Congratulations to Alumna Hyanghee Lee (PhD, ’18) who recently started a position as postdoctoral scholar at the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center at Penn State University.

Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez (’97 HDFS, ’00 MSW) will be featured in a ThisIsAmerica webinar hosted by Neag and UConn Alumni, on the topic of Critical Race Theory in Schools. She is a superintendent in the Hartford Public Schools. Learn more:

• • https://www.events.foundation.uconn.edu/website/16374/
  • https://www.facebook.com/events/587378256005519
  • https://www.linkedin.com/posts/uconnalumni_thisisamerica-critical-race-theory-in-schools-activity-6841834574343888896-MQDM

 

Samantha graduated from UConn in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS). As an undergraduate student she had two very formative experiences that started her on a path toward becoming a healthcare researcher. One was working as a research assistant with Dr. Keith Bellizzi, primarily focused on a study of breast cancer and quality of life. The second was working with Husky Sport, a community-campus partnership between the NEAG School of Education’s Sport Management program and nonprofits in Hartford’s North End, aimed at supporting youth development through sport and relationship building. After much reflection on these experiences, as well as guidance from two very influential mentors in her life, Dr. Bellizzi and Dr. Steven Wisensale, Samantha decided to pursue a Master’s of Public Health (MPH) degree.

Samantha attended the University of Maryland’s (UMD) School of Public Health to concentrate on health policy and be in close proximity to Washington, DC to work on Capitol Hill. As she began her health policy program, she quickly realized she was much more interested in studying the impact of health policy on individuals and the healthcare system than she was in actually drafting legislation. Samantha applied to an internship at Berkeley Research Group (BRG) in the Healthcare Transactions and Strategy practice, where she later took a full-time position following her graduation from UMD in May 2020.

Samantha and her team at BRG work to inform both investors and providers on how commercial payer dynamics, federal policy, and state policy impact healthcare businesses and the broader healthcare system. Since beginning work at BRG, Samantha has worked on over two dozen healthcare related mergers and acquisitions (M&A) across various healthcare sectors. She has also participated in multiple strategy projects with healthcare companies, including an eating disorder provider looking to expand their current business to address access to care issues and a non-profit healthcare data company looking to improve their business to help solve important life science and health policy questions. Samantha is very early on in her career as a healthcare researcher but is incredibly excited to see where it takes her

Alum Rona Karasik (MA, 1989) was recently named editor-in-chief of the journal Gerontology and Geriatrics Education. Learn more about Rona, a Professor and Program Director of Gerontology at St. Cloud State University, here.

Alum Jennifer Cecarelli (’91) was recently featured in an article about her business, Peace, Love, Books! mobile bookstore, often seen in Hamden CT.  Jennifer is also an elementary school teacher in Middletown, CT, and serves on the school board in North Haven.

Michael Munoz (’01) will be a speaker at Husky WOW (Week of Welcome). Michael is Global Marketing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Lead at Google, Inc.

Congratulations to UConn HDFS alum, Stephanie Labbe (09), who won Olympic gold as Canada’s goalkeeper!

Recent HDFS graduate *Michael Zhu recently received the first place prize from the Elie Wiesel Foundation. Currently, he works in Washington, DC at the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy. Congratulations Michael!

UConn HDFS alum, Stephanie Labbe (’09), “who played women’s soccer for UConn from 2005-08, will be playing in her second Olympics as a goalkeeper for Canada, after helping that nation win a Bronze medal in the 2016 games.”

Learn more about Stephanie here: https://olympic.ca/team-canada/stephanie-labbe/. It appears she was quite the hero in the first round game: https://www.insider.com/video-canada-steph-labbe-penalty-kick-save-despite-tears-injury-2021-7

Learn more about the other 15 UConn 2021 Olympians here.

Alumna Tatiana Melendez-Rhodes (PhD ’10) received tenure and promotion to Associate Professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy Program at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) last year. And this month, she became Marriage and Family Therapy Program Director in the Department of Counselor Education and Family Therapy at Central. Congratulations Tatiana!