City of Tacoma environmental scientist Tom Chontofalsky ‘03 loves asking questions
From an early age, Tom Chontofalsky ‘03 always thought he’d be a wildlife biologist. He’d pore over issues of National Geographic and One World magazines his dad purchased, studying photos and text of exotic animals. Chontofalsky is now an environmental scientist with the City of…
Lute Powered: Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. More than 125 PLU alumni work for the global commerce and technology leader. For this “Lute Powered” feature, we met with three of…
My Story, My Words: Ricky Haneda ’22
Recent PLU graduate Ricky Haneda gives a first-person perspective on his experience as an international student making the transition to an American school.
LUTES ANSWER: What does it mean to innovate wherever you are?
What does it mean to innovate wherever you are? “To innovate everywhere means to think ahead and find new ways to answer new and old questions. It’s finding new ways to make even the mundane fun. Wherever I am I look for the next step,…
LUTES ANSWER: How can innovation help meet the challenges of the moment?
How can innovation help meet the challenges of the moment? “Embracing innovation ensures we have a pipeline of ideas focused on improving our future as we manage the current complexities in our lives today. We must be eager to engage students, communities and colleagues in…
Rising Amazon recruiter April Rose Nguyen ’19, ’21 has a plan
April Rose Nguyen ’19, ’21 has a plan. A political science and communication double major who recently earned an MBA at PLU, Nguyen followed the advice of a career adviser into a series of contract jobs in human resources. Not because she has career aspirations…
Jon Grande ’92 embraces innovation, talent and fun at Amazon Games
Jon Grande ’92 was an intern at Microsoft the summer before he enrolled at PLU. His supervisor was a young marketing manager named Melinda French. He remembers advice Melinda — now Melinda French Gates — gave him a few weeks before the fall semester began.…
Regan Zeebuyth ’01 helps shape culture and solve puzzles at Amazon
Regan Zeebuyth ’01 has always been curious. Curious about words, about ideas, and about systems. He’s always trusted that curiosity to guide him. Even when, as a second-year Lute, it led him to rethink plans to follow his parents into medicine and toward a major…
Sophia Barro ’22 is following her passion for faith, literacy and diversity into elementary education
Sophia Barro ’22 is a senior education major and religion minor at PLU. She recently completed full-time student teaching at Lakeview Hope Academy. We spoke with Barro about her experiences at PLU and as a student teacher, and about the values she hopes to inspire…
Lute Powered: MultiCare Health System
MultiCare Health System is a not-for-profit health care organization that’s been caring for communities in Washington state since the founding of Tacoma’s first hospital in 1882. MultiCare has grown from a Tacoma-centric, hospital-based organization into the largest, not-for-profit, community-based, locally-owned health system in the state…
MultiCare’s Leah Butters ’15 believes that great care starts with recruiting great employees
When Leah Butters ‘15 decided to major in environmental studies she didn’t have healthcare marketing in mind. Actually, she didn’t have any specific professional sector in mind. The PLU Softball stand-out just knew she wanted to be in the business of service and care. “What…
From the exam room to executive leadership: Dr. Mark Mariani ’98 follows his curiosity at MultiCare
When Mark Mariani ’98 was a student at PLU his singular goal was to become a medical doctor. A member of the football team and a biology major, Mariani loved his science courses, but he also found he was interested in a range of disciplines…