Syracuse University’s Office of Multicultural Advancement will recognize seven accomplished alumni during Coming Back Together (CBT), which will be held Sept. 12-15.
CBT is a triennial reunion that welcomes Black and Latino alumni back to campus to celebrate their accomplishments, meet current students and remain connected with the University. 2024 represents the 14th CBT reunion held on campus. In 2021, the University’s reunion raised $1.29 million for the Our Time Has Come scholarship.
This year, Abdul K. Abdullah ’10, Ada Agrait ’94, Tara Favors ’95, JaNeika James G’05, Jason Olivo ’95 and Savalle Sims ’92 will be honored with Alumni Awards. Sade Muhammad ’12 will be honored with the Young Alumni Award.
The award recipients will be celebrated by Chancellor Kent Syverud at the “Shades of Orange Sneaker Ball” fundraising gala on Saturday, Sept. 14, from 6:30-11 p.m. in the JMA Wireless Dome. The awards recognize the significant civic or career achievements by the selected. Since 1983, the ceremony has been a signature event presented at the CBT reunion.
“I am so pleased to celebrate these outstanding alumni at the 2024 Coming Back Together reunion,” says Chancellor Syverud. “Each of these awardees, through their careers and their commitment to Syracuse University, inspires the next generation of leaders. They give generously by mentoring current students and young alumni, creating new learning experiences, and encouraging their friends and fellow alumni to get involved. I am proud to honor the Orange leaders for all they do for their alma mater.”
“I am thrilled to join our Orange community in celebration of this year’s honorees,” says Rachel Vassel, associate vice president in the Office of Multicultural Advancement. “These individuals have achieved phenomenal success while also finding time to give back to current students and stay connected with the University and their fellow alumni. We are proud that they’re an active part of the Syracuse family.”
Read more about the recipients below.
Abdullah is the founder and chief executive officer of AfroFuture Fest (formerly known as Afrochella). Founded in 2017 and held in Accra, Ghana, AfroFuture is a festival designed to highlight and promote talent from and within Africa.
AfroFuture became the anchor event of Ghana’s Year of Return tourism campaign in 2019, which encouraged people of African descent to return to their ancestral homeland. Since its inception, AfroFuture Fest has brought over 65,000 global travelers to Ghana, generating over $4 billion in tourism revenue and economic support and 6,000 local jobs. Abdullah was named Goodwill Ambassador of Tourism to Ghana, named an African Voices Changemaker by CNN and recognized as a Top 100 Under 40 Most Influential People of African Descent by MIPAD.
In addition to his entrepreneurial pursuits, Abdullah is a global trial manager for Bristol Myers Squibb, a position he’s held since 2022. Previously he was a global clinical trials manager for Syneos Health Clinical Solutions (2019-22) and held a variety of roles at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center culminating in the position of clinical research project manager.
Abdullah’s childhood and early education were spent in both Ghana and the United States. At Syracuse, he earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in biology from the College of Arts and Sciences. During his time as a student, he was involved in CSTEP and the PanHellenic Council as a member of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. He was also involved with the NAACP, the African Student Union and the Student African American Society. He graduated from Hunter College in 2013 with a master’s of public health degree.
Abdullah supports the University as an Our Time Has Come (OTHC) donor and by mentoring recent graduates and helping them with job opportunities and career advancement.
Since 2022, Agrait has been the executive vice president and global head of corporate marketing for SAP, a business software management company. She is also a board member of Dress for Success Seattle and has served as the board president since January 2023. Prior to this, Agrait worked for Microsoft, starting as a director of MSN marketing in 2005 and advancing to the position of vice president of commercial marketing in 2021. She has also worked as an associate director for Ernst & Young, a director for the Association of National Advertisers, and a senior account executive for Dobbin/Bolgla Associates.
Agrait was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications in 1994. During her time at the University, she was a member of the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta and studied abroad in London and Florence. She graduated from Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business with an MBA in 2003.
Agrait is actively involved with the University. She is a supporter of the OTHC Scholarship Program, mentoring scholarship recipients, serving as a guest speaker for OTHC Leadership sessions and serving as a professional resource to the OTHC cohort.
During the Forever Orange Campaign, Agrait hosted local alumni during a Salon Event at her home in Seattle, and she has remained connected with Newhouse through activities, such as participation in Dean’s Roundtable. Additionally, Agrait has engaged consistently with University representatives in support of strategic priorities on the West Coast.
Since 2021, Favors has served as the chief human resources officer for Mutual of America Financial Group. In this position, she is responsible for all aspects of human resources strategy for the company’s 1,100 employees. From 2019 to 2021 she served as the vice president of human resources business partners for American Express. Her career in corporate human resources also includes positions with Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Revlon and Deutsche Bank. Favors serves on the board of NJLEEP, a four-year college program serving underserved students in the greater Newark area. She also serves on the University’s Multicultural Advancement Advisory Council.
Favors earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of Arts and Sciences in 1995. During her time as a student, she participated in the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Clubs and the Caribbean Students Association. She graduated from the New School in 1997 with a master’s degree in human resources.
Favors is a loyal Syracuse alumna who continues to serve her alma mater. She was the lead donor of the OTHC Kevin Richardson Endowed Scholarship, leading fundraising amongst her Syracuse classmates to ensure that the fund was endowed. She supports the OTHC Scholarship and the OTHC Midwin Charles Endowed Scholarship, named for Midwin Charles, an alumna in law and media who died suddenly in 2021. Favors has also named the Brown Favors Quiet Lounge at the Barner McDuffie House. During the Forever Orange Campaign, Tara was a featured speaker during the Forever Orange Campaign Event in New York City where she shared her motivations for giving back. She currently serves as a CBT 2024 co-chair, and has been actively involved in planning and promoting the reunion among her numerous Orange connections.
James is an executive producer on Peacock’s “Bel-Air.” James and her identical twin sister and producing partner, JaSheika James, frequently work together in television. They have served as co-executive producers for Netflix’s “True Story” and HBO Max’s “Gossip Girl.” They rose from positions as staff writers to supervising producers on the Fox’s hit series “Empire” and have published an autobiographical book, “Living Double.”
James worked in scripted development at VH1 and for the producing team of Jennifer Crittenden and Gabrielle Allan (“Seinfeld,” “Scrubs,” “What’s Your Number?”) at ABC. She began her career working for Yvette Lee Bowser on the UPN show “Half & Half.”
She earned a master’s degree in television, radio and film from the Newhouse School in 2005. She graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor of science and majored in telecommunications.
James is a supporter of the OTHC Scholarship Program and is a member of the Office of Multicultural Advancement Advisory Council. She has participated in several alumni panels, including events at SU in Los Angeles and during the Coming Back Together reunion. In 2022 she attended Forever Orange Salon Event at the home of Roland Williams in Los Angeles. She and JaSheikia hosted donors for a tour and a cast meet and greet on the set of Empire in Chicago. Most recently, James spoke with student-athletes during a visit to Los Angeles.
Olivo is a senior vice president for investments at JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A, a position that he has held since 2003. From 2000 to 2003 he was a vice president and director for Prudential Securities. Previously, he served as senior vice president at Kaufmann Brothers L.P., where he worked on initial public offerings and private placements in the technology industry. Olivo also holds a professional license as an insurance agent in many states. Olivo was involved in the J.P. Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge in 2009, 2010 and 2013. He has been a National Achiever from 2004 to present and a member of the President’s Club from 2010 to present. He is also a JPMorgan Syracuse University internship mentor from 2015 to present and participated in the Our Time Has Come Virtual Immersion with his colleagues at JPMorgan.
Olivo earned a bachelor’s degree in information management and technology from the School of Information Studies. During his time at Syracuse University, he was a member of the Lambda Upsilon Lambda fraternity, studied abroad in London, and was involved with Black and Latino IST Support (BLISTS). Olivo was one of the lead donors of the first Latino Fraternity Endowment Fund at Syracuse University through the Our Time Has Come program–the La Unidad Latina Endowment Fund. He volunteered at Syracuse Stage, worked in Schine Student Center Security and was a member of Inroads. Olivo also interned at Carrier Corporation, where he managed infrastructure projects both locally and abroad.
Olivo is the proud father of three boys and enjoys coaching his sons’ baseball and AAU basketball teams.
Sims serves as executive vice president and general counsel for Warner Bros. Discovery, overseeing the company’s global legal teams and managing legal issues across 20 worldwide offices. She played a key role in AT&T’s sale of WarnerMedia and the subsequent creation of the new company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
Sims worked for Discovery Inc. as an executive vice president and general counsel, where she managed Discovery’s Litigation and Trademark legal teams, handling legal efforts around Discovery’s intellectual property. She was named to the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications’ (NAMIC) Luminary Class, has been recognized on Cablefax’s Diversity List each year since 2013 and was featured in the Black General Counsel Project as part of Bloomberg Law.
Sims earned a bachelor’s degree in transportation and distribution management from the Whitman School of Management in 1992. She earned a juris doctorate from Notre Dame in 1995.
A loyal and generous supporter of Syracuse, Sims is a supporter of OTHC, Syracuse Black Law Alumni Collective, William H Johnson Endowed Scholarship, Inclusive U and Athletics (Women’s Basketball, Lally Complex Fund, and the Football Head Coach’s Fund). Recently, she was a speaker at the Orange Central Multicultural Breakfast, attended the Forever Orange Salon Event in Bronxville, New York (hosted by SUMA Council Member Sammy Cueva), and returned to campus to accept an award at the Black Excellence Gala hosted by the Black Student Union. She hosted a half-day immersion at Warner Bros. Discovery for the OTHC scholars in April.
Sims is married to former Syracuse University football player Turnell Sims Jr. ’90 (College of Visual and Performing Arts) and her sister, Marie Davis ’03, is an alumna of the School of Social Work in the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics.
Muhammad is the chief marketing and impact officer of Time, where she oversees Time’s newest and emerging go-to-market sales products, including events and paid social, as well as content platforms, such as The Closers and Time Impact House.
She has over a decade of experience in marketing, digital transformation, ad products and organizational change via diversity, equity and inclusion. She founded the Representation and Inclusion Practice at Forbes, a revenue-generating ad business centered on equity as a path to marketing innovation and cultural change. Her work has been celebrated in Digiday, Adweek, PRSANY and more. Prior to Forbes, Muhammad helped bring digital products to life at NBCUniversal.
Muhammad serves on the University’s Multicultural Advancement Advisory Council and is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. She contributes to the OTHC Delta Sigma Theta Endowed Scholarship Fund.
Over the four-day CBT weekend, workshops, receptions, social events and cultural activities will be offered to attendees. Highlights include the CBT Celebrity Classic basketball game, a comedy show featuring comedian Roy Wood Jr., the fundraising gala and awards ceremony and a Sunday worship service featuring the Black Celestial Choral Ensemble and Grammy-winning gospel artist Erica Campbell.
For a full list of CBT events and registration information, visit the Coming Back Together 2024 website.
