Past Issue:

Spring 2014

Spring 2014 Stories

Star Appeal
Features 

Star Appeal

Rutgers celebrates the five new members of the Hall of Distinguished Alumni for their professional and civic achievements as they honor Rutgers. 

Community Organizer

Nancy Cantor, the new chancellor of Rutgers University–Newark, explains the importance of civic engagement.

A Big Moment in the Big Ten

Rutgers enters the nation’s top athletic conference—and its esteemed research and teaching consortium.

Desolation Row

A new book by alumnus Phillip Buehler documents the decline of Greystone Park State Hospital and its most famous patient, folksinger Woody Guthrie.

Steve Vaccaro with bike on court house steps in NYC
On the Banks 

A Passion and a Cause

Alumnus Steve Vaccaro, an attorney who is changing how automobiles, pedestrians, and cyclists share the streets of New York City, specializes in motorist negligence. 

Seeing Things My Way

Who better to know the fine art of persuasion than a trial lawyer?

A Bold Vision for Rutgers

President Robert Barchi unveils a five-year strategic plan to vault Rutgers to eminence among the nation’s top public universities.

Something to Celebrate

In a memorable commencement, the university honors its first class of graduates of the new Rutgers.

Star-Studded Scholarships

Rutgers students are singled out for top national and international honors.

Living Arrangements

Resident assistants reflect on the challenge of taking responsibility for a floor full of students. 

Board-Certified Loyalty

Nimesh Jhaveri, a top executive at Walgreens, shows his gratitude to Rutgers by chairing the Board of Trustees health affairs committee.

Pretty in Pink

Branch Brook Park in Newark and Belleville, now home to the largest cherry tree collection in the United States, benefits from the assistance of Rutgers volunteers. 

Host With the Most

Clement Price, longtime professor of history at Rutgers University–Newark, was recently named the City of Newark’s official historian. 

Junior Alyssa Landrith star pitcher on the Scarlet Knights softball team, and sophomore Howie Brey, the top starter for the Scarlet Knights baseball team
Scarlet Sports 

Pitch Perfect

Whether it's softball or baseball, pitchers have to be masters of deception in order to fool the hitters.

What a Crew!

For 150 years, the sight of rowing shells on the waters of the Raritan River has reflected the hard work, and joy, of men’s crew teams, with many rowers becoming Olympians.

Scarlet Sports Shorts

A round up of athletes and their achievements universitywide.

Two Peas on the Sod

Donna Young and Samantha Moyal represent two generations of golfers for the Scarlet Knights, with similar, but mostly very different, experiences.

Protecting the Zebras

Alumnus Alan Goldberger, an attorney and lifelong referee of amateur sports, advocates for officials who, in this day of hypercompetition, are often under threat.

 

filmmaker Ross Kauffman
The Arts 

Light Amid the Darkness

Ross Kauffman won the U.S. documentary cinematography award at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival—the latest recognition of his talents as a documentarian. 

Comedy Central

Rutgers University–Camden hosts its inaugural comic book festival, the Camden Comic Con.

Artistic Expression

Events leading to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were spurred by many, among them six African-American women whose rare artistry underscored the movement.

A Documentarian on the Move

Jeanpaul Isaacs—who just graduated and was acknowledged at the Oscars for his films—embarks on a promising career.

The Call of the Wild

The New York area is awash in wildflowers. And alumna Mariellé Anzelone, the founder of NYC Wildflower Week, is their champion.

Bonita Mangura pointing to map
Health Matters 

Globe-trotting to Fight a Worldwide Scourge

Bonita Mangura is the director of international activities at the Global Tuberculosis Institute, part of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. 

Breaking a Glass Ceiling

Anne Mosenthal, the chair of the Department of Surgery at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, is one of just five women nationwide leading academic surgery at a medical school.

Life Saver

Alumnus Douglas Michels is the top executive of OraSure, the company behind OraQuick, a simple self-administered test to diagnose HIV at home.

Breakthroughs

Developments in the biomedical and health sciences.

Not for the Faint of Heart

Learning to draw blood, helpful in any field of health care, can be daunting. That’s where Rutgers School of Health Related Professions comes in.

When (Medical) History Repeats Itself

Janet Golden, of the Department of History at Rutgers University–Camden, is a blogger for The Public's Health, part of philly.com. 

Risky Business

The behavior of teenaged daughters can try the patience of mothers, who now have a new means for communicating with them to help avoid the rough spots.

Undertakings

New clinical and research collaborations 

Vikki Katz in front of spanish store
Insights 

Gained in the Translation

Assistant professor Vikki Katz explores the complicated role of "child brokers," the offspring of immigrants who serve as their eyes and ears in trying to understand a new culture.

Initiatives

New collaborations between Rutgers and funding agencies.

Accolades

Faculty honored for research and teaching achievements.

Appointments

New positions for key faculty and staff.

Raymond Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) in state capital
Alumni Notes 

Truth Teller

New Jersey State Senator Raymond Lesniak is the longest-serving alumnus in the legislature, a tenure that has been marked by his unabashed advocacy for progressive causes dear to him.

Service and Sacrifice

Trained as a physician assistant, Michelle Cifelli then got a medical training like no other by caring for U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Comic Timing

Mark Poulton writes and illustrates comic books and graphic novels, many for the standard-bearer, DC Comics.

Home Run

Rutgers’ participation in the Capital Alumni Softball League brings graduates together for fun and sun.

Bringing Home the Bacon

Doug Keiles, proprietor of Ribs Within, is a force to be reckon with in the world of competitive barbecue. 

 

Robert Barchi
Letters 

President’s Message

One University, Four Unique Missions

From the Editor

There’s Something Happening Here

Eric LeGrand accepts his diploma from President Robert Barchi.
The Big Picture 

Believe!

Former New Jersey governor Thomas H. Kean and Eric LeGrand address the largest graduating class in Rutgers history—an estimated 16,431 graduates—during Commencement 2014.