The Power of Being People for Others

Moderator: Vanessa Rotondo ’17, ’25 PhD, Mission Strategy Officer, Fordham University

Vanessa Rotondo, PhD, is the mission strategy officer at Fordham University, where she advances university-wide initiatives at the intersection of Fordham’s Catholic and Jesuit mission, institutional strategy, and emerging challenges in higher education. A triple alumna of Fordham, she holds a doctorate in religious education and teaches theology to undergraduates.

Rotondo’s scholarship and professional work focus on Ignatian pedagogy, artificial intelligence, synodality, and the Catholic imagination. Her doctoral research examines how Jesuit education can cultivate discernment, moral imagination, and interior freedom amid rapid cultural and technological change. She publishes and presents on the future of Catholic and Jesuit higher education and works to translate the Ignatian tradition into strategies for institutional formation, leadership, and mission integration.

Anita Batisti, PhD, Associate Dean; Founding Executive Director, Center for Educational Partnerships

Anita Batisti, PhD, is a visionary leader who has redefined the commitment Fordham University and the Graduate School of Education have to the City of New York. As associate dean and founding executive director of the Center for Educational Partnerships at the Graduate School of Education, Batisti has dismantled the walls between higher education and local communities. Since establishing the center in 2006, she has transformed it into a powerhouse of service, securing more than $150 million in grant funding to support the city’s most vulnerable populations.

During the course of her career, Batisti has served as an administrator, educator, and development specialist for the New York City Department of Education, Pace University, New York University, the United States Department of Education, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and other nonprofit organizations.

She’s received Fordham’s Archbishop Hughes Medal and President’s Meritorious Service Award, and was named a 2024 Mujeres Destacada by El Diario and one of the 25 Bronx Influential Women by Bronx Times.

A native New Yorker, Batisti attended New York City public schools. She received a PhD in administration, supervision, and urban policy from Fordham, , an MS in education from Hunter College Graduate School of Education, and a Bachelor of Business Administration from City College, Baruch School of Business Administration.

Kasia Laskowski Burke ’10, ’18 MA, Executive Director and Customer Success Manager, Thrive Global Foundation 

Kasia Laskowski Burke is the executive director of the Thrive Global Foundation and a customer success manager at Thrive Global, a behavior change technology company focused on mental resilience, health outcomes, and workplace productivity. Over eight years at Thrive, she has partnered with enterprise clients on wellbeing strategy and led the foundation’s work with nonprofits, the public sector, and educational institutions — including launching #FirstRespondersFirst and ALL IN: Wellbeing First for Healthcare with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the CAA Foundation. A graduate of Fordham College at Rose Hill with a master's in international humanitarian action from Fordham, Burke lives in New Jersey with her husband and son.

Camesha Grant '00, '07 PhD, Vice President, Community Impact and Investment, Food Bank for NYC

For more than three decades, Camesha Grant has been a champion for the people of New York City. A Queens native and a career social worker, she spearheads the strategic effort to expand food access and resources in NYC’s most underserved neighborhoods. By fostering innovative partnerships between Food Bank for New York City and various civic, community, and academic institutions, she ensures that support reaches the 1.2 million New Yorkers who struggle with food insecurity each year.

Grant’s leadership is informed by close to 20 years of service at the NYC Administration for Children’s Services, where she held leadership roles in the divisions of child protection and policy and planning. An accomplished scholar, she holds a BA from Virginia State University and both a master’s degree and a PhD in social work from Fordham University, where she also taught as an adjunct professor for 10 years. Grant was named a Black Trailblazer by City & State in 2025.

Cindy Vojtech ’00, Chief of the Financial Institution Risk Evaluation, Federal Reserve Board

Cindy Vojtech is chief of the Financial Institution Risk Evaluation (FIRE) section in the Division of Financial Stability at the Federal Reserve Board. She leads a team of researchers that focuses on identifying and measuring the systemic risks of banks and banking organizations. Her research interests include financial institutions and the effects of regulation. She joined the board in 2011 after receiving her PhD in economics from the University of California, San Diego. Prior to attending graduate school, Vojtech worked as an economist at the Bureau of Economic Analysis and as an investment banking analyst at Lehman Brothers. She received her bachelor’s degree from the Gabelli School of Business, graduating as valedictorian. 

Outside of work, Vojtech enjoys teaching. She was a lecturer at the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences at Johns Hopkins University for more than a decade. This academic year is the 20th year she has served as a catechist at her local parish. Other service roles include being on the Parish Pastoral Council of St. Augustine Catholic Church in Washington, DC, and a member of Fordham University’s President’s Council.