Left to right: Cy Pattee, Cole Meier, Burke Irwin, Charlie Woolsey, Phil Sheers, Will Nichol, Zach Vuillemin, Jordan Potter, Andrew Hall, Ben Jagolinzer.

On May 3, 2018, the College sanctioned Lambda, proscribing its return until the last Active from that era graduated. Above is a picture of the Class of 2019 gathering on the steps of West Wing minutes after their graduation on May 18, 2019. It was a difficult time for the Lambda classes of 2018-2020. Now with Lambda reborn, back in the Bullseye and celebrating a renovated Lodge, it is the right time to look back with thanks. 

Let’s check in with some our Lambda Brethren from that era and see how they are doing.

Andrew Hall, ’19 is starting a new clothing business:

“I’m Senior Partner Success Manager at Wix.com and working in the eCommerce and Web Development space, focusing on our partnerships with digital marketing agencies. Over the past two years I’ve also been working on my own athleisure and underwear eCommerce business. I have built a strong social media presence of over 100k followers on Tik Tok and Instagram, which has helped with brand awareness. I will be leaving Wix in August to pursue this venture full time. In June, I am marrying my partner of 5 years! We have a house together in Philly along with our dog-sized cat, Loki.”

Burke Irwin, ‘19 in pursuit of his PhD in Physics, is studying the Neutrino, a sub-atomic particle:

“I am currently working on my PhD in Physics at the University of Minnesota and as part of the particle physics collaboration called MicroBooNE. One of the primary goals of MicroBooNE is to measure neutrino cross sections, or in other words, the probabilities of various outcomes of neutrino interactions. Neutrinos are the most abundant, massive, fundamental particle in the universe. There are trillions of them passing through this computer monitor right now. Some might think that the photon (the smallest unit of light) is the most abundant particle in the universe, and they would be right. However, photons are massless, and thus neutrinos hold the aforementioned title. I study the specific neutrino interaction process that produces neutrons from the scatter interaction. The existence of neutrons in these interactions creates issues for the particle physics community's larger scale goals including studying neutrino oscillations. Thus, the crux of my PhD will be to understand how often neutrons are produced in these interactions and the degree to which they impede neutrino energy reconstruction. Recently, I have been spending the majority of my time writing a paper that describes the first half of my PhD; however, I will be taking a step away from physics this summer as I participate in a hedge fund internship with Allianz Investment Management.”

Cole Meier, ’19, also in pursuit of his PhD in Biological Sciences, is researching mosquito control by attacking their immune system:
“I am approaching my defense this August where I will graduate from Vanderbilt University with a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences. Here, I have investigated how photosensitive insecticides can control mosquito populations and prevent the spread of mosquito-borne diseases, as well as how the mosquito immune system fends off infection. This work stems directly from my research at Kenyon, where the DKE internship stipend helped me discover a love for research. And for those wondering "why bother looking at the immune system of a mosquito?", it turns out that the first line of defense against many important mosquito-borne diseases such as, malaria, Dengue, Zika Virus, and Yellow Fever, is actually the immune system of the mosquito itself, which we know very little about! As much as I would love to continue to investigate similar questions in the coming years, my next stop is actually going to be at Johns Hopkins University as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow where I will work to expand our understanding of insect repellents by studying the brains of mosquitoes and their sensory organs. Here, I hope to optimize repellents to better protect individuals from mosquito-borne diseases (as well as itchy evenings following a porch hang at the Lodge of course), and someday I hope to leverage my research experiences to begin my own lab at a primarily undergraduate research institution like Kenyon. Until then, however, I will simply remain a DKE with an unusually high tolerance for mosquito bites.”

Ishan Mirchandani, ’20 is already working in Artificial Intelligence ,“AI” speed up introduction of new medical treatments and devices:

“I am an Account Manager for a software company based out of Cambridge, MA working with Life Sciences organizations looking to leverage AI to modernize their scientific literature review process. I'm considering graduate school in the future, but for the time being am enjoying working with the industry and doing a small piece to help them drive innovation forward and bring therapies and medical devices to market faster.”

Ryan Muzzio, ’18 received his PhD in Physics from Carnegie Mellon and is now working at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado:

“It’s hard to summarize five years of life in a paragraph or two.  I am grateful to the people who have walked in front of, beside of, and behind me and wish I had the space to individually thank them all. To everyone I’ve met throughout the years: Since I’ve graduated Kenyon, know that I have thought of an experience we’ve shared and that I am thankful for you.  In the past five (or so) years, I’ve done a lot in my personal and professional life (as we all have):  I have gotten engaged to Schuyler Stupica, Kenyon ’19, become an avid outdoorsman, traveled all over Europe for work, spoken to Congress, and received my Master’s and Ph.D. in Physics from Carnegie Mellon University and am the first African American to do so. 

“After receiving my Ph.D., I joined the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden Colorado, one of the 17 DOE funded laboratories.  I now spend my workdays trying to boost the energy efficiency of one of the only viable US-made solar panels.  In the evenings and on the weekends, I snowboard, fly fish, hike, bike, and try to find wildlife.  My current near future goals are to secure a longer-term position at NREL, catch more native fish, interact with more wildlife, and get married.” 

Jordan Potter, ’19 graduated Summa Cum Laude and is working in the high-tech industry likely on his way to Business School:

“I work for a startup called simplicityDX as a data scientist. The product we are building is an eCommerce platform that helps eCommerce shops advertising on social media to build storefronts designed for the type of traffic and intents of people visiting those storefronts. I am considering an MBA, but generally enjoying being in the eCommerce space.”

Phil Sheers, ’19 is about to get a master’s degree in “Security Studies” at  Georgetown University and simultaneously working at a Washington DC Think Tank in pursuit of a career in National Security:

“I’m currently wrapping up my master's degree at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, where I’m pursuing an M.A. in Security Studies. My academic emphasis has been on military operations, nuclear deterrence, and great power competition, with the corresponding regional interests in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. I'm on track to finish the program in August of 2024 and am looking forward to getting some of my evenings back in the fall!

“Last August, I started a new job as a research assistant with the Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security, a bipartisan think tank in Washington, D.C. I'm thrilled to be back in the mix of US-China-Russia security competition and defense policy, though I'm certainly feeling the exhaustion of full-time work in addition to school. I'm currently wrapping up two reports with my supervisors, one on U.S.-China nuclear escalation management, and another on reinvigorating the U.S. defense industrial base. I'm looking forward to continuing in this field and would be eager to engage with anyone also in this line of work!”

Charlie Woolsey, ’19 is striking out and seeing the world and likely making many of us wish we had done the same:

“I left my job at RWE Clean Energy last summer to begin an extended solo traveling stint. Since then I’ve spent eight months backpacking and volunteering in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. I'll be stateside for the summer before moving to Spain for one year to teach English starting in October. 

“I write to you today from Sapa town, located a few miles from the Chinese border in the mountains of Northwest Vietnam. When the wind blows the clouds away, I can see the bright green rice terraces stacked on top of each other, some being farmed by local Hmong people. While I eventually plan to return to the working world in the US, I think I still have some more time living and working abroad left in me! It’s been an incredible period of personal growth so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing where the travels take me next!

“Old Kenyon and the Lodge feel far away, but the bonds of brotherhood are as strong as ever. Long term solo travel can get lonely at times, and I'm lucky to have so many brothers just a phone call away no matter where I am.”

A “round of clicks” to these PhD’s, Businessmen, Technocrats, World Travelers and Patriots!!! Undaunted by the difficult challenges, which they faced with honor and humility, it is rewarding to acknowledge their extraordinary achievements, just “Five Years Later”.