Class Notes

Erica Stephenson (Nurs ’11 CM) and Caleb Stephenson (Com ’08 CM) welcomed their daughter, Isabel Charlotte Stephenson, on Sept. 27, 2023. The family lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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.

Joe Essid (Col ’83) published “Writing Centers & the Dark Warehouse University: Generative AI, Three Human Advantages,” in the Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies: Vol. 2, 2023.

Jim Roche (Darden ’06 CM) has been named president, BRP and CEO, Underwriting, Capacity, & Technology Operations at Baldwin Risk Partners, one of the largest insurance brokers in the United States.  

Roche has been at BRP since 2019, when he joined as part of the acquisition of Millennial Specialty Insurance (MSI), a firm which he founded in 2015.

Additionally, he has purchased a farm in Charlottesville near Foxfield to serve as a full-time residence upon retirement.

Capt. Jenny Sigel Burkett (Nursing ’97 CM) assumed command of Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command, Camp Pendleton, California, on Aug. 4, 2023.  She is the first Nurse Corps officer to command the hospital.  She lives in Oceanside, California, with her husband C. Allen Burkett Jr., and children Emma, Lizbeth, and Clarence.

Mark Nuckols (Col ’90 CM) has published Travels with Ferdinand and Friends: A Centennial Journey Through Austria–Hungary, which won Hidden River Press’s Panther Creek Nonfiction Book Award. Beginning at Franz Ferdinand’s castle in the Czech Republic, Nuckols trekked through former Habsburg lands to Sarajevo for the centenary of the Archduke’s assassination, visiting old friends from Slovakia—where he taught English after graduating from UVA—and singing with local musicians in Dubrovnik, Prague and elsewhere. He lives on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, where he translates, plays music and chess, and is active in the local alumni group.

Tom Gilroy (Col ’73 CM) has published Out of Season, a political thriller set against the backdrop of a 1980s civil war in West Africa, which Gilroy covered as a reporter based in Douala, Cameroon. The book also explores deeper themes like race, religion, colonialism and the high cost anger and resentment inflict on relationships and judgment. Gilory’s book of short stories, In Bikole, based on his two-years as a Peace Corps volunteer in a village in Senegal, was published by Alfred A. Knopf. 

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.

Jason F. Lovvorn (Grad ‘96) was promoted to professor of English at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Lovvorn has served as assistant director of the Teaching Center and as Writing Program director and currently serves as the English Department’s internship coordinator.

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.

Peter Capuano (Grad ’09) has published Dickens’s Idiomatic Imagination, an analysis of how Charles Dickens’s use of “low” and “slangular” language allowed him to express and develop his most sophisticated ideas. Capuano considers Dickens’s use of bodily idioms—”right-hand man,” “shoulder to the wheel,” “nose to the grindstone”—against the broader lexical backdrop of the nineteenth century.  Capuano is associate professor of English and a faculty fellow in the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities at the University of Nebraska.

Dr. Chuck Edwards (Col ’69 CM) has published Late Fragment: Notes on the Later Stages of Life, his second book helping the aged find hope in their later years. His first book was Much Abides: A Survival Guide for Aging Lives. Sales support Memory & Movement Charlotte, the nonprofit medical practice Edwards founded to treat Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.   

Steven Betz (Grad ’98) has joined the University of Michigan-Dearborn as government relations director.  In this role, he directs all university interactions with federal, state, and local officials.

Benjamin Cunningham (Com ’16 CM) and Stephanie Coffua (Col ’16 CM) were married in Savannah, Georgia, on October 28, 2023, 10 years after meeting at the Corner Parking Lot during a scavenger hunt for new students. Over 50 ‘Hoos attended the nuptials, where the bride and groom led a rendition of “The Good Old Song” during the reception. The couple lives in Brooklyn, New York, where Stephanie works as an editor for ABC News and Benjamin works as a consultant for McKinsey & Co.

Sharon E. Crane (Grad ’84) has joined Haynes and Boone, LLP as counsel in their Life Sciences practice group in Washington, D.C. Crane’s practice focuses on intellectual property matters in the biotech and pharmaceutical fields. She advises clients on drafting patents, challenging competitor patents and defending against infringement claims.

Catherine Jansch (Col ’13, Med ’18 CM) and Paul Andrew Jarasek Jr. welcomed their first child, Paul Andrew Jarasek III, on December 26th, 2023. 

Robert Muckenfuss (Col ’93 CM) has been appointed as chair of McGuireWoods’ Financial Services and Securities Enforcement Department. Previously, Muckenfuss chaired the Commercial Litigation Department. He has over 20 years of experience representing financial institutions nationwide.