WPC Class Notes

1950s

Darrell Sawyer (BS Management ’57) became a licensed pilot at 17, going on to become one of Arizona’s top aviation leaders. During the Korean War, he served in the Air Force as an F-86 mechanic. He gave flying lessons at Phoenix-area airports until 1961 when he borrowed enough seed money to launch The Sawyer School of Aviation at Deer Valley Airport (later changed to Sawyer Aviation), including aircraft sales, maintenance, and charter flying. He founded AirEvac with Good Samaritan Hospital. In March 1979 he moved his growing business to larger facilities at Sky Harbor Airport, and in 2000 sold it to Swift Aviation. Sawyer was inducted into the W. P. Carey Alumni Hall of Fame in 1980.

1960s

Alvin Bender (BS Accountancy ’63) is a certified public accountant in Phoenix who helps local taxpayers and small business owners in tax filing preparation.

Gary Johnson (BS Economics ’68) is the director of marketing at the Law Offices of Glynn Gilcrease in Tempe, Ariz.

Juliann Trump (BS Business Administration ’69) is a teacher in the Scottsdale Unified School District. She also serves as a DECA advisor, sharing access to resources to enhance the classroom experience, bringing learning to life, and motivating students.

Reconnect, renew, Golden Reunion

aduates from W. P. Carey’s classes of 1970 and ’71 returned to the Tempe campus in December for their Golden Reunion. The W. P. Carey Alumni Relations team hosts this special event every year, allowing classmates from the university’s 50-year reunion class and their guests to reconnect with each other and ASU.

1970s

Class of 1970 and ’71 reunion attendees were joined at the breakfast and short program by members of the classes of 1957, 1963, 1968, and 1969.

members of the class of 1970 and '71 sit and stand for a group photo

From left top row: Interim Dean Amy Ostrom, Robert Glenn (BS General Business Administration ’70), Kenneth Goodacre (BS General Business/Finance ’71), Philip Smith (BS Management ’70), William Sullivan (BS Finance ’70), Michael White (BA Anthropology ’70), Wayne Gustafson (BS Accounting ’70), Ed Pope (BSEE ’65, MBA ’71, MSEdu ’08)

From left bottom row: William Simon (BS Business Management ’70), Vivian Painter (BS Management ’70, MBA ’72), Paul Probst (BS Business Administration ’70), Daniel Spitler (BS Business Management ’70), Marlene Shultz (BS Economics ’70)

1970s

Class of 1970 and ’71 reunion attendees were joined at the breakfast and short program by members of the classes of 1957, 1963, 1968, and 1969.

Reconnect, renew, Golden Reunion

1980s

David Adame (BS Finance ’86, MBA ’04) was named 2021 Man of the Year by the Arizona Hispanic Chamber for his role as president and CEO of Chicanos Por La Causa (CPLC), one of the nation’s largest Hispanic community development corporations. Since Adame was named to this post in 2008, CPLC has experienced significant growth and expansion in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico.

Mary Boosalis (Health Services Administration ’87) was named one of Modern Healthcare’s top 25 women of 2021 as the president and CEO of Premier Health in Dayton, Ohio. Boosalis plans to retire in 2022 after more than 35 years in the health care industry.

1990s

Herman Gonzalez (BS Management ’90) will celebrate his nine-year anniversary as vice president of administrative services at Paradise Valley Community College.

John Lugar (MBA ’91) is the executive vice president of the mid-Atlantic region for investment management company Transwestern in Washington, D.C. Lugar previously served as senior vice president for tenant representation at commercial real estate company Colliers in Washington.

Nicole Byun (BS Finance ’92) will celebrate her 12th anniversary at Ohana Pacific Bank in Honolulu in August. Byun, who began as the senior credit administrator, is now the chief credit officer.

Patti McFarland (BS Accountancy ’92) is the chief financial officer at Partnership HealthPlan of California in Santa Cruz.

David Laurence (BS Finance ’93) is senior vice president and business development officer for Wells Fargo in Phoenix.

Heidi McNary (MBA ’98) is the vice president of customer service for Textron Specialized Vehicles in Augusta, Ga.

2000s

Richmond Vincent (MBA ’00) was recognized in Virginia Business Magazine’s 100 People To Meet in 2022. Vincent is the president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Valleys in Roanoke, Va.

Corrie Francis (BS Marketing ’01) has been employed at Wells Fargo for more than 17 years, currently as a business initiatives consultant. When she’s not in the office, Francis serves as Mrs. Colorado American 2021. In this role, she brings awareness to and increases support of the terminally ill and their families.

Brennan Forss (MBA ’02) is the director of academic assessment for W. P. Carey. Previously, she was the director of alumni relations for W. P. Carey. In this role, she started the W. P. Carey Alumni Council; led the creation of the Carey Code for alumni, students, faculty, and staff; pioneered new marketing, communications, and processes; and fostered a strong presence within the school among W. P. Carey students, faculty, and staff. In her new role for W. P. Carey, Forss focuses on academic assessment for the dozens of programs and partnerships offered at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Sommer Decker (BS Marketing ’03) is the owning partner and brewer at Desert Monks Brewing in Gilbert, Ariz., which was awarded a silver medal at the 2021 Great American Beer Festival competition, presented by the Brewers Association.

Nicole Nixen (BS Economics ’03) is the regional finance director with Tegna media headquartered in Tysons Corner, Va. As part of her role, she serves as a department head for Tegna-owned TV stations in Arizona (KPNX/KMSB-KTTU) and California (KXTV).

Jarrad Evans (MBA ’04) leads Remington Hotel’s strategic growth initiatives, investments, and business development team to meet the company’s growth targets as the chief investment officer.

Sindi Major-Martinez (MBA ’04) is the Phoenix public policy chair of the National Association of Women Business Owners, and is a business and technology executive with more than 30 years of experience working with organizations in the private and public sectors. Major-Martinez has worked for organizations in various leadership positions, and also has started two award-winning technology managed services and consulting companies.

Mary Stewart (MBA ’04) is the chief operating officer of genome sequencing and genetic research company GenapSys in Redwood City, Calif. Stewart brings more than 20 years of experience in leading both large and small organizations in the health sector. Previously, she was vice president for global diagnostic strategy at medical genetics company Invitae in San Francisco and ArcherDX in Boulder, Colo. Stewart is also a retired colonel in the U.S. Air Force, where she was in command of the 59th Medical Support Group and the 377th Medical Group.

Trent Wilfinger (BS Marketing ’04) is the senior vice president of talent ID and development for World Wrestling Entertainment in Stamford, Conn.

Benjamin Langis (MBA ’07) and his wife, Lauren, are the benefactors of the Langis Excellence in Teaching Awards. Langis is the head of workplace of the future and senior vice president at financial services company State Street in Boston.

Jason Stead (MBA ’09) is the senior vice president and chief information security officer for Choice Hotels in Scottsdale, Ariz., where he oversees privacy and security, risk management, service management, and technology compliance. Before this, Stead was the vice president of information security for First National Bank of Arizona, now known as CIT Bank.

2010s

Britton Russel (BS Finance/BA Business Sustainability ’10) is the chief financial officer of biotechnology company GenapSys in Redwood City, Calif.

Atif Saeed (MBA ’10) is the chief financial officer of the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) in Minneapolis. He oversees and manages two divisions: finance and revenue development and human resources and labor relations. Saeed was named the 2021 CFO of the Year by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal for his focus on spending reductions, balanced with investments in infrastructure and keeping MAC strong during economic turbulence.

Renisha Robnett (MRED ’11) is a corporate real estate advisor at Greenwood Commercial Real Estate Group in Atlanta. In 2020, online commercial real estate publisher GlobeSt. and print publication GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum awarded Robnett with Broker of the Year–Tenant Representation and as a Woman of Influence in Commercial Real Estate.

Nicholas Tyler (BS Economics/Business Sustainability ’13, MBA ’20) is part of the Procurement Leadership Development Program at Johnson & Johnson in Skillman, N.J.

Aravind Mohan (MBA/MS-IM ’14) is a senior category sourcing manager at Amazon Web Services in Austin, Texas.

Citlali Aguilar-Canamar (BS Business Data Analytics/Computer Information Systems ’18) is a solutions engineer with online content moderation company Spectrum Labs in New York.

Tim Benter (MBA ’18) is vice president of general counsel for RV Retailer, the second-largest RV dealership group in the United States. He oversees all legal affairs from the Arizona office. Benter’s most recent legal role was as vice president, deputy general counsel, and assistant secretary for Republic Services, where he played a significant role in the mergers and acquisition legal function during the American disposal company’s high-growth period.

Matthew Burch (MBA ’18) is a senior sales representative at medical device company Medtronic in Phoenix.

Rachel Curtis Vinck (MBA ’18) is a private-sector engagement manager for USAID projects at global consulting firm Resonance. Working at the firm’s Washington, D.C., office, Vinck helps USAID missions and bureaus engage with the private sector globally. She was named a 2018 Best & Brightest MBA by Poets & Quants.

Alexandria Duran (MBA ’18) is an integration and test lead at ViaSat in Chandler, Ariz. She’ll celebrate her fifth anniversary at the telecommunications company in August.

Jordan Gift (MBA ’18, BA Journalism and Mass Communication ’11), director of strategic initiatives at American software company BeyondTrust in Phoenix, welcomed daughter Harbison Rae on Jan. 14, 2021.

Aaron Gliner (MBA ’18) is the director of business development and regulation at drone safety systems company ParaZero in Israel. Gliner leads global sales, business development and strategy, marketing communications, strategic collaborations, and regulatory affairs.

Ross Handley (MBA ’18) will be celebrating his four-year work anniversary as assistant vice president at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Charlotte, N.C.

Jansen Neff (MBA ’18) is a manager of quality of care initiatives at the Arizona chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Adarsh Nungoor (MBA/MS-BA ’18) will be celebrating his four-year anniversary as a data scientist at Cable One in Phoenix.

Christopher Ott (MBA ’18) will celebrate his fifth anniversary at Amazon in June. He started as a central flow manager and is currently a senior manager of supply chain management at the Tempe, Ariz., location.

Rebecca Porter (MBA ’18), who will be celebrating her three-year anniversary as a marketing campaign manager at Flagstar Bank in Troy, Mich., is also celebrating a new family member, Abigail Rose, who was born June 26, 2021.

Christian Reyes (MBA ’18) is celebrating his 10th year as a physical therapist.

Scott Wegener (MBA ’18) is a marketing manager at Foothills Creamery in Calgary, Alberta.

Tori Becher (MBA ’19), who is a sourcing category manager for global materials science company W.L. Gore & Associates in Phoenix, welcomed baby girl, Callie, on Nov. 23, 2020.

2020s

Abhinav Chauhan (MBA/MS-BA ’20) is a senior product manager at Adobe in San Jose, Calif.

Moises Espinoza Lopez (MBA/MS-BA ’20) will be celebrating his three-year work anniversary at semiconductor company Micron Technology in Boise, Idaho, in May. Lopez, who started as a supply chain management intern, currently is a supply chain rotational in the Global Supply Chain Rotational Program.

Ditipriya Ghosh (MBA ’20) is a demand planning analyst at Shamrock Foods in Phoenix.

Brian Hubbell (MBA ’20) is the chief operations officer at information technology and services company QuantumRhino in Phoenix.

Megan Hucek (MBA ’20) is an associate brand manager for Nestlé in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Richa Jain (MBA/MS-BA ’20) will celebrate her two-year anniversary as a senior business analyst at Capital One in Washington, D.C., in June.

Nicolas Magnan (MBA ’20) is a lead financial analyst at the aviation and aerospace company Bombardier in Quebec.

Jean Martinez Vera (MBA ’20) is assistant vice president of strategy and management at Bank of America in Charlotte, N.C.

Jyotishka Misra (MBA/MS-BA ’20) is a manager at American Express in Phoenix.

Priyadarshini Ojha (MBA ’20) is a software product manager at Micron Technology in Boise, Idaho.

Jared Richards (MBA ’20), who serves as a military police observer coach/trainer in the Grand Prairie, Texas, Army National Guard and is a global commodity manager at Dell Technologies in Fort Worth, Texas, is expecting his first daughter.

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