The New Year brings with it much to look forward to — the prospect of new adventures on the horizon and the excitement of not quite knowing what this next cycle around the sun has in store.

But before we dash forward, we'd like to take a moment to look back on 2018 and celebrate the many remarkable accomplishments of our EXPLO family members. 

• James Forman, Jr. won the Pulitzer Prize in Nonfiction for his bestselling work, Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America
  
  
• Jon Chang, Jesse Kaplan, Ruby Lee, Jeff Low, and Amina Yamusah were all named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Class of 2019
  
  
• Seth Goldman and Brynn Putnam each earned TIME Magazine Best Inventions of 2018 awards
  
  
• Variety named Tayarisha Poe one of the 10 Directors to Watch for 2019 for her upcoming film Selah and the Spades
  
  
• Salvador Gomez was named TIME Teen of the Year for his work supporting his fellow citizens in Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria
  
  

We know there are likely many more achievements among our community, and we would love if you shared your news with us at alumni@explo.org.  

Wherever your explorations take you in 2019, all of us here at EXPLO hope they are filled with joy, wonder, and spirited adventure. Happy New Year!