Breadcrumb
Alumni Updates
Hero Burke Smith
Art, Accounting, 2003
Hero Burke Smith, 2003 Art, is working in the media and textile industry, developing mad lib scripts for newish products.
Zoe H. Armstrong
Religious Studies, Minor: Geography, 2003
June 1, 2009 I began serving in Peace Corps Armenia as a Community and Business Development Volunteer. I am an NGO Development Specialist for a Women's Resource Center in Southern Armenia. I will be completing my service term and moving back to the east coast this summer. I credit my time with the Refugee Extension Program out of HSU's Youth Educational Services for getting me this position. I am very happy to be counted amongst the large and proud group of past HSU students who have served in the US Peace Corps.
Heather Sundblad-Rhoade
Journalism, 2003
Heather Sundblad-Rhoade, 2003 Journalism, served on many nonprofit boards, and then as a paid staff member serving as development director for the Education Foundation of Forest Grove after graduating. After two years, she shifted career focus and accepted a seat on the foundation’s board as communications director. In 2016, she became the marketing and tasting room manager at the award-winning Plum Hill Vineyards in Gaston Ore.
Heather Sundblad-Rhoade
Journalism, 2003
Heather Sundblad-Rhoade moved away from journalism and public relations and entered the world of business ownership. She purchased a retail business in August 2022 and has now been the owner and operator of a gift shop - Willow & Ash - in Forest Grove, Oregon, for two years. 2024 has been a year of milestones: She celebrated her 20-year anniversary with her husband and watched her daughter graduate from high school and move on to college to work on completing a degree in welding technology.
Kristina Elizabeth Ryan
Politics, 2003
After meeting at Humboldt State some 20 years ago, James Catlin (2002- Political Science and Economics) and Kristina have been married since 2010 and have two children. James is the Chief Macroeconomist at Value Investors Edge where he specializes in research and analysis of maritime trade. Kristina works for the State of California at the Department of Social Services. They currently reside in Southern California. They both share fond memories of their days as HSU students. James misses surfing alongside redwood lined cliffs and Smug's Pizza. Kristina misses all the amazing natural scenery. They can’t wait to have their children visit HSU when they are older.
Benjamin Ebert
International Studies, Masters in Public Policy, Cal Poly SLO, 2003
Benjamin Ebert, 2003 International Studies, is now married, a father of two and runs a local investment and tax firm, Ebert Capital Management, in Arcata. Ebert is also on the HSU Centennial Planning Committee, is working on a patent for a quantitative investment strategy, and periodically hires HSU interns.
Ali
Sociology, 2002 B.A. and 2009 M.A.
Ali R. Chaudhary, 2002 Sociology and 2009 Sociology, earned his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California, Davis, in 2015. He is currently a Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Oxford and enjoying life in the U.K. with his wife Rebecca Kellawan and their newborn son, Miles Ali Chaudhary. In January 2017, they will move to New York City, when Ali will take up his position as an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Danny Recendez
Anthropology, 2002
Since graduating from HSU, Danny moved back to the Central Valley, where he grew up. He worked as an archaeology field tech and then decided to pursue a career in teaching. He has been teaching middle school since 2005. Danny still enjoys traveling back to Humboldt County for vacation and has family who live in Eureka.
Shelli Maher-Sarchett
Sociology, 2002
I am in my 7th year as the Assistant Softball Coach here at Humboldt State University.
Jenna MacFarlane
Art, 2002
Jenna MacFarlane ('02, Studio Art) moved to the east coast in 2005 and since that time has owned a marketing company. In early 2022, she published her first novel entitled "Hardware Stories," and has since released an award-winning feature called "Adopting Audrey" nationwide.



