Page Fortna ’90 and Joseph Entin ’91 are both members of the first group of visiting scholars at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Cambridge, Mass., in a program designed to support research conducted by young scholars of promise. Fortna, an assistant professor of political science at Columbia University, is studying the effectiveness of international peacekeeping in civil wars. Entin, a postdoctoral scholar at Yale University, is researching “Sensational Modernism: Disfigured Bodies and Aesthetic Astonishment in American Literature,” which examines interpretations of the lives of immigrants, African Americans, and working-class communities in America.
Nadine Finigan ’92 was promoted to senior research project manager for her work with Steppin’ Up, a mentoring initiative through Johns Hopkins University, intended to increase interest in academics and reduce aggression in middle-school children. She previously worked for Teach For America in Baltimore and has continued efforts “to make this adopted city a better place for children.” She has also been working with Evette Maranda ’92 on a paper, “A Cultural Lens: Exploring the school behavior of urban, low-income, African American students,” which they were asked to present at the National Black Child Development Institute’s Conference.
Musician and activist Rebecca Fanya Lichtenfeld ’97 wrote a song that has been released on For the Lady (Rhino Records, Oct. 2004), a benefit album with contributing artists U2, Peter Gabriel, Bonnie Raitt, Natalie Merchant, Coldplay, Paul McCartney, and others to raise awareness for Aung San Suu Kyi, the imprisoned democratic leader of Burma. The project was put together by the U.S. Campaign for Burma. At Wesleyan, she majored in Latin American studies. For more information, please visit www.rebeccafanya.com.
Sasha Chanoff ’94, executive director of Mapendo International, is a recipient of a 2007 Draper Richards Foundation fellowship, a prestigious award given to emerging social change organizations throughout the United States and the world. Mapendo, a lifeline for forgotten refugees, received the support of lead refugee officials from the U.N., the U.S. government, other foundations, and experts across the world.
For the second year in a row, Phillip Buchanan ’92, president of the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP), has been named to The Nonprofit Times “Power and Influence Top 50.” This honor recognizes leaders who have had a major impact on the nonprofit field in the last twelve months, and whose leadership is responding to, and growing with, challenges in the charitable sector. Buchanan joined CEP, which develops comparative data to enable higherperforming foundations, as its first staff member in 2001. He has overseen the growth of the Cambridge, Massachusettsbased organization to a staff of 30, with a new office in San Francisco slated to open in October. He was a government major at Wesleyan and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. His past experience includes strategy consulting at the Bostonbased Parthenon Group and six years in higher education administration, as assistant to the presidents of Wesleyan University and Mount Holyoke College.
Amy Andrus ’93, MD, a 2008 graduate of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, received the annual William D. Kaplan, MD, award, recognizing the graduate who best combines humanism with the study of clinical medicine. She was also inducted into the national Gold Humanism Honor Society for her “demonstrated excellence in clinical care, leadership, compassion and dedication to service.” She plans to pursue an obstetrics and gynecology residency after a year of research.
Brendan Armm ’98 was named the 2004 Student of the Year by the American Association of Oriental Medicine, the premier acupuncture organization in America, for his involvement in professional organizations, activities, academic performance, and community service. Armm completed his master’s this summer and plans to open a private practice as an acupuncturist in L.A. while continuing his studies at the doctoral level. At Wesleyan, he majored in music.
New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., announced the appointment of Polly Greenberg ’90 as chief of the Major Economic Crimes Bureau. She joined the office in 1993, starting in the Appeals Bureau and later in the Investigations Division. After leaving the office in late 2000 for private practice, Greenberg returned in 2005, and prosecuted primarily organized crime cases. She was appointed deputy bureau chief of the Major Economic Crimes Bureau shortly after its creation two years ago, and has been instrumental in setting bureau priorities and in collaborating with outside agencies to broaden the reach of the bureau. She has supervised wiretap investigations, as well as investigations into and prosecutions of securities, bank and mortgage fraud, and international and domestic money laundering. She graduated from Wesleyan with high honors in American studies and received her law degree from New York University School of Law.
The Indignant Generation: A Narrative History of African American Writers and Critics, 1934–1960, by Lawrence Jackson ’90, has received the 2011 William Sanders Scarborough Prize from the Modern Language Association as well as the Black Caucus of the American Library Association literary award in the nonfiction category. The book was also a finalist for the Hurston/Wright nonfiction book prize. The Modern Language Association called the book a “magisterial narrative history of African American literature” and “beautifully written and rich in historical detail.” Jackson majored in African American Studies at Wesleyan, received his master’s degree in English from Ohio State University, and received his PhD in English and American literature from Stanford University in 1997. He is a professor of English and African American Studies at Emory University.
Andre Kikoski ’90 received the Institute Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects, their highest recognition nationally, for his creation of The Wright, the new restaurant in the Guggenheim Museum. Kikoski’s work was selected from more than 700 submissions, and he was one of only 27 recipients worldwide who was to be honored at the AIA 2012 National Convention and Design Exposition in Washington, D.C., in May. Said Kikoski, “It was both an incredible honor and an exhilarating challenge to create The Wright…which is the first addition to the building’s iconic interior.” The jury called Kikoski’s project “sensitively handled and respectful of the essence of the original architecture.” Kikoski, an English major at Wesleyan, earned his master’s degree in architecture from Harvard University. His firm, Andre Kikoski Architect, PLLC, is located in New York City.
