ALUMNI IN THE ARTS
Ashley Yarchin
Professional Designer
Ashley earned a master’s degree in modern and contemporary art and simultaneously studied at the New York School of Interior Design. Her company, Ashley Yarchin LLC, provides professional curatorial and design expertise to both private and corporate collectors.
Andrew Balick
Executive Chef/Partner
Andrew Balick discovered his passion for cuisine early on in his college career. Today, Balick serves as executive chef and partner at Tapco Restaurant Group, which includes Tap 42 and Bar Rita.
Josh Gad
Writer and Actor
My life at NSU University School, specifically under the guidance of the Fine Arts Department...really pushed me toward my love of drama and gave me incredible opportunities to hone my craft. Every opportunity to be on a stage from playing Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof to being Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls gave me the love, the passion, the work ethic that would then translate into my career.
Alex Weisman
Actor
Since Alex Weisman graduated from NSU University School in 2006, he has been a success on both the stage and screen with a career that’s taken him from Sesame Street to Hogwarts.
Additional Noteworthy Alumni
Class of 1982
Vernon Lewis
Lewis is a shareholder with the Greenberg Traurig Law Firm, where he is a member of the Litigation Practice Group. He represents individuals and corporations accused of violations of state or federal criminal laws related to healthcare fraud, tax fraud, securities fraud, antitrust, environmental crimes, money laundering, import fraud, mail fraud, benefits fraud, wire fraud, and commodities fraud.
Class of 1984
Andrea Liska Finkle
Andrea, valedictorian of her class, spent almost three weeks of her summer rehearsing for and appearing in a one-act play at a festival in New York City. This was a dream come true for her because she had spent many years performing in scholastic and community theater productions in Florida.
Class of 1986
Class of 1993
Matthew Pearl
Best-selling author Matthew Pearl’s novel, The Dante Chamber, the sequel to his highly successful novel, The Dante Club, was published in May 2018.
His books have appeared both on international and New York Times bestseller lists. They have been translated into over 30 languages. You can often read Matthew’s non-fiction works in the New York Times and the Boston Globe.
Scott Weinger
Scott recently reprised the role of Steve Hale for the Netflix reboot, Fuller House, a role he originated on the '90s series Full House. Scott has worked steadily in the entertainment business as an actor, producer, and writer and is well known as the voice of Disney’s Aladdin. Scott majored in English and minored in French literature at Harvard University, where he graduated magna cum laude.
Seth Yanklewitz
Seth is an Emmy-nominated casting director known for his work on New Girl (2011), The Hangover (2009), Blades of Glory (2007), and Fool’s Gold (2008).
Class of 1995
Mandel Ilagan
Mandel was promoted to vice president of unscripted development for Nickelodeon. In his new position, he heads a team overseeing the network's new game show and reality show projects. He’ll also be seeking new ideas from production companies for future unscripted programming.
Mandel has been with Nickelodeon for a number of years and has developed and led production for shows including Paradise Run, React to That, and Webheads. The network premiered JoJo Siwa: My World on Nickelodeon; Mandel was one of the executives overseeing this exciting project.
Class of 1996
Alan Foreman
Congratulations to Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Award-winner, Alan Foreman, Class of 1996, who spent the better part of the last two years directing Baby Shark's Big Movie! now streaming on Paramount Plus and airing on Nickelodeon. Baby Shark’s Big Movie! is a 2023 animated comedy film based on the popular song and TV series. The plot follows Baby Shark and his family as they leave Chomp City, the great city of sharks, and face a new threat from an evil pop starfish named Stariana who plans to steal Baby Shark’s gift of song in order to dominate all underwater music. All USchool Sharks (and Suns) should check out this great new movie based on our favorite small screen and now big screen Shark!
Class of 1997
Class of 1999
Seth Gabel
2017 was a busy year for Seth who could be seen on TV in recurring roles on both Genius and Salem. Prior to these appearances, you might recognize him from American Horror Story or Arrow.
Josh Gad
Josh Gad, Class of 1999, will reunite with Andrew Rannells in “Gutenberg! The Musical!” The pair, who were the original co-stars of “The Book of Mormon,” will return to Broadway this fall in a two-man musical comedy. Josh is best known for voicing Olaf in the Frozen franchise, playing Elder Arnold Cunningham in the Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, and playing Le Fou in the live-action adaptation of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. And, of course, USchool’s stage productions of Fiddler on the Roof and Guys and Dolls and many more!
Shawn Snyder
A graduate of Harvard University and NYU Graduate Film School, Shawn is an independent filmmaker. He co-wrote and directed his first feature film entitled To Dust, which was released in 2018 and premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Shawn has also worked as a sound editor and mixer, as well as a producer on several television and film projects. His pre-thesis film, Festus, won the 2014 CINE Golden Eagle Award for Best Student Drama, and he won the Sloan Student Grand Jury Prize of $100,000 to help produce To Dust.
Class of 2001
Danny Ghitis
Danny is a Brooklyn-based editorial and commercial photographer and frequent contributor to the New York Times. His clients include Adweek, Billboard, Rolling Stone, TIME, and Vogue.
Danny recently decided to follow another of his passions—studying, understanding and helping people be the best they can be. He completed the coaching program at NYU and now helps clients make the pursuit of happiness rewarding and fulfilling.
Class of 2002
Class of 2010
Class of 2011
Andrew Dolberg
Congratulations to Andrew Dolberg, Class of 2011, and his writing partner, Rob Long, who officially published their first children's book, The Great Weather Diviner, today! The Great Weather Diviner is about a young groundhog’s adventure to find his purpose and save his town. The story is a fractured fairy tale, reimagining the origin story of Punxsutawney Phil and Groundhog Day. This fantastic book is currently available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.org and for each book sold, a portion of the proceeds goes to Habitat for Humanity!
Class of 2012
Class of 2014
Renata Narvaez
When Renata was a sophomore at UCLA, she interned for Skydance Productions, which is responsible for films such as Mission Impossible-Rogue Nation, Terminator Genisys, and the Netflix Series Grace and Frankie.
Renata was a Television Development Intern at both BBC America and AMC Networks where she led the creation, development, and pitch of “The Next Big Idea” intern project to AMC. Renata was also the Special Events Coordinator for HOOLIGAN Theatre Company and the UCLA Campus Director for University Tees.
Class of 2017
Grant Leff
Dreams do come true!! Congratulations to Grant Leff, Class of 2017, who officially accepted a full-time position at ESPN in Bristol, CT as a Media Replay Op for REMI Productions. This opportunity is something Grant has been dreaming about since childhood! While in high school, Grant was able to gain valuable experience for his passion as a vital team member of USchool's Media Production team. In his new role, he'll be doing replays for live games on ESPN networks including highlights from MLB/NFL/NBA/NHL and even Cornhole. Prior to landing this coveted role, Grant earned his Bachelor of Science in Telecommunication from University of Florida and later went on to pursue his Master's degree at Ball State Department of Media.