VIRES A Pu b l i ca t i o n of t h e F l o r i d a S ta te U n i ve rs i ty A l u m n i Asso c i a t i o n
S p r i n g /S u m m e r 201 2 Vo l u m e I V, I ss u e 1
CELEBRATING
50 YEARS OF INTEGRATION AND An FSU Alumnus Makes a World of Difference YOUNG ALUMNI • Meet the Alumni Association's Thirty Under 30 • Recent Graduates Give Back
The Moment Saturday, April 28, 2012 2:38 p.m. Former Florida State football player, assistant coach and now-legendary broadcaster Lee Corso fights back emotion after delivering a commencement address that brought members of the Class of 2012 to their feet. Earlier in the ceremony Corso was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters by FSU President Eric Barron (left). For more on Dr. Lee, turn to Ten Questions on page 38. Photo by Zachary Goldstein/FSView & Florida Flambeau
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VIRES is the first torch in the university seal and represents strength of all kinds: physical, mental and moral.
Cover: Signal rockets soar above the Integration statue during a special event commemorating the 50th anniversary of integration at The Florida State University. Read more about the milestone on page 30. Photo by Vito Caserta Spread: A celebratory member of the Class of 2012 joins fellow graduates in one of Florida State's most time-honored traditions — posing in cap and gown on Westcott Plaza — as she prepares to join the ranks of the university's almost 300,000 alumni. Photo by Scott Brouwer 2 Vires
Contents
Departments
Features
Catching Up With ... Around Campus Then & Now Ten Questions Association News Office Hours Class Notes In Memoriam Parting Shot
6 8 28 38 60 70 71 77 80
30
40
48 52
Integration Then, Engagement Now FSU Celebrates 50 Years of Social Change and Growth Special Section: Young Alumni Introducing the Inaugural Class of Thirty Under 30
Young Alumni Development Councils Support Giving at FSU Inspiring Change on a Global Scale An FSU Alumnus Proves Small Decisions Can Lead to Big Things
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TELL US YOUR STORY The Florida State University Alumni Association is proud of the accomplishments our alumni have made and wants to share them with the growing network of Seminoles worldwide. We are always on the lookout for compelling stories about Florida State graduates, from personal and professional achievements to unique experiences and points-of-view.
THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY BOARD OF TRUSTEES Wm. Andrew Haggard, Chair Susie Busch-Transou, Vice Chair Allan Bense Edward E. Burr Joseph L. Camps Emily Fleming Duda Joseph Gruters Mark Hillis James E. Kinsey, Jr. Sandra Lewis Margaret A. “Peggy” Rolando Brent W. Sembler Rueben Stokes
THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS
If you have a story idea for VIRES … Email fsualum@alumni.fsu.edu with your suggestions.
If you or an alumnus that you know recently made headlines … Email fsualum@alumni.fsu.edu with “Noles in the News” in the subject line along with a link to the news story, and you may be showcased in an upcoming e-newsletter.
If you have a professional, civic or personal accomplishment to share … Email fsualum@alumni.fsu.edu with “Class Notes” in the subject line to submit items for publication in the Class Notes section of VIRES. Please include the names and class years of all relevant alumni when submitting information. Photographs are happily accepted but should be print quality (at least 300 DPI at 4” x 6”). Kindly note that submission does not guarantee inclusion due to space limitations. 4 Vires
Executive Committee Laurel R. Moredock, Chair Scott F. Atwell, Association President Allen D. Durham, Chair-Elect Gordon J. Sprague, Vice Chair S. Dale Greene, Treasurer Karema Tyms-Harris, Secretary Jeffrey L. Hill, Immediate Past Chair Tom Jennings, Vice President of University Advancement L. Carl Adams Ruth Ruggles Akers Samuel S. Ambrose James J. Bloomfield Flecia S. Braswell David Brobst Blythe Carpenter Kyle Doney John E. Doughney IV Sandra Dunbar Richard Erickson Don Glisson Mallory Hager Marion Taormina Hargett Thomas V. Hynes Connie Jenkins-Pye Betty Lou Joanos Craig T. Lynch Joda Lynn Katie Patronis Steve Pattison Tamara Wells Pigott Michael J. Raymond James A. Riscigno Susan Sarna Raymond R. Schroeder Delores O. Spearman Cindy Davis Sullivan
VIRES FOR MEMBERS OF THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 1030 West Tennessee Street Tallahassee, FL 32304 850.644.2761 | alumni.fsu.edu
PUBLISHER: Scott Atwell
EDITOR: Lauren Pasqualone
DESIGNER: Jessica Rosenthal STAFF CONTRIBUTORS: Lauren Antista Barbara Ash Louise Bradshaw Bob Branciforte Doug Carlson Kristen Coyne Ron Hartung Ashley Ivey Jenn Mauck Michael McFadden Marilyn McGhee Brenda Mills Christi Morgan Gail Robbins University Communications ALUMNI ASSOCIATION STAFF: Administration & Operations David Overstreet, Director Kathleen Harvey Helm Jenn Mauck
FROM THE PUBLISHER By our most recent count, FSU now has more than 290,000 living alumni. It’s impossible to know what each of you thinks individually about your alma mater, but collectively we can survey general attitudes — and your FSU Alumni Association has done just that. As noted on page 60, the survey reveals an alumni base extraordinarily pleased with its student experience. For us at the association, the takeaway points include ideas on how we can better serve our alumni and friends — ideas that have been incorporated into our 2013 budget plans. VIRES magazine serves as a semiannual report of the work we do on behalf of members. It may surprise you that spring, in many ways, is busier than fall. As you make your way through these pages, I hope you appreciate the depth and breadth of programming and services that came to life in this first half of the year. Our activities included the first-ever presentation of Thirty Under 30 and the Reubin O’D. Askew Young Alumni Awards (page 40), a new recognition program to complement our existing Circle of Gold (page 64). And there’s more … In late October the Alumni Association will invoke its own version of Back to the Future, when the longstanding Grads Made Good awards program welcomes a co-presenter. Since Grads Made Good began in 1974, the award has been the purview of the student honorary Omicron Delta Kappa, though presented each year at the Alumni Association’s Homecoming Awards Breakfast. I’m pleased that Grads Made Good will now be jointly presented by ODK and the FSU Alumni Association. To paraphrase Humphrey Bogart, “It’s the expansion of a beautiful friendship.”
Atwell emcees the spring induction of Circle of Gold.
I can’t tell you how proud I am of our Seminole Clubs across the country for coming together in March to serve their communities (page 66). It was an incredible expression of pride. Many of those clubs also hosted Seminole Send-Offs for local students headed to FSU as freshmen and, in addition, sent club board members to Tallahassee for the Seminole Club Leadership Conference, an annual back-toschool conference that shares ideas and elevates best practices. Our nationwide network of Seminole Clubs is thriving, and I encourage you to take part in their activities. Everything that unfolds on the following pages is made possible by your membership. Thank you. I hope you will ask others to follow your example.
Marketing & Communications Lauren Pasqualone, Assistant Director Louise Bradshaw Jessica Rosenthal Membership & Business Development Ellen Cole, Director Valerie Colvin Programs & Outreach Mandi Young, Senior Director Tom Block Sue Fulford Michael McFadden Whitney Powers
Scott Atwell President & CEO FSU Alumni Association THANK YOU TO OUR CORPORATE PARTNERS
The Alumni Association would like to extend a special thank you to the FSU Photo Lab and others for allowing us to use their photographs in the magazine.
© 2012
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By Scott Atwell
BOB BOWMAN (B.S. ’87) U.S. OLYMPIC SWIM COACH For the past 15 years, FSU alumnus Bob Bowman has sat at the right hand of swimming history, as coach, guru and motivatorin-chief to ultra-Olympian Michael Phelps. Four years ago the protégé made history by winning eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, a penultimate accomplishment that made it nearly impossible for Phelps to get motivated for the 2012 games, which open in London on July 27.
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“You can lead a Phelps to water but you can’t make him swim,” Bowman quipped. “Actually, the first three years you couldn’t even lead him to water.” But Bowman, who was head coach of the North Baltimore Aquatic Club when an 11-year-old Phelps walked though his doors in 1996, has mustered every morsel of psychological knowledge to get his swimmer back on track for what could be another record games. Phelps is owner of 16 Olympic medals in all, two shy of the record.
“HE’S THE ONLY PERSON BESIDES ME WHO CAN REALLY HELP ACHIEVE MY GOALS ... ” - MICHAEL PHELPS “He’s the only person besides me who can really help achieve my goals,” Phelps says of Bowman. “My mom doesn’t know my goals.” Bowman, who swam for FSU from 1983 to 1985, has been described by Phelps as a drill sergeant. In truth, the regimented demands of the coach are most likely the product of his upbringing as an aspiring musician, with the discipline’s emphasis on rigor and repetition. Bowman came to FSU to pursue music. He wound up minoring in music composition after switching his major to developmental psychology, which offered another set of practical theories. “One of the reasons I switched my major was because I had taken a psychology course as part of my general requirements,” Bowman recalls. “I just felt like everything we did in there was applicable. As soon as I got into the program, I realized every class gave me something I could use.”
Whether or not Bowman’s psychology helps Phelps become the greatest medal-winner in Olympic history, London is expected to be the last time we see the swimming phenom in a pool. Phelps will retire but Bowman, who coaches other swimmers on the U.S. Olympic team, will continue on. “When they’re [London Games] over, I’ll take a whole-year sabbatical,” Bowman says. “Just travel and recharge my batteries. Do some things I haven’t been able to do. I’ll visit Tuscany for two weeks and then Australia. Provence in the spring. Maybe I’ll get down for a game at FSU.” Living in the horse-rich countryside of Baltimore, Bowman has also dabbled in the ownership and training of race horses. But for now, his focus is on the thoroughbred in the water racing down the final stretch.
Photo by Matt Roth
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GOOD … BETTER … BEST.
student body. The uninterrupted rise in ACT scores topped out last year at 26.5, while the more wellknown SAT hit an all-time high of just over 1205.
Numbers will not be final until the freshman class of 2012 is fully enrolled, but by all accounts the incoming group of students will be the brightest in FSU history — and that’s saying something. Admissions scores for enrolled students have been on a steep rise for years, creating an enviable trend of one-upmanship that has dramatically increased the quality of the
“While it is impressive to see the continual improvement in the academic quality of our students, they bring more to the university than just a GPA and test score,” says director of admissions Janice Finney (B.S. ’75). “They are actively engaged and ready to contribute, and what many of them accomplish in their four years at Florida State is quite remarkable.”
AVERAGE SAT AND ACT SCORES 27
1200
26.5
1190
26
1180
25.5 Average SAT
Average SAT
1170
Average ACT
1210
25
Average ACT
1160
24.5
1150
24
1140
23.5 2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
NEW DIGITAL REPOSITORY TO MAKE SCHOLARLY RESEARCH AVAILABLE TO PUBLIC THE
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY 8 Vires
To support the idea that publicly funded research should be broadly and widely disseminated and easily accessible to the general public, The Florida State University has developed the DigiNole Commons Virtual Repository for Electronic Scholarship, an online venue for the university’s faculty to store and showcase its research. “Open access to scholarly works will provide valuable knowledge to society, which is something we can all support,” said Micah Vandegrift (B.A. ’06, M.A. ’09, M.S. ’11), scholarly-communications project manager
for the University Libraries, which is responsible for the development of the DigiNole Commons. In addition to creating the DigiNole Commons, Florida State has joined the Coalition of Open Access Policy Institutions, a recently formed group of universities that support open access to scholarly research. Other participating institutions include Duke University, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University and the University of Kansas.
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– Tallahassee Memorial – Official Hospital of Florida State Athletics Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare is proud to be the Official Hospital of Florida State Athletics. As the recognized leader for brain and spinal cord injuries, pediatrics, emergency and cancer care, Tallahassee Memorial is the most comprehensive health care system in Seminole Territory.
TMH.org
FSU PANAMA CITY USHERS IN 30TH ANNIVERSARY AT ALUMNI LUNCHEON
COLLEGE OF
The Florida Legislature and Board of Regents established the campus on July 1, 1982. Florida State Panama City began operating with six administrative and support staff, five resident faculty and 531 students in 11 degree programs. Today it is a cutting-edge campus attended by more than 1,300 students pursuing degrees in 24 program areas taught by 28 resident faculty
As a continuation of celebration, FSU Panama City Dean Ken Shaw will welcome students to campus by serving cake and ice cream during the first week of classes in the fall. The FSU Panama City Annual Dinner scheduled for October 30 will be the premier event celebrating this special year in the life of the campus.
Claire Calohan (M.S.W. ’84) and Jae Pate (M.S.W. ’84), members of FSU Panama City’s first graduating class.
APPLIED STUDIES
More than 100 alumni and guests attended the first of several events planned in 2012 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Florida State University Panama City. Alumni attending the luncheon, held on April 25 in the state-of-the-art Holley Academic Center at FSU Panama City, received a coin commemorating the campus’s milestone year. Attendees also enjoyed the opportunity to reconnect with classmates and review displays of historical photos and other memorabilia.
members. The campus houses Florida State’s multidisciplinary College of Applied Studies, which was established in 2010 to enable the university to respond to the needs of the Northwest Florida work force. More than 6,000 alumni have received Florida State University degrees while attending the FSU Panama City campus.
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AUSTRALIAN SALTWATER CROCODILES DECLARED THE CHAMPS OF CHOMP
COLLEGE OF
ARTS AND SCIENCES
After more than a decade of research, Florida State biology professor Greg Erickson and his colleagues have named Australian saltwater crocodiles the most powerful biters on the planet, with a bite force value of 3,700 pounds. They estimate that the largest extinct crocodilians, 35- to 40-foot animals, bit at forces as high as 23,100 pounds. Funded by the National Geographic Society and the FSU College of Arts and Sciences, Erickson’s study looked at the bite force and tooth pressure of every single species of crocodilian. The study’s findings are so unique that editors at the Guinness Book of World Records have contacted Erickson’s team inquiring about the data. Over the 11 years that his study took place in both the United States and Australia, Erickson and his team roped 83 adult alligators and crocodiles, strapped them down, placed a device between their back teeth and recorded the bite force. An engineering calculation was then used to estimate the force generated simultaneously by the teeth nearest the front of the jaws. The team molded the teeth with dentist’s dental putty, made casts and figured out the contact areas. The data contributes to analyzing performance in animals from the past and provides unprecedented insights on evolution and statistically informed models about other reptiles. Erickson’s research team is already using the study’s data to explore bite-force and tooth-pressure performance in fossil forms, building the world’s most sophisticated models for extinct crocodiles and dinosaurs.
Steven Lenhert
BIOLOGY RESEARCHER ON THE VERGE OF A TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGH IN DRUG CREATION PROCESS New technology being developed at FSU could significantly decrease the cost of drug discovery, leading to increased access to high-quality health care and cancer patients receiving personalized chemotherapy treatments. “Right now, cancer patients receive chemotherapy treatments that are based on the accumulated knowledge of what has worked best for people with similar cancers,” said Steven Lenhert, an assistant professor in biology whose work was recently featured in the journal Biomaterials. “This is the case because hospitals don’t have the technology to test thousands of different chemotherapy mixtures on the tumor cells of an individual patient. This technology could give them access to that capability, making the treatments truly personalized and much more effective.” The key to Lenhert’s invention is miniaturizing the first phase of a process used by pharmaceutical companies to discover new drugs. Right now, companies use large, specialized laboratories to test hundreds of thousands of compounds on different cell cultures. The equipment and manpower cost is substantial, even though only a tiny fraction of the compounds will ever make it to the next phase of testing. If fully employed in the pharmaceutical industry, Lenhert’s technology would make the cost of this expensive process a thousand times cheaper. Depending on funding, Lenhert expects the technology could be made commercially available after two years of development.
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AROUND CAMPUS Left to right: College of Business Dean Caryn BeckDudley, William Hold and FSU Provost Garnett Stokes
COLLEGE OF
Hold is co-founder and president of The National Alliance for Insurance Education & Research, an umbrella organization for research and educational programs geared primarily toward insurance and risk management professionals. Hold previously held faculty positions at the University of Wisconsin and at the University of Texas, where, as an associate
BUSINESS
COLLEGE OF
On Feb. 28, FSU Provost Garnett Stokes announced a $5 million gift from alumnus William Hold (B.S. ’63) to the College of Business. The gift launches “The Risk Initiative,” an upcoming campaign to establish the risk management and insurance program, which will now be known as the Dr. William T. Hold/The National Alliance Program in Risk Management and Insurance, as a national leader.
BUSINESS
FSU RECEIVES $5 MILLION TO EMBARK ON “RISK INITIATIVE” AND NAMES TOP-RANKED RISK MANAGEMENT AND INSURANCE PROGRAM
professor, he was responsible for the insurance and risk management area in the Graduate School of Business. His articles have been published in insurance-related academic and trade journals, including the Journal of Risk and Insurance, the Insurance Law Journal and the CPCU Annals. He is the author of several books on industry-related topics. Hold, who holds a master’s degree and doctorate from the University of Wisconsin, was named to the Insurance Newscast’s prestigious annual list of the “100 Most Powerful People in the Insurance Industry” six years in a row. In 2011, Hold received the Henry C. Martin Award of Industry Achievement, named after the founder of The Rough Notes Company. Vires 11
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The Florida State University chapter was praised by the awards committee for “its accomplishments in each of the six categories related to the award.” The committee was “impressed with the chapter’s use of technology to recruit, retain and communicate with members, especially Ph.D. candidates, and the variety of activities for both local and distance students. The chapter leadership also demonstrated a strong commitment to future growth by drafting a strategic plan to solidify the long-term prosperity of the chapter.” “We are very proud of our chapter and its officers, who have consistently risen to the challenge of reaching the majority of our students, who are taking their classes online and at a distance,” said Christie Koontz (B.S. ’80, M.S. ’81, Ph.D. ’90), the chapter’s faculty advisor. “With the support of our college, our chapter began webcasting its meetings three years ago.”
COLLEGE OF
COMMUNICATION
AND INFORMATION
COLLEGE OF
The Florida State University chapter is located at its School of Library and Information Studies, one of three school’s comprising the College of Communication and Information.
AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION STUDENT CHAPTER NAMED BEST IN THE NATION The American Library Association New Members Roundtable has named the Florida State University American Library Association Student Chapter its 2012 Student Chapter of the Year. The annual award is presented to one of the 57 national chapters in recognition of outstanding contributions to the association, to the chapter’s school and to the library and information studies profession.
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“By consistently engaging our chapter’s local and distance members via our social media outlets and technology, we have fostered a sense of the importance of professional development, the exchange of ideas, social cohesiveness and cooperation with other organizations such as the Beta Phi Mu honor society,” said chapter president John Hinrichs. “It is a tremendous honor to receive this award on behalf of the distinguished 65-year history of Florida State’s School of Library & Information Studies.” The chapter will receive a certificate and $1,000 to help defray travel expenses to the 2012 American Library Association Annual Conference in Anaheim, Calif., where they will be recognized during an awards reception held by the New Members Roundtable. “It is truly a wonderful feeling to be recognized for all of the great things that our student members, both past and present, have accomplished,” said Allison George (B.S. ’04, M.S. ’12), chapter vice president.
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COLLEGE OF
CRIMINOLOGY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE
COLLEGE OF
Because of its beginnings as the Florida State College for Women, FSU has always had a high percentage of female students. Although the criminology program has long been the exception to the rule, the gender gap is beginning to close. In the 1950s and 60s, criminology stood out at FSU with only a 15 percent female population. From 1970 through 2000, that percentage doubled, and today, female criminology students make up more than half of the college’s total population and over 74 percent of its graduate program.
CRIMINOLOGY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE
CRIMINOLOGY ALUMNAE GIVE “MORE FOR FSU”
Despite a decrease in gender divide over time, the criminal justice system as a whole has yet to achieve similar representation. According to 2010 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, women comprise approximately half of total legal occupations such as lawyers and judges but only 21 percent of protective service occupations such as correctional and police officers. FSU alumnae Kim Dalferes (A.A. ’83, B.S. ’85, M.S. ’87), Lisa Brock (B.S. ’80) and Laura Bedard (Ph.D. ’98) are working to change that. The trio founded the “MORE for FSU” mentoring program, which launched during National Women’s History Month in March, to connect successful alumnae with female students in the criminology program. Mentors Offering Real-world Education, or MORE mentors, reflect the diverse employment opportunities possible with a criminology degree, from policy makers in our nation’s capital to private business owners, prison wardens and beyond. The mentors, who will convene on Florida State’s campus on Sept. 21 for the MORE summit, work with students throughout the year to prepare them for and guide them into careers in traditionally male-dominated fields.
COUNTDOWN TO CRIMINOLOGY’S DIAMOND ANNIVERSARY HAS BEGUN Florida State’s criminology program will turn 60 in the fall of 2012. The College of Criminology and Criminal Justice is planning a yearlong celebration to commemorate the storied legacy of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious criminology program and to honor alumni, faculty and staff who have made significant contributions to the highly rated college.
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PROFESSOR PENS BOOK TO HELP ADULTS WITH ADHD For adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly referred to as ADHD, successfully tackling even routine daily tasks can sometimes seem insurmountable. That’s why educational psychology professor Frances Prevatt, director of the Adult Learning Evaluation Center at Florida State, has co-authored the book Succeeding with Adult ADHD: Daily Strategies to Help You Achieve Your Goals and Manage Your Life with former student Abigail Levrini.
Young-Suk Kim
RESEARCHERS STUDY SILENT READING IN CHILDREN When a beginning reader reads aloud, her progress is apparent. But when that same child reads silently, it’s much harder to measure how much she is reading – or understanding.
COLLEGE OF
EDUCATION
Researchers at the Florida Center for Reading Research at FSU will tackle that paradox over the next four years. Funded by a $1.6 million grant from the Institute of Education Sciences, the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education, a team headed by researcher Young-Suk Kim will examine a poorly understood area of literacy: the relationship between oral and silent reading, and how those skills, in turn, relate to reading comprehension.
“I’d been working with college students who have ADHD for so long and had collected so many great ideas that I really wanted to write about it,” said Prevatt. “The result is that our self-help book incorporates proven research with innovative features to deliver a truly unique resource.” As Prevatt alluded, Succeeding with Adult ADHD is not your average self-help book. It contains interactive features, such as worksheets and checklists that aim to make the content uniquely practical and interesting for individuals with ADHD. The book’s chapters are broken down into short sections, and start-and-stop graphics encourage the student to read just one section at a time. Each chapter also includes a true story of an individual that illustrates both the difficulties encountered in living with ADHD and how that individual overcame them. “You can manage your life if you have ADHD,” Prevatt Shouping Hu said. “There’s no cure, but our extensive research and clinical experience has shown that there are proven, practical paths to better coping skills and success.”
“Initially, kids sound out each letter, then put all the sounds together, and then make a word,” explained Kim, a former classroom teacher. “As their reading develops further, they will be able to do that in their minds. But initially, it’s not going to be as efficient or fast.” Until recently, measuring silent reading was difficult, but researchers can now see this progress with the help of advanced eye-tracking technologies that follow students’ eye movements as they read text on a computer screen. Kim and her team will also examine instructional strategies for promoting reading fluency, and hope that this new grant will be followed by a second one in which they will test these approaches. The ultimate goal is to help students read faster and better, a skill critical to their success throughout their years in school.
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Frances Prevatt
AROUND CAMPUS She is impressed with the academic strengths of the university and how much FSU does, especially in the face of limited resources. “The value of the FSU degree increases every year as the prominence of the university grows,” she said. “FSU is seen as a major player among research universities, yet the focus on students is key.” Noting the friendliness of the campus, she said, “This is a campus that feels alive, even on weekends.”
Garnett Stokes
FSU STRIKES GOLD WITH GARNETT By Fran Conaway
THE
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
THE
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
The university’s new chief academic officer has a name no Seminole is likely to forget: Garnett S. Stokes has been serving as The Florida State University’s provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs since August 2011. With a first name (a family legacy) that resonates across campus, Stokes admits, “I didn’t know FSU’s colors until I decided to look into the provost position. When I saw they were garnet and gold, I thought, ‘I have to apply for this job.’” Winning the position thanks to her superb qualifications, Stokes, a widely published scholar in the field of industrial and organizational psychology, previously served as dean of the University of Georgia’s Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. As chief academic officer and second-highestranking official after the president, Stokes has quickly become an integral part of Florida State and its academic excellence. During her first months in office, she has spent her time “getting in front of colleges, departments, institutes and centers and developing relationships with the Faculty Senate, chairs, deans and faculty,” she said.
She calls the reconfigured Strozier Library “unique in its appeal. I’ve never been to a library that was so alive.” Looking toward the future, she is working with FSU President Eric Barron (B.S. '73) on plans to strengthen the faculty, “carving out funds to retain and add quality faculty. We need to develop strategies to reward success,” she said. Beyond academics, among Stokes’s favorite Florida State experiences so far are the President’s Ice Cream Social and the Alice in Noleland festival (named for Eric and Molly Barron’s new granddaughter), featuring fun of all kinds for the families of faculty members in the backyard of the President’s House. Stokes holds an appointment as a professor in psychology at FSU. Her research focuses on personnel selection and promotion, and areas of individual differences such as life history, personality and values. She is a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, the American Psychological Association and the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. She earned two degrees from the University of Georgia: a doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology in 1982 and a Master of Science in 1980. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Carson-Newman College in 1977.
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AROUND CAMPUS top producers of baccalaureate minority engineers in the nation. We are very fortunate to have him join our team of academic leaders,” agreed FAMU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Cynthia Hughes Harris. Yeboah will be the fifth leader of the jointly operated engineering college, which enrolls approximately 2,250 undergraduate and 300 graduate students annually.
Yaw D. Yeboah
NEW DEAN APPOINTED AT FAMU-FSU COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING COLLEGE OF
ENGINEERING
COLLEGE OF
ENGINEERING
Florida A&M University and Florida State University have named Pennsylvania State University engineering professor Yaw D. Yeboah as the new dean of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering effective July 1, 2012.
After a national search, Yeboah was selected to succeed Ching-Jen “Marty” Chen, the college’s dean from 1992 to 2011. Engineering professor John R. Collier served as interim dean following Chen’s resignation in February 2011.
“Dr. Yeboah is an accomplished scholar who blends a genuine concern for students with the leadership skills that will propel the College of Engineering toward greater distinction,” said Garnett Stokes, Florida State’s provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. “He is a consensus builder with a track record of success in higher education administration.” “I am confident that with Dr. Yeboah’s level of experience, research expertise and professionalism, he will ensure that the college remains one of the 16 Vires
“I look forward to joining the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering family, and to continuing the tradition of excellence by upholding the motto ‘Quality, Growth and Diversity,’” Yeboah said. “The potential of the college, through its uniqueness, advantages and the opportunities it offers, is incredible, and I anticipate us working together on a shared vision to move it to the next level.” Yeboah began his illustrious career conducting research and development at the General Electric Corporate Research and Development Center in Schenectady, N.Y. He then joined Clark Atlanta University, building an engineering program as associate dean for science and engineering. In addition, he served as technical director of the Research Center for Science and Technology at Clark Atlanta University from 1995 to 2004. At Penn State, Yeboah was the department head of the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, where he administered the engineering degree programs in energy, environmental systems, mining, and petroleum and natural gas. He also continued his research in catalysis, bioenergy, fuel cells and combustion, and emission control. In 2008, Yeboah received the Black Achiever in Chemical Engineering Award for extraordinary contributions to chemical engineering and the engineering profession from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. In 1975, Yeboah became the first Massachusetts Institute of Technology student to ever earn four degrees in four years — bachelor’s degrees in management, chemistry and chemical engineering, and a master’s degree in chemical engineering practice. He earned a doctorate in chemical engineering in 1979, also from MIT.
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ENTREPRENEUR RECOGNIZED AS HUMAN SCIENCES DISTINGUISHED ALUMNA Merchandising alumna Marian Christ (B.S. ’69) received the 2012 Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Human Sciences during its annual honors and awards night in April. Christ founded All About Kids in Orlando, Fla., in 1991 after identifying the need for a professional childcare provider to serve hotels and conventions in the tourism-heavy area. Again responding to the market’s demand, Christ expanded the business to include the rental of children’s equipment, such as strollers, portable cribs and car seats, to visitors in 1993.
Marian Christ accepts the College of Human Sciences 2012 Distinguished Alumna Award from Dean Billie Collier.
Christ credits her education at Florida State with providing her an array of applicable business skills. “Without the business background of my merchandising degree, I would not have been as prepared to develop marketing and business plans,” she said. Reflecting on the more than 20 successful years she’s had with All About Kids, Christ offered the following advice to future entrepreneurs: “Be persistent, and don’t give up on your dream. If one way doesn’t work, try another.”
PARTNERSHIP WITH HIGH SCHOOL PROVIDES BENEFITS FOR ALL STUDENTS INVOLVED
afternoon during the school year, Brock goes to the school to train individual athletes and create sports conditioning programs for its athletic teams. “Initially, some of the athletes had no idea that I could really help them improve their performance and prevent injuries, but I’ve slowly won them over and it’s great to really see a difference in the kids,” Brock said. “I can’t wait to work out with these student athletes during the summer training program that I have designed.” Mark J. Kasper, director of the Institute for Sports Sciences and Medicine, believes both schools profit from the sharing of resources.
Anthony Van Gessell, athletic director and basketball coach at John Paul II Catholic High School, agrees, “A dedicated strength and conditioning coach who spends each afternoon developing our athletes and educating them on proper techniques and safety in the weight room has been invaluable to our growing sports program.”
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Creating a functional workspace with limited resources was the first of many practical lessons to come for Brock, a second-year graduate student in sports sciences. A private-public partnership between the high school and the FSU Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine provides a year-round internship opportunity for a graduate student. Each
Nate Brock spent his first few days as the new strength and conditioning coach rearranging machines, swapping equipment and stacking free weights around the undersized weight room of Tallahassee’s John Paul II Catholic High School.
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“I had to organize this small space as efficiently as possible first before I could even begin training and conditioning with the students,” he recalls.
“Our students can actually put into practice what they learn in the classroom while under the supervision and mentorship of Jon Jost, director of strength and conditioning at Florida State University and an instructor in the sports sciences graduate major. At the same time, athletes at John Paul II receive top-notch training and state-of-the-art instruction by a National Strength and Conditioning Association certified strength and conditioning specialist. It’s a win-win for everyone.”
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Donald J. Weidner
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LAW DEAN LAUDED NATIONALLY Donald J. Weidner is receiving national recognition for all he has achieved as dean of the FSU College of Law over the last 21 years. Gov. Rick Scott recently selected Weidner to be Florida’s representative on the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, the nation’s leading statutory law reform group. Weidner’s appointment follows his being named one of the nine most transformative law school deans in the country by influential blogger and University of Chicago law professor Brian Leiter. The accolade, which is awarded for boosting a school’s “intellectual identity and scholarly profile,” places Weidner squarely among some of the nation’s top law school deans, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan (formerly of Harvard University) and Vanderbilt University’s Kent Syverud.
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Under Weidner’s watch, the College of Law has climbed 17 spots over the past seven years in the U.S. News & World Report rankings, pushing it into a coveted top 50 ranking. The publication, which ranks hundreds of academic disciplines, also rated the university’s environmental law program the sixth strongest in the country, while Brian Leiter’s Law School Reports rated Florida State’s law faculty 23rd in the nation in terms of scholarly impact. The College of Law also ranks 10th best in the nation (and third among public universities) in annual alumni giving according to the American Bar Association, which found that nearly one-third of FSU’s law graduates give back.
BLACK LAW STUDENTS ASSOCIATION NAMED NATIONAL CHAPTER OF THE YEAR For the third time since 2006 — and the second year in a row — the National Black Law Students Association has named the FSU Black Law Students Association the National Chapter of the Year. Florida State, the 2011-2012 Southern Regional Chapter of the Year, competed for the national award against six other regional winners: Harvard Law School, William & Mary Law School, Indiana University Mauer School of Law, University of Texas School of Law, University of South Carolina School of Law and UCLA School of Law. Chapters were evaluated on criteria including community service events, voter rights programming, youth programming, college student programming, career development, social events and National Black Law Students Association participation. The Florida State chapter held more than 30 events during the 2011-2012 academic year on topics ranging from election law to AfricanAmericans in the legal profession. Chapter members also participated in community service activities, volunteering at the Second Harvest of the Big Bend, donating food and clothing to local families and collecting books for prisoners.
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PROFESSOR NAMED TOP U.S. CLINICIAN IN GERIATRICS The American Geriatrics Society has named Niharika Suchak, an associate professor in the College of Medicine’s Department of Geriatrics, the 2012 Clinician of the Year. “I cannot imagine another clinician more deserving of this award than Dr. Suchak,” said Barbara Resnick, president of the society. “She has an innate ability to guide patients and their families through the maze of complex medical decision-making and considers the patient’s individual needs, which is essential when caring for older adults.” Teaching students how to care for older adults is a key part of the College of Medicine’s mission. Florida State has one of the few medical schools in the country with a separate geriatrics department. In addition, it integrates geriatrics throughout its four-year curriculum, because all physicians — not just geriatricians — are likely to provide care to older patients.
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Niharika Suchak
The Florida State University College of Medicine filled Ruby Diamond Concert Hall on May 19 for a commencement ceremony featuring 117 new physicians, the largest graduating class in the college’s 11-year history. Twenty-seven students graduated with the first class in 2005.
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Dean John P. Fogarty thanked the graduating class for its role in helping the College of Medicine successfully complete its application for reaccreditation in 2011. He also praised the class for being the first from Florida State to have a 100-percent first-attempt pass rate on the rigorous United States Medical Licensing Exam Step 2, which takes place early in the fourth year of medical school. Nationally, about 95 percent of medical students who take the exam pass on the first attempt. “As you start your residency training I want you to remember that you represent a new innovative medical school, a school founded on the principles of patient-focused care and community-based training,” Fogarty told the graduates. “You have thrived in that environment and validated the vision of the founders of this innovative model.”
Members of the College of Medicine's 2012 graduating class cross the stage at Ruby Diamond Concert Hall to receive their diplomas.
Suchak received her medical degree at the Armed Forces Medical College in Pune, India, and completed her residency and fellowship training at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore. She has a master’s degree in clinical epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene & Public Health and is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in internal medicine, geriatric medicine, and hospice and palliative medicine. Vires 19
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DODD HALL HAILED AS ONE OF FLORIDA’S BEST BUILDINGS
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Florida State’s Dodd Hall has been recognized by the Florida chapter of The American Institute of Architects, or AIA-Florida, as the 10th most popular building in Florida. In March, AIA-Florida launched a “Top 100 Buildings” statewide online competition, inviting the public to vote for their favorite Sunshine State structure. More than 2.4 million votes were cast. Dodd Hall was built in 1923 with $200,000 granted by the Florida Legislature for construction of a new library. It remained a library until 1956, when Strozier Library was completed. Over the years, Dodd Hall has housed the philosophy, religion and classics departments, WFSU-TV, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Mildred and Claude Pepper Museum and Archives. It has been restored to highlight the original details and the building’s stained glass. The Tallahassee, Fla., firm MLD Architects received an award from the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation for restoration of the building. The Gatsby-era icon is named for William George Dodd, who joined the faculty of the Florida State College for Women in 1910 and served as head of the English department and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
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Gary K. Ostrander
UNIVERSITY APPOINTS NEW VICE PRESIDENT FOR RESEARCH Gary K. Ostrander has been named The Florida State University’s vice president for research following the retirement of Kirby Kemper, who held the position for nine years and was a member of the FSU faculty for more than 40 years. As the senior research officer for Florida State, Ostrander will direct the Office of Research and all aspects of the university’s research enterprise, including its research centers, programs and institutes. He will oversee a staff of 80 and a $29 million operating budget. Ostrander is currently the vice chancellor for research and graduate education at the University of Hawaii’s flagship campus in Honolulu. In addition to faculty positions at Oklahoma State University and Johns Hopkins University, he previously served as associate provost for research and chair of the graduate board at Johns Hopkins. “I look forward to joining Florida State University’s world-class community of scholars and the opportunity to enhance the institution’s far-reaching network of research partners and collaborators,” Ostrander said. “My wife, Frances, and I are also looking forward to becoming part of the Tallahassee community.” Ostrander received a bachelor‘s degree in biology from Seattle University, a master‘s degree in biology from Illinois State University and a doctorate from the University of Washington. Initially, his research focused on exploiting novel aspects of the biology of aquatic species to address fundamental questions of cancer biology. In recent years, his research program has focused on laboratory and field studies aimed at understanding the worldwide deterioration of coral reef ecosystems.
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ALUMNI PREMIERE FEATURE AT FLORIDA FILM FESTIVAL When Ken Adachi (M.F.A. ’09) and Kyle Arrington (M.F.A. ’09) graduated from the FSU Film School, they decided not to wait for the industry to make space for them. Instead, they took fate into their own hands and headed to Hollywood. With limited means and an abundance of passion, they devoted their free time to writing a screenplay, soon turning to their former Florida State classmates to bring Dead Dad to life.
Arrington, Adachi’s co-writer and one of the film’s stars, has written short films and plays seen across the country and was a finalist in the National Ten Minute Play Contest at Actor Theatre of Louisville (Ky.). Most recently, he was a researcher for the Fox television series House.
Photo by Lance Turner
Other FSU alumni credited in the film include producer and actor Ben Hethcoat (B.F.A. ’10), cinematographer Eric Bader (M.F.A. ’09), executive producers Adam Varney (M.F.A. ’09) and Jason Ambler (B.F.A. ’09), production designer Morgan Hall (B.F.A. ’09), actress Jenni Melear (B.S. ’07), first assistant camera Beth Napoli (M.F.A. ’10), second assistant camera Madeline Eberhard (B.F.A. ’10), associate producer and production coordinator Monique McKellop (B.S. ’07), additional camera assistant Ron Johnson (B.F.A.’10), grips Eric Clark (M.F.A. ’09) and Thomas Lorne (M.F.A. ’09), and still photographer Jessica Tosoc (B.F.A. ’07).
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Dead Dad follows three estranged siblings who must deal with their father’s remains after his unexpected death. With little guidance and plenty of resentment among them, the three must work together to give their father a proper send-off. Ironically, the man who split the siblings apart brings them closer together as they discover what it means to be a family.
Left to right: editor Eric Ekman, producer Ben Hethcoat, director Ken Adachi, co-writer and actor Kyle Arrington and producer Kelly Calligan at the world premiere of Dead Dad.
MOTION PICTURE ARTS
The comedic drama — written, directed, produced and starring mostly College of Motion Picture Arts graduates — made its world premiere April 16 at the 2012 Florida Film Festival in Maitland, Fla. The movie was one of 167 films selected for the festival from 1,706 entries and one of only 27 films making world debuts.
Adachi’s short film Picture Day won a prestigious College Television Award in 2010. He said that while working primarily in short formats, he developed an urge to complete a feature-length film. Dead Dad is his feature film debut.
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Clinical studies conducted by Standley have shown that infants will increase their sucking rates up to 2.5 times more than infants not exposed to the musical reinforcement. PAL can reduce the length of a premature infant’s hospital stay by an average of five days.
MUSICAL INVENTION TO HELP PREMATURE BABIES ONE LULLABY AT A TIME
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Many premature babies enter the world with a mountain of challenges in front of them. To help address one of their biggest problems — learning how to suck and feed — Florida State University has announced the availability of the Pacifier Activated Lullaby device, or PAL, to hospitals around the world. PAL uses a specially wired pacifier and speaker to provide musical reinforcement every time a baby sucks on it correctly. The musical lullabies are gentle and pleasant to the baby, making them want to continue the sucking motion so they can hear more of the lullaby. “Unlike full-term infants, very premature babies come into the world lacking the neurologic ability to coordinate a suck/swallow/breathe response for oral feeding,” said Jayne Standley (B.S. ’66, M.M. ’69, Ph.D. ’76), Florida State’s Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor of Music Therapy and inventor of the PAL. “The longer it takes them to learn this essential skill, the further behind in the growth process they fall. PAL uses musical lullaby reinforcement to speed this process up, helping them feed sooner and leave the hospital sooner.”
Originally envisioned by Standley more than a decade ago, PAL has undergone extensive testing, received a U.S. patent and been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Recognizing the significant health and economic benefits of PAL, Powers Device Technologies obtained the distribution and marketing rights and has launched a worldwide sales initiative. As premature birth rates continue to rise (up 36 percent since the 1980s), PAL demonstrates how the power of music is being harnessed to help premature infants overcome their developmental challenges. “Many of these babies undergo daily medical procedures that, while necessary, result in added stress, pain and anxiety for the infant,” Standley said. “Using a device that actually gives them comfort while they learn an essential life skill is a valuable complement to NICU [neonatal intensive-care unit] care.”
UNIVERSITY SINGERS TO CELEBRATE 65TH ANNIVERSARY WITH REUNION CONCERT The University Singers, an audition-only choir consisting of FSU students, has represented choral excellence throughout the United States and the world since it was founded in 1948. The choir will celebrate its 65th anniversary with a reunion on Feb. 23-24, 2013. The weekend will culminate with a gala concert, featuring an alumni choir comprised of past University Singers, in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall. For more information, email fsusingersreunion@gmail.com.
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NURSING ALUMNA RECOGNIZED FOR HER ACHIEVEMENTS
Hassmiller, who resides in Princeton Junction, N.J., joined the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 1997 and is now the foundation’s senior adviser for nursing. In this role, she shapes and leads the foundation’s strategies to address nurse and nurse faculty shortages in an effort to create a higher quality of patient care in the United States. She directs the foundation’s Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action. This nationwide effort strives to implement the recommendations of the Institute
After receiving a pair of degrees from Florida State, Hassmiller went on to further her education, earning a second master’s degree and a doctorate before beginning a nursing career filled with accomplishments. She has volunteered and held numerous nursing positions in public health settings at the state and national level. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and a member of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations’ National Nurse Advisory Council and the New York Academy of Medicine. Hassmiller is the recipient of a number of awards, most notably the Florence Nightingale Medal, the highest international honor given to nursing professionals by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The College of Nursing annually bestows Distinguished Graduate Awards to alumni who have made outstanding scholarly, creative and humanitarian achievements in service to their profession. Nominations for the 2012 award will be accepted through Aug. 17. For more information, visit nursing.fsu.edu/alumni-and-friends.
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“This award is a tremendous honor, especially in light of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s commitment to improving the quality and safety of patient care,” said Hassmiller. “The public counts on nurses to be there for them — in schools, clinics, hospitals and everywhere care is needed.”
of Medicine’s Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report. Hassmiller served as the report’s study director.
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Fresh on the heels of receiving a prestigious Grads Made Good award from FSU’s Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa honor society, Susan B. Hassmiller (B.S. ’77, M.S. ’79) was named a Distinguished Alumna by the College of Nursing in recognition for her work in spearheading the national Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida Foundation subsequently announced a $10,000 grant in her honor for faculty development in the College of Nursing.
Susan Hassmiller (center) with students (left to right) Jessica Wawryniak and Brandi Woodrum after receiving the College of Nursing’s Distinguished Alumna Award. Vires 23
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“The bottom-line measure of success for the grant from the DOT is that we reduce the number of fatalities, injuries and crashes that involve older adults in Florida,” Reynolds said. “However, in doing so we’ll be making the roads safer for all Floridians and hopefully serving as a national model for other states.”
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SOCIAL SCIENCES AND PUBLIC POLICY
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Residents ages 65 and older make up almost 18 percent of the Sunshine State’s population, and the Census Bureau projects that number to grow to 27 percent over the next two decades. In 2008, 447 older adults were killed in automobile crashes on Florida roads, making up about 15 percent of all crash fatalities in the state.
STUDY SHOWS RANGE OF PERCEPTIONS ABOUT WHEN MIDLIFE BEGINS John Reynolds
INSTITUTE AWARDED GRANTS TO REDUCE DRIVING INCIDENTS INVOLVING OLDER ADULTS Florida is home to one of the highest percentages of residents ages 65 and older in the United States, but very few of them have thought ahead to a time when they will no longer be able to drive safely, according to a new survey developed by The Florida State University and the Florida Department of Transportation. The findings reflect a serious issue in Florida — and across the nation — that older drivers are at a disproportionate risk for being involved in a fatal vehicular crash, according to John Reynolds, the Eagles Professor of Sociology at Florida State and director of the university’s Pepper Institute on Aging and Public Policy. To address the problem, the Department of Transportation has awarded the Pepper Institute grants totaling $475,000 to establish and implement a statewide coalition to create an Aging Road User Strategic Safety Plan.
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Anne Barrett, a 41-year-old associate professor of sociology at FSU, views herself as middle-aged. Until recently, however, there was little research to back up her claim. In a new paper published in the journal Advances in Life Course Research, Barrett examines how people view the start and end of middle age, a topic that intrigued her because “there are so few clear markers of its boundaries, unlike adulthood or old age.” Barrett combed through two waves of nationally representative data collected in the United States in 1995-1996 and 2004-2006 that examined how various factors influence people’s views of the timing of middle age. According to Barrett’s research, most people think of middle age as beginning at 44 and ending at 60. However, both women and men view the start and end of middle age as occurring earlier for women than for men. Younger adults tend to see middle age as occurring at younger ages than do older adults. Others likely to view middle age as occurring earlier include those who are economically disadvantaged, in racial or ethnic minority groups, in poor health, began families young, are divorced or have no living parents. Barrett is now studying the health consequences of these conceptions of middle age.
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STUDENTS RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT GENOCIDE
SOCIAL WORK PROFESSOR LAUNCHES YOUTH MENTORING PROGRAM
College of Social Work doctoral student Jane McPherson is working with the undergraduate students she teaches to raise awareness about the ongoing reality of genocide. Through the One Million Bones project, McPherson is reaching out to high schoolers, college students and residents in Tallahassee, Fla., to craft 4,000 replicas of human bones out of clay. Every bone created generates a $1 donation from the Bezos Family Foundation to aid survivors of mass violence. The bones also serve as a visual aid to help people grasp the impact of genocide. The national organization will display 1,000,000 clay bones, crafted by local groups like McPherson’s, in Washington, D.C., in spring 2013.
Professor Eyitayo Onifade is spearheading a new outreach program for disadvantaged youth in Florida’s Big Bend area. FSU Construction-Coaching Opportunities to Reach Employment, or C-CORE, facilitates mentoring and skills training for at-risk and court-involved adolescents interested in residential construction careers.
“Social work is human rights work … ” McPherson said. “One Million Bones is a great way to get students into the community and to get them thinking about human rights at the same time.”
Eyitayo Onifade
“This collaboration will connect youth with construction industry leaders, preparing them for the participation in a primary labor market and planting the seed for future economic growth in the region,” Onifade said. Onifade was awarded a $60,000 grant to launch the program in partnership with the Home Builders Institute. The 14-month program will be evaluated on its ability to connect the approximately 200 youth it will serve with job opportunities while reducing delinquency risk among participants.
Jane McPherson
RESEARCHER AIMS TO COMBAT ADDICTION AND PAIN WITH MINDFULNESS
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Research has shown that mindfulness may promote psychological and physical health in three ways: by reducing pain, by reducing stress and negative emotions (which exacerbate pain) and by increasing self-control. Garland’s current study, which is funded through a National Institute of Health grant, is particularly promising because mindfulness is also a potential treatment for other habit behaviors and health problems, such as alcohol abuse.
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Prescription drug abuse frequently makes headlines in Florida and remains at the forefront of U.S. news as the country struggles to address this public health threat. Eric Garland, College of Social Work assistant professor, is offering an innovative way to combat chronic pain and problems related to prescription painkillers through a type of mental training he developed called “MindfulnessOriented Recovery Enhancement.”
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ART MEETS SCIENCE IN NEW FACILITY FOR COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH
INTERIOR DESIGN GRADUATE PROGRAM, PROFESSOR AMONG NATION’S TOP
Imagine a place where studio painters, sculptors, ceramicists, graphic artists, scientists and engineers gather to collaborate on projects that might someday change the way everyday objects are created.
FSU’s graduate program in interior design ranks No. 10 in the nation among both public and private institutions, and interior design professor Lisa Waxman (B.S. ’80, Ph.D. ’04) is among the 25 “Most Admired Educators” in the design field, according to the 2012 edition of America’s Best Architecture and Design Schools.
The Facility for Arts Research, or FAR, is just that place. The 22,500-square-foot former cancer-research facility, nestled on five acres in northwest Tallahassee, will provide a unique, interdisciplinary research environment for both the fine arts and the sciences. “The FAR building is the first of its kind in the country and arguably in the world,” said Sally McRorie, dean of the College of Visual Arts, Theatre and Dance, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. 8. “We’re making this extraordinary facility into a reality.” According to FSU President Eric J. Barron (B.S. ’73), Florida State is being very efficient and effective by taking a pre-existing building and re-imagining it into a cutting-edge artists’ mecca that will provide students with an even richer academic experience.
“That Professor Waxman has been ranked among the elite in her field is no surprise to anyone who has worked with her, but that she should be so honored this year is particularly noteworthy because only five of the 25 ‘Most Admired Educators’ are from the interior design field,” said Florida State Department of Interior Design Chairman Eric Wiedegreen. “The others listed come mostly from architecture and landscape architecture.”
FAR will allow students, faculty and researchers in the arts, engineering, sciences, medicine, information, business and beyond to work together on innovative research projects that truly cross disciplinary boundaries.
Waxman served as FSU’s director of graduate studies in interior design from 2004 until fall 2011, when she became national president of the Interior Design Educators Council — the leading organization for interior design educators in North America.
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Published by top industry journal Design Intelligence, the Best Architecture and Design Schools rankings have served for 13 years as the definitive analysis of architecture and design programs nationwide.
Eric Wiedegreen and Lisa Waxman
“We have soared in the rankings,” Wiedegreen said, “because design faculty such as Lisa Waxman have successfully met the challenges of graduate design education today, giving our students the finest experience possible through excellent leadership and a diverse faculty that focuses on both research and creative scholarship.”
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STATE UNIVERSITY DEGREE IN FLORIDA CAN MEAN HUGE BOOST IN LIFETIME EARNINGS A new economic study suggests that having a degree from one of Florida’s 11 state universities can be a financial lifesaver — equivalent to more than $1 million in a worker’s lifetime earnings.
The study also found that the 11 public universities had a nearly $52 billion value-added economic impact on the state’s economy during the 2009-2010
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Extended to 30 years and accounting for typical pay increases, the difference between those with high school diplomas and higher degrees remained vast, with bachelor’s degree recipients outpacing high school graduates by more than $550,000; master’s degrees, more than $850,000; doctorates, more than $1.3 million; and professionals, more than $1.8 million.
The study did not include spending on college sports events, nor did it include spending by university technology “spinoff” companies.
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• those with a high school diploma, $20,924; • those with a bachelor’s degree, $36,520; • those with a master’s degree, $58,698; • those with a doctorate, $66,743, and • professionals, such as physicians or attorneys, $70,716.
The economists estimated that the universities and related businesses are responsible directly and indirectly for about 771,000 jobs in the state, or 7.9 percent of the state’s work force.
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Using data from the state’s Department of Education, economists from The Florida State University and University of Florida found the following average annual earnings for Florida high school and university graduates who were employed in Florida during fiscal year 2009-2010:
fiscal year, which ended in June 2010. That represents a little more than 7.25 percent of the state’s total economic activity and includes regional multiplier effects produced by government and household spending by those who work for, attend or conduct business related to the State University System.
Besides FSU and UF, the state’s public universities are the University of West Florida, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, the University of North Florida, the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida, New College of Florida, Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University. Researchers from FSU’s Center for Economic Forecasting and Analysis and the University of Florida’s Food and Resource Economics Department conducted the study at the request of the Board of Governors of the State University System.
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Photo courtesy of the State Archives of Florida
Then& Above: The palatial west wing of Dodd Hall, shown here in the 1930s, served as the central library at the Florida State College for Women and later, FSU until 1956. Right: The former library, now known as the Werkmeister Humanities Reading Room, has been transformed into a space dedicated to preserving, showcasing and honoring the university’s history. Though FSU’s Heritage Museum contains many artifacts, photographs and memorabilia for visitors to peruse, its most prominent features are the towering stained-glass windows, all skillfully created by the university’s own Master Craftsman Studio.
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One must simply stroll through Florida State’s picturesque campus to realize the university has a deep and rich heritage. Although the walls of the majestic buildings cannot talk, there are people within them who are meticulously working to document the institution’s history, from its 19th-Century beginnings as West Florida Seminary to the modern Florida State University of today. Eddie Woodward (M.A. ’98) has spent the last five years combing through FSU memorabilia, photographs, ephemera and other commemorative items for The Florida State University Heritage Protocol program, a campus-wide initiative to record and share the story of the institution’s past.
Now readers can travel back in time with Woodward through the pages of his new book on Florida State’s history, Florida State University. The FSU-specific edition of Arcadia Publishing’s Campus History Series contains over 200 photographs, transporting bibliophiles through each of the university’s eras.
Florida State University is available in bookstores, at online retailers and from FSU Libraries. All author’s royalties generated from its sale in bookstores and online benefit the University Libraries. Additional support is provided to the libraries when the book is purchased directly from FSU; for more information, contact Elizabeth Johnson at eljohnson2@fsu.edu or 850.645.8925.
To learn more about Heritage Protocol, visit heritage.fsu.edu.
Photo by Bill Lax
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INTEGRATION THEN, ENGAGEMENT NOW FSU CELEBRATES
50 YEARS
OF SOCIAL CHANGE AND GROWTH
By Bill Edmonds
With the confident walk of the eternal athlete, Fred Flowers (B.A. ’69, M.S. ’73) stepped away from the dugout and strode to the pitcher’s mound on Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium to throw the opening pitch in the Seminoles’ first of three victories over the Miami Hurricanes. His appearance on April 20, a sunny Friday afternoon, was part of a week of celebration and commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the integration of Florida State University.
Right: Students pass a commemorative medallion during the Hand in Hand Across Time observance of Florida State’s integration. Photo by Melina Vastola Photos by FSU Photo Lab unless otherwise indicated
The highlight of the celebration — complete with choral singers, food, music, dancing and, yes, signal rockets — was the Hand in Hand Across Time tribute. More than 1,500 alumni, students, faculty, administrators and community friends formed three human chains to pass along, one to another, medallions commemorating those students who took the university from its segregated past to an integrated future. In terms of spectacle, Flowers’s arrival on the baseball field couldn’t compete, but his stroll to the mound was meaningful and telling in its own way. In 1965, Flowers became the first AfricanAmerican athlete to wear the garnet and gold. That’s him you see standing with his sister, Doby Flowers (B.S. ’71, M.S. ’73), the first AfricanAmerican homecoming queen, and Maxwell Courtney, the first African-American graduate, in the Integration monument on campus. For Flowers,
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his return to the field was both a page from his past and a new piece of personal history. For FSU fans, it was a glimpse into the mindset of a Southern university of more than 40 years ago and a look at FSU’s transformation into a modern, multicultural institution. Flowers’s throw to sophomore pitcher Peter Miller was surprisingly strong and fast — none of that wobbly, wild stuff of most first throws by celebrity guests. “I struck out the phantom batter with an overhead curve on the inside corner,” Flowers recalled later. “It was a little high,” observed relief pitcher Hunter Scantling, one of a number of AfricanAmerican players on today’s team, “but he threw it hard. I could tell he had an arm.” Scantling, a senior from Jacksonville, Fla., majoring in sociology, said having a pioneer from the past join the team meant a lot. “This is the guy who pretty much created a way for all of us,” he said. “It not only gave us a chance, it gave whites a chance as well, to learn about bonding together, coming together. To be in the presence of that kind of person and take the mound after he did, it’s an awesome feeling.”
Sherman Johnson, FSU’s third baseman, noted that life at FSU for African-American students and athletes today is a world apart from what Flowers experienced in 1965.
Left: Fred Flowers makes the opening pitch at the FSU-UM baseball game. Below: Flowers celebrates after placing a medallion in one of three permanent markers on campus.
“To watch him throw out the first pitch was awesome,” said Johnson, a senior from Tampa, Fla., studying geography. “We had integration stuff going on all week here. It really puts it into perspective on how easy they made it for us. Nowadays you don’t really see color anymore on the field, just everybody playing. I know it wasn’t the case back then. He made it a lot easier for us, and I’d like to thank him for that.” Johnson was right — it certainly wasn’t the case back then. For Flowers, his time in uniform for the Seminoles was both exhilarating and frustrating. Long before he was cast in larger-than-life bronze, and many years before he threw his curveball to open the game, Flowers was a star student and talented athlete at Tallahassee’s Lincoln High, then a segregated all-black school. A pro prospect — the San Francisco Giants gave him a nice offer to sign on right after graduation — Flowers chose instead to attend FSU on academic and athletic scholarships. Though he loved baseball, his decision to play for Florida State wasn’t all about athletics.
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“We were members of an army, an army of young students whose mission it was to integrate the predominately white universities,” Flowers said. “These students were spread out all across the South.” Flowers considers himself lucky to have been part of Seminole sports, because it made his role as a soldier of change more effective. Above: More than 1,500 individuals passed commemorative medallions to signify the importance of passing along the values of diversity and unity. Right: Doby Flowers greets people along one of the three human chains that extended from the Integration statue to the edges of campus. Opposite: With her largerthan-life likeness as a backdrop, Flowers embraced many of the students lined up to thank her for opening the door to opportunity at FSU. 32 Vires
“It seems like society can take integration in athletics first,” Flowers said in an interview in his law offices in Tallahassee. “I have friends today from that time.” Those friends include head coach Mike Martin, who was a senior on the team when Flowers joined as a freshman. (Even today, Martin calls him Freddie.) “The kind of atmosphere on the team was different from society,” Flowers said. “A very big difference.”
Though he made friends with fellow players, Flowers had less success bonding with the coaching staff. After a year’s pitching on FSU’s freshman-only squad — the NCAA forbid firstyear students from varsity competition at that time — Flowers never got a chance to throw again. The coach told him to play outfield instead, but Flowers was having none of that. He left the team after his sophomore year. Flowers’s opening pitch in April’s FSU-Miami series was his first, and only, varsity pitch for the Seminoles. Frustrated as a ball player, Flowers continued on as a student. Life in the classroom wasn’t always fair and friendly. “The one thing that sticks out in my mind, I had one professor who could not take his eyes off me, in all of his lectures,” he recalled. “I don’t know what that was about, but it was a stare. But I wasn’t troubled by that. I was there. … I was on a mission, no matter what his attitude.”
Although they could not have known it at the time, Maxwell Courtney, Fred Flowers and Doby Flowers paved the way for thousands of others and helped distinguish Florida State from comparable institutions. Among top public research universities, FSU is now third in the number of bachelor’s degrees awarded to black students and one of the top 15 in the nation for the number of black students earning doctoral degrees.
Flowers went on to earn his bachelor’s degree and, after a stint in the U.S. Army, a master’s degree as well — mission accomplished! — before obtaining a law degree from the University of Florida. Throughout his time at Florida State, Flowers was a leader on campus (he helped establish the Black Student Union and served as its second president) and, like his sister, a committed activist. For African-American students, the role as soldiers of social change has now morphed into positions of citizen leaders guiding student government and student organizations. Ties to the past are strong for today’s minority students, but their world, their campus and their experiences are distinctly different. “This school has given me so much,” said Jareth Bent, president of FSU’s Black Student Union, offering an affirmation that might have sounded strange to African-American students 50 years ago. “It has helped me develop as a person. It has challenged me on so many levels.”
Bent had to defend his decision to attend a PWI — Predominately White Institution — to his mother, who had another school in mind, and to his peers. “I remember telling my mom, ‘This might be a PWI,’” Bent recalled, “’but they take care of black people.’” That’s not how the student-soldiers of change describe the FSU of old. Doby (rhymes with “Bobby”) Flowers came to FSU in 1967, two years after her brother arrived, and she and other AfricanAmerican students at that time felt isolated from the larger student population and from the professors. “Then at Florida State was no different than then in the society,” she recalled. “The only difference was that now we could all go through the same door. In terms of socializing and befriending, any of that, it was not going on. ... It was an environment that had changed, but it was not necessarily welcoming.” Vires 33
As a result, racial separation on campus remained largely complete. “Many of the people who I was in school with cannot remember a white student’s name,” she said recently at her Tallahassee office where she manages her brother’s law firm. “I tried, and I can’t do it.” The lack of engagement with other students united the African-American students. “We were a small band of black students who were isolated in our classes, because there was maybe one black student per department, which pushed us closer together. Because we were such a small number we became really family. We didn’t have factions. We didn’t have cliques. It was like us against the world, so there was no time for us against each other.”
Above: Celebrated poet Maya Angelou’s appearance at the TallahasseeLeon County Civic Center was the perfect finale to the weekend-long commemoration of Florida State’s integration. Opposite: With her crowning in 1970, Doby Flowers became the first African-American to be elected homecoming princess at FSU.
Everyone was part of the movement, she said, and working for successful social change. Her 1970 campaign to be elected homecoming queen was part of that larger agenda. “We decided that we would break down this last wall of defining us as a people and what is beautiful in this world …” she explained. “You had the sacred institution of what beauty is, as defined by the majority. So, this was a challenge — an institution and a concept that had to be won by us, because image dictates a lot in this world. It would dictate little children seeing themselves as beautiful, it would dictate what is beautiful, it would dictate who could be defined as that.” Her election as homecoming queen that fall was a turning point for the university and was emblematic of student-driven changes on the campus, in Tallahassee and throughout America. “I was coming through at a time when my older sisters, you know, you had to be a debutante,” she explained. “By the time I came along, who wanted to be a debutante? We were all free and all that. So these institutions of sacred beauty didn’t mean beauty to us. That was part of the campaign, to say, it’s about substance. It’s about character. It’s about what you stand for. That makes you beautiful.” Students of today appreciate that dedication and commitment as they work to broaden engagement and cultural exchange.
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“I spoke with Doby before Maya Angelou’s speaking engagement,” said Jasmine Johnson, vice president of the Black Student Union, “and to hear some of her experiences, it does seem unbelievable — but I know that is realistic for that time period — because my experience is so different. At the same time I am just so grateful. She’s done a lot for black students, and particularly black women. … She was a pioneer for black women to know that it is possible, that things can be done.” Flowers acknowledged that student lives and student attitudes have changed dramatically since she was an undergraduate. “What I saw at the celebration, it was not just black kids who wanted to meet me,” she said. “It was white kids, it was Hispanic kids, it was Chinese kids who were saying, ‘We embrace this, and thank you.’ That was just totally different. Looking at the student population, not only how the black students react, but how white students and other students of color react to that event, says a lot about the culture of that university.” Still, minority students remain mindful of their role as social educators at large and of their opportunity to help the greater student body, as pitcher Hunter Scantling put it, “learn about bonding together, coming together.” “I think when people have an eager ear,” Johnson said, “you should entreat them with what it [the Black Student Union] is about, and how they can get involved. … Because regardless of whether you are black, white, purple or green, it is not just black history — it is our history. Things that happen at Florida State are ultimately Seminole history.” Bent, the Black Student Union president, sees it as an obligation. “People are scared of something they don’t know,” he said. “So it is our job to inform about us, so they can be aware and realize we are all the same people. The main point is to teach everyone about different cultures, so they can respect each other’s culture. … You need to go out there and meet people who are not like you, and that’s why I am glad to go to Florida State University.” Of course, the modern university is not just black and white. There are students of many shades from various cultures and countries, and they all contribute to the mix of languages and to the
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1962 Maxwell Courtney becomes FSU’s first African-American undergraduate student 1963 Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker and Carmena Greene Bostic enroll as FSU’s first female African-American undergraduate students 1965 Maxwell Courtney graduates cum laude 1965 Fred Flowers, who would become the university’s first African-American athlete, enters Florida State 1968 FSU’s Black Student Union is established 1968 Tonya Harris becomes the university’s first black faculty member 1970 Doby Lee Flowers is elected the first African-American homecoming queen at FSU
Right: Doby Flowers and Rosalia Contreras, director of the Hispanic Latino Student Union, set the commemorative medallion in its final resting place. 36 Vires
1970 James “Jack” Grant, Florida State’s first male black faculty member, is hired as a temporary instructor in educational administration; he went on to become dean of the College of Education
1983 The FSU Black Alumni Association is founded
1972 The Office of Minority Affairs is established
1996 Liza Park is the first AsianAmerican student to serve as Student Body President
1973 Charles Leon Thompson is elected as FSU’s first African-American Student Body President 1973 Lawrence Gonzalez, Florida State’s first Hispanic graduate, receives his bachelor’s degree 1978 Bobby E. Leach becomes FSU’s first African-American administrator, serving as vice president for student affairs 1980 Cecil Howard is named the first African-American homecoming chief
1995 The Hispanic Latino Student Union is established
1996 Carla Gopher becomes the first member of the Seminole Tribe to graduate from FSU 2010 The Office of Multicultural Affairs is renamed the Center for Multicultural Affairs and relocated to its new home, The Center for Global and Multicultural Engagement 2012 The Florida State University celebrates 50 years of integration
sharing of knowledge and understanding that is today’s FSU. They share, too, the need to connect with others. “We have to be careful of being marginalized, because we are minorities …” said Rosalia Contreras, a junior in International Affairs and director of the Hispanic Latino Student Union. “We touch all areas of campus … because we are part of FSU, we are part of Tallahassee, we are part of Florida, we are part of many other communities.” Like other minority students, Hispanic and Latino students feel a responsibility to foster understanding. “We definitely take our roles very seriously and understand that hopefully we can educate not only Florida State but also the Tallahassee community as well,” said Ivan Marchena, the Hispanic Latino Student Union’s past director. Both Contreras and Marchena said FSU was the right place for students of color. “It’s been nothing but great for me …” said Contreras. “It has been more welcoming than I ever could have imagined.” “I love Florida State with all my heart, and I do not want to leave,” said Marchena, a senior majoring in communication. “I am just really happy for all the opportunities I had at this university.” They acknowledge that, even today, there is resentment against minorities among some mainstream students, but they insist that’s not the spirit of the campus as a whole. “We’ve built a culture on campus where it is not OK to make racist remarks or marginalize anyone in any way,” Contreras said. Creating such openness and encouraging friendly and meaningful connections are priorities for the university’s administrators, and national studies show that students at FSU enjoy a high level of engagement compared to students on similar campuses elsewhere. Such cross-cultural exchange is an important part of each student’s education and preparation for life in a complex, complicated and highly diverse world.
“I think it is as critical as the courses you sign up for,” said Mary B. Coburn (B.A. ’71), FSU’s vice president for student affairs.
Above: FSU President Eric Barron, Tallahassee Mayor John Marks (B.S. ’69, J.D. ’72) and Doby Flowers at Hand in Hand Across Time.
Florida State President Eric J. Barron (B.S. ’73) stressed this important role of diversity in education in his remarks at the Hand in Hand Across Time celebration. “The pioneering students who were admitted in the 1960s began a remarkable transformation of this university,” Barron said, standing near the Integration statue that honors those who broke the color barrier. “There is a deep understanding all across Florida State University that the more varied our academic community is, the more we are all enriched.”
There is a critical gap in the documentation of Florida State’s period of integration as well as the overall experiences of black, Hispanic, AsianAmerican and other minority students. If you have relevant photos, scrapbooks, news clippings, film, memorabilia, letters or notes from your time at The Florida State University, contact: Eddie Woodward FSU Heritage Protocol Archivist 850.645.7988, ewoodward@fsu.edu The Florida State University Heritage Protocol is dedicated to building and sharing a complete history of FSU and the student experience. For more information, visit http://heritage.fsu.edu. Vires 37
TEN QUESTIONS W
ith
His Italian father immigrated to America on a boat with nothing more than a second grade education and a dream. His mother never studied past fifth grade. On April 28, 2012, however, Lee Richard Corso completed his father’s vision, receiving an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from his alma mater, The Florida State University. Corso, who famously roomed with Burt Reynolds at FSU, played both football (inset) and baseball in college. After earning his bachelor’s degree, he turned down a $5,000 offer to teach and coach at Tallahassee’s Leon High School in favor of a $1,500 graduate assistantship at Florida State. Although Corso was a newlywed with a young son, he opted to pursue a graduate degree as part of his larger plan to become a university president. He earned his master’s one year later, but fate and football intervened on his path to a presidency. Corso landed a full-time coaching job at FSU and eventually a trio of head coaching assignments at Louisville, Indiana and Northern Illinois. His real fame, though, took root just outside the stadium gates, paralleled by the rise of cable television’s ESPN and a football pregame program called College GameDay, which just completed its 25th season. Corso joined the network’s signature Saturday morning show in its first year and is the only original on-air personality remaining on the program. Taking a cue from Corso’s legendary quip, “Not so fast my friend,” the FSU Alumni Association recently called a timeout for TEN QUESTIONS. If a student asked for career advice on whether to go into coaching or broadcasting, what would you say? Coaching. There’s nothing like being a coach. There’s nothing like the thrill of being on the sideline and creating the action. Creating the action is much more fun than reporting the action.
When did you realize the social impact of College GameDay? When I go on the road I have to stay under an assumed name. I can’t go out to eat any place. I’ve ticked off about everyone in the country one time or the other, and so I can’t go out and socialize in a college town. I hunker down in the hotel under an assumed name, do the show with police escorts and then get out.
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(B.S. ’57, M.S. ’58)
What’s the best advice you ever received? Never prostitute my integrity to get a job or to keep one. What are the recollections of your academic career at FSU? I had real good teachers. Remember, we had small classes, and the teachers were closer to their students then. I was proud that I made pretty good grades. How do you balance your pride in FSU with the required independence of a journalist? My first year at ESPN, Florida State was playing Syracuse, and I was asked to pick the game. I went on the air and said, “I went to FSU, my wife went to FSU, my son went to FSU, my daughter went to FSU, my mother-in-law went to FSU, my unbiased pick is FSU.” Phone rings, and it was the vice president of ESPN. He said, “You like it around here?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “Well cut that crap about FSU; I’m a Syracuse graduate.” How did FSU shape your success in life? I was always a competitor, and I never gave up. Even if you’re the underdog, fight hard. What can you tell us about the lapel pin you wear every week? I was at the Air Force Academy, and a general gave me a stealth bomber pin. He said, “Not many civilians get to have this. Wear it with pride.” And I haven’t taken it off since. Are you guys on College GameDay really having as much fun as it seems? It’s like stealing. You get to go to the best game every week, travel first class, stay in the best hotel and get paid. We have a great time. Although the guys are from different generations, we have a great relationship because we keep egos out — we close the door and let the ego out. And … the mascot hats? My favorite is the Oregon duck. The one I hate to put on the most is the Gator hat. But you’ll notice every time I put it on, I do the chop.
Photo courtesy of NoleFan.org
When you think of your time at FSU, what’s the snapshot that comes to mind first? You’ll remember FSU was not very good back then, and I came here with the idea we were going to build something. And we did. I think we were the foundation of a good football program.
Lee Corso
Football analyst Lee Corso (right) with anchor Chris Fowler on the set of College GameDay during the show’s 2011 appearance at Florida State, its first since 2003. Photo courtesy of ESPN
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Introducing the Inaugural Class of
The FSU Alumni Association honors 30 young alumni who have made significant contributions to their professions, communities and the university. Florida State’s newest generation of alumni is far beyond its years in terms of accomplishments, both professional and civic. This spring, the Alumni Association set out to recognize the best of this promising young group of recent graduates for the first time. After a worldwide call for nominations, a committee of fellow FSU graduates selected 30 exceptional alumni, all of whom are 30 years old or younger, from an impressive pool of candidates. From the larger group of 30, six alumni were also designated
THE 2012
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION THIRTY UNDER 30 JUNIOR BERNADIN (B.A. ’08) Technology Manager, The Ron Clark Academy Atlanta, Ga.
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MICKEY DAMELIO (B.S.’03, M.S.’05) President, Ability Beyond the Horizon Orientation and Mobility Coordinator, Visual Disabilities Program, FSU Tallahassee, Fla. DUSTIN DANIELS (B.A. ’11, B.S. ’11) Policy and Research Coordinator, Young Elected Officials Network Washington, D.C.
AUDREY CHISHOLM (B.A. ’04) Partner/Attorney, Chisholm Law Firm, LLC Orlando, Fla.
MATTHEW GAETZ (B.S. ’03) Florida State Representative, District 4 Attorney, Keefe, Anchors, Gordon & Moyle Fort Walton Beach, Fla.
GAMAL CODNER (B.S. ’07) Account Executive, Wells Fargo Insurance Services Atlanta, Ga.
LINDSEY GIFT (B.S. ’05) Sales Manager, Park Hyatt Chicago Chicago, Ill.
LAUREN DALTON (B.S. ’07, M.S. ’08) Senior Program Analyst, Bureau Veritas Dallas, Texas
KATE GUNNING (B.A. ’06) Account Director, JWT London, England
recipients of the Reubin O’D. Askew Young Alumni Award, which they accepted at a reception at Tallahassee’s Hotel Duval in May. The recipients of this award, the highest honor bestowed upon recent graduates by the FSU Alumni Association, exemplify the inimitable qualities that define Florida State’s freshest alumni — service, leadership, ingenuity and dedication, among others — and they’re just getting started.
DAWN GUNTER (B.S. ’04, M.B.A. ’06) Business Manager, Taylor County Health Department Perry, Fla. JESSICA HANSON (B.S. ’04, M.B.A. ’08) Federal and International Public Affairs Director, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America Alexandria, Va. NELSON HERNANDEZ (B.A. ’07) Councilman, City of Miami Lakes Miami Lakes, Fla. CAITE HEVNER (B.F.A. ’06) Designer, Caite Hevner Design New York, N.Y. GARRETT JOHNSON (B.S. ’05) Co-Founder and CEO, SendHub Mountain View, Calif. MARK KANDRA (B.S. ’05, M.S. ’06) Federal Advisory Services, KPMG LLP Washington, D.C.
AUDREY CHISHOLM (B.A. ’04)
Partner/Attorney, Chisholm Law Firm, LLC Orlando, Fla. Audrey Chisholm started her FSU career at the age of 16 — so young that she had difficulty getting into the Leach Center because students had to be 18 to sign the waiver to use the campus fitness facility. She’s been ahead of the curve ever since. As a sophomore at Florida State, she launched a nonprofit organization to equip young people with the skills and financial confidence to succeed in college, business and their communities. Revolution Leadership started with a dozen students. Eleven years later, and now based in Orlando, Fla., more than 1,100 high school juniors and seniors have gone through the program, which includes workshops, SAT and ACT training and college tours. In addition, one Revolution Leadership student receives a scholarship each year. Chisholm’s charitable work has been lauded by the United States House of Representatives with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition and by the Orlando Magic basketball organization, which bestowed its Magic Maker Award upon her. The kids who take part in Revolution Leadership have an exemplary role model. As an FSU senior, the then-Audrey Hicks was elected homecoming (continued on next page)
Audrey Chisolm
JORDAN KIRBY (B.S. ’04) Attorney, The Law Offices of Robert Rubenstein Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
NAVARRO MOORE (M.A. ’09) U.S. Diplomat, U.S. Department of State San Salvador, El Salvador
SHANNON ST. VAL (B.S. ’08) Examiner, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority New York, N.Y.
MICHAEL LOWRY (B.S. ’05, M.S. ’09) Physical Scientist/Storm Surge Specialist, National Hurricane Center Doral, Fla.
STEPHANIE NISIVOCCIA (B.S. ’04, M.S. ’06) Foreign Service Officer, U.S. Department of State Nairobi, Kenya
TADARRAYL STARKE (B.S. ’03, M.S. ’10) Director, FSU Center for Academic Retention and Enhancement Tallahassee, Fla.
JARED LYON (B.S. ’11) National Program Manager, Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities, Institute for Veterans and Military Families, Syracuse University Syracuse, N.Y. CRAIG MILTON (B.S. ’05) U.S. Operations Manager, Data Center Security, Google Redwood City, Calif. JOSHUA MONTAGNA (B.S. ’05) Vice President, Corporate & Commercial Banking, BankUnited Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
KATHERINE O’DONNILEY (B.A. ’04) Attorney, Holland & Knight LLP Tampa, Fla. RYAN POWERS (B.S. ’09) Legislative Correspondent, Office of U.S. Senator Marco Rubio Washington, D.C. ASHLEY ROSS (B.S. ’05) Senate Finance Director, Republican Party of Florida Tallahassee, Fla.
ROBBIE STOKES (B.S. ’10) Event Coordinator for Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. CLINT WALLACE (B.S. ’04, J.D. ’08) Partner, Scott & Wallace LLP Tallahassee, Fla. KARRISSA WIMBERLEY (B.A. ’09) Master Choreographer Tallahassee, Fla.
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A
SPECIAL SECTION
YOUNG ALUMNI
Matthew Gaetz
princess alongside homecoming chief Juan Chisholm, who is now her husband. Chisholm went on to be named senior class president, which gave her the privilege of addressing her fellow graduates on the same stage as commencement speaker Dick Cheney, the vice president of the United States at the time.
She is a partner in her Orlando-based law firm, specializing in business law, real estate, commercial litigation and nonprofits. Chisholm is also a nationally recognized motivational speaker and presented at the 2011 White House Summit on Hispanic Leadership.
After earning her FSU degree in social sciences and public policy, Chisholm enrolled in law school at Florida A&M University, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 2008.
Florida State Representative, District 4 Attorney, Keefe, Anchors, Gordon & Moyle Fort Walton Beach, Fla.
MATTHEW GAETZ (B.S. ’03)
Matt Gaetz, was sworn in as state representative of District 4 in the Florida Panhandle at age 28. Today he and Don Gaetz, the Florida Senate presidentdesignate, make up the only father-son duo in the state’s legislature. Even at an early age, the younger Gaetz displayed an extraordinary gift for debate. In high school he won the state policy debate championship and was ranked as one of the top debaters in the country. He brought that skill to FSU, where he earned national and international honors with The World Affairs Program, a student-run academic organization within the College of Social Sciences. When he was unsatisfied with the student political parties at Florida State, he founded his own. The party won every student election during his time in college. He further honed his interest in government as head of FSU’s student lobbying organization. After graduating from FSU with a degree in social sciences and public policy, he was accepted into the nation’s oldest law school at the College of William and Mary. In his role as state representative, Gaetz has used age to his advantage, becoming one of the most prominent legislators utilizing social media and earning an A+ rating from the Florida Chamber of Commerce. As an attorney, he’s offered pro bono expertise to champion the cause of community issues, including an effort that brought new military aircraft to the Air Force base in his district, preserving and enhancing jobs. Gaetz also volunteers to help struggling students. One of his greatest joys is working with Trendsetters, a weekly mentoring program that helps middle school kids succeed academically.
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JESSICA HANSON (B.S. ’04, M.B.A. ’08)
Federal and International Public Affairs Director, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America Alexandria, Va. To understand the scope of work managed by Jessica Hanson, one must first understand the scope of her employer, the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America. PCI is a national trade association composed of more than 1,000 insurance companies. Its members write over $180 billion in premiums each year, making up 37.4 percent of the nation’s property casualty insurance policies. As PCI’s director of federal and international public affairs, Washington, D.C.-based Hanson’s role is multi-faceted. On any given day, she may be managing grassroots and coalition-building initiatives that influence federal legislation or directing communications for the CEO and the association’s member companies. She coordinates and analyzes market research, leads PCI’s traditional and social media efforts, and serves as an industry spokesperson on flood insurance, catastrophic risk and financial services regulatory reform. In 2009, PR News named her to its national list of “15 to Watch.” Achievement is nothing new for Hanson. At FSU, she was active in student government, Greek life and homecoming. She was named to the Senior Hall of Fame, and today gives back to the university through Burning Spear, a nonprofit organization comprised of current and former student leaders. After graduating with a bachelor’s in political science, Hanson remained at Florida State to earn a Master’s in Business Administration. Like her fellow honorees, Hanson has an appreciation for service. She is a member of the Junior League of Washington, D.C., actively supporting the organization’s early literacy programs. She also serves as advisory board president for Dress for Success Washington D.C., an organization that promotes the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire and career development tools to help them thrive in work and life.
Jessica Hanson
CAITE HEVNER (B.F.A. ’06) Designer, Caite Hevner Design New York, N.Y.
In the Theme for New York, New York, Frank Sinatra crooned, “If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere.” If this is true, the world is Caite Hevner’s oyster. The young set designer has already enjoyed an extremely successful career, having worked on Broadway with Colin Quinn’s Long Story Short and as assistant set designer for the Tony Awardwinning MEMPHIS, which stars fellow FSU alumna Montego Glover (B.F.A. ’96). Hevner’s off-Broadway credits include Signature Theatre’s acclaimed revival of Angels in America. She has also taken her talents around the world, working on Frank Wildhorn’s new musical Tears of Heaven, the largest budgeted musical ever produced in Vires 43
Garrett Johnson
South Korea. Her design work has been displayed at the Prague Quadrennial, the world’s largest and prestigious theatrical design exhibition, and she is a member of Wingspace Theatrical Design, a selective group of designers and theatre artists dedicated to pushing the boundaries of contemporary theatrical design. Hevner typically works on 10 to 15 projects simultaneously and attributes this versatility to her time at FSU, where she was encouraged to work in many types of theatre in order to discover what she loves and excels at in the field. After graduating from Florida State with a bachelor’s in theatre design and technology, Hevner earned graduate degrees from Yale School of Drama and New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Hevner takes time to give back to the theatre community that has given her so much, providing pro bono design work for Studio 42, a nonprofit theatre company that supports emerging artists whose work is challenging and innovative. She frequently mentors college students and is also a proud member of the Broadway Green Alliance, which works to inspire the theatre community to implement environmentally friendlier practices.
Caite Hevner
GARRETT JOHNSON (B.S. ’05) Co-Founder and CEO, SendHub Mountain View, Calif.
Garrett Johnson’s place in FSU history is assured. A two-time NCAA shot put champion, he held numerous leadership positions on campus and earned a variety of awards throughout the three short years it took him to graduate magna cum laude with a double major in political science and English. In 2006, Johnson’s hard work paid off when he became the second student in the university’s history (and the first of three in the following four years) to receive the illustrious Rhodes Scholarship, allowing him to pursue graduate studies at the University of Oxford. At Oxford’s Exeter College, Johnson completed a master’s degree in migration studies. His graduate studies examined global economic inequities and the impact poverty has on global migratory patterns, continuing research on Haiti that he began while working in the legislative office of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush while at Florida State. 44 Vires
Johnson has long been interested in how socioeconomic conditions have affected stability and development in Haiti, which led him to a job with the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, D.C. When a devastating earthquake struck Haiti in 2010, Johnson, whose grandmother was in the country as a missionary, sprang into action and played a key role in the U.S. response. Working with the committee’s ranking member, Sen. Richard Lugar, Johnson was also involved with immigration policy, including refugee resettlement and non-military foreign development assistance. Last year he worked on the introduction of a bill for the StartUp Visa Act, which, if passed, will allow immigrant entrepreneurs to receive two-year visas if qualified U.S. investors finance their ventures. Johnson recently moved to Silicon Valley, Calif., to operate SendHub, a text messaging service aimed at businesses, educators, healthcare workers and others who need an effective and direct method to communicate to groups. In April, venture capitalists invested two million dollars in the company that Johnson co-founded.
CRAIG MILTON (B.S. ’05)
U.S. Operations Manager, Data Center Security, Google Redwood City, Calif. Craig Milton has a secret. As manager of data center security at Google, he is the head of security for the technology giant’s critical physical infrastructure in the United States, but what exactly that involves, he’ll never tell. Since completing his undergraduate studies in criminology at FSU, Milton has been on what he describes as “a light speed adventure up the career ladder.” Prior to joining Google, Milton worked through the security ranks of the Microsoft Corporation, ultimately serving as its director of global security operations and managing its operations centers in the United States, United Kingdom and India. Before venturing into the high tech industry, Milton managed security in the luxury hotel industry, including The Ritz-Carlton San Juan, The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds Plantation and the famous Setai on Miami Beach. Milton began his career with the Tallahassee Police Department’s Gang Response Unit while going to school at FSU.
Craig Milton
Milton has always stood apart from his peers, focusing on his community and career aspirations from a young age. By the time he was 14 years old, Milton had logged more than 3,000 hours volunteering with the U.S. Coast Guard at Station Miami Beach, where he became the first student to obtain active duty qualifications as a communications watchstander and rescue crewman. He received multiple military awards and honors for his work with the Coast Guard as well as an honorable mention for being a finalist in the prestigious Silver Knight Awards. During his tenure with the Tallahassee Police Department, Milton delivered Meals on Wheels to the elderly and currently serves as an advisor and donor to the Chabad of Mid-Peninsula in Redwood City, Calif.
Photos by Jonathan Allain
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REUBIN O’DONOVAN ASKEW THE MAN BEHIND THE MEDAL Former Gov. Reubin O’D. Askew (B.S. ’51), the leader who guided Florida through the civil rights era into the modern age, has twice been named The Florida State University’s most outstanding alumnus. Thus, it was a natural choice to name in his honor the award granted to FSU’s six most accomplished young alumni. The former FSU student government president announced his first bid for statewide office at the age of 29 and rose from an obscure legislator and state senator from Pensacola, Fla., to being named one of the greatest governors of the 20th century by Harvard University. He was the youngest governor ever to serve as well as the first to fully serve two four-year terms. Above: Reubin Askew (seated) and FSU President Eric Barron (left) with the inaugural recipients of the Reubin O’D. Askew Young Alumni Award.
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An attorney and former U.S. Army paratrooper, Askew governed during one of the most tumultuous times in the history of the nation and the Sunshine State. Florida was very much
a part of the Deep South when he first entered the Florida Legislature in 1958. When Askew left the governor’s post in 1979, the state was one of the most populous, economically powerful and culturally diverse states in the country. Askew has served at every level of American government, including a Cabinet-level post as U.S. Trade Representative during the Carter Administration from 1979 to 1981, and became the first Floridian to make a serious, but unsuccessful, bid for the presidency in 1984. Since then, Askew has served as a professor at each of Florida’s state universities, and academic programs at both Florida State University and the University of Florida bare his name.
I
t is the gateway to our university and the gateway to your heart. Don’t miss the chance to leave your mark and legacy where life’s iconic moments took place — from birthday swims to commencement rites of passage, the Westcott Plaza has served as Florida State University’s hallowed grounds for more than a century. Celebrate those memories for generations to come with the purchase of a commemorative Westcott brick. As a member of the FSU Alumni Association you’ll receive a $50 discount when you purchase your brick. Leave the legacy of your name forever engraved on Florida State’s Westcott Plaza.
PURCHASE YOUR BRICK TODAY! Call Valerie Colvin at 850-644-2249.
FSU President Eric Barron, a proud Florida State alumnus and Alumni Association member, purchases his brick at Westcott Plaza following commencement exercises.
FSU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION MEMBERS
SAVE $50 On Westcott Commemorative Bricks
By Sally Bowman
In the past 10 years, more than 100,000 people received degrees from The Florida State University. While these graduates represent nearly one-third of the university’s alumni, they constitute only 9.5 percent of Florida State’s donors. In 2011, FSU’s overall alumni participation rate was 17.7 percent.
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With the goal of engaging young alumni, the Office of Annual Giving has revitalized the Young Alumni Development Council, once known as the GOLDen Ring Development Council. By focusing on annual gifts — individual gifts up to $24,999 — the Office of Annual Giving and the Development Council help the state-funded Florida State University provide necessities beyond those for which the state dedicates resources. Annual dollars allow the university to address its immediate needs; without those dollars, Florida State would not be able to sustain many of its daily operations. “Raising funds to support Florida State University is just one goal of the Young Alumni Development Council,” said Perry Fulkerson, FSU Foundation vice president for central development. “The other goal is to create alumni who are passionate about supporting the university in ways that are most important to them such as supporting the Flying High Circus or student scholarships.”
To more actively engage young alumni, the Development Council has been reorganized into 10 regional councils designed to increase connections among FSU alumni in their area and serve as ambassadors for the university. Each regional council is led by one team lead and supported by a handful of other council members. The collection of regional team leads make up the executive council, which sets the strategic direction for the overall organization.
YOUNG ALUMNI
“There is a large population we haven’t been engaging very well,” said Sarishni Poonen (B.A. ’06, M.A. ’08), assistant director of annual giving at The Florida State University Foundation. “We recognize the need to focus more on these graduates, and the Office of Annual Giving is actively working to do so.”
The requirements to become involved in the Young Alumni Development Council in any region are simple. Each member is asked to donate at least $250 annually to support university academics or programs (entering the alumnus into the Annual Giving Society’s GOLDen Ring Circle of Support) and must actively engage in the mission of the Young Alumni Development Council. There are active council members currently in Atlanta; North Carolina; Orlando, Fla.; South Florida; Tallahassee, Fla.; Washington, D.C.; and the West Coast, with plans for regional development in Jacksonville, Fla., New York and Tampa, Fla. Council members have hosted or cohosted events with the Seminole Boosters and the Alumni Association centered on Florida State University athletic events, including a wellattended game-watching party in Orlando during the Champs Sports Bowl. They also have hosted intimate networking events between young
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Any gift from any person can make a huge impact. When I was a senior, more than 2,000 students gave $10 each online for a single fundraiser in conjunction with course registration. Altogether that’s more than $20,000 — quite an impact! alumni and influential Florida State University alumni and foundation trustees. Trustee members also have agreed to mentor each regional council, advocating for and supporting its mission and outreach efforts. Many members of the council are past campus leaders, and a large portion were students during trying economic times. Their leadership on campus translates well to understanding the purpose of the Young Alumni Development Council and the need for annual giving to the university. Bobby Seifter (B.S. ’11) was involved with the Student Government Association all four years of his undergraduate career at FSU. He also was instrumental in the formation of the FSU Student Foundation in 2010. “The biggest issues we consistently dealt with [at the Student Government Association] were budget related,” he said. Bobby Seifter
As a student leader, Seifter was acutely aware of the benefits of annual giving to The Florida State University. “Any gift from any person can make a huge impact. When I was a senior, more than 2,000 students gave $10 each online for a single fundraiser in conjunction with course registration. Altogether that’s more than $20,000 — quite an impact!” Seifter now teaches for Teach for America in Atlanta and is spreading the word about the Young Alumni Development Council and the needs of Florida State to friends and alumni there. 50 Vires
“Young Alumni Development Council members are like other young alumni out there right now. They are trying to make their way in a tough economic environment, paying back student loans and embarking on new adventures such as starting a family or buying a home,” Poonen said. “Yet they still understand the importance of how any gift, of any size, can make a difference at Florida State.” For Seifter, giving back — and encouraging others to give — to the university that provided him with so many opportunities as a student is important. “Private scholarships afforded me the opportunity to get good grades, become student body vice president and found the Student Foundation without having to work a part-time job. Private donations also helped fund many aspects of student life that made my experience as a college student unforgettable.” Jonathan M. “Jon” Fry (B.S. ’02, M.S. ’04), chair of the Young Alumni Development Council, agrees: “Our mission is to educate other young alumni about the importance of giving back, to engage with other young alumni at regional events and to ask fellow young alumni to give back to their alma mater, either financially or by taking the time to ‘brag’ about our alma mater. There are so many incredible things going on at Florida State University — including groundbreaking research, incredible leadership and academic excellence by current students — that alumni outside of Tallahassee don’t always hear about. We need more voices talking about the great things taking place at FSU. “Naturally, some people get nervous when we talk about ‘giving back,’ but it’s really more about ‘paying it forward,’” Fry said. “If each of us thinks back to our time at FSU and realizes that while we were students there were other [young] alumni who were making sacrifices to ensure that we had the resources we needed to be successful, then why wouldn’t we do the same to ensure the success of the next generation of Seminole leaders? “I’m often asked why someone should give back to the university. Some feel that after paying off tuition, they don’t owe the university anything,” Fry continued. “I try to show them that by being an alumnus of FSU, each one of us is part of a very special ‘tribe.’ We’re able to take advantage of countless intangibles. For instance, we have
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The FSU Student Foundation was established in 2010 to instill a spirit of giving in Florida State’s students while supporting their university. The first organization of its kind in Florida, the Student Foundation has already made significant contributions to FSU, from a $100,000 donation to the Garnet and Gold Scholar Society in October 2011 to a $15,000 gift to the Office of Undergraduate Research in March. Left to right: Alec Kercheval, director of the Office of Undergraduate Research; Joe O’Shea (B.S. '08), associate director of the Office of Undergraduate Research; David Ward (B.A. '12), chairman of the Student Foundation; and Karen Laughlin, dean of Undergraduate Studies.
the ability to move almost anywhere in the world and immediately connect with hundreds, if not thousands, of other like-minded Seminoles, all ready and willing to lend a hand in both professional and personal endeavors. This is one of those intangibles that you just can’t put a price tag on after graduation. In the end, it’s all about the tribe taking care of one another: past, present and future.” Fry — a manager for the Management and Technology Division at Acuity Consulting, Inc. in Alexandria, Va. — serves as the Washington, D.C.area Young Alumni Development Council co-lead. One event he coordinated in his region was a networking session with Gordon Holder, chairelect of the Florida State University Foundation Board of Trustees. “Events like this,” Fry said, “play an important role in cultivating future leaders for prominent roles at FSU — like serving as a foundation board member — by educating and exposing young alumni to how the FSU Foundation helps ensure Florida State’s continued success.” As chair of the Young Alumni Development Council, Fry is an ex-officio member of the FSU Foundation Board of Trustees. In areas in which there are no regional council members, young alumni are encouraged to get involved and work with the FSU Foundation Office of Annual Giving and the Young Alumni Development Council to start a new regional council.
“For instance, if you live in Dallas and you’d like to take the lead in establishing a regional council, you simply need a handful of other young alumni to charter a regional council. You’ll be fully supported by the FSU Foundation’s Office of Annual Giving with resources to ensure the success of your region. Even if you are alone in your region, the Office of Annual Giving will ensure you have the resources necessary to grow,” Poonen said. Fulkerson added, “Regional support members help the regional leads plan, coordinate and attend local events, generate buzz, promote the importance of giving back to FSU and, overall, support the university.” Even if there is already a regional council in one’s area, young alumni can still get involved in the Young Alumni Development Council. “We encourage any FSU graduate from the past 10 years to join our cause,” Fry said. “Together, we can help ensure FSU’s continued success and ensure that today’s students have the necessary resources they need to become tomorrow’s leaders.”
To learn more about how you can get involved with the Young Alumni Development Council, contact Sarishni Poonen at 850.645.8586 or spoonen@foundation.fsu.edu, or visit http://one.fsu.edu/community/goldenring.
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A Florida State Alumnus Proves that Small Decisions Can Lead to Big Things By Enocha Edenfield
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He remembers, “I thought it was the voice of God, and I never forgot that.” Today Francisco Sánchez (B.A. ’81, J.D. ’86) is the under secretary for international trade at the U.S. Department of Commerce. Since his childhood in the Tampa Bay area, Sánchez has understood that people — from individuals to small businesses to large government bodies — could inspire change and encourage communities to move forward.
Another uncle developed a device that measured blood pressure. He turned that idea into a successful small company. “I saw firsthand how important small businesses were to the fabric of neighborhoods. They keep people working. They are essential for families. Quite simply, they are the backbone for every healthy community.” Of course, it wasn’t just the men in Sánchez’s family who offered an example of community service through business.
Above: As under secretary for international trade, Sánchez travels throughout the United States and the world to create opportunities for American companies abroad. Here, he is shown speaking at the Fourth Annual Americas Competitiveness Forum in Atlanta, Ga. See more photographs of Sánchez at work on pages 54-57.
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“My mother, Delia Sánchez, is my hero,” he says. 20° who 30° 40°to get involved 50° 60° “She10° is the person inspired me in public service. Her life has always been about public service, and in so many ways, she was ahead of her time.” Maria Delia Sánchez (B.S.W. ’45) attended the Florida State College for Women, which would become FSU two years after her graduation, but she didn’t stop there. She also received her master’s degree in social work from Columbia University in the 1940s. “For a Latina, at that time, this was almost unheard of.” When Delia returned to Tampa, she started one of the nation’s first Head Start programs. She wanted to ensure that children, regardless of family situation or income, could get a good education and have a productive life.
Right: Delia Sánchez's senior portrait from the 1945 Flastacowo, the Florida State College for Women yearbook.
“No matter what she did, she always considered how her actions would benefit others before thinking of herself,” Sánchez says. “This is a lesson that I’ve carried with me throughout my life, both personally and professionally.”
In just over two years as the under secretary of commerce for international trade, Francisco Sánchez has journeyed from coast to coast and circled the globe promoting U.S. businesses abroad and encouraging collaboration among nations for the economic betterment of all. Here are just a few images and quotes from the globetrotter’s time with the U.S. Department of Commerce: Berlin Feb. 25, 2012 Global Business Conference “I look forward to working more with all of you to strengthen the close ties among our countries. If we are successful, our businesses and our workers will continue to drive prosperity for Germans, for Americans and in fact, for people throughout the world.”
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U.S.-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum “Our relationship should be defined by collaboration and mutual interest. Of course, our issues aren’t always resolved as quickly as we would like, but as the Chinese proverb goes, ‘Be not afraid of growing slowly; be
Opening the U.S. Travel Association’s annual International Pow Wow in Los Angeles. 100° 40°
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only afraid of standing still.’ At this moment in history, we can’t stand still. We must remain committed to taking steps forward — both large and small — that will bring a more prosperous future for both our peoples.” Tampa, Fla.
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White House Hispanic Community Action Summit “Good things happen when community, business and government leaders get together in one room to talk. And, I look forward to working with all of you in the years ahead to strengthen our community, our city and our country.” 20°
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Touring the Larsen & Toubro engineering facility in Chennai, India.
Photo courtesy of Larsen & Toubro Limited
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In April of this year, Francisco Sánchez addressed the class of 2012 at one of FSU’s spring commencement ceremonies, telling the graduates what led him to the school and to pursue a career involved in politics. His freshmen year of college coincided with the 1978 Florida gubernatorial race. Sánchez wanted to support a candidate, but he wanted to be certain he was supporting the right one and took time to study the issues. One day, Sánchez, then a student at the University of Florida, was working as a busboy at a political event where all the candidates running for governor were in attendance. While he bussed tables, Sánchez kept mulling over the pros and cons of each candidate. While one of his friends supported the leading candidate, Sánchez wasn’t as confident in the frontrunner’s chances. For the first of many times in his life, Sánchez decided to go in an unexpected direction that night – a move that changed the course of his education and ultimately, his career. “I walked up to Bob Graham and introduced myself. And, before I knew it, I was on the campaign as a volunteer.”
Washington, D.C. Jan. 31, 2012 The Council of the Americas and the Inter-American Development Bank “Sure, we all represent different countries, with different histories and a diversity of interests and perspectives. Yet, those differences are small in comparison to what we share. What we share is a common desire to boost our economies and support jobs by lowering the barriers to trade and investment, and strengthening the economic bonds between us.” Bali, Indonesia
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Sánchez transferred to FSU. And after the presumed underdog, Graham, won the election, he worked his way up through the ranks at the governor’s office while earning his bachelor’s degree and Juris Doctor. After his final graduation from Florida State, he joined a prestigious law firm, applying the same purposeful drive that paid off at the office of Gov. Bob Graham. But there was a difference. “I was just a few months from being named partner. But something inside me told me that this wasn’t what I wanted to do with the rest of my 140° life. Obviously, I have great160° respect 150° for the law, and all of the great people I worked with, but I just felt I had another calling.”
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Emphasizing the need for U.S. companies to aggressively pursue overseas opportunities during the White House Hispanic Policy Conference in Orlando, Fla.
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Latin Builders Association Monthly Luncheon “… no community can ever reach its full potential without opportunity. No person can ever achieve the full benefits of citizenship without economic empowerment.” Hyderabad, India
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SOLARCON India 2011 “My message today is that we cannot let these opportunities go to waste. We achieve much more as partners than we ever can on our own.” Hong Kong
Signing a memorandum of intent to help seaports secure new exporters through education initiatives with American Association of Port Authorities President Kurt Nagle at California’s Port of Oakland.
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American Chamber of Commerce “In this 21st century global economy, it makes both business sense and common sense to work in partnership. And this work must be guided by mutual interests and values.” Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic
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Americas Competitiveness Forum Official Dinner “We all have something to learn. We all have something to offer. That’s why success in the 21st century will be fueled by cooperation and community. We must help each other sharpen our competitive edges and build a better future for our peoples.”
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Istanbul, Turkey Sept. 19, 2011 U.S. Turkey Business Council 50° 50° “In this room today, we have executives from some of the most successful and most innovative companies in the world. You represent different industries and different regions. And, you come here today with more than just your impressive résumés — you also come with unique perspectives and ideas as well. You can help our governments answer some simple questions: What can we do better? How can we be even more efficient and responsive to your companies? In short, today we seek solutions. And, I’m confident to new 60° that this dialogue will provide some solutions — that this new conversation will lead60° ideas and new economic partnerships.”
Presenting the Peace through Commerce Award to Kiran Pasricha, former head of the Washington office of the 80° 70°of Indian 60° Confederation Industry,50° in recognition of her work with U.S.-India trade during a trade mission stop in New Delhi, India. 56 Vires
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Participating in a panel at the 2011 World Economic Forum in Jordan 50° (third from left). Photo courtesy of the World Economic Forum
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Minority Economic Development Week “There is much work to do, but I know that we all possess the ability to envision the new world around us as a new era of American prosperity. The new America that is forming is not just a new demographic phenomenon. It is rather the creation of a new American economy that will redeem the investment that each of us make in the country as we prepare it — and ourselves — for the future that is quickly forming around us.
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All of us have a stake in making sure that each of us in this room succeed. If all of us succeed, America will succeed, and there can be no greater return on investment than that.”
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Convening with Mexican representatives during the fourth Americas Competitiveness Forum.
Looking on as representatives from California-based DiaCarta, LLC and the Chinese government sign an agreement to sell the company’s cervical cancer testing products in China during a ceremony in Beijing.
Lima, Peru
June 21, 2010
The American Chambers of Commerce of Latin America “This is an opportunity for stereotypes to be shed, for individuals to invest and plan and for companies to look at the production and marketing opportunities that abound in our hemisphere. In the face of overwhelming challenges — from earthquakes to oil spills — and in the midst of the continued economic plight of so many millions in the hemisphere — we can be optimistic about the future.” Washington, D.C.
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The Washington International Trade Association “There have been times in history when the nation has had to come together to achieve a larger, long-term goal. This is one of those moments. If we work together, we can succeed in expanding exports, creating jobs and building the America of the future.”
Sanchez - Itinerary
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Tallahassee, Fla. Raleigh, N.C. National Harbor, Md. Tokyo Mexico City Istanbul, Turkey Chicago Walnut Creek, Calif. Las Vegas Albuquerque, N.M. Irwindale, Calif. Portland, Ore.
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In his speech during the 2012 spring commencement ceremony, Sánchez told graduates that they should follow their passions, but reminded them that they should also think of how it benefits others as well. Through his work with the Department of Commerce, Sánchez has helped American businesses find new clients, which helps support jobs in the U.S. “Being able to help businesses succeed, keep people working, and keep the economy growing — in a challenging environment — is very rewarding work.” Having inherited his mother’s heart for the community, he doesn’t reap the greatest rewards from his day job, though. Despite a demanding schedule that takes him to faraway places to meet with other world leaders, Sánchez finds time to volunteer. Above: Sánchez applauds Florida State's graduating class prior to delivering a commencement address in which he advised, “Life is full of uncertainty. All you can do is to try to make the most of every moment and opportunity. … taking risks is necessary for a life well-lived.”
Sánchez made the decision to leave the law firm and head north to Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Photo by FSU Photo Lab
He worked with Professor Fisher for four years before starting his own business, a firm that taught those same negotiation strategies to corporate and government clients.
All other photos courtesy of the U.S. Department of Commerce unless otherwise indicated
“I took classes with a well-known professor named Roger Fisher. I honed valuable skills in negotiation and conflict resolution,” Sánchez recalls.
While this business was fulfilling for Sánchez, he knew an opportunity to do something more when it was presented to him. Buddy MacKay, an old friend, had just been appointed the Special Envoy to the Americas for then President Bill Clinton. He wanted Sánchez to be his chief of staff in the White House. Sánchez had been out of the full-time government game for a while, but it was still something that pulled at his heart. He accepted.
View an interactive map of Sanchez's travels
Just as Sánchez had worked his way up in Gov. Graham’s office, he worked his way up in the Clinton Administration to become assistant secretary of transportation. And now, he eagerly advocates for American companies abroad as President Obama’s under secretary of commerce for international trade. “I’ve always valued the incredible role they [businesses] play in our nation’s economy and future, and am glad that I’m now in a position at the Department of Commerce to help them succeed.”
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He says, “Whenever I can, I mentor young people to ensure that they get the best possible start in their lives and careers.” In recognition of his work with Tampa’s Boys and Girls Club among other worthy causes, Sánchez has been inducted into the Boys and Girls Club of America National Hall of Fame and recognized as a leader in the community through the Points of Light Institute, an organization established by President George H.W. Bush during his 1989 inaugural address. Sánchez has also been named one of the "100 Most Influential Hispanics" by Hispanic Business Magazine and one of the top Hispanics nationwide by Poder Magazine. Recently, he even received the NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award in front of a hometown crowd at a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game, a fun and humbling honor for this sports fan who never misses a chance to brag about his favorite teams — including, of course, the Florida State Seminoles — during his speeches across the country. As he travels the world, Sánchez is quick to remind the international business leaders and dignitaries with whom he meets that one of the surest ways to succeed is to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves. Indeed, his path from bussing tables to serving his country on the world’s stage demonstrates just that. It doesn’t matter if you’re a small child clutching your mother’s hand, a college student preparing to graduate or a business person searching for something more. No path is set. It can change direction to somewhere that makes you happy and improves the lives of those around you.
U O Y D R A E H E W
The FSU Alumni Association works hard every day to empower Florida State’s proud network of alumni around the world. Last fall, we asked you to participate in an Alumni Attitude Survey, and more than 5,400 individuals responded, providing us with an unprecedented look into the opinions, needs and concerns of our alumni base. Because we are dedicated to exceeding your expectations, the Alumni Association has incorporated the information you provided into our plans for the upcoming year and beyond, and just to make sure we got it right, we hosted focus groups in multiple locations to verify our understanding of your input. Here’s what we found out:
You want to be connected ... ... to
each other. Res pondents indicate for networking op d a strong desi re portunities and m ore career servic es . ... to today's S eminoles. Particip ants want to supp students through ort scholarships and mentoring opportun ities. ... to campus. A lumni said they want to know wh happening on ca at's mpus, and recent graduates feel a particularly strong connection to thei r individual colle and professors. ges
You are proud to be a Seminole. 98% of respondents said attending FSU was a good or great decision.
97% described their experience as a student as good or excellent. 97% described their current opinion of the university as good or excellent. 84% claimed their experience as an alumnus is good or excellent. 80% said they promote the university to others on a regular or frequent basis.
WHAT SHAPES
YOUR OPINION OF
... to the commun ity. Respondents showed an intere in serving as am st bassadors for F S U and participat in and providing ing leadership to un iversity-related organizations and boards.
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 * Value and respect for degree History and tradition
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Providing scholarships Accomplishments of students Accomplishments of faculty
School Rankings (e.g. U.S. News & World Report) FSU
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Community outreach Success of athletic teams
ASSOCIATION NEWS SEMINOLES SHOW SPIRIT ON THE ROAD With an ACC Championship under their belts, the Florida State men’s basketball team headed to the NCAA Tournament. 1. On the eve of the first of two games Florida State played in this year’s competition, the Alumni Association, Seminole Boosters and Middle Tennessee Seminole Club welcomed fans to Nashville, Tenn., at a pep rally. Prior to the FSU-UF baseball game in Jacksonville, Fla., Seminole fans displayed their spirit at a pre-game party across the street from the Baseball Grounds. 2. During the well-attended event, the Alumni Association’s Tom Block (B.S. ’91, M.S. ’05) recognized former coach Hugh Durham (B.S. '59, M.S. '61), who led the FSU men’s basketball team to its first and only Final Four appearance 40 years ago.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION TAKES FSU LEADERS ON TOUR University leaders hit the road with the FSU Alumni Association this spring and summer for a coast to coast networking tour. 3. Alumni packed the Florida House at a reception hosted by Rep. Vern Buchanan in our nation's capital. 4. Left to right: Jared Lyon (B.S. ’11), FSU Collegiate Veterans Association immediate past president; Billy Francis (B.S. ’86), FSU Veterans Center director; Phillip Lennon, FSU Collegiate Veterans Association president; Sam Huckaba, College of Arts and Sciences interim dean; Ryan Taylor, Collegiate Veterans Association president-elect; and G. Kurt Piehler, Institute on World War II and the Human Experience director, joined fellow Seminoles in New York for a tour of the United States Military Academy at West Point and a cruise on the Hudson River to benefit the university’s veterans initiatives. 5. Alumni enjoyed the Asolo Repertory Theatre’s performance of Hamlet, Prince of Cuba after a reception at the stunning John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Fla. 6. President Eric Barron (B.S. ’73) welcomed FSU’s newest students at the Palm Beach County’s Seminole Send-Off. Similar events were held by clubs throughout the country to acquaint incoming freshmen and their families with FSU.
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EMERITUS ALUMNI REUNITE TO CELEBRATE FSU’S HERITAGE The FSU Alumni Association welcomed members of the Emeritus Alumni Society, all of whom attended or graduated from the university 50 or more years ago, back to campus for their annual reunion in April. 1. After touring the Coyle E. Moore Athletic Center and FSU College of Medicine, society members enjoyed a barbecue at the FSU Reservation, known as Camp Flastacowo to the students of the Florida State College for Women, before heading back to campus for the Heritage Day Celebration. 2. Emeritus Alumni Society Chair Betty Lou Joanos (B.S. ’57, Ph.D. ’85) opened the yearly commemoration of FSU’s legacy with the ringing of a bell on Mina Jo Powell Green, which was rededicated in the ensuing ceremony. 3. Event-goers then explored the historic William Johnston Building, which recently received an ultramodern interior makeover complete with a dramatic five-story atrium. 4. The celebration culminated at Werkmeister Humanities Reading Room, where alumni browsed the poignant exhibits in the Heritage Museum.
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5. The following morning brought the society to the Alumni Center, where Cayce Black (B.S. ’48) accepted a Commitment to Excellence Award during the Emeritus Alumni Awards Program. Other honorees included Richard Kurras (B.S. ’52) and Tex Brown Meachem (B.S. ’38) as well as former Associate Vice President of Student Affairs Sherrill Williams Ragans, who received the Dean Eyman Distinctive Service Award. 6. The group returned to the Grand Ballroom that evening for the weekend’s crowning event, the induction of the Class of 1962 into the Emeritus Alumni Society.
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SPRING WEEKEND BRINGS ALUMNI HOME 1. Mere days before throngs of FSU football enthusiasts flocked to Tallahassee for the annual
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spring game, a smaller but equally ardent group convened on Florida State’s campus for the Seminole Club Leadership Conference. The annual meeting kicked off with a reception in the Alumni Center’s grand ballroom. 2. At the conclusion of a question and answer session with some of Florida State’s most promising student athletes, starting fullback Lonnie Pryor charmed the crowd with an impromptu country music performance. 3. Though Pryor’s curtain call came at the end of his act, the conference attendees, representing clubs across the United States, returned the following day for a series of helpful workshops. 4. Among them, a presentation by Heather Rocker, a nationally renowned volunteer management expert who gave the group tips for empowering their volunteer base, the heart of every Seminole Club. 5. The officers also had the opportunity to meet with peers whose clubs are already participating in Operation CLUB, a pilot program that will allow alumni, fans and friends of Florida State within a club’s reach to be part of the chapter without paying dues on the local level. Every Seminole Club will come on board over the next four years, enabling all alumni to stay connected to the university through their local clubs’ activities while supporting FSU at the national level. 6. The 2012 conference was capped off by a tour of the impressive Moore Athletic Center, followed by the exclusive opportunity to watch the garnet and gold game from the President’s Box.
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The members of the prestigious Circle of Gold joined the club leaders in cheering on the Noles after their spring induction ceremony in Miller Hall at Doak Campbell Stadium. 7. With the induction of honorees (left to right) Gary Wilson (B.S. ’85), Sean Pittman (B.S. ’90, J.D. ’94), Joel Padgett (B.S. ’72) and Diane S. Ervin (M.S. ’72), the number of alumni and friends who have received the Alumni Association’s signature award rose above 200.
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ASSOCIATION NEWS 1
PAST PERFORMERS CELEBRATE 65 YEARS UNDER THE BIG TOP Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, and children of all ages celebrated the 65th anniversary of the FSU Flying High Circus during a weekend of events presented by the Circus Alumni Association. 1. The spectacular began with an evening gala at The Moon. 2. Left to right: Kaylan Zysk, Sharon Zysk (B.S. ’92), Kendall Minter and Annasue Minter (B.S. ’93) made a splash with their red carpet arrival. 3. Inside, Leigh Heisinger (B.S. ’61) reflected on the troupe’s past while 4. Vice President for University Relations Liz Maryanski (M.B.A. ’88) and Flying High Circus Director Chad Matthews posed with Circus Alumni Association President January Littlejohn (B.S. ’99, M.S. ’01) and Vice President Tricia Ravenhorst (B.A. ’97). 5. & 6. The next day brought a lunchtime barbecue at Oglesby Union, where future entertainer Jake Ravenhorst practiced his acrobatics. 7. That night, current Flying High entertainers mingled with their predecessors after a production of what all in attendance agreed to be the greatest show on Earth.
BAND ALUMNI MARCH INTO SPRING For two talented musicians at FSU, the semester reached a crescendo with the Band Alumni Association’s annual presentation of scholarships to students who have demonstrated excellence in performance, arranging or composing. 8. The smiles on (left to right) Band Alumni Association Associate Director for Administration Lucas Bhuvasorakul (B.S. ’97), scholarship recipients Jennifer Bruijn and Eric Pablo Elias-Rodriguez, and Band Alumni Association Board Member Meghan McCaskill (B.S. ’06) hit a high note following the presentation of awards.
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ASSOCIATION NEWS
Seminole inol Clubs Paint the Nation Ga r n e t a n d G o l d inole Service Day
in Sem Alumni Across the Country Participate
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On Saturday, March 24, Florida State University alumni and fans in 28 communities from coast to coast volunteered with their local Seminole Club for the inaugural Seminole Service Day, the FSU Alumni Association’s first national day of community service. California LOS ANGELES, CALIF. 1. Southern California Seminole Club Participated in and manned a water station at the RockWater Relay Race to raise awareness of the importance of keeping local watersheds and beaches clean
Florida DESTIN, FLA. 2. Emerald Coast Seminole Club Donated non-perishable food items to Harvest House, a food pantry for families who are in need 66 Vires
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MELROSE, FLA. 4. Gainesville Seminole Club Provided landscaping assistance and office support at the Puppy Hill Farm Animal Rescue JACKSONVILLE, FLA. 5. Jacksonville Seminole Club Picked up litter at Jacksonville Beach MADISON, FLA. 6. Madison County Seminole Club Collected trash along a local road
JUPITER, FLA. 7. Palm Beach County Seminole Club Cleaned up the beach at Carlin Park as part of The Great American Cleanup coordinated by the Solid Waste Authority SARASOTA, FLA. 8. Sarasota Seminole Club Volunteered with Save Our Seabirds, a rescue and rehabilitation organization for injured birds FT. LAUDERDALE, FLA. 9. Seminole Club of Broward County Picked up trash on Fort Lauderdale Beach MIDDLEBURG, FLA. 10. Seminole Club of Clay County Collected goods to help stock the Clay County Habitat for Humanity ReStore, which helps fund the construction of homes for underprivileged families MAITLAND, FLA. 11. Seminole Club of Greater Orlando Sponsored a team in the Orlando 2012 Muscle Walk benefiting the Muscular Dystrophy Association FORT MYERS, FLA. 12. Southwest Florida Seminole Club Assisted Habitat for Humanity, which builds affordable homes for families in need, at a local construction project TALLAHASSEE, FLA. 13. Tallahassee Seminole Club Assembled over 150 care packages for military serving overseas
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ATLANTA, GA. 15. Atlanta Seminole Club Delivered meals through Project Open Hand, which prepares and distributes more than 5,000 meals a day to those in need around Atlanta
COLUMBIA, S.C. 21. Midlands Seminole Club Performed building and grounds maintenance, laundry and general facility cleaning for the Palmetto Place Emergency Children’s Shelter, which provides a safe and nurturing environment for children who are victims of abuse and neglect
VALDOSTA, GA. 16. Valdosta Seminole Club Assisted the Valdosta Food Bank
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GOSHEN, KY. 17. Kentucky Seminole Club Picked up trash along a stretch of road that the club has assumed responsibility for through the Kentucky Adopt-a-Highway program
CHATTANOOGA, TENN. 22. Chattanooga Seminole Chapter Collected food and household items for the Ronald McDonald House in Chattanooga, which offers housing to families with children being treated at a nearby hospital
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NEW ORLEANS, LA. 18. Greater New Orleans Seminole Club Collected cheek swabs to be entered into the National Bone Marrow Registry and accepted donations on behalf of the Kidz1stFund, which was established by Jimbo and Candi Fisher to raise awareness and funds in support of research to fight Fanconi anemia, a rare but serious blood disease that affects their son
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 23. Alamo Seminole Club Cleaned up Walker Ranch Historic Landmark in San Antonio
Massachusetts BOSTON, MASS. 19. Boston Seminole Club Organized and cleaned a variety of spaces at the Yawkey Family Inn, which provides affordable housing options to families whose children are at Children’s Hospital Boston
AUSTIN, TEXAS 24. Austin Seminole Club Helped rebuild trails and soil that were damaged during a recent rainstorm at Pease Park DALLAS, TEXAS 25. Seminole Club of North Texas Cleaned up Samuell-Grand Park as part of the Dallas Park and Recreation Department’s It’s My Park Day HOUSTON, TEXAS 26. Houston Seminole Club Performed yard maintenance for The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation
Virginia ROANOKE, VA. 27. Seminole Club of Southwest Virginia Provided landscaping for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southwest Virginia
TAMPA, FLA. 14. Tampa Bay Seminole Club Cleaned, organized and repaired the facilities at Children’s Cancer Center, which supports families of children with cancer or chronic blood disorders
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. 20. Charlotte Seminole Club Assisted with landscaping at West Charlotte High School as part of Hands On Charlotte’s BIG Project, a monthly large-scale service event that promotes volunteerism in the Charlotte community
RENTON, WASH. 28. Seattle Seminole Club Cleared a parking lot of trash, concrete debris and overgrown plants and weeds for a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store, which benefits the underprivileged in and around Seattle
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1. As 2011 came to a close, the Student Alumni Association passed its gavel to a new president, Mallory Hager. As head of one of the largest student organizations on campus, Hager serves on the FSU Alumni Association’s National Board of Directors alongside 35 of Florida State’s most influential alumni — all while continuing her full-time college education. The promising young leader from Boynton Beach, Fla., will graduate in spring 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science, a minor in child development and a certificate in entrepreneurship.
s and have for three year A SA in ed lv vo e have been I have been in perience. Ther ex my of te nu w months alone. loved every mi in the past fe ts en ev ng ti ci so many ex o 50 students wh l, a group of ci un us Co it er ip Em sh e er th 2. The SAA Lead adors to FSU, participated in the annual mpus tours to serve as ambass r union. From ca re s y’ vities gave ou et ci So Alumni weekend’s acti e ged th an ch n, s io ha at U br le how much FS to en Heritage Day Ce st li il to the wh e portunity 50 years, all st pa students the op e th er ov e same) ed alumni. (or remained th with the season s ce en ri pe ex mmon sharing our co ip Council Board, Leadersh e iv ut ec Ex s 3. SAA’ the honor mbers also had and general me 50 years of g in of celebrat e eg il iv nd in Hand pr d an part of the Ha as U FS at n 3 integratio ss campus. man chain acro Across Time hu udents during know fellow st to t go we , ar Lanes in hing and 4. Earlier thisCoyesmic Bowling Social at Crenshaw in their neon clot s up 80 ed al ow nu sh an s our lights. d friend der the black SAA members an and bowling un Oglesby Union. od fo ee fr y to enjo side ponytails student-led FSU’s official at nd ha a nt eation area ice Day, we le deled the recr from 5. On Seminole Set,rv The Big Event. SAA members remo e ce to se it go ec rding experien . wa en re dr a il volunteer proj ch ch e su th s ound for ool. It wa gr ch ay es pl pr fe l sa ca d lo at a tiful an tyard to a beau a rundown cour head-shaving ck’s Foundation ri ld Ba . St a while showing ain during cancer research d oo ate dh il 6. SAA gave backisag ch r our own, Associ es funds fo to victims. One of g ad un event, which ra he yo s s hi e’ e as av the dise eered to sh nt lu vo , ay Gr solidarity with or cruitment Conn use. Director for Re this worthy ca r fo s es en ar aw d an y ne mo raise all that will ok forward to lo we s ok bo e in th n and pride in azing semester irit, traditio sp er st fo to With another am inue ture as we cont come in our fu NOLES! GO , ys wa al . As the university
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Mallory Hager ciation ent Alumni Asso President, Stud
ADVERTORIAL
KICKING OFF FOOTBALL SEASON WITH A DECADES-OLD TRADITION The Alumni Association marked the start of FSU’s highly anticipated football season at its 60th annual Kickoff Luncheon on Friday, Aug. 26.
1. Head coach Jimbo Fisher addresses a sea of over 1,400 fans at the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center. 2. The Marching Chiefs enliven the sellout crowd with a spirited performance. 3. Wide receiver Bert Reed pauses to take a photograph with a Seminole enthusiast at the conclusion of the luncheon.
SERVING FOOD, FUN AND SEMINOLE SPIRIT For the third year this fall, the association welcomed alumni and friends of the university to an Open House the evening before every home football game. Guests were treated to activities and fare unique to each event’s theme as well as a performance by retired professor of music Tommie Wright.
4. The legendary Wright leads the rousing cheer at the end of the FSU Fight Song, which he composed. 5. Emeritus Alumni Society Board of Directors member Jack McCoy (B.S. ’56, M.S. ’58), with wife Betty, wears his Florida State pride on his face. 6. Future alumna Penelope Pasqualone (Class of 2032) dons her Seminole best. 7. Judy Willis (B.S. ’76), Dale Willis (B.S. ’76) and Erin Fellows (B.S.N. ’02) are all smiles.
Denise SANDERS (B.S. ’90)
OCCUPATION: Senior Sales Representative, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Tampa, Fla. FAVORITE FSU COURSE: Behavior Management with Dr. Jon Bailey “At FSU I learned to understand people and how to relate to them. People trust you when you’re professional and have their best interest at heart. My fellow FSU alumni receive special savings because of our partnership with the university and that makes our products even more affordable.”
O F FI C E H O U R S An FSU faculty member opens her door to VIRES readers
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Lenore McWey (A.A. ’92, B.S. ’93, Ph.D. ’02) may laugh at herself, but she’s 100 percent serious about teaching. It’s that combination that led her students in the Department of Family and Child Sciences in the College of Human Sciences to nominate the vivacious associate professor for The Florida State University’s 2012 Distinguished Teacher Award, which she won. Students complimented McWey’s ability to be “hilarious at 8 a.m.” and said they would take a class on any subject as long as she was teaching it. One described her as being “more than a teacher, but a mentor whose thoughtful, conscientious and sincere manner I can only hope to emulate when I teach others.” An expert in marriage and family therapy, McWey’s teaching, research and service deal with building family ties, focusing on some of life’s most rewarding, yet all-toooften painful experiences. Her research focus is families involved in the foster care system. With a self-deprecating charm about her teaching style, McWey claims to be nervous before classes, sometimes fumbling over her words, creating a mishap with classroom technology or being the only one laughing at her own bad puns. Yet she clearly loves the experience, as do her students. “To experience a student having an ‘ah-ha’ moment, to see evidence of students’ learning in their work and to watch as they evolve from students to professional colleagues are invaluable advantages of my role as a teacher, and a privilege I treasure,” McWey said.
Tara Lehan (Ph.D. ’07) chose Florida State University because McWey was on the faculty of the marriage and family therapy program, the oldest and one of the strongest in the country. Lehan said, “Dr. McWey has a certain peace that surrounds her that is contagious. At the same time, she has seemingly endless energy. It is this combination of tranquility and vivaciousness that makes her one of the most effective educators I have ever known. Dr. McWey has an uncanny ability to both support and challenge her students as they strive to reach their highest potential. … She is the type of teacher who gives you something to take home other than assignments. Alumna Andrea S. Meyer (Ph.D. ’10), now on the faculty of Mercer University School of Medicine, said she owes much to McWey. "As a junior faculty member I have adopted a motto to guide my decisions: WWLD (What Would Lenore Do).” A self-proclaimed “Nole through and through,” McWey earned a doctorate in marriage and family therapy from Florida State, a Master of Education in mental health counseling from the University of North Florida and a bachelor’s in psychology from Florida State. She joined the faculty in 2004.
By Fran Conaway
1960s Betty L. Siegel (Ph.D. ’61), president emeritus of Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Ga., was inducted as an honorary member of the Kappa Delta Epsilon professional education fraternity. Donald L. Hoernschemeyer (Ph.D. ’64) authored the book How to Be Healthy in a Toxic World, which discusses toxic chemicals that invisibly contaminate the environment, how they damage our immune systems and what people can do to prevent toxins from contaminating their bodies.
1970s Peter V. Antonacci (B.A. ’70, M.S.P. ’75, J.D. ’79) was appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to serve as state attorney for Palm Beach County, Fla. R. Anne Abbott (M.S. ’70) retired from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in Stevens Point, Wis., after more than 30 years of teaching. She was the first woman exercise physiologist certified as an American College of Sports Medicine Cardiac Rehabilitation Program Director and a founding fellow of the American Association of Cardio-Pulmonary Rehabilitation. John W. Lewis (B.S. ’71, M.S. ’74, J.D. ’80), an attorney with the law firm of Henderson, Franklin, Starnes & Holt, P.A. in Fort Myers, Fla., has received his fifth certification by the Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education in civil trial law. He concentrates his litigation practice in defense of automobile, premises and other tort litigation. He also represents school boards, municipalities and other governmental entities in civil rights litigation in state and federal court.
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Lonnie N. Groot (B.S. ’73, J.D. ’76) of the Lake Mary, Fla., law firm of Stenstrom, McIntosh, Colbert, Whigham & Partlow, P.A., served as a judge at the Florida High School Mock Trial Competition at the Barry University College of Law in Orlando, Fla. Aubrey Lucas (Ph.D. ’66) has been selected to serve as interim president at the University of Southern Mississippi as its board of trustees searches for the institution’s 10th president. Lucas was the university’s sixth president, retiring in 1996 after 21 years in that position. He remains a professor of higher education at the university.
EMERITUS ALUMNA TAKES FINAL BOW AFTER 65 YEARS AS CHURCH ORGANIST
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Class Notes
▼ William R. Adams
▼ Carolyn J. Owens
William R. Adams (Ph.D. ’74) was named to the Order of Isabella the Catholic by the Spanish government. Adams received the award, which is granted through a Spanish civil order, due to years of effort in preserving the historic resources of St. Augustine, Fla.
Carolyn J. Owens (B.S. ’69), executive secretary for the social science division of Franklin College in Franklin, Ind., received the 2011 Margaret Hommell Staff Service Excellence Award.
C. Howard Hunter (B.S. ’75, J.D. ’78), shareholder in the litigation group and head of the health care litigation team of the Tampa, Fla., law firm of Hill Ward Henderson, has been elected to The Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel.
George H. Sheldon (B.A. ’69, J.D. ’78), of Orlando, Fla., is acting assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families.
Lois I. Tavaf-Motamen (B.S. ’75) works as a management and program analyst at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. She was named a winner in The New Yorker’s 2012 Eustace Tilley Contest.
She played her first notes when she was 13 years old. One year later, she was the organist at Highland Avenue Methodist Church in Tampa, Fla. Margaret Smith McAlister (B.M. ’45) has been making music ever since. On a Sunday afternoon in January, McAlister, now 88, gave her final performance to a standing-room-only crowd at Tampa’s First Presbyterian Church, where she has been the organist since 1947 – when Harry Truman was president. Two years before taking her place at First Presbyterian’s bench, McAlister graduated from the Florida State College for Women with a bachelor’s degree in music education. She would have majored in organ, but her mother insisted she learn a “marketable skill.” Despite her mother’s apprehension, McAlister’s talent on her instrument of choice provided her with plenty of opportunities, such as completing graduate work in organ at the esteemed Juilliard School. Until recently, she traveled with other musicians to see — and sometimes play — notable organs in faraway places such as the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, France, Switzerland and Hungary. McAlister has been an active participant and officer in a number of organizations including the American Guild of Organists, the Pi Kappa Lambda national music honorary and the Presbyterian Association of Musicians. She is a former member of the music faculty at the University of Tampa and Clearwater Christian College and was the music department accompanist at Hillsborough Community College’s Ybor Campus for 25 years. Vires 71
THERE AND BACK AGAIN Pilot makes historic first flight from Tampa to Havana in 50 years By Jeffery Seay
Florida State University alumnus Robb Williams (B.S. ’00) has flown into aviation history. On Sept. 8, 2011, Williams served as the co-captain on a round-trip flight from Tampa, Fla., to Havana, Cuba — the first in nearly 50 years. That day, Williams says he and the rest of the crew were well aware of the historical significance of the moment.
Stephen Lee (Ed.S. ’76) has been named president of Baptist Medical Center Nassau in Fernandina Beach, Fla. Mark P. Barnebey (A.A. ’77, B.S. ’78, J.D. ’83, M.S.P. ’83), a shareholder with Kirk-Pinkerton in Bradenton, Fla., has received his recertification as a board certified city, county and local government law attorney.
“This was a big deal to our passengers,” said Williams of the nearly 90 Cuban-Americans, dignitaries and reporters who made the charter flight on a Boeing 737. For years, only three airports — Los Angeles International, John F. Kennedy International and Miami International — were allowed by the federal government to serve as gateways to Cuba. In 2011, Tampa International Airport was among 16 additional airports to be approved as gateways. Before takeoff, the atmosphere at Tampa International was extremely festive, with a band playing and many passengers dressed in yellow to celebrate the Feast Day of the Virgin of Charity, Cuba’s patron saint.
▼ Ricky Polston Ricky Polston (B.S. ’77, J.D. ’86) has been unanimously elected to become the 55th Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court. He is the first Florida State University College of Law alumnus to serve in this capacity. John Webb (A.A. ’77, B.S. ’79) has been selected to serve as president of Florida Sports, replacing Larry Pendleton (B.S. ’69) who is retiring after 21 years in the position.
“As we left, we taxied underneath a water-cannon salute,” Williams said. “That was a big honor.” The flight to Cuba lasted one hour and 28 minutes. After arriving at Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport, Williams was allowed to enter the terminal but not leave the airport property.
Paul H. Amundsen (J.D. ’78) joined the Tallahassee, Fla., law office of Lewis, Longman & Walker, P.A. Amundsen represents clients before government agencies. ▲ Paul H. Amundsen
“Once we got off the plane, a lot of our passengers walked up to greet us and thank us, which was really nice,” he said. The flight back lasted one hour and 16 minutes.
“Around 2005, I thought, ‘If I’m ever going to be a pilot, I better do it now,’” he said. Today, Williams works for a charter airline company and routinely flies to far-flung places like Colombia, Palau and Guam. Since that historic day last September, Williams has made the flight from Tampa to Havana for the second time. The first, however, will always be extraordinary. “Just being from this area and being able to actually pilot an aircraft from Havana into Tampa Bay — the fact that it was coming from a place where no plane had come from in 50 years — is really something that I am proud of in my aviation career,” Williams said. “I can always say, ‘I did that.’” 72 Vires
CLASS NOTES
Growing up, Williams had often thought about becoming a pilot because his father flew for Delta Airlines for 30 years. But after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in marketing from Florida State, he started working as a salesman for Miami Elevator Company, then got a job as a high school math and business teacher.
Marcel J. Bernier (B.S. ’79), a partner in the Hartford, Conn., office of Murtha Cullina LLP, authored Preserving Your Business for the Next Generation, a chapter in A Practical Guide to Estate Planning published by the American Bar Association. Steven L. Hearn (B.S. ’79), a Tampa, Fla., attorney, has established the Hearn Family Endowment in the FSU College of Music, which creates an annual $2,000 scholarship for a member of the Marching Chiefs who is majoring in a non-music field.
1980s Craig T. Lynch (B.S. ’81) was elected to the position of second vice president of the University of North Carolina’s School of Law. He will serve on the executive committee of its national board of directors and as president of the UNC Law Alumni Association in 2014. ▲ Craig T. Lynch
SEMINOLE TRIBE HONORS OSCEOLA AND RENEGADE
Lisa J. West (B.S. ’83) opened Charyli, a clothing boutique for women, in Winter Park, Fla.
By Jeffery Seay
Kim Barnhill (B.S. ’84, M.S. ’87, M.P.H. ’08), who is currently the administrator for health departments in Florida’s Jefferson and Madison Counties, has been named Florida’s Outstanding Woman in Public Health for 2012 by the University of South Florida. Michael Bianchi (B.S. ’86, M.B.A. ’87) joined the Orlando, Fla., CPA firm of Batts Morrison Wales & Lee as the organization’s fifth principal and will serve as national director of outsourced solutions. John Carbone (B.S. ’86) was promoted to major and will assume the duties of patrol division commander for the Clinton Police Department in Clinton, Conn. Denise D. Dell-Powell (B.S. ’86), a partner at Burr & Forman in Orlando, Fla., was selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America in bankruptcy and creditor debtor rights, insolvency and reorganization law and litigation in bankruptcy. She was also ranked as leading practitioner in the 2012 edition of Chambers USA, a directory featuring clientled intelligence on America’s leading lawyers for business.
Osceola and Renegade, the legendary and deeply beloved symbols of Florida State football, were recently honored by the Seminole Tribe of Florida as the grand marshals of a parade that kicked off the 74th Annual Brighton Field Days Festival and Rodeo.
CLASS NOTES
Cari L. Roth (B.S. ’79, J.D. ’83), an attorney with Bryant Miller Olive’s Tallahassee, Fla., office, has been appointed chair of the Environmental Regulation Commission by Gov. Rick Scott. She practices in the areas of environmental and land use law and governmental affairs. Roth has served on the Environmental Regulation Commission since 2005.
FSU graduate Allen Durham (B.S. ’93), the Tallahassee businessman who oversees the Osceola and Renegade program, along with six members of the 12-member Osceola and Renegade team — including student Drake Anderson, who currently portrays Osceola — traveled to the tribe’s Brighton Indian Reservation for the parade, which took place on Feb. 18. “In order to preserve the dignity of our portrayal of Osceola and Renegade, we normally don’t make any appearances outside of Florida State football games,” said Durham, who portrayed Osceola while he was a Florida State student. “But certainly with the Seminole Tribe requesting it, we were absolutely honored and most definitely said ‘yes’ to this very special request.”
Gregory L. Parkes (B.S. ’86) has been named bishop of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee by Pope Benedict XVI. Parkes previously served the Orlando diocese as Vicar General and Chancellor for Canonical Affairs and as the pastor of Corpus Christi Parish in Celebration, Fla. David Lambert (B.S. ’87), a senior mechanical engineer at the Air Force Research Laboratory Munitions Directorate’s damage mechanisms branch, was recently named an Air Force Research Laboratory fellow. The recognition acknowledges Lambert as an expert among his peers within his field; he is one of only four scientists to have ever received the honor. ▼ Don Glisson Jr.
Don Glisson Jr. (B.S. ’82), CEO of Triad Financial Services in Jacksonville, Fla., has been appointed to serve as a member of the Citizens Property Insurance Corporation Board of Governors by Florida Chief Financial Officer Jett Atwater. Joe F. Smith (B.S. ’82), an otorhinolaryngologist with ENTcare of Dothan, Ala., and past president of the medical staff at Southeast Alabama Medical Center, was recently board certified in medical management and awarded the status of “Certified Physician Executive” for his educational achievements. Tom J. Wolfe (B.S. ’82, B.S. ’84) of Auburndale, Fla., has been promoted to senior director of global treasury at Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, a new publicly traded company formed from the spinoff of Marriott International’s timeshare division.
Robbie Fox Castleman (M.A. ’88), of Siloam Springs, Ark., received the 2011 Kathleen ConnollyWeinert Leader of the Year Award from Theta Alpha Kappa, a national honor society for religious studies and theology. The award was presented during the Theta Alpha Kappa meeting at the American Academy of Religion annual conference in San Francisco, Calif. Gina Hill (B.S. ’88), president and owner of G.M. Hill Engineering in Jacksonville, Fla., was named 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year by the Women Business Owners of North Florida. ▲ Gina Hill
The appearance of Osceola and Renegade at the parade was so well received that Seminole Tribe officials invited Osceola to plant the spear prior to the festival’s rodeo the following day. Prior to this, the spear had only ever been planted at Doak Campbell Stadium or the stadium of a bowl game or a neutral-site game. “We have conducted the Osceola and Renegade program as a great tribute to the unconquered people of the Seminole Tribe of Florida,” Durham said. “This goes back to a 1977 meeting at a Seminole Indian reservation between my father, Bill Durham, and Chief Howard Tommie. My father asked for permission for us to portray Osceola at Florida State. Now, 35 years later, to be at the reservation and to have been asked to do what we did is a tremendous honor.” Durham will serve as chair of the FSU Alumni Association’s National Board of Directors for the 2012-2013 fiscal year. Vires 73
ALUMNA MAKES BILLIONAIRES LIST THANKS TO SPANX
Rachel S. Peterkin (B.S. ’89, J.D. ’99) joined the Tampa, Fla., office of GrayRobinson, P.A. as an ofcounsel attorney in the real estate practice group. Peterkin will focus her practice on commercial real estate. James R. Rickard (B.S. ’89) has been admitted as a principal with Averett Warmus Durkee Osburn Henning, an Orlando, Fla., accounting firm. He specializes in community banking, real estate and professional associations. Rickard is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Florida Government Finance Officers Association.
1990s Laurie Graybar (B.S. ’90) of Tallahassee, Fla., has published her debut novel, Off the Dock.
Faced with frustrating lines showing through her new cream pants while getting ready for a party, Sara Blakely (B.S. ’93) had an idea. Turns out it was a billion dollar one. That night in 1998, she cut the feet off of her control-top pantyhose, resulting in the prototype for Spanx – a now world-famous product invented by Blakely. The undergarment company, which she started with just $5,000, is presently worth an estimated $1 billion, landing Blakely, its sole owner, on the 2012 Forbes World’s Billionaires list. The 41-year-old entrepreneur — the world’s youngest self-made female billionaire — was featured on the cover of the March 26, 2012, issue of Forbes magazine.
Blakely made the leap into full-time entrepreneurship in 2000. Just two weeks after resigning from her day job, Oprah Winfrey named Spanx her favorite product of the year during her annual Favorite Things Show. With Oprah’s endorsement, Blakely accepted over $30,000 worth of phone and Internet orders in only two days. Twelve years later, Spanx is a global powerhouse, selling 200 products in 11,500 department stores, boutiques and online shops in 40 countries. “Five grand,” she mused during her interview with Forbes. “Good investment.” 74 Vires
Michael W. Beck (Ph.D. ’95), lead scientist of the Global Marine Team at The Nature Conservancy in Santa Cruz, Calif., has been awarded a 2012 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation. He will receive $150,000 for a three-year project to support coastal protection through green infrastructure. Jennifer Krell Davis (B.A. ’95), of Tallahassee, Fla., has been named vice president of public affairs for the Florida Ports Council. She previously served as deputy communications director and press secretary for Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Heather Rodriguez (B.A. ’95, B.A. ’95, J.D. ’98) of Maitland, Fla., has been appointed to the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court by Gov. Rick Scott. ▼ R. Jeff Goolsby
Matthew T. Walker (B.M. ’91) and Alison Gooding (B.M. ’96) were nominated for a GRAMMY award in the Best Small Ensemble Performance category for their work with the ALIAS Chamber Ensemble. Cindy Conaway (M.S. ’92), an assistant professor of media studies at Empire State College in Saratoga Spring, N.Y., appeared on the popular game show Jeopardy! in January 2012. Kelly Schirm Lafferman (B.S. ’92), a marketing, branding and communications executive in Orlando, Fla., recently joined WebSolvers, a digital design and development firm, as principal of strategy and development.
CLASS NOTES
During her time at Florida State, Blakely was a member of the Delta Delta Delta sorority and part of the national championship debate team. Following graduation, she briefly considered a career in law before accepting a sales position with an office equipment firm.
J. Marshall Shepherd (B.S. ’91, M.S ’93, Ph.D. ’99) was selected as the president-elect of the American Meteorological Society, the oldest society in the meteorological profession.
Richard L. Barry (B.A. ’95, J.D. ’00), an attorney in the Orlando, Fla. office of GrayRobinson, P.A., has been elected to serve on the Cornerstone Hospice Ethics Committee, Cornerstone Hospice Foundation Orange Advisory Board of Directors and the Cornerstone Hospice Foundation Board of Directors.
The Orlando-Fla., law firm RyanLaw, founded by Cynthia B. Ryan (J.D. ’93) and partners, was awarded “First-Tier” ranking as one of the 41 highest-ranked litigationenvironmental law firms in the United States by U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers, publisher of the international business news magazine U.S. News and World Report. Ray D. Butler (B.S. ’94), of Cairo, Ga., was promoted from major to lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. Suzanne E. Minor (B.S. ’94), of Miami, Fla., received her medical degree at the University of Miami and is an assistant professor at the Florida International University College of Medicine in the Division of Family Medicine and the Department of Humanities, Health and Society.
R. Jeff Goolsby (B.S. ’96, M.A. ’97) has been named a shareholder in Moore Stephens Lovelace. Goolsby is a member of the firm’s Senior Housing and Healthcare Practice Groups and the firm’s audit and accounting team in Tampa, Fla. Erik T. Gamache (B.S. ’97), an animation supervisor with Digital Domain in Venice, Calif., was recently in charge of animation for the movie Real Steel. Ryan G. Van Cleave (M.A. ’97, Ph.D. ’01), of Sarasota, Fla., edited the book City of the Big Shoulders: An Anthology of Chicago Poetry. Erin L. Knight (B.S. ’98) was promoted to Miami, Fla., market president of Stonegate Bank. In this role, she will oversee the opening of the bank’s new location in Doral, Fla., and continue to manage the Coral Gables, Fla., office. Amy D. Littleton (B.S. ’98) has been promoted to senior vice president of KemperLesnik’s public relations practice in Chicago and Northbrook, Ill.
Thomas W. Roush (M.F.A. ’94), the film commissioner for the Pensacola, Fla., area, and Frank Patterson, dean of the FSU College of Motion Picture Arts, have been appointed to the Florida Film and Entertainment Advisory Council by Gov. Rick Scott. ▲ Amy D. Littleton
Allison Yu (A.A. ’98, B.S. ’00) has been selected as the manager for Florida State University’s capital campaign, the largest fundraising effort in the institution’s history. Yu most recently served as chief development director for Florida State’s College of Human Sciences.
2000s Scott Duncan (B.S. ’00) of Pensacola, Fla., has been appointed to the First Judicial Circuit Court by Gov. Rick Scott. Bill Wertman (B.S. ’00, M.S.W. ’05), director of the Tallahassee, Fla., nonprofit Alzheimer’s Project, has been named one of Social Work Today magazine’s “10 Dedicated and Deserving Social Workers.” Wertman is also an adjunct professor and field educator for the FSU College of Social Work.
Stephen A. McLeod (M.A. ’05), of Alexandria, Va., authored Dining with the Washingtons. The book explores the menus, diet and styles of entertaining that characterized the nation’s founding father. Amanda R. Caruso (J.D. ’06), of Orlando, Fla., has been promoted to senior associate at the Orlando, Fla., law firm Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed. Caruso works in the real estate group and focuses on real estate transactions, development and finance, land use and zoning, and commercial leasing. Christopher J. Jones (B.S. ’06) of Rice University in Houston, Texas, has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarship to Hungary in chemistry. He is one of over 1,600 U.S. citizens who will travel abroad for the 2011-2012 academic year through the program. James J. Argento (J.D. ’07), a prosecutor for the Florida State Attorney’s Office in the Fifth Judicial Circuit in Tavares, Fla., was appointed to the City of Leesburg Charter Review Committee.
CLASS NOTES
Shirley T. Murillo (B.S. ’98), a research scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hurricane Research Division in Miami, Fla., has won the 2012 Dr. Charles Anderson Award for outstanding support of minorities and women to promote a more diverse workforce through mentoring, education and community services.
FSU GRADUATE TURNS FANS’ HUNGER INTO BOX OFFICE SUCCESS
Adam Johnson (Ph.D. ’01), authored The Orphan Master’s Son, a novel set in North Korea.
Effie Trinket, a character in The Hunger Games, would probably suggest that the odds of success were ever in the book-turned-movie’s favor, but Lionsgate left nothing to chance in the months leading up to the film’s spring release. The studio’s marketing campaign for the season’s biggest blockbuster relied heavily on social media to ignite and stoke fans’ excitement for over a year prior to the premiere.
Thomas A. Joseph (B.S. ’01), founder and CTO of Epiphany Solar Water Systems in New Castle, Pa., received a Carnegie Science Award in the environmental award category.
Florida State alumna Danielle DePalma (B.S. ’04), senior vice president for digital marketing at Lionsgate, led the movie’s social media campaign.
Joseph R. Fitos (B.S. ’01), a shareholder in the Orlando, Fla., office of GrayRobinson, P.A., has been appointed to the board of directors of the Roper YMCA.
Scott P. Sowell (M.S. ’02, Ph.D. ’04), a seventh and eighth grade teacher at Darnell-Cookman Middle/High School in Jacksonville, Fla., was named Duval County’s Teacher of the Year.
“We decided from the beginning that we wanted to tap into all the large social platforms, but in different ways, because each platform is unique,” DePalma said of the digital marketing effort.
Robert K. Urban (B.S. ’03, B.S. ’03) has been hired as a vice president and relationship manager with Fifth Third Bank’s Mid-Corporate Banking and Capital Markets team in New York City.
The executive developed a day-by-day, and often minute-by-minute, schedule for the elaborate online operation, initially appealing to the book’s existing fan base with the ultimate goal of recruiting new followers through virtual word-of-mouth.
Michael R. Santana (B.S. ’04) has joined the Orlando, Fla., office of GrayRobinson, P.A. as an associate in the firm’s litigation practice group. He focuses his practice on civil litigation, including insurance litigation, personal injury and professional malpractice matters.
The Hunger Games grossed over $150 million dollars in its opening weekend — nearly double its $78 million production budget — and has since made almost $650 million worldwide.
Travis M. Ward (B.S. ’04), of Sarasota, Fla., was honored as Merit Medical’s sales representative of the year in 2011.
Despite having more than 6.5 million followers between Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Tumblr, DePalma’s work on The Hunger Games isn’t finished yet. The DVD will be released on Aug. 18, and three more films are planned for the franchise.
Kenley J. Collins (B.S. ’05), of Pompano Beach, Fla., competed as a designer on Project Runway All Stars which aired on the Lifetime television network. ▼
Kenley J. Collins
According to DePalma, “We’ve got a long road ahead!” Vires 75
Barbara Gilbert (M.S.W. '11) - social worker who returned to school later in life and builds villages for underprivileged in Jamaica – 300 words with 1 image
Kim Yen Nguyen (J.D. ’07) has been promoted to senior associate for the Orlando, Fla., law firm of Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed. She works in the firm’s bankruptcy and creditor’s rights practices and focuses on commercial foreclosures, commercial loan workouts, bankruptcy litigation, general litigation and commercial litigation. James Douglass III (J.D. ’09) has joined the Tampa, Fla., office of national labor and employment law firm Fisher & Phillips LLP as an associate attorney. Justin M. Preiser (B.S. ’09) completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Ill. Geoffrey W. Taylor (B.S. ’09) completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Ill.
2010s Sarah D. Hutchings (M.M. ’10), of Cincinnati, Ohio, is a winner of the prestigious Boston Metro Opera’s International Composer’s Competition in opera.
ALUMNA BUILDS A BETTER LIFE FOR A COMMUNITY IN NEED Life for several families is looking brighter thanks to Barbara Gilbert (M.S.W. ’11), a 57-year-old single mother of four who proves that an ordinary person can accomplish extraordinary things.
Gilbert soon decided to follow her passion for making a difference while working with children and the poor. In the spring of 2009, at age 54, Gilbert was accepted into graduate school at The Florida State University. She earned her master’s degree in social work in December 2011. “It is never too late to earn an education. During my journey towards my degree, it was important for me as a social worker to advocate for education for the poor,” said Gilbert. “In my travels to Jamaica I have witnessed the passion the children have for learning.” Today, Gilbert continues to put others before herself, working as a waitress to fund her relief projects in Jamaica. In February 2012, she generated donations to complete the Celebration of Life School, providing the children of Jamaica with an opportunity to receive an education. She has started a youth music initiative on the island and hopes to build a second community, Hope Village, to meet the growing need for housing for the impoverished. Gilbert was recognized as one of the “Jamaican Heroines of the Year” and was a finalist in the CVS “For All the Ways You Care” nationwide contest in 2009. In 2010, a local chapter of the National Association of Social Workers named her Student of the Year. Gilbert’s story has been featured on CNN and Good Morning America.
76 Vires
Matthew T. O’Donnell (B.S. ’08) was designated a naval aviator while serving with Training Squadron 22 at Naval Air Station in Kingsville, Texas. Christopher J. Norcross (B.S. ’11) completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Ill.
CLASS NOTES
Gilbert’s dedication to helping others began nine years ago during her first trip to Jamaica with international relief and development agency Food For The Poor. After seeing the needs of the people firsthand, she set out to raise enough funds to build a village for the destitute in St. Catherine, Jamaica. Although her time and resources were already limited — she was pursuing her undergraduate studies in criminal justice at the University of North Florida and working three jobs — she met her goal with the help of the Jacksonville, Fla., community, where she works and lives. “Barbara’s Village” was completed in June 2006 and was followed by the Ellerslie Gardens Soccer Complex.
Tom B. Tollerton (B.A. ’06, M.B.A. ’11) has relocated to Charlotte, N.C., to work for the CPA firm of Dixon Hughes Goodman. He will specialize in the area of IT risk advisory.
Amanda Singh (B.S. ’11) received a 2011 Hank Nuwer Anti-Hazing Hero Award from HazingPrevention.org, a national organization dedicated to preventing hazing in college and university student groups. Aaron N. Whitchurch (B.A. ’11) completed 12 weeks of basic training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, S.C. indicates FSU Alumni Association membership
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I N M E M O R IAM 1930s Rosalind Hadley Daniel (B.A. ’30) Harriett Bize Lenfestey (B.A. ’30) Fay Amstutz Rand (L.I. ’30) Mabel Teague Kilner (B.M. ’31) Florence Argintar Lebos (L.I. ’32) Helen Walters Davis (B.A. ’33) Shirley Shepherd Furr (L.I. ’33, B.A. ’61) Ann McMillan (B.S. ’33) Barbara Greene Bissett (B.A. ’36) Laura Mathis Strahorn (B.A. ’36) Elizabeth Hamilton Ingle (B.S. ’37)
1940s Dorothy Hill Jeffery (B. ’38, M.A. ’40) Claire Wilson Lamb (L.I. ’38) Luise Barshell McFarland (B.A. ’38) Dorothy Atkinson Stripling (B.S. ’38) Margaret Sparkman Bland (B.S. ’39) Annie Laurie Polk Clark (B.S. ’39) Opal Brook Dorrance (B.S. ’39) Elizabeth Harrison Lewis (B.S. ’39, M.S. ’42) Martha P. Moore (B.A. ’39) Anita Jaeckel Anthony (B.A. ’40) Lillian Usher Drake (B.A. ’40) Martha F. Farmer (B.S. ’40) Margaret Vogt Lamar (B.S. ’40, M.S. ’43) Harriette Tobin Markow (B.S. ’40) Doris Bush Scott (B.S. ’40) Sarah Fuller Evans (B.A. ’41) Marjorie Clayton McMahon (B.M. ’41) Bettye Hyatt Williams (B.A. ’42) Leona Ogle Baxter (B.A. ’43) Jeanne Reese Cason (B.S. ’43) Pauline Russ Cook (B.S. ’43) Yvonne Cody Dell (B. ’43) Aleta Price Hoppers (B.S. ’43) Mary Pinckard Gregory (B.S. ’44) Nell Smith Hughes (B.S. ’44) Mary Vogt DuVal (B.S. ’45) Mary Thorp Rival (B.S. ’45) Mary Mendenhall Wood (B.A. ’45) Alden Maples Wyse (B.S. ’45) Judith Alexander Guidice (B.S. ’46) Betty Thompson Wheeler (B.S. ’46) Bobbie Sweat White (B.S. ’46) Gloria Reed Hendry (B.S. ’47) June Bothwell Hinson (B.A. ’47) Merle Knowles Perkins (B.A. ’47, M.A. ’53) Betty Bryson Thompson (’47) Barbara Mann Vinson (B.A. ’47) Joyce M. Windham (B.S. ’47) Mary N. Andreu (B.A. ’48, M.Ed. ’74) Vera Mayo Driskell (B.A. ’48) Doris Lake Eldred (B.S. ’48) Carolyn Jones Graves (B.S. ’48) Gloria Stapelton Hogan (B.S. ’48) Robert Kohler (B.S. ’48, M.S. ’49) Anne MacInnes Lindsay (B.A. ’48) Vera Hudson Mobley (B.S. ’48) Mabel Jean Morrison (B.A. ’48, M.A. ’51, Ed.D. ’80) Phyllis Hazen Voyles (B.S. ’48)
Joseph G. Almyda (B.A. ’49, M.A. ’57) Clyde Foster Brown (B.A. ’49) James B. Childs (B.S. ’49) Dorothy Trask Cleghorn (B.S. ’49) Muriel Scott Cox (B.S. ’49) James V. De Cosmo Jr. (B.S. ’49, M.S. ’50) Jane Martin Dugan (B.S. ’49) Berniece Kirkland Grindle (B.S. ’49) Dewey T. Mills (B.S. ’49, M.S. ’66) Leola Beland Pope (B.A. ’49) Patricia Torraca Raiford (’49) Charles G. Smith (B.S. ’49) Iris Wilson Walker (B.S. ’49) Caroline Caro Watson (B.A. ’49)
1950s Gloria S. Baxter (B.A. ’50) Benjamin R. Clark (B.S. ’50) Elinor Crews Graham (B.S. ’50) Jacqueline Allen McClure (B.S. ’50) Gene A. Morse (B.S. ’50) John O. Moseley Jr. (B.S. ’50) Margary Jones Nelson (B.A. ’50) Martha E. Powell (B.S. ’50) William C. Roberts (B.S. ’50) Joyce Aronovitz Shrage (B.S. ’50) Stephen B. Simmons (M.S. ’50) Chiquita Burkette Thomas (B.S. ’50) Myrtice Clemons Wilkins (B.S. ’50, Ed.S. ’78) John W. Bowling (B.S. ’51) Harris Q. Carter (B.S. ’51) Harry P. Day (M.A. ’51, Ed.D. ’56) Dora Mondon Furr (B.A. ’51, M.A. ’84) Raymond G. Hemphill (B.S. ’51) Barbara J. Hull (B.S. ’51) Doris G. Bowman (B.S. ’52) Paul J. Carey Jr. (B.S. ’52) Florence Williams Chamberlin (B.S. ’52) Dorothy C. Robertson Cochran (B.A. ’52) Joseph S. Crona (B.S. ’52) Ann Dillard (B.S. ’52) Helen Bell Latzer (B.M. ’52) William H. Long (M.S. ’52, Ph.D. ’61) James D. Maxwell (B.A. ’52, M.S. ’59, M.D. ’63) Alice M. Purdes (B.M.E. ’52, M.M.E. ’53, Ph.D. ’76) Doris Stevens Rossman (B.S. ’52, M.A. ’78) Joe-Ann Blue Thirsk (A.A. ’52) L. Wendell Carpenter (B.M.E. ’53, Ph.D. ’69) Ann Aton Chandler (B.S. ’53) Edith Pope Crisp (B.S. ’53) Anna M. Erdman (M.S. ’53, Ph.D. ’56) Beth Walker Koon (B.S. ’53, M.S. ’56) Betty A. Lippke (B.S. ’53) Lynn Chapman Overman (B.S. ’53) Joseph U. Raffo III (B.A. ’53) Earl A. Sapp (B.A. ’53, M.S. ’69) Raymond K. Young (B.S. ’53) Juanita Horton Brandon (B.S. ’54) William Dingwall (B.S. ’54) Joyce Parrott Etty (B.S. ’54) George F. Ivey (M.S. ’54) Neil S. Crispo (B.S. ’55, M.S. ’57) Michael D. Doran (B.A. ’55, M.A. ’56, Ph.D. ’65) Beverly Browne Green (’55) Mary Robertson Harrell (B.S. ’55)
Charlotte Ream Krause (B.A. ’55) Emilio J. Lepore (M.S. ’55) Charley Jackson Llewellyn (M.S. ’55) Frances Shofner Martin (B.A. ’55) George R. Redfearn Jr. (B.S. ’55) Elizabeth Ferguson Addison (B.S. ’56) Freeman E. Baggett (B.S. ’56, M.S. ’58) Theresa Sudol Bridges (’56) Morrill M. Hall (Ed.D. ’56) James M. Havens (M.S. ’56) Mary E. Hendricks (B.A. ’56) Aubrey L. Hutchison (B.S. ’56) Donald A. Johnson (B.S. ’56) Franklin K. Kessler (B.S. ’56) Barbara B. Marky (B.S. ’56) Nancy Counts Owen (B.M. ’56, M.M. ’58) Louis Schwartz (Ph.D. ’56, Ph.D. ’56) Jack A. Sinclair (B.S. ’56) Ronald W. Skelton (B.S. ’56) Laverne W. Williams (B.S. ’56) June McManus Alford (B.S. ’57) Pete Ballas (B.S. ’57, M.S. ’59) Steve W. Bevan (B.S. ’57) Raymond G. Hemann (B.S. ’57) Max G. Rieves (’57) William V. Sullivan (B.S. ’57) Lamarr B. Trott (B.A. ’57, M.S. ’60, Ph.D. ’67) Nancy Ford Veghte (B.S. ’57) Anthony J. Visconti Jr. (B.S. ’57) Sue Fain Vondracek (B.A. ’57) Clyde R. Ward (B.S. ’57) Russell O. Alderman (B.S. ’58, M.S. ’62) Donald K. Dewoody (B.S. ’58) Willie C. Gardner Jr. (B.S. ’58) William H. Ginn Jr. (B.A. ’58, M.B.A. ’62) Pauline Pronski Hall (M.S. ’58, Ph.D. ’63) Arthur M. Kirchoffer Sr. (B.S. ’58) Cornelia Van Deusen Lawson (B.S. ’58) Hodges R. Martin Sr. (M.S. ’58) William E. Mills Jr. (B.S. ’58) Jesse G. Nable (B.A. ’58) Dayton Y. Roberts (B.A. ’58, M.A. ’59, Ph.D. ’64) Sandra F. Smith Ruthven (B.M. ’58) Julian H. Weekley Jr. (’58) Louis M. Weiss (B.S. ’58) Barbara A. Bidwell (M.S. ’59) George T. Crutchfield (M.S. ’59) Joseph V. Farrar Jr. (B.S. ’59) Frances Pendarvis Finlay (B.S. ’59) Melvyn S. Fleischer (B.S. ’59) Alton M. Haeger (B.S. ’59) Carrie Kendall Haucke (M.S. ’59) Rufus B. Jennings Jr. (B.A. ’59) Mary Lomaistro Mattioli (M.A. ’59) Joseph B. Messing (M.S. ’59) Charles S. Schwenk Jr. (B.S. ’59) R. Douglass Strickland (B.S. ’59) William VanDercreek (J.D. ’59) Clarence E. Vicroy Jr. (B.S. ’59) Dolores L. Zeiler (B.A. ’59)
1960s Deane Shafer Colby (B.A. ’60) Floyd M. Deterding (B.S. ’60, M.S. ’61) Alvis Trimble Harthern (M.A. ’60)
Roger D. Lorenze (B.S. ’60) Helen Mathis Marshall (B.S. ’60) Walter G. McPeak (B.S. ’60) Norma J. Perez (B.S. ’60) Dorsey L. Rhodes (B.S. ’60) Alma Altman Stuart (M.A. ’60) Francis L. Trice (B.A. ’60) Roger G. Villars (B.S. ’60) Charles E. Boring Jr. (B.S. ’61) Allie Fillingim (M.S. ’61) John K. Foulk (B.S. ’61) Michael Hillegas (B.S. ’61) Ruth Peeler Maxwell (B.S. ’61) Dorothy Lane Owen (B.S. ’61) James W. Ragans (B.S. ’61, M.S. ’69) Gwendolyn Waters Sharp (B.S. ’61) Harriet Howe Simpson (B.A. ’61) Lucile Hess Wilhite (B.S. ’61) Sarah Williams Cote (M.A. ’62) William O. Pifer (B.S. ’62) Jerry R. Spinks (B.S. ’62, J.D. ’72) Homer C. Starling Jr. (B.S. ’62, M.S. ’65) Robert A. Stuart (B.S. ’62) Maryanne Sprengling Evans (B.S. ’63) John C. Levings (B.S. ’63, M.S. ’67) Ivan W. Bates (B.S. ’64, M.S. ’65, Ph.D. ’71) Cynthia Cline Chase (B.S. ’64) David C. Cumming (B.S. ’64) Harold F. Gibbs (B.S. ’64) George E. Gleason (B.S. ’64) William D. Goddard (B.A. ’64) Ralph D. Howell (M.A. ’64, Ph.D. ’71) Arthur E. Johnson (B.A. ’64) Gerald J. Mershon (B.A. ’64) Max Morenberg (B.S. ’64, M.A. ’68, Ph.D. ’72) Catherine Stafford Shaw (B.S. ’64) David A. Sliney (B.S. ’64) Laura Bunte Tucker (B.M. ’64) Martin A. Washington (B.S. ’64) Lorraine Yarborough Whiting (B.S. ’64) Edwin V. Wilson (B.S. ’64) Douglas M. Windham Sr. (B.A. ’64, M.A. ’67, Ph.D. ’69) Barbara Walden Artabasy (B.S. ’65) Charlotte Born Berkshire (B.A. ’65) Lloyd L. Biddle (B.S. ’65) Susan Wonson Clowe (B.A. ’65) Janet E. Deyo (B.S. ’65) Peter A. Deyoung (M.S. ’65) Linda Rankin Duncan (B.S. ’65) Patricia F. Freeman (B.A. ’65, M.A. ’70) Donald L. Kraker (B.A. ’65) Adele Oldenburg (M.S. ’65, Ph.D. ’87) Craig L. Reynolds (B.S. ’65) Carol Walborn Ruland (B.S. ’65) Charles E. Stephens (B.S. ’65) Charles F. Warnock (M.S. ’65, D.B.A. ’68) Manuel Love (B.S. ’65) William L. Aldredge III (B.A. ’66) William E. Baughman (B.S. ’66) M. Carole Hand Bohnert (B.S. ’66) Carol Schmeisser Davies (B.S. ’66) Thomas Evans (B.A. ’66, M.A. ’67) John C. Evans (B.S. ’66) Marie Hafey Hafey (M.M. ’66) Mark S. Hanson (B.M. ’66, M.M. ’68) Vires 77
John W. Maguire (Ph.D. ’66) Margaret Kroeker Mikesell (M.S. ’66) Dewey R. Mockler (B.A. ’66) Monford C. Rice (B.S. ’66) Mary N. Turner (B.S. ’66) Frances Daniel Bell (B.S. ’67) Mary E. Coleman (B.A. ’67) Gail Hibbe Ewing (B.S. ’67) Nancy L. Germani (B.S. ’67) T. Lane Harris (B.M. ’67) Charles I. Jones (Ed.D. ’67) Gail Chadwick Lee (M.S. ’67) Thomas M. Manning (B.S. ’67) Donnie A. Powell (Ph.D. ’67) Rodger W. Baumgarten (B.S. ’68) Robert L. Cartwright (B.S. ’68) Dennis J. Fitzgerald (B.S. ’68, M.B.A. ’73) Joe C. Gleaves (M.S. ’68) Karen Rowland Heinich (M.A. ’68, M.S. ’78) Larry M. Jenkins (B.S. ’68) William H. Rice Jr. (M.S. ’68) Thomas E. Utsman (M.S. ’68) Adeline Wood Wilkes (M.S. ’68, Ed.S. ’77, Ph.D. ’83) Ronald S. Crim Sr. (B.S. ’69) Richard B. Devenuti (M.S. ’69) Beatrice Reynolds Hardie (M.S. ’69) Larry R. Kilgore Sr. (B.A. ’69) Roger G. McCollum (B.S. ’69) William B. Mills (B.M. ’69) Carole Showalter Mitchell (B.A. ’69) Susie F. Whitener (’69) Corawayne Weller Wright (M.S. ’69) Barend Eversen (B.S. ’69)
1970s Helen Steffee Biebel (M.S. ’70) Jerry J. Bigner (Ph.D. ’70) Barbara Grimmett Bozeman (B.S. ’70) Thomas M. Brittain (B.A. ’70) John C. Davis Sr. (B.S. ’70, M.S. ’73) Loretta Felicione Freeland (B.S. ’70) Jeanne Baker Hamilton (M.S. ’70) Phillip D. Jackson (M.S. ’70) Christopher Joyner (B.A. ’70, M.A. ’72, M.A. ’73) Bruce M. Lauer (B.A. ’70) Steven R. McConville (B.S. ’70) Polly S. Paterson (B.A. ’70) John W. Schuler (B.S. ’70) Frances Rivers Stegall (B.S. ’70) Nelda C. Toothman (B.S. ’70) Robert M. Wilcox (B.S. ’70) Ronald A. Young (M.F.A. ’70) Jane Emerson Carter (M.S.W. ’71) T. Jeffrey Dunn (Ph.D. ’71) Monroe T. Elder Sr. (M.S. ’71) Randolph B. Luttrell Jr. (M.F.A. ’71) Annette Sowell Maleszewski (B.S.W. ’71) Thomas P. McWade (B.S.W. ’71) Dean A. Padgett (M.S. ’71) Anna Griffith Taylor (B.S. ’71) Kathleen McIver Teeter (B.A. ’71) Larry K. Worthington Sr. (B.S. ’71) Carolyn Coggin Bierley (M.S. ’72) Robert D. Carreiro (J.D. ’72) Diane Scheel Guthrie (M.S. ’72, J.D. ’76) 78 Vires
Regan, an active leader and participant in campus activities, was one of 36 Florida State students to be named to Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges by her peers during her senior year.
DALE DUKE REGA N (B.A. ’70) More than 3,000 people gathered on the grounds of the Episcopal School of Jacksonville on a recent morning to celebrate a life that ended too soon. Students passed out river rocks decorated with words like “love,” “courage” and “faith,” an homage to the stones their head of school would give to faculty when they were faced with difficult decisions. Their beloved educator lost her life abruptly only three days before when a disgruntled former teacher opened fire at the school. Though Dale Regan was fatally injured on March 6, 2012, her legacy would carry on through the lives of those assembled at the school she treasured.
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Among them, Rev. Kate Moorehead, dean of St. John’s Cathedral in Jacksonville, Fla., who said the loss of the dedicated administrator stunned those who knew of her love for the place where she had been head of school for the last seven years. “We believe Dale’s love lives on in each one of you,” Moorehead said during the memorial service. “We believe this love has not been diminished by this violence, but it has grown.” A lifelong educator, Regan enjoyed more than 30 years of teaching and administration at the Episcopal School and was dedicated to the advancement of education throughout the Southeast. She served on the Southern Association of Independent Schools Board of Trustees and was president of the Florida Council of Independent Schools. Regan was born and raised in Jacksonville, Fla. While at FSU, she was a member of the varsity tennis team and president of the Delta Zeta sorority. She graduated cum laude with a degree in arts and sciences, and remained an avid Seminole in the years that followed. She also held a master’s degree from the University of North Florida. She leaves behind two sons, John and Duke (B.A. ’01), along with her sister, Denise Hunt (Russell) and parents Allen and Charlotte Duke.
Ronald G. Havelka (B.M. ’72) Paul C. Herbert (Ed.D. ’72) Bruce A. Hill (B.S. ’72, Ph.D. ’96) Jackson D. Ingram (J.D. ’72) Russell T. Kitching (M.S. ’72) E. Joe Nosari (Ph.D. ’72) Peggy Cash Skeen (B.S. ’72) Sidney R. Smith (B.S. ’72) John W. Toomey Jr. (B.A. ’72, M.S. ’75) Robert E. Watts Jr. (M.S.W. ’72) Richard E. Wiederhold (B.A. ’72) Mark S. Bonter (B.S. ’73) Jerry L. Burton (B.S. ’73) Beth Staples Chabot (B.A. ’73) Jack A. Collier (B.S. ’73, M.B.A. ’74) David L. Grovdahl (M.S. ’73) Stephen A. Hafer (B.S. ’73) Jim Harrier (M.A. ’73) Deborah Minear Humphries (B.S. ’73, M.S. ’88) Danny G. Lamb (M.S. ’73) Charles R. Massey (B.S.W. ’73, M.S. ’74, Ph.D. ’83) David R. Pederson (M.S. ’73) John D. Pugh (M.S. ’73) James D. Ramsey (M.S. ’73) Judith O’Connor Gimbel (B.S. ’74) Betty H. Houston (B.S. ’74, M.S. ’78) Samuel L. Parrish (B.S. ’74, M.S.W. ’75) William K. Russell Jr. (B.S. ’74) Edwin F. Snider (B.S. ’74, M.A. ’77) Lawrence S. Taylor (B.S. ’74, M.S. ’75) Shirley J. Washington (B.A. ’74) Jane E. Barfield (B.S. ’75) E. Michelle Coutant (B.M. ’75) Rhoda Eisenberg-Mendlow (B.S. ’75) Peggy Dickson Glass (B.S. ’75) Johnny Jefferson (B.S. ’75) Gayle D. Lewis (B.S. ’75) Richard J. Markonic (M.S. ’75) Shirley J. Perry (B.M.E. ’75, M.M.E. ’78) Ernest P. Phillips Jr. (B.S. ’75) R. Neil Scott (B.A. ’75, M.S. ’76, M.B.A. ’82) Charles D. Weaver (B.S. ’75) William R. Bamberg (M.S. ’76, Ph.D. ’80) Diane Eddins McGarity (M.S. ’76) Elliott C. Mitchell (B.S. ’76) Ralph H. Smith II (B.S. ’76) Barbara Volpi Stagner (B.A. ’76) John P. Wassman (M.S.P. ’76) William H. Wickes (M.S. ’76) Melissa Powers Baum (M.S. ’77) David T. Beil (B.S. ’77) James O. Boone (Ph.D. ’77) Laura Stark Brown (B.S. ’77, M.S. ’83) Doina Gradina Farkas (M.S. ’77) Richard P. Kern (M.S. ’77, Ph.D. ’82) Audrey L. Ryals (B.S. ’77) James S. Stanley (B.S. ’77) James M. Kerstetter (M.S. ’78) Alan E. Klose (M.S. ’78) Ray A. Menze (Ph.D. ’78) Gary M. Popkin (M.B.A. ’78) Ola H. Spears (B.S. ’78) Glenn F. Wright (B.S. ’78) William R. Celander (B.F.A. ’79) Lillian Honchell Conner (Ph.D. ’79)
Paul H. Crouch (Ph.D. ’79) Ray B. Munroe Jr. (B.S. ’79, M.S. ’94, Ph.D. ’96) Stephen A. Powers (B.S. ’79) James P. Schulz (B.A. ’79)
1980s Linda Baxter Brooks (B.S. ’80, M.S.W. ’90) Audrey W. Collins (Ph.D. ’80) Pamela Lawhon Evans (B.S. ’80) John F. Ginestra Jr. (B.S. ’80) George I. Golik (B.S. ’80) Blake M. Hadley (B.S. ’80) Stanton B. Hoover (B.A. ’80) Kim A. Cavanaugh (B.S. ’81) Carol D. Harllee (B.A. ’81) David L. Johnson (B.S. ’81) Debra Menna Kromer (B.S. ’81) Mary A. Marangos (Ph.D. ’81) Lee Sypula Schwartz (B.S. ’81) Nancy Wagner (B.S. ’81) Robert B. Westbrook Jr. (B.S. ’81) Daniel P. Sargent (B.S. ’82) Kathy L. Elliott (B.S. ’83) Frederick L. Gause Jr. (B.S. ’83) Kathy Rugoff (Ph.D. ’83) Wenda Wolf (A.A. ’83) Wendy Cooper Garrity (B.S. ’84) Jeffery M. Mork (M.M.E. ’84) Richard D. Morrison (B.S. ’84, M.S. ’87) Dana A. Paulk (B.S. ’84) Jimmy Pospiech (A.A. ’84, B.S. ’86) George A. Cejka (B.S. ’85) Ann H. Garrison (B.S. ’85) Mark H. Graetz (B.S. ’85) David M. King (B.S. ’85) Felix F. Rizk (M.S. ’85, Ph.D. ’91) Jennifer L. Scarborough (B.S. ’85) Charmaine K. Gilbert (M.S.W. ’86) Yvette M. Hicks (B.S. ’86) Thomas M. Blinstrub (B.S. ’87) Leslie A. Cain (B.S. ’87) Paul D. Gray (B.S. ’88) John P. Keyser (J.D. ’88) Cindy A. Davis (M.S. ’89) Danny L. Ouzts (B.S. ’89)
1990s Susan Ernst Kessler (M.S.W. ’90) Frances Simon (B.A. ’90) Curtis G. Smith Jr. (B.A. ’90) Andrew J. Stephens (B.S. ’90) Michael J. Cantey (B.A. ’91) Tawanna Moore Evans (B.S. ’91) Larry E. Godbolt (M.S.W. ’91) Jeanne Brown Speckhals (M.S.W. ’91) Charles Boyd (M.F.A. ’92) Harry W. Stacey Sr. (B.S. ’92) Mary E. Connor (M.S.W. ’93) Scottie L. Woodall (B.S. ’93) Mark A. Boyd (B.S. ’94, M.S.W. ’95) Joseph A. Cornett (B.S. ’94, B.S. ’94) James A. Smith (B.S. ’94) Ronald B. Gardin (B.S. ’95) Vivianne Grajales King (B.A. ’96, M.S. ’97) John P. Mezzatesta (B.S. ’96)
John F. Goble (Ph.D. ’97) John T. Wharton (B.S. ’97) Jennifer Mohr Richards (B.S. ’98)
2000s Joel R. Driver (B.A. ’00, S. ’06, M.S. ’06) Justin D. Harris (B.S. ’00) David C. Speights (B.S. ’00) Tosha Garrett Tyms (A.A. ’00, B.A. ’02) Benjamin R. Jones (B.S. ’01) Zoreh Moshir (Ph.D. ’01) Michael D. Collins (B.S. ’02) Allison F. Hall (B.A. ’04) Jennifer L. Sickle (B.S. ’04) Holger A. Von-Oetinger (B.S. ’06) Catherine Morris Heaps (M.F.A. ’07) Jeremy R. Marston (B.S. ’07) Melissa L. Montgomery (B.A. ’09)
Class Year Unknown Eunice H. Adams Mary Bostick Auman
Leyla J. Benitez Ronald E. Bobus Brook C. Bowers Alice R. Brigman Bessie B. Brown Herbert L. Bryant Jr. Annette C. Chapman Waltz V. Conner Sue Dunne Corsale Carmelita A. Danzey Brita F. Darling Maxine Adams Doster Danny Filer Tinsley W. Floyd Joel L. Floyd Vince Gibson Alcista Newman Gillies Rolf S. Gunther Jr. Wayne R. Hanna Wanda M. Hoffler Steve O. Holton Sr. Dan Isaacs
BENJAMIN NATHA NIEL C ER NIGL IA (B.S. ’07, B.S. ’07) Capt. Benjamin Cerniglia, a helicopter pilot with the U.S. Marine Corps, was killed in a flight accident on Feb. 22, 2012, while training for deployment to Afghanistan. The AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopter Cerniglia was in collided with a UH-1Y Huey helicopter over the desert of the Arizona-California border, killing seven Marines aboard the two aircraft. Cerniglia was born in Louisville, Ky., on Jan. 27, 1981, and raised in Indianapolis, Ind., and Montgomery, Ala. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps immediately after high school and was later selected for the Florida A&M Naval ROTC program, which enabled him to earn dual bachelor’s degrees in finance and economics at The Florida State University. While at Florida State, he appeared on both the dean’s and president’s lists, was inducted into two honor societies — Golden Key International and Beta Gamma Sigma International Business — and was honored with the NROTC’s Academic Excellence Award. Upon graduating from FSU, Cerniglia reached the rank of captain and became a Cobra helicopter pilot. During Cerniglia’s memorial service, fellow NROTC graduate and FSU alumnus Capt. Richard Cardona (B.A. ’07) shared three things his friend talked about constantly: “his two kids, the United States Marine Corps and FSU.” Pride in the university came naturally to the Florida State legacy student. His parents, Constance Flanery Weber (B.A. ’78) and Mark Cerniglia (B.A. ’77); uncle, Carl Cerniglia (B.S. ’78, M.S. ’97) and younger brother, Adam Cerniglia (B.S. ’10), also attended FSU. In addition to those family members, Cerniglia is survived by his two children — Ashlyn and Ben Jr. — and another brother, Joseph.
Mary Hunter Jenkins Daniel W. Litwhiler Sr. Joseph H. Luten Sr. Maureen D. Matthes Bruce A. Meyers James T. Moore Anita D. Neal Kayla A. Needle Rachel M. Pinto John E. Probert John M. Reynolds Edward S. Robinson Samuel B. Rogers John R. Saltsman Dick L. Sargent Benetta A. Sherard Zelda Hill Smith Ruby Edwards Snyder Emory K. Sparkman Cynthia Wingo Stillings Betty Betar Taylor Ellen D. West Dorothy B. Yates
Faculty & Staff Iretha Anderson Brenda Moran Baggett Robert W. Beard J. B Beckwith Robert C. Carter Michael R. Clark Irvin H. Cole Maner Cull Robert F. Dalton Robert E. Glotzbach Leroy C. Gould Mary Stanaland Grissett Willie L. Harris Tommy Hay Sandra Long Hedrick Hazel Flowers Hufstetler Margaret Kassouny Robert A. Kromhout Garland B. Layton Lydia Herrington Markley Harris McQueen H. J. Mottice Warren Nation Clydeyne McKenzie Nelson Alice B. Nichols Donald R. Parramore Sylvia Hull Robinson Penny Wilson Rodriguez Howard L. Rosenfeld Mario B. Sanguily Woodrow Sapp Sr. Helen E. Scruggs Gerald Shook Irene McNally Stacey Donnie E. Staten Jr. Zephaniah D. Virgil Waltraud F. Wiese Augusta Young
Vires 79
A S EM I N A L MOM ENT Seminole smiles — even from usually stoic head coach Leonard Hamilton — reflect the joy of culminating FSU’s 21-year journey along Tobacco Road with its first-ever Atlantic Coast Conference Basketball Championship. The 85-82 win over perennial power North Carolina on March 11 netted the most coveted conference championship trophy in all of college basketball and landed the Noles atop the nation’s most prestigious basketball league. 80 Vires
Photo by Ross Obley
PARTING SHOT
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