People
New York Times Beirut bureau chief Ben Hubbard conducted hundreds of interviews over seven years for MBS: The Rise to Power of Mohammed bin Salman. The book tracks the trajectory of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, a largely mysterious figure who has rapidly asserted his control over the kingdom’s oil, finances, military, and domestic and foreign policy.
Ashley O’Shay’s documentary Unapologetic follows the work of two young Black women who organize for Black political, economic and social liberation. The feature-length documentary premiered at the BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia last summer.
First-time director Wendy Levine Sachs co-directed and produced Surge, a feature documentary film that follows three female candidates who fought to flip their districts from red to blue in the last midterm election.
Misha Euceph, a podcast host, writer and producer, created Dustlight Productions, a mission-driven podcast studio with diversity at its core. Dustlight will release its first original podcasts in 2021, and Euceph is an executive producer on The Michelle Obama Podcast.
In his more than 20 years as president of the Chicago Community Loan Fund, Calvin Holmes has guided the nonprofit to lend more than $1 billion, reaching more than 70 low-wealth Chicago-area communities and providing funding for affordable housing, commercial real estate, community spaces and social enterprise.
Stephen Peck, who served with the Marines in Vietnam, is president and CEO of the Los Angeles–based United States Veterans Initiative (U.S.VETS). The nation’s largest veteran services nonprofit, U.S.VETS runs 20 residential sites and nine service centers across the country, offering counseling, job placement, case management, employment assistance, and drug- and alcohol-free housing.
Michael Moreci has written two novels, Black Star Renegades and its sequel, We Are Mayhem. He’s also written for Lucasfilm and recently finished work on The Clone Wars: Battle Tales, a five-issue miniseries that ties into The Clone Wars TV show.
Igor Karlicic ’12 and Bhargav Maganti ’12 founded the Dallas-based sports tech company from Monarc. Their first creation is the Seeker, a smart quarterback that uses positional tracking technology.
Chicago Red Stars defender Kayla Sharples cherishes growth experiences on and off the pitch. Sharples, the 26th overall in the 2019 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) draft, was among the first professional athletes in the country to compete last summer through the NWSL’s 2020 Challenge Cup.
Ziwe Fumudoh ’14 has re-created appointment TV in the streaming era with her Thursday night Instagram Live show. In the sharply funny, confrontational and often wildly uncomfortable show, Fumudoh interviews celebrity guests to get at their implicit biases and start conversations about race and racism.
