In the News: Comets Making Headlines

LaToya Watkins’ BA’06, MA’11, PhD’15 first novel, “Perish,” is receiving strong reviews from a variety of critics including from author S. Kirk Walsh who wrote in a The New York Times review that, “Watkins prose is effortless and forthright . . . This is an impressive feat of storytelling.” A Texas native, Watkins earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees and a PhD in literary studies from the School of Arts and Humanities at UT Dallas. Her story, set in fictional small-town Texas, follows the lives of four members of a family wracked by trauma. Watkins is a lecturer in the School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology.

The New York Times also recently featured UT Dallas alumnus Chip Wade MBA’98 who has been named CEO of the Union Square Hospitality Group known for its signature restaurant Union Square Café in New York City and the popular fast-food chain Shake Shack. Wade, who earned an MBA from the Naveen Jindal School of Management, came to the company from Darden, the former parent company of Red Lobster. The Times reported in its profile that Wade once oversaw more than 700 of the ubiquitous seafood restaurants.

Former UT Dallas baseball player Shahid Sattar BS’15 has joined the national baseball team of Pakistan to play in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. The Dallas Morning News wrote about Sattar’s return to the game following his recruitment by the Pakistan Baseball Federation to play in the international tournament. Sattar graduated with a degree in finance from the Naveen Jindal School of Management in 2015 and works as a senior associate for the Dallas consulting firm Riveron. He last wore a baseball uniform in 2013 when he played briefly for UTD. Sattar was a pitcher for Skyline High School in Dallas, where he grew up. Sattar told the newspaper he is proud to be asked to play for the team representing his father’s native Pakistan.