Curt Richter Photography
Chalk Up Another for Marilyn Nelson
Professor Emeritus Marilyn Nelson added the 2017 NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s Literature to a list that includes the Newbery Honor, Coretta Scott King Honor, and the Pushcart Prize. “Her engaging, lyrical style builds awareness around sensitive issues through human, and even humorous, storytelling that both children and adults can relate to,” said Robert Con Davis-Undiano, executive director of World Literature Today, the award-winning magazine of international literature at the University of Oklahoma that bestows the honor.
Class Notes
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Your classmates want to know about — and see — the milestones in your life. Send us news about weddings, births, new jobs, new publications, and more — along with hi-res photos — to: Alumni News & Notes, UConn Foundation, 2384 Alumni Drive, Unit 3053, Storrs, CT 06269.
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James V. Morgia ’46 (CLAS) has published Three Day Pass, a book about the unfinished ROTC Class of ’44 at UConn. The 56 students in this patriotic group couldn’t graduate because the U.S. Army needed every available recruit at the time. Instead, the students were ordered to Camp Wheeler in Georgia for 16 weeks of basic training in May 1943. Morgia and some of the infantry officers from UConn ended up with the 84th Infantry Division. They shipped out to Europe in September 1945 and fought in the Siegfried Line, the Battle of the Bulge, and the breakthrough to the Elbe River in Germany.
(Above are some of the recruits in Fort Benning, Georgia.)
John Surowiecki ’66 (CLAS), ’78 MA published Pie Man, his first novel after 12 poetry books. Pie Man takes place in a working-class neighborhood in a small city in central Connecticut and was awarded the Nilsen Literary Prize for a first novel. It was published by Southeast Missouri State University Press.
Sherwood J. (Woody) Anderson ’70 (CLAS) was recently inducted into the Berlin (Conn.) High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Anderson set school records in the mile (4:49.7) and two mile (10:14) runs, won several cross-country meets, and was among the first in school history to qualify for state meets. He was a member of the UConn cross-country team in 1966 and later became sports editor of the Connecticut Daily Campus. He won many awards for coverage of high school sports for The Hartford Courant.
Edward Nusbaum ’70 (CLAS), co-founder and principal of Westport-based family law firm Nusbaum & Parrino P.C., was selected by his peers for inclusion on the 2018 list of The Best Lawyers in America, a distinction he has earned for 23 consecutive years.
Justin Gordon ’72 (CLAS) wrote Holocaust Postal History, a journey through the Holocaust using actual correspondence written by victims. Gordon and wife, Sandra, live in Skokie, Ill., and have three children and many grandchildren. For information on the book, go to holopostal.com.
Mary MacIlvain ’73 (CLAS), ’75 MS, of East Hampton, Conn., recently became marketing coordinator for Hoffmann Architects, a Hamden, Conn–based architecture and engineering firm specializing in the rehabilitation of building exteriors.
Paul H. Glotzer ’73 (BUS) of Newington, Conn., has been reappointed by The Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants (CTCPA) to serve as a member of its advisory council for 2017–18. He is also an instructor-in-residence at UConn.
Rich Walcoff ’74 (CLAS), who started his sportscasting career at WHUS-FM as the radio voice of UConn football, basketball, and baseball, was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame in September. Walcoff was sports director for KGO Radio in San Francisco for 32 years and hosted the San Francisco 49ers pre- and postgame talk shows. He was also the first ever radio sideline reporter for a Super Bowl (SB XXIX) in Miami in 1995. Walcoff recently retired and has two adult sons. He lives with his wife, Christina, in Petaluma, Calif.
Paul Martel ’74 (CLAS), founder of YHB Investment Advisors, Inc., in West Hartford, Conn., was one of three national finalists for the Global Community Impact Award as part of the annual Invest in Others Awards in September. He has been providing affordable healthcare and other humanitarian support to the people of Ecuador for nearly 20 years. Tens of thousands of Ecuadorians have received medical care thanks to Martel’s clinic and hundreds have received life-changing vision surgeries. His organization also partners with the World Health Organization to provide cervical cancer screenings for women.
Eric D. Coleman ’77 JD was honored with a UConn Law alumni award in October. Coleman was a state senator representing parts of Bloomfield, Windsor, and Hartford for 22 years. He was the first African-American chair of the legislature’s Judiciary Committee, and served 11 years in the Connecticut House of Representatives. He led the effort to repeal the death penalty in Connecticut and had an active role in enacting medical marijuana legislation and reforms in criminal justice and police accountability. He was instrumental in establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a state holiday, strengthening the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, and increasing the number of minority and female judges in the state.
Cheryl Chase ’78 JD was honored with a UConn Law alumni award in October. Chase is co-president, general counsel, and a principal of Chase Enterprises, a private holding company engaged primarily in commercial real estate development and management. She serves as a trustee for both the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art and the Connecticut Science Center. She also serves as vice chair of the board of directors of the University of Connecticut Health Center and was a trustee of the University of Connecticut Law School Foundation.
Dan M. Blumenthal ’78 (CLAS) has joined the law firm of Wenig Saltiel, LLP, in Brooklyn, N.Y., as special counsel, concentrating in general real estate and landlord/tenant litigation as well as commercial lease negotiation.
Stephen Smith ’78 MSW has retired after 26 years as a supervisor for the Massachusetts Department of Welfare/ Social Services and 22 years as a health facility specialist with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Recently, he and his wife, Nancy, re-visited Cambodia and Vietnam with several veterans, who served in that area. Smith served as a combat infantry sergeant from 1969 to 1970 with the 1st Infantry, 4th Calvary Mechanized, and 101st Airborne divisions.
When longtime Huskies fan William C. Simmons ’79 (ED) retired as principal from the North Street Elementary School in Oneida, N.Y., the school celebrated in an unusual way — they changed the school mascot. The school marked the occasion by voting to replace the North Street Falcon with a Husky. Simmons, of Utica, N.Y., spent 31 years in the Oneida school district. He started out in special education, then became a third-grade teacher before becoming principal.
Kelley (Leahy) Hill ’80 (CAHNR) ’94 MS is the head of global medical writing at Alexion Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on serving patients with rare and ultra-rare disorders. Her early career included 17 years as manager of biology lab services at UConn. She now leads clinical writing efforts to support drug development from first-in-human to life-cycle management of marketed products. She is an active member of the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association and supports the Open Door food bank that serves communities in Cape Ann, Mass.
Dr. Alan J. Lipman ’84 (CLAS) was featured in the Tom Hanks–produced CNN series “The Nineties,” in the episode titled “Terrorism Strikes Home.” Lipman discussed the causes and consequences of such violent and terrorist attacks as the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the Columbine School shootings, and the Oklahoma City bombing and how such events could be prevented. He is a clinical professor of psychiatry and behavior sciences at George Washington University Medical Center.
Michael Horyczun ’81 (CLAS) has been named director of communications for New Canaan Public Schools in New Canaan, Conn.
Deborah Fuhr ’82 (BUS) was given the 1980s 100 Women in Finance’s 2017 European Industry Leadership Award in October. Fuhr, who is managing partner and co-founder at ETFGI, LLP, an independent research and consultancy firm, was recognized for her outstanding achievements in the financial markets and for being a pioneer in the exchange-traded fund (ETF) sector. Fuhr is one of the industry’s leading commentators and an early identifier of the significance of the ETF industry. She was named one of the “100 Most Influential Women in Finance” by Financial News over several years, most recently in 2016.
Steven M. Greenspan ’85 JD was honored with a UConn Law alumni award in October. Greenspan is vice president and chief litigation counsel for United Technologies Corp. and a trustee of The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford, Conn. He is also a member of the Hartford County Bar Association and a trustee of the University of Connecticut Law School Foundation.
Steven M. Greenspan ’85 JD was honored with a UConn Law alumni award in October. Greenspan is vice president and chief litigation counsel for United Technologies Corp. and a trustee of The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford, Conn. He is also a member of the Hartford County Bar Association and a trustee of the University of Connecticut Law School Foundation.
Elizabeth (Lisa) J. Podlaha-Murphy ’86 (ENG), ’89 MS recently started a new job as chair of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y.
Corliss J. Montesi ’86 (BUS), of Cheshire, Conn., was reappointed by The Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants to serve as a member-at-large of its advisory council for 2017–18. She is vice president and corporate controller of Stanley Black & Decker in New Britain, Conn.
Pirro ’87 MD, has earned the designation of Certified Physician Executive from the American Association of Physician Leadership. He is currently the TeamHealth Facility Medical Director at Rutherford Regional Medical Center in Rutherfordton, N.C. His specialties include hospital medicine, intensivist medicine, and anesthesia.
Dan Thomas ’90 (CLAS) is an attorney in the Office of the General Counsel at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. He recently completed two years as lead counsel to the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, where he was responsible for legal advice on all human spaceflight matters, including missions to the International Space Station, astronaut program, the development of commercial crew vehicles with Boeing and SpaceX, and future missions to Mars.
Paul Valenti ’90 (CLAS) is the director of human rights for Pinellas County, Fla., and was elected as a member of the board and Southern Region Representative to the International Association of Official Human Rights Agencies (IAOHRA) at its annual conference in Seattle in September. In his new role, he represents state and local civil and human rights law-enforcement agencies in 13 states.
Fred Kuo ’90 (CLAS) was appointed senior associate director of the annual fund at the Loomis Chaffee School in Windsor, Conn.
Sharon (Healy) Yang ’94 Ph.D. co-edited and contributed to the academic collection of essays Gothic Landscapes: Changing Eras, Changing Cultures, Changing Anxieties (Palgrave), with Kathleen Healey ’85 (CLAS), ’88 MA. Yang also published a sequel to her first novel, Bait and Switch, called Letter from a Dead Man (TouchPoint Press).
Rob Carolla ’94 (CLAS) has been named director of communications for the College Football 150th Anniversary celebration. He serves as president of the College Sports Information Directors of America, a national organization of strategic communicators for college athletics.
Laura Budzelek ’99 (CLAS), ’02 MA, a baroque pop singer and songwriter recorded her debut album, Treasure the World Now.
Dorothy Carlone ’01 MBA received the Small Business Award from the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development for excellence in precision manufacturing. Carlone is vice president of the General Machine Company in Southington, Conn.
Heidi (Forrest) Henaire ’02 MSW and Kristopher Henaire ’03 (CLAS), ’14 MBA announce the birth of their daughter, Ella Grace. She joins two year-old brother Colton. Heidi works for the State of Connecticut as an education consultant and coordinator for deaf services, and Kris is director of college counseling at Chase Collegiate School in Waterbury.
Michael P. Jordan ’01 (BUS), ’02 MS, of Glastonbury, Conn., was installed as advisory council chair by The Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants for 2017–2018. He is managing director at Andersen Tax in Old Greenwich, Conn.
Renee (Christopher) Deemy ’04 (CLAS) and Gregory Deemy ’04 (CLAS) are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Riley Kate, in January 2017. Riley joins her big brother, Tyler, as a big fan of Husky basketball. Mom and Dad hope they will both become future Huskies!
The Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants (CTCPA) reappointed Michael G. Maksymiw Jr. ’05 MS, of Plainville, Conn., to serve as a member-at-large of its advisory council. He is a senior tax manager with Filomeno & Company, P.C., in West Hartford, Conn.
Phillip Champagne ’06 (CAHNR) and Krystal (Hawks) Champagne ’06 (CLAS) welcomed their first child, Julian Phillippe Champagne, in July 2017. The family lives in North Branford, Conn.
Justin Theriault ’07 (CLAS), ’10 JD has been selected as a recipient of the 2017 New Leaders in the Law award by The Connecticut Law Tribune.
Jodi Roth-Saks ’08 MA recently joined the United Way of Chester County (Penn.) Board of Directors. Prior to joining the board, she helped to assess agency funding requests as part of United Way’s Community Impact Teams.
Lindsey Reinert ’08 MA recently received her Doctorate of Education from the University of Denver. She is coordinator of gifted education in Jefferson County Public Schools, Colorado’s largest school district.
Katherine A. Donovan ’09 (BUS), of Bloomfield, was reappointed by The Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants to serve as a member-at-large of its advisory council for 2017– 2018. Donovan is an audit supervisor with Whittlesey & Hadley, P.C. in Hartford, Conn.
Lauren Bucknam ’10 (CLAS) and Conor Gereg, an ECE adjunct at UConn, celebrated their wedding July 15 with many fellow Huskies attending.
Shana (Morales) Shea ’10 (CLAS) and Kenneth Shea ’12 (CLAS), ’16 JD were married August 26, 2017 in Waterbury, Conn. Their officiant was Patrick Whalen ’11 (CLAS).
Tim Stobieraki ’11 (CLAS) launched StudentDebtWarriors.com to help college students, graduates, and parents make sense of the complex world of student loans.
Erica (Mason) McQuade ’11 (CLAS) and Kevin McQuade ’11 (CLAS) were married Sept. 16, 2017, in Washington, D.C., with an alumni-filled wedding party.
Christie D. Jean ’11 (CLAS), ’14 JD has been elected to the board of directors for The Artists Collective, a multi-arts and cultural organization serving the Hartford, Conn., region. The Artists Collective works to safeguard and maintain the arts and culture of the African diaspora and to expose children to a nontraditional arts education by promoting social skills training, school success, and community responsibility. She is a lawyer at Robinson+Cole in Hartford.
Cynthia Harakaly ’12 MA and Shane Gibson ’12 MS married on April 14, 2017, in Sedona, Ariz., six years after they met in graduate school. They live in Arizona, where she is a high school counselor at Mingus Union High School and he is a professor of mathematics at Yavapai College.
Jessica Pisano ’12 (CLAS) shares the news that she “finally married” her college sweetheart. She and Chris Machado ’12 (CLAS) were married on July 6, 2017, in New Jersey surrounded by family, friends, and many lifelong Huskies. They honeymooned in St. Lucia and are building a home in South Jersey.
Courtney Dinnan ’12 (CLAS) and David Knapp ’10 (ED) were married May 28, 2017. While at UConn, Courtney competed for the Huskies as a three-sport athlete and captain of the women’s cross-country, indoor and outdoor track and field teams.
Michael Marshall ’17 MSW was elected to the board of directors for the National Association of Social Workers, Connecticut chapter. He works as an outpatient clinician at a community-based nonprofit in Norwich, Conn.
In Memoriam
Find alumni and faculty obituaries at uconnalumni.com.
Please share news of alumni deaths and obituaries with UConn Magazine by sending an email to: alumni-news@uconnalumni.com or writing to Alumni News & Notes, UConn Foundation, 2384 Alumni Drive Unit 3053, Storrs, CT 06269.
Share your news with UConn Nation!
Your classmates want to know about the milestones in your life. Send news about weddings, births, new jobs, new publications, and more to: alumni-news@uconnalumni.com
Submissions may be edited for clarity or length.
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