Milestones

Michelle Iwasaki '04

earns $25,000 Milken Educator Award for empowering Honolulu teachers and raising achievement for students.

Dawn Michaels '80

Dawn Michaels O’Bar '80, published a new book, COVID 2020 A Year Like No Other: A roller coaster ride of losses, challenges, and opportunities. The author shares her experiences during the year and includes interviews from others.

Nicole Starosielski '07

has published Media Hot and Cold (Duke University Press, December 2021). Starosielski, a professor of media, culture, and communication at NYU, is best known for her 2015 book on the history of undersea cables, The Undersea Network. She received her PhD in Film and Media Studies from UCSB in 2010.

J. Ward Anderson '84

J. Ward Anderson '84, has published their first book, Misplaced Your Body which tells about ESP, reincarnation, and the human spirit.

Jeff Levin '90

Jeff Levin '90, was promoted to vice president of distribution for Care Solutions at OneAmerica®. The 25-year financial professional, a thought leader in the long-term care industry, now leads a team of divisional vice presidents, regional sales directors and managers. Levin also oversees the account management team in the distribution, sale, and support of the company’s Care Solutions product line. Levin, who joined OneAmerica in 2019, previously was a divisional vice president, responsible for expansion of Care Solutions products, including life and annuity asset-based long-term care products.

Gregory Ruiz '80

Gregory Ruiz '80 has been announced as a finalist in the 2021 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals (the Sammies), otherwise known as the "Oscars" of government service. The Sammies are presented by the nonpartisan, non-profit Partnership for Public Service. Gregory is one of 29 finalists. The Sammies recognize the unsung heroes in our federal government who have made phenomenal contributions to the health, safety and prosperity of our country. They were honored at the 2021 Sammies Award show.

Alexandria (Ali) Jimenez '14

is currently president of Columbia Law's Latinx Law Students Association and a staff member of the Columbia Law Review. She shares her inspiration for going to law school, her advice to new law students, and more!

Reg Spittle '74

Reg Spittle '74, shares his backpacking adventures on four European long-distance trails in Trippin’ Through My 60s. The paths: the Alps’ Tour du Mont Blanc, Scotland’s West Highland Way, Italy’s Way of St. Francis, and England’s South West Coast Path.

Kristine (Fowler) Cirby '86

Kristine (Fowler '88) Cirby, received the Marin Trial Lawyers Association's 2021 President's Award on September 23, 2021 for her career-long commitment to assisting families and children in need of critical legal services. Congressman Jared Huffman ’86 assisted in introducing the award through a video presentation.

Jeff Baglio '90

Jeff Baglio '90, received recognition from BTI Consulting Group for providing superior service to clients in its 2021 BTI M&A Client Service All-Star report. Baglio is the managing partner of DLA Piper’s San Diego offices. In his practice, he represents both mature and emerging technology, healthcare, life sciences and consumer products companies in all facets of their business, including mergers and acquisitions, financing, and general strategic and corporate counseling.

Justin Balser '97

an experienced litigator and compliance attorney, has joined Troutman Pepper’s nationally recognized Consumer Financial Services Practice Group as a partner. Balser joins from Akerman where he was managing partner of the firm’s Denver office. Balser works with financial institutions, mortgage lenders, loan servicers, and other credit-related entities throughout the United States on consumer finance litigation and compliance matters. He previously served as legal counsel and advisor to senior management at Lehman Brothers’ mortgage subsidiary, Aurora Loan Services LLC and its affiliated companies.

Steven James Bartlett '68

Steven James Bartlett ’68, has published a massive philosophical treatise, “Critique of Impure Reason: Horizons of Possibility and Meaning.” The nearly 900-page study seeks to offer new and compelling solutions to a wide range of problems that have occupied philosophers for millennia. The book’s central focus is the unavoidable limitations of knowledge, reference, and meaning. Renowned German philosopher and physicist Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker contributed the book’s Foreword. Bartlett received his Master’s degree in philosophy from UCSB and then his Ph.D. from the Université de Paris.

Lin Loring '72

Lin Loring '72 has been inducted into the Intercollegiate Women’s Tennis Hall of Fame. The ceremony took place in Williamsburg, VA at the William & Mary Indoor Tennis Center. Loring was the winningest women’s tennis coach in NCAA Division 1 history. He coached women’s tennis at UCSB after his graduation and then went on to coach for 30 years at the University of Indiana. He was twice named national women’s tennis coach of the year and won nine Big 10 championships.

John Lardas Modern '03

is working on his new book "Neuromatic: Or, A Particular History of Religion and the Brain". In this book, John Modern offers a powerful and original critique of neurology’s pivotal role in religious history.

Genna Promnick '12

recently joined Downey Brand as an associate attorney. Genna joins the firm with several years of experience as a Deputy Public Defender in the Northern California area where she worked for the Solano County Alternate Public Defender’s Office and most recently for Placer County’s Public Defender’s Office. During her tenure as a Deputy Public Defender, she litigated numerous misdemeanors and felonies, including DUIs , domestic violence actions, and juvenile cases. Genna’s time working as a juvenile criminal defense attorney helps position her to excel while practicing family law.

Gregory Schell '92

Gregory Schell '92 has produced a feature film called, Mayberry Man. The movie follows an arrogant movie star is trapped in a modern day Mayberry where he's given a chance to discover the true meaning of friendship and family.

George Thurlow '73

George Thurlow '73, former Executive Director for UCSB Alumni Affairs, has joined the Board of Directors for the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara. After earning a BA in sociology at UCSB, Thurlow embarked on a 20-year career in journalism, including a three-year stint as Professional in Residence at CSU Chico, before returning to Santa Barbara to become publisher of the Independent in 1994. His writing and reporting have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The Sacramento Bee, TIME magazine, the San Francisco Examiner, and numerous other newspapers and magazines. He retired from Alumni Affairs in December 2020.

Dr. Ricardo F. Vivancos-Pérez '06

Modern and Classical Languages Professor Ricardo F. Vivancos-Pérez has published, as lead editor, the first critical edition of Gloria Anzaldúa’s iconic book Borderlands / La Frontera.

Elizabeth Tandy Shermer '09

graduated with a Ph.D. from UCSB in 2009. Soon thereafter, she served as the assistant director at the Center for the Study of Work, Labor, and Democracy at the University. During that period, Ms. Shermer was chosen to deliver a commencement address for UCSB undergraduates. Today, Dr. Shermer is an Associate Professor of History at Loyola University Chicago where she teaches courses in twentieth-century United States history. Shermer is the author of the highly praised book Indentured Students: How Government-Guaranteed Loans Left Generations Drowning in College Debt (Harvard University Belknap Press 2021). The press release below was sent to national television and radio program producers as well as editors of major magazines. A similar version was sent to a select group of prestigious colleges, universities, and city forums. This week, we began introducing Professor Shermer to members of the U.S. Senate for the purpose of providing valuable insights related to the student loan crisis.

Jeffrey Stine '84

Jeffrey Stine '75, MA '78, Ph.D. '84, the curator for environmental history at the National Museum of American History, has published Green Persuasion: Advertising, Voluntarism, and America’s Public Lands with Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press. The book is available online as a free downloadable PDF from the Press’s publication archive.

Eric P. Wendt '86

Eric P. Wendt '86, the longest-serving Green Beret on Active Duty, retired on the 19th of August, in California overlooking the beautiful Monterey Bay. The US military conducted a joint service retirement ceremony for the Lieutenant General. With a remarkable career, spanning over 34 years of active duty, including over 4 years in the Light Infantry, followed by 30 years as a Green Beret. He also retired at the highest rank achieved by any Special Forces branched/career-long Green Beret since the Green Berets were created in 1952.

Chuck Hanson '71

Chuck Hanson '71, has published Secrets of Successful Parenting: A Proactive Approach to Raising a Well-Behaved, Happy Child. A compilation of over 40 years of guidance for parents in his pediatric practice in Walnut Creek, California. It offers a fresh look at an age-old problem and focuses on defining a limited set of concise parenting goals that will assure success throughout the entire age spectrum.

Dr. Ralph J. Lamson '72

Dr. Ralph J. Lamson '72 has published Emergence in all Seasons. A book review by UCSF Clinical Professor of Psychiatry accompanies this publication.

Stephen Davis '93

Stephen Davis, ’93, has been named to the 2020 Forbes/Shook Best-in-State Wealth Advisors. Davis is a financial advisor in the Westlake Village office of UBS Wealth Management. Davis has more than 27 years of experience in the financial advising industry. The Forbes/SHOOK list is made up of 4,000 financial advisors across the country that are judged on the basis of interviews, compliance records and revenue generated for the firm. Davis is a member of the UCSB Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Renée Patin Farrington '60 '60

Renée Patin Farrington '60, has published In the Shadow of the Sign, Chapters showcase all aspects of UCSB in her days including fashion, Greek life, the origin of the Gaucho mascot and much more!