Avi Conant

Avi Conant - MA 2014

Avi Conant graduated from Whitman College with a degree in Politics. He has lived and taught abroad in China. He is currently researching food in China.

Contact Info: aconant@uoregon.edu

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Julie DePaulo

Julie DePaulo - MA 2013

Julie DePaulo graduated from Ohio University in 2006 with a degree in World Religions. She was a Fulbright Fellow to Japan and remained there for over three years teaching English. Julie is currently finishing her MA focusing on the Japanese ritual of mizuko kuyo and digital media.
Contact info: jdepaulo@uoregon.edu

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Sara Menton

Sara Menton - MA 2014

Sara Menton graduated from Birmingham-Southern College in 2012 with a degree in History. She studies Chinese and is interested in Chinese Art History.

Contact Info: smenton@uoregon.edu

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Jesse Rodenbiker

Jesse Rodenbiker - MA 2013

Jesse Rodenbiker graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.A. in Philosophy. His recent research through the University of Oregon’s Asian Studies M.A. Program broadly focuses on issues of China’s urban sustainability, eco-city development, culture, land-use, landscape aesthetics, urban form, and human-environment relationships. His work engages Chinese language urban planning discourses, urban-geographic analysis, and anthropological methods. In addition, Jesse currently works with the Sustainable Cities Initiative’s China programs and is a graduate teaching fellow in the History department. After completing his M.A. studies at the University of Oregon, he will pursue a Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley in the field of Geography.

Contact info: jgr@uoregon.edu

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Eric Tojimbara

Eric Tojimbara - MA 2013

Eric Tojimbara completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Oregon in 2008 and returned as a Post-Bacceaulaureate in 2009. He majored in English, philosophy, and religious studies.

Currently he is in his final term as a M.A. student in Asian Studies focusing on Japan with his research specialization in Medieval Japanese religion and vernacular literature. His thesis, tentatively titled “Re-Presenting the Chigo: The Figure of the Acolyte in Medieval Japanese Buddhist Literature,” focuses on the Chigo Monogatari (acolyte tales) tradition. In the fall of 2013 Eric will begin his Ph.D at UCLA in the Asian Languages and Civilizations department.

Contact Info: ytojimbara@uoregon.edu

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Rachel Wallner

Rachel Wallner - MA 2014

In 2011, Rachel Wallner applied and was awarded a scholarship to pursue Chinese language study at Sichuan University in Chengdu, China. Rachel spent 2011-12 developing her language skills abroad. In 2012, she applied for and won another full-year scholarship and a second year of leave from the UO, so she can complete her second and final year at Sichuan University. She will return to the University of Oregon in fall 2013 to complete her degree in Asian Studies, and equipped with advanced language skills and an improved understanding of Chinese culture and society. She hopes to make unique and significant contributions to Chinese social history as she intends to pursue a Ph.D. after graduating from the Asian Studies master’s program.

Contact info: rwallner@uoregon.edu