Brandeis Magazine

Jay Bergman’s book “The French Revolutionary Tradition in Russian and Soviet Politics, Political Thought, and Culture,” published by Oxford University Press in 2019, was republished in a Russian translation by Academic Studies Press in November 2025.

Janet Fishman wrote, directed and produced her second play, “The Play of Our Theatre Company,” about a traveling French theatrical troupe struggling to survive.

Joyce Kamanitz reports, “I still work part time in my private practice of psychiatry and volunteer at Malta House, which provides medical services to indigent patients. Also keep busy with piano, gardening and lots of crocheting for my seven grandchildren. Just returned from a visit to my sister Donna Kamanitz Tzinamon ’72 in Israel. She made aliyah more than 50 years ago after participating in the Hiatt program at Brandeis.”

Richard Liskov married Deborah Hasin on May 11, 2025, at The Boathouse in New York’s Central Park. Deborah is a professor of clinical epidemiology at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Wedding guests included Vicki Free Presser and David Bell.

Alain Rook is an emeritus professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. The author of more than 300 scientific articles and chapters, he has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society for Cutaneous Lymphomas, as well as the Eugene J. Van Scott Award for Innovative Therapy of the Skin from the American Academy of Dermatology.

Steven Swerdlow writes, “I am very excited to see that my neighbor from when I was a first-year in Shapiro B — Arthur Levine ’70 — is now president of Brandeis.” Steven, who is retired, is co-editor of the book “Hematopathology” (Elsevier, 2024). In May 2025, he and wife Jenny celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

Susan Townsend is engaged in a lot of volunteer work, including in a Direct Support for Immigrants group and at CASA. She writes, “Many of us began organizing during our Brandeis years, and I am encouraged to see the daily results of so many people working so hard throughout our country, which may someday be a true democracy for all.”

Michael Freemark is retired from the clinical practice of pediatric endocrinology at Duke University Medical Center yet continues to do research in the fields of obesity, insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes and childhood malnutrition. He and wife Anne Slifkin ’73 live in Durham, North Carolina, and are co-owners of an apartment in Paris. Daughter Samara, who lives with her husband and two children in Minneapolis, is co-creator and managing producer of The New Yorker’s podcast “In the Dark,” which won a Pulitzer Prize in 2025. Son Yonah, who lives with his husband in Washington, D.C., is the director of the Land Use Lab at the Urban Institute.

Sarada George, P’00, retired from the University of Rochester libraries in July 2025 after 36 years of employment.

Ron Joseph writes that he and a group of classmates spent a weekend at Tanglewood to celebrate their 75th birthdays. Participants included Debby Chotner, Michal Regunberg, Dennis Shulman, Pam Tropper and Irene Wong.

Kenneth Still, P’15, reports his two youngest grandchildren — Sunny and Dash — are now 2 years old.

Janet Becker has retired as chief human resources and strategy officer at American Jewish Committee. She says she’s enjoying working in her garden, teaching kids to swim at the JCC and traveling the world with husband Neil.

Lee Brooks, P’13, reports he is enjoying his retirement from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia/University of Pennsylvania. He continues to write and review articles for scientific journals. His second grandchild, Eleanor, was born in November 2024, joining her older brother, Max.

Jonathan Greenberg writes, “I very much enjoyed my years at Brandeis. Although always a liberal university in the true sense of the word — and in the current political sense — it was an honest place where varying opinions were encouraged. I no longer believe this to be the case. The epitome was disinviting Ayaan Hirsi Ali. When she is invited to speak at Brandeis, the university will have righted a very serious wrong.”

Ellen Lodgen, P’14, retired in 2023 after 50 years of teaching. Ellen manages her synagogue’s cemetery, among other volunteer activities, and she and husband Larry have enjoyed trips to Iceland, Kenya, Spain, Italy and France. Daughter Sara ’14 was married in September 2024.

Stuart Appelbaum is associate chair of the Democratic National Committee, where he also chairs the Labor Council. At work, he is president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, and executive vice president of the 1.3 million-member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. In addition, he is a vice president at the AFL-CIO, president of UNI Global Commerce, president of the Jewish Labor Committee and a director at the National Endowment for Democracy. “I wear a lot of hats — but that’s a good thing because I’ve lost a lot of hair over the years,” Stuart writes. He and husband Michihito Osawa live in Manhattan. 

Don Friedman and Ilene Miller, both P’13, met up with Brad Connor and his wife, Sharon, in Milan in July 2025 for the final show of the 2023-25 Bruce Springsteen concert tour. Don is one of Springsteen’s attorneys, and Brad was the tour’s wellness/ medical coordinator. Ilene and Brad, who knew each other at Brandeis, held medical fellowships at New York Hospital at the same time.

Michael Goldenkranz reports he enjoyed watching the Blue Angels perform at Seattle’s 2025 Seafair Weekend Festival, especially because he got to do it with his 2.5-year-old granddaughter, and because of the memory of his father and father-in-law (“now angels themselves”) taking in a Blue Angels show together one summer.

Sharon Hammer Rubin writes that she and husband Irwin are staying busy with their new synagogue and new friends since their move to California. In August, the couple traveled to England and Scotland to celebrate Irwin’s 75th birthday.

Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill summarizes her recent activities: “Up to my keister in paperwork. Overseeing a kitchen remodel. Hubby’s in postop rehab. New dog is a beagle mix. Trying to be judicious about political protests and not go to everything. Still looking for the fountain of youth.”

Michael Krasnow has retired as a board member at ThinkMD, which seeks to expand global pediatric health care through technology. He reports he recently got together with Anand Patwardhan ’72 (who screened his film “The World Is Family” at Harvard and MIT) and Albert Silliman, GSAS MA’76. He’s also enjoyed seeing Kenny Raskin and Betsy Sarason Pfau.

Caroline Leavitt writes, “I was gobsmacked to be longlisted for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, given to a fiction writer for a whole career, rather than just one book. I wish I could tattoo it on my forehead.”

Basil Racheotes invites everyone to view his sculptures at www.basilart.com. He says he is especially grateful for the lessons, inspiration and guidance of sculptor Peter Grippe and art historian Ludovico Borgo at Brandeis more than 50 years ago.

Ernie Rubinstein is the author of “Toward a Negative Theology of Judaism” (Cascade Books, 2025).

Last June, Betsy Sarason Pfau and Dan Pfau ’73 took a trip through Poland, Budapest, Vienna and Prague that included a tour of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps and many sites associated with the Jewish ghettos. “We learned ‘Brandeis’ was a common last name in Prague,” Betsy reports. Soon after returning to the U.S., Betsy and Dan attended the Denver-area wedding of their nephew Ethan Stone ’19. In July, they enjoyed a mini-reunion on Martha’s Vineyard with Francine Ladd Sohn, and Don Friedman and Ilene Miller, both P’13.

Alan Shapiro, emeritus professor of English and creative writing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has written 15 books of poetry — including “Reel to Reel” (2014), which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize — and six books of prose. His recognitions include two awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and a fellowship from the Guggenheim Foundation. Alan’s next poetry collection, “Diver,” will be published in 2026 by Unbound Editions.

Gail Shister welcomed her second grandson on April 30, 2025.

At the Class of 1975’s 50th reunion in May 2025, Alison Bass reconnected with old friends and, as part of an authors panel, talked about her latest book, “Rebecca of Ivanhoe.” A few weeks later, she spent July 4th on a lake in Canada with her two sons and daughters-in law, and three granddaughters.

David Baum reports he’ll be fully retired from the practice of law by the end of 2025 and adds, “Being a grandparent is far more fun than being a parent ever was or could be. IYKYK!”

Alan Korman received the 2025 William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology from the Cancer Research Institute, for his contributions to tumor immunology. The chief scientific officer at BlueSphere Bio, Alan has helped develop immune checkpoint inhibitors used in the treatment of metastatic melanoma and other cancers.

Harry Marquez was active in the student organization Grito during his Brandeis years. “Money was never a motivation for me,” he writes. “I had other means to find joy in life. I keep my life as simple as possible, enjoying simple pleasures that aren’t too costly.”

Though officially retired, artistic director/performing arts teacher Marcia Barryte still does substitute teaching and is affiliated with major theater-education institutions in the Los Angeles area. She reports she loves working with new teachers and is giving away many of her teaching materials. Feel free to contact her at marciabarryte@gmail.com.

Janet Kolodner, P’07, has been fully retired since August 2024. She’s writing a book about designing scalable, engaging and effective learning experiences and environments for formal (school) or informal (family, library, museum) settings. “Still learning how to manage my time and energy with no set schedule,” she reports.

Karen Putterman is a managing director/asset manager at Blackstone Energy Transition Partners. Previously, she worked at Collins Aerospace as vice president/general manager of its military landing-gear business. She serves on the board of directors of Kinetik, a company specializing in the pipeline transportation of natural gas.

Rosina Rubin curates the legacy of her late aunt, painter Anna Walinska, whose work was featured in the 2025 exhibition “Remembrance and Renewal: American Artists and the Holocaust, 1940- 70” at the Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University. Walinska’s work is on display in museums and public spaces throughout the U.S., including at Brandeis’ Women’s Studies Research Center.

Jay Spieler has worked at brokerage and investment bank Oppenheimer & Co. for 29 years. “I enjoy it and have an expanding partnership, so I’d like to stick around perhaps five more years to ensure the wheels don’t fall off,” he writes. “Oh, and I gave a kidney almost five years ago. It usually takes me 5 to 10 minutes to bring that up at cocktail parties. It’s hard knowing I’m the best person in the room without everyone else knowing it as well.” He reports he keeps in touch with Michael Friend ’75, P’17; Bruce Litwer ’61; and Martha Norkunas ’78.

Lynn Whitfield is an instructor in a pre-law program at a South Florida charter school. She’s also a comedian who does private and corporate events under the name No Trash Comedy. In June 2025, she received a Medal of Honor from the National Bar Association’s Virgil Hawkins Florida Chapter

Dan Feier, who has been retired since 2018, says daughter Natasha graduated from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University last May and is working at a vet clinic in Burlingame, California. Son Joel is in his third year as a medical resident in the ear, nose and throat specialty at UC Irvine.

Diane Botwick Greenlee reports college roommate Mary Lovely now lives close to her and they see each other often. Diane is enjoying retirement, especially spending time with her seven grandkids. Together with husband Allen, she has helped find forever homes for more than 70 dogs.

Elyse Goldstein, P’11, writes, “I happily retired after 41 years in the rabbinate, which was my dream-come-true career.”

Andrea Halpern is a psychology professor at Bucknell University, where her studies include looking at how the mind and brain process music. She also enjoys performing music, including during a recent choir tour with stops in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. She writes, “Some of my formative experiences in both domains occurred at Brandeis with adviser Art Wingfield and choral director Jim Olesen.”

Jonathan Hirst, P’18, was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court at a May 2025 ceremony in Washington, D.C., presided over by Chief Justice John Roberts. “A truly momentous occasion,” Jonathan says, “especially since I was accompanied by my son.”

“The Psychology of Religion: A Social Force,” written by Neil Kressel, GSAS MA’78, P’16, P’20, P’25, was published by Cambridge University Press in October 2024. It’s Neil’s seventh book. He also wrote a chapter titled “The Psychology of Contemporary Antisemitism” for the third edition of “Handbook of Prejudice, Stereotyping and Discrimination” (Routledge, 2025), and co-authored an article titled “Antisemitism in 2025: Problems on Campus and the Mental Health Response,” published by the journal Frontiers in Mental Health.

A children’s book written by Rosa Lowinger and husband Todd Kessler — titled “Luisa of the Sea” — will be published by Row House Publishing in May 2026. Rosa has been named a sculpture conservation adviser to the Ellsworth Kelly Foundation.

David Lubin says he’s planning to attend his first Kentucky Derby this May.

Fruma Markowitz is a fine art photographer, working with experimental and historical photographic processes, and creating visual narratives about women’s lives, family and cultural legacies, identity, and the historical Jewish experience. See her website (frumamarkowitz.photo) for information about her work and exhibitions.

Elisa Schindler Frankel is a member of the executive committee of Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, where she is board secretary and the immediate past president; serves on the Ritual Committee at Hevreh of Southern Berkshire; is a liaison to Women of Reform Judaism; and is a member of Fairview Hospital’s Garden Gala Committee. Each summer, she reunites with Brandeis friends.

Dave Sternberg, P’20, has practiced law in Chicago for 42 years. Last summer, he and wife Diane, along with sons Josh and Ethan ’20, vacationed in Japan for two weeks, visiting Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima and Hakone.

Debra and Gary Wasserman welcomed their second grandchild, Eli Aviv, who joins big sister Charlotte. The proud parents are Marc and Amelia Wasserman, of Tigard, Oregon.

Gayla Zoghlin and Eric Linden welcomed their first grandchild, Charlie Stephen Zambelli Linden, on March 28, 2025.

Howard Cetel has retired after more than 40 years of practicing dentistry. His plans include playing pickleball seven days a week and enjoying his grandkids with wife Rosanne (Levinson) ’80.

Catherine Orkin Oskow writes that 2024-25 brought “one life-cycle event after another,” including the death of her mother, Etta Fay Orkin (a past president of the Brandeis National Committee’s Minneapolis chapter); the wedding of daughter Aviva; and the birth of granddaughter Akari to son Noah in Tokyo. Catherine joined a new Jewish Arts Collective with her sister, Aimee Orkin, GSAS MFA’91, and wrote a series of poems organized around a life-cycles theme. Finally, on Oct. 19, 2025 — exactly one year after her mother died — Catherine and husband Craig celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in Japan, while meeting their new granddaughter.

Debbie Rittner is a religious-school teacher at Temple Sinai in Brookline, Massachusetts; a tutor who works with bar/bat mitzvah students; and, for almost 20 years, a Torah reader at Temple Israel of Natick.