Notes from the Class of 1998

CU couple Dipesh Amin (Bio, Econ; MD’05) and Sita Kedia (MCDBio, Ger’01, MD’05, MPubHealth’14) are physicians by day, restaurant owners by night. The duo and a friend opened Table Top last summer in Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood. The restaurant focuses on new American cuisine and craft beer.

Entrepreneur and engineer Marco Campos (CivEngr) was named the 2015 9News Leader of the Year by the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation and 9News. Through his engineering, procurement and construction services firm, Campos EPC, Marco is dedicated to investing in STEM education efforts, especially those focused on helping female and under-represented minority students. He lives in Denver.

With more than 12 years of experience in the healthcare and benefits field, Christopher Walker (PolSci) joined Edgewood Partners Insurance Center as director of healthcare compliance. The company consults on retail property, casualty insurance brokerage and employee benefits. Christopher is based in San Francisco.

Arapahoe Libraries executive director Nicolle Davies (Jour; MPubAd’03) was named Library Journal’s Librarian of the Year. This is the first time a Colorado librarian has earned this honor. The award recognizes one individual for transforming their library and community and leading the profession toward innovation. Her library district offers access to technology including 3D printers, Go Pro cameras and virtual reality headsets. Nicolle served as deputy director of Arapahoe Libraries before advancing to executive director in 2012.

Producer and writer Drew Goddard (Engl; Film) received his first Academy Award nomination, Best Adapted Screenplay, this year for his work on The Martian. He is also the producer and showrunner for Daredevil, a Netflix original TV series that began its second season this spring.

On May 26, Freight Books released Shawn Stein’s (Span) book, Idols and Underdogs: An Anthology of Latin American Football Fiction, in the United Kingdom. An associate professor of Spanish and Portuguese at Dickinson College in Pennsylvania, Shawn plans to create a digital soccer-fiction bibliography to help advance the emerging field of literary soccer studies.

Doug Slaybaugh (Acct) started his own business, The CPA Coach. Doug was previously an audit partner with EKS&H, a professional services firm based in Colorado. Doug is being certified as a professional coach to challenge and encourage CPAs, accountants, finance executives and professionals to exceed their own expectations.

Steve Soich (MMus) finished his first year as dean of students at Sobesky Academy, an alternative school in Lakewood, Colo., serving students with severe emotional disabilities. He is assistant principal for the 2016-2017 school year and is working on a degree to be an Educational Leadership Specialist (EdS) through the University of Colorado Denver.

Corbin Marr (Hist) and Ben Herrmann (PolSci’06) have gone into business together in the wastewater infrastructure sector. Their firm has locations in California and in the East. Projects include an inspection of pipelines in Boulder using cameras, sonar and laser equipment. The firm is also developing and implementing technology to inspect, clean and rehabilitate failing infrastructure.

Of his latest book, Ultimate Glory, David Gessner (MEngl) writes: “It is the story of the 15 years of my life I spent dedicated to playing Ultimate Frisbee braided together with a history of that strange sport. The last six of those years were spent playing for the Boulder team, and Colorado plays a key role in the book… Wildness has always been a key theme for me and those were wild years. But this is also a book about nonconformity during the age of Reagan, about what it means to dedicate yourself to something that many others consider ridiculous. In this way it is a portrait of an artist as a young Ultimate player. And, more directly, it is also about my own simultaneous struggle to become a writer, another ‘ridiculous’ pursuit.”

In July, Horizon Elder Law & Estate Planning welcomed Jerald Marrs (Law) to its team. Jerry, a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, is committed to helping seniors, couples and families through the trying times associated with the aging process. He lives in San Ramon, Calif.

In July, Andrew Hamilton (CompSci) set his third Nolan’s 14 record — a run over the 14 summits over 14,000 feet in Colorado’s Sawatch Range, from Mt. Massive to Mt. Shavano — with a north-south time of 53 hours, 42 minutes. Andrew also holds a 2003 record for riding a bicycle from base to base of all of Colorado’s fourteeners. He and girlfriend Andrea Sansone met while hiking a fourteener. 

Colorado native Tim Barr (Mktg) joined McCarthy Building Companies, Inc.’s Denver office as director of business development.

Matthew Easley (MCompSci; PhD’00) was promoted to brigade general in the U.S. Army Reserve. His children pinned on his new rank during a Jan. 6, 2018, ceremony in Golden, Colo. He is now the cyber deputy command general for the 335th Signal Command (Theater) in Atlanta, Ga.

Christine Ahn (PolSci) is the founder and international coordinator for Women Cross DMZ, an organization that aims to end the Korean War, reunite families and ensure women’s leadership in peace building. In 2015, Christine helped organize a peace walk across the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea. She is also the co-founder of the Korea Policy Institute, a think tank that advises American politicians to foster diplomacy and friendship with both Koreas.

Darlene Kondo (MElEngr; Law’07) was hired by Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, joining the intellectual property department in its Denver office. Darlene is also a board member of the Colorado Asian Pacific American Bar Association. 

CanonDesign named Tim Barr (Mktg) of Arvada, Colorado, the office practice leader for its Denver office. He said, “I’m excited about making those connections and helping organizations harness design to push our city and state forward.”

Last December, Evan Papel (Mgmt) and his company Pocket Socks were featured on Good Morning America. Pocket Socks were invented for travel security and are accented with fun, fashionable designs. Evan lives in Carlsbad, California.