Elon University celebrated 10 remarkable alumni from the past decade who have achieved professional success, worked to better their communities and served as loyal alumni.
Elon University honored 10 standout alumni at the 2026 Top 10 Under 10 Alumni Awards. Held on Saturday, May 2, in the Snow Family Grand Atrium, the ceremony brought together alumni, faculty, staff, family and friends to recognize graduates of the past decade who are making a significant difference in the world.
Among the honorees were reporters, entrepreneurs, researchers and more, whose journeys reflect the values that define the Elon experience.
See a photo gallery from the ceremony.
Morgan Bodenarain ’18 – Policy Director and Counsel, Congressional Black Caucus | Washington, D.C.
As policy director and counsel for the Congressional Black Caucus in the 119th United States Congress, Morgan Bodenarain leads policy development and advocacy efforts on behalf of its 61 members, previously holding the same role in the 118th Congress. Bodenarain’s work has earned national recognition, and she has been honored with the National Black Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 Award and the National Bar Association’s Nation’s Best Advocates Award.
At Elon, Bodenarain was active in the Student Government Association, Phi Alpha Delta professional pre-law fraternity, the North Carolina State Legislature and much more. After graduation, she received her juris doctorate from The George Washington University, where she served as president of the Black Law Students Association and deputy vice president of student affairs in the Student Bar Association.
In her remarks, Bodenarain shared that her four years at Elon contributed heavily to who she is as a person, noting, “Elon is truly unlike any other place. Thank you, Elon, for recognizing my success.”
Colby Marvin Bracy ’16 – Director of Human Resources & Philanthropy, The Nonantum Resort, and Owner, Hello Humans Consulting | Portland, Maine
Colby Marvin Bracy led the efforts to transform her family’s historic hospitality business, The Nonantum Resort, into a certified Recovery Family Workplace. Having joined the resort in 2018, Marvin Bracy is now the director of human resources and philanthropy, holding operational responsibilities and championing initiatives to hire individuals reentering the workforce after incarceration.
In addition to her role at The Nonantum, Marvin Bracy is the founder of Hello Humans Consulting, a firm that helps organizations develop thoughtful human resources strategies and people-centered workplaces. She remains active in her local community with the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Arundel Chamber of Commerce and chairs its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Her honors include the Rising Star Award from the local Chamber of Commerce, the Innovator of the Year award from New England Inns & Resorts and the North Star Award from the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
Marvin Bracy shared that Elon’s sense of “bELONing” was something that stuck with her since her first year. “As a student here, I always wanted to belong and help others feel like they had a place they belonged.” She explained that as she moved into a career in HR, “that desire only became more pronounced,” and she wants Nonantum’s employees “to have a sense of belonging at work, especially those who may have never had that feeling before.”
Michaela Fogarty ’19 – Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist, Upstream USA | Verona, New Jersey
Michaela Fogarty supports the research and program evaluation efforts that inform national reproductive health initiatives through her role as Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist at Upstream USA.
After graduation, Fogarty began her career with Planned Parenthood Federation of America as a data analysis and visualization specialist, later earning her Master of Health Science degree from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Forging a research-driven trajectory at Elon and beyond, Fogarty’s work has progressed from undergraduate research presentations at the Eastern Economics Conference and Undergraduate Research Forum, to authorship of several academic publications, including research on youth vaping behaviors published in the Journal of Public Health and Epidemiology. Before her current role at Upstream USA, she worked as a data manager in the Division of Global Women’s Health at UNC-Chapel Hill.
Fogarty chronologized the milestones of her Elon experience from joining many clubs to changing her major. By her senior year, she noted that she knew how to use her business skills to make the world a little bit better, but wasn’t sure how.
“With the support of the people I met at Elon, and my parents,” she said, “I figured it out.”
Michael Goldstein ’17 – Vice President, Guggenheim Partners | New York, New York
In 2015, Michael Goldstein transferred to Elon, graduating with degrees in accounting and finance in 2017. In 2021, he was inspired to give back and established the Goldstein Family Transfer Engagement Scholarship, providing financial assistance to transfer students entering the Love School of Business just as he did.
A certified public accountant turned vice president, Goldstein’s work at Guggenheim Partners in New York focuses on medical device and health care technology transactions, and he has helped support advisory engagements totaling more than $5 billion.
Goldstein doesn’t shy away from education and philanthropy. Beyond serving on the Love School of Business Advisory Board and hosting Elon University business fellows in New York, Goldstein has been recognized as the top U.S. fundraiser for the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, which brings together Palestinian, Arab and Jewish students to collaborate on environmental research and conflict resolution.
For Goldstein, his remarks were filled with deep gratitude, sharing, “This award would not be possible without the mentorship I’ve had along the way.”
Gary Grumbach ’16 – Legal Affairs Reporter, NBC News | Washington, D.C.
Gary Grumbach has held various positions throughout the NBC Newsroom. From desk assistant to researcher, and later campaign embed, Grumbach is now the legal affairs reporter covering the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts across broadcast and digital platforms.
Grumbach’s Elon experience included leading Elon Local News as director and ELN Radio as executive producer. He was also president of the Society of Professional Journalists. Having reported on various presidential campaigns and trials, Grumbach’s work has earned national recognition, three NBC GEM Awards and team honors for coverage of national elections and major federal court proceedings. In November 2025, he was featured in President Book’s podcast series, “Elon Beyond the Bricks.”
Grumbach shared that Elon taught him teamwork. Connecting the skill to his current career and mentorship, he emphasized, “You don’t get far without teamwork. Fellow Elon graduates at NBC are always cheering each other on.”
Emmanuel Morgan ’19 – Sports and Culture Reporter, The New York Times | Los Angeles, California
Emmanuel Morgan has delivered stories as a trusted reporter since high school, where his work was featured in outlets such as ESPN’s “The Undefeated” and The Charlotte Observer. At Elon, Morgan joined The Pendulum as a first-year reporter before rising to editor-in-chief and later serving as executive director of Elon News Network. He also represented Elon in the prestigious Carnegie-Knight News21 fellowship, where he collaborated on the national reporting project “Hate in America.”
Since graduation, Morgan has reported for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Los Angeles Times, now covering sports and culture for The New York Times. Morgan’s coverage of multiple Super Bowls and the 2024 Olympics in Paris, as well as his interviews with leading athletes and cultural figures has been featured in national coverage, and in 2023, he received the National Association of Black Journalists’ Salute to Excellence Award for his feature on identity and expression among NFL players.
Morgan thanked the Elon School of Communications staff and faculty for always having an open-door policy and for being there for him. Thanks to their “tough love,” Morgan said he felt prepared for his role today, and can “take constructive feedback well and apply it.”
Daniela Pereyra ’16 – Real Estate Broker, Dalton Wade Real Estate Group, and Founder, Dare to Jump | Charlotte, North Carolina
Daniela Pereyra is making homeownership accessible one client at a time. As a real estate broker licensed in North Carolina and Delaware, Pereyra currently works with Dalton Wade Real Estate Group, where she represents home buyers and sellers and supports clients through residential transactions and relocations nationwide. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she assisted military families with relocations and was recognized early in her career as a top-performing agent.
Pereyra is also the founder of Date to Jump, a professional development platform offering workshops and coaching focused on productivity, resilience and overcoming self-sabotage in business. Through this venture, she leads seminars for individuals and groups and has presented programming for students, entrepreneurs, and young professionals. Her leadership also extends to managing a Charlotte community group, where she not only offers guidance on HOA affairs and home values, but also brings the group together for social outings.
Pereyra emphasized Elon’s “lifelong impact” on her, sharing that “it’s stories like mine that prove that Elon is above standard.” She feels grateful that Elon entrusts her to represent the award.
Jensen Roll ’16 – President, Roll Construction, and founder, The Alamance Mill | Graham, North Carolina
What started as an independent major in social entrepreneurship has culminated in a custom homebuilding and remodeling company, Roll Construction, based in Graham, North Carolina. Since launching the company in 2018 with his wife, Mtende Roll, Jensen Roll has built a residential and commercial real estate portfolio of more than 20 properties with Roll Construction earning various accolades.
An entrepreneur by nature, Roll delved into undergraduate research on micro house design, the sociology of social enterprise and solutions to hunger, leading to the founding of Helping Other People Eat (H.O.P.E.), a nonprofit initiative that partnered with local restaurants to combat food insecurity. Today, Roll’s community spirit has led to the founding of The Alamance Mill, a collaborative co-working space that supports local startups and small businesses. He also currently serves as secretary of the Board of Directors for the Alamance-Caswell Home Builders Association.
Elon’s impact contributes to Roll’s everyday work, as he stated, “Elon taught me how to build not just homes, but character and community.” He reflected on striving to continue to represent the spirit of the institution.
Nikki Sanz ’18 – Founder & CEO, GIGGS | Nashville, Tennessee
After working with major artists and organizations including Eric Church, Weezer, and Live Nation, and contributing to high-profile events such as the Super Bowl and CMA Awards, Nikki Sanz founded GIGGS, a professional career platform designed specifically for the live events and touring industry. The platform connects freelancers, touring professionals and production teams through a centralized marketplace and has grown to include 40,000 vetted professionals and 2,000 companies across multiple continents.
To start the venture, Sanz raised an impressive $1.2 million from 35 investors and landed a deal with Netflix’s co-founder Marc Randolph during an episode of Entrepreneur’s “Elevator Pitch.” In 2025, she was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the music category.
Sanz is grateful for Elon’s experiential learning, stating, “It’s no wonder Elon grads go on to make a difference in the world!” She looks forward to seeing what all the honorees accomplish in the next 10 years.
Christian Seitz ’16 – Postdoctoral researcher for epidemic vaccine development, University of Chicago | San Diego, California
As a recipient of Elon University’s Lumen Prize, Christian Seitz conducted advanced computational chemistry research resulting in a first-author publication. Following graduation, Seitz continued to pursue research and was awarded the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship while earning his Ph.D. in biochemistry and biophysics from the University of California San Diego.
His doctoral research produced multiple first-author publications and contributed to understanding infectious diseases and molecular biology, a subject he continues to study as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Chicago working on vaccine development and pandemic preparedness.
Today, Seitz’s work focuses on applying artificial intelligence and computational modeling to better understand viruses and accelerate the design of vaccines for emerging infectious diseases. He is a trusted collaborator with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and has received research funding from Argonne National Laboratory.
In his remarks, Seitz asked the audience to reflect on “What would happen if you encouraged someone to pursue a talent?”, encouraging all of them to do so. “Maybe in 10 years they’ll be up on this stage,” he said.
After recognizing the shared themes of “gratitude, love, and the people who have made a difference in your life” in the honorees’ remarks, President Connie Ledoux Book congratulated the alumni.
“We can’t wait to see what you do in the next 10 years, and we are so proud of where you got your start,” Book said.