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50 Years of Coeducation

Make a Gift in Honor of the CA Woman in Your Life!

 

 

CA is recognizing the 50th Anniversary of Modern Coeducation this year, capped with a special, celebratory fundraising and recognition campaign during Women’s History Month in March.

 

To celebrate this milestone and share the breadth of experiences and paths our alumnae have taken since graduation, we have highlighted 50 CA women of the last 50 years. 

 

As you reflect on the CA women in your life (daughters, mothers, teachers, and others.) we hope you will make a gift to the Annual Fund in their honor. Your support of the Annual Fund enhances the education of all CA students and provides them with unparalleled opportunities to succeed. Please also share your stories and memories about the powerful CA alumnae or teachers who influenced you. Click the link below.

 

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50 for 50

 

 

Regina Ali ’86: Ali is currently the Clinical Resource Leader and Administrative Supervisor for HOCC’s Bradley Memorial campus for the Emergency Department and inpatient North 3 unit. In 2018 she received the Nightingale Award for Nursing at the Hospital of Central Connecticut.

 

Suzanne Austin ’70: Austin is the Senior Vice Provost and Senior International Officer at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

 

Brittany Barberino ’05: Barberino is the Operations Manager at a Renowned Auto Group.

 

Margarita Blandon Eastman ’93: Eastman is the IT project leader for Western Asset Management.

 

Mary Blum ’77: Blum is the founder and practitioner of Energy Medicine at Harbor Point Wellness where they offer energy healing, sound therapy and wellness coaching. Mary is also founder of Mary Blum Studio where she creates fine art and design pieces incorporating silver and gold leaf into her works.

 

Meaghan Bolduc ’06: Bolduc is a Senior Manager, Finance & Administration at Boston University.

 

Maria Boscio ’90: Boscio arrived at Cheshire Academy in 1988 as an 11th grader and benefited from individualized training, as part of CA’s coeducational programing, and developed the confidence, character, and critical thinking skills that enabled her to thrive as a global citizen. It marked the beginning of a journey towards the formation of character, discipline, ethics and perseverance. 30 years later, she maintains a commitment to loyalty, devotion and consideration for others as a recipient of the Frederick Vollrath Richmond Award back in 1990. After completing her college education at George Washington University with a Bachelors in International Affairs and obtaining a Juris Doctor at the Catholic University of America, Maria worked in various fields of law. In 2008, she began her career at the federal level servicing the public at the Social Security Administration, as a Senior Attorney Advisor with Office of Hearing Operations at the Ponce PR Hearing Office.

 

  • Aliya Catanzarita '19

 

Sheri Brady ’87: Brady is the Associate Director for Strategic Partnerships at Aspen Forum for Community Solutions, whose mission is to support community collaboration that enables communities to effectively address their most pressing challenges. She leads work on field-building around collective impact, place-based investment, community engagement and equity.

 

Angelina Casanova-Bell ’00: Casanova-Bell is a federal government relations and strategic communications professional located in the Washington, D.C. area with over 11+ years of experience working for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation (MPTN). Angelina serves as Vice-Chairwoman of Command Holdings’ Board of Directors, and also as the President of Copperhead Technologies, LLC. She co-owns Native Way Blend, LLC and has a B.S. in Women’s Studies from Towson University. Additionally, Angelina has a graduate certificate in Business Communications from Harvard Extension School and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Business Management.

 

Aliya Catanzarita ’19: Catanzarita is CA’s first D1 softball player and she has been named to the Dean’s list at Hofstra University, to the Colonial Athletic Association Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll, and to Hofstra Athletic Directors Scholars Academic Roll. Aliya is also a first generation American.

 

Kimberly Cotton Hoyt ’85: Cotton Hoyt tells everyone that her time at Cheshire Academy changed her life and propelled her onto the path that she is on today, as the Associate Director of Marketing & Analysis for The Dartmouth College Fund. In addition to her work duties at Dartmouth, Kim also coordinates the Dartmouth Football mentor program and takes great pride in the young men that she has mentored over the years with her husband, Tom.

 

Gina Della Porta ’97: Della Porta channeled her love of writing and science, cultivated at Cheshire Academy, into a career in the field of Research Development. In her current position at Yale University, she works with scientists to write and develop grant proposals for a variety of basic and medical research projects.

 

Jennifer Duke ’02: Duke is an Employment Attorney at Littler Mendelson, P.C. in Boston. Jen has a history of pro bono work representing survivors of domestic violence.

 

Courtney Evans Sacchetti ’93: Evans Sacchetti is the Director of Financial Planning and Analytics at Bankwell.

 

  • Kimberly Cotton Hoyt ’85

 

Rosanne Ferraro ’74: Ferraro is a skilled English teacher in both the public and private sector for over 16 years with a demonstrated history of curriculum writing.

 

Meredith Fiorino Newman ’90: Fiorino Newman is a personal growth coach with an M.A. in marriage and family therapy.

 

Maria Gabriele ’00: Gabriele is the Associate Director of Global Programs at Purdue University.

 

Kinga Gawron-Akerly ’98: Gawron-Akerly is the Regional Sales Manager for the Great American Insurance Group, focusing on annuities in the bank and independent distribution channels.

 

Rebekah George ’95: George has been a national beauty, fashion, and healthy lifestyle expert for over a decade. You may recognize her from The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Doctor’s, Extra, Inside Edition, or The Early Show to name a few. A well-respected key influencer, she knows the ABC’s of AHA’s and a thing or two about Choos (we mean, shoes!). Rebekah has worked as a spokesperson for brands like Olay, Secret, Clairol, Zyrtec, and DDF. George travels nearly 200,000 miles a year appearing on local and national television shows and shopping channels like QVC. George has also hosted beauty shows like Total Look on totalbeauty.com and Your Beauty Skin on discovery.com. Rebekah is called upon frequently to be featured as an expert on various beauty and fashion blogs and national newspapers like USA Today. She’s held fashion and beauty editor titles for women’s magazines like Redbook, Prevention, Lifetime, Natural Health, and Grace, producing and styling stories that cover every trend from the runway to the real-way, truly helping real women across the country achieve their most coveted looks. Rebekah resides in Westport, CT with her husband and 3 year old son and daughter, Max & Vivienne.

 

Laura Griffin ’88: Griffin is a Senior Policy Advisor with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. With more than 26 years of Federal government experience, she coordinates policy analysis as well as leads communications, strategic planning and special projects for SNAP, formerly food stamps, which serves 36 million people per month. Laura has a passion for public service and ensuring that eligible low income people have access to nutrition benefits that stretch their food budgets so they can purchase healthy food.

 

Molly Griffin ’03: As part of The Hartford’s Government Affairs group, Griffin leads the company’s political engagement program, including management of their political action committees.

 

Dr. Candace Griffiths ’02: Griffiths is a Resident Physician of the Mercy Health System of Southeastern Pennsylvania.

 

Nancy Strakosch Gross ’75: Nancy Strakosch Gross is co-owner of Summer Girl Media LLC, a multi-tiered film and TV production company.

 

Nancy Haaz ’00: Haaz works in external relations & governmental affairs for trade in Paris, France.

 

Suzi Raftery Herbst ’94: Herbst is the Sr. VP and Director of Human Resources at Harbinger Partners.

 

Alexis Holmes ’18: Holmes had a world-record performance at the Under 20 Pan American Games. She brought home a gold and silver medal. Her 4 by 400 relay team ran a world record time and she is an Olympic hopeful for 2020 or 2024. She is a sophomore at U of Kentucky.

 

Susan Hurwitz Callison ’89: Callison is the Founder and CEO of Solidea U.S. As a breast cancer survivor affected by lymphedema who had to wear compression garments every day, Sue went on a global search for a better solution. She discovered Solidea, an innovation in managing edema.

 

Karen Kerski ’73: Karen Kerski is owner of Catalpha Advertising & Design, Inc. specializing in branding, package design and product marketing strategy. With over 40 years experience, Karen works with global brands and start-ups to create, position and launch brands. Clients include Biofreeze, Stanley/Black&Decker, Dave’s Sweet Tooth, Tessco and Dap.

 

Dr. Aroub Khleif Saeh ’97: Khleif Saeh is the Director of Ambulatory Clinical Systems at Houston Methodist Hospital.

 

  • Dr. Suzanne Austin '70

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Suhi Koizumi ’96: Koizumi is a partner at Minami Tamaki LLP in San Francisco, CA where she practices immigration law. She is passionate about immigrant rights and volunteers at nonprofit organizations that serve the local immigrant community. Her love of music, which she discovered at Cheshire Academy, continues, and she enjoys jamming with her husband, Jarred McAdams, and her 7-year-old daughter.

 

Hannah Leser ’17: After Cheshire, Hannah returned to Germany and began a successful career on the stage. She has played Mary Poppins, Alex Owens in Flashdance on a European tour, and is currently performing in a production of of Chicago in Braunschweig, Germany.

 

Snow Li ’07: Snow is a consultant for The Boston Consulting Group, a business strategy company.

 

(Yu-Jen) Stella Liu ’07: Stella is an Analytics Sr. Consultant for CAN Insurance.

 

Tara Lynch ’18: Lynch is a Park Scholar with junior academic standing at the Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College. She has reported for ESPN+ and Ithaca College Television, and she recently worked with CNN at the 2020 Iowa Caucus.

 

Shelly McClure ’90: McClure is an interior designer with a focus on kitchens and baths. She is the founder and President of Shelly McClure, Inc, an interior design firm that designs and sells imported cabinetry from Italy. Together with her husband, Shelly also owns two boutique wine shops in Manhattan, where she lives. She is passionate about exploring and discovering the world with her two young children.

 

Andrea Morris ’83: Morris is the Curriculum Coordinator for an international school located in Liberia and the Associate Director for an organization called Africa in the Odyssey of the Mind. They are holding the first Odyssey of the Mind Afrifest competition in March 2020 and have invited school teams from throughout Europe, the United States, and Africa to compete in Liberia.

 

Brenda Mulligan ’95: Mulligan is the head of Global Oncology Communications for Sanofi Genzyme in Cambridge, MA.

 

Alex Blandon Murphy ’95: Blandon Murphy is a VP at Payden & Rygel, an investment management firm in the Los Angeles area.

 

MaryOlga Nieto ’81: Nieto is a distinguished international artist, teacher, instructor, writer, and publisher. As an artist, she creates innovative, modern, abstract art in a variety of mediums including paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and murals. Maryolga is an art teacher and conducts workshops and classes. She writes and publishes books on folklore, culture, and poetry. She currently lives in the Hague Area of the Netherlands.

 

Jessica Nocerino Troianello ’92: Troianello is a seasoned Business and Technology Engagement leader in Accenture Salesforce Technology practice based out of San Jose, California. Jessica has worked in cloud technologies since 2010, focusing on development, delivery and deployment of cutting edge SaaS applications. Jessica brings with her a strong experience across Financial Services, Customer Support and Retention, Sales (Channel, Direct, Services), Marketing, Go-To-Market delivery and Service Delivery transformations. 

 

Veneta Nikolova ’01: Nikolova is a finance industry professional with over 12 years of experience. She is currently a Vice President at Barclays in New York City. Veneta also serves as an Alumni Council Member at the University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School.

 

Kelly Ryan ’15: Ryan is an Analyst at JP Morgan Chase & Co. in Boston in the Technology and Disruptive Commerce Department.

 

  • Alexis Holmes '18

 

Ayana Saunders ’03: Saunders is working for Focus Features at Universal Studios as a Post Production Coordinator. She organizes the completion of their films, such as Emma, starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Bill Nighy, in theaters as of February 2020 and The High Note, in theaters May 8, starring Tracee Ellis Ross and Dakota Johnson. Ayana has many fond memories of CA and misses the nurturing environment that supported her growth, independence, self- confidence, and self-expression. She credits her female teachers and dorm parents. Whether it was a ride to a volunteer event in Hartford, a weeknight stop at Sweet Claude’s, or a visit to the ER after a clumsy accident, Ayana felt the women in leadership at CA were always there for her and prepared.

 

Christine Schott Ledes ’82: Ledes is the President of the American Influencers Association.

 

Dr. Lindsay Shaw Thornton ’01: Thornton is a Senior Sport Psychophysiologist for the U.S. Olympic Committee.

 

Laura Shmishkiss ’91: Shmishkiss is the co-executive director of the Center for Racial Justice in Education.

 

Kallie Taylor ’10: Taylor is a freelancer at Pictures in a Row and has recently worked on the set of Season 3 of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

 

Bridget Thornton ’05: Thornton is a Social Work Care Manager at Portland Family Medicine, MaineHealth. Her family lives on an island off the coast of Portland, Maine. When she is not at work, she tries to spend as much time on, or near the water, as possible. Bridget enjoys exploring the coast with family and friends in the summer time and getting outside snow shoeing and ice fishing in the winter. Portland also has a great food and drink scene, so she tries to take advantage of all the city has to offer. Bridget thinks it’s a great place to call home.

 

Anne Tivin ’70: Tivin is an experienced scientist with expertise in analytical chemistry and microbiology.

 

Lingquan Zhang ’15: Linquan is an Advisory Specialist for Ernst & Young Global Consulting services in Shanghai, China.

 

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