The Pomona-Pitzer athletics program has announced the appointment of Danielle Lynch, Ed.D., as Director, effective April 1.

Most recently serving as Director of Athletics of Haverford College in Pennsylvania, Lynch brings more than two decades of leadership in collegiate athletics administration.

“I am excited to join an institution where academic excellence, athletic achievement and physical education are all essential parts of the student experience,” says Lynch, who will also chair Pomona’s Physical Education Department. “Pomona-Pitzer’s commitment to holistic development aligns deeply with my values.”

Lynch will lead a program with 21 NCAA Division III varsity sports and more than 600 intercollegiate scholar-athletes; a robust physical education curriculum; club and intramural programs; and student wellness initiatives.

The academic program has captured dozens of SCIAC championships the past 10 years. Deep postseason runs are regularly made by teams such as women’s soccer, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, baseball and men’s tennis. Men’s cross country has won three NCAA titles since 2019, and women’s water polo is on a run of four straight USA water polo Division III championships. Angie Zhou ’23 captured the 2023 NCAA Division III women’s tennis singles championship, and in 2024, women’s swimming won NCAA titles in the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays.

A former college athlete herself, Lynch competed in the 400-meter hurdles and pentathlon while at Rutgers, an experience that ignited a lifelong passion for athletics and student development. Her career of coaching and athletic administration began at the United States Military Academy (West Point) and continued at schools such as Bucknell, Penn State Harrisburg, Susquehanna University, and Haverford.

With seven teams representing Pomona-Pitzer in the fall, the first sports season of the 2025-26 academic year delivered individual and team championships, record-breaking performances and Sagehen spirit. Below are a few highlights.

Women’s Soccer

The Sagehens won 16 games, secured a seventh consecutive Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) regular-season championship and advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals for the first time since 2019.

Teammates Hannah Hong ’26 (Offensive Player of the Year) and Vivian Rojas Collins ’27 (Defensive Player of the Year), along with Jen Scanlon (Coach of the Year), swept the SCIAC’s regular-season honors. Hong, Rojas Collins and Goalkeeper Hadley Johnson ’26 also earned All-American honors.

Johnson allowed only one goal in 1,010 minutes, a Sagehens record 0.09 goals-against-average (GAA) that led all NCAA divisions.

Men’s Soccer

Under first-year coach Clint Moore, the Sagehens hit double-digit wins for the first time since 2014 and came within a point of securing a share of the SCIAC regular-season title.

Moore and his staff were recognized as the SCIAC Coaching Staff of the Year for getting the Sagehens back on the winning track, while Niclas Ulrich earned SCIAC Defensive Athlete of the Year honors for anchoring a back line that surrendered the fewest goals in the conference.

Women’s Volleyball

Paige Mountanos ’26 set the career record for total kills in the rally score era with 1,151 and earned All-SCIAC First-Team honors a third straight season.

Teammate Corrina Benson ’27 earned All-SCIAC Second-Team laurels after leading the Sagehens with 536 digs and 45 service aces—a single-season program record in the rally score era.

Football

The Sagehens defeated rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on September 28 and ended the season with five wins. They defeated Redlands in the SCIAC Third Place Game.

Defensive lineman Alden Kling ’27 received All-SCIAC First Team honors after leading the team in tackles for loss.

Women’s Cross Country

After finishing 30th at the 2024 NCAA Division III cross country championships, the Sagehens placed 14th at this season’s culminating race. All-SCIAC First-Team runners Joya Terdiman ’26 and Eva Novy-Hildesley led the way.

Men’s Cross Country

Paced by All-American and SCIAC Athlete of the Year Jack Stein ’26, the Sagehens finished eighth at the NCAA Division III cross country championships. The team continued its conference dominance, securing the program’s eighth straight SCIAC title.

Emma DeLira was named West Region Coach of the Year.

Men’s Water Polo

The Sagehens appeared in the USA water polo Division III championships for the first time since 2021 but lost to rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the title match.

The team repeated as SCIAC regular-season champions, while Greg Moore was named SCIAC Defensive Athlete of the Year, Jaden Winters, SCIAC Newcomer of the Year and Alex Rodriguez, SCIAC Coach of the Year.

Karl Johnson officiates the 2016 wedding of Meredith Course ’12 and Nick Clute-Reinig ’13—students he introduced during office hours.

Karl G. Johnson, the Sara Rampel and Herbert S. Rampel Professor of Neuroscience who inspired Pomona students for nearly 20 years, passed away in July at 52. Johnson joined the Pomona faculty in 2005 and was the first professor at the College hired into neuroscience with a joint appointment in biology.

“He was the heart and soul of neuroscience at Pomona, and no one can ever replace him,” says longtime colleague Richard S. Lewis, professor of neuroscience and psychological science.

Unlike those who get annoyed by Drosophila—fruit flies—Johnson studied them to find windows into the way central nervous systems are constructed. His work sought answers to two important questions: How do neurons find the right synaptic targets, and how do neurons build synapses?

Johnson and his active lab of student researchers studied how molecules called “heparan sulfate proteoglycans” (HSPGs) influence central nervous system development. He was the lead author of a 2006 paper in the journal Neuron reporting the discovery of a novel molecular mechanism that controls synapse strengthening, a process essential for learning and memory.

Students who flocked to Johnson’s courses—such as Vertebrate Sensory Systems and Introductory Cell Chemistry and Cell Biology—found him to be an exceptional lecturer and an approachable and humorous teacher. “He has the amazing ability to take really complex scientific content and walk the class through it in a way that is comprehensive, non-intimidating and also fun,” wrote one student in nominating him for the Wig Distinguished Professor Award, which he won twice. “Can he teach me everything for the rest of my life?”

Rachel Levin, emerita professor of biology and neuroscience, describes Johnson as “one of those magical teachers who makes his students want to know more about whatever he is teaching.” His classes, she says, were “always filled to capacity. He [was] adored and respected as a friend and colleague.”

Meredith Course ’12 is a professor at Colorado College, and credits Johnson as her professional motivation.

“He had the superpowers of both seeing generously who we could become, and knowing how to help us get there,” she wrote in a tribute. “He was everything I could ever hope to be as a teacher, mentor, advisor and researcher.”

Returning to Pomona after a five-year hiatus, Mark Andrejevic (media studies) researches and writes about digital media technology.

Yuki Arita (Asian languages and literatures) conducts conversation analysis, investigating the systematicity of social interaction in Japanese.

Jordan Daniels (environmental analysis) works at the intersection of environmental philosophy, critical theory and feminist thought, and was previously a visiting lecturer and visiting assistant professor.

Olivia Lafferty(English) studies contemporary trans-Pacific literatures and visual cultures, examining the circuits of U.S. and Spanish colonialism.

Clint Moore (physical education) is the new head coach of the men’s soccer team after eight seasons as assistant coach at Colorado School of Mines.

Sarah E. Noll ’13 (chemistry) develops ambient ionization mass spectrometry methods, alongside more traditional techniques, to characterize biomaterials used in cultural heritage.

Leila Safavi (economics and public policy) conducts research on energy and environmental markets, including electricity and natural gas regulation, pricing, and the economic and business impacts of environmental policy and legal frameworks.

Kelsey Sasaki (linguistics and cognitive science) examines the mental mechanisms involved in our comprehension of linguistic meaning, and also does community-engaged linguistic fieldwork.

Samuel Thomas (computer science) studies secure computer hardware and focuses on building and optimizing systems to study these architectures.

Previously a visiting assistant professor, Jody Valentine (classics) researches contemporary artists who reimagine ancient materials in new, discordant ways.

Returning to Pomona after six years in Australia, Zala Volcic (media studies) focuses on media and nationalism, and has published and taught widely on media education, transitional justice, gender and civic disposition.

Ania Vu (music) explores the interplay between language, time, and the sounds of nature. As a pianist, she performs music from both the standard and contemporary repertoire.

Previously a visiting assistant professor, Daniel Watling (religious studies) specializes in Islamic philosophy and theology, with a particular focus on medieval Iberia and North Africa.

Yuqing Zhu (neuroscience), a visiting assistant professor at Pomona in 2023, builds AI models inspired by brains to discover new ways to make AI more energy-efficient and better understand what makes real brains so computationally adept.

Michael Zlatin (computer science) works to design improved algorithms for fundamental problems in combinatorial optimization and decision sciences.

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A stone’s throw from a red sandstone hunk on which Sagehens of the past carved their class numerals and motto, “Not to live but to live well,” in Greek, Sagehens of the present and future gathered to celebrate their beloved Pomona College’s founding.

President G. Gabrielle Starr (top right) kicked off Pomona’s annual Founders Day Celebration on October 15 with a State of the College Address inside Little Bridges Auditorium. Scores of students, staff, faculty and College administrators then mingled on Marston Quad over lunch as the Draper Center accepted donations from the Sagehen community.

Starr told the story of Charles Sumner, who saved the College from a serious financial challenge in its early days; expressed pride in Pomona becoming one of the most highly-regarded colleges in the nation; and touted the milestones Pomona has hit in its 138 years.

“Pomona is a ‘we,’” Starr said, “and it’s a ‘we’ that does all kinds of things. We argue with each other, we disagree, we learn. We care about each other an extraordinary amount. We chirp together. We plan for the future, and we do things that are consequential on this campus.”

Starr emphasized that Pomona can also be better, and more true to its ideals.

“We always look higher—to who we can become and what we can do,” she said. “It’s crucial for all of us here to remember that the acts we carry out today, the things we’re doing now, lay the foundation for the future.”

Nayla Ward ’29, a first-generation Sagehen from Georgia, found comfort in learning Pomona has initiatives in place to support a diverse student body. Jared Sedlis ’29, a Massachusetts native, said he took great interest in hearing about Pomona’s globalization efforts “because we live in an interconnected world.”

What lies ahead for all Sagehens is a promise to give more college-aged students from middle-income families an avenue to Pomona, Starr said. Admissions officers do tireless work recruiting new students every year, she added, and record fundraising has made it possible for Sagehens to graduate in four years and debt-free.

“Having a day where we think about where we’ve been helps motivate [us on] this shared path we’re taking on together,” said Michael Steinberger, associate professor of economics and chair of the department. “I particularly appreciate that the events today bring together staff, faculty and students to say that we are together in this incredibly important mission.”

Founders Day also provided an opportunity for Sagehens to give back. The Draper Center partnered with local organizations to collect canned and packaged food, books and clothing. Pomona staff looking for ESL support had the chance to sign up for a personal tutor.

“Now more than ever, with what’s going on in the world, it’s important to focus on what we as a College can do,” said Sefa Aina, associate dean and director of the Draper Center. “Giving back is the nature of higher ed, but specifically at Pomona, it’s nurtured. All of our big events are centered around giving, around community service, around an externalizing of our energy and of our gifts.”