“I don’t like to leave things unfinished,” says Ralph Castellano, a retired firefighter who just completed a journey nearly five decades in the making – earning his degree in��Business Administration��from ����vlog.

Castellano has worn many hats: mason, firefighter, small business owner, husband, father – and now, proud college graduate. He began taking night classes at Montclair in January 1975 while working full time in construction.

“I was accepted part time and went at night for about six years,” he recalls. “Then I got on the fire department and said, ‘I’ll finish this some other time.’ And I did – 50 years later.”

Though he initially pursued a degree in accounting, Castellano wasn’t sure how he’d adapt to corporate life. “I was never one for sitting,” he laughs. But following advice from his father – a mason and deputy fire chief – he took the firefighter exam. “The benefits were good. It was a solid job. I took the test, and I’m glad I did – I stayed 40 years.”

A Life of Service

His roots in the Belleville Fire Department run deep, even helping as a mason to build parts of the station with his father before officially joining. Over the years, Castellano became a fire prevention specialist, giving safety talks in schools and community centers, and collaborating with The Burn Center at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center.

In 2012, Castellano received the prestigious Valor Award, which honors first responders who go above and beyond in life-threatening situations. While en route to a fire inspection, he responded to a call about an apartment complex fire in Belleville. Without protective gear, he rushed into the smoke-filled building, knocking on doors and helping residents escape – including an older woman overcome by heat and smoke.

“It was the right place at the right time,” he says humbly. “I believe any firefighter would’ve done the same.”

While he considered retiring after 30 years, life had other plans. “Today is actually a sad day,” he shared during his spotlight interview. “It’s been 15 years since my first wife, Marianne, passed away from ovarian cancer.” Together, they raised two children, Kimberly and Christopher. Castellano extended his career after her passing, finally retiring in 2020.

Retirement brought time for reflection – and renewal. He remarried. His wife, Joan, a certified Laughter Yoga teacher and adjunct professor, along with his sister Marion Bergenfeld, encouraged him to finish what he started.

Many of his original courses – including one in key punch computing – no longer exist, but Castellano learned he was fewer than 30 credits away from earning his degree. Over the past four years, he took one class per semester.

“Here I am,” he says, smiling. “It’s been great – the professors, the students. Coming in as an older student, I wasn’t sure how I’d be accepted. I studied every night to keep up with the kids. But I loved it. It kept my mind sharp.”

He’s not done learning. Castellano is now enrolled in a hybrid MBA program at New Jersey City University and is planning a safari next year in South Africa.

He remains active in the community through his local Knights of Columbus chapter and continues working part time at the firehouse.

His advice to other older adults thinking about returning to school? “Do it. It’s absolutely worth it. You’re never too old.”

The University will celebrate its graduates at Commencement exercises on Wednesday, May 7 and Thursday, May 8, 2025, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Story by��Marilyn Joyce Lehren,��University Communications and Marketing

“I am a second-generation American,” she says. “My Italian-American parents insisted on a well-rounded education. For me, that meant classical training in clarinet as well as being a drum majorette at my high school. I participated in softball the year the sport was inaugurated in my home town and played the position of pitcher. I mostly remember having a lot of fun.”

When she decided to continue her education at Montclair, she brought the same high energy to campus life. In addition to joining the Marketing Club and Sigma Delta Phi sorority, Iannarelli was president and co-captain of the University’s Equestrian Team. “There was so much camaraderie,” Iannarelli reminisces. “I have fond memories of trips to the barn, the horse shows, and meeting people from other schools. I am still in touch with a few of those who I rode with at that time.”

Eager to put her major in Business Administration – Marketing to use while still in school, Iannarelli had been eyeing the world of advertising and a position with one of the big firms based in Manhattan, when a temp job introduced her to the world of aviation. “My reality was that I needed to work,” she recalls. “Through Montclair’s Career Services, I found a part-time position with an aviation company that specialized in market research for the business aviation sector of the industry. The founder of this business was herself a woman entrepreneur who developed a new information product for the aviation marketplace and she needed support to take it to the next level.”

Iannarelli rose to the challenge of helping develop, refine and market the new product – a collection of data about aircraft available for sale along with recent sales. In addition to getting great experience, she was able to use the new opportunity and its abundance of learning to earn credit for one of her marketing class requirements.

“At that time, the only data source for this information was the FAA registry that included each plane’s manufacturer, model, and serial number with an address that was often just a P.O. Box or registered agent’s address – that was it,” she explains. “Whoever got to an available airplane first had the opportunity to buy and resell it. We created an owner’s list, putting valuable contact information into the industry’s domain. It leveled the playing field. And we did it the old-school way, utilizing public information resources, where often the library was the only resource. The information was typed out and mimeographed as there was no such thing as spreadsheet software!”

When considering whether to stay with this start-up after graduation or to return to her original goal to work in advertising, Iannarelli took the unusual step of reaching out to some of the people in advertising who had interviewed her for positions. “One of the ad executives pointed out the benefits of working for a very small company early in my career,” she says. “I would get rapid-fire exposure to a lot of things. I would learn firsthand business management and best practices and be directly accountable in part for the growth and success of the company. An opportunity that is rare and unheard of in corporate at the time. He was right. In addition to research, I helped train new employees, developed promotional and advertising concepts for the company and was directly responsible for the sale of the research services.”

Within a year, however, changes at the start-up – and a thirst for adventure – led Iannarelli to negotiate a position with AeroSmith/Penny, Inc., a Houston-based international business aircraft dealer. She was with the company for 13 years, rising to the role of vice president of sales and marketing. In 1997, Iannarelli formed Par Avion Ltd.

“I had reached the limit of learning and earning potential there,” she says. “It was time to strike out on my own.”

By this time, Iannarelli had already traveled extensively, building cultural bridges around the world. She had studied French at L’Alliance Française and earned continuing education from Rice University. She built Par Avion Ltd. from the ground up, chasing the hardest deals first as they were ones that were made available to her – those that involved at times complex international considerations. One notable transaction required ferrying a Falcon 10 and 100 from the tip of South Africa to Texas in 1997, making her the first woman aircraft broker to undertake such an endeavor.

In addition to building her company, Iannarelli has contributed generously to her profession and to her community. Currently, she is a member of the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) and serves this organization as a mentor to young aviation professionals as well as a resource who is “available to comment” to local, national and international media. She is active with the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA), providing expert input on international sales transactions as chair of its Associate Members Advisory Council (AMAC) Sales and Acquisition committee. In 2019, she was elected vice chair of the AMAC and in 2023 was elected chair and seated on the EBAA Board of Governors as the representative of over 500 associate members. Iannarelli also participates in Women in Aviation, International (WAI) and the American Marketing Association.

Iannarelli, a senior fellow of the American Leadership Forum, further contributes her time as a Texas Children’s Hospital ambassador, a Houston PetSet advisory board member, a sponsor and advisory board member of the Pin Oak Charity Horse Show, a sponsor of the Houston Mounted Patrol, and a souvenir program committee member for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Texas Governor Greg Abbott reappointed her to the Texas Aerospace and Aviation Advisory Committee in 2016, where she served as presiding officer until the spring of 2020.

Iannarelli’s hard work, generosity and accomplishments have been recognized in the community. She was named a Great Woman of Texas by the Fort Worth Business Press in 2011; one of the final four in the Texas Women’s Chamber of Commerce Texas Business Woman of the Year competition in 2016 and 2017; one of three inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame of New Jersey in 2016; named among the 99 finalists for inclusion to the National Aviation Hall of Fame of Dayton, Ohio from 2016 to the present; honored by Texas Executive Women as a Woman on the Move in 2016; and named a 2017 Enterprising Women of the Year Champion by Enterprising Women magazine. Iannarelli was honored as one of the Women Who Mean Business, Outstanding Leader in Professional Services by the Houston Business Journal and as one of four Houston area women honored by GIRLSTART for leadership in STEM related fields. Houston Woman Magazine named her as one of Houston’s 50 Most Influential Women of 2017. In 2019, Corporate Jet Investor declared Iannarelli as one of America’s Top Dealmakers. This past September, the Greater Houston Women’s Chamber of Commerce named her a 2024 Role Model in Aviation.

In 2023, Iannarelli joined the board of directors of Vermont-based Heritage Aviation. She is seeking additional board placements that align with her skill set.

As she considers all that she has accomplished to date, Iannarelli is grateful for the value she has gotten from her Montclair education. “Family finances were definitely part of my decision to study at Montclair,” she says. “I got a great return on our investment. The professors, especially the adjuncts, were such a wonderful resource. It was like having your own brain trust – local experts who were on a big stage and who were eager to share their real-world knowledge and experience.”

“Also, I was a commuter student, which meant getting to campus on time in all kinds of weather,” Iannarelli adds, recalling the hilly trek to campus during winter months. “Learning to push through those kinds of challenges helps you develop the tenacity to master difficulties and disappointments. It is one of the qualities that employers look for when they are making hiring decisions.”

Iannarelli’s Houston location makes it difficult to get to campus often, although she was able to lend her knowledge and experience to a panel, “How to Grow Your Business,” during the University’s 2015 Women Entrepreneurship Week conference. “It was a unique experience to present in a classroom environment as well as the panel discussion,” she says. “There were about 70 students in the audience. My advice to them was to always do more than what is expected of you. That’s how you stand out. Demonstrate that you can use good judgment and rise to the occasion, and you will be noticed.”

The visit featured an engaging panel discussion with alumni and executives representing diverse sectors such as wealth management, corporate finance, and technology. Panelists shared their career trajectories, discussed challenges within the tax and accounting industry, and highlighted emerging trends shaping the business landscape. Students gained valuable perspectives on developing critical skills, navigating the early stages of their careers, and making meaningful contributions in a corporate environment.

Following the panel, attendees toured PwC’s state-of-the-art facilities and participated in a networking luncheon with Montclair State alumni. This lively session allowed students to build professional connections and further explore potential career paths.

This enriching experience bridged the gap between academic learning and practical application, offering students a clearer understanding of how they can succeed in the professional world.

The Feliciano School of Business extends its deepest gratitude to PwC and the ����vlog alumni who generously shared their time and expertise to inspire the next generation of business leaders.

Special thanks to our PwC partners: Maura Cheatham, Chenelle Manley, Lyndsey Farrell, Nicholas Lopez, Mike Rodriguez, Melany Melendez, Marissa Marcantonio, Amankwah Clinton, Lexi Castellano, Christopher Wood.

Shout out to our RedHawks! Feliciano School of Business Graduate Assistants Nicholas Burgess and Ralph Ramayoni for expertly guiding our students on this trip.

The AICPA holds this annual conference to share the newest innovations in technology and provide quality networking opportunities for young professionals. The Standing Ovation Program Award honors young finance professionals who demonstrate outstanding achievement and contributions in forensic accounting and business valuation. Congratulations Nicholas!

Becker has more than 35 years of experience on Wall Street, holding positions within the research, trading, and investment banking departments of several broker/dealers including Citi, Lehman Brothers, and Smith Barney. She has been frequently ranked as the #1, 2, or 3 analyst by Institutional Investor magazine, as well as in the top 5 analysts by The Wall Street Journal.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from ����vlog and a master’s of business administration from New York University. She is a member of the international honor society, Beta Gamma Sigma, and is on the Advisory Board of the Feliciano School of Business at Montclair State. Ms. Becker served three terms on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.

According to Nina, “TikTok fans won’t watch traditional ‘commercials’, but are looking for creator content, behind-the-scenes lives of celebrities, or the special details of Calvin Klein fashions.”

The TikTok audience for fashion has been growing rapidly, and Nina notes “it’s great to see fans discover and interact with our TikTok content. It makes months of planning worth it!”

Before joining Calvin Klein, Nina was a social media marketer at Paramount, where she helped develop social media marketing for media properties as diverse as SpongeBob, Paw Patrol and Yellowstone.

Nina graduated from the Feliciano School of Business in 2018 with a concentration in Marketing. While she cites the importance of learning the “pillars” of business and marketing at Feliciano, she also observed that learning to work as part of a team was critical, since collaboration is very much “a real world” skill that needs developing. Nina also encourages current Feliciano marketing students to get experience by connecting with local businesses.

“Anyone can be a social media manager or digital marketer. Internships, and overall experiences, are key to convincing your future employers that you have the skills to voice their brand. If you don’t know where to start, ask a local business to create content and post for them.”

Nina also observes that user-generated content has transformed marketing, and for major fashion brands like Calvin Klein, the traditional “media plan” needs to adjust to a dynamic market of creators, brands and followers. The crossroads of those forces is where Nina Russo spends her days.

Merli ’83, a member of the ����vlog Foundation Board as well as the Feliciano School of Business Advisory Board, has been instrumental in steering the Fund and its reality-based model. Merli engages members of the School’s Advisory Board to mentor students and act as a professional sounding board for students giving presentations at semester’s end. Donations to support the Fund add to the investment and have a direct impact in launching students on their investment journey and building their career know-how.

The ����vlog foundation, a non-profit charged with soliciting and managing funds and property for the university, initially provided $250,000 and today the fund is over $500,000 and growing. The Fund has a multi-asset mandate where students invest within and across broad asset classes such as global equities, equity sectors, fixed income and alternative assets. Students learn about various types of alternative strategies in the classroom and then research which funds they believe will be additive for inclusion in the Red Hawk portfolio. These are the same types of investment decisions made by large, sophisticated university endowments and pension funds. Engagement in the program with alumni and friends results in high returns in more than just the investment portfolio. As graduates find professional success, they are paving a path for each other into the competitive world of finance.

The Red Hawk Fund provides students with a real-world experience a finance student could achieve at Montclair State. Students gain a solid foundation in institutional investing and portfolio management that leads to jobs in top companies. Some recent graduates include:

• Victoria Cseuscsik ‘23 – Senior Derivatives Analyst, Northern Trust
• Madison Surgent ‘22 – Senior Associate, Business Support Rotational Program, Prudential
• Valeria Syanchuk ‘21 – Research Analyst, Cushman & Wakefield
• Andres Villanueva ‘19 – Senior Associate, Investments, CIM Group
• Nate Nahirny ‘20 – Investment Banking Analyst, Jefferies
• Kevin Sherman, ‘19 – Structured Credit Associate – Transportation Group, Credit Agricole CIB
• Kishan Rana ‘21 – Portfolio Monitoring Analyst, TC

To learn more about the Red Hawk Student Managed Investment Fund, please contact Karen Richards in the Department of Accounting and Finance at��richardsk@montclair.edu��or 973-655-4174 or reach out to Professor Mike Radin at��radinmi@montclair.edu.

Industry leaders will be on hand for a panel discussion highlighting their career journeys and how analytics is utilized in their business functions. Current and prospective students will also have the opportunity to learn about Montclair’s graduate-level programs in analytics and participate in a networking session as part of the two-hour program.

The panel will feature several ����vlog alumni working at some of the world’s leading corporations, including Google Senior Data Analyst Antonio Ivanovski ’18, Prudential Senior Business Analyst Emily Ng ’20, Veolia Manager Engineering Lead Hetal Mistry ’18 and current MBA student and IFF Senior Data Scientist Jeff Kattas. ADP Vice President of HR Analytics Eric Mackaluso, Verizon Data Science Director Rangan Gangavaram and Microsoft Principal Software Engineer Shawn Cicoria will also participate in the panel.

The Feliciano School of Business at ����vlog offers STEM-designated master’s degree programs in Business Analytics, Digital Marketing Analytics and Human Resources Analytics that prepare students for careers in the data-driven world of modern business.

Programs can be completed in as little as 16-20 months and are offered in a full-time blended (a mix of in-person, hybrid and online coursework) or fully online format.

“Today, facility with analytics and its applications is fundamental to successful strategic management across all business sectors and functions,” says Feliciano School of Business Dean Kimberly Hollister. “Our programs provide students with the skills they need for a future of continued, rapid technological disruption and data-driven advances in knowledge.”

To register to attend the conference, complete the online registration form. To register to attend as a business representative, please complete the and contact the MBA and Graduate Programs Office at gradbusiness@montclair.edu

According to Nielsen, U.S. consumers now spend more time watching streaming platforms than traditional cable television channels – the once-dominant platform for television viewing.

Frank is part of that change at Disney.�� As a Senior Product Manager for Disney+ and Hulu, he helps shape the viewing experience for Disney and Hulu viewers and assures that advertisers are effectively connecting with their target audiences through those platforms.

Prior to joining Disney in 2022, Frank worked for the NY Red Bulls (where he interned during his time at Feliciano), as well as NBCUniversal, and WarnerBros. Discovery.�� At WarnerBros. Discovery, Frank worked across both streaming and podcast platforms, doubling down on his experience with fast-growing media platforms.

At Disney, Frank noted the importance of learning from colleagues and managers, “I am continually impressed by the expertise of my coworkers, which I try and take advantage of by seeking out dedicated 1×1 sessions that allow me to ask more in-depth questions.”

Looking back on his experience at the Feliciano School of Business, Frank appreciated how his classes connected directly to the career he was pursuing, “some of my Marketing classes directly applied to the work that I do today, and I leaned into those classes not only in terms of the coursework but in getting to know the Professors and their backgrounds and experiences”.

Frank’s advice for current students is to focus on specific marketing areas and careers, “find out what areas of marketing are most interesting to you. Look up companies that you think excel in those areas and figure out what it takes to work there.”

His final advice to students was “don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone.” In the rough and tumble world of media, this Feliciano School of Business alum has learned what only experience can teach: Fortune favors the bold.

The visit was arranged through the joint efforts of our ADP partners, including Barat Dickman, Senior VP of Worldwide Commercial Operations at ADP and a Feliciano School of Business Advisory Board member; School of Business faculty and staff including Chad Brown, Executive Director for Corporate Partnership and Development; April Sime, Accelerated MBA Program Coordinator; Sabrina Sanichar, Director of Career Services; and Jeanne Marano, Assistant Vice President for Annual Giving and Alumni Engagement for ����vlog. The visit is the second in a series that began with a visit to Prudential’s Newark headquarters last November.����

Our ADP hosts presented a brief overview of the company’s history and offerings, followed by a panel discussion on “The Future of Work” that featured Michele Rigolizzo, Assistant Professor in the Management department, and Rashmi Jain, Professor in the�� Information Management and Business Analytics department, alongside ADP Marketing and Talent Management vice presidents Linda Mougalian and Sandy Thomas. The panel was moderated by Helena Almeida, ADP Vice President-Counsel.��

Dean Kimberly Hollister praised the partnership as well as the opportunity for students to learn about a company’s mission and business while observing its workplace and culture firsthand by networking with ADP leaders: “We are grateful to Barat and his team, as well as Sreeni Kutam, President of Global Product & Innovation and an MSU Trustee, who kicked off the gathering and continues to actively support our school and our students.”��

Business Administration and Finance student Elthon Gonzalez thanked ADP for welcoming the group into their corporate office and said, “Meeting very professional and established people across various industries, especially successful MSU Alumni, makes me beyond excited for what lies ahead in my future.”

ADP is currently working with Management Chair Warren Zhou and Management Department faculty on the launch of the department’s new Strategic Human Capital Management (HCM) concentration through their sharing of the company’s proprietary HCM platform for student and faculty training.����

ADP also hosted a group of undergraduate students in the School’s CEO Program on March 17.