Class Notes

1960s

'63 Marvin Happel, BA, Managua, Nicaragua, published a book titled "Cabbages & Kings," telling his story of going from a Bremer County farmhand to college dean and provost.

1970s

'75 Deb (Kofron) Stanek, BA, Manchester, received the 2022 Gold Star Award for Outstanding Teaching. She teaches family and consumer science at Hudson High School.

1980s

'83 Jon Niehaus, BA, MA '85, Oak Ridge, TN, celebrated 34 years with Health Management Resources. He is a senior account manager and national trainer.

'84 Charisse (Brown) Gillett, BA, MA '87, Versailles, KY, was elected to the Transylvania University board of trustees, appointed by the Kentucky governor to serve on the Kentucky African‑American History Commission and celebrated 10 years as president of Lexington Theological Seminary.

2000s

'01 Jeremy Jones, BA, MA '11, ASC '11, Cedar Falls, was named the 2022 Iowa Middle Level Principal of the Year by the School Administrators of Iowa. He is the principal of Holmes Junior High School.

'01 BJ McGinn, BA, Boone, was named 2021 Athletic Director of the Year by the National Junior College Athletic Association. He is the athletic director at DMACC.

'02 Laura (Williams) Booth, BA, Cedar Rapids, was promoted to director of family philanthropy with the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation.

'05 Leslie (Rash) Berckes, BA, MPP '09, Des Moines, was selected by the Des Moines Business Record as one of the 2022 Forty Under 40 honorees. She is the director of programs with Trees Forever.

'05 Andrea Devore, Reinbeck, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2021. She is a facilities manager at Lincoln Savings Bank.

'05 Holly (Petersen) Wardlow, BA, MSW '07, Waverly, is a licensed independent clinical social worker with Waverly Health Center.

'08 James Crawford, BA, MA '12, Washington, DC, served as a GIS Analyst for Polk County for seven years and then as a GIS Systems Administrator for the Library of Congress since 2020.

'08 Tonya (Darrow) Hotchkin, BA, Mount Vernon, was named one of the 2021 Women of Influence by the Corridor Business Journal. She is the vice president of clinical services at Tanager Place.

2010s

'10 Jordan Dunn, BSW, Waterloo, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2022. He is a clinical director at Pathways Behavioral Services.

'10 Julia Ruetten, BA, Albuquerque, NM, is the director of government regulation and reimbursement policy with the New Mexico Hospital Association.

'11 Adam Haselhuhn, BA, Des Moines, was promoted to director of development at UnityPoint Health John Stoddard Cancer Center.

'13 Lauren Hernandez, BA, Saint Paul, MN, is a senior corporate business recruiter for Indeed.com.

'13 Margaret Nervig, BA, MA '15, Ankeny, received a Fulbright scholarship to the Slovak Republic and served as an English teaching assistant for the 2021 2022 school  year.

'13 Chris Phalen, BA, BM '13, MM '18, Storm Lake, is the director of choral activities at Buena Vista University.

'13 Adriana (Hofstadter) Yarrington, BA, Warren, MI, is the Families Together Building Solutions pathways to potential supervisor with Orchards Children's Services.

'14 Jessica (Woodward) Auel, BA, Mankato, MN, is a mental health therapist at Gustavus Adolphus College.

'14 Logan Kraus, BA, Marion, is an associate in the litigation unit of Dentons Davis Brown.

'15 Tirzah Roussell, BA, Delhi, is a law associate with Bradshaw, Fowler, Proctor & Fairgrave, P.C. and practices on the Bankruptcy and Reorganization Practice Group.

'15 Ty Smith, BA, Waterloo, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2022. She is a fitness influencer at Bodied by Ty Fitness.

'16 Carissa (Schneider) Barrett, BA, Dubuque, is a victim witness coordinator with the Dubuque County Attorney's office.

'18 Christopher Tims, MA, Waterloo, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2021. He is a teacher and head wrestling coach at Waterloo East High School.

'18 Abigail Van Patten‑Freeman, BA, MA '21, Tipton, is pursuing a doctorate in counselor education and supervision at the University of Iowa. She is a mental health counselor at Green Counseling Services.

2020s

'20 Cade Olmstead, BA, Ankeny, is a graduate teaching assistant in the Department of English at the University of Vermont. He was previously a U.S. Fulbright researcher at the University of Ljubljana Institute of Philosophy at Slovenian Academy of Sciences Arts.

'20 Britni Perkins, BA, Waterloo, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2021. She is a secretary with the Waterloo Community Schools and owner of Blessings 2 Celebrate.

'21 Aladdin Dafalla, BA, accepted a position with the Permanent Mission to the United Nations of the State of Qatar.

'21 Peter Johnson, BA, is the Executive Director at Midwest Partnership Economic Development Corporation.

'21 Josh Wilson, BA, Cedar Falls, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2022. He is a senior publicist at Otter PR.

'22 Nilvia Reyes-Rodriguez, BA, Waterloo, was named one of the Cedar Valley's 20 under 40 by the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier for 2022. She is the director of community impact and engagement at Cedar Valley United Way.