Tiger Tracks
Seattle Central Alumni Magazine
Cameron Karsten: From backpacker and blogger to commercial photographer, Seattle Central alum Cam Karsten (‘12) transformed a love of travel and the outdoors into a career thanks to training from the Creative Academy’s Visual Media program.
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MAC: Don’t call it a comeback. We’re highlighting the Return of the MAC—or more accurately, major improvements to the student fitness center. New floors, new equipment, new programming, and a new Punch Pass Program.
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EcoDistrict: Central is on a mission to replace its aging heating and cooling system with a state-ofthe-art electrified HVAC system that also serves as a living laboratory for Sustainable Building Science Technology students.
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Community Dinner: Our second-ever Community Dinner featured paella, freshly baked breads, a signature drink prepared by student chefs, and the announcement of a new scholarship in partnership with the Greater Seattle Business Association.
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Alumni Profile: Cameron Karsten (’12)
A selected photo from Karsten’s second year in the Creative Academy, “highlighting [his] path to steer away from the studio and practice [his] light skills to shoot outside.”
For budding photographers, Seattle Central Creative Academy alumnus Cameron Karsten (’12) offers simple, yet pragmatic advice: “Shoot what you love.”
After developing a passion for photography while backpacking and blogging across the globe, Karsten was eager to turn his passion into a career. Now, as a highly soughtafter commercial photographer with an expansive clientele, he has made a living from capturing those very things he loves: hiking, surfing, and fishing.
“Shoot what you love.”
Karsten’s professors at Seattle Central first pushed him out of the studio and into nature, where he preferred to be anyway.
Raised in California and the Pacific Northwest, Karsten developed an early love for the outdoors. “I was an explorer,” he explained. “I was outside most of the time, whether it was riding bikes, fishing for salmon in the fall, or just experiencing nature.” Karsten also feels lucky that his single mom instilled in him a love of travel from a young age too and recalled driving to Mexico several times a year when the family was based in southern California. “And so that imbued a love of travel and of going somewhere new and not knowing the final destination,” he added. When Karsten wasn’t exploring outside, he recreated scenes from the outdoors in the classroom. He never gravitated towards formal art classes, instead filling his notebooks for other subjects with realistic sketches. “I’d picture a place that
I wanted to go, and I would draw it realistically,” he said. “And I think that also played into, you know, telling stories with pictures, instead of with words.”
Karsten attended college in Los Angeles, where he quickly realized city life wasn’t for him. “I didn’t like much of anything except the ocean down there,” he admitted. This dissatisfaction led him to take what he thought would be a one-year break from college—a gap year that ended up stretching into six years of traveling around the world.
Karsten’s initial goal during his academic hiatus was to become a writer. “I was collecting stories and characters, learning through real-world experiences rather than studying in books and taking tests,” he explained. At first, Karsten would hunker down at internet cafes to write stories to his friends and
family. But when he discovered a travel blog community of fellow backpackers, he started sharing his traveling tales to a much more global audience under the blog name cam2yogi, a nod to his deep interest in Buddhist philosophy as he traveled through Asia.
It was during this time that Karsten’s interest in photography began to take shape as well. With his film camera—and later, a tiny digital point-and-shoot gifted by his family —he began using photography to complement his written storytelling.
To his surprise, readers praised his photos as much as, and sometimes more than, his writing. “People would say, ‘your photos are fantastic.’ Because of that encouragement and feedback, I started falling in love with taking pictures and just looking forward to capturing the best moment to
Île de la Cité, Paris, from Karsten’s travels.
A photoshoot in Rwanda for a non-profit called All Across Africa, circa 2015.
include in whatever story I was trying to tell.” As his network and skills grew, Karsten was even able to sell some of his blog posts as articles to smaller travel magazines.
After six years of wandering the world with his pack, his stories, and his cameras, Karsten returned to the Pacific Northwest and felt more restless than ever. His travels had provided him with a wealth of experiences, but he was still searching for a way to channel his creativity into a sustainable career.
“They said, ‘If you want to be outside, go be outside.’ That support made all the difference.”
It was a woman he met, now his wife, who helped him put down roots in Seattle. She worked as a photo stylist at the time and connected Karsten to several commercial photographers she worked with.
“I realized that the whole traveling lifestyle was going to
be on pause because I was in this serious relationship, and I started learning more about the commercial world and what was available to me as a career,” he said. “And every commercial photographer I worked with within the Seattle area was like, ‘Hey, if you want to do this seriously, go back to school.’”
Karsten took their advice and looked into Seattle Central College’s Creative Academy. “It was a nobrainer,” he said. “The program was highly recommended and close to home.” He enrolled in the two-year Commercial Photography program, which has since been folded into the current Visual Media program.
At Seattle Central, Karsten found the structure and mentorship he needed to hone his craft. “The first year was all about learning the fundamentals of commercial photography, like continuous versus strobe lighting,” he said. By the second year, the structure of the program shifted towards encouraging students to find their niche and lean into their creative strengths to set them up for real-world success. For Karsten, that meant focusing on storytelling through outdoor photography.
“Growing up in nature, I could not stand being in the studio working with inanimate objects,” he said. His instructors, like the retired Alejandro Tomas and the late Robert Milne, recognized his passion and gave him the freedom to pursue it. “They said, ‘If you want to be outside, go be outside.’ That support made all the difference.”
Karsten remembers feeling like he was in a vastly different stage of life than his classmates who were
fresh out of high school. He and his wife were starting a family by the time he was in his second year of the program, and he knew he had to take school seriously. “It was my career,” he said.
He credits his professors, Tomas and Milne, with not only imparting the technical skills necessary to make his career but also offering mentorship that bridged the gap between the classroom and the professional world.
“I loved the one-on-one conversations with them,” he recalled. “They weren’t just teachers—they were adults, and I could relate to them. Those conversations were less about school and more about photography as a career. That’s what really stands out to me.”
After graduating from Central in 2012, Karsten made it his goal to build up a professional portfolio of work while simultaneously enjoying his favorite outdoor activities in the Pacific Northwest. He took his camera with him whenever he and his friends would camp, hike, or hit up the beach.
Karsten tried photographing surfing at first, but found it was too hard to stay off the waves. But he realized that shooting his friends fly fishing was different, and it soon became a subject that dominated his portfolio. This work also caught the eye of his first major client, Grundéns, a commercial fishing gear company.
“I brought a really nice, printed portfolio and as [the marketing professional] was going through my work, he was like, ‘Hey, this is great. You want to go to Norway?’ and I was like, ‘what!?’” he explained. “So, the next thing I knew, I was on a plane to Norway to photograph cod fishing for this company. And then from there we went to Guatemala, the Florida Keys, and Alaska.”
By continuing to capture subjects he was passionate about, Karsten’s portfolio expanded to include work with other high profile outdoor recreation and technology brands, like Patagonia and Garmin Marine.
In recent years, Karsten has returned to Seattle Central, not as a student but as a professional, supporting the college in a variety of photography and videography projects.
“I’m always like, ‘Yep, let me block my calendar because of course I’m there for you,’” he shared. “It’s
Photographer, videographer, and Seattle Central Creative Academy Alum Cam Karsten (’12).
“Seattle Central gave me the tools, the trust, and the freedom to build a career I love.”
part of just paying it forward and trying to give them my all, since they gave me their all and got me to where I am today,” he said.
While Karsten continues to shoot a variety of subjects for his clients, he finds the most enjoyment, and conveniently, work, shooting those very things he loves, like nature and outdoor recreation, echoing the subject matter he captured on the point-and-shoot he carried with him throughout his backpacking adventures. “When it’s a personal project, your passion
shows through, and that’s what attracts clients,” he said.
He travels less now, prioritizing quality time with his wife and two daughters, eight and 10, but still cherishes every moment he gets to spend outside with a camera in hand.
As Karsten prepares for his next project—photographing warm-water fishing in Baja California for Grundéns —he reflects on the impact Seattle Central has had on his less-thantraditional path. “Seattle Central gave me the tools, the trust, and the freedom to build a career I love.”
An action-packed fishing shoot Karsten completed for Grundéns in Guatemala. All photos courtesy of Cam Karsten.
Nine years ago, Thea Karakalos (’15) and Eric Bennett (’16) found themselves sitting next to each other in an Oceanography class at Seattle Central College and struck up a friendly conversation as they waited for their professor to arrive. Neither knew that this random choice of seats would lead to a lasting friendship, one that continues to enrich their lives today.
Karakalos, a first-generation, low-income college student, grew up in Athens, Greece. In 2008, amidst the worst financial crisis Greece had faced in almost a century, she relocated to Ventura, California to live with her uncle. While visiting Seattle with a friend in high school, she fell in love with the city and took the leap to move after graduation— even though she “didn’t know anybody, didn’t have a house or a job, and wasn’t enrolled in school.”
Fortunately, Karakalos found her footing at Seattle Central, where she enrolled in liberal arts courses. “The transition was easy because it’s so easy to make friends, lifelong
In the Same Boat
Thea and Eric’s Nine-Year Long Friendship Voyage
friends,” she shared. “Eric and I just talked one day, and we’re still connected.”
For Bennett, pursuing an associate degree at Seattle Central marked a fresh start in his life. Despite being an older student surrounded by younger classmates, he was immediately struck by the campus’s diversity and supportive atmosphere. “Seattle Central was a melting pot of ideas,” Bennett said. And of his classmates, he said, “It was so diverse—a great group of people. I could’ve been their parent, but I became good friends with them. Those connections were fostered by a real sense of community.”
Following that first day of Oceanography class, Karakalos and Bennett bonded by tackling the difficult coursework together. “We started the class and then we just sat next to each other every day,” Bennett recalled. “We got to know each other. We did experiments together in class. We laughed about silly things, because the class was fun, but you were expected to learn.”
For Karakalos, the shared struggles of the class made their friendship even stronger. “It was way more difficult than you’d think,” she said. “But I had someone next to me who I could, not commiserate with, but say, ‘Okay, this is a lot, but we’re going to do this lab and get through it.’”
Karakalos reflected on how something as simple as choosing a seat can impact your life. “It’s funny how random it is,” she said. “When you’re younger, you have assigned seats you don’t like. But as adults, you pick a spot, and that’s your spot. I was lucky because the people I sat near were awesome. It was easy to start conversations.”
Their friendship wasn’t just built on academic struggles. After class, the two would often meet to share a meal or hang out in Cal Anderson Park on sunny days.
“We’d spend time together eating, laughing, and talking about life,” Karakalos remembered.
Though their time together has been limited since Karakalos transferred to Seattle University in 2015 and Bennett transferred to Central Washington University in 2016, social media has allowed them to stay in touch. “The time that we spent together in real life has been very few and far between, we have been able to follow each other’s lives and stay connected,” Karakalos said. Their connection remains rooted in a shared passion for learning and a mutual appreciation for Seattle Central. “Eric and I talk about Central so often because it was life-changing, or at least lifeaffirming,” Karakalos said. “There was definitely a community there.”
“. . . But my ship was lost, and Thea’s ship came by. I anchored next to hers, and we started chatting. Before I knew it, we were on one boat.”
Recently, the two friends reunited for a meal on Capitol Hill, where they reminisced about their time at Seattle Central. A photo from their gathering, shared on Facebook, caught our attention, leading to this feature of their heartwarming story of lasting friendship.
As Karakalos returns to Athens, where she is embarking on a new chapter of her life, Bennett remains in Seattle, working towards his dream of teaching college history. But no matter where life takes them, their friendship remains strong.
“He’s so clever, quick, and hilarious,” Karakalos said. “When we catch up, it’s mostly laughing, but it’s also really deep. It’s never superficial. He’s the most real person I know, an amazing person. I love you, Eric.”
Bennett shared his sentiment. “She’s such a sweet, wonderful person. She always has a smile on her face, even when I feel like a gray cloud. I love you too, my friend.”
Fittingly for two friends who bonded through studying the ocean, Bennett concluded our interview with a sailing metaphor: “Some people I met at Seattle Central were like ships crossing in the night. But my ship was lost, and Thea’s ship came by. I anchored next to hers, and we started chatting. Before I knew it, we were on one boat.”
Return of the MAC: Revamped Spaces, Fitness Classes, and New Punch Pass Program
On September 19, 275 Seattle Central staff, faculty, and volunteers gathered in the Mitchell Activity Center for President’s Day, where they listened to speeches, picked up Tiger merchandise, and played pool. While attendees heralded the new academic year, the MAC flaunted the sparkle of its newly painted and resurfaced gym floor.
The gym floor is just one of many changes for the MAC this year. Since late summer, the MAC has undergone significant remodels aimed at revitalizing campus engagement. In addition to physical renovations, the MAC staff has also focused on activating underutilized spaces, offering more activities, and increasing accessibility to the facilities through a new Punch Pass card system to return the MAC’s attendance to pre-pandemic levels.
To address this, Sammy Faust, who took the helm as manager in January 2024, has made the space more inviting and functional.
“It’s about making the MAC a space where students feel welcome and engaged,” Faust stated, adding that the renovations are a part of a larger college strategy to create a
vibrant campus community partially through reactivating spaces. Former President Lane echoed this same sentiment in his President’s Day keynote, emphasizing the importance of “moving with purpose” this year. Faust and the MAC staff have initiated numerous updates across the facility, prioritizing cleanliness, organization, and aesthetic enhancements. One key renovation so far has been the resurfacing and repainting of the basketball gym floor, which supports recreational use, rental activities, and events like President’s Day and New Student Orientation. Room 210, the MAC’s primary meeting space, also received a substantial makeover. On President’s Day, Room 210 hosted coffee, tea, and later in the day, free chair massages, while
Room 210 boasts new floors and a fresh coat of paint.
The MAC’s newly painted and resurfaced basketball gym floor.
boasting its fresh paint, student artwork, and shiny hardwood floors that had been trapped under its previous carpet for years.
MAC staff is also upgrading all the water fountains in the building and are working to complete facility-wide HVAC maintenance, replace the safety belts on all the basketball hoops in the gym, and hopefully install security cameras by the end of academic year, according to Faust. “Those updates aren’t as exciting, but worthwhile to note we are working on the health and safety of the building,” she shared. Faust and the MAC team have functionally reworked spaces, like the weight room. Many machines were replaced or repaired, and others were rearranged to foster a safer and less-congested workout space.
To further promote wellness and a sense of community amongst Seattle Central affiliates, the MAC hired six new fitness instructors to teach free yoga, Pilates, dance, and High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) with a gym membership.
The MAC is also rolling out its Punch Pass Program: a $25 pass
“. . . Working out with friends just makes the experience so much more enjoyable!”
that gets you, or a friend, five visits to the facility. “It’s also a great option if a staff or faculty member doesn’t want to sign up for a membership or doesn’t want to do payroll deduction,” added Faust.
Many of the MAC’s student employees are beginning to see the benefits of these changes in action—and have even more ideas for the facility’s future.
Sandro Herzog, a new instructor teaching HIIT, appreciates how diverse the MAC staff is. “Our team includes students from all around the world, which makes every day interesting and fun,” he said. “And as a fitness instructor, I’m thrilled that the MAC offers group fitness classes. Working out with friends just makes the experience so much more enjoyable!”
Of the new renovations, Herzog was most excited about the updated weight room. He also expressed
The new equipment and layout in the weightlifting gym prioritizes safety and user experience.
“... it’s fun to look at all the potential the MAC has.”
interest in the addition of a climbing gym one day, and in hosting ping pong and billiards tournaments.
Front desk attendant Christy Xu is appreciative of how clean and inviting the MAC has become since she started in late 2023 and praised Faust for her efforts. Xu reported increased usage of the facility since recent renovations, particularly in the basketball gym. She’d love to see the addition of martial arts classes, an increase in intramural sports, and other activities that engage the student community.
Student employee Chilombo Chiyaze, who is also involved in Student Leadership in the adjacent building believes the MAC plays a vital role in fostering community. She has noticed the growing popularity of relaxation spaces like the game room and the sauna. For the future, Chiyaze hopes to see more events and meetings hosted in Room 210 as well as more intercollegiate sporting events and creative student activities hosted at the MAC.
For Chiyaze, the best part of her job is connecting with other students. “I really enjoy [getting to
say], ‘now I know your name because I see you all the time.’” She also emphasized how supportive the environment is between MAC staff. “The chemistry is good, and we uplift each other a lot,” she added.
While cleaning and organizing spaces, Faust found the expected treasures: old trophies, binders from the 90s, and several large, heavy TVs. But her favorite find? A headless goose sculpture.
“We found it in a closet, and then a month later we found its head on a different level of the building,” she said. “It now sits on a shelf in a closet, ‘cause why not.”
Faust’s exploration of the building also revealed other surprising spaces, including access ladders leading to a mechanical area on the running track and even a hidden tunnel under Broadway that connects the MAC to the main Broadway-Edison building.
As for the old pool room, closed in 2019 due to corroded ventilation and high maintenance costs, Faust envisions transformation. “I’d love to see it become an extension of the weight room for powerlifting or CrossFit,” she said. “Additionally, I’d love to rethink some of the racquet courts and potentially get a bouldering climbing space in the building… it’s fun to look at all the potential the MAC has.”
Powering the Future
Seattle Central’s HVAC system, originally powered by heavy fuel oil and later by natural gas, is now slated to be replaced with a cutting-edge, energy-efficient heating and cooling system, with backing from grants and legislative support.
This visionary environmental project, transitioning to an allelectric HVAC system, is part of a broader “EcoDistrict” initiative. Initial efforts for this project began in 2018, when the college began looking for alternatives to heat and cool the campus. Around the same time, the state began drafting legislation to move state agencies off of fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Seattle Central commissioned a feasibility and design study to assess alternatives energy systems that were all-electric, renewable, and as self-reliant as possible. Out of this study came the term EcoDistrict, which envisions a network of campus and neighboring buildings that store, generate, and share energy sources.
This initiative would allow for energy storage during nonbusiness hours and utilization during high-demand periods, significantly reducing costs and carbon footprints. It also envisions leveraging innovations
such as tapping sewer mains for heat extraction and utilizing geothermal fields. Smart building controls and expanded solar panel installations, which began in 2016, will further optimize energy use and production.
The EcoDistrict will also serve a dual purpose as a “living laboratory” for students in the Sustainable Building Science Technology Program at South Seattle College. These students will gain hands-on experience with advanced energy systems, preparing them for careers in clean building management.
Funding this $22 million project requires a blend of local funds, state contributions, and other financing mechanisms. To date, the college has invested $2 million through grants, including a $700,000 federal energy grant secured by Seattle City Light. A critical financial investment in the state’s next biennium cycle is under consideration. Based on funding needs, college leadership has recommended launching the EcoDistrict in the 2027-2029 biennium.
By embracing sustainable technologies, fostering educational opportunities, and creating shared resources, Seattle Central’s EcoDistrict vision is more than just an infrastructure upgrade, it’s a step toward reimagining the campus’s role within the community.
Celebrating 75 Years of Seattle Central’s Creative Academy
Seattle Central’s Creative Academy marks a significant milestone this year—its 75th anniversary. Over the past seven decades, the academy has been a cornerstone for nurturing artistic talent, and for equipping students with the skills, resources, and industry connections to turn their passions into thriving careers across diverse creative fields.
Since its inception in 1949, the program has evolved to meet the creative world’s demands, from its original Advertising Arts program to its current Graphic Design and Visual Media programs. Marc Salverda, Graphic Design faculty, joined Seattle Central in 1993. In their second year as a full-time instructor, Salverda, alongside former instructor Margaret Parker, undertook a complete overhaul of the Graphic Design curriculum. Guided by input from industry professionals and alumni, the curriculum continues to be updated to align with current industry trends and needs.
In the last 30 years, the program has produced 1,400 alumni who have gone on to work for large companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks, and Boeing, as well as midsized companies like Nordstrom and REI.
We’ve asked several Creative Academy alumni to reflect on the profound impact the institution has had on their lives.
For Kyra Anderson (’20) the Graphic Design program offered an escape from a cycle of service industry jobs and provided a space to channel her artistic passion into a career. Anderson had consulted Seattle Central’s Center for Working Adults, who identified her interest and strengths and guided her towards the Creative Academy.
SCCA provided Anderson with an arsenal of practical, hands-on skills, and with ample experience in projects that mimicked realworld design scenarios. “This helped me enter the workforce feeling confident in my skills and ability to communicate ideas,” she explained. “The combination of professional practices being taught and access to the alumni network meant graduating with valuable insights into the industry.”
Today, Anderson works at Riot Games in Southern California, where she contributes to the popular online game League of Legends. She designs in-game visual elements as well as UI updates for the 2024 season.
Jean Bradbury (’06) enrolled in the Graphic Design program at the
age of 40 after moving to Seattle with her children. “I needed some practical skills and I couldn’t have chosen a better, more exhilarating, and welcoming program,” she recalled. Despite feeling “hopelessly computer illiterate,” her younger peers were patient and supportive, and she soon felt deeply connected to the creative community of Capitol Hill.
The Academy didn’t just give Bradbury essential computer literacy —it gave her tools to evolve her fine art practice into a sustainable career. “I was a painter and needed more marketable skills. As it turned out, my painting career is supporting me, but I still use typesetting and Photoshop to promote my work,” she shared.
“The skills I learned helped me make this life of adventures.”
Bradbury currently splits her time between Seattle and Canada, designing murals that celebrate local diversity and nature. Her most recent project is a mural at a new development on Beacon Hill. Looking back on her time at the Creative Academy, she spoke with deep gratitude: “The skills I learned helped me make this life of adventures. It sounds corny, but I am grateful.”
Brad Curran (’11), a graduate of the Commercial Photography program (now Visual Media), recalled the Creative Academy having a long waitlist, and waiting over a year to enroll. “I had a few close friends that went through the program, so I had a pretty good sense of what the program entailed and plenty of time to prepare and save money,” he explained.
He fondly recalls his routine of racing up five flights of stairs to make it to class on time and later watching the sunset from his desk.
Curran remains grateful for not only the skills he developed, but for the robust network of industry professionals tied to the program. “From the skills I gathered at Central, I was able to start contracting in the Amazon photo studio right after graduation,” Curran said. “The head of the studio was a graduate of the program, about a decade prior, and I met him at one of our required portfolio reviews.”
In addition to remaining in contact with many of his friends and mentors from the program, Curran has also returned to Seattle Central as a guest instructor and as a contract photographer and videographer on many occasions. “I feel like I have such a uniquely rich relationship with Central. It’s hard to put into words,” he added. “The college radiates diversity in every shape and form, and I hope to always be connected.”
As the Creative Academy celebrates its 75th anniversary, the stories of alumni like Anderson, Bradbury, and Curran highlight the program’s enduring legacy of shaping careers, fostering personal growth, and creating a vibrant community where creativity thrives.
“The people are what make SCCA so great—collaboration and networking lead to lifelong friendships,” said Marc Salverda. “We have a space designed to encourage taking risks and trying new things in a safe learning environment unlike any other.”
Alumni Profile: Josh Valdez (’15)
Valdez (’15) working behind the scenes of a local theater production.
In October 2024, SCC alumnus Josh Valdez won his first Gregory Award for Outstanding Sound Design for his work on June is the First Fall with Seattle’s Yun Theatre. This award honors individuals in the Puget Sound performing arts community, and Valdez’s win underscores years of innovation in sound design and dedication to productions written by and for Asian American and BIPOC communities.
A first-generation college student, Valdez initially felt uncertain about his future when he was not accepted into any of the universities and music programs he applied to. However, with the support of a college access coach, he discovered his musical and academic path at Seattle Central. This pivotal experience set him on a successful journey as a professional drummer, theater sound designer, and education advocate. Today, when Valdez isn’t jamming or working on set, he helps students who are in the same position he once was, serving as an Outreach Specialist with the Seattle Promise program.
Valdez first fell in love with music as a kid growing up in the Othello Park neighborhood of South Seattle. While drums have always been his favorite, Valdez also remembers putting countless hours into the
“I had several friends that had attended Central, which made it feel like home.”
guitar and to many people’s surprise, even the clarinet. “[The clarinet] helped me a lot because in middle school and high school, I learned how to sight read music,” referring to his ability to read and perform a piece of music for the first time without prior preparation.
For Valdez, his dreams of college were primarily motivated by the prospect of studying music in a formal setting—and the career opportunities a music degree might open up. “I wanted to learn as much about music as I could, because at my high school, I only had concert band and that was it. Back then, all I had to do was try to memorize the piece, but not so much get to know my instrument,” he recalled.
Valdez hadn’t considered two-year colleges until the coach at College Possible (formerly College Access Now) recommended Seattle Central. The prospect of saving money, staying close to home, and transferring to a four-year college quickly appealed to him.
“My goal when I first came [to Seattle Central] was to absorb as much as I could for music,” he explained. “I did have my own community too—I had several friends that had attended Central, which made it feel like home.”
Valdez credits much of his early growth as a music student to influential music faculty members like Brian Kirk. “I learned a lot about music, learned a lot about how to go about the music industry... how to write a song, all of these things that I probably would not have known if I had not attended here,” Valdez said.
Valdez’s time in Kirk’s jazz ensemble, which he took for three consecutive quarters, stands out
Valdez and fellow artists in Seattle’s Asian American theater community.
as a highlight of his time at Central.
“Every time it hit 4:30, we went to the Broadway Performance Hall, we set up those drums, and then we started jamming.”
But Valdez’s experience at Seattle Central wasn’t limited to music. Professor Kirk encouraged practicality in the professional pursuit of music, and suggested Valdez devise a “backup plan.”
Valdez decided to enroll in psychology classes too—another
“Every time it hit 4:30, we went to the Broadway Performance Hall, we set up those drums, and then we started jamming.”
longtime interest of his that directed his path after Central.
After earning his associate degree, Valdez successfully transferred to the University of Washington, where he pushed himself academically and creatively by majoring in psychology and earning minors in both music and Digital Arts & Experimental Media (DXARTS), a creative practice-based research program where Valdez learned to compose music with computer code.
DXARTS aims to empower artists who explore and redefine their evolving relationships with technology. The program challenges trends, fosters innovation, embraces diversity, and engages critically with traditional art forms through interdisciplinary experimentation—
Valdez jamming in Seattle Central professor Brian Kirk’s Jazz Ensemble.
an approach that opened a new world for Valdez.
Throughout his time at UW, Valdez continued to play music—and even played in school theater productions, tapping into his interdisciplinary training. During his senior year, Valdez was asked to work on sound design with local professional productions.
“I was still kind of figuring it out—it was only if I had a gig, and I wanted to see if I could find something more consistent,” he said. But then a friend of his who worked at College Possible, the same program who helped Valdez get to Seattle Central, reached out looking for college access coaches.
At College Possible, Valdez found a new passion advocating for students and helping them make informed decisions about education—just like the one that led him to Seattle Central. His role inspired Valdez to apply for a master’s degree in education at UW, which he started in 2021.
While juggling his role with College Possible, and later, graduate school, Valdez found ways to stay involved with music and theater, often rehearsing late into the evening. Even though it was difficult to balance late night rehearsals with early mornings at work, Valdez remained motivated by telling diverse stories through community theater.
“I used to think of theater as predominantly white, like Shakespeare and the classics,” he said. “It wasn’t until I joined the community scene [in Seattle] that I saw Asian plays, plays that were done by Black and brown folks ... and I get to be part of the crew and take up that space.”
Growing up, the closest Valdez got to the stage was the pit orchestra. Now, each new production he worked on served as an intensive crash course in the inner mechanics of theater. One of the productions that stands out to him, and where he remembers learning the most, was Anansi and the Halfling, a play he stage-managed at Annex Theatre in 2019 that explores the life of a young, Black millennial through a variety of African storytelling forms.
“The cast and crew were incredible. It was a freshly written script, and they were predominantly Black and brown,” he said. “The director I worked with, Jay Santos, taught me so much as a stage manager too.” Through this experience, Valdez gained a better understanding of important theater operations, like how to write a rehearsal report and how to communicate with actors versus crew.
Valdez’s team for Anansi even included a drummer who had worked on the Black Panther soundtrack. “We wanted African drums for this, so Jay had gotten in contact with a drummer who brought in all these drums to record at Annex. Then [this guy] just nonchalantly goes, ‘Oh, I just worked
“Even to this day, I still feel a bit of that imposter syndrome that tells me, ‘no way.’ But a lot of it also tells me, ‘this is just the start.’”
on the Black Panther soundtrack.’ And we were like, ‘shut up!’”
Today, Josh continues to contribute to Seattle’s vibrant theater scene, working with local companies like Annex Theatre and Pork Filled Productions. He’s also jamming outside the theater with his band, Yuelan. “It’s like musical theater meets indie pop with dark lyrics,” Valdez said of his band, which is made up entirely of sound designers and composers in theater. Most recently, Yuelan played in a performance with the UW School of Drama Caucasian Chalk Circle.
Since 2023, Valdez has also worked for Seattle Promise, continuing to provide mentorship and guidance for the next generation—this time with the same
institution that shepherded his own growth as a musician and mentor.
Valdez’s hard work, creativity, and commitment to the community culminated in his recent Gregory Award, which he explained is more of a celebration of the unique and diverse work of the local theater community rather than a cutthroat competition, and that he competed against several peers that he respects and looks up to.
“Honestly, it’s crazy because it’s probably the first award I’ve ever won... I always hear about people who win trophies for recitals and stuff, but I’ve never gotten anything.” Valdez shared. “Even to this day, I still feel a bit of that imposter syndrome that tells me, ‘no way.’ But a lot of it also tells me, ‘this is just the start.’”
Valdez and fellow Gregory Award recipients.
Community Dinner: Paella with Pride
In February 2024, Seattle Central hosted its inaugural Community Dinner, where 170 guests dined and socialized under the twinkling lights of the Atrium. Eight months later, on October 25, friends, family, and neighbors of the college gathered under those same lights and filed into long, communal tables, this time adorned with bright colors, butterflies, and autumn leaves.
Seattle Central College’s secondever Community Dinner reiterated the themes of the first, emphasizing the college’s efforts to foster community and connection with the broader Capitol Hill community. This dinner also honored the legacy of the late Chef Tamara Murphy, a beloved local culinary icon, passionate advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and dedicated supporter of small businesses. It also celebrated the establishment of a new culinary scholarship in her name.
“This Community Dinner was near and dear to our hearts, with many faculty, graduates, and current students having worked with Chef Tamara Murphy in some capacity,” shared Culinary Dean Aimee Lepage.
Seattle Culinary Academy Chef Kären Jurgensen created a tribute menu filled with rich and complex flavors, honoring the menu at Murphy’s Capitol Hill restaurant, Terra Plata, which she owned and operated with her life partner, Linda Di Lello Morton. The vegetable dish was influenced by An Incredible Feast, a local fundraiser conceived by Murphy to raise funds for the Neighborhood Farmers Market and Good Farmer Fund that Seattle Culinary Academy students have traditionally volunteered at.
In the kitchen, a dynamic team of SCA chefs and students, including Chef-Instructors Craig Hetherington
and Carol Wang, prepared paellaadjacent dishes directly from a massive paella pan. The pan itself was a gift from the World Central Kitchen, used in 2022 for disaster relief training, now repurposed for community events like this one. “We learned to prepare meals for 250+ folks at a time in an emergency [during that training],” Lepage explained. “It was perfect to feed 170 guests.”
Like the first, October’s dinner brought together a diverse mix of guests, from college affiliates to community partners, to Capitol Hill neighbors ranging from toddlers to seniors.
Lepage’s ten-year-old daughter, Elsie, was among the volunteers. “She sorted silverware in the dish room, then served epis (wheat stalk bread) to each table while I pushed the bread cart,” Lepage said. “We
“This Community Dinner was near and dear to our hearts, with many faculty, graduates, and current students having worked with Chef Tamara Murphy in some capacity.”
noticed other families with young ones checking out the paella pan and playing by the Atrium’s fountain.”
Culinary student Chelsea Holstra, who volunteered as a wine server, found herself in her element that night as she poured sangria and selected wines from South Seattle College’s NW Wine Academy in the M. Rosetta Hunter Art Gallery.
SCA chefs prepare the pork, clam, and chickpea entree in an enormous paella pan.
“I love when it’s super busy— that’s my happy place. I just get to react and live in the moment and pour things that make people happy, she shared. “Being very busy in hospitality and in service is such a chaotic, simple action, but I find it deeply meaningful, and it brings me great joy to serve others in the kitchen.” Hostra is especially grateful
for the ample volunteer opportunities like the Community Dinner that SCA provides its students.
Central to the evening was the announcement of the Tamara Murphy Food is Love Scholarship, slated to launch in spring 2025. Introduced by Ilona Lohrey of the Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA), the scholarship aims to support aspiring culinary artists who embody “Chef Tamara Murphy was a force of nature … her impact extended far beyond her delicious meals—she inspired connection, belonging, and joy.”
Murphy’s vision of food as a unifying and healing force. It will cover a two-year culinary certificate program, emphasizing leadership and community-building in the culinary world and within the LGBTQ+ community.
“Chef Tamara Murphy was a force of nature … her impact extended far beyond her delicious meals—she inspired connection, belonging, and joy.” Lohrey shared. “Through this scholarship, GSBA aims to continue Tamara’s spirit of love and excellence, nurturing new voices in the culinary world and ensuring her legacy endures for years to come.”
Lohrey recalls the room buzzing with excitement, and marveled that the paella pan was “as big as a boat.” What inspired her most that evening, though, was breaking bread with total strangers.
Long-time Capitol Hill resident Susan Ragen, who attended the first Community Dinner solo, expressed
similar sentiments. But this time around, she brought company, including her mom, who informed her about Central’s first dinner in February.
“I didn’t know what to expect the first time, and going solo, I got to talk with people I didn’t know,” she shared. “But for the second one, I wanted my family to experience it, so I got tickets for two brothers, my mom, plus two friends.”
The paella-inspired dish was a hit for everyone in Ragen’s party. She is looking forward to a third dinner in fall 2025.
As the evening drew to a close, children doodled on the butcher paper lining the tables, their parents nibbled on slices of citrus olive oil cake, and other guests mingled by the art gallery as they finished their last glasses of sangria. The full bellies and belly laughs that filled the room seemed to echo Chef Tamara’s enduring ethos: “Food is love.”
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