The Weird and Wonderful World of Ransom Riggs

A reigning force on the young-adult best-seller list, Ransom Riggs '01 pulls in readers with haunting imagery and explores the shadows between fantasy and reality.

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Wake-up Call

Like many college yearbooks, Kenyon’s "Reveille" has fallen on hard times in recent years. Observers blame uneven funding, lack of interest among students, and social media.

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Peace in Earth

Kenyon’s land trust turns a golf course into a public nature preserve—including space for environmentally friendly burials that bring the past into the future.

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Also In This Edition

Holi, the ancient Hindu festival that welcomes spring with a shower of color, in this case marked the last day of classes. Colored corn starch was in the air and on the skin and clothes of all comers to Ransom Lawn.

A view into Ransom Hall through the vestibule doors, before the Office of Admissions stirs into life.

Student Life

Well Versed

English major meets graduation goal by publishing a book of poetry.

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Kenyon in Quotes

“When I saw their draft, I liked the ending better than I liked the ending of my book. That was a good feeling—and a little bit annoying.” —John Green ’00, in the Los Angeles Times, commenting on the film adaptation of his novel "The Fault in Our Stars"

General Kenyon

Team Transition

Changes in the ranks of Kenyon’s leadership team keep the Decatur administration on firm footing.

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Margin of Error

31
Percentage of Kenyon students who have a car on campus.

83
Percentage of Kenyon students who think marijuana should be legal.

25
Percentage of Kenyon students who have attended a religious service in the last month.

Go, Go, Go

Sierra DeLeon ’14, a two-sport athlete, packed away her volleyball gear from the fall and shifted into spring in high gear. She strung together multiple explosive performances that included record-breaking Kenyon runs in the 100- and 200-meter dashes, as well as the 100-meter hurdles.

Gimme Five

A casual, weekly dinner series —Top Five—was introduced at Peirce Hall this year and featured a list of five favorites in any field chosen by a professor. Dean of Students Henry “Hank” Toutain dropped in to share his “Top Five Vinyl Records.”

1. Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano by Claude Bolling/Jean-Pierre Rampal
2. Abbey Road by the Beatles
3. Heavy Organ by Virgil Fox
4. The Best of Edith Piaf
5. Ridin’ High by Jerry Jeff Walker

Class Notes

Recent Class Notes
’20

Talia F. Light Rake, New York City, started her own production company, Heavy Shovel Productions, and has been directing and producing films. “Always looking for more collaborators who are interested in supporting emerging filmmakers!”

’74

Dorinda Kim (Mayhew) Blackey and Chester E. Blackey III, Versailles, Kentucky, send this update: “Chet has pretty much retired from his equine veterinary prac-tice, and I retired from teaching a few years ago. We stay busy with farm and family stuff including nine grand-kids who live close by. Pretty lucky!”

’73

Thomas P. Shantz, Flat Rock, North Carolina, updates, “Although I retired from my paying job 19 years ago, I never really retired, only redirected after I concluded my career in journalism. For the last 17 years, I have volunteered my time serving on the boards of various community organizations and groups. Apparently, the critical, multidis-ciplinary skills I honed at Kenyon remain very much in demand. Too many of my professors to list here in thanks for that — and my father, G. Thomas Shantz ’49, for introducing me to Kenyon in the first place.”

Past Editions