Class Notes: Summer 2021

1971 
Edmond Hennessy of Nashua, NH, CEO of Performance Marketing Group, shared a recent industry article titled, “The Perry Initiative Set the Stage — Although How Is It That COTS Is Still Fuzzy?” which was picked up and published by COTS Journal. This is an article (in a series) that demonstrates our dedication to the defense market. 

1974 
Janet (Kipphut) Ainsworth ’74, JD ’84, of Guilford, CT, is retiring from her job as a staff attorney for a Connecticut state agency after more than 30 years working. She is looking forward to more time for hiking, biking, skiing and advocating for conservation.

1975 
David Niesel of Georgetown, TX, recently retired after 37 years as a faculty member at the University of Texas Medical Branch. He retired as a professor of microbiology and immunology and senior vice president and dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. He will continue his role as host, along with Dr. Norbert Herzog, professor, Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, of the award-winning Medical Discovery News weekly radio broadcast and newspaper column that presents advances in biomedical science research to the public.
Stephen Rovenger of Mooresville, NC, reports that his son, Gregory, is deployed aboard the U.S.S. Eisenhower and in his third year of a six-year contract helping to maintain the reactor aboard his vessel. 

1976 
Richard Horowitz ’76, MBA ’82, and his wife, Vicki (Koltz) Horowitz ’79 of Boynton Beach, FL, purchased a home in Florida and are now enjoying retirement there. Vicki retired after 36 years as an occupational therapist at ACES in 2019. Richard sold their Bark Busters franchise in 2019, after 13 years. 

1980
Gary Sidorsky of Lillington, NC, is chief executive officer/CFO at American Defense Systems, Inc.

1982
Paula Dominick of Wilton, CT, has joined Wells Fargo as the company’s chief compliance officer.

1983
Tamara Hayden of Blue Bell, PA, earned a master’s degree in professional studies from Pennsylvania State University. She also holds an MBA from Villanova and an MHA from Pennsylvania State University.

1986
Sandra (Benton) DeGennaro of Georgetown, DE, retired after working 12 years as a microbiologist with The Metropolitan District Commission. She and her husband, Paul, are building a new home in Delaware.

1991
Keith McLiverty of Derby, CT, was appointed finance director for Warren County Virginia. He previously served as treasurer for Derby, Connecticut, for more than 20 years, and also Derby’s finance director.

1992
Michael O’Donnell of Prospect, CT, was promoted to major with the Connecticut State Police. Michael is a commanding officer at the State Police Western District Headquarters.

1993
Janet (Carrano) Crean of Branford, CT, is retired and working part time as a standardized patient at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine. She previously worked full time as assistant to the deans of liberal arts at Quinnipiac.

1998
Michelle (O’Donnell) Bourne of New Gloucester, ME, joined the Learning and Advising Center team at Central Maine Community College as the jobs for Maine graduates college success specialist.

1999
Jason Oksenhendler of Brookeville, MD, was promoted to director, FedRAMP Advisory Services at Coalfire Systems.

2000
Todd Barry of Branford, CT, began teaching economics at Hudson County Community College in Jersey City, NJ. Todd has also published his fifth book, “The Apostles, and Other Inspirational, New Testament Hymns.” The book features music that Todd composed; it also comes with a CD.
Alyssa Klein ’00, MPT ’02, of Mount Kisco, NY, is a senior physical therapist at NYP Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville, NY. Throughout the pandemic, she has helped recovering COVID-19 patients regain strength as they prepare for discharge. She also led the development of a new PT telehealth interface, which enabled patients to receive care from the safety of their homes.

2002
Eric Yutzy of Pembroke Pines, FL, is an anchor at Local 10 in Fort Lauderdale. He was named the “Best Morning News Anchorman” as part of Fort Lauderdale Magazine’s Best of Fort Lauderdale 2020.

2003
Brianna (LaBrecque) Barnes of East Hampton, CT, is a media relations and communications specialist at Saint Francis Hospital in Hartford.
Dorit (Lemel) Kemsley of Encino, CA, was featured in an interview with Insider, in which she spoke about her career. Best known as a cast member on the television show, “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” Dorit is also a fashion designer, who founded the swimwear line Beverly Beach in 2017.

2004
Heriberto Cordero ’04, MAT ’05, of Meriden, CT, is moving to Lancaster, PA, where he will be one of three new principals for the public school district there. He previously worked as principal of Fair Haven School in New Haven, where he started an English and Spanish dual-language immersion program. He and his family are planning to start a residential center focused on rebuilding families, which they will call Cordero House.
Kelly McKinnon ’04, MBA ’05, of Colchester, CT, has been promoted to chief financial officer at Mohegan Sun.
Katie Tompkins of Canton, MA, has been named leader of the Intellectual Property Practice Group at Lathrop GPM. She is a certified white belt in Legal Lean Sigma and project management.

2005
Jeffrey Blanchet and his wife, Christine, of Stratford, CT, welcomed their second daughter, Claire Lucille, on July 3, 2020.
Nuwoe Goteh of Boston, MA, is the global director of Nike’s Jordan Brand.
Aubrey (Bishop) Heller ’05, MS ’07, of Saco, ME, is a stay-at-home-mom. She reports that she has excelled at keeping her 5-year-old son, Connor, and 3-year-old triplets, Karoline, Dylan and James happy, healthy and home, during the COVID pandemic while still keeping (most of) her sanity. She and her husband, Ryan, have now both received their COVID vaccines.
Amy (Sparby) Murphy of West Newton, MA, graduated from Simmons University in May 2021 with a master’s degree as a family nurse practitioner.
Suzanne Murphy welcomed her second child, Shane, on Jan. 2, 2021. Shane joins big brother, Daniel, at the family’s home in Oxford, CT. Suzanne works as a development writer.

2006
Stephen Dumark of North Branford, CT, is the branch director for the design/build department at Hoffman Landscapes. This promotion is part of the transition surrounding Hoffman’s purchase of Kent Greenhouse & Gardens.
Leeanne Griffin, MS ’06, of Hartford, CT, is the statewide food and consumer reporter at Hearst Connecticut Media Group. She previously worked at the Hartford Courant for 15 years.

2007
Rocco Aloe of Norwalk, CT, is a senior communications consultant. He previously worked for Fox News Channel for 7 years and is moving in another direction and looking to take things to the next level.
Jamin Bricker of Culver City, CA, is a film editor, who recently edited the Netflix series, Firefly Lane, starring Katherine Heigl and Sarah Chalke. He is currently working on a graphic novel adaptation that will launch on Netflix in 2022.
Stacey Pattberg of Wallingford, CT, was promoted to news director at News 12 Connecticut. Stacey married Mike Antonini in September 2020.

2008
Janette (Lopez) Bohensky ’08 BS, MBA ’09, and her husband, Stanley, of Collingswood, NJ, welcomed their first child, Philip Louis, on Dec. 5, 2020. She is the director of menu innovation and product development at Aramark.
Kaitlyn Kennedy of New Hyde Park, NY, joined the book marketing firm Smith Publicity as a book publicist.
Jessica (Fine) Sowalsky, MS ’08, of Bethesda, MD, and her husband, Adam, welcomed their second child, Shira Maya on Oct. 30, 2020. Shira Maya shares her birthday with her 2-year-old brother Ari. Jessica is a learning systems and courseware manager at the University of Maryland.

2009
Kevin Berghorn ’09, DPT ’13, of Warwick, RI, has joined the team of physical therapists at the Sharon Road office of Select Physical Therapy in Waterbury, CT.
David Facchini ’09, MBA ’12, of Woodbridge, CT, accepted a position as the director of radiology at Yale New Haven Hospital.
Dean Vitarisi, MBA ’09, of New Haven, CT, is chief financial officer at Holyoke Medical Center and Valley Health Systems.
Janet Waldman, MS ’09, of Milford, CT, retired in May as director of editorial services in the Office of Integrated Marketing Communications after almost 21 years at Quinnipiac. During her career, she guided Quinnipiac Magazine through three redesigns and grew it into an award-winning publication.

2010
Michael Bivona ’10, JD ’13, and Elizabeth Moran, JD ’15, of Stamford, CT, were married in Desert Mountain, AZ, while surrounded by close friends and family. Michael and Elizabeth met while attending QU law together.
Sophia Diakoloukas of South Windsor, CT, opened the restaurant Urban Greek in Shelton, CT.
Chelsey Greer of Moodus, CT, welcomed a son, William Richard, on Jan. 18, 2021. Chelsey reports that William’s big sister is totally in love, as are mom and dad. Chelsey is a technology education teacher.
Michael Laramie ’10 and Sarah (Moler) Laramie ’11, MAT ’12, of Mesa, AZ, welcomed their second child, Cecilia Grace, on March 2, 2021. She joins her older sister, Charlotte, 4. Michael is a special education teacher.
Greg O’Neill ’10, MBA ’11, of Lynbrook, NY, has been named vice president and regional controller of Clune Construction.
Aron Shepley of Lenexa, KS, was promoted to technical supervisor of molecular infectious disease at Quest Diagnostics.
Kristin Spath of Attleboro, MA, married Craig Gordon on Oct. 10, 2020 during a small ceremony with close family. She is an e-commerce specialist.

2011
Dolapo (Philip) Fakiyesi of Meriden, CT, joined the staff of Franciscan Ever There Care as office manager. Franciscan Ever There Care is a non-medical home health care agency.
Paloma (Pero) Perrin of La Paz, Bolivia, is moving to Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Christopher Wilson of South Boston, MA, joined the firm Lando & Anastasi. He is working with the firm’s life sciences team.

2012
John Acampora of Wallingford, CT, was promoted to sergeant with the Connecticut State Police. He previously held the position of trooper first class, and has been assigned to Troop A in Southbury.

2013
Stacey Bell of East Rockaway, NY, works at Northwell Health as a surgical physician assistant in pediatrics, orthopedics and plastic surgery.
Bryanna Buckley ’13, DPT ’16, of Peabody, MA, and her fiancé, Michael, welcomed a baby girl, Isabella, on Jan. 20, 2021. She is a physical therapist.
Sheldon Cuffie, MS ’13, of Brookfield, WI, was featured in “The Ascent, Profiles of leaders on the Rise,” a series of security leadership profiles prepared by Cybersecurity Collaborative in conjunction with SC Media. He is vice president and enterprise chief information security officer at American Family Insurance.
Shevaun Harris, MBA ’13, of Tallahassee, FL, was appointed secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF).  She previously served as the acting secretary for Agency for Health Care Administration.

2014
Brittany Ferri ’14, MOT ’16, of Rochester, NY, is the owner and founder of Simplicity of Health, a writing and consulting business that provides a range of services for health organizations. Brittany received her PhD in integrative mental health from Saybrook University.
Kathryn LeMonda ’14, MOT ’16, of Somerville, MA, is a pediatric occupational therapist at the Neurological and Physical Abilitation (NAPA) Center. She works in an intensive therapy program for children with brain injury and related neuromotor conditions. Kathryn recently earned her clinical doctorate in occupational therapy. This summer, she will be moving to Melbourne, Australia, to help in opening another NAPA clinic, where she will serve as the director of rehabilitation.
Melanie Morse of Sidney, ME, has joined the Scott & Sunny Townsend Team as a transaction coordinator and administrator. The Scott & Sunny Townsend Team specializes in residential, vacation and luxury real estate in Greater Scarborough.

2015
Elizabeth Alexander ’15, MBA ’16, of Southington, CT, has become a certified educator for the state of Connecticut in two subject areas: history/social studies and middle school mathematics.
Ejiochi Azubuike, MS ’15, of Washington, DC, joined ABC News as a Washington-based multi-platform reporter. He previously worked at WTTG in Washington as a reporter and fill-in anchor.
Rebecca (Morse) Canizares ’15, DPT ’18, of Amesbury, MA, was recently honored with the Celebrate the Star Award for going above and beyond in providing the highest quality medical care to patients. Rebecca is the lead physical therapist for the Center for Inpatient Rehabilitation at Halifax Health/Brooks Rehabilitation.
Kaleigh Quinn ’15, DPT ’18 and Wyatt Hamilton ’17, MBA ’18 of Vineyard Haven, MA, were married in August 2020 on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. Kaleigh works as a physical therapist.

2017
James Doig ’17, MS ’18, has opened his own company, Social Scousers, which specializes in social media management, website and graphic design, photography and videography.
Joshua Fulmer, MS ’17, of Jewett City, CT, was promoted to supervisor at General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, CT.
Ryan Kennedy of Manhattan Beach, CA, was a featured speaker for the ADDitude Expert Webinars session “Is It Bipolar Disorder of ADHD Moodiness? A Guide to Getting the Right Diagnosis and Treatment.” Ryan is a nurse practitioner and assistant director of the Brown Clinic for Attention and Related Disorders where he specializes in assessment, behavioral, and psychopharmacological treatments for children and adults.
Gina Mero of Long Island City, NY, earned her master of arts in psychology at The New School for Social Research, graduating during the beginning of the pandemic. She now works as a research assistant at the Weill Cornell Medicine Center for Neurogenetics.

2018
Teresa McCann of Oak Ridge, NJ, has been accepted into Kean University’s Speech-Language Pathology master’s program starting Fall ’21. She is currently a development coordinator at Children’s Specialized Hospital.
Aaron Ray, MS ’18, of Scotia, NY, is the director of Opportunity Programs at Hamilton College in Clinton, NY.
Jeffery Adams Russell ’18, MBA ’19, of Ballston Spa, NY, is the fourth generation of his family to work at Frank Adams Jewelers. During the pandemic, while the store was “closed,” he kept things running by transferring the phone lines to his cell phone and making deliveries to customers’ homes, leaving a bag on the doorstep while wearing gloves.
Julie Vigil, MS ’18, CERT ’19 of Canton, CT, is a member of the Board of Trustees at Wheeler Clinic.

2019
Tiana Clemons, MHS ’19, of Westland, MI, has four years of experience in health care administration and medical laboratory sciences, and is beginning the MD program at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine
Jaclyn Rivera, DNP ’19, of Woodstock, CT, welcomed a daughter, Francesca Bianca on June 14, 2020. She joins big sister Annistyn. Annistyn’s twin brother, Russell, is now a guardian angel to both. Jaclyn is a patient service coordinator at Novartis.
Jennie Torres of Jersey City, NJ, taught English as a second language in Japan during the height of the 2020 COVID pandemic for an entire year. She completed her job as a foreign language teacher and cultural ambassador for the United States while living independently in another country with little grasp on the Japanese language.

2020
Brian Koonz, MS ’20, of Newtown, CT, was promoted to director of editorial services in the Office of Integrated Marketing Communications at Quinnipiac in May.

1985
Clifford Welden of Glen Head, NY, has been named president of the Queens County Bar Association for the 2020-21 term. He also is a member of the Board of Governors of the New York State Bar Association. He has been a civil litigator in GEICO’s staff counsel offices for 34 years and served as counsel to Glen Cove’s Zoning Board of Appeals on Long Island for six years.

1988
Helen (Oster) Barry of Danbury, CT, married her longtime sweetheart, Bill Barry, on June 5, 2020, on their backyard patio because of COVID-19 restrictions. She and her husband are enjoying retirement and looking forward to traveling again soon.

1993
Tom Januszewski of New York, NY, has been appointed vice president of global business development for The Associated Press. In his new role, Tom is responsible for driving revenue growth, building out content and service lines, introducing new revenue channels and leading a team focused on new markets.

1997
Bobbi Bittker of Bedford Hills, NY, is serving as chair of the ABA Civil Rights and Social Justice Section’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee. She also has been appointed to the editorial board of the ABA’s Human Rights magazine.

J.P. Kemp, JD ’97, and Heather Kemp, JD ’97, of Las Vegas, NV, are enjoying life and pleased that their son, Carson, is studying at the University of Nevada in Reno. J.P. says business at Kemp & Kemp is steady, and they are blessed with good health. He also predicts season tickets to the Golden Knights and Raiders will keep them busy after the pandemic.

Charles Mudd of Chicago, IL, continues to grow his focus on space law and policy. He recently was elected as a member of the International Institute of Space Law. Over the past year, he completed three more graduate astrophysics courses at the University of Chicago. He also serves as a board member of itechlaw and newspace Chicago.
Lorraine Sabalja of Brooklyn, NY, received the Liz Padilla Excellence in Public Service Award from the Brooklyn Bar Association Volunteer Law Project on March 4, 2021. Lorraine represents Volunteer Law Project clients in uncontested divorce, child support and modification cases.

1998
Jennifer (Croteau) Zettergren, JD ’98, SYD ’20, of Durham, CT, teaches English at North Haven High School and plans to merge her degrees in school administration. She was named North Haven High School Teacher of the Year in 2021.

2001
Jennifer L. Booker of West Hartford, CT, has joined Goldberg Segalla as a partner in the firm’s general liability group in Hartford. She is an experienced litigator who focuses her practice on commercial and personal motor vehicle liability, premises liability, product liability and uninsured/underinsured motorist matters.

2005
Nicholas W. Vitti Jr. of Bethel, CT, has joined Murtha Cullina as a partner in the firm’s business and finance department and real estate group in Stamford. A former director of the Fairfield County Bar Association, Nicholas covers transactions, development, zoning appeals and valuation.

2008
Ethan Ung of Deep River, CT, has been promoted to partner at Halloran Sage. A member of the firm’s litigation and intellectual property practice groups, Ethan represents insurers and corporate clients helping them manage risks, mitigate damages, and resolve complex disputes involving claims in general liability, medical malpractice and products liability.

2009
Christopher Kenworthy, JD ’09, and Anissa Klapproth, JD ’09, of Wallingford, CT, have opened a new law firm, Klapproth & Kenworthy LLC, as husband and wife partners. Their practice areas are personal injury, workers’ compensation, criminal law, family law, juvenile delinquency and juvenile child protection.

E.J. Yerzak of Watertown, CT, recently published his debut fiction novel, “Access Point.” The book is a cybersecurity techno/medical thriller and available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. All net proceeds will be donated to a local animal rescue and the Alzheimer’s Association. The book has been covered by TV, radio and the Republican-American newspaper in Waterbury.

2021
Pearl Brown, professor emerita of English
Stella Cretella ’61, MHS ’77
James Dana English (non alum)
Frederick Esposito ’57
Clarinda Ann Kersey, MS ’15
Richard Krasun ’73
Teresa (Zywocinski) Milazzo ’48
Ralph Monaco, JD ’93
Edward Obidinski ’57
David O’Konski ’80
F. Thomas Pogwizd ’70
Bruce Saulnier, professor of computer information systems
Dominic Twohill ’60
Robert Wallace ’69

2020
George Allen ’49
Rosemarie Caiaffo ’52
William Gargano ’47
Janie Giacondino ’69
Vincent Imbriani ’59
Kristin Ingersoll ’94
Fred Kellert ’48
Morton Meretsky ’63
Linda (Crawford) Moquet ’90
John Naizby, JD ’93
Steven Neher ’08
Lois (Houseknecht) Nickeson ’50
Frederick Palmer ’67
Vincent Penna ’92
Daniel Podvesker ’08
John Sedensky ’61
Robert Serenson ’88
Mary (Lynch) Sullivan ’58
Paul Trigilia ’80
Anthony Viola ’64

2019
Robert Albini ’71
Margaret (Grosek) Donnell ’93
Kenneth Matloff ’60
Kendra (Estler) Palmer ’54
Angela Parente ’59
Paul Singman ’85
Joan Zisek ’64

2018
Myrna (Gale) Gambino ’49

2015
Felice Pacelli ’70