Robert Nigro

"Whatever's Write" founder Robert Nigro has been named as one of two runners-up for the 2009 Creative Nonfiction Prize awarded by Hunger Mountain, a publication of the Vermont College of Fine Arts, for his memoir, "Under the Black Flag." Details here: http://www.hungermtn.org/contest-news/

Pete Tidemann

Pete has been working as a live sound engineer and producer for 25 yrs and has been involved with many live productions, festivals and special events. His specialty is working in developing countries with arts, film and music festivals. Recently he was involved with Film Festival Jakmel in Haiti, where they held a 6 day festival of film, culminating in a concert by Wyclef Jean on a beach in which 80,000 people showed up to see the show.

In addition, Pete has been involved with the Sauti za Busara music festival in Zanzibar, Tanzania for the last few years and is presently shipping a container of professional audio and lighting equipment to the festival for 2010. He started the first education and training program in stage arts in East Africa and continues to work with a variety of people and organizations to educate and train technicians and artists in the region. His company, Linear Velocity, works to bring together cultures through technology and the arts as a tool of communication. You may find his website at www.linearvelocity.com or the music festival at www.busaramusic.com

Christopher Cokinos

My new nonfiction book, The Fallen Sky: An Intimate History of Shooting Stars, was published in summer 2009 by Tarcher/Penguin, to reviews and notices in a number of venues including The New Yorker, Nature, Science, Seed, Discover and Natural History. I've done a number of radio and t.v. shows for the book and had a tie-in piece published in The New York Times.
www.christophercokinos.com

Suerah Bomzer Alterman

After a stint at ABC-TV research in NY, I moved to the Washington D.C. area to work in Public Broadcasting. I stayed at PBS for about 10 years and then retired to spend time with my children, start a private kindergarten and have fun. I currently teach English as a Second Language, working with children from around the world who come to live in Maryland.

Douglas Postels

I am a Collins alumnus, having lived there from 1984-1987 while doing an undergraduate major in microbiology.I am currently volunteering with Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) in Lubutu, Democratic Republic of Congo.

I have a blog address (www.dougpostels.blogspot.com) if anyone is interested in reading about the life of an MSF volunteer. In real life, I currently live in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Julie Pitzen

Lived in Collins, Brown Hall, 1982-85
Currently living in Mongolia. Here's some more info:
www.ancientfragments.com
www.culturesnclay.wordpress.com

Nic Hartmann

After graduating from IU in the summer of 2007, I moved to the awesome small city of Bowling Green, Kentucky, where I got a master's in folk studies from Western Kentucky University in the spring of 2009. Recently, however, I packed up and moved to St. John's, Newfoundland, where I received a fellowship to pursue my Ph.D. in folklore at Memorial University. Working in the dining hall in Ed is serving me well here, as my side job is working in the kitchen of a pub for graduate students...

I totally wouldn't be here without the CLLC...it was passing the folklore & ethnomusicology buildings every day that led me to switching career paths, and the support of many friends who were blowing my mind with the projects they were involved in. For any Collinsite who knew me as "the Estonian guy" (I had a certificate in Central Eurasian Studies), I finally hung it up and started taking French this year instead.

Sarah Loos: Woman of the Year

Sarah Loos, Collins alumna from 2009, recently received two awards:


Recipient of a Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship

• Recipient of Woman of the Year award, given each year by IUB's Women in Computing group

Michael Schuessler

I lived at Collins way back in 1985. I am currently a professor at Mexico’s Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana where I arrived in 2007 after teaching at UCLA and Columbia. I am the author of several books on Mexican subjects, particularly biographies.

Christopher Cokinos

My new book The Fallen Sky: An Intimate History of Shooting Stars has been released from Tarcher, an imprint of Penguin, with positive reviews in such places as Kirkus, Discover, Natural History, Seed and elsewhere. I've had work recently in The New York Times. For more information on the book, you can go to my website: www.christophercokinos.com.

Shari Aronson

My company, Z Puppets Rosenschnoz, has upcoming performances in MA, NY and Indy!

Z Puppets Rosenschnoz NE Tour! Beginning Oct. 3

Z Puppets Rosenschnoz will take North Adams, Amherst, Boston, Albany, Saratoga and Indy with performances that combine puppetry with physical comedy and live music. Please see calendar for all details.

We recently had our first red carpet moment, as our puppet designer won a prestigious Ivey Award— the Tony’s of the Twin Cities.

Deb Getz

I visited MRC the summer of 2008 - brought back a lot of memories. This summer I traveled to San Francisco, Sacramento and Yosemite National Park where I worked during the summers when I attended IU and lived at MRC. Yosemite continues to inspire me.

Becky Edmonds

Immediately after graduation from IU this past spring I packed up a Honda Civic and drove to Olympia, Washington, where I continue to reside. I spent the summer working at the most beautiful camp on the face of the earth. I'm attaching a picture to demonstrate, which, while awesome, still doesn't do it justice.

Thom Kudla

I wrote a collection of short stories last year called "What My Brain Told Me," a book which was recognized as a finalist in the 2009 National Indie Excellence Awards. You can find the book from any major online retailer or via special order through your local bookstore. It is definitely a book that I'm proud of, one which is a lot more personal than my other writing. I have some ideas for other projects, but I'm so busy with freelance work that I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to work on them.

Missing yearbooks from the archives

Alumni, we need your help!

Several yearbooks are missing from the Collins archives. If you have an extra copy from any of these years that you can spare, please send it to us. We'll make not of your donation on the copy you send.

Here are the missing years:

'82-'83
'85-'86
'86-'87
'87-'88
'88-'89
'91-'92
'93-'94
'96-'97
'97-'98
'98-'99
'00-'01
'01-'02

Thanks for helping us out, if you can!

Collins alumni in the news

Owen Sutkowski is running for city council in Charlotte.

First chapter mini-reunion

We're starting small: The first regional Collins mini-reunion will be held here, in Bloomington, in the private room at the Scholar's Inn Cafe and Wine Bar.

The event will be held on June 25 (a Thursday evening), at 8:00 p.m. This will be an informal event, an opportunity for alumni in the area to mingle and network.

Hors d'oeuvres and desserts will be provided, and there will be a cash bar available.

We hope you can make it!

If you're in another region and can't get to Bloomington, don't worry: This is just the beginning. We'll be helping organizers to host events in other cities in the coming year.

Jill Teige: a newly graduated Collinsite

I’ll never forget the first time I came to Collins. It was right after I had been accepted to IU, and I wasn’t sure about the whole dorm-life thing. I did (and still do) like living with my parents, and wasn’t thrilled about having to move in with a bunch crazy, partying college students. When I first saw Collins, I decided it would be okay to live there, because it looked just like Hogwarts (don’t tell me you don’t see Hogwarts when you look into the dining hall… We all do). I knew even if the people were crazy, this was a place I could live.

That fall, when I moved into Cravens, I quickly found out that yes, the people are crazy, but they’re my kind of crazy. I stayed up too late so many times my freshman year chilling out in the Chesh, or just sitting on the floor with some floormates, talking until all hours of the night. We all come to college to learn, and the academics were great, but I think it was somewhere in the halls of Collins that I learned to be an adult. I also learned how to listen, how to tell stories, how to freak out one night and be functional the next day. My Collins family not only helped me learn to be a person, it also helped me learn to be part of a community. Most of the best friends I made in college I met in Collins, and I’ll never forget them or the lessons they taught me about family. Those lessons are just as important as the ones I got in my classes.

I’d be in trouble if the Collinsites hadn’t taught me how to build a family from friends; I’m moving to California in the fall, and will be further from home than I’ve ever been in my life. I’m super excited to be moving there, where I’ll be working towards my doctorate in physical chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley. I don’t know what specifically I’ll be studying yet; I do know I’ll be working with lasers doing some sort of spectroscopy, but I can’t be more specific than that yet. Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be awesome; I chose Berkeley not only because it’s chemistry program is incredible, but because its students reminded me most of Collinsites. It’s hard to argue with a program that has such incredible researchers, and is placed in such a beautiful area.

Tim Gross: a newly graduated Collinsite

What do you think you'll remember most about Collins?

It will definitely be the people. Collins has provided me an awesome community of like-minded people here at IU that I will greatly miss in years to come.

I will also remember the trips to Costa Rica I did through Collins. I was fortunate enough to be able to organize spring break service trips to Costa Rica for the past two years, and both have really had a great impact on the way I have seen the world.

What will you be doing next?

I will be living in Louisville participating in a program called Teach Kentucky. This is an organization that works very closely with Louisville's public school district and the University of Louisville to get highly skilled graduates emergency teaching certification and working in their school. The program lasts about 3 years, and I will be teaching Middle School Math while I take classes for my certification.

I am most looking forward to getting to know Louisville and to meet my fellow program partners, teachers, and students.

How will you take what you learned at college into what you'll be doing?

My time at Collins has taught me the importance of community, which I will definitely work to develop in Louisville. Also, my leadership positions at Collins have given me confidence and taught me the importance of organization, both of which I will need when teaching a class of 30 middle-schoolers.

Call for assistance: Collinsites in Dallas

Shari Aronson says:

I’m doing a project for the Science Museum of MN and my task is to find details of the “real” Dallas— the sites, stories, beloved features that people who know it well would know but tourists might miss. Collins alumni seem like the perfect demographic to poll.

If you live (or have lived) in Dallas, email us {eatons[at]indiana[dot]edu} to pass along the info to Shari.

Peter Holquist

I lived at Collins from 1982-1986, most memorably in a triple with Rich Remsberg and Doug Lathom. Even more memorable was Jim Rose's visit to our room during my 21st birthday celebration (see commemorative picture at Al Chitlick's Collins photo page). I took two semesters "off" from Collins, studying in Russia in Fall 1983 (Moscow) and Spring 1986 (Leningrad). Some may remember as "Mad Dog" in the pick-up soccer games we played. Let's try to forget some of the late night dancing (some pictures of which can be found on Mike Rozenzweig's Collins photo page).

I went on to complete a graduate degree at Columbia University in Russian History (PhD, 1995). I was overjoyed to find that Patty Weitsman, also a Collins alumna, also had gone to Columbia for a PhD in Political Science. When Ron Mader and JP Simon visited me in NYC in Spring 1987, we all watched IU's run to the NCAA championship together.

I met my wife Diana at Columbia University. Rich and JP attended my wedding as groomsmen.

After graduation, I taught for nine years at Cornell University before moving to the University of Pennsylvania in 2006.

I have been back to Bloomington intermittently, but I have never managed to coincide with a Collins Reunion. Yet I always remember my time at Collins with great fondness.

(Picture 1: Peter Holquist and Rich Remsberg; Picture 2: Doug Lathom, Peter Holquist, Rich Remsberg)

Geoff McKim

Geoff McKim (Collins 86/87 & 87/88) was elected to the Monroe County Council in November of 2008. He is a Councilman at Large and was elected for a 4 year term.

Rose (Yersky) Kreidler

I'm Rose Kreidler, aka Rose Yersky, resident of Collins LLC in 83-87, with my Junior year off in Madrid, Spain. I keep quite busy working for the Federal Government, first for the Social Security Administration, and now working on War Hazard cases for the U.S. Dept. of Labor.

I love the blogs and pictures. I can't wait to show my 12 year old daughter where I lived in college. I'm sure she'll laugh to no end!! Better yet, I'll show my entire Girl Scout Troop.

Collins was the BEST place in Bloomington!! Great people, always with challenging ideas and philosophy--even PRACTICAL philosophy. I live up near Cleveland, Ohio, so I don't get back to Bloomington as much as I would like.

Anne Haines

Hi kids! I lived in MRC/Collins from 1979-1982 (and continued to hang around, working in the cafeteria, through 1983). I still live in Bloomington; got my MLS a few years ago and am now working as the Libraries Web Site Editor here at IU.

I was involved with Dancing Star during my Collins years, and I'm still writing; my first chapbook of poetry, "Breach," was published in 2008 by Finishing Line Press. You can read some sample poems and get more info on the chapbook at http://mypage.iu.edu/~ahaines/breach.html.

Gretchen Sneegas: Americorps Adventures

First Day

I got in to Baltimore, and did my "in processing"... a bunch of paperwork, basically. Then I got moved into my house, which I share with 5 other girls. I share a bedroom, we all share a bathroom, but we have a kitchen, dining room, living room, and even our own washer and dryer, which is pretty sweet. Unfortunately, the house SUCKS. A LOT.

It is much, much, much better now that we spent a hefty chunk of the weekend cleaning it top to bottom. The guy who came in and repaired the hole in the dining room ceiling and the holes in the kitchen walls helped a lot in that regard. Soon we should be getting the leaks in our plumbing fixed... which were what caused those holes in the first place... and life will be better than ever.

In fact, our cleaning was so superb, that we won the "best cleaned house" for our unit in today's house inspections. Our prize, so rumor has it, is homemade fudge by Chris, the unit leader. I'm pretty stoked.

Last week was pretty laid back in a lot of ways. We were placed into temporary teams called "pods,” and mainly we did preliminary tedious-but-necessary stuff. A scavenger hunt (which my pod rocked, by the way), history of Americorps, getting our uniforms, doing our physicals, etc.

Wildland Firefighting Unit

There are three units- Wolf, Badger, and Raven in NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps). Each unit is broken down into teams, and each team (with 8-10 people per team) is led by a team leader.

The fire fighting unit, however, is slightly different. There are about 2 fire fighters per regular team, so it's spread out evenly through teams and units. They can be called up at any time to do wildland fire fighting, at which point they leave their teams temporarily, and come back after 10-20 days, depending on the project.

SO being the adventurous and masochistic lady that I am, I did the pack test, which consists of wearing a 45 lb vest and power walking 3 miles (no running or jogging allowed!) in 45 minutes or less. I clocked in at almost exactly 45 minutes, which means I passed! SO HOORAY FOR THAT! I am still super sore, but not NEARLY as sore as I was yesterday. I also have some enormous bruises on my legs, because I managed to get one of the men's vests, which hit me mid-thigh. And 45 minutes of power-walking with a 45 pound vest bouncing on one's thighs is bound to leave bruises.

Even though I passed, I didn't get picked for the fire fighting unit... I'm disappointed, but not overly disappointed. They had more people pass than they had spots open, and they needed to keep it even across the units... so I got shafted. There are some pluses to this, however. For example, I only need to do PT (physical training) three times a week instead of five. Which means I only have to get up at 5 am three times a week instead of five. Yay!

Permanent Teams

Today was really cool in that we found out our PERMANENT teams. There are eight of us, nine if you include Pete, our Team Leader. My roommate is one of my team members... hopefully we won't kill each other. We're both pretty easy going, though, so I'm not too worried. The rest of my team seems pretty cool. I'm in the Wolf unit- we're Wolf 2! Get pumped, y’all.

Now that we have our teams, our training will begin in earnest, and will last for 4 weeks. I'm not entirely sure what that will entail... I've heard some vague mumblings about things like "first aid" and "CPR" and "diversity training" and so forth. You will all be posted, of course.

Kieron Mitchell

The most important thing by far about IU was meeting my wife, Courtney!

After college I started work at Eli Lilly in Indy (computer stuff).

I got an MBA at night, paid for by Lilly (thanks, Colonel Lilly!), and switched to Finance after about 4 years in computers. After about 4 years of that, I switched to working for a 100 person company in Columbus, Indiana as their controller. After about 4 years of that (are you noticing a pattern yet?) I got religion and switched to working for a 8 person not-for-profit. I've been there for about 5 years.

I expect my next move will be to work for myself (only if the pattern holds true...I'm just kidding).

I am a devout Catholic, have a great family (two daughters, Maddie and Molly, ages 13 (very soon) and 10), and work and live in Indianapolis with Courtney's side of our family. Maddie spends a lot of time reading, and updating her web site about (not surprisingly) books.
Molly loves on our five (yes, 5) cats and soon to be two rabbits (and we don't even live on a farm!).

My blog: www.kieronmitchell.com

Interests:

* Religion
* Games
* Tai Chi

Favorite Books:

* The Life of Pi

Steve Congdon

Lived @ Collins in late 80's. WIUS student radio geek, too. Now happily married and living in Chicago. Take advantage of fantastic summers listening to music in Millenium Park. Enjoy traveling, nickel poker, trumpet and the company of good friends. Work in professional services marketing and help ad agencies win new business.

Collins. Yep. Good stuff. A single tear runs down my cheek as I think of all the fun that was had there (now that we're older and fatter, but still having fun.) Cheers!

Jeri Rosen Saper and Paul Saper

Jeri lived at MRC, Smith Hall, from 1975 to 1977. Paul Saper lived at MRC, Edmonson Hall, from 1975-1978. We met on the steps of MRC the first day of freshman orientation, August 17, 1975. We have great memories of friends and fun, convenient classes in the dorm basement, concerts in the dining hall and disco dancing with Sal (where are you Sal?). We graduated from IU in 1979, and have been married since then. We’ve got two grown sons and we each run our own businesses in Austin, Texas. We’ve lost touch with almost everyone but would love to catch up with our fellow MRC-ites.

Michelle Talonn Blechman

I've been living in the Chicago area since college. Married 17 years to the brother of an ex-colleague. Two kids: Eve is 13 and Ari is 11. I fell into advertising and marketing, and currently work at Abbott Labs, which I find very rewarding (as I get to spend time listening to and learning about patients with chronic illness). I also volunteer at my synagogue, and serve on a couple of nonprofit boards (Chicago Association of Direct Marketing Educational Foundation, and Luminescence Media Group).
BA '82 (Brown Hall)

Robert Nigro

As a resident of Collins’ Greene Hall during 1986-1988, I may be remembered for my portrayal of Sonny in “Doing Poetry with Helen, Veronica, Sonny and Poor Dead Charlie,” a play written by Peter Dee and directed by fellow Collins resident Cyndi Elliot in +/-1987. Also at IU, I majored in broadcasting and hosted various shows for then-WIUS 95.1 FM (Cable).

Since graduating from IU, my journalism and fiction career has spanned more than 23 years. I recently was an editor of the manuscript of Construction Administration for Architects, by Greg Winkler, AIA and Gary Chiumento, Esq. (McGraw-Hill, 2009). I also served as a volunteer editor for the second edition of S.S. United States: The Fastest Ship in the World, (Turner Publishing, 2003), a publication of the S.S. United States Foundation.

I estimate that I’ve written more than 1,000 different pieces for print and broadcast media.
I formerly was a journalist, photographer and editor for the Times Graphics newspaper group in Atlantic and Cumberland Counties, where I was integral in the launch of two newspapers for that company, then served as managing editor in the publications department of the Philadelphia Bar Association. I then was programming manager for the Pennsylvania Br Institute, a nonprofit provider of continuing education for lawyers. I’ve since served as a marketing communications manager for two law firms: Schnader Harrison Segal and Lewis LLP and, currently, Pepper Hamilton LLP.

I served on the editorial board (1992) and as fiction editor (1993) for the South Jersey arts group AfterImage, and chaired the Publication Committee of the Atlantic County Historical Society in 1992.

In 1995, I founded Whatever's Write, a workshop group for prose writers in South Jersey. I’m a lifelong South Jersey resident.

Joe Chesak

Hey everybody!

Marianne is pregnant again! We're about half way through and it's a girl! Due mid-summer.

Moonhop is her nickname for now. We're thinking that Maya or Fiona will stick, and we're open to suggestions. :)

Here are some recent photos! http://picasaweb.google.com/chesaknorway/MoonhopAndMore?feat=directlink

Marianne & Joe

Laura Robinson

I lived in Collins from 1998 to 2002 on Smith 1 and in Hillcrest, was on BOEP, E-Force, Community Council, Collins Thespians, and spent a year as an RA. After finishing my MA in English, I moved to Helsinki, Finland. I teach English and drama at the junior high and high school levels at a bilingual school. I love it -- there are hassles with any job but teaching-wise, it's my dream job. Outside work I spend a lot of time swing dancing and playing the flute in a wind band and a symphony. I travel a lot around Europe and get back to the States every year or two. I was sorry to miss the Collins reunion last May, but I can only travel on school holidays. :)

Collins 87-89

Collins 87-89

Collins alum Jeff Grote recently sent in a ton of photos from 87-89. Enjoy!

You can reach Jeff at jeffgrote.com.

Brian Pence

I only awakened to Collins for my senior year, but wow!! That was the best of times spent at IU. I made great friends, experienced true human beauty, and I met my wife, Robin Gnagni Pence (B.S. '93).

We now live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. We have two children, Zoe - 5 years old, and Jacob - 9 months old. We love the climate out here, but often find ourselves longing for a stroll through the courtyard at Collins LLC.

I am technical director for an environmental testing laboratory and I have my own business.

My wife, Robin, is a teacher and technology director at Solomon Schechter Day School here in Albuquerque.

We like to spend our time with our kids and our dog, Yofi, roaming the Southwest.

Blessings to all of our fellow Collins alums. Peace be with you always.

Gretchen Sneegas

Gretchen Sneegas is currently a member of Americorps NCCC, Class XV. She is based out of Perry Point, MD from February through November 2009, doing disaster relief and recovery work. At Collins, Gretchen served as Vice President and Director of BOP, member of BOG and Exec Board, and was a Q-teacher for two years. She also made HUNDREDS of sandwiches in the deli. She graduated in May 2008 with majors in Theatre and Drama and Germanic Studies, and plans to further her education eventually with a Masters in Arts Administration. She is also a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Alvia Lewis Frey

I am presently a columnist for The Frankfort Times, Frankfort, IN. I write a monthly column highlighting everyday people and the uplifting and positive aspects of their lives. My husband, Dan, and I have three children, one of whom will be entering the IU freshman class of 2009. I teach Sunday School to third and fourth graders at St. Matthew United Methodist Church, where I am also a certified lay speaker.

(BA '82, MA '84)

Scott Sala

I lived at Collins before it was Collins from 1974-1977.

I received a degree in English in 1979 and moved to Colorado where I have been working as an elementary school teacher. I currently do a live, elementary school science program on a district-owned cable station. After a long academic hiatus, I am working on my dissertation which focuses on the professional identity of science teachers.

Tony Ralph

I’m Tony Ralph, and I lived and worked in Collins from 1990-1995. I’m living in Lexington, KY now and working at the University of Kentucky. We’re trying to create more LLCs here, but have not achieved anything like Collins yet. I’m married with two kids (ages 17 and 14). Life is busy!

Alex Dzierba, Jr.

I graduated from IU in 1992. When I was living at Collins in 1987 as a freshman I was majoring in math. I was working as an orderly at Bloomington Hospital to pay my way through school. When I was just three math classes short of graduating I decided to go into a more exciting field - nursing. My plan was to work as a traveller. I wanted to go to Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii... I went to Hawaii first, 16 years ago, and I got stuck. I am living in Honolulu and working as a nurse in a hospital. I also do some contract work on the side - I'm designing a statewide database to track victims of trauma and I'm also working for a product company to teach about pulmonary artery catheters. I'm married to a beautiful (inside & out!) local girl named Allison, also a nurse. We enjoy the life of being DINKs.

I have a younger brother, Chris Dzierba, that is a current resident at Collins!

Andi Smith

After returning home from Bloomington as a Vocal Major in the School of Music, I went on to finish my Bachelor's in English at the extension.

I spent 10 years in the sales industry and did very well for myself, but in the end, I really hated Sales. I eventually quit to plan my wedding which was unbelievably beautiful. It took place at the Taltree Arboretum in Valpo just as the leaves were turning their fall colors. After that my husband Shane and I bought a house, adopted a Labrador named Rupert, and we are planning on starting our family some time next year. Yes, even I went traditional and (it turns out) am excellent at the culinary arts. My married name is Andi Houlihan and I miss my old friends from Collins.

('91-'93)

Christopher Cokinos

I just got tenure at Utah State and have a new book coming out, on meteorite hunters and their lives, in July. It's called The Fallen Sky: An Intimate History of Shooting Stars (Tarcher/Penguin, Summer 2009).

Geoffrey Rubinstein

I lived at MRC/LLC from 1975-1977. I was pretty involved with the creative writing scene (Dancing Star, coffee house readings, etc). I went on to get an MFA in poetry writing at the University of Arizona, lived and taught in Japan for two years, then settled in the Boulder, Colorado area, where I completed a Ph.D. in communication/media studies. I now direct the University of Colorado's Independent Learning Programs--primarily distance and online learning representing most of the CU schools and colleges but also two smaller programs:
Sustainable Practices and Applied Music. I'm always interested in hearing from old friends.

Stacy P. Allan Horcher

I loved the time I lived in Collins LLC from 1983-1985, those were the happiest most carefree days of my life!

I lived on the third floor, in the bay window room facing the quad, on the right hand side.

Here is a photo from my 21st birthday.

For the past 17 years, I've been a jewelry designer in wholesale diamonds in Chicago, and I love my job, but I'd give almost anything for one more weekend at the dorm in the 1980s!
Thanks for the updates!

(BA English 1986)

Edward Burkhardt

Looking back 26 years since I walked into Collins, I still have fond memories of my first two years at the Center. Collins was clearly a special place and as an out-of-state student, helped me ease into life in a large campus much easier. Great friends and cherished experiences were all part of my time at Collins.

Since graduating in 1987, I was recruited through the Business Placement office to a position with May Dept. Stores Co. in St. Louis. After a year with that organization, I accepted another position with a large Retailer in Southern California and relocated to Los Angeles. In 1990, I changed career paths and began what is now my current career in Insurance. I’ve lived in Southern California for the past 21 years and enjoy all this wonderful area has to offer. Having worked in a number of insurance and Risk Management positions during the past 18 years, I currently hold the Regional Vice President position for ESIS, Inc., a unit of ACE USA. While it’s been many years since I’ve visited IU and the Bloomington campus, I have many fond memories of my time on campus and am grateful for the great experiences that Collins LLC offered me as a Freshman and Sophomore.

BS – IU/Bloomington 1987

Lived in Collins LLC (Edmonson and Brown Halls) in 1983 and 1984

Alan Rose

I've moved out of the corporate world after six years with a small software company in Ithaca, NY. I returned to working at Cornell University, this time in IT, where I support all of the systems that Cornell Dining uses. I'm still very active in the Ithaca music scene, especially during the summers when my entire band is in town. I'm hoping to get into the studio with them in '09 for a new CD, but meanwhile there are some live recordings on my Facebook music page:
I'd love to reconnect with people from my Collins days (and my time at IU in general).

(Collins Brown RA '95-96 and Q instructor Fall '96)

Identify yourself

UPDATE:

This picture is from the 95-96 IU Sing entry, "The Spirit of Cheese."

The following people have been identified:

Ian Hodges (glasses and goatee in the second row)

Brian Quick (top left corner in the hat)

Candace Bertotti (third one from left in back row)

Kim Ornat (third row with glasses)

Kevin Zeck (first row with beard and mustache)

Kate Buckman (in the center with jazz hands)

Chris (Hester) Scudder (front row, hands framing her face)

John Bancroft

john bancroft, iu school of music 1993

my wife and i recently relocated from north carolina to seattle, washington. my new responsibilities as vice president of tommy bahama are keeping me busy and happy. our son, johnny, is now 16 months old and we look forward to hearing from any other collins alumni who might be in the seattle area.

Candace Bertotti

This year has taken me to explore Jordan, Egypt, Beligum and France.

Betsy Brazy

BA 1982/ MRC-LLC 1979-1981.

In May, we survived our 9-year-old daughter's slumber party. Last August our family rode Amtrak to Disneyland. I completed my Fall 2008 law clerk internship at Disability Rights California, specializing in special education advocacy. I'll graduate in May 2009 from Golden Gate University School of Law in San Francisco with a certificate in Public Interest Law.

Jonah Busch

Jonah Busch, Ph.D. (Collins '96-'00) works as an environmental economist for Conservation International in Arlington, VA. At the December 2008 United Nations climate negotiations in Poznan, Poland, Jonah presented recent research on the role of a market for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from tropical deforestation.

Mary Frances Cappiello

I lived in Collins on and off from fall 1988 to spring 1994. Here's my update:After spending eight years teaching in China, I decided I needed something new. I've now returned to the US and am working toward an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language from Michigan State University. I'm missing China, speaking Chinese, public transportation, great food, and cheap clothing, not to mention all my friends in Shanghai. When I'm done with my degree, I may go back there, or I might try Japan, where I've always wanted to go but have never been. In other details, in the past few years I've gotten into photography and have had some pictures published. I've also discovered I'm not too bad at karaoke. Some of my specialty songs include "These Boots Are Made for Walking," "House of the Rising Sun," and Minnie Ripperton's execrable "Loving You."

Joe Chesak

It's been awhile since I've updated Collins. I live with my Norwegian wife and family in Norway. I'm fairly domesticated :) I stayed home from work for 3 months of my baby's leave. I work here as a systems consultant. We just got a hairless cat; it's very sociable.

Jami Davis

This fall, I gave up being self-employed and took a full time job when my old boss from pre-grad school days called on me to help reorganize his agency's management structure and staffing. I'm the Program Director of a small nonprofit in San Rafael, CA (www.marinventures.org), overseeing about 30 staff serving 75 clients in a day program for adults with developmental disabilities. I enjoy spending time with my Mom and my nieces, nephews, brothers, in-laws and the rest of my extended family here in CA. I've been working on my family history/genealogy for about 16 years and am currently the Treasurer for the Marin County Genealogical Society. I also serve on the board of a national nonprofit called The Churkendoose Project--look us up at www.churkendoose.org.

Michelle Dorothy

Michelle Dorothy (graduated from IU in 1993 and lived in the CLLC in 1990) does product strategy for Ariba, a Silicon Valley high-tech business. She lives in Pittsburgh with a fellow IU grad and CLLC alum (Sally).

Michael Denner

I was awarded tenure this year at Stetson University.

Sally Edison

Sally Edison (graduated from IU in 1992 and lived in CLLC from 1989-1991) is a partner in the bankruptcy and restructuring practice of McGuireWoods. She lives in Pittsburgh with a fellow IU grad and CLLC alum (Michelle).

http://www.mcguirewoods.com/lawyers/index/Sally_E_Edison.asp

Sarah Gilchrist

I just finished working for the Nels Ackerson for Congress campaign. I'm also celebrating my second year at the Indianapolis Art Center.

Collins Alum 1994

Candi Harrison

In early October, my three best friends from MRC (yes – we were pre-“Collins”) days and I had a reunion in Bloomington. The four of us were among the first group of women to move into MRC, in September 1970. Prior to that year, “Mens’ Residence Center” had been – you guessed it – all male. All the women lived in Smith, at that time. Though we had kept in touch with one another over the years, this is the first time my friends and I had seen one another since 1972. We took a sentimental journey all over campus (and Bloomington). But our favorite stop was Collins. We arrived there early on a Saturday afternoon, and we were so happy to run into some students who – hearing our story – offered to let us see their rooms in Smith. Two of us even got to see the room where we had lived way back when: Smith 103. Though some things have changed at the dorm, we really were amazed at how much was the same, down to those interesting little gnomes in the foyer windows! But the best part of our visit was talking with some of the students (including one young woman who does the Collins yearbook) who were as excited about our reunion as we were and – I think – excited that these almost-60-year-olds still share the wonderful friendship that was born at MRC/Collins, lo, those many years ago.

By the way, I was Vice President of the dorm, during my senior year; and I chaired the student committee that worked with I. Don Bell in University Division to create the living-learning center, in 1972. The primary goal of our student committee was to sign an agreement ensuring that students who lived in, and loved, MRC could continue to stay there while the living-learning center concept was implemented…you may still have the signed agreement among the LLC archives! Then I was an RA (we had grad RAs in those days) in the first year of the living-learning center in 1972-73, working with Residence Life Coordinator Claire Gaudiani Burnett and LLC Coordinator David Burnett; and I was the Assistant Coordinator, working for Coordinator Cherry Darriau, in 1973-74. So I like to think that I was part of those who gave birth to this wonderful educational concept!

We are (left to right): Candi Brunk Harrison (Tucson, AZ), Linda Podlasek Herreman (who met her husband, Jim, at MRC) (Indianapolis, IN), Susan Landseadel (Fairfax, VA), and Jeanne Benham Elliott (Lawrenceburg, KY).

It’s wonderful to see that our beloved dorm continues to foster that sense of community that we valued 38 years ago!

Ophra Leyser

Ophra Leyser is almost done with her PhD in sociology, teaches at Haskell Indian Nations University, and lives in Lawrence, KS with her partner and their 3 year old son.

Wendy Jones Nakanishi

My name is Wendy Jones Nakanishi. Naturally, when I was an I.U. student, I was simply "Wendy Jones". After my two wonderful years at MRC, I spent the next year as a "Junior Year Abroad" student at Lancaster, in England. Upon graduating, with special departmental honors in English, in 1976, I went to France, working first for three months as an au pair in Paris and then setting up a small English language school with my English boyfriend.

I returned to Lancaster after that year to complete an MA in Eighteenth-century English Literature. In 1984, I got my Ph.D from Edinburgh University (Scotland), where I had got a scholarship for postgraduate work. I had found a job shortly before graduating from Edinburgh at a small private university in western Japan. I've been working here, full-time, ever since, in the meantime, marrying a Japanese farmer and having three sons. I've published widely in my chosen academic field, eighteenth-century English literature, but also belong to Lancaster University's Ruskin Programme and to the Iris Murdoch Society of Japan, and lately have been writing "creative non-fiction" about my experiences as an American long-term resident of Japan. Many of these publications can be accessed on the internet, under "Wendy Jones Nakanishi".

But enough, far more than enough, about me. It would be lovely if I could get news about people I lived with, in beautiful Bloomington, so many years ago.

Eric "Anadi" Nemrava

Eric "Anadi" Nemrava Iived in Collins 85 - 87, and visited a lot afterwards.

Collins changed my life, and for the better. It was a beautiful time. I have no words to describe the Collins that is in my heart.

Two days after gay marriage was legalised in New Zealand in 2005, my partner Preman Tilson and I took the plunge and finally got hitched. Our adult children and first granddaughter attended the civil ceremony.

We have two adult sons, Sigurd and Sam, and one adult daughter, Jean. We also fostered quite a few kids over the years.

We have two granddaughters, a 4-year-old and a 4-month-old.

Preman is now working half the year in America; he is playing in the Lyric Opera of Chicago - October through March of each year. I go to Chicago for a month of that each year and visit my parents.

I ran queer youth groups in the high schools in Wellington, New Zealand, for about 6 years.

I am now a Guru! Yeah, really! Ok it is maybe not the best word for it, but I do not doubt that it is the word most people use. I am known as Zen Master Avatar Prem Anadi Bunny Rabbit The Third, garden-variety. Oh, and I sent something like three copies of my book: Zen Master Avatar Prem Anadi Bunny Rabbit The Third takes violin lessons to the Collins Library. I wonder if anyone will ever read one of them?

I would enjoy hearing from you; write and say hello. I am hoping to visit Bloomington in December 08.

Michael Wilkerson

Now prof. of arts management in Department of Performing Arts, Katzen Center 219, American University, Washington, DC 20016.

Dates of Collins residency - 1974-79. RF 1978-9. Q199 instructor when it was X110, 1975.

Married to Deborah Galyan (since 1980).

Children Dylan (born 1991), Liam (1999).