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SHARON (NEMECHEK) GERARDI and her mother, NADINE (BLAKE) NEMECHEK ’51, are the co-authors of a cookbook, The 7 Day Cookbook, The Easy Answer to “What’s for Dinner?” (Redbank Ranch). Gerardi is a pediatric dermatologist at Valley Children’s Hospital in Fresno, Calif. Her mother is retired from the field of pharmacy and lives with her husband, VICTOR NEMECHEK ’51, on a ranch in Clovis, Calif.
GERALD S. PAPAZIAN has been named president and chief operating officer of Aura Systems, Inc., a producer of electromagnetic and electro-optic devices in El Segundo, Calif. He is a trustee of USC and past president of the USC General Alumni Association.
MARDI A. RUSTAM MFA, president of Mars Productions Corporation and publisher of The Tolucan Times newspaper in Toluca Lake, Calif., has been honored by The United Chambers of Commerce of the San Fernando Valley with its Small Business of the Year Award.
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STEVE ALEXANDER has been promoted to vice president of consumer marketing- circulation at the Los Angeles Times. He is responsible for all aspects of selling and distributing the newspaper, including customer service, home delivery, street sales and circulation sales.
ARTHUR T. FORREST DDS is serving as president this year of both the USC Dental Alumni Association and the Angel City Dental Society. While in dental school, Forrest founded the USC Black Dental Student Association and served as its president. He currently practices in Chino Hills, Calif.
The work of artist ROXENE ROCKWELL was exhibited during February at the Artists, Resident of Chicago gallery. The show, titled “Boxes: Collage, Assemblage and Construction,” consisted of intricate surreal collages in wood boxes that hang on the wall.
JAMES SEVER has joined Bridge Capital, Ltd., a direct lender specializing in short-term bridge loans, as regional director. He is based in the firm’s regional headquarters in Newport Beach, Calif.
ALAN D. WAPNER was recently elected Mayor Pro-Tem of the City of Ontario, Calif. Wapner, a police sergeant, has served on the council since 1994.
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LEONARD J. HARVEY MD is leaving Desert Medical Group in Palm Springs, Calif., as the associate medical director to move to Tucson, Ariz., to be the medical director for CIGNA Health Plan of Tucson. He was previously a staff internist with the Southern California Permanente Medical Group in Los Angeles.
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SHAWN A. ARENA, A.A.E., has been selected as the new airport manager for Phoenix-Goodyear Airport by the City of Phoenix Aviation Department.
RORY BENNETT is a segment director for the television show “Entertainment Tonight.”
LANI HARRIS MFA accepted a tenure-track position as assistant professor of theatre at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. She had previously been teaching at the University of Alabama graduate program in theatre. Her article, “Fighting Stage Fright,” was published in a recent issue of Stage Directions magazine.
Nocturne by CLEMENT REID MM was played on a program at the Washington State History Museum last June as part of an exhibit of traditional expressions of memory and mourning. Another of his works, Stillness—for Chamber Orchestra, was recently premiered by the Northwest Symphony Orchestra in Seattle.
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RICH GINGER is chief financial officer for Bell Phillip Television and Bell Dramatic Serial Company, production companies for the daytime dramas “The Bold and the Beautiful” and “The Young and the Restless,” respectively. He lives with his wife, Debbie, and their three children in South Hills, Calif.
SUZANNE MAYAGOITIA-ROMO has been an oncology RN at the USC/Norris Cancer Hospital and Research Institute for the past 10 years.
N. SADEGH NAMAZIKHAH MS, MEd ’82, is the co-chairman of the Los Angeles Dental Society and also appointed to the California Dental Association’s Ad Hoc Committee for Diversity for the third consecutive year. He is the acting chairman of the USC School of Dentistry’s department of endodontics and has an endodontic practice in Woodland Hills, Calif.
TOMSON T. ONG MPA ’84, DPA ’92, has been appointed judge of the municipal court by Governor Pete Wilson, assigned to the Long Beach judicial district. Since 1989, he has served as a member of the faculty in the USC School of Public Administration.
STEVEN M. ROSS has been promoted to executive vice president of worldwide promotions and product placement for Twentieth Century Fox Licensing and Merchandising. Most recently, Ross spearheaded the comprehensive worldwide promotional campaign behind the feature film Anastasia.
BARRY ADAM SAPERSTEIN received his JD degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.
ROBERT R. TYLER MS completed 30 years active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he is a colonel. In December Tyler received a PhD in human factors psychology from the University of Central Florida and has assumed the position of chief administrator of Dowling College’s National Aviation and Transportation Center at Oakdale, Long Island, N.Y.
GEORGE HAROLD WAXTER graduated with an MD degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and is now enrolled in a three-year residency program in internal medicine at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson.
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DENISE EGER, rabbi and founder of Congregation Kol Ami in West Hollywood, was one of seven women honored with the fourth annual Lesbian and bisexual women Active in Community Empowerment (LACE) Award, presented by the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center.
PETER C. HALT has been named vice president and corporate controller for Sony Pictures Entertainment. He was previously a director in the entertainment, media and communications practice at Price Waterhouse.
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DONALD E. HEPFER MS, a commander in the U.S. Navy, recently completed a six-month deployment to the Mediterranean Sea aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington.
Marine Maj. PETER MARTINO recently participated in the 22nd annual Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. Open to the public, the event is designed to promote harmony among civilians and military in the city.
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NEAL DOTEN MPA accepted a position as the first hospital administrator for Pets Unlimited, a non-profit organization which, with a full-time staff of 65, is the largest animal hospital and shelter in San Francisco. He’s currently involved in the fund-raising and coordination of a $2.3 million renovation of the facilities.
KOSTA DUNCAN has joined Johnson Capital Group, Inc., a full service real estate investment advisory company, as vice president-capital markets in its Irvine, Calif., office. He was most recently a senior investment analyst with MetLife Real Estate in Los Angeles.
BILL FOLTZ was named vice president, finance and administration, of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is a Redondo Beach, Calif., resident.
DANIEL HOROWITZ has been appointed vice president, brand management, for Hollywood Ventures, a children’s entertainment/licensing company specializing in television properties for pre-school children. He will be responsible for marketing and branding all properties, which include the hit PBS series “The Big Comfy Couch.”
MARK LUEKER MS is president of 308 Systems, a Hermosa Beach, Calif.-based communications and information systems design company. He recently developed the TAC•PAK™, a portable communications system integrated into a suitcase.
FRANK PALMERI MBA has been appointed to the newly created position of director, strategic marketing and drivetrain integration, for Meritor Automotive Inc.’s Heavy Vehicle Systems business.
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PAUL BARTELT has been appointed vice president of RENZI Sport, a sports management and marketing firm located in Newport Beach, Calif. He has worked in public relations positions with both the Los Angeles Raiders and the San Diego Chargers.
NAVNEET S. CHUGH MBA operates a law and CPA practice in La Mirada, Calif. Recently, along with Safi Qureshey, the founder of AST Computers, Chugh started The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), a trade organization of successful entrepreneurs from South Asia. He lives with his wife, Ritu, and son and daughter in La Mirada.
CHRIS HEIDELBERGER was named chief executive officer of VirtuFlex Software Corp., an Internet software start-up that produces reseller extranet solutions. His appointment culminates a six-month search for a new CEO to take the company to the next level in its growth.
LORENCE (LARRY) HONDA MM has been appointed professor of woodwinds at Fresno (Calif.) City College. He is also instructor of saxophone at California State University, Fresno, and continues to freelance in the area, performing with his own classical and jazz groups.
CHERIE MARTIN MA recently took over as director of community arts for the City of Cambridge, Mass. With three months lead time, she produced the 20th Cambridge River Festival, an outdoor arts and musical festival attended by 110,000.
Navy Lt. Cmdr. MARIE H. MELBOURNE recently was promoted to her present rank and reported for duty with Naval Support Activity in La Maddalena, Italy.
JOHN MULLIGAN was promoted to the position of fraud systems specialist at Capital One Services, Inc., a top 10 issuer of MasterCard and Visa cards, based in Richmond, Va.
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CYNTHIA A. ALDRIDGE MBA has been admitted as an associate partner in Andersen Consulting in Chicago. She works in the organization’s financial services industry practice.
CHRISTIAN G. BREAULT MS, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, assumed duties with Marine Wing Support Squadron 374, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, at the Corps’ air station in Tustin, Calif.
ROSANNE (McCOY) COLOCCIA, after four years in programming at independent television station KTVK in Phoenix, has been named program director for KSAZ, Fox 10, a Fox-owned and operated station also in Phoenix. She lives in Chandler, Ariz., with her husband and daughter.
JAY T. KOPAS MA is the athletic director for Cactus Shadows High School and chair of the Cave Creek Unified School District’s physical education department in Cave Creek, Ariz., where he lives with his wife and four sons.
ALBERT LOPEZ was promoted to corporate director of regional communications — Europe, Middle East and Africa, for Motorola, Inc. He and his wife, Tricia, relocated to London, England, for the three-year assignment. Lopez is immediate past president of the USC GAA Midwest Alumni Club.
STEPHAN H. WASSERMAN, CPA, has been promoted to partner at the West Los Angeles accounting firm of Gursey, Schneider & Co. LLP.
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HABIB F. BALIAN has been appointed assistant deputy of the chief executive officer of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority. For the past five years, Balian has served on the staff of Supervisor Mike Antonovich as transportation deputy-construction. He lives with his wife, TONI BALIAN ’85, and their son in Pasadena.
SHAWN BLAKE has been named director, advertising, publicity and promotion for Walt Disney Network Television and Touchstone Television. She was most recently vice president of the consumer television division at the entertainment publicity firm of Bender, Goldman & Helper.
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CHARLES E. WHITESELL, Jr. has been appointed vice president in charge of the Western United States of Vienna Sausage Manufacturing Company, headquartered in Chicago.
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KEVIN McCOLLUM MFA is a co-producer of the Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent. He has also been a co-producer of the Broadway hits Damn Yankees and Oleanna, and was executive producer of the feature film Jeffrey.
DAVID SWARTZ MA is the recipient of a 1998 Young Architects Citation from the The American Institute of Architects. He is a senior architect at HLW International in Los Angeles.
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KEVIN A. DADIAN is vice president of marketing and research for U.S. News and World Report in New York, N.Y. He is a 1996 MBA graduate of NYU’s Stern Business School.
JEFFREY R. GUND is a composer and sound designer and has written music and created sound effects for a number of films, television shows and multimedia titles. Last year he received the award for Best Use of Music and Sound in Multimedia from the Software Publishers Association for his work on Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail, a CD-ROM based on the film.
DAVID S. KELLY is the overnight news anchor and morning drive reporter for news radio station WTAM 1100 in Cleveland, Ohio. He has also worked as a minor league baseball broadcaster.
JENNIFER LAURIE NIEHAUS-RIVERS was selected for inclusion in the 1997 edition of Outstanding Young Women of America. The program honors men and women between the ages of 21 and 40 who have distinguished themselves in various types of service.
JOHN JOSEPH PETRUSH, JR. is an assistant public defender in Beaver County, Penn.
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HOWARD HARRY DONNELL earned a master of arts degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and has begun course work in pursuit of a PhD in government at the university.
JEAN LOUIS ETCHEPARE, who has been with the engineering and construction company Fluor Daniel Inc. since 1991, recently relocated to New York, N.Y., to join his company’s Program Management/ Redevelopment Team overseeing the construction of the new International Arrivals Terminal Building at JFK Airport. • HOWARD LYNCH II has begun studies at Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles.
BARBARA B. MISHKAN graduated from Pepperdine University with an MBA last spring and is now consulting in education at The Learning Gym in Los Angeles.
JULIANA SCHMIDTKE is an actress/stand-up comic using the performing name Juliana Morgan. She has recently appeared twice in supporting roles on the television show “Ellen,” and is currently performing at the Groundlings Theater in Los Angeles.
JO SCOTT has been writing, editing, teaching English and doing public relations work in Riverside, Calif. Last year she was elected president of the board of directors of Habitat for Humanity, Riverside.
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MARTIN DIEKHOFF is a Web and applications developer working on Web sites, databases and multimedia projects with The Getty Trust.
KELLY BURNEY is a senior account executive at Campbell-Ewald Advertising.
RICHARD TITHECOTT MA, PhD ’95, has written Of Men and Monsters: Jeffrey Dahmer and the Construction of the Serial Killer, published by the University of Wisconsin Press. He is administrative director for the Office of Curriculum and Instruction at USC.
Navy Lt. JAY D. WYLIE finished a six-month deployment to the Mediterranean Sea aboard the guided missile destroyer USS Carney.
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First Lt. JOSEPH J. BUTKUS of the U.S. Marine Corps was recently in Guam for training with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, homebased in Okinawa, Japan. • Navy Seaman NELSON CRISPO reported for duty at Naval Air Reserve, Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego.
KARI EISAMAN has joined Time, Inc., as account manager on Entertainment Weekly.
CHRISTOPHER J. GADOMSKI began his medical education last fall at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, Calif. He was previously employed at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles as a research associate in the field of medical genetics.
Marine Maj. EDWARD J. MAYS MS received his master’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif.
JOHN-PAUL MORGANTE has been selected as director, training and development, for The PDS Group, a human resource management company in Augusta, Ga.
ELIZABETH MORROW DMA was promoted to associate professor with tenure in the music department of the University of Texas at Arlington. She is currently recording a compact disk of contemporary works for unaccompanied cello with Centaur Records.
MICHAEL PIERCE was named head of international production for Los Angeles-based music video and television commercial company Frog Productions.
AVA SIRKEGIAN is building her own graphic design/creative services firm, Ava’s Artworks in Fountain Valley, Calif.
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ANDY BRYANT joined Neumann Smith & Associates, an architecture, planning and interior design firm. He and his wife, Tammy, live in Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.
ROBERT VERDI is enrolled in the evening program at the Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles, a course of study leading to the JD degree.
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HEATHER ANDREASEN accepted a position as a media planner with BBDO Chicago, a full-service advertising agency.
KEITH CALMES DMA has completed a three-year tour of duty as a guitarist with the 399th Army Band at Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo. Highlights of his performances there include tours with the flute and guitar duo and a solo performance before famed tenor José Carreras.
Navy Lt. j.g. JOSEPH J. RING concluded a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific Ocean aboard the guided missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain.
SAAR SWARTZON served as an advocate for the Southwestern University School of Law Trial Advocacy team that captured the third place team title at the Consumer Attorneys of San Diego Student Trial Competition.
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CHRISTOPHER J. HARRER MBA has recently been recruited by a fellow Trojan to join Julien J. Studley, Inc., as assistant director, working as a commercial real estate consultant. He and his wife, Pamela, reside in Pacific Palisades, Calif., with their three sons.
HENRY S. KIM, an ensign in the U.S. Navy, is on a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific Ocean aboard the guided missile cruiser USS Port Royal.
ALINA LANDVER and AN MAI NGUYEN are attending Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles.
LEIGH TURNER PhD has accepted the position of bioethicist at Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care and Sunnybrook Health Science Centre/ University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics, beginning in June. He will also have an appointment as assistant professor in the Department for the Study of Religion. Turner is currently a research associate at The Hastings Center.
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