We salute your achievements!

The NYU Office of Alumni Relations welcomes the chance to inform your fellow graduates of the events and activities in your life. Browse here by class to find news of your former classmates and take a moment to submit a note of your own. Our class notes are now entirely online, allowing the information here to be updated more frequently and be displayed for a longer period of time.

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Class Notes

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1930's | 1940's | 1950's | 1960's | 1970's | 1980's | 1990's | 2000's |

1940's

Robert Treuhaft (STERN 1948, Advertising) passed away at home on April 16, 2008. He leaves his wife of 55 years, Ellie, and two daughters. Bob was a buyer at Bloomingdale's in New York for many years until he became a merchandise manager at John Wanamaker's in Philadelphia in 1968. He was a member of Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill for over 40 years, and volunteered for Jewish Family Services and for SCORE (Counselors to America's Small Business).

1950's

Richard P. Kleva (Steinhardt 1956) was recently honored by Middletown High School North when the school dedicating The Wrestling Wall of Champions in his name. He is considered "The Father of Wrestling in Middletown." Through the years teams he has coached have won six District Championships and six A Division titles. His grapplers also earned 35 individual district championships. In addition to his impressive wrestling coaching career, he also won two state championships as coach of the Lions’ football team.

1960's

Jan Kasoff (STERN 1963) has worked as a cameraman for NBC for 36 years, 26 of them doing Saturday Night Live. He has won several Primetime Emmy Awards for SNL through the years.

Barney Popkin (WSC 1964, Geology/Mathematics) is a foreign service officer for USAID in Washington, DC, where he recently completed environmental reviews of over 800 projects in Asia and the Middle East worth over $40 billion. He also trained over 400 USAID staff and contractors in environmental management and environmentally sound design. Prior to that, he was Halliburton/KBR's Northern Iraq environmental manager to restore Iraqi oil.

George S. Rotter (GSAS 1964, Psychology) passed away on June 12 after an extended illness. He was a member of Congregation Shaya Ahavat Torah and the Society of American Baseball Research. Dr. Rotter was a professor of psychology at Montclair State University for 33 years and received the distinguished title of Professor Emeritus. He was also the former research director of the Institute for Human Sexuality at Montclair State. Dr. Rotter was a charter fellow of the Association of Psychological Science. Dr. Rotter was also a United States Air Force veteran, serving his country as a weather observer, from 1947 to 1950. Additionally, he bore a lifelong grudge against Walter O’Malley for moving the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Dr. Naomi Rotter (GSAS 1974) two daughters Nora Tillman (Seth) of Philadelphia and Valerie Levin (Miles) of Teaneck a son, Ephraim of Thomasville, GA and eight grandchildren and numerous beloved nieces and nephews.

Felissa R. Lashley (NUR 1965) dean of the College of Nursing at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is stepping down as dean effective June 30.

Abraham H. Foxman (LAW 1965) received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Yeshiva University. Mr. Foxman spoke about “The 11th Commandment” in the commencement address to the university’s 2,000 graduates on May 22, 2008 at Madison Square Garden. Foxman is the National Director of the Anti-Defamation League and a world-renowned leader in the fight against anti-Semitism.

Alan D. Rosenberg (STERN 1967) is a certified public accountant and president of Alan D. Rosenberg, P.C. He is a member of the Advisory Council of the College of Westchester.

David L. Cohen (STERN 1967) has been elected to serve as Vice-President for the Eleventh District of the Association’s Executive Committee.

Thomas G. Angelo (STERN 1967) of Stratford, CT has been appointed to the Town of Stratford’s Financial Advisory Committee. Tom retired in 2002 after 13 years as Chief Financial and Administrative Officer of Beck’s North America, a North American subsidiary of the Belgian firm INBEV, the world’s largest brewer. Since his retirement Tom has be involved with various community activities.

Robert F. Lima, Jr. (GSAS 1968) was awarded the Institute for the Arts and Humanities Medal by Penn State University on April 10, 2008.

1970's

Jay S. Kwawer (GSAS 1971) was selected as the new Director of The William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis and Psychology in New York City. His four year term began in July 2008.

Raymond T. Coppola (Steinhardt 1972, Early Childhood Education, MA) is the author of Empowering Children For Success, How Parents and Teachers Can Open the Door of Success for Every Child (Book Clearing House, 2008). The book is based on the latest findings of neuroscience and the research of infant care, and tackles the nature/nurture debate.

Thomas Houghton (TSOA 1972, Film & Television) is the Director of Photography for feature film "Finding Amanda" which opened in June 2008 starring Matthew Broderick, Steve Coogan, Britney Snow and Maura Tierney.

Mark G. Leeds (STERN 1974) a certified public accountant from Eastchester, was awarded the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants Outstanding CPA in Industry Award. Leeds was honored at the society's 111th Annual Election Meeting and Dinner. Leeds is chief financial officer of Win Properties, a national real estate company based in Rye Brook. This award recognizes CPAs who are financial executives and who have distinguished themselves with outstanding service and professional development in a private business or industry.

Mei-Ching Chow (LAW 1976) is the new First Lady of Taiwan. She is keeping her job as head of the legal affairs department at International Commercial Bank.

Agustin Arbulu (LAW 1977) was awarded the Samuel R. Marotta Faculty Ethics Award at Northwood University. The award, which was created in 2001, is intended for a faculty member who best models integrity and high ethical standards.

Laura Foti Cohen (WSUC 1978) has launched www.LoveHowTo.com, with advice on finding love, keeping it alive, and moving on gracefully if it fades. The core of the site is a directory reviewing more than 150 dating services.

Vincent Skuderna (Steinhardt 1978) is currently working on a Stage to Screen piece reflecting the 1930's to present looking for fellow NYU alumni collaborators.

Noemi Figueroa (Steinhardt 1979) produced, wrote and directed The Borinqueneers which won Best Documentary in the Puerto Rican Film category at the Rincon International Film Festival in Puerto Rico.

1980's

Elise Meisner Healy (WAG 1980) is a founding shareholder in Spencer Crain Cubbage Healy & McNamara, a majority-owned female law firm in Dallas – the first significant firm of its caliber in Texas.

Bonnie Rosenstock (Steinhardt 1982) is a freelance journalist in New York City. Two of her articles were cited in garnering first and second place awards for The Villager for coverage of Business, Financial & Economic News and coverage of Religion at the 2007New York Press Association's Better Newspaper Contest. Rosenstock also teaches ESL part time at Baruch College

Bruce Nozick (TSOA 1982) is working as an actor in Los Angeles and his recent guest star television appearances include "Entourage," "Shark," "Big Shots," "Women’s Murder Club," and "Private Practice." He is also married and has two teenage boys.

Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom (TSOA 1982) was the Senior Producer of "Rock Band", the music video which allow gamers to perform music from the world's biggest rock artists with their friends as a virtual band using drum, bass/lead guitar and microphone peripherals. Rock Band received 3 D.I.C.E. awards for Innovation in Gaming, Soundtrack, and Family Game of the Year.

George Gulla (STERN 1983) was appointed vice president of publications for American National Standards Institute (ANSI), a private not-for-profit organization that administers and coordinates the U.S. standardization and conformity assessment system.

Yvonne Farrow (GAL 1983) was been nominated by the NAACP as Best Producer for Yvette Heyliger's / GAL ’83 GAL ’87 / hit stage play, What Would Jesus Do? The 18th Annual NAACP Theater Awards show, "Salute to Black Theater", was held on in June 2008 at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood.

Jon Nicholas Austin (GSAS 1984, History/Museum Studies, GSAS 1985) is the executive director of the Museum of Funeral Customs in Springfield, IL, received the 2008 Excellence in Peer Review Service award from the American Association of Museums during its recent annual meeting in Denver.

Arturo Casadevall (MED 1985) was presented the William A. Hinton Research Training Award by the American Society for Microbiology. Dr. Casadevall works as the Chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University. This award recognizes Dr. Casadevall’s outstanding contributions toward fostering the research training of underrepresented minorities in microbiology.

Cathy Mezinis-Balenovic (GAL 1986, Language Arts) has just launched Sagesse Designs™ which offers greeting cards and relaxation CD's for those with cancer or going through challenging times. Visit www.sagessedesigns.com for more info.

Vincenzo Paparo (GSAS 1987) has been inducted into the American College of Commercial Finance Lawyers (ACCFL). Paparo is a partner in Proskauer Rose LLP’s Corporate Department and co-chair of its Finance Group.

Jill Lebowitz (GSAS 1988, LAW 2000) has been appointed senior counsel to the Estate Planning & Administration and Taxation Groups at law firm of Norris McLaughlin & Marcus, P.A.

Pedro Reina-Perez (WSC 1988) has received two awards for print and radio journalism: the 2nd Bolívar Pagán Award 2006 (Puerto Rico), and an Honorable Mention in the José Ramón Piñero León International Journalism Prize (Spain). His latest book on Pablo Casals in exile will be published in the Fall.

Dara P. Richardson-Heron (MED 1989) was recently appointed CEO of the Greater New York City Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Dr. Richardson-Heron will be the first CEO of Komen Greater NYC. Previously the top position was known as Executive Director. A 10-year breast cancer survivor, she is also the first physician and African-American in the post.

Alejandro Badia (MED 1989) has recently opened his own practice Badia Hand to Shoulder Center in Doral, Florida.

1990's

Daniel Putkowski (TSOA 1990) recently published his novel An Island Away (Hawser Press, 2008), a vivid and absorbing tale of personal endurance, bartered souls, and stifled ambition that unfolds against the backdrop of San Nicolaas, Aruba.

James Raines (SSW 1990) recently published his first book Evidence Based Practice in School Mental Health published by Oxford University press.

Paul Kadetz (WSC 1991, Psychology/Biology) a doctoral student at the Institute of Social & Cultural Anthropology at University of Oxford, is leading an Oxford University Expedition to Guatemala with 2 other Oxford doctoral students with funding from the Royal Geographic Society. The expedition will assess the preferences, perceptions, and practices of Indigenous Guatemalans in terms of diet and activity to determine factors affecting a population demonstrating some of the poorest values on indicators for malnutrition in the Western Hemisphere.

Robert E. Massengill (STERN 1992) has been named president of SES Advisors, Inc.

Laura L. Jalowayski Vidler (WSUC 1992) has been promoted to the rank of Associate Professor of Spanish at the United States Military Academy (West Point, NY). Her research focuses on performance theory and the staging practices of 17th-century Spanish drama.

William J. Castillo (GSAS 1993) a partner in the intellectual property law firm of Caesar, Rivise, Bernstein, Cohen & Pokotilow, recently addressed lawyers from around Pennsylvania on IP issues affecting the pharmaceutical industry at the 2nd Annual Intellectual Property Law Institute sponsored by PBI.

Kristine Mercuro Tooker (CAS 1994) earned her Master's in Library Science from Rutgers and is the librarian at Point Pleasant Beach High School (NJ) and a reserve reference librarian at Ocean County College where she is also an adjunct instructor of Humanities. She serves as a Councilwoman in Point Pleasant Beach, NJ where she is the of Chair the Finance Committee and serves as Council liaison to the Planning Board, Environmental Commission, Shade Tree Commission, Recycling Task Force and the Animal Welfare Committee. She helped to start her town's Farmer's Market and is also a trustee of the Point Pleasant Beach Public Education Foundation.

Keeley P. Mitchell-Wallace (CAS 1994) recently joined SouthSearch Legal Recruiters as the attorney search firm's vice president. She is responsible for establishing and managing the firm's Research Triangle Park, NC office. Her practice involves all aspects of attorney placement and legal career counseling. Prior to joining SouthSearch Legal Recruiters, Keeley practiced commercial real estate at such prominent law firms as Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis LLP, Miami, FL and Wolf Block Schorr and Solis-Cohen, LLP, Philadelphia, PA.

David Kubersky (WSC 1994) has been appointed president of SimCorp USA, the North American subsidiary of SimCorp A/S.

Stephanie (Rosenblatt) Korenman (CAS 1994) was recently promoted to Senior Vice President and Senior Attorney of the Executive Financial Services arm of Citigroup's Global Wealth Management Division.

Douglas D. McInnis (TSOA 1994) received a juris doctor degree from New England School of Law during Commencement ceremonies at the Citi Performing Arts Center on May 23, 2008.

David C. Suarez (TSOA 1995) has been facilitating corporate training and team building workshops for the past five years for such organizations as: Burger King, Taco Bell, Bayer CropScience, Honeywell, Florida International University, American University of the Caribbean, and Miami Dade College.

Berl D. Jones, Jr. (Steinhardt 1995, MPH - Public Health) was recently promoted to Director of the Individual Assistance Division, within the Disaster Assistance Directorate within the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Brian Kennelly (GSAS 1996, French) has been promoted to Professor at Cal Poly, where he is Chair of Modern Languages and Literatures.

Greg Siers (TSOA 1998) is now working as manager of live events for Discovery Communications in Silver Spring, MD.

Hebron Simckes-Joffe (TSOA 1999, Film & TV Production, GAL 2007) is working at Warner Brothers on a new digital initiative. His job is to conceptualize, write and direct content with a team of filmmakers in a "creative lab."

2000's

Valon L. Beasley (GSAS 2000, English Education) self-published a book for English teachers and started her own business entitled Y.N.T.S.: You Need to Succeed, (www.uneed2succeed.com), a promotional and educational company. She has also received accolades such as the Superintendent's Leadership Award and was featured on PBS with NYS Commissioner of Education Richard Mills for raising test scores in reading and writing.

Helena Coronado-Salazar (CAS 2001, Politics and Romance Languages) has been awarded an Equal Justice Works Legal Fellowship for 2008-2010. Ms. Coronado-Salazar will work at the Equal Justice Center, Inc. in Austin, Texas (not affiliated with Equal Justice Works). As Wage Collections Counsel, she will be assisting immigrant and low-income workers recover unpaid wages.

Timothy M. Hull (GAL 2002) recently had a major solo exhibition in Chelsea entitled “The Swarm of Possible Meanings Surrounding the Ancient Pyramids,” which was composed of videos, paintings, intricate drawings, sculptures and sound surrounding ancient Egypt.

Kristin Blemaster Hogan (CAS 2002) is an associate at Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto and was named winner of the 2008 Burton Award for Legal Achievement for an article she co-wrote “High Court to Rule on Territorial Reach of Patents,” originally published in the January 22, 2007 issue of The National Law Journal. This year marks the second time Ms. Hogan received a Burton Award. She was a recipient of the Burton Award in 2006 for an article she co-write while in her third year of law school at Columbia.

Miraida Morales (GSAS 2003, French Studies, CAS 2002) co-founded a nonprofit youth theater group Artists for Creative Theatre. Their first production, Little White Lies, opens in July 2008.

Heather A. Vaughan (Steinhardt 2004, Visual Culture: Costume Studies) has recently had two articles "Foreign Treasures: Elizabeth Ginno's Costume Etchings at the 1940 Exposition on Treasure Island, San Francisco" published in the International Journal of Local & Regional Studies (University of Lincoln, UK) (Series 2 Vol. 3, No. 2 Autumn 2007) and "Natacha Rambova, Fashion Designer (1928 – 1931)" published in Dress (Journal of The Costume Society of America) 2006 issue, released May 2008.
She is also now a regular contributor to the fashion history blog, http://www.wornthrough.com. More information about Heather is available at http://www.fashionhistorian.net

Julie Harbey (CAS 2004, Economics) rang the closing bell at the NYSE on Friday, April 11, 2008 on behalf of the Women's Syndicate Association (WSA) for which she serves on the Executive Board. She was joined by the entire Executive Board and some active NY-based members.

Robin Wilson (SCPS 2004) won the Black Enterprise Business Innovator of the Year award. The award was presented at the Small Business Awards Luncheon in May 2008 in Charlotte, NC.

Lisa Mondello (CAS 2004, Journalism & Mass Communications) married Matthew Fielack in Stony Point, NY on April 19, 2008. Lisa is a Senior Publicist at Picador books in Manhattan. Matthew is an HVAC Technician with Johnson Controls in Brooklyn. The two met at a Wolfe Tones concert in March 2006.

Jordan Silver (WAG 2005) recently opened Silver Lining Opticians, a luxury optical boutique in Soho featuring independent brands and unused vintage from around the globe.

Jennifer Tippins (TSOA 2005, Film/TV) has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. student scholarship to Hong Kong in Filmmaking. She is one of over 1,450 U.S. citizens who will travel abroad for the 2008-2009 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. For her research project, she will study animation and art at City University of Hong Kong and work on developing a new animated film.

Mallory Carra (CAS 2005, Journalism) covers real estate news for the New York Daily News. She previously worked as a sportswriter for the Chattanooga Times Free Press in Tennessee.

Sushmitha Narsiah (CAS 2005) is currently a gender analyst at the World Bank in
Washington D.C. working on the Doing Business project. She is involved with data collection, research, and interviews of women entrepreneurs from 181 countries. She will be attending the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies this fall to complete a Master's degree in International Affairs.

S. Elizabeth Lockman (GAL 2006, Film & Linguistics) premiered the coming-of-age feature, "Wrestling", on which she served as co-producer, in Wilmington, Delaware this April. She was recently named Program Director of the Hearts & Minds Film Initiative of Serviam Media. She develops and runs a range of outreach programs which engage the community (especially youth) in social issues and media literacy through film exhibition and production training. The organization is located in Wilmington, Delaware, where she grew up and now resides with her young daughter.

Ben Liebert (TSOA 2006) is currently playing Boq in Wicked on Broadway here in NYC.

Dan Carmeli (Steinhardt 2007, Environmental Conservation Education) has just launched his own sustainable business: "Namaste of Mind". Namaste of Mind’s mission is to provide rural artisans with a market to sustain livelihoods, to improve communities, and to connect people with the source of a product. They are committed to achieving the highest levels of environmental stewardship, social consciousness, and customer service. They do this by providing customers with unique, handmade, natural fiber goods and fairly sharing profits with the artisans. Please feel free to visit the website at www.namasteofmind.com.

Anne Klingeberger (CAS 2007, European and Mediterranean Studies) has been awarded a 2008-2009 Fulbright grant. She will teach English and American studies as an English Teaching Assistant in Oranienburg, Germany.

The following abbreviations are used to represent NYU schools and colleges, past and present: ARTS University College of Arts and Science (Heights) | BPA College of Business and Public Administration (formerly School of Commerce, now the Stern School of Business Undergraduate College) | CAS College of Arts and Science (formerly Washington Square and University College of Arts of Science) | DEN College of Dentistry | ED Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development (formerly Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, Health, Nursing, and Arts Professions) | ENG School of Engineering and Science (Heights) | ESSW Ehrenkranz School of Social Work (formerly School of Social Work) | GAL Gallatin School of Individualized Study (formerly Gallatin Division) | GPA Graduate School of Public Administration (now Wagner Graduate School of Public Service) | GSAS Graduate School of Arts and Science | HON Honorary Degree | IFA Institute of Fine Arts | LAW School of Law | MED School of Medicine (formerly College of Medicine) | RET School of Retailing | SCPS School of Continuing and Professional Studies | SCE School of Continuing Education | SEHNAP Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, Health, Nursing, and Arts Professions (now Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development) | SG Stern School of Business Graduate Division (formerly Graduate School of Business Administration) | SSW School of Social Work (now Ehrenkranz School of Social Work) | SU Stern School of Business Undergraduate College (formerly College of Business and Public Administration) | TSOA Tisch School of the Arts (formerly School of the Arts) | WAG Wagner Graduate School of Public Service (formerly Graduate School of Public Administration) | WSC Washington Square College of Arts and Science (now College of Arts and Science) | WSUC Washington Square and University College of Arts and Science (formerly Washington Square College of Arts and Science; now College of Arts and Science)