Mir Bashar ’11 was appointed by New York City Mayor Eric Adams as the chief administrative officer in the Office of the Mayor, a significant role in the day-to-day finances, budgets, contracts, and general administration of City Hall. Bashar previously served in the Office of the Mayor for over 20 years as the director and senior director of budget and financial planning.

Danny Simmons, Jr. ’85 was honored by the Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning and New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Lurie Cumbo for his accomplishments as a painter, author, poet and philanthropist. Simmons is the co-founder of Def Poetry Jam, the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation and Rush Arts Philadelphia, which bring arts access and education to disadvantaged youth.

Men’s lacrosse assistant coach Troy Reh was voted to the PLL All-Star Game alongside Connor Farrell ’19, who served as an all-star team captain. Farrell is a faceoff specialist and midfielder for the Chrome Lacrosse Club and has become one of the league’s most popular players. Reh is a long-stick midfielder for the Chaos Lacrosse Club with one goal and 10 ground balls through the first five games of the season.

Education student Brianna Maloney, owner of Coastal Cuts, combined her interests in special education and entrepreneurship by hosting a design contest for artists of all abilities. The winning design, created by a young woman with Downs syndrome, is featured on a t-shirt in the Coastal Cuts collection, with proceeds from the shirt donated to a non-profit organization that promotes inclusion.

The Press Club of Long Island named Emma Robinson, editor of the LIU Post student newspaper The Tide, as the “Best College Newspaper Reporter” of the year. Robinson also earned second place in the “Best Student Feature Story” and “Best Student Investigative Journalism” categories, while former editor Dylan Valic ’21 earned third place for “Best Student News Story.”

Senior playwrighting major Brett Wolfe was awarded a certificate of merit from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival National Playwriting Program for his play, “Simulacrum.” Additionally, Wolfe’s full-length play, “Dogs of Peace: A Fantasia on the Hardship of Being” premieres in the Post Theatre Company’s fall 2022 season and will be directed by a professional guest director.

Kelly Nash was named head coach of the Sharks women’s ice hockey program after serving as associate head coach and head scout for the Premier Hockey Federation’s Metropolitan Riveters. Nash won two national championships as a student-athlete at the University of Wisconsin and spent six seasons as an assistant coach at the collegiate level with a focus on player development, recruiting, practice planning, video analysis and scouting.

Dr. Zsolt Kulcsar ’20 was chosen as the medical director of the virtual care team for Lee Health, a leading health system in Southwest Florida. Dr. Kulcsar previously implemented a digital footprint for medical and surgical practices and expanded the telehealth services across White Plains Hospital as the associate medical director and chief of service rheumatology.

Jen Lapera ’04 was selected as vice president and casualty leader for M&T Insurance Agency’s real estate and construction practice. Lapera is responsible for managing casualty insurance placement, program design, and strategy for MTIA’s New York City clients and is also involved in complex casualty placements across the company’s footprint.

Timothy J. Russo ’08 was named assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment for the Commack Union Free school District. Russo previously served as principal at Harborfields High School and works extensively with committees concerning social and emotional learning, diversity, equity and inclusion, counseling, strategic planning, and the NYS Seal of Biliteracy.