FAMU will honor 125 alumni during its 125th Anniversary Gala, November 9, 2012, for their outstanding achievements, financial support and service to the National Alumni Association.
“We are looking forward to having these outstanding Rattlers back on the campus so that we can show our appreciation for their accomplishments and unwavering support of the university,” said Larry Robinson, interim president for FAMU. “We are looking forward to a grand affair as we celebrate our 125th Anniversary.”
Among the lists are former presidents of FAMU, chief executive officers of corporations, educators, lawyers, film producers and directors, college administrators and professors, physicians and journalists. This group will be honored on Friday, November 9, at 7 p.m. in the Alfred L. Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center and Teaching Gymnasium. At 6 p.m., an invitation only reception is scheduled.
“It is an impressive list of graduates who have shown their dedication to the university in ways that have helped the university to thrive,” said Sharon Saunders, chair of the 125th Anniversary Planning Committee. “Nearly 200 individuals were nominated. The committee had a tough time whittling the list down to 125.”
To be honored as one of the Outstanding Alumni of the Quasquesentential, the individual had to be nominated. An independent panel, selected and chaired by the FAMU National Alumni Association with representation from all alumni regions and the university, evaluated each nominee based on their professional achievements, civic involvement, and community service. The nominees were further evaluated based on their financial contributions to the university and membership in the National Alumni Association. In alphabetical order, the honorees are as follows:
Corey Alston, managing director, SBK Brooks Investment Group, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Torey Alston, member of the FAMU Board of Trustees and chief of staff, Broward County Commissioner Barbara Sharief, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
James H. Ammons, Ph.D., tenured professor and 10th president of FAMU , Tallahassee, FL
Gregory Anderson, president and co-owner, Tri-Destined Films, Los Angeles, CA
Aaron P. Arnold, CEO, MusicIsMyBusiness, Atlanta, GA
E. Belicia Ayers, Esq., appellate panelist (judge), South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, Columbia, SC
Alice Bacon, owner, Bacon Rug Company, Philanthropist, Pembroke, NH
Solomon L. Badger III, Ed.D., chairman, FAMU Board of Trustees and retired educator, Jacksonville, FL
Leroy Bell Sr., retired Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Ft. Washington, MD
Alvin F. Benton Jr., attorney, Holland & Knight, Orlando, FL
Amber D. Benton, senior human resources manager, Frito Lay Orlando, Orlando, FL
Alfreda Blackshear, M.D., pediatrician, Tallahassee, FL
Richard “Dick” Blake, city councilman, retired high school principal, Rockledge, FL
Mirion P. Bowers, M.D., clinical professor, University of Southern California Department of Otolaryngology, Los Angeles, CA
Joe Briggs, Esq, attorney, National Football League Association, Washington, D.C.
Charlie Brown, philanthropist, retired real estate professional, New York, NY
Corrine Brown, U.S. Congresswoman, 3rd District-Florida, Washington, D.C.
Willie L. Bryant, D.D.S., orthodontist, TMJ Center of Stuart, Stuart, FL
Atira C. Charles, Ph.D., assistant professor, Florida State University, College of Business, Tallahassee, FL
Gregory L. Clark, Major, U.S. Army, president, AUREUS Financial Management, Chelsea, AL
Yvonne Hayling Clarke, retired educator, philanthropist, Sarasota, FL
Gwenesia Smith Collins, PharmD., CEO, managing member at Tri-Unity Infusion Services, co-owner of Pharmacy Consulting Associates, chairman, Michigan Board of Pharmacy, director of pharmacy at Boca Raton Regional Hospital, adjunct associate professor at Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
Alfonso N. Cornish II, Esq., attorney, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, LLP, Washington, D.C
Clara Davis, retired executive, Harris Corporation, Inc., Melbourne, FL
Carol Davis, PharmD., associate director, Virology Medical Strategy, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Plainsboro, NJ
Richard A. Dent III, CEO and president of Astor & Black, Custom Clothiers, Blacklick, OH
Seabon Dixon III, vice president of Marketing and Business Development, Alternatives Unlimited Inc., Jacksonville, FL
Robert B. Donaldson, Ph.D., mayor of Hazel Crest, IL
Makeba S. Earst, D.D.S, owner and dentist, All About Smiles Center, Tallahassee, FL
Allesa Jackson English, M.D., PharmD., director for SELECT preclerkship curriculum and director of MD career advising Morsani College of Medicine, USF, Tampa, FL
Donald E. Fennoy II, Ed.D., executive director, New Leaders New Schools, New York, NY
Pearl Lindbergh Ferguson, retired Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Parkland, FL
Charles L. Fields, economic advisor, founder and president, Charles Fields Associates, Purchase, FL
Tamara Foreman, PharmD., professor, Howard University College of Pharmacy, Washington, D.C.
Emma James Fountain, retired, General Motors, Inc., Atlanta, GA
Roland H. Gaines, former FAMU vice president for Student Affairs, Tallahassee, FL
Fred Gainous, Ed.D., director, FAMU Center for Agriculture Research and 9th president of FAMU, Midway, FL
Tamara Garrett, Esq., discipline capability manager, BP, Houston, TX
Andrew Gillum, Mayor Pro-Tempore, Tallahassee City Commission, Tallahassee, FL
Kim Godwin, senior producer, CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley, Jamaica, NY
Lillian Granderson, entrepreneur, Duxberry, MA
Rob Hardy, co-founder and director, Rainforest Films, Atlanta, GA
Cheryl A. Harris, senior vice president of Sourcing and Procurement Solutions, Allstate Insurance, Chicago, IL
Brodes H. Hartley Jr., retired Colonel, U.S. Army, president and CEO, Community Health of South Florida, Cutler Bay, FL
Jacquelyn Hartley, Ph.D., retired administrator, Florida International University, Cutler Bay, FL
Joseph Hatchett, Esq., counsel attorney, Akerman Senterfitt, Tallahassee, FL
John Haugabrook, retired, past president of the Leon County Chapter of the FAMU National Alumni Association, Tallahassee, FL
Robert Hayling, D.D.S., first African-American dentist in the State of Florida elected to the American Dental Association, Lauderhill, FL
Doris Hicks, retired educator and 2nd vice president of FAMU National Alumni Association and president of the Polk County Alumni Chapter, Lakeland, FL
Rosalie A. Hill, Ph.D., vice president for University Relations Emeritus, Tallahassee, FL
Adriel Hilton, Ph.D., executive assistant to the president & chief diversity officer, Upper Iowa University, Fayette, IA
Eric Hinson, vice chairman of the Gadsden County School Board, Quincy, FL
Bishop C. Holifield, Esq., former FAMU general counsel, Civil Rights Activist, Tallahassee, FL
Earl Holmes, FAMU assistant football coach and former NFL football player, Tallahassee, FL
Marlon Honeywell, PharmD., professor for pharmacy practice, FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tallahassee, FL
Frederick S. Humphries, Ph.D., regent professor, FAMU College of Law and 8th president of FAMU, Orlando, FL
Leonard L. Inge, director of pharmacy at Apalachee Center, Inc., Tallahassee, FL
David Jackson Jr., Ph.D., professor of history/chair of the Department of History, Political Science, Public Administration, Geography, African-American Studies and Social Science Education, Tallahassee, FL
Eddie Jackson, retired, former FAMU vice president of University Relations and author, Tallahassee, FL
C. Sha’Ron James, Esq., director of the Department of Financial Services, Division of Rehabilitation and Liquidation, Tallahassee, FL
Michael A. James, FAMU interim CIO/director of Student Administration Application, Tallahassee, FL
C. William “Bill” Jennings, member of the FAMU Board of Trustees and former executive director, Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, Orlando, FL
Ronald M. Joe, retired Colonel, U.S. Army, former FAMU director of Student Activities, former executive director of the FAMU Foundation, Inc. and former interim vice president for University Relations, Tallahassee, FL
Oscar A. Joyner, president, Reach Media, Inc., Coppell, TX
Arthenia Joyner, Democratic member of the Florida Senate, representing the 18th District, Tampa, FL
T’Keyah Crystal Keymáh, actress, writer, director, producer, singer and comedian, Los Angeles, CA
Bernard Kinsey, Ph.D., philanthropist and entrepreneur, and owner of The Kinsey Collection, Pacific Palisades, CA
Shirley Kinsey, philanthropist and entrepreneur, and owner of The Kinsey Collection, Pacific Palisades, CA
Tracy Harmon-Kizer, PharmD., assistant professor of Marketing, University of Dayton, Dayton, OH
Alfred L. Lawson Jr., former Florida State Senator/president of Lawson and Associates, Tallahassee, FL
Lasalle Leffall, M.D. surgeon and Charles R. Drew Professor, Department of Surgery Howard University, Washington, D.C.
Margaret Lewis, Ph.D., retired dean of FAMU School of Nursing, Tallahassee, FL
Henry Lewis III, PharmD., former dean of the FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, former FAMU interim president and current president of Florida Memorial University, Miami Gardens, FL
Charles R. Lewis III, vice president/COO Siwel Inc., Orlando, FL
Ray C. Long, deputy director of Program Management, Rosser International, Inc., Atlanta, GA
Clinton D. McGill, chief, financial management branch, U.S. Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C.
James “Skip” McLemore, battalion chief, Atlanta Fire Rescue, president of the Metro Atlanta Alumni Chapter of the FAMU National Alumni Association, Atlanta, GA
Freddie Groomes McLendon, retired higher education administrator
Spurgeon McWilliams, M.D., vice chair of the FAMU Board of Trustees and gynecologist, Tallahassee, FL
Monroe Mack, PharmD., career pharmacist, first African-American director at Tampa General Hospital, Tampa, FL
Altha F. Manning, former FAMU interim vice president of Research and former executive director of Alumni Affairs, Tallahassee, FL
Carmen Cummings Martin, executive director, FAMU Office of Alumni Affairs, Tallahassee, FL
Carrie P. Meek, former Florida State Senator, Miami, FL
Mitzi Miller, editor-in-chief, JET magazine, Chicago, IL
Tommy L. Mitchell Sr., president, FAMU National Alumni Association, Tallahassee, FL
Paul B. Mohr Sr., Ph.D., director of Special Programs, Alabama Commission on Higher Education, Montgomery, AL
Rufus Montgomery, member of the FAMU Board of Trustees and managing director for Hall Booth Smith & Slover P.C., Atlanta, GA
Sonia Jackson Myles, director, global packaging purchases at Procter and Gamble and founder, president and CEO of The Sister Accord, Cincinnati, OH
Nick F. Nelson, COO, principal, Liquid Soul Media, Atlanta, GA
Will Packer, co-founder and producer, Rainforest Films, Atlanta, GA
Daryl Parks, Esq., founding and managing partner of Parks & Crump, LLC, Tallahassee, FL
Maurice Pickett, retired Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Riverview, FL
Robert Porter, retired Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Jacksonville, F
Wesley S. Puryear, vice president, head of North American Listed Preferred Stock, JP Morgan, West Orange, NJ
Jonathan Quarles, director of Government and Corporate Affairs, W Industries, Detroit, MI
Tiffany Butler Quaye, Ph.D., guest lecturer of history, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC
George H. Rawls, M.D., retired physician and surgeon, Indianapolis, IN
Garth Reeves, president emeritus of the Miami Times, Miami, FL
Adam J. Richardson, presiding prelate, 11th Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Jacksonville, FL
William H. Robinson Ph.D., associate professor at Vanderbilt University School of Engineering, Nashville, TN
Vernell Ross, retired educator, Havana, FL
Leo P. Sam Jr., retired, former FAMU vice president of University Relations, Tallahassee, FL
Sharon P. Saunders, FAMU chief communications officer and executive assistant to the president, Tallahassee, FL
Keisha L. Senter, associate director in the president’s office at The Rockefeller Foundation, New York, NY
Belinda Reed Shannon, Esq., member of the FAMU Board of Trustees and corporate attorney and vice president of GlaxoSmithKline, Wake Forest, NC
Jerry A. Simmons, retired Colonel, U.S. Army, Ft. Washington, MD
Walter L. Smith, Ph.D., founder, The Walter L. Smith Library and 7th president of FAMU, Tampa, FL
Thrya Starr, educator, entrepreneur, public servant, West Palm Beach, FL
Shawnta Friday-Stroud, Ph.D., dean, FAMU School of Business and Industry Tallahassee, FL
Theodore N. Taylor, Esq., attorney, law office of Theodore N. Taylor, Riverview, FL
Shundrawn A. Thomas, managing director and global business head, Exchange-Traded Funds Group at Northern Trust Global Investments, Chicago, IL
John W. Thompson, CEO of virtual instruments, former IBM vice president, former CEO of Symantec Corporation, San Jose, CA
Valencia P. Walker, M.D., assistant clinical professor and faculty member at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in the Department of Pediatrics and Division of Neonatology, Los Angeles, CA
Leila A. Walker, Ph.D., retired professor, 3rd vice president FAMU National Alumni Association, president, FAMU National Alumni Association Capital City Chapter, Tallahassee, F
Keshia Walker, president and founder of Insights Marketing, Atlanta, GA
Joseph L. Webster Sr., M.D., CEO of Webster Surgical Center, Gastroenterologist, Tallahassee, FL
Nathaniel Wesley, retired professor and author, Tallahassee, FL
Karl E. White, member of the FAMU Board of Trustees, managing principal of Gracián & Co., Boston, MA
Tirrell D. Whittley, CEO, Liquid Soul Media, Atlanta, GA
Alan B. Williams, representative, Florida House of Representatives and president and CEO of MW Land Investments, Tallahassee, FL
Dorothy P. Williams, president, FAMU Rattler Boosters Board of Directors and former FAMU vice president of University Relations, Tallahassee, FL
Ralph L. Wilson, former presiding elder, Tallahassee District, Tallahassee, FL
Joey Womack III, founder, Digitalguestlist.com, Atlanta, GA
Arthur Woodard, Ph.D., retired Captain, U.S. Army, former educator and community activist, Miami, FL
Freddie Gilliam Young, Ed.D., administrator, principal and adjunct professor, Miami, FL
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