Class Notes

Charles Jenkins III, GR12, in 2018 achieved his longtime dream of moving to Europe, where he works for consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton. 

Moustapha Gassama, LW12, was appointed assistant county attorney with the litigation practice group in Harris County, Texas. As such, he is part of the Community Protection Team, a program that uses civil law to rid neighborhoods of enterprises that foster crime. Gassama previously was an assistant city attorney with the city of Houston.

Arif Soto, GR11, is a corporate and securities associate at Carmel, Milazzo & DiChiara, LLP. He represents companies in corporate and securities matters.

Kara Powder, GM11, an assistant professor of biological sciences at Clemson University, received a $1.17 million National Science Foundation CAREER Award grant to investigate gene regulatory elements that determine craniofacial development and evolution. The CAREER Award is the most prestigious NSF award for faculty members early in their careers as researchers and educators. The awards have an educational component, and Powder’s long-term goal is to increase diversity in STEM fields.

Elsa Hart, LW11, penned her fourth mystery novel, The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne (Minotaur Books, 2020), which introduces Cecily Kay, an 18th-century plant enthusiast whose fascination with botany leads her into a world of collectors, apothecaries, artists and charlatans.

Rachel Cohn, AR11, launched her own business, Virtual Party Planning, inspired by the rise in virtual events and the increase in at-home time. The company designs and plans virtual parties, from developing the concept and theme to creating the party agenda and fun, engaging activities. virtualpartyplanning.com

Victoria Boren, OT11, hung up her scrubs in skilled nursing and home health care to take a full-time position as an academic fieldwork coordinator at Eastern Virginia Career College. She sometimes teaches labs, concepts in aging, concepts in mental health and a professional seminar at the school.

Ashlee (Minton) Vieregger, LW10, was named to the Des Moines Business Record’s 40 Under 40 list in 2020. She is vice president, managing wealth advisor at Bankers Trust Company in Des Moines, Iowa.

Balazs Martonffy, LA10, received the 2020 John McCain Dissertation Award at the 2020 Munich Security Conference. The award recognizes exceptional academic achievements in the field of political science, with an emphasis on the transatlantic relationship. Martonffy, who is a fellow at the International Center for Security and Leadership and an assistant professor at the National University of Public Service, won the award for his doctoral thesis analyzing why alliances find it more difficult to cooperate in peacetime: “Analysis Paralysis: Threat Perception and Incohesion in NATO, 1960–1980.”

Mark Hikin, GB10, LW10, is an associate with Sklar Kirsh, a corporate, real estate, entertainment, litigation and bankruptcy law firm with offices in Los Angeles and Pasadena, Calif.