Recognizing Excellence

Dear alumni and friends,

Maxwell recently convened our inaugural Awards of Excellence in Washington, D.C. We were excited to come together as a community to celebrate public service in all of its forms and honor our 2022 awardees. Guests included our alumni and students who, in their professional and volunteer roles, live out their commitment to public service.

Among the individuals attending the Maxwell Advisory Board’s semi-annual meeting earlier in the day was Susan Willie ’98 M.P.A. Along with her husband, James Willie '98 M.P.A., she attended the Awards of Excellence to accept the Maxwell Advocate Award on behalf of her father-in-law, the late Charles V. Willie ’57 Ph.D. (Soc)/’92 Hon. Susan is an exemplary public servant. For much of her career, she has worked for the Congressional Budget Office, where in her current role as a unit chief in the Budget Analysis Division, she and her team provide nonpartisan analysis for Congress in a number of areas, including natural resources, transportation and agriculture.Her expertise and perspective are important to our advisory board, which is comprised of alumni from an array of professions. Members have a pivotal role in guiding decisions that directly impact Maxwell’s community of students, faculty, staff and alumni.

In addition to devoting her time to the board, Susan is a frequent volunteer guest lecturer in public budgeting for Maxwell’s online executive master of public administration program. She has shared her expertise on the federal budget every term the course has been offered—14 times—to students around the world. Course instructor Brian Ohl, a faculty member in the online program, says Susan “is very generous with her time and her knowledge, supporting and inspiring our students and going the extra mile to modify her presentations based on current events and budget issues.”

Susan’s service exemplifies the ideals of her late father-in-law, which brings me back to the Awards of Excellence. Included in the printed event program was a quote from Charles Willie that illustrates this ability for each of us to have an impact: “It is an ancient custom, as ancient as the Roman Empire, to idolize those whom we honor, to make them larger than life, to give their marvelous accomplishments a magical and mystical origin. …By idolizing those whom we honor, we fail to realize that we could go and do likewise.”

Here’s how you can engage with the the Maxwell School:

Connect with Maxwell students through classroom visits, career talks, our Alumni Ambassador program and more. Contact the alumni office at maxalum@syr.edu to learn more about these opportunities.

Think of Maxwell when looking to fill roles at your organization. Reach out to the Palmer Career Center at maxcareers@syr.edu for information about how to share internship and employment opportunities with students and alumni.

Complete Maxwell’s Alumni Update Form at maxwell.syr.edu/ updateform to pass along your career news, so we can celebrate your achievement, share with the alumni network and update our alumni records.

We invite you to stay connected with us through events, campus connections and more— and watch for future Awards of Excellence communications this fall!

Stay well,

Jessica Murray Director of Alumni Relations

Submit Your Class Note

Online: maxwell.syr.edu/ submit-class-note

Email: maxalum@syr.edu

Post Office: 200 Eggers Hall, Syracuse, N.Y. 13244

Key To Degrees

Alumni are designated by year of graduation, degree level and (in parentheses) discipline—for example: Joan Smith ’87 M.A. (Soc). A few of the degree abbreviations indicate both level and discipline, such as M.P.A. and M.S.Sc. Alumni with more than one degree from Maxwell are listed under the year of the latest degree.

AmSt American Studies

Anth Anthropology

CCE Citizenship and Civic Engagement

ESP Environment, Sustainability and Policy

E.M.I.R. Executive Master’s in International Relations

E.M.P.A. Executive Master of Public Administration

DFH Documentary Film and History

Econ Economics

Geog Geography

Hist History

IR International Relations

J.D. Law

LAS Latin American Studies

M.A. (IR) Master of Arts, International Relations

M.A. (IR)/

M.S.P.R. International Relations/ Public Relations (dual)

P.D.G.C. Master of Public Diplomacy and Global Communication

MES Middle Eastern Studies

M.P.A. Master of Public Administration

M.P.A./

M.A. (IR) Joint M.P.A. and M.A. (IR)

MPH Master of Public Health

M.Phil. Master of Philosophy

M.R.P. Master of Regional Planning

M.S.Sc. Master of Social Science

PA Public Administration

P.D. Public Diplomacy

PPhil Political Philosophy

PSt Policy Studies

PSc Political Science

RusSt Russian Studies

Soc Sociology

SPsy Social Psychology

SSc Social Science

UrSt Urban Studies

40s

Ann Bodie Ward ’47 B.A. (Soc)/’49 M.A. (Soc) is celebrating the 75th anniversary of her Syracuse University graduation from her home in Alexandria Bay, N.Y. While a student, she was involved with the Daily Orange student newspaper and served as president of the women’s student government. She says “Syracuse University and the Maxwell School were pivotal in my life. The five years getting my two degrees showed me the path and taught me skills that enabled me to succeed in life.”

50s

Arnold P. Etelson ’59 B.A. (PSc) retired after serving 54 years as a municipal judge for the village of Spring Valley, the town of Ramapo and the village of Montebello in Rockland County, N.Y.

60s

Howard Palley ’63 Ph.D. (SSc), professor emeritus in the School of Social Work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, published three articles in 2021. “Review of Health Care in Switzerland: A Closer Look at a System Offered as a Model for the United States” was published in the Journal of Medicine and Surgical Sciences, while the Open Journal of Political Science featured two pieces: “The White Working Class and the Politics of Race in the United States and Race and Caste: Its Impact on the American Political System.”

Neil Gingold ’67 B.A. (PSc) is the Top 100 Lawyers’ attorney of the year in the state of New York. Gingold is the founding attorney of Neil M. Gingold Attorney at Law, Fayetteville, N.Y. With over 50 years of experience, he practices environmental law, real estate development and environmental remediation.

70s

Barbara Vorhees ’70 M.A. (Hist) has received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine from North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. The award is the highest civilian honor in N.C.

Stephen Soble ’72 B.A. (Hist/PSc) is on the board of directors for TerraScale, an organization which aims to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable planet through large-scale green infrastructure and technology development globally. TerraScale is located in Culver City, Calif.

Bruce Dearstyne ’74 Ph.D. (Hist) is the author of two new books. The second edition of his book The Spirit of New York: Defining Events in the Empire State’s History (SUNY Press, 2022), is a history of New York state through the narratives of 20 dramatic events from the first state constitution to the history behind the hit musical Hamilton. The Crucible of Public Policy: New York Courts in the Progressive Era (SUNY Press, 2022), analyzes Court of Appeals’ decisions from 1900-1920 that shaped key policies on social, economic and regulatory issues.

Robert Layton ’79 M.P.A. received the 2021 Board of Trustees award from Wichita State University. The award is given to a person who has made significant contributions to the partnership between Wichita State University and the surrounding community. Layton is currently the interim chief financial officer for Kansas City Community College.

80s

Bob Greene ’83 Ph.D. (Hist) has published a new book, The Presidency of George W. Bush (University Press of Kansas, 2021). The book uses Freedom of Information Act requests to explore newly released information and documents to expand notions about the Bush administration’s achievements.

Kent Olson ’83 M.P.A. retired after 37 years of local government financial management. He served as finance director for two suburbs in the Chicago region and Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Craig Colten ’84 Ph.D. (Geog) joined the Water Institute of the Gulf as a senior advisor. Based in Baton Rouge, La., the Water Institute is a nonprofit, applied research institution advancing science and developing integrated methods to address environmental and societal challenges. In 2022, Colten also received the Gilbert White

Distinguished Public Service Honors Award from the American Association of Geographers. The award recognizes his contributions to the field of geography as a government employee and later as an academic.

Brian Burns ’85 B.A. (Econ/PSt) was elected to serve a 14-year term as a New York State supreme court justice, commencing at the beginning of 2021. He was also recently named to the Diversity Task Force for the 6th judicial district.

Richard Ramacier ’89 M.P.A. retired on Jan. 1, 2022, after 25 years of service to County Connection, a public transit agency based in Danville San Ramon, Calif.

90s

Jacqueline Kopito ’90 B.A. (AmSt) just published a book, Twintastic (Good Times Books, 2021). The book follows two identical twins who gain magical powers and use them to save a family restaurant.

Stacie Collier ’93 B.A. (PSt) was appointed chief talent officer at the global law firm Nixon Peabody. In addition to practicing law, she oversees the firm’s recruiting; retention; training; well-being; and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. She also serves on the advisory committee to Temple University’s Fox Business School’s Center for Ethics, Diversity and Workplace Culture.

Stephen Hagerty ’93 M.P.A. completed his term as mayor of Evanston, Ill., in May 2021. Prior to becoming mayor, Hagerty consulted with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, then founded his own emergency management firm, Hagerty Consulting, which assisted in recovery efforts following Hurricane Katrina, Superstorm Sandy and other disasters. Hagerty also serves on the Maxwell School Advisory Board.

Pamela Caraccioli ’94 M.P.A. is president and chief executive officer of Fulton Savings Bank. She is also on the Richard S. Shineman Foundation Board of Directors. The Richard S. Shineman Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Oswego County, N.Y., through grants, collaboration and nonprofit education and training.

Anne-Marie Deitering ’94 M.A. (Hist) has been named the Donald and Delpha Campbell Dean of Libraries for Oregon State University. Deitering oversees more than 100 staff members while working to build an inclusive process for employee retention, creating flexible library spaces that support student engagement, promoting innovative uses of technology, and continuing to ensure a transparent, equitable and anti-racist work environment.

Joila Hill ’94 M.P.A. has been named director of the charter schools program at Eastern Michigan University.

Daniel Aman ’95 B.A. (Geog/IR) was re-elected as town clerk for the town of Brighton, N.Y. Aman was first elected in 2011.

Norman Leffman ’95 M.P.A. retired in December 2021 after 17 years of service as assistant executive officer to the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority.

Krista Peyton ’95 M.A. (PSc) was appointed associate circuit judge for St. Louis County in the 21st judicial circuit in the greater St. Louis, Mo., area.

Nancy Laird ’97 M.P.A. joined the Harvard Art Museums as the director of finance after working for Harvard University for 22 years.

Matthew Little ’97 M.P.A. was recently named the western region director of public policy for the Memphis-based Ducks Unlimited, an organization that supports the growth of duck populations and the future of waterfowl hunting.

Charlie Bush ’98 M.P.A. has been appointed city administrator of the city of Sedro-Woolley, Wash. Previously, he served as the city manager of Sequim, Wash.

Prashanth Jayachandran ’98

M.P.A. was appointed as a member of Syracuse University’s College of Law Board of Advisors. Jayachandran is chief supply chain counsel for Colgate-Palmolive Company.

Mark L. Loeben ’98 M.S.Sc. was recently appointed chairman of the National Aerospace Research & Technology Park, a research, design and innovation organization based in Egg Harbor Township, N.J.