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Multiplying Forces
Colin Henning ’19 (Acting) and Chad Hylton ’18 (Film) are founders of C.H. Squared Films, an independent film house whose debut feature, Appalachian Dog , was acquired by Buffalo 8 Distribution and premiered in December 2024 at the Big Apple Film Festival. Shot by Aidan Macaluso ’18 (Film), the film stars Acting BFA alumni Hayleigh Hart Franklin ’19, Monica Rae Summers Gonzalez ’16, Georgia Morgan ’19, and Aaron J. Stewart ’21, as well as Brooke (Paolotto) Elizabeth ’16 (Liberal Studies).
Jay O. Sanders ’76 (Acting) and Owen Laheen ’18 (Acting) appeared together in Henry IV , Dakin Matthews’s adaptation directed by Eric Tucker, at Theatre for a New Audience’s Polonsky Shakespeare Center. Critics called Sanders’ portrayal of Sir John Falstaff a role he was born to play. Laheen, a non-binary actor from Wicklow, Ireland, made their TfaNA debut as the quick-witted Davy.
Proof of Purchase was on display at the Brooklyn Museum recently, with five alumni on staff across a range of departments: curator Ernestine White Mifetu ’99 (Visual Arts); interns Julianna Vargas ’23 (Communications/Arts Management) and Briana Thompson ’23 (Arts Management/Museum Studies); fine arts packer Paul Speh ’96 (Visual Arts); and framer Takayuki Umezawa ’16 (New Media).
Jasai Chase-Owens ’17 and Daniel Bravo Hernández ’24 made their Broadway debuts in September 2024 as members of the cast of Romeo + Juliet , directed by Tony Award–winner Sam Gold.
Danny Eberle ’22 (Anthropology), Bret Kaser ’20 (Studio Production), Connor Kleitz ’21 (Studio Production), and Ilan Natter ’20 (Studio Production) comprise Lip Critic, a band formed at Purchase in 2018. Named a “Band to Watch” by Stereogum, their album Hex Dealer landed at No. 57 on Paste Magazine ’s “100 Best Albums of 2024.” An online pinball game accompanies the recent release of two new songs.
Receiving Honors and Awards
Fred Wilson ’76 (Visual Arts), a conceptual artist known for challenging assumptions of history, culture, race, and display, was celebrated as the Neuberger Museum of Art’s Passionate Artist during its Golden Anniversary Gala in April 2024. Earlier in 2024, he had been honored by the establishment of the Fred Wilson Lectures in Global Black Studies, created in partnership with the Museum and the Purchase College Global Black Studies and Media Studies programs. In fall 2024, Wilson was appointed to the Board of the Friends of the Neuberger Museum of Art.
Ona Gritz ’84 (Literature) has received multiple honors for her true crime memoir, Everywhere I Look (Apprentice House Press, 2024), including the Storytrade Award for Nonfiction Book of the Year and the Readers’ Choice Gold Award.
Gregory Crewdson ’85 (Culture and Society), known for his cinematic photographs of suburban life, is the subject of a new book by Walter Moser exploring his images of the extraordinary in everyday scenes. He received the Purchase College Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013.
Kathryn C. Collins ’98 (Literature), the first female partner at Feldman, Kleidman, Collins & Sappe LLP, received the 2024 ATHENA Award from The Chamber Foundation Inc. and the Women’s Leadership Alliance of the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce. The award honors her leadership, professional excellence, and commitment to mentoring the next generation of women leaders.
Ali Sharma, PhD ’03 (Biology), Scientific Review Officer at the National Library of Medicine, received the NIH Director’s Award for his contributions to scientific peer review. He has held faculty appointments at both the Icahn School of Medicine and Weill Cornell Medical College.
Matie Argiropoulos ’04 (Literature) was nominated for a GRAMMY® Award for co-producing Barbra Streisand’s audiobook My Name Is Barbra . She also received the 2024 American Library Association Odyssey Award for producing the audiobook El Deafo .
Sidra Bell ’05 (Dance) has been named a 2025 Yaddo Artist Medal honoree, recognizing her contributions to contemporary performance and her work as a choreographer, dancer, performance artist, and founder and artistic director of Sidra Bell Dance New York.
Adam Eccleston ’08 (Music), a flutist, educator, and radio host, received a 2024 Spark Award for Oregon Artists from the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. One of 20 mid-career artists honored, he was awarded $25,000 to support his creative development.
Brandi (Wagner) Perri ’09 (Women’s Studies), Assistant Professor of Sociology at MassBay Community College, won the 2024 Constance Coiner Award for Best Dissertation for her groundbreaking research on blue-collar workers.
Stephanie LeBlanc ’14 (Media, Society, and the Arts) was named one of the Top 25 Women Chief Content Officers of 2025 by Women We Admire , recognizing her leadership and impact on the content industry across North America.
Ruby Rose Makkena ’22 (Film) was named one of 17 winners of the National Board of Review’s student grant program for her senior thesis film On the Ridge , which she directed, edited, shot, and produced.
Oliver Pezzano ’23 (Film) received a National Board of Review student grant for his senior thesis film Penny , which he wrote, directed, and edited. The film was also an Official Selection and Semifinalist at the 2023 New York Indie Shorts Awards.
Making Moves
Mary Corda ’84 (Psychology) is loving retirement after a 35-year career with IBM Corporation. She is now focused on her work on the board and as a member of the chorus of the Taconic Opera Co.
Sarah M. O’Brien ’95 (Film) was appointed Director of Development and Marketing for Goodwill of the Finger Lakes. In her new role, she oversees fundraising, marketing, and engagement strategies designed to boost public outreach and support.
Daniel Connor Jr. ’07 (Political Science) is the new Broadcast Account Manager for Sony in the Northeast Market, specializing in cinema and broadcast productions. He brings extensive account management and retail sales experience to the region’s entertainment industry.
Catania James ’07 (Language and Culture) has joined Maryland Youth Ballet as Administrative Assistant and Ticketing Coordinator. She brings a unique blend of experience in ballet, Spanish interpretation, and customer service, along with a master’s degree in international affairs from The New School.
Geri Munnick ’07 (Liberal Studies) is a playwright, poet, and award-winning community contributor. She retired last June after more than 29 years as a special education teaching assistant in the Carmel Central School District. In January, she rejoined the Purchase community as a new staff member at The PAC.
Kate (Hope) Giscombe ’11 (Media, Society, and the Arts) and her husband, Bryant, welcomed their daughter, Anaya, on August 1, 2025. Giscombe serves on the PCAA Board of Directors and is Manager of Development and Communications at Abbott House in Irvington, NY.
Sydney Rivera ’17 (Sociology) and Shomar Lowe ’14 (Arts Management) were married on July 27, 2025—a love story more than a decade in the making. They first met at Purchase in September 2013, when Sydney was a freshman and Shomar was a senior. Years later, a reconnection brought them back into each other’s lives. Today, they share a life filled with travel, creativity … and two cats.
Priya Tejpal ’25 (Communications) has opened Momo’s Café, Westchester’s newest spot for coffee, bubble tea, pastries, and wraps. Named for her cat, the café’s logo even features Momo’s ears peeking out of a coffee cup. Tejpal was part of a three-person team that won the Best New Business award at Shark Tank 2023 for a different entrepreneurial idea.
Leading
Kevin Lawler ’88 (Acting) has served as Artistic Director of the Great Plains Theatre Commons in Omaha for 17 years, where he strengthens community by supporting the creation and sharing of diverse new stories. In 2025, the company marked the 20th anniversary of its New Play Festival, which has nurtured playwrights and supported the development of over 600 new scripts since its founding. He works alongside alumna Rachel Hauben Combs ’90 (Acting).
Davnet Conway ’94 (Environmental Science), an experienced conservationist and nonprofit leader, joined Sudbury Valley Trustees on March 1 as Executive Director. She previously served as Executive Director of the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center in Mystic, CT.
Raissa Simpson ’01 (Dance) is founder and Artistic Director of PUSH Dance Company in San Francisco. In celebration of the company’s 20th anniversary, she was a featured panelist in the Black Choreographers Festival’s opening discussion in February 2025.
Sethu Laxmi Nair ’04 (Women’s Studies) is a mediator, coach, and trainer specializing in alternative dispute resolution and restorative practices. She serves as Director at the Center for Creative Conflict Resolution in New York City and consults with nonprofits and businesses on leadership, mediation, and conflict management.
Allison Pohl ’05 (Music) became the new Artistic Director of Vashon Opera in October 2023. Her first production, Romeo and Juliet , opened in May 2024 to rave reviews. A soprano, she has performed nationally and abroad, including tours in Italy and China.
Meredith Burns ’08 (Acting) is the Executive Artistic Director of Art House Productions, bringing over 15 years of experience to cultural and nonprofit organizations. Before transitioning to arts leadership, she worked as an Off-Broadway actor.
Jessie Biele Luxenberg ’08 (Journalism) was elected President of the Board for the Washington Metropolitan Gamer Symphony Orchestra (WMGSO), the DC area’s premier community ensemble devoted to video game music. She also performed with WMGSO at the Kennedy Center in 2024.
Joey Katz ’18 (Cinema Studies) has been named Artistic Director of Boston Jewish Film Festival (BJFF). Joey started at BJFF as a programming associate, eventually becoming Director of Special Programming before stepping into his new leadership role in December 2024.
Empowering Artists and the Arts
Rachel Hauben Combs ’90 (Acting) is an actor, writer, and nonprofit arts administrator who serves as Development Director at the Great Plains Theatre Commons in Omaha. In addition to her work with GPTC, she is a part-time Grants Manager with Fox Creek Fundraising. Previously, she worked as a performer, playwright, and member of the artistic leadership team with the BLUEBARN Theatre.
Jennifer Goggans ’00 (Dance), Program Director for the Merce Cunningham Trust, continues to carry forward the legacy of the iconic choreographer. A longtime performer and former Assistant to the Director of Choreography, she toured globally as part of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s final Legacy Tour.
Brett Alan Garfinkel ’12 (Dance) founded The Louisiana Dance Alliance to strengthen and unite the state’s dance community. He is the department head and Chair of Theatre and Dance at Northwestern State University of Louisiana.
Spencer Moon ’19 (Arts Management) is Associate Chief of Staff at ArtsWestchester. He represented the organization and joined other alumni attending the Samara Joy ’21 concert at The PAC in November 2024.
Producing and Directing
Lauren Kurinskas ’06 (Theatre Design/Tech) is the Producing Director at Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ. She has overseen more than 70 productions and helped develop the theater’s 36,000-square-foot Center for New Work. She is deeply committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Karen (Dr. K.) Baptiste ’07 (Sociology) directed the award-winning documentary Preschool to Prison , now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. She also leads a coaching and consulting firm focused on leadership, workshops, and mentoring.
Damani Pompey ’12 (Dance) received a 2025 NYSCA Support for Artists Grant for his collaborative residency project at Vassar College. During his residency in March, Pompey choreographed Empty Hand , a new work created in partnership with Battery Dance Company.
Angela Giacalone ’13 (Arts Management/New Media) served as Associate Producer on The Four Phantoms in Concert: Live at the Grand Oshkosh , a public television special that received a Silver Telly Award. She is also the Tour Manager for the production’s national concert tour.
Cory Savage ’16 (Theatre and Performance) co-directed DORIS , an immersive performance by Joan Nelson. The intimate, absurdist experience premiered at Theatre 154 in New York’s West Village for a limited run in late 2024.
Performing
Andrea Patterson ’05 (Theatre Arts) is an award-winning television and theatre actor who starred as Helen in Memnon at the Getty Villa Outdoor Classical Theater in Los Angeles last November. In 2023, she received an Obie Award for Sustained Achievement in Performance.
Lawrence Saint-Victor ’06 (Acting), best known for his role as Carter on The Bold and the Beautiful , debuted in the BET+ thriller One Night Stay last January. He was nominated for a 2014 NAACP Image Award and lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.
Jennifer Mogbock ’13 (Acting) stars as Dora Carter in Apple TV+’s Lady in the Lake , opposite Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram. The series is now streaming on Apple TV+.
Chloé Watson ’13 (Dance) premiered Sábado , a work inspired by her family weekends, in March with Ballet Vero Beach. She retired in April 2025 after 12 seasons with American Midwest Ballet, Peninsula Ballet Theatre, and Ballet Vero Beach.
Jaylen K. Petinaud ’20 (Music) is a musician, arranger, composer, and educator thriving on the music scene. He played drums on the Hell’s Kitchen Original Broadway Cast Recording—winner of the 2025 GRAMMY® Award for Best Musical Theater Album—and is currently touring with Herbie Hancock.
Imani Gaudin-County ’21 (Dance) appeared this spring in Alethea Pace’s interdisciplinary, site-specific performance between wave and water , which reclaims the history of an African burial ground in Hunts Point, the Bronx. She is currently a movement artist with TRIBE and artistic director and founder of Gaudanse.
Sean Kaufman ’22 (Acting) returned as fan-favorite Steven in the final season of Amazon Prime’s The Summer I Turned Pretty .
Analyzing and Innovating
James Czerniawski ’16 (Economics) is a senior policy analyst at Americans for Prosperity. In April, James testified before Congress on government surveillance of U.S. citizens.
Nickoli Parkinson ’21 (Biology and Biochemistry) works at the New York Genome Center as an Associate Scientific Project Manager. He supports cutting-edge genomic research and fosters collaboration among interdisciplinary teams.
Composing and Recording
James P. (J.P.) Kiernan ’90 (Music) and his band Three Normal Humans—originally formed at Purchase in 1986 as Being Don and Nothingness—are finalists in the International Songwriters Competition. The band is currently preparing to release a new album.
Ryan Homsey ’07 (Studio Composition) composed the original score for Merchant Ivory , a feature documentary film produced and directed by Stephen Soucy that explores the legacy of Oscar-winning director and screenwriter James Ivory and legendary producer Ismail Merchant. Adam Scott ’07, MM ’08 (Studio Composition) served as the film’s post-production supervisor and sound mixer. Homsey also serves as director of academic advising at Skidmore College.
Exhibiting and Making
Kim Do ’76 (Visual Art) is a New York-based artist and educator whose work reflects a painterly, observational connection to earth, water, and sky. In fall 2024, he exhibited paintings and worked in residence at NYC’s Blue Mountain Gallery; he was also an inaugural exhibitor at the Purchase 2025 Alumni Showcase.
Jon Kessler ’80 (Visual Arts) presented Petrified , a selection of new bronze and ceramic sculptures, at Magenta Plains in spring 2025. Jon was a founder of the Bozart toy company and is a Professor of Art at Columbia University, where he has taught since 1994.
Jennifer Madelin Burns ’87 (Visual Arts) is an award-winning commissioned artist. A selection of her oil paintings was on view in Pivotal Moments in Caring for the Earth at The Donald Gallery, South Presbyterian Church, Dobbs Ferry, NY, last fall.
Abigail Doan ’89 (Visual Arts) is an interdisciplinary artist, curator, and writer dedicated to cultural and environmental preservation. In November 2024, she launched Sedimental Edition 01 , the inaugural exhibition of her Lost in Fiber Library gallery and special collections project in New York City. In February, she opened MASQUERADE , an exhibition of masks spanning African, Asian, and European traditions, at the Museum in Progress in Cincu, Romania.
Dannielle Tegeder ’95 (Visual Arts) co-founded Hilma’s Ghost, a collective dedicated to fostering growth through feminism and spirituality. Recently, the group created a “magical space” at the Guggenheim Museum, celebrating creative expression and collective power. In spring 2025, they installed a permanent public glass mosaic mural at Grand Central Station and debuted a solo exhibition at the RGR Gallery in Mexico City.
Dana Piazza ’10 (Graphic Design) is a visual artist who creates abstract drawings and paintings. Previously featured at the Dallas Art Fair, his first solo exhibition with Turley Gallery was on view this spring.
Jen Hitchings ’11 (Painting & Drawing) completed a six-week residency at Colstoun, a historic estate in Scotland, where she began new works featured in her first major solo exhibition at Gaa Gallery, which ran through late 2024 in New York City.
Working the Land
Lily Bruder-Zal ’04 (Visual Arts: Printmaking and Sculpture) is cultivating the art of flower farming at Vanishing Point, her 35-acre farm in the Hudson Valley. She and her husband Isaac Zal ’04 (Visual Arts) live on the farm with their two children and sheep.
Ceara Rose Creegan ’23 (Sociology) is pursuing her passion for organic farming while traveling across the Northeast. She has worked as a farm educator, livestock caregiver, horse hand, and livestock assistant.
Filmmaking and Creating Content
Paul Sanchez (Yates) IV ’93 (Film) is a director, writer, and cinematographer who was named a 2024 Sundance Episodic Lab Fellow for a television pilot based on his experiences as a homeless, Latinx, teenage punk rocker in the early 1980s. Paul returned to campus in December 2024 for a screening and discussion of his short art-horror film Babyteeth .
Compton A. Belle Jr. ’94 (Studio Composition) is the founder of CPTFX Studio and a VIZ artist at NBC Universal. His animation and graphic works have been featured on major networks, including ABC, CBS, and ESPN. He recently debuted his project, JAZZ Upright Trio, from concept to collectible.
Azazel Jacobs ’95 (Film) premiered his latest film, His Three Daughters (2023), at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2023. The film, which he wrote, directed, edited, and produced, was subsequently released globally by Netflix. Jacobs was also selected as the 2025 recipient of the Purchase College Alumni Association’s Outstanding Commitment to the Arts Award.
Sean Kenealy ’07 (Dramatic Writing) is writer and director of Two Knocks on a Door , a short horror film that toured 12 festivals last fall. It won Best Writing at the Nightmares Film Festival.
Allison Jones ’09 (Dance) was Lead Intimacy Coordinator for the final season of Netflix’s You , which premiered April 24, 2025. Allison has built a career advocating for consent and safety in vulnerable scenes across film and television.
Nina-Marie Daniele ’11 (Creative Writing), also known as Nina Drama, is a comedic content creator and social media personality known for her MMA interviews and commentary. With over 11 million followers across platforms, she continues to expand her reach through viral collaborations.
Sebastián Rea ’12 (Cinema Studies) was selected into the NBCU Writers Launch program (2024–2025) and is now a staff writer for UCP and Peacock’s series Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy . He traveled to Toronto in December to film the episode he wrote. He has also joined the Writers Guild of America and signed with RAIN management.
Derek Shane Garcia ’13 (Film) premiered his film A/way at the 2024 Dances With Films NYC film festival. The film previously won multiple awards, including Best Feature Audience Choice at the Festival of Cinema NYC and Outstanding Narrative Feature and Director at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival.
Dan Cohn ’14 (Studio Production) served as Audio Coordinator for Super Bowl LVIII (February 2024), overseeing enhanced audio for NFL Films—including the quarterback mic’d-up segments heard by more than 124 million viewers. He brings expert sound design to concerts, broadcasts, and major events.
Andrew J. Rodriguez ’19 (Film) wrote and directed El Tiguere (The Tiger) , selected by Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Colectivo fellowship to premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival. The film follows a Dominican immigrant in the Bronx running a mobile food garden while trying to reconnect with his son.
Mathew Louis Reyes ’20 (Liberal Studies) served as First Assistant Director on the Sundance Film Festival award-winning feature, Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) . The film premiered globally and continues to earn honors across the circuit.
Aracelie Aarie Colón ’25 (Film) received a filmmaking grant from the National Board of Review for her documentary short Puff Puff Pass , an intimate look at Black lives shaped by the legal and cultural history of the now-legal cannabis industry.
Publishing
Geoff Loftus ’78 (Literature) has released The Devil’s Vacation , the 10th novel in his Jack Tyrrell thriller series. A former Forbes.com contributor, Geoff’s career includes freelance and on-staff assignments as a business journalist and in corporate communications.
Kathleen (Kat) Callo ’81 (Political Science) recently ghostwrote The World According to Stoopball: A Bronx Childhood , a memoir based on interviews with her 95-year-old father, retired Rear Admiral Joe Callo. It reflects on his Bronx childhood and the legacy of his immigrant roots.
Rollie Erickson ’81 (Visual Arts) is the author of Gentleman of the Road: A Hitchhiking Memoir of the 1970s , published by Between the Lines Publishing. His cross-country journey, guided by the I Ching, ends with his graduation from Purchase College and move to New York City.
Elizabeth Smith ’94 (Sociology) became a self-published author in 2024. Her new book, Pocketful of Poetry , is available on Amazon and through Barnes & Noble. She also recently launched her YouTube channel, Queen Lizz, a poet’s place and a space for people who love poetry.
Maria-Cristina Necula ’97 (Language and Culture) is the author of The Voice Beneath the Quince Tree: A Memoir of Growing Up in Communist Romania . Her memoir recounts her early life under a repressive regime, her father’s defection, and the powerful role opera played as both refuge and resistance.
Adam Knight ’05 (Literature) published Made of Iron , a memoir chronicling the life of Holocaust survivor Dina Jacobson and her legacy as a teacher and mentor, in September 2024. Adam is an English teacher and writer based in New Jersey.
Lara M. Montes, PhD ’09 (Literature) is a writer, editor, teaching artist, and member of the faculty at Pacific Northwest College of Art. Her latest book, The Time of the Novel , was published by Wendy’s Subway in June 2025.
Sara Barkat ’19 (Philosophy) is an intaglio artist, writer, and editor. Illustrator of The Yellow Wall-Paper: A Graphic Novel , Sara has recently released a graphic adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Colour Out of Space . Interpreting the tale as ecofiction, she brings it to life with woodcut-inspired art (white pen on black paper) and gouache-colored pages.
Educating
Joyce Butler, PhD ’77 (Psychology), is an educational consultant specializing in systematic analysis and change. In October 2024, she presented portions of her new book, Comparative Psychology and Educational Outcomes: Lessons from Project Nim , at the International Division on Career Development and Transition (DCDT) conference.
David Chirico ’92 (Literature) has joined the Liberal Arts faculty at the Savannah College of Art and Design after teaching English for more than twenty years at SUNY Broome Community College in Upstate New York.
Marcia Neblett ’95 (Visual Arts) has been promoted to Associate Professor of Fine Arts with tenure at Norfolk State University, where she also serves as Foundations Coordinator. A three-time Fulbright recipient, she recently delivered a TEDx Talk on teaching in India.
Marilyn K. Miller ’10 (Dance), owner of Pilates on Hudson in Peekskill, NY, presented at the July 2024 Performing Arts Medicine Association’s annual conference in London. Her talk focused on how core weakness contributes to chronic back pain in dancers and how this issue is embedded in technique.
Mike Zacchio ’11 (Journalism) recently changed careers from sports journalism to education. After earning his master’s degree in secondary education and receiving his NY State teaching certification, he started his first full-time position in Rockland County in September 2024 and now teaches U.S. History, Participation in Government, and Economics, and serves as the advisor for the Student Government and Youth in Government clubs.
Diana Gilday ’22 (Journalism) is in the second year of her master’s degree program at St. John’s University, working toward a dual degree in Public History and Library Information Science. She recently completed a visual media internship with the National Parks Service and an internship with the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.
Mixing Disciplines
Tom Whitford ’86 (Political Science) retired after a 30-year career practicing law and now produces music and DJs under the name euSonix. His first song, Dream of Me , was signed by a record label and released in November 2024. Listen on Spotify and SoundCloud.
Aaron Conte ’92 (Acting) booked a supporting role in Jim Cummings’s pilot IBG YBG/The Screener , shot the short film Entanglement —which was featured in the Culver City Film Festival—and played drums with the John Powhida International Airport band during its Los Angeles shows.
Ezra LeBank ’05 (Philosophy) teaches, choreographs, and directs internationally. Currently, he is Chair of the Department of Theatre Arts and Head of Movement at California State University, Long Beach, and Director of Bad Goat Dance. His book Clowns: In Conversation with Modern Masters is available from Routledge Publishing, UK.
Harry Edgar Palacio ’11 (Liberal Studies: Arts)—known artistically as Hari—is an author, artist, and musician with a new book released in 2025 by Atmosphere Press. He has performed with GRAMMY® winners and nominees including Ari Up, lead singer of The Slits, and former members of The Raincoats. In addition to his artistic pursuits, he is a certified yoga teacher and ordained guru.
Helping Heal
Jayne Singer, PhD ’82 (Psychology), IECMH-E®, is a Senior Attending Psychologist at Boston Children’s Hospital, a Past President of the Massachusetts Association for Infant Mental Health, and an accomplished researcher and author in the field of early childhood mental health.
Anne-Marie McGovern Uebbing ’83 (Anthropology) is an Associate Professor of Nursing at Mount Saint Mary College and a certified family nurse practitioner. She brings more than 20 years of experience in internal medicine to her teaching and participates in international missions and public health initiatives.
Dr. Dinorah Nieves ’02 (Liberal Arts: Sociology/Media, Society and the Arts) was featured as a guest expert on A&E’s Hoarders , contributing her insights on addiction and mental health. A certified coach and mediator, she also serves as Assistant Professor of Liberal Arts at the Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design.
Raditia Lasry ’19 (Liberal Studies: Arts) leads mindfulness and art workshops that promote compassion and connection. She offers online and in-person sessions, an inspirational summit, and forest retreats. In 2025, she was an inaugural exhibitor at the Purchase Alumni Showcase, where she introduced her services and book, Be Human, Be Happy, Be YOU!
Reporting and Podcasting
Emily McElwreath ’05 (Art History), an independent curator and host of The Art Career Podcast , moderated the 2024 Yaseen Lecture, Feminism and Body Freedom , at the Neuberger Museum of Art, featuring speakers Marilyn Minter and Jasmine Wahi.
Blake Pfeil MA ’19 (Entrepreneurship in the Arts) received a 2025 Ambie Award for excellence in audio storytelling for abandoned: The All-American Ruins Podcast . Blake also works as Operations & Digital Programs Manager at TMI Project and co-hosts Cinema Kingston! on Radio Kingston.
Mariah Thomas ’20 (Journalism) was recently promoted to Associate Editor at Reader’s Digest , where she covers celebrity interviews, travel, and lifestyle trends. Her recent stories include a feature on fellow alum Stanley Tucci ’82. She also shares personal insights via her blog Internationista .
Meet Cute on the Mall
It all began beneath the iconic pillars of Campus Center North during Orientation Day. Jas’meena Melendez ’15 (Literature), in a flurry of excitement, searched for Group 1, only to be gently guided to Group I.
There, fate stepped in as she sat beside Jeidar Cole ’15 (Biochemistry) just in time for the ice breaker that would spark an unforgettable connection.
That day laid the groundwork for a friendship that soon grew into a beautiful, enduring love. Fast forward nearly 14 years, through shared milestones and unwavering support, their bond has only deepened.
On Saturday, June 28, 2025, with their family, closest friends, and fellow alumni—Aliyah Worthy ’14, Emani Steele ’14, and Cassandra Lamanna-Coppola ’15—by their side, they returned to the place where it all started.
In a moment that brought their story full circle, they got engaged on the very campus where their journey began.
—Jeidar Cole ’15 and Jas’meena Melendez ’15