Alumni Visiting Day Sparks Ideas and Inspiration
Among their many talents, Chandler alumni can teach, engage and inspire. On February 7, campus buzzed with conversations and big ideas as two dozen alumni guests shared their life experiences with inquisitive students.
This year’s Alumni Visiting Day, hosted by Alumni Relations Director Jennifer Sells Johnson ’94, showcased accomplished alumni whose generous spirit and eagerness to solve problems and think creatively made them ideal role models for Chandler’s current K-8 students. See the event photo gallery.
Many thanks to our guest instructors:
Chris Waldheim ’81 and Joyce Wang Sakonju ’87 led a card-making activity with kindergarten students, to give love to homeless youth at My Friend’s Place, a Los Angeles nonprofit where alumna Susan Dutra ’94 serves in a leadership role.
Dentist-extraordinaire Dr. Sunjay Lad ’95 talked to spellbound first graders about their teeth and good dental care. He never fails to elicit lots of student questions and comments.
Second and third graders enjoyed story time, as published author Michelle Noble Barnett ’86 read her children’s book, Honey the Bee, and encouraged them in reading and writing.
Anna Pehoushek ’80 taught fourth graders about her work as a city planner for the city of Orange, and Hilary Tate ’96 talked about architecture – from concept to a finished building.
Fifth graders couldn’t get enough from Raymond Jimenez ‘05, a former avionics engineer and mission director for SpaceX who now builds plasma engines for satellites. “How exactly does a plasma engine work?” asked one of the many future scientists in the room. Earlier in the day, he spoke with eighth graders about nuclear fusion.
Alyssa Rivas ’10 showed seventh-graders examples of her art from Chandler and today. She urged them to value the college-level skills they’re building at Chandler, from art to research papers. She also proved to first and second graders that she could still ride a unicycle!
Amy Hathaway ’88 joined students for a drama workshop and shared her journey as an actor. Students loved her acting exercises, like spelling their names through movement and improv.
Attorney Ann Fromholz ’82 spoke to Middle School students about civil rights law, and told them that a college professor inspired her legal career defending the rights of others. Today she owns an employment law firm in Pasadena.
Another attorney, Faisal Dittu ’96, spoke to seventh-graders about his work as a public defender, the right of all Americans to legal representation, and the ethical considerations of a public defender.
Musician and composer Matt Gangi ’98 brought his synthesizer to demonstrate for seventh-grade students the creative work he’s doing in music performance, composition, and composing for film.
Susan Dutra ’94 led a workshop for Middle School students, including an empathy exercise to imagine the lives and needs of young people on the streets. My Friend’s Place, the nonprofit where Susan works, is a Chandler School community partner.
Sebouh ’10 and Shawnt ’12 Bazikian shared with Middle School students how they were inspired at Chandler’s bike-a-thon with a love for cycling that led them to create Bikes 4 Orphans and provide bikes to orphans worldwide.
A line up of visionary problem-solvers, creators and risk-takers talked with Middle School students in small break-out sessions about the challenges and rewards of blazing new trails:
Tony Christopoulos ’85, the president and CTO of Tap.in2, shared his passion for computers and technology which has led to a career in software development for tech startups.
Andrea Swain Laks ’99, the president and founder of Blooms by Drea, shared with students real-world lessons of life as a creative entrepreneur.
Matt Rising ’99, a managing partner with Swell Energy, excited students about the possibilities of solar energy and the thrill of being part of a team that’s tackling a major world problem.
Omar Dittu ’98, told students that following your creative inspiration is a little bit scary, but extremely fulfilling. His contemporary fashion line, Patrons of Peace, wowed Chandler students.
Naveen Jeereddi ’88, the CEO of Jeereddi Partners, told Middle School students what it takes to become an entrepreneur and a successful investor, and also shared his favorite Chandler experience - meeting his wife at Chandler!
