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Mary Leon Vail, '13 MBA, recently accepted a six-month volunteer assignment with Bankers without Borders to work with a social enterprise, EcoZoom, based in Kenya.

Judy A. Cornelius, '79 BA Criminal Justice, retired in 2011 from UNR where she was associate director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming. She says she enjoyed having professional colleagues all over the world and traveling extensively. She co-edited a number of books and collaborated in the design and execution of the executive development program for casino executives that began in 1991 and continues to this day. Cornelius, who earned a BS in economics from UNR in 1987, is the proud aunt of seven nieces and nephews and great aunt of 12 more. She lists collecting antiques, houses, and cats as her hobbies. The Reno resident currently has a retirement gig handing out samples at a store and discovering how amazingly some people can behave for 1/6 of a free peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Megan Lane Neri, '03 BA Communications Studies, recently returned to UNLV as the director of communications for the Lee Business School. Previously she worked at Imagine Communications, a full-service marketing and communication firm, where she began as an intern during her last year at UNLV.

Mikayla Whitmore, '10 BFA Art, is an artist based in Las Vegas who was selected as the best photographer in the city of Las Vegas by Desert Companion. She completed artist residencies at both the Cosmopolitan (2015) and the Neon Museum (2016). Her work has appeared at the Torrence Art Museum in California, the Humble Arts Foundation in New York, and in galleries across Las Vegas, including two of UNLV's museums, the Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery and the Marjorie Barrick Museum. Commercial clients include Vice, Thrillist, Wall Street Journal, and ESPN. Road trips, rock hunting in the desert, and thrift store treasure hunting are among her hobbies.

Mike Branum, '17 JD, accepted a senior associate position with Gallian, Welker, and Beckstrom in Saint George, Utah. On April 25, he married Lisa Marie Dunn. They spent three weeks driving around southern Germany for their honeymoon.

Luke Cavener, '05 BA Political Science and '05 BA Journalism and Media Studies, is director or government relations for the American Cancer Society cancer action network and a member of the Meridian (Idaho) City Council. He and his wife, Adrean, have two children, Gunner and Lincoln.

Jordan Hollander, '16 LLM Gaming Law and Regulation, recently was elected to serve as the chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association, Casino Law Section for the 2018-19 term. He lives in Branchburg.

Wendy Callahan Roksvold, '99 BA Communication Studies, now works at AppleOne as an accounting and engineering specialist. She is a hockey/goalie mom and a hockey fanatic. Go, Knights, Go!  

Sal Semola, '81 BS Hotel Administration, is responsible for the oversight of the operation and master plan for Gun Lake Casino in Michigan. Previously, he was president of Cornerstone Gaming, a full-service casino gaming consulting and management company and in the 1990s served as an adjunct professor at UNLV. He established the Salvatore P. Semola Scholarship for hotel administration students at UNLV and encourages all alumni to support UNLV however they can. He lives in Wayland.

Russell B. Leavitt, '78 BS History, recently received the Special Achievement Award from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Leavitt is executive chairman of Telgian Holdings, a worldwide provider of comprehensive fire, security, and life safety consulting and engineering/design services. The award, which was presented during the technical committee session, celebrates the significant contribution of a committee member to a single project that has enhanced the NFPA standards development process. Leavitt’s active role as chair of the NFPA 13 Restructuring Task Group for the 2019 edition led to the recognition. NFPA 13 is recognized globally as the benchmark standard for the design and installation of fire sprinkler systems. The reformatted NFPA 13 is designed to make this widely used document easier to use and interpret for non-expert users. Over the course of 18 months, Leavitt exhibited incredible dedication to the project, attention to essential details, and strong leadership skills, according to Kerry Bell, Standards Council chair. Leavitt lives in Phoenix.    

Tongyu Zhang, '16 BS Hotel Administration, recently joined TAL Education Corp. in Beijing, China, as a specialized consultant. Previously, he worked as a duty manager at both the Marriott and Starwood hotels in Beijing. He says he enjoys working with many students who are interested in studying abroad. He also is studying English interpretation via an Internet-based degree program at Beijing Foreign Study University.

Justin Veilleux, '04 BS Engineering - Computer Engineering, will be returning to UNLV this fall to pursue an MBA. He has been with FEA Consulting Engineers for more than 10 years. He received his professional engineer (PE) certification in mechanical engineering and is now a dual PE in both mechanical and electrical engineering. Some of his significant projects in Nevada include Resorts World Las Vegas, the Cromwell Hotel Las Vegas and its Giada’s restaurant and Drai’s nightclub, TopGolf Las Vegas, Downtown Grand Casino, Tivoli Village, Mandalay Bay Convention Center expansion, and MGM Grand Convention Center expansion. He also has been involved in projects across the country.