These St. Margaret’s alumni are positively influencing the world through their work in arts, athletics and technology—and national media are taking notice.

 

In a Time Magazine feature titled “How Artists of All Ages Keep Their Creative Spirit Alive” as part of its “Art of Optimism” issue, Kinsale Hueston ‘18 was one of nine artists profiled, as she discussed her award-winning poetry and the empowering voice it gives her.

“My poetry is a way for me to become more visible and, by doing so, create room for people who share my identity. It gives me a voice and a platform,” she told Time.

 

The New York Times Magazine published an in-depth feature on the fight for gender equality in big-wave surfing, an issue St. Margaret’s alumna Bianca Valenti ’03 is front-and-center for as co-founder of the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing.

The Times says that Valenti is “the best female big-wave surfer on the United States mainland.” The magazine details her experiences surfing giant waves at spots in California, Hawaii and Mexico, and her work as an activist fighting for equal opportunities and prizes for women at big-wave surfing competitions.

 

Austin Russell ‘13 is founder of Luminar Technologies, a maker of innovative lidar sensors to help self-driving vehicles reliably recognize their surroundings in 3D. The company has received a lot of media attention, and recent profiles by Forbes and TechCrunch detail Luminar’s collaborations with Audi, Volvo and Toyota as the automobile industry continues to work toward making self-driving vehicles a reality.