Please join us for a roundtable discussion w with recent Communication and Media alumni, taking place Tuesday, May 7th, 7-8pm on Zoom!
It will be a wonderful conversation with some CM alums who have successfully pursued graduate work and built careers in a variety of fields, including strategic communications, journalism, publishing, nonprofit and arts administration, television production, and more. Please see your emails and the attached flyer for the registration link and read on below for the panelist bios!
CM Alumni Roundtable: Panelist Bios
Joe Caffrey ‘21 was born and raised in Hell’s Kitchen, New York, to a family emphasizing work over education. He spent four years studying film at Hunter College in the 1980s but found himself without the tools to finish the job. He began working in television and built a career that took him around the country and the world. Joe worked for Bloomberg News in Tokyo, the BBC, in London, PBS in Washington D.C., and most recently for NBC. Itching to get his degree and loyal to brand CUNY, he began studying Communication and Media with SPS while doing remote productions in far-flung locations. Joe graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2021 from CUNY SPS and is now pursuing a Master’s from the CUNY Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism. Joe hopes to tell compelling stories that serve the needs of democracy. Joe lives in Staten Island with his wife, Deirdre, and his son, Gabe, who studies philosophy at the CUNY College of Staten Island. Go CUNY!
Ashley Echevarria ‘23 (she/her/ella) works in fundraising for Marwen, a nonprofit dedicated to providing free visual arts education to young people from across Chicago. A native Chicagoan of Puerto Rican descent, Ashley spent several years in New York City working in finance and law while dabbling in the performing arts – and of course attending CUNY for her bachelor’s degree in Communication and Media. She’s passionate about arts education as a vehicle for developing a strong sense of self and unlocking myriad professional opportunities, and she strongly believes that access to the arts should not be hindered by class, ethnicity, or background. She serves on the Board of Directors for Filament Theatre, which makes her inner theater kid very happy. When she’s not advocating for the arts and social justice, Ashley can be found taking long walks along Lake Michigan, planning her next international trip, or reading in her perfectly curated reading nook on the northside of Chicago.
Milan Fredricks ‘19, M.S. is a native New Yorker and CUNY alum. She graduated from CUNY SPS in 2019 and from Columbia University with her master’s degree in strategic communications in 2022. She is the strategic communications manager for the department of Pathology and Cell Biology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. As an internal communications professional, Milan’s goal is to inform, inspire and activate employees. She builds connections; giving a voice to employees, deepening their connection to each other and to the missions of the department. As a Millennial, Milan is obligated to tell anyone she meets that her Hogwarts House is Slytherin and her patronus is an owl.
Nori Pérez ‘21 boasts an impressive career spanning over two decades, leaving an indelible mark on both the non-profit and private sectors. Her expertise lies in skillfully managing complex organizations, particularly within academia and corporate law. In March 2024, Nori embarked on a new chapter by joining the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School, where her steadfast dedication to social justice illuminates her work. Additionally, she generously volunteers with New York Cares in her spare time. A proud alumna of the CUNY School of Professional Studies (CM ’21) and a lifelong New Yorker, Nori currently resides in Brooklyn.
Anita M. Samuels ‘23 is a nationally acclaimed journalist and critic who writes about media, fashion, music and culture. A frequent contributor to the New York Daily News, Samuels began her career on the staff of the New York Times Style section, where many of her features about the African American community earned her an award from the National Association of Black Journalists. Samuels has been an editor for national publications as BET Weekend, Billboard, Heart & Soul, and Impact Radio, Records and Retail Weekly. Her stories have also appeared in Essence, The Source, Consumer’s Digest, Global Rhythm Magazine, The Asbury Park Press, Upscale, Honey, CODE, Caribbeat, Forum, Child Magazine, fierceforblackwomen.com and diversebusinessnews.com, among others. She was a contributing writer for Mama’s Little Baby: The Black Woman’s Guide to Pregnancy, Childbirth and Baby’s First Year and the April 2024 anthology, We Refuse to Be Silent. She is the author of Rants & Retorts: How Bigots Got a Monopoly on Commenting About News Online.
