STEM
Stay up to date on the latest from your fellow Violets! Read about what alumni are up to in STEM, from research in climate studies to mentorship of STEM students and more.
Please note: Class notes are organized first by school (you may use the links on the right to jump to a school or college you'd like to view notes from) and within each school or college, notes are organized by class year (most recent graduates to older graduates).
College of Arts & Science
Dina Zielinski (CAS ’08) named a 2020 Kavli Frontiers of Science Fellow of the US National Academy of Sciences. (Winter 2020)
Becca Franks (CAS ’02) is a research scientist in the department of Environmental Studies at New York University and recently won a Refinement Grant from the Animal Welfare Institute. Dr. Franks is among four winners who will develop and test innovative methods of refinement to the care, husbandry, or housing of animals in research to improve their welfare. (Winter 2022)
Nan Eileen Capel Mead (CAS ’95) was recently appointed Interim Executive Director of Sustainable Progress and Equality Collective (SPEC), an open learning organization that merges the tenets of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics). Ms. Mead continues to represent the 1st Judicial District, which includes Manhattan, on the New York State Board of Regents, to which she was appointed in 2016. (Fall 2020)
Gallatin School of Individualized Study
Rachel Rae Vassar (GAL ’06) joins the 2022-23 Longwood Gardens Fellows program from the Landscapes and Gardens team at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS), where she manages the design and construction of parks, playgrounds, and green stormwater infrastructure. (Spring 2022)
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development
Marla Schuchman (STEINHARDT ’05, TANDON ’11) is celebrating the first anniversary of standing up the new Research and Technology Partnerships Office at Jefferson Lab, a Department of Energy National Laboratory in Newport News, VA. As the Chief Innovation Officer, she helps transfer new technologies and discoveries from the lab to the market. (Winter 2023)
Vijay S. Jodha (STEINHARDT ’96) work on climate change has been given Decade of Change Best Series Prize by an eminent jury from The New York Times, Greenpeace, Climate Museum New York, Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and others. It is currently on view at the world's first climate museum in Hong Kong and will be shown at NYC climate week in Sept. 22-23 2021. (Fall 2021)
Tandon School of Engineering
James Colotti (TANDON ’81) recently presented a virtual lecture on three-phase power failure conditions for the IEEE Long Island Electromagnetic Comparability Society. The presentation drew attendees from six countries. (Summer 2021)
Mark Charles Hehl (TANDON ’78) is slowly phasing into retirement. He now mentors university STEM students and volunteers with Engineers Without Borders. In 2017, he published the book Amusing Confessions of an International Consultant, which chronicles his experiences working with clients as an international technology transfer consultant. He is also the author of An Immigrant’s Dilemma and Ameri-Sicula: Sicilian Culture in America. (Summer 2021)
Salvatore J. Monte (TANDON ’69) has been elected to the Plastics Hall of Fame 2021 by the Plastics Academy. (Summer 2021)
Tisch School of the Arts
Barry Broxton (TSOA ’97, STEINHARDT ’00) is the new associate director at the New Jersey Institute of Technology and is the first Black and gay person to hold the position. (Summer 2021)
Jim Willard (TSOA ’85) was hired this year as an executive for NTT Data, overseeing the information technology infrastructure of the National Life Group. (July 2022)