Alumni News

New ‘Early Show’ stars Julie Chen
Last October, Julie Chen (B.A., ’91) joined Harry Smith, Hannah Storm and Rene Syler in debuting a revamped “The Early Show,” CBS News’ weekday morning broadcast. Chen, a graduate of USC with degrees in broadcast journalism and English, is one of four anchors. She has been the news anchor of “The Early Show” and anchor of “CBS Morning News” since November 1999, when “The Early Show” first aired. She has hosted “Big Brother,” the CBS reality series, since its debut three years ago. Prior to joining CBS News in June 1999, Chen was a reporter and anchor for WCBS-TV, the CBS-owned station in New York (1997-1999); was a reporter for WDTN-TV Dayton (1995-1997); served as a producer for ABC News One, that network’s affiliate news service (1991-1995); and was a production assistant in the ABC News Los Angeles bureau (1990-1991).

Black fights terrorism
J. Cofer Black (B.A., ’73, M.A., ’74) was sworn in on Dec. 3, 2002 as the State Department coordinator for counterterrorism with the rank of ambassador-at-large. Originally from Stamford, Conn., Black received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from USC College. Ambassador Black’s office has the primary responsibility for developing, coordinating and implementing U.S. counterterrorism policy. Prior to this appointment, he served as a CIA official for 28 years, where he was director of the CIA’s Counterterrorist Center and deputy chief of the Latin American division.

Chartrand is first Metis pro female golfer
Leila Chartrand (B.A., ’02), a 22-year-old Metis woman from Victoria, B.C., made her debut as a professional golfer at the Whirlpool PGA Women’s Championship at the St. Catharines Golf and Country Club in St. Catharines, July 16-17, 2002. The tournament made her the first Metis pro female golfer. Chartrand’s debut on the pro tour follows a history of success as a junior and amateur golfer. She twice won the Manitoba Junior Girls Championship, was a B.C. Girls High School Champion and a B.C. Women’s Amateur Champion at age 18. College coaches heavily recruited Chartrand after high school. She attended USC on a full athletic scholarship, graduating with a B.A. degree in sociology. Captain of the 2001-2002 Women’s Golf Team, Chartrand had numerous top finishes in college, including sixth in the NCAA Championship in Oregon in her sophomore year. She was hampered by injuries in her final year, but nevertheless had a remarkable college career, being ranked as high as fifth in the Golfweek Collegiate Rankings. USC won numerous tournaments during her four years, and some of her former teammates are now on the LPGA.

Raidy joins law firm as partner
Business lawyer Cherie Raidy (B.A., ’78) recently joined the Los Angeles office of Chicago-based Lord, Bissell & Brook as a partner. A graduate of USC, she will work in banking and real estate, as well as continue with her practice of construction lending, commercial lending, finance, real estate and business transactions. She says her hire was part of Lord, Bissell & Brook’s plan to expand its transaction practice and its office generally in the West. Raidy holds an undergraduate degree in political science from USC and a law degree from Southwestern University School of Law. She chairs the real-estate finance section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and is a member of the Boards of Directors of LACBA’s Real Estate Executive Committee, the state bar association’s Real Property Section Executive Committee and the Pasadena YMCA.

James Irvine Foundation elects Cruz to board
The James Irvine Foundation elected Frank H. Cruz (B.A., ’66, M.A., ’69) to its Board of Directors last September. Cruz is president of Cruz & Associates, a financial consulting firm, and former chairman and founder of Gulf Atlantic Life Insurance. He serves on the Board of Trustees of USC, from which he holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree. A veteran broadcaster, Cruz was a founder of Telemundo, the nation’s second Spanish-language network, and of KVEA-TV in Los Angeles. Cruz’s awards include the Emmy and the Golden Mike for coverage of Latin American issues and U.S. Hispanic community events. Cruz has been a director of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting since 1994 and served as board chair from 1999 to 2001. In 1997, then-President Bill Clinton appointed him to serve on the 21-member Advisory Committee on Public Interest Obligations of Digital Television Broadcasters, informally known as the Gore Commission. He has held leadership positions at numerous civic organizations in the Southern California region, including the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, Rebuild Los Angeles and The Latino Museum.

Williams re-elected in Texas
Michael L. Williams (B.A., ’75), the first African-American in Texas history to serve in a nonjudicial statewide office, was re-elected as chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission last November. He was appointed to the commission by then-Gov. George W. Bush in 1998, and was elected by his fellow commissioners to chair the commission one year later. Williams earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from USC College, and later returned to USC to earn his M.A. in public administration and a law degree. Previously, Commissioner Williams served as special assistant to Attorney General Richard Thornburgh in the U.S. Department of Justice. He is a former assistant district attorney in his hometown of Midland and a former federal prosecutor.

Harper continues with city council
Clint Harper (Ph.D., ’76), a physics and astronomy professor at Moorpark College, was elected to the Moorpark City Council for a second four-year term. He earned a Ph.D. in physics from USC College.

Ayuso compared to Bird, Jordan
Puerto Rican guard Elias Ayuso (B.A., ’99) lived up to a recent comparison to NBA legends Larry Bird and Michael Jordan by scoring 31 points and nearly leading his nation to an upset over Brazil at the World Basketball Championships on Aug. 31, 2002. Ayuso, a graduate of USC with a bachelor’s degree in social science, scored 25 of his points in the second half as Puerto Rico nearly pushed past two-time world champions Brazil 90-86 in the teams’ final Group B match in Indianapolis, Ind. The guard hit nine of 13 three-pointers as he raised his tournament scoring average to 30 points per game and pushed his team into the second round. Lebanon coach John Neumann was full of praise for Ayuso after he had torched the another team with 37 points, including making seven of 10 three-point attempts and 20 points in the first quarter. “That was the greatest shooting experience I’ve seen in a long time,” said Neumann. “Other than Larry Bird or Michael [Jordan] in a normal game, I haven’t seen such a performance. But this is the Worlds and it’s a bigger stage.” Neumann was impressed with how Ayuso has acted on the court, saying, “Elias carried himself as a true professional. He didn’t get cocky. He represented himself, Puerto Rican basketball and the people of that nation. That’s what basketball is all about.”

Stadler wins golf pro debut
Kevin Stadler (B.A., ’02) two-putted for birdie on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff to win the Colorado Open on Sept. 1, 2002, at the Sonnenalp Golf Club. Stadler, the son of Masters champion Craig Stadler, took a two-shot lead into the fourth round of his professional debut. He defeated Gary Hallberg, a three-time PGA Tour winner, and New Mexico professional Brian Kortan for a win worth $22,500. Stadler shot a 2-over 73 while Hallberg shot 67 and Kortan 69. “I didn’t even think about the money,” says Stadler, who holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from USC College. “If I had, I probably would have hit that first putt 8 feet past the hole.”

Smogorzewska wins prize for study of cell components
Agata Smogorzewska (B.S., ’95) was the first runner-up for the Prize for Promise awarded by the national organization Student Achievement and Advocacy Services. The award recognizes young women of exceptional ability, ambition, boldness, brilliance and dedication within their field of expertise. Smogorzewska, who emigrated from Poland and studied biology and chemistry at USC, where she graduated magna cum laude with a degree in molecular biology and biochemistry, was cited by the awards committee for her extraordinary work in the study of cell components known as telomeres, in an effort to understand why older cells fail to reproduce. Her work has been published in prestigious journals including Nature Genetics and Cell and she has recently completed her Ph.D. in the lab of Titia de Lange at Rockefeller University, where she will continue to work as an associate professor. She will receive $10,000.

Allen to oversee development of $16.4M Biosciences Center
Susan Davis Allen (Ph.D., ’71), a renowned researcher in laser technology, has been selected as Arkansas State University’s vice chancellor for research and academic affairs. Allen, who earned her doctorate in chemical physics from USC and was the associate director of USC’s Center for Laser Studies from 1984 to 1987, has been a professor of chemistry at Florida State University since 1996 and served as FSU’s vice president for research for the past three years. Allen will oversee the development of ASU’s Biosciences Center, a $16.4 million facility that will house agricultural research projects. The center is scheduled to open in the spring of 2005. Allen will also act as a consultant to the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences in Little Rock, assisting the program in laser surgery. Her research includes work done in laser-assisted particle removal processing, laser cleaning of optics in semiconductor chips and laser chemical vapor deposition. She is also the inventor or co-inventor on nine active patents.

Senetek appoints Delmage to CTO
Senetek recently announced the appointment of Michael Delmage (Ph.D., ’79) to chief technical officer. Delmage received his Ph.D. in cellular and molecular biology from USC, graduating magna cum laude; he was awarded a National Institutes of Health Post Doctoral Fellowship in 1980. In 1986, Delmage earned an MBA from Pepperdine University. He was one of the founding executives of Santen International and member of the board of directors of Santen Oy. While at Chiron Ophthalmics, Delmage’s accomplishments included the pioneering of the nation’s first successful investigational new drug application dealing with wound healing “growth factors,” and initiating the first studies and subsequent development of tissue attachment factors as therapeutic agents. In addition, he served as program director at Celtrix Pharmaceuticals where he successfully managed the first biotechnology product used clinically to treat retinal disease.

Citigroup chooses Prince to help restore confidence
Citigroup Inc. has promoted Charles Prince (B.A., ’71, M.A., ’75) to lead its Salomon Smith Barney Inc. investment bank. Prince, who has reported to chief executive Sanford Weill as Citigroup’s general counsel and chief operating officer, replaces Michael Carpenter at the helm of the No. 1 bond underwriter and second-biggest manager of stock sales. Prince, 52, earned his undergraduate, master’s and law degrees at USC. He worked as an attorney for U.S. Steel Corp. and Control Data Corp. before joining Commercial Credit Co. in 1979. After the 1998 merger of Travelers Group Inc. and Citicorp, Prince served as Citigroup’s general counsel. He has also assisted negotiating acquisitions, helped handle accusations that a Citigroup unit overcharged low-income borrowers for loans, and worked on a sex discrimination suit filed against Smith Barney in 1996.

Terzian receives humanitarian award
Carl R. Terzian (B.A., ’57) received the Belle Dubnoff Humanitarian Award on Nov. 14, 2002. A prominent public relations consultant and past president of the Los Angeles Fire Commission, Terzian graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa and student-body president from USC. He was a State Department Goodwill Ambassador for President Eisenhower; a public relations director for the Lutheran Hospital Society of Southern California; dean and professor of government at Woodbury University; and public affairs director for architect Charles Luckman. In 1969, he started his own firm of consultants in corporate, product, institutional, executive and crisis marketing to more than 4,500 clients. The Dubnoff Center, established in North Hollywood in 1948, is a private, nonprofit, publicly funded special-education day school and treatment facility.