Alumni in Focus

Sarah Stoneback was already an accomplished musician when she enrolled in the College of Music master’s program in 2008. It was her experience at the college, however, that helped steer the course of her chosen career.

CU Boulder alumna and University of Georgia history professor Jamie Kreiner thinks a lot about thinking. She shares “medieval cognitive practices” with her students to help them manage distraction, and her new book on the topic has earned rave reviews from The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and more—a rare feat for a scholarly work.

Benjamin Lourie’s career has made twists and turns, taking him to outer Mongolia and back to Moscow, where he opened a Tex-Mex restaurant near Red Square—two weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Growing up, Jay Parry got a healthy appreciation for sports from her father. Decades later, the former banking executive would make her name working for the WNBA and NBA. Today she serves as the public face of the group responsible for Super Bowl LVII.

College of Music alumna Mindy Watkins released her first album, “Tuesday’s Child,” earlier this year. Discover what inspired the album and the path she took to get there.

Astrodynamicist and space environmentalist Moriba Jah is among the prestigious 25-member cohort of the 2022 MacArthur Fellows Program.

Fifteen years ago in a documentary filmmaking class, alumna Katrina Miller received a standing ovation for a short movie about her friend, a Black student who’d received a racially charged letter. Now she is once again using documentary film as a vehicle for social change, sparking important conversations about race and inclusion in Boulder.

Nepal has some of the worst air quality in the world. The Health Effects Institute estimates more than 42,000 deaths were attributed to air pollution in the country in 2019 alone.

Alumni Cliff and Carol Pearson are investing in the next generation of Forever Buffs by funding scholarships for engineering and history students at CU. Read their story and hear about their impact from two engineering scholarship recipients.

CU Boulder alumna Anna Iwanciw feels her education directly impacted her views on climate change. And now she wants all women to have access to the same things she’s learned.