Class Notes
’10s
Five Terps were named to Forbes magazine’s 2018 “30 Under 30” lists, recognizing young people revolutionizing 20 industries:
Erik Martin ’16 was named to the Games list. Martin designs outreach programs for Unity Technologies, a video game development company. He was formerly a policy adviser for President Barack Obama’s Office of Science and Technology Policy; while there, Martin helped create the White House Education Game Jam, in which game developers, teachers, learning researchers and students came together to develop educational software.
Tian Li M.S. ’15, Ph.D. ’16 made the Energy list for contributing to the creation of see-through wood at UMD. It’s stronger than traditional wood, as well as more energy-efficient and less expensive to manufacture than glass for windows. (Read the Terp story about it!)
Natalya Gallo ’11, now a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, San Diego, was named to the Science list. Gallo studies the warming climate’s effect on ocean conditions, and how that will influence the health of fish and fisheries. Along with engineer collaborators, she’s developed new tools to study underwater ecosystems.
Marian Cheng ’10 made the Food & Drink list; Cheng and her sister, Hannah, opened Mimi Cheng’s Dumplings, a restaurant inspired by their mom’s Taiwanese dumplings, in New York’s East Village in 2014. They added a second location in Nolita last year.
Former Terp Jake Rozmaryn was named to the Energy list. Rozmaryn was the CEO and founder of Eco Branding, a public relations and marketing agency that focuses on clean-tech companies. He’s now vice president of strategy and business development for the Antenna Group, a public relations and marketing agency dealing with energy, sustainability, emerging tech and life sciences.
Brad Rodier MBA ’16, senior vice president of Columbia Bank, joined the Casey Cares Foundation’s board of directors.
Harrison Lisabeth Ph.D. ’16 received the 2017 Mineral and Rock Physics Graduate Research Award at the American Geophysical Union’s fall meeting. He works at Stanford University as a postdoctoral researcher with the Stanford Center for Carbon Storage, studying the interaction of chemical and physical stresses in deforming materials, the intersection of rock mechanics and petrology, and science communication.
Jason Rivera Ph.D. ’15 was named vice chancellor for student academic success at Rutgers University-Camden. He most recently served as dean of the sophomore class and director of the Intercultural Center at Swarthmore College and previously held a number of positions at Montgomery College in Maryland. At UMD, he served as assistant director of multiethnic student education.
Dawn Avery Ph.D. ’14, a world music artist and professor of music at Montgomery College, released the album “Crane on Earth, in Sky: A Journey.” She composed this music for a play by IBEX Puppetry, led by Heather Henson, daughter of Muppets creator Jim Henson ’60. The play, “Ajijaack,” a coming-of-age story about an American Indian, will run at La MaMa Experimental Theater in New York Feb. 8–18. Listen to audio tracks from the album here.
Nicole Daya ’14 joined the law firm of DLA Piper’s Baltimore office as a Krantz Fellow. She will spend her first year focused on pro bono work in Maryland and across the U.S., as well as global projects through New Perimeter (DLA Piper’s global pro bono affiliate). She was previously involved in local pro bono projects, including the University of Maryland’s Clinical Law Program and Project HEAL at the Kennedy Krieger Institute.
The Marine Trades Association of Maryland has elected Marco LeGette MBA ’14 to the board. He is co-founder of Snag-A-Slip, a Baltimore-based company that connects boaters with available slips while showcasing marinas in the same way hotels are promoted. He previously spent seven years in the U.S. Marine Corps before transitioning to government consulting. He has been fishing/boating on the Chesapeake Bay since a teenager and lives in the Annapolis area.
Evan Lutz ’14, co-founder and chief executive officer of Hungry Harvest, has joined SHIFT Society, part of SHIFT, a Baltimore-based management consulting and recruiting company. SHIFT Society is the world’s only mission-driven, localized, invite-only entrepreneurial membership community, committed to creating meaningful, sustainable change in communities and solving issues facing the world.
Ben Simon ’14, founder of the Food Recovery Network and 2012 Do Good Challenge winner, won $100,000 on the ABC TV show “Funderdome” with Steve Harvey to support Imperfect, his organization that fights food waste by finding a home for “ugly” produce.
Andrew Hartford ’13 is running for U.S. Congress in his hometown district in central New Jersey in hopes of becoming its youngest member. As a student, he worked for U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer ’63 and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, then earned a law degree in 2016 from the University of Virginia. Learn more at andrewdhartford.com.
“A Different Shade of Justice: Asian American Civil Rights in the South” by Stephanie Hinnershitz Ph.D. ’13 explores how Chinese, Filipino, Japanese and, later, Vietnamese and Indian Americans faced obstacles in the Jim Crow South, similar to those experienced by African Americans in their fight for civil and human rights. Hinnershitz is an assistant professor of history at Cleveland State University.
Max Jaffe ’13 ran the 2017 New York City Marathon in November to raise money for the Live Your Cor Foundation, created to honor his friend, Cory Hubbard ’14, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver in College Park in 2014. Jaffe is director of strategic partnerships for CBS New York.
Christian Cerria ’12 and Pamela Prifti ’12 were married Aug. 20, 2016, at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C., with a reception at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. They met senior year of college at spring break in Panama City, Fla., and he proposed during a weekend getaway in Belize. The couple honeymooned in Italy, Dubai and the Maldives. Read about their wedding and reception in Washingtonian.
Meg Eden ’12, M.F.A. ’16 has written “Post-High School Reality Quest,” a young-adult novel about a retro-gaming, con-going teen approaching graduation who finds she has an unwelcome guest in her mind: the “Text Parser.” Find her at megedenbooks.com or on Twitter at @ConfusedNarwhal.
Doug Hogan MBA ’12 was promoted to vice president of business operations, global sales and marketing at SkyTouch Technology, which provides hotel property management systems. Hogan, who is based in Phoenix, has led business operations for SkyTouch Technology since its inception.
Jesse David Sivkin Lirtzman ’11 and Chelsea Janette Weinberg were married Oct. 28 at Union Station in Washington, D.C. He is a senior associate at LaFave & Associates, a Democratic fundraising firm in Washington. The couple met in July 2006 while doing volunteer trail work at Glacier National Park in Montana.
Tolleah Price M.Jour. ’11 joined the syndicated weekly TV show on politics, "Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien," as supervising producer. She was most recently at NBC in Washington, where she was promoted to the investigative unit.
Matt Dernoga ’10, M.P.P. ’13 is running for Maryland state delegate in Prince George’s County as a Democrat; the District 21 seat includes College Park. He has spent the past six years as a policy analyst for County Councilwoman Mary Lehman.
Christopher Minnich M.P.P. ’10 will take over as chief executive officer of the education nonprofit NWEA on Jan. 29. He currently serves as executive director of the Council of Chief State Schools Officers, where he has worked since 2008.
’00s
Designer Sam Stone ’09 was a Merit winner in HOW magazine’s recent Promotion & Marketing Design Awards for her self-promotion pin. She designed and backed the pin with a business card so that the two pieces can function together and when separated.
Rachel Emma Englander ’08 and Adam Matthew Davis were married Oct. 21 at Cipriani 42nd Street in Manhattan. She is the corporate events manager for the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort. After their first date in 2013, Englander wrote herself a note and sealed it in an envelope. The note inside the envelope (which she presented to him for the first time on their wedding day) read: “I just went on a date with the man I am going to marry.” Read the full story in The New York Times.
Danielle Tricolla ’08, associate at the Uniondale, N.Y.-based law firm of Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana, LLP, was selected by her peers as a 2017 New York Rising Star Super Lawyer.
Josh Welle MBA ’08 is running for U.S. Congress in the 4th District of New Jersey. He is a 2002 graduate of the U.S. Naval Aademy and served 12 years on active duty in the Navy, including a tour in Afghanistan and four deployments to Afghanistan. He was selected as one of the Top 40 Rising Stars in Government Technology in 2017. He founded a software company and served as its CEO, and was also lead editor of the book "In the Shadow of Greatness." Learn more at welleforcongress.com.
Adrian Zink ’08 has published his first book, “Hidden History of Kansas.” The work covers dozens of overlooked true stories from Kansas history, from the first patented helicopter in Goodland in 1912 to Wyatt Earp being fired from the Wichita police department for a fistfight. Zink works for the National Archives-Kansas City and previously worked for the Kansas Historical Society.
Rebecca Gibson Ph.D. ’07 was named assistant professor of education at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md. Her research interests include vocabulary acquisition in children, the role of nonfiction texts in primary classrooms, and emergent/beginning writing development and instruction in young learners.
Mack McGee ’07, vice president and chief marketing officer of SC&H Group, has been named vice chair of the board of directors for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Maryland Chapter. For six years, McGee has helped raise more than $1.5 million for the foundation, including as founding co-chair of its annual Passion for Wine fundraiser. McGee is also an active member of the Baltimore County Special Olympics and was recently appointed to its Board of Directors.
Eddie Tyner MBA ’07, who has served as president of Enquirer Media and the USA Today Network for Ohio since February 2017, has also been named president of the USA Today Network for Ohio and Louisville.
Erin Watley ’07 was promoted from visiting professor to assistant professor of communication and cinema at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md. Watley holds a master’s degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico.
Steven A. Book ’06, an associate at the law firm Kramon & Graham, was recognized by Maryland Super Lawyers 2018 as a Rising Star for his work in business litigation and civil litigation. He has appeared in the directory annually since 2016.
Danielle Earls ’06 unexpectedly met fellow Terp Mary Chang ’01 during a bus tour of the English countryside in November. “It was such a delight to meet another Terp while traveling in another country, especially because I do not currently reside in Maryland.”
Megan Emhoff ’06 was named vice president of people operations at health care compliance analytics firm Protenus. Most recently, she was director of people operations at Curiosity Media, an e-learning platform based in Arlington, Va.
Benjamin R. Levy Ph.D. ’06 has written a new book published by Oxford University Press, “Metamorphosis in Music: The Compositions of Gyorgy Ligeti in the 1950s and 1960s,” focusing on the Hungarian composer’s stylistic transitions. He is an assistant professor of music theory at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Jeremiah Lowery ’06 is seeking a seat on the D.C. Council as an at-large Democrat. He is the director of the Universal Childcare NOW D.C. Coalition and a climate justice organizer at the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. In 2016, he was appointed by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to the D.C. Food Policy Council as a commissioner/member.
Leo Cyril Lucisano ’06 and Victoria Jeanne Ryan were married Sept. 30 at Holy Name Roman Catholic Cathedral in Chicago. The couple met at Northwestern, from which each received a law degree, and from which the groom also received an MBA. He is a turnaround and restructuring consultant for AlixPartners, a professional advisory firm in Manhattan. From 2011–14, he served as a combat engineer officer at Fort Benning, Ga., in the U.S. Army, attaining the rank of captain. He completed one tour in Kuwait. He continues to serve as a staff officer in the Army Reserve.
Josh Seiff MBA ’06 joined HouseCanary, which provides collateral valuation solutions in residential and rental markets, as vice president of business development, financial services. He spent the past 13 years at Fannie Mae as vice president, multifamily capital markets and trading.
Patrick Smith MBA ’06 joined Cvent, a cloud-based enterprise meetings, events and hospitality technology company, as chief marketing officer. Most recently, Smith served in the same role at Deltek, an enterprise software company that was recently acquired for $2.8 billion.
Shaina Hernandez ’05 was elected to the board of directors with the South Baltimore Learning Center, a community-based nonprofit providing adults functional literacy, life skills training and career preparation services. She serves as the director of local government affairs and strategic initiatives for the Greater Baltimore Committee.
Ryan A. Mitchell ’05, principal at the law firm Kramon & Graham, was recognized as a Rising Star by Maryland Super Lawyers 2018 for his work in business litigation. He has been selected to appear in the directory every year since 2015.
Soccer player Robbie Rogers, the first openly gay man to compete on a major pro sports team in the U.S., retired in November from the Los Angeles Galaxy. Over an 11-year career, he played in England, the Netherlands and the U.S., and won two MLS Cups. During his year at Maryland, he helped the Terps win the 2005 NCAA title.
Suneel I. Sheikh Ph.D. ’05, co-founder, CEO and chief research scientist of Minnesota-based Advanced Space Technology and Research Laboratories, was selected for membership in ARCS Foundation Alumni Hall of Fame. Sheikh created the company in 2004, in part, to operate as a bridge between the progressive, high-grade research at universities and the rapid development cycles of the aerospace industry.
Lindsay Dreyer ’04 was listed among Washingtonian magazine’s Most Powerful Women in Washington in October. She is owner and broker at City Chic Real Estate, which she founded to appeal to millennials who expect technology to ease their home-buying and -selling.
Randy Guttman ’04 was promoted to general partner at JMI Equity in Baltimore. Guttman, who is also JMI’s chief financial officer, joined JMI in 2007 and was appointed CFO in 2013.
Sean P. O’Connor ’04 has been named to the 2017 Massachusetts Super Lawyers Rising Stars list. He is a partner at Boston labor and employment law firm Morgan, Brown & Joy, LLP, and earned his law degree from Northeastern University.
Charlotte Glinski Philips MBA ’04 joined the Baltimore office of Wilmington Trust as team leader for private banking for the Mid-Atlantic region. She came from U.S. Trust, where she was senior vice president and private client manager for over a decade. Before that, she was an analyst in Wachovia’s Capital Markets Group. Earlier in her career, she worked at the New York Stock Exchange, PricewaterhouseCoopers and the U.S. Department of Treasury.
Kevin Wheeler ’04, a principal in the Washington, D.C., office of Fish & Richardson, has been named a “D.C. Rising Star” by the National Law Journal. The list recognizes 40 influential lawyers age 40 and under. At Fish, Wheeler represents some of the world’s top technology and chemical companies in patent infringement disputes. For the past five years, he has also worked with The Children’s Law Center in D.C., which provides legal services for at-risk children living in D.C.’s poorest neighborhoods. He received his J.D. from the George Washington University Law School.
Brooke A. Manrique MBA ’03 was promoted to vice president, human resources and communications, at SI Group, a developer and manufacturer of chemical intermediates, specialty resins and solutions. In 2015, Manrique led SI Group’s global brand transformation, an 18-month project that impacted customers in more than 90 countries and facilities on five continents. She joined the company in January 2013 as the global public relations and marketing communications manager, and since that time has held several leadership roles.
Johnette Magner Ph.D. ’01 joined Louisiana Tech University as its executive director for external affairs. She was founding executive director of the Shreveport-Bossier Business Alliance for Higher Education and served on the graduate faculty for the Frost School of Business at Centenary College. She also serves as the director of Centenary’s Center for Family-Owned Business. Prior to her position with SBBA, she served LSU Shreveport as interim vice chancellor of development.
Megan Farrell MBA ’01 was appointed Title IX coordinator for the Palo Alto Unified School District. She previously served as counsel to Hirschfeld Kraemer LLP in its San Francisco office, advising educational institutions across the country on legal issues involving faculty, staff and students. She has a law degree from Widener University in Pennsylvania.
Daniel Powell ’01 was elected a 2018 Hawthornden Fellow for “Runaways,” a short story from his collection in progress, “Fo(u)nd Memories.” He will spend a month at Scotland’s Hawthornden Castle, where he’ll finish the collection and work on a novel. Powell has previously been awarded writing fellowships and residencies from the Edward F. Albee Foundation, Tofte Lake Center and Art & History Museums–Maitland. His stories have appeared in Blunderbuss Magazine, Fantastic Floridas, York Literary Review, Atlas & Alice, The Adirondack Review, Pea River Journal and elsewhere. More can be found at danny-powell.com.
Nate Tibbits MBA ’01 was promoted to senior vice president of global government affairs and public affairs at Qualcomm’s Washington, D.C., office. Tibbits, who has been at the company since 2014, most recently ran day-to-day efforts in the San Diego-based company’s D.C. outpost in an acting capacity.
Daniel Ives MBA ’00 was named chief strategy officer at GMH Insights, a market research and analytics firm. Most recently, Ives was executive vice president of finance and corporate development at Synchronoss.
Yang Wang ’00, ’01, M.A. ’05 was promoted to partner at the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in its Beijing office. He represents private equity funds and corporate clients on mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions, corporate finance transactions and other general corporate matters. He received his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Michigan, where he was a Clarence Darrow Scholar and served as an article editor of the Michigan Law Review.
’90s
“Giving Stuff Up,” a poem by Charlie Clark ’99, M.F.A. ’03, was published in the Winter 2017–18 issue of the literary journal Ploughshares. His poetry has also appeared in Copper Nickel, Pleiades, Smartish Pace, Threepenny Review, West Branch and other journals. He lives in Austin, Texas.
Perry Hardt MBA ’99 was named senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Deltek in the United Kingdom. In his new role, the former Oracle veteran oversees the global marketing team of the provider of enterprise software and solutions.
Julie Oberg ’98 was named deputy secretary of agriculture for the state of Maryland. Oberg has been with the state since 2004, most recently serving as communications director for the department of agriculture.
Former Prince George’s County state delegate Aisha N. Braveboy ’97 is running for Maryland attorney general. She ran unsuccessfully for the state’s top prosecutor job in 2014. She served in the House from 2006–14. The native Prince Georgian earned her law degree at Howard University.
Catherine M. Manofsky ’97, a principal at the law firm Kramon & Graham, was named one of Maryland’s Leading Women by The Daily Record. The award honors women age 40 or younger for their professional experience and community service. Since 2013, Manofsky has served on the board of Anne Arundel County Court Appointed Special Advocates. She is a member of the Executive Parent Teacher Organization Board at Davidsonville Elementary School and a troop leader for the Girl Scouts of Central Maryland. Within the legal community, Manofsky is an active member of the Maryland State Bar Association and has served on its Ethics Committee since 2013. She is a member of the Federal Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar Association.
Craig Fitzgerald ’96 has been hired as the Tennessee Vols’ strength and conditioning coach. He had been the Houston Texans’ main director of strength and conditioning since 2014. Before that, Fitzgerald was the director of strength and conditioning for Penn State, South Carolina and Harvard. He was an assistant director of strength and conditioning at UMD from 2000–05. He played for Maryland from 1994–96.
Brett Katzner MBA ’96 joined independent financial firm Stephens Inc. as managing director for New York institutional equities sales and trading. He is a former director of institutional sales at BTIG and a former vice president at Thomas Wiesel Partners. He was a consumer analyst and portfolio manager earlier in his career.
Chris LaFleur M.S. ’96, a researcher from Sandia National Laboratories in California, was honored with a Clean Energy Education & Empowerment Award from the sixth annual C3E Women in Clean Energy Symposium. C3E is a collection of 25 major-economy governments whose goal is to increase women’s participation and leadership in clean energy. At Sandia, LaFleur has led R&D efforts that support the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fuel Cell Technologies Office’s Hydrogen Safety, Codes and Standards program.
Mark Miller MBA ’96 was appointed director of brand marketing at Land O’Frost, a manufacturer of pre-sliced meats and specialty hot dogs and sausages. He was previously director of marketing at Kellogg, where he revitalized the Cheez-It brand and led the growth development of Pringles. During his career, Miller has also launched and grown brands for GlaxoSmithKline, JB Heinz and Ainsworth Pet Nutrition.
Jordan Goldstein ’94 was named to The Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 of 2017. He is co-regional managing principal at Gensler, overseeing the Southeast region of the global architecture firm. The Washington, D.C., office has about $85 million in billings.
Teri Quinn Gray Ph.D. ’94, global technology integration leader at DuPont Performance Materials in Wilmington, Del., was elected to the board of directors of the American Chemical Society. She began her three-year term on the board Jan. 1.
Judy Brown MBA ’93, a senior financial adviser with Lutherville-Timonium-based independent financial planning and wealth management firm Berman McAleer, was named to the board of directors of the Financial Planning Association of Maryland.
Christine Buckley ’93 CFP, CPWA, CFC joined the Dyer Kroneberger Group of RBC Wealth Management in Baltimore as a senior client associate. She leads the wealth management planning practice. She holds an MBA from Johns Hopkins University and is a member of the Investment Management Consultants Association, the Howard County Estate Planning Council and the Baltimore Estate Planning Council.
Joseph Cosentino ’93 rejoined the corporate team of Clifford Chance as a partner in New York. His practice focuses on public and private M&A, with significant emphasis in the insurance and private equity sectors. Cosentino had been a partner at Clifford Chance from 2012–15.
Bestselling author Jeff Kinney ’93 released the 12th book in his “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series, “The Getaway,” on Nov. 7. In it, middle schooler Greg Heffley and his family escape the cold weather and stress of the holiday season by going on an island vacation, where they soon discover sun poisoning, stomach troubles and venomous critters. To celebrate a decade of “Wimpy Kid” books, Kinney took his biggest book tour yet, visiting 20 cities worldwide, including Moscow, Shanghai, Dublin and Budapest. Kinney’s books have sold nearly 200 million copies.
Gene M. Ransom III ’93 was appointed to the Maryland General Assembly Compensation Commission to serve a four-year term. He is CEO of MedChi, the Maryland State Medical Society
Seema Verma ’93 was listed among Washingtonian magazine’s Most Powerful Women in Washington in October. She is administrator at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is responsible for health-insurance programs covering 130 million people.
Serge Knystautas ’93 is the founder of PrestoSports, a provider of “software as a service” to 950 university athletics departments. He sold the company in September to the investment firm Battery Ventures. Knystautas, a serial entrepreneur, is moving on to pursue other opportunities.
Inky, a company founded by Dave Baggett ’92, was named Cyber Start-up Company of the Year 2017 during the Infosecurity North America 2017 Expo and Conference. Inky, whose staff includes Director of Sales Scott McBrien ’04, is the creator of Inky Phish Fence, which protects users from so-called “deep sea” phishing emails that use clever tricks and realistic-looking branding elements to fool both users and traditional mail protection software.
The Douglas County (Ga.) Commission promoted Rick Martin '92 to director of the Department of Communications and Community Relations. He joined the county government as deputy director of communications and community relations in September 2017 following 26 years in the television news industry.
Kelley (Jenkins) McCormick ’92 joined Under Armour in the new position of senior vice president of corporate communications. She has more than 20 years of high-level strategic experience in corporate affairs, brand and reputation management, and public policy initiatives for leading companies. She was most recently managing director at SKDKnickerbocker, a strategic communications agency.
Andrew Ochs ’92 has written“Unusual for Their Time: On the Road With America’s First Ladies, Vol. II.” It follows his travels around the country as a TV producer to learn and share little-known and interesting stories about the presidents’ wives. Ochs, who calls himself “The First Ladies Man,” covers Edith Roosevelt to Melania Trump in this volume.
Mi-Ai Parrish ’92 has joined the faculty of Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, filling a new endowed position. She served as president of The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com for the previous two years. She’s also started a consulting company, MAP Strategies Group, to help companies in various industries deal with innovation, change management and digital transformation. Parrish was the first Korean-American publisher of a major metropolitan daily newspaper in the U.S.
Eric Rommal ’92 took charge of the FBI’s New Orleans division in November. He had been deputy director of the FBI’s Directorate of Intelligence, the bureau’s primary information gathering and analysis division, in Washington, D.C. He joined the agency in 1997.
Mei Xu ’92, CEO of Pacific Trade International, was named to The Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 of 2017. She immigrated to the U.S. in 1989 and soon after founded her company, which she built into a global operation with 1,500 employees and revenues exceeding $50 million. She recently sold off one segment, Chesapeake Bay Candle.
Walt Williams ’92 was inducted into the Washington Metropolitan Basketball Hall of Fame in October. He was on the 1992 Associated Press All-American Second Team, averaging a school-record 26.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.1 steals. He scored 20 or more points in 19 straight games and broke Len Bias’ single-season point total record with 776 points. Known as “The Wizard,” Williams was selected as the seventh pick in the 1992 NBA draft and went on to play 11 seasons in the NBA. His former coach, Gary Williams, introduced Williams at the ceremony.
Victoria L. Gruber ’91 was appointed executive director of the Maryland Department of Legislative Services, the nonpartisan agency that analyzes the budget and legislative policy for the General Assembly. Gruber, who was chief of staff for State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller ’64, became so enmeshed in negotiations and writing policy that Miller and other senators often joked she was the 47-member chamber’s 48th senator. She started working for the General Assembly in 1999 as a staff attorney on the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and is widely viewed among state lawmakers as an expert on the Maryland budget.
Dan Martin ’90 was hired as managing director of the debt placement team at Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. He joins HFF from Walker & Dunlop, where he was a senior vice president in its mortgage banking group. Before that, he spent 17 years with GE Capital Real Estate. Martin is a member of the Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Association of Office & Industrial Properties. He holds an MBA from George Mason University.
’80s
Jenny Thompson ’89 is the founder and chief executive officer of SafetyPIN Technologies and became a member of SHIFT Society, part of SHIFT, a Baltimore-based management consulting and recruiting company. The organization is committed to creating meaningful, sustainable change in communities and solving issues facing the world.
Brett Wilson ’89, a Washington County delegate and assistant state’s attorney, was appointed by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan to the Washington County Circuit Court bench. Wilson was elected to the House of Delegates in 2014. He received his law degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law.
John A. Bourgeois ’87, a principal at the Maryland law firm Kramon & Graham, was recognized in the 2018 edition of Benchmark Litigation as a Local Litigation Star in the Criminal, General Commercial and Professional Liability categories. In addition, he was recognized in the “Leaders in their Field” ranking in the 2017 edition of Chambers USA and by Maryland Super Lawyers 2018 for his work in Business Litigation and Criminal Defense. He earned his law degree at Georgetown University.
Manuel A. Chinea ’87, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Popular Community Bank, was appointed to the board of directors at Junior Achievement of New York. JA New York provides K–12 students from the greater New York City area with the knowledge and skills they need to make smart academic and economic choices and to plan for their futures. Chinea, who has worked at Popular for 28 years, has an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Michael Genhart M.A. ’87, Ph.D. ’89 has released five new children’s picture books published by Magination Press, an imprint of the American Psychological Association: “So Many Smarts!”; “I See You”; “Peanut Butter & Jellyous: Sometimes Friendships Get Sticky”; “Mac & Geeez!: Being Real Is What It’s All About”; and “Cake & I Scream!: Being Bossy Isn’t Sweet.” He is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice in San Francisco and Mill Valley, Calif.
Daniel J. Schrider ’87, president and CEO of Sandy Spring Bank, was named to The Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 of 2017. Last year, the company bought Reston-based WashingtonFirst Bank in a move that expands the Olney-based bank’s footprint into the Virginia market.
Ann Andrews ’86 was hired as a shareholder in the Phoenix office of Ogletree Deakins, a labor and employment law firm. She joined the company from Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie in Phoenix and focuses her practice on insurance coverage and bad faith litigation. She has expansive experience in life, health and disability insurance. She earned her J.D. from the University of Notre Dame.
Jayne Miller M.A. ’86 was named president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy beginning in April. She serves as superintendent of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, which was named No. 1 among U.S. park systems for the last five of Miller’s seven years of leadership.
Kevin Powderly ’86 was named to the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center’s Board of Directors. He is chairman and co-founder of CyberCore Technologies, a supplier of cyber supply chain security, professional services and managed services in the intelligence community. He is a board member of the University of Maryland’s Cyber Security Task Force and for the past two years has served as a member of the CEO Panel for University of Maryland St. Joseph’s Medical Center. In addition, he serves on the boards of Bay Colony Golf Club and Bay Colony Estates in Naples, Fla.
Madelyne Woods ’86 has joined Washington, D.C.’s WMMJ-FM Majic 102.3 and 92.7 as its newest radio personality. A regular contributor to “The Tom Joyner Morning Show” and a former BET host, she can be heard Sundays from 6 to 10 a.m.
Karen Addis ’85 was hired at GLA Communications as senior vice president. She has more than 25 years of experience working with national and international corporations, associations and nonprofit organizations. Addis is a member of the PRSA National Capital Chapter, the National Press Club and the D.C. Science Writers. She received her accreditation in public relations (APR) certification from the Public Relations Society of America and has a master’s certificate in publications from the George Washington University.
Lisa Brusio Coster ’85 celebrated 20 years as founder and principal of Coster Communications Ltd., a public relations consulting firm based in Howard County, Md.
Elizabeth “Betsy” Folk ’85, MBA ’01 was promoted from vice president of sponsored programs and acquisitions to senior vice president and chief of staff at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. She has held key financial and administrative positions with HJF for more than 25 years.
Jon Franke M.S. ’85 was promoted from vice president of generation technical services to vice president, power generation, at PG&E. He joined PG&E in January 2017, bringing with him more than 30 years of nuclear and energy industry experience. As an officer in the U.S. Navy, Franke served in several nuclear power and fleet assignments, and retired with the rank of lieutenant commander. He is a 1985 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and also holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Teresa Halleck ’85, president and CEO of the San Diego County Credit Union since 2010, was named the 2017 Most Admired CEO in the Business/Nonprofit category by the San Diego Business Journal. The awards program recognizes dynamic business leaders and role models for their achievements and contributions to San Diego companies and the economy. Halleck also won this award in 2011 and 2015. She is credited with balancing the credit union’s financial performance with service, convenience and operational efficiency. It is now one of the largest credit unions in the U.S.
Brian J. Gibbons ’84, chairman and CEO of Greenberg Gibbons, was named to The Daily Record’s 2017 list of Maryland’s Most Admired CEOs. He is recognized as an innovative developer of high-profile projects such as Foundry Row in Owings Mills, Town Centre at Laurel, Annapolis Towne Centre and Hunt Valley Town Centre.
Bishop Barry Knestout ’84 was appointed by Pope Francis to lead the Diocese of Richmond, Va. He has most recently been one of three auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. He began his seminary studies at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., in 1985 and was ordained a priest in June 1989. Knestout served as a parochial vicar at St. Bartholomew in Bethesda and St. Peter in Waldorf before being named priest-secretary to Cardinal James A. Hickey in 1994. He continued in that role until the cardinal’s death in 2004, also serving as priest-secretary to Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick in 2001 and from 2003–04.
David Lemus ’84 was appointed an independent director of Sorrento Therapeutics. He will serve as a member of the audit committee of its board of directors. Lemus is also a non-executive board member of BioHealth Innovation, the MIT Club of Washington, D.C., and Proteros BioScience GmbH. He has held leadership positions at multiple biotechnology companies, most recently as interim chief financial officer and chief operating officer of Medigene AG. Lemus received an M.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management.
Richard Sullivan ’84 joined MiTek Industries as vice president, enterprise operational excellence. He was previously General Manager Quality and Continuous Improvement at Carpenter Technology. He also served as Vice President of Business Transformation, EH&S, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Harsco Prior to beginning his career in business, Sullivan served as a logistics officer in the United States Marine Corps. He also holds a Master’s in Science in Management Systems from the University of Southern California.
Timothy J. Gough ’83 joined Bay Capital Mortgage as chief executive officer. He has more than 30 years of experience in the industry, including the designation of being a Master Certified Mortgage Banker, the highest certification awarded. Tim is active in the Anne Arundel County chapter of The Freeman Foundation’s F.A.C.E.S. (Freeman Foundation Assists Communities with Extra Support) and the ARC of Central Maryland. He previously served on the board of directors of the Parents’ Place of Maryland.
Carin Lazarus ’83, founder and CEO of Media Star Productions, was named to The Daily Record’s 2017 list of Maryland’s Most Admired CEOs. She started the company in 1987 with one other employee. Today, the strategic marketing agency has grown to more than 1,500 employees.
Michael Martirano ’81, M.Ed. ’92 was named permanent superintendent of Howard County Public Schools; he had served in the role on an interim basis for eight months. The father of three returned to Howard County in May to be closer to family, following his wife’s death in 2016. Martirano’s roots in Howard County education date back to his days as teacher and principal in the 1990s and expanded as the school system’s director of elementary school education in 2005. Martirano left the county to become superintendent of St. Mary’s County Public Schools, where he worked until 2014, and then became state superintendent of schools in West Virginia.
Jack Cullen ’80, a veteran of the staffing industry, was appointed an officer of the board of directors at New Jersey-based Diversant, an African-American owned IT staffing firm. Cullen is the former president of Modis and a former trustee on the University of Maryland College Park Foundation. He also served as president of the Washington, D.C., chapter of the National Association of Computer Consulting Businesses.
Carl Elefante ’80, FAIA, LEED AP O&M, a principal and director of sustainability with the design firm of Quinn Evans Architects, was inducted to the Association for Preservation Technology International College of Fellows. He was recognized for his decades of leadership in advancing sustainable principles in historic preservation practice.
Jeffrey Kinrich MBA '80, CPA, AVB, managing principal at Analysis Group, a private economics consulting firm, has co-edited a new book, “Lost Profits Damages: Principles, Methods, and Applications.” It combines practical advice and theoretical reasoning for trial lawyer.
Edward F. Koehler, who attended UMD before earning degrees from University of Maryland, University College and Drexel University, has published his first book, “Felix Leiter USMC,” an adventure novel set in the Iraq War in 2003. The sequel, “Felix Leiter CIA,” is expected to be published in the spring.
Robin Portman ’80 was appointed president and chief executive officer of government consulting firm Atlas Research. She came from Georgetown University, where she served as director of the Strategic Innovation Group and as an adjunct professor in the School of Nursing and Health Studies. Prior to Georgetown, she served as executive vice president and chief growth officer at Booz Allen Hamilton.
James J. Wood ’80, Greater Washington market president at Bank of America, was named to the Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 of 2017. He is a former Navy aviator and Merrill Lynch executive who has run the second-largest bank in Washington, D.C., since 2013.
’70s
Nancy F. Goldstein ’79 joined Hill Wallack as a partner in the Princeton, N.J., office. She is a member of the real estate and corporate law practice groups. She came from Goldstein & Herst in Princeton, where she was the founding member. She earned her J.D. from Rutgers Law School-Newark.
James Pula M.Ed. ’79 wrote “Under the Crescent Moon with the XI Corps in the Civil War Vol. 1: From the Defenses of Washington to Chancellorsville, 1862–1863,” published by Savas Beatie. It draws extensively on primary sources to create a comprehensive and personalized portrait of the men who fought in the beleaguered and long-misunderstood Eleventh Corps. Pula is a history professor at Purdue University Northwest, the author and editor of more than two dozen books on immigration history and the American Civil War, and editor-in-chief of Gettysburg Magazine.
Karen Murray ’78 was appointed chief executive officer and a director of Sequential Brands Group. She was most recently president of VF Sportswear, where she oversaw the $1.2 billion global brand Nautica, as well as Kipling.
Jeanette Marbert ’78 was promoted to president and CEO of the exchange and rental operating segment at ILG, a provider of professionally delivered vacations. Most recently, she was chief operating officer of ILG. She joined the company as corporate counsel in 1984. Marbert is on the board of directors of the ILG Relief Fund, established to assist the company’s more than 10,000 associates with emergency housing. She also has been active in the American Resort Development Association’s state legislative and federal issues committees. She currently serves as an ARDA trustee. Marbert earned a juris doctor degree from the University of Miami, and a master of law degree in taxation from Villanova University.
Ron Paul ’78 was named to the Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 of 2017. He is chairman and CEO of EagleBank, and now controls co-working space MakeOffices and Matchbox Restaurant Group.
President Trump nominated Michael D. Griffin Ph.D. ’77 as principal deputy undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. Griffin has most recently served as chairman and CEO of the Schafer Corp., which provides scientific, engineering, and technical services and products in the national security sector. He served as the administrator of NASA from 2005–09, where his successes included the architecture for space shuttle replacement, plans for human return to the moon and the development of the first commercial cargo delivery service to Earth’s orbit.
Howard Labow ’76 of Chicago was inducted in October into the Niles West High School Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a three-time All-American fencer from the University of Maryland, a member of the U.S. national team, and a member of the 1980 Israel Olympics team, which boycotted the Games in Moscow. He is president and CEO of National Enrollment Services and a philanthropist supporting institutions and projects in the U.S. and Israel.
Jerry Wilson ’76 was appointed superintendent of the Shippensburg Area School District. He has served as a superintendent for 23 years in five states, most recently in Worcester County Public Schools. He graduated from Idaho State University with a master of education in curriculum and supervision and earned his doctorate in curriculum and instruction from the University of Wyoming.
Dr. Russell W. Moy ’75 was appointed Harford County health officer by the Maryland Department of Health and the Harford County Council. He had been acting head of the Harford County department since July and began his career at the Harford County Health Department in 2011 as deputy health officer. Moy previously held a number of leadership roles at the Maryland Department of Health, including director of the Family Health Administration. Moy is currently a site reviewer for the Public Health Accreditation Board, a national accrediting board for state and local health departments.
Susie Turnbull M.A. ’75 is running for lieutenant governor of Maryland with Ben Jealous, a former national president and CEO of the NAACP, who seeks the Democratic nomination. She is a co-founder of Emerge Maryland, which trains and supports women who want to run for political office, and has been vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, chair of the Maryland Democratic Party and chair of both the Jewish Council for Public Affairs and Jewish Women International. She is on the board for the Center for American Politics and Citizenship at UMD.
Bruce S. Landsberg ’71 was nominated to serve on the National Transportation Safety Board. Landsberg retired in 2014 after four years as president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s Air Safety Foundation. He spent 18 years before that as executive director of the AOPA’s Air Safety Institute.
Nelson North ’71 was voted onto the board of Pequot Library in Southport, Conn. In 2007, after a career in both domestic and international sales management, he joined the Connecticut Audubon Society, from which he retired in 2017 as executive director. During his tenure, the deficit was reduced by 50 percent and grant-supported, science-based education programs were delivered to more than 30,000 inner-city children. A committed volunteer, North has chaired fundraising campaigns for the Ruffed Grouse Society, Ducks Unlimited and the Coastal Conservation Association. North and his wife, Peg, have lived in Southport since 1976.
Dr. Louis Silverstein ’71 was inducted into Havre de Grace High School’s Hall of Fame. Silverstein served in the Army from 1966 to 1968 as a medic stationed in Korea and in the Army Reserves from 1968 until 1972. After earning a bachelor’s degree with high honors in government and politics at UMD, he earned a second degree in pharmacy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore in 1976 and his medical degree in 1980 at the Chicago Medical School. In 1983, Silverstein returned to Havre de Grace to open his own general medical practice, where he continues to serve the community. He also owns Joseph’s Department Store, which his parents opened in 1937. Silverstein was a founding member and continues to serve as the vice president of the R. Madison Mitchell Endowment Trust. In addition, he is a member of the Harford County Medical Society, serving as president in 1995. Silverstein is also a member of Temple Ada Shalom.
’60s
Tony Dove ’69 and Ginger Woolfridge have written “Essential Native Trees and Shrubs for the Eastern United States,” to be published in February. The pair designed the book to be a valuable resource for gardeners, landscape architects and designers interested in creating sustainable and attractive landscapes. He is the chief horticulturalist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, Md.
Joseph Roth ’69, president and CEO of NJ Sharing Network since 1998, was recently awarded the NJBIZ ICON Honors, which recognizes New Jersey business leaders for their leadership both within and outside of their chosen field. Roth was also appointed to the United Network for Organ Sharing Liver and Intestine Transplantation Committee, the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation Board of Directors. He is also a member of the New Jersey State Health Care Administration Board.
Acme Paper and Supply CEO Ronald Attman ’68 was named to The Daily Record’s 2017 list of Maryland’s Most Admired CEOs. He began working at the family-owned company when he was 12, has served as CEO since 2016 and is known for promoting innovation and environmental sustainability.
Robert Pence ’67 was nominated to serve as the United States ambassador to the Republic of Finland. He is the founder and chairman of The Pence Group, a development company established in 1977 and best known for developing and managing shopping centers, hotels and office buildings throughout the United States. Pence also serves as a board member of the Gary Sinise Foundation, which supports U.S. veterans, first responders and their families. He has a Doctor of Jurisprudence and multiple master’s degrees from American University as well as two master’s degrees in Italian from Yale. Pence hopes to complete his Ph.D. thesis, on Dante, at Yale by May.
“Courtier to the Crowd,” the dissertation by journalism professor emeritus Ray Hiebert M.A. ’61, Ph.D. ’62, has been republished in a 50th anniversary edition, available on Amazon. The biography chronicles the life of public relations pioneer Ivy Ledbetter Lee, one of the first exponents of the philosophy of “full disclosure” in news. Hiebert was director of the Washington Journalism Center when he was recruited to Maryland in 1968 and became the founding dean of the College of Journalism. He has now retired to his home state of California and lives in Carmel.
Retired structural engineer Nils D. Olsson ’61 has published two books in the last three years: “No Place to Go But Up” (2015) chronicles his time serving in the Korean War, and “Letters to Sweden” (2017) tells the story of his Swedish grandmother, a midwife who delivered 4,000 babies over 30 years. Both are available on Amazon.
Passings
Christopher Michael Napier ’11 of Huntingtown, Md., died Nov. 9 at the age of 34. He was the son of Kathryn Napier and Mark Lewnes. Napier earned a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from North Carolina State University and was employed as a mechanical engineer working for Nav Air at Pax River Naval Air Station. He enjoyed playing his guitar, traveling, cars and working on anything mechanical. Along with his mother, he is survived by his brother, Timothy Baumgardner, and sister, April Ortega. He was the grandson of Ruby Napier and husband of Linda (Ronniger) Napier.
Scott S. Fricker Ph.D. ’07 and his wife, Buckley Kuhn-Fricker, were killed in their Reston, Va., home on Dec. 22, allegedly by their daughter’s teenage boyfriend. He was 48. Fricker was born in Heidelburg, Germany, while his father was serving in the military. He spent his formative years and professional life in the Washington metropolitan area. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Richmond, his master’s from UC Santa Barbara and doctorate in survey research methodology from UMD. He enjoyed his meaningful work for the Bureau of Labor Statistics and made many friends there. Fricker was the son of John and Sandy Fricker of Burlington, N.C.; the brother of Jason Fricker of Charleston, S.C.; and the father of Elliot Auden Fricker. He was the stepfather to Kelly Sizemore Kuhn and Amelia Sizemore Kuhn Fricker.
David Boera ’97 died Dec. 22 at his Arnold, Md., home following a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 42. A native of Garden City, N.Y., he attended Garden City High School, where he was a star athlete in football and lacrosse. At the University of Maryland, he developed a deep love for and loyalty to the Terps. In 2015, Dave was elected to the Alumni Association Board of Governors. In 2000, he moved to Arnold with his wife, April, to be near the water and pursue his love of boating, fishing and crabbing. In 2003, he started his own business and grew it successfully until the end of his life. He coached his children’s youth soccer and lacrosse teams through the BAYS organization. He is survived by his wife of 19 years, April; son Andrew; daughters Natalie and Lindsay; parents Susanne and Andrew; brother Jason; and many extended family members.
Tommy Keene ’88 died Nov. 22 at his home in Los Angeles at age 59. Keene was a power-pop guitarist and singer who rose to prominence in Washington, D.C.’s local music scene in the 1980s. He released a dozen solo albums of music that a Washington Post music critic described in 1984 as “almost too commercial for those who support alternative music styles, and not calculated enough for those who control the nation’s airwaves.” Born in Evanston, Ill., Keene and his family moved to Bethesda, Md., when he was a child. During his time at UMD, he and songwriter Richard X. Heyman formed the band the Rage. He is survived by his partner, Michael Lundsgaard; his father, Robert Keene; his stepmother, Dorothy Keene; and his brother, Bobby Keene.
Robert Lawrence Kort M.S. ’80 died Nov. 10 in Groton, Mass., of advanced prostate cancer. Born the son of Marion and Roy Kort, Robert grew up in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and graduated from Syracuse University SUNY College as a forest engineer before earning his master’s at UMD as an agricultural engineer. He thrived as a disc jockey, first at Syracuse University’s WAER, and later as music director at Georgetown University’s WGTB while in graduate school. He was employed for more than 27 years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in Vermont. His work focused on improving the environment—including the Chesapeake Bay, Lake Champlain, and agricultural and urban lands—and energy conservation. Robert met his wife, Kathleen (Bard), while at Syracuse University, and they began dating in 1974. Married in 1978, they resided in Silver Spring and Columbia, Md., until 1990, when they moved to Huntington, Vt., with daughters Lori and Kelly. They loved attending concerts and camping, and Kort led the St. Andrew’s Highland Dancers, supporting Kelly’s dancing. Kort is survived by his mother, Marion; siblings Laura Murphy and Kenneth Kort; wife, Kathleen; daughters Lori Saafi and Kelly Eng; and three grandsons. He was predeceased by his father, Roy, and stillborn daughter, Erin.
Pamela Lynn Munson ’80 died Oct. 23 at her Annapolis, Md., home. She was 63. Born in Hancock, Md., she was the daughter of Nita Dolores (Kerns) Glaser of Chambersburg, Pa., and the late Darrow Glaser. Munson graduated from Hancock High School in 1972, attended Hagerstown (Md.) Business College, and went on to graduate from UMD. She was employed by Global Express Money Orders, retiring in 2015. She was a member of the Terrapin Club since 1979, supporting the university in athletics as well as through scholarships. Munson is survived by her sister, Jacqueline Greenawalt; two brothers, Larry Munson and D. Twain Glaser; nephew, Colby Zimmerman; and niece, Payton Glaser.
Elfriede Brunner M.A. ’74, a retired high school foreign language teacher who introduced the music and literature of her native Germany to students, died Nov. 26 in Hospice of Northwest Ohio, according to the Toledo Blade. She was 77. She was diagnosed with stomach cancer about two years ago. Brunner was born on April 14, 1940, in Schweinfurt, Germany. She and her husband, Guenter, and their two young children immigrated in 1964 to the United States. The couple first settled in Muncie, Ind., where she earned her bachelor’s degree from Ball State University. They later moved to Maryland, where she took classes to earn a master’s degree from UMD. Prior to teaching at St. John’s, she taught German and Spanish at high schools in New Jersey. Her classes included translating German operas and classic literature into English and studying the country’s culture. She was chairman of the foreign language department for nearly her entire career at the school and adviser to the German Club. Brunner also escorted students on trips to Germany and other countries in Europe, including England, Italy, France and Austria. She retired in 2007. Surviving are her husband, Guenter; daughter, Evelyn Brunner; son, Peter Brunner; and three granddaughters.
Paul A. Martino Ph.D. ’73 of Clinton, N.Y., died Oct. 22 at St. Luke’s Medical Center in New Hartford. He was 79. He was born April 19, 1938, in Batavia to the late Daniel (Sarah Repecci) Martino. Martino was a 1960 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy and completed his graduate school at University of Maryland. He was retired from Lockheed Martin in Liverpool. He is survived by his wife, Alberta J. (Moore) Martino of Clinton; sons, Paul A. Martino II of Houghton and Pete (Laura) Martino of Clinton; brother, Daniel Martino of Batavia; nine grandchildren, Andrew Merical, Flint Martino, Ashley Merical, and Aiyana, Angela, Lexi, Levi, Vincent and Gavin Martino; along with aunts, cousins, and several nieces and nephews. Martino is preceded in death by his sister, Concetta Anastasi.
Raymond V. Spring ’70, M.A. ’73 died Sept. 27 at the Notre Dame Health Care Center in Worcester, Mass. He was 70. Born in Washington, D.C., he was the son of the late Raymond and Violet (Voss) Spring. He was raised and educated in Wheaton, Md., and earned degrees at UMD in education and measurements and statistics. Spring was first employed as a statistician for the Census Bureau and then worked for many years at Natick Labs, retiring in 2008 with more than 30 years of service in the federal government. He was an avid reader and enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren. He was predeceased by his wife, Kathryn H. (Buonagurio) Spring. Spring is survived by three sons, R. Paul Spring, Ryan C. Spring and Justin B. Spring; two sisters, Diana Jenson and Robin Spring; and five grandchildren.
Ronald Jean Wilcox M.Ed. ’68 of Shepherdstown, W.Va., formerly of Rockville, Md., died on Oct. 22. He was 84. Born in Fairmont, W.Va., to Jean and Bernice Emery Wilcox, he served in the U.S. Navy. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in industrial arts from Fairmont State College and continued his education at UMD. He began his teaching career at Berkley Springs High School before teaching at Newport Mill Junior High and Parkland Middle School in Montgomery County. He also taught at the University of Maryland. He retired from Montgomery County Public Schools in 1988. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Martha Louise (Geege) Hamrick; sons, Kevin and Kraig; daughter, Kelly; nine grandchildren; and two great grandchildren. He is survived by a sister, Marlene Mallon, and a brother, John Wilcox. Wilcox was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Darlene.
Dr. Michael L. DiPaula ’67, a Navy veteran and retired dentist who practiced in Parkville for decades, died of cancer Sept. 25 at his home in Baldwin, according to The Baltimore Sun. He was 72. Born in Baltimore and raised in Walbrook, he was the son of Leonard George DiPaula Jr., a Glenn L. Martin Co. worker and insurance agent, and Helen Romaine Mummert. The family lived above his grandfather’s business, DiPaula’s Confectionery and Soda Shop on Reisterstown Road. He was a 1963 graduate of Mount St. Joseph High School, where he played football. He gained early acceptance for a pre-dental program at UMD and earned a bachelor’s degree after three years. He graduated from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry in 1970. He paid his tuition by working at A&P grocery stores. He also played the saxophone in two popular Baltimore bands, the Marquis and the Chelseas. DiPaula enlisted in the Navy in 1970 and was assigned to Camp Pendleton in California. As a lieutenant, he was stationed at a Naval Mobile Construction Battalion on an Indian Ocean atoll, Diego Garcia, where he was an officer in charge of a diving team that did underwater construction. He also headed the base’s dental department and was its medical anesthetist. In 1972, he left active military service and then served in the Naval Reserves for a decade. In 1974, while vacationing in Ocean City, he met his future wife, Nancy Fritz, on a blind date. He joined a family dental practice in Parkville in 1972. He later took over the practice and specialized in cosmetic and minimally invasive dentistry. DiPaula was a lecturer and writer on alternate medicine. He also taught on the dean’s faculty at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry. He retired from his profession earlier this year. DiPaula worked Mondays through Thursdays and spent Fridays and the weekend working on his farms, where he raised, bred and boarded horses. He was a scuba diver and deer and goose hunter. He enjoyed fishing, crabbing and powerboating out of Rumsey Island in Harford County. He was also a motorcycle and sports car enthusiast. He retained his love of music and played the saxophone, clarinet, guitar, banjo, drums and piano at his home and in informal sessions with friends. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, who was his office assistant; a daughter, Lisa DiPaula; a son, Anthony M. DiPaula; and two sisters, Concetta Barth and Karen DiPaula.
Leslie R. Wolfe M.A. ’67, who pursued equality for women, particularly women of color, as a longtime leader of the Center for Women Policy Studies in Washington, D.C., died on Nov. 30 in Rockville, Md., according to The New York Times. She was 74. Leslie Rosenberg was born on Nov. 24, 1943, in D.C. and raised in Montgomery County, Md. Her father, Theodore, worked at the Pentagon; her mother, Isabelle, was a homemaker. She graduated from the University of Illinois and earned a Master of Arts from UMD in 1967 and a Ph.D. in English literature from the University of Florida. She worked briefly as an assistant professor of English at Olivet College in Michigan. Wolfe’s work began in the thick of feminism’s second wave. Her multiethnic approach stemmed from her experience in the 1970s when she worked at the National Welfare Rights Organization and two government agencies, the Commission on Civil Rights and the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. In 1979, she became director of the Women’s Educational Equity Act program, a government agency that funded career training for women. At the Center for Women Policy Studies, where she was president from 1987 until the organization closed its doors in 2015, Wolfe was among the first to draw attention to women who needed treatment for AIDS, which had until then been thought of as a man’s disease. Her organization established a national resource center for women with AIDS and put together education and counseling programs around the country. Wolfe was also one of the authors of a 1989 report on gender and racial discrimination on the SAT college admissions exam. The report found gender bias in the exams, for instance, in questions that referred to sports. As a result of their lower scores, the report argued, girls were often shut out of merit scholarship funds or acceptance into quality universities. In 1989, a federal judge in Manhattan barred New York schools from granting scholarships solely based on SAT scores. Hundreds of colleges now no longer require the SAT as part of the admission process. Her marriage to Barry Wolfe ended in divorce. Her second husband, William Greene, died in 1998. She is survived by her brother, Stanley Rosenberg.
Robert L. de Zafra Ph.D. ’58, a physicist who helped confirm that the chemicals in some aerosols and refrigerants were responsible for the expanding ozone hole over Antarctica, died on Oct. 10 in Stony Brook, N.Y., according to The New York Times. He was 85. De Zafra was born in Scarsdale, N.Y., and grew up there and in New Milford, Conn. His father, Carlos, was an engineering professor at New York University, and his mother, Ellen Knox, was a seamstress in a design house. De Zafra was a 1954 graduate of Princeton University and received his Ph.D. at UMD four years later. He began teaching at Stony Brook in the early 1960s and in 1986 was part of the first National Ozone Expedition to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. The ozone hole, a seasonal thinning of the ozone layer in the atmosphere over Antarctica that allows harmful ultraviolet rays to reach the Earth’s surface, had recently been detected, but whether it was a natural phenomenon or caused by human activity remained under debate. De Zafra and other researchers, led by Susan Solomon of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, were able to confirm that chlorofluorocarbons, used in refrigerants and as propellants in aerosol cans, were causing chemical reactions in the atmosphere that depleted ozone. In 1987, convinced of a human cause of ozone-layer depletion, world leaders finalized the Montreal Protocol, a global agreement that set a timetable for elimination of the harmful chemicals. In and around Setauket, Long Island, however, de Zafra may have been better known for his work to preserve his area’s character and history. He bought and renovated two historic buildings in Setauket—one was his home—and in recent years had purchased a third, which he was still rehabilitating at his death. He served on various civic boards. De Zafra’s first marriage ended in divorce. He is survived by his wife, Julia M. Phillips-Quagliata, whom he married in 1981.
Dr. Robert E. Dinker ’58, a longtime physician, died Dec. 22, according to The Baltimore Sun. He was 81. The son of Milford and Ethel Dinker, he was the youngest of three children and grew up in Stoneleigh, Md. After graduating from Towson High School in 1954, Dinker enrolled at UMD, paying for some college expenses with money he earned from raising cocker spaniel puppies. He met fellow Terp Betty Anne Headley at a fraternity party; the couple were wed on Sept. 5, 1958. He later juggled his studies at the University of Maryland School of Medicine with two part-time jobs to support his growing family, including three young children. Soon after he completed his degree and the family moved to Winston-Salem, N.C., Dinker joined the Army Reserves. He was sent to Chu Lai, Vietnam, as a captain with the 312th Evacuation Hospital Unit. Dinker returned to the U.S. in August 1969. The following year, the family moved back to Baltimore when Dinker joined a newly formed radiology practice operating out of Mercy Hospital. There, he developed an expertise in reading the “plain film” X-ray images often taken before a patient undergoes surgery or to examine broken bones. At least once, his professional expertise benefited someone he loved. In his free time, Dinker enjoyed gardening and woodworking. He was an avid fisherman, and he and his wife enjoyed traveling the world. Dinker is survived by his wife, Betty; daughters Katherine Silas and Kerry Dinker-Ulevich; a son, Robert E. Dinker Jr.; and eight grandchildren.
Joanne Shecter ’57, a retired Mount Washington elementary school teacher and a marathon runner, died of a seizure Oct. 8 at her home in the Edenwald retirement community, according to The Baltimore Sun. She was 82. Born in Baltimore, she was the daughter of Ezra Deane, a wine and spirits merchant who later worked at Field’s Pharmacy, and Sadie “Sara” Deane. She was a 1953 graduate of Forest Park High School. She earned a bachelor’s degree in education at UMD and had two master’s degrees from Loyola University Maryland. She began teaching at Mount Washington Elementary School in the late 1950s. She later taught at the Jemicy School and the Krieger Schechter Day School. She met her future husband, Alan Shecter, a real estate investor and former owner of the Charles Theatre, while they were Forest Park students. They became reacquainted at a 1963 reunion and married later that year. She was a lay member of Baltimore County Lawyers’ Grievance Commission. She was also a past president of the Maryland Women’s Division and the American Jewish Congress, and was a founding member of the Baltimore Committee for Soviet Jewry. Shecter belonged to two book clubs as well. She began running in the 1970s and completed 16 marathons nationwide. Survivors include her husband of 54 years; a son, Michael Shecter; a daughter, Ami Shecter; and three grandchildren.
Alexander R. Martick ’52, who practiced law in Baltimore for 61 years, died Sept. 10 from complications of a stroke at Harrisburg Hospital in Harrisburg, Pa., according to The Baltimore Sun. The former longtime Mount Washington resident was 89. The youngest of five brothers and sisters, Alexander Rubin Martick was the son of Harry and Florence Martick, owners of a West Mulberry Street grocery store that became a speakeasy during Prohibition and was later a bar. After graduating in 1946 from City College, he obtained a bachelor’s degree in 1952 in business and public administration from UMD and the next year graduated from the University of Maryland School of Law. Martick practiced criminal and family law, first in an office in the Equitable Bank Building, then later in the Court Square Building in downtown Baltimore. He retired in 2014. Martick made a point of not learning how to use computers or email. He preferred to work strictly with paper. He liked to dine at his brother Morris Martick’s Restaurant Francais, located in the old family home. Martick liked attending Johns Hopkins lacrosse games with friends and listening to or attending Orioles games. He enjoyed jazz, and for years took his son to concerts at the Left Bank Jazz Society at the old Famous Ballroom on North Charles Street. In 2016, Mr. Martick moved to Essex House, a senior living and retirement community in Laymoyne, Pa. He is survived by a son, Laurence V. Martick, and one grandson. His companion of more than 30 years, Beverly Jett, died a day before he did. A daughter, Hillary Clare Martick, died in 1996. A marriage to the former Helen Goldstein ended in divorce.
Joseph Lawrence “Jay” Fohner Jr. ’52 died Dec. 1 at Covenant Place in Sumter, S.C. He was 88, according to the Chronicle Independent. Born in Beaumont, Texas, to the late Joseph Lawrence and Julia Ruth Moore Fohner, Fohner retired from the United States Air Force after 20 years of active service as a navigator and meteorologist. Following his time in the military, he enjoyed a career in civil engineering and land surveying. He loved being on the water and outdoors. Of all the boats he had, his prize was a sailboat named Fantasea, on which he and his wife Gayle lived and sailed for five years. They went everywhere from Annapolis to Granada. Jay made wonderful drawings of the people and places he visited. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Gayle Turbeville Fohner; two sons, Joseph L. Fohner III and Thomas A. Fohner; a daughter, Deborah S. Vallez; five grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his first wife, Addie B. Fohner, and two sisters, Anna May Bunker and Ellen Ballsmith.
Frank Joseph Armsworthy ’51, a Baltimore-born former vice chairman of the Saks Fifth Avenue department store board who also served as a Noxzema executive, died Dec. 1 of complications from dementia at his home in South Natick, Mass., according to The Baltimore Sun. The former Cockeysville resident was 90. Born in Southwest Baltimore, he was the son of Frank Armsworthy, a cab driver and Carroll Park custodian, and Eva Cooney. He attended St. Jerome School and Southern High School, where he played basketball, baseball and football. In 1947, Baltimore sports reporters selected Armsworthy to the All-Maryland Scholastic Association basketball team. He left school to enlist in the Navy and played basketball for the Naval Training Center at Bainbridge in Cecil County. After his service ended, Armsworthy returned to Southern and received his high school diploma. At the University of Maryland, he played baseball, football and basketball. He played in the inaugural football game at Maryland Stadium on Sept. 30, 1950, when Maryland beat Navy, 35-21. After graduating, he joined the Central Intelligence Agency and worked as an intelligence officer in the Philippines. Armsworthy returned to Baltimore in 1956 and became director of personnel and operations at the old Sears, Roebuck & Co.’s North Avenue store. He also supervised similar departments in Philadelphia and New England. He spent a year traveling with baseball Hall of Famer Ted Williams, who had a line of fishing and outdoor equipment that Sears sold. In 1964, Armsworthy joined the Noxzema Co. as its personnel director. He held the same post at the Horn & Hardart baking and cafeteria firm in Philadelphia and New York. In the 1970s, he joined Filene’s in Boston and supervised the openings of suburban branches of the department store. He later became president of Goldsmiths department stores in Memphis, Tenn. He retired as vice chairman of the Saks Fifth Avenue board in New York City. He was a member and past president of the Wellesley Country Club. He played golf and gin rummy regularly. He also read widely and enjoyed cooking, traveling and gardening. Survivors include his wife of 54 years, Joan Colamaria Armsworthy; three sons, Richard, Frank and Scott Armsworthy; a granddaughter; and a sister, Beverly Kohlhepp.
Raymond N. Doetsch Ph.D. ’48, a professor emeritus at UMD and resident of Rockville, Md., died Dec. 29 at age 97. A native of Chicago, he was educated at the University of Illinois, Indiana University, and the University of Maryland, where he earned a doctorate in bacteriology. He served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Coast Artillery during World War II. A microbiologist by training, Doetsch served on the UMD faculty from 1948–85. He trained dozens of graduate students, conducted research on many species of bacteria, and authored more than 100 research articles and books ranging from microbial physiology to the history of medicine. Doetsch was an avid supporter of the arts, a classical music enthusiast and a successful competitive chess player during his retirement years. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Jennie Burgess, his wife, Janet Doetsch and his sister, Elinor King. He is survived by his daughter, Karen Robison; son Paul Doetsch; and four grandsons.
Alan Sagner ’48, chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and a fundraiser for liberal candidates and causes, died Jan. 3 at his home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., according to The New York Times. He was 97. A grandson of immigrants from Eastern Europe, Sagner was born on Sept. 13, 1920, in Baltimore to Samuel Sagner, a men’s clothing manufacturer, and the former Mary Rappoport. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and a master’s from Columbia. He sought to enlist during World War II, but was rejected because he had asthma. Sagner left the family garment business early on to become a homebuilder with Martin Levin, his brother-in-law. He was drawn into politics in 1960 by Gov. Adlai E. Stevenson of Illinois, who waged an unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination that year. After serving as the finance chairman for Brendan T. Byrne’s successful 1973 New Jersey gubernatorial campaign, Sagner was appointed state transportation commissioner. Sagner headed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in the mid-1990s. He was the unsalaried chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey from 1977–85. There, he pressed for expansion of PATH rail service and other mass transit improvements, lost a court challenge to letting the supersonic Concorde land at Kennedy Airport, and supported the modernization of outmoded highways. In 1984, he and the Port Authority were honored by the Broadway Association for improving conditions in Times Square, near the authority’s bus terminal. In addition to his government posts, Sagner was a founder, in 1960, of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee, which favored self-determination for that country until the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 and Fidel Castro’s public embrace of socialism. He was an investor in The Nation magazine when Victor Navasky was installed as its editor in 1977. Sagner was a board member of Business Executives for National Security, a nonpartisan group that seeks to moderate government spending without jeopardizing economic or military security, and an early supporter of J Street, the liberal Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group formed in 2007 that supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His wife, the former Ruth Levin, died in 1995. He is survived by daughters Deborah Sagner and Amy Pouliot; a son, John; eight grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren. He had a brief later marriage.
Louise C. Rymer ’47 of Plum Point, Md., died Oct. 29. She was 91, according to the Southern Maryland News. She was born at Plum Point and earned her bachelor’s degree in textiles and clothing from UMD and her Master of Education from American University. She began her career at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory of UMD in Solomon’s Island, Md., then changed careers to become a nutritionist for the Beech-Nut Company, often traveling to New York City. Rymer subsequently found her calling in the education field as a first-grade teacher at Beach Elementary School in Chesapeake Beach, Md., before becoming a supervisor of elementary schools in Prince George’s County. Upon her retirement from the school board after 20-plus years, she spent several years as a real estate agent for Coldwell Banker. Rymer was an active member in the Daughters of the American Revolution and the National Democratic Club in Washington, D.C. Rymer is survived by sons Gary C. Rymer and Ronald C. Rymer, and five grandchildren. She was preceded in death by a son, Thomas A. Rymer Jr.; a granddaughter, Jennifer L. Rymer; and her two sisters, Margaret C. Moore and Anne C. Jones.
Jean Scheller Hollyday '43, a retired teacher, died Jan. 8 at Homewood of Williamsport (Md.). She was 94. Born June 17, 1923, in Keedysville, Md., she was the older of two daughters born to Frederick Rohrer Scheller and Rachel (Geeting) Scheller. Hollyday was a graduate of Hagerstown (Md.) High School UMD, and Shippensburg (Pa.) University, where she earned a master's degree. While at Maryland, she was active in Alpha Omicron Pi sorority. She worked as an English teacher in the Waynesboro, Pa., school district until her retirement in 1986. She was a member of multiple bridge clubs, achieving grand master status, and of the Fountain Head Country Club, Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Washington County Historical Society, Salem United Methodist Church in Keedysville and Trinity Lutheran Church. She was preceded in death by her husband, State’s Attorney John S. “Jack” Hollyday, in 1979; as well as by her sister, Elaine Scheller Strausner. She is survived by a daughter, Karen Scheller “Schelley” Hollyday; son, John D. Hollyday; and two grandchildren.
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