Monique Morin ‘90 graduated in December 2007 with her Ph.D. in computer science from the University of New Mexico (UNM). Husband Nick (married in 2003) and daughter Carina (born 2005) were in attendance along with other family members. Monique is now adjunct faculty at the Los Alamos branch of UNM and can be reached via e-mail at morin@cs.unm.edu.

Joining in the celebration of President-Elect Barack Obama’s historic inauguration, AmeriCorps alumna Rosa Moreno-Mahoney ‘93 marched in the 2009 Inaugural Parade in Washington D.C. “I was honored to represent this amazing network of AmeriCorps alumni on the national level – it’s a great way to promote what we do and celebrate our commitment to our communities across America.” said Rosa Moreno-Mahoney. “The parade launched the beginning of a dynamic year for AmeriCorps and I was thrilled to participate.”

Moreno-Mahoney was one of the 150 AmeriCorps alumni chosen to represent this national network of civic leaders. There are currently 550,000 alumni of AmeriCorps National Service continuing to act as agents of change in their communities. Moreno-Mahoney served as a member of AmeriCorps in Austin, Texas, and Washington, DC, and is currently the Chair of the AmeriCorps Alums National Leadership Council. Moreno-Mahoney is the associate director of service and volunteerism for the One-Star Foundation in Austin, Texas.

Anna (Thomson) Owens ‘96 was married May 26, 2007, and her fellow classmates Nicole Boisseau ‘96, Shumiah McTier ‘96, and Elif Arslan ‘96 were all able to attend. Nicole’s daughter was one of her flower girls; she was fabulous at her job. Tim and Anna moved to Portland, Oregon, last summer and their son was born on November 23, 2008, via natural waterbirth (which was an amazing experience). Miles Spencer Thomson Owens was a healthy, alert baby from the start weighing 9 lbs., 11 oz., and measuring 21-1/2 inches. They are enjoying watching him learn about the world and working for his delighted giggles since he decided about two weeks ago that they are hilarious.

Jessica Stoller ‘97 wanted to update all her Cottey friends. She has been living and teaching in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, for the past eight years. She finished her master’s in curriculum and instruction this past summer and is now the ELL teacher at her school. She bought a house at the end of August and would love to hear from any friends at booker08@msn.com.

Brianne Fulton ‘99 had a recent adventure with 80 other American artists when she attended “Shared Journeys”: an international ceramics symposium held in China in October of 2008. The conference was held by the National Council for Educators in the Ceramics Art (NCECA) and the only ceramics-centered university in China: The Jingdezhen Ceramics Institute (JCI) and was the first of its kind. Brianne was one of seven students selected nationally for a scholarship from NCECA, and was able to contribute to student panels, exhibit her artwork, and donate a piece to the permanent collection at JCI. The experience was filled with daytrips to kiln sites that were up to 1000 years old, small and large-scale porcelain factories, demonstrations by prestigious American and Chinese artists, artist residency sites, mountain villages, and multiple day excursions to Shanghai and Suzhou (the Venice of the East). This trip marks Brianne’s sixth experience abroad since graduating from Cottey, with stints in Egypt and various parts of Europe including a special trip with Cottey to London when she worked for the College as an admission representative. Brianne is currently a graduate student in the ceramics department at Fort Hays State University with an emphasis in ceramic sculpture. Her Cottey friends would be excited to know that her artwork carries a feminist theme! She’d love to hear from old buddies at blfulton@scatcat.fhsu.edu.

Here’s proof of Cottey’s international influence - Diana (Dimitrova) Kalitzin ‘04 and Tania String ‘78

 Diana (Dimitrova) Kalitzin ‘04 is studying art history at the University of Bristol in England. Imagine her surprise when it turned out that one of her lecturers is Cottey alum, Tania String ‘78! The initial conversation went this way: Tania, who has been teaching at the University of Bristol since 1996, observed at Orientation that Diana, a new student from Bulgaria, spoke unusually excellent English. Tania asks, ‘Why is that?’ Diana, replies that she spent two years in the United States. Tania’s interest is growing and asks where in the US. Diana responds with ‘Missouri’. Tania thinks this is starting to sound a bit familiar, two years in Missouri, and asks, ‘where in Missouri?’ Diana, who has had a kind of feeling about this conversation from the beginning, says ‘Cottey College!’, at which point Tania takes the glass out of Diana’s hand so as not to spill, says ‘I’m a Cottey girl as well!’ and there is much squealing and hugging!!

Dr. Tania String ‘78 is lecturer in the History of Art. She is married to Professor Marcus Bull, who teaches Medieval History at the University of Bristol. They have one daughter, Sasha, who turned nine on Valentine’s Day.