Alumni to share Laker Effect stories, professional experiences during multiple presentations

A mathematician who works for Disney and the investigative reporter who broke the Larry Nassar sex abuse story will be among 10 alumni from Grand Valley’s College of Liberal Arts of Sciences who will return to campus to speak about their professional experiences. 

Donovan Anderson, CLAS assistant dean for strategic planning, accreditation, assessment, and faculty and staff development, said the annual CLAS Distinguished Alumni-in-Residence series of presentations reflects the college’s desire to support students throughout their paths from college to career.

“When these highly regarded alumni come back to campus and meet with students and faculty, they serve as outstanding role models because they give perspective to exploratory students who have yet to choose a major,” said Anderson. “They also provide insight on how to make the transition from liberal arts degrees to successful careers, and they present concrete examples of effective pathways to professional life after Grand Valley.”

Below is a full list of this year’s CLAS Distinguished Alumni-in-Residence who will participate in presentations, lectures, Q&A sessions and meet-and-greet opportunities on the Allendale Campus October 1-5.

For the full schedule of events, visit the CLAS Distinguished Alumni-in-Residence website.

• Tricia Erickson, ’05, art teacher at Northview High School (Visual and Media Arts Department alumna)
• Elizabeth Stolz, ’14, senior experience insights analyst at Disney Parks and Resorts (Mathematics Department alumna)
• Meghan Burke, ’02, associate professor of sociology and chair of the sociology and anthropology departments at Illinois Wesleyan University (Sociology Department alumna)
• Patrick Jurgens, ’07, geographer at the U.S. Census Bureau (Geography and Sustainable Planning Department alumnus)
• Marisa Kwiatkowski, ’05, investigative reporter at The Indianapolis Star (School of Communications alumna)
• Ashley Nickels, ’03, assistant professor of political science at Kent State University (Psychology Department alumna)
• Lindsey Drager, ’08, assistant professor of English at College of Charleston (Writing Department alumna)
• Embriette Hyde, ’10, freelance science writer and editor at BioScience Writers, LLC (Biomedical Sciences Department alumna)
• Naveen Kamireddi, ’08, vice president of operations at NxGen MDx (Cell and Molecular Biology Department alumna)
• Tracy Steinbech, ’10, physicist (Physics Department alumna)