NJIT’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design (HCAD) hosted its Design Showcase, the college’s flagship fundraising and networking event, which provides a chance for members of the Hillier College community to connect and discuss the exhibited work done by HCAD’s architecture and design students over the past year. This year’s event took place in the Jewel Box of One Gateway Center in downtown Newark, a flagship space in Gateway’s $50 million investment plan.
ROI-NJ recognized deans, administrators, board members, alumni and a director from New Jersey Institute of Technology as the most influential women in business for 2025.
Four of the Highlanders made the top 50 list: Trustee Elisa Charters; Michele Siekerka and Debbie Hart, who both serve on the Board of Directors of NJIT’s New Jersey Innovation Institute; and Becky Button, who serves on the Advisory Board of NJIT’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design.
The architecture, engineering and construction industry is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by technological advancements reshaping how projects are designed, coordinated and executed. Three alumnae of New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design — Gayatri Desai ’14, Veronica Quintero ’07 and Alexandra Pollock ’03 — are leading this evolution.
For over 55 years, NJIT’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) has been a beacon of hope for talented students from educationally and economically disadvantaged backgrounds, opening doors to higher education and empowering them to achieve success in STEM fields and beyond.
Bryan C. Lee Jr. ’08, an architect, educator and design justice advocate with a master’s in architecture from NJIT’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design, was recently named president of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA).
Lee is the founder and director of Colloqate Design, a nonprofit multidisciplinary design practice based in New Orleans. His appointment marks a significant milestone in NOMA's ongoing mission to promote diversity, equity and inclusion within the architectural profession.
Robert Cohen, president of Digital, Robotics, and Enabling Technology at Stryker, and a distinguished alumnus of New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE). This honor, one of the highest professional distinctions in engineering, recognizes Cohen's outstanding contributions to orthopedic surgical procedures and devices, and his leadership in additive manufacturing and biomaterials.
Fifteen Highlanders from New Jersey Institute of Technology are featured in ROI-NJ’s annual lists of the most powerful individuals in New Jersey.
Five of the honorees made the publication’s Super 75 list: President Teik C. Lim; Trustee Gary Dahms; Hispanic Latinx Leadership Council member Luis De La Hoz; and two members of the Board of Directors of NJIT’s New Jersey Innovation Institute: Michele Siekerka and Wesley Mathews.
NJIT hosted a National Science Foundation-funded Research Coordination Network (RCN) workshop on Urban Food, Energy, and Water (Urban FEW) in November. The event brought together researchers, technologists, urban gardeners and policymakers to tackle urban challenges related to food, water and energy security. Organized by NJIT’s Roberto Rojas-Cessa and New York Institute of Technology’s Ziqian Dong (also an NJIT alum), the workshop aimed to foster connections between academia and community stakeholders in Newark and beyond.
Artificial intelligence is transforming our world in ways that spark curiosity, excitement and concern. Sanmi Koyejo ’05, assistant professor of computer science at Stanford University and founder and president of Black in AI, explored its profound impact across various domains, addressing pressing questions about the technology’s societal implications.
Anna Maria DiBrita ’24 didn’t quite have the time to study abroad during her time pursuing her degree in biomedical engineering. The Albert Dorman Honors Scholar kept a full plate on campus — member of the Society of Female Engineers, ambassadorships for biomedical engineering and the Honors College, Orientation Fellow among others. But now, DiBrita has earned a Fulbright scholarship and is an English teaching assistant in Spain’s Canary Islands.
