Breadcrumb
Alumni Updates
Tyler Smurr
Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1995
Tyler Smurr, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1995, worked for Sierra Pacific Industries after graduating from Humboldt State but then met a girl and followed her to Texas. He taught middle school science for 14 years, and is currently an Assistant Principal for a San Antonio Middle School. Smurr says he uses his experience at Humboldt State to talk to students about finding the right place for them and seeing the beauty in the world.
William Chilson
Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1967
For the past 10 years, William Chilson, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1967 has been working in the renewable energy industry with a focus on development of utility scale power plants. His current position is Director of Siting and Real Estate with Candela Renewables. Candela Renewables develops solar power plants throughout the United States.
Stephen Bowlus
Chemistry, 1970
After graduation, Stephen Bowlus, Chemistry, 1970, attended University of Illinois (MS '72, PhD '74, postdoc entomology '75), and went into industrial research. He worked primarily in the agricultural chemistry field, starting as a synthesis chemist, then migrating to computational chemistry, molecular modeling and statistics. He retired from industry in 2003. In 2006, Bowlus started teaching as an adjunct instructor at Columbia College in Sonora, California, before retiring in 2019.
Colin Savage
Fisheries Biology, 2018
Shortly after graduating, Colin Savage, Fisheries Biology, 2018, started working with Washington Fish and Wildlife as a hatchery specialist. During his senior year he worked in rearing many species of salmonids and White Sturgeon.
Leonard A Brennan
Wildlife, 1984
Leonard A Brennan, Wildlife, 1984, is in his 19th year as the C.C. Winn Endowed Chair for Quail Research at the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University - Kingsville. His seventh book, Quantitative Analyses in Wildlife Science, was published by Johns Hopkins University Press this fall, and was co-edited with another Humboldt Alumnus, Dr. Bruce Marcot.
Claudia Carlson Cottrell
Fisheries Biology, 1974
In 1991 16 years after graduating from Humboldt State, Claudia Cottrell, Fisheries Biology, 1974, graduated from Northwestern Health Sciences University with a doctorate in Chiropractic. After 23 years of running a human chiropractic practice, she went to Options for Animals School of Animal Chiropractic. She now practices exclusively on horses, dogs, cats, and any other animals that are presented to her. Cottrell, says she feels like she has come full circle. She lives in Duluth, Minnesota (her native state) with her husband, Harry Cottrell, who is a native of Arcata, California, and is also a graduate of Humboldt State. They have two adult sons, have always had pets, and still visit Humboldt County.
Andre Degeorges
Natural ResourcesDr. Technology, Natural Resources, Tshwane University of Technology, 1973
Andre Degeorges, Natural Resources, 1973, is retired and is living on the Eastern Shore of Virginia hunting & fishing. Degeorges has several publications on researchgate.net under his name that are available to download for free. Publications include a seven volume book on conservation & development in Sub-Saharan Africa, one on the Taliban, many peer reviewed documents, gray literature & PowerPoint presentations on coral reefs, community based natural resource management (CBNRM), dams, wildlife management & hunting issues, and development/foreign aid, etc.
John R. Hawkins
Forestry & Wildland ResourcesAA Fire Science, Butte Community College, 1969
John Hawkins, Upland, 1969, retired from CAL FIRE in December 2018 after serving 55 fire seasons and finishing his career for the last 12 years as the CAL FIRE Riverside Unit/Riverside County Fire Department Fire Chief. Hawkins commanded many of California's major fires over his career, served as a Type 1 Incident Commander on 3 teams and an Operations Section Chief on a federal Type 1 team. Hawkins was recognized as a Certified Fire Chief and graduated from the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program. He is living in SoCal and working part-time as a Wildland Fire Consultant for the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
Gary Newman
Environmental Resources Engineering, 1977
After graduation, Gary Newman, Environmental Resources Engineering, 1977, went to Utah State University and earned a Masters in Civil and Environmental Engineering. Upon graduation from USU, he was hired by Brown and Caldwell Consulting Engineers (BC), in their Pasadena, California office. Newman has continued working with BC for the past 41 years saying "they have treated me well and provided some wonderful professional opportunities." His specialty has been wastewater treatment. Besides, Pasadena, he has lived and worked in Salt Lake City, Dallas, Seattle, and now Phoenix. He has also worked on projects in Vancouver, B.C., Washington D.C, New York, Nashville and San Francisco. Newman says he will be mostly retiring in the next year or so but will continue working part-time.
Drew Coe
Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1996
Drew Coe, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1996, began working in the forest industry following graduation. After several years he returned to school, graduating with a MS in Watershed Science from Colorado State University. Coe currently works as the Forest Practice Monitoring Coordinator/Hydrologist in CALFIRE's Watershed Protection Program. He lives with his wife and two children in Redding, California.