Physician, Author, Educator and Speaker

Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine Ceremony
Friday, May 8, 10 a.m.

Dr. Monique Nugent is a healthcare educator and speaker who teaches patients, families and medical professionals how to better understand hospital care and navigate complex healthcare systems. She is also the author of “Prescription for Admission,” a guide that helps patients and families accomplish these important goals.

With years of frontline experience, Nugent has witnessed the challenges and opportunities within hospitals. She is committed to bridging the gap between medical expertise and patient advocacy. Her mission is to make healthcare more accessible, understandable and effective for everyone. 

Whether through her book, public speaking engagements or thought leadership in medical education, Nugent is dedicated to empowering both patients and providers with the knowledge needed to make informed decisions. As a practicing hospitalist, Nugent works daily with patients and healthcare teams to improve hospital-based care. 

Her experience spans patient-centered care, medical education and training, and healthcare leadership and policy. Along with a board certification in internal medicine, Nugent earned her MD from Loma Linda University School of Medicine and her MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. She also completed a fellowship at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Chief Judge, U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut

School of Law Commencement
Friday, May 8, 2 p.m.

Michael P. Shea serves as Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut. He’s chaired or served as a member of numerous District Court and Second Circuit committees, and he currently serves as a member of the Judicial Council of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. 

Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Shea was sworn in as a United States District Judge on Dec. 31, 2012. Before joining the bench, he was a partner at Day Pitney (and previously Day, Berry & Howard), where he focused on commercial litigation, mass torts, First Amendment matters and white-collar criminal defense. 

Throughout his career in private practice, Shea maintained an active pro bono practice, receiving awards from both the Hartford County and Connecticut Bar Associations for his work on behalf of indigent persons in civil and criminal cases.

Shea began his legal career as law clerk to the late Judge James L. Buckley of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Shea graduated from Yale Law School, where he served as a senior editor of the Yale Law Journal, in 1993. He graduated from Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, summa cum laude, in 1989.

Chief of the Mohegan Tribe

School of Education and School of Nursing Commencement
Saturday, May 9, 10 a.m.

Chief Mutáwi Mutáhash (Many Hearts) Marilynn “Lynn” Malerba became the 18th Chief of the Mohegan Tribe on Aug.15, 2010, and is the first female chief in the tribe’s modern history. The position is a lifetime appointment made by the tribe’s Council of Elders.

She returned full-time to Connecticut after serving as the Treasurer of the United States. When she was appointed by then-President Joe Biden in June 2022, she was the first Native American to serve in that role. Prior to becoming Chief, she served as chairwoman of the Tribal Council and executive director of health and human services.

Before working for the Mohegan Tribe, she had a lengthy career as a registered nurse ultimately serving as the director of cardiology and pulmonary services at Lawrence & Memorial Hospital in New London, Connecticut.

She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice at Yale University and was named a Jonas Scholar. Earlier, she earned her Master of Public Administration from the University of Connecticut, her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the College of St. Joseph and her diploma in nursing from the Hartford Hospital School of Nursing.

Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Playbill

College of Arts & Sciences and School of Communications Commencement
Saturday, May 9, 3 p.m.

Alex Birsh is the third generation of the Birsh family to work at Playbill, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, Arthur, and his father, Philip. A self-professed lover of Broadway and baseball, Birsh is captivated by the magic, splendor and spontaneity of live performances.

After working for Sirius XM, Major League Baseball and Topps, Birsh joined the family business in 2016 as vice president and chief digital officer. In 2020, he was promoted to vice president and chief operating officer. 

Over the last decade, Birsh has helped his father grow Playbill into an indispensable theater brand. Playbill is not just the exclusive magazine for Broadway and Off-Broadway theater patrons in New York City. It’s also required reading in several other major theater markets, including Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, St. Louis and Washington, D.C.

Birsh, who earned a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from Quinnipiac, launched the Playbill Podcast in 2025 to celebrate live theater and the audiences who enjoy it. As the host of each episode, Birsh highlights a currently running Broadway show and features an interview with members of the cast and/or creative team. 

Chairman and CEO, Airbus North America and Public Member, Quinnipiac University Board of Trustees

School of Business and School of Computing & Engineering Commencement
Sunday, May 10, 9 a.m.

As chairman and CEO of Airbus North America, Robin Hayes is responsible for Airbus’ commercial aircraft and commercial services businesses throughout the Americas, as well as coordination with Airbus Helicopters, the company’s market-leading helicopter business, and Airbus U.S. Space & Defense.
 


Prior to his role with Airbus North America, Hayes served as CEO of JetBlue Airways Corporation for nine years. He joined the airline in 2008, serving as the company’s executive vice president and chief commercial officer until becoming president of the airline in January 2014. He was appointed as JetBlue’s third chief executive officer in February 2015.
 


Before JetBlue, Hayes spent 19 years at British Airways, where he ascended to the position of executive vice president for the Americas. From 2020-22, he was the chairman of IATA’s Board of Governors, where he championed the air transport association’s commitment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Hayes serves as a public member on the Quinnipiac University Board of Trustees, and the Board of Directors for KeyBank and Make-A-Wish Connecticut. He is a graduate of the University of Bath, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s degree in electrical and electronic engineering. 

Founder and CEO, In A Heartbeat Foundation

School of Health Sciences Commencement
Sunday, May 10, 4 p.m.

Mike Papale is the founder and president of the “In A Heartbeat Foundation,” a nonprofit organization whose mission is to prevent death from sudden cardiac arrest and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) by raising awareness, enabling research and donating automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to places that need them.

Papale knows firsthand how 10 minutes can alter a lifetime. He experienced cardiac arrest when he was just 17 years old because of undiagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He likely would have lost his life if a nearby EMT had not immediately administered CPR.

Inspired by his experience, Papale founded “In A Heartbeat” in 2015 to raise awareness around hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and sudden cardiac arrest among children. Since its founding, the nonprofit has run an AED donation program and organized early-detection events for children and their parents. “In A Heartbeat” also raises money for research projects that focus on sudden cardiac arrest.

After graduating from Quinnipiac in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts in communications, Papale served several years as a college basketball coach at UMass-Lowell, Quinnipiac and Southern Connecticut State University before channeling his transformative journey into the pages of his book, “A Big Heart.”