Class News
Class News items are submitted by alumnae/i and do not represent positions, policies or opinions of Dominican University. Items have been edited for length and content, and additional Class News appears in the spring and fall editions of Dominican Magazine. To submit Class News, visit www.dom.edu/alumni/submit-class-news. For questions, contact the Office of Alumnae/i Relations at alumni@dom.edu or (708) 524-6286.
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Undergraduate Alumnae/i Class News, Spring 2026
2006
Annie Hughes Halsema
Class Agent
Courtney Thompson MSW ’11 reports, “After nine years of hard work, I successfully defended my dissertation, ‘Motor and Phonic Tic Severity and Its Relationship to Social, Emotional, and School Functioning in Children with Tourette Syndrome From the Caregivers’ Perspective.’ I will walk in graduation in June.”
John Hannes writes, after celebrating 15 years with Rotary International in November, I stepped into a new leadership role as a supervisor of membership growth and experience in December.
2007
Mark Carbonara
Class Agent
Elizabeth Schneider was appointed as vice president, partner channel sales, at Fusion Connect, a provider of cloud communications solutions.
Dena Nardulli Battaglia writes, “I had a wonderful career rooted in ministry. I worked as a professional hospital chaplain for Centegra Health System, which merged with Northwestern Medicine from 2002 to 2020. I became the manager of spiritual care and education and managed three hospitals. I took my vows to be a member of the Order of Secular Servants of Mary in 2014. I have retired and moved with my family to Alabama.”
Dorothy Paape Kotscha, MBA ’09 started a new job as a senior client insights analyst at SPINS LLC in 2025.
2008
Catherine Capistrano Calixto and Eileen Terrien
Class Agents
Yoana Dvorzsak was appointed as vice president of innovation and product integrity at Solésence, where she will lead a newly unified group that combines Solésence's research and development, product and component development, and regulatory and quality operations.
2009
Shannon Sromek Hickey
Class Agent
Chris Tyre ’09 earned international recognition for his Austin-based design studio, Via Visual, which won the 2025 Esprit Award for best Marketing Collateral (Nonprofit) from the International Live Events Association (ILEA) for its branding of the Lone Star Film Festival. He partnered with fellow Dominican alum Syndey Musselman (Nogle) ’08 on select print collateral and collaborated with the Lone Star Film Society and Visit Fort Worth on the project.
2011
Jaron Salazar
Class Agent
Becky Markey-Valenti and her husband, Jordan, welcomed their first child, Cooper, in 2025. The family resides in Nebraska. Becky is a member of the Nebraska Coaches Association and is in her sixth year as a high school varsity soccer head coach.
2012
Ali Messina
Class Agent
Corinne Zimmerman, a biology teacher at Homewood-Flossmoor High School, is the recipient of an award from the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) for Excellence in Encouraging Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI). The award recognizes a teacher who is committed to upholding JEDI principles in their teaching and student outreach, while also finding ways to increase student enthusiasm for biology.
2013
Karla Bayas, Mary Brauer and Marco A. Rodriguez
Class Agents
Rene Howard-Paez was listed as one of 31 top Latino leaders in Wisconsin for 2025. Howard-Paez is the president of St. Joan Antida High School, the youngest Catholic high school president in Milwaukee, and the only Latino in the role. Earlier, he was recognized by the Milwaukee BizTimes as a Notable Latino Leader.
2015
Katie Schmidt and Tanner Strong
Class Agents
Adam M. Ansari has been elected as a New Fellow for The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. Adam was one of 48 fellows elected. To qualify for membership, a lawyer must have at least 10 years of experience in the active practice of trust and estate law. Lawyers and law professors are elected to be Fellows based on their outstanding reputation, exceptional skill and substantial contributions to the field by lecturing, writing, teaching and participating in bar leadership or legislative activities.
Brian Manjarrez MSW ’19 reports that his son, Leo, just turned 1 and it has been a great year for him and his family.
2016
Berto Aguayo, Andrea Hinojosa and Olivia Szuszkiewicz McKinney
Class Agents
Quynh-Huong Nguyen has completed her PhD in psychology via Fielding Graduate University. She also recently completed end-of-life doula certification via INELDA. She plans to use her certificate to help her community.
2025
Sofia Alessandrini writes, “I accepted a position with the Archdiocese of Chicago as the gift fulfillment coordinator in the Office of Stewardship and Development. I was pleased to find this role only a few months after graduation. In the short time between graduation and accepting this position, I traveled to Europe twice. One trip was to visit friends I made while studying abroad in Ireland, and the other was to visit extended family in Italy.”
Graduate News, Spring 2026
Frank Ronis MBA ’86 has been hired as chief of examinations of the state of Illinois’ Securities Department. In this role, Ronis oversees efforts to “examine the books, records, and sales practices of Illinois-registered investment firms to assess compliance under state and federal laws,” the office said.
Rebecca Hass MLIS ’08 is the programming and outreach manager for Anne Arundel County Public Library and a published author with ALA Editions. Rebecca’s book is titled 101 Seeds for Library Joy.
Thomas E. Prothero MBA ’95 is semi-retired and residing in Fountain Hills, Arizona. After concluding a 20-year executive career with MB Financial Bank in 2019, Tom now serves as a director and chairman of the Audit Committee for Marquette National Corporation, the holding company for Marquette Bank in Chicago. Tom also provides consulting services to small businesses primarily in the Scottsdale area.
Robert Benoit MSA ’12 was appointed chief financial Officer of Viamedia.
Kalli Nowtizke MAED ’13, a resource room teacher with Ann Arbor Public Schools, was highlighted as an Exceptional Teacher in the Michigan school district’s public newsletter.
Francesco Castaldi MAT ’15 joined global law firm Greenberg Traurig as a shareholder in its Chicago office, bringing deep experience in negotiating and structuring complex private equity, mergers and acquisitions, and other corporate transactions.
Srinitya Tripuraneni MLIS ’24 writes, “After graduation, I did an internship at the Allen County Museum, based in Ohio. I recently started working as an Adult Services library assistant at Sycamore Public Library in Sycamore, Illinois.”