Dear Students,
Every once in a while there is a harmonic convergence in my apartment in Washington Heights, when both of my (huge) sons, Javier and Mateo, are at home, both are relaxed, both are in a good mood, both are in the mindset that they have all the time in the world to hang out with their parents, and both even want to. In those all too brief and fleeting moments I can sometimes convince them to play their guitars and we have a family sing-a-long. The boys take turns choosing the song and then they sit close together on our couch to look at the musical chords while they play and we all sing. These moments are so joy-filled and fun that I’m distracted by nothing and am solely focused on making music with my kids. I am also silently wishing for time to stop.
A family favorite is the song Something in the Orange by Zach Bryan. The song’s music video includes a montage of sunset images sent in by fans and it inspired our family’s now regular habit of snapping a photo whenever we catch a sunset and sharing them in our family group chat. If you start to pay attention to sunsets, no matter where you are, they are almost always gorgeous and often arresting.
Sunsets are also a liminal time, the moments between day and night. They are a transitional stage, a boundary position, a time between times. They can evoke reflection, stillness, and feelings of peace or even transformation. They are also fleeting. When I spot a particularly pretty sunset I again find myself silently wishing for time to stop. I want to stay in the liminal.
We are all in liminal time right now, just ending the semester, finishing up finals and papers, wrapping up grading, scheduling final meetings before summer, packing and unpacking, preparing to move, to celebrate, to start a new internship or job, saying goodbye to old friends and hello to new colleagues. Some of you are joining TC’s community for the first time. Others are ending their first full year of studies with us. Some are graduating. None of us is standing still, yet most of us have not yet moved beyond the liminal time. Transitions can fill us with anxiety and excitement simultaneously. We often feel uneasy, optimistic and anticipatory, yes, but also nervous and out of sorts. The boundary position is challenging, but also precious.
In Kurt Lewin’s language of “Unfreeze – Change – Refreeze” we are in the Change phase, the time of upheaval, turbulence, movement and growth. We will all refreeze soon enough, so I urge you to savor these days. Try to pay attention to what you are doing, thinking and feeling during this liminal time. Take a few moments to reflect on all you have learned and how much you have grown over the past year. Steady yourself when you feel apprehensive and relish the feelings of excitement and hopefulness about what is yet to come.
You have all worked very hard this year. I speak on behalf of all my Social-Organizational Psychology faculty and staff colleagues when I tell you we are proud of you and that we are wishing you well. Please know you will always have a community here at Teachers College and that you take that community with you wherever you go.
Happy end of semester! Happy graduation! Happy summer! I look forward to seeing you soon.
Warmly,
Current Student Profile
Michele is a first-year M.A. student in the Social-Organizational Psychology program at Teachers College, Columbia University. As a first-generation college student, she brings a deep appreciation for the challenges and the opportunities that come with pursuing higher education, which continues to shape her commitment to growth and impact.
She brings extensive experience in human resources, currently serving as HR Manager, Strategic Operations & Employee Experience, where she leads initiatives focused on engagement, culture, and performance management.
Michele is particularly passionate about employee experience, organizational effectiveness, and aligning people strategies with institutional priorities. Her work centers on creating meaningful, people-centered systems that support development, connection, and a strong sense of community.
Outside of her professional and academic work, Michele is a proud mom to three boys who are avid soccer players and enjoys spending time with her family while embracing opportunities for continued personal and professional growth.
Alumni Profile
Seth is a 1997 graduate of the MA in Organizational Behavior program at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is a Partner at PwC and serves as the Global Risk, Technology, and Data Leader, where he drives the firm’s global strategy to modernize risk management through technology innovation and large-scale implementation.
With more than 25 years of experience, Seth has built his career at the intersection of risk, technology, and data—helping organizations redesign and digitize their risk and compliance functions for the modern enterprise. He focuses on implementing advanced platforms, workflow automation, and AI and analytics to make risk processes more integrated, efficient, and insight-led. By pairing deep industry and regulatory expertise with technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, he helps institutions enhance decision-making, strengthen governance, and unlock more value from both structured and unstructured data.
Seth previously served as PwC’s National Consulting Leader for Integrated Risk Technology, where he led teams that modernized clients’ compliance architectures, risk frameworks, and control environments. He has overseen multi-year, global transformation programs that improve operational resilience, regulatory readiness, and technology enablement across complex organizations.
Prior to joining PwC, Seth was a Managing Director at AlixPartners, where he founded and grew the Financial Services Technology and Data practice, expanding its capabilities in commercial risk, business intelligence, and data-driven performance improvement.
Before AlixPartners, he was a Partner at EY, where he led a Technology Risk and Data practice delivering regulatory, cybersecurity, and compliance technology solutions to financial institutions. He began his career at BearingPoint, advising major financial institutions on technology strategy and digital transformation.
In addition to his client work, Seth is committed to developing the next generation of professionals and expanding access to technology education. He founded an advanced analytics program at New York University to help accounting students master data and analytics in their profession. He also co-founded Creative Computing, a program that raises funds and provides opportunities for thousands of students in underserved communities to learn coding techniques and build foundational digital skills.
A recognized thought leader in risk and compliance innovation, Seth’s insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, GARP, and The Financial Brand. He frequently speaks on modernizing risk and compliance through technology—covering topics such as data-driven decision-making, automation, and the practical use of AI within governance, risk, and compliance.
Seth holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Delaware and an MA from Teachers College, Columbia University. He also holds an Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation certification from MIT.
Recommended Readings
Graduating and on the job hunt? Consider the advice in this Forbes article: 3 Things New Grads Should Do Instead Of Waiting For The Perfect Job
Not graduating? Consider this article in The Chronicle of Higher Education on Planning a productive summer for graduate students
Looking for a beach read? Consider Moral Ambition by Rutger Bregman
Looking to build a summer reading list? Check out the NYT best books of the year (so far) list