2013 Spring – Alumni News and Notes: 2000s, 2010s

2000s Tracy L. (Poppe) Montalbano ’00 (CLAS), ’03 JD is partner at the law firm Halloran & Sage LLP in Connecticut. Darren Stewart ’00 (BGS), chief of police in Stonington, Conn., received the St. Edmund’s Medal of Honor in October. The award, which recognizes individuals who exhibit the values and spirit of St. Edmund and […]

2000s

Tracy L. (Poppe) Montalbano ’00 (CLAS), ’03 JD is partner at the law firm Halloran & Sage LLP in Connecticut.

Darren Stewart ’00 (BGS), chief of police in Stonington, Conn., received the St. Edmund’s Medal of Honor in October. The award, which recognizes individuals who exhibit the values and spirit of St. Edmund and serve as modern-day role models, was presented by the St. Edmund’s Retreat, a nonprofit in Mystic, Conn.

Sarah Lukman ’01 (CLAS) received an associate’s degree/RN in nursing from Goodwin College in June 2012.

James G. Coogan ’02 (BUS), ’02 MS is assistant vice president, SEC compliance and external reporting, at Kaman Corp. in Bloomfield, Conn.

Natalie Berg Keightley ’03 (BUS) is the author of Walmart: Key Insights and Practical Lessons from the World’s Largest Retailer, released in May 2012 by Kogan Page.

James F. Leddy ’03 MBA is senior vice president and treasurer of JetBlue Airways Corp. He was previously senior vice president of treasury and cash management at NBC Universal, and held various leadership positions at GE, Measurisk, and the Industrial Bank of Japan.

Thomas McNerney ’03 MS is director, internal audit, at Kaman Corp. in Bloomfield, Conn.

Lauren Woody ’03 (SFA), ’05 MM, opera singer, made her international operatic debut at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing, China, performing Western and Chinese opera as part of the prestigious Young Artist program, “I Sing Beijing.”

Kevin Ballestrini ’04 (CLAS) and Christine (Jaworski) Ballestrini ’03 (SFA) announce the birth of a daughter, Livia Rose, on Feb. 11, 2013. The family lives in Mansfield, Conn.

Ebony Murphy-Root ’04 (CLAS), ’10 (ED) is supervisor of academic services at Our Piece of the Pie (opp.org), a nonprofit youth development agency in Hartford. She previously taught middle and high school English at the Watkinson School, Capital Preparatory Magnet School, and Jumoke Academy at The Hartford Conservatory. She and her husband, Jonathan Root ’01 (CLAS), live in Hartford.

Jennifer (Mitrano) Huntington ’05 (PHR), ’07 Ph.D. and Daniel Huntington ’04 (CLAS) announce the birth of a daughter, Ella Mae, on July 20, 2012. The family resides in Reading, Mass.

Stephenie R. Chaudoir ’06 MA is an assistant professor of psychology at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. She previously taught at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill., and was an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at the University of Illinois School of Medicine at Peoria. She holds an appointment as an associate research scientist at UConn’s Center for Health, Intervention and Prevention (CHIP).

Greg Magoon ’06 (ENG) is senior engineer at the Center for Aero-Thermodynamics at Aerodyne Research Inc., in Billerica, Mass. He earned a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Robert Amenta ’07 (BUS), a former trading desk analyst at Credit Suisse, is a high-yield analyst for ING Investment Management in
New York, N.Y. He works in the sectors of media and telecommunications.

Amanda Ploch ’09 (CLAS) received a juris doctor degree from the New York University School of Law in 2012.

2010s

Josh Davis ’10 (CANR), penguin trainer at Mystic Aquarium in Mystic, Conn., traveled to South Africa last year to assist SANCCOB, a marine conservation nonprofit, in hand-rearing more than 300 abandoned African penguin chicks.

Robert Hungaski ’11 (CLAS) has earned the title of Grandmaster, the highest title a chess player can attain from the World Chess Federation (FIDE).

Chris Nuelle ’11 (BUS) and Mike Rambone ’09 (ED), ’10 MS launched Lakeside Watersports, a full-time wakeboard and waterski school on Candlewood Lake in Danbury, Conn., in 2011.

Jacquelynn Garofano ’12 Ph.D., senior research scientist at United Technologies Research Center in Connecticut, was named to Connecticut Magazine’s “40 Under 40: Class of 2013” list.

Michael J. Zacchea ’12 MBA served as the grand marshal of the 13th Connecticut Veterans Parade held in November in Hartford, Conn. Zacchea was named director of veterans’ outreach and support for the UConn School of Business.