“Award/Recognition” Class Notes

Finn Pincus (Col ’77) was inducted into Roanoke College’s Hall of Fame in April 2018. In his 25 years as track and cross country coach, his teams won 22 conference titles, forty individual All-American honors, two individual national titles, and 10 national runner-up finishes for individuals and relays. Two athletes competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Honored 21 times as Old Dominion Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, Pincus had eight women’s team top-25 finishes at the NCAA track championships, with a best of fifth at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships in 2008.  

Eric Cunningham (Col ’06) couldn’t vote in the New York Primary election because he moved to Jersey City, but he did like all the Instagram photos of people who did vote. He is a Double-Hoo, in that he graduated from U.Va. and no one knows hoo he is.

Frederick L. Daniels Jr. (Col ’87), a DeKalb County, Georgia, representative on the MARTA board of directors, was selected as the 2018 Outstanding Public Transportation Board Member, one of the American Public Transportation Association’s highest honors.

Mary Wayne Watson (Grad ’83 L/M) will present “The Sandhills: The Comfort of Tradition and Ritual” at the Scotland County Museum in Laurinburg, North Carolina, on Sept. 24, 2018, at 7:00 p.m. Watson is a Road Scholar with the North Carolina Humanities Council. This program is free and open to the public.

Monica Dell’Osso (Grad ’89) was selected to the 2019 edition of Best Lawyers in America. She is a partner with the law firm Wendel Rosen Black & Dean in Oakland, California.

Sarah Beth Richardson Fahrendorf (Col ’93 L/M) served as the art grant event manager for the PTA of Hammond Elementary School in Laurel, Maryland. She was recognized by the PTA for securing a small grant from the Howard County Arts Council to bring in local mosaic artist Ali Mirsky as an artist-in-residence. The project engaged all of Hammond’s 656 students and culminated in the installation of a glittering 125 square foot mosaic of the Chesapeake Bay.  

Don Slesnick II (Col ’65 L/M) was recognized for his philanthropic efforts and dedication to the Coral Gables, Florida, community and honored with the 2018 Leadership Florida® Distinguished Member Award at the group’s annual meeting. The award is presented to a Leadership Florida member whose leadership activities and character illustrate the highest standards of the organization, and whose activities leave a lasting impact on the state of Florida. Slesnick served four terms as mayor of Coral Gables (2001-2011).

Jerry Sparkman (Arch ’01) is a partner at Sweet Sparkman Architects in Sarasota, Florida, which received the Firm of the Year award from the Florida/Caribbean chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Melody Robertson Weigel (Col ’06) was named the 2017-18 Staff Member of the Year by the William H. Bowen School of Law Student Bar Association at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She also serves as the school of law’s staff senator, and she works in the admissions office.

Kristen Smith (Col ’07) received a Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, which is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 mathematics and science (including computer science) teaching. Established by Congress in 1983, the President may recognize up to 108 exemplary teachers each year. Smith, who lives and teaches in New York, New York, is the daughter of Eben Smith (Grad ’02).