Hultberg and Darshana Udayanganie of the Department of Economics and Business, and Ryan Patterson of Residential Life
Elizabeth Wang, nominated by Regina Stevens-Truss of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Ryley White, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors, and Alison Geist, Teresa Denton, Riley Gabriel and Felicia Ford, of the Center for Civic Engagement
Christian Zeitvogel, nominated by Kathryn Sederberg of the Department of German
Nathaniel Zona, nominated by Sandy Dugal, coordinator of President’s Student Ambassadors
The 2023 Senior Leadership Award recipients include (front row from left): Gunzi Otj, Milagros Robelo, Maheen Mulligan, Crystal Mendoza, Suja Thakali and Jazmyne Fannings. Second row: Claire Kvande, Litzy Bahena, Nathaniel Zona and Kylah Davis. Third row: Kate Haywood, Elizabeth Wang, Noah Prentice, Stefan Nielsen, Yoichi Haga and Alexis Petty. Fourth row: Ryley White, Isabella Kirchgessner, Violet Crampton and Alex Stolberg. Fifth row: Christian Zeitvogel, Chilotam Urama, Andrew Puckett and Aleksandr Molchagin. Top row: Milan Levy, DaShawn Meeks, Justin Negrete and Peter Fitzerald. Not pictured: Katia Duoibes.
Kalamazoo College students, faculty and staff will take a step toward carbon neutrality while promoting healthier lifestyles and showing that sustainability matters to the campus community on Tuesday, May 16. The first A Better Way to K Day, planned through the Climate Action Plan Committee (CAP) and the Larry J. Bell ’80 Center for Environmental Stewardship, will invite anyone with business on campus to do anything other than drive on their own to K.
The idea for this event was initially brainstormed in the winter term as a “car-free day” in Professor of English Amelia Katanski’s Wheels of Change first-year seminar with input from City Planner and K alumna Christina Anderson ’98. The course explored how communities can build cycling infrastructure to better support residents.
Carpooling, taking public transportation, walking, biking or running to get to the College all are encouraged for May 16, and participants who share social media posts with the hashtag #ABetterWaytoK will help spread awareness. Those with obstacles to these modes may still participate by spreading awareness of the day, reducing the number of car trips in a day or thinking critically about systems and what might need to change in our own lives, within K or within the community to make traveling without a car more accessible to everyone.
“At the heart of the Kalamazoo College community is a commitment to sustainability, and our climate action plan is a commitment to achieving carbon neutrality,” Associate Vice President of Facilities Management and Chief Sustainability Officer Susan Lindemann said. “Finding alternative transportation to campus for A Better Way to K will impact both, while showing that a sustainable lifestyle is not only possible but valued and encouraged in our community.”
Professor of English Amelia Katanski’s Wheels of Change first-year seminar traveled for a week to Copenhagen, Denmark, to see how the city, one of the world’s best for cycling infrastructure, can provide examples from which Kalamazoo can learn. That class, along with City Planner Christina Anderson ’98, initiated the idea for a climate-targeted “car-free day” on campus. That idea became A Better Way to K Day, scheduled for Tuesday, May 16.
Commuters who want to learn how to use public transportation may contact Associate Bookstore Director Richard Amundson at Richard.Amundson@kzoo.edu for information on routes and tokens. Anyone looking to organize group walks or runs to campus may contact Director of News and Social Media Andy Brown at Andrew.Brown@kzoo.edu. Plus, students who live on campus may participate in A Better Way to K by spreading awareness and finding alternate ways to their off-campus jobs and sites around town.
Sophomore Emerson Wesselhoff is spearheading student participation through CAP.
“Initially, I was excited, but a bit confused by the idea of A Better Way to K,” Wesselhoff said. “I already live on campus and I don’t have a car. But I am going to participate by spreading awareness about the day and the reasons why it is so important. I will continue to walk to classes and make efforts to walk or bike to my off-campus job, the climbing gym and my other favorite Kalamazoo spots.”
Based on recent car-count data from K’s Center for Environmental Stewardship, more than 500 cars are on campus every day. By decreasing that number even slightly, the K community can drastically decrease the carbon emitted from its passenger vehicles each year.
One day, however, will only be the start of such community efforts that aid sustainability at K. CAP is asking those who participate in A Better Way to K Day—and those who don’t—to submit their reflections of the event along with what might have helped them or prevented them from participating to enable more efforts in the future. The short survey is available at the Sustainability at K website under Share Your Experience.
“K can help students and our community make a difference in many global issues from across the street or around the world,” Lindemann said. “A Better Way to K will be a way to show we’re taking steps toward improving our climate and environment for everyone—now and for the future.”
With hearts full of service, a student organization is pumping exceptional success into the blood drives at Kalamazoo College.
The Red Cross Club, led by Abby Barnum ’23, has earned a Premier Blood Partners Program award from the American Red Cross, designed to recognize community efforts in benefiting the local blood supply. The award honors the Red Cross’ highest contributing sponsors, starting at 50 donations collected per year, with a minimum blood-drive size of 30 units.
As many as 50 students, faculty, staff and community members have signed up for each of the blood drives at K, which are conducted once per term, amounting to three times a year. After a few cancellations and donation deferrals for low blood-iron levels, about 35 to 40 typically will donate.
“It’s a really big honor,” said Barnum, a biochemistry major and aspiring physician assistant. “The Red Cross person who arranges the blood drives told me, ‘you guys are doing so well, we’re going to give you this special recognition because you just keep knocking it out of the park.’ It was nice to hear that we’re making a difference even though we’re a smaller school.”
The COVID-19 pandemic prevented Barnum and Red Cross Club members from conducting blood drives at K until last spring. But now, a local Red Cross representative will collaborate with Health Care Center Coordinator Jennifer Combes to schedule each drive. That empowers about 10 active Red Cross Club members to volunteer both before and after the drives.
“The week before a drive we’ll have at least two people at tables at Hicks Student Center, and we encourage everybody as much as we can to donate,” Barnum said. “We let them know that donating saves up to three lives and we’ll give them free snacks afterward. On the day of, we have hour-long shifts. I usually take the day off from classes because it’s easier if at least one person is always there. One person does registration. Another works in the canteen, where we make sure everyone who donates gets a snack and is feeling OK afterward.”
Abby Barnum ’23 (left) joined Caelan Frazier ’24, Assistant Professor of Chemistry Daniela Arias-Rotondo and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Blake Tresca at Declaration of Major Day in February. Barnum is a member of the Kalamazoo College Red Cross Club, a student organization being recognized by the American Red Cross for the success of its blood drives.
How to help the Red Cross Club
Kalamazoo College will host its next Red Cross blood drive from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday, March 30, in the Hicks Banquet Room.
For an appointment, visit RedCrossBlood.org and enter sponsor code kzoocollege or call 1-800-REDCROSS (1-800-733-2767).
Donors of all blood types are needed and blood can only come from volunteer blood donors.
Barnum has seen the importance of blood donations from a young age on through family members. Her grandfather has hemochromatosis, a condition in which one’s body accumulates too much iron, which forces him to donate blood regularly whenever he’s eligible. Her mom also began donating blood years ago, setting an example for Barnum.
As a result, Barnum became a blood drive officer at her high school and began donating herself. Later, her dad benefitted from blood donations when he suffered from two non-malignant brain tumors. And since, she has worked in Bronson-affiliated emergency rooms as a medical scribe in downtown Kalamazoo, Paw Paw and Battle Creek through Helix Scribe Solutions, which provides services to physician groups, healthcare systems and hospitals.
“I’ve seen the amount of help that just one blood donation can provide,” Barnum said. “Donating takes such a small portion of your day and you can really change someone’s life with it.”
If the thought of needles prevents you from donating, but you still want to help, remember that students can always join the Red Cross Club.
“We’re always looking for new people and the time commitment is once a term for maybe four hours,” Barnum said. “It’s an easy way to feel good about yourself and boost your resume with volunteer work. It’s also a good way to contribute to society and have a positive impact on the world around you.”
