SPRING 2019
70
YEARS
SIMULATION: THE PATHWAY TO EXCELLENCE
A HOME FOR LIFELONG LEARNERS
HONORING A PRESIDENTIAL LEGACY
LIU Nursing
Hutton House Lectures
The Theodore Roosevelt Institute
Your gift to the Annual Fund helps make your LIU degree more valuable! YOU ARE OUR LEGACY Long Island University has earned more national recognition than ever before because of YOU. Alumni leaders and friends—like YOU—advance the mission of the University through your successes, honors, and awards. We are proud of all you have achieved. YOUR GIFT HAS POWER Your support is crucial to help LIU students achieve their dreams. FUND A FUTURE Scholarship funds play a critical role in recruitment, retention, and graduation. YOU can make a dream come true with your gift to the Annual Fund for LIU. Please visit liu.edu/donate.
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LIU MAGAZINE | SPRING 2018 LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
IN THIS ISSUE KIMBERLY R. CLINE President, Long Island University ALUMNI RELATIONS WILLIAM MARTINOV Chief of Alumni and Employer Relations MOREEN MITCHELL University Director of Employer and Alumni Engagement JOAN YONKE Campus Director of Employer and Alumni Engagement EDITORS ZAC HOWARD Assistant Director of Marketing MICHAEL MORRISEY Managing Editor SPENCER RUMSEY Associate Director of Public and Media Relations
FEATURES
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
04 George Polk Awards
30 Student Success
06
A Question of Facts
32 Post Athletics
18
Biological Advancement
34 Brooklyn Athletics
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
DEPARTMENTS
12 Chintu Patel
08
Hutton House Lectures
14
10
Theodore Roosevelt Institute
24
Sanford Education
Winifred Mack
22 Dr. Morrell Avram, Dr. Barry Brenner, Dr. Ira Greifer 38
Art Beltrone
PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT 16 Simulation: The Pathway to Excellence 20 The School of Professional Accountancy
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT 13
Ken LaZebnik
26
Larry Banks
25 Superintendents/College Presidents Partnership Forum 28
Virtual Enterprise
36
Hornstein Center
37
Stars at Tilles Center
40 Newsroom 42
On The Shelf
43
Alumni Events
44
Class Notes
CONTRIBUTORS LLOYD RIBNER Deputy Director, Athletics CATHERINE SNEDECOR Assistant Director of Media Relations, Athletics VIRGINIA KLUITERS Editorial Marketing
A MESSAGE FROM
DR. KIMBERLY R. CLINE, PRESIDENT Dear Friends:
DESIGN
Long Island University has served the students of New York for nearly a century. It is a distinguished legacy that includes ground-breaking research, high profile publications, and world-class speakers. We are particularly proud to be the home of the George Polk Awards, celebrating 70 years of recognizing journalistic excellence in 2019.
LAUREN PANKRATZ Senior Creative Director
Stay connected! Visit LIUalumni.com or email liualumni@liu.edu to share News and Notes or update your alumni profile, address, and/or contact information. Copyright © 2019 by LIU. All rights reserved.
At the heart of all we do is community. We recognize that we belong to a world-wide community, and our 260,000 alumni are having an impact across disciplines and borders. Long Island University always strives to provide its students with a global perspective and seeks to inculcate a dedication to making the world a better place. This edition of the LIU Magazine highlights the many ways Long Island University and its communities are working together to improve the world around us. I am proud of all of our students, faculty, and alumni, and am happy to share this magazine with you. Sincerely,
LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
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FEATURE STORY
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ANNUAL GEORGE POLK AWARDS T O HO NOR J OU RN A L ISM TH AT MA KES A D IFFE R E N C E
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or 70 years, Long Island University has been home to one of the most prestigious prizes in American journalism: the George Polk Awards.
The annual prize was the idea of a dedicated group of LIU professors who wanted to pay tribute to the memory of George Polk, a CBS radio correspondent murdered while covering suspected government corruption in Greece. Decades later, the judges still place a premium on investigative and enterprising reporting that gains attention and achieves results. The most recent winners were announced in a nationally televised event held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The ceremony was broadcast live on C-SPAN2 and cited stories that exposed miscarriages of justice, wrongful dealings in politics and business, and the massacre and starvation of innocent civilians abroad. “I am immensely proud of how this award has remained relevant despite an ever-changing journalistic landscape,” said Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, President of Long Island University. “It is for this reason that the George Polk Award has become one of the most highly regarded journalism honors in the country.” The judges awarded a prize for a podcast for the first time in
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the Polk Awards’ history to “In the Dark, Season Two.” “The Polk Awards recognize the changing landscape of news,” said John Darnton, curator of the awards and recipient of two Polk Awards and a Pulitzer for his work with The New York Times. “The story of a person who, in all likelihood is wrongly convicted, is tried and true. But the podcast, as a delivery vehicle spread over multiple episodes that makes listeners feel it is unfolding in real time right before their ears, is a new and exciting reincarnation.” The judges reviewed 554 submissions, a record number since the Polk Awards began. “Few years have been as fruitful as this one,” noted Darnton. “These winners tell us that the best of our journalists remain resilient, courageous, dedicated and undeterred by attacks on their ability and integrity.” Winners were honored at a luncheon ceremony at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan on Friday, April 5. The journalist and author Charlayne Hunter-Gault read the award citations and moderated this year’s David J. Steinberg Seminar of the George Polk Awards, “After 70 Years, Still Honoring Reporters Who Seek to Right Wrongs,” on Thursday evening, April 4, at LIU Brooklyn’s Kumble Theater for the Performing Arts. Several of this year’s award winners took part in the seminar, which was free and open to the public. •
2019 GEORGE POLK AWARD WINNERS Foreign Reporting: Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo of Reuters National Reporting: The staff of The New York Times State Reporting: Jeff Adelson, Jim Mustian, Gordon Russell, John Simerman and the staff of The Advocate of New Orleans Local Reporting: Kathleen McGrory and Neil Bedi of the Tampa Bay Times Political Reporting: David Barstow, Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner of The New York Times Medical Reporting: Kirby Dick, Amy Zierring and Amy Herdy for “The Bleeding Edge,” a Netflix documentary Justice Reporting: Julie K. Brown of the Miami Herald Immigration Reporting: The staff of ProPublica Education Reporting: Craig Harris, Anne Ryman, Alden Woods and Justin Price of The Arizona Republic Environmental Reporting: Photojournalist Larry C. Price and reporters for Undark Magazine 1
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Magazine Reporting: Ben Taub of The New Yorker Foreign Television Reporting: PBS NewsHour special correspondent Jane Ferguson Local Television Reporting: Joe Bruno of WSOC-TV in Charlotte, N.C. Podcast: Reporter Madeleine Baran and senior producer Samara Freemark of APM Reports for “In the Dark, Season Two”
3 1. Joe Bruno, shown with his family, won the George Polk Award for Local Television Reporting for his work at WSOC-TV in Charlotte, N.C. that uncovered election fraud in a hotly contested Congressional race. 2. Investigative reporter Madeleine Baran, right, and senior producer Samara Freemark of APM Reports won for their podcast, “In the Dark, Season Two,” which made a compelling case for the innocence of an inmate on death row. 3. Long Island University announced the winners in the First Amendment Lounge at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., and hosted a panel discussion on the role of the press that was broadcast live on C-Span.
Special Award: Columnist David Ignatius and Global Opinions editor Karen Attiah of The Washington Post The George Polk Career Award: Bill Siemering, formerly of National Public Radio
FOR MORE INFORMATION: GO TO LIU.EDU/GEORGE-POLK-AWARDS
LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
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FEATURE STORY
A QUESTION OF FACTS PROMINENT LIU ALUMNI WORKING IN MEDIA WEIGH IN ON THE CURRENT STATE OF AFFAIRS
F
rom smartphones to social media, there are more ways of disseminating information than ever before, allowing breakthroughs in reporting once inconceivable. These developments extend the reach of truth, yet the public’s faith in long-standing institutions appears to wane with each passing month. The present distrust of media, either exaggerated or understated, is pernicious, and threatens to undermine the bedrock of civil society. The free press, as protected by the Constitution, shoulders the responsibility of uncovering and heralding truth to the country’s otherwise preoccupied citizens. “Most people have millions of things going on in their life. They’re not interested in journalism, they’re just interested in information,” said Brian Kilmeade (Post ‘86, B.A.), a popular television and radio show host for Fox News. With accusations of fake news coming from every location on the political spectrum, the reliability of facts can no longer be taken for granted.
Even those covering more entertaining fields, such as sports, music or pop culture, lament the declining veneration for journalism. “There’s a lot of people who truly believe it’s opinion and speculation, and that you shouldn’t trust reporters,” Alan Hahn (Post ‘93, B.A.) said. Hahn wrote for the school’s student newspaper before going on to Newsday. He currently works for MSG Network and ESPN. “It’s a really scary time,” Jessica Dimmock (Brooklyn ‘04, M.A.) said. “It’s a frightening idea that people have been made to feel that they should discredit or be suspicious of the rigor that goes into journalism.” Dimmock is a prominent photographer and filmmaker, and winner of The Infinity Award for Photojournalist of the Year from the International Center of Photography in 2014. Her book “The Ninth Floor,” which documented heroin addicts in Manhattan, claimed 1st place in Multimedia at the 2007 New York Photo Festival. Of course, no cloud lacks a silver lining, and the new era of digital media offers future generations unprecedented, exciting opportunities.
Athletics and a strong communications program attracted Brian Kilmeade to Long Island University. He credits his days on the men’s soccer team as foundational for learning time-management skills and discipline. Kilmeade believes that the superfluous content inundates all parties, increasing competition for attention. “To break through is harder,” he said. “If everyone’s got an iPhone, that means there’s a lot more competition.” While ambitious freelancers may overlook the value of a earning a degree in the field, LIU’s global network of 260,000 alumni boasts a litany of accomplished individuals in virtually every branch of professional media, many of whom work just a short train ride away from campus. “Life is connections,” Kilmeade said. “If you can sit across from somebody and they say they graduated from your college, it helps.” Moreover, as Long Island University grows in prestige, so too does the camaraderie among graduates, Kilmeade believes. “I think there’s an additional pride now. The combination of merging campuses helps,” he said. “I’ve seen a constant upgrade since I left. A lot of people have noticed it. LIU is on the move.” As for heralding truth in contentious times, Kilmeade points out that, from a commercial standpoint, restoring trust and resuscitating endangered media goliaths go hand in hand. “First and foremost, you’ve got to be telling the truth.” he said. “We’re not going to exist if we’re not credible. You want to have headlines that get people to watch and click, I get it, but if the stories aren’t true, you’re not going to keep that audience, and no one makes money.”
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LIU ICONS OF JOURNALISM rnold Philip Hano — Editor, A novelist, biographer and journalist, best known for his non-fiction work, “A Day in the Bleachers,” a critically acclaimed eyewitness account of Game 1 of the 1954 World Series.
Similar to Kilmeade, a basketball scholarship drew Alan Hahn to LIU Post, along with the school’s reputation for journalism and one of the top newspapers on any campus in the nation. “All of the pieces fit for me,” he said. “Once I visited there, it was a no-brainer. I had other offers, including NYU.” Back in the 1980s, the path to publication was arduous and required patience. Long before the internet ruled the day, print media offered limited space for up-and-coming writers. “Now, there’s so much more opportunity to get experience, even while in school,” Hahn pointed out. “You can be a freelancer, a stringer. I didn’t have any of that.” The challenge for current LIU students is standing out from the crowd. While the principle is timeless, contemporary dynamics make the task seem daunting. “You end up getting lost in a sea of a million people, trying to do the same thing,” Hahn said. “We’re trying too hard now to be heard or noticed.” Hahn understands that clicks drive revenue, but insists the strategy must remain scrupulous. “It can’t be about traffic. When media became a product, that’s when media stopped being journalism,” he said. “We live in an age now of fast food: ‘I just need the take, the quick hit, the eight-second video. I don’t have time to read five or six paragraphs.’ And that’s a shame.”
Enthused and engaged with photography from an early age, Jessica Dimmock always thought of it as a hobby, not a potential career path. She started off as a teacher, but a nagging sense of neglect for her greatest passion prompted her return to school. Her first breakthrough came after exploring how to display the familiar horrors of drug addiction through a novel perspective. “I found a story I could really sink my teeth into,” she said. “I didn’t have to worry about selling it or if it was publishable.” In fact, it turned out to be both, immediately catapulting Dimmock into the upper echelon of photojournalists. Although she recognizes that the public plays a role in the deterioration of mainstream outlets, Dimmock acknowledges part of the solution to regaining trust in the trade must come from those among her ranks. “Some of it is about journalists continuing to put their heads down and make good and important work, and sometimes stop only preaching to their audiences,” she said. The paradigm of objectivity has long been a fundamental tenet of the free press in America. Dimmock aimed to lead her team in holding to it during the production of the hit Netflix documentary Flint Town, which scrutinized the Flint Police Department. “We were trying to create more of a dialogue,” she said. “Even if we don’t agree with their tactics, isn’t it important to try to understand them, rather than just writing them off and saying, ‘I don’t believe in what these people believe’?”
L arry Wachtel — Iconic market analyst on NYC radio famous for his thick Brooklyn accent, known as the “Voice of Wall Street.” Burl Osborne — Served on the board of directors for the Associated Press for 14 years, as well as the editor and then publisher of the Dallas Morning News. ancy Hicks Maynard — Former N owner of The Oakland Tribune, cofounder of the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education and the first African-American female reporter for The New York Times. I carus “Ike” Pappas — A news correspondent for CBS for 25 years, Pappas was the reporter who was speaking to Lee Harvey Oswald when Jack Ruby shot him. Pappas testified at Ruby’s trial. icholas Pileggi — Once New N York City’s top crime writer for the Associated Press and then New York Magazine, Pileggi’s “Wiseguy” novel inspired the movie Goodfellas. rthur George “Art” Rust Jr. — A Sports broadcaster, historian and author, considered by many to have been the godfather of sports talk radio. ita Sands — The first female R anchor for WCBS Newsradio and broadcast news correspondent for CBS and ABC networks, and news director of The New York Times radio stations in New York City.
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HUTTON HOUSE LECTURES WHERE LIFELONG LEARNING NEVER STOPS F
or decades Hutton House Lectures at Lorber Hall on the LIU Post campus has offered stimulating classes in the arts, humanities and sciences to adults who want to learn something new.
The lectures run the gamut. One recent course focused on how age and disease affects different animals as they grow older, taught by Dr. Robin Sturtz, director of the LIU Veterinary Technology Program and president of the Long Island Veterinary Medical Association. Another explored what archaeologists and scientists have discovered from studying the Old Testament, as taught by Denise Gold, senior officer of the Long Island Society of the Archaeological Institute of America. How five game-changing movies on sports pushed the envelope on the representation of athletes in celluloid was the theme of an entertaining lecture series developed by film-expert Valerie Franco.
LIU Art professor Dan Christoffel, internationally recognized for his portraits of historical figures such as Lincoln, Walt Whitman and Mark Twain, will be teaching at Hutton House this summer.
Theodore Roosevelt scholars are presenting a three-part lecture series at Hutton House on President Roosevelt this spring.
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Besides its regular course offerings, Hutton House also provides special presentations. Former Congressman Steve Israel signed up to host a three-part lecture series to share his invaluable experience gleaned from representing his Long Island district for 16 years. Tweed Roosevelt, Chairman of LIU’s Theodore Roosevelt Institute and great grandson of the 26th president of the United States, offered his insights into his family’s important legacy as well as provide the public access to our
Spring
nation’s history thanks to the collection of TR’s writings and archival materials that will take up special residence in a revamped Lorber Hall. Other special presentations have ranged from an appreciation of the words and music of Irving Berlin to the study of two pivotal battles of the Civil War, and a close-up look at the monumental movie “Ben-Hur” in time for the 60th anniversary of its Hollywood premiere. Hutton House was the brain child of Frances Bush-Brown, wife of then-chancellor Albert Bush-Brown, who had envisioned a program that would offer cultural courses weighted toward history, art history, literature, philosophy, music and current affairs. With the encouragement of her husband, the idea bore fruit in 1975 when Bush-Brown enlisted her friend, Claire Fairman, a Radcliffe graduate with a major in art history and professional experience in public relations, to become the first director of the Hutton House Lectures. “The prospective audience would be the intellectually curious, open-minded women and men of the North Shore and beyond,” wrote Robert Parker, former chairman of the Hutton House Lectures Advisory Board in “Where Town Meets Gown,” his brief history of the series timed to commemorate its 25th anniversary. The series took its name from the Georgian-style mansion on the Post campus originally designed in 1927 by noted Washington, D.C., architect John Russell Pope, who had also designed the Jefferson Memorial. From 1946 until 1965, when the University acquired the property, the building had been owned and occupied by W.E. Hutton II, the cousin of Marjorie Merriweather Post’s second husband, E.F. Hutton. The building is now known as Lorber Hall.
also highlight the University’s “faculty stars,” as Parker put it. Lending their expertise early on, Chancellor Bush-Brown, a professional architect, lectured on that subject, while Post President Edward J. Cook taught a course on economics. Editors from Newsday came to deliver lectures on current events. Later Thomas Hoving, then director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, shared his knowledge of Egyptian archaeology. Anthropologists Margaret Mead, Richard Leaky and Jane Goodall also spoke to packed houses. The first full year saw 215 adults participate in the program. Since then, that number has grown more than ten-fold. Today, the LIU School of Professional Studies, under the leadership of Dean Rita Langdon and Associate Dean Lynne Manouvrier, is expanding the Hutton House programming to create a nationally recognized initiative that will have on-campus as well as off-site offerings throughout our region and the world. “We share the community’s love for Hutton House,” said Dean Langdon. •
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Ever-popular former New York congressman, the Honorable Steve Israel, is presenting a three-part series this spring as part of the award-winning Hutton House Lectures.
For more information about the School of Professional Studies, please visit LIU.EDU/POST/ACADEMICS/SCHOOL-OF-PROFESSIONAL-STUDIES
Entrance to Lorber Hall
From the its inception, Bush-Brown and Claire Fairman decided that they would focus more on cultural and liberal arts rather than just on vocational or how-to courses. The lectures would
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L I U ’ S THEODORE ROOSEVELT INSTITUTE H ONO R S H I S LE G A C Y The Theodore Roosevelt Association and LIU are aligned in a unified mission to take Theodore Roosevelt’s life and ideals and make them relevant and accessible for students, educators and individuals from around the world.
LIU’s Theodore Roosevelt Institute will work to further the legacy of the legendary Long Island resident and 26th President of the United States. The Theodore Roosevelt Institute is a collaboration between LIU, the Sagamore Hill National Historic Site and the Theodore Roosevelt Association. The Institute will serve as a dedicated resource for research, public seminars, lectures, international scholars, educational programs and conferences focused on TR’s life and times, and his continued relevance to the issues facing America today. It will also showcase many of his writings and books. “Long Island University is committed to working with its partners to preserve and grow the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt through the Theodore Roosevelt Institute’s programming, sponsored research, and other events that highlight President Roosevelt’s extraordinary life and the ideals to which he was committed,” said LIU President Dr. Kimberly R. Cline. Thanks to a $250,000 New York State grant secured by Assemblyman Charles D. “Chuck” Lavine (D-Glen Cove), LIU plans to renovate and expand Lorber Hall on the LIU Post campus to accommodate the Institute and the Congressionally-chartered Theodore Roosevelt Association. “The Theodore Roosevelt Institute at LIU will allow for greater opportunities for community access to local,
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from around the world. Our ultimate objective is to grow the Institute into a school, furthering the ideals of Theodore Roosevelt.”
Tweed Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt’s great-grandson, is partnering with Long Island University to bring the legacy of the nation’s 26th president to new generations of Americans.
national and international history,” said Assemblyman Lavine, “and I am proud to help procure funding for this wonderful project.” Under the leadership of Tweed Roosevelt, the Theodore Roosevelt Association is a historic and public service organization dedicated to perpetuating the memory and ideals of the 26th President. “The Theodore Roosevelt Association is thrilled to partner with LIU on this ambitious effort,” said Tweed Roosevelt. “The Theodore Roosevelt Association and LIU are aligned in a unified mission to take Theodore Roosevelt’s life and ideals and make them relevant and accessible for students, educators and individuals
LIU is joining with Sagamore Hill Historic Site and the National Park Service to offer a special professional development program for educators. Week-long seminars will be held to engage K–12 teachers in examining original documents and archives, as well as literary and social works of the Theodore Roosevelt era. LIU faculty, visiting experts and National Park Service Rangers with special knowledge of the role of Sagamore Hill in the presidency and in Roosevelt’s personal life will be on hand to share their insights. Through partnerships with LIU Post’s College of Education, Information and Technology, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the LIU Global Institute, the Theodore Roosevelt Institute at LIU plans to enhance existing programs and develop new opportunities for high school students as well as LIU Post undergraduate and graduate students. The Institute’s proximity to nearby Sagamore Hill, where Roosevelt lived from 1885 to his death in 1919, provides easy access to the national historic site. The confluence of services and resources provided by LIU and Sagamore Hill, an important collaboration, will help to bring this important chapter of American history alive for generations to come. •
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5 1. Theodore Roosevelt mounted on horse. 2. Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Campaign Poster, 1904. 3. Theodore Roosevelt sitting at his desk at Sagamore Hill. 4. Theodore Roosevelt in front of Sagamore Hill. 5. Young Theodore Roosevelt as Wilderness Hunter, 1880s.
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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
CHINTU PATEL HAS FOUND
THE PRESCRIPTION FOR SUCCESS P
harmaceutical industry leader Chintu Patel knows Long Island University well. He’s a member of the Board of Trustees, received an Honorary Doctorate from LIU and is also a neighbor, living near the Post campus in Old Brookville since 2010. Patel is the co-chief executive officer, co-chairman and co-founder, with his brother Chirag, of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, now the fourth largest generic drug maker in the United States. He’s spoken at the University’s commencements and received an honorary degree from the Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (LIU Pharmacy). As LIU Pharmacy’s Dean John Pezzuto said, “You inspire us all, as you are an example for pharmacists and a role model for the profession. For your expertise, extraordinary leadership, philanthropy and service as a humanitarian.” Founded as a startup in 2002, Amneal has grown rapidly, employing more than 5,000 people and generating an estimated $2 billion in annual revenue from its more than 200 generic products. Patel has made great strides since arriving with his family from India when he was just 15. He followed his father’s footsteps and became a pharmacist at Eckerd Pharmacy. He was inspired to launch Amneal because he wanted to do more in his career and do more for the consumer. “I saw patients coming into the pharmacy not having the money for co-payments, having to pick between food and medicine,” he said. “The support from my wife and my family gave me the confidence to go ahead and start something even though I had very limited knowledge of the pharmacy industry. I knew a lot more about the front end: how the drug behaves in the body, the side-effects and the dosages.”
and not get carried away or get disappointed because things are not happening overnight, that will lead to success,” Patel said. “There’s no substitute for working hard.” Looking to the future, Patel predicts that artificial intelligence will play an important role in the research and development of pharmaceutical products. Genetics will also gain more prominence in drug therapy. “There will be a lot more on the prevention side,” he said. “You’re not going to wait until you develop cancer. You’re going to be screened for certain genomes up front so you won’t get cancer to begin with.” For their business prowess, Patel and his brother were honored with the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur of the Year Life Sciences Award in 2011. Somehow he’s found the time to serve on the boards of the Long Island Association, a local business advocacy group, and the Make-a-Wish Foundation, as well as donate to the Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity. In India, he and his wife Falguni launched the Irada International Foundation, which provides access to health care through mobile clinics and community outreach. “Irada,” which means “resolve,” is also the title of an award-winning movie that he and his wife produced, which was declared “the Best Film on Environment Conservation/Preservation” at the National Film Awards held in New Delhi in 2018. The film, which also earned Divya Dutta the “Best Supporting Actress” prize for her performance, dealt with the adverse impact of uranium and fertilizer poisoning on people living in India’s Malwa region. The production marked the couple’s debut in Mumbai’s thriving movie industry, and they have other projects in the pipeline. Patel admits that he’s a big fan of super hero movies, perhaps due to he and his wife raising two daughters. “The Avengers are my favorite,” he said with a laugh. “They just take my brain out and I relax.” Someday, he says, he’ll make a Hollywood movie.
With his father’s blessing, he got Amneal off the ground. When his brother joined him in 2005, it took off. But he never forgot his core beliefs.
“It would be a film that would inspire millennials that anything is possible in life if you stay with it and you work hard,” explained Patel. “You give it the time, and have honesty and integrity, and the world, the universe and divine blessings will make you successful.”
“When you’re doing things for the right purpose with honesty, integrity and staying focused on your short-term goals,
As Patel sees it, that inspiring formula is a prescription for success. •
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FACULTY SPOTLIGHT
T UR N I N G TH E P A G E THE NEXT SEASON OF KEN LAZEBNIK’S LIFE FEATURES A RETURN TO BROOKLYN. TUNE IN THIS FALL FOR SEASON TWO, ONLY AT LIU!
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he inside of Ken LaZebnik’s corner office at LIU Brooklyn’s campus resembles that of a Hollywood showrunner, only with a view of snow-lined streets and brick high-rises outside his window instead of multi-million-dollar mansions adorned with palm trees. A small stack of scripts rests atop his desk, with two laptops and half-empty shelves containing various books and binders. LaZebnik is in the final weeks of his first year with the University, so perhaps these same shelves will be filled in a matter of months. He will surely have a list of student success stories to flaunt. As Director of the M.F.A. in Writing and Production for Television program, LaZebnik coordinates the University’s TV Writers Studio, which offers students access to industry professionals and facilities like Steiner studios, where classes are held. He took the program baton from founder and longtime friend Norman Steinberg, an Emmy Award winning screenwriter who retired last fall. The two met in the early 1990s after LaZebnik moved from New York to Los Angeles, where he established a career writing hour-long dramas, including Touched By An Angel, Star Trek Enterprise, and Army Wives. “Norman was incredibly generous,” said LaZebnik, recalling his early days trying to break through the industry. “He just read a script of mine and liked it, said, ‘Let’s go out to lunch.’ We did, and we hit it off.” LaZebnik grew up in Columbia, Missouri, where his father, Jack, taught at Stephens College. Professional writing proved a family trend, as his older brother Phillip writes animated features such as Mulan, Pocahontas, and The Prince of Egypt. His younger brother Rob just wrapped up his twelfth year of writing for The Simpsons. Ken moved to Minnesota to attend Macalester College, where he met his wife, the now accomplished actress Kate Fugeli, during a production of A Christmas Carol. The two moved to New York not long after getting married. In 2011, LaZebnik took his writing skills to higher education, becoming an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California, and loved it. Realizing he was perfect for the role, LaZebnik pitched a low-residency program to Stephens College. The administration greenlit the project in 2014.
Four years later, Steinberg called up his old friend with a pitch of his own. After deciding to retire, he identified LaZebnik as his ideal successor. As it turned out, the offer was too good to refuse. “What Norman has created, which is so smart, is the writers’ room model,” LaZebnik said. “He always said that to him it was like a practicum, meaning that he was interested in giving students the experience of actually being in a writers’ room. That’s unique. I don’t think there’s any other program that full-out does what we do.” LaZebnik gushes about the opportunities for students, who operate in a media arts department near tantamount to a fully functioning production studio. The incubator space, instructed and overseen by prominent names in music, acting, cinematography, digital production, allow for collaborative projects that appear three-dimensional on a résumé or within a portfolio. In fact, it may not be long before one of them ends up on Netflix. “To me, the beauty of what we do here is that you get to have that experience of actually filming with professionals, and see what you’ve written on-screen. It just elevates the end product, way above the usual. It’s not a student film at that point; it’s something else.” One of the program’s biggest appeals, like the University, is its prime location. “Brooklyn is the coolest place in the world right now,” said LaZebnik. “To me, it’s the creative center of America right now. Part of it is just because the artists got pushed out of Manhattan and migrated to Brooklyn. It’s fascinating to me, as someone who lived in New York in the ‘80s.” And New York, thanks in large part to the tax incentives from the state, draws productions like bumblebees to nectar. “I can tell you that people in L.A. are going ‘Man, what’s going on?’” LaZebnik said. “There are all these shows that are getting shot in New York and more and more writing opportunities are happening. It feels like New York is — it feels strange to say it — but an up-and-coming hub of television.” Just like prospective students, the chance to dive into the excitement was too much for LaZebnik. “There’s a lot of opportunities right now,” he said. • LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Making a Difference HOW LIU POST ALUMNA WINIFRED MACK FOUND A REWARDING CAREER IN HEALTH CARE
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orthwell Health Senior Vice President Winifred Mack, RN, (Post ’76, B.S. in Nursing; Post ’85, M.P.A.) can still recall when she got the best career advice of her life. She was 17 years old and lying in a hospital bed recuperating from an emergency appendectomy while on vacation in Maine visiting her grandparents. “An extraordinary nurse named Lee was taking care of me, and we would just talk,” said Mack, who spent almost two weeks in the hospital. Three days before she was due to return home to Queens and start her senior year at Bishop Edmund J. Reilly High School in Fresh Meadows, they got to talking about her future plans. “I said, ‘I think I’m going to be a gym teacher.’ Lee looked me straight in the eye and said, ‘No, you’re not.’ I said, ‘Excuse me?’ And she replied, ‘You’re a nurse. All week you have done nothing but ask me about all these student nurses. You got excited when you found out what they were doing. You keep on telling me about how you care for people. Even your family says that you’re more worried about them—and you’re the one who had the surgery! You have nursing in you.’ ” Mack, who recently joined Long Island University’s Board of Trustees, took Lee’s advice to heart. “She was an absolutely amazing woman,” added Mack. They stayed in touch over the years as her career took off. She now has more than four decades of health-care experience as a nurse and an administrator. When she was promoted to be the executive director at Southside Hospital in 2006, she became the second nurse ever to lead a Northwell hospital. As Northwell’s senior vice president of health system operations, Mack is responsible for overseeing and implementing policies, evaluating perioperative protocols, providing counsel for emergency management services, and working on issues
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related to labor management, strategic planning, special projects, community relations and management consulting. She recently became the interim president and chief executive officer of Nassau University Medical Center, which has a partnership with Northwell Health. Her first clinical job was working from four to midnight at Syosset Hospital, after she’d finished matriculating at Nassau County Community College in 1970. The following year she met her future husband Bill on a blind date and they clicked. A year later they were due to get married in July, but in February he told her that he had something important to tell her and he’d pick her up soon. “I said to my mother, ‘I think he’s backing out. He says he wants to have a serious conversation.’ My mom said, ‘Oh, really? We’ll see about that. I just put the last payment on the wedding hall.’ ” Later, at the restaurant, she had no appetite; she wanted him to get to the point. He explained that not only had he taken the Nassau County Police Department’s entrance exam, he’d passed, and he was supposed to begin on March 1st. “He says, ‘I just wanted to tell you that, because you said you would never marry a cop.’ I started to laugh, and I said, ‘You really believed me? Listen, that would be like you telling me not to be a nurse. I just said that to aggravate my father.’ ” Her dad was a New York City policeman. When Mack returned home from dinner, she found her mother pacing frantically. “I walk in the door, and my mother says, ‘So?’ And my father says, ‘So, he’s going to be a policeman — and your daughter said she wouldn’t marry a policeman!’ My mom looks at him and says, ‘You knew?’ ‘Of course, I knew,’ he says. ‘He talked to me about it all the time. He wanted to tell Winnie himself.’ ” They got married on July 1st and have been together ever since, living in Bayville. Early on in their marriage they decided that Bill would get his master’s and she’d earn her bachelor’s degree. They enrolled at Post because the college gave married couples a break on tuition.
Above: Winnie Mack is presented with the LIU Post Distinguished Alumni Award in May of 2013.
You want to do the right thing. You want to take care of people. You want to ensure that everything you touch and do is for a good reason.
“I worked full-time days and went to school evenings and weekends,” Mack said. “I would get up at five in the morning and go to work. I worked from seven to three, but you could never get out at three, so I didn’t pick my first class until six at night. Then I would go from six until 11, and come home and study from eleven to one.” The schedule was grueling but it paid off. At one point, when she was eight months pregnant with her son Patrick, she found herself testifying before a Senate committee chaired by Sen. Al Gore to discuss pediatric liver transplants, a topic she’d become very familiar with as president of the North American Transplant Coordinators Organization. “I think the best gift you can give anybody is life,” she exclaimed. “You can do that through giving birth and through death by giving of yourself.” As Mack looks back at her career, she believes that having all her clinical experience and getting her degrees at LIU—she was given LIU Post’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013—helped to propel her to where she is today. But she’s never forgotten the bedside advice she got when she was 17 and recovering from surgery. “It’s just inside of me,” she said. “You want to do the right thing. You want to take care of people. You want to ensure that everything you touch and do is for a good reason.” Words to live by. •
With scissors in hand (top photo), Winnie Mack smiles at the opening ceremony in 2017 for the Interprofessional Simulation Center at LIU Post. On her left is Dr. Stacy Gropack, then-Dean of the School of Health Professions and Nursing at Post and now the Dean of the LIU Brooklyn School of Health Professions. On her right are Paul Dominquez, Assistant Dean of Health Professions and Nursing, and then-LIU Post Vice President for Academic Affairs Lori Knapp, who replaced Gropack as Dean at LIU Post. Next, Mack cuts the green ribbon to make it official. Below, LIU Post Nursing students practice their bedside manner in the new lab.
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PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT
SIMULATION:
THE PATHWAY TO EXCELLENCE THROUGH STATE-OF-THE-AR T FACILITIES, PREMIER FACULTY, ELITE NETWORKING AND INNOVATIVE CURRICULUM, LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY IS SUPPLYING CAPABLE, QUALIFIED NURSES TO MEET THE GROWING DEMAND
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ong Island University is pioneering nursing education by incorporating simulated patient scenarios, electronic patient-record systems, and patient-centered care into the curriculum on both campuses. These practices prepare undergraduate students for successful future careers in the health-care industry, and the approach is paying off. In 2017, The Harriet Rothkopf Heilbrunn School of Nursing at LIU Brooklyn was awarded “Educational Institution of the Year” by the National Association of Hispanic Nurses-New York. Dr. Peggy Tallier, Dean of the Heilbrunn School of Nursing, and Dr. Lori Knapp, Dean of the School of Health Professions and Nursing, believe that this approach equips graduates to enter the professional world with minimal adjustment, and it all but ensures they master the knowledge necessary for passing the NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses). “It’s the didactic lecture and lab components that makes the school very experiential,” Dr. Tallier said. “Students are not just learning from PowerPoints. Rather, they practice their skills with state-of-the-art simulation technology, which allows for a hands-on, interactive experience.” “We understood the need for students to practice in the field of nursing in this region,” echoed Dr. Knapp. “The
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Nursing students get a hands-on experience delivering a baby in the new simulation lab, where both mother and infant are mannequins so any complications that arise are intended by their instructors as teachable moments, not lifethreatening matters of urgency. Another feature of the lab is that a mannequin with a special monitor prepares students to administer the correct medication in the proper dosages.
health-care systems continue to grow and expand, and nurses are needed. Our graduates fill that critical need.”
the curriculum. Students receive one-on-one clinical placement with nursing leaders in their leadership course.
Made possible by a $10-million gift from the Heilbrunn family, LIU Brooklyn’s School of Nursing boasts a multi-floor facility that replicates a hospital setting, empowering clinical competence and teamwork skills for students. Among the myriad realistic features are high-tech mannequins that respond to stimuli and have bodily functions. Some give birth to a mannequin baby, preparing students for childbirth and the complications that can arise during it. Other mannequins report the amount of medication administered and will instantly reveal in the monitor whether or not the student administered the proper medication and dosage.
This experience makes them “visible to places of employment, oftentimes where they are hired,” Tallier said. “[This is] a leadership course that is unique to LIU.”
The Interprofessional Simulation Center functions similarly at LIU Post, with several mannequins and multiple wings, including an Emergency Department Area, Obstetrical Delivery Suite and examination rooms. Students practice their skills in this safe, controlled environment while technicians or faculty members remotely control the mannequins and observe students from behind a one-way glass window. The sessions are also recorded on video, which students watch afterward during a debriefing session to analyze their performance. “We want to challenge the students with complex scenarios,” said Brian Haughney, LIU Post’s Simulation Center Manager. Undergraduate nursing students also work alongside students from other departments, such as Biomedical Science, Health Sciences, Health Information Management, Medical Imaging, Social Work, and Nutrition, giving them a more integrated educational experience. “On any given day, you can see faculty members working with nursing students, and in another scenario, with diagnostic imaging students,” Knapp said. “The center comes alive with dynamic activities across other professions.” While nursing students receive a comprehensive program of study in school, their internships are also an integral part of
Since opening in 2017, the nursing program at LIU Post has already partnered with several neighboring health-care institutions to offer a hands-on education that is a hallmark of LIU. Unlike at other universities, students are immediately accepted as nursing majors and begin to take nursing courses during their first semester. “This is a true four-year integrated educational approach to nursing, which leads to generally better results and outcomes in students’ future careers,” Knapp said. Some students may choose to continue their educations post-grad, because the University offers Master of Science degrees in Family Nurse Practitioner, Nursing Education, or Adult Gerontological Nurse Practitioner. Moreover, the numerous health-care facilities associated with the Nursing School provide a variety of opportunities for post-grad job placement. Among the many program connections are: Brooklyn Hospital, Northwell Health Systems, Catholic Health Services, and all major New York City-based hospitals, such as NYU Langone and Mount Sinai Beth Israel. Additionally, the Nursing Advisory Board at Long Island University includes some of the most prominent professionals in the area. The board “gives us a chance to see what we’re doing well, what we could improve, and what they need from us to educate nurses so they are top-notch employees when hired,” Tallier said. Looking ahead, the prognosis is clear that both the Heilbrunn School of Nursing at LIU Brooklyn and the School of Health Professions and Nursing at LIU Post will continue to grow their national reputation for excellence as they prepare future generations of nurses to make an immediate impact on their patients’ lives. •
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evoted professors wield the power to advance their respective institutions through both dint of individual effort and by inspiring student achievement. At LIU, they are the linchpin for the fulfillment of the University’s strategic goals, so the decades of excellence exhibited by members of the Biology departments at both campuses overlapping with the institution’s remarkable ascent is neither a surprise nor a coincidence. Perhaps no one exemplifies the University’s commitment to meaningful research better than Dr. Jeanmaire Molina, Assistant Professor of Biology at LIU Brooklyn. Before arriving at the University, she willingly joined a botanist who sought volunteers to join him on a perilous trip to a remote part of the Philippines, which involved a 10-hour bus ride followed by a six-seat airplane flight known as “The Flying Coffin,” because it crashed almost every two years. “Fortunately, I’ve survived eight or nine trips,” Molina said. “There was one time we flew right after a typhoon, and we felt that sudden dip and…yeah, it was crazy.” Besides acquiring entertaining anecdotes in bad traveling experiences, Molina’s plight yielded an uncompromising ardor portending future success. Now a mother, Molina swore off future Flying Coffin flights, yet her devotion, now manifest through other endeavors, remains unabated. Funded by the U.S. Botanic Garden, Molina and her team are trying to propagate a rare flower called Rafflesia, a feat that has not yet been accomplished. “It’s like the panda of the
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plant world,” she said. “It’s that endangered — and charismatic. To have it in a botanic garden in the U.S. would be really something.” She travels every summer to the Philippines and brings samples back for her students to analyze so they can attempt germination using host extracts. This hands-on, guided work for students also includes genomic studies and DNA testing, among other projects. Dr. Molina teaches ethnobotany and medicinal botany at LIU. “We make chewing gum. We make chocolate. Anything that’s useful from plants,” Molina said. “I ask them to bring plant samples, and we test them for DNA and make sure it contains the right species. We even do beer making.” The students enjoy the lesson, even if they’re no closer to becoming brew masters. “It does not taste good,” explained department chairman Dr. Joe Morin, who has been at LIU since 1986. “In my opinion, education is changing,” Morin said. “Students don’t want a general degree anymore. They want something that gets them a job when they get out of here.” In line with the University’s overarching vision, the Biology department values experiential learning. “We’re trying to develop courses and programs with lab experience and research experience where the students learn things,” Morin said. “So when they go out and look for a job, they can say, ‘I can do X, Y, and Z.’”
Possibilities abound, aided in large part by instruments like LIU’s high-level genome sequencing machine, which helped current graduate student Nini Fan (Brooklyn, M.S. Biology, M.B.A.) to develop a unique business concept for a biotech consulting firm. The project was sponsored by Innovation Corps, a program administered by the New York City Regional Innovation Node (NYCRIN) for the National Science Foundation. This combination of computational power and biological ingenuity comprises the essence of the new Bachelor of Science in Bioinformatics degree program. First-year professor Dr. Darryl Reeves underscored the program’s value, both to students and the University. “It provides a lot of different career paths in some very in-demand and potentially high-paying roles,” he said. “For LIU to be offering it as an undergraduate program is a real advantage.” By gaining expertise in two expanding fields, graduates benefit from a wide range of occupational possibilities. “There’s a very direct route going to pharmaceutical companies or to hospitals, or research institutions,” Reeves said. “If a student finds out they are more into the technical side of the work, they also have a foundation to continue down that path, pursuing careers in data science and computer programming.” LIU professor and best-selling author Dr. Bill Schutt (Post ‘78, B.A.) emphasized the importance of faculty devoted to research and vocational labors beyond just teaching. As a research associate in residence at the American Museum of Natural History and an accomplished writer of both novels and non-fiction books related to the field of biology, Schutt’s extra effort allows him to give lectures across the country, promoting his books and various other endeavors. Last year Schutt wrote the script for a TED-Ed video on his recent book, “Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History.” The video has surpassed 2.5 million views, ranking it among the site’s Top Ten most viewed for 2018. He is currently working on a second video for TED-Ed.
Dr. Jeanmaire Molina poses with a rare Rafflesia flower.
While LIU has grown since his time as a student at the University, its foundational tenets remain intact. “The teachers cared,” he said. “That’s still one of the strengths of this school. You’re not a number if you’re an undergrad. Your professors actually know you.” Although few educational experiences can top a memorable lecture, nothing beats hands-on learning. From fossil collecting in New Jersey to exclusive access at the Museum of Natural History, Schutt’s extensive connections benefit students in many ways — and they are currently working in academia, zoos and museums. With research funded by the National Science Foundation, Dr. Scott Santagata relies on his versatility to help students explore and refine their research interests. “We do a wide range of genetic and molecular work here, from cell culture, cancer biology, comparative physiology, and genomics,” he said. “We all use lots of different techniques, so students work on a variety of model and non-model systems.” Getting an early start can lead to prodigious accomplishments down the road, as familiarity is the cornerstone for indepen-
Clockwise from top left: Dr. Bill Schutt; Dr. Scott Santagata; Nini Fan; Dr. Darryl Reeves
dent exploration. “We get kids involved in research as soon as possible,” Santagata said. “Eventually what you really want them to do is present at a national conference, and the LIU Symposium ‘Post and Beyond’ is really good for that.” Santagata recognizes and cherishes the way curiosity fuels excellent research, yet appreciates the inevitable shortcomings along the way. “As a scientist, you have to learn how to live with failure,” he said. “It’s more about how you get up and do it again and again, rather than expecting to always be successful. It’s not always going to be that way. Those are good life lessons for undergrads, too.” • LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
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PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT
T H E S CHOOL OF PROF ES S ION AL AC C OUN TAN CY:
CO UN TIN G O N SU CCE S S W IT H A W EA LT H O F E X P E R I E NC E N
o matter how you add it up, you can always count on the LIU School of Professional Accountancy to help students find the right balance for having successful careers.
Founded in 1974, it’s the first school for professional accountancy in the nation, and it’s still on the leading edge. The School is part of LIU Post’s College of Management, which holds the distinction of being accredited by AACSB International, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Less than 5 percent of the world’s 16,000 business programs have earned AACSB Accreditation, making it the hallmark of business education quality. “At a time of intense competition in higher education, the LIU Post College of Management is uniquely positioned to build upon its existing attributes and embrace complex market-drivers such as technology-based disruption, the changing roles of multinational corporations, and the growth of new enterprises,” said Dr. Robert M. Valli, an internationally recognized innovation expert who is the Dean of the College. The home of the School of Professional Accountancy is known as Lorber Hall, named after Howard M. Lorber, an LIU alumnus (Post ’70, B.S. in Accounting; ’91, M.S. in Taxation; ’01, Honorary Doctorate) and a member of the University Board of Trustees. He currently serves as Chairman of Douglas Elliman, LLC, one of the nation’s oldest and largest real estate brokerage firms; Executive Chairman of Nathan’s Famous, Inc.; and President and Chief Executive Officer of Vector Group Ltd., to name a few of his many titles. In 1965 the University purchased the original estate in Brookville, then known as Mariemont, from William E. Hutton, E.F. Hutton’s nephew. Thanks to the generosity of Lorber and his wife Thea Hallman, the mansion was restored to its original luster in 2000 after a three-year, $450,000 renovation. LIU Post alumni are successful practitioners in every business area, but especially in the Big 4 accounting firms such as Rob Arning, vice chair of market development at KPMG LLP; James Flanagan, vice chairman and U.S. Managing Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers; Jeffrey Hoops, former partner of Ernst & Young and past president of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, who teaches tax and accounting courses at LIU; and William “Bill” Brennan, managing partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). “The LIU Post School of Accountancy taught me about the real world of business while opening doors that launched a fulfilling career beyond my wildest dreams,” Arning exclaimed. “The camaraderie among the students and professors created the perfect environment to learn and have lots of fun along the way. Post remains a big part of my life.” Now in his 30th year at KPMG, Rob Arning (Post ’84, B.S. in Accounting) is the head of KPMG Citizenship and chairman of the KPMG Foundation, among his duties. He’s held a number of leadership positions within KPMG. His experience in the Dean Rob Valli speaks with LIU students.
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PROMINENT LIU ALUMNI AND FACULTY
From left to right: Howard Lorber, Rob Arning, James Flanagan, Bill Brennan and Professor Jeffrey Hoops
“At LIU, you can have the experience to start your own business. You can run your own company. You can do whatever you set your mind to.” —Christina Principato
financial services industry is vast. Arning believes the School continues to lead the way in this ever-evolving field. James Flanagan (Post ‘82, B.S. in Accounting) turned the lessons he learned at LIU into a 37 year career at PricewaterhouseCoopers, rising to Vice Chair and U.S. Managing Partner after leading the firm’s Transaction Services and U.S. Financial Services practices. As head of US Financial Services, he was actively involved with global financial services leadership. At PwC, Bill Brennan (Post ’87, B.S. in Accounting), CPA is the managing partner for Assurance Transformation, where he leads a team dedicated to enhancing the operations, processes and activities in auditing. He brings more than 25 years of audit experience to the role. “I have always valued my degree from LIU and feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend this fine institution,” Brennan said. “After four years I left Post believing I was well equipped to take on a career in Public Accounting. The professors and curriculum couldn’t have prepared me any better.” “This is a very exciting time to be pursuing a career in accounting,” he added. “Watching the firms and the profession transform themselves as they react to the technological advancements has been quite pleasing. The pace of innovation is extremely high and being able to deliver quality-oriented services by leveraging data, automation and improved processes creates opportunity for all those involved.”
member at LIU Post since 2013, teaching tax and accounting courses at the undergraduate and graduate level. A retired partner at Ernst & Young LLP, he is a current member and formerly on the Board of Directors for the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). Last March, Professor Hoops was named chair of the Board of Examiners for the Uniform Certified Public Accountants Examination, which is given in all 50 states. “I’m honored to have been chosen to lead this prestigious group of professionals,” he said. “The CPA Exam is vital to the accounting profession.” Because of the network and opportunities offered through the School of Professional Accountancy, aspiring accounting students at LIU can get a leg up on their careers. Director Dr. Rebecca Rosner, Ph.D., leads the faculty in preparing graduates for all aspects of the accounting profession. Veteran Professor Michael Abatemarco, LL.M., is highly respected and a favorite among students, considered a “quadruple threat” in that he teaches courses in Accounting, Law, Finance, and Taxation. CPA and Professor Ilene Persoff’s focus offers final undergraduate preparation in the advanced accounting courses. Newcomers Drs. Ibrahim Siraj and Izhar Haq are standout performers; Dr. Siraj holds two Ph.D. degrees in Finance and Accounting. Dr. Haq, CPA, has held senior management roles in multinational corporations, and leads the faculty in the number of research publications. “LIU’s School of Professional Accountancy provides students not only an excellent education on the hard skills needed in the business world,” said Dr. Haq, “but also exposure to soft skills such as communications, leadership, agility, and emotional intelligence.” A recent graduate sums it up best. “LIU Post, to me, is about innovation and entrepreneurship,” said Christina Principato (Post ’16, B.S./M.B.A. in Accounting and Business), Senior Audit Associate at KPMG. “At LIU Post, you can have the experience to start your own business. You can run your own company. You can do whatever you set your mind to.” •
Professor Jeffrey Hoops, CPA, who earned his Master of Science in Taxation at LIU, has been a full-time faculty LIUMAGAZINE | Spring 2019
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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
A LASTING IMPACT HOW THREE LIU BROOKLYN ALUMNI HELPED PIONEER BREAKTHROUGHS IN THE TREATMENT OF KIDNEY DISEASE
From left to right: Dr. Morrell Avram, Dr. Barry Brenner, Dr. Ira Greifer
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hanks to the medical knowledge, ability and dedication of three exceptionally talented LIU Brooklyn alumni, countless thousands of children and adults with kidney disease are alive today around the world. Dr. Morrell Avram (Brooklyn ’53, B.S.), Dr. Barry Brenner (Brooklyn ’58, B.S.), and the late Dr. Ira Greifer (Brooklyn ’52, B.S.) may have gone off in different directions but they did their undergraduate work at LIU Brooklyn before branching out into the field of medicine known as nephrology. Their contributions continue to make a difference. The Avram Kidney Center at the former Long Island College Hospital, named after Dr. Morrell “Mike” Avram, its founding director, once had the distinction of keeping a patient alive on dialysis for 38 years, then the longest duration in the nation. Named after its former director, the Ira Greifer Children’s Kidney Center at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in the Bronx is regarded as one of the country’s largest, most experienced and innovative facilities dedicated to caring for children with kidney problems. Decades ago the groundbreaking research of Dr. Barry Brenner, then the founding chief of nephrology at the San Francisco Veterans Administration Hospital and now the
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Distinguished Samuel A. Levine Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, led him to become the co-author of the world’s foremost nephrology textbook, “Brenner & Rector’s The Kidney,” first published in 1976 and now in its 11th edition. Both Dr. Brenner and Dr. Avram—Dr. Greifer passed away in 2014—continue to publish and attend international conferences sharing what they’ve learned. Dr. Avram took a very circuitous route to get to LIU Brooklyn. He was born in Romania, but his mother had been born in New York City, so that he was an American citizen. When he graduated from the High School of Commerce in Manhattan, he was offered a hundred-dollar scholarship by Long Island University. Money was always tight. “I had no social life in those days because I worked all the time and I was extremely poor,” Dr. Avram recalled. Ten credits short of graduation, he was drafted to fight in the Korean War. Because he could speak German, French, Italian and Romanian, the U.S. Army deployed him to Germany, where he could interrogate escapees and deserters. “I went back to LIU and the dean said, ‘Avram, where were you? Were you in jail?’ I said, ‘No, sir.’ ‘Sir?’ said the dean. ‘Don’t tell me you were in the Army!’ I told him I was the
lowest ranking draftee.” He explained his plans to study medicine in Europe on the G.I. Bill, and the dean gave him 10 credits for gym so he could graduate. He enrolled in the University of Geneva, where he met his wife Maria. They have now been married 53 years and have five children. Dr. Avram completed his medical training back in Brooklyn at Long Island College Hospital (LICH), which later became known as SUNY Downstate Medical Center. His present title is professor of medicine at Downstate Medical College; he is also adjunct professor of medicine at SUNY Stony Brook. In 1964, Dr. Avram had 55 kidney patients in treatment at his hospital. “Nobody had that many patients because they weren’t getting paid,” he said. “I never turned a patient away.” Time magazine covered his life-saving work. He’d taken two diabetics and put them on dialysis, helping them survive for two years. “That made me famous, because since then we have kept over a million diabetics alive from a procedure that I did for the first time.” Dr. Barry Brenner was 33 years old when he started work on “The Kidney” textbook with his collaborator, Dr. Floyd Rector, who had become Chief of the Renal Division at the University Hospital in San Francisco. The two kidney specialists had first met back east while they were both working for the National Institutes of Health. Living with his family in California, Dr. Brenner began his pioneering research to unravel the mystery of how small globular structures of the kidney known as the glomerulus actually function in the filtration of bodily fluids, thanks to his studies of a unique strain of rats from Germany. His findings brought him wide renown.
(now Montefiore), Dr. Greifer was the former medical director of the National Kidney Foundation and secretary general of the International Pediatric Nephrology Association for 20 years. From her home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Carol Greifer can still recall how her husband felt about his time at LIU Brooklyn. “He was so excited about what he was learning and what he was seeing,” she said. “He just loved it.” They had met at the University of Vermont when he was in his third year in medical school and she was starting her freshman year. After he finished, they got married and eventually raised three daughters. “His passion was to develop help for those who had kidney disease,” she said, adding that he regarded his efforts to get Medicare to cover its treatment one of his crowning achievements. Dr. Greifer formed a special connection with his patients and their families at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, now Montefiore. One young girl on dialysis presented the doctor with a portrait she’d done. “She made a picture of a ferocious lion, but the big lion had the kindest eyes you’d ever seen—and that was Dr. Greifer’s relationship with his patients,” she said. Dr. Brenner offers the same advice to students today that he has told his own two children and his grandchildren. “It’s not what you study. It’s how you study.” As the accomplished careers of these three kidney specialists prove, they all put what they learned into practice. •
Like Dr. Avram, he had also gotten a scholarship to attend LIU Brooklyn. In 1987, years after his graduation, LIU awarded him an honorary degree. When he first met with John Baiardi, the chairman of LIU Brooklyn’s biology department, he said he wanted to take as many courses as he could. The dubious chairman reluctantly let him take 28 credits his freshman year instead of 17. “I never needed much sleep,” said Dr. Brenner. “I wasn’t a normal teenager. I worked 15 hours a day, six days a week.” Later he chose to attend the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine because it was the most research-oriented of the medical schools that had accepted him. Nephrology interested him because he said it was “the most cerebral topic” in all of internal medicine. “I was attracted not only by the topic but by the fact that the smartest people teaching in medicine were interested in the kidney at the time.” When he was a teenager, he met his future wife Jane on a tennis court in Coney Island. A world-renowned pediatric nephrologist and Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine
At a Christmas reception at the White House, a beaming Dr. Morrell Avram stands with his son Eric Avram, a senior producer at ABC-News, and First Lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama.
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S AN FO RD E DU C ATI ON : C O NT I NUI NG TO IN S PIRE HA RMON Y I N T H E CL AS S ROOM IN PAR TNERSHIP WITH LIU, NATIONAL UNIVERSITY SYSTEM’S SANFORD EDUCATION COLLABORATIVE REWARDS BROOKLYN KINDERGAR TEN TEACHER WITH A $10,000 CHECK
Philanthropist T. Denny Sanford founded the Sanford Education Center, the creator of the Sanford Harmony program. PS 282 kindergarten teacher Nicole Lopez, who received the check, is flanked by her principal, Rashan Hoke, and Z, the Sanford Harmony mascot, as Dr. Kimberly R. Cline looks on.
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n recognition of her inspiring approach in the classroom, New York City kindergarten teacher Nicole Lopez has won one of five inaugural Sanford Teacher Awards. Long Island University is a proud founding member of Sanford Education Collaborative, a network of universities committed to advancing the Sanford Education Programs, Harmony and Inspire. The programs are impacting the way more than 300,000 students learn in classrooms across New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. “Today, I am honored to take part in recognizing one of the outstanding educators we work with in New York City schools, Ms. Lopez, who inspires her students to strive for greatness,” said Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, President of Long Island University, who attended the ceremony held at PS 282 in Brooklyn on October 23, 2018. “I have had the pleasure of witnessing firsthand the way Ms. Lopez engages with her students, and it is amazing to see an inclusive classroom where children work together and truly support one another.” The Sanford Teacher Award is a half-million dollar campaign to honor the nation’s most inspiring Pre-K through 12th grade teachers. When Lopez entered her Park Slope school, she was surprised to learn that she was the recipient of a $10,000 check in recognition of her meeting the key criteria that define the Sanford Teacher Award because she showed her commitment to creating an inspirational and harmonious classroom with students of diverse backgrounds. “It feels really, really special to be honored as a teacher,” said Lopez. She said she plans to donate her prize money to her elementary school’s programs. “Inspiring teachers are critical for student success, shaping students in their formative years and guiding them to become the best versions of themselves,” said Dr. Cline. “LIU is proud to partner with change agents like Principal Hoke and Ms. Lopez to truly revolutionize the way children learn and thrive.” On hand for the award ceremony was Dr. Michael R. Cunningham, Chancellor of the National University System, which is working in partnership with LIU to promote the Sanford Education Programs, as well as a very proud PS 282 Principal Rashan Hoke. PS 282 has been integrally involved in this endeavor with LIU since January 2017. •
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LEADING THE WAY TO SUCCESS LIU HOSTS SUPERINTENDENTS/COLLEGE PRESIDENTS PAR TNERSHIP FORUM TO PREPARE STUDENTS FOR HIGHER EDUCATION
Helping today’s high school students make a smoother transition to the rigorous demands of higher education was the focus of the Superintendents/ College Presidents Partnership Regional Forum held at Long Island University’s Tilles Center on Nov. 28, 2018. Almost 150 high school superintendents, principals and guidance counselors joined Long Island’s college presidents and administrators to hear concrete suggestions on how they can improve college readiness at the high school level.
children’s long-term success, preparing them for the “college mindset”—as she put it—as well as helping them choose what college to attend. Dr. Timothy Eagen, superintendent of Kings Park Union Free School District, who also co-chairs the SCPP steering committee, discussed what his working group on mathematics had recommended. “Our students rely way too much on their calculators,” he observed. MaryEllen Elia, New York State Education Commissioner
The participants were greeted by LIU President Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, co-chair of the SCPP steering committee, who praised the hundreds of hours the volunteers had devoted to studying this important issue. “Our collective effort will improve transitional pathways to college,” said Dr. Cline, “and will become an engine for equity, recognizing the need to identify gaps, share best practices, and develop new approaches to improve attainment rates.” The SCPP is a work group formed in 2001 of the Long Island Regional Advisory Council on Higher Education (LIRACHE), which is a non-profit consortium of 15 colleges and universities, representing more than 178,000 students and more than 33,000 employees. The Partnership is uniquely focused on matters related to teaching and learning on Long Island, from preK-12 and beyond. “College readiness is an issue that needs to be tackled,” said Dr. Albert Inserra, Dean of the College of Education and Information Technology at LIU Post. “It’s not so much an academic issue as it is about how kids can transition from high school to college, meaning: Can they work independently? Do they know how to manage their time? Do they know what it means to be in a college class where nobody’s calling your mother to tell her that you didn’t do your homework?” The forum presented the results of three work groups that had handled the areas of counseling/advising, mathematics, and writing skills. “While academic skills are clearly important, social and emotional factors—the non-cognitive and meta-cognitive skills—are actually quite powerful when it comes to college readiness,” said Dr. Rachell Germana, interim assistant provost for academic success, division of undergraduate education, Stony Brook University, who co-chaired the first work group. She called for getting parents more engaged as effective partners in their
He brought a special perspective to this area as a former physics teacher. The goal for improving math fluency, he said, is threefold: “making it real, making it relevant, and making it practical.”
He pointed out that under New York State rules, high school students are required to take only three years of mathematics, and
While academic skills are clearly important, social and emotional factors—the non-cognitive and meta-cognitive skills—are actually quite powerful when it comes to college readiness
as a result many seniors in high school skip math only to wind up in worse shape when they get to their first year of college. As Dr. Ellen Semel, superintendent of Islip Union Free School District, later put it, the forum reinforced the need to change the emphasis on statistics in high school. “We don’t do enough,” she said afterwards, calling the forum excellent. “That’s the most significant course freshmen college kids take, and we give them calculus.” When it was her turn to speak, New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia praised the work done by LIRACHE in creating SCPP. “You have some incredible examples here of great partnerships,” Dr. Elia said, who added that the goal is to help all high school kids find their true pathway to success. “The real issue is: How do we guarantee that we have opportunities for all students in New York State and that every one of them has success in college, their career, or whatever they choose to do as the next step of their life?” They all agreed that there is much more work to be done. •
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FACULTY SPOTLIGHT
LARRY BANKS BUILT A CAREER BY STORYTELLING AND MADE HIS OWN LIFE AN INSPIRATIONAL TALE IN THE PROCESS
T
he stately figure and unhurried elocution of Larry Banks (Post ‘05, M.F.A.) present a contrasting temperament to his fastidious technological savvy. Perhaps it is this reserved demeanor that stabilizes the exciting, rapidly developing Media Arts Department at LIU Brooklyn he oversees as Chair. A quick study with a voracious appetite for learning and the soul of an educator, Banks’ remarkable career appears destined in hindsight. A true New Yorker, born and raised in Jamaica, Queens, Banks was an only child. His mother was a school teacher and his father a gaffer who, according to Banks, was the first African-American man in the country to own his own professional lighting company, renting equipment for major motion pictures. As a result, adolescent Larry frequented the sets of How to Murder Your Wife, Godspell, Hair, Cotton Comes to Harlem, Let’s Do It Again, Claudine and other iconic movies during the Blaxploitation period. Mastering the fundamentals of film left Banks adroit with just about every piece of equipment, making him a sort of production prodigy. While he always wanted to work in the business, he was never certain it would happen. The hands-on experiences he earned during his youth revealed the hectic nature of the industry. Banks’ parents supported his goals, insisting only that he earn a college degree before pursuing them, but they were not ready to endorse a moviemaking future at the outset. “My father always thought the business was a crazy business,” he said. So after earning his bachelor’s degree in Communications and Media from Rutgers University in 1976, he returned home to find work. Starting off as an electrician, Banks’ versatility came in handy on set, and his credits started piling up with a domino-like effect. Ascending from Chief Lighting Technician to Director of Photography, his career launched him into industry prominence, with constant job offers for movies, music videos, television shows, documentaries and commercials. These took him from the confines of Manhattan to international destinations, including China, Germany and Africa. Over the years, Banks compiled a prodigious résumé boasting
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the likes of Juice, Strapped, Fly By Night and Substitute 2. His work includes collaboration with Forest Whitaker, Ernest Dickerson and Spike Lee. In fact, his professional relationship with Lee brought Banks to LIU for the first time as a panelist for a discussion hosted at the University. The experience proved to be a turning point in his career. “At a certain point I found that sharing what I did was really interesting with the young kids, and I was looking for a change,” he said. Banks started as an adjunct professor, became full-time faculty in 2000, and was named Chair of the Media Arts Department in 2005. His office is tantamount to a miniature museum, exhibiting innovations spanning the last half century, featuring an old Macintosh, a bulky television, a discolored keyboard, and a shimmering iMac for daily use that is not much thicker than the adjacent manila folders containing important paperwork. Of course, these all pale in comparison to the sage erudition effused from the technician at the center, who manned these electronic devices during their respective heydays. “I’ve always been someone who liked to keep on the cutting edge of the industry,” Banks said. “It’s a challenge, but It’s also the thing that makes us unique and sought after. Our Media Arts Department allows us to integrate these fields. Through the computer, the various areas are now converging.” This trickles down from professors to pupils, allowing creative exploration and, ultimately, well-rounded graduates. “Our students then realize, ‘From learning this software I can not only work on editing a film, but I can also do special effects. I can do music,’” Banks explained. “That works well for them. Many students don’t know exactly where they’re going when they come. They like this; they like that. As they start to experience, they start to want to combine things on their own. We provide them that opportunity.” While his multimedia skills alone qualify him for veneration, Banks’ keen eye for identifying and cultivating faculty to lead programs within the department is no less impressive. With his demure disposition, he rattles off the star-studded squad he assembled like a spelling bee emcee introducing
I’ve always been someone who liked to keep on the cutting edge of the industry. It’s a challenge, but it’s also the thing that makes us unique and sought after. Our Media Arts Department allows us to integrate these fields.
a championship team’s starting lineup. Among these are world-renowned artists, like musicians Kenyatta Beasley and Samuel Newsome, producer Tony Dofat, 3-D animator Marjan Moghaddam and television screenwriter Ken LaZebnik. By merging experts in cinematography, web development, music and photography, all working in unison and inculcating student cohesion, there is virtually no limitation on achievement. While equipping students with technical skills is fundamental, teaching them how to monetize these skills from a business perspective is an essential component for success, and it is structured into the curriculum. “It’s one thing to direct a movie and know what makes for a pretty picture,” Banks said. “But how do you organize to actually get a movie done? How do you schedule the days? How do you budget a film?” This is another reason why hiring experienced professionals holds such a priority at the University. “That’s the real ‘cutting edge,’” Banks added, “when you bring in the business side of it—the entrepreneurs as well as the artists—working together.” Banks himself stays active in freelance work and serves as the Chairman of Headstrong Nation, a non-profit devoted to encouraging, empowering, and educating those with Dyslexia. Correcting misnomers about the condition is near and dear to his heart as he is himself dyslexic and has discovered breakthroughs through personal enlightenment. “Dyslexics see the world differently. We have a different approach,” he said. “The reading mechanics may be a little bit trickier for us, so we have to find ways to work around that, but our ability to visualize things is really strong. That’s been really useful in business and science, and obviously the arts.” Still, for Banks, no passion supersedes molding young minds.
Larry Banks draws on decades of professional experience in the movie business when guiding students through the proper use of technical equipment.
“I like being in the classroom, working with students and watching those lights go on as they start to understand what the art in the industry is,” he said. “When they start to understand the integration and how this all comes together, it’s a beautiful thing to watch. That’s what fuels me and keeps me going. At heart, I’m a teacher.” •
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LIU POST HOSTS
VIRTUAL ENTERPRISE
FO R THOU SA NDS O F EN T RE P R E N E U R I A L H I G H S C H O O L S T U D EN TS
LIU Post was abuzz with budding entrepreneurs earlier this year as the University hosted more than 2,000 local high school students who were on hand for Virtual Enterprises International’s ninth annual Long Island regional conference and exhibition. It was the first time the Brookville campus hosted the big event. More than 100 student-run companies pitching innovative products that ranged from solar-powered roofing shingles to stress-reducing hammocks, recycled bagel bits and custom-made smoothies delivered door-to-door. Vying for the gold, the teams competed in almost a dozen competitions, including Business Plan, Company Branding, Company Newsletter, E-Commerce Website, Employee Handbook, Sales Materials, Video Commercial, Booth Design, Salesmanship and Impact marketing. “Events like these are vitally important in preparing our young people for future success in college and career pursuits,” explained Nick Chapman, VEI’s president and national program director, who was accompanied by Iris Blanc, VEI founder, as well as Ellen Palazzo, LI regional director, and Irv Wortman, LI regional coordinator. “We’re excited to welcome Virtual Enterprise to LIU,” said Ed Weis, LIU’s vice president of Academic Affairs. “We’re huge admirers of Iris Blanc and Virtual Enterprise due to their learning model because students are actively engaged. They learn how to be business people, not just learn about business.” Virtual Enterprises is a nonprofit educational organization based in Manhattan that works with schools and districts to implement a year-long, credited class that provides students with an authentic, collaborative business and entrepreneurship experience through its business simulation model. Since its inception in 1996, VE has had more than 140,000 students participate in its programs in almost 20 states. Almost 70 Long Island schools alone were represented. “We’re happy that LIU is hosting this conference,” said Lori Sheinberg, the faculty coordinator for the VEI program at John Adams High School in Ozone Park in Nassau County. “We feel very privileged to be part of it.” Tiffany Callejas, a senior at John Adams High School, explained how Grab’n’Go, the name of her firm, operates. “Everybody likes food. Who doesn’t?” she said with a
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laugh. “We took into consideration the students who come late to school. You can pre-order your favorite snacks, and you don’t have to wait.” “We have the menu online so you can order a day or two before, and we give you a code,” explained Joshua Mongol, a senior at John Adams High School. “So when you come in, you scan the code right away, and we give you your meal.” Students from Mount Sinai High School in Suffolk County formed a company called Sol Energy. “We’re a solar-based company that sells solar products to help the environment and save money,” said Rianna Balz, a sophomore. Among the offerings are solar shingles that blend into the rooftop and solar-powered cell-phone chargers. Zachary Stock, Sol Energy’s chief operations officer, came up with the idea. “We needed a better way to have a sustainable future,” he said, “and so we thought, ‘What better way to make a profit and save the environment?’” As they envisioned it, their company’s solar shingles would come embedded with small, efficient solar panels that would look like specks on the roof so they wouldn’t stand out the way solar panels mounted on suburban homes do now. “We needed something different,” Stock added. “We couldn’t be like a normal solar company. So, we thought, almost everyone on Long Island owns a home, so our product has a very large customer base.” John Panos, a junior at Huntington High School, was the chief executive officer of Poppy, Inc., whose motto was: Giving bagels a second chance. “Basically, what we do is repurpose bagels from local stores,” he explained. “At the end of the day, we take items that would be thrown away and repurpose them as bagel chips. Most of us have worked in delis and bakeries, and we saw a lot of bread being thrown away.” Bursting with enthusiasm, Panos believes his company has serious potential. “I’m biased because I think ours is so capable of becoming a real business,” he said. “I am really hoping that as a team we can all get to a point where we have the full capability of physically putting this in the real world.” Calhoun High School senior Samantha Fortmeyer, who was seated at the booth of her company called DefenseLine, had
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come to LIU Post in October with her team to compete in VE’s Elevator Pitch Contest—and they’d won a $1,000 check. Working as a team was much harder than she thought because “you can’t put your faith in one person,” she explained. “You have to have strong communication skills and work together really well.” Calhoun sophomore Christie McBride had come up with the concept for DefenseLine, which would market a line of products such as key chains and nail polish that would turn different colors in the presence of a date-rape drug. “I saw the idea of nail polish that changes colors,” McBride recalled. “With college coming around the corner, parties will be part of our life style, and safety will be our No. 1 priority.”
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Fortmeyer said that she’s learned a lot by participating in the VE program. “I’ve taken marketing and accounting classes, but nothing has really taught me what it’s like to actually present in the real business world like this,” she said. “It’s so much harder than you think.” But thanks to her experience with Virtual Enterprise at LIU, she’ll be well prepared for whatever comes her way. •
1. Here with John Adams High School’s Grab’n’Go virtual business are (l-r) Tiffany Callejas, Bibi Bacchus, Joshua Mongal and Rodia Ramlall. 2. Standing with Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, president of Long Island University, are (l-r) Iris Blanc, founder of Virtual Enterprises International; Ellen Palazzo, Long Island regional director; and Nick Chapman, president of VEI. 3. Hoping for a repeat of their October success in VE’s Elevator Pitch Contest (4.) but now on a much bigger stage at LIU Post is the team from Calhoun High School’s DefenseLine. Seated are Samantha Fortmeyer, left, and Elizabeth Herman; standing (l-r) are Christie Powell-McBride, Margaret Joseph, Brenden Rosario and Harrison Valdes.
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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
STUDENT
SUCCESS Fiona Klassen LIU Global Class of 2020 Vice President of the LIU Global College Student Government, Fiona Klassen has served as a student representative for three years. Having studied in locations such as Costa Rica, Spain, Morocco, Fiji and Australia over the course of three years, Fiona pursued a focus in settler colonialism and conflict transformation processes. Fiona currently plans a research project in Bosnia and Herzegovina for Global’s senior year Independent Research and Internship Semester (IRIS) in Fall 2019. Fiona will look at how memory works as a mechanism for conflict transformation through its capacity to foster empathy in post-conflict communities.
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Tara Gyemibi Class of 2020 — LIU Pharmacy, double major in PharmD/M.B.A.
Keith Berrios Class of 2021 — LIU Pharmacy, PharmD
Tara Gyemibi is a student from Ghana and a Registered Respiratory Therapist. Tara has a successful online business where she ideates, creates, and curates daily original content to strategically drive brand awareness and equity on her social media platform. Additionally, she facilitates brand partnerships and sponsored posts with leading hair-care brands and is currently working on independent projects in which she formulates and refines skin care and hair products. A social media influencer, Tara has over 22,700 followers on Instagram. She is interested in marketing and looks forward to a career in the pharmaceutical industry.
As LIU Student Veterans Association President-Elect, Keith Berrios uses his extensive leadership background in the U.S. Navy as a Pharmacy Technician at the Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan and in Guam to help him in his current role as a first-year Pharmacy student. While in the Navy, he was also a mentor and training representative, and Hospital Corpsman. Keith has also worked as a Counselor for Immigration Social Services and as a Supervisor for the Chinatown YMCA of Greater New York. He uses all of his community experience in his role as one of LIU Brooklyn’s Student Veterans Resource Center’s Mentors and Ambassadors. He also has Federal Aviation Administration Certification and CPR Certification.
Kirby Leggett LIU Global Class of 2019 Kirby Leggett is completing a thesis evaluating the Human Rights Due Diligence policies of multinational corporations like Coca-Cola and Nestlé while interning with the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative in New York City for Spring 2019. In Fall 2018, Kirby interned at a law firm in Vienna, Austria. Currently the president of the LIU Global Student Government, he has served in student leadership every year he has been at LIU Global. He is passionate about international law, human rights, corporate social accountability, and diplomacy. After graduation, he hopes to earn a law degree and a master’s degree in international affairs and learn how to prevent human rights transgressions by multinational corporations.
IN AND OUT OF THE
CLASSROOM
Cheyenne Bethune Class of 2019 — LIU Brooklyn Nursing
Moon Soek Ed Kim Class of 2019 — LIU Pharmacy, PharmD
Gabriela “Gabby” Sikorska Class of 2020 — LIU Pharmacy, PharmD
Neil Feminella Class of 2019 — LIU Post, Accounting
Peer mentor for Nursing students and Member of the Student Nurses Association, Cheyenne Bethune is a 33-year-old Nursing student of African American, Puerto Rican, Native American, and Italian descent, who has overcome multiple, successive struggles to persist through life and school and is poised for graduation this year. She volunteers yearly as a rider and a helper in the North Brooklyn Asthma 3-Boro Bike Ride, and also helps in Woodhull Hospital’s Back to School Fair, which offers health screenings and health insurance options for parents and their children. Certified as an Asthma Educator, Cheyene has won the Bravo Award for outstanding in-service on asthma for the adult residents of Woodhull Hospital.
Last spring, through the Entrepreneurship Center, Ed Kim competed in a business plan competition against students from Cornell, Columbia, NYU and other leading universities in New York State. Ed’s idea beat out these schools, he and represented LIU as a finalist in Albany. His winning business was a product to help seniors taking multiple medications and help ensure they are compliant, with the help of a local pharmacist, if necessary. The product he envisioned is better than one on the market and less expensive. Because he is familiar with health insurance, Ed worked out how elderly patients would be eligible to have Medicare reimburse the cost of the product. LIU’s Entrepreneurship Office staff is looking to help him secure a patent for his design.
Gabriela Sikorska, a recipient of the Melnicke Endowed Scholarship, is originally from a small Polish town. She has participated in cancer research in Dr. Anait Levenson’s cancer laboratories since P3 year, and was fortunate to co-submit a paper comparing the use of opioids versus non-opioids for acute pain in the emergency department. Gabby has presented her research at the 2018 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, the Annual NYACS Undergraduate Research Symposium, the 2019 NYS ACCP Annual Meeting, and the ASHP Midyear Clinical Research, and has been involved in the Emergency Medicine Clinical Research at Brooklyn Hospital. A member of Phi Lambda Sigma, she is also president of the College’s chapter of American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP).
Neil Feminella has made the most of his time at LIU Post in and out of the classroom. An accounting major, he is a member of the Accounting Society and captains the Men’s Soccer team while serving as president of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee. Committed to his faith, Neil also serves as President of the Newman Club. His drive and passion have landed him a full-time position at PwC for September.
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POST ATHLETICS SWIMMING Senior Karis Fuller earned three conference titles at the Metropolitan Conference championships in February. An All-American as a junior, Fuller qualified for the NCAA championship in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke, and also won the 200-yard individual medley title at the championship.
WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD Junior Alexandria Okon was named the Preseason Athlete of the Year for women’s indoor track & field, and Okon was impressive during the ECC Championship. With a time of 2:18.21, Okon captured the 800-meter run title at the conference championship meet.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL LIU Post earned a thrilling 61-59 victory against NYIT in the final regular season chapter of the Battle of the Boulevard rivalry. Redshirt-junior Robyn Francis hit a game-winner with 1.2 seconds remaining to help the Pioneers clinch a home playoff game and the No. 4 seed in the ECC postseason tournament.
BASEBALL The Pioneer baseball team was selected second in the ECC preseason poll. Senior James Varela was named the ECC Preseason Pitcher of the Year after earning the award during an incredible junior season.
SOFTBALL The LIU Post softball team was selected by the East Coast Conference coaches to repeat as conference champions in 2019, earning the top spot in the preseason poll. Juniors Abbey Fortin and Katie Humhej were tabbed as Preseason Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively. Fortin also earned national recognition, being named to the Schutt/NFCA National Player of the Year Watchlist.
WRESTLING Graduate student Joe Calderone became a fourtime NCAA Championship qualifier by winning the NCAA Super Region I title in the 141-pound weight class. Calderone was the top-ranked wrestler in his weight class throughout the season.
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MEN’S LACROSSE LIU Post opened the year ranked in the Top-10 nationally and were selected as co-favorites with neighboring NYIT during the ECC preseason poll. LIU Post is looking to avenge an overtime loss in last season’s conference championship game during their final season of Division II competition.
WOMEN’S LACROSSE The Pioneers opened the year ranked in the Top-10 nationally and earned ECC preseason recognition as the favorite to capture their fifth-consecutive conference championship.
Meghan McNamara compiling nine NCAA Tournament appearances and five East Coast Conference titles. McNamara’s mentorship has helped multiple Pioneers earn attention on the national stage, helping her win IWLCA National Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2013 after leading the Pioneers to consecutive National Championships. LIU Post recorded one of six undefeated seasons in Division II history during the 2013 season, outscoring opponents 338141 during that stretch. During the NCAA Tournament, Jackie Sileo scored with six seconds remaining during the National Semifinal against Adelphi, leading the Pioneers to their second consecutive championship appearance where LIU Post took down Limestone 10-7 for the program’s fourth national title. Meghan McNamara enters her 12th season as head coach of the LIU Post women’s lacrosse team in 2019. The unrivaled success of the Pioneers during her tenure has made McNamara one of the most successful coaches in the sport’s history. McNamara has compiled a 179-33 record, ranking second among active Division II coaches in winning percentage (.844) while also ranking as the seventh-winningest coach among all divisions by percentage. McNamara’s 179 wins ranks fifth all-time in Division II. Under McNamara’s guidance, the Pioneers have captured two NCAA Division II National Championships (2012, 2013), while
A native of East Northport, N.Y., McNamara was an assistant coach at LIU Post for two seasons (2006-07), where she helped the Pioneers to a perfect 17-0 record in 2007, en route to the program’s second NCAA Division II National Championship. A 2001 graduate of the University of Maryland, McNamara helped the Terrapins to a combined record of 83-4 and four national championships during her playing career. A member of the 2001 ACC All-Tournament Team, she registered 71 points (51 G, 20 A) in a Maryland uniform.
Eric Wolf Most recently, Wolf held the position of offensive coordinator at Harvard University, where he assisted in the day-to-day operations and guided the Crimson to an Ivy League runner-up finish in 2016. Prior to his appointment at Harvard, Wolf served as offensive coordinator at his alma mater, the University at Albany, for four seasons (2011-15). In that time, he guided the nation’s top scoring offense in each of his last three years and mentored the Great Danes to three-straight America East Conference titles.
Eric Wolf enters his second season at the helm of the LIU Post men’s lacrosse program in 2019. Wolf became the ninth head coach in program history when he took over the reins of the LIU Post men’s lacrosse team for the 2018 season. In his first season leading LIU Post, Wolf helped mentor the East Coast Conference Rookie of the Year, William Snelders. Snelders broke a 55-year-old program record for single-season goals (61) and led the country in goals per game (4.07) during the regular season. Wolf arrived at LIU Post with a wealth of experience, serving as an assistant coach at the Division I level from 2009-17.
In addition to his time at Harvard and Albany, Wolf led the offense at Siena College from 2009-11, helping the Saints to the programs first two Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championships and NCAA tournament berths. Additionally, Wolf currently holds the position of assistant coach with the Israeli Men’s National Team. During the 2014 World Games in Denver, he helped Team Israel to a 6-2 record and a seventh-place finish, and most recently helped the national team to a 5-2 mark in 2018, also finishing seventh overall. A Long Island native from Baldwin, Wolf played in 62 career games at Albany, helping the Great Danes to three America East Conference titles and NCAA Division I Tournament appearances from 2004-07.
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BROOKLYN ATHLETICS WOMEN’S BASKETBALL The women’s basketball team was led by one of the best starters the Blackbirds have seen for some time in phenom Brandy Thomas. Thomas was named the 2019 NEC Rookie of the Year, as well as named third team All-NEC and to the NEC AllRookie team. She led the team and NEC rookies in scoring with 13.9 points per game. Thomas also set a program record with 16 made field goals in a game on February 11 and ranked second in the conference with 10.4 rebounds per game this season, a mark that ranked her second in the nation among first-year players. The 5-10 forward recorded 15 double-doubles on the season, ranking second in the conference. Her season total in double-doubles was the most in the nation by a first-year student.
MEN’S BASKETBALL On the men’s side, the Blackbirds advanced to the NEC semifinals for the second straight season, led by first-team All-NEC honoree Raiquan Clark. LIU Brooklyn has landed at least one player on the All-NEC first team in each of the last four seasons and 10 of the last 11 years. Clark was named to the first team after leading the NEC in scoring all season long. He finished the regular season with six double doubles, and had 14 games this season where he scored 20 points or more. Teammate Ty Flowers also earned third team All-NEC honors in his first season for the Blackbirds. LIU, which finished the season tied for fifth in the conference standings, returns all five starters next season, and 10 of the team’s 12 letter-winners.
SOFTBALL The LIU Brooklyn softball team is off to a hot start this spring. The Blackbirds had an eight-game winning streak, the longest non-conference streak for the program, with wins over opponents like UMass, Harvard, Delaware, UCSB and Illinois State. The Blackbirds have been led by hot pitching on the mound. First-year student Elena Valenzuela earned three-straight NEC Pitcher and Rookie of the Week honors, and has pitched four shutouts so far this season. She has a league-best 1.58 ERA, and her four shutouts ranks nationally among pitchers. Junior Haley Irvis was also named the NEC Pitcher of the Week this season. LIU also has three different hitters with at least 12 RBI so far this year.
MEN’S TRACK & FIELD The LIU Brooklyn men’s track & field team used a 118-point showing on the final day of the meet to vault from sixth place to atop the podium, claiming the 2019 Northeast Conference Indoor Championship at Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex on Staten Island. The Blackbirds have won five of the last six indoor team titles. Junior Kimorie Shearman was named the meet’s Most Valuable Performer after winning the 60-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter events. His outstanding performance also garnered Most Outstanding Performer in the sprint events. Senior Bryalon Wilkerson won an NEC championship title in the 500m, while 24 different Blackbirds scored points for the team.
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Derek Kellogg making LIU’s seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Though the Blackbirds fell to Radford in their First Four matchup, Coach Kellogg was pleased with the season. “I wanted to let the guys know, and the administration and staff at LIU, how proud I am of our team,” Kellogg said in the post-game press conference. “We had to battle through some adversity throughout the year and continue to push and fight forward. What a really great group of kids who represented our University at the highest level. We didn’t come away with a victory today, but I thought we played our hearts out. I thought they gave everything they had, like they did all season long. And I’m just happy to be a part of this LIU family and head coach of this team for the season.” In 2017, LIU Brooklyn hired a new face for its men’s basketball program: Derek Kellogg. The former coach at UMass brought a new look to the Blackbirds, with an up-tempo style of play that’s fun to watch, and even more fun for the athletes who play it. And the upbeat tempo and attitude would carry LIU all the way to the Northeast Conference championship game. In his first year, Kellogg’s team got hot at the right time, winning their last two games to clinch the No. 4 seed in the NEC Tournament. The winning ways continued, as the Blackbirds beat both St. Francis Brooklyn and Fairleigh Dickinson en route to a championship upset of No. 1 seed Wagner on Staten Island. The Blackbirds beat the Seahawks soundly, 71-61, to clinch the program’s first championship title since 2013 and
In 2018-19, the Blackbirds continued to thrive under Kellogg, travelling to California, Wisconsin and Ireland to play basketball, and continuing to find success in the NEC. The defending champions finished the regular season by winning three of their last four games to clinch a No. 6 seed in the playoffs. LIU would upset No. 3 seed Sacred Heart on the road, before falling to regular season champions Saint Francis in Loretto, PA. Despite a tough loss to end the season, Kellogg has LIU poised for success moving forward: 11 of the 13 players on the roster are returning in 2019-20, including All-NEC honorees Raiquan Clark and Ty Flowers. And with an experienced roster returning under an exciting head coach, LIU basketball fans have a lot to look forward to in 2019-20.
Rob Morgan Division I level,” he said. “I’m so excited to share my knowledge and experiences in building a high-quality NCAA Division I hockey program at LIU Brooklyn.” Morgan comes to downtown Brooklyn after spending the past year in China developing professional women’s hockey. He was the head coach of the Vanke Rays professional women’s ice hockey club team, one of two Chinese expansion clubs in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. The Vanke Rays and the Kunlun Red Star programs were started as part of a long-term development plan for creating women’s ice hockey in China as the nation prepares to host the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Morgan also served as associate head coach of the Chinese national hockey team. LIU Brooklyn tabbed Rob Morgan as the program’s inaugural women’s ice hockey coach. Morgan, who was announced as the head coach in September, has recruited the program’s first-ever hockey team, which will begin to play in September of 2019. “We are bringing NCAA Division I hockey to New York City, and I’m so incredibly thankful to LIU Athletics for the confidence and trust that they have shown in me to serve as LIU Brooklyn’s first ever women’s hockey coach,” Morgan said.
Prior to his stint in China, Morgan spent two seasons as associate head coach of the Yale women’s ice hockey team. “I’m so excited to start recruiting to LIU,” Morgan said. “We are talking about the epicenter of the world in sports, culture, business and entertainment! Right here in the heart of Brooklyn, LIU has over 150 academic programs and worldclass internships, and a genuinely caring faculty and staff that share a strong sense of community.”
“It’s been my career ambition to be a head coach at the
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A T T H E H O R NSTEIN CENTER IT ’ S A L W A Y S A MATTER OF
OPINION
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ince its founding at LIU Post in 2014, the Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling, and Analysis has distinguished itself not only through what it studies and whom it polls, but through the way it conducts its surveys. As Hornstein Center Director Dr. Stanley Klein explained, “We are focusing a lot of our data collection on innovative and non-traditional methods.” Independent polling, empirical research and cogent analysis on a wide range of issues shaping our country have set the Hornstein Center ahead of the pack. Thanks to the generous support of Steven Hornstein (Post ’80), the Center has broadened its reach to gather findings from target constituencies that otherwise might have been overlooked. “The world around us is changing at such an incredible pace and becoming even smaller,” said Steven Hornstein. “Events at one edge of the map are having an almost immediate impact on the entire world, and the Hornstein Center’s goal is to carry out polling that keeps up with the speed of real life.” Through a unique partnership with the Generations Institute at Long Island University, an academic center geared towards understanding and improving the lives of younger Americans, the findings are subjected to an unprecedented level of critical analysis as they come to grips with the pulse of the nation. Adding to its impact, the Hornstein Center also sponsors the “Hornstein Conversation” series, which brings together respected commentators for lively debates on important issues. Last fall, for example, the Hornstein Conversation on Education Policy, which LIU President Dr. Kimberly R. Cline moderated at the legendary Tilles Center, featured Roger Tilles, a member of New York State’s Board of Regents; Assemblyman Charles D. Lavine of Glen Cove; Dr. Albert Inserra, Dean of the College of Education and Information Technology at LIU Post; and Dr. William Johnson, superintendent of the Rockville Centre School District. They discussed a recently conducted Hornstein survey regarding Americans’ attitudes about school choice. The poll found that 63 percent of the respondents favored a system that would allow parents to place their children in either private or parochial schools. Their preferred choice,
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however, differed dramatically depending on the age bracket of the respondents, with under 35 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 29 wanting to send their children to public schools, compared to over 60 percent of those between the ages of 45 and 60 opting for public schools. But, true to its mandate to seek out Americans’ opinions, the Hornstein Center also uncovered a disturbing finding. “About a third of parents do not believe their children are safe while attending school,” observed Dr. Klein. “That is a rather disconcerting number, and it seems to be something governments and school systems must work to remedy.” Taking on other hot-button topics, a Hornstein Center poll conducted this January showed that the majority of Americans (56.14 percent) opposed building a new wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, while less than a third (30.99 percent) backed President Donald Trump’s multi-billion-dollar proposal. Diving deeper into the results showed that more than three quarters of Republicans supported a border wall and nearly all Democrats opposed its construction. “With the current polarized state in American politics, it’s not surprising that opinions on the border wall would fall along party lines,” said Dr. Stanley Klein, an LIU political science professor whose tenure on campus spans six decades. The national dialogue is undeniably better for what the Hornstein Center brings to the discussion. In our rapidly changing landscape of the 24-hour news cycle, the Hornstein Center stands as a beacon of truth, providing insight into the ways generations of today’s Americans think and react to the pressing issues of our time. •
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TH E COME OUT TO S H IN E A T T IL LES CENTER
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he’s known in show business simply as Miss Ross, but when she took center stage at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, Diana Ross sparkled like the super star she truly is.
But that’s not all. Former President George W. Bush and NFL sports icon Terry Bradshaw, just to name a few luminaries, were also part of the Tilles Center line-up this year, sharing their life experiences and insights on separate occasions to avid listeners. Other nights offered a breath-taking range of entertainment, from Broadway’s hit show, “Something Rotten!,” to the mind-blowing magic of The Illusionists and The Swingles, a London-based jazz group with five Grammy awards under their belt.
One of the founding members of The Supremes, she helped put Motown on the map. For her singing, she’s gone on to win Grammy Awards, and for her acting she earned an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in “Lady Sings the Blues.” Here at LIU Post, she won accolades for kicking off the Tilles Center Gala show in high style as the 2018–2019 season got underway. There’s no wonder that Billboard magazine named Ross the “Female Entertainer of the Century” in 1976, and 40 years later President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, at the White House. But she came to Tilles to sing and perform for her countless fans, and that’s what she did splendidly last October. The 2018 Gala was one of the most successful in years, raising more than $300,000 in one night. Add it all up and the talent on display at Tilles this season has been superb. Take those wild and crazy guys, Steve Martin and Martin Short, who lit up the crowd with their incendiary wit and rapid-fire comedic timing in front of a full house. The iconoclastic musicians Pat Benatar and Melissa Etheridge each rocked the hall with
their uniquely individual styles guaranteed to please their legions of fans. Making it more special, Benatar, a four-time Grammy winner, hit the audience with her best shot on homecoming weekend at Post. Speaking of iconic bands, Foreigner, hailed as one of the most popular rock acts in the world, raised the roof as they unreeled one pop tune after another from their 10 multi-platinum albums and more than a dozen Top 30 chart-busters like “Juke box Hero,” “Cold as Ice,” and “Hot Blooded.” Their song, “I Want to Know What Love Is,” was a worldwide No. 1 hit. Opening for them was former LIU Post student, Kelsey Hunter, a young singer/songwriter raised on blues and rock ‘n’ roll, now living in New York City and hoping to finish her first album this year.
For a classic that never grows stale, the Russian National Ballet Theatre presented “Sleeping Beauty,” with its full-length version performed stunningly in the grand tradition of Russian ballet. “We always present world-class orchestras, unique dance performances and national Broadway tours but now we’ve also added more classic rock and pop shows,” said Shari Linker, Tilles Center’s director of communications and engagement, who wanted to remind LIU students that “it’s not just your father’s performing arts center!” Indeed, the Tilles Center’s diverse programming appeals to an audience of many generations. And, of course, there’s not a bad seat in the house. •
For more information, visit: TILLESCENTER.ORG/EVENTS
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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
M A K ING W A R
C O ME A L I V E
HOW LIU ALUMNUS AR T BELTRONE HAS HELPED SAVE OUR VETERANS’ HISTORIES
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orld War II was in the past and the Vietnam War lay in the future when Art Beltrone (Post ’63, B.A.) entered college in 1959. In the years to come, this former Long Island public relations man and ex-Newsday reporter, now a military artifacts appraiser residing in Keswick, Virginia, would come to play a key part in preserving the memories of the brave men who fought in those two conflicts. His unique veterans’ projects drew coverage in the Washington Post, The New York Times and NPR, to name a few outlets across the country that reported on his efforts to keep their history alive. Of course, Beltrone had other things on his mind freshman year—in particular the lack of an FM radio station like the one at Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park. He liked broadcasting so much that he’d gotten a summer job at NBC after he finished high school. Hoping to get a radio station off the ground at Post, he met with Dean of Students Fred DeMarr, who was initially cool to the idea. Beltrone suggested that the station could get sponsors and that he’d ask his NBC contacts about obtaining unwanted radio equipment. And that’s what happened. Years later, Beltrone would be honored with a plaque as the founder of WCWP. “One of the things that I still remember—and I really appreciate so much—was the encouragement of the Post faculty,” Beltrone said. “When
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you have an idea you feel is worth pursuing, jump in and do whatever it takes to make it happen.”
added to the responsibility he felt when he later took on the veterans’ projects.
Playing varsity baseball his senior year, he was asked by his journalism teacher, Tony Insolia, a Newsday editor,
One summer night in 1963, he decided on a whim after work to stop at a different Garden City restaurant from his usual routine on his way home to Elmont. He parked his red Triumph Spitfire right behind a red MG midget that he couldn’t help noticing.
Art and Lee Beltrone’s “A Wartime Log” and “The Vietnam Graffiti Project: Messages From a Forgotten Troopship” (both published by Howell Press)
to wait around after class. Then Insolia suggested he come to the Long Island paper for an interview. “And this is the important part,” Beltrone recalled. “He said, ‘If you get a job with us, we would like you to play on our softball team.’ I was a ringer!” Beltrone had been at the paper about five months when the government told him to report for his Army physical. He followed a colleague’s advice and joined the Marine Corps Reserves, which had a battalion in Garden City, so he could remain at Newsday and fulfill his military obligation. He was never called to active duty, which
“Lo and behold, there’s Lee sitting at the bar with her date,” said Beltrone about his future wife, a music major he’d known in high school. “Somehow the conversation got around to what vehicles we’re driving.” It turned out that he’d parked right behind her sports car. They got married in 1965 and eventually had two children—a son Brent and a daughter Laurel—who got drafted into helping them document their Vietnam Graffiti project. Beltrone credits his parents, Arthur and Marie Beltrone, for encouraging his life-long interest in military history. They’d take him to big family dinners at his grandmother’s house in Bay Ridge, where a German officer’s sword and medal from the Second World War hung on the dining room wall. “I would position myself at the table so I could look at them,” said Beltrone. One of his uncles, an Army medic, had brought them back as souvenirs. Beltrone’s first venture beyond studying war history and collecting military artifacts started in the early 1990s when a friend sent him a journal that
had belonged to a captured American airman held prisoner during WWII. The Y.M.C.A. had produced these logbooks for their distribution to American POWs under the Geneva Conventions’ rules of war. Art and Lee Beltrone eventually found more than a dozen diaries. An accomplished photographer and editor, she photographed them to illustrate what would become “A Wartime Log,” published by Howell Press of Charlottesville, Va., to commemorate the 50th anniversary of D-Day. As Beltrone put it: “They all share a number of common characteristics: the prisoner’s patriotism, his sense of humor, his creativity, and his will to survive.” Beltrone also contributed to an exhibit at the Intrepid Sea Air Space Museum in Manhattan called “The Wartime Log,” which opened Sept. 16, 1995. Among the POW artifacts accompanying the show was a violin that a skilled prisoner had crafted out of bed slats and a table leg, with sheep gut used for the strings. A decade later Art and Lee collaborated on “The Vietnam Graffiti Project: Messages From a Forgotten Troopship,” published in 2004 by Howell Press. How it came to be is a story for a movie. In fact, it was Beltrone’s friendship with his Virginia neighbor, Jack Fisk, a motion picture production designer, that led the two men to a 1945-commissioned troopship moth-balled in the James River. Fisk had been hired by Terrence Malick to ensure that “The Thin Red Line,” a film about Guadalcanal, was historically accurate. One scene had called for the interior of a WWII troopship. So, on a chilly day in February, they boarded the General Nelson M. Walker. Strolling below decks, they noticed that on the bottoms of the canvas bunk beds men had written graffiti during their voyage overseas. Looking closely, Beltrone saw from the dates that these troops were going to Vietnam. One poignant inscription was apparently influenced by the then-popular Buffy-Sainte-Marie song, “Universal Soldier”: “You’re the one who must decide who’s to live and who’s to die/You’re the one who gives his body as a weapon of the war—and without you all this killing can’t go on.” Another asked simply: “Will I return???” Through Art and Lee Beltrones’ efforts ultimately 300 of these graffiti-inscribed canvases were saved from the ship before it was scrapped in 2006. The canvases have been donated to the Smithsonian Institution and the Library of Congress as well as the Navy, Army and Marine Corps museums. An eight-bunk berthing unit became part of an exhibition called “The Vietnam War: 1945-1975”, curated by the New-York Historical Society. For their Vietnam Graffiti Project, the Beltrones mounted two traveling exhibits under the same name, “Marking Time: Voyage to Vietnam,” which have gone to over 70 venues across the country. Along the way, they reconnected with a hundred veterans who had left their mark on board that ship.
Top to Bottom: As senior class president in 1963, Art Beltrone greeted New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller on behalf of the student body when he visited the Post campus. The traveling exhibit that Art and Lee Beltrone assembled, “Marking Time: Voyage to Vietnam,” features inscribed canvas bunk beds and other artifacts taken from a troopship slated for the scrapheap. Art and Lee Beltrone standing outside of the General Nelson M. Walker.
“I knew the graffiti-covered canvases and other artifacts aboard the ship must be preserved,” said Beltrone. “They were part of America’s military and social history.” And thanks to Art and Lee Beltrone’s dedication, that history will live on. •
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NEWSROOM LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY RECEIVES RATINGS UPGRADE FROM STANDARD & POOR’S Standard & Poor’s, one of the nation’s foremost credit agencies, has again issued an upgrade for Long Island University, marking the fourth consecutive positive credit action issued for LIU since 2014.
This year, University faculty will conduct more sponsored research than at any other time in the institution’s history.
“I am immensely proud of the efforts of all members of our community,” said Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, president of Long Island University. “This upgrade by Standard & Poor’s is yet another indicator that our future is strong and that we are well positioned to deliver on our commitment to academic excellence.”
the objectives set forth in LIU’s strategic plan,” said LIU Chief Financial Officer Christopher Fevola. “Our goal moving forward is to grow new, strategic programs aimed at market needs. We are focused on continuing to attract high-achieving students who graduate on time.”
S&P Global Ratings, a division of Standard & Poor’s, raised its rating on LIU 2012 general revenue bonds issued by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York from “BBB” to “BBB+” with a stable outlook. LIU’s credit rating increase serves as a measure of the overall health of the institution. The indicators considered by ratings agencies include:
“LIU continues to support and attract talented faculty members who offer a high-quality education with a focus on experiential learning that prepares students for the workforce of the future,” said Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs Randy Burd. “This upgrade correlates with the University’s strategic approach to recruit world-class faculty.”
→ Affordability – LIU has capped its tuition rate increases at 2% for the last five years and remains committed to continue this policy through 2020. This stands in contrast to 2018 regional and national averages of 3.6% and 4.1%, respectively. → Endowment – LIU has generated unprecedented growth with the endowment increasing from $86.9 million in 2013 to $230 million in 2018, or approximately 165%. This has been complemented by a sustainable operating model which has allowed the University to increase its capital investment by 650% over 2013 levels. This has enabled investment in state-of-the-art classrooms, upgraded labs, research facilities, and student amenities. → Improved student academic credentials – The University’s status and reputation are enhanced by continued improvement in the academic credentials of its students. Efforts to increase the pool of first-year students with high-quality academic credentials have resulted in a 12.2% increase in average SAT scores over the past five years. → Expanded research & international engagement – LIU has established a formal sponsored research and development plan, launching a global research strategy. This year, University faculty will conduct more sponsored research than at any other time in the institution’s history. The hiring of world-class faculty members and talented researchers to join our distinguished faculty means more opportunities for students and an enhanced classroom experience with a valuable global perspective and impact. → Expanded out-of-state enrollment – Year-over-year out-of-state undergraduate enrollment increased 6.1%, led by programs in accounting, business, nursing, theater, and new programs such as veterinary technology and sports management. “LIU’s strong market position has been built on improved operating performance and the University community collaboratively achieving 40
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The S&P rationale specifically referenced LIU’s “expanded recruitment efforts,” “solid management team,” and “increased alumni engagement” as critical factors in their assessment. S&P also cited LIU’s strength in “establishing a presence at high schools and community colleges, as well as to students in other regions.” The rating reflects their views of the University’s “exceptional operating margins resulting from good management.” For the fifth straight year, LIU has generated an operating surplus of greater than $10 million, enabling unprecedented capital investments across the University. LIU’s financial performance has resulted in a perfect 3.0 financial responsibility ratio with the U.S. Department of Education and an improved outlook from Moody’s, along with this upgrade from S&P.
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NEWSROOM LIU’S DR. RICHARD NADER IS AWARDED FULBRIGHT SCHOLARSHIP TO INDIA Dr. Richard Nader, Chief Research and International Officer at Long Island University, has been selected for a 2019 – 2020 Fulbright-Nehru U.S. International Education Administrators (IEA) award. This is his second Fulbright Award; his first was in 2014 to France. Dr. Nader heads the LIU Research and International Office (RIO), where his role includes strategic global research development and assisting faculty to enhance research and international activities. This particular Fulbright program is a specially designed, short-term intensive program to connect U.S. universities to opportunities in India that match the interests and priority areas of LIU. “I am thrilled and honored to be selected for this award and to represent LIU in highly recognized venues in India,” said Dr. Nader. As Jeffrey L. Bleich, chair of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, said in his recent acceptance letter to Dr. Nader, “The Fulbright Program, which aims to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries, is the flagship international exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government.” Named after U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright, more than 380,000 Americans have participated in the program since its inception in 1946. As a grantee, Dr. Nader will join the ranks of 59 Nobel Laureates, 84 Pulitzer Prize winners, 72 MacArthur Fellows and 16 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients. “I think Fulbright said it best,” added Dr. Nader, “when he said: ‘The making of peace is a continuing process that must go on from day to day, from year to year, so long as our civilization shall last.’ “ Dr. Nader has more than 30 years of experience in research and international affairs. Before coming to LIU in June 2018, Dr. Nader served as Associate V.P. for International Development at Mississippi State University, where he led efforts in international development, education and research, including establishing the state’s first Fulbright Association. Previously, Dr. Nader worked at the National Science Foundation’s Office of International Science and Engineering and at Texas A&M University. “Research and creative activities are noble pursuits,” Dr. Nader said. “A university values faculty because they carry out its goals: the pursuit of truth through discovery, and the pursuit of peace through freedom of expression, debate and understanding the human condition. Research, teaching and service are the key means of accomplishing the university’s goals, and for universities to thrive, they must excel at all three missions.”
LIU PROFESSOR THOMAS INZANA JOINS ELITE RANK OF AMERICA’S LEADING SCIENTISTS FOR HIS RESEARCH Long Island University is proud to announce that Dr. Thomas Inzana, the new Associate Dean for Research at the College of Veterinary Medicine, has been elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for his extraordinary work in the world of medical science. This honor places him in an elite company that includes Thomas Edison, Linus Pauling and computer science pioneer Grace Hopper since AAAS began its annual tradition of recognizing leading scientists in 1874. With its announced mission to “advance science, engineering and innovation throughout the world for the benefit of all people,” AAAS is the world’s largest multidisciplinary scientific society, with individual members in more than 91 countries. In its announcement, Dr. Inzana was singled out for his “distinguished contributions to basic and clinical bacteriology, particularly for research leading to improved methods for diagnosing and preventing human and animal diseases.” “I was always interested in science,” said Dr. Inzana, who took a microbiology course early in his college studies at the University of Georgia that inspired him to become the clinical microbiologist he is today. Over the years he estimates he’s received more than $9 million in funding from sources such as USDA, the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense. He holds three patents including a vaccine developed for swine respiratory disease that was marketed by Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (BIVI). Now he’s hoping to develop a vaccine for bovine respiratory disease caused by the pathogen Histophilus somni. “A lot of my work these days is on bacterial biofilms,” he said, referring to the thin, slimy film of bacteria that adheres to a surface like lunchmeat. “The good point is that biofilms don’t induce a highly robust inflammatory response so the disease isn’t so severe. The bad news is that they’re very difficult to get rid of because they’re more resistant to antibiotics and host defenses.” At LIU, he’ll be teaching microbiology while continuing his lab work, mentoring faculty, and overseeing the College’s research program. Dr. Inzana, a native of Rochester, N.Y., earned his doctorate at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and did his postdoc at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Medical Microbiology, the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists (Honorary), and a Fellow of the American Academy for Microbiology. Before joining LIU, he spent 31 years at Virginia Tech.
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ON THE SHELF Sam Houston and the Alamo Avengers: The Texas Victory That Changed American History By Brian Kilmeade (Penguin Random House)
Here, Brian Kilmeade (Post ’86, B.A.) reveals hidden aspects of Sam Houston, the first president of Texas, and relates a critical chapter in American history. It all started with Texas’ quest for independence. In 1836, the Mexican army led by General Santa Anna massacred hundreds of Texans trapped inside the Alamo, a tiny adobe church in San Antonio. The devastating loss galvanized the surviving Texans. Under General Sam Houston, a maverick with a rocky past, the tiny army of settlers rallied and soundly defeated Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto. They secured the independence of the land their friends had died for. Thanks to Kilmeade’s storytelling, a new generation of readers will long remember the Alamo.
Mao and the Sino-Soviet Split, 1959–1973: A New History By Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia (Rowman & Littlefield)
Two prominent historians—Dr. Yafeng Xia, professor of history at LIU Brooklyn, and Danhui Li, professor of history at East China Normal University in Shanghai—have collaborated on this important book, which is based on archival materials from China and several other countries, to recount this geopolitical shift from the Chinese perspective. Part of the Harvard Cold War Studies Book Series, this history draws on more than 20 years of research, starting in 1959 when the first fissures in the Sino-Soviet relationship became visible, and concluding in 1973 after China formally changed its foreign policy from aligning with the Soviet Union and opposing the United States to aligning with the United States and opposing the Soviet Union.
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The Darwin Strain: An R. J. MacCready Novel By Bill Schutt and J.R. Finch (William Morrow)
In their third high-octane thriller, the coauthors Bill Schutt, a vertebrate zoologist and LIU Professor of Biology, and J.R. Finch create a page-turning blend of science, history and suspense featuring zoologist and adventurer Captain R.J. MacCready, who teams up with Yanni Thorne, a Brazilian expert in animal behavior, on a mission to a mysterious Greek island for the Pentagon as the Cold War between America and the Soviet Union heats up. Apparently, the islanders believe that a volcanic spring there has miraculous healing properties. The pair discover that underwater plumes from the spring release an exotic microbe that can transform life with astonishing speed. The question is whether they’ll have enough time to unravel the mystery before its powers end up in the wrong hands.
A Misunderstood Friendship: Mao Zedong, Kim Il Sung, and Sino-North Korean Relations, 1949–1976 By Zhihua Shen and Yafeng Xia (Columbia University Press)
LIU Brooklyn History Professor Dr. Yafeng Xia teams up with Zhihua Shen, director of the Center for Cold War International History Studies at East China Normal University, to reveal the rivalries hidden behind the public façade of the China-North Korea relationship. Far from the official portrayal of their “brotherly affection,” the actual alliance was fraught with tension. Through unprecedented access to Chinese government documents, Soviet and Eastern European archives, and in-depth interviews with former Chinese diplomats and North Korean defectors, the historians unravel the conflicts between these two Asian powers, beginning with Mao’s ascendency in 1949 and ending with his death in 1976. They significantly revise the existing narrative to shed light on one of the most secretive relationships of the Cold War.
Pennsylvania Station: A Novel By Patrick Horrigan, Professor at LIU Brooklyn (Lethe Press)
LIU Brooklyn Professor Patrick Horrigan sets this frank yet subtle novel about a middle-aged man’s struggles to understand his true self in 1962. Frederick Bailey, a 48-year-old successful architect, claims he’s doesn’t believe in causes. But through a friend he ends up on the side of preservationists protesting the planned demolition of Penn Station. After helping a woman who’s been mugged, the middle-aged protagonist attracts the attention of Curt, a scrappy 20-year-old with romance on his mind when gay rights were still locked up in the closet of pre-Stonewall times—and that’s where Bailey felt he was most comfortable until the younger activist came along. There’s art, architecture, family dynamics, and the interplay of the personal and the political in this poignant book.
Have you recently written a book or made an album? Let us know about it and we’ll gladly include it “On the Shelf”! We’re proud to promote work by our talented University alumni and faculty. Contact liu.edu/alumni/submit
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ALUMNI EVENTS LIU offers many opportunities to stay engaged with the community and continue your educational and professional growth long after graduation. Mark your calendars and plan to join us for these upcoming events: May 10
May 11
May 14
June 17
LIU Post Golden Commencement
LIU Volunteer Day
LIU Brooklyn: Golden Commencement Luncheon
LIU Gala
LIU Post, 8 p.m. Luncheon on Campus Join us as we celebrate the 50th Reunion of the Class of 1969. For more information, please contact postalumni@liu.edu or call 516.299.2263. community.liu.edu/GCPost2019
6 – 8 p.m. Long Island University has partnered with Island Harvest in an effort to offer volunteer opportunities across Long Island.
1 p.m., Samui Restaurant, Brooklyn, NY
Volunteers will be asked to inspect, sort and pack canned goods for distribution to hungry Long Islanders.
For more information, please contact bklnalumni@liu.edu or call 718.780.6562.
Join us as we celebrate the 50th Reunion of the Class of 1969.
community.liu.edu/GCBklyn2019
For more information, please contact liualumni@liu.edu or call 516.299.2263.
The Plaza Hotel, New York City, 6 p.m. LIU cordially invites you to a special evening honoring Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, President of Long Island University, and Alumni Decade Honorees. For more information, please visit liu.edu/gala or call 516.299.GALA
community.liu.edu/ServiceDay2019
June 25
July 2
July 12
October 19
LIU Annual New York City Alumni Event
LIU Subway Series: New York Yankees at New York Mets
LIU Golf Outing
LIU Homecoming
9 a.m. registration, Harbor Links Golf Course
7:10 p.m.,* CitiField Stadium, Flushing, NY
LIU Athletics is hosting the annual golf tournament at Harbor Links Golf Course in Port Washington, NY. The outing will start at 9 a.m. with registration and breakfast, followed by 11 a.m. shotgun start. We will conclude the day with a social hour, including drinks and starters, from 5-6 p.m. and then dinner starting at 6 p.m.
Save the date for Homecoming 2019. Join us for football, food and fun!
6:30 p.m., New York Athletic Club Join us for an open bar and hors d’oeuvres and reconnect with alumni friends. For more information, please contact liualumni@liu.edu or call 516.299.2263. http://liu.edu/nyc2019
Please join us for our 5th Annual Subway Series Alumni Outing. LIU alumni seats are located on the Field Level in the Baseline Box, Section 131 & 132. In addition, LIU alumni will be given an on-field group photo (first 100 requests only). liualumni@liu.edu or 516.299.2263
community.liu.edu/golfouting2019
For questions, please call 516.299.2263.
Check our website at liu.edu/alumni for the most up-to-date alumni information, news, and events.
community.liu.edu/subwayseries2019
* Time subject to change according to MLB regulations
Get your Annual Alumni Membership today!
community.liu.edu/liualumnimembership For $10 a year, alumni will receive: • Alumni ID card • Alumni email address with Microsoft Office 365 • Access to LIU’s job portal Handshake
Tell us your story! Share your personal milestones and professional accomplishments with the LIU community! Visit liu.edu/alumni/submit to send your story.
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CLASS NOTES TELL US YOUR STORY! SHARE YOUR PERSONAL MILESTONES AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS WITH THE LIU COMMUNITY. Visit liu.edu/alumni/submit to send your story.
1950s ROBERT BUSCH (Brooklyn ’56, B.S. in Health and Physical Education) was a health education teacher at Yonkers High School until he retired in 1991. He was also vice president of the Yonkers Federation of Teachers, where he helped to negotiate several contracts. He said what he learned about coaching basketball from LIU Brooklyn’s “Pic” Picariello helped him win 11 City of Yonkers JV Basketball Titles.
1960s BERNARD BERMAN (Post ’64, B.A. in Chemistry) is a semi-retired patent attorney for Amin Turocy & Watson, a Cleveland, Ohio-based IP law firm. BRIAN BERENBACH (Brooklyn ’65, B.S. in Chemistry) is a retired expert system engineering professional. He teaches as an adjunct professor in the Georgia Tech Research Institute. Recently he contributed a chapter to the textbook, “Modeling and Simulation in the Systems Engineering Life Cycle.” CHARLES ISAACS (Brooklyn ’67, B.S. in Mathematics) got his M.A. in Social Theory from the New School for Social Research and a Ph.D. in Community Development from the Union Institute and University. He is president of CSI Consultants, which provides real estate services for non-profit groups. He is the author of “Inside Ocean Hill-Brownsville: A Teacher’s Education.” ROBERT STEINBERG (Brooklyn ’67, B.S. in Accounting), CPA, is a tax attorney. In January 2018, he published “Tax Effects of Dissolution of Marriage.” ANGELO ALVERADO (Brooklyn ’68, B.S. in Business Management) recently retired after working in accounting in the health-care industry in New York, New Jersey and south Florida.
1970s BARBARA GOTHARD (Post ’71, M.A. in Fine Arts) is an artist with a website, www.barbaragothard.com, whose oil paintings were featured in the London-based quarterly publication Artist Talk Magazine.
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PAUL GUNSER (Brooklyn ’68, B.A. Pyschology, Brooklyn ’71, M.S. Guidance Counseling), Psy.D., is a clinical neuropsychologist who recently published an article in the newsletter of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis entitled “The Role of Psychologists in Palliative Care.” As a member of the Palliative Care Team at St. John’s Riverside Hospital, he was asked to consult on a depressed, stage 4 cancer patient, and by using a short hypnotic intervention, he was able to decrease the patient’s reported pain from a 10 to a 1 level, and elevate her mood to the point where she was interacting with hospital staff after previously being in a vegetative state. GEORGE GIOKAS (Brooklyn ’73, B.A. in Journalism) serves as president and chief executive officer of StaffWriters Plus, Inc., which he founded in 1995. He is also one of the founders of HealthDay, where he serves as senior director and chairman of the board. He is a screenwriter and recent graduate of UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television. He’s been a columnist for Newsday and BusinessWeek Online. He is on the faculty of the Stony Brook University School of Journalism. THEODORA KARCZEWSKI (Post ’76, M.A. in Speech Pathology) was a Baltimore City Public Schools speech pathologist until her retirement in 2008. WAYNE DAWKINS (Brooklyn ’77, B.A. in Journalism) is an associate professor at Morgan State University’s School of Global Journalism and Communication, as well as the founding editor of Columbia University’s Black Alumni Network (BAN) newsletter. In 2004 he was awarded the Columbia University Alumni Federal Medal, the highest honor that can be bestowed upon its alumnus. He is the author of the book, “Black Journalists: The NABJ Story.” MIRANDA GATEWOOD (Southampton ’79, B.F.A.), an exhibiting artist and photographer, is the owner of Seatuck Communications as well as the editor of Networking Magazine. She received an M.F.A. in Fine Art Photography from the Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Her work has been collected by the Erie Art Musuem in Erie, Pennsylvania. National juried exhibitions of her selected photographs include the 2014 Long Island Biennial.
1980s RITA JAIN (Post ‘82, B.S. in Biology), M.D., is senior vice president, chief medical officer at Akebia Therapeutics, based in Cambridge, Mass., which she joined in 2017. Before that, she was vice president of Men’s and Women’s Health and Metabolic Development at AbbVie. From 2003 to 2016 she worked at Abbott as a divisional vice president and vice president in pharmaceutical development. She received her M.D. from SUNY Stony Brook School of Medicine. In 2019 she was appointed to the Board of Directors of ChemoCentryx, Inc., in Mountain View, California. WALTER BALDI (Post ’85, B.A. in Criminal Justice/Social Sciences) spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Airborne Ranger Infantry Officer reaching the captain’s rank. Then he returned to school and obtained three more university degrees. He’s now in his 20th year teaching French, Italian and Latin in the Baldwin School District on Long Island, where he won the Baldwin UFSD “excellence in teaching” recognition twice, was an honored teacher at the National Honor Society Induction Ceremony seven times, and received the New York State PTA Honorary Lifetime Membership award for excellence in teaching. FRANK POMATA (Post ’86, B.A. in Political Science) is a labor technician at Suffolk Works Experience Program (SWEP). After graduating from LIU, he started working at the New York State Governor’s Office for Voluntary Service, which led to a long series of jobs at various nonprofit/ human service agencies. His favorite job so far was being the assistant director of Gear Up at Wyandanch, a federally funded college access project intended to help students stay in school. CHRISTINE DICOSTANZO (Post ’86, B.S. in Accounting) worked at KPMG Peat Marwick for two and a half years and then worked at Philip Morris for five years until the birth of her daughter. Subsequently, she worked from home for private investigative firms. SUSAN CONWAY (Post ’88, B.A. in Communications) is a real estate sales agent for the Level Group. WAYNE SCHUSTER (Post ’88, M.S. in Music Education) started teaching in the Jericho school district on Long Island but took a year off to tour with Blood, Sweat and Tears. He returned to teaching and directs the fourth and fifth grade bands at Jackson Elementary School and the sixth grade band at Jericho Middle School. For the past four years, his fifth grade bands have earned Gold ratings at the New York State School Music Association Majors. He continues to play tenor sax and clarinet.
IVONNE REYNOLDS (Brooklyn ’89, B.S. in Health Sciences), D.O., worked six years as a physician’s assistant in obstetrics and gynecology before going back to medical school. Now she is self-employed as a board-certified ob-gyn in Margate, Florida. DARLENE AIKEN-WILLIAMS (Brooklyn ’89, B.A. in Public Administration) is currently a celebrity agent, personal and professional development specialist, and head of D. Aiken & Associates Worldwide, a consulting firm and speakers bureau based in New York City, www.daikenassociates.net.
1990s VINCENT GALLUCCI (Southampton ’90, B.A. in Psychology) is the chief marketing officer at Ascension Medical Group in Wisconsin. HARVEY GILMORE (Post ’90, M.S. in Taxation) is a professor at Monroe College in New York and recently published an academic advice book to help freshmen navigate their first semester, called “The College Freshmen Guide to First Year Greatness.” MELISSA ECKSTEIN (Post ’92, L.M.S.W.) has been working in the health-care industry for more than 24 years. SUSAN RUBENSTEIN DEMASI (Post ’98, M.S. in Library Science) is a media librarian at Suffolk County Community College. She recently wrote the first biographer of Henry Alsberg, a writer and pioneer of the early 20th century, called “Henry Alsberg: The Driving Force of the New Deal Federal Writers’ Project.” JOE GATTO (Post ’99, B.S. in Accounting) is one of the stars of truTV’s hidden-camera prank show, Impractical Jokers, now in its eighth season. He and his comedy troupe known as The Tenderloins will star in the upcoming TBS game show, Misery Index. JOHN PETRONE (Southampton ’99, B.A. in History-Political Science) is an assistant professor of education administration on the tenure track in the Educational Studies Department, College of Education and Technology at Eastern New Mexico University.
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ALEXANDER MONELLI (Post ’09, B.F.A. in Film) will screen his first feature-length documentary, “At the Drive-in,” as an official selection of the Long Island International Film Expo on July 16, 2019 in Bellmore, N.Y. This award-winning film will also be shown at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood as an official selection of Dances With Films. To learn more go to www.Facebook.com/AtTheDrivein.
2010s CONOR REEVES (Post ’11, B.S. in Business Administration/ Management concentration), a wealth management advisor for Merrill Lynch in Garden City, N.Y. since 2012, was recently named to the first-ever Forbes’ list of America’s Top Next-Generation Wealth Advisors. He received his Certified Financial Planner designation in 2016.
LIU Brooklyn alumnus Isaiah Covington puts his skills to use here as the head performance coach of the Santa Cruz Warriors, a National Basketball Association affiliate of the Golden State Warriors, where he also works to keep those professional players in top shape.
2000s GRETCHEN ADAMS (Post ’01, B.A. in English and Philosophy) is a financial advisor at Morgan Stanley. ERIC EISENBERG (Brooklyn ’01, M.A. in Special Education) is a special education teacher at the New York City Department of Education, where is an athletic director and boys varsity basketball coach. He is the proud father of 10-year-old twins, Griffin and Gabrielle. His wife Karin Trapani passed away three years ago after battling breast cancer. LINDSEY BLOCK (Post ’08, B.S. in Childhood Education) is currently a personal trainer, after discovering a passion for fitness, especially running, which she began doing rigorously in 2010. At Post she was on the crew team and remembered making excuses to her coach to avoid running whenever it was required. She ran the 2011 Long Island Marathon and has continued to stay in shape. AYANN HILL (Brooklyn ’08, B.S. in Computer Science; ’14, M.S. in H.R.M.) is a human resources project manager and lead at Global HCM Data Integrity Workstream. At the upcoming National Association of Black Accountants, he will be moderating a panel discussion on “Unconventional Career Paths for Finance Majors.” JOHN PUJIA (Post ’09, B.S. in Physical Education) moved to Colorado in 2014, where he taught special education at high school and middle school, and also coached varsity wrestling, before moving back to New York and getting a job in the Bronx teaching physical education. He hopes to become an athletic director, dean or principal.
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VIDITA DESAI (Brooklyn ’15, M.S. in Drug Regulatory Affairs) is working with a pharmaceutical company as a regulatory affairs specialist, focusing not only on the U.S. market but also on South Korea and China. He also handles product and facility registration issues for Health Canada, the Food & Drug Administration in the U.S. and the European Commission. MARIA RYADCHIKOVA (Post ’16, Masters in Clinical Art Therapy) is an art therapist at Russkoye Pole Therapy and Rehabilitation Centre in Moscow, Russia, which focuses on rehabilitation and research on children diagnosed with oncological or hematological disease. ISAIAH COVINGTON (Brooklyn ’18, M.S. in Exercise Science) is the performance coach at the Golden State Warriors, a National Basketball Team based in Oakland, California. He’s also the head performance coach at their affiliated team, the Santa Cruz Warriors, in Santa Cruz, California. Prior to that, he was a seasonal sports performance intern at the Indiana Pacers, an NBA team based in Indianapolis, Ind. He is currently certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach (CSCS), the National Academy of Sports Medicine as a Performance Enhancement Specialist and as a Corrective Exercise Specialist, and by USA Weightlifting (USAW) as a Level 1 Sports Performance Coach. He was given an Award for Clinical Excellence when he graduated from LIU Brooklyn.
honoring
KIMBERLY R. CLINE President, Long Island University and
ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
Monday, June 17, 2019 The Plaza Hotel | New York City Cocktails and Silent Auction, 6 p.m. Dinner, 7 p.m. For more information, visit liu.edu/gala
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