Meet Our Alumni
Hawks to Watch: Seth Sanchez
Why Seth is a Hawk to Watch:Have you ever waved goodbye to the borders of Kansas — holding back tears — only to feel at home by finding a Free State beer in another time zone? You might have Seth Sanchez to thank for that. Or, have you ever tried a new Lawrence restaurant after coming across a…
Hawks to Watch: Madeline Dickerson Gonser, protection order project coordinator
Sex, gender, race, and identity-based discrimination is uncomfortably prevalent in American culture — more so than many of us want to admit — but only some of us dedicate our working lives to fighting its presence in our society. Madeline Dickerson Gonser is one of those people. …
Hawks to Watch: Chloe Burns, filmmaker
Lights, camera, action. This may seem like a cliché beginning to an interview with a film major, but it is an apropos description of the in-progress career trajectory that this month’s Hawk to Watch has taken:Lights: Chloe Burns discovers a career in film is possible. Camera: She moves to…
Hawks to Watch: Tracey Lien, author
Why Tracey is a Hawk to Watch:Oftentimes schoolwork is enough for a passing grade, and usually it's good enough for a degree. On rare occasions though, it's good enough to be published — which is where this Hawk to Watch comes into play. Tracey Lien's thesis for her Master of Fine Arts in…
Sydney Pursel, curator for public practice
Why Sydney is a Hawk to Watch:Sydney Jane Brooke Campbell Maybrier Pursel graduated from the University of Kansas in 2017 with an MFA in Expanded Media with honors after earning a BFA in Painting from the University of Missouri. Self-described as an "interdisciplinary artist specializing in…
Emily Lew Fry, director of interpretation
Why Emily's a Hawk to Watch: If a picture is worth a thousand words, the person shaping the stories they tell must be worth millions. Emily Lew Fry, University of Kansas School of Fine Arts alum and director of interpretation at the Art Institute of Chicago, does just that. Emily’s…
Hawks to Watch: Kris Kennedy, associate creative director
Why Kris is a Hawk to Watch:Kris Kennedy has made a name for himself within creative circles with big ideas, ambitious media stunts and an unapologetic weirdness that’s become his signature style — The moon as a Corona beer lime wedge. Mini donkeys and Heinz ketchup bottles. A chicken nugget TV…
Hawks to Watch: Brent Lind, web developer
Why Brent's a Hawk to Watch:You’ve heard of Childish Gambino, My Morning Jacket, and Foster the People — now meet the Jayhawk who’s been backstage at nearly every show, making them sound flawless around the world for the last 15 years. Brent Lind graduated from the University of Kansas in 2003…
Hawks to Watch: Vanessa Delnavaz, collection manager
Why Vanessa's a Hawk to Watch: Behind every life, there’s a story. The same could also be said of every species — and indeed, every specimen. And the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History has a lot of stories to tell. Millions of them, in fact. There, Vanessa Delnavaz and her team are…
Hawks to Watch: Aric Toler, digital investigator
Why Aric's a Hawk to Watch:Russian spies. Chemical weapons attacks. Drug lords, drones, conspiracy and war crimes. A day at ‘the office’ is anything but ordinary for Aric Toler. As the director of research and training at Bellingcat, an independent international collective of researchers and…