MARCH 2021
Greetings!

I hope you were able to join us at the end of February for our alumni event "Live from the Third Coast: LFA in the Entertainment Industry." Read coverage below and follow the link to watch the recordings from both nights. We are grateful to our talented alumni panelists for their involvement, and to the more than 220 members of the LFA community who joined us over both nights. There is so much talent among our alumni community.

Next, we hope you'll join us online for the popular Chicago Networking Event (CNE), now in its 15th year. This year's panel discussion will be held via Zoom on May 20. Mark your calendar and plan to participate. More details and the registration link are included below.

Finally, thank you for your support of our Giving Day on March 11. It was an enormous success thanks to all of you. Go, Caxys!


Ruth Keyso
Director of Alumni Engagement
847.615.3268 (office)
847.224.6072 (cell)
That's Entertainment!
LFA hosted its largest alumni engagement event of the year on Feb. 24-25 via Zoom. "Live from the Third Coast: LFA in the Entertainment Industry" was a two-night panel discussion with alumni who work in the fields of film and TV, theater and music. More than 220 alumni, parents, faculty/staff, students, and friends of the Academy attended over the two nights. What an amazing industry engagement opportunity and a wonderful chance for us to showcase the talents of our alumni in the arts. Thank you to our panelists and co-host Gabe Llanas '96 for their involvement in this educational and entertaining event!

HERE IS THE LINK TO THE VIDEO RECORDINGS FROM EACH NIGHT

Night 1 (film and TV) featured the following Hollywood professionals:

  • Jay Chandrasekhar ’86, actor, comedian, director, screenwriter, producer, author; LFA Hall of Fame honoree (Achievement in the Arts, 2016)

  • Jason Delane Lee ’90, actor, director, producer, and co-founder of Lower Depth Theatre and film finance/development company Lagralane Group

  • Luma Khatib ’97, lawyer and VP of Business Affairs at Sony Entertainment

  • Gabe Llanas ’96, TV writer (and event co-host)

  • Rachel Maguire ’85, award-winning executive producer, writer, and director

  • Kelly Perine ’87, writer, actor, director

Night 2 (theater and music) featured the following alumni, who joined us from LA, Chicago, and Las Vegas:

  • Jason Delane Lee ’90, actor, director, producer, and co-founder of Lower Depth Theatre and film finance/development company Lagralane Group

  • Marissa Ford ’07, Associate Managing Director at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago

  • Doug Kaplan ’07, record label operator (Hausu Mountain) and musician in Chicago

  • David Lin ’11, performer, singer-songwriter and producer known for his work with Moose Light Kingdom

And congratulations to our prize winners: Night one winners were Winnie Kimata P'22 and Jodee Ryskiewicz '86; night 2 winner was Vince Sparrow '74!

Got an idea for a future panel discussion? Send it along: rkeyso@lfanet.org

caption for photo above: top row, l to r: Luma Khatib '97, Jason Delane Lee '90, Jay Chandrasekhar '86; middle row, l to r: Gabe Llanas '96, Kelly Perine '87, Rachel Maguire '85; bottom row, l to r: Marissa Ford '07, Doug Kaplan '07, David Lin '11
LFA Community Celebrates Black History Month
The Black Student Union, under the leadership of junior Safiya Nicol '22, set up a gallery of student artwork in the Cressey Center in February in honor and celebration of Black History Month. The gallery featured student artwork as well as contributions of books and music from alumnae Regina Spellers-Sims '85 and Rukiya Ashanti Wheeler-Johnson '01. Nice job, Safiya! And thank you, alumnae, for your involvement.
Thank You, Alumni
Thank you, alumni, for rallying in support of LFA's students and teachers as part of Giving Day 2021.


We are grateful to you and to our challenge sponsors.
Together, more than $120,000 in total was raised.


1990s Challenge
Made possible by Trustees Haji Glover '92 and Amish Shah '92

Hoesel Fund for Annual Student Support Bonus
Made possible by a member of the Class of 1975

Caxy Cornerstone Challenge
Made possible by Colleen and Doug Berto P'10, '10, '22

Didn't get a chance to make your gift on Giving Day?
You can still help us reach our $1.6M goal by June 30.
Make your gift online or by texting LFA to 24365.
Transferring Stock is a Great Tax-Wise Way to Support LFA
Have you considered transferring appreciated securities to make your gift?  A gift of appreciated securities is tax deductible and allows you to avoid capital gains tax on the appreciated value. To request LFA securities transfer information, contact Nancy Bateman at 847.615.3212 or nbateman@lfanet.org. For more information on gifting securities or other tax-wise giving options, visit lfa.givingplan.net.
Seniors Learn about the LFA Alumni Program
Members of the Alumni Engagement Office visited the senior Health, Wellness & Community classes (formerly Senior Seminar) in February to talk with the Class of 2021 about the alumni community and the many ways to stay involved with the Academy after they graduate.

Students also spent a moment signing the class paver, a tradition started in 2014. The brick paver includes the names of all graduating seniors and is placed in the patio at the Bowditch Bell on campus. Above, senior Hadley Fagan '21 signs her name to the Class of 2021 paver.

We look forward to welcoming you into the alumni community soon, seniors!
Alumnus Speaks with Biochem Class
Young alumnus Dan Sambor '10 spoke with students in Dr. Kerry Cedergren's biochemistry class on March 4 via Zoom from the renewable energy lab at Stanford University.

Dan is a Ph.D. candidate and lecturer at Stanford, where he teaches a course called "Energy Efficient Buildings" in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. Dan is also a visiting researcher at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. 

Dan was in Dr. Cedergren's AP chem class at LFA. He went on to earn his bachelor's degree from Brown University.

Dan's research and dissertation focus is on systems-level design solutions for food, energy, and water systems in remote Alaskan communities. He plans to continue teaching at Stanford after completing his doctorate in 2021. Thank you, Dan, for sharing your knowledge and advice with our students. Go, Caxys! 

caption for photo below: top row, l to r: Dan Sambor '10, Dr. Kerry Cedergren P'13,'17,'24, Hadley Fagan '21; second row, l to r: Calvin Osborne '21, Katie Schilling '21, Jake Putzel '21; third row, l to r: Josh Mayberry '21, Ferdoss Ibrahim '22, Anna Freyman '22; bottom row, l to r: Tien-Yu Lee '21, Ian Honczarenko '21, and Halbert Kim '21
Extraordinary Women: 2021 Virtual "Chicago" Networking Event (CNE)
Join us on Thurs., May 20 from 11:30 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. CT, via Zoom, for a panel discussion featuring Carole Segal GP '21, '24 Co-Founder of Crate and Barrel; Louise Hamilton Short '66, Founder, Hamilton Financial Partners, Tulsa, OK; and Renata Ferraiolo P'21, '24 Vice President of Marketing, North America, for consumer-products giant SC Johnson. The theme of this year's celebration is Extraordinary Women.

This year's CNE will be virtual, which means alumni from across the country and around the world will be able to join the discussion and networking. Registration is now open. Watch your email for additional details! Questions? Rachael Josephsen at 847.615.3298
One Question Can Get You CUSTOM Spirit Items!
As we make plans for Alumni Weekend & Reunion 2021 (Sept. 24-26), we would love your feedback on how you would prefer to participate in events and programming -- in-person vs. virtual.

We will be sure to include opportunities to take part both ways, but your feedback will be valuable in planning!

Everyone who responds to this ONE-question survey will be entered to receive LFA or Ferry Hall items that we will customize with your name.

Feedback can also be sent to Hannah Keller, Director of Alumni Reunions & Reunion Giving, at hkeller@lfanet.org.