Fall 2020 Class Notes

1960s

Sidney Secular ’62 writes articles on political issues for newspapers and is publishing her newsletter, “Freedom Movement Action Report.” She is assisting in a third political party presidential campaign and will receive the Humanitarian of the Year Award from Who’s Who in America. 

Howard Blue ’63 had his first book Words of War about U.S. radio during World War II published in 2002. He writes for the Rheinstrom Community Foundation and is working on a biography of the late Carroll Rheinstrom. 

William Snizek ’63 is an Emeritus Distinguished Professor of Sociology at Virginia Tech. 

Gail Cafferata ’66, ’70 wrote “Gender, Judicatory Respect and Pastors’ Well-Being in Closing Churches,” published in the Review of Religious Research in June 2020. She is a priest associate at The Episcopal Church of the Incarnation in Santa Rosa, California, where she lives with her husband, Robert.

James Betts ’67 continues to do Scottish country dancing and has traveled through France and Normandy with his wife and fellow alum Grace Kessler Betts ’67. 

Martin Peckerar ’68 teaches in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maryland College Park. Last year, he and his wife, fellow alum Nancy nee Druss ’68, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. 

1970s

Steven Attias ’70 celebrated his 4th retirement anniversary in December.

Richard Hurst ’70 will be celebrating 50 years in front of the classroom, which began at Stony Brook, giving his peers lectures in his undergraduate classes. 

Richard Kummer ’70 has retired from the law and his practice, The Law Office of Richard E. Kummer. 

Carol Dahir ’71, educator, author and international consultant, is a professor in the Department of School Counseling at the New York Institute of Technology.

Barton Davis ’71, ’76, is a co-author of a children’s book series with Julian Lennon. Their latest story, Touch The Earth, made the New York Times bestseller list and is being produced as an animated TV series. They’re also working on their next book, The Morning Tribe.

Steve Bilzi ’72 is an apple consultant, a former chairman for the local board of education, and held several North Carolina state and local appointments in technology, education, and business. He is a proud father of five children and a proud grandfather of five grandchildren.

Scott Karson, Esq. ’72 was the president-elect of the New York State Bar Association and became president in June 2020. He is a former president of the Suffolk County Bar Association (2004-2005) and partner at Lamb & Barnosky, LLP. 

Robert J. Kaufman, Esq. ’72 has joined Fox Rothschild, LLP as a partner in the Litigation Department in its Atlanta office.

Vincent Ashby ’73 received the 2020 MLK Humanitarian Award from Trident Technical College in South Carolina. 

Mitchell Bressack ’73 sold his private dermatology practice after 37 years and joined a medical school as a part-time faculty member.

Jordan Goldrich ’73 authored a new book, Workplace Warrior, and has created a successful business as an executive coach.

Victoria-Ann Bonanni ’74 is a recipient of the 2018 Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award.

George J. Meyer, Esq. ’74, ’78, co-chair of the shareholder and construction industry group at Carlton Fields, has been appointed to the American College of Construction Lawyers’ Board of Governors.

Duane Webb ’74 retired from full-time GI medical practice in May 2019 and is now pursuing part-time consulting and volunteer opportunities. 

Ruth Clifford, PhD ’75, works in private practice in California, specializing in couples and sex therapy. 

Keshab Dwivedy, PhD ’75, retired as a principal engineer from Nuclear Generation and moved to North Carolina. 

Robert Feirsen ’75 is chairperson of the Department of Education at the New York Institute of Technology.

Ayse Erzan ’76 retired from Istanbul Technical University in 2012 and received the 2020 APS Sakharov Prize. 

Fay Sharit ’76 retired from podiatry in 2015 after practicing for 32 years. She works part-time as an associate director of Primoris Academy, a private school in Westwood, New Jersey. She enjoys reconnecting with Stony Brook alumni in New Jersey on group hikes.

Richard Weiss, Esq. ’76 has joined Schoeman Updike & Kaufman LLP, a WBENC-certified woman-owned law firm founded in 1969.

Carol Davis Wiebelt ’76, ’81, has retired from government service and public school teaching. 

Charles A. Fleming ’77 was elected president of the New York State Veterinary Medical Society.

Peter Berger ’78 has retired as an interventional cardiologist, including time at the Mayo Clinic, Duke, Geisinger, and Northwell. He is still involved with research projects and serves on an advisory committee to the Commissioner of Health for New York City.

Barry Seidel ’78 just published Evolutions of a Law Practice – How I Opened My Own Practice Right Out of Law School. 

Linda Delaney Davis ’79 retired from 31 years in public school teaching and is now a professional assistant for astronomy at Suffolk County Community College.

Phyllis Zagano, PhD ’79, published Women: Icons of Christ. She was appointed to the Pontifical Commission for the Study of the Diaconate of Women in 2016.

1980s

Bernard Fialkoff, DDS ’80, a New York gum and dental implant specialist, organized an NYC Dentists Give Back Day in December to help city veterans.

Joanne Summer ’81 is a speech therapist in private practice at Well Spoken Speech Therapy, LLC in Manasquan, New Jersey. 

Bhalachandra Tembe, PhD ’81, retired from IIT Bombay and moved to IIT Dharwad as a visiting professor.

Venkat Chebolu, PhD ’83, a professor of chemistry at Jefferson Community College, was named a recipient of the 2020 SUNY Chancellor’s Award.

Elena Kaczorowski ’83 co-authored Linear Algebra and Geometry, published by the American Mathematical Society. The book features carefully sequenced problems that help students build tools and habits that provide a solid basis for further study in mathematics. 

Richard Napolitano ’83 was appointed CEO of Advisor360°.

Nancy Anderson ’84 was named vice president of aircraft modernization & modification at Boeing. She returned to Oklahoma City to take the firm’s top executive post after starting her career with Boeing 22 years ago. 

Shaun Comfort ’84 has published his first book How Much Is that Cure in the Window?: Simple Math Solutions for Complicated Problems in Biology, Medicine, and Healthcare. It draws on his experience in physics, neurology, and biopharmaceutical medicine to provide ways to evaluate and understand pressing issues in healthcare today using simple algebra and reasoning.

Atefeh “Atti” Riazi ’84 was named chief information officer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Previously, she was the chief information technology officer and assistant secretary-general at the United Nations.

Anthony Claudio ’85 is a teacher and volunteers teaching kids how to play ultimate frisbee. 

Scott Cohen, DDS ’85, is in private practice in Denville, New Jersey. He specializes in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, and oral and maxillofacial surgery.

David M. Miller, DDS ’86, was named Nassau County Dental Society treasurer in January 2020.

Milagros “Milly” Peña ’86, PhD ’90, was named the next president of SUNY Purchase. She is the first Hispanic woman to lead a SUNY college.

John Cona ’87 has two young adult fantasy-adventure novels coming out in 2020. The first debuted in June 2020 under the pen name Prof. WW Marplot and included many scenes at Stony Brook University.

Lane Lipton ’87 is a Wall Street technical project manager. In the past, he explored professional writing and was a New York City Teaching Fellow, where he taught AP calculus.

Ronnie Schindel, Esq. ’89 has joined Pryor Cashman as co-chair of its Family Law Group. 

1990s

Assemblyman Carl Heastie ’90 is listed in the 2020 Albany Power list, ranked #10.

Karin Falcone Krieger ’90 authored an article on the history of Dover Publications, “This is a Permanent Book,” published in Contingent Magazine.

Patrick Jenkins ’90, founder, Patrick B. Jenkins & Associates, is listed in the 2020 Albany Power list, ranked #68. 

Frank Cipriani ’91 is a professor at Monmouth University, where he is an advisor to the “Nuestros Sonidos Latinos” radio show. The Intercollegiate Broadcasting System nominated the radio show for Best Foreign Language Radio Broadcast for three consecutive years. This year, it was named Top Foreign Language University Broadcast in the United States.

Thalia Segal, MD ’91, joined Singular Anesthesia in Hartsdale, New York. Her oldest daughter is a freshman at Middlebury College, and her two younger daughters are in high school. 

Todd Goffman ’92 has joined Globalization Partners as general counsel.

Virginia Goldman ’93, a licensed social worker, has moved to Denver, Colorado, and returned to doing art.

Michael Griffin, Esq. ’93 was featured in the Chambers USA 2020 Guide, which ranks leading lawyers and law firms across the United States. He is a principal and office litigation manager in the Seattle office of Jackson Lewis P.C., where he focuses on employment litigation.

Barbra Osborn ’93 has been appointed vice president of public relations at Northwell Health.

Ainsley A. Reynolds, CPA ’93, was elected president of the New Jersey State Board of Accountancy.

Joseph Campolo, Esq. ’94, and Scott Middleton, Esq. ’84, managing partners of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, had their firm featured on the Forbes “America’s Top Trusted Corporate Law Firms” list. 

Wayne Park ’94 joined the global asset management firm American Century Investments as head of personal financial solutions.

Cliff Weisner, Esq. ’95 was named principal of Lee & Associates South Florida in Miami. His focus is on retail investment sales and leasing.

Maryjane Kenney ’96, a Nissequogue Village clerk, retired after 16 years in this role. 

Joseph Moreno, Esq. ’96 is general counsel at SAP National Security Services, Inc., in Northern Virginia.

Wayne White ’96, ’99, is an at-large director at NYSUT and president of the Bellport Teacher Association. 

Diane Zinna’s ’96 first book, The All-Night Sun, was published by Random House in July 2020. It takes place in Sweden, Washington, D.C., and a town based on Port Jefferson, New York. 

Anitra Eiding Ingalls ’97 married David Alexander Hyde at the Golden Hind Farm in Madaket, on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. She is a research assistant at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University in Palisades, New York. She will begin doctoral studies in geochemistry at Stony Brook in the fall. 

Atabek Nazirov ’98 was appointed head of the Capital Markets Development Agency in Uzbekistan, a securities market regulator. The agency’s goal is to develop a functioning domestic capital market system, support economic growth, and promote the wide reform agenda promoted by President Mirziyoyev.

Thomas Lendvai ’99 received his first major public art commission for the new Tappan Zee Bridge. 

2000s

Roy Flores ’00, ’04, is president of the New York State Athletic Trainers’ Association, a membership association for athletic trainers. These healthcare professionals work in all settings to teach prevention of injuries, and provide emergency care, and evaluate and rehabilitate injuries.

Daniel Kivatinos ’01, ’02, and Michael Nusimow ’01, co-founders of DrChrono, have teamed up with Cognition IP to draft new patent applications that will focus on machine learning technology. They have also partnered with Ricoh to automatically scan patient ID, medical documentation, and referrals, helping patients for a seamless process into the DrChrono EHR.

Edith Ohadekwe ’02, a registered nurse who worked in pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, relocated to London, England, where she has worked in England’s National Health Service for 11 years managing several outpatient services and an inpatient ward/unit.

Lauren Hallam ’03 leads Fox Corporation as vice president of employee and community engagement. 

Dominik Biezonski ’04 is a professional grant writer for an HHMI-supported lab at Rockefeller University. He is the senior scientific grant writer for the entire New York Genome Center and has also had a prolific music career, playing sold-out shows in New York City and releasing two full-length albums.

William Gioconda ’05 is a vice president in marketing at Citi.

Ahmed Belazi ’06, ’10, and Allison Kruger ’13 have announced the birth of their son, Jude. 

Mireya Castillo ’06, ’13, has announced the birth of her daughter, Priscilla Love. 

Emily Cappiello ’07 joined Stony Brook University’s Office of Marketing and Communications as a media relations specialist. She most recently was the executive editor of Gourmet Insider Magazine and senior editor for HomeWorld Business Magazine, ICE Publications.

Nirav Makwana, MD ’07, joined Rhode Island Medical Imaging as a radiologist. 

Jennifer Muilenburg ’07 is a nurse practitioner and acupuncturist with Just Enjoy Life Acupuncture and Wellness Center in Stony Brook. 

John Mulligan ’07 joined AT&T’s new ad-tech company, Xandr, as a senior solutions consultant for global accounts. 

Gabriela Saldana Parkes ’07 lives in Dallas and teaches kindergarten in a private elementary school. 

Erik Ulrich ’07, clinical director and interim director of social services and mental health at Little Flower Children’s Services of New York, received the CEO Innovation Award for his ongoing dedication to residents’ mental health at the residential treatment center. 

Osaze Uzamere ’07 was appointed chief of staff by Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki.

Elizabeth Pincus ’08 was elected national vice president for the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses for 2020-2022. 

Thomas Lipani Jr. ’08 was named principal of Grundy Avenue Elementary School in the Sachem Central School District, effective July 2020. 

Rob Longiaru ’09, a Long Island conservation biologist at the Town of Hempstead, is working with the University of Oklahoma on a GPS telemetry project with Black Skimmer. 

2010s

Katerina Kramarchyk, Esq. ’10, an associate at Ward Greenberg Heller & Reidy, was named an “Up & Coming Attorney” by the Daily Record.

Tamara Weathers ’10 was promoted by the New York Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center to a senior social worker for the Emergency Department in September 2019. 

Amy Ellis ’11, ’19, is a clerk of the Suffolk County Legislature.

Yan Leyfman, MD ’11, was recruited by the Global COVID-19 Taskforce to serve as an advisor for immunology, oncology, and novel therapeutics. He has led the immunology group in devising solutions and shaping policy to improve survival outcomes. He published “Potential Immunotherapeutic Targets For Hypoxia Due to COVI-FLU” on PubMed. And he was elected to the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy’s Educational Committee to create opportunities for fellows, residents, and medical students that inspire careers in transplant and oncology. 

Megan Harned ’12 is working for a new mental health startup called Mental Health Match. Their mission is to make it easier for people to find therapists using their matching tool and algorithm that show searchers skilled therapists who are in their budget and best match their needs.

Franck D. Joseph II ’12, deputy commissioner for community relations, NYC Commission on Human Rights, was named one of the “16 Queens Heroes” by City and State. They represent local individuals who are leading the borough through the COVID-19 crisis.

Claire Laborde ’12 is a foreign language teacher in the New York City Department of Education.

Nicole Laible ’12 has been working on p3 initiatives as an environmental project manager in local government. She manages four boards, serves on the Hudson River Watershed Alliance, and has received awards in environmental education and leadership for her government work. 

Anthony Lapelosa ’12, ’14, is a teacher at Carey High School. 

Genevieve Sly Crane ’12 was awarded the Whiting Award, based on the early accomplishment and the promise of great work for her first book, Sorority. She teaches in the Creative Writing and Literature BFA program at Stony Brook. 

Safa Naibzada ’14 is a sixth-grade science teacher at SA Bronx Middle School and won an achievement award recognizing educators who, through their outstanding instruction, have led their students to exceptional academic growth. 

Betul Pamuk ’14 is a research associate at Cornell University. 

Joseph Park, MD ’14, will be on the 16th season of ABC’s “The Bachelorette” expected to premiere this fall.

Sofia Varino, PhD ’14, ’17 will be a postdoc fellow at the Minor Cosmopolitanisms research training group in the Department of English and American Studies at Potsdam University, in cooperation with Humboldt University and Freie University, in Berlin. She will work on her book on multispecies genealogies of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Yalile Suriel ’14, a PhD candidate in the Department of History, won the American Education Research Association Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research.

Justin Waryold ’14 received the 2020 Outstanding Nurse Practitioner Educator Award from the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties. 

Dana Castro ’15, ’16, started as a scientist at Estee Lauder in October 2018. 

Tamika Julien, DNP ’15, is a member of the Yale School of Nursing Midwifery Faculty Practice. She is a lecturer in the Midwifery/Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner and Graduate entry pre-specialty in nursing programs. She is also caring for the underserved population at the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center and the Vidone Birthing Center at Saint Raphael campus of Yale New Haven Hospital. 

Sohyun Kim ’15 is working on her diplomat and civil servant exams in Daegu, South Korea. 

Christopher Legare ’15 graduated from Penn State College of Medicine and will be starting an emergency medicine residency program at St. Luke’s University Hospital.

Mary Beth Patterson retired from Stony Brook University Hospital in 2018 but returned to work when the coronavirus pandemic hit, joining daughter Kelly Patterson ’15 on the front lines. The two appeared on The Today Show to talk to Al Roker about their experience working side by side.

Ashley Rizzotto ’15, a commencement speaker in 2015, gave a TEDx Talk on Mastering the Art of the Interview in April 2019. She is a career counselor for online student initiatives at Florida International University. 

Dureya Syed MD ’15 is an internal medicine resident at Stony Brook University Hospital. 

Giselle Zabranskey ’16 is a financial aid advisor at the University of Buffalo (SUNY).

Nicole Abissi ’16 has invented Extendabone to make trombones accessible to children, smaller individuals, and those with limited mobility. She is a trombone instructor at Montclair State University in New Jersey and has led clinics at many universities and music festivals.

Eliana Horowitz ’16 was married to Jason Emrani in May 2019.

Marisa Femia ’17 is teaching ENL in the Hauppauge School District.

Luisa Le Donne, PhD ’17, moved to Italy and has a postdoctoral position at the Italian Institute of Technology, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems.

Caitlin Mullen ’17 received rave reviews for her first novel, Please See Us. She was awarded fellowships and residencies from the Saltonstall Foundation and the Vermont Studio Center. The New York Times review, coupled with NPR’s Books to Read during the pandemic, named her book a must-read for Spring 2020. 

Karen Tsai, MD ’17, Kevin Tsai, MD ’19, and their organization DonatePPE.org donated more than 1.2 million PPE to hospitals in COVID hotspots such as New York City, the Bay Area, Southern California, New Orleans, Atlanta, Chicago, and Boston.

Renée Fannon ’18 is a first-grade lead teacher at SA Bensonhurst and won an Excellence Award for ETHOS, recognizing school staff who have exemplified the SA values of excellence, teamwork, humor, ownership, and scholars. 

Riddhima Laha ’18 started his PhD in Robotics and Mechatronics at TU Munich. 

Ashliann Arditi ’19 is a science teacher at SA Upper West. She won a Rookie of the Year Award, recognizing first-year teachers who have embraced the challenge of teaching and demonstrated significant growth. 

Melissa O’Brien ’19 is the marketing and communications manager for the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce, Delaware.

Kirsten Schweitzer ’19 was married in December 2019 and graduated from the accelerated nursing program in 2020. She is currently a nurse technician.