Where Are They Now?
Ana Panaligan/UC Davis
Amy Gutierrez
When she appeared in the winter 2011 issue, Amy Gutierrez ’95 was in her third season as the San Francisco Giants sideline reporter and had just launched her own webcast, “Amy G’s Giants Xclusive.” Since then, Gutierrez has continued to be a reporter and host for the Giants, became a communications department lecturer at Sonoma State, and started as a national correspondent for MLB Network. She has covered a variety of teams including the A’s, Warriors, Sharks, Raiders and 49ers — winning eight Emmy awards along the way. In 2013, Gutierrez published a children’s book about baseball called Smarty Marty’s Got Game.
Gutierrez advises aspiring journalists to “stay on your path” but also emphasizes the importance of diversity. She has also written features for UC San Francisco. “I went back to my roots as a producer. It was really important to me that I had other outlets to tell stories with.”
Gutierrez said she is a huge fan of the underdog and loves telling stories of triumph or overcoming the odds. “But I’ve also been privileged enough to use this platform for much bigger causes, [like when] I get to meet a Make-a-Wish child at a Giants game who has terminal cancer and grant them a final wish. The way you’re able to reach out to the community because of what you do helps you prioritize life.”
Costa Dillon
Costa Dillon ’71 created the concept of “Killer Tomatoes” as a short film in college. Finding a new audience as one of the first films to be available on VHS, the movie developed a cult following that led to three sequels, including Return of the Killer Tomatoes starring George Clooney. He went on to become a superintendent in the U.S. National Park Service, serving at Homestead National Monument of America, Fire Island National Seashore and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. He is now retired. (Spring 1991)
Ann Veneman
Ann Veneman ’70 appeared in UC Davis Magazine when she was appointed deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and in 2001 she was appointed U.S. secretary of agriculture. She held that position until 2005, when she became executive director at UNICEF (until 2010). She sits on the board at Nestle and continues to advise and speak internationally. (Winter 1991)
Ana Panaligan/UC Davis
Steven R. Kutcher
Steven R. Kutcher ’68 studied entomology at UC Davis and went on to become a consulting entomologist, teacher, artist, photographer, writer and environmentalist. He became known as the “bug man of Hollywood” in the 1990s, working on feature films including Jurassic Park, Arachnophobia and Spider-Man.
Featured in the spring 1996 issue of UC Davis Magazine, Kutcher has worked as an entomological consultant for governmental agencies and for private industry at bugsaremybusiness.com. He said that educating people about insects is one of his passions, and creativity and nature are important to him. He gives presentations at museums, universities, and organizations and created the “Insect Fair,” now at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. In 2022 he retired from teaching biology part-time at community colleges after 44 years.
In 2003, Kutcher created Bug Art with insect footprints, which has been displayed in museums, libraries, galleries and other venues. He also enjoys making videos and currently lives in Arcadia, California.
Bob Warren
Bob Warren ’58, the son of former Chief Justice Earl Warren, is preserving his father’s past and that of many other major historical figures through his collection of political memorabilia. He continues this work to this day. (Summer 1996)
Angel Martinez
Angel Martinez ’77 built a career in the shoe business, managing such brands as Reebok, UGG, Hoka One, Teva and more. He ran for mayor of Santa Barbara in 2017 and has continued to advise companies. (Fall 1996)
David Phillips
David Phillips ’88, who works as the associate vice president of Energy and Sustainability at University of California Office of the President, calculated while grocery shopping that the value of a mail-in promotion for frequent flyer miles exceeded the cost of the pudding on which it was offered. In May 1999, Phillips received 1,253,000 frequent flyer miles. (Fall 2000)
Ana Panaligan/UC Davis
Lucy Spelman
Lucy Spelman, D.V.M. ’90, was first featured in the summer 2002 edition of UC Davis Magazine, when she had recently become the first female director of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. Since then, she has treated animals of all kinds, from cockroaches to giant pandas. She has lived in Rwanda, where she managed the veterinary team responsible for the world’s only mountain gorillas, and is a published author. In addition to scientific articles, she contributed to and co-edited The Rhino with Glue-on Shoes (2008) and wrote the main text for the popular National Geographic Animal Encyclopedia (2012).
Since 2010 she has taught biology to students at the Rhode Island School of Design, and she continues to practice veterinary medicine at Ocean State Veterinary Specialists. She is also a National Geographic Explorer for its Great Apes of Rwanda and Uganda tour. In 2015, she founded Creature Conserve, a nonprofit bringing artists, writers and scientists together to celebrate, study and protect animals and their habitats.
In her words: “Artists have always been interpreters of our time. Through their eyes, the science of saving species and the importance of taking a One Health approach to conservation becomes accessible, meaningful and relevant — and the source of positive change.”
Nadine Burke Harris
Nadine Burke Harris, M.D. ’01, dedicated her medical career to toxic stress and the lifelong effects it can have on our health and had just written a book about it when she was featured in UC Davis Magazine. She was appointed California surgeon general in 2019 and held that position until 2022. (Spring/Summer 2018)
Jackie Speier
Jackie Speier ’72 is a politician and author, who was famously shot at Jonestown in 1978. She rose up through the California Legislature and ultimately won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2008. She did not run for reelection in 2022. (Spring/Summer 2019)
