Updates: 1990s' Grads

We post updates from alumni and friends as we receive them. Use our handy online form to send us your news!

Ellen Painter Dollar (B.A., '90) I live back in my Connecticut hometown with my husband and three children. I am a writer, focusing on family, faith and disability. I maintain two blogs (thefivedollars.blogspot.com and choicesthatmatter.blogspot.com) and am working on a book about the ethics and theology of assisted reproduction, genetic screening, prenatal diagnosis, and disability. I am grateful that my W&M history major taught me to love writing and do it well! (11/09)

James Vizzard (B.A., '90) Since graduation I have served nearly 20 years in the U.S. Army as a field artillery officer. I earned an MA in English in 2000 from Colorado State University and an MMAS in strategy in 2004 from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. From 2000-2003 I was an instructor and later assistant professor of English at the U.S. Military Academy. Today I command a field artillery battalion in the 1st Infantry Division. (3/10)

Charles Bowery (B.A., '92) I earned my M.A. American History from North Carolina State in 2001 and spent two years teaching military history at the U.S. Military Academy. In 2004 I published my first book, Lee and Grant: Profiles in Leadership From the Battlefields of Virginia (American Management Association), and am currently working on my second, co-authoring a battlefield guide to the 1864 Richmond-Petersburg Campaign for the University Press of Kansas. My wife Mary Ann (Miller '93, B.A. History) is a serving Army officer as well, in the JAG Corps. (3/10)

David Burns (B.A., '92) Earned an MBA from Georgia State University ('05) and currently working as a supply chain analyst for UPS in Alpharetta, GA. (3/10)

Kelly Smith Lockeman (B.A., '92) After working in higher education for 13 years, I have taken a break to finish my Ph.D. I am currently enrolled as full-time student at Virginia Commonwealth University in the research and evaluation track in the School of Education. (11/09)

Long Westerlund (B.A., '92) I went to work for a DC law firm in 1995 after law school. Since the Internet was picking up steam, I went back to school at George Washington University at the time and picked up an engineering certification. I started my career in technology and ended up coding software for UUNet and other Internet companies. In 2000, I began working for the US Government as a systems engineer, and am now a Chief Engineer with S4 Inc (my client is the Joint Chiefs of Staff). I am currently living in McLean, Va. I am also currently getting my MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, and we just came back from two weeks in New Delhi, India and Dubai, UAE, where we met some great business leaders. I am married to a wonderful wife, Stephanie, and we have 18 month old twins -- Charlie and Lucy. (3/10)

William Carpenter (B.A. '93) William C. Carpenter (BA, 1993) completed a Ph.D. in history at George Mason University in August 2010. His dissertation is entitled, "'Croppies Lie Down:' Orangeism in Low and High Irish Protestant Political Culture, 1790-1801." Bill works for the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC. (11/10)

Catherine Hance (B.A., '93) I am a partner at Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP in Denver, Colorado practicing commercial real estate. (3/10)

Ann Smart Martin (Ph.D., '93) Ann is the Stanley and Polly Stone Professor and Director of the Material Culture Program in the Art History Dept. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her book, Buying into the World of Goods: Early Consumers in Backcountry Virginia (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 2008) is available this fall in paperback and Kindle. She is most proud that it won a best-book award for material culture (Fred Kniffen Award)and business history (Hagley Prize). (6/10)

Allison

Rice (B.A., '93)

I currently live in Arlington, Va., with my husband Joe Malin (W&M '93, but with a major in physics) and our daughter, Lucy, who is three years old and in love with American Girl dolls. (Can the Williamsburg "Felicity" doll be far behind?) I'm an online editor for BUILDER magazine, which covers the U.S. housing industry. (11/09)

Jacqueline Sorongon Rodes (B.A., '93) I have used the writing and analytic skills gained through my studies to work with companies in the design and development of their training curricula. I completed my Master's in Instructional Systems Design in 2002. I currently have my own consulting practice and live in Harrisonburg, Va., with my husband and daughter. (11/09)

Andrew Ryder (B.A., '93) I am currently a doctoral candidate in the department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Iowa State University. My research is on returns to workers who participate in employer-direct contract training programs offered at community colleges and I'm interested in the intersections of higher education and state and federal economic policy. I lived in the Boston area for 10 years working in residence life at Northeastern University and MIT before beginning doctoral work. I hope to graduate (fingers crossed!) in Spring or Summer 2011. (3/10)

Philip Swan (M.A., '93) I've had published the following article: "'The Present Defenceless State of the Country': Gunpowder Plots in Revolutionary South Carolina," The South Carolina Historical Magazine, Vol. 108, No. 4 (October 2007), pp. 297-315. (11/09)

Matt Todd (B.A., '93) My long and storied career in History (MA University of Exeter, PhD (pending) Northwestern University) finally ended in a Library. I am currently the Head of Collection Development at the Northern Virginia Community College Library in Alexandria Virginia. I was recently elected Vice-President/ President-Elect of the Virginia Library Association. VLA Annual conferences are frequently held in the 'Burg, so I get back there fairly often. (3/10)

Mark Voigt (B.A., '93) I am an attorney with a solo practice in Blue Bell, PA. I represent children with special needs throughout PA, MD, NJ & DE, trying to get them an appropriate public school education. I'm married with two boys, ages 12 & 7. Regards to all. (3/10)

William "Zest" Whitley (B.A., '93) I received a M.A. in Southern Studies from the University of Mississippi, then a Ph.D. in history from the University of Florida. For four years I was an assistant editor for the Dictionary of Virginia Biography, at the Library of VA in Richmond. For the last year and a half, I have been an assistant editor with the Papers of Thomas Jefferson at Princeton U. I also help edit the online Journal of Southern Religion. (3/10)

Mike Hardy (B.A., '95) Happily teaching World History and Philosophy at James Madison High School in Vienna, Va. I live in Centreville with wife Joann and son Nicholas. (3/10)

Mike Ludwick (B.A., '91; M.A., '95) In February 2009 I started in a new position at the University of Virginia as the Associate Director for Grants and Contracts in the Office of Sponsored Programs. The previous fifteen years I had worked in the Office of Grants and Research Administration at the College of William and Mary. It was a great pleasure to serve my alma mater, but, like Thomas Jefferson himself, I have migrated west indebted to so many wonderful people in Williamsburg. (11/09)

Diana McCord (B.A., '95) Nearly fifteen years (!!!) after graduating from W&M with a degree in history, I'm happy to say that the analytical and writing skills I gained through my many history classes continue to serve me well. I'm a federal employee, working as an analyst in the Terrorism & Financial Intelligence office at Treasury. Earlier, while working for the Department of Defense and then the Department of Homeland Security, I completed a master's degree in U.S. Foreign Policy at the Elliott School of International Affairs, graduating in 2006. (3/10)

Christopher Gehrz (A.B., '96) I'm an associate professor of history at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota, teaching modern European and international history. Earlier this year I was awarded the Faculty Excellence Award in Teaching. (11/09)

Bryan Godfrey (B.A., '96) I teach social studies and mathematics at Richmond, VA's Huguenot High School, where I enjoy trying to make a positive difference in the lives of urban youth. I am aspiring for graduate work in the near future once the budget crisis is over and I can obtain a "free ride." I am also able to apply what I learned as a W&M History major through my hobbies of genealogy and travel. I am grateful to W&M for teaching me the values of writing and research skills, of questioning or debunking previously held notions, and of acknowledging the wrongdoings of the past to make us better, open-minded citizens for the future. (3/10)

Matthew Siano (B.A., '96) I'm working as the General Counsel of an investment firm in New York City and have been back to campus to speak at a number of events at the Business School – great new building. Feel free to reach out: matt.siano@twosigma.com (11/09)

Elizabeth Callender (B.A., '97) I'm working for USAID and living in New Delhi, India. (11/09)

Brit Erslev (B.A. 97) MAJ Brit Erslev, U.S. Army, received her Masters of Military Art and Science from the School of Advanced Military Studies, Fort Leavenworth, KS, and her PhD in Military History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 2011. Her dissertation explored the intersection of duty, honor, identity and memory in the life of Confederate Major General Daniel Harvey Hill, who fought in the Battle of Williamsburg in 1862. She is currently deployed to Headquarters, International Security Assistance Force, NATO, in Kabul, Afghanistan. (8/11)

Susan Arnot Heaney (B.A., '97) I have been a resident of New York City since 1980 and, as proof that History majors can parlay their education in pretty much any direction; I spent 11 years in publishing immediately after graduation, including 2 years at USA Today at its launch, and then moved into communications for major corporations. Since 1997 I have worked for Avon Products, Inc., but, no, I am not ringing doorbells. Currently I am Director of Corporate Responsibility, and in 2010 will focus mainly on environmental issues (yes, History majors can understand carbon offsets and sustainable forestry!).

During my tenure at Avon I have worked on communications and corporate programs for the business itself, as well as for women's empowerment (which is core to the company's mission), and spent 5 years focused on the Avon Foundation in the areas of breast cancer and domestic violence. For the past few years I have been serving on the Board of the W&M Alumni Association, so I keep close tabs on the College. If you graduated in 1979 you have probably seen my name on our class reunion outreach in 2004 and 2009. (3/10)

Richard Rovang (B.A. '97) This is my fifteenth year teaching high school World History in various Virginia counties (Fredericksburg City, Gloucester County and Loudoun County). Currently, I am a charter staff member at Woodgrove High School in Purcellville, VA., teaching Pre-AP World History and imparting the writing skills I learned at W&M to a new generation. (10/11)

James Liou (B.A., '98) I've been working as a history/humanities teacher in the Boston Public Schools for the past six years, and most recently now in teacher support and development across the school district. I recently finished some excellent committee work with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS); our task was to revise and update the Social Studies/History standards for accomplished teaching in the field. Great experience. (11/09)

Sheila Phipps (Ph.D., '98) My new book will be out this December through University of Missouri Press. TitledEntering the Fray: Gender, Culture, and Politics in the New South, it is a collection of essays co-edited with Jonathan D. Wells of Temple University. (11/09)

Charles Samuels (B.A., '98) In 2007 I opened my own law firm, where I focus my practice on Disability and Juvenile Law. In November 2008 I was elected to a four-year term on the Richmond City Council. (11/09)

Charles Fulcher (B.A., '99) I'm about to begin my fifth year working in the Visitor Programs department at Washington National Cathedral, sharing this historical and cultural landmark with visitors from across the world. I came to the cathedral after receiving my M.A.T. in Museum Education from The George Washington University. (11/09)