2014 - Megan Kennedy

Megan Kennedy (BA, philosophy and political science, ’14) was featured in a Davis Enterprise article, "Female veteran offers support, inspiration to others at UC Davis." She is a UC Davis undergraduate admissions adviser and a student veteran advocate.

2007 - Angela Chang

Angela Chang (B.A., international relations, ’07) is a human rights advocate with Amnesty International and a student in Penn State’s online master’s degree program in geographic information systems. She recently received the university’s 2014 Lt. Michael P. Murphy Award, which recognizes achievement by a geospatial intelligence graduate student. At Amnesty International, she has used geospatial intelligence methods since 2012 to monitor and document human rights abuses in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The findings have corroborated witness testimony and helped influence U.S. policies. “At first glance for many, it might seem like we are coming from very opposite ends of the spectrum,” she said, “but at the end of the day, human rights and national security are not, and should not, be mutually exclusive.” 
portrait photo

1972 - James Barrall

James Barrall (B.A., philosophy, ’72) has been selected to receive the Cal Aggie Alumni Association's Distinguished Achievement Award. He was honored at the 43rd CAAA Awards Gala on Friday, Feb. 5, 2016, at the Presidio Golden Gate Club, along with seven other award winners. Barrall is one of the country's leading tax attorneys, with more than 30 years of experience specializing in employee benefits and executive compensation. In 2012 he created the Barrall Family Philosophy Scholarship, which was the UC Davis philosophy department’s first endowed fund. He is active on UCLA Law School’s board of advisers and works with the Inner City Law Center, a nonprofit that provides legal services to the underserved.

2007 - Reema Rajbanshi

Reema Rajbanshi (M.A., English, ’07) has won the UC Davis Department of English Maurice Prize. The $5,000 award has been given annually since 2005 to a graduate of the creative writing program who has not yet published a major work of fiction. The award is made possible by best-selling novelist and Davis resident John Lescroart and is named for his late father. Rajbanshi won the award for her novel manuscript Sugar, Smoke, Song.  “This novel is a gorgeous thunderswirl of dance and music, failure and friendship,” wrote award judge Ramona Ausubel, who has published a novel and a collection of short stories. “I love how the places — India, New York, San Francisco and beyond — press out through the narrative alongside Hindu, American and family mythologies.” Rajbanshi’s writing has appeared in Confrontation, So to Speak, Southwest Review and Another Subcontinent. She won the 2010 So to Speak fiction contest.  She is working on a doctorate in literature from UC San Diego.

2004 - Sallie Poggi

Sallie Poggi (B.A., communication, ’04) joined the UC Davis Strategic Communications office as social media strategist. She previously worked at Fleishman-Hillard in Sacramento as a managing supervisor with a speciality in developing social and digital media strategies for global and national food, wine, agriculture and consumer products clientele. She brings 10 years of public relations experience, nine of which were as a social media specialist.

2002 - Anne Guzzo

Anne Guzzo (Ph.D., music, ’02) has been appointed composer-in-residence with the Colorado Chamber Orchestra. She is an associate professor in the University of Wyoming Department of Music. Guzzo, whose music has been performed internationally, is the founder of New Frontiers Festival of contemporary music at UW. She performs regularly as a clarinetist and teaches composition and theory. She earned her master’s degree in 20th century music from UC Santa Cruz.

1998 - Jocelyn Anderson

Jocelyn Anderson (B.A., rhetoric and communication, ’98) will join the UC Davis Strategic Communications office Oct. 19 as content provider for UC Davis Magazine. She has been the marketing and communications specialist for the UC Davis Office of Research, where she’s written for the web and internal and external newsletters and managed social media. Prior to joining the Office of Research, Jocelyn was features editor for Footwear News, a publication of Conde Nast in New York. Also in New York, she served as managing editor of Pointe, a bimonthly ballet magazine. In addition to her UC Davis degree, she holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

1983 - Christopher Staring

After five years serving as a Superior Court judge in Pima County, Arizona, Christopher Staring (B.A., political science – public service, ’83) was named in October to the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division II. “Judge Staring has a record of integrity and achievement in the legal profession and has established himself as a well-respected and thoughtful judge on the Pima County Superior Court,” Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey said in announcing Staring's appointment. 

1980 - Debra Tracy

Debra Tracy, (B.A., English, ’80) has won the Bronze Medal and Seal in the 2015 Moonbeam Children's Book Awards for her novel Monet's Fun Camp. She won in the pre-teen general fiction category for the book about an inner city girl who struggles in school but has a big heart and creates a camp that brings together latchkey kids with the elderly. She lives in Minnesota.

1969 - Robert “Bob” Owens

Robert “Bob” Owens (B.A., anthropology, ’69) has written two novels, Pointman and Pointman II. The first book was inspired by his experiences in the Vietnam War and the Cambodian invasion, where he received the Combat Medical Badge, Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals. The second novel deals with war and the effects of PTSD on veterans and their families. Both books are available on Amazon. Owens worked as a teacher and schools administrator, serving as the Lassen County schools superintendent for nine years. 

Subscribe to Alumni Content