Charlie Sherman

Charlie Sherman, fire and building safety coordinator in the Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management, retired Jan. 14. According to an Intercom post written by Elyse Nepa, assistant director of Clery Act and prevention education, Sherman worked in municipal fire service for three decades before coming to Ithaca College.

“Charlie is widely known across campus for his reassuring smile and offering of kind words to those in need, leaving a positive impression on everyone he encountered,” Nepa Said. “His presence on campus and in our office will be greatly missed.”

Before his time at the college, he served the city of Cortland as assistant fire chief from 1988 to 2010, before later working as fire marshal for the Oneida Indian Nation Department of Environmental Health and Safety from 2012 to 2014.

Paula Larsen

Paula Larsen, administrative assistant in the Department of Chemistry, retired Jan. 17. For 25 years, she worked at the college, beginning in the Facilities department before becoming the administrative assistant of the Department of Chemistry.

Michelle Stiles 

Michelle Stiles, administration and operations assistant in the Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management, retired Jan. 6 after 12 years at the College. Stiles managed many of the administrative tasks for the Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management. Stiles received a masters in education from Le Moyne College, and previously worked as a planning analyst and a material manager for different companies across upstate New York.

“Michelle will be leaving us to enjoy some of the finer focuses in her life to include her work with stained glass, leather sewing and repair and taking long motorcycle rides with her husband, Ron,” Nepa said in an Intercom post. “A staple of Michelle’s presence in the Office of Public Safety is her laughter, which can often be heard down many of the hallways of OPS, concurrently. This will be missed.”

Shadayvia Wallace

At the end of Fall 2024, Shadayvia Wallace, associate director of the BIPOC Unity Center and program director of the MLK Scholarship program, left the college. She ended her time with a farewell party Dec. 16. Wallace took on a new role as director of educational opportunity programs and assistant diversity officer at Tompkins Cortland Community College.

Wallace previously worked at Syracuse University from 2015 to 2017 and Le Moyne College from 2017 to 2021, before spending three and a half years at Ithaca College. “While I am excited about this new chapter, leaving Ithaca College is bittersweet,” Wallace wrote in an Intercom post. “I will deeply miss the joy, energy, and authenticity that define this community and the incredible people who make it what it is.”

Liz Miller

At the end of Fall 2024, Liz Miller, clinical assistant professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology and clinic director of the Sir Alexander Ewing-Ithaca College Speech and Hearing Clinic, left the college. As both a professor and the head of the clinic, Miller played a large role in the School of Health Sciences and Human Performance. Miller continually pushed the department forward, searching for and exploring new opportunities, expanding into telehealth and gaining new contracts with different services for the clinic.

Christine Haase

Christine Haase, administrative assistant for the School of Humanities and Sciences, retired Jan. 6. Haase’s time at the college began more than 34 years ago in the Mail Center. After that, she worked with the Center for the Study of Culture, Race, and Ethnicity, the Department of Philosophy and Religion, and the Jewish Studies program. She also served on the Faculty Council for multiple terms. Haase was known for her dedication and commitment to the school and the campus community, as well as her fellow staff and faculty.

Jess Shapiro 

On Oct. 14, Jess Shapiro, assistant director of the Office of Student Engagement, left the college and headed across town to a new role as a program manager for the College of Arts and Sciences Career Development Office at Cornell University. At Ithaca College, Shapiro was the adviser to student groups that planned big events on campus including IC After Dark and Senior Week as well as being the Senior Class adviser.

Shapiro is responsible for creating the Campus Center Programming Grant, allowing student-run organizations and clubs a stipend to organize one-time weekend events in the Campus Center. Additionally, Shapiro organized the first three years of the Co-Curricular Symposium, a forum for students to share their formative experiences with the various co-curricular programs here at the college.

Before coming to Ithaca, Shapiro worked at universities across the Midwest, specifically Denison University, Bowling Green State University and the University of Michigan.