RECOGNIZING ALUMNI SUCCESS

Throughout the worlds of art, business, education, service and health care, Virginia Commonwealth University alumni shine in all areas of human endeavor, illuminating problems, creating solutions and strengthening the quality of our lives. VCU Alumni is honored to recognize 16 alumni for their career and humanitarian achievements and for the infinite possibilities they bring to the future.

WELCOMEGordon McDougall

Associate Vice President, University Alumni Relations

DINNER

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

VCU Commonwealth SingersErin Freeman, conductor

EMCEEJesse Vaughan (B.S.’80/MC)

2013 Alumni Star and 27-time Emmy winner

INTRODUCTION

Marti K.S. HeilVice President, Development and Alumni Relations

REMARKS

Michael Rao, Ph.D.President, VCU and VCU Health System

James Williams (B.S.’84/GPA; M.S.’96/GPA)President, VCU Alumni

2015 ALUMNI STARSin order of appearance

Wilsie Paulette Bishop, D.P.A.School of Nursing

Minh Q. Tran, M.D., FACPThe Honors College

Morgan YacoeSchool of the Arts

Jean-Venable “Kelly” R. Goode, Pharm.D., BCPS, FAPhA, FCCP

School of Pharmacy

Grace E. Harris, Ph.D.School of Social Work

Katherine WintschRichard T. Robertson

School of Media and Culture

Norma Sue Kenyon, Ph.D.School of Medicine

Michael T. Gamel-McCormick, Ph.D.School of Education

Thomas J. DorseySchool of Business

Barbara L. HartungCollege of Humanities and Sciences

Sterling Thomas, Ph.D.VCU Life Sciences

Jonathan W.B. WaybrightSchool of World Studies

Keith T. Parker, AICPL. Douglas Wilder School of

Government and Public Affairs

Christine S. Zambricki, D.N.A.P., CRNA, FAANSchool of Allied Health Professions

Del. Todd E. Pillion, D.D.S.School of Dentistry

Brad TrevillianSchool of Engineering

“My nursing education at VCU was paramount in preparing me for a successful life and a successful career.”

Wilsie Paulette Bishop, D.P.A.1970 Bachelor of Science • 1978 Master of Science

School of Nursing

As a female whose career began before the equal educational and employ-ment opportunities afforded by Title IX were a reality, Wilsie Paulette Bishop, D.P.A., says she found herself “either at or breaking the proverbial glass ceiling on many occasions.”

In 1978, she joined East Tennessee State University, where she’s held numer-ous positions, including vice president for administration and chief operating officer, dean of the College of Public and Allied Health, department chair in the College of Nursing, assistant vice president for academic affairs and associate vice president for health affairs.

Today, as ETSU’s vice president for health affairs and university chief operating officer, a role she’s held since 2007, Bishop is one of only two nurses in the country to head an academic medical center. Bishop oversees the five health science colleges of the ETSU Academic Health Sciences Center, which serve more than 4,000 students in 35 programs at the undergraduate, graduate and doctoral levels and offer residency programs in medicine and pharmacy. She also teaches, as a tenured professor, a policy, leadership and ethics course to doctoral students.

Recognizing that she serves as a model for young women in clinical, faculty and professional roles, Bishops says, “It is important that I be a mentor and ac-cessible for sharing my leadership journey with others.”

That journey started in 1966 at the Medical College of Virginia School of Nursing, where she took an active role in the National Student Nurses Association and was elected to its board. After earning her master’s in nursing at VCU, she continued her studies at the University of Southern California, where she earned a second master’s and a doctorate. But, she says, VCU provided the foundation for her success.

“My nursing education at VCU was paramount in preparing me for a success-ful life and a successful career,” she says. “I know I received the best education in nursing available — then or now. I credit the School of Nursing for developing my ability to think critically, problem solve, set priorities and think strategically.”

Her honors and public recognitions reflect her commitment to nursing. She received the Altrusa Honorarium for Women and Industry Award and the Bristol Regional YWCA Tribute to Women Award and was a National Honor Initiate to Sigma Kappa Sorority, Gamma Lambda Chapter. In 2013, the VCU School of Nursing named Bishop one of its 120 Visionary Leaders, and she was inducted into the Tennessee Women’s Hall of Fame that year, joining a group of distinguished women who have made “outstanding, unique and lasting contributions to the economic, political and cultural well-being of Tennessee.”

Minh Q. Tran, M.D., FACP1992 Bachelor of Science

College of Humanities and Sciences1996 Doctor of Medicine • 1999 Residency in Internal Medicine

School of Medicine

“I have graduated but never felt I have left

the university.”

Minh Q. Tran, M.D., FACP, might have had the best first day of classes in the history of VCU. After years of suffering through war, asylum camps and reloca-tions with his Vietnamese refugee family, Tran realized three dreams that day in 1988: beginning his studies in the VCU Honors College, taking his first steps toward guaranteed admission to medical school and meeting his future wife, who was seated a few desks away from him in English 101.

“This was the kick-start of my rewarding career thus far and many meaningful relationships, both professional and personal,” Tran says. “VCU shaped me into the person that I am today.”

Eight years later, Tran earned his medical degree and married Anh-Thy N. (B.S.’92/H&S). “I am proud to say we have a whole VCU family. My three sisters, three brothers-in-law, my nephew and, of course, my wife are all VCU alumni,” Tran says. In keeping with their family’s tradition, one of the couple’s three daughters entered VCU as a freshman this fall.

Tran specializes in internal medicine at Virginia Physicians Inc.’s Reynolds Primary Care office in Richmond, Virginia. He fulfills his passion for hospice/palliative care as medical director at AseraCare Hospice. He was named a Top Doc in geriatric medicine by Richmond magazine, was elected a Fellow of the American College of Physicians in 2012 and earned a Best Bedside Manner Award in internal medicine from OurHealth magazine for 2014 and 2015. Tran also participates in many community events to educate the public in disease awareness and prevention.

“The VCU School of Medicine’s preadmission program through the Honors College was an invaluable gift for me,” Tran says.

His family struggled to survive after the fall of Saigon in 1975, when Tran’s father, a captain in the South Vietnamese army, was captured and sentenced to four years in a hard-labor camp. He was critically ill upon his release but recov-ered sufficiently to lead the family through a three-year cycle of escapes and captivity, in pursuit of a better future for his children. The Trans finally broke out of Vietnam and settled into an asylum camp in Malaysia. From there, they moved to the Philippines before making a permanent home in the U.S. in 1983.

Tran credits his educational success to his parents’ perseverance and a “never give up” attitude. After finishing high school in Arlington, Virginia, Tran made his transformative journey to VCU.

“I have graduated but never felt I have left the university,” he says. “Since I began my private medical practice, I have continued to teach and mentor other VCU premed and medical students every year. This gives me a great sense of accomplishment. I feel that I contribute to shaping the next generations of doc-tors and influence them in a positive way. I feel blessed.”

“My career since graduating from VCU has been devoted to exploring the deep connection between the fine arts and medicine.”

Morgan Yacoe2011 Bachelor of Fine Arts

School of the Arts

As an undergraduate at VCU, Morgan Yacoe blended her knowledge of sculpture and arts with her interest in the medical field. During her senior year in the School of the Arts, she played a key role in the surgery that separated conjoined twins Maria and Teresa Tapia at VCU Medical Center. While working with Jennifer L. Rhodes, M.D., associate professor in the VCU School of Medicine and director of the VCU Center for Craniofacial Care at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, Yacoe created a medical sculpture fabricated from a plaster body cast of the twins’ bodies. The sculpture allowed the surgical team to practice a variety of medical procedures to determine the best way to cosmetically care for the twins post-separation.

After graduating, Yacoe applied the artistic skills she learned at VCU to a medical pursuit and began teaching clay sculpture classes to residents at VCU Medical Center. She also produces 3-D models to use in medical education, constantly merging the art and medical fields through teaching and personal production.

“My career since graduating from VCU has been devoted to exploring the deep connection between the fine arts and medicine,” Yacoe says. “This connection begins with anatomical models created by artists. These models then help doctors with surgical procedures and medical students when learning medical practice. But the cross-influence goes much deeper than that by allowing artists to help medical professionals visualize the spaces that our bodies contain and the spaces within which we live our lives.”

Last year, Yacoe received an interdisciplinary-focused Arts and Health Fellowship from VCU that allowed her to partner once again with Rhodes. This time, Yacoe and Rhodes created an ongoing course that develops and teaches figurative sculpting workshops for plastic surgery residents. The classes provide the discipline of a traditional sculpture class with drawing and figuring as well as developing the models for the residents to practice their medical procedures.

“This fellowship has been tremendously helpful because it has given me the resources and support needed to continue the work at VCU,” she says.

Yacoe’s talents have also been recognized outside the university. In 2014, she received the Theresa Pollak Prize, which recognizes artists whose work has en-riched the region, and she was named the lead sculptor for a key aspect of the restoration of the Rotunda at the University of Virginia.

“I feel very grateful that my education at VCU has given me a wonderful foundation in fine arts, science and medicine,” Yacoe says. “This has been invaluable in preparing me for the career path I have followed since graduating.”

Jean-Venable “Kelly” R. Goode, Pharm.D., BCPS, FAPhA, FCCP

1989 Bachelor of Science • 1994 Doctor of PharmacySchool of Pharmacy

“My education at the VCU School of

Pharmacy has opened up many

doors and created an enduring belief that anything is possible.”

In 1996, Jean-Venable “Kelly” R. Goode, Pharm.D., BCPS, FAPhA, FCCP, accepted a seminal role: a full-time faculty position at VCU focused on enhancing the role of the pharmacist in the community pharmacy setting. In the nearly 20 years since, she has developed a national reputation for her work in the development of patient care services in community pharmacies.

“Nationwide, 250 million people walk into community pharmacies each week,” says Goode, professor in the School of Pharmacy and director of its Community Pharmacy Residency Program. “The access is incredible, and the ability for the community pharmacist to make an impact in patient care in that setting is just tremendous.”

When she joined VCU’s pharmacy school, Goode was tasked with developing patient care services at Ukrop’s Pharmacy (now Martin’s Pharmacy), and under her leadership, she pioneered a shift in the way pharmacists do business. She implemented an impressive variety of wellness and prevention activities and established an immunization program that trained pharmacists to administer vaccinations. Within four years, she saw 99 percent of Ukrop’s pharmacists participating in the program. As a result of that success, Goode accepted the Non-Traditional Partner Award from the National Partnership for Immunization.

Today, Goode continues to consult with Martin’s Pharmacy and is a credentialed practitioner at the Daily Planet Inc., a health care center for the homeless in Richmond, Virginia. There, she has developed innovative pharmacists’ patient care programs, including medication therapy and chronic disease management, immunizations, prevention and wellness, collaborative team care for high-risk patients and a pharmacist-run medication refill program.

Goode credits VCU’s Pharm.D. program, where she had opportunities to work alongside faculty members and the dean, for propelling her professional success.

“My education at the VCU School of Pharmacy has opened up many doors and created an enduring belief that anything is possible,” she says. “It has helped me approach my profession with vision, passion and integrity.”

Her contributions to the field extend to service in professional associations at both the state and national levels, most significantly with the American Pharmacists Association, where she is president-elect. She’s also written a number of abstracts, special publications and journal articles and is the senior editor of “Community Pharmacy Practice Case Studies.”

For her commitment to furthering the pharmacy profession, Goode has received numerous awards, including the Ed Spearbeck Service Award from the Virginia Pharmacists Association, the APhA Daniel B. Smith Practice Excellence Award, the inaugural Community Pharmacy Faculty Award from the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation, the APhA Community Pharmacy Residency Excellence in Precepting Award, the VCU Distinguished Service Award and the VCU School of Pharmacy Teaching Excellence Award.

“My story is proof that times change and people change. We’ve come a long way in the South, in Virginia and at Virginia Commonwealth University.”

Grace E. Harris, Ph.D.1960 Master of Social Work

School of Social Work

Although Grace E. Harris, Ph.D., graduated with honors from Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), she was denied admission into graduate school at Richmond Professional Institute, one of VCU’s predecessor institutions, because of her race.

“I applied to RPI because of the reputation of the School of Social Work, which was started on the basis of the same kind of interests I had regarding community outreach and involvement with people,” she says. “But [the dean] informed me in person that because of the laws of the state that, at that point, I would not be considered for acceptance.”

In 1954, Virginia didn’t offer any graduate education for African-Americans through public institutions. Instead, the state would offer assistance for African-Americans to attend graduate school out of state. So Harris, a newlywed, picked up and moved to Boston University, where she studied alongside Martin Luther King Jr.

She later returned to RPI to complete her master’s in social work and ultimately lead the school that initially rejected her.

“The whole effort of the school was to build and to be helpful and to make the community a better place, which is what I wanted to do,” she says.

Harris’ long career at VCU began in 1967 when she joined the social work faculty. She became dean of the School of Social Work in 1982 and then VCU’s vice provost for continuing studies and public service in 1990.

When she retired nine years later, as provost and vice president for academic affairs, she had twice served as acting president of the university. She says her proudest accomplishment occurred at her retirement when VCU’s Board of Visitors established The Grace E. Harris Leadership Institute to honor her longstanding leadership, service and contribution. Sixteen years later, Harris continues to serve as the visionary leader of the institute where, she says, “I have the pleasure of seeing my legacy live on through their programs and mission.”

The university also rededicated the former School of Business building as Grace E. Harris Hall and has recognized Harris with numerous awards and honors, including the Presidential Medallion Award, the Presidential Award for Community Multicultural Enrichment and the Riese-Mellon Award. She also was cited for her leadership in establishing the first long-range strategic plan for VCU.

“My story is proof that times change and people change,” Harris says. “We’ve come a long way in the South, in Virginia and at Virginia Commonwealth University.”

Katherine Wintsch 2001 Master of Science

College of Humanities and Sciences Richard T. Robertson School of Media and Culture

“The education I received at the

VCU Brandcenter was remarkable. …

and the work ethic I developed as a result propelled

my career to great heights in a very

short period of time.”

As founder and CEO of The Mom Complex, an internationally acclaimed consulting company, Katherine Wintsch is considered one of the nation’s leading experts on motherhood. Her sought-after expertise has been featured by the “Today” show, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Fast Co., and she’s a regular blogger for The Huffington Post and Working Mother magazine.

While her two children — Layla, 8, and Alex, 6 — don’t always listen to her, many of the nation’s leading Fortune 500 companies hang on her every word. Brands such as Johnson & Johnson, Wal-Mart and Lego trust Wintsch and her team to reveal the good, the bad and the ugly behind motherhood and then turn those insights into compelling new products and services. Her creativity, resourcefulness and ability to inspire The Mom Complex’s team of talented women have led to numerous groundbreaking ideas and products, including shopping carts for Wal-Mart, a toy line for Playskool, brand positioning for E! Entertainment and a social media platform for Cool Whip.

For her work in the consulting world, this VCU Brandcenter graduate has been honored with the Advertising Women of New York’s Changing the Game award. She has also been named one of Ad Age’s 40 Under 40 and one of Business Insider’s 30 Most Powerful Women in Advertising.

“The education I received at the VCU Brandcenter was remarkable,” she says. “The fact that we lived and breathed the advertising industry 24 hours a day set me up for tremendous success in my career, and the work ethic I developed as a result propelled my career to great heights in a very short period of time.”

Before launching The Mom Complex, Wintsch served as a senior vice president and group planning director at The Martin Agency, where she ran the strategic planning efforts for the world’s largest marketer to moms, Wal-Mart.

Although Wintsch loves making an impact in the world of marketing and innovation, her true passion is impacting the lives of mothers directly by helping them overcome obstacles and make the leap toward a better life. She helped a mother turn the tragedy of losing her son into an internationally acclaimed nonprofit to prevent texting and driving (Project Yellow Light). She’s a strategic adviser to the nonprofit organization Unbound RVA, where she helps mothers at or below the poverty level become entrepreneurs. And, most recently, she was named the 2015 Richmond, Virginia, Christmas Mother, where she’ll help raise support for underprivileged women and families in the Richmond region.

“Never give up. Persistence is a Kenyon family trait — an intense desire to continuously learn new things, meet new people and work toward the common good.”

Norma Sue Kenyon, Ph.D.1987 Doctor of Philosophy

School of Medicine

After graduating from VCU with a doctorate in immunology, Norma Sue Kenyon, Ph.D., completed two postdoctoral fellowships, including one focused on Type 1 diabetes and islet cell transplantation. She left academics briefly, undertaking both research and development in the private sector but ultimately returned to the university setting.

“As I transitioned back to academics at Duke University, my 14-month-old daughter went into a coma from the onset of T1D,” says Kenyon, the Martin Kleiman Chair in Diabetes Research at the University of Miami’s Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. “I returned to diabetes research and have had the privilege of both collaborating with leaders in the field and also making seminal contributions to cure-related research.”

T1D is the result of an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system, normally effective at fighting off disease, attacks and destroys islet cells, the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Kenyon’s research focuses on islet cell transplantation, which has the promise of reducing or eliminating the need for insulin injections. She has marked several significant milestones in her journey to find a cure for T1D, including being the first to demonstrate that transplanted pancreatic islets could survive long term and reverse diabetes.

“The work I did as a tech in the Tissue Typing Lab in the VCU Department of Surgery led to my strong interest in translational research,” Kenyon says. “Intrigued by the fact that the same immune system that protects you from disease is also capable of turning against you in the setting of autoimmunity, transplant rejection and cancer, I focused my career on identifying and assessing approaches to manipulate the immune system to treat disease.”

Kenyon’s program in transplant immunology has received sustained National Institutes of Health support as well as funding from organizations devoted to diabetes research. Knowing how important sponsored funds are to moving research from the bench to the bedside, Kenyon, who also serves as UM’s vice provost for innovation, established the Wallace H. Coulter Center for Translational Research. The center, established in 2004, identifies and supports research that has the highest commercial potential.

“With a little over $3 million in funding to 34 projects, the supported technologies have obtained over $77 million in follow-on funding,” says Kenyon, the center’s executive director.

She also reorganized the university’s commercialization efforts and increased the number of licenses and startup companies, driving intellectual property revenue and generating interest and engagement from inside and outside UM.

“Never give up,” says Kenyon of the personal motto that drives her success. “Persistence is a Kenyon family trait — an intense desire to continuously learn new things, meet new people and work toward the common good.”

Michael T. Gamel-McCormick, Ph.D. 1995 Doctor of Philosophy

School of Education

“VCU recognizes that to be great, an

institution must serve its neighbors and its

region and use the knowledge gained and the personnel trained to improve

the lives of those that surround it.”

Risk propels Michael T. Gamel-McCormick, Ph.D., toward success. “My approach to my career has always been to take risks and to not remain

comfortable,” he says. “I believe growth and change happen only when you move outside your comfort zone.”

Following this philosophy has enabled him to effect profound change for children and others with disabilities. Among his accomplishments: establishing an inclusive child care center, consulting with the Dubai government to create a newborn screening program and collaborating on a Senate bill to advance disabilities rights, which President Obama signed into law.

“The law reauthorizes the Rehabilitation Act and provides resources to help youth with disabilities prepare for competitive, integrated employment,” explains Gamel-McCormick, associate executive director for research and policy for the Association of University Centers on Disabilities.

He served from 2010-14 as the education policy adviser for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions under the chairmanship of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and as the senator’s disability policy director. In the latter capacity, he wrote a report on the dangerous use in schools of restraints on children, especially children with disabilities, which was accompanied by legislation to prohibit the measures.

In honor of Gamel-McCormick’s commitment to advancing disabilities rights, Harkin wrote a tribute in the Congressional Record: “Throughout his career, Michael has worked to improve the lives of children and other people with disabilities. And because of his work, countless individuals with disabilities will work, live, laugh and flourish in their communities alongside friends, colleagues and neighbors.”

Before joining Senate staff, Gamel-McCormick was a professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies for 17 years, dean of the College of Education and Public Policy and director of the Center for Disabilities Studies, all at the University of Delaware.

Early in his career, Gamel-McCormick worked as an adjunct instructor for the VCU School of Education and as coordinator of the early childhood special education technical assistance center. He says the knowledge and passion expressed by the school’s faculty impressed him and encouraged him to enroll in the Ph.D. program.

“I value VCU for its diversity and its grounding in the community,” he says. “So called ‘excellent universities’ often ignore their immediate communities. VCU recognizes that to be great, an institution must serve its neighbors and its region and use the knowledge gained and the personnel trained to improve the lives of those that surround it.”

In this same vein, Gamel-McCormick shares his expertise to benefit others. He’s provided technical assistance to early childhood and early intervention programs throughout the nation and in five countries, is co-author of “Young Children with Special Needs: A Developmentally Appropriate Approach” and has published articles on inclusion, family-centered care and interdisciplinary teamwork.

“My experience at VCU was intoxicating to say the least. Every class I took got me closer to that coveted degree I was never expected to attain.”

Thomas J. Dorsey1975 Bachelor of Science

School of Business

A serious weightlifter, avid pool player and inveterate globe-trotter, Thomas J. Dorsey is a man of many talents. As president and co-founder of Dorsey, Wright & Associates, Dorsey prefers a rigorous, no-nonsense style to sizing up investments, with a top-down, objective approach that relies on the Point and Figure price-charting method popularized by Charles Dow in the late 1800s.

An investing pro with 41 years of experience, Dorsey has written nine books based on the Point and Figure technique, which have been translated in a number of languages. He’s been a regular guest on Fox’s “Cavuto: Coast-to-Coast” and “Bulls & Bears” programs and frequently speaks to audiences worldwide on topics related to the stock market, technical analysis and momentum investing.

Looking back, though, Dorsey says, his success was a longshot. “You see, all my life I would have been voted the least likely to succeed,”

says Dorsey, who has dyslexia. With a high school GPA that hovered around 1.5, Dorsey started at Richard Bland College in Petersburg, Virginia, on probation. He flunked out the first semester and spent the next four years in the Navy during the Vietnam War. He continued to work on his studies, teaching himself to eventually read at the college level and finished one final semester at Richard Bland before transferring to VCU.

“My experience at VCU was intoxicating to say the least,” Dorsey says. “Every class I took got me closer to that coveted degree I was never expected to attain. I learned that one can have difficulties learning in the younger years and still attain great success. I learned to be passionate with everything I did.”

Dorsey credits the lessons he learned in Economics 101 for serving as the spark that later prompted him to leave a senior vice president position at Wheat First Securities to start Dorsey, Wright & Associates.

“I still mention in every talk I do, how Economics 101 changed my life,” he says. “Once I graduated from VCU, I realized I could do anything in the world. If I was asked to be president of the United States, I was ready.”

Dorsey started his career as a stockbroker at Merrill, Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith but planned to have his own company by age 40. In 1987, at age 39, he started Dorsey, Wright & Associates, which grew to become a world leader in supplying technical research services to the financial industry. Just this year, he sold the company to NASDAQ for $225 million.

“I started Dorsey, Wright & Associates with $90,000 in borrowed money, a pregnant wife and two young boys. All we had in the beginning was a vision and hope,” he says. “I’ve learned that great success is in every one of us.”

Barbara L. Hartung 1972 Bachelor of Arts

College of Humanities and Sciences

“My philosophy studies provided

excellent training in logical thinking and

analysis. These skills were essential to both

my professional and personal life.”

Barbara L. Hartung, one of a small number of criminal defense attorneys who specialize in death row appeals, has pursued a career that lies at the intersection of law and philosophy. After earning a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at VCU, she pursued graduate studies in the philosophy of law at the University of Virginia, where she earned her master’s degree.

In the mid-’70s, she worked for the American Philosophical Association, then housed at the University of Delaware, and later joined the UD administration, serving first as an admissions counselor and later as assistant director of the university’s honors program. From Delaware, she moved to New York City and worked as director of undergraduate admissions at the New School for Social Research. Throughout these years, she taught philosophy part time.

While in New York, she took the next step in her career, earning her law degree from Brooklyn Law School. She later taught part time at both Brooklyn Law School and the Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University. She worked for two Manhattan criminal defense firms, assisting with state and federal cases, and for the criminal appeals bureau of The Legal Aid Society. She then opened a solo criminal defense practice.

When Hartung returned to Richmond in 1994, she joined the legal team at the Virginia Capital Representation Resource Center, a not-for-profit law firm dedicated to providing direct representation in death-penalty cases in Virginia and assisting attorneys representing death-sentenced inmates or those facing possible death sentences. She later established her own practice concentrating on representation of death row inmates.

“I enjoyed the professional challenge that criminal defense work presents, especially my representation of those sentenced to death,” Hartung says. “The work is intellectually challenging and complex. It requires creative thinking, patience and dogged persistence over many years. A death case is akin to a chess game, and the attorney must look many steps into the future before making a move.”

Hartung was involved in a number of high-profile capital murder cases, and the U.S. Supreme Court heard two of her cases, a credit that comes to very few attorneys. In 2008, she was co-counsel for Zacarias Moussaoui in his appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit arising from his terrorism conviction as the 20th hijacker on 9/11. In three other death-penalty cases, she represented clients whose sentences were ultimately changed to life in prison.

As she looks back on her accomplished career, Hartung, who retired in 2011, says her philosophy studies at VCU had a profound impact on her life and the work she ultimately pursued.

“I enjoyed my academic years teaching philosophy and then my legal career as a criminal defense attorney,” she says. “My philosophy studies provided excellent training in logical thinking and analysis. These skills were essential to both my professional and personal life.”

“VCU Life Sciences provided me with the skills and motivation to stay on top of new technology and act as a thought leader.”

Sterling Thomas, Ph.D.2010 Doctor of Philosophy

VCU Life Sciences

As an informaticist, Sterling Thomas, Ph.D., solves problems with data. His success in developing analytical tools to combat threats in the national security, biological and financial arenas can be attributed to his experiences while pursuing a Ph.D. in Integrative Life Sciences at VCU.

“Infectious disease and big data is a rapidly advancing field where many bright scientists are left behind due to rapid innovation,” Thomas says. “VCU Life Sciences provided me with the skills and motivation to stay on top of new technology and act as a thought leader.”

Through his work at the university and the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park, Thomas gained the necessary experiences and skills in team management, nontechnical audience communication and technology transfer to advance his capacity to be a leader in his field. He also capitalized on opportunities for cross-discipline collaborations, such as participating in two studies with the School of Business, experiences that taught him basic business strategy and how to engage with private funding sources.

After earning his doctorate, Thomas joined Noblis, a nonprofit research corporation with headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia, where he serves as a fellow and director of the advanced analytics and the Agile IT Division. There, he’s had the opportunity to work and lead in a field with rapid advances and continuous innovations. Under his direction, Noblis’ AIT Division offers advanced analytics research and development for clients in state, federal and private sectors for projects ranging from developing human diagnostics to developing financial algorithms for equities markets.

Thomas says the 2011 German E. coli outbreak, in particular, was a pivotal moment in his career. “I had only been at Noblis for 18 months and was asked to run the response that included collaboration with two U.S. Department of Energy labs, three U.S. Department of Defense labs and Columbia University,” Thomas says. “We were given less than 24 hours’ notice to begin receiving samples and data from Europe. This program had a major impact on narrowing down the source of the outbreak and understanding the fast-acting toxin acquired by this strain.”

His division has since managed a portfolio of diverse projects including the 2014 Ebola outbreak, infectious disease tracking and research, Web research focused on pursuing human traffickers and research in cybersecurity.

“My approach to managing my career is to focus on areas where I can provide value and make a difference to the public good and scientific discovery,” Thomas says. “Science has always been my focus, and this approach allows me to identify projects of interest for me and my teams.”

Jonathan W.B. Waybright 1990 Bachelor of Arts

College of Humanities and Sciences School of World Studies

“I have found the most rewarding

aspect of teaching is knowing that the

classroom can be such a catalyst for

inspiration and life change beyond mere

intellectual growth.”

Jonathan W.B. Waybright can pinpoint, with visual clarity, the moment he found his calling.

“I can easily remember the exact room, professor and course at VCU where, in very much an enlightening moment, my soul awakened from a near pedantic undergraduate slumber in business to a liberating sense of knowing I had found what truly interested me,” says Waybright, an instructor of religious studies and internship coordinator for the VCU School of World Studies. The course was The Bible as Literature, taught by Cliff Edwards, Ph.D., in Harris Hall, Room 2117.

“It was this spark that not only led to a dual major in religious studies and history, but more importantly connected me to material that would fuel both research and career interests for the next 24 years of my life.”

After completing his undergraduate studies at VCU, Waybright, sought out a graduate program that would accommodate his interests in ancient history and the world’s religions. In 1995, he enrolled in the Boston University School of Theology where he earned his master’s in theological studies.

Waybright supplemented his academic career with global experiences and adventure. Travel throughout Europe, Asia and the Near East provided context, anecdotes and life lessons that he brings into the classroom. “In today’s multicultural environment, a key for successful leadership and advancement in society depends on learning skills that enable students to understand cultures and perspectives far different than their own,” he says.

For more than 20 years, Waybright has served as the leader of an overseas archeological project in Israel. He is considered an expert in the field of archaeology and has encouraged dozens of students from Boston-area schools and Virginia universities to participate in this once-in-a-lifetime study-abroad experience, literally working alongside them to discover cultural remains that inform today’s scholarship.

He also serves as the core faculty member for Open Minds, a series of VCU service-learning courses offered in partnership with the Richmond City Sheriff’s Office, and he teaches courses at Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School and community-based continuing education seminars for seniors. He has received notable recognition for his work, including the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences’ Distinguished Adjunct Teacher award and the Harvard University Distinguished Service Award.

Waybright says he found his spark in a VCU classroom and it continues to thrive there.

“I have found the most rewarding aspect of teaching is knowing that the classroom can be such a catalyst for inspiration and life change beyond mere intellectual growth,” he says. “I have found no other replacement for the energy, atmosphere and stimulation of being in the classroom.”

“Serving as president of several student organizations provided me with a great platform to develop meaningful leadership skills that I employ to this day, as CEO of a multibillion-dollar organization.”

Keith T. Parker, AICP1990 Bachelor of Arts

College of Humanities and Sciences1993 Master of Urban and Regional Planning

L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs

While serving as president of VCU’s Urban and Regional Planning Student Association, Keith T. Parker, AICP, invited Michael Townes, then-CEO of the Hampton Roads Transit system, to speak at the group’s annual conference. That connection led Parker to his first position in the public transit industry as senior planner with the San Joaquin Metropolitan Transit District in Stockton, California.

“He became my adviser and recommended me for the position,” Parker says of Townes.

Parker’s career since that break-in role has included public- and private-sector experiences in diverse communities in Virginia, California, Washington, North Carolina, Texas and, most recently, Georgia.

In 2012, Parker was hired to serve as general manager and CEO of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, the nation’s ninth-largest transit system, which includes heavy rail, bus and paratransit services. When Parker arrived, MARTA was facing projected annual budget deficits of up to $33 million, massive ridership declines and an overwhelmingly negative public perception. In addition, in the previous five years, the agency had eliminated 30 percent of its bus routes, increased fares by more than 40 percent and provided raises for employees in only one of the previous 10 years. Under Parker’s leadership, the authority has focused on working with employees, customers, transit stakeholders and the community to provide safe, efficient and high-quality transit services to the Atlanta region.

“Our MARTA team has turned the projected budget deficits into surpluses averaging over $15 million annually, increased ridership, added bus and rail service, held fares flat, provided raises for all eligible employees and dramatically improved the perception of the agency,” Parker says.

Positive media stories now outnumber the negative 12-to-1, he notes. For his efforts, Parker’s peers in the transit industry voted him as the nation’s Most Outstanding Public Transit Manager of 2015.

Parker also serves on the boards of several civic and charitable organizations and credits VCU for giving him the opportunity to gain leadership experience. In addition to URPSA, as a student, he served as president of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and helped lead efforts that resulted in the creation of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and the introduction of the Fall Block Show, which today is one of the country’s largest.

“VCU provided the unfettered opportunity to become an adult,” Parker says. “I made many mistakes, learning a lot along the way. Serving as president of several student organizations provided me with a great platform to develop meaningful leadership skills that I employ to this day, as CEO of a multibillion-dollar organization.”

Christine S. Zambricki, D.N.A.P., CRNA, FAAN2012 Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice

School of Allied Health Professions

“Because of the opportunity provided

by VCU to compare clinical safety issues with colleagues, our

conscience is clear that we have made

the risk known.”

Christine S. Zambricki, D.N.A.P., CRNA, FAAN, joined America’s Blood Centers as CEO in 2013, culminating a 30-plus-year career of extensive health care advocacy, association and hospital leadership experience. America’s Blood Centers represents North America’s largest network of community-based blood centers that provides half the U.S. blood supply to more than 3,500 hospitals and health care facilities.

Before leading the nonprofit, Zambricki served as chief operating officer and chief nursing officer of Henry Ford Health System in Detroit. In that role, she helped plan and open West Bloomfield Hospital, a $360 million facility where she orchestrated patient-friendly architectural designs, wellness services and an integrative medicine clinic.

Michael D. Fallacaro, D.N.S., CRNA, FAAN, the Herbert T. Watson Endowed Professor and Chair of VCU’s Department of Nurse Anesthesia, describes Zambricki as “a highly respected nursing scholar, a consummate professional in research, publication, professional association, community affairs and government relations.”

In the legislative arena, Zambricki has served, at the governor’s appointment, as chair of the Michigan Board of Nursing and the Michigan Nursing Specialty Task Force. She also served a three-year post as senior director of federal affairs strategies with the 47,000-member American Association of Nurse Anesthetists. Under her leadership, AANA created a national network of state reimbursement experts to standardize how certified registered nurse anesthetist services are reimbursed.

As a scholar, she has written more than 40 papers and articles focused on education, advocacy and safety in the profession. One article stemmed from a journal club discussion she led as a doctoral student at VCU.

“I was surprised to see one of my own graduate students from 20 years prior in the audience,” says Zambricki, who has dedicated many of her professional years to teaching. “I mentioned a case of standardization of deviance that had haunted me for years having to do with the improper use of equipment to accomplish cost savings. To my surprise, she mentioned that she had seen the same misappropriation of the same piece of equipment in her practice.”

This revelation led Zambricki to publish a paper bringing light to the issue. Since then, several CRNAs have contacted her reporting the same incorrect device use in their hospitals and how they’ve used her article to change their practice. “Have lives been saved?” Zambricki asks. “We will never know. But because of the opportunity provided by VCU to compare clinical safety issues with colleagues, our conscience is clear that we have made the risk known.”

Her dedication to the practice and efforts to further the art and science of nurse anesthesia have earned Zambricki many notable awards, including the profession’s highest award, AANA’s Agatha Hodgkins Award for Outstanding Accomplishment.

“From the battlefield of Iraq to the floor of the Virginia General Assembly, I am always proud to be a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University.”

Del. Todd E. Pillion, D.D.S.2001 Doctor of Dental Surgery

School of Dentistry

Raised on a farm in Ewing, Virginia, Republican Del. Todd E. Pillion, D.D.S., grew up understanding the value of education. His thirst for knowledge led him through college at Lincoln Memorial University in Tennessee and then to the VCU School of Dentistry as one of a handful of students from the Southwest Virginia area.

At VCU, he became active in student government, serving his fellow classmates as president of the dental student body during his senior year and as vice president of the MCV Campus SGA. In his third year, Pillion participated in the inaugural Missions of Mercy project to provide dental care for Virginia’s uninsured and underserved populations. The event took place in Wise, Virginia, near his hometown.

“As a proud Southwest Virginian, I told the organizers that a free clinic would never work,” he recalls. “I was amazed, and proven very wrong, when I arrived that first morning at the fairgrounds to a line of people that seemed to go on forever. I recognized then the need for dental care was great and my mission to return home to practice and provide dental care for my native community was a much needed one.”

Following graduation from dental school, Pillion joined the Virginia Army National Guard. He was called to active duty to support Operation Iraqi Freedom and completed his eight-year commitment in 2009 with the rank of major and the honor of being the state dental officer for Virginia’s finest.

Pillion advanced his education through a postgraduate residency program in pediatric dentistry in Buffalo, New York, and practices at Pillion & Smith Pediatric Dental Associates, a three-office clinic that serves patients from Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee.

In 2014, Pillion was elected to represent Virginia’s 4th District as the voice of Southwest Virginia in the House of Delegates. He serves on the committees for Counties, Cities and Towns; Science and Technology; and Transportation. He also was appointed to the Southwest Virginia Public Education Consortium Governing Board.

As a dentist and a delegate, Pillion works to improve the lives of Southwest Virginians. “Since the Missions of Mercy project, I have worked to find solutions to the problem I was faced with that morning,” he says. “Pillion & Smith is a leading provider serving Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee that accepts Medicaid reimbursement for pediatric dental care. As delegate, I am constantly searching for ways to improve the economic prospects of my fellow Southwest Virginians through new jobs that provide paychecks and insurance that will enable people to afford preventative dental care.”

Pillion is passionate about his affiliation with the VCU School of Dentistry and has served as a mentor and advocate for the school.

“The VCU School of Dentistry prepared me for all the challenges that my career could offer,” he says. “From the battlefield of Iraq to the floor of the Virginia General Assembly, I am always proud to be a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University.”

Brad Trevillian 2006 Bachelor of Science

School of Engineering

“At Virginia Commonwealth University, I was

afforded the opportunity to

leverage diverse talents and

perspectives to begin shaping

my future.”

During his senior year at the VCU School of Engineering, Brad Trevillian designed a custom ice-rail bar that automatically sensed when a drink was placed on it and kept the beverage cold. He says this senior design project taught him invaluable skills that he carries with him today as general manager at Trane in Richmond, Virginia.

“I had the opportunity to identify a real-world problem, interview key stakeholders, assemble a budget, secure funding, design the system, execute the project and install the final product in a customer’s home,” he says. “As a salesperson, and later as a manager, the skill of really listening to the end user prior to implementing a solution has been paramount. I also learned the importance of a team and the reality that the best solutions are rarely achieved in a vacuum.”

Following graduation, Trevillian joined Trane, a creator of high-performance commercial buildings, as a direct account manager. He was promoted to direct sales manager in 2010, to general sales manager in 2013 and just this past spring to general manager. In this role he leads 110 team members and oversees more than $100 million in equipment, contracting and service revenue streams.

“I have the privilege of working with what I (and many others) consider to be the best team of sales engineers in the Trane company globally,” Trevillian says. “I believe that customers are No. 2. Associates are No. 1. Business results are No. 3. If we take care of associates and enable a world-class culture, the associates will take care of the customers. If the associates take care of our customers, business results will follow. At Trane, our associates own that world-class culture.”

It’s this philosophy that earned him a 2014 and 2015 Sterling Workplace Award from the Richmond Society for Human Resource Management. He’s also been recognized several times as a Trane Sales Associate of the Year.

Outside of work, Trevillian is an active member in the community, including service roles on the executive committee and board of the Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce; chair of the Hanover Business Council; president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers; member of the VCU School of Engineering Alumni Association board; and a member of the Hanover County School Superintendent’s Budget Advisory Council. In 2014, he received the Hanover County Commitment fo Community Award, recognizing the volunteer efforts of the local Trane team.

He’s also returned to his alma mater to inspire and talk with the next generation of innovators.

“At Virginia Commonwealth University, I was afforded the opportunity to leverage diverse talents and perspectives to begin shaping my future,” he says. “I chose VCU’s School of Engineering because I wanted to do more than study engineering theory. VCU offered hands-on opportunities, with labs, seminars and design projects that worked on real-world applications.”

1989 Peggy C. Adams Wyndham Blanton Jr., M.D.* William C. Bosher Jr., Ed.D.* Sarah Cooke* Altamont Dickerson Jr., D.Ed. Paul A. Gross John Hasty Mattie S. Jones* Fitzhugh Mayo, M.D. French H. Moore Jr., D.D.S. Tom Robbins Dana Ward George Woltz

1990 Ronald C. Abernathy D. Ware Branch, M.D. Phyllis Cothran Deborah D’Alessandro Ginna Dalton Kathy Kaplan, Ph.D. Suzanne Laychock, Ph.D. Elizabeth A. Mason Michael McMunn, D.D.S. Martha Moon, Ph.D. Teresa Mullin Kenneth F. Smith Kathy Snowden

1991 Thomas W. Blekicki Stephanie Ferguson, Ph.D. Bill Gaines* Fred Karnas, Ph.D. Lynda Mandell, Ph.D. Karl E. Peace, Ph.D. Robert Rigsby James Schroeder, D.D.S. Jay T. Thompson III Thelma Bland Watson, Ph.D. Adyce Waymack* Sandra Wiltshire

1992 Richard D. Barnes, D.D.S.Maurice Beane Don Beville James W. Bynum, Ed.D. Gary D.V. Hankins, M.D. S. Chris Jones J.C. McWilliams Jr. Susan A. Minasian James A. Rothrock John Seibert Beth A. Sharp, Ph.D. Donald M. Stablein, Ph.D. Denise Williams

1993 Virginia “Penny” H. Anderson Charles Ben Bissell, Ph.D. James N. Boyd Anthony G. Cokes John C. Doswell II, D.D.S. James D. Fox Woody B. Hanes Richard W. Leatherman, Ph.D. Diana J. McGinn, Ph.D. Thomas L. Mountcastle Richard P. Phipps, Ph.D. Marie A. Smith, Pharm.D. Keith N. Van Arsdalen, M.D.

1994 Lou Oliver Brooks Barry L. Carter, Pharm.D. Claire Faith Collins Jeremy Conway Richard C. Davis Jr., M.D. William D. Dietrich III, Ph.D. Michael A. Evans David Hunt Michelle B. Mitchell Dana Moriconi A. Carole Pratt, D.D.S. Joan F. Rexinger Sydney Sherrod, Ph.D.

1995 Anne C. Adams, D.D.S. John O. Beckner David Lee Cochran, Ph.D. Regan L. Crump, Ph.D. Robert J. Grey Jr. Bruce E. Jarrell, M.D. M. Kenneth Magill, Ph.D. Catherine E. Nash* Robert A. Pratt, Ph.D. Joseph A. Runk* David W. Singley Jr. Roberta Williamson

1997 Sheryl D. Baldwin, Ph.D. Edward B. Barber Susan I. Brandt Catherine S. Casey, M.D. Eugenio A. Cefali, Ph.D. Teresita Fernandez R. Reese Harris Richard C. Kraus* Jeffrey Levin, D.D.S. Carol A. McCoy Marilyn B. Tavenner Linda R. Watkins, Ph.D.

1998 John D. Bower, M.D. Sheila Crowley, Ph.D. Bevill M. Dean Nancy K. Durrett Charlotte G. Fischer Jay F. Fitzgerald Russell W. Heath Jr. James H. Revere Jr., D.D.S. Sheri A. Reynolds Mark A. Szalwinski Tracey S. Welborn Sandra P. Welch, Ph.D.

1999 Ralph L. Anderson, D.D.S. Susan M. Carlton, Ph.D. Melissa A. Davis Carl F. Emswiller Jr.* John J. Nagelhout, Ph.D. Cathy N. Pond Richard T. Robertson Patricia A. Rowell, Ph.D. Alice M. Schreiner* Thomas G. Snead Jr. Jeffrey K. Taubenberger, M.D. Susan M. Trulove

2000 Elnora Allen David Baldacci, J.D. Gregory Enas, Ph.D. Earl R. Fox, M.D.* William M. Ginther Victor Goines Jane Moncure* Carmen Nazario Rita Pickler, Ph.D. Rebecca Parker Snead William J. Viglione, D.D.S.

2001 Jo Lynne DeMary, Ed.D. Rex Ellis, Ph.D. Milton Ende, M.D.*, and

Norman Ende, M.D. Cynthia Garris L. Preston Hale Daniel Jarboe, Ph.D. Rodney J. Klima, D.D.S. James Lester Janice Meck Susan Morales Katharine Webb

2003Christopher C. Colenda, M.D. Donna M. Dalton Edward L. Flippen, J.D. Starrene Foster Ray C. Goodwin Daniel A. Herbert* Kevin L. Holmes, Ph.D. Brian K. Jackson Robert B. Lantz* Bennie L. Marshall, RN, Ed.D. James O. Munn Christopher C. Thurston and

William H. Chapman James D. Watkins, D.D.S.

2005 Ira C. Colby, D.S.W. Bradford A. Crosby Nancy C. Everett Judith W. Godwin Stephanie L. Holt Colleen K. Jackson-Cook, Ph.D.Anita M. Josey-Herring, J.D. Hugh D. Keogh Thomas M. Krummel, M.D. Margaret Gallagher Lewis Bruce D. McWhinney, Pharm.D. Rebecca Perdue Leah T. Robinson, Ph.D.* Roger E. Wood, D.D.S.

2008 Golden H. Bethune-Hill Mark A. Crabtree, D.D.S. John Cragin Donwan T. Harrell Sheila Hill-Christian Steven Offenbacher, Ph.D. Mary Perkinson Jonathan B. Perlin, Ph.D. Mark Raper

Cathy Saunders Tom Silvestri Patricia W. Slattum, Pharm.D., Ph.D. Robert J. Wittman, Ph.D. Patricia Wright, Ed.D.

2011 Edmond F. Bowden, Ph.D. Glenn A. Davis Tara Donovan Dale C. Kalkofen, Ed.D. Panelpha “Penny” L. Kyler,

Sc.D., OTR/L Debra E. Lyon, Ph.D. Paul D. McWhinney Jonathan C. Roberts Jason T. Roe Ronald L. Tankersley, D.D.S. Tadataka “Tachi” Yamada, M.D.

2013Angela T. Bacskocky Joseph F. Damico S. Dallas Dance, Ph.D.Raymond A. Dionne, Ph.D. Josephine L. Hargis Stephen W. Harms Sainath R. Iyer Arthur W. Layne Susan M. Learned, Pharm.D., Ph.D. Tonya S. Mallory Oscar L. Martin Jr., Ph.D. Julian C. Metts Jr., D.D.S Jesse VaughanJane G. Watkins

* Deceased

Alumni Stars1989-2013

Alumni Stars1989-2013

AcknowledgementsNeil Duman (B.A.’77/A), designer and creator of the glass award

Frederic and Joan Brumbach from On Stage Gear LLC

VCU Commonwealth Singers conducted by Erin Freeman

Award assistant: Allison Oberlin, Class of 2017 and STAT president

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