ALUMNI

Eight Inducted into Athletic Hall of Fame

EIGHT ALUMNI WERE INDUCTED into the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2020, and one team was selected for special recognition this past November. The annual ceremony and dinner was postponed in 2020 due to the pandemic.

The honorees included John Bruckner ’74 (football), Mary DudekSerre ’05 (women’s lacrosse), Carey Edwards ’93 (men’s basketball), Milan Jotanovic ’09 (men’s track & field), Walter Olsewski ’68 (men’s and women’s swimming & diving/golf), Mike Parisi ’13 (baseball), Joe Ryan ’81 (men’s and women’s track & field) and Michael Ward ’91 (men’s and women’s rowing). In addition, the 1977 men’s soccer team was honored for its outstanding achievement.

John Bruckner ’74 was a four-year starter for the football team, and the defensive leader of the 1972 team that matched the program record with six victories. A two-way player, he suited up at linebacker on defense and guard on offense, and was a three-year defensive captain. Bruckner was named Manhattan’s Best Offensive Lineman as a sophomore in 1971, and the Best Defensive Player one year later. He would go on to serve as team captain as a senior. A longtime member of the FDNY, Bruckner retired as a battalion chief in 2002 and was named as the 2011 FDNY Holy Name Society Man of the Year.

Mary Dudek-Serre ’05 is one of the most accomplished players in the history of the women’s lacrosse program. She helped Manhattan to back-to-back MAAC Championships in 2004 and 2005, and is the only three-time MAAC All-Tournament team selection in school history. A First Team All-MAAC selection as a sophomore in 2003, she earned Second Team honors in 2004 thanks to a career-high 33 goals in leading Manhattan to a school-record 11 wins. At the time of her graduation, she was second in program history in both goals (114) and points (148).

Carey Edwards ’93 was one of the cornerstones of Manhattan’s outstanding basketball teams during the Steve Lappas and Fran Fraschilla eras. He scored 1,139 career points while helping the program to 79 wins during his four years, highlighted by three straight trips to the postseason. As a redshirt sophomore in 1991-92, Edwards and the Jaspers earned a then school-record 25 victories and a berth in the NIT, while setting the table for a historic season in 1992-93. He had a breakout year as a redshirt junior, earning All-MAAC Second Team honors, averaging 13.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game, as Manhattan secured its first-ever MAAC Championship along with a date in the NCAA Tournament.

Milan Jotanovic ’09 is one of the top throwers in the history of the men’s track and field program. A five-time All-American in the shot put, he finished third at the 2007 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships and at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. A standout for the program for five years, he redshirted the 2008 outdoor season and qualified for the Serbian Olympic team. A seven-time NCAA Championship participant, seven-time Met Champion and six-time IC4A Champion, he won the Penn Relays and NCAA Preliminary titles.

Walter Olsewski ’68 served as the head of the swimming and diving program for 20 seasons and was instrumental in resurrecting the men’s team at Manhattan. During his 20 years, he guided the women’s team to a 155-124 record (.556) and led both squads to a combined 200 victories. Olsewski also served 11 seasons from 2000-11 as the Jaspers’ golf coach.

Mike Parisi ’13 was an outstanding pitcher for the baseball program, winning 14 games with 272 strikeouts and a 4.03 ERA over 243.2 innings. Following his junior year, he was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2004 MLB Draft. Parisi would join the major leagues in 2008, playing a total of 12 games for the Cardinals. He burst on to the Manhattan scene as a rookie in 2002, going 7-4 with 81 strikeouts and a 2.83 ERA in 86 innings while helping the Jaspers to a then school-record 32 victories. Parisi earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American honors, and would cap his three-year Jasper career with a then school-record of 104 strikeouts in just 81 innings in 2004.

Joe Ryan ’81 has had a tremendous impact on the illustrious history of the track and field program. Ryan, who was named the 2003 AFLAC National Assistant Coach of the Year, coached several college recordholders and numerous All-East performers in both the IC4A and ECAC Championships. A total of 62 MAAC Championships, 39 Metropolitan Championships, and one IC4A Team Championship were won during his time. In 2000, Ryan helped guide Aliann Pompey ’99, Manhattan’s first female All-American, to both the NCAA indoor 400-meter title and a national collegiate record in the 500 meters. He also served as the head track and field coach for Guyana at the 2008 Beijing and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.

Michael Ward ’91 was one of the elite oarsmen in the long history of the rowing program before also making an impact as a coach. He joined the team as a junior in 1988-89 and was a member of the lightweight eight and four. During his tenure, Manhattan medaled at many local races, including the New York State and Metropolitan Championships. Ward coached at Manhattan from 1991-97 and again from 200313, before returning in 2017.

The 1977 men’s soccer team finished the 1977 season with a 10-3-3 record. At the time, the 10 wins set a program record, which has only been surpassed once, when the team won 12 matches in 2018.

Whatever Happened to … the Annual Retreat?

“IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO WORK EFFECTIVELY IN YOUR MINISTRY EXCEPT

BY SOLITUDE AND PRAYER,” proclaimed Saint Augustine. Retreat and reflection, he wrote, are the two means by which we separate ourselves from the world entirely and from the tendency to sin, and consecrate ourselves entirely to God.

St. Augustine’s message seems more relevant today than ever. Despite the compulsory respite caused by a global pandemic, stress, sadness and dread, coupled with relentless political and cultural polarization, have made mindfulness and spiritual reflection a necessity. St. Augustine reminds us that it’s important to take time to reflect on what we are doing; to contemplate our behavior and encourage practices that exemplify a lived faith. This opportunity was once a fundamental ritual and holy obligation for the students of Manhattan College.

The annual retreat, established to promote Catholic principles and encourage spiritual formation, was an integral experience and required event in the Manhattan College academic schedule for decades. Officially mandated in 1897, it represented a significant phase of the spiritual life of Manhattan men. During the time of retreat, students were given the opportunity to renew their spiritual lives through intensive programs of prayer, conferences, meditations, readings and the reception of the sacraments. The annual retreat was one of many devotional practices that affirmed the College’s Catholic values and sustained the faith of its students.

It wasn’t until the 1960s when students, faculty and administrators began to examine the overall program of campus religious activities to ensure its preservation and revitalization. The campus culture was changing in the wake of societal and ecclesial developments. A significant step was made away from compulsion, making many of the devotional observances voluntary. One of the last mandated religious activities of the College was the annual retreat. Students began to question the validity and effectiveness of the required event. In 1965, The Quadrangle newspaper surveyed the students prevailing attitudes, and the results revealed that 82% were against the mandatory retreat. More remarkable, perhaps, was that 56% of those polled said they would make a retreat anyway if it was not required.

The teachings of the Second Vatican Council and its emphasis on religious tolerance and flexibility helped convince administrators that all religious activities and devotional practices had to be voluntary. The requirement of the annual student retreat was eliminated in 1966 and was replaced by a series of forums and discussions to help foster and encourage introspection, theology, sacramental and liturgical life. Optional retreats continued with new modifications, including the introduction of relevant social topics on racism, pornography, religious activities on campus, psychology and marriage. Private, off-campus retreats like the co-ed Novacor retreat were also encouraged.

Today’s co-ed, pluralistic campus is different in many ways from the College of 60 years ago. Nevertheless, the opportunity provided by retreats to experience prayer, encourage faith and celebrate spiritual care persists. Campus Ministry and Social Action sponsors several faith-based retreats incorporating service, wellness activities and discussions on relevant social issues. Some retreats introduce students to the Lasallian charism and welcome them into our Lasallian community. In today’s chaotic world, we can all benefit from gathering together in one place, from listening, hearing, feeling, sharing and emerging refreshed and renewed and, as St. Augustine advised, capable and successful in our vocation.

ALUMNOTES

1930

Michael Mazurki was inducted into the Capital Region of New York State Football Hall of Fame and was posthumously awarded the New York State Award by the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. He played both football and basketball and continued on to be a professional heavyweight wrestler. Mazurki passed away on Dec. 1, 1990.

1959

Francis Carey retired after 63 years of working for IBM and the New York State Department of Labor, and moved to Connecticut.

1961

Rich Curtin, Nick Catalano, Tom

Philbin, Richard Caputo and Danny Panzer had an Omega Lambda Phi fraternity reunion in Moab, Utah, after 60 years. The members reminisced about their college years and explored the beautiful landscapes of Arches and Canyonlands National Parks.

1962

Albert Cevasco retired from Pfizer as a principal research chemist. He started with the company in 2001. He plans on traveling and visiting his grandchildren in South Carolina and Maryland.

1963

Joseph Palma has two grandchildren attending Manhattan College.

1965

Frank Cuomo retired after 40 years of running Frank Cuomo & Associates Inc. Thomas Mullady was awarded the Licking Memorial Health System’s 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award. The award was created in 1989 to recognize individuals for contributions that reflect the LMHS mission to improve the health of the community. Mullady became the safety, medical and industrial hygiene leader and retired from the Ohio-based company in 2002.

A Westchester County Educator is an Amazing Teacher

PATRICIA REGAN BARRY ’84 WAS CHOSEN as one of Westchester Magazine’s Amazing Teachers of 2022. The article highlights Barry’s dedication and creativity as a third-grade teacher in Westchester County’s Edgemont School District in Scarsdale, New York.

The magazine notes: “We’ve taken this opportunity to showcase some of our county’s many outstanding pedagogues, ranging from elementary school all the way through high school, who have made it their missions in life to mold young and impressionable minds into healthy, well-prepared, and productive members of society.”

Barry did not begin her career as a teacher. She graduated from Manhattan College with a finance degree and worked as a financial analyst. She says she began substitute teaching when her children were young and decided to go back to college to get her certification in order to pursue teaching full time. Barry earned her master’s degree in education from Fordham University. She has been an elementary school teacher in the Edgemont School District for the past 15 years and currently teaches third grade at Greenville Elementary School.

“I really wasn’t enamored with business,” Barry says. “I wanted a job where I could be home with my children. I loved subbing. I fell into the perfect environment for me. I am an example of someone who recreated themselves.”

Barry, whose parents were both originally from Ireland, says her family always placed a great value on education.

“Education was as sacred as going to church,” she says. She adds that her Catholic school upbringing also has influenced her teaching style, making her lessons very project-based.

For example, her class works on a children’s version of Hamlet. “Students create a six-foot [Elsinore Castle] castle complete with drawbridge and moat,” Barry describes. “They create each Patricia Regan Barry ’84 is one of Westchester County’s major character amazing teachers, according to a recent issue of Westchester and write Magazine. Noted for her creativity, she teaches third grade at Greenville Elementary School in Scarsdale, New York. about how the characters have transformed throughout the play. Students create a playbill describing the antagonist and protagonist and supporting characters.”

“For our unit on landforms,” she continues, “we create homemade clay (flour and water), and each student creates a volcano, which we ‘set’ off at the end of this science unit.”

Calling teaching a gift every day, Barry concludes that it is not a job.

“I become part of families’ lives,” she says. “It is a responsibility to be a positive role model.”

1967

Patrick Morrissey was interviewed for an article in the New York Real Estate Journal in which he discussed his career as a materials consultant for construction repair and restoration.

1968

Kenneth Lanfear had an award named after him by the American Water Resources Association for the best paper on a technology subject published in its journal each year. He served as the president of the American Water Resources Association and retired as a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in 2006. James Connolly has been retired from Jackson Electric Authority for seven years, married for 53 years, and currently has eight grandchildren.

1969

Vincent Maligno had dinner with his Alpha Phi Delta brother Gerard McManus and spent two days in Boston with his former classmate William White.

1970

Charles Ruff sold his orthodontic practice in 2020 and is continuing to teach part time in the Harvard Orthodontic Program. He and his wife, Rebecca, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Raymond Valenti retired as a mathematics tutor and is currently caring for his wife.

1972

Charles Barrett, director of catering sales for the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel and a member of Marriott’s Chairman Circle for the top 1% of the salesforce, retired after 34 years. He recently published a book titled, Playing to Win or Afraid to Lose, which covers sales in the hospitality industry. Thomas Behr has eight grandchildren and is happily living in New Jersey. Gerald Byrne welcomed three more grandchildren in September and October 2021. Brian Rohan welcomed his grandson, Tristan, in Dubai on 9/9/2021.

1973

Carlos Rodriguez retired from the New York State Attorney General’s office in 2009. He recently volunteered at a Latino youth agency dedicated to helping young people attend college.

1974

Steven Fangmann was profiled in the Long Island Business News magazine under the environmental consulting and engineering and construction sections. Fangmann is currently the president and CEO of D&B Engineers and Architects P.C. in Woodbury, New York, and has been recognized for his achievements in engineering during the course of 40 years. Joseph Maguire, a retired vice admiral in the United States Navy, joined the Orchestra Macrosystems Advisory Board. After earning his bachelor’s degree from Manhattan, Maguire served as commanding officer, SEAL Team TWO from 1992-1994, and deputy commander for the Naval Special Warfare Command from 19992001. He also was the acting director of National Intelligence.

1975

Robert Mittelstadt retired after 35 years of teaching social studies and coaching varsity football at North Salem High School in New York.

1976

Russell Josephs retired after working at the University of South Carolina and York Prep School in the physical education department and is now living in New Smyrna, Florida.

1977

Richard Ludwig retired from Schindler Elevator Corporation after 43 years. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, Ludwig worked in many fields, including engineering, manufacturing, management and field operations.

1979

Kevin Reilly retired after 40 years in education and athletics. Judith Courtney was featured in the Garden City News for her candidacy in the Eastern Property Owners Association of Garden City, New York.

1982

James Diver started work at Chemical Bank (now Chase) in 1982. He was with the company for 23 years. After a merger eliminated his position, Diver went back to school and received his master’s degree in education. He has been a special education teacher at Half Hollow Hills West High School in Dix Hills, New York, for 14 years. Susan Wittner celebrated 10 years as an adjunct professor in the O’Malley School of Business. She has more than 25 years of experience in marketing, including brand strategy, corporate identity, advertising, events, public relations, thought leadership and social media.

1983

Sam Borrelli was promoted from deputy commissioner of the Yonkers Department of Public Works to the role of interim commissioner. Borelli has 45 years of experience working for his family’s business, Virgil Borrelli Contracting Company Inc., as a project manager working alongside professional engineers. Jim Malone retired after 26 years with the New York City Board of Education. He plans to work in the field of nonprofit fundraising and organizations. Frank Rechner was named the technical director for the Air Force Petroleum Office (Det 1 SCOW). He formerly was Defense Logistics Agency Energy deputy director, supplier operations, and retired from the USAF in 2011 as a colonel.

1985

Willie and Mary ’83 McLaughlin are proud of their daughter, Sydney McLaughlin, a twotime track and field Olympic gold medalist, who is competing to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The couple met at Manhattan College and were both members of the track team.

1989

Kieran Lynch was named the 2022 grand marshal of Bergen County’s St. Patrick’s Day parade. Lynch is the son of the association’s founding member Edward Lynch, from County Kerry, Ireland. Working in conjunction with Holy Name Medical Center’s Foundation, Lynch helped supply personal protective equipment to all four hospitals in Bergen County early in the pandemic.

1990

Edward Bier was promoted to associate at Dewberry in Bloomfield, New Jersey. Bier is a member of the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association and was recently named Engineer of the Year by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) North Jersey branch. Ken Bouyer was honored by AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) as one of 27 influential leaders whose work serves as an inspiration to the next generation of business leaders. Bouyer is Ernst & Young’s America’s director of inclusiveness recruiting and a member of the board of trustees at Manhattan College.

1991

Maggie Nerz Irbarne has published multiple short stories and essays in a variety of small online and print publications. She began her writing career as a student at Manhattan College and is looking forward to publishing more stories this year.

1993

Matthew Skaarup was announced as the new chief executive officer at the Greenwich, Connecticut, YMCA. He began his YMCA career at the Capital District YMCA in Albany.

1994

Ofrona Reid is the new chief medical officer at the Syracuse Community Health Center. Reid was the senior vice president at Oneida Health Hospital and president of Oneida Medical Services.

JASPER BOOKSHELF

John Paluszek ’55 released Global Public Relations in the Roiling Twenty-Twenties: Confronting Disinformation, Serving a Sustainable Society (2021), a free summary of major issues within this decade and the public relations practices to address them. The book discusses the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, climate change, social media and contextual global issues. Paluszek is a former journalist, author and senior counsel at Ketchum in New York and Washington, D.C., specializing in reputation management and corporate responsibility.

Martin Keefe ’60 recently published a book of short stories, Tales from a Cardboard Box (Martin L. Keefe, 2020). The short stories touch on dreams, love, fear and hope that one often experiences and keeps concealed throughout life. Keefe is currently a retired marketing professional who spent much of his career at IBM. In addition to Tales from a Cardboard Box, Keefe has written Taking the Measure.

Richard Curtin ’61 published the ninth book in the Manny Rivera Mystery Series, Final Arrangements (Monticello Press, 2020). It follows the story of Iggy Webb, a Moab rockhound who is found murdered in his motor home. As Deputy Sheriff Manny Rivera peels back the layers of the case, he discovers a shocking conspiracy unlike anything he’s ever encountered. His investigation uncovers tentacles leading to the most unlikely places and motives driven by the darkest of man’s imperfections. Curtin is a retired research executive who served as vice president at Southwest Research Institute.

Richard Ranellone ’64 wrote his first historical fiction novel The Aüslander (Newman Springs Publishing Inc., 2021), which tells the story of a World War II German soldier who is captured by the United States Army in North Africa. After spending his captivity at a prisoner-of-war camp in Texas, he returns to war-ravaged Germany but is disillusioned by the dismal state of the country and the lack of opportunities available to him. Ranellone previously worked as a technology manager for Westinghouse and holds a master’s degree in science in nuclear engineering from the University of Virginia.

James Patterson ’69 recently released a novel with Dolly Parton titled Run, Rose, Run. The thriller follows a young singer-songwriter on the rise and on the run, and determined to do whatever it takes to survive. The talented woman travels to Nashville, to pursue her music-making dreams while coping with her dark past. Patterson and Parton are also partnering with Reese Witherspoon’s media company, Hello Sunshine, for the feature film adaptation of Run, Rose, Run, in which Parton is set to star. Patterson was awarded the 2019 National Humanities Medal, the Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community, and nine Emmy Awards.

Peter Quinn ’69, author of four novels and a book of essays, had all five republished last year by Fordham University Press, starting with Banished Children of Eve: A Novel of Civil War New York. The title was originally released in 1994 and won a 1995 American Book Award. His acclaimed Fintan Dunne Trilogy, comprising the Hour of the Cat, The Man Who Never Returned and Dry Bones, was reissued this past fall. Quinn’s book of essays, Looking for Jimmy: A Search for Irish America, was released this spring, and Cross Bronx: A Writing Life is due out in fall 2022. As a foremost chronicler of New York City, Quinn has participated as a guest commentator in several PBS documentaries.

Thomas Reilly ’73 published his first novel entitled, Chasing Time (World Castle Publishing, 2021). A medical suspense and fantasy story, it begins in Rome around A.D. 40-50 with the fictional character, Lucius Fabius Antonius. The plot then jumps to the story of the Roman merchant’s mirror image, Anthony Lucas, in 1960s Brooklyn. The story follows Anthony’s journey to seek a cure for his wife’s terminal illness. Reilly is a retired biotechnology scientist and has published numerous essays on science and technology.

Kevin McNeill ’74 wrote a novel with his son, David McNeill, titled The Orchid and the Emerald (Blackstone Publishing, 2022). The story follows William Gunn after he returns home from the Napoleonic Wars, and his daughter falls prey to a mysterious sickness. Gunn ventures into the Amazon rainforest to search for the only cure, the black orchid. Across the Atlantic, American frontiersman Nathanial Yankee left his country to join a new revolution to free South America from the Spanish. In a race against time, the two must survive the battlefields and work together against their enemies. McNeill served on a blue water research vessel and worked for Saudi Aramco in Saudi Arabia.

Annette Berkovits ’77 released Erythra Thalassa: Brain Disrupted (Tenth Planet Press, 2020), which details Berkovits’ personal journey of faith, hope and guilt through poetry after her son suffered a hemorrhagic stroke and became a quadriplegic. Erythra Thalassa: Brain Disrupted is her first poetry chapbook. Berkovits has written two memoirs, a novel, and assorted poetry and short stories. She previously served as the senior vice president of the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York for 30 years.

Julienne Pechulis Ryan ’81 published The Learned-it-in-Queens Communications Playbook – Winning Against Digital Distraction (J. Ryan Partners, 2020), in which she shares ways to communicate effectively in our new digital age from a humorous perspective and how her understanding of communication was informed by her Queens upbringing. Ryan currently works as a public speaker, trainer and coach and is a partner in her publishing company, J. Ryan Partners.

Frances Martinez ’10 published her first children’s book, The Tale of El Chiquitín (Scarlen Martinez, 2021). The story follows the fictional character Sissy Dominguez, who has a very close relationship with her mother and father. Everything changes when her parents return from a trip and seem to have changed forever. Her grandmother blames the mysterious El Chiquitín, so Sissy sets out to uncover what happened. The children’s tale is written in English but includes Spanish phrases for those interested in learning either language. Martinez has worked in urban education for almost 10 years.

Susan M. Fiorentino ’12 self-published We Will Never Forget: The Stories of Children of 9/11 First Responders (2021), which features stories from more than 40 children of 9/11 first responders, including two Manhattan College alumni. All proceeds from sales of the book go to the Tunnels to Towers Foundation. The daughter of a detective and first responder, Fiorentino is an assistant at Staten Island Academy.

Danica Mendez-Liakos ’12 penned her first book, The Phantom’s Tea (Danica MendezLiakos, 2020), part of her trilogy All are Welcome at the Silent Circus … But How Do I Get Out of Here? A children’s horror novel, it teaches children the importance of spreading kindness to combat fear and anxiety. Mendez-Liakos was inspired by R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books, which she loved as a child, and the book features illustrations by the same artist who designs Stine’s covers, Tim Jacobus. Mendez-Liakos teaches sixthgrade math and science at Evergreen Charter Middle School in Hempstead, New York.

Jamila Thompson ’19 wrote a children’s picture book, Girls Can Be Engineers (JH Lindo LLC, 2021), in which a young girl, Hannah, searches for a career at her school’s upcoming Career Day. Each time she chooses a career, she becomes discouraged because her chosen career seems to be only for boys. With the help of her mother, a structural engineer, she learns that she can do anything, regardless of her gender. Thompson earned her civil engineering degree from Manhattan and is a recent construction management graduate from Columbia University.

1998

Angela Johnson was selected as the 2021-2022 Newport, Rhode Island, Public Schools Teacher of the Year. At Manhattan, she majored in secondary education with a minor in social studies and sociology. In 2014, Johnson was hired at Rogers High School, where she currently works as a social studies teacher. Michelle-Marie (Komorowski) and Gregory Shaw Jr. ’99 are proud that their son, Gregory Shaw III, signed his National Letter of Intent to play on the Manhattan College baseball team. Gregory III will be a third-generation Jasper. His mother, Michelle-Marie, was a four-year starter on the Manhattan softball and swim teams.

2001

Peter Mangubat is currently a pediatric hospitalist at New York-Presbyterian in Queens.

2003

Mellisa Cain was featured in an article on the Vermont-centric website Seven Days detailing her initiative to provide masks to everyone in Burlington, Vermont. In the first year of the pandemic, Cain was able to distribute about 40,000 masks. In addition to her mask initiative, Cain also ran clothing drives, launched a GoFundMe campaign for Mawuhi African Market, and founded a pop-up mutual aid program to help those struggling to make ends meet in her community. Lester Marks was recently admitted to the New York State Bar.

2005

Janett Santiago has been working as an engineer for the city of New Rochelle since 2015. She previously worked on the Yankee Stadium project as an engineer for Turner Construction.

2009

Kathleen Bulson and Daniel Maher got married in October 2021 at St. Anthony’s Church in Nanuet, New York. The couple met during their junior year at the College.

Jasper Honored at the Pentagon

MAJOR JOHN H. MARK JR. ’00 WAS HONORED POSTHUMOUSLY for his service to the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps in June 2021 at the Pentagon. Lieutenant General Charles Pede, T-JAG, dedicated a plaque in the Pentagon’s JAG office to recognize Mark’s dedication and service to the United States and to the U.S. Army.

“This is a rare and distinct honor,” say his parents, John H. Mark Sr. ’71 and Angela P. Mark ’87. “JH’s was a life of service. The quote from Mother Teresa, ‘I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples,’ is inscribed on the plaque honoring his military service, and it is appropriate to his life of service.”

Mark made an impression on the Manhattan College campus, as well. The Gunn Medal recipient at his graduation, he was also a member of the Pen and Sword Society and Phi Beta Kappa. As a student, he studied abroad at Oxford University and was involved in the Manhattan College Players. Mark had starring roles in Rumors and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. After graduation, he also served as director of student life.

A graduate of St. John’s Law School, Mark taught at a Catholic elementary school in Queens and served as an adjunct professor at Monroe College’s Bronx campus while waiting to join the JAG Corps, to which he was accepted in December 2007. He served as trial defense counsel at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. During his service, he volunteered as a cavalry soldier with Troop B and also earned the German Armed Forces Proficiency Medal.

Mark graduated from Fort Benning, Georgia, Airborne School in 2009 and was deployed as senior defense counsel in Kuwait in 2012, where he was awarded the Bronze Star. He was assigned to the Pentagon the following year as a criminal law attorney with the JAG office. Mark served from 2007 until his death in 2015.

“Our son would be so proud and pleased to know that his legacy is being carried on through the Manhattan College Major John H. Mark Jr. Study Abroad Scholarship we established shortly after his passing,” Mark Sr. concludes. Contributions may be made online at manhattan.edu.

Lieutenant General Charles Pede, Angela ’87 and John Mark Sr. ’71 stand alongside the plaque in the Pentagon’s JAG office dedicated to their son, Major John Mark Jr. ’00.

Alexandra Velella was highlighted in the Colonie Spotlight for winning a seat on the town board in the Albany County Board of Elections. Velella received her bachelor’s degree in communication from Manhattan College, a master’s degree from Pace University, and a law degree from Brooklyn Law School.

2010

Perry Geyer Jr. was promoted to senior project manager in the New York tri-state office of LeChase Construction Services LLC in Armonk. In his 15 years with LeChase, Geyer has overseen more than $100 million in construction for biomedical facilities. Victoria Scala, a civil engineer and president at Lowy & Donnath Inc., was featured in the Engineering NewsRecord’s Top 20 Under 40 group. Gabrielle Puglia-Pesce became a speechlanguage pathologist for Fort Hamilton High School in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, for the 2021-2022 school year.

2011

Nathaniel Burke started as an assistant professor in the economics department at West Virginia University.

2012

Jonathan Luke is working as a senior project manager at the New York City Economic Development Corporation Capital Program. He manages the design and construction of a range of New York City public projects, including civil infrastructure and ground-up building construction.

2013

Matt Wellington became a fixture in the public health policy landscape during the COVID-19 pandemic through his work as the director and face of the nonprofit advocacy group, U.S. PIRG, a federation of independent, state-based, citizenfunded public interest research groups. He appeared on NBC Nightly News, MSNBC, and numerous local TV stations. Wellington, who has worked for U.S. PIRG or its state groups since graduation, also runs PIRG’s campaigns to keep children from getting hooked on tobacco. Adrian Hot, an innovation manager at Blue Point Brewing Company, spoke on behalf of the company in an interview with Beverage Dynamics. He discussed the company’s latest innovations, such as the rise of craft beer terpenes and what’s next for the industry.

2015

John Atwell received a nomination for City & State New York’s Real Estate/ Construction 40 Under 40 Award. Atwell is an assistant superintendent at Skanska and has worked on multiple large-scale projects like the Bayonne Bridge Project, Kosciuszko Bridge, and LaGuardia Airport renovation. He is currently working on the Hunts Point Interstate Access Improvement Project with the New York State Department of Transportation to create access for commercial vehicles traveling to and from the Hunts Point Peninsula.

2016

Rachel Love started a new job at the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation as a project development coordinator for personnel. Gregory Zajac began a new position at Celonis, a start-up company in New York City.

2017

John Evans was featured in New York’s The Rivertowns Enterprise for his inspiring poetry. At the age of five, Evans lost his sight and in 2015, he learned that its cause was a brain tumor. The article discusses his journey through two surgeries and his outlets like podcasting and writing. Francis Merklin earned his Professional Engineer license from D&B Engineers and Architects. Merklin has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree in environmental engineering that he earned from Manhattan College in 2019.

2018

Daniel Tenney received the Con Edison’s Living Our Values Award for his dedication to keeping service safe and reliable, helping customers, and his commitment to his community. He is currently a senior designer in gas engineering maps and records at Con Edison, and has actively been working to help large buildings in the area switch from oil to natural gas. In his free time, Tenney also volunteers at the West Sayville Fire Department with his brother and father.

2019

Andres Rojas was featured in a Construction News article highlighting the next generation’s leaders. Rojas is a computer technical assistant at Columbia Law School in New York City.

2020

Maryann Moriarty, a reporter for The Educators Room, published an article, “Filling Your Cup with Science,” where she reflected on her achievements as an elementary science teacher. After 13 years of teaching first and second grades, Moriarty decided to transfer to elementary science, where she taught K-4. She held weekly science programs for roughly 287 students and emphasized the importance of teaching science in elementary schools.

MARRIAGES 2009

Kathleen Bulson and Daniel Maher, 10/29/21

2010

Gabrielle Puglia-Pesce and Frank Pesce, 10/9/2021

2012

Caitlin Sweetapple and Michael Salogub ’13, 10/21

2017

Sean Sonnemann and Michelle DePinho ’18, 10/02/21

2018

Daniel Murphy and Victoria Thomas, 6/23/21

BIRTHS 2006

Mark Sheeran and Pamela Sheeran Daughter, Mae, 11/7/21

2011

Steven Montoni and

Cara (Vullo) Montoni

Son, Luca, 8/23/21

2012

Marielle McMahon

Son, Christopher, 8/16/21

ADVANCED DEGREES 1998

Christopher Trivino earned his Master of Arts in Defense and Strategic Studies from the United States Naval War College.

2005

Michael Laterza received his doctorate in English pedagogy with a concentration in teaching from Murray State University.

2012

Samantha Fox earned her Master of Science in Human Resource Management and Development from New York University.

Alumna Becomes First Woman to Lead New Jersey Town’s Beach Patrol

SOME GRADS FOLLOW A STRAIGHT LINE TO THEIR CAREER, others aren’t sure what they want to do and try a few jobs until landing one that suits them. For still others, their ideal job was always there, waiting to be discovered.

The latter example was the case for Meghan Marro ’13, who, in a sense, found two jobs waiting for her. Marro’s full-time job is teaching; her summer job is working for Beach Haven Beach Patrol in Beach Haven, New Jersey, on Long Beach Island (LBI), which she has done since the summer after her freshman year in college.

Throughout the years, she has risen through the ranks, including lieutenant and assistant chief. In January 2021, she was promoted to chief of beach patrol, the first woman to be selected for the position.

The Cherry Hill, New Jersey, resident has received support from all sides.

“If you think about — it’s always been a man’s game, and now all of a sudden, it’s changing,” she says. “I’m in charge of all these women and all these men, and I believe it’s important to show that a woman can do just as great as a man. I think that all of the men that work for me believe that I deserved it, and the younger women, who are my lifeguards-in-training, look up to me.”

In her new role, she oversees a staff of about 50, coordinating their work schedules and beach assignments, and ensuring that their certifications are current, for example. She also responds to emergencies in town and on the beach.

Marro has loved the beach since she was a child, and with her teaching background in physical education, it’s as if the position was just waiting for her when her predecessor retired.

The start and end of the season are particularly challenging because teachers can only work on weekends until school is out, and college students leave for school before the season is over. But she still loves it.

“It’s different every day,” she says. “I can wake up to a beautiful, calm ocean and then suddenly, the wind can turn, and it’s roaring.”

When Marro enrolled in Manhattan College, she knew she wanted to teach, possibly special education.

“Then when I went to Orientation, I saw there was a physical education major,” she says, and that’s the field she decided on, with a minor in adaptive physical education.

She credits several Manhattan professors — Lisa Toscano, Ed.D., Shawn Ladda, Ed.D., and Jeffrey Cherubini, Ph.D. — with influencing her desire to teach. She especially remembers “how they spoke about teachers, and how you hold yourself as a teacher.”

In addition, Marro was a four-sport varsity athlete at Manhattan. She was on the swim team and was captain of the cross-country team and both the winter and spring track and field teams. With that experience, who can doubt that teaching physical education was preordained for her?

Playing sports at Manhattan also helped her to be organized. “I had to be in class at this time, and then I had a paper due at that time, so I had to find time to make sure I made every practice, every meet, and did all my schoolwork, too,” she says. That skill has stayed with her, and helps in both jobs.

Another takeaway from college are her memories from May Camp, a spring program for physical education and exercise science students following freshman year that offers physical and mental challenges through outdoor educational activities.

“It’s like a sleep-away camp,” Marro says. “It really changed how everyone in my department viewed each other. We became close and from then on, in every single class, everyone knew each other in a personal, beautiful way.”

For the last four of her nine years teaching physical education, Marro has worked at the J. Mason Tomlin School in Mantua Township, New Jersey. Besides teaching, she also plans and develops curricula for games, and life and team sports, leads Field Day, and organizes and runs township activities, among other responsibilities at the elementary school. In addition, she is using her adaptive physical education minor in her role as leader of the physical challenge club.

She sees parallels between teaching and her beach job.

“I think that it makes me a little warmer dealing with kids all day and then going to the beach and having to explain different things to a child, knowing how to talk to a kid,” she says. “Some of the kids call me Chief Marro, which I think is hysterical.”

A “perk” during her years working at the beach was meeting her future husband, Colin, a medical salesman, when she was a lieutenant, and he was a “regular lifeguard.” They will be married this June — where else? — in LBI.

Politics and Tech Make for a Rewarding Career for This Jasper

WHEN TOM MCNEIL ’04 WAS LOOKING for an internship his senior year, he happened to be in the right place at the right time.

“While taking classes in my major, history,

I also took a bunch of government classes and fell in love with politics and policy,” he says. (He minored in government and religious studies.) McNeil also worked part time doing clerical work for the history and government departments and had become friendly with some of the professors.

Margaret Groarke, Ph.D., professor of political science, noticed his passion for politics and policy and asked about his plans after graduation.

“When I said I wasn’t sure, she asked if I would be interested in interning with New

York State Assembly Member Jeffrey

Dinowitz. I jumped at the chance,” he says.

He started interning that January.

That occurrence was an early lesson for him in the importance of developing strong personal relationships, and it has served him well. “That lesson has carried over in my work in government politics, especially — absolutely,” he says.

Following McNeil’s internship, Dinowitz hired him full time, and McNeil stayed eight years. Besides working on Dinowitz’s re-election campaign, he helped on the campaigns of New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., among others.

Then McNeil decided that he wanted to see the other side of government — “how things work from the outside,” and he chose transportation technology; first joining startup car2go, a car-sharing company. Next, he joined Getaround, which involves customers renting cars from private owners. Following that, he worked for Revel, a moped and ride-share company. He worked as an adviser for the two founders even before the company had a name, and today is on the advisory board.

“Those three companies were trying to change the transportation landscape,” he says. Just as he fell in love with politics and policy at Manhattan College, he “fell in love with tech companies and technology and saw that tech could bring about change faster. I also saw the opportunity to bridge tech and government,” McNeil says. Startups understand rapid change, but they don’t really understand government, he explains. He helps translate these things, so each side understands where the other is coming from.

In 2020, the Manhattan resident joined Instacart, a grocery delivery service, as East Coast public policy manager. It’s still transportation technology and policy, but it’s also focused on improving the quality of life in cities. (For example, Instacart helped keep grocery stores open during the pandemic.) McNeil describes the job as advocating for public policy outcomes that support the long-term growth of the company. In addition, he builds trust with government policymakers, helping them to understand Instacart’s business and its positive impact on their communities.

He also helps to shape complex public policy debates that will help define the future of work and e-commerce.

“A perfect example is Instacart’s expansion of SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly the Food Stamp Program) after hearing from so many elected officials at the start of the pandemic,” he says. One of their biggest concerns was the ability of their New York constituents to use SNAP benefits online and have groceries delivered. “We were able to raise this issue internally, and within a couple of months, SNAP benefits could be used on our Instacart platform,” he notes.

“That’s where I’ve made my career — translating for people the positive changes that technology can bring to our communities, and being the go-between for government policy and tech,” he says.

His efforts have garnered some enviable attention; in 2021, he was named to City & State New York’s list of New York City 40 under 40 rising stars.

The excitement one hears in McNeil’s voice when he talks about his work is related to another lesson he learned at Manhattan: Surround yourself with great people. He’s done that with friends he made there and afterward with colleagues.

“My friends from Manhattan are still in my life, and I talk to a few almost daily,” he says. “And when you work with great people, you wake up with a passion for your job, and you want to work with them and achieve great things together.”

For Thomas Foley ’92, Public Service Means Getting It Done

WHEN NEW YORK CITY MAYOR ERIC ADAMS appointed a new commissioner of the New York

City Department of Design and Construction (DDC) in January of this year, he chose someone who has been, in Adams’ words, “a steady hand in moments of crisis”:

Thomas J. Foley ’92, P.E.

Indeed, in his nearly 30-year career in public service (25 of them at DDC), Foley has been front and center in helping the city recover from historic moments of crisis such as 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy. More recently, he has played a pivotal role in the city’s efforts to provide the resources and buildings needed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Beyond addressing the city’s needs during emergencies, Foley’s work also encompasses New Yorkers’ day-to-day and civic concerns.

He oversees the city’s capital construction projects, from animal shelters and libraries to firehouses and community health centers, while ensuring that they are aligned with the city’s resiliency goals.

The Staten Island, New York, native notes that his education at

Manhattan, where he majored in civil engineering, was foundational to his success. Especially vivid is the support he received from

Moujalli Hourani, D.Sc., associate professor of civil and environmental engineering.

“I’ll never forget some of Dr. Hourani’s classes,” he says. “I sat down with Dr. [Jeanette] Brown, Dr. Hourani, Dr. [John] Horvath at various times because I needed their insight. They instilled a level of confidence in their students to, ‘keep at it, and you will be successful.’”

After Manhattan, Foley joined the New York City Department of

Environmental Protection (DEP). “I had a preference for construction and wanted to be outside,” he recalls. “A good number of our class went to work for the city; we had jobs lined up November of our senior year. I still strive for that now as commissioner at DDC — to start outreach to college students so that when they graduate, they can start as soon as they’re able.”

In 1996, Foley transitioned to the newly formed Department of

Design and Construction. Since then, he has worked in every borough of the city in a variety of roles at the agency, including deputy director, director and assistant commissioner in the Division of Infrastructure. After 9/11, he became a project manager for DDC’s

World Trade Center Disaster Recovery and Debris Removal Project, reviewing staffing and procedures, analyzing labor and equipment utilization, and identifying and correcting inefficiencies in the $500-million endeavor. “I remained at the site for about two years,” he says. “During that time, I worked with so many fellow alumni from Manhattan College, more so than from any other school, from an engineering standpoint.” He continues, “It had its physical and mental challenges, but everybody was working together to get it done.” Foley says that his efforts on the 9/11 recovery project were “very similar to public service after Sandy, and the amazing work that my agency was able to perform, and continues to perform, during the pandemic.” The DDC’s pandemic-related construction projects include two temporary hospitals, four health labs, three permanent healthcare facilities, and a number of testing and vaccination sites throughout the city.

“Those were all done in record time,” he says. “When the city is in crisis situations, these are some of the things that we always volunteer for.”

During the past decade, Foley has also been responsible for the reconstruction of the Times Square Plaza, as well as the activation of New York City Water Tunnel 3, a 60-mile tunnel that runs from the Hillview Reservoir in Yonkers, New York, to Queens. Designed to reduce the city’s dependency on two older water tunnels, it is the largest capital construction project in New York City history.

In January 2017, he was named deputy commissioner of the Public Buildings Division, where he managed the $8.7 billion Borough-Based Jail Program, which aims to replace the Rikers Island complex with four smaller facilities.

Foley is especially proud of the DDC’s work on the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project, a critical coastal protection initiative aimed at reducing flood risk due to coastal storms and sea level rise on Manhattan’s East Side. “It’s the largest resiliency project going on in the country,” he says. “I’m not surprised that New York City is leading the way.”

As he leads a staff of 1,150, with plans to add additional numbers, Foley is bullish on bringing Manhattan engineers into the DDC fold.

“I encourage graduates to work in the public sector, to give back,” he says. “Working with the city provides so much latitude and mentorship. They learn a lot in those first couple of years, which are so critical both on the design table and then out in the field.”

Take it from someone who knows.

Isabel Pradas ’96: Advancing College Access for Bronx Students

AT THE OUTSET OF HER STUDIES at Manhattan College, Isabel Pradas ’96 aimed to advocate for underserved communities as a lawyer. However, other possibilities became apparent to the political science major when she worked at a summer internship with the Queens District Attorney’s office.

“We would help victims with services they may need, and also attend their court trials to provide support,” she recalls. “I became conflicted hearing many of the defendants’ stories and what their situation was. There were so many young people in the system, and I realized there was something more to this.”

Pradas discussed her experience with Winsome Downie, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science, who told her about the College’s new academic program in urban affairs (now urban studies), which provided the opportunity for students to participate in community engaged learning with Bronx nonprofits and agencies. Pradas decided to double major in political science and urban affairs, and connected with the Highbridge Community Life Center, attending retreats and providing translation services.

“I saw the two worlds that existed in my backyard,” she says. “I thought, ‘I want to do something about this, and I don’t know that I have to be a lawyer to do it.’”

After graduation, she chose a career path working for educational access organizations, starting as a counselor for ASPIRA, a grassroots organization that provides programming to encourage Hispanic students to stay in school and succeed.

“Exposing young people to educational opportunities is a key way of changing the trajectory of a person’s life experience,” she says. “Providing them with the right support services, helping them identify their aspirations.”

Pradas later moved on to other organizations that built her knowledge base and connections: the Milano School of Policy, Management and Environment at the New School, the Bronx Institute at Lehman College, and a decade as a co-director with the federal program Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP). “I worked with 20 or 30 schools throughout my career there, and started thinking about whether I could create something similar on my own terms,” Pradas says.

In her next role, as director of a national AmeriCorps program in youth sports development, she partnered with community organizations and schools across the country.

In 2018, Pradas and a longtime colleague, Kevin Anthony, made the decision to found a nonprofit providing college-access and other postsecondary services for students in the Bronx, and called it the College Bridge Café (CBC). They started with a crowdfunding campaign and brought on former mentees as consultants. Among the programs they established were college application boot camps that provide students with an intensive head start on preparing their applications and financial aid portfolios; college application support workshops for guidance counselors and students that focus on the CUNY and SUNY application process; and FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) completion events for parents and students.

In its first year, CBC gained 501(c)3 nonprofit status and partnered with the New York State GEAR UP office to run a college application boot camp for 100 high school rising seniors at Union College. They also worked with College Goal New York to offer FAFSA completion events at Fordham University, and were granted office space at the South Bronx Business Lab run by the Third Avenue Business Improvement District. On top of that, Pradas says, “We leveraged the contacts we had over the years, became a New York City Department of Education College Access for All (CA4A) vendor and began working in the schools.”

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pradas says, “We wanted to continue to do the work.” CBC ran its FAFSA completion events virtually, as well as online professional development training with high school educators. They also provided workshops for Bronx high schools like the International School of Liberal Arts, Westchester Square Academy and Fordham Leadership Academy, and Renaissance High School, and for residents of Betances Houses through Catholic Charities.

Looking ahead, Pradas hopes to offer a physical location where community members can meet with counselors and take workshops — and even have a cup of coffee. “I believe that those spaces are special and can really add vibrancy to a community,” she says.

Recently, CBC was awarded a grant of $1.3 million over five years from the U.S. Department of Education Talent Search Program. There are plenty of uses for the funds. “It’s amazing the amount of resources you need to run a fully built-out program,” Pradas says. “Kevin and I are wearing 15 different hats.”

For now, Pradas is happy to be living her dream of helping Bronxites achieve their educational goals and has remained in contact with many past students and mentees.