Class Notes
We鈥檙e proud to celebrate the noteworthy achievements and life changes of fellow Petrels.
Tell us about a new job, promotion, news coverage, award, government appointment, wedding, birth or adoption, or other noteworthy milestone. We want to keep your classmates up to date on your latest news and celebrate your accomplishments!
The list below includes news shared within the last year.
Alice Hughes 鈥67听recently received the听. She has been a meticulous recorder of history and spent time serving the Georgia Historic Markers program, contributing to three of the 10 historical markers in 麻豆色情片 County, including the historical marker for Cloud鈥檚 Creek Baptist Church which was founded in 1788 by her ancestors and others.
Tom Reilly 鈥67听attended the dedication of a joint memorial to the American and South Vietnamese soldiers who died in the Vietnam War. The memorial stands in Brook Run Park in Dunwoody, Georgia. Veterans from both nations were in attendance.
John ’71 and Mimi Hobbs Fittipaldi ’72 celebrate 53 years of marriage in September 2025. They met in the fall of 1968 at 麻豆色情片. Congratulations!
Bruce Greenfield 鈥76听补苍诲听Amy Schuman Greenfield 鈥76听met at 麻豆色情片 in 1973. They have been married for 45 years and produced three daughters and six grandchildren. Bruce is retired as Professor Emeritus at Emory University.
Brian Sass ’84 and his wife Rana have had their nonprofit selected by @sixdegreesofkb, a nonprofit started by Kevin Bacon, who has chosen several nonprofits to partner with in the month of May for Mental Health Awareness Month. Follow and post to the #Igetit campaign, a campaign to show how one handles their own mental health crisis, what brings them calmness and gets them through tough times. Anyone interested can like or follow to learn more!
Barb Henry 鈥85听has begun a new position as the executive director of the National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS) Foundation and director of alumni engagement and development at NSHSS. As executive director of the NSHSS Foundation, she leads a team in shaping the vision and strategy of the foundation; as the director of alumni engagement and development, she is responsible for building meaningful connections with NSHSS alumni, facilitating mentorship opportunities, and fostering a vibrant and supportive network.
Laura Turner Seydel 鈥86听was named to Atlanta Magazine鈥檚 2025 Atlanta 500: Religious, Nonprofit & Advocacy. She serves as director of the Turner Foundation and works with organizations that address challenges affecting our life support system, including air, water, land, food, biodiversity, and climate.
Deborah Cardone Chosewood 鈥87听has been elected as the Strengthening Families Georgia Chair-Elect. In this role, she will shadow the current Leadership Chair for this year and then will assume the Leadership Chair role in 2025. Strengthening Families鈩笍 is a research-informed framework and approach to preventing child abuse and neglect. Developed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy, this approach focuses on family and community strengths and Protective Factors rather than risk factors.听Strengthening Families Georgia is a statewide partnership, providing support to organizations embedding the framework and delivering trainings to parents and professionals. The Strengthening Families Georgia Chair is responsible for overseeing and coordinating the coalition of statewide and community-based partners, along with the statewide coordinator, to embed the protective factors in the work of child- and family-serving entities throughout Georgia.
Darien Ogburn ’89 recently published his first book, titled . Among many other anecdotes, he recounts his time as a professional baseball player (for one day), the time he wrote a joke for the president of the United States, and other defining moments of his life. Ogburn will be retiring from the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention on June 28, 2025, after a 35 year career as a Health Scientist and Public Health Advisor.
Cliff Robinson 鈥89,听Chick-fil-A鈥檚 current chief people officer, has been named COO. His responsibilities will expand to include field operations and restaurant development. Robinson, who has worked at the company for more than 30 years, will step into his new position on Oct. 1.
Merrill 鈥淢erri鈥 Griffis Gibson 鈥90听renewed her Board Certification as an Orthopedic Specialist in Physical Therapy. She received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy, from Utica University, in 2016 and is celebrating her 29th year as a PT. The Gibsons also celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary as well as their daughter鈥檚 graduation from the University of Georgia. Merrill is a clinic director and clinical instructor in the metro Atlanta area.
Cheryl Ritzel ’91 is now the the owner/editor of Mulberry Magazine, a free digital magazine that offers family-friendly content for the city and surrounding areas. The City of Mulberry is the newest city in the state of Georgia, located in Gwinnett County. She recently appeared on the to talk about it.听She also works as a book consultant and photography instructor with her own mentoring company.

Joe ’91 and Andrea Shelton ’91 hosted their inaugural Nashville Potluck on Sunday, June 29, 2025. Petrels and friends Rachel Lester ’22, Ralph ’85 and Elecia Beard, Jim ’79 and Carolyn听 Steinhouse ’79, Myers ’93 and Angela Brown, Brian ’95 and Tiffany Fryman were in attendance. They had a grand time and their next meetup will be at Union Station for Conductor鈥檚 hour (happy hour).
JoEllen Wilson 鈥93听has been honored by the Rotary Club of Canton with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
Cameron Bready 鈥94听was named one of Atlanta鈥檚 Most Admired CEOs of 2024 by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Michael Claxton ’94 published his second book, Saving Magic: David Price and the Making of Egyptian Hall, in May 2025. It’s a biography of his friend David Price (1910-1998), who built one of the world’s largest collections of magicians’ memorabilia at his home in Brentwood, Tennessee. Michael has just completed his 22nd year teaching English at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.

Scarlet Pressley-Brown ’94 completed her doctoral studies and received her Ph.D. in Humanities with a concentration in English from Clark Atlanta University. She finished in Summer 2024 and marched in May 2025.
Marge Ramos ’95 was recently appointed as a board member of RE:IMAGINE Atlanta, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering pathways for marginalized youth to access paid opportunities within the film and creative media industry. They equip youth with essential training and resources, enabling them to thrive with paid apprenticeships and jobs. Marge is the Founder and Journey Strategist of Moxie Creative LLC, an advisory practice that helps creatives, athletes, ambitious individuals and organizations on how to pivot with purpose, unlock opportunities and map out their next moves.
Rebecca Miller 鈥97听recently earned the Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA庐) designation from the National Elder Law Foundation (NELF), the only organization accredited by the American Bar Association to offer certification in elder law. Miller is one of 16 CELAs in Tennessee and approximately 500 nationwide, and is employed as an attorney at Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel, P.C.

Jerry Portwood 鈥99 recently founded The Queer Love Project, a platform that publishes personal essays, interviews, and columns that reveal the stories behind heartbreaks, happiness, and the multiplicity of LGBTQ+ experiences鈥攁ll in an effort to seek new answers to the question: 鈥淲hat do we know about love?鈥 Portwood听 was quoted in
Maryam Abolfazli 鈥01听听for Tennessee U.S. House, District 5.
Daniel Sobczak 鈥01听earned his Education Specialist from Augusta University in December 2024. He continues to teach economics at Southwest DeKalb High School where he has worked since 2007. He brought two classes of students to tour 麻豆色情片 and attend a mock Economics lecture last school year. He also has the honor of serving as the first vice president of the Organization of DeKalb Educators, the local affiliate of the Georgia Association of Educators and National Education Association.
Shaniece R. Criss 鈥02听was selected as one of the听听for 2023. An associate professor of health sciences and director of the Master of Arts in Advocacy and Equity Studies at Furman University, Criss has also recently presented a听听titled 鈥淗aving Babies: From Cotton Fields to Twitter,鈥 in which she draws on her听听and offers several small ways to help shore up health care disparities among ethnic groups.
Additionally, Nobles was elected President of the听. The AMI is recognized as the premier global resource for promoting the power of visual media to advance scientific understanding, communication, education, and research. Nobles is honored to serve in this role and to help advance key goals such as improving health literacy, diverse representation in medical art, and strategic partnerships with healthcare organizations.
Colin Gillis 鈥04听has been named chief investment officer at Passco Companies. In his new role as CIO, he will continue to guide Passco鈥檚 investment strategy and spearhead new opportunities in the multifamily housing sector.
Brent Jones ’04 has been appointed as associate vice president and executive deputy athletics director at Georgia Tech. He previously led Troy University athletics to unprecedented success in six years as the Trojans鈥 director of athletics.
In May, Katy Purwin Watson ’04 graduated cum laude with pro bono and public service distinction with her JD from Georgia State University College of Law.
Jonathan Chadwick 鈥05听works his 1,000th consecutive Braves game. He became the producer of the Braves Radio Network before the 2018 season and has since been elevated to an executive producer role.
UTA Music executive Dina Marto ’05 has been as an influential, dominating force in an industry that historically has been male-dominated.
Jenny Hofstetter Agel ’06 was recently elected to the Board of Trustees for the Georgia Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Jenny became involved with the MS Society after attending the 2024 Taste of Generosity event and went on to graduate as valedictorian of the 2025 MS Leadership Challenge. Earlier this year, she also joined the board of Footie Mob, an Atlanta United supporters group and 501(c)3, where she leads community engagement and philanthropic initiatives as Philanthropy Chair. She currently works as a Senior Consultant at CGI, specializing in project management and business development.
Lauren Howard (Formerly Bundy) 鈥08听joins Dandelion Energy as Chief Revenue Officer. Lauren also was appointed to the board of the Exceptional Women鈥檚 Alliance (EWA).
Chelsie Green Ogletree ’09, the owner of Her Majesty Kitchen in Forsyth, earning a $10,000 prize.
Radford Bunker 鈥10听(EDP) was promoted to Assistant Public Defender IV for the Rome Judicial Circuit.
Jude Gelman 鈥11听recently celebrated his marriage on March 25, 2025, to Maya Banerjee.

Barry Langer ’11 married Rachel Ginsberg in Chicago, IL on May 25, 2025 in a morning ceremony at the Lincoln Park Zoo. Other Petrels in attendance were his brother Seth Langer ’13, Robert Cairns ’11, Zach Kevorkian ’13, Chandler Anderson ’13, Nicholas Etherington ’10, his father and former Adjunct Instructor of Accounting Stuart Langer, along with former 麻豆色情片 students Zach Hamilton, Sara Foster Hamilton, and Elena Freeman. Rabbi D鈥檙or Chankin-Gould of Anshe Emet officiated. They honeymooned in Cancun, Mexico and Warsaw, Poland.
Felix Mann ’11 is in his seventh year leading the Sewanee Tigers men’s tennis team, and recently won Sewanee’s 11th conference title. The coaching team, led by Mann, was voted the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Coaching Staff of the Year for the second-straight season.
is stepping into a new chapter with 鈥,鈥 a podcast that holds space for healing, honesty and what comes after survival.
LaDonna Stallworth 鈥11听welcomed her first child, Catherine Carolyn Stallworth, on February 24, 2023, with husband Byron Stallworth. Mom, dad, and baby are healthy and happy.

Nic Harris ’12 recently graduated on June 2, 2025, from the State Department鈥檚 Basic Special Agent Course, completing a long training pipeline. He has been appointed as a Special Agent with the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), the federal law enforcement arm of the U.S. Department of State. The DSS mission is unique in blending global law enforcement authority with the Department of State鈥檚 broader diplomatic mission, providing an opportunity to represent the United States both in security and in diplomacy.
Ashleigh Cauthen 鈥13听married John Papageorgiou on September 21, 2024 at Oakland Cemetery.听Chris Richardson 鈥13听officiated the ceremony.
Cedric Floyd 鈥13听has returned to 麻豆色情片 to pursue a business administration degree, and he has secured a position on SGA for the fall 2023 semester. Additionally, he will be getting married in September 2025.
married Jordan Reddington on January 17, 2025 in Stony Brook, NY. Fellow petrels Shelby King 鈥12 and Kristin Butler 鈥14 were in attendance.
Lewin also started a new job as a the Branch Manager at the Peachtree Library in Midtown on May 21, 2025.
Ruwa Romman 鈥15听听on the John Oliver show.
Grace Djokoto ’16 recently launched Kalanchoe Skateboards, a brand designed to create space for women and nonbinary skaters. The launch was marked with a party at Brook Run Skate Park on August 9, 2025, bringing the community together for skating, music, and giveaways. To learn about upcoming events, visit .
Toni Jennings Hodge ’16 and her husband have a new baby. Baby Jalen Hodge was born on March 21 and they are all excited about the addition to the family!
Y. Malik Jalal 鈥16听had an exhibit opening on April 3, 2025 at the Gallery 400 Lecture Room in Chicago. Jalal鈥檚 sculptures expand dialogues on Black history, post-industrial production, and the interconnectivity highways and automobiles enable. Building upon the legacies of Black artisans working in Southern iron and steel industries, Jalal welds steel and bronze to re-frame US histories formed by morphing industries and inequalities.

In May, Ana Almeida Rojo ’17 graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a Ph.D. in Neurobiology, making her the first person in her family to obtain a Ph.D.
Taryn Spires 鈥17 has recently been appointed as an adjunct instructor of Core Studies with the 2025-26 new faculty at 麻豆色情片 University.
Shanice Chesney Taylor 鈥17 recently married Wayne P. Taylor, Jr. on August 8, 2024, in Decatur, Georgia. Fellow Petrels听Aadithya Prem 鈥17,听Caleb Logan 鈥18,听Gabrielle Williams 鈥16, and听LaBreshia Taylor 鈥18听were in attendance. The couple now lives in Washington, D.C. with their cockapoo, Garbanzo, where Shanice works in philanthropy for the Trust for the National Mall. She鈥檚 also deeply involved in her community, serving on the Board of Directors for the Ecological Landscape Alliance, as Vice Chair for SlowFood D.C., and as an active graduate member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Liliana Esquivel ’18 has been named a Alpharetta Office. Lili will focus her practice on general liability, premises liability, professional malpractice & ethics, and transportation matters. Before joining HBS, Lili was a senior legal analyst at GreenSky in Atlanta, where she managed a broad portfolio of finance litigation across multiple jurisdictions.

Alex Wilson ’18 proposed to Viviana Osorio atop a Buddhist temple in Thailand on February 13th.
In April, Amani Moore ’18 was admitted to the Alabama State Bar after successfully in February.

Vinh Pham ’18 got engaged to Cindy Huynh in June of 2025.
LaBreshia Taylor 鈥18, MPH听purchased her first home in Philadelphia, PA and began a new role at Drexel University鈥檚 Dornsife School of Public Health. Bre is a Project Manager for Community Partnerships to Advance Science for Society (ComPASS), a health equity program funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Bre is also an adjunct instructor in the Public Health Department at Arcadia University.
Becki White 鈥18 competed at the 2025 USATF Masters Indoor Championships in February, placing in multiple events
Bradley Firchow ’19, a fourth-year medical student in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine鈥檚 Rural Physician Leadership Program, has been awarded the by the . A native of Kentucky and West Virginia, Bradley鈥檚 commitment to rural health was shaped by his firsthand experiences of healthcare gaps in Appalachia. In Morehead, Kentucky, he co-founded the Caring for Appalachians Through Service (CATS) Clinic, providing care to underserved populations through a student-run model. His leadership extends to national policy work: as chair of the NRHA Student Constituency Group, he championed student voices and contributed to initiatives like the creation of CDC鈥檚 Office of Rural Health through an act of Congress. Bradley鈥檚 work 鈥 from authorship in leading journals to community service 鈥 highlights his dedication to bridging health equity in rural America.

Lexi Grams ’19 and Martijn Edelman ’16 got engaged in Virginia Highland, GA.
Amari Holmes 鈥19听was promoted in September 2024 to the Marketing Manager position at Colony Square in Midtown Atlanta.
Shante Ruffin 鈥19听joins HunterMaclean, a leading business law firm with offices in Savannah and St. Simons Island. She previously served as a summer associate with the firm in the previous year.
Dylan Harper-Firchow 鈥19听was recently featured on ABC 36 Lexington鈥檚听. He was interviewed as a board member of Lexington Rotary Club for the show鈥檚 Charity Spotlight. Dylan is one of Lexington Rotary鈥檚 youngest board members and has led new initiatives including a monthly morning mixer for Lexington鈥檚 business community.
Jibril Stapleton 鈥19 graduated from Kennesaw State University with a masters in Exercise Science in 2023 and is currently serving as head coach for the Men鈥檚 Lacrosse team at 麻豆色情片 University.
Deon Heavens 鈥19听becomes the first physician in his family. He will serve as one of the latest Internal Medicine-Pediatrics physicians at Medical University of South Carolina.

Taylor Dodson ’20 married Brantly Mitchell on May 10, 2025 in Loudon, TN. Fellow Petrels Charlotte Disley ’19, Maya Diab ’20, Ruby Philippaerts ’20, Carson Pittman ’19, Hava Stenn ’20, Hailey Willman ’19, Sydney Long ’19, Ana Garcia ’20, Katie Hanley ’19, Michael Santalocci听’19, Karly ’20 and Justin Thigpen ’16, Hunter Couchot ’19, Makay Nichols ’20, Connor Bolinger ’21, Ben ’19 and Madison Hopper ’19, Matt Motz ’18, Henry Edwards ’18, Jake Arnett ’19 were in attendance.
On May 15, 2025, Autumn Johnson ’20 graduated from the University of North Georgia鈥檚 Doctor of Education in Higher Education Leadership and Practice program.
Manuel 鈥淢anny鈥 Portillo 鈥20听is excited to announce that he has joined HOPE Atlanta鈥檚 Young Professionals Board. HOPE Atlanta is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending homelessness and hunger across Atlanta. Manny is eager to contribute his skills and passion to support the organization鈥檚 mission. You can help make a difference by听.
Ansley Hames 鈥20听married听Patrick O鈥橲ullivan 鈥23听on March 29, 2025, in Apalachicola, Florida. Fellow Petrels were among the bridal party, including 听Lauren Bacque 鈥19,听Amara Carrero 鈥22, and听Tuli Mwarumba 鈥22.听Friends听Felipe Ferreira 鈥24,听Sebastian Molina 鈥24, Spencer Hsu 鈥24, Carlos Cavallaro 鈥24, Stephen Summerow 鈥22, Jeff Poyo Martinez 鈥23, Faith Miller 鈥24, Kirsten Wrona 鈥25,听Will Ransom 鈥21, and听Stephen Bole 鈥25听were in attendance.
Emily Schultz 鈥20听graduated from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice this May with a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology. She is celebrating by running the TCS NYC Marathon to听raise funds for Team Innocence Project, which works to exonerate people who have been wrongfully convicted, to reform the criminal legal system, and to build a justice system that is based on science and is fair for all. She chose to fundraise for the Innocence Project because the nonprofit has been a center for research and activism which she followed closely throughout her undergraduate and graduate studies.
Petrel Pair听Sharia Rahman 鈥20 and Ariana Jimenez 鈥20听tied the knot in a religious ceremony on April 20, 2024 and a larger ceremony on August 24, 2024. 麻豆色情片 brought the pair together over 6 years ago.

McKenzie Simpson ’20 graduated with her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the University of North Georgia. She will be working in sports rehabilitation and performance.

Kayla Trice ’21 married Lane Foster ’21 on 8/2/2025 in Dawsonville, GA. Fellow Petrels were among the bridal party including, Arielle Shaw ’19, Sedaries Mathis ’19, Alexis Walker ’22, Maya Singleton, and Dimetri Chambers. Friends Lauren Ransom ’19, Tom Inungu ’19, Will Perry ’19, Sydney Steinberg ’20, Justin Hughes ’21, and Jamal Willis ’23 were in attendance.

Rachel Lester ’22 graduated from Vanderbilt Law School on May 9, 2025. She also received the , presented annually to the third-year law student who has a keen dedication to legal activism and a demonstrated commitment to confronting social issues facing both Vanderbilt Law School and the greater Nashville community.

Alessandra Nash ’22 recently completed her master’s degree in counselor education with a specialization in education from Clemson University in May. She got engaged the same week.
Jackson Owen ’22 will present his work at the , exhibiting pieces created during his master of arts in painting program. While attending 麻豆色情片 as a student he pursued study abroad with the partner program in Oxford, and stayed for a master鈥檚 degree at Cambridge University.
Vanessa Rodriguez ’22 was married on Valentine鈥檚 Day to Adalberto Mendez and their story was featured in the news.

Katie Hunter 鈥22 married Collin Sides 鈥22 on September 21, 2024 in Vinings, GA.

Trevon Burkhead ’23 got engaged to Tori Hammond on June 14, 2025.
Marc Collins 鈥23听appeared in a Super Bowl commercial this year. The clip is听.
Wynne Kelly ’24 is an actor and singer in Atlanta, and she was recently highlighted by .
LaChelle Foster 鈥24听is opening Mai听A莽a铆 this spring in Peachtree Corners. The shop will feature self-serve bowls made with a莽a铆 sustainably sourced from Brazil.
Randi Parks ’24 renewed her and was awarded a second grant for the 2025-26 academic year. Parks will help teach the English language while serving as a cultural ambassador for the United States.
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If you have questions about one of these areas or want to learn more about how you can be more involved in supporting these or other aspects of the university community, let us know by emailing听[email protected]. We鈥檒l be glad to help you find your path to becoming more engaged with 麻豆色情片!