2015 Top 10 Under 10 Alumni Award recipients announced

The honorees are alumni who have graduated in the past 10 years, enjoyed major professional success, made a big difference in their community and been loyal Elon supporters.

The Office of Alumni Engagement and the Young Alumni Council have announced the recipients of the 2015 Top 10 Under 10 Alumni Awards. These 10 outstanding alumni will be honored during a ceremony on Saturday, April 18 in the Lakeside Meeting Rooms.

The honorees are alumni who have graduated in the past 10 years, enjoyed major professional success, made a big difference in their community and been loyal Elon supporters, as well as role models who are active partners, advocates and investors. They are:

Erica Ayala ’08, youth leadership development associate, Children’s Defense Fund

A political science graduate, Ayala has been affiliated with the Children’s Defense Fund since 2006, where she works connecting youth engaged in CDF programs to community-based resources and services.

Shea Coakley ’07, co-founder, LeanBox

A leisure/sport management graduate, Coakley co-founded LeanBox, an innovative corporate food service solution blending health, convenience and technology, in 2011.

Phil Collins ’08, associate account director, Imagination

A business administration graduate, Collins is an international marketing specialist who lives in Hong Kong and works for a marketing firm.

Mark Horsburgh ’07, event marketing and production, Turner Sports

A business administration graduate, Horsburgh is an event marketing and production coordinator based in New York City.

Carolyn Klasnick ’09, co-owner/executive producer, Post Script Productions, LLC

A broadcast communications and business administration graduate, Klasnick currently owns Post Script Productions with fellow alumna Michele Hammerbacher ’08.

Mark Schwartz ’06, president, The Richmond Group USA

An accounting graduate, Schwartz works for one of the nations most established and successful recruiting firms.

Amanda Taylor ’06, chief executive officer, DanceOn

A musical theater graduate, Taylor lives in Los Angeles, where she oversees operations for DanceOn, a company she started in 2010.

Lace Varn ’07, vice president brand partnerships, DanceOn

A musical theater graduate, Varn lives in Los Angeles, where she oversees brand partnerships for DanceOn, a company started by fellow alumna Amanda Taylor ’06.

Andrew Wilen ’08, owner, Chef Alyssa’s Kitchen

A communications graduate, Wilen offers hands-on cooking classes that are taught at Atherton Market in South End of Charlotte, N.C.

Christine Winans ’10, senior sourcing associate/co-op manager, Bristol-Myers Squibb

A business administration graduate, Winans currently works for global biopharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb in New Jersey.

For more information about the awards, please contact Jordan Bacharach ’09, coordinator of young alumni and student engagement, at jbacharach@elon.edu or (336) 278-7424.