’10
Priya Shah
Senior Economist, Federal Reserve Board of Governors
“The best note I ever received was from my BPD Capstone mentor: ‘This is interesting; it is also wrong; fix it.’”
Alumni
Once a Beacon, always a Beacon.
The Academy’s living alumni number just over 4,200. They work as economists, architects, surgeons, teachers, clergy, journalists, soldiers, musicians, and farmers. They live in 43 states and 18 countries. And every fall and spring, a fair number of them come home.
Alumni in residence
Selected visits, 2025–26.
Twice a term, a BPD alum returns to campus to speak with current students about work, judgment, and the years after graduation. Recent speakers:
’97
Wen Nakamura
Partner, Nakamura Saunders Architecture, Portland OR
“BPD gave me the nerve to treat a building like an argument — to expect it to be read, questioned, and answered.”
’88
Gen. Thomas Oyelaran (Ret.)
Former Deputy Commander, U.S. Transportation Command
“Dr. Fields’s seminar on ‘Why do democracies fail?’ stayed with me for three tours and the whole Pentagon.”
’15
Naomi Perez-Valdez
Staff Writer, The New Yorker
“Writing every week in Mrs. Foster’s Grade 11 English was the hardest training I ever had. I still miss it.”
’02
Dr. Ife Oduya
Pediatric Oncologist, Memorial Sloan Kettering
“Nothing about medical school surprised me except how much BPD had already taught me about listening to people.”
’20
Ezra Lin
Violinist, Philadelphia Orchestra second-violin section
“The Conservatory Arts Track said: this work is serious. Nobody at a regular high school ever said that to a fifteen-year-old.”
’93
Sara Kwon-Reilly
Founder, Chamberlin Lane Farm & CSA; author of Slow Bread
“I read Wendell Berry for the first time in Mr. Archer’s Humanities class. I have never been the same.”
’06
Rev. Caleb Desjardins
Assistant Rector, Trinity Church Boston
“BPD taught me that a classroom and a sanctuary are closer cousins than either of them would admit.”
Stay connected
Tell us where you are.
The Alumni Office keeps an up-to-date directory for class reunions, regional events, and career-mentoring connections with current students.
Upcoming alumni events
- May 22 — Capstone Symposium. Alumni mentors welcome. Heritage Hall, 1:00 PM.
- June 6 — Class of 2026 Commencement. Alumni of reunion years (’01, ’06, ’11, ’16, ’21) receive reserved seating.
- October 17–18 — Homecoming + Reunion Weekend. Classes ending in 1 and 6.
- November 14 — New York alumni reception. Hosted by Jeremy Pak ’08 and Catherine Delacroix ’01.