Alumni News
(Use alphabetical list at right to read about other alumni)
Kelly O'Donnell (Class of 2001) attended Padua Academy before transferring to North Harford High School, MD, where she is a senior (2005). She is doing well academically and enjoys the school newspaper and French Club as extra curricular activities. She also works at the Dairy Queen and loves it.
Beth Olney is in her last year in anthropology at West Chester State University. She continues to be a star member of the varsity volleyball team and is an assistant volleyball coach intern at DE Orthopedic Center.
Jason Olney has recently become engaged. He has finished his second year at the university of the Arts in Philadelphia majoring in film and animation.
Eric Orndorff graduated from Jefferson University Medical School after attending the University of Delaware graduate program in air and space engineering. He is starting a special rotation in internal medicine at the Medical Center of Delaware. Eric and his wife are expecting their first child on Christmas Day.
Mark Orndorff graduated from the University of Delaware with a degree in environmental engineering. He is a lieutenant in the army reserves and is part of a new unit to intervene in pollution control around the world.
Sam Page spent a year travelling, studying and doing voluntary work in Central America, where he learned Spanish and developed a strong interest in Latin America. He is currently attending a university in London, majoring in Iberian & Latin American Studies.
David Pajerowski is married, living in Philadelphia and desperately trying to wrap up his PhD in Bioengineering the University of Pennsylvania. (David graduated in from UD (2001) with a degree in Chemical Engineering and Math. He presently works as a genetic engineer with a company called Physiome in New Jersey. He plans to further his education in the cognitive and neurological development of artificial intelligence.)
Tony Pajerowski is single. He has just finished his fourth year of a Doctorate in Immunology at the University of Pennsylvania, but will be finishing in Rochester, Minnesota at the Mayo Clinic starting in August 2008. (Tony is a senior at UD (2001/02) studying Biology and Music. After spending the summer interning with Astrozenica in bioinformatics research he has decided the corporate world should not be his home. So now he stays awake at night wondering which path to embark upon.)
Daniel Pajerowski just completed his 4th year of a Doctorate program in Physics at the University of Florida. He is single and traveling the world giving presentations “in god knows what- something to do with solid states,” says his Mother. He graduated from UD (2001/02) with a major in Astrophysics and Art.
Matt Paladinetti married Theresa Petrowsky on April 19, 2003. They are expecting their first child some time in October. Matt graduated from Caravel Academy in 1995. He has worked for Delaware Park Race Track and Slots as a Fire Lieutenant in their Fire and EMS Department since 1997 where he also heads an employee CPR training program. In the past two years he has assisted in saving the lives of three people after they went into cardiac arrest at Delaware Park. Matt spends a good deal of his time volunteering at the Christiana Fire Co. as a firefighter EMT.
Nori Pao completed her Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Arizona. She was an artist in residence at Anderson Ranch College for a year and then Sculpture Assistant. She then lived and worked (mixed media sculpture and drawings) in New York and taught ceramics at The Craft Students League, a continuing art education program for adults run through the YWCANYC. Nori is now living in Minnesota with her boyfriend. She works as a studio artist and is also Adjunct Faculty in the Fine Arts Department at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design.
David Parker (Class of 2009) is a sophomore at Newark High School (2010). I have been at NCCL for nine years now. My highlights have been working in Group One, having fun with all my friends, and apprenticing. Apprenticing was extremely fun; I really liked working at Days of Knights. I’ll miss my friends and the breaks we always got, we will never get those in high school - I wish we would though. When I go to Newark High School I’m looking forward to meeting tons of new friends and I’m hoping I’ll have a lot of fun in all my classes. I will also see all my old friends that graduated last year. The lessons I have learned here at NCCL are that you should always be open to suggestions, and always have an open mind. You should also be kind to everyone so other people will be nice to you and hopefully you will have more friends that way. I’ll take with me all of the knowledge and advice that I have gotten from the teachers.
Raymond Parker (Class of 1993) graduated from Newark High where he played basketball, belonged to the cross country team, the Key Club, the Nature Society and the Chess Club. He received the Principal and Athletic Director Awards. Ray graduated from the University of Delaware in 2002 with a B.S. in Economics. He started a job with Accenture early 2003 then quit at the end of the summer to go back to school. He got halfway through a MA in Economics also at UD before moving to Richmond in Aug 2004 to be closer to His girlfriend, Kristin (now his wife). They met in June of 2003 at a wedding. After that, He took a job at Ernst & Young in Jan 2005 and worked there as a healthcare consultant until April 2009. While he was there, They got married on November 3rd, 2007, and had their first baby, Sophia Marie, on Sept 20th, 2008. Ray started a new job this May with a very small healthcare consulting company called DSH Management Solutions, LLC. So, for now he is just busy with work and chasing after their 8-month old!
Caroline Parker is married and expecting her first child. (She attended Del Tech for a year of nursing school and then moved to Florida where she attends Hillsborough Community College in the nursing program. She joined the cheerleading squad and works 2 jobs.)
Catharine Parker (Class of 2003) Catharine will be interning in Bermuda this summer (2010). "I'm finally going to train dolphins!" She graduated from Newark High School where she played soccer, and volleyball, and was a member of the Key Club, the Drama Club, and the Student Government. She says that NCCL "made me more confident about myself and my opinions. It has taught me to not worry about what people think of me because everybody is themselves here. And I have learned to accept everybody for who they are, and not try to make them something else." She now attends Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL where she is currently working on an Environmental Studies major with a double minor in Biology and Psychology. She recently traveled to New Zealand to participate in a dolphin research project, and hopes to pursue a career in environmental conservation and education.
Travis Parsons (Class of 2003) is attending The Concept School. Some of his favorite memories of his two years at NCCL include playing basketball with the other kids and Sean during breaks. His favorite subjects at NCCL were gym, writing, and science.
Desiree Danielle Parsons (Class of 2004) How old are you? 13. What is important to you? Horseback riding, my family, pets, and friends. What do you like to do in your spare time? Horseback ride, watch movies (with Johnny Depp). What are your favorite school subjects? Reading and writing. What high school do you plan to attend? The Concept School. What excites you about going to high school? Well, I met a few people in my high school that I'm going to and they're all nice, so I'm looking forward to spending the next four years with them. What scares you about going to high school? Nothing. How old were you when you started going to NCCL? I went here when I was younger, then I left for a while because my brothers couldn't get in. I came back as soon as there was an opening for us, which was in my non-grad year of Group 4. What are some of the highlights of your years at NCCL? Well, I met Jocelyn. And I have a lot of friends now. What special opportunities/experiences has NCCL provided that you will carry on to other places? I learned how to ski, but I really didn't like it. I learned how to sew and I like it.
Miranda Partie (Class of 2010) is attending Sanford.
Kim Passidomo graduated from Newark High School and is attending Maryland Institute College of Art.
Elizabeth (Liz) Pilchard (Class of 2003) is attending William Penn High School. Liz says that at NCCL, "I learned to be open minded and I learned to stand up for what I believe in. So at other places, I will work my butt off for what I want. And nothing will move me.
Jason Pinder owns and renovated a piano bar in Middletown called Maynard's. The News Journal has said that it offers elegance and execution as well as saying that it is brilliantly beautiful!
Joy Pinder is attending Hodgson Vo-Tech. Her interest in sewing, which she learned how to do at NCCL, led to her decision to become a fashion designer. She says, "I feel going to NCCL was a wonderful experience. Having teachers you can talk to and actually learn from is great when it comes to education." She helps her brother Jason in the summer at his piano bar and is a volunteer coach for 7 through 10 year-olds. She mentions that she did the staining in her brother's brilliantly beautiful restaurant.
Remi Daniel Poindexter (Class of 2004) says, " After 4 years I finally graduated from high school! We didn’t get any funny awards, but my experience was great. My time in the International Baccalaureate Programme was challenging but somehow I managed to remain stress-free. While at Mount Pleasant High School, I participated in too many activities to list, met lots of new people, and started speaking Spanish. Next year I will be going to the University of Delaware in the Honors Program with the hope of going to medical school thereafter. I am excited to be moving on once again and look forward to what the future will hold. " (Age: 13. Things of Importance: My family and friends are important to me. What I do in my spare time: Aside from doing my homework, I e-mail friends, I talk with my parents, play games, etc. Preferred Subjects: My favorite subjects are writing, research, reading and science. Future High School: International Baccalaureate Programme at Mount Pleasant High School. Things that excite me about high school: Meeting new friends, new classes. Things that frighten me about high school: More people, larger environment. My age at the time I came to this school: I came to NCCL in 1st grade when I was 6. NCCL highlights: Being with my friends, camping trips. NCCL opportunities/experiences: NCCL has given me the opportunity to feel more confident in the things I do. I also feel more comfortable around people.)
Tori Poole (Class of 2004) How old are you? I turned fourteen last September. What's important to you? Art. I love sculpting. Also mythical creatures, mainly dragons. Dragons are the coolest mythical creatures! What do you like to do in your spare time? Mostly I sculpt and write stories. I have a long one that I love, and want to publish. But I also like to play video games, like Zelda, Final Fantasy Tactics, or Fire Emblem. What are your favorite school subjects? Art class and writing class mostly, but research and math are interesting as well. What high school do you plan to attend? Newark High. I'm in district, so I'm going there. My older sister is going there. She's going to be a senior next year. I'm going to know a bunch of seniors in my freshman year. What excites you about going to high school? Meeting new people, definitely. I'm not that great at meeting new people, so this will be interesting. I'm looking forward to it! What scares you about going to high school? The tests and the homework. I see my sister come home with tons of homework all the time. I hate homework... How old were you when you started going to school at NCCL? I was nine. I started in the fifth grade. What are some of the highlights of your years at NCCL? Meeting all of my best friends is the only one I can think of. I met Elle in my first year, Stephanie in my second, and Lauren in my fourth. They're the best friends I have. Also, being in the Group 4 play, A Midsummer Night's Dream as a fairy. It was really fun. What special opportunities/experiences has NCCL provided that you will carry on to other places? It really helped me to be more social. I was held back one time, in the sixth grade, my second year here, because I wasn't social and only had like, two friends out of around one hundred students. Also I'm much better at math now. In my old school, I always got bad grades in math class. NCCL has been great for me.
Roger Price is married and has two children. He has been a disc jockey, studio manager and chief engineer for various radio stations, a free-lance on-camera actor, voice talent and print advertising model, and the national spokesperson for Circuit City stores. He has taught Sound for the Stage at Longwood College in Farmville, VA, and does on-camera training videos. He has his own recording studio, Whisper Recording.
Brian Pruett was married in August 1998. He is working in the Post office and has recently bought a house.
Kyla Rafert graduated from Friends School where she took every art class, played volleyball and softball, and was in a school musical. She now attends the Rhode Island School of Design.
Eric Rasmussen and his wife finished refurbishing their 58 foot pilot boat on which they live. They are expecting a baby in February 2001. He works refurbishing boats.
Heidi Rasmussen is the quality control specialist for products and employees for Illy Expresso of America (a coffee company).
Reed Rasmussen is still singing with the Seattle Symphony Chorus and working at QFC as a gourmet chef.
Tami Rasmussen Tonder is caring for her husband and two sons. She works as a public works engineering consultant. She really loves her job!
