2006

Post date: Jan 23, 2018 3:11:12 AM

Dr. Malcolm P. Baker '91 has been appointed to TAL International Group, Inc.’s board of directors. Baker is a professor in the finance unit of the Harvard University Graduate School of Business and a faculty research fellow in the corporate finance program at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Dr. Baker has authored numerous articles and case studies on corporate finance, capital markets, and behavioral finance. He is a frequent presenter at academic and practitioner conferences, a consultant to corporations and investment management firms, and a winner of the Brattle Prize, which is given annually by the American Finance Association. Prior to his graduate studies, he was a senior associate at Charles River Associates and a member of the US Olympic rowing team.

Sharon Besser Hi Everyone, Since our last reunion, I finished my Ph.D. in Education at Berkeley, married Jeremy Howell (an Australian airline pilot), and lived in England, Scotland, and now Hong Kong! We have two kids, Adelaide, age 2 and Sean age 1. I've been putting my academic training to work reading bedtime stories and taking the kids to swimming lessons. A highlight of this year was attending Catherine Noon's ('91) wedding to Nicholas Hardy in England. Chris Valeo ('91) and I roomed together and we enjoyed catching up with Yadey Yawand-Wossen '91 and Will Yu '91. I am sad about missing reunion and wish everyone a great time. We'll be in Hong Kong for a while and I'm always happy to catch up with people coming through, so please look me up: sharonbesser@gmail.com.

Sharon Besser and Jeremy Howell A4,

2/F Po Shan Mansions 14-16 Po Shan Road

Mid-Levels Hong Kong

tel: (852) 2914-4431 (home) (852) 9304-8245 (mobile)

Richard Acker After graduating from Brown, Richard Acker took a year to learn about public policy by working in the Governor's office in Springfield, Illinois. He followed that by earning a Master's in Public Administration from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University (1994) and then a law degree from the University of Chicago (1997). Since then, Richard has practiced environmental law and is currently working at the nonprofit Environmental Law and Policy Center in Chicago (with, among others, Kevin Brubaker '85 and Meleah Geertsma '98), where his work focuses on improving water quality and saving wildlife habitat. Prior to that, Richard spent five years at the nonprofit Openlands Project, also in Chicago, working on water quality and smart growth issues. In 2001, Richard married Karen Spronk (Calvin College, 1992) and they have a two-year old daughter, Amelia, who brings them much joy! Amelia is best friends with Sophia and Eleanor Gyuk, daughters of Richard's former roommate Geza Gyuk ('91) and Kathy Szoke (1992) who live just down the street. The Gyuk and Acker families get together all the time and are really happy to have some good Brown friends living so close by! Richard, unfortunately, was diagnosed with cancer in the spring of 2005 but has been tolerating chemotherapy very well and still works full time and enjoys a normal and active life. He is sorry he cannot be at the reunion but invites anyone who is in the Chicago area to look him up and say hi!

Lawrence Stern Lawrence originally moved to Los Angeles for graduate school. Upon receiving his MFA in writing from UCLA's Department of Theater, Film, and TV, he decided to stay in California and work in the entertainment industry. Since then, he has won many awards for his writing (stage and screen) and held a variety of jobs - including teaching high school in Beverly Hills (very 90210!), working in film development, and being employed by two of the biggest talent and lit agencies (story departments).

One of Lawrence's dramatic screenplays ("Life Support") has attracted a lot of interest from talent and is currently being packaged - with a producer, casting director, and director attached. They are trying to raise funds now. He has just finished two new feature scripts for his manager. This year, Lawrence also completed his first short film as a writer and director (another short that he wrote but didn't direct played at festivals two years ago). He has also had three, successful, professional stage productions in LA.

Most recently, Lawrence has been hired to write a feature drama film by a German director. Lawrence has also just been hired to write a short comedy film by a second director (which will be filmed in April) and to "script-doctor" a third project. At the same time, he has been commissioned to write two treatments (one for film and one for TV) and to edit a crime novel. In his spare time, he still loves to perform and often plays the piano at parties. He can be reached at LHSnLA@aol.com and looks forward to seeing everyone at the reunion.

Christie O'Neil Harrison Hello Class of '91ers: I am getting really psyched for reunion this year. And 5 years ago, I had not planned to attend the 15th, but a phone call from my dear friend and former roomie Leslie King prompted me to register, go, and get other people excited about coming back to Camp Bruno as well.

What's new with me? Well, basically, I am happily married to Marc Harrison '92, we live in Pawtucket with our two children, Claire and Evan, and my career path has been a long and winding road, to quote the Beatles. I am currently a part-time Spanish teacher in a Middle School in Woonsocket, RI and am searching for a full-time position doing the same. I also teach music in the afternoons, specifically piano, voice and guitar. I have tutored literacy, and also substitute teach in any subject area needed at a few different schools. For about 2 years I was our church organist, until our parish closed and merged with another. So I now get to sing in the choir (a treat for me), and am the substitute organist there. I live a very fulfilling life, but the path to getting here has not been easy.

I do hope that by the time we all see each other in May, I will have published my first book. I started writing it 12 years ago, and it has been in production since 9/11/2001. I don't want to give too much info on that away; suffice it to say that I'll be sure to post all that info and announce it when it comes out. Additionally, I have recently begun songwriting. To be honest, I had no idea that I had that within me, and whether I'm any good at it remains to be seen. However, while my muse is with me I am taking advantage of this creative rush.

So that's basically about it with me. You'll have to wait until reunion to get any of the gory details if you're interested. I cannot WAIT to see everybody!!!!!

Dr. Kima Joy Taylor ’91, MD’95 has been appointed by the Baltimore City Health Department as its assistant commissioner for the division of health promotion and disease prevention. Since January 2004, Dr. Taylor has been a legislative assistant in health and social policy to Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-MD).

Jonathan '91 and Sarah Lamont Kocmond '91 are excited to tell all that Elle Louise Kocmond arrived on December 7, 2005. Big brothers Taber (7) and Nathan (4) welcomed her with open arms. In August 2005, Sarah was named President of Friends of Brown Field Hockey and is thrilled to have a girl to pass her stick along to (and maybe goalie pads?!?) . Jon's new pediatric practice celebrated its one-year anniversaryin July 2005 and things are going great. "We all are planning on making it to Providence for our 15th reunion. Hope to see you there!" They moved from Connecticut to Charlotte NC in May 2004. Contact them at kocmond91@alumni.brown.edu especially if you're coming through the Charlotte area.

Ken Dornstein ’91 (Somerville, MA) will see his memoir “The Boy Who Fell Out of the Sky: A True Story” published and released on March 28, 2006. The book is the “emotionally charged story of his own coming-of-age with the promise of greatness his brother David Dornstein ’85 never lived to fulfill." David Dornstein died in the crash of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie Scotland. www.boywhofelloutofthesky.com.