Category: Alumni profiles
Emily Sieu Liebowitz: A love letter long overdue
Emily Sieu Liebowitz (Rachel Carson ’07, literature) used the writing skills she developed at UC Santa Cruz to cowrite But Will You Love Me Tomorrow?, a book celebrating the songs and achievements of American girl groups of the ’60s
By Kristen Garabedian, November 2023
Maurice Conti: Diving into the future
Maurice Conti (Stevenson ’92, Japanese history) is a futurist, so he helps clients prepare for what’s coming, while also combining technology with storytelling to protect one of his lifelong loves—the ocean
By Kristen Garabedian, November 2023
Melissa LaHommedieu: Finding a way home
Santa Cruz social worker Melissa LaHommedieu (John R. Lewis ’19, psychology) uses her lived experience to help others find housing and navigate the foster-care system after breaking the cycle of poverty and abuse that marked her early life.
By Kristen Garabedian, August 2023
Nomsa Khalfani: Health care without stigma
Nomsa Khalfani (Kresge ’91, sociology), co-leads Essential Access Health, a nonprofit with a mission of advancing health equity and promoting quality sexual and reproductive health care for all.
By Lisa Renner, August 2023
Joseph K. Lyou: Environmental justice for all
President and CEO of Coalition for Clean Air Joe Lyou (M.S. ’86; Ph.D. ’90, psychology) began his decades-long fight for environmental protection and civil rights during his student years at UCSC.
By Kristen Garabedian, May 2023
Bonnie Garmus: Chemical reaction
Bonnie Garmus (Rachel Carson ’79, aesthetic studies/creative writing), author of the smash-hit novel Lessons in Chemistry, drew on many lessons learned at UC Santa Cruz on her way to finding the formula for success.
By Dan White, May 2023
Samantha Hamilton: First Amendment advocate
Award-winning journalist and civil rights lawyer Samantha Hamilton (Kresge ’16, economics) finds herself using skills learned at City on a Hill Press during her fellowship as a newsroom attorney for the New York Times.
By Kristen Garabedian, March 2023
Andrew Kramer: A witness to war
A Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter, war correspondent, and now Ukraine bureau chief for the New York Times, Andrew Kramer (Cowell ’94, history) shines a light on world events.
By Peggy Townsend, March 2023
Helen Tran: A term of firsts
Helen Tran (Rachel Carson ’04, American studies), a daughter of Vietnamese refugees, is the first Asian American mayor of San Bernardino and the first Vietnamese American woman to be elected mayor of a U.S. city.
By Dan White, March 2023