From Classroom to Career: Alumni Return to Guide the Next Generation

Lawrenceville’s Alumni and Development Office, in an ongoing joint venture with Student Council, recently held the second roundtable event in the 2025-26 Alumni Career Series. The roundtable format enables one-on-one conversations between alumni and students.

The January 14 Alumni in Wellbeing roundtable coincided with the School’s Wellbeing Week, and featured four Lawrenceville graduates working in a variety of wellness fields, from finding cost-effective solutions to high drug costs to mental health funding to food education: Christy Maselli ’13, operating partner, Evio; Sophie Ochs ’16, program designer, BetterUp; Augusta Powell ’11, director of grants and operations, The IV Fund; and Elizabeth Ruddle Gabrielson ’04, food educator, wellness coach, and chef, Elizabeth Gabrielson Wellness.

An earlier Career Roundtable, held in November, welcomed seven Lawrenceville alumni for conversations around career opportunities in media and the visual and performing arts. Alumni attendees hailed from both the creative and administrative sides of media and the arts: Courtney Bush ’98, senior textile designer, Berkshire Blanket & Home Co.; Marina Hyson ’14, associate general manager, Baseline Theater; Toby Ilogu ’19, senior content creator, VaynerMedia; Alice Engel Vartan ’99, design director, Studio McGrath; Naina Saligram ’97, Picasso research fellow, The Barnes Foundation; Jon Sheldrick ’04, principal product manager, Spotify; and Tom von Oehsen ’81, executive director and founder, Trenton Circus Squad.

“It was a joy to be back on campus, where so much–and so little–has changed since my time there,” said Engel Vartan of her experience as an alumni presenter.  “The students were engaging and curious and welcoming. It was interesting to hear their perspectives on what career challenges and successes might lie ahead of them, and to answer their questions on how I got to where I am now.”

The Alumni Career Series will continue in March with an all-women panel in honor of Women’s History Month. The second annual Career Day on May 9 will once again bring alumni from a wide range of industries back to campus, building on last year’s event, which featured more than 60 alumni sharing career insights with students.

Alumni interested in participating in any of the upcoming Career Series events are invited to contact Molly Edwards, senior associate director of Alumni Engagement, at medwards@lawrenceville.org.

For more information, contact Lisa M. Gillard H'17, director of public relations, at lgillard@lawrenceville.org.