Brandeis Magazine

The new school year is once again under way, as are the rhythms and routines that make Brandeis the place we remember and love. To reconnect with those memories of your school days or, better yet, to get in touch with your classmates, make use of Class Notes, B Connect and the many other resources of our Office of Development and Alumni Relations. You’ll be so very glad you made the time!

Diane Berman again volunteered for an international Habitat for Humanity project through the organization’s Global Village program. After assisting with house building in Romania in August 2011, she traveled this summer to Sri Lanka for similar work. While there, she also taught art to the community’s children, utilizing the professional skills she’s developed as a New York City public school teacher. David Swirnoff joined PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he manages a team implementing human resources information systems for clients. After a lengthy and challenging period of unemployment due to the economy, he is overjoyed to be back at work using his education and skills. He and his wife, Merry Firschein ’87, have purchased their first house together. Ted Frank, who founded the Center for Class Action Fairness (CCAF), was recently profiled in The Wall Street Journal and GQ magazine. In a recent HBO movie, actor Brian d’Arcy James played him. Writes Ted, “You can tell the movie was fiction because the Ted Frank character was good-looking and didn’t say anything.” Ted founded CCAF in 2009 to represent consumers dissatisfied with their counsel in class actions and class-action settlements. Jonathan Hamilton is partner and head of Latin American arbitration at White & Case, a global law firm in Washington, D.C. He is a leading authority on foreign investment and international dispute resolution. He commenced his career in the firm’s New York office, spent several years in the Mexico City office and also worked as a visiting associate with a major firm in Lima, Peru. Jonathan recently co-edited a book titled “Latin American Investment Protections,” with chapters written by experts from 18 countries across Latin America. Kenneth Wong was named interim associate dean of the Virginia Tech Graduate School in the National Capital Region and director of the Northern Virginia Center in Falls Church, Va. Kenneth is responsible for developing recruitment and marketing strategies, and strengthening and enhancing the overall student experience and the relationship between the university and the broader community. He joined Virginia Tech in 2009 as assistant professor of physics and director of the biomedical technology development and management program. Daniel Shapiro, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, was the subject of a Q&A in Hadassah Magazine. Of the Arab Spring, he said, “We know these transitions contain risk: Revolutions can be hijacked by extremist actors. There are risks that peace treaties with Israel might be challenged, and we need to be on guard against such developments, trying to mitigate them, prevent them.”

Alumni and friends celebrated the opening of the new Crumbs Bake Shop in Greenwich, Conn., owned by Mia (Kozicharow) Bauer ’91. From left: Rose Auerbach ’06, Jonathan Tash ’06, Andy Zeitlin ’90, Sarah Rogovin ’90, Alex Rogovin, Annie Rogovin, Jacob Zeitlin, Noah Zeitlin, Andrea Soloway ’89 and Lori Underberger ’82.