University of Baltimore Magazine

WebExtra: Realizing Dreams Through Social Good

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:50:06 +0000

Hampden’s Dogwood Restaurant Provides Training for a Bright Future

Watch the video below to see an exclusive interview with Bridget Sampson, co-owner of the Dogwood Restaurant.

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Alumni Profile: Alessandro Vitale, B.A. ’94

Alessandro Vitale, B.A. '94, at Chazz: A Bronx Original in Harbor East (image credit: JJ Chrystal)

The Dogwood isn’t the only UB-connected area restaurant that’s making headlines. Alessandro Vitale, B.A. ’94, is getting rave reviews for his latest venture, Chazz: A Bronx Original. We’ll give you one guess on the identity of the eatery’s famous namesake.

by Paula Novash

One of Alessandro Vitale’s first solo business ventures was selling his father’s famous veal parmesan sandwiches to his classmates at what was then called Loyola High School.

“My friends had PB and J’s, and when they saw my lunch they would ask, can you bring me one of those sandwiches?” Vitale, B.A. ’94, recalls. “So my dad would make up a bunch and let my brother, Sergio, and me keep the profits.”

This is only one example of the many culinary successes of the Vitale family. Their father, Rinaldo, opened the first Aldo’s Ristorante Italiano, now a Little Italy institution, more than 30 years ago. And their latest “star” is Chazz: A Bronx Original in Harbor East, developed in collaboration with its namesake, actor Chazz Palminteri.

“No one is more Italian than Chazz,” Vitale says. “He wanted a place where everything reminds you of your grandmother’s cooking: good, basic Italian done the right way.”

Vitale’s upbringing has that same family focus. Alessandro and Sergio grew up helping with the family food businesses, which included a pizza parlor, restaurants and a pastry operation that distributed items such as cannoli cream all over the country. “My father is Jedi wise, and he taught us to work for our dreams,” Vitale recalls.

Once he began at UB, says Vitale, who majored in interdisciplinary studies, he observed a similar work ethic in his fellow students. “Many of us were entrepreneurs as we were going to college—full-time students and full- or half-time workers,” he recalls. “And our professors had real-world experience. One of my professors, from the World Bank, would say, ‘Your textbook is a good guide, but let me tell you more about how things really work.’”

After graduating, Vitale worked for MBNA bank for three years before deciding to return to the family business. “I loved being in the banking world, but I also love working with my dad and brother—you can’t put a price on that,” he says.

The idea for Chazz came about when Palminteri, an Academy Award-nominated actor, writer and director, brought his autobiographical one-man show, A Bronx Tale, to Baltimore’s France-Merrick Performing Arts Center (also known as the Hippodrome). “Chazz asked where the best Italian [restaurant] in Baltimore was, and he wound up coming to Aldo’s for, I think, nine nights in a row,” Vitale recalls.

In the Vitale family, Palminteri found the right combination of food know-how, financial expertise and business savvy to create his vision. The restaurant features authentic New York City decor, including duplicates of subway tiles, and the only coal-fired pizza oven in Maryland and its surrounding states. “It’s the closest thing to the pizza you get in Naples,” Vitale says. “Ninety seconds in the oven, and it comes out perfect.” Actor Robert De Niro, a good friend of Palminteri’s, sampled the authentic pie on a recent visit.

The Vitale family is currently working to expand the Chazz brand to Washington, D.C., Manhattan and Las Vegas.

New Graduate Certificates Fill Tomorrow’s Professional Needs

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:32:47 +0000

Anticipating the future skills that professionals will need is no small feat, considering the world’s constantly shifting technological landscape. But UB’s focus is on what will be, providing students with a competitive edge by preparing them for tomorrow’s workplace.

With this in mind, UB has launched two new 12-credit graduate certificate programs this semester, each designed for a specific group of professionals whose changing work environments require them to adapt—and to thrive.

Certificate in Library Technologies

As libraries expand their collections and resources far beyond their physical walls, the librarians who manage them must be well versed in this ever-changing terrain to serve their users.

The certificate focuses on the use of emerging technologies and on user-centered design in library settings to enable master’s-level librarians to remain current and marketable in their profession. Students analyze the usability and audience-appropriateness of the electronic systems that allow libraries to function. They develop plans to interact with library users via social media and other electronic forms of communication, and they employ information systems and emerging technologies to plan for and implement library development and expansion—all to ensure these public institutions serve our needs as we move into a digital future.

Certificate in Digital Communication

With the world posting/blogging/tweeting/pinning and otherwise connecting around us, learning to cut through the noise to deliver a message is an invaluable skill in a digital environment. Enter this certificate, geared toward current communication professionals who need a leg up in crafting the right messages in the appropriate medium.

Students learn the benefits of various media and the best instances in which to utilize them. They delve into digital advertising and marketing (and the fields’ necessary writing prowess), social media and other digital platform options, media planning and the digital communication strategies that tie all of these tools together.

Class Notes

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:58:52 +0000

Let your fellow UB alumni know where you are and what you’ve been up to. Submit a Class Note online or contact the Office of Alumni Relations by e-mail or at 410.837.6139..

1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s |

Featured Class Notes | In Memoriam |

1950s

Herbert S. Garten, A.B.A. ’53, a longtime cantor with Baltimore’s Chizuk Amuno Congregation, received the lifetime achievement award from the Cantors Assembly in November at a tribute concert held in his honor.

1960s

Stephen F. Meszaros, B.S. ’64, was named executive vice president/regional manager of Yerman, Witman, Gaines & Conklin Realty in February 2011. He oversees day-to-day operations and management of the company’s three Baltimore offices.

Joseph P. Binder, B.S. ’65, was honored by Baltimore’s Calvert Hall College High School with a plaque dedication and first-pitch ceremony in May 2011. He taught physical education at Calvert Hall 1967-2005 and coached baseball 1975-76 and 1981-2001, finishing with a 460-151 record and 11 titles.

Elliott L. Oppenheim, B.A. ’65, retired as the head baseball coach at the Community College of Baltimore County, Dundalk, in June after 24 years. He has spent 49 years coaching various Maryland college teams.

Ronald M. Sharrow, J.D. ’65, released The Sword of Justice: A Lawyer’s Revenge in February 2011. The book is about an aggressive young lawyer whose determination for revenge against his client is overcome by his compulsion to win.

Stuart Steiner, J.D. ’67, retired as president of SUNY Genesee Community College in Batavia, N.Y., after the 2010-11 academic year; he served in that position for more than 37 years. He also received the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce’s first Lifetime Achievement Award in April 2011.

Ralph E. Alexander, B.S. ’69, was appointed chief executive officer of Lattice Government Services in Pennsauken, N.J., in May 2011.

Richard A. Streett, B.A. ’69, earned a Ph.D. in Theology from the University of Wales in Cardiff, Wales, U.K., in June.

1970s

Bernard A. Raum, J.D. ’70, was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences’ Jurisprudence Section in February 2011. He also acted as counsel and as a forensic-science trial consultant to the Orange County (Fla.) State’s Attorney’s Office in the case of the State of Florida v. Casey Marie Anthony.

William S. Kelly, B.S. ’71, was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 list of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

Lenore R. Gelfman, J.D. ’73, was appointed as an administrative judge for the Howard County (Md.) Circuit Court in July. She is responsible for policy decisions and for the administration of the court.

Brian A. Goldman, CERT ’73, was elected president of Baltimore-based Jewish Community Services in July.

Larry D. Unger, B.S. ’73, was promoted to president and chief executive officer of Maryland Public Television in Owings Mills, Md., in May 2011.

Stuart M. Goldberg, B.A. ’70, J.D. ’74, received an Unsung Heroes Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ Maryland Chapter in November in recognition of his volunteer efforts with both the University of Baltimore Foundation and the UB Alumni Association.

Kenneth O. Hassan, J.D. ’74, was appointed to the advisory board of Florida Atlantic University’s Jupiter Lifelong Learning Society in Jupiter, Fla., in September.

Carolyn H. Thaler, J.D. ’74, joined the firm of Turnbull, Nicholson & Sanders in Towson, Md., in February 2011.

Brian B. Dembeck, B.S. ’75, was appointed to the board of directors of the Y of Central Maryland in June.

Michael C. Hodes, J.D. ’75, of Hodes, Pessin & Katz in Towson, Md., was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 list of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

Susan B. Watson, J.D. ’76, celebrated 26 years as a senior attorney in the Office of Chief Counsel for the Internal Revenue Service in Lanham, Md. She is currently with the Small Business Division Counsel Headquarters staff.

Joseph I. Cassilly, J.D. ’77, was honored in August as the 2011 Outstanding Disabled Veteran of the Year by the Disabled American Veterans at its national convention in New Orleans, La.

Michael L. Curry, B.S. ’77, was selected by U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team coach Jergen Klinsmann to serve as a goalkeeper’s coach for the team’s Aug. 10 match against Mexico in Philadelphia, Pa.

Ellen M. Lazarus, J.D. ’77, was appointed to the advisory board of Florida Atlantic University’s Jupiter Lifelong Learning Society in Jupiter, Fla., in September.

Harry W. Wilson Jr., B.S. ’77, joined Cook Associates Executive Search in Charlotte, N.C., as a managing director in September; he supports the company’s financial services and insurance practice.

Donald W. Biles, B.S. ’78, was named chief financial officer of the Arc Baltimore in August.

Therese A. Schoen, B.A. ’78, owner of Mythic World Tours in Denver, Colo., has expanded her company’s tours beyond Europe to include South Africa and the Amazon.

Jeffrey Van Grack, J.D. ’78, was elected to serve as dean of the national College of Community Association Lawyers for 2011 and 2012. He founded and co-chairs Lerch, Early & Brewer’s community association practice in Bethesda, Md., and is an active member of the Community Associations Institute.

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1980s

Barry M. Chasen, J.D. ’80, founder of Chasen Boscolo Injury Lawyers, of Greenbelt, Md., marked his firm’s 25th anniversary in March 2011. He also was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore Foundation in June. His son, Ben, is a second-year student at the UB School of Law.

G. Lawrence Franklin, B.S. ’80, was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore Foundation in June.

Donald C. Fry, J.D. ’80, was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore Foundation in June.

Janis M. Leftridge, J.D. ’80, was named the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s first diversity officer in June. She oversees and facilitates the Harrisburg, Pa.-based association’s efforts to improve diversity internally and within the state’s legal profession.

Bruce L. Schindler, B.S. ’80, president of Baltimore’s Bob Davidson Ford Lincoln, was named to a number of national Ford Motor Co. committees, including the dealer product advisory committee and the Baltimore Washington Ford Dealer Advertising Fund Board.

Darlene B. Smith, B.S. ’78, M.B.A. ’80, dean of UB’s Merrick School of Business, was elected to the board of directors of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship’s Baltimore affiliate in July. She will serve a three-year term.

David N. Pessin, J.D. ’81, a member of Hodes, Pessin & Katz, was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 list of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

William M. Feehley, B.S. ’82, was inducted into the board of directors of the Maryland Society of Accountants as second vice president in July.

Wendy G. Rothstein, J.D. ’82, was appointed to serve on the Long-Range Planning Committee of the Montgomery County (Md.) Bar Association in April 2011.

Mark A. Shapiro, B.A. ’82, released Dream Catcher, an album of acoustic and indie rock, in May 2011.

Louise A. Lock, J.D. ’83, was installed as president of the Columbia, Md.-based Maryland Association for Justice in May 2011.

Ronald D. Rudich, B.S. ’68, M.S. ’83, is the director of business valuation and litigation support services at Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn in Owings Mills, Md.

Mark G. Allen, B.S. ’81, M.S. ’84, is the director of security forces for the Air Force District of Washington, D.C., and is a civilian employee. In September, he returned from a six-month deployment as the deputy provost marshal for the U.S. Forces–Afghanistan.

Richard C. Bittner, J.D. ’84, was reappointed by Gov. Martin O’Malley to the Maryland Board of Physicians for a four-year term in February 2011.

Kevin F. Bress, M.S./J.D. ’84, a member of Hodes, Pessin & Katz in Towson, Md., was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 List of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

Raymond E. DiBiagio Jr., J.D. ’84, retired from the Bankruptcy Judges Division of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts and opened his own law firm, Raymond DiBiagio, Attorney at Law, in Glen Burnie, Md., in August. He concentrates on bankruptcy law.

Francis C. Heim, M.S. ’84, was appointed to the board of trustees for the Annapolis, Md.-based Chesapeake Bay Trust in September.

E. Kenneth Henschen, B.S. ’76, M.P.A. ’84, was appointed as an assistant director in the Office of the Comptroller of Maryland in Annapolis, Md., in May 2010.

Stuart D. Kaplow, J.D. ’84, was nominated for Corridor Inc.’s 2010 Person of the Year for his work creating and advancing the emergent body of law that is green building and sustainable business law.

Barry F. Levin, J.D. ’84, was named chair of Saul Ewing’s business and finance department in Baltimore. He oversees more than 90 lawyers and others who advise public and private companies, nonprofit businesses and other entities and individuals around the world.

Gregory J. Morgan, B.A. ’84, works as an account manager in the commercial and facility services division of Brothers Services Co., a roofing and exterior renovations company in Hampstead, Md.

Carolyn M. Peoples, B.S. ’83, M.B.A. ’84, president and chief executive officer of Jeremiah Housing in Randallstown, Md., was honored in February 2011 with the 2010 LifeSpan Network Member Service Award for her outstanding services in the community.

Barbara A. Rishel, B.S. ’82, M.B.A. ’84, joined the Baltimore investment firm of Hardesty Capital Management as an investor in July.

Robert A. DeAlmeida, M.S. ’85, was elected to the executive committee of the Annapolis, Md.-based Maryland Bankers Association in July and will serve as vice chairman.

Edward J. Hanko, B.S. ’85, was named special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Cincinnati (Ohio) Division in July.

James A. List, J.D. ’85, founding partner of the Law Offices of James A. List, of Towson, Md., was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 List of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

Carol M. McGowan, J.D. ’87, was honored for 38 years of service with Baltimore-based Maryland New Directions in a November ceremony at the Mount Washington Conference Center.

Laurie G. Precht, M.A. ’87, is at McDaniel College, working on what will be her third master’s degree in liberal arts. She has worked as the library media specialist at the Hannah More School in Reisterstown, Md., since 2003.

Robin C. Jones, M.S. ’88, celebrated 26 years with the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services in Towson, Md., in April 2011.

Lawrence F. Maykrantz, B.S. ’80, M.B.A. ’88, was named president of St. John Properties in Baltimore in March 2011. He oversees all day-to-day operations, including all phases of development, asset management, marketing, leasing and financial operations.

R. Delacy Peters Jr., B.S. ’86, J.D. ’88, was named to the 2011 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists by Illinois Super Lawyers magazine in January 2011.

Jonathan S. Beiser, J.D. ’89, joined the board of directors of Baltimore-based Kids’ Chance of Maryland in August.

Janice Bledsoe, J.D. ’89, a criminal defense attorney, heads the Police Integrity Unit within the Office of the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City.

Jeffrey B. Gould, CERT ’89, was elected secretary of the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters, based in Potomac Falls, Va., at its annual meeting in June.

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1990s

Kathryn D. Claypoole, B.A. ’90, joined the Baltimore-based law firm of Al Betz & Associates as firm administrator in September.

Stephen A. DaRe, B.S. ’90, was named chief financial officer of Access MediQuip in Lake Mary, Fla., in July.

Jeffrey A. Bateman, B.S. ’91, was named controller of Barcoding in September. He manages the Baltimore company’s financial operations.

Renee B. Battle-Brooks, J.D. ’91, was appointed a member of the board of trustees for Adventist HealthCare in Rockville, Md., in April 2011.

Richard E. Guida, J.D. ’91, was appointed a federal administrative law judge for the Social Security Administration in Wilkes Barre, Pa., in 2010.

Oren D. Saltzman, J.D. ’85, LL.M. ’91, a member of the Baltimore law firm of Adelberg, Rudow, Dorf & Hendler, began a two-year term as board chair of Learning, a nonprofit organization that provides at-risk adolescents in Baltimore with academic and life skills.

Mark F. Scurti, J.D. ’91, received the Maryland State Bar Association Consumer Bankruptcy Section’s Belsky Award in 2010 and 2011 in recognition of his extraordinary support of the section.

Ray M. Shepard, J.D. ’91, joined Smith, Gildea & Schmidt in Baltimore in August. He practices in the areas of complex civil, administrative and criminal litigation.

Joan Worthington, B.S. ’84, M.B.A. ’91, was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore in June.

Robert D. Cole Jr., J.D. ’92, opened the Law Office of Robert D. Cole Jr. in Baltimore in September. He practices in the areas of criminal defense and civil litigation.

Christine M. Curtis, B.S. ’92, was hired in July by Rice County, Minn., as the director of community corrections; she oversees all probation, parole and juvenile services.

Geoffrey P. Friedman, B.A. ’92, is the owner of Quarry Bagel & Cafe in Pikesville, Md.

Cynthia H. Jones, J.D. ’92, joined the Maryland Labor Department’s Office of the Commissioner of Financial Regulation as assistant commissioner of enforcement and consumer services in April 2011. She directs the office’s investigative and enforcement staff and supervises the handling of consumer inquiries and complaints.

Christopher K. Kyanko, B.S. ’92, started a new business, Cirrus Valuation Services, in August. His Westminster, Md.-based firm provides business valuation and litigation support services to attorneys, accountants, business owners and fiduciaries.

Paul R. Purdum, B.S. ’92, is the branch controller at LVI Demolition in Gaithersburg, Md.

David L. Thurston, J.D. ’92, was sworn in for a three-year term as a member of the Baltimore County (Md.) Board of Appeals in May 2011.

Brian A. Boone, B.S. ’93, was promoted to chief operating officer for Amereco BioFuels Corp. in Phoenix, Ariz., in March 2011.

Kimberly M. Burns, J.D. ’93, was named president of Maryland Business for Responsive Government in Towson, Md., in March 2011. She oversees the nonprofit organization’s daily operations.

Mary Beth Robinson, M.B.A. ’93, was promoted to director of underwriting at the Baltimore Life Cos. in Owings Mills, Md., in June.

Dario J. Broccolino, J.D. ’70, LL.M. ’94, was elected president of the Maryland State’s Attorneys Association in June. He is responsible for the association’s business affairs.

Caroline D. Ciraolo, LL.M. ’94, a partner at Rosenberg/Martin/Greenberg in Baltimore, was selected as a member of Network2000 in February 2011. The organization advocates and monitors women’s progress in becoming leaders and offers a mentoring program in the metropolitan Baltimore business community.

Callista M. Freedman, J.D. ’94, joined the Baltimore firm of FSquared Law as a principal in September 2010. She specializes in the areas of employment, general business services, arbitration and real estate.

Ann K. Goodman, J.D. ’94, joined the Easton, Md., firm of Parker Counts & Melton in summer 2011 as a partner. She focuses on estate planning, elder law and estate administration.

William C. Holzman, J.D. ’94, was promoted to assistant vice president, retail leasing for St. John Properties in Baltimore in July.

Sara B. Long, B.A. ’91, M.S. ’94, was named dean of instruction for Monarch Academy’s Baltimore campus in July.

George J. Nemphos, J.D. ’94, was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore Foundation in June.

Annette C. Quigley, B.S. ’94, program director/financial consultant with Baltimore County Savings Bank Financial Services, was named to Baltimore magazine’s 2011 list of Five-Star Wealth Managers in February 2011.

Jocelyn C. Carter, J.D. ’95, was named president of the United Healthcare Community Plan in Ridgeland, Miss., in September.

Dianna N. Fornaro, M.A. ’95, received a 2011 Bronze Anvil Award of Commendation in August from the National Public Relations Society of America. She was recognized for superior performance in the design and execution of an individual public relations tactic within a broader campaign.

Heidi Salow, J.D. ’95, joined Greenberg Traurig’s intellectual property practice in Washington, D.C., as a shareholder in January 2011.

Robert A. Scott, J.D. ’95, became a partner with the Baltimore firm of Ballad Spahr in July.

Tamika L. Tremaglio, M.B.A. ’95, was named chair of the National Aquarium’s Washington, D.C., board in April 2011. She leads the board’s involvement in the continued growth of the aquarium’s D.C. venue.

Gregory M. Derwart, M.A. ’96, was named to The Daily Record’s 2011 VIP List of very important professionals age 40 and under in September.

Todd A. Feuerman, M.B.A. ’96, was awarded the certified construction auditor credential by the National Association of Construction Auditors in September.

Kirk J. Halpin, J.D. ’96, was selected in April 2011 to serve a three-year term on the board of the Baltimore-Washington Corridor Chamber of Commerce, based in Laurel, Md.

Joseph T. Kearney, M.B.A. ’96, was appointed director of client solutions at TrustPoint International in Washington, D.C., in September.

Ali Agan, M.B.A. ’97, was nominated for the Business Leader’s Award to Fight Human Trafficking in December 2010. He is the chief executive officer of Azercell Telecom, which contributed to an awareness-raising campaign in Azerbaijan and helped establish a shelter for homeless children.

Victoria A. August, J.D. ’97, accepted a position with West, Thomson Reuters, in Washington, D.C. She works with companies to maximize their legal research, due diligence and outside counsel budgets.

Alexander M. Giles, J.D. ’97, was elected to the board of directors of the Maritime Law Association of the United States in May.

Aaron J. Greenfield, J.D. ’97, was appointed to the lawyers committee of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., in May. The committee aims to foster study of the Holocaust’s legal ramifications through ongoing professional development initiatives for judges, lawyers, law students and professors.

David C. Matukaitis, B.A. ’97, was named program director of Jewish Recovery Houses in Baltimore in February 2011. He is responsible for all aspects of resident and family recovery programs.

Christina J. Pappas, B.A. ’94, J.D. ’97, was promoted in May 2011 to of counsel in the real estate practice of DLA Piper’s Baltimore office. She practices in the area of real estate development and finance.

Adrienne L. Bennett, J.D. ’98, a candidate for state delegate in Virginia’s 21st district, was endorsed by the Farm Team, an organization committed to recruiting, supporting and electing Democratic women to all levels of elected office in Virginia.

Alex J. Brown, J.D. ’99, joined the Baltimore firm of Silverman, Thompson, Slutkin & White as a member in March 2011.

Peter C. O’Malley, J.D. ’99, joined the Baltimore office of Venable as a partner in its government relations practice in April 2012.

Jennifer J. Stearman, J.D. ’99, was appointed chair of the board of visitors for the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital in June. She leads the board in continuing its support of capital campaigns and awareness initiatives benefiting the hospital.

Deborah J. Weider-Hatfield, J.D. ’99, has been working as an assistant attorney general for Missouri since February 2006. She is in the Financial Services Division and represents the Family Support Division of the Missouri Department of Social Services.

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2000s

Renee B. Ades, B.S. ’74, J.D. ’00, opened the Law Offices of Renee Bronfein Ades in March 2011. She focuses on matrimonial and family matters.

John C. Berkley, M.B.A. ’00, was named Man of the Year by the Second District of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity at its 63rd annual conference in April 2011 in recognition of his notable contributions to society.

Clayton A. Mitchell Sr., J.D. ’00, was appointed to a fourth six-year term as an associate member of the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation Board of Appeals in June. He was also appointed to the Maryland Region 1 Selective Service Board by President Barack Obama.

Donna H. Williams, M.B.A. ’00, joined Waltham, Mass.-based Actifio as vice president of global services and support in February.

Dorine C. Andrews, D.C.D. ’01, was appointed to the board of directors of the University of Baltimore Foundation in June.

Mariusz Dabrowski, M.S. ’01, was named vice president of Web effectiveness consulting for Systems Alliance in Hunt Valley, Md., in April 2011. He is responsible for managing and growing the company’s Web consulting practice.

Dale K. Cathell, J.D. ’01, became a partner with the Baltimore firm of DLA Piper in May 2011.

Darrell S. Cherry, B.A. ’01, and the company he works for, J.E. Berkowitz in Pedricktown, N.J., are manufacturing the windows for the Varsity at the University of Baltimore and the interior glass for UB’s new John and Frances Angelos Law Center.

Brian K. O’Connell, M.B.A. ’01, married Amy Pearson on May 7, 2011.

G. James Benoit, J.D. ’02, was nominated for Corridor Inc.’s 2010 Person of the Year.

John S. Butler, B.A. ’03, chief administrative officer with the Howard County (Md.) Department of Fire and Rescue Service, completed the leadership in crisis program in April 2011.

Patricia Ann Cotten, B.S. ’83, M.S. ’85, D.P.A. ’03, director of the University of Baltimore’s Schaefer Center for Public Policy, is president of the Southern Consortium of University Public Service Organizations for 2012-13.

Mary E. Quick, M.A. ’03, launched Mary Quick Designs, her new business venture as a surface designer; she designs prints to be licensed for commercial application.

Beverly E. Richards, B.S. ’03, was elected to the board of directors of the Hearing and Speech Agency of Baltimore in September.

Kathleen J.P. Tabor, J.D. ’03, published a book, Maryland Equine Law: A Legal Guide to Horse Ownership & Activities, in April 2011.

Vincent M. Garufi, M.S. ’04, organization development director for Adventist Midwest Health in Bolingbrook, Ill., received the company’s regional pillar award in January 2011 for his commitment to helping enhance the company’s culture.

Arun Subhas, M.S. ’04, became a partner with Ernst & Young’s tax practice in Baltimore in July.

Brenda N. Taylor, B.S. ’91, J.D. ’04, and Dawn A. Nee, B.A. ’00, J.D. ’03, formed Family Law Assistant in Manchester, Md., in May. The company focuses on assisting family law practitioners and individuals with family law matters.

Barbara D. Thompson, B.A. ’04, joined Franklin & Prokopik in Baltimore in August. She practices in the area of workers’ compensation defense.

Byron B. Warnken, J.D. ’04, opened a financial advisory practice handling insurance and investments with Wells Fargo Advisors in Hunt Valley, Md., in September.

William F. Burnham, J.D. ’05, received a 2011 Maryland Pro Bono Service Award from the Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland at the Maryland State Bar Association’s annual meeting in June.

Albert J. Hannan, B.A. ’66, J.D. ’05, celebrated 25 years as a professor of economics at Notre Dame of Maryland University in May 2011.

Heather A. Mewshaw, B.S. ’05, was appointed president of the Potomac Chapter of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, which serves Maryland and Washington, D.C., in August.

Mark P. Samuel, B.A. ’05, completed his M.B.A. studies at the University of Maryland University College in September.

Aimee V. String, J.D. ’05, was named as the senior criminal justice planner for Delaware’s Domestic Violence Coordinating Council in Wilmington, Del., in May 2011.

Imoh E. Akpan, J.D. ’06, joined Franklin & Prokopik in Baltimore in August; she concentrates her practice in the area of general liability defense.

Ari N. Laric, J.D. ’06, joined the Towson, Md., law firm of Berman, Sobin, Gross, Feldman & Darby, in May 2011. He represents injured workers throughout the state.

Rosa M. Linnear, B.S. ’06, was hired as project manager for IndiSoft in Columbia, Md., in September.

Erin McCarthy Naylor, J.D. ’07, joined the Office of Financial Regulation in Baltimore under a Department of Justice grant to work on criminal mortgage and fraud prosecution.

Carol C. Shepherd, B.S. ’07, was promoted to senior accountant at UHY Advisors Mid-Atlantic of Columbia, Md., in September.

Lisa D. Sparks, B.A. ’05, J.D. ’07, joined the Towson, Md., law firm of Bowie & Jensen as an associate in its construction practice in May 2011.

Adam P. Di Palma, M.A. ’08, is the lead graphic designer of the Nutramax Laboratories’ veterinary division in Lancaster, N.C.

Sarah R. Dorsett, J.D. ’08, accepted a commission in November 2010 with the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the U.S. Navy and has been assigned to the Navy Legal Services Office at the Bangor Trident Base in Silverdale, Wash.

Thomas E. Dunlap, J.D. ’08, joined the Bethesda, Md., firm of Budow & Noble. He concentrates on civil litigation.

Hana R. Kondratyuk, J.D. ’08, joined the Baltimore firm of Rosenberg Martin Greenberg as an associate in April 2011.

Edward F. McNally, J.D. ’08, is the executive director of Baltimore’s Franciscan Center, a nonprofit organization serving the poor and homeless.

Ronni H. Monaghan, J.D. ’08, was named director of development for St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson, Md., in August.

Paul E. Nesterovsky, M.S. ’00, M.S. ’08, was promoted to vice president–tax of Sinclair Broadcast Group in Hunt Valley, Md., in September.

David D. Nowak, J.D. ’08, opened the Law Office of David D. Nowak in Towson, Md., in 2010. He focuses his practice on family law and workers’ compensation cases.

Sarah B. Sherman, J.D. ’08, joined the Towson, Md., office of Bodie, Dolina, Smith & Hobbs in February 2011. She focuses her practice on general litigation, particularly toxic tort defense.

Daniel B. Wechsler, J.D./M.B.A. ’08, works at the Social Security Administration in Woodlawn, Md.

Paul B. Beaulieu, B.S. ’09, is president of Harrison Marketing and managing partner of Open Air Lighting in Abingdon, Md.

Julie S. Harada, J.D. ’09, joined the Baltimore office of Gorman & Williams as an associate in September. She concentrates her practice on intellectual property and health-care law.

Lucy D. Holman, D.C.D. ’09, began her term as president of the Maryland Library Association in Baltimore in June.

Heather L. Winkel, M.A. ’09, was named one of Folio magazine’s Rising Stars: Ten Under 30 in November 2010. She is an art director and graphic designer for Network Media Partners in Hunt Valley, Md.

Matthew J. Youssef, J.D. ’09, received The Daily Record’s 20 in Their Twenties Award in April 2011.

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2010s

David E. Bauer, J.D. ’10, joined Global Automakers of Washington, D.C., as the state relations manager in July.

Simone J. Christian, M.A. ’10, joined the Baltimore Community Foundation as the communications officer for integrated design in February 2011.

Scarlett M. Corso, B.A. ’07, J.D. ’10, joined Franklin & Prokopik in Baltimore in August. She concentrates her practice in the area of general liability defense.

Jin Luo, B.S. ’02, M.B.A. ’10, joined the New York Life Insurance Co. in Columbia, Md., as a financial services professional in May 2011.

Ryan M. McConnell, J.D. ’10, was elected to the board of directors of Chesapeake-Potomac Spina Bifida in April 2011.

Michael E.J. Merod, J.D. ’10, joined the Baltimore law firm of Ingerman & Horwitz in August. His practice areas include automobile torts and personal injury claims.

Trang T. Phan, M.S. ’10, joined Stoy, Malone & Co. in Towson, Md., as an accountant in October. She works in auditing and assurance services and tax preparation.

Timothy R. Polanowski, B.S. ’03, M.B.A. ’10, was promoted in July to president and chief executive officer of the Kornblatt Co. in Baltimore.

Luke D. Smith, B.S. ’10, was promoted to senior accountant at UHY Advisors Mid-Atlantic of Columbia, Md., in September.

Matthew M. Somers, J.D. ’10, is an associate with Chason, Rosner, Leary & Marshall of Towson, Md. He focuses on business litigation, insurance litigation, medical malpractice, personal injury, products liability, professional liability and complex civil litigation.

Bradley A. Wasser, J.D. ’10, married Sherri Weiss on April 9, 2011, in North Brunswick, N.J.

Kathleen L. Wright, J.D. ’10, was admitted to the New York Bar Association in March 2011 and is an associate at the Long Island, N.Y.-based law firm of Miranda, Sambursky, Slone, Sklarin, Verveniotis. She married Daniel Wright in October 2010.

Jonathan E. Yoffe, J.D./M.B.A. ’10, was sworn into the Maryland Bar Association in June. He is an associate attorney at Ezrine, Castro & Stavisky in Baltimore and focuses his practice on personal injury law, workers’ compensation and small-business matters.

Martin D. Coleman, B.S. ’11, enrolled in the University of Maryland University College’s graduate program in cybersecurity policy.

Christopher M. Craig, B.A. ’06, M.A. ’11, works as a sales associate for Bisco Industries in Glen Burnie, Md.

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Featured Class Notes

Baby Bee Announcements

UB proudly welcomes the newest members of our University family—Baby Bees! Moms- and dads-to-be, let us know when your little one arrives, and we’ll send you a Baby Bee bib, courtesy of the UB Alumni Association. We look forward to receiving more photos of your new additions and will include them in the magazine as space permits. (If you want us to really gush, send us a photo of your baby proudly sporting the Baby Bee bib.)

Share the buzz about your new Baby Bee with us at 410.837.6131 or alumni@ubalt.edu.

Jaxon Roberts was born Sept. 30, 2010, to Angela M. Roberts, J.D. ’06.	Macy Elizabeth Richardson, granddaughter of Dave Richardson, B.S. ’64, was born Feb. 27, 2011.
Bijoy Bradford Mahanti was born May 6, 2011, to Raj K. Mahanti, B.S. ’03, and Tracey R. Herling.	Ellery Kathleen and Arabella Regina Nagle were born Aug. 6, 2011, to Meredith and Dan Nagle, B.A. ʼ11.

2011 UB Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees

Congratulations to the 2011 UB Athletic Hall of Fame inductees, all of whom were honored at a May 12, 2011, ceremony emceed by WBAL TV-11 sports anchor Gerry Sandusky at Valley Mansion in Hunt Valley, Md.

Baseball
James W. Cassaday, B.A. ’66
James Rafferty, B.A. ’66

Basketball
W. Riley “Skip” Whorton Jr., B.S. ’64*
1976-77 Basketball Team

Lacrosse
Arnold Amidon
Mike Daly*
Jack Downey*
Kenneth E. Johnson Sr., B.S. ’60
1982 Lacrosse Team

Soccer
William Beck, B.S. ’52*

Wrestling
Fred Frommelt Jr.
James G. Hebbel, B.S. ’74

Coaches
Ray Haney (wrestling)
Richie Meade (lacrosse)

* posthumous award

In Memoriam

Samuel R. Layton, B.S. ’36
James N. Phillips, LL.B. ’43
Gunther R. Borris, B.S. ’49
Jay D. Connor, J.D. ’49
Albert Hyman, B.S. ’49
Calvert R. Bregel Sr., J.D. ’50
Edward B. Hopkins, CERT ’50
Morton I. Meyers, LL.B. ’50
John J. Bishop Jr., J.D. ’51
Charles W. St. Clair, A.A. ’51
Harold I. Buskirk, A.A. ’52
John W. Moyer Sr., LL.B. ’54
Aaron Smelkinson, J.D. ’54
Norton Naviasky, B.S. ’55
John R. Polyniak, A.A. ’55
Konstantine J. Prevas, LL.B. ’55
Milton R. Beever, LL.B. ’56
John J. Kaufman, B.S. ’58
Philip E. Giannino, B.S. ’59
Kenneth F. Wisner, B.S. ’59
John W.S. Hudson, B.S. ’60
Theodore A. Shulka, B.S. ’60
David I. Abramson, CERT ’62
William A. Kroh, A.A. ’57, J.D. ’62
Henry J. Witthauer, LL.B. ’62
Harry R. Jones, B.S. ’63
Walter P. Hammond, B.S. ’65
Garylee Cox, LL.B. ’66
Allan M. Schwartzman, B.S. ’66
Theodore J. Rohleder, B.S. ’68
Richard G. Hill, B.S. ’69
Sondra Elise B. Dailey, CERT/M.S. ’80
Linda J. Quimby, B.S./M.S. ’80
Michael S. Radcliffe, B.S. ’80, J.D. ’83
Frank G. Charshee, M.P.A. ’96
James J. O’Neill III, J.D. ’97
Thomas R. Berger, B.S. ’05
Richard Walton Jr., B.A. ’09
Thomas F. Cardegna, former professor, Merrick School of Business
Walter A. Rafalko, former professor and associate dean, UB School of Law

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B.Y.O.UB.

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:46:47 +0000

by Kevin Atticks, D.C.D. ’02

While we expect to learn that our alumni are doing remarkable things, there’s a little extra excitement involved when researching their accomplishments involves sampling the vinous creations of five renowned wineries. Our alumni work as marketing directors, vineyard managers and winemakers throughout the country, so we rounded up some of their finest offerings and enlisted our resident wine expert to offer his take on your best options from coast to coast.

Cheers!

Our wine guy: Kevin Atticks, D.C.D. ’02, is the executive director of the Maryland Wineries Association and the author of Discovering Wineries, a series of travel guides. He also co-founded the WBJC-FM show Word on Wine. Atticks teaches publication design at Loyola University Maryland.
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Russian River Vineyards
Forestville, Calif.

Petite Sirah 2009
Mendocino County, Calif.
Guido Venturi Vineyard
$36

Barbara Sattler, B.A. ’81, is a partner at the Forestville, Calif.-based Russian River Vineyards, a sustainable winery that produces cabernet, pinot noir, rose, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and more.

If you don’t know petite sirah, you’re missing out. It’s a glassful of dark, brooding flavors, most notably blueberry compote, brambles and black pepper. Russian River Vineyards sourced the grapes from Guido Venturi Vineyard, a Mendocino, Calif., vineyard with a great reputation for high-quality fruit resulting in exquisite wines. This wine comes on strong with an incredible aroma (petite sirah lovers know this well), full-mouth feel and medium finish. Petite sirah can usually be enjoyed immediately upon release, but it is best when cellared for a few (or as many as 10-15) years. This wine would pair wonderfully with grilled meats but is superb all by itself.
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Joseph Phelps Vineyards
St. Helena, Calif.

Insignia 2008
Napa Valley, Calif.
$200

Joseph Phelps has earned a reputation among wine lovers as one of the best of the best of California’s premium wine producers, offering cabernets, red blends, sauvignon blancs and estate-grown olive oil. Mike McEvoy, M.B.A. ’97, is vice president and director of sales and marketing.

There are few labels that get big-time wine lovers more excited than does Insignia by Joseph Phelps. Known as one of Napa Valley’s greatest wines, Insignia lives up to every expectation. It’s big, deep and full of concentrated red- and black-fruit flavors with aromas of coffee, pencil shavings and cream—imparted by 24 months of aging in new French oak. While clearly a cabernet sauvignon, its structure is bolstered by 7 percent petit verdot and 4 percent merlot.

I opened it and realized immediately that I had committed a crime; it needs to be aged many more years before reaching its peak. The Wine Advocate, which rated this wine 97 points, noted, “Ideally, the 2008 should be purchased by those who can be patient; it is not a wine for those seeking immediate gratification.”

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Boordy Vineyards
Hydes, Md.

Chardonnay 2010
Baltimore County, Md.
$13.99

Phineas Deford, M.B.A. ’11, works with his family at Boordy Vineyards just north of Baltimore, where he is the wine club manager. The winery makes 20 wines in a variety of styles, from premium Landmark wines and Icons of Maryland wines to its Just for Fun series.

Boordy Vineyards is Maryland’s oldest winery, founded in 1945 by Philip Wagner. Though it started as a vine nursery, Boordy developed a following for its unique varieties and small-batch wines. Now it’s an industry leader, deploying the latest vineyard and winery techniques to create excellent wines.

Fermented in French oak and aged on the lees, Boordy’s chardonnay is rich, creamy and full bodied—a sometimes surprising quality for a white wine. There’s some citrus zest initially and tropical fruit and melons rounding out the long finish. At this price, it’s a steal.

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Snow Farm Vineyard
South Hero, Vt.

Vidal Blanc Ice Wine 2008
Vermont
$45/375ml

Harrison Lebowitz, J.D. ’84, founded Snow Farm Vineyard in Vermont with his wife, Molly. The winery makes nine wines, from riesling to baco noir (a light-red French-American hybrid) to late-harvest vignoles.

Perhaps it’s the process to create it or maybe it’s just the price we pay for that process, but there are few treasures in the wine world like ice wine. The grapes hang on the vine until frozen and then are delicately pressed to collect the honeyed juice. The water in the grapes is frozen as well; thus, the remaining juice is super concentrated and very sweet.

Snow Farm’s Vidal Blanc Ice Wine has a golden hue and slow-rolling legs (indicating the sweetness). It’s redolent of tropical fruit, particularly mango and lychee—plus a striking flare of white pepper. This wine would make for a great dessert all alone or paired with nuts and dried fruit.

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Four JG’s Vineyards
Colts Neck, N.J.

Celebration Cabernet Franc 2008
Outer Coastal Plain, N.J.
$17.99

Four JG’s Vineyards, co-owned by attorney John A. Giunco, J.D. ’78, is situated on a historic farm in Monmouth County, N.J. The winery makes seven wines in a variety of styles.

From the start, this wine is a mix of serious and fun. First, the serious: It’s a cabernet franc, one of the noble Bordeaux varieties. It’s garnet in the glass and exudes leather and dark cherry aromas. It fills your mouth with soft, broad tannins and has a medium finish of raisins and dried cherries; it was aged in American oak for nine months. Cabernet franc has begun to stake a claim as one of the best grapes from Maryland to the Finger Lakes (N.Y.). This example earned a medal in the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

Next, the fun. The label has a green dinosaur with a birthday hat running at a fast clip, clearly late for the party.

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Russian River Vineyards (image courtesy of Barbara Sattler)

Snow Farm Vineyard (image credit: Karen L. McCloud)

UB By the Numbers

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:45:58 +0000

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83
Fat Club by Kimberley Lynne, UB theater events coordinator, presented as part of the Emerging Voices Project	In 2009, Spotlight UB introduced the Emerging Voices Project, a summer reading series designed to provide authors and playwrights in the UB community with the opportunity to stage their work and receive audience feedback. Since its inception, the project has featured 83 actors performing 18 eclectic pieces by 20 writers.
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812
	UB’s Community Service Day brings students, alumni, faculty and staff together to lend a helping hand (or 232 helping hands in the case of the 2011 event, when 116 UB community members participated) to local, community-serving organizations. Last year, UB donated 812 volunteer hours to 15 organizations.
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65
The UB School of Law’s Experience in Legal Organization, or EXPLOR, program provides students placement in a legal setting after completion of their first year and is a unique offering among American law schools. Students spend 16 hours per week throughout the summer in internships in both the public and private sectors. More than 65 percent of the 2010 incoming class participated in the program last year.
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7
	The College of Public Affairs’ Master of Public Administration program again passed its reaccreditation process with flying colors, receiving full accreditation—a nod to the continued high quality of the program—for the next seven years from the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration.
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10
	You may think there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but the Office of Alumni Relations’ SavorUB program proves you wrong. Launched in September, it allows current students and alumni to share advice and to network over a free or reduced-price meal at a local restaurant. So far, 10 partner restaurants have agreed to sponsor the program, which has already connected 10 pairs of participants. To participate in SavorUB, contact the Office of Alumni Relations by e-mail or at 410.837.6131.
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10
Last semester, Leadership UB, which started life as the Leadership Certification Program in fall 2001, celebrated 10 years in the business of educating and supporting student leaders. The Rosenberg Center for Student Involvement’s program offers leadership workshops, team-development activities and community service opportunities—all focused on honing students’ leadership and community stewardship skills.
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1,388,170
	In its annual report, Langsdale Library notes that users retrieved 1,388,170 items from the library’s online subscription databases (via 706,382 searches) during fiscal year 2011. Throughout the same time period, users asked 37,587 questions, including those posed to circulation and special collections experts—helped along by the library’s handy Ask a Librarian feature on its website. For more information, read the Library Annual Report.
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1
	We’re No. 1 in safety according to StateUniversity.com, which named the University of Baltimore as Maryland’s safest campus among all the state’s public colleges and universities based on 2010 crime statistics published in an FBI-issued report. Using a scale that takes into account the severity and the frequency of reported crimes (whether violent or not), the website gave UB a rating of 92 out of 100.
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38
	During a marathon, 2,389-mile trip throughout Maryland, M.F.A. in Integrated Design student Jim Lord tasted a crab cake in each of the state’s 23 counties and in Baltimore city—all in the name of research for his book, The Maryland Crab Cake, which he produced as a final project in a Theory of Visual Communication class. Lord, his friends and his family consumed 38 crab cakes along the way.
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10,500
	The UB Food Drive to Benefit the Maryland Food Bank and the Lawyers’ Campaign Against Hunger collected 10,500 canned or nonperishable food items during fall 2011, exceeding its 10,000-item goal. Throughout the semester, UB students, staff, faculty, alumni and friends donated goods at several collection points across campus and made financial gifts online.
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WebExtra: Alumni Profile: Jennifer Morrison, M.S. ’08

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:36:05 +0000

Fisher and Morrison at their wedding reception in the UB Recreation Center

by Emily Brungo

More about Jennifer Morrison, M.S. ’08:

A down side to her job:
Three to four times a year, she travels to sites abroad. Chemonics has taken her to conflict zones like the West Bank, Kosovo and Afghanistan. Afghanistan was particularly difficult, she says. “You’re secluded on the compound. And then when you leave you have to put on the vest, the armor, a helmet. You can’t leave the armored SUV. It’s very isolating.” However, in Kosovo and Israel, she was able to experience the culture. The local staff introduced her to the food, the people, the environment—even their families.

Her guilty pleasure:
Television. From Law & Order: SVU to the Food Network. She particularly loves quirky shows like Pushing Daisies, Dead Like Me and Eureka. “You know—all the shows that are cancelled after one or two seasons.”

How she winds down:
Running, cooking and attending her husband’s performances: He’s a stand-up comic and a regular on D.C.’s storytelling scene.

How she stays healthy:
For mental and physical well-being, a lot of her daily commute is by foot. After work, she eschews public transit for a 2- to 3-mile walk with friends, a short trip on the metro and then another mile home after disembarking the train. “It’s exercise and it’s social!”

Before attending UB:
Morrison was born in South Texas and attended Texas A&M University. When she was little, she had her sights set on being a judge.

Another reason she chose UB:
It was her first experience in urban living—and she loved it: “I like telling people that I survived the ‘dangers’ of Baltimore!”

Realizing Dreams Through Social Good

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:32:12 +0000

Galen (left) and Bridget Sampson, owners of the Dogwood Restaurant in Hampden, blend their business with social enterprise, a concept that a UB course helped to shape. (image credit: Chris Hartlove)

by Paula Novash

Among the fanciful murals that decorate the Dogwood Restaurant in Hampden are a bright blue dog nestling beneath a flowering, purple tree and giant crimson tomatoes that seem to spill off the walls onto diners’ plates. Created with the help of community-based program Rebuilding Through Art, the images are dreamlike.

And dreams, realized, are a large part of what makes the Dogwood so special. Featuring fresh, organic foods locally sourced whenever possible, the restaurant is the fulfillment of a lifelong goal for owner and chef Galen Sampson and his wife and business partner, Bridget.

Through a culinary apprenticeship program, the Sampsons provide training and employment to people who are transitioning from addiction, incarceration and homelessness. It’s a double bottom line: financial and social returns on investment through transformed lives.

image credit: Chris Hartlove

“We’re staking our restaurant business on the hope that people can change,” Galen says.

The apprenticeship program is supported through business revenues and employs seven people for one to two years. In addition to food preparation and kitchen techniques, apprentices learn life skills necessary for success. “When people apply for a job, we want them to have real-world experience to succeed as professionals,” Galen says. “Our employees deal with stress and pressure and learn how to think on their feet and work together.”

The Sampsons are longtime activists in Baltimore. When they met in 2003, Bridget, a writer and university professor, was an Open Society Institute Baltimore Community Fellow teaching a family literacy program at the Women’s Detention Center. “I saw women and their children wanting a better life but lacking practical skills to achieve that,” she recalls.

image credit: Chris Hartlove

Galen, then executive chef at Baltimore’s Harbor Court Hotel, had seen some of his coworkers struggle with poverty, family issues and available transportation to get to and from work. After they met, the couple teamed up on projects such as reading and swimming programs and Christmas tree sales to benefit families in transition—but they wanted to do more.

To help shape their vision, the Sampsons participated in 2007 in UB’s Social Enterprise and Entrepreneurship course, which they had learned about through the Open Society Institute. The class pairs nonprofit organizations with teams of business students to identify needs and goals, conduct financial analysis and market research, and develop viable business plans.

Dream scenes: On any given day at the Dogwood Restaurant, culinary apprentices learn business and life skills while employed full time. (image credit: Chris Hartlove)

“We’ve had many participants with wonderful results, and the Dogwood is one,” says J.C. Weiss, who teaches the course in the Merrick School of Business. Weiss, who came to UB after 30-plus years in banking and venture capital, says that many nonprofit entrepreneurs are passionate about their mission but struggle with the details of creating a workable entity. “We give them organizational help, and the students get experience working with real clients,” Weiss says. “It’s an excellent school-and-community partnership.”

Through the course, UB students helped the Dogwood simplify its original plans to ensure a tenable business model that also provided an intensive and practical training program. “We started out to create a nonprofit but ultimately wound up with a restaurant that could help people—a model that could sustain itself,” Galen says.

As the Dogwood’s apprenticeship program has evolved, it has produced unexpected benefits. “We had not anticipated the support system that has been created among the staff,” Bridget explains. “When people have been through similar experiences, they understand each other.”

Now, Galen and Bridget continue to mentor their former employees as they move on to other jobs.

“Seeing people succeed is very special—better than I could have imagined,” Bridget says. “For us, the journey is the dream.”

Galen was named a CNN Hero in 2008, and the couple and their employees were recently featured in an hourlong Turning Point documentary on PBS.

WebExtra: Meet a Faculty Member: David E. Johnson

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:11:14 +0000

by Giordana Segneri, M.A. ’10

We know that Santa is all about giving; true to form, David E. Johnson, a lecturer in the College of Public Affairs’ School of Criminal Justice who moonlights as Santa during the holiday season, gave us too many great quotes to fit in the print version. But we didn’t think you deserved coal in your stocking, so enjoy them here …

On Santa’s relationship with his “staff”:
“Santa loves the [mall] elves. They’re very deferential to Santa, and they want him to be happy.”

On Santa for adults:
“There are body builders who dress in abbreviated Santa suits—maybe a red Speedo. At Arundel Mills, for example, when it opens at midnight on Black Friday, they have that sexy Santa there from midnight to 7 in the morning. Not for the kiddies … Hunky Santa, that what they call it.”

On Santa’s secrets:
“One of the mall Santa secrets is never to promise anything. Always say, ‘We’ll see; we’ll do the best we can.’ You don’t want to put whoever might be in charge of gift giving in a bad position. Another thing is mall Santas wear baby powder around the neck because it’s soothing to the little ones. I’ve tried it, and it works.”

On changing one’s mind:
“One kid said, ‘I wrote you a letter, but I wanted you to know that you shouldn’t bring the jumbo jet. And I said, ‘Why not?’ He said, ‘Our backyard isn’t big enough.’”

On the absolute best, star-on-top-of-the-tree moments:
“When a child’s afraid or upset, and I’m able to work with the child and help him relax and be happy and have a little fun, that’s always the top-of-the-tree moment for me. To help kids have fun with the visit with Santa is always the best feeling.”

On being Santa to students:
“When I was at Arundel Mills, I had a number of students and former students who saw me. Actually, a number of students have pictures of their children with me.”

On what keeps him coming back:
“I really love being able to instill some hope and joy in children and their families. I get enjoyment from just seeing happy children, and when people come to visit Santa, it’s a happy time. If someone says, ‘I haven’t been very good this year,’ you can say, ‘There’s still time; don’t give up hope.’ I enjoy that interaction. … It’s not just about the pictures; it’s about spreading a little happiness and joy around.”

On accessorizing:
“I have a hat with a 20-inch tassel with a nice fur ball on the top. When I’m at the mall, I take photos with and without the hat. Some people prefer to see the hair and the beard.”

On living the part:
“I’ve had a full beard for nine or 10 years—that’s how I got started. I’ve let my hair get longer because the photographers like it swept back from the face.”

Meet a Faculty Member: David E. Johnson

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:53:30 +0000

Brittany Metzger—1-year-old daughter of former UB employee Nichole Metzger and her husband, Steve—visits David Johnson as Santa at the Santa Experience at the Shops at Kenilworth. (photo courtesy of Nichole Metzger)

by Giordana Segneri, M.A. ’10

Take one look at David Johnson, lecturer in the College of Public Affairs’ School of Criminal Justice, and you can probably guess what he does in his spare time between Thanksgiving and Dec. 24. In fact, he preps year-round for the monthlong gig that keeps him nearly constantly on camera—one, he says, that dovetails nicely with his former 25-year career with the U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services System, from which he retired as chief U.S. probation officer for the U.S. District Court, District of Maryland.

“In a way, being Santa Claus is like being a probation officer,” he says with a jolly twinkle in his eye. “You have people coming to you telling you how good they’ve been—and maybe not being 100 percent truthful.”

Q: How did you get started as a Santa Claus?
A: About three years ago, my wife and I were at … [the] mall, and a young lady came up to me. She said she managed the Santa concession at Arundel Mills mall and needed somebody, and she thought I’d make a good Santa. I said, “Let me think about it.” Well, I did Arundel Mills for a couple of years. … [For this past holiday season,] the photographer who does the Santa Experience at the Shops at Kenilworth saw me and asked if I was interested, and the shops are only about 15 minutes from home. I can still get my Santa fix and teach full time.

Q: Do you own your suit?
A: Yes, the costumes I wear are from California, from Adele’s of Hollywood. She’s been making Santa suits for over 40 years. It’s a big part of her business. I have a couple of crimson suits with a seven-inch, white-fur shawl collar. You always have to have a backup if you’re a mall Santa—you never know what might happen.

Q: What are some of the most memorable wishes you’ve heard?
A: I had a little girl ask for a hippopotamus. I said, “You mean a toy?” And she said, “No, a real one.” I asked how she’d take care of it, and she said they had a swimming pool. Then there was a boy who asked for an official certificate from Santa saying he’d been good that year. … I always have a number of kids who ask for presents for kids whose parents can’t afford to give them something, and I had one little girl who said, “I’d like to have a home”; she said she was homeless. There are the real tear-jerkers: “Can you help me get mom and dad back together?” “Can you please get mom and dad back from overseas for Christmas?”

Q: Do you believe in Santa?
A: Of course! Who do you think brings all those great presents every year? I always wish for everybody: health and happiness and world peace.

Serving Those Who’ve Served

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:43:28 +0000

Peter Fedak, LL.B. ’65, often invites veterans for some R & R at his farm in Western Maryland, where they can fish, swim, hike and even take in a movie at his private theater. (image credit: Chris Hartlove)

by Chris Hart and Cristina-Maria Popescu, M.A. ’11

It starts with just two words: “Welcome home.” In those two words is a wealth of meaning—a return to familiar faces and places, hope for a better future, for a chance to live again. When it comes to the ways that we treat our military veterans—how we serve those who have served—those two words can make a big difference.

For several members of the University of Baltimore community, “welcome home” has a new significance, as veterans of the nation’s conflicts in the young century take their place alongside those who fought in earlier wars. It seems that some lessons have been learned about how veterans should be treated, and those lessons in turn are helping today’s veterans truly get back home.

We talked to several UB alumni and University staff about their contributions to improving the lives of former and current members of the military. Whether on or off campus, in or out of class, it’s the kind gestures and human touches that seem to matter most.

PETER FEDAK, LL.B. ’65
Willing to make the ultimate sacrifice: Peter Fedak, LL.B. ’65, knows that this is the right way to describe a soldier in a war zone. But this attorney and mentor recognizes that it’s also a good way to describe what people do in everyday life. Whether it’s the busy father who gives up evenings with his kids to pursue a college degree or the single mother who takes on a second job to pay for classes, a sacrifice is made. For Fedak, the acknowledgment of that sacrifice is what’s important. It’s why he started a scholarship for UB law students who’ve served in Iraq or Afghanistan and why he strives to inspire others to step up and give their all.

Fedak, a Navy veteran, says that many returning vets face having to restart their lives completely. For some, lacking adequate financial resources for college may be just one of a host of issues they encounter. Long-term physical therapy, rocky relationships, friends lost in war—all of it takes a toll on a veteran. Opportunities like law school may lose their appeal, and passionate, talented legal minds may be, well, sacrificed.

“I hate to see a potentially great attorney not get to go to law school—it’s a waste,” Fedak says. “I’m glad to help them. Here they are, coming back from their service, starting out in law school. We need these people.”

The Rockville, Md.-based lawyer built a strong personal-injury practice after his years in the military, which included a stint in the White House during the Eisenhower administration and later as a special agent in naval intelligence. Fedak transferred to UB after completing two years of law school at Georgetown University—and he hasn’t forgotten the hardships of those times.

“I was newly married, working and going to school at night,” he recalls. “I see the same thing with young men and women wrapping up their military service today. They deserve our help.”

Nowadays, Fedak mentors up-and-coming lawyers, especially those who once wore a military uniform. On his wheelchair-accessible farm near Camp David in Thurmont, Md., he also hosts veterans for some much-needed rest and relaxation. The farm gives them a chance to get out of the city and to think about what awaits them in life.

Boosting the self-confidence and job-interviewing skills of veterans is a specialty for Jessi LaCosta, M.A. ’97, who has devoted part of her consulting business to this important task. (image credit: Rob Andrew)

JESSI LaCOSTA, M.A. ’97
Coaching veterans who are readjusting to civilian life and helping them land new jobs or start their own businesses: Jessi LaCosta, M.A. ’97, describes this as a “rewarding, challenging, inspiring, energizing” part of her daily interactions with veterans. Hawk Veteran Solutions, an arm of LaCosta’s BlueRio Strategies consulting firm, pairs her expertise in coaching and personal branding with veterans’ desire to leverage military service when searching for a new career.

Based in San Diego, Calif., LaCosta works with former service members in all stages of their careers. Some served for nearly half their lives while others are barely into their 20s. Many, she says, share a common challenge: They “talk about how they proudly served the mission. … But in doing that they did not always have the chance to design their own missions—a personal life calling,” she says.

That’s where her plan to launch an online program to certify professionals as “military transition coaches” comes in. She envisions “a cadre of well-trained, strategic and yet compassionate experts” who assist veterans.

LaCosta is gaining insight from employers who could potentially change vets’ lives; her job also entails providing support for managers and small-business owners who want to work with veterans: “I call it helping both sides of the house—helping the transitioning veteran and helping those who hire the veteran.”

The help is often necessary: “To know and believe that the veteran is capable … and yet for some, the timing is off, the interview does not go well or the job offer was made far below the salary needed. … It can be painful to see someone who has served our country feel ignored by the community she or he served,” she says.

But with LaCosta’s coaching, her clients show significant gains—specifically, improved confidence and a recapturing of the skills, talents and values they had before they entered the military as well as what they developed while they served.

LaCosta says that if you’re in a position to hire a veteran, you should. They are “incredibly dependable” with “great leadership capabilities” and a sense of loyalty that she calls “intense.” As she points out, they made it their business to save lives, and some of them were in charge of millions of dollars’ worth of equipment and technology.

“The talents and answers are inside the veterans; we just facilitate the uncovering of them—the unveiling of who they get to become in the next chapters of their lives,” LaCosta says.

Bart Stringham, J.D. ’81, helps injured vets by teaching them how to play guitar—a way for them to relax and clear their minds while they recover. (image credit: Chris Hartlove)

BART STRINGHAM, J.D. ’81
Can music truly heal? Bart Stringham, J.D. ’81, is convinced it can. The Washington, D.C.-based attorney who serves as senior vice president and corporate counsel for the National Association of Broadcasters also plays guitar professionally on the side. He believes that wounded veterans can benefit from the fine motor skills required to fashion chords and strum the strings of a guitar as well as from the human interaction that goes along with it. Whether they learn to play well doesn’t matter much to him. It’s the healing that counts.

Stringham says he was watching the news in 2003 when it occurred to him that his love of guitar could serve others’ pressing needs. “I saw a story on returning U.S. soldiers wounded in battles in Iraq and other places,” he says. “It showed them at Walter Reed Hospital—going to the gym, playing pool, reading, hanging out, etc., while recovering from injury. When I saw that they had time on their hands, I knew that some of them would be interested in learning to play guitar.”

It took a while for Stringham to find the right person at Walter Reed Army Medical Center to help him get the practice space and promote his availability for teaching guitar, but once he overcame that hurdle, he began to make musical connections with injured vets.

“I would head to Walter Reed for one evening every week, or every other week,” he says. “After working all day, sometimes I would not be too energetic about giving guitar lessons. But once I got there, I was always glad I made the trip, even if it was just meeting with one interested soldier for a short while.”

Sometimes, a soldier would show up for only one class. Sometimes, he’d get no takers at all. But Stringham never became discouraged because, as he says, “Anyone recovering from a traumatic injury has a lot going on. Playing some guitar now and then would only be a small part of recovery.”

In 2011, Walter Reed closed its doors in Washington and merged with the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., to become the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Now Stringham is considering volunteering again there.

“I could see working at the new Walter Reed facility,” he says. “They only recently have made the transition, so once they are settled, I will probably get in touch about resuming guitar lessons.”

His reasons for going back are personal: “I had many experiences I will never forget,” he says. “One was giving lessons to a soldier named Heath Calhoun. Heath had lost both legs in battle, but this did not dampen his enthusiasm for learning to play guitar. He was a joy to teach. Heath went on to become a leading athlete, counselor and advocate for injured veterans. Heath qualified to represent the United States as a member of the 2010 U.S. Paralympic Ski Team, and last I heard was training for the 2014 games.

“Another student, John Garrard, was fairly reserved during the lessons we had together, so I was not sure whether he was enjoying them or not. Years later, John reached out to me and told me how important getting together and having those lessons were to him. He gave me one of his medals. I was just unbelievably touched when that happened.”

Some injured veterans need specially built living spaces as they re-enter civilian life, and Karen Colvin, B.A. ’95, sees her fully accessible home as a way for them to reach that goal. (image credit: Chris Hartlove)

KAREN COLVIN, B.A. ’95
What do you do with something you no longer need? Give it away? Sell it? Trash it? When Karen Colvin, B.A. ’95, and her husband, John, decided to move from their uniquely designed home in Owings Mills, Md., they knew exactly what to do with it: Put it in the hands of someone with special needs—specifically, a disabled veteran and his or her family.

Recently retired from teaching sociology at UB, Colvin has used a wheelchair since she was injured in a car accident about 25 years ago. She and John, a builder and developer, custom-designed their ranch house; its wheelchair lift, ramps, counters and other amenities are a model for creating a house that is completely accessible, so much so that it received the governor’s Barrier-Free Design Award in 1983. Now, as the couple enters the next phase of their lives, the house where they raised their children has become a solution waiting to happen.

“We’ve been very blessed, and now we want to see somebody who needs a house like this move in and take comfort in it,” Colvin says. “There are many injured veterans who could use it, and we’re working to make that happen.”

The Colvins’ goal is to find a family through a veterans’ organization with expertise in supporting injured soldiers recuperating in nonclinical settings. Through groups like the Wounded in Action Family Foundation, the couple is making the case that a devastating war injury shouldn’t have a ripple effect that could destabilize a soldier’s house, family, school or job.

“Our house can be a home for a family with special needs,” Colvin says. “There are so many soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan with serious injuries and no accommodating place for them to heal and then get back to living.”

Good ideas and good intentions can take time, but the Colvins are persistent. “There have been some stumbling blocks, but we’re working on them as we go,” Colvin says. “If we do it right, I can see this becoming a program that expands across the country. There are so many homes … that could be easily adapted for accessibility.”

UB SUPPORTS ITS VETERANS
With input from students, faculty and staff members who are veterans or currently serving in the military, the University is taking steps to recognize and support this distinct community. It is ensuring that vets know about the range of services available to them at UB, such as financial aid, scholarships and counseling.

The University named last November as “Recognize a UB Vet” month: banners, signed by members of the UB community, thanking veterans for their service hung in three prominent spots. President Robert L. Bogomolny sent a letter of appreciation to veterans in the UB community whom the University has been able to identify—roughly 300, at last count—and included special lapel pins that recognized their status as UB Vets. University community members conducted “guerilla readings” of vets’ letters, poems and narratives throughout the month. Finally, the campus marked Veterans Day itself with a solemn ceremony at the University’s flagpole on Gordon Plaza.

For Bogomolny, these activities, and those to come, are an opportunity. “It’s important for UB to support our veterans any way we can, including honoring their service,” he says. “Their presence on our campus contributes to one of our core strengths at this University: the diversity of our campus population. Just as the G.I. Bill transformed higher education after World War II and established our country as a global leader for learning and prosperity, we can do the same thing today by committing ourselves to our veterans. UB is exactly the kind of institution to take on that job.”

No matter what our job is, a warm welcome doesn’t always await us when we arrive home. And sometimes we don’t know how to respond when a friendly hand is offered. But with the kind of effort made by UB alumni, faculty and staff, the feeling of returning to the familiar, of accepting help when it’s waiting there, can become commonplace. For the soldier, the one who braved the unbearable and got back alive, finding home may be enough. At the very least, it’s a start.

Alumni Profile: Jennifer Morrison, M.S. ʼ08

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:13:31 +0000

image credit: Nichol Jones

From UB to Afghanistan, an alumna makes lives healthier and happier—one person
at a time.

by Emily Brungo

From a very young age, Jennifer Morrison, M.S. ’08, was concerned with the well-being of others. At just 5 years old, she made an agreement with her father that if he quit smoking, she would run with him every day. Today, Jennifer still enjoys running—and her father has never smoked again.

So it’s no surprise that in 2007, as a graduate student, she founded UB’s Wellness Center. As part of the larger facility now known as Campus Recreation and Wellness, the center provides programs that promote physical, social, environmental, emotional, intellectual and spiritual health—including an anti-smoking plan.

It was through her work at the center that she met her future husband (and UB’s assistant director of intramurals and sports clubs), Dustin Fisher. Though they were acquaintances while she attended UB, it wasn’t until she and Dustin reconnected at an alumni happy hour that sparks flew. In May 2011, she returned to the gym once again for their wedding reception. “We could’ve had [it] anywhere,” she says. “However, the gym is symbolic to us—it connected our lives.”

Before she arrived at UB, Morrison worked with the Peace Corps in Nicaragua, where she noticed that the aid efforts of other organizations sometimes devolved into mere handouts. “In some ways, [they] did more harm than good,” she says, attributing the problem to a lack of communication between organizations and volunteers. Morrison saw the need for more thoughtful and structured communication and hoped an eventual M.S. in Negotiations and Conflict Management would help her facilitate that change.

Now, as the employee relations manager at Washington, D.C.-based Chemonics International, she leads the Staff Care program, which assists employees working in war zones abroad. The program provides resiliency training, monitors the mental well-being of Chemonics’ workforce and assists with the organizational effectiveness of the company’s projects with the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Morrison is also involved in crisis management. Her most trying moment came after a bombing wounded and killed numerous members of Chemonics’ Afghan staff, and she had to attend to the needs of the team members there, those at the home office and the families of those killed. “There was a lot of emotion,” Morrison says, and she admits that she is not unaffected. “It can be hard to always separate work from home.”

But ultimately her job is worth it, she says. “It’s great to have someone come to me crying but leave smiling—whether through me listening or addressing simple needs like good food and water. I guess it’s sort of like raising kids—we’re all scared, mad, tired, hungry—but at the end of the day, if I’ve made someone’s life just a little better, it’s really rewarding.”

President’s Page

Cristina Popescu — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 17:46:18 +0000

Dear UB Alumni and Friends,

By now you are aware of the overwhelming success of Uniquely UB: The Campaign for the University of Baltimore. The campaign exceeded its $40 million goal by more than $5 million, making it by far the most successful fundraising campaign in University of Baltimore history. Of course, the campaign success is really your success: The generosity of UB’s alumni and supporters has made this record-setting effort possible. On behalf of UB’s students, faculty and staff, I extend my personal thanks to the 11,000-plus donors who contributed to Uniquely UB.

The close of the campaign will inevitably lead to planning for the next one, but it’s also a chance to reflect on why we give. I’m sure there is no single answer. Some donors give to express gratitude for what UB has provided them. Others give in recognition of the University’s successful past and its bright future. Still others believe strongly in UB’s mission to teach students who may not be well served elsewhere. It may be all of these reasons and more.

The decision to give is ultimately a personal choice, informed by our values and by our experiences. My connection to UB and to the campaign is rooted in my own educational journey. When I was 16 and just beginning to think about college, my father died. He ran the family business, and so his passing could have significantly delayed—or even ended—my college dreams.

Instead, my brother Richard—three and a half years older than I and completing his sophomore year at Harvard—dropped out to take over the family business with our mother. While I went on to college, Richard kept the business going, paid the bills and completed his undergraduate education. He later attended law school at night, something that may resonate strongly with many UB graduates. Richard’s commitment was a reflection of our family’s values and is why I made my gift to Uniquely UB in honor of our parents, the children of immigrants who instilled in us the enduring value and importance of education.

I don’t know what would have happened to me without my brother’s generosity and ethic. What I do know is that not everyone is as fortunate as I was. I also know that University of Baltimore Foundation scholarships provide more than 1,000 UB students with the same type of opportunity that my brother provided me, and I am certain they’re equally grateful.

Uniquely UB is an anthology of more than 11,000 such stories, making this an aptly named campaign. Your story and support inspire all of us to continue to make the University of Baltimore the truly unique place it is.

Thank you again.

Robert L. Bogomolny
President, University of Baltimore

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From UB to Afghanistan, an alumna makes lives healthier and happier—one person at a time.

President’s Page

From UB to Afghanistan, an alumna makes lives healthier and happier—one person
at a time.