Brandeis Magazine

Júlia Kirst, GSAS PhD’11, is the author of “What the United States Wants: The Essential Roadmap for International Candidates Applying for Study, Work, and Visa Opportunities,” published in May. The book seeks to help international students, professionals, and visa seekers understand American culture and cultural expectations. She writes, “Too often, we think simply having strong English-language skills is all we need, when, in fact, cultural fluency is just as important. This was my experience coming to an American college from Brazil many decades ago.” Jodi Beneson, Heller MA’12, PhD’15, is an associate professor with tenure at the University of Nebraska Omaha’s School of Public Administration, where she has been named a Faculty Fellow and received the Outstanding Faculty Service Learning Award. Qian Brone, IBS MSF’12, writes that husband Dean has retired from Sunovion and hopes to become a consultant. Tova Katz, Heller MBA’12, received the 2022 J.J. Greenberg Memorial Award from the Jewish Funders Network for her work as an under-40 Jewish philanthropic leader. Tova is senior portfolio manager at the One8 Foundation. Erika Smith, Heller MA’12, PhD’15, dean of the college at Connecticut College, has been named a trustee at Lehigh University. She also serves on the board of directors of the Cambridge Insight Meditation Center and previously served on the board of Posse Boston. Beth Semel, GSAS MA’13, is an assistant professor of anthropology at Princeton University. Nicole Rodriguez, Heller MPP’14, is president of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a think tank that drives policy change to advance economic, social, and racial justice. On March 18, Yiren Guo, Rabb MS’15, and husband Guo Yu welcomed daughter Sage, who joins big brothers Pierce and Preston. Brenda Lemos, GSAS MS’16, PhD’19, and David Waterman, GSAS PhD’18, are co-founders of GreenLabs Recycling, which collects and recycles plastic items from university laboratories and scientific research facilities in Greater Boston. By early March, after three years of operation, the company had successfully recycled more than 100,000 pounds of lab plastics. Nicholas Croce, Heller MPP’17, is a research analyst at Mathematica, which partners with clients to reimagine the way the world gathers and uses data. Nicholas works on projects related to homelessness, disaster recovery, and childhood nutrition. Josilane Santos, Heller MA’19, is one of 13 Transformative Development Initiative Fellows at MassDevelopment. For the next three years, she will provide on-the-ground economic development expertise and collaborative leadership in Hyannis, Massachusetts. Penda Sarr, Heller MA’19, has written the e-book “When in Dakar,” a guide to the capital of Senegal and its top attractions, including restaurants, beaches, islands, spas, and hotels.