Alexander Aber (SMG’96) of West Newton, Mass., announces the birth of his daughter, Natalie Quan Aber, on May 10, 2007. “Mom, Dad, and big brother Jude are thrilled,” Alexander writes. “And her grandpapa, SMG professor Jack Aber, is thrilled, too!”

Sunil Chaddha (GSM’96) of New York, N.Y., and his wife, Anu, announce the birth of their son, Yash, on February 12, 2007. E-mail Sunil at schaddha@nyc.rr.com.

Gregory Dyas (CAS’96) of Simi Valley, Calif., received a master’s degree this spring and celebrated 10 years in pharmaceutical research at Amgen, Inc., in Thousand Oaks. He and his wife have two children, Eleanor, four, and Beatrice, one. Contact Gregory at gldyas@yahoo.com.

Bill Grady (CFA’96) of Brooklyn, N.Y., is a singer-songwriter. His debut album, A Room Called Home, is a collection of his tunes, a blend of soul, folk, and acoustic pop. Visit www.billgrady.net or e-mail Bill at bill@billgrady.net.

Lisa Hayes (CAS’96) of Seattle, Wash., a principal at the law firm Rafel Manville, was named the King County Bar Association’s Outstanding Young Lawyer for 2007.

Jack Leonard (SED’96,’02) of Boston, Mass., published New Hope for Urban High Schools: Cultural Reform, Moral Leadership, and Community Partnership (Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007) with Lisa Gonsalves of the University of Massachusetts, Boston. The book looks at the 60-year history of the former Dorchester High School of Boston, a chronically underperforming school noted for violence, low test scores, and one of the highest dropout rates in Massachusetts. “Dorchester High faced trends, policies, and challenges similar to those of high schools all over the country,” Jack writes, “so the lessons learned in this school should be instructive for urban high schools across America.”

Tony Lopez-Isa (COM’96, CGS’94) of North Bethesda, Md., is senior producer at Fox 5 Morning News in Washington, D.C. He left Washington’s WRC-TV, where he had produced the 6 p.m. newscast for the past three years. Contact Tony at tolopez@hotmail.com.

Snehal Patel (SAR’96) of Washington, D.C., writes, “My new wife and I have finished our training in ophthalmology and oral surgery, respectively. We look forward to making new friends.”

Erik Trump (GRS’96) of Midland, Mich., recently coauthored Political Animals: Public Art in American Zoos and Aquariums (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2007). Erik is an associate professor of political science at Saginaw Valley State University.

Tristan L. Cuthbert (COM’97) of Portland, Maine, is engaged to Alison H. Kopelman. They plan to wed on June 14, 2008, in Peaks Island, Maine.

Glenn D. Garay (CAS’97) of Kaiserslautern, Germany, was promoted to major in the U.S. Air Force on May 1, 2007. His second child, Claudia Logan, was born on February 8, 2007. E-mail Glenn at ggaray@alum.bu.edu.

Hope Luckie (STH’97) of Bloomington, Ill., is university chaplain at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington and is pursuing a Doctor of Ministry at BU. Previously, she was the minister of Lexington United Methodist Church in Lexington, Mass., and an adjunct instructor at Andover-Newton Theological School in Newton Center, Mass. Hope was dean ad interim of Marsh Chapel at BU in 1999 and from 2001 to 2003.

Heather Menicucci (CAS’97, COM’02) of Canadensis, Pa., published Let’s Get Primitive: The Urban Girl’s Guide to Camping (Ten Speed Press, 2007). Find out more at www.letsgetprimitive.com.

Gary Nelson (STH’97) of Fredericksburg, Va., recently published A Relentless Hope: Surviving the Storm of Teen Depression (Cascade Books, 2007). Gary has worked with teens and their families as a local church pastor and counselor for more than 30 years.

Shin Yu (Doris) Pai (CAS’97) of Dallas, Tex., published Works on Paper (Convivio Bookworks, 2007). The letterpress book, a collection of poems, was printed in an edition of 125 handmade copies. E-mail Shin Yu at shinyu32@hotmail.com.

Charles Holtz (CAS’98, SED’06) of Quincy, Mass., and his wife, Amy, announce the birth of their son, Oliver Charles, on May 30, 2007.

Lauren (Silkowitz) Reiff (SAR’98) of Little Neck, N.Y., and her husband, Larry, welcomed their daughter, Juliet Madeline, on April 13, 2007. Contact Lauren at laurenreiff@hotmail.com.

Jennifer Chianese Rifenburg (CAS’98) of Boston, Mass., completed her first Boston Marathon on April 16, 2007, with a finishing time of 4 hours and 51 minutes. Jennifer is a registered nurse on the vascular unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and lives with her husband, Tim.

Diane Del Rosario (CAS’99, COM’99) of New York, N.Y., was awarded a Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship, which will prepare her for a career as a U.S. Foreign Service officer. Diane, a Filipino-American who speaks French, Japanese, and Tagalog, has dual degrees from BU, in broadcast journalism and French language and literature. She plans to use the fellowship to pursue a master’s in international affairs.

Beth (Hernon) Mahon (COM’99, SED’06) of Arlington, Mass., held an Industry Inside Out networking event for BU alumni in April. The event took place at the Boston-based education consulting and research firm Eduventures, where Beth is director of member services.