Remembering Jason Collins ’97 – TSC079

Alyssa Thompson ’23 is a member of both the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) and Chelsea FC in London. In this episode, Alyssa describes growing up playing AYSO in Sherman Oaks, before finding club and national team success while at Harvard-Westlake, to then committing to Stanford at age 15. But the next few years would change Alyssa’s trajectory. In 2021, she was named national Gatorade Player of the Year. In 2022, she and her sister Giselle (who is also on the USWNT) signed Nike’s first-ever NIL deal for high school athletes. And then in 2023, Alyssa was drafted #1 overall out of high school to her hometown Angel City. Aside from these accolades, however, Alyssa speaks most endearingly about her family—her father Mario, an elementary school principal, mom Karen, a therapist for children with special needs, and the great joy of sharing a field with her sister Giselle. Alyssa references Harvard-Westlake soccer coach Jordan Roseboro as having a profound influence on her soccer career and love of the game.

In October of 2022, then LA Times reporter Julia Wick ’07 received a call from a source that a tape was circulating of several prominent LA City Council members making racist remarks during a redistricting conversation a year prior. Julia and her colleagues broke the story, which became a political earthquake in Los Angeles—leading to numerous high-profile resignations, and resulting in Julia and her colleagues receiving the 2023 Pulitzer Prize. In this episode, Julia tells her story, from growing up in LA and attending Harvard-Westlake and USC, to working at LAist and the LA Times before assuming her current role—as co-founder and editorial director at LA Material, a new publication aimed at making Los Angeles “legible.” Julia references Kevin Starr at USC, as well as Kathy Neumeyer and Tim Newhart of Harvard-Westlake, as profound influences on her career in journalism.

Maz Jobrani is an Iranian-American actor and comedian, whose work spans from roles in major movies to global comedy tours to NPR’s “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me.” In this episode, Maz speaks to how comedy changes during times of international conflict, as it did after 9/11 when Maz headlined the “Axis of Evil” comedy tour—or now, with the United States at war with Iran. Born in Tehran, Maz’s family emigrated to northern California when he was six. Maz was originally caught by the acting bug in high school with the encouragement of various teachers, but brushed these dreams aside in pursuit of political science. First, a BA at UC Berkeley and then the start of a PhD at UCLA. However, the pull of the spotlight was just too strong. Maz left to pursue a career in comedy, which began at The Comedy Store in West Hollywood and has since taken him (literally) around the world. Maz references acting teachers Shirley Bonbright and Michelle Swanson, as well as Mitzi Shore of The Comedy Store, as profound influences on his career in the arts.

Bela Bajaria is Chief Content Officer at Netflix, where she oversees a $20 billion budget for content accessible in 190 countries worldwide. In this episode, Bela speaks about how Netflix operates globally—including through 27 country offices developing regional content—and how some of those shows (such as Squid Game, Adolescence, and K-Pop Demon Hunters) become global phenomena. A global citizen herself, Bela was born in the United Kingdom to Indian parents before spending part of her childhood in Zambia and relocating to California, where her family started a car wash business. It was there that Bela learned the value of hard work and developed her deep love of movies and television. Bela references her parents, as well as television executive Nancy Tellem, as profound influences on her life and career.

On May 12, 2026, the world lost Jason Collins ’97. In the wake of his passing, we re-share a conversation with Jason from episode 9 of this series, which was recorded on February 28, 2020.

Mariko Silver ’95 is the President and CEO of Lincoln Center, the largest performing arts campus in the United States, featuring eleven resident arts organizations ranging from the Metropolitan Opera to Julliard to New York City Ballet to Jazz at Lincoln Center. In this episode, Mariko tells her story. From growing up in New York City before moving to LA and entering Harvard-Westlake in the 10th grade. It was there where she met performing arts and history teachers who inspired Mariko to find her voice as both an artist and a leader. Following Yale and two post-graduate degrees, Mariko led a fascinating career–becoming President of Bennington College at age 35, leading the Henry Luce Foundation, and serving in the Department of Homeland Security in the Obama administration. All of this has led to her current role leading Lincoln Center, bringing “the best of New York to the world and the best of the world to New York.” Mariko references Harvard-Westlake teachers Karl Kleinz, John West, and Cyndy Winter as profound influences on her life and career.

Curtis Stone is a renowned chef and author whose charisma and culinary skill has made him a mainstay on United States and Australian television for more than two decades. Here in LA, Curtis’s restaurants Maude and Gwen have each earned the coveted Michelin Star. In this episode, Curtis speaks about the culture of restaurants–what it takes to achieve and maintain culinary excellence, as well as his own story. From growing up in Melbourne as an Aussie footballer to departing for London at 18 to learn under the famed master chef Marco Pierre White. Curtis started at the bottom working for White, but eight years later left as the his head chef, paving the way for numerous highly successful restaurant and media ventures. Curtis references his Aussie football coach, as well as chef Marco Pierre White, as profound influences on his personal and professional journey.

Dan Alig is the Chief Information Officer (CIO) at Harvard-Westlake, having arrived in 2024 after serving as CIO for more than a decade at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. In this episode, Dan speaks to how Harvard-Westlake and other schools are confronting the emergence of AI—from keeping up with daily breakthroughs in AI capability, to how teachers are adjusting to new methods of instruction and assessment, to how some adolescents are using AI for companionship. Dan also speaks to how schools like Wharton and Harvard-Westlake are uniquely suited to take leadership in this space. One big example—thanks to Dan’s leadership, last year Harvard-Westlake partnered with OpenAI to became the first independent school in the world to create an individual license for ChatGPT. This has enabled Dan and his team to begin to determine how HW enters the AI space skillfully and thoughtfully, with the goal of enhancing student learning with humans and humanity at the center. Dan references his parents, as well as Deirdre Woods at Wharton, as profound influences on his life and career.

In the fall of 2026, Harvard-Westlake will open River Park (www.hwriverpark.com), a new campus dedicated to athletics, wellness, community partnership, and environmental sustainability. What you may not know, however, is that River Park was designed by a graduate, Steve Chung ’89, the Global Practice Area Leader for Sports at Gensler. In this episode, Steve describes growing up in Van Nuys as a Bay Area transplant and finding community through following LA sports, a passion he leveraged into a long and meaningful career designing large-scale sports venues. These include BMO Stadium in LA, Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, and the new LA Rams Village at Warner Center. Lastly, Steve discusses River Park, for which he feels unique pride as a graduate of Harvard School, which Steve calls the most formative educational experience of his life. Steve references Harvard School teachers Lee Carlson ’50 and Carl Wilson as profound influences on his life and career in architecture.

Bear Ride ’71 is the only sister of astronaut and American hero, Sally Ride ’68, who in 1983 became the first American woman in space. In this episode, Bear tells Sally’s story—but also her own, which includes “breaking ground” in her own right as a female and openly gay Presbyterian minister. The Ride sisters were born and raised in Los Angeles and attended Westlake School, where Bear and Sally each encountered life-changing teachers—leading Bear to pursue the ministry and Sally a PhD in astrophysics. It was at Stanford where Sally came across a NASA ad soliciting interest in a new kind of astronaut. She applied, and the rest is history. Bear also speaks to the release of a new documentary, Sally, produced by National Geographic and premiering on Disney+ and Hulu on June 17. The film not only charts Sally Ride’s public journey into space, but also her private 27-year partnership with a woman—Tam O’Shaughnessy. It wasn’t until Sally’s death in 2012 that her obituary revealed Tam as her partner—and thus the truth she’d kept private for so long. Bear references Westlake teachers David Coombs and Elizabeth Mommaerts as profound influences on her and Sally’s lives and careers.