Class Notes

Name: Cheryl Kowalik

Class Year(s): 1983

Note: Cheryl Kowalik ’83 (CAST) started a new job as a data processing clerk with the Batavia City School District.

Submitted on: April 19, 2021

Name: Anthony Macri

Class Year(s): 2008

Note: Anthony Macri ’08 (KGCOE) and his wife, Alisha, celebrated the birth of their second child, Bennett Anthony, on January 5, 2021. Big sister Maggie, 2, is obsessed with her little brother!

Submitted on: April 11, 2021

Name: Sandra Dolitz-Vasquez

Class Year(s): 1996

Note: Sandra Dolitz-Vasquez ’96 (CLA) was promoted to Director of Education for SmartMLS, Connecticut’s largest MLS supporting nearly 20,000 subscribers. Her son, Ben, is graduating from Norwalk C.T. P-Tech High School and will hopefully be a future RIT student.

Submitted on: April 2, 2021

Name: Paul-James Jones

Class Year(s): 1983

Note: Dr. Paul-James Jones ’83 (COS) retired in January 2021 after 30 years in the analytical sciences and Information Technology departments at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals USA in Ridgefield, C.T.

Submitted on: April 2, 2021

Name: Hilary Sinclair (Young)

Class Year(s): 2014

Note: Hilary Sinclair ’14 (CHST) and Garth Sinclair ’15, ME ’15 (KGCOE) welcomed their first child, Aiden James Sinclair, on December 1, 2020.

Submitted on: March 26, 2021

Name: David Stern

Class Year(s): 1996

Note: David J, Stern ’96 (KGCOE) is currently serving as a network engineer for the White House Situation Room.

Submitted on: March 21, 2021

Name: Manmeet Chhabra

Class Year(s): 2001

Note: Manmeet Chhabra MBA ’01 (SCB) writes: 2020 has been a challenging year to say the least, but it is also the year giving birth to innovations and creative ideas throughout the world. My 8 year old son and I collaborated to write this book amidst the COVID shutdown. It was amazing to work with the little imaginative mind and helping him write this book. I love how the book came together. If you get a chance, I would like encourage you to check out "The Mighty Geek": https://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Geek-Sahej-Chhabra/dp/0578835053/ref=sr_1_1dchild=1&keywords=The+Mighty+Geek+Book&qid=1616302210&sr=8-1

Submitted on: March 21, 2021

Name: Matthew Elman

Class Year(s): 1987

Note: Matthew Elman ’87 (GAP) and Kathleen Rowe welcomed their first grandchild. Rowan Scott Elman was born on December 7, 2020 weighing in at 8lbs. 4 oz. Parents Dylan Elman and Breanna Peck are elated.

Submitted on: March 5, 2021

Name: Tre DiPassio

Class Year(s): 18

Note: Tre DiPassio’s ’18 (KGCOE) MS ’18 (KGCOE) vocal arrangement of Counting Stars (originally performed by One Republic) was nominated for a Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA) for Best Lower Voices Collegiate Arrangement. The CARA awards are the a cappella world’s equivalent to the Grammy awards. Tre performed with the Brick City Singers, an RIT A Cappella group, from 2013-2018. This arrangement debuted at the 2016 International Championships of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) quarterfinal at the University of Rochester. The Brick City Singer’s latest album, Sing It!, was in production from 2016 - 2019 under Tre’s direction, and features nine of his vocal arrangements. Sing It! was then released in 2020, making Tre’s arrangements eligible for award consideration in this year’s CARA program. Tre is a current PhD student in musical acoustics at the University of Rochester.

Submitted on: March 1, 2021

Name: Tiffany Owens

Class Year(s): 1998

Note: Tiffany Owens ’98 (KGCOE) and a lead system safety engineer with the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) Dam Neck Activity was selected as the Department of Defense Science Technology Engineering Math (STEM) Advocate of the Quarter in Fiscal Year 2020. This quarterly award recognizes outstanding STEM education and outreach efforts that further the mission of the Department of Defense. The award recognized Tiffany’s extensive experience in and passion for STEM outreach and education, her ability to develop and implement STEM outreach activities at NSWCDD Dam Neck Activity and surrounding communities, and her development of STEM curriculum and activities to expose young students of all backgrounds. Tiffany leads and participates in a number of STEM efforts in her community, including coaching a FIRST robotics team, leading a STEM outreach group at her church, chairing her division’s Special Events Committee, serving as a NSWCDD STEM outreach school program lead, project screener and judge for the Metro Richmond Science Fair, member of the Board of Directors for the Girl Scouts of the Commonwealth of VA and STEM Youth Conference Chair for the International System Safety Conference (ISSC). Tiffany currently works as lead safety engineer on Naval laser weapon systems and resides in Richmond, V.A.

Submitted on: February 26, 2021