Utica Magazine - Fall/Winter 2020

A MAGAZINE OF UTICA COLLEGE FALL/WINTER 2020

Heartache and Hope Amid a global crisis, members of UC’s Class of 2020 find ways to celebrate their accomplishments— and their future.

Leading the Way: Inside UC’s Successful COVID-19 Response Pioneers on the Front Lines | Honor Roll of Donors

FIRST WORDS Letter from the Editor On Looking for the Light

“Are you sure you want to see this?” he’d ask.

In mid-April, I got a much-needed wake-up call from Nick Hallett ’18.

Like nothing I’d read or seen on the news, Nick’s stories made it clear: the virus was unpredictable, unprecedented, and utterly devastating.

Then nearly six weeks into New York’s stay-at-home order, I had begun to associate the COVID-19 pandemic with docuseries on Netflix, working from home in pajamas, and the endless struggle to entertain my wild child three-year-old.

But after my hours-long interview with Nick, an ICU nurse outside New York City, I emerged from our guest bedroom (my “office”) looking so stricken and teary-eyed that my husband gasped.

Nick, a 2018 nursing grad, had just quit his job as a cardiac nurse at Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse to join the COVID response at a hospital downstate. In his six weeks on the job, Hallett had been working in a makeshift ICU, one of nine such units in the crowded COVID-only hospital, including one in the former cafeteria.

Nick told me, in grim and vivid detail, about the heartbreaking calculation nurses were making each time a patient coded, since performing chest compressions exponentially increased the risk of virus transmission. The FaceTime calls he’d had to make to a dying patient’s loved ones—the only safe way for them to say goodbye. The warning he’d give to grieving families before he turned the phone on his patient. How the image of their swollen, barely recognizable father or sister or spouse prone in a hospital bed might never leave their memories.

Cocooned in my lazy quarantine bubble with my family, it was just the reality check I needed.

But more shocking than the details Nick shared was his ability to stay positive through it all. As we talked on his day off, Nick laughed with me about the “dumb stuff” he was watching on Netflix. And sardonically, the Facebook posts we’d both seen loudly declaring the virus a “hoax.”

Perhaps it’s a quality inherent to the nursing profession—the tendency to see the good in the darkest of crises.

“We are discharging patients,” he emphasized. “People are getting better.”

In this issue, in some small way, I hope you’ll find that same balance of stark reality and positivity through stories of UC students and alumni on the literal front lines of the pandemic, the inspiring Class of 2020, and alumni turning the struggle for racial justice into action—all who are finding the light in this dark time.

As always, I’d love to hear how you’re doing and what you think of this issue. Email me at uticamag@utica.edu Mary Donofrio Editor

Utica College’s online programs allow students to access our exceptional academic programs and our accomplished faculty from anywhere in the world.

Learn from home — wherever home is for you.

With undergraduate degree programs, graduate degree programs, and certificate programs in the areas of business administration, criminal justice, cybersecurity, health professions, and more, Utica College fits your goals, your career, and your life.

Learn more at utica.edu/online

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FROM PRESIDENT LAURA CASAMENTO

Even in 2020, There’s Still Reason to Celebrate I hope this issue of Utica Magazine finds you and your loved ones healthy and safe.

More than eight months into this unprecedented global crisis, it still seems surreal to begin this letter with an update on our COVID-19 positive test rate—a phrase that I, and probably you, had never once uttered before March 2020.

While news on this front is good (thanks to weekly testing, our positivity rate remains below 0.2 percent—well below the national average), I would much rather these concerns never had made their way onto our collective radar.

Like many of you, I feel deep sadness and disappointment for everything our students have missed out on during this crisis, not least of which is the 2020 Commencement Ceremony we had planned for May. But, as you’ll see in these pages, there remains much to celebrate.

Our faculty and staff continue to do meaningful work both in the classroom and beyond. Our alumni, including the incredible Class of 2020, are achieving success in so many fields, including as frontline workers fighting COVID-19 and, quite literally, saving lives.

And most of all, our students, who have displayed remarkable strength, grace, and resilience, and continue to doggedly pursue their academic goals while navigating one of the most difficult periods in recent history.

As has been the case since March, we face myriad unknowns as a result of the pandemic. Until an effective vaccine has been developed and distributed, we can assume COVID-19 will continue to pose challenges, and Utica College will continue modify its plans and operations accordingly. (You can find more up-to-date information at utica.edu/covid-forward) For now, I hope you’ll join me in celebrating the positive stories coming out of Utica College in these challenging times. Like never before, it’s clear to me—and, I hope, to you—that the Pioneer spirit is alive and well.

Sincerely,

Laura Casamento President

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“Our students continue to doggedly pursue their academic goals while navigating one of the most difficult periods in recent history.”

CONTENTS 5

Everyday Pioneers

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Around Campus

12 Athletics FEATURES 14

A Ripple of Hope Black Alumni Association President Shanelle Gabriel ’06 on the power of representation, mentorship, and supporting current and future Pioneers.

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The Fight of Their Lives Alumni on the front lines of the pandemic share what they’re experiencing—and what they’ve learned.

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Here’s to You, Class of 2020 Student leaders from the Class of 2020 reflect on the strange and sudden end to their college experience and share their plans for the future.

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Alumni News

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Advancement Updates

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Class Notes

Editor Mary Donofrio Creative Director Kevin Waldron Senior Writers Joe Perry ’90 Kelly Adams ’00 Christine Leogrande ’81 David Dellecese Photography Jamie Callari Kevin Waldron Class Notes Editors Kim Landon ’75 Jared Stanley ‘21

Stay in Touch!

Send correspondence regarding Utica, address changes, and Class Notes to: Office of Alumni and Parent Relations Utica College 1600 Burrstone Road Utica, NY 13502-4892 Or call (800) 456-8278, (315) 792-3025 Or e-mail: uticamag@utica.edu

Utica is published twice a year, Fall and Spring, by the Office of Marketing and Communications: Kelly Adams, Vice President.

MEDAL OF HONOR Provost Todd Pfannestiel presents the salutatorian medal to Caleb Davisson G ’20, an MBA graduate and one of two salutatorians from the Class of 2020.

Cybersecurity graduate Adam Lyford ’20 was also named salutatorian.

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Everyday Pioneers:

Zackery Caporale ’21 By analyzing pages and pages of health data, biology student Zackery Caporale ’21 is searching for patterns that may unlock some of the mystery surrounding lung cancer.

For cancer researchers studying gene mutations and their role in certain cancers, the National Institutes of Health’s vast database of patient case files is arguably the most valuable resource in the search for a cure.

One of those researchers is UC biology student Zackery Caporale ’21.

With help from Assistant Professor of Biology Brandee Rockefeller, Caporale has spent the past several

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months combing through NIH’s patient case files looking for the specific gene mutations present in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, which accounts for about 80 percent of all lung cancer cases, according to the American Cancer Society.

“Specific mutations in the Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog, known as the KRAS gene, and Epidermal growth factor receptor, or EGFR, may serve as potential indicators of

developing lung cancers in patients with similar mutation types,” explains Caporale.

“Detecting these patterns could allow improved predictions of cancer development, and will eventually help us to determine more effective treatments for this type of lung cancer.”

Caporale, who plans to pursue medical school after graduating from UC, says he was inspired to study medicine and medical research after seeing the toll diseases like Alzheimer’s have taken on his own loved ones.

“I’ve always been interested in the study of life on a molecular level and the

development of diseases.

Understanding and discovering the functions of living systems allows me to see the world in a different way,” he says, “And when we have better insight into what causes various diseases, we’re closer to finding a cure.”

For Brandee Rockefeller, the benefit goes beyond having Caporale’s help in the lab.

“As a scientist, there is nothing better than getting students involved in your research,” she says. “There is nothing better than seeing a young scientist when things start to click and realizing ‘Wow, I’m doing something really big here.’”

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DISTANCE LEARNING Now the new normal, students in Professor Tom Crist’s physical therapy class abide by social distancing guidelines and wear masks to prevent transmission of COVID-19.

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AROUND CAMPUS

LEADING THE WAY— TOGETHER Utica College is a national leader among colleges and universities in its response to COVID-19

WHAT BEGAN AS A MYSTERIOUS RESPIRATORY ILLNESS IN WUHAN, CHINA, QUICKLY BECAME A MASSIVE INTERNATIONAL CRISIS, WITH FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF UTICA COLLEGE’S SPRING 2020 SEMESTER—AND SO MUCH MORE. During the summer of 2020, when some colleges made the decision to move fall instruction entirely online, Utica College’s senior leadership team, including President Laura Casamento and Vice President for Emergency Management Shad Crowe, were creating an exhaustive reopening plan to allow UC students to return to campus in the fall—safely and on schedule.

Announced in July, the UC Safe Plan included a comprehensive

screening, testing, tracing, and surveillance program in partnership with SUNY Upstate Medical University; a containment, isolation, and quarantine program that provides COVID-positive students with safe housing separate from our student body; a treatment and care protocol for COVID-positive students, providing access to Student Health Center medical providers at all times; campuswide safety upgrades including air filtration and UV light disinfectant systems, and much more (see the full plan at utica. edu/covid-forward).

When students arrived on campus for the Fall 2020 semester on August 17, they began the adjustment to a new version of campus life, which included mandatory mask-wearing, social distancing, and limits to large group gatherings, among many other changes.

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Our campus is still open because we have come together as a community to meet this historic challenge.”

But the efforts paid off. Within months, Utica College quickly emerged as a leader among colleges responding to the crisis.

In October, NPR reported only 6 percent of colleges in the nation are testing all students regularly for COVID-19. Utica College is among the select few, helping the College’s positivity rate remain well below the 5 percent positivity threshold required for in-person instruction to continue, as instituted by Governor Andrew Cuomo. At the Fall 2020 semester’s end, Utica College’s COVID-19 positivity rate was 0.2 percent.

“This did not happen by accident,” says President Casamento. “Our campus is still open because we have come together as a community to meet this historic challenge.

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Something to Talk About What students are saying about staying safe on campus

Weekly pooled testing, daily health screenings, and social distancing in hallways and classrooms became part of the routine— and helped Utica College keep its COVID-19 positivity rate well below the national average.

“This semester many of my professors had back-up plans and were prepared to go online if needed. I felt secure knowing that every one of them has my back. The new safety rules on campus, such as weekly testing and the new ID access swipes, help me feel safe, too. It makes it easier for contact tracing.”

Stephanie Gonzalez ’21

Utica College is one of only 6 percent of colleges nationwide routinely testing everyone on campus for COVID-19, according to NPR. UC was recently praised in the Wall Street Journal for being one of the first higher education institutions to install UV-C germicidal lighting, which “[provides] an important layer of protection against airborne illnesses.”

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“From the beginning of the pandemic, I knew UC prioritized the health of students, faculty, and staff. The weekly testing especially makes me feel safe because it’s a constant checkpoint. The guidelines around masks and social distancing are strict, but it is very reassuring to see everyone follow the rules to keep us all safe.”

Amari Abraham ’21 “UC has been keeping us updated and aware of everything going on not just on campus, but in our surrounding communities. They have made sure our procedures are communicated to our students so that everyone can do their part. I feel safe knowing they have taken every step possible to keep the virus under control.”

Emily Surace ’21

those pieces coming into the fall, we realized every single one of them would be essential for us to be successful.

UM: How would you describe the College’s planning and the execution of the response?

SC: Overall, we’ve done a remarkable job. But even with all the measures we’ve put in place, we rely heavily on the members of this community to be honest, forthright, selfless, and vigilant. It’s required a constant commitment on the part of every single individual on our campus.

UM: How do you think we’ve succeeded in completing the fall semester in person when so many other colleges and universities have fallen short of that goal?

Defender in Chief How UC’s Vice President of Emergency Management is leading the College’s response to the crisis of a lifetime Shad Crowe is no stranger to emergencies. Formerly the regional coordinator for the Special Operations Response Team for the New York State Police, Crowe, who arrived at UC in 2018, has helped lead the College’s response to COVID-19. He talked to us about the key components of UC’s successful approach.

Utica Magazine: You began preparing for COVID last January, even before we knew the impact the virus would have on the U.S. As we approach one year since that planning began, could you have imagined the scope of this pandemic and UC’s response?

Shad Crowe: We planned and were prepared for every scenario. I always take the worst-case scenario and backwards-plan how to mitigate that. And then ask, ‘Where in that decision-making process can we pivot away from it being the worst-case?’ Maybe it’s mask-wearing, social distancing, extensive cleaning and sanitization protocols and making remote options available. Or maybe it’s putting in the UV-C lighting and air filtration. As we looked at all of

Utica

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SC: Our messaging has been key, and we’ve also drawn a very strict line in the sand with holding everyone accountable. But what I can’t emphasize enough is that everyone—the administration, faculty, students, and staff—is taking this very seriously. Yes, we’ve invested a lot in time, effort, and money to safeguard our campus, but without the cooperation from everyone here, we could never have gotten successfully to where we are.

UM: How has weekly testing of the entire campus community helped in that effort?

SC: If you have students learning in a residential experience, you must, as an institution, test everyone, repeatedly and on a regular basis. If you’re not testing, that’s like sticking your head in the sand. Ignorance is bliss, but only until you have an outbreak and you can’t control it.

UM: What feedback have you received from public agencies regarding the steps that College has taken?

SC: We’ve been identified by several government agencies as one of the institutions that are at the front of the line when it comes to successfully navigating through this pandemic. And it’s a credit to everyone here. We have students and faculty involved on every taskforce team. And it’s not just places like the New York Department of Health that are giving us accolades. I’ve also heard from my colleagues at other institutions – both much larger than us and similar to us – who recognize the remarkable job we’ve done.

Bucking the trend, Utica College completed its entire Fall 2020 semester on-campus when COVID-19 outbreaks required many area colleges and universities to transition fully online.

percent positivity rate as of November 2020

27 of 27

athletic teams have participated in team activities

33,000+ COVID-19 tests administered

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AROUND CAMPUS

Faculty Achievement Leslie Corbo, associate professor and director of cybersecurity programs, and her colleagues were awarded “Best Paper” by the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) published in 2019.

The paper, titled “Assessment of employee susceptibility to phishing attacks at US health care institutions,” examines the recent targeting of these attacks in the field along with their substantial economic impact and influence on patient treatment. Corbo’s paper was selected out of more than 2,500 entries.

Douglas Edwards, assistant professor of philosophy, won the American Philosophical Association (APA) 2019 Sanders Book Prize for “The Metaphysics of Truth” (Oxford University Press, 2018), presented at the APA Central Division conference in Chicago. This Sanders Book Prize is awarded to the best book in epistemology, metaphysics or philosophy of mind published in the previous five years.

Austen Givens, associate professor of cybersecurity, published his second book, Disaster Labs: How American

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States Use Partnerships to Manage the Unthinkable, which explores how state governments, nonprofits, and businesses manage crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professor of Physical Therapy James Smith is the 2020 recipient of Dr. Virgil Crisafulli Distinguished Teaching Award.

The prestigious award, given each year to a professor who exemplifies the highest standard of Utica College faculty. Smith has been instrumental in curriculum reforms in the PT program and is a strong advocate for maintaining a high level of educational content with an emphasis on critical thinking skills needed to treat patients. (1) Xiao Xiao, professor of mathematics, was awarded the Clarence F. Stephens Award for Teaching Excellence from the Seaway Section of the Mathematical Association of America. Xiao has taught in the mathematics department at Utica College for nearly a decade. Xiao’s research is in arithmetic algebraic geometry and inquiry-based learning in undergraduate education. (2)

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ATHLETICS

Claire Frier ’22 Hometown: Lafayette, NY Major: Criminal Justice Claire Frier and her women’s lacrosse teammates ended last season undefeated – and on the lowest note imaginable. One day after the Pioneers defeated Morrisville State to move to 4-0, the COVID-19 crisis forced the cancellation of the season on March 12. Nine months later, Frier and the nearly 200,000 Division III studentathletes continue to wait patiently to return to competition. “We’re definitely anxious to get back out there, but we know everyone is going through the same thing right now, and so you just have to stay patient and positive,” she says. “We’re fortunate that we’re able to be together as a team this semester and having that camaraderie of doing workouts and just hanging out, even if we’re wearing masks and not doing all the things we’d normally do.”

Pioneer student-athletes set UC record for GPA Despite COVID-19 disrupting the athletic season and academic year, UC’s student-athletes finished strong. Pioneer athletes finished the spring 2020 with a record 3.39 grade-point average. Twenty-two UC athletic teams achieved a team GPA of 3.2 or higher.

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POWERFUL

MEDICINE When Henry Spring stepped onto Utica College’s campus in 1973, he had a vision.

“I wanted to graduate from the pre-med program, go on to medical school, and become a doctor,” he says.

It was a dream he’d had since a summer job at St. Luke’s Hospital in New York City as a teenager introduced him to the medical world.

“I was mesmerized,” he recalls. “I walked through the halls and thought to myself, ‘this is what I want to do.’”

After graduating from UC’s biology/pre-med program, he went on to achieve his dream and then some. Spring ’77 attended medical school at Boston University and went on to become an obstetrician-gynecologist.

HERITAGE SOCIETY

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With his bequest to Utica College as part of the Heritage Society, Spring wants to ensure future students—especially students of color with an interest in medicine—have access to the same educational opportunities that propelled his success.

“Black people have always been a small percentage of those who succeed and move into the life sciences, especially as physicians,” he says. “One thing that has become more onerous is the financial burden that Black students have to overcome just to be players in the game. I want my gift to ease some of that burden through the undergraduate years.”

Today, with his gift to Utica College, Henry Spring has another familiar vision: that of a young Black student succeeding at UC, going on to medical school, and becoming a medical doctor.

“That,” he says, “is what inspires me.”

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A RIPPLE OF HOPE Utica College alumna and President of the newly reinstated Black Alumni Association, Shanelle Gabriel ’06 reflects on creating community, finding mentors—and leaving a legacy of her own.

When UC student ambassador Leonard Morgan III ’99 showed up in my high-school auditorium during my senior year, he told me that if I chose to attend Utica College, I could have my own radio show. “We have a station called WPNR that students run,” he said.

That was all I needed to hear to take the UC application home. Of course, the small classroom sizes, lower tuition, campus activities, and financial aid helped confirm my decision. Hearing Leonard speak so highly of his experience at Utica College allowed me to envision myself there. Much later, I would learn that Leonard helped solidify many Black students’ decision to attend UC, showing that representation matters—and how seeing a person of color represent a college that wasn’t an HBCU can impact a decision.

In July of 2002, I prepared for my transition from the Black and Caribbean-concentrated area in Flatbush, Brooklyn, to an area of New York State that was, at the time, nearly 80 percent white, according to the U.S. Census.

As a student in the Higher Education Opportunities Program (HEOP), I was able to start my semester with a diverse group of friends and the support of their staff as I transitioned into college life. Those initial connections made things smoother for me and allowed me to connect with upperclassmen who served as mentors. Being Black at UC meant being a part of a sovereign community within the wider, predominantly white campus. Being Black at UC meant cafeteria parties, Kwanzaa dinners, A.I.M. (Africa in Motion) Dance Troupe Extravaganzas, and Angelic Voices of Unity Gospel Fests. We built safe spaces and took on leadership roles to make sure our voices were represented.

Illustration by Keith C. Taylor Jr. ’00

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His eyes lit up as he shared his vision of a highly engaged network of Black alumni that would also serve as mentors and a support system for Black students at UC.”

IN HIS ELEMENT The late Jonathan Adewumi ’86 returned to campus in fall 2019 to celebrate the Black Student Union’s 50th Anniversary.

Still, there were challenges. While Utica College was considered diverse by national standards, there were many classes where I was the only Black student, and we had only one Black professor on campus. There were moments where I had to challenge stereotypes for white students from small, segregated towns whose first-ever interactions with people of color occurred on Orientation Day. Part of the knowledge I gained at UC was learning how to navigate spaces with people who didn’t share or even stigmatized my background, race, and culture. This was not always an easy task, especially as the term “microaggression” was not common language as it is now, and the blatant moments of racism were not captured on cell phone video. Even through this, I was able to graduate with friends of all identities.

Upon earning my degree in Communication Arts and a minor in Business Management, I stepped off campus and into the world of the performing arts and arts education. As a former Student Senate President, member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and the Black Student Union, General Manager of WPNR 90.7 FM, and more, I credit UC for allowing me to graduate with a full resume and experiences that informed my work. I also left with a demo tape filmed in Strebel Auditorium that later secured my

spot on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam. From there, I toured full-time, performing in 45 of 50 states as well as Nigeria, South Africa, Italy and more. All that time, I stayed in touch with UC staff who supported me like Mark Kovacs, Carolyn Carstensen, and Alane Varga. I frequently return to Homecoming to see these mentors and the unbelievable growth of the College with my own eyes.

Here is where Jonathan Adewumi ’86 enters my story. I met Jonathan at a Utica College event in New York City in 2015. A fellow Pioneer and former member of the Black Student Union, Jonathan and I had a lot in common and became fast friends. When Jonathan confessed that he hadn’t been back to UC since graduation, I encouraged him to return for a visit. He finally did in fall 2019 for the 50th anniversary of the Black Student Union, where he was truly in his element—reconnecting and celebrating with good friends.

After that visit, Jonathan told me how he was invigorated and impressed by the physical growth of the campus and, most of all, by the students. Jonathan, a man who fully believed in unity within communities of Afro-ancestry, also told me about his idea to revive the Black Alumni Association (BAA). He envisioned the BAA creating scholarships, hosting events and workshops, and ensuring that Black alumni returned en masse each fall for Homecoming. I remem16

FO R T H E F U T U R E Funding is currently underway for two new scholarships created to expand access to the life-changing power of a Utica College education.

Utica College Black Alumni Association’s Jonathan Adewumi ’86 Memorial Scholarship awarded to a full-time junior or senior undergraduate student with demonstrated financial need and exceptional leadership qualities that embody the spirit of entrepreneur and loyal alumnus Jonathan Adewumi ’86.

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Robert D. Horton Endowed Scholarship awarded annually to undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need who exhibit a high level of leadership, persistence, perseverance, and dedication to community service.

To learn more and to donate, visit utica.edu/donate, and select one of the above scholarships in the “donation details” section.

ber how his eyes lit up as he shared his vision of a highly engaged network of Black alumni that could serve as mentors for Black students during and after their time at UC. I was excited, too. As Jonathan shifted into his role as co-chair of the Metro NYC Regional Alumni Network in February 2020 and I took on the role of BAA president, we began working together to achieve his vision.

In March, our plans and worlds shifted as COVID-19 ravaged New York City, especially the Black community. And on April 17, 2020, I received the shattering news: We lost our dear Jonathan Adewumi to COVID-19.

I was devastated, as were the many UC alumni who attended his virtual memorial service—and who all sought to honor him in some way.

In June, the Black Alumni Association created the Jonathan Adewumi ‘86 Memorial Scholarship to support the education of students who foster the ideas of community and entrepreneurship that

come from underfunded and overpoliced schools, low and middle-income communities historically hindered from having the benefits of generational wealth. And there is a hole in mentorship, which is necessary for upward mobility. This is something Jonathan recognized and wanted to change.

After discussing the state of the country as well as the specific needs of Black students at UC, the Black Alumni Association worked with Office for Career and Professional Development and the BAA Student Relations Chair Maria Araujo ’99, to funnel Black alumni into the new Career Mentor Program so that the pool of alumni would be able to reflect the full population on campus. As much as I know that my schedule can be beyond hectic (I’m working full-time while pursuing my Master’s full time), supporting the reconnection of the Black Alumni community means the world to me.

Our students are the next leaders of the world; how can I not do all I can to help prepare them?

When I think of my engagement with UC, I think

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Jonathan upheld.

The scholarship was officially established on Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, which I know Jonathan would have greatly appreciated. We are currently fundraising to ensure the scholarship’s perpetuity (see above).

While we grieved the loss of this beautiful soul filled with so much vision and passion during this time of quarantine, unrest was bubbling from the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Daniel Prude, and others at the hands of law enforcement.

We witnessed the cruel and agonizing murder of George Floyd, which released a flood of tears, anger, and protests across the world. This became a fight to have our society finally recognize that, even though we know all lives should matter, the importance of Black lives has continued to be in question. While we recognize the contributions of our ancestors who fought for Civil Rights, to this day, there are still systemic barriers that are still hurdles to the success of today’s Black students. They

of Leonard Morgan shaping my beginning and Jonathan Adewumi cementing me in the present. Both envisioned my destiny long before I fully saw it myself. I was able to speak to several leaders of various Black organizations on campus, and I aim to continue the work that was done in me in 2002 and again at the beginning of 2020.

I say to the current UC students, especially students of color, that amidst this dark season, any light you find in your heart, any passion you have, take it, nurture it, and share it. We are the dream of our ancestors, and like them, we are all required to continue laboring to build a more equitable society. We are allowed to be angry but we cannot let hate steal our joy. We are allowed to feel discouraged but we cannot give up on our goal.

To quote Robert F. Kennedy, “Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.”

I pray those ripples turn into waves.

The Fight of Their Lives In the healthcare world and beyond, Utica College students and alumni are making an impact—and in many cases, saving lives—during this unprecedented time.

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Here, meet just a few of the Pioneers on the front lines: In t he ‘Belly of t he Beast’ Nick Hallett ’18 A lot has changed for Nick Hallett ’18 since March 2020. For one, he left his position as a cardiopulmonary ICU nurse at Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse to answer the desperate call for nurses downstate just as the pandemic began. He quickly secured a contract position with Aya Healthcare, a travel nursing agency that assigned him to a crisis relief position in an understaffed, COVID-only hospital in New Jersey—what he called “in the belly of the beast” of the crisis. In August, he moved again—this time across the country to southern California, for another COVID-relief assignment at an ICU in Orange County.

On top of it all, Hallett found time to marry his longtime girlfriend and fellow UC nursing alum, Samantha Warner Hallett ’17, on August 8, 2020.

Back in April, during one of the biggest COVID surges in the New York City area, we talked to Hallett about what his experience had taught him about COVID-19, the nursing profession—and himself: The v irus is unpredictable —and probably scarier t han we t hink.

By now, the general public is familiar with the telltale signs of COVID-19: fever, cough, shortness of breath.

But in the worst cases, says Hallett, the virus attacks the body in strange and even more devastating ways.

“We’ve seen many, many patients die from cardiac arrest,” says Hallett. “We’re just learning now how the virus affects the heart, the lungs, and the kidneys, thickening the blood and causing blood clots.”

For Hallett and his team of doctors, this makes treating the virus like shooting a moving target.

“We will devise a treatment plan that has to completely change the next day because of how this virus progresses in the body,” he says. “It’s like nothing we’ve seen before.”

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Nurses are improv ising.

“This has been the most trying assignment of my life,” says Hallett Compared to most hospitals, says Hallett, his facility has not experienced the dire shortage of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) so widely reported in the news. But there have been challenges.

When Hallett arrived at work one day to find only sizesmall N95 face masks, a colleague suggested buying his own reusable respirator online. Sold out nearly everywhere, Hallett eventually found one on eBay—marked up about four times the normal price. “That’s capitalism at its finest,” he says with a laugh.

One crucial piece of equipment in short supply, says Hallett, are the monitors that allow nurses to keep tabs on an ICU patient’s vital signs from outside the patient’s room.

“In a typical ICU, that large monitor screen would be visible through a glass window or wall, so the nurse could check vitals without having to enter the room,” he says.

In his makeshift ICU, only small travel monitors are available, requiring Hallett and his fellow nurses to “gown up” and enter the patient’s room multiple times an hour to check his or her vitals.

But thanks to a company’s donation of baby monitors, Hallett fashioned his own system by duct-taping the camera portion of the baby monitor to the travel monitor’s display, allowing him to see the patient’s information from anywhere in the unit.

“I keep that baby monitor in my pocket and check it more than I check my phone,” he says.

The rules have changed.

In nursing school, Hallett learned one thing above all else: do whatever you can to save a life. “When a patient is coding [experiencing cardiopulmonary arrest], we were taught to do whatever it takes,” he says. “You’d do compressions for hours if necessary.”

But in the midst of the pandemic, Hallett finds himself and his colleagues making a heartbreaking calculation all too often.

“Sometimes it’s more dangerous for the patient and the healthcare workers to continue these interventions,” he says.

“This has been the most trying assignment of my life.” - Nick Hallett ’18 For instance, life-saving chest compressions require close contact between the patient and healthcare workers. The virus is easily transmissible through the patient’s bodily fluid and droplets in the air, putting everyone in the area at risk. What’s more: ICU beds are in demand.

When one patient is discharged or passes away, there’s a long line of new, severely ill patients waiting to take his or her place.

“It was a rude awakening the first time a patient was

coding,” he says. “We did several rounds of compressions and a doctor said, ‘I think we should call it.’”

“I got into this profession to save lives, but in this situation, you have to make difficult decisions for the greater good.”

Optimism is ever y t hing.

When a typical day includes delivering the news of a loved one’s death to a family—sometimes in person but more often via FaceTime—it’s not easy to leave

Helping Young People Cope Loretta Plescia ’06 Beyond the physical toll of the COVID-19 crisis, the emotional effects can be devastating to those who already struggle with mental health issues. A Recreational Therapist at Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center in Utica, New York, Loretta Plescia ’06 is helping kids and young adults manage the mental burden.

work behind at the end of a long shift, says Hallett.

“Dumb stuff” on Netflix helps him decompress, as does Hallett’s self-imposed boycott of Facebook and other social media (Facebook friends who claim the pandemic is a “hoax” are especially grating). And despite leaving behind his fiancé, also a nurse, back in Syracuse, Hallett is joined in his New Jersey apartment by his dog, Oliver.

“It’s nice to have some sort of companionship,” he laughs.

But more than anything else, says Hallett, staying mentally healthy is all about his outlook.

“Strangely enough, this whole situation has made me more of an optimist,” he says. “I’m constantly looking for the good in things. We are discharging patients. In my unit, we have saved 10 patients who have coded.

“I have to keep thinking about the positive,” he says. “Despite everything, people are getting better.”

UM: How has your work changed amid the COVID-19 pandemic?

LP: Pre-COVID, my day usually consisted of planning and implementing Dialectal Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Groups and Recreation Therapy groups to patients from

the ages of 5-17. These children suffer from different mental health issues including anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. Programming has changed based on the CDC recommendations, especially with social distancing. It has changed 20

what interventions and materials that we use for the health safety of both the patients and staff.

The work itself is a little more challenging. Many of those we treat are already anxious and depressed because of their own life stressors, and they now have to worry about the unknown of this pandemic on top of it. Also, with social distancing we are having smaller groups of both staff and kids, so instead of all sitting together at a table, we are spaced out. It seems to be a little less personal.

UM: You’re one of many whose work is deemed essential amid this crisis.

Why do you feel the work

you do is essential in not just times like these, but all the time?

LP: As a recreational therapist, I work with the whole person. We treat all the domains—physical, cognitive, emotional, social and spiritual. I offer interventions that help the person be successful while teaching leisure and coping skills. Here at MVPC, working with young people who struggle with mental health issues, I teach them skills they can use while here in the hospital and when they are out in the community. My goal every day is to make them believe that life is worth living, even in the toughest times.

Turning Patient Care Upside Dow n Dan Kemp ’17 DPT Dan Kemp, an acute care physical therapist at Rome Memorial Hospital in Rome, New York, is pioneering new techniques that may improve outcomes for intubated patients diagnosed with COVID-19.

UM: When did COVID-19 first appear on your radar?

DK: When we started seeing the staggering numbers down in New York City and in all the major cities in March, I realized that this was going to be something that we were going to be dealing with rather quickly here in the Mohawk Valley. I knew I had to buckle down and find a way to help these patients in my own way.

It clicked to me that with the acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by the virus, patients exhibiting severe symptoms have a greater chance of oxygenating well when they are prone, or on their stomachs or chest lying down on the bed. It changes the way that the lung works

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to truly allow the gas exchange to happen, giving the patient better oxygenation and a better chance at fighting this illness.

UM: Are you seeing positive results?

DK: The first patient who we proned reduced his oxygenation demand by nearly half the amount he required when he was supine. The pressure that was needed decreased quite a bit as well to allow him to continue to oxygenate. Now, this isn’t appropriate for every patient that COVID-19 impacts, but there are patients that

are benefitting from it.

Every time you think you have COVID-19 figured out, something else pops up that we didn’t know about the virus before. It makes you come back together as a team and think about how we can solve that aspect of the patient care. That’s something that’s going on throughout

the country and the world.

We’re constantly thinking of something different and trialing something else.

But we’re fighting it.

UM: A cornerstone of the PT curriculum at UC is the evidence-based approach to clinical practice. Has that prepared you to deal with and respond to this

health crisis?

DK: It’s one hundred percent applicable here.

The program at UC always pushed us to be sure we’re providing what is optimal for our patients, what is suited as best practice, what is backed by evidence.

Without that education and training—really, that way of

thinking and approaching the work I do—I don’t think I’d have the knowledge, the confidence, or the strength to handle something like this. My professors always pushed us to think, “And then? And then? And then?”

The surface answer was not good enough. That really prepared me for dealing with this crisis.

Fighting t he Virus, One Test at a Time Bryce Berie ’22 Bryce Berie is the first to admit—the test for COVID-19 is not pleasant.

It requires placing a sterile swab deep into a patient’s nasal passage to reach the nasopharynx, the upper part of the throat behind the nose. After several seconds, secretions are absorbed and a sample is collected.

Since March, Berie estimates he has administered more than 5,000 of these tests on patients ranging in age from six months to 92 years.

“Kids are usually the toughest to test,” says Berie. “I’ll say ‘OK, I’m going to pick your boogers now’ and that helps puts them at ease.”

From March until June, Berie, a Utica College junior and member of the U.S. National Guard, was stationed at a COVID-19 drive-through testing site in Suffolk County, New York. It was one of dozens of similar testing sites established throughout the country this spring and staffed, in part, by the National Guard and other medical volunteers. Berie and his troop were deployed to help with the testing efforts at Stony Brook University on Long Island, which converted much of its campus to accommodate testing operations and patient triage.

Fast and Furious Along with the rest of the country, it was a whirlwind spring for Berie, who headed downstate from Utica in mid-March, at a time when Suffolk County had reported fewer than 100 cases of the coronavirus.

“We were told that the deployment would last around a week, so I planned to be down here for the duration of UC’s spring break,” he says.

But within days, the number of confirmed cases had

nearly quadrupled, and it became clear to Berie and his commanders that the troop’s deployment would be extended. (By November 2020, Suffolk County had surpassed 49,000 confirmed cases.)

Berie remained in Long Island through the summer, when his work transitioned from testing in the drivethrough site in the University’s commuter parking lot to the University’s hospital.

Now back in Utica, Berie remains on active duty with the National Guard, testing incoming travelers for COVID-19 at Syracuse Hancock International Airport.

As for the emotional toll of his daily work, Berie is matter of fact: “It’s not easy,” he says. “I just try to be a calming presence [when testing], because people are scared.”

Is he scared? Of the virus, the death toll, and what the future might look like for him and the rest of the country, when and if this pandemic subsides?

“No, I’m not,” he says.

He joined the National Guard three years ago to help people, he explains. And in this time of national and global crisis, he’s proud to be doing just that.

“This,” says Berie, “is what I signed up for.”

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“Ever y t hing’s Gonna Be A lright” At the height of the spring surge in NYC, Utica College PT alumnae Nikolina Klindo Markovic ’02 (back row, second from left) Melissa Ortiz Dorset (third from left, holding sign), and Myra Choi ’00 (back row, second from right) do their best to stay positive at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.

Into t he Unknow n Melissa Ortiz Dorset ’03, G’05, ’08 DPT As an acute care physical therapist at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, NY, Melissa Ortiz Dorset has seen firsthand the devastating effects of COVID-19—even after patients recover.

UM: What are you seeing in patients who have recovered from COVID-19?

MOD: The change in their endurance is the big thing.

They become short of breath doing everyday things, they’re weaker and limited in their ability to live life as normal. We’re still learning about the 23

long-term effects of COVID-19, and it varies so widely from patient to patient. But it’s significant to see how lasting the consequences have been.

UM: What’s the biggest misconception about this virus?

MOD: People don’t seem to understand how unpredictable it is. I’ve seen this virus affect people of all ages, all ethnicities, and from all walks of life.

I’ve seen 20-year-olds who contract COVID and have mild symptoms, and others who end up on

ventilators and feeding tubes. As a healthcare worker, that unpredictability is scary. We’re always trying to do what’s in the best interest of patients while protecting ourselves.

With this virus, there’s still so much unknown.

“I’ve seen this virus affect people of all ages, all ethnicities, and from all walks of life.” - Melissa Ortiz Dorset

'

Heres to you, Class of

2020

There’s no way the members of Utica College’s Class of 2020 could have anticipated how their final semester would end. Due to the pandemic, the traditions and celebrations of those last months were replaced with a national lockdown, increasing uncertainty, and an end to their college experience that was anything but expected.

But, as the Class of 2020 already knows, the strangeness of the circumstances does nothing to diminish their incredible accomplishments—or the greatness they’ll go on to achieve.

This fall, Utica talked to four student leaders from the graduating class, who reflected on the spring of 2020, the moments they missed, and how—with help from family and friends—they are keeping it all in perspective.

We also asked members of the Class of 2020 to share photos and stories from their own (socially distanced, at-home) graduation celebrations, along with details about their future plans.

So, to the Utica College Class of 2020, for everything you’ve achieved and overcome, congratulations. Here’s to you.

Jackie Aronin ’20, Biology Captain, Utica College Softball Team Recipient of the Utica College Alumni Council 2020 Sportsmanship Award “Unfathomable” “When my friends and I first began hearing about how the virus was spread-

ing across the world and, inevitably, to the states, it seemed like such a distant concept. I remember sitting in office hours with some of my classmates thinking how ridiculous it sounded when we heard some major universities decided to teach the rest of the semester online. Never did we believe that COVID-19 would consume our lives as much as it did. There was so much uncertainty circulating around campus. I felt every possible emotion within a matter of days. With research projects being put on hold, conferences being canceled, and spring training for softball being taken

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away, it just never seemed to end. The only way I can encompass my feelings was that it felt unfathomable.

There was an intense emotional rollercoaster missing out on the final weeks that every college student dreams about.

Senior week, graduation, spending the last moments before adulthood with your friends—these were the moments we waited four years for. The biggest heartache came with the premature end to my softball career.

Having an abrupt ending to my junior year with a season-ending injury, it was extremely difficult to accept that the past year spent in physical therapy and rehab to get back to peak performance was so quickly thrown away with our season being canceled the night before our flight to Florida. Being a member of the softball team was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I would do anything to play another game with those girls.

I didn’t know how upset I would be about the cancellation of Commencement until it was a reality. During my senior year, I really fell in love with the research I was involved in with my

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professors and the strides I was making towards my future. The confidence that I gained those final two semesters made me excited to celebrate with my classmates, especially my peers within the biology department. I was disappointed when the ceremony was canceled, but knew that that did not take away from the accomplishments that my classmates and I made and the milestone that had been earned. To celebrate, I put my cap and gown on for a small “ceremony” in my backyard surrounded by my family. I never would have had enough tickets for my whole family to come to Commencement, so it was nice that I was able to celebrate with those who mean the most to me.

into lessons regarding the logistics of the pandemic and any new information that my peers or my professor had to offer.

No matter the difficulty of the situation, it is important to find the good. Through this adverse situation, I was able to spend more time with my parents, time that I wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. Also, I valued the time spent with my classmates and professors more than before. In particular, I looked forward to Zoom review sessions for my immunology class. These meetings typically turned

I want my peers in the Class of 2020 and others to remember all that they have to be thankful for.

Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives or their loved ones to this overpowering disease.

While it was unfortunate that the Class of 2020 missed out on our celebratory events, we need to remember how lucky we are and appreciate the good health that we have.”

On a more personal note, I saw firsthand how frontline workers were impacted by the severity of the pandemic. Both of my parents work on the front lines and helped me establish a greater appreciation for those in the healthcare field and increased my excitement for my future in medicine.

Since the spring, I moved out of my hometown of Naugatuck, Connecticut, and began working fulltime as a medical scribe at The Brass Eye Center in Latham, New York. I am also in the thick of applying to medical school so I have been keeping fairly busy.

Adriana Toribio ’20, Criminal Justice President, Fuerza Latina Hermandad de Sigma Iota Alpha, Inc. Recipient of the Utica College Alumni Council 2020 Outstanding Senior Award “I Am Grateful” “Being a first-generation student, I was looking forward to Commencement more then anything. It was more then just a ceremony for me; It was recognizing all the hard work I put in through my four years. It was showing me that I was more than a statistic within the Latinx community. Graduating helped me prove that even though I did not have access to opportunities other people may have, I did my best with what I did have. I tried my best in everything I pursued, and that is what helped me get to where I am today.

When campus closed in March and, later, Commencement was canceled, I didn’t know what to feel. I felt betrayed in a way. I felt like something was taken from me. I couldn’t believe the moment I was waiting for was gone just like that. My family and I were planning months ahead to make sure everyone would be able to be there. This was not only a celebration for me, but for my family, as well. Instead, I was able to celebrate in August with immediate family and friends.

Although I knew the feeling wouldn’t be the same as an actual Commencement ceremony, they made sure to make me feel extra appreciated that day.

This has been a very difficult time for everyone, but there are still some positives. During this time I have been able to reflect on myself and my community.

I have been able to express more gratitude for what I have. Sometimes we think we need extra items or factors in our life but fail to appreciate what we have.

I am so grateful to have healthy family and friends, and to be able to support myself after graduating.

This time has given me the opportunity to make major life decisions and fully decide on what I want to do with my future. It has pushed me to be a bigger inspiration for my younger brother and show him that even through difficult times, there is always light ahead.

After graduating, I was scared of not finding a job I would enjoy or a job that wasn’t fulfilling. Being that

I just worked hard for four years, I wanted to make sure I was working in a job with meaning. I reached out to a lot of Utica College faculty for advice and assistance.

The Opportunity Programs office was a huge help not only in guiding me, but showing me I was worth much more than what I was selling myself for. I am now a full-time program assistant at the Thea Bowman House, a non-profit organization for children and families in Utica. I love coming to work and helping different kids each day. This is just the beginning of my journey.

I am forever grateful for my experience and the opportunities that crossed my path. I am so proud of my graduating class. Although our semester did not end the way we expected, no one can ever take away our hard work or our degrees!

Thank you to everyone who played a role in my journey.

Michael Delia ’20, Construction Management President, Student Government Association 2019-2020 President, Student Contractors Association “We Are Resilient” “Honestly, when campus closed in March, my initial

thought was that it wasn’t going to last and that things would return to normal soon. Of course, that didn’t happen, and I soon felt disappointment knowing that my classmates and I were going to miss out on so much in the last few months at UC. However, I tried to look at what we missed out on compared to what others have lost. Members of our Utica College community have lost loved ones and have struggled in many different ways because of this pandemic. My heart goes out to those families, and I hope they know that our UC community stands with them and that they are in my prayers.

the time that our nation was attacked on 9/11. We have persevered through a school shooting threat. We have persevered through incidents relating to race.

We graduated amidst a global pandemic. We are resilient. We are the men and women you want working for you. Not only are we resilient, but we are innovative, hardworking, strive for perfection in everything we do and, last but not least, we are Pioneers.”

When my family and I realized that an in-person Commencement would be canceled, my family threw a makeshift graduation at my sister’s house where my mom, my sisters, and my now-fiancé surprised me with a PowerPoint of family and friends with congratulatory messages for me.

I have been fortunate that my career has not been sidetracked by the pandemic. I am currently employed

by Meyer Contracting Corporation in Pleasant Valley, New York, and I am the superintendent on the Kingston Central School District Capital Improvements Project. Also, I recently proposed to my fiancé, Michaela, and we are planning for a wedding in November 2021.

The Utica College Class of 2020 is every bit resilient. We are students who started school around

Nicole Collette ’20, Animal Behavior Class of 2020 Valedictorian Resident Assistant, Theta Phi Alpha, UC Theatre, and Improv Club “Create Positive Change” “As the class valedictorian, I was excited to give a speech to my fellow classmates at Commencement.

When it was rescheduled from May to August 2020, I honestly didn’t know what I could possibly say to

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make up for the time they had lost and the stress and trauma that came with both the pandemic and the racial injustices we are facing in this country. Alas, that ceremony was also canceled, but I know it was for the best, considering we are still battling this virus.

To celebrate, my mom and dad surprised me one day with dinner and cake and balloons, and sent out a message to all of my friends and family that could not be there in person asking them all to congratulate me at the same time. I felt truly recognized at that moment, not by everyone that would have been sitting at Commencement, but by those that mattered most to me and truly experienced my hard work from the beginning.

How They Celebrated With no in-person Commencement, members of the Class of 2020 took matters into their own hands, celebrating at home with family and friends.

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Being in these scary times, I took a step back this spring and realized what was important: Time. I was able to slow down and picture my future. I realized I wanted to spend my life doing the thing I loved most. So, I applied for my MFA in acting and am currently approaching the end of my first semester of graduate school at Pace University!

Leigha Castilla ’20 (1)

To anyone who might offer condolences to the Class of 2020, thank you. It really does mean a lot to have the sadness of the situation recognized. However, I urge them and everyone in the Class of 2020 to focus that energy on creating positive change. There is so much to be thankful for, even more so now that we realize how easily things can be taken away from us.”

Karina Marie Zabko ’20, Marcy, NY, graduated with a B.S. in Childhood Education & Liberal Studies and currently works at Whitesboro Central School. She is enrolled in UC’s graduate program in Leadership and Instruction for an Inclusive Classroom. (5)

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Holly Kalil ’20 of Inlet, NY, graduated with her BSN and moved to Brandenton, Florida, where she is a nurse at Manatee Memorial Hospital. (2) Kaeli Ulatowski ’20, Herkimer, NY, works as a preventative caseworker in the Department of Social Services. (3) Ramona Miller ’20, Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration “I really enjoyed my time at Utica and felt I had a great experience with my education.

While I’m saddened that graduation was canceled, I understand it was the safe thing to do. I celebrated by going to campus and taking pictures with my cap and gown while social distancing. I’m immensely proud to be a Pioneer! I’m currently located in Friendsville, PA, and have started a doctorate program so I can become a professor someday.” (4)

Kassidy Krenzer ’20, Albany, NY, will attend Bank Street College for a master’s in Psychology-Child Life. (6)

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Marissa Hajec, DPT ’20, Whitesboro, NY, is a physical therapist at Function Better Physical Therapy in Utica. (1) Doctor of Physical Therapy 2020 graduates from left to right: Marissa Hajec, Lauren Bachner, Bethanny Jolly, Kristen Bassler, Keri Berkowitz (2) Allie Wagner ’20, Canandaigua, NY, is a current student at SUNY Brockport pursuing an MSW. “My family celebrated with me in August by taking a trip to UC to take graduation pictures. We went to my favorite spots on campus and reminisced. It was surreal to be on campus after leaving so suddenly but it still felt like home.

My connections to professors and peers at Utica prepared me for this next step and I am forever grateful for the teachings I received. I still contact my professors to keep in touch and ask for help when I need it. Completing my undergrad at UC was an amazing experience filled with many learning opportunities (inside and outside of the classroom), fun with peers, and a strong sense of community.” (3) Kelsey Brooks ’20 (left) graduated with her bachelors in fraud and financial crime investigations. She plans to take the Saratoga and Utica police exams in the near future to pursue her career in law enforcement. Lindsay Hayduk ’20 (right) from Clinton, NY graduated with a degree in Health Studies- Occupational Therapy. She plans to pursue a Mas-

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ters in Occupational Therapy and graduate in 2021. (4) Jaylan Smith ’20, Niagara Falls NY, is a Full-Time Estimator at Dick Tile & Marble in Whitesboro, NY. (5) Kaitlyn Tambasco ’20, Fort Johnson, NY, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Communications and Media/Criminal Justice. She is currently pursuing an M.A. in Magazine, News and Online Journalism at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. “I would love to relocate to either Boston, NYC or Washington D.C. and become an investigative reporter, or do public relations for a criminal justice agency. If that doesn’t work, I would also love to get into the beauty industry and do communications there. I also want to get my certification to be a crime analyst.” (6) Johanna Johnson ’20 “I had no plans of putting the cap and gown on but my daughter asked if we could do a picture! My dad passed away my second day of my first semester at UC. I completed my degree with him by my side, and he was shining down on me when we took this picture! I have applied to NYU Silver School of Social Work and hope to begin in January. Through my internship I began working for the Kelberman Center as a Family Support Specialist. I am excited as an adult student to see what the future holds.” (7)

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Honor Roll of Donors June 1, 2019– May 31, 2020

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The Honor Roll of Donors highlights members of Utica College’s Pioneer, Heritage, and Oneida Square Societies who made gifts to Utica College during the 2019-20 fiscal year beginning June 1, 2019 and ending May 31, 2020. Gifts to the College received after May 31, 2020 will be recognized in the 2020-21 Honor Roll of Donors.

Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and completeness. In the event that an error or omission is found, we sincerely apologize and ask that you contact the Office of Advancement at 315-792-3053 or email advancement@utica.edu so we can correct our records.

For the full list of donors, please visit utica.edu/HonorRollofDonors

PIONEER SOCIETY The Pioneer Society honors Utica College’s most generous annual donors. The society recognizes those leadership donors whose commitment and investment in Utica College is critical to the institution’s future. Each year, gifts received from Pioneer Society donors represent more than 80 percent of the College’s total gifts.

Pioneer Society Chair’s Summit Circle $20,000 or more

Pioneer Society President’s Summit Circle $10,000 - $19,999

Anonymous Betsy and Dick Bedient Larry ’74 and Cora Bull Robert Brvenik ’77 Harold Clark Jr. ’65, H’03 and Bernadette Clark Ronald ’66 and Sheila Cuccaro Harry ’71 and Wendy Cynkus Christopher ’61 and Virginia Kelly John ’61 and Elizabeth Meehan* Christian Meyer III ’79 and Mary Beth Welle-Meyer ’79 Rosangela Putrelo John and Jacqueline Romano ’11, G’13 Thomas ’65 and Virginia Rossiter Gloria Shaheen ’82 Donald and Theresa Snyder Stewart Starer ’66 Kenneth ’80 and Wendy Taubes Philip ’70 and Barbara ’69 Taurisano Howard Terrillion ’58 Gary ’68 and Mary Thurston Jeremy ’00 and Carrie Thurston

Anonymous Kenneth Bell ’75 and Anne Veness Bell Bernice Benson ’72* The Brandt Family Joan Brannick ’54 John Burkholder III ’75 and Diane Burkholder Gerard Capraro ’66 Don H’14 and Edna Carbone Laura and Filippo Casamento Thomas Cox Jr. ’69 Christopher Crolius ’80 Frederick ’70 and Connie Degen Jeffrey Donahue John Donohue Sr. ’57† and Valerie Donohue Lawrence and Elizabeth Gilroy Arthur Golder ’50* Ronald ’63 and Cecelia ’62 Gouse Scot and Jill Hayes Hartwell Herring III and Paulette Herring Samuel and Nancy Hester Andrew ’84 and Mary Hislop John G’13 and Deborah Johns* Daniel ’97 and Anne-Marie Jones* Benay Leff ’65 Salvatore and Kathleen Longo Sally ’61 and Donald Majka

† deceased *arranged for matching gift

Christopher and Kari Max Albert ’58 and Elinor Mazloom Matthew Millett ’88 and Maria Millett Mark ’88 and Mary Beth Pilipczuk Linda Romano and Russell Petralia* James ’70 and Sharon Samuel John ’71 and Mary Schalk Butch Schuman Jeffrey Senft ’76 Thomas Sinnott Vincent ’60 and Sherry Solomon Carol Spira DeForest ’62 and Arlene ’63 Tinkler Nancy Williams Pioneer Society Burrstone Circle $5,000 - $9,999 William Abraham ’64 Lawrence and Barbara Adler George ’50 and Marilyn Barlow Ifigenia Brown John Calabrese Sr. ’90 and Lori Calabrese John Casellini ’81 and Christine Rutigliano Joseph ’11 and Barbara Chubbuck Thomas Cole ’92 Randolph Collins ’83 Matthew Dziekan ’14* Violet ’73 and J. Chris Eagan

Richard Falvo Richard and Bonnie Fenner John Forte ’73 Marianne and Peter Gaige Linda Gigliotti ’69 Rick Green Robert Greene ’67 George Grisham Jr. ’78 and Nancy Grisham Kimberly Hanna Timothy Hobbs ’70 Heidi Hoeller ’91 and Paul Serbaniewicz Richard ’92 and Robin Jones J. Eric King ’65 and Kathlene Thiel Stephen and Amanda Mandia Wesley Miga ’80 and Karen Stonebraker Miga ’80 Frank ’62 and Clorinda ’62 Mondi Louis Natale ’59 George Nehme Christopher Neumann Jeana Nicotera Anthony ’72 and Barbara Paolozzi Todd Pfannestiel and Aimee Zellers Leigh and John Rae James ’73 and Linda Reid Marianne and Dennis Reynolds Donna Sabatino and John Hanlon Raymond ’59, H’11 and Elizabeth Serway Michael and Carol Simpson

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Tanner Stewart ’10* Kathleen Tehan ’76 Shelli Tsoueplis ’92 and Symeon Tsoupelis Jr. Thomas Wilson ’86 Robert ’88 and Maureen Wuest Ann Wynne ’58 Pioneer Society Scholars Circle $2,500 - $4,999 Bart ’62 and Carol Basi Andrew Beakman Hossein Behforooz and Forough Saba Gregory ’83 and Julie Benincasa William and Joan Blanchfield Linda ’89 and Les Bramblett Bryant Buchanan and Sharon Wise Alan Bucholtz ’59 Mary Cahalan ’53* John Calidonna James ’78 and Catherine Caruso Timothy Coakley ’59 Gilbert Condon ’59 Lorinda Coulter Thomas Crist Stuart Davis Jr. ’58 and Constance Griffith Davis ’58 Krista ’82 and Louis DiBerardino Michael DiGeorge ’80 William ’68 and Judith Dowling James DuRoss Jr. and Cynthia DuRoss Christine ’92 and Peter Farley Blake ’91 and Cathy Ford Cecilia Friend and Donald Challenger Jeffery and Tara Gates Richard Getty ’75 Anna Green ’73 and George

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Stairs Andrew ’69 and Eileen Guzzetti Scott ’69 and Paula Healy Robert and Carol Keller Jean-Marie ’78 and Richard Kneeley Robert and Tatyana Knight Robert ’88 and Bridget Korrie George ’67 and Helen Lucke Arlene Lundquist W. Anthony and Carol Mandour Pamela Matt and Francis Matt III Denise McVay G’07 Wester ’76 and Lorraine Miga Richard ’52 and Elaine Montag Stephanie Nesbitt and Liana Prosonic G’17 John ’81 and Kathleen ’83 O’Donnell * Katherine Pyne Mario Rocci ’56 Brian ’79 and Elizabeth Russell Rhoda Segal John ’66 and Madeline Stephenson* Glenn Stevener Jr. Charles Teuscher ’84 Kirsten Ullman ’88 and Brian Bursa Michael ’66 and Mary Anne Valentine Paul ’05 and Catherine Ward* Scott Weisman ’77 and Virginia Furth Weisman Pioneer Society Charter Circle $1,000 - $2,499 Nicholas and JamieLeigh Accordino Kelly ’00 and Michele ’01 Adams Stephen Alcala ’73 and Donna Braun

Anthony Baird ’91 Alan Balutis ’67 and Letitia Tucker Trisha ’13 and Edward Barone Gordon Bashant Jr. ’55 and Nancy Bashant David Bialek ’91 Mark ’85 and Joanne Blood Damian Boehlert David ’72 and Regina Bonacci Jacqueline Boulden ’75 Jim Brock Jr. Eugene Brockway Natalie Brown ’80 Marcia ’60 and Jack Brunner Anne Burton ’63 Matthew Carr ’03 and Amie Lucia ’05 DJ Carstensen Jr. ’85 and Carolyn Carstensen ’88 Nicholas ’86 and Barbara Cecere Richard ’71 and Paula Chmielewski Betty Comora Antonia Cortese ’66 John Crittenden Shad Crowe Ann Damiano Leila Davis ’89 Michele Davis G’11 Michael and Karen Davis Benjamin De Iorio ’62 and Donald Daniels ’61 Thomas ’63 and Virginia DeGironimo Rory ’77 and Vanessa ’79 DeJohn Mark Devito Stephen DeVito ’12 Carmen DiRienzo Carmody ’77 William Dibble ’65 James Dinneen ’54 Dennis Donohue Carl and Andrea Dziekan Alan Ellinwood ’68 Richard ’65 and Joan Evans

Michael Evolo Jr. ’90 and Melissa Hobika Evolo* Shanell Finney ’14 Thomas ’68 and Colleen Flynn David Fontaine ’89 Anthony Fus Jr. ’04, G’06, G’11 Brian and Sandra Gaetano Joseph ’81 and Patricia ’83 Giordano Martin Gleason Jr. and Lenore Gleason William ’74 and Linda Grammaticas Lawrence Grasso ’77 and Cindy Moeckel Lisa Green G’16 and Donald Green II W. James Greene ’54 Linda Griffin ’72 and Freling Smith Anthony Grimm II ’68 and Susan Grimm Douglas Gross ’65 Andrea Guy Patrice and David Hallock Mary Hayes Gordon ’82, G’13 and Dean Gordon Gary G’05 and Jodi Heenan Nadine and Alan Hillel Sarah Hinman ’77 Kathleen Hobaica Mark ’80 and Elizabeth Hobaica Brian ’75 and Susan Hughes Michael ’73 and Janice ’73 Huss Todd and Jennifer Hutton Dan Iovino ’76 Ellin ’67 and Robert Irwin Stanley ’67 and Phyllis Ann Jachimowski Anthony ’50 and Ann Jadhon Richard ’67 and Sally ’68 Jarvis Paul and Mairead Johndrow John† and Heather Johnsen Edward ’62 and Honore Jones

† deceased *arranged for matching gift

Barbara Jordan ’75 Harry ’73 and Melissa Keel Richard Kennedy ’97 John Kuhlmann ’72 Walter ’60 and Gloria Kunz Ann Lambert Kremer ’81 and Steven Kremer Kim Lambert and William Wheatley Kim Landon ’75 Terrence Li ’01 and Kat Bui * Michael ’96 and Christine ’97 Loveric Carol and Steven Mackintosh Barbara Marchilonis ’69 and Clyde Evans Anthony G’04 and Janice Martino Ronald ’74 and Karen Mason J. Kemper Matt Sr. and Angela Matt James McHenry ’59 Michael Meserole ’82 Michael Miller ’00 Patrick and Linda Mineo John ’66 and Patricia’66 Mulhall Paul J. ’79 and France Murphy Edward Naidamast ’75 Timothy Nelson Thomas ’69, ’90 and Anne ’77 Nelson Rachel Netzband ’63 Jane Noble Timothy ’72 and Sharon Noonan Frank Notarianni ’67 Peter ’90 and Colleen O’Connor Stephanie Opalka Rose Patterson ’87 Loch Phillipps Jeff Pollock Lili Poon ’99 Melvyn ’59 and Ronnie Poplock Curtis and Joni Pulliam

Albert Pylinski Jr. ’85 Eugene Quadraro Jr. ’71 and Mary Quadraro Doris Rice ’68 Andrew Ring Setsuko Rosen ’87 John and Beth Rowe Solade Rowe ’94 Barry ’70 and Patricia Ryan Pamela and Robert Salmon James Salsbury ’69 Treesa Salter ’88 Laura Salvaggio John Sammon III Kristian Schlottner ’01 Mark Schwartz Thomas Scirto ’81 Anthony Shaheen ’57 David Shanton ’80 Stephan Shapiro ’94 Robert ’74 and Veronica Sherman John Snyder ’95 and Renee Carlson Snyder Charles Sprock Sr. ’61 and Gretchen Sprock David ’69 and Lynne Suuronen Ann Marie Teitelbaum Cassella ’92 Tracy Tolles-Rueckert ’90 and Donald Rueckert Brent Tuttle ’69 Alane Varga Anthony and Barbara Villanti Kenneth ’08 and Noel Visalli Gregory G’06 and Katharine Williamson David ’67 and Jayne Wilson Harry and Ruth Wolfe John ’68 and Patricia ’68 Zalatan Susan Zullo ’88 Matt Zucker and Claudia Marshall Paul Zurek ’78 and Ann Smith ’80

HERITAGE SOCIETY We gratefully acknowledge the commitment, foresight, and generosity of our community of alumni and friends who believe so fervently in our mission to educate that they have included the College when planning their philanthropy. Those listed here have either made provision in their estate and/ or have taken steps to make a planned or deferred gift at some future point to benefit the faculty and students of Utica College.

Future Planned Gifts: Lawrence and Linda ’96 Aaronson John Bach Jr. ’75 Pat Bamdad ’65 Annette Becker Leo ’54† and Joan ’54 Brannick Larry ’74 and Corky Bull Anne Calabrese ’71 Gerard Capraro ’66 Timothy Coakley ’59 Thomas Cole ’92 Harry Cynkus ’71 Carolyn Dalton ’74 Stuart ’58 and Constance ’58 Davis Frederick Degen ’70 John Donohue Sr. ’57† Ron ’61 and May ’60 Duff Jim DuRoss Carl Dziekan Suzanne Finegan ’7† Joan Friedenberg ’73 Linda Gigliotti ’69 Honorable Linda Griffin ’72 Mary Hayes Gordon ’82 John Hobika Jr. ’91 Eileen Hopsicker Todd Hutton Brian Jackson ’85 Daniel Jones ’97 Kevin Kasky ’86

Harry Keel ’73 Kim Landon ’75 Benay Leff ’65 Gerald Martin ’71 Elvira Marotta† Sharon White McEwan ’64 Wester ’76 and Lorraine Miga Timothy Nelson Randall Nichols Adalgisa Nucci ’67 Theodore Orlin James Samuel ’70 James Sheldon ’67 Henry Spring ’77 Bernard Sullivan ’61† Ann Marie Teitelbaum Cassella ’92 Howard Terrillion ’58 Charles Teuscher ’84 Hans and Laura Wang Francis Wilcox† Walter Williams ’61† Bequests Received from the Estates of: Fred S. Dyer ’61 Lotis B. Howland M. David Seidel ’66 Catherine H. Streichert Evelyn Webster ’61 Gladys W. Young

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ONEIDA SQUARE SOCIETY The Oneida Square Society honors the visionary leadership of those donors whose lifetime giving to Utica College totals $100,000 or more. Their generous gifts helped build Utica College and lay the foundation for its future.

Genesee Street - $5,000,000 or more Harold T. Clark Jr. ’65 F. Eugene Romano Plant Street - $1,000,000-$4,999,999 Anonymous Bob Brvenik ’77 Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties The Hayner Hoyt Corporation Gary Thurston ’68 & Jeremy Thurston ’00 Lotis R. Howland Trust Dr. Albert ’49† & Gloria ’82 Shaheen Hart Street - $500,000-$999,999 Adirondack Bank George I. Alden Trust ARAMARK Donald G. ’71† & Bernice F. ’72 Benson Larry ’74 & Corky Bull Thomas J. Jr. ’49† & Marion D. Cahill † The Carbone Family Ellen Knower Clarke Charitable Trust Harry J. Cynkus ’71 Edward W. ’50† & Jean M. Duffy† Jim & Cynthia DuRoss Charles A. & Connie† Gaetano Estate of Dr. Jean Halladay ’53 Estate of Ruby Rogers di Iorio Christopher ’61 & Virginia Kelly Albert S. Mazloom ’58 Estate of Professor Wayne N. Palmer Francis Street - $250,000-$499,999 Eugene† & Connie Corasanti John ’66 & Ann Costello Ronald ’66 & Sheila Cuccaro John A. ’57 & Valerie Donohue Estate of Joseph P. Furgal ’50 Frank E. Gannett Foundation GE Foundation Andrew ’84 & Mary Hislop Estate of Peter Kucherenko & Eugenia

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Kucherenko Gary Kunath ’79 LexisNexis Mac-Clark Restaurants Theodore E. Martin ’61 John ’61 & Betty Meehan Mele Foundation Christian W. Meyer III ’79 & Mary Beth Welle-Meyer ’79 John F. Millett ’52, DDS† & Margaret A. Millett† James ’59† & Katherine Pyne John F. & Jacqueline C. ’11, G’13 Romano Linda Romano & Russell Petralia John & Deanna ’62 Sammon SBU Bank Sodexo Estate of Lt. Col. Edna Stappenbeck ’51 Gerald Starer ’65† & Dr. Stewart H. Starer ’66 Dr. Esat Toksu Walter W. ’61† & Nancy Williams Estate of Gladys W. Young State Street - $100,000-$249,999 Anonymous Adirondack Financial Services Corporation Albert† & Nata M. Augustyn Bank of Utica Ken Bell ’75 & Anne Veness-Bell Nancy E. Blake ’55 The Honorable Sherwood L. Boehlert ’61 Robert Brandt Jr. & Carol Brandt P’07 The Gilbert & Ildiko Butler Family Foundation Judge Richard† & Catherine Clarke Cardamone John Casellini ’81 & Christine Rutigliano Thomas F. Cox Jr. ’69 Professor Virgil C.† & Martha† Crisafulli Steven M. Critelli ’72 David F. D’Alessandro ’72 Frederick C. Degen ’70

Ronald H. ’61 & May C. ’60 Duff Professor Allyn R. Earl ’62 Fred L. Emerson Foundation First Source Federal Credit Union Marianne & Peter Gaige Gilroy Kernan & Gilroy Inc. Larry & Elizabeth Gilroy Arthur J. Golder ’50 Isaac Gordon† Ronald ’63 & Cecelia ’62 Gouse Friends of Dr. Michelle E. Haddad ’81† Dental Seminar The William Randolph Hearst Foundation Sam & Nancy Hester Heidi Hoeller ’91 & Paul Serbaniewicz Dr. Todd & Jennifer Hutton Estate of Mary S. Kramer ’88 Estate of Doris ’52 & William Lynch Sally ’61 & Donald Majka Professor Doris W.† & Walter E.† Miga Anthony C. ’72 & Barbara Paolozzi Mark ’88 & Mary Beth Pilipczuk John R. Pyle Jr. ’50† James E. Reid ’73, Linda P. Reid & Griffin A. Reid ’07 The Retirement Research Foundation Estate of Esther Reynolds Thomas J. ’65 & Virginia Rossiter Jeffrey B. Senft ’76 Slocum-Dickson Foundation, Inc. Charles ’61 & Gretchen Sprock Kenneth J. ’80 & Wendy R. Taubes Philip ’70 & Barbara ’69 Taurisano Howard J. Terrillion ’58 Utica National Insurance Group & Foundation Hans & Laura Wang Women’s Christian Association of Utica George ’55† & Ann ’58 Wynne Ronald & Helena Youngs Charitable Remainder Unitrust Dr. Donald K.† & Doris Zellner†

ALUMNI NEWS

‘The Heart and Soul of Utica College’ Professor and Provost John Johnsen 1948-2020 To understand the impact of John Johnsen’s 41-year career at Utica College, look no further than the comments beneath the announcement of his passing on UC’s social media.

Johnson, who passed away on July 24, 2020, retired in 2018 after one of the longest and most extraordinary tenures in Utica College’s history.

Starting at UC as an Instructor of Anthropology in 1977, Johnsen’s career was marked by a distinguished record of publications and service, including as a member of the administration, where he served as Dean of what is now the School of Business and Justice Studies, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, and Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Throughout his tenure, Dr. Johnsen was a tireless advocate for justice and equality, serving as a champion for the College’s diversity efforts, helping to build the Young Scholars Liberty Partnerships Program, forging strong relationships with the Oneida Indian Nation, and participating in community activities designed to raise awareness for underrepresented individuals.

The number of people whom Dr. Johnsen positively

influenced is beyond count—and many of those people took to Facebook in July to honor and remember their teacher, colleague, and friend: “John will forever be in our hearts and in the heart and soul of Utica College. John, we miss you.”

–Former Utica College President Todd Hutton “A wonderful person to agree with, and an even more wonderful person to argue with. I will have a Basil Hayden’s in your honor, John.”

—UC Professor of Biology Adam Pack “Always advocating. Never settling. RIP, Dr. Johnsen.”

—Alexia Herbowy Conrad ’94 “John never failed to make people around him feel like they mattered. He spent the time to talk and listen.”

–UC Director of Academic Business Development Elizabeth Nassar “John was such an important part in building the Utica College of today. He will be missed, but the legacy of his contributions will live on.”

—Former UC Trustee Frank Mondi ’62 “Rest in Power, John.” —Marcus Recile ’18 34

ALUMNI NEWS

Quarantine Projects When the COVID-19 pandemic forced many Americans into lockdown this spring, those who were lucky enough to remain safe and healthy found some productive—and surprising—ways to pass the time.

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Inspired Fellow Teachers (1) Shelley Cardiff Bartolotti ’91, a reading specialist at Myles Elementary in New Hartford, New York, wrote an article for Empatico, a blog and online resource for educators. In “Give Yourself Some Self-Love,” she encourages teachers to take care of their mental health during the pandemic.

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Had a Zoom Wedding (2) Alexandra Caldas ’13 married Adam Shaked on October 22, 2020, in a small ceremony in their Pawtucket, Rhode Island, backyard. The wedding was broadcast live to friends and family via Zoom.

Created a Photography Website (3) Ron Mason ’74, former UC Trustee and Dean of Students, created a website for his photography.

“It was hard picking favorite images to be included in the debut of my work, as well as making sure the logistics all worked.” See the finished product at ronmasonphotography.myportfolio.com

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Wrote a Book Sharing Grandparents’ Wisdom (4) Laxmi Geronimo De Jesus ’15 DPT, a healthcare worker who has worked in rehabilitation facilities, wrote The Wisdom at Sunset: What Grandma and Grandpa Have to Say. The book shares words of advice from her elderly patients who are nearing life’s end. The book was independently published in September 2020.

Built a Robot (5) Rachel Netzband ’63, retired Morrisville State College professor of mathematics, built a robot (her third) using a 3D printer. “This was the most challenging one so far,” she says.

PIONEER PAST A big part of the conversation in the UC Black Alumni Association Facebook group includes sharing throwback photos from members’ UC days. Check out this one, shared

by Kathyanne Davis ’04, from an orientation leaders’ day trip in 2005.

Find the group on Facebook at facebook.com/groups/ UCBlackAlumniAssociation

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ADVANCEMENT UPDATES

‘Trailblazing’ Through Philanthropy With one of the largest charitable gifts in UC’s history, the College will establish a groundbreaking institute for integrative health.

President Laura Casamento announced on October 27 that Utica College will establish The Institute for the Study of Integrative Healthcare (ISIH), made possible through an anonymous multi-year gift commitment totaling $2.8 million.

“This represents one of the largest charitable gifts in UC’s history, and the largest single endowment gift since our founding,” Casamento said.

changing landscape of the healthcare delivery system, Casamento said.

The Institute is a natural extension of the College’s mission and vision to pursue interdisciplinary study within the health professions and improving patient care through applied research.

The Institute will provide many opportunities for students to participate in professional research.

The multi-disciplinary institute will promote advanced learning and research in the emerging field of integrative healthcare, which brings together a broad range of practices in support of patient health and wellbeing, Casamento said.

“The UC Institute will be one of only a handful of similar institutes nationwide that is anchored in a four-year professional college with a liberal arts base,” said Utica College Provost Todd Pfannestiel. “Utica College is going to be a trailblazer with this model.”

The donors, who have requested to remain anonymous, made the philanthropic investment in UC due to the College’s longstanding record of innovation and responsiveness to the

Patrice Hallock, professor of education and founding director of the new institute, said that a national search for a permanent director will begin later this fall.

What is Integrative Healthcare?

• A holistic approach to healing that incorporates traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine, and is increasingly accepted within conventional systems of medical treatment throughout the developed world.

• Represents a collaborative opportunity to enhance the strategies of conventional medicine.

• Nearly half of U.S. adults opt for integrative medical treatments, including Chinese herbal medicines, which represent the fastest growing area of alternative therapy.

• Examples of common practices include: acupuncture, aromatherapy, meditation, massage therapy, and dietary supplements

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Science Center Expansion Underway (1)

Unprecedented Times, Unprecedented Generosity

New 25,000 square-foot building connects to Gordon Science Center and Romano Hall.

Days after the COVID-19 crisis closed UC’s campus, Utica College’s Division of Advancement began rallying Pioneers across the country to help students facing incredible hardships due to the pandemic. Pioneers Come Together: COVID-19 Relief Initiative, established on April 7, 2020, sought to raise funds for several important needs: institutional aid and student services, helping the College meet the financial need of all new and returning students and to continue providing critical student services; and for individual grants to students via the Emergency Relief Fund.

Summer 2020 marked a milestone in Utica College’s continued growth, as the institution broke ground on a new, $12-14 million science center—the latest in a string of campus improvements designed to support growing academic areas and improve the quality of student life.

Known informally as the “Science Annex,” the center contains new, state-of-the-art laboratories and classrooms for Utica College science classes.

“The new teaching laboratories will include those for genetics and molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry, animal physiology and animal behavior, and human anatomy and physiology laboratory,” says Dean of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Biology Sharon Wise. Other spaces included a vivarium with two procedure rooms and 4 climate-controlled housing rooms, a microscopy room, a clean molecular lab, and cell culture lab, as well as other flexible laboratory spaces for faculty/student research. The building will also include spaces for faculty and students to interact outside the classroom.

The new facility is scheduled to open in Fall 2021, with a dedication ceremony planned for Homecoming, Alumni, and Family Weekend on September 24-26, 2021.

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True to its name, Pioneers came together. By May 31, 535 donors had contributed $108,943 to the initiative.

Those funds were immediately put to use, helping the College assure a successful completion of the Spring semester, and to assist in the extensive planning for a safe reopening.

Said George Nehme, Vice President for Advancement: “This incredible show of support is proof that, even in these challenging times, the Pioneer spirit is loyal and unwavering.”

Four Alumni Join UC’s Board of Trustees In June, Robert Brvenik ’77, chair of the Utica College Board of Trustees, announced the addition of four new members: Krista DiBerardino ’82 (2), John Forte ’73 (3), Wester Miga ’76 (4) and Treesa Salter ’88 (5).

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Class Notes Frank Lentricchia ’62, Durham, NC, wrote A Place in the Dark/ The Glamour of Evil, a flip book with two novels: A Place in the Dark braids history, fiction and politics through memories carried by a Vietnamese immigrant woman living in Utica, an American Marine, and an Iraqi.

The Glamour of Evil deals with how some males are drawn to organized crime. (1) Vincent J. Coyne ’66, Whitesboro, NY, received the Genesis Group’s Joseph R. Carucci Legacy Award.

Steven Gorss ’71, West Hartford, CT, received the Distinguished Citizen Award from The Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, Middletown, CT, for his decades of philanthropic and community service. He recently retired from his motel business and owns a real estate investing firm.

Robert A. Sherman ’74, Sauquoit, NY, was given The Immaculata Medallion Award by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse for generosity and volunteerism toward the service of his parish.

Kim A. Bradford ’76, Mount Pleasant, SC, is director of global sales, groups and incentives for Rocco Forte Hotels.

Timothy L. McGowan ’80, Lebanon, NH, is associate vice

president of advancement marketing and engagement at Dartmouth College.

Cherie K. Kocsis ’82, New Paltz, NY, is a graphic specialist for Ulster County BOCES. Roger A. Shapiro ’83, Ewing, NJ, is associate director, patient engagement communications at Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Jeffrey Kuhn ’87, Sauquoit, NY, was elected Administrator of the Year by the Oneida/ Herkimer School Library System.

Alexia Herbowy Conrad ’94, Canastota, NY, started a new job as a technical editor at PAR Government in Rome, NY. Gina M. Pearce ’94, New Hartford, NY, achieved certification as an integrative holistic life coach.

Christina M. Kunzman ’01, Endicott, NY, is public relations coordinator for BroomeTioga BOCES. Kory Aversa ’95, Philadelphia, PA, and his company, Aversa PR, have been recognized as one of the top 25 PR and Branding Companies by the Philadelphia Business Journal for the sixth consecutive year.

Aversa was also named one of the top LGBTQ employers in the Philadelphia region by the Philadelphia Business Journal. (2) Charles J. Huddleston ’01, Sarasota, FL, is manager of the Orlando branch office of Safe Touch Security.

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Cerissa L. Gaulden ’02, Syracuse, NY, is a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines of Detroit.

Jean Palmer ’02, Oneida, NY, Supervisor of Communications and Printing Services at Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES, has been named the

2020 Communicator of the Year by The New York School Public Relations Association (NYSPRA).

Peter J. Holehan ’03, Saratoga Springs, NY, is a sportswriter for the Albany Times Union.

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Hasan Bajrektarevic ’04, Utica, NY, has been instrumental in developing NBT Bank’s fair lending self-assessment and risk assessment protocols. He is also a Pennsylvania Bankers Association’s Compliance School graduate.

Neal S. Keating ’05, Springfield, VA, was awarded a registered trademark and service mark for his new business, Cosaint Cyber LLC. Jennifer N. Escobar-Echols ’06 Glen Ridge, NJ, started a new business, ProSolutions Paralegal & Administrative Support Services, Inc, in 2018.

Shanelle Gabriel ’06, New York, NY, recently performed at Fast Company’s Innovation Festival. Gabriel wrote and performed poems inspired by panels featuring innovators from around the globe, including Janelle Monae, Lena Waithe, Verizon CEO Hans Vestbergas, as well as various scientists.

Michelle L. Ironside-Kinville ’06, Oneida, NY, was sworn in as Ward 4 Councilor on the Oneida City Council.

Kenneth Y. Rodriguez ’06, Burlington, ON, has completed a master’s degree in marketing from Baruch College, Zicklin School of Business. He is director of media planning at Klick Health in Toronto, Ontario.

Geoffrey S. Taft ’06, San Francisco, CA, was named head of growth at the computer software company Harness.

Geoffrey W. Brandt ’07, Lancaster, PA, was promoted to director of warehouse operations of Benchmark Construction.

Keshia L. Clukey ’08, Troy, NY, completed a National Press Foundation Fellowship on statehouse and local reporting. She has also been named the climate change reporter for Bloomberg Law, Albany.

Jennifer Ringrose Martin ’08, West Leyden, NY, is digital marketing manager for C & D Advertising, Utica.

Timothy E. Vondell ’08, Destin, FL, is director of product management and vehicle service at CDK Global.

Honoring Utica College’s 2020 Alumni Council Award Recipients Each year, Utica College’s Alumni Council honors outstanding students with three Alumni Council Awards. With the cancelation of homecoming in fall 2020, these awards will be presented at a ceremony during 2021’s Homecoming, Alumni, and Family Weekend. Congratulations to this year’s winners!

The Outstanding Senior Award is given to one Utica College graduate who has been involved in on-campus and/or community activities, has outstanding scholastic achievement, and/or has overcome a hardship to achieve success. This year’s winner: Adriana Toribio ’20 The Alumni Memorial Scholarships are awarded to two UC students going into their Junior or Senior years, and has a GPA of 3.00 or higher. In addition, these students should be involved in College or community activities. This year’s winners: Caleb Mayer ’21, Peter Gaughan ’21 The Sportsmanship Award honors the male and female student athletes who have demonstrated one or more of the ideals of sport including fairness, civility, unselfishness, respect, and responsibility. This year’s winners: Matthew Scott Patton ’20, Jacqueline Aronin ’20

The Gift that Gives Back Establishing a charitable gift annuity with Utica College can provide vital support to students and the College by funding scholarships, academic resources, capital projects, and other institutional priorities—while also providing donors with fixed payments for life.

Visit 39 utica.edu/planningyourgift to learn more about charitable gift annuities and to determine if establishing one as part of The Heritage Society may be right for you.

HERITAGE SOCIETY

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6 Zully A. Ramirez ’09, Chicago, IL, received an Emmy award for her investigative consumer reporting with Telemundo Chicago. (3) Jacqueline C. Romano ’11, New Hartford, NY, received the Genesis Group’s Joseph R. Carucci Legacy Award.

Tameka J. Hamilton ’12, Brooklyn, NY, is membership coordinator at the Economic Club of New York.

Alexandra Caldas ’13, Pawtucket, RI, is a Member Communications Operations Consultant for CVS Health in Rhode Island.

Scott Baron ’14, Jacksonville, FL, is a Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch.

Christine de Souza G’14, Manassas Park, VA, has been recognized by Cyber Defense

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7 Magazine as one of the Top 100 Women in Cybersecurity.

(4) John Verra ’14, Niskayuna, NY, is a social studies teacher in the Lansingburgh School District in Troy, NY. Katherine Cadieux Baron ’15, Jacksonville, FL, is an operations manager at Preservation Home Specialists. She married Scott Baron ’14 in 2016. They welcomed twins, Beau and Chloe, on December 28, 2018. (5) Katharine E. Shove ’15, Utica, NY, has a new position as associate litigation lawyer of Bacon Wilson, P.C. Elaine Paravati Harrigan ’15, Marcy, NY, is author of a University of Buffalo study on achieving social satisfaction through music and food.

8 Amarildo Ceka ’16, G’19, Tirana, Albania, is an adviser to the Albanian Minister of Health and Social Protection at the Albanian American Development Foundation in Tirana, Albania.

James McClendon ’17, Utica, NY, is Digital Managing Editor for Towne Square Media in Buffalo.

Ann C. Ciancia ’18, Liverpool, NY, had her publication, “Breaking the Cultural Masculinity Link Between Domestic and Gender-Based Sexual Violence in Central America” selected for publication by Syracuse University College of Law Journal of Global Rights and Organizations (JGRO).

Kaleigh Congdon ’18, Niskayuna, NY, is a cardiac nurse at Ellis Medicine in Clifton Park, NY. She also works part-time at her family’s daycare center.

WEDDINGS, ENGAGEMENTS & ANNIVERSARIES Jean Palmer ’02 and Christopher Miller, Oneida, NY, were married on July 18, 2020.

Damaris Bergas ’03 and Devin Misarti, Scarsdale, NY, were married on July 24, 2020. (6) Jennifer N. Escobar-Echols ’06 and Nishawn Echols, Glen Ridge, NJ, were married on September 16, 2017. (7) Victoria Cruz-Griffith Wilson ’12 and Phabion Wilson, Atlanta, GA, were married on October 13, 2019. (8)

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Helping Kids Cope: Ruth Fein Revell ’79 A children’s book by PR alumna Ruth Fein Revell ’79 is helping kids understand the changes and challenges of COVID-19.

At a small family gathering in March 2020, Ruth Fein Revell ’79 noticed that her grandson, 9-year-old Aiden, was unusually quiet.

“We were all talking about the social distancing that was about to begin, and I realized nobody was asking the only child in the room how he felt about the crazy scenario playing out,” she says.

Fein Revell, a public relations/journalism grad and a health and environmental writer, was instantly inspired. Over a weekend, she penned a children’s book—her first—about the challenges children are facing amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The story, titled “A Crazy Year, It Isn’t Easy,” follows Aiden as he progresses from sadness and concern about missing school, soccer, and friends, to feeling hopeful about all the good things he sees happening around him.

Fein Revell, who lives in Saratoga Springs, New York, says the story was designed to help children—and their parents—express feelings of anxiety, fear, and disappointment, and to feel less alone.

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“The COVID pandemic isn’t happening in a vacuum,” she says. “Kids, like all of us, are dealing with other important issues around it and through it.”

Written for children ages 7 to 11, Fein Revell says the book has been vetted by a social worker, a third-grade teacher, and parents, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

“Parents, teachers, and counselors love it,” she says, “but getting it into their hands is an organic exercise—no typical author visits at schools, no book signings at stores, no physical school settings.”

But instead of publishing the story as an e-book, Fein Revell says choosing to publish a printed book is worth the extra challenge: “While kids are learning nearly exclusively online right now, I believe holding a printed book is more valuable than ever.”

The book is published through Northshire Books/ShirePress, and is available for order through Northshire Bookstore, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.

Cancer-Free and Ready For What’s Next: Lukus Becker ’19 After a harrowing battle with cancer during the pandemic, Lukus Becker ’19 is cancer-free.

All college graduates expect to face challenges when they enter the “real world.” For Lukus Becker ‘19, those challenges included a life-altering cancer diagnosis and treatment during a pandemic.

After graduating in May 2019, Becker moved to Brooklyn, New York, to start a position as an elementary teacher at Success Academy Charter School.

But in September 2019, the mild pain he’d been experiencing in his right knee had intensified. A series of doctor visits and tests had revealed a malignant osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, along with five cancerous nodules in his lungs.

Becker quickly began chemotherapy and underwent several surgeries to remove the nodules and the tumor, and insert a device to help regenerate the bone.

The treatment and recovery process hit a speed bump in March 2020, when COVID-19 began to ravage New York City.

For Becker, the pandemic meant taking extra precautions, such as transitioning to telehealth appointments, working with only one caregiver at a time, and being meticulous about mask-wearing.

“I was and still am pretty terrified of COVID, as I have gone through three lung surgeries and eight leg surgeries during my treatment, most happening during the pandemic,” says Becker. “I’m still rebuilding an immune system, so it’s a constant thought of safety.”

But on September 15, 2020, Becker and his wife, Katie, finally had something to celebrate: His scans and blood tests showed he was cancer-free.

“I remember that night so well,” Becker says. “I spent a good two hours calling everyone I knew and, funny enough, all of my family members were busy at the time, so my first person to answer was my UC friend Hawa Sanogo ’19, who was a huge support during my treatment.”

Becker continues to work on rehabilitating his right leg in physical therapy, but he’s eager to return to work at Success Academy—and to everything else.

“I still have monthly scans to make sure the disease doesn’t come back,” he says. “But I’m excited to start returning to parts of my life that had to be put on hold due to cancer.”

8 Alexandra Caldas ’13 and Adam Shaked, Pawtucket, RI, were married on October 22, 2020.

Melissa Landstrom Desland ’15 and Jonathan Desland, Auburn, NY, were married in July 2020.

Kaleigh Congdon ’18 and John Verra ’14, Niskayuna, NY, were engaged on August 9, 2019. They are planning a July 2021 wedding. (8)

BIRTHS & ADDITIONS Adrienne Campbell Haase ’07 and her husband, Elliott, Albany, NY, welcomed a daughter, Estelle Ruth Haase, on August 22, 2019.

Katherine M. Montmeny ’04, G’12, and her husband, Matthew, Braintree, MA, welcomed their daughter on January 12, 2020.

Zachary J. Vaccaro ’04 and his wife, Marge, Utica, NY, welcomed their daughter on October 13, 2019.

Julie M. Acquaviva ’05 and her husband, Salvatore, Ilion, NY, welcomed their son, Greysen Bernard, on September 15, 2020.

IN MEMORIAM Edward J. Godemann ’50, Clinton, NY, Feb. 14, 2020.

Paul A. Williams ’50, Sauquoit, NY, Jan. 10, 2020.

Elizabeth Ciolek Ricci ’51, Binghamton, NY, Oct. 23, 2020.

Mahlon A. York ’52, Clinton, NY, Oct. 6, 2020.

Frederick S. Brady ’54, Utica, NY, Sept. 11, 2020.

John A. Fitzsimmons ’55, Whitesboro, NY, April 15, 2020.

Richard L. Wolfe ’55, Whitesboro, NY, Oct. 31, 2019.

John A. Donohue ’57, Syracuse, NY, Sept. 29, 2020.

Peter Fava ’57, Barneveld, NY, Jan. 3, 2020.

Anthony J. George ’58, Utica, NY, Dec. 25, 2019.

Charles A. Lewis ’59, Westmoreland, NY, April 14, 2020.

Rev. Anthony LaFache ’60, Utica, NY, Oct. 30, 2019.

Richard A. Dawes ’62, Utica, NY, Oct. 26, 2019.

Louis A. Fraccola ’62, Utica, NY, August 2, 2020.

Robert W. Babiarz ’63, Lawrenceville, GA, Jan. 6, 2020.

Michael E. Barry ’63, Ballston Spa, NY, Feb. 8, 2020.

James B. Davis Jr. ’63, Sherrill, NY, March 4, 2020.

Robert L. Wood ’63, Clinton, NY, April 13, 2020.

Edward L. Goodridge ’64, Clinton, NY, Oct. 12, 2019.

Wayne W. Harris ’64, Horseheads, NY, Oct. 6, 2020.

Robert M. Bebee ’65, Malvern, PA, July 10, 2020.

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Eva Berg Clark ’65, Clinton, NY, July 17, 2020.

Mary Boesch ’66, Utica, NY, August 10, 2020.

Joseph C. Montgomery ’66, Sylvania, GA, June 6, 2020.

Donald F. Skelly, Jr. ’66, Sauquoit, NY, Jan. 3, 2020.

Michael C. Silverman ’66, New Hartford, NY, Dec. 7, 2019.

Gerard M. Graniero ’67, Utica, NY, May 1, 2020.

J. Ronald Johns ’67, Key West, FL, Sept. 25, 2020.

Pasquale J. Santacroce ’67, Utica, NY, Feb. 24, 2020.

Esther Sherline ’68, New Hartford, NY, Oct.15, 2019.

John L. David III ’69, Tucson, AZ, April 9, 2020.

Thomas A. Evans ’69, Clinton, NY, Oct. 23, 2019.

Marlene Brown ’71, Clark Mills, NY, Oct. 31, 2019.

Duane A. Darling ’71, Johnstown, NY, June 27, 2020.

John A. DeLuca ’71, Framingham, MA, August 1, 2020.

Kenneth J. Fanelli ’71, Marcy, NY, Oct. 16, 2020.

Nancy B. Powers ’71, Poland, NY, Jan. 6, 2020.

James R. Hall ’72, New York Mills, NY, April 11, 2020.

Mary Schecter ’72, Clinton, NY, June 15, 2020.

Anne Marie Bentro Talarico ’72, New Hartford, NY, Oct. 1, 2020.

Elaine G. Perkins ’73, New Hartford, NY, May 9, 2020.

Patricia B. Bracco Berardino ’74, Utica, NY, Jan. 8, 2020.

Philip Graziano ’74, Sauquoit, NY, Oct. 29, 2019.

Charles Groppe ’75, Yonkers, NY, Oct. 9, 2020.

John F. Butler ’77, Leesburg, FL, March 9, 2020.

Deborah Ann Murray ’77, Ilion, NY, Sept. 30, 2020.

Glenn Schultz ’77, Voorheesville, NY, April 8, 2020.

Roger G. Broadbent ’80, Bernville, PA, August 31, 2020.

Thomas Keene ’82, Fleetwood, PA, Dec. 9, 2019.

Barbara Marie Sweeney ’83, New Hartford, NY, August 19, 2020.

Joseph F. Loretz ’84, Endwell, NY, Oct. 25, 2020.

Rene Marie Trimmer ’84, Mechanicsburg, PA, August 4, 2020.

Leslie J. Henrickson ’85, Brantingham, NY, August 15, 2020.

Charles William Hurd, Jr. ’85, Camden, NY, August 31, 2020.

Jonathan Adewumi ’86, New York, NY, April 17, 2020.

Suzanne Lynn Castle Williams ’01, Utica, NY, July 28, 2020.

Gabrielle Hudson Gayle ’08, New York, NY, April 25, 2020.

William George White ’12, Utica, NY, May 30, 2020.

Rebecca King G’16, Utica, NY, Dec. 25, 2019.

FACULTY & STAFF WHO HAVE PASSED John H. Johnsen, Provost, Damariscotta, ME, July 25, 2020.

Kathleen Randall ’71, Director of ITS Services, New Hartford, NY, March 7, 2020.

Jill Loessi McCarty, Professor of Accounting, Herkimer, NY, April 13, 2020.

Send us your news! uticamag@utica.edu

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In Memoriam: Gabrielle “Gabby” Hudson Gayle ’08 1985-2020

By Kaitlyn Tambasco ’20 A mentor for new students and a tireless advocate for women and students of color. Full of life with an infectious laugh and a wonderful sense of humor.

That’s how Dean of Diversity and Inclusion Alane Varga remembers Gabrielle “Gabby” Hudson Gayle ’08.

“We stayed in touch after she graduated,” says Varga. “The high points in her life were her marriage to Leon Gayle and the birth of their daughter, Leona. She was eagerly anticipating the birth of her son.”

As a resident assistant, a member of the Black Student Union, the Womyn’s Resource Center, and V-Day, a campus group created to raise awareness about violence against women, Hudson was a steadfast presence in all facets of campus life.

She was also a dual major in special education and general education. At UC’s Commencement in 2008, she received the Dean Robert Woods Student Life Award for her contributions to campus life.

Hudson, who lived in Queens, taught special education and was pursuing her doctorate online. After becoming ill in late March, Hudson died of COVID-19 on April 25 at the Katz Women’s Hospital in New Hyde Park, New York. Her unborn son, whom she and her husband had named Gabriel, passed away three days before on April 22.

Neva Becerril ’07, Hudson’s close friend, remembers Hudson for her drive and determination.

“At UC, Gabby worked endlessly to create an environment for new students to feel loved and welcomed,” she says. “Always going out of her way to go the extra mile.”

Adds Becerril: “The outpouring of sadness for her loss is nothing but a testament to the beautiful person she was.”

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PEACE OF HIS MIND Along with hundreds of other members of the UC community both virtually and on campus, Student Government Association President Peter Gaughan ’21 took part in September’s Walk a Mile for Unity.

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