Union College Magazine, Fall 2020

FALL 2020

UNIONCOLLEGE A Magazine for Alumni and Friends

WRUC celebrates a century on the air

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ALSO INSIDE:

14 Engineering turns 175 27 Making Our Mark:

Volume 115 / Number 1

The impact of Union women

UNION COLLEGE ON THE FRONT COVER

Sata Diakite '21, general manager of WRUC, at the control board. The station this year celebrates a century of broadcasting.

VICE PRESIDENT FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING

Leah Rosen EDITOR

Charlie Casey caseyc@union.edu ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Erin DeMuth Judd demuthje@union.edu CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Christen Gowan Tina Lincer Phillip Wajda CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Matt Milless Shawn LaChapelle DESIGN

2k Design PRINTING

Fort Orange Press

UNION COLLEGE is published

three times a year by the Union College Office of Communications, Schenectady, N.Y. 12308. The telephone is (518) 388-6131. Non-profit flat rate postage is paid at Schenectady, N.Y., and an additional mailing office.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Office of Communications, Union College, Schenectady, N.Y. 12308-3169.

Alumni who want to inform the College about changes of address should contact the Alumni Office at (518) 388-6168 or via e-mail at alumni@union. edu. The same phone number and e-mail address should be used to correspond about ReUnion, Homecoming, alumni club events, and other activities.

Meredith Blinn '24 soars through the trees at Mountain Ridge Adventure in Schenectady during Leadership Pre-Orientation in early September.

FALL 2020 // Volume 115 // Number 1

IN THIS ISSUE:

14 Engineering turns 175

Though we acknowledge 1845 as the start of engineering at Union, the seeds were sown as early as 1802, when the first course on surveying was taught. Throughout most of the College’s history, engineering within the context of the liberal arts setting has made Union unique.

16 WRUC celebrates a century on the air

Since the first scheduled broadcast on Oct. 14, 1920, Union College radio has been a laboratory for generations of students to experiment on-air, and in many cases to launch a career they never expected.

27 Making Our Mark: The impact of Union women When women arrived at Union as full-time students for the first time in fall 1970, they changed the College in a monumental way. Over the last five decades, Union women have continued to make their mark here in Schenectady and around the globe.

Greta Bieg ’15, left, and Emily Crampe ’15 in WRUC’s “fishbowl studio” on the first floor of Reamer Campus Center in 2013.

Departments 2

President’s Message

48 Alumni Clubs

3

Letters

49 The Classes & Profiles

4

Around U

59 Arrivals

40 Focus

60 Unions

42 Media

66 In Memoriam

» Visit us online at www.union.edu/magazine

» Follow us on social media

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Rising to the challenge

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year ago, when we finalized a Strategic Plan that would prepare students to lead in “multiple tomorrows,” none of us could have anticipated that one of those multiple tomorrows would come so soon.

The rapid emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic disrupted what we hold dear as a community. But how we’ve handled this disruption has made me as proud as ever to be Union's 19th president.

Students have persevered through a term that has deviated from expectations, yet they continued to stay connected to one another, to faculty and to staff. Faculty have reinvented their curricula and found new ways to share their passion for learning. Staff have gone above and beyond to keep the rest of us safe, nourished, healthy and engaged. Alumni, even while dealing with the pandemic in their personal and professional lives, have reached out to ask what they can do to support our community on campus. Thank you.

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, we have found ways to thrive, not just survive. With the benefit of six months of preparation and the luxury of a relatively late start compared with many schools, we developed a nimble and flexible framework to accommodate various situations and to provide students a choice in how to best learn during the pandemic. We call this plan “Union Where You Are.” About 15 percent of our students chose to study remotely. The rest of the students, about 1,800, chose to come back for in-person, remote and hybrid classes.

We also piloted two new paths that are consistent with emphases identified in our strategic plan: • New online courses that take an interdisciplinary approach to complex challenges such as climate change, artificial intelligence, police reform and racial inequality; and • New faculty-mentored experiential opportunities that allow students to earn credit while engaging in activities such as working on a political campaign or doing an internship. We thank Bob Moser ’99 and his wife, Lisa, for their support of this program through the Robert J. Moser ’99 Experiential Learning Awards There are many new things on campus: masks, a testing facility, sanitizing stations, signs reminding us to keep safe, classrooms and dining halls with sparse seating, outdoor classrooms, even an app we use each day to attest to our health.

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But much is the same. Wandering around campus, I encounter students, faculty and staff who exude joy at being together, albeit at a distance. In virtual meetings, I see members of the Union community finding new and creative ways to learn and grow.

We are also well into planning for the postpandemic era. In a recent virtual open house, I invited prospective students to join a Union College that will have been transformed, and not just by the pandemic.

• The Templeton Institute for Engineering and Computer Science was made possible by a $51 million gift from Rich and Mary Templeton ’80 that was announced at our February campaign kickoff. The gift will establish Union as a place that develops engineers with the depth to be accomplished engineers, and the breadth to be leaders. It also will ensure that students of all backgrounds can thrive in engineering and computer science, and that all students will graduate with skills critical in the years ahead.

• There will be an enhanced emphasis on experiential and residential learning. Students will develop perspectives and competencies through opportunities such as the Minervas, study away, research with faculty, athletics, Greek life and community service.

• Union will remain committed to growing by facing uncomfortable issues. Through efforts begun in the Presidential Initiative on Race, Power and Privilege, we will ask difficult questions about Union’s past and what it takes for all to succeed here. Through our Constructive Engagement series, we will encourage appreciation of conflicting perspectives around controversial issues. Through campus-wide efforts led by our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Team, we will focus on outcomes, not aspirations.

At Opening Convocation, I reminded everyone that we are in the midst of a novel, all-encompassing Union College challenge that none of us would have selected. We must become comfortable being uncomfortable. We must celebrate our victories and support one another when we stumble. In the process, we will develop insights into ourselves and one another that will enable us to thrive as individuals and as a community, now and for many years to come.

DAVID R. HARRIS, Ph.D.

U LETTERS

An early Union union

A One of Union's first alumnae

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read with interest your article on the first women at Union. Although I did not matriculate, I graduated with departmental honors in 1967. My major was sociology and I had a wonderful professor in Sherwood Fox. I was newly married; my husband, John, was a member of the language department teaching German. It was not easy for me. There were just a few majors in sociology and the men were not friendly. But I just went about my studies trying not to be intimidated. I could identify with some of the feelings these women expressed in your magazine. So, even before 1974 Union did have at least one woman working toward graduation.

CAROL W. GRANDIN ’67

That's my former roommate

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he summer 2020 article on pages 6 and 7 [“50 years ago: A peaceful protest”] has a photo of Father Jim Murphy [Catholic chaplain] of Union College at that time. In that photo, with his eyeglasses and the top of his head showing just above Father Jim's bullhorn is Walter Burt. It was during that time that Walter and I became friends and decided to room the next year in the triple with fireplace on the top floor of South College. We were sophomores at the time the photo was taken.

DANIEL D. DASHMAN ’72

fter Jane and I read your piece in the summer 2020 magazine titled “One of Unions First Unions,” we decided to add a snippet of our own story. When I was a freshman pre-med student at Union in 1969, a senior whom I met in the library asked me if I wanted to “meet a girl.” Jane Kreplick was a first-year nursing student at Skidmore College. After I finally got around to calling her, we met every weekend and I traveled to her home in Lynn, Mass., for Thanksgiving. Our relationship survived Jane’s two clinical years in Manhattan and we married in 1972. She and I both completed our senior years at Union. We even took a class together—demographics with Prof. Robert Wells. Jane got an A and I took the course pass/fail. We pre-meds are very protective of our GPAs. We’ll soon celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary. We’re both recently retired. I practiced geriatrics for the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and Jane taught nursing at Nassau Community College.

We have two daughters and four grandchildren. We wrote a book together called The Voice of Experience: Stories About Health Care and The Elderly. We continue to be friends with Dr. Twitty Styles and his wife, Dr. Connie Glasgow.

SAM BRODY ’73 AND JANE KREPLICK BRODY

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Convocation kicks off unprecedented year

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he 226th academic year opened with a virtual Convocation to welcome the Class of 2024, reflect on recent accomplishments and to remind the community of the shared challenges ahead.

“As we begin this new academic year, we see both the fruits of our labor, and that the year ahead will require unparalleled commitment, flexibility, patience and goodwill,” said President David R. Harris.

“It will require that we follow health and safety protocols at all times, not just for a few weeks or in some circumstances.”

“This will be the year in which we continue to identify what's most important to us and use our collective wisdom to find new ways to achieve it while keeping one another safe,” he said. “It will be the year that demands a novel, all-encompassing Union College challenge that none of us would have selected. We must become comfortable being uncomfortable.

We must celebrate our victories, support one another when we stumble, and in the process, develop insights into one another and ourselves that will enable us to thrive as individuals and as a community, now and for many years to come.”

He stressed, however, that the goal for the year is not just to survive the myriad challenges COVID-19 presents.

“It is to achieve our shared vision in the time of COVID,” he said. “We must be a college that is deserving of the exceptional staff, students and faculty who have joined our community. We must achieve individually and collectively the goals established as part of our strategic planning process. We must remain motivated in the future by what

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motivated us in the months before COVID-19 dominated conversations in every part of the world.”

Harris noted the importance of continuing to ask fundamental questions about diversity, inclusion and equity. In June, he announced the Presidential Initiative on Race, Power and Privilege. The initiative came in the wake of nationwide protests sparked by the death in May of George Floyd, an unarmed black man killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis.

“We must balance our love for Union and all it has enabled with a frank acknowledgment of the cultural ruts that have been worn into this campus over the more than 225 years in which our conception of inclusion was far narrower than what is required now and will be required in the future,” he said.

“We must understand how these ruts, in what is considered a typical Union experience, enable some to have relatively smooth and assured paths through Union, while others persevere despite a daily struggle for acceptance of their identities, their experiences, their perspectives and their centrality in Union's story. We must act with wisdom, empathy, courage and patience to change Union, not so that it is unrecognizable, but so that it recognizes fully and equally the preferences, passions, and contributions of all who call this campus their home.”

While he focused on the coming year, Harris also touched on some of the highlights of the preceding year. This included the launch in February of a capital campaign with the largest gift in Union’s history, $51 million from Class of 1980 graduates Rich and Mary Templeton.

The gift will transform engineering and the liberal arts with the creation of the Templeton Institute for Engineering and Computer Science.

In closing, Harris offered an optimistic message for the year ahead, one filled with joy and real and lasting progress on personal and shared goals.

“And perhaps as an afterthought, we'll recall there was also the year we faced the challenges of COVID-19 and emerged with our integrity, our community and our aspirations intact,” he said.

Also during the 20-minute ceremony, the College marshal, Kathleen LoGiudice, professor and chair of the Biology Department, welcomed the 470 members of the Class of 2024. She also recognized the students who made the Dean’s List last year, and welcomed 95 employees who have joined the Union community in the last year.

LoGiudice noted that Scott Kirkton, associate professor of biology, winner of the Stillman Prize for Faculty Excellence in Teaching, and Leo Zaibert, professor of philosophy, winner of the Stillman Prize for Faculty Excellence in Research, would be presented with their awards later. The prizes, created by David I. Stillman ’72, Abbott Stillman ’69 and Allan Stillman in honor of their father and grandfather, Abraham Stillman, are normally presented at Convocation.

Amarilis Francis, associate director of the Academic Opportunity Program, winner of the UNITAS CommunityBuilding Prize, will also be honored at a later date. The prize is given in recognition of a person who has helped foster community and diversity at Union.

A move-in day like no other

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hristine McGovern, the mother of five boys, helped move two sons into Union residence halls at the start of school in past years. So, she knew the drill for move-in day: • Arrive early in the morning with a tightly packed car and squeeze into a precious parking spot.

• Be greeted by members of an athletic team who help an army of students and their parents lug mini refrigerators, televisions and other college essentials up to the student’s room.

• Set up the room, hang out (only for a bit), and be on your way.

As Union began officially welcoming the Class of 2024 with the first of two move-in days Sept. 4, families learned that in a year of a global pandemic, the rituals of the college drop-off have been upended.

Instead of all students checking-in at the same time, arrivals were staggered to limit the number of people gathered in one place. More than 140 first-years arrived Sept. 4, with another 180 Sept. 5. More than 100 were already on campus for pre-orientation activities.

Also, to avoid contact with a student’s personal belongings, no volunteers were present to help carry items. Oversized bins were provided to make it easier for

families to pack belongings. Families were encouraged not to linger. And everyone was required to wear a mask.

“It’s usually a bit of a frenzy,” McGovern said of move-in day and the organized chaos that signals the start of a new academic year. She and her husband, Brian, along with son, Kieran ’21, were helping Liam ’24 get settled in Davidson Hall. Charlie ’20 graduated in June.

“This is actually more peaceful and enjoyable. We didn’t know what to expect, but the College has done a good job with the process,” McGovern said.

Before checking into their residence halls, all students reported to the COVID-19 testing site in Memorial Field House for mandatory testing. Each student was also given a COVID kit (which includes two masks, a digital thermometer and hand sanitizer) and other materials from Residential Life staffers in the Viniar Athletic Center. Regular testing is taking place throughout the fall term.

More than 7,600 applicants vied to join the 470 that make up the Class of 2024.

The students come from 29 states and the District of Columbia. They represent 21 countries, including Zimbabwe, China, Australia, New Zealand and Finland.

The class is one of the College’s most diverse and global, with 34 percent inter-

national or students of color. The academic standing is strong, with 58 percent of the class ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class. Sixteen percent of the incoming students are the first in their immediate family to attend college.

Sign of the times Robert Hermann '22 shows his "badge." Each day, students, faculty and staff on campus use a self attestation app to show they are not experiencing COVID symptoms.

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President Harris announces team, initiatives to enhance diversity and inclusion

P Andrew “Dru” Alvez

Christa Grant

Deidre Hill-Butler

Mary Simeoli

resident David Harris has announced the creation of a four-member leadership team and a number of initiatives aimed at enhancing diversity and inclusion.

Members of the Diversity Leadership Team are: • Andrew “Dru” Alvez will assume the position of assistant director of intercultural affairs, responsible for the success and well-being of students of color and marginalized communities.

• Christa Grant, will be assistant dean for intercultural affairs, responsible for all aspects of student affairs programming aimed at fostering a community of diversity and inclusion.

• Deidre Hill-Butler, associate professor of sociology, will be academic chief diversity officer, responsible for leading faculty and curricular matters.

• Mary Simeoli, Title IX coordinator, will add the role of interim director of equal opportunity to foster a supportive environment for all members of the Union community.

“I thank Dru, Christa, Deidre and Mary for leading these important initiatives,” Harris wrote in an email to the Union community.

“In the weeks, months and years ahead, I look forward to working with them and all of you to create and sustain a campus environment that is even more consistent with our ideals.”

“Over the last several months, as our nation and the Schenectady community have grappled with difficult issues over race, power and privilege, I have been inspired by the reaction of the Union community to address these issues here on campus and beyond,” Harris said.

As part of the President's Initiative on Race, Power and Privilege, a 40-member committee met weekly over the summer to consider five key areas: cultural

competency, curricular change, faculty and staff diversity, campus safety and increased support for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) students.

Harris cited several recommendations from the committee: • Enhance formal and informal actions to build connections between Campus Safety officers and students across campus; • Launch peer facilitator programs and diversity and inclusion workshops for students, staff and faculty; and • Develop curricular and co-curricular requirements for students to explore issues of race, power and privilege.

“It is clear that while we have taken action in many areas , there is still much to do,” Harris said. “It is also clear that we must acknowledge that at Union we are not starting from a neutral place and that our past has consequences.”

Founded by Protestant denominations, Union was long a college for white men with students of color appearing rarely before the 1960s and women not admitted until 1970. More recently, he added, LGBTQ+ students have become more visible.

“We acknowledge that some have not thrived at Union, and for that, our culture, policies and history must bear some responsibility,” he said. “Even when dreams have been realized, it has often required more stress and tenacity for some than for others.

For all the ways in which our institution could and should have served our students, faculty and staff better, we apologize.”

Harris concluded: “This effort will make us all uncomfortable in different ways and at different times, as it should. I am confident that with wisdom, empathy and courage we will not only live up to our name, but become a model for every college that is facing challenging issues that have plagued our country for over 400 years.”

For more on the College’s initiatives on diversity, equity and inclusion, visit: www.union.edu/campus-diversity-inclusion 6

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Union recognized for its commitment to diversity and inclusion

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nsight Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education, has again recognized the College for its commitment to diversity and inclusion.

The College is among 91 schools chosen as winners of the magazine’s HEED (Higher Education Excellence in Diversity) Award. This marks the seventh straight year Union has been honored.

The winners will be featured in the magazine’s November issue.

“The HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees—and best practices for both; continued leadership support for diversity; and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion,” said Lenore Pearlstein, the magazine’s publisher.

“Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being

done every day across their campus.”

Among the innovative and impactful diversity- and inclusion-related programs, initiatives, policies or practices at Union: • Social Justice Retreat, an annual event, gives students a forum in which to further develop knowledge and skills to support them in becoming better change agents around areas of racism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, ageism, religious oppression, classism, global citizenship and many identities and power differences.

• Diversity and Inclusion Certification Course is offered to all employees and is designed to expand employees’ knowledge of issues related to diversity, and broaden the campus learning environment beyond the classroom.

Diversity remains central to Union’s institutional identity and mission and is a key priority of the College’s strategic plan.

A key objective of the plan is to “cultivate respect and understanding for all mem-

bers of the Union College and broader communities, and welcome, include and support a measurably more diverse college community.”

In spring 2019, President David R. Harris established a new lecture series, the Union College Forum on Constructive Engagement. The series brings in notable speakers that expose the campus community to a range of topics and perspectives.

In June, Harris announced the Presidential Initiative on Race, Power and Privilege.

“As a liberal arts college, we must provide ongoing, purposeful and diverse opportunities for our students, faculty, staff and alumni to engage on issues of race, privilege and power,” Harris said in a recent message to the campus community. “We must create brave spaces across campus that engage all of us where we are, and help us grow and be part of positive change.”

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Union’s newest trustees announced

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nion College has named five new members to the Board of Trustees. They are Dennis Coleman GP’24, Richard Delaney ’80, Pete Haviland-Eduah ’10, Sophia Anderson ’22 and Prof. Andrew Morris.

DENNIS COLEMAN GP’24, of East Greenwich, R.I., is senior counsel at Ropes & Gray LLP. One of the country’s top sports attorneys, he heads the firm’s nationwide sports, media and entertainment practice.

Coleman represents a variety of sports industry clients, from the National Football League to collegiate basketball coaches to sportscasters. Additionally, he regularly collaborates with colleagues across the firm to solve complex problems for clients, such as those involving intellectual property and licensing issues.

A term trustee, Coleman earned an A.B. from Brown University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. He is the grandfather of Robert “Eli” Coleman ’24.

RICHARD DELANEY ’80 P’18, of New York, N.Y, retired in 2016 as senior vice president of global operations at PepsiCo International.

Previously, he was senior vice president of operations for PepsiCo Beverages International, with responsibility for the functional management of Pepsi, Tropicana and Gatorade outside the U.S. and Canada. During his career, Delaney also was vice president of manufacturing

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for Pepsi-Gemex in Mexico City and general manager for North American Concentrate Operations.

A term trustee, Delaney holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Union College.

PETER HAVILAND-EDUAH ’10, of San Francisco, Calif., is a communications manager at Facebook, where he specializes in policy and integrity communications for the Messenger app.

Before joining Facebook, he ran the communications team for Apartment List and worked as a consultant for Deloitte Consulting LLP. Haviland-Eduah was also an aide to U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.) and a communications consultant for SKDKnickerbocker.

An alumni trustee, Haviland-Eduah earned degrees in Africana studies and history from Union College. He holds a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan.

SOPHIA ANDERSON ’22, of Mystic, Conn., is a junior with an interdepartmental major in political science and psychology, and a minor in environmental science. She is class president and a residential

“Union College is pleased to welcome such dedicated and talented individuals to the board. I look forward to working with them as we navigate these challenging times.”– Robert Bertagna ’85, chair of the Union College Board of Trustees

advisor. She is an admissions tour guide and serves on the standards board of her sorority, Delta Phi Epsilon. A member of the College’s Sustainability Committee and a work-study student at the college's Office of Sustainability, she conducted research on Union’s carbon emissions and calculated the purchase of carbon offsets in addition to helping draft a proposal for Union's carbon neutrality. She is also a member of the Union College rowing team. She joins the board as junior student trustee.

ANDREW MORRIS, of Schenectady, N.Y., is an associate professor of history at Union College. He teaches contemporary American history with an emphasis on political and environmental history. Morris’ current research focuses on placing the history of disaster relief policy in the broader context of American political history, specifically through the lens of Hurricane Camille. This work, which will inform a book on the same subject, has been supported by a prestigious fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Morris, a faculty trustee, joined Union in 2003 and was the recipient of the College’s Stillman Prize for Excellence in Teaching in 2014. He holds an A.B. from Brown University and an M.A. and a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia.

New VP for College Relations named

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obert J. Parker Jr., has been appointed vice president for College Relations. He has more than two decades of executive leadership and institutional advancement experience.

Since 2014, he has been the senior associate dean for development in the College of Arts and Sciences and executive director of the Arts and Sciences Foundation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is responsible for planning, coordinating and implementing strategies to meet and exceed the College’s $750 million goal in the University’s $4.25 billion campaign, “For All Kind: The Campaign for Carolina.”

In fiscal year 2019, under Parker’s leadership, the Foundation raised $109.5 million in new gifts and pledges for Arts and Sciences. He also provided strategic leadership for the Foundation’s major gift activity for the “Carolina First” campaign (UNC’s previous campaign), in which the College surpassed its $350 million campaign goal by more than $35 million.

Parker began his career in development at the University of Chicago, where he received an M.A. in religious studies (1989) and a Ph.D. in theology (1997). He holds a B.A. in history from Baylor University.

At Union, Parker is responsible for managing alumni relations and development.

He will play a critical role in overseeing the College’s $300 million “Powering Union: The Campaign for Multiple Tomorrows,” the largest and most ambitious capital campaign in the school’s 225-year history.

The public phase of the campaign launched in late February with the announcement of a $51 million gift from Class of 1980 graduates Rich and Mary Templeton. The gift, the largest ever for the College, will transform engineering and the liberal arts with the creation of the Templeton Institute for Engineering and Computer Science. In addition, the gift will be used in the recruitment and retention of women pursuing a degree in engineering or computer science, enhancements to the curriculum, faculty support, and capital to further develop spaces and facilities.

Simeoli joins as Title IX coordinator

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ary F. Simeoli has joined the College as Title IX coordinator, playing a key role in strengthening efforts to maintain a culture in which sexual assault, harassment, discrimination and violence are unacceptable.

She reports directly to the Office of the President.

Before joining Union, she served as director of Non-Discrimination Initiatives and Title IX administrator at Springfield (Mass.) College. There, she was instrumental in helping restructure the college’s Office of Title IX and coordinated an

overhaul of the school’s Clery compliance efforts. She supervised a team of 15 in-house investigators and partnered with the four deputy Title IX coordinators.

Mary has developed a number of training modules for students, including “Culture of Consent,” which focused on the need for community ownership and values congruence as it relates to Title IX culture.

Before joining Springfield, she was an assistant district attorney with the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office as a member of the Special Victims Unit.

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Mia Villeneuve ’22 works on her summer research project from her home in CrotonOn-Hudson, N.Y.

Student summer research adapts to the pandemic

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uring her time at Union, Mia Villeneuve ’22 has spent countless hours in the Ion-Beam Analysis Laboratory studying the content of lead and other heavy metals in New York City soil.

This summer, she conducted research from her home in Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y. Working remotely with Michael Vineyard, the Frank and Marie Louise Bailey Professor of Physics and Astronomy, she analyzed soil samples for heavy metals from the paint used on the Hell Gate Bridge that connects the Bronx and Queens.

Villeneuve was among 86 students engaged in research this summer. They worked with 56 faculty representing 21 departments and programs.

Most projects were funded through the undergraduate research program.

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Government or scientific society grants to faculty members, academic departments and foundation funding supported the rest.

A virtual poster session (digitalworks. union.edu/srps_2020/) highlighting this year’s projects went live Aug. 10.

“This has obviously been extremely challenging, with students not having access to labs and facilities that would normally be buzzing with activity at this time of year,” said Chad Orzel, the R. Gordon Gould Associate Professor of Physics and director of Undergraduate Research.

“I was amazed that we got as many students as we did—we’re at about two-thirds of the usual number of summer researchers—but students and faculty really went above and beyond finding ways to convert projects from

in-person to remote work. A couple of faculty have even asked to extend student projects beyond what they originally proposed because remote research is going better than they expected. Overall, it is a great testament to the ingenuity and dedication of our students and faculty.”

“The remote transition was smooth,” D’Amico said. “Luckily, everything I needed to do for the project could be done on my laptop. Being in an academic setting on campus may have improved my focus on the project, but from a productivity standpoint, I think that the screen-sharing method made it easier for them to follow my code than if we were all huddled around a computer screen in person. I do not think that the remote setting was a hazard at all relative to my project’s potential.”

College receives NEH CARES Act grant for its Bigelow collection

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ttorney and writer John Bigelow was so smitten with the vivacious and exuberant raconteuse Jane Tunis Poultney that, four months after meeting her at a party on Long Island in 1850, the two were married.

A member of the Class of 1835, Bigelow rose to become one of the most distinguished figures of the 19th and early 20th century. Managing editor and co-owner of the New York Evening Post until 1861, he also served as consul-general and later as minister to France under President Abraham Lincoln.

Active in New York’s social and literary circles, Jane Bigelow championed Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde, hosting both when they visited New York. She was just as comfortable in the company of diplomats she and John entertained in their home.

Known as Jenny to her family and friends, she had a profound impact on her better-known husband.

“Without her my career in the world would not only have been very different from what it was, but far less satisfactory to myself and to others,” Bigelow wrote years after her death.

The world may soon learn more about Jane Tunis Poultney Bigelow, who died in February 1889.

Union is among more than 300 cultural institutions to receive the latest CARES Act grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The funding is part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress to assist those impacted by the pandemic.

Union’s grant of nearly $47,000 was used to hire Jill Tominosky as a part-time project archivist in Special Collections and Archives in Schaffer Library. Tominosky had interviewed for the position and a job offer was pending when the College instituted a hiring freeze due to the pandemic.

Tominosky will survey the College’s popular John Bigelow Collection, with a particular focus on the 16 handwritten diaries kept by Jane Bigelow. Gifted to the College nearly 60 years ago on behalf of the Bigelow family, the collection spans approximately 80 linear feet and includes over 20,000 letters, the diaries and 18 scrapbooks.

In 2012, the College completed a two-year project to create a digital index to the letters, including to and from such heavyweights as Dickens, Theodore Roosevelt, Andrew Carnegie and Mark Twain.

“We are delighted to receive this funding from the NEH,” said Sarah Schmidt, director of Special Collections and Archives. “Jane was a fascinating person in her own right, yet little has been written about her. This project will allow us to describe and digitize the contents of her diaries so we can all learn more about this remarkable woman.”

“J A N E [ B I G E LO W ] WA S A FA S C I N AT I N G P E R S O N I N H E R O W N R I G H T, Y E T L I T T L E H A S B E E N WRITTEN ABOUT HER. THIS PROJECT WILL ALLOW US TO DESCRIBE AND DIGITIZE THE CONTENTS OF HER DIARIES SO WE CAN ALL LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS REMARKABLE WOMAN.”

—Sarah Schmidt, director of Special Collections and Archives

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Through the lens: OU R

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he recent disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic and the reactions to racial injustice forced Martin Benjamin’s photography students to consider the world anew.

Students turned their cameras toward the sometimes underappreciated details of life—a sunrise, a morning walk, a trip to the store, visits with family—and to the new reality of masks, protests and memorials.

“The students demonstrated their resilience, tenacity and ability to create photographs that spoke to their lives and curiosity,” Benjamin wrote in the epilogue of Life During Coronavirus, a book of collected works by students in his two advanced photography classes. “The photographs made, more than anything else, reflect love and hope.”

The book was produced by the Department of Visual Arts and edited by Benjamin and co-edited by Frank Rapant III, photography and exhibition technician.

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1. View to the Other Side of the World Through a Magic Mirror by Martin Lank ’21 2. Hailey, 2020 Graduate by Ava Berg ’20 3. Half-staff for COVID-19 Victims, Towaco, N.J. by Ryan Magee ’22 4. Cautious Passenger, KLM Flight 646 by Dominik Choudounsky ’21 5. New Gas Station Apparel, Dedham Mass. by Ava Berg ’20 6. Protest, Morristown, N.J., 6/6/2020 by Rayna Katzman ’23 7. Home of the Blues, Austin, Texas by Gangliang “Max” Zhao ’20

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This is the first in a series of articles on engineering at Union.

Future issues will profile engineering alumni (your story wanted) and the future of engineering within the liberal arts.

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Engineering @ T

hough we acknowledge 1845 as the start of engineering at Union, the seeds were sown as early as 1802, when the first course on surveying was taught.

Throughout most of the College’s history, engineering within the context of the liberal arts setting has made Union unique. The College’s location near the Erie Canal, major railroads and the headquarters of General Electric also made it a natural leader in engineering education.

The history of engineering is traced in a new online exhibit, “Brick by Brick: 175 Years of Engineering at

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Union College, 1845-2020” at https://digitalcollec tions.union.edu/s/brick-by-brick/page/today The presentation was curated by Matthew Golebiewski, project archivist, with materials and assistance from Schaffer Library’s Special Collections and Archives. It includes a video by Rebecca Cortez, professor of mechanical engineering and director of engineering.

Prof. William Gillespie, considered the founder of engineering at the College, began teaching civil engineering at Union in 1845.

Squire Whipple, Class of 1830, civil engineer and author, was a pioneer of bridge building whose spans were ubiquitous along the Erie Canal.

The Whipple Bridge in the Vischer Ferry Nature Preserve in Rexford, just a few miles from campus, is still in use today as a pedestrian bridge.

Notable among the male graduates at Commencement in 1925, Florence Folger Buckland, third from left, was a GE employee and MIT grad who earned a master’s in electrical engineering some 45 years before coeducation.

An early mechanical engineering lab.

Wanted: your engineering story For an upcoming feature on engineering at Union, we are soliciting recollections, photos (1 MB or larger) and other materials from alumni. Please send to magazine@union.edu.

Christie Dionisos '19 in the phasor lab, a venue for research at the interface of electrical engineering and music

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‘Music hurtling through the ether’

CEL EB RAT I N G A C ENT URY An in-person celebration of Union radio is planned for the fall of 2021.

As part of virtual Homecoming Weekend, a panel of alumni recalled their Union radio days and the careers that followed. (To see a recording of the WRUC Zoom panel, visit union.edu/WRUC-panel.)

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WRUC TRACESfiITSfiFOUNDINGfiTO AfiCENTURYflOLDfiPOPfiTUNE

O

n the evening of Oct. 14, 1920, amateur radio operators as far away as Hartford, Conn., could hear a scratchy phonograph recording of Irving Berlin’s “Tell Me, Little Gypsy” sung by tenor John Steel. Then came seven more pieces from records borrowed from the H.S. Barney department store in exchange for on-air mention.

The signal came from the Union campus, where a 150-watt transmitter and an antenna strung between two trees “sent the music hurtling through the ether,” according to Concordiensis.

The first broadcast, with William G. McCaig (Class of 1923) as announcer, went from 8 to 8:30 with a three-minute break midway to cool down the transmitter. It was the first of 30 weekly Thursday night concerts from the station then known as 2ADD.

In the competitive era of early radio, an Oct. 16, 1920 Concordiensis headline left little doubt about pride: “UNION AGAIN PIONEER OF AMERICAN COLLEGE WORLD; MUSIC BY WIRELESS TELEPHONE LATEST RADIO FEAT” The often-heard claim that Union was first in radio is correct if carefully defined, according to Wayne Somers, editor of the Encyclopedia of Union College History.

The broadcast of Oct. 14, 1920 made Union the first college station, and the first licensed station of any kind, to air regularly scheduled programs.

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‘Music hurtling through the ether’

1910 ‘First station in the nation’: a timeline 18

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Students set up a “wireless telegraph station” for a senior thesis in electrical engineering

1915 A new radio club transmits Morse code to receivers in Albany and Schenectady

1920 Union is the first licensed station to air a regular scheduled broadcast

1921 “Wireless baby carriage” promotes station in Schenectady

Union’s broadcast preceded by 19 days Pittsburgh’s KDKA, which aired the returns of the Harding-Cox presidential election on Nov. 2, 1920. Another station, 8MK of the Detroit News, began broadcasts on Aug. 20, 1920, but did not have a broadcast license.

Notwithstanding a popular radio slogan (“First Station in the Nation”) it is not correct to say that Union’s first station became WRUC; the College’s stations do not have a continuous history, Somers writes in the encyclopedia.

The 1920-21 year had a number of other firsts, many attributed to Leo Freedman ’21, the promotion-savvy secretary/treasurer: play-by-play game broadcasts, music for off-campus dances and advertisements for Union’s engineering program.

Among the exploits that year was a claim to the first portable broadcast receiver, the “wireless baby carriage.” During spring prom weekend, students outfitted a wicker baby carriage with a receiver, antenna and batteries and had a student’s date push the contraption around the streets of Schenectady as it played music broadcast from campus. The stunt was re-staged three weeks later for a newsreel that ran throughout the U.S. and Europe.

1939 Union’s Radio Workshop begins through GE shortwave stations

1942 Union radio airs five hours a day

The stunt has been re-enacted several times including in 1970 when Phil Robinson ’71, apparently for lack of women students on campus, wore a dress to play the nanny. Also in that photo were Robert Ditter ’71, general manager; William G. McCaig ’ (Class of 1923), first announcer of the station; Dave Robbins ’73, announcer; C.G. “Glen” Mercer (Class of 1916), who built the radio station in 1920 with parts borrowed from General Electric; Philip Valpey ’72, announcer; and Art Forsdick ’70, production director.

The “wireless baby carriage” stunt in this incarnation included, from left, an unidentified prom date; Leo Bombard ’22; Edwin Conde ’93, chairman of the Graduate Council publicity committee; Schenectady Patrolman “Lobby’ O’Brien; William T. Meenan of the General Electric news bureau; Leo Freedman ’21, originator of the carriage idea; and Clyde Wagoner of the GE News Bureau. The baby was 10-month-old Marvin Smith, who would graduate from Union in 1944.

For more on Union College radio and WRUC, see The Encyclopedia of Union College History (Wayne Somers, editor) pp. 593-596.

1943 Debut of “Remaining Standing,” a popular quiz show in which students try to stump a faculty panel

1947 A contest produces new call letters: WRUC – “Radio Union College”

1965 After a 1963 shutdown, WRUC schedule at 18 hours per day; 24 hours by 1980

1974 FCC approval to switch to FM broadcasting

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‘Music hurtling through the ether’

WRUC ‘an electronic petri dish’

I

n the late 60s and early 70s, WRUC was a popular Top 40 commercial venture, complete with advertising, jingles, contests and giveaways.

Led by Richard Ferguson ’67 and Jeffrey Hedquist ’67, the station was on the air seven days a week, 18 hours a day.

When the two arrived in 1963, the station was off the air. With only a stack of dusty equipment piled in a corner, there was little to encourage their dream of building a professional station.

In just two years, the station was a leader in college radio and beyond. A member of the ABC radio network, it had Top 40 sounds; five newscasts a day that included local, national and campus news; an hourly weather report; frequent coverage of concerts and lectures; and a major daily sports program.

Since student activities funding was far short of what their dream required, the two broadcast entrepreneurs sold advertising to upgrade equipment, build new studios and support programming and

news. In 1965-66, WRUC had a budget of $8,000 and billed $6,000 in advertising.

“We sold advertising to local merchants, and nearly every commercial ended with ‘just a short walk from campus,’ no matter where the business was!” recalled Charlie Cisumano ’70. The key to success, he said, was getting friends to patronize the advertisers and mention they’d heard about them on WRUC.

For Hedquist, one of many WRUC alumni of his era who went on to careers in broadcasting and journalism, the experience was pivotal: “That’s what we wanted to do in the real world,” he says.

“It was an electronic petri dish.”

To read a reprint of a 1998 story about WRUC, visit www.union.edu/wruc-sixties

WENDELL KING, FIRST RADIO ENGINEER When Union signed on for the first scheduled radio broadcast in 1920, it used 2ADD, the personal call letters of Wendell King ’24. The chief engineer arrived at Union in 1916 with a reputation for his radio wizardry. At 12, he had started his own amateur radio station and was later president of the Troy Amateur Radio Club.

He took a hiatus from Union to join the U.S. Army Signal Corps, which specialized in radio communications. King was also notable as “the first black student to attend 20

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Union for a significant length of time,” according to the Encyclopedia of Union College History. King was notable for another reason. In 1917, during a summer job as a drill press operator at GE, he was at the center of a 1917 labor dispute. The machinists union walked out to protest what they feared was an effort to import Southern black labor for their jobs.

For more on King, visit: www.union.edu/ wruc-king

reports daily. (Killian and Roth would go on to successful careers in law and TV news, respectively.)

That summer. Robinson and Killian sold coverage from the Democratic convention in Chicago. There, they witnessed a stirring tribute to the recentlyassassinated presumptive candidate, Robert F. Kennedy.

Then, Robinson recalls, “things went south” as protestors were attacked by police and the National Guard.

“I remember standing on Michigan Avenue, looking up and down as far as the eye could see, bumper-to-bumper Army trucks and shoulder-to shoulder national guardsmen with fixed bayonets,” he said. “I remember thinking, this is a major American city and it’s under siege.”

Robinson said he doesn’t recall much about his reports, but he has vivid memories of “cops beating protestors and throwing them into paddy wagons.”

“It was shocking and eye-opening and I think about it now when I open the papers and see federal troops beating up protestors. So much has changed

Robinson: ‘It was always 2 a.m. at WRUC’

P

hil Alden Robinson ’71 recalls WRUC as the place that let him take chances, fail a few times and launch a career.

The film director and screenwriter for Field of Dreams, Sneakers and The Sum of All Fears got his start on WRUC in the Sunday 2 a.m. slot, which he took with the idea that “no one will be listening and I’ll make all my mistakes.”

When no one called in to claim a prize for a local restaurant, he upped the offer to a new car. When no one called then, “That’s when I realized how alone I was,” he said.

Mistakes notwithstanding, he did well enough to secure a weekend news gig at WGY radio, which led to a job as a fill-in sports anchor for WRGB TV. His on-air TV break came when he got a call from the station telling him to comb his hair and put on a tie; the sports anchor had broken his arm in a softball game.

In the spring of his freshman year, Robinson joined Bob Killian ’69 and Richard Roth ’70 at the 1968 Indiana presidential primary. To cover the cost of the trip, the trio sold coverage to radio stations all over the eastern seaboard. For $50, each station got four

in some ways and so much hasn’t.”

When he graduated from Union with a low draft number, he thought his best option was to join the Air Force where he made training films for “two years, nine months, 14 days, six hours and 23 minutes.”

“I didn’t want to be there, but I enjoyed production and made the best use of my time.”

From there, it was on to Los Angeles to produce educational TV and corporate films, then TV writing, and finally feature films. “One job led to another and I got lucky,” he said.

Looking back at his time at Union, he remembers the late Prof. Robert Sharlet, who taught him to write concisely; the late Prof. Joe Board, who encouraged him to do a documentary film on FDR’s New Deal coalition as a senior thesis; and Prof. Jim Underwood, a great teacher whose friendship has continued for five decades.

“I feel very lucky to have been at a great college that encouraged real creativity and I think of my time at WRUC as just golden. It was so much fun. Every day you got up with an idea and you could just try it.

And you could fall on your face and it wasn’t so bad.”

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‘Music hurtling through the ether’

Here are some excerpted memories from alumni who have shared their WRUC experiences. Full accounts are at www.union.edu/magazine. To add yours, please send text and photo (if desired) to magazine@union.edu.

WRUC ‘CHANGED MY LIFE’ JEFFREY HEDQUIST ’67 President, Hedquist Productions

I actually graduated with a BA in psychology, but in truth I majored in WRUC. I and many of our band of adventurers lived, ate, and sometimes slept in the magical playground in the west end of Old Gym Hall that housed the radio station.

Hedquist’s multi-faceted career has included stints in radio sales and production, and as a singer/songwriter, author, educator and voiceover artist. In 1984, he launched Fairfield, Iowa-based Hedquist Productions, specializing in award-winning radio commercials and audio marketing. “I’ve always been a storyteller,” he said “Now I use story-based marketing to help businesses and organizations prosper.

Much of what I do today I learned while having the time of my life at WRUC.”

DICK FERGUSON ’67 Retired radio executive

When most of us think of WRUC in its mid to late 60’s era, we think of it as a highly produced, fun, Top 40 station that didn’t take itself too seriously … a station with a fun attitude; distinctive jocks like the Big Z, Zorba, Tom Seam, Pogo Polansky and the multi-talented Jeff Hedquist to name a few.

Ferguson’s post-Union radio career brought him to stations around the country. With the help of his WRUC partner, Hedquist, he turned a struggling station in southern Connecticut into a top-rated FM power. By the time he retired in 2006, he was an executive with Cox radio’s portfolio of 85 stations. “I can honestly say that my 39 years in radio after Union, despite some difficult and challenging times, were more fun than any one person deserves,” he said.

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GREG PATTENAUDE ’79

Retired, NYS Department of Public Service

CHARLES CUSIMANO ’70

My roommates taped my many hours on the air at WRUC. I can pop in those shows and instantly be transported back. Listening to the Ride Board not only captures a time when that was safe to do, but reminds me of the numerous times I read one where the person left the day before. Oops.

And as I used to sign off, “it’s nice to be important, but more important to listen to WRUC, Schenectady.”

Greg retired in 2013 as chief of carrier operations after 34 years with the NYS Department of Public Service Office of Telecommunications, where he DJ’d the occasional holiday party.

Over the years, he has done producing, play-by-play for hockey games, PA announcing, and background acting (most recently in HBO’s “Succession”). Son, Andrew was a college DJ at Emerson College. Daughter, Kate, hosts a weekly podcast on popular culture, “So Many Screens.” Greg and his wife, Susan, have been married 30 years. “She was at UAlbany when their FM station ‘stole’ the 90.9 FM frequency from WRUC, but I've never held that against her,” he said.

Retired TV executive

WRUC changed my life. It led me to a nearly 50-year career in radio and television that I would never have expected to pursue as an incoming freshman in September 1966. As time went by, I started spending more and more time at the studios in Old Gym Hall, likely to the detriment of my studies!

We were running the station not as just an extracurricular activity, but as a professional business. Under [Dick Ferguson ’67 and Jeff Hedquist ’67], WRUC expanded their coverage to include Skidmore College, where we found an appreciative audience. Eventually, we started to do regular live broadcasts from D’Andrea’s Restaurant in Saratoga and drew large crowds from both schools.

WRUC was to me, and many others, our fraternity.

Many of us spent considerably more time there than in our dorms, our classes or the library. All of the closest friends I made in my years at Union were fellow “radio geeks” from the classes of 1966 through 1973.

After Union, Cusimano taught school for two years, then took a job as a DJ and salesman at a radio station in Burlington, Vt. He moved to TV sales, then TV sales management and eventually became GM of a TV station in Sarasota, Fla., retiring in January 2020.

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BOB HARRINGTON ’71 My most significant memory of my years at WRUC was the invention [by David Emery ’71] of “The Night Machine.” Living in South College, where WRUC was located, I would often get a rap on my door in the early morning hours, with the explanation that the “USS WRUC” was sailing with no one at the helm.

Dave took the “guts” of a jukebox, and synchronized it with a cart machine to insert promotions and commercials while the records were changing. It didn’t always work … but it was much better than having to find enough coffee to survive the “graveyard shift” in person.

JULIE GREIFER SWIDLER ’79

Executive Vice President Business Affairs and General Counsel Sony Music Entertainment I have always loved music and saw that the library at WRUC was huge and they received all of the new releases from the various record labels. My shows always included eclectic music as that has been my musical taste for as long as I can remember (you would have heard Bill Withers and Traffic in the same show).

I always made sure to pick a long song to start the show so that I would have time to pick my music from the library and make sure that I looked into the new music bin.

Working with digital music, first iTunes and now Spotify, it brings back wonderful memories of those days because suddenly I am in the driver’s seat again, creating playlists and picking all kinds of eclectic music from every genre. Working at WRUC was truly one of the highlights of my time at Union.

One of the most powerful dealmakers in music, Julie oversees Sony’s legal, business affairs and governmental matters on a global level. A political science major at Union, she went on to graduate from New York City’s Cardozo Law School. She is a trustee of Union.

What’s in a name?

Union College radio, best known as WRUC, has used many call letters. Some of them, by year of adoption, were: 24

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1919

1920

1922

1928

2YU

2XQ

WRL

2BMS

AND

2ADD

JOHN WELCH ’80

Senior Counsel, Chevron Corp.

In February 1980, I volunteered to do men’s basketball at SUNY Potsdam. It was a 4-hour drive and I was doing the game solo. After the game, I made the return drive to Schenectady on dark, icy roads, and finally got to bed after 3 a.m. When I returned the equipment to the station the next day, I found out that I had cut out early in the first half, and that the station had been forced to fill the space with music. Instead of kudos for a job well done, all I got out of the broadcast was a sore throat. Despite that, I enjoyed my experiences at WRUC. After Union. Welch graduated from Duke University Law School and then served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps in Fort Jackson, S.C. Since 1988, he has held a number of positions with Chevron, and since 2008 has been senior counsel for Downstream, Chemicals and Midstream Law.

SCOTT WYKOFF ’85

Reporter, WBAL Radio, Baltimore, Md. The day I walked into the WRUC studios soon after I arrived my freshman year literally changed the course of my life! There is no way a freshman like me from Cleveland, Ohio could have ever imagined landing a spot broadcasting college hockey games on such an amazing station. Thirty-nine years later, I owe my career to my four years at WRUC as a sports reporter, play-by-playannouncer, DJ and two-term general manager.

Most importantly, on a road trip to broadcast a Union football game at Middlebury College, I met my wife of 30 years and the mother to my two wonderful boys (including William Wykoff, Union College Class of 2018) Two days after graduation from Union, Wykoff was on the air on WMER Radio in Portland, Maine. Now in his 18th year at WBAL, his career has included stints as the voice of the Maine Mariners, WMAL Radio in Washington and studio host for the Navy Football Radio Network. He has won four national Edward R. Murrow Awards, two national Headliners Best In Show Awards and an Eclipse Award.

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1932

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1946

W2XBN

W2GSB

W2XAD

UBS

WRUC

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W2XAF

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‘Music hurtling through the ether’

SATA DIAKITE ’21 General manager, WRUC “I didn’t do radio before Union but I was always interested in music,” said Sata Diakite ’21, a political science major from New York City who was recently elected WRUC’s general manager.

She went on the air during winter term of her first year with a show called “Recharge,” an eclectic mix that ranged from hip hop to alternative. She often chose new music, explaining to listeners what prompted her picks.

As WRUC returns to the air and we emerge from the pandemic, she sees WRUC playing a greater role: “We are trying to expand to host gigs on campus, to bring in local acts from around the Albany and tri-state areas.”

For possible career plans, she said, “As a political science major I think it would be cool to do something on NPR. That’s an option I want to pursue.”

NOAH COUTURIER ’21 Technical Director, WRUC As the pandemic sent the campus to remote learning, Noah Couturier ’21 and his colleagues (with advisor Prof.

James Hedrick) set up a system to keep WRUC up and running over the summer. An automated playlist, maintained and updated by members of the WRUC board, played a constant stream of music with breaks for station identification.

Musical purists who treasure vinyl will be pleased: “MP3 is great, but I don’t think it sounds as good,” he said. “I like how the LP sounds. It’s more natural.”

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MAKING OUR

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hen women arrived at Union as full-time students for the first time in fall 1970, they changed the College in a monumental way. Over the last five decades, Union women have continued to make their mark here in Schenectady and across the country. As we conclude our yearlong celebration of the 50th anniversary of coeducation, here are just a few examples of the accomplished alumnae we are proud to call Dutchwomen. They shared a bit about their jobs and answered the question: “What are the most challenging and rewarding aspects of your career or volunteer activities?”

For more on these, and many other extraordinary Union women, visit union.edu/making-our-mark

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1970s Valerie Hoffman ’75 A partner at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, she practices employment law nationally. As counsel to chief executives and management, Valerie advises employers of all varieties and sizes. While she has a broad-based practice, Valerie has a particular focus on strategies to prevent and resolve issues relating to employment discrimination. She is a core leader of the firm’s Pay Equity Group, and founded and is co-chair of the firm’s nationally prominent OFCCP, Affirmative Action and Diversity practices.

Valerie has served on Union’s Board of Trustees for 12 years.

I chose to practice employment discrimination law on behalf of employers across the U.S. because I wanted to see more fairness for women and minorities in their work lives. While we have made significant progress since I began my practice in 1978, there is more progress that must be made. My work these days is focused on pay equity, glass ceiling issues and people analytics designed to help large employers ensure fairness and support employees’ growth.”

Barbara C. Burek ’75 In 2013, she retired from PepsiCo as vice president for international foodservice. Her career there in marketing, strategy and sales was just short of 31 years. In retirement, Barbara has been indulging the arts side of her life—taking up yoga, refinishing furniture, painting watercolors after a hiatus of 40+ years, studying Italian, traveling and cooking.

The first woman president of Union’s Alumni Council and a member of the Presidential Search Committee, she’s also served on the Board of Trustees and as an alumni admissions volunteer.

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Linda Young Fisher ’74 Linda has always been dedicated to community-level issues and services.

Currently enjoying her encore career, as she calls it, she is executive director of the East of the River Steelband, a music training and youth development program. Previously, she was associate director for the Marshall Heights Community Development Corporation in Washington, D.C. (1987-2001) and executive director of the D.C. Community Prevention Partnership, a city-wide substance abuse prevention program (19912001). From there Linda became the district’s substance abuse prevention director and interim administrator for the Addiction Prevention Recovery Administration (2001-2008), and then was executive director of the Rockson Community Development Corporation (2012-15).

Much of my career has been with nonprofit organizations where you must continually raise funds to provide services. Over my career, both public and private, I’ve raised more than $25 million.

Another challenge was the focus on substance abuse, not a poster child issue. The reward is the ability to impact adolescents and families in positive ways. Providing training, cultural education, community bonding and fun.”

The last dozen years at PepsiCo were the best of my professional life. I led an international team that supported our largest global customers. Working across cultures was something I loved—both my undergraduate and graduate school courses fueled my interest and enthusiasm for the global arena, as did my participation in the Union term abroad in Seville, Spain. Understanding the priorities by country and the distinct manners of conducting business in each were challenges, as was managing an indirect, global team. The rewards were more than offsetting. I built the business and the capabilities of our teams around the world, mentored some of our best global talent, and went to countries I would not have had the opportunity to visit otherwise.“

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1980s

Kerrie Margo (Ticknor) Droban ’87 She’s a criminal defense attorney in Phoenix specializing in capital appellate and post-conviction relief.

Her first capital case was heard before the United States Supreme Court and resulted in the reversal of 180 death row cases nationwide and the implementation of jury sentencings.

Kerrie is also the author of six best-selling memoir/true crime books. Her memoir, Vagos, Mongols & Outlaws, was made into the television series “Gangland Undercover.” A national speaker and expert consultant on outlaw motorcycle gangs and the pathology of the criminal mind, Kerrie’s work has also been featured on the true crime television shows “American Greed” and “Investigation ID.”

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The most challenging aspects of my dual careers are also the most rewarding. Working closely with criminals—both in the legal system and through my book projects—has given me fascinating insight into violent subcultures, undercover operations and the pathology of the criminal mind. Practicing law and writing true crime have been dangerous and thrilling careers.

In both professions, I am afforded opportunities to tell a story, inspire an audience and expose a world rarely seen by most. Everyone has a story, not everyone has a voice.”

Lisa Freed ’86 Throughout her career, Lisa has been dedicated to engineering outreach and encouraging students to enter the STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields. Eight years ago, she took her dream job as STEM program manager for iRobot, coordinating outreach and education efforts. iRobot visits schools, hosts tours in its museum and arranges job shadowing. It’s a position Lisa loves because she gets to “inspire students from pre-K through college to see the excitement of the STEM fields.” Past manager of the New England Region for National Engineers Week Future City Competition, Lisa served 10 years on her local Planning Board.

Working with students is incredibly rewarding. We see students come in who have no idea what they want to do after high school and leave committed to engineering. More satisfying is when those same students return to intern at iRobot. But even at the young ages, it’s incredibly fun to show them robots, have them take them apart, see how they work and then imagine what they might build. But knowing you made a difference professionally is the reward in itself.”

Lynn Villency Cohen ’82 An art historian, art appraiser and writer, she spent part of her career with the U.S. Treasury Department, where she worked as an art appraiser for the Commissioner’s Art Advisory Panel in Washington, D.C. Lynn has been on the Board of Trustees of the Stamford Museum & Nature Center (Stamford, Conn.) since 2002. She chairs the collections committee that plans exhibits and cares for the permanent art collection. In 2018, she was recognized by Moffly Media as the “Most Dedicated Supporter of the Arts” in Fairfield County, Conn.

While the arts may not be as crucial as progress and discoveries in science and medicine, art offerings and museums not only bring personal joy, but enhance learning and offer shared experiences that can affect peoples’ lives for the better. Visiting a museum or historical property serves to engage, heal, enrich and enlarge our worlds, making our lives fuller, which in turn can help us better understand our complex, intricate world.”

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1990s Nikki Stone ’97 A 1998 Olympic gold medalist in aerial skiing, she now works nationally and internationally as a motivational speaker for corporate groups, nonprofits and schools. Nikki serves on five different philanthropic committees and raises money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation every year in support of her son, who has type 1 diabetes.

Jessica Lowenstein Leif ’95 The most challenging thing about starting a career in speaking was the initial fear of presenting in front of an audience of thousands of people. It was very similar to aerial skiing in that they both really tested my nerves. But when I skied onto the in-run or stepped onto the stage, those fears would dissipate and the confidence in my endless hours of hard work always kicked in. I still get some excited nerves before I present in front of a large audience but the adrenalin that takes over is just as powerful as the exhilaration of performing a triple backflip. The most rewarding aspect of my job is when attendees come up to me afterwards and tell me that they want to change something in their lives because of something I said.”

She is a senior medical physicist at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the associate director of the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC)—Houston Quality Assurance (QA) Center. Jessica wears several hats at IROC-Houston, running the day-to-day operations of this office as well as supervising the dosimetry program and the TLD (Thermoluminescent Dosimeter)/OSLD (Optical Stimulated Luminescent Dosimeter) program. As a medical physicist, she also performs the quality assurance on patient charts and the linear accelerator for National Cancer Institute (NCI) funded clinical trials.

Jessica is actively involved in the Evelynn Rubenstein JCC of Houston and assists in the Texas Sled Dog Rescue.

The most rewarding aspect in my career is when I see a patient beat their disease and I know we helped them do it. The most rewarding aspect of volunteering is putting a smile on someone’s face, whether it be finding a foreverhome for an abandoned dog or putting the right programming together that makes a child excited. The most challenging aspect in my life in general is the work-life balance.”

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Marisa M. Silveri ’95, right, with mentee Anna Seraikas ’16

Marisa M. Silveri ’95 She is director of the Neurodevelopmental Laboratory on Addictions and Mental Health in the Brain Imaging Center at McLean Hospital, and associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Marisa’s research investigates the neurobiology of adolescent and emerging adult brain development, and the identification of neurobiological markers of risk for addictive disorders and mental illness. Passionate about community outreach, she chairs the National Advocacy and Public Education (NAPE) committee for the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA). Marisa is also public education liaison between the RSA, the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research and the journalist outlet, Newswise.

The biggest challenge in my career is procuring funding for my research, typically from the National Institutes of Health. Federal funding is extremely limited and highly competitive. It has been extremely rewarding to have been continually funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism branch of the NIH since 2004, as principal investigator on five grants. But the most rewarding aspect of my outreach work is to arm the community with science— peer-reviewed empirical data that will help reduce suffering associated with substance use and psychiatric illness. The process of having peer-reviewed science articles accepted is also highly rewarding. I have over 75 publications to date, with the last five years reflecting more the work of my mentees.”

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Desiree Plata ’03 Desiree is the Gilbert W. Winslow Career Development Associate Professor in MIT’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, where she educates undergraduates and trains graduate and postdoctoral scholars.

Her research mission is to change the way people invent materials and processes—to incorporate environmental metrics during the design phase to avoid environmental damage.

Her group’s work focuses on energy technologies and carbon-based materials. Dedicated to the professional development of her students, Desiree created a workshop to help them navigate bias (gender or other) in the workplace.

She is an active symposium organizer for the Gordon Research Conferences and the American Chemical Society. Desiree is also an associate editor of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s journal, Environmental Science: Processes and Impacts.

My career is demanding in the sense that it is really three or four careers. We are researchers. We are educators. We perform services to the university to keep it running and to our academic community to push the boundaries of discovery. We are mentors and coaches to young people.

All of these are also the most rewarding aspects of my job. I love each facet of the work, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love discovery, I love sharing that discovery and I love seeing people advance in pursuit of their dreams. I am so fortunate to be able to use my skills to improve our world (and humanity’s impact on the Earth). I get paid to do something I love, make the world a better place and grow the people in it. How lucky am I?”

Rachel Racusen ’04 Rachel is director of communications at Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat.

Previously, she spent five years doing communications for a congressional committee and seven years working in the Obama administration. In the latter capacity, Rachel ran communications for FEMA, headed communications for Obama’s re-election campaign in 2012 and worked in the White House Press Office.

I think one of the most challenging aspects of communications work is that a lot of your schedule is set by events you have no control over. A crisis that brews, a reporter who is on deadline for a story and needs you to call them at 10 p.m., or a piece of news that breaks at 6 a.m. and affects your company or brand. After doing it for more than 15 years, I’m very used to it—I really only know how to function in a deadlinedriven environment now. One of the most rewarding aspects is that communications is a field where you can quickly drive a real impact.

You can work with a reporter on a story and immediately see the outcome of that work. There is also a huge amount of variety in the work that I do—the substance of the issues I work on is constantly changing, which I find fascinating.

It’s a really interesting time to be working in the nexus of technology, media, and entertainment.”

Carla Reeves ’08 Now a litigation associate at Goulston & Storrs PC, her practice is focused on employment law and litigation, and also includes government and internal investigations. Carla is member of the Board of Directors of the Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association, a nonprofit organization that provides underserved families and individuals access to high quality, pro bono civil legal services. Carla also serves as pro bono counsel to domestic abuse survivors through the Women’s Bar Foundation’s Family Law Project for Domestic Abuse Survivors. She is a member of the Women of Color Committee of the Boston Bar Association, the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association, and the 2020 Leadership Council on Leadership Diversity Fellows Program. At Goulston & Storrs, Carla serves on the Inclusion Advisory Committee and Hiring Committee.

My practice is engaging and dynamic. I am always learning, connecting with people in different industries, and working closely with clients as they make very impactful decisions about workplace challenges. The immediacy involved in certain aspects of my practice can be challenging at times, but has made me a better lawyer.”

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2010s 36

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Nancy Miorelli ’11 She is the chief visionary officer of her tourism business. SciBugs is based in Ecuador, where Nancy plans, organizes and leads personalized tours for groups and individuals focused on insects, ecology, conservation and local culture. This work keeps her involved in local communities.

Especially on the western side of Ecuador, much of the forest and jungle is protected privately. Helping to make privately led conservation efforts, and the local communities involved, financially viable inspires her.

So, too, does acceptance by residents who are fighting to conserve one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet. It has made Nancy realize that small groups and individuals can make a difference.

The most challenging part of my job is the organization. All of the moving pieces of a tour in Ecuador are incredibly difficult to organize, plan and manage. Many times, there are cultural and language barriers. My clients often speak little Spanish and many people in Ecuador don’t speak English—I’m the link between them. But one of the most rewarding aspects is when people realize human experiences are the same everywhere. It’s heartwarming to watch my clients and the guides, hosts, drivers and hotel staff connect over shared experiences and a love of nature. It’s also rewarding when clients who were previously wary of insects are holding them by the end of a tour. And it’s empowering when clients think more about conservation and want to help in any way they can to protect our planet.”

Chetna Prasad ’15 Now a medical resident in anesthesiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, the pandemic has meant Chetna is also working on inpatient COVID teams to care for patients who have tested positive for the virus or are awaiting results. She feels fortunate to be surrounded by an incredibly supportive work family.

Without a doubt, my patients. In medicine you meet people at their most vulnerable and difficult moments. It is a privilege to help during those times. I have met the most amazing people in my job—patients who have taught me so much about the power of hope, the human spirit, a listening ear, a smile, and humor in the most trying of times. I find it challenging sometimes to balance this human part of medicine with the long hours, high volume, administrative burden and inefficiencies of our healthcare system.

There are some days I have left work feeling overwhelmed, wondering where the time went and what I actually did for others. It can be hard on those days to feel like you are making a difference. Then you have those pauses in the business of the day where you have special moments with patients or witness inspiring work of your colleagues, and you remember why you chose this profession.”

Sara Miltenberger ’15 After working as an environmental engineer and working in the tech industry at Tesla, she started her own sustainability consulting firm, RSTR media + strategy. Sara now works with some of the biggest names in the beauty and fashion world on sustainable design and corporate responsibility. She also has a podcast—Make Climate Cool Again—that teaches people about positive climate change and supporting small businesses. Sara donates 1% of her business revenue to charity. She is a Union College mentor, was president of her class at Columbia and is part of the Connecticut Women’s Small Business Association. Fifteen percent of revenue from her podcast also goes to a scholarship for students interested in studying sustainability.

I think being a business owner is extremely rewarding but also extremely difficult because you have to wear so many hats.

I’ve learned to celebrate all the small wins because it’s hard to be an accountant, the legal team, the sales director and a leader in my community! I have always compared owning a business to owning a house. Everything you put into it, you get back. Whereas I felt working for someone was like renting an apartment. At the end of the day, you don’t really own anything that you created.”

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WHO ARE ?

Nina (Wolff) Luxenberg ’74 (left) with roommate Catherine (Toye) Suslavich ’74

U

T

hank you to all our readers who helped us identify some members of Union’s first coed class. The photos, from Schaffer Library Special Collections, ran in the summer 2020 magazine (union.edu/magazine). We’d still love to know who else appears in these images. Visit the magazine site and let us know if you recognize anyone else. Email magazine@union.edu

Kathy (Mullaney) Mitchell ’74, seated left

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Christine (Chris) Kelly ’74 with her mother Evelyn Kelly (who married her father, Edwin Kelly ’32, right after he graduated from Union), her sister and niece.

Margery Zellermaier Lapp ’74 walks campus with her parents, Helen and Irwin Zellermaier.

Margery now lives in California and has a private practice in psychotherapy.

Above: Virginia (Ginny) Bade '74 with her mother Joann Bade

Right: Joseph Witford ’72 stands beside Tom Hough ’72, seated

Jennifer Smith Turner ’74, center, with roommate Felicia E. Collins Correia ’74 (right) and older sister, Valerie Smith (left).

Ruth Morton ’74 and her father, Robert Morton, arrive on campus.

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FOCUS

Ever wonder what Union professors are up to when they aren’t teaching?

Just about everything, as it turns out.

Nothing is beyond their collective reach or curious minds. Here’s a glimpse of the diverse and intriguing work they do.

Protecting and understanding groundwater MASON STAHL,

the James M. Kenney Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering

T

hink about groundwater much?

Probably not, but that makes it no less important.

“Groundwater provides drinking water to over 2 billion people; supplies nearly half of the irrigation water used globally to grow our crops; and sustains surface water bodies and groundwater-dependent ecosystems,” 40

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Mason Stahl said. “But because groundwater is largely out of sight, people often don’t realize how important it is and how threatened it is by overuse and contamination.”

To better understand groundwater and its recharge process, and to better protect and manage it, Stahl’s research focuses on two key questions.

Left: Mason Stahl conducting fieldwork in Vietnam.

Right: Mason Stahl conducting fieldwork in New York State with Jack Wassik ’19 and Connor Horan ’19

1. How does water become groundwater?

Where does this water come from and when did it become groundwater? (Stahl is working with Jaclyn Gehring ’20, Yusuf Jameel of MIT, and Union geology professor John Garver on studies related to this question.)

Consider this example from Stahl.

The water in a household well might recharge (refill) locally or the water might come from mountains hundreds of miles away. In terms of when, the well might recharge during spring thaw, or the water filling it today might have arrived thousands of years ago during a very different climate. And as for how, that might be during strong rain storms or from river water seeping into the aquifer.

“Knowing where, when and how groundwater recharges is important to understanding the sustainability of our groundwater resources,” Stahl said. “And to understanding how the quantity and quality of this resource might be impacted by climate and environmental change.

Which segues to Stahl’s second key area of study.

2. Arsenic contamination in groundwater is relatively common. How does this happen?

“High levels of groundwater arsenic pose a health risk to more than 150 million individuals across the world. While it’s most severe in Asia, more than 2 million Americans are estimated to be exposed to groundwater arsenic above EPA guidelines,” Stahl said. “In many cases, high levels of arsenic are naturally occurring and are not the direct result of human activities.

However, human activities can influence the process of releasing arsenic.”

Naturally occurring arsenic is very sensitive to levels of oxygen or organic matter (like plant material and animal or human waste) in saturated soil, Stahl explained. Changes in the environment caused by human disruptions to the ground—such as flooding fields for irrigation or constructing ponds—can alter the geochemical conditions and cause arsenic to leach out of soil and rocks and into groundwater.

Together with colleagues Beck DeYoung ’21 and Ben Bostick and Craig

Connolly (both of Columbia University), Stahl is studying how flooding patterns and surface water bodies (like ponds) might contribute to contamination.

A recent National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation Grant supports research on both questions. The funds will allow the purchase of a cavity ring-down spectrometer, which measures isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in water.

“By analyzing the isotopes in groundwater you can learn about the water’s source,” Stahl said. “You can track the where, when and how of groundwater recharge and the way groundwater moves through arsenic-affected aquifers. This is critical to understanding the conditions that drive arsenic release.”

Stahl is the principal investigator on the grant. Co-investigators are Holli Frey, professor and chair of geology; David Gillikin, professor of geology and director of environmental science and engineering; Donald Rodbell, professor of geology; and Anouk Verheyden-Gillikin, geology lecturer and stable isotope laboratory manager.

–Erin DeMuth Judd FALL 2020 | UNION COLLEGE

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| MEDIA |

RON SINGER ’62

THOMAS ZENTALL ’62

MARTIN JAY ’65

The Promised End

The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Cognition

Splinters in Your Eye: Frankfurt School Provocations

Unsolicited Press

The Promised End is a collection of stories, long and short, about mid-life, old age, and thereafter. The title echoes a cry of pain from “King Lear.”

In Singer’s vision, pain is both ubiquitous and funny. To compare his protagonists to characters from “King Lear,” some are like the suffering old men, Lear and Gloucester; others, closer to the whimsical fool; some, witty villains, like the bastard, Edmund; and still others, hybrids. Each of the three stages features its own eccentricities and predicaments. Experiencing a mid-life crisis, for example, is a vacationing New Yorker who has sex with a teenager at a dump in Maine. An elderly man travels to a fictional African country, where he encounters two of his building’s former superintendents, a political dissident and a gunrunner. After death, a character whose avocation was shopping, is reincarnated as a highway advertising display.

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Oxford University Press

Zentall and co-author Edward Wasserman have brought together 98 eminent researchers who study the learning and cognitive abilities of animals to describe the current findings of the varied way in which we are similar to and different from other animals. Sections of this volume are devoted to the way they see the world, how they attend and search their environment, how they learn what causes events to happen, how they remember important events, how they know where things are in their world, their ability to keep track of time and number, how they learn concepts and how to categorize, how they learn patterns, how they solve problems and use tools, and how they learn from others.

Zentall is a research professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky.

RAYMOND ANGELO BELLIOTTI ’70

Dante’s Inferno: Moral Lessons from Hell

Verso Press

New York: Palgrave Macmillan

Although successive generations of the Frankfurt School have attempted to adapt Critical Theory to new circumstances, the work done by its founding members continues in the 21st century to unsettle conventional wisdom about culture, society and politics.

Exploring unexamined episodes in the school’s history and reading its work in unexpected ways, these essays provide ample evidence of the abiding relevance of Horkheimer, Adorno, Benjamin, Marcuse, Löwenthal, and Kracauer in our troubled times.

Without forcing a unified argument, they range over a wide variety of topics. From the uncertain founding of the School to its mixed reception of psychoanalysis. From Benjamin’s ruminations on stamp collecting to the ironies in the reception of Marcuse’s One-Dimensional Man. From Löwenthal’s role in Weimar’s Jewish Renaissance to Horkheimer’s involvement in the writing of the first history of the Frankfurt School. Martin Jay is the Sidney Hellman Ehrman Professor of History Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley.

Raymond Belliotti provides a recipe for healthy moral and personal transformation by taking seriously Dante’s deepest yearnings: to guide human well-being; to elevate social and political communities; to remedy the poisons spewed by the seven capital vices; and to celebrate the connections between human self-interest, virtuous living and spiritual salvation. By closely examining and analyzing five of Dante’s more vivid characters in hell—Piero della Vigna, Brunetto Latini, Farinata degli Uberti, Cavalcante de’ Cavalcanti, and Guido da Montefeltro—and extracting the moral lessons Dante intends them to convey, and by conceptually analyzing envy, arrogance, pride, and human flourishing, the author challenges readers to interrogate and refine their modes of living. Belliotti is the SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at SUNY Fredonia.

This is his 22nd book.

UCAN:

A GREAT RESOURCE for ALUMNI and STUDENTS ROBERT GLICKSMAN ’73

CHRISTOPHER KETCHAM ’74

Reorganizing Government: A Functional and Dimensional Framework

Flowers and Honeybees: A Study of Morality in Nature

NYU Press

Regulation is frequently less successful than it could be, largely because the allocation of authority to regulatory institutions, and the relationships between them, are misunderstood. As a result, attempts to create new regulatory programs or mend under-performing ones are often poorly designed.

Reorganizing Government explains how past approaches have failed to appreciate the full diversity of alternative approaches to organizing governmental authority. The authors illustrate the oftenneglected dimensional and functional aspects of interjurisdictional relations through in-depth explorations of several diverse case studies involving securities and banking regulation, food safety, pollution control, resource conservation and terrorism prevention.

Brill

Can we discover morality in nature? Flowers and Honeybees extends the considerable scientific knowledge of flowers and honeybees through a philosophical discussion of the origins of morality in nature.

Flowering plants and honeybees form a social group where each requires the other.

They do not intentionally harm each other, both reason, and they do not compete for commonly required resources.

They also could not be more different. Flowering plants are rooted in the ground and have no brains. Mobile honeybees can communicate the location of flower resources to other workers. We can learn from a million-year-old social relationship how morality can be constructed and maintained over time.

Union College’s CAREER ADVISORY NETWORK • A searchable database of approximately 13,000 alumni and friends of the College who have offered to share information and advice relative to their career and/or graduate school interests.

• Exclusive to Union College students and alumni.

If you have already joined UCAN, please make sure your profile is up to date. If not, please join us to help students and network with other alumni.

Learn more at ucan.union.edu

Thank you, alumni We are incredibly grateful for the support alumni have shown Union students over the past few months. Thank you!

If you become aware of opportunities (paid or unpaid), or have an open position at your company or organization (remote or in-person, short-term or long-term), please notify Rochelle Caruso (carusor@union.edu), senior associate director for employer relations in the Becker Career Center.

Media is continued on page 44 FALL 2020 | UNION COLLEGE

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CHRISTOPHER KALER ’86

The Secret of Pandooma

KAREN (LOTTICK) PERRY ’91 (K.A. PERRY)

Dorrance Publishing Co.

The Green Beach File

“Our childhood was different from most kids...” When you’re born in space, life is anything but normal. It’s hard enough navigating the complexities and challenges of relationships, teamwork, problem-solving and self-discovery as young adults. Now add out-of-this world adventures, life-anddeath battles, amazing discoveries and harrowing escapes—with no adults—and, chances are, you’ve just joined the crew of a ship evacuating a dying planet. Join Samantha, Bobby, John Paul, Gunther, Robin and Alexandra on their fantastical adventures throughout space to solve a riddle that is thousands of years old. Fresh and ready for adventure, this group of ambitious young adults quickly learns that while planet life has its share of challenges, it’s nothing they can’t accomplish together.

Permuted Press

First, an amphibian expert is found murdered in the fancy shoreline town of Mayfield, Conn. Then, a second shocking murder of a wellrespected community leader occurs. Why are there murders happening in a town as peaceful as Mayfield? Jenn isn’t the perfect, clever attorney.

She doesn’t love her job, has no superpowers, and no awesome legal skills. But she does have her love and respect for nature. Along with her entertaining dysfunctional family, Jenn weaves her way into the midst of a momentous fight over land preservation.

The murders appear to be tied to the development of the largest parcel of pristine beachfront land between Boston and New York. Most folks in Mayfield want the unique beachfront preserved for the public and object to the construction of expensive homes. But are any of these folks extremist enough to murder for the environment and save coastal land? And how much will Jenn stretch the law to solve the mystery?

THOMAS MARINO ’99

Bridge to Change: A Transformation Process for Sustainable Life Fulfillment Game Changer Publishing

Tom Marino is a certified life coach and author. His new book focuses on making change using simple incremental action steps. As a helping professional, Marino has assisted others in making positive changes in their lives using these steps. Each chapter emphasizes a different step in the change process, showcasing a fresh perspective and a goal-oriented approach for individuals to help themselves and improve their lives.

Marino engages readers in a conversation and offers many thought-provoking questions to challenge them to evaluate their beliefs and values. The goal of the book is to provide the steps necessary to complete a transformation in people’s lives to ensure they create a life they want. Marino’s life coaching experience teaches the importance of self-care, motivation and an ability to set S.M.A.R.T goals for the future. Marino also introduces a new method of resolving issues and establishing priorities in the book’s bonus chapter.

ROGER H. HULL, president emeritus

How to Get Beyond Trump Aegis Publications

Union’s 17th president (1990-2005) has authored “a somewhat (not entirely) dispassionate discussion of the presidency and the President, as well as the issues voters in key states may find of import in deciding our government’s direction during the next four years.” Hull argues that Biden could unite Americans, reassure suburban Republican women in swing states and help all down-ticket Democratic candidates. Trump’s re-election prospects, Hull contends, will be determined largely by his response to the COVID-19 pandemic. All proceeds of the book are going to the Biden campaign.

CONSIDERATION Media, formerly Bookshelf, features new titles by or about alumni and other members of the Union community. To be included, send a copy of the work (book, DVD, CD) and synopsis to: Office of Communications Union College Schenectady, NY 12308 Or send synopsis and high-resolution image to: magazine@union.edu

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Parents Circle

Thank you to our 2019-20 Parents Circle families: Lauren and Brad Egna P’21, Parents Circle co-chairs, with sons Max ’21 and Austin ’21

“

We are proud to support Union, a vibrant college community that has provided an exceptional education and enriching athletic experience for our sons. Union parents help make great things happen, and through your involvement, you can also be part of that success.

- Lauren and Brad Egna P’21

”

T

he Parents Circle is a philanthropic group that works in concert with school leaders to enhance the Union experience for students and their families by supporting faculty, staff and the broader campus community. Members become College insiders and investors in its success, ultimately developing stronger ties to their student’s Union experience.

We invite you to join us

in supporting the educational programs and activities that will make your child’s Union experience extraordinary.

Anonymous Thomas and Jeanne Capasse P’20 Thomas Caulfield and Sandra Eng-Caulfield P’19 Barry and Nancy Cohen P’23 Francis and Patricia D’Iorio P’21 Brad and Lauren Egna P’21 Susan Farley ’81 and Gilbert Harper P’24 Roger and Mary Forman P’22 Craig Goos and Kerry Berchem P’23 David and Irene Harding P’22 Peter ’82 and Daphne Hoffman P’21 Jaap and Regina Ketting P’21 Henry and Nancy Klingeman P’21 Susanne Klingeman GP’21 David and Ann Kurtz P’22 Jared ’93 and Stacy LaCorte P’24 Jon Lennon ’92 and Carolyn Dunn ’90 P’23 Julie ‘87 and Michael Levy P’21 Stephen and Lori Libonati P’21 John ’89 and Susanne Lovisolo P’23 John Masini P’13 Kevin McAuliffe and Katharine Frase P’23 Henry and Amy Merlo P’23 Eric ’91 and Susan Miller P’22 Michael and Anne Moran P’10 P’13 Mark and Nedra Oren P’88 Michael and Janet Rogers P’11 William and Judi Rosensweig P’22 Alan ’80 and Maura Rutkin P’21 P’12 David and Karen Sherwood P’23 Eric and Risa Siegel P’21 Angelo and Connie Silveri GP’21 Richard and Elizabeth Solazzo P’20 Bruce Stuart P’13 David and Michele Tarica P’10 Jon and Betsy Tilkemeier P’21 Robert and Louise Tritt P’20 Brahim and Rosamond Vernon P’21 Peter and Judi Wasserman P’00 P’95 Mark ’88 and Emily Webster P’23 Bob Wilson P’09 Anne Wilson P’09 Edward and Elizabeth Youmans P’20 Guilan Yu GP’22

To learn more about the Parents Circle, please contact: Noelle Beach Marchaj '05 Director of Parent and Family Philanthropy Cell: 860-655-2875 marchajn@union.edu union.edu/parents-families FALL 2020 | UNION COLLEGE

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P

owering Union: The Campaign for Multiple Tomorrows is fueling Union’s latest leap forward as we educate a new generation of students to enter a world of unprecedented global challenges, technological change and unimaginable possibilities. As of Sept. 30, 2020, the Union community has generously contributed over $229 million to support scholarships and financial aid, professorships and academic initiatives, student services and programs, immersive learning and the Union Fund.

Experiential learning, the hands-on learning that takes place outside the classroom, is a centerpiece of a Union education and a Powering Union priority. Running the gamut from study away to community engagement to internships, these opportunities develop the competencies, wisdom, empathy and courage that students need to succeed in a broad range of cultures, contexts and professional settings.

As in-person opportunities dwindled during the pandemic, we re-imagined experiential offerings. Through partnerships with respected organizations around the world, students continue to benefit from these experiences in creative virtual formats during the 2020-21 academic year.

All returning students, with priority going to those who opted to live away from campus and take classes online, chose from a menu of unique experiential learning opportunities for academic credit this fall. Those students living away from campus who complete the courses receive a Robert J. Moser ’99 Experiential Learning Award ($2,000).

To learn more about the Powering Union campaign or to make a gift, visit union.edu/powering

To learn more about offerings for the winter term, visit union.edu/where-you-are/experiential-education-winter-2021

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THE OXFORD PROJECT The Oxford Project is an education innovator that uses the Oxford Tutorial method to provide nontraditional students with greater access through a blend of liberal arts education and real world technical expertise. Union students pursue virtual internships at one of the Project’s four partner schools and organizations.

HEALTH LEADS Health Leads works to break down systemic barriers to health. Students take part in virtual internships at the national and local levels. Some research best practices, and others work directly with families in Boston public schools to understand their needs around food insecurity, unemployment, mental health and technology access.

POLITICAL CAMPAIGN INTERNSHIP In the months leading up to the 2020 elections, students have identified an internship opportunity on a local, state or national campaign, and participate in a course led by Political Science Professor Zoe Oxley.

DONOR STORY

THINK GLOBALLY, ACT LOCALLY Students examine diverse environmental issues, government policies and community responses to environmental problems.

They work closely with New York State and local agencies to learn about the issues confronting community leaders.

GLOBAL VIRTUAL INTERNSHIPS Through partnerships with three study abroad organizations, students take part in virtual internships around the globe based on their areas of interest, academic course of study and career aspirations.

STUDENT-ARRANGED INTERNSHIPS For students who secure their own internship, their experience is supplemented by readings, check-ins with a faculty supervisor, papers and projects.

The Robert J. Moser '99 Experiential Learning Awards are made possible through the generosity of Bob Moser ’99 and his wife Lisa.

Bob is a member of the Union College Board of Trustees and the founder and CEO of Saratoga Springs, N.Y.-based Prime Group Holdings, the nation’s largest independent owner and operator of self-storage facilities.

Lisa is the company's co-owner and chief administrative officer.

While at Union, Bob obtained his broker’s license and began brokering sales of institutional real estate assets.

His senior honors thesis served as a springboard to his career in real estate.

“I started my business when I was at Union. Looking back, I appreciate how important hands-on experience in the industry was to launching my career. I applaud Union's commitment to expanding experiential offerings to educate and engage students in new and exciting ways. Today, more than ever, it's

important for students to be exposed to real world scenarios and outside perspectives.

I firmly believe that these types of immersive experiences will differentiate Union students from other candidates for internships and jobs. The world is getting more and more competitive, and this is exactly what today’s students need to be prepared and successful. Lisa and I are passionate about the value of these learning opportunities and proud to support the students who are taking advantage of them.”

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Alumni Clubs Don’t miss out on any of our exciting virtual events!

We know that this has been a very challenging year for everyone. While we are disappointed that we can’t be together, that doesn't mean we can’t connect. The Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement has a great lineup of virtual programming to connect with fellow alumni for trivia, networking, health and fitness, and learning. We look forward to seeing you online very soon. In the meantime, learn more about our events at ualumni.union.edu

Stephen M. Berk, the Henry and Sally Schaffer Professor of Holocaust and Jewish Studies, delivered weekly live lectures this summer.

New lifetime members of the Alumni Council named The Alumni Council is proud to acknowledge the loyalty and commitment of the following members. By vote of the executive committee, they have been named lifetime members of the Alumni Council. Congratulations to: Bill Allen ’59, Don Bentrovato ’69, Dallam (Ted) Blandy ’74, G. Anders Carlson ’66, Stu Cohen ’61 (in memoriam), Richard Herrmann ’54, Karen Huggins ’77, Frank (Tad) Knight ’68, Michael Rapaport ’59, Cal Welch ’62 and Robert Saltzman ’69.

The Class of 1970 got together this spring for a virtual ReUnion

O F F I CE R S O F T H E A LUMN I COUN C IL

Kathryn Stefanik Barry ’01, president Vincent Mattone ’06, first vice president Chester Karwatowski ’78, second vice president Matthew Mauriello ’99, treasurer Jessica Hayashi ’74, secretary For more information about the Alumni Council, or to get involved, email alumni@union.edu 48

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The New York City Alumni Club Board met recently over Zoom.

CL ASS

Garnet Guard Alumni who have celebrated their 50th ReUnion.

GARNET GUARD CLASS CORRESPONDENT

John Honey ’61 jahoney@msn.com John Honey writes, “The Garnet Guard was founded during ReUnion weekend in 1988 to honor those alumni of Union College who graduated at least 50 years ago. An induction ceremony is held in the Nott Memorial during each class’s 50th ReUnion. Class members are presented with a medallion, a lapel pin and a certificate of membership by the College president. We have all benefitted from our Union College education as it prepared us for future challenges. We matured during our time as undergraduates from the challenges of the academic life and our experience in dealing with classmates having diverse interests and backgrounds.

The Guard provides an opportunity to cherish and build on those experiences later in life. Bob Howe ’58 was the Chair of the Guard for many years. Bob attended Harvard Medical School and went on to be a leader at the University of Minnesota Medical School. In recognition of his service to the College, Bob was awarded the Alumni Gold Medal (2008) and the Distinguished Service Award

(2005). Bob has served as chair of the Ramée Circle Society, which recognizes those who include the College in their estate plans. Bob also presided over Union’s alumni club in Minnesota. It has been my honor to follow in Bob’s footsteps and lead the Guard for the past two years. While I can’t match his service to Union College, I am president of the Class of 1961, cofounder of the Cape Cod Alumni Club, co-class head agent for the Union Fund and a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award (2014).

The Garnet Guard holds an annual luncheon during each ReUnion Weekend. We plan to honor a member of the Guard annually for a significant career achievement. I look forward to greeting members of the Guard at the combined ReUnion and Homecoming weekend in October, and to welcoming new members from the Class of 1970.”

John Honey ’61

U

N O TE S

1951 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

James Taub 711 S. Market Street Johnstown, N.Y. 12095 (518) 762-1172 shrevie711@hotmail.com

1953 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Hubert Plummer 21 Temple Road Setauket, N.Y. 11733 (631) 941-4076 whp@plummerlaw.com

1954 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Avrom J. Gold 33 Madison Lane Hilton Head Island, S.C. 29926 (908) 581-1455 avromgold@gmail.com Avrom Gold writes, “I’m now living full-time on Hilton Head Island, S.C., where we had a home from 2003 to 2010. We returned here in November 2018 after being back in N.J. for eight years. I keep busy working in our gardens and participating in book clubs and a modest amount of political activity. Golf is no longer a physical possibility. A couple of weeks ago, I spoke with Barbara Blum, wife of our late beloved classmate, Dave, and today, I had a call from classmate Rick Fink (with whom I visited a couple of times a year for several years in San Antonio, where my daughter lives), and also called

classmate Sonny Gertzog in N.Y. We had wonderful conversations. Rick and Sonny and their families are doing well, riding out the current storm. Sonny reminded me that his daughter, Dave’s daughter and classmate Jerry Barandes’ daughter were all members of the Union class of 1982. If my daughter had taken her acceptance at Union, she also would have been a member of that class.

She opted for Middlebury. I’m looking forward to hearing from any members of the Class of 1954 who may have a few spare moments to send an email or make a call.”

Natalie Ullman ’10 writes, “My grandfather, Captain Ross Saddlemire ’54, passed away on April 26 near his home in Port Jefferson Village, N.Y., at the age of 87. He was born in Waterloo, Iowa, and raised not far from Schenectady in Sloansville, N.Y. He is survived by his high school sweetheart, Evelyn, and five daughters and many grandchildren who all loved him dearly. While at Union, Ross was a member of the men’s soccer and lacrosse teams. He loved Union College and inspired me to apply. I loved it equally as much. We attended multiple ReUnion weekends together.

Ross particularly enjoyed visiting his old fraternity, Phi Delta Theta, during ReUnion.

He served in the Air Force from 1954 to 1957 as lieuten-

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CLASS NOTES

ant colonel, and was squadron commander of the National Air Guard. He then worked for American Airlines as a captain and as manager of operations out of LaGuardia and Kennedy airports. He even piloted the NBA Orlando Magic for a season! Ross later worked for the FAA and retired at age 85.

He received the Wright Brothers ‘Master Pilot’ Award in September 2013 for 50 years of dedication to aviation safety. This is the most prestigious award the FAA issues to pilots. Other notable awardees include Neil Armstrong and Chuck Yeager.

His name also appears on the Wall of Honor at the Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. Ross resided in Nissequogue, N.Y., for 31 years with his family. He was very devoted to them, and loved tennis, flying and dogs. Ross was always playing jokes on people and brought joy to everyone around him.” Ross is also remembered on p. 67.

1955 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Ken Haefner 1346 Waverly Pl. Schenectady, N.Y. 12308 kbhaefner@gmail.com

1957 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Paul Mohr 140 E Duce of Clubs Ste A Show Low, Ariz. 85901 dadtired@frontiernet.net

1958 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

David C. Horton 68 Paul Revere Road Lexington, Mass. 02421 paulrevereroad@aol.com Daniel Riesel writes, “I thought the recent update of my book, Environmental Enforcement,

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Civil and Criminal, might be of some interest. The book was first published in 1997 and since has been updated twice a year. The treatise and its updates draws on some of the work of Sive, Paget & Riesel, P.C., which incidentally may be the oldest environmental law firm in the country, and maybe the world. In other news, my wife, Sheila, and I are still practicing law in New York City (but not in the same firm). We are presently sheltering in place in Arlington, Vt. We have enjoyed living in Manhattan and Arlington, and are convinced that New York City will once again be the most vibrant city in the country.”

Dave Wainwright writes, “After graduation, I became a supply officer in the Navy, then 39 years as a broker and manager with Merrill Lynch. My last eight years before retirement, I was a financial consultant with Smith Barney. I left Rancho Bernardo, Calif., after 35 years where I was active in the community, mostly with Kiwanis. In 2017, we moved to Peoria, Ariz., to play golf, chess, pinochle and volunteer at the Peoria Sports Complex for Spring Training. I have two children, five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.”

1959 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

William “Dal” Trader 5361 Santa Catalina Avenue Garden Grove, Calif. 92845 daltrader@earthlink.net (310) 629-8971 Jim Tyler (BCE, MSCE Missouri ’65, PE, FASCE) writes, “I spent 33 years in Syracuse, where I was president of the Syracuse Section, American Society of Civil Engineers 1996-97. Now living in Dewey Beach, Del.”

1960 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Charles E. Roden kiw702@aol.com

1961 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

John Honey jahoney@msn.com

Judi and John Morack of Fairbanks, Alaska, are doing well and remain isolated for the most part. They now have a winter home in Phoenix, Ariz., where they were when the pandemic hit. They had a little hassle to get back to Alaska, but when they arrived, there was still four feet of snow on the ground so they felt they may have come home too early.

When the pandemic hit, Richard McGavern and his wife, Sandra, of Canandaigua, N.Y., were somewhere in the Indian Ocean on a fourmonth, round-the-world cruise with Viking Cruise Lines.

There were 400 passengers on board after about half of them departed early in Australia. There were no coronavirus cases diagnosed.

The ship headed to Dubai, from where they would fly everyone home. All but 80 passengers got flights to the U.S. before the Viking Sun was ordered to leave Dubai.

Fortunately, the McGaverns made their flight. The remaining U.S. citizens flew home from Gibraltar. So, quite an adventure! Richard and Sandra are doing okay at home. Viking refunded about half the fare in the form of vouchers and they are booked on another cruise next spring.

1962 Ronald T. Singer (BA, English) has recently published one book of fiction, with two more on the way. The Promised End (Unsolicited Press, December 2019) is a collection of Singer’s stories about mid-life, old age and the thereafter. Gravy (Unsolicited Press, July 2020) is a multi-genre collection of Singer’s writings about life after 70. The Real Presence (Adelaide Books, forthcoming, 2021) is a historical novel set principally in Nigeria, and centering on the Biafra War.

1963 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

George Ball 6929 Country Line Road Wayland, N.Y. 14572-9553 gball@frontiernet.net

1965 James T. MacGregor has received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award from Marquis Who’s Who. A renowned expert on product safety evaluation and regulation, James has held leadership positions at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), SRI International (the former Stanford Research Institute) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Since 2004, he has been a consultant and principal with Toxicology Consulting Services, where he consults for major international companies and government and nonprofit organizations on safety issues related to foods, dietary supplements, and pharmaceutical products.

Martin Jay writes, “Verso Press has published my latest collection of essays, Splinters in Your Eye: Frankfurt School Provocations. An earlier book, Downcast Eyes: The Denigration of Vision in TwentiethCentury French Thought, has recently been translated into Korean and Chinese. In 2019, the American Historical Association gave me its Award for Scholarly Distinction, which recognizes lifetime achievement.”

Rob Hoffman writes, “Still working Tuesdays through Thursdays with no intention to retire but plan to move to San Rafael in a few years to be close to three daughters and their families who live within one mile of each other. Trips to Amazon and Galapagos and to see gorillas canceled, losing beaucoup bucks but loving our home, backyard and following COVID guidelines.”

1966 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Antonio F. Vianna 7152 Tanager Drive Carlsbad, Calif. 92011 simpatico1@juno.com

Bill Barnes ’66, Jan O. Werner ’66 and Frank LoVerme ’66 Zooming in place.

Young, MD, PhD, who was a fellow flag officer in the U.S. Public Health Service and former commissioner of the FDA, as well as a member of the Union Class of 1953 (although he left Union after three years in 1952 to attend medical school).”

Jan Werner ’66 writes, “Visited Alaska last year, including the town named after our illustrious alum [Seward]. Its vastness and beauty are awe-inspiring.

Not to be missed.”

1968 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

John Dresser Etna, N.H. jdressernh@gmail.com

1969 CLASS CORRESPONDENTS

1967 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Joseph Smaldino 6310 Lantern Ridge Lane Knoxville, Tenn. 37921 smaldinoj@comcast.net (815) 762-5984 Rev. Charles N. Stewart, assistant chaplain at Upstate University Hospital, was recently interviewed by Syracuse.com.

The story focused on the way COVID-19 has changed how families are able to say goodbye to dying loved ones.

Van S. Hubbard writes, “I have been enjoying retirement for almost five years, although the recent pandemic has curtailed many of my activities and travels. My last trip did involve a visit to the Union campus in March 2020 as the campus was preparing to close. In November 2019, I was fortunate to be honored by the Obesity Society with the President’s Medal ‘in recognition of outstanding and enduring scientific achievements; public service with the aim of improving the health of the public; and advocacy for persons with obesity.’ In December 2019, I attended the memorial service for Frank

George Cushing Delanson, N.Y. pinyachta@gmail.com Ray Pike Salisbury, Mass. rnwpike@comcast.net

1970

Bob Shages ’72 at Everest Base Camp in Nepal

Colin P. Watson Sr. (also Union M.S. 1973, operations research) was appointed acting executive director of the 1,000-parish Christian Reformed Church in North America at the 2020 meeting of the church’s Council of Delegates. Watson had served as the denomination’s director of ministries and administration since 2015.

CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Frank P. Donnini Newport News, Va. fpdonnini@aol.com

1971 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Henry Fein, M.D. Rockville, Md. hgfein@aol.com

1972 Bob Shages writes, “After years of hiking around New England, New York, Colorado and Pennsylvania, I trekked to Everest Base Camp in Nepal for unbelievable views of Everest and the surrounding mountains. My wife, Susie ’74, decided to pass on a trip of 14 days in the same clothes and without a shower. When not hiking, I am mostly retired from GE as I continue to consult there on contracts and government compliance.”

Colin P. Watson Sr. ’72

1973 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Larry Swartz Niskayuna, N.Y. larry.swartz@agriculture.ny.gov Lou Snitkoff retired in early April following a 40-year healthcare career in the Capital Region. His most recent position was vice president for the Ellis Medical Group in Schenectady. He also completed a four-year term on the American College of

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CLASS NOTES

Physicians (ACP) Board of Governors, and a one-year term as president of ACP’s New York Chapter. He is now serving as a volunteer with the New York State Department of Health and assisting with development and delivery of programming that’s focused on clinical well-being in the era of COVID-19. He and his wife, Gail Goodman Snitkoff ’74, look forward to reopening their business, Pause Gallery in Troy, N.Y., when conditions permit.

Rob Glicksman published a new book (with co-author Alejandro Camacho), Reorganizing Government: A Functional and Dimensional Framework (NYU Press 2019).

The book explores how paying insufficient attention to the structure of the interacting authority of federal agencies has contributed to failures to achieve congressional policy goals in areas that include food safety, environmental regulation, natural resource management, securities and banking regulation, intelligence gathering and climate change. The book recommends a novel framework for thinking about government organization that can help avoid similar problems in the future.

Rob Glicksman ’73

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1974 CLASS CORREPSONDENT

Cathy Stuckey Johnson San Mateo, Calif. caj1080@hotmail.com Mitchell L. Hallow is memorialized in a memoir written by his wife, Deborah A. Sabin. 32 Days: A Memoir of Love and Death chronicles Mitchell’s heroic struggle to survive a traumatic injury that left him paralyzed from the neck down in the summer of 1988.

Deborah was by his side at a hospital in Plattsburgh, N.Y., awaiting his transfer to a hospital closer to their home in Clifton Park. 32 Days is based on notes she wrote to Mitchell each night he was hospitalized. Hidden away for 25 years after Mitchell died in 1988, the notes were inadvertently found eight years ago. It took most of those eight years for Deborah, a best-selling author of contemporary romance under the pen name Morgan Malone, to complete the book which pays tribute to Mitchell’s courage, grace, dignity and humor during those trying times. 32 Days is available in print from Amazon and as an e-book form Amazon, Barnes and Nobel, and Apple iBooks. A portion of the profits from the sale of the book will be donated to Union College in Mitchell’s memory.

Nina (Wolff) Luxenberg writes, “I recently transitioned from full to part-time radiology practice in St. Petersburg, Florida, and I’m enjoying more leisure time with friends and playing tennis. Through the years, Laura Greene and Jessica (Sobiech) Hayashi have remained special friends. Laura and I shared a memorable Impressionist trip to the south of France two years ago. 2019 was a very sad year for me

with the passing of my husband of 24 years, Barry Schneider. I’ve been blessed with two children, two stepchildren and a wonderful grandson, who is 12. I’d love to hear from classmates (luxenberg.nina@gmail.com).”

Nina (Wolff) Luxenberg ’74

Award-winning novelist Andrea Barrett was recently featured in “The Conversation” with the New York State Writers Institute.

Bucky Rulon-Miller writes, “I sailed into St. Michaels (Md.) harbor in July and saw a replica of the historic vessel Dove under construction in a temporary shed at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Upon further investigation, I discovered the newest iteration of the Dove was being designed by classmate Iver Franzen, principal and founder of Iver C. Franzen Maritime, LLC, an Annapolis-based firm specializing in historic vessel naval architecture services.”

For more about the project and Franzen’s career, visit www.marylanddove.org/ the-new-maryland-dove.

1975 Rita Corwin provides fundraising consulting services to not-for-profit organizations to assist in growing major gift

and gift planning programs.

She enjoys painting, travel, yoga and spending time with her four little grandchildren.

1976 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Jill Schneier Wegenstein Carmel Valley, Calif. jwegenstein@gmail.com Lena Marder writes, “After retiring five years ago I find that I can’t seem to slow down. I am keeping myself busy doing contract work as a clinical supervisor; providing art therapy at family court; and teaching a graduate level course on substance use and addiction as an adjunct professor. Keeps me just busy enough.”

1977 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Leila Shames Maude LeeShamesMaude@alumni. union.edu

1978 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Jeff Laniewski, Florence, Ariz. jlaniewski4@gmail.com

1979 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Kurt Hamblet San Luis Obispo, Calif. kurthamblet@gmail.com

1980 Robert Rosenfeld writes, “Adrienne and I welcomed our first grandchild to the world in the midst of the pandemic, Frederick Leo Clark. Freddy is the son of our daughter, Aly Rosenfeld, and her husband, James Clark. Aly is a voiceover actress perhaps best known for her roles on Pokémon.”

Drafted into the COVID war: A surgeon shares his experiences

’74

Dr. Alan Benvenisty ’74 is professor of surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and director of quality assurance in the Department of Surgery at Mount Sinai St. Luke’s and Mount Sinai West Hospital. Valedictorian of his class, he graduated from Union with a degree in biology before earning his M.D. from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University.

A

t Union, I studied complex neuroanatomy, firmly entrenching myself as a budding neurologist.

I was sure this was my calling.

Then I completed my first clinical rotation at Columbia P&S in neurology.

I hated it! Back in 1976, neurologists were able to cure very little. I needed to make people better and I needed to see it happen in front of my eyes.

That is what is so wonderful about being an academic vascular and transplant surgeon. Nothing is more satisfying than enabling a patient with kidney failure to be a productive member of society again.

Or fixing the carotid artery of a patient so he/she will not become a stroke victim.

I have had the good fortune of doing this for 42 years. And I’ve seen a lot during this time.

I watched the AIDS epidemic unfold before we knew a virus caused it. I performed innumerable lymph node biopsies on cachectic young men with fevers and weight loss. I watched the World Trade Towers crumble down from the operating room windows in Washington Heights. I watched, as we got ready for Ebola victims and worried about West Nile and Zika.

Nothing could possibly match the dramatic metamorphosis of our health care system that we have witnessed fighting COVID. I entered this fight March 14, 2020.

That was the date a patient I saw just days before—seemingly well—was admitted with COVID and placed on a ventilator. He died a few days later in multi-organ system failure.

We were in the process then of shutting down all normal activities and ramping up for “the surge.” On that day, my job as a vascular and transplant

surgeon came to a grinding halt.

All elective cases stopped and we performed surgeries only for life- or limb-threatening emergencies. Everyone in my great Department of Surgery at Mount Sinai became a soldier in the army, each assigned to a different position.

As a senior vascular surgeon, I became captain of the “line team.” With a platoon of amazing surgical residents, we patrolled the ICUs at Mount Sinai West. We placed small tubes and straw-sized catheters in arteries and veins of critically ill patients to administer medications and treatments.

Most of these individuals were on ventilators.

Because many of the COVID victims developed renal failure, we provided vascular dialysis access for that as well.

I also provided emergency vascular surgery coverage for two hospitals, putting out the usual fires that we take care of in my specialty. For a brief time, I covered a COVID discharge unit where we developed discharge plans for patients who were lucky enough to recover and go home.

That was a sweet and rewarding job!

Although it was a harrowing experience, I have been awestruck by several things.

First, the Mount Sinai system went to the ends of the Earth to do what they could to protect their health care workers and transform the hospital into one massive critical care machine.

We had the protective armor we needed, when we needed it. It was very scary when it looked like the personal protective equipment would be insufficient. As a person in the high-risk category (over age 60), the unknown danger was particularly worrisome, especially since two of my classmates from Columbia P & S had already succumbed to COVID.

ALAN BENVENISTY ’74

Second, my view of other health care professionals is forever changed.

I see the housekeeping staff, who painstakingly clean the ICUs and patient care areas, as real fighters. They are risking their lives. They did not sign up for that.

The nurses, physician assistants and respiratory therapists—what guts they have.

Talk about front line! The anesthesiologists are amazing heroes, staring right in the face of the virus intubating highly contagious patients.

Kudos to all of my colleagues who are so brave.

The saddest part was the cruel loneliness that patients and their families endured when they could not accompany each other in their time of greatest need. I spoke to a wonderful hospital worker who lost her elderly mother and cried to me that she had to bury her and sit Shiva alone.

The most tragic part of the whole affair was the fact that we in New York got through this hellish situation but other parts of the country did not learn enough from our struggle. There are still many people in the hospitals to fight for and unfortunately, COVID admissions keep coming in.

Now that the surge in New York is over (and hopefully for good), I am happy to be a vascular and transplant surgeon again.

I hope that my colleagues in other states soon enjoy the same privilege. I am praying that as we progress forward, I will only be seeing the fading image of COVID in my rear view mirror.

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CLASS NOTES Adrienne and Robert Rosenfeld ’80 with grandson, Frederick.

1982 Paul Freedman writes, “My wife, Kerry, and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary with a trip to Scotland; from the southern Borders to John O’Groats in the north and west to the Isle of Skye, we hiked, biked, listened to great Celtic music and sampled single malts along the way. Recently, 70 alumni and Phi Gamma Delta fraternity brothers met in a Zoom reunion that crossed the USA and included a couple of other countries. This ‘Pig Dinner’ was like none before and hopefully none after, but was a great way to reminisce about our Union/Fiji experiences nonetheless under the challenging coronavirus situation.”

Kerry and Paul Freedman ’82 at Duncansby Head, Scotland

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1983

1984

CLASS CORRESPONDENT

CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Cory Lewkowicz Needham, Mass. corylewkowicz@gmail.com

Linda Gutin Cary, N.C. lindagutin@hotmail.com

Bruce Marlowe writes, “The fourth edition of my co-edited text on the foundations of education will be published by SAGE in August.”

Bonnie Rayman writes, “I started in January as the new chief community officer at the Posnack Jewish Community Center in Davie, Fla.”

Dr. Melissa Beth Gruen was recently became a fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians. The degree recognizes AAFP members who have distinguished themselves among their colleagues and in their communities, as well as by their service to family medicine, their advancement of health care to the American people and by their professional development through medical education and research.

Christopher H. Kiwus is vice president for campus planning, infrastructure and facilities at Virginia Tech, where he oversees the university’s six-year plan for approximately 30 projects totaling nearly $3 billion. He had been Tech’s associate vice president and chief facilities officer since 2014.

In January, Cheryl Aylesworth, Carol Talbot, Sue (Goldman) Meyerson and Debbie Poskanzer met in NYC for a senior year roommate’s reunion. They write, “We ate well, drank a bit, spent hours touring the 911 Memorial and Museum and saw a Broadway show. And of course, lots of walking, talking and catching up. Nothing like old friends.”

Cheryl Aylesworth ’83, Carol Talbot ’83, Sue (Goldman) Meyerson ’83 and Debbie Poskanzer ’83 in New York City

medicine, massage, counseling and ministry. Fortunately, thus far none of us have contracted coronavirus. I have been blessed in my 32-year marriage to Mark Pearson, who wears many hats including chief executive officer of New Creation, assistant for a leader to the New Hampshire House of Representatives, and pastor of Trinity Church. I have three stepchildren, three grandbabies, and when I have time, I get into my garden.”

1985 Mary Pearson writes, “I continue to work as an osteopathic physician at New Creation Healing Center in Kingston, New Hampshire. We provide integrated Christian healthcare including medicine, counseling, massage therapy and prayer ministry. I have been working here for over 20 years, and love the fact that I don’t have to deal with corporate medicine, and can spend time with my patients.

It is an honor and privilege to take care of the amazing residents of New Hampshire.

I work as the chief operating officer, and as a staff position.

We have remained open throughout the coronavirus pandemic, and continued to offer services to our patients and clients. It’s been a challenging time for all of us, although New Hampshire was not affected as severely as many other areas. I work with an amazing team of professionals and support staff who seek to show the love of Christ through the practice of

Mary Pearson ’85 and husband, Mark Pearson

1988 Richard Gersten writes, “I started a new business, True Beauty Capital, in March 2020.

My focus will be on private equity investing in the beauty, wellness and personal care space. My daughter, Hallie (23), lives and works in NYC for Bare Minerals. My son, Tyler (21), just graduated from Bucknell and started work in NYC for an investment-banking firm, PJ Solomon, in July.”

Dr. Ilse M. Jenouri was inducted into the Unatego (N.Y.) Hall of Distinction, which recognizes graduates of Unatego who have distinguished themselves through recognition, honor and distinction during their lives.

Ilse is a graduate of SUNY Health Science Center at

The Terrace Council The Terrace Council is our society for leadership-level donors who make Union College a priority in their annual philanthropy.

The Terrace Council honors all members of the Union community who propel Union to the forefront of higher education.

Gifts can be made as a one-time payment or as monthly installments during the College’s fiscal year, July 1 - June 30. Gifts may go to the Union Fund, where the need is greatest, or can be restricted and utilized to support specific priorities. Matching gifts from an employer also count toward your contribution.

Levels of the Terrace Council TRUE TC LEVEL—Alumni, family and

friends who make a total annual gift of $2,000 or more.

GARNET GUARD LEVEL—Alumni in the Class of 1959 and older who make a total annual gift of $1,000 or more.

GRADUATES OF THE LAST DECADE (GOLD) LEVEL—Alumni who have

graduated within the last 10 years who make a gift at special rates ranging from $100 – $1,000. More information about GOLD is available on page 73.

“I am committed to our alma mater because our support is integral to the College’s continued growth and sustainability. Our giving provides students with the opportunity of a lifetime—the Union College experience.”

– Kenya LeNoir Messer ’90, Terrace Council Chair

F OR M ORE I N F OR M AT IO N A B O UT TERR AC E COU N C I L , V IS IT

ualumni.union.edu/terracecouncil OR CON TAC T: Ritchie Assini, Associate

Director of the Terrace Council terracecouncil@union.edu | (518) 388-6175 FALL 2020 | UNION COLLEGE

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CLASS NOTES

Syracuse. Following her residency at Rhode Island Hospital, she served as attending physician at several New England area hospitals.

She presently serves as medical director of emergency medicine at Miriam Hospital in Providence. She is also a clinical professor of emergency medicine at Brown University.

biophilic and sensory design in order that the built environment supports the people who are in it. I won the ASID NY Metro Design Excellence Award in 2019. I’m also a WELL AP, Living Future Accredited, a fitwel ambassador and a Healthy Materials Advocate.

Find me at www.designglxy. com or @designglxy on Instagram.”

1989

Katherine (MacDonald) Huth writes, “My oldest daughter, Kristen, graduated from Linfield College with a major in Spanish and minor in music.

Jessie transferred from UNH to CSU during this pandemic.

Kevin is hoping to have a senior year IN high school. I was hoping to come back for ReUnion/Homecoming in October, but guess we’ll have to see.”

Ben Ohebshalom has been awarded first place from N.Y. State, NYSERDA Buildings of Excellence, for his passive house designed building—a 22 story 140,000 sq. ft. building at 515 East 86th Street in Manhattan with 140 units (the largest non-subsidized passive house rental building in North America).

1990 Maria Lomanto writes, “After a long career as executive producer of corporate theatre, I opened my own interior design firm, DesignGLXY LLC. I specialize in creating timeless, healthy and sustainable commercial and residential interiors in NYC and the Hudson Valley. I practice

1993 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Jill D. Bernstein New York, N.Y. jilldbernstein@yahoo.com

1994 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Randall Beach Schenectady, N.Y. rsbeach72@gmail.com

Jason Miller ’19 (Men’s USA Open Team), William Popper ’23 (Boys USA Youth Team, gold medalist) and Lee Popper (Men’s +45 USA Masters Team, bronze medalist) competed at the Pan American Maccabi Games in Mexico City in 2019, representing Team USA. They played soccer at Needham High School and Union.

1995 Eileen Barrett writes, “We are still living in New Mexico, where my husband, Sam, and I are working as physicians at the University of New Mexico when not goofing off with our daughter Daisy. We’ve very busy with COVID, but are grateful to be taking care of hospitalized patients. I recently finished a four-year tenure as a regent of the American College of Physicians (ACP), the largest physician specialty society in the world. The work was immensely rewarding, and I’m grateful to have taken part in advocacy, education and health policy through ACP. I recently had a publication in the Annals of Internal Medicine, and an interview in the Journal of the American Medical Association—two opportunities facilitated by my

work with ACP. It was also so much fun getting to know and getting to work through ACP with fellow Union alums Lou Snitkoff ’73 and Audrey Kupchan ’76.”

Michael J. Rothstein writes, “Proud to share a special experience: Our organization, Yale Productions, in conjunction with our distribution partner, Quiver, are fortunate to be part of the recent drive-in revival with our thriller, “BECKY.” It was selected to premier at Tribeca Film Festival and stars Kevin James, Joel McHale and Lulu Wilson, and is one of our latest films to release. Excited to have Kurt Ebner ’93 as part of our producing team on this film. Hope the nostalgic way of appreciating films entertains or perhaps provides a much needed distraction. Gratitude to Union health care providers and their families. Wishing the Union family safety and health!”

Michael J. Rothstein ’95 and Yale Productions recently released the film, “BECKY.”

1997 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Maria Lomanto ’90 won the ASID NYMetro 2019 Design Excellence Award for this holistic healthcare office in Manhattan.

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Jason Miller ’19, William Popper ’23 and Lee Popper ’94 competed at the Pan American Maccabi Games in Mexico City in July 2019.

Sara Amann Garrand Ballston Lake, N.Y. sgarrand1@nycap.rr.com Laurel Ruma recently joined MIT Technology Review as the director of custom content for the U.S. She joins the country’s

oldest tech magazine after 14 years at O’Reilly Media, a technology book publisher and conference organizer. Her first work trip for Tech Review was to Dubai, where she made time to photograph the souks and bought lots of scarves. She and her partner, Mike Korcynski ’99, live in the Boston area and often see a group of Phi Sigs/Union alumni for beers and Union hockey.

Niko (Winstral) Harriton writes, “I have taken on a new role as partner at Simple Protective Gear in a women’s business enterprise which manufactures and distributes reusable civilian face masks and other PPE. We have the highest quality of reusable, adjustable, custom, hydrophobic 2-and 3-ply face masks. Our masks have adjustable ear loops and have great washability. To learn more contact me at niko@simpleprotectivegear. com or visit simpleprotectivegear.com. Stay safe!”

1998 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Elizabeth travels back and forth between offices, spending time in Chicago and New York City, her home base now is the firm’s Greenwich, Conn., office.

1999 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Kellie Forrestall BeeBee Lowell, Mass. forrestkj@hotmail.com

groundbreaking website to allow public visibility and collaborative analysis of school funding information in New York State.”

2008 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Dana Cohen Bernstein New York, N.Y. dana.lynn.bernstein@gmail.com

2003 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Katrina Tentor Lallier Shrewsbury, Mass. katrinalallier@gmail.com

2005 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Noelle Marchaj Old Saybrook, Conn. marchajn@union.edu

2006

Jay Shah ’08 is a practicing anesthesiologist in Phoenix, Arizona. He was recently awarded Top Doc 2020 through Phoenix Magazine.

Dolinger ’10, during the pandemic. Koman has Crohn’s Disease, which could leave her more vulnerable to the virus.

2015 Chetna Prasad M.D., Max Willinger M.D., Max Roehmholdt M.D. and Wayne Fu M.D.—all members of Union’s Leadership in Medicine Program, graduated from Albany Medical College May 23, 2019. They all began their residency in July 2019, with Chetna to Harvard/Brigham Women’s Hospital for anesthesiology, Willinger to Northwell/Long Island Jewish Medical Center for orthopedic surgery, Roehmholdt to Cleveland Clinic Akron General for urology, and Fu to Northwell/ Staten Island University Hospital for emergency medicine.

CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Sarah T. Heitner New York, N.Y. sarah.t.heitner@gmail.com

2007

Ryan T. Smith Jupiter, Fla. ryan.smith@thebenjamin school.org

CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Elizabeth (Malaspina) Coe and her husband, Blake, live with their three boys (ages 8, 6 and 2) in Westport, Conn. They moved from Brooklyn to Connecticut almost six years ago. At the time, Elizabeth was head of U.S. Litigation at Barclays in Manhattan. But in 2016, she left Barclays to become deputy general counsel at Citadel. As deputy GC, Elizabeth manages litigation and regulatory inquiries and investigations for Citadel’s hedge fund business, and for Citadel Securities, the broker dealer. Although

Michael P. Mastroianni has been appointed assistant secretary for education in the Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. Previously, Michael served as an associate budget examiner with the New York State Division of Budget on the team responsible for budgeting New York State’s $28 billion School Aid program. In 2019, Michael was a co-recipient of the John E. Burton Service Award (Eastern Region) from the National Association of State Budget Officers for “advancing budget transparency through the creation of a

Jackie Siedlecki Murphy Delmar, N.Y. jaclynrenemurphy@gmail.com

2009 CLASS CORRESPONDENTS

Gabe Kramer Los Angeles, Calif. kramerg3@gmail.com Carl S. Winkler New York, N.Y. carl.s.winkler@gmail.com

2012 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Anna Meiring Boston, Mass. annameiring@gmail.com

2013 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Cristina Vazzana Boston, Mass. vazzanaca@gmail.com

Chetna Prasad, Max Willinger, Max Roehmholdt and Wayne Fu—all members of the Class of 2015—graduated from Albany Medical College in May 2019.

Jordan Pulling writes, “I graduated with my master of landscape architecture from SUNY ESF in 2019, and am working as a landscape designer in the Boston, Mass. area.”

Tess Koman recently penned a piece for ELLE magazine about what it’s been like living apart from her husband, Dr. Michael

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CLASS NOTES

U ARRIVALS

2016 CLASS CORRESPONDENT

Lauren Woods Watervliet, N.Y. 2016@alumni.union.edu

Alumni of the inaugural (and as of yet, only) Cuba miniterm of 2015 gathered virtually on May 20 to catch up, share stories and most importantly, to acknowledge the retirement of their fearless leader, Professor Teresa Meade. ¡Hasta mañana comandante!

The group gathered from various countries and time zones and included Dima Yankova (Targovishte, Bulgaria); Omololu Adeniran (Lagos, Nigeria); Chris Graff (Natick, Mass.); Nurisha Rodriguez (Selkirk, N.Y.); Brendan O’Connor ’17 (Andover, Mass.); Tony Wright ’17 (Boston, Mass.); Melissa Rodriguez ’16 (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) and Quisqueya Witbeck (Boston, Mass.).

Max Caplan was recently featured in the Times Union newspaper. The article focused on young musicians in the Capital District (N.Y.) who are finding success amid the pandemic. Max is the composer of the one-act opera “Aleda: The Flight of the Suff Birdwomen” that was commissioned and premiered two years ago by the Musicians of Ma’alwyck. He also collaborated with the group’s Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz on a three-minute duo for violin and piano, which they premiered online in June. Max works as a pianist/accompanist for Union College, Congregation Gates of Heaven in Niskayuna, and First Reformed Church in Schenectady.

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2018 Samantha St. Marie writes, “I recently became an enrolled agent. The tax credential, which is granted by the IRS, enables me to advise, represent and prepare tax returns for individuals and businesses. I am now working for Quill & Keyboard Accounting in Rutland, Vermont. In my current role, I perform regular accounting work, prepare tax returns and advise businesses.

As the firm expands, my responsibilities also include outreach to new clients. In two years, I will transition to become the sole owner of the business.”

In May, Cassie Call earned her master of arts in teaching from Quinnipiac University. She also has accepted a position to teach math at East Side High School in Newark, N.J., beginning in September. She is excited to finally start teaching in her own classroom!

2019 Marc Perlman writes, “I was recently published in In-Training, a journal with the goal of sharing the experiences of medical students and residents. My improv class at Union with Professor Culbert inspired the piece, which was about ‘Using Comedy to Tackle Issues of Isolation in Preclinical Curricula.’”

2020

Elizabeth Whitney ’20 holds a drawing of her great-grandfather, Reuben D. Head, Class of 1925 Daggett Prize winner.

William McIver ’74 holds a photograph of his father, Kenneth McIver, member of the V12 program and secretary of the Class of 1949. Elizabeth and William are family friends.

Harrison Moran Welsh (Welsh ’02)

Ryan Breakey ’04 and Emily (French) Breakey ’07 with their children, Catherine and Charlie.

2002 Jesse Welsh welcomed Harrison Moran Welsh on Nov. 3, 2019.

2004 Michelle Morgan (nee Latzoni) and her husband, James, welcomed their second child, a daughter, Violet Gwendoline Morgan, in October 2019.

They are loving life as a family of four, on top of adjusting to the west after moving from New York City to Utah for a career opportunity last summer.

Violet Gwendoline Morgan (Morgan ’04)

Lindsay (Cohen) Nakash ’05 with daughters Charlotte and Sophia

Levi Eklavya Garb (Garb ’06)

Kathryn Charlotte Brush (Brush ’08)

Laurel Marie Martel-Foley (Martel-Foley ’09)

Chimobi Ukanwa with big brother Chioke (Ukanwa ’10).

Alejandro Mathias (Dominguez-Salomon ’13) with Julius Barbanel, Union math professor emeritus and Posse advisor

2005

see often. They write, “Charlie, and his big sister, Catherine, have lots of playdates with the Union kiddos. Maybe someday they will all be Union graduates as well!”

nicknamed her Lolly after their favorite food—lollipops.

The family resides in Reading, Mass., and is grateful to have many Union friends (and their babies!) nearby.

2012

2008

2010

Liza (Turkel) Brush and Jesse Brush welcomed their daughter, Kathryn Charlotte Brush, July 2, 2020 in New York City. Katie joins big brother, Nathan Brush.

Alexandra (Dumitrescu) Ukanwa writes, “We welcomed our second son on June 18, 2020—Chimobi Ukanwa (his name translates from Igbo as ‘God knows the heart’).

Everyone is healthy and happy, learning to enjoy life as a family of four.” This year, Alex also graduated with a master’s in professional social work from the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

Lindsay (Cohen) Nakash and her husband, Brian Nakash, welcomed Sophia Claire Nakash in November 2019. She joins big sister, Charlotte (4).

2006 Colby Garb and his wife, Megha, welcomed baby Levi Eklavya Garb on Aug. 7, 2019.

2007 Ryan Breakey ’04 and Emily (French) Breakey welcomed their son, Charlie, on Sept. 30.

Emily and Ryan live in Charlestown, Mass., with many other Union alums who they

2009 Joe ’08 and Rosie Martel-Foley welcomed their third child, Laurel Marie, April 8, 2020. Big brothers Mo and Mackey

Philip Santo Scoville, Jr. (Scoville ’12)

Sean Aaron and Maria Normoyle welcomed their son, Séamus Fidler Patrick Aaron, Aug. 31, 2019. The happy family resides in Bentleigh, Victoria, Australia.

Phil and Alicia Scoville write, “We are thrilled to announce the birth of a possible future Dutchman!” Philip Santo Scoville, Jr. was born July 5, 2020.

2013 Melanny Dominguez-Salomon and Pedro Salomon welcomed a baby boy in October 2019, named Alejandro Mathias.

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U UNIONS

’15 Alumni attend the wedding of Kirk Seaman ’14 and Nell Pinkston ’15

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2010

’10

’10

’10

Alumni attend the wedding of Valerie (Angell) Lichtenthal ’10 and Brendan Lichtenthal ’12

Ewo Harrell ’10 and Henry Adams

Valerie (Angell) Lichtenthal and Brendan Lichtenthal ’12 were married April 13, 2019. Guests included Kyle Anderson ’12, Megan Belair ’09, Sean Belair ’09, Ross Bennet ’08, Nick Blanchard, Erin Bligh, Dave Brown, Ben Cote, Mike DeWolfe ’12, Stephen Dusel ’12, Andrea Fan ’13, Pat Fan ’12, Josh Gayer ’08, Ben Gurlitz ’12, Tyler Kelly ’12, Scott Loitherstein ’08, Danielle Mendiola ’11, Conor O’Reilly, Samantha O’Reilly, Anne Reiser ’11, Ken Reiser ’12, Zachary Rittner ’12, Christi Ross’11, John Russell ’11, Ian Schwartz ’12, Jordan Schellens ’09, Win Schellens ’07, Benjamin Sims ’11 and Dave Swift ’08.

Ewo Harrell married Henry Adams (Stanford University ’07, Ph.D. ’13) at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in Denver, Colo., on Aug. 17, 2019. Alumni in attendance included the bride’s father Donald Harrell ’75, Donald Jones ’73, Jared Gourrier, Rachel Dann, Katherine Rodman, Carley (Jacobson) Hart, Shanique (Kerr) Nikel, Ondrej Nikel, Kate (Morris) Kaplan, Yubin (Choi) Wong, Molly Head, Sam Ringel, Rachel Feingold, Adrian McLaren and Pete HavilandEduah.

Claire Chazen and Scott Sandler were married Oct. 26, 2019 at Migis Lodge in South Casco, Maine. Alumni in attendance included Lauren McCartney, Chuck Pappas ’11, Lizzy Rosen, Alec Rosen, Briana Cincotta, Gillian Russo, Meredith Scaplen, Andrew Scaplen ’09, Richard Gross ’72 (bride’s uncle), Katrina Schellens and Jamie Schellens.

Alumni at the wedding of Claire Chazen and Scott Sandler

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UNIONS

2012 Nancy Romero wed Max Needle Aug. 31, 2019. In attendance were Mike Ermias, Patricia Sanchez, Nathalie Marte, Jeff Kurzius ’69, Chandler Taylor, Gaby DeAndrade, Jimmy Duverseau, Steven Gavin and Elite Williams ’13.

’12

Alumni attend the wedding of Nancy Romero ’12 and Max Needle

Brittany and Brett Tessler were married March 7, 2020 in Miami, Fla. at the Miami Beach EDITION. Alumni in attendance included Ryan Dowling, Rusmir Dzanko, Phil Mendes, Anthony Pontosky, Will Fischer, Jonathan Goldberg, Brian Cannon, Jamie Carey, Chris Chiodo ’11, Katie Pontosky ’11 and Jim Clifford ’10.

2013

’12

Alumni attend the wedding of Brittany and Brett Tessler ’12.

Victoria Frisbee married Paul Boor May 25, 2019 in Schenectady, N.Y. Photos were taken at Union in Jackson’s Garden, where a current student gladly hopped into one of the photos after offering snacks to the very hungry wedding party. Alumni in attendance included Katie Murray, Kezia Lawler ’14, Betsy Schwartz, Nell Kruszynski and Ally Palleschi.

Julian Romero, Nate Haines, Kevin Grome, Kendall Allen, Emmanuel Fabre, Fernando Gomez ’14, Jeffrey Moreno and Jully Araujo attended the wedding of Melanny Dominguez and Pedro Salomon in Cartagena, Colombia. The couple celebrated two years of marriage this summer.

’13 62

Alumni attend the wedding of Victoria Frisbee ’13 and Paul Boor

UNION COLLEGE | FALL 2020

2014 Kiera Tormey and Evan States were married July 19, 2019 in Verona, N.Y., among close friends and family, including Preston and Danielle Thompson ’12, Hannah Kutil ’15 and Daniel Smith ’81 . They live in Columbus, Ohio, and are very busy chasing after their new puppy, Remy, a rambunctious Border Collie mix.

’13

’14

’15

2015 Alumni attend the wedding of Melanny Dominguez ’13 and Pedro Salomon ’13

Kiera Tormey ’14 and Evan States ’14

Liana Nunziato and Samuel Jones were married July 13, 2019 on top of Hunter Mountain in New York. Alumni in attendance included Robert “Matt” Lattanzi, Elvis Lara, John Volpe, Ashwin Basu ’16, Carson Keator, Brian Bidstrup, Morgan Rosen, Julianne (Quinn) Burns, William Burns, Abigail McNamee, Alvin Andino, Alexandra Walters, Nicholas Boncek ’14, Timothy Palace, Curtis Larsen ’14 and Carol (Spranger) Mason ’91.

Kirk Seaman ’14 and Nell Pinkston were married March 14, 2020. They write, “We skied down Ski Butternut in Great Barrington, Mass., to the altar and were married on the mountain. Our reception was at St. James Place, also in Great Barrington. We feel so incredibly fortunate to have celebrated with all of these wonderful people, and we are heartbroken to watch so many Union friends push their weddings to next year.” (Photo on page 60)

Alumni attend the wedding of Liana Nunziato ’15 and Samuel Jones ’15

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THE RAMÉE CIRCLE: Union’s Planned Giving Society rameecircle.org

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UNION COLLEGE | FALL 2020

Your planned gift provides a permanent source of support.

In 1978, C. Malcolm “Dusty” Rhoades ’35 thoughtfully included his alma mater in his will and estate planning.

With this gift, the Ramée Circle launched a new era for planned giving at Union.

Today, Union remains grateful when our loyal alumni continue the tradition of Dusty Rhoades.

In fiscal year 2019-2020, new commitments and 69 realized bequests helped the Ramée Circle grow to nearly $9,155,000. The Ramée Circle is named in honor of Joseph-Jacques Ramée—the architect whose designs made Union the first planned American campus.

“A Union education provided our family with the ideas, skills and perspectives to be thoughtful, effective local and global citizens functioning in a democracy.

Education is a foundation for the rest of your life. A Union education must remain available and accessible to all.

Our family’s gift will empower this access one student at a time.”

Margaret “Peg” Fuller ’74

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR T O M A K E A G I F T, P L E A S E CO N TAC T:

Steven Jo, Director, Gift Planning (518) 388-6156 (direct) | jos@union.edu

DONOR PROFILE

From left to right: Muriel Fuller Mills, granddaughter; Richard Mills, son-in-law, Robert M. Fuller ’49, Margaret “Peg” E. Fuller ’74, Alex Fuller Mills, grandson

Robert M. Fuller ’49

had lived a long and full life when he passed away at the age of 95 in November 2019. From Johnstown, N.Y., Robert first arrived on the Union College campus in 1942. He walked into the Admissions Office and asked for a scholarship.

Robert never forgot the scholarship he received, and included Union in his estate plans and will. His generosity to the Powering Union campaign will endow a scholarship in Geology. It will also create a research stipend for a female student in honor of the 50th anniversary of coeducation.

Robert’s gift reflects the immense value he placed on education, and his appreciation of the degree he earned at Union. The first person in his family to graduate from college, he made sure his children and grandchildren had the same opportunity.

His daughter, Margaret “Peg” Fuller ’74, was a member of Union’s first coed class. Though she was a psychology major, Peg found her home in the Modern Languages department. She had William “Bill” Thomas for senior French seminar and went on the study abroad term in France with Paul LeClerc. Both instructors were hugely supportive and influential.

She went on to earn an M.A. in educational psychology.

To learn more about the Fuller family, or to share your family’s legacy, visit rameecircle.org

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8 As this calendar year draws to a close…

IN MEMORIAM

8 1930s Marvin Katz ’37, of Pittsburgh, Penn., who held a doctor of law degree from Columbia University, June 25, 2020.

Senior vice president and general counsel at Goody Products Inc. (Kearney, N.J.), he was also on the board of directors. After retirement, Marvin was an active member and president of his local branch of SCORE, formerly the Service Corps of Retired Executives. Also a member of Beth Tephilah Synagogue in Troy and a former member of Temple Emanuel and Temple Beth Israel, both in New Jersey, he was 103.

A year-end gift to Union College may enable you to take advantage of significant new tax benefits introduced by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. For example, if you itemize deductions on your 2020 federal income tax return, you can take a charitable deduction for cash gifts up to 100 percent of your adjusted gross income—a significant increase from the previous limit.

If you do not itemize, the CARES Act permits you to make and deduct charitable gifts up to $300 per tax return.

For individuals with a birthday on or before June 30, 1949: While the CARES Act waives required minimum distributions (RMDs) for the calendar year 2020, a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from your individual retirement account (IRA) may offset all or part of the taxable income from your IRA’s RMD.

T O L E A R N M O R E , visit rameecircle.org

or contact Steven Jo, director of gift planning at (267) 797-4342 (direct) or jos@union.edu

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1940s A. Noble McCartney ’41, of McLean, Va., July 14, 2020. He was 102.

John A. Walsh III ’49, of Lititz, Penn., who spent his career at AMICA Insurance and was a devout Roman Catholic and member of St. John Neumann Catholic Church, April 7, 2020. A volunteer at BookSavers in Ephrata, part of the Mennonite Central Committee Organization, Jerry was 91.

1950s Dr. Dirk Romeyn ’50, of Montpelier, Vt., who served in the U.S. Army as a military police officer in Germany during the Korean Conflict, April 27, 2020. A graduate of Tufts University who went on to earn an M.D. from Boston University School of Medicine, he practiced at Central Vermont Hospital. Dirk was an active member of his community and the Christ Episcopal Church, and was a lifelong Red Sox fan.

He was 92.

William G. Wilkie ’50, of Dallas, Texas, who served with the 504th parachute infantry during World War II and was a civil engineer, July 14, 2020. During his career, he worked for the City of Schenectady, the New York State Health Department and the Department of Environmental Conservation. A member of the Bellevue Reformed Church and Lynnwood Reformed Church, he was also a member of the Rotterdam Masonic Lodge and the OFC. He was 95.

George E. Martin ’52, of Hillsborough, N.C., and formerly of New Britain, Conn., who served in the U.S. Army and worked in the hardware division of the Stanley Works, where he retired as manager of special projects, March 11, 2020. Active in his community, George volunteered with the United Way, the First Church of Christ, Junior Achievement, the Red Cross and the New Britain Museum of American Art. A longtime member of a local singing group, he was 89.

Joseph J. Gardeski Jr. ’51, of Closter, N.J., who served in the Army Corps of Engineers in Korea, Aug. 15, 2019. A business executive in the construction industry, Joe spent more than 40 years building roads, bridges and highways in the northeastern United States. Active in his community, he volunteered with the Knights of Columbus, Boy Scout Troop 63, the Closter Swim Club and St. Mary RC Church. He was 89.

Allen C. Braemer ’52, of Bend, Ore., who graduated from Cornell Veterinary College before going into infectious disease research, June 24, 2020. Allen, who worked at Sterling Drug Company and Norwich Pharmacol, later started the chemotherapy and vaccine research program at Syntex Research in California.

In retirement, he consulted with the Oregon State University Health Sciences Division and worked to get Sunriver a library of its own. Allen also helped develop the Sunriver Service District and was treasurer of Sunriver Citizen’s Patrol.

A member of Sunriver Christian Fellowship, he was 90.

Isak V. Gerson ’52, of Chicago, Ill., who designed welding systems (some used in the Apollo mission) and escaped from Nazi-controlled Greece with his family, April 19, 2020. Isak, who held a master’s degree in engineering from Princeton University, was an electrical engineer with Sciaky Brothers. A major supporter of the Oriental Institute and the Art Institute, where he was instrumental in founding the Classical Arts Society, he was 90.

Bernadotte P. Lester Jr. ’52, of Pasadena, Calif., who held an M.B.A. from Stanford University and had a 60-year career as an investment banker, Feb. 17, 2020. First employed with Lester Ryons Company, he later retired from Crowell Weedon & Company. A member of the University Club of Los Angeles, the California Club and the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, he enjoyed tennis and travel. He was 90.

Theodore G. Caldes ’53, of Albany, N.Y., who served in the U.S. Navy abroad the U.S.S. Alcor and graduated from Albany Law School, April 28, 2020. Ted, who practiced for over 50 years in Albany, Rensselaer and Columbia counties, worked for many years in the office of Zweig and Caldes (Nassau). Eventually specializing in estate planning and real estate matters, he was an excellent cook who was proud of his Greek heritage and relished serving Greek dishes. A baseball fan who played in the Albany Twilight League, he was 82.

Robert M. Lea ’53, of Egremont, Mass., who held a doctorate in physics from Yale University and conducted research at Brookhaven National Laboratory, June 1, 2020. Later, he had a long career as a physics professor at the City College of the City University of New York. Bob enjoyed tennis, gardening and sailing.

He was 88.

Ralph A. Caruso Jr. ’53, of Glenville, N.Y., who graduated from Florida Southern College and served in the U.S. Navy aboard the U.S.S. Tweety, May 2, 2020.

A computer specialist for GE and Honeywell early in his career, he later was a computer consultant with Arizona’s Maricopa County, Amsterdam Printing Company and CLT. Ralph, who was a door monitor at a Scotia elementary school during retirement, enjoyed music and sports, and was passionate about baseball.

He spent many evenings and weekends umpiring. He was 87.

Ross L. Saddlemire ’54, of Port Jefferson, N.Y., who served in the U.S. Air Force and the National Air Guard, and from 1959-1992 was a captain with American Airlines, April 26, 2020. Manager of operations for American out of LaGuardia and Kennedy airports for 33 years, he also worked for Pan Am International Flight Academy as an instructor and was a flight operations safety manager for the Federal Aviation Administration. Ross, who at one time served as mayor of Nissequogue, was a volunteer firefighter and deacon at the Smithtown Presbyterian Church. He was 87.

Rev. Francis E. Turpin ’54, of Madison, Wis., who held a master of divinity from Andover Newton Theological School, June 9, 2020. He ministered at Gaylord Community Church and Cambridge Congregational UCC Church before

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IN MEMORIAM

becoming pastor at the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Athens, Mich. Later, he spent 20 years as pastor of Emanuel’s United Church of Christ in Holgate, Ohio. An avid reader who enjoyed playing the recorder and signing in the choir, he also enjoyed woodworking and photography. He was 87.

Stephen Stott ’54, of Rochester, N.Y., who served in the U.S. Army and began his career in electrical engineering at General Dynamics, Feb. 16, 2020. He went on to work at Stromberg Carlson and Eastman Kodak, from which he retired. He was an avid sports fan and loved to follow the achievements of the Union hockey team.

More than anything, he loved to spend time with his family. He had two daughters and five grandchildren. He was 88.

Dr. Frederick W. Richartz ’55, of Stonington, Conn., who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine and served at the U.S. Army base in Bad Kreuznach, July 6, 2020. A sole practitioner before helping found the Mystic Dental Group, he was a voracious reader and enthusiastic birdwatcher who enjoyed golfing, skiing, fishing, sailing, traveling and Formula One racing. He was 87.

Rupert Huse ’56, of Greenville, S.C., who served in the U.S. Army Reserves and had a long career with the N.Y. Telephone Company, May 2, 2020. He enjoyed sailing, surfing, volleyball, golf and travel, and was dedicated to philanthropy at Union College, and with the Furman Olli Program, Greenville Humane Society and United Ministries. Rupert, who earned the decathlon title on Union’s swim team his senior year, also served in the campus ROTC. He was 84.

George P. Wodarzak ’56, of Plantation, Fla., who served in the U.S. Air Force and retired after 22 years as a lieutenant colonel, June 1, 2020. Later an assistant director in public works and construction

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management for Broward County for 18 years, he was a fan of the Miami Hurricanes, Miami Dolphins and Miami Heat. He enjoyed golfing, reading, all genres of music and was an excellent drummer.

He was 86.

Dr. Peter I. Jatlow ’57, of New Haven, Conn., a professor emeritus and senior research scientist in the departments of laboratory medicine and psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine, May 18, 2020. Chair of the department of laboratory medicine from 1984 until 2006, Peter published some of the earliest studies of the clinical pharmacology and the pharmacokinetics of cocaine. A fellow of the American Institute for the Advancement of Science, he authored more than 100 publications and received numerous honors. Also a dedicated and valued supporter of Union College, he held an M.D. from State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center. He was 84.

James H. Templeton ’57, of Queensbury, N.Y., who served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and was a communicant of Third Reformed Church in Albany, June 2, 2020. James enjoyed a long career with Home and City Savings Bank, starting as a file clerk and working his way up to vice president. He was 90.

Theodore Wilklow ’57, of Endwell, N.Y., who held a master’s degree in mathematics from Binghamton University and worked at Amphenol in Sidney, June 24, 2020. He spent three decades with Amphenol, rising from junior engineer to director of engineering. Active in his community, Theodore volunteered with Cub Scouts, Sidney Hospital Board, Sidney Library Board, Delaware County Historical Association Board, the United Way of Sidney and the residents council at Good Shepherd Village. He was 84.

Morton Ruden ’58, of Westport, Conn., who graduated from New York University

Law School and was a respected real estate attorney, Oct. 10, 2019. A partner with the Bridgeport-based firm Cohen & Wolf, he later opened his own practice in Westport. Named to as a Top 100 Lawyer by both Connecticut Magazine and New York Magazine, he was an active member of the Union Alumni Council. Mort enjoyed tennis, photography, traveling and reading (particularly history and philosophy novels

by Ward Just and Alan Furst). A loyal New York Giants fan, he was 82.

William Eckerline ’58, of San Jose, Calif., who worked for the U.S. Army Signal Corps., May 28, 2020. Bill later worked at GTE Government Systems for 24 years, before retiring as an engineering manager.

He was 84.

Raymond C. Shaw ’58, of Binghamton, N.Y., who served in the U.S. Coast Guard and spent 30 years as an operations manager with AT&T, July 10, 2020. A tour bus driver for Coach USA after retiring from AT&T, he was an avid swimmer, water-skier and golfer who enjoyed coaching youth sports and officiating basketball and softball games. An active member of the Hill Crest Rotary Club and recipient of the Paul Harris Fellow Award, he was 89.

Thomas J.F. Ordon ’58, of Skaneateles, N.Y., who was a professional engineer for 30 years with National Grid and was an adjunct professor at Bryant & Stratton and OCC, July 10, 2020. He was very involved in his hobby of amateur radio (W20LH) and a devoted member of St. Mary’s of the Lake Church. He was 83.

Kenneth O. Hasson ’59, of Johnson City, Tenn., who held a Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville) and for 25 years was a geology professor at East Tennessee State University, May 21, 2020.

Ken, who founded Franken Frames, a professional picture framing manufacturing company, published many papers on geology. A talented woodworker who

8 built bridges and staircases, he was passionate about gardening. He was 83.

STUART “STU” COHEN ’61

1960s Paul R. Wiesner ’60, of Madison, Conn., who served in the National Guard and enjoyed a 45-year career in the banking and commercial lending industry, May 9, 2020. Paul served on the board of directors for the Easter Seals and Goodwill Industries Rehabilitation Center (19731985) and was chairman from 1983-1985.

Also a member of the board of directors of the AIDS Interfaith Network, he had a passion for antique collecting and loved gardening, cooking and spending time with family and friends. He was 81.

William H. Intemann Jr. ’60, of Southgate, Mich., who served with the U.S Army in the Korean War and graduated from Albany Law School, June 26, 2020. A member of the New York State Bar, he practiced in Hamilton County, N.Y., and held the office of Hamilton County district attorney for many years. Later elected to the Hamilton County Family and Surrogate Court, he was 85.

Anthony Alworth ’61, of Blairstown, N.J., who worked for his father’s contracting company and later succeeded him as owner, April 2, 2020. Dedicated to his children and family, Tony served faithfully in the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints and enjoyed sailing, fishing and spending time on Cape Cod. A pillar of the Brewster Park Club, he liked building model ships. He was 82.

Robert J. Galvin ’61, of Brookline, Mass., who was editor-in-chief of Concordiensis and a member of Kappa Nu at Union before graduating from Suffolk University Law School, May 27, 2020. A shareholder/ director of the firm Davis, Malm & D’Agostine, Bob was an expert in real estate law and a member of the American, Massachusetts and Boston bar associa-

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tuart Edmund Cohen ’61 of Niskayuna, a certified public accountant who lent his professional expertise to the Alumni Council and was a longtime associate agent for the Annual Fund and a ReUnion volunteer, passed away on July 27, 2020. He was 80.

A Schenectady native who graduated from Nott Terrace High School, he earned his A.B. in economics from Union, where he was a member of Kappa Nu fraternity, Concordiensis and the wrestling team.

After Union, Stu earned a graduate degree from Siena College, and served in the N.Y. Army National Guard from 1963 to 1969.

Early in his career he worked in the family-run Henry Cohen Furniture Company in Schenectady.

In 1972, he became a certified public accountant and practiced as a sole proprietor for most of his career.

He received both the Special Appreciation Award and Alumni Gold Medal for service to Union College and the Alumni Council.

He served on various not-for-profit boards and synagogue committees at Congregation Agudat Achim. He was a long-time member of Shaker Ridge Country Club and was very proud of his title as longest-standing member. He was a life member of the American Institute of CPAs and the New York State Society of CPAs. He was married to the late Carole Lois Freedman.

Union relatives included his father, the late Nathan Cohen ’30 and his uncle, the late Edward Cohen ’31.

Survivors include his daughter, Nina Swierczewski, and brother, Richard Cohen ’65.

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tions. Editor and co-author of the Massachusetts Condominium Law textbook, he was active in his community.

He spent 25 years on the board of directors of the Boston Center for Adult Education and 30 years as president of Beech Hill Foundation Inc. He was 81.

Arnold R. Klappas ’61, of Nanuet, N.Y., who graduated with a dual degree in economics and electrical engineering, July 10, 2020.

He had an extensive career with AT&T in the global manufacturing and engineering division, from which he retired as director of environment and safety operations after 35 years. A voracious reader, theater lover and daily devotee of the New York Times crossword, Arky liked dogs, the Yankees, golf and the UConn women’s basketball team. He was 81.

Robert L. Gunshor G’62, of Hyannis, Mass., who was a scientist and professor for 31 years at Purdue University, and held a B.E.E. from New York University, an M.S.E. from Union College and a Ph.D. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (all in electrical engineering), April 6, 2020. The winner of 69 research grants, he published 237 journal articles and was one of the world’s leading authorities on II-VI compound semiconductors. A fellow of several professional societies, he was Purdue’s Thomas Duncan Distinguished Professor of Microelectronics and a recipient of its Sigma Xi Faculty Research Award. He was 84.

Kenneth C. Kessler ’63, of Schenectady, N.Y., who attended Rutgers University for graduate studies and operated a private accounting practice in Amsterdam, N.Y., for 35 years, May 2, 2020. Ken, who once ran a 67-acre sheep farm and had a collection of over 5,000 pieces of hammered aluminum and 70 string instruments, played fiddle, violin and mandolin. Music was a fundamental part of his life and he spent many summers playing at violin camps and Bluegrass festivals. He was 78.

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Gordon F. Puls ’63, of Green, Ohio, who held master’s degrees from Fredonia State University and Edinboro State University, April 16, 2020. He taught geometry at Southwestern Central High School before working at Alliance High School. Gordon, who retired as a vocational guidance counselor, enjoyed fly-fishing and big game hunting. He was 79.

Gary W. Conrad ’63, of Bar Harbor, Maine, July 1, 2020. Guided by Union College Professor Dr. Raymond Rappaport to a career in academic research, Gary earned a Ph.D. from Yale University. He taught and conducted research on the mechanisms of cytokinesis and the development and innervation of the cornea at Kansas State University (Manhattan, Kan.) and the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (Salisbury Cove, Maine) from 1970-2014.

Upon retirement, he and his wife moved to Mount Desert Island, where he enjoyed volunteering in Acadia National Park and honing his guitar/harmonica skills with the island music community. He was 79.

Clayton A. Dyer G’64, of Scarborough, Maine, who served in the U.S. Air Force and held a B.S. from the University of Maine, Orono, and an M.S. from Union College, April 7, 2020. He taught biology at South Portland High School for 29 years and was director of the school’s driver education program for 10 years.

The recipient of the National Association of Biology Teachers Maine Biology Teacher of Year Award (1969), he was a licensed arborist who enjoyed gardening and coaching and umpiring Little League and Senior League baseball. He was 85.

Richard C. Johnson ’66, of Latham, N.Y., and Largo, Fla., who owned All Seasons Tree Service and was a member of the American Society of Consulting Arborists, Oct. 12, 2019. Past president and 50-year member of the Latham Rotary Club, he was a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow. Richard was a great lover of the outdoors who enjoyed walking in the

woods and duck and turkey hunting. He was 77.

Robert K. McAdams ’67, of Venice, Fla., June 2, 2020. He was 75.

Joseph A. Maciariello G ’67, of Claremont, Calif., who attended Bryant College before earning an M.S. in industrial administration from Union College and a Ph.D. in economics from NYU, July 3, 2020. He was a professor at Claremont McKenna College and Claremont Graduate School for 25 years before he joined the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University, retiring in 2013.

Active with the Shao Foundation and the California Institute of Advanced Management, the latter honored him with the creation of the Joseph A. Maciariello Institute of Management as a Liberal Art. He was 78.

Robert Zentz G’68, of Schenectady, N.Y., who held a B.S. from SUNY Brockport and a master’s from Union College, and taught science at Schalmont Central Schools for 34 years, May 9, 2020. Bob, also an adjunct professor at the College of St. Rose, was a park ranger for N.Y.S. Parks and Recreation and an administrator at Youth Conservation Corp. The JV and varsity soccer coach at Schalmont for many years, he was an avid singer and member of the Galway Players. Also a member of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church (Glenville), he was 81.

John W. Cebula ’68, of Castile, N.Y., who attended Albany Law School and was the longtime managing attorney for Oak Orchard Legal Services in Orleans, Genesee and Wyoming counties, May 13, 2020. A champion for the poor and migrant workers, he was a former president of the Swan Library Association and supporter of Ministry of Concern and Orleans Community Action. John, who enjoyed golfing, fishing and spending time with his grandchildren, was 73.

Alexander E. Gelston ’68, of Skaneateles, N.Y., who earned a BSME from Union before earning an MBA from Syracuse University, July 5, 2020. Later a designer of Drill Detection Systems, he held 75 patents for early drill detection. Also CEO of U.S. Tech Engineering in East Syracuse, he had a second career in Techno Thriller Books. A member of Delta Chi fraternity, he was 74.

Marianne E. O’Callaghan ’69, of Lake Worth, Fla., who graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude from Union College, June 27, 2020. An art teacher for 35 years in Schenectady, N.Y., she moved to Jensen Beach in 2007, where she was a substitute teacher at Jensen Beach High School. She was 79.

1970s Robert G. Forbes ’71, of Vienna, Va., who worked for James V. Hurson Associates from 1973 until his death, July 11, 20202.

Active in his community, he was president and CEO of Vienna Youth Incorporated for nearly 20 years. He oversaw major facility improvements and hundreds of thousands of dollars provided to student athletes in scholarship awards. He was 70.

Edward Bartholomew ’71, of Glens Falls, N.Y., who was president of the Economic Development Corporation of Warren County and a graduate of Albany Law School, July 21, 2020. Edward, who also served two terms as mayor of Glens Falls, recently led the effort to secure $10 million in downtown revitalization funds for the city. The leader of the economic development corporation since 2010, his law practice focused on municipal, school, planning, zoning and real estate.

He was 70.

Bonnie Joyce Dorton Greeson G’73, of Lexington, Ky., an educator at a number of high schools in Kentucky, New York, Virginia and Georgia, and who earned a

master’s degree in education with a specialization in geology from Union, Aug. 10, 2020. An active community volunteer, she served a number of churches and volunteered at Albany Medical Center and Prince William Hospital in Manassas, Va. She was 78.

Kenneth J. Grey ’74, of Glenville, N.Y., who retired in 2010 after spending 35 years as a code enforcement officer with the City of Schenectady, May 15, 2020. An All-American football player and member of Chi Psi fraternity at Union College, he was an avid sailor who participated in the Shark National Regatta on Canandaigua Lake. He also enjoyed sailing on Galway Lake and was a Union hockey and football fan. He was 68.

Barbara Carmody ’75, of Spring Lake, N.J., who rose to partner and client manager at Sibson & Company and served clients like Vanguard, Chase and New York Life, March 30, 2020. She held a master’s in public policy from Northwestern University, was always interested in politics and started a tutoring program at the Boys and Girls Club (Asbury Park). Also named to the City of Worcester (Mass.) town planning board, she was gifted writer and listener. She was 66.

Dean R. Walter ’76, of Newtown, Conn., who was a pioneer of the first health maintenance organizations (HMO) in the U.S. while working with the National Institutes of Health, July 12, 2020. Later, he helped establish HMO and PPO networks with Humana and Cigna, and for the past decade sold arts, antiques and other collectibles throughout the northeast. Dean, who held a master’s degree in public health administration from American University, volunteered with charitable groups that served the poor when he lived in the Philadelphia area. He was 65.

Almer B. Baker Jr. G’78, of Latham, N.Y., who taught mathematics in Port Jervis for

five years before spending 23 years with Brittonkill Central Schools, where he was head of the math department, May 10, 2020. A self-employed contractor during retirement, he held a master’s in math from Union College and served during World War II with the 25th Weather Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Corps. He was an elder of the Loudonville Community Church, where he served in many capacities, and was also a member of the Albany Camp of The Gideons International. He was 96.

1980s James J. Chanen G’80, of Pittsfield, Mass., who held a B.A. from UMass Amherst and an M.S. in systems analysis from Union College, July 19, 2020. Jim, who worked for General Electric for over 20 years and served in the Coast Guard Reserve, also worked on office systems and taught physics at St. Joseph High School during retirement. He enjoyed crackers and cheese and a good Manhattan, as well as trying out new recipes and exploring food.

He was 80.

Bradley E. Wahl ’82, of Atlanta, Ga., who held a J.D. from Vanderbilt Law School, July 21, 2020. Brad spent most of his professional career at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, where he became a leader in the commercial finance group.

He enjoyed the simple things in life, like watching Premier League soccer and Formula One, attending golf tournaments, playing “old man” hockey, traveling with Jennifer, vacationing at the beach, and reading biographies of historical figures.

He was 60.

John K. Mills ’86, of Hampton Township, Penn., who was an associate vice president of product development for UPMC Health Plan, July 19, 2020. His career also included work for Emblem Health and as a legislative director for Rep. Elliot Engel. The co-founder of eCareDi-

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ary, he held a master’s from Georgetown University and served as Hampton Township district democratic leader since 2016. A member of Saint Paul’s United Methodist Church who coached his sons’ T-ball and basketball teams, he was 56.

Frederick J. Kirschenheiter II ’87, of Liverpool, N.Y., who rose to the position of senior vice president at Blasland, Bouck and Lee (which merged with Arcadis) and spent 30 years with the company, April 29, 2020. A member of the National Society of Professional Engineers and the NYS Society of Professional Engineers, he loved taking care of his home, family and anyone who needed help. Fred enjoyed music and was a drummer with Bodies in Motion, Net Weight, Global Riff and Moonpies. Also an avid fan of the New York Giants and Yankees, he was 55.

Duane E. Lindsey ’87, of Raleigh, N.C., who earned a master’s degree in computer science from Union College, July 5, 2020.

He spent most of his career with IBM until the product line he worked on was sold to Genesys, from which he retired. He was 66.

Alan H. Hodges ’88, of Birdsboro, Penn., who was a research scientist and senior research investigator at Sanofi Aventis for many years, May 27, 2020. He valued time spent with family and was caring, supportive, thoughtful and kind. He was 61.

1990s Betsy Rothstein ’92, of Washington, D.C., who earned a master’s degree from the journalism school at Northwestern University, June 28, 2020. A well-known gossip blogger at The Daily Caller, she previously spent a decade on Capitol Hill as editor of the gossip blog, FishbowlDC. She had run The Mirror blog at The Daily Caller since October 2013. Betsy had also worked as a business reporter at Boca Raton News and briefly as a press secretary for a democratic Florida representative. She was 50.

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Friends of Union College John R. Lewis, a towering figure in the civil rights movement and longtime U.S. congressman, July 17, 2020. A Democrat who served as the representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District for more than three decades, he was the keynote speaker at Union College’s Commencement ceremony in 2013. He received an honorary doctor of laws degree. He was 80.

Leatrice Mendelson, of New York, N.Y., who taught at Union College, McMaster University and SUNY New Paltz, Jan. 31, 2020. Leatrice, who attended Vassar College and the Institute of Fine Arts and held a Ph.D. in art history, specialized in the Italian Renaissance. Her book, Paragoni, is a classic in the field. She was 83.

Donald W. Boyd, of Laramie, Wyo., who served in the U.S. Army and taught at Union College before joining the University of Wyoming, April 8, 2020. He held a B.S. from Ohio State University and a doctor of philosophy from Columbia University, both in geology. The recipient of several awards, including the University of Wyoming Trustees Award for Merit and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Grover E. Murray Memorial Distinguished Educated Award, he was 92.

Warren C. Kennedy, of Feura Bush, N.Y., who held academic positions at Union College and RPI, scientific posts at Westinghouse Laboratories, civilian-military posts at Electric Boat and governmental assignments at N.Y.S. Department of Transportation, May 5, 2020. He earned a B.S. from the University of Pittsburgh, an M.S. from Carnegie Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. from Carnegie Melon University—all in mechanical engineering.

An avid reader and musician, Warren composed and arranged music. He was a tuba and euphonium player in several community ensembles. He was 79.

Sandra M. Geraci, of Schenectady, N.Y., who was a secretary with General Electric for several years before becoming an administrative assistant in the Union College Economics Department, May 14, 2020. Sandra, who held an associate’s degree from Boston University, retired from Union in 1995. She loved her family, music, dancing, gardening and traveling.

She was 89.

David L. Herrington, head coach of cross country and track and field at the College from 1989 to 1993, who also coached at Hartwick College and the University at Albany, Aug. 19, 2020. He also served as a certified financial planner for 25 years. In retirement, he relocated to Albert Lea, Minn., where he served as a volunteer coach for the Albert Lea High School track and field team and developed a children’s track and field program at the Albert Lea YMCA. He was 71. Survivors include his wife, Kathie Herrington, who retired as administrative assistant in visual arts.

GOLD G R A D UAT E S O F T H E L A S T D E C A D E From the day you graduate until your 10-year commencement anniversary, you are automatically a member of GOLD. The GOLD Network fosters engagement through social events, networking opportunities and volunteer activities, and encourages philanthropic support among young alumni.

JO RDAN GOLDMAN ’ 1 1

GOLD Committee Co-Chair Paul Hastings LLP, corporate associate “I’m active in the Alumni Club of New York City and I’m a member of the Alumni Council. I choose to support Union because it’s where I made lifelong friendships. It’s the setting for countless happy memories, and I want to give back to an institution that gave me so much. Staying involved is how I can give back.”

K ATE F O LE Y ’1 3

GOLD Committee Co-Chair Vineyard Vines, designer of women’s wear/jewelry collections “Union is not just the name of our school, but also a symbol of differences coming together to make something better. I’ve always considered Union part of my family and something I should support.

Some would even say it’s in my blood. My dad graduated in 1973 and my older brother graduated in 2010. I choose to give back so that students, professors and staff are able to have the amazing experiences that I had and, potentially even better ones!”

QUIS QUE YA W IT B E C K ’1 6

GOLD Terrace Council (TC) Chair Northeastern University, writing consultant “I volunteer with the Alumni Club of Boston and I am a member of the Alumni Council, the head class agent for the Class of 2016 and a volunteer for Admissions. I choose to give to Union because it is a school that has prioritized possibility over perfection and does so better than other institutions of higher education that I have encountered.”

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE GOLD NETWORK,

visit ualumni.union.edu/gold or contact: Samantha Coons, Assistant Director of Young Alumni Engagement coonss@union.edu

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The control board at WRUC. See story inside on the centennial of Union College radio.