News Briefs

HAMILTON MEDAL: Lee C. Bollinger, president emeritus of Columbia University and one of the nation’s foremost First Amendment scholars, was honored with the 2024 Alexander Hamilton Award on Nov. 21 at a black-tie dinner in Low Rotunda. This year’s event raised more than $1 million, which will benefit College students by supporting the Core Curriculum and financial aid.

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2025 John Jay Awards

The John Jay Awards Dinner, which celebrates alumni for their distinguished professional achievement, will be held on Wednesday, March 5. The 2025 honorees are Hon. Rolando T. Acosta ’79, LAW’82, partner, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman and retired presiding justice, New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department; John A. MacPhee ’89, PH’12, CEO of The Jed Foundation; award-winning filmmaker and producer Katharina Otto-Bernstein ’86, SOA’92; Blondel A. Pinnock ’90, president and CEO of Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corp.; and Steven S. Stuart ’86, managing director of Fortress Investment Group.

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Wood and Gorman Are Newest Trustees

Alisa Amarosa Wood ’01, BUS’08 and James Gorman BUS’87 joined the Board of Trustees in October. Wood is a partner at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., where she is also co-CEO of KKR’s Private Equity Conglomerate and a member of the investment committee for its Private Markets Equity Fund. She also is vice-chair of the Convent of the Sacred Heart Board of Trustees and vice-chair of the Board of Trustees of the Public Theater of New York. A 2019 John Jay Award honoree, Wood also sits on the Columbia University Investment Management Company Board, Columbia Business School Private Equity Board and the Private Equity Women’s Investor Network Board of Directors.

Gorman is the executive chair of Morgan Stanley; he was the CEO from 2010 to 2023. Before he joined Morgan Stanley, he held a succession of executive positions at Merrill Lynch; he was previously a senior partner of McKinsey & Co. Gorman is also a director of the Walt Disney Co., a director of the Council on Foreign Relations, chair of the board of overseers of the Business School and a graduate member of the Business Council. He grew up in Australia and earned a B.A. and a law degree from the University of Melbourne.

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Sherwin Award Recipients

The Gerald Sherwin Young Alumni Service Award, which honors individuals who have demonstrated exceptional service to the College’s young alumni community, was presented to Jessica Chi ’15, BUS’21 and Brian Chung ’16 at the Columbia College Alumni Association Board of Directors meeting on Oct. 26.

Chi is global marketing director of Fenty Skin at Kendo Brands and co-chair of the Columbia College Young Alumni (CCYA) Development Committee. She has been co-chair of Columbia College Women’s Outreach & Recruitment Committee, has served on a Reunion Committee and is a consistently enthusiastic supporter around organizing alumni events centering on community and engagement in the Bay Area.

Chung is the associate director of US Investments at Oxford Properties Group. He and his wife, Katherine Chung ’16, remain enthusiastically engaged in the Columbia community as active members of the Young Leaders Council. He is a former president of CCYA (2019–21) and has mentored dozens of students through the Center for Continuing Education and the Odyssey Mentoring Program.

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Vilanova Named Rhodes Scholar

Luiza Diniz Vilanova ’24 has been named a 2025 Rhodes Scholar; she is among 32 Americans chosen for the prestigious scholarship, which provides funding for two or three years of postgraduate study at Oxford.

Born in the United States and raised in Brazil, Vilanova graduated magna cum laude with concentrations in political science and education. As an undergraduate, Vilanova was a Laidlaw Scholar, investigating changes in campaign finance legislation and the impact of widespread civic engagement, and assessing strategies and methodologies to support women’s political leadership. A recipient of Fundação Estudar’s Leaders Scholarship, her other research projects included conducting comparative education policy analysis between Finland and Brazil, with a focus on infrastructure, teacher training and curriculum.

“Luiza has been such a generous and dynamic contributor to the Columbia community,” says Ariella Lang, associate dean of academic affairs and director of undergraduate research and fellowships. “Both Oxford and the Rhodes communities will benefit from the energy she brings to everything she does.”