Looking for a smoother transition from high school to college? The University of Puget Sound’s First Year Inside (FYI) program helps incoming students begin their college journey with confidence, connection, and support.
Dr. Hajung Lee, associate professor of religion, spirituality, and society and bioethics and director of FYI, has worked closely with the program and witnessed its impact firsthand.
In the spring and summer of 1986, Tacoma was rocked by the shocking rape and murder of two young girls, Michella Welch and Jennifer Bastian. Despite the killings occurring five months apart, the similarities between the victims, including their age, appearance, and the circumstances surrounding their disappearances, were hard to ignore. Locals worried that a serial killer might be lurking in Tacoma’s North End. Despite pressure from the community to bring the killer to justice and continued efforts by the Tacoma Police Department, there simply wasn’t enough evidence to build a case.
Looking back, it seems almost inevitable that second-year student Sophia Irigoyen ’28 would choose the University of Puget Sound. Less predictable: a decision by her mom Jennifer Irigoyen MPH’27 to join her this year as a Puget Sound student.
Sophia applied to 22 colleges — including Stanford and Princeton — and was accepted to many of them.
It’s been yet another incredible year at the University of Puget Sound. From launching innovative new programs to celebrating the accomplishments of our students, faculty, staff, and alumni, there are so many Logger stories that highlight the power of a liberal arts education to transform lives. Here are 10 stories from 2025 that you may have missed.
Sophie Billadeau ’29, a first-year student from Minnetonka, Minnesota, is quickly building a memorable college experience at the University of Puget Sound. A graduate of a small charter school where she was involved in theater and served as president of the National Honor Society, she’s wasted no time in immersing herself in campus life as a member of the university's Honors Program in Consciousness, Creativity, and Meaning.
When Emily Mitchell ’23 arrived in Kyoto, Japan, for 12 months of intensive language study, she carried more than a suitcase. As the University of Puget Sound’s Miki Memorial Scholar, she represented the university in a program designed to strengthen cultural understanding and friendship between Japan and the United States.
It wasn't a fictional plot twist but a real-life 19th-century cold case that had Mia Steiner ’27 and her classmates huddled around a whiteboard, mapping out suspects and motives. The students were investigating the infamous 1880 Donnelly family murders — an unsolved case that took place in Canada more than a century ago. Their work was part of a Puget Sound class, Murder and Mayhem Under the Microscope, taught by Amy Fisher, professor of Science, Technology, Health, and Society.
Everywhere Anna Dery ’27 looks, she sees stories waiting to be told. As a student at the University of Puget Sound double majoring in art history and economics and minoring in Spanish, Dery has spent her college career seeking out new opportunities to learn and grow. Whether studying abroad in Denmark, telling stories on her radio show, or starting a club for runners, Dery continues to find creative ways to express herself while building community.
The University of Puget Sound’s Taiko drumming club was not just an extracurricular activity for Lev Jersan '26 — it was a primary reason he chose to apply.
His journey from Missouri to Washington is a great example of the Puget Sound experience. It’s the opportunity to find a deep sense of community and fully invest in a passion. The Taiko club, known as Yume Daiko, serves as a home for students of all backgrounds, from those like Jersan who sought it out for years, to those who simply walk in curious, never having heard about it at all before.
