News

This spring, Sophie Wilson's eighth grade science class at the Elementary•Middle School researched and wrote in-depth research projects on infectious diseases. To enhance the experience and provide a primary source for one student researching Ebola, Ms. Wilson arranged for Landmark alumnus, Kieran Kesner '09 to speak to the class. Kesner shared his experiences as a news photographer on assignment from the Wall Street Journal in Liberia covering the Ebola outbreak in 2014. 

Kesner and the students viewed photos on his website from his time there. He candidly shared stories about the work, safety concerns, and challenges of the assignment. With the COVID-19 pandemic fresh on everyone's mind, his pictures were striking, raw, and authentic—and gave the students a unique snapshot into the reality of the ravages of the Ebola disease.

Ms. Wilson said, "We were so grateful to have Kieran come and speak to the class about his experiences in an epidemic hot-zone. He did an incredible job of bringing the situation that he faced to life. The students were clearly moved by Kieran's honesty and the poignancy of the imagery." 

Students in the class each selected an infectious disease upon which to write including: AIDS, anthrax, malaria, polio, typhoid, and others.