Class Notes

1950s

  • Alvin Brooks (B.A. ’59, M.A. ’73, H.D.’12) was honored with the Spirit of Philanthropy award by the Greater Kansas City chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professional on National Philanthropy Day, Nov. 15. As an alum, not only does he have a scholarship named after him for more than a decade, he also received an honorary doctorate from UMKC in 2012. The UMKC Foundation nominated Brooks for the award, and he was selected. The award honors an individual with a proven record of embodying the spirit of philanthropy through financial support, community service and leadership.

1960s

  • Joy Franz (B.M. ’64) performed in High Spirits: The 60th Anniversary Concert of an Improbable Musical Comedy at 54 Below in New York in January 2025.

  • Diane Stephenson (M.A. ’67), a former UMKC physical education assistant professor, was selected as the oldest volunteer at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. At nearly 94, she was the oldest in the Games’ 64-year history.

1970s

  • Stephen Schonndelmeyer (BSP ’74) was announced as the 2025 Remington Honor Medal recipient by the American Pharmacists Association (AphA). He will be officially recognized during the APhA Annual Meeting and Exposition in Nashville, Tennessee in March 2025.
  • The Hon. Hugh H. Ryan (B.S. ’74, Admin of Justice ’75, MPA ’78) retired from the bench in 2024. He is an instructor for the police academy at Metropolitan Community College teaching constitutional law and law updates to in-service officers.
  • Dennis McCoy (DDS ’77) closed his office after practicing for almost 46 years in St. Clair, Missouri. He still volunteers with the Rural Parish Clinic and plans on doing another mission trip to Honduras in 2024. He and his wife Mindi have been married for 51 years and have four children and eight grandchildren.
  • Daniel E. Jolly (DDS ’77) was announced as the Marquis Who’s Who Humanitarian Award in January 2025. Dr. Jolly's notable accomplishments, brilliance and prominence within the dental and forensic sectors make him an exceptional choice for the Humanitarian Award.
  • Bob Regnier (MBA ’78) joined Hawthorn Bank as Market Chairman and an Advisory Board Member in 2024, and was recently named Ingram's 2024 Philanthropist of the Year.

1980s

  • Michele Perry-Williams (M.A. ’80) recently retired from her position as an investigator/drug specialist at the Food and Drug Administration in St. Louis, Missouri.
  • UMKC School of Medicine alums Alexander Norbash (B.A. ’85, M.D. ’86) and Richard Barohn (B.A. ’76, M.D. ’80) co-presented on the importance of rural medicine at The Missouri 100 group meeting in Columbia, Missouri, on September 7, 2024. Dr. Norbash is currently the Dean of the UMKC School of Medicine while Dr. Barohn is the Executive Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and the Hugh E. and Sarah D. Stephenson Dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Missouri. The Missouri 100 is a UM System affinity group of approximately 100 business leaders from across the state that help advise the system's president. (pictured below)
  • Sean O'Brien (J.D. ’80) was presented with the 2025 Legal Champion Award by Missouri Lawyers Media for the exoneration of Sandra Hemme. O'Brien has been director of various criminal defense clinics at UMKC School of Law since 1983 and was 2023 Alumnus of the Year. (pictured below)
  • Freda Mendez Smith (B.A. ’80) was honored with the inaugural Clara Reyes Lifetime Achievement Award at the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City Nuestra Latina Awards. She is a former president of the UMKC Women's Council and 2023 Starr Women's Hall of Fame inductee. (pictured below)
  • The Hon. Ronnie L. White (J.D. ’83) retired from the federal bench on July 31, 2024. He had held the position of United States District Judge since his nomination by President Barack Obama in January of 2014 and confirmation by the U.S. Senate in July of that year. (pictured above)
  • Dean Elledge (D.D.S. ’83, A.E.G.D. ’13) was named 2024 Dentist of the Year by the Kansas Dental Association.
  • Matthew Hahn (MFA ’84) published his third book with BearManor Media, “THE ANIMATED UNIVERSAL CLASSIC MONSTERS. Cartoons with Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, The Wolfman, The Phantom of the Opera, and The Creature from the Black Lagoon.”

1990s

  • Dana Thompson (B.A. ’90/M.D. ’91) was a 2024 Living Legend inductee to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNS/F) Hall of Distinction.
  • Maria Finn (B.A. ’91) published her new cookbook “Forage. Gather. Feast. 100+ Recipes from West Coast Forests, Shores, and Urban Spaces” in 2024. She is also the founder of Flora & Fungi Adventures, hosting small group, food-centric adventures from California all the way to Alaska. (pictured above)
  • Abram “Abe” McGull (J.D. ’92), founder of McGull Law Firm and Springfield, Missouri City Council member, was one of the four inductees into LSU's Manship School of Mass Communication 48th annual Hall of Fame in October 2024. (pictured above)
  • Michael VanBuskirk (BBA ’92) has been named vice chairman and principal of Newmark Zimmer, a full-service commercial real estate firm headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. He remains involved with the Bloch School on the advisory board for the Lewis White Real Estate Center. (pictured above)
  • Marion Pierson (B.A./M.D. ’93) was named the 2024 Distinguished Alumna for St. Teresa’s Academy located in Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. Pierson founded EM Medical Products, which develops medical devices for pediatric patients. She owns and operates Elite Care Pediatrics, a concierge medical service that offers direct primary care, an alternative to a traditional pediatric practice. (pictured below)
  • Kea Yong Chan (BSEE ’94) was appointed as an executive director at Dataprep Holdings in January 2025. He has more than 30 years of experience in the manufacturing, sales and aftersales of semiconductor and IT industries.
  • Angela L. Nelson (B.A. ’99) was appointed as executive vice president and partner, chief strategy officer at Boston Biodevelopment LLC, a life sciences regulatory consulting firm. She was also named one of the “Top 25 Biotech Executives of 2024” by The Healthcare Technology Report.

2000s

  • Tiffany Owens (MBA ’01) was named Kansas City market executive for Bank of America Private Bank in May 2024. She joined Bank of America Private Bank in 2011, most recently serving as a private client adviser. Previously, she held roles as market trust executive for Kansas City and St. Louis and market trust director for Little Rock, Arkansas, and Wichita, Kansas. (pictured above)
  • Shannon Jenkins (M.A. ’05) was named principal for Mallory Early Childhood Center in Springfield, Missouri, in March 2024. She previously served as director of early childhood for Grain Valley Early Childhood Center. For the past 29 years, Jenkins has worked for Grain Valley R-5 and Smithville school districts in Missouri in a variety of leadership and educational positions, including special education process coordinator, special education teacher and paraprofessional. (pictured above)
  • Chandra Clark (BLA ’06) was named as a Top Women Leaders of 2024 by Women We Admire. Clark is President of the Corey C. Griffin Foundation, which aims to support Boston-area youths' health, safety, education and success, helping them access opportunities that foster their growth into future leaders in business, culture and civic life. (pictured above)
  • Janice Putnam (Ph.D. ’06) received the 2024 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Education from the University of Central Missouri’s Board of Governors. This award recognizes college- and university-level faculty members who have excelled in their profession. Dr. Putnam retired from UCM in January 2024 as Professor Emerita of Nursing and Health Studies. She continues to work part time for the university. (pictured above)
  • Prof. Jill Barton (J.D. ’09) recently published her third book, The Supreme Guide to Writing (Oxford University Press 2024). With the first-ever analysis of 10,000 pages of U.S. Supreme Court opinions, the book pinpoints grammar and style rules that the justices follow and describes the outdated rules they leave behind. In addition to establishing grammar and style rules, the book illustrates best practices with hundreds of examples of the justices' most brilliant sentences from the past several years. The Supreme Guide to Writing has been featured on NPR, the ABA Journal and LAW.COM. (pictured above)
  • Maggie Dickerson (MBA ’09) was named principal of Rountree Elementary School in Springfield, Missouri, in March 2024. She previously held the position of school community liaison at Pittman Elementary School. Dickerson started her career with Springfield Public Schools in 2018 as a kindergarten teacher at Pittman Elementary School. She also taught at Disney Elementary School for two years and has served as an Explore principal. Prior to that, she worked as a preschool teacher in Iowa. (pictured above)

2010s

  • Kamera Meaney (B.A. ’10) received the 2024 ATHENA Young Professional Award from the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. She is currently the director of advocacy and government relations at University Health KC.
  • Angela Danley (Ed.D. ’12) began her role as senior director of education and program services at Cornerstones of Care in Kansas City, Missouri, in June 2024. From 2013-2022, she was associate professor and program coordinator for elementary and early childhood education at the University of Central Missouri. In 2022, she became director of clinical and field-based experience at Avila University’s School of Education, and in 2023, she served as interim chair, leading the team to secure a seven-year accreditation. With 29 years in education, she looks forward to making a direct impact on students and families at Cornerstones of Care. (pictured above)
  • Scott Fergerson (M.S. ’12) has been promoted to chief financial officer at Park University in Parkville, Missouri. A resident of Parkville, he became interim CFO in December 2024 after serving the university as chief business officer since July 2022. He joined Park in November 2016 as controller and was promoted to controller and associate vice president of finance in July 2021. (pictured below)
  • Spencer Shearer (B.A. ’15) completed his residency training at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita Family Residency Program at Wesley Medical Center in June 2024. He is currently practicing at Olathe Health College Point in Olathe, Kansas.
  • Tristan James (MFA ’18) was honored in September 2024 by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with an Emmy for Outstanding Art Direction/Set Decoration/ Scenic Design: News, for his work on CNN Heroes.
  • Taylor Edwards (BFA ’19) toured with Missy Elliot during her Out of This World - The Experience Tour in 2024. She is also the associate artistic director and company member of the Hiplet Ballerinas, the professional company of The Chicago Multicultural Dance School.

2020s

  • Lyle Simpson (BME ’21) was named Band Director at Hocker Grove Middle School in Shawnee, Kansas. Simpson was also appointed the new vice president of the UMKC Conservatory Alumni Board of Directors.
  • Tessa N. (Ward) O’Donnell (J.D. ’22) has joined the Springfield, Missouri, office of McAfee & Taft, one of the region’s largest law firms. O’Donnell’s complex business litigation practice encompasses the areas of product liability, mass torts and asbestos defense litigation. Her primary area of focus is on discovery management, and she serves as part of the national discovery team for product liability cases for the nation’s largest automaker.
  • John Fetse (Ph.D. ’22) was the recipient of the 2024 New Investigator Award from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy while an assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences at Larkin University in Miami, Florida. He recently joined the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Binghamton University in Binghamton, New York, as an assistant professor.
  • Mitchell Mahan (BLA ’23) completed medical school at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Medical School and has entered residency at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita Family Medicine Residency Program at Ascension Via Christi in Wichita, Kansas.
  • Kayla Brazelton (BFA ’23) has been a professional dancer for the Norwegian Cruise Line since July 2023. (pictured below)
  • Songfeng Tian (DMA ’24) was appointed as assistant professor in composition at the Harbin Conservatory of Music located in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China. His position began in Fall 2024.

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