Alumni in Action

Receiving Honors+Awards

Laura Von Rosk ’86 (Visual Arts: Painting) was awarded an artist residency at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA) in December 2022 and was the recipient of a 2023 Individual Artist Support Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts. Since retiring this past May from her position as Gallery Director at the Lake George Arts Project in Lake George, NY after 23 years, she plans to have more studio time.

Symara Johnson ’19 (Dance) is the Outstanding Breakout Choreographer for 2023, according to the New York Dance and Performance Awards, known as the Bessies. The award, announced on August 4, recognizes an artist who has made an exceptional leap in their career in the past year.

Mason Martinez ’22 (Creative Writing) is a finalist and recipient of the Fall ’23 Sundress Academy of the Arts Writing Residency in Knoxville, TN, allowing him to connect with emerging writers and volunteer on the residency’s farm. These interactions aid in the completion of their short collection focusing on the effects of climate change on children in poverty.

Shonnon Marshall ’22 (Arts Management) is a 2023 Fellow at the Black Boy Writes/Black Girl Writes Mentorship Initiative. The year-long initiative provides pre-WGA Black writers with a pathway to becoming established screenwriters in entertainment.

Having An Impact

Moza M. (Asad) Mendes ’22 (Sociology) successfully lobbied for a New York State law that was signed by Governor Hochul in May. The Birth Control Access Act provides over-the-counter access to birth control. Mendes became an advocate for the bill while interning with the New York Birth Control Access Project (NYBCAP) as a Purchase student.

Producing+Presenting

Tony Castrigno ’78 (Acting) co-founded MTTM Theatrics last summer with producing partner Mark Rubinsky. They are currently co-producing the off-Broadway musical Rock and Roll Man, and are executive producers, producers, and co-producers on a range of new works.

Doug Varone ’78 (Dance) will present the world premiere of To My Arms / Restore at The Performing Arts Center at Purchase College on March 16, 2024. The evening-long two-part work from Doug Varone and Dancers embodies Varone’s choreographic fascination with the interplay of the deeply emotional and the immensely physical. Tickets for the 8 p.m. performance are discounted by 10% for Purchase College alumni.

Kyle Abraham ’00 (Dance) and his contemporary dance company, A.I.M, return to The Performing Arts Center on April 6, 2024, with a repertory program showcasing his signature “postmodern gumbo”—a blend of modern dance styles ranging from ballet to hip hop, seasoned with human stories and social commentary. A.I.M is widely recognized as one of the most consistently excellent troupes in the field today. Tickets for the 8 p.m. performance are discounted by 10% for Purchase College alumni.

Jane A. DiBartolo ’16 (Theater Design/Technology) is a stage manager and recent member of the Director’s Guild of America (DGA). She was an assistant stage manager on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah when an episode was nominated for a DGA Award for daily programming, and was excited to attend the awards ceremony with her team this past February.

Publishing

David McGlynn ’79 (Visual Arts: Photography) had two images from his Nullland series chosen to appear in the American Photography Annual Book (AP39). One of his Light Painting images also appears in American Illustrationonline (AI42). Both are from his yearlong project, 12 in 21, a series of 12 separate month-long art projects from 2021. This is his fifth consecutive year having works selected for the annuals.

Amy L. Smiley ’80 (Literature) published her first novel, Hiking Underground (Atmosphere Press), in January. With creativity and motherhood as its central themes, the work is written in an unconventional narrative style that has received praise from fellow authors and positive feedback from reviewers.

Peter Compo ’81 (Chemistry) launched his book The Emergent Approach to Strategy: Adaptive Design and Execution(Business Expert Press) in the summer of 2022, shortly after the launch in late 2021 of Films, an album of hybrid acoustic electronica (Tower by the Sea Records).

Gary Golio ’81 (Visual Arts) has a new book, Everywhere Beauty is Harlem: The Vision of Photographer Roy DeCarava(Calkins Creek/Astra Publishing), available for pre-order before its publication in early 2024. The book explores DeCarava’s portrayal of the people of his Harlem hometown as dignified, remarkable human beings, whether they were jazz luminaries or passersby on the street.

Karen Veder Peck ’82 (Psychology) has a new novel, The Memories Between Us (5310 Publishing), that was published in May. This time travel romance, set in contemporary New York City, is a work of speculative fiction about love across parallel universes, crossing the line between perception and reality, and holding onto faith in the transcendence of love.

Laura Goldsmith VonDracek ’85 (Literature) began her career in children’s book publishing before transitioning to law and becoming an attorney for New York State. She then became a professional ceramist, creating dinnerware for the famed Nobu Restaurants. Most recently, she self-published her book Jemma and the Mermaid’s Call, featuring a spunky mermaid who, along with her marine friends, clean up the oceans.

Richard Mirabella ’02 (Creative Writing) published his debut novel, Brother & Sister Enter the Forest (Catapult) in March 2023. The story of a sudden reunion of estranged siblings that led to an overdue reckoning with past trauma was featured in a New York Times book review.

Andrea Janov ’05 (Creative Writing) has published her second poetry collection, Short Skirts and Whiskey Shots (Earth Island Books). This collection is deeply rooted in the people of New York City. Celebrating the dirty streets, the beer-soaked nights, and those who sweat liquor, it explores the idiosyncrasies, the innocence, and the excesses of the city—on the streets, in the subway, in the tenements, and in the bars and clubs.

Elizabeth R. Hyman ’11 (History & Journalism) has a new book deal with HarperCollins to produce a work of narrative history titled The Girl Bandits of the Warsaw Ghetto: a Female Military History of the Warsaw Ghetto and its Uprising.

Emily Ruth Verona ’12 (Creative Writing & Cinema Studies) has a debut thriller, Midnight on Beacon, that will be published by Harper Perennial in winter 2024. The novel is about a babysitter who loves horror movies and must overcome her own anxiety to protect the two children she’s babysitting when strangers come knocking at the door. Pre-orders are available on major platforms. Staying on theme, Emily has also launched a horror book website called Frightful.

Reporting

TJ Raphael ’11 (Journalism) is a seasoned audio journalist whose critically acclaimed programs have reached millions of listeners. Her latest podcast, Cover Up: The Pill Plot, explores the fascinating and frightening true story behind bringing the abortion pill to the U.S. in the 90s. The podcast recently hit #42 in the coveted Apple Podcast Top 200 True Crime chart.

Educating

Debra Whitman ’91 (Music) is a private piano teacher, professional harpist, and teaching artist. She created the Classical Kids Music series to introduce children to the joys of music appreciation. Her coloring book, Composer Celebration, accompanies the program and is available online and at independent bookstores throughout the Westchester area.

Gretchen Beckhorn ’96 (Media Studies) continues her continuing professional development and search for a role in media and digital literacy. For now, she is in her 25th year teaching ENL (English as a New Language) and working with refugees and at a public library.

Practicing Law

Crismelly Morales ’15 (Legal Studies) started her own law practice in Rockland County, NY, focusing on immigration law. She became an adjunct professor for the Legal Studies Department at Rockland Community College in January 2023.

Making

Alix Pearlstein ’88 (Visual Arts) debuted a commissioned work in the Neuberger Museum of Art’s performance art exhibition, Hard Return, in February. Her work, Inventory, blurred the lines between then and now, self and other, and live and recorded by using improvisational exercises to examine a personal archive of objects from previous artworks—props, structures, gestures—with a group of student actors.

Abigail Doan McEnroe ’89 (Visual Arts) is an environmental artist whose performative arts and installation project, Walking Libraries AD, was featured in the exhibition Incantatio Mundi during Romanian Creative Week 2022. Her ongoing work in environmental outreach and preservation includes projects in rural communities in the U.S. as well as in Italy and Eastern Europe.

Melissa Rodriguez ’13 (Cinema Studies) wrote and directed the short film Helado, which premiered earlier this month at the Festival of Cinema NYC and took home the Audience Choice Award. The film will next appear in Mexico City at Shorts México, the largest international short film festival in Latin America. It has been invited to screen at the TCL Chinese Theatre in L.A. as part of the HollyShorts festival.

Composing+Recording

Seth Hebert-Faergolzia ’98 (Music) is a songwriter, producer, manager, booking agent, and DIY musician. In 2022, he revisited the late 90s/early 2000s while also working on present-day music to create and release a 12-album series entitled 12 for 22, with solo works and unreleased tracks from his Purchase project, Dufus. In addition, he continues to work on his puppet-opera-film, Moon Shaped Head, plus promotional solo tours and new music videos while living in Rochester, NY.

Oren Neiman ’04 (Music Performance) released his new trio album, Serenity Now, in July 2023 on all major streaming services. It features Neiman on guitar with fellow Purchase alumnus Nadav Snir-Zelniker ’02 (Music) on drums and Daniel Ori on bass. The album is Neiman’s 3rd as a bandleader.

Cas Weinbren ’10 (Music: Studio Composition), an award-winning, multi-million streamed keyboardist, composer, and multi-genre music producer, recently scored two songs for Zombies 3 on Disney+: I’m Finally Me and Utopia. Cas has collaborated with Statik Selektah, Action Bronson, Joey Bada$$, 2 Chainz, Black Thought, ASCAP Award winner Kari Kimmel, and more.

Performing

Jon Glenn Berger ’83 (Music) is a drummer who has played on 23 Broadway shows; his work off-Broadway with Romeo and Bernadette led to a New York Times Critic’s Pick. He also worked with Aretha Franklin, Michelle Shocked, Gloria Gaynor, and Petula Clark, and toured the U.S. with the Roy Orbison & Buddy Holly Hologram Tour. He recently performed in music and dance festivals in New York City; Raleigh, NC; and in Yerevan, Armenia with the Armenian State Symphony.

Emily Gilson ’12 (Drama Studies & History) joined the Screen Actors’ Guild in 2022 and makes her feature film debut this fall in Rustin for Netflix. Directed by six-time Tony winner George C. Wolfe, the film stars Colman Domingo, Audra McDonald, Chris Rock, and an all-star Hollywood lineup.

Making Moves

Bobby (Robert) Score ’77 (Acting) recently retired as the Recording-Corresponding Secretary of IATSE Local-1 after serving for 18 years, and as a member of the stage crew at the New York State Theater for 27 years. He continues to serve on the Entertainment Community Fund Human Services Committee and the Emerald Diamond International Baseball Executive Board. He has had two short stories published in the MSKCC Visible Ink Journal. Bobby is married to Haviland Morris ’82 (Theatre Arts).

Matt Bessell ’82 (History) retired from the Veterans Administration after more than three decades as a clinical social worker. Matt says that he and his artist husband of 41+ years, Peter, are “rocking retirement.”

Charles E. Shuler ’94 (Sociology) has devoted 25 years of service to the State of New York and plans to retire in another five years. He says, “If it was not for the great education I got from one of the best colleges in America, SUNY Purchase, this march to retirement would not be possible.”

Tovah O’Rourke Olson ’00 (History) is now Vice President of Strategy and News Analytics at Gannett/USA Today Network. At the nation’s largest newspaper company, Tovah leads a team of talented news analytics experts whose prescriptive guidance drives decision-making on everything from new beats to new products and hiring across hundreds of newspapers.

Adam McHeffey ’10 (Liberal Studies) was named Chief Marketing Officer at Artiphon, a music technology company that makes hardware and software instruments allowing anyone to make music; he manages a team of 12. Adam is married to Kari Spieler ’10 (Music Production). They live in the Hudson Valley with two children.

Caitlin Christian-Lamb ’09 (History) has begun a new position as an Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in Archival Studies at Louisiana State University. She teaches graduate courses in LSU’s School of Information Studies and advises master’s students while continuing her PhD program at the University of Maryland’s College of Information Studies.

Natalia Yepes-Lutchman ’11 (Dance) is the new owner and director of Astoria Dance Center, where she grew up dancing. After graduating from Purchase, Natalia found her passion for teaching and spent many years as an instructor at the Center. As successor to founder Maureen Gelchion, she hopes to continue the legacy of the place where she discovered her passion for dance.

Lauren Doty Brown ’12 (Political Science) was recently appointed commissioner to the Massachusetts State Commission on LGBTQ Youth. The Commission advises others in state government on effective policies, programs, and resources for LGBTQ youth; issues annual recommendations; and holds community events and listening sessions.

Cheyenne A. Hutchinson Myrie ’17 (Arts Management) is now Director of Individual Giving and Special Events at Signature Theatre.

Helping Heal

Robert A. Herman, MD ’79 (Chemistry) is a psychiatrist specializing in the treatment of severe mental illness, including bipolar disorder, depression, and PTSD. He is active in the profession, testifying before the Maryland State Legislature about bills that affect mental health. He has three grown daughters and 11 grandchildren and is the bass section leader of the Baltimore Bach Choir.

Natasha Atkins ’02, MSW, MA (Liberal Arts) is an award-winning social worker committed to transforming mental health care for K-12 students. She is the pioneer of neuro-trauma-informed social work and founder of Projekt 48, an organization that is transforming mental health care for K-12 students in the South Bronx through programs such as The Hunts Point Alliance for Children’s Ballet in the Bronx.

Marissa Joseph Schaeffer ’11 (Dance), PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS, opened FlySpace, a physical therapy and strength and conditioning clinic on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that caters to performing artists from Broadway to ballet, both in-clinic and in-studio. FlySpace is the official provider for the Steps on Broadway Conservatory Dancers and HopeBoykinDance, and has provided therapy services for Roundabout Theatre Company, Saint Ann’s Warehouse, and countless dance companies.

In Memoriam

Thomas William Kish ’74 (Philosophy) passed away peacefully with his beloved family at his side on March 31, 2023, following a long, hard-fought battle against cancer. He was 72. A kind and generous soul, Tom joined the Marine Corps at 17 and was deployed to Vietnam. After graduating from Purchase College, he embarked on a successful 30-year career in sales and engineering at Exxon-Mobil. He was a faithful servant of God and an avid reader of history and philosophy, having collected thousands of books in his lifetime.

Jay Schulkin ’77 (Philosophy) passed away on March 17, 2023, at age 70 of hepatic cancer. According to his wife, April Oliver, “He had a smile on his face and a tear in his eye—completely at peace.” He was a behavioral neuroscientist, a philosopher, and a public policy commentator. At the time of his death, he was finishing his 40th book. After Purchase, Jay went on to graduate study at the University of Pennsylvania, first entering its PhD program in philosophy and later finishing with a PhD in anatomy and neuroscience, with a special focus on brain mechanisms of sodium appetite.

Stephen E. To ’85 (Biology) died on July 15, 2023, after a six-year battle with cancer. In Stephen’s own words, “You can say I gave it a good fight and kept my humor up.” He worked 11 years as a lab technician at Cornell University Medical College and The Rockefeller University in New York City before returning to school for an MBA at Fordham University. Later, he switched careers to medical writing and advertising, working directly for the pharmaceutical industry on new medical therapies for cancer.

Judith Babson Werben ’83 (Language and Culture) passed away on July 25, 2023. She was 89. A longtime resident of Greenwich, CT, and Rye, NY, Judy had a gift for languages and was fluent in Italian, Spanish, and French. She also spoke some Dutch and was learning Portuguese. She was a creative writer and avid reader and loved to garden and do genealogy research on her family.

Kathryn M. Mullins ’89 (Literature) passed away peacefully on July 18, 2023. She was 62. After graduating from Purchase, she began her career at the White Plains Library. Unfortunately, her career was cut short due to her illness. She was a kind-spirited soul who had many passions including photography, being out in nature, and literature.

Lauren Michelle Fitzsimmons ’04 (Theatre Design Technology) died suddenly from glioblastoma on Feb. 21, 2023. She was 42. The loving partner of Andris Kasparovics ’96 (Theatre Design Technology), Lauren had a 19-year career as a freelance art director and production designer for TV and film in New York City and Los Angeles. She was a member of USA Local-829 IATSE and the Art Directors Guild.