Catching up with...

A regular feature in which a faculty or staff member is profiled. Answering a series of short questions, the profiles are intended to be light, informative and conversational.

Catching up with…Mark Walker

Mark Walker grew up on a small family farm in Iowa just as American agriculture was transitioning away from family farms to large-scale factory farming. Because he was on a farm, Walker, the John Bigelow Professor of History, wanted to go to college in a city. He ended up at Washington University in St. Louis, where he majored in math. During his junior year as an exchange student at the University of Sussex in England, he took a wide range of courses and met many international students, including becoming

Catching up with...Patrick Gwamna

Patrick Gwamna recently joined Union as a major gift officer, bringing with him a passion for building personal relationships with donors and connecting their interests with the College’s priorities. His work includes securing major contributions to support everything from everyday activities to long-term strategic goals. The move to Union also brought Gwamna to a new part of the country. An Iowa native, he and Perci, his Frenchton, arrived in Schenectady a little over a year ago after Gwamna spent several

Catching up with...Susan Manchester

Susan Manchester celebrated her 20 th year with Union this September. As the associate director and nurse practitioner at Wicker Wellness Center, she helps students achieve their health and wellness goals. “There’s never a dull moment as you never know who is going to walk through the door. Every day, week, month and trimester offer something new and exciting,” she said. Outside of work, Manchester enjoys teaching yoga, hiking, kayaking, gardening in her backyard and volunteering at Schenectady Urban Farms.

Catching up with...Tim LaDuca

Tim LaDuca’s life revolves around sports. As assistant athletic communications director, he spends hours at various facilities writing stories and compiling statistics for various sports teams.

Catching up with...Shruti Mahajan

Shruti Mahajan joined Union as the Mary H. and Richard K. Templeton Assistant Professor of Computer Science shortly after earning her doctorate.

Catching up with...Rachel McNeil '18

Enjoy that clip on Union’s TikTok asking students what their major was when they arrived on campus? Or the Instagram post asking faculty “who are you wearing” at Commencement?

Catching up with…Ellen Gasparovic

When she was growing up 15 minutes down the road in Latham, Ellen Gasparovic had no idea that she would one day end up teaching at Union.

Catching up with...Richard Manzer

Richard Manzer is brand new to Union – his first day as mailroom supervisor was March 16. He’s looking forward to getting to know everyone, and to being part of this “friendly and welcoming” campus.

Catching up with…Stephen Schmidt

For more than three decades, Stephen Schmidt has been a familiar face on campus.

Steven Schmidt, the Kenneth B. Sharpe Professor of Economics, and his wife, Alexandra, in their sukkah.

Catching up with...David Jadin

David Jadin has been at Union for about three-and-a-half years and finds that he “grows more connected to this community every single day.”