NC State Alumni Association
honors 16 distinguished alumni

The NC State Alumni Association held its first “Evening of Stars” Nov. 5, honoring 16 distinguished alumni.

Alumni Association Executive Director Lennie Barton said the event “begins a new tradition. We salute the winners of the College Distinguished Alumni Awards and the Alumni Association Awards with a ceremony that truly befits their professional and personal achievements. These are individuals who have made what you might call a ‘State’ment in their careers, in their communities and on the campus of their alma mater.”

Following is a list of the award winners, their hometowns, the college granting a distinguished alumni award or the type of alumni association award granted, and the year or years degrees were earned.

Tom Cabaniss of Denver, N.C. (Alumni Association Meritorious Service Award Winner, Class of 1972), a partner in the law firm of McGuireWoods in Charlotte, served 10 years on the Alumni Association Board of Directors. He served two terms as president as well as two terms as vice president and past president.

Dr. Albert Carnesale of Los Angeles (College of Engineering, Class of 1966), has served seven years as chancellor of UCLA. Carnesale has represented the United States government in high-level negotiations on defense and energy issues, including the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks with the Soviet Union.

Dr. Calvin Carter of Durham (College of Engineering, Classes of 1977, ’80 and ’83) is the director of materials technology at Cree Inc., a company he co-founded with five other colleagues, most of whom are graduates of NC State. His research earned him the 2002 National Medal of Technology, and he has been a co-inventor on 17 U.S. and 74 foreign patents.

Michael Constantino of Cary (College of Management, Classes of 1984, ’85) is a certified public accountant with more than 19 years of experience with Ernst and Young, specializing in emerging biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies as well as contract research organizations.

Mark Fleming of Raleigh (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Class of 1982) is vice president for state government relations for the University of North Carolina System. He serves as the primary liaison to the North Carolina General Assembly, the governor’s office and state agencies.

Terry Gannon of Montclair, N.J. (College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Class of 1985), was a member of the 1983 North Carolina State University national champion basketball team. Gannon is an ABC Sports commentator, covering everything from professional sports to the Tournament of Roses Parade and the Little League World Series.

Dr. Sharon Gwaltney-Brant of Mahomet, Ill. (College of Veterinary Medicine, Classes of 1981, ’85), is the medical director at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ National Animal Poison Control Center in Illinois. She and her colleagues staff a 24-hour hotline designed to help pet owners and veterinarians handle poisoning in pets.

Dr. Stu Hunter of Hightstown, N.J. (College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Classes of 1947, ’49, ’54), a world-renowned teacher of statistics, is professor emeritus in the Princeton University School of Engineering and Applied Science. He is founding editor of the journal Technometrics and co-author of “Introductory Engineering Statistics and Statistics for Experimenters,” now in its 34th printing.

Henry Kuo of Cary (Alumni Association’s Outstanding Young Alumnus, Class of 1986) served four years as secretary-treasurer of the Alumni Association Board of Directors. He also chaired the investment committee, which manages the Alumni Association’s endowment.

Dr. Charles Lee of Starkville, Miss. (College of Natural Resources, Classes of 1964, ’72), is president of Mississippi State University. He has been honored for outstanding service by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Joint Council on Food and Agricultural Sciences, Texas A&M University Board of Regents, and the Mississippi Forestry Commission.

Laura Gail Lunsford of Raleigh (Alumni Association’s Outstanding Young Alumna, Class of 1988) has built NC State’s Park Scholarships into one of the premier merit scholarship programs in the nation. She oversees a $5 million annual budget and manages programmatic and academic enrichment activities for 250 scholars.

Thomas McPherson of Potomac, Md. (College of Engineering, Classes of 1976, ’77), recently served as president and CEO of Hatteras Networks Incorporated, a developer and manufacturer of high-performance broadband and optical communications equipment. Previously, he co-founded PEL Corporation and led the growth of Network Equipment Technologies.

Jenny Penney Oliver of Athens, Ga. (College of Education, Classes of 1977, ’83), is director of academic initiatives at the University of Georgia College of Education. Oliver serves on the board of directors of the Georgia chapter of the National Association for Multicultural Education, and will co-chair the 2005 national conference in Atlanta.

George Schofield of Lima, Peru (College of Textiles, Class of 1957) has led the South American textile industry with more than 40 years of management – including CEO – in two of the largest textile companies in Peru, Universal Textile and the National Society of Industries of Peru.

Rodney Swink of Raleigh (College of Design, Classes of 1973, ’77) directs the North Carolina Office of Urban Development. Swink is a fellow and national past president of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and is responsible for leading downtown revitalization efforts statewide.

Dr. Larry Sykes of Midlothian, Va. (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Classes of 1966, ’68, ’71), is former director of agricultural programs in the leaf department of Philip Morris. He currently serves as co-chair of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ $275 million Achieve! Capital Campaign Executive Committee.

Posted November 24, 2004

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