JWU Magazine Fall 2023

Code Breakers

photo by Getty Images

From The Chancellor’s Desk

AS THE ROLE OF FOOD has evolved, the College of Food Innovation & Technology’s (CFIT) curriculum has responded to meet the needs of industry, students and society.

“A Recipe for Health” explores JWU’s commitment to food as medicine. “People who are feeding people — product developers, chefs, performance chefs, dietitians — have a real responsibility to the larger public,” says CFIT Dean Jason Evans, Ph.D.

We are excited to be celebrating 50 years of excellence and leadership in the evolution of food education that is now at the nexus of health and wellness. This fall, we expanded our presence in healthcare education by offering a new accelerated second degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program and a Master of Public Health degree. They join other academic programs offered in the College of Health & Wellness that include culinary training and focus on health outcomes. “As we continue to struggle with systemic issues concerning public health, we have to look to expand how that education of nutrition gets to the general public,” says CFIT Associate Professor Mike Makuch ’03, ’05.

JWU is also expanding its reputation in cybersecurity. Our feature “Codebreakers” notes how faculty members traveled to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, to ensure they were designing the program right from the start. As a result of their diligence, Johnson & Wales has been named a National Center of Academic Excellence by the National Security Agency —  one of only about 300 higher education institutions to earn this prestigious federal designation.

Last year, the university secured more than one million dollars in federal funding for JWU’s Cybersecurity Center to help prepare the next generation of cybersecurity specialists. With the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expecting this field to surge 35 % by 2031, JWU students will be trained and ready to join one of the fastest-growing areas in the marketplace today.

Mim L. Runey, LP.D. Chancellor

JWU

Vice President of Communications

LISA PELOSI

Editor

DENISE DOWLING

Designer

BRIAN MURPHY

Contributors

SCOTT BOWERS

JENNIFER BROUILLARD

MIKE COHEA

STEVE CUNHA

LYNZI DELUCCIA

KRIS DERAIMO

ELIZABETH GEHRMAN

LIZA GENTILE ’18 MBA

PETER GOLDBERG

ANNIE KENNEDY

BILL KOCH

NICOLE MARANHAS

DAN MORRELL

CLARA SCHWAGER

KATELYN SILVA

ALEX WILLIAMSON

JWU Magazine is published twice a year. Photos (black and white or color prints), high-resolution digital images and news can be sent to JWU Magazine, 8 Abbott Park Place, Providence, RI, 02903 or emailed to jwumagazine@jwu.edu.

Selection and publication of entries are at the editor’s discretion. JWU Magazine is produced by Strategic Communications in cooperation with the department of Advancement & University Relations.

Chancellor

MIM L. RUNEY, LP.D.

Campus Presidents

MARIE BERNARDO-SOUSA, LP.D., ’92, PROVIDENCE

RICHARD G. MATHIEU, PH.D., CHARLOTTE

JWUVIEWS

PROVIDENCE

Directed Experiential Education in the community

HIGHER GROUND

WHETHER IT’S LEADING the planning of community events or being part of a documentary camera crew, Johnson & Wales students spend their days getting in on the action, not just learning about it. This year, hospitality management students collaborated with the Providence Parks Department and other local groups to get the wheels rolling on a family-friendly, community-forward event — bringing “Cycling Without Age” to the Rhode Island area.

“It’s been on my radar for the last 10 years to get it here,” says College of Hospitality Management Associate Professor Kathy Drohan, M.A.T., CHE, of the international organization with the mission to build bridges between generations by getting people of all ages out on bicycles. Drohan’s class helped obtain funding and planned the Fam Jam Flower Power cycling event in the city, introducing adaptive bicycles and kicking off from the first carbon-neutral building in Rhode Island.

This work is an example of JWU’s Directed Experiential Education courses, a cornerstone of the university’s foundation. In the College of Arts & Sciences, students in the Media & Communications Studies program — led by Professor Evan Villari, MFA — spent months creating a docuseries that follows the unique stories of different student-athletes at Brown University, set to stream on ESPN+. Alongside them, students under the guidance of Professor Chris Westgate, Ph.D., partnered with the Providence Performing Arts Center to shoot promotional videos to bring musical theater education into local K-12 school districts. “It’s a gift to be able to lead this project and this DEE,” Westgate says. “Our students have experiential education at the heart here at JWU, and they’re asked to make connections; this is an opportunity to do just that and to apply some of the theories and knowledge they’ve picked up in classes to this video campaign project.”

— Lynzi DeLuccia

Charlotte welcomes new president

RICHARD G. MATHIEU, PH.D., joined Johnson & Wales University as president of the Charlotte Campus in January. Mathieu was the clear choice to lead the Charlotte Campus and to achieve JWU’s systemwide strategic objectives in pursuit of the university’s mission, essential learning outcomes and commitment to diversity and inclusion.

He is an administrator who believes that business and civic partnerships are a foundation for building successful student outcomes, meaningful faculty development opportunities and a financially sustainable campus. As such, he will be visible and active in the Charlotte business, civic and higher education communities.

He will build upon the network and relationships he has made during his time as dean of the McColl College of Business and the interim dean of the Blair College of Health at Queens University in Charlotte. He earned his doctorate in Systems Engineering and master of science degrees from the University of Virginia.

Student Research, Design & Innovation Symposium debuts

This spring, JWU’s inaugural Student Research, Design & Innovation Symposium showcased students’ innovative cross-disciplinary research and design projects. Occupational Therapy to Food & Beverage to Graphic Design majors presented findings on such topical issues as compassionate healthcare; reducing food waste by repurposing recipes; the benefits of robotic animals for patients with dementia; racial disparities in the food industry; voter rights’ advocacy; and collaborations to improve mental health treatment.

Associate Professor of Health & Wellness Samantha Rosenthal, Ph.D., says she envisaged the symposium as an opportunity for the community, including future employers and students, to be involved with JWU: “I was impressed with the number of products that were able to incorporate social justice and diversity, equity and inclusion, too.” — Annie Kennedy

CENTER FOR STUDENT RESEARCH AND INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION LAUNCHES

As part of a three-year National Institutes of Health (NIH) research grant, the College of Health & Wellness launched its Center for Student Research and Interdisciplinary Collaboration last fall. It supports directed educational experiences for specific projects, offers workshops and regularly highlights student research across the university.

“The Center strengthens collaborative research at JWU by bringing together research-interested students and faculty to cultivate a community of research in various ways,” says Associate Professor and Center Director Samantha Rosenthal, Ph.D. “We offer student-led work-

shops that include topics like presentation skills, advocacy, writing an abstract or creating a high-quality poster or presentation. We also host accessible, student-led discussions on topics such as food insecurity on college campuses, discrimination in healthcare, living with a disability in college and the impact of nature on mental health.”

It’s an opportunity, she says, to open students’ eyes to view things through a research lens and leave with concrete research skills, a strong sense of community, greater critical thinking and intellectual curiosity, and a true understanding of how to advance a field of knowledge.

— Lynzi DeLuccia

An unforgettable experience

Join JWU’s Epicurean Scholarship Society for exclusive access to:

• Dinners with renowned chefs

• An annual lunch in the university dining room

Charlotte expands diversity programming with DOE grant

In 2021, the Charlotte Campus received a five-year, $1.25 million grant from the United States Department of Education. With funding from this awarded Title III PBI (Predominantly Black Institutions) project the campus is expanding its programming, number of employees and resources to provide increased offerings to Black students and the entire student body.

• Invitations to events such as the FIT Symposium and special guest lectures

• Customized corporate cooking courses (Chef’s Choice)

• A portion of your membership is tax-deductible (the full membership is deductible if you opt-out of events)

Your membership matters

Funds support JWU philanthropically, helping to promote the communal spirit of fine cuisine and lifelong learning.

According to Timothy Stiles, executive director of JWU Charlotte’s Center for Academic & Career Excellence, “The grant is a real gift, as it allows us to launch new efforts that can result in systemic change, over time, through customized offerings that suit students’ needs.”

Funds will be invested in four major areas: the First-Year Seminar (FYS) course; diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging programming; academic and career support; and financial literacy. Charlotte was able to debut its First-Year Seminar experience for the 2022–2023 academic year — a one-credit, pass or fail course. Last fall, the course welcomed its first cohort of first-year students who were educated on how to transition to college life. This fall, FYS will be required for all students.

Center Director Samantha Rosenthal, Ph.D.

ATHLETICS

Making History

Breaking ground and setting records at JWU Charlotte

Trudi Lacey has enjoyed a lifetime of athletic firsts, and they continue to this day.

The former North Carolina State women’s basketball star came to prominence on the court in Raleigh. Her work continues a couple hours down the road in Charlotte, and it is no less groundbreaking in terms of authoring breakthroughs.

Next year marks the 20th anniversary for the Johnson & Wales campus in the Queen City, and its athletics program remains steadily on the rise. The 2022–23 academic year saw a United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) championship in men’s soccer, a title game appearance in women’s basketball and individual track and field gold for men’s distance runner Stevenson Barnes ’24.

“Being a sports champion, I have a saying — ‘Excellence is excellence at any level,’” Lacey says. “Whether it’s Division I, the NBA or a small college, once you win a national championship, you’re always a national champ. To have our student-athletes experience that is so, so gratifying.”

Lacey’s inductions into the Wolfpack Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018 and North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in April recognized her status as a trailblazer. She was the first Black woman to accept a scholarship offer from late North Carolina State coach Kay Yow and developed into an All-American. So many of the barriers broken by Lacey and her peers have created opportunity for the undergraduates and coaches she now mentors as the JWU Charlotte athletic director.

“I love how everybody has all their goals and is just going after them,” says Barnes, the new 5,000-meter USCAA champion on the outdoor oval.“When you see somebody going after their goals, you only think about the success they could have.”

JWU opened its $110-million Charlotte campus in 2004. Lacey presided over just five athletic teams when she was hired in September 2015 — that number has more than doubled in the last eight years. Barnes is a health science major, one of several courses of study added to an original curriculum that included university staples like culinary arts, hospitality and sports management.

“We’re adding sports every year,” men’s soccer coach Phil Kroft says.“We’re adding majors. There just constantly seems to be growth and excitement, and so that does keep things fresh. It’s fun to talk about with recruits. I almost prefer that to [other schools where it’s about] pointing back and saying, ‘Hey, we were the first conference champions in the 1890s.’”

The Wildcats won all three of their men’s soccer matches at November’s United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national tournament, including a victory against defending champion Penn State Brandywine. Josiah Davis ’22 was named the event’s most valuable player, as the striker netted a hat trick in the final against Berkeley College of New Jersey. It was a series of highlights that almost didn’t take place — Davis was set to graduate the previous spring before opting to further his studies with the school.

“Young people become the best versions of themselves,” Lacey says. “I think how we’ve been able to do it is very similar to how we’ve built our athletic teams. You win with people, and I’ve been very fortunate to have some good coaches who are good people.”

Barnes had no college offers in the midst of his senior year at the city’s Olympic High School. COVID-19 and its subsequent societal restrictions limited his chances to compete and be noticed by coaches at the next level. Barnes took it upon himself to upload his times and resumé to the Next College Student Athlete portal, and he was contacted by JWU track and field program director Peter Brown.

“It was a new program,” Barnes says. “We didn’t know anything that was going to happen. Kind of just getting a feeling for him over time, it was like, Okay, he wants this.”  Success allowed the Wildcats to target a different class of recruit. Barnes quickly realized in training how newcomers like Dillon Neeley ’26 on the men’s side and Betzy Hilario Urieta ’26 with the women were more advanced than previous groups. Kroft has enjoyed a similar experience presiding over a program that was founded in 2015.

“Other colleges I’ve coached at are older and built in the 1800s with all this history,” Kroft says. “I kind of like that we don’t have a history to lean on. Everything is new and fresh and exciting. Everything about the Charlotte campus has always been in a phase of growth.”

A pair of women’s programs have served as flagships for the school to this point.

Tanaeschia Dorsey ’23 is a two-time basketball All-American and was joined on the first team in 2022–23 by Jordan Durant ’25. The Wildcats totaled 21 wins while reaching the national final, a number they’ve only eclipsed once.

Volleyball Coach Callie Phillips heralded her last season before retirement by finishing third at last season’s national tournament. She oversaw a transition from club to varsity status in 2010–11 and quickly built a USCAA power. JWU boasted 22 AllAmericans, 39 all-academic selections and a 2018 champion that didn’t drop a set at the USCAA tournament — the only unblemished winner in the event’s history to date.

“I’ve been in athletics all my life,” Lacey says. “I’ve worked and competed at the highest levels. But I would say I’ve never worked a day in my life — I really love what I do in athletics.”

Lacey has been a general manager in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), a head coach in the college and professional ranks and an assistant director with USA Women’s Basketball. She’s won an Olympic gold medal, an Atlantic Coast Conference championship and a pair of titles at the World University Games. Lacey’s background suggests a certain ambition to accomplish even more with the Wildcats, and the recent achievements on her

watch now seem to be driving both coaches and athletes alike.

“It almost makes it feel like it’s arrived,” Kroft says. “You’ve done right by all the people who have come before you. All the hard work the players have put in — all that stuff.”

“We’re looking to take over the region,” Barnes says. “I think that’s the plan now. We have the pieces to do it. We have the talent. We have the commitment.

“We can do this.”

Photos 1, 2, 4, and 5 by Gerry Wall; photo 3 by Megan Anagnostopulos

[1] Trudi Lacey was inducted into the Wolfpack Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018 and the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame this April. [2] Lacey with the men’s basketball team. [3] 2022–23 included a U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) championship in men’s soccer. [4] The 2022–23 season boasted a title game appearance in women’s basketball.

[5] Volleyball Coach Callie Phillips led the women’s team into a third place finish at last season’s national tournament.

By Elizabeth Gehrman

IT’S NOT USUALLY CAR CHASES

and Angelina Jolie and people dying and that sort of thing,” says Anthony Chavis, an assistant professor in cyber threat intelligence and defense. “The movies overstate those aspects of the job, but that doesn’t mean it’s not exciting. You’re doing some really cool stuff on a daily basis.”

Chavis would know. Before coming to Johnson & Wales as the first hire the school made when the cybersecurity degree launched in 2015, he spent more than a decade doing military intelligence, serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and various U.S. posts, and later working as a contractor. He and his colleagues produced electronic warfare analysis and worked to assess and neutralize risks, decrypt communications from adversaries, disrupt technology, support tactical operations and more. “I can’t tell you exactly what we were doing,” he says, unconsciously lending himself a touch of the 007 mystique that hovers around the field.

The more sedate detective work depicted in movies, at least, is not far off, and more people will soon be able to get a taste of it through a federal grant that will allow JWU’s cybersecurity team to train high school teachers and local police. In addition to strengthening the relationship between JWU and the surrounding community, the federal funds will help train local law enforcement in cyber forensics and may provide a pathway to internships for JWU students. Additional capital is being sought to construct a Faraday room, which will block outside electromagnetic interference so that seized devices can be checked safely — because “if signals can go out of a phone they can also go in,” says Kyle Leupold ’23, “and the bad guy can remotely wipe the evidence.”

Cybersecurity’s spy-vs.-spy element makes it a never-ending game of catchup, of constant sleuthing and quick and decisive action when the “black hats,” or malicious hackers, make their move — which is constantly. The trade publication Security Magazine estimates there’s a cyberattack every 39 seconds, and Cybercrime Magazine predicts the cost of successful strikes will reach $10.5 trillion by 2025. From 2021 to 2022 alone, the number of cyberattacks worldwide rose by almost 40%, according to Check Point Research, which warns that the increased use of artificial intelligence, notably from ChatGPT, will continue to accelerate that trend, as will the ever-expanding Internet of Things, or physical objects like wearables, smart appliances and driverless cars that are embedded with software,

sensors and other technology. “Everything that’s connected can be hacked,” says Frank Tweedie, dean of JWU’s College of Engineering & Design, which oversees the Cybersecurity Center. “And that can be a portal to get into something else.”

All of which means that those employed in the field will never go hungry. “There’s a huge need for talent,” Tweedie says. “It’s one of the fastest-growing areas in the marketplace today, and it goes across every industry, from governments to banks to retail and other private-sector companies. Even mom-and-pop shops need to have a cybersecurity plan in place.” The ethical hacking site cobalt.io says about 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs will need to be filled in 2023 at wages of up to $166,000 a year, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the field to surge 35% by 2031. That’s 30 percentage points higher than overall job growth.

Angel Labelle Johnson ’19 foresaw the explosion of need for cybersecurity five years ago, when she applied for the online MBA program. “I had seen stats about the high rate of employment in the field,” she says, “and from my perspective it was the next big thing.” After graduating she took a job as head of cybersecurity at a large e-commerce company, and she recently applied to a doctorate of technology program.

“Most of the students in my classes already have job offers or are working for big companies,” says Douglas Tondreau, an assistant professor in the cybersecurity program and director of JWU’s Cybersecurity Center. “There’s so much out there that part of my challenge is convincing students to finish school rather than just start working right away.”

The Origin Story

“Cybersecurity’s spy-vs.-spy element makes it a never-ending game of catch-up...”

The first antivirus software, called Reaper, was written in 1973, to counteract the original computer “worm,” a somewhat lighthearted warning from a Cambridge, Massachusetts, engineer to his techie colleagues that self-replicating code could be made to jump from one machine to another. “Creeper” crawled across the Pentagon’s ARPANET network, a forerunner of public internet, taunting users to “catch me if you can.” By the late 1980s malware was becoming widespread enough that former President Ronald Reagan signed the Computer Security Act, which helped establish standards and guidelines for federal information systems. From there, every year has seen more and more attacks, because even though cybersecurity has grown exponentially stronger, it will never conquer all its foes.

“As a cybersecurity professional you are always at least one step behind,” says Chavis, “because hackers have the advantage that you don’t know what they’re going to do. It’s like being a homeowner who’s about to get robbed. The thieves know all the ways into your house, they know when you’re leaving, they know things you don’t even think about. You don’t even know you’re being watched.”

Chavis himself has been hacked several times.

“More often than not when retailers or vendors are

Previous page: illustration by Alex Williamson Photos by Scott Bowers

“There’s a huge need for talent...” Dean Frank Tweedie

attacked, they don’t even know it occurred until the victims start telling them about it,” says Nicholas Tella, JWU’s director of information security. Tella recently had a week of workdays hijacked by hackers who got into the Audience View platform (formerly University Tickets) that students use to buy admission to events. “We discovered it when a student reported a suspicious charge to her credit card after she got tickets to the SnoBall,” he says. “We went to talk to her in the commuter lounge, and other students overheard and started saying, ‘That happened to me too!’ We found like eight victims just in the commuter lounge that day, but the platform wouldn’t admit there was a data breach. Of course, now we know we were far from the only school affected, but I spent the entire week trying to deal with it. You can never predict how your day will go with this job.”

Cybersecurity’s enigmatic nature is one of the things that appealed to Leupold, a recent graduate, when he was applying to colleges. “Cyber-

space in general isn’t something you can really see,” he says, “so I thought it was cool that so much is happening even though it isn’t happening blatantly in front of you.” Last October, Leupold won the candidate division (for anyone seeking to get on employers’ radar) of the inaugural Colorado Cyber Games, a monthlong competition sponsored by the National Cybersecurity Association that presents contenders with weekly offensive and defensive challenges.

“Our hacking team has always done well in competitions where they’re looking to build the best mousetrap,” says Tweedie. “We’ve been up against much bigger schools — including MIT, Harvard and Yale universities — in hackathons and we still win. Before COVID-19 slowed the pace of competitions, we were top of the game in the official student league.”

That kind of authentic learning — being presented with a problem and having to fix it in real time — is at the heart of JWU’s ethos, and the cybersecurity program is no exception. When Chavis, Tweedie and Assistant Dean Nick LaManna were putting the program together, they traveled to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, to make sure they were doing things right from the start. “I think we were the only school that had that kind of access,” says Tweedie. “We had a connection who worked at JWU and was also a commander there. From the begin-

Professor Anthony Chavis teaches the language of code.

ning we wanted to make sure we’d have the right credentials to align with the federal requirements to become a National Center of Academic Excellence.” That prestigious designation, from the National Security Agency, came last summer, and JWU is one of only about 300 colleges and universities nationwide that has it.

The White Hats

The certification must be revisited every five years, but cybersecurity faculty and students are used to working on the fly. “Things I taught a few years ago are no longer valid because technology is updated so fast,” says Chavis. “Every time something new comes out we have to adjust. Textbooks can’t keep up, so we do labs using real-life examples.”

That allows students to look at cases both past and present, and analyze how police “blew it,” as Tella puts it, in a few famous national investigations. “When things were missed though it hasn’t been entirely the cops’ fault,” he adds. “Until the past decade or so they just didn’t know how to check browsing histories. The crimes were moving faster than the police training and the laws to address them.”

That’s one reason JWU views working with local law enforcement as a priority. “We think we can help the police departments get better at picking up on social media red flags, processing evidence faster, closing cases quicker and just becoming better equipped to take on challenges they might not have seen before that relate to technology,” says Tondreau. “We envision new cadets going through training with us as a matter of course. It will become a recruitment tool for the police and for

“Most of the students in my classes already have job offers...”

us that will help people see the good work the police do at a time where they’re sort of under fire.”

Training local teachers, too, is a two-way street; it helps schools beef up their cybersecurity while creating a pipeline of students for JWU to take to the next level. “We looked into needs in the area and number-one is awareness training for secondary schools, which get hit a lot,” he says. One reason educational institutions are targeted, he adds, is that they have a lot of personal information on faculty, staff and students, and can’t fully regulate the use of devices. “Sometimes they’re hacked by students playing around,” Tweedie says. “We’d like to harness the interests of students like that and build a model where they and their teachers can get JWU credit through trainings.”

Of course, there’s always a risk that students could go to the dark side instead. As one former professor pointed out, the skills they’re learning in some classes can either get them a job or “land them in jail.”

“With digital forensics tools we teach students how to recover deleted files,” says Tondreau. “But by learning that, they’re also learning how to

Left: Douglas Tondreau, assistant professor and director of the Cybersecurity Center

destroy digital evidence if they’re ever accused of a crime.” It’s important to Tondreau, Chavis and their colleagues to touch upon ethics in every class so that “our students will contribute to society in a positive manner,” Tondreau says. “We like to think our students will come out using what they’re learning for good. It’s much more interesting that way.” JWU

{To support the College of Engineering & Design visit giving.jwu.edu/ college of engineering-design

A Recipe for Health

As the general public begins to recognize the medicinal power of food, Johnson & Wales is poised to meet the opportunity — and responsibility — of making the world a healthier place

By Dan Morrell

WHEN ASSISTANT PROFESSOR JONATHAN POYOUROW

’03, RD, LD, CSCS was an officer and a dietitian in the Army in 2006, he was in charge of a dozen soldiers, and one of their monthly exercises was a 12-mile road march around the Fort Campbell, Kentucky, base. “You’re wearing upwards of a hundred pounds of gear — weapon, helmet, all that stuff,” says Poyourow. “And it’s up and down; the course is never flat.” The first time out with the group, they met the standard of a three-hour time. But no one was happy with just meeting the standard.

So before they went out for their next 12-mile march, Poyourow had some specific orders: “You are going to eat and drink exactly what I tell you to eat.” They filled up their canteens with Gatorade and loaded their packs with energy gels that Poyourow supplied, with a prescription of one gel for every four miles. “Every soldier beat his original time by at least 15 minutes,” says Poyourow. “And everybody was saying that they felt better. They said they didn’t feel as tired. They told me, ‘I don’t feel as useless the rest of the day as I normally do.’” It helped gain the young commanding officer some trust, but was also visceral evidence for Poyourow, now a sports and fitness nutrition expert, of the direct link between diet and human health and physical performance.

The rest of the world is coming around to this idea, too. A 2022 McKinsey study of consumers in the U.S. and Europe found that “healthy eating” was a top priority for half of those surveyed. And a recent report from Deloitte found that most consumers see food as having medicinal effects, with some 78% saying that “the right foods keep me healthy and prevent me from suffering certain health problems” and with large percentages reporting they seek specific therapeutic effects from fresh foods, including weight management (43%), preventing disease and preserving health (39%), and mental and emotional health (34%). “This has really bled into everyday life,” says Poyourow. “People are seeing the importance of this, and they’re buying into it.”

kind of multidisciplinary approach that JWU employs, bringing in expertise from disparate fields to deepen instruction. And the scope of the potential impact makes JWU’s growing expertise and leadership in culinary medicine not just a relevant educational priority, but also a social responsibility, says College of Food Innovation & Technology (CFIT) Dean Jason Evans, Ph.D. “Because of these resources that we have and the fact that we are one of the largest — if not the largest — populations of food-centric knowledge students in the country, I think that we as food educators have to adopt our own sort of Hippocratic oath,” says Evans. People who are feeding people — product developers, chefs, performance chefs, dietitians — have a real responsibility to the larger public, he says, even if the national policy conversation hasn’t yet fully recognized the value of food to lifelong quality of life. “What and how you feed people and the way you change how people think about food is incredibly important. And you are the only professionals with the skills to fundamentally change the way people eat and see food, so you have a great responsibility,” he says. That’s a heady concept, and he understands that. “But that’s really our messaging to our students: This is a big deal, what you’re able to do.”

On Friday nights in the spring and the fall, medical students from Brown University head to what professor Makuch calls “culinary bootcamp.” Starting at 5pm and ending somewhere between 8 and 9pm — “depending on how long it takes to clean up the kitchen”— Makuch and student volunteers from JWU’s Nutrition Society offer their Brown counterparts some general culinary grounding and an understanding of how that knowledge can be applied to a clinical setting. Makuch handles the lectures — “the boring stuff,” he says — and the JWU students handle the kitchen. “They’ve formed some really awesome relationships with the Brown students,” says Makuch. “Sometimes they actually help tutor one another.”

And while there is rising personal interest in the subject, it is also relevant to the massive public health concern around rising levels of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Poor diets are the leading cause of mortality in the United States according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, and a 2019 study in the journal The Lancet found that, globally, about 11 million deaths a year are linked to poor diet. “As we continue to struggle with systemic issues concerning public health, we have to look to expand how that education of nutrition gets to the general public,” says Mike Makuch ’03, ’05 M.A.T., CEC, associate professor of culinary arts.

Addressing a field that has this kind of impact, he notes, requires the

For the Brown students, it helps fill a gap in their medical education. “It also provides them with some resources about food insecurity that they may not be familiar with. It takes kind of a broad view, really looking at the barriers that may prevent somebody from actually cooking at home and eating healthy — and looking at how we overcome those barriers,” says Makuch. “It’s a much more holistic approach to medicine in the sense that you really have to understand where your patient is coming from: their needs and specific challenges, their culture and what foods they like to consume.”

The course, says Makuch, launched in 2014, after celebrity chefturned-Brown medical student Dave Lieberman reached out to him to express interest in working together to bring more nutritional

CFIT Dean Jason Evans

Professor Poyourow and a student with the cutting-edge equipment at the College of Health & Wellness Exercise and Sports Science Hub.

knowledge to the curriculum. The resulting course, Food + Health, has become one of Brown’s Medical School’s most popular electives. “Partially because they get to eat really good food,” Makuch notes with a laugh.

Nutrition has become increasingly accepted as a critical element of hospital care, says Associate Professor and Registered Dietitian Kara Cucinotta ’06, RD, CNSC, LDN, who teaches in the College of Health & Wellness (CHW). She offers a story from her time working in the intestinal failure clinic at Hasbro Children’s Hospital as an example: Some of the children were born with such severe digestive issues, lacking some or all of their small intestine or their colon, that they were not able to eat any food or even be tube fed. Their only source of nutrition would come via IV. “So part of my job was to work with one of the surgeons to help figure out what should go into that IV bag that provided pretty much all of their nutrients,” says Cucinotta.

She uses a similar hands-on, practical approach in her Nutrition Assessment course, where the students conduct what she calls a “nutrition-focused physical exam” on patients, looking for things like brittle hair or fingernails that could signal a protein deficiency. As students progress to her Medical Nutrition Therapy and Advanced Medical Nutrition Therapy courses, they work to figure out not just what health conditions and diseases patients might have, but also how to modify their diet to help treat or manage those conditions. In the advanced course, Cucinnota’s students do mock case rounds in a hospital setting, playing the roles of nurse, pharmacist, occupational therapist and other specialists, with a dietitian overseeing the reports. “It gives them an appreciation for what their job is as a dietitian,” says Cucinotta. “What is my scope of practice? When do I reach out to the speech language pathologist or the respiratory therapist? Where does my job actually end?”

Going the Distance

For Poyourow, the sports nutrition expert, the prescription process for athletes starts with some categorization. Are you a sprinter? A marathoner? A hockey player? Each has different needs: The sprinter and the hockey player need to generate massive amounts of power, says Poyourow. “You look at Usain Bolt. Usain Bolt is jacked, right? Everything he does is power-based. That’s also the hockey player. They’re out on the ice, 30 seconds, a minute, generating massive

amounts of power. Their quad muscles and their hamstrings are ginormous — especially compared to a marathon runner, who’s incredibly lean and tight.” They use different energy systems, and it’s the sports dietitians’ jobs to understand that energy system and to translate that into food that tastes amazing. “That’s what I say to my students on day one. I don’t care how close you are on your numbers for calories or macronutrients today. Can you cook? If you can cook, I can get you to those numbers.”

Further diagnosis requires understanding the athlete’s schedule. “So let’s say you wake up at 7am:  What’s your schedule from 7am until you go to bed? When’s your practice? When are you meeting with strength coaches? Are you foam rolling?” Poyourow needs to know when he can fit nutrition into the mix. “If you’re on the ice for two hours, I can’t get food into you for two hours,” he says. So maybe it’s just a few shots of Gatorade or a quick bite of a protein bar. And if puck drops later in the day, maybe there’s a heavier dish in the morning and lighter foods in the afternoon so you’re not lethargic. Location is a factor, too. If the Patriots are playing in Colorado, for instance, they’ll have to factor in elevation and hydration changes into their diets.

Poyourow explores these kinds of topics at the College of Health & Wellness Exercise and Sports Science Hub, which opened last spring and offers students experiential learning opportunities for improving the lives of athletes and non-athletes alike. “The data is lacking on individuals who are not athletes or deep into fitness. The average person who hurts their back, for example, is not a 19-year-old football player but more likely a middle-aged day laborer,” says CHW Associate Dean and Associate Professor Paul Ullucci. “So, there’s a lot of low-hanging research fruit related to health and wellness for everyday life, and the new hub can help us tackle that and ultimately improve clinical practice.”

And while all of this currently requires diligent investigation and testing, the future of prescriptive nutrition, Cucinotta notes, could go beyond the body’s signals and into its programming. Nutritional genomics, she says, involves looking at someone’s genetic makeup and figuring out how nutrition can play a role in their function and building precision nutrition strategies. “It’s interesting and promising work, but the research is so new that we can’t incorporate it into practice just yet,” says Cucinotta.

But the field has huge potential, says Poyourow, allowing a quicker development path for athletes. He offers the example of runners, who often discover through the course of time and experience what type of races their bodies excel in running. Maybe you are a great sprinter, but falter in marathons.

Professor Poyourow, along with culinary and design students, tailors a special meal for the men’s tennis team.

“So by default, we end up figuring out what type of muscle fibers we have,” says Poyourow. There are other ways to figure it out, by surgically removing and examining bits of musical tissue, but that is localized and invasive. “So there might be a better way through genetic testing to determine that,” he says. “I think genomics will play a big part in redefining the field.”

Shared Resources

These types of advancements make JWU’s multidisciplinary approach to culinary medicine so critical, says Makuch. “We have advances in technology and in our understanding of culinary science — and food in general — that can push our craft in directions that we can’t even see today and respond to new and systemic challenges that may pop up across the food system,” he notes.

Offering students the wider perspective of multiple disciplines, says Dean Evans, is an effective teaching strategy that needs to scale. “Especially in culinary arts, baking and pastry, your practitioner instructors historically have a fairly specific expertise,” says Evans. “So finding a way, collaboratively, with the College of Arts & Sciences to make sure that CFIT faculty are injecting what we’re gleaning from, say, the multidisciplinary approach of culinary nutrition or sustainable food systems into all of our courses

is important.” The College of Health & Wellness has also developed programs that focus specifically on health outcomes, including an Accelerated Second Degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN), an accelerated program designed for individuals who already hold an earned bachelor’s degree or higher and wish to pursue nursing as a career and a profession, and a Master of Public Health, both of which debuted this fall.

This broad palette of offerings makes JWU uniquely built to meet the opportunity that the ascent of culinary medicine presents, Evans says. “At other schools where you have academic disciplines that in some way touch food — whether that be food systems, nutrition or even food science — often those campuses are missing the physical facilities and intellectual assets for actually taking raw nutrition and turning it into edible food,” says Evans.

There are other advantages for JWU, too. Cucinotta notes that the dietetics program is one of the few that has culinary arts as its basis, and that health and wellness offerings, like its Physician Assistant Studies program and the new Accelerated Second Degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, continue to grow. “Our students get this really well-rounded, professional education that offers them different angles and helps them appreciate the roles that each of these different professionals provides,” she says.

That’s the advantage of studying culinary arts at a university, says Makuch. “It’s really about harnessing your resources,” be it the medical school a few blocks away or a colleague a few doors down. “We’re not going to know all the answers, but there are other disciplines out there, and if we can get them together and talk, that’s success. And that’s what we do well as chefs, right? We can solve so many problems just over the dinner table, through food and conversation.” JWU

Cucinotta (left and below) demonstrates using a lancing device.

By Katelyn Silva

Houston Striggow ’79 supports Annual Fund with SusieCakes Endowed Scholarship

Houston Striggow ’79 received his bachelor’s degree at The School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business in 1975. His MSU professor and mentor, the late Lewis J. Minor, suggested he further his education at Johnson & Wales University.

“I never wanted to be a chef, but Professor Minor felt it was important for students to gain a better understanding of ‘the heart of the house.’ He told me that if I was going to spend my career in hospitality and food service that attending culinary school would help me forever,” explains Striggow.

Professor Minor was right, he says.

“The combination of my education and degrees from MSU and JWU have been the foundation of my success,” says Striggow.

That success includes the development of restaurant concepts beginning almost immediately after completing his associate degree in culinary arts from JWU until now. Today, Striggow is the cofounder and chief development officer of SusieCakes Holdings Inc., a collection of all-American home-style bakeries with classic desserts made from scratch using simple ingredients. The bakeries are beloved by celebrities such as Kelly Clarkson and Mario Lopez, as well as

everyday families across the country. In 2006, Houston co-founded SusieCakes in Los Angeles with his business and life partner, Susie Sarich, who serves as chief executive officer. Today, SusieCakes has expanded to 26 bakeries in California and Texas and offers nationwide shipping.

As a means of giving back to JWU for helping lay the foundation for his success he supports future food industry leaders with SusieCakes Endowed Scholarship. This scholarship is intended to support students in the College of Food Innovation & Technology (CFIT), with a preference for students in the Baking & Pastry programs on both campuses. He also joined the newly-established CFIT Advisory Council and served as a panelist on the 2022 JWU Alumni Executive Panel, Executives in the Food Space Discuss Innovation & Evolution.

The Michael Nula & Family Endowed Scholarship Fund is Powered by Purpose

While Michael A. Nula, DPT, is not a graduate of Johnson & Wales, he’s always considered himself a part of the family. His sister studied fashion merchandising at JWU, and he kept up with new initiatives via friendships with faculty and leadership before becoming the founder of Elite Physical Therapy — with 13 locations across RI and MA — and an adjunct professor in the JWU College of Health & Wellness. He is working with JWU to help develop a physical therapy doctoral program within the College of Health & Wellness.

“I’ve always been attracted to the mission of JWU and how they are truly powered by purpose,” says Nula. “I’m also a huge fan of our home state of Rhode Island and I believe JWU strengthens our communities in significant and meaningful ways.”

To further reinforce his commitment to JWU and in developing talent for the future of the physical therapy and healthcare industries, he and his wife Lisa recently established the Michael

Nula & Family Endowed Scholarship Fund to support Rhode Islandbased students enrolled in the College of Health & Wellness.

Beyond a dedication to the healthcare field, Nula chose to support JWU with a scholarship fund, he says, because of his belief in the importance of education and access to opportunity. Growing up, Nula’s mother was a high school Spanish teacher (she’s now adjunct faculty at the University of Rhode Island), his father was a human resources director, and his first job out of college was as a high school science teacher.

“I’m a teacher at heart and passionate about supporting learning opportunities for continuing education. I’ve built a career focused on helping people, and I want others to have the chance to fulfill their goals,” says Nula. “Ultimately, I want to inspire people to help one another so that we all live healthy, active and happy lives.”

Susie Sarich and Houston Striggow ’79

Dennis L. Thompson ’18 Hon. gives $100,000 to support Charlotte Campus Entrepreneurship Center

WITH THE Johnson & Wales University Charlotte Campus in his backyard, restaurant concept developer and mogul Dennis L. Thompson ’18 Hon. enjoys a pipeline of high-quality restaurateurs and chefs for his growing portfolio of locations within Charlotte and across the United States.

“JWU provides us with great talent: Students who work with us at they continue their studies, and then, after graduation, chefs and entrepreneurs for our restaurants,” says Thompson, who founded the Board of Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, which has 55 locations, as well as a partner in Viva Peruvian Roasted Chicken and the Sea Level Oyster Bar in downtown Charlotte.

Thompson received an honorary degree in 2018 from the Charlotte Campus and delivered the commencement address that touched on his decades-long love affair with the restaurant industry.

A graduate of Wichita State University, Thompson paid his way through college by working the third shift at Boeing Aircraft for five years. After graduation, he applied his business administration degree to real estate, sourcing restaurant chain sites throughout the Midwest and later building restaurant concepts that spread across the country.

Thompson is so appreciative of the talent pipeline that JWU provides he recently established the Dennis L. Thompson ’18 Hon. Endowed Entrepreneurship Fund that commits $100,000 to the Charlotte Campus Entrepreneurship Center. The fund provides support to bring speakers and events to the center and gives scholarship money to one or more JWU students with awards of $2,000 for each academic year. Preference is given to finalists in the Charlotte Campus Sharkfest competition, an annual Shark Tank-inspired competition at which students pitch their

business ideas to a panel of industry professionals for seed money.

“Giving to JWU impacts my life in a positive way because I’m helping those that require assistance financially while they learn and also helping the restaurant industry to employ the quality of staff and entrepreneurs needed for their businesses to grow,” says Thompson.

Memorial bench at Providence Campus honors a beloved daughter

Alexandria M. Saker ’17, fondly known as Allie, had a special relationship with animals, children, and the elderly, as well as a passion for Lady Gaga, JWU, and her family. Tragically, Allie passed away after an accident in 2020, but her spirit lives on through her family and friends.

“Allie was an extraordinary woman, a special person who touched so many lives. People were drawn to her,” says her mother, Tina Saker.

Saker says that her daughter had a transformative experience during her four years at JWU. It was there that Allie “grew into herself,” blossoming into a confident young woman who learned to face her fears and embrace her love of animals, nature, and people. The mother-daughter duo had a strong bond that included trips to the Manhattan restaurant owned by the parents of Allie’s idol, Lady Gaga. When she saw Lady Gaga’s mother — Cynthia Germanotta — at the restaurant, she didn’t hesitate to ask for a photo. “JWU helped her to be her best self,” says Saker.

where her parents often visit. In addition, funds raised in memory of Allie support the university’s greatest needs, including scholarships, through the JWU Fund.

In honor of Allie and her time at JWU, her parents, Elie and Ernesta “Tina” Saker, established a fund in her memory. Family and friends donated monies to install a memorial bench at the Providence Campus

These contributions are an appropriate way to honor Allie, says Saker, because she was a humble, compassionate presence who helped others without expecting recognition. That truth was made evident by those who spoke at her funeral, particularly her boss from Swarovski Optik.

“He gave a beautiful eulogy describing Allie and, in some ways, I didn’t know who he was talking about because she was never one to brag and kept so many of her compassionate acts, like fundraising for the needy, to herself,” says Saker.

While Allie was humble, her impact was strong. After her passing, the Sakers received a letter from Cynthia Germanotta expressing her condolences and reaffirming that Allie’s life was “profoundly impactful.” Saker says that hearing others appreciate and remember Allie is her greatest solace. Her hope is that the memorial bench keeps Allie’s memory alive for many decades to come.

ALUMNI NEWS

Reunion 2023: Back to the Beginning

On Friday, April 21, the weekend kicked off with this year’s Distinguished Alumni Awards that recognize three Wildcat graduates making their mark on the world. Michael Rypka ’96, founder of Torchy’s Tacos, received the Outstanding Achievement Award. Torchy’s began as one food trailer in Austin, Texas, 16 years ago and now has 100 locations across 14 states. David Salcfas ’88, who founded iYou Hospitality Consulting to help others thrive in the industry after a remarkable 34-year career with Marriott, was given the Alumni Service Award. Geoffrey Lanez, ’12, ’14 MBA, executive chef of The Patterson Club in Fairfield, Connecticut, where he manages four kitchens while remaining committed to uplifting others, was presented with The Graduate of the Last Decade (G.O.L.D) Award. The day concluded with a reception where faculty and staff mingled with alumni in the Rhode Island Room at Harbor View.

Saturday was (unsurprisingly) filled with delectable food and drink! T.J. Delle Donne ’04, ’07 M.A.T., associate dean of the College of Food Innovation & Technology, led an exploration and tasting of eggs benedict on the Harborside Campus while alumni had the opportunity to experience program tours of Cannabis Entrepreneurship, Cybersecurity and Public Health at the Downcity Campus. The flagship of the weekend, Taste of JWU — its annual food and wine festival — was led by alumni chefs and restaurateurs from top regional eateries who served tasty signature dishes. The day closed with a decadent chocolate truffle workshop and wine tasting.

The fun-filled weekend concluded on Sunday with a Disco Brunch featuring a delicious menu, creative takes on the classic mimosa and a DJ spinning classic hits.

— Katelyn Silva

Photos by Peter Goldberg and Scott Bowers

ALUMNI NEWS

Regional events connect graduates near and far

Alumni Relations, accompanied by Providence Campus President and alumna Marie Bernardo-Sousa, LP.D., ’92, hit the road this spring to reconnect with alumni from the Sunshine State to the Windy City to the Big Apple and beyond. Regional events are an opportunity for alumni to engage in informative and interesting discussions related to professional development, and to network with fellow alumni, faculty and staff.

The first stop on the spring tour took place at the Sugarcane Raw Bar Grille in Miami,

Florida. The event marked the first Alumni Relations trip to Miami in more than four years and the team couldn’t have been more excited to be back. The next stop was Cedric’s at The Shed in New York City, where the group enjoyed excellent food and drinks with city-based alumni. In May, Alumni Relations returned to the Windy City for its Chicago Alumni & Industry Reception. The reception took place at the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant Sociale Chicago, hosted by Martin Murch ’90, as part of the National Restaurant

Association Show — the largest gathering of foodservice professionals in the Western Hemisphere. The final stop was at our nation’s capital for the D.C. Summer Social at Capital Burger, hosted by managing partner Matthew Jaffe ’04.

The four stops were full of connections, delicious food and drink, reminiscing and plans for future gatherings.

— Katelyn Silva

CLASS NOTES

1978

[1] EARL KNIPE PVD

CHELSEA, OKLAHOMA

Earl is a retired U.S. postmaster serving as chaplain and veterans’ service officer at an American Legion Post in Chelsea.

1982

PETER OELKERS PVD

MIAMI, FLORIDA

Peter retired from the Miami-Dade County Information Technology Department this spring after nearly 40 years.

1983

DANIEL ROMANELLO PVD

ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA

The author and attorney recently published his coming-of-age thriller “Paperboy.”

[2] CYNTHIA OWENS PVD

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

Cindy is an IT Business Partner with Ryman Hospitality Properties in Nashville; she is now certified as a business relationship management professional.

THOMAS ROSEN PVD NAPLES, FLORIDA

Tom is a real estate advisor with COMPASS. 1996

[3] SCOTT DOGGETT PVD

ORLANDO, FLORIDA

CYNTHIA NICKERSON PVD

FORT MILL, SOUTH CAROLINA

Cyndi is senior project manager at Ashfield Event Experiences, a division of the Creative Engagement Group.

2001

2006

6

Scott was promoted to VP of learning and development at Holiday Inn Club Vacations Inc. 1997

[4] JENA MINNICK-BULL PVD SAN CLEMENTE, CALIFORNIA

Jena was inducted into the Marquis Who’s Who Biographical Registry for her community contributions as the founder of Dance Discovery Foundation.

CORY

JACOBSON PVD

GROTON, CONNECTICUT

Cory is a Level 1 industrial radiographer at General Dynamics-Electric Boat in Groton.

2003

SHERRY BODDIE PVD

MIDDLESEX, NORTH CAROLINA

Sherry and her son have co-authored the book “A Nature Walk With Nana.”

2006

SARAH MORIO NMI

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA

Sarah is director of marketing operations for Libsyn, a Pittsburgh-based podcast platform.

[5] WESLEY FEIST DEN EAST HELENA, MONTANA

Wes is director of the State Workforce Innovation Board with the Montana Department of Labor & Industry. Wes also continues to represent his hometown of East Helena as a city council member.

[6] ASHLEY MASSEY DEN

CARROLLTON, TEXAS

Ashley is a realtor with Ebby Halliday in the greater Dallas area. TOVA SCHERZER DEN DENVER, COLORADO

Tova joined Autodesk as the senior project manageer manager for Enterprise Customer Success Consulting in Denver.

2007

SCOTT FRAUENHEIM PVD

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Scott is CEO of Distinctive Schools, a nonprofit management organization serving schools in Chicago and Detroit.

2008

[7] JACK BURTCH PVD

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND

Jack is an associate vice president of Global Customer & Brand Insights at T. Rowe Price in Baltimore.

2009

[8] ARNDRES MASON PVD

2010

TAMPA, FLORIDA

Arndres is VP of operations at Avalon Healthcare Solutions in Tampa and a recent fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

AMANDA MONTGOMERY CLT

WARRENSBURG, MISSOURI

Amanda is the event and planning coordinator with the University of Central Missouri Meeting & Conference Services in Warrensburg.

ALIA ASHER NMI

TIVERTON, RHODE ISLAND

Alia is executive sous chef at the Boat House in Tiverton.

2011

REGINALD MARCELLUS NMI

ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA

Reginald is manager of corporate events strategy at the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) Alexandria headquarters.

2013

[9] MARIA PINERES

BUSTILLO PVD

PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND

Maria was one of six recipients of the 2022 UFI (the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry) Next Generation Leadership Grant.

2014

YALIM ACAR NMI

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

Yalim is CEO and managing director of the Los Angeles-based Gate Experience.

[10] MARQUIS COOPER PVD

WRENTHAM, MASSACHUSETTS

Marquis was elected to The Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants Board of Directors for the past fiscal year.

2019

ANTHONY CONTE PVD

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

Anthony is a sous chef at Le Bernardin in New York City.

As a company, Hestan is built upon a shared love of food and innovation. From what you cook on to what you cook with — even the wine to complement the meal — Hestan delights in the details of cooking. Hestan founder Stanley Cheng ’22 Hon. and Johnson & Wales University have teamed up to bring exclusive Hestan Vineyards and Hestan Cookware offers to JWU alumni.

Handcrafted in Italy, each line of Hestan cookware combines high-performance and highly durable materials to deliver cookware that cooks beautifully and looks stunning for years to come.

Hestan Vineyards is a picturesque estate located on Napa Valley’s remote eastern slopes, and home to awardwinning boutique wines.

WEDDINGS

SUBMISSIONS

If there’s news in your life you’d like to share with fellow alumni, please send us photos and announcements about your career, recent weddings, unions and additions to your family.

Images: To submit images from your event, please provide high resolution digital files (minimum one megabyte [1 MB] in size, in jpeg format), or actual photographs can be emailed to alumni@jwu.edu. A form to submit class notes is available at: https://bit.ly/jwuclassnotes

JOSEPH FERRARO PVD and Leigh Adamo Ferraro ’14 PVD October 8, 2022

CHRISTINA MARIA SWICKARD ’11, ’13 MBA PVD

Emma and Alina

JOHN F. BRODEUR ’49

June 28, 2022

FRANCIS MEO ’59

July 30, 2022

ANN CIPRIANO ’61

May 27, 2022

MARTHA E. HEWEY ’62

March 1, 2023

MARK FLANAGAN ’65

August 30, 2022

FANNIE STURDIVANT ’69

November 20, 2022

CHARLOTTE SHARKEY ’70

June 24, 2022

CHARLES E. CHISHOLM ’71

July 3, 2022

ROBERT F. TRIPODE ’73

April 17, 2022

MICHAEL MULVEY ’74

January 26, 2023

ROBERT A. FERREIRA ’75

December 25, 2022

ANDREW J. FROLICH ’75

March 9, 2023

NORMAND W. BEAUFORT ’76

November 26, 2022

NORMAN E. LECOURS ’76

November 11, 2022

CHARLES S. WHITTALL JR. ’76

April 5, 2023

RONALD AMARAL ’77

June 17, 2022

ALLEN W. DANIELS ’77

December 23, 2022

BRUCE MACDONALD ’77

June 1, 2022

MICHAEL J. MATCZAK ’77

July 9, 2022

GEORGE W. BREEDON ’78

June 7, 2022

JEAN R. DUPONT ’78

June 25, 2022

KEVIN J. BLANEY ’79

February 25, 2023

NESTOR C. CHAMBERLAND JR. ’79

July 1, 2022

MICHAEL CZARCINSKI ’79

March 9, 2023

ROBERT C. FERRY ’79

November 23, 2022

JOSEPH GIAQUINTO ’79

December 11, 2022

NICHOLAS A. HOST ’79

August 16, 2022

CHRIS D. LAMPSON ’79

May 12, 2022

RAYMOND F. SEWELL ’79

June 21, 2022

JOHN L. SMITH ’79

October 25, 2022

STEPHEN R. FITCHETT ’80

August 31, 2022

JONATHAN M. HEARD ’80

March 5, 2023

RONALD A. LEVESQUE ’80

February 15, 2023

WESLEY PELLETTIERI ’80

March 30, 2023

JULIET SILVA ’80

July 7, 2022

KAREN L. BLANEY ’81 February 25, 2023

STEWART L. BROWN ’81 February 10, 2023

PAUL R. GOODMAN ’81

August 23, 2022

JAMES M. STOLBERG ’81 February 4, 2023

ROGER A. BOUCHARD ’82

July 12, 2022

MARY E. FOX ’83 September 11, 2022

MICHAEL S. GOLON ’83 March 26, 2023

EILEEN LAVALLEE ’83

October 28, 2022

WILLIAM E. MILLER ’83

January 26, 2023

STEVEN D. O’RILEY ’83

January 1, 2023

GLENN SWOTINSKY ’83

October 14, 2022

BERNICE M. VECKERELLI ’83

December 21, 2022

DAVID R. DUMAINE ’84

January 25, 2023

DOUGLAS A. ELKAS ’84 January 30, 2023

STEVEN E. KETTELLE ’84 April 28, 2022

STEPHEN BRADY LITCHEY ’84 November 18, 2022

SCOTT J. OLIVER ’84 November 17, 2022

STEVEN BARTLETT ’85

July 7, 2022

RALPH J. BERMAN ’85

June 17, 2022

MICHAEL CHAGNON ’85

December 9, 2022

BRIAN BYRNE ’86

January 27, 2023

DANIEL L. CLARK ’87

May 17, 2022

MAUREEN M. GOTAY ’88

August 1, 2022

RALPH S. LITTLE ’88

October 31, 2022

CHRISTOPHER A. MOFFAT ’88

October 27, 2022

WENDY J. RECTOR ’88

January 1, 2022

DANIEL K. BALDAUF ’89

March 16, 2023

TODD J. CARRELL ’89

September 10, 2022

DIANA R. MANGIARELLI ’89

October 23, 2022

KIMBERLY A. RINGLING ’90

April 9, 2023

MORRIS NATHANSON ’91 HON.

September 17, 2022

DENISE BURNLEY ’92

July 11, 2022

JOSEPH DEROSA ’92

August 26, 2022

JAMES FLANAGAN ’92

September 10, 2022

ROZANN JAROSZ ’92

January 17, 2023

JASON R. KOWALSKI ’92

August 19, 2022

JEFFREY J. LAVALLEY ’92

September 19, 2022

SHANNON A. AUMICK ’93

October 3, 2022

DAVID P. DIOT ’93

August 23, 2022

MATTHEW L. GRANDCHAMP ’93

July 22, 2022

SCOTTY K. IRANI ’93

April 7, 2022

DONNA M. RALEIGH ’93 M.S. July 27, 2022

TODD J. BERUBE ’94

January 9, 2023

TIMOTHY F. FITZGERALD ’94

December 22, 2022

MATTHEW J. HAIST ’94

August 24, 2022

JOHN MCNABB ’94

March 4, 2023

LINCOLN C. ALMOND ’95 HON.

January 3, 2023

MATTHEW S. LANGLEY ’95

February 6, 2023

BARBARA A. VECOLI ’95

July 31, 2022

STEVEN M. VELOZO ’95

October 1, 2022

PETER J. YARBROUGH ’95

March 15, 2023

CHARLES F. ASHER ’96

February 11, 2023

MICHAEL G. BESSETTE ’96

February 7, 2023

LINDA HATCHER ’97

August 26, 2022

KEVIN M. MALDONADO ’97

December 28, 2022

JOSHUA L. REED ’97

February 2, 2023

JOHN M. ADAMS ’98

December 28, 2022

JUSTIN J. CUNHA ’98

May 20, 2022

DARREL KENYON ’98

November 8, 2022

JOHN A. MARMANN ’98

June 21, 2022

DAVID A. STEES ’98

April 30, 2022

ISAAC D. STRAUSSER ’98

July 12, 2022

KEVIN J. THODE ’99

November 25, 2022

CORNELIUS MEDAS ’00

August 13, 2022

ANDRE COLEMAN ’01

July 16, 2022

PAUL R. POTTER ’01

December 8, 2022

FINLEY MERISCA ’02

May 14, 2022

TRACEY M. BELOCK ’03

August 7, 2022

VICTOR HALL ’03

December 31, 2022

EUGENE L. CHASE ’04

January 6, 2023

JASON MAZZA ’04

December 31, 2022

BRIAN A. ROBINSON ’05

August 29, 2022

GUILLERMINA C. RODRIGUEZ ’05

April 23, 2022

GWENDOLYN WILSON ’05

February 9, 2023

DREW C. ALLEN ’06

July 18, 2022

NICHOLAS J. PERRONE ’06

December 18, 2022

BRUCE W. WHITE ’07 HON.

January 19, 2023

JULIE E. DELGRECO ’08

October 10, 2022

CLAYTON J. SHELDEN ’08

November 17, 2022

CHARLES F. CARPENTER ’10

September 24, 2022

RYAN J. DOYLE ’10

August 20, 2022

KEVIN J. HERDMAN ’10

February 25, 2023

MARK H. PASSANTE ’10

July 17, 2022

ROBERT TALMO ’10

December 8, 2022

LINDSEY A. BIDWELL ’12

December 21, 2022

BRANDI A. DEWRELL ’12

October 18, 2022

HILLARY A. GINSBERG ’12

May 5, 2022

NICHOLAS J. BATORY ’13, ’15

M.A.T.

April 29, 2022

JERRY RICHARDSON ’13

HON.

March 1, 2023

HOLLY A. WATSON-KINNE ’13

July 11, 2022

ZACHARY E. FRY ’14

May 13, 2022

CONOR M. O’BRIEN ’14

July 10, 2022

KELSEY M. DOWNEY ’15

April 19, 2023

ALEX T. DOYON ’15

August 18, 2022

CHRISTIAN A. PARKES ’15

June 14, 2022

BRYAN S. BAILEY ’17

July 12, 2022

JUAN C. PAREDES, JR. ’17

August 22, 2022

JACOB V. MAREZ ’17

May 20, 2022

JOSHUA J. ULMER ’17

March 29, 2023

NASTASIA I. FRANKLIN ’20

August 4, 2022

STEPHEN M. BAILEY ’21

June 7, 2022

FACULTY, STAFF AND FRIENDS

ROBERT L. ADAMS

January 18, 2023

FRANK ANDREOZZI

August 9, 2022

RICHARD CATTANI P ’97

July 3, 2022

DANIEL CONWAY

August 25, 2022

RAYMOND R. FORGET

April 4, 2023

JOSEPH R. H. GAGNE

May 12, 2022

ROBERT M. KOK

November 18, 2022

WILLIAM T. LANDRY

February 12, 2022

MICHAEL K. LEAZOTT

June 6, 2022

NORMAND LECLAIR

June 26, 2022

JUAN R. MALDONADO

November 5, 2022

PATRICIA A. MARIANO

September 10, 2022

BARBARA MORAN

July 29, 2022

PATTI G. MULLEN

April 17, 2023

PHILOMENA D. MURPHY

June 23, 2022

JOHN R. OLSEN

September 29, 2023

TELSON A OSCAR

January 5, 2023

JOYCE E. OSTER

January 31, 2023

HERMAN PAOLUCCI

January 3, 2023

DONALD H. RAMSBOTTOM

July 23, 2022

CAROL A. RANDALL

November 9, 2023

PAUL N. ROBILLARD

May 9, 2022

TC ROGERS

January 13, 2023

STEVEN M. SCHAEFER

August 1, 2022

HENRY D. SHARPE JR.

July 1, 2022

HELENE SHATZ

November 29, 2022

JEAN-MICHEL VIENNE

May 14, 2022

Relationship Advice from a Wedding Planner

Event planner Pearl Farquharson ’12 on boundaries, fate and world peace

Pearl Farquharson ’12 has an eye for details — the paper fan or signature cocktail on a summer day — that transform a spectacular setting into an intimate celebration.

But her career as a luxury wedding and event planner isn’t driven by her lifelong passion for style and food, or even her admitted addiction to pulling off the perfect event.

“It’s my way of solving world peace,” she says, joking yet sincere. “I think the need for community is the one thing we all share.”

From a young age, Farquharson was captivated by the power of gatherings. “Sundays were for congregating at my dad’s house, and at six years old, I could see the magic of food and drinks and music in bringing people together,” she says. She developed a love of cooking, playing restaurant with her sisters on nights when her mother worked late shifts and dreaming of becoming a chef.

At JWU, she realized she wasn’t meant for kitchen life (“I was getting up at five in the morning, no makeup, not talking to anyone all day”), but she completed her degree in Food Service Management and started her career at Catered Affair in Boston: “The moment I fluffed the gown and fixed the veil, I knew wedding planning was for me.”

In 2017, she launched Designed by Delsie, a nod to her great grandmother, Delsie (also her own middle name) and motto-acronym: “Delivering Exceptional Luxury Services with Integrity and Elegance.” Despite initial setbacks, including a breakup with her boyfriend and first business partner (“I can see the value in working with a romantic partner, but it is not for me”), Farquharson stayed true to her vision. “I am grounded in my faith and belief that I have a larger purpose,” she says, “and I am passionate about supporting small businesses, especially those that are women- or minority-owned, through my work.”

For all her hours devoted to dream weddings, she is deeply dedicated to the real-life groundwork that supports a strong marriage. “As couples make these decisions together, establishing expectations and boundaries, the planning process becomes an opportunity to learn to resolve conflicts and compromise, and to bring everyone together.” So yes, in her way, world peace. JWU

By Nicole Maranhas

FARQUHARSON SHARES WISDOM FROM THE ROAD TO THE ALTAR.

How to meet your future spouse

At least half my couples meet online, but one of my favorite stories was a groom who had been trying for years to date his sister’s friend. The sister refused to set them up. Finally, she caved — and it turned out he was right; they were meant to be.

How you know you’ve met the right person to marry

I ask every one of my couples. The answer I hear most often is: “They felt like home.”

Communication yellow flag

Sometimes you see one partner taking the lead and the other taking a step back. It doesn’t mean this person doesn’t care. It could be that they’re overwhelmed or feel their voice isn’t heard.

When not to call off a wedding

Do not make decisions when you’re emotional. Those emotions come from stress, which why it’s important to eliminate as much stress from the event as possible. (She has seen it almost happen once, but the couple is happily married today.)

How to stay together

Friends first. The couples with the best energy, the ones who are most united, are the ones who were friends first.

Left: Fergie Medar Photography

Below: Kelly Stevens Photography

MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS AT REUNION 2024

It’s time to rediscover all the things you love about JWU! Dive into signature events like Taste of JWU, the Distinguished Alumni Awards and interactive workshops. Scan the QR code below to learn more about JWU Reunion’s exciting programs, view hotel deals and register for the biggest #JWUAlumni event of the year!

Register today and relive your favorite JWU memories this April 19–21, 2024. lumni.jwu.edu / ion alumni.jwu.edu/reunion

There’s something about JWU that creates and curates connectivity. We legacy alumni carry the baton of that connectivity that has only gotten stronger.”

James Griffin, Ed.D. , ’88, ’9 2 M.S.

8 Abbott Park Place, Providence, RI 02903

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

Join the Mary & Gertrude Society and commit to JWU’s legacy and future. Together, we will power an educational experience rooted in excellence and driven by purpose. e Mary & Gertrude Society proudly recognizes the unwavering commitment of donors who have generously supported Johnson & Wales University for three or more consecutive years.

To learn more or to join the Society before our fundraising year ends, visit giving.jwu.edu/maryandgertrude

Mary Wales Gertrude Johnson