IACS Travel and Event Programs will be the “Talk of the Town”

New hire Sarena Romano hopes to pique Stony Brook students’ interest in computational studies     

When attending a party have you ever wondered who is behind the food, music, invitations and décor? Hint: It takes someone with excellent organizational abilities, creativity and interpersonal skills.

Here at IACS, that person is Sarena Romano who joined IACS in May 2015 as the Travel and Event Coordinator. Sarena is charged with synchronizing faculty, staff and student travel plans - both domestic and international - in addition to creating, planning and overseeing all IACS events that take place on- and off-campus. It’s her hope “to create an event program that becomes the ‘talk of the town’ - or at least the campus,” said Sarena.

With her diverse work background, she has accrued a unique set of skills and abilities well suited for her new position at IACS. As executive assistant to the director of  SBU’s Center for Thermal Spray Research, her previous position, Sarena successfully planned and coordinated two annual consortium events. Before coming to SBU she worked as a Customer Service Manager at Tanger Outlets in Deer Park, New York as well as a new-home designer for a leading New Jersey homebuilder. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Secondary Education from Stony Brook University.

Sarena has energetically and enthusiastically taken on her new position. She said she already has several events planned for the remainder of 2015, including a wine and cheese gathering; a Halloween party; an annual networking social; movie night; and an etiquette dinner. Sarena said besides ensuring IACS faculty and staff enjoy themselves, her primary objective when orchestrating IACS gatherings is to pique “Stony Brook University students’ interests not only in computational studies but the forums these events provide: fun and engaging opportunities to share their work, brainstorm ideas, meet new colleagues and occasionally kick up their feet and watch a movie.”