UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Smeal College of Business Director of Alumni Relations Jennifer Crispell has announced that three new members of the college’s Alumni Society Board will begin their terms on July 1.
Alyssa Cotillo, a 2020 finance graduate, Jesse Knapel, a 2015 accounting graduate, and Michael Liotta, a 2023 Penn State online MBA graduate, will all join the board in July.
The mission of the Smeal Alumni Society Board is to provide opportunities for networking, volunteerism and lifelong engagement to its diverse alumni community of more than 96,000. Crispell said the three new members will help fulfill that mission.
“It’s with sincere excitement and gratitude that I welcome Alyssa, Jesse and Michael to our board,” Crispell said. “Our alumni have consistently embraced Smeal’s culture of giving back, exhibiting Penn State’s 'We are!' spirit. Through their collective work histories, we feel our new members add a level of expertise and experience that will complement an already diverse collection of accomplished alumni.”
Cotillo is a manager in Grant Thornton’s CFO advisory services practice in Philadelphia. She works with financial services clients to modernize their finance and accounting operations. Cotillo joined the firm in 2020 after having interned with the company in the summer of 2019.
Knapel serves as both chief financial officer and chief compliance officer for Prelude Growth Partners in New York. Prior to Prelude, Knapel filled a series of ascending leadership positions with MidOcean Partners, Man Group, Grant Thornton and Deloitte.
Liotta is director of privacy standards and training for American Express in New York. He has worked in a series of leadership positions during his 20 years with the company. Prior to joining American Express, Liotta served in a director’s role for Viacom.