October 2006 Newsletter1. PREGAME PARTIES A SMASHING SUCCESS
Last year in an effort to connect alumni in different
regions of California and the rest of the country, the Alumni Association
developed a program to foster emerging alumni networks in regional areas and
organized pregame parties prior to all Spartan away football games. This year’s
pregame parties have been wildly successful with over 150 Spartans in Seattle,
Washington and over 400 in Reno, Nevada. With three remaining away games, we
hope to see many more of you! Get information about our upcoming pregame parties
in Hawaii, New Mexico, and Idaho. More...
2. NEW NETWORK NOW CONTAINS OVER 100 GROUPS
Have you registered for the new online network? If not,
you’re missing out! Our new network has just reached the 100-group milestone.
That means alumni like you have created different groups, catering to your
interests within our alumni network. Spartans are reconnecting, finding jobs and
sharing interests. Visit www.sjsualumninetwork.com today to get connected.
Events & Programs
3. ALUMNI CULINARY AND WINE ADVENTURE
 Next in our installment of decadent delights comes our alumni culinary and wine adventure. SJSU Alumni will be treated to a seasonal cooking demonstration at the amazing Culinary Institute of America (CIA) at Greystone in St. Helena. The demonstration will consist of instruction on how to prepare the dish, complete with a tasting and a copy of the recipe. Afterward, our group will travel down the road to V. Sattui Winery, owned by SJSU alumnus, Daryl Sattui, to enjoy a private lunch, tasting and tour. If you’re still thirsty for more, travel the Napa and Sonoma countryside and enjoy wine tasting at your leisure.
WHEN: Saturday, December 2, 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: St. Helena, California
RSVP: Register online
or contact Sheryl Walters directly at 408-924-6520
4. LEND A HAND AT THE TURKEY TROT 4K RUN/WALK ON NOVEMBER 4
Associated Students is sponsoring the Turkey Trot 4K Run/Walk to support the Cesar E. Chavez Community Action Center.
Registration information:
Race Date: November 4
Early Bird Sign-Up Start: October 16-October 26
Regular Sign-Up Start: October 27
Sign Up Deadline: November 4 at the
race
Pricing:
Early Bird/Regular
Student Cost: $3/$5
Alumni Association Cost: $6/$8
Faculty/Staff Cost: $8/$10
ASCR Affiliate Cost: $13/$15
Student Affairs Team Cost: *Group of 4 people
$15/$15
Student Team Cost: *Group of 5 people $15/$15
Contact: Nicole Hagar
at 408-924-6217
5. "SUCCEEDING WHILE DANCING BACKWARDS: INSIGHTS FROM FEMALE BUSINESS LEADERS"
This event is hosted by SJSU’s College of Business and open to all alumni. The panelists will be EWE members Melissa Dyrdahl, senior vice president of corporate marketing and communications at Adobe Systems Inc., Linda F. Morasch, chief financial officer of Ponderosa Homes Inc., and Cynthia Kenyon-Lazares, CPA, retired co-founder of Shilling and Kenyon/SK Consulting Inc. Dr. Joyce Osland, the Donald and Sally Lucas endowed professor of global leadership will act as moderator.
The following student clubs will sponsor this event: Financial Management Association, Beta Alpha Psi and The Entrepreneurial Society.
A private reception preceding the event will be held for EWE members.
WHEN: Tuesday, November 7, Reception 5 p.m., Discussion
6 p.m.
WHERE: SJSU Main Campus, University Room
RSVP: For more
information, contact Liz
Harvey
at 408-924-3410
6. DAVID SAURMAN PROVOCATIVE LECTURE
The David Saurman Provocative Lecture will present “The Rise of the Corporatist State and Fall of Freedom in Russia: An Insider’s
view,” led by Dr. Andrei Illarionov, president of
the Institute of Economic Analysis and former economic advisor to President Putin of the Russian Federation. This event is
free and open to all alumni and the public.
WHEN: Tuesday, November 14, 5:15 - 6:45 p.m.
WHERE: Rotary Summit Center,
4th & San Fernando Street, atop the City of San José 4th Street parking
garage
RSVP: No RSVP is necessary, open to the public
7. SPARTANS IN THE DESERT
 Next year will be filled with special events, as the university celebrates its 150th anniversary. Please join us again for dinner and golf. This year, we will meet at the Desert Willow Country Club on Friday and Saturday, March 9 and 10. The Pacific Life Open tennis tournament is also planned for this weekend. If many of you are interested in attending the tournament on Saturday afternoon, we will purchase a block of tickets so we can attend as a group.
We are hoping for an even larger crowd at this year's event, and you are the key! This is a great way to reconnect with alumni and friends while learning about exciting campus developments and activities. Please feel free to invite your sorority sisters, fraternity brothers, former classmates and roommates, and your friends.
WHEN: Friday and Saturday, March 9 -10
WHERE: Palm
Desert, California
RSVP: For more information, contact Liz Harvey
at 408-924-3410
Alumni on the Move
8. LEGENDARY WATER POLO COACH LEE WALTON IS BACK—AND STILL WINNING
 After a 23-year break from the sport that twice got him elected to the SJSU Hall of Fame—as a player and a coach—Lee Walton returned to coaching water polo for NorCal Blue Alumni, a 55 and older squad that includes Spartans Bob Likins and Steve Hamman (SJSU All-American in 1971). In June, the NorCal team took first in its division in the national championship in San Diego, and in August the squad became 2006 World Champions in an international tournament held at Stanford. About his coach, Hamman says: “That man is real competitive.”
9. TITO ADDISON IS NEW GAVILAN COLLEGE BASKETBALL COACH
At SJSU, Tito Addison was part of the 1996 team that won the Big West Conference tournament. After two seasons as assistant coach for the SJSU women’s team, he became the women’s coach at Mission College. Now he’s psyched to be coaching the men’s team at Gavilan College. “This is a very tough conference,” he told the Morgan Hill Times. “Getting respect in the conference, especially in my first year, will be a tough challenge.” Another challenge will be turning around a Gavilan program that tied for last place in conference play last season.
10. GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER APPOINTS SAN JOSÉ DEMOCRAT TO JUDGESHIP
Hector Ramon, ’71 History, who has run his own law firm in San José for the past two decades, is now a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge. He is the ninth Latino judge on Santa Clara County’s 79-member court, according to the San José Mercury News. “For me,” Ramon said, “this is a great opportunity for a local guy to serve the community.” He received his law degree from Harvard and has served as treasurer of La Raza Lawyers Association.
11. MAISANO RECEIVES 2005 CHAIRMAN’S AWARD
The Hartford Financial Services Group in Hartford, Connecticut, honored Gayle Maisano, ’89 Management, with its Chairman’s Award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the company, one of the nation’s largest financial services and insurance firms. Maisano’s team redefined the company’s strategy for assisting workers’ compensation claimants with spinal cord and brain injuries.
12. HASEMEIER IS MISSOURI HISTORY TEACHER OF THE YEAR
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and Preserve America named Claire Hasemeier, who teaches social studies at Ida Cannon Middle School in Elsberry, Missouri, the state’s top educator in her field. The award includes a $1,000 honorarium and the chance to compete for the National History Teacher of the Year award. Hasemeier has been teaching since 1990 and serves on the Steering Committee of the Missouri chapter of the National Council for History Education.
13. FONG INDUCTED INTO ASIAN ACADEMY HALL OF FAME
Asian American community activist and Evergreen Valley College Professor Paul Fong, ’76 Sociology, ’82 MPA, was named to the Asian Academy Hall of Fame. He will be honored with the global award next month in Prague, Czech Republic, at the annual conference of Asian Leaders and Connected International Meeting Professionals Association (CIMPA).
Fong is a board member of Santa Clara County’s Asian Americans for Community Involvement (AACI) and has devoted more than 30 years to giving back to his community. Currently he serves as an elected trustee of the Foothill-DeAnza Community College District and also sits on the boards of the Association of Community College Trustees and the California Community College Trustees. “I am surprised and honored to receive this recognition,” he said in a press release. “My passion is serving the local community. This is just icing on the cake.”
14. NEW SCOTTS VALLEY POLICE CHIEF IS ALSO A PUBLISHED CARTOONIST
John Weiss, ’84 MS Criminal Justice, is Scotts Valley’s new (and only its fifth) police chief. He started his career with the SV Police Department in 1990, while also working as the editorial cartoonist at the Santa Cruz Sentinel. He gave up that job, he told the press, when it became less “appropriate” to lampoon the community leaders he needed to interact with as a member of the police department. He hasn’t given up on the visual arts entirely. Weiss is now an oil painter—like his late father, an administrative law judge who died in 2004.
15. REED NAMED VICE CHANCELLOR OF NEVADA SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION
University of Nevada, Reno, Dean of the College of Business Administration Mike Reed, ’68 Economics, is the new vice chancellor of finance and administration for the Nevada System of Higher Education. The NSHE is comprised of two universities, a state college, four community colleges and one research institute, and is governed by the Nevada Board of Regents.
Reed has been a member of the University of Nevada, Reno economics faculty since 1972, and served as the department chair from 1983 to 1992 before becoming dean. He is a member of the SJSU Alumni Association.
Spartans at Work
16. A VERY FIT CLUSTER OF SPARTANS AT CLUB ONE
Many thanks to Robyn VanDerLuit, ’92 Recreation, for letting us know she’s not the only Spartan over at Club One, the “fitness continuum” club headquartered in Campbell. Read on for a list of Director Robyn’s associates, their jobs, promotions, and someone who thinks SJSU Professor Peggy Plato ROCKS!
David Amacher, ’99 MA Kinesiology, athletic training program manager, Juniper Networks: “I answered an ad in the Mercury News and was hired to be the program manager on behalf of Club One for the Sheriff Department’s fitness and wellness program. I now run Juniper Networks' health and fitness program.”
Jami Andrews, ’95 Kinesiology, corporate worksite fitness
senior program manager: “Currently, I oversee the health and fitness programs for Applied Materials, Blue Shield and the San José Fire Department on behalf of Club One. I started working for Club One in 1997, when I was hired to build, then manage, the health and productivity program at Netscape.”
Kristin Filice, ’03 Kinesiology, corporate fitness program manager, Mercury Interactive: “I got into contact with Club One through a job posting at the university. I quickly progressed up the ladder and currently oversee the health and fitness program for Mercury Interactive. I love Professor Peggy Plato at SJSU! SHE ROCKS!”
Tom Nelson, ’96 MS Kinesiology, director, Community Centers: “I began with Club One in 1991 as a personal trainer at General Electric. I now oversee three Bay Area Jewish community centers on behalf of Club One.”
Robyn VanDerluit, ’92 Recreation, business management director, Worksite Health and Fitness: “I began with Club One in 1994 as a program manager at AMD in Sunnyvale. Now I oversee the Worksite Health and Fitness Division for Club One with 70 worksite health and fitness programs nationwide for companies such as Motorola, AOL, Chevron, Electronic Arts and more.”
Abbey White, ’06 Kinesiology, business personal trainer/fitness coordinator, Skyport: “I will always have a strong connection with SJSU. I am a former Spartan athlete, and several of the methods I use while training I learned from SJSU’s strength and conditioning program. The Kinesiology Department was very well rounded, and I greatly enjoyed my time there.”
Campus News
17. MINETA TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE TO RECEIVE $8 MILLION
 SJSU's Mineta Transportation Institute will receive $8
million in state and federal funding over the next four years after winning a
tough U.S. Department of Transportation competition, pitting SJSU against 36 of
the nation's top research universities. Rod Diridon, the institute's executive
director, said the funding will be used to expand many of the institute's
endeavors, including its semi-annual national symposia on transportation
security and finance, its peer-reviewed research on the same topics, and its
master of science in transportation management and professional certificate
programs. More...
18. ACADEMIC SUCCESS CENTER CELEBRATES GRAND OPENING
SJSU's new Academic Success Center celebrated its grand
opening Tuesday, October 24, on the ground floor of Robert D. Clark Hall. The
10,000-square-foot endeavor will provide a convenient and highly motivational
one-stop shop for inspiring and celebrating learning. The center is comprised of
a 3,000-square-foot computer learning stage surrounded by three conference
rooms; incubator classroom and conference rooms; nine more tech-enriched
classrooms; and offices for student services. The incubator classroom includes
interactive whiteboards, a video conferencing system, tablet personal computers,
Macintosh laptop computers, a document camera and huddle boards. More...
19. CSU RANKED AMONG NATION'S TOP GREEN POWER PURCHASERS
SJSU is one of 16 California State University campuses that bought enough green power recently to make CSU one of the nation's top green power purchasers. CSU ranked 19th on a list of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's top 25 purchasers. Others on the list include the U.S. Air Force, Wells Fargo, Whole Foods Market, Johnson & Johnson and Starbucks. In addition, CSU ranked second on a similar E.P.A. list for the top ten colleges and universities. CSU was the only California institution to make the list, which was topped by the University of Pennsylvania. Over a one-year period, the CSU system purchased more than 75 million kilowatt-hours of green power generated from biomass, geothermal and wind resources. Both lists are updated quarterly.
20. NEW TOWER BOARD MEMBERS
The San José State University Tower Foundation has appointed six highly accomplished individuals to its board of directors. The foundation manages SJSU's $40 million endowment. The board is now comprised of 26 top business and community leaders, including many alumni. The new board members are: Laurence Boucher, Alacritech Inc. founder, president and chief executive officer; Dana C. Ditmore, Oak Valley Consulting president, Applied Materials former executive; Edward A. Oates, Oracle Corp. founder; Anthony Ridder, Knight Ridder Inc., former chairman and chief executive officer; Peter V. Ueberroth, U.S. Olympic Committee chairman, former baseball commissioner; and David Wasick, Supreme Court of Nevada settlement judge.
Spartan Sports
21. FOOTBALL LOOKS AHEAD TO LOUISIANA TECH
 A hallmark of Dick Tomey’s 2006 San José State Spartans:
they win as a team and they lose as a team. The good news for those in the land
of Sparta is this: there haven’t been many losses this year. That has certainly
been the case in the friendly confines of Spartan Stadium where San José State
owns a spotless 4-0 mark this season. At 4-2 and coming off their first loss
since the season-opener at Washington, the Spartans are looking to get back on
the winning track. "We were disappointed with our performance against Nevada,"
said Tomey during his Monday press conference. "We also look at it as a great
learning experience for our team. We now know we must continue to work hard and
get better everyday. The loss was not the end; it's only the beginning. It is
the beginning of us working to become an even better football team." More...
22. IRWIN HAT TRICK SENDS WOMEN'S SOCCER TO 4-2 WIN AT HAWAII
 A three-goal second-half hat trick by Nicole Irwin
propelled the San José State University women’s soccer team to a 4-2 triumph
over defending Western Athletic Conference regular-season champion University of
Hawai’i at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium on Sunday, October 22. The hat trick
was the second for a Spartan player in as many games. Jessica Scott scored three
first-half goals in a 5-0 home victory over Louisiana Tech on Sunday, October
15. The feat was previously achieved last by all-time leading scorer Stacie
Savage on October 24, 1997, against Hawai’i. Irwin’s is now the seventh hat
trick in program history. More...
23. WOMEN'S GOLF TOPS FOUR TOP-20 TEAMS FINISHING FIFTH AT STANFORD TOURNEY
 San José State University posted its best 18-hole team
score in seven years to finish fifth in the talent-laden Stanford
Intercollegiate Women’s Golf Tournament. The Spartans recorded a final-round
team score of four-under par 280 on the par 71, 5,985-yard Stanford University
Golf Course for an 877 team score. More...
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