Interviews
Nate Tellis '10
Nate Tellis graduated from Bay in 2010 and attended McGill University in Montreal, where he studied physics and computer science.
Currently, Nate serves as a software engineer on the b612 project of the Asteroid Institute; he is working on a map of the solar system. Previously he was the chief technology officer for Rocket CDL, a human resources technology startup he cofounded with fellow Bay alum James Robinson (also Class of 2010). He was also a staff scientist at UC Berkeley’s Department of Astronomy. (Photo: Nate at graduation in 2010 with Bay's former faculty dean Lori Cohen.)
Nate exemplifies Bay's mission to think broadly and "find your range."
Annie Obermeyer '08
Annie Obermeyer was a member of Bay’s first graduating class in 2008. She is currently pursuing a master's degree at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Annie received her BA from Oberlin College and has worked in theater and culinary arts, all while delving deeply into Zen practice. We were lucky to have her return to co-teach our Shakespeare Immersive in 2021. But the “spine of her life” has been the Zen study and mindfulness work she began as a 9th grader with Bay’s then-chaplain Teah Strozer. Annie trained as a monk at San Francisco Zen Center and has a kind of magic touch with our students. Bay’s Art Department Chair and drama teacher Katherine Riley says, “She had our students meditating in total stillness and silence for 15 minutes—with no instruction—within a week, by their own request.” That is no small feat with high school students in the easiest of times.
During our conversation, Annie beautifully described how mindfulness can help heal some of the cracks that have opened in the world—and in us—in recent years.
August Rosedale '18
August Rosedale always liked taking things apart to see how they worked. While a student at Bay, he spent many hours in the Project Center and took all the engineering classes he could with Brad Niven. Now, as a mechanical engineering major in his senior year at Santa Clara University, August is back in the shop, spending a lot of time in the campus’s new STEM building.
The extra time brought by the pandemic took him into the world of artificial intelligence, digital art, and NFTs. It's brought him some unexpected fame and lots of fans, but August keeps it down-to-earth.
Jason Nemerovski '14
Jason Nemerovski is a researcher at Equidem, a human rights and labor organization. He earned his master’s degree at the Graduate Institute Geneva, where he focused on legal and legislative solutions to human trafficking. He also produced the Bold Moves Only podcast, in which he interviewed with activists, politicians, small business owners, and others who are making a positive impact in many realms Listen and learn at boldmovesonly.com.
Boris Cotom '19
“For years, I have searched for a place to call home. I would have thought that Bay would become home, but instead this school taught me that I am my own oasis and that home is wherever my whole self is.”
Boris Cotom spoke these words in his graduation speech to The Bay School community in spring 2019. After graduation, he jumped into life at UC Berkeley, where he was pre-med, studying in the School of Public Health, with a minor in journalism. Always thinking across disciplines and about the social impact of his work, he continues to build a place in the world that is true to his whole self. He is now earning his master's degree at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
In addition to his studies, Boris has taught Spanish and anatomy and is working with multiple public-health research teams at Berkeley.
Updates
Cara Vennari ’08 earned her Ph.D. in geophysics from UC Santa Cruz, and is now a scientist at Lawrence Livermore Lab specializing in the physical and chemical behaviors of the earth’s mantle.
Cindy Dzib '11 graduated from USC in 2015 and, after a Fulbright fellowship in Brazil, has worked as a communications professional, including for San Francisco’s Office of the Environment. Her interest in the connection between communication and culture has been a driving force in her work, and in 2020 she and her brother Kenny produced a docuseries about the local Mayan community, called Mundo Maya. You can read about the creation of this series on the KQED website and watch the Mundo Maya episodes on YouTube.
Noah Tuchow ’12 earned his Ph.D. from Penn State in astronomy and astrophysics with a dual-title in astrobiology, and his bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Chicago. He recently joined the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to help design a space telescope that will be able to observe Earth-like planets around sun-like stars. Noah told us, “I can point to my time at Bay as one of the main reasons why I pursued this area of study.” Read more about his work on the NASA website.
Olivia Lee '13 released her first feature film, Juniper, which was selected for five film festivals in 2022. She attended NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.
Katy Oda ’18 graduated from Carleton in 2022 with a degree in astronomy and astrophysics; she is currently student-teaching high school physics.
Angela Xie '18 was awarded the Frederick Emmons Terman Engineering Scholastic Award from Stanford in April 2023. These awards are presented to the top 5 percent of each year's senior engineering class. Angela invited her college counselor, Dorothy Jones, Bay’s Director of Enrollment Management and Strategic Engagement, to the ceremony and reception for award recipients.
Malik Bosset ’19 began his PhD program in astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz in fall 2023, after graduating from the Honors College of Northern Arizona University in May. During his undergraduate years, Malik worked in science communications at the Lowell Observatory and, as only a junior, presented at the International Astronautical Congress. With his related interest in science communication, Malik’s capstone project at NAU was devoted to black scientists’ contributions to astronomy and astrophysics. Read an interview with Malik.
Mitchell Rusiztky ’20: Graduated early from Northeastern University Boston and won an Emmy in December 2023. He was the marketing producer on a team at SF's Baobab Studios that won for their game "Galactic Catch" in the Outstanding Interactive Media category.
Leila DeSchepper '20 has been recognized for being in the top 5 percent of her major, human biology, in Stanford’s 2024 graduating class. She will be honored along with other members of this cohort at a ceremony in April. Leila is also minoring in math. For her undergraduate research project, she studied how parasites affect the function of gut epithelial cells.