At this year’s Fordham Women’s Summit, to be held Wednesday, Oct. 18, at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus in Manhattan, four alumni in the fashion industry will share how companies are looking to implement innovative practices to curb their environmental impact.

Barbara Porco, Ph.D., professor of accounting and head of Fordham’s Responsible Business Center, will moderate the panel, which will feature the following Fordham graduates:

• Stacey Ferrara, GABELLI ’10, director of strategic initiatives and operations at the Estée Lauder Companies
• Claudia Rondinelli, FCLC ’91, head of global materials: leather and trims at Ralph Lauren
• Georgeanne Siller, GABELLI ’17, assistant buyer, women’s apparel at Macy’s Inc.

Beyond Fashion: Sustainability Across Industries

This year’s women’s summit—“Beyond Green: Investing in a More Sustainable World”—is inspired in part by the University’s environmental action plan and aims to highlight how Fordham women are helping to lead charge across many industries. Speakers will share ideas for how everyone can take bold action in their own lives to live more sustainably.

Jeannette Ferran Astorga, GABELLI ’96, executive vice president of corporate affairs, communications, and sustainability at Zoetis Inc., will deliver the keynote address. She’ll share how her values-driven career started at Fordham and has led her to Zoetis, a global animal health company. In addition to setting long-range environmental and social impact goals for the company, she started the Zoetis Foundation, which aims to advance opportunities for veterinarians and farmers, including those in sub-Saharan Africa.

The day will also feature a conversation on how the food, wine, and other products we consume affect us, and how we can become better consumers for our own benefit and the health of the planet. Other sessions include a look into environmental research happening at Fordham and a discussion of the ways Fordham is taking action to support our common home and inspire change in its communities.

Learn more about the Women’s Summit and register at fordham.edu/womenssummit.

“Dr. Porco told me that she loves accounting because there’s always a right answer—it’s the only discipline in business that has an answer that you can get to at the end of the day,” Dougherty said, adding that that’s what drew him to the field.

With Porco’s help, Dougherty threw himself into accounting, getting his undergraduate degree in December 2021, followed by his master’s in professional taxation in May 2022—fully completing two degrees in four years.

Dougherty, who’s originally from right outside Philadelphia, said he was able to make it happen thanks to some pre-college credits, summer courses, and relationships with faculty like Porco and the dean’s office. He was able to take five master-level courses as an undergraduate student, which enabled him to have just one full-time semester as a graduate student.

For Dougherty, juggling a lot of work has always been a part of his life. He worked three jobs in high school, including as a janitor at his school, to save up some spending money for college, and continued working at Fordham as Ram Van driver in addition to his internships.

Once he decided he wanted to pursue accounting, this desire to do as much as possible carried over to his academics.

“The faculty have always been great, and willing to work with me,” he said. “I think I drove some of them up a wall at times—I was asking for a lot—but they were really helpful and they were totally understanding that [getting these degrees]was something that I wanted to do.”

Porco said Dougherty’s success is due in part to his clear vision.

“Planning is key—students need to have the plan, and the earlier you have that vision, then you have more capacity to be supported and guided,” she said. “I had him first semester sophomore year. I had some guest speakers. He was inspired by some of the things that he was learning. I was launching a ‘wintership’ program. [A winter internship program which Porco defined as “a win for the firms, and a win for students.”]  And he was one of my first participants in the program—all of that early planning is part of what I think creates the success.”

Porco emphasized that Dougherty’s confidence and consideration of others played a role in his achievements.

“He’s a strategic thinker, he is mature, responsible, articulate, amiable—very considerate of others, very eager to help other people,” she said. ”He’s assertive, he’s confident, but there’s a humility there, and I think it’s a striking balance.”

As part of the winternship program, Dougherty worked at KPMG as a student. He also completed internships at Ernst and Young and Buchbinder Tunick.

“I was working full-time at KPMG, and I was able to take a full semester worth of classes, so that was a really cool opportunity that not many students get—it’s kind of a unique situation to Fordham because we’re in New York City,” he said.

Because of his dedication to his schoolwork and internships, Dougherty, who just finished his CPA exam, will be starting a full-time role as an associate at KPMG in their mergers and acquisitions tax department in November. Before that, he’s squeezing in one more internship this summer at CBS with their Paramount Global division in their tax accounting department.

As much as he loves New York, Dougherty also credits Fordham’s Global Outreach program to Kolkata, India, with expanding his perspective and contributing to his success. Dougherty said that he came across the Global Outreach table at the club fair and talked with students there about the trip next semester to India.

“Global Outreach was probably my favorite experience in my four years of Fordham,” he said. “I was the only one that was a freshman, and it was an experience especially outside of my comfort zone. It was just a really powerful experience.”

Dougherty said some of the most vivid memories from the trip included a visit to the Mother House of the Missionaries of Charity to learn about Mother Teresa’s work and her impact in the area. The group also spent time with college students from India.

“We got to meet students at a university in India—St. Xavier’s, Kolkata—and that was a really cool part of my Fordham experience, meeting people who are in my same position, just on the other side of the world,” he said.

Dougherty said that the trip allowed him to see things from a different, more global perspective, something that he put into his work at Fordham.

In addition, Dougherty said he felt connected to the Gabelli School’s “business with a purpose” mantra, something he was able to put into action through a former club called Social Innovation 360, which encouraged first-year students to start a business and approach business problems creatively.

“It was to encourage social innovation and try to promote more sustainable versions of business,” he said”

Dougherty said he plans to carry that mission with him as he moves forward in his career, along with a message he took from Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, and the William J. Loschert Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship at the Gabelli School of Business, Professor Benjamin Cole, whom Dougherty took two classes with, including a blockchain course his senior year.

“Father McShane always tells students that they’re going to leave Fordham bothered by the injustice of the world and determined to fix it,” he said. “I’ve kind of experienced that same thing with being in [Cole’s] class. He challenges you to think about the broader implications of things—it’s not just about, ‘how can I make money?’ but also, ‘what’s really going on in this crazy world that we live in?’”

The new course, titled Sustainability Reporting and SASB Standards, allows students to learn Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) principles through case studies, data sets, guest speakers, and other resources. The students will be prepared to take the Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting (FSA) Level 1 certification exam at the end of the course.

“Sustainability disclosures are the future of reporting information,” said Barbara Porco, Ph.D., clinical professor and associate dean of graduate studies at the Gabelli School of Business, who is an instructor for the course. “We’re preparing students for the future.”

Sustainability accounting refers to how a company’s social and environmental impacts are measured, analyzed, and reported. Porco said that interest in sustainability reporting increased exponentially after Larry Fink, the founder, chairman, and CEO of BlackRock, wrote in his annual letter to shareholders in 2018 that companies should state their purpose and how their work contributes to society.

The Ability to Drive Value

The course, created in collaboration with the Value Reporting Foundation, highlights the connection between financial sustainability reporting and a business’s ability to drive value.

SASB standards are considered to be at the forefront of sustainability reporting. Through the course, students learn how sustainability issues can impact a company’s value and how to integrate data on environmental, social, and governance issues into reports, corporate strategy, and investment analysis.

“There is a huge demand for skill sets in the [ESG] area, and I believe our students are going to be uniquely qualified when they get to the marketplace because they have been so deeply engaged with these standards,” said Timothy Hedley, Ph.D., one of the instructors of the course and an Executive in Residence at Fordham University.

‘A New Dialect’

The standards have their roots in the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, which was founded in 2011 by Jean Rogers, an engineer and former Loeb Fellow at Harvard University, as a way to help businesses and investors develop a common language about the financial impacts of sustainability. The organization merged with the International Integrated Reporting Council to create the Value Reporting Foundation in summer 2021, but its standards still remain. SASB standards aim to help businesses “identify, manage, and communicate financially-material sustainability information to their investors.”

Porco said that sustainable reporting is essential to the future of business.

“I’m in a position where I’m able to give the students not only what they want, but what they need,” she said. “This is the language of business, but it’s a new dialect. And everybody’s got to learn how to speak it and understand it or you’re going to be behind.”

The course–which was first offered last semester–features five graduate students that help lead a class of 15 undergraduate students, according to Porco. She said that she intentionally kept the class size small to help facilitate learning. While the course is listed under accounting, Porco stressed that it’s not a traditional accounting course.

“The course is in sustainability disclosures and SASB standards—there are students in this course who are not accounting majors,” she said.

A Prestigious Certification

The students will also have the opportunity to walk away with a globally recognized certification, although sitting for the certification exam is not required to pass the course.

“They will also be positioned to take the FSA Level 1 exam and Fordham will be sponsoring them to do so. That is a globally recognized certification—there’s only 3,000 people in the world that have FSA Level 1 certification,” she said. “I would think that probably within the next five years that’s going to go into the hundreds of thousands.”

She said that she would love for at least half of the students enrolled to pursue the extra certification.

This curriculum is the latest addition to the Gabelli School’s impressive range of academic offerings on sustainability, including a sustainability reporting track for accounting majors, a sustainability accounting minor, and embedded sustainability content throughout the school’s core courses.

In addition to providing these skills to Fordham students, in February 2022, the Gabelli School launched three new open enrollment programs in ESG literacy for professionals outside of Fordham: an ESG Bootcamp, as well as FSA Level 1 and Level 2 training. All offerings are eligible for Continuing Professional Education credits.

“It’s part of our mission. We not only educate our students holistically, but students need to understand organizations holistically, cura negotium,” she said, using a Latin phrase meaning to “care for the whole of business” which is related to Fordham’s value of cura personalis, or “care for the whole person.”

“[This is knowledge they need] to be the future responsible business leaders.”

ASIF SIDDIQI
50 Years Ago, a Forgotten Mission Landed on Mars
Discover Magazine 12-1-21
“The Soviet space program was under a lot of pressure in the 1960s to achieve ‘firsts,’” says Asif Siddiqi, a Fordham University history professor who’s penned multiple books on the Soviet side of the space race.

CHERYL BADER
Rittenhouse Verdict Sparks Split Reactions, Fears of Vigilantism
Bloomberg.com 11-19-21
“I am afraid that as people are empowered by this verdict to weaponize the public spaces, we will see more fatalities,” said Cheryl Bader, a former assistant U.S. attorney and associate clinical professor at Fordham University School of Law.

ZEPHYR TEACHOUT
‘I Want to Be a 21st-Century Trustbuster’: Zephyr Teachout on Her Run for A.G.
New York Magazine 11-24-21
Teachout is currently a professor at Fordham Law School, where she specializes in constitutional and antitrust law.

FORDHAM UNIVERSITY

Capital Campaign Watch: Dickinson, Fordham, Springfield, Tulane
Inside Higher Ed 11-22-21
Fordham University has announced a campaign to raise $350 million, probably by 2024. The university has raised $170 million so far.

Museum of American Finance to Present Virtual Panel on “SPACs: The New IPO?”
BusinessWire 11-30-21
“SPACs: The New IPO?” is sponsored by Citadel Securities and Vinson & Elkins. It is presented in partnership with the Fordham University Gabelli Center for Global Security Analysis.

Study Abroad Programs Reopen To Eager College Students
Gothamist.com 12-1-21
This fall, Fordham University only re-opened its London program. Joseph Rienti, director of the study abroad office, said the enrollment for that campus was higher than usual.

LAW SCHOOL FACULTY

CHERYL BADER
Rittenhouse Verdict Sparks Split Reactions, Fears of Vigilantism
Bloomberg.com 11-19-21
“I am afraid that as people are empowered by this verdict to weaponize the public spaces, we will see more fatalities,” said Cheryl Bader, a former assistant U.S. attorney and associate clinical professor at Fordham University School of Law.

JOHN PFAFF
In Depth Podcast: Why Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted
Audacity.com 11-19-21
This week’s guests include Kim Belware, John Pfaff (sic), and Charles Coleman Jr.
… Pfaff (sic), an author and law professor at Fordham University, breaks down how self defense laws, open carry laws, and the burden of proof contributed to this case.

OLIVIER SYLVAIN
FTC Chair Khan Brings on AI Policy Advice From NYU Researchers
Bloomberg Law 11-19-21
They join Olivier Sylvain, a law professor from Fordham University, who is serving as Khan’s senior adviser on technology.

DORA GALACATOS
The future of geographic screens for NYC’s high schools is up in the air amid concerns over diversity, commutes
Chalkbeat.com 11-19-21
Dora Galacatos is the executive director of the Fordham Law School Feerick Center for Social Justice, which recently released a report calling for a number of reforms to make the admissions process more fair.

CHERYL BADER
Rittenhouse’s Winning Strategy Rested on Tear-Filled Testimony
Bloomberg Law 11-19-21
Cheryl Bader, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches at Fordham University School of Law, said there didn’t appear to be any obvious errors in the state’s case.

CHERYL BADER
Rittenhouse verdict raises stakes in Arbery trial
SFGATE 11-20-21
Cheryl Bader, a former assistant U.S. attorney and a professor at Fordham University School of Law, said that while people of any race can claim self-defense, implicit bias means that race will inevitably factor into who can successfully claim it.

RICHARD M. STEUER
The congressional debate over antitrust: It’s about time
The Hill 11-20-21
Richard M. Steuer is an Adjunct Professor at Fordham Law School

ERIC YOUNG
Who Was Watching Over The CEO Of Activision Blizzard?
Forbes 11-22-21
Eric Young, a former chief compliance officer at a number of large global investment banks, and currently an adjunct professor for compliance at Fordham Law School, said about this matter, “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

OLIVIER SYLVAIN
Hochul tops new poll
Politico 11-22-21
Olivier Sylvain will be senior adviser on technology to [FTC Chair Lina] Khan. He is a law professor at Fordham University and is considered a Section 230 expert.

CHERYL BADER
Table Topics: Oil Prices, Rittenhouse, and Ethical Debates
Player.fm 11-23-21
Cheryl Bader, clinical associate professor of law, Fordham

OLIVIER SYLVAIN
FTC Chair Lina M. Khan Announces New Appointments in Agency Leadership Positions
MyChesco.com 11-24-21
Olivier Sylvain will serve as Senior Advisor on Technology to the Chair. Sylvain joins the FTC from Fordham University where he has served as Professor of Law.

ZEPHYR TEACHOUT
‘I Want to Be a 21st-Century Trustbuster’: Zephyr Teachout on Her Run for A.G.
NY Mag 11-24-21
Teachout is currently a professor at Fordham Law School, where she specializes in constitutional and antitrust law.

BRUCE GREEN
Jan. 6 panel faces double-edged sword with Alex Jones, Roger Stone
The Hill 11-26-21
“Even people that have a tendency to lie in a lot of different contexts have strong motivation not to lie under oath because it puts them at risk,” said Bruce Green, a law professor at Fordham University and a former federal prosecutor.

BRUCE GREEN
Ahmaud Arbery trial shines a light on prosecutorial misconduct
DNYUZ 11-30-21
Bruce A. Green is the Louis Stein Chair at Fordham Law School, where he directs the Louis Stein Center for Law and Ethics.

BRUCE GREEN
10 Things in Politics: Kamala Harris’ Big Tech problem
Business Insider (subscription) 12-1-21
Bruce Green, who leads the Louis Stein Center for Law and Ethics at Fordham Law School, said it would be “misleading or irresponsible” to make such a commitment.

JOEL COHEN
When a President Comments on a Pending Criminal Case
Law & Crime 12-1-21
He is the author of “Broken Scales: Reflections On Injustice” (ABA Publishing, 2017) and an adjunct professor at both Fordham and Cardozo Law Schools.

TANYA HERNANDEZ
A college law professor who teaches critical race theory worries that educators are living through another ‘Red Scare’
Business Insider 12-1-21
Tanya Katerí Hernández feels fortunate to be a tenured professor at Fordham University School of Law, a private Catholic institution in New York City that she said supports her teaching on critical race theory.

FORMER LAW SCHOOL FACULTY

ALISON NATHAN
Who Is Alison Nathan? Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Judge
Newsweek 11-29-21
From 2008 to 2009, she was a Fritz Alexander Fellow at New York University School of Law and before that, from 2006 to 2008, a visiting assistant professor of law at Fordham University Law School

ANNEMARIE MCAVOY
From Serious to Scurrilous, Some Jimmy Hoffa Theories
NewsNation USA 11-24-21
Former federal prosecutor and adjunct law professor at Fordham University Annemarie McAvoy discusses history and fascination of the Hoffa case.

GABELLI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS FACULTY

FRANK ZAMBERELLI
How does the Impact Index support sustainable fashion?
Sustainability.com 11-19-21
Frank Zambrelli, Executive Director of the Responsible Business Coalition at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, says, ‘it is not a green light or a red light. It’s merely a platform. Nobody’s saying this is a better skirt than this one; we’re just saying, “This skirt was produced this way, with these certifications”’.

BARBARA PORCO
Companies Are Falling Short Measuring Environmental Performance Against Goals: Report
Forbes 12-2-21
As I wrote last month, “All elements of ESG reporting are really based on proper risk management,” according to Barbara Porco, director for the Center of Professional Accounting Practices at Fordham Business School.

LERZAN AKSOY
Aflac Lands Top-15 Spot on the 2021 American Innovation Index
PR Newswire 12-1-21
“The pandemic continues to challenge companies to adapt their business models at a faster rate than in normal times,” said Lerzan Aksoy, Ph.D., professor of marketing at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business.

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SERVICES FACULTY

Aging Behind Prison Walls
WFUV-FM 11-30-21
Tina Maschi, PhD, LCSW, ACSW Professor, Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service

ARTS & SCIENCES FACULTY

BRYAN MASSINGALE
Christians must develop an anti-racist spirituality, Mennonite authors argue
National Catholic Reporter 11-24-21
Among that year’s honorees was Fr. Bryan Massingale, who was then on the faculty of Marquette University in Milwaukee and now teaches at Fordham University in New York.

JACK WAGNER
In Their 80s, and Living It Up (or Not)
New York Times 11-26-21
Dr. Katharine Esty has the right idea. I am 85 and my wife is 80. I work out six times a week at my local gym, and I teach mathematics at Fordham University. We are fully vaccinated, including boosters.

KATHRYN REKLIS
Telling Native stories on TV
The Christian Century 11-19-21
Kathryn Reklis teaches theology at Fordham University and is codirector of the Institute for Art, Religion and Social Justice.

SHELLAE VERSEY
Forever Young: Seniors Dance in the Bronx
The Villiage Voice 11-24-21
“Even before COVID, we were already noticing the squeeze of gentrification on the social lives of older adults who were living in these communities,” Shellae Versey, an assistant professor of psychology at Fordham University, tells the Voice in a phone interview, referring to members of racial minority groups being priced out of their neighborhoods.

CHARLES CAMOSY
Takeaways from the USCCB’s General Assembly
National Catholic Register 11-20-21
To help shed some light on the broader scope of what happened in Baltimore, and the general assembly’s true significance, the Register spoke with Charles Camosy, a moral theologian at Fordham University;

CHRISTINA GREER
Eric Adams, off on the right foot
Marietta Daily Journal 11-20-21
The rubber’s yet to hit the road and I’ve written plenty already about my doubts and concerns about Adams and what Fordham University political science professor and my FAQ.NYC co-host Christina Greer calls his “nervous cop energy.”

CHRISTINA GREER
Thanksgiving is upon us
Amsterdam News 11-25-21
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University, the author of “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream,” and the co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.

BRYAN MASSINGALE
Bryan Massingale wins social justice award from Paulist Center
The Christian Century 11-29-21
He currently teaches ethics at Fordham University, where he also serves as the senior ethics fellow for the school’s Center for Ethics Education.

ARISTOLTLE PAPANIKOLAOU
Jan. 6 panel faces double-edged sword with Alex Jones, Roger Stone
National Catholic Reporter 11-30-21
Looking ahead to the pope’s time in Cyprus and Greece, Aristotle Papanikolaou, co-director of the Orthodox Christian Studies Center at Fordham University, told NCR that “the symbolism is key.”

CHRIS RHOMBERG
Fattest Profits Since 1950 Debunk Wage-Inflation Story of CEOs
Daily Magazine 11-30-21
“Workers may be tired of seeing the fruits of their labor go to corporations making record-breaking earnings,” Chris Rhomberg, a professor of sociology at Fordham University, said at that point. “The Deere workers evidently felt that the company could afford more.”

SARIT KATTAN GRIBETZ
Yeshiva University Museum Receives NEH Planning Grant
Yeshiva University 11-20-21
Additional consultants on the project are Sarit Kattan Gribetz, Associate Professor of Classical Judaism at Fordham University, who has particular expertise on the Jewish calendar and its development during the rabbinic period and on aspects of the calendar as they relate to the historical experience of Jewish women;

ASIF SIDDIQI
50 Years Ago, a Forgotten Mission Landed on Mars
Discover Magazine 12-1-21
“The Soviet space program was under a lot of pressure in the 1960s to achieve ‘firsts,’” says Asif Siddiqi, a Fordham University history professor who’s penned multiple books on the Soviet side of the space race.

DAISY DECAMPO
The Ethics of Egg Freezing and Egg Sharing
The Cut (subscription) 12-1-21
Daisy Deomampo, a medical anthropologist and associate professor at Fordham University who has researched donor egg markets.

NICHOLAS JOHNSON
School Board Finds Anti-2A Bias In Elementary School Textbook
Bearing Arms 12-1-21
As Fordham professor Nicholas Johnson brilliantly pointed out in his book Negroes and the Gun: The Black Tradition of Arms, the Second Amendment has long played a role in advancing the cause of freedom in the United States.

CHRISTINA GREER
December is upon us
New York Amsterdam News 12-2-21
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University, the author of “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream,” and the co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.

FORMER ARTS & SCIENCES FACULTY

ROGER PANETTA
Houston highway project sparks debate over racial equity
MyNorthwest.com 11-23-21
Roger Panetta, a retired history professor at Fordham University in New York, said those opposing the I-45 project will have an uphill battle, as issues of racism and inequity have been so persistent in highway expansions that it “gets very difficult to dislodge.”

ATHLETICS

KYLE NEPTUNE
Early returns on the Kyle Neptune era at Fordham University positive
News12 New Jersey 11-19-21
The early returns on the Kyle Neptune era at Fordham University have been pretty positive.

Red Bulls Pick Up New Players In Super Draft
FirstTouchOnline.com 11-28-21
Janos Loebe, a German-born Fordham University product, will start to move from forward to attacking wingback, a key position on the field for New York.

ALUMNI

40 Under 40: Kyle Ciminelli, Ciminelli Real Estate Corp.
The Business Journals (subscription only) 11-19-21
[Kyle Ciminelli] Bachelor’s, finance, Fordham University; master’s, real estate and finance, New York University.

Devin Driscoll to Host Christmas Gathering
The Knoxville Focus 11-21-21
Devin Driscoll graduated from Catholic High School and went on to earn a degree from Fordham University.

Columnist Judith Bachman Captures The Spirit Of Sister Mary Eileen O’Brien, President Of Dominican College
Rockland County Business Journal 11-23-21
Sister O’Brien has dedicated herself to education for over 50 years. Sr. Mary Eileen earned a doctorate degree in Educational Administration and Supervision from Fordham University and holds a master’s degree in Adult and Higher Education from Teachers College of Columbia University and a master’s in Mathematics from Manhattan College.

Lacerta Therapeutics Appoints Min Wang, PhD, JD and Marc Wolff to its Board of Directors
BusinessWire 11-24-21
Dr. [Min] Wang received her PhD in Organic Chemistry from Brown University and a JD from Fordham University School of Law.

Teva Attorneys Leave Goodwin Procter For Greenberg Traurig
Law360.com (subscription) 11-24-21
He earned his law degree from Fordham University School of Law.

She went through foster care. Now she leads one of the oldest U.S. child welfare organizations.
MSNBC 11-29-21
[Kym Hardy] Watson, who holds degrees from Fordham University and Baruch College, CUNY, began her career in the 1980s after a summer job working with youth at St. Christopher’s Home.

FreedomCon 2021 – Native Lives Matter
Underground Railroad Education Center 11-27-21
[Loriv Quigly] earned her bachelor of arts in Journalism and Mass Communication from St. Bonaventure University, and a master of arts in Public Communication and Ph.D. in Language, Learning and Literacy from Fordham University.

The Hall case in the Poconos and malice in the US | Moving Mountains
Pocono Record 11-27-21
Anthony M. Stevens-Arroyo holds a doctorate in Catholic Theology from Fordham University and authored a column on religion for the Washington Post from 2008-2012.

The Success Of Emmy Clarke, Both In And Out Of The Camera
The Washington Independent 11-29-21
[Emmy Clark] decided to attend Fordham University. She finished her studies in 2014 and received a bachelor’s degree in Communication and Media Studies.

Paraco’s CEO puts business lessons, family experiences in print
Westfair Communications Online (subscription) 11-19-21
…was born in Mount Vernon, the oldest of four sons He attended Fordham University, graduating in 1976 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in…

Greenberg Traurig Further Strengthens Pharmaceutical, Medical Device & Health Care Practice
PR Newswire 11-19-21
In addition, [Glenn] Kerner has experience in complex commercial litigation, antitrust, real estate litigation, and other civil litigation. He has a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law and a B.A. from Cornell University.

Three Universities Have Announced the Hiring of African Americans to Diversity Positions
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Ed 11-19-21
[Tiffany Smith] holds a master’s degree in education, specializing in counseling services, from Fordham University in New York.

President Biden nominates second out woman to federal appellate court
LGBTQ Nation 11-21-21
[Alison Nathan] has clerked in the Supreme Court and taught at Fordham Law School and NYU Law.

GOTS ramps up oversight on product claims in North America
HomeTextilesToday.com 11-22-21
[Travis Wells] earned his Juris Doctorate (J.D.) in Corporate Law from George Washington University Law School and his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Global Sustainability and Finance from the Gabelli School of Business at Fordham University.

Malcolm X’s 5 surviving daughters: Inside lives marred by tragedy and turmoil
New York Post 11-23-21
[IIyasah Shabazz] graduated from the elite Hackley School, obtained a bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz and a master’s degree in human resources from Fordham University.

Michael R. Scoma is recognized by Continental Who’s Who
PR Newswire 11-24-21
From a young age, Dr. [Michael] Scoma knew he wanted to pursue a career helping others. He started off earning his Bachelor of Science from Fordham University.

STODDARD BOWL: 2021 game will honor the former greats, Maloney’s Annino and Platt’s Shorter
MyRecordJournal.com 11-24-21
After Platt, [Michael] Shorter did a post-grad year at Choate, where he was an All-New England running back, then went on to play four years at Fordham University, where he earned a degree in Economics.

Local performer returns to state with ‘Fiddler’
HometownSource.com 11-24-21
From there [Scott Willits] went to The Ailey School and Fordham University and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance in New York.

The Singer Who Calls Himself Sick Walt
Long Island City Journal 11-24-21
After graduating from Fordham University with a degree in communications and a minor in German and singing in a cover band, Sick Walt set out on a traditional (he means boring!) career path, taking what he calls a corporate “suit job” in a financial institution.

Aleksander Mici files to run for U.S. Senate
Bronx Times 11-24-21
[Aleksander] Mici, 46, is a practicing attorney with a law degree from Fordham Law School.

Robert Hughes
Citizens Journal 11-20-21
Bob [Robert Hughes] has a MA in economics from Fordham University and a BS in business from Lehigh University.

Grassroots solutions and farm fresh eggs
The Bronx Free Press 11-27-21
[Jack] Marth first connected with POTS when he was a Fordham University student in 1988, as he volunteered to help in the soup kitchen.

Suozzi enters governor’s race
The Daily Star 11-29-21
A graduate of Boston College and Fordham Law School,, [Thomas] Suozzi lives with his wife, Helen, in Nassau County.

Latino students succeed in graduate school with the support of the Hispanic Theological Initiative
FaithandLeadership.com 11-30-21
The Rev. Dr. Loida I. Martell recalls a critical, do-or-die moment she faced while pursuing a Ph.D. in theology from Fordham University.

Governor Hochul Announces 2021-2023 Fellows
Governor.ny.gov 11-30-21
[Shaquann Hunt] received a B.A. in Philosophy and Psychology from Colby College and a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law.

With Graduate Degree She Worked At McDonald’s, She Now Owns Three
Patch.com 11-30-21
Just after Sara Natalino Amato received a graduate degree at Fordham University, she went to work at an Orange McDonald’s.

Lamont nominates Nancy Navarretta as Mental Health and Addiction Services Commissioner
Fox61.com 12-1-21
[Nancy Navaretta] earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from Boston College, and a Master of Arts degree in clinical psychology from Fordham University.

United Way Board of Directors Appoints Four New Members
Patch.com 12-1-21
[Marjorie] De La Cruz was awarded the Fordham School of Law 25th Annual Corporate Counsel Award; Latino Justice 2019 Lucero Award and was featured in Hispanic Executive in March 2019.

Jasmine Trangucci, LCSW-R is Meritoriously Named a ‘Top Patient Preferred Psychotherapist’ Representing the State of New York for 2022!
DigitalJournal.com 12-2-21
[Jasmine Trangucci] then went on to complete her Master of Social Work degree at Fordham University in 2005.

Hamilton Re-Signs Anderson as General Manager
OurSportCentral.com 12-2-21
A 2006 graduate of Fordham University, [Jermaine] Anderson earned his Master of Business Administration from the Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University in September of 2019.

Hers Is a Filmmakers Festival
The East Hampton Star 12-2-21
Ms. [Jacqui] Lofaro grew up in Greenwich Village and graduated from Fordham University.

Connell Foley elects new managing partner
ROI-NJ 12-2-21
[Timothy] Corriston earned his J.D. from Fordham University School of Law and his B.A. from Hobart College. He also holds an LL.M. in environmental law from Pace University School of Law.

OBITUARY

Walter Miner Lowe, Jr.
Auburn Citizen (subscription) 11-24-21
Born in NYC, he was the son of late Walter Sr. and Florence Lowe. Walter was a 1958 graduate of Fordham University and an Army veteran serving his …

Denis Collins
Legacy.com 11-24-21
He graduated from Gonzaga High School in 1967, and attended Fordham University, with various mis-adventurous detours to Trinity College in Ireland, Talladega College in Alabama, and Stony Brook University in Long Island.

Sr. Marie Vincent Chiaravalle
Legacy.com 11-29-21
She attended St. Elizabeth Teacher College, Allegany, Fordham University in New York City and graduated from St. Bonaventure University, Allegany, with a bachelor of science degree in education.

Frank J. Messmann III
The Enterprise 11-26-21
He received a doctorate from Fordham University.

Roderick Dowling
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution 11-28-21
He received his law degree from Fordham Law School as the President of his class in 1965, paying for his tuition through multiple jobs as a waiter, lifeguard, and a Fordham scholarship.

Mary Waddell
The Atlanta-Journal 12-1-21
Mary was born in Manhattan, New York to James and Anna McHugh McGuinness on August 18, 1927. She attended St. Barnabas High School in the Bronx and graduated from Fordham University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry before joining the global headquarters of the New York City-based public relations firm Carl Byoir & Associates.

ZEPHYR TEACHOUT
Zephyr Teachout announces run for New York attorney general
AP News 11-15-21
Teachout, 50, is an associate professor of law at Fordham University and a scholar on corruption and antitrust laws.

LAURA AURICCHIO
The U.S.-France relationship has always had friction
The Washington Post 11-15-21
Laura Auricchio, Dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center, is the author of “The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered” and serves on the scientific advisory board for France in the Americas, an international collaborative project led by the French National Library.

MARK NAISON
How GOP focused voters on critical race theory
USA Today 11-16-21
Mark Naison, a professor of history and African American studies at Fordham University, told USA TODAY that critical race theory is used as a label to attack all efforts to diversify school curricula. “There is no school system in the country which uses it as a basis for curricular development,” Naison said.

FORDHAM UNIVERSITY

Bachelor’s Degree Center Releases National Rankings of Real Estate Degree Programs
PR Newswire 11-16-21
Fordham University – Bronx, NY

ADMINISTRATORS

JEFEREY NG
Campus Counselors Are Burned Out and Short-Staffed
The Chronicle of Higher Education 11-15-21
Jeffrey Ng, director of counseling and psychological services at Fordham University, reports that the number of students seen for clinical appointments has risen 42 percent since last fall.

LAURA AURICCHIO
The U.S.-France relationship has always had friction
The Washington Post 11-15-21
Laura Auricchio, Dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center, is the author of “The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered” and serves on the scientific advisory board for France in the Americas, an international collaborative project led by the French National Library.

BARBARA PORCO
Last Place Finish Of Systemic Risk Management Reporting In ESG Survey Raises Red Flags
Forbes 11-16-21
“All elements of ESG reporting are really based on proper risk management,” according to Barbara Porco, director for the Center of Professional Accounting Practices at Fordham Business School.

SCHOOL OF LAW

New report calls for greater equity in middle and high school admissions
Inside Schools newsletter 11-17-21
A new report by the Feerick Center for Social Justice at Fordham University School of Law calls on the city to overhaul middle and high school admissions by taking some concrete steps.

FORMER SCHOOL OF LAW FACULTY

ALISON NATHAN
President Biden Names Tenth Round of Judicial Nominees
The White House 11-17-21
Judge Nathan was a Fritz Alexander Fellow at New York University School of Law from 2008 to 2009 and a Visiting Assistant Professor of Law at Fordham University Law School from 2006 to 2008.

SCHOOL OF LAW FACULTY

BRUCE GREEN
Legal Professors’ Lawsuit Spotlights Resistance to Prosecutor Accountability
Filter Magazine 11-12-21
“Were [the state bar]motivated by the fact that the complaints were filed publicly so that a failure to act expeditiously would look bad?” Bruce Green, a Fordham Law professor not involved in filing the complaints, rhetorically asked.

MARTIN FLAHERTY
What one American’s case says about the future of the courts in Hong Kong
Vox 11-14-21
“My sense is that [Hong Kong’s rule of law is] on life support — but the prognosis is not very good,” said Martin Flaherty, a professor of international law at Fordham University.

ZEPHYR TEACHOUT
Zephyr Teachout announces run for New York attorney general
AP News 11-15-21
Teachout, 50, is an associate professor of law at Fordham University and a scholar on corruption and antitrust laws.

BENNETT CAPERS
Iowa scores lowest in the nation in policing and corrections spending
The Center Square 11-15-21
“These expenditures mean less money for schools, for libraries, for parks, you name it,” Fordham Law School Professor and Center on Race, Law, and Justice Director Bennett Capers said. “More importantly, they mean less money for things that could actually reduce crime, such as more affordable housing, job creation, and mental health treatment.”

JOHN PFAFF
Rittenhouse doesn’t have to prove he acted in self-defense
The Washington Post 11-15-21
John Pfaff is a professor of law at Fordham University. He is the author of “Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration and How to Achieve Real Reform.”

BRUCE GREEN
Bad romance: When courts won’t let lawyers and clients part ways
Reuters 11-16-21
As legal ethics expert Bruce Green, a professor at Fordham University School of Law, put it, “To have an effective lawyer-client relationship requires trust between the lawyer and the client.”

JOHN PFAFF
He’s Remaking Criminal Justice in L.A. But How Far Is Too Far?
DNYUZ 11-17-21
The single largest group in state prisons, totaling around 55 percent nationally, have been convicted of crimes of violence, according to John Pfaff, a law professor at Fordham University.

ALAN RUSSO
How Social Inflation is Changing Liability Insurance
Legal TalknNetwork 11-18-21
He’s also a regular lecturer for the National Business Institute on trial advocacy, and an instructor for the Corporation Counsel’s Trial Advocacy Program at Fordham University Law School and regular contributor to Lawline.

GABELLI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS FACULTY

DENISE BENNETT
Denise L. Bennett: Reaching a hand back in the business world
New York Amsterdam News 11-17-21
Along with her positions at iHeartMedia, Bennett just completed her first year as a professor at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, where she teaches Advanced Business Communications at the graduate level.

ARTS & SCIENCES FACULTY

CHRISTINA GREER
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown faces backlash after winning write-in campaign
City and State NY 11-12-21
“Oftentimes, if you’ve been elected four different times, you’re not terribly worried about a primary, and so you tend to let your guard down just a little bit,” Fordham University associate professor of political science Christina Greer told City & State. “Ask Joe Crowley, right?”

MARK NAISON
How critical race theory went from conservative battle cry to mainstream powder keg
Yahoo News via USA Today 11-15-21
Mark Naison, a professor of history and African American studies at Fordham University, told USA TODAY that critical race theory is used as a label to attack all efforts to diversify public school curricula.

SAUL CORNELL
Will SCOTUS Force Us All to Find Out How Polite an Armed Society Will Be?
History News Network 11-14-21
Fordham Professor Saul Cornell, one of the leading authorities on early American constitutional thought, led 16 professors of history and law in a brief, arguing that “One of the longest continuous traditions in Anglo-American law are limits on the public carry of arms in populous areas.”

SAUL CORNELL
Former Prosecutor: “Wild West” Will Follow If NY Carry Laws Struck Down
BearingArms.com 11-15-21
Fordham Professor Saul Cornell, one of the leading authorities on early American constitutional thought, led 16 professors of history and law in a brief, arguing that “One of the longest continuous traditions in Anglo-American law are limits on the public carry of arms in populous areas.”

MARK NAISON
BronxTalk I November 15, 2021 – Racial Disparities
Bronx Net 11-15-21
…Dr. Mark Naison, Professor of African American Studies and History at Fordham University and Founder and Director of the Bronx African American History Project.

CHARLES CAMOSEY
Catholic groups criticize Archbishop Gomez for speech on ‘woke’ movements
Crux.com 11-16-21
He is an associate professor of theological and social ethics at Jesuit-run Fordham University.

MARK NAISON
How GOP focused voters on critical race theory
USA Today 11-16-21
Mark Naison, a professor of history and African American studies at Fordham University, told USA TODAY that critical race theory is used as a label to attack all efforts to diversify school curricula. “There is no school system in the country which uses it as a basis for curricular development,” Naison said.

CHRISTINA GREER
As N.J. Dems lick their wounds over 2021, 2022 looms
New Jersey Monitor 11-17-21
Christina Greer, politics professor at Fordham University, pointed to the failure of the party to capitalize on popular provisions in the infrastructure and spending bills that have been D.C.’s focus for months.

ATHLETICS

Largest Number of Ridgefield High School Athletes Ever Participate in Signing Day
Ridgefield’s Hamlethub 11-12-21
Daniel Bucciero, RHS class of 2022, has signed a National Letter of Intent to play Division 1 baseball at Fordham University…Miranda Bonitatebus, RHS class of 2022, has signed a National Letter of Intent to swim on the women’s swim and dive team at Fordham University…Eva Niemeyer, RHS class of 2022, has signed a National Letter of Intent to play women’s soccer at Fordham University in New York.

That Noise You Heard Was The Entire Atlantic Ten Conference Shitting Their Pants; The Loyola Ramblers Will Join The A10 In 2022
Barstool Sports 11-17-21
Fellow Jesuit institutions Fordham University, Saint Joseph’s University and Saint Louis University are current members of the Atlantic 10 Conference and in joining the A-10, Loyola will renew rivalries with The University of Dayton, Duquesne University, La Salle University and Saint Louis University, which were all-conference foes of the Ramblers at one time in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.

STUDENTS

Amid Black exodus, young Catholics are pushing the church to address racism
The Washington Post 11-15-21
To John Barnes, who will be leading an upcoming webinar episode, says, “Black people always exist in liminal spaces.” Barnes, a doctoral student in systematic theology at Fordham University, converted to Catholicism in his 30s and said he was drawn by the religion’s sacraments and rituals.

Food Insecurity Linked to Disordered Eating in Patients With Obesity
Clinical Advisor 11-15-21
While more than 14 million US households experience food insecurity, research on the relationship between food insecurity and eating pathology is only just emerging, explained Jill Stadterman, MA, of Fordham University, and lead author of one of the studies with coauthors Yvette G.

ALUMNI

Former Japanese Princess Arrives In U.S. For New Life With Husband
Forbes 11-14-21
Mako is the elder daughter of Japan’s Crown Prince Fumihito and niece of Emperor Naruhito, while her new husband was raised by a single mother and graduated from Fordham Law School, according to the Associated Press.

Cedar Fair hires a new chief legal officer
CrainsCleveland.com 11-15-21
Nurse earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and a law degree from Fordham University School of Law.

Built on Beer
RichmondMagazine.com 11-15-21
McKay graduated from Fordham, earning his MBA, and Murtaugh attended Siebel Institute of Technology, the oldest brewing school in the United States, with campuses in Chicago and Germany.

Sam Ramirez Jr., a second-generation investment executive for the people
Al Dia 11-17-21
He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Vermont, before pursuing two MBAs at Dartmouth and Fordham University, respectively.

Bressler, Amery & Ross Welcomes Jorge Campos as Counsel in New York Office
PR Newswire 11-17-21
He went on to earn his Executive MBA in Global Business from Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona and an LL.M in Intellectual Property and Information Technology from Fordham University School of Law.

Msgr. John P. “Doc” Monaghan (1890-1961)
Catholic New York 11-17-21
Assigned to St. Peter’s Church on Staten Island, Father Monaghan taught at St. Peter’s Boys and Girls High Schools, while pursuing a doctorate in English literature at Fordham University.

Crowder College names finalists for president
The Joplin Globe 11-16-21
She holds a doctorate in educational leadership, administration and policy from Fordham University in New York, and a master’s degree in higher education administration and a bachelor’s degree in international marketing from Bernard M. Baruch College, CUNY, in New York.

Loyola Academy names new president
Evanston Now 11-17-21
He holds bachelor’s degrees from the University of Dayton in mechanical engineering and English and master’s degrees in English from Pennsylvania State University, in philosophy from Fordham University, in theology from Boston College, and in educational policy and management and in public administration from Harvard University.

Four finalists announced in Crowder College President Search
FourStatesHomepage.com 11-17-21
She previously served as Administrator for Retention and Student Success at Bronx Community College, CUNY, in New York, NY. Dr. Simpson earned a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership, Administration and Policy from Fordham University in New York, NY; a Master of Education in Higher Education Administration, and a Bachelor of Business Administration in International Marketing from Bernard M. Baruch College, CUNY, in New York, NY.

Erin Dahl, Home Décor Expert for MyDomaine
MyDomaine.com 11-18-21
She went on to study French Language & Literature and International Political Economy at Fordham University in the Bronx.

Cuban scholar publishes new book detailing Cuba’s history through stamps
The Independent Florida Alligator 11-17-21
In the U.S. he earned a J.D. from Fordham University Law School and a M.A. in Political Science from Columbia University.

OBITUARIES

James Brundage
Lawrence Journal-World 11-15-21
B.A. (1950) and M.A. (1951) from the University of Nebraska; Ph.D. (1955) Fordham University.

Betty Starr, 93, longtime Katonah resident, educator and St. Luke’s parishioner
The Record-Review 11-15-21
She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in elementary education from Fordham University and a master’s degree in education administration from the University of Chicago.

William J. DuMond
Legacy.com 11-16-21
Will attained a perfect score on his college entry exam and received an academic scholarship to Fordham University.

Sister Maureen McDermott, Catholic school leader, dies at 65
CatholicPhilly.com 11-17-21
Along the way she earned a master’s degree in English from West Chester University and a Ph.D. in Catholic educational leadership from Fordham University.

Vincent R. Harter
Legacy.com 11-18-21
Vince’s essence remains with us.
Vince was a graduate of Fordham University, served in and retired from the United States Air Force, worked in the private sector, was involved in the wellbeing and maintenance of St. John’s Catholic School in Belleville, coached sports, volunteered his time at St. Luke’s in Belleville and never knew a stranger.

But after two years of living in Jersey City, she felt confident enough to enroll in graduate school at the Gabelli School of Business. When she graduates this month, she will be a very different person.

“The whole experience of Gabelli has been so enriching and so valuable to me, and has transformed me,” she said.

Accounting was a passion for her already; she had worked in the field for five years in India, but it took her a few years before she felt comfortable enough in her new home to consider pursuing it further.

“I thought I should definitely make use of this wonderful opportunity of living here in the U.S.,” she said, noting that three of the big four accounting firms are headquartered in New York City.

Badekila and her husband have made the most of living in the United States. In the four years since she moved here, they have visited 30 states, with stops at national parks like the Grand Canyon.

In addition to her studies, she founded the Gabelli School’s South Asian Business Association (SABA).

“I was very aware of how it feels to live far away from your family and friends,” said Badekila, who serves as the group’s president. “I was really very keen on this concept of building a community inside a bigger community and letting people meet each other and get people from their own countries to talk to each other.”

That community extends to prospective students as well. Badekila has worked with the Gabelli School’s admissions office to send personalized welcome e-mails to prospective Indian students who have been offered admission.

The SABA group organized a Diwali party for more than 150 people in the fall. It was also scheduled to present the first ever Global Asia Conference on March 26, featuring a keynote address from Viral Acharya, Ph.D., former deputy governor of Reserve Bank of India. The event was postponed when Fordham closed its campuses but is tentatively scheduled for next fall. It would have been a part of the Gabelli School’s centennial celebration, and it was expected to draw attendees from around the New York metropolitan area, so Badekila admits she was disappointed it was put on hold. It hasn’t been all for naught though.

“I was able to reach out to all these people in the field and build good relations with them as I was planning the conference. I was able to build my own leadership and people skills, so it was tremendously helpful,” she said.

As part of her studies, Badekila got first-hand experience in the world of New York accounting. She worked on KPMG’s professional practice research team—a project overseen by Barbara Porco, Ph.D., Bene Merenti Professor of Accounting and Taxation, that had Badekila researching fraud in investment banking and capital markets industries. She was also a lead volunteer in 2019 for the annual symposium sponsored by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), a nonprofit organization that sets sustainability accounting standards for the accounting industry.

She he was offered a position at EY that is tentatively scheduled to begin in October.

Badekila said her time at Fordham has expanding her horizons when it comes to the accounting field.

“Accountancy is something which I’ve been involved in the past several years, but I was not very familiar with classes like forensic accounting, sustainability research and reporting, or data analytics,” she said.

“These were really new topics to me, which I found really fascinating. I could never have imagined that these kinds of topics are a part of accounting.”

Porco said Badekila was always willing to invest enormous energy in projects she was asked to join.

“She approached each one of them with enthusiasm, professionalism, dedication, integrity, and in many ways, incomparable acumen,” she said.

“To me, she is the personification of the type of individual you would hope would be assigned to your team. We can teach students how to do journal entries, we can teach them how to do tax returns. You can’t teach attitude though, you just can’t. That’s what she brings— this inspiring, enthusiastic, contagious attitude. It engulfs everyone that works with her.”

Badekila credits people like Porco and Lonnie Kussin, assistant dean of advising and student engagement, with helping her adapt and thrive. She also said she’s grateful for her husband’s support, noting that he’s pushed her “into achieving more and dreaming bigger.”

“I come from really a very humble background. If I was still living in India, I wouldn’t have even thought of doing a master’s, but after living a couple of years here, my husband and I decided we just save enough for me to get a master’s here,” she said.

It was a gamble they decided to take together, and while there were times when she wasn’t sure if it was worth the effort, she’s confident now that it was the right move.

“I’m ready for anything,” she said.

Photos by Dana MaxsonFordham’s Gabelli School of Business rolled out the red carpet for its highest achievers on May 16 at its annual Awards Night celebration at the Rose Hill campus.

The ceremony, which took place in the McGinley Center’s student lounge, brought together about 400 students, faculty, administrators, friends and families, who sat on three sides of a stage.

Speaking to graduating seniors at the McGinley Center Ballroom, Dean Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., implored them to remember the helpers in their lives. The notion that one can be successful all on their own is a lie, she said.

It’s also useful to remember organizational psychologist Adam Grant’s theory that people are generally givers, takers, or matchers, she said. We vacillate between the three at different points in the day, but in general, those who gravitate toward one specific model are more successful.

“In business, you might think it’s the takers: Hard-charging, take-no-prisoners types who pull themselves to the top no matter what. Or you might think it’s the matchers: People who master the delicate negotiation of ‘you scratch my back, I scratch yours.’ But it’s not. It’s the givers,” she said.

Their accomplishments are many, including jobs at the likes of Barclays, BlackRock, J.P. Morgan Chase, Blackstone, Amazon, Instagram, Adobe, BBDO, Nike, and all of the Big Four accounting firms, and Rapaccioli lauded them for being supportive of each other in hard times. Deep down, Gabelli School graduates are givers, she said.

“You have completed four years at a business school that is caring, not cutthroat. You have learned to use your business skills to advance society and the plight of others. You are interested not only in a great salary and a great apartment, but in doing something that adds good to the world,” she said.

Caroline Dahlgren, GABELLI ’11, recipient of the Alumnus of the Year Award, echoed that refrain, telling graduates that it’s now their turn to help each other. That’s how she connected with Tiffany & Co., where she is currently manager of global consumer insights, she said.

“Fordham said yes to you when you were accepted, and along the way, professors, deans, mentors, peers, coaches, parents, and maybe even some alumni said yes to you,” she said.

“But I ask now that no matter how busy you are, to find the tiniest block of time for that Fordham student who inevitably reaches out to you. Now you might say, ‘I can’t hire them, I can’t give them profound career advice—I just graduated.’ That may be true. But I ask that you not be afraid to impart even the smallest nugget of wisdom and experience with them. Its valuable. That’s the beauty of the Fordham community. We can support each other even in seemingly small ways.”

The class of 2019 featured two valedictorians, Clara Gastaldi and John Lichtmann.

Gastaldi, a finance and marketing major who minored in fashion studies and was a member of the women’s soccer team, compared her acceptance to Fordham to the U.S. welcoming her parents from Argentina 20 years ago. Her parents, she said, taught her the value of embracing the unknown with that move.

“Through hard work and dedication, they opened a world of opportunities for me and my three brothers. Whenever I had even the wildest of dreams, you always had my back and pushed me to do everything to my fullest potion,” she said, pausing to address her mother in back of the McGinley Center ballroom.

“Mom, please don’t cry.”

A “passion for fashion” that she had since she was a little girl, walking around in pink plastic high heels, led her to Fordham.

“I knew that my future was in New York. So, when the opportunity presented itself, I packed my bags, made the switch, and reported for preseason in August of 2016,” she said.

“In the same way that the United States welcomed my family, Fordham University and Fordham athletics took me in when I transferred to the Bronx from the University of Georgia, just after my freshman year, and for that I’ll be forever grateful.”

For Lichtmann, an accounting major who commuted two hours to campus from New Jersey and is pursuing an M.S. in public accounting at the Gabelli School, his time was bittersweet, tinged with the sudden loss of his mother right before Christmas his sophomore year. He was devastated, and unsure he’d be able to return to Fordham, he said.

“However, I kept faith that God would guide her safely to heaven, and I learned to trust the people around me to help adjust to my new lifestyle. I decided that I had to work harder and focus even more on school so I could make her proud,” he said.

Lichtmann was able to maintain a sense of humor as well. He joked that he was not really in any position to tell anyone what to think, because he only got to be on stage “because I was able to balance debits and credits for four years.”

“What I can tell you is, people will remember you for your actions. Opening the door for a stranger, greeting a co-worker with a hello—kindness and respect are contagious. At the end of the day, knowledge is power, but how you use that knowledge to affect lives of others is even more power,” he said.

“I hope to see a future where accountability is a virtue, dreams can become a reality through hard work, and people choose cooperation and collaboration over division.”

Capstone student awards include the Alumni Chair Award, which was given to Maxwell Lynch, the Mozilo Future Distinguished Alumnus Award, which was given to Morgan Mezzasalma, and the Dean’s Award, which was given to Amanda D’Antone.

In addition to recognizing dozens of students from the Gabelli School at Rose Hill with awards throughout the evening, the event also celebrated faculty contributions. The Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence for full-time faculty went to Stanley Veliotis, Ph.D., associate professor of accounting and taxation; the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence for adjunct faculty went to Linda Luca, adjunct professor of marketing; the Faculty Cura Personalis Award went to Nancy McCarthy, lecturer of communications and management; and the Faculty Magis Award went to Barbara Porco, Ph.D., clinical associate professor of accounting.

The Center for Professional Accounting Practices (CPAP) nurtures interdisciplinary collaborations among policymakers as well as accounting, auditing, tax, and forensics professionals through informative research, workshops, lectures, and conferences.

“We really want to be a catalyst for change and a think tank for considering information,” said Barbara Porco, Ph.D., a clinical associate professor of accounting and taxation and co-director of CPAP.

With an emphasis on research of current practical relevance and cultivating partnerships with distinguished advisers and professionals who are engaged in innovative work, CPAP is primed to be on the front line of change in the marketplace. This approach will also allow the center to bridge the gap between academia and the accounting profession.

“Our goal is to reflect what’s happening in the practice,” said Stanley Veliotis, Ph.D., associate professor of accounting and taxation and co-director of CPAP. “If we’re just talking to our own students, then we’re talking to ourselves. This is an opportunity to get the word out to people who are also practicing accounting.”

Last fall, CPAP hosted “OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project and International Corporate Tax Avoidance,” which highlighted changes in the international tax system and the tax planning techniques of global companies. The panelists included notable accounting experts Greg Ballentine, Ph.D, a former associate director of the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Management and Budget; Reed College professor Kimberly Clausing, Ph.D, an award-winning researcher on international taxation and tax avoidance; Manal Corwin, KPMG LLP’s national service line leader for international tax; and NYU Law professor Mitchell Kane, a former clerk for the Honorable Karen LeCraft Henderson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Though CPAP is in the early stages of its development, its directors said it has the potential to create impact by promoting engaging discussions, not just about current tax issues, but also about auditing and assurance, fraud, financial analysis, and sustainability reporting. According to Porco, these practices tend to overlap, but have traditionally been examined separately in academia. CPAP hopes to change that.

“Accounting professionals have to understand data analytics and how information is processed in order to audit and provide assurance,” she explained. “They also have to understand how the data is stored, communicated, and transferred.”

Porco said a holistic approach to accounting would enable practitioners to confidently cultivate financial, environmental, and social growth—or a “triple bottom line” for their clients and organizations.

CPAP is equally committed to furthering conversations about the latest strategies for detecting fraud and best practices in fraud prevention, which can ultimately take the profession to new heights.

“The center is a breeding ground to talk about things that can lead to improvements and policy changes in the profession,” said Veliotis.

Barbara Porco, Ph.D., director of program development at the College of Business Administration (CBA) and 20-year member of the accounting faculty, began designing the multi-module toolkit, “The Ethical Compass,” last June. She collaborated with the ethics and compliance group at accounting giant KPMG on the project.

“It’s important to the profession to get ethics into the classroom,” Porco said. “Most financial accounting textbooks do not address ethics issues in a meaningful way, and there’s little time in a professor’s schedule to prepare lectures pertaining to ethics.”

So Porco got to writing. The result is a toolkit that includes interactive video, role-play scenarios and case studies that tackle some of the most challenging topics in accounting ethics. The toolkit has also won an award; the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) voted it the “Best Practice or Program—Educational Programming—Employer” for 2008.

“We aimed to create ethics material that could be presented to students at any point in their college studies,” Porco said. “I’m thrilled that it has been recognized and is being used by other universities.”

The toolkit is offered to colleges and universities at no cost, courtesy of KPMG.

“This program bridges the gap between the ethical challenges students are experiencing on campus—for example, issues of cheating—and the challenges they will likely face when they enter the accounting profession,” Porco said.

More than 100 faculty members at nearly as many colleges and universities have ordered the toolkit, according to Blane Ruschak, KPMG’s director of national recruiting.

“It’s very flexible,” he pointed out, explaining that professors and instructors can use as much or as little of the toolkit as they need.

Porco, who has held senior positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers, has been researching ethics for decades. Perhaps that is why Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., dean of CBA, approached Porco a couple of years ago and asked her to develop content for Rapaccioli’s freshmen enrichment program that would ready them for the tough world of business.

“These were students who have no business experience whatsoever, so I thought, why don’t we do something that follows the Jesuit tradition? Something with ethics?” Porco said.

It was then that Porco approached KPMG to help create the enrichment program, which was jointly instructed by Fordham professors and KPMG representatives. The positive reaction it elicited prompted KPMG and Porco to consider how they could encourage other professors to address similar issues in their classrooms.

Enter The Ethical Compass. The toolkit, Porco said, helps students take personal responsibility for acting ethically.

“For most college students, the default position when faced with an ethical challenge is to do nothing,” she said. “The Ethical Compass highlights that not doing anything is a decision in itself. Our profession will be enriched if students joining public accounting firms understand the importance of reflecting decision-making and have the critical-thinking skills to recognize an ethical dilemma.”