Edward Higgins ‘58
Devon, Pennsylvania, earned an MA in communications from Rowan University, in Glassboro, New Jersey, and works as a writer. He won an Emmy Award for television programming and a Scripps-Howard National Journalism Award. He is married, with four children and four grandchildren, and serves as an adjunct communication professor at Rosemont College in Pennsylvania. He retired from New Jersey Public Broadcasting in 2002.

M. Dianna McCullough Metger ‘61
Wilmington, Delaware, completed an MS in chemistry and worked for seven years for DuPont before returning to school to complete his MD. He has been a family physician for 20 years and was named Delaware Family Physician of the Year for 2000.

Peter Keckel ‘62
Edmond, Oklahoma, served seven years in the U.S. Army, including service in Vietnam, rising to the rank of captain and earning the Bronze Star, Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal. He is the owner of Oklahoma Communities, Inc., and Oklahoma Gold, and serves on the board of directors of the Edmond, Oklahoma, Chamber of Commerce, the Edmond YMCA, and the Oklahoma Disaster Education Fund. He received the Presidential Vietnam Veterans Outstanding Community Achievement Award from President Jimmy Carter and is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in the World.

William Barger ‘63
Cobb Island, Maryland, earned a PhD from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 1985. He served for 15 years as a surface chemist with the chemical oceanography branch of the Ocean Sciences Division of the Naval Research Lab, and later with the surface chemistry branch of the Chemistry Division. He has more than 100 publications and patents, but reported that his fondest memories are of traveling with other students from UMUC’s Munich Campus in the 1960s.

Kathryn Earnest ‘64
Alexandria, Virginia, earned a Master of Library Science degree from Florida State University, and has served as a military librarian for more than 30 years, first with the U.S. Navy and later, since 1972, with the U.S. Army. She is currently director of the Pentagon Library. She reported that she began skiing with the ski club at UMUC’s Munich Campus, and continues skiing today. She wrote, "Skiing with the Air Force Ski Club a couple of years ago, I was able to go back to Garmisch with a quick day trip to Munich. Amazing how much places change, but how much remains the same."

Benjamin Shinn ‘64
Plano, Texas, earned a MTh from the Perkins School of Theology of Southern Methodist University in 1969, and serves as a minister and assistant to the bishop. He wrote, "I have great memories of the Ski Club and trips to Berchtesgarten (sledding down the mountain at night), Saalbach, and Daprun in Austria. I spent two Easter breaks in Italy—the first year on a school-sponsored tour and the second year hitchhiking and staying in youth hostels."

San Antonio Alumni Association Chapter President Howard Cain '68 (center) celebrates his 77th birthday with friends.

Dennis Berwyn ‘78
Arlington, Virginia, works as a political consultant and holds both a BBA and MBA in management. He is the proud father of four sons, and served in George W. Bush’s presidential campaign.

Michael Pafford ‘81
College Park, Maryland, wrote, "My UMUC business management Bachelor of Science degree helped land me a systems engineer position with ITT in 1981, helped get me accepted to the U.S. Navy Aviation Officers Candidate School in 1982, and helped qualify me for a master’s degree program in computer systems management at the Naval Postgraduate School in 1986. Since my military retirement in 1993, that same UMUC degree has helped land me senior systems engineer positions with General Dynamics, Harris Corporation, and now the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory."

Debra Mueller ‘82
Seal Beach, California, wrote, "My education with UMUC set the foundation for my experiences in the business world. I spent 18 years developing skills in finance, marketing, and program and project development and management. My focus was in the financial, hospitality, and healthcare industries. In 2001, I decided to open my own practice as a life coach. Patterns for Living provides me with the vehicle to apply the knowledge and skills I learned through my education and national business experience."

Gregory Fant ‘85
Fairfax, Virginia, is a statistician with the Office of Science and Epidemiology in the HIV/AIDS Bureau of the Public Health Service within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A charter member of Phi Theta Kappa, he serves as an adjunct assistant professor at George Mason University in Fairfax. He was married to his wife, Christine, on April 17, 1999.

Joseph Maximuangu ‘86
Mankon-Bamenda, Cameroon, retired from public service and is self-employed on a zero-grazing milk production project.

Felix Alvarado ‘88
Fort Worth, Texas, a high school world history and geography teacher, is running for a seat in the U.S. Congress, representing Texas’ Sixth Congressional District. He wrote, "The education and experience I received prepared me well for this try at being elected to Congress."

Russell Floreske ‘90
Frederick, Maryland, retired from the U.S. Navy and began a career in commercial construction project management. He has been involved in two significant projects thus far—the modernization of the Interstate Commerce Commission, U.S. Customs Service, and connecting wing, located at 1201–1301 Constitution Ave., in Washington, D.C., and the emergency repair and restoration of the Pentagon. He wrote, "UMUC provided a solid business foundation from which I have been able to build a successful career."

Rothie Dunnigan ‘93
Macon, Georgia, wrote, "[My degree] helped me obtain the knowledge needed to be successful in today’s society."

Joyce Wright ‘94
Auburn, Pennsylvania, recently accepted a position in Sydney, Australia, as head of claims in KPMG International’s insurance division.

Glen Paine ‘95
Linthicum Heights, Maryland, is executive director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies in Linthicum, Maryland. He was recently featured in a cover story in the First Quarter 2002 issue of Maritime Executive.

Deborah J. Russell ‘96
Fort Washington, Maryland, recently joined the federal government as a decennial specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau, planning and managing projects and writing analytical reports. Before that, she worked for 20 years in the telecommunications field, specializing in network capacity management. She wrote, "My experience at UMUC has equipped me with the knowledge and confidence to become an effective manager and has opened additional career challenges."

Devin Williams ‘96
Worcester, Massachusetts, wrote, "UMUC has a wealth of knowledgeable faculty members who bring the real world to the classroom. If you are motivated to learn, the resources are virtually endless."

Kevin L. Johnson ‘97
Upper Marlboro, Maryland, is cofounder of the K3 Management Group, specializing in business development, resource management, product marketing, information security, network design and analysis, and disaster recovery planning. Before founding K3, he was national director of information security for BlueStorm Consulting, and before that served as regional director of strategic solutions for GE Capital IT Solutions, a division of General Electric.

Jason James ‘99
Lanham, Maryland, is a computer specialist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C., currently pursuing a master’s degree in information technology from UMUC. He wrote, "The degree I earned at UMUC has allowed me to succeed on a professional level as well as a personal level. I am very excited about the [graduate] program."

James A. Allender ‘00
Oakland, Missouri, retired from the U.S. Air Force April 2001, worked that year as a National Park Ranger in St. Louis, and now works as a security officer for a major medical center in Bridgeton, Missouri.

Eric Boughman ‘00
Minnetonka, Minnesota, is enrolled in law school at the University of Minnesota. He will graduate in 2003.

Jeff Ecott ‘00
Mt. Airy, Maryland, a senior systems analyst for Marriott International, won the J. Willard Marriott Award of Excellence for 2002.

Z. Stuart Eisenman ‘00
Gaithersburg, Maryland, wrote, "After working in the federal sector for 20 years, I had to start a new career. I attended UMUC for a second degree in information systems, and am now studying for a master’s degree in education."

Cory Matsui ‘00
Rockville, Maryland, wrote, "The faculty and staff of UMUC understand the needs of the working adult and fashion their courses and schedules to [accommodate] those needs. I have enjoyed the courses, instructors, and classmates that I have had the pleasure of working with over the past two years and would definitely consider working with UMUC in the future to complete my master’s degree."

Roy Mesler ‘00
Port Tobacco, Maryland, retired from the Prince George’s County Fire Department and now works as a deputy state fire marshal in southern Maryland, where he investigates fires and conducts fire inspections. He also serves part time as a fire service instructor for the University of Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute in La Plata, Maryland. He wrote, "If everything works out, I hope to start my master’s degree in adult education in fall 2002."

Elsie Stevenson ‘00
Brandywine, Maryland, started out working as a legal technician for the federal government, completed coursework in paralegal studies, and began working as a computer specialist. She has receive several promotions and wrote, "My degree has enhanced my life both professionally and personally."

Kenneth Chin ‘01
Beltsville, Maryland, is the senior operations research analyst and investment analysis lead providing independent investment analysis, advice, and guidance to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in telecommunications, navigation, surveillance, air traffic management, and automation programs. Previously, he managed the Federally Funded Research and Development Center’s safety statistics branch, executive staff, technical and contract support branch, and operations research branch of the FAA. He wrote, "UMUC has provided me with knowledge, skills, and abilities to organize, plan, and evaluate projects from a system lifecycle viewpoint. It has also improved my written and verbal communications."

Katherine Day ‘01
Northridge, California, wrote, "I attended UMUC while on active duty, but upon returning to the United States I divorced and left the military. I still wanted to complete my degree and needed to in order to provide for my children. I was so grateful when I learned about UMUC. UMUC allowed me to pursue my degree on MY TIME and I still had a lot of time to spend with my children."

Jeffrey A. Landis ‘01
Oceanside, California, a first lieutenant with the U.S. Marines, was deployed to the Arabian Gulf in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His unit has conducted offensive raids against Taliban and al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan; earlier, he also worked to complete humanitarian projects in six different coastal areas of Kenya, where his unit built a two-classroom school, completed repairs on a school for hearing impaired children, and created a water source for the maternity wing of a hospital.

Sheri Lyn Stroop ‘01
Dalton, Georgia, wrote, "UMUC was remarkably helpful in allowing me to finish my Bachelor of Arts degree by taking classes online. I was working a full-time job throughout college, and this was the best way for me to attend classes."

Tracie Brewer ‘02
Lemoore, California, completed UMUC coursework in Germany, Japan, and the United States. She wrote, "I move around so much, I would not have been able to attend school. If it wasn’t for UMUC, who knows? I may never have had the opportunity to get a degree."

Kelly Dobransky ‘02
Sarver, Pennsylvania, earned two associate’s degrees from Pennsylvania State University, one in electrical engineering and one in microcomputer processing, and has worked for Alcoa for 12 years. She wrote, "UMUC made it convenient for me to get my Bachelor of Science degree. If I had had to attend a college instead of going online, I probably would not have gotten my degree."

Janelle Taylor ‘02
Capitol Heights, Maryland, wrote, "UMUC has helped me establish a great career and has provided numerous opportunities for me financially. Attending night classes is the best option for the working professional, and I earned credits and continuously accrued work experience with my current employer. It looks great on my résumé and it [will prove] impressive in my future endeavors as well. Thanks, UMUC!"

Kenny Vasquez ‘02
Brandenburg, Kentucky, reported that, after 20 years with the U.S. Air Force and having attended a number of schools in a variety of locations, he was still 31 credits short of earning his Bachelor of Science degree. He wrote, "Thanks to online courses, I was able to complete the 31 credits between January and August of 2001 and earn my degree before retiring from the Air Force. I’ve now been able to start a lucrative career in the IT field. Thanks again, UMUC."