While at Ellis, Elissa McCARTHY Tessier played field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse for the Tigers in grade 7 through grade 12. During her athletic career, she was awarded MVP in Varsity Field Hockey in 1994 and 1995, MVP in Varsity Basketball in 1994, and MVP for JV Lacrosse in 1992, as well as Varsity in 1994 and 1995. During her senior year, she was the recipient of the Sportsmanship Award.

After graduating Ellis, Elissa was a four-year letter winner for the Denison University field hockey and lacrosse teams between 1995-99. Elissa was a five-time All-American and eight-time All-NCAC honoree. Her career was highlighted by a pair of first-team All-America honors in 1996 and 1998 for field hockey. In 1997, she was named the NCAC’s Offensive Player of the Year, and in 2004 she was named to the prestigious NCAC 20th Year Anniversary Team. She remains the only three-time All-American in Denison field hockey history. She received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Connecticut and has worked for the Veteran Healthcare Administration since 2006. She currently lives in Connecticut with her husband and three daughters.

Susan DAVENPORT Austin '85 currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of Grace Church School in New York City. In this role, she is responsible for the overall financial management of the school. Grace Church School serves approximately 780 students from Jr. Kindergarten through 12th grade. Additionally, she serves as a board member for a number of companies and nonprofits. Prior to joining Grace Church School, Ms. Austin served as a Senior Managing Director at Brock Capital Group, a boutique investment bank, since 2013. Previously, she spent ten years at Sheridan Broadcasting Corporation, a private broadcast radio company. At Sheridan, she served as Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer and as President of the Sheridan Gospel Network. Prior to Sheridan, Ms. Austin worked at Goldman Sachs, Bear Stearns, and Salomon Brothers.

Ms. Austin was named one of the “40 Most Powerful People in Radio” in 2013 and 2014 by Radio Ink Magazine. Radio Ink also named her one of the “Most Influential Women in Radio” and/or one of the “Most Influential African Americans in Radio” from 2006 to 2015. She has been profiled twice as the cover story in Radio Ink (2005 and 2013). 

Ms. Austin received her A.B. from Harvard University and M.B.A. from Stanford Graduate School of Business. She and her husband, Kenneth Austin, have two children (Abigail and Kyle) and reside in New York and East Hampton.

Dr. Nicole F. Vélez '00 graduated Phi Beta Kappa and cum laude from Carnegie Mellon University and with Alpha Omega Alpha honors from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. She then went on to complete a combined internal medicine and dermatology residency at Harvard Medical School, and received additional fellowship training in Mohs micrographic surgery for skin cancer and cosmetic dermatology.

Dr. Vélez is a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and a fellow of the American College of Mohs Surgeons. After practicing dermatology for five years in Pittsburgh, she started her own dermatology and Mohs surgery practice in Cranberry, PA. She enjoys teaching and staying on top of new advancements in her field. Dr. Vélez has published over 20 peer-reviewed journal articles and lectured both nationally and internationally on skin cancer.

When not at work, Dr. Vélez enjoys spending time with her husband, two young boys, and extended family.

Kristen HAUSER '10 is a Powertrain Fuel Economy Integration Engineer at Ford Motor Company. After earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 2014, she relocated to southeast Michigan to join the Ford College Graduate Program. In this program, she completed five job rotations in the areas of software development, program management, and product launch to deliver products including the Lincoln Continental and F-150 Raptor.  

Her current organization is responsible for designing and implementing software that controls the electromechanical systems which allow gas engines and automatic transmissions to comply with federal emissions and fuel economy standards, as well as deliver optimal performance to customers. In her current role as a fuel economy integration engineer, she uses analytical tools and lab testing to find fuel economy opportunities within these control systems and collaborates with North American, European, and Chinese teams to implement the changes and ensure future regulatory compliance.

In her free time, she participates in an amateur endurance road racing series called Champ Car with friends from work and explores remote international destinations with her boyfriend, Trevor. She resides in Royal Oak, Michigan with her two cats, Nugget and Shelby.  

Michelle GIRTS '70, President of EnTranRight LLC, has been building successful businesses around technology and talent for 35 years. Michelle joined CH2M HILL as an Environmental Scientist to develop and commercialize the innovative, low-cost treatment technology of engineered wetlands, based on her research under a U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Fellowship at the US Bureau of Mines. Before specializing in wetland biogeochemistry, Michelle worked for the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and the Portland, OR Water Bureau Water Quality Division. 

 

Since retirement, Michelle was appointed to the Clark County Clean Water Commission, and she is active as Chair of the local chapter of the Ninety Nines (an international women pilot association), secretary of the local chapter of Sigma Xi (honorary science research association), and book group leader for the local American Association of University Women chapter. She also is active in Presbyterian church ministries, is a Master Gardener, dabbles in genealogy—and flies a Cirrus single engine airplane with her husband in her spare time.

 

Ms. Girts has a B.S. (Portland State University) and M.S. in Biology (West Virginia University) with minors in geology and civil engineering, and she completed course requirements towards a Ph.D. in Engineering Water Resources at Oregon State University.

Liz SUCCOP Altman, Kathy MCMORRAN Murray, Susie GILBERT Tabor, Michelle GIRTS, Parie MILLER Duggan

Courtney SYSKOWSKI and Jessica RUFFIN

Megan MARKOVITZ