Class Notes

Brian Ross Fairbrother, BAE, social studies - elementary, retired after 32 years of teaching and coaching in the Shelton School District and six years in North Thurston Public Schools. Brian was inducted into the 2024 Shelton School District and Community Hall of Fame for starting the Shelton High School Soccer Programs, and for coaching the varsity teams for 27 years (boys program) and 15 years (girls program).

Rick Sherman, BAE, physical education - secondary, is a Farm to School analyst for the Oregon Department of Education and the co-host of the "Farm to School" podcast, exploring locally grown food pathways into schools and all things related to school gardens. 

John Southard, B.S., environmental policy and assessment, was recently sworn in as the deputy chief of the Sequim Police Department. Southard has worked with Sequim PD since 2007. Previously, he was a dive officer and research scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and served 20 years in the U.S. Army National Guard. 

Ryan Pike, M.Ed., educational administration, will be the principal this fall at Columbia Middle School in Moses Lake. Ryan was previously the principal of two elementary schools in Moses Lake and has also worked in the Anacortes and Stanwood-Camano school districts. 

Tom Simon, M.S. geography, owns Synthos, LLC, a geographic information systems and mapping consulting firm in Seattle. 

Attorney Giles Rhodenhiser, B.A., politics, philosophy, economics, joined the law firm of Phelps Dunbar LLP in Raleigh, North Carolina. Giles graduated from the North Carolina School of Law and previously served as a judicial law clerk for the state of North Carolina. 

Robin Modlin, B.A., psychology and Fairhaven interdisciplinary concentration, has a new memoir out, "Love, Courage, and Miracles," about being the mother of a daughter who was born with cystic fibrosis and later received a lung transplant, and the journey it took her on. 

Lucy Blanco-Maratita, B.A., Fairhaven interdisciplinary concentration - law and diversity, is an assistant attorney general in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, serving in the Civil Division. 

Greg Meier, B.A., communication, became the head men's basketball coach at Central Arizona College in Coolidge, Arizona. 

Matt Galley, M.Ed., secondary school administration, and '05 and '14, administrative certificates, is the superintendent of Nooksack Valley School District in northern Whatcom County. Matt has worked in Nooksack schools since 1999 as a teacher, coach and principal before becoming superintendent in 2021. He was also selected by Whatcom County to serve on the Whatcom Racial Equity Commission. 

Traci Rogstad, B.A., international business, is returning to Western as the new associate vice president for Facilities Development and Operations in the Renton School District. Previously, Traci was senior facilities program director and deputy executive director for Capital Planning and Construction. She has also worked for the Northshore School District and Washington State Ferries. 

Corey Ashline, B.S., plastics engineering technology, recently became a senior account executive for the equipment finance company Tamarack Technology. 

Lauren Hurst, B.A., geography, became a survey technician with R&M Consultants in Fairbanks, Alaska. 

Lynn Sordel, B.A., recreation, recently retired as Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts director of the city of Lynnwood, where he oversaw the renovation and expansion of the Lynnwood Recreation Center. He'll continue as the president of the Lynnwood Parks and Recreation Foundation and on the board of the Sound Foundation for Public Health, but hopes to spend more time with his family, traveling, and writing a book about his experiences in Lynnwood. 

Landyn Olsen, B.A., business administration - finance, became the sports development coordinator for the Snohomish County Sports Commission. 

Andrea Entz, B.S., psychology, is a voice actor, podcast manager and stand-up comedian who recently moved to Los Angeles after performing in Seattle and Tacoma. 

Erik Lowe, B.A., history and political science, is the force behind "Spokane Reimagined," an ambitious $1 billion, 20-year  tax levy proposal that would fund pedestrian- and bike-friendly infrastructure in the city. "I've always been the kind of person to swing for the fences," he told the Inlander in March.  

Jory Mickelson, B.A., English - creative writing, published their second book of poems, "All This Divide," with Spuyten Duyvil Press in May. Their third book of poems, "Picturing," is forthcoming in January from End of the Line Press in Canada. 

Alison Cochrun, B.A., English literature, writes full-time after teaching high school English for 11 years. Her third book, "Here We Go Again," was released by Atria Books in April. Her first queer romance novel, "The Charm Offensive," won the 2023 Lambda Literary Award for Best LGBTQ Romance and Erotica. 

Mateo Messina, B.A., business administration - marketing, is a Grammy-winning composer for films and television. He also writes a symphony each year to benefit Seattle Children's Hospital, and expects to premiere his 25th symphony on Nov. 8, 2024.