Notable Alumni of Plymouth State University

Plymouth State University (PSU), a public institution in Plymouth, New Hampshire, boasts a rich history dating back to its founding in 1871 as Plymouth Normal School. Over the years, PSU has evolved into a comprehensive university offering a wide array of undergraduate and graduate programs. Among its many accomplishments, PSU is particularly recognized for its meteorology program, considered one of the best in the eastern United States. Throughout its history, Plymouth State University has produced numerous notable alumni who have made significant contributions in various fields. This article aims to highlight some of the most prominent graduates and former students of Plymouth State University.

Prominent Alumni

Plymouth State University has a diverse alumni base, including individuals who have achieved recognition in fields such as business, politics, athletics, arts, and sciences. This list showcases some of the distinguished individuals who have attended Plymouth State University.

Dean Kamen

Dean Lawrence Kamen, born on April 5, 1951, is an American engineer, inventor, and businessman. Born to a Jewish family in Long Island, New York, he attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute but dropped out before graduating after five years of private advanced research for the insulin pump AutoSyringe. He is the son of Jack Kamen, an illustrator for Mad, Weird Science and other EC Comics publications.

Bill Keneely

Bill Keneely has been a member of The Weather Channel meteorology since March 1982, two months before the network's official launch in May of that year. Currently, he is seen on programs that include PM Edition, which airs Saturdays and Sundays at 11pm & 2 am ET. Keneely's favorite weather event took place when he was just a youngster. He still remembers the experience that he describes in this way -- February 9 & 10, 1969.

Heather Tesch

A native of Buffalo, MN, Heather Tesch earned a Bachelor's degree in journalism/broadcast from University Of Minnesota-Minneapolis and a bachelor's degree in meteorology from Plymouth State College at Plymouth, NH, And She is a Member of the American Meteorological Society.

Read also: Affording Plymouth State

Jeffrey Robert Howard

Jeffrey Robert Howard, born November 4, 1955, is the Chief United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Scott Chandler

Scott Chandler is Vice President, Worldwide Sales at Infinera. Chandler joined Infinera in 2003 and has experience with CLEC accounts, the enterprise, and the service provider market.

Joe Dudek

Joe Dudek gained national attention when he was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated's December 2, 1985, issue as the magazine's pick for the Heisman Trophy after he broke Walter Payton's NCAA record for career touchdowns. Dudek finished his collegiate career with ten school records. He holds the NCAA record for career 100-yard rushing games (30) and games with two or more touchdowns (24). Plymouth State went 37-6 during his time there, reaching the Eastern College Athletic Conference playoffs twice and earning their first-ever NCAA playoff appearance. To this date, his jersey is the only one that Plymouth State has retired. Dudek played two games for the Denver Broncos in 1987 (during the 1987 NFL players' strike), rushing for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Dudek was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997.

Richard Chandler

Richard Chandler majored in physical education and played basketball and tennis during his time at Plymouth State. He recently received recognition for his achievements by being inducted into the Merrimack Valley Athletics Hall of Fame, acknowledging his significant contributions to sports and athletics. Chandler spent his career at a school in Penacook, NH, serving as an athletic director and teacher before retiring in 1995. His notable accomplishment in sports includes being part of the Plymouth State basketball team that secured the N.E. Teachers College Athletic Conference Championship in 1960.

Carolyn Trosky-Absher

Carolyn Trosky-Absher had an enriching career as a teacher, with a diverse range of teaching experiences both in the United States and abroad. Her teaching journey took her to several locations in the US, including Plymouth and Hudson, NH, as well as Incline Village, NV, and Kerrydale Elementary in Virginia. Beyond domestic teaching, Carolyn ventured internationally, teaching in significant cities like Warsaw, Frankfurt, Mexico City, Beijing, and Moscow.

Raymond Grady

Raymond Grady majored in education during his time at PSU. After graduating, Grady became a history teacher at North Andover public schools. Recently he has been inducted into their Education Hall of Fame. He was humbled, honored, and surprised by the induction. He counts this as one of the nicest things that has happened to him professionally.

Peter Cofran

Peter Cofran was inducted into the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association (NHIAA) Hall of Fame in November 2023, recognizing his over 50 years of dedicated service to New Hampshire high school athletics.

Don Clark

Don Clark, a retired commander of the Portsmouth Police Department, had a distinguished career in law enforcement and public safety. A graduate of the FBI National Academy’s Class 158, Clark has transitioned from his role in the police department to serving as the director of safety and security at the University of New England.

Ellen (Larsen) Wallwork

Ellen (Larsen) Wallwork loved skiing at Waterville Valley and Loon Mountain during her time at Plymouth State. She also enjoyed tubing down the Pemi River in late spring.

Barbara Montague

Barbara Montague is entering a one-year specialty training fellowship at the University of Texas in San Antonio in addiction medicine in June 2024 after a term of retirement from family medicine practice.

Read also: PSU Football Through the Years

Gary Rabinovitz

Gary Rabinovitz received the lifetime achievement award from the Additive Manufacturing User Group (AMUG), the second in the organization’s 36-year history.

Guy T. Wisinski

Guy T. Wisinski joined the University Advancement team at Plymouth, serving as philanthropic development officer.

Elizabeth (Currier) Morin

Elizabeth (Currier) Morin has served dual roles as the owner/director/teacher of Imaginations…A Child’s Place in Moultonborough since 2007.

Kerri (Mather) Cotter

Kerri (Mather) Cotter has just appeared on a new Showtime comedy special called Funny Women of a Certain Age, streaming now. She’s been on Oprah, Dr. Oz, and The Howard Stern Show. Kerri Louise was a finalist on NBC’s Last Comic Standing and starred in her own reality TV show, Two Funny, on The WE Network. She has been featured on Comedy Central, VH1, and TrueTV countless times. She’s been on numerous TV talk shows, podcasts, and is a regular on Sirius XM radio. You’ve seen her high heels on stages like The Apprentice, America’s Got Talent, Comics Unleashed, Gotham Live, and she was the warm-up for The View. Her comedy career started in college back in 1990 when her Delta Zeta sorority sisters begged her to enter the Miss Plymouth State College pageant. She did standup comedy for the first time as her talent and won the whole thing! Kerri went on to represent PSC in the New Hampshire State Pageant. She now lives in New York with her comedian husband, Tom Cotter, and their three sons. Being in a household full of testosterone, Kerri needed an escape, which is why she started her webisode, My Mommy Minute. That audience inspired Kerri to write Mean Mommy, a funny “how-to” mom book, and a children’s book entitled Harry The Elephant Has An Allergy, both on sale now on Amazon. This two-time author, hilarious comic, and mother of three (four if you count her husband) can be found performing all over the country.

Gerald Beaulieu

Gerald Beaulieu is enjoying life on the West Coast and has recently stepped away from hi-tech after 32 years to pursue other interests.

Julie True Kingsley

Julie True Kingsley has taught almost everything from preschool to grad school. She has since founded an educational site called The Manuscript Academy and The Manuscript Academy Podcast.

Susan Goraczkowski

Susan Goraczkowski is happy to announce that she was officially promoted on April 6, 2024, and found out right before her sixth anniversary with the company! When she’s not at work, Susan enjoys spending time with her family; being invited by teammates to fun activities (renaissance fair, corn mazes, escape rooms, and game nights); traveling up north to her favorite places in North Conway and Meredith and walking with her work friends.

Kimberley Connors

Kimberley Connors is the new executive director of the Massachusetts Campaign for Single Payer Health Care (Mass-Care). Connors, who lives in Maynard, MA, has a strong background in progressive politics and Single Payer advocacy, having chaired the Maynard Democratic Committee and been active in various progressive groups. Her interest in health care reform began after a personal experience with breast cancer, which exposed her to the systemic issues within the health care system, including high costs and profit-driven practices. This experience led her to become a passionate advocate for Single Payer health care. Connors has organized and participated in numerous Medicare for All forums, testifying on Beacon Hill, and working on campaigns for candidates who support Single Payer, such as US Senator Ed Markey and Tami Gouveia. As the new executive director, Connors is excited to work with Mass-Care’s board and volunteers to continue building grassroots support for a single-payer health care system in Massachusetts.

Domenica Medaglia-Brown

Domenica Medaglia-Brown, her husband, and their two beautiful children have been part of Whole Village Family Resource Center for over 10 years and consistently take advantage of various family strengthening programs, resources, and connections. Additionally, she assists with outreach, serves as a parent voice on its Early Childhood Regional Team, and acts as a local CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate/Guardian ad Litem) volunteer, advocating for children who are in state care. Domenica works full-time at Plymouth State University for the TRIO program, a federally funded program aimed at providing support, mentorship, and guidance to students who are first generation, income eligible, or have a documented disability.

Jeff Nadeau

Jeff Nadeau was recognized by the Rhode Island Athletic Trainers’ Association as the Athletic Trainer of the Year. Jeff credits Professors Julie Bernier, Linda Levy, and Liesl Lindley for guiding him through his athletic training journey from a nontraditional student to a 20+ year professional. He currently serves as head athletic trainer at St.

Crystal Rousseau

Crystal Rousseau is a marketing and communications graduate leading sales at L’Oreal USA in NYC. While excelling in her career, she returned to NH, balancing her leadership role with a heartwarming commitment as a board member for the Webster House Children’s Home as well as recently accepting a position on Plymouth State’s President’s Council.

Stefanie Webb

Stefanie Webb was appointed the new managing vice president of government relations at The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM). Previously, she was director of corporate affairs at Gopuff, where she established the federal affairs program and managed public and government affairs during market expansions. In her new role, Webb will lead NAM’s government relations strategy to enhance US manufacturing competitiveness. She brings extensive experience from previous roles at Anheuser-Busch and the United States Navy Reserve.

Kyle Worth

Kyle Worth has founded and sold two healthcare companies in New Hampshire. He was named one of the state’s ‘40 Most Influential Young Professionals’ by both the Union Leader and the Nashua Telegraph. He has since transitioned his career to real estate, where he specializes in large scale renovations of apartment buildings in southern New Hampshire. Kyle, his wife Erin Worth (PSU class of ’09) and their two wonderful children are currently renovating a waterfront vacation rental community on Little Squam Lake. It is the perfect place for PSU alumni to stay when they are back in the Plymouth area!

Kathleen Fleming-Clemente

Kathleen Fleming-Clemente worked at Greater Lawrence Technical School as a school social worker until June 2021. She then worked as a part-time school psychologist for a year at the Timberlane Regional School district. Kathleen currently works part time as a clinician for Endurance Behavioral Health in Seabrook, NH.

Kory Reynolds

Kory Reynolds was recently promoted to tax principal at Baker Newman Noyes.

Allison Standish

Allison Standish is a certified athletic trainer at West Haven High School in West Haven, CT. During her four years at PSU she met wonderful people, including friends she still keeps in touch with and mentors who taught her everything she knows.

Anwar Cameron

Anwar Cameron obtained an MBA with a certification in healthcare administration. After graduation he obtained his medical doctorate from American University of Antigua College of Medicine. Anwar went on to complete his family medicine residency in ’19 through Southern Illinois University.

Steven Curry

Steven Curry majored in mathematics with a middle school teaching certification and was the student assistant for the Panther baseball team, a part of the sports information department, and was an avid member of intramural sports on campus. After completing his student teaching at Windham Middle School (NH), Steven accepted a full-time position there as a middle school math teacher where he has been teaching and coaching volleyball, basketball, and baseball for the last nine years.

Victoria (Brochu) Graham

Victoria (Brochu) Graham majored in health promotion. After graduating, she worked in the public health field for several years, in both clinical and community settings. She married in 2018 and moved to South Carolina with her husband and two rescue dogs in 2020. Victoria has since gone on to complete graduate school, receiving her master of public health degree in 2023. She began working for the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control and served as a program coordinator for the Lowcountry Immunizations Program, where she was responsible for managing a regional team of nurses and administrative staff who worked in over 160 schools in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina implementing a school-based flu vaccine program.

Donovan King

Donovan King manages the Dartmouth College biorepository and is also extending his academic experience by attending graduate school at Dartmouth College in epidemiology.

Ami Patel

Ami Patel recently accepted a new position as chief population health officer for Yuvo Health.

Anna Brown

Anna Brown has truly gone full circle in the last six months. She graduated from Plymouth in 2016 and has lived in various parts of the country (Kentucky, North Carolina, and Maine). She has spent her time working in higher education in residential life and first-year experience work. Beginning in 2022, she decided to take the leap of faith and go back to school to become a therapist. As she started to look at programs, a mentor she had from PSU told her to look into the clinical mental health counseling program. She loved being at PSU during her undergraduate degree and was ecstatic to be accepted into the master’s program.

Christin (Crowell) Farrell

Christin (Crowell) Farrell majored in childhood studies. She was a part of PACE, as the banner coordinator, and participated in the Catholic Ministry Youth Group. After graduation, she worked at a charter school for grades 1-5, then went into childcare as an infant and toddler teacher. The last two school years she has been teaching multi-age classrooms as a Kindergarten/first and first/second grade teacher! Christin also worked as a summer camp program director for the past six years.

Katarina (Walker) Keeler

Katarina (Walker) Keeler is a current grad student at the University of Montana, studying for a master’s in social work. Senior athletes for PSU women’s rugby 2016.

Kaylee (Darigan) Lambert

Kaylee (Darigan) Lambert majored in communication and media and was a founding member of the PSU Film Club. She held the positions of secretary (’13-’14), vice president (’14-’15) and president (’15-’16). After graduating she moved into a corporate graphic design position, then an agency graphic design position, which she currently holds. She married Brandon Lambert in 2020 and welcomed a son, Thomas, in 2022.

Courtney Leahy

Courtney Leahy majored in athletic training and was president of the women’s rugby football club. After graduating, she worked full time as an athletic trainer while also pursuing a master’s in health, PE, and recreation. She now is a senior athletic trainer for Mass General Brigham and provides medical coverage for Boston Public Schools.

Colin McKenna

Colin McKenna worked in digital marketing since graduation, where he was promoted to team lead. He currently works for RafterOne (formally PixelMedia) with lifestyle Ecom brands as a salesforce commerce cloud SEO expert.

Bethany Morin

Since graduating with her MBA, Bethany Morin has continued her career in higher education, specifically in advancement. She is currently the director of alumni engagement and annual giving at Franklin Pierce University.

Elizabeth Whatley

Elizabeth Whatley majored in biology and competed on the PSU ski team. She met Max Martin, a fellow ski team member, in 2013. They have been together since freshman year and recently got married in September 2023. Eliza and Max live in the Jackson Hole area where Max owns his business and Eliza works as an optometrist.

Dr. Marissa (Davis) Blake

Dr. Marissa (Davis) Blake majored in criminal justice, serving as the vice president of the Class of 2017 and president of Delta Zeta Sorority. Building on her experiences as a work study student in the Student Activities Office and her engagement in Delta Zeta’s philanthropic efforts, Marissa went on to build a career in the nonprofit sector, where she currently serves as the program manager of Women in Philanthropy for the American Red Cross National Headquarters. Marissa was married to her husband Thomas Blake in June 2019 and the couple welcomed their first child in 2021. They reside in Rutland, VT. It’s worth sharing that Marissa met lifelong friends at PSU, including Vianca (Ramirez) Miller-Nelson, Miranda (Beaudry) McAlister, and Christina (Lanfranchi) Phillips.

Hannah Dutton

Hannah Dutton majored in anthropology/sociology with a focus in anthropology and a minor in French. She was an active member of PSU Po…

Other Notable Attendees and Affiliates

Robert Frost

While not an alumnus, Robert Frost, the renowned New England poet, taught at Plymouth State, then called Plymouth Normal School, for a year before he moved with his family to England. Despite his brief time here, PSU has numerous commemorations of the New England poet, including the Robert Frost House behind Mary Lyon and a Frost collection in the Spinelli Archives. But Frost’s Plymouth legacy lives on most visibly through the bronze statue of the poet outside of Rounds Hall, where he taught. Installed in October 2005, the statue has become a campus landmark that students see almost daily.

The history of the Frost statue itself began in 1995, when Colorado-based sculptor George Lundeen was assigned a task. He was commissioned by Dartmouth College alumni to mold a bronze statue of Frost, a Dartmouth alumnus. After accepting the assignment, Lundeen looked for a reference photo to capture Frost the best he could. He eventually came across a photo from the 1940s that depicted sculptor Walker Hancock designing a bust of Frost. After finishing the statue for Dartmouth College, Lundeen made 20 more replica statues of Frost, including the one that sits outside of Rounds Hall. Other locations where the Frost statue can be found include CU Boulder, West Texas A&M, and the original at Dartmouth College.

Paul Reubens

Paul Reubens, who created and portrayed Pee-wee Herman, attended Plymouth State for a semester before transferring.

Alumni Updates and Engagements

Plymouth State University actively engages with its alumni community through various events and initiatives. Alumni are encouraged to stay connected with their alma mater and fellow graduates.

Maida Velez-Kopet and David Kopet’s son Lukas David was born June 10, 2014. The university encourages alumni to share their good news and life updates. Alumni can catch up with one another and Plymouth State by attending events near them or traveling to explore new places. Information about alumni events can be found on the alumni events page or by calling (800) 772-2620. The university relies on family members and media releases to inform them of the passing of Plymouth State alumni.

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