The Whittier College class of 2016 included leaders, entrepreneurs, educators, researchers, and future medical practitioners who are now on their way to prestigious graduate programs and are ready to take the professional world. Here's a sample of the outstanding Poets of 2016.
Cody Allman
Business administration senior Cody Allman will graduate with a deep understanding of leadership thanks to his experience in student government, the Penn Society, and his work on behalf of his fellow students in several Whittier College committees. Next Stop: A career with the City of Anaheim.
College highlights, achievements, and awards:
Allman served in Associated Students of Whittier College (ASWC) Senate all four years, two of them being on the executive cabinet and also being program board director. He also was part of the Penn Society and served in various leadership roles (vice president for two terms and graduating as president.) In addition, he sat on a Board of Trustee's building and grounds committee for the last two years, the student lounge renovation committee, and served on two search committees for College's dean of students position and the assistant dean of the Weingart Center for Career and Professional Development.
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Edwin Bennett
This outstanding senior majored in biochemistry, tutored children in math, presented at a biology academic conference, volunteered at local hospitals, and even found time to build homes in Mexico with Amor Ministries. Next Stop: UCLA's School of Dentistry on a full-tuition scholarship.
Who is your favorite faculty member and why?
My two favorite professors are Dr. Devin Iimoto and Dr. Christina Bauer, who I took for biochemistry and physical chemistry respectively. Additionally, I conducted biochemical research with Dr. Iimoto and I was a teaching assistant for Dr. Bauer in the general chemistry lab sessions. By taking both of their chemistry courses together, I was able to gain a well-rounded understanding of the field of chemistry. Dr. Iimoto and Dr. Bauer have continued to encourage me and support my academic career from the first day of meeting each of them. In terms of my undergraduate career and personal growth, I wouldn’t be where I am today without their dedication and guidance.
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Derek Blankenship
The English major with an affinity to Chinese and computer science has been able to thrive as a student newspaper leader at Whittier, with plenty of activities, travel and honors to show for it.
What's your favorite place to study on campus?
My favorite spot to study is on the top floor of the library in the southwest corner that overlooks the campus center. I love that place because it is very quiet and peaceful, and it has an amazing view of the string of palm trees that extend from Deihl Hall down to The Rock. Those trees are my favorite campus landmarks, because they capture an ideal image of Californian beauty, and they shift and change depending on which angle you view them from. Also, when you’re sitting in my favorite spot, you can lift or lower the shade depending on your ideal temperature, and whether or not you want to be distracted by the amazing view.
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Amanda Cabanilla
Amanda Cabanilla, a senior majoring in sociology has a desire to radically transform the world and has been able to thrive as a researcher at Whittier. Next stop: University of Chicago.
What was your favorite class?
My favorite classes by far were the paired courses I took with Professor Becky Overmyer-Velázquez, Racial and Ethnic Relations, and Professor Rosemary Carbine, Public and Popular Religion. Becky and Professor Carbine are absolutely incredible women and professors. They brought so much passion and insight into the classroom and really challenged all of us to think critically about the issues at hand. Class discussions were also notoriously loud and passionate.
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Olivia Foppiano
Olivia Foppiano is an entrepreneur at heart who always dreamed about attending college and made her dream a reality at Whittier. Next Stop: A career in operations and member success at SoFi, a finance company.
The one Whittier experience I'll always remember...
Pledging the Athenian Society. When you find the right fit on campus, whether it's with a club, society, or sports team, it creates an environment and support system that helps you to grow as a person during your time at Whittier College.
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Alex Hackworth
Alex Hackworth ’16 is a storyteller, part artist, part technician, and aspiring cinematographer who’s made the most of his Whittier experience both on and off campus.
Using his extensive technical and people skills, Hackworth serves as the senior executive manager of the student-led Video Production Studio (VPS) and technical advisor for the Whittier College Sports Network. He was also one of the first student Tech Liaisons for the Center for Digital Liberal Arts, helping others access technology.
In recognition of his many accomplishments, Hackworth was a nominee for the 2016 Fulbright Fellowship. And, last year he was one of three students awarded the Whittier College Undergraduate Fellowships for Organizational Leadership in the Arts, made possible through generous gifts from the David Bohnett Foundation, trustee Christopher G. Caldwell P ’13, ’15, and Richard Llewellyn P ’13, ’15, which gives students the opportunity to take an unpaid internship in this competitive field and gain valuable hands-on experience.
Hackworth took a summer internship with a small production studio, Larry Jordan and Associates, which is owned by one of the leading Final Cut Pro editing trainers in the world and the owner of the longest running podcast on film and television news.
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Xochitl Ramirez
During her time at Whittier Xochitl Ramirez, a senior majoring in Spanish and business, wrote her own screenplay, interned for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and led M.E.Ch.A. to be one of the best student organizations on campus.
College highlights, achievements and awards:
During college, Ramirez worked for the Cultural Center, for the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, for the City of Alhambra’s Joslyn Senior Center, and as a math tutor for two families from the Whittier area. She also had the opportunity to intern for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles as a diversity services intern during summer 2013 and as a wish intern for Make-A-Wish Greater Los Angeles during summer 2015.
On campus, she was involved with M.E.Ch.A., Amigos Unidos, Diversity Council, Sigma Delta Pi (Spanish Honor Society), and OMEP. She served as scholarship chair for M.E.Ch.A, then as vice president, and finally as president. In addition, she served as vice president of Sigma Delta Pi (Spanish Honor Society) and as co-chair for Diversity Council senior year. For three consecutive years Ramirez was awarded the TELACU scholarship which helped pay her way through college. Recently, she was awarded the Student Life Diversity Award, the Alianza de Los Amigos Leadership Award, and the Research Experience for Undergraduate and Internship Award. During her senior year and as president of M.E.Ch.A. the organization was recognized as the Diversity Council Organization of the Year.
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