Honda Executive To Give St. John’s College Commencement Address

St. John’s College, Santa Fe is celebrating its 45th commencement on Saturday, May 19 with an address by alumnus Robert J. Bienenfeld.  There are 101 candidates for the 2012 graduation: 74 Undergraduates & 27 Graduates.  Thirteen students are New Mexico residents.

Robert J. Bienenfeld is senior manager, environmental and energy strategy, for American Honda’s Product Regulatory Office. In this capacity, Bienenfeld was responsible for Honda’s discussions with the White House that led to two sets of regulations, covering the years 2012 to 2025, on greenhouse gases and fuel economy.  Over his 30-plus-year career at Honda, he held a number of positions, with responsibilities for strategic planning and research, product planning, new business development, and alternative fuel vehicle sales and marketing. Among his key accomplishments were Honda’s investment in Flexcar (a car-sharing company since merged with Zipcar) and in FuelMaker, a home refueling appliance for natural gas vehicles, and the marketing of Honda’s first battery electric car, first natural gas-powered vehicle, and first hybrid vehicle. A 1980 graduate of St. John’s College, Santa Fe, Bienenfeld now serves as a member of the Board of Visitors and Governors. He currently resides in Long Beach, California.

From Fulbright Fellowships to music performance studies to new business ventures, St. John’s College graduates prove that there are no limits to what they can pursue with their education. Here are some highlights from graduating seniors. 

·         Valerie Blomberg – Research Assistant, Southwest Marketing and Planning, Santa Fe, NM 

·         Quan Bui – Research Assistant, Computational Earth Science, Los Alamos National Lab, NM 

·         Matthew Eakin – Residential Assistant, Johns Hopkins, Center for Talented Youth (CTY), CA

·         David Bumpus –English Teacher, JET Program,  Japan

·         Colin Colby – Teacher, Great Hearts Academies, Arizona

·         Russell Coniff – Graduate Student, St. John’s College, Santa Fe, NM

·         Julia Coursey – Intern, Historic Art Archives, Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.

·         Rhett Forman – Intern, Public Policy, Civitas, Raleigh, NC and Duke University

·         Chloe Ginsburg – Entrepreneur, Néanmois, etsy.com jewelry business 

·         Katherine Grau – Neuroscience Intern, Imagination and Cognition Lab, UT-Austin, TX

·         Tamaki Ishii – Intern, Santa Fe Council on International Relations, and Fall Intern, Hudson Institute, Washington, DC

·         Yu Ji – Graduate Student, Music Performance, Temple University

·         Riley Junell – Neuroscience Intern, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

·         Julia Levin – Teacher, Leadership Program for Girls, Georgia O’Keefe Museum, Santa Fe, NM

·         Pierce Lively -  Law Student, Cornell University, Law School, Ithaca, NY

·         Carolyn Manning – Exhibition Intern, SITE Santa Fe, NM

·         Gloria McGillen – Research Assistant, Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge, MA

·         Sylvie Neal – Graduate Student, St. John’s College EC, MA in Eastern Classics

·         Aparna Ravilochan – Fulbright Fellowship Winner, Teaching Assistantship in Malaysia

·         Hellena Schiavo – Administrator, Creative Arts, Music & Performance (CAMP), Santa Fe, NM

·         Matthew Summers – Graduate Student, University of Chicago; MA Program in Social Sciences

·         Sophie Stauffer –Graduate Student, Masters in Water Resources program in Hydroscience/Policy/Water Law,   University of New Mexico, Albuquerque

·         Hania Stocker – Entrepreneur, Repair and Redesign: rethink landscape, and Crew Leader, Santa Fe Children’s Museum, Earthworks program, NM

·         Collin Webb – Passive solar engineering design, Zomeworks, Albuquerque, NM

Schedule of Events ­St. John’s College Commencement Weekend 

Friday, May 18

·         11:30 a.m. College-wide Commencement Picnic on the Field

·         1:00 p.m.  Faculty/Student softball game on the field

·         4:00 p.m. President's Reception for families, friends, and graduate/undergraduate degree candidates in the Great Hall: 8 pm Commencement Ball (semiformal) in the Great Hall

Saturday, May 19

·         9:00 a.m. Photography Session ­ all graduating undergraduate candidates

·         9:30 a.m. Photography Session ­ all graduating Graduate Institute candidates

·         10:00 a.m. Commencement Ceremony on Weigle Placita

·         12:00 p.m. Commencement Lunch in Peterson Student Center