Impact Players
By Kevin Coyne, Illustrations by Lauren Tamaki
They work in hospitals and grocery stores, in boardrooms and cutting rooms, in classrooms and courtrooms. They are scientists and lawyers, activists and artists, making an impact from New York to San Francisco to West Africa. The eight Sarah Lawrence graduates profiled here affirm the true meaning of the Sarah Lawrence experience—fearless exploration of new ideas, an interdisciplinary approach to learning, a leadership role in the larger world.
Cary Johnson '82, Mali, Crisis Counselor
Hunger, HIV, genocide, and violence against women and LGBT people—Cary Johnson '82 has fought in all those battles, and more.
Cecily Tyler '97, Boston, Storyteller
Maybe, Cecily Tyler '97 has come to think, stories can be more than just stories.
Analisa Freitas '10, Washington, DC, Green Leader
When Analisa Freitas '10 returned to campus after studying for a year in Peru, a classmate urged her to volunteer with Groundwork Hudson Valley, a local group that believes addressing the needs of neighborhoods is an essential element of environmentalism.
Yukiji Fujimoto '03, New York City, Gatekeeper
At Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, doctors and researchers who think they have a breakthrough idea—like the first knee implant, which was developed there in the 1970s—must first convince Yukiji Fujimoto '03.
Acacia Graddy-Gamel '03, New York City, Teacher's Aide
So you’re a sixth-grade teacher in the Bronx, and you try something new in your classroom that works so well you want to shout about it from the rooftop to all the other teachers in the city. Acacia Graddy-Gamel '03 will provide the megaphone.
Jonathan Silverblatt '91, New York City, Pro Bono Pro
Jonathan Silverblatt '91 devotes most of his billable hours at a large Manhattan law firm to mergers and acquisitions, corporate financings, and other high-octane transactions of the business world. But then there are the hours he’s spent on behalf of experimental filmmakers like Stan Brakhage, Jonas Mekas, and Todd Haynes.
Matt Chanoff '82, San Francisco, Global Thinker
Dana Frasz '06, Oakland, CA, Food Fighter
Dana Frasz '06 spent most of her evenings at Sarah Lawrence trying to solve a problem that troubled her from her first meal at Bates Dining Hall: What to do with all the perfectly good food going to waste? At the end of each day, Frasz and volunteers in the program she started, Empty Bellies, collected excess food from Bates and from local businesses and delivered it to Part of the Solution, a Bronx-based organization that feeds the hungry.