Jocelyne Muñoz ’17 Serves as LASER Program Mentor
Also in this edition: Dominic Mejia ’17, Don Shaw ’69 and Tom Trumble ’68, Bradd Skinner ’87, Katy Herron Piazza ’94, Lon Kemeness ’91, John Oberle ’93, Peter Hahn ’82, Quinn Chandler ’03, Jud Hall ’11, and Susan Phillips Read ’69.
Jocelyne Muñoz ’17
Jocelyne Muñoz ’17
Jocelyne Muñoz, a Spanish and microbiology double major, mentors a Hispanic high school freshman as part of The Ohio State University’s LASER (Latino and Latin American Space for Enrichment and Research) program.
“I was motivated to see fellow Latinos excel in such a competitive environment, because one’s background should not be the determining factor of whether or not they attain higher education,” Muñoz says.
In addition to being a LASER mentor, Muñoz traveled to Tanzania through OWU’s Theory-To-Practice Grant Program to research the culture of the Maasai. She also studied abroad in Salamanca, Spain, and participated in a summer research project working with an OSU linguistics professor on a project to “better understand language comprehension using an eye-tracker method to focus on the role of prosody (the patterns of stress and intonation in a language).”
Muñoz plans to attend graduate and/or medical school after earning her Ohio Wesleyan degree.
Read the full article, “Ohio Wesleyan LASER Mentor: Jocelyne Muñoz.”
Dominic Mejia ’17
Dominic Mejia ’17
Dominic Mejia, a pre-theology major, discusses illegal immigration in relation to Christian faith in a guest blog post on “Hacking Christianity,” a blogging community that “engages in conversations about faith using the lenses of progressive theology, technology, and geek culture.”
“We as Christians must come to realize that we are Christians first and citizens of the U.S.A. after that,” Mejia writes. “We must realize that being born north of the Mexican border does not make us better, nor does us being born here mean that the U.S.A. is inherently superior.”
Read Mejia’s full Hacking Christianity blog post, “Christ and the Immigrant.”
Don Shaw ’69
Don Shaw ’69 and Tom Trumble ’68
Don Shaw and Tom Trumble write about their Habitat for Humanity experiences working with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter.
Shaw and Trumble took part in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, which shepherded 3,000 volunteers from around the world to construct 100 Habitat for Humanity homes in one week.
Tom Trumble ’68
“As Carter has taught us so well, adequate shelter should be a basic human right throughout the world,” say the OWU alumni, now board members for the Hartford (Connecticut) Habitat for Humanity.
At Ohio Wesleyan, Shaw majored in economics, and Trumble double majored in economics and geology/geography.
Read Shaw and Trumble’s full Hartford Courant article, “Inspiring Advocate Who Gets Results.”
Bradd Skinner ’87
Bradd Skinner ’87
Bradd Skinner is named by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection as the assistant director of field operations, trade operations at Laredo Field Office in Texas.
Skinner served for five years as the director of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Customs – Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program.
In his new position, Skinner will oversee trade operations, including processing of commercial trucks, railcars, and air carriers, as well as entry specialist, import specialist operations at eight ports of entry. Previously, he worked for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Policy, as the DHS attaché to Canada.
At Ohio Wesleyan, Skinner graduated with honors with a degree in international business and Spanish.
Read the full announcement, “Veteran CBP Executive Bradd Skinner Assumes Assistant Director, Trade Operations post at Laredo Field Office.”
Katy Herron Piazza ’94
Katy Herron Piazza ’94
Katy Herron Piazza becomes the priest-in-charge at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Connecticut.
“I think religion can be effective in helping people grow into being courageous, compassionate, and merciful persons who work for justice and peace,” Piazza says.
Before starting at Emmanuel, Piazza was as an interim pastor and served on the clergy staff in New York. In three years Piazza will decide, with the help of the bishop and the church, whether she wants to become the rector.
She majored in politics and government at Ohio Wesleyan and earned her master’s degree in public administration from Cleveland State University. She received her Master of Divinity degree from the General Theological Seminary in New York City.
Read the full thewestonforum.com article, “Katy Piazza is priest-in-charge at Emmanuel Church.”
Lon Kemeness ’91
Lon Kemeness ’91
Lon Kemeness, a criminal defense attorney in South Georgia, is appointed by Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal to the Department of Community Supervision Advisory Board.
Kemeness is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Tifton Bar Association. He also is a high school coach for the State Bar’s Mock Trial program.
He majored in international business at Ohio Wesleyan and earned his law degree from John Marshall Law School.
Read the full governor’s office announcement, “Deal appoints eight to boards.”
John Oberle ’93
John Oberle ’93
John Oberle is appointed chair of the Gaming and Liquor Law Committee by the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA).
Oberle has more than 20 years of experience as a regulatory attorney, public sector advocate, and lobbyist before state governmental agencies. Previously, he worked as chief of Legislative Affairs for the Ohio Department of Commerce.
Oberle studied politics and government at Ohio Wesleyan and received his law degree from Capital University Law School. He was named an Ohio Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2007.
Read the full announcement, “OSBA announces appointments of committee and section chairpersons.”
Peter Hahn ’82
Peter Hahn ’82
Peter Hahn, Ph.D., professor of history, is appointed Divisional Dean of Arts & Humanities at The Ohio State University.
Hahn specializes in U.S. foreign relations in the Middle East since 1940. He previously served as chair of the history department at OSU.
Hahn double majored in religion and history at Ohio Wesleyan. He earned his doctorate in 1987 from Vanderbilt University.
Read more about Hahn’s background and career.
Quinn Chandler ’03
Quinn Chandler ’03
Quinn Chandler discusses his successful jewelry photography business, Quinn Chandler Photography Inc., in New York, with Philipstown Paper writer Alison Rooney.
“I figured out that jewelry had different requirements, in terms of studio lighting and Photoshopping,” Chandler says. “I had a great command of Photoshop, and if you’re very interested in those two things, as I was, it’s the perfect field — the right fit for me.”
Chandler works for a range of clients, in all strata of jewelry design, from high-end designers to corporate catalog work.
At Ohio Wesleyan, he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts with concentrations in photography and graphic design.
Read the full philipstown.info article, “Quinn Chandler Jewelry Photography.”
Jud Hall ’11
Jud Hall ’11
Jud Hall is named assistant coach of men’s lacrosse at Colgate University in New York.
Hall served three years as a volunteer lacrosse coach at The Ohio State University before being promoted in 2015 to director of player development.
“We were all impressed with Jud’s confidence, knowledge of the game, and his desire to help our student-athletes reach their greatest potential in the classroom, on the field, and in life,” says Colgate’s head coach Mike Murphy.
Hall graduated from Ohio Wesleyan with a major in sociology/anthropology and a minor in history. An outstanding goalkeeper for the Bishops, Hall was team captain of OWU’s lacrosse team as both a junior and senior.
Read the full laxpower.com article, “Colgate Names Jud Hall as Assistant Lacrosse Coach.”
Susan Phillips Read ’69
Susan Phillips Read ’69
Susan Phillips Read, associate judge on the New York Court of Appeals for more than 12 years, discusses her tenure on New York State’s High Court as she prepares for retirement.
“I know I’ve done as good a job at that as I’m capable of doing,” Read tells the New York Law Journal. “I look upon the law as a craft and so I have tried to be a very craftsmanlike judge in that sense.”
“Susan Read is someone who has contributed immensely to the jurisprudence of the court and of New York state,” Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman tells writer Joel Stashenko. “Her decisions are so beautifully written and well-constructed and at the highest level in terms of their legal principles.”
Read majored in history and minored in biology at Ohio Wesleyan. She earned her law degree from the University of Chicago Law School.
Read the full New York Law Journal article, “Read Reflects on Her Tenure on New York State’s High Court.”