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'A work in progress' - Roberto Cruz '08 (CLAS)
Establishing Husky ties that bind - Stefanie Landsman '08 (Neag)

Roberto Cruz ’08 (BGS) describes himself as “a work in progress,” even as he is about to achieve an academic milestone at UConn that has taken two decades to complete.

Photo by Sean Flynn

Growing up in Puerto Rico, he dreamed of becoming a doctor. In 1988, after graduating from high school, he moved to New York with his mother and siblings and was accepted into New York University’s pre-med program.

When financial realities got in the way, he began working full-time as a nursing assistant and in health related, customer service jobs.

Yet he continued his educational quest, studying part-time at several schools.

By 2001, Cruz had earned a certificate in health care administration from NYU. In 2005, still working full-time, Cruz enrolled in the human services program at the City University of New York’s Manhattan campus.

Even as he worked and attended classes, he found time to volunteer as an English as a second language teacher at a local Hispanic senior center. But, he felt something was still missing.

“I wanted to get my education back on track and recognized I needed to earn at least a bachelor’s degree,” he says.

Some friends who had graduated from the UConn School of Social Work suggested he consider the bachelor of general studies program at UConn’s Greater Hartford campus.

In fall 2006, Cruz relocated to Connecticut, secured a job as a client services account manager at United Health and also became a full-time student.

Cruz credits his UConn advisor, Susan Graham-Handley, with helping him develop an individualized program focusing on urban and health care management.

“She has helped me better identify a vision of what I really want to do, which is work in community outreach programs or with hospital-based organizations within a community setting—to be able to make a difference,” Cruz says.

This spring, Cruz is doing an internship at the Hispanic Health Council in Hartford with Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, professor of nutritional sciences in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and director of the Center for Eliminating Health Disparities among Latinos.

“Prof. Pérez-Escamilla lectured in one of my classes and afterwards I asked him if I could help with any research,” says Cruz, who is working as a research technician and has been collecting and interpreting data for the Diabetes Among Latinos Best Practices Trial.

He also is working on an independent study about the uninsured Hispanic population in Connecticut with Marysol Asencio, associate professor of Human Development and Family Studies & Puerto Rican and Latino Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

In 2007, Cruz was honored with the University Continuing Education Association award as the outstanding continuing education student for New England in recognition of his academic achievements and service to the community.

The award qualified him as one of five finalists for the national award. For Cruz, the quest continues.

He has been accepted into the master in public health program at the UConn Health Center in Farmington, beginning next fall.

— Karen Singer ’73 (CLAS)

Stefanie Landsman '08 (Neag) believes the process of instilling a student’s lifelong involvement with UConn should commence even before a student’s arrival on campus.

Photo by Lanny Nagler

“We want to build those connections from the beginning,” says Landsman, who will graduate in May from the Neag School of Education with a master of arts concentration in higher education and student affairs that included field work in administrative offices in Storrs.

“We worked with UConn admissions to get out-of-state students so we could pair them with current students before they arrived on campus. We found it was one of the most beneficial times to get questions answered and lessen their anxiety about starting life on campus.”

She used a similar approach to build connections while serving as a graduate assistant in the Office of Student Affairs, where she helped to expand the Huskies Away From Home program, which assists new out-of-state students transition to campus life and the Storrs community.

“Being an out-of-state student at a large state university is really a unique experience,” says Landsman, who is from New Jersey.

“For these students, the majority of their in-state peers live much closer to their family and friends than you do. A lot of their friends came to UConn, too, so they are already connected socially. Knowing how these students feel — and feeling it myself at times — has really allowed me to address certain issues that might have been overlooked by someone more familiar with Connecticut, like issues of transportation or planning events over holiday weekends.”

As program director, Landsman transformed Huskies Away From Home from a straightforward peer mentoring program to a recognized student group with an executive board holding monthly social events and that participates in other activities.

When she first joined the program last year, there were 25 returning mentors, mostly juniors and seniors.

This year there were 160 mentors, 180 first-year students, and another 90 students who wanted to expand their involvement with the social network through involvement with events such as pizza parties, ice skating, study breaks during finals week or participation on intramural teams.

Landsman was able to bring her enthusiasm for helping students to other projects.

During an internship at the UConn Alumni Association (UCAA), Landsman developed an undergraduate student relations outreach initiative aimed at increasing involvement and boosting membership with UCAA upon graduation.

She also worked with the Student Alumni Association to address issues such as student recruitment, retention and event planning to engage more current students with UCAA.

Landsman says she was attracted to UConn’s higher education graduate program because of its hands-on, less theoretical methodology.

Students are teamed into small groups, so they can bring their varied experiences together to work on class assignments, and there are required field internships and assistantships.

She says being involved with first-hand experiences is a catalyst for her graduate work and notes that UConn’s graduate program has exceeded her expectations.

Landsman praises John Saddlemire, UConn vice president for student affairs, for being “incredibly supportive” and providing her with the opportunity to get involved with areas of higher education administration that she wanted to pursue.

“He really helped me better understand the options in the field, which really has enabled me to grow a lot professionally,” she says.

The admiration is mutual.

“Stefanie brings a calm sense of professionalism to whatever job she is asked to do,” Saddlemire says. “You can always count on her to deliver at a high level.”

— Karen Singer ’73 (CLAS)