Class notes

1962

Thomas Campbell Butler, A&S '62, BSPH '75 (MS), retired from Ross University in 2022 as professor of microbiology. He wrote a memoir about his clinical research with plague patients in Vietnam in the 1970s. Titled Trials and Triumphs of a Plague Doctor, it was published in February.

Cornelius "Neal" Grove, A&S '63, '64, (MAT), authored Misaligned Minds: How Cultural Differences Complicate Teaching, a practical application of education ethnology on a global scale. The book is geared to American classroom teachers and global corporate trainers at all levels, from early childhood to PhD. It includes 76 true stories of misaligned minds in educational settings around the world. The book will be published by Bloomsbury in 2026.

1974

Roger Barth, A&S '74, '77 (PhD), retired in 2021 after 36 years on the faculty of West Chester University in West Chester, Pennsylvania. He co-authored the second edition of the textbook Mastering Brewing Science: Quality and Production, published in April by Wiley. He also wrote the second edition of The Chemistry of Beer: The Science in the Suds, published by Wiley in August 2022. He is the author of three other books.

1975

Cynthia Norman Carbo, Nurs '75, Professional Studies '83 (MS), is a nurse in the Johns Hopkins Technology Transfer and an instructor of nursing at the Johns Hopkins University School. of Nursing. She received the 2025 Church Home & Hospital Distinguished Alumni Award in recognition of her distinguished nursing career.

William Herbert Miller, A&S '75 (PhD), is the retired founder, chairman, and chief investment officer of Miller Value Partners. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society, which was founded by Benjamin Franklin and is the oldest learned society in North America, in recognition of his accomplishments and his distinguished work in his field.

1982

Sydney S. Yoon, A&S '82, is co-section chief of Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology at Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside, New York, and assistant professor in the Department of Diagnostic, Molecular and Interventional Radiology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. He is also vice president of the alumni council of the Medical & Biological Sciences Alumni Association of the University of Chicago.

1983

Apurba Kundu, SAIS '83 (DIP), '84 (MA), retired in August 2024 from Anglia Ruskin University and the University of Bradford. He also taught at Chatham University and the European Institute for Asian Studies and served as editor of Contemporary South Asia. He lives in Cambridge, England.

**George Yatchisin, A&S '83, '84 (MA), is poet laureate of Santa Barbara, California. His tenure runs until 2027. His poetry has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies and is collected in his books Feast Days (CreateSpace, 2016) and The First Night We Thought the World Would End (Brandenburg Press, 2019). He retired from his position as director of communications for the University of California Santa Barbara's Gevirtz Graduate School of Education in 2023.

1989

Jeffrey A. Koncius, A&S '89, is partner at Kiesel Law, where he represents plaintiffs in national consumer class action lawsuits in a variety of matters. He is president of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and serves on the Merit Selection Panel for the Central District of California. He also lectures on lawyers' use of artificial intelligence and its pitfalls.

1990

Kelli Garber, Nurs '90, is associate professor and director of the DNP Advanced Practice Program in the Ellmer School of Nursing at Old Dominion University. She was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing in 2024 as a fellow.

1993

Andrew Ackerman, A&S '93, is an author and adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at New York University's Syms School of Business. His novel, The Entrepreneur's Odyssey, was published by Routledge Press in May. He described it as an "un-textbook of everything founders need to do to take an idea to funded startup." He has been a management consultant, founded two startups, and invested in more than 70.

Mark Hsu, A&S '93, is partner-in-charge of Hawkins Parnell & Young's New York City office. A litigator for more than two decades, he represents clients in product liability, toxic tort cases, commercial disputes, wage/hour and employment matters, and insurance coverage litigation. Additionally, Hsu serves as outside general counsel for a number of startup companies.

1996

Clara M. Gona, Nurs '96, is associate professor at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Institute of Health Professions, School of Nursing, where she teaches in the Advanced Practice program. She also is a Nurse Faculty Scholar at the MGH Munn Center for Nursing Research, where she works to enhance the cardiovascular health of African immigrant populations, among other research projects. She was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing in 2024 as a fellow.

1997

Elaine Chang, Ed '97 (MS), '00 (Cert), is director of partnerships for Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools. She was recognized as one of the top 50 women leaders in Maryland by Women We Admire, a professional women's network.

Dontae Winslow, Peab '97, '99 (MM), is a composer, arranger, music producer, and trumpeter. He was a guest artist on "Met Gala," the new single from Los Angeles–based composer/ producer JimiJames$.

1998

Danielle C. Ompad, BSPH '98 (MHS), '02 (PhD), is professor of epidemiology, deputy director of the Center for Drug Use and HIV Research, and faculty facilitator of the Urban Epidemiology Lab at New York University's School of Global Public Health. She recently completed a fellowship in the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine program.

Tim Wendel, A&S '98 (MA), is a lecturer and writer whose novel Rebel Falls (Three Hills, 2024) won the W.Y. Boyd Literary Award from the American Library Association. The award is presented annually to the best novel set when the United States was at war. He is the author of 13 additional books.

2000

Konstantin Steshenko, A&S '00, is an author who published the first book in his young readers graphic novel series, We're All Gonna Die-nosaur!, in April. The second book in the series, published by Disney Hyperion, is slated to be released this fall. He writes under the pen name Kon Tan.

2002

Charbel J. Barakat, A&S '02, is corporate vice president and counsel for public policy at D.R. Horton, America's largest homebuilder. He also was appointed to the board of trustees of the University of South Florida by Governor Ron DeSantis.

Judith Leitch, A&S '02, a book reviewer for Kirkus Reviews, reported that her partner, Laura Murray, graduated from the Peabody Conservatory in 2024.

Jacob Yoffee, Peab '02, '04 (GPD), is a composer whose work with his Th3rdstream creative partner Roahn Hylton appears on the scores of Whitney Houston in Focus on Starz and We Are Guardians, a documentary about protecting the Amazon rainforest and its Indigenous communities. His work for a Thule commercial was performed by a studio ensemble that included Russell Kirk, Peab '05.

2004

David Snipes, Ed '04 (MS), is a private practitioner whose Clover Hill Counseling is located in Frederick, Maryland. Previously, he provided acute psychiatric crisis services to Frederick County through Sheppard Pratt's Mobile Crisis Unit.

2006

Kunal Agarwal, A&S '06, is the medical director of TidalHealth Sleep Medicine – Eastern Sussex County, in Lewes, Delaware. He also practices primary care, sleep, and obesity medicine. He has a podcast that can be found on Facebook and was featured on a segment of Delmarva Life on WBOC-TV about the importance of sleep.

Charles Alwakeel, A&S '06, is the founder of Red Flux Architecture, a New York City–based architecture, planning, and development consulting firm specializing in complex zoning and feasibility matters. He was named Development Consultant of the Year at the 2025 RED Commercial Real Estate Awards.

Kate Guzman, Nurs '06, is public health administrator in the Oakland County (Michigan) County Health Division. She oversees the division's nearly 350 employees while advancing the county's goal to protect and improve the health of its residents.

Caki Wilkinson, A&S '06 (MFA), holds the Connie Abston Chair in Literature and is a professor of English and director of creative writing at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. She received the Clarence Day Award for Outstanding Research and Creative Activity at Rhodes' annual awards convocation, where major scholarly or creative contributions are recognized. Her poetry has appeared in The Atlantic, The Nation, The Kenyon Review, and The New Yorker. She has authored three volumes of poetry: Circles Where the Heads Should Be (University of North Texas Press, 2012), The Wynona Stone Poems (Persea, 2014), and The Survival Expo (Persea, 2021). She also teaches in the Sewanee Writers Program, one of the most prestigious summer writing workshops in the country.

2007

Laurie A. Saletnik, Nurs '07 (MSN), '08 (DNP), is vice president, CNO Perioperative Services for the Johns Hopkins Health System. In 2024, she was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing as a fellow.

2008

Tanyaneka Lipscomb, Ed '08 (Cert), is principal of Wildwood Elementary/Middle School in Baltimore. In May, she received a Heart of the School Award presented by the Fund for Educational Excellence.

Finbarr Malafronte, Peab '08, '09 (MM), is a guitarist whose second solo album, In Modo Polonico, was released by Dux Records in May. It features 25 guitar works by Polish-French composer Alexandre Tansman.

Ashanti Porter, Ed '08 (MAT), is principal of Leith Walk Elementary/Middle School in Baltimore. In May, she was honored with a Heart of the School Award presented by the Fund for Educational Excellence.

2009

Darrin Brozene, Ed '09 (MAT), is principal of Baltimore Design School. In May, he was presented with a Heart of the School Award by the Fund for Educational Excellence.

Mohan B. Dangi, Engr '09 (PhD), is a professor in the Department of Geography and City and Regional Planning at California State University in Fresno. He received the 2025 Steven K. Dentel AEESP Award for Global Outreach from the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors at their national conference at Duke University in May. He was recognized for outstanding faculty contributions and leadership outreach activities. He also was a Fulbright Specialist Award winner in 2017–18.

Chelsey Green, Peab '09 (MM), is associate professor of strings at Berklee College of Music in Boston. She recently was elected chair of the board of trustees for the Recording Academy, the first Black woman and youngest person ever to hold the post. She also serves on the boards of the Latin Recording Academy, the GRAMMY Museum, and Musi-Cares.

2011

Caitlyn Brady-Brooks, Ed '11 (MAT), is principal at Moravia Park Elementary School in Baltimore. She was honored with a Heart of the School Award presented by the Fund for Educational Excellence in May.

2012

Laura Wood, Nurs '12 (DNP), is executive vice president of patient care operations and system chief nurse executive, and she holds the Sporing Carpenter Chair for Nursing at Boston Children's Hospital. She was inducted into the West Virginia University Academy of Distinguished Alumni. She also received Distinguished Alumna awards from Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. She is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Executive Nurse Fellow alumna and an elected fellow of the American Academy of Nursing.

2013

Cinthya Guadalupe White, A&S '13, and her husband, Andrew White, have a son, James Garcia White, born on March 5, 2025.

2014

Jen Maylack, A&S '14, is a writer, documentary filmmaker, and film and television producer based in New York City. She produced the docuseries The Price of Milk, which explores the battle behind the 1990s "Got Milk" campaign. The docuseries' world premiere was at the Tribeca Film Festival in June.

Stephen Skeen, Ed '14 (MS), is principal at Mount Royal Elementary/Middle School in Baltimore. He received a Heart of the School Award, presented by the Fund for Educational Excellence in May.

2015

Natalia Barolin, Nurs '15, is senior health policy adviser at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, where she leads initiatives that advance health system reform, equity, and community-based care, including the innovative Neighborhood Nursing model. She received the 2025 Outstanding Policy Influencer Award from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing for her leadership in health policy and advocacy at the local, regional, and national levels.

Chelsea Samms, Nurs '15, is perinatal clinical professional development educator at Northwell Health, the largest health system in the state of New York. In her position, she leads high-acuity clinical training and supports new nurses. She continues to practice as a NICU nurse and is the founder of I Know Newborns, which focuses on community education to reduce Black infant mortality and inspire the next generation of nurses. She received the 2025 Outstanding Nurse Educator Award from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing for her dedication, innovation, and leadership in nursing education.

2018

Rebecca R.S. Clark, Nurs '18 (PhD), is assistant professor in the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, a core faculty member in the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, a nurse scientist at Pennsylvania Hospital, and a senior fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania. In 2024, she was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing as a fellow.

Joy Guidry, Peab '18, is a composer and bassoonist. Her third album, Five Prayers, was released by Jaid Records in May. She performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the summer.

Melissa D. Hladek, Nurs '18 (PhD), is a nurse practitioner at the Esperanza Center in Baltimore and an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at Johns Hopkins University. She was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing as a fellow in 2024.

Roberto Roman Laporte, Nurs '18 (DNP), is co-founder and chief innovation officer of VitalBridge Health, a primary care practice in Palm Beach, Florida, that provides innovative treatment at an affordable rate for marginalized, uninsured, and underserved communities in south Florida. A former Jonas Scholar, he is a nurse leader, educator, and researcher whose work advanced evidence-based practice, nursing education, and health equity. He received the 2025 Outstanding Nurse Researcher Award from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

Kathleen A. Schachman, Nurs '18 (PMC), is an endowed professor of nursing at Saginaw Valley State University in Bay City, Michigan, and a psychiatric nurse practitioner at Recovery Pathways. She was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing as a fellow in 2024.

2020

Christina Wong, BSPH '20 (MAAS), is a principal at Munn Advisors, which provides consulting and advisory services, specializing in population health and health administration. She earned a Doctor of Health Science degree in population health from the College of Population Health at Thomas Jefferson University in fall 2024.

2021

Michael Benson, A&S '21 (MLA), is the 27th president of West Virginia University. He was previously president and professor of history at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, South Carolina.

2025

Sophia Sorrentino, Peab '25 (MM), is a vocal performer and musician. She recently collaborated with composer and DMA candidate Young-Jun Lee on "MYBSTMM," which received first prize in the composition category at the 16th Amigdala International Music Competition in Italy. The piece was based on a letter that Sorrentino wrote to her mother when she was a child.