2014 Ninth Annual
Distinguished Achievement 
Awards & Gala

Saturday, October 25, 2014 ⋅ Newport Marriott, Newport, R.I.

The Distinguished Achievement Awards honor
those who personify URI’s tradition of excellence
in achievement, leadership, and service.

2014 PRESIDENT’S AWARD RECIPIENTS

Wesley R. Card ’70
Retired CEO and Director, The Jones Group, Inc.
When Wes Card retired as CEO and director of the Jones Group earlier this year, he had served the company for 25 years, including positions as president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer. The former chair of the American Apparel and Footwear Association, he began his career at Price Waterhouse and Bank of Boston before becoming corporate controller for Warnaco Inc. He later became executive vice president and chief financial officer for Carolyne Roehm, Inc. before joining the Jones Group. He is a member of the URI President’s Advisory Council, a former member of the URI Business Advisory Council and former chair of the Big Chill/Winter Gala Committee.

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Thomas D. Cerio III ’76
Executive Vice President, Warner Bros.
Most of the Warner Bros. television programming seen on domestic basic cable networks and digital content providers can be attributed to the efforts of Tom Cerio. As executive vice president of cable sales at Time Warner, he is responsible for making the deals that bring shows like The Big Bang Theory to cable. He previously was senior vice president of program sales for HBO, where he was responsible for distributing iconic programs like The Sopranos and Sex and the City to basic cable networks. He began his career in television at Orion Pictures and Disney. He is a member of the Executive Advisory Board of URI’s Harrington School of Communication and Media.

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Paul J. Hastings ’84
Chairman and CEO, OncoMed Pharmaceuticals
Paul Hastings has been a leader in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries for more than 20 years. He has served as president and CEO of QLT, Inc., Axys Pharmaceuticals and LXR Biotechnology, and as president of Chiron BioPharma. He also held management positions with Genzyme Corp., including president of Genzyme Therapeutics Worldwide. Today he is president and CEO of OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, a clinical development-stage biopharmaceutical company in Redwood City, Calif. In 2011 he was the first member of the LGBT community to be awarded URI’s Diversity Award for Lifetime Achievement, and he has been an active supporter of StartOut, which fosters leadership among LGBT entrepreneurs and combats LGBT discrimination in the business world.

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Diane Pennica, Ph.D. ’77
Retired Senior Scientist, Genentech
During her 30-year career at Genentech, Diane ­Pennica worked on numerous projects to help reduce or eliminate the effects of heart attacks, strokes and cancer. Her 1987 invention, the clot-busting drug Activase, has helped treat more than 4.7 million patients who suffered heart attacks and strokes. She also cloned a vital tumor-suppressor gene, which was named Molecule of the Year in 1993 by the journal Science and opened a new field of cancer research. She discovered three new genes that are implicated in colon cancer, and she was first to clone tumor necrosis factor, the protein responsible for joint destruction. Her research has led to therapies—such as Enbrel—which have helped millions of people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.

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2014 CORPORATE AWARD

Hasbro, Inc., Alfred J. Verrecchia ’67, M.B.A ’72, Hon. ’04
Chairman of the Board
An iconic toy and game company employing numerous URI alumni and student interns, Rhode Island-based Hasbro has been extremely generous to the University through the years, with gifts supporting academics, athletics, student affairs and alumni relations. It has supported URI’s International Engineering and International Business Programs and its Center for Nonviolence and Peace Studies, and funded an endowed chair in business. Founded by the grandfather and great uncles of URI Foundation Trustee Alan G. Hassenfeld, the company has been included on lists of the best companies to work for, the most ethical companies in the world, the best corporate citizens, and the most community-minded companies.

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2014 DEANS’ AWARD RECIPIENTS

ALAN SHAWN FEINSTEIN COLLEGE OF CONTINUING EDUCATION
Gary J. Burkholder Jr. ’92, M.A. ’95, Ph.D. ’00, Chief Academic Officer, Laureate University Partnerships, USA

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Lori J. Merolla ’83, M.S., Vice President, Fidelity Investments
Ann M. Spruill ’76, Retired Partner, GMO LLC

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
Thomas J. Chisholm ’68, CEO, Chisholm Ventures, LLC
Kenneth E. Knox ’70, Regional Director (New England), Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
William J. Murray ’78, M.B.A.(’95), President, Teknor Apex Co.
Daniel W. Urish, M.S., Ph.D. ’78, Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering, URI; and Engineering Consultant

COLLEGE OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND LIFE SCIENCES
Perry A. Raso ’02, M.S. ’06, Owner, Matunuck Oyster Bar and Matunuck Oyster Farm
Edward Ueber, M.S. ’76, Owner and Farmer, Bluebird Oaks Organic Farm

COLLEGE OF HUMAN SCIENCE AND SERVICES
Caroline Tennant Kaull ’66, URI Supporter and Community Leader
Janet W. Raymond ’79, M.B.A., Senior Vice President, Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce

COLLEGE OF NURSING
Rebecca L. Burke ’76, RN, M.S., NEA-BC, Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer, Kent County Hospital
Elaine Barber Parker ’74, M.S. ’79, Ph.D. ’97, Retired Associate Professor of Nursing, UMass Graduate School of Nursing

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY
Anthony Palmieri III ’71, M.S. ’73, Ph.D., Associate Scholar, Pharmaceutics, University of Florida College of Pharmacy
Jean-Marie Pflomm, Pharm.D. ’96, Editor, The Medical Letter

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF OCEANOGRAPHY
Amy S. Bower, Ph.D. ’88, Senior Scientist, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Christopher T. H. Pell, M.M.A. ’80, Retired Executive Director, The Preservation Society of Newport County

2014 RISING STAR AWARD

Wilson K. Okello, M.S. ’12, First Year Adviser and Resident Director, Miami University-Ohio