Brandeis Magazine

Dan Falkoff began working as an electrical engineer after graduation, and has worked with surgeons and young doctors in Worcester, Massachusetts, for the past 10 years. He was formerly married and has three grown kids. Jackie Hyman, who writes under the pseudonym Jacqueline Diamond, celebrated the publication of her 100th novel with the February release by Harlequin American Romance of “The Would-Be Daddy.” (Don’t miss her Brandeis Questionnaire in this issue.) Leonard Jason received the American Psychological Association’s Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Applied Research. During his career as a professor of clinical and community psychology at DePaul University, he has edited or written 27 books, published articles and book chapters in clinical and community psychology, and received nearly $37 million in federal research grants. Susan Eisenberg Jay, who is not ready for retirement, recently accepted a promotion to executive director of development at Florida International University’s College of Engineering and Computing. Mark Kaufman is volunteer president of FAR-West, one of the five regional affiliates of Folk Alliance International. Each year, FAR-West organizes a large regional conference, where artists, presenters, radio DJs and others interested in folk and acoustic music share music and educational opportunities. Mark tries to visit New York City frequently to see his daughter and two granddaughters. Richard Kopley edited, wrote an introduction for and annotated the 1842 novel “The Salem Belle: A Tale of 1692.” The novel, set during the time of the Salem witch trials, served as a source for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter.” Shu Lai, MA’70, PhD’71, has retired and is now a visiting scientist at Boston College and MIT. He owns three patents and has more than 100 publications, including two books, to his credit. He is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the Institute of Physics and the Royal Astronomical Society. Pat Madsen is practicing water law as special counsel to law firm Hamre, Rodriguez, Ostrander & Dingess in Denver. She exemplifies random selection by having two faux hips (bad cartilage genes) and mostly red hair (good pigment genes). When not making water go to someone’s tap instead of to the Gulf of Mexico, she works with the Abrahamic Initiative, a Denver interfaith group, and Kavod Jose Diaz, an anti-gun violence havurah of a local Reconstructionist congregation. She writes, “No kids; no grandkids; great husband, Marshall Brodsky; and really cute dog.” Marc Mandel was featured in a Boston Globe story about the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s “101” series, which offers concertgoers an educational behind-the-scenes look at the music the orchestra plays. Marc is the symphony’s director of program publications. Philip Meyer’s recent book, “Storytelling for Lawyers,” was published in 2014. Phil writes a column on legal storytelling and popular culture for the American Bar Association Journal, and is a law professor at Vermont Law School. He is the proud grandfather of three granddaughters. Victoria Free Presser lives in White Plains, New York, with her husband, Barry Presser. She works for the Scarsdale Public Schools in public information and is completing a three-year term as Northeast region vice president of the National School Public Relations Association. Ronnie Riceberg, P’98, retired in June 2014 and remarried in December 2014. In retirement, she has become very active in the Jewish Federation, serves as president of the Sarasota Jewish Chorale and is on the board of the local Brandeis National Committee chapter. Susan Townsend reports she has retired after 40 years at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. She writes, “Still a clown, witch, activist and No. 2 mom to a teenager. Loving life in Takoma Park, Maryland.”