Where R.A. Now?

Dr. Bryan Brazeau is a Senior Teaching Fellow in Liberal Arts at the University of Warwick (UK). He began at NYU as a graduate student in Italian Studies working with residential life (first on the Graduate Programming Initiative, and then as an RA in Stuy Town from 2009-2012). He obtained his Ph.D. in Italian Studies from NYU in 2015 and his MA in the same field from NYU in 2010. Prior to his arrival at NYU, Bryan obtained a BA in Western Society and Culture from Concordia University’s Liberal Arts College in Montréal in 2008. Bryan is currently editing a volume of essays on new perspectives in the study of early modern poetics, Beyond Aristotle's Poetics: New Directions in Early Modern Italian Literary Criticism—which emerges from a conference and graduate workshop that he organized at the Newberry Library in March 2017.

As Senior Teaching Fellow in Liberal Arts at Warwick, Bryan teaches interdisciplinary courses such as Science, Society, and the Media; Underworlds; Paradises; and Sustaining the Serenissima: Venice and Sustainability (which includes a week at Warwick’s campus in Venice). As Study Abroad co-ordinator for the department, he also maintains and oversees exchange partnerships with international institutions in the Netherlands, Germany, and Canada. At Warwick, he has co-created programs such as the Early Career Convivium, and maintains the Centre for the Study of the Renaissance Podcast. Prior to his current role, Bryan served as Research Fellow at Warwick on a project funded by the European Research Council titled “Aristotle in the Vernacular,” with project teams at Warwick and at Ca’ Foscari in Venice. As part of his work on the project, he worked on the reception of Aristotle’s Poetics in early modern Italy, carried out the legacy migration of the Aristotle in the Vernacular Database and collaborated on an exhibition of early modern Aristotelian texts Aristotele e Venezia at the Museo Correr and Marciana Library in Venice. During this time, he also taught graduate-level seminar courses: Latin for Researchers; Early Modern Palaeography; and lectured on undergraduate courses such as Defining France; and The Epic Tradition. As part of this teaching, he helped organise field trips to the Bodleian Library (Oxford), and the British Library (London).

Bryan has published several articles and book reviews in journals including MLN, Renaissance and Reformation, The Italianist, California Italian Studies, and History of European Ideas. His essays have appeared in collections such as Dante and Heterodoxy, ed. Maria Luisa Ardizzone (2014), and MLA Approaches to Teaching the Italian Renaissance Romance Epic (2018). He is also working on his first book, Hero of the Day: The Development of Christian Epic in Sixteenth-Century Italy. 

Dr. Ken Schneck is a tenured Professor and Director of the Leadership in Higher Education Program at Baldwin Wallace University where he teaches courses on race in society, ethical leadership, student development theory, and a slew of courses on how individuals can work with communities to create a more just world. He tours the country speaking on the topic of LGBTQ culture, community change, racial justice, and how you can use your voice to create actual change (instead of creating more meetings about actual change). Previously, he served as the Dean of Students for Marlboro College and the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs for Sarah Lawrence College. 

For 10 years, Ken was the producer and host of This Show is So Gay, a multi-award-winning, long-running, nationally syndicated radio show/podcast focused on people using their voices in a unique way to create dialogue around LGBTQ topics. For 430 episodes, he interviewed over 500 of the most notable names in LGBTQ culture from civil rights champions to champions of drag, presidential candidates to singer/songwriters, prolific authors to one former member of Menudo (not as famous as Ricky Martin…but just as gay). 

Ken is an author and freelance writer whose first book Seriously...What Am I Doing Here? The Adventures of a Wondering and Wandering Gay Jew (1984 Publishing) was released in 2017, second book LGBTQ Cleveland: Images of Modern America (Arcadia Publishing/The History Press) hit the shelves in 2018, and third book LGBTQ Columbus: Images of Modern America (Arcadia Publishing/The History Press) is due out in June of 2019. His freelance writing has been seen in a ton of national media including The Advocate, PRIZM Magazine, The Windy City Times, 201 Magazine, Bravo TV, NBC News, FreshWater Cleveland, and monthly pie

John Kazlauskas:  While an MA student at Gallatin studying documentary filmmaking and social justice, John worked as a Graduate Housing Assistant at 80 Lafayette. During that time he was also a Production Assistant on the Oscar-winning Bowling for Columbine, while his own documentary SPEAK UP! premiered at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival before being acquired for national distribution through the Media Education Foundation. While a Community Developement Educator (CDE) at Hayden Hall, John started the MFA program in Dramatic Writing at Tisch. Since leaving NYU, John has worked as a Writer’s Assistant, Script Cooridnator and Writer on TV shows including Brothers & Sisters, SMASH, Happily Divorced, Mulaney and currently NBC’s Superstore. In addition, he has written freelance jokes for Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live.

Dr. Sara Klein currently serves as the AVP for Student Affairs at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.   Prior to her role at Stevens, she served as Dean of Campus Life and Engagement and Title IX Coordinator at Wagner College.  Dr. Klein also held the positions of Associate Dean of Campus Life and Director of Res Ed at Wagner College.  Before coming to Wagner, she worked as a CDE in the Department of Res Ed at NYU, and as a Fixed Income, Currencies & Commodities analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Dr. Klein is an adjunct professor at NYU in the HESA program.  She has also taught in Wagner College’s Executive MBA program and has instructed webinars for the American College Personnel Association and ResLife.net, as well as presented throughout the country at professional conferences, seminars, and workshops.   Dr. Klein has published articles in the Journal  of the First Year Experience and Students in Transition, the Journal of College and University Housing, and authored a chapter in Linking Theories to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students (3rd Edition). Dr. Klein earned her Ph.D. at NYU in Higher Education, where she also received a Master’s degree in the same subject.  She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Music.  She lives with her husband, Ben, and two young children in Maplewood, NJ.

Ryan Sylvester is a Judge Advocate (lawyer) in the U.S. Navy. He is a native of Little Falls, Minnesota. He completed a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications (1998) as well as a Master of Science in Educational Leadership (2002) at Minnesota State University Moorhead; a Master of Science in Global Affairs (2007) at NYU; a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies at the U.S. Naval War College (2018); and a Juris Doctorate (2011) at Fordham University School of Law. He is currently working toward a Master of Science in Strategic Intelligence at the National Intelligence University. Ryan is currently  assigned to a legal office at Fort George G. Meade.  His prior assignments include: U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. TENTH Fleet; Office of the Judge Advocate General Code 18 (Intelligence, Cyber, and Information Operations Law); Command Judge Advocate, USS EMORY S. LAND (AS 39); Policy Advisor, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Undersecretary of Defense for Policy (Oceans Policy); Defense Counsel, Defense Service Office North in DC; and Trial Counsel, Legal Assistance Attorney, and Command Services Attorney at Region Legal Services Attorney at Region Legal Service Office Naval District Washington in Washington, DC.  During law school Ryan interned with the Sierra Leone Mission to the UN in NY. Prior to law school, Ryan had a career as a university administrator for eight years. From 2003-2007 he was the CDE for Weinstein Hall at NYU. From 1999-2003 he was he was an Area Director.

Born and raised in Staten Island, NY.   Jonathan Graf is a life-long New Yorker and graduate of the New York City public school system.  He attended NYU undergrad where he obtained a computer science degree and graduated in class of 2004.  As a technology professional he worked for brands such as Citigroup, HBO and Macmillan.  He was on the technical team that built and launched HBO GO, serving as the Technical Lead for the login module.  In his spare time he has joined community theater groups and has taken language classes in French, Spanish, German and Yiddish.  An avid traveler, he just completed a year long trip around the world where he visited 17 countries.  On this trip, he accepted his 15 year story of documenting his family history is perhaps his purpose in life. 

 Isha Dandavate has been a user experience researcher at Google for five years. She seeks to elevate the voices of underserved audiences in technology, which she has done by incorporating the needs of teens, women, and people in developing markets into the product development process at YouTube. 

While at NYU, Isha was an RA for two years at Alumni Hall/7th St. She also served as an RA at University Hall one summer. Isha graduated from NYU in 2010, majoring in international relations and journalism. She worked for 2 years as a freelance journalist before transitioning to a career in user research. 

Isha worked at a design research consultancy, SonicRim Ltd, in San Francisco for a year before beginning graduate studies at the UC Berkeley School of Information. She graduated with a master's in information management and systems in 2014.

Darryl Jordan, a singer/songwriter/musician/conductor, graduated from New York University and Boston University, where he received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, respectively in 2003. This year, he will complete his Ed. Doctorate in Music and Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. He has spent the better part of his career training multi-faceted young singers for a new generation in Harlem as the Chair of Performing Arts and Vocal Music at the Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts. Armed with the desire to “develop singers for every stage,” he has spent the past twenty years training singers in Maryland, D.C., and New York for everything from classical to jazz. His students have performed in many great halls including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, National Black Theater, the Apollo Theater, Aaron Davis Hall, Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, Baltimore’s Center Stage, and a host of churches, community centers, and public events!  

Thanking God for his own musical gift, he continues to perform as a baritone/tenor soloist in and outside of the Tri-State area. Performing with everything from Gregory Sheppard Artists Management, Opera Ebony, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, St. Frances De Sales R.C. Church, Mott Haven Reformed Church, Randolph Noel and the Brooklyn Arts Ensemble, Dion Parsons and the 21st Century Band, as chorus member and soloist in The Underground Railroad: A Spiritual Journey with famed soprano Kathleen Battle at the Metropolitan Opera House, and most recently with the pit ensemble of Born for This, a new musical by BeBe Wigans. A sought after conductor and clinician, he most recently conducted Nyack’s Off-Broadway Production of The Wiz in his third conducting assignment with the school having conducted In the Heights and Westside Story in previous years. He is a regular conductor with Nyack's Chorale in their Celebration of God’s 

Faithfulness performances at Lincoln Center. He is proud to be the choral director at the historic Calvary Fellowship A.M.E. and former choir director at the historic Mt Lebanon Baptist Church in Brooklyn. A solo artist with his music group FreeMind, he brings a unique brand of neo-gospel-soul music to the world! An Apollo Amateur Night winner, he is set to released his second project TIME this year! Creative and Dynamic, he seeks to empower the community through the gift of song. 

 Kenton Muscato was initially a Peer Educator and two-year Resident Assistant in University Hall from 2006 to 2009. He graduated from Leonard N. Stern's School of Business in 2009. Thereafter, he began a career at Ralph Lauren Corporation always in a buying, merchandising function. Kenton has been with Ralph Lauren for ten years, working with multiple product categories and brands with a current focus on the Greater China Southeast Asia market needs. Kenton is currently based in Hong Kong where he has lived for nearly the past five years.  

Dr. Marcella Runell Hall serves as the Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students and Lecturer in Religion at Mount Holyoke College.  Her roots at NYU began as a graduate student working with residential leadership.  Marcella is the co-editor of a new book entitled UnCommon Bonds: Women Reflect on Race & Friendship with Kersha Smith; more resources can be foundL www.uncommonbondsbook.com.

In the Division of Student Life, Marcella oversees Athletics, Residential Life, Health, Counseling, Religious & Spiritual Life, Community & Inclusion and Student Programs. She has co-created programs and initiatives such as the MoZone Diversity Peer Education program, Be Well Mount Holyoke, worked with her team to revamp New Student Orientation. Recently she developed and taught a first year seminar course on The Meaning of Friendship.

Marcella has edited three books which focus on social justice curriculum, The Hip-Hop Education Guidebook: Volume 1 (2007) with Martha Diaz,  

Mark Levy is a musician living in New York City.  As the Licensing Manager of MPL Music Publishing, an independent music publisher (www.mplcommunications.com), he specializes in the licensing of music for use in film, television, commercials, and a wide array of other applications.  Mark is the co-founder/co-owner of a private event company, Magic Cube Entertainment, in which he functions predominantly as a game show host working with school groups, camp groups, and corporate clients such as IBM.  He is also the bandleader of The Academy Blues Project (abp.nyc).  Together, he and his band have played in venues such as The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Brooklyn Academy of Music, and Joe's Pub at the Public Theater, where they recorded a live album in 2017.  They also serve as the house band of the NYC tech variety show, Live From Tomorrow! (livefromtomorrow.tv) and still regularly play shows in the NYU area at venues like Rockwood Music Hall. Upcoming show dates can be found on their website, and their music is available across all major platorms (Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, etc.).

Mark graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences in 2012 with a major in History and minors in Business (through Stern) and Social Studies Education (through Steinhardt).  He served as an RA from 2010-2012 at Brittany Hall on the F.A.M.E. Explorations Floor. 

 Maliha Salim graduated from New York University in 2007 with a B.A. in Politics, Spanish & Public Policy.  Following graduation, she joined the Financial Sales & Analytics Training Program at Bloomberg L.P.  During her 11 years at the company, she has held positions across a variety of departments including Analytics, Sales & Product.  During her time in Analytics, she managed a team of specialists focusing on the FX & Commodity sector before moving onto Sales to cover the sell-side.  In Sales, she was promoted to a manager position in 2016, overseeing a team of relationship managers who looked after some of Bloomberg's key accounts.  In 2017, Maliha moved to Product Management, where she oversees development of Bloomberg's instant chat platform.