Daryl Mundis ’88 joins the Manhattanville Alumni Board on July 1, 2024 bringing his unique Manhattanville and professional experience to the table. Daryl had taken a few years off from high school before coming to Manhattanville, so he was one of the older students. Being an older student put him in the position of being a resident advisor for three years, covering every dorm. Daryl had his own radio show on WMVL and wrote a regular column in the school’s Touchstone newspaper. Daryl also participated in an organization on campus called CORE crew that worked with the admissions office and gave tours to incoming students and helped with recruiting. Daryl was also heavily involved in the Student Organization for Political Awareness (SOPA), a club that worked to develop student activism for political and environmental causes. Daryl also went to many of the events that were held on campus with his friends and really enjoyed being a part of as many student programs as possible. Daryl said during his time at Manhattanville, many people were living on campus and not many students commuted to school, unlike today. 

After graduating Manhatanville, Daryl attended Columbia University, earning a Masters in International Affairs, as well as a law degree (J.D.), graduating in 1992. Daryl went from Columbia directly into the Navy JAG Corps as a lawyer. Daryl served in both Philadelphia and London. for a couple of years. While in the JAG Corps, Daryl prosecuted and defended before courts martial, practiced administrative law, conducted training on laws of war, and provided legal assistance to service members, helping them with estate planning, tax planning, property disputes and other legal matters. After his time with the Navy, Daryl spent the next twenty-three years working for the United Nations in the Hague, The Netherlands, in the field of war crimes and international criminal justice. In 2021, Daryl retired from the United Nations and moved with his family back to the United States. Daryl has come back to Manhattanville, first to volunteer and assist with curriculum development and then as an adjunct professor teaching his students about the law and global justice studies.

Daryl gives credit to Manhattanville for giving him a greater understanding of things that he typically wouldn’t gravitate toward. Daryl also credits the Portfolio system that Manhattanville used to have for expanding his interests and giving him new ideas outside of his major studies. Those graduation requirements that were enforced opened his mind and helped him think outside the box. Daryl believes that he left Manhattanville a better writer and critical thinker.