CLASS NOTES | SUMMER 2026 | 57 mouth University as an assistant athletic director of athletic communications, also shared about working in women’s athletics: “My passion for women’s athletics has been the driving force behind my career. There’s something incredibly powerful about helping tell the stories of female student-athletes — their resilience, leadership and the way they continue to elevate the game for the next generation. I’ve always had a special interest in the WNBA, and that passion has only grown as I’ve worked more closely with women’s programs at the collegiate level. “One of the most meaningful experiences in my career came while covering Lehigh women’s basketball during their 2025 Patriot League Championship season. Watching that team finish 27-7 and earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament—and having the opportunity to travel with them and share their story—was a moment that reinforced exactly why I love what I do.” Thanks for reading, and please reach out to us with any news you would like to share with your alumni community! ’23 Declan Coster, declanmcoster@ gmail.com Hello, Class of 2023! I know you all have so much going on in your lives, please reach out to me so I can include those updates in the next write-up. Specifically, I’d love to highlight personal events such as engagements, marriages, relocations and anything else you would like to share. I’d also love to include snippets on how you all are keeping up with your classmates in different ways. Below is an example of how I’ve been able to keep up with others from the Class of 2023. Throughout 2026, I have been very lucky to have spent time with my South Mountain friends. On his way to a New York on-site, Lester Huang stayed the weekend with me in New Jersey. Lester recently switched jobs, traveled all over Europe (Serbia to Portugal) and moved to San Francisco. Lester and I met up with Kevin Coxhead in Lambertville, N.J., for a nice breakfast. Kevin recently started a new job in eastern Pennsylvania, where he lives with his wife, Kylin. In February, I traveled out to Japan for a work engagement, and my roommate and friend, Matt Tallo, met me at the airport. Matt has been living in Sapporo, Japan, for over a year working as an engineer for a rocket company. Matt showed me around Tokyo one weekend, and then I joined him in Sapporo, where he showed me around the city. It’s a lot easier to travel to a foreign country when you have a fellow Lehigh grad as your tour guide. Kieran O’Connor and I have been keeping up through music. Kieran added me to his hometown Music League, a fantasy football–style music competition. As former WLVR cohosts, I have also been trying to guess which songs Kieran submitted every week. Kieran currently lives in Wilmington, Del., with his fiancée, Ashley Lindsay. I have also been spending a lot of time with my girlfriend, Miranda Asral. Miranda is more than halfway done with her master’s of architecture at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. If you would like to share something like the above on how you have been catching up with your fellow alumni, please shoot me an email! ’24 Kyra Boston, kruthb11@gmail. com It’s been a busy and exciting season on my end, Class of 2024! I recently purchased a home and have been going through the time-consuming process of moving and getting settled. Between packing boxes and organizing everything, I did find a chance to flip back through my Lehigh yearbooks from while I was Epitome editor-in-chief. Looking through the pages covering all the different events I attended and photographed made me feel nostalgic. With my yearbook days on my mind, I decided to reach out to my former co-editor-in-chief, Nikki Paladino, to catch up and hear what she’s been up to since graduation—and I’m excited to share her update with you all! Following graduation, Nikki began a medical laboratory science training program with St. Luke’s Hospital Network. Over the course of about six months, she completed a variety of rotations, gaining hands-on experience in different areas of the lab. One of her rotations was in the hospital’s blood bank, where she worked on ensuring safe transfusions, assisting with distributing blood for surgeries and trauma cases, and performing blood typing. After completing the program, Nikki transitioned into a full-time role as a lab technician with St. Luke’s, where she currently works the night shift. While she admitted the schedule took some getting used to, she has since found her routine. Outside of work, Nikki has been making time for friends and visiting back home in New York State. She also mentioned how important it’s been to prioritize getting outside and enjoying the sunlight. Nikki also shared an update about her dog, Daisy, whom she adopted during our time at Lehigh. Daisy is doing well and still has plenty of energy! And in a fun moment of nostalgia, Nikki and I bonded over watching the recent “Hannah Montana” 20th anniversary special. It’s hard to believe how time continues to fly by! I hope you enjoyed hearing Nikki’s update. Please reach out and share your own accomplishments and updates. My inbox is always open! ’25 Maya Zucker, mayazucker21@ gmail.com, (908) 963-9465 ’26 Amanda Rowan, amandarowan150 @gmail.com We are now officially Lehigh alumni, which is absolutely crazy! It still hasn’t hit me that this fall, I won’t be packing up to move back to Bethlehem. I won’t be spending Sundays in FML, I won’t be in Coppee Hall at all hours of the day and I won’t be a student. Lehigh has truly given me the most incredible four years filled with lifelong friendships, laughs, memories and unforgettable times. And now, I’m on to the next chapter of my life, and though I may not know what the future holds for me, I know I will always have Lehigh and will forever be a Mountain Hawk. Now, let’s hear a little bit about two amazing people and their experiences at Lehigh! Julia DeAngelis was a biochemistry major from Marlborough, Mass. Julia worked on the Epitome yearbook, where she was co-editor-in-chief, and was also a member of the STEM engagement club, LU Space Initiative and the Mustard & Cheese Drama Society. Julia said that at her high school, she worked on the yearbook and always knew she wanted to continue. On her first day on campus in 2022, she signed up at the club fair and has been a part of staff ever since. Julia helped to create the cover design and photographed events. She said the most rewarding part of working on the yearbook is when the book is finished and sent out to students and parents; she loves hearing how much everyone loves it. I know I can’t wait to receive my copy and look through all the amazing pages! She said the yearbook staff is about 12 people, and they meet once a week, as well as completing assignments and photographing events outside of their meetings. This year is also the 150th edition of the Epitome, which has been an exciting milestone book to work on. Grace Alto was a fellow staff member of the Epitome, and a double major in journalism and theatre, with a minor in marketing. Grace is from Warren, N.J., and she told me that in 2019, she came to tour Lehigh with her older brother. While the tour wasn’t meant for her, she said she immediately fell in love and labeled Lehigh her “dream school.” Then, in 2021 she applied, and was accepted early on her birthday! Grace and her brother overlapped for two years at Lehigh. At Lehigh, you could often find Grace with a camera in her hand. Grace developed her passion for photography, taking photos as a
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTA0OTQ5OA==