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Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum

A distinctive
feature of social and
cultural life at CMC

 

Students, Faculty, and Staff: 
Please sign up using the “Register for this event” button. This will register you for the reception and meal. 

Alumni and Parents:
Please visit the alumni and parent engagement website to register. 

 

Photo of Adam Nemer
Thu, February 20, 2025
Dinner Program

Normalizing Mental Health in the Workplace
Adam Nemer ‘92

More than 20% of Americans annually experience a clinically diagnosable mental illness that impacts their productivity, attendance and overall performance as much as any physical illness. Yet, less than half get help. From the C-suite to line supervisors, leaders don't know what to do. Their education and training were informed by the myths and stigmas of mental illness, such as the outdated mantra to “leave your emotions at the door.” However, Adam Nemer ’92, who previously served in senior level executive positions at Kaiser Permanente, believes there is something we can all do about it: make the active choice to become mental health literate, incorporate this knowledge in leadership at all levels, and normalize conversations about mental health to unlock potential and transform lives.

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Almost 26 years ago, Adam found his dad, best friend, and business partner Mort Nemer '62 dead by suicide. Unfortunately, the myths and stigmas of mental illness were so strong at that time that Nemer only had a few therapy sessions and went off into the world. After graduating from CMC with a double major in history and government, he got an MBA at the University of Washington, moved back to Portland, got married, and grew a 20-year leadership career at Kaiser Permanente—primarily as a CFO and senior operations executive—all while silently enduring severe, undiagnosed depression and anxiety.

 

His life changed when a compassionate colleague encouraged him to seek help, a simple act that revealed the profound impact leaders can have on their team’s mental well-being.  As Nemer progressed on his recovery journey, he came to the realization that many leaders, though well-meaning, don’t feel at ease approaching their colleagues when they observe them grappling with mental health challenges. They don’t know what to say. They don’t know how to help. So, he started to share his story and quickly realized that he was making a difference in other people’s lives. 

 

Nemer subsequently founded Simple Mental Health, an organization dedicated to educating leaders about the business case for mental health while inspiring them with the human case to destigmatize mental health in their teams.

 

Nemer and the Simple Mental Health team now work with organizations across the Americas and Europe spreading mental health literacy and helping leaders create stigma-free mental wellbeing cultures. 

 

Mr. Nemer’s Athenaeum presentation is co-sponsored by the Berger Institute for Individual and Social Development at CMC.

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Photo of Matt Garcia
Mon, March 3, 2025
Dinner Program

Padua Hills — Redux
Matt Garcia

In 1995, Matt Garcia, now a professor of history, Latin American, Latino, and Caribbean Studies, and human relations at Dartmouth College, first published about the founding of Claremont based Padua Hills Theatre–the longest-running Mexican-oriented theatre in United States’ history running from 1931 to 1974. With the benefit of time and an expanded archive, he now sees the theater in a wider context, from the international travel of the theater’s founder, Bess Garner, to the Hollywood careers of Padua’s brightest stars. At its best, Padua Hills constituted a sincere appreciation of California’s Mexican roots and a bulwark against anti-Mexican racism. In this presentation, Garcia reflects on the totality of the theatre’s history and what it can teach us about intercultural exchange and the place of Claremont in the study of Mexican culture on both sides of the border.

 

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Matt Garcia is Ralph and Richard Lazarus Professor of History, Latin American, Latino, and Caribbean Studies, and Human Relations at Dartmouth College. He is the author of Eli and the Octopus: The CEO Who Tried to Reform One of the World’s Most Notorious Corporations, published by Harvard University Press in 2023.  He is also the author of A World of Its Own: Race, Labor and Citrus in the Making of Greater Los Angeles, 1900-1970 published by the University of North Carolina in 2002, and From the Jaws of Victory: The Triumph and Tragedy of Cesar Chavez and the Farm Worker Movement, published by the University of California Press in 2012. He is the co-editor of Food Across Borders with Melanie DuPuis and Don Mitchell published by Rutgers University Press in 2017. His archive of his research resides at Claremont Honnold Library, Special Collections.
 

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Steve Eggert '82, Sue O'Bannon '84, Ken Valach '82, and Riley Lewis ’11
Tue, March 4, 2025
Dinner Program

Inaugural Real Estate Finance Conference
Steve Eggert '82 P'15, Riley Lewis ’11, Sue O'Bannon '84, and Ken Valach '82, panelists

This inaugural program by the Financial Economics Institute will feature an exclusive panel of distinguished alumni including Steve Eggert '82 P'15 (Anton DevCo), Sue O'Bannon '84 (Trammell Crow Residential), and Riley Lewis ’11 (Lewis Group of Companies) who will discuss their journeys from CMC to national success in real estate finance. The event will culminate in a special fireside chat with Ken Valach '82, CEO of Crow Holdings and Chair of the Board at CMC. This program offers a unique opportunity to engage with industry leaders, alumni, and fellow students for insightful conversations, valuable networking, and an insider perspective on real estate finance and management. 

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Panelists include:

Steve Eggert '82 P'15: Leader of Anton DevCo, he transitioned from real estate law to become a successful multifamily community developer. Eggert also serves on CMC's Board of Trustees.

Riley Lewis'11: Investment Performance Manager at Lewis Group of Companies, he oversees financial analysis and investment strategies.

Sue O'Bannon'84: Chief Financial Officer at Trammell Crow Residential since 2004, she oversees debt and equity financing for new developments in the Western U.S.

Ken Valach'82: Chief Executive Officer of Crow Holdings Development, he leads multifamily, industrial, and office projects across the United States. He also serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees at CMC.

This special event is hosted and organized by CMC's Financial Economics Institute (FEI) and the Real Estate Finance Association (REFA), a CMC club. 

Please note a SPECIAL SCHEDULE for this program:
4:30-5:10 PM | Student/Alumni Networking Reception
5:10-5:30 PM | Introduction
5:30-6:15 PM | Panel Discussion (Sue O’Bannon ’84, Riley Lewis ’11, and Steve Eggert ’82 P’15), moderated by Braden Crockett ’15
6:15-6:30 PM | Panel Q&A
6:30-7:00 PM | Dinner
7:00-7:30 PM | Fireside Chat with Ken Valach ’82, moderated by Harry Brenner ’20
7:30-8:00 PM | Q&A 

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Photo of Funie Hsu/Chhî
Wed, March 5, 2025
Dinner Program

Buddhist Ceremony and Chanting as Connection to Ancestors: May We Gather as a Response to Anti-Asian Violence
Funie Hsu/Chhî

Funie Hsu/Chhî, associate professor of American studies at San José University, will discuss the role of Buddhist ceremony and chanting as means of creating ancestral connections. Focusing on the May We Gather ceremonies held in 2021 and 2024, the talk explores the significance of ceremony and chanting in creating embodied pathways for connecting to ancestral legacies of continuance, and for transforming suffering into Buddhist practice and community during a period of heightened anti-Asian violence and social isolation.

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Funie Hsu/Chhî (she/they) is a transdisciplinary scholar whose work melds American studies, Asian American studies, Buddhist studies, education, and other fields. Hsu/Chhî is currently associate professor of American studies at San José State University. She received a Ph.D. in education with a Designated Emphasis in Women, Gender, and Sexuality from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to her academic career, she was an elementary school teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District. She is currently working on a book project that examines race, religion, and the popular secularization of Buddhist mindfulness in the context of American public schools. Her scholarship and essays have appeared in American Quarterly; Journal of Global Buddhism; Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies; Educational Studies; CATESOL; L2 Journal; The Immanent Frame; Lion's Roar;  Buddhadharma; The Progressive, and elsewhere. Hsu/Chhî is a co-organizer of May We Gather, a national Buddhist memorial ceremony for Asian American ancestors.

Professor Hsu/Chhî's Athenaeum presentation is co-sponsored by the Kutten Lectureship in Religious Studies at CMC.

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Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum

Claremont McKenna College
385 E. Eighth Street
Claremont, CA 91711

Contact

Phone: (909) 621-8244 
Fax: (909) 621-8579 
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