Alumni turn love of plants into budding business

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–By David Drucker for FIU News Whether they are being eaten, gazed upon or used for shade, plants have long held a soft spot in the heart of mankind. Two alumni have capitalized on this fact to create a new business: Dade Plant Co., a company that delivers tropical plants to customers. During the COVID-19 […]

Alumna Chanel T. Rowe JD ’14 appointed to FIU Board of Trustees

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The Florida Board of Governors has appointed FIU Law alumna Chanel T. Rowe JD ’14 to the Florida International University Board of Trustees for a five-year term. “We are thrilled to have our very own law graduate Chanel Rowe join FIU’s Board of Trustees,” said Board of Trustees Chair Dean C. Colson, who was recently […]

Newly graduated Stempel Ph.D. takes on the world as a professor and researcher dedicated to bettering the lives of refugees

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Mitra Naseh grew up in Iran and had a first-hand view of what those fleeing neighboring war-torn Afghanistan experienced –By Alexandra Pecharich for FIU News Mitra Naseh this month won a national award for a dissertation that presents “a multidimensional model for understanding poverty among refugees.” But the 2020 graduate of the Stempel College of […]

From singer to paratrooper to mathematician, this alum took a different route to NASA

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–By David Drucker for FIU News Michael Lopez ’20 is a bit of a thrill-seeker. In his 20s, he picked up a guitar, started a folk-rock band and moved to Nashville. In his 30s, he became a paratrooper for the U.S. Army in Germany before busting his leg on a jump. Now, using his degree […]

Education alumna becomes assistant principal at 24

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–By Angela Nicoletti for FIU News Amanda Hernandez became an assistant principal at 24 years old — in the middle of a global pandemic. The FIU early childhood development alumna works at the Ann Storck Center, a Fort Lauderdale nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of children and adults with special needs and developmental disabilities. She […]

Alumnae create sustainable, reusable cutlery line to ease pandemic anxiety

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–By Tatianna Basanta for FIU News Following months of quarantine and a citywide lockdown, alumna Margie Stein ’14 finally braved visiting restaurants this past summer, only to discover she felt admittedly uncomfortable. After taking a look at her surroundings, she realized she was not the only one. Stein noticed dozens of restaurant patrons elected to […]

Alumnus creates film for Amazon Prime Video using smartphone

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–By Zion Sealy for FIU News Award-winning filmmaker Gabriel Rhenals ’16 produced his first full-length feature film “For My Sister”—now streaming on Amazon Prime Video—on his smartphone. In 2019, Rhenals was looking for a simple, cost-effective way of creating the movie; he decided to film the entire production using his Samsung Galaxy S9+. “There was […]

Alumnus shares experience as political analyst for Telemundo during election season

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–By Katherine Dagand for FIU News Alumnus Michael Hernandez ’04, MPA ’11 has had an extensive career in public affairs. He worked both Obama campaigns in 2008 and 2012 and served as the director of communications and senior advisor for Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Giménez for four years. He’s currently a senior vice president […]

Alumna makes her mark on the film and entertainment industry

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–By Tatianna Basanta for FIU News Michelle Jubilee Gonzalez MA ’08 (@michellejubilee) is a self-proclaimed storyteller and has made a career for herself in the film and entertainment industry in whatever capacity she could – actor, voice-over talent, singer, stunt performer, producer and, most recently, writer. Gonzalez graduated from FIU’s School of Music with a master’s […]

Alumna to lead refugee team at Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games

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–By Tatianna Basanta for FIU News Architecture alumna Ileana Rodriguez ’08, M.Arch ’11 was appointed chef de mission for the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) Refugee Paralympic Team (RPT) at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. As chef de mission, Rodriguez will be a mentor, sponsor and spokesperson for the RPT team throughout the Paralympic games. Born and raised in Cuba, Rodriguez […]