Alumni Updates

Joyce Schlachter

Wildlife, 1994

Joyce Schlachter, Wildlife, 1994, has retired after 26 years with the Federal government, working as a wildlife biologist. Joyce is enjoying her freedom and continues to volunteer with Project Wildlife, rehabilitating bats. Joyce says "thanks HSU for the best years of my life!"

Lyla Godfryd

International Studies, 2019

Lyla Godfryd, International Studies, 2019, will be serving in the Peace Corps as an Environmental Education Volunteer in Panama beginning in February. Lyla says she feels very blessed to have been provided with such an encouraging and caring group of professors and fellow classmates and the International Studies program at HSU has provided her with the skills and confidence she needs to embark on this journey!

Stephanie Cowherd

English, Literature, MA, 2014

Stephanie Cowherd, English, 2014, works for Ecotrust, an environmental non-profit based in Portland, Oregon. She leads community outreach and engagement, communications, and manages tribal forestry projects for her Forests & Ecosystem Services team at Ecotrust. Her current projects include a landscape assessment of opportunities and barriers in tribal forestry workforce development, working alongside native educators to design culturally-specific curriculum for forestry education tools, and community engagement with tribal forestry activities.

Jesse Mestemacher

Business Administration, Industrial Technology, 2008

Jesse Mestemacher, Industrial Technology & Business Administration, 2008, has joined Jacobs, a design, engineering, construction and technical services firm, in their Redding, California office. He brings six years of CAD experience in architectural design and manufacturing and is excited to join the building and infrastructure team. Jesse will primarily be assisting in water processing and conveyance design.

Ariana Hendren

International Studies, 2017

After completing her degree Ariana Hendren, International Studies, 2017, earned a Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Certificate. She caught the travel bug after studying abroad in Spain with the HSU World Languages and Cultures Department. She is now teaching elementary-middle school students at an English Academy in South Korea with her boyfriend whom she met while living in Arcata. They will soon move to a new country to continue their teaching adventure.

Anthony Erba

Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1987

After nearly 33 years of federal government service, Anthony Erba, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1987, has retired from the USDA Forest Service to Northern Wisconsin. His last position was as Regional Director (Eastern Region) overseeing environmental planning, litigation, and landscape-scale conservation (lasting 8.5 years). Anthony's career spanned all four organizational levels of the Forest Service, located on six national forests, one national grassland, one region, and the Washington Office.

Never in his wildest dreams would he have been able to predict his career when he graduated in 1987. Anthony is grateful for his experience at HSU, providing him the awareness needed to recognize career opportunities whenever they popped up.

Jon Pede

, Social Studies, 1990

Jon Pede, Social Studies, 1990 is currently a middle school principal in Hillsboro, Oregon. He is also an Adjunct Professor at Lewis and Clark College in Portland.

Karen J. Haner

Natural Resources, 1986

April 1, 2018 Karen Haner, Natural Resources Planning & Interpretation, 1986, retired from a 36 1/2 year career with the National Park Service. Karen spent the last 20 years serving as the Chief of Interpretation, Education and Cultural Resources at Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northeastern California. She also worked in other national parks in California, Texas, Pennsylvania and Indiana. Karen feels she has had a wonderful career made possible with her HSU degree and participation in the Cooperative Education Program through the National Park Service and Humboldt State University. Now she plans to go to national parks as a visitor and sometimes to volunteer.

Ron Miller

Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1983

Ron Miller, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1983, recently retired after 35 years of government service as a forester. Last year, in celebration of retirement, he walked the French route of the 500-mile Camino de Santiago across northern Spain starting in St. Jean Pied de Port, France and walking to Santiago, Spain. He completed the pilgrimage on June 3, 2018.

Jason Storlie

Wildlife, 2007

Jason Storlie, Wildlife, 2007, transitioned from wildlife biologist to manager of Bitter Creek and Blue Ridge National Wildlife Refuges.