Alumni

“We don’t talk about Bruno” — but we humbly brag about our alumni, especially those who work on Academy Award-nominated films. 

By now, you’ve likely heard about Disney's animated feature film "Encanto." It’s about the Madrigals, an extraordinary family living in Encanto, a hidden place in the mountains of Colombia. Each family member is blessed with a unique gift — except for Mirabel, who is forced to use her ordinary gifts to save Encanto.

Successfully combating the COVID-19 pandemic has depended on the minds, hands and hearts of thousands of individuals in a wide spectrum of fields, from medicine and public health to public affairs and social work.

One important component of the battle of the last two years involves case investigation and contact tracing — public health tools that involve identifying infected individuals and those with whom they’ve been in contact, as an attempt to prevent further infections and save lives.

On March 17, ASU Founders’ Day returned to an in-person format at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. The annual event honors faculty, alumni and philanthropists who drive Arizona State University's mission of innovation and entrepreneurship forward.

Held every spring since 1960, Founders’ Day is an homage to commemorate the March 7, 1885 anniversary of when the institution, then called the Territorial Normal School, received its charter from the Thirteenth Territorial Legislature.

Editor's note: An additional alumna came to light after this story originally published. The story has been updated to include Wendy Bohon.

Three Arizona State University women are immortalized in statue form on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., this month to highlight women in science, technology, engineering and math fields.

Arizona State University alumna Monica Orillo is in the middle of completing a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Germany, but she already knows what the next few years of her career will look like.

Imagine a class so meaningful to students that one says it is changing her life, while another pledges to cherish the experience she’s having for the rest of hers. A third calls it the most important class he’s taken in his degree program.

Still another, an exchange student from England, says the class was a major reason she decided to spend her year abroad at Arizona State University.

“The class has taught me to see beyond a person's current situation or past choices to see who a person truly is, and how much difference we can make to our own lives,” she said.

On March 17, the Sun Devil community will unite once again for Sun Devil Giving Day, a universitywide day of giving when Arizona State University supporters come together to champion the causes they care about the most by giving to an ASU program or initiative.

Whether they care about protecting the planet, serving the community, making education accessible for all, conducting research for the public good or creating learners for life, when supporters donate on Sun Devil Giving Day, the impact of their generosity runs deep throughout the ASU community and beyond.

Cindy Parnell loves to mentor tomorrow’s leaders, and she doesn’t stand still while doing it.

“I like to design and build things,” she said. “I’m not a maintainer.”

Parnell began work March 7 as the first-ever chief of public service at the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions, where she will guide several of the college’s well-known and highly successful programs that focus on community embeddedness in public service.

Movies on the Field is presented by ASU 365 Community Union, an initiative transforming Sun Devil Stadium into a community hub activated with events and free programs 365 days a year. On March 18, guests are invited to bring their blankets, family and friends to sit on the football field and enjoy "The Banker" under the stars on one of the biggest screens in Tempe.