“Award/Recognition” Class Notes
Chris Schulz (Col ’12 CM)
Chris Schulz (Col ’12) is a writer and director living in New York City. In May, his experimental comedy short “leftovers” was announced as an official selection of the Nashville Film Festival, selected from over 6,000 submissions. It premiered in Nashville on May 10, 2018.
Michael Laurenson (Col ’89 CM)
Mike Laurenson (Col ’89 L/M) was elected to membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates. Members are invited based on a trial lawyer’s experience, skill, civility and integrity. Laurenson is a partner at Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, where he has practiced for over 20 years since serving in the U.S. Navy. He has been selected as one of the Top 75 Labor & Employment attorneys in California and has had two jury verdicts selected as Top 10 Defense Verdicts in California.
Kennedy Smith (Arch ’82)
Kennedy Smith (Arch ’82) was recently named to the list of “The 100 Most Influential Urbanists” by Planetizen, a prominent urban planning website. The list, which includes entries from the past 2,500 years, also includes Thomas Jefferson. In 2009, Planetizen also included Smith in its list of “The Top 100 Urban Thinkers.”
Jennifer Robinson (Col ’86)
Jennifer Hagen Robinson (Col ’86) has been named a co-chair of the hospitality industry group within Littler, an employment and labor law practice. Robinson has been a labor and employment litigator for more than 20 years and is the firm’s Nashville office managing shareholder.
Steve Klepper (Grad ’98, Law ’01)
Steve Klepper (Grad ’98, Law ’01) has been recognized for legal excellence and client service by the 2018 Chambers USA legal ranking guide. Klepper serves as principal at Kramon & Graham.
Paul Honeycutt (Com ’77 CM)
Paul Honeycutt (Com ’77 L/M) received the Silver Beaver Award, the council-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America, in February 2018. He has volunteered with his current troop for 14 years and currently serves as the scout master. He lives in San Diego, California.
S. Brian Farmer (Col ’84, Law ’87), Robert Westermann (Col ’92), R. Webb Moore (Engr ’80 CM)
S. Brian Farmer (Col ’84, Law ’87), R. Webb Moore (Engr ’80 L/M) and Robert Westermann (Col ’92), who are attorneys with Hirschler Fleischer in Richmond, Virginia, were recognized as leaders in their respective fields by Chambers USA’s 2018 guide. Farmer works in corporate and mergers and acquisitions law, Moore works in commercial litigation and Westermann works in bankruptcy and restructuring law.
William Nelson (Educ ’79, Educ ’83, Fellow ’92, Med ’87 CM)
William “Bill” Nelson (Educ ’79, ’83, Med ’87, Fellow ’92 L/M) received the 2018 Air Force Hero of Military Medicine Award. The Heroes of Military Medicine Awards honor outstanding contributions by individuals who have distinguished themselves through excellence and selfless dedication to advancing military medicine and enhancing the lives and health of our nation’s wounded, ill and injured service members, veterans, and civilians. The award was presented by the USAF Surgeon General May 3rd in Washington D.C. Read more about Colonel Nelson’s contributions here.
Thomas Pettigrew (Col ’52)
Thomas Pettigrew (Col ’52) has been selected to receive the Society for Experimental Social Psychology’s Scientific Impact Award, which honors psychological articles that have proven “highly influential” during past decades. The winning paper which has now been cited more than 5,300 times since it was published in 2006.
Benjamin Chew (Law ’88)
Benjamin Chew (Law ’88) has joined the international law firm Brown Rudnick as a partner in its litigation practice, working out of both the Washington, D.C., and Irvine, California, offices. Chew has more than 25 years of courtroom experience and has represented figures such as Cher and Johnny Depp as well as the governments of several countries. He has also been named a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
With more than 25 years of courtroom experience, Ben handles a variety of high-stakes matters throughout the United States and abroad on behalf of eminent individuals, businesses, trade associations and foreign governments. His strong professional reputation led him to be named a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Fluent in Spanish, Chew’s list of winning representations includes matters involving the governments of Nicaragua, Ecuador, Honduras, and Dubai, as well as international celebrities, major defense contractors, large software companies, and other multinational corporations. His more notable matters include:
-Representation of the actor Johnny Depp in a $50 million fraud battle against his former business managers;
-Representation of Cher in her action against a former financial advisor; and
-Representation of L-3 Communications and other government contractors in various civil actions.
Chew’s experience includes counseling clients in legal matters related to class action, intellectual property, government contracts, breach of contract, healthcare, Lanham Act, advertising, Uniform Commercial Code, defamation, products liability, bankruptcy, real estate, employment, insurance, civil rights, fraud, and RICO litigation, as well as in shareholder derivative suits and partnership disputes. He is active in several federal and state courts, including the U.S. District Court, Eastern District, Virginia and the U.S. District Court, District of Colorado.
M. Slaughter (Col ’91)
M. Bryan Slaughter (Col ’91), partner with MichieHamlett in Charlottesville, has been elected president of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association for 2018-2019. Slaughter concentrates his practice on complex personal injury cases throughout Virginia and adjoining states. He also lectures and writes on topics involving products liability and personal injury law. He is married to Jennifer C. Slaughter, and they have four children, Jane, Libby, Michael and Cate.
Molly Minturn (Col ’02)
Molly Minturn (Col ’02) won the 2017 Fool For Poetry chapbook competition from the Munster Literature Centre in Cork, Ireland. In February 2018 she traveled to Ireland and read at the Cork International Poetry Festival, where her chapbook of poems, Not in Heaven, was launched.
Anne Tjaden (Col ’95)
Anne Stinehart Tjaden (Grad ’97), who goes by the pen name Margaret Locke, was named as a finalist in the historical romance: short category of the 2018 RITA Awards, which recognizes excellence in published romance novels and novellas. Winners will be announced in July 2018. Tjaden lives in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
John Kraljevich (Col ’99 CM)
John Kraljevich (Col ’99) is running as the Democratic nominee for the South Carolina House District 26, which includes Fort Mill. Professionally, he is the owner of John Kraljevich Americana, specializing in early American historical artifacts, a consultant to the Newman Numismatic Portal at Washington University of St. Louis, and he previously served on the senior staff of a congressional campaign for South Carolina’s 5th District.
Mark Scharf (Col ’84 CM)
Mark Scharf (Grad ’84) was selected to receive a 2018 Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award in Playwriting for his play The Monroe Doctrine. His play The Quickening has its world premier in Baltimore on June 8, 2018, as a co-production of The Collaborative Theatre Company and the Fells Point Corner Theatre,
bailey Rusch (Grad ’78, Law ’80)
Jonathan Rusch (Col ’78, Law ’80) received the Georgetown University Silver Vicennial Medal on April 5, 2018, in recognition of his 20 years of service to Georgetown University as an adjunct professor of law. He has taught courses including global cybercrime law, trial practice and questioning witnesses. Mr. Rusch continues to work at Wells Fargo in Washington, D.C., as senior vice president and head of anti-bribery & corruption governance.
Alison Travis (Col ’12, Educ ’16)
Alison Travis (Col ’12) has been selected by the National Geographic Society and Lindblad Expeditions as a 2018 Grosvenor Teacher Fellow. In recognition of her commitment to geographic education, she will sail on a field expedition to the Galapagos Islands in September 2018. She will return to her school with knowledge and media to connect classroom learning to real-world experiences. She currently teaches first grade and lives in Boulder, Colorado, with her husband Ben Travis (Com ’12).
Daniel Neelon (Col ’80, Law ’83 CM)
Daniel P. Neelon (Col ’80, Law ’83 L/M) was one of seven Massachusetts business lawyers named among the nation’s top attorneys in business/corporate law in Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers® Business Edition Annual Directory 2018. He was named a Massachusetts or New England Super Lawyer® in business law for the 11th time in 2017. Neelon practices law with Boston International Law Group, which focuses on domestic and transnational business contracts, transactions and advice, and with Neelon & Associates, which focuses on complex business, securities, commercial contract and commercial fraud litigation.
Andrew Krecicki (Arch ’79 CM)
Drew Krecicki (Arch ’79 L/M) received the Florida’s 2018 Citizen Architect Award in Tallahassee on Jan. 17, 2018. The award, which recognized his contributions to both the community and the architectural profession, was made more special by the inclusion of a portrait of Thomas Jefferson and the Rotunda.
John Gill (Col ’85 CM)
John Gill (Col ’85 L/M) was recognized by Forbes, Barron’s and the Financial Times for his expertise as a financial advisor working with individuals, high net worth families and institutions. Gill is a financial advisor with BB&T Scott & Stringfellow and leads his team with more than thirty years of experience.
Sarah Harris Wallman (Col ’00 CM)
Sarah Harris Wallman (Col ’00 L/M) was awarded the 2018 Tucson Festival of Books literary award for fiction.
Shawn Rayder (Col ’83 CM)
Shawn Rayder (Col ’83 L/M) was named to the Top Doctors in New Hampshire list by New Hampshire Magazine for the fourth consecutive year. Dr. Rayder is chief of Radiology at Seacoast Radiology in Rochester, New Hampshire. He specializes in pediatric and interventional radiology and has worked on the seacoast of New Hampshire for 12 years. He and his wife, Holly, live in Hampton, New Hampshire, with their two children and 3 dogs.
Jason Silverman (Col ’74 CM)
Jason H. Silverman (Col ’74 L/M) was awarded the Order of the Silver Crescent, the state’s highest civilian award, by the governor of South Carolina for significant contributions, leadership, volunteerism and lifelong influence within a region or community. Silverman retired in December 2017 as the Ellison Capers Palmer Jr. Professor of History at Winthrop University after teaching there for more than 33 years. Prior to that he taught at Yale University. His recent book, Lincoln and the Immigrant, received the Immigrants’ Civil War Award.
Ryan McEnroe (Arch ’09)
Ryan McEnroe (Arch ’09), an associate with Quinn Evans Architects, has been honored with the 2018 Young Architects Award, given by the American Institute of Architects. The award honors individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and made significant contributions to the architecture profession early in their careers.
Michael Guthrie (Educ ’75, Educ ’76 CM)
Michael Guthrie (Educ ’75, Educ ’76 L/M) received the President’s Award from the Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, a global community of the more than 565 independent real estate firms, on Feb. 16, 2018. The award is given to individuals who consistently strive to serve the organization. Mr. Guthrie is the CEO of Roy Wheeler Realty in Charlottesville.
Louise Phipps Senft (Col ’83 CM)
Louise Phipps Senft (Col ’83 L/M) of Baltimore Mediation has been invited into and named a distinguished fellow of the International Academy of Mediators, a international provider of commercial mediation services. The induction ceremony will take place in Edinburg, Scotland, in May. Additionally, Ms. Phipps Senft received the the 2018 Chief Judge Robert M. Bell Award for Outstanding Contribution to Alternative Dispute Resolution in Maryland, which is given annually by the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of the Maryland State Bar Association.
Joey Ponzi (Law ’07)
Joey Ponzi (Law ’07) was recognized by the 2018 edition of Super Lawyers of North Carolina as a “Rising Star” in the field of environmental litigation. He is a lawyer at Brooks Pierce in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Jeff Oleynik (Law ’83 CM)
Jeff Oleynik (Law ’83) was named by the 2018 edition of Super Lawyers of North Carolina as a top lawyer in the field of for bankruptcy (business) law. Mr. Oleynik is a lawyer with Brooks Pierce in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Frederick Greene (Col ’66, Med ’70 CM)
Frederick L. Greene (Col ’66, Med ’70 L/M) was awarded the 2018 Distinguished Service Award from the Southeastern Surgical Congress. Dr. Greene is a surgical oncologist in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he is also a medical director at the Levine Cancer Institute. Dr. Greene currently serves as president of the UVA Medical School Foundation.
Gregory Williams (Col ’87 CM)
Gregory S. Williams (Col ’87) of Carruthers & Roth in Greensboro, North Carolina, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2018 in the practice area of trusts and estates.
Rafael Zahralddin-Aravena (Arch ’89 CM)
Rafael X. Zahralddin-Aravena (Arch ’89 L/M) was selected as one of 46 Top Latino Lawyers of 2017 in the country by Latino Leaders Magazine. Mr. Zahralddin-Aravena founded the Elliott Greenleaf Delaware office in 2007 and currently serves as director, shareholder and chair of the commercial bankruptcy and restructuring practice. The office specializes in business law.
George Morrison (Col ’98)
George Morrison (Col ’98), a shareholder at the law firm McNair, received a 2018 Leadership in Law award by South Carolina Lawyers Weekly. Mr. Morrison leads the firm’s Business and Real Estate Practice Group and is involved in all areas of corporate practice.
C. Dean Furman (Law ’93 CM)
C. Dean Furman, Jr. (Law ’93) was elected president of the Louisville Bar Association, a 3,000 member voluntary local bar association. He continues to practice commercial litigation, personal injury, whistleblower and federal criminal healthcare defense in Louisville, Kentucky.
Matthew Galati (Col ’07)
Matthew Galati (Col ’07), a U.S. senior associate for the law firm Green and Spiegel, was selected as one of the industry’s Top 5 Rising Stars for 2017 by EB-5 Investors Magazine. The award recognizes Mr. Galati’s reputation in the EB-5 realm. He is a regular contributor to the magazine which specializes in providing information to investors and industry stakeholders.
Richard Durham (Col ’62)
Richard Durham (Col ’62) recently completed a three-year term as director of his three-county United Way in West Virginia. In sporting news, he recently celebrated 25 placements in the master swimming national top 10 list with the help of talented swimmers from Germantown Masters and Virginia Masters.
Carmen Collins (Col ’94 CM)
Carmen Shirkey Collins (Col ’94 L/M) has been recognized with several awards for her work as the Social Media Lead for Cisco’s Talent Brand Team, managing the @WeAreCisco social handles. PRNews named her the 2017 Digital Communicator of the year, a Digital Leader of 2017, and one of the 2017 Top Women in PR. She was also asked to serve on the Advisory Board for the Social Shake Up Show, which also named her a 2017 Mover & Shaker. Additionally, the social team she leads earned over 20 awards for campaigns in 2017.
Neva Bryan (Col ’89 CM)
Neva Bryan (Col ’89 L/M) has been awarded a fellowship for the Bloodroot Mountain Writer-in-Residence Program. The fellowship includes a one-week residency at a 17-acre forest farm in Tennessee. Bloodroot Mountain is a project of New York Times–bestselling author Amy Greene and her husband, poet and writer Trent Thompson.
James Ware (Col ’69 CM)
J. Catesby Ware (Col ’69 L/M) was honored by the Virginia Academy of Sleep Medicine, who named the newly established Distinguished Service Award after him. The Academy presented the award to Dr. Ware at its November 2017 conference. He is the chief of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School where he holds the John and Lillian Norfleet Professorship in Internal Medicine. Publication topics include obesity and sleep, heart rate variability in sleep apnea patients, treatment of narcolepsy with gamma hydroxybutyric acid, driving performance in medical residents and elderly patients, and the effects of high school start times on student crashes. He is a contributing author and one of three editors on the book Sleep and Gastrointestinal Health and Disease (2018). He lives in Norfolk, Virginia, with his wife, Carolyn; a daughter Catherine Kilduff (Law ’07); her husband; and two grandchildren.
Calder Loth (Arch ’65, Arch ’67 CM)
Calder Loth (Arch ’65, ’67) received the American Institute of Architecture Virginia Chapter’s 2017 Architecture Medal for Virginia Service. The medal honors individuals who have made an unusually significant contribution to the public’s awareness of Virginia’s built environment. Mr. Loth is the retired Senior Architectural Historian of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and a member of the University of Virginia Historic Preservation Advisory Committee.
Melanie Patterson (Grad ’05)
Melanie Schroeder Patterson (Grad ’05) was featured by AbbVie in their monthly series penned by scientists who share interesting research in their field and why it matters. Ms. Patterson, who received her doctorate from the University, highlighted her area of expertise, protein mass spectrometry, and how she and her team use the tool to decode the messages that cancer cells try to hide. Melanie is a senior scientist at AbbVie, a global biopharmaceutical company.
Gerard F.X. “Guy” Geier (Arch ’76, Arch ’78 CM)
Gerard F.X. “Guy” Geier II (Arch ’76, ’78 L/M) was inaugurated as 2018 president of the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects on Dec. 5, 2017. At the event, he discussed his presidential theme, “Architect|Activist,” which invites members and professionals to use their design thinking to help solve the most challenging issues of our time. Mr. Geier offered a two-pronged approach to activism in architecture, distinguishing issues from within the profession, such as increasing diversity, equity, and licensure, from broader societal issues, including climate change and resiliency, preservation, and affordable housing. AIANY, the largest chapter of the AIA, will be hosting A’18, the National Conference on Design, in New York in June 2018.
Frank Johnson (Col ’73 CM)
Frank A. Johnson (Col ’73 L/M) was appointed to the Mason School of Business Foundation Emeritus Board at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. The board is organized for charitable and educational purposes to promote the advancement and further the aims and purposes of the Mason School of Business at The College of William and Mary. Mr. Johnson received his MBA degree from the school in 1984, and previously served as president of the William and Mary MBA Alumni Association and what is now known as the Mason School of Business Foundation Board. Mr. Johnson and his wife, Elizabeth, live in Deltaville, Virginia, and have two sons, Grayson Johnson (Col ’16, Grad ’23 L/M) and Cullen Johnson (Com ’17 L/M).
Richard McDorman (Col ’94 CM)
Richard E. McDorman (Col ’94 L/M) has been named chair-elect of the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation, a national accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education for the accreditation of post-secondary English language programs and institutions. He will serve as chair-elect in 2018 and as chair of the commission in 2019.
Harrell Thomas (Col ’50)
Tom Harrell (Col ’50) was inducted into the Order of the Long Leaf Pine in Salisbury, North Carolina, on Nov. 7, 2017. The award, conferred by the governor, is one of the highest civilian awards in North Carolina and recognizes public service that “goes above and beyond the call of duty.” Mr. Harrell, a World War II veteran, co-founded a free weekly coffee gathering for veterans at a local coffee shop in Salisbury in 2014.
Robert Gardner (Engr ’79, Engr ’80)
Bob Gardner (Engr ’79, ’80) was elected vice chairman of the Environmental Research & Education Foundation’s Research Council, which provides technical expertise and guidance to the organization’s board of directors. Mr. Gardner was also re-elected to the board of directors at SCS Engineers, an environmental consulting and contracting firm where Mr. Gardner has been since 1980. He currently serves as senior vice president at the firm, which works to prevent, mitigate and remediate environmental events and helps promote sustainable waste management practices enhancing efficiency and ecological well-being. Mr. Gardner oversees the company’s nationwide solid waste management practice.
James Wall (Law ’89 CM)
James Wall (Law ’89 L/M) was named a 2018 Best Lawyer in America in health care law and corporate law. Mr. Wall is a partner at Wall Babcock in Winston Salem, North Carolina.
John Paradee (Col ’85 CM)
John W. Paradee (Col ’85 L/M) has been selected by his peers in the Delaware Bar Association as a 2017 Delaware Top Lawyer in the areas of land use law and business-commercial law. The honor was announced in the November 2017 edition of Delaware Today magazine. Mr. Paradee, who earned both a law degree and an MBA from the University of Richmond, is a partner with the Delaware law firm Baird Mandalas Brockstedt, which has offices throughout the state. He is attorney for businesses, home builders, landlords, contractors and private property owners for all matters relating to regulatory and transactional work, land use and zoning, and commercial and residential real estate.
E. Glenn Waldrop (Col ’79, Law ’82 CM)
Glenn Waldrop (Col ’79, Law ’82 L/M) has been recognized as a Litigation Star in the 2018 edition of Benchmark Litigation. He is a partner with Lightfoot, Franklin & White in Birmingham, Alabama.
John Johnson (Col ’79 CM)
John M. “Johnny” Johnson (Col ’79) has been recognized as a Litigation Star in the 2018 edition of Benchmark Litigation.
Mark Krebs (Col ’70 CM)
Chris Krebs (Col ’61 L/M), Tom Krebs (Col ’66 L/M), Van Krebs (Col ’68 L/M) and Mark Krebs (Col ’70 L/M), along with their two brothers, were named to the inaugural class of the Birmingham Vulcans Hall of Fame on Sept. 29, 2017. The brothers started the Alabama rugby team in 1967.
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