Columbia Pride (LGBTQ)

Columbia Pride Executive Board Members

Jose Ricardo Moreno '13CC President '24-'26

I grew up in Dallas, Texas, and graduated from Columbia College in 2013 studying Chemistry. After Columbia, I attended USC for my PhD in Chemical Biology. I've been involved with LGBTQ Prides throughout the United States (Dallas, NYC, and Washington DC) since 2010, volunteered with asylum seekers in Tijuana, Baja California during graduate school, and during the pandemic developed COVID antibody diagnostic kits. Currently, I'm in equity research covering life science tools and diagnostics companies. In my free time, I enjoy participating in book clubs, finding the best coffee shops in New York City, engaging in photography, and exploring new neighborhoods in New York City.

Wally Suphap '01CC '04LAW '23SOA Vice-President '24-'26

Wally Suphap (he/they) is a proud triple alumnus of Columbia, holding a B.A. from Columbia College, a J.D. from Columbia Law School, and an M.F.A. from the School of the Arts. After fifteen years as an international corporate lawyer in New York and Hong Kong, Wally recently returned to academia, and specifically, to their beloved alma mater, where they teach in the Creative Writing Program and the Core Curriculum’s Undergraduate Writing Program. In their past three years of service on the Columbia Pride Executive Committee, they were thrilled and honored to have been involved in various initiatives supporting inclusion, access, and equity, including participating in the launch of the College's first-ever Pride Scholarship Fund, which annually awards scholarships to undergraduates in recognition of demonstrated commitment to and leadership in LGBTQ+ causes on campus and in the community. Externally, Wally is a co-founder of HKGALA, Asia's first professional network for LGBTQ+ lawyers and allies, and the Hong Kong Marriage Equality Network, a non-profit dedicated to advancing the rights of same-sex couples in Hong Kong and across Asia. They have been recognized a Top 50 Global LGBTQ+ Future Leader by INvolve and LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion of the Year by Community Business. They also sit on the Board of Directors of APIA Scholars, a non-profit promoting access to higher education for Asian and Pacific Islander Americans through scholarships and other professional resources. They look forward to the opportunity to continue serving on the Pride Board to support and strengthen the Columbia LGBTQ+/allies community.

John Varamo ’17GSAS Communications Chair '24-'26

John Rocco (he/him) is a graduate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, having received his MA in Climate and Society in 2017. He’s currently the Director of Strategic Engagement and Alumni Affairs with The State University of New York (SUNY) and lives in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan.

He has spent the last 10 years working in various levels of government including state, county, and municipal governments, most recently serving as the Commissioner of Arts, Culture, and Tourism for the City of Stamford, Connecticut. In 2019, he founded the nonprofit Stamford Pride, with the goal of building up the local LGBTQ+ community through quality programming for all ages. He served as President & CEO for two years and successfully launched Stamford’s first-ever LGBTQ+ pride month events in June 2021. For three years, John also served as Adjunct Professor at Columbia University and Barnard College teaching GIS and spatial data analytics.

As a dedicated community leader, John has sat on numerous nonprofit executive boards including the United Way of Western Connecticut; Orchestra Lumos; Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens; Stamford Pride; and the City of Stamford Mayor’s Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Strategies Committee. In 2023, John was named one of Fairfield County's '40 Under Forty', and named one of the 'Top Millennials' in Westchester and Fairfield Counties in 2019.

Eva Westphal '23CC Development Chair '24-'26

Eva (she/her/hers) is a digital marketing coordinator at BMG - The New Music Company and an active participant in organizations that further LGBTQ+ inclusion in the music industry, such as Queer Capita. While at Columbia, she was heavily involved in the arts scene on campus and served as president of Notes and Keys, Columbia's premiere all gender a capella group. Eva continues to perform her original songs about the lesbian experience, mental health, and her Latina identity around the city.

Vielka Rosario Ebadan Student Relations Chair '24-'26

Vielka Rosario Ebadan (they/them) is a 2023 CC graduate. At Columbia, they lived in Q-Haus, served as an e-board member of WKCR, and worked at the Double Discovery Center. Vielka is currently a lead patient account manager at a reproductive health insurance company where they spearhead initiatives aimed at increasing reproductive health access for LGBTQ+ members across the US and Canada. Outside of their 9-5, they produce music, take pictures, and are always on the search for the best wings in NYC.

Vielka is running for the Student Relations board member position. Vielka’s first home after leaving the Dominican Republic and Alabama was New York City, and more specifically Q Haus, the SIC brownstone for Columbia/Barnard LGBTQ students. As a member of Q Haus, a brownstone occupied by predominantly first-generation low-income QTPOC, Vielka witnessed firsthand the challenges Q Haus students experienced when navigating life at Columbia as queer students and then transitioning to life post-Columbia as queer people.

As the Student Relations chair, Vielka would like to foster a connection with LGBTQ+ students on campus like none other before. Through programming events, Vielka would like to further develop the mentee-mentor program, provide tools/resources/webinars for navigating corporate spaces for LGBTQ students on campus, and create a broader relationship between Pride Alumni, CU Students, and LGBTQ+ resources in the tri-state area. Vielka’s goal as student relations chair would be to foster a community where current students feel connected to alumni, and vice versa. As a recent graduate, Vielka is still connected with current LGBTQ+ Columbia students and they will always listen to the voices and needs of students first.

Henry Woo '03SIPA Global Club Liaison '24-'26

Henry Woo Ph.D. (he/him) has 15 years of experience in the fields of renewable energy & investment management in Beijing, Seoul, New York, Manila, Geneva, and Cairo. He is currently serving on the Columbia University School of the Arts and School of International & Public Affairs Boards. Henry is Sr. Advisor at Shanghai-based VC/PE firm that specializes in FinTech, IoT & AI innovations. Residing in Hong Kong with his husband and two sons, Henry is an avid enthusiast of contemporary arts, book clubs, hiking and cultural policies.

Wayne Glass '24TC Chief of Staff '24-'26

Prior to attending graduate school at Teachers College, Columbia University, Wayne completed his M.Ed. in Higher Education and Student Affairs at Iowa State University (ISU) in 2015. As a Graduate Student at ISU, he served as a Conduct Hearing Officer, #LGBTQIAA Graduate Assistant, and liaised with Student Assistance and Outreach as a Case Manager. As one of two LGBTQIAA Graduate Assistants, he aided in the coordination of ISU's 'Speakers Bureau Program,' served as the Advisor of the #LGBT Alliance, and helped organize various institutional, local, and regional-based programming.

Upon graduation from ISU, he served as a Residence Hall Director at Macalester College and Assistant Director of Residence Life at The Juilliard School. In the midst of working full-time in Higher Education, he attended Teachers College's Mental Health Counseling Ed.M. program as a Part-Time student, with the hopes of (eventually) becoming a Licensed Mental Health Counselor. As a Higher Education administrator, he served on various directorates/executive boards in local, regional, and national organizations. Within 'ACPA - College Student Educators International,' he served as an Executive Board Member within the 'Coalition for Sexuality and Gender Identities' for two years.

Outside of Higher Education and Counseling, he has served as a Group Fitness Instructor since 2009 and coaches/has coached at various gyms throughout Florida, Minnesota and New York City. In his present life, he works full-time at Pace University, coaches part-time at two gyms in Manhattan, and will begin onboarding at a Private Practice to resume individual psychotherapy in the coming weeks.