Alumni

Samar Ali, BS’03, JD’06, a member of the Vanderbilt Alumni Association Board of Directors, has joined Nashville law firm Bone McAllester Norton to practice international law and continue private diplomatic work in the Middle East and elsewhere. She previously advised Gov. Bill Haslam on economic issues and was a counterterrorism… Read More

Will Hedgecock, BE’08, MS’09, PhD’14, founder of PinPtr, a high-precision GPS that can detect a difference in location within centimeters instead of meters, took first place at Spark Nashville, a rapid-fire pitch competition. Read More

Alpha Omega Alpha elects Dr. Charles “Chipper” H. Griffith III, BA’84, MD’88, as a councilor director for its board. His three-year term begins Oct. 3. Read More

Alumnus and brother running orphanage in South Africa Read More

An engineering graduate’s app catches Apple’s eye Read More

Perseverance is a trait ingrained in Madeline Myers. In January the 2011 graduate of the Blair School of Music won the first Ken Davenport Songwriting Contest in New York City. The contest, sponsored by Davenport, who produced the 2013 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, Kinky Boots, served as a showcase… Read More

Internship program helps Vanderbilt athletes Read More

During the next 15 years, as the baby boomer generation ages, the number of people affected by Alzheimer’s disease is expected to double. But there is new hope if promising research by Robert Mahley bears fruit. Mahley is senior investigator and founder of the Gladstone Institutes, a nonprofit biomedical-research organization… Read More

One hundred years ago pilot Tony Jannus made history when he flew a biplane from Tampa, Fla., to neighboring St. Petersburg. By all accounts the flight itself was unremarkable. There were no speed or distance records broken that day, nor feats of aerial acrobatics. In fact, the plane was in… Read More

By Sidney DeLair, BA’75 It was my first hello and my last goodbye. As I stood by the green dumpster overflowing with boxes discarded by freshmen moving into the Kissam Quadrangle, I waved goodbye to my dad and mom while their blue 1965 Buick LeSabre slowly inched onto West End… Read More

Like the vineyards that produce the classic vintages she adores, Amy Christine Ellis’ palate has been carefully cultivated for years. Recently, she was named a master of wine by the Institute of Masters of Wine—one of only 312 people to hold that title worldwide, and one of only 10 women… Read More

A disappointing court decision led attorney Piper Hendricks to an unusual change of career—documentary filmmaking—with a little help from a nun. “I was working in international human rights litigation,” recalls Hendricks, “and was handling cases against corporations, including one against [a tire manufacturer] for using child labor in Liberia. It… Read More

StyleBlueprint.com profiles 2012 Vanderbilt University Distinguished Alumna Nora Tyson, BA’79, and her rise to vice admiral and deputy commander of United States Fleet Forces Command. Read More

Steven Smartt, BME’71, MME’72—associate dean for academic services in the Graduate School, assistant provost for research, and assistant professor of the practice of education—leads a parallel life. A trumpet player since elementary school, the Nashville native earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music education from Peabody College. He… Read More

The Vanderbilt Alumni Association Board of Directors is pleased to announce new leadership and the addition of eight new members. Patti White, BA’76, is president and Perry Brandt, BA’74, JD’77, is president-elect. New members include Ryan Grant, BS’01; Eileen C. Hart, BA’10, MSN’12; Larkin Martin, BA’85; Kate Morgan, BS’06; Alex Quintana, BA’05, MSF’06; Tim Warnock, BA’84; Valerie Williams, BE’95; and Justin Wood, BA’03, JD’06. Read More

The Senate has confirmed Staci Yandle, JD’87, as a federal judge in the Southern District of Illinois. According to Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., she will be the first African-American judge to ever serve in Southern District of Illinois, and only the second woman to do so. Read More

James W. Barker, PhD'11, has been awarded the 2014 Paul J. Achtemeier Award for New Testament Scholarship. Barker, a visiting assistant professor of religion at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, was honored for his essay "Ancient Compositional Practices and the Gospels: A Reassessment." Read More

When it comes to his love for auto racing, Travis Geisler is always willing to go the extra mile—thousands of them, really, if one considers his college years. While at Vanderbilt he made the 1,200-mile round trip between Nashville and his hometown of Pittsburgh nearly every weekend just to compete… Read More

Members of the classes of 2004 through 2013 have once again made Vanderbilt history by rising to the university’s challenge specifically for graduates of the last decade—the GOLD Challenge 2.0—and helping to secure another $100,000 gift to Opportunity Vanderbilt. Opportunity Vanderbilt is the university’s initiative to replace all need-based undergraduate… Read More

Adena Friedman, MBA’93, will rejoin NASDAQ OMX as president of the company’s Global Corporate, Information, and Technology Solutions comprising Information Services, Technology Solutions and Corporate Client Group business segments. In this newly created role, Friedman will be responsible for overseeing the strategy and operations as well as having financial responsibility… Read More