Question: What college or university did you attend after SAAS (or what did you pursue instead?) What did you major in? Did you get other degrees?
Answer: Undergraduate: Claremont McKenna College. B.A., class of 2007, majored in Government with the equivalent of a minor in “leadership studies,” which basically means organization development. Graduate school: J.D. from Columbia University Law School, 2010.
Q: What unique experiences have you had since leaving SAAS? Trips, internships, jobs, etc.
A: I’ve done some active traveling in Latin America: spelunking in Belize, snorkeling in the Galapagos, bodysurfing and fishing in Costa Rica, wakeboarding between mangrove islands off Panama, and wandering Inca and Mayan ruins in Peru and Guatemala. I started my legal career as a law clerk in the Antitrust Division of the Washington Attorney General’s office, but only after spending my first summer of law school on the Pacific Crest Trail.
Q: What are your favorite memories from SAAS? What programs, teams, extracurriculars were you involved in while at SAAS? Who were your most influential teachers at SAAS?
A: Trips including Guatemala and Canyonlands are high on my list of favorite memories not just from SAAS but from my life so far. I was involved in soccer and track, speech and debate, mock trial, and student government. I was even in a play once (“Twelfth Night”). The teachers who influenced me most include Joe Puggelli, Rob Phillips, and Tom Hajduk.
Q: Where are you now and what do you do? Where do you see yourself in 10 years? How did SAAS help prepare you for your job today?
A: I have practiced law at Seattle firm Keller Rohrback LLP since 2010, representing consumers, businesses, and inventors in complex antitrust, securities, consumer protection, and intellectual property litigation in courts across the country. In 10 years, I’d like to be innovating in the legal industry—which can be stodgy, and lag behind other industries in terms of efficiency, management techniques, and technology—and doing good while doing well. More excitingly, I’m a SAAS parent now, and get to see from the parent’s perspective the special things about SAAS that were so formative for me, including the vibrant, energetic community that values individuality and inquiry. I arrived at college exceptionally well prepared for the academic work and the need to be self-directed and responsible, and I have carried the presentation skills and confidence to express myself truly and well—both developed at SAAS—throughout my education and career.