Black/Hispanic Alumni Association
2026 Alumni Recognition, Scholarship, and Networking Dinner
Celebrate, Connect, Dine, and Dance
Saturday, April 11, 2026, 7 p.m.
Hofstra University Club, David S. Mack Hall, North Campus
Black
National Anthem
“Lift
Every Voice and Sing”
Lift every voice and sing, till earth and Heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of liberty; Let our rejoicing rise, high as the listening skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won. Stony the road we trod, bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet, Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered; Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast. God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou Who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou Who hast by Thy might, led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee.
Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee.
Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land.
James Weldon Johnson, 1900
Message from the BHAA President
Good evening, distinguished guests, alumni, scholars, and friends,
It is both an honor and a privilege to welcome you to the Black/Hispanic Alumni Recognition, Scholarship, and Networking Dinner. Tonight, we gather not only to celebrate achievement but also to recognize the enduring strength, resilience, and brilliance within our community.
Our alumni represent a powerful legacy — one built on perseverance, leadership, and a commitment to uplifting others. You are mentors, trailblazers, and changemakers whose impact extends far beyond this institution. Your stories continue to inspire the next generation to dream boldly and lead with purpose.
To our scholarship recipients, tonight we celebrate you. Your dedication, hard work, and vision for the future embody the very spirit of excellence this event represents. These scholarships are more than financial support — they are a testament to your potential and a reminder that an entire community stands behind you.
I would also like to applaud Resa Nelson ’26, Hofstra’s first-ever Rhodes Scholar, an international student from Antigua; and Hofstra Men’s Basketball Coach Speedy Claxton, the entire coaching staff, and the student-athletes on their accomplishment of winning the CAA Championship and making it to March Madness 2026. These achievements speak volumes about our community — driven, curious, resilient, and proud. This reminds us of what’s possible when talent, hard work, and opportunity come together. Hofstra’s future has never looked brighter.
This evening is also a reflection of unity. The Black and Hispanic communities share deep histories of strength, culture, and contribution. Together, we continue to break barriers, create opportunities, and shape a more inclusive future.
Let us take pride in how far we have come, while remaining committed to the work that still lies ahead. May tonight serve as both a celebration and a call to continue investing in education, equity, and empowerment.
Thank you to everyone who made this evening possible, and to all of you for being part of this important tradition.
Enjoy the evening, and congratulations once again to our honorees, alumni, students, friends, and family.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Jacqueline Fowler ’07; MS, ’21 President, Hofstra BHAA
Program
Welcome Jacqueline Fowler ’07; MS, ’21 President, Hofstra BHAA
Invocation
Dwane O. Jones ‘05 Treasurer, Hofstra BHAA
Black National Anthem Hofstra Gospel Ensemble
Greetings Laine Norton Senior Vice President for Development and Alumni Affairs
Remarks Susan Poser President, Hofstra University
Deanna Hunter
Jamie Whitfield ’82 Legacy Awards Immediate Past President, Hofstra BHAA
Dinner
Student Leadership
Wilbert K. Davis ’20 Awards Vice President, Hofstra BHAA
Scholarship Jacqueline Fowler Awards and Appeal
Alumni Recognition Jacqueline Fowler Awards Wilbert K. Davis
Closing Remarks Jacqueline Fowler
Dancing
2026 Black/Hispanic Alumni Association Dinner Honoree
Hermina ‘‘Nina’’ Batson ’90
Global Senior Financial Services Executive
Hermina ”Nina” Batson is a strategic, mission-driven global executive recognized for her impressive track record in financial services and regulatory engagement. As a senior business leader, she possesses invaluable expertise and a distinguished background in regulatory relations, risk management, corporate finance, and successful securitization transactions. With over 30 years of experience, Batson has worked at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Goldman Sachs, BNP Paribas, MetLife, and JPMorgan Chase. Most recently, she served as the global head of regulatory engagement for Barclays' Internal Audit. She holds Series 79 and 63 certifications and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration and a certificate in accounting from Hofstra University.
As a facilitation leader with strong negotiation skills, Batson brings clarity to complex transactions, manages diverse global teams, and delivers top-tier services within large international financial institutions. As a change agent and problem solver, she has leveraged her confident mindset and effective executive communication to build and lead collaborative, resilient, high-performing cross-functional teams across regions, consistently delivering exceptional results, often during periods of significant change.
Batson leverages her extensive expertise to collaborate with senior management, business leaders, and departments across legal, compliance, accounting, audit, tax operations, and risk management. She fosters positive, lasting change, resolves issues effectively, promotes regulatory readiness and transparency across the organization, builds credible relationships with global regulators, and earns the trust of key stakeholders and executive leaders. Her ability to synthesize critical information into actionable strategies and navigate supervisory environments has driven revenue growth, reduced costs, improved expense planning, optimized headcount, streamlined processes, enhanced workflows, and increased efficiency.
Batson is also committed to doing the right thing and giving back to the community. Since 2009, she has been actively involved with the Financial Women's Association (FWA), serving as its first Black president and as the 58th president from 2021 to 2023. She is a member of the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) Equity & Opportunity Advisory Council, and the Hofstra Zarb School of Business Dean’s Advisory Board.
In 2024, Batson received Hofstra’s Award for Alumni Achievement. In 2023, CIO Views magazine named her one of the 10 Most Successful Black Businesswomen Making a Difference. In 2022, Crain’s New York Business recognized her as one of 105 Notable Black Leaders and Executives. She also received the Markets Choice Awards’ Women in Finance: Excellence in Social Responsibility Award.
2026 Black/Hispanic Alumni Association Dinner Honoree
Rudy R. Racine ’04
Founder and CEO, HireLearners
Rudy Racine is a leadership expert, executive leader, and proud Hofstra alumnus whose career has been defined by service and impact. For more than 20 years, he has overseen large-scale workforce programs across North America, helping tens of thousands of unemployed and underemployed individuals connect to education, skills training, and meaningful employment. Through his executive leadership, he has strengthened teams, improved performance, and expanded opportunity for communities navigating challenging transitions.
After two decades of professional leadership, Racine authored The Leadership MILE: Motivate. Inspire. Learn. Empower., built on the belief that the path to effective leadership starts by mastering the MILE — learning how to motivate, inspire, learn, and empower others to perform at their highest level.
Racine credits his time at Hofstra and his experience as a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. with shaping that philosophy. The relationships, brotherhood, and leadership development he experienced reinforced a lasting truth: Leadership is not about position — it is about responsibility, service, and lifting others as you rise.
Since July 2022, he has served as president of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.’s Xi Psi Chapter Alumni Affinity Group, increasing alumni engagement and philanthropic support through participation in Hofstra’s Winter Homecoming, Fall Fest, and the Chapter’s 45th Anniversary Reunion.
Racine’s leadership reflects a lifelong commitment to excellence, empowerment, and uplifting others.
Katherine Sanchez, MHA, ’23 Program Manager, Northwell Health
Katherine Sanchez is a Hofstra University alumna and an advocate for equitable healthcare access. After immigrating to the United States at the age of 8, she grew up in Queens, New York, where she saw firsthand how access to education and health care impacts individuals and communities. These experiences shaped her commitment to equity and access to opportunity.
Over more than a decade at Northwell Health, Sanchez has progressed from frontline roles into administrative and programmatic work, gaining a practical understanding of healthcare systems from the ground up. She currently serves as program manager at the Institute for Community Health and Wellness, supporting programs focused on patient care, readmission reduction, and access to care.
Sanchez is deeply committed to mentorship and education through action. As co-chair of the Higher Education Network at Healthcare Leaders of New York (HLNY), she supports students and early career professionals as they prepare for administrative roles or entry-level opportunities in health care. Sanchez is also spearheading a mentorship pilot through HLNY that brings together students, early career professionals, and clinicians from diverse backgrounds to expand access to guidance, professional readiness, and meaningful career pathways. Through professional development events, including interview-readiness workshops and access to professional headshots, she helps participants build the skills and confidence needed to navigate today’s digital job market.
Sanchez remains actively engaged with Hofstra University, regularly returning to speak with students, including those in the Master of Health Administration program. She has also supported the Sandra Lindsay Foundation since its early stages, contributing to efforts addressing period poverty on the island of Jamaica by investing in education and ensuring equitable access to menstrual supplies.
Across her work, Sanchez believes that dignity and opportunity belong to everyone, and that legacy is not in what we achieve alone, but in who we help rise alongside us.
2026 Black/Hispanic Alumni Association
Duane Shippey ’03
Vice President, Senior Client Service Specialist, BNY
Duane Shippey has had an amazing career in finance spanning 30 years. He is currently a vice president at BNY (The Bank of New York) supporting their Corporate Trust business as a senior client service manager on their secondary insurance team.
He is also one of the co-chairs for their employee business resource group, IMPACT, where he helps to oversee multiple thoughtful, insightful, and engaging events throughout the enterprise.
Shippey is the go-to person for events happening in his industry, regularly sharing internal E/BRG events within the BNY community as well as external multicultural events from the Council of Urban Professionals (CUP), National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), Ascend, and the National Black MBA Association. He is also a member of a cross-firms Black ERG known as The Collective, whose mission is to create opportunities for Black professionals to network, share best practices, and collaborate on engagement and philanthropic initiatives to support their local communities.
Shippey has served as a panelist and mentor representing BNY on college campuses in the New York City metro area, is active in volunteer and youth mentorship programs, and stays involved with several professional networking, leadership, and team-building engagement programs. Every year he hosts numerous on-site “Day on Wall Street” events with Hofstra and other universities at BNY. Shippey regularly spends time speaking with interns and early career analysts at BNY serving as a mentor. In addition, he regularly assists the Corporate Trust Employee Engagement Committee where he initiates and encourages his colleagues to interact through various internal and external activities, displaying his passion for connectivity and thriving together. Shippey has been recognized and awarded as a BNY Rising Star, BNY DEI Champion, BNY Star Award recipient, Harlem YMCA Achievers in Industry Award recipient, and a recipient of the St. John’s University MLK Agent of Change award. He also pays it forward to his alma mater, Uniondale High School, with the alumni scholarship program he founded to help pave the way and create opportunities for the next generation of professionals, which has been recognized in the LI Herald. As a master connector, Shippey brings people together through his work on reunion initiatives with fellow high school and college alumni. He is a driving force in cultivating an inclusive environment for all.
Deanna Hunter Legacy Award
Deanna Hunter was a dedicated and beloved member of the Hofstra University administration for 21 years, as well as an alumna who received her BA and MS in Counselor Education. She was a founding member of Hofstra‘s Black/Hispanic Alumni Association in 1990, as well as an active member of Hofstra‘s Alumni Senate and Alumni Organization. In 1995, Hunter was honored and received the Alumni Achievement Award.
She was a passionate advocate for her students. Hunter often looked high and low for internships, job opportunities, and scholarships, and always had a listening ear to help students move forward in their educational and career pursuits. She also served in the local community as co-chair of the Hempstead Neighborhood Advisory Counsel and as a member of the Hempstead/Uniondale Regional Parochial School Board. Hunter was recognized in Who's Who Among Black Americans.
Hunter was the former assistant dean for special programs and the executive director of Hofstra‘s Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) and the New York Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP). The CSTEP and STEP programs help economically disadvantaged students and underrepresented minorities succeed in their chosen fields. The programs foster a cooperative learning environment with support services that enhance each student‘s academic growth and professional potential. STEP is an academic enrichment and career preparation program for students in grades 7-12.
CSTEP is a program for undergraduate students that provides a number of academic and preprofessional support services.
2025-2026
Deanna Hunter Legacy Award Recipients
Saskia Guerrier
Aydan Smith
Student Leadership Awards
African Student Association (ASA)
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.
Black Leaders Advocating for Change (BLAC)
Black Student Union (BSU)
Caribbean Student Association (CSA)
Dark Room
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.
Hofstra Gospel Ensemble
Hofstra’s Organization of Latinx Americans (HOLA)
Melanin Movers
Multicultural Fraternity Sorority Council
NAACP, Hofstra Chapter
National Society of Black Engineers
Queer and Trans People of Color Coalition
Strictly Steppin’
Scholarship Recipients
CONGRATULATIONS TO:
2025-2026 Endowed Scholarship Recipient
Luis Rodriguez Osorio, Finance
2025-2026 Annual Scholarship Recipients
Hajjah-Immanuel Aiken, Filmmaking and Drama
Carmela Barnett, Television Production and Studies
Santiago Hinestroza Velez, Finance
Erick Porro, Biology (Pre-Med)
The Hofstra Black/Hispanic Alumni Association commends your commitment to academic excellence.
Help us to provide scholarships to deserving students by scanning the QR code below:
Congratulations to this year’s honorees and scholarship recipients!
— Thrisha Andrews
Hearing your collegial journey and knowing your grit, this award is a great reflection of the incredible woman you are and the impact that you've made and are still making on so many since you first walked the halls of Hofstra University.
Congratulations to you and all of the BHAA honorees.
Your daughter, Tati
Black/Hispanic Alumni Association
Executive Board
President ....................................................... Jacqueline Fowler ’07; MS, ’21
Vice President ................................................................. Wilbert K. Davis ’20
Treasurer .......................................................................... Dwane O. Jones ’05
Immediate Past President ............................................... Jamie Whitfield ’82
”People might not get all they work for in this world, but they must certainly work for all they get.“
– Frederick Douglass