Elizabeth Santeramo ’88 originally thought she might pursue a career in politics, and in some respects, she did. Early in her career, she worked for Mayors David Dinkins and Rudy Guiliani, writing mini-speeches and drafting letters to constituents.

Those early gigs, and many years writing for a number of New York City-area companies have helped Santeramo with her latest project, a non-fiction book she’s writing for teens dealing with all kinds of issues, especially alcoholism or addiction in their families. She knows from first-hand experience how devastating addiction can be, as her father was an active alcoholic when she was young. When he joined Alcoholics Anonymous, Santeramo started attending Alateen and Al-Anon meetings, a support group for family and friends of alcoholics, and advocated for an Alateen group at Cathedral that she continued to support during her freshman year at New York University.

The Brooklyn native didn’t initially plan to attend Cathedral, but when the straight-A, self-proclaimed overachiever didn’t get accepted at her intended high schools, Cathedral agreed to make room for her. She ended up fitting in fantastically, taking advanced-placement classes, loving Mr. Doyle’s English classes, and finding her first job through Ms. Kiely’s then-fledgling networking program.

She studied political science and philosophy at NYU, but put plans for law school on hold, and instead pursued a Master’s in Public Policy from NYU’s Wagner School. She carved out a niche in corporate communications working for companies including The American Heart Association, Benjamin Moore & Co., and Dresdner Bank, among others.  She later launched a freelance career working for L’Oréal, Scholastic, Parent & Child Magazine, Nielsen, and others.Her work has also appeared on Healthline.com, GirlsLife.com, and TheFix.com, and participated in an article about bullying at work for BusinessWeek.com.

In addition to working on her book and her freelance writing, Santeramo also co-chaired SOAP-Up NJ with the New Jersey Coalition Against Human Trafficking. SOAP (Save Our Adolescents from Prostitution) is a national organization that works to raise awareness of human trafficking happening at hotels and motels.  She helped coordinate a two-day training attended by more than 450 volunteers who visited hotels and motels near MetLife Stadium during Super Bowl 2014 and left bars of soap wrapped with a help-line number. She originally became aware of human trafficking issues in New Jersey through the League of Women Voters, and she has worked to raise awareness since being appointed to the local and state board for the New Jersey chapter.

When Santeramo thinks back to her days at Cathedral, she has many wonderful memories, but what stands out is how safe and protected she felt here. “Priceless,” she said.