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Alumni Highlights

Learn about alumni achievements and stories

Alumni Highlights

Alumnus Honored by Miami Marlins

Tim Sylvester ’12, ’14MBA was honored by the Miami Marlins organization as the 2025 Jackie Robinson Award Winner. He serves the Marlins as coordinator of Minor League video and operations.

Sylvester was recognized for demonstrating Jackie Robinson’s Nine Values and was nominated by Marlins leadership and selected by peers. This annual award highlights staff who go above and beyond their daily duties to contribute to the organization in a meaningful way, aligning with the values that define Robinson’s life and career. He was honored in a pregame ceremony at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Florida.

Sylvester has been a member of the organization since 2019, and previously worked for the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers. At º£½ÇÉçÇø, he was a four-year member of the Cardinals baseball team. 

Cardinal Connections Near and Far

Not once, but twice in a week, Dr. Michael Maguire ’07, associate program director of the Combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics residency at ChristianaCare/Nemours Children’s Hospital in Delaware, had serendipitous meetings with fellow º£½ÇÉçÇø alumni, thousands of miles apart.

This past January, Maguire was working on an internal medicine floor when he met Dr. Allen Murphy ’20, a new intern.

“I ask every resident I work with who their undergraduate mascot is and then attempt to guess where they went,” said Maguire. “I think Allen was as surprised as I was when I narrowed it down. In all the hundreds of students and residents I’ve interacted with, this was the first time finding a fellow Cardinal.”

Murphy, a combined emergency/internal medicine resident at ChristianaCare, and Maguire, both biology graduates, connected over shared professors, classes, and of course the dining hall.

“Moving several times for medical training it was comforting to work with someone who had shared experiences,” said Murphy. “It was also motivating to see an attending from a similar background model a dedication to education, learning, and care for patients I want to emulate as I progress through training.”

Less than a week later, Maguire traveled from Delaware to the Dominican Republic where he was volunteering, something he has been doing for nearly two decades. While there, he was working with a care team that included a Spanish interpreter, Ivan Lopez ’23, ’25MBA, working with the Somos Amigos organization. Maguire and Lopez were chatting about their hometowns when they realized they were both from Rochester. They then discovered they were both º£½ÇÉçÇø alumni.

“It was a shocking moment for both of us,” said Maguire. “Ivan was an awesome addition to the clinic team and an asset to the care of our patients. He embodied many of º£½ÇÉçÇø’s core aspirational values.”

These two connections in very different corners of the world may feel like a “lightning strikes twice” kind of moment, but also serves as a reminder that the º£½ÇÉçÇø family is doing great things all over the world. (Photo: Maguire with Allen (left) and Lopez (right).

Showing Pride in a Cardinal Legacy

Jim Henderson ’65 is a proud legacy grandfather to Alexis (Lexi) Henderson ’22, a Wegmans School of Nursing graduate. A pediatric emergency nurse at Golisano Children’s Hospital, Lexi first traveled to Lwanyonyi, Uganda, in 2023 as a medical mission volunteer. Inspired by her work there, she, along with several family members, created Project Seka (www.projectseka.org) to raise money to build a medical facility in the town. 

From º£½ÇÉçÇø Football to Faith in Action

For Dan O’Connor, a member of the Class of 1973 and a founding member of º£½ÇÉçÇø football, commitment to others has shaped a lifetime of work grounded in compassion, faith, and a deep belief in the power of education to transform lives.

As a º£½ÇÉçÇø sophomore in 1971, Dan met Irma, a Peruvian student on full scholarship at Daemen College in Buffalo. As they spent time together, his interest in Peru grew, and shortly after earning his sociology degree, Dan joined the Maryknoll Fathers in Peru as a mission volunteer. The experience was life-changing.

“My eyes were opened to the stark realities faced by millions,” said Dan. “No running water or electricity; rampant illness with limited medical care; fragile one- or two-room shacks; and little access to technical education or university.”

Dan and Irma married and returned to Buffalo where they built a life and a family. Through the decades, their shared commitment to their faith and community led them to serving their church and other community organizations. They stayed connected to Peru through the Maryknoll Fathers and regular trips to visit family.

On one such trip in 2005, they were connected with a teen living at an orphanage. He was a gifted and hard-working student who had dreams of becoming a nurse, but would never be able to afford tuition to a technical school. Inspired, Dan and Irma decided to fund his education. Each year they repeated the gesture, funding three-year technical school or one or two students.

Then came the COVID-19 pandemic. With extra time to reflect on their work, they began to think about broadening their impact beyond a handful of students, and they decided to start a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to education for impoverished students and orphans in Peru and they called it The Last Shall Be First Scholarships.

The mission reflects the O’Connors’ belief that an individual’s education can create opportunity for the wider community.

Through the foundation, they partner with local organizations and schools in Peru to identify those who lack the financial means to continue their education. The Last Shall be First Scholarships have been able to fund three-year technical school education for more than 30 students each year. This work has impacted lives across several regions including Lurin, Chaclacayo, Piura, and Moyobamba. The O’Connors cover all administrative costs of the foundation to ensure all donations directly support students in Peru.

For the O’Connors, the work is both personal and purposeful. The students who receive scholarships earn technical degrees and return to their communities with new skills, strengthening local economies and inspiring others to follow similar paths.

Dan’s journey, from a young graduate volunteering abroad to a founder helping transform lives, embodies the University’s mission of service to others.

“What we do running our foundation is a small part of a much larger story. The true heroes are the orphans, students, and families who overcome doubt, extreme poverty, scarce resources, and the many temptations to quit,” said Dan. “Through their determination, drive, and discipline, they are breaking the cycle of poverty, helping their families, and transforming their communities. Our kids are extremely resilient and dedicated to complete their degrees and get to work at a decent-paying job.”

Learn more about the transformative work of The Last Shall be First Scholarships at thelastshallbefirstscholarships.org. 

Alumni Back at the Nest

Alumni Chris Keyes ’10, ’20MBA, Jason Byam ’06, Matt Lake ’03, and Marykate Edmunds ’14 started new positions at their alma mater.

Keyes is director of student engagement and leadership. He previously served as football coach and advisor for the Teddi Dance for Love. In his new role, he will lead the efforts to support student clubs and organizations, student leadership development, and campus traditions. 

Byam is leading both the men’s and women’s tennis programs. Previously head tennis professional for Mendon Racquet Club, he is a 2017 º£½ÇÉçÇø Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, recording the most wins (81) by a men’s tennis player in school history and earning All-Empire 8 honors six times in singles and doubles. 

Lake is director of retention and student success, a new position at º£½ÇÉçÇø. He has previously worked in several roles at º£½ÇÉçÇø, including associate director of academic advising. Most recently, he has served as associate director of student success and retention at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Edmunds is head women’s lacrosse coach following four years at the helm for SUNY Geneseo’s program. She has also coached at SUNY Fredonia and SUNY Polytechnic. She was a member of the º£½ÇÉçÇø women’s team from 2011-2014 earning second-team All-Empire 8 honors as a defender.

Jen Granger ’95 Becomes First Woman to Lead Athletics

Jennifer Granger has been named director of athletics and recreation at º£½ÇÉçÇø. Granger has served as interim director for the past year, and has been part of the University’s intercollegiate athletics program for more than two decades.

A 1995 graduate of º£½ÇÉçÇø, Granger becomes the fourth director of athletics in the University’s history, and is the first woman to earn the role. She has compiled several notable accomplishments during her career at the University, including the establishment of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee. Granger has been essential in the development of new athletics programs, including men’s and women’s ice hockey, men’s wrestling, men’s volleyball, and women’s rowing.

Granger has also been instrumental in hosting multiple NCAA championship events in the Rochester area, including the 2025 NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championships and the 2023 NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships.