Alumni News

J. Richard Overturf (B.A., international relations, ’61) recently published the first biography of Ely Callaway Jr., the founder of the Callaway Golf Company. Thanks Ely! (Trafford Publishing, 2006) documents Callaway’s success as a leader and businessman. Overturf has been a golfer all of his life and began his examination of Callaway after his retirement in the late 1980s. Previously, Overturf served with the State Department as a foreign service officer for 32 years. He also was the English editor for the publication of memoirs by survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

Lori Walden (B.A., political science, ’83) has been named news director at WISN-TV (Channel 12) in Milwaukee. She is the first African-American news director in the city’s television history. Prior to WISN, Walden spent 13 years at KPIX-TV in San Francisco, rising from weekend news writer to producer of the 11 p.m. news. She believes the best path to increasing news viewership is through good storytelling and strong writing.

Tom Becktold (B.A., political science, ’87) was promoted to senior vice president of marketing at Business Wire, a service used by companies to provide information to journalists. Becktold joined Business Wire in 1988 and has worked as a news editor, an account executive and a regional manager.

John Vossoughi (B.A., international relations, ’88) has been named senior vice president of computer products marketing and system builder sales at Bell Microproducts Inc., a Fortune 1000 company. Vossoughi has 18 years of sales and marketing experience in the computer technology industry.

Wayne Bowen (B.A., history, ’90) recently published the book Undoing Saddam: From Occupation to Sovereignty in Northern Iraq (Potomac Books, 2007) based on his 2004 military service in Iraq as a civil affairs officer. The book builds on e-mails he sent to his mother during his nine-month tour while a major in the Army Reserves. The book counsels patience, arguing that, despite numerous American mistakes, life for most Iraqis is better than before the invasion. Bowen earned his doctorate from Northwestern University and has been a professor of history at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Ark., for 11 years.

Courtney Smith (B.A., social sciences and communication, ’90) and Christopher David Rae were married Feb. 10 in Lahaina, Hawaii, on the island of Maui. Smith is a managing director of client relations in the wealth management group at Angelo, Gordon & Company, an investment firm in New York. Her father, Judge Milan Dale Smith Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Pasadena, officiated.

Susan Aminoff (Ph.D., sociology, ’92) has been elected chairperson of the Santa Monica College Board of Trustees. She won a seat on the Board in 2004 and served as vice-chair for 2006. Aminoff wants to help students reach their educational goals, whether that is earning a certificate or an associate’s degree, or transferring to a four-year institution.

Nancy Kienzler (M.A., English, ’95) was hired in December as vice president of research operations at Lightspeed Research, a global interactive marketing research company. Kienzler had been with Roger Green and Associates, where she was vice president and director of operations. She will be based at Lightspeed Research’s Basking Ridge, N.J., office.   

Steven Croke (M.A., professional writing, ’96) premiered his first feature film, “The Busker,” in December in his hometown of Lowell, Mass., which was the setting for the movie. Croke wrote, directed and produced the film, which he began shooting in late 2002. A “busker” is a musician who plays on the street for money. The film explores interracial love amidst a background of societal turmoil and racial tension, Croke said. He plans to submit the movie to film festivals across the country and is pursuing theatrical release of the full-length feature.

A general civil attorney, Gary K. Daglian (B.A., political science and economics, ’01) joined the Los Angeles law office of Klinedinst PC. Daglian, a real estate broker, specializes in real estate law, but he also handles a variety of civil litigation. At USC, Daglian was the recipient of the Kalpakian Scholarship, which is awarded to a U.S. citizen of Armenian descent. He also continues to be active in the local Armenian community.

—Compiled by Kirsten Holguin