2002 Award Winners

Sam Harrell, PhD 1964, Physical and Inorganic Chemistry

Innovation, efficiency, and an absolute demand for quality are the hallmarks of Sam Harrell's success in academia, technology, and business. At the forefront of the semiconductor industry since the mid-1960s, and also highly regarded as a merger and acquisitions specialist, business advisor, and premium cattle rancher, Dr. Harrell grew up on a ranch outside of Stephenville, Texas. Inspired by an outstanding high school chemistry teacher, he attended Tarleton College (1958-59), and completed his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at Texas Technological University in 1961. He did his doctoral studies at the University of Cincinnati with Dr. Darl McDaniel, who allowed him to work on an accelerated schedule, and received his PhD in Physical and Inorganic Chemistry in 1964, only six years after graduating from high school.

Dr. Harrell began his career at Texas Instruments, working with Jack Kilby who won a Nobel Prize for his pioneering work in microchips. He moved to the startup company Computervision in 1973, serving as Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy Officer. In 1982 he founded and became President of Micronix Corporation, leaving in 1986 to help establish Sematech, the landmark collaboration between government and corporations intended to jump-start the US microchip industry by promoting consistent standards in production and technology. From 1987 through 1992 he was President of SEMI/Sematech, the consortium of equipment and material suppliers, and then became the Senior President and Chief Strategy Officer for Sematech, responsible for industry-wide strategic direction on new semiconductor factory requirements. In 1995, he went to KLA-Tencor in San Jose, California, a company that produces instrumentation and sensors to reduce failed microchips, where he is now Senior Business Advisor and Senior Vice President for Strategic Business Development, planning to retire in June 2002. Dr. Harrell is also a producer of Kobe beef from Wagyu cattle, which he raises without hormones or antibiotics-an endeavor he began when he learned that researchers predicted it would take up to 25 years to correct a shortage of Prime grade beef using a genetic-selection model applied to existing breeding stock. His idea was to find genetics that already worked, which led him to the Wagyu cattle of Japan; within three years, he bred cattle rated Prime.

Dr. Harrell is noted for serving in numerous advisory roles to the US government relating to semiconductor technology and international trade. He has led conferences in both the United States and Japan on Education in the 21st Century, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Wagyu Association. He serves on the Chancellor's Advisory Committee at Texas A & M, and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation of Tarleton State University, where he was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus in 1999. He lives with his wife, Koko, and son, Daniel, in Austin, Texas.

Thomas E. Murphy, BA Economics 1964; Juris Doctorate, 1967

Educated locally, at the University of Cincinnati, Mr. Murphy has shared his knowledge and expertise globally, making lasting contributions within Greater Cincinnati and the far reaches of the world.

Mr. Murphy entered UC's College of Law directly after earning his bachelor's in Economics. Upon graduation he worked for the US Labor Department as a trial lawyer, but in 1970 returned to the College of Law to teach. He developed an innovative student practice program in cooperation with Legal Aid and the Public Defender's office, and was appointed Associate Dean of the Law School. In 1974 he joined The Kroger Co., rising quickly through the ranks as he worked in labor and employment matters, anti-trust, real estate, and mergers and acquisitions. Promoted to Senior Officer and Group Vice President of Human Resources and Labor Relations, his achievements include the initiation of a new win/win approach to labor relations, a leadership role in Kroger's decentralization plan, and involvement in the $4.8 billion recapitalization program. Enjoying corporate life but always planning to return to university work, Mr. Murphy kept connected by teaching human resources management courses at UC and Xavier University as an adjunct professor.

Planning early retirement from Kroger in 1997, he applied to the Fulbright Program and was offered a six-month assignment to Jordan. Assigned to the National Center for Human Resources he worked for Crown Prince Hassan building relationships between public universities and business leaders, and succeeded beyond expectations. He returned to Cincinnati in June 1998 to become the Herbert E. Markely Visiting Professor at Miami University, but in September 1999 was invited back to Jordan by Hassan for a ten-month tour of duty. This time he worked with Hassan's Higher Council for Science and Technology to develop research and development linkages between business and universities, and also as Senior Management Consultant for the Jordan-United States Business Partnership, a USAID Fund project. He taught companies how to write business and marketing plans and to streamline operations for greater efficiency and productivity. Drawing on contacts in Europe and America, he was able to solve technical problems and help Jordanian companies build international relationships.

Now a Fulbright Specialist accepting short term assignments, Mr. Murphy went to Beirut last summer to start an executive education program at the Lebanese American University. He continues to teach at Miami University, but plans to buy a home in Italy and divide his time among teaching in America, traveling in Europe, and working wherever he is needed. Mr. Murphy's professional credentials include numerous presentations and publications on subjects including employment law, human resources, and Middle Eastern issues. His list of local community contributions is equally long, including Chair of the American Heart Association; Chair of the Development Committee for the Cincinnati Opera; service on the board of Bethesda Hospital; and Chair of Jobs for Cincinnati Graduates, an organization that prepares inner-city public school students for the world of work. He and his wife, Janet, live in Cincinnati near his children, Jason and Caroline.

McMicken Excellence Award

Kimberly Carey

Kimberly Carey is best known in the Department of Chemistry as the person who can do anything, do it well-and get it done ahead of schedule. Because she is so expert at anticipating deadlines and prioritizing her work, she regularly accomplishes major objectives far above the expected levels, even if it means coming to work on the weekend to get a head start on a project. Her ability to take charge and work with minimal supervision has helped her successfully coordinate the annual Oesper Symposium, a nationally advertised event which includes an awards banquet and an all-day symposium. Ms. Carey also enjoys the special projects that give variety to her work, especially if they involve learning a new skill. She recently took a course on web site management, and now serves as webmaster for the department's site. She willingly and regularly accepts added responsibilities. "The fact that she is very well organized, is excellent at mult-tasking, and works exceptionally rapidly, efficiently, and accurately enables her to complete special projects while maintaining high performance standards in her regular duties," notes Dr. William Heineman, Distinguished Research Professor. In fact, Dr. Heineman did not accept the position as Chair of the Division of Analytical Chemistry (DAC) of the American Chemical Society (ACS) until he consulted with Ms. Carey to be sure she would be available to help him manage the substantial workload. She has been particularly helpful in organizing the technical program and dinners for the spring and fall national meetings of the 10,000-member DAC, even mastering a specialized computer system for printing the technical program. With her new web skills, she has also taken on the management of the local ACS website.

McMicken Dean's Award for Distinguished Adjunct Performance

Dr. Edward Hunter

Large lecture classes are not often rated favorably by students, but Professor J. Edward Hunter, who teaches the First Year Chemistry sequence, has discovered the formula for success. His well-organized lectures combined with his thorough knowledge of the material and his willingness to meet personally with students, despite an average class size of 350, have earned him high regard from both students and peers. "Ed Hunter has succeeded in conveying to his students not only his enthusiasm for chemistry, but also that he is accessible and willing to help them," says Dr. John Alexander, of the Department of Chemistry. Students commend him for clear and focused teaching that helps them master complex concepts, the review sessions he offers before exams, his obvious knowledge of his subject, and most of all for his approachability. "Dr. Hunter goes out of his way to be available," writes one student. He has assisted a 101 student who was not in his class, offers help with lab work (which is not his responsibility), and corresponds by e-mail with students who cannot come for appointments. Dr. Hunter returned to teaching after twenty-two years with Procter & Gamble, with an impressive number of publications and a wide range of professional affiliations. He has made further contributions to the freshman program by collaborating with University College faculty to set common standards and exams for their First Year Chemistry program and by working with Dr. Alexander to field test a remedial program for at-risk students.

Distinguished Scholarship

Dr. Kay Kinoshita

Recognized internationally for her research on B meson physics and magnetic monopoles, Dr. Kay Kinoshita is also valued in the Department of Physics as a "conscientious and inspiring" professor. Considered by UC colleague Dr. Brian Meadows as "a leading light in the field of particle physics" with "a history of seeking the unusual," Dr. Kinoshita is best known for the invention of an analysis technique termed "partial reconstructions," a very powerful algorithm for doing B meson analysis that has become a standard tool used in a broad range of B physics studies. She has been a key participant in the CLEO collaboration at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring, has taken a leadership role in charm fragmentation studies at CLEO, and is making significant contributions to BELLE, a large international collaboration doing advanced B research at the KEK laboratory in Japan. Described by Dr. Stephen L. Olsen of the University of Hawaii as "very creative in developing experimental apparatus," Dr. Kinoshita invented, built, and implemented an ingenious charged track trigger device at CLEO, and has revised new techniques for processing exposed films in magnetic monopole searches. Her work has resulted in her election as a Fellow of the American Physical Society, an honor restricted to a small percentage of membership. She has more than three hundred publications in refereed journals, and gives numerous presentations each year. A member of the UC Department of Physics since 1998, Dr. Kinoshita serves on the Advisory Committee formed by department head Dr. Frank Pinski, and is chair of the undergraduate committee.

Edith C. Alexander Award for Distinguished Teaching

Dr. Margaret Hanson

In less than four years, astronomer Margaret Hanson has become one of the brightest stars in the Department of Physics. Since coming to the University of Cincinnati in 1998, Dr. Hanson not only has established herself as a respected researcher awarded more than $600,000 from the National Science Foundation and granted fifteen telescope observing runs at major facilities, but also has dedicated herself to creative teaching and a high level of community service. Her introductory astronomy classes are the largest lecture courses in the department, with class sizes approaching 300, but she engages students with her energy and enthusiasm along with peer learning, in-class demonstrations, and extensive use of Blackboard to present online course notes complete with links to images and animated clips that illustrate complicated concepts. A student commended Dr. Hanson for her excellent multimedia lectures, saying she is "uniquely suited to the difficult task of effectively teaching to a large lecture hall." Dr. Hanson also works with her students on a personal level, training undergraduates to serve as teaching assistants. She is active in University Women in Science and Engineering (WISE), and is a model mentor for both graduate and undergraduate students. "She has completely inspired and changed the course of my life," says Amanda Bauer, who, with Dr. Hanson's support, presented her undergraduate research at the American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting, and will be attending graduate school in the fall. Dr. Hanson also serves as faculty advisor to the Society of Physics Students, is on the Nominating Committee for AAS, is working to develop a high school astronomy curriculum at Clark Montessori School, and serves on the Committee for Science and Technology for Girls of the American Association of University Women.

McMicken Excellence Award

Dr. Paula Dubeck

Since joining the Department of Sociology in 1974, Professor Paula Dubeck has generously and diligently joined her professional skills with her energy, intellect, integrity and unfailing sense of humor in an exemplary career marked by extraordinary service. In her seventeen years as Head of the Department of Sociology (1983 - 2000), Dr. Dubeck oversaw the transition from a faculty devoted primarily to teaching, into one of productive researcher-teachers. To support this change, she co-wrote the grant that resulted in the founding of what is now the Kunz Center for the Study of Work and Family, which has increased the department's national stature. Dr. Dubeck has served on nearly three dozen key college committees, including search, advisory, budgetary, and Taft committees. At the university level she most recently chaired the Academic Integrity Sub-Committee of the NCAA Certification Steering Committee, and a subcommittee of the University Athletic Council. Her tireless work on issues of fairness and justice earned her a Recognition of Service Award from the Just Community Initiative, and she is also noted for her dedication to the advancement of women. She was the first president of the Association of Women Faculty (1975), and was instrumental in developing the Women's Studies Center and the master's program in Women's Studies. In the Greater Cincinnati community, she chaired the Community Chest's Evaluation Task Force, provided training seminars to the Cincinnati Police Department, and has served as a consultant to the Better Housing League, the Prison Reform Advocacy Center, and the Hoxworth Blood Center. Maintaining an active role in her field, she serves on the editorial boards of The American Sociologist and Contemporary Sociology: A Journal of Reviews, and is currently President of the North Central Sociological Association. She has participated as chair or member of 34 masters and doctoral committees, and published 11 articles and three books, with another soon to be published.

Friends of McMicken Award

Dr. Rollin Workman

Professor Emeritus Rollin Workman is rumored to have retired in 1988. That will be a surprise to the many colleagues, students, and staff with whom Professor Workman continues, to this day, to have a close relationship as a volunteer advisor, and key contributor in McMicken's Office of Undergraduate Affairs and Advising. But his continued interest in undergraduate students is no surprise to those who are aware of Professor Workman's career-long dedication of his time, talents, and resources to students. With degrees in Physics and Philosophy, Professor Workman joined McMicken's Department of Philosophy as an instructor in 1958 and rose to Professor in 1969. From the outset he served many student groups, most prominently Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Beta Kappa, which for the last 26 years has prevailed on his services as Secretary-Treasurer. For many years he sat on the Pre-Medical Recommendations Committee and was known for his insightful, if not always gushing, portraits of the candidates before him. He created the award we present annually at commencement to McMicken's outstanding graduating woman. His unique career as teacher and advisor is exemplified by the fact that Professor Workman is the only individual to have been awarded both the Dolly Cohen Award for excellence in teaching and the George Barbour award for furthering good student-faculty relations. Alumni often ask about their favorite instructors and advisors from the past. No name is mentioned more often than Rollin Workman's, and when we're asked if he's still here, we are proud to answer, "Of course".

McMicken Scholarship

Brian Huber

Moving from a small town to the cultural diversity of UC gave Brian Huber a wealth of new experiences and brought him closer to realizing his life-long dream of a career in medicine. A pre-med philosophy major with a 3.87 GPA, Brian earned a rare A in a notoriously difficult graduate / undergraduate philosophy class, as well as praise from the professor for producing "one of the best essays I've read by an undergraduate at all of the universities I've taught at..." In the Honors Organic Laboratory for the 2000–2001 school year, Brian was commended for both his work ethic and initiative in designing his own project. With his passion for knowledge and learning, his dual goal is to become an orthopedic surgeon, specializing in sports medicine, and to write on topics in the philosophy of medicine, especially normativism and the role it plays in physician's decisions. Brian hopes to continue on the path to success here at UC; he will be applying this summer for early decision admittance to the UC Medical School.

McMicken Alumni Scholarship

Jeanette McClellan

Based on her undergraduate achievements to date, Jeanette McClellan's future will be both busy and bright. An Honors Scholar with a 3.89 GPA, studying communication and philosophy, Jeanette has been on the dean's list for eleven consecutive quarters. She has also earned two citations of excellence from the Department of Communication, and is a member of both Golden Key National Honor Society and Mortar Board. The variety of her extra-curricular activities is truly impressive: she is the current president of the New York Arts Tour, a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, past secretary of Students in Free Enterprise, a member of RallyCats, and a volunteer with the Environmental Community Organization, for which she created a media kit. In addition, she has been on the News Record staff for three years, serving as reporter, news editor, and now editor in chief. She has also completed two media internships at ABC affiliates, WVEC-TV in Norfolk, Virginia, and WFAA-TV in Dallas, Texas. On March 11, the six-month anniversary of September 11, she participated in a workshop at the headquarters of the New York Times. She will return to New York this summer, representing UC as a visiting student at New York University's summer program. After her final year at UC, Jeanette will attend law school, where she plans to study advocacy and First Amendment law.

McMicken Dean's Scholarship

Margaret Lawson

Inspired by a childhood fascination with faraway lands that matured into a desire to gain a global perspective, Margaret Lawson looks for diverse opportunities outside school as well as within her classes. Before coming to UC as an honors student and a double major in international affairs and French, she spent a year studying at a lycée in France on a Rotary scholarship. There she formed lifelong relationships, mastered the language, and, through the large African presence in France, learned the effects of colonization and the gross inequalities between underdeveloped nations and the rest of the world. Last summer she returned to Paris for a two-month service internship with The Brothers of the Poor Friends of the Elderly. Other service work includes volunteering as a French teacher at the Corryville Recreation Center and participating in Amnesty International. Margaret has further broadened her knowledge of international issues by attending two inter-collegiate Model United Nations conferences. She has also gained proficiency in Spanish, and during spring break traveled to El Salvador with Students for Salvadoran Solidarity for a week-long cultural immersion experience. She is planning to study in Madrid, Spain in the coming academic year. She hopes to earn a doctoral degree in African or Arabic studies, in preparation for a career centered on solving human rights violations in the international community.

Joyce E. Yeager Scholarship

Rachele Walter

Believing since childhood that her aspirations were limited only by her imagination, Rachele Walter credits the University of Cincinnati with helping to shape and guide her goals. She began her college career as a languages major at the University of Nebraska, excelling in Spanish, French, Italian, and Russian, then worked with computers and in health care for three-and-a half years. She transitioned back to student life by enrolling in a linguistics class in the Department of Anthropology at UC. She found that languages no longer filled her hunger for learning, but that the broader field of anthropology touched on all the subjects she loved -history, science, and mathematics as well as the theoretical ideas of art and language. Intrigued by hominid development and evolutionary primatology, she discovered her particular niche in Physical Anthropology, and earned a reputation as one of the better students in the department. Associate Professor Joseph F. Foster says, "...this student's determination and enterprise will make her one day well- known and our college proud to have promoted her intellectual development." Rachele has been on the Dean's List the past three quarters. She will gain hands-on experience at field school this summer, and expects to graduate in June 2003. She plans to pursue a PhD in paleoanthropology, and hopes to teach this knowledge to students "who, like me, hunger for a subject to nourish their many starving facets."

Richard E. Greenholz Scholarship

Donna Crossley

Donna Crossley has many classes ahead before earning her bachelor's degree and completing law school, but she already knows enough about determination and dreams. During her eight years as a critical care nurse, she found she was a natural patient advocate, and planned to enter medical school. But when an autoimmune hearing loss worsened to the point that she could no longer listen through a stethoscope she redefined her goals. After spending a few precious years at home with her two daughters she enrolled in the Legal Nurse Consulting certificate program at the University of Cincinnati. When Legal Studies Associate Professor Raymond Matlock told her about the availability of real time captioning for hearing impaired students, she realized that no academic doors were shut for her. With his support and encouragement, she discovered her aptitude for legal studies and decided a law degree would let her achieve her original goal of patient advocate, from a different standpoint. She transferred to the College of Arts and Science, selecting a major in psychology. An "extraordinary student and exceptional person," she has earned a 3.95 GPA, was ranked the top student among 250 in the Moral and Political Ideas, and has impressed both professors and peers with her personal courage and academic accomplishments. Says Professor Matlock, "This is a complete person-mature, hard working, and extraordinarily talented. She is overcoming a serious hearing disability as if it were no more than a minor inconvenience. She is focused and driven. She will succeed and she will make us all proud. I am certain that someday the legal profession will be strengthened and enriched by her membership."

Isabel & Mary Neff Scholarship

Tonya Camille Hucks

Winning the Neff Scholarship will not only enable an outstanding student to participate in advanced research but also may help her find solutions for a serious problem. "Tonya Hucks is uniquely positioned to make a major contribution to research and prevention in the domain of HIV/AIDS and related disorders," says Department of Psychology professor and department head Dr. Kevin J. Corcoran, who also commends Tonya for her initiative and drive, her interest in doing good science, and her unflinching search for understanding. A third year graduate student pursuing her doctorate in Clinical Psychology, Tonya will use this scholarship to go to the University of California/Los Angeles (UCLA) to work with Vickie Mays, PhD, a leading researcher in HIV/AIDS prevention. This research will form the basis of her doctoral dissertation, but Tonya has already demonstrated excellence in her field. She studied and worked in Africa, attained high-level skills in structural equation modeling, published her research twice, gave five academic presentations, holds membership in numerous professional organizations, and serves as Diversity Chair for the Ohio Psychological Association of Graduate Students-a leadership position through which she helps implement state policies sensitive to the development and cultivation of minority psychology graduate students. Dr. John (Chuck) Schafer, says, "She is clearly a remarkable scientist well on her way to establishing herself as an important presence in our field."

Friends of McMicken Scholarship

Jason O'Neal

His college career may have taken a few twists and turns since he began at Clermont College in 1990, but Jason O'Neal is now on a straight path to success. A dual major in Philosophy and Germanic Languages and Literatures, he is described as a "bright and highly motivated student" by his advisor, Professor Karl Obrath, who says "He has the native intelligence and the tenacity to succeed." Determined to increase his facility in the German language to support his keen interest in early 20th Century German philosophy, Jason will attend an intensive immersion program at the German School of Middlebury College this summer and study in Germany next year. He is commended by his professors for his perseverance, attention to detail, work habits, and direct no-nonsense writing style, as well as his personal qualities of punctuality and courtesy. He has achieved a 3.75 cumulative GPA, and is regularly on the Dean's List. Assistant Professor James Bradford was impressed with Jason's ability the first time he taught him. "His intelligent questions and acute observations placed him well beyond the performance of anyone in the class." Even in challenging graduate courses, "His level of performance did not falter and his ability to write clearly and economically was obvious." Jason will graduate in 2003, and plans to enter a graduate program in German Studies and Philosophy.