Class Notes Summer 2016

 

// 60s & earlier

Rabbi A. James Rudin, BA ’55, is the author of Pillar of Fire: A Biography of Rabbi Stephen S. Wise (Texas Tech University Press, December 2015), which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography as well as the National Jewish Book Award. Mr. Rudin also was chosen to participate in the Roosevelt Reading Festival at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, N.Y., on June 18.

Gustavo A. Mellander, AB ’59, MA ’60, PhD ’66, is the author of “The Unending Cost of Going to College,” which appeared in the Jan. 18 issue of The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education. The article highlights the unprecedented increase in student debt and offers a plan to eliminate indebtedness.

 

Michael Arkin, AA ’61, authored Judicial Indiscretion (JB Stillwater Publishing Company, December 2015), a legal thriller following the murder of a highly respected judge in the New Mexican Rio Grande Valley. It is the second book in the Matt Lucas series.

Don Ardell, BA ’63, and Ray Lupo, BS ’63, JD ’68, developed and patented a hands-free transition running shoe that “clicks” on with a heel strap, which is secured with the other foot. Mr. Ardell also coauthored Wellness Orgasms: The Fun Way to Live Well and Die Healthy (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, January 2015).

Les Megyeri, BA ’63, JD ’68, BA ’73, MBA ’80, was the featured speaker at the Venice, Fla., Veterans Club in April because of his involvement, as a teenager, in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Mr. Megyeri served two years in the Irish army after an Irish family “adopted” him from an Austrian refugee camp. Later, he immigrated to the United States and joined the U.S. Army. He was activated 22 times from the reserves before retiring as a lieutenant colonel.

Louis Pirkey, JD ’64, was recognized as one of the top trademark law attorneys in the nation in the 2016 edition of World Trademark Review 1000. Mr. Pirkey earned national gold status for prosecution and strategy and was awarded gold status for the state of Texas.

J. Edwin Dietel, JD ’69, authored Designing an Effective Corporate Information, Knowledge Management, and Records Retention Compliance Program (Clark Boardman Callaghan, September 2015), a guide to managing information contained in corporate records and developing a reliable record-keeping system.

Robert Gerdes, BA ’67, authored Winter Kept Us Warm (Wilde City Press, July 25, 2015). The novel follows the relationship of two young men who meet at the George Washington University in 1964 and deal with the Vietnam War, the draft and their sexuality.

Robert F. Hargest, JD ’67, authored Death of the Constitution: A Brief History of Judicial Activism (Tate Publishing, November 2014), which explores how U.S. Supreme Court justices have impacted elected government and the fundamental aspects of American life, paying special attention to the influence of progressive justices.

Ann Planutis Linder, BA ’69, authored World War I in 40 Posters (Stackpole Books, 2016, which examines 40 World War I propaganda posters in their political, social, cultural and artistic context.

 

// 70s

James A. Calderwood, JD ’70, was appointed chair of the Maryland Transportation Commission on July 16, 2015, by Gov. Larry Hogan.

Ellen L. Meyer, BA ’70, MFA ’74, retired as president of Watkins College of Art, Design & Film after serving seven years. She will now serve as president emerita. 

Sue Stinson, MA ’70, retired in 2013 as professor emeritus of dance at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where she taught courses in dance education and research for 34 years and served one year as interim dean of the School of Music, Theatre and Dance. Recently, she authored Embodied Curriculum Theory and Research in Arts Education: A Dance Scholar’s Search for Meaning (Springer, October 2015).

Robert F. Hemphill, MBA ’72, authored Stories from the Middle Seat: The Four-Million-Mile Journey to Building a Billion Dollar International Business (Strelitzia Ventures, January 2016). Sharing letters Mr. Hemphill wrote to his father, the author recounts his world travels and covers the funny, unique and sometimes outlandish parts of international business.

Meyer “Skip” Grinberg, MBA ’73, is serving as a vice chair of the Jewish Council of Public Affairs as well as co-chairing its strategic operating committee. He just completed a three-year term as president of the Pittsburgh Three Rivers Marathon and as chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Community Relations Council. Mr. Grinberg also is active with the Animal Rescue League of Western Pennsylvania, the Melanoma Research Alliance and the BairFind Foundation, which publicizes the plight of missing children.

Marc Hennemann, BA ’73, is a Republican candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2nd Congressional District of Washington state. He is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a former high school social studies teacher. For more information on Mr. Hennemann’s campaign, visit marc4congress.com.

Gary S. Horan, MHSA ’73, president and CEO of Trinitas Health Regional Medical Center, was named to the “Power 50 Healthcare” list, which is published yearly by NJBIZ, a business journal. He also received the New Jersey Hospital Association’s 2016 Distinguished Service Award.

Tom Glenn, MA ’74, DPA ’83, authored The Last of the Annamese (Naval Institute Press, 2017). This forthcoming novel is a love story set during the fall of Saigon—which the author survived, escaping under fire after the North Vietnamese were already in the city streets. Mr. Glenn also has authored Friendly Casualties (Glenn Publishing, September 2012), No-Accounts (Apprentice House, February 2014) and The Trion Syndrome (Apprentice House, November 2015), which received a Somerset Awards honorable mention in 2015. It’s also been nominated for a Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts, which is given by the World Cultural Council to those who offer a positive message through art.

Harley Tropin, BA ’74,  president of Kozyak Tropin & Throckmorton, was selected as the recipient of the American Jewish Committee’s Judge Learned Hand Award.

Samuel J. Biondo, MEA ’75, DSC ’88, authored Jack and Jill Spratt’s Amazing Journey to Healthful Eating: An Explorer’s Guide to Delicious Plant Based Diet Styles (Samuel J Biondo, ScD, LLC, January 2016), a guide to the health benefits of plant-based food. The book also helps readers create their own diet plan by providing information about digestion, appetite and metabolism, and helping them learn the key attributes and nourishing characteristics of healthful foods.

Roberta Bren, BA ’75, left Oblon, a large intellectual property firm, after more than 25 years as a partner to join the small intellectual property firm, Muncy Geissler Olds & Lowe, P.C., in the Washington, D.C., area as a principal. Ms. Bren’s practice focuses on trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property matters.

Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, MA ’75, was named the deputy director of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass.

William R. Simpson, MS ’75, authored Enterprise Level Security: Securing Information Systems in an Uncertain World (Auerbach Publications, April 2016). The book provides a modern alternative to the fortress approach to security—one that is more distributed and has no need for passwords or accounts.

David Estey, MS ’76, will have a 65-year retrospective exhibition of paintings and drawings Aug. 30-Oct. 9 at Studio 53 Fine Art Gallery in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. The show of over 50 pieces will cover his development from youth through Rhode Island School of Design, studying in Italy, illustrating for the Army, a public affairs career with the Internal Revenue Service, studying at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and current career as an improvisational painter in his native Belfast, Maine.

David Padilla, LLM ’78, received an honorary doctorate in law from the University of Pretoria on Dec. 10, 2015, in recognition of 45 years of work on behalf of human rights and development.

Kevin Generous, BA ’79, MA ’83, defended his doctoral dissertation and earned his PhD in political science (international relations/American politics) from the University of Connecticut, where he is also an adjunct professor at the Avery Point campus. He spent the past six years teaching U.S. foreign policy, national security policy and American government at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.

 

// 80s

Thomas E. Douglas, MA ’81, retired after a 44-year career in law enforcement, which included serving as a law instructor and commander for the Baltimore Police Department and assistant director of security on the Homewood campus of Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Douglas also worked for the Clery Center for Security on Campus and the University of Baltimore’s Police Department. He currently resides in Delaware, where he volunteers with the local police department and also helps retired officers maintain their national concealed-handgun-carry permits.

Evan Hillebrand, PhD ’81, coauthored Energy, Economic Growth, and Geopolitical Futures (The MIT Press, March 2015), which presents eight scenarios of possible global futures, emphasizing the interconnectedness of three drivers of change: energy prices, economic growth and geopolitics.

Elliott Kugel, MS ’83, was named in the March 7 issue of Barron’s as one of the “Top 1,200 Advisors in America.” Mr. Kugel, a managing director of investments at Merrill Lynch in Bridgewater, N.J., also was ranked 16th in the state of New Jersey. He resides in Skillman, N.J.

Katherine A. Simmonds, MA ’83, became a partner at the Stanford Investment Group, Inc., a wealth management and financial planning firm in Mountain View, Calif. 

Constance Huddleston Anderson, EdD ’86, authored Tethered to Wanting (Abednigo Hogge Press, March 2016). Set in the mountains of Tennessee, the novel is the haunting tale of a young woman driven by yearning for something unnamed as she struggles to understand the secrets of her family—her violent father, her evasive mother, her protective, Cherokee grandmother and two extended clans of mysterious, gun-packing relatives.

Glenn Boyet, BA ’86, was appointed director of corporate communications at AmeriQuest Business Services—a technology-enabled provider of financial process, procurement and asset-management solutions—in Cherry Hill, N.J.

George F. Indest III, LLM ’86, president and managing partner of The Health Law Firm, was selected to the 2016 Florida Super Lawyers list.

Steven Gartner, BBA ’87, was appointed managing director of retail for the greater Pennsylvania region by CBRE Group, Inc.

Nadja Y. West, MD ’88, was appointed the U.S. Army’s 44th surgeon general and also the commanding general of the U.S. Army Medical Command. She is the first black female to serve as Army surgeon general and also the first black female to hold the rank of lieutenant general. Lt. Gen. West is now the highest-ranking female to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy.

Lawrence Kasmen, BBA ’89, joined Berman Fink Van Horn, a law firm in Atlanta, as a shareholder. Mr. Kasmen is a corporate and commercial real estate attorney.

 

// 90s

Michael Anderson, MBA ’91, was designated director of the Office of Investigations at the United States International Trade Commission.

Amy Chazkel, BA ’91, co-edited The Rio de Janeiro Reader: History, Culture, Politics (Duke University Press Books, January 2016). Spanning a period of more than 450 years, the book traces Rio’s history, culture and politics, and contains a mix of primary documents—many appearing in English for the first time—that present the “Marvelous City” in all its complexity, importance and intrigue.

Meri-Margaret Deoudes, BA ’91, is the new president and CEO of EarthShare, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., that focuses on environmental issues and conservation.

Steven Gilbert, MFS ’91, coauthored Police Corruption in the NYPD: From Knapp to Mollen (CRC Press, November 2015), which explores how and why the New York Police Department was investigated twice for internal corruption in less than 25 years: 1970 (the Knapp Commission) and 1992 (the Mollen Commission).

Aaron Leventhal, MA ’91, coauthored Footsteps in the Fog: Alfred Hitchcock’s San Francisco (Santa Monica Press, October 2002), which details how the director’s familiarity with Northern California influenced his films, specifically Shadow of a Doubt, Vertigo and The Birds. Mr. Leventhal also owns the family-run, solar-powered, green-certified business Hero Arts, which manufactures craft products such as stamps, paper, ink and more.

Ben Shichman, BBA ’91, was named executive vice president of platform operations for InvestCloud, a software company in Beverly Hills, Calif. Previously, Mr. Shichman was vice president of technology for Guidance, an e-commerce consulting firm.

Maria Tichelman-van Lieshout, BA ’91, is an author and illustrator who has published 13 children’s books, including Bye Bye Binky (Chronicle Books, March 2016) and I Use the Potty (Chronicle Books, March 2016). More information is available at www.MariavanLieshout.com.

Carl LeVan, BA ’92, was promoted to associate professor, with tenure, in the School of International Service at American University.

Matthew Moog, BA ’92, was elected to the Metropolitan Planning Council’s board of governors. The MPC is a nonprofit that works to improve Chicago. Among its priorities are getting people to live near public transit, reducing housing costs, streamlining tax codes and creating jobs through infrastructure investment. Mr. Moog is the CEO of PowerReviews.

Ilan Berkner, BS ’93, MS ’96, joined Centric Consulting as the Miami practice lead and is responsible for its South Florida consulting practice. Last year, Mr. Berkner was nominated to join the supervisory committee of Velocity Credit Union.

Barbara Sheaffer, MA ’93, works for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, which houses the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. She has been involved in this work for more than 22 years.

Akin Alcitepe, BA ’94, MA ’96, JD ’99, joined Sedgwick LLP as a partner in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office.

Paul D. McLean, EdS ’95, earned a PhD from Virginia Tech in May 2011.

Boniface Tsimi, BS ’95, MS ’98, owns MyOneCruise.com, which is hosting the seventh annual World Music & Independent Film Festival aboard the Carnival Pride cruise ship, which leaves Baltimore on Aug. 28 and returns Sept. 4 after a trip to Florida and the Bahamas. Tickets are available through the website and at 1-844-8MyTrip.

Damon Coppola, BS ’96, MS ’03, authored Introduction to International Disaster Management, Third Edition (Elsevier, 2015) and coauthored Introduction to Homeland Security: Principles of All-Hazards Risk Management, Fifth Edition (Elsevier, 2015) and Living with Climate Change: How Communities Are Surviving and Thriving in a Changing Climate (CRC Press, 2015).

Yahia Lababidi, BA ’96, authored Balancing Acts: New & Selected Poems 1993–2015 (Press 53, April 2016).

Elizabeth Schlatter, MA ’96, the deputy director and curator of exhibitions at the University of Richmond Museums, was elected to serve a four-year term on the board of the College Art Association.

Chris Holm, JD ’97, joined Polsinelli’s intellectual property practice as a principal in the national law firm’s Los Angeles office. Mr. Holm assists clients with patent litigation and prosecution. He also has extensive experience defending clients against allegations of patent infringement.  

Thomas C. Leonard, PhD ’97, published Illiberal Reformers: Race, Eugenics, and American Economics in the Progressive Era (Princeton University Press, January 2016), which reexamines the economic progressives whose ideas and reform agenda underwrote the Progressive Era—dismantling laissez-faire and the creation of the regulatory welfare state—which, they believed, would humanize and rationalize industrial capitalism.

Maxine Griffin Somerville, MPA ’97, was named chair of the Charles County Commission for Women, an organization that works to better define and identify services for women and families in Maryland’s Charles County.

Kuyomars Golparvar, BA ’98, was appointed an immigration judge in York, Pa., by Attorney General Loretta Lynch on April 21. Mr. Golparvar also is an adjunct professor at GW.

Jeremy Strozer, BA ’98, published the third volume of his Threads of War series: Threads of The War: Personal Truth Inspired Flash-Fiction of The 20th Century’s War (The Good Enough Empire, June 2016). The books are collections of narratives about real events that occurred during World War I and II. Mr. Strozer offers weekly individual stories of war at his blog, JeremyStrozer.com, and is a regular contributor to the financial and family-focused blog LifeIsComfy.com.

Sherryn Craig, BA ’99, authored Midnight Madness at the Zoo (Arbordale Publishing, February 2016), a picture book that tells the story of zoo animals playing a basketball game after the zookeepers go home. Young readers can count along as the team grows, learn a little basketball lingo and find out why all the animals at the zoo are so sleepy during the day.

Lindsay Krasnoff, BA ’99, is the new communications director for Salon Media Group in New York after serving seven years with the Office of the Historian in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Public Affairs. She also writes about French soccer and basketball, with pieces this year for The New Yorker, Sports Illustrated, Vice Sports and CNN International.

 

// 00s

Magdalena Fulton, BA ’00, a senior associate at Creative Associates International, is a youth development, employability and training specialist. She developed and implemented Creative Pathways, a curriculum for at-risk and marginalized youth that focuses on personal competencies, conflict resolution and workforce readiness. She is currently based in Tanzania.

Eve Goldberg, BA ’00, was named director of research of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation.

Jennifer Trezza, BA ’01, was named director of marketing and communications of WDG Architecture in Washington, D.C.

Jennifer A. Wieclaw, JD ’01, of Duane Morris LLP’s Real Estate Practice and Philadelphia office, was promoted to partner.

Asha Aravindakshan, BBA ’02, operations director for global talent at Ashoka, was given a SuperNova Award by Constellation Research Inc. for her leadership in disruptive technology adoption.

Richard Ernsberger, BS ’02, is a co-chair of the Pittsburgh Symphony’s “Moonlight Masquerade Soiree,” which is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016.

Jason Franklin, BA ’02, is the first holder of the W.K. Kellogg Community Philanthropy Chair at Grand Valley State University’s Johnson Center for Philanthropy in the College of Community and Public Service.

Mareesa Fredericks, JD ’02, was promoted to partner at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP.

Naresh Kilaru, JD ’02, was promoted to partner at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP.

Dan Nadel, BA ’02, MA ’06, JD ’06, was named director of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom.

William L. Sparks, PhD ’02, coauthored The Director’s Manual: A Framework for Board Governance (Wiley, February 2016), which offers current and aspiring board members guidance, blending research-based information with the wisdom of practical experience.

Mark Cheramie Walz, BA ’02, was promoted to partner at Sweet, Stevens, Katz & Williams in New Britain, Pa. Mr. Walz is a former deputy district attorney for Bucks County.

Cynthia R. Beyea, JD ’03, was elected partner of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP. She is based in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office.  

Allen Kent Willis, MA ’03, completed a dissertation on the relationship between knowledge of multiplication tables and fraction operations to learning algebra. It was the final step toward completing his doctorate in teacher leadership at Walden University.  Dr. Willis now works part time as a teacher and university student-teacher adviser. He also is a support provider to a new math teacher in the Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) program in Fortuna, Calif.

Elizabeth Howard, MA ’04, edited Ned O’Gorman: A Glance Back (Easton Studio, May 2016), a series of essays examining the life of poet and educator Edward Charles “Ned” O’Gorman.

Amanda Mantone Linehan, BA ’04, was elected chairman of the Malden Redevelopment Authority board of directors for a one-year term. She is the communications manager for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council in Boston.

Sabrina Ricks Campbell, BA ’05, won the “Shark Lagoon” episode of the Food Network TV show Cake Wars with her partner, Charles Tola, of Lulu’s Bakery in New York. The episode aired on Feb. 15. The winning cake was a realistic depiction of a shark’s habitat, and the recipe is on the Cake Wars website. Ms. Campbell owns Occasionally Cake in Alexandria, Va.

Charles R. Gill, BS ’05, was named the director of quality and compliance for St. Anthony Physicians Organization, a member of SSM Health-Oklahoma.

Micah Kubic, BA ’05, authored Freedom, Inc. and Black Political Empowerment (University of Missouri Press, February 2016), which tells the story of black political empowerment in Kansas City through the prism of Freedom Inc., the United States’ oldest black political organization. Mr. Kubic is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas.

Dan LeClair, BA ’05, is serving as the director of development for the international environmental nonprofit 1% for the Planet. Mr. LeClair is responsible for guiding philanthropic strategy and growing revenue by garnering regional, national and global support.

Evan Michelson, MA ’05, authored Assessing the Societal Implications of Emerging Technologies: Anticipatory Governance in Practice (Routledge, June 2016), which offers insight on how to make better policy associated with new technologies—nanotechnology, synthetic biology, etc.

Jessica Schimmerling, BA ’05, MA ’09, and Josh Schimmerling, BBA ’04, MA ’06, welcomed their son, Jacob Henry Schimmerling, to the world on
Feb. 1, 2016, joining big sister (and future GW Colonial Class of 2035), Abby.

Paul VanVeldhuisen, PhD ’05, was promoted to chief operating officer at The EMMES Corporation in January 2016. Headquartered in Rockville, Md., the organization conducts clinical trials for government and independent research institutes.

Keesha M. Crosby, MS ’06, is the founder of Tri-Guard. The cybersecurity firm—its three-year research into developing secure software for government agencies was funded by the Department of Homeland Security—has published three articles: two in Computer (the flagship publication of the IEEE Computer Society) and one in CrossTalk, a journal for defense software engineering. Tri-Guard’s research also is featured in the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014, which updates and codifies the federal government’s cybersecurity practices.

Samuel Gordy, MBA ’06, joined IBM in January as general manager for the U.S. Federal Business. Mr. Gordy previously served as senior vice president and group president of Integrated Systems at Leidos.

Erik Eisenmann, JD ’07, a shareholder in Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C.’s  Milwaukee office and a member of the labor and employment team, will co-lead the firm’s occupational safety and health team. 

Timothy McAnulty, JD ’07, was promoted to partner at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP.

Stephanie Dolloff, BA ’08, co-created Wicked Awesome 3D Photography, a Matterport 3D virtual tour company, which helps customers create interactive virtual tours for interior spaces. For more information, go to www.WickedAwesome3D.com.

Bethany Patz Evans, MTA ’08, earned a fellowship with the National Association of Corporate Directors, one of just 71 individuals named to the list. The NACD Fellowship is a comprehensive and continuous program of study that empowers directors with the latest insights, intelligence and leading boardroom practices. Ms. Evans currently serves on the board of directors for Conscientia Global and EHS Support.

Ramzi Fawaz, MA ’08, PhD ’12, published The New Mutants: Superheroes and the Radical Imagination of American Comics (NYU Press, January 2016), which considers the relationship between comic book fantasy and radical politics in the modern United States. The book won a Center for LGBTQ Studies Fellowship Award in 2012.

Stephanie Brooks, BA ’09, and Sam Markowitz, BA ’09, were married on June 18, 2016.

Aaron P. Davis, LLM ’09, was named a partner at Thornton Davis Fein in Miami.

Ivie Guobadia, BA ’09, joined the Employment Practice Litigation Group of Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP’s New York office. Ms. Guobadia represents employers in civil rights and employment-related litigation matters, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation and wrongful-termination claims.

 

// 10s

Despina D. Dalton, MBA ’10, was named the vice president of medical affairs and physician adviser at WellStar Douglas Hospital in Douglasville, Ga., where she oversees all medical staff and clinical projects.

Elizabeth Groncki, BS ’10, was named director of project development and management for the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Faculty Physicians, Inc.—the business arm of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Mrs. Groncki works closely with physicians, medical center staff and the city of Baltimore to develop women’s health programs. Mrs. Groncki also is enrolled in the Master of Public Health Program at the University of Maryland.

Gregory M. Tomlin, MA ’10, PhD ’13, authored Murrow’s Cold War: Public Diplomacy for the Kennedy Administration (Potomac Books, May 2016), which examines Edward R. Murrow’s stint as the director of the U.S. Information Agency and how it affected the United States’ domestic and foreign policy during John F. Kennedy’s presidency.

Danielle Desaulniers, BA ’11, a second-year law student at the University of Virginia, was selected as editor-in-chief of the Virginia Law Review.

Marianne Olaniran, MS ’11, and her husband, Kabir Olaniran, welcomed their first child, Eliana, in December 2015.

Paul H. Shakotko, BS ’11, and Madeleine A. Peckham, BA ’11, were married at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 3, 2015. Mr. Shakotko is a document management analyst for CACI International at the U.S. Department of Justice. Mrs. Shakotko is a program manager and budget analyst at the Order of Malta Federal Association. The couple resides in Silver Spring, Md.

Oliver E. Twaddell, JD ’11, formerly of Mound Cotton Wollan & Greengrass LLP, joined Goldberg Segalla as an associate in the firm’s Manhattan office.

Bridget Harriss, BFA ’12, opened in Boston the first brick-and-mortar location of her company Sailormade, which makes marine-inspired belts, bracelets and necklaces. Sailormade can be found online at SailormadeUSA.com.

Andrew Szente, MPS ’12, joined Best Buy Inc.’s Washington, D.C., office as a senior manager of government affairs. He spent the past 10 years working for the Retail Industry Leaders Association.

Abdul Aslam, MS ’13, and Chris Williams, MS ’13, coauthored Enterprise Cybersecurity: How to Build a Successful Cyberdefense Program Against Advanced Threats (Apress, June 2015), which presents a framework for managing all aspects of an enterprise cybersecurity program.

Kathy Wever, CERT ’13, MS ’15, was selected to be a member of the Presidential Leadership Scholars class of 2016. Ms. Wever is the chief of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s support team to the U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois.

Rosalynne D. Whitaker-Heck, EdD ’13, joined the Division of Communication and Creative Media as an associate dean and associate professor at Champlain College in Burlington, Vt.

Charis Redmond, BA ’14, a second-year law student at the University of Virginia, will serve a one-year term as the vice chair of the National Black Law Students Association. Ms. Redmond also is president of the Virginia Law chapter of the Black Law Students Association.

Rodney Sutton, MA ’14, was appointed by the District Department of Transportation to design the official “Welcome To Washington, DC” signage for Mayor Muriel Bowser. Mr. Sutton’s documentary film Farming A Legacy, about black farmers in Southern Maryland, was screened in several cities across the country in 2015, including San Francisco, Nashville, Baltimore and Austin, Texas.

Nicole Catá, JD ’15, MA ’15, is serving as a judicial law clerk at the Executive Office for Immigration Review in the U.S. Department of Justice in New York. She is part of the U.S. Attorney General’s honors program.

Alexis Coleman, BA ’15, received the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Fellowship. The program is a partnership between Howard University and the U.S. Department of State that promotes diversity and excellence in the U.S. Foreign Service.

Tealye Long, BA ’15, is a partner at Chufly Imports, an Arlington, Va.-based company that brings Bolivian wine and spirits to the United States. Chufly specializes in wines and the Rujero brand of signani, a clear liquor distilled from the Muscat of Alexandria grape. Rujero is available in Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia and online at Chufly.com.