Our Place in Walla Walla: Andrew Trogstad-Isaacson ’11
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Feature by: Noah Leavitt, College Liaison for Community Affairs
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Andrew “Drew” Trogstad-Isaacson grew up in Minnesota and attended Whitman, graduating as a Geology major in 2011. After more than a decade working and researching outside the region, he returned in 2022 and now serves as the Interim Director of the Water & Environmental Center at Walla Walla Community College. He has over 20 years of environmental education and natural resources management experience. Drew and I met on Indigenous Peoples’ Day and had a great chat in Walawála Plaza.
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How are you involved in the Walla Walla community?
To start—where am I not involved? [laughs]. In my current job, I work closely with water and natural resources agencies like Walla Walla Conservation District, the state’s Department of Ecology, CTUIR [Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation], and lots of nonprofits. I am also a board member of Tri-State Steelheaders, which has been really fun and rewarding. I try to remain connected to the happenings at Whitman by returning to campus whenever possible, from partnering with professors on projects to keeping in touch with advisors, etc. I’m also trying to enjoy the community for everything it has to offer, whether its lunch meetings like this one or heading into the Blues and enjoying the outdoors. I also enjoy being an active member of the community by making connections, not just for me, but also for others—I really enjoy connecting people to each other!
How does your role fit into larger aspects of our region?
One of the things that drew me to the Pacific Northwest when looking at colleges was the connection to outdoor landscapes here. I really liked Whitman’s campus and the community. When I got here, I tried as many things as I could to get me out into the natural world, which led me to a degree in Geology wherever class had a field component. This helped me cement my understanding of the natural world. It also led me to create a career that encourages others to get outside and teaches them about their sense of place, and their connections to the ecosystems that our community is a part of. Many people don’t have that connection—they may think of themselves as stewards of the environment but not a part of it.
Read more.
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Beyond the interview:
Andrew Trogstad-Isaacson ’11 will be available for questions and further conversations on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at noon in Reid Campus Center, room 207. The Career and Community Engagement Center will provide lunch for the first 10 students in attendance. Questions or ideas? Please contact Noah Leavitt at leavitns@whitman.edu.
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Two Seniors Receive ORISE Fellowships
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Biology major Margaret Burgess ’25 and Biology-Environmental Studies major Morgan Sherwood ’25 have each received Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) Fellowships. The students are currently conducting their Senior Thesis research in collaboration with Dr. Adam Duarte at the USFS PNW Research Station and Dr. Ben Vernasco in the Biology Department. Their projects focus on quantifying the wildlife distribution across the Umatilla and Wallowa-Whitman National Forest by combining landscape-scale measurements of soundscapes and artificial intelligence that can recognize the sounds of various species of wildlife, birds in particular. Their research will describe where certain species are found in the national forest and how forest characteristics and management practices influence species distributions. Such information is essential to understanding the species ecology and maintaining viable populations.
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Free STI Testing This Week
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The Planned Parenthood Generation Action student group and the Welty Student Health Center are partnering to provide free testing for sexually transmitted infections (STI) next week. (Flyer attached.)
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- Monday, Oct. 21–Wednesday, Oct. 23 from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Thursday, Oct. 24–Friday, Oct. 25 from 8 a.m. to noon.
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Visiting Writers Reading Series on Thursday
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The Visiting Writers Reading Series continues with a presentation by Noé Álvarez on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 6 p.m. at Kimball Theatre in Hunter Conservatory. Álvarez is the author of “Accordion Eulogies” (Catapult, 2024) and “Spirit Run” (Catapult, 2020). (Flyer attached.)
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A Cappella Concert on Saturday
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The SOS Volunteer Club student group will hold their annual SOS Speakeasy Concert on Saturday, Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. in Cordiner Hall. This annual fundraising event features performances by Whitman’s a cappella groups. Admission is a freewill donation to SOS Health Services, a clinic that provides free healthcare to uninsured & underinsured patients in the Walla Walla Valley. (Flyer attached.)
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An overgrown field behind James Hayner Field is getting cleaned up through the efforts of a huge herd of hungry goats!
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Movement That Matters: Pilates
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Reid Campus Center, All Faiths Room
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Hall of Science, Room 151
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Reid Side Lawn or Sherwood 114
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Sherwood Athletic Center, Room 106
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Movement That Matters: MELT
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Welty Student Health Center
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Reid Campus Center, Room 207
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Prentiss Hall, Great Hall
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Luncheon with Andrew Trogstad-Isaacson ’11
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Reid Campus Center, Room 207
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Movement That Matters: Strength & Stretch
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Reid Campus Center, Side Lawn
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Reid Campus Center, Basement
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Movement That Matters: Step Aerobics
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Reid Campus Center, Young Ballroom
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Reid Campus Center, All Faiths Room
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Hunter Conservatory, Kimball Theatre
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Movement That Matters: Yoga
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Reid Campus Center, Side Lawn
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Baker Ferguson Fitness Center, Harvey Pool
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Fouts Center for Visual Arts, Native Plant Restoration Site
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Amazing Grace Church-Nazarene
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Would you like to share an event with campus? Submit the information to the Events Calendar.
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Produced by the Office of Communications, Whitman Today is emailed to Whitman College staff, faculty and students each weekday during the academic year and twice a week during breaks. An archive of previous issues is available online.
All submissions are welcome! If you have accomplishments to celebrate, an event to publicize or other Whitman content to share, email whitmantoday@whitman.edu. Submissions of 125 words or less are due by noon for the following day’s newsletter. Submissions may be edited and/or held for a later date according to space and editorial needs. Your submission also authorizes use on Whitman's social media unless otherwise specified.
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