Hofstra University

Hofstra journalism major Joe Orovitz '27, who frequently covers Hofstra Men's Basketball for the Office of Marketing and Communications (Marcomm), is making a name for himself behind the lens. His photo of the team celebrating last week's historic CAA Tournament win over Monmouth was splashed on the back page of Newsday on March 11. Orovitz's photos have been featured throughout Newsday's coverage and in media outlets nationwide. Now Orovitz is heading to Tampa with the team as it makes its first NCAA Championship appearance in 25 years to face Alabama this Friday, March 20, at Benchmark International Arena.

Trading winter break downtime for soldering irons, microcontrollers, and interdisciplinary collaboration, two Hofstra mechanical engineering students spent their January inside one of the nation's leading research laboratories, gaining practical experience that sharpened their career focus and expanded their professional horizons.

From Silicon Valley boardrooms to behind-the-scenes conversations with tech leaders, computer science and engineering students from Hofstra University's Fred DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science spent winter break exploring how innovation, talent, and ambition converge in northern California. Students met with engineers, project managers, and senior leaders at companies such as Meta, Google, CrowdStrike, Apple, and Oracle, while experiencing the region's broader innovation ecosystem at the seventh annual Hofstra in Silicon Valley program.

Hofstra University is proud to release the fall 2025 Provost's List, which recognizes students who earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average.

Hofstra University congratulates the students named to the fall 2025 Dean's List for their outstanding academic achievements. Students must earn a grade point average of at least 3.5 during the semester to make the Dean's List.

A team of Hofstra engineering students from the Fred DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science earned an honorable mention and a $1,000 prize in the 2025 Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams (DEBUT) Challenge, sponsored by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) and VentureWell.

When Hofstra senior Richie Castronova boarded a plane to London last spring, he had no idea he would soon be competing for a $1 million prize on national television. Castronova '26, a TV and business major in the Lawrence Herbert School of Communication, starred on FOX's new game show 99 to Beat alongside his sister. While participating in the Hofstra LA semester program, Castronova advanced through multiple rounds of interviews and screenings before officially being cast in May 2025. Filmed in London over the summer, 99 to Beat premiered this fall on FOX.

Hofstra School of Health Sciences students from the Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Exercise Physiology programs volunteered their time and expertise at the Special Olympics New York FUNfitness event last month, working side by side with clinical staff from Northwell Health. Under the direction of Anna Len, assistant professor of physical therapy, student teams conducted flexibility, strength, balance, and mobility screenings for athletes; provided individualized wellness and at-home exercise recommendations; and offered education and encouragement throughout the day.

At the Frank G. Zarb School of Business, students enrolled in the Advertising Management course are learning firsthand how strategic communication can create positive change by designing marketing campaigns for Hofstra's Pride Pantry, an on-campus resource that helps students facing food insecurity. The project challenges students to apply classroom concepts in a practical way, creating campaigns that both raise awareness of the Pride Pantry and help reduce the stigma often associated with seeking assistance.

The Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies (SONPA) honored the Undergraduate Nursing Class of 2027 during its pinning ceremony on September 29 in the Sondra and David S. Mack Student Center Theater. The event marked a symbolic rite of passage as students transition from classroom study to clinical practice.

Two Hofstra civil engineering students from the Fred DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science spent their summer in Eswatini, a small country in Southern Africa, where they helped build a pedestrian bridge, alongside students from other universities, as part of the international nonprofit Engineers in Action (EIA). The project, supported through the DeMatteis OverSEAS program, provided students with hands-on experience addressing infrastructure challenges in a resource-limited setting while engaging with the local community.

The DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science celebrated innovation and student achievement at the Advanced Summer Program in Research (ASPiRe) Symposium, held August 26 at the Science & Innovation Center. This year's event featured 30 students presenting their summer research in fields spanning bioengineering, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, and artificial intelligence (AI), among others, many in collaboration with faculty mentors and some with researchers from the Feinstein Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine.

Hofstra students joined Dr. Antonios Marsellos, associate professor in the Department of Geology, Environment, and Sustainability, at the 32nd Annual Conference on Geology of Long Island and Metropolitan New York (LIG) this spring at Stony Brook University. Marsellos, an expert in environmental hazards, has participated in the LIG for seven years and has coauthored more than 50 publications with Hofstra students over the past nine years.

A group of six Hofstra University students were inducted into the Mu Kappa Chapter of Gamma Theta Upsilon (GTU), the international honor society for geography students.

Leah Boisvert '26, Lilly Knappe '27, and Sophia Marciano '26, students in Hofstra University's Lawrence Herbert School of Communication, participated in the AmPav Worldwide Student Program at the 78th Annual Cannes International Film Festival, May 13-24. The American Pavilion (AmPav) is the hospitality and communications hub for the thousands of Americans attending Cannes, one of the world's largest and most glamorous film festivals.

The U.S. Department of State has awarded Hofstra University student MeiLi Haan '26 the competitive Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. Haan, a double major in sustainability and music business, is applying the award to a program that will allow her to study both disciplines at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland this fall.

Dylan Budhu and Craig Mannino, both Class of 2026 and students in Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (HCLAS) and Rabinowitz Honors College, have been named the recipients of the 2025 Firestone Fellowship, an annual award that provides students with opportunities to conduct summer research in their academic discipline, under the guidance of a faculty mentor.

Hofstra University inducted 68 students into its chapter of Phi Beta Kappa this spring. Phi Beta Kappa is considered an emblem of high achievement and strong potential. The society celebrates and advocates excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. Its campus chapters invite for induction the most outstanding arts and sciences students at America's leading colleges and universities.

Two mechanical engineering students from the Fred DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science recreated a historic artifact for the Hofstra University Museum of Art's EVERY Body, EVERY Mind exhibition. Krishan Rathee '27 of Williston Park, NY, and Gianluca Tredici '26 of Tomkins Cove, NY, developed a replica of a late 19th-early 20th-century Chi Wara headdress. Their work offers visitors of all ages and abilities the rare opportunity to engage with art through touch. The exhibition, which runs through July 11, explores the 35-year impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act and highlights inclusive approaches to museum education. The tactile replica allows guests, including those with visual impairments, to interact more meaningfully with a culturally significant object.

Four students from the Frank G. Zarb School of Business put their entrepreneurial skills to the test at the 2025 New York Business Plan Competition (NYBPC), competing against students from schools such as Farmingdale State College, Molloy University, and SUNY Old Westbury in the regional round. Representing Hofstra were international business student Aydan Smith from Locust Grove, GA (OurBloom), Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences economics student Prisha Srivastava from San Ramon, CA (CogniView), finance student Jack Fernandez from South Ozone Park, NY (Vacant), and entrepreneurship student Dhrruv Dhamani from Jaipur, India (One More Time).

Established in 1997 by Hofstra's Axinn Library faculty, this award recognizes and rewards excellence in research and writing by graduating seniors.

Mia Lee '26 is heading to the 2025 Rifle and Pistol National Junior Olympics in Alabama, April 13-18, where she has secured a first-round invitation to compete in the women's 10-meter air rifle championship. After competing in Junior Olympics for the past seven years, this is her final year of eligibility. The Hofstra biochemistry major and ROTC cadet from Boston, MA, fell in love with the precision and focus that her sport requires. Her interest was sparked when she was just 8 years old and began accompanying her father to the rifle range.

Lawrence Herbert School of Communication students won top honors in five categories at the 50th national Gracie Awards for exemplary news programming. The prestigious honor, awarded annually by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation (AWMF), recognizes work by, for, or about women in television, radio, and online media on the national, local, and student levels. Hofstra students have taken home multiple Gracie Awards for the last 11 years.

Hofstra University presented its annual Service Week, March 18-20, 2025. The program offers Hofstra University students opportunities to participate in community service programs over spring break. For the first time, Service Week included an inaugural program to meet and work with residents of the Shinnecock Indian Nation in Southampton, Long Island. Organized by Anita Ellis, director of the Office of Commuting Student Services and Community Outreach, and Karen Torrence, director of the Shinnecock Senior Citizen Nutrition Program, students were matched with senior tribal members and helped around their homes with planting and weeding.

Naya Mahabir '25, a Hofstra biology major from New Hyde Park, New York, received a TriBeta Research Grant for her work on microbes that may promote plant growth in adverse environments.

Sandro Amaglobeli and Allison Siegel, both Class of 2025 and Rabinowitz Honors College students, presented a research poster at the 2025 Pi Mu Epsilon (PME) annual conference held in Seattle, Washington, during the Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM), from January 8-11.

Hofstra University's Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) made a strong impression at Hacking Health 2025, a 48-hour healthcare-focused hackathon hosted by Columbia University's BMES on February 8-9. Competing against over 20 elite teams from institutions including Columbia, Brown, MIT, Yale, and Penn, Hofstra's BMES secured first place in the Personalized Medicine and Genomics division for its novel thyroid monitor, THYROS, which is now patent pending.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Hofstra Chapter advanced its leadership and professional development by attending the Workshop for Student Chapter Leaders (WSCL) in Memphis, Tennessee. The conference, which brought together engineering students from across the country, helped participants enhance their skills in chapter management, professional development, and networking - all key components of a successful student organization.

Six undergraduate nursing students, in their senior year, from the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies (SONPA) traveled to Washington, D.C., February 6, to participate in the 37th annual National Black Nurses Day on Capitol Hill. This year's event, titled "Reimagining Health Equity: Addressing Ongoing Threats to America's Well-Being," provided an opportunity for students to engage in discussions on legislative issues affecting the nursing profession, including workforce diversity, maternal mortality, artificial intelligence in health care, and economic wellness.

Sandro Amaglobeli and Allison Siegel, both Class of 2025 and Rabinowitz Honors College students, presented a research poster at the 2025 Pi Mu Epsilon (PME) annual conference held in Seattle, Washington, during the Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM), from January 8-11.