The Winter 2021-22 edition of the SLUH Magazine introduced the 1540 List, highlighting 15 alumni under the age of 40 who have made a positive impact in the world since graduating high school. 

The list, which honors the founding of the Society of Jesus in September 1540, pays homage to alumni who resemble the bold founders of the Jesuits who came before them centuries ago. 

“Everyone who has graduated from SLUH, myself included, has a story of someone in their class doing amazing work,” said Alumni Relations Coordinator Chris Buerke. “When we realized that so many of these stories were about alumni who were only 10 to 15 years removed from SLUH, we wondered just how many other tales were out there that we didn't know about.”

Buerke was instrumental in the creation of the list, devising this original project idea last September. Buerke emailed nomination forms to thousands of SLUH alumni, faculty members, and even SLUH mothers, calling for them to remember stories of beloved classmates and students. 

“We wanted them to tell us the stories of young alumni that they were proud of and who they thought were doing awesome things,” said Buerke. “We ended up getting about 100 nominations.” 

Being forced to narrow down the list, a selection committee was brought together to choose the top 30 to 40 alumni. After a difficult decision process, the committee finally chose a group of alumni that best answered the question of what SLUH wants their diverse group of students to look like and achieve post-graduation. Honores on the list range from 23 to 39 years old, and graduated from SLUH between 2001 and 2017.

“I wish we could have chosen all 100 people because each of their stories are great,” said Buerke. “We had some really difficult stories to choose from in the final selection.”

One honoree, Fr. Louis Hotop, SJ of the Class of ’09, was recently ordained a priest last summer after spending years studying under the Jesuits. Many seniors who focused their Grande Project on the topic of Immigration Injustice will remember Hotop’s stories of his work and experiences at the US-Mexico border and even has his own podcast on the same topic. 

“In my senior year of high school, I wanted to be a Jesuit priest and, after 12 years of formation, that desire has been fulfilled,” said Fr. Hotop in SLUH Magazine. “I never imagined myself working with migrants on the US-Mexico border.” 

Sam Heagney, ’16 is another example of a former Jr. Bill attempting to solve problems concerning the climate by using alternative, clean sources of energy in our day-to-day life. A Vanderbilt University graduate who has had experience working with clean energy in India, Heagney remembers the time in his senior year when he decided how he would spend the rest of his future. 

“I had the privilege of taking AP Environmental Science my senior year, and it was over the course of APES that I decided to dedicate my career to climate change solutions,” said Heagney in SLUH Magazine.

Ryan Hopkins, ’16 has found himself successful in the competitive West Coast film industry in Los Angeles. After creating his own filming group Everybody at 86 in 2017, Hopkins graduated from Loyola Marymount University and shortly thereafter began to work with several filmmaking companies such as Netflix and STX Entertainment. Even after leaving the halls of SLUH, he continues to act as a Man for Others in the film industry.

“I try to be a resource for younger people wanting to be filmmakers, whether it’s speaking on the phone or connecting on social media,” said Hopkins in SLUH Magazine. “There’s a lot of value in being able to have a relationship with someone who is in the thick of it.”

The former Jr. Bills that make up the 1540 list have not forgotten their origins and have continued to bring the ideals and virtues they learned while at the U. High to every  corner of the country or even the globe. 

“Expect more of yourself. Privilege your own curiosity over grades; it matters more,” said Nicholas Fandos ‘11, a New York Times Reporter, in SLUH Magazine. “If you’re from the county, spend time in the city. Listen to your English teachers. Read the newspaper.”

Being a new project that was created through the combined efforts of several SLUH faculty and staff, Buerke hopes that the 1540 list will return next year or will be expanded on to include more alumni and stories as time goes on and these former Jr. Bills continue to amaze us and the rest of the world by their work. 

“We could probably build three different lists right off the bat right now,” said Buerke. “The best thing is: SLUH will continue to graduate students who go off to accomplish amazing things, so stories like these will never stop.”

If you are interested in these few alumni presented above or want to learn more about the alumni who used to walk the halls of SLUH, read further about the 1540 list in SLUH Magazine or on the school’s website.