25 Years Later: Reflections of a Generation

In August 2001, CUNY's Macaulay Honors College welcomed its first class, just weeks before the September 11 attacks reshaped New York City and the nation. As Macaulay marks its 25th year alongside this milestone anniversary of 9/11, inaugural alumni Deanna Bitetti, Senior Communications Officer at the UN High Commissioner for Refugees; Jesús A. Hernández-García, Esq., Federal Public Defender; and Amanda Perez, journalist and educator, return to reflect on beginning their college careers at a moment that would come to define a generation of New Yorkers. The program will open with welcome remarks from Ryan Merola, Chief of Staff to New York City Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch and an alumnus from Macaulay's third cohort. In conversation with 9/11 Memorial & Museum Director Clifford Chanin, they will discuss how coming of age in New York during a time of profound loss and resilience has remained part of their personal and professional journeys and influenced how they understand service, community, and their roles in the world today.