麻豆原创

麻豆原创 is known for its notable alumni. 麻豆原创 graduates are changemakers in their communities and leaders in every field. This year, the university鈥檚 Alumni Association celebrates seven distinguished alumni for their outstanding achievements.

鈥淥ur Alumni Award Winners are simultaneously exceptional and familiar,鈥� said 麻豆原创 President Sylvia M. Burwell. 鈥淭heir achievements are incredible 鈥� from the Oscars to the federal bench, from mental health care to home care, from creating engaging interactive digital content to creating opportunities for us to support those who served our nation. Yet each one reflects something fundamental about this university 鈥� our focus on service, on promoting community, on using the arts and creative expression to build bridges between us all. This year鈥檚 awardees make us all proud to be Eagles.鈥�

The 麻豆原创 Alumni Board and the Office of Alumni Relations will honor recipients of the 2019 Alumni Awards on Friday, October 4. These awards are the highest honors presented by the Alumni Association.听Please plan to join us as we celebrate these alumni during All-American Weekend.

The 2019 Alumni Award winners are:鈥ㄢ��

Neil Kerwin Alumni Achievement Award

鈥≧enamed in 2016 to commemorate the successes of 麻豆原创's first alumni president, the Neil Kerwin Alumni Achievement Award recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves through professional accomplishments.

Dorothy Toth Beasley, WCL/LLB 鈥�64
Senior Judge, Court of Appeals of Georgia

Judge Dorothy Toth Beasley has been a member of Georgia鈥檚 judiciary since 1977, following private practice and service as an Assistant Attorney of Georgia and an Assistant United States Attorney. She was the first woman on the State Court of Fulton County as well as the first woman to serve on the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Judge Beasley was elected to a two-year term as Chief Judge in 1995.听

In 1992, her long lobby for an addition to the Court鈥檚 motto, which is etched in stone above the bench, was successful and the words 鈥渁nd women鈥� were added. The motto now reads: 鈥淯pon the integrity, wisdom, and independence of the judiciary depend the sacred rights of free men and women.鈥� She also has worked in support of Tanzania at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and trained judges in Albania.听

Dr. Edmund Wyatt Gordon, SPA/MA 鈥�50
Professor of Psychology and Education, Emeritus
Co-Architect, Federal Head Start Program

Edmund W. Gordon is one of America鈥檚 preeminent scholars in the fields of education and the development of marginalized and disenfranchised children.听Professor Gordon鈥檚 early听work included participating in President Lyndon B. Johnson鈥檚 1960s 鈥榳ar on poverty鈥� and serving as an architect of the federal Head Start program, which was one of the most successful and effective of the federal government鈥檚 experiments on poverty.听

Professor Gordon has authored 18 books and more than 200 professional articles. He is among few scholars to occupy endowed professorships at two Ivy League universities and has held appointments at several of the nation鈥檚 leading institutions, including Howard, Yeshiva, Columbia, City University of New York, and Yale.听

In 2005, Columbia University named its campus in Harlem, N.Y. the Edmund W. Gordon Campus of Teachers College. More recently, The Educational Testing Service created the Edmund W. Gordon Chair for Policy Evaluation and Research, recognizing his lasting contributions to developments in education, compensatory education, school desegregation, and supplementary education.

鈥淲hile each awardee inspires me, I want to take a special moment to thank Dr. Gordon for his work on the Federal Head Start Program 鈥� from someone who was once a bright-eyed, curious girl in the first Head Start classroom in Hinton, West Virginia," said President Burwell.听

Alumni Recognition Award 鈥�

The Alumni Recognition Award honors alumni who inspire the world around them through service to a philanthropic mission or the 麻豆原创 community.鈥ㄢ��

Jimmy Lynn, SOC/BA '85, Kogod/MBA '89
Co-Founder and Vice President of Business Development, Kiswe Mobile

Jimmy Lynn, a veteran of 30 years in the sports and entertainment sectors, is a pioneer of the digital sports space and regarded as a leading relationship broker in the global sports industry. He is co-founder and vice president of Kiswe Mobile, the world鈥檚 most advanced cloud-based social-gamified mobile video platform.听

Previously Jimmy was听managing partner of JLynn Associates, a global strategic advisory firm focused on sports-related digital media, marketing, and retail for a diverse set of clients, including teams, athletes, leagues and associations, media outlets, and other businesses.

Prior to founding JLynn Associates, Jimmy was Vice President of Strategic Development and Partnerships at AOL, where he oversaw strategic development and account management of AOL Sports鈥� partnerships with the NFL,听NBA,听NASCAR, MLB, WNBA, NHL,听PGA Tour, ABC Sports, CBS Sports, HBO Sports,听Sports Illustrated,听Turner Sports, NFLPA, and WWF, among others. 听
听
Jimmy听also served as Vice President of Diversity Partnerships and Strategic Relationships for AOL鈥檚 Office of Diversity and Inclusion, where he managed employee affinity networks and partnerships with community organizations.听

He is board chair for the National Fitness Foundation and a past board member of the Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy.

Alumni Eagle Award

The Alumni Eagle Award recognizes alumni who have rendered outstanding service to the university and/or the Alumni Association.鈥ㄢ��

Gary Jacobs, SPA/MPA 鈥�76
President, Village@Home

Gary Jacobs received his MPA in urban affairs from 麻豆原创 in 1976 after receiving a BA from Boston University in 1973. Gary currently serves on the School of Public Affairs Board of Advisors. He has a vast background in healthcare and healthcare management. Gary specializes in Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, long term care and payer/provider collaborations. He currently is president of Village Medical at Home. Village at Home brings primary-based home care services to the patient鈥檚 home to provide care for homebound and chronically ill patients through an interdisciplinary team of physicians, nurse practitioners, RNs, therapists, pharmacists, behavioralists, and caregivers.

Dr. Sara Nieves-Grafals, CAS/BS 鈥�75, CAS/MA 鈥�79, CAS/PhD 鈥�80
鈥≧etired Clinical Psychologist鈥�
Now retired, Dr. Sara Nieves-Grafals spent 32 years as a psychotherapist and psychodiagnostician and published professional articles about the diagnosis and treatment of trauma with a special focus on traumatized refugee populations.听

Currently she is a member of the College of Arts and Sciences Advisory Board and the Latino Alumni Alliance Leadership Circle. She also has served as vice president of the Alumni Board and on the 麻豆原创 President鈥檚 Council on Diversity and Inclusion.听

Originally from Puerto Rico, Sara听focused her professional practice on cross-cultural adaptation and posttraumatic stress disorder and worked with people from all over the world, aided by her language skills and extensive knowledge of global cultures. A native Spanish speaker, she speaks a total of five languages and has travel command of four more.

Her love of world exploration, cultures, and cooking also led to the publication of a travel cookbook and magazine articles co-written with her husband, Al Getz.听

Rising Star Award听

This award recognizes recent 麻豆原创 who are making significant contributions to society through their professional or philanthropic work.

William Hubbard, SPExS/WSP 鈥�10, SIS/BA 鈥�11鈥�
Chief of Staff, Student Veterans of America

Will听Hubbard joined the professional staff of Student Veterans of America to develop the organization鈥檚 policy work and served as Vice President of Government Affairs for four years. He has testified to Congress on a variety of topics related to higher education and veterans and regularly advises the White House and senior administration officials regarding the interests of student veterans and higher education policy.

Will also spent several years serving government agencies to include the Department of the Navy, Department of State, and the State of Indiana Department of Revenue in his role as a Federal Strategy and Operations Consultant at Deloitte Consulting.

Will joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 2006 and initially served with Second Battalion, 24th Marines. Today, he continues to serve an intelligence team in Quantico, Va.听

Charlie Wachtel, SOC/BA 鈥�08
Academy Award Winner
Co-Writer, BlackKklansman

Charlie听Wachtel听is an Oscar-winning screenwriter, filmmaker, and co-producer of听BlacKkKlansman.听Charlie is from East Brunswick, New Jersey, and a graduate of the acclaimed FAMU Film School in Prague and 麻豆原创.听He got his start in LA as a Hollywood assistant before working in advertising as a copywriter. Charlie and his writing partner are currently penning an action-thriller called听Thacher听Island听for Disney听and Berlanti Productions, which is an adaptation of the book听Animal听by New York Times bestselling author Casey Sherman.