Alumni and Friends Feature

Oct 8, 2014

Alums Get in the Game (Shows)

Our alumni get in the game. Literally, in some cases. Tensie Taylor ('09 Communication) appears on Wheel of Fortune this week; Josh Hager pulled in prize money as a contestant on Jeopardy last week. Who's next? 

Jul 18, 2014

Embracing Language Diversity at NC State

Humanities and Social Sciences alum Stephany Dunstan's award-winning dissertation focused on how dialects influence the college experience. In typical NC State Think And Do fashion, now she's working with sociolinguist Walt Wolfram and others to apply her findings in ways that raise awareness and celebrate just how richly diverse we are at NC State, every which way we say it. 

Jul 4, 2014

Chris Hondros is Remembered, Celebrated at D.C. Event

NC State alumni, friends and family gathered at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., to remember Chris Hondros (English '93), the NC State alum who was killed on April 20, 2011, while on assignment for Getty Images in Libya. 

Jul 3, 2014

Love of Writing Leads to Career As Author

Madelyn Rosenberg says she has always been fascinated with the unique ways children navigate the world. As a writer for children and adolescents, she has turned that curiosity into a career. 

Jun 27, 2014

Philosophy Alum Creates Music in the Moment

Jeb Bishop (Philosophy ’89) is improvisational by nature. Over the course of his hugely successful career as a jazz musician, staying open to possibility has enabled him to do what he loves: create music in the moment. He has earned a reputation worldwide as a gifted trombonist and collaborator in free jazz and improvised music, forging partnerships with some of the most celebrated performers in the genre. And that philosophy degree? He says the habits of thought he acquired have served him well. 

Mar 24, 2014

Two CHASS Alums Receive 2014 Watauga Medals

CHASS alumni Peaches Gunter Blank (BA, political science and MA, public administration) and Burley Mitchell (BA, political science) have received the Watauga Medal, the university's highest nonacademic award, for their extraordinary service and commitment to NC State. 

Mar 20, 2014

NC Tech Association CEO Earns National Praise

CHASS alum Brooks Raiford, CEO of the NC Technology Association, has earned the national "TechVoice Champion" award for his advocacy on behalf of the tech sector. Raiford, outgoing president of the CHASS advisory board, is a former president of the NC State student senate and the student body. 

Mar 13, 2014

From Wolfpack Red to Blue Man Group Blue

Brian Tavener (Communication, ‘04) did something very unusual for an NC State alumnus: he turned blue. Tavener, a former Park Scholar, has been a member of the Blue Man Group, an international spectacle in which the performers dress in bald caps, blue-black costumes and makeup, for more than six years. Blue Man Group performances are regularly seen across the country and around the world. 

Nov 26, 2013

A Circus Life

As a CHASS student in the 1970s, Bill Allen says his professors inspired him to travel the world trying to solve ecological problems. His wanderlust eventually turned to circus love. Allen is the executive director and producer for Cirque de la Symphonie, a performance company he co-founded in 2005 that blends the European circus tradition with symphony performances. 

Aug 7, 2013

Friends look to document, celebrate Hondros’ life

Friends of the late Chris Hondros are making a documentary to honor his life and career. "He was one of the greatest photographers of all time," says his friend Greg Campbell. "He had developed into the elder statesman of conflict photographers. Everyone respected him, even his competitors. He was a master of his environment." In 2011, Hondros was fatally wounded in a mortar attack in Libya.