Class Notes Summer 2022
From advanced degrees to book launches to retirements…
See what’s happening in the lives of CGS alums, and submit your class note here.
1950s
George Lilly (’54, COM’56) worked for years in various engineering, production, and management positions in local television stations before owning his own company, SJL Broadcasting. SJL is a subsidiary of Lilly Broadcasting, which his sons Brian (COM’89) and Kevin (Questrom’90,’97, COM’97) own. Lilly Broadcasting owns and operates television stations serving New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and parts of South America. George writes that the family’s success was based on “delivering above average returns to our investors while serving the needs of our communities.”
Gail (Goldman) Korrick (’56, SSW’60) has been in private practice in the field of social work since 1982 in New Haven, Conn. She wishes to thank the faculty that encouraged her to get her BA and her master’s degree in social work.
1960s
Milton T. “Sandy” Martin, Jr. (’60, COM’62) is retiring in 2023 from a career in accounting and taxation after 43 years and will be doing part-time work in real estate development and property management.
John Johnston (’61) graduated from Cambridge College in 1995 with an MEd in counseling psychology at 57 years old. He then went to work in the prison system and retired in 2014. He says, “Thanks to CGS (CBS), I had a long and successful career.”
Frank McHugh (’61, COM’63) served as an air force officer before working in Boston, Salt Lake City, and Houston. He received a master’s degree from the University of Utah, Salt Lake, and retired in 2009. He is fluent in Spanish and working on learning German and Italian. He is a gardener and volunteer and has three adult children and nine grandchildren.
Ed Shaul (’61, COM’63) has been retired for more than 20 years and married for 61 years to Muriel (SON’80), who received her master’s degree from the former BU School of Nursing. They spend their time skiing, mountain biking, and enjoying Idaho.
Harmon Prives (’63, CAS’65) retired in 2008 after working as a real estate agent in Tucson, Ariz., for 17 years. He has since moved back to the East Coast, where he spends time with family and friends and works as a substitute teacher.
Phyllis Soloman Starr (’63, Wheelock’65) is enjoying retirement in Rockport, Mass. She and her husband have three adult children and six grandchildren.
Sandy Cohen (’64, Wheelock’66) has had an extremely successful career in education and writing and is now enjoying retirement.
Steven Cohen (’64, CAS’66) received a master’s degree from Temple University and a PhD from Bryn Mawr College and has had a long and successful career as a psychologist. He writes, “I wanted to express my appreciation for the wonderful educational foundation that was provided during my two years at the College of Basic Studies in Copley Square. The support from the teachers, the curriculum, and the coordination of the material presented in the classes helped to shape my ongoing education. I am very grateful to the writing instructors. I did not imagine at the time that I would have a career involving lengthy reports. I still hear their voices helping to clarify my writing.”
Lynn Lieberman Konowitz (’64, Wheelock’66) works for CareerPro, a résumé and career development business helping professionals in all fields.
Jimmy Green (’65, COM’67) is a semiretired lawyer in the D.C. area. He’s been married for 49 years and has two kids and three grandkids. He gets back to Boston every summer and has great memories of his time at BU.
Steve Robinson (’66, CFA’69) recently completed a 13-part audio documentary, No Regrets: The Music and Spirit of Billie Holiday. He is continuing to work on an ongoing series of audio/video programs, The Architects of Music, about the inner workings of classical music. In April 2022, he produced two 18-hour fundraising events in Chicago for the work UNICEF is doing in Ukraine, raising $175,000.
Sue William Silverman (’66, COM’68) writes that her fourth book of creative nonfiction, How to Survive Death and Other Inconveniences (University of Nebraska Press, 2020), won the Gold Star Foreword Reviews INDIE Book of the Year award as well as the Clara Johnson Award for Women’s Literature.
Tom Damigella (’67, CAS’70, SSW’72) retired in 2016. He writes that he is active with Italian American organizations to preserve and protect his cultural heritage.
Randy Miller (’67, Questrom’69) is living in Portland, Ore., where he works in business and holds a diplomatic appointment from the US Department of State, representing the Republic of Lithuania.
John Barry (’68) is continuing to pursue traction painting. Two of his most recent efforts are a 16-by-9-foot canvas and a 19-by-6-foot canvas, both painted with a mountain bike. He is also putting the finishing touches on a book of art, verse, songs, and riddles about the years 2017–2021.
Sylvester White (’68, CAS’72) attended Columbia University Law School, where he had a seminar with then professor Ruth Bader Ginsburg and schoolmates Attorney General Eric Holder, Irv “Scooter” Libby, and Carter White House Fellow Paul Sweeney. He worked in litigation for Allstate and AAA. After doing intramural basketball refereeing at BU, he became a high school and NCAA Division I referee. He is now happily retired in Central Florida.
Richard Leonard (’69, CAS’71) self-published a children’s book, Sasha, in March 2022, based on the bedtime story he told his children as they were growing up. He writes that the moral of the book is that you can be different and still “love and be loved.”
Stephen Muehlbauer (’69, CAS’71) is a retired insurance vice president and infantry officer in the US Army and Army Reserve. He writes that, overall, the years have been good to him.
1970s
Tom Clifford (’70, CAS’72) was appointed a member of the Connecticut State Board of Labor Relations by Governor Ned Lamont. He was previously employed as an assistant attorney general for the state of Connecticut. Previously, Tom was mayor of Ansonia, Conn. He has also served as an adjunct professor of business law at Fairfield University.
William Thomas (’72, COM’85) retired as an Episcopal priest in 2018 after serving for 30 years in ordained leadership positions. He was awarded a Doctor of Ministry in 2014 by the Virginia Theological Seminary. He is on the faculty of the Interim Ministry Network and teaches pastoral and leadership skills to ordained persons and laypersons across interfaith congregations and ministries. He and his wife, Edna Marie, will celebrate their 49th wedding anniversary in October 2022 as they enjoy an active retirement in New Bern, N.C.
Austin Duvernoy (’73) writes that he is still alive and well, pushing 70 years old, just like the College of General (Basic) Studies.
Deborah (Ringler) Smith (’74, Wheelock’76) is still happily teaching middle school after 41 years. She says, “I find myself laughing more and wondering how fast time flies. I am married, have my 34-year-old daughter close by, and my 16-year-old adopted daughter doing what 16-year-old kids do, and watching the world spin by with us on board.”
Diane Kilgore (’75) launched She the People News after holding a position at the online newspaper New Boston Post.
Marc Kritzer (’76, Questrom’78) enjoyed Boston University so much that his son is applying early admission next year. He had the opportunity to tour the school this year and says he loved all the changes.
1980s
Vita Siracusa Norton (’83, Questrom’85) has lived in Newton, Mass., since 1997, about one year after the birth of her first son. She now has three adult boys, the last of whom is attending archrival Boston College. She has been married for 32 years to a wonderful man named Dan, who works for Dell Technologies. She did a complete turnaround in her early 40s and found herself back in college to study nursing at Simmons College. She has since been working at Massachusetts General Hospital, the first 15 years as an inpatient oncology nurse and, since October 2021, as a certified wound and ostomy nurse. She would love to hear from any of her old BU buddies, and can be reached at vita.norton@verizon.net.
Jane (Arena) Gilmartin (’84, COM’86) released the paperback version of her debut speculative thriller, The Mirror Man (Mira Books, 2020), and is pursuing interest in the film rights to the book.
Stewart Roach (’85, CAS’87) is the founder of Norwood Yacht Sales and has sold boats and yachts throughout the country and abroad.
Karin (Wilcox) Cassel Mitterando (’86, MET’91) became the executive director of Caritas Communities in 2019, following six years as chief development and communications officer. Caritas Communities prevents homelessness by providing extremely low-income individuals with permanent housing, support, a sense of community, and expanded opportunities. Karin lives in Cohasset, Mass., with her family.
Tracy (Rudolph) Davis (’87, Questrom’89) moved to rural Alaska after jumping around the country enjoying a variety of careers in accounting, lending, and investments. She has worked there for more than 20 years in finance for local government.
Laura Antonecchia De Veau (’87, COM’89, Wheelock’95) successfully defended her doctoral thesis at Northeastern University in April 2022. The title of the dissertation is “What happens to us when we close? An interpretive phenomenological study of Mount Ida College students’ lived experiences after institutional closure.” Laura is teaching in the master’s in higher education and master’s in higher education administration programs at Boston College and Boston University, as well as managing her boutique consulting firm, Fortify Associates, LLC.
Dave Glick (’88, Pardee’91, Wheelock’94, SSW’96) has lived in metro Atlanta for the past 23 years, founding a clinic in 2003. He writes, “Unfortunately, both my daughters passed on attending BU and are at other colleges, one in Chicago and the other here in Atlanta. I am glad that both of them are studying at urban universities similar to BU.”
1990s
Gregory Casamento (’90, Questrom’92, LAW’96) lives with his wife, Valerie (CGS’90, COM’92,’94), in Long Island, N.Y., with their two children and two dogs. Their oldest child starts college next year. He writes, “We miss BU (and Boston) and hope everyone is doing well.”
Scott Laughlin (’90, COM’92) works as an English teacher at an independent high school in San Francisco and is cofounder and associate director of the DISQUIET Literary Program in Lisbon, Portugal.
Lindsay (Kennedy) Hyland (’99, Wheelock ’01) lives in Staten Island with husband Patrick and their two daughters, who are eight and five years old. She has spent the last four years teaching students with intellectual disabilities in a public middle school in Staten Island and advocating for siblings of individuals with disabilities. She is the New York State representative for the Sibling Leadership Network and helps facilitate a group called SibsNY. In 2019 she was presented with the Disability Ally Award by Person Centered Care Services for helping to bring the Disability Ally Initiative into school buildings. She says, “It’s hard to believe more than 20 years have passed since graduating from Boston University. Seems like just yesterday I was walking away from Sleeper Hall down Commonwealth Avenue, with friends, to CGS!”
2000s
Adam Marks (’00, COM’03) is an adjunct health and wellness instructor at Brandeis University, Fisher College, and the Laboure College of Healthcare.
Yolanda Reyes Guevara (’01, CAS’03) earned a PhD in adult, professional, and community education from Texas State University in 2019, and is working on publishing journal articles.
Evangelos Siafakas (’01, CAS’03) is a partner in the Alemagou Beach Restaurant in Mykonos, Greece. He writes, “To this day (two decades later), not only do my BU CGS and CAS friends visit me very often, but I also see people that I didn’t keep in touch with throughout all these years. The Boston University connection is so strong!”
David Silldorf (’01, UNI’03) and his wife, Hana, recently moved into their forever home with their two young daughters, Ellie Arielle and Emmanuelle Rae, ages two and a half and one. David just celebrated his 15-year anniversary as a criminal defense attorney in San Diego, where he owns and operates his private practice.
Jackie Bruno (’04, COM’06) has won three Emmy awards for her storytelling at NBC10 Boston and NECN and was nominated for four more this year. She started her own women’s professional group called The Connect-Her, which already has hundreds of members.
Karun Arya (’05, COM’07) is trying to grow the web3 and crypto ecosystem in Southeast Asia and India, working as a global venture partner for GetVantage, a revenue-based financing platform in India.
Adanta Ahanonu (’08, Questrom’10) is from Tucson, Ariz., and lives in Oakland, Calif., where she serves as the chief program officer at COOP Careers. COOP Careers is a national nonprofit focused on overcoming underemployment for recent first-generation college graduates through peer connections and digital skills. In 2021, Adanta was appointed to the board of directors of Rivet School and accepted to the executive women’s network Chief. Adanta is earning her master’s degree in nonprofit leadership from the University of Pennsylvania.
Azeem Khan (’08, CAS’10, MED’12) spent last year running a venture-backed web3 company that was helping creators do crowdfunding using cryptocurrency. He now works on web3 strategy with brands like Red Bull, UBS, PitchBook, Indy500, and Firestone while preparing to fundraise for another company.
2010s
Gina Ford (’15, Questrom’17, MET’22) is officially a double Terrier, after receiving her master’s in project management from BU’s Metropolitan College.
Kyle Mabry (’15, CAS’17, MET’22) is a machine learning software engineer in the field of computer vision for a midsized start-up. Since graduating from BU with his bachelor’s in neuroscience, he’s rowed for the US national team and moved to San Diego, Calif., where he’s an avid spearfisherman. He says, “My experience at CGS motivated me to become the best version of myself, and I’d like to give a special shoutout to Professor Tilchin for being such an inspirational professor.”
Raymond Rosenbloom (’16, Sargent’18, MED’20) received a master’s in medical sciences from BU and conducted research at the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories at Boston University. He is now a medical student, studying both medicine and health equity at the Medical School for International Health at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel.
Nabeel Younis (’16, ENG’19) helped launch two start-ups and is working at Whoop as a cybersecurity engineer. Nabeel was on the program committee of the MIT Bitcoin Expo for 2020, 2021, and 2022.
Connor Burke (’17, CAS’19) offers this advice to current students: “Come graduation, you will find yourself being pushed in so many directions with little guidance, from where to live, what occupation to choose, and who to connect with. But know this: From the experiences, skills, and teachings you acquire at CGS, you will be able to look inwardly and across disciplines to find the answers you’re seeking. I’ve done it and you will too. I moved from a career in sales to editing. I moved from New York, N.Y., to Durham, N.C. And I found the love of my life. I have never been happier. Your starting point isn’t always where you will be. Remember to reflect on your experiences to guide and navigate your present.”
Daniel Flesch (’17, CAS’19) worked as a project assistant at Sidley Austin LLP in Downtown Boston for two years following graduation. He is considering law school and is preparing for the LSAT.
Pablo Jimenez (’18, Pardee’20, MET’22) worked for the past two years for College Advising Corps–Boston University. He is now at New Mission High School, where he works with students who are predominantly of color and first generation. He graduated with a master’s in urban affairs from BU in May 2022 and plans to pursue another master’s, in international affairs, at Columbia University this fall.