1940s
Ruth Shapiro (BS '47, MA '73), of New York, NY, is founder of Ruth Shapiro Associates. Her job search, résumé, and cover letter approaches were featured in McCall's, The Christian Science Monitor, and the Dow Jones' National Business Employment Weekly.

Paul Steiner (BS '47), of New York, NY, has authored sixteen books and contributes to the New York Post, Star Magazine, and zingmagazine. He also writes a weekly column for Jewish Voice in the New York and Florida area.

Alan Greenspan (BS '48, MA '50, PhD '77), of Washington, DC, has penned The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World. He has also joined Paulson & Co. Inc., an investment management company, as a member of its advisory board. Greenspan was former Chairman of the US Federal Reserve Bank.

1950s
Fred J. Lo Faso (BS '54), of Massapequa Park, NY, has retired from the Mearl Corporation as Senior Vice President of Global Sales to start his own company, Global Sales & Marketing, which offers pearl pigments and glitters to US and overseas markets.

Stuart I. Greenbaum (BS '58), of Saint Louis, MO, has been appointed as an independent director of Brooke Credit Corporation. Greenbaum was Dean of the John M. Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis from 1995 to 2005.

Calvin E. Ramsey (BS '59), of New York, NY, known as the “Mayor of Harlem,” is a Director of Special Projects and Community Relations for the NY Knicks. Ramsey was one of the nation's top 100 high school basketball recruits and has been inducted into the NYC Sports Hall of Fame and the Brooklyn USA Hall of Fame.

1960s
Dwight B. Massey (MBA '62), of Haledon, NJ, founded Massey Quick, a financial management firm based in New Jersey.

Robert F. Johnston (MBA '64), of Princeton, NJ, has been appointed Executive Chairman of the Pharmos Corporation's Board of Directors. Johnston, a venture capitalist, is President of Johnston Associates.

Peter Warren (BS '65), of Morganville, NJ, serves on the Executive Advisory Boards of the Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism, and Sports Management and the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism.

Irwin H. Block (MBA '66), of Norwalk, CT, retired in 2004 from Purdue Pharma L.P. as Senior Executive Director of Creative Services after 46 years of service. Block, also a photographer, has widely exhibited his black and white silver gelatin images which have appeared in The New York Times.

Francis P. Mulvey (BS '66), of Bethesda, MD, has been nominated by President George W. Bush for an additional five-year term to be a member of the Surface Transportation Board.

Shau Wai Lam (MBA '67), of Summit, NJ, has been awarded the New Jersey “Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2007” award. Lam is Chairman of DCH Auto Group, one of the largest auto dealer groups in the country.

M. Faroq Kathwari (MBA '68), of New Rochelle, NY, was one of three South Asians who received the “American by Choice” award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by naturalized US citizens. Kathwari is Chairman, President, and CEO of Ethan Allen Interiors, Inc.

Thomas E. Freston, III (MBA '69), of New York, NY, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at DreamWorks Animation. Freston most recently served as President and CEO of Viacom.

James H. Herbert (MBA '69), of San Francisco, CA, has been appointed Chairman at First Republic Bank. Herbert was the founding President and CEO of First Republic.

1970s
Lewis J. Altfest (MBA '70), of New York, NY, is the recipient of the 2007 Charles R. Schwab IMPACT Award®. In connection with the award, The Wall Street Journal honored Altfest for his continuing quest to provide independent advice to individual investors. Altfest is currently President of L.J. Altfest & Co., Inc.

Richard S. Fuld (MBA '72), of Greenwich, CT, has been re-elected a Class B Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for a three-year term. Fuld is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

Mary C. Gelormino (BS '75, MBA 79), of Brooklyn, NY, has been appointed Senior Vice President and Regional Executive at Sovereign Bank. Prior to joining Sovereign, Gelormino was Senior Vice President and Client Relations Manager for Bank of America.

Ann M. Stordahl (BS '75), of Dallas, TX, is the Executive Vice President of Women's Apparel at Neiman Marcus. Stordahl is responsible for all women's apparel categories and the company's fashion offices in New York.

Kenneth J. Witkin (MBA '75), of Brookline, MA, has been appointed President and CEO of CBRE Realty Finance, Inc. Witkin most recently served as Executive Vice President in the Commercial Real Estate Banking Group of Bank of America.

Brandes S. Elitch (MBA '76), of Sebastopol, CA, has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing at Avalon International, a software provider. Brandes has previously worked as Corporate Cash Manager.

Richard A. Lorraine (BS '76), of Jonesborough, TN, has been awarded Chemical Weekly's annual “Senior Financial Officer of the Year” award. He is currently the Senior Vice President and CFO of Eastman Chemical.

Richard E. Kolman (MBA '77), of Greenwich, CT, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, was honored by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association for his “significant contributions to the Association and the municipal securities industry thoughout his career.”

Cathy E. Minehan (MBA '77), of Boston, MA, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Becton, Dickinson and Company. Minehan most recently served as President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Gary M. Rautenstrauch (MBA '77), of Charlotte, NC, has been appointed CEO of SirsiDynic. Previously, he held several management positions at Baker & Taylor, including Chief Information Officer, Vice President of Operations, and CEO.

Raymond S. Baxter (MBA '78), of Vienna, VA, is Vice President, Government Sales, at Mobile Satellite Ventures, an operator of a satellite-based telecommunications network.

Gail D. Fosler (MBA '78), of New York, NY, has been appointed President of The Conference Board, a global research and business membership organization. Fosler most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Economist at The Conference Board.

David E. Mack (MBA '78), of Evanston, IL, has been appointed Managing Director at Morris Anderson & Associates' Chicago office. Before joining Morris Anderson & Associates, Mack was Senior Managing Director at Mesirow Financial Consulting and Managing Partner of White Oak Group.

Marc J. Oppenheimer (BS '79, MBA '84), of Fort Lee, NJ, has been appointed Executive Vice President, CFO, and Treasurer at IDT Corporation, an international telecommunications and technology company. Oppenheimer was previously Executive Vice President of Kenmar Global Investment Management, Inc.

1980s
John Cherkezian (MBA '80), of Englewood Cliffs, NJ, has been appointed COO at The Armenian General Benevolent Union. He was previously Managing Director of Trade Finance at International Asset Holdings Corporation.

David J. McCue (MBA '80), of Florence, MT, has been appointed CIO at Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC). His previous CSC assignments include Vice President of Application Portfolio Management and Chief Information and Resource Officer for the company's health care group.

Lance S. Miller (MBA '80), of Leonia, NJ, has been appointed Managing Director of Morris Anderson & Associates in New York. Before joining Morris Anderson, Miller served as Managing Director of KLB Partners, LLC.

Open to Possibilities Charlie Chasin (BS '80, Law JD '83) A successful career, the theory goes, often results from working hard to create opportunities, and then being alert and daring enough to take advantage of them. Charlie Chasin, currently Managing Director in Firm Management for Morgan Stanley, could be the poster boy for that theory. Chasin, armed with both an accounting degree from NYU Stern and a JD from NYU School of Law, spent the first part of his career as a law clerk to US District Judge John Bartels, a litigator at Dewey, Ballantine, Bushby, Palmer & Wood, and an adjunct professor of business law at Stern. In 1988, he joined Morgan Stanley’s legal department, where he worked for 12 years, ultimately serving as Head of Litigation and Regulatory Affairs. In 2001, Chasin made the first of several career shifts at Morgan Stanley, becoming the Legal and Regulatory Risk Manager for the Fixed Income Division. “I have always loved business, so the transition from the legal side, while challenging, was a natural one for me,” Chasin explained. “The timing was right, the position was right, and I knew I could always move back into the legal arena if I wanted to. Luckily, I haven’t wanted to – being on the business side has been terrific.” Four years into the risk management position, Chasin saw another opportunity to broaden his skills and went for it: Chief of Staff to Morgan Stanley’s former Co-president Zoe Cruz. “Something that Morgan Stanley promotes firm-wide, and that I ascribe to on a personal level as well,” said Chasin, “is to go outside your comfort zone. Once you challenge yourself and succeed, you develop the confidence and courage to continue to expand your horizons.” In December 2007, Chasin accepted his current position working for Morgan Stanley’s new Co-president Walid Chammah. Chasin attributes much of his success to his educational experience. “NYU gave me the chance,” he said. “Without the opportunities I had in school, I wouldn’t be where I am today.” As a result, he’s stayed connected. “It has been important for me to stay involved with NYU over the course of my career. I have worn many hats for NYU since my graduation: I have served as a mentor, an adjunct professor, a recruiter for the firm’s Fixed Income Division, and currently, as Morgan Stanley’s University Relationship Manager (URM) for NYU. As the URM, I have worked to build bridges between Morgan Stanley and NYU; develop meaningful relationships with the deans, students, and alumni; create greater opportunities for collaboration; and forge a strong partnership between NYU and Morgan Stanley.” Reflecting on his achievements, Chasin said, “I never had a master plan. My education and career have been much more evolutionary in nature. My philosophy is to roll up my sleeves, work hard, and not take anything for granted.”

Lawrence R. Litowitz (MBA '81), of Palm City, FL, has been appointed CFO of Silverstar Holdings. Previously, he held CFO and Senior Vice President positions at a number of companies.

David N. Spiselman (MBA '81), of Salinas, CA, has been appointed CFO of WineNationTV.com. Spiselman was also recently elected to a four-year term on the Monterey Bay Blues Festival Board of Directors as Chair of the Audit Committee.

Steven H. Tishman (MBA '81), of New York, NY, has been made Head of Mergers and Acquisitions at Rothschild North America.

Jack D. Cogen (MS '82, MBA '87), of New York, NY, has been elected Chairman at The International Emissions Trading Association. Cogen is President and CEO of Natsource and is one of the founders of the Natsource group of companies.

Alexander D. Dembitzer (BS '82), of New York, NY, is the Principal and Managing Partner of the Northern Group, a real estate development company. Northern Group is currently developing a $150 million project in downtown Detroit.

Paul E. Simons (MBA '82), of Washington, DC, has been nominated by President George W. Bush to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Chile.

Rodolfo L. Archbold (MBA '83), of Acton, MA, has been appointed Vice President of Operations at Evergreen Solar, Inc., a manufacturer of solar power products. He most recently served as an Operations Consultant at Teradyne, Inc. and other electronics manufacturing firms.

Elyse Douglas (MBA '83), of Cos Cob, CT, has been appointed Executive Vice President and CFO of Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. Before joining Hertz in 2006, Douglas served as Senior Vice President and Treasurer of COTY, Inc.

Michael E. Hess (MBA '83), of Washington, DC, is the Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance, US Agency for International Development. Hess was appointed by President George W. Bush for this Senate-confirmed position.

Angelo C. Malahias (BS '83), of Weston, FL, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Eurand, a pharmaceutical company. Malahias was previously CFO at Andrx.

Edward T. Manzitti (APC '83), of Hillsborough, NJ, has recently been appointed Vice President of Research at the Direct Marketing Association, the leading global trade association for business and nonprofit organizations using and supporting direct marketing tools and techniques.

Barbara L. Rambo (MBA '83), of Sandisfield, MA, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of UnionBanCal Corporation. She is a director and vice chair of Nietech Corporation.

Jeffrey J. Woodward (MBA '83), of Hopewell, NJ, has been appointed Managing Director at Syracuse Stage, a theatre company. He is currently Managing Director of the McCarter Theatre Center for the Performing Arts in Princeton, NJ.

Leo P. Grohowski (MBA '84), of Bernardsville, NJ, has been appointed Chief Investment Officer for The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. He was previously Head of Investments at US Trust.

Evan A. Marks (MBA '84), of New York, NY, has joined Vestar Capital Partners, a private equity firm, as a principal. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at WebMD Health Corporation.

Michael P. Tarnok (MBA '84), of Mount Kisco, NY, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. He most recently served as Senior Vice President of Finance at Pfizer Inc.

Catherine M. Avery (MBA '85), of New Canaan, CT, has recently formed her own investment firm. The firm creates and manages customized investment portfolios for private investors.

Alexander P. Moon (MBA '85), of New York, NY, has been named Partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP in New York. He was previously with the New York office of Duane Morris.

Denis J. O'Leary (MBA '85), of Scarsdale, NY, has joined the Board of Directors at Fisery, Inc. O'Leary is a private investor and consultant.

Cynthia L. Shereda (BS '85), of Pound Ridge, NY, has been appointed Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary at Converse Technology. She was previously Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer, and Secretary at ATMI, Inc., a semiconductor materials company.

Dawn A. Fisher Albin (BS '86, MBA '90), of Westfield, NJ, joined Brown Brothers Harriman as Senior Vice President of Risk Management. She was previously Director at DB Services New Jersey, Inc.

John Gaffney (MBA '86), of West Orange, NJ, has been appointed Executive Vice President and General Counsel at First Solar, Inc. in Phoenix. Gaffney was previously a partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

Peter D. Galasinao (MBA '86), of Brooklyn, NY, has joined Willis Mergers and Acquisitions Group as Senior Vice President. Prior to Willis, Galasinao worked for KPMG and Ernst & Young.

Steven G. Milewicz (MBA '86), of Armonk, NY, has been appointed Executive Vice President at RailWork Corporation, a provider of track and transit systems construction. Milewicz most recently served as General Counsel for Atlantic Housing and Scaffolding, a hoisting and scaffolding contractor.

Herbert J. Roberts (MBA '87), of Albany, NY, has been appointed Senior Vice President, CFO, and Secretary at Juniper Content. Roberts was previously an operations and financial consultant to companies in the electronics and media industries.

George S. Barrett (MBA '88), of Rydal, PA, has been appointed CEO of Cardinal Health's health care supply chain services sector. Barrett currently serves as CEO of Teva North America.

A Passion for Excellence Susan M. Puglia (WSC BA '81, MBA '88) It takes a daunting combination of skills to run IBM’s global, end-to-end technical support and development transformations operation, and lead the computer giant’s global quality initiatives. That’s the charter of Susan Puglia, a double-degree graduate of NYU, who currently goes by the hefty title of Vice President, IBM Quality and Process Transformation for Development and Technical Support. Puglia joined IBM in software product development after earning a BA in computer science and math from NYU’s Washington Square College in 1981. She had planned to work just a few years and then attend Stern full-time for an MBA in international business and finance, but her flourishing career altered the game plan. “I hadn’t planned on enjoying my job so much,” she said. “In the end, I decided to go back to school part-time. It took me five years to graduate, but the decision to stay with IBM is one I’m still grateful I made.” Puglia’s career carved a linear path upwards. From 2002 to 2004, as Vice President for Systems Architecture, Design, and Development, Puglia led the development and delivery of IBM’s virtualization solutions (the abstraction of computer resources) and user technologies. She also gained IT experience in IBM’s CIO organization when, in 2000 and 2001, she set the direction for IBM’s information technology, established the company’s global IT infrastructure and applications’ standards and architecture, and managed the worldwide deployment of these technologies. Earlier in her IBM career, Puglia held a variety of technical and management positions in marketing and mainframe hardware and software development. With equal intensity, Puglia has figured out a way to strike a balance in her life. “I’ve given my entire career to IBM,” she said. “I waited a long time to start a family, and, in doing so, I achieved much success professionally, which has been really rewarding. However, now that I do have a family, with two wonderful small children at home, it is extremely important to me that I achieve and maintain that same level of success personally with both my kids and my husband. I strive every day to make a tremendous impact at work and an even greater one at home with my family.” Puglia is also committed to making an impact on her alma mater. She is a long-time Stern Fund and Courant Institute donor and serves as the NYU-IBM Partnership Executive, working to forge a strong partnership between IBM and the University. As a Partnership Executive, she is building the Stern alumni community at IBM, aligning IBM support of Stern research, and bringing prestigious IBM executives to speak on campus. She is also actively involved with the NYU Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, serving on its Advisory Board, as well as with NYU’s Women’s Initiative Steering Committee.

Robert H. Eller (MBA '88), of Milan, Italy, announced the formation of GMAT Prep Europe, a GMAT preparation and MBA application consulting services firm based in Milan that serves all of Italy.

Kenneth L. Sperling (MBA '88), of Orange, CT, has been appointed Senior Vice President of Retiree Solutions for CIGNA’s senior segment. Sperling was previously a member of CIGNA's national accounts leadership team.

Paul W. Staby (MBA '88), of Watertown, MA, has started a new company, Resolute Marine Energy, Inc., to develop technologies for extracting energy from ocean waves.

Ronald E. Blaylock (MBA '89), of New York, NY, has been elected to serve on the Board of Directors of CarMax, Inc. Blaylock is Managing Partner at GenNx360 Capital Partners and is a member of the Stern Board of Overseers.

Jeffrey M. Fischer (MBA '89), of Mamaroneck, NY, has been appointed Director of the MBA Career Management Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School. Most recently, Fischer was co-founder and Managing Partner of an investment advisory firm specializing in hedge funds.

Richard S. Gold (MBA '89), of East Amherst, NY, has been appointed to the management committee at M&T Bank Corp. Gold is Executive Vice President at M&T Bank Corp.

JoAnne R. Jensen (MBA '89), of Larchmont, NY, has been selected by Global Investor as one of the “20 highly regarded women in wealth in the US.” Jensen is Managing Director at Citi Private Bank.

Paul S. Lambdin (MBA '89), of New Canaan, CT, has been appointed President of Health Net of the Northeast. Lambdin currently serves as the Northeast's Chief Commercial and Medicaid Officer.

1990s
Mark E. Almeida (MBA '90), of Brooklyn, NY, has been named Senior Vice President at Moody's Corporation, with responsibility for directing the newly formed Moody's Analytics division. Almeida has been with Moody's for 19 years, serving most recently as Senior Managing Director of the Investor Services Group.

Mark C. Portu (MBA '90), of Dix Hills, NY, has been appointed CEO and President at FeedRoom, Inc., a provider of Web video and digital media services. Portu was previously Senior Vice President at Open Text Corporation.

Mitchell S. Stern (MBA '90), of New York, NY, has been appointed Managing Director at SMH Capital Markets. Stern was most recently Managing Director and Head of the Health Care and Life Sciences Investment Banking unit at Glocap Advisors.

James W. Sullivan (MBA '90), of San Jose, CA, has been appointed Vice President of Finance and CFO of MoSys, Inc. Previously, Sullivan was Vice President of Finance and CFO of Apptera, Inc.

Alan Weichselbaum (MBA '90), of Lawrence, NY, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Star Scientific, Inc. Weichselbaum is Chairman and the General Partner of Gimmel Partners, an asset management firm in New York.

Tayeb Tahir (MBA '91), of Barrington, RI, has been appointed President of Peabody China. Tahir joined Peabody in April 2006 as Senior Vice President of International Development.

Jesse D. Greenberg (MBA '92), of Morganville, NJ, debuted his Larger Than Life series at the Jersey Shore in the Shore Institute of Contemporary Art (SICA) outdoor sculpture exhibit, “SCULPTOURE.”

Rana K. Gupta (MBA '92), of Somerville, MA, has been appointed CEO of HistoRx, Inc., a tissue-based diagnostic products company. Gupta had served as interim CEO since August 2006.

Gregory B. Luttrell (MBA '92), of Princeton Junction, NJ, has been appointed Senior Portfolio Manager at JPMorgan Asset Management. He was previously a portfolio manager at TIAA-CREF.

Mitchell J. Speiser (MBA '92), of New York, NY, has been appointed Director at Telsey Advisory Group LLC, an independent research and consulting firm. Speiser previously served as Senior Vice President and buy-side equity Analyst for Jeffries Asset Management.

Stephen A. Velgot (MBA '92), of New York, NY, has been appointed Special Situations Analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group, LLP. Velgot was previously Situations Analyst at Cathay Financial.

Frank DeMaria (MBA '93), of Allendale, NJ, has been appointed Managing Director of Business Development at The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, an over-the-counter derivatives provider. Previously, DeMaria was Global Head of Derivative Client Services and Operations at Merrill Lynch.

Peter J. Eliopoulos (MBA '93), of Larchmont, NY, has been appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at M&T Bank Corp. Previously, Eliopoulos was Senior Vice President and Director of Strategic Planning with Citibank North America.

Douglas M. Mazlich (MBA '93), of Pound Ridge, NY, has been appointed Vice President of Channel and Business Development at Tizor Systems, a provider of data auditing and protection solutions. Mazlich is a former vice president at Microsoft's Whale Communications Subsidiary.

Leela Petrakis (MBA '93), of New York, NY, was featured at CEW's Women in Beauty event on October 24, 2007. Petrakis is General Manager for Neutrogena Cosmetics at Johnson & Johnson.

Michael S. Vincent (MBA '93), of Edison, NJ, has been appointed Vice President and Treasurer of Saks Incorporated. Vincent joined Saks in February 2007 as Assistant Treasurer.

Darryl S. Zaontz (MBA '93), of Woodmere, NY, has been appointed to the consulting staff at Innovative Designs, a manufacturer of outdoor apparel and equipment. Zaontz is one of Innovative Designs' largest shareholders.

Charles R. Barton (MBA '94), of Chatham, NJ, has been appointed COO at The Barton Group, a mining company.

David S. Klein (MBA '94), of Los Angeles, CA, has joined CENTRIS as Executive Vice President, running its West Coast office based in Los Angeles. Klein recently served as Vice President for TNS' Media and Entertainment Group.

Andre J. Koo (MBA '94), of Taiwan, is Chairman and CEO of Financial One/Chailease, a Taiwan-based financing and leasing company.

Raymond Quartararo (MBA '94), of Rye, NY, has been appointed International Director at Jones Lang LaSalle. Quartararo was previously Northeast Regional Manager with the company's project and development services group.

Martin O. Vidaeus (MBA '94), of Stockholm, Sweden, has just accepted a new post as Director of Marketing with UniTech Biopharma, which provides specialized manufacturing capabilities of biopharmaceuticals to biotechnology and pharmaceutical firms in Scandinavia.

Juli R. Branson (MBA '95), of Alexandria, VA, was named speechwriter for US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Prior to this, Branson worked at the Department of Defense for the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics.

Salvatore J. Bruno (MBA '95), of Dix Hills, NY, has been named Senior Vice President and Head of Research and Product Development at IndexIQ, a dedicated developer of innovative quantitative investment strategies. Bruno previously served as Director at Deutsche Asset Management.

Roger Burkhardt (MBA '95), of Irvington, NY, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Market-Axess Holdings, an electronic trading platform provider. Burkhardt is President and CEO of Ingres Corporation.

Peter G. Klein (MBA '95), of New York, NY, was named a “Forty Under Forty” Rising Star of the Class of 2007 by Westchester County Business Journal. Klein is currently Vice President of Fidelco Realty Group.

Kyungwon Lee (MBA '95), of Forest Hills, NY, has been named a partner at Shearman & Sterling's Hong Kong office. Lee practices in the firm's capital markets group.

John C. Redett (MBA '95), of New York, NY, has joined the Carlyle Group's recently-formed Global Financial Services Group. Redett is a former vice president of the Financial Institutions Group at Goldman Sachs.

Paul H. Simpson (MBA '95), of New South Wales, Australia, has been appointed as Head of Global Public Sector and Health Care Markets for the global transaction services business at Citi Markets & Banking. Simpson was previously an executive in the Treasury services department at JPMorgan Chase.

Gene Boxer (BS '96), of New York, NY, has joined American International Group, Inc. as Assistant General Counsel in the Corporate Legal/Mergers & Acquisitions Group. Prior to AIG, he spent eight years at Milibank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP.

Travis E. Bradford (MBA '96), of Cambridge, MA, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Hy-Drive Technologies. Bradford is the founder and Managing Partner of Atlas Capital Investments, a hedge fund based in Massachusetts.

Aviram “Rami” Branitzky (MBA '96), of San Jose, CA, has been named Managing Director of SAP AG Labs North America, a company in Silicon Valley. Branitzky previously served as Senior Vice President in charge of SAP global software solution partnerships.

Scott K. Larson (MBA '96), of Milwaukee, WI, is President and COO of Gustave A. Larson Co. The Larson family's business success has earned the company the Generational Sustainability Award from the Wisconsin 75 annual awards program sponsored by Deloitte & Touche.

Edward D. Reiskin (MBA '96), of San Francisco, CA, has been appointed by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom as the Director of the city's new 311 Customer Service Center. He most recently served as the city administrator in Washington, DC.

Glenn M. Saldanha (MBA '96), of Mumbai, India, is the CEO of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, a drug research and development company located in Mumbai.

Randle G. Schumacher (BS '96), of Del Mar, CA, has accepted a position at LPL Financial as Director of Marketing in San Diego. He previously worked for six years at AXA Financial in New York.

Denise M. Valentine (MBA '96), of Norwalk, CT, has joined Aite Group to focus on institutional asset management and hedge funds. Previously, she was a senior analyst with Celent, a financial technology research and advisory firm.

Ruaridh “Rory” Cumming (MBA '97), of Darien, CT, has been appointed CEO of ShopWiki, the shopping search engine. Cumming most recently served as Vice President of Online Marketing for Rodale Inc.

Meridith F. Dennes (MBA '98), of New York, NY, and Mark Dennes welcomed a daughter, Addison Ryder Dennes, on June 30, 2007.

Allison J. Galligan (MBA '98), of Bronxville, NY, has recently been promoted to Managing Director at Charles J. McBride & Associates, Inc., a boutique executive search firm specializing in the real estate industry.

Guillaume A. Jesel (MBA '98), of New York, NY, was promoted to Vice President of Global Marketing at MAC Cosmetics. Previously, he served as Vice President of Makeup Marketing at Estée Lauder.

Sajid A. Khan (MBA '98), of Plainsboro, NJ, is President of MicroAgility, Inc., which has recently been named one of the “Top 100 Diversity-Owned Businesses” in New Jersey by DiversityBusiness.com.

Thomas P. Lukacovic (MBA '98), of Syosset, NY, has accepted a new position at BNY Convergex as Equity Sales Trader.

Ian A. Post (MBA '98), of New York, NY, recently launched an investment advisory firm called Post Asset Management, LLC. The firm designs and manages investment portfolios for individuals and small businesses using passive investment strategies.

Harry Prassakos (BS '98), of Elmwood Park, NJ, and his wife, Sandy, welcomed their first child, George H. Prassakos, on July 31, 2007.

Brett B. Rochkind (BS '98), of New York, NY, has been appointed Managing Director at General Atlantic (GA) LLC, a global growth equity firm. Prior to joining GA in 2002, Rochkind was an investment banker with Morgan Stanley & Co.

Mark A. Glickman (MBA '99), of Marlboro, NJ, has been appointed Vice President of Sales at Oscient Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Glickman was previously Vice President of Sales at Kos Pharmaceuticals.

Djena N. Graves (MBA '99), of New York, NY, is the Director of Business Development at ICV Capital Partners. Graves was previously Senior Associate in the Mergers and Acquisitions Group at Morgan Stanley.

Kevin N. Hinton (MBA '99), of Washington, DC, has joined the National Association of Investment Companies (NAIC) as Vice President. NAIC is a Washington, DC-based trade association for investment companies dedicating financial resources to the development of an ethnically diverse marketplace.

David Orozco (BS '99), of Evanston, IL, has accepted a faculty appointment as Assistant Professor of Business Law at the School of Business and Economics at Michigan Technological University.

George J. Pagano (BS '99), of Staten Island, NY, has joined the law firm of Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP as an associate in the firm's Finance Group.

2000s
Melissa M. Coker (BS '00), of Los Angeles, CA, owns a clothing label, Wren, which has been named “one of three young labels to watch” by Women's Wear Daily.

Ronald Lamprecht (MBA '00) and Susanne Mei (MBA '00), of New York, NY, welcomed their second child, a baby girl, Lucia Olivia, on August 2, 2007.

Jeremy W. Szeto (BS '00), of Missouri City, TX, recently began his private medical practice specializing in family medicine.

C. Mark Tang (MBA '00), of Jersey City, NJ, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Puda Coal, Inc. Tang is the founder and Chairman of World Technology Ventures, LLC, an international merchant banking and advisory firm.

Blazing a Private Equity Trail South of the Border Humberto Zesati (MBA '96) Mexico City native Humberto Zesati has a bold vision for his homeland. The self-described “stubborn” venture capitalist sees ripe investment opportunities where others see none. Zesati serves as Managing Partner of Latin Idea Ventures, a private equity fund that provides late-stage venture capital to nascent Mexican companies – a concept generally considered a nonstarter. “People have said to us, ‘You’re not going to get any money. There’s no venture money to be made in Mexico,’” he said. But Zesati ignores the naysayers. “I’ve always believed that there are very good companies and very good entrepreneurs in Mexico that lack access to capital,” he explained. “I see private equity as a way to develop my country and a way to build world-class companies. The Mexican credit markets have been very ineffective at bringing capital to the people. Ten years ago, there were no venture funds investing in India and China. But now there are hundreds of them investing billions of dollars there. We hope to replicate that model in Mexico.” Zesati started Latin Idea in 2000 with a $5 million incubator fund that invested in dot-com companies. “This was a small fund in comparison to those in the US, but $5 million is a lot of money for most Mexican ventures,” said Zesati. The fund was financed by private investors and, despite the dot-com bust, it netted a profit. As a result of Zesati’s tenacity, his company continues to grow. “We’ve been successful because we’re basically the only active fund in Mexico dedicated to this niche,” he said. “So we see the crème de la crème of the deals here, and we can cherry-pick which ones we want to take on.” In 2005, fellow Stern alumnus Alex Rossi (MBA ’96) joined Zesati as Managing Partner in Latin Idea. The pair then began raising capital for the firm’s second fund and, in three years, has raised four times the amount of its first. The goal is to raise $28 million total; the company is working with European institutional investors to raise the remaining $8 million. “The process of raising a fund in Mexico is hard because the local community cannot support it,” Zesati said. “There are few high net worth individuals here and only a few Mexican institutions that have the money to invest in the fund.” Once fundraising is completed, Latin Idea will focus the fund’s investments in technology, communications, and media companies that have potential for growth. Also this year, the company will start marketing a couple of new funds: a $75 million to $100 million real estate fund, and a $100 million to $150 million mezzanine debt fund. But the biggest challenge for Zesati is how to take his idea to the next level: building a vibrant industry in venture capital in Mexico. “One fund doesn’t make an industry,” he asserted. “We need an ecosystem that can foster entrepreneurship and innovation here in Mexico.” Of course, if anyone is going to make that happen, it’s going to be the trailblazing Zesati.

Erik J. Blum (BS '01), of Forest Hills, NY, has joined the staff of New York City Council Member Helen Sears as Legislative Counsel.

Alisha N. James (MBA '01), of Ozone Park, NY, married Donald M. Graham on November 25, 2006, in Garden City, NY.

Eric S. Nonacs (MBA '01), of Brooklyn, NY, is a senior advisor to the William J. Clinton Foundation. From June 2002 until August 2007, he was the Foreign Policy Advisor to President Bill Clinton and the Clinton Foundation.

Jo-Ellen Pozner (MBA '01), of Berkeley, CA, has accepted a position as Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business.

Ann M. Sheridan (MBA '01), of New York, NY, married Erich Steinbrunn on September 22, 2007, in Spray Beach, NJ.

Christy Y. Shue (MBA '01), of Shoreham, NY, has been appointed Executive Vice President of Finance and Investor Relations at Harbin Electric. Shue was previously Vice President and Senior Investor Relations Consultant at Christensen, an investor relations
advisory firm.

Gary Bennaim (MBA '02), of London, England, together with his wife, Olivia, and their daughter, Emma, welcomed Michael Saadia, on April 21, 2007.

Eric J. Bertrand (MBA '02), of New York, NY, and Julie Dellinger were married in November 2007. Bertrand is a managing director with Greystone Private Equity.

JonPaul Checa (BS '02), of New York, NY, is founder and CEO of Convos, an online venture that helps small businesses and their employees manage information online. He was previously a consultant with Acquis Consulting.

David L. Feldman (MBA '02), of Scotch Plains, NJ, was recently designated a certified physician executive. He is currently Vice President of Perioperative Services, Vice Chairman of the Department of Surgery, and Co-director of Leadership Development at Maimonides Medical Center.

Heather F. McMeekin (MBA '02), of Philadelphia, PA, has been appointed Co-manager in the Growth Equity Investing Team at Turner Investment Partners, an investment firm that manages more than $25 billion in assets on behalf of institutions and individuals.

John-David Schramm, II (MBA '02), of San Francisco, CA, accepted an appointment to the faculty at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Previously a Stern faculty member, he will be leading an effort to re-introduce communication courses to the MBA curriculum at Stanford.

Jim P. O'Neill (MBA '03), of Evanston, IL, has been named Vice President and Director of Product Development for Social Sciences at McDougal Littell, a division of global educational publisher Houghton Mifflin.

Rao A.S. Khan (BS '04), of Brooklyn, NY, has been promoted by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer as his new Director of Community Affairs and Constituent Services. He most recently served as Deputy Director of Community Affairs and Constituent Services.

Jay A. Legenhausen (MBA '04), of Palo Alto, CA, has been appointed Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales at Actel. Previously, Legenhausen was Vice President of Sales at Cypress Semiconductor.

Samantha G. Woodruff (MBA '04), of New York, NY, has been promoted to Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at Nickelodeon/MTV Kids and Family Group.

Jason Halpern (MBA '05), of Elkins Park, PA, and his wife, Rebecca, welcomed son, Isaac Benjamin Halpern, on March 5, 2007.

Shiri C. Leventhal (BS '05), of Canton, MI, is participating in the first non-stop relay around the world. The run is organized by Blue Planet Run Foundation with sponsorship by Dow Chemical in order to highlight the clean water shortage in many countries.

Angela G. Salomon (MBA '05), of New York, NY, married Ryan Barkan on October 28, 2007, in New York, NY. Salomon is Director of Marketing and Publicity at Sony BMG Music Entertainment.

Fikre Bizuneh (MBA '06), of Peoria, AZ, has been appointed Senior Risk Analyst at FiREapps, a provider of foreign exchange exposure management technologies.

Theresa A. Harrison (MBA '06), of Falls Church, VA, has been appointed Director of Government Relations at PIERS Global Intelligence Solutions, a division of Commonwealth Business Media. Previously, she worked in government relations at Factiva.

Iheanyi “Ik” Kanu (MBA '06), of Brooklyn, NY, has joined Arthur D. Little, Inc., a global management consulting firm, as a consultant. Kanu was previously a consultant at PA Consulting.

Alexander B. Panov (MBA '06), of Moscow, Russia, has recently been appointed CFO of Transstroy after working five years in planning at
TNK-BP.

Nils Weber (MBA '06), of Basel, Switzerland, has started a new venture, Wizable, which develops business class mobility software.

Melissa F. Desjardins (MBA '07), of New York, NY, and her husband, John, welcomed a daughter, Olivia Rose, on August 14, 2007.

Jen T. Hu (MBA '07), of New York, NY, has joined Earnest Partners as an equity trader. Hu was previously with Goldman Sachs' equity trading group.

Joseph M. Miscione (MBA '07), of Hoboken, NJ, founded Providge Consulting, which was ranked number 332 in Inc.com's 5,000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in America. Providge Consulting customizes financial, human resources, and customer service software applications.

Howard Schor (MBA '07), of Great Neck, NY, was promoted to Executive Vice President of Strategic Operations and Planning at Treeline. Prior to Treeline, Schor was Associate Media Director at advertising agency The Media Kitchen.

To access the contact information of your fellow alumni and to update your own, log on to SWAP, Stern's online alumni community, at www.stern.nyu.edu/alumni.