Class Notes

1960s

  • Joy Franz (M.M. ’64) is currently appearing in "Third Installment of DUETS" at Chelsea Table + Stage in New York City. She has previously appeared in "Into the Woods" and the national touring company of "Anastasia" where she performed the role of the Dowager Empress.

1970s

  • Steve Paul (B.A. ’74) has been elected president of Biographers International Organization, a 650-member non-profit that supports and advances the art and craft of biographical research and writing. Known as BIO, the organization holds an annual conference and year-round online workshops and other activities. Since retiring from The Kansas City Star in 2016, Steve has published two literary biographies and is researching and writing a third.

  • Richard “Dick” Rhyne (J.D. ’74) has started Rhyne ADR, an alternative dispute resolution practice focused on providing arbitration, mediation, and special master services in construction- and commercial-related disputes. He previously worked at Lathrop GPM for over 19 years. (pictured above)
  • Jawole Willa Jo Zollar (B.A. ’75) has received the 2024 Samuel H. Scripps/American Dance Festival Award for lifetime achievement. The award will be presented in July. Also this year, she is retiring from the dance company she founded, Urban Bush Women — her final choreography will be this summer. Jawole will continue in her role as a Lawton Distinguished Professor in the College of Fine Arts at Florida State University.
  • Nick Rogers (D.D.S. ’78) was recently recognized by Oral Health Kansas with the inaugural Chairman's Award for Outstanding Achievement.

1980s

  • The Hon. Steven Hudson (J.D.) was named as circuit judge for the 3rd Judicial Circuit, which covers Grundy, Harrison, Mercer and Putnam counties in northwestern Missouri. Hudson previously was an associate circuit judge in Grundy County.
  • Michael Gault (M.A. ’80) won Best Water and Top 100 in the 13th Annual PleinAir Salon national art competition.
  • Beth Lyman (M.S.N. ’84), a nutrition support nurse consultant, received the 2023 Clinical Excellence Award from the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition.
  • The Hon. Marco Roldan (J.D. ’83) retired on August 4, 2022. He was the first minority appointed to serve as a judge in Independence in the history of the circuit court. He served as presiding judge from 2013-2014 and served on court for 27 years. Judge Roldan served in the United States Corps and as a police officer prior to attending law school. (pictured above)
  • Keith Cutler (J.D. ’89) was installed as the president of the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association at the 139th Annual Meeting on Dec. 8, 2023. (pictured below)

1990s

  • Stephen Farnsworth (B.A. ’90) has published a new book titled Late Night in Washington. The book traces the trajectory of late-night political humor, which has long been a staple of entertainment television and is now a prominent part of social media political discourse, especially when it comes to the presidency.
  • Jonathan Metzel (B.A./M.D. ’90) has published his fifth book titled "What We've Become." He is a doctor, public health expert and director of Vanderbilt University's Center for Medicine, Health and Society.
  • Catherine Spong (B.A./M.D. ’91) has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine. Election to the academy is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. (pictured above)
  • Jacquelyn Eidson, Ph.D. (B.S. ’97) was appointed to serve as a member of the U.S. Department of Education’s Central Regional Advisory Committee by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel A. Cardona, Ed.D. She currently serves as the director of the National Higher Education Benchmarking Institute, a non-profit service and research institute that organizes data from colleges and universities to create usable benchmarks for higher education.
  • Kelly McAndrew (M.F.A. ’98) was the winner of the 2023 BroadwayWorld Rockland/Westchester Best Support Performer Award for her performance in "Later Life" at the Katonah Classic Stage in Katonah, New York.
  • Donnie Keshawarz (M.F.A. ’98) has appeared in several Season 4 episodes of HBO's True Detective series. The above photo is from episode two.

2000s

  • Brenna Neumann (Pharm.D. ’01) was recently appointed to the Arkansas Medicaid DUR Board. In 2021, she was selected as the 2021 Arkansas Pharmacist of the Year by the Arkansas Pharmacists Association. (pictured above)
  • Jeremy Hegle (B.B.A. ’00, MBA ’03) was appointed to assistant vice president and community affairs officer for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City in 2023. In this role, Hegle will lead the Tenth District’s Community Development and Engagement department, with responsibility for leading and executing the Bank’s districtwide community and economic development initiatives. He also will represent the Kansas City Fed on the Federal Reserve System’s CAO subcommittee and will manage the Bank’s Community Development Advisory Council.
  • Mike Marza (B.A. ’04) was promoted to weekday morning anchor on the “Mornings @ 10” show on ABC7 New York. Marza was previously a general assignment reporter and weekend morning anchor for Channel 7 Eyewitness News.
  • Andrew Dunehoo (M.A. ‘07) is the new executive director of the Museum of Nebraska Art in Kearney, Nebraska.

2010s

  • Miles Pringle (J.D. ’10) has been named the new president of the Oklahoma Bar Association. He currently works as executive vice president and general counsel at The Bankers Bank in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (pictured above)
  • Andrés Salguero (D.M.A ’11) and his wife, Christina Sanabria, known together as 123 Andrés, won the 2024 Grammy Award for Best Children's Album.
  • Jennifer M. Cascio (J.D. ’12) has been named as an Illinois Super Lawyer "Rising Star" for 2024. Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The Rising Stars list, a distinction for attorneys who are 40 or younger or who have been in practice for 10 years or less, includes no more than 2.5% of lawyers in the state. (pictured above)
  • Kameron Saunders (M.F.A.) has been honored by Kansas City, Missouri, with an official day of recognition for his contributions to the performing arts. Moving forward, Jan. 25 will be "Kameron Saunders Day of Dance."
  • Kendall Guthrie (Pharm.D. ’13) is the incoming president for the Missouri Pharmacy Association and will serve as president for the 2024-25 year. In addition to serving as a faculty member at UMKC, Dr. Guthrie is a co-owner of Guthrie Family Dental with her husband, Dr. Garret Guthrie (D.D.S. ’15). (pictured above)
  • Melissa Blevins (Ed.Sp. ’15) was named the new principal at Blue River Elementary School in the Blue Valley School District, Kansas. She began in her new role in Fall 2023. Blevins previously worked as Sunflower Elementary principal at Lawrence Public Schools. (pictured above)
  • Peyton Snowden (B.A. ’15) was named the new director of early learning programs for Kansas City Public Schools in Kansas City, Missouri.
  • Dahila Dyson (B.H.S. ’16) was named the head athletic trainer at Montgomery Public Schools in Rockville, Maryland.
  • Brynne Brown (J.D. ’16) has joined the Kansas City office of law firm Lewis Rice as an associate. She will be practicing in the firm's Charitable and Cultural Taxation, Corporate, Estate Planning and Probate, Taxation, Tax-Exempt Organizations, and Trust and Estate Litigation practice groups.
  • Jennifer Oliverio (D.M.A., ’19) was named the 2023 winner of The American Prize in Brass Performance – professional division for Cornet/Flugelhorn. (pictured above)
  • Janae Maxwell (J.D. ’19) has joined law firm Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice as an associate. Maxwell’s practice primarily focuses on premises liability, personal injury, product liability and insurance defense. Prior to joining Baker Sterchi, she served as an assistant public defender with the Public Defender's Office in Liberty, Missouri. In this position, Maxwell provided legal representation to indigent defendants in various criminal cases and managed a caseload of over 100 clients concurrently. She also has over five years of experience as an insurance claims representative. (pictured below)

2020s

  • Scott Conner (M.M.E. ’20) sang the role of Colline in “La Boheme” at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City on October 13, 2023. Conner made his Met debut in 2017 and has also performed with the Canadian Opera Company, Santa Fe Opera, Utah Opera, San Diego Opera and Semperoper Dresden.
  • Emma Jo Blankenship (M.A. ’21) released her latest album, "Girl Bandit," on Nov. 10, 2023.
  • Amy Fry (Ph.D. ’21) has been named dean of the College of Nursing at Purdue University Northwest in Indiana. (pictured above)
  • Anna Lillig (B.H.S. ’19, M.M.S. ’22) is a physician assistant at Orthopedic Health of Kansas City, working specifically with orthopedic trauma patients. Previously she worked in post-acute care rehab medicine for Comprehensive Rehab Consultants.(pictured above)
  • Ray Robins (B.S.N. ’23) is a registered nurse at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, currently working in the inpatient float pool on different medical/surgical floors.
  • Chad Walker (J.D. ’23) recently joined the Department of Corrections as a litigation attorney. He focuses on legal matters involving civil rights claims and prisoners' rights. (pictured above)
  • Natasha Patel (B.B.A. ’17, M.A. ’23) was named head of people for Yuvo Health, a leading technology, operational and administrative solution uniquely designed to give community health centers an advantage in value-based care. Through her studies, she learned how to cultivate inclusive cultures, foster effective teams, and address systemic issues in organizations. Additionally, she is a certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt.(pictured above)

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