News

Student and Alum News: May 2021

Written by Karen L. Bystrom
May 18, 2021

Students

Anson Frederick, Kinesiology, senior, received the Undergraduate Scholar Award from the American Kinesiology Association.

Augustine Herman, first year Kinesiology Masters student, presented original research, "Using Sports Science Data in Collegiate Athletics: Coaches’ Perspectives,” a collaborative effort from the Kinesiology Department titled " at the Northwest Student Sport and Exercise Psychology Symposium, a regional conference for the Association for Applied Sport Psychology.

The Blume Criminal Justice Scholars awards go to an undergraduate and graduate student whose academic work, research, and/or service advances scholarship and practice at the intersection of criminal justice and mental health.  The award is named after Ann and Bruce Blume. The Blume Scholars receive a $2,500 Award for the 2021-22 academic year, are included on a list of Blume Scholars, and listed as a student leaders on the department’s advisory committee.

Sedona Naifeh, Undergraduate Blume Scholar 2021-22, is a junior in Criminal Justice with Specialization in Forensic Psychology with double major in Psychology. She is a member of the National Criminal Justice Honor Society and the local Pi Delta Chapter. Sedona is interested in the intersection between psychology and criminal justice and in how different countries (such as the US and Canada) address the intersection between criminal justice and mental health. She is planning to pursue graduate research at the doctoral level in the intersection of criminal justice and mental health. Sedona has volunteered with the Gospel Rescue Mission and Mary’s Place Seattle and other community organizations. She recently completed case study research on the case of serial murderer Israel Keyes.

Joslyn Wallenborn, Graduate Blume Scholar 2021-22, is a student in the Master of Arts in Criminal Justice program. She earned both her BA in Sociology with a minor in Law, Societies, & Justice and her Paralegal Certificate from the University of Washington. She is a member of the National Criminal Justice Honor Society and the local Pi Delta Chapter. Joslyn has worked in state service for over a decade and currently works full-time in the Criminal Justice Division at the Washington State Attorney General’s Office where she provides legal support to attorneys and investigators, as well as hires, mentors, and supervises legal staff providing support to the Sexually Violent Predator Unit, the Criminal Litigation Unit, the Statewide Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) Unit, and the Homicide Investigation Tracking System (HITS) Unit, and provides assistance on human trafficking and wrongful conviction cases within these units. Joslyn organized the annual Commercially and Sexually Exploited Children Statewide Coordinating Committee meeting from 2017-2019, coordinated the first Truckers Against Trafficking coalition build in Washington State in 2018, assists with planning and volunteering at the annual Medal of Honor Ceremony honoring fallen officers in our state, and has coordinated regular tours of the Special Commitment Center (SCC) on McNeil Island for attorneys and staff since 2014. Prior to the Attorney General’s Office, Joslyn was a judicial assistant at the Office of Administrative Hearings for four years. She has served as TA for CRJS 4500-5500 The Psychopath, recently published a co-authored chapter on the history of forensic psychology in a forthcoming text Clinical Forensic Psychology (Garofalo & Sijtsema, Palgrave Publishers), and is currently working on an article

Alumni

Lena Beck, BA Humanities for Leadership 2017, published “‘Ghost’ Forest Expansion Rate Alarming: Study.”

Melissa Chittenden, MNPL, 2002, is the new Executive Director at Cascadia Art Museum.

Sena Crow, BA English, 2019, was accepted to the University of Washington's Master of Library and Information Science and received the MLIS Dean's Fellowship.

Jen Doak, BA History, 2002, is the owner of Brimmer & Heeltap in Ballard, and has continued to adapt the business during the pandemic.

Veratta Pegram-Floyd, BSW and Sociology, 2007 and MEd, 2013, has been named director of undergraduate student advising at Central Washington University. She currently serves as the academic and career coordinator of the Tykeson College at the University of Oregon. She also has academic and student affairs experience at Western Carolina University.

Eddie Lincoln, BA Communications Studies, 2005, was appointed Interim Chief Executive Office of Equal Opportunity Schools.

Sofia Locklear, BA Sociology, 2014, accepted a faculty position as an assistant professor at the University of Western Ontario.

Claire Lucas, BA Theology and Religious Studies and Psychology 2019, recently published two articles:

Joe Nguyen, BA, Humanities and Finance, 2006, who currently represents the 34th Legislative District in the Washington Senate, announced he will run for King County Executive. He also published an op-ed in the South Seattle Emerald, “Why an economic recovery agenda shaped by those who have relied on government programs prioritizes investing in people.”

Anna Pickett, BA Spanish and Humanities for Leadership, 2017, has been awarded the William H. Gates Public Service Scholarship to attend law school starting this fall at the University of Washington. This is more than a full-ride scholarship; it speaks to the depth of Anna’s commitment to public service and means that she will be able to dedicate herself fully to her studies and associated opportunities while in law school.  Only five incoming UW law students receive this fellowship each year.

Talisa Rhea, BA Sport and Exercise, 2012, was promoted to general manager of the Seattle Storm.

David Rue, MFA in Arts Leadership, 2017, Public Engagement Associate, Seattle Art Museum, cohosted The Art of Empathy, Session 3: Social Awareness for the museum.

Chelsea Schiller, BA Humanities in Leadership, 2016, (also a Naef Scholar and Ignatian Fellow) joined Health Commons Project, a non-profit organization committed to accelerating health equity in Washington state. Health Commons Project operates a Public Health Service Accelerator Program that supports communities in the design and launch health care products and services. Currently, they are applying their Public Health Service Accelerator Program to support communities in pandemic response. Her role has been focused on the design and launch of a statewide vaccine service delivery program that engages city government, local fire departments, and community-based organizations to deliver vaccinations to eligible and vulnerable community members.

Bob Smith, BA Journalism, 1978, regional editor of the Port Orchard Independent and Central Kitsap Reporter, has been promoted to executive editor of the Kitsap News Group’s three weekly newspapers and two monthly publications. He will continue his role as editor of the Port Orchard weekly newspaper and the monthly CKR. In his new position, Smith will work to expand Kitsap News Group’s coverage of regional news in the Kitsap County communities of Bainbridge Island, Port Orchard and Poulsbo.

Cheryl Strange, MPA, 2020, was named secretary of Washington’s Department of Corrections (DOC) by Governor Jay Inslee. She will be the department’s first female secretary. She is currently secretary of the state’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), the state’s largest human service agency.

Teresa Wippel, BA in Journalism, 1979, the publisher at My Edmonds News, spoke to the Edmonds Rotary on “The Changing Face of the News.” She founded the My Neighborhood News Network, which includes online community news websites in the South Snohomish County cities of Edmonds, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace.