Alumni Updates

Tracy Alvarado

Art, 2025

As an Associate Governmental Program Analyst (AGPA) State of California DMHC for the Provider Complaint Branch (PCB) for 25 plus years, your core responsibilities center on protecting the financial stability of California's healthcare system by ensuring health plans pay providers accurately and on time.
As an Associate Governmental Program Analyst (AGPA) on the DMHC Equity in Action team, l analyze internal and external data sets to identify inequities and recommend strategies for promoting a more diverse, inclusive workplace. You are responsible for coordinating equity activities, such as healing circles and training sessions, to normalize conversations around race and ensure that Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) are integrated into the Department's day-to-day operations.

Shea King

Theatre, 2015

Shea King (he/him/his) is a Professor of Theatre at Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, NV. He holds an MFA in Directing from University of Idaho. In 2022 Shea was featured in American Theatre Magazine’s ROLE CALL as a “Theatre Worker You Should Know.” His directing credits include HAPPY DAYS and MURDERERS (Snowy Range Summer Theatre); PERFECT ARRANGEMENT and SEUSSICAL (Reno Little Theatre); DRACULA: A COMEDY OF TERRORS, and YOU MAY HAVE SIX (Good Luck Macbeth Theatre Company); OBAMA-OLOGY (Bay Street Theater); 5 LESBIANS EATING A QUICHE and THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA MCBRIDE (Redwood Curtain Theatre); HAND TO GOD, EMME AND THE TAKING OF THE WOODS (Columbia Basin College); ROMEO AND JULIET, COMPLETE WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (ABRIDGED) [REVISED] (The Rude Mechanicals); CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN (Lake City Playhouse); EURYDICE and CARRIE The MUSICAL (Lewis-Clark State College); DOG SEES GOD: CONFESSIONS OF A TEENAGE BLOCKHEAD, NEARLY, WASHINGTON and THAT DAY IN TUCSON (Truckee Meadows Community College). Shea is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and the National Alliance of Acting Teachers. 

Patrick M Orr

Sociology, 1982

Retired from American Airlines after 34 years of flying. 

Danny Recendez

Anthropology, 2002

Since graduating from HSU, Danny moved back to the Central Valley, where he grew up. He worked as an archaeology field tech and then decided to pursue a career in teaching. He has been teaching middle school since 2005. Danny still enjoys traveling back to Humboldt County for vacation and has family who live in Eureka. 

Eileen Bostwick

Sociology, 1971

After graduating, Eileen had an interesting career path. Briefly, she was with the Humboldt County Office of Education, which led to a position as Director of Environment Services at General Hospital for almost 10 years. During that time, she started a family. 

Next, she joined Daly’s Department Store in Human Resources. Life changed, and she was hired by North Coast Opportunities in Ukiah to direct the Foster Grandparent Program in Humboldt, Lake, and Mendocino Counties. She expanded that service area to include Del Norte and northern Sonoma Counties and added a Senior Companion Program. 

Eileen served on a national board in Washington, DC, for 22 years and was responsible for changing legislation. She was offered a scholarship for a Master’s degree in Gerontology and graduated from the University of Indianapolis.  With the knowledge and experience I gained, she was able to enrich the quality of programming offered across the programs she directed. Currently, she's retired but stays active as a governing board member of our Area Agency on Aging, a Regional Advisor and Advisory Council member of her Community Foundation, and a volunteer with United Disaster Relief of Northern California. She appreciates Humboldt State University, especially Dr. Dennis Winters and Kathryn Corbett, for the excellent education she received. 
 

Stacy Bricco

Sociology, 2013

Stacy is a social worker for the county of Humboldt. 

Philip Ross DeMontigny

History, 1995

Philip attended Humboldt State University from 1992 to 1995, where he was a student athlete competing in cross-country and track. He currently serves as a Brigadier General in the Oregon National Guard, having recently completed a tour as Chief of Staff for NATO’s Kosovo Force (KFOR). In his civilian career, he is the Agency Risk and Emergency Manager for the Washington State Department of Enterprise Services, overseeing enterprise risk management, safety, and emergency preparedness for the state capital campus. He lives with his family in Olympia, Washington.

James Smith

Sociology, 1971

James just published a new book- American Insomniac: Reflections on the Future of a Dying Democracy.  A collection of articles and essays on freedom, democracy, and other issues facing America today. Available on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. 

Richard Caldwell

Music, 1969

Richard retired in 2015 after 20 years as a Navy musician, followed by 25 years of band instrument repair in the Seattle area. He made the trip to Humboldt in 2018 for the Marching Lumberjack band's 50-year celebration.

Bonnie D Gavey Napier

Sociology, 1967

After Humboldt, Bonnie went on to other degrees, and later became an Occupational Therapist and professor of occupational therapy and physical therapy. The third edition of her textbook, The Occupational Therapy Fieldwork Survival Guide 3rd Edition, will be out this fall.