Updated: October 2014

In February, the U.S.-Israeli non-government organization ORT invited Bernard Schechterman, MA’50, PhD’73, to give a presentation, “Understanding and Analysis of the Middle East/North African Arab/Islamic World Today.” Schechterman is a professor emeritus of international relations and Middle East studies at the University of Miami. He lives in Boynton Beach, Fla.

In May, Phyllis White Geeslin, BS’60, former president and CEO of the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site, was honored at a retirement celebration in Indianapolis. Geeslin, who had led the museum and former home of the 23rd president of the United States since 1993, was also presented with the Sagamore of the Wabash award. She was joined at the event by nine IU classmates and members of the Kappa Kappa Gamma women’s fraternity—Susanna Walker Buchanan, BS’60; Marsha Mackanos Carlson, BA’59; Joan Rothrock Everitt, BA’62; Judith Binz Hohlt, BS’60; Marie E. Kingdon, BA’59; Gretchen Chickedantz Mathews, ’60; Mary Ann Pulse McCray, BA’60; Katherine Berry McKinney, BS’60; and Judith Hinds McNarny, BS’60.

San Francisco-based attorney Guy O. Kornblum, BA’61, has been named a member of the National Trial Lawyers’ listing, “Top 100 Trial Lawyers.” The Top 100 is composed of the premier trial lawyers from each state who meet stringent qualifications as civil plaintiff and/or criminal defense trial lawyers. Kornblum, who has also been named a fellow of the American Board of Certified Attorneys, heads the civil litigation firm of Kornblum, Cochran, Erickson & Harbison, with offices in San Francisco and Santa Rosa, Calif.

Bose McKinney & Evans attorney Daniel B. Seitz, BA’65, JD’68, has been selected for inclusion in the publication Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the area of insurance law. Seitz is of counsel in the law firm Bose McKinney & Evans’s Indianapolis office and is a member of the firm’s insurance, health care, and business services groups. He lives in Avon, Ind.

Indiana University and the IU Foundation honored several alumni as Partners in Philanthropy in October. The recipients were recognized for the integral role they have played in furthering the university’s philanthropic goals as volunteers and supporters. Joel F. Meier, ReD’73, and Patricia Meier, received the Cornerstone Award for their efforts on behalf of the School of Public Health and IU Art Museum, while Louise Eleanor Addicott received the Cornerstone Award for her support of the Jacobs School of Music and IU South Bend. John R. MacLennan, BS’60, and Kathryn “Kay” Ryan Booth, BA’72, received the Keystone Award, recognizing their exemplary volunteer leadership through multiple IU campaigns and fundraising initiatives. V. William “Bill” Hunt, BA’66, JD’69, LHD’11, and Nancy Bergen Hunt, received the Herman B Wells Visionary Award in recognition of their longstanding dedication to IU.

The IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs recently received a $3 million gift from Paul H. O’Neill, MPA’66, LHD’14, the largest private donation in the school’s history. O’Neill began a career in public service in 1961 as a computer systems analyst with the U.S. Veterans Administration before joining the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed him U.S. secretary of the treasury. Prior to his retirement as chairman and CEO of Alcoa, O’Neill helped found the not-for-profit Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative to address the clinical and economic problems of the region’s health care system. He lives in Pittsburgh.

Former Hancock County (Ind.) Superior Court judge, Richard T. Payne, BA’66, JD’69, received the George B. Davis Jr. Distinguished Jurist Award from the Hancock County Bar Association at its 2014 spring dinner. Payne served as a judge for 42 years and is currently employed by the Indiana Supreme Court’s division of state court administration as a staff attorney in the trial court management section. Payne lives in Greenfield, Ind.

Paul A. Rozycki, MA’67, has retired from Mott Community College in Flint, Mich., where he taught political science since 1969. Rozycki, who also taught political science at Ball State University from 1967–69, is the author of Politics and Government in Michigan and A Clearer Image: The History of Mott Community College. He lives in Flint.

In October 2013, the IU College of Arts and Sciences in Bloomington welcomed three alumni back to campus as members of the inaugural class of the College’s Luminaries Program. The three alumni are Donald M. Fehr, BA’70, executive director of the National Hockey League Players Association; Lorna G. Schofield, BA’77, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York; and Robert A. “Bob” Chapek, BS’81, president of Disney Consumer Products. The Luminaries Program brings successful College alumni to campus to share personal and professional ideas and experiences with students, alumni, faculty, and staff in order to inspire future leaders.

W. Paul Helmke Jr., BA’70, LLD’07, was inducted into the National Academy of Public Administration in November. He is professor of practice in the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs and director of the school’s Civic Leaders Living–Learning Center, which opened in August. In addition to practicing law in Fort Wayne, Ind., for a number of years, Helmke also served three terms as mayor of the city and later headed the D.C.-based Brady Center/Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence.

John R. Sheehan, BA’71, MBA’73, has retired after nearly 13 years as director of the Douglas County Community Mental Health Center, an acute psychiatric hospital in Omaha, Neb. He retired as a colonel from the U.S. Air Force in 1999 after 27 years service. His wife, Deborah (Hartlage), BA’72, completed a master’s degree in Christian spirituality at Creighton University in 1999. She is a spiritual director and an adjunct faculty member in the Creighton University Christian Spirituality Program. The couple lives in Bellevue, Neb.

“I have recently published my second novel,” writes Richard S. Sheres, BA’71. “Ingersoll, published by Vendemmia Press, is a story of political and social conflict in a near-future America,” he adds. The author of Keeping Gideon, Sheres is a former U.S. government foreign affairs and intelligence senior executive. He and his wife live in Alexandria, Va.

Stephen R. Pennell, BA’73, JD’76, was one of four attorneys from the Indiana law firm Stuart & Branigin to be named by Indiana Super Lawyers magazine as among the top attorneys in the state in the 2014 edition of the listing, which recognizes lawyers for achievements in specific practice areas. A partner in the firm’s Lafayette, Ind., office, Pennell has extensive experience as a trial attorney in Indiana and courts across the country, and has successfully argued cases in the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, Indiana Supreme Court, and Indiana Court of Appeals. In recognition of his success as a trial lawyer, he has been named as an “Indiana Super Lawyer” for civil litigation defense each year since 2004 and has also been named in Best Lawyers in America since 2004. Pennell lives in West Lafayette, Ind.

Michael E. Brown, BA’74, JD/MBA’78, a senior partner in the Indianapolis office of law firm Kightlinger & Gray, was recently selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the area of legal malpractice law–defendants. He was also named Best Lawyers’ 2014–15 “Lawyer of the Year” in the Indianapolis legal malpractice law–defendants category. Brown’s practice areas include commercial litigation, constitutional law, insurance law and regulation, and professional liability litigation.

In July 2011, Fred J. Logan Jr., BA’74, JD’77, was appointed chair of the Kansas Board of Regents, the governing board for higher education institutions in the state of Kansas. Logan is an attorney and partner in the law firm Logan Logan & Watson in Prairie Village, Kan., where he focuses his practice in the areas of business law, public and not-for-profit law, real estate, probate and estate planning law, and administrative law. He lives in Leawood, Kan.

Charles H. Lichtman, BA’77, was recognized in the 2015 Best Lawyers in America ranking guide in four categories: securities fraud, “bet-the-company,” commercial, and bankruptcy litigation. He was also listed in the Chambers Global guide for his work representing a client in a $1.4 billion Ponzi scheme and for recovering 100 percent of the victims’ investment losses. Lichtman is an attorney and partner in the Florida law firm Berger Singerman’s Fort Lauderdale office. He lives in Boca Raton, Fla.

Thomas C. Pence, BA’77, JD’80, has been recognized as a leading lawyer in his field in the 2014 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. He is a partner and litigation attorney in the Milwaukee office of the law firm Foley & Lardner, where he represents employers in all aspects of labor and employment law. Pence is a frequent speaker on labor and employment law topics and is former chairman of the Foley & Lardner labor and employment practice.

Three attorneys in the Indianapolis office of the law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister have been selected for inclusion in the 2014 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. They are Marci A. Reddick, BA’78, JD’84, a partner in the firm’s real estate and business and finance practice groups; Bradley W. Schwer, JD/MBA’99, a partner in the business and finance practice group; and Michael C. Terrell, BS’81, JD’84, a partner in the firm’s labor and employment law practice group. All three live in Indianapolis.

In September 2013, Polly D. Boruff-Jones, BA’79, MLS’96, Cert’06, MPA’10, became dean of the Indiana University Kokomo Library. She previously served as director of library and information services at F.W. Olin Library at Drury University in Springfield, Mo., where she also served as director of academic computing. Prior to that, she was associate dean for learning, teaching, and research at IUPUI. As dean of the IU Kokomo Library, she leads all areas of library administration and operation.

In October 2013, M. Lillian Casillas-Origel, BA’89, MS’98, director of La Casa, the Indiana University Latino Cultural Center at IU Bloomington, was named 2013 recipient of the IU Latino Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award. The award recognizes outstanding professional achievements and community service of Latino alumni of any IU campus. Previous winners of the award include Lake County (Ind.) Superior Court Judge Jesse M. Villalpando, BA’81, JD’84; Chicago television journalist Felipe V. “Phil” Ponce, BA’71; Arizona State University professor Carlos J. Ovando, MAT’69, MA’73, PhD’75; and administrative law judge Albert J. Velasquez, JD’73.

Samuel D. Hodson, BA’82, JD’86, MBA’90, has joined the law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister’s Indianapolis office as a partner. He is a member of the business restructuring, bankruptcy, and creditor rights practice group. Hodson lives in Greenwood, Ind.

Dolores M. “Lori” Theisen, BA’83, recently started The Literary Café, a blog for book lovers. The site has reviews, plot summaries, discussion forums, and interesting facts about books and authors. For more information, visit thelitcafe.com. Theisen is managing director of re:vision, a marketing services company based in New York City, where she lives.

In November 2013, Thomas R. Schultz, BA’84, JD’87, principal partner in the Indianapolis law firm Schultz & Pogue, was inducted as a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He lives in Carmel, Ind.

Lafayette, Ind., attorney Karen R. Orr, BA’85, JD’89, has been named by Indiana Super Lawyers magazine as one of the top attorneys in the state. A partner in the law firm Stuart & Branigin, Orr counsels hospitals, clinics, physician groups, and other health care entities on a wide variety of issues. She lives in Monticello, Ind.

Connor Prairie vice president of exhibits, programs, interpretation, and facilities Cathryn C. Ferree, BA’86, Cert’98, MPA’04, was appointed as a Noyce Leadership Institute fellow in March. Ferree is one of 18 senior-level leaders from across the globe to become a participant in the yearlong sponsored fellowship. The aim of the fellowship is to increase the public impact of science centers, museums, and related institutions. Ferree will use the yearlong fellowship to help foster dialogue on informal learning and how it can integrate with formal education to support learning in history, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics beyond the traditional enrichment field trip. Connor Prairie is an interactive history park in Fishers, Ind. Ferree lives in Indianapolis.

Brendan J. Kiernan, MA’86, Cert/PhD’90, had a translation of Vladimir Gilyarovsky’s classic portrait of the Russian capital, Moscow and Muscovites, published by Russian Life Books in 2013. One of Russia’s most beloved books, Moscow and Muscovites was first published in 1926, but has never been translated into English until now. Kiernan is a freelance translator and political analyst. A student of Russian language and literature since 1977, he is the author of The End of Soviet Politics, published by Westview.

In May, the not-for-profit organization Parent Encouragement Program of Kensington, Md., named Kathleen Karavitis Hedge, BA’87, as its new executive director. She is a not-for-profit executive with 25 years of experience in fundraising, board development, planning, and administration. Hedge is the author of the book, Engaging Your Board in Fundraising: A Staff’s Guide, published by BoardSource. Previously, she was an independent consultant, deputy director for the Center for a New American Dream, and chief fundraising officer at BoardSource. She also worked for the American Red Cross, American Youth Hostels, and Hariri Foundation. Parent Encouragement Program currently provides parenting classes to 5,000 parents. Hedge lives in Garrett Park, Md.

Tracy Borgert Marshall, BA’87, a civil trial lawyer and shareholder in the Florida law firm Gray Robinson’s Orlando office, has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America from 2007 to 2014, and by Florida Super Lawyers from 2010 to 2014. She practices in the areas of eminent domain, land use litigation, and commercial litigation.

Timothy D. Zick, BA’88, a member of the William & Mary Law School faculty and a prominent constitutional law scholar, has been named the Mills E. Godwin, Jr., Professor of Law. Zick has written on a wide variety of constitutional issues, with a special focus on issues of free speech and federalism. The author of nearly twenty articles and two books, Zick has been a frequent commentator in local, national, and international media regarding public protests and other First Amendment concerns. In 2012, he testified before Congress on the Occupy Wall Street protests and rights of free speech, assembly, and petition. He lives in Richmond, Va.

After nearly 18 years critiquing television, media, music, and pop culture at the Tampa Bay Times, Eric C. Deggans, BA’90, has left the newspaper to become National Public Radio’s first TV critic. He joined the Times in 1995 as a pop music critic, and moved to the TV beat two years later. Taking a break to join the editorial board in 2004, he returned to the critics’ corner, first as media writer in 2005, then again as TV critic in 2006. While at the Tampa Bay Times, Deggans also provided commentaries about television and media to CNN and NPR, and is the author of Race-Baiter: How the Media Wields Dangerous Words to Divide a Nation.

Ariel E. Axelrod, BA’91, has retired from the U.S. Army as a lieutenant colonel after 27 years of service. He recently formed the Axelrod Group at Keller Williams Realty in Austin, Texas, where he lives.

P. Stephen Fardy, BA’91, JD’94, is an equity partner in the Chicago law firm Swanson, Martin & Bell. He recently represented a company in an Illinois trade secret dispute that settled for over $60 million for the plaintiff. Fardy is the chair of Swanson, Martin & Bell’s intellectual property litigation and transactional services practice group and focuses his practice on intellectual property litigation and transactions, as well as on a variety of commercial litigation matters. Fardy represents a variety of entities ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies. He lives in Chicago.

IU Bloomington history professor James H. Madison, MA’68, PhD’72, was named Regional Author winner in the Eugene and Marilyn Glick 2013 Indiana Authors Award program. The award recognizes a writer who is well known and respected throughout Indiana. Michael A. Martone, BA’77, professor of English and director of creative writing at the University of Alabama, received the Indiana Authors’ National Award, which recognizes an author with Indiana ties whose work is known and read throughout the nation. Michael J. Mullin, BA’91, MBA’95, received the Emerging Author Award, while Patricia Driggs Fields, BS’88, MS’96 was a finalist in the same category.

Kristy L. Nabhan-Warren, BA’92, PhD’01, is the author of The Cursillo Movement in America: Catholics, Protestants, and Fourth-Day Spirituality, published in September 2013 by the University of North Carolina Press. The book provides an overview of the internationally growing Cursillo movement, or “short course in Christianity,” founded in 1944 by Spanish Catholic lay practitioners. Nabhan-Warren is the V.O. and Elizabeth Kahl Figge Fellow in Catholic Studies in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Iowa and author of The Virgin of El Barrio: Marian Apparitions, Catholic Evangelizing, and Mexican American Activism.

After a successful legal career in state government, Andrew J. Klinger, BA’93, MPA’98, JD’04, returned to his core interest in local government management and economic development when he accepted an appointment as town manager for the Town of Cumberland, Ind., in 2013. Klinger writes that he looks forward to building on the assets of the community to create the most desirable locale in central Indiana to live and work.

The Milwaukee-based law firm Quarles & Brady recently opened an office in Indianapolis, and named Daniel M. Long, BA’93, JD’96, as one of the office’s inaugural partners. He is a member of the firm’s product liability, toxic tort, and personal injury litigation practice group. Long concentrates his practice on defending manufacturers, premises owners, and contractors in personal injury and wrongful death litigation. He lives in Carmel, Ind.

In October 2013, Rebecca Gole Geyer, Cert’95, BA’96, JD’98, opened her own law firm—Rebecca W. Geyer & Associates—in Carmel, Ind., providing estate planning and elder law services to clients in central Indiana. She is also an adjunct professor of elder law at the IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law. In February, Geyer was named a member of the Indianapolis Business Journal’s 2014 class of “Forty Under 40.” She lives in Zionsville, Ind.

Nicholas L. Tampio, MA’97, was promoted to associate professor of political science at Fordham University in May. He writes that he wishes to thank his mentor, Jeffrey C. Isaac, James H. Rudy Professor of Political Science, for his mentoring and friendship along the way.

Co-founder and managing partner of Cultural Heritage Partners Marion Forsyth Werkheiser, BA’00, received the IU College of Arts and Sciences’ Outstanding Young Alumni Award during the College’s Annual Alumni Awards dinner in April. Cultural Heritage Partners is a Washington, D.C.-based law and lobbying firm that focuses exclusively on cultural heritage issues, the first firm of its kind. A global leader in cultural heritage law, Werkheiser co-founded the Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation in 2004 and served as its inaugural vice-president. For four years she taught international and domestic cultural property law at the College of William and Mary Law School. Prior to launching Cultural Heritage Partners, Werkheiser co-founded—and for five years co-directed—the Phoenix Project, a nationally recognized social enterprise focused on improving business practices and preparing the next generation of social entrepreneurs. The Phoenix Project now is part of the Center for Social Entrepreneurship at George Mason University. Werkheiser previously practiced corporate, regulatory, and international trade law in the Washington, D.C. office of Baker & Daniels. She also served as a legal fellow in the office of U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh. Werkheiser lives in the San Francisco Bay area and in Virginia.

David W. Clark, BA’01, JD’05, is a partner in the Milwaukee office of the national law firm Foley & Lardner and vice chair of the Milwaukee office pro bono committee. He is a member of the firm’s finance & financial institutions and transactional & securities practices and the energy industry team. Clark represents both public and private companies in a variety of industries with respect to transactional and business law matters, with an emphasis on the energy industry. He routinely advises clients on acquisition and divestiture transactions, including various types of cross-border transactions, commercial transactions, and general corporate matters. Clark lives in Milwaukee.

In September 2013, IU Northwest Chancellor William J. Lowe appointed Gavin Mariano, BA’01, to a two-year term on the IU Northwest Board of Advisors. The board consists of 25 northwest Indiana business, civic, not-for-profit, and education leaders, recommended by Lowe and the IU Board of Trustees. Mariano is coordinator for youth as resources at the Crisis Center in Gary, Ind.

In June, the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents elected Robert L. Taylor, MS’81, EdD’03, superintendent of Lebanon Community School Corporation, as its 2014–15 president. He will serve in the position for a year and represent all 288 of Indiana’s public school superintendents. Taylor has served as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and principal at the high school, middle school, and elementary school levels in the U.S. and in Europe. Taylor and his wife, Jackie, MS’80, have two sons, Matthew, BA’04, and Cole.

Elizabeth A. “Liz” Weikes, BA’04, of New York City, married Adam Kapner in November on Amelia Island, Fla. She works for JP Morgan Securities in New York City as a vice president in sales.

The Louisville, Ky.-based Muhammad Ali Center recently appointed attorney Ozair M. “Oz” Shariff, BA’07, JD’12, to a three-year term on its board. Shariff is an associate in the law firm Stites & Harbison’s Louisville office, where he is a member of the health care service group. The Muhammad Ali Center is a multicultural center and museum dedicated to the life of former world heavyweight boxing champion, Muhammad Ali, and to promoting the core principles he espouses. Shariff lives in Louisville.

“In a brutally difficult job market, never underestimate the power of a common Hoosier bond,” writes Allison C. Diercks, BA’08, JD’11, who has joined the law office of Berry & Carr on Hilton Head Island, S.C., as an associate attorney. The firm was founded by fellow IUB political science alum David H. Berry, BA’72. Diercks lives in Bluffton, S.C.

Eli M. Isaacs, Cert/BA’09, has joined law firm Faegre Baker Daniels as an associate in the firm’s corporate practice. He counsels companies on mergers, acquisitions, and other corporate transactions. Prior to joining Faegre Baker Daniels, Isaacs worked as an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton, where his practice focused on corporate and financial transactions and U.S. bank regulatory matters. Isaacs earned his law degree from Stanford Law School in 2012. While in law school, he was associate managing editor of the Stanford Law and Policy Review.

Traveling to St. Petersburg, Russia, in 2012 to teach English, Ingrid A. Nelson, BA’12, immediately fell in love with the city. Nelson now plans to make it her permanent home. “It’s so beautiful [here]. The architecture. The literature. The language is rich and beautiful and interesting. I’m never bored here,” she said in a recent interview with Indianapolis television station WTHR. A tutor of young students who are learning English, Nelson credits her study of Russian at IU with preparing her for life in St. Petersburg.

Burnell K. Grimes Jr., BA’13, is attending IU’s McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis. He worked as a summer clerk in the law firm Ice Miller’s Indianapolis office.