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Kingsborough Alumni Success

Kingsborough Alumni Success

Photo of Lenny Green

LENNY GREEN

They say find something you love and try to make a career of it, that is just what Lenny Green did. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Lenny Green had a passion for music and this love managed to take him into the broadcast industry.

Lenny attended Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn where he studied Broadcast Management in the early 1980's. Lenny is now a full time DJ on KISS-FM and says he owes it all to Kingsborough Community College.

   


Photo of Tracy Cloherty TRACY CLOHERTY

Tracy Cloherty, VP of Programming for Emmis New York, has earned her way to be one of the most powerful women in the music industry.

Born and raised in Brooklyn she attended Kingsborough Community College in the 1980's working at WKRB, Tracy started her professional career at Hot 97 in 1988 as an intern in the promotions department.

At the time she was attending New York University with a major in Communications. After college, she then worked her way up the programming ranks being named Research Director/Programming Assistant in 1990.

Three years later she became the Music Director, and then the Assistant Program Director in 1995. As of 1998, Tracy was promoted to the position of Program Director at Hot 97. Then in October of 2001, she was promoted to Vice President of WQHT, WRKS, and WQCD while still retaining the daily programming responsibilities for the #1 rated radio station in the New York tri-state area.

During her tenure at Hot 97 the station has been number #1, in the target demo 18-34 for 32 out of 35 ratings books. Tracy has always had a devout love for music, and it was this passion that not only brought her into the business but that has kept her here for so many years.

According to Judy Ellis, the former Senior Vice President & Market Manager of Emmis New York, "Tracy is one of the most successful programmers in the country." After a successful 15 years, radio will be losing one of their greatest; Tracy will be retiring from Hot 97.

Unable to ignore her passion for music she will continue to consult for the #1 hip hop station, but she will also be exploring other opportunities as well.

Ms. Cloherty is starting a new venture exploring television. She has partnered up with Oscar nominated Queen Latifah to launch a new television show that is expected to be picked up by a major network. Thus far things are looking great and Tracy's new career path looks like it will lead to great places. From radio to television Tracy will continue to be a powerful force in the world of media, as she has been for over a decade

TRACY STAYS: Tracy Cloherty, vice president of programming for Emmis, which runs WQHT (97.1 FM), WRKS (98.7 FM) and WQCD (101.9 FM), has pulled her foot back in the door.

Cloherty had announced last fall she would be leaving this month to work on a television project with Shakim Compere and Queen Latifah, but on Friday it was announced she will stay.

"Emmis is allowing me the flexibility to do both," says Cloherty, who started at WQHT in 1988 as a promotion intern.

"We looked around the country and we couldn't find anyone who could do the job better," said Barry Mayo, Emmis senior vice president. "Believe me, no one is happier about this than I am."

Among the decisions Cloherty will now rejoin is naming a permanent morning show at WQHT, where DJ Sway, Rich Nice, Miss Info and the crew have held it down since Star departed last spring.

The Sway crew's ratings initially went down, but have lately been going back up.

"They're doing a pretty good job right now," says Mayo, adding that he and Cloherty will sit down soon "to look at the whole year."


Photo of Pete FalconePETE FALCONE

Former New York Met Pitcher Pete Falcone got his start pitching for the Kingsborough Baseball Team. For Pete's career statistics,  please click here.


DR. DENNINS GIORDANO

Brooklyn, N.Y. -- Dr. Dennis Giordano was in his senior year at Sheepshead Bay High School when, almost simultaneously, he lost his father and his family home. To assist his mother, he became an ironworker, helping to build skyscrapers in midtown Manhattan.

He recalls sitting at the end of a steel beam one day, high over 42nd Street, and thinking, "What am I doing here? I have to go to school." After graduating from Kingsborough Community College which he credits with giving him the chance he needed to succeed in higher education in 1993.

Giordano was admitted to Brooklyn College, where he majored in biology. He remembers long hours in the lab, engaged in research with his faculty mentors and delving into subjects in depth.

"Brooklyn College offered me a chance to challenge myself academically, and my teachers were exceptionally good and approachable," said Giordano, the first in his family to attend college.

Thanks to a flexible schedule and a high grade point average, he was also able to take graduate courses in molecular biology, a powerful boost to his premed studies.

Giordano received his M.D. from the State University of New York Health Science Center and currently is a physician specializing in the field of radiology at Nassau University Medical Center, the trauma center for Nassau County.

Giordano is among a select group of recent graduates featured in the City University of New York's "Express to Success" campaign, which will include bus, subway, Web, and CUNY-TV promotions highlighting their achievements.

Like many young people growing up in Brooklyn, Giordano balanced demanding work and family obligations with pursuing his dream of a solid education and a fulfilling career.

Dennis Giordano is one of many Kingsborough Community College graduates who have gone on to Brooklyn Law School, New York University School of Dentistry, SUNY Health Science Center, and other prestigious professional schools


Photo of Dr. Anthony LoprestiDR. ANTHONY LOPRESTI

Dr. Anthony LoPresti is considered one of the top Dentists in New York City and he began his long trip in Higher education with an associate degree from Kingsborough Community College.

 

      


Photo of Senator Larry SeabrookSENATOR LARRY SEABROOK

State Senator Larry Seabrook credits Kingsborough with putting him on the political track that lead him to the New York State Senate.



Photo of Jeff KoinageJEFF KOINAGE

Jeff Koinage was the Valedictorian of his Kingsborough class in 1989 he is now one of the chief correspondents for CNN in Africa and considers Kingsborough his home away from home.  

Congratulations to Kingsborough Alumnus and CNN Top Reporter, Jeff Koinange, Class of 1989, for Winning a National News Emmy Award

 


GERONIMO

Geronimo is the new Director of Hip Hop and Dance Programming at Sirius Satellite Radio and was one of the most popular DJ's at Kingsborough's WKRB while he was a student at the college.

Geronimo
Format Manager (Dance) for The Rave, The Beat, and Hot Jamz
SIRIUS RADIO

Born and raised in Brooklyn, Geronimo attended Kingsborough Community College and got his start at WKRB-FM/ New York the station at the college. He has been in the entertainment industry for nearly 15 years, working at some of the most successful music radio stations in America. Stations like WPLJ in New York, WBLS and WKTU in New York and B97 in New Orleans. The "G" man has interviewed many of today's biggest celebrities like Janet Jackson, Ricky Martin and Britney Spears just to name a few.

In April of 1995, Geronimo helped to start Republic Records. The Universal Music Group then purchased the label after developing successful acts like the Bloodhound Gang and Chumbawumba. When WKTU in New York signed on in 1996, Geronimo jumped at the chance to return to New York radio. Soon after it's inception WKTU became the #1 most listened to station in America. He spent six years helping to keep WKTU at the top of the ratings ladder.

Geronimo spent all of 2002 consulting the leading Hip Hop and R&B radio station in the country, New York's WQHT-HOT97. The G-man also consults Promo Only, a music subscription service that provides popular music to d.j.'s worldwide.

In the summer of 2002 Geronimo became a voice talent for Sirius Stream; Planet Dance, and then in December 2002 "The G-man" was hired by Sirius Satellite Radio to program streams; The Rave, The Beat and most recently Hot Jamz.

After, starting his own production and consulting company, Ecstasy Music, in the spring of 2001, Geronimo co-produced the successful Tommy Boy Records dance music compilation "Dance Mix NYC".

Geronimo has also appeared as himself on several television series including, FOX's "New York Undercover" and "Living Single", the ABC soap opera "The City" and the nationally syndicated Maury Povich Show.


Photo of Barbara PattonBARBARA PATTON

Barbara Patton graduated from Kingsborough with the drive and determination to become one of the first Assemblywomen in New York State. She continues using that drive and determination today in her many activities in politics and government throughout the state. 

On the steps of Hempstead Town Hall Tuesday afternoon, Democrat Barbara Patton at the podium announces her run for town supervisor in the November election in front of supporters, Legislators Roger Corbin (2nd right) and Jeff Toback (right). Photo by Joe Rizza


Photo of Drew BrownDREW BROWN

Drew Brown graduated Kingsborough Community College in 1974 and when on to a career as a pilot and successful motivational speaker. He is also a member of the Kingsborough Alumni Wall of fame and proudly credits Kingsborough with setting him on a course for higher education.


Photo of Mary Pender GreeneMARY PENDER GREENE

For the past eighteen years, Mary Pender Greene has been at the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services. She has been Chief of Social Work Services and Director of Group Treatment for the last ten years.

The Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services (JBFCS) is the United States' premier mental health and social service agency with a century-long tradition of helping families and children. JBFCS serves more than 68,000 New Yorkers annually in 168 different programs. The agency's staff of 2,700 professionals includes social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, child care workers, teachers, doctors, nurses and volunteers who serve all racial, ethnic, economic and religious backgrounds.

As a relationship expert, Ms. Pender Greene continues to maintain a private psychotherapy practice for adult individuals and groups. She has made numerous television appearances on shows that include Good Day New York, Live at Five and New York One.

Ms. Pender Greene is President of the New York City Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers and a member of the board of trustees of the Association for the Advancement of Social Work with Groups, a member of the advisory board of the Kingsborough Community College, and a former board member of the National Association of Social Workers. She participates on the Advocacy Committee for Citizens' Committee for Children of New York and is active in Black Agency Executives, the National Social Work Managers Network, and the Association of Black Social Workers.

Since receiving her Master's from New York University School of Social Work in 1974, Ms. Pender Greene has pursued the study of family and group therapy, multiculturalism in groups, and eating disorders at such institutes as SUNY Health and Science Center, the Realization Center, the George Washington University Institute, and the A.K. Rice Institute.


PAUL WEIN

Fillmore Real Estate Hires Kingsborough Alumni As Director Of Marketing And Business Development. more...

NEW YORK CITY Fillmore Real Estate, New York City's largest privately owned and operated residential and commercial real estate company, today announced that it has hired Paul Wein as its director of marketing and business development. Paul is a dynamic individual with a lot of imagination, drive and know-how, says John Reinhardt, Fillmore's president and chief executive officer. In New York's hypercompetitive real estate market, Paul, with his strong skill set and excellent work ethic, will help to move Fillmore to the next level and beyond.


JOHN JOHNSON

MTA TRANSIT VETERAN AND KINGSBOROUGH ALUMNI IS NAMED TO DIRECT THE ONLY CITY-OWNED FREIGHT RAILROAD OPERATED BY NEW YORK SUBWAY SYSTEM.

Brooklyn N.Y. - John Johnson, a 26-year veteran of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and a Kingsborough Community College Alumni, was named the Assistant Chief Transportation Officer in charge of the South Brooklyn Railway Company. In this capacity Johnson manages and directs the operations of the only city-owned Class III freight railroad. more...


Photo of Barbara DrixelBARBARA DIXEL

Barbara Dixel writes that she is the Democratic candidate for Council in Howell, New Jersey. She proudly lists her Associate Degree with Honors from Kingsborough Community College along with her many other accomplishments as a loving wife, mother and grandmother. liaison to the Howell Board of Education, community activist and member of the American Legion Auxiliary.

 


Photo of Daniel RamosDANIEL RAMOS

Daniel Ramos after graduating from Kingsborough Community College has worked his way up in the Information Technology Field. His facility and abilities with computers all began while a student at the college.

 


 


MARIA CAMPANELLA

Kingsborough Community College Alumnus Maria Campanella has won the Lifetime Achievement Liberty Medal awarded by the New York Post.

Brooklyn's Maria Campanella says that whenever she reads a story about a local hero in a newspaper, she breaks down in tears. "I wind up crying," she said. "I don't know the person, but I'm proud of them. I want to be like them." Which is funny, because a lot of people around her neighborhood ? where she's better known as "Maria the Ice Cream Lady" ? would say she's a pretty big heroine herself. Campanella, 50, drives around Bensonhurst in her ice-cream truck doing far greater deeds than selling treats to delighted kids. She has scooped out a little help for just about every local charity you could think of. She packs her truck with toys she donates to needy kids at the Marlboro Housing Projects; she drives it to hand out yellow ribbons for Mothers Against Drunk Driving and coordinate meetings for the American Red Cross; and she fills it with plants to adorn the public garden she created along the Belt Parkway through Adopt-A-Highway. She even saved an elderly man's life by performing CPR after she saw him collapsed on the sidewalk along her route. "All the stuff I do from behind this ice-cream truck, you wouldn't believe," Campanella said. In January, Campanella raised $11,000 for the Maimonides Comprehensive Cancer Center at a "roast" she helped organized. Her sister, Roseann Giuliano, nominated her for the Lifetime Achievement Liberty Medal. "She's exceptional, she really is," Giuliano said.


DAVID SCHEINBAUM

David Scheinbaum got his start in photography while a student at Kingsborough Community College. He is now a Professor at the College of Santa Fe in New Mexico.


Photo of Jim WundermanJIM WUNDERMAN
Job: President and CEO, Bay Area Council

Education: Graduated with honors from San Francisco State University, where he majored in political science. Earned an associate degree (summa cum laude) from Kingsborough Community College of the City University of New York, where he majored in business administration.

Affiliations: Former chairman of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and co-chair of the Public Affairs Roundtable of the Bay Area Council. He serves on the board of directors of several nonprofit organizations.

Family: Married, three children with one on the way.


JAMES E. FLYNN JR.

James E. Flynn Jr. "Kingsborough was a critically important part of my life and absolutely crucial to me in many, many ways."

James E. Flynn Jr., Kingsborough Alumnus Class of 1971,Co-Founder and Partner in Avenida America, Inc. a Marketing Company for speakers of Spanish with corporate headquarters in Georgia and Texas,(<http://www.miavenida.com>www.miavenida.com and http://www.avenidagroup.com>www.avenidagroup.com), and a corporate strategic and financial advisor with his own consulting firm, Earth Capital Partners LLC Jim Flynn, I graduated from Kingsborough in January 1971 (the records should show him as James E. Flynn, Jr., A.A.).

Since graduating, he earned a B.A. in History from Cornell University (May, 1972) and a J.D. from Emory University School of Law (1975, Member, Board of Editors, Emory Law Journal).He no longer actively practices law, though he still is a member (inactive) of the State Bar of Georgia. While at Kingsborough ,Mr Flynn was president of one of the student councils, recipient of the English Studies Award, and participated as the student representative on the City University search committee for a new president of Kingsborough, among other things. He credits many of the Professors at Kingsborough with being the inspiration for going on to receive degrees at Emory and Cornell among them he includes former Professor Sidney Rosenberg who he says," was an amazing teacher, friend and mentor who even cajoled me into reading ahead of the class (and there were a few I had with him) and "teaching" an occasional class, with him in attendance." He also praises his former Professors in Physics and Chemistry and Jaqueline Lord of the English Department for being instrumental in his life and career.