Class notes

By the Decade

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1960s

Robert Miske, BS 1961, a Western New York-based scout for the New York Yankees, was elected to the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame in the steward category. He resides in Amherst, N.Y.

Anthony Capozzi, BA 1967, owner of the Law Offices of Anthony P. Capozzi, was appointed to a second term on the California Commission on Judicial Performance. He lives in Fresno, Calif.

1970s

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Donald Bain, PhD 1974, MA 1972 & BA 1969, will retire as the sixth president of St. John Fisher College after a 40-year career there as a faculty member and administrator. He resides in Rochester, N.Y.

Howard Smith, EdM 1974 & BA 1972, vice president and wealth adviser at Morgan Stanley, joined the Santa Barbara Symphony Planned Giving Committee. He lives in Ojai, Calif.

Ronald Mitchelson, BA 1975, was named interim provost of East Carolina University. Mitchelson previously served the university as interim vice chancellor for research and graduate studies. He resides in Greenville, N.C.

Marilyn Massaro, MA 1976, retired after 25 years as curator of Roger Williams Park Museum of Natural History and Planetarium. She lives in Richmond, R.I.

Barry Mukamal, MBA 1977 & BS 1976, formed the consulting and accounting firm KapilaMukamal LLP where he will act as co-managing partner. He resides in Hollywood, Fla.

Mary Carnes, MD 1978, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was awarded the inaugural Linda Joy Pollin Heart Health Leadership Award from the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center. She lives in Madison, Wis.

Peter Gal, PharmD 1978, was named associate dean for academic affairs of High Point University’s School of Pharmacy. He resides in Kernersville, N.C.

1980s

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*René Lerer, MD 1980, was appointed president of Florida Blue and the GuideWell group of companies. Lerer previously served as chairman and CEO of Magellan Health Services. He lives in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

William Prenevau Jr., BA 1981, retired after a 40-year career with General Motors Corporation. Prenevau most recently served as senior manager of global security operations. He resides in East Amherst, N.Y.

*Thomas Madejski, BS 1982, was re-elected assistant treasurer of the Medical Society of the State of New York. Madejski is an internist at Greater Physicians Medical Practice in Medina. He lives in Albion, N.Y.

Eric Altman, BA 1983, joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton’s New York office as a partner in the firm’s real estate, land use and environmental practice group. He resides in Columbia, N.J.

*Ronald Marcus, MD 1983, was named chief medical officer at Spinifex Pharmaceuticals. Prior to Spinifex, Marcus was executive director of neuroscience global clinical research at Bristol-Myers Squibb. He lives in Hamden, Conn.

James Wild, MD 1983, medical director of the TLC Health Network and president of Tri-County Family Medical Associates, received the 2014 Health Care 50 award from Buffalo Business First. He resides in Angola, N.Y.

*Kathleen Bennett, PMCRT 1984 & DDS 1983, was appointed president of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine’s board of directors. She lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Ronald Solarz, BS 1984, rejoined Eastern Consolidated as executive managing director and principal. He resides in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Douglas Williams, PhD 1984, executive vice president of research and development at Biogen Idec, was appointed to Ironwood Pharmaceuticals’ board of directors. He lives in South Boston, Mass.

Michael Orlovsky, BS 1985, was named 2013 outstanding engineer by the Orlando Section of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Orlovsky is a senior program manager at Lockheed Martin. He resides in Orlando, Fla.

John Q. Doyle, BS 1986, chief executive officer of Global Commercial Insurance for AIG Property Casualty, was honored by the Spencer Educational Foundation for his contributions to insurance educational opportunities. He lives in Rye, N.Y.

Jonathan Pullano, BA 1986, was named marketing communications manager at Weaver, a large accounting firm in Dallas, Texas. Pullano was previously marketing manager at Thomson Reuters. He resides in Bedford, Texas.

Daniel Figler, BS 1987, was promoted to vice president of finance at Mountwest Community & Technical College. He lives in Huntington, W.Va.

Michael McRae, BA 1988, was promoted from executive vice president and chief operating officer to president and CEO of St. Ann’s Community. He resides in Honeoye Falls, N.Y.

Dawn Mirand, EdM 1988 & BA 1982, was appointed superintendent of the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Union Free School District. Mirand was previously superintendent of Mount Morris Central School District. She lives in Williamsville, N.Y.

Donna Gorney, MA 1989, was promoted to administrative vice president at M&T Bank. Gorney previously served as vice president and manager of data center and network operations. She resides in Tonawanda, N.Y.

1990s

Debra Torrence, EdM 1990, executive director of the North Carolina Institute for Child Development Professionals, received the Karen W. Ponder Leadership Award from the North Carolina Partnership for Children. She lives in Bath, N.C.

Zhijian Chen, PhD 1991 & MA 1990, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Chen is a professor of molecular biology and the George L. MacGregor Distinguished Chair in Biomedical Science at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He resides in Dallas, Texas.

Mary Jean Jakubowski, MLS 1991, was appointed to a second three-year term as director of the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library. Before being named director, Jakubowski was the library’s chief operating officer. She lives in Lancaster, N.Y.

Amy Kimmel, BA 1991, an English teacher at Canisius High School, received Business First’s 2014 Teacher of Merit Award. She resides in Lockport, N.Y.

David McKibbin, PhD 1991, was awarded the 2014 Outstanding Senior Volunteer Award by the Larimer County Office on Aging. He lives in Fort Collins, Colo.

Julie McGuire, MBA 1992, was promoted to administrative vice president and systems manager at M&T Bank. She resides in Getzville, N.Y.

Paul Lipton, BA 1994, a professor in Boston University’s College of Arts & Sciences and director of the undergraduate neuroscience program, was named director of the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. He lives in Brookline, Mass.

Jacqueline Mozrall, PhD 1994, senior associate dean of engineering at Rochester Institute of Technology, was appointed interim dean of RIT’s Saunders College of Business. She resides in Pittsford, N.Y.

Diane Vinch, BA 1994, senior vice president of Sudler & Hennessey, was recognized as a 2014 Rising Star by the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association. She lives in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Cleatus Hunt Jr., BA 1995, was appointed area port director at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He resides in Carrollton, Texas.

Thomas Schenk, MD 1997, was named senior vice president and chief medical officer of Health Now New York. Before joining Health Now, Schenk was managing partner for Delaware Pediatric Associates. He lives in Buffalo, N.Y.

Kim Tillery, PhD 1997, chair of the Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences at SUNY Fredonia, was awarded the 2014 Distinguished Achievement Award from the New York State Speech-Language Hearing Association. She resides in Snyder, N.Y.

James Lohrey, MA 1998 & BA 1996, joined Mercyhurst University as assistant professor of communications. Lohrey was previously assistant professor of communications at Mansfield University. He lives in Rochester, N.Y.

Lynn Pullano, EdM 1998, was named CEO of the Child Care Resource Network. Previously, she was director of education for the United Way of Buffalo & Erie County. She resides in Hamburg, N.Y.

Daniel Sucato, MS 1998 & MD 1991, chief of staff at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, received the Memorial Award from the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America. He lives in Dallas, Texas.

Yunte Huang, PhD 1999 & MA 1998, received a Guggenheim Fellowship in the area of creative arts, general nonfiction. Huang is a professor of English at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He resides in Santa Barbara, Calif.

2000s

Eric Waffner, MD 2000, a member of Buffalo Medical Group’s primary care division, was elected a fellow of the American College of Physicians’ Society of Internists. He lives in Buffalo, N.Y.

*Samantha Clark, BA 2001 & BS 2001, was promoted to senior vice president of career development at Alliance Advisory Group. She resides in Elma, N.Y.

Brian Goldwater, BS 2002, was promoted to administrative vice president at M&T Bank. Goldwater was previously vice president at the bank and will maintain his role there as senior audit manager. He lives in Orchard Park, N.Y.

Cynthia Leung, DDS 2002, a clinical instructor at Columbia University Medical Center, expanded her practice, Riverview Dentistry. She resides in Bloomfield, N.J.

Shaun Maciejewski, BFA 2002, joined Blue Bridge Financial as a marketing manager. Maciejewski was previously lead marketing designer for New Era Cap Company. He lives in Buffalo, N.Y.

Timothy Altieri, BA 2004, opened Altieri Law Firm in Cape Coral, Fla. Before forming the firm, Altieri was an assistant state prosecutor and personal injury defense lawyer in Florida. He resides in Cape Coral.

Emily Lamb, BS 2004, an attorney at Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, was selected for Leadership Louisville Center’s Ignite Class of 2014. She lives in Louisville, Ky.

Lindsey Clark, MD 2005, joined Wyoming County Community Hospital as an orthopedic surgeon in the Orthopedic Specialty Services Clinic. She resides in Hamburg, N.Y.

Robert Davies, PhD 2005, was appointed the 13th president of Murray State University. Davies previously served as president of Eastern Oregon University. He lives in Murray, Ky.

Roseane Santos, PhD 2005, joined the organizing committee of the second International Summit on Clinical Pharmacy. Santos is an assistant professor in South University’s Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. She resides in Savannah, Ga.

Kevin Rush, BA 2006, was promoted to senior project manager at Eric Mower & Associates. Rush joined the agency in 2010 as a traffic manager. He lives in Kenmore, N.Y.

David Marcoux, MArch 2007 & BS 2005, an associate at Foit-Albert Associates, earned his architect’s license in New York State. He resides in Buffalo, N.Y.

2010s

*Sandra Sheppard, PhD 2010 & MSW 1997, joined West Side Community Services as executive director. She lives in Buffalo, N.Y.

Philip Cortellucci, BS 2011, graduated from the Marine Corps Officer Candidates School and was commissioned to second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. He resides in Buffalo, N.Y.

Michael Valerio, PhD 2011, a postdoctoral fellow at the Medical University of South Carolina, won first place in the American Association for Dental Research’s Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Products Edward H. Hatton Awards competition. He lives in Penfield, N.Y.

Julian Renz, MS 2013, joined HEIDENHAIN Corporation as a TNC product specialist and liaison to the corporate headquarters in Traunreut, Germany. He resides in Chicago, Ill.

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