Spotlights
We want to recognize the successes of Wayne State’s exceptional alumni and invite you to share your news or spotlight fellow Warriors (and Tartars) who are making a difference.
Did you or a fellow alum win an award? Get named to a board? Earn a promotion? Publish a new book? Share a photo and a brief summary of the accomplishment so we can share the good news.
John Latella '95
Mike Ilitch School of Business
John Latella has been named Chief Executive Officer of USSA – the number one multi-sport association in the nation. With more than 25 years of leadership experience, Latella will bring a blend of entrepreneurial drive and purpose-driven leadership to the organization as it looks to expand its reach and impact in youth sports nationwide. Latella earned his bachelor's in business from Wayne State University in 1995.
Lawrence Deary '68
Mike Ilitch School of Business
Lawrence Deary recently published his first book, "The Boy Who Talked to the Moon." After retiring from a successful career in human resources administration and consulting, Deary strives to be a strong motivator for students interested in creative writing and to prove that even at 80, imagination has no age limit. Deary earned his bachelor's in business from Wayne State University in 1968.
Ellizar Abalos '08
College of Fine, Performing, and Communication Arts
After serving over a decade in the U.S. Navy as a fire controlman, Ellizar Abalos earned his bachelor's in music from Wayne State University in 2008. After graduation, Abalos went on to be a choir director, mentoring over 300 students and leading them to regional and state recognition before returning to his U.S. Navy roots as a recruiter and ROTC coordinator. Abalos credits his success to Wayne State and notes the university's legacy empowering veterans, educators and leaders to make a measurable impact in the communities they serve.
Mary Brown '69
College of Education
Mary Brown '69 was recently awarded the Sister Lenore Boivin Adaptive Teaching Award for her volunteer tutoring work at the Siena Literacy Center in Detroit. The Sister Lenore Boivin Adaptive Teaching Award is given to the tutor who employs extraordinary tutoring methods and tailors their instruction to meet the unique learning needs of their students. Brown earned her bachelor's from the Wayne State University College of Education in 1969.
Eric J. Flessland '83
Law School
Eric J. Flessland, attorney and shareholder at Butzel Long Attorneys and Counselors, has been named to Michigan Lawyers Weekly’s “Go To Lawyers for Construction Law.” The program honors leading lawyers in a particular field of law as nominated by their peers. Flessland earned his J.D. from Wayne Law in 1983.
Tejaskumar Balgonda Patil '16
College of Engineering
Tejaskumar Patil has been selected as a member of the Oakland Together 40 Under 40 Class of 2025. "This prestigious recognition underscores the significant impact of the education and experiences I received at Wayne State University, which were pivotal in shaping my professional and personal development. This recognition is not merely a personal achievement but a celebration of the university's mission to create a prosperous future for all. Thank you for being an integral part of my journey."
Dwayne Bates '91
Mike Ilitch School of Business
Dwayne Bates was recently named president of AISIN Aftermarket & Service of America (AASA). In this new role, Bates will lead AASA in its continued growth and global expansion efforts. Bates earned his bachelor's in business administration from Wayne State University in 1991.
Keith D. Wunderlich '99
College of Education
Keith D. Wunderlich recently published "Coach of Champions: D.L. Holmes and the Making of Detroit's Track Stars," with Wayne State University Press. The book documents Wunderlich's grandfather, Wayne State athletic director and track coach D.L. Holmes, who mentored and trained thousands of athletes of all backgrounds from 1917 to 1958, coaching many to become Olympians, world record holders, and national and AAU champions. Wunderlich earned his doctorate in education from Wayne State in 1999.
Aqueelah Akbar '21
College of Engineering
Aqueelah Akbar '21 has been crowned Ms. Full-Figured U.S.A. Michigan 2024. The role of Ms. Full-Figured U.S.A Michigan is to bring awareness to under-utilized resources within the community and advocate for funding. Akbar earned her bachelor's in computer technology from Wayne State in 2021.
Bryan Cain '07
College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts
Bryan Cain, Ph.D. has been appointed executive vice president of Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts. In his new role, Cain will oversee key areas, including Board of Trustee relations, institutional advancement and alumni relations, communications and marketing, and more. Cain earned his B.A. in speech communication from Wayne State in 2007.
Michelle Taylor '24
College of Education
Michelle Taylor has been awarded the 2025 Distinguished Dissertation Award from the American Educational Research Association (AERA). Taylor earned her Ph.D. from the Wayne State University College of Education in 2024.
Kendra Boyd '10
Mike Ilitch School of Business
Kendra Boyd has published a book titled Freedom Enterprise: Black Entrepreneurship and Racial Capitalism in Detroit, which highlights the history of Black entrepreneurship in Detroit. Boyd began the research for this book as an undergraduate student in the Wayne State University McNair Scholars Program. She earned her B.S. from Wayne State in 2010.
Floyd Rumohr '85
College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts
Floyd Rumohr has published his seventh book entitled State It: Making Shakespeare Come Alive in Schools. Rumohr earned his B.F.A. from Wayne State in 1985 and founded a nonprofit organization called States of Learning (1994-2010), which inspired this book.
Thomas Beindit '16
Law School
Thomas D. Beindit was recently promoted to shareholder with Rosati Schultz Joppich & Amtsbuechler, PC, handling various municipal matters and civil litigation. He works in the firm's Lansing office. Beindit earned his J.D. from Wayne Law in 2016.
Roland Hwang '80, '84
Law School
Alumnus Roland Hwang has been elected as a member of the Northville Township Board of Trustees. Hwang served as the assistant attorney general for the state of Michigan for 27 years, retiring in 2015. He earned his J.D. in 1980 and LL.M. in 1984 from Wayne Law.
John Counts '01
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Alumnus John Counts recently published his first book, a short story collection entitled "Bear County, Michigan." Counts earned his bachelor's in English from Wayne State in 2001 and studied creative writing under Professor Christopher T. Leland. He also worked at The South End. He's worked for newspapers throughout Michigan over the past twenty years and is currently the statewide editor of investigations for MLive.
Jason McLellan '03
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Alumnus Jason McLellan has been inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his work using structure-based vaccine design to stabilize and modify surface proteins of viruses. A structural biologist, McLellan and immunologist and virologist Barney Graham have led discoveries that contributed to the development of the COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines. He earned his bachelor's in chemistry with an emphasis in biochemistry from Wayne State in 2001.
Valerie Kinloch '98, '00
College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts
Alumna Valerie Kinloch has been named Johnson C. Smith University’s 15th president. Kinloch earned her master’s degree from Wayne State University in English and African American Literature in 1998 and her doctorate in English in 2000.
Harman Singh '17
College of Education
Alumnus and former Wayne State University Alumni Association Board Member Harman Singh has been named executive director for the Sikh Coalition. Singh earned his master's of education at Wayne State in 2017 and worked as an academic advisor in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from 2018 to 2021.