Alumni Spotlight: Hannah Menzner, Riverstone Alumni, Class of 2014.

Since her graduation in 2014, Hannah has been making a splash in the world.

Gretchen Arguedas, Director of College Counseling, said “ I remember Hannah as a student who was up for any challenge and I’m not surprised to learn about all of her current endeavors.”

Hannah began her academic journey at Riverstone in 2001, attending from Kindergarten through our rigorous high school International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme (DP) program. “I had the opportunity to teach Hannah as a 6th grader and then again later in high school. [She] was perhaps the most dialed, organized, and articulate sixth grader I ever taught,” said Gretchen. Hannah embodied several of Riverstone’s pillars while a student. She was active in National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), a nonprofit program that prepares young people for leadership through outdoor experiences. Her family also hosted an international student. In addition to her reputation for academic excellence, she also played piano and learned to play the drums. Hannah says, “Riverstone certainly shaped my appreciation for and love of the outdoors. That is one part of my life and home that I dearly miss. Once I finish my studies on the East Coast, I plan to return West to get back to my mountain roots.”

After graduating from Riverstone she moved to Virginia and graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce with concentrations in Marketing and Information Technology through the Business Analytics track. Reflecting on her 13 years at Riverstone, Hannah said “My time at Riverstone prepared me for the academic rigor of my college classes. It also gave me the time management and personal management skills I needed to navigate life in a much larger school.”

During her time at the University of Virginia, she even got the opportunity to study abroad in both Singapore and Spain and also work for a summer internship at JR Simplot Company and PR firm SKDKnickerbocker.

Since graduating, Hannah has continued to add accolades to her resume.

She recently wrote a book titled “Glass Ceiling Epiphanies,” which will be published and available on Amazon in September. She describes the book as “a nonfiction work sharing the stories of real women in business and the lessons they learned through hands-on workforce experience. Hopefully, by sharing these experiences with each other, women can close the gender leadership gap in the corporate and business world.”

Hannah is the current Miss Capital City and will compete for Miss Idaho USA on September 10 and 11, 2022. Should she win, she will represent the Gem State at events throughout the year and will go on to compete for Miss USA 2023 next summer. Her platform of fighting mental health stigma has provided her with opportunities to educate and advocate to all ages. She also serves on the Board of her local chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

This fall, she will attend The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania where she is pursuing her MBA with a focus in entrepreneurship and innovation. Her goal is to pivot from management consulting to tech and start-ups, with the hope of joining an early-stage venture that combines her interests in sustainability and technology.

To summarize her time at Riverstone Hannah says ”my experience at Riverstone shaped my college and grad school choices in that I wanted to challenge myself with something completely different.” Riverstone prepared her for the challenge. “After thirteen years at Riverstone, I wanted to see how I could perform among thousands of students. The good news is that I was able to excel with the foundation Riverstone helped me create.”

Your Riverstone community is rooting for you, Hannah, and we can’t wait to see what you accomplish next!