Alumni, Faculty, and Student News
ALUMNI
‘70s
Maria Tesoriero ’78, Mathematics, has been promoted to senior adjunct professor with 35 years of service. Tesoriero is also mathematics department chairperson at Monsignor Farrell High School, Staten Island, NY.
‘90s
Michelle Stowers (née Jones) ’93 ’97, Criminal Justice/MST Education, is now an assistant principal in Suffolk County, NY, celebrating 19 years with the Bay Shore School District.
‘00s
Irina Gelman ’06, PhDc, Biology, has been named Orange County commissioner of health. The appointment became effective earlier this year.
Reggie Thomas ’08, Economics and Political Science, was appointed to the Real Estate Board of New York as senior vice president for government affairs. Thomas is a Watson Fellow and a member of the Dyson College Society of Fellows.
‘10s
Christopher Abbiss ’85, Journalism, has rejoined the MAC Group to focus on managing marketing, content development, education and dealer relations for the operation’s lighting brands.
Sarah Ashey ’12, Communication Studies, is the marketing and creative producer of The View, responsible for promoting overall image and branding. Ashey’s work received the 2018 Silver ProMax award for Best Daytime Program Campaign.
Marissa Caro ’10, Communication Studies,participated in a panel discussion at the Pequot Library in Southport, CT on how high school students can use their artistic assets to enhance their college applications.
Matteo Ceurvels ’13, Latin American Studies and Spanish, authored an article in Business Insider about the new streaming options available through mobile and social platforms during the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Elizabeth Eggimann ’18, Environmental Studies, contributed to Community of Gardens, a digital archive kept by the Smithsonian Institution, as part of her senior project. Eggimann’s senior project included extensive interviews with the William A. Harris Garden and the Joseph Daniel Wilson Memorial Garden, now published on the Community of Gardens website.
Samantha Elisofon ’14, Liberal Arts, received a best actress nomination at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival for her performance in the romantic comedy Keep the Change. She was featured in the New York Post article, "Actors with Autism Finally Get the Star Treatment."
Charles Fall ’14, Master of Public Administration, won New York’s Democratic primary on September 13, emerging over two challengers in an open race to represent Staten Island’s North Shore in the state assembly.
Tatiana Lofton ’15, Musical Theater, was mentioned in Broadway World aboutjoining the cast of "DUETS with the Write Teacher(s) Volume 6" at New York’s Feinstein's/54 Below.
Kelsey Parker ’18, Master of Science in Environmental Science, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to fund her research in Zambia on the effects of the country’s copper mining on soil health and overall sustainability.
Natalie Powers ’17, Commercial Dance, appeared in a multimedia advertisement for Uniqlo.
Lexi Rabadi ’16, Musical Theater, was featured in the Broadway World article, “Pounding the Pavement with Positivity: A Conversation with Lexi Rabadi.”
Ashley Romans ’15, Theater Arts, won the 2017 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for Lead Performance as Fiona/Adrian in the play, Rotterdam, about transgender lives. Now appearing in a recurring role on Showtime’s comedy-drama series Shameless, Romans also recurs on Showtime’s I’m Dying up Here and has booked a role in Apple’s upcoming drama series Are You Sleeping.
Annie Rosa ’17, Master of Science in Publishing, has been promoted to sales operations manager at the comic book publisher Valiant Entertainment.
Taslim Tavarez-Garcia ’19, Communication Studies and Political Science, Pace University’s first-ever Truman Award winner, has accepted a position as a legal assistant with the American Civil Liberties Union’s Immigrants' Rights Project.
Lauren Trapanotto ’11, Business Economics, was elected to serve as a New York State Democratic Committee Member for the 76th Assembly District.
Nicole Virgona ’18, Master of Arts in Environmental Policy, has accepted the position of regional deputy director of Senator Charles Schumer’s (D-NY) Hudson Valley office.
Natalie Waits ’18, Commercial Dance, was featured in Focus Daily News, about being accepted into the Commercial Dance program.
Madeline White ’13, Acting, has joined 6 On Your Side, the news team of KIVI-TV, an ABC-affiliated station serving Boise, ID.
Dominique Fishback, Theater Arts, was interviewed by the LA Times about her stage and screen successes.
Jeremy Kareken, Actors Studio Drama School, has co-written The Lifespan of a Fact, a new Broadway play staring Bobby Cannavale, Cherry Jones, and Daniel Radcliffe. The show, running through January 13, 2019, is an adaptation of a book about a thought-provoking battle between a writer and a fact-checker, and the challenges they face in the Information Age.
FACULTY
Inbal Abergil, Art, authored N.O.K: Next Of Kin, which has been shortlisted for the 2018 Documentary Essay Prize at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. Abergil is one of ten finalists selected from 155 entries for the prize, and the winner will be publicly announced in June 2019. Abergil's work has also been featured at a number of exhibitions, including PHOTOVILLE, Capture Your Freedom, and the 2018 Atlanta Celebrates Photography Ones to Watch. Further, she received the 2017-2018 Pollock-Krasner Foundation Photography Grant in support of N.O.K.
Matthew Aiello-Lammens, Environmental Studies and Science, co-authored an article in the journal, New Phytologist, entitled “Divergent Trait and Environment Relationships among Parallel Radiations in Pelargonium (Geraniaceae): a Role for Evolutionary Legacy?”
Eve Andrée Laramée, Art, is represented in “Hot Spots: Radioactivity and the Landscape,” a multimedia exhibition at the University of Buffalo’s UB Art Gallery featuring 18 international artists and art collectives who examine the environmental impact of the production and use of radioactive materials by the military and industry. Laramée is exhibiting a set of infographic digital works, NukeNOtes: West Valley Nuclear Site, about a former nuclear fuel recycling plant. The NukeNote project includes a social sculpture intervention–prints that are free for viewers to take and distribute.
Daniel Bender, English, presented at the 2018 meeting of the Renaissance Society of America. Bender’s work, entitled "Enduring Renaissance Rhetoric: A Plebeian Perspective," explores the gap between elites and commoners in public speaking skills and opportunities.
Janetta Rebold Benton, Art History, recently gave a two-part lecture on the history, art, and architecture of Paris at the 92nd Street Y in New York. On November 3, she is scheduled to speak on the chateaux of France’s Loire Valley at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.
Susan Berardini, Modern Languages and Cultures, gave a paper titled “Casa tomada: perspectivas sobre los nadies en Hidalgo, de Maria Marull,” at the XXVII Congreso Internacional de Teatro Iberoamericano y Argentino, held this August in Buenos Aires.
Martina Blackwood, Dyson director of instructional technology, was quoted by Engadget on what educators think about Apple’s new iPad.
Matthew Bolton, Political Science, and Emily Welty, Women and Gender Studies, received honorary degrees for their work promoting denuclearization and gave the 2018 commencement address at Graceland University, Bolton’s alma mater. Bolton was also quoted in Newsweek on the United States’ withdrawal from the Iran Nuclear Agreement, and featured on Radio New Zealand discussing how more needs to be done to help those affected by nuclear testing.
Michelle Chase, History, authored Revolution within the Revolution, a book outlining the role of gender politics in Cuba in the 1950s and early ’60s. Chase also lent expertise to the NBC Newsarticle, “Raul Castro's Daughter to Push for Gay Marriage in Cuba,” and was awarded the Moody Research Grant from the Lyndon B. Johnson Foundation for summer research at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, TX.
Kimberly Collica-Cox, Criminal Justice and Security, received the Outstanding Public Service by an Employee Award from the Jefferson Awards Foundation for her innovative Parenting, Prison, and Pups program supporting incarcerated women. The Jefferson Awards Foundation is the nation’s most prestigious and longest-standing organization dedicated to inspiring and celebrating public service. Additionally, her article, “Of All the Joints, She Walks into This One: Women Executives’ Motivations to Enter Corrections” was published in The Prison Journal, and she co-authored "Parenting, Prison, and Pups with a Purpose," which appeared in Corrections . Collica-Cox gave interviews with Daily Voice, Fios1, the Westchester County Business Journal, and Westchester Rising regarding her work.
Andy Crosby, Public Administration, was quoted in Politifact Illinois, on the Chicago public schools, and LoHud, regarding gentrification.
Diane Cypkin, Media and Communication Arts, wrote “The Statue of Liberty or a Memory of Memories,” published in the current issue of Still Point Arts Quarterly.” The piece is the first chapter of Cypkin’s upcoming book about her parents' and brother's experiences as Holocaust survivors.
Donna Drake, Pace Performing Arts, directed and choreographed the Westchester Broadway Theatre's production of SISTER ACT, which ran earlier this year.
Florence Denmark-Wesner, Psychology, was recognized by Marquis Who’s Who for noteworthy contributions to psychology and education.
Mike Finewood, Environmental Studies and Science, co-wrote the article, "Benefits of College Farms & Gardens," inToday's Dietitian.
Catalina Florina Florescu, English, was a featured presenter at a University of Chicago Center for East European and Russian/Eurasian Studies (CEERES) of Voices event held in partnership with Seminary Co-op bookstore in New York. She discussed Transnational Narratives in Englishes of Exile, which she coedited.
Kency Gilet, Psychology, was featured in the MassLive News article “Young, Black and Republican: Why This NRA Member Thinks Education is Key in the Conversation about Guns in America.”
Melissa Grigione, Biology, was quoted in an article in Examiner News about how uncommon it is for a coyote to attack a person in northern Westchester.
Lijun He, Public Administration, authored the article, “Are the Wealthy Also Healthy? An Empirical Evaluation of the Financial Health of Chinese Foundations,” in Chinese Public Administration Review.
Marcy Kelly, Biology, Len Mitchell, Philosophy and Religious Studies, were both awarded the 2018 Kenan Award for Teaching Excellence. Bureen Ruffin, English, who leads the People of Color (POC) workshop, was awarded the Kenan Award for Teaching Excellence for part-time teaching.
Adam Klein, Communication Studies, was quoted in the The New York Times opinion piece, “Are We Really Still Calling this Shirt a ‘Wifebeater’?”
Hillary Knepper, Public Administration, has been named co-editor-in-chief of The Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, effective January 1, 2019. Knepper also co-wrote with Gina Scutelnicu, Public Administration, “A Tale of Two Journals: Women’s Representation in Public Administration Scholarship,” which appeared in Public Integrity.
Grant Kretchik, Pace School of Performing Arts, provided auditioning advice for college-bound students in “What you Need to Know about Auditioning for College,” for Backstage. Kretchik was quoted again, along with JV Mercanti, Pace School of Performing Arts, in another Backstage article entitled “Why You Should Audition for Acting School.”
Nancy Krucher, Biology, was awarded a $400,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health, for her research “CDK4/6 Resistance: An Alternate Strategy to Target RB Phosphorylation in Cancer.”
Melanie La Rosa, Media and Communication Arts, has received grant funding from the Puffin Foundation, the Yip Harburg Foundation, and the Solutions Journalism Network to complete a documentary project titled How To Power A City. The film showcases clean energy efforts at the grassroots level, and Pace students, including Christian Arriaga ’19, Media and Communication Arts, Irene Mercado ’17, Media and Communication Arts, Nick Ostrander ’16, Digital Cinema and Filmmaking, and Anthony Parker ’15, Communications, have been involved in filming, research, writing and website development.
Joseph Tse-Hei Lee, History, has penned three editorials for the Taipei Times: “US Changing Strategy on China,” “North Korea-US Summit is a Milestone,” and “Heeding the Warning of Hong Kong.”
Helane Levine-Keating, English, had a solo photography exhibit of her recent work at the Longyear Gallery in Margaretville, NY, May 18—June 11, 2018. She also authored a book review of poet Donald Lev’s Focus, in American Book Review, Volume 39.
Andreas Manolikakis Actors Studio Drama School, traveled to Greece to give a two-day masterclass on Method Acting for the Theater Group of Samos, and others. The event was presented by the Natural History Museum of the Aegean in Samos, Greece.
Rhonda Miller, Pace Performing Arts, was honored with a Dance Teacher Magazine Award from Dance Media.
Seong Jae Min, Communication Studies, authored the book As Democracy Goes, So Does Journalism: Evolution of Journalism in Liberal, Deliberative, and Participatory Democracy.
Elmer-Rico Mojica, Chemistry and Physical Sciences, obtained a $48,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to purchase an accelerated solvent extractor that will be used to enhance research and education at all levels. Mojica also co-authored an article entitled "Raman Spectroscopic Discrimination of Estrogens," published in Vibrational Spectroscopy, and this summer was appointed as a visiting professor at the University of the Philippines, Los Banos.
Rob Mundy, English, co-edited the book Out in the Center: Public Controversies and Private Struggles.
David Nabirahni, Chemistry and Physical Sciences, authored the article “Is US Immigration Still a National Asset or a Heartland Liability?”inThe Iranian.
Mirjana Pantic, Media, Communications, and Visual Arts, has received the Outstanding Graduate Dissertation Award from her alma mater, the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She also presented a solo research study, “Gratifications of Digital Media: What Motivates Users to Consume Live Blogs,” at the 68th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association.
George Picoulas, Political Science, was quoted in two New York Times articles: “He Led a Group of Disloyal New York Democrats. Will It Cost Him His Seat?,” and “Special Elections in New York on Tuesday Will Decide 11 Races.”
Darrin Porcher, Criminal Justice, gave interviews with The Daily Caller, Fox & Friends , and New York 1, discussing personal experiences as a retired NYPD lieutenant, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and NY Governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision to grant parolees the right to vote.
Jennifer Powell-Lunder, Psychology, was quoted in the article “Hang up the Game Controller: How to Press Pause on 'Fortnite' as the School Year Begins” in PressConnects and in an ABC News piece on "What Parents and Teachers Can Do to Not Make the 7th Grade the Worst Ever.”
Sherman Raskin, Publishing, who retired after fifty-five years of service to Pace University, was featured in Publisher’s Weekly in “Bidding Adieu to Sherman Raskin.”
JaimeLee Rizzo, Chemistry and Physical Sciences, and Mark Weinstock, Economics, were awarded the Homer and Charles Pace Faculty Award at the 2018 Spirit of Pace Awards.
Amy Rogers Schwartzreich, Pace Performing Arts, was quoted in the American Theatre article “Want to Develop a New Musical? Take It to School."
Min Seong-jae, Communication Studies, was quoted in the Korea Timesarticle “Past Social Media Comments That Can Be Haunting.”
Anna Shostya, Economics, won the 3rd Annual People-to-People Award National Essay Contest organized by the Confucius Institute US Center.
Anne Toomey, Environmental Studies and Science, wrote an article entitled “Redefining ‘Impact’ so Research Can Help Real People Right Away, Even Before Becoming a Journal Article” for The Conversation.
Leora Trub, Psychology, was interviewed by Women's Health, andHeartabout her research on mobile technology and its impact on our relationships. Trubalso discussed her work on 2 Girls, 1 Podcast.
Collin Williamson, Film and Screen Studies, authored Hidden in Plain Sight: An Archaeology of Magic and the Cinema, an investigation of how professional illusionists and their tricks have been represented onscreen for more than a century.
STUDENTS
Douglas Dillon ’22, Acting, was featured in a Study Breaks article entitled "From the Stage to the Sea, Douglas Dillon Is Reeling Them In."
Alexxis (“Allie”) Granger ’16 ’20, Political Science, Master of Arts in Environmental Policy, has accepted an externship in the district office of Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY).
Laurianne Gutierrez ’21, Philosophy & Religious Studies, and David Lê ’19, Advertising and Integrated Marketing Communications (Lubin School of Business), won Project Pericles Debating for Democracy 2018 “Letter to an Elected Official” competition for their letter urging Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) to repeal the Dickey Amendment, which effectively prohibits the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from funding research on gun control.
Maile Makaafi ’19, and Julia Spizzichini ’19, both Commercial Dance, will join the line of Rockettes in the 2018 edition of the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes.
Sydney Mesher ’20, Commercial Dance, was profiled in Health Magazineabout pursing her dream to be a dancer in spite of a physical disability.
Maggie Miller ’18, Commercial Dance, was one of about fifty college students selected to participate in the Television Academy Foundation’s 2018 Internship Program. Miller worked on the FOX television series So You Think You Can Dance this summer.
Madison Olavarria ’21, Computer Science and Economics, and Hansali Tavarez ’18, Political Science, have been awarded the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship for international study from the US State Department. Olavarria is studying at Korea University in South Korea for the academic year 2018-2019 and Tavarez is studying in Vietnam.
Kaleigh Ryan ’20, Chemistry, received a Research Experience for Undergraduates Award from the National Science Foundation to conduct research on renewable energy sources at the University of Massachusetts Amherst this summer.
Kaleigh Ryan ’19, Chemistry, received Honorable Mention in the 2018 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship competition.
Christine Shepard ’19, Commercial Dance, made her Broadway debut in the new musical comedy Head Over Heels, set to the music of the ’80s all-female rock band The Go-Go's.
Suruj Devi Singh ’20, Biology, was awarded a McKeon Research Grant from the Hudson River Environmental Society to study eastern oysters with Associate Professor Erika Crispo, Biology. There will be an opportunity to present findings at the organization’s 2019 symposium next spring.
Elsa Stallings ’21, Commercial Dance, was chosen to represent Under Armour in a video ad featured by Refinery29, which focuses on promoting the serious work dancers put into their craft as athletes and artists.
Christina Thomas ’19, Economics and Environmental Studies, presented research on the Billion Oyster project, with Assistant Professor Anne Toomey, Environmental Studies and Science, at the North American Congress for Conservation Biology.
DEPARTMENTS
Pace University has received accreditation of its MS and PhD Mental Health Counseling programs, offered by the Pleasantville Psychology department, from the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs.
Department of Chemistry and Physical Sciences students Michelle Lopata ’18, Chemistry, Josephine Farshi ’20, Biochemistry, Lauren Reilly ’19, Forensic Science, Lyric Wyan ’19 Forensic Science, and Gwen Iannone ’19, Arts and Entertainment Management (Lubin School of Business), presented posters at the American Chemical Society National Meeting.
Students in the Environmental Policy Clinic course traveled to Washington, DC this spring to advocate regarding a proposal for oil barge anchorages on the Hudson River. Their advisor, John Cronin, who also made the trip, spoke to the Putnam Daily Voice about the experience.
Environmental Studies majors Rowan Lanning ’18, Carl Wojciechowski ’18, and Ethan Kravitz ’18, together with Professor Michael Finewood, presented a panel session titled “Collaboration Challenges in a Suburban-Urban Watershed” at the Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences 2018 Conference, on their research conducted in the Bronx and Hudson River watersheds.
Pace student filmmakers commemorated the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, with a free panel discussion and bilingual (English/Spanish) with subtitles screening of Puerto Rico: Hope in the Dark, the award-winning Pace docs project. The Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance-sponsored event was held at New York’s Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art and Storytelling, and the film also aired on WTTN, the Chicago PBS affiliate.
Four Pace School of Performing Arts programs have been ranked by OnStageBlog: Musical Theater (no. 4), BFA Acting (no. 6), BFA Commercial Dance (no.16), and BFA production and design (no. 24).
Pace University was featured in a Playbill article entitled “Big 10: The 10 Most Represented Colleges on Broadway in the 2018-2019 Season.”
Pace NYC and Pace PLV Model United Nations teams participated in the 2018 national conference in New York, receiving a combined eleven awards and placing them fifth out of more than one hundred participating higher education institutions. Specifically, the PLV team earned Distinguished Delegation, the second highest honor, for their representation of Rwanda. Pace NYC students also participated in the 2018 Geneva International Model UN conference at the Palais des Nations, the former League of Nations headquarters.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s report on disarmament education acknowledged the involvement of Pace faculty and students in the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, recipient of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, as well as Pace's International Disarmament Institute.