WE ARE YOU

Rutgers Excellence across
New Jersey and Beyond

WE ARE YOU is an ongoing series of stories about the people who embody Rutgers University’s unwavering commitment to academic excellence, building community, and the common good.

‘Together, WE ARE YOU’

With more than 600,000 alumni worldwide and almost 360,000 living in New Jersey, Rutgers University’s powerful influence resonates throughout the state and around the globe. Every day, more than 67,000 students, 8,000 faculty members, and 14,000 staff on our campuses and in the field embrace excellence in the pursuit of education and research. Their explorations and expertise range from the arts to engineering, the sciences to the humanities, business to health care, farming to teaching to public service, and much, much more.

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Michael Ilycn

“If you ask me,” says Michael Ilcyn ENG’82, “that’s what Rutgers is all about—a brighter tomorrow.” A proud School of Engineering graduate, Ilcyn believes in the power of technology and education to transform lives. As a TeamUP mentor at Rutgers Business School and a Capstone Project Advisor for Industrial and Systems Engineering students at Rutgers, Ilcyn helps create the future he envisions.

Latoya Singleton

Rutgers brings out excellence, and it brings out leadership. Latoya Singleton RBS'07, NCAS'07, RBSG'10 is proof positive, using her Rutgers MBA to keep great math and science teachers in the classroom and advance human rights. A member of the Rutgers University Alumni Association, Singleton is also on the board of a nonprofit dedicated to preparing women and gender-expansive adults to be software developers while advocating for inclusive and equitable work environments.

Tamesha Forrest

“Success isn’t just about personal achievement,” says Tamesha Forrest RBS’18. “It’s about empowering others and driving positive change on a global scale.” Forrest’s MBA from Rutgers Business School informed her perspective, setting her on a path that took her across borders, from South Africa to Brazil, to study emerging economies. Today, she calls London home and is a proud member of Rutgers’ 600,000-strong global alumni community.

Michael Adler

“The connections I’ve made—starting as a Rutgers undergrad in political science—are really important to me,” says Rutgers University Alumni Association board member Michael Adler. Embracing the power of Rutgers’ 600,000-strong global alumni community, Adler has developed a wide network over the years in and around Philadelphia: as a Trustee of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, as pro bono legal counsel for Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, and as a champion of the Support Center for Child Advocates.

Rory McGregor

Rory McGregor RC’90 knows the power of the Rutgers global alumni network. From a young man living in Trinidad and Tobago to the trading desk at Barclays in New York City, he credits his Rutgers connection with paving his road to Wall Street. “I think the key is always to meet as many people as possible; ask as many questions as possible because you’re not going to know where the opportunity will come from,” he says.

Patricia Devitt Risse

“Every trial, there is a patient that can be impacted by what we do,” says Patricia Devitt Risse PHARM’85, GSNB’93. A 2024 inductee into the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni, Devitt Risse has devoted much of her 35-year career to oncology drug testing, including founding an award-winning company focused on early-stage cancer trials where medicines are tested in humans for the first time. An early proponent of precision oncology, her innovative work has emphasized personalized cancer treatments—using an individual’s genes, tumor antigens, or other unique biomarkers to identify the treatment most likely to work.

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