A nursing professor, an environmental manager and the director of an arts program for children are among the three SSU alumni to be honored by the Sonoma State University Alumni Association on Thursday, Oct. 6.
The 2005 Distinguished Alumni Day and Awards Ceremony will recognize:
Richard Ohlemacher, Manager of Environmental Systems, Northrop Grumman Corporation in Los Angeles, provides private sector analysis, outreach, and business development to advance broad efforts to integrate technology and its civilian applications for monitoring and understanding the Earth and its natural systems. He worked previously in the Peace Corps in Africa.
Wendy Smith, Professor of Nursing and Director of the Family Nurse Practitioner Program, Sonoma State University, has procured over $2.7 million in funding support for the delivery of the Family Nurse Practitioner program in rural areas in California. She utilized federal grant awards to launch an innovative distance delivery program to rural California State University campuses.
Jan Sofie, director of the award-winning ArtQuest at Santa Rosa High School for the past seven years helped expand the 11-year-old ArtQuest from 75 students to over 520 students attending from Sonoma, Napa and Marin counties.
Highlights of the 2005 Distinguished Alumni Day include a luncheon with President Ruben Arminana, a dedication to these alumni at SSU's Alumni Grove and Brick Path, and visits to classrooms and campus centers. The day culminates with the Distinguished Alumni awards dinner.
The awards dinner includes a 5:30 p.m. reception and a 6:30 p.m. dinner at the Doubletree Hotel in Rohnert Park. The cost for the event is $50 for Alumni Association members, SSU faculty and staff and $55 for non-members. Tables of eight can be reserved for $1,000. Dress is business attire. Those who wish to attend should RSVP by calling (707) 664-2426.
Visit the Alumni Association Distinguished Alumni Web site at http://www.ssualumni.org/distinalum.htm for details about this year's honorees.
For further information, contact SSU Alumni Director Kate McClintock, (707) 664-2693.
