Albert Dorman Honors College Awards Students, Alumni for Impact and Excellence at 30th Celebration

The Albert Dorman Honors College (ADHC) at NJIT commemorated its 30th anniversary with a celebration honoring three decades of academic distinction, community service and transformative leadership. The event gathered university leadership, faculty, alumni and supporters to reflect on the college’s evolution and reaffirm its mission to develop civic-minded leaders.

“Tonight is a well-earned celebration of the powerful legacy left to us by Al Dorman and Saul Fenster 30 years ago,” said ADHC Dean Louis Hamilton in his opening remarks. “There is no better way to celebrate them than by recognizing the graduating seniors and the alumni of the Albert Dorman Honors College who exemplify those joined commitments to intellectual excellence and service to others.”

NJIT President Teik C. Lim followed Hamilton at the podium, saluting the Honors College’s outsized role in NJIT’s rise as a nationally ranked research university. “Over the past 30 years, the Honors College has shaped NJIT’s rise as a national university — now home to 770 Scholars with an average SAT of 1513 and nearly 50% women,” he noted. He also applauded the college’s commitment to expanding research and experiential learning, made possible by philanthropic support and dedicated alumni leadership.

What started out in 1985 as a humble program with 28 scholars has soared to become one of the premiere Honors Colleges in the country, putting an emphasis on research and community service. ADHC students present more than 300 research presentations and publications every year at conferences on campus and around the world, and ADHC is home to fifteen Goldwater Scholars. Meanwhile, ADHC students have logged 40,000 hours of service dedicated to NJIT’s campus and its Newark neighbors.

The celebration was laden with notable speakers, including Vatsal Shah — a three-time NJIT graduate, current president of the NJIT Alumni Association and ADHC Board of Visitors member. Shah shared his personal journey from student to faculty fellow, and introduced former NJIT president and founding ADHC dean Joel Bloom, whose early leadership helped launch the first named college at the university and the first honors college at a public polytechnic institution.

Continuing the reflection on legacy, Richard Dorman, son of the late Albert Dorman, delivered heartfelt remarks on behalf of Joan Dorman and the entire Dorman family. He honored his father’s enduring influence and challenged attendees to carry the mission forward. “It will take work, dedication, and a new commitment and passion to do even better over the next 30 years,” he said.

The program also recognized key members of the ADHC Board of Visitors, including Board Chair Richard Schatzberg and alumnus Sarabjit Singh, who helped organize the event and have played instrumental roles in advancing the college’s programs and student opportunities.

The evening culminated in the presentation of the 2025 ADHC awards to outstanding students and alumni. These honorees exemplify the values of academic excellence, leadership, innovation and service that define the Albert Dorman Honors College community.

Student Award Presentation

Albert Dorman Future Leader Award – Sriramya Ganisetti, electrical and computer engineering technology major

Ganisetti served two terms as president of the Honors Scholar Council, revitalizing it in the years following the pandemic. Through the Dean’s Fund for Student Development, she attended the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference, where she studied “City as Text” methods to reform the Honors First-Year Retreat, so that scholars discover the rich resources of the City of Newark. 

She was recently awarded the prestigious SMART Scholarship—Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation—through the National Defense Education Program to fund her masters in electrical engineering. Ganisetti has been admitted to both Johns Hopkins University and the University of Pennsylvania, and will attend Penn in the Fall.

Joan Dorman Prize for Community Education and Development – Karina Tay, electrical engineering honors scholar specializing in the radiofrequency track 

Tay has served as president of both NJIT’s IEEE Student Branch and the IEEE-HKN Gamma Kappa chapter and is a member of the ECE Department’s Student Advisory Board. She is recognized for her leadership in the MakeNJIT™ Hardware Hackathon, a program co-sponsored by the Dean’s Fund for Student Development and the Joan and Albert Dorman Community Education Fund, as well as other educational initiatives inclusive of our neighbors in Newark and the region. 

She was given a full scholarship and will pursue her master’s degree in semiconductor technology at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, International College of Semiconductor Technology (NYCU-ICST). .

Dorman Honors Scholar Exceptional Service Award – Joseph Mucci, double major in applied mathematics and computer science 

Mucci has distinguished himself through his great commitment to the First-Year Honors Seminar, supporting and mentoring incoming scholars, shaping the program and developing the next generation of mentors. 

The First-Year Seminar service project is paid for through the Dean’s Fund. Mucci is also a student-athlete, competing on NJIT’s Cross Country and Track & Field teams. He is preparing for a future career in software development or finance.

Dean’s Prize for Outstanding Undergraduate Research – Aliza Mujahid, senior majoring in biomedical engineering

Mujahid has a deep commitment to innovation, entrepreneurship, and scientific discovery. She is the founder of DermaMech, a MedTech startup focused on developing accessible dermatological solutions, and her groundbreaking work has gained national attention. 

She is a 2024 Gilman Scholar and was recently awarded the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship—the most competitive awards for undergraduate researchers in the nation. Through the generous support of donors, including the Dean’s Fund for Student Development, she was able to initiate her research agenda in the Honors Summer Research Institute. 

Likewise, through the support of donors and the Dean’s Fund, she studied in both Italy and Taiwan, where she was part of an honors team that won an international robotics competition. Mujahid has been accepted to PhD programs in biomedical engineering at Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania, and has been accepted at Columbia University where she will join Columbia’s Business Ventures programs.

Alumni Awards Presentation

Young Honors Alumni Award – Elaine R. Gamolo ’18H ’19 and Kiera A. Nissen, Ph.D. ’18H

Gamolo holds both a bachelor of architecture and a master of infrastructure planning from NJIT. She currently serves as a Senior Architectural Consultant at WSP, advancing equitable and sustainable design in major transportation projects across New York City. 

Kiera Nissen earned her bachelor's degree in civil engineering from NJIT, and a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, where her research focused on green infrastructure. She now works at French and Parrello Associates, where she focuses on sustainable stormwater management solutions that support resilient urban development. 

Gamolo and Nissen have remained deeply engaged with the Honors College through the Women with STEAM program. As mentors and role models, they have helped cultivate a supportive community for current scholars—sharing their journeys, offering guidance, and empowering the next generation of women in science, technology, engineering, architecture and mathematics.

Distinguished Alumni Impact Award – Maria F. Karim ’05H

Maria Vasquez Karim is a member of the Class of 2005 with a degree in computer engineering. Karim is also a graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business LEAD program. 

Originally from Ecuador and raised in New Jersey, Karim’s journey has taken her through roles at IBM, Intel, British Telecom and ultimately Google, where she now leads key initiatives for YouTube’s web and mobile platforms—reaching over 2.5 billion users every month. 

Her work at YouTube includes launching features that shape user experience, improving data pipelines to empower creators, and founding the New Platform Machine Learning Evaluation Team to enhance hardware readiness and performance. As co-chair lead of the Familia Employee Resource Group at YouTube, she has been a tireless advocate for Latinx representation and advancement in tech, while also mentoring high school and college students across Silicon Valley. 

Distinguished Alumni in Leadership Award – Jesse B. Thomas ’99H

Jesse Thomas is the chief vision officer and CEO of RDE Systems, and a 1999 graduate of NJIT and the Albert Dorman Honors College, where he earned his degree in information systems. 

Under Thomas’ leadership, RDE Systems has grown into a national leader in healthcare transformation, helping to improve health outcomes from Hawaii to New York City. Their software as a service platforms have administered over $1 billion in funding, bringing life-saving resources to vulnerable communities across the country. 

Thomas has also been a trainer, international speaker, and author on issues of public health and technology. He’s served on congressional science and technology committees and expert panels on public health informatics. A proud advocate for his team, Thomas’ most significant achievement is the creation of RDE’s People & Culture Program, ensuring that his team thrives both professionally and personally. 

Thomas has remained deeply committed to NJIT, supporting initiatives like the ADHC RDE Coding Challenge, sponsoring research projects, and hiring NJIT alumni.

Friends of the Albert Dorman Honors College Award – Mary Ann & Richard "Dick" Sweeney ’82

Mary Ann Sweeney is a retired senior data manager with an impressive career focused on advancing research in psychiatry, community medicine, and behavioral health. At Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine, she played pivotal roles in the departments of psychiatry and biomedical data science, contributing to significant clinical studies and supporting groundbreaking work through the Center for Technology and Behavioral Health and the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network. 

Her career has also included interdisciplinary, community-based health research, and she has been widely published in her field. Her husband, Dick Sweeney, is a decorated Vietnam War veteran and the co-founder and former vice president of Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., where he led engineering, operations, and global manufacturing during the rise of the iconic Keurig brewing system. 

As a business innovator and advisor, Sweeney has earned numerous patents and dedicated much of his time mentoring aspiring entrepreneurs. He also serves as Chair Emeritus of the Albert Dorman Honors College Board of Visitors and is a passionate university guest lecturer. 

Together, Mary Ann and Dick created the Sweeney-Lacey Scholarship, which continues to support the success and opportunities for Dorman Scholars, embodying their commitment to education and student development.