Where R.A. Now?

In this the finale broadcast, Tom interviews three stalwarts of the NYU Residential Life and Housing Services team, Executive Directors Kate Baier, Neil Hanrahan and former Director of Residence Life (and now Director of Student Conduct & Community Standards, Craig Jolley.  But like all good finales their is a twist!  The podcast is stolen from the host.  What comes next...  take a listen.  A humbling moment.  Thank you NYU for the memories!

Chris Stipeck serves as the Director for Residential Staff & Programs in NYU Residential Life and Housing Services. Prior to this, he served in seven different roles that include hall positions in Hayden (Lipton), Carlyle Court, and 3rd North, and centrally as an Assistant Director for the Leased Properties then FYRE areas, and is in the first year of his current role. Chris also works on a research team for the Assessment of Collegiate Residential Environments and Outcomes (ACREO) – a national assessment to better understand the influence that living on-campus has on academic, social intellectual outcomes for students. He has presented and published research on topics related to developing intentionally inclusive communities (first-generation student support, Project Pay Attention), residential staff management (entry-level residential life staff burnout, mid-level management) and residential outcomes (the first-year experience, served as a faculty member for the ACPA Residential Curriculum Institute). Chris received a B.A. in History from Rutgers University-New Brunswick and then an M.A. and Ed.D in Higher Education Administration at NYU.

Therese Grande’s career in higher education spans over fifteen years at both public and private institutions and includes cross-functional experience in student affairs, curriculum and instruction, and institutional planning.  During her time at New York University, she served as a member of the Residential Peer Board, an RA in Third North and President of RA Council, a graduate assistant for Academic Initiatives in Residence Life, the ACDE/RHAD at Carlyle Court, and the Program Administrator for the FFIR, Explorations, and Residential College programs.  In her current role as the Student Life Coordinator at Golden West College (a community college in Huntington Beach, CA), she trains and advises student leaders, facilitates campus-wide programming, and helps foster an environment where students can meaningfully engage with peers, faculty, staff, and administration outside the classroom.  Therese is passionate about leveraging educational policy, institutional governance, and organizational structures to improve access and educational outcomes for students who have traditionally been underserved or marginalized by systemic inequities and has been recognized by the California Community Colleges Classified Senate and the American Association for Women in Community Colleges for her leadership in these areas.  She holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from New York University, a master’s degree in Public Policy and Public Administration from California State University Long Beach, and is an alumni of the California Education Policy Fellowship program.

Andrew Schulte is a consumer technology leader, serving as Chief of Staff to the CEOs of both a Fortune 500 company and private company unicorn. Since 2007, Andrew has helped executives launch new products, build engaging company cultures, attract and retain top talent, communicate internally and externally, define corporate and product strategies, and establish critical processes and operations.

Today, Andrew serves as the Chief of Staff to the Chief Marketing Officer of Google.

Prior to his current role with Google, Andrew worked for real estate startup Opendoor, where he served as Chief of Staff to CEO Eric Wu during a period of rapid expansion and growth. During his time at Opendoor, Andrew was focused on driving structure, process, internal communications, and coaching and development for the leadership team. Throughout Andrew’s contributions at Opendoor, headcount tripled to nearly 2,000 employees across more than 20 geographic markets, and the enterprise value doubled to $3.8B within his first year.

Prior to Opendoor, Andrew joined Yahoo in 2012 as Chief of Staff to CEO Marissa Mayer. Throughout his 5 years at Yahoo, Andrew focused on bringing energy and growth to one of the web's pioneering brands. Reporting to Marissa, Andrew hired and mentored a "SWOT team" focused on corporate strategy, executive communications, company goals and operations and employee engagement initiatives. He worked closely with product and functional executives to develop and communicate yearly strategic plans, ultimately achieving substantial product simplification, 650MM+ monthly active mobile users, more than $2B in GAAP revenue, and Yahoo’s lowest operating cost structure in more than a decade.

Andrew effectively started his career at Google in 2007, where he worked across a number of roles, including advertising sales, executive communications, and product marketing. During his 5 years at Google, he helped drive the communications and marketing plans for numerous search launches, keynotes, digital campaigns, and highly visible events reaching all employees and more than 5 million users.

Andrew graduated Cum Laude from New York University's Stern School of Business, with a double major in marketing and management, and a minor in Journalism. Andrew resides in San Francisco with his husband Todd, and their labradoodle, Edgar. On the weekends you can find Andrew creating artwork with computer circuits, teaching himself piano, or hiking and biking north of the city.

Since 2011, Cameron Myler has been a member of the faculty at New York University's Tisch Institute for Global Sports, where her teaching and research is focused on legal and governance issues in Olympic and international sport. Cameron teaches students in both the undergraduate and graduate programs. After retiring from Olympic competition, Cameron attended Boston College Law School. She practiced law for a decade in New York City, first at Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy and then at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz. Cameron represented Olympic athletes, sports organizations and executives in regulatory, eligibility, anti-doping and ethics matters. Cameron was a member of the U.S. National Luge Team for 14 years, won the National Championships seven times, was named U.S. Female Luge Athlete of the Year nine times, and had the good fortune of representing the United States at four Olympic Games. In 1994, Cameron was elected by her teammates to carry the American flag at the Opening Ceremonies, which was both humbling and exciting. During her tenure on the National Team, she also won 11 World Cup medals.

Trace Jordan is the Faculty Fellow-in-Residence in Senior House at West 13th Street. He is a Clinical Professor and Director of the Foundations of Science Inquiry program in the College Core Curriculum. In addition to offering science courses in the Core Curriculum, he teaches a CAS First-Year Seminar entitled “What is College For?” He is a three-time recipient of the Golden Dozen Teaching Award from CAS and received an FAS Teaching Innovation Award in 2020.  Trace earned a BSc in Applied Physics and an MSc in Laser Physics from the University of Essex (UK), an MA in History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Toronto, and a PhD in Chemistry from Princeton University. He is a first-generation college student and a founding member of the Proud to be First initiative in CAS.  Trace plays the drums and enjoys performing at residence hall open mic nights!

Michael Sean Funk is a proud alumnus of the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, where he received his M.A. from the Department of Administration, Leadership, and Technology. In 2012, he received his doctorate from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst Social Justice Education program. His dissertation, Making Something of It, explores The Untold Stories of Promising Black Males at a Predominately White Institution of Higher Education. He currently serves as coordinator of the M.A. in Higher Education and Student Affairs Program where he teaches courses including Diversity in Higher Education, Leadership in Higher Education, Foundations of Higher Education, Internship Seminar, and Undergraduate Advising. University-wide, Dr. Funk resides as a Faculty Fellow in Residence at the first-year residence hall, Founders. Michael is also a Steinhardt Knowledge Partner that works with faculty to support efforts toward creating inclusive classroom settings. Additionally, he contributes as an Alternative-Senator for the Continuing Faculty Senate Council (C-FSC). Some of Dr. Funk’s noteworthy accomplishments and most proud moments include: receiving the Star Award in 2017 from NYU's Graduate Student Organization; selection into the inaugural cohort of the NASPA 2016, Emerging Faculty Leader Academy; recipient of the Senior Bertha Reynolds Fellowship at Smith College School for Social Work; Distinguished Teaching Award in 2011 from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and induction into his High School Hall of Fame for his work surrounding issues of social justice.

Jeff Benjamin has been Billboard's K-Pop Columnist since 2013 and a leading authority and expert on international-pop music in the American media for years. The 2012 New York University graduate has written about K-pop for a wide range of publications, including The New York Times, Rolling Stone, GQ, ABC News, MTV, Forbes, NPR, Apple Music, and more. A double major in music and journalism from the College of Arts and Science, his expertise in international music trends has led him to commentator roles on CNN, Good Morning America, E! News, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, BBC and other major international outlets. In 2019, he joined the KBS World variety show 'We K-Pop,' reaching more than 100 million viewers in 120 countries weekly with his segments filmed in his home of New York City, leading ArirangTV to declare him "just as famous as any other K-pop star among K-pop fans." The New York Times has called Jeff "the leading American authority on K-pop,” while CNN said he is "the perfect person to talk about K-pop."

Daniel Spector is a theater teacher, director, and acting coach.  He is a Distinguished Teacher Tisch, where is also director of The Classical Studio.  He is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab and is an alumnus of the Broadway Theatre Project. He has served as a consultant to PBS on matters Shakespearean, moderated Artist Talks at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, led workshops and spoken at numerous conferences around the world, and produced many readings of new plays. A frequent collaborator in the classroom, he has taught with Alec Baldwin, Louis Scheeder, and Tim Carroll.

Lynne Haney is a Professor of Sociology and Director of the Law and Society program. She also serves as Faculty Director of Curricular Innovation and Diversity in CAS. She has been at NYU for 22 years, coming here straight out of graduate school at UC Berkeley. She teaches courses in Research Methods, Sex and Gender, and Law/Punishment--and has directed the Presidential Scholars Prague group for over 14 years. Her research has taken her into the welfare and prison systems in both the United States and Eastern Europe. She has published four books and co-edited three book collections. She is currently finishing a new book on the intersection of mass incarceration and child support enforcement--and how it shapes men’s lives as fathers.

Jim Calder is the Head of Movement at Tisch Graduate Acting Department, winner of the David Payne Carter Excellence in Teaching Award - Tisch School of the Arts. Artistic Director of La Pietra Summer Theatre Festival – Florence, Italy, Directed works in New York City at Lincoln Center Institute, Pearl Theatre, Classic Stage Company, with workshop presentations at The Public, New York Theater Workshop and HERE. Jim has been a movement consultant on Pericles at Berkeley Rep, (Director Mark Wing-Davey), Passion Play by Sarah Ruhl (Director Mark Wing-Davey) and Therese Raquin staring Keira Knightley, (director Evan Cabnet) on Broadway. Jim has performed at The Old Globe, P.S. 122, and through out Europe with Treato De La Grappe. He was the lead actor and creative consultant in PBS’s Noddy & Friends TV. Jim trained at Ecole Jacques and performed under the direction of Jacques LeCoq in numerous TV specials in France.

Joan Harmon is a visual artist and art professor at CUNY.

Paolo Laraño grew up in The Bay Area before moving East to attend New York University, where he studied English and Music. He served as an RA at Hayden Hall from 2008-2010. He was also heavily involved in leading retreats and groups through NYU’s Catholic Center and was involved in Middle C, a music-focused community service group. After graduating in 2010, he eventually found his way to the mental health field, all while fulfilling a childhood dream of making ice cream professionally. He sadly had to say goodbye to this dream job when he moved back to California to pursue a graduate degree at The Wright Institute in Berkeley, California, eventually earning a doctorate in Clinical Psychology in 2018. He has cherished the opportunity to provide clinical services to students at every level,  political refugees, adults of all ages, families, individuals in the criminal justice system, and more. His dissertation, entitled “Exploring The Onset and Progression of Body Dissatisfaction in Male Athletes From Adolescence to Young Adulthood” highlights some of his clinical interests, which also include multicultural issues,  acculturation difficulties, decolonization work, family issues, social anxiety, and motivation. He currently works as a Staff Psychologist and Outreach Coordinator at The University of Washington Tacoma. When he’s not working, you can catch him running, eating/cooking, dancing while washing dishes, and spending time with his wife, Courtney (a fellow Hayden RA!), their son, Cai, and their dog, Winnie.

David Hollander is a Clinical Associate Professor with the Preston Robert Institute for Global Sport and Assistant Dean of Real World and serves as this week's co-host for a special episode of Where RA Now! One of NYU's most popular professors, Hollander is the recipient of NYU’s highest faculty honor, 2019 NYU Distinguished Teaching Award. He's also been recognized with highest divisional honors: Award for Teaching Excellence (2018, 2012; only full-time professor to win the award twice) and Award for Outstanding Service (2016). Hollander's signature innovative experiential program Real World has become one of the hottest programs at NYU, partnering with A-list organizations like Nike, Porsche, JetBlue, Ace Hotel, CNBC, and a dozen others. Axios called Real World "the future" of higher education.  But his claim to fame is being an FFIR in Founder's Hall.  Dave will help interview three great FFIRs: Robin Nagle, Michelle Dent, and Greg Erickson in the first of a three-part episode.

Originally from Buffalo, NY, Lindsay earned her baccalaureate degree from the University at Buffalo in 2003, double majoring in Psychology and Communication. As an undergrad, she worked on campus in the Office of New Student Programs and served as an RA in the University Residence Halls. Lindsay moved to NYC in 2004 to pursue a master’s degree in Higher Education Administration at NYU, during which time she had the opportunity to serve as an RA in the 26th Street Residence Hall (2005/2006) and work in the Office of Admissions at the NYU College of Dentistry (2004-2006). These experiences served as a catalyst for Lindsay to pursue a professional career in recruitment, admissions, and student services.

Upon graduating with a Master’s in Higher Education Administration in 2006, Lindsay accepted a position as Scholarship and Recruitment Officer, and was eventually promoted to Assistant Director for Admissions and Student Affairs, at the NYU College of Nursing. As Assistant Director, Lindsay advised applicants on admission requirements, contributed to the development of strategic marketing plans, predicted enrollment trends, advised incoming students, and planned and implemented New Student Orientation.

In 2012, after nearly eight years in NYC, Lindsay accepted a position as Associate Director of Admissions at the University at Buffalo School of Law. In January 2017, she was promoted to Vice Dean for Admissions. She is responsible for the management and oversight of the Office of Admissions, all of its programs, operations and staff.

Lindsay lives on Buffalo’s West Side with her husband, Brent. She enjoys running (she ran the NYC Marathon in 2011), traveling, reading, gardening, and true crime. Lindsay was a Division I cheerleader during her undergraduate years and a member of the Liberty Torch Patrol (New York Liberty-WNBA) from 2007 – 2011.

Dimitri Joseph Moise is an actor, award-winning editor, and national HIV spokesperson. He is currently featured in a national HIV awareness broadcast campaign titled “Keep Being You,” also featured in GQ magazine. Dimitri has also been featured in HIV Plus magazine, Them magazine, Thought Catalog, PAPER magazine, Teen Vogue, and on Good Morning America. Instagram: @dimitrimoiseofficial

Originally from New Jersey, Casey Farin received a Bachelor of Science in neural science at New York University in 2010, where she was pre-health and also completed a minor in Jewish history and civilizations. She was an RA at Greenwich Hotel from 2008 to 2010. She went on to complete her MD at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in 2014. She completed her internal medicine internship, neurology residency, and clinical fellowship in multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology at Duke University. She now practices general adult neurology with a subspecialty in multiple sclerosis in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she lives with her fiancé and their pets.

Nickie Robinson received her B.A. in Economics from New York University and Juris Doctorate from the University of Denver where her concentration was corporate, securities and tax law. She worked in finance for four years before embarking on a 10-year career in public relations as the owner of GoodGirlPR, establishing herself as a highly sought-after business and marketing consultant.

Janet (Yu) Barik was a RA at Carlyle from 2006-2008. She was one of the first to work with FFIR Anthony Reynolds for exploration halls: Food and Culture. Janet graduated with a major in Communications from the Steinhardt School. She has worked on prominent media companies and is now helping Walmart build their advertising business within their Walmart Media Group division.

Morgan Jay is a first-generation American performer based out of Los Angeles.  Originally from New Jersey, he started his career in NYC where he attended the Tisch School of the Arts (2005-2009).  With over six years of stand up and five years of musical comedy, Morgan has managed to create a unique performance that touches comedy and music fans alike with his melodic tunes derived from his love for classic RnB and Bossanova. 

Most recently he finished as a semi-finalist on NBC’s Bring the funny but has performed at numerous comedy festivals including the SF Sketchfest, Laughing Skull Comedy Fest and was a finalist at the 2019 Big Sky Comedy Fest and 2018 Boston Comedy Festival. Morgan has taken home first prize at the 2012 Westside Comedy Showdown, 2018 Ventura Comedy Festival and 2019 Antelope Valley Comedy Festival.  Morgan also won 1st Prize for best comedy/novelty song in the International Songwriting Competition which received over 16,000 submissions.

For the 2020 Spring Development Day for RAs, we invited 48 Alumni RAs to share their "where am I now" and how the role helped me in gaining skills for my next steps in life.  Listen to this special episode that captures the life of our great alums!  Enjoy.  Thanks to our special reporter, Sam O'Donnell, who serves as a student social media intern for Residence Life and Housing Services.

Jake Arky is the Program Manager for The Unusual Suspects Theatre Company 

and an artist in residence for The Geffen Playhouse after serving as the

Associate Director of Education-Playwriting for TheatreWorks | Silicon Valley.

Theatrically trained at the University of Utah’s Youtheatre Conservatory, Jake

began writing and producing original plays before completing his Bachelor of

Fine Arts in dramatic writing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

He is the author of the plays Brothers of Emery, The Green Flash, The Birthday

Girl, Little Perfections, and Erasers. Short stories include Video Tape Sleepover,

The Green Flash, and #deathies, all published by SSWA Press. Jake is a 2014

National Playwriting Conference finalist with The O’Neill Center, as well as a

New American Voices Award recipient at Landing Theatre Company and the

Great Plains Theatre Conference.

Jake has worked with The Cherry Lane Theatre, The La Jolla Playhouse, The

Playwrights Project of San Diego, ’06 Ensemble, Dragon Theater, The 68 Cent

Crew (NYC), PianoFight, and Cat & Owl Theatre. Film work includes production

assistant credits on the films Everything Is Illuminated (2005), Sunshine Cleaning

(2007), and the Academy Award-winning Little Miss Sunshine (2005). His original

comedic television series, Open (2017) and Amateurs (2018), have been

developed by CineStory.

Jake co-founded So Say We All: a non-profits arts production and education

organization specializing in the literary and storytelling arts. He regularly

performs stories on stage with The Moth, RISK!, Fireside Storytelling, Busting

Out, and the Oakland Story Slam.

Ryan Aguirre is a Director of Publicity and Awards at STARZ. Previously, he served as a Publicist at CBS Television Studios, where he worked on the publicity campaigns for “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” “Hawaii Five-0,” and “Magnum P.I.,” as well as AMC, where he oversaw the awards campaigns for the final seasons of “Breaking Bad” and “Mad Men.” He has also run four marathons (with more to come) and can recite all the Best Picture winners in order. He currently lives in West Hollywood, CA.

Ashley Nickelsen is a tried & true former Res Lifer graduating NYU in 2010 after serving as a Resident Assistant in Third Avenue North for two years. She went on to pursue her Master's degree in Higher Education at Rutgers University where she was a Graduate Residence Hall Director of an all first-year hall. After two years in NJ, Ashley moved to the University of Delaware to oversee an all upperclass apartment complex and then back to her home: New York University as the Residence Hall Director of Founders Hall, followed by The Residential College at Goddard and Broome. Ashley Nickelsen is now the Director of Sales & Marketing at Further Food. Further Food is a women-owned & operated whole food supplement company that creates expert-approved supplements made from real food ingredients. Starting at a young age, Ashley battled with severe IBS-C and had always been overweight. After losing over 50 lbs., becoming a NASM Certified Personal Trainer, and discovering the power of real food to foster a healthy lifestyle, Ashley slowly started the journey to heal her IBS-C naturally. Ashley fell in love with the mission of Further Food, and joined the founding team.

Ashima Talwar graduated from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study in 2013 with a concentration in the Origins of Power and Privilege. She served as an RA at Weinstein Hall and the President of the Gallatin Student Council during her junior and senior years. Upon graduation, Ashima returned home to the DC-metropolitan area to work for then-U.S. Rep. Chris Van Hollen. She then attended the George Washington University Law School, during which she interned for U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Judge Robert Okun of the D.C. Superior Court, and a law firm. After graduating in 2018, Ashima served as the Corporation Counsel Honors Fellow at the New York City Law Department. She has since relocated to Chicago  with her husband (who she met at NYU!) and is now practicing in the private sector at Sperling and Slater, a boutique complex commercial litigation firm. Ashima continues to be active in local politics and public interest work, serving on the Associate Board of Growing Home, a Chicago-based non-profit.

Jesse Yu graduated from New York University in 2016 with a B.S. in Finance and Global Business, as well as a minor in Public Policy and Management. He currently works in Corporate Development at a fintech startup called Trumid. Prior to that, Jesse worked in biz dev at a SaaS startup called Tessian, and was an investment banker at J.P. Morgan out of college.

In this special edition of the podcast, celebrating the 100th episode, we hear from nine former RAs who attended the Fall 2019 RA Alumni Reception at Lipton Hall. Interviewed by the RA Council President, Sophia Shi, these Alumni reminisce their time at the University, the skills they learned, the hardships they faced, and the lessons they took with them into their lives beyond NYU. Enjoy!

Phillip Klugman graduated from the NYU's College of Arts and Science in May 2011, with a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Web Applications and Design. He served as an RA at Third Noth as well as on the RA Council during his Junior and Senior year from 2009 to 2011, in addition to serving as the RA Council President from 2010 to 2011. During his time at NYU, Phillip played club lacrosse and served as the Captain of the NYU Men's Lacrosse Team in 2011.

After graduating from NYU, Phillip moved to San Francisco to work for TriplePoint Public Relations, a firm that specializes in video game and technology clients. He joined a startup that spun out of TriplePoint, Bolo Software, where he was the #2 employee and worked as a Product and Customer Success Manager. After his time at Bolo Software, Phillip started as an Account Manager at Motionloft, a Mark Cuban company that made computer vision based sensors for automated vehicle and pedestrian counting. Phillip currently works as an Enterprise Customer Success Manager at Scoop Technologies, where he partners with employers across the country to help make the commute a meaningful part of their employee's lives.

Libby Carlson graduated from NYU in 2010 with a Bachelors of Music. Libby pursued a professional music career throughout college and after graduating until Fall of 2011, when she moved home to Connecticut to pursue a career in politics and government. She started as a Bill Clerk for the Connecticut State Senate and successfully ran a State Representative campaign in 2012. After this success, she served as a press secretary for the Connecticut House Democrats, overseeing the communications and new media of 11 State Representatives. In 2014, she worked as the Communications Manager for U.S. Congressman Jim Himes’s campaign. After that successful campaign, she worked as a senior adviser and Communications Director for the City of Stamford and Mayor David Martin. Libby left that position in Fall of 2018 for a brief stint in San Antonio, Texas as the Deputy Field Director for Congressional candidate Gina Ortiz Jones. In January 2019, Libby moved to DC to become Communications Director for freshman Congresswoman Kim Schrier. In Libby's spare time, she is a volunteer firefighter and enjoys working out and reading books.

Amanda Moffa is a Marketing Manager on the CODE Creative Partnerships team at NBCUniversal.  She is extremely proud of her career path to-date, including her first job at CBS Interactive, and the 5 years she spent with WWE.  With each new opportunity came a new learning experience and meaningful friendships along the way.

Amanda received her bachelor’s degree from the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development at NYU (Class of ’11). She strongly believes that her classroom experiences, internships and interactions with professors and fellow students at NYU played an important role in laying the foundation for her success thus far. As someone who likes to keep busy, Amanda attributes her extracurricular involvement at NYU, including the RA position, participating as an active member of the Alternative Spring Breaks Advisory Board, Peer Health Educators, and the Diving team was key in making her the multi-tasker she is today.

Megan Loh is 35 years old and currently living in San Diego, California.  Her husband, Seth, and she has been married for six years and they have two boys together.  Silas is three years old and Mason is one.  Megan grew up in Connecticut with her older sister and parents.  She graduated from Steinhardt School in 2006, where she studied Early Childhood Education and Special Education. She was also an RA in Goddard.  After teaching first grade at PS 11 for five years, she moved to San Diego and taught fifth grade for eight years.  She is now a K-8 Assistant Principal at a public school in Rancho Santa Fe, CA.  When she is not working,  she enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, and reading!

Erik Justin (“EJ”) Gaines is the Co-Executive Director of Motown Gospel, and Vice President of Marketing at Capitol Christian Music Group, a division of Capitol Records/Universal Music Group. A former entertainment lawyer and artist manager with 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry, EJ Gaines has guided the careers of GRAMMY® Award-winning recording artists, producers and songwriters, as well as producers and talent in film and television.

EJ Gaines is a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences and the Gospel Music Association, as well as a member of the Leadership Music Class of 2015, where he currently serves on the Board of Directors. EJ is the Secretary of the Board of the Gospel Music Association and a Trustee of the Gospel Music Trust Fund, as well as a board member of Speaker Louder Ministries. He resides in Franklin, TN with his wife, recording artist Janice Gaines, and their two sons.

Jordan Woods-Robinson graduated from Tisch School of the Arts.  He performed in seven Main stage shows as a student.  He was in the cast of the first NYU "Reality Show" where he sang, danced and played the guitar.  He is best known for fours seasons on The Walking Dead (2015-2018), Homeland (2018), Nashville (2017), and as a member of the prestigious Blue Man Group for over a decade! Jordan's chameleon-like performances have led to roles opposite Sir Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell, Clare Danes, Donald Sutherland, Andrew Lincoln, Connie Britton, Octavia Spencer, and more.  

John Sanchez is a lifelong Bronx resident and currently the District Manager for Bronx Community Board 6, which includes the neighborhoods of Belmont, East Tremont, and West Farms in the Central Bronx. He is responsible for resolving community concerns with city government, advocating for budget requests to elected officials and city agencies, and planning community events. In his first year, he successfully advocated to bring a Youth Court to The Bronx and worked with the Department of Small Business Services to receive more than $200,000 in grants for storefront facade improvements on East Tremont Ave. He has also sponsored and organized free financial literacy workshops, youth sports programming, a college scholarship competition, and an annual Holiday toy giveaway for children living in shelters.

John previously served as New York City Advocacy Manager for the Northeast Charter Schools Network helping advocate for increased charter school funding and also served in the New York State Assembly as Deputy Chief of Staff for a Bronx Assembly member where he was responsible for managing the district office, resolving constituent issues, and community outreach .

John serves on the nonprofit boards of Housing Rights Initiative, Legacy College Prep Charter School, and Immaculate Conception School. John is a graduate of New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Victoria Fabiano Hoffman currently works as an Enterprise Customer Development Manager for Google Cloud. She has worked at Google for the last five years in various business development and strategic partnership roles, advising customers on strategic marketing plans, assisting companies on operationalizing and launching new revenue streams with Google Ads and working directly with CTOs on building custom solutions with Google APIs.

Before joining Google in New York City in 2015, Victoria worked in marketing and brand management crafting go-to-market strategies and new product launches for Danone, The Estee Lauder Companies and Bath & Body Works.

Victoria received her Bachelor’s degree from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University with a concentration in consumer psychology. During her undergraduate years, she volunteered as an Orientation Leader and was part of the NYU Inter-Residence Hall Council. Victoria also served on the Coral Tower Residence Hall’s student government, including holding the position of president before becoming a Resident Assistant. Victoria also received an MBA from New York University Stern School of Business, where she held the position of VP of Student Affairs, was elected a Core Group Leader, and served as a Stern Graduate Ambassador. She was also the Recipient of the 2014 Ken Langone Service Award and the 2015 NYU President's Service Award. Victoria now resides in Austin, Texas with her husband, Cody.

John D Carrion, originally from Chicago, holds two degrees from NYU: a Bachelor of Arts from the College of Arts and Science (2006) and a Master of Public Administration from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service (2007).

From 2004-2006, John was an RA at Hayden (now Lipton) Hall.  For his work as an RA, he received the NYU President's Service Award in 2005 and the RA of the Year Award in 2006. He was also a Martin Luther King, Jr serving as class representative during his entire college career.  Finally, he served as University Orientation Leader, Assistant Coordinator for Undergraduate Orientation, and as Class Marshal at the Baccalaureate Ceremony in the College of Arts and Science.

After NYU, John worked at St. John's University first as Residence Director, then as Assistant Director of the Ozanam Scholars Program, and finally as Associate Director of the Paris Campus.  In 2010, he relocated to London and worked at two different UK charities - the Royal College of Psychiatrists and Marie Curie Cancer Care - as a project manager.  In 2014, he returned to NYU in a newly created role as Assistant Director for Global Housing Administration where he oversees the housing administration for NYU's study away sites.  Additionally, he works with NYU's external partners to generate revenue for the university and contribute to NYU's affordability efforts.

Additionally, at NYU, John serves as President of the NYU Alumni Club in London.  Since 2014, John has revitalized the club to quadruple the number of events, involve NYU's global faculty, and host New Student Send-Offs in London and in Mumbai. Most recently, he created, chaired, and hosted the inaugural NYU Alumni Conference in Europe in November 2019 which hosted over 200 alumni and guests.

Outside of NYU, in 2013 John was elected the youngest Chairman and Chief Executive of the London Gay Men's Chorus. Overseeing 10 staff and 80 volunteers, he led the Chorus to its 25th anniversary celebrations, to campaign for equal marriage at the Houses of Parliament, and facilitated a 100% growth in membership.  In 2014, he was invited to the 10 Downing Street celebration to meet Prime Minister David Cameron after the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill was given Royal Ascent.

Michelle is a graduate of the NYU Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute and NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service with a BA in both broadcast journalism and religious studies and an MPA in international policy.  She returned to media and co-founded BellyFire Productions after working for several years in global education and the nonprofit sector and traveling extensively in the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.  BellyFire Productions creates video content that illuminates compelling, powerful stories to ignite action and generate awareness. During the year, she and her team collaborate with mission-focused partners using video and photography to advance their work. Michelle also produces, shoots, and edits documentary content for outlets such as CNN Digital and NBC Digital.  Her year spans NYC/South Asia/the US Midwest and several regions in between depending on where work, family, and nature-seeking takes her.

.Gracy Sarkissian is the Senior Director of the Wasserman Center for Career Development at NYU. She has 14 years of experience in higher education administration. She oversees career development for over 26,000 undergraduate students at New York University and leads employer engagement initiatives serving over 50,000 undergraduate students, graduate students, and alumni. Gracy is a thoughtful leader who has a reputation for creating strong partnerships, meaningful collaborations, and student-centered services. She speaks across campus, teaches both graduate and undergraduate students, and trains employers and academic partners across the globe.  She designs career education programs and initiatives aligned with the university's strategic priorities and is deeply committed to student success and inclusion. Gracy serves on the New York City Mayor’s Office Talent Coalition, NYU's Provostial Working Group on Disability, Inclusion and Accessibility, and the National Association for Colleges and Employers Inclusion Committee. Gracy holds a Masters in Organizational Communication and a Bachelors in Psychology & Politics from New York University.

Samantha and Brian Lawton are life and dance partners who met as RAs at NYU’s Brittany Hall. Samantha studied dance at Tisch School of the Arts and Brian studied nutrition at Steinhardt. Since then they have become specialists in Lindy Hop/Swing and the Vintage Jazz Dances with a wide knowledge of the ballroom dances. Together they direct for Norwegian Cruise Line, were featured dancers in 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel', been in the Red Hot Chili Peppers music video “Go Robot”, have done pre-production for Broadway shows, directed and choreographed a national tour, and have taught in India, Paris, and London. They feel so grateful that dance has led to so many amazing opportunities, allowed them to travel to exciting new locations around the world, and has let them experience it all together.

Kimberly DiPersia is an actress, screenwriter, and producer living in New York City. A graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts (BFA Drama ‘07), she has had a varied and interesting career in the entertainment industry. Kimberly has performed in regional theatre (Roxy Regional Theatre, TN), understudied Off-Broadway (Pearl Theatre Company), and been a stand-in on Steven Spielberg’s set (Bridge of Spies). She has worked in the production office for New York film and television shows (including Billions, Red Oaks, and Private Life) and has produced award-winning independent short films and web series, including the animated documentary, For A Better Life, which screened at the most recent DOC NYC Festival, and the dark comedy, Zombied, now streaming on Amazon Prime. She is currently in post-production for her short film, Junie & Frank, which she wrote, produced, and acted in.  Kimberly is a staff writer and actor in the sketch comedy group, The Egos, streaming on Amazon Prime.

BORN AN HOUR DRIVE OUTSIDE OF DENVER, COLORADO…
in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, AJ Smith has taken a rather
unconventional path for an Indie/Pop singer-songwriter.

After all, not many can claim to have served as a Young Associate
Violinist to the National Symphony Orchestra while simultaneously
serving as an Engineer and Infrared Systems Developer for the U.S.
Naval Research Laboratory...in high school. But Smith's dual passions
for organic music and technology started early and with a reckless
abandon that led him to run away from home at the age of 3 for the
sole purpose of listening to piano lessons down the street. His
parents finally realized that these escapades would only stop once
Smith himself, still only 3-years-old at the time, was allowed to
learn how to play the piano. And shortly after that, despite having
limited music knowledge, Smith was stealing both of his parents' tape
players, figuring out how to effectively multitrack & record early
compositions (while haphazardly recording over some of his parents'
favorite cassette tapes in the process).

The trend continued and, never shy about seizing opportunities or
facing challenges, Smith’s diverse passions and healthy obsessions led
him on a genre-crossing journey. While learning piano and violin in
rigorous classical settings, Smith's musical palette continuously
sought new sounds, leading him to serve as the drummer/vocalist in his
middle school Punk/Screamo band, electric guitarist in a Rock duo, and
even the lead fiddler in the regionally touring Bluegrass/Gospel band
The Circuit Riders. Oh, and all of this was while he was programming
and selling games to his friends for their calculators.

Eventually, Smith would turn down scholarships to some of the top
engineering programs in the country in order to pursue the study of
music at New York University. With scholarships from the Songwriters
Hall of Fame and Carole Bayer Sager Foundation, Smith was able to
pursue a degree in songwriting and it was there where he found
life-changing mentors in the late Glenn Frey and hit songwriter Phil
Galdston, self-released his first EP “Dragons in the Sky”, had a #3
hit in Australia with “Summertime”, opened for The Eagles at the
Beacon Theatre, performed in the off-Broadway and West End hit Close
to You: Burt Bacharach Reimagined, learned some more instruments (he
plays 10 now), and graduated with one of America’s first Masters
Degrees in Songwriting.

Smith collaborated with GRAMMY-winner producer Scott Jacoby (John
Legend, Vampire Weekend) for his 2016 single & EP “Brooklyn Nights”,
which received airplay on Z100, Eagle 97.7 and DC101 (where DJ Mike
Jones compared the track to fun.’s “We Are Young”). He’s opened for
Lindsey Stirling and Emily Kinney, and performed at Milwaukee
Summerfest and Bethlehem MusikFest.

Now nearly 2,000 miles away from where his musical journey began,
Smith makes his home in a city with a different sort of breathtaking
view - New York. And all of his experiences are apparent in his unique
Pop sound: an orchestrated blend of acoustic and electronic
instruments, informed by Classical, Rock, Folk, Theatre and more. His
continued wiz-kid love of technology that once had him building
infrared sensors for the U.S. Navy now enables him to build out custom
rigs for his one-man live shows that are a spectacle of showmanship,
featuring Smith on a revolving multitude of instruments all at once.
Be sure to stay in touch to see Smith's next live show!

Priyanka Chugh is a recent graduate of Cooper Medical School of Rowan University in NJ, now currently a General Surgery resident at Boston Medical Center. She has previously received her Masters in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University in 2014. At NYU she was in the College of Arts of Science and graduated in 2013 with a major in Psychology, minors in Chemistry, Public Health and Policy, and Child/Adolescent Mental Health Studies. At NYU she was involved in residence life since her freshman year by joining hall council at Third North, then at Gramercy Green, joining NRHH, and finally becoming a Resident Assistant at Third North for her junior and senior year,

Erica Tachoir is a Brooklyn-based writer/director. She was featured in Tracking Board’s 2018 Young and Hungry List, named to ISA’s 2019 Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch, and selected for the 2019 NYWIFT From Script To Pre-Production Lab. Her screenplay SCATTERING JAKE was a Nicholl semifinalist, Big Break and Page finalist, and a WeScreenplay and Table Read My Screenplay winner. Her short TOO SUNNY FOR SANTA (starring Natalia Dyer from Stranger Things) screened at festivals across the country. With her comedy partner, she co-wrote and starred in the web series LIFE, AFTER, and they were named notable writers at the New York Television Festival for their pilot script, UNFINISHED. A graduate NYU/Tisch Film, Erica also studied at FAMU in Prague, Atlantic Theater Company, and UCB. She is repped by MXN Entertainment in Los Angeles.

Lauren Bosch ’12 SPS (Hotel & Tourism Management) was an RA in Third North. As an RA she had internships at Hotel Indigo, Gansevoort Hotel Group, and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. Her first full-time position upon graduation was with the Westin Hotel in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She worked in Sales and Business Travel & Group Sales. For the past six years, Lauren has five roles with Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, all in the Metro DC area. She was promoted to the position of Area Director of Sales & Marketing, which is a remarkable trajectory for someone at this phase of their career.

Brittney Johnson a Tisch alum has had tremendous success in her acting career.  Her Broadway credits include: Wicked (Glinda, certain performances); Sunset Boulevard (Ensemble); Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (Ensemble, Shirelle, Little Eva); Les Misérables (Eponine); Motown: The Musical (Swing & replacement).  In Los Angeles: Dreamgirls, at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (Lorell Robinson); Tropicana Las Vegas: Mamma Mia! (Lisa).  Westchester Broadway Theatre: Ragtime (Sarah). Toronto, ON: Les Misérables (Eponine, Ensemble) The Really Useful Group, Ltd, Mirvish Productions.  US National Tour (25th Anniversary): Les Misérables (The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts Innovation Studio, Philadelphia, PA, Broward Center for the Performing Arts Au-Rene Theatre, Fort Lauderdale, FL, and 67 other venues). Weathervane Theatre (Whitefield, NH) Ragtime (Ensemble, Sarah's friend), Hair (Tribe), South Pacific, and Bye, Bye Birdie.

Awards - 2016, nomination: Ovation Award: Lead Actress in a Musical Dreamgirls - Lorell Robinson.

Follow her on Twitter @sunnybrittney 

Pooja Kumar spent a year on "Laff Staff" as an RA in Lafayette Hall, and graduated from Stern in 2008 with a degree in International Business and Accounting. She spent her early professional years working as a CPA until she realized she was way too fun for that life. She moved to Washington, D.C., transitioned into human capital consulting, and spent five years supporting clients in the public sector on strategic change and communications projects. For the last five years, Pooja has been working for Marriott International, currently as a Digital Customer Experience Adviser incorporating consumer insights into the digital strategy for the company.

Leah Gutstadt is a Senior Manager, Digital Content at PwC, where she oversees editorial and content strategy for the firm's internal communications platforms. In a previous role at PwC, Leah supported the Responsible Business Leadership (formerly Corporate Responsibility) team with communications strategy and messaging, with the goal of engaging PwC US’ 50,000+ partners and staff. Leah received a Master's Degree in Strategic Communications from Columbia University and a Bachelor's Degree from New York University. She lives in Ossining, NY with her husband and two sons.

Maya Ardon serves as the Director for Student Affairs in the NYU College of Dentistry Office of Student Affairs & Academic Support Services. Maya received a BA degree in drama studies cum laude from the State University of New York - Purchase College; her involvement in college as a campus leader and student athlete led to her pursuing an MA degree in higher education and student personnel administration from NYU Steinhardt. During her graduate program, Maya worked as a paraprofessional in the NYU Department of Residential Life and Housing Services, first as an RA in the Uptown Hall known as 26th Street and subsequently serving as a Graduate Assistant at 2nd Street. Maya began her professional career at NYU in 2007 as a Program Administrator at the NYU School of Medicine and continued to work in various capacities within the university before arriving to NYU Dentistry at the start of 2014. 

In this special episode leading us into Season 2 of 'Where RA Now?', Senior Associate Vice President of Student Affairs and usual host of the podcast, Tom Ellett, sits down with his Executive Producer, Shehara Ranasinghe, and Executive Director, Duncan Lemieux, to discuss his time hosting the show. 

Listen to the following alums speak about their RA experience: 

Here are some of those alums interviewed by investigative reporter Nia Harris and Carlyle alums:  Liz Bossov Glen Feinstein John Gonsalves Michelle Jasmine Arlene Lormestoire Stephanie Plachy and ThirdNorth alums: Priyanka Chugh  @HannahCrane Michel Dominguez Beddome Abigail Garcia Adewunmi Ogunfowora Ife Onatunde Alexa Sachs AJ Smith  

A really wonderful series of events.  Hope you enjoyed the first season.  Back at you in August 2019!

Major Carman A. Leone is an Assistant Professor of Law, United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado. He teaches and serves as the course director for the Academy’s only negotiation course, Principles of Negotiation. He also serves as the Director of the Leadership & Appropriate Dispute Resolution (LADR) Program, a Department of Law initiative that focuses on remaining on the cutting edge of negotiation pedagogy and application.

Before joining the law faculty at the Academy, Maj Leone served as the Area Defense Counsel (ADC) at Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota. In that role, Maj Leone tried seventeen courts-martial and served hundreds of Airmen who faced a variety of disciplinary issues. Maj Leone has also served as the Chief of Military Justice, Deputy Chief of Military Justice, Chief of Adverse Actions, Chief of Legal Assistance, and Special Assistant United States Attorney. 

Maj Leone is currently admitted to practice law before the highest courts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Minnesota as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. 

Bridget Malit (now Godwin) was an RA in Weinstein for two years and graduated from CAS in 2005 with a degree in English and American Literature.  After graduation Bridget worked for a year as a research assistant at NYU School of Medicine before enrolling in the Bryn Mawr College post baccalaureate premedical program. From there she moved to Providence, RI to attend medical school at Brown University, deciding to pursue a career in Pediatrics. She received her General Pediatrics training at NY Presbyterian Hospital - Weill Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan before returning to her hometown of Philadelphia for further training in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, where she works today as a pediatric GI doctor with a focus on GI conditions related to food allergies. 

 Zontee Hou is a passionate advisor and teacher of communications. She’s the founder of Brooklyn-based agency Media Volery and co-lead of consulting for Convince & Convert, founded by industry leader Jay Baer.

She brings more than a decade of experience in the marketing industry to her work, and her work has garnered multiple awards including several PR News Platinum Awards and a Forrester Groundswell Award. In 2018, she was named one of TopRank’s 50 most influential content marketers, and she’s been a judge for the Content Marketing Awards for three years running.

Zontee was formerly a faculty lecturer at Columbia University and adjunct lecturer at the City College of New York, bringing her unique ability to draw connections between marketing methodology and business goals to students as well as clients.

In a previous life, Zontee was also a podcaster, a crafts & hobbies personality, and has been seen on PBS and the Martha Stewart Show.  

 Antonio Duran (he/him) recently completed his Ph.D. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from The Ohio State University. He will be starting a role as an Assistant Professor in Administration of Higher Education at Auburn University in the fall. Informed by his time at NYU as a Goddard RA, Antonio has continuously been passionate about helping college students with marginalized identities to succeed in higher education. 

Hilary Brandenburg spent two years as an RA in Brittany Hall and graduated from Gallatin in 2012, with a concentration in Public Policy and Service. Since leaving NYU, Hilary has worked for an education non-profit in Haiti, at the White House and U.S. Department of the Treasury during the Obama Administration, and at BlackRock, focused on inclusion and diversity. She has also been an advisor and board member for Emma's Torch, a social enterprise restaurant and workforce development program in Brooklyn. Hilary currently works as an independent consultant, focused on non-profit development and social impact strategy.  

Dr. Anna D’Souza is an Associate Professor at the Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College (City University of New York). She is a development economist who studies issues related to food security and nutrition, food price shocks, violence, governance, and trade. She teaches class on economics and public policy and on international development. Before joining Baruch, she worked as a research economist at the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She also worked as an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, a consultant for the World Bank, and a Peace Corps volunteer in Dakar, Senegal. Dr. D’Souza received a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at NYU and an MS and PhD in Economics from UCLA.

Terri Burns is a Principal at GV (Google Ventures), working on the investing team with sourcing and deal flow. Terri’s also on the fundraising team of the nonprofit All Raise, which aims to increase the diversity of funders and founders in the technology industry. She’s a board member of the nonprofit Brave Initiatives, which teaches coding skills to girls from underserved geographic and economic communities. Prior to joining GV, Terri was a product manager at Twitter where she helped improve the home timeline, and prior to that, a developer evangelist at Venmo. Terri is also an international speaker, covering topics related to how technology impacts various communities. In addition, Terri is a freelance writer, and regularly writes about technology, diversity, and inclusion, having been featured in publications like Forbes, Fast Company, Scientific American, and Teen Vogue. Terri graduated from the NYU Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences (computer science).  

Clive Chang is an Arts & Entertainment executive and professional musician based in New York City. He currently serves as Director, Strategy & Business Development for Disney Theatrical Group, where he is responsible for steering strategic planning and growth of Disney’s commercial live entertainment businesses worldwide. His key areas of oversight include long-range planning, deal and decision analysis, industry insight, content and franchise management, and new venture development.

Prior to Disney, Clive spent three years at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, initially serving as Special Assistant to the President, and subsequently as Director, Strategy & Business Development, where he led a team responsible for internal consulting, earned revenue growth, and special projects. Clive was a key founding member of Lincoln Center’s trailblazing global consulting practice and successfully led projects for both domestic and international clients. In addition to Lincoln Center, Clive has also previously held strategic planning roles at New York City Ballet and New York Road Runners.

Outside of corporate life, Clive is active in the community as a musician, appearing frequently as a pianist and music director for concerts, cabarets, special events, professional training programs, and developmental readings and productions. As a composer, his original works range from chamber music to full-length musicals, and have been performed across various venues in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

Clive holds a B.Mus (composition, piano) and a B.Com (finance, strategy) from McGill University, an MFA in Musical Theater Writing from NYU/Tisch School of the Arts, and an MBA from the Harvard Business School. He is Adjunct Faculty in the graduate program in Arts Administration at Columbia University.

Born and raised in NYC, Maxim Berger attended NYU as an undergraduate between 2005 and 2009. He studied at the NYU Stern School of Business and majored in Management and International Business. He also obtained a minor in the Russian language. He was an RA at Lafayette for the 2008-2009 academic year.  After graduating, Maxim has worked in the financial services industry.  He began his career as an intern during his final year at NYU. He interned DBRS, Inc. a credit rating agency, where he spent the next nine years.  In 2017, Maxim joined Morgan Stanley in their Risk Department, working on structured finance transactions.  Maxim obtained an MBA from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business in 2016. 

Chris Chan Roberson is a 15-year veteran editor, digital content strategist, cinematographer, college professor and project manager.

He has been teaching cinematography and editing at Tisch School of the Arts since 1999 and served as NYU’s Executive Director of Post Production for over two years. Currently he is the Freshman Area Head.

Chris is a contributing writer for Comic Book Resources. He also edits professionally and has worked with such talents as Sting, Billy Eichner, Nick Kroll and Christian McBride. Currently he edits for the YouTube channel The Things and produces content for Kung Fu Tea and the New-York Historical Society. In 2006, Chris won a Telly Award for his editing work with Robert Small Entertainment, where he edited for Comedy Central, Nick at Nite and The Biography Channel.

From 2012 through July 2014, Chris worked at YouTube. He helped emerging partners devise channel strategy, increase production value, and develop their brand. On a regular basis Chris worked with such YouTube channels as The Key of Awesome and VSauce3.

In 2014, Chris conducted a TEDx Talk, titled “Modern Mavericks”.

Chris is a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Neil is a born and raised New Yorker. He completed his undergraduate degree in Biochemistry with minors in Math and Computer Science at New York University in 2009. He then went on to complete his medical degree from the Keith B Taylor Global Scholars Program at SGU. He then started a Masters in Business Administration in Multi-Sector Health Management. Neil completed his Neurology training at  State University of New York Downstate Medical Center as an Assistant Clinical Instructor, also achieving Chief Resident and Resident of the Year award in his last year. 

Currently, Neil is currently a Sports Neurology Fellow at Cedars Sinai Kerlan Jobe Institute. 

Neil has been involved side line coverage and neurological consultant to Loyola Marymount University, Occidental College, Dorsey High School, Team HEAL, MMA/boxing events, and the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. 

Neil is looking forward to coming back to New York City to continue working and developing the field of Sports Neurology.

Joanna Champion is currently the Sr. Manager of primary research for USA and SYFY Networks, under the NBCUniversal/Comcast umbrella; she's served in various roles in the department since starting there in 2012.  She has both a Bachelor's and Master's from NYU ( '07, B.A., Tisch, Cinema Studies / '10 M.A., Steinhardt, Visual Culture), and served as an RA in Hayden from 2005-2007 (though a piece of her heart will always belong to Weinstein, her freshman hall).  She went on to work as a professional staff member in the department, serving as the ACDE of 26th St./University Court from 2007-2009, then the RHAD of Founders from 2009-2011.  She currently lives in Washington Heights with her husband.   

Roseann Maurantonio has been a classroom teacher for the past 14 years.  She began her career at P.S. 158 in New York City, one of the highest performing schools in New York State and currently teaches first grade at Rosendale Elementary School, a suburban elementary school in Upstate NY. 

In addition to having taught grades 1-4, Rosie has been an adjunct professor in the Literacy Teaching and Learning Department at the University at Albany.  She has worked with graduate students to help them understand the basics of the balanced literacy framework and how to differentiate their instruction to support diverse learners.   

In 2014, Rosie was presented with the Milken Educator Award for her leadership in education and her success improving student achievement.  In 2016, she received an Excellence in Part Time Teaching Award from the University at Albany.  For the past few years, Rosie has done consulting work in schools in the states and abroad. She enjoys pushing teachers to be reflective about their practice and aims to be sure that all of her presentations and professional development work reflect what she herself has done in the classroom. 

Her academic degrees are as follow:  B.S. Childhood Education/Childhood Special Education ('04  NYU), M.S. Reading/Writing/Literacy ('05 UPENN), M.A. Educational Leadership ('11 NYU)

Born and raised in New York City to Afro-Dominican parents, Suhaly Bautista-Carolina has designed a career centered on harnessing the collective power of communities through the arts. Over the past 10 years, she has served as a social justice educator, youth advocate, and community organizer both in the U.S. and throughout Latin America. Suhaly has worked in various capacities with organizations such as the Brooklyn Museum, Creative Time, Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI), ArtBuilt, and the Laundromat Project. In 2015, Suhaly was a panelist at ArtPrize7's "Reflecting the Times: Arts & Activism" alongside Dread Scott and Arts.Black. She is also a 2016 alumna of CCCADI’s Innovative Cultural Advocacy Fellowship and a graduate of Columbia University's Summer Teachers and Scholars Institute, "The Many Worlds of Black New York." As a curator, Suhaly has worked to design exhibitions and arts programming on behalf of organizations including Art Connects, ArtSpace, and Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership’s “Black Artstory Month.” Her photographic documents and writings have been published in La Galeria Magazine, Remezcla, United Nations’ International Museum of Women and Caribbean Vistas Journal. She has enjoyed solo exhibitions at New York University (8th Floor Gallery) and La Casa Azul Bookstore and has been featured in Bustle, The Girl Mob, and mitú. Suhaly is a Weeksville Heritage Center Ambassador and serves on the Advisory Boards to Black Girl Project and More Art. She earned her Bachelor’s (B.A.) and Masters in Public Administration (MPA) degrees from NYU, where she was named one of “NYU’s 15 Most Influential Students.”

Suhaly lives in Brooklyn with her wife and their daughter, Luna.

Ron has been a talent shepherd for 15 years, recruiting and selecting hundreds of candidates to become education leaders. He is a Principal at Edgility Consulting, a national boutique executive search firm that finds the leaders that education organizations need to make a difference. Before that he built his own search firm, consulting, leading and supporting hiring searches for school districts, charter schools and non-profits.  
 

Ron is also a coach, giving career advice on how to navigate career transitions and present oneself from networking to interviewing. He also supports others on how to live healthier lives through group fitness classes. Ron believes in the power of connecting with others to support, nurture and develop our talents. Last, Ron is a men's personal stylist through J.Hilburn, a luxury menswear company. Guided by his belief that a well-dressed man oozes confidence, he styles men to define their personal wardrobe style and develops wardrobe recommendations. 

Ron is an active member of the NYU alumni community, having served as Vice-President of the NYU Alumni Association, co-founder of the Multicultural Alumni Group, co-chair of the Marketing and Communications committee, and a Young Alumni Leadership Circle patron. 

In his spare time, he loves spending time with his wife Shanita and his daughter Sofia, whether it's watching reality TV, enjoying Jeopardy, or devouring favorite movies/shows on Netflix. He's also an avid yoga practitioner, meditator, obstacle course racer, and VersaClimber enthusiast. A native New Yorker, he's a rabid New York Yankees and New York Giants fan. 

Ron served as an RA in Weinstein Hall under the leadership of Craig Jolley, in his first year at NYU!

Meghna Shah is a Former 7A  resident advisor, and current  Internal medicine physician in Seattle, Washington.  She is interested in social justice in medicine, and the social determinants of health.  She will be joining the faculty at the University of Washington this summer.  In her spare time, she likes to kayak and bake.  

Richa Tandon is a Director in Private Debt with Benefit Street Partners (“BSP”), a credit-focused alternative asset management firm with approximately $26 billion in assets under management. Prior to joining BSP in 2014, Ms. Tandon was an Associate at Trilantic Capital Partners, where she worked on executing private equity investments in the business services and consumer sectors. Prior to joining Trilantic, Ms. Tandon worked in investment banking at Morgan Stanley. Ms. Tandon received a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Accounting from the Stern School of Business at New York University.

​​​​​Dr. Mrunal Parmar is a board certified Pediatric Dentist. He is the proud owner of a pediatric dental practice, The Smile Stop Pediatric Dentistry, in Park Ridge, NJ. He graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Biology before earning his Doctorate of Dental Surgery from NYU College of Dentistry. Dr. Parmar was admitted to the highly sought-after Pediatric Dentistry Residency Program at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. Dr. Parmar has worked as a Pediatric Dentist in Northern and Central New Jersey for several years.  He is a proud member of the American Dental Association and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry.

The Smile Stop:

Photos of the dental office can be found here: https://thesmilestop.com/our-office/office-tour/ - let us know if you need the jpeg images and we can send those.

Born and raised in Great Neck, New York, Mark majored in Sports Management and graduated from New York University in 2009 where he competed as  a member of the NCAA Division III Wrestling team. Mark then obtained his law degree from New York Law School in 2012. 

Mark is an attorney and in August 2016, he founded his own law firm, Mark David Shirian P.C., a boutique litigation firm in Midtown Manhattan specializing in employment discrimination, personal injury and entertainment matters. Mark has has been featured in the New York Post, New York Daily News and Fox News. 

During his free time, Mark mentors teenagers as the head wrestling coach at Davis Renov Stahler High School in Woodmere, New York. 

Jonathan Wu was an RA for Hayden Hall during the 2003-2004 school year.  He studied at Stern majoring in business.  Jonathan worked in different capacities within the insurance and investment industries.  He is currently a risk advisory consultant.  Jonathan credits his time as an RA for instilling leadership skills.  He continues to use these skills in the work place and local church.  Jonathan resides in New York.  When he is not advising clients on risks Jonathan enjoys exploring the city.  His hobbies include dancing!

Kathleen was an RA in Alumni Hall while she studied in the Gallatin School.  She graduated in December 2001. Kathleen was born in Washington, DC. She is an artist, writer, and geographer based in Marfa, Texas. Her visual and academic work explores landscape, space, and place, home and memory, and aviation and aerial geography. Her first book, Marfa: The Transformation of a West Texas Town, was published by the University of Texas Press in 2017. She is working on two books about airports. 

John Kazlauskas:  While an MA student at Gallatin studying documentary filmmaking and social justice, John worked as a Graduate Housing Assistant at 80 Lafayette. During that time he was also a Production Assistant on the Oscar-winning Bowling for Columbine, while his own documentary SPEAK UP! premiered at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival before being acquired for national distribution through the Media Education Foundation. While a Community Developement Educator (CDE) at Hayden Hall, John started the MFA program in Dramatic Writing at Tisch. Since leaving NYU, John has worked as a Writer’s Assistant, Script Cooridnator and Writer on TV shows including Brothers & Sisters, SMASH, Happily Divorced, Mulaney and currently NBC’s Superstore. In addition, he has written freelance jokes for Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live.

Dr. Sara Klein currently serves as the AVP for Student Affairs at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.   Prior to her role at Stevens, she served as Dean of Campus Life and Engagement and Title IX Coordinator at Wagner College.  Dr. Klein also held the positions of Associate Dean of Campus Life and Director of Res Ed at Wagner College.  Before coming to Wagner, she worked as a CDE in the Department of Res Ed at NYU, and as a Fixed Income, Currencies & Commodities analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Dr. Klein is an adjunct professor at NYU in the HESA program.  She has also taught in Wagner College’s Executive MBA program and has instructed webinars for the American College Personnel Association and ResLife.net, as well as presented throughout the country at professional conferences, seminars, and workshops.   Dr. Klein has published articles in the Journal  of the First Year Experience and Students in Transition, the Journal of College and University Housing, and authored a chapter in Linking Theories to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students (3rd Edition). Dr. Klein earned her Ph.D. at NYU in Higher Education, where she also received a Master’s degree in the same subject.  She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Music.  She lives with her husband, Ben, and two young children in Maplewood, NJ.

Ryan Sylvester is a Judge Advocate (lawyer) in the U.S. Navy. He is a native of Little Falls, Minnesota. He completed a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications (1998) as well as a Master of Science in Educational Leadership (2002) at Minnesota State University Moorhead; a Master of Science in Global Affairs (2007) at NYU; a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies at the U.S. Naval War College (2018); and a Juris Doctorate (2011) at Fordham University School of Law. He is currently working toward a Master of Science in Strategic Intelligence at the National Intelligence University. Ryan is currently  assigned to a legal office at Fort George G. Meade.  His prior assignments include: U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. TENTH Fleet; Office of the Judge Advocate General Code 18 (Intelligence, Cyber, and Information Operations Law); Command Judge Advocate, USS EMORY S. LAND (AS 39); Policy Advisor, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Undersecretary of Defense for Policy (Oceans Policy); Defense Counsel, Defense Service Office North in DC; and Trial Counsel, Legal Assistance Attorney, and Command Services Attorney at Region Legal Services Attorney at Region Legal Service Office Naval District Washington in Washington, DC.  During law school Ryan interned with the Sierra Leone Mission to the UN in NY. Prior to law school, Ryan had a career as a university administrator for eight years. From 2003-2007 he was the CDE for Weinstein Hall at NYU. From 1999-2003 he was he was an Area Director.

Born and raised in Staten Island, NY.   Jonathan Graf is a life-long New Yorker and graduate of the New York City public school system.  He attended NYU undergrad where he obtained a computer science degree and graduated in class of 2004.  As a technology professional he worked for brands such as Citigroup, HBO and Macmillan.  He was on the technical team that built and launched HBO GO, serving as the Technical Lead for the login module.  In his spare time he has joined community theater groups and has taken language classes in French, Spanish, German and Yiddish.  An avid traveler, he just completed a year long trip around the world where he visited 17 countries.  On this trip, he accepted his 15 year story of documenting his family history is perhaps his purpose in life. 

 Isha Dandavate has been a user experience researcher at Google for five years. She seeks to elevate the voices of underserved audiences in technology, which she has done by incorporating the needs of teens, women, and people in developing markets into the product development process at YouTube. 

While at NYU, Isha was an RA for two years at Alumni Hall/7th St. She also served as an RA at University Hall one summer. Isha graduated from NYU in 2010, majoring in international relations and journalism. She worked for 2 years as a freelance journalist before transitioning to a career in user research. 

Isha worked at a design research consultancy, SonicRim Ltd, in San Francisco for a year before beginning graduate studies at the UC Berkeley School of Information. She graduated with a master's in information management and systems in 2014.

Darryl Jordan, a singer/songwriter/musician/conductor, graduated from New York University and Boston University, where he received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, respectively in 2003. This year, he will complete his Ed. Doctorate in Music and Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. He has spent the better part of his career training multi-faceted young singers for a new generation in Harlem as the Chair of Performing Arts and Vocal Music at the Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts. Armed with the desire to “develop singers for every stage,” he has spent the past twenty years training singers in Maryland, D.C., and New York for everything from classical to jazz. His students have performed in many great halls including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, National Black Theater, the Apollo Theater, Aaron Davis Hall, Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, Baltimore’s Center Stage, and a host of churches, community centers, and public events!  

Thanking God for his own musical gift, he continues to perform as a baritone/tenor soloist in and outside of the Tri-State area. Performing with everything from Gregory Sheppard Artists Management, Opera Ebony, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, St. Frances De Sales R.C. Church, Mott Haven Reformed Church, Randolph Noel and the Brooklyn Arts Ensemble, Dion Parsons and the 21st Century Band, as chorus member and soloist in The Underground Railroad: A Spiritual Journey with famed soprano Kathleen Battle at the Metropolitan Opera House, and most recently with the pit ensemble of Born for This, a new musical by BeBe Wigans. A sought after conductor and clinician, he most recently conducted Nyack’s Off-Broadway Production of The Wiz in his third conducting assignment with the school having conducted In the Heights and Westside Story in previous years. He is a regular conductor with Nyack's Chorale in their Celebration of God’s 

Faithfulness performances at Lincoln Center. He is proud to be the choral director at the historic Calvary Fellowship A.M.E. and former choir director at the historic Mt Lebanon Baptist Church in Brooklyn. A solo artist with his music group FreeMind, he brings a unique brand of neo-gospel-soul music to the world! An Apollo Amateur Night winner, he is set to released his second project TIME this year! Creative and Dynamic, he seeks to empower the community through the gift of song. 

 Kenton Muscato was initially a Peer Educator and two-year Resident Assistant in University Hall from 2006 to 2009. He graduated from Leonard N. Stern's School of Business in 2009. Thereafter, he began a career at Ralph Lauren Corporation always in a buying, merchandising function. Kenton has been with Ralph Lauren for ten years, working with multiple product categories and brands with a current focus on the Greater China Southeast Asia market needs. Kenton is currently based in Hong Kong where he has lived for nearly the past five years.  

 Maliha Salim graduated from New York University in 2007 with a B.A. in Politics, Spanish & Public Policy.  Following graduation, she joined the Financial Sales & Analytics Training Program at Bloomberg L.P.  During her 11 years at the company, she has held positions across a variety of departments including Analytics, Sales & Product.  During her time in Analytics, she managed a team of specialists focusing on the FX & Commodity sector before moving onto Sales to cover the sell-side.  In Sales, she was promoted to a manager position in 2016, overseeing a team of relationship managers who looked after some of Bloomberg's key accounts.  In 2017, Maliha moved to Product Management, where she oversees development of Bloomberg's instant chat platform.  

Joseph Azam is Senior Vice President and Global Chief Compliance & Ethics Officer at Infor, a privately held major provider of business-specific software across the manufacturing, distribution and service industries worldwide. In his role, Joe oversees business conduct, internal investigations, corporate criminal matters and compliance in a wide range of areas, including anti-corruption, sanctions and export controls. Prior to his position at Infor, he served as SVP & Group Chief Compliance Officer at News Corp and SVP & Associate General Counsel, Global Anti-Bribery at London-based HSBC where he was also a member of the bank’s Global Internal Investigations Group investigating bribery, money laundering, sanctions violations, and other financial crimes. He has held similar in-house positions at Accenture and Oracle. He began his legal career at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP in New York. His work has taken him throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.  He is a graduate of the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, where he was co-Editor-In-Chief of the Hastings International & Comparative Law Review and now serves on the law school's Board of Governors. He holds a B.A. and M.A. from NYU where his graduate research focused on Political Islam in the Middle East and South Asia.  His has written for Ethisphere Magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, Lucky Peach Magazine, the LA Times, and MTVNews. In 2018, he contributed to The Displaced, an acclaimed book of essays published by AbramsPress and edited by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen. Proceeds from the book go directly to the International Rescue Committee.

Joe was an RA at Goddard (02-03) and GA at Coral Towers (03-05). 

Rogelio Plasencia joined The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2018 as the manger of The Apollo Circle young patrons program. Before joining The Met, Rogelio was the Director of Membership for The Phillips Collection and oversaw the growth of their young patron program, the Contemporaries. He began his career in fundraising at the American Museum of Natural History, and has worked at various cultural institutions between New York and D.C., including El Museo del Barrio and The Smithsonian Institution.

Rogelio earned his BS from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at NYU with a major in Marketing, and minors in Art History and Latin American Studies. While at NYU he was and RA at Carlyle Court, and President of the Cuban American Student Association.

Dan Barker joined Social Impact at BlackRock in 2018 and leads corporate grant making. Before joining BlackRock, Dan was a management consultant at Deloitte where he advised corporate, multilateral, and nonprofit clients on social impact strategy. Prior to Deloitte, Dan managed a number of public-private partnerships and policy initiatives focused on advancing economic development at Earth Institute. He began his career as a researcher at the Council on Foreign Relations. 

Dan has published research with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Halcyon Incubator on outcomes based funding models and social enterprise. He holds a Masters in International Finance and Economic Policy from Columbia University and a BA in International Relations from NYU. While at NYU he was an RA at Gramercy Green and Greenwich Hotel and founded the International Relations Society.

Dan and Rogelio have been married for six years.

Geoffrey Kwan was an RA at 3rd North Residence Hall between 2014 - 2015. After graduating with a degree in Nutrition & Dietetics at NYU, he began transitioning is career within the Human Resources field through several roles in the hotel and tech industry. He currently works as a University Recruiter for Facebook helping students get internships and full-time opportunities and being an advocate for them throughout the process. Geoffrey truly believes that his experience as an RA has really shaped his career path and has inspired him to do a unique line of youth mentorship work. 

Opal Bennett has been a curator since 2014 when she joined the Programming team at Montclair Film Festival as Shorts Programmer.  Beginning as a volunteer for the first Sundance London Film Festival, she now curates year round. Opal is on the programming teams for Aspen ShortsFest, Athena, Nantucket and Tribeca Film Festivals, and is a Program Consultant for The March on Washington Film Festival. She is also on the selection committee for shorts at Cinema Eye Honors. Opal has served on juries for SxSW, IndieMemphis, NewFest, Leuven ShortsFest, IndieStreet Filmfest, Cleveland and Seattle International Film Festivals among others. She has also participated on selection committees for documentary programming and grants. A Columbia Law grad, Opal holds a Masters in Media Studies from the LSE, and received her B.A. from New York University.   Opal served as an RA in Weinstein Hall with NYU Director of Student Conduct, Craig Jolley as her supervisor.

Vanessa Herman is a commerce & content professional. With 10+ years of experience in E-Commerce, Product, and Content, she has worked in start-up, on contract at Google Express, as well as for companies such as Restoration Hardware, ABC, CBS, Spirit Airlines, and on projects such as Yahoo's "WHO KNEW" and NBC's "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE". She was an R.A. at NYU Hayden from 2003-2005 and received her Bachelor's Degree from NYU's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. While at NYU, Vanessa focused on language, literature, performance and culture with a curiosity about identity and duality, given her own identity, as a biracial woman of Puerto Rican and Jewish descent. Vanessa grew up with the L.A. vibe, loving theatre and television, thus her studies in New York were a natural fit. Currently based in San Francisco, when she’s not working, she enjoys shopping local to find wonderful artists & artisans, getting her yoga on in her athleisure wear and practicing Reiki, as a Level 2 practitioner, working with women recovering from breast cancer for The Shanti Project and various community members at SF Reiki Center. 

The very first episode of Where R.A. Now - with Any Chang!