Class Notes

In July, after their final semester at CU, science aficionados Carissa Marsh DeGregori (MCDBio) and Luke DeGregori (Phys’16) got married. The couple met in middle school, started dating in high school and is almost as passionate about science education as they are about each other. The wedding’s theme appropriately centered on science education and featured Erlenmeyer flasks as centerpieces. Carissa and Luke live in Boulder.

MTV came to Boulder in July to work on a new TV program about Shinesty, a millennial-run clothing company co-founded by CEO Chris White (Law, MBA). Chris lives in Boulder.

This summer Andres Arriola (Fin) and Brian Ritter (Soc’07) will launch a free mobile app that connects individuals with friends and mentors, much like Uber connects people with drivers. The duo also launched a Kickstarter campaign in April with the hopes of raising $50,000 for their company, SocialPing Inc.

Water resources engineer Anna Campbell (EnvEngr; MCivEngr) was named young professional of the year by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado. She works at the Denver company Wright Water Engineers, Inc., and was a contributor to a 10-month effort to investigate storm water discharges from a Hawaii landfill during two large storms.

Matthew Reed (Geol) accepted a position with the Kansas City district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a geologist. He is from Broken Arrow, Okla.

As a program director for Manna Project International, Carissa Chen (Jour) leads programs in Nicaragua that give underserved communities access to healthcare, education and improved livelihoods. She also teaches English, dance and a creative arts class for children in Nicaragua and runs a child sponsorship program that supports 50 children (ages 0-5) and a women’s jewelry cooperative that provides 25 women with a steady income.

A long-term experiment run by Scott Ferrenberg (PhDEPOBio) and Sasha Reed (PhDEPOBio’08) showed that the biocrusts of Utah’s Upper Colorado Plateau are at risk from climate change. They found the biocrusts, made up of complex organisms like mosses and lichens, die off with heat increases, putting drylands at an increased risk for desertification. Their work was featured in the Washington Post this September.

Anisha Lamsal (EnvEngr’16; MS’19), born and raised in Nepal, is the founder and CEO of the Bahini Education Project, a nonprofit that aims to educate and empower young women in rural Nepal while helping them reach their educational and career goals and teach them leadership skills. In addition to her role with the nonprofit, she works full-time as an environmental engineer at the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, where she designs drinking water treatment systems and conducts research on desalination.

Author and finance professional Darius Ebrahimi’s (Econ’16) first book, Till Myth Do Us Part, received the 2023 Indie Reader Discovery Award for a fantasy novel. He released a second book, Detective Death in May 2023. Each novel is the first book in a four-part series. He lives in Boulder. 

Outdoor enthusiast Brit Goldman (Comm’16) is the group sales manager for Sage Outdoor Adventures, a Vail-based outdoor guided adventure company offering snowmobiling, horseback riding, rafting and more. In January, CU’s head football coach, Deion Sanders, and his partner, Tracy Edmonds, visited Vail for a snowmobiling tour with Sage Outdoor Adventures. Coach Prime shared his visit on social media and said, “Vail, Colorado, changed my life, I’ll never be the same.”

Assistant professor of public health at Pacific University Adelle Monteblanco (PhDSoc’16) was recognized as a 2023 Emerging Scholar by Diverse: Issues In Higher Education magazine. Only 15 scholars received the recognition for their stellar teaching, research and service out of several hundred nominees. Adelle previously served as an assistant professor of sociology at Middle Tennessee University.

Last year, while writing his book Till Myth Do Us Part, Darius Ebrahimi (Econ’16) made Hong Kong — where he lived as a child — his base to visit 20 countries in 20 months. The book is inspired by the legendary love story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Darius lives in San Francisco.

Zachary Szlendak (MEcon; PhD’20) joined the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) as a research staff member in the Cost Analysis and Research Division of the Systems and Analyses Center. IDA is a nonprofit corporation seeking to answer U.S. security and science policy questions. 

As a second grade student in Lafayette, Kenny Nguyen (PolSci, Comm) was a dreamer in the I Have a Dream program, which provides long-term academic support and college scholarships to students from low-income households. After graduating from CU as a first-generation college student, he joined AmeriCorps to volunteer with the I Have a Dream Foundation of Boulder County. Now, Kenny works as executive assistant to Colorado Lt. Governor Dianne Primavera. In May, he was one of four alumni nationally recognized at the I Have a Dream Foundation’s 40th anniversary gala. 

Cousin duo Sabina Rizzo (Comm) and Casey Nunnelly (StratComm’20) founded Byte Bars, a no-regrets vegan energy bar company. The snack has become a local hit after its launch into Whole Foods Markets across Colorado. The name Byte is an acronym standing for “Be Yourself Today Everyday,” which aligns with the Byte mission to be a brand that stands for a healthy, yet carefree, lifestyle. Casey and Sabina have nothing but fond feelings for their alma mater. “I will forever be thankful for the home I found with the Buffs. I wouldn’t be where I am today without it,” wrote Casey. Learn more about Byte Bars at bytebars.com.

Last year, Berkley Gamble (Comm) launched her ethical, environmentally-friendly clothing brand Past Life the Collective. Read about her in the spring issue of CMCI Now magazine. 

Hailing from Mexico and Boulder, Nayeli Medina (Arch) is associate at CO Architects in Los Angeles. Her recent projects include the modernization of L.A.’s North Hollywood High School and John H. Francis Polytechnic Senior High School. 

At CU, Mike Mullen (ChemEngr) played in the Golden Buffalo Marching Band and was a member of the Chemical Engineering Honor Society. Later, he earned his law degree at the University of Houston Law Center. Now, he works for the Houston office of Chamberlain Hrdlicka as an associate in the intellectual property practice.

Alabama native Jake Shuford (Psych) writes that his new novel from 25&Y Publishing, The Secret of the Green Anole, embodies a cross between the writing of Stephen King and Jordan Peele. Jake’s goal as a writer is to “offer readers a phenomenal story that allows them to escape their daily lives and explore the possibilities of what lies just beyond our vision.”

While studying engineering at CU, Tyler Huggins (MEngr’13; PhDCivEngr) and Justin Whiteley (MMechEngr’14; PhD) bonded over their mutual love for science and passion for creating change. In 2014, the duo founded Meati Foods, an alternative meat company that makes steak- and chicken-like products from fungi. The company raised $28 million in its Series A funding round.