w i n t e r 2 0 1 4

Educate

Elevate

Advocate

Innovate

SUNY Buffalo Law School • The State Un ivers i t y of New York

OUR TIME IS NOWTwo years to goal in the Campaign for SUNY Buffalo Law School!

IN MILLIONS

SUNY BUFFALO LAW PHILANTHROPY

Goal $30

$25

$20

$15

$10

$5

0

$23 millionThe amount raisedto date toward our $30 million goal

S U N Y B U F F A L O L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Contents

Ilene R. Fleischmann, EditorVice Dean for Alumni and Communications310 O’Brian HallBuffalo, NY 14260-1100(716) 645-7347fleisch@buffalo.eduDesignJohn DavisPrincipal PhotographersDon DanneckerRob McElroyNancy ParisiOffice of Law School Development408 O’Brian HallBuffalo, NY 14260-1100(716) 645-2109Karen R. Kaczmarski ’89Associate Dean and Director of Philanthropy(716) 645-6429krkacz@buffalo.eduAlan S. Carrel ’67Vice Dean(716) 645-6222carrel@buffalo.eduJeffrey J. PiscitelliMajor Gifts Officer(716) 645-3076jjpiscit@buffalo.eduLucy Dadd ’04Major Gifts Officer(Annual Fund)(716) 645-2113ladadd@buffalo.eduJill M. DomagalaAssistant Director of Development Programs(716) 645-2109jilld@buffalo.edu

• • •

© Copyright 2014 by SUNY Buffalo Law SchoolVolume 6, Number 1. All Rights Reserved

Scholarship SupportHow scholarship support made the difference for five alumni 2

Leadership GivingCarol M. Matorin ’76 gives back 5Diane and Chris Wightman ’99 ramp up their involvement 6

Program suportGrowing the next generation of advocates 7

Legacy GivingSchnirel family legacy, still going strong 8Tomkins and Cerulli legacies grow 9

Campaign ReportKaren Kaczmarski’s campaign report 10Multi-year pledges count toward goal 11

Annual GivingNew named scholarships 12Scholarships awarded for 2013 – 2014 13A pitch with a personal touch 14Annual fund co-chairs 15

Honor RollGiving societies 16Contributions and matching gifts from corporations, foundations, organizations and friends 20Contributions by class year 22Top 10 classes 29Thank you to our fundraising volunteers 34A parting gift from the Class of 2014 35

TributeAlan Carrel says goodbye 36

New York State’s Law School

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www.law.buffalo.edu

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As this edition of Philan-thropy goes to press, I amnearing the completion ofmy seven-year tenure as

dean of this remarkable law school.Looking back, I am filled with a pro-found sense of gratitude for all thatyou – our wonderful alumni andfriends – have helped us accomplish.When I became dean, I set out toguide the Law School toward greaterheights on the path of academic excel-lence. During that time, I have had theprivilege of getting to know many ofyou and to work together with you forthe betterment of the Law School – anhonor I will cherish always. Despitethe most challenging economy sincethe Great Depression and significantchanges in legal education, we havesucceeded in improving every keyaspect of the Law School – from ourfaculty, to our student body, to ourprograms, to infrastructure andbeyond – thanks to your support. The Campaign for SUNY Buffalo

Law – our largest fundraising initiativeto date –has been critical in helping ushold our own against the challengesfacing the legal profession. It is becauseof you that the Campaign has been sosuccessful so far – more than $23 mil-lion raised in just over five yearstoward a $30 million goal. And it willbe because of your continued supportthat we will be able to declare victory. With less than two years to go, the

$30 million goal is clearly in sight. OurCampaign Steering Committee con-tinues its remarkable work in guidingour efforts, and our stellar develop-ment team will continue to partnerwith you in making the difference forthe Law School. I am confident thatour new dean will steer the LawSchool over the finish line in the mostsuccessful fundraising campaign inschool history. The only thing neededto ensure we reach our goal is you!Each of you is integral to the suc-

cess of the Campaign and to the futureof SUNY Buffalo Law, and I thank youagain for all that you have done andwill continue to do to help. I cannotoverstate the importance of friendslike you who care greatly about theLaw School and want to ensure its suc-cess for future generations. I amdeeply grateful to each of you for yourfriendship and for your investment inthe Campaign and the Law School.We could not and cannot be successfulwithout you.One final note. As our esteemed

dean, the late Jack Hyman, so aptlyobserved years ago: “Times maychange, but the values of the LawSchool remain constant.” I have said

often that no law school can aspire togreatness without the vibrant supportof its alumni and friends. Indeed, inchanging times, that is the one con-stant on which the Law School canrely – your devoted and loyal support– and for which I will be eternallygrateful. With my very best regards,

Makau W. Mutua

From Dean Mutua

“We’re withinsight of ourcampaigngoal.”

–Dean Makau W.Mutua

Timesmaychange,butthevaluesof theLawSchoolremainconstant

Professor Athena Mutua and Dean Makau W. Mutua

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Scholarship Support

Trini E. Ross ’92 supervises a staff offive attorneys as chief of the Fraud andCorruption Section of the U.S.Attorney’s Office in Buffalo, and stillhandles a significant caseload herself.The cases run the gamut: tax fraud,mortgage fraud, sex and labor traf-ficking, civil rights cases such as thosealleging excessive use of force by lawenforcement. It’s important work, and she notes

wryly that there’s never any shortage ofcases. And the scholarship support shereceived as a law student made it allpossible.Ross came to law school with a

family, and says that a generous fellow-ship for underrepresented minoritystudents made it possible to have afamily life as well. “Not only did it paymy full tuition, it also gave me a stipendeach year,” Ross says. “It completely andtruly allowed me to focus on mystudies. I had two children and a hus-band, and I didn’t have to take awayfrom my family to work. It allowed me

to treat law school like a job. I went in at8 a.m. and left at the end of theworkday; I could be home with myfamily and make dinner, and wheneverybody went to bed I could study alittle bit more.”That experience taught her a lot

about time management, Ross says.And it enabled her to graduate debt-free. That was important when she firstconsidered joining the U.S. Attorney’sOffice. “The reason I was able to leaveprivate practice was that I didn’t havestudent loans to pay,” she says. “I coulddedicate my career to public service.”

Brian M. Melber ’96also was mar-ried, with two young children, when hewas a law student. Now a partner in thesmall Buffalo firm Personius Melber,where his areas of practice include busi-ness litigation and white-collar criminaldefense, he says the financial support hereceived as a student changed his expe-rience of law school. During his 1L year, Melber worked

in UB’s undergraduate admissions

office to help make ends meet. Scholar-ship money that materialized at the endof that year, including endowed loanfunds, made it possible for him to quitthat job. “The scholarship support wasreally important for me at the time,”Melber says. “One of the key things wasthat it allowed me to focus on school inmy second and third years, and nothave as much pressure to be working somany hours outside of my schoolwork.… I’m not sure I would have succeededand graduated from the Law Schoolwithout that support.” He also notes with gratitude a Buf-

falo Public Interest Law Program fel-lowship that supported his internship,in his 2L summer, at the NiagaraCounty district attorney’s office. Therehe worked on a developing area ofcriminal law, establishing best practicesfor dealing with domestic violencecases.Human rights lawyer Nicole C. Lee

THE INVESTMENT How scholarship support made the difference

Donors to the Law School have the satisfaction of knowing that their dollars are put

to work immediately, providing crucial resources for the school’s multifaceted

educational program. According to Lillie Wiley-Upshaw, vice dean for admissions and

student life, “Scholarships help us attract the best applicants and are vital to our

continued success.” Less visible, though, is the long-term good that comes from wise philanthropy – especially

in the lives and legal careers of students for whom scholarship support made the SUNY Buffalo Law experi-

ence possible. Whether they’re just a few years out of school or are flourishing in long-established careers,

alumni who benefited from substantial scholarships are proving that the investment of generations of donors

pays off not only in their own lives, but in the good they can do in the world.

Continued on Page 4

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PAYS OFF for five accomplished alumni

Trini E. Ross ’92 Nicole C. Lee ’02Brian M. Melber ’96

Jonathan S. Beane ’98 Robert J. Feldman ’76

’02 stepped down this year as presidentof TransAfrica Forum after leading thatorganization – the nation’s oldestAfrican-American policy group advo-cating for equitable U.S. policy in Africaand elsewhere – for nearly eight years.There she oversaw the expansion of theorganization’s work into Latin Americaand Europe, and proved a successfulfundraiser. Her new endeavor is a crisis man-

agement firm, Lee Bayard Global. “Wework with international and domesticcorporations and nonprofits to helpthem deal with issues that come up,”she reports, “and we help marginalizedcommunities have their voices heard incommerce and policy, especially issuesof the working and middle class.”For Lee, as a self-supporting law stu-

dent, receiving scholarship supportmeant a chance to explore her interestin human rights law. “When I came tothe Law School, I was working threejobs,” she says. “And because I had towork so much, it was very difficult tohave any flexibility. The fellowshipshelped me to work less and take risks,like working in South Africa for asummer. Had it not been for that, Iprobably would have had to makemuch different decisions just basedupon the need to pay the rent and otherbills.” Having hired legal interns interested

in human rights work, she acknowl-edges that student debt is a major issue.“All the students are taking out a ton ofmoney to go to school,” she says, “butsome of them have to make differentchoices than where their passions are.People say, ‘I want to do public-interestwork, but I can’t do it because I have allthese loans.’ The debt really does deter-mine what industry people end up in.”

Annual tuition at the Law Schoolwas $1,600 when Robert J. Feldman ’76was a student. “Even before any scholar-ships, SUNY Buffalo Law School whenI went was the best bargain I’ve ever hadin my entire life,” says Feldman, now apartner with the Buffalo firm GrossShuman Brizdle & Gilfillan, where hedoes general business representation,including bankruptcy, and has anextensive practice in education law. It was only at the end of his first year

that he heard that a scholarship wouldbe given to the student achieving thehighest grades in the 1L year – and thathe and classmate Richard F. DiGia-como had tied for the honor and wouldsplit the $1,500 award. “We thoughtthat was phenomenal,” Feldman says.“They asked us how they should handlethe listing of who won the award, andwe were both so broke that we said, ‘Wedon’t care, we just need the money.’ ”

More seriously, he acknowledgesthat the scholarship became a signifi-cant part of his effort to cobble togetherthe resources to get through law school.“I was the recipient of generosity fromsomebody I never knew, somebodywho decided he wanted to fund thenext generation of people who coulduse the assistance,” Feldman says.“Somebody from a prior generationwas there to help me, so to the extent Iam able to give, I pay it forward.”Scholarship support, and the chance

to earn dual J.D. and MBA degrees,made all the difference for Jonathan S.Beane ’98. He had already decided to goto another law school when an M&TBank scholarship surfaced – full tuitionplus a stipend for two years. He com-pleted his first two years in the dual-degree program – a year in law school, ayear of business studies – and then theLaw School came forward with a grad-uate assistantship, a working grant thatcame with a tuition rebate and healthinsurance coverage. “I will never forget that, and I am

forever grateful,” says Beane, who man-ages employee initiatives as executivedirector of global workforce diversityand inclusion for Time Warner. “I wentto Dartmouth for undergraduateschool, but if you go to my office, there’sonly one school that’s highlighted andthat’s SUNY Buffalo. I felt like theschool really wanted me, they werecommitted to me, and they supportedme. “And the education I got was fan-

tastic. I feel obligated not only to sup-port the school but also to try to be assuccessful as possible, to support thename, so people know you don’t haveto go to Harvard Business School orHarvard Law School to be successful.The education at Buffalo is as good asanywhere.”

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Scholarships help applicantsmake the best choiceContinued from Page 2

“Scholarships help us attractthe best applicants and arevital to our continued success.”

–Lillie Wiley-Upshaw, Vice Dean for Admissions

and Student Life

Carol M. Matorinalways hadan artistic eye. As a UBundergraduate she consid-ered becoming an art major.

Even in law school – as a member of thenow-legendary Class of 1976, the firstclass in the newly built O’Brian Hall – “Ifollowed my interests, studying types oflaw that were related to art,” she says.She followed that interest into a suc-

cessful career in corporate law, negoti-ating contracts and tending to businessfor Calvin Klein Cosmetics Co., LimitedBrands and, most recently, Marc JacobsInternational, where she was senior vicepresident and general counsel. Now,recently retired, she has a little more timeto hit the famed museums of New YorkCity and indulge her passion for the cre-ative. Although it may sound like a cliché,

passion is important, Matorin says, nomatter what you’re doing. “When I talkto aspiring lawyers, I advise them tospend some time with people who arepracticing in various fields of law,” shesays. “I want to make sure that they findout what their days will look and feel like.It must resonate with them, becausethey’ll be working very long hours andvery hard for many years, and in order toenjoy their work under those circum-stances, it must be aligned with their pas-sion.” Now Matorin has made a major

commitment of $250,000 to SUNY Buf-falo Law School, to help ensure that thenext generation of attorneys can haveaccess to high-quality legal educationand have the chance to build their future.“The Law School gave me the tools to

build an interesting and successful career,and I’m grateful for it,” says Matorin,who serves on both the Dean’s AdvisoryCouncil and the steering committee ofthe Campaign for SUNY Buffalo LawSchool. “I would like other people tohave the same opportunity.”Matorin, a New York City native who

now lives in Brooklyn, earned her under-graduate degree in UB as well. “Theywere seven very meaningful and happy

years in Buffalo. I even like the cold! Imade lifelong friendships there, and stillhave very close friends who are up there.“I believe in public education – that’s

a major theme for me. SUNY BuffaloLaw School must continue to provide aquality educational experience, and it’scrucial that an affordable option existsfor people.”

That concern for quality publiceducation extends to herinvolvement on the board ofa nonprofit group called CoolCulture, which builds literacy

through culture by, among other things,providing free access to 90 of New YorkCity’s museums for underserved pre-Kchildren and their families. “Part of themission is encouraging the parents tobecome the child’s first educator throughthese cultural engagements,” Matorinsays. “We also work with museum edu-cators and pre-K education providers onhow to attract a diverse audience andmake families feel safe and comfortable.A lot of families are intimidated by

museums – they are outside the neigh-borhood, there’s a guard at the frontdoor, it’s for them not for us – a lot ofbarriers we help work through so fami-lies can feel empowered, engage and pro-vide that benefit and enrichment fortheir children. If parents learn to step outof their comfort zone for the child’s sake,who knows where that can lead as thechild grows?” Looking back on her career, Matorin

is proud that she made some major tran-sitions. From her first job after law schoolin the New York City CorporationCounsel’s office, Family Court Division,she moved to the private sector with aboutique FCC firm, then to a larger firmdoing advertising and marketing law.One of her clients was Calvin Klein Cos-metics Co., and that was what occa-sioned another major move from lawfirm to corporate law. “I have alwaysbeen interested in intellectual propertylaw, and I was going to have it as part ofmy practice one way or another,” sherecalls.“A lot of people get typecast by their

first job. It’s not that easy to go frompublic to private, or from litigation tocontract law. You have to have a specialkind of drive and desire and strategicplanning in order to make those transi-tions. People can get pigeonholed andremain there unhappily.”Now, amid her transition to retire-

ment, Matorin says she finally found thetime to think seriously about philan-thropy and about the Law School’s vitalrole in providing affordable legal educa-tion. “It’s crucial to provide a qualityoption for people of modest or very littlemeans,” she says. “I understand thatgiving is a very personal decision.Everyone’s in their own position and hastheir own priorities, but I felt I needed togive back so that quality public legal edu-cation is available for future generations,and I would encourage other people togive back if they can. The state cannot berelied on to provide the resourcesneeded, and it’s up to us to step up if weare able.”

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Leadership Giving

The art of appreciation– and giving back

“The Law School gave me thetools to build an interestingand successful career, and I’m grateful for it.”

–Carol M. Matorin ’76

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Leadership Giving

SUNY Buffalo Law Schoolwas a great fit for me,” saysChristopher A. Wightman’99. “I had some very influ-

ential professors. I spent a goodamount of time talking with them,and they really helped guide me ina way that gave me substantiveadvice on how to succeed. I found itto be a great environment where Icould grow and thrive.”And so he did. He followed his

interests in business, corporate andtax law, and continues a lifelonginterest in learning. As he says,“Buffalo Law taught me how toread critically and analytically inways that I didn’t get as an Englishmajor,” which he was as a UBundergraduate. He also made theLaw Review and was awarded a fel-lowship to research and developjoint law and business schoolcourses. Wightman and his wife, Diane,

have deep roots in Western New York,and they thought they’d stay local.Indeed, he started out as an associatewith the Buffalo firm Damon &Morey. But an interesting offer occa-sioned a change in geography and incareer, and the couple moved toPennsylvania, where Wightmanjoined the mutual fund companyVanguard, doing securities regulationwork. He went on to assume responsi-bility for Vanguard’s global corporategovernance and portfolio complianceoversight programs, and oversaw gov-ernance and proxy voting matters formore than 180 fund portfolios.Now, a new opportunity has taken

the Wightmans to San Francisco,where he has become a principal atCamberView Partners, a new firmthat advises the management teamsand boards of public companiesabout how to interact effectively withtheir investors. That includes man-aging shareholder votes and craftingproxy materials as companies copewith a recent trend toward investoractivism on such issues as executivecompensation and social responsi-bility.He’s not practicing law, but he’s

using all his people skills and politicalsavvy in this 2-year-old start-up. Andboy, does he travel – in one recent trip,a dozen cities in 18 days, meeting withclients and helping to grow Cam-berView’s business. He’ll also spend

some of his time in the firm’s newlyopened New York City office. The lessons of Buffalo Law still

come into play, including,Wightman says, “the fundamentalsof law, the fundamentals of businessand corporate life, critical thinkingand writing, all of the basic skillsyou learn in a good law school pro-gram. And I keep in touch with thenetwork of people I met at Buffalo.”Now Chris and Diane

Wightman have made a $100,000gift to support student scholarshipaid, especially for students from tra-ditionally underrepresented groups.It’s a commitment that builds ontheir continuing engagement withthe Law School, including his ser-vice on the Dean’s Advisory Counciland a deliberate choice on their partto participate in the school’s alumnievents in Buffalo, New York Cityand San Francisco. “We didn’t want to wait until we

retired. If we could do it now, weshould do it now,” Diane Wightmansays. “It’s important to show UB stu-dents that graduating from a publicschool or a public law school is a won-derful opportunity to do anythingyou want.” Adds her husband: “We’ve always

believed in the importance of educa-tion, and particularly public educa-tion, for helping people to get a goodstart without incurring a mountain ofstudent loan debt. We hope otherswill join us in supporting the out-standing students at SUNY BuffaloLaw School.”

“

Christopher A. Wightman ’99: “We’ve always believed in the importance of education, and particularly public education, for helping people to get a good start without incurring amountain of student loan debt.”

DianeandChrisWightman’99 ramp up their involvement

Diane Wightman and Christopher A. Wightman ’99

7Program SupportW I N T E R 2 0 1 4

One of the most ambitiousinitiatives in the LawSchool’s recent history ispaying off already for stu-

dents and practitioners – and there’splenty more to come.That’s the fruit of the Advocacy

Institute, a multifaceted effort to pro-vide experiences and help developpractical skills in trial and appellateadvocacy and alternative dispute reso-lution. The Institute is quicklybecoming one of the Law School’s sig-nature programs, and has set an ambi-tious goal of making SUNY BuffaloLaw one of the nation’s top 10 pro-grams for legal advocacy. Erie County Court Judge Thomas P.

Franczykand personal injury practi-tionerChristopher J. O’Brienco-directthe Law School’s Trial Advocacy Pro-gram, and they provide leadership forthe Advocacy Institute.“We have a great faculty at the Law

School, and they do a wonderful job ofmolding the students in that first year,”O’Brien says. “The purpose of theAdvocacy Institute is to help the stu-dents move more into the applicationof that new way of thinking and thatsubject matter mastery. Through bettertraining of our own adjunct faculty, anddifferent and varied opportunities forthe students, we are producing studentswho are ready to step into a courtroomthe day after their admission to the bar.”Toward that end, the Institute this

year has already produced two majorprograms.In a “Train the Trainers” gathering,

three nationally known teachers of trialadvocacy – two from Stetson Universityand one from the University of Mary-land Law School – engaged 19 SUNYBuffalo Law adjunct professors overthree days on best practices in theteaching of these skills. Fourteen lawstudents – members of the school’s trialtechnique competition teams – gaveopening statements and performedwitness examinations, the adjunct fac-ulty critiqued their performances, and

the experts critiqued the faculty. Then, just before the academic year

began, 30 trial team members wentthrough a rigorous “boot camp” led byO’Brien and four other trainers. “It wastwo days of how to perform caseanalysis, how to prepare for an openingstatement, how to give an opening, howto properly impeach a witness, how tobring a document into evidence,”O’Brien says. “The goal was to prepareour students to compete at the highestlevels in the year’s competitions.”

Coming soon is the BuffaloNiagara Mock Trial Com-petition, sponsored by theLaw School – the largestnational competition held

in the fall semester. The Novemberevent draws teams from as far as Cali-fornia, Texas, Florida and Nebraska,O’Brien says, adding, “It’s wonderful forthe Law School’s national reputation.”SUNY Buffalo Law will of course sendteams to the competition, as well as to afull roster of moot court, appellateadvocacy and ADR competitionsthroughout the year.Earlier in the year, the Advocacy

Institute provided key support for theLaw School’s Jessup Moot Court team,

which placed highly in last spring’sinternational-round competition inWashington, D.C. After the team wonthe regional round in Chicago, theInstitute paid for airfare, hotel roomsand meals for the five-member teamand two coaches. George Kannar, whodirects the Moot Court Program, says,“We budget for the ordinary trip to theregional competition, but we nevermade this breakthrough before. I don’tknow how we would have paid for it if itweren’t for the Advocacy Institute.”All this activity, O’Brien notes,

reflects an initiative that is making a dif-ference already in the legal community,and has the potential to do so muchmore. The Advocacy Institute is beingfunded primarily with support frommajor donors, including Terry Connors’71, and the firms of Goldberg Segalla,Brown Chiari, Damon MoreyandPhillips Lytle.Funding is also providedby the Law School and the University.Further private support is crucial forthe Institute to grow.“This is a student-focused pro-

gram,” O’Brien says. “It’s about teachingas many students as possible how to beeffective advocates. With this supportwe’ve received, we have an opportunityto take what we have and improve it.”

Growing the next generationof advocates

Competitors from other law schools travel to Buffalo for the Buffalo Niagara MockTrial Competition, the largest national competition held in the fall.

To contribute, go to www.giving.buffalo.edu/advocacy

Every June at Chestnut HillCountry Club in DarienCenter, there’s a fund-raising golf tournament.

But it’s not easy to get into – it sells outevery year.Such is the enduring legacy of

Matthew J. Schnirel ’08, whosepromising future was cut short whenhe and Michael Doran ’82died in thecrash of their small plane during abusiness trip in 2009.Schnirel’s family immediately

established a scholarship at SUNYBuffalo Law School in his name. Buttheir work was far from done. In wayslarge and small, the Schnirel familyand Matt’s many loyal friends havekept up an unstoppable momentumin support of that scholarship. Thescholarship fund they established inMatt’s name now has an endowmentof about $115,000, and it producesabout $4,000 in scholarship moneyeach year. “At the beginning we weren’t

thinking about anything grand,” saysKevin Schnirel, Matt’s father. “Thenthe whole community just kept saying,‘Let’s do more, let’s do more, let’s domore.’ ” So they have. There have beenrestaurant fundraisers, theme basketauctions, pool parties, garage sales,Halloween parties, birthday celebra-tions, Christmas parties.

And there’s the golf tournament,which can accommodate 32 teams.They have to turn other potentialplayers away, but there’s a dinner formore than 200 people. There are lotsof merchandise donations. There’s awinery tour. “We make it a very funevent,” Schnirel says. “It’s not somberat all. It’s like Matt was – he playedhard and he worked hard.”

The family makes it a point tomeet the recipient of the scholarshipeach year, and of course they areinvited to attend the golf tournament.The Matthew J. Schnirel Scholarshipis awarded to one or more third-yearstudents who have been involved in

mock trial or moot court competi-tions, Matt’s passion in law school.“We know they have to pay for a

law review class, they may have to stopworking to study for the bar, theirloans will probably run out, they haveto buy clothes for job interviews,”Schnirel says. “These are people whoare almost there.”Matt was the eldest of four chil-

dren, and this spring the familycemented another tie when his sisterRebecca graduated from SUNY Buf-falo Law School.

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Legacy Giving

A family legacy, still going strong

Your participation counts!Our fiscal year concludes on June 30, 2015

Matthew J. Schnirel ’08

A golf tournament raises money forthe Matthew J. Schnirel Scholarship.

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Afund to carry on the workof one of the Law School’ssignature clinics, and tohonor its founders, has

reached a critical milestone. The Women, Children, and Social

Justice Fund was established to supportresearch and projects in the area of inti-mate partner violence. It was launchedin 2012 with a goal of $100,000 toendow two awards: the Suzanne E.Tomkins Women, Children, and SocialJustice Advocacy Fellowship, whichfunds work by a law student on anadvocacy project during the summer orthe academic year; and the CatherineCerulli Women, Children, and SocialJustice Research Award, which assists astudent with research, such as fundingtravel to present at a conference or toseek publication of research findings.The awards recognize the work of

Tomkins, who co-directed the Programfor Excellence in Family Law and co-founded the clinic in 1992; and Cerulli,who now directs the Susan B. AnthonyCenter for Women’s Leadership at theUniversity of Rochester. Both are 1992graduates of SUNY Buffalo LawSchool. Mia McFarlane Markello ’99 and

Paige Rizzo Mecca ’99, co-chairs of theseven-member fundraising committee,recently announced that the fund hasreached the $25,000 threshold tobecome an official endowment. Whenthe full $100,000 is raised, the endow-ment will produce income to fully fundthe two awards, which total $4,000annually. Until then, Professor SusanVivian Mangold is making up the dif-ference so that the awards can be madeannually at that level. Markello notes that as Tomkins

approaches her formal retirement date,donors – those touched by the work ofthe former Women, Children, andSocial Justice Clinic – may see an

opportunity to express their apprecia-tion. “This is a way for people to honor

Sue,” Markello says. “If someone has theidea of giving her a gift to recognize herretirement, this would be a great way tohonor her. This is a great way for herlegacy to live on, and future generationsof students will perpetuate what she’sdone at the clinic.”Says Mangold of Tomkins and

Cerulli, “Their work has changed theway the legal system addresses intimatepartner violence in our community,state, nation and world. The Women,Children, and Social Justice Fellowshiphonors their work and carries it for-ward through summer support for stu-dents advocating for victims of inti-mate partner violence and workingwith agencies devoted to eliminatingviolence from our communities.”

• • •For information about how to donate tosupport these awards, please contactMajor Gifts Officer Lucy Dadd at (716) 645-2113 or ladadd@buffalo.edu

Cementing a legacy for the future

Every gift to the Law School –no matter thesize – helps make a difference for our studentsand our future. Making a donation is a vote of confidence, and

sends a clear message that our alumni andfriends believe in the mission of the school andall that it offers. Your support also sends a signalto others who are considering making a gift –corporations and foundations included – letting

them know that SUNY Buffalo Law is a great investment.Be part of the future of SUNY Buffalo Law

School. Please make your gift today!

To make a gift, please call (716) 645-2109 or go online to www.law.buffalo.edu/giving. THANK YOU!

Clinical ProfessorSuzanne E.Tomkins ’92

Dr. CatherineCerulli ’92

The Campaign for SUNY Buf-falo Law is in full swing andwe are delighted to report wehave raised more than $23

million in just over five years toward our$30 million goal. This is remarkableprogress and a wonderful milestone forthe largest fundraising campaign in ourhistory. We celebrate these results withyou – our alumni, friends and sup-porters – because it is you who make thispossible, when you make the choice togive back to our Law School.Our Campaign is focused on trans-

formational funding for several key pri-orities – student scholarships, endowedfaculty chairs and professorships, innov-ative academic programs, and upgradedclassroom technology – while at thesame time maintaining the strength ofour Annual Fund. Growing our endowment is also a

priority of this historic Campaign sinceour endowment is our “savings account”for the future. We are very pleased toreport incredible success there as well.Since the Campaign began, our endow-ment has nearly doubled – up 87 percent

in five years. And, again, that is thanks toyour support!We are now in the final two years of

the Campaign, with just under $7 mil-lion to go to our $30 million goal. We’vetaken the Campaign on the road,meeting with more of our alumni,making new friends and seeking yourfeedback, involvement and support.Each and every gift – no matter the size –is important, and every dollar pledged tothe Law School counts toward the Cam-paign goal.As always, we know that none of our

success would be possible without yourloyalty, dedication and generosity. Youare making a difference for our studentsand we deeply appreciate your invest-

ment in the Law School. Our Time IsNow – for the Campaign, for the LawSchool and for the future, and we hopeall of you will join us in continuing topave the way for future generations ofstudents. THANK YOU!

Karen R. Kaczmarski ’89Associate Dean and Director of Philanthropy (716) 645-6429krkacz@buffalo.edu

For more information or to make a gift,visit www.law.buffalo.edu/campaign

10S U N Y B U F F A L O L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Campaign Report

Our development teamand members of theadministration, fromleft to right: Vice Dean for Adminis-tration James R.Newton; AssistantDirector of Alumni andAnnual ProgramsPatricia L. Warrington;Major Gifts OfficerLucille Dadd ’04; ViceDean Alan S. Carrel ’67;Dean Makau W. Mutua;Associate Dean andDirector of Philan-thropy Karen R. Kacz-marski ’89; and MajorGifts Officer JeffreyPiscitelli

Not pictured are Assis-tant Director of Devel-opment ProgramsJill M. Domagala andAdministrative Assis-tant Anne M. Gaulinand Amy Hypnarowski

Making great progress for our law school

$23 million raised so far –$7 million to go• Student Scholarships 35%• Endowed Chairs & Professorships 19%• Academic Programs 15%• Infrastructure & Technology 5%• Annual Fund 26%

11W I N T E R / 2 0 1 4

Multi-year pledges counttoward the $30 million goal

Katherine Gorham ’97 isretired now from her full-time position teachingmath at Erie Community

College. She still teaches a little; shetravels, including a month in Francesome years; she maintains a yoga disci-pline; she dotes on her young grand-sons. “I live debt-free,” she reports. “It’s areally simple sweet life.” Sometimes the simplest way is the

best. And for Gorham and others whohave chosen to make multi-yearpledges to the Law School, that simplestep pays big dividends for their finan-cial planning – and for the school’sability to budget. “It fits my idea of how I like to give,”

says Gorham, who entered the LawSchool when she was in her 40s for theintellectual challenge. “Nobody callsme, nobody hounds me. They justknow the check is going to come. Forme it really works.” Gorham has pledged a steady gift

over a three-year period, and in a fewyears when the law requires her to startdrawing from her 403(b) retirementaccount, she expects she’ll increase thatpledge a bit. “It was just fun,” she says of her years

in O’Brian Hall, during which she alsomaintained a full-time teachingschedule at ECC. “I liked being inschool, and I really did like the LawSchool. I always used to tell everybodythat I got into law school reading at aneighth-grade level and got out readingat a much higher level, and fast. It was aterrific experience.” And of her philanthropy she says, “I

don’t give to anything that I don’t knowpersonally. “I only give to things that are local

and that I know. I’ll re-pledge everythree years. You need to live debt-freeand then give your money away.”For Robert J. Gutowski ’99,his deci-

sion to pledge over five years madebudgeting simpler both for him and forthe Law School. “Both in my personal and profes-

sional life, I need to know what myincome stream is in the future to makedecisions,” says Gutowski, who serves asmanaging director-legal and compli-ance for the New York City firm MSCIInc, a provider of decision support toolsfor investors. “In my professional life, ifI want to hire another lawyer at work, Ineed to know that we’ve got workcoming in to pay that person. Whenyou scale that to a budget the size of theLaw School’s, an institution of that sizetrying to live year to year is probably theequivalent of a person living paycheckto paycheck. It’s hard to do anythingwhen you’re in that situation.”He says the school was flexible in

enabling him to structure a plan thatworked for him. “I came up with a totalnumber that I thought I was willing topledge over time,” he says. “It gives theLaw School that predictability, and itdoes enforce the discipline on me to infact do what I was intending to do.”Like Gorham, Gutowski says his

giving is motivated by “both affection

and a sense of gratitude for the school. Iwouldn’t give if I didn’t have a sense ofallegiance to the school. It all starts withhaving had a good experience in theLaw School, and the good continuingrelationship I’ve had with the schoolsince I left.”

• • •

Multi-year pledges have special leverage

now, as the Campaign for SUNY Buffalo

Law School is just two years from its end.

Pledges made now count toward the

overall $30 million Campaign goal, even

if they extend beyond the end of that

fundraising push. It’s a simple way to

make an even greater contribution

toward securing the future of SUNY Buf-

falo Law.

Above, Robert J. Gutowski ’99

At left, Katherine Gorham ’97

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S U N Y B U F F A L O L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Annual Giving

The Robert J. FeldmanScholarship was fundedby Feldman, a partner inthe Buffalo firm Gross,Shuman, Brizdle & Gil-fillan. A 1976 graduate ofthe Law School, he serves

on the Dean’s Advisory Council. Recip-ient Catherine C. Pulvirenti ’17, a Syra-cuse native, has studied in Germany andmajored in geology at Tulane University.She is considering career paths in envi-ronmental or intellectual property law.“Cost was the main factor in my deci-

sion to come to Buffalo. Getting a substan-tial portion of that money in scholarshipform is very, very helpful. Having a reduceddebt load will enable me to pursue thecareer that I want to pursue and look at jobsbased on their merit and how I’m able toperform.”– Catherine C. Pulvirenti ’17

The Donald D. SerotteScholarship was fundedby Michael I. Serotte ’85in memory of his father,also a SUNY Buffalo Lawgraduate. A seniorpartner with the Serotte

Law Firm in Buffalo, he practices immi-gration law. Erin Goldberg ’17, the inau-gural recipient of the scholarship, is anAmherst native who studied history andEnglish at Fredonia State College. She alsounderwent two years of military trainingand still drills regularly with the ArmyReserve. “I would not be able to attend law school

without that scholarship. The decision tocome here was based on the financial aid Iwas able to receive, and that level of gen-erosity benefits me greatly.”– Erin Goldberg ’17

In addition to these two new scholar-ships, a new crop of students has receivedthe good news that they have beenawarded existing named scholarships.

Amanda Brennan ’17was awarded the PhyllisG. Smith Scholarship.Brennan, a graduate ofFredonia State College,commutes from theChautauqua County

village of Silver Creek and works one daya week as the court clerk there. She’s alsothe mother of two elementary-age chil-dren.“The scholarship significantly lightens

my financial burden, affording me theopportunity to devote more time and focuson strenuous courses and furthering mypotential to succeed as a law student. I hopeone day I will be fortunate enough to pro-vide help to other students to assist them inachieving their legal educational goals, justas I have been helped.” – Amanda Brennan ’17

John E. Minnick ’17,recipient of the CarmenP. Tarantino MemorialScholarship, is a native ofLatham, N.Y., nearAlbany, and majored ininternational studies at

SUNY Cortland, with a concentration inpolitical science in international politics.Law school, he says, “looked like some-thing that could open a lot of doors forme. I knew that it would be very difficult,but I knew the rewards would be great.” “The scholarship gives me more of an

opportunity to focus on trying hard inschool and making sure to stay on top ofthings and not have to worry about howam I going to afford this. It’s a really greatfeeling that people who have gone throughthe school care about the next generation.The community of alumni is incredible.”– John E. Minnick ’17

Her work with victimsof human trafficking iswhat inspired Kerry Q.Battenfeld ’17 to go tolaw school. Battenfeld,recipient of the WilliamR. Greiner Scholarship, is

a Buffalo native who studied politics and

philosophy at the University of Pitts-burgh, then served with the Peace Corpsin Honduras, before returning home andworking with the immigrant communitythrough the International Institute ofBuffalo. She is pursuing a joint degree inlaw and social work. “I’ve been working a couple of different

part-time jobs, and it was very stressful.Now I’ll just be able to focus on school andbe part of some of the activities, like LawReview or the Buffalo Public Interest LawProgram, instead of having to rush off towork after class. Having a couple extrahours each week will make a huge differ-ence.”– Kerry Q. Battenfeld ’17

Thora Knight ’17, recip-ient of the Richard E.Gottlieb Scholarship,comes to Buffalo Lawfrom Brooklyn. She tookan alternative route tolaw school, having done

her undergraduate program onlinethrough the University of Phoenix. Thereshe was a business major, with a concen-tration in management information sys-tems. “It makes a big difference to leave law

school with less debt. I am drawn topublic interest and less debt means that Ican more freely explore that path.”– Thora Knight ’17

The Law Alumni Associ-ation Scholarshipwasawarded to Larry E.Waters ’17, who studiedcriminal justice at theUniversity of Delaware.He decided on law

school, he says, because it “gives me thebest platform to help people, and itendows you with knowledge as well togive back to your community.” “The scholarship is a huge help. It rein-

forced my commitment to the Law School,because they seemed committed to me. SoI’ll give it my all. I’m so thankful to all thealumni who put this together.”– Larry E. Waters ’17

The names of some generous donors have pride of place in the LawSchool’s coveted tuition scholarships, awarded to students of exceptionalpromise. Two new named scholarships this year join the list of awardsthat support our students’ education, easing financial pressures and

enriching their SUNY Buffalo Law experience.

Paving thewayforourstudents

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W I N T E R 2 0 1 4

Scholarships awarded 2013-2014Alden-Baldy ScholarshipKerisha H. Hawthorne ’14Erin Goeman ’15Jessica N. Carbone ’15Carla N. Perez ’14

Varkis A. Baligian & Hon. Jacqueline M.Koshian ScholarshipNicholas A. Pusateri ’15

Henry W. Box Scholarship Steven R. Fisher ’16Christopher J. Sasiadek ’16

Carol E. Brevorka Scholarship Emily A. Dinsmore ’14

Ross M. and Jeanette E. CellinoScholarshipAlina T. Hasan ’16

Charlotte Cuneen-Hackett ScholarshipDebra A. Tredo ’14

Harold A. Dautch Memorial ScholarshipLogan C. Geen ’14Matthew K. Parker ’14Brian D. Schaedler ’14

Dean’s Advisory Council Scholarship Benjamin Nelson ’15

Diversity ScholarshipKatherine E. Ellis ’15

Frederick C. Ebert ScholarshipDaniel J. Corbitt ’14

Hon. John T. Elfvin ScholarshipCarey C. Beyer ’14

Richard J. Evans Scholarship in Memory ofMorris and Adeline EvansJesse Hoelscher ’16

Martin A. Feinrider ScholarshipGrace E. Golando ’14

Ellen and Kenneth Forrest ScholarshipCaitlin E. O’Neil ’15

Garry Graber Scholarship Tricia M. DeFilipps ’14

Graduating Class Gift ScholarshipJamella S. James ’15Matthew Turetsky ’14

Professor William R. Greiner ScholarshipMoira H. Cooper ’14

Stanley Grossman ScholarshipMegan R. Hartl ’16Keli A. Iles Hernandez ’16

Pamela and Robert Heilman ScholarshipGregory C. Smith ’16

Jacob D. Hyman ScholarshipKelsey A. Garlock ’15Rebecca L. Schnirel ’14Kirsty J. Woodfield ’15

Harvey L. Kaminski ScholarshipPaul J. Bartlett ’15Matthew A. Eldred ’15

Barbara D. Klippert Scholarship Marcus R. Catlin ’15

Korniczy Intellectual Property LawScholarshipDaniel R. Carosa ’16

John F., Mary A. and Robert J. LaneScholarshipRebecca A. Fioravanti ’15

Norman B. Lewis ScholarshipRobert M. Zielinski ’16

Lipsitz Green Scime & CambriaScholarshipGraham S. Leonard ’14

Joseph G. Mari ScholarshipJoshua D. Jansch ’16

James M. McMahon MemorialScholarshipBrian B. Braun ’14

Ira S. Meiselman ScholarshipDaniel R. Carosa ’16Bridget C. Steele ’16

Adelbert Moot ScholarshipWilliam D. VanDelinder ’14Jamie E. Moss ’15Kathleen T. Wysocki ’15Nicole C. Kolczynski ’14

Albert Eli Moss ScholarshipMichael R. Aures-Cavalieri ’14

Marie Nesbitt Promise PrizeChidera N. Atuegbu ’15

Judge Henry and Dr. Nancy NewlinScholarshipChristopher M. Berloth ’15

William M. North and Carolyn B. NorthScholarshipEmily A. Dinsmore ’14

Gerard J. O’Brien ’52 Trial ExcellenceScholarshipJoseph L. Nicastro ’14

Joseph P. Peperone Memorial ScholarshipRyan G. Ganzenmuller ’15

Phillips Lytle Diversity Scholarship Amat Fatimah ’15Ninteretse Jean Pierre ’16Maisha M. Blakeney ’16Vagmi Patel ’16

Phillips Lytle ScholarshipJeffry M. Lewis ’15Margaret H. Wydysh ’15Mary A. Verdi ’16Todd J. Aldinger ’16

Thomas A. and Billie Davis RodenbergScholarshipShemori S. Corinthian ’14

Savino-Martin Scholarship Alexandre Sinenko ’16

Matthew J. Schnirel ScholarshipStephen C. Earnhart ’14

Phyllis G. Smith ScholarshipAlexandra E. Lugo ’14Jessica A. Diaz ’16

SUNY Buffalo Law Alumni Scholarship Logan C. Geen ’14Kelsey Marie E. Till ’16

SUNY Buffalo Law ScholarshipJordan L. Zeranti ’14Matthew Turetsky ’14Emily M. Berry ’15Anastasia M. Stumpf ’15

Carmen P. Tarantino MemorialScholarshipCarrie A. Zimbardi ’14

Hon. Michael A. Telesca ScholarshipAnthony J. Delle Fave ’14

Candace and James Vogel BookScholarshipJustin J. Andreozzi ’15

Jacob Weissfeld ScholarshipJordan L. Zeranti ’14

Brent L. Wilson Scholarship Christopher A. Gibson ’15

Margaret W. Wong ScholarshipMichelle Yeung ’15

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U B L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Annual Giving

It’s a funny thing about youngeralumni of the Law School, saysMajor Gifts Officer Lucy Dadd’04 – they tend not to open their

mail.That’s why, when leadership

donors to the school gathered tohand-write their personal solicita-tions to fellow alumni and colleagueson behalf of the Annual Fund,addressees who have graduated in thelast 20 years got personalized post-cards – no letter opener required.Their elders got a more formal letter.“We wanted to encourage people

to think bigger,” Dadd says. Thatmeans the leadership letter signingevent, held Sept. 10 at the BuffaloClub, encouraged potential donors toconsider making a multi-year pledgeand give at a higher level than theymight have in the past. It’s all in ser-vice of completing the final pushtoward the $30 million goal of theCampaign for SUNY Buffalo LawSchool. The event was hosted by Ann E.

Evanko ’79, president and managingpartner of the Buffalo law firm Hur-witz & Fine, and the Buffalo co-chairof this year’s Annual Fund solicita-

tion. Twenty Law School leaderssigned notes and letters at the gath-ering, Dadd says, and they produced427 pieces for the postman. Otherphilanthropic leaders held similarevents at their law firms. And Dadd says the personal touch

historically has paid off: In past years,better than half of those who receiveda handwritten solicitation have madea pledge to the Annual Fund.

A pitch with a personal touch

Major Gifts OfficerLucy Dadd ’04 andJeffrey P. Gleason ’08

Every dollar counts. That’s themessage behind this year’sAnnual Fund campaign atthe Law School.

Those dollars count in practicalways – in supporting scholarships andclinical learning, in building improve-ments, in attracting faculty scholarswith star potential – as the school con-tinues to improve in both quality andreputation.But they count as well toward an

ambitious long-term goal – the $30million target of the Campaign forSUNY Buffalo Law School, with lessthan two years to go.“Every dollar makes a difference,”

says Major Gifts OfficerLucy Dadd’04, who directs the Annual Fund cam-paign. “Investing in the Annual Fundhelps us reach our ultimate goal.” Daddnotes that gifts to the Annual Fund arerecorded as progress toward the overallCampaign goal. That’s true as well, shenotes, for the multi-year pledging that’sso important to the Law School’s sta-bility in long-term budgeting. Even if apledge made this year is paid off on aschedule that extends beyond twoyears, the Campaign is credited withthe full amount.The three national co-chairs of this

year’s Annual Fund solicitation are inBuffalo, New York City and Wash-ington, D.C. – three areas where SUNYBuffalo Law alumni have a particularlystrong presence. All three have com-mitted to giving at a significant level insupport of the Annual Fund, and theirarguments for their fellow Buffalo Lawalumni reflect their own continuingengagement with the school that jump-started their careers.“The Law School has done a lot to

integrate itself into the community par-ticularly through helping those in need,and that is what law is really all about,”says Ann E. Evanko ’79, president andmanaging partner of the Buffalo lawfirm Hurwitz & Fine. “There’s moreemphasis on the clinical aspect of legaleducation now, far more than when I

was a student. It’s a very valuableteaching experience and also con-tributes a great deal to helping outthose in need in the community.” Evanko says Hurwitz & Fine

encourages its lawyers to make a differ-ence in Western New York. “We reallybelieve significantly in contributing ourtime, talent and resources to the com-munity, so it was an easy decision tobecome involved,” she says. “We alsohire from SUNY Buffalo Law School.It’s not exclusive – we hire from othergreat law schools as well – but we reallylook to SUNY Buffalo for great-qualitygraduates. We know they’re well-trained and can write well, and hope-fully they’ll have the same commitmentto the community that we have. It’s awin-win.”“It behooves all of us to support the

Law School financially so it can achievethe level of excellence it deserves andcontinue to enhance its fine reputation,because all of us want to be proud ofthe law school that we attended andwant it to prosper,” says Neil E.Botwinoff ’82, a partner in the NewYork City firm Tannenbaum, Helpern,Syracuse & Hirschtritt. That support is crucial, Botwinoff

says, “in light of the fact that state-sup-ported schools throughout the countryhave experienced declining publicfinancial support. Because this is theonly state university law school in NewYork State, I think it’s particularly

incumbent on us to step forward andfill the gap that was formerly suppliedby the state of New York,” he says.“People often think that a state univer-sity is entirely funded by the state andthat there is not a need to support it pri-vately, but that has not been the case fora long time.” “Buffalo has given me a lot of

opportunity, and I owe the school a lotfor that opportunity. It gave me a goodgrounding in what I do,” says LawrenceM.F. Spaccasi ’87, who practices in theareas of securities, tax, banking andM&A as a partner with the boutiqueWashington, D.C., financial institutionsfirm Luse Gorman Pomerenk &Schick.“I took all the securities and tax

courses in the Law School,” Spaccasisays, “and I also took a lot of the sem-inar classes taught by practitioners, ontopics like financing a small businessand venture capital. They really helpedme out because they taught me verypractical skills and enabled me to hitthe ground running and be produc-tive.”As well, he says, alumni support will

help raise SUNY Buffalo Law’s profilein the D.C. market, which has a lot ofopportunities for graduates seekinglegal positions.

• • •Annual Fund director Lucy Dadd

can be reached at (716) 645-2113 orladadd@buffalo.edu.

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Closing in on a goal – and counting on you

From left,Ann E. Evanko’79, Neil E.Botwinoff ’82and LawrenceM.F. Spaccasi’87

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S U N Y B U F F A L O L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Annual Giving

We cannot thankour volunteersenough for thetime and energy

they give to help make SUNY Buf-falo Law School a place of whichwe can be proud. Every positiveact or word related to our LawSchool makes a difference and weare so grateful for all they do. Theindividuals listed below helpedand supported the Law Schoolthis year in many different capaci-ties that have allowed the LawSchool to be successful thus farand have created a strong founda-tion from which we can reachhigher. The 2013-14 Annual Fund, co-

chaired by Anne E. Joynt ’05 (Buf-falo), Jason Y. Lee ’07 (New YorkCity) and Celeste M. Murphy ’97and Jeremy W. Schulman ’97(Washington, D.C.), surpassed itsgoal and raised $1,039,191 forSUNY Buffalo Law. Every dollardonated to the Annual Fund iscounted toward our $30 millionCampaign goal. Therefore, ourco-chairs and our Annual Fundsupporters were able to knockanother million off the ultimategoal. All should be proud! Everydollar really does count andmakes a difference.Our current co-chairs for the

2014-15 Annual Fund, Ann E.Evanko ’79 (Buffalo), Neil E.Botwinoff ’82 (New York City) andLawrence M.F. Spaccasi ’87 (Wash-ington, D.C.), are up to the chal-lenge to raise at least another mil-lion to help reach the $30 millionCampaign goal. We thank themfor taking on this leadership roleand acting as the stimulus forothers to give back to the institu-tion that has given experience andopportunities to so many students.

We also would like to acknowl-edge everyone who participates atour Leadership Letter Signing andthe GOLD group signing, as wellas on our Campaign SteeringCommittee and fundraisingboards. We so appreciate thework that they are doing forSUNY Buffalo Law. There are somany people who help in so manyways and SUNY Buffalo LawSchool is going to reach newheights thanks to the dedicationof our loyal alumni and friends. A special thanks to the volun-

teers listed below. We could notdo it without your help!

Kenneth W. Africano ’85Maura Africano Samuel A. Alba ’14Thomas C. Bailey ’74Brian D. Baird ’83Erin Barclay ’98Kelly P. Bartley ’14

Thank you to our fundraising volunteers

Richard S. Binko’82Thomas E. Black Jr. ’79Jill M. Bond ’85Keith N. Bond ’83Neil E. Botwinoff ’82Marc W. Brown ’99Anthony J. Colucci Jr. ’58Paul R. Comeau ’73Jen DeCarli ’98Sheila Sullivan Dickinson’00Emily A. Dinsmore ’14Joshua E. Dubs ’08Stephen C. Earnhart ’14Andrew R. Eastham ’14Ann E. Evanko ’79Robert J. Feldman ’76Kathleen T. Feroleto ’11Jeffrey Thomas Fiut ’10Tara M. Flynn ’92 Kenneth B. Forrest ’76Sue S. Gardner ’76Josephine A. Greco ’81Kerisha H. Hawthorne ’14Michael J. Hecker ’09

Pamela D. Heilman ’75Judith B. Ittig ’71Anne E. Joynt ’05Harvey L. Kaminski ’77Barbara D. Klippert ’75Dan D. Kohane ’79Robert M. Kornreich ’67Chelsea N. Latta ’14Elizabeth A. Lee ’14Jason Y. Lee ’07Francis M. Letro ’79Bradley S. Loliger ’13Mia McFarlane Markello’99William E. Mathias II ’71Carol M. Matorin ’76Paige Rizzo Mecca ’99 Celeste M. Murphy ’97Christopher J. O’BrienBridget O’Connell ’98 Jean Carol Powers ’79Vikki L. Pryor ’78Michael E. Reyen ’09Shatorah N. Roberson ’12Elizabeth M. Savino ’92William F. Savino ’75Barbara L. Schifeling ’84Jeremy W. Schulman ’97Robert C. Schwenkel ’82David B. Smith’93David F. Smith ’78Lawrence M.F. Spaccasi ’87Mark K. Suzumoto ’82Chris G. Trapp ’81Matthew Turetsky ’14William D. VanDelinder ’14Brent L. Wilson ’76Margaret W. Wong ’76Stephen L. Yonaty ’94Henry A. Zomerfeld ’14

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” –William James

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SUNY Buffalo Law’s Class of2014 left school with highhopes and big plans – and leftbehind something to

remember them by.That would be $3,945 in scholar-

ship support, collected piecemealthroughout their third year as a classgift and matched by a generousalumni donor. The scholarship will goto a current third-year student whohas made a significant extracurricularcontribution to the Law School com-munity. More than the money, though, the

3L class gift represents a commitmentin participation by cash-strapped lawstudents. Forty-seven percent of theclass chipped in for the gift, beatingthe steering committee’s goal of 45percent contributing. “We were a relatively small class,

and we thought it would be nice totake the lead with a high level of par-ticipation,” says Kelly Bartley ’14, whochaired the 11-member class giftcommittee. They had a kickoff event with

between-classes refreshments in thelaw library and then a series of “tabledays” reminding passing 3Ls of thecampaign. “A lot of people hadn’theard of the class gift and what itwas,” Bartley says. “We needed toexplain what we were raising themoney for. The most important thingwas just to explain it was somethingwe were doing together as a class –that we’re able to give back to studentsnext year because we’re all in thistogether.” All donors got a Class of 2014

coffee mug as a thank-you gift. Nocash? No problem: They took creditcards.The students’ gifts were aug-

mented with a generous matchingdonation by Kenneth Africano ’85,who teaches as an adjunct professor atthe Law School, and his wife, MauraAfricano. “My wife and I were verypleased to help the students come up

with this generous gift and develop ascholarship for the Law School,”Africano says. “We also enjoyed it alot, because we got to spend sometime with the third-year students andget to know them a little, and that wasa thorough pleasure.” When all themoney was counted, the Africanostreated the class gift committee to thetraditional Buffalo celebratory dinnerof pizza, wings and beer. The committee decided to use a

piece of the proceeds to buy a single-cup coffeemaker for the Student BarAssociation office. If you visit, you’llsee some leftover Class of 2014 coffeemugs. In addition to Bartley, the class gift

committee was Samuel A. Alba, Emily

A. Dinsmore, Stephen C. Earnhart,Andrew R. Eastham, Kerisha H.Hawthorne, Chelsea N. Latta, Eliza-beth A. Lee, Matthew Turetsky,William D. VanDelinder and HenryA. Zomerfeld.

A parting gift, with class

Row 1, left to right, Elizabeth A. Lee, Kelly P. BartleyRow 2, left to right, Emily A. Dinsmore, Matthew Turetsky, Henry A. Zomerfeld, William D. VanDelinder, Maura Africano, Kenneth Africano, Dean Makau W. MutuaRow 3, left to right, Chelsea N. Latta, Andrew R. Eastham, Stephen C. Earnhart

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S U N Y B U F F A L O L A W P H I L A N T H R O P Y

Tribute

Alan S. Carrel ’67 spent thebetter part of four decadesbuilding relationshipswith all sorts of people on

behalf of SUNY Buffalo Law School.In a crowded hotel banquet room, alot of those people gathered to cele-brate his retirement. The Oct. 15 gath-ering at the Hotel @ the Lafayettebrought together colleagues, facultyand alumni to celebrate a career thathas meant much to the Law School.Carrel is best-known for his suc-

cessful fund-raising, a key element inthe Law School’s growth. As James R.Newton, vice dean for administration,noted, Carrel inherited a developmentoffice that raised $13,000 annuallyand, over his 36-year career, helpedgrow it into a department that raises$3 million a year. He also personallysecured more than $20 million in con-tributions for the school.Newton also ticked off a list of

“firsts” for the honoree, but perhaps

more important, he said, have been theconnections he has made, and nur-tured, with students, colleagues andalumni. “For 36 years, he has connectedpeople to SUNY Buffalo Law School

because they know that hecares deeply about them asindividuals, and that he caresdeeply about our school andour students.”In his remarks, Dean

Makau W. Mutua said, “Alanunderstood very early on thatyou could not build a great lawschool without great alumni,and he drummed that messageinto the head of every deanwith whom he served. Wecould not be where we aretoday as a law school withoutAlan’s wise counsel, supportand guidance.”Dean Mutua announced

the establishment of a scholar-ship fund in Carrel’s honor,

and closed by leading the crowd in atoast, saying: “Alan, you have set a stan-dard for this Law School that will bedifficult to surpass. Your devotion to theLaw School, your work for this Law

Left to right, Sue and Alan S. Carrel ’67 withDennis R. McCoy ’77

Left to right, Ericka N. Bennett ’05,Associate Dean and Director of Philan-

thropy Karen R. Kaczmarski ’89 andTasha E. Moore ’98

Alan S. Carrel ’67 with SUNYDistinguished Service ProfessorCharles Patrick Ewing

Left to right, Alan S. Carrel ’67,Hon. Leslie G. Foschio ’65 andHarvey L. Kaminski ’77

Amid memories and tributes, Alan S. Carrel ’67 and Vice DeanIlene R. Fleischmann Kenneth B. Forrest ’76

Laurie StykaBloom ’83 andAlan S. Carrel ’67

Steven P.Curvin ’80and Diane F.Bosse ’76

Sue and honoree Alan S. Carrel ’67

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School, your affection for the alumni andall that you have done for this LawSchool is unparalleled. May the candlesyou have lit burn brightly forever.”

Harvey L. Kaminski ’77, a member ofthe Dean’s Advisory Council, said it wasCarrel who developed his interest indonating to the Law School and encour-aging others to do so. “He conveyed theimportance of the Law School and rein-forced my experience of the Law School,and his credibility with me was unsur-passed.” Noting that Carrel’s careerspanned the tenures of four deans,Kaminski said, “He is the one constant inan ever-changing scenario. Alan hasalways been there to reassure me aboutall the good things going on in the LawSchool.”

Hon. Lenora B. Foote-Beavers ’97,chair of the SUNY Buffalo Law AlumniAssociation, spoke in personal termsabout Carrel’s support for her during herstudent years, when she had a newbornchild. “The personal challenges I faced

were extraordinary and difficult,” shesaid. “Dean Carrel knew them all. Heconstantly encouraged me and sup-ported me in several ways to help guideme through the many tough times in mylife. … The Law School will not only misshis incredible fundraising skills, but willalso lose an amazing man who cares.”

Lucille Dadd ’04, a major gifts officerwith the Law School’s DevelopmentOffice, cited Carrel’s keys to happiness.First, she said, was his devotion to hisfamily. Second was “being a good personand dong the right thing. … His integrityand loyalty are two of his best qualities.”And third, she said, “The Law School andthe people there make Alan happy. Hehas mentored numerous students bygiving them advice and giving them con-fidence to do what was needed in theirlife. He has done the same with facultyand staff. We will miss Alan very mucharound the Law School, not only for hisaccomplishments, but for his heart.”When the honoree had his turn at the

microphone, he said, “To most, this is aroomful of people celebrating a retire-ment. To me, it is a roomful of peoplealmost every one of whom is a specialfriend who has played a meaningful rolein my life. … Tonight is a major highlightin my life, and I thank all of you forenabling that to happen.”Carrel went on to acknowledge his

upbringing with “phenomenal” parents;his family, including three children andseven grandchildren; the students andalumni who, he said, “are among mydearest and most valued friends”; and hisLaw School colleagues, saying, “It is theywho are responsible for much that hasbeen credited to me.”At the outset, he was persuaded to

leave private practice for “a year or twobreak” at the Law School. But, he said, “Ifell in love with my new job immediately,and I stayed for a few more than twoyears. I spent 36 years at a job I loved.”

To make a gift in Alan Carrel’s honor,call the Law School development officeat (716) 645-2109 or go online towww.giving.buffalo.edu/carrel

SUNY Distinguished ProfessorGuyora Binder and Alan S. Carrel ’67

Patricia L. Warrington, left, andAmy Hypnarowski

Lucille Dadd ’04and Alan S.Carrel ’67

Vice DeanJamesNewton

Alan Carrel says goodbye

Left to right, Dean Makau W.Mutua, Terrence M. Gilbride ’88and Garry M. Graber ’78

Left to right, Hon. Samuel L. Green ’67, Alan S. Carrel ’67, Harvey L. Kaminski ’77 and

Hon. Lenora B. Foote-Beavers ’97