The purpose of the Sarah Lawrence College Alumni Association is to further the intellectual and fiscal vitality of the College, promote its educational philosophy, and encourage continuing interaction and collegiality among alumni, the College, and its past and present faculty and students.
The following slate was elected to the Sarah Lawrence College Alumni Association Board of Directors during the Association's annual meeting on June 9, 2018.
Michael Sapienza '03 has been working on television commercial sets since his junior year when he interned for U.A.T.W. a small creative commercial production company in Pelham, NY that was charged with creating and filming regional TV spots for local businesses. His internship experience took him directly into advertising and commercial production after graduating from Sarah Lawrence. Michael moved to New York City where he worked for over 10 years as a freelance First Assistant Director and Production Manager. In 2013, he took on the number two position with Vision, Grey World Wide Advertising's in house production company. At Vision, he runs the day-to-day operations as well as directing and producing countless commercials. Michael is an integral part of both the creative and production departments at both Vision and Grey.
Myles Lewis Alexander graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 2010 with a concentration in Economics, specifically the financial markets. He was hired as an Associate by Zeus Capital Advisors in their de novo banking group, specializing in Islamic financial products. After ZCA was sold to Northern Trust, he went to work at an options house, TradeMonster, with a focus on tech and finical contracts. After a stint there Myles left the finance community for five years to pursue a dream and race triathlons at a professional level. When he retired from professional triathlon he put his degree and knowledge of finical products back to work, now for The Walsh Group, where he co-leads Lease Back financial design. In addition to his work at the firm, he is an active member of the arts community in Chicago and sits on the junior boards of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and The Art Institute of Chicago. In his spare time he loves cycling and running, cooking with his girlfriend, giving Freddy (a Shih Tzu) belly rubs, and sitting in his chair listening to jazz with a nice single malt scotch and cigar in hand.
Jesse Bernstein is a human rights advocate. During his first year at Sarah Lawrence, he interned at the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights providing legal assistance​ to detained asylum seekers. This and other experiences led Jesse to develop a passion for human rights advocacy. Jesse is currently a Special Advisor in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the Department of State. He led the development of the Global Equality Fund, a multi-stakeholder partnership that supports programs to advance LGBTI rights globally. Previously, he worked for Human Rights First, the United Nations, Norwegian Refugee Council and the Refugee Law Project in Uganda, Switzerland and Bosnia. Jesse holds a Masters in Human Rights with Distinction from the London School of Economics. He is also a Truman National Security Fellow and serves as a mentor for the Point Foundation. Jesse lives in Washington, DC with his partner Dylan.
Sally Booth '81 studied Anthropology at Sarah Lawrence and has been working on global perspectives in education ever since. After earning a Ph.D. in Anthropology at The Graduate Center, City University of New York, she worked in teaching and curriculum development at various institutions, including Friends World Program (Long Island University), Ross School, THINK Global School, and Keystone Academy. Educational consulting has provided opportunities to work with students and teachers around the world (USA, Europe, and Asia), in different kinds of schools (independent, public, charter, college and K-12). Recently, her focus is on developing new schools. Her SLC experience has inspired her thinking in ways that are unique and powerful when shaping educational experiences for teachers and students. Sally authored, Dirty Work: Immigrants in Domestic Service, Agriculture, and Prostitution in Sicily (with co-author, Jeffrey Cole), numerous articles, and presents occasionally at conferences. She's received teaching awards and research grants, and wants to encourage others in the gratifying and important work of education. She lives in Mystic, CT and works in Beijing.
Andrea Fono's passion for life is expressed through laughter and paintings which are collected around the world. Her art is an exploration of what "love looks like." In 2008, she founded Global Coloring; Painting for Peace in which more than 1200 people in Europe, Africa and Ecuador have participated as a community art celebration. Fono and her husband Frank, a native Fijian, have co-founded the Fiji Reads Project, contributing art supplies and thousands of children's books to schools in Fiji. Her joy is mentoring artist's hearts. A television segment she wrote on "inspiration" was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Joshua Gannon '03 moved back to his native state of Massachusetts after graduation, following stints in New York and Dublin. Working in academic journals for over a decade, his roles have spanned the entire publishing process, from editorial to production, typesetting, and design. Currently, he is a Journals Editor at De Gruyter, a German publisher with offices in Boston. He works mostly in the hard sciences. This surprises him, too.
At De Gruyter, Josh is also head of the Community Service Committee, managing monthly volunteer days with St. Francis House, a local shelter. He also volunteers outside of work, and is running the 2017 Boston Marathon to benefit St. Francis House. In addition to unexpected science, departures from his Sarah Lawrence years include playing ice hockey and eating kale.
Eva Golinger '94 is an attorney and writer, author of several books including The Chavez Code, a best seller in Latin America. Eva practices law in New York and hosts a world news and analysis show on an international satellite and cable network in Spanish. She is also a high-level Consultant on strategic matters relating to law, media, and foreign affairs. She has won the "International Journalism Award" in Mexico, one of the most prestigious awards in journalism in Latin America, and she has received numerous other awards and honors for her writings and investigations. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence and CUNY Law School, Eva is admitted to the Bar of the State of New York, the Bar of the United States Supreme Court, and the Bars of the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. In her spare time, Eva writes children's stories based on the adventures of her toddler son.
Mark Kaplan '87 is the father of two teenagers, and since 2002, he has spent his days as the Vice President of Sales for the post-sound division of Technicolor. Prior to joining Technicolor, he was the founder and President of Tandem Entertainment Management, Inc., a boutique personal management firm for actors and writers. In 1997, Mark became VP of two companies that service the post-production community: Miles O' Fun Sound and Westwind Media.
Prior to working in post-production, Mark was a freelance producer and associate producer. He worked on a number of award-winning projects including Broadway Bound, Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead, David Mamet's The Water Engine, and Arthur Miller's The American Clock.
Mark has also experienced the trials of live theatre. He was the Producing Director of 30 Minutes From Broadway at Sarah Lawrence and the producer of the pre-Broadway tryout of the musical Are We There Yet? by Sarah Lawrence alumna Carol Hall. In his spare time, he directs regional theatrical productions.
Mark has served on many boards, including a stint as his Temple's President and founding board of the Albert Einstein Academy.
Ari Kepnes '12 studied the intersection of technology, media, and psychology while at Sarah Lawrence and has extended these interests into his career in digital media strategy and marketing. Ari recently moved from New York City to San Francisco to lead marketing at Density, a venture-backed startup. Density collects anonymous data that helps tailor work environments to the people who use them, which relates directly to his senior year conference project on the future of the workplace. Ari is appreciative of the conference system and his Sarah Lawrence professors.
Ari previously worked with Sarah Lawrence alums at Contently, where he built a department that shapes the editorial strategy of thousands of freelance journalists who work with global brands, and at Zeitguide to consult Fortune 500 executives on the impact of digital trends on business. Ari believes involvement in the Alumni Association Board is an opportunity to serve the extended alumni community, and welcomes any alumni to contact him with views they'd like represented.
After graduation, Emily Krupin '11 edited books in New York City at Oxford University Press USA and HarperCollins Publishers LLC. After moving to Los Angeles, Emily expanded IP portfolios through literary rights acquisitions at an independent film and television production and distribution company and managed their website and social media content. Currently, Emily is the grant writer at a local nonprofit organization. She also freelance edits for the Talkhouse and HarperCollins. At SLC, Emily was Editor-in-Chief of the Phoenix, studied abroad through the Florence program, played on the women's volleyball team, served as an Orientation Leader and Food Committee member, worked many campus jobs, and held various internships through alumni.
Joe is the Director of Content Strategy for Contently and Editor-in-Chief of The Content Strategist, winner of the 2016 Digiday Award for Best Brand Publication. A technology and marketing journalist, Joe is a regular contributor to Fast Company and has written for Mashable, Digiday, and Forbes, amongst other publications. His first book, Stories at Work, comes out this May.
Allison Lenk '83 studied child psychology, film, and literature while at Sarah Lawrence. As a junior, she enjoyed a guest year at Tulane University in New Orleans, and she has the Mardi Gras beads to prove it. Allison has been an educator for 30+ years, beginning as a Moderate Specials Needs Teacher, Title 1 Teacher, then moving in to her present role as a Literacy Specialist. She is passionate about all students getting what they need to reach their full potential. Outside of work, she is involved in several environmental organizations. She also enjoys spending time in nature, particularly the woods on Cape Cod, and traveling.
After graduating from Sarah Lawrence, and then teaching high school for 6 years, Sarah went on to pursue a Doctor of Osteopathy from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. She currently works at Albert Einstein Medical Center as an Attending Psychiatrist. Her areas of interest are women's mental health, particularly postpartum depression, and LGBTQ mental health. She has worked within her hospital to educate staff and doctors, and to create systems of care for both of these populations.
Sarah Lawrence is a singular place and because of that it holds a distinct place in all of our hearts. My goal is to engage as many as possible in our alumni network for the benefit of the school, but also to knit together our diverse and far-flung community.
Maureen Pilkington's (MFA '97) fiction and non-fiction have appeared in numerous magazines, journals and anthologies. She also writes essays for the Weston Magazine Group whose fourteen editions cover the New York Metro and suburban luxury market. She previously worked in book publishing as a subsidiary rights director at Walker Books, Viking Penguin and Avon.
Maureen is the founder and director of Page Turners, a literacy program at the Archdiocese of New York. She also serves on the board of Champions for Quality Education at The Inner City Scholarship Fund. In the past, she served on the board of Iona Prep in New Rochelle and The Hudson Valley Children's Museum.
Maureen is currently working on a novel and collection of essays. She lives in Rye, New York and Manhattan with her husband, Mark Rossi. They have two children.
Frederic Richter '10 studied history, film, and literature at Sarah Lawrence, and he was editor-in-chief of The Phoenix. He earned his MFA from The American Film Institute (AFI). His thesis film, MACHSOM, was screened at over twenty-five festivals, and it won numerous grants and awards. His screenplay APPEARANCES, won 1st place in the Slamdance Screenwriting competition. His script, BLIND, co-written with Joe Novoa, is slated to shoot in 2016, with Parallax (Sally Hibbin) producing. Frederic has worked as a Story Analyst for numerous companies, including QED International, Black Label Media and The Black List 3.0. He is a Creative Executive at Tradition Pictures. He has taught classes on screenwriting, film, and the entertainment industry at Sarah Lawrence College, NYU, and The Ghetto Film School. He is a Teaching Artist at The Ghetto Film School, an Instructor at NYU SPS, and The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence.
Joshua David Riegel '02, MA '04 is an attorney and an Excelsior Service Fellow with the New York State Industrial Board of Appeals. In September 2017, he will clerk for the Honorable Victor A. Bolden of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. He currently serves on the Sarah Lawrence Alumni Committee on Community and Inclusion (ACCI) and The Class of 2002 Reunion Committee. As an undergraduate at Sarah Lawrence, he studied U.S. history and cultural anthropology and, as a graduate student, studied women's history. Joshua is a 2015 graduate of New York University School of Law where he was a Root-Tilden-Kern Scholar. After his time at Sarah Lawrence, but before law school, Joshua worked as a paralegal for the American Civil Liberties Union's Racial Justice Program and Women's Rights Project. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his husband and their dog.
Carol Roth '96 graduated from Sarah Lawrence with a concentration in writing, also having studied literature, Civil War and antebellum cultural history, and film theory. She's now a copywriter at a marketing agency and writes website copy, emails, video scripts, brochures and more. Before moving to copywriting, she was a proofreader and copy editor for many years. In her free time she blogs about personal finance, participates in social justice activism—particularly around racial and income inequality and police brutality—plans renovations for her hundred-year-old house, reads literary fiction and true-adventure books, writes the occasional trashy novel for fun, cooks vegan food, and organizes local Sarah Lawrence alumni get-togethers. Carol lives in Minneapolis with her two partners, two daughters, and two rescue cats.
Alicia Ruiz '97 is a lawyer and works as a compliance analyst for Related Management, the property-management arm of Related Companies, one of the premier developers of luxury real estate in New York, and one of the country's largest owner/managers of affordable housing. Alicia has been involved in fundraising and volunteer work for Sarah Lawrence since 2011, when she served as a volunteer for her 15-year class reunion. Prior to her career in law, Alicia pursued fiction and television writing. She still employs her skills as a writer in her current profession. Alicia cherishes her time at Sarah Lawrence and believes serving on the board will allow her to contribute in a more direct and meaningful way to the College in the years to come.
Nancie Schnur '74 has spent the last 28 years performing Kiddie Kabaret, a one woman show for young children which she created. She has also worked musically with children with special needs as well as adults in hospice care. Prior to that Nancie was Senior Product and Package Designer for Avon Products and before that was a designer for Sigma Marketing Systems. She began her design career working for the architects who designed the Andrews Court dorms while she was a senior at Sarah Lawrence.
For 38 years Nancie has been married to author and photographer, Steven Schnur, who has been teaching at the SLC Writing Institute since 1990. Nancie and Steve met in high school and attended Sarah Lawrence together, graduating in 1974. They are still both close to their amazing don, Ilja Wachs. Nancie and Steve have three married children, three delicious grandchildren, and another one due any moment!
Alana T. Sliwinski '08 is an Associate in the New York and New Jersey offices of Zetlin & De Chiara LLP. She concentrates her practice on a wide range of complex commercial matters. Alana is experienced in drafting and negotiating commercial agreements as well as resolving construction claims, handling partnership disputes, breach of contract actions, employment matters, restrictive covenant and unfair competition issues in both state and federal court. Her representative matters involve real estate developers, architects, engineers and other design professionals, construction companies, and real estate investment trusts. After receiving her B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College, she earned her J.D. at New York Law School. Alana is an active member of the American Inn of Court and a member of the New York City Bar Association's LGBT Rights Committee and the New York Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW).
Elisabeth von Uhl earned an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College in 2005. In 2016, she was a finalist for the "Bronx Recognizes its Own" (BRIO) Fellowship. She has earned scholarships to the Prague Summer Writer's Conference and the Postgraduate Writer's Conference. Her work has been published in The Cortland Review, Cream City Review, The Broome Review, and other journals. Her poetry has also been anthologized in Two-Countries: U.S. Daughters and Sons of Immigrant Parents (Red Hen Press, 2017). Her chapbook, Ocean Sea, which was a semi-finalist in the Black Lawrence Press Chapbook Contest, has been published by Finishing Line Press. She has taught at Montclair State University, Fordham University, City College of New York, and Bronx Community College.
Corey Walker '06 was raised near Atlanta, GA and concentrated in French and Africana Studies at Sarah Lawrence. In 2013, he earned a Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law. Corey has developed national and international public policy experience with a leading public policy firm in Washington, D.C. and with the High Commissioner on National Minorities, an office within the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in the Hague. In 2011, Corey was selected as a Google Policy Fellow and worked with a media and technology think tank. In addition to his training in the law, Corey specializes in media relations and communications, nonprofit strategic management consulting, nonprofit incorporation and development; corporate responsibility; and diversity and inclusion initiatives. Recently, Corey was thrilled to return to Sarah to work as a Senior Assistant Director of Admission. Most recently, he was selected as a Pat Cox Fellow and supported a member of the European Parliament while in Brussels, Belgium.
Khaliah Williams '02 began her career in college admissions and counseling as a Sarah Lawrence tour guide and senior interviewer in the Office of Admission. After graduation she joined the office as an Admission Counselor and later as the Director of Multicultural Recruitment. She received her MFA in Fiction Writing from the Iowa Writers' Workshop and has published her short stories and nonfiction at the Hawaii Women's Journal, Frontier Psychiatrist, Buzzfeed Book Country, Day One, American Short Fiction and Day One Year One Best New Stories & Poems 2014. She is also a fellow at the Kimbilio Center for African American Fiction. While at Sarah Lawrence Khaliah studied Italian, Literature, and Film History and credits Judy Serafini-Sauli, Bill Park, and Cristina Anzilotti for shaping her SLC experience. She is currently a college counselor at the Berkeley Carroll School and a Fiction Writing instructor at the Sackett Street Writers' Workshop.
The Alumni Board Nominating Committee is seeking your suggestions for three additions to the Alumni Association, with the hope of adding alumni of the graduate programs to the board. Ideal candidates are leaders in our community who are familiar with alumni activities and programs. A demonstrated commitment to alumni community-building through volunteer work is appreciated. The nomination period will close on April 23, 2019. To submit your nomination, please complete the following web form.