Clarkson Magazine

Alumni Awards

Alumni Awards — Golden Kinghts and Woodstock Winners

Golden Knight Award winners: [L-R]
Nelson F. Gibbs '59, Richard R. Griffith
'69, Susan M. McCormick '79, and
Daniel C. Heintzelman '79. Not shown
Robert C. Fanch '69.

Golden Knight Winners
The Golden Knight Award, Clarkson's most prestigious alumni honor, is given to graduates who have distinguished themselves either by service to Clarkson through Alumni Association activities or have demonstrated outstanding career achievement, bringing distinction to themselves and to Clarkson. This year's winners:

• Nelson F. Gibbs '59 (Civil Engineering) is assistant secretary of the Air Force for Installations, Environment and Logistics. As assistant secretary he heads three departments that deal at the policy level with Air Force facility and logistic issues. He oversees about 20 percent of the Air Force budget, with 400 people directly in his chain of command.
• Richard R. Griffith '69 (Industrial Distribution) is president and chief executive officer of Sturges Manufacturing, a company that makes fabric webbing to customer specifications. Richard has been an officer of the Clarkson Mohawk Valley Alumni Chapter since it started, and has been a member of the Clarkson Alumni Council since 1998, serving as the Clarkson national fund chair and roundtable chair.
• Daniel C. Heintzelman '79 (Industrial Distribution) is vice president and general manager for GE Aircraft Engines and president and chief executive officer of GE Engine Services. Daniel is currently a member of Clarkson University's Board of Trustees, and is also a member of the Clarkson Alumni Council and serves as a member of the Board of Governors.
• Susan McKee McCormick '79 (Civil and Environmental Engineering) has over 20 years of environmental engineering experience. She is currently a grant project coordinator at Union College while working on a master's degree in guidance and counseling at Sage Graduate School. Sue has been actively involved with the Capital District Chapter since 1988, and has served on the Clarkson Alumni Council since 1993, and was president of the Alumni Association in 2002-03.
• Robert C. Fanch '69 (Accounting) was also selected as a Golden Knight and will be honored at a future date.

Woodstock Award Winners: [L-R]
Sephir D. Hamilton '99, Timothy M.
Thomas '84, Kathryn A. Premo '84,
and Robert A. Duchow '89.

Woodstock Winners
The Woodstock Award honors young alumni who have demonstrated outstanding loyalty and service to Clarkson and the Alumni Association, and who have used their Clarkson experience to make a notable contribution to their careers. This year's winners:

• Robert A. Duchow '89 (Technical Communications) who began his career as a reporter for the Daily Sentinel in Rome, N.Y., became the director of communications for N.Y. State Senator Raymond A. Meier, and is now a marketing and communication specialist for Mohawk Valley Edge. He also serves as a board member of Clarkson's Mohawk Valley Alumni Chapter, and a member of the Clarkson Alumni Council.
• Sephir D. Hamilton '99 (Mechanical Engineering) received a master's degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and currently works for the Hamilton Engineering Group, the consulting company he co-founded with his father. Sephir has been an alumni admission volunteer, a member of the Board of Governors, has served as a regional chapter board member, and as reunion activity chair.
• Kathryn A. Premo '84 (Accounting and Law) is director of Pension and Investment at R. J. Reynolds, responsible for overseeing the investments and administration of all retirement plans, which includes assets in excess of $4 billion. She has also received an M.B.A. from Wake Forest in 1993. Kathryn has served Clarkson as a capital campaign volunteer, an alumni admission volunteer, an alumni career day participant, and in off-campus career programs.
• Timothy M. Thomas '84 (Industrial Management) has held positions of increasing responsibility with Lockheed Martin Systems Integration, where he is currently Business Program Manager. He has received numerous company awards, including the Lockheed Martin Systems Integration "Honors Night" President's Recognition in 2004. Timothy has served as a member of Clarkson's Board of Governors, class reunion activity chair, and class campaign chair. He has returned every year since he graduated to sing the alma mater at Clarkson University events.