Mountaineer gold and blue was splashed with red, white and blue Saturday (April 13) as the West Virginia University School of Journalism Alumni Association held its annual banquet at Erickson Alumni Center.
This years event had a patriotic theme,”Valuing America and Our Alma Mater,”to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the 9-11 tragedy; to those who are covering the war as journalists; and to the men and women of the armed services who are fighting the war on terrorism, said Kim Gemondo, president.
In addition, the Association honored three outstanding graduates.
Recipient of the 2002 Perley Isaac Reed Award was Scott Bosley. The Reed award is the highest honor the Association bestows upon graduates of the School of Journalism and recognizes the recipientsoutstanding achievements during their journalism careers.
A 1965 graduate, Bosley is executive director of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, located in Reston, Va. As such, he has overall responsibility for management of the largest national organization of newspaper editors in the United States. He also manages activities of the ASNE Foundation, which funds programs on diversity, credibility, readership and First Amendment issues.
Prior to his 1999 association with ASNE , he was director of shared content with Knight Ridder Inc. from 1998-1999, and also worked as editor and vice president of Knight Ridder Tribune Information Services from 1987-1991.
He has also served as president and publisher of The Post-Tribune in Gary, Ind., editor and vice president of The Journal of Commerce and managing editor of The Detroit Free Press and Akron Beacon Journal.
He is a board member of the Luther Institute in Washington, D.C., and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Press Club.
He has extensive executive leadership training and attended the Harvard Experience.
Bosley is married to Carol Machamer Bosley, and they have two grown children.
The Friend of the School Award went to two individuals for exemplary support and commitment tothe SOJ Leonard S. Gross, Class of 1949, and C. Michael Fulton, Class of 1979.
Gross, of Morgantown, has served as president of the Journalism Alumni Association two times. During his most recent term (ending April 2001), he almost single-handedly organized the campaign to establish the Associations endowment fund through the WVU Foundation. It currently exceeds $10,500.
Gross worked in print and broadcast news and sports early on in his career, but spent nearly 20 professional years with Consolidation Coal Co., retiring in 1982 as general manager of public relations. He was ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church in 1974, and served congregations in Morgantown and nearby communities.
He resides in Morgantown with his wife, Louise. They have two grown daughters.
Fulton is executive vice president of the Washington, D.C., firm Golin/Harris. He has been with the firm since 1988, specializing in government relations. He is a long-time member and former president of the schools Visiting Committee, and has been instrumental in setting up collaborative internships, partnerships and working relationships between his company and the school.
He resides in Kensington, Md., with his wife, Teresa Fulton, also a SOJ grad.
Other honorees included the SOJ Teachers of the Year ** Assistant Professor Robyn Blakeman, who also serves as advertising program chair, coordinator of the IMC Online Graduate Certificate Program and coordinator of student affairs and curriculum; and Adjunct Teacher of the Year Paul S.Sunyak, an award-winning reporter at the Herald-Standard in Uniontown, Pa., who has taught as a SOJ adjunct since August 1999.
The SOJ also honored its top students:
- AdvertisingElizabeth Leigh Thompson, Elkins
- Broadcast NewsTracie Lynn Stuart, Philippi
- News Editorial- Michael Gregory Casazza, Manassas, Va.
- Public RelationsAnn R. Mangold, Masontown, Pa.
Elected to fill two-year terms on the SOJ Alumni Board were: Judith Dinardi, Class of 1982; Frances Bennett Riley, Class of 1993; and Kathleen Utterback, Class of 2000. Becky Lofstead, Class of 1976, will fill a one-year vacancy created when Stephanie Hall Beddow, Class of 1990 and 1993, assumed the secretarial position.
Other officers completing their terms are: Kim Gemondo, president, Morgan Clevenger, vice president; Ronda Gregory, treasurer; and board members Leonard Gross, Greg VanCamp, Paul Atkins, Regan Fritsch Bruni and Julie Cryser.