Alum Notes
We take pride in celebrating the good news of our fellow alumni. Where has life taken you since graduation? Tell the Tech alumni community about career changes, achievements, family news, awards, and more by submitting an alum note using the form below.
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Class of 1965
Ta M. Li
April 21, 2025
After retiring in 2017, I have spent my time mostly as a volunteer at the Denver Art Museum. Working as a Visitor Ambassador welcoming guests to the Museum. Here we not only greet visitors but attend the Docent Lectures on the Special Exhibits and Shows that inform visitors of the finer points of the exhibits. Over the years, special exhibits included “Becoming Van Gogh,” “Monet Water lilies,” Kent Monkman’s “History is Painted by the Victors,” to name a few. Appreciation of the fine arts has been a win-win, influenced by my education at BTHS.
Class of 1965
Bill Anselm
April 21, 2025
It only took me an hour-and-a-half to get to and from Tech from Staten Island, where new discoveries awaited. I still use my mechanical and freehand drawing skills, avoid harming myself or the product doing woodwork or metalwork, and even understand a lot more about how all those dam’ smartphones and iPads are made. English, German, History, Industrial Processes all helped me, believe it or not, through work with the Army Security Agency, manufacturing industrial monitors in Boston, biomedical research, classified Department of Defense work, and building satellites for NASA in Greenbelt, MD. What a fascinating path built on such a broad and deep foundation.
Class of 1965
Ronald B. Alexander
March 20, 2025
After Tech, I attended Columbia College, Columbia Law School, and NYU Law School. I practiced tax law and then became a corporate CFO in the tech industry. Along the way, I got an MA in US History. My avocational interest is US constitutional history. I am a docent at the US Supreme Court, where I welcome visitors, give Courtroom lectures, and tours of the building. My favorite rooms, besides the Courtroom itself, are the East and West Conference Rooms with portraits of the past Chief Justices, which affords me the opportunity to talk about the history of the Court in the context of the history of the United States.
Class of 1965
FASCE Marvin J. Levine P. E.
March 5, 2025
I graduated from Tech in the College Prep course, with a 79.6 weighted average, putting me in the bottom half of my graduating class.
When I was ten, my parents moved from an apartment in Brownsville, Brooklyn to a two-family house in Canarsie. The neighborhood was old and much of the area was swamp/marsh land. The builder was constructing hundreds of new homes, and I was fascinated with the process of construction. At 10 years old I wanted to be a builder. When I was got to Tech in 1961, I was just turning 14 and the courses available were perfect for me to begin my journey. I chose CP as I was unsure whether to select the Architectural or Structural major. I was good at math and impressed by Dr. Barnett Rich, my first math teacher. Unfortunately, I was not as good in shop or technical drawing.
I tried out for JV football freshman year and didn’t make it. Determined, I went on to football camp that summer for my sophomore year and again didn’t make the team. My junior year I made the team and got a chance to play quite a bit. My senior year I was a co-captain.
I went on to Northeastern University and played on the freshman football team. I spent the next few years in Northeastern’s Co-op plan, combining real-world work experience and academics as part of the five-year degree requirement. While still an undergrad, I worked for a surveyor, sanitary engineer, highway engineer, and finally for Turner Construction, a building contractor. I graduated in 1970 with a degree in Civil Engineering.
I have spent my career in the building construction industry working on projects all across the country. The last 28 years I have had my own firm. In 2009, at age 62, I went to law school at night and graduated in 2014 at 67. I am now semi-retired.
What I learned from my years at Tech was you must work hard in order to succeed in life; things do not come easy.
Class of 1994
Jamik Ligon
February 25, 2025
While a mere 0.05% of the U.S. population has completed a marathon and African Americans make up just 6% of the country’s runners, these stats, when woven together, help tell a compelling and inspiring tale of perseverance and growth. Every Runner, Every Day highlights the journey of overcoming failure, embracing resilience, and discovering that becoming a runner is as simple as taking that first step.
I’m a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), USATF Level 1 Coach, Certified Running Gait Analyst, and a USATF Marathon Specialist. Having completed 36 marathons and over 150 road races, I founded Run 4 the Love LLC in 2015, a company dedicated to offering running solutions, race direction, training programs, and fostering a love for the sport. Born and raised in Brooklyn, I graduated from Columbia University in 2009 and now live in River Vale, New Jersey with my wife and two children.
Every Runner, Every Day, available on Amazon, was published on December 15, 2024, and is my first book. It’s more than a memoir about running—it’s a reflection on the journey from Brownsville, Brooklyn to Bergen County, New Jersey, and everywhere in between.
Class of 2000
Erdley Wright
November 13, 2024
Erdley Wright was recently appointed as Senior Systems Engineer at the United States Senate!
Erdley is now responsible for managing Virtual Machine Infrastructure (VMI) and is leading efforts to modernize operations with Hyper-Converged Infrastructure (HCI), developed by Nutanix, where he previously worked as a Senior Systems Reliability Engineer.
Erdley credits Brooklyn Tech’s Software Engineering major with giving him a strong foundation in IT. From programming to networking, those formative years set him up for a career that’s spanned over two decades, including years in the US Marine Corps as a Data Specialist and later, launching a Managed IT Services firm known for top-tier support.
Today, he brings deep expertise in Nutanix AOS, AHV, and a broad tech suite, delivering robust solutions across aerospace, government, and healthcare.
Class of 1994
Soljane Martinez
October 29, 2024
Soljane Martinez, Ed.D. has been appointed the Director of Library Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Brown University. In this role, Soljane serves as a Library leader and administrative thought partner, advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging across the Library by directing organizational and programmatic initiatives, contributing to outreach to campus and wider communities, and fostering an inclusive workplace culture.
Soljane brings over two decades of experience in education and leadership, focusing on disrupting educational inequities and promoting culturally responsive teaching. She was most recently the Director of School Redesign and Improvement for Providence Public Schools. In this role, Soljane helped align school improvement and program resources to prioritize student achievement and maximize results based on vision and measurable outcomes. Soljane also supported transformative leadership through her capacity-building work with school leaders across the district.
Soljane returns to Brown University having previously served as the Education Coordinator, during which time she spearheaded outreach activities, developed K-12 programming to enhance educational outcomes, and helped expand Brown’s partnerships locally and nationally. She was instrumental in establishing College Day at Brown, an immersive one-day program that brings Rhode Island high school students to Brown’s campus to experience a college setting and learn about their opportunities in higher education.
Soljane serves as adjunct faculty in the Johnson & Wales University Master’s of Education, Teaching and Learning Program, where she teaches Culturally Responsive Teaching. She is on the Instructional Faculty of College UnBound, and she was an award-winning classroom teacher in elementary through high school for almost 20 years. Before entering the field of education, she was a reporter for The Providence Journal and The Wall Street Journal Sunday.
Soljane holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Johnson & Wales University, an M.Ed. from CUNY-College of Staten Island, and a B.A. in Journalism and Political Science from the University of Rhode Island.
Class of 1959
Kenneth Kanev
October 9, 2024
Nice to read about my fellow alums although none are personally known to me. Where are my boys?
My 50-year BTHS graduation reunion (now 15 years ago, wow!!) was almost a bust because none of my (few) old pals showed. A few I vaguely remembered. (“Hey, Kanev! I sat behind you in Mrs. Irenas’ French class!”) That April day I took the same BMT crossing the East River, walking the few blocks down DeKalb Ave with Fort Greene Park on my left. Entering the building and walking around alone, I notied the little things — the 1930s ceramic tile, oak display cabinets, lighting fixtures. To the gym (much smaller than I remembered), not sure the climbing ropes remained (lawsuit potential, no doubt), recalling the mandatory side horse routine. Down to the basement, the chlorine still wafting from the pool where I practiced daily with swim team. (I was not a very good competitive swimmer, close to the bottom of the squad which won the City title in ’58 and was runner up in ’59, anchored by the amazing Abrahmson brothers).
Vignettes Dredged Up from the Past
At orientation, I recall being warned never, NEVER enter Fort Greene Park “unless you are a member of the football team.” (The whole area at the time was seriously sketchy unlike today’s gentrified version.) Then there was 9th grade IP (industrial processes — Bessemer converters, arc welders) taught by one W.J. Lincoln, am ex-military martinet who scared the crap out of me (us?). WJL, to save himself time, had us correct our own quiz answers, with odd and even rows exchanging. Need I say more? And then there was the best, Mr. Wolfson, who taught a free-flowing, wide-ranging history in senior year.
I parted company with engineering in my second year at Syracuse U., and transferred into NYU Business (Econ.), and then entered law school at Washington and Lee in southwest Virginia. Fifteen months lawyering in New York City (Legal Aid Society in Harlem) was enough and I headed to Seattle where I put in a quick 45+ years doing criminal defense and plaintiff injury cases, and where I continue to live.
I’ve been blessed with a great family.
Class of 1947
Irwin Shapiro
May 30, 2024
Yale University Press published a book by Irwin Shapiro, entitled, The Unity of Science: Exploring Our Universe, from the Big Bang to the Twenty-First Century (October 31, 2023), based on a Harvard University undergraduate course for nonscientists that Prof. Shapiro invented and has taught each spring for the past 15 years. The book provides a broad and entertaining survey of major scientific discoveries that have changed our views of nature and, in turn, spawned further questions. Irwin is now 94 and still going strong.
Class of 1965
Ron Brandt
May 21, 2024
I earned a Master’s degree in Jewish History from Touro University. I am a lifelong student.
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