Lafayette’s graduate success is a consistent, across-the-board story of outstanding alumni recognized and rewarded for their talent and skill as they rise quickly in their professions.
Featured Success Stories
Ross Gay ’96 Awarded Guggenheim Fellowship
Poetry is a craft and a spiritual practice, but it is more, says Ross Gay ’96, the recipient of a prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship 2013 for Creative Arts–Poetry. The craft comes in thinking about form, diction, and “fiddling with syntax and line,” and “it’s a close cousin to prayer, no doubt—but it’s also play [...]
Katherine Blair ’04 Shapes Health Policy for the State of Colorado
By Larry Atkins Making Colorado the healthiest state in the nation is the focus of Katherine Blair ’04, health policy adviser in Governor John Hickenlooper’s Office of Policy, Research, and Legislative Affairs. She is helping the governor accomplish his vision. “Colorado created the first bipartisan health insurance exchange in the country, which will launch in [...]
Unique Business Approach Pays Off for Entrepreneur Jeffrey Fry ’81
By Kevin Gray Someone once said that Jeffrey Fry ’81 is like the A-Team or Delta Force for entrepreneurs. It’s an apt description for the Austin-based entrepreneur and consultant, who has more than 25 years of experience in operations, technical sales, marketing, strategic planning, and business development. “I start my own businesses and help others starting up businesses,” [...]
Virginia Logan ’81 Connects Arts and Nature at Brandywine Conservancy
By Lori Burke As a college student, Virginia Logan ’81 encountered the rich connection between art and nature in a 19th-century gristmill in the Brandywine Valley. The Brandywine River Museum sparked her lifelong interest in the region and its influence on the area’s cultural heritage. Now, as the recently named executive director of Brandywine Conservancy, Logan [...]
Brian Peacock ’12 Launches FastFig Scientific Research Tool
Brian Peacock ’12 won three national awards for research while at Lafayette. So, when he saw a need for an improved mathematical tool optimized for scientific exploration, he launched FastFig, a cloud-based solution. Visit the FastFig website “I was inspired to create FastFig from my combined research experiences at Lafayette, abroad in New Zealand, and at [...]
Latest Success Stories
Richard Ill ’65 Heads Preparations for 113th U.S. Open
Making sure Merion Golf Club is completely up to par for the national golf championship June 13-16 is on the shoulders of Richard "Rick" Ill ’65, head of the club’s U.S. Open committee. Ill, who previously served five years as president of Merion, began planning and preparation many months ago. Logistics include steps to manage [...]
The Danger of Iron Explored by Brad Wertheim ’07 in The Atlantic
Too much iron—is that possible? Yes, for people who have a gene resulting from an ancient DNA mutation that causes iron to accumulate to toxic levels in their organs. When Dr. Brad Wertheim ’07 learned about “the Celtic curse” of hereditary hemochomatosis during medical school, he wondered why it had a predilection for those of [...]
Award-Winning Poet Anthony Caleshu ’92 Mines Experience, Research for Prose
By Kevin Gray Translating inspiration into art involves a bit of magic, says Anthony Caleshu ’92. “For a poem to be outstanding, I’ll echo Harold Bloom’s idea that there has to be a ‘strangeness’ about it,” says Caleshu, professor of poetry and manager of the master’s program in creative writing, University of Plymouth, England. “An [...]
Bill Bennett Jr. ’78 Advances Mission of Compassion
By Andrew Faught After more than 30 years as a successful business executive, R. William “Bill” Bennett Jr. ’78 was struck by an intriguing question: “If I were given a week to live, how would I feel about my life?” At the time, he was a division president for FranklinCovey, the Utah-based management firm cofounded by [...]
National Media Seek Advice from Investment Firm Founder Tyler Vernon ’00
By Kate Helm In 2008, Tyler Vernon ’00 was catapulted into the national spotlight when he accurately predicted a 20 percent drop in U.S. stocks on Fox Business News. Since then, his keen market sense has landed him a monthly spot on Fox and made him the “go to” source for respected media outlets, including [...]
Producer Kevin J. Walsh ’97 Has Premiere Hit at Sundance Film Festival
The excitement of having his first feature film—The Way, Way Back—premiere at the Sundance Film Festival was heightened for Kevin J. Walsh ’97 when it was purchased by Fox Searchlight Pictures after an all-night bidding war erupted following the initial fest screening during the Jan. 17-27 festival. Deadline.com reports that the company is paying just under [...]
Political Newcomer Travis Hutson ’07 Takes Seat in Florida House of Representatives
Elected in November, Travis Hutson ’07 will begin his term as District 24 representative in the Florida legislature in mid-January. A resident of Elkton, he is well known throughout St. Johns County where he received the Character Counts Award as a high school senior. As a businessman, he has served on the HandsOn Jacksonville board of [...]
Kathryn Kerge ’94 Helps Drive Global Growth as Vice President of Ralph Lauren’s Club Monaco
By Samuel T. Clover ’91 At Club Monaco, Ralph Lauren’s hip clothing and accessories division, Kathryn Kerge ’94 oversees the “nuts and bolts” aspects of human resources. She handles recruiting, employee relations, and performance management, as well as helping determine organizational strategy for Ralph Lauren’s international expansion. “I feel like there are very few opportunities, [...]
Constance Killian Neves ’77 Specializes in Children’s Dentistry
By Matt Sinclair ‘90 A pediatric dentist, Dr. Constance Killian Neves ’77 has a waiting room filled with patients ages 1 to 16. “Children are so honest,” she says. “They immediately let you see how they are feeling—sad or happy, scared or excited. And they are so trusting. It makes me realize what a precious [...]
Chris Jose ’11 Composes Music for Video Presented at Royal Danish Ballet
Chris Jose ’11 was commissioned to compose a piece for an experimental ballet video that was shown in March on a large screen in the opera house in Copenhagen as part of a program with the Royal Danish Ballet. View photos of the premiere Jose has been composing experimental violin music, which he features on [...]