Lute Powered: Educational Service District 113
There are nine Educational Service Districts (ESDs) in Washington state. Created in 1969, the ESDs help local school districts by providing academic support, business services, educator training and more for local school districts. Capital Region ESD 113, based in Tumwater, WA, works with 44 public…
Kate Hall ’17 builds connections, serves community at ESD 113
Kate Hall ’17 remembers the job interview that landed her in a communications role at ESD 113. It was memorable — but not necessarily in a good way. “I was so nervous,” she remembers. “My internet died during the Zoom interview.” She was prepared to…
Summer Internship: Economics major finds family environment with global company
Travis McDaneld ’23 is entering his fourth year at PLU as an economics major, minoring in data science. When he enrolled at PLU, he had every intention of majoring in business, although he admits to not having any idea about what he wanted to do…
Tracye Ferguson ’94 brings her principles to work at state education agency
Tracye Ferguson ’94 is an experienced educator who believes children develop and reach milestones at different phases — and we need to celebrate their growth. “Not all children thrive or develop the same, but they all need the same amount of encouragement and support,” she…
Kristen Jaudon ’94: Picturing the possibilities
Kristen (Vold) Jaudon ’94 likes to keep her options open. “I say ‘yes’ to different possibilities,” she says. “I like trying new things.” That kind of thinking helped her segue from jobs in art education and publishing to public education communications. As senior director for…
Summer Internships: Theater major learns from the best at a Seattle Theatre Company
In high school, Peyton Noreen ’23 loved participating in theatre productions. Noreen’s passion for the stage wasn’t something they were ready to give up on when they enrolled at Pacific Lutheran University. It’s why they chose to major in theatre and why they’re spending the…
Summer Internship: Environmental Studies major works as a bio tech at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
Fiona Ashton-Knochel ’24 is spending her summer on a bird refuge in Brigham City, Utah. The Environmental Studies major sat down with us to discuss her exciting internship and to offer suggestions for anyone looking to land their own internship working in conservation. Why did…
Lute Powered: City of Tacoma
The City of Tacoma provides high-quality, innovative and cost-effective municipal services that enhance the lives of its 215,000 residents and the quality of its neighborhoods and business districts. PLU alumni Tom Chontofalsky ’03, Clarissa Gines ’12 and Lisa Woods ’92 are three of the many…
Lisa Woods ’92 helps move Tacoma forward as the city’s Chief Equity Officer
As far back as middle school, others noticed Lisa Woods’ quiet strength and power of observation. “My demeanor is to listen, hear people and see people,“ she says. “I’ve developed that over time, but I’ve always been the listener in the room and not necessarily…
Clarissa Gines ’12 combines her passions for art and community working for Tacoma Creates
Clarissa Gines was one of the first students to graduate with PLU’s art history undergraduate degree in 2012. It wasn’t easy—she had a child during her senior year, and juggled parenthood with schoolwork and an internship at a Seattle-based art gallery. She then worked as…
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…