Alumnae Career Panel
Saturday, June 8
9:45 AM
The Alumnae Career Panel will bring together alumnae in various fields and careers to foster meaningful connections across age and geography.
Join us for coffee and conversation, and network with our dynamic panelists/your SEM sisters!
Molly Roach '74 - Assistant U.S. Attorney
Vanessa Vari '94 - Violin Teacher, Suzuki Strings of Denver
Molly Beck-Joslyn '99 PhD - Licensed Psychologist
Kerri Chyka '99 - Head of Communications, Editorial and Research at Bloomberg
Casey Perley '04 - Deputy Technical Assessment Lead for the Army Applications Laboratory
Jule Carr '09 - Engineer, Geosyntec Consultants
Moderator:
Julianna Glauser-Jordan '05
Panelists:
Molly Roach 1974 - Assistant U.S. Attorney
Molly Roach graduated from Buffalo Seminary in 1974. She attended Williams College and the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School. She worked in private practice from 1983 to 1995 and was a partner in a law firm of Falk and Siemer, and her practice included commercial and personal injury litigation and school law.
Molly joined the Office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of New York in 1995. She has worked in the Civil Division of the US Attorney‘s office since that time. Her practice includes defense of personal injury actions, including malpractice claims, employment discrimination claims and various other federal claims against the United States.
Molly was appointed Senior Litigation Counsel in 2008. In this role, she provides advice to office management and to attorneys in the office, and coordinates continuing legal education for attorneys. She received a Directors Award from the Department of Justice for superior service in 2011.
She served on the Board of Directors of the Bar Association Erie County, and chaired the federal practice committee. She also served on the boards of the Women’s Bar Association, Neighborhood Legal Services, and Buffalo Seminary. She has been a presenter at the National Advocacy Center in South Carolina and at continuing legal education programs sponsored by the Erie County Bar Association.
Vanessa Vari 1994 - Violin Teacher, Suzuki Strings of Denver
“Talent education for the whole child” is Vanessa Vari’s motto in her studio, Suzuki Strings of Denver, where she teaches private and group violin lessons along with early childhood education classes.
Vanessa began her own diligent violin studies at the tender age of 2 1/2 years with Mary Cay Neal and the Buffalo Suzuki Strings. Through her BSS experience, she was very fortunate to perform on several international concert tours, and to study with Dr. Suzuki in Australia. At Buffalo Seminary, she enjoyed many laughs playing in the Ensemble under maestro Dr. Joseph Wincenc!
After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, Ms. Vari went on to complete her master’s degree in Suzuki Pedagogy with Sanford Reuning at Ithaca College.
Following three years of teaching at the Suzuki String School of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, Vanessa moved to Colorado to join the Boulder Suzuki Partnership and to begin her own Suzuki studio in Denver.
She has since directed summer music camps, co-coordinated national student orchestras, and enjoyed hearing her advanced students perform at various events across the country.
While performing with several ensembles including the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra and her rock band, The Atomic, Ms. Vari continues to receive training in Suzuki Early Childhood Education and to guest teach around North America.
Molly Beck-Joslyn 1999 - PhD Licensed Psychologist
After graduating from SEM in 1999, Molly attended UB and rowed for its Division I team while completing a bachelor of science in Health and Human Services (’03). Molly started her PhD in Counseling Psychology at University at Buffalo in the fall of 2003 and graduated in 2008 with clinical experience ranging from child/adolescent to adult inpatient and outpatient treatment.
Her graduate and post graduate research focused on eating disorder treatment, group therapy, yoga and mindfulness, and foster care and attachment. Molly worked at Buffalo State College Counseling Center for about two years before opening her private practice in 2010. She has sat on the Board of Directors for Ken-Ton Meals on Wheels and Psychological Association of WNY and maintained memberships in the local, state, and national psychology organizations.
Molly has worked with older children through late adulthood in her practice, though in recent years has shifted to working primarily with adults. She provides individual therapy with a focus on women’s issues, perinatal mood and anxiety, stress management, and grief. She integrates mindfulness and positive psychology into her work and has an overall wellness approach with each client. In addition to her private practice, she collaborates with UB School of Medicine to support their mental health initiative for medical residents (ReST program) and a Women’s Clinic team, focused on providing assessment and care for women during pregnancy and postpartum.
Molly married in 2009 and has two daughters, Emma (7 years old) and Zoey (almost 6 years old). Her family loves living in Buffalo and being active members in the community.
Kerri Chyka 1999 - Head of Communications, Editorial and research at Bloomberg
Kerri Chyka, a 1999 SEM graduate, has worked in New York media for more than 15 years. Last year she joined Bloomberg as head of communications for its editorial and research division, overseeing global media relations for Bloomberg News, Bloomberg Businessweek, Bloomberg Television and Radio, among other entities.
Previously, she oversaw communications for Time and Fortune magazines. She worked with these brands for eight years during which time, among other responsibilities, she led public relations for major franchises including the Time 100, Time Person of the Year, Fortune 500, Most Powerful Women, Fortune Best Companies to Work For and more. Kerri began her career working at various PR agencies and for the film studio New Line Cinema.
She graduated from Boston University in 2003 with a bachelor's degree in English and her fondest memory there was serving as the college paper’s arts and culture editor. She lives in Brooklyn, grew up in West Seneca, and is beyond excited to spend time with her SEM classmates this weekend.
Casey Perley 2004 - Deputy Technical Assessment Lead for the Army Applications Laboratory
Dr. Casey Perley is the Deputy Technical Assessment lead for the Army Applications Laboratory, a component of the Army Futures Command, which helps non-standard defense innovators bring technologies to the military market. She holds a B.S. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University, a PhD in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology from Duke University, and spent four years as a post-doctoral fellow in the Virology Section of the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases.
Outside of science, Dr. Perley is a classical harpist and has played as both principal and a featured soloist with numerous orchestras in Connecticut, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Maryland.
Jule Carr 2009 - Engineer, Geosyntec Consultants
Jule is a Licensed Professional Engineer located in Pittsburgh at Geosyntec Consultants with over five years of experience in the civil engineering industry (specifically in the contaminated site remediation, geotechnical engineering, geospatial, and construction sectors). Previously, she worked as a construction field engineer and now works on designing construction plans. She has worked on projects throughout the United States and Canada as an integral team member to clean up contaminated sites for future reuse and development. Each day presents a different challenge with site conditions, client communication, and problem solving!