Student Housing over the Years Technology and Human Rights
Dear AUP Community Members,
It has been such a delight to get to know the thriving community that is AUP. I have been so grateful for the time spent with our distinguished faculty and exceptional staff in a range of settings— in their departments and programs, in our meetings, strategic planning sessions and at new communitywide events. All of these have reinforced just how very talented and committed they are and how broad, deep and transformative the distinctive global education offered here truly is.
Our students readily testify to that. I have been so fortunate to spend time with current students, and the range of their lived experience and interests, their intellectual curiosity and aspirations and their own deep commitment to being involved and engaged leaders here, in their communities and globally, has deeply impressed and inspired me. No wonder, then, when I meet alumni that I see this extraordinary liberal arts education in action across the world.
It is always particularly special when alumni return to Paris to speak with current students
and faculty about their work, experience and leadership in a wide range of professional and creative activities. This connection is important for all of us on campus as it renews the way we understand the world and its emerging challenges and how lifelong learning and personal and professional growth empower each individual. Whether it’s a single class or a professional module, serving on an advisory board, or participating in an event, alumni enrich the learning experience at AUP in so many ways described in this issue.
And faculty continue to develop new programs that reflect AUP’s values and address global conversations and research interests. The recent award of a UNESCO Chair for Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights to Professors Claudia Roda and Susan Perry recognizes their commitment to human rights and dignity, contemporary global challenges, developing disciplines and their intersection with emerging technologies.
This emphasis on academic excellence and reputation, on supporting individual pathways
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Kilian Ordelheide
WRITER & COPY EDITOR
Amanda Murphy
PROOFREADER
Carrie Chappell
IMAGERY
Krystal Kenney
and success and on enhancing the shared experience and community is at the heart of our next Strategic Plan. Developed through a year-long collaborative process, the Plan sets out commitments to further bolster AUP’s reputation for excellence, to leverage the value of our existing partnerships, to shape new ones for mutual benefit and to strengthen our community, whether through increased opportunities for international networking and professional development or more spaces and time for connection and collaboration on campus. A formal Alumni Association is also on the horizon to facilitate new opportunities for alumni to connect and engage with each other, as well as with the University.
Inside the magazine, you will find highlighted just a few of the ways our community is advancing and excelling. I am so very pleased and energized to be a part of this extraordinary University, and we are all so grateful for your continued interest, trust and support of AUP.
Sincerely,
Sonya Stephens
Rita Martinos
Alfonso Sjogreen
DESIGN
Leland International
Questions or comments? communications@aup.edu
Sonya Stephens
President of The American University of Paris
Yearin The Review
The 2023–24 academic year was a year of recognition, development and coming together as a thriving community. Here’s a snapshot of life on campus over the last 12 months.
FALL SEMESTER 2023
New VP for Development and Alumni Relations
September 2023
Courtney Stombock came to us from Atlanta, Georgia, where she served as the Associate Dean of Advancement and Alumni Engagement at Emory University School of Law.
Career Week at AUP September 2023
The Center for Academic, Career, and Experiential Advising (ACE Center) hosted Career Week featuring international employers and alumni and culminating in a Career Fair for current students.
AUP Research Center
Receives EU Horizon Grant
September 2023
The Center for Critical Democracy Studies, spearheaded by Professor Stephen Sawyer, received a grant from the European Research Council to collaborate on a project for the study and prevention of radicalization.
Cabaret and Collaboration: A Josephine Baker Symposium
October 2023
Professor of Comparative Literature and English
Biswasmit Dwibedy and Jeannine Cook (Summer '22) held a symposium to honor the life of Josephine Baker at the Omid & Gisel Kordestani Rooftop Conference Center.
Faculty Emeriti Board
Created October 2023
AUP announced the creation of a new Emeriti Board dedicated to representing the interests of all retired AUP colleagues, both former faculty and staff.
Veterans Day: AUP Broadens Its Support
November 2023
Thanks to our collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), AUP works to welcome and empower veterans and their family members through education.
Exploring Blackness Abroad
February 2024
SPRING SEMESTER 2024
A Day with AUP’s Writer in Residence
January 2024
AUP creative writing students sat down with Tinashe Mushakavanhu to discuss literature, the Zimbabwean diaspora and artmaking under the radar of authoritarianism.
In honor of Black History Month, writer, mixed media graphic designer, photographer and AUP alumna Aalyiah Heath (G’18) exhibited “An Ode to Blackness... Everywhere” at AUP’s Fine Arts Gallery.
TEDxAUP Returns
March 2024
The topic “Resilience Redefined: Thriving in Times of Change” got the attention of thinkers across our community and beyond, including a number of alumni.
Photo: Aris Theotokatos
AUP Community Drives
Change in the Fashion World
March 2024
Faculty, staff and students from AUP’s MA in Global Communications and the London College of Fashion hosted the Symposium on Fashion Communication for SocioEcological Transformation.
Alumni Weekend 2024
April 2024
Former students met on campus to celebrate their time at the University and to commemorate the 60th anniversary of our founding class of 1964.
Deborah Roberts Awarded Honorary Degree
May 2024
World-renowned reporter at ABC News Deborah Roberts received an honorary degree and spoke to the graduating class at Commencement 2024.
AUP HIGHLIGHTS Campus
Each
the
year,
Paris Pride parade goes from Montparnasse to Bastille and the celebration continues in the Marais
An LGBTQ+ History of AUP
Out of discussions in Professor Geoff Gilbert’s Queer Theory and Literature class, a question arose: How is LGBTQ+ history kept, archived and transmitted, if it is all? And how could it be properly kept?
While considering the importance of taking into account the complexity of the categories used in the past and today, as well as across geographical borders, the group decided to take a closer look at Paris and in particular AUP. Therein began the project Gilbert and students have undertaken to collect testimonies from AUP alumni about their experience in Paris.
“As for other minority groups, things don’t get passed down through families or institutions; they don’t get stored or recorded in the same ways; they’re seen as private questions,” says Gilbert who is particularly interested in looking into what has happened at AUP, an American institution in Paris with radically international students.
The project, which will continue throughout the 2024-25 academic year, seeks to map individual experiences through testimony, revisiting places, groups and support offered from the 1960s to the present. “I’m really loving what’s happening so far in the conversations between current
students and older alumni,” says Gilbert, who also notes that Black and Abroad and other student groups on campus are doing similar work to build histories that have simply not existed.
If you would like to contribute to the LGBTQ+ History of AUP, please reach out to alumni@aup.edu
“As for other minority groups, things don’t get passed down through families or institutions; they don’t get stored or recorded in the same ways; they’re seen as private questions.
Music in the Making: Professor
Treilhou
When AUP Fine Arts Professor Stéphane Treilhou wants to understand something, he makes it. The many artistic disciplines he works in—painting, printmaking, jewelry making and music—afford him a wealth of knowledge and skills with which to do so. The AUP community recently saw many of Treilhou’s abilities converge in one of his greatest passions: building musical instruments. In February 2024, Treilhou unveiled a clavichord, a stringed keyboard instrument and precursor to the piano, which he built just by looking at a painting from the wall of a chapel.
As one of the few makers worldwide of the clavichord, Treilhou’s enthusiasm for the instrument began in his early years as a working professional in Paris. His flat was too small to house a piano, and while the clavichord presented itself as a practical alternative, it cost “around €15,000,” he explains. The instrument unveiled at the AUP event was modeled after an extraordinary mural in the commune of Saint-Bonnet-le Château depicting the oldest rendition of a clavichord. Medieval art historian Dr. Yuko Katsutani studied these images and asked Treilhou to recreate the clavichord as part of a project to bring the instruments to life.
Read the full story
Discover Prof. Berg’s Podcast on Water
Beetles to Help Fight Climate Change
As the impact of climate change reshapes the natural world, AUP students undertook research that might help better understand its repercussions. In Spring 2024, an ambitious experiment began at the Joy and Edward Frieman Environmental Science Center where four graduating seniors investigated the reproductive outcomes of seed beetles to understand how extreme heat waves affect wildlife biological systems.
“There is something special about diving into scientific inquiry and experiencing firsthand the complex interplay between climate change and biodiversity,” says environmental studies major Sarah Glavan ’24, who participated in this experiment as her Senior Project. The extensive process ran from January to June under the supervision of the center’s director, Elena Berg. The students, alongside technician Sophie Bricout, monitored beetles through a continuous cycle of incubation, hatching, mating, and egg-laying. New beetles hatched every three weeks, requiring meticulous daily tracking of reproductive output.
“Each data point is precious,” said Berg, emphasizing the dedication required to perform this repetitive, detail-oriented work.
“The most challenging aspect is self-discipline,” agreed environmental studies major Maya Golub '24.
A Firsthand Look at Human Rights and Data Science
AUP’s graduate students are often seeking professional and personal transformation when joining AUP—whether they enroll straight out of an undergraduate degree or after several years of work experience. To fully explore the career paths available in often competitive fields, and to discover the ways in which multiple fields intersect, AUP offers the Data Industry Practicum, which brings professionals working in relevant fields to students enrolled in the MSc in Human Rights and Data Science. This 6-credit series offered every spring semester features intensive workshops led by experts, including AUP alumni, who are analyzing in practical ways the computational, legal, economic and ethical aspects of data use. They come to the practicum from sectors as varied as finance, product design and diplomacy. In addition to meeting and discussing with professionals from companies such as IBM and Qwant, students complete assessed projects grounded in industry-relevant contexts. “The practicum builds on the theories covered in class,” explains Claudia Roda, director of the program. “It is vitally important that students be exposed to professional figures who understand data science, as well as the legal and ethical implications of its use.”
Learn from the CTO of Qwant and a Senior IBM Engineer
Investing in the Experience of First-Year Students
Studying in Paris is not for the faint of heart. The fast-paced lifestyle and academics, along with learning a new language, can make incoming students feel adrift—as many AUP alumni can attest—but a new program aims to provide newcomers with a sense of community and support. The First Year Success (FYS) initiative, launched in Fall 2023, helps students build a great foundation and begin crafting their own journey. This means more opportunities to meet peers and build friendships; workshops to facilitate navigating AUP culture, Paris and organizing one’s life; as well as a first-year trip.
“I have lived many different lives in many different places, yet Paris was the hardest to adjust to,” said Terrell Stahl '24, a student advisor in the FYS initiative. Kevin Fore, Dean of Student Development, has long supported first-years and truly believes in the program’s focus on facultystaff mentorship, which now involves eighteen student advisors and eighteen faculty-staff mentors, including President Sonya Stephens.
“This program is really important. We want to complement the rigor of their academic courses by providing the tools to understand where they are living and working,” said Stephens. The program will continue in its second year in Fall 2024.
Read the full story
AUP Unveils New Graduate Studies Website
Graduate study at AUP presents a unique opportunity for recent undergraduates to deepen their knowledge and expand their perspectives through a distinctive educational approach. Additionally, it serves as an ideal platform for established professionals looking to pivot their careers or gain the international experience needed to embark on a global career path. Regardless of one’s motivation, AUP is committed to providing a transformative academic experience that equips graduates with the knowledge and skills necessary to excel in diverse and dynamic work environments worldwide.
In 2024, AUP unveiled its new website dedicated to the University’s six master’s programs. This comprehensive online platform showcases the MA in Diplomacy and International Law
GRADUATE
MA in Global Communications, MSc in Human Rights and Data Science, MA in International Affairs, MSc in International Management and MSc in Strategic Brand Management. In Fall 2025, the University will launch a new MFA in Creative Writing.
The website is meticulously designed to provide detailed information about each program,
Explore the website
GRADUATE
AUP HIGHLIGHTS Alumni
View the results of the study
The Results Are in! The Alumni Attitude Study
This year AUP conducted a survey campaign of alumni to better understand their experience at the University and beyond. The wide-scale Alumni Attitude Study has been used to survey more than 1 million alumni at 320 institutions over the last 20 years. “The benefit of using an organization like that,” says VP for Development and Alumni Relations, Courtney Stombock, “is that the data can be benchmarked against other institutions.” Over 450 alumni responded to the survey. Their responses coming in from across the world indicated that their overall experience as students was excellent.
“They felt we did a great job of preparing them for their lives beyond the University in terms of skills, cultural understanding, etc.,” explained Stombock. The survey also revealed a desire among alumni to get involved. As a result, Alumni Relations is working to offer more engagement opportunities and host more international events at a much larger scale.
For alumni looking to get involved or reconnect, the first stop is global.aup.edu. They may also reach out to the Alumni Relations Team directly at alumni@aup.edu.
Lacy Audry '13 and Charles Duque '93 in discussion at the AUP Alumni in Food Roundtable
Alums Dish on Careers in the Food Industry
The Celeste Schenck Atrium sizzled with excitement during the AUP Alumni in Food Roundtable in February. In a discussion moderated by Professor Christy Shields, four AUP alumni—Lacy Audry ’13, Charles Duque ’93, Samantha Gilliams ’18 and Daniel Rose ’00—with careers in the food industry shared perspectives on all things culinary, from first jobs washing mushrooms to innovation in coffee production. They emphasized, among other things, the importance of French language skills in a trade where France looms large. “It’s essential to making connections with people in Paris who are international,” advised Gilliams.
Having studied business at AUP and superlative French skills, Charles Duque went on to work as Managing Director for the Americas of
the French Dairy Interbranch Organization (CNIEL); Lacy Audry has started businesses in the Philippines and France before creating a branding and communications agency for small food companies; Samantha Gilliams is a project manager at the Paris-based culinary production studio Balbosté where she crafts immersive dining experiences and oversees operations; and Daniel Rose is a culinary entrepreneur who founded La Bourse et La Vie in Paris and the Michelin star-bearing Le Coucou in New York.
Together, these alumni portrayed a dynamic, intersectional field that yields constant routes to discovery.
For future students passionate about food, look out for AUP’s new minor in Food Studies, which will be launching this fall!
Explore Their Stories
Lacy Audry ’13
Charles Duque ’93
Samantha Gilliams ’18
Daniel Rose ’00
Prof. Christy Shields
Micky (den Tuinder) Lawler: A Leader on and off the Court
As standing President of the Women’s Tennis Association since 2015, Micky (den Tuinder) Lawler ’80 is a model of female leadership. Through her modest disposition and innate ability to foster connections, she has been an inspiration to many across the community of international sports.
In childhood, she was already exposed to many different countries and cultures and considered herself a global citizen by nature. However, she cites the AUP experience, and the university’s “empathic approach to collaborating with different cultures in different languages,” as having cemented her appreciation of diversity. “When you surround yourself with globality, which you do at AUP, you also get a very healthy dose of perspective because you get a better understanding of how big the world is.”
After 27 years at Octagon, a global sports agency, Lawler became President of the WTA Board. Before realizing that she would one day work side by side with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, Lawler looked up to these two figures. “They were up there for me,” Lawler says, “but I also looked very much next to me.”
Discover her full story
How I Came to AUP: Advice that Changed a Life
While Ohio native Tom Kennedy ’90 was solo hitch-hiking around Europe, he visited his mother’s cousin in Alsace. She saw in Tom a curious spirit and suggested he interview at AUP (then ACP), which he did! She was the first person to offer “an alternative way of looking at one’s life,” Kennedy explains.
“Growing up gay in rural Ohio in the 1980s at the core of the AIDS crisis was not easy […] if you were different,” he says, so by the time he was 17 and looking at colleges, he knew he needed a change. After high school graduation, Tom left again, stopping by London before enrolling at AUP in the spring of 1987. “I took the advice of this relative who seemed to be living a life she had chosen for herself,” he explains. In Paris, Tom would soon discover the wonders of city life, major in Art History and begin living, as he says, “outside of normal prescribed life.” After AUP, the adventures didn’t stop. Tom then toured with the Big Apple Circus, hiked the Appalachian Trail and went on to have a successful career in real estate. He has also become an AUP planned giving donor.
“A Greek artist known as Takis once told me to take advantage of every single opportunity that presents itself. I do that to this day, and I’ve had an amazing life,” Tom reflects.
Learn more about Planned Giving at AUP
Isis Ossebi '12, Director of Communications at the NYC Commission on Racial Equity
Isis Ossebi Fights for Racial Equity in NYC
For Congo-born, Paris-raised Isis Ossebi ’12, working at the United Nations was a dream: “Coming from the Congo, where I had experienced civil war and other political turmoil, I felt a drive toward being part of the change.” In just over a decade since graduating from AUP, Ossebi has realized that dream, in two ways: first as a consultant with the Office of the Ambassador at the UN and now as the Director of Communications at the NYC Commission on Racial Equity (CORE), whose mission is to “advance racial equity in government operations and to increase community voice in government decision making,” with a focus on tracking the city’s Racial Equity Plans.
Ossebi is all too familiar with the reverberations of institutionalized racism. Growing up in Paris, she found herself denied pathways to higher education, internships and jobs. Yet experiencing early setbacks only solidified her resolve to be a changemaker who influences governments for the better. In this inaugural position within the newly established commission, Ossebi plays a vital role in giving visibility to those who have been historically excluded and fostering racial equity and social justice throughout New York City.
Alumnae Make Waves in Fashion
Many students come to Paris and AUP because of their interest in fashion. They come away having gained exposure to major actors, brands and events such as Fashion Week, but AUP’s education also offers the opportunity to consider the ways the industry can affect everyday life and incites students to make sure their impact is a positive one. Our graduates who have gone on to lead fulfilling and impressive careers—Charla Carter ’82, Liana Engel ’06 and Geneviève Hartmann Colom ’13, to mention but a few—personify this in what they have achieved.
These alumnae have demonstrated a commitment to making fashion more accessible and more equitable for all women. After 30 years in the industry, Charla Carter explains that fashion is not just high fashion and should not satisfy only a certain type of woman or criteria for beauty. Today, as a stylist appearing on ABC Talk TV’s Incredible Transformation and “senior influencer,” her focus is on the average woman. Geneviève Hartmann, Product Lead at Stitch
Fix, says her work has been about leveraging the industry as a vehicle to address the climate crisis and minimize the effects of fashion on the environment. As for Liana Engel, Global Director of Talent and Entertainment at Cartier, the focus is on how fashion can be diversified to take into account gender and ethnicity.
For all three women, the fashion industry must adapt to its wearers and not the other way around, a stance also emphasized in AUP’s MA in Global Communications fashion track curriculum.
Connect with them on LinkedIn
Charla Carter ’82
Genevieve Hartmann Colom ’13
Liana Engel ’06
Genevieve Hartmann Colom
Liana Engel
Charla Crter
The Future of
Sonya Stephens became AUP’s 13th president in September 2022. At the helm of a team steering a new five-year strategic plan—recently approved by the Board of Trustees—she sat down with us to talk about the direction it charters and how the University will evolve.
As a lifelong Francophile who holds a PhD in French from Cambridge University and an MA in French studies from the Université de Montréal, and has worked extensively in higher education in the United States and the UK, Sonya Stephens has a deep appreciation for and understanding of the benefits of global education. She has spent her whole career thinking about literature and culture and the ways in which cultures, perspectives and forms intersect. Through each of her experiences, she has treated her various leadership roles as if she were embracing a new culture, learning the contours of a new landscape, all of which she has done with humility.
A collective mozaic created by faculty and staff during the first-ever AUP Retreat
In the two years she has spent getting to know AUP students, faculty, staff and alumni, Stephens says she has been inspired by the imagination and creativity within the institution, by its deep commitment to student success, and by the contributions alumni are making to communities and professions worldwide. This commitment to student success and global engagement is one she deeply shares, and the next strategic plan for AUP speaks to that commitment and to the idea that AUP be a place where all can flourish as they pursue their academic, professional and personal goals on campus and worldwide.
This plan sits within a fifteen-year framework that envisions the long-term vibrancy and stature of the University—it is a step on the path to a slightly larger, better-known, highly regarded and more prosperous AUP. It builds upon strong foundations, Stephens explains; drawing on past success and a shared sense of the character and purpose of the University, the Plan foregrounds the distinctive mission of AUP, rooting itself in its location in Paris, emphasizing the transdisciplinary, transnational and hybrid approach to learning, and supporting the bold and independent thinkers it assembles.
Over 150 faculty and staff joined the first-ever AUP Retreat in May to discuss strategic priorities
In the spirit of connected and collaborative community, this plan was co-created and emerged from multiple forms of engagement—a series of “future crafting” sessions, retreats and informal meetings—with faculty, staff, students, alumni and trustees alike. “It has been immensely rewarding,” says Sonya Stephens, “to be engaged with the entire community as we have worked on a plan for our shared future. I am incredibly grateful to all those who have participated, in one way or another, to imagine this future and to renew our shared commitment to excellence in international education.”
A Beacon Across Borders
While the landscape of higher education has become increasingly complex, and the value of a liberal arts education is too often challenged, AUP has enjoyed increased interest and last year enrolled more students than ever before. Even with this year’s headwinds, caused notably by changes to the financial aid application process (FAFSA), the University will likely see the secondlargest class in its history. The Plan envisions carefully managed, sustainable growth in student numbers but is more focused on the “growth mindset” that characterizes AUP. This implies programmatic initiatives that will encourage and deepen independent thinking, increase community engagement and the programs and spaces that enable it, improve pre-professional experiences and career support for students,
and add more opportunities for professional development for faculty and staff.
As an international learning organization that constantly questions the status quo, it is only natural that AUP remain dedicated to continuous renewal and intellectual and professional growth. The Strategic Plan therefore describes ways in which the University will continue its critical relationship to the world—through improvements to its signature educational experience, connection to its location in the 7th arrondissement and the diverse city of Paris, and its partnerships.
The Plan envisions continued investments in distinctive transdisciplinary programs that address far-reaching and contemporary global challenges and are responsive and adaptive to a changing social and technological landscape. This includes investing in signature experiences, such as study trips through the Cultural Program, intensive pre-professional modules, internships, and career support so that the student experience is both structured and individualized. The Plan therein creates more opportunities for students to pursue a self-designed academic experience, enhanced by other shared experiences that build both academic and social community and connection while preparing them for post-graduation success.
Scaffolding the Student Experience
“The magic of AUP is the nature of the education—transdisciplinary, transnational and transformative, offering experiences inside the classroom and out that complement each other. The magic of AUP is its capacity to produce independent thinkers ready to test boundaries and equipped to navigate many countries, cultures and languages,” says Stephens. This implies, for the Plan, reiterating the University’s commitment to the individual experience and making sure that each student finds their unique path.
While this experience is not without difficulty— because enrolling at AUP means challenging preconceived ideas through discussion and debate, and for most, living in a new country and learning a new language—the institution is also there to guide students, or as the Plan presents it, “scaffold” the student experience. This means providing the right support structures and encouragement at the right moments in order for students to craft their own trajectories and orient themselves within the curriculum and programs offered. As students gain intellectual maturity and grow personally, the community they build is then enhanced and extends even more as they travel on study trips, complete internships, conduct research and participate, even at the undergraduate level, in pre-professional intensive modules and practica, such as the signature Sustainable Development Practicum in India
and the École the Guerre practicum just a few hundred meters from campus.
Whether incoming students already know who they want to be or are seeking an opportunity to define themselves, Stephens recognizes the powerful potential for personal and professional growth that the University offers. “Through specific sets of support structures, we aim to shape the experience to amplify aspirations, help students map their individual pathways to achieve their goals and become the best version of themselves,” comments Stephens. The Strategic Plan aims to better support students' specific needs at each step of AUP’s global educational experience, the University providing the scaffolding for them to navigate the opportunities, and to give more visibility to the excellent things that our students and alumni are accomplishing. This includes continuing development of the First Year Success Program, identifying opportunities for all students to participate in study trips, increasing career advising and improving student support, with a focus on internships and careers. Beyond graduation, students should expect a strong alumni community that nurtures lifelong connections, enhances the institution's reputation, and provides valuable support through mentorship, networking, and financial contributions. Later this year, AUP will launch an alumni association to foster more vibrant and engaged alumni network.
Stephens also sees this opportunity for selfactualization as connected to the career
development of alumni, and, of course, that of faculty and staff, who are engaged in worldclass research and creative work. “The more opportunities for transformation and selfactualization we offer, the better prepared our students will be to succeed at AUP and when they step out into the careers of their dreams,” says Stephens. The main underlying idea of the Plan is that the freedom of the AUP experience allows for each individual—whether a student or professional—and, therefore, for the community as a whole, to flourish.
As both faculty and students explore the most difficult questions facing us today and build connections—to the curriculum, to each other and to the places they go—solutions and new questions emerge, engaging classroom learning, understanding and active problem-solving.
Academic Innovation and Community Engagement
New degree programs and initiatives focused on contemporary opportunities and challenges have also been recently approved or are envisioned in the Plan, Stephens reveals. AUP will be adding two new majors in Global French Studies and Fashion, a minor in Food Studies and an MFA in Creative Writing in the next 12 months alone.
Faculty are committed to innovation and growth at AUP, constantly reimagining the curriculum and orienting it to meet the needs of our students. “One of the things that makes AUP so unique,” explains Stephens, “is the way our faculty and curriculum speak to global issues, divisions and conflicts and the way they engage with the diverse student body and its global outlook.” She highlights, in particular, the quality of faculty scholarship and the breadth of interests it represents, inflecting the teaching at AUP in very visible ways. Involving students in faculty scholarship has also been a particular strength of the curriculum.
Stephens emphasizes here the need to continue to support faculty in this endeavor, as well as the critical work of the research centers. She cites the important contributions of the George and Irina Schaeffer Center for the Study of Genocide, Human Rights and Conflict Prevention; the Center for Critical Democracy Studies; and the Center for Writers and Translators, in which AUP will continue to invest, and adds that new interdisciplinary degree objectives are also laid out. “AUP does a tremendous job of creating a community where critical questions can be asked and in different ways; this is part of why AUP does and should exist; this is the most distinctive feature of AUP’s truly international classroom,” explains Stephens.
Thanks to this commitment to learning through connectedness across social, linguistic and disciplinary borders and to being an integral part
of the international community, AUP aims to continue to enhance its global reach, furthering the network and its positive impact. “While we are clearly doing many things right, we can always improve on what we are doing and build on existing success,” says Stephens, “and we will continue to evolve and enhance our existing programs, partnerships and opportunities for individuals to excel.” Accordingly, the Strategic Plan also underscores the fact that community does not stop at the edge of AUP’s 7th arrondissement campus. “‘How to build and be in community?’ is an important conversation in itself,” says Stephens, and while AUP has already taken it on in theory and in practice, many elements of the Plan for the future of AUP center around the importance of reimagining community, in the places, spaces, programs and global partnerships of AUP. “AUP is not a bubble. It has always existed in partnerships—with global partners, academic partners, non-profits and companies that offer opportunities for study trips, internships and employment and which share a common set of principles and values with the University,” says Stephens.
AUP’s Plan is to build upon existing partnerships— including with US universities and traditional study abroad programs—as well as to foster new connections that may allow for multi-site, co-awarded degrees, increased pre-professional and professional experiences and more seamless interaction with the local community and the city of Paris. This thrust of the Plan will also be aided by the creation of the Alumni Association, which
will allow for better networking for alumni and the opportunity for more regional chapters and, eventually, professional affinity groups.
“We are an institution focused on opportunities for learning across the community,” says Stephens, “and one priority of the Strategic Plan is to continue to enlarge and strengthen that opportunity across all constituencies.”
Since 1962, the University has grown tremendously and yet our core values have remained the same. The Strategic Plan has been developed through a commitment to sustain the character and uniqueness of AUP and the education it offers—a transformative, American liberal arts education infused with experiential learning, in the heart of Paris, with a global outlook that launches confident individuals with the curiosity to explore, the passion to engage and the capability to lead.
Students, staff, faculty and alumni have all helped build the new Strategic Plan; many through future crafting sessions with University leadership.
The AUP Retreat helped our community discuss ideas for the future of the University, including artificial intelligence, student success and professional development.
over the Years Student Housing
The city of Paris has always been a coveted but challenging place to live in, not to mention its historically saturated housing market. Needless to say, the housing team at AUP has a lot on their plate, and the process of housing hundreds of students each year has drastically changed over the years.
During AUP’s first few decades, students would arrive in Paris, often without a clue as to where they would be living. In the 1980s, explains Marc Montheard, VP of Student Services and Security, the process involved temporarily housing students at youth hostels (the FIAP) or the American House of the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris during orientation week until housing counselors could offer students options that met their needs and budget. This involved sifting through a paper binder, lots of phone calls and on-site visits. “It was a zoo!” says Montheard.
Professor Stephane Treilhou with students on an art history study trip to Madrid and Toledo
Karen Johnson ‘75, Elizabeth Sharpe ‘77 and Michele Zazwirskz ‘76 dining with the d’Anginé on Boule Mich family
In the early 2010s, a proper housing program was created in partnership with Blue Stripe Living, a provider that offered hundreds of apartments scattered across the city and managed the entire rental process. However, in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, the provider went bankrupt, leaving the AUP housing team just three months to figure things out!
Since 2021, AUP has managed all the steps of housing internally. Now, residential options include six different AUP-leased buildings that house only AUP students and three French partner residences, where students mix with people from outside the AUP community–both of which have resident assistants on-site for support and who organize events–as well as apart’hotel options with front-desk staff available 24/7.
As for graduate students and returning students, information sessions on how to find housing are held in the spring, and they are given the opportunity to consult a database–a remnant of the old system–with a list of contacts. “The market has always been difficult, and scams are ever more prevalent,” says Siham Mouahid, Manager of Residential Life, “but we do our best to accompany students without taking over everything for them.”
Learning to live with roommates and navigating Parisian apartment life go hand in hand with the challenges of moving abroad, adjusting to an unfamiliar environment and learning a new language, Mouahid explains. “No A/C in Paris; you’ll have smaller spaces; these are older buildings, and even if renovated, the structures are old. It’s a cramped city; the commute is just a reality. But old also means beautiful and historic; and commuting means that you can explore any part of the city because you know how to use public transportation,” says Mouahid. “All of this is educational.”
1 Homestays were a common option in AUP’s first few decades, but demand for this housing option has shrunk, as students prefer more independent living.
2 Living in Paris has always been tied to building community. While much has changed in AUP’s housing landscape, shared meals are as common today as they were in the 70s.
3 In the early years, students arrived in Paris without knowing where they would live and were temporarily housed until they could find an apartment.
4 Students may be housed with other AUP students in shared rooms or shared apartments, as is the case with AUP’s residence on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
5 AUP houses students in the 11th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th arrondissements. The Heliopolis residence features a stunning rooftop, common areas and even a gym.
6 As of Fall 2024, AUP's 12 residences, including Annonciation, featured here, house between 12 and 72 students depending on location. Some exclusively house our students, while partner residences may house individuals from outside the AUP community.
7 For many, housing registration for residences such as Leon Blum, seen here, opens in late spring, and students are informed of their placement by early summer for the fall. The possibility of independent housing still exists, but only in exceptional cases.
8 AUP housing options, such as Musset, above, cater to the needs of current students, whether they are visiting (first year abroad or independent study abroad) or incoming degree-seekers. Graduate students may also consult our housing database to facilitate their apartment search. Resident assistants live in most of the AUP housing options, offer support, and organize activities to help students build community once they arrive in Paris.
9 Many residences and apartments feature classic Parisian architecture on the inside and outside, as seen here at Jouffroy d'Abbans. Historic housing is beautiful and inspiring, but it also has challenges in terms of space, plumbing, and old fireplaces that are no longer used.
Technology Human Rights
Learn more about AUP‘s UNESCO Chair for Artificial Intelligence & Human Rights
The intersection between human rights and 21st-century technology represents a dynamic frontier where innovation and ethical considerations converge. As technology permeates every facet of our lives, from communication to healthcare and governance, it profoundly impacts the fulfillment and the protection of our rights. Technological advancements such as artificial intelligence, big data and digital media platforms have the potential to benefit human rights by improving access to knowledge and information, enabling freedom of expression and fostering social inclusion. However, these technologies do not come without significant risks, including but not limited to privacy violations, surveillance and the amplification of biases, which can undermine individual freedoms and exacerbate inequalities. Navigating this complex and rapidly evolving landscape requires a nuanced understanding of how technological progress can both advance and jeopardize human rights. From an academic standpoint, this means considering the intersection and impact of each field on another, which AUP has endeavored to bring into focus with the recent creation of the MSc in Human Rights and Data Science. With Professors Susan Perry and Claudia Roda—newly appointed UNESCO Co-chairholders for Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights— at the helm, AUP is ideally positioned to train professionals capable of creating the robust legal frameworks and ethical guidelines necessary to ensure that technology serves as a tool for empowerment rather than for oppression.
Through the AUP community’s expertise and decades-long commitment to being present members in the pressing, and sometimes controversial, global conversations around where human rights and technology meet, we find ourselves at the forefront of both fields—promoting social justice and ensuring that technology contributes positively to society. In what follows, you will discover perspectives from some of the best placed individuals in our community to discuss the issues at hand and the realities present within specific fields.
“We need to start thinking about where technology is useful and where it is useful for people to make a lot of money” “
Professor Claudia Roda in class
Dr. Claudia Roda Program Director, MSc in Human Rights and Data Science
Professor Roda began working at the crossroads between computer science and cognitive psychology for a study on children’s learning that involved a form of tracking. She immediately became concerned with the abuse of data and connected with Susan Perry, Professor of History, Law and Politics, who specializes in human rights.
For Roda, the potential of data to solve social problems is tremendous. “For issues related to access, statistics on abuse, to cure disease, to feed people, data is a gamechanger,” she says. However, the benefits of technological development for human rights do not come without major risks. While EU legislation has been very proactive—GDPR being a model for the rest of the world, and the French CNIL an effective safeguarding mechanism—Roda believes such frameworks need a more robust regulatory system and governance structure firmly rooted in the International Human Rights Framework. “Privacy regulation has come a long way, but it’s still very focused on the individual; the rights of communities must also be taken into account in order to prevent the amplification of disinformation and bias through technology.”
Roda’s goal for the Master’s is to make sure that graduates, in a position to guide the development of technology, are aware of all the interconnected problems related to the field, be they technical-, legal- or businessoriented. For her, ethical input-assessment is key. This means working with the people who will be impacted when you want to develop a product and thinking about the consequences of such products at all levels.
Claudia Roda's faculty profile
Nicole Santiago, JD, G ’19 Research Manager at Trilateral Research
Nicole Santiago, who holds a JD from Northeastern University, an MA in Diplomacy and International Law from AUP and recently taught at the AUP Summer Institute for Human Rights specializes in international law and human rights. As a student at AUP, she collaborated with Professors Perry and Roda to submit feedback to UN committees and still regularly contributes to debates on human rights at the international level. Currently focused on the ethics of emerging technologies and conducting legal analysis in this field, in her most recent role, she considers how to operationalize ethical recommendations and link them to binding human rights requirements existing at the international, regional and national levels.
“The focus is 100% on AI at the moment,” she says, telling of serious human rights infractions already taking place, such as the use of neurotechnology for the purpose of torture she is working to help expose.
Santiago advocates in particular for a “technology neutral” as opposed to “technology specific” approach to regulation, as in the case of the AI Act recently adopted by the European Commission. She also reaffirms the need for increased predeployment assessments through audits and impact assessments to analyze the intended and unintended uses and abuses of technology as well as the short-term and longterm consequences. One example Santiago highlights is virtual and augmented reality, which is already being used in classrooms. While it may allow children to learn things in different ways, and perhaps encourage greater engagement, some of the physical and psychological effects (long-term dissociation, development issues, lack of retention) are extremely undesirable. “We must also consider who is designing the interfaces and the content we use,” she cautions.
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“Technology development has gone mostly unregulated and is happening primarily in the private sector; there is a need for balance, and we haven’t struck balance yet.”
Connect with Nicole Santiago on LinkedIn
Dr. Agnieszka Kupzok ’04
Senior Manager at Nokia
For Agnieska Kupzok, who comes to the field from a background in economics and intellectual property law, any new technological or developmental shift should be accompanied by a reflection on the need for a framework.
“AI needs a framework for ethical use wherever you use it. It is a very exciting time when we are thinking about what we as humans want. There is a need for cogent, evidence-based analysis to determine the parameters for successful use of AI, which is legal and ethical at the same time.”
She underscores the need for the political and governance framework, which should include reflection at the grassroots level as well as more engagement with inventors and developers to thoroughly understand the impact of technology.
One practical use Kupzok sees for AI, which stems from her work on LGBTQI+ rights in Poland, is for AI to be used as part of a video-editing tool for training materials and for the general optimization of human resources to help alleviate some of the overhead cost struggles of non-profit organizations on the ground. Another example of a potential use is language translation to meet the needs of refugees. As Kupzok explains, innovation is a sustainable development goal, and her work at Nokia centers around this principle. “I am always for science and R&D because it brings humanity forward. Some progress is structured, some is unpredictable, and I am very fortunate to witness it and support it in my role at Nokia.”
“Technological progress for humans only means progress if there are humans.”
Connect with Agnieszka Kupzok on LinkedIn
Chloe
Curreri
G ’24
Founder and CEO, InnovateRights
Chloe Curreri is a recent graduate of AUP’s MA in Diplomacy and International Law and has already founded the youth-led, women-led NGO InnovateRights that aims to educate and equip social sector organizations to more effectively drive change.
While at AUP, Curreri completed a field internship in Peru, working in an abandoned government housing project where 10,000 people were still living. Part of her internship involved helping to build the very first school in the area, an endeavor that allowed her to witness first hand how technology could help. She soon began to turn her focus toward making technological tools as accessible as possible in remote locations across Africa, Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe. “If you’re not equipped with technological know-how, you’re suffering from exclusion,” she says. In other words, marginalized communities are the most impacted by injustices. “Technology is clearly exacerbating vulnerability,” she explains, “but at InnovateRights we are looking at ways to empower people with technological tools without creating new vulnerabilities or new problems.” InnovateRights currently has a team of 15 people who are on the way to greater impact through partnerships in various countries.
Connect with Chloe Curreri on LinkedIn
Chloe Curreri conducting field research in Viñani, Peru
Yann Lechelle ’93 Founder and CEO at Probabl
For entrepreneur Yann Lechelle, how we manage technology reflects the geo-economics and geopolitics of the places where the technology emerges. He is particularly interested in how shared European and North American values, tightly correlated to democracy and human rights, can be applied to technological development. “Value capture takes place through data capture,” he says. As founder of several European tech companies and now exclusive brand operator of Scikit-learn.org, a French-built open-source framework used for AI (machine learning), he expresses the need to build this industry around the values that drive European society—and with awareness and responsibility. “Technology is knowledge, but not if it is a black box,” he says, insisting on the role of technological education and awareness at the societal level to avoid knowledge getting captured and content spoon-fed to us. Lechelle recognizes that AI is a slippery slope but highlights that this is especially the case because companies are left unchecked. “AI has a tendency to become exponential; the danger is that it may hijack the very foundational basis of our societal constructs, in particular democracy.” For Lechelle, the European AI Act was produced quite quickly and has a lot of strong ideas but remains complex. “We need to continue to raise awareness and place guardrails without stifling innovation,” he says.
Connect with Yann Lechelle on LinkedIn
“Eyes wide open, AIs wide open.” “
Jessica Kaisairis G ’14 Senior Product Manager at Microsoft AI
After completing an internship at UNESCO in the Communication and Information division, Jessica Kaisaris entered the tech world at Farmerline in Accra, where she worked on empowering smallholder farmers in Ghana. Since then she has returned to Paris to work in various tech startups, including Octoly, where she launched an online marketplace for micro-influencers, and AppNexus (acquired by Microsoft in 2022), where she works with machine learning engineers to automate ad trust and safety platform policies.
Despite her concerns over non-stop data breaches, the malicious use of AI, such as prompt injection attacks, and the environmental harms associated with the carbon cost of computing large models, Kaisaris firmly believes
that technology will continue to be a force for good. “AI will bring people together and further widen access to information and education,” she affirms, “but Responsible AI measures must be leveraged at every step of the product development process in order to ensure AI systems are reliable, private, secure, inclusive, transparent and accountable.” All the while reaffirming her strong belief that local entrepreneurs can change the world and that technology will be the driving force of their impact, she warns that “the private sector, civil society, researchers, technologists, individuals and especially governments must all work together to stay informed of the ethical risks and implications of AI in society so that human rights are protected by design.”
with Jessica Kaisaris on LinkedIn
Connect
CLASS NOTES
BARBARA FREMINEUR (BRUNI) ’64
After AUP (a wonderful school where I met my three best girlfriends), I attended George Washington University where I majored in economics and minored in African politics. Then, I married a high school sweetheart and worked at Yale in the economics department before moving to Manhattan and getting an MBA at Columbia Business School. For the last 44 years, I’ve been married to a Belgian. And I live in Honolulu!
GRANT PLEMONS ’64
Our 2022 HWY 9 Dry Rosé won a Double Gold Medal in the 2024 SF Chronicle Winemaking Contest, and our 2020 Tempranillo won a Silver Medal. Donna and I continue to enjoy our winemaking journey which has resulted in gold, silver and bronze medals in 2022 and 2023. This past year we traveled to Athens and Paris for the alumni reunion, to the South American wine country and
took a week-long yacht trip in the BVI. Weekend trips included Napa, Sonoma, Paso Robles and Cambria. We live in the beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains of California with a house on the river. Please come share a glass of wine with us if you are in the area.
ROBERT HERTZKA ’68
My wife, Linda Lockhart, and I work for the non-profit Global Give Back Circle (GGBC) that she started in 2006 in Kenya. We mentor and support at-risk girls through high school, university or trade schools. The organization got a major boost thanks to the Clinton Global Initiative, where Linda appeared on stage at the opening with Bill Clinton, and then grew rapidly with the help of USAID and many corporate sponsors, including over 1500 mentors from Microsoft! The program is a huge success and is inducing a major cultural change that we hope to expand throughout East Africa. On top of this, two years ago my wife was selected out of 10,000+ applicants to the Forbes 50 over 50 Program celebrating 50 women over 50 who have started a new career (Linda worked in banking before this bug took her over!)
Have a look at our website
Years 1964 - 1975
RHICKE S. JENNINGS ’74
Following that transformative year in the City of Light, I returned to the US and completed my undergraduate and graduate degrees in business at Chaminade University of Honolulu. Little did I know that my career would take me across the globe, primarily with FedEx Express, on ten international assignments across Asia and Europe, eventually leading me to retire as a country managing director in 2021. For the past 44 years, I have been happily married to my wonderful wife, Lisa. We have two incredible children. Lisa and I are now retired in the city of Porto, Portugal, where we continue to indulge in our passion for travel, and I pursue my lifelong love of scuba diving. Additionally, I take great joy in mentoring students at AUP. I have remained friends with my AUP flatmate, Chip Jordan. I am filled with gratitude for the experiences and relationships that have shaped my life.
ANNE ZEDLER ’75
My two years at AUP (1973-75), then ACP, were the most meaningful years of my life. I lived at 24, rue du Laos chez Mlle Baston with two fellow students. It was a most memorable time! The plan was two years in Paris and then back to Heidelberg, Germany. Instead, I stayed 20 years! Thanks to my wonderful AUP professor of psychology, Dr. George Allyn, and his fascinating classes, I stayed in Paris to study psychology and built my life in this fantastic city. I finally left Paris in 2009 to teach at universities in Germany and France. For the past 15 years, I have worked as a psychotherapist at a private practice near Munich. Through these years and the knowledge gained from my clients, I was inspired to write a book on resilience. I can only say “Merci Paris! Merci AUP!”
CLASS NOTES
VICTORIA VARVARIV MARKOWICZ ’77
After leaving AUP, I went on to attend the École des Beaux Arts and got the equivalent of a Masters and a Doctorate in Aesthetics and Fine Arts at the Sorbonne. I got married in Vienna, Austria, in 1988 and my daughter was born there in 1997. I have had over 50 one-woman exhibits of my artwork in Geneva; Washington, DC; NYC; Philadelphia; Chicago; San Francisco; Los Angeles; Toronto; Edmonton; Ottawa and other cities. Before getting married, I lived in Paris, Florence and Venice.
After getting married I lived in Bucharest, Romania; Mons, Belgium; Bratislava, Slovakia; Kyiv, Ukraine; and Tbilisi, Georgia. Since spring of 2017, I have lived in Alexandria, Virginia, and Bethany Beach, Delaware.
KAREN RAMOS ZURO ’78
A year ago my husband passed away, and I am looking to move to Colorado to be nearer to my daughter, son-in-law and 6-month granddaughter once I have sold my house in Cape Coral, Florida. Yet, for now, it is hurricane season, so I may be here for a while!
DOROTHY (DOTTIE HALLEY) OHLRICH ’80
Professor Bob Toth taught me calculus in my first year in 1979-80. I loved the way he taught, and the second semester I ended up tutoring ACP students per his recommendation. After being a French major and going to law school for one year, I ended up becoming a math tutor. I would love to get in touch with him and thank him for his awesome way of teaching. It made an indelible impression. I loved the one year I spent at AUP (then ACP) and wish I could have done all four years there. Looking forward to being there 45 years later next April!
BEVERLY (BEVI) INGRAM ’85
Greetings AUP people! I graduated from AUP with a BA in International
Relations in 1985. Since then, I have been an entrepreneur and educator. I am an expert in this area and have loved coaching and teaching the English language at MBA and professional programs, community colleges and 1-1 coaching through language schools for professionals and refugees. I specialize in intermediate-advanced levels and American culture. I offer 1-1 goal-based lessons targeted specifically to the needs of the client. After years of working for others, I am ready to go out on my own and open an English language coaching business for professionals! I am particularly interested in reaching nonnative English speakers in business and government/diplomacy. If you would be so kind as to offer suggestions, I’d love to hear anything that pops into your head about this new project and look forward to connecting!
Connect with Beverly Ingram on LinkedIn
REBECA GRILLET ’87
I recently had a mini reunion with classmates from my time at AUP!
REBECCA CAMHI ’88
I live in Athens, Greece, a progressive European country; however, the legislation on same-sex marriage was not passed until very recently. With my partner Marina, we have been together for 8 years and did a civil union contract (before the marriage legislation passed),
CLASS NOTES
which we decided to celebrate with 250 friends and family at the yacht club in Athens, which has an amazing venue overlooking the sea and sunset. I feel like it is important to share this information not only because it is nice to be in touch with old schoolmates but because still today there are people who cannot live their life the way they want to.
THOMAS FULLER ’92
Penguin Random House published my first book, The Boys of Riverside, in August 2024. The book follows members of a deaf high school football team in Southern California and their quest for a championship. I took seven months off from my job as a reporter for The New York Times to follow the team and write the book. I am based in the East Bay of San Francisco.
Check out the book
TEODOR (TONY) MASSAD ’95
I had my first son in 2021, Zander Khalil, and my second in 2022, Izaak Jamil Massad. Since I went back to university in 2013, I have been happily married to my sweetheart, Meagan, who is an amazing mother, wife and BSN nurse! We are living the dream with rental properties and vacation rentals in Aruba, Dutch Caribbean. I am looking for interns to learn real estate investing and entrepreneurship.
I am also working with another AUP alumni to publish books. Later this year, I expect to launch an online course.
EDWARD FEHLIG ’96
I am an attorney with law offices in Saint Louis and Kansas City, Missouri. I have an international legal practice with an emphasis on immigration, estate planning, and criminal defense. I spent my junior and senior years of college at Saint Louis University in Madrid and
graduated from The American University of Paris. I am fluent in Spanish and French and have clients from around the world. My time at AUP gave me an international outlook and network, which I have maintained to this day.
View Edward Fehlig's website
Years 1992 - 2001
My book on traveling by night train, Nachtzugtage (Days on the Night Train), will be published by Friedenauer Presse/ Matthes & Seitz Berlin in August. It recounts the high and low lights of my many long-haul train trips throughout Europe over the course of the last thirty years and reflects upon the expansion of time, space, and experience when choosing to travel slowly.
Check out the book
PAUL CURE ’01
Paul Cure is now the Chair of Strategic Partnerships at the Conference on World Affairs at the University of Colorado (Boulder). Now in its 77th year, the Conference hosts thought leaders, influencers and entrepreneurs to discuss how best to address and solve the current challenges facing the world.
Learn more about the Conference on World Affairs
MILLAY HYATT ’96
CLASS NOTES
MARGARET M. FENNER ’02
Bonjour! My time at AUP truly helped me navigate many international experiences, particularly as they relate to my new passion for aviation. I became a pilot in 2018 and have flown and traveled to many destinations. Merci!
JEANETTE GRENDAHL ’05
After 8 years in the field working for equality in the workplace and in investment education for females, I started at Feminvest in 2023 (www. feminvest.se). It is the biggest investing network in the Nordics, and I will be focusing on strengthening the Norwegian division. We have podcasts, magazines, conferences in all the biggest Nordic cities; memberships for entrepreneurs, advanced investors and beginners; smaller events; a Run for Female Ownership; and we recently launched a Fund (Feminvest Ventures) that will invest in 50% female-owned businesses! If you are interested in collaborating, or want to know more about memberships, partnerships or the fund, please contact me.
Connect with Jeanette Grendahl on LinkedIn
CAITLIN WARE ’07
I just graduated from the Université Paris Cité with a PhD in psychoanalysis and psychopathology under the supervision of Professor Paul-Laurent Assoun. My research centers on how bilingualism affects the psyche and how learning a second language promotes neuroplasticity. In January, my research was cited in the New York Times.
Check out the article
CODY DAMON G ’09
After selling my digital ad agency, Media Cause, I have moved on to my next venture, honey! I launched Outfield Apiaries this summer as a honey brand that sources honey from all over the United States (www.outfieldapiaries.com). We partner with family-owned apiaries to create a subscription-based honey delivery service. Our brand mirrors the small towns and communities of minor league baseball with each of our partner apiaries having their own queen bee that tells the story of that region. We’re looking forward to scaling our business in
Years 2002 - 2011
the coming months and building our farm system with more local apiary partners.
RACHEL HUSSEY ’10
I recently accepted an administrative assistant position at the Allied & Rehabilitative Health Department at the Community College of Rhode Island.
Working on the island where I grew up and fostering relationships with the surrounding community are just a few of the perks of this exciting new endeavor for me.
JENNIFER LAUREN G ’11
In 2024 my edited volume Global Youth Protest, Climate and Education will be published by Routledge.
CLASS NOTES
JENNIFER COOK G ’12
My husband, AJ Mesiti, and I welcomed a beautiful baby girl—Louisa James—on August 30, 2023. We currently live in Brooklyn, where I am a buyer in the fashion industry. We can’t wait to make it back to Paris with Louisa soon to show her where Mom lived and went to school for a bit!
RACHEL RIXEN G ’15
I’m a professional watercolor artist based in Chicago, and I was selected for an artist residency at La Maison de Beaumont in Beaumont-de-Pertuis, France, in summer of 2024. After attending AUP (during which time I met my now husband, a wonderful Paris memory), I spent many years working in law and made the transition into the art world in the fall of 2023. This residency was an indispensable opportunity to take a break from city life and live in the tranquility of the Luberon, to connect with the other artists-in-residence and to reconnect with the French language.
See more of my work
PATRICK JOSHUA LASKEY G ’16
I will be joining the faculty of Wharton County Junior College outside Houston, Texas, where I’ll teach English, Humanities, and Theater.
JOAN STEIGER G ’18
I started as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State in April 2024. As a newly minted diplomat, I’ll be moving to Lagos, Nigeria, at the end of the summer for my first assignment at the consulate.
MICHELAH BROWN ’19
I am continuing to make my way in the music industry. I have recently played Sofar Sounds shows in Madeira, Portugal and in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
KATE BUTCHARD G ’20
I am soon to be married to Emmanuel Maloba. An official wedding is taking place in Canada, and a traditional ceremony is planned for Kenya.
Do you have an update for your fellow alumni?
Share it with us by visiting aup.edu/class-notes
ALUMNI WEEKEND 2025
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to reminisce and relive your student days in Paris. Join us to reconnect, spark new connections with friends from across six decades of AUP’s rich history and enjoy networking opportunities, celebrations, and academic and cultural programming. Whether you graduated last year or fifty years ago, this weekend has something for everyone. Alumni from all decades and programs are welcome and encouraged to attend. Those from graduation years ending in 0 and 5 will be celebrating milestone years. Don’t miss out!
