Each year, Hillyer College honors an outstanding alumna or alumnus of the College whose devotion to their community or profession is exemplary. Take a look at where some of the past recipients of the Hillyer Young Alumni Award are in their professional and personal lives.
2019
Brandon Korn (A’11)
Work: Music Producer at Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Owner of Bkorn Music Productions LLC
Current Home: New York City
Recognitions: Grammy nominated for Best Album in the Rap/Hip-Hop category, RIAA 3x Platinum Certified Producer, 2017 BMI London Music Awards Winner
2018
Wayne Lawrence (A’10,’13), Health Sciences
Work: Presidential Doctoral Fellow and doctoral candidate at the University at Albany, and graduate research assistant at the New York State Department of Health. Has accepted a post-doctoral position as a Cancer Prevention Fellow at the National Cancer Institute in Washington D.C.
Current Home: Albany, N.Y.
Recognitions: American Association for Cancer Research Scholar-in-Training Award
2017
Kweyah Cook (A’11,’13, M’17), Economics and Finance
Work: Senior Manager —Accounting & Controls at Otis Elevator
Current Home: West Palm Beach, Fla.
Recognitions: Promotion to senior manager position in fall 2019; Legacy Florida’s 40 Under 40 Black Leaders of Today and Tomorrow 2018
2014
Ebony Wright-Campbell (A’02, ’04), Sociology
Work: Social Worker for the New York City Department of Education
Current Home: New York City
Recognitions: Doctoral degree from Capella University in 2017; now mentoring a senior psychology student
2011
YaAdam Fye (A’06,’07), Political Economy
Work: Director of Project Management at Fyen Consulting Services and the Co-Founder and Author of Fye Network
Current Home: Atlanta, Ga., and Banjul, The Gambia
Recognitions: 2018 Quartz Africa 30 Pioneers List, receiving her award from Bill Gates; Obama Foundation Leaders: Africa
2010
Bret O’Neal (A’04,’06), Marketing
Work: Senior Account Manager at NXP Semiconductors
Current Home: San Jose, Calif.
Recognitions: EOY closed 110 percent on expected performance with over $90 million in new business
2009
Julie Shiller (A’05, ’07), Sociology
Work: Personal Trainer at Tapestry—Mind. Body. Lifestyle which she founded in 2019 Current Home: Long Beach, Calif.
Recognitions: ACSM-certified personal trainer, and Master of Social Work from the University of Denver
2008
Chelsie Carswell-Cremona (A’04,’06), Elementary Education
Work: First-Grade Teacher at Noah Webster MicroSociety Magnet School
Current Home: Westfield, Mass.
Recognitions: 2017–18 Teacher of the Year at Noah Webster MicroSociety Magnet School
2007
Keith Larit (A’98, ’00), Communication
Work: Managing Director at Oppenheimer
Current Home: Westport, Conn.
2006
Doug Riahi (A’86, ’88), Economics and Finance
Work: Managing Director & Senior Banker at UniCredit Bank AG
Current Home: Rowayton, Conn.
Recognitions: Former Board of Visitors for Hillyer College; University of Hartford regent
(2013–19) and former chair of the institutional advancement committee