“Job” Class Notes
Kent Sullivan (Col ’78, Law ’82 CM)
Kent Sullivan (Col ’78, Law ’82 L/M) was appointed to a second term as Texas insurance commissioner, and the appointment was unanimously confirmed by the Texas Senate during its recently concluded legislative session. He took office in October 2017, having been asked by Gov. Greg Abbott to serve in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. As commissioner, he is the sole regulator for the second-largest insurance market in the country and the eighth-largest market in the world. His prior professional experience includes more than 25 years in private law practice and service as a justice on the Texas Court of Appeals, a state district court judge, and first assistant attorney general for the Texas Attorney General.
M. Alliston (Col ’83 CM)
M. Ross Alliston (Col ’83, Arch ’90 L/M) has accepted a position as a foreign affairs officer with the U.S. Department of State in the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, at their headquarters in Washington, D.C. He previously spent 16 years as a fish and wildlife biologist with the National Wildlife Refuge System.
Ashley Deihr (Com ’04, Com ’05)
Ashley Deihr (Com ’04, ’05) has been promoted to partner at Baker Tilly, an advisory, tax and assurance firm. Deihr has been with Baker Tilly since 2005 and assists institutions to achieve strategic and financial success, optimize operational effectiveness and enhance compliance.
Eric Hairston (Grad ’04)
Eric “Ashley” Hairston (Grad ’94, ’04) was named associate dean for the Office of Academic Advising and university associate professor at Wake Forest University, starting July 1, 2019. Author of The Ebony Column: Classics, Civilization, and the African American Reclamation of the West, Hairston was a 2015 Virginia Foundation for the Humanities Fellow. He most recently served as associate professor of English and of law and humanities and director of the Center for Law and Humanities at Elon University.
Deborah Awai (Col ’81, Law ’84 CM)
Deborah M. Awai (Col ’81, Law ’84 L/M) was appointed as the chief financial officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. As senior vice president for the finance and statistics groups, Awai oversees multiple business groups, including financial planning, accounting, procurement, supplier diversity, depository institution reserve requirement compliance and data collection and analytics.
Todd MacLeod (Com ’90 CM)
Todd MacLeod (Com ’90 L/M) joined Bachara Construction Law Group in Jacksonville, Florida. An experienced litigator with extensive knowledge of the construction industry, MacLeod was previously a partner at Cole, Scott and Kissane, also in Jacksonville. His practice will continue to be focused on construction litigation, general and commercial litigation, contract evaluation and dispute resolution. Before earning his law degree from Florida Coastal School of Law, MacLeod was a general contractor, business owner and corporate executive.
Laura Belmonte (Grad ’91, Grad ’96)
Laura Belmonte (Grad ’91, ’96) was appointed dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences at Virginia Tech University, beginning Aug. 1. Belmonte currently serves as associate dean for instruction and personnel at Oklahoma State University.
Michael Mayes (Arch ’99 CM)
Mike Mayes (Arch ’99 L/M) joined BCG Digital Ventures in April as a product director, leading corporate innovations and incubation activities for BCG clients. Previously, he ran his own product innovation consulting practice from 2013-2019 focused on fintech, HR tech and entertainment client digital transformations. He and his wife, Caroline Cundiff Mayes (Col ’99 L/M), live in Santa Monica, California, with their two daughters, Phoebe and Eliza.
Nicholas Knodt (Arch ’14)
Nicholas Knodt (Arch ’14) joined the Washington, D.C., office of Quinn Evans Architects as a staff architect. Knodt has extensive experience in the design of higher education, museum, and theater facilities, primarily in the Northeast.
Lynne Tickle (Col ’84 CM), Emily Wilkinson (Com ’81 CM)
Lynne Barnard Tickle (Col ’84 L/M) and Emily Lewis Wilkinson (Com ’81 L/M) started Concierge on Call in 2018. The company, based in Richmond, Virginia, provides organizational, de-cluttering and downsizing assistance in Richmond and throughout the Northern Neck of Virginia. After 32 years in banking, Tickle retired in 2017 as senior vice president of TowneBank.
Luke Fox (Engr ’15 CM)
Luke Fox (Eng ’15 L/M) was named managing engineer and director of operations for Hampton Roads Executive Airport, a reliever airport for Norfolk International Airport in Chesapeake, Virginia. He brings four years of experience in federal facilities engineering and management where his responsibilities sent him to Chicago, Jacksonville, San Diego, Hawaii and Japan. Fox is a 2019 master’s candidate in engineering management at Old Dominion University and has been inducted into Phi Kappa Phi. He lives in Virginia Beach.
Kristin Garris (Grad ’96)
Kristin G. Garris (Grad ’96), an intellectual property attorney, joined the law firm Scarinci Hollenbeck’s New York office. She has significant experience with trademark and copyright litigation, and with trademark proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Susan Klobuchar (Col ’96 CM)
Susan Stuelpner Klobuchar (Col ’96 L/M) joined the UVA Alumni Association as chief marketing officer in October 2018. She returns to Charlottesville after 15 years in Minneapolis, leading brands and marketing initiatives for General Mills and BreathableBaby, and is thrilled to be able to give back to the University in this new role. She is accompanied by her husband, Tim, and children Jack,10, Lise, 7, and Cecily, 5.
Brandon Peters (Law ’92)
Brandon Peters (Law ’92) has been hired by the Florida Democratic Party to serve as director of statewide voter protection through the 2020 presidential election.
Abigail Spanberger (Col ’01)
Abigail Davis Spanberger (Col ’01) was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2018 and sworn into the 116th Congress in January 2019. Congresswoman Spanberger represents Virginia’s 7th Congressional district and lives in Henrico County with her husband, Adam Spanberger (Engr ’02) and their three daughters. She serves on the Foreign Affairs and Agriculture Committees.
Renee Catacalos (Col ’85 CM)
Renee Brooks Catacalos (Col ’85 L/M) joined Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders (SAFSF) as Membership and Strategic Partnerships Manager. SAFSF strengthens connections, fosters collaboration, and builds capacity within the philanthropic and impact investing sectors toward ensuring that all resources invested in food and agriculture systems enhance our collective well-being. Catacalos published The Chesapeake Table: Your Guide to Eating Local in October 2018.
Wendy Shoob (Col ’74)
Wendy L. Shoob (Col ’74) joined JAMS, a provider of alternative dispute resolution services. She previously served 24 years on the Fulton County State Court and Superior Court benches, during which time she participated in the creation of the Fulton County Business Court and the Fulton County Family Division. Shoob served two terms in the Family Division, including as chief judge. She also served as associate chief judge of the Fulton County Superior Court and chair of the Business Court Division. Based in the Atlanta Resolution Center, Shoob will serve as a mediator, arbitrator and special master in a variety of practice areas, including business/commercial, employment, family law, insurance, personal injury, probate and professional liability.
Peter Garvey (Darden ’02)
Peter Garvey (Col ’82) was promoted to vice president of Dewberry. He serves as the business unit manager for the firm’s Boston office, where he oversees growth in water/wastewaster, transportation, and telecommunications engineering and consulting services in the Northeast.
Jay Miller (Grad ’87)
Jay D. Miller (Engr ’87) was named as president and chief executive officer of Nortech Systems. He had been serving as interim president since January 1 and has been an independent director of the company since May 2018. Miller brings experience in the medical imaging industry.
Michael Cairo (Grad ’94, Grad ’99)
Michael Cairo (Grad ’94, ’99), professor of political science at Transylvania University, will assume the position of interim vice president for academic affairs and dean of the university on Feb. 16, 2019. For the past three years, Cairo has served the university as the associate dean for academic affairs.
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