Michele C. Lee ’02 B.A. (PSc)
recently joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati as part of its General Counsel in Residence program. The San Francisco based firm provides legal services to technology and life science enterprises worldwide. Lee previously served as general counsel at Pinterest.
November 13, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
David J. Gaulin ’02 B.A. (Hist/PSc)/ ’07 M.S.Sc.
was promoted to colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve in November 2024 and is vice president of federal and defense programs at Skyfire AI. Skyfire provides AI drone technology and solutions for public safety, critical infrastructure and defense; in the fall of 2024, the company was credited with helping to rescue 13 flood victims in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
November 11, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Debra Whitman ’96 M.A. (Econ)/ ’97 Ph.D. (Econ)
chief public policy officer for AARP, has received the 2025 Living Now Book Awards gold medal in the mature living/caregiving category for her book, "The Second Fifty: Answers to the 7 Big Questions of Midlife and Beyond."
November 5, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Vance M. Spears ’95 M.P.A.
is a lead ramp agent with Southwest Airlines.
November 6, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Tracy A. Reid ’95 B.A. (PSt)
leads L’Oreal’s sustainable business solutions team for North America. The team focuses on creating sustainable and profitable solutions to reduce waste and improve environmental and community impacts. Reid has worked at L’Oreal for over 20 years.
November 5, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Susan T. Gooden ’95 M.A. (PSc)/ ’96 Ph.D. (PSc)
received the American Society for Public Administration’s 2025 Dwight Waldo Award, which honors sustained, influential scholarship in public administration. She serves as dean and professor at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.
November 3, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Peter G. Bine Jr. ’95 M.P.A.
recently married in Guadalajara, Mexico. Bine and his wife live in Raleigh, N.C., with their dog, Bonnie. He previously served as the president and owner of Red Hippo Events, a retail marketing business based in North Carolina.
November 3, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Michael N. Rosen ’94 B.A. (PSc)
has been named chief revenue officer at Origin, a New York City based technology company. He leads revenue growth and market strategy while helping scale Origin’s innovative approach to modern brand storytelling.
October 30, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Melanie L. Rottkamp ’91 B.A. (PSc)
was elected as board president of Hudson Valley Tourism. She is the president and CEO of Destination Dutchess, the official destination marketing and management organization working to drive tourism and visitor spending for Dutchess County, N.Y.
October 29, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Michael L. Owens ’91 B.A. (PSc)
co-authored "Deadly Force: Police Shootings in Urban America" (Princeton University Press, 2025) with Tom S. Clark and Adam N. Glynn. Owens is a professor of political science at Emory University and was awarded the Emory Williams Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Award for Social Sciences in 2023.
October 29, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Robert S. Needham ’88 M.A. (IR)
recently returned to Washington, D.C., from overseas assignments in Italy, Ukraine and Norway. He has served as a foreign service officer for the executive office in the Bureau of European Affairs for the U.S. Department of State for over 30 years.
October 28, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Victoria S. Ekstrand ’88 B.A. (PSc)
received a Fulbright-Schuman Innovation Award for the 2025–26 academic year. Ekstand is a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She will study artificial intelligence governance in the European Union and examine what U.S. media undergraduates need to know about new and evolving regulations.
October 27, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Diana F. Dwyre ’88 M.A. (PSc)/ ’94 Ph.D. (PSc)
recently co-authored "The Fundamentals of Campaign Finance in the U.S.: Why We Have the System We Have" (University of Michigan Press, 2024), a book that analyzes the American financial system through historical, transactional and institutional perspectives. Dwyre has taught political science at Chico State University for over 20 years.
October 27, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Marc L. Nicole ’86 M.P.A.
was named Maryland’s acting budget secretary in October 2025. He joined the office in 2001 as deputy budget director and was named deputy budget secretary in 2015 under then-Gov. Larry Hogan.
October 23, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Thomas J. Reno ’85 B.A. (Econ)
recently joined New York Public Radio, the largest public radio group in the country, as chief operating and financial officer. He previously worked at Precision Strategies, a Washington, D.C.-based strategic communications agency.
October 23, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Ferlanda (Fox) Nixon ’85 B.A. (PSc)
has joined the board of directors of the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE), an organization comprised of more than 9,000 professionals who work for and with more than 1,300 chambers of commerce. Nixon serves as president and CEO of the Newark Regional Business Partnership.
October 22, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Robert A. Spiegel ’84 M.P.A.
was recognized by Who’s Who as an Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Awardee in 2023 for his achievements in law, policy and social advocacy in a federal government career that spanned three decades. The award recognizes demonstrated leadership, excellence and longevity within honorees’ respective industries and professions. Spiegel retired in 2007 as a special assistant for equal employment opportunity with the U.S. Department of the
Treasury and continued to serve for several years as a pro-bono, public interest attorney.
October 20, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Geoffrey A. Johnson ’83 M.P.A.
and spouse Avon Hart-Johnson authored "Children of Imprisoned Parents: A Guide to Holistic Caregiver and Child Well-Being" (McFarland & Company Inc. Publishing, 2025). The book and its companion workbook illuminate the hidden challenges of parental incarceration and help caregivers to understand children’s stress response systems.
October 17, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Rocco D. Chiappetta ’83 M.A. (PSc)
recently celebrated his seventh year as the chief executive officer of the Union of American Physicians and Dentists, the nation’s oldest and largest physicians’ union. With the union since 2002, he previously served as the director of political and legislative affairs.
October 16, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective
Susan N. Becker ’82 M.P.A.
serves as a member of the leadership team of the Sisters of the Divine Compassion, based in White Plains, N.Y. Prior to joining Divine Compassion, she served as a staff social worker in hospitals and volunteered in numerous charities.
October 15, 2025
Published in the
Fall 2025
issue of the Maxwell Perspective