Karen Moyer Walker ’77 is Associate Head of Telluride Mountain School. She grew up in Kentucky and Pennsylvania, receiving her bachelor’s degree in classical studies from Middlebury College and her master’s degree in English from The Bread Loaf School of English, a summer graduate school of Middlebury College.  For seven years, Karen taught English literature and tutored dyslexic boys at the Kildonan School in Amenia, N.Y.  She moved to Telluride in 1990, where she and her mountain guide husband, Peter, ran Ryder-Walker Alpine Adventures (featuring inn-to-inn treks through the Alps). Their son, Branford, was born in 1995.  Branford is now a junior studying creative writing at Idyllwild Arts Academy. 

Karen joined the Telluride Mountain School community in 1998.  She has served the school in several capacities: first as a board member and then as an administrator overseeing the Montessori and Lower School. She also has served as admissions director and worked to integrate the school's academic and experiential programming in the Upper School.  

Here’s what Karen had to say when asked about her experience as a student at Harrisburg Academy:
“I think my love of independent school education is directly related to the attention, care, and excellent instruction that I received at Harrisburg Academy.  My Academy education not only created the opportunity for me to attend a fantastic college, but inspired the love of learning that led to graduate studies, teaching, and ultimately, school leadership.”  

Charlie Mahoney ’85 is an acclaimed freelance photojournalist, multimedia storyteller, and educator who is dedicated to documenting stories of social significance.  Over the last few years he has worked on issues ranging from the plight of African immigrants entering Europe to the troubling issues of climate change to the political unrest in the Maldives.  While his projects have taken him all over the world, he currently is focused on contemporary issues in the Southern Europe.  A sensitive eye to color and complex imagery are signatures of his work.  Charlie has a bachelor’s degree in international relations and biology from Bowdoin College.  Prior to his career in photography, he worked 10 years in finance in San Francisco, Calif.

Since receiving a master’s degree in photojournalism from the University Autónoma of Barcelona, Spain, Charlie has received recognition through numerous international awards, including the Sony World Photography Awards, the Environmental Photographer of the Year Award, the Travel Photographer of the Year Award and the PX3 Prix de la Photographie.  He is a founding member of Prime Collective, a global collective of photojournalists and visual artists, and is a contributing photographer to Corbis and Agency Cosmos in France.  Interested in checking out some of Charlie’s work?  Visit www.charliemahoney.net. 

Deborah Skok ’85 is a history professor at Hendrix College, a small four-year liberal arts college in Conway, Ark.  She caught the “history bug” from Mr. Stewart and Dr. Jones and still has it!  Deborah currently chairs the History Department at Hendrix and is working on a book about childhood during the New Deal.  Her first book, “More than Neighbors,” examined Catholic charities in Chicago from 1893 to 1930.  The courses Deborah teaches include “Poverty and Welfare in American History,” “Vietnam and the 1960s,” and “Leisure in America.” 

Hendrix College is a small community that values close mentoring relationships among faculty and students.  The school’s motto is “demanding but supportive.”  Deborah feels lucky to be learning as much from her students as they learn from her.  During her free time, she volunteers in the costume shop of the college theatre department.

Alex Hassman ’92, his wife, Suzy, and their two children, Wren and Kjetil, live in Gallatin Gateway, Mont.  It is a small town outside of Big Sky.  Alex has established a successful career as a home remodeling contractor with special interest in custom millwork.  He spends his free time taking advantage of the fantastic outdoor activities Montana has to offer.  

Alex and his family enjoy adventuresome trips including rafting, biking, hiking, and camping.  Alex also enjoys the competitive side to these activities as well, participating in several events throughout the year — he took first place in the 2009 Moonlight Basin Headwaters Run-off in the men’s telemark run!

Through the year, Alex finds the time to write for the Big Sky Weekly Contributor, a regional magazine. To read about Alex’s true, life-changing story, click on the link below.   

Explorebigsky.com, December 2, 2011 Issue – “Celebrating life on the Green River”      

Alys Yablon ’94 lives in Seattle, Wash. with her husband, Jeremy, and children, Avi (3) and Ella (1).  After graduating from McGill University in 1997 and earning her master’s degree from Columbia University in 1998, Alys worked as an assistant editor at the Free Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster in New York City.  In 2001, she moved to Jerusalem.  Here she began her career as a freelance book editor and ghostwriter, specializing in spirituality and Judaica titles.  In the last 10 years, she has authored and co-authored several books, including one with Deepak Chopra. Her most recent editorial project was former lobbyist Jack Abramoff's recent memoir, “Capitol Punishment,”which was published in November2011.

Christian Deardorff ’02 graduated in 2006 with honors from University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music.  During his undergraduate work, he performed frequently with the San Diego Symphony and the San Diego Opera.  Christian provides top-notch private guitar, ukulele, bluegrass five-string banjo, and mandolin lessons at Gordon's Music & Sound in Fairfield, Calif.

Christian enjoys teaching students of all ages, abilities, and musical backgrounds, and tailors his teaching to meet each student’s individual needs.  He credits Randy Gutwein and Harrisburg Academy for giving him the opportunity to explore his love of music.

Kate Porter ’03 graduated from Hamilton College with a concentration in French and studio art and then moved to New York City to study fashion design at Parsons The New School of Design.  While there, she interned in the design studios of Thakoon and Donna Karan.  After graduating, Kate began freelancing for a startup fashion company called Amy Claire.  She enjoys the rapid pace of NYC and the challenge the industry provides.

Kate became engaged to Michael Flynn of Edwards, Colo. this past September.  Michael is a graduate of the Vail Mountain School and Hamilton College and is an associate at Nomura Bank in New York City. They are planning a May wedding.

Michael Chernicoff ’05 is in the middle of his second year of graduate school at Boston University, where he is pursuing a Ph.D. in physics.  Michael’s interests lie mostly in high-energy physics, and he has spent a year working on a novel, “Method of Dark Matter Detection.”  As a graduate student, Michael spends a considerable amount of time teaching.  He credits his success to the examples set by his teachers while attending Harrisburg Academy.

Outside of class, Michael has recently self-published a historical fantasy novel that he co-wrote and is working on the first draft of the sequel.  Clearly, Michael’s curiosity has taken him beyond the world of math and science!

Matthew Nye ’05 is the producer of Red Sauce Productions and was recently recognized as the youngest American director to write, direct, and produce an independent feature film. The film, “Two for Three,” followed a rigorous shooting schedule from August through November of 2007. While balancing a fall and spring semester's worth of classes, Matt released the film, which went public in March of 2008. Later that July, the film qualified in an online competition and screened at Tribeca Cinemas. Matt’s most recent production, “Post-Grad Lament,” is based on personal experience and was entered in a competition sponsored by Bombay Sapphire and Playboy. To view Matt’s list of productions, visit www.redsaucefilms.com.

Caroline Hickok ’06 graduated from Mount Holyoke College in the spring of 2010, earning a bachelor’s degree in biology with a minor in educational studies.  During her four years at Mount Holyoke, Caroline was undecided between the idea of becoming a veterinarian or a biology teacher.  After working part time as an education aid at ZooAmerica (coming about as a result of her Harrisburg Academy senior internship), she fell in love with teaching.  However, Caroline has decided to pursue a career in veterinary medicine with the hope of teaching veterinary science in the future.

In January 2011, Caroline left for a three-month internship with a mixed-animal practice in Nelson, New Zealand.  She worked at the clinic with eight different veterinarians five days a week and traveled throughout the country in what turned into a six-month stay.  Interested in reading more about Caroline’s adventures abroad?  Visit her blog at http://blog.travelpod.com/members/caroline1077.