Class Notes

Class of 2009

Schafer Bomstein (MPP ’09) married Alain Castella on May 5, 2018 in a ceremony in Washington, D.C. The couple recently left humanitarian jobs in Ukraine and plan to move to Panama to pursue their careers.

CLASS OF 2011

Genevieve Heckel (MPP ’11) joined the Foreign Service and will be moving to Dubai in November, where she will join the Consular Section. In April, she and her husband Fernando Herrera (CLAS ’11) welcomed the birth of their daughter Catalina.

CLASS OF 2012

Lillian Frost (MPP ’12) received a pre-doctoral research fellowship from the Harvard Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs’ Middle East Initiative. She is now based in Cambridge, MA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Class of 2013
Melina Flabiano (MPP ’13)

Melina Flabiano (MPP ’13) spearheaded Keaton, a brand dedicated to empowering women with thoughtfully designed and stylish office essentials. Keaton will officially launch in spring 2019 with an everyday trouser that was designed with input from over 300 women. Keaton partners with nonprofits devoted to women’s career advancement to provide young professionals with the tools they need to succeed.

Aaron Chafetz (MPP ’13) married Jordan Butz (CLAS ’12) on September 22, 2018 in a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

Evan Vahouney (MPP ’13) married Gabriela Benavides last October at a beautiful ceremony at St. Agnes Catholic Church in Arlington, VA. The reception was held at Top of the Town in Rosslyn, VA. They bought a house last September in Falls Church, where they now reside.

CLASS OF 2014

John Bennett (BA ’14 moved from D.C. to Brooklyn and is working with Accenture Strategy as a business strategy consultant. John hopes to become more involved with Accenture’s New York-based innovation function.

Arushi Kumar (MPP ’14) moved from Washington, D.C. to Seattle, WA in June 2018, and continues to work for the U.S. Government Accountability Office as a Health Care Analyst.

Joseph Nelson (BA ’14) After almost four years in management consulting, he took a job with the business development team at Fundera, a New York-based mission-driven fintech start-up that focuses on small business lending. He’s thrilled to move into the world of social impact, as he was originally inspired to do through his coursework in social entrepreneurship at Batten.

CLASS OF 2015
Baylee Molloy Eby

Baylee Molloy Eby (MPP ’15) recently started her own social enterprise called Dreamer & Co. Dreamer & Co is a social impact brand whose mission is to provide job skills for young women living in the Horn of Africa, with the hope of enabling them to achieve a steady income and feel empowered.

Elizabeth Minneman Thomas (MPP ’15) married David Alexander Thomas on August 11, 2018 in Richmond, VA.

CLASS OF 2016

Hayley Lawrence (BA ’16) recently began the JD/LLM program at Duke University’s School of Law.

Benjamin Paul (MPP ’16) and Anna Barber (MPP ’15) are elated to share news of their engagement. Ben and Anna met at Batten, and they have joyfully shared the last four years together. They are very excited to begin their new journey, along with their faithful dog Sheba.

CLASS OF 2017

Christine Jacobs (MPP ’17) welcomed her daughter, Hadley Tennyson, on May 18, 2018. Holden and Eliot are proud big brothers and everyone is doing great!

Chimmuanya Obi (MPP ’17) began an internship at Bello, Bello & Associates.

CLASS OF 2018

Eugene Noh (BA ’18) recently started a job at Accenture Federal Services, where he focuses on healthcare.

Joshua Sagartz (MPP ’18) started a job with the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, working in the Office of Policy and Strategy as a project manager.

Matthew Tully (BA ’18) published an article in his home state paper, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, titled “One Year After Charlottesville” on August 12, 2018. The article examined how no one should ever be a bystander—something that his time at Batten instilled in him. Last year’s tragic events should serve as a reminder that it is one’s duty to never be silent.