“The problems of tomorrow will not be solved by the thinking of the past,” President Krislov said during his Commencement address on Monday, May 15. “They will be solved by new people, with new ideas, and new ways of doing things. They will be solved by a new generation that is creative and resourceful and adaptive. Your generation was knocked down, and then you stood right back up. You know how to think on your feet, how to adjust on the fly, how to make the best of any situation. You know how to get to a goal like graduation, even through a once-in-a-century disruption.”

Students celebrating this exciting achievement were a mix of undergraduate, graduate, law, and doctoral students, spanning a variety of disciplines and future careers, such as nurses and physician assistants, cybersecurity experts, lawyers, accountants, teachers, performers, and much more.

“Be courageous. That means trust yourself. Don’t sell yourself short. Don’t settle for work that you don’t believe in. Don’t assume that you can’t make a difference." —US Senator Elizabeth Warren

Speaking to roughly 15,000 people including 3,700 graduates at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, alumnus Telfar Clemens ’08 spoke of his path from a student finding his way in lower Manhattan to a celebrated fashion designer and founder of the global label Telfar.

In addition, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law, which recently earned the No. 1 ranking for Environmental Law by U.S. News & World Report, graduated 241 students, its largest class in the past five years.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren and Harvard Law Professor and legal historian Bruce H. Mann both received honorary degrees during that ceremony. Senator Warren shared stories of her early years out of law school and threaded her speech with a simple yet powerful message.

“Be courageous,” Warren said. “That means trust yourself. Don’t sell yourself short. Don’t settle for work that you don’t believe in. Don’t assume that you can’t make a difference."

Pace Trustee and alumnus Ivan G. Seidenberg ’81, retired chairman and CEO of Verizon Communications, addressed graduates of Pace’s Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems to mark the school’s 40th anniversary. Pace also awarded Aldrin Enis, president of One Hundred Black Men of New York, with its Opportunitas in Action Award.

The day was highlighted by the conferral of over 4,000 degrees including 1,735 masters’, which is the largest number in over five years, and roughly 300 students receiving dual degrees.

Audiovisual, better known as AV, is often mischaracterized as a nostalgic scene with student volunteers rolling in a television when the teacher was absent—but this falls short of encapsulating full scope of audiovisual work carried out by professionals every day. From television broadcasts and live concerts, to Twitch streams and Zoom meetings, AV is an industry with incredible reach. An industry that, according to the nonprofit AVIXA (the golden standard for all things A/V), is estimated add 100 billion in revenue over the next 5 years, reaching 400 billion by 2028.

What’s surprising then is that most AV tech professionals are completely self-taught.

George Chacko ’04 ’15 and Rich Miller ’06 ‘09 think it’s time to change that.

The AV industry has no formal training or education but relies primarily on certifications and job experience to validate skillsets. Both Chacko and Miller say their AV experience is similar to everyone they’ve met in the industry—they had to figure it out along the way with no formalized AV education and often by trial and error. With technology advancing rapidly and the increased reliance on it by the general population, there is a growing need for professionals well-versed in AV tech.

Chacko and Miller (who, incidentally, are also long-time friends) had been kicking around the idea of AV curriculum for some time. So when the pandemic lockdown grinded the world to a halt, they decided to use their AV skills and gift for gab to start a podcast, with the hope of hammering out the details of what an AV education could look like on air. The initial concept for the podcast, hosted by “the Bald AV Guys”, was to discuss the ins and outs of such a program at Pace, but it soon grew a life of its own. Cables, Coffee, and Curveballs is the podcast, named for the variety of topics listeners can expect to hear covered. “Coffee is coffee, we’re both obsessed. Cables is technology,” Chacko explains. “And while curveballs was supposed to be about sports, it's become tangents. You know, hypothetical curveballs.”

Those curveballs have included episodes on mental health, human resources, and military information tech. But these tangents never stray far from their shared passion for AV technology and their desire to create an AV program right at home, at Pace.

Though AV might seem synonymous with computer tech, Chacko and Miller decided to create their program under the banner of Pace’s Media, Communications, and Visual Arts (MCVA) department. Part of it had to do with the nature of AV. AV powers most media communications—there is no media besides printed media that exists without somebody who knows how to turn on the lights and make the sound play. But the other determining factor was how hands-on MCVA programs are. “All they do is experiential learning,” Miller explains. “And this AV program is a hands-on, experiential program.” When they bought it up the MCVA chair Paul Ziek, PhD, his enthusiasm solidified what would become an organic partnership between them and the MCVA department.

During the spring 2023 semester, they launched their inaugural class—Introduction to the Audio Visual Industry in the Media, a lab-focused crash-course in AV. And one of the favorite labs of their students?

The AV Olympics.

And what are the AV Olympics? Chacko and Miller split their class of twenty into teams, assigned them five tasks, and dumped a mess of AV equipment in the center of the room and said, “figure it out!” Each task either drew from or was a continuation of work from a previous lab, challenging them in all aspects of the work, even requiring some AV math (yes, that’s a thing!)

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The Olympics were not only a culmination of everything they had learned, but served as their final exam, really putting the students’ knowledge and thirst to succeed to the test. “It was just amazing to see how dedicated and interested the students were,” Chacko says. “They stayed past nine o'clock to make sure their setup was completely perfect, the cables, everything. It was so great to see.”

At the end of the inaugural Intro to AV class, students received their AV Technologist Certification. By completing the AV minor that Chacko and Miller are developing, students will be fully prepared to take their Certified Technology Specialist certification and complete an internship that will help springboard them into their AV career.

Chacko and Miller’s overarching hope is to build an entire program, and hopefully a movement, towards AV education. “Obviously there's a lot more hurdles to making something a major, but that is our end goal,” Miller says. “But we're not ending it here, once the minor’s done. We're not stopping there.” They’ve even had other schools reach out asking to partner to develop their own programs. “They're actually sort of jealous,” Miller says, “that we've been able to get something off the ground.”

Chacko and Miller might have had to learn their craft along the way and on their own but, if all goes well, their program won’t be the last of its kind, even if it may be the first.

College represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in myriad ways. By definition, a University is an institution designed for instruction and examination in many areas of advanced learning.

Across our seven schools, there’s quite a lot students can learn–from computer information technology to peace and justice studies, there is truly something for everyone. While the areas of study are truly endless, we decided to highlight a range of some truly unique courses students can enroll in while at Pace–types of courses that add an extra, distinctively satisfying dimension to the Pace educational experience:

PHI 230: The Philosophy of Happiness

For most of us, it takes more than a Pharrell song to be happy. This course, offered by the philosophy department at Dyson College, delves into one of the most profound–and difficult to answer–questions of the human condition. Namely, it tackles age old questions like: What is happiness? Is happiness sufficient for a worthwhile life? Is morality necessary for happiness? What is the relationship between happiness and a meaningful life?

Course Rotation: Westchester, Fall

MGT 312: Event Management

As anyone who has been involved in events will know, successful event management has more layers and tiers than the most elaborate of wedding cakes. Offered by Lubin’s department of management, this course introduces students to the principles, concepts, and steps involved in planning and executing successful events. Students taking this course will learn many aspects of organizing and managing special events, including venue selection, preparing and managing the budget, scheduling and staffing, food and beverage coordinating, decor, and much more.

Course Rotation: NYC, Fall

MCA 258: The Invasion of Reality Television

Reality television is not a new phenomenon. In fact, it’s been with us for three quarters of a century, ever since Candid Camera first aired in 1948. Yet, of course, the advent of Reality TV has truly exploded in the 21st century–from Survivor to American Idol, from The Bachelorette to Top Chef. Offered by the department of media and communication arts, this course examines the phenomenon of reality television from programming, economic, and social viewpoints.

Course Rotation: Westchester, Spring

Art 224: Hip Hop in Contemporary Art and Design

Hip hop shapes today’s visual culture, from magazines, clothing and design, to the art world itself. But what is it? Many of the elements of the culture can be traced back to the early 70's with graffiti on trains, and new forms of street dance, poetry and DJ'ing coming out of The Bronx. An afro-centric street culture became a new language which spoke to the world. This course combines lectures, slide shows, video and readings; engaging students in discussion and writing on the class topics.

Course Rotation: NYC, Fall

COS 250: Digital Youth Activism

What does activism look like in the digital age? How are youth engaging with digital technologies in everyday life, and what are the political implications of these everyday practices? This course examines the myriad forms and mechanisms of digital activism that have been embraced by youth throughout the globe, and consider how digital media can be a platform for both leisure and politics, and some of the ways in which each informs the other. Digital media—both its form and content, as well as its production and consumption—will serve as a lens onto issues of social inequality and national politics as they pertain to youth.

Course Rotation: NYC, Fall

INT 197G: Rome and the Eternal City

Dreaming of heading to Rome? Why not do so with course credit? This unique travel course provides students with an intense and comprehensive experience grounded in an understanding of history, art, architecture, religion, and Roman culture; the capital of the ancient Roman Empire, the Catholic Church, and the contemporary state of Italy. In other words–take an unforgettable trip to Rome, and truly get to know one of the greatest cities in the world.

Course Rotation: Travel Course

PAAT 481: The Pace LA Acting Experience

This comprehensive immersive learning course is designed to demystify the logistics of working and living in Los Angeles, the audition and booking process, as well as creating/implementing business strategies for a career in Film and Television. Taught in an immersive, hands-on approach, actors will work closely with current West Coast industry casting directors, talent agents, talent managers, studio and network executives in the areas of commercial, TV comedy, TV drama, soap opera, and feature film to gain a personal understanding of the expectation and preparation required to be a working professional actor in Los Angeles.

Course Rotation: Travel Course

MGT 397D: Contours of Black Entrepreneurship in America

In this anti-racism education (ARE) and civic engagement (CE) course, students learn about the trials and triumphs experienced by Black entrepreneurs from historical, contemporaneous, and sociological perspectives. Students learn about the various business disciplines; entrepreneurship, specifically Black entrepreneurship; historical, political, economic, and social factors affecting Black entrepreneurship; challenges facing Black entrepreneurs in New York City; and hear from Black Pace alumni entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs affiliated with New York City's Small Business Services Advancing Black Entrepreneurship (BE NYC) initiative.

Course Rotation: NYC, Fall and Spring

NUR 247: Pathophysiology and the Entertainment Media

House. ER. Grey's Anatomy. Medical shows, sure, but representative of an important media phenomenon. This course focuses on the analysis of media portrayal of disease states. The media portrayal of disease manifestations will be assessed and contrasted to evidence based disease manifestations and clinical experience. Students also analyze the effect of accurate and inaccurate disease portrayal on health care, health policy, and the general public.

Course Rotation: NYC and Westchester, Spring and Summer

COMING SOON: Digital Media Law + Taylor Swift

Law 320 Digital Media Law delves into the ever-evolving, complex relationship between entertainment, technology, and the law. How might this class look when its focus is Taylor Swift? Look out for Digital Media Law (Taylor's Version) coming to a Pace classroom near you—anticipated release date Spring 2024!

Have you taken a unique course you’d like the Pace Community to hear about? Let us know.

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Terryl Brown ‘86, an attorney with extensive legal, leadership, and management experience in city and state government, has been named vice president and general counsel for Pace University.

“I am committed to Pace University’s mission and believe in the transformative power of education,” said Brown. “Pace's values are consistent with my own, and I'm looking forward to helping Pace continue its important and transformative work.”

Brown most recently served as deputy commissioner of legal affairs and administration for the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), where she oversaw operations and legal matters for a department comprised of 17,000 employees.

I am committed to Pace University’s mission and believe in the transformative power of education,” said Brown. “Pace's values are consistent with my own, and I'm looking forward to helping Pace continue its important and transformative work.

Over the course of her impressive legal career, Brown has also been chief ethics officer and counsel with the New York State Attorney General’s Office, acting counsel to Governor David Paterson, first assistant counsel to Governor Eliot Spitzer, a commissioner of the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics, executive vice president and general counsel at the New York Power Authority, and a partner Harris Beach PLLC.

“Terryl Brown’s accomplished career in law and government exemplifies what it means to make an impact on the world through her hard work and excellence,” said President Krislov. “She embodies our mission and philosophy of creating opportunities for our diverse student body, and we are pleased we’ll be able to benefit from her insight and expertise.”

This spring, Pace University joined a winning collaboration chosen by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and The Trust for Governors Island that will create a world-leading climate solutions center on the 172-acre island in the heart of New York Harbor.

As a core partner in “The New York Climate Exchange,” Pace will leverage its proximity and programs—particularly in the areas of ESG, environmental law, climate justice, water science, sustainability, business, and technology—in creating a first-of-its kind international center for developing and deploying dynamic solutions to our global climate crisis, while also acting as a hub for New Yorkers to benefit from the rapidly evolving green economy.

“At Pace University, our students, faculty, and staff walk the walk of sustainability every day and we are thrilled to bring our expertise to the New York Climate Exchange," said Pace President Marvin Krislov. “As home to the nation's No. 1-ranked environmental law program—and our expertise in Land Use, climate justice, ESG and regional clean water initiatives—we are eager to work collaboratively and bring an interdisciplinary approach to climate actions that forge a more resilient future for New York City and communities worldwide. Our expertise, vast student and alumni network, and location in lower Manhattan provides the perfect springboard for creating opportunities in the green economy and engagement on Governors Island.”

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The Exchange will host green job training and skills-building programs for New York residents to help them launch successful careers—and convene the world’s leaders and experts seeking climate solutions.

“Fighting climate change is a real battle and it's a battle that we are going to not only lead the nation, but we are going to win,” Mayor Adams said in his remarks. “And together we are creating climate opportunities across the city, investing in innovation and inventions, so that today's climate solutions become tomorrow's economic powerhouse. And I want to be clear, all New Yorkers will and must benefit from this major investment that we are making.”

Stony Brook University, as the anchor institution, will lead The Exchange while other partners, including President Krislov, will have a seat on The Exchange’s Board of Directors. Local partners include Pratt Institute, New York University, the City University of New York, SUNY Maritime College, Brookhaven National Labs and IBM.

In addition to local schools involved in The Exchange, the organization will also partner with Georgia Tech, University of Washington, Duke University, Rochester Institute of Technology and the University of Oxford. Additional partners are the Simons Foundation, one of the largest charitable organizations in the United States; social justice and local advocacy groups such as GOLES, The Point and WeACT for Justice; treasured New York institutions including the American Museum of Natural History; and research and business leaders such as Boston Consulting Group and Moody’s.

Fade In: France.

When Dyson Professor Maria Luskay, EdD, first met an enthusiastic group of budding filmmakers this past spring who were taking the popular course, Producing the Documentary, she set an expectation that everyone had to meet.

“When you have a documentary that has to be completed in 14 weeks, you cannot fade out,” she cautioned students. “We have a lot of work to do.”

The sage advice stuck. In fact, not fading out became an axiom for these students who traveled to France, worked long hours, and made an impactful film, For the Love of Food: Pour l’amour de la Cuisine. In May, it made its worldwide premiere in France and to a packed theater at Jacob Burns Film Center.

The film focus is about the slow food movement, which has a long history in Europe and sprouted up around the world in the 1980s as a sustainable means of providing healthy locally sourced food.

During the semester of production, which included filming across France and New York, PaceDocs filmmakers spoke with farmers, chefs, and restaurateurs who have dedicated their lives to making slow food a reality in a fast-paced world.

Beyond learning the essentials of filmmaking, students also explored how generations of families in France prepared their meals (fresh, local, and affordable) while also being exposed to cultures far different from their own.

The hands-on experiences were priceless, and reflect Pace’s commitment to experiential learning, says Luskay.

“Our classes provide real-world experience,” she says. “They are taking what they learn in class and using it, so that when they graduate, they are ready to compete and succeed in their respective professions.”

Making this film was as hard as it gets, but it was a real confidence booster.

The class is part of the Dyson College’s highly regarded film program that requires students complete a full-length environmentally themed documentary within a semester. During the process, they learn teamwork, problem-solving, research, and organization, along with technical skills such as lighting, sound, camera work, interviewing, and other essential skills necessary to complete a film.

The 2023 documentary continues Pace University’s distinguished tradition of producing award-winning documentaries that shine a light on important environmental issues.

For Brittany Walkingstick, a 23-year-old graduate student from Kansas City, Missouri, the course proved to be “one-of-a-kind.”

“It was a chance to experience a different culture and a way to step out of my comfort zone,” she said. “Making this film was as hard as it gets, but it was a real confidence booster. I really enjoyed it, and I would definitely do it again.”

Wesley Brown, a 21-year-old junior majoring in digital cinema and filmmaking from Seattle, Washington, noted that the class taught him the intricacies of lighting, sound, voice-over, film production, and problem-solving.

“I loved being on the ground in France,” Brown said, citing a number of examples where the crew had to adapt to circumstances in the moment. “There were times we just had to figure it out. We learned how to improvise and had to find a solution. I’m grateful that I took this class.”

Announcing the Sands College of Performing Arts

Pace University’s board of trustees voted to launch the Sands College of Performing Arts this fall. The college, which will commence with the 2023–2024 academic year, is named in recognition of a $25 million gift from Pamela and Rob Sands, JD ’84, and becomes the seventh school and college within Pace University. Sands College will build on the global reputation of one of Pace University’s flagship programs, which includes undergraduate and graduate degrees in acting, directing, musical theater, commercial dance, production and design for stage and screen, and stage management.

We’re Number One!

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Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law is once again ranked number one in the country for Enviromental Law by the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings. This is the third year in a row, and the fourth time in five years, that Haub Law has received the number one ranking for Environmental Law, marking the latest major success for the school’s Environmental Law Program.

Big Watson Wins

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The Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship is a three-year, cohort-based program that provides funded summer internships and unprecedented opportunities to promising undergraduate students. This year, Pace students—Yara Ammar ’26, Mariana Rojas ’26, and Ellis Clay ’25—have been selected for this prestigious fellowship. “It’s an opportunity to challenge myself differently than in my past academic and internship experience,” said Clay. “I’ll be in the spaces that will help me reach my academic and career goals by interning with different organizations and working with Watson mentors.”

Cutting-Edge Care Through Research

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“If we create technology that helps emergency care personnel make better decisions faster, we can literally save lives,” says Seidenberg Professor Zhan Zhang, PhD, who was recently awarded nearly $500K through the National Science Foundation's Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, the most prestigious award for junior faculty across the US from a federal agency. Zhang’s been doing research in emergency care tech for almost a decade and has been using research funding to develop touchless smart glasses that will allow emergency care professionals to collect data, communicate with other specialists, and pull up medical protocol checklists with a gesture of the head or through voice controls.

Pace University Esports Voted No. 1 Program in the Nation

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Pace University's Esports Program has taken the college gaming world by storm, winning a March Madness-styled bracket for college esports programs hosted by Esports Foundry. After five rounds of polling which generated over 155,000 views and over 10,000 votes, Pace Esports emerged victorious. On their road to victory they defeated top-end schools including Akron University, Texas A&M University, Ohio University, Northwood University, and UC San Diego.

Employee Appreciation Month

In March, Pace celebrated our amazing employees with a month of activities to express well-deserved recognition. From tasty treats, award nominations, skill-building webinars, and Blue and Gold Spirit days, we showcased and acknowledged the excellence of our faculty and staff.

Haub Law Hosts Inaugural Equity and Justice Forum

In Spring 2023, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law presented their Inaugural Equity and Justice Forum. Marcia Sells, Chief Diversity Officer at the Metropolitan Opera, was the featured panelist for this forum titled, “Belonging—Centuries of Struggle,” which highlighted the challenges of diverse communities in the legal profession. The forum was moderated by Haub Law Professor and Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Barbara Atwell.

Education Abroad

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Pace University student Liani Frederick ’25 has been named a 2023 Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship recipient. This cohort of Gilman scholars will study or intern in more than 80 countries and represents more than 520 US colleges.

The Best and (Ful)Brightest

Four Pace University faculty—Iuliana Ismailescu, PhD; Seong Jae Min, PhD; Nancy Reagin, PhD; and Nancy Wright—are among over 800 US citizens who will teach or conduct research abroad for the 2023–2024 academic year through the Fulbright US Scholar Program. Fulbrighters engage in cutting-edge research and expand their professional networks, often continuing research collaborations started abroad and laying the groundwork for forging future partnerships between institutions. Upon returning to their home countries, institutions, labs, and classrooms, they share their stories and often become active supporters of international collaboration and research.

The Buzz About Poetry

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Pace alumna RK Fauth’s poem “Playing with Bees” won the Treehouse Climate Action Poem Prize and was featured on Academy of American Poets "Poem-a-Day," curated for April by the 24th US Poet Laureate of the United States, Ada Limon. The poem is from Fauth’s poetry collection A Dream in Which I Am Playing with Bees (2024), which was the winner of the Walt MacDonald First Book Prize in Poetry.

Earlier this summer Marilyn Jaffe-Ruiz, a former provost, a former dean of the Lienhard School of Nursing, and a beloved leader, teacher, and mentor for generations of Pace faculty, students, and staff, passed away. She died peacefully at home, surrounded by family and friends, after a long battle with cancer.

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Marilyn, said her good friend Dean Emerita Harriet Feldman, was “one of the kindest people I have ever known, or will ever know.” She started her nursing career in 1963, when she graduated from the Mount Sinai Hospital School of Nursing. She went on to earn a master’s degree in mental health nursing from NYU and EdD from Teachers College, Columbia University. In 1981, she joined the Lienhard School faculty at Pace University.

She served as dean of the Lienhard School from 1985 to 1992, and later she was the University’s vice provost and then provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. In 2002, she received Pace’s Diversity Leadership Award, and in 2006 our Martin Luther King Jr. Diversity Leadership Award.

Marilyn’s good works extended far beyond Pace. She was an active volunteer and leader with AHRC New York City, which supports those with developmental disabilities, serving on its board for many years and as its board president for several years. In 2015, she was named the group’s volunteer of the year. After her retirement from Pace, in 2011, she volunteered as a docent at the American Museum of Natural History, as well.

When she retired, she also established a planned gift to create an endowed scholarship for first-generation nursing students at Pace.

Marilyn is survived by her husband of 43 years, Victor Ruiz. The family asks that donations in Marilyn’s memory be made to the AHRC NYC Foundation. You can also contribute to the Marilyn Jaffe-Ruiz Endowed Scholarship at Pace by indicating that your donation is in her memory. We intend to hold a memorial at Pace in the new academic year.

We send all our best wishes in this difficult time to Marilyn's family and friends, and to those in the Pace Community who were lucky enough to have worked with her.

“I had a little speaker playing [The Verve’s] “Bitter Sweet Symphony”–and I would say ‘hey, do you recognize this song? The band didn’t see a cent for 20 years because of five notes that they used from a version of a Rolling Stones song.’”

Although the intricacies of copyright law in the music industry may sound like an esoteric avenue of research for an undergraduate, Lubin Arts and Entertainment Management student Sadie Lorence ’23 had long been up for the challenge. In fact, it was an intersection of interests she’s had since as long as she can remember.

“My father’s a musician,” says Sadie. “Growing up, he was always pointing out the similarities between popular songs on the radio. That would always blow my mind as a kid, and I wanted to delve into that.”

I had a little speaker playing [The Verve’s] “Bitter Sweet Symphony”–and I would say ‘hey, do you recognize this song? The band didn’t see a cent for 20 years because of five notes that they used from a version of a Rolling Stones song.’

Her father’s musical influence was combined with an uncanny interest in the legal profession from an early age. Not many people can say they were voted “Most Likely to Become a Lawyer” by their third grade class, but it’s an honor Sadie remains proud of.

Thus, during her senior year, Sadie carried on the Pace tradition of undergraduates conducting unique and impactful research. Her project, It's a bitter sweet symphony: Licensing complexities and copyright law in the music industry explored why The Verve’s 90’s brit-pop hit “Bitter Sweet Symphony” was indeed bittersweet–how it was mired in copyright complication, which Sadie analyzed to explore the tension between ownership and accessibility under US copyright law, and ways in which interpretations of the US Copyright Act have significantly impacted the music industry.

Although this 1997 hit was the band’s biggest song by far and has racked up millions of dollars worth of royalties, Verve songwriter Richard Ashcroft was not granted songwriting credits, nor did the band receive any royalties on the song, until 2019. This was because Verve based the instrumentals of “Bitter Sweet Symphony” on a sample of a 1965 Rolling Stones song, “The Last Time,” by the Andrew Oldham Orchestra, which the Rolling Stones had obtained the right to use from copyright holder Decca Records. However, a lawsuit and contention from Rolling Stones manager Allen Klein meant that The Verve had to relinquish all royalties for the song, and the songwriting credits were subsequently given to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. It wasn’t until Klein’s death in 2019 that the rights and future royalties were ceded to The Verve’s Ashcroft.

Yet, as Sadie explains, the onion can be peeled back even further. The Rolling Stones song “The Last Time,” features the chorus of a song “This May Be The Last Time,” from the gospel group The Staples Singers–creating an argument that the Rolling Stones song itself can be disputed in regards to its licensing. Additionally, the five notes that were so heavily contested in “Bitter Sweet Symphony” were credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards–but not the composer in the Andrew Oldham Orchestra, who is the one who arguably deserves the credit.

Listen While You Read:
Hit play to listen to our Spotify playlist of songs examined by Sadie through her research.

Suffice to say, the song’s history is…complicated.

“Researching this project was tough,” notes Sadie, after explaining the many intricacies of this specific case, and the aftershocks it created. “Because music is so abstract and subjective, everyone has their own opinions or thoughts. You can play two songs next to each other, one person thinks they’re entirely different, one doesn’t. Is there a perfect solution? I’m not sure, but there has to be a better one.”

To hone in on the legal complexities of this case, Sadie valued the expertise of her mentor, Lubin Professor of Business Law and Ivan Fox Scholar Jessica Magaldi, JD. Sadie had taken some of Magaldi’s classes early on in her undergraduate career–as Sadie jokes, her class was the only class she enjoyed attending on Zoom during the height of the pandemic–and knew that having her as a resource would greatly enhance the quality of her work.

“She is someone I’ve looked up to for a long time,” said Sadie “I was even nervous getting the courage to ask her to be my advisor. It was a really wonderful time working with her, actually presenting, seeing my work on a big poster board.”

Magaldi, having worked with many students over the course of her career, was particularly impressed with Sadie’s drive and enthusiasm to tackle such a complex topic.

"Sadie’s research fits into a long history of the law’s attempts to acknowledge and encourage the creativity of artists and to balance the rights of an original artist to be rewarded and acknowledged for their artistic creation with the rights of a artist who comes after who is inspired by that original work to make an original work of their own," noted Magaldi. "The law is always trying to navigate where the line is between inspiration and infringement.

As technology advances and the lines between original works continue to blur, licensing issues in sampling will likely even become more pronounced, something Sadie hopes to further explore and follow in the future.

“So many great musical works have come out of sampling. What I learned is there should be protection both ways–both for the artist, who is licensing their work out there, and also for the recipient of the license, giving the green light, the ok, I feel like there should be more of an industry standard process. There are more provisions to go.”

As for Sadie’s future plans? Let’s just say Sadie’s third grade classmates and her father would hardly be surprised. The project has confirmed her desire to make an impact in entertainment law, where she has definitely found her groove.

Imagine a traffic intersection two decades from now. What might it look like? How might pedestrians, automobiles, bikes, and new technologies interact with each other? How can the intersection of the future be maximized to protect the safety of human beings?

This was the task that Seidenberg graduate students Susanna Lammervo ’23, Aastha Bhadani ’23, and undergraduate student Sachin Archer ’25 enthusiastically tackled via an ambitious initiative from the Design Factory Global Network. The New York City Design Factory housed at Pace University is part of a network of 37 innovation hubs across 25 countries, dedicated to creating change in the world of learning and research through global and multidisciplinary collaboration. Through Pace’s NYC Design Factory, Pace students are privy to cutting-edge initiatives and projects that enable students to collaborate within this robust global network–and sometimes even travel the world.

For this particular project, Pace’s team participated in the Design Factory’s Challenge Based Innovation A³ project: an initiative focused on developing innovative outcomes from CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research and ATTRACT technology, a project funded by the European Union to explore problem areas framed by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development goal three, focusing on good health and well-being. Pace’s team, dubbed “Team Fusion'' embarked on a seven-month research and development journey, which included a team trip to CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, during which they learned how to tackle complex problems in a way that leads to innovative solutions. Their work was also presented by Susanna as part of the ATTRACT Academy Student Showcase in Bologna, Italy in June.

“You’re not just building with technology, you’re building with systems thinking, behavior change and future forecasting, trying to imagine how the world will look in 2040 or 2050. In the context of the curriculum,I find this exercise to be unique to this particular learning experience,” noted Seidenberg Clinical Professor and NYC Design Factory Director Andreea Cotoranu, who alongside Dyson Film and Screen Studies Chair Luke Cantarella served as the faculty mentors for this interdisciplinary endeavor.

You’re not just building with technology, you’re building with systems thinking, behavior change and future forecasting, trying to imagine how the world will look in 2040 or 2050.

Pedestrian safety is among one of the most pressing problems facing New York City today. In 2021, 273 people died in road traffic accidents in New York City, 50% of which were pedestrians. If you find yourself at any intersection in the city, you’ll likely see a cacophonous symphony of cars, bikes, e-bikes, buses, and pedestrians, some of whom might have their situational awareness compromised by the pull of a smartphone.

“NYC can have an individuality complex–everyone is out there for themselves,” said Sachin. “I took some time to look at myself and how I interact at an intersection.”

Resolving to improve pedestrian safety, Team Fusion got to work. Their goal? To employ a design-centered approach for improving pedestrian safety at New York City intersections, while reducing human error and enhancing decision-making for pedestrians. A vehicle-to-network (V2N), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), and vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) system called Auriel, a state-of-the-art solution that relies on object-based data and a number of advanced technologies to keep New York City’s intersections safe.

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Auriel, as shown above, would be installed at intersection corners across the city. From its screen, four visual animations (combined with three audio alerts) would be displayed to express different traffic scenarios and hazards–informing the pedestrian as to whether or not it would be safe to cross the street. This concept, as the team explains, gives more autonomy to pedestrians, while creating a simple system dedicated to keeping everyone safe.

“A lot of our design solution was based on our observations as to how pedestrians function in New York City—which is quite different from most other cities,” said Aastha. “When we were designing Auriel, we wanted to shift that traffic signal mindset to something that makes the pedestrian have the decision-making power in their hands.”

Equipped with a LiDAR-based sensor system, LED screen system, solar power system, and a communication system, Auriel would measure the speed, distance, and velocity of approaching vehicles, and identify the level of activity from the density of objects in the area. It also would employ a high speed information system with integrated AI to provide up-to-date traffic analysis and management.

All of this to say that the design solutions were often complex, and required a lot of deep thinking, and problem-solving from the team.

“I am familiar with the design thinking and how the design process goes, but for me, the most unexpected thing was how much workload there was–in a good way. We dug into the smallest little details and then had to scale out and think about how it would work on a macro-level,” said Susanna. “Scaling from the smallest details to a global aspect was very inspiring. It's good practice to do that.”

For the problem-space exploration phase of the project, the team traveled to IdeaSquare CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. While at ideaSquare the team met and collaborated with other students from across the world , and proudly represented the NYC Design Factory and Pace on the global stage.

The two-week immersive experience at IdeaSquare CERN was amazing,” said Susanna. “I don’t think I've ever learned that much about anything in two weeks.”

Upon returning from Switzerland, the team continued to collaborate to create the final concept, and a white paper (a research-based report) that lays out Auriel, its technical details, and an implementation plan in exhaustive detail. Honing in on everything from how Auriel would positively impact climate-friendly initiatives, to future-forecasting how scenarios like carbon-taxation might impact street design, the paper was lauded extensively by the team’s two faculty advisors, who admired the team’s ability to rise to this ever-complex challenge.

I don’t think I've ever learned that much about anything in two weeks.

“I’m very proud of all the work that the team has done,” said Cantarella. “When you’re working on a project like this, we don’t know the answers to the test. We have some skills, some insight, but we’re really together as a team to pull this all together. To me, that's such a refreshing and rewarding way to teach and learn.”

“We also need to recognize the students for their ability to step out of their comfort zone, '' added Cotoranu. “They found themselves in high-pressure situations, rapidly learning new things within tight timeframes. Their journey was filled with significant discomfort. I believe it is this discomfort that lies at the core of their remarkable growth.”

For Aastha, Susanna, and Sachin, the experience not only furthered their professional and technical skills, but was also a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity which they’ll look back fondly upon for many years to come–at which point, they might also be looking to cross the street by way of an Auriel-esque infrastructure.

“I’m not going to lie, it’s the best thing I’ve ever done in my life,” said Sachin. “It really changed my perspective and opened my eyes to the fact that there’s more to the world than just North America. And the fact that I can represent Black men in the tech world, that was touching for me.”

“I’ve been involved with a few Design Factory projects, but this is the best one,” said Aastha. “It was the highlight of my Pace journey.”

About CBI A³

CBI A³ is a Design Factory Melbourne (DFM) initiative, developed for the Design Factory Global Network (DFGN), in conjunction with IdeaSquare, CERN. It builds on earlier Challenge Based Innovation (CBI) that focus on design innovation to propose solutions that connect CERN’s deep technology with societal needs. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provide the framework for the CBI A³program and guide user-cantered research and design to focus on areas of high sustainable impact. This year CBI A³ brings together teams from Swinburne Design Factory Melbourne (AUS), New York City Design Factory (USA), Inno.space - Design Factory Mannheim (DEU), Warsaw Design Factory (POL) and Pratt Institute (USA).

CBI A³ 2022-23 & 2023-24 editions include projects funded by ATTRACT Academy. ATTRACT has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101004462

Teaser and Hero Photo Credit: Aaron Down, CBIA3