Alumni - 1980-1989

What do Humboldt political science alumni do? They work for – and start-up – non-profit groups that tackle social, environmental, and cultural challenges. They lead state and local governmental agencies. They join the Peace Corps. They succeed in outstanding graduate and law schools. They teach high school. They become college professors and administrators. They staff Congressional and the State Legislative offices. They become leaders in international organizations. They practice law. They establish businesses and consulting firms. They manage political campaigns. They get elected to public office. They remain active and engaged citizens who make their communities and our world a better place.

Meet our featured Alumni

Graduates: join your fellow alumni on Facebook.

 

1980’S

Richard Baroway (1980) is an attorney with Tomasi Salyer Baroway in Portland, Oregon. He earned his J.D. from Willamette University.

Joel Rollins (1980) is Principal of The Brinnington Group, an organization providing contract CFO services to a variety of companies in Central Virginia. He has had extensive experience as VP of Finance and CFO for multiple organizations, including Bandspeed, Exterprise, Jato Technologies and National Instruments.

Alison Anderson (1981) is Chief Counsel for the California State Senate Public Safety Committee.

Gary Costello (1981) is a Senior Environmental Consultant for the World Bank, headquartered in Washington, D.C. He earned an M.A. in Public Administration from Harvard.

Eddie Scher (1981) is the founder and owner of Soy Vay Enterprises, maker of Kosher Chinese sauces.

Allan C. Bee (1982) retired as the Director of Admissions at CSU, Chico in 2014. Currently, he is a grant writer/editor and works part-time as a communication planning consultant at Butte College. He graduated with a double major in Spanish and political science; he also received an MPA in 1995 from CSU, Chico.

Michael J. Boyajian (1982) is a real estate attorney with Michael J. Boyajian Law Offices. He earned his J.D. from Southwestern University School of Law.

Peter La Vallee (1982) was Mayor of Eureka from 2002-2006. He has over 25 years of non-profit experience with Redwood Community Action Agency and is a board member of Hospice of Humboldt.

Joel Tipple (1982) is a freelance writer/blogger in Fortuna, CA.

Allison Travis-Bee (1982) is an Executive Assistant at Graphic Packaging International. She was previously a Student Services Coordinator at CSU Chico and Associate Faculty at Shasta Community College and Butte Community College. She earned a master’s in English from CSU, Chico in 1996.

Tanya Cantrell (1983) is a Disability Program Manager for the U.S. Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.

Peter Cavanagh (1983) is a real estate broker with Coldwell Banker in San Diego.

Karen Cox (1983) is a humanities teacher at Manzano High School in Albequerque, NM, and the Academy Head of Health and Social Sciences at Atrisco Heritage Academy High School, asecondary education school also located in Albequerque. She has published a chapter on the Atrisco land grant in an anthology of New Mexico history and she was recently one of 58 winners nationwide of a James Madison Fellowship to study for a dual history and law degree at St. John’s College in Santa Fe. Earlier, Karen served as a graduate intern at the United Nations.

Elaine Enos (1983) is Executive Director of Special Events & Protocol at Stanford University.

Charles Frakes (1983) works as a Senior Technical Writer for Taleo, a computer software company that provides businesses with a cloud-based talent management program. He has had a number of other positions relating to technical work and was a Safety Engineer for Lockheed Martin for over eight years.

Leah Green (1983) is the founder and director of The Compassionate Listening Project, which teaches skills for peace building and reconciliation in families, communities, on the job, and in the world. The Project began in 1990 as Mid-East Citizen Diplomacy. She has master’s degrees in Public Administration and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Washington.

Michael Sagehorn (1983) is a History Teacher/Assistant Football Coach at Deer Valley High School in Antioch, California. His previous job experience includes providing rugby coaching at De La Salle High School, Course Leader/Coach Educator at USA Rugby, and social-studies teaching positions at Deer Valley High School, Oakland Military Institute, Antioch Middle School, and Park Middle School. He served as a U.S. Marine Corps officer and corporate management in two large transportation companies, and completed his teaching credential and earned his master’s degree in education at CSU East Bay.

Gary Allen (1984) has had over sixteen years of experience as a senior executive in Federal service and private industry. He currently works as a consultant for Tech 2000, a company that prepares people for work in the field of Information Technology.

Bruce Jackson (1984) is VP of Trade Controls & Export Strategy at Virgin Galactic. Prior to joining Virgin Galactic, he was the Vice President and U.S. Exports Practice Leader with JPMorgan Trade Management Consulting. He has over 30 years in the field of export compliance, and has worked in both the government and private sectors.

Dan Silvernale (1984) has provided support services in the field of Information Technology for a number of U.S. military groups. He currently directs network operations at the Missile Defense Agency.

Eric Stahl (1984) reports that, “immediately following my graduation I completed an MBA while working with computer systems in the Space Shuttle Launch Control Center and in the Air Force Flight Test Center mission control for the first B2 Stealth bomber flight tests. I’m currently in a senior engineering position with Hewlett Packard. I’m proud that Humboldt is my alma mater!”

Mark Childress (1985) is Terminology Manager at SAP, a software company headquartered in Walldorf, Germany. He is the current President of the Deutscher Terminologie-Tag (German Terminology Association).

Kristy Clearman (1985) is the Vice President of Operations at CDS Insurance Services, located in Los Angeles, CA.

John Appleby (1986) is a teacher of foreign languages in Kanagawa, Japan.

Kevin Novotny (1986) is the Country Director for Haiti at Save the Children International. Previously he was the Country Director of Malawi, and also the Sub-Regional Programming and Training Coordinator of Southern Africa, for the U.S. Peace Corps, and held the position of Country Director of Mozambique for Project HOPE from 2003 to 2007.

Dave Siddons (1986) is President of Form-Craft Business Systems, Inc.

George Cornett (1987) is a Land Quality Analyst for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. His previous work experience includes performing budget analysis as a Financial Analyst for OHumboldt (Oregon Health and Science University) and the Portland Development Commission.

Marc Fredette (1987) has been in the Ministry of church services for over 10 years. He currently heads church services at First Parish in Waltham, MA.

Douglas Gallwas (1987) is a founding partner of GT Financial Advisors and has worked as a financial services professional since 1988. His practice centers on investment and financial consulting for families and small businesses in St Paul, MN. At Humboldt he received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Economics and in Political Science. He previously attended the University of Connecticut where he became a commissioned Army Reserve Officer (1984) and was recognized as a Distinguished Military Student. Doug completed the College for Financial Planning professional education program in 1997 and earned the designation of Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor in 2003.

Jeffrey Gunn (1987) is a Graduate Teaching Fellow at the University of Oregon. Prior to his current position, he was a Visiting Assistant Professor at Whittier College.

Mark Murray (1987) is Executive Director of Californians Against Waste. He has helped draft many of California’s solid waste and recycling laws.

Charese Rohny (1987) owns her own business, Charese Rohny Law Office, LLC. She is currently a member of the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association and was a Board Member for the Oregon Lawyers Against Hunger for over 10 years prior to the founding of her own business.

Sean Smith (1987) teaches seventh grade history and eighth grade Spanish at Crescent Elk Middle School in Crescent City, CA.

J. David Smock (1987) is the Academic Dean at Sonoma Academy. Previously, he was the Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs at the Jewish Community High School of the Bay in San Francisco. He earned an M.A. in Political Science, New School for Social Research.

Lorna Steward (1987) owns her own business in Redding, CA: the Law Office of Lorna Steward.

Suzanne Van Velkinburgh Bost (1987) retired in 2008 from the California Department of Finance. She oversaw the development and administration of budgets on behalf of five governors. Sue began working with the department after participating in the Governor’s Executive Fellows Program upon her graduation from Humboldt. While living in Humboldt County, Sue was a deputy sheriff for 12 years.

Grant Gunz (1988) is a CSE at iPass, where he troubleshoots technical issues for all iPass products. Previously, he was a CiscoTAC Engineer for UCIS products.

David Lofink (1988) is an Education Technology Curriculum Specialist, currently working for the Santa Ana Unified School District. He has taught computer science-related classes for the Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) and Rancho Santiago Community College, and was a Library/Media Technician for the SAUSD prior to his roles in teaching.

David Masover (1988) founded his own business in 2005 known as Top Line Selling Solutions, and, for over 11 years, worked to obtain the knowledge he needed to become a successful sales professional. He now assists in Content Creation and Distribution for The Momentum Selling System®, an online sales training program designed to increase the effectiveness of sales organizations.

Shelley Sullivan Schroeter (1988) is a paralegal with Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies.

Bob Baker (1989) is currently an Operations Specialist for Terra Luna Real Estate, a company that renovates and restores apartments and townhomes in Santa Rosa, CA.

John Furlong (1989) is a Senior Project Manager at South Coast Environmental Consulting. He provides regulatory guidance, compliance management, permitting, air dispersion modeling, and health risk assessment services to a variety of industries.

Robert Johnson (1989) is currently employed at Tower Hill Insurance Group. Previously, he was Executive Vice President and Senior Claims Counsel for Balboa Insurance Group. He reports that “while my job does not directly involve political issues, my education does come in handy for explaining government processes including the development of statutory law, the operation of regulatory agencies, and the function of the courts.” He earned a J.D. from California Western School of Law in 1991.

Todd Keogh (1989) teaches social science and coaches golf at Chowchilla High School in the Central Valley. Prior to becoming a teacher and coach, he implemented and administered emergency relief operations, development projects and social service programs throughout sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe and the United States.