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Connections

Class Notes

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Class notes are the perfect way to share your news with friends and classmates. Read about your classmates in this issue of GSU Magazine, then share your own news, achievements, accomplishments and photos. Mail your class notes to GSU Magazine, P.O. Box 3983, Atlanta, GA 30302-3983 or e-mail them to winman@gsu.edu.

1960s

  • Ed H. Bowman Jr. (B.B.A. '68) was named Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year. He was a 2010 Regional (Southwest) Award winner and is president and chief executive officer of SOURCECORP Inc.  He and his wife, Betty Jean Bowman (B.B.A. '85), live in Dallas.
  • Joel F. Fletcher (B.A. '61) has authored "The Great Atlanta Bike Race of 1948," a story of youthful adventure that recaptures a wonderful time and place in the 1940s.
  • The Georgia Municipal Association awarded Eva Galambos (Ph.D. '69), mayor of Sandy Springs, Ga., its "People, Place and Purpose" award during its annual meeting this summer in Savannah. Forbes magazine has named Sandy Springs one of its "Top 25 Towns to Live Well" under her leadership.

1970s

  • Seals Burdell (B.B.A. '76), a CPA with 34 years of finance experience in the poultry industry, will helm financial operations at the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association as controller.
  • Bruce Cook (M.P.A. '78), chaplain for the Crime Victims Advocacy Council in Atlanta, recently wrote a book, "Redeeming the Wounded," that was published by Xulon Press.
  • Lynn Coulter (B.A. '76) recently published a new book titled "Little Mercies: Celebrating God's Everyday Grace and Goodness" with B&H Books, a division of Lifeway.
  • Douglas Daniel (B.B.A. '75) has been named senior vice president of corporate development and finance for GeoBio.
  • Sister M. Susan Harms, (M.E. '74), Religious Order of Sisters of Mercy, is celebrating her 50th year as a Sister of Mercy and her 36th year as a first-grade teacher in Savannah, Ga., first at the Nativity of Our Lord Catholic School, and now at Saint Peter the Apostle Catholic School on Wilmington Island.
  • William "Marvin" Toliver (M.P.A. '77) is the manager of community relations for the Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority.
  • Krista Webb (B.A. '79) has been selected Cherokee County School District's Teacher of the Year for 2010. Webb teaches social studies at Woodstock High.
  • David M. White (M.Ed. '75) has been named campus vice chancellor for Troy University's Phenix City Campus. White has worked in teaching and administrative roles at Troy since 1996. He most recently served as director of Troy's Southeast Region, which includes 21 campus sites in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida and Tennessee.

1980s

  • Hamid Bastin (Ph.D. '89) is a professor of economics at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, where he has taught since 1989.
  • Susan E. Claxton (B.S. '88, M.S. '92), associate professor and coordinator of the Human Services program at Georgia Highlands College, was awarded the Miriam Clubok award by the National Organization of Human Service Education.
  • Eddie Ellis (M.Mus. '86), director of bands at S.C. State University, has been awarded the Dr. G. Johnson Hubert and Cleophus Johnson Award for Distinguished Achievement in Music.
  • Judson L. Hawk (B.A. '85) was appointed by Dolce Hotels and Resorts to general manager of the Aspen Meadows Resort - home of The Aspen Institute, a nonprofit policy organization.
  • Thomas Jackson (M.B.A. '81) will serve as senior vice president and commercial lender for Verity Bank in Winder, Ga. Prior to joining Verity Bank, Jackson served as city president of Georgia Bank & Trust in Athens, Ga. Jackson, a 32-year career banker, has served 22 years in the Athens community.
  • Grady W. "Skip" Philips III (M.B.A. '87, M.H.A. '89) has been named CEO of Memorial Hospital in Martinsville, Va. He most recently was president and CEO of Houston Healthcare in Warner Robins, Ga.

1990s

  • Angela Douglas (M.P.A. '98) is lecturer and master's of public administration program coordinator at the University of North Carolina - Wilmington.
  • Tom Harbin (M.B.A. '91) an ophthalmologist, recently wrote the book "What Every Doctor Should Know...But Was Never Taught in Medical School," published by FEP International.
  • Christopher R. Koeneman (M.B.A. '96) has joined Bluesocket, a supplier of virtual wireless LAN networking, as vice president of Worldwide Sales and Marketing. He has held senior leadership positions at AT&T, Data Com Systems and Cisco.
  • Suzanne Shields (B.B.A. '96) has been named resident vice president of the Nashville, Tenn. office for Harleysville Insurance. In this position, she will oversee Harleysville's property/casualty operations in Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee.
  • Roger (Rong) Zhang (M.A. '93, M.P.A. '96) has been appointed Chief Financial Officer of China TransInfo Technology Group Co., Ltd. 

2000s

  • Grant Black (Ph.D. '01) is an associate professor of economics at the University of Missouri - St. Louis, where he directs the Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Education.
  • Robert David Black (B.S. '02), a student in Cal State Los Angeles' doctoral program in educational leadership, was recently honored as one of two 2010 CSU Trustee Ali C. Razi Scholars. The award, which includes a $10,000 scholarship, is given by CSU trustees to a select group of CSU William Randolph Hearst Scholars.
  • Jae Brown (B.S. '04), an emergency response coordinator for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, was named the 2010 Atlanta Urban League Young Professional's-Heineken Rising Star. The Rising Star award is given to a talented young professional leader from across the metro area between the ages of 21-40 who has demonstrated a commitment to community and leadership in the area of economic development.
  • Maria McDaniel Dikin (M.Mus. '07) won the Grand Prize Oxnard Gold Medal Award in the 2010 American Traditions Competition for Singers held during the Savannah (Georgia) Music Festival. Dikin sang opera, art song, jazz and musical theater repertoire to win the $12,000 first prize. She also sang the role of Second Lady in the Atlanta Opera's April 2010 production of "The Magic Flute."
  • Sandra Francis (M.S. '05), an office manager at Georgia Perimeter College, is a contributing writer for Winsome Way Children's Magazine and has authored the books "Kenya: At First Impression" and "South Africa: Looking Through the Eyes of Compassion."
  • Daniel T. Hall (M.A. '06, Ph.D. '10) was recently hired as assistant professor of economics in the Earl N. Phillips School of Business at High Point University in High Point, N.C.
  • Andrew E. Lovejoy (M.B.A. '05) has been promoted to president of Civil Engineering Consultants, a civil and environmental engineering firm specializing in water and wastewater infrastructure projects.
  • Mary-Kate Murray (B.S.W. '07, M.P.A. '10) has been named director of youth leadership and engagement for GUIDE Inc. in Lawrenceville, Ga.
  • Lindsay R. Romasanta (M.P.A. '09) joined Arizona State University Health Services' Wellness and Health Promotion staff as a health educator.
  • Robert F. Salvino (M.S. '04, Ph.D. '07), assistant professor of economics at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C., was recently named research economist with the BB&T Center for Economic and Community Development in the university's E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration.
  • Rebecca Serna Woiderski (M.S. '07), executive director of the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition, has joined the board of EarthShare of Georgia, which raises donations for environmental organizations through employee giving.
  • Magdalena Wór (B.Mus. '03, B.A. '05, M.Mus. '05) gave her debut performance in the title role in "Carmen" with Palm Beach Opera in April and received a stellar review from the Palm Beach Arts paper. Wór also sang the "Vivaldi Gloria" with the National Philharmonic and "Tisbe" for Washington Concert Opera's production of "La Cenerentola" in May.

2010s

  • Sidnei Alferes (M.Mus. '10) serves as an affiliate artist at Agnes Scott College, teaching voice and opera workshops for the 2010-2011 academic year.
  • James Burch (B.Mus. '10) recently won the Atlanta Music Club's Scholarship Competition. He is attending graduate school at Southern Methodist University's Meadows School for the Arts.
  • Will Corbin (M.P.A. '10) is a project associate for Market Street who was previously an assistant project manager in the DeKalb County Office of Economic Development.
  • Steven Gooden (B.Mus. '10) is attending Northwestern University as a graduate award recipient in the Master of Music (clarinet) program.
  • Heather N. Hammonds (J.D. '10) has been named an associate in the litigation department with the Savannah law firm of Oliver Maner LLP. She concentrates her practice in the area of medical malpractice litigation.
  • Jennifer Zuiff (B.Mus. '10) won the Courtney Knight Gaines Silver Medal Award in the 2010 American Traditions Competition for Singers held during the Savannah Music Festival in Savannah, Ga.