Alumni Association Board of Directors

Dan Black is responsible for EY’s global recruiting strategy, leading a team of more than 1,200 recruiters around the world who are responsible for hiring talent at all levels, across all of EY’s locations and lines of business. Prior to his career in recruiting, he was an auditor for financial services clients as a Certified Public Accountant. He also serves on the Americas Inclusiveness Advisory Council, a group of senior leaders focused on advancing the firm’s efforts related to belonging, equitable sponsorship and accountability in the context of leading culture change.

Black regularly provides commentary for top media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, CNN, FORTUNE, Forbes, FOX Business and The New York Times, among others. He frequently serves as a keynote speaker at conferences, universities and industry events around the world, and was the School of Management Commencement speaker in 2016.

He is a former president and board member of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the country’s leading organization focused on the employment of the college-educated. He currently serves as chair of the Executive Leadership Committee for the Tri-State New York chapters of the March of Dimes, ranking among its top-100 U.S. fundraisers nationally for the past 10 years. Black is also active within his local community, serving as a volunteer firefighter for the Archville Fire Department and as a coach, referee and active supporter of youth sports in his hometown. He remains an active alumnus of Binghamton as a regular speaker and contributor at alumni, admissions and mentoring events, as well as a site leader for the Global Days of Service. His leadership role in recruiting has helped to solidify Binghamton as a top source of talent for EY for the past two decades.

Diane L. Fischer Castiglione '82

Diane Castiglione has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Mentoring and Career Development and Regional Chapters committees. She retired in 2017 after a 32-year career at the U.S. Department of State. As a student, Castiglione was active in Hinman College Council, including serving as president, and was on the Political Science Undergraduate Committee and the Commencement Committee. After graduating, she was one of the founding members of the Potomac Club/D.C. Metro Chapter, serving as co-chair 1989-90. She was on planning committees for Hinman College’s 40th and 50th anniversary celebrations and also volunteers with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. She considers her work with the Fleishman Center, and other programs in which she provides career information and mentoring, including being a four-time sponsor of Liberal Arts to Careers Externship students, to be her most fulfilling connection with the University. She received the 1990 Young Alumni Award and in 2015 was given an Alumni Association Medal of Distinguished Service.

Matthew DeSaro '09, MPA '11

Matthew DeSaro has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Audit Committee during this time. He is an attorney and former prosecutor who currently serves as a law clerk to a federal judge. Since graduating from Binghamton, he has remained engaged with the University in both formal and informal capacities. He has been an active member of the Metro New York Chapter of the Alumni Association, a perennial volunteer at Metro Connections Night and a regular attendee of School of Management events in New York City. DeSaro is a recipient of an Alumni Association Medal of Distinguished Service in recognition of his efforts on behalf of the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Binghamton is a special place for him, as he proposed to his now wife, also an alumna, outside the University Union where they first met while undergraduate students. As a student, he was a resident assistant in College-in-the-Woods, a graduate assistant in the Center for Civic Engagement, executive director of the ESCAPE Bus Company, and a tour guide with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

Kate Haughie '09

Kate Haughie has a bachelor's degree in English from Harpur College of Arts and Sciences. As an alumna, she has remained actively engaged with the University, volunteering with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and Metro New York Networking Nights. She was an inaugural Bearcats of the Last Decade Leadership Council member, serving for two years and chairing the Social and Networking Committee and Career and Mentoring Committee. An active member of the Long Island Chapter, she stepped up to serve as chair. As a student, Haughie was involved in many campus areas, including serving as an admissions tour guide, intern in the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development and a student information assistant in the Call Center. After graduation, she received her master's degree in integrated marketing and communications from Marist College. Haughie works in Demand Generation marketing for Cvent, the industry-leading meetings, events and hospitality technology provider. She spent the first 10 years of her career working in higher education, specializing in engagement events, marketing, communications and volunteer management.

Amy Hyatt '78

Amy Hyatt is recently retired from serving as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Palau 2015-20. Previously she worked for the U.S. Department of State in various postings negotiating successful outcomes around the world in Egypt, Finland, North Korea, Australia, Korea, Thailand, Philippines, Norway and the Czech Republic. Hyatt was also a trial attorney in San Francisco during her early career. In 2016, the Alumni Association presented her with the
Edward Weisband Distinguished Alumni Award for Public Service or Contribution to Public Affairs. She has also served as a TIER Talk speaker for the University, coming back to campus for Homecoming in 2018 when she spoke with two other panelists on “The Effects of Climate Change.”

Tahmina Lipsman '13

As a student, Lipsman was involved with Women in Business, was director of Mentoring Initiatives, and co-president of the Russian Student Union. She also volunteered to help international students with their language skills as part of the English Conversation Pairs program and participated in a winter study-abroad to India. Since graduating, she has served on the School of Management Young Alumni Advisory Board and helped organize volunteer and social events as well as engage with current Binghamton students and alumni. Lipsman currently lives in New York City and works for Ernst & Young on its Debt Capital Markets team. Prior to that, she worked at several private direct lending institutions focused on providing capital to middle market companies. Outside of work, she volunteers for youth mentoring organizations and is a member of the Philanthropy Committee for 100 Women in Finance.

Balakrishnan G. Iyer, MS '00, SD '19

Balki Iyer has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Mentoring and Career Development and Signature Events committees. He is a seasoned energy and utilities industry management professional, with rich experience driving business development for global conglomerates and successful startups. He has successfully steered three startups from inception to exit, with investments from some of the largest utilities and financial investors worldwide. Iyer strongly believes in the power of mentoring and the lasting impact it can leave. A prolific speaker at global conferences, he is passionate about the role of clean energy in changing the world and the role of education in empowering the people who can change the world. His business and entrepreneurial pursuits over the past decade have been guided by this passion. He is on the advisory group for INK, a TED-like platform in India that promotes inspiring ideas by game-changers. Iyer sat on the executive board for GE’s Asia Pacific American Forum, a diversity group focused on mentoring Asian American business leaders. As someone who believes in making a positive community impact through education, he, along with his wife, co-founded Iyer Educational Institutions with the mission to offer inclusive learning opportunities for children with autism. He is a recipient of the prestigious Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business award in 2017 and was listed in the Top 100 North American Power List 2020.

Julius Johnson '05, MS '09

Julius Johnson was born and raised in the Brownsville and Crown Heights neighborhoods of Brooklyn. He attended Clara Barton High School for health professionals while starring in football for the Brooklyn Skyhawks. He received his bachelor of science, with a major in nursing from Binghamton University in 2005, and received his master of science with a major in family nurse practitioner from Binghamton in 2009, and his Doctor of Nursing Practice from the University of Miami in 2016. Johnson specializes in home-based primary care, transitional care and transformational community intervention projects. He has spent the past 13 years serving underserved communities and reducing hospital rates for at-risk populations. He is a founding member of the Greater New York City Black Nurses Association and currently serves as president. Also, Johnson is the founding president of the Omega Nu chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society at Long Island University (LIU) Brooklyn. He serves as an associate professor, chair of faculty affairs and director of the family nurse practitioner program at LIU-Brooklyn’s nursing school. In 2018, he was recognized as one of the National Black Nurses Association’s 40 Under 40 Rising Stars. In 2021, he received the Trailblazer in Nursing Award from the National Black Nurses Association. In his spare time, he is the defensive coordinator of the Brooklyn Skyhawks who are the current back-to-back U12 champions of the New York City youth football league.

Stacy Newman Kandel '99

Stacy Newman Kandel '99 is an executive director, experience lead at JP Morgan Chase & Co., where she has been since October 2018. She graduated from Binghamton University with a bachelor’s degree in art and received a master's degree in human-computer interaction from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Kandel has been on the Alumni Association board since 2018 and serves as the chair for the Mentoring and Career Development Committee. She is also on the board of directors for the Wilson Area Partners in Education Foundation and serves as chair of its Fund Development Committee. In her free time, Stacy apprentices in printmaking and also runs. She recently completed the Boston Marathon. She resides in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley with her three children, daughter Tillie and sons Murray and Harry.

Karen E. Fuhrman Kerner '86

Karen Kerner has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Networking and Social Engagement and Signature Events committees. She works part-time as an optometric physician and is very involved in her church as a member of the choir and parish council. Kerner is originally from Nanuet, N.Y. Her family lived in Switzerland for three years, which is where she developed her love of travel and learning languages. She is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and enjoys hiking and walking and her rescue dog, Frankie. Kerner is actively engaged at Binghamton University and has served on the Parent Leadership Committee and a panel of health professionals. As an undergraduate, Kerner was a resident assistant in Hinman College. She and her husband, Michael, another Binghamton graduate, have created a scholarship fund at Binghamton University. Their son, Edward, has also graduated from Binghamton University and is currently working on his master’s degree at American University. Daughter, Kimmi, is a graduate of University College Dublin, in Ireland and is teaching in Korea.

Manoj T. Mahtani '03

Manoj Mahtani has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Finance Committee. He has recently been named to the School of Management New York Metro Advisory Board. As a student at Binghamton, he was active in the Indian International Student Union and was Treasurer of the MCA. Since then, he has kept close ties to Binghamton by establishing an endowed scholarship for Services for Students with Disabilities and has stayed engaged through volunteer work. He has participated in round table discussion for students and provided a tour of the trading floors at Deutsche Bank.

Owen C. Pell '80, LLD '11

Pell is president of the Auschwitz Institute for the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities, the largest nongovernmental organization (NGO) training government officials in genocide and mass atrocity prevention. Pell is a retired partner of counsel at the international law firm of White & Case LLP, where he has handled a broad range of complex commercial and international litigation. In addition to Holocaust-related cases, Pell handled cases relating to Apartheid-era South Africa and African slavery in the United States. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude, from Binghamton University with a Bachelor of Arts in political science. In 1983, he earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a member of the Virginia Journal of International Law. Pell received the Binghamton University Alumni Association's Glenn G. Bartle Distinguished Alumni Award in 2007. In 2011, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University.

Heather A. Provino '95

Heather Provino has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Finance Committee. She is one of the founders and a managing partner of The Scanlon Group where she applies entrepreneurial and strategic expertise in her work with start-up and growth companies to chart pathways of robust business acceleration balanced with long-term organizational vision, strategy and viability in pursuit of strategic exits and/or M&A. She credits her time at the University and the skills developed during her time at Binghamton to her ability to take the risk to found a company and for the successful growth and exit of her healthcare company. Provino is committed to mentoring, philanthropy and volunteerism which helped her find her way back to her Binghamton roots in Rhode Island during the Alumni Global Days of Service. As a student, she was a student athletic trainer, fitness instructor and manager at FitSpace and an active member of Smith’s Hall student council.

Laurence Stein '88

Larry Stein has served on the Alumni Association Board since 2017. During that time, he has been both a member and chair of the Regional Chapters and Networking and Social Engagement committees. His undergraduate activities included serving as a teaching assistant in the philosophy department, Telefund caller, founding member of Zeta Beta Tau, member of the Lacrosse Club and the Hinman Halitosis newspaper staff. Following graduation, he has maintained a strong connection to the many friends he made at Binghamton and, along with a group of his fraternity brothers, has endowed a scholarship at the University. As an alumnus, Stein continues to stay active by regularly attending various alumni events in the Metro New York region and Binghamton, as well as volunteering at Homecoming, Metro Connections Night, for Undergraduate Admissions and as both a participant and site leader for Alumni Global Days of Service.

Following his years at Binghamton, Stein earned his Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from Syracuse University College of Law, where he served as business editor for the Syracuse Law Review, on the Moot Court Board and as Student Senate president. After earning his JD, he worked at major New York law firms and as in-house counsel. Stein has been a member of the General Re legal department for over nineteen years, where he serves as a senior vice president and legal counsel to its various subsidiaries and affiliated companies.

Marjorie J. Strelzyn '81

Marjorie Strelzyn is an optometrist and director of the contact lens service at Montefiore Medical Center. She is an assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the Einstein College of Medicine and enjoys teaching residents, interns and medical students. Strelzyn has served on the Binghamton Parents Leadership Council from 2016-2022 and has chaired the council for the last three years. She was on the advisory committee for the Binghamton Women’s Weekend in 2017 and was a speaker at the Binghamton Women’s Workshop in New York City in 2019. She and her husband, Barry Witt ’80, created an endowed “Acts of Kindness” scholarship which provides recognition and financial support to one undergraduate student annually who has impacted the community through acts of kindness. Strelzyn is an active member of the Binghamton Campaign Committee. Strelzyn and her family have hosted numerous “summer send-offs” at their home for incoming undergraduate students and their families, and organized and hosted dinners at local restaurants for parents of students to create connections with each other and to promote their engagement with the university. They also held a fundraiser for a Binghamton mental health and wellness initiative. As a student, Strelzyn enjoyed participating in co-rec sports and was secretary of the Canoe Club and sang in various campus shows. She worked in the dining hall as well as in the administration office and was a Telefund caller. Strelzyn and her husband have two sons, Dylan and Adin, who are also Binghamton graduates. Dylan received a bachelor of arts in biology then a bachelor of science via the accelerated nursing program. Adin received a bachelor of arts in economics and then pursued an MBA in management information systems.

Tasha S. Thomas '02, MA '03

Tasha Thomas has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Networking and Social Engagement and Regional Chapters committees. She is the project manager and special assistant to the dean of science at Harvard University, where she is in charge of leading complex projects. Thomas is currently pursuing a doctorate within the Graduate School of Education at Northeastern University. In 2007, she created Binghamton University's Alumni of Color Network after noticing the need for broader engagement among Binghamton's alumni of color. The group organized several annual events in New York City as well as Homecoming brunches garnering hundreds of alumni attendees. As an undergraduate, she was an active student leader holding positions in the Black Student Union and Protection Connection, not to mention participating in countless volunteer hours with the BSU Youth Program and other organizations. Thomaa also held on-campus jobs as a student information assistant at the University Call Center and as a student manager in the University Union. As a graduate student, she held on-campus internships in Residential Life and the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and credits those experiences in fostering her passion for higher education.

Dana S. West '98

Dana West has been on the Alumni Association board since 2019 and has served on the Lifelong Learning Committee. He is founder and leader of the Westchester Chapter of the Alumni Association and lives in Westchester County with his wife, Nancy, and their two children. In his spare time, he enjoys exploring the great outdoors and seeking out all the food, beverages and towns that make the Hudson Valley unique. As a student, he was active in volunteer opportunities with College-in-the-Woods, working as stage crew for Woods Jam and decorating for Woods War. Now, he is proud to see the success of TIER Talks and the rapid growth of the Westchester Chapter. Professionally, West is passionate about providing his clients with the planning tools and education they need to navigate life’s financial challenges. With more than 20 years in the financial services industry, he recognizes the more knowledge his clients have, the more empowered and confident they feel about achieving their goals.

Officers

Directors