Pitzer College Alumni Association

06/03/2026

On most campuses, graduation weekend means caps and gowns.

For 13 graduating Pitzer seniors on the Claremont Braineaters Ultimate team, it meant cleats, jerseys, and one final tournament together.

While Commencement 2026 was taking place back on campus, the Braineaters were competing at the USA Ultimate Division III National Championships in Illinois — where they finished fifth in the nation and earned the tournament’s coveted Spirit Award for sportsmanship and positivity.

But for co-captain Jamie Miller '26 and his teammates, the weekend was about something bigger than winning.

“This tournament is really important to us because we see it as a celebration of the last four years with our team,” Miller said.

For the Brains, nationals wasn’t missing graduation. It was another kind of graduation entirely.

Read more: https://ow.ly/yUIZ50Z3k3n

06/02/2026

Honoring the Sagehens' athletic past:

This spring, Pitzer’s own Erik Munzer ’13 returned to be inducted into the Sagehens Hall of Fame, honoring his legacy as a standout student-athlete in both soccer and baseball.

Joining him for the celebration were his mother, Cindy, and sister, Alison, along with former Sagehens Head Baseball Coach Frank Pericolosi, whose mentorship — and international baseball connections — helped launch Munzer’s opportunity to play baseball in Belgium after college.

It was a night filled with memories, gratitude and lifelong bonds—and were proud of Munzer for representing Pitzer!

05/30/2026

Earlier this month, Pitzer's Commencement 2026 also celebrated graduates from Pitzer’s Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA program — an educational partnership that brings together “inside” students at the California Rehabilitation Center (CRC) and “outside” students from Pitzer in shared college classrooms.

This year, three members of the program walked during Pitzer’s campus ceremony, while nine additional graduates (pictured) from the Class of 2026 were honored during a special ceremony held May 19 inside the CRC that featured Pitzer President Strom Thacker and Isabelle Thacker.

The Pitzer community is proud of these graduates, their perseverance and the powerful example they set through education, connection and achievement. We look forward to all that lies ahead for them.

05/23/2026

What's one of the first discoveries that students make about painting murals?

For Professor of Art Jessica McCoy, it boils down to one word: scale.

“Everything’s just bigger … the brushes, the amount of paint. You need more of everything,” she said in the latest issue of The Participant Magazine. “Painting a mural forces you to think about scale in a completely different way.”

As the new issue of The Participant Magazine looks at Pitzer's mural tradition, McCoy offers insights into mural-painting and the joyful experience of collaborating with students on murals in the surrounding community.

“I don’t really show my students how to paint a mural in my classes,” says McCoy, a member of PItzer's faculty since 2006. “We all paint together. We collaborate. We learn from each other how to paint that mural.”

Read more and watch an interview with McCoy here: https://ow.ly/3PGW50YZQJX

05/18/2026

When Peruvian artist Yandos Rios (pictured) raised his brush to start a scene atop Avery Hall in 1973, a tradition of mural-painting began at Pitzer. Though the mural was short-lived — it was painted over — Rios returned to Pitzer and recreated it in the same spot in 1996, more than 23 years later. His return was followed by a mural boom on campus—started by Darci Raphael ’97 and Aaron Rhodes ’97 (pictured with their Mead mural) -- that continues to this day.

Though many campus murals started out as a form of student protest, the tradition has evolved into a central pillar of Pitzer’s approach to public art. Today, more than 50 murals are on campus … and more are getting added every year.

Read more about Pitzer’s murals: https://ow.ly/2onZ50YZOu8

05/16/2026

Mindful of graduating seniors' futures:

Led by Senior Class President Wini Lindholm '26, the Class of 2026 Giving Committee is applying Pitzer's motto "Provida futuri" (mindful of the future) to future classes of graduating seniors.

They have worked with the Pitzer administration to create the Senior Class Impact Fund, which is aimed at helping graduating seniors navigate the financial pressures that often accompany post-graduate plans.

The fund is intended to support expenses such as graduate school application fees, interview travel, fellowship participation, thesis materials, professional networking opportunities and other support.

“There are seniors with so many great post-graduate opportunities, but they’re still facing barriers to achieve them,” Lindholm said.

Pictured -- Class of 2026 Giving Committee members (back row, from left) are Ellie Mobley ’26, Lake Payne ’26, Anna-Sofia Simmons ’26; (front row, from left) Stella Isarankura ’26, Wini Lindholm ’26, Aaron Matsuoka ’26

Read more: https://ow.ly/wlHQ50YZPxR

05/14/2026

Is that the next John Williams playing jazz at the Grove House? As a self-designed media scoring major, Noah Straus ’26 excels in Pitzer’s thriving music scene.

With aspirations to become a film composer, Straus is joining the USC Thornton School of Music this fall.

Read more: https://ow.ly/JARr50YYrPq

Is that the next John Williams playing jazz at the Grove House? As a media scoring major at Pitzer College, Noah Straus ’26 has become a familiar go-to for storytelling through sound.Straus has composed music for student films, fashion shows and even philosophical concepts. He has also played live...

05/09/2026

As a future clinical psychologist, Kaylene Yee ’26 is committed to youth mental health. Her next career step is a two-year fellowship at McLean Hospital.

Get to know this standout member of the Class of 2026: https://ow.ly/9Phi50YWGrg

05/07/2026

Numbers intimidated Anya Sharma ’26 as a high school student. She never imagined she’d flourish as a mathematical economics major and a data justice champion.

Yet that's how she finds herself now at Pitzer.

Read more: https://ow.ly/IChZ50YVhy7

Numbers and equations intimidated Anya Sharma ’26 as a high school student. She never imagined she’d flourish as a mathematical economics major and a data justice champion. Yet that’s how she finds herself now at Pitzer College.Sharma, who is also a data science minor, first saw STEM as a tool...

05/05/2026

Robinson Lee ’26 has equipped himself for The Fulbright Program fellowship and public service career with his Pitzer education: https://ow.ly/F2Wx50YT2S2

Robinson Lee ’26 considers his family heritage and career aspirations to be inseparable. From his classes to his internships, he has advocated for Asian and Asian American communities like the one where he grew up in Arcadia, Calif. His next step on this path? A 2026 Fulbright fellowship in South ...