Engaging with the NYU Community
Trustees are a significant leadership presence at NYU. With more than 60 active members, Trustees are deeply engaged with the University and the schools in a variety of ways and are committed to exploring additional opportunities to hear from and learn with NYU faculty, students, and staff.
Over the years, Trustees have taken on a wide array of roles. Some serve on school advisory councils or boards; others mentor students or teach as adjunct professors. Trustees are often called upon to serve on committees that advise on scholarship recipients or meet with students seeking to pursue careers in their fields.
Trustee Chandrika Tandon spoke with Tandon students Jefferson, Riley, and Rohan during a recent campus visit.
I wanted to do something meaningful that could consciously refocus impact on institutions that were serving a higher purpose—that’s what got me to NYU. For example, at Tandon, we have a high percentage of first-generation families, a high percentage of students on aid, 43 percent women in the entering class.... We are not just changing individuals' lives. We’re changing generations.
—Chandrika Tandon
Trustees regularly engage with NYU students who are the beneficiaries of specialized scholarship and fellowship programs they have created, such as the AnBryce Scholarship to support first-generation college and law school students, created by NYU Trustee Anthony Welters and his wife, Beatrice.
I was the first in my family to attend college and obviously the first in my family to attend law school.... I said to myself, if I ever had the opportunity to help somebody from humble beginnings to fully appreciate the law school experience, I would do that.
—Tony Welters
Trustees come out in force to celebrate with students at the annual All-University Commencement ceremony at Yankee Stadium. Trustees Evan Chesler (second from right) and Rima Al Mokarrab (far right) join the procession with Professor Michael Gomez (far left) and honorary degree recipients Carla Diane Hayden (second from left) and Abdel Kader Haidara (center).
Trustees Jeffrey Gould and Kelly Kennedy Mack donned their NYU robes, as alumni of Washington Square College and the Stern School of Business, respectively.
Trustee Dasha Rettew discussed career development with NYU computer science student Rosio at a recent alumni event.
Trustee Brett Rochkind engaged with alumni in the Bay Area at a recent alumni reception in San Francisco, an event he co-hosted with President Hamilton.
At the Provost's Postdoctoral Program Fellows lunch, Trustee Jessica Swartz discussed job market opportunities in private and academic sectors for recent PhD recipients.
A group of Trustees joined President Hamilton at the NYU ice hockey team's face-off with the University of Delaware.
The hockey team trains and competes at Chelsea Piers on Manhattan's West Side.
After delivering a keynote address at the 6th Annual Diversity in Business Forum, Trustee Taffi Ayodele answered follow-up questions from attending Stern students Daniela, Lupe, and Carlos.
I feel that a Trustee should really serve the University community, which includes students, alumni, faculty, staff, administration.... understanding their needs and making education accessible to all.
—Taffi Ayodele
Julia, a student in Tisch's Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), explained her interactive garden project—now on display at the Children's Museum of the Arts—to Tisch Dean Allyson Green (left) and Trustees Sascia Yuan (center) and Kelly Kennedy Mack (right).
Trustee Connie Silver talked to MakerSpace Designer in Residence Gabriella Cammarata about her class, 3D printing of biomedical devices, in which students design and fabricate low-cost hand orthotics for children with cerebral palsy at Langone Orthopedic Hospital.
Trustees Rima Al Mokarrab and Dasha Rettew discussed the creation of simulations and models at the Tandon School of Engineering MakerSpace.
Trustees Michael Denkensohn (center) and Kelly Kennedy Mack (right) shared some laughs with students at the annual Student-Board dinner.
Trustee Stuyvie Comfort met with sociology PhD students Chantal and Amethyst at the Faculty of Arts and Science building on Washington Square.
Board of Trustees Chair William Berkley chatted with administrators after speaking at an Administrative Management Council meeting.
Engineering student Veena explained to Trustee Phyllis Putter Barasch the task-specific rehabilitation system she developed for stroke patients, which allows them to practice drinking activities at home with the help of an interactive video game.
I think we all try our hardest to give back to the school. We see ourselves as part of a continuum—we’ve gotten from the University and we give back to the University, and that's of great importance.
—Phyllis Putter Barasch
Masters students in curation, art history, and conservation enjoyed lunch at the Institute of Fine Arts with Trustees Beverly Hyman (far left) and Catherine Reynolds (second from left).
Trustees Leonard Boxer and Sharon Chang were treated to a student dance performance at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study.
Trustees Amanda Lipitz and David Katz chatted with students over lunch at the College of Arts and Science.
Trustees Casey Box and Joseph Landy discussed simulated approaches to clinical nursing with students Miin and Laetitia at the Rory Meyers College of Nursing.
