Classnotes

Alumna Nia Coffey (BS17), pictured above, was inducted into the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame. A small forward with the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream, she was the fifth overall draft pick in 2017, the highest of any Northwestern basketball player in history.

60s

Nancy Wendt Sindelar (BS66) wrote Hemingway’s Passions, a biography that provides a unique look at how the women Ernest Hemingway loved shaped his literary legend. 

70s

John Zaimes (MS73) joined the labor and employment practice of Greenberg Traurig in California. He litigates and advises clients on labor and employment issues.

Tanny Crane (BS78), president and CEO of the Crane Group, completed a 3,400-mile cross-country bike ride to raise $100,000 for Pelotonia, a nonprofit that funds cancer research at Ohio State University. She was called “one of the region’s foremost civic leaders” by Columbus CEO magazine.

80s

Jackie Taylor Holsten (BS87) was appointed a life trustee of Loyola University Chicago. She is senior vice president and general counsel at Holsten Real Estate Development Corporation and board chair and executive director of Holsten Human Capital Development.

Michael Morris (BS89) is senior director of sun and body care brands at Crown Laboratories. He lives in northeastern Tennessee with his wife, Giannine Masters Morris (WCAS90). 

90s

Deborah Noble-Triplett (BS94) was named provost and vice president for academic affairs at Lindenwood University.

Kim Kopetz (BS95) is president and CEO of the Opus Group, a global events and experiential agency.

Jimmie Sanders (BS97) is assistant dean of academic and enrollment services for the School of Continuing and Professional Studies at DePaul University.

D’Wayne Bates (BS98) starts in July as athletic director at Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois. He was also named to the board of directors of the National Federation of State High School Associations.

Rob Schnieders (Comm90, MA98) is vice president of strategic initiatives at Fairfield University.

00s

Michelle Park Michelini (BS04) is executive director of the Behavioral Insights and Parenting Lab at the University of Chicago.

Kara Godwin (MS05) joined Pomona College to establish its interdisciplinary Center for Global Engagement as inaugural senior global fellow.

Jon Mikrut (BS05) is an asset manager for ML Realty Partners, focusing on the Chicago and Dallas-Fort Worth areas. A standout shortstop and pitcher for the Wildcats baseball team, Mikrut played for the St. Louis Cardinals for four seasons and was then an assistant baseball coach and recruiting coordinator for Northwestern. Outside of work, he’s an instructor with Glenview (Illinois) Youth Baseball.

Leah Doane (MA06, PhD09) was named chair of Arizona State University’s psychology department.

Julie Emms (MS07) is associate director of the Center for Biomedical Informatics and Biostatistics at the University of Arizona. She was previously administrative director of the Center for Quantum Networks, where she was nominated for the Edith Sayre Auslander Emerging Visionary Award.

Sunny Lin (BS09) is assistant professor of medicine at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, where she researches health services and policy.

Spiro Maroulis (PhD09) has been named director of the University of Kentucky’s Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, beginning this fall. He is currently on the faculty of Arizona State University’s School of Public Affairs.

Tammy Williams (BS09) advises nonprofits and families for the Cooke Financial Group. She was recently ranked first on AdvisorHub’s 2024 list of 100 women to watch. Williams, a softball standout, is a member of the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame.

10s

Maddie Orenstein (BS10) is director of community development for the West Contra Costa Public Education Fund. She previously cofounded the Colibri Collaborative to help organizations navigate change. 

Samantha Viano (MS11), associate professor of education at George Mason University, won the Jack Culbertson Award from the University Council for Educational Administration. April Stewart (BS12) is a research, monitoring, and evaluation specialist at the Marjorie Kovler Center.

Henna Ahmed (MS13) is associate director of college counseling at Honolulu’s Mid- Pacific Institute.

Alexa Herzog (BS13) is special assistant to the chief of staff for Maryland’s Department of Juvenile Services.

Tana Didelot (MS14) is manager of recruitment at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, where she oversees pathway programs, marketing, communications, and advising for prospective students.

Daniel Nissani (BS14) is director of responsible artificial intelligence at Salesforce.

Elysse Longiotti (MS15) is director of doctoral program administration in Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering. She was previously associate director of career advising with the University’s career advancement office. 

Brendan Bond (MS16) launched Navigating the College Journey with his wife, Maddy, to give high school students more personalized support in the college search and application process. He also leads the college counseling department at Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart in Lake Forest, Illinois, where he coaches basketball.

Nia Coffey (BS17) was inducted into the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame. A small forward with the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream, she was the fifth overall draft pick in 2017, the highest of any Northwestern basketball player in history.

Kiernan Michau (MS18) is an upper school humanities teacher at the International School of Trieste in Italy.

Justin Siler (MS18) is clubs program manager for the University of Notre Dame’s alumni association.

Amy Conn Bloom (MS19) is senior associate vice president of leadership and learning for Revantage, which serves Blackstone real estate companies and investments.

Bianca McKenna (BS19) is a management consultant at Accenture. Samantha Oberman (BS19), a former special education teacher, is a reading intervention specialist at Redwood Literacy in Chicago.

20s

Akie Kadota (BS22) is senior manager of programs and partnerships at the Honeycomb Project, a nonprofit that connects Chicago families with service opportunities.

Jue Wu (PhD22) is assistant professor of higher education at the University of Florida.

Joselyn Chavez (BS23, MS24) is a teacher at her alma mater, Chicago’s Douglas Taylor Elementary School.

Kelly O’Connor (MS23) is a partner development manager at Ellevation Education, which provides software to help educators lead English language programs.

Kasey Tedford (MS23) is director of change management for benefits company Trustmark. Dalia Segal-Miller (BS24) is political and policy manager with the Jewish Democratic Council of America.

Amelia Vasquez (BS24) is a research assistant at the American Institutes for Research.

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For more class notes, visit sesp.northwestern.edu.