QView #200 | March 25

Tom Dinegar, legislative director for Congresswoman Grace Meng, swung by campus on Tuesday, March 18, for a meeting with President Frank H. Wu and the Business School Steering Committee. He visited several projects that have benefited from funding and support obtained by the congresswoman, including for the Colden Center, the Small Business Development Center, John Dennehy’s lab (top photo), and the Tech Incubator.

Then President Wu and other administrators joined Urban Studies faculty for a mid-day discussion about the department’s civic and community-oriented programs and opportunities for student internships.

From left: Eric Goldfischer, Do Lee, Melissa Checker, President Frank H. Wu, ACE Fellow Danielle Egan, Vice President for Communications and Marketing and Senior Advisor to the President Jay Hershenson, Soniya Munshi, Natalie Bump Vena

A delegation from the Wuhan Institute of Design and Sciences (WIDS) in China came to campus on Wednesday, March 19, for lunch, tour, and coffee with faculty. Founded in 2004, WIDS comprises nine colleges, including schools for business, environmental design, fashion, film, and nursing. WIDS is well-known for the Jackie Chan Institute for Film and Media Studies. Discussions included potential collaborations of benefit to QC and Wuhan Institute students.

From left: Vice President for Communications and Marketing and Senior Advisor to the President Jay Hershenson, Guanglei Hui (DTD), Yunzhong Shu (CMAL), WIDS Director of International Affairs Nelly Hu Kuo, WIDS Co-founder and Board Director Wennie Bin Cheng, Sin-Ying Ho (Art), Yin Mei Critchell (DTD), Edisa Weeks (DTD), Tao Wang (Business), Yan Sun (Political Science)

Meanwhile, Kappa Gamma—QC’s chapter of education honor society Kappa Delta Pi—held a book-signing event in the Patio Room for Jacqueline Atkins MSEd ’08. Her children’s novel, From Panamá to New York: Jacquelina’s Story, draws on her experience as a Spanish-speaking immigrant.

Over lunch on Thursday, March 20, President Frank H. Wu (missing from the photo) and ACE Fellow Danielle Egan met Aaron Copland School of Music faculty and staff to discuss possible projects. 

From left: Sherry Overholt, David Schober, Emily Wilbourne, Tom Lee, ACE Fellow Danielle Egan, Claudia Cali, Michael Lipsey

Works by members of this year’s class and six recent graduates were displayed in Klapper Hall Gallery last week in Lux Populi, the 2025 Photography & Imaging BFA Thesis Exhibition and Alumni Invitational. (Lux populi is Latin for “light of the people.”) During a reception for the show on Thursday, March 20, attendees got in the picture.

The Path to Political and Community Engagement, a course led by James Vacca (Urban Studies), frequently features guest speakers. On Friday, March 21, Vacca, standing at far left, presented (seated, from left) Assembly Members Khaleel Anderson ’19 and Steven Raga; City Council Finance Analyst Casey Lajszky ’20, a graduate of QC’s MA in Urban Studies program; and Matthew Cruz, district manager of Community Board 10 in the Bronx and an instructor in our SEEK program. 

Baseball Team Upsets 11th-ranked East Stroudsburg

The Queens College baseball team earned a big win last Tuesday, defeating #11 East Stroudsburg University, 11-7. It is the second straight year the Knights have defeated a nationally ranked opponent.

The men’s tennis team went on the road last week and earned a convincing, 6-1 victory against Jefferson University before falling to University of the District of Columbia, 5-2 last Friday. The softball team dropped its first three games of last week but bounced back to defeat D’Youville University by a score of 12-10 on Saturday.

This week, the baseball team will visit Pace University on Wednesday at 3 pm before taking on the College of State Island in a four-game series over the weekend. On Friday at 2:45 pm, Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer Hector Batista will throw the opening pitch for the first league of the year for the Knights.

Softball will also travel to Pace University this week, on Thursday afternoon, for a doubleheader beginning at 2 pm. On Saturday, they will host Staten Island for a doubleheader at noon.

Women’s tennis welcomes Wilmington University on Wednesday at 1 pm and men’s tennis will be home on Friday to take on St. Thomas Aquinas College at 12 pm and St. John’s University at 11 am on the road. Additionally, the outdoor track and field team will begin the season on Saturday, Mar. 29 at St. John’s University.

For the latest Knights news, visit the athletics website at queensknights.com.

Helping Kids Cope with Anxiety



Queens College Psychological Center (QCPC) is offering a free, 6-week anxiety-reduction program for pre-teens/teens (aged 9-13) and their parents/caregivers. Pre-teen/teen participants will learn to become aware of their feelings to help them build self-confidence and manage their emotions effectively. A separate group for parents/caregivers will explore strategies to support their pre-teen/teen’s growth and enhance the use of coping skills in daily life. 

Starting April 3, groups will meet weekly at QCPC, on the QC campus, at 5:30 pm. Enrollment is limited. If interested, please contact QCPC at https://tinyurl.com/actqcpc as soon as possible for a free phone screening.

This Saturday in Queens

Technically, Holi—a Hindu festival marking the spring—occurred earlier this month. But Queens County Farm Museum will invoke the blessings of the season with its first-ever Holi Celebration on Saturday, March 29, from 10 am to noon. Dancers will perform, snacks will be served, and visitors will have the chance to toss around brightly colored powders. Wear white clothes that can get dirty and bring a towel or sheet to cover yourself for the trip home.



Forest bathing—quietly strolling through a natural area, paying attention to its sights and sounds—is an easy way to reduce stress. Certified forest guide Linda Lombardo will be leading a 90-minute forest bathing session in Alley Pond Park on Saturday, March 29, at 10:30 am. To participate, register here. No equipment required other than comfortable walking shoes.

Forest Hills Stadium Is Hiring

Looking for work at a Queens venue? Forest Hills Stadium will hold its annual job fair on April 5, from noon to 4 pm. The stadium has openings for ushers, VIP staff, production assistants, box office staff, and more. Applicants—who must be at least 18—should enter at the corner of 69th Avenue and Dartmouth Street. Job postings will go live on the AEG job board the week of the fair for those who can’t attend in person.

Clothes Call for Prom

With the help of the community, students of any gender identity can step out in style at the Second Chance Prom.

LGBTQIAA+ Programs at Queens College is asking for donations of new or gently used party attire—formal, semi-formal, or fantasy-themed—to stock a free pop-up boutique. Bring donations to the Office of Student Development and Leadership, Student Union, Lower Level 23, through April 7.

The boutique, in Student Union LL37, will be open on April 8, 4 to 6 pm, and April 9, noon to 2 pm. Shopping will be limited to prom ticket holders.

The Second Chance Prom, a QC tradition sponsored by the QC Gender, Love and Sexuality Alliance/GLASA and their event partners, is a ballroom party where students can be themselves without any gender restrictions or stigma. This year’s prom will take place on Thursday, April 24, from 6 to 9 pm in the Student Union. Free tickets are available to CUNY students and their guests at https://tinyurl.com/GLASAprom2025; attendance will be capped at 300.

Roy Louis Haje ’66

Conservation biologist and consultant Roy Louis Haje died on February 4 at the age of 79.

A Queens native who was only 16 when he received his diploma from Andrew Jackson High School, Haje majored in biology at QC. Upon graduation, he was drafted into the Marines and stationed at Camp Lejeune in Beaufort, South Carolina; he returned to New York at the end of his service.

While working for the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation as a conservation biologist and permit agent, Haje completed a master’s in marine science from C.W. Post, Long Island University, and a master’s in environmental science from Stony Brook University. In 1980 he went into business for himself, launching Southampton-based En-Consultants, focusing on coastal environmental planning, permit acquisitions, and project management of development and restoration projects across Long Island. 

Retiring 31 years later, he transferred En-Consultants to his associates, who run it to this day, and took up bicycle repair, giving away the bikes he fixed.

Predeceased by his wife Carole, nee Jankowski, whom he met at QC, Haje is survived by three of their four children, five grandchildren, and his two siblings.

Margaret Elenis Siklas ’11, MSEd ’14

Teacher turned entrepreneur Margaret Elenis Siklas, who ran a company and raised money for women with cancer while fighting the disease herself, passed away on March 4. She was 34.

Born and raised in Glen Oaks, the daughter of a couple who ran a plumbing business, Siklas graduated from Fresh Meadows High School. She studied special education at QC and taught it at William Cullen Bryant High School, which promoted her to dean.

Cancer changed Siklas’s trajectory. A married mother of a toddler at her diagnosis, she adopted a rigorously healthful diet and prescribed herself high doses of vitamins. Her cancer went into remission.

In 2020, Siklas and her sister founded Oh My Goodness Kids, offering classes and open play periods for children and an on-site café that serves food and beverages made without dairy, gluten, or refined sugar. That same year, while Siklas was pregnant with her second child, her cancer returned at stage 4, forcing her to deliver her baby early. Nonetheless, she opened a second Oh My Goodness Kids location. In April 2024 she hosted a fundraiser for women with cancer, telling Newsday, “I chose to pursue a path where I know I’m doing something for the future.”

Siklas is survived by her husband, two sons, sister, brother, and parents.

Daniel Gaztambide (Psychology) received a 2024 Gradiva Award for Best Book for Decolonizing Psychoanalytic Technique: Putting Freud on Fanon’s Couch . . . . Kimberly Pugliese ’22 and Daniela Crimi MSEd ’24, both of whom studied photography at QC, regularly meet the Mets. Pugliese works full time for the Amazins as an assistant photographer and Crimi freelances for the team . . . .

A composition by Edward Smaldone (ACSM) will be performed by the Alegria Ensemble on Sunday, March 30, 3 pm, at the Port Washington Library. His Suite for Violin and Piano was on a program presented by Emily Weiss and Joseph Martin on March 21 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Baldwin, New York. Students, alumni, and faculty will participate in a free concert celebrating Smaldone’s retirement on April 6 at 2 pm in LeFrak Concert Hall. Tickets are free; reserve them here Sell Tickets, Create Events and Discover Experiences - Universe . . . .

President Frank H. Wu is listed on City & State’s The 2025 Queens 100 at #23. His Op-ed | Combatting Antisemitism: An essential work in progress – QNS was published on March 17.