Connections Vol.6 No. 1 by City Tech

New York City College of Technology

Fall 2013 Vol. 6, No. 1

COMPETITIONS Kionic Awards • Digilent Design • CUNY/Labor Arts • Junior Pastry Chef One Club • Entrepreneurial Concept • Financial Awareness Video AND THE WINNERS ARE …

2013 Scholar on Campus Named Best of New York Honors Women of Vision 2,378 Degrees Conferred at 2013 Commencement

Dale Tarnowieski

Editor in Chief Jewel Trowers Escobar Michele Forsten Jessica Malavez

From Graffiti Artist to Acclaimed Abstract Expressionist Painter

Contributing Editors

Professor Is Key Player in Discovery of Groundbreaking Virus Detection Method

Guest Contributing Editor

Steven Lora

Jamie Markowitz

City Tech Receives NEH Grant for Faculty to Study Medicine as Expression of Cultural Beliefs

2,378 DEGREES CONFERRED AT 2013 COMMENCEMENT President Russell K. Hotzler conferred 2,378 degrees – 1,192 associate and 1,186 baccalaureate. The number of baccalaureate graduates has almost doubled over the past ten years as the result of the addition of several new BS and BTech degree programs, including those in Applied Mathematics (BS), Biomedical Informatics (BS), Emerging Media Technologies (BTech), Health Services Administration (BS), Mathematics Education (BS), Mechanical Engineering Technology (BTech) and Radiological Science (BS). Delivering the commencement address was David Hinson, national director of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), a bureau within the United States Department of Commerce. Mr. Hinson oversees a national network of 40 MBDA Business Centers, including those in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico and the first of its type Federal Procurement Center located in Washington, DC.

The top two students in the 2013 graduating class both had Latin American roots. Dany Salas, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic who majored in Computer Systems Technology, was City Tech’s valedictorian. Jessica Castillo, an Architectural Technology major whose family was from El Salvador, was the College’s salutatorian (second in the graduating class). Prior to Commencement , this year’s graduates were provided “City Tech Proud! City Tech Promise!” – a booklet that reminded them of all the reasons they should be proud to have attended City Tech, identified the many ways in which the College can continue to serve them, and the many ways in which they can remain connected with their alma mater. In addition, the Alumni Association and Student Government Association co-hosted a Red Carpet Graduation Celebration Dinner Dance for graduates and their guests in the historic Brooklyn Borough Hall Rotunda in late May.

Members of New York City College of Technology’s faculty in the health fields have embarked on a year-long project to explore ways of enhancing students’ understanding of cultural differences among patients. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)-supported project is titled “Comparative Perspectives on Health, Illness, and Healing.” It involves faculty members from City Tech’s Departments of Nursing, Radiological Technology & Medical Imaging, Dental Hygiene, Vision Care Technology, Biological Sciences and Law & Paralegal Studies. Through seminars and independent study, they are exploring Eastern and Western approaches to health, disease and healing in specific cultural and historical contexts. The NEH faculty fellows will focus on such topics as Eastern versus Western systems of medical knowledge, portrayals of illness in world art, cultural interpretations of addiction, and the religious, ethical and legal meanings of death across cultures. “The goal is to enable participating faculty, and consequently their students, to become more thoughtful, culturally competent and ethically aware practitioners,” said Associate Professor Mary Sue Donsky, JD (Law & Paralegal Studies), project co-director. “That can happen by better understanding variables of philosophy, values and culture that underlie medical practice in different societies.” Like other colleges, City Tech’s associate and baccalaureate degree curricula in the health fields are constricted by requirements imposed by licensing and accrediting bodies at the state and federal levels. Since degree requirements leave little room for humanities electives, the NEH grant will enable City Tech faculty to develop special cross-cultural study modules and learning activities to be integrated into existing courses. City Tech lead faculty on this grant include Aida Egues and Elaine Leinung (Nursing); Gwen CohenBrown (Dental Hygiene); Kara Pasner (Vision Care Technology); Laina Karthikeyan (Biological Sciences); Sarah Standing, Shauna Vey, Roxana Delbene Grossi, Sandra Cheng (Humanities); and Lisa Pope Fischer (Social Science).

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CITY TECH PROFESSOR IS KEY PLAYER IN DISCOVERY OF GROUNDBREAKING VIRUS DETECTION METHOD

Vasily Kolchennko

Vasily Kolchenko, associate professor of biological sciences at New York City College of Technology, is a key player on a research team that recently made a breakthrough with enormous potential significance for the treatment of serious diseases. Their work has made it possible, for the first time, to detect the smallest virus particle. Since

even one viral particle can represent a deadly threat, the research will make an important contribution to ongoing research on early detection of such diseases as AIDS and cancer. Until the research team announced their discovery in the American Institute of Physics’ July 27, 2012 issue of Applied Physics Letters, no instrument or methodology had been successful in reliably and accurately detecting a single virus particle, which is in the size range of a nanoparticle. About 80,000 nanoparticles side by side would have the same width as a human hair. The research will potentially have an immense impact on the general public, aiding disease detection at its earliest stage when fewer pathogens are present and medical intervention can be most effective. This new approach also has possible applications in the identification of numerous molecules, especially proteins, which are important for drug development research, both as the targets and the treatments.

While scientists have long used microscopes to view objects as small as bacteria, viruses are much smaller. Even the most sensitive electron microscopes, which are cumbersome, expensive and difficult to operate, cannot guarantee detection of these tiny particles. The team’s breakthrough involved adding a nano-antenna to the light-sensing device to enhance the signal. “The idea that light can ‘sense’ the presence of nanoparticles and respond to their arrival was groundbreaking,” Dr. Kolchenko says. The two-year research project, funded for $400,000 by the National Science Foundation, has been conducted at Polytechnic/NYU’s Micro-Particle Laboratory for BioPhotonics, under the direction of Dr. Stephen Arnold, in collaboration with the physics departments of Fordham University and Hunter College, and the biological sciences department of City Tech. Polytechnic/NYU has applied for a utility patent for the team’s groundbreaking innovation.

Professor George Guida Named 2013 Scholar on Campus Professor George Guida, Department of English, delivered the 2013 Scholar on Campus Lecture, “Creativity, Language and Life,” and read from his poetry on April 22. Dr. Guida was named this year’s Scholar on Campus by New York City College of Technology’s Professional Development Advisory Council. Each year, the designation Scholar on Campus is awarded a member of the faculty who has demonstrated extraordinary scholarship or creative work that has had an important impact at the College and in the larger community. “Professor Guida truly exemplifies the ideals of the Scholar on Campus award,” said Pamela Brown, the College’s Associate Provost. “In addition to his impressive publication record, he serves the community through readings across the region and as co-founder of the College Poetry Slam at the Bowery Poetry Club, a competition where poets can read or recite their work.” A creative writer since the age of 12, Dr. Guida has taught literature and writing to CUNY students for nearly 25 years. In 1998, he joined City Tech as a full-time faculty member, and now teaches poetry, creative writing and composition; he soon will teach

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a course on the literature of immigration. Additionally, he is poetry editor of the literary magazine 2 Bridges Review, the third issue of which was published this year. Dr. Guida, who received his undergraduate degree at Columbia University, interned at The Paris Review and The Hudson Review, two of America’s leading literary magazines, and earned his doctoral degree from The CUNY Graduate Center. Early in his Scholar on Campus lecture, Dr. Guida noted that he was teaching Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in his spring 2013 Composition I course, adding that the best that could be said of its anti-hero, Victor Frankenstein, was that he meant well. “Victor’s big problem,” Dr. Guida observed, “is the problem with human beings: We can’t help being creative. We’ve engineered transit systems, invented the microchip, and used stem cells to treat

chronic illness. Unfortunately, we’ve also devised ways to burn fossil fuels, discovered nuclear fission, and genetically modified foods that ought not be modified. Maybe Mary Shelley and the Romantic poets were right: We would have been better off taking long walks along sandy beaches and mountain trails, spending our time and mental energy simply marveling at nature’s bounty, not trying to do too much with it. But we just aren’t wired that way. Create we must, and create we do.” Dr. Guida went on to say that the sword of creativity has two very sharp edges that cut in entirely different ways: “Creativity can attract the company of beautiful minds whose transcendent thoughts and wit make every night on the town an adventure; or it can lead to disastrous relationships with dangerously unstable companions whose whims leave us emotionally disabled for the rest of our lives.”

MERCK PRESENTS CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION TO CITY TECH PRESIDENT RUSSELL HOTZLER In May 2013, City Tech President Russell Hotzler was awarded a certificate of appreciation from Merck & Company for his ongoing support of a partnership between the firm and the College. Implemented in spring 2012, this partnership is with the City Tech Department of Nursing’s baccalaureate program. The initiative enables students to supplement their coursework by working on a specific aspect of a healthcare research project sponsored by Merck. This provides students with a taste of the industry knowledge and research experience they will face in an increasingly competitive, technologically advanced, business-oriented healthcare environment.

‘HEALTH AND WELLNESS IN BLACK COMMUNITIES’ FOCUS OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH “Health and Wellness in Black Communities” was the theme of New York City College of Technology’s series of February 2013 events in celebration of Black History Month. These events, which included an art exhibition, storytelling, lectures, readings and a panel discussion, were sponsored by City Tech’s Department of African American Studies in collaboration with faculty and staff from the Departments of Biological Sciences, Dental Hygiene, Health Services Administration, Human Services and Nursing, plus the Black Male Initiative program and Black Women’s Networking Committee. The celebration included an Ursula C. Schwerin Library Showcase Exhibit, “Celebrating Healers from the Africana World,” featuring photographs, books and brief biographies on how unknown as well as well-known figures like Dr. May Edward Chinn, Mary Eliza Mahoney, Ben Carson and Arthur Ashe impacted health and wellness throughout the world. Also featured was a reading, “Healing Stories and Proverbs from the Africana World.” Department of African American Studies faculty

member Annie Mundeke emphasized how storytelling and proverbs from the Africana World have served as critical vehicles for healing and wellness for people of African descent. In a mid-month program, “City Tech Celebrates the 24th Year of the National African American Read-In,” students, faculty and staff shared various forms of literature, including poems, essays and excerpts from novels and plays. Students also read from their own works, many of which examined love and healing in the Africana World. The celebration concluded with an overview of health and wellness in Africana communities followed by a discussion of some of the physical and psychological health challenges, as well as traditional and alternative health and wellness approaches in Black communities. Panelists included faculty members Christine Thorpe (Human Services), Rosalyn Forbes (Nursing) and Gwen Cohen-Brown (Dental Hygiene).The event included performances by the City Tech Community Choir and Black Theater students, a student slide show, and information tables on health and wellness.

City Tech Hosts Conference on ‘Culture and Impact of the Bicycle in Brooklyn’ A half-day conference on the evolving culture and impact of the bicycle in Brooklyn, sponsored by New York City College of Technology’s Brooklyn Waterfront Research Center and The City University of New York’s University Transportation Research Center, was held on campus in March 2013. They say that once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget. Brooklyn, however, did forget – for a while. After an explosion of interest in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Brooklynites forgot about bikes until later in the 20th century, and now, in the 21st century, bikes are ubiquitous in Brooklyn, especially in its rapidly changing waterfront neighborhoods. There are bike lanes and bike paths; bikes are seen as an answer to transportation problems and as a solution for environmental troubles. In this conference, speakers examined the issues raised by the history and ubiquity of bikes in Brooklyn.

Topics, speakers and other activities included “Engineering Bikes and Bike Lanes,” Ted Wright, Bicycle and Pedestrian Projects, NYC Department of Transportation; “Bikes as Agents of Environmental and Social Change,” Brian McCormick, co-founder of the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway Initiative, and Ben Shepard, City Tech professor and author of “The Beach Beneath the Streets: Contesting New York City’s Public Spaces;” “Bringing Bikers to Brooklyn: Tourism, Recreation, and Sport,” Chris Wogas, president, Bike and Roll, Mike Lydon, principal, The Street Plans Collaborative, and David Trimble, director, Red Hook Criterium; and a screening of “Racing toward Red Hook,” Jessica Scott, director. The event concluded with a bike tour of the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway, with 25 free bikes provided by Bike and Roll on a first come/first served basis. “The conference was also about jobs,” said event organizer Richard Hanley, a faculty member with the Department of English. “Bicycling is creating jobs in Brooklyn and throughout New York City.”

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City Tech’s Zissu Plays Instrumental Role in Settlement of Mortgage Backed Securities Lawsuit

Dr. Anne Zissu, chair of City Tech’s Department of Business, was the lead expert witness in a recent landmark $500 million settlement of a class action suit against Countrywide Financial Corporation. The case, which was litigated for fiveyears, resulted in the nation’s largest mortgage-backed securities (MBS) class

action settlement. Dr. Zissu was the lead expert witness on behalf of the plaintiffs, which were multiple retirement funds in Maine, Iowa, California and Oregon. From 2005 to 2007, Countrywide was the biggest U.S. residential home lender, originating or purchasing about $1.4 trillion in mortgages. By late 2008, virtually all of the MBS certificates purchased by the plaintiffs had been downgraded to junk bond status, causing significant economic losses. The Oregon state pension fund, for example, lost $29 million of its $200 million investment. In 2010, the plaintiffs charged that they were sold billions of dollars worth of MBS certificates backed primarily with defective Countrywide-originated loans, because the company violated its own guidelines for originating home loans. Dr. Zissu’s deposition validated claims that Countrywide’s prospectus of 429 offerings misled investors about the quality

of mortgage loans in the pool of collateral, packaging poorer quality loans into the MBS. Besides analyzing the structure of the MBS, she assisted the plaintiffs’ attorney at the class certification stage of the litigation. She established that a class action suit was appropriate, since the investors all were in the same circumstances, having relied on the misrepresented quality of the mortgage loans and invested in the same MBS. She also opined that the court could evaluate the plaintiffs’ economic losses from the misrepresentations in the Countrywide prospectus supplements. “I was very happy about the settlement,” says Dr. Zissu, who in addition to her responsibilities at City Tech is a research fellow at The Polytechnic Institute of New York University (NYU-Poly), the Department of Financial and Risk Engineering. “This means that my testimony was strong, and I am happy that I could help investors recover some of their investments.”

LIFE IMITATES ART IN CITY TECH PRODUCTION OF ‘THE SERVICE ROAD’ Imagine working on the pre-production aspects of a play about a mythical storm and waking up to the reality of Hurricane Sandy. It happened to the cast, crew and City Tech students involved in the Adhesive Theater Project’s acclaimed production of The Service Road, which was performed on campus January 11 through February 2, 2013. A nature guide attempted to find a lost child after a violent storm of mythic proportions hit Prospect Park in the 70-minute multimedia show written by Obie Award-winning playwright Erin Courtney. The production featured the introduction of a Japanese theatre-video puppet and a gravity defying set. The director, Meghan Finn, deftly struck a balance between ingenious technology and Courtney’s intimate script, marshaling the two into a resonant and captivating whole. The play’s internal order, however surreal, felt entirely complete, according to a January 24 New York Times review of the show. In this work, playwright Courtney examined

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what it means to be of service and the true nature of forgiveness. About 50 City Tech Department of Entertainment Technology students were involved in the production of the show, with more than a dozen students running the show at each performance. Interviews with students involved in the production whose homes were devastated by Sandy can be viewed at http://youtu.be/cN0r0Otc5Y. A donation jar at each performance collected money for the students heavily impacted by the storm. Several City Tech faculty members lent their expertise to the show. Professor Sue Brandt was the production manager and lighting designer; Professor John McCullough worked on the technical design and supervised the student construction of the large, complex, detailed set; Professor John Huntington also worked on the technical design and supervised the audio/ video systems and the live sound design;

and Adjunct Professor Cory Einbinder was the lead actor and props/puppet designer. His interactive video puppet went on to win top honors at the United States Institute for Theatre Technology’s 2013 Tech Expo recently held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

CITY TECH’S CULINARY, PASTRY AND WINE EXPERTS STAR ON CUNY TV’S EMMY WINNING ‘STUDY WITH THE BEST’

Celebrity Chef Michael Lomonaco

Master Sommelier Roger Dagorn

New York City College of Technology’s hospitality management program was the focus of a 30-minute special edition of the New York Emmy®-winning “Study with the Best”– the news magazine show about the CUNY community and its influence in the region and nation. Titled “Cuisine,” the program aired in May 2013 and looked at cuisine throughout and beyond CUNY, particularly at City Tech. The program began in City Tech’s Department of Hospitality Management with a walk-through by City Tech faculty members Susan LifreiriLowry and Joanne Jacus that included cooking demos. The segment continued with City Tech student Kristen Battaglia as she participated in the U.S. Student Pastry Competition, after being mentored by City Tech graduate and Adjunct Assistant Professor Anthony Smith, who won the 2012 U.S. Pastry Competition. Then the show then moved to the Time Warner Center’s Porter House New York restaurant where Michael Lomonaco, a graduate of the College, is executive chef and managing partner. Lomonaco, who honed his skills at Le Cirque and 21, and ran Windows on the World at the World Trade Center, talked about life as a chef and entrepreneur in New York City.

Up-and-coming Chef Kubee Kassaye

Student pastry competition winner Kristen Battaglia

Another City Tech graduate to provide an inspirational story was Kubee Kassaye, now a chef at the five-star Peninsula Hotel and a winner of last year’s Les Dames D’Escoffier Legacy Award. Born in a small village in Ethiopia to a large family, Kassaye at 13 moved to New York, where she spoke no English. Nevertheless, she went on to graduate from high school with honors and Magna Cum Laude from City Tech. Then “Cuisine” profiled French-born, U.S.-raised wine connoisseur and Master Sommelier Roger Dagorn, one of only a handful of experts in the world officially designated a Sake Samurai by the Japan Sake Brewers Association. Dagorn is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Wine Education in City Tech’s Hospitality Management program. The episode also offered a brief profile of Spoons Across America, a not-for-profit organization that teaches children and families about the benefits of healthy eating. Its board of directors includes a City Tech administrator, faculty member and alumnus. Study with the Best observed a class learning all about bees and honey.

Workshop Prepares CST Students for Goldman Sachs Internships Computer Systems Technology (CST) Professor Josephine Accumanno-Braneky moderated a workshop for students who began a six-week paid Bridge Internship Program at Goldman Sachs in January 2013. Four veteran program interns – Karl Garcia, Dany Salas and Stanislau Podolski from City Tech and Andy Rivas from LaGuardia Community College – all of whom have employment contracts once they graduate, shared their experiences with the current group. The winter 2013 student interns from CST were Juan Hernandez, Jason Rosado, Rahmaan M. Abdul, Roger Disla, Alyssa Williams and Olufemi Akinbode. The rigorous application process began the previous October, followed by interviews and the selection of interns a month later. During the last six years, most of City Tech’s Goldman Sachs interns have been accepted for full-time employment following graduation.

NSF Grant to Fund New Center for Performative Design and Engineering Technology The School of Technology & Design at New York City College of Technology was awarded a National Science Foundation TUES (Teaching Undergraduate Education in the STEM Disciplines) grant to create a unique interdisciplinary Center for Performative Design & Engineering Technology. To be situated within a new Digital Visualization/ Computation/Fabrication facility, the center will expand opportunities for engagement in hands-on interdepartmental team projects that promote active learning and problem solving while familiarizing students with cutting-edge tools used across a variety of technology fields. The two-year grant of $199,820 was awarded to PI Dr. David B Smith and Co-PI’s Anne Leonhardt, Iem Heng and John McCullough.

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News Shorts CITY TECH TEAM DESIGNS NEW WEBSITE FOR INSTITUTE FOR JUSTICE & DEMOCRACY IN HAITI A City Tech team that included Department of Advertising Design & Graphic Arts Assistant Professor Daniel Wong, Adjunct Professor Natasha Marcano, recent graduates Norali Zamora and Sebastian Llano, and student Juan Vargas helped rebrand the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti by redesigning its website, reorganizing the site’s content, and building a custom template for its content management system.

“It was a challenging task”, said Wong, “given that the organization had many active participants involved in content development over the years. The message of the organization’s purpose was muddled by the diversity of their mission. Now that the site has launched, the future goals are to mobile optimize the design, and to begin to help IJDH with its social media campaigns.”

STORIES FROM THE ROAD TO FREEDOM

VOORHEES HALL RIBBON CUTTING

In March 2013, City Tech President Russell Hotzler hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking virtual completion of the Voorhees Hall Façade Project which has brought a contemporary new face to the building. Upgrades to the building’s HVAC system are also part of the overall refurbishing of Voorhees Hall, home to School of Technology & Design academic programs.

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In May 2013, the Department of African American Studies and the Black Women’s Networking Committee sponsored a screening of “Shorts from the Road to Freedom,” which was created for the History Channel for Black History Month. The screening was preceded by a panel discussion with filmmakers and History Channel representative. Narrated by Primetime Emmy Award nominee Deon Cole, the film provided a fresh perspective on the Black movement in America from Emancipation to the Civil Rights era. It featured first-hand accounts, rare audio recordings, never-before-seen archival footage and home movies to chronicle African American life as lived by ordinary people through 150 years of social upheaval.

7th Annual City Tech Research Conference The 7th Annual City Tech Research Conference on April 4, 2013, featured plenary talks by Professors Anne Zissu, chair of the College’s Department of Business, and Assistant Professor Benjamin Shepard, Department of Human Services, as well as a record 60 panel talks by City Tech faculty members. Research is rapidly growing across the disciplines at the College, as evidenced by the number and broad range of research topics discussed at the conference.

2013 LITERARY ARTS FESTIVAL AWARDS CEREMONY

The 2013 Literary Arts Festival at City Tech on April 18 featured readings and presentation of cash prizes to literary arts competition award winners. The event also feature guest speaker Katie Dellamaggiore, director of the documentary film Brooklyn Castle. The film, which has garnered extensive accolades, facilitated a broad-ranging discussion with students regarding storytelling in film, public education funding, activism and the arts. The annual event was organized by Assistant Professor of English Caroline Hellman. Promotional materials were designed by City Tech alum Daniel Ramirez.

Student Wellness Center Hosts 1st Annual ‘Take Back the Night’ Rally The Student Wellness Center at City Tech hosted its 1st Annual Take Back the Night rally on April 17, 2013. Held at hundreds of colleges and universities around the world, Take Back the Night marches and rallies protest and direct action against rape and other forms of sexual violence. The event included student and staff performances, with multiple organizations that support individuals who have suffered from sexual violence also participating.

RESTORATIVE DENTISTRY STUDENTS ARE ALL SMILES IN YOUTUBE THANKS TO GUEST SPEAKERS

City Tech Department of Restorative Dentistry students were all smiles in their YouTube “thank you” to Thomas Singh, MDT, and Joshua Polansky, MDC, who shared their knowledge and experiences with them during an April 2013 on-campus Greater New York C.D.T. Study Group seminar. View the students’ “thank you” video at http://youtu.be/VrSzFb1izYo.

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CONTINUING EDUCATION THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING NEW IN CONTINUING EDUCATION Designing continuing education programs to meet the expectations of 21st century employment is incredibly interesting but fraught with challenges. Rapid technological advances, legislative mandates for licensure and certification, the loss of sector jobs to foreign markets and newly defined job titles create the urgency for continuous collaborations with college departments, unions, community organizations and regional businesses. The Division’s fall 2013 bulletin reflects courses that meet the needs of new job seekers, incumbent workers, those interested in emerging sector employment and professionals in need of advanced technologies.

What’s new? The restructuring of healthcare delivery is well under way and is changing the ways in which patient care is monitored and managed. Healthcare Our fall programming will offer training for patient care navigators, case managers charged with monitoring patients with complex medical needs in order to prevent frequent re-hospitalizations. From the provider perspective, courses related to patient care reflect needs for industry specific certifications. Medical billing and coding classes prepare students for the AHIMA CCS examination for national certification as coders. Training as medical records and health information technicians qualifies course completers to sit for exams as Registered Health Information Technicians (RHT) or the National Healthcare Association (NHA) certification as a Certified Electronic Health Record Specialist (CEHRS). New emphases on sustainability and respect for the environment have fostered growth in industries and Sustainability programs that reflect the mandate to reduce the carbon footprint for city buildings by incorporating renewable energy practices such as installation of green roofs and living walls, wind turbines and photovoltaic systems. The Division’s newly

constructed Solar Lab on historic Wallabout Bay at the Brooklyn Navy Yard provides our students with real world, hands-on experience installing actual rooftop photovoltaic cells and calculating energy output (NABCEP certification prep). Instructors Rob Ashmore of Aeon Solar, Cullen Kusunik of Wind Analytics and Debra Salomon, LEED AP, lead the Division’s inaugural efforts as students build a greener future. Funded by the Robin Hood Foundation and predicated on the need for preparing workers for the city’s sustainability needs (Mayor’s Plan 2030, Greener, Greater Buildings’ Plan), Continuing Education’s Workforce Development Center and the Environmental Control Technology Department created the Green Maintenance for Buildings program which prepares graduates for both current and future energy efficiency needs of residential and commercial buildings. Over 75% of its graduates have accessed employment in the field. The meteoric advances in emerging technologies are shaping manufacturing, leisure activities, architectural design and social networking. Digital Fabrication Digital Fabrication allows the production of prototypes directly from 3D models. The “additive” or “building up” nature of 3D printing offers an ease of use and freedom of form that can’t be found is subtractive fabrication technologies, making it a suitable gateway for design professionals interested in learning more

about designing for manufacturing. The course covers fundamentals of digital modeling for 3D printing, file preparation and output methods for multiple types of 3D printers and best practices in 3D printer operations. Classes in Wordpress, INDESIGN, Video Games and Graphic Design using C++ and Troubleshooting Computers and Mobile Devices are just a sampling of the new technology courses being offered this fall. Funded by a grant from the USDOL, City Tech’s Green Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative offers stackable, credit bearing industry recognized credentials leading to associate degrees in Mechanical Engineering Technology and Industrial Design Technology. There’s always something new in continuing education. City Gardening offers advice from an urban gardening specialist on planning, planting and City Gardening harvesting focusing first on autumn and winter. Watch for spring and summer workshops in the 2014 spring bulletin. Superstorm Sandy focused attention on the harmful effects of mold contamination. The Environmental Remediation Specialist Certificate trains participants in site specific operations, cleaning and disposing of mold contaminated materials. Societal concerns focus on Autism, the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States. Our fall seminar discusses ways in which families can provide support so that persons with Autism can lead meaningful, happy and integrated lives.

Get in touch by visiting our website at WWW.CITYTECH.CUNY.EDU/ACADEMICS/CONTINUINGED. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and You Tube

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STUDENT ACHIEVERS MAKING THEIR MARK ON CAMPUS AND OFF CITY TECH STUDENT WAS FINALIST IN ENTREPRENEURIAL CONCEPT COMPETITION Radwa Mohamed is a City Tech student and entrepreneur who presented her business model at the 3rd Annual Entrepreneurial Concept Competition at the City College of New York late last year. The competition aims to encourage CUNY students to develop their entrepreneurial ideas, enhance their understanding of the requirements for a successful business venture, and showcase their creativity. The ECC is created and coordinated by The Black Male Leadership and Mentoring Program (BMLMP) of The City College of New York and the New York City Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program. Radwa, a finalist and the only student representing City Tech, presented the business model for her company, R.M. Logistics. Unlike most of the other projects that were presented, Radwa’s business is already in operation. She opened it herself, built it from the ground up and manages it while going

to school full-time. R.M. Logistics is a brokerage firm within the transportation industry that focuses on matching carriers with shippers so that goods can be effectively delivered domestically and internationally. Radwa currently employs 11 co-agents, who assist her in servicing all of her clients that make up a customer book of over $1,000,000.

KIONIC AWARD WINNERS Two City Tech Department of Advertising Design & Graphic Arts (ADGA) students were recipients of the Fall 2012 Kionic Awards – Orlando Arias for Most Promising New Web Designer and Alfredo Lopez for Best Web Site. Arias, who is both a freelance graphic designer and a designer for Vanguard Systems, Inc. in Brooklyn, expects to graduate in spring 2014 with a baccalaureate in Communication Design. Lopez, a January 2013 graduate of the same program who studied web design

under City Tech Professor Daniel Wong, is a freelance web and mobile UI designer and also a site designer for Early-Adopter, LLC in Manhattan. The Kionic Awards are cash awards funded by Netfronts/Kionic.com, an Internet service provider. The awards are presented every semester, and all City Tech students enrolled in web courses are eligible to compete upon recommendation of web course instructors. The jury consists of ADGA faculty and representatives from the company.

City Tech Students Place First, Second and Third in The One Club Competition

Five talented City Tech students were part of teams that swept the top three honors in The One Club’s Creative Boot Camp competition, held in January 2013 at Macaulay Honors College. The camp, co-sponsored by the New York City advertising agency Deutsch, Inc., drew 80 students from primarily CUNY colleges, 60 percent of whom are majoring in visual arts, graphic design or communication design, with the rest working for degrees in public relations or business. All of the City Tech participants were communication design majors. Led by creative directors and designers from across the US, the One Club Creative Boot Camp is an intensive four-day workshop that introduces students to the art of creating advertising for a client from initial concept through the final pitch. The students were asked to create a fundraising campaign to shed light on the global education crisis. City Tech Department of Advertising Design & Graphic Arts students Wing Dong and Richard Moody were on the team that finished first. City Tech students Desiree Camacho and Mohammad Chowdhury participated on the team that placed second. They created a book, “Patrons of Promise,” that featured blocked out words that could only be accessed when the book was purchased. City Tech’s Keith Brown and his team took third place honors with their ads using the tagline “Decoding Our Future,” which used jumbled lettering to evoke a sense of confusion for the reader. Once unscrambled, the text made a statement about who the client was and its aims, and, more importantly, what the client hoped the reader would do.

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MORE STUDENT ACHIEVERS

CITY TECH STUDENTS WINNERS IN FINANCIAL AWARENESS VIDEO FESTIVAL

From left: Javier Herrera, Assistant Professor Ryoya Terao, Anthony Cruz and Ron Hatcher

Three City Technology students from the Department of Entertainment Technology were winners in The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s 4th Annual Financial Awareness Video Festival in February 2013. Under the guidance of Entertainment Technology Assistant Professor Ryoya Terao, students Anthony Cruz, Ron Hatcher (who was a winner in last year’s festival) and

Javier Herrera took third place for “It Is Up to Me,” a 30-second video about how to build good credit. A celebrity panel of judges, including personal finance expert Suze Orman, the Tribeca Film Institute’s Jose Rodriguez, and actor Ashley Springer, viewed and evaluated the top 15 submissions. City Tech students swept the top three prizes in the 2012 competition.

The New York Fed’s video festivals, which are sponsored by the Regional and Community Outreach team, challenge local college and university students to create videos aimed at their peers about responsible borrowing and the dangers inherent in acquiring too much debt. They combine peer-to-peer learning with video technology aimed at advancing financial literacy among young people. This year, the New York Fed ran two concurrent festivals – one in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut and the other in Puerto Rico. “It is an excellent experience for our students to see good results from their effort,” said Professor Terao. “I should also mention that another student, Jinwon Sung, submitted a PSA that was among the finalists in this year’s competition. Although it didn’t receive an award, it was an outstanding piece as well. The video was shot in the dental facility on campus with the help of the Department of Dental Hygiene. City Tech is diverse and resourceful. There are many ways that students, faculty, staff and departments can collaborate with each other. Jinwon’s video is an example. I look forward to more such opportunities in the future.”

CITY TECH STUDENT KRISTEN BATTAGLIA WINS FIRST ANNUAL JUNIOR PASTRY CHEF CHALLENGE Kristen Battaglia, a City Tech senior majoring in Hospitality Management, won the U.S. Pastry Competition’s first annual Junior Pastry Chef Challenge earlier this year. The competition took place at Javits Center in Manhattan during the 2013 International Restaurant and Foodservice Show. Student competitors were required to present a chocolate showpiece (maximum 75 percent chocolate and minimum 25 percent sugar work/

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decoration) that reflected the theme “Women,” a plated dessert and petit fours.

Battaglia beat nine other students from Monroe College and Pennsylvania School of Culinary Arts to take the grand prize. Battaglia was mentored by City Tech alumnus Anthony Smith, who is an adjunct professor at the College. He is the pastry chef at the Cosmopolitan Club and was named 2012 Pastry Chef of the Year by the U.S. Pastry Competition. Battaglia was assisted by Sandy Marin, also a City Tech Hospitality Management student. Battaglia, was in Paris for three weeks in June 2013 with City Tech’s Thomas Ahrens International Work and Study Program.

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CITY TECH STUDENTS WIN FIRST AND THIRD PRIZES IN 2013 DIGILENT DESIGN CONTEST In May 2013, eight City Tech students presented six projects at the 2013 Digilent Design Contest held at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. The projects were Golf Picking Robot presented by Ilya Erlikh (Mechanical Engineering Technology); City Tech Transporter – A Homemade Segway, presented by Aidan Murphy and Joseph Kim (Mechanical Engineering Technology); Robotic Hand, presented by Eugene Babkin (Computer Engineering Technology); Security System – An Automatic Door System, presented by Bijan Mohktari and Angjelo Kuka (Mechanical Engineering Technology); Sniff Puppy II – A Chemical Detection Robot, presented by Zayva Lareche (Mechanical Engineering Technology); and Dynamic Façade Panel, presented by Valentina Stanovoka (Architectural Technology). During the

contest, the students demonstrated excellent teamwork, multidisciplinary knowledge and collaboration, and high quality presentation skills. Their various mechatronics projects were well received by other participants, and Morgan State

faculty members indicated that they were considering creating a mechatronics program at their institution. At the conclusion of the competition, the Robotic Hand project won the first prize and Sniff Puppy II project took third prize.

THREE VISION CARE TECHNOLOGY STUDENTS HONORED Three outstanding City Tech students were honored during the spring semester in ceremonies hosted by the Department of Vision Care Technology. Jay Gropen, (left photo), was presented with the New York State Society of Opticians’ (NYSSO) 2013 $500 Future of Opticianry Scholarship Award by NYSSO President Ethan Browne and Professor Joseph B. Sollecito, adjunct faculty member and NYSSO board of directors, in recognition of his academic achievement and promising future in the field. Also, honored with a $250 Student Scholarship was Doug Hess (right photo).

Presented by Department of Vision Care Technology Chair Robert Russo with the $250 Joseph L. Bacotti Scholarship Award was outstanding student Maria Jimenez (center photo) on behalf of the Opticians Alliance of New York. Professor Bacotti founded the department more than 40 years ago and the scholarship in his memory is presented to a student who has displayed high ethical and moral conduct.

2013 John and Helen Meyer Scholarship Recipients Congratulations to Entertainment Technology students Jacqueline Anscombe and Alexandria Bottiglieri on being named 2013 John and Helen Meyer Scholarship recipients. The scholarships provide students the opportunity to attend the Broadway Sound Master Classes and to experience the unique interplay of ideas and implementations in the theater today. Participants with a passion for theatrical art have an opportunity to learn from the best.

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CITY TECH STUDENTS TAKE FIRST AND THIRD PRIZES IN CUNY/LABOR ARTS CONTEST First-year City Tech students Jessica Guerra and Michael Youmans have taken two top prizes in this year’s City University of New York (CUNY)/Labor Arts “Making Work Visible” Contest earlier this year. Sponsored by the Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation, the Jessica Guerra annual contest, open to undergraduates at any CUNY school, aims to increase awareness of the history of work and workers and stimulate the study of labor history. Jessica Guerra’s first-place essay, “The Williamsburg Renaissance,” for which she won $1,000, is a creative blend of personal narrative and nonfiction telling the story of how change affects both place and people. Michael Youmans’ thirdplace short story, “The Hands of Time,” for which he won $250, is a fictional, quintessential New York

tale of a man and woman who meet on the subway and fall in love after facing down a possible obstacle to their union. “Of the 150 submissions received this year,” said Terrence Cheng, associate dean of the School of Arts and Humanities at Lehman College, which administers the contest, Michael Youmans “20 came from City Tech. Undoubtedly this is due to the encouragement and support the students received from English Professors Jane Mushabac and Suzanne Miller, who promoted the contest at City Tech.” Labor Arts is a joint project of the Rubin Foundation and The Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives/Tamiment Library at New York University. Its mission is to gather, identify and display images depicting the history of work and working people.

‘Bryant Park at Citytech’ Student Fashion Show The International Business Organization, a student club at City Tech, sponsored “Bryant Park at Citytech,” a student fashion show, during the spring 2013 semester. Co-sponsors included the College’s Veterans Club, Office of Student Affairs, and The Ink & Comic Club. Student organizers included Jomuelle Anicet, Jaribel Abreu, Romel Brewster, Nnena Jobe, Natalie Agbaje and Marcus Campbell. The event showcased student creativity and collective industriousness in establishing a reputable fashion community and annual event at the College. Outside event sponsors were Dr. Jays (footwear and accessories), NewTress Virgin Hair (hair and apparel), North Star Publishing Group (gift bags), Elucid Magazine (media), and Colleen Gwen Armstrong, media director with Brooklyn Fashion Weekend (media). Also integral to the success of the show were City Tech’s Student Government Association, Dean Barbara Grumet of the School

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of Professional Studies and Department of Business Professor John Dixon. “Bryant Park at Citytech” was designed to be both a creative showcase and an academic project that aims to position City Tech in league with the Fashion Institute of Technology and Parsons New School of Design which regularly host fashion shows. One of the major goals of this event is to bring attention to the Business Department’s new academic expansion project to develop a baccalaureate degree program in the fashion marketing field. This effort is being spearheaded by Dr. John Dixon and has received support throughout the Business Department and the larger College community. The 2013 fashion show was the largest oncampus fashion event since “EcoEnvy” in 2009 and featured more than 80 designs by 11 students and local designers, as well as a host of talented models from throughout CUNY and New York City.

City Tech Mechanical Engineering Technology Students on NY1 Kudos to City Tech Mechanical Engineering Technology students who mentored middle and high school students to help them build robots from scratch for the FIRST robotics competition. View an NY1 News report on what the students have been doing at http:// www.ny1.com/content/ top_stories/180751/ connect-a-million-minds-college-students-mentorgrade-school-students-inrobotics-competition. The Mechatronics Center at City Tech trains engineering majors to mentor kindergarten through 12th graders in both technical and professional skills. Over the past two years, the City Tech students have mentored 20 teams that built robots from scratch to battle against each other in the FIRST Robotics competition. The students are sharing their knowledge and experience with high school and middle-school students from across the city as part of an American Society of Mechanical Engineers youth outreach program.

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FOR CITY TECH STUDENT PATRICIA PERSAUD VOLUNTEERING IS A WAY OF LIFE “Volunteering has become part of my DNA,” says City Tech senior Patricia Persaud. “I take what I learn from each project and apply it to the next one.” Persaud, a Communication Design major, has done more volunteering in the past couple of years than most people do in a lifetime. She has made it her job and duty to help others on and off campus. “Volunteering is a great way of being part of something bigger than you,” she says. At the moment, she is working on a bone marrow drive with Save a Life Foundation and is involved as a part-time youth advocate with Project Reach, a social justice initiative for children and adults located in Chinatown. Participating in The City University of New York’s CUNY Corps, a leadership-through-service project that is part of the Malave Leadership Academy, she traveled to Syracuse during spring

break 2013 to work with Habitat for Humanity. Right after Hurricane Sandy, Persaud was like a whirlwind, helping some of the hardest hit communities in the city. As part of CUNY Corps, she worked on the emergency reconstruction of Bailey Pond Park in Queens and the cleanup of Far Rockaway, canvassed Red Hook residents and staffed the Red Cross emergency evacuation center at John Jay College. In addition to her Sandy work, she helped organize a NYPIRG clothing drive and donated her hair to Beautiful Lengths so it could be made into wigs for children who have cancer.

She has also volunteered for CUNY Citizenship Now! events, helping immigrants navigate the road to citizenship. Persaud was honored recently at the 42nd Annual Conference of the New York State Association of Black and Puerto Rican Legislators in Albany. At a luncheon sponsored by CUNY, Senior Vice Chancellor Jay Hershenson commended her for “really stepping up to give back to her community in need.” The next day, she and another CUNY student were invited to a luncheon at Gracie Mansion with Governor Andrew Cuomo, at which they were among the attendees at a private viewing of the original Emancipation Proclamation document. During this event, former Mayor Dinkins was honored with a replica of the proclamation. “Governor Cuomo shook my hand and thanked me for my support and volunteer efforts in general and in helping Sandy victims in particular,” explained Persaud.

STUDENTS STUDY HOW DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN IS CHANGING “Researching our Past, Building our Future” has been a spring 2013 semester-long theme in sections of an English course taught by Dr. Mary Nilles. As the skyline of Downtown Brooklyn rapidly changes, her students not only have been reading literary selections about the area, but also have been trying to create a historical context for the assigned literature. A trip to the Brooklyn Historical Society introduced the students to the study of maps, land conveyances and photographs related to Downtown Brooklyn buildings erected along or intersecting Jay Street over the past 150 years. Documentation of City Tech’s Klitgord Center, built in 1962 and scheduled for demolition this summer to make room for construction of a new state-of-the-art academic complex, was of special interest. Students have used past history to better understand present-day initiatives to make Downtown Brooklyn a center for technology education. After discussing selected literature as a reflection of history, the students walked around the MetroTech area, photographing images of Jay Street, Klitgord Center, and the College’s Namm, Pearl, Midway and Voorhees buildings for use in subsequent Power Point presentations.

Then they were introduced to sculptor Esther Klas, whose installation entitled “Gelift” is part of the current Public Art Fund installation at the MetroTech Commons and who explained her work to them. The class then paused at the site of a home once inhabited by Walt Whitman’s family and recalled how Whitman had an office near what would become the City Tech campus when he edited the Brooklyn Eagle. Next they photographed four historic houses on Duffield Street moved there from Johnson Street before construction of MetroTech Center in 1988. On the corner of Duffield and Willoughby Streets, they caught a glimpse of Ft. Greene Park to the east. To the west, they encountered a demolition crew at work, its foreman explaining how 19th century Downtown Brooklyn buildings are fast disappearing to make room for sites like that for the future Brooklyner on Bridge and Willoughby Streets. When completed the luxury apartment building will be the tallest structure in the borough. The trip ended with a discussion of writings about the benefits and costs of urban development.

Eighth Edition of ‘City Tech Writer’ Now Online

The 8th edition of City Tech Writer, featuring outstanding student writing from across the disciplines, is now online at http:// www.citytech.cuny.edu/ files/academics/ctw8.pdf.

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FACULTY & STAFF EMERGING FRONTIERS IN RESEARCH AND INNOVATION In September 2012, the National Science Foundation reached out to the research community nationwide to propose interdisciplinary topics at the emerging frontiers in research and innovation. It was anticipated that exposure to these topics would encourage new research and lead to transformative results that addressed important national needs. More than 150 ideas were submitted, and New York City College of Technology Department of Mechanical Engineering Technology Assistant Professor Gaffar Gailani’s topic, “Research Frontiers in Quantitative Understanding of Biological Systems with Interacting Fluids and Structures,” was among the ten selected for presentation in January 2013 to NSF staff and more than a dozen outside experts. In his presentation, Dr. Gailani introduced a number of topics that focused attention on applications of coupled systems of structures and fluid in quantitative biomechanics such

as nested porosity, on promising applications of new biologically inspired materials, on recent developments in imaging and testing from the macro to the nano scale, and on microgravity in aerospace, among others. Early this year, Dr. Gailani and a group from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at City College of New York (CCNY) published a review article that covers part of the subject in a special issue on biofluids in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Journal of Biomechanics. Dr. Gailani is principal investigator (PI) for a 2010 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) grant (see www. cipairnasa.com), the first NASA grant ever awarded City Tech. The three-year, $442,000 award was earmarked for the College’s project, “Achieving Proficiency in Engineering Research and STEM Education through NASA Initiatives.” He is also a co-PI for a $599,000 NSF S-STEM grant.

City Tech Professor Gaffar Gailani, left, presents at NSF on Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation

CITY TECH DIRECTOR OF ASSESSMENT AND INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH NAMED ABET FACILITATOR Tammie Cumming, PhD, City Tech’s director of assessment and institutional research, has been named a facilitator for ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology), a non-governmental organization that accredits post-secondary education programs in applied science, computing, engineering and engineering technology. Dr. Cumming is an expert in assessment and psychometrics with more than 20 years of experience in the testing industry and with assessment activities at the post-secondary level. As director of the Office of Assessment

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and Institutional Research, she oversees assessment activities for 30 academic departments and provides guidance for institutional effectiveness related to strategic planning and for various accreditation agency requirements. She is the director for one of four major activities under the umbrella of a 2010-2015 $3.2 million Department of Education Title V grant and oversees the institutionalization of creating a culture of assessment for learning to improve student outcomes. In 2011, she was the recipient of a Major Institutional Grants for Education and Public Service Award for the City University of New York.

Dr. Cumming provides workshops and seminars for the development of a continuous improvement model, emphasizing direct assessment methods to improve student outcomes at the institution. She also serves as a reviewer for the Association for Institutional Research Annual Forum and a consultant to U.S. and international post-secondary institutions regarding the utilization of direct assessment methods and fulfilling regional and professional accreditation requirements. Dr. Cumming and her team have recently developed a comprehensive web-based assessment system to aid programs in their program assessment planning, curriculum mapping, data collection and scoring, data analysis, reporting results, and documenting improvement strategies. She is an ABET Senior IDEAL Scholar.

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LONG-LASTING BENEFITS OF A 1973 FULBRIGHT GRANT TO BELGIUM-LUXEMBOURG When Dr. Mary Nilles received a Fulbright grant in fall 1973, she was a relatively new member of the City Tech faculty and director of the College’s fledgling ESL program. Her research interests included using 19th century American immigration history and literature in ESL and Developmental classrooms. She never thought then that four decades later she still would be researching and writing about patterns of Luxembourger immigration to the United States, involving other researchers in the U.S. and Europe in her work, and integrating the topic and the history and literature of many other immigrant groups into her classes at City Tech, as well as the graduate courses she taught in the School of Education at New York University. Over the years, Dr. Nilles has created a series of books and articles on mid-to-late 19th century Luxembourger emigration, promoted the development of student exchanges with and tours to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. She also has contributed to the preservation of notable historic buildings erected by the immigrants, the establishment of the Luxembourg Society and Heritage Museum in Rollingstone, Minnesota, and the national Luxembourg American Cultural Center in Belgium, Wisconsin. For her efforts in the fields of educational and cultural exchange, the Grand Duchy has twice bestowed on her its Order of Merit, as a Knight and an Officer.

In addition, she has created a series of library displays on Luxembourger-American history and culture in the U.S. and in Luxembourg, beginning in 1979 with a major exhibition at the National Library of Luxembourg that was visited by His Royal Highness Grand Duke Jean. Dr. Nilles has worked with national television of Luxembourg (RTL) on the creation of a five-part series on emigration. More publications and short films followed. With support from four PSC and Mellon grants in the 1980s, she began to compare Luxembourger immigration from the 1850s to 1900 with that of a host of other immigrant groups of the era. Between 2005 and 2009, Nilles received support from the Luxembourger Ministry of Culture and the 2007 Luxembourg and Greater Region Year of Culture program to coordinate a series of events that simultaneously would honor this initiative and the 150th anniversary of Luxembourger immigration to the Midwest. She created inter-connected teaching-learning, classroom and community activities and related K through university-level curricula. June 2012 brought the creation of a 65-minute documentary entitled Hémecht:

Luxembourgers Making a New Home in Winona County, Minnesota. Woven into this film are many of the projects with which Dr. Nilles and her students have been involved, as well as the artwork of students at City Tech and other institutions. The Hémecht script, written by Nilles and Jean Ensch, examines the history and traditions of Luxembourger Americans in Winona County, Minnesota. It follows the immigrants as they arrive in New York City, pause briefly, and then move to the West, and also looks at a small group that settled permanently either in Manhattan or in Brooklyn. Many of the posters and other graphics that appear in and advertise the film were created by City Tech students, as well as artists in the Midwest and in Luxembourg, including a number of elementary school students. The film was produced initially by Robert Pack at HBC Productions, Winona, Minnesota, then edited and enlarged by Erik Larson, filmmaker and animation specialist in City Tech’s Department of Advertising Design & Graphic Arts. It was funded by a grant from the Roots & Leaves Association, Luxembourg City, and through other private donations.

Dental Hygiene Professor Named to JCNDE National Board Dental Hygiene III Test Construction Committee The American Dental Association’s Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations has tapped Associate Professor of Dental Hygiene Anty Lam to serve on its Test Construction Committee as a community dental health expert. Lam is the only dental hygienist from New York appointed to this position on the national licensing examination committee. The National Board Dental Hygiene Examination is a comprehensive test consisting of 350 multiple-choice test items. The exam assists state boards of dentistry in

evaluating the qualifications of dental hygienists seeking a license to practice dental hygiene. It complements state or regional licensure exams. Professor Lam, a registered dental hygienist who has taught at City Tech since 1995, takes her new role very seriously. “Test constructors must use our subjectmatter expertise, familiarity with the curriculum in accredited dental hygiene programs, and awareness of what is important in the practice of general dentistry to create each exam. Its integrity depends on this.”

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FACULTY

PROFESSOR STRICKLER APPOINTED TO COMMISSION ON OPTICIANRY ACCREDITATION Assistant Professor of Vision Care Technology Kimberly Strickler has been appointed a voting member of the Commission on Opticianry Accreditation. Recognized by the Council for Higher Education, the Commission is a not-for-profit organization that accredits two-year degree opticianry programs in the United States. It fosters excellence in opticianry education by setting standards, assessing effectiveness and

identifying those academic programs that meet the standards with the goal of producing competent graduates. In addition, Professor Strickler has been appointed by the New York State Society of Opticians as a member of the Continuing Education Committee for licensed opticians in New York State. Professor Strickler coordinates City Tech’s eyeglass clinic and ophthalmic dispensing. She is certified by the American Board of Opticianry and National Contact Lens Examiners and is licensed in New York and Florida. She is presently secretary of the National Federation of Opticianry Schools, and a member of the New York State Society of Opticians and the Optical Women’s Association.

Barthold Engraving Commemorates Retirement of Restorative Dentistry Adjunct Lecturer Charles Cottone Department of Restorative Dentistry CLT David Barthold crafted this 4” x 6” copper engraving to commemorate the retirement at age 89 of department Adjunct Lecturer Charles Cottone at the end of the 2012 fall semester. Barthold, who is an accomplished artist, also currently serves as president of the City Tech Alumni Association. A native of Brooklyn, Cottone served as a dental technician in the United States Navy during World War II. After graduating from the New York School of Mechanical Dentistry in 1946, he spent the first 20 years of his career working for one dentist, Dr. V.O. Lucia, who was an innovator in the field. In 1980, Cottone was one of the first graduates of the Master Dental Technologists program at NYU, which offers the highest degree a dental technician can earn. He also holds two degrees from New York City College of Technology, an AAS in Dental Laboratory

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Technology (1981) and a BA in Teacher Education (2004), and became an adjunct lecturer and instructor at City Tech in 1995. “Cottone was perhaps the most distinguished and beloved instructor ever to teach in the Department of Restorative Dentistry,” says Barthold. “He was unfailingly good-humored and generous of spirit, and brought a genuine love of his work into the classroom. He passed his knowledge on to many generations of dental technicians, and will be remembered fondly, and missed, for years to come.”

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New Administrative Appointments Sandra C. Gordon, Esq. was appointed the College’s new Executive Director of Human Resources in March 2013. Ms. Gordon joins City Tech after an extensive professional career as a hearing review officer and Assistant Commissioner for Workforce Development at the NYC Administration for Children’s Services, an arbitrator in the Civil Court of the City of New York, and a human resources analyst at Beth Israel Medical Center. Ms. Gordon is a graduate of Baruch College, holds a Juris Doctorate from Fordham University’s School of Law, and is a member of the Bar in New York and Florida. She reports to Esdras Tulier, Esq. as the College moves to consolidate and enhance its human resource operations and services. Kevin Hom has been named Dean of the School of Technology & Design. Dean Hom brings over three decades of broad professional and academic experiences to the position, including an extensive portfolio of creative work and structures designed and built by his architectural firm that have received numerous honors and citations. During Dean Hom’s service as Interim Dean over the past three semesters, he exhibited a deep commitment to the educational mission of the College and the success of its students. Dean Hom holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s in architecture from Columbia University, and is licensed to practice in five states and Washington DC.

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PROFESSOR WORKING WITH NYSE EURONEXT MANAGERS TO INCREASE STUDENT INTERNSHIPS Last December, Professor Josephine Accumanno-Braneky, Department of Computer Systems Technology internship coordinator, hosted a luncheon at City Tech for NYSE Euronext managers Salvatore Sigona, Dan Meyer and Donald Brown. Their discussion focused on how to increase the number of City Tech students serving in internship positions with the multinational financial services corporation. Salvatore Sigona, a City Tech alumnus and former College employee, has hosted at least one internship student who was then hired by his department. Dan Meyer, who spearheaded the internship program at NYSE, has been an advocate for several years and recently formalized the program with mentors from his department as well as one headed by Donald Brown. “At present,” says Braneky, ”nine students are interning with NYSE Euronext and hopefully we can increase that number. Everyone at the firm has been so helpful to the students, who are gaining valuable experience there. Many are so grateful for that experience that they have asked to continue going to the site even though their required time for the internship has been satisfied.”

Professor Josephine Accumanno-Braneky joined by NYSE Euronext managers Salvatore Sigona, Dan Meyer and Donald Brown

2013 SERVICE AWARDS RECIPIENTS In May, President Russell K. Hotzler honored distinguished employees at City Tech’s 2013 Service Awards Reception, congratulating one and all for their dedication and service to the College. SEVEN YEAR RECIPIENTS Eveline Champagne, Financial Aid Lynda Dias, Hospitality Management Paul C. King, Architectural Technology Eric Lobel, Radiologic Technology & Medical Imaging Clemente Martinez, Facilities & Operations Douglas Moody, Computer Systems Technology Teresa Parker, Enrollment Management Kisha Swaby, SEEK Counseling Halroy F. Taitt, Buildings & Grounds Joyce Bavlinka, Brooklyn Educational

Calvin Grace, Physics Roman Kezerashvili, Physics Dianna Pippen, Human Resources Andrea Ross, Financial Aid David B. Smith, Entertainment Technology Gail Taylor, Career & Technology/Teacher Education

TWENTY-FIVE YEAR RECIPIENTS

TWENTY SEMESTER ADJUNCT RECIPIENT

Olga M. Saunders, Instructional Staff Relations Daniel Stadnyckyj, Buildings & Grounds Ruben Thomas Jr., Radiologic Technology &

Charles Daniels, Business

Shantel Childs-Williams, Dental Hygiene Olliver Davis, Scholarships & Residency Services Dulhill Desrouilleres, Buildings & Grounds Tanweer Javaid, Brooklyn Educational Opportunity Center

Medical Imaging

FORTY SEMESTER ADJUNCT RECIPIENT

THIRTY-FIVE YEAR RECIPIENTS

FIFTEEN YEAR RECIPIENTS

Mira Mukhopadhyay, Mathematics

Jacqueline Charlot, Brooklyn Educational

David M. Bellehsen, Computer Systems Technology Monique Breeland, Biological Sciences Pamela Brown, Office of the Provost Charles Eberle, Entertainment Technology Eric Lobel, Human Services Gilberto G. Gerena, Continuing Education/CLIP

FIFTEEN YEAR PART-TIME COLLEGE ASSISTANT RECIPIENTS

Opportunity Center

Herbert Brathwaite, Continuing Education Vernon Gilliam, Buildings & Grounds Dionne Smith, Enrollment Management

Opportunity Center Frank Derringh, Social Science

FORTY YEAR RECIPIENTS Steve Caputo, Advertising Design & Graphic Arts Sheldon Dinter, Business Office/Accounts Payable Earl A. Hill, Mathematics

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Bookshelf NEW BOOK BY PROFESSOR GEORGE GUIDA STIRS RELIGIOUS POT WITH HUMOR Building on the success of his previous books about Italian-American identity in the New World, George Guida released a new fiction collection, The Pope Stories and Other Tales of Troubled Times (Bordighera Press, 2012), late last year. The stories range from laugh-out-loud funny to touching to thought provoking. Says National Public Radio’s “Here on Earth” host Jean Feraca, “George Guida has guts. In The Pope Stories and

Other Tales of Troubled Times, he sets about slaughtering the sacred cows of Italian-American culture beginning with the Papal Bull himself, and then, in descending order, the cult of the Infant of Prague, the Cana conference, the holy rites of matrimony, and, of course, the family marshaled by La Mama, all of it cast comic/grotesque curiosities. These are thoroughly modern stories from a natural born satirist.”

Professor Guida has authored two books of poetry – Low Italian (Bordighera Press, 2007) and New York and Other Lovers (Smalls Books, 2008) – as well as the critical monograph The Peasant and the Pen: Men, Enterprise and the Recovery of Culture in Italian American Narrative (American University Studies Series: American Literature, Lang, 2003).

INSTRUCTOR ROB OSTROM PUBLISHES NEW POETRY COLLECTION Instructor Robert Ostrom, whose poems have been praised by distinguished poet Lucie Brock-Broido as “sorcery” and “some of the most gifted I’ve ever read,” has published a new collection, The Youngest Butcher in Illinois (YesYes Books, 2012). Ostrom, who teaches developmental writing and composition at City Tech and poetry at Columbia University, says, “Many of the poems in the manuscript deal with family; two sections are made up of a long poem,

‘To Show the Living,’ which is in large part an elegy for my grandmother.” His prior publications include two chapbooks, “To Show the Living”, winner of the 2008 New York Center for Book Arts Chapbook Competition, and “Nether and Qualms” (Projective Industries, March 2012). Previously, during his graduate education at Columbia University, he was awarded the Academy of American Poets Prize. “One thing about finally publishing my first book,” says Ostrom, “is that

now I can write new poems without thinking that they need to work in the context of the older stuff. I’m currently writing poems that I hope will grow into a second collection.” The publication of his long poem, “A Happy Idea,” is forthcoming from YesYes Books. Ostrom’s work has appeared in New Voices from the Academy of American Poets, Columbia: A Journal of Literature and Art, Gulf Coast, Cut Bank, Drunken Boat, Western Humanities Review, and other literary publications.

PROFESSOR ADRIANNE WORTZEL CHRONICLES EXPLOITS OF ELMO ROCCO IN NEW BOOK Entertainment Technology/Emerging Media Technologies Professor Adrianne Wortzel’s new book, Elmo Rocco, Polymat (Venus Press, 2013), chronicles Elmo Rocco’s exploits as plucked from the memory palace of his mind. It features Elmo Rocco as polymath (a person of great or varied learning) and polyglot (a person having a speaking, reading or writing knowledge of several languages) traveling through time as a quiet and invisible catalyst of invention in a range of demeanors

We’re on...

– at times somber and even irritable; at other times in a state of exuberant enthusiasm equally difficult to bear. The work stems from Wortzel’s project “Re-enactment of the Battle of the Pyramids,” which featured an army of denuded ELMO TMX toys performing synchronized military maneuvers. It is a performance installation of reconfigured robotic toys performing seemingly military maneuvers in rigid choreographed formations. This art project explores and uses sensor and

wireless communication to create clusters of entities moving in exact synchronization in response to a call to arms. Professor Wortzel creates interactive online works, robotic and telerobotic installations, performance productions, videos and writings. These works amplify historical and cultural perspectives by coupling fact with fiction in both physical and virtual networked environments.

and

Visit the official City Tech Alumni Association Facebook page at www.facebook.com/citytechalumni, its LinkedIn Company Page at City Tech Alumni, and Twitter at City Tech Alumni. These are places to stay connected with the College, alumni, faculty, staff and friends.

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Who’s News? Dr. Soyeon Cho, an assistant professor in the Department of Human Services and the department’s internship coordinator, attended a White House AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) Initiative Briefing on Suicide Prevention and Mental Health in May 2013. The event convened some of the nation’s leading health care advocates. Dr. Gwen Cohen-Brown, Department of Dental Hygiene and a nationally recognized expert on infection control in dentistry, was a guest lecturer at the Oregon Dental Conference in April 2013 and was invited to be interviewed by KATU-TV as part of the station’s coverage of a story about an Oklahoma dentist who may have exposed thousands of patients to a host of possibly life-threatening infections. Professsor Anthony Cioffi, chair of the Department of Construction Management & Civil Engineering Technology, was featured in a NYCAN Early College High School Blog interview in March 2013 on the instrumental role he played in designing the scope and sequence for Downtown

Brooklyn’s City Polytechnic High School of Engineering, Architecture and Technology engineering courses. Professor John Huntington, Department of Entertainment Technology, presented on systems, networking and show control at the Broadway Sound Master Class in June 2013. The presentation focused on basic tenants of systems thinking for shows, where planning must be made and accommodation for failure provided in a “show must go on” world. Dr. Jesse C. McCarroll, professor emeritus of music at New York City College of Technology, the College’s 1987 Scholar on Camps and president of the National Association for the Study and Performance of AfricanAmerican Music (NASPAAM), has received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He also organized the 2013 NASPAAM Conference, “Celebrating Freedom in Music, Arts and Education,” held in conjunction with the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary of the 1963 Birmingham Civil Rights

Movement. He was invited to deliver the keynote address at the Pan African Society for Musical Arts Education (PASMAE) 2013 Conference held in late July and early August in Kampala, Uganda. Dr. Jane Mushabac, Department of English, won a 2012 prize from Leapfrog Press for her short novel, The Hundred Year Old Man. In April 2013, she did a reading of her fiction with performance artist/ accordionist Jane Carner at the Hunter College MFA Studios. Dr. Kara Pasner, Department of Vision Care Technology, was one of several women honored at a Brooklyn Women of Distinction Dinner at El Caribe in June 2013. An earlier article in the Canarsie Digest spoke of Dr. Pasner as a “caring optometrist” and “an eyeopener for others.” Dr. Annette Saddik, City Tech professor of English and theatre and 2007 Scholar on Campus, was interviewed in March 2013 for a postproduction talk-back for the Roundtable Theatre’s production of Lanford Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize winning play “Talley’s Folly.”

In Memoriam Norbert Aneke Career & Technology Teacher Education Department William Berensmann Architectural Technology Norman Horowitz Mathematics Joanne V. Salacinski Office of the Dean of Engineering Technology Laura Polla Scanlon English Rita Schwartz Developmental Skills/ Mathematics Mary Serena SHARED Services – University Employee Benefits Office

DENTAL HYGIENE CLINIC

EYEGLASS CLINIC

LOW-COST DENTAL HYGIENE SERVICES

REDUCED-COST SERVICES

Pearl Building, 2nd Floor 259 Adams Street (south of Tillary), Downtown Brooklyn By appointment only Alumni/college community/general public Clinic schedule and other information/appointment at 718.260.5074

Pearl Building, 3rd Floor 259 Adams Street (south of Tillary), Downtown Brooklyn By appointment only Alumni/college community/general public Clinic schedule and other information/appointment at 718.260.5298

I http://www.citytech.cuny.edu/alumni 19

FOUNDATION CORNER 2013 BEST OF NEW YORK AWARD DINNER SALUTES WOMEN OF VISION The American story is replete with accounts of women whose contributions to all fields of human endeavor have ensured them a place in history. From Dolley Madison to Oprah Winfrey, countless women have left a positive mark on the affairs of a nation that fewer than 100 years ago denied women the right to vote and too often held to the notion first voiced by the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus that a woman’s place is in the home. In May 2013, New York City College of Technology saluted several women of visionary accomplishment and equally visionary organizations that have distinguished themselves in the area of gender equality at the City Tech Foundation’s 2013 Best of New York Award Dinner. Proceeds from the annual dinner help fund foundation-sponsored scholarships and other student financial assistance and professional development programs. Honorees included Denise Arbesu, a Citibank senior vice president and chair of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce; IBM (headed by Ginni Rometty, chair, president and CEO); Paula Ingram, president, Ingram & Hebron Realty and a member of the board of directors of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership; Jewish Foundation for Education of Women; Grace Lyu-Volckhausen, president, Tiger Barron Foundation, and a Commissioner on the New York City Commission on Human Rights; and Randi Weingarten, president, American Federation of Teachers/AFL-CIO. Also honored with the 2013 Distinguished Alumnus Award was City Tech graduate Nooria Nodrat ’09, founder and president, Afghanistan Blind Women & Children Foundation. Lorraine Beitler, who recently retired as board vice chair, was recognized for her more than 21 years of service to the City Tech Foundation and Executive Director Jewel Trowers Escobar received a surprise Best of New York Award for her 20-plus year of service heading the foundation. This year’s Honorary Dinner Chair was Yvonne Riley-Tepie ’92, vice president, U.S. field marketing, TD Bank. Michael Lomonaco ’84, celebrity chef and managing partner, Porter House New York at Time Warner Center, again served as Dinner Chair and Master of Ceremonies.

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FOUNDATION CORNER

2013 DONOR RECOGNITION RECEPTION The New York City College of Technology Foundation hosted its 2013 Donor Recognition Reception in the historic Brooklyn Borough Hall Rotunda on April 18. More than 125 guests attended, including Jewish Foundation for Education of Women Scholars and other student

scholarship recipients, City Tech faculty and staff members and retirees, as well as other good friends of the College. The reception featured the unveiling of the 2011/2012 Donor Recognition Plaque. President Russell K. Hotzler and Special Assistant to the President for

Institutional Advancement Steve Soiffer expressed the Collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appreciation for the generous support donors continue to provide City Tech. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reception was catered by The Brownstone and staffed by hospitality management students.

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FOUNDATION CORNER

CORPORATE AND FOUNDATION GRANTS RECEIVED Through the hard work of City Tech’s faculty, administration and staff the City Tech Foundation is pleased to report the following corporate and foundation grants received through the Foundation during the 2012/2013 Academic Year. Adobe Systems Incorporated American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. American Society of Civil Engineers American Society of Mechanical Engineers Amna Development LLC Anna Construction Company Apicha, Inc. Asian American Arts Alliance Astoria Federal Savings Balzac Communications & Marketing Bass & Lemer LLP Belle Zeller Scholarship Trust Fund BMCC Bridges Outreach, Inc. Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Brooklyn Brewery Corp. Brooklyn College Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. C.D.E Air Conditioning Co., Inc. Cambridge Associates Carroll and Milton Petrie Foundation CDE Air Conditioning Co. Center for Music by People with Disabilities Citi Citizens Union

City Meal on Wheels City University of New York Coca-Cola Bottling Company of New York Colgate-Palmolive College Access & Success Grant Collegiate Mail Service, Inc. Consolidated Edison CSEA, Local 1000 AFSCME Cullen & Dykman LLP Cypress Hills Local Development Corp. Denihan Hospitality Group Management Co. LLC FIRST Food & Beverage Scholarship Foundation, Inc. Frederick Wildman and Sons LTD HAKS Engineers, Architects and Land Surveyors PC Health Plus Amerigroup Herbert H. Lehman College Hilton New York Humanscale Informa Ingram & Hebron Realty Corp. International Chefs’ Association, Inc. International Union of Operating Engineers Jewish Foundation for Education of Women

Kingsborough Community College Lehman College Lewis Alan Office Furniture Liberty Mutual Little Orchestra Society Local 1 IATSE M & J Engineering PC Manager/Wine Buyer McNeil-PPC, Inc., Johnson & Johnson Medgar Evers College Mexican Cultural Institute of New York, Inc. Meyer and Associates Minkwon Center for Community Action, Inc. Mionetto USA, Inc. Morgan Stanley c/o Cybergrants, Inc. Namm Family Foundation New York Post New York State Hospitality & Tourism North Carolina Stage Opici Wines Paris Gourmet of New York, Inc. Parsons Brinckerhoff Group Administration, Inc. Perkins Eastman Pershing LLC Pfizer Corp.

YOUR DOLLARS AT WORK

Pfizer Foundation Pitney Bowes Porter House New York PSC/CUNY Queensborough Community College QW Wine Experts Robert Silman Associates Robin Hood Foundation Rockefeller University Saint Ann’s School Shinn Estate Vineyards Societe Culinaire Philanthropique SUNY BEOC TD Bank TDX Construction Corporation Gloria And Sidney Danzier Foundation, Inc. Tiger Baron Foundation TMI Trading Verizon Vignaioli Selection Warren George, Inc. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC Wine & Food Associates Wine Media Guild Wines of South Africa York College

PLANNED GIVING Contact the City Tech Foundation at foundation@ citytech.cuny.edu for a free booklet on How to Make a Will That Works. Complete information on remembering City Tech in your will is available at http://www.citytech. cuny.edu/aboutus/foundation/giving.shtml.

Gifts to New York City College of Technology through the City Tech Foundation fund a variety of initiatives, including student research, scholarships, professional

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development, work/study abroad, internships, emergency loans, emergency food programs, and assistance to students adversely impacted by Hurricane Sandy.

FOUNDATION CORNER

TIPS TRAINING FOR 62 CITY TECH HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT STUDENTS SUPPORTED BY BEITLER STUDENT RESOURCE ENDOWMENT FUND

This spring, 62 students from New York City College of Technology’s awardwinning Hospitality Management program successfully completed the Training for Intervention Procedures (TIPS) certification course under the direction of Professor Patrick O’Halloran through funding provided by the City Tech Foundation’s Beitler Student Resource Endowment Fund. Professor O’Halloran is a certified TIPS trainer and Dr. Lorraine Beitler is a retired City Tech administrator and educator as well as the Foundation’s former vice chair.

“The reason it is important for students to become TIPS certified,” said Professor O’Halloran, “is that in this volatile economy the broader their education, skill set and industry certifications, the greater their employment opportunities. My students will not only carry this certification with them when they graduate and start their careers, but it will also greatly benefit their employers through discounts on liquor liability. More importantly, the fundamentals learned through TIPS will help ensure the responsible service of alcohol and safer communities.”

Professor O’Halloran, whose latest book is titled Detailed Job Descriptions in the Hospitality Industry, added that “the guidance and direction received from the TIPS staff and TIPS Vice President Patrick O’Halloran Trevor Estelle helped make the latest training session at City Tech an outstanding success.”

FOUNDATION GRANTS PROVIDED The City Tech Foundation is pleased to have provided grants during spring 2013 to the following departments and programs: Academic Affairs

City Tech Lecture Series

Hospitality Management

Physics

Advertising Design & Graphic Arts

CUNY Haiti Project

African American Studies

Dental Hygiene

Hospitality Management Paris Exchange Program

Radiologic Technology & Medical Imaging

Alumni Association Graduation Celebration

Nursing

JFSA

Restorative Dentistry

English

Law & Paralegal Studies

School of Arts & Sciences

Architectural Technology

Gamma Epsilon Tau

Literary Arts Festival

School of Professional Studies

Brooklyn Waterfront Research Project

City Tech General Education Committee

Mathematics

School of Technology & Design

Honors Scholars Program

Peer Led Team Learning Program

The Women’s Center

Business

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ALUMNI NEWS SAMUEL E. VÁZQUEZ ’91:

From New York City Graffiti Artist to Internationally Recognized Abstract Expressionist Painter

Several works by City Tech Department of Advertising Design & Graphic Arts graduate and internationally recognized painter Samuel E. Vázquez ’91 were recently featured in the international art magazine Humanize. The article can be found in issue 20 by clicking on the cover page at http://www.humanizemag.com/index.php/ humanize-issue-20/. In addition, Vázquez recently introduced the historic 1983 documentary Style Wars (by directors Tony Silver and Henry Chalfant) and painted live at the Indianapolis Museum of Art in spring 2013. Style Wars documents the 1980s hip hop culture of New York City and the struggle by young graffiti artists to express themselves in the face of those who called their work vandalism. In 1984, Style Wars won the Grand Jury Prize for Documentaries at the United States Film and Video Festival, a forerunner of the Sundance Film Festival. Vázquez’s life story is a fascinating one detailed in a biographical sketch, “Graffiti Will Take You Nowhere,” by Tara Gentry, a freelance writer and mentor to at-risk youth

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in the Indianapolis, Indiana, area. The following is adapted from that sketch, the full original version of which can be found at https://www.facebook.com/ notes/samuel-e-v%C3%A1zquez/ graffiti-will-take-you-nowhere/ 186417018067392. A native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Vázquez was nine years old when he arrived in New York City with his parents in 1979. On their way to a temporary residence in Harlem, the youngster’s imagination ran wild as he dreamt of all that he would discover in this intimidating, yet fascinating city. Later, on his first subway ride from Harlem to a building in the South Bronx in which the Vázquez family planned to settle, Samuel discovered firsthand how truly unique New York City could be. He still remembers the sight of a middle-aged African-American man wearing iconic 70s fashion. Dressed in torn jeans, jacket, boots, cap and shades, this stranger was the epitome of cool. Looking back, this style was clearly a reflection of the times – a kind of urban, revolutionary feel, deeply rooted in Harlem. Their visit to the South Bronx brought a shock to the Vázquez family. The neighborhood looked like a war zone, with buildings in partial or complete ruin. Samuel would later learn that these were the remains of an earlier uprising there, where people destroyed their own buildings to protest what was felt to be the social injustice of failure to provide adequate living conditions. Samuel’s parents realized that this was no place to live, and took an apartment in Washington Heights. While attending his first public school in Washington Heights, young Samuel was intrigued by all of the graffiti that covered the city’s subway system. Soon he began to meet graffiti artists and became aware of the work

of the legendary PJay. But the Vázquez family’s stay in Washington Heights was cut short by a building fire, and eventually they moved to Spanish Harlem, where Samuel attended P.S. 121. There, he took music and percussion classes and was further exposed to the rap music, soul and disco funk that marked the times. Like a scene from the movie Style Wars, the New York City of the 1980s was brimming with creativity and graffiti crews became a strong presence on the streets. By the age of 13, Samuel was fully immersed in graffiti and later joined numerous graffiti crews from Manhattan, Brooklyn and The Bronx. Throughout that decade his art graced the New York City subways, rooftops and walls, and found its way to the city’s Graffiti Hall of Fame. Among scores of vivid memories on Samuel’s part, nothing can quite compare to meeting late artist Keith Haring, who in the 1980s became known for his quick chalk drawings in unreserved advertising spaces in the subway system. In time, Samuel became a prolific graffiti artist at his school and often skipped classes to go check out graffiticovered subway cars. Samuel remembers one teacher denouncing his creative inclination early on, warning him that “Graffiti will take you nowhere.” But another teacher understood his passion and suggested that he apply to the New York High School of Art and Design. The young man’s application was rejected and he went on to attend Julia Richman High School instead. But Richman was far removed from Samuel’s upbringing, as it was located in an affluent section of Midtown Manhattan. Despite the setting, most students who attended were from inner city neighborhoods from all five boroughs of New York City. The interior of the school and surrounding environs resembled those neighborhoods, with graffiti-covered hallways, urban fashion, language, music and attitude. While at Richman, Samuel became a city-wide graffiti writer with ties to all boroughs. Within a few months, he was the top writer at his school,

ALUMNI NEWS

earning him celebrity status. This brought both peer admiration and constant scrutiny from school administrators, and although officials tried to catch him in the act for two years, Samuel managed to elude them and continued to pursue graffiti art. In 1984, he shook hands with late Mayor Ed Koch in Harlem. Little did the Mayor know that the same hand he was shaking was tagging and painting the subways and stations throughout the city. After experiencing academic trouble, Samuel became more future-focused, signing up for the football and handball teams and an after-school program. Through that program,

Graffiti Hall of Fame, studying the work of artists like A-One, who later became one of his mentors. During that time, A-One was collaborating with obscure graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, a source of inspiration for many street artists who went on to become an internationally renowned neo-expressionist and primitivist painter. But Samuel’s hopes to meet Basquiat went unmet with the latter’s untimely death in 1988. Now that his own work was featured at the Graffiti Hall of Fame, Samuel hoped that what he had done would inspire other young people to embrace the graffiti arts.

Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, Conseco Fieldhouse, Indiana University Kelly School of Business, NCAA and SAP United States Grand Prix – Formula 1. After a decade, Samuel moved away from design to explore other interests. Over the next few years, he participated in numerous exhibitions in Indianapolis and New York City, gaining international recognition for his work. In 2006, He made his fuller portfolio of graffiti sketches public for the first time through an exhibition called, “Spitting Rainbows.” His passion for art in its many forms continues to drive his life and work. He is

The Strange Thing Is, We Are Lovers Again

Samuel was able to visit the advertising agency Young and Rubicam and came to realize that he could have a future in the arts. His new found admiration for design diminished the young man’s interest in graffiti for about a year, until he met King Bee, founder of the legendary “UW” graffiti crew. Their meeting revived Samuel’s passion for graffiti, and he was asked to join the crew. Samuel went on to produce works that eventually were featured at New York City’s Graffiti Hall of Fame, an almost surreal honor. Over the years, Samuel spent hours in the

In 1991, Samuel graduated from New York City College of Technology in Brooklyn and left the city. Spanish Harlem was going through many changes and the young man moved to the Midwest, settling among family in Indianapolis. After months of showing his portfolio to prospects, it seemed he was not understood as an artist in the Hoosier State. At the suggestion of a friend, he enrolled at Herron School of Art and then worked for several design firms. He did art direction and design on many high profile projects, including BAA Indianapolis International Airport,

currently returning to his art through graffiti, cut and paste, and other creative means of self-expression. He has served as an adjunct professor at Indiana University’s Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis. He has also made it a priority to devote time to world relief causes, a passion perhaps awakened as a young boy witnessing the plight of New York City’s disadvantaged. Learn more about Samuel E. Vázquez, an internationally recognized abstract expressionist painter, at http://twostrangers waitingforlovers.tumblr.com.

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ALUMNI NEWS

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT’S ENGRAVING AND OTHER WORK FEATURED ONLINE IN VERDAD MAGAZINE Verdad, the online literary and fine arts journal that showcases the best unpublished works of poetry, short stories, non-fiction and visual arts, featured the works of New York City College of Technology Alumni Association President David Barthold in its fall 2012 edition. A 2006 City Tech graduate, Barthold is a college laboratory technician with the school’s Department of Restorative Dentistry. “I work with the idea that art gives form to experience,” Barthold told Verdad. “My projects wordlessly declare ‘This is beautiful. This matters.’” During his son’s early childhood, Barthold and his family visited zoos in different parts of the world. Whenever they encountered rare and beautiful animals, Barthold would photograph them and use them as the basis for copper engravings, drawings and prints. He expanded the subject of those works to include trees. “[Each of those] majestic trees,” he said, “have the striking presence, and the imprint of experience, that makes them individuals.”

Pictured here are “Copper Beach, Prospect Park” (ink and watercolor on paper) and “Rhinoceros” (etching and engraving on copper), both of which were featured by Verdad. Also pictured is “Sababu” (engraving on copper), a more complete realization of Barthold’s earlier rhino.

FORMER CITY TECH GRAD DELIVERS STUDENT ADDRESS AT NEW YORK LAW SCHOOL COMMENCEMENT A former City Tech Department of Law & Paralegal Studies graduate, Kiiru Gichuru, delivered one of two student addresses at the 2013 New York Law School Commencement. He won that honor in a highly competitive process and his City Tech teachers are extremely proud of him. He served as president of the Black Students Law Association at New York Law and has been awarded a Social Service Employees Union Public Interest Fellowship, which he will begin after taking the New York and New Jersey Bar exams. Go to http://www. youtube.com/watch?v=cjhNXfliAds to view his address.

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ALUMNI NEWS

RED CARPET GRADUATION CELEBRATION DINNER DANCE

Class Act! Angela Hines ‘98 Helps Make Prom Possible for Female Victims of Sandy

The City Tech Alumni Association, in partnership with the College’s Student Government Association, hosted a Red Carpet Graduation Celebration Dinner Dance for this year’s graduates in the historic Brooklyn Borough Hall Rotunda in May 2013.

AUTO, HOME AND RENTERS INSURANCE Liberty Mutual offers an auto, home and renters insurance program for City Tech alumni. So far this year, 57 alumni saved an average of $343.90 on auto insurance!* Call 1.800.524.9400 or click for more information. Please refer to group #111826. *Average figure based on a February 2011 sample of auto policyholder savings when comparing their former premium with those of Liberty Mutual’s auto and home insurance program. Individual premiums and savings will vary.

City Tech alumna Angela Hines ’98 has made the Daily News again in an April 19, 2013, article, “Inspirational Rockaway mom pampers Sandy teens; Angelina Hines hosts event to help storm victim prepare for proms,” by writer Lisa L. Colangelo. “Angela Hines thinks every teen girl should experience a prom,” wrote Colangelo, “whether or not she has the money to make it happen.” Hines, a mother of five who went on to graduate from law school and is today a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society, collected gowns, shoes, accessories and donations and organized a “Queens of Far Rockaway” event in May that allowed teen victims of Superstorm Sandy “to pamper and primp for the big night.” As of mid-April, Hines had collected more than 100 prom dresses and enlisted the help of her two daughters, 19-year-old Ebony and 13-year-old Zhane, in organizing the event. The Sandy victims were able to munch on snacks while trying on dresses and being assisted by volunteers in picking out accessories and testing make-up.

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ALUMNI NEWS

TWO VISION CARE TECHNOLOGY GRADS TAKE NYS SOCIETY OF OPTICIAN AWARDS

Two City Tech Department of Vision Care Technology graduates, Lisha LambertRivero and Barry Santini, were honored at the May 5, 2013, New York State Society of Opticians Annual Convention Gala held in Verona, New York. They are pictured here with Department of Vision Care Technology Chair Robert Russo. Lisha, a 2010 graduate of the program, was one of four recipients to receive the New York State Four Under Forty Award. The LuxotticaNYSSO Four Under Forty Award was established as an annual recognition of four young New York State

ophthalmic dispensing professionals who uphold the highest ideals of the profession, give back to the profession and their communities, and truly represent the future of the profession. Barry, a 1975 graduate of the program, received the NYSSO Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of contributions and dedication to the advancement of the ideals of NYSSO and its continuing development. He is owner of Long Island Opticians in Seaford, Long Island, and a consummate professional who is always promoting the industry.

GIVING BACK! Special thanks to City Tech Advertising Design & Graphic Arts (ADGA) graduates Paul Baranowski and Chris Castellanos, co-founders of PixelSprite Creative, for providing internships to ADGA and other City Tech students during the 2012-2013 academic year.

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PET INSURANCE A recent survey predicts that pet parents will spend $12.2 billion on veterinary care in the coming year. Woof! That’s a lot of scratch. When your four-legged pal is sick or injured, the last thing you want to do is worry about the financial strain. Instead, you can be prepared with pet insurance coverage, available at discounted rates through the Alumni Insurance Program. In addition to accidents and illnesses, Petplan offers full coverage for hereditary, congenital and chronic conditions. For more information on other insurance products available through the City Tech Alumni Association, visit www. meyerandassoc.com/ma/citytech.

THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION WANTS YOU!

The City Tech Alumni Association is currently seeking graduates to serve as Class Agents and as members of the association’s Board of Directors. Board membership offers rewarding opportunities to shape the direction of the Alumni Association by promoting and strengthening relationships with City Tech alum. Please e-mail a letter detailing the reasons you are interested in joining along with your résumé to alumni@ citytech.cuny.edu. Thank you for your interest.