“Award/Recognition” Class Notes

Dr. Reginald J. Sanders (Col ’81 CM), was recently named President of the American Society of Retina Specialists. The ASRS is the world’s largest organization for retina specialists, and Dr. Sanders is the first African American to serve as President. His other achievements include being elected into the Retina Hall of Fame as a charter inductee in 2016.

Justin Humphreys (Col ’01) has been nominated for a Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Book of the Year for his recent biography George Pal: Man of Tomorrow. 

Sarah V. Schweig (Col ’07) has won the 2023-24 Jake Adam York Prize for her second collection of poems, The Ocean in the Next Room. The collection will be published by Milkweed Editions in January 2025. Schweig’s first poetry collection, Take Nothing with You, was published by the University of Iowa Press in 2016. 

Charles Avery (Col ’72) has been leading The Nehemiah Project DC, a federally funded housing program which helps men transition to society following incarceration, while also consulting on other mental health matters. He also serves as the president of the Loudoun Douglass School Alumni Association and co-chaired the effort to preserve and restore the school, which has been designated as a historic landmark. Avery, who was valedictorian of the last class of the segregated school, received a 2023 Charles Hamilton Houston Equity and Justice award from Loudoun County NAACP in recognition of his work. 

Avery took on these projects after completing 11 years as the executive director of Veterans On the Rise, a non-profit dedicated to providing a holistic system of care to fight veteran homelessness in the Washington D.C. area.

Justin Humphreys (Col ’01) has been nominated for the Theatre Library Association’s Richard Wall Memorial Award for his book George Pal: Man of Tomorrow. The award recognizes performing arts scholarship with exemplary use and interpretation of library and archival collections. 

Byron Dickson (Arch ’63 CM), was inducted into the Salem (Virginia) Educational Foundation and Alumni Association Hall of Fame on April 26th, 2023. The five inductees were recognized for major achievements in their chosen fields of education and architecture.

Thaddeus Minshall (Col ’03) received a Design-Build Award from the New England chapter of the Design-Build Institute of America for Connolly Brothers Inc.’s design and construction management work on New England Academy’s new South Shore campus in Marshfield, Massachusetts. Minshall is vice president of real estate/development at Connolly.

Jim Chapman (Col ’89 CM)has been honored with the Lewis Cenker Award by the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association (GAHBA). 

Named after an industry luminary and the only GAHBA member to serve as president of the National Association of Home Builders, this award is the GAHBA’s highest honor, given in recognition of lifelong contributions and achievements in the housing industry.

Chapman, president of the Jim Chapman Construction Group, served as the GAHBA president in 2018. He has been named builder of the year by numerous industry organizations.

Ross Perry (Col ’73 CM) was named a Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur by the Republic of France for his work building French and American relationships during his tenure as president general of the Society of the Cincinnati.  The society was formed at the end of The Revolution in 1783 by George Washington’s officer corps, and the current members focus on the appreciation of the deeds, accomplishments, and relevance of the American Revolution.

Laura Rikard (Grad ’11) has been invited to speak at the Berlin Film Festival on intimacy coordination, the process of working with and advocating for actors to develop and choreograph intimate scenes in film, television and theater. Rikard is founder of an organization called Theatrical Intimacy Education and a leading voice in creating intimacy coordination. She is associate professor of Theatre at the University of South Carolina Upstate.

Malerie Ma Roddy (Col ’10 CM) has been promoted to partner at the law firm ArentFox Schiff. Roddy concentrates her practice on civil litigation and class action defense, serving clients across industries such as juvenile products, food and beverage, automotive, and consumer home goods. Her experience extends to multidistrict civil litigation, governmental investigations, and advising clients through all stages of product development and sales. Roddy co-chairs ArentFox Schiff’s New Moms Group, ParentFox Midwest, and the Asian Attorneys Inclusion Group.

Allison (Powell) Leighton (Arch ’07) has been promoted to senior associate at Quinn Evans. Leighton has served as the project manager for Cristo Rey High School in Richmond, Virginia; the Acuff Center for Aquaculture at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science in Gloucester Point, Virginia; and the Advanced Career Education Centers at Hermitage and Highland Springs for Henrico County Public Schools.

Ryan McEnroe (Arch ’09) has been promoted to senior associate in Quinn Evans’ Washington, D.C. office. He has contributed to the design of the recently reopened Bird House at the National Zoological Park and the award-winning National Native American Veterans Memorial at the National Museum of the American Indian, both for the Smithsonian Institution. He is a co-founder of AIA|DC’s Christopher Kelley Leadership Development Program.

Nakita Reed (Arch ’06) has been promoted to senior associate in Quinn Evans’ Baltimore office. Working at the intersection of historic preservation, sustainable design, and equity, she engages in transformative projects such as the redevelopment of the 800 block of Harlem and Edmondson in Baltimore, Maryland, and the restoration of Baltimore Penn Station. Reed currently serves as president of the Baltimore Architecture Foundation.

Ilana Berry’s (Law ’03) debut novel, The Peacock and the Sparrow (Simon & Schuster), was named a best book of the year by The New Yorker, NPR, and Diplomatic Courier. The book is about an aging spy caught in the crosswinds of the Arab Spring on the Persian Gulf island of Bahrain. Berry was a spy for the CIA for six years, including one year in wartime Baghdad. She publishes under the pen name I.S. Berry.

Heather Brown Holleman (Col ’97 CM) has won Christianity Today’s 2024 Book of the Year Award for her young adult novel, This Seat’s Saved.

https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2023/december-web-only/christianity-today-2024-book-awards.html

Roger Millar (Engr ’82 CM) recently completed his service as president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, advocating for a resilient national transportation system that is safe, smart, and sound.

Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier (Col ’04, Educ ’04) wrote a short story, “Ripen,” that was included in The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2023, edited by Lisa Unger and Steph Cha.

Bernier has been writing short fiction set in her home island of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, since she was an undergraduate student at UVA. Bernier returned to the Virgin Islands after graduating from UVA, but currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and children. 

Rayotis Perkins (Col ’88 CM) received a ‘Hoos Making a Difference’ honor by the Virginia Football Alumni Club. Dr. Perkins was nominated for his positive contributions as a leader and dedication to community service. 

Dr. Perkins played football as a defensive tackle during the 1980’s for the late coach George Welsh. After his collegiate career, he continued his passion for football as a free agent with the National Football League to include brief stints with the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals.

Dr. Perkins is currently an assistant principal and athletic director with Tolleson Union High School in Phoenix.

Steve Nesbit (Engr ’80, ’82 CM) was one of six American Nuclear Society members elevated to the rank of Fellow in September 2023.  The ANS past president (2021–2022) and founder of LMNT Consulting LLC was recognized for being a prominent and effective leader and spokesperson for the beneficial use of nuclear technology.  The society highlighted Nesbit’s work to dispose of surplus weapons plutonium by converting it to mixed oxide fuel and using it in commercial nuclear reactors.

Beth Meyer (Arch ’78, ’82 CM), the Merrill D. Peterson Professor of Landscape Architecture in the UVA School of Architecture, was appointed the inaugural faculty director of the UVA Morven Sustainability Lab in November 2022.  She received the Thomas Jefferson Award, the University’s highest faculty scholar honor in June 2023.

P. Burks Echols III (Col ’85 CM) and Ann Carter “Boo” Refo Echols (Col ’86 CM) celebrated the graduation of their daughter M. Carter Echols (Com ’22 CM) from the McIntire School of Commerce in May 2022 and look forward to celebrating the graduation of their daughter Sarah B. Echols (Col ’24) from the College of Arts and Sciences in May 2024.  The family – including June W. Echols (Educ ’73  CM) and Porter “Pete” B. Echols, Jr. (Col ’55, Med ‘58 CM) – gathered for a photo with their collection of UVA diplomas in July of 2022.  Sarah held the Medical School diploma that was earned by her great grandfather, Porter B. Echols, Sr (Med 1925) as a marker until she earns her diploma in May 2024.

Anne Marie Seibel (Col ’94 CM) is serving as chair of the American Bar Association’s Litigation Section for the 2023-24 bar year.  She and her husband, Steven Rowe (Col ’94 CM), chief scientific officer of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, live in Birmingham, Alabama.

Nayna Agrawal (Col ’98) has had plays staged this year at the Signature Theatre in Washington, D.C., the Great Plains Theater Conference in Omaha, Nebraska and the Studio Tenn Theatre Company in Nashville, Tennessee . She also received Kuma Kahua Theatre’s annual playwright award. The Theatre is based in Hawaii and, in addition to a monetary award, offers the winning playwright the opportunity to have their work staged.

Patricia (Anyaso) Sasser (Col ’99 CM) was selected to be a Fulbright Specialist for a tenure of three years (2023-2026) by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and World Learning. During her tenure, she is eligible to be matched with approved two-to six-week projects designed by host institutions in over 150 countries globally promoting international exchange and understanding.

Dr. Andrew G. Lee (Col ’85, Med ’89 CM)  was recently awarded the 2023 Secretariat Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. The annual award from the AAO recognizes special contributions to the Academy and to the field of Ophthalmology as determined by the AAO Senior secretaries. Dr. Lee has previously received the honor award, the senior honor award, and the life achievement award from the AAO.

Paulette Jones Morant (Col ’74 CM) was featured as artist of the month in July 2023 at The Nelson Gallery in Lexington Virginia.  Her exhibit From Where I Stand, a compilation of seascapes, public structures, florals and collections, was Paulette’s first solo photography exhibition.  The opening reception was highlighted by the attendance of family, friends and a number of UVA alumni of various decades.

William C. Gentry (Col ’81 CM) of Gentry Law Firm LLC in Marietta, Georgia has been elected to serve as secretary of the 54,000-member State Bar of Georgia. Gentry was installed June 10 during the organization’s annual meeting in Savannah.

Gentry also serves on the state bar’s executive committee and has represented the Cobb Judicial Circuit on the Board of Governors of the State Bar. He earned his law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law and was admitted to the state bar in 1986.

His law practice focuses on family law, including divorce, high asset property division, child custody and alimony cases. He serves as chair of the state bar’s Senior Lawyers Committee and is a past president of the Cobb County Bar Association.

Ed Coleman (Col ’04) has been named in the 2024 edition of Best Lawyers in America for his practice in insurance litigation and personal injury.  Inclusion is by peer evaluation only and fewer than 6% of all U.S. lawyers are included in this annual publication.

Thomas C. Grant (Col ’92) has been named to the 2024 edition of Best Lawyers in America® in the practice area of Commercial Litigation. Grant is a partner with Freed Grant LLC in Atlanta, where he focuses his practice on commercial litigation, commercial real estate, and insurance defense matters. He received his law degree at Emory University School of Law.

About Freed Grant LLC www.freedgrant.com

About Best Lawyers www.bestlawyers.com

Best Lawyers is the oldest and most respected peer-review publication company in the legal profession. Their lists of outstanding lawyers are compiled by conducting exhaustive peer review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers.

Wolfgang Dreschler (Grad ’86 CM) and co-authors Rainer Kattel and Erkki Karo have won the Academy of Management’s 2023 George R. Terry Award for their book How to Make an Entrepreneurial State: Why Innovation Needs Bureaucracy. The George R. Terry award is granted annually to the book judged to have made the most outstanding contribution to the global advancement of management knowledge during the last two years.

https://aom.org/membership/awards-and-recognition/george-r-terry-book-award/2023-george-r-terry-book-award

Andrew G. Lee, MD (Col ’85, Med ’89) was named as one of the top 30 ophthalmologists in the United States by Newsweek’s America’s Best Eye Doctors for 2023.  America’s Best Eye Doctors 2023 – Ophthalmologists (newsweek.com)

On June 6, 2023, Rodney Hobbs (Com ’94) appeared on “The Price Is Right” and won the Showcase, for the 2nd time!  His first appearance and win occurred in May 2012.  His latest prizes included a refrigerator, and trips to Bali & New Orleans, which he will be taking later this year with his wife, Freda Johnson Hobbs (Col ’94 CM).

Col. (Ret.) Tara A. Osborn (Grad ’84 CM) has been appointed to serve an eight-year term on the Military Justice Review Panel, a blue-ribbon commission chartered by Congress to conduct independent periodic reviews and assessments of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the military justice system. Osborn is a former chief trial judge of the U.S. Army and a current faculty member of the National Judicial College.

Kent Bennett (Engr ’00) has been included in The Boston Globe’s second annual list of the most influential people in the New England tech sector.

The leaders spotlighted in the selective Globe Tech Power Players 50 List have demonstrated innovation and resourcefulness and have contributed heartily to keeping their sector thriving during challenging economic times.

Boston Tech Leaders: Kent Bennett, Bessemer Venture Partners – The Boston Globe

Bryan McGrath (Col ’87 CM) has been nominated to serve on the National Commission on the Future of the Navy. The Commission is tasked with providing recommendations to Congress on force structure and shipbuilding no later than July 1, 2024. McGrath is a retired naval officer, commissioned through the UVA Naval ROTC program. He commanded the destroyer USS BULKELEY (DDG 84) on active duty and retired in 2008. 

Adam Titrington (Arch ’06) became a partner at Estes Twombly + Titrington Architects in Newport, Rhode Island. Since joining the firm in 2015, Titrington has designed contemporary homes across New England and Long Island, with an emphasis on simple, innovative design­­­ that integrates healthier, low-energy, fossil-fuel free solutions. His work has received awards from the American Institute of Architects AIA Rhode Island & New England. The Quahaug Point home was recognized by Residential Design Magazine with a 2023 citation award.  The Cape Cod Hemp House, completed this year, was built with hempcrete insulation in the roof and walls, drastically lowering embodied carbon. Titrington lives in South Kingstown, Rhode Island with wife Laura Erban (Col ’06) and their two children.