Yelena Dzhanova is a news reporter and editor based in New York City. Her coverage centers around gender-based violence, crime, and criminal justice. She’s also an adjunct professor of journalism at Pace University and a proud product of CUNY. She graduated from Baruch College in 2019 and received her master’s degree in women’s and gender studies from…
Israel Sanchez
Israel is currently working on housing policy at ANHD, a member organization fighting for affordable housing and equitable neighborhoods for all New Yorkers. He graduated Baruch College in the Fall of 2017 as an English and Political Science Major. He went on to receive an MPA at NYU and currently spends his free time reading…
Sophia Carnabuci
Sophia is currently studying in the Certificate in Editing program at the University of Chicago. She writes: “I remembered the child-like curiosity I felt when I had taken my first editing class with Professor Lisa Blankenship at Baruch. I remembered the joy of working with Refract Magazine, editing my peers’ writing. I am very excited…
Marcelle Karp
Marcelle is a writer and brand strategy professional. She currently works at Pandora, as an Associate Creative Director, Copy. Prior to Pandora, she was a Creative Director at BET, MSG, Fuse, Lifetime, VH1 and Logo, winning many broadcasting and design awards. She has consulted for Hello Giggles, the NFL, and produced a weekly stand up show…
Kezia Velista
Kezia is a photographer, writer, and designer. At Baruch, she was an English and philosophy student who also worked as a docent for the school’s New Media Artspace. Currently, she is a social media marketing manager for Melville House Publishing, where she’s involved with designing campaigns, content creation, and advertising for a variety of books….
Victoria Merlino
Victoria is a writer and communications professional. She currently works at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, where she proudly serves her city as an assistant press secretary. Prior to her communications work, Victoria was a journalist, appearing in Gotham Gazette, Family Circle Magazine, the Queens Daily Eagle, and the Brooklyn Daily…
Carolyn Bongiorno
I am a 1985 Baruch graduate and English major, with a minor in Education. My post-Baruch career includes two years as a per diem substitute teacher in the Bronx for the Board of Education, and four years as a child protective caseworker for the Human Resources Administration. Since May 1993, I have worked for the Unified Court System…
Sarah Park
Sarah graduated from Macaulay Honors College at CUNY Baruch in 2016 with a B.A. in English, and minors in Art History and New York City Studies. By day, she is a technical support engineer at a tech start-up, and by night, she is a freelance writer and editor. Sarah is the Our Voices Section Editor…
Andrew Scrivani
I am a professional photographer and director and have done a large majority of my work in food and for The New York Times. My work constantly requires me to write and communicate my thoughts clearly. I have to use my writing skills every day. I am either asked to write articles about my work or…
Dani James
Dani James leads Talent Marketing with a focus on Equitable Recruiting at Asana, a work management software company. Her career in marketing has spanned field marketing; demand generation; diversity, belonging, and inclusion; talent marketing; and equitable recruiting. ln 2017, Dani received the Diversity in Tech Award. Prior to her current role, she worked at MongoDB, where she started interning while…
Sam Probber
Currently, I’m transitioning into a market research career and applying to MBA programs, and I was just appointed to the Weissman Dean’s Council. I started my career as a Client Services Manager at Interior Design Magazine. My responsibilities included leading the optimization of our clients’ largest advertising campaigns across our print, digital and events platforms,…
Jenna Joanna Winstars
Jenna Joanna Winstars graduated from Baruch College with a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature in 2015. Her hobby is writing. She writes children’s and young adults’ books as well as plays and poems. She currently works as SNAP Specialist at MET Council in New York City. Jenna is passionate about making a difference in our…
Jennie Nolan Buono-Core
I had such an enriching experience at Baruch. I was so pleased being an English major. I learned a lot from Professor John Dore, A.Solomon and others. I also enjoyed my philosophy and religion classes. I became an elementary school teacher! I continued my education with a graduate degree from Brooklyn College. CUNY offers an…
William St. Louis
I majored in English Literature and graduated in 1991. I thoroughly enjoyed all of my classes but particularly recall classes taught by Professors Addison Gayle and Paula Berggren. I’m currently the District Director of FINRA’s New York and Long Island offices and manage the sales practice examination and surveillance staff in both locations. Prior…
Sheila Elaine Anderson
After spending seventeen years on the production and sales side of publishing, Ms. Anderson left to pursue a career in broadcasting. Always interested in jazz, in 1995 she joined the staff of WBGO, Newark, New Jersey where she hosts Weekend Jazz After Hours and Salon Sessions. She has authored three books: The Quotable Musician: From…
Raqshinda Khan
Raqshinda Khan is a former Teach for America alumna in her 9th year of teaching. She previously worked for the Department of Education (DOE), where she designed and coordinated her school’s advisory program and served as a Peer Instructional Coach through a DOE leadership pathway to participate in conducting yearlong inquiry projects. She holds a…
Sara Dowd
After graduating from Baruch College in 2013, I decided to pursue a Clinical Psychology Doctoral program. I continued to work at Baruch as a TA for Introduction to Psychology and in research labs on campus for two years post-graduation. I was able to publish three manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals with my mentor, Dr. Daniele Artistico,…
David Neumann
I am a Motion Picture Literary Agent at CAA, the world’s leading Talent and Sports agency and some of our clients include Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Meryl Streep, Tom Cruise, George Clooney, Beyoncé, Kanye West, David Beckham, and many more. One area of my focus is to grow our Global Animation Business. To begin, a…
Irene Starygina
I graduated Baruch in 2007 with a degree in English and Journalism. Since this was prior to the 2008 crash, work prospects were promising, and I embarked on a career in start-up digital media and marketing. I was in the NYC start-up scene for the next 5 years, when I realized that the space had…
David Wilkes
Following graduation from Baruch with a degree in English Lit (I entered with the idea of majoring in business), I graduated from Boston University School of Law and began practicing commercial litigation; I found myself handling primarily real estate valuation matters, and went back to school for a master’s degree in real estate finance and…
Risa Hartsough
Risa Hartsough graduated from Baruch June 2015 and started as an editor and writer at Pulse Magazine right after. After over a year at the magazine, she started freelancing in the comfort of her small town coffee shop, which allows her to make her own schedule and travel as she wishes. Contact: [email protected]
Daphne Palasi Andreades
Daphne Palasi Andreades is an author and educator from Queens, New York. Her debut novel, BROWN GIRLS, was published by Random House in 2022, and has since published internationally in the UK and Commonwealth (India, Australia, South Africa, and more), France, and Germany. In the U.S., BROWN GIRLS was named a New York Times Editors’…
Dawn Selman
In January of 1974, I began my studies at Baruch College, where in June of 1977 I graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English. Before I even started my tertiary education I knew I wanted to serve the young people of my country in the field of education. Therefore in September…
Yelena Zhurav
Yelena Zhuravlev works as an assistant professor adjunct and freelance writer. While at Baruch, she studied both Biology and English; in the hopes of somewhat following in Isaac Assimov’s footsteps. She went on to earn a PhD in Genetics and Development from Columbia University where she studied cytokinesis. Since her PhD and postdoc, she never forgot her love…
Ryan Munroe
Shortly after graduating from Baruch, I enrolled in Bard College’s Master of Arts in Teaching Program. It was a fantastic experience that complemented my education at Baruch, preparing me to share my love for literature with young people. Once I earned my degree and teaching credentials, I started teaching 7th and 8th grade English at…
Lior Cohen
I began teaching English when I graduated. I noticed many of my students were struggling with learning how to read. I then began developing a literacy targeting pedagogy that I called Coloread—a way of utilizing colors as diacritics to help deal with the non-phonemic nature of the language. Low literacy is the greatest problem in…
Yasmin Majeed
Yasmin Majeed is the editorial coordinator for the Asian American Writers’ Workshop, a literary nonprofit dedicated to Asian American literature, where she also serves as the shop steward for their union with UAW Local 2110. Her essays and reviews have appeared in the New York Review of Books Daily, unbag, and The Margins. She also…
Jane Odartey
Could everyone adhere to that old cheesy saying: “follow your heart”? I don’t know. But as I reflect on the years I have known since college, over a decade, I see that I have been very lucky to be able to hear and listen to my heart. This means that I have lived an unplanned…
Andy Lawler
Andy Lawler obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from Baruch College in 2007. While in college he was an editor for Encounters Magazine and The Ticker, and then spent seven years in the educational publishing world. He started as an editorial assistant at a small independent publisher in Westchester County, then worked…
Angela Melamud
Angela Melamud is an independent book publicist. She began her career in publishing at Picador, an imprint of Macmillan, after graduating from Baruch College in 2009 with a major in English literature and a minor in art history. Before working at Picador, she interned at both The Paris Review and Farrar, Straus and Giroux. She also worked…
Sorin Grigore
I was a double major in English and History and graduated from Baruch in 2013. Like many other students, I worked full time throughout college, first at the Apple Store and then as a Project Manager at a small healthcare company. After graduating, I worked for a small financial services firm as a Product Manager…
Elisabeth Greenberg
Elisabeth spent her college career taking classes year-round and remaining highly active on campus as Editor-in-Chief of The Ticker and later as president of Hillel. She also took part in two study abroad programs in China as well as numerous internships. Elisabeth graduated in June of 2014 and began working at the New York City…
Daniella Bondar
After leaving the fluorescent-lit halls of Baruch, Daniella Bondar went on to receive her MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. Upon graduating she became a freelance journalist writing for sites like Vulture, Elite Daily and HuffPost covering women’s issues, politics, and entertainment with a focus on profiling comedians. She is now Head of…
Chris Zumtobel
Chris Zumtobel has a history of successful crowdfunding campaigns on Kickstarter. From these campaigns he was able to found the wallet company BankNote NYC. This was inspired by a passion for storytelling as a tool for small businesses, a passion which led him to pursue a hybrid education in English, creative writing, and entrepreneurship at…
Connie Huang
Connie Huang graduated with a degree in Arts Administration and English Literature in 2016. During her interim at Baruch, Connie served as president of Japan Club and a prose editor for Encounter Magazine. After getting a piece published in the newly established student online intellectual journal, Refract Magazine, she joined as an editor. Unable to…