couples met at Chapman and are grateful for their education and their relationships. John Swetnam, MFA screenwriting ’05, had his spec script picked up by New Line Cinema. Steven Quale has been hired to direct the film, called Category Six.
O
P
Raelyn Tepper, BFA film production ’10, and Christina Weston, Class of ’09, both worked on the set of the film Sound of My Voice. Raelyn was a set dresser and Christina was the prop master. The movie screened at Sundance and is now playing in select theaters. Ashlee Tuttleman, BA business administration ’09, just graduated from The New School’s graduate program in International Affairs, concentrating in development. She took a summer position as an advisor for ThinkImpact, a for-profit company that “teaches” social innovation/ entrepreneurship in rural communities in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana and South Africa. They apply human-centered design methodology to an asset based community development approach. Katie Vlietstra, B.A. history/ political science ’03, recently joined the National Association for the Self-Employed as director of government affairs in Washington, D.C.
2010s
Q
Bianca Arevalo, B.S. accounting and business administration ’12, will be studying for the CPA exam this summer before accepting a full-time position in the fall as a tax accountant at White Nelson Diehl Evans LLP.
Alvaro Berrios, B.S. business administration ’10, is working on his MBA at Pepperdine University and recently started work at Disney as a project controls specialist, developing and executing financial controls for the Corporate Real Estate Design and Delivery team. Jessica Browne, B.A. political science ’12, has accepted a full-time position at GKN Aerospace. She is moving to Long Beach with two fellow Chapman alumni. O Daniel de Arakal, B.M. music composition and instrumental performance (Classical Guitar) ’10, has received his Master of Music Degree with honors in classical guitar performance from the USC Thornton School of Music. He is a guitar instructor at the Tustin Music Center. Daniel is planning to pursue his D.M.A. and seek an associate professor position at a major university.
Hannah d’Angerio, BFA film production ’11, was promoted to casting assistant at Ronna Kress Casting, after beginning there as an intern in August. P Zeinab Dabbah, M.D., J.D. ’12, has been hired as the chief medical officer for Inter Valley Health Plan.
Dustin Davis, MFA film production ’11, has been working as a set production assistant on the newest season of American Idol. Brianna Donath, B.A. public relations and advertising ’11, recently joined Orange Label Art + Advertising as an integrated advertising coordinator. James Ellett, MBA business administration ’12, has been offered a full-time position with Ingram Micro as a Web technology
Numbers Worth Crunching
I
n a business that’s all about the numbers, Chapman University accounting alumnus Michael Koll ’11 has landed a big one — a near-perfect score on the Uniform CPA Examination. The achievement won him the highly selective 2011 Elijah Watt Sells Award. Out of 90,000 candidates who sat for the CPA exam in 2011, only 37 met the criteria for the award. It is an extraordinary accomplishment, says Glenn Pfeiffer, professor in the Argyros School of Business and Economics. “In my 32 years as an accounting professor, Michael Koll is the first student I have known who won the award,” Pfeiffer says. “Given the scope and caliber of the competition, this is truly a rare and remarkable achievement. Michael epitomizes the qualities of so many of our students. He is an outstanding representative of Chapman University.” Koll is the only recipient from a university in California. He is currently an associate with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Irvine, Calif. According to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the 2011 award was presented to candidates who obtained a cumulative average score above 95.50 across all four sections of the Uniform CPA Examination, completed testing during the previous calendar year and passed all four sections of the examination on their first attempt. So how does it feel to earn such a selective award? “Kind of surreal,” Koll said. “I didn’t go into the exam trying to get it. I just wanted to pass the first time through.”
Continue on next page ❯❯❯
FA L L 2 0 1 2
45