The 10 Under 10 Awards were established by Randolph-Macon’s Young Alumni Board to recognize young alumni who have achieved remarkable success in their short time since graduating from RMC. Read on to learn more about the inaugural class of recipients who have established themselves as pillars in their communities and leaders in their professions in the 10 years since their graduation.

Kelly Abate ‘17

Abate (biology major) earned a Doctor of Pharmacy from Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy, receiving Highest Honors at the top of her class. While at Nova Southeastern, she was accepted as one of 22 students nationwide to serve as a Senior Commissioned Officer in the Student Training and Extern Program for the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps. After graduation, she received orders from the Commissioned Corps to begin work as a pharmacist in the Bureau of Prisons at Federal Correctional Complex Hazelton in West Virginia.

Carrie Jacobs Cheatham ’15

In 2017, Cheatham (sociology major) founded Snail Mail, a business that sells hand-painted greeting cards, original art prints, and ornaments. Thousands of dollars in Snail Mail proceeds have been donated to local and national refugee aid organizations, including ReEstablish Richmond and Miry’s List. In 2020, Carrie participated in Mending Walls RVA, a collaborative art initiative that paired artists from different cultural backgrounds to address “how we can move forward through understanding and collaboration.”

Derek Dittmar ‘16

Dittmar (communications studies and political science double-major) earned his J.D. from Campbell University in addition to a Master of Laws degree from Nottingham Trent University in England. After graduation, he earned a North Carolina Judicial Fellowship during which he conducted research and assisted North Carolina’s 380 trial court judges with high profile and complex cases, many of which involved novel constitutional and procedural issues related to COVID-19. He currently works as an attorney at the Raleigh office of civil defense firm Hedrick Gardner Kincheloe & Garofalo. As one of the only attorneys in the country to possess a professional certification in accessibility core competencies, he has presented to the American Bar Association and the North Carolina Chief Justice’s Taskforce on Virtual Courts on the importance of disability access in the court system.

John Hollemon ‘13

After graduating from RMC, Hollemon (communications studies major) earned a Master’s in Executive Leadership from Liberty University and a Doctorate in Healthcare Administration from Virginia University of Lynchburg. Hollemon is the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) where he provides subject matter expertise to NACAC’s 27,000 members, special interest groups, media, and the general public by contributing as a speaker, panelist, moderator, and writer. He also chairs the annual Guiding the Way to Inclusion Conference and College Fair, now in its 44th year of operation. Prior to joining the NACAC staff, John was the Inaugural Chief Diversity Officer for Hampden-Sydney College. He also served as a National Fellow in the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education.

Kori Hughes ‘17

Hughes (political science major) has been a leader in the field of exceptional education for Hanover County Public Schools since graduating from RMC in 2017. After serving as an exceptional education teacher for five years, she accepted a new role as a Project SEARCH Instructor, working in a global post-secondary program focused on positive, integrated employment for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. After her first year of teaching, Hughes received the Beginning Teacher of the Year Award in recognition of her outstanding leadership and commitment to community enrichment. Additionally, she served for two years on the Principal Advisory Committee, coordinated and coached Special Olympics Unified Track meets and All-Star Basketball teams, and was the Hanover High School varsity assistant softball coach.

Dory Jackson ‘16

Jackson (communication studies major) has forged a successful career in entertainment journalism, working as a culture reporter for Newsweek, a staff writer for Us Weekly, and since 2021, on the team at PEOPLE. Jackson started as a writer-reporter in PEOPLE’s TV division before getting promoted to associate editor in June 2022. Her work as a writer and editor has led to on-screen appearances on Good Morning America, Nightline, MTV, and PEOPLE’s shows and podcasts. She has covered major events, including the Oscars, the VMAs, and New York Fashion Week, in addition to interviewing stars like Pierce Brosnan, Viola Davis, Anna Faris, Michael B. Jordan, and Jerry Seinfeld.

Fidele Ntumba ‘18

After earning a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from RMC and a master’s in finance from Vanderbilt University, Ntumba (an economics and political science major and accounting and mathematics minor) has embarked on a successful career in finance. Ntumba started at PricewaterhouseCoopers, advising and delivering valuation solutions to large Fortune 500 companies and private equity firms before working as a lead analyst on several high-profile transactions at Raymond James. Ntumba has served as a private equity associate at ICV Partners since July 2022, leading the execution of new investment opportunities and driving operational value and enhancements to current portfolio companies. He continues to give back to the RMC community, volunteering at the Edge Boot Camp and serving on the Multicultural Alumni Association Advisory Council.

J.D. Rackey ‘15

After teaching English in China as a Schwarzman Scholar for a year following graduation, Rackey (music and political science double-major) earned Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in political science from the University of Oklahoma. While working on his Ph.D., J.D. was chosen to serve as the American Political Science Association’s Public Policy Fellow on the U.S. House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress. He continued his work on the committee through December 2022, and now works for the Sunwater Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank as their Director of Legislative Studies.

Rachel Stewart St. Clair ‘13

After a successful career in corporate recruiting and account management for companies like Homes.com, Groupon, and Norfolk Southern Corporation, St. Clair (sociology major) established her own recruitment and social media consulting firm, RecruitingSavvy, in April 2017. RecruitingSavvy provides strategic recruitment planning and execution for small-to-medium-sized businesses. In less than six years, St. Clair has grown RecruitingSavvy to a million-dollar company. In addition to owning and operating her own business, she volunteers with The Honor Foundation, a career transition program for U.S. Special Operations Forces, and is a member of the Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) Accelerator program, Atlanta chapter.

Emily Kirk Sullivan ‘16

After graduating from RMC, Sullivan (biology and behavioral neuroscience double-major) earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Dartmouth College. Her research focused on the neurobiology underlying co-occurring addiction and mental illness, specifically alcohol use and schizophrenia. In addition to publishing five peer-reviewed articles, Sullivan received a National Institute of Health grant to fund her research. Her thesis was awarded the John W. Strohbehn Medal for Excellence in Biomedical Research at Dartmouth College. Sullivan is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where her research focuses on adolescent alcohol exposure and the subsequent effects on cognition and underlying neurochemical alterations.