Notes from the Class of 2002

Brad Turner (Jour, Mus’02) has served as the digital producer for Colorado Public Radio classical service since 2013. Previously he worked as an editor at New West, a website covering the Rocky Mountains, and was an account executive for Pivot Communication.

Surna, a company that develops, produces and sells equipment for the legal marijuana industry, hired Todd Whitaker (MechEngr’02) as vice president of engineering. Todd has designed core systems for the Mars Phoenix Lander and Mars Rovers for NASA and has extensive experience in sealed systems, thermal system design, chemistry mechanisms and more. He lives in Boulder.

Kevin J. Jones (Class) of Denver reported on the hopes and the sufferings of Syrian and Iraqi refugees in Jordan and Lebanon during a Catholic Relief Services’ 2014 Egan Journalism Fellowship. His reports were published through the Denver-based Catholic News Agency, where he is a senior staff writer. Kevin’s reports were translated for CNA’s Spanish- and Portuguese-language sister news agencies.

Psychologist Anna Peters (MPsych; PhD’08) relocated to Estes Park, Colo., to become chief clinical officer of Harmony Foundation, Colorado’s longest-running residential alcohol and drug addiction treatment center. She directs the Harmony Clinical Program, which treats around 700 men and women for alcohol and drug addiction each year.

Anthony Pigliacampo (Engr) created Modmarket with partner Rob McColgan as a healthy alternative to existing fast-food restaurants. There are now 10 Modmarket restaurants in Colorado and Texas, and the chain is hoping for more. Read more about Anthony in the Summer 2014 issue of the Coloradan. Modmarket offers fast, inexpensive, farm-fresh food.

When Brad Turner (Jour, Mus) of Denver joined Colorado Public Radio in 2013, he was the first digital producer for CPR’s classical service. He has worked as a reporter, editor and public relations professional. Before working at CPR, Brad managed communications and voter outreach for the Boulder County Elections Division.

Anne Verrill (PolSci) owns two restaurants in Maine, Foreside Tavern in Falmouth and Grace, which is located in a former Methodist church in Portland. Anne is a mother of two and lives
in Falmouth.

Dallas natives Zack Fickey (Comm) and John Reardon (Fin’03) own and operate the Texas craft brewery Deep Ellum Brewing Company. The pair credit their success to great brews, creative marketing and design and their CU experience. “Couldn’t have made this possible without the love of craft beer right in our own backyards for so many years,” Zack writes.

As grants manager at CU’s BioFrontiers Institute, Meagan Balink Taylor (Jour) uses her six years of experience in grant writing and sponsored research administration to help faculty submit grant proposals, develop budgets and navigate regulations. She lives in Broomfield, Colo.

In April Sean Smiley (Math, CompSci) joined Cimation, a consulting firm serving the energy industry, as operations director for the Denver office. Among other duties, he is responsible for establishing the regional business unit’s vision and execution strategies.

After 21 high school indoor and outdoor track championships, Keena Schuler Wood (Soc) was inducted into the 2015 Virginia High School Hall of Fame for her achievements in interscholastic sports. She continued her running career at CU-Boulder and was a member of the Big 12 distance medley championship team and 4×400 team.

Curious Minds: 40 Hands-on Activities to Inspire a Love of Learning, a book written by Azeem Vasi (Chem) and Tyler Kolstedt (Hist’04; MEdu’10), is intended for teachers, parents or homeschoolers searching for new ways to motivate and engage students between the ages of 9 and 12. Curious Minds takes a multidisciplinary approach to learning and incorporates science, social studies, math, language arts and world languages. Azeem and Tyler were roommates at CU.

After spending 11 years as an anchor at KOB in Albuquerque, N.M., Nicole Brady (Jour) returned to Colorado and is now a reporter and anchor for Denver7 on weekday mornings. She and her husband live in the Denver area with their two children.

After years of successful homebrewing and beer writing, Dave Carpenter (MAeroEngr) was named editor-in-chief of Zymurgy, the journal of the American Homebrewers Association. Dave lives in Fort Collins, Colo.

Last October the Centennial, Colo., men’s tennis team, a part of the U.S. Tennis Association’s adult league, took the national title at the USTA National Championships for adults with the hard work of team captain Jerad Harbaugh (Bus, MInfSys) and teammates Bryan Knepper (Psych), John Dietz Fry (Biochem’00) and Chris Celechovsky (EPOBio’98). Jerad, Chris and Bryan played on the CU men’s varsity tennis team during their time at CU Boulder.

Brokerage firm Drexel Hamilton announced the formation of an energy industry research team that includes John Ragozzino (Fin). He has 15 years of institutional equity experience, and has previously worked for Wells Fargo and RBC Capital Markets.

Regina Brigid Stewart (ArchEngr) teaches math at Arvada West High School in Colorado. She recently obtained her master’s degree and next year will be teaching AP calculus. She loves spending time at home with her children Tyler and Kiera and baking in the kitchen.

Entrepreneur and consultant Aaron Perry (MGer) works with social enterprises to enhance company culture and holistic balance. He has a new book, Y on Earth. Aaron and his partner, Winter Wall, also offer workshops for companies, colleges and community groups.

CU Boulder Veterans Club leader Rex Laceby (Hist) was awarded the Red Cross Armed Forces Hero Award. At the end of his acceptance speech at the Red Cross Heroes Soirée at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel in March, Rex proposed to Sabrina Blosky, now his fiancée. Rex is retired from the Marine Corps after 21 years of service. He enjoys spending time in the mountains, climbing and skiing.

Tracy Bloch Lechner (PolSci) joined the intellectual property department of Denver law firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, where she will lead cybersecurity and technology transactions. Previously Tracy worked as vice president for Outfront Media Inc., an outdoor media advertising company.