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Class Notes

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1950s
WALTER BRAAFLADT, ’53, MA, Music, is the new music director at the Cordova Presbyterian Church. A music teacher in the San Juan and Sacramento school districts, he plays several instruments.


1960s
MICHAEL RANKER, ’69, BS, Civil Engineering, is the new senior project manager at Sandis Humber Jones in Salinas. Ranker has more than 40 years of civil engineering, surveying and planning experience in public and private sectors. Ranker is a registered civil engineer in California and Nevada.


1970s

CRAIG T. JOHNSONCRAIG T. JOHNSON, ’71, BS and ‘73, MS, Criminal Justice, is the executive officer for the Office of Military Affairs, an operation of the CIA which provides support to the U.S. military. He serves as subject matter expert for the office director and deputy office director. Among his many assignments—including counterintelligence investigations, personnel security investigations and polygraph administration—he was also assigned to guard the head of the CIA.

CAY DRACHNIK, ’75, BA, Art, won an award for her painting, “Cats,” in the Northern California International Open Art Exhibition, held at the Sacramento Fine Arts Center in Carmichael. She also received an honorable mention in the Triton Art Museum’s all state Watercolor Biennial Exhibition for her painting, “Mother.” Drachnik teaches fashion illustration at Sacramento City College.

JAMES KNAUSS, JR., ’75, BA, Psychology, recently opened a bed and breakfast in Mazatlan, Mexico.

DON MADDY, ’76, BS, Computer Science, recently received his master’s degree in computer sciences from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. With more than 25 years of computer programming, he recently retired from business after 16 years as President and CEO of The Maddy Corporation. He also retired from the State of California after working for CSU Sacramento, CSU Bakersfield, and Cal Poly. He is now on staff with Pacific Gas and Electric as a Senior Systems Analyst and DBA.

ARTHUR SIMS, ’76, BA, Psychology, was honored by the Elk Grove Unified School District Board for his volunteer work with Cosumnes River Elementary School. Sims serves as a volunteer math tutor, and has also taught special quilting projects.

WILLIAM AYRES, ’77, BS, Speech Pathology, has been hired by CB Richard Ellis as first vice president of the retail services team. Ayres brings more than 15 years of sales experience to the firm, and previously worked as a partner in a similar firm.

RONALD A. HUNTER, ’77, BS, Economics, is the director of the F117-A System Program Office at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. The $10 billion program is responsible for managing the world’s only stealth fighter.

BARBARA YOUNG, ’77, BA, Sociology/ Social Science, is president and CEO of Young Enterprises.

FRANK ZACCARI, ’79, BS, Finance, was named president and CEO of Computech Systems Corporation. Prior to Computech, Zaccari was instrumental in developing and implementing programs involving hardware, software and e-commerce in a range of industries.


1980s

LAWRENCE CARLOSLAWRENCE CARLOS, ’80, BS, Business Administration, leads Solutions’ Southern California Healthcare Practice, specializing in healthcare strategy and performance improvement. He has been with the firm for 15 years, and previously worked for the U.S. Department of Defense.





LORI PETERSON GARDNER AND FAMILYLORI PETERSON GARDNER, ’80, BA, Biological Sciences, has completed an eight-year mission in Mozambique. She and her husband are linguists who work with literacy, linguistics research and Bible translation. Gardner is currently completing a master’s degree at William Carey International University. Gardner and her family studied in Portugal and France, and worked in Brazzaville, Congo, before moving to Mozambique.

BRUCE MORGAN, ’81, BS, Accountancy, of Major League Soccer’s San Jose Earthquakes has been awarded ACE Athletic Trainer of the Year for the second time. Morgan has been with the San Jose club since 1996 and is the only person to take part in every game in team history. Prior to the Earthquakes, Morgan served as trainer for the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks from 1988-89. A certified member of the National Athletic Trainers Association, Morgan has served as a sports medicine consultant to numerous organizations and has authored several sports medicine articles.

MELISSA BROWN, ’80, MA, International Affairs, was recently promoted to assistant superintendent of the Sacramento City Uni- fied School District.

GENE FOWLER, ’80, BS, Biological Sciences, has been promoted to associate professor of biology and granted tenure at Pomona College. Fowler has been a member of the faculty since 1993, and the director of the Robert J. Bernard Field Station of the Claremont Colleges since 1994.

RANDY PAGE, ’80, BA, English, has been appointed director of the Tri-County Regional Occupational Program, which provides job training to students in Yuba, Sutter and Colusa Counties. Page is also involved with the leadership council of his church in Yuba City, Easter Seals, the Bok Kai Parade Committee, Early Risers Kiwanis and the Salvation Army’s advisory board.

SUSAN WEIDEL, ’80, BA, Liberal Studies, received her master’s degree in linguistics from UC Davis.

JERRY ADAMS, ’81, BS, Criminal Justice, was named police chief of the Lodi Police Department. Adams is the youngest top offi- cer in the department’s history. Adams’ community involvement includes being chair of the Lodi Boys and Girls Club board of directors, a past Lodi-Tokay Rotary Club president and 19 years as a community-oriented policing instructor at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton.

MAGGIE MCGURK, ’81, Art, photographed and produced a 2001 Celebrity Calendar, which was a fund-raiser for the UC Davis Cancer Center. The calendar featured 13 prominent business and media personalities from the Sacramento area.

ELAINE HOWLE, ’82, BS, Business Administration, was named state auditor by Gov. Gray Davis. Howle has been serving as deputy auditor for the Bureau of State Audits, and has been with the office since 1983.

JOHN ALLARD II, ’84, BA, Government, has been named regional vice president of the Hospital Council of Northern and Central California (HCNCC). Prior to joining HCNCC, Allard served as the vice president of grassroots and political activity for the California Health Association (CHA). Allard currently serves as vice chair of Sutter Health’s Placer County Community Advisory Board.

GREG HUBBARD, ’85, BA, Journalism, recently received his master’s degree in mass communication from Fresno State University. Hubbard is chief photographer at the Merced Sun-Star newspaper and adjunct faculty at Merced College, where he teaches photography.

EDDIE KHO, ’85, MS, Civil Engineering, is principal in the consulting firm of Morton & Pitalo in Sacramento. He is president of the Sierra Chapter of the Consulting Engineers and Land Surveyors of California and of the Associates Council of the Building Industry Association. Kho also belongs to the Best of Broadway board of directors and is a member of the Cordova Planning and Advisory Council.

KEN LASTUFKA, ‘85, MA, Urban Studies and ‘82, BA, Environmental Studies, is an associate environmental planner with Caltrans.

CHRIS COURTNEY, ’86, BS, Finance, was recently promoted to executive vice president and chief operating officer of Oak Valley Community Bank. Courtney joined the bank in 1996 as a vice president and loan team leader, becoming senior vice president and credit administrator in 1998.

GREG KNAPP, ’86, BA, Communication Studies, has been named offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers after spending three seasons as the quarterbacks coach and three years as offensive quality control coach. Before joining the 49ers, Knapp spent nine years coaching at Sac State, serving as running backs coach (1986-89), receivers coach (1989-90), and offensive coordinator/ assistant head coach (1991-94). A collegiate quarterback at Sac State, he was one of the most prolific signal callers in Hornets’ history. He ranks among Sac State’s career leaders with more than 3,800 passing yards and 32 touchdown passes.

MICHAEL OSTER, ’86, BS, Criminal Justice, recently returned from a year with the U.N. Civilian Police Mission in Kosovo. Oster left his position as a senior police offi- cer with the Merced Police Department after 12 years to take a position with DynCorp Aerospace, which is contracted to provide American Police Officers to the U.N. Civilian Police Missions worldwide. While in Kosovo, Oster was a patrol officer and field-training officer working his way up to the Regional Operations Center responsible for the overall running of the region.

MIKE A. SHIELDS, ’86, BA, Marketing, has been named vice president of sales and marketing for Desteo.com, a member of the Aptimus Network in Seattle. Desteo is a travel marketing website for travel suppliers, as well as a travel information portal for consumers. Shields previously worked in the cruise industry.

KEVIN BURKE, ’87, MSW, received his Ph.D. in clinical social work from the University of Chicago.

LORI BRADFORD, ’89, BS, Accountancy, has joined G&J Seiberlich & Co. LLP, a leading Napa Valley CPA firm, as a senior accountant in its Napa office. Bradford previous worked on tax issues for two Sacramento firms.

GUY GILLEN, ’89, BS, Criminal Justice, was promoted to state parole agent with the California Department of Corrections.


1990s

MICHELLE KISS, ’96, BA, Journalism, has joined the public affairs firm Katz & Associates as an assistant account executive. Kiss previously served as project coordinator for Power PR, a public relations firm in the Los Angeles area.






KRISTI MCDONALD, ’99, BA, Communication Studies, has been hired as an account executive for Deen+Black Public Relations. McDonald will work primarily with government clients. Formerly she was employed by the United Way, California Capital Region.





KEN MACIAS, ’90, MS, Accountancy, obtained his doctorate in public administration from the University of Southern California. Macias qualified in administrative theory, organizational behavior, public finance, and performance auditing. Macias wrote his dissertation on “A Financial Audit Model for Entrepreneurial Governments.”

Fr. Wade L.J. Menezes, C.P.M., ’91, MA, Communication Studies, was ordained as a Catholic priest in the Fathers of Mercy Order. He serves at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Hanceville, Ala., which is affiliated with the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), the world’s largest religious cable network.

Miyuki Murphy, M.D., ’91, BS, Forensic Science, has joined the medical staff of Mark Twain St. Joseph’s Hospital as a radiologist. Dr. Murphy served her residency in Diagnostic Radiology at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. She received her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark and served her internship at Alameda County Hospital in Oakland.

Justine Crossno, ’92, MBA, was recently promoted to Sac State Financial Accountant/Co-Manager of Accounting Services. Crossno is responsible for the preparation of Sac State financial statements.

Rosio Escobar, ’92, BS, Business Administration, was promoted to business taxes compliance specialist/investigator with the State Board of Equalization.

Kirk Stratton, ’92, BS, Criminal Justice, was promoted by the Coloma Police Department to the rank of sergeant. Stratton has been with the department since 1994.

Jackie Howard, ’93, BA, English, has her own law practice in Roseville, placing special emphasis in estate planning.

Hugh McGee, ’93, BS, Criminal Justice, was promoted to sergeant in the Sacramento Police Department. McGee currently supervises the bike unit in downtown Sacramento.

Heath Charamuga, ’94, BS, Business Administration, is currently working as a senior advisor with commercial property investments at Grubb & Ellis.

Sharon Savery Gould, ’94, BA, Communication Studies, was named president of the Sacramento Public Relations Association board of directors.

Thomas Humbert, ’94, BA, Economics, has joined the New York office of Fulbright & Jaworski as an associate in corporate and securities law. Humbert received his J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law in 1998, where he was Notes Editor for the Seton Hall Legislative Journal.

John Jordan, ’94, BA, Economics, is working with the Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation Office in Sacramento as a regional economist.

Walter Kendricks, ’94, BS, Computer Science, was recently promoted to managing consultant for Predictive Systems to work with Fortune 1,000 clients. Prior to joining PSI, he spent 14 years as a network manager for Lawrence Livermore Laboratories and the Franchise Tax Board.

Mark Towns, ’94, BS, Business Administration, has joined the local office of OfficeTeam as division director. He is the vice president of the California Association of Temporary and Staffing Services, as well as the services ambassador for the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce.

Lenny Husen, ’95, BA, Chemistry, and Charles Husen, ’97, BA, Economics. Lenny matriculated at Penn State College of Medicine, and Charles has retired from his job as a printer/supervisor of 23 years, and is embarking in a new career as a financial manager in Hershey, Penn.

Pete Novaresi, ’95, BS, Construction Management, is a project manager for DPR Construction. Novaresi will be part of the project team for a Wave Techology facility being constructed by DPR.

Sherry Saville, ’95, BS, Accountancy, was appointed to assistant vice president/controller at the Bank of Lodi. She is a member in the American Society of Women Accountants.

William Gear, ’96, MS, Physical Education, serves as the new director of sports medicine at California Lutheran University. Gear is working on his doctorate at the University of Pittsburgh. For the past two years, he has served as coordinator of athletic training education at CSU Dominguez Hills.

Jennifer Hogan, ’96, MS, Biological Sciences, was recently promoted to environmental specialist III with the Department of Water Resources.

Patricia Johnson, ’97, MA, History, has joined the City of Sacramento as archivist with the Sacramento Archives and Museum Collection Center.

Matt Neal, ’97, BS, Health and Safety Studies, a Gulf War veteran, has been named administrator for Eskaton’s Manzanita Manor Skilled Nursing Facility in Carmichael. Neal is a licensed nursing home administrator.

SARAH DILLINGHAM, ’98, BA, English, earned a master’s degree in college student personnel from Kansas State University last year. Dillingham is the graduate outreach and admissions coordinator at UC Santa Barbara.

JACQUELINE HALE-JOHNSON, ’98, MSW, is currently a doctoral student in the human and organization development program at The Fielding Institute.

LISA MATHES, ’98, BA, Child Development, is currently working with the City of Rocklin, as assistant coordinator of the school-aged recreation center.

AZIZ BOUZIDA, ’99, MS, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, was promoted to senior design engineer at Intel in Folsom.

SERENA BRASCO, ’99, MA, Education, is currently enrolled as a doctoral student at Florida Atlantic University in the field of educational leadership.

CHRISTOPHER HAYES, ’99, BA, Graphic Design, has joined Barcellona Communications as a graphic designer.

ERIC MARKS, ’99, BA, Journalism, was named as the new general assignment reporter at The Folsom Telegraph. Marks had worked at the Sacramento Bee as a freelance reporter at the Neighbors division and with the Gold Country Media newspapers, The Placer Herald and the Roseville Press Tribune.


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