Director of Field Education at Hartford International University for Religion and Peace, working with students in the Peacebuilding and Chaplaincy Graduate Programs. Born in London to parents from Sri Lanka, she is active in the community and works with the Islamic Association of Greater Hartford and on the Community Service Committee of the Muslim Coalition of Connecticut, where she was President from 2011-2015. A Community Chaplain in the Greater Hartford area committed to building bridges of understanding, Aida has been making presentations about Islam and the Muslim world since 1999. She is also a board member of the Connecticut Council for Interreligious Understanding, the Coalition for Elder Justice in Connecticut and the State of Connecticut's Commission Against Hate Crimes. Her awards include the Human Relations Award from the National Conference for Community and Justice, a Pubic Service Award from the Permanent Commission on the Status of Hartford Women (City of Hartford), and she was named one of 30 Women of Distinction in 2019 by Hartford Magazine. She holds an undergraduate degree with honors in biology and physiology from King's College (London), a master's degree in community health from California College of Health Sciences and a master's degree in Islamic studies and Christian Muslim relations from Hartford Seminary.
Marilda Gándara
Born in Cuba, former President of the philanthropic AETNA Foundation, 1998-2008. Ms. Gandara had a 30 career with Aetna — including Attorney Specializing in real estate and manager of a $5 billion real estate portfolio. She serves on the Executive Committee for the Veterans Day Parade, on the boards of CT Forum, Hartford Hospital, and Covenant Prep. She has been honored by many nonprofits, including Hispanics in Philanthropy, The Bushnell, Urban League of Greater Hartford, Metro Hartford Alliance and the CT Council for Philanthropy. She has a Law Degree from UCONN.Her mother and she fled Cuba to the US, when she was 10 years old.
Judith Altmann
Was born in Jasina Czechoslovakia, which was occupied by the Nazis in 1939. In 1944 she was arrested and transported to Auschwitz concentration camp with her niece where they were selected for work. From there she was sent to Essen and Gelsenkirchen Labor camps where she remained until March 1945. She survived the "death march" that ended in the Bergen Belsen concentration camp. Sick with typhus, Judy was barely alive when she was liberated by the British Army in 1945. Ms. Altmann was given the opportunity to go to Sweden. She lived in Swedenuntil1948atwhichtimesheimmigratedtothe United States. Judy, who has extensive experience speaking in schools, is a member of the Holocaust & Human Rights Education Speakers Bureau and is Vice President of the Holocaust Child Survivors of Connecticut.
Dr. Radenka Maric
Vice President for Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VPRIE), is Interim President of the University of Connecticut, the state’s flagship public university. She also holds the rank of Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and Chair Professor in Sustainable Energy in UConn’s Departments of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering. She previously served as Executive Director of the UConn Technology Park and Innovation Partnership Building. Dr. Maric is a world leader in technologies for clean energy and sustainability. She brings her technical background in materials and energy to create, manage and lead innovative programs designed to commercialize new products and develop emerging markets. She was born and raised in the former Yugoslavia and earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Belgrade in Serbia, then earned her master’s and Ph.D. in materials science and energy at Kyoto University in Japan. She is a talented painter and pianist, an amateur chef, and speaks four languages fluently (Croatian, English, German, and Japanese). She holds the rank of Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2019), the National Academy of Inventors (2019), and the International Association of Advanced Materials (2020).