1) Alex Bentley (Seminar class of 2008) recently moderated some of the presentation sessions at the second Biology of the Pit Vipers Conference at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma. This is particularly impressive given that he is a college freshman. Alex, whose passion for snakes is well known around our school community, chose to attend Wofford College because of its leadership in the study of pit vipers in the Southeast, as well as the location of the Copperhead Institute in Spartanburg. He is the recipient of a Benjamin Wofford Scholarship, was the 2008 Grand Prize Winner in “Snakes Alive,” a national photo-essay contest sponsored by the National Geographic Society, and published his first professional research paper in a peer-reviewed journal as a high school student.
2) Evelyn Thornton (Seminar class of 1993) is the Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Inclusive Security in Washington, D.C. The Institute’s mission “is to increase the participation of all stakeholders—particularly women—in preventing, resolving, and rebuilding after deadly conflicts.” According to the Institute’s website, Evelyn “has written on women’s participation in peace processes, led training programs for women leaders from Asia and Africa, and advocated extensively to advance the Institute’s work. Before joining the Institute, Ms. Thornton worked for His Holiness The Dalai Lama on ‘women, peace, and security’ initiatives at the Foundation for Universal Responsibility, in New Delhi. There she assisted with conflict-transformation workshops for young people from India and Pakistan and published research on the changing contours of diplomacy in South Asia. Her career path was influenced by formative periods of work in Bolivia and the UK.” Evelyn holds a master’s in conflict resolution from Georgetown University.
3) Caleb Coulter, who attended CS for elementary and middle school, is a political activist and current campaign manager for Robert Sarvis, Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate in Virginia.
4) Laura Sorensen Bruce (Seminar class of 1998) is a CBT Therapist at the Adult Anxiety Clinic of Temple University and a Ph.D. student in clinical psychology at Temple. She holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Virginia.
5) Lucy Sorensen, who attended CS for preschool and elementary school, is currently a Ph.D. student at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University. She holds a B.A. in economics and East Asian studies from Yale University.