Howard Balzer has been covering professional football as a writer, editor, and broadcaster for 50 years, including 44 Super Bowls.

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After graduating from Hofstra University in 1974, he was director of public relations for the Long Island Tomahawks (National Lacrosse League) and the play-by-play typist at Madison Square Garden for all New York Knicks and college basketball games. His connection with pro football began in 1976 with College and Pro Football Newsweekly on Long Island. Since then, he has been a featured columnist for The Sporting News, Pro Football Weekly, USA Today Sports Weekly and The Sports Xchange.

Balzer moved to St. Louis in 1978 to work for The Sporting News, becoming editor of Pro Football in 1979. For 32 years, he has been the senior editor for Lindy’s Pro Football Preview magazine.

Balzer was an analyst on ESPN's initial broadcast of the NFL draft in 1980, a role he continued for eight years. He has won seven writing awards in the Professional Football Writers of America competition, an Emmy for commentaries on KPLR-TV in St. Louis in 1986, and Emmy nominations in 1988 and 1990.

In 2016, Balzer received the Bob Broeg Media Award presented by the St. Louis/Tom Lombardo Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame. The award recognizes enthusiasm, integrity, professionalism and devotion to the game of football, and is reserved for individuals whose contributions to football in the St. Louis area made a significant difference. Balzer was an officer for the Professional Football Writers of America for 33 years and was inducted into the St. Louis Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.

Balzer relocated to the Phoenix area in 2020 and covers the NFL and the Arizona Cardinals for cardswire.usatoday.com. He has served on the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee for 21 years and is also on the Hall's Seniors Committee. He appears regularly as an NFL Insider on ESPN 620 Radio and Fox 10 TV sports in Phoenix.

As a Hofstra student, Balzer wrote for the school paper, The Chronicle, and was also the school’s assistant director of sports information for two years.

Christy Bareijsza is the founder and creative director of Red Carpet Events, where she develops innovative concepts that encompass full sensory experiences with a signature style that surpasses expectations. Her refined breadth of work is actualized through a unique portfolio that maintains timeless appeal, while her distinct combination of talents has helped create a myriad of press-worthy events for a notable list of corporate and celebrity clients.

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Christy is a hospitality leader and recognized feature for industry conferences, magazines and podcasts. She contributed to the bestselling book “How to Create Events To Remember” and served on the corporate meetings advisory board for the Four Seasons New York. In addition, Christy has forged influential partnerships with Amazon, Macy’s, Clinique Bridal Salon and Bride Magazine.

A second-generation entrepreneur, Christy leveraged her personal and professional experiences to create “Finding Her,” a popular podcast from a GenX perspective that exposes female hardships impacted by challenging marriages and questionable decisions. Christy’s uncanny ability to see problems clearly and uncover realistic solutions in a non-judgmental and entertaining manner has made her the go-to source for female motivation.

Christy continues to mentor up-and-coming professionals as a university lecturer and was recognized as an Alum of the Month by Hofstra University. In 2021, Christy was honored for her innovation and industry influence as Smart Women in Meetings Entrepreneur of the Year by Bright Business Media.

Praised for her “exquisite lyricism and velvet-gloved high notes” (Washington Classical Review) German American soprano Rachel Blaustein was recently named a 2022 Grand Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. Rachel’s varied 2024/25 season includes her debut with Austin Opera as Jocelyn Jordan in Kevin Put’s “The Manchurian Candidate,” the titular role in “Rusalka” with Pacific Opera Project, and Pamina in “Die Zauberflöte” with Opera Mississippi. She makes appearances with South Florida Symphony Orchestra and Maryland Opera, and has advanced to the next round of the 62 Concurs Tenor Viñas Competition in Barcelona, Spain, in January 2025. She finishes out the season in her debut with Cincinnati Opera as Hodel in “Fiddler on the Roof.”

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Last season, Rachel debuted with Opera Delaware and Opera Baltimore as Gilda in “Rigoletto,” to great acclaim. She joined The Metropolitan Opera workshop of Mason Bates’ upcoming premiere, “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay,” as Sarah Kavalier. She made appearances with Opera Omaha, Opera Tampa, Opera Ithaca, gave a recital with the Academy Art Museum, and joined the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra for Handel’s “Messiah.” In previous seasons, Rachel sang Laura Brown in The Metropolitan Opera workshop of “The Hours,” debuted with Maryland Lyric Opera as Nannetta in “Falstaff” and Annapolis Opera as Countess in “Le Nozze di Figaro.” She originated the role of Micòl Finzi Contini in Ricky Ian-Gordon’s world premiere “The Garden of the Finzi-Continis” with New York City Opera and is on the 2024 Grammy-nominated album (best opera recording) “The Lord of Cries,” in the role of Autonoe (second sister). John Corigliano, composer; Mark Adamo, librettist.

Rachel holds a bachelor’s degree in music from Hofstra University, a master’s degree in music from The Peabody Conservatory, and is represented by UIA Talent Agency.

Christopher De Bono has worked as an attorney for 15 years, focusing on drug-related policy and litigation. He received his Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Hofstra University’s Honors College in 2006 and his Juris Doctorate from The George Washington University Law School, manga cum laude and order of the coif, in 2009.

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De Bono was an associate in Ropes & Gray, LLP’s government enforcement practice group, from 2010-2012; a senior associate in Pepper Hamilton LLP’s Health Effects Litigation Practice group from 2013-2017; and as a senior attorney with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Office of Chief Counsel from 2021-2023. In 2023, Christopher joined the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Policy, where he advises on policies, legislation and regulations involving drugs, firearms, and violent crime.

Benjamin Dynkin is the global head of AI assurance for Amazon Web Services. Previously, he was an executive director at Wells Fargo, where he led efforts on AI cybersecurity governance, education, and policy engagement. Ben also led several financial sector efforts around AI, including serving as the founding chair of the FS-ISAC AI Risk Working Group and the founding chair of the ASC X9 AI Working Group. Ben also served as a member of the International Standards Organization’s Technical Committee 68, which creates global standards for the financial services industry.

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Ben’s work has appeared in several leading national and international journals, and he has been a regular commentator on television and radio. Ben is also the treasurer of the New York Metropolitan chapter of Infragard, the FBI’s public-private partnership. Ben is a Techin-Residence Fellow at City College of New York, where he teaches tech and AI ethics and cybersecurity law; he has also taught classes at Hofstra University. Ben also serves as a Contributing Fellow at AI and Faith, where he helps lead the group’s policy and engagement efforts. Ben is a fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts and a fellow of the Economic Club of New York. Ben received his B.A. in economics from Hofstra University, his J.D. from Cardozo Law School, and his M.St. from the University of Cambridge.

Scott Eck is the founder and chief executive officer of Leadership Masters, a premier leadership development organization serving Fortune 100 organizations, governments, and elite learning institutions worldwide. A recognized expert in immersive, interactive theatrical experiences, Mr. Eck’s career began in 1985 when he and four fellow Hofstra alumni created “Tony N’ Tina’s Wedding,” a groundbreaking environmental stage play that enjoyed extraordinary international success. Following “Tony N’ Tina,” Mr. Eck created “Instant Shakespeare,” another interactive stage play that toured the United States, England, Scotland, and Wales from 1987 until 2000.

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While both “Tony N’ Tina” and “Instant Shakespeare” were playing in New York, and Mr. Eck was enjoying a television career on the daytime drama “All My Children,” he was contacted by General Electric to create theatre-based, immersive leadership experiences for three thousand senior executives at GE. Mr. Eck then created a business entity called “Leadership Masters,” and began building powerful, immersive leadership development experiences focusing on executive skills and competencies.

Simultaneously, Mr. Eck began teaching in Hofstra University’s theatre department, creating such classes as “The Business of the Theater” and “Improvisation in Life.” Meanwhile, Leadership Masters was creating partnerships with such elite learning institutions as Oxford University, Cambridge, Columbia, NYU, Purdue, OCAD University, Elon University, Fairleigh-Dickinson, and the University of Dallas. In 2006, Leadership Masters was hired by the US government to help address the broken human processes of the veteran’s administration. Because of the subsequent success of the culture-changing programs created by Mr. Eck, Leadership Masters was then contacted by the Canadian government to help address cultural issues amongst the various ministries in both Ottawa and Toronto.

Mr. Eck is also the author of three books: “The Status Solution,” “The Status Solution Leadership Tool Kit,” and “The 29 Best Practices of Global Team Dynamics.” He resides in New York and in the United Kingdom.

Dr. Matthew Goldberg is a research scientist and the director of experimental research at the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication at Yale University. His research focuses on persuasion, social influence, and strategic communication about climate change, renewable energy, and other urgent environmental, social, and political issues. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers and scientific reports, has been cited more than 5,000 times in scientific papers, and his research is regularly cited in prominent news outlets like the New York Times and Washington Post.

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In 2022, he was named a Rising Star by the Association for Psychological Science and, in 2023, he received the Early Career Achievement Award from division 34 of the American Psychological Association for exceptional research contributions. Five years ago, he co-founded XandY—an independent research and strategy firm that helps the world’s most important ideas and innovations build momentum in society.

Dr. Jeannette Eileen Jones graduated from Hofstra University in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in history and minors in political science and philosophy. Her mentor at Hofstra, Professor Carolyn Eisenberg, encouraged her to pursue her doctoral degree in history. Jones earned her MA (’97) and PhD (’03) in history from the University at Buffalo. She joined the faculty at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2004, where she is now the endowed Carl A. Happold Associate Professor of History and Ethnic Studies.

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Professor Jones has taught at the University of Buffalo, SUNY Fredonia, Buffalo State College, Heidelberg University, and Regensburg Universität. She is a United States historian, with expertise in American cultural and intellectual history, African American history and studies, and pre-colonial Africa. Her research focus includes Gilded Age and Progressive Era America, US and the World, trans imperial history, and the transnational history of race and racialization. She is the author of “In Search of Brightest Africa: Reimagining the Dark Continent in American Culture, 1884-1936.” Her current book project, “America in Africa: U.S. Empire, Race, and the African Question, 1807-1919,” is under advanced contract with Yale University Press.

Jones is a New Yorker, born in Queens and raised in Flushing, Queens, and Freeport, Long Island.

Emily Miethner is a serial entrepreneur with a focus on community building, social media, and digital marketing. An educator at heart, she is an award-winning keynote speaker with over 15 years of experience delivering engaging talks and sharing her expertise at conferences, events, and through teaching courses.

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In 2017, Emily co-founded Travel Cat, the #1 cat travel brand in the world. Travel Cat is a profitable, fast-growing, 7-figure omni-channel brand that serves "catstomers" in 100+ countries and is sold in over 1,200 retail locations worldwide. Emily oversees influencer marketing, SMS and email marketing, organic digital content, retail, product development, licensing, and partnerships for the brand.

In 2021, she founded a short-term rental brand in the Catskills/Hudson Valley, Getaway Upstate.

Her first business, FindSpark, launched in 2011 and has connected hundreds of employers with top diverse early career talent, produced more than 300 career programs, and cultivated an online and offline community of over 33,000 young professionals and employers, including Hulu, BuzzFeed, NBCUniversal, L’Oreal, Showtime, Ralph Lauren, and Walmart eCommerce.

Emily regularly leads talks on social media, networking, e-commerce, small businesses, and cats. She has spoken at Global Pet Expo, The International Youth Leaders Assembly at the United Nations, SXSW, Sony, Columbia, Yale, NYU, and the American Pet Products Association, among others. Her expertise has been featured on TV, print, and digital platforms, including Good Morning America, Cheddar TV Live, The New York Times, WSJ, Vice, and Vogue, as well as on 20+ podcasts. Since 2014, Emily has been an adjunct professor at institutions such as the School of Visual Arts and the Fashion Institute of Technology, where she teaches career and social media classes. She is also a proud member of Hofstra University’s Women in Leadership Advisory Board.

Eric M. Plakun, MD, is former medical director and chief executive officer of the Austen Riggs Center and former Harvard Medical School clinical faculty member. He is the editor of two books, author of over a hundred published papers and book chapters, and has presented widely in the US and overseas. Plakun is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and served as an elected member of its board of trustees. He is past chair of the APA committee on psychotherapy by psychiatrists, the APA bylaws committee, and founder and past leader of its psychotherapy caucus. He is a past member of the APA finance and budget committee, the APA assembly executive committee, and past chair of the assembly committee of representatives of subspecialties and sections.

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Plakun served as plaintiffs’ expert on adult mental disorders in the landmark case of Wit versus United Behavioral Health/Optum that challenged restricted access to treatment for mental and substance use disorders. He has been honored for his outstanding contributions by the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society and the American Psychoanalytic Association. Plakun is a leader in organized psychiatry and psychoanalysis, an advocate for the value of psychotherapy and other psychosocial treatments, and an advocate for access to care.

Before entering psychiatry, Plakun served as a rural general practitioner in Vermont—where he made house calls on skis.

Joshua Sankowski serves as the director of corporate partnerships at PathStone Corporation, a pioneering community development and human service organization operating across nine states and Puerto Rico. Since joining PathStone 13 years ago, Joshua has dedicated his career to advancing affordable housing initiatives and antipoverty programs. Working directly with the president and chief executive officer, he oversees public relations, communications and strategic partnerships while managing crucial grant and funding relationships.

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A passionate advocate for housing equity and homeless services, Joshua has chaired multiple Western New York/Upstate symposiums on homelessness and actively serves on the Homeless Services Network of Rochester. His leadership extends to the Genesee Land Trust, where he serves on the board of directors and co-chairs their development committee. His impactful work has earned him numerous accolades, including recognition in Rochester Business Journal's Forty Under 40 in 2017 and consecutive appearances on their Power List for LGBTQ+ Business Leaders in 2023 and 2024.

At Hofstra, Joshua graduated cum laude, earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and minors in English and fine arts. During his undergraduate years, he gained valuable experience as a scheduling intern for then-Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in Washington, D.C.

Jamie Whitfield graduated from Hofstra University in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts. Her advertising career includes 16 years as partner, director of Broadcast Talent and J. Walter Thompson Advertising. She is currently the senior talent specialist at Havas Advertising.

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Jamie has been an involved member of the Hofstra community, serving as the president of the Black Hispanic Alumni Association from 2022 to 2024. She is currently the co-chair of the Hofstra Alumni Association’s fundraising and scholarship committee. In addition, she uses her career experience in advertising in her role as advisor at Hofstra’s School of Communication.

She has a scholarship established to honor her father, Oscar N. Whitfield III, which supports students studying the creative arts.

Jamie is a proud member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority and has dedicated her spare time to the graduate chapter of the organization, Eta Omega Omega. There, she engages in public service through mentorship to high school students and other public service in the chapter’s Bronx community.

In addition, she serves as a judge for speech competitions for high school students on the local and national level. An avid community theater performer and stage manager, Jamie volunteers her time working with the Pelham Memorial Middle School and High School drama departments. Jamie is extremely honored to receive of this wonderful award.

Dr. Sanam Hafeez received her doctorate from Hofstra University, with a research interest in PTSD and secondary trauma, and completed her post-doctoral work in neuro-developmental psychology at Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn, NY.

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She is a New York State licensed psychologist, and a New York State certified school psychologist.

Dr. Hafeez is a pioneer in neuropsychological assessments, reshaping its clinical model and best practices.  She founded Comprehend the Mind in 2006 and continues to serve as the director of her neuropsychological assessment center.

Dr. Hafeez is also a trusted media expert, and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, ABCNews, and Fox News. She has contributed to the New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Harper’s Bazaar, WebMD, Yahoo, Psychology Today, and serves on multiple boards as an expert in mental health and education. She has published a chapter on secondary trauma with IGO Global in a textbook on PTSD by Dr. Robert Motta in 2024.  Dr. Hafeez is in contract to write a textbook on autism and its complex diagnostic profile.  She is also co-authoring a book on trauma and substance abuse.

Dr. Hafeez greatest role is that of ‘Mama’ to her twin boys. She enjoys traveling and would have been a movie critic in another life.