New School graduates have stepped forward to assume leadership of all kinds in our community: holding virtual office hours for students’ professional development, welcoming new students and families to campus on move-in days, raising funds for scholarships and other resources, and hosting events to connect with New Schoolers in their area. The Executive Alumni Council leads and guides The New School’s efforts to nurture and support this dedicated and dynamic global alumni community, whose members are committed to one another, devoted to The New School’s mission, and invested in its future.
Currently composed of 17 members from across disciplines and professional pursuits, the Executive Alumni Council provides feedback to the university on recognizing alumni achievement, organizing fundraising and volunteerism programs, and managing student–alumni relations. The council’s accomplishments in 2023 include raising more than $21,000 on #GivingTuesday for scholarships, financial aid, and tools for teaching and learning and raising more than $12,000 for the newly created Annual Fund for Equity Inclusion and Social Justice, designed to ensure equitable access to the university through civic leadership training, community volunteer and service days, heritage month celebrations and events, and new financial aid and scholarship opportunities.
Jahmila Edwards
BA Liberal Arts '06
Associate Director, District Council 37
Jahmila Edwards is a dynamic leader with more than 15 years' experience working at the intersection of government, policy, and politics in New York City.
After several years working as a registered lobbyist, Edwards left the private sector to serve as deputy chief of staff to Bill de Blasio and later as executive director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs for the NYC Department of Education.
In her current role, she is the associate director of District Council 37, New York City's largest municipal labor union, where she oversees the union's approach to public policy, political operations, strategic campaigns, and community partnerships.
Eden Elam
MFA Transdisciplinary Design '23
Chief of Staff, Sapan Studio
A design and media strategist based in New York City, Eden Elam began volunteering on behalf of her fellow New Schoolers as a graduate student trustee, representing graduate students as a member of the Board of Trustees. Elam sat on the board's Academic Affairs, Honorary Degree, and Budget Strategy committees. For her MFA thesis, Elam collaborated with The New School’s Center for New York City Affairs to make higher education more accessible, redesigning students' FAFSA experience for ease and confidence, in partnership with understandingfafsa.org, Parsons Scholars, CUNY, and the NYC Department of Education. In her current role, Elam contributes to the execution of film, TV, publishing, and philanthropic projects as chief of staff at Sapan Studio.
Talib Hudson
PhD Public and Urban Policy '22
Director of Research, National Network for Safe Communities
Dr. Talib Hudson is a community-based scholar and advocate who promotes public policy for the advancement of Black urban communities. He launched The New Hood, a community-based think tank at the Center for New York City Affairs. His grassroots community work began with Street Corner Resources, a community-based organization in Harlem. Under the leadership and mentorship of founder and CEO Iesha Sekou, Hudson organized anti-violence demonstrations and coordinated community outreach efforts while promoting the issue of violence prevention in the local policy discourse.
Sasa Li
BFA Integrated Design '15
Private Wealth Advisor, Wells Fargo Private Bank
Sasa Li is a private wealth advisor working in the Beverly Hills office of Wells Fargo Bank. She serves her ultra-high-net-worth clients’ wealth management needs holistically by identifying their goals and coordinating a team of specialists to implement a custom plan. She works with a select group of entrepreneurs, multigenerational families, private investors, foundations, and endowments.
Li began her wealth management career at Goldman Sachs in New York City, where she served private clients on one of the largest teams at the firm's headquarters. Before beginning her financial services career, Li ran an independent costume design company, where she worked with high-profile entertainers and commercial productions.
Li earned her MBA in Finance and Economics at New York University Stern School of Business and her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design at Parsons School of Design, where she was an annual recipient of the Dean’s Merit Scholarship.
Sarah Lorya
MA International Affairs '12
Deputy Director for Adult Education and Tech, St. Nicks Alliance
Sarah Lorya graduated from The New School with an MA in International Affairs: Governance and Human Rights. Earlier she attended the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, where she earned a BA in History and Political Science and a BA in Social Sciences. Lorya's passion for education is reflected in her 15 years of work in the education sector.
Lorya is involved with her community board in Brooklyn, acting as a committee member for the Youth Services Committee. She has worked with the Environmental Justice Team at the New York Power Authority and serves as the deputy director for Adult Education and Tech at St. Nicks Alliance. She is the president of the Pitt Bradford Alumni Association and speaks Sudanese Arabic, German, and Swahili.
Sybille Louis
MS Urban Policy Analysis and Management '02
Senior Director of Performance Tracking and Analytics Department, NYCHA
Sybille Louis is the senior director of the Performance Tracking and Analytics department at the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the largest housing authority in North America. The department’s mission is to provide best-in-class business analytic support to help NYCHA’s executive staff and departments reach long-term strategic goals and attain operational effectiveness and efficiency. Her team supports departments throughout the agency through quantitative data analysis, qualitative research, mapping, and reporting. Although her work may seem removed from the everyday, it always involves using data to improve the lives of NYCHA’s residents. Louis’ work at NYCHA has not gone unnoticed. She was selected as one of 14 women profiled for NYCHA’s Women’s History Month Celebration in 2006; won the 2007 award in the Employee Recognition Program of the Policy, Planning, and Management Analysis division; was profiled in NYCHA’s employee bulletin in 2017; and received NYCHA’s Changemaker Award in 2019. NYCHA is the last bastion of housing affordability in New York City, and Louis is dedicated to its mission of preserving public housing for future generations.
Louis also believes in making a difference in the world outside of work. She serves as the president of the Haitian American Association at NYCHA. The association held several fundraisers in collaboration with prominent nonprofits such as Habitat for Humanity and CapraCare to help the people of Haiti, who have endured many natural disasters including the devastating 2010 earthquake. In 2022, Louis received an NAACP award for her work with the organization. She has also served as an alumni mentor at The New School for four years.
Louis received a master's degree in urban policy and management from the Milano School of Policy, Management, and Environment at The New School, which awarded her the Jacob M. Kaplan Award for Outstanding Urban Policy Student. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science (magna cum laude) from the City University of New York at Queens College. She’s a graduate of the 2011 NYCHA Leadership Academy and holds a joint Certificate in Applied Data Analytics from the University of Chicago, New York University, and the University of Maryland. Louis lives in Queens with her husband, Ricardy Maingrette, with whom she shares two sons, Ethan and Evan.
Sandra Rice
MA Media Studies '85
Senior Vice President of Outreach and Strategic Partnerships, Coqual
Sandra Rice is senior vice president of Outreach and Strategic Partnerships at Coqual. Her life and career path have been deeply influenced by a childhood spent traveling the world with her family. Her mother showed her the beauty of difference and taught her about the value of diversity. Rice has worked in the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion for more than two decades. Before joining Coqual, she served as senior vice president for National Recruitment and Leadership Development at the Emma Bowen Foundation (EBF), a nonprofit that provides diverse talent to the media and tech industries. At EBF, Sandra implemented strategic leadership programs that placed more than 1,000 college students of color in paid multi-summer internships leading to full-time jobs at more than 70 companies. Many of her protégés now hold high-level media jobs around the world.
Earlier Rice worked for the ABC Television Network in daytime programming, international distribution, and corporate public relations. She started her career at KCRA-TV, an NBC affiliate, in Sacramento. She is a board member of several organizations, including GIVEWITH in New York City; the Union County College Foundation in Cranford, New Jersey; and the Center for Great Expectations in Somerset, New Jersey. Rice is a member of the National Coalition for 100 Black Women Inc., Jack and Jill of America Inc., and the American Legion Auxiliary. She earned her undergraduate degree in journalism at San Jose State University and a master’s in media studies at The New School. In her free time, Sandra can be found reading, and then reading some more.
Jessica Rothkuo
MS Urban Policy Analysis and Management '09
Senior Vice President of Strategy, Development and Communications, Little Flower Children and Family Services of New York
Jessica Rothkuo is a strategist dedicated to public-sector systems improvement. She is the senior vice president of Strategy, Development and Communications at the nonprofit Little Flower Children and Family Services of New York. There she oversees strategic planning and growth, fundraising, marketing and communications, and external and governmental affairs.
Before joining the Little Flower team, Rothkuo served as a senior policy analyst at Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, where she consulted on strategy and operations with federal, state, and local child welfare agencies to build their capacity for system transformation. She held similar roles at the Redlich Horwitz Foundation, Deloitte Consulting LLP, and the New York City Administration for Children’s Services. Rothkuo was also a Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia from 2010 to 2012.
Rothkuo earned her Master of Science in Urban Policy Analysis and Management from The New School, where she served as a graduate assistant in the Urban Policy Lab. She also holds a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kent State University.