Photo by Orin Zyvan ’04

James Meador ’09

Russian - religion

Hometown: New Paltz, New York

How Reed changed me: I was a curious but relatively undisciplined high school student, over-impressed with myself and under-impressed with others and the complexity of the world around me. Reed helped me deepen my understanding of myself as an individual, while somehow managing to introduce me to the importance of community. Reed provided an ideal environment to pursue my curiosity down the rabbit hole alongside an inspiring and delightfully idiosyncratic group of faculty and peers.

Cool stuff I did: Russian House, Star-Spangled Youth Orchestra’s Pioneer Square Pageant, rock climbing, Glow Opera, tutoring refugees in English, Volunteering at Outside In.

Financial aid: Yes

Advisers: Prof. Lena Lencek, Prof. Ken Brashier

Thesis: Moscow Tantric Blues: Bidiya Dandaron’s Letters to Nataliya Kovrigina 1956–1959

What it’s about: See below.

What it’s really about: A valiant but impossible attempt to capture love with ideas.