Dr. Ilona Kopits ’93 was a Stone Ridge Gator for eight years. During her time there she was active in yearbook, Social Action, campus ministry and now most recently helping to plan the 25th reunion. Upon graduation, Ilona attended Tufts University where she majored in Biology and minored in American Literature. She then completed a master’s in Public Health at Boston University before heading to medical school at Loyola University in Chicago. She went on to complete her residency in Family Medicine at Boston University and Boston Medical Center, the former public city hospital, providing care to the low-income poor neighborhoods of the city. During her training, she took part in medical trips to both Guatemala and Ecuador, further inspiring her to focus on under served communities without access to adequate health care. Her passion also remained caring for older adults and she completed her geriatrics fellowship at BU in 2008.

Dr. Kopits is a clinician educator for geriatrics trainees and her past research interests include falls assessment, Alzheimer’s disease and evaluation of function and disability. She precepts primary care residents in their longitudinal geriatric outpatient clinic and heads the PACE rotation for the BU Geriatric fellowship. She is also a primary care physician at the Uphams Elder Service Plan/PACE organization in Boston, a program that provides health care to low-income seniors allowing them to age in place at home instead of in nursing homes. She has had an active role in developing the program’s first supportive housing unit in collaboration with the Boston Housing Authority. She was a scholar at the Tideswell Leadership in Aging Program at UCSF in 2017 where her practicum project focused on this topic. Her education and experiences at Stone Ridge shaped her path and continues to inspire her to put social awareness into action. She is thrilled that her daughter now attends Newton Country Day School.

Young Outstanding Alumna

Jordan DeVeaux ’18 answered her call to preach at the age of 12 and gave her first sermon entitled “The Ultimate Invitation” at the 7 Last Words Youth Service at Ebenezer AME Church at the age of 14. Throughout high school, she continued to pursue the life of ministry in addition to her studies, praying to God for wisdom along the way. Jordan recently graduated from Towson University majoring in Psychology with minors in Gerontology and Family and Human Services. Jordan is pursuing her Master of Divinity at Duke University in North Carolina with a focus in theology and medicine. She aspires to ultimately explore a career in geriatric social work with a specialty in hospice care. She serves as a pastoral associate at the Riderwood Senior Living Community in Silver Spring, MD, in their Interfaith Office of Pastoral Ministries.

Jordan is the immediate past president of the Towson University Student Government Association and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. Beyond her leadership roles, she cares deeply about the intersections of intellectual inquiry and spiritual practice. She serves and worships at Kingdom Fellowship AME Church, under the pastoral leadership of Rev. Matthew L. Watley in Silver Spring, MD. Jordan also serves as the Second Vice President of the Connectional Young People’s and Children’s Division of the AME Church and recently published the fourth installment of the Spiritual Senses Self Denial Devotional Series. In 2020, she launched the Agape Answers Podcast where she aims to foster a safe space for young adults to come and lay their burdens down through approachable and responsive conversation about the walk of faith, living a kingdom lifestyle, and relevant social issues impacting young people today. ❤