Alumni Updates

Alissa Sobo

Chemistry, 2010

After graduating from Humboldt State University, Alissa Sobo, Chemistry, 2010, stayed in the community and opened a restaurant called Naan of the Above. Alissa sold this business and moved to the bay area to teach science in after school programs. Alissa then had two children, and while staying at home with them, taught herself to code. She built a web application called Ample that was recently mentioned in the New York Times. She now works as a software engineer for Mozilla.

Kathryn Hedges

Biological Sciences, 2010

Kathryn Hedges, 2010 Biological Sciences, started a handcrafting business in Silicon Valley at TechShop in 2011. She creates jewelry, holiday decor, and souvenirs and sells locally and globally online.

Damien Adams

Mathematics, 2010

Damien Adams, 2010 Mathematics, earned a master’s degree in Mathematics from San Jose State University and acquired a full-time teaching position at Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz, Calif. Adams has also started a podcast, Women in Math: The Limit Does Not Exist promoting women in mathematics, and founded the college’s Math Club.

Áki Jarl Láruson

Biological Sciences, General emphasis, minor in Chemistry., 2010

I am starting my second year as a doctorate student at the University of Hawaiʻi at Månoa. I am focusing on molecular ecology, population genetics and quantitative genetics in the shallow water urchin genus Tripneustes. Thanks to Professor Sean Craig of Humboldt State, I had my first publication as a lead author before finishing my first year of Grad school.

Stewart Wilson

Forestry & Wildland Resources, Wildland Soils, 2010

Research Assistant at UC Davis in Soils and Biogeochemistry. MS Student

Nathan Rasmussen

Physics & Astronomy, 2010

Going to HSU to study physics was the best decision I've made in my adult life. Not only did it give me confidence in my problem solving abilities, but the faculty is amazing. I was able to do research with Dr. Hoyle and not only publish a paper, but gave a conference talk and a few others about the research. I was hired to teach physics labs after graduation, and now I am about to start a PhD program at Washington State University. Studying at HSU has been an amazing experience!

Tai-Aqua Morgan-Marbet

Environmental Resources Engineering, Economics, 2010

Tai-Aqua Morgan-Marbet, Environmental Resources Engineering, 2010, started in 2012 working for Lincoln and Long Engineering in Grass Valley, CA. She still works for them here and there as they need help. She then worked for AM Baird Engineering and Surveying in Fortuna, CA from 2013 to 2014. She worked for LACO Associates in Eureka, CA from 2014 to 2016. Finally, she is currently working for Kolstad Land Surveying and has started her own firm, Lost Coast Engineering, with two other engineers (an HSU graduate and a UC Berkeley graduate).

Marshall R Ligare

Chemistry, 2009

Marshall R. Ligare, 2009 Chemistry, finished his PhD at University of California Santa Barbara and is starting a postdoctoral research position at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Holly Edmundson

Physics & Astronomy, 2009

After graduating from HSU I went to grad school at University of Oregon where I got my Masters in Materials Science with an emphasis in Optics.

I got a job in the semiconductor industry. Humboldt's physics program gave me a major advantage when it came to E&M, electronics and lab experience all of which I used regularly in grad school and still use in my 'real job'.

Benjamin J. Crain

Biological Sciences, 2008

Benjamin Crain, Biological Sciences, 2008, recently took a position as an Ecologist with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and the North American Center for Orchid Conservation. With a diverse group of collaborators, he conducts research in the Republic of Palau where they study the diversity and distribution of orchids, monitors their dynamics in the Ngardok Nature Reserve, and studies the fundamental ecology of orchids by looking at their relationship with mycorrhizal fungi. The team's goals are to improve knowledge and increase awareness of orchid diversity in Palau, understand the ecology of these plants, and develop strategic plans for conservation and restoration of orchid species and their habitats.