Class Notes
James Guy (Col ’87)
Jim Guy (Col ’87 CM), Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative’s General Counsel and Vice President of Administration, has been appointed by Governor Glenn Youngkin to serve on the Virginia State Air Pollution Control Board.
Katherine Knaus (Engr ’12, Engr ’21 CM)
Katherine Read Knaus (Engr ’12, ’21 CM) began her post-doctoral research fellowship in the Cardiac Mechanics Research Group of the Department of Bioengineering at the University of California San Diego in 2021. She, her husband and their daughter are enjoying life in La Jolla, California.
Austin Palmore (Col ’15, Com ’16)
Austin Randolph Palmore (Col ’15, Com ’16) graduated in May with a Juris Doctor degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law. After sitting for the July 2022 Virginia Bar Examination, he will begin a one-year clerkship for the Honorable Judges of the Henrico County Circuit Court in the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit of Virginia, followed by a two-year clerkship for the Honorable Randolph A. Beales, Judge of the Virginia Court of Appeals in Richmond.
Margaret Rankovic (Col ’04, Educ ’05)
Margaret Rankovic (Col ’04, Educ ’05) has been promoted to Director of Content and Education at the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative Program. She manages the development of new content and oversees projects related to ethics, regulatory and compliance topics in areas of clinical research. She is a member of Harvard’s Health Literacy in Clinical Research working group, the Clinical Trials Transformation Initiative single Institutional Review Board, ClinicalTrials.gov reporting challenges project teams and the Clinical Trials Registration and Results Reporting Taskforce consortium. She and her husband and their three sons reside in Charlottesville, Virginia.
JoAnne Mancini (Col ’90 CM)
JoAnne Mancini (Col ’90 CM) was admitted to the Royal Irish Academy on May 20, 2022. Chartered in 1785, the RIA is Ireland’s leading body of experts in the sciences and humanities. Membership is by election and is considered the highest academic honor in Ireland. Mancini lives in Dublin and Berlin, and is the 2021-2022 Terra Visiting Professor at the Department of Culture, John F. Kennedy Institute, Freie Universität Berlin. https://www.jfki.fu-berlin.de/en/faculty/culture/persons/index.html.
David Logan (Law ’77)
David Logan (Law ’77 CM), a professor at Roger Williams University School of Law, debated leading first amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams and Professor Mary-Rose Papandrea of the University of North Carolina School of Law on whether the Supreme Court of the United States should revisit the iconic decision New York Times v. Sullivan. The program was a part of the annual meeting of the American Bar Association’s Litigation Section.
David Nicholson (Educ ’99)
David W. Nicholson (Educ ’96, ’99) has published the second edition of Philosophy of Education in Action: An Inquiry-
Based Approach (Routledge, 2022). Mr. Nicholson is a professor of education at Stevenson University in Maryland.
Brian Madden (Col ’91)
Brian Madden (Col ’91 CM) and Colleen Madden are proud to share that their daughter Kathleen “Ann” Madden (Com ’22 CM) has graduated with distinction from the McIntire School of Commerce.
J. Hagood Tighe (Col ’87 CM)
J. Hagood Tighe (Col ’87 CM), a partner at the national labor and employment law firm Fisher Phillips based in Columbia, S.C., has been sworn in as president of the South Carolina Bar. The ceremony was presided over by U.S. District Court Judge J. Michelle Childs during the bar’s annual assembly May 12.
As president, Tighe will serve South Carolina’s expansive legal and business communities by working to uphold the integrity and honor of the legal profession, advance the science of jurisprudence, promote quality legal education and services to the public, and continually improve the administration of justice throughout the Palmetto State. He will serve a one-year term.
At Fisher Phillips, Hagood is co-chair of the firm’s wage and hour practice and an active member of the firm’s class and collective action practice. In recent years, he has handled over 40 class and collective actions throughout the country, many of which involve wage and hour issues. Hagood recently led a team that won one of the nation’s largest WARN Act class actions in recent history. He also has extensive experience defending single plaintiff lawsuits alleging wrongful discharge, discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. While Hagood maintains an active litigation practice, he also focuses on providing practical and proactive advice designed to minimize the risk of litigation. He enjoys working with companies to help them avoid problems before they arise. This takes many forms including advising on handbooks, policies, employment agreements, investigations, layoffs, and terminations.
To learn more, click here.
Timothy Jarrett (Col ’94)
Timothy Jarrett (Col ’94 CM) has written Ten Thousand Voices: 150 Years of the Virginia Glee Club, a history of the oldest musical group at the University of Virginia. The book is also a history of choral music at UVA, and examines the social, political, and cultural forces that shaped the Glee Club along the way.
Paul Jacobs (Grad ’94)
Paul DuBois Jacobs (Grad ’94) recently published the fourth installment of his Mack Rhino Private Eye series, The Lost Lost-and-Found Case (Simon & Schuster/Aladdin, 2022). He is the author of more than 20 books for children, including My Subway Ride (with Jennifer Swender) and Abiyoyo Returns (with musician Pete Seeger).
Leonard Boord (Col ’88)
L. Roger Boord (Col ’88) and Fran Gaddin Boord report that their daughter, Nina Marie Virginia Boord, is a freshman at Stanford University studying engineering.
Linda Fisher Thornton (Col ’83 CM)
Steven Longstreet (Col ’05)
Steven Longstreet (Col ’05 CM) has been appointed senior vice president, data & analytics, at ExecOnline, the pioneer of online leadership development for enterprises. Longstreet will lead enterprise data & analytics, driving enterprise business impact through data, analytics, insights, and strengthening a data culture that ensures continued improvement and increased value for customers. Longstreet will play a key role in enabling ExecOnline to deliver impact through its proprietary methodology and partnerships with the world’s top business schools. Longstreet has more than 15 years of experience in strategy, product management, and analytics, including roles as global head of advanced analytics, BI, and automation for Hilton, and independent consulting for Fortune 100 companies in product, data and analytics. Longstreet also held senior management, data science and analyst roles at CDT Dynamics, Concentric Methods, and eStara. Longstreet is an AI & Data Science Standards Board Member for General Assembly, a pioneer in education and career transformation.
Daniel Hoffheimer (Law ’76)
Daniel J. Hoffheimer (Law ’76 CM) had the privilege of commissioning a new work by renowned American composer and violist, Nokuthula Ngwenyama. Her Piano Quartet for violin, viola, cello, and piano received its world premiere at Linton Chamber Music in Cincinnati on April 3, 2022. The composition, entitled “Elegy,” in twelve minutes tells the story of African-Americans from their first arrival as slaves in 1619, through slavery, Civil War, emancipation, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, the Civil Rights Movement, and into the present backlash against Critical Race Studies. Dan is board chair of Linton Chamber Music, now in its 41st season. He practices law in Cincinnati.
Suzannah Evans Comfort (Col ’03)
Suzannah Evans Comfort (Col ’03 CM) was promoted to associate professor in the Journalism unit of the Media School at Indiana University.
John Muir (Law ’64)
J. Dapray Muir (Law ’64) has more than 35 years of experience in corporate and securities law. His practice included counseling a wide range of commercial enterprises with respect to securities law, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, investment transactions, contracts and litigation. He has served as lead counsel in numerous public and private offerings of securities.
Mr. Muir served one year as law clerk to a federal trial judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, and two years as Assistant Legal Adviser for Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. From 1981 to 1985, he was chairman of the D.C. Securities Advisory Committee. He was a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Panel of Commercial Arbitrators from 1995 to 2015, serving as sole arbitrator or panel member in more than 40 proceedings.
John Wilder (Col ’62 CM)
John G. Wilder (Col ’62 CM) published Wagons, Gold and Conflict, a chronicle of the adventures of Captain Alfred Davenport in the Trans-Mississippi West from the 1840s through the 1860s. The book will appeal to lovers of history, travel and adventure, especially those interested in California from 1846 to 1861 and the western theater of the American Civil War.
Johanna Kahn (Arch ’10)
Johanna Kahn (Arch ’10), a practicing architectural historian in the San Francisco Bay Area, has published an essay in the anthology Julia Morgan: The Road to San Simeon, Visionary Architect of the California Renaissance. The anthology is a companion to a forthcoming traveling museum exhibition about architect Julia Morgan and her design for the monumental Hearst Castle.
Paola Gregus (Com ’13)
Paola A. Castillo (Com ’13 CM) and Matthew T. Gregus (Com ’13, ’14) celebrated their one year wedding anniversary on May 21, 2022. They were married at St. Dominic’s Catholic Church in Washington D.C. The couple will be moving to Tampa, Florida with their one-year-old pug, Gnocchi, and continue to work for the federal Risk and Financial Advisory practice of Deloitte & Touche LLP.
Kevin Kelley (Col ’73)
Kevin C. Kelley (Col ’73 CM) retired on May 1 from his position as Managing Director and Associate General Counsel after 39 years with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and its predecessors. Kevin’s practice as an insolvency attorney with JPMorgan included working on most of the major corporate insolvency matters over that time in the financial, automotive, retail, oil and gas and real estate industries to which JPMorgan was a lender.
Kendall Jones (Col ’89 CM)
Kendall Jones (Col ’89 CM) has been named the General Counsel of California Pizza Kitchen, Inc., and all of its affiliated companies.
Ariel Heisel (Engr ’13)
Marc Heisel (Engr ’07) and Brianne (King) Heisel (Engr ’13 CM) welcomed a son, Aiden, in May 2021. The family lives in Charlottesville where Marc is an engineering and quality manager, and Brianne is a senior program manager.
Wilson Weber (Com ’84)
Wilson Weber (Engr ’13 CM) and his wife Ani McDowell celebrated their Feb 2020 California wedding with a belated East Coast reception at Charlottesville’s The Space Downtown on Oct 16, 2021. Fellow Wahoos in attendance included John Weber (Com ’84 CM), Joey Murphy (Engr ’12 CM), Kyle Brew (Engr ’13 CM), Kylene Brew (Engr ’13 CM), Patrick Brown (Engr ’13), Chris Curtin (Com ’13), Chris Millisits (Col ’13 CM), Andrew Noh (Engr ’13 CM), Jared Arrington (Col ’14 CM), Heidi Trott (Col ’14 CM), Will Vieth (Engr ’14, Law ’19 CM), Carter King (Engr ’15 CM), Taylor Chamness (Col ’17 CM), Zoe Grippo (Col ’18 CM), Jake Weber (Engr ’18 CM), Eileen Cowdery (Darden ’19) and Hank Weber (Engr ’20 CM). Will and Ani reside in Denver, Colorado, where Ani is a senior product manager at Split and Will is a consulting and engineering lead at Google.
Lealani Mae Acosta (Med ’07, Res ’11)
Dr. Lealani Mae “Leah” Acosta (Med ’07, Res ’11) was recently promoted to Associate Professor of Neurology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where she serves as the behavioral neurology fellowship director. She also was awarded the distinction of Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology for contributions to the field, including serving as an editor for the Humanities section of the journal Neurology.
Bruce Webster (Engr ’74 CM)
On Apr. 19, 2022, UVA Air Force ROTC alumni from the classes of 1973, 1974 and 1976, along with one of their professors from that time, met on Grounds for a reunion and to speak to current Air Force ROTC cadets from both UVA and James Madison University. Major J. David Carroll, USAF, Ret. (Col ’73, Darden ’85, Law ’85), Lt. General David A. Deptula, USAF, Ret. (Col ’74, Engr ’76 CM), Colonel Richard T. Kingman, USAF, Ret. (Col ’74 CM), Bruce L. Webster (Engr ’74 CM), Michael W. Skojec (Col ’76 CM) and Lt. Colonel John E. Valliere, USAF, Ret. (Engr ’76 CM) participated in this reunion along with their UVA Air Force ROTC Air Science Professor, Colonel James A. Ball, USAF, Ret. They met for lunch in the historic Varsity Hall before being escorted by officers and cadets of the current Air Force ROTC unit to O’Hill Forum, where they spoke to some 100 cadets of the James Wing of the current Air Force ROTC Detachment 890.
Shannon Donohue (Arch ’12)
Shannon (Casey) Donohue (Arch ’12 CM) and husband Kevin Donohue welcomed their first child, Madeline Grace, on Mar. 15, 2022. The couple resides in Alexandria, Virginia, where Shannon works in fundraising at George Mason University and Kevin is in cybersecurity with Amazon Web Services. They are excited to show their daughter around Charlottesville and the UVA campus this fall.
Dan Vick (Col ’84 CM)
Dr. Dan Vick (Col ’84 CM) assumed the role of Chief Medical Officer of MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta, Maine, effective Mar. 28, 2022. MaineGeneral Medical Center is a 198-bed community hospital with 4,000 employees and over 600 medical staff members. Most recently, Dr. Vick was on the Graduate Teaching Faculty in the Master of Health Administration program at Central Michigan University.
Robert Scearce (Engr ’13)
Robert Burton Scearce II (Engr ’13 CM) was recently promoted to Plant Manager of Monogram Foods in Martinsville, Virginia.
John Howard (Col ’83 CM)
John Howard (Col ’83 CM) has published the first critical biography of radio broadcaster, stage director and auteur filmmaker Michael Cacoyannis, best known for triple-Oscar-winner Zorba the Greek. Howard is Emeritus Professor of Arts and Humanities, King’s College London.
Ed Price (Col ’84)
Ed Price (Col ’84), Charlottesville Firehouse Subs restaurant owner and operator, was recently awarded an Axe Award for Mid-Atlantic Franchisee of the Year. This award recognizes high performing franchises throughout Firehouse Subs and honors Price for his strong commitment to his community.
In the Firehouse Subs system of more than 1,210 restaurants, this award recognizes Price as an exemplary business owner that has earned this achievement through an increased focus on Firehouse Subs’ core values, setting high standards, giving back to the community and increasing guest satisfaction.
Price attributes his business success to focusing on guest satisfaction, his involvement within the community and commitment to public safety. One of his favorite parts about being a Firehouse Subs business owner is the portion of every purchase that benefits the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation, which has donated 117 grants worth $1.7 million to help first responders and public safety organizations in Virginia. Most recently, Price’s efforts helped secure a $27,000 grant for the Charlottesville Fire Department, allowing them to purchase much-needed bunker gear and personal protective equipment. Price is also a longtime supporter of the Tom Sox and the Red Cross.
Sharon Kressel (Col ’05, Med ’12 CM)
Sharon Kressel (Col ’05, Med ’12 CM) and her husband Jason welcomed their daughter Nora Irene in October 2021. Nora joins her older brothers, Aaron and Max. The family resides in Bethesda, Maryland.
Paul Lombardo (Grad ’82, Law ’85)
Paul A. Lombardo (Grad ’82, Law ’85) of Georgia State University College of Law has published a new edition of Three Generations, No Imbeciles: Eugenics, the Supreme Court, and Buck v. Bell (Johns Hopkins University Press).
Ashley Bartley (Col ’06 CM)
Ashley Bartley (Col ’06 CM) has released her third children’s book in a social emotional learning series published by Boys Town Press. Remi in Overdrive offers children struggling with ADHD, hyperactivity, impulsivity and/or inattentiveness ideas and strategies they can implement both at home and at school. Remi in Overdrive is available on Amazon, Boys Town Press, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million, along with her other two books, Diamond Rattle Loves to Tattle and Opal Octopus is Overwhelmed. Ashley is a school counselor, author and curriculum writer who now lives in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia with her husband and three young boys.
Christopher Stanley (Com ’76)
Chris Stanley (Com ’76) was recently named Professor Emeritus in the Department of Theology and Franciscan Studies at St. Bonaventure University in western New York. He retired from the university in 2021 after 22 years as a professor at St. Bonaventure. Dr. Stanley has authored or edited seven academic books and two historical novels, together with dozens of professional articles and papers, in his 31 years in academia. He is looking forward to continuing his writing in retirement. He lives in Allegany, New York, but plans to move to southern California in the next year.
Elliot Felix (Arch ’99)
Elliot Felix (Arch ’99 CM) helps students and families get the most out of college with his new book. Felix founded brightspot strategy and has helped more than 100 colleges and universities use design thinking to improve what they offer, how they are organized and how they operate. In his new book, How to Get the Most Out of College (Alinea Learning, 2022), he shares what he’s learned about how colleges and universities work so that students and families can make it work for them, because it’s not just where you go to college but how you go to college.
How to Get the Most Out of College is the top new release in the academic development category on Amazon and was recently featured in Forbes. Having done hundreds of consulting projects to help attract and retain students, the book is a chance to give back and help level the playing field, including a “buy one, give one” model where for every copy sold, one is donated to a student in need.
Joshua Richards (Col ’09, Grad ’10)
Josh Richards (Col ’09, Grad ’10 CM) has been promoted to Corporate Director, ESG at Transwestern, an integrated commercial real estate services, development and investment management firm. In this role, Richards is responsible for expanding engagement across the various companies to identify, track and communicate ESG goals and key performance indicators; advocating for responsible, proactive programming that advances the brand and mission of Transwestern and its clients; evaluating partnerships and opportunities to deliver resources at the leading edge of industry; and reporting progress against the firm’s commitments to all stakeholders.
Richards joined Transwestern in 2017 as Director of Sustainability for Asset Services. During his tenure, he advanced Transwestern’s energy and sustainability platform through extensive benchmarking and compliance of the firm’s managed assets, educating internal and external audiences on the value and implementation of ESG and increasing transparency through integrated communications and reporting.
Additionally, Richards reinforced the firm’s commitment to culture by leading the Transwestern Experience, a unique approach to customer service. He is also actively involved in the firm’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts, leading the national Awareness and Belonging Committee which provides resources and strategies to create a more open and inclusive work environment.
Nicole Darden Ford (Com ’07)
Nicole Darden Ford (Com ’07) has joined Rockwell Automation as vice president and chief information security officer. Darden Ford joins Rockwell from Carrier, where she was global vice president and chief information security Officer, overseeing global information security, compliance and product cybersecurity through the company’s spin-off from parent company United Technologies Corporation. Prior to Carrier, she was global vice president and chief information security officer for Baxter International, where she had global responsibility for information security, information governance and IT quality compliance. Darden Ford began her career in the U.S. military and federal government, including for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, handling security, network engineering, and telecommunications.
Darden Ford is also passionate about building and growing teams, fostering culture, and focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion. She currently serves on the boards of IT-ISAC, South Florida Tech Hub and the Lola Mercedes Parker Foundation. She will remain located in Jupiter, FL.
Pamela Maliszewskyj (Col ’89)
Dr. Nicholas C. Maliszewskyj (Col ’89 CM) and Ms. Pamela Baldwin (Col ’89 CM) first met in the Hancock dormitory stairwell in August 1985, and they formed a close friendship that has spanned over 36 years. They were married on Mar. 12, 2022, in Frederick, Maryland with their four adult children and many friends and family in attendance. The couple will reside in Frederick following a brief honeymoon in Bermuda. Wahoowa!
Jenna Pastuszek (Col ’09, Educ ’10)
Jenna Pastuszek (Col ’09, Educ ’10 CM) and Joshua Zecher-Ross are thrilled to debut GET HAPPY!: A Tribute to the World’s Greatest Entertainer, Judy Garland, live and livestreamed at The Green Room 42 in Manhattan. With “lavishly clever arrangements” and “witty, endearing personal stories,” this is not a traditional Judy Garland tribute—there will be no impersonation here. Instead, lifelong Judy fans will love the cleverly curated playlist of beloved classics and forgotten gems while millennials and Gen Z-ers will discover an artist who transcends time.
The tribute will take place on Apr. 7 at 7:00 P.M., and tickets are available at this link. Contact The Green Room 42 Presents, 646-449-7792, programming@thegreenroom42.com or tickets@thegreenroom42.com.
Richard Mines (Engr ’77)
Dr. Richard O. Mines Jr. (Engr ’77), Mercer University School of Engineering professor, was named Engineer of the Year by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Georgia.
The Georgia Society of Professional Engineers coordinates the Engineer of the Year awards, which are judged by the Engineering Council of Birmingham. The purpose of the awards is to honor licensed engineers who have made outstanding contributions to the engineering profession, public welfare and/or humankind.
Dr. Mines received the Engineer of the Year Award as the overall highest scoring nominee from the categories of Engineer of the Year in Construction, Education, Government, Industry and Private Practice. He received the honor during the 2022 Georgia Engineering Awards held Mar. 19 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta.
Dr. Mines is a professor of environmental and civil engineering at Mercer. He has served in academia for 34 years and consulting for seven years, specializing in the design of water and wastewater treatment facilities. He also serves as startup coordinator for the Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in civil engineering degrees at Mercer, where he has taught since 1998. He was previously on the faculty of the University of South Florida, where he was twice named Civil Engineering Professor of the Year.
Meagan Jolley (Com ’76)
Bill Chapin (Col ’76 CM) of See Rock City, Inc. is thrilled to announce the succession from fourth generation family ownership to fifth generation, as his son Doug Chapin is set to purchase the outstanding shares of the company.
“We have always had a focus on hospitality, as well as on conservation,” said Bill. “In the last 90 years we have protected the geological wonders of Rock City Gardens for everyone’s enjoyment, and for future generations of the next 90 years. Rock City is a unique outdoor attraction that allows visitors to experience what has been created by God and enhanced by man.”
See Rock City, Inc. has seen outstanding growth under Bill’s leadership, including consistent increases in profitability and attendance despite economic downturns, the acquisition of Battles for Chattanooga museum, Grandview, Starbucks, Clumpies Ice Cream Co., RiverView Inn and GOOD DOG, as well as multimillion-dollar renovations alongside the creation of several restaurants and shops inside Rock City Gardens. Bill has received two separate lifetime achievement awards in tourism, one from Southeast Tourism Society in 2019, and another during the Georgia Governor’s Tourism Conference in 2017.
See Rock City, Inc. is a hospitality and entertainment company that features the world-renowned Rock City Gardens high atop Lookout Mountain. Visit www.seerockcity.com for more information.
Photo 1: Bill Chapin at Carter Cliffs; photo credit to the Chattanooga Times Free Press
Photo 2: Bill Chapin, Susan Harris and Doug Chapin at iconic Lover’s Leap; photo credit to the Chattanooga Times Free Press
Photo 3: Doug Chapin and Bill Chapin at the See Seven States Flag Court; photo credit to Rock City
Molly Scarborough (Col ’13)
Roscoe Scarborough (Grad ’09, ’15) and Molly Petry (Col ’13 CM) were married on Mar. 11, 2022, in a private wedding ceremony at the Historic Brunswick Courthouse in Brunswick, Georgia. The couple resides on St. Simons Island, Georgia.
JoAnne Speiden (Educ ’69, Educ ’77)
JoAnne Hilson Speiden (Educ ’69, ’77) of Somerset, Virginia, was chosen as President of the Virginia Electoral Board Association on Mar. 20, 2022. This organization is a voluntary organization consisting of the 133 local Electoral Boards across the Commonwealth. Electoral Boards are citizen boards that ensure elections are conducted accurately, fairly, securely and according to the Code of Virginia. JoAnn received her B.S. in Education in 1969 and her M.S. in Education in 1977, and was employed by the Piedmont Regional Education Program in Charlottesville for 32 years as an adapted physical education teacher. Since then, she has been a member of the Orange County Electoral Board.
Halley House (Col ’08)
Halley Bogart (Col ’08) and William House, USA Ret., were married on Feb. 24, 2022, in San Diego, California. The Houses reside in Durham, North Carolina.
Michael Goodwin (Col ’78)
Michael Goodwin (Col ’78 CM) has recently published his fourth novel, Vice Versa.
It can be purchased on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Vice-Versa-Michael-Goodwin/dp/1633635651/
Robert Cottrell (Educ ’16 CM)
Dr. Jason Cottrell (Educ ’16 CM) was awarded the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) – College Student Educators International Presidential Citation.
The Presidential Citation is awarded by the discretion of the ACPA President based on their observation and/or direct work with the individual. This honor is bestowed upon members of the Association for lifelong service and extraordinary contributions to the profession of student affairs and most particularly to ACPA. It is one of the Association’s highest honors.
ACPA – College Student Educators International is a values-centered leadership association that has worked to boldly transform higher education since 1924. Student affairs and higher education professionals, faculty and students trust ACPA to deliver high-quality educational programs, provide access to modern research and scholarship, and promote leaders at all levels through a racial justice and decolonization lens.
ACPA President Dr. Danielle Morgan Acosta described Cottrell as “a passionate public servant” and “a dedicated member of ACPA for 13 years who has held numerous leadership positions in the Association at the chapter, coalition, and convention spaces,” stating that she is “honored to present one of two Presidential Citations to Dr. Jason Cottrell.”
A second Presidential Citation was awarded to the Association for the Study of Higher Education.
Tonya N. Jefferson (Col ’93)
Tonya N. Jefferson (Col ’93 CM) co-founded the non-profit Virginia Africa Partnership during late summer of 2021, and is currently the Vice President, Government Liaison and Resource Mobilization. The Virginia Africa Partnership (VAP) strives to boost trade and investment opportunities between Virginia and Africa by providing market research; helping companies identify new markets via trade mission; connecting them to potential business partners, customers, or distributers; fostering minority and women-owned small business; and facilitating the transfer of technology for the transformation of natural resources designed to increase trade and spur growth. The collaboration of higher educational institutions and the promotion of siter-cities initiatives will cement that long-term partnership.
Jefferson applied to the Clinton Global Initiative University as a George Washington University doctoral student on the due date, Jan. 26, 2022, which was exactly two days after she learned of the opportunity, and was accepted into the 2022 cohort as a result of her thoughtful, thorough and compelling application. Her Commitment to Action plan included all four of VAP’s current projects: Leadership and STEM Awards Ceremony to be held on June 11, 2022; Youth Leadership and Entrepreneurship Exchange to be held from July 10 through Aug. 10, 2022; Higher Education Leadership Conference to be held from Oct. 5 through Oct. 7, 2022; and Entrepreneurship Academy, in addition to a few new projects and partnerships.
Emily Thiede (Col ’04)
Emily (Bean) Thiede (Col ’04 CM) sold her debut novel, This Vicious Grace, and an unnamed sequel in a six-figure deal to Wednesday Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Publishing. The first in a planned young adult fantasy duology, This Vicious Grace will be published June 28, 2022 in the U.S. and in the United Kingdom by U.K. publisher Hodder & Stoughton, with translations announced for Germany (LYX Verlag), Russia (Eksmo), Romania (Storia) and the Czech Republic (Host).
BuzzFeed calls Thiede’s debut “remarkable” and “one of the best YA fantasies of the year,” and it is listed amongst Goodread’s “68 Most Anticipated YA Novels of 2022” and Nerd Daily’s “24 Debut Releases To Get Your Hands On In 2022.”
Launch events are to be announced in the Virginia/D.C. area for summer 2022, and This Vicious Grace will be available wherever books are sold on June 28.
R. Bradford Mills (Col ’83)
R. Bradford Mills (Col ’83 CM) joined the Philadelphia-area food bank Caring for Friends in January 2022. Founded in 1974, the organization distributed 14 million pounds of prepared meals and fresh produce to homebound seniors and other needy people in 2021.
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