connectionsFall 2009 Vol. 2, No. 1New York City College of Technology

Don’t Be Lured into Credit Card DebtCity Tech Helps Launch New High SchoolNovember 2009 is CUNY Month at City TechNew Access for Women’s Job Training ProgramWeird Coincidence Links City Tech to Broadway Hit

It’s true that “knowledge is power.” But there are different levelsof knowledge that empower different people to accomplishdifferent things in different areas of life. Knowing this, I madethe decision after doing all that needed to be done to see mytwo daughters successfully enter college to return to school andto pursue the knowledge and know-how at New York City Collegeof Technology that would enable me to add a professional careerto my career as a parent.

I have never once regretted choosing City Tech over so manyother schools I might have attended. Here, I have come to betterunderstand so many things about myself and about theimportance of education. My interactions with so many otherindividuals who make up this College’s diverse student bodyhave been a rich and joyful experience. One of my mostmemorable experiences was working with other students tolobby for more scholarship funding.

Through determination, persistence, stamina and old fashionedhard work, all of us will graduate and one day soon join those ofyou who came before us to become City Tech alumni. We willgraduate understanding that the one thing that no individual cantake from another is that person’s knowledge and know-how – avery personal treasure that when wisely spent will have made allthat hard work well worth it.

And when our graduation day comes, we will join all of you whocontinue to support your alma mater in ways essential to CityTech’s continued success and who are helping make it possiblefor us to soon follow in your footsteps. Please remain connectedor reconnect with your alma mater and support it in every wayyou can.

Evita Belmonte

SGA President’s Message

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COME BACK TO CAMPUS IN NOVEMBERfor the following and other special eventsin observance of CUNY Month at City Tech.The College will host a series of eventsdesigned to showcase its 60baccalaureate, associate and specializedcertificate programs in 21st centurytechnologies as well as an array ofcontinuing education courses andcommunity assistance activities.

CUNY Month at City Tech will kick off onNOVEMBER 2 with a Black Solidarity Daylook at “The Black Church, Politics and theAfrican American Community.” Speakersinclude Dr. Clarence Taylor, Professor ofAfrican American Studies and History atBaruch College, and Rev. Violet Dease ofthe historic Abyssinian Baptist Church,plus performances by the City TechCommunity Choir and Black Theaterclasses.

On NOVEMBER 5, Professor PartrickO’Halloran will speak on the topic of “Howto Get the Most Out of Your Credit Cards inTough Economic Times.” NOVEMBER 8 willbring the College’s Fall 2009 Open House,which traditionally sees upwards of 1,000prospective students visit campus to meetwith current students and faculty and to

tour academic classrooms, labs and theother state-of-the-art facilities that are thehallmark of a City Tech education.

ALSO IN NOVEMBER, the City Tech AlumniAssociation will host a reception foralumna mentors and student menteespursuing careers in areas in which womenlong have been underrepresented. Also,the Department of Radiologic Technologyand Medical Imaging will observe “ACelebration of RadTech Week,” while theCity Tech Foundation will host a receptionfor student scholarship recipients and thedonors who helped make these awardspossible.

Other activities will include free ContinuingEducation programs for communityresidents on “What You Need to KnowAbout Foreclosures” and “Pilgrims andButterballs,” which will answer thequestion about who really inventedThanksgiving. The month also features anAnna Nurse Culinary Workshoppresentation by author Norman Weinstein,author of Mastering Knife Skills: TheEssential Guide to the Most Important Toolin Your Kitchen, and a nationally acclaimedVeterans Center for the Performing Artsproduction of Fit for Society, a three-person

play that unites military veterans with thelocal community.

NOVEMBER WILL SEE the College’s 7thAnnual Faculty and Student ResearchPoster Session, an Ursula C. SchwerinLibrary Cinem@tech viewing of AbrahamLincoln, the Student Wellness Center andDepartments of Nursing and DentalHygiene educational collaboration inobservance of Great American Smoke-OutDay, the annual Local Apple Festival/Diabetes Education Day observance, theBlack Women’s Networking Committee’sHoliday Pie Sale to fund a year-long roundof professional development programs forCity Tech students, faculty and alumni, andthe FIRST Tech Challenge RoboticWorkshop for high school students.

For a full schedule of November activities,visit http://www.citytech.cuny.edu/aboutus/newsevents/index.shtml and click on This Month at City Tech at thetop of the “Events” column beginningOctober 30.

is CUNY Month at City Tech

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City Tech Professor’s Advice

‘Don’t Be Lured intoCredit Card Debt’

In these tough economic times, thereis the temptation to obtain morecredit cards and run them up.However, according to City TechProfessor Patrick O’Halloran, there areways to avoid the pitfalls of credit carddebt, which averages $8,400 amongall American households. A typicalhousehold will pay $1,200 annually incredit card interest alone.

“The golden rule with regard to yournew credit card is to pay your accountin full each month, so you don’t incurany interest charges,” O’Halloran says.“A $1,000 charge on an average creditcard will take almost 22 years to payand cost more than $2,300 in interest($3,300 total) if only the two percentminimum payments are made.”

Other tips offered by O’Halloraninclude:

• Negotiate with the card company tohave the annual fee (membershipfee) waived, if possible.

• Only have one credit card and beaware of what your “balance due” ison it at all times.

• Research the credit card companiesyou’re considering. Review theannual percentage rate (APR); thisdetermines the cost to you of usingthe credit.

• Consider having an initial creditbalance on your credit card; that is,pre-pay $500 in advance of anypurchase you wish to make. By

doing this you won’t fall for themantra “buy now, pay later.”

• Consider initially having a securedcredit card, which requiresmaintaining a savings account tosecure the line of credit forthe card. The savingsaccount generallyequals 50 to 100percent of theactual line ofcredit.

• Confirm withthe creditcardcompanythat you will notbe required to make aminimum number ofpurchases within a year.

• Always mail your payment checkfive to seven days prior to the“payment due date” to avoidincurring late charges.

“If you can’t pay off the entire creditbalance when it is due, paying morethan the minimum can make a bigdifference,” O’Halloran says. “Andkeep in mind that because of thehigh annual percentage rates on baddebt, not paying for what you buyright away will result in every item onyour credit card bill costing more.”

If you do get into debt that isoverwhelming, the non-profitNational Foundation for Credit

Counseling can assist with structuringa repayment plan. For moreinformation, call 800.388.2227 or logon to www.nfcc.org.

by Patrick O’Hallorn

The ACCESS for Women (AFW) program at City Tech hasreceived a $343,000 Federal Stimulus Grant through theNew York City Department of Small Business Services. Inpartnership with the Parks Department’s Parks OpportunityProgram (POP), the grant funds a new Electrical TechnicianTraining (E-TECH) program through July 2010.

E-TECH is a special program designed by ACCESS forWomen in collaboration with the College’s Department of

Computer Engineering Technology. The program consistsof four courses that will prepare graduates to meet entry-level technical requirements for the position of electricalmaintenance and service technician.

In preparation for the training, POP conducted a 160-hour Math Academy for clients, 35 of which enteredAFW’s new 440-hour E-TECH program in August of thisyear. School of Technology & Design faculty and staffworked with AFW on curriculum development andcourse design for a three-day training model that includesclassroom instruction, technical labs, hands-on projectsand field experience.

In addition to courses that will be held here on campus,the trainees will be taken on various trips to observe andspeak with individuals at work in jobs for which they arebeing trained. Upon completion of the new E-TECHprogram, POP Sparks will provider graduates with jobplacement assistance.

Fall 2009 Enrollment SoarsCity Tech has experienced an eight percent increase in fall 2009enrollment over last year, bringing total enrollment to 15,399,the highest since tuition was imposed in 1976. Enrollment hasjumped 28 percent since fall 2004.

Part of the reason for the enrollment increase is the significantrise in the number of first-year students who came back for theirsophomore year – which at City Tech now totals 78 percent –placing the College among the top 20 of all comprehensivebaccalaureate colleges in the North, according to U.S. News &World Report. This fall, 3,329 freshmen enrolled, marking anincrease of five percent over last year’s entering class.

For several years in a row, City Tech has been recognized ashaving one of the most diverse student populations in itscategory, according to the same publication. This year theCollege ranks second in that category and also in the top five in the number of international students.

CONTINUING EDUCATION LAUNCHES NEW ACCESS FORWOMEN JOB TRAINING PROGRAM

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City Tech has added 30 new full-time,tenure-track professors, reflecting both therapid growth of the College and the strongcommitment that The City University ofNew York has made to increasing thepercentage of classes taught by full-timefaculty members. The increase brings thetotal of full-time faculty to more than 400,the highest level since 1976.

“Enrollment growth, efficiencies and dedicatedCUNY Compact funding have also allowedus to continue our broad faculty recruitmentinitiative,” City Tech President Russell Hotzlersaid in a letter to the campus community. “Todate, this effort has added over 140 full-timehighly qualified professionals to the facultyover the past four years.

“Faculty scholarship activity at the Collegehas increased significantly as well, resultingin an impressive and ever-lengthening listof faculty achievements,” he added.

“New faculty at the College bring with themexcellent credentials and exciting researchinterests. They will provide generations ofstudents to come the skills necessary tosucceed in our technology-dependent world,”says City Tech Provost Bonne August.

Among the new faculty are:

Jay Deiner, PhD (chemistry) earned adoctorate in chemistry from Harvard.While employed by Hewlett-Packard, he ledresearch efforts to incorporate novelsurfactants in inkjet inks and participatedin the invention of and wrote patentdisclosures for inkjet ink formulations withenhanced performance.

Sean Patrice MacDonald, PhD (socialsciences) has 16 years experience ineconomic analysis, most recently as theacting director of financial services researchfor the New York State Banking Department.

Jason Montgomery, RA, LEED, AP(architectural technology) holds an MA inarchitecture from the University of Wales atCardiff. As a principal with Hart Howerton,he worked on hotels, resorts, residentialand town planning projects in the U.S.,Europe, North Africa, Central America, theCaribbean and the Middle East.

Armando D. Solis, PhD (biological sciences)applies bioinformatics and computationalstructural biology to clarify how proteinmolecules fold into definite structures, usefulin understanding diseases and designingpharmaceutical treatments. He has hadarticles published in Proteins: Structure,Function and Bioinformatics and other journals.

Melanie Villatoro, PE (constructionmanagement and civil engineeringtechnology) holds a master’s degree ingeotechnical engineering from ColumbiaUniversity. As an assistant project managerfor Langan Engineering & EnvironmentalServices, she provided design services forresidential and commercial waterfrontdevelopments as well as railroads, highways,bridges and airports in the NYC area.

Yu Wang, PhD (computer engineeringtechnology) was a research associate inthe Department of Electrical Engineeringat Dalian Jiaotong University, China forseven years before coming to the U.S.She taught at CCNY and is part of aresearch team that developsmathematical models to ensure properinformation transfer among electronicdevices, including data transfer throughcomputer networks.

Thirty New Faculty Members Boost Total to Record High

New faculty at the College

bring with them excellent

credentials and exciting

research interests.

Construction to Bring New Facilities,New Look to City TechConstruction will be underway all over thecampus next spring. Rising on the site ofthe current Klitgord Center will be a newstate-of-the-art academic building ofapproximately 350,000 square feet,which will house the sciences andhealthcare programs and include a newauditorium and gymnasium.

“These investments represent recognitionon the part of the State, the City and TheUniversity of the importance of City Tech toour students, the economy and ourcommunity at large,” President Hotzlerexplained.

The new LEED-certified building is beingdesigned by Perkins-Eastman, a leadinginnovative international architectural firmwhose redesign of the TKTS Booth and ofFather Duffy Square created a new centerfor Times Square. The design for the newbuilding is under review at this time, withthe demolition of the existing buildingscheduled for the spring 2010 semester.

Meanwhile, bids have been received for anew facade for Voorhees Hall, withconstruction scheduled to begin spring2010. Also, construction drawings havebeen completed for the renovation of the

ground level and first floor of the AdamsStreet facade of the Pearl Building, and fora Student Welcome Center, which will beconveniently located on the first floor ofthe Atrium Building.

This fall, students and faculty alike havefound extensive improvements of facilities.Sixteen classrooms were recentlyrenovated and 11 state-of-the-art “smart”classrooms were added. In addition, theCity Tech hospitality managementdepartment’s training kitchen renovation isscheduled to be completed before thestart of the spring 2010 semester.

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‘WEIRD’ COINCIDENCE LINKS CITY TECH TO

HIT BROADWAY SHOW What’s theprobability of twostrangers – whosesons star in thesame role onBroadway –working at thesame place? It’s100 percent if youhappen to beTammy Cummingsand David Alvarez-Carbonell.

City Tech ProvostBonne Augustdiscovered thisweird coincidence when Cummingcame on board this past summer asdirector of assessment and institutionalresearch. Cummings, who mostrecently served as executive director ofthe Iowa City-based National Learningand Achievement Organization, bringsextensive experience as a researcher,consultant and teacher to her position.Her son, Alex Ko, is the fifth actor torotate into the title role of “Billy” inthe Tony-award winning hit BillyElliot the Musical.

Alex joined Adjunct AssistantChemistry Professor David Alvarez-Carbonell’s son, also named David,who has starred in the show since itopened on Broadway a year ago.Professor Carbonell-Alvarez, abiochemist and molecular biologistwho is also a senior research scientistin the Department of Medicine atNYU Medical Center, beganteaching at City Tech last spring.

The play focuseson a poor Britishworking-class boy,who, despite thelack of supportfrom his family,pursues his dreamof becoming aballet dancer.Unlike thefictional characterthey portray, Alexand David bothhad the support oftheir parents, whomade the same

decision to relocate their families toNew York City – one from Iowa, theother from California – thus givingtheir sons the chance to make theirdreams a reality.

Perfect timing played a major rolein bringing Cumming to City Techand her son Alex to Broadway. “Hehad his final audition for BillyElliot the same week I had my biginterview at City Tech,” she recalls.“I had told him that if he got thepart he could only take it if I couldget a job in New York.”

When Alvarez-Carbonell asked hisson what he thought about thecoincidence, the youngster replied,“Gosh, that’s weird if you ask me.”Adds Alvarez-Carbonell: “That’sreally funny because it’s the sameresponse that Billy’s friend Michaelgives in the play when Billy asksMichael what he thinks of Billy’saudition for the Royal Ballet!”

November 11, 2009, marks the 90thAnniversary of The New York CityVeterans Day Parade. This year, CityTech veteran students again will joinother City University of New Yorkstudent vets abroad a CUNY-sponsored float.

Since 1919, the parade has broughtNew Yorkers and Americans together tohonor those who served, defending ourdemocracy. From its modestbeginnings, a year after the Armisticewas signed that ended World War I, theparade has grown not just in scope andscale, but in national importance. TheParade has always been a reflection ofNew York City’s sense of patriotism andcommunity spirit. Participating in thishigh-energy commemoration is yetanother way in which New Yorkersthank all City Tech and other vets whoproudly served our country andprotected our freedoms.

City Tech Veteran Students to Help CelebrateVeterans Day onNovember 11

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City Tech has partnered with theNew York City Department ofEducation (DOE), NationalAcademy Foundation (NAF) andThe City University of New York’s(CUNY) Early College Initiative tolaunch a new secondary school inDowntown Brooklyn.

Making its debut this fall with142 students, the new school –City Polytechnic High School ofEngineering, Architecture andTechnology (City Poly High) –will operate on a trimesterschedule that allows students toearn credits faster and fulfill theirhigh school graduation requirements inthree years instead of four. They will receivean associate degree from City Tech whenthey complete their fifth year.

The school will blend a curriculum focusedon career and technical education withadvanced courses in such subjects as civilengineering, computer systems andarchitectural technology.

Housed at Westinghouse High School (105Tech Place), adjacent to the City Techcampus, City Poly High is the first of itskind in New York City. Currently, 11 EarlyCollege schools allow high school studentsto earn college credit at CUNY. But noneare able to integrate a career andtechnological high school program with aclosely linked career-oriented college degreelike City Poly High, designated by Schools

Chancellor Klein as one of fourdemonstration Career andTechnical Education (CTE)high schools in the DOE.

Several City Tech departments– Architectural Technology,Construction Management andCivil Engineering Technologyand Computer SystemsTechnology – have played anactive role in curriculumdevelopment and will continueto be engaged in facultyprofessional development,student projects and curricularwork to truly connect the

school to City Tech programs.

“I believe this high school will offer itsstudents a wonderful opportunity and willbring City Tech some very highly qualifiedand focused students,” says City TechProvost Bonne August.

For more information on City Poly High,go to: http://www.citypolyhigh.org.

City Tech Helps Launch New High School

City Tech Professor’s New Book Mixes Politics with PlayIn his newly published book, Queer Political Performance and Protest: Play, Pleasure,and Social Movement (Routledge), City Tech Assistant Professor of Human ServicesBenjamin Shepard explores the role of fun, creativity, pleasure and play in socialmovements, especially the theatrical approach to protest and community buildingtaken by the gay liberation movement and “queer activism.”

“This wonderful book tells the remarkable story of the rise of the theatrical andaudacious queer movement in the United States,” says Frances Fox Piven,Distinguished Professor, CUNY Graduate Center. “It’s a fascinating read that is theoretically illuminating as well.”

The book examines the intersections between the global justice movement andqueer activism, post-war cabaret culture and its links to politics, the rise of gayliberation, AIDS activism, links between direct action groups and service providers,and current movements. But according to Shepard, no movement has had alarger influence on the emergence of a playful model of social movement renewalthan the AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power (ACT UP).

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New York City College of Technology(CUNY) has learned that Dr. MarvaLoretta Clark Gordon, who passed awayin late May, has remembered City Techin her will with one of the largestindividual gifts in the College’s history.Her gift is earmarked for the NursingDepartment.

When Dr. Gordon was a high schoolsenior in Camden, NJ, she wasselected by her drama teacher to playa maid in a school play. She refusedthe part, even though the teacherthreatened to fail her. Her resolvemade newspaper headlines.

“I stood my ground,” she said, “andinformed the principal that my great-great-grandfather had been a slave and aboot smith to Abraham Lincoln, and thatboth my great grandmother, who helpedraise me, and my mother worked toohard to see me stereotyped that way.”

Her success and determination did notstop there. She worked two jobs in thesummers while in high school and,once in college, worked full-time as a

nurse’s aide on the midnight to 8 a.m.shift while taking classes in themornings and evenings. Gordon, whoeventually made her home in Tucson,Arizona, went on to earn severaladditional academic degrees aftergraduating from City Tech with anassociate’s degree in nursing in ‘69,capping her achievement with a PhD insociology from St. Johns University(Queens, NY) in 1983. In 2003, shereceived an Extraordinary Citizen Awardfrom the Mayor of Tucson for hervisionary leadership and tenacity incoordinating human services needswithin the greater Tucson community.

In 2004, she was honored by City Techwith the President’s Award at theCollege’s annual commencementexercises and also was recognized,along with her husband, forestablishing the Dr. Marva L. and Mr.John Gordon Scholarship Fund,demonstrating their strongcommitment to future generations ofCity Tech students. The late Mr. Gordonalso graduated from City Tech.

DR. MARVA LORETTA CLARK GORDON ‘69 LEAVES LEGACY TO CITY TECH

Foundation Corner

PLANNED GIVING

This is an exciting time at City Tech asstudent enrollment and additions to full-timefaculty soar. What’s more, the College isabout to bring the curtain down on KlitgordCenter Auditorium and other facilities inpreparation for construction of a new state-of-the-art academic building to begin next year.However, with all that we have to boastabout, providing our 15,399 students with afirst-rate education and an engaging academicenvironment remains our top priority.

You can help us maintain our high standardsfor tomorrow’s scholars by remembering CityTech in your estate plan. As you think aboutyour intentions, you’ll find our brochure,Eleven Things To Remember, a valuablereminder of estate planning basics and ourbooklet, How To Make A Will That Works,which offers valuable information that willbe helpful to you as you plan for the long-term distribution of your property to family,friends and charitable interests, especially inlight of recent tax law changes that mayresult in more freedom as you decide howyour property is ultimately distributed.

Contact us at foundation@citytech.cuny.eduor write to us at City Tech Foundation, 300Jay Street, Namm Hall 323, Brooklyn, NY11201 to request your copies.

PHONATHON

In the heart of City Tech lies aroom that comes alive eachevening with the energy andexcitement of students. Thesestudents gather nightly during thefall and spring semesters on thethird floor of Namm Hall to reachout to alumni and other friendsof the College across the nation.Their mission is to increase AnnualGiving participation and strengthenties with those who are not able toregularly visit the campus. As amatter of fact, these studentsare the key element in increasing

unrestricted support essential toCity Tech’s continued success.

Our student callers are committedto helping maintain and enhancethe City Tech experience for todayand tomorrow’s students. Theyvalue the quality education theyreceive at City Tech, and theyrealize the life-long advantages thatit provides. So when you see CityTech on your Caller ID, pick up thephone and, at the very least,update our alumni records and letus know how you can give back toyour alma mater.

Thank you for your support ofNew York City College ofTechnology! Gifts to City Techdirectly benefit ourextraordinary students andscholars, who come to CityTech to avail themselves ofthe unique educationalopportunities that only we canoffer, from our renownedfaculty to our innovativeschools and programs.

City Tech relies on itsdedicated community ofalumni, parents, friends,

faculty, staff andadministrators to help makepossible its continuedexcellence. Gifts to City Techsupport financial aid andscholarships, allow us torecruit and retain a world-class faculty, to build andrenovate state-of-the-artclassrooms and laboratories,and so much more.

Regardless of where youdirect your support, your giftwill truly make a difference.

YOUR GIFT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

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Works of sculpture titled “Transfiguration to

Hope” by Advertising Design and Graphic Arts

Professor Bernard Aptekar were exhibited at

Miejska Galeria Sztuki in Lodz, Poland, in

September 2009. The exhibit is a narrative on

Polish life and culture and the valiant struggle

of the Polish people for autonomy and

independence.

Assistant Professor Oleg Berman, Physics,

presented “Bose-Einstein Condensation of

Quasiparticles in Graphene,” at the Nano and Giga

Conference held in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada,

August 10-14, 2009.

Former Chief Librarian and College

Achivist Catherine Veronica Tyler Brody

died at the age of 81 on Friday, September 4,

2009. She served for 30 years as a professor and

administrator, and was the author of several

books on the history of printing.

Distinguished Hungarian Philosopher and

Fulbright Scholar István Bujalos is teaching

at City Tech this fall as a visiting professor. He

is director and associate professor of the

Department of Philosophy at the University of

Debrecen, Hungary, and formerly served as the

college’s dean of faculty of humanities and

social sciences

Assistant Professor Jean Claude ‘96,

Hospitality Management, and culinary arts

students treated hundreds of Downtown

Brooklyn office workers and other passers-by to a

tasting of Warm Eggplant with Garlic, Tomato

and Basil on Brushetta at a Cooks in the Market

foodfest held in Columbus Park near Borough

Hall on September 24, 2009.

Assistant Professors Candy Dato and Peggy

Rafferty together with Adjunct Assistant

Professor Kevin McGirr, and more than 20

Department of Nursing students joined other

nursing students from across the country in

lobbying for healthcare reform in the nation’s

capital during summer break.

Assistant Professor Ann Delikan, Humanities,

presented “Getting Dependent Feet to Toe the

Line: Asymmetrical Application of Segmental

Processes in Malay” at the CUNY Linguistics

Colloquium held at the CUNY Graduate Center

on September 17, 2009.

Retired Acting Dean of Continuing Education

James A. Goldman authored a guest article on

“Why We Don’t Say Shanath Tovath” for the

“On Language” column of the October 9, 2009,

edition of The Jewish Daily Forward.

College Laboratory Technicians Calvin Grace

and Chi Jau Yuan have been recommended to

the CUNY Board of Trustees for promotion to

the rank of Senior College Laboratory Technician,

effective January 1, 2010.

Computer Engineering Technology Professor

Iem Heng accompanied students Sandor Bocz,

Michael Hernandez and David Ruffins to

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in

Worcester, Massachusetts, on November 7 and 8,

2009. The three students were selected to

participate in the WPI’s 1st Annual Robotics

Innovations Competition & Conference (RICC).

The students designed and built a five-fingered

robotic prototype that mimics the finger

movements of a controlling human wearing a

wireless glove and sensor strapped to the

human’s arm.

Professor Roman Kezerashvili, chair of the

Department of Physics, presented “Baryons in

the Field Correlator Method,” at the 10th

International Conference on the Intersections of

Particle and Nuclear Physics held in San Diego,

California, May 26-31, 2009, “Deviations from

Keplerian Orbits for Solar Sails” at the 6th

International Academy of Astronautics

Symposium on Realistic Near-Term Advanced

Scientific Space Missions held in Aosta, Italy,

Who’sNEWS?

In MemoriamLenny Eylinkrig ’95Alumnus and Adjunct Lecturer Department of Hospitality Management

The City Tech community was saddened to learnof the untimely death of Hospitality Managementalumnus and Adjunct Lecturer Lenny Eylinkrig‘95 on September 19, 2009. In addition toteaching at City Tech, he served as director ofservices for the La Guardia Airport Marriott.

Eylinkrig was one of two Greenburgh, NY,residents killed in unrelated incidents over atwo-day period.

“This certainly is a difficult time for the students,faculty and staff of the hospitality managementdepartment,” retired department chair Francisco J.Betancourt wrote to the College community in amoving tribute to his former student andcolleague. “He was an exceptional student, afantastic teacher and a very dedicated member ofthe hospitality industry. I valued him as a friendwho would always be available to offer a kind wordor helping hand. Lenny loved his students and

found so many of them employment andopportunities to intern in various positionsthroughout the industry. He made those whoperformed tasks which others would never wantto be involved with proud of theiraccomplishments. The College, department,hospitality industry, and his family and friendshave a very special person looking out for all ofus in Heaven.”

The Eylinkrig family has established The LennyEylinkrig Memorial Library at Congregation Sonsof Israel in the Bronx. For more information aboutthe library, call 718.231.6213.

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July 6-10, 2009, and “A Four-Electron Artificial

Atom in the Hyperspherical Function Method” at the

19th International Conference on Few-Body Problems

in Physics held in at the University of Bonn, Bonn,

Germany, August 31-September 5, 2009.

Sixteen drawings (pencil on gessoed wood panel) by

Advertising Design and Graphic Arts Adjunct

Lecturer Joe LoGuirato that showcased

historically significant structures in Queens were

on exhibit at the Bayside Historical Society

through November 1, 2009.

Assistant Professor Gregory Matloff, Physics,

presented a paper, “NEOs as Stepping Stones to Mars

and Near-Earth Asteroids,” at the 6th International

Academy of Astronautics Symposium on Realistic

Near-Term Advanced Scientific Space Missions held

in Aosta, Italy, in July 6-10, 2009. The paper was co-

authored by Monika Wilga, a former student in

Professor Matloff’s astronomy classes.

Assistant Professor Justin Vazquez-Poritz,

Physics, presented “Escape Trajectories of Solar

Sails and General Relativity” at the 6th

International Academy of Astronautics Symposium

on Realistic Near-Term Advanced Scientific Space

Missions held in Aosta, Italy, from July 6-10,

2009, and “Strings on AdS Wormholes” at the 6th

International Symposium on Quantum Theory and

Symmetries 6 held at the University of Kentucky

from July 20-25, 2009.

Professor Robert Russo, chair of the Department

of Vision Care Technology, was honored with the

Dennis Tilley Educator of the Year Award by the

American Board of Opticianry-National Contact

Lens Examiners at the organization’s annual

conference held earlier this year in Cincinnati.

Assistant Professor of History Geoff D. Zylstra

lectured on “The Rise and Fall of Coney Island: A

Story of Industrial and Post-Industrial

Consumption” as part of St. Francis College’s

Lecture Series “Brooklyn Observed: History,

Politics, Culture,” on September 22, 2009.

ClassACT!Nooria Nodrat ’09

Nooria Nodrat and herfriendly guide dog, “Yahoo,”were a familiar presence atCity Tech during the yearsNooria worked toward abaccalaureate degree inhuman services. Havingfaced severe challenges inher life that would havebroken most other people,Nooria has emergedstronger and with a willand ability to help othersthat have fueled a fierceambition to realize the

most difficult of goals. Now pursuing graduate studies to prepare her for acareer in clinical psychology, Nooria recently made another dream cometrue by establishing a foundation to assist blind women and children inher native Afghanistan.

She immigrated to the United States in 1991, after losing both herhusband and brother to the ravages of that war-torn land. Initially forcedto leave her two children behind, she eventually brought them toFlushing, where she lived at the time before moving to Long Island City.

Then, in 1997, Nooria was robbed of her eyesight on a New York Citysubway train after a drug-addicted teenage girl repeatedly punched her inthe head, inflicting such extensive damage that it was necessary fordoctors to remove both of her eyes. In Afghanistan, her husband andolder brother had been blind, and Nooria had worked as a proofreader forthe Institute of the Blind and learned Braille, an ability that would serveher well in her own later struggle.

Countless New Yorkers read about her courage and determination in awidely published profile that appeared in the regional media as shetrained to participate in the 2006 New York City Marathon. The city readabout her again in an October 2007 New York Post feature, “BlindDevotion,” that both recounted the many tragedies she had endured andovercome and announced her nomination for the News Corporation’s2007 Liberty Medal for Freedom, an award she won. Her life in theaftermath of the losses she has experienced was captured in adocumentary, New York Nooria: An American Journey, which premiered inNew York City in January 2009.

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Brooklyn NY

Volunteer OpportunitiesWhy volunteer?

City Tech alumni are vital members of their communities; many leavean impressive mark because of the character, dedication and talentthey developed here. Their experience, skills, resources and just plainenthusiasm have had an impact on the College.

Here are some ways you can be part of the action

• Volunteer to mentor a student

• Speak at alumni and/or student workshops

• Serve on Alumni Association Board committees

• Help out with reunions, events, public relations and

strategic planning

• Help out with the annual Phonathon

Yes! I want to volunteer!Call 718.260.5006 or

email: alumni@citytech.cuny.edu

City Tech Alumni Relations Office, 300 Jay Street, N-322, Brooklyn, NY 11201