Transitions

• 1970s
• 1980s
• 1990s
• 2000s
• Deaths

1970s

Thomas R. Tribuiani, BA Spanish ’75 and MA Foreign Language ’82, retired in June 2006 after 30 years of teaching Spanish at Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia, and Cumberland Regional High School in Seabrook, New Jersey.

Leslie M. Alden, BS Business Administration ’78 and JD ’83, is president-elect of the International Association of Women Judges, an organization of 4,000 members in 75 countries. She assumes the presidency in March 2008.

Mary Smith Ali, BA European Studies ’78, a middle school teacher in Palm Beach County, Florida, has a niece attending Mason and her twin sister is a Mason employee.

1980s

Richard McMahon, JD ’80, received the Legal Services Award on March 2, 2007, from the Massachusetts Bar Association. The award is given to an attorney who makes a particularly significant contribution to the provision of low-income legal services above and beyond his or her job requirements.

David Miller, JD ’80, is the Fairfax County Democratic Party’s nominee for the clerk of court in Fairfax County, Virginia. His campaign colors are Mason green and gold.

Paula Grimsley, BSN ’82, is a missionary nurse serving in North India where she provides counsel and teaches basic health care to women living in villages and slums.

George Zombakis, BA Art History ’83, was elected a board member for the Hellenic Professional Society of Texas for 2007–08.

Steven Horwitz, MA Economics ’87 and PhD Economics ’90, was named a Dana Professor at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York.

John Forgy, BA Art ’89, was promoted to senior designer and associate at Gallagher & Associates in Bethesda, Maryland, a museum exhibit and signage and environmental graphic design firm.

1990s

Shannon McLeod Lauer, BA Government and Politics ’90, from Newport News, Virginia, was state finalist in a contest to win an Ace Hardware store in Houston, Texas. Shannon was one of 40 chosen from 5,400 applicants.

Michael J. Colburn, MA Music ’91, the director of the President’s Own, the United States Marine Band, was promoted to colonel on July 3 by President George W. Bush in an Oval Office ceremony. Colburn is only the second director in the band’s 208-year history to be promoted by the commander in chief.

Thomas F. Hamilton, MS Physical Education ’91, completed the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kailua Kona, Hawaii, in October 2005, and continues to compete in races of various distances. He is a fitness trainer and certified yoga teacher at the Beckley-Raleigh County, West Virginia, YMCA and maintains a private practice in massage therapy as a licensed body worker.

Timothy Kennedy, BA Geology ’91, took an early retirement from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after nine years of federal service and six years of tribal government service. He worked on the Corps of Engineers Native American Special Emphasis Project and volunteered for the Hurricane Rita cleanup efforts.

David Kilpatrick, BA Theater ’91, earned an MA in theater at Missouri State University in 2002 and is a PhD candidate in theater there as well. He is the producing artistic director for the Old Creamery Theatre Company in Amana, Iowa.

David L. Core, MBA ’92, and his wife, Melinda, welcomed their fourth child and second son, Isaiah David, born on January 15, 2007. Core is director of education for the Mailing and Fulfillment Service Association in Alexandria, Virginia.

Denis Hamlett, BS Public Administration ’92, a former Mason men’s soccer standout, was named interim head coach of the Major League Soccer team Chicago Fire.

Tim N. Murray, BSN ’92 and MSN ’02, teaches nursing in Singapore.

Mark J. Ruttkay, BS Social Work ’92, is the New Mexico foster care and adoptions manager, responsible for all federally and state-funded public child welfare programs in New Mexico.

Saadia Ali Aschemann, BA Government and Politics ’93, had her first collection of poetry published by FireFly Publishing. The book, lavish lines/luscious lies, is available on Amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com.

Mark DeSantis, PhD Public Policy ’93, is running for mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as the Republican challenger to the incumbent.

Christina Lief, MS Geographic and Cartographic Sciences ’93, is the Global Observing Systems Information Center program manager at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, North Carolina.

Juna Mackey-Padilla, MSN ’93 and PhD Nursing Administration ’03, established M.O.V.E. Empowerment Services in 2006 to educate, encourage, empower, and motivate others toward healthier lifestyles and healthier communities. She also wrote E-mails That M.O.V.E, a collection of inspiring thoughts, prayers, reflections, and journal entries.

Blas Falconer, BA English ’94, had a book of poems, A Question of Gravity and Light, published by University of Arizona Press. He teaches poetry and memoir writing at Austin Peay State University.

Teresa Paccassi, BA English ’94, and husband, David Paccassi, BS Urban Systems ’96, welcomed their fourth child, Samuel David, born April 27, 2007. Samuel joins his siblings, John, Lily, and Peter, in the family’s Mason cheering section.

Allison Jones Sprouse, BA English ’94, was named Teacher of the Year for 2006–07 at Stuarts Draft High School in Stuarts Draft, Virginia. Allison was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi, the international honor society in education at Mary Baldwin College, and serves as the society’s vice president elect.

Matt Thomson, BIS Fire Service Administration ’94, a pilot with Atlantic Southeast Airlines in Atlanta, Georgia, is proud to announce the birth of his twins, Allison Elizabeth and Cameron Peter on May 25, 2007.

Dave Trosko, EMBA ’94, is vice president of wealth management with Smith Barney and serves on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce. Dave and his wife, Nancy, have a nine-year-old son, John.

David P. Baker, MBA ’96, is the chief of police for the City of Alexandria, Virginia.

Bill Elvey, MBA ’96, assistant vice president for facilities at Virginia Tech, is the president-elect of APPA, an association for educational facilities professionals.

Tina McPherson, BA Art History ’96, won a Cannes 2007 Community Documentary Honorable Mention Award for her documentary, Belly Up. Tina designed the film’s graphics.

Amy Melnick, MPA ’96, was named chief public policy officer by the Arthritis Foundation.

Joe Little, BA Speech Communication ’98, is a television reporter for KGTV, the ABC affiliate in San Diego, California.

Robert C. Nagle, JD ’98, special counsel in Saul Ewing LLP’s Business Department and Labor, Employment, and Employee Benefits Practice Group, presented “Best Practices in Hiring and Promotion” to the Human Resources Council of the Delaware Credit Union League in April 2007.

Min H. Park, BS Computer Science ’98 and JD ’06, joined Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz LLP as an associate in the firm’s Intellectual Property Group.

Ryan Fink, BA History ’99, and Sheri Keyser, BA Communication ’99 and MA Telecommunications ’02, are engaged and plan to marry on May 22, 2008. The happy couple met at Mason and now resides in southern California.

Patricia Innocenti, MPA ’99, is the new deputy director of the Department of Purchasing and Supply Management for Fairfax County, Virginia.

M. Faith Marasigan-Chang, MA International Commerce and Policy ’99, and her husband, Joon, announce the birth of their daughter, Isabella, on March 15, 2007. Faith also graduated from American University’s Women and Politics Institute; her graduate paper was on the politics and policy of women and sexual harassment.

Laura Matthews, MA English ’99, works as an independent consultant from her home office, researching, writing, and editing technical documents for corporate and nonprofit organizations, as well as designing and delivering writing and editing workshops for corporate clients.

Michael Porterfield, BA English ’99, won an award from Graphic Design USA for his redesign of the Intranexus Inc. logo. He works as a graphic designer for True Image in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

2000s

Marialena Bridges, MEd Counseling and Development ’00, is director of counseling at Brooke Point High School in Stafford, Virginia, and a doctoral student in educational leadership at Northcentral University. She recently opened with four colleagues La Dolce Vita, an Internet business specializing in a compartmentalized, organizational leather handbags. For more information, visit www.ladolcevitaonline.net.

Mark Looney, JD ’00, became chair of the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce Board on June 26, 2007. He is a partner at Cooley Godward Kronish, where he specializes in development and land use.

Donald Mercy, BA History ’00, MA History ’02, and MEd Curriculum and Instruction ’04, has taught for three years at Osbourn Park High School in Manassas, Virginia, where the class of 2007 voted him the most inspirational teacher and keynote speaker at its graduation.

Ryan Snead, MA Psychology ’00, proudly announces the birth of his daughter, Alyce Elizabeth, on February 1, 2007.

Adam Thiel, MPA ’00, was appointed fire chief for the City of Alexandria, Virginia.

Douglas A. Brook, PhD Public Policy ’01, was nominated by President George W. Bush to be assistant secretary of the navy.

Erica Johnston, BA History ’01, and Jeremy Cover, BS Psychology ’00, were married on August 5, 2007.

Dennis P. Butler, BS Administration of Justice ’02 and MPA certificate ’04, the chief of police in Ottawa, Kansas, graduated from the International Association of Chiefs of Police fifth National Law Enforcement Leadership Institute on Violence against Women. He received the 2007 Kansas Attorney General’s Crime Victims’ Service Award in recognition of outstanding service in law enforcement for aggressively developing policies, training, and funding sources to enhance assistance to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.

Brian R. Biggie, JD ’03, joined the law firm of Goldberg Segalla LLP in Buffalo, New York, as an associate concentrating on complex insurance coverage disputes and analysis. He is a member of the Defense Research Institute and the New York State and Erie County Bar Associations. Brian also serves as a board member for the Buffalo Alliance for Education and works on the Schools Committee with the Buffalo Niagara Partnership.

Mary (Weber) Brandon, BS Biology ’03, graduated with honors from the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine with a doctor of osteopathic medicine degree on May 26, 2007. She is interning at the George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C., in general surgery.

Andrew Ciafardini, BS Management ’04, was named special assistant to the president for intergovernmental affairs by President George W. Bush in July.

Grant Mathiasmeier, BS Accounting ’04, and wife, Jennie, had a baby girl, Lindsey Hope, on May 23, 2007.

Osita Chidoka, MA Transportation Policy Operations ’05, was appointed corps marshal and chief executive of the Federal Road Safety Commission of Nigeria, the lead agency in charge of road safety in the country.

Allison Cowan, BA English ’05, a former All-Colonial Athletic Association honoree and standout player at Mason, joins the women’s soccer program at Cornell University as an assistant coach.

Gretchen M. Gonzalez, BSN ’05, a registered nurse in the general intensive care unit at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, received the 2007 Sentara Healthcare Nursing Excellence Award.

Megan (Thornton) Crain, MPA ’06, was married and moved to Williamsburg, Virginia, where she is director of development for Walsingham Academy.

Joe Sinclair, BS Finance ’07, joined SolomonEdwardsGroup in its Washington, D.C., metropolitan professional search consulting team as a professional search consultant.

Deaths

Anita Adhikari, MEd Curriculum and Instruction ’07, May 20, 2007

Irene M. Holmquist, BA German ’84, February 18, 2007

David W. Rossell, DA ’00, August 10, 2007