Rochester Alumni Network hosts defensive driving course

The Rochester Alumni Network hosted a defensive driving course Nov. 9 for alumni and their guests. The event was sponsored by the Alumni Association, in conjunction with Liberty Mutual Insurance. Those who completed the program were entitled to a 10 percent discount off auto liability and collision insurance for three years, plus a reduction of up to four points from individual driving records. Binghamton alumni who completed the program became eligible for an additional 10 percent discount on all auto insurance coverage through Liberty Mutual Insurance.

SEHD annual Holiday Party postponed

The School of Education and Human Development planned its annual Holiday Celebration at Morey's for Dec. 5, 2002. More than 100 alumni signed up to celebrate with Dean Ernie Rose to share a wonderful evening with friends and colleagues. Unfortunately, because of Binghamton weather, the event had to be postponed until March 6, 2003.

BU men's basketball at Syracuse University

The Binghamton University men's basketball team had plenty of alumni fans on hand when they played against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome Dec.15. More than 50 Binghamton University alumni took a bus trip from the Binghamton campus to the University Sheraton on the Syracuse University campus for a pre-game reception, where they met up with alumni from across upstate New York. Alumni from Binghamton were given BU stadium cushions and "koozies" to keep their beer cold on the bus ride to Syracuse.

Students, alumni enjoy Metro Career Fair 2003

The 14th Annual Metro Career Fair, held Jan. 7 at the Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers, was a huge success! More than 65 alumni volunteers shared information about their various professions with more than 300 current BU students.

The fair, held each January in New York, is eagerly anticipated by both students and alumni. Alumni love to hear about the University from the perspective of current students. Students benefit tremendously from the opportunity to network with established alumni.

A panel discussion, "The Road from Binghamton: Career Expectations in a Shaky Economy," organized by Lee Perlman '80, vice president of the Alumni Association, was the best-attended panel discussion ever held at the annual career fair. Panelists included Helene Naftali ' 80, Howard Unger ' 82, Philip Teplitzky ' 70 ' 76, David Lorden ' 84 and Jessica Lorden ' 83.

EOP Alumni Organization Revival

From Leah Dixon '97, MA '99

The Educational Opportunity Program Alumni Organization hosted a "Spoken Word" at the Velvet Lounge in Soho Jan. 10. A relaxed evening was planned for both students and alumni. The purpose of the evening was to begin forging ties between current students and alumni. Approximately 75 guests were expected, but more than 130 alumni came out to mingle, perform and network! The Velvet Restaurant & Lounge is located on 223 Mulberry St. between Spring and Prince Street.

SOM alumni host panel discussion, CEOs and founders

The Binghamton University Alumni Association, Binghamton University School of Management Young Alumni Advisory Council and Ernst & Young sponsored a panel discussion, "CEOs and Founders: Managing a Company, Climbing to the Top and Achieving Success," Jan. 21 at the new Ernst & Young Building. The panelists, all leaders in the New York business community, shared what motivated them and helped them climb the corporate ladder. The networking reception following the panel provided a great opportunity for Binghamton alumni to have access to some terrific role models.

Paul Aversano '93, CPA, who served as the discussion moderator, is a senior manager in the transaction support practice at Ernst & Young, LLP, in New York. There, he provides financial accounting due diligence and transaction structuring services to private equity fund clients in a wide variety of industries. Previously, Aversano spent 10 years at Arthur Andersen, LLP, where he was a manager in its commercial products audit practice and, more recently, a senior manager in and one of the founders of its transaction advisory services practice. Aversano is an active member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is also a frequent speaker on conducting financial accounting due diligence at several industry seminars.

Discussion panelists included:

David Bolotsky '85, founder of UncommonGoods, an online and catalog retailer featuring creatively designed home and gift products. Until 1999, he was a managing director with Goldman Sachs, where he led the firm's retail research team and was a top-rated member of Institutional Investor's All-America Research Team.

Barry Goodman '79, executive vice president of the Millburn Ridgefield Corporation, an alternative investment management firm with assets of $800 million. Goodman serves as director of trading and co-director of research. His responsibilities include product development, the design and implementation of trading systems, oversight of the firm's trading relationships and the launching of strategic business initiatives.

Jeffrey Saltzman '81, CEO of Sirota Consulting, a business consulting company that conducts surveys of all key corporate constituencies. Some of Sirota's many clients are corporations such as American Express, American Retail Group, Aventis Pharma, BP Amoco, Caltex, Citicorp, Delta Air Lines, Dow Jones & Co., The Starbucks Coffee Company and Time Warner.

David M. Zaslav '81, JD, president of NBC Cable, where he is responsible for the strategic development of NBC's cable properties and oversees affiliate sales and marketing for Bravo, CNBC, CNBC World, MSNBC, ShopNBC, Telemundo, mun2 and the Olympics on cable. He is also an adjunct professor at Fordham University.