Notes from the Class of 1975

University of Utah pathology professor Edward Ashwood (ChemEngr’75) received The American Association for Clinical Chemistry’s award for Outstanding Contributions in Education. He has mentored more than 100 pathology residents and fellows who have twice honored him with the outstanding teaching award. Edward also served as president and chief executive officer of ARUP Laboratories and lives in Circle Park City, Utah.

The American Association for Clinical Chemistry recognized Edward Ashwood (ChemEngr’75, MD’79) for his contributions to education. He is a professor of pathology at the University of Utah and is president and CEO of ARUP Laboratories. He has mentored more than 100 University of Utah pathology residents and fellows who have twice honored him with the outstanding teaching award. His research in fetal lung maturity tests and standardization in clinical chemistry has resulted in more than 150 publications. Edward lives in Park City, Utah.

A celebration of 50 years of marriage took place for Mary Agnes “Aggie” Ruh Madden (MEdu’75) and her husband in Boulder surrounded by their four children and eight grandchildren. The couple also took an anniversary trip to New Zealand. Mary is an avid traveler, watercolor painter and senior auditor of classes at CU.

In April Howard Schultz* (Comm’75) participated in CU’s Conference on World Affairs, speaking at such panels as “Reality TV: Wife Swap to Weight Loss.” Howard has been at the forefront of reality television since the genre’s inception and was named one of the city’s most influential people by Los Angeles magazine for the worldwide success of his television show Extreme Makeover. Read more about Howard in the December 2011 online Coloradan. He lives in Pasadena, Calif.

*Lifetime member

Mathews Architecture, based in Asheville, N.C., is led by Jane Gianvito Mathews (EnvDes’75). The firm received the 2011 Firm of the Year Award from the North Carolina chapter of the American Institute of Architects in Raleigh, N.C. This is only the second time a woman-owned firm received the honor. Jane writes this award reflects particularly well on the foundation in design education she received at CU-Boulder.

Author Sharon Niederman (MJour’75) received the Lowell Thomas Award from the Society of American Travel Writers in the guidebook category for her book Signs and Shrines: Spiritual Journeys Across New Mexico (Countryman Press). In it, Sharon provides an overview of sacred sites, festivals and retreat centers that took more than 20 years of research. She is an award-winning Southwestern author, journalist and photographer living in Raton, N.M.

Author and musician Ken Mazur (Anth’75) wrote a book titled The Zxap Jacket, a science fiction detective suspense novel set in New York City in 2047. The book’s website is www.thezxapjacket.com. Ken has been a musician since 1975, starting as a guitarist recording more than 50 albums with such acts as Robert Palmer, Tina Turner, Kid Creole and The Coconuts and more. Ken later became a composer and wrote jingles for Chevy, Nintendo, McDonalds and Purina and for such TV shows as VH1’s Behind the Music and Joseph Rosendo’s Travelscope on PBS. He lives in Topanga, Calif.

In April Howard Schultz* (Comm’75) returned to campus as a panelist for CU’s 65th Conference on World Affairs. His company, Lighthearted Entertainment, had worldwide success with the television show Extreme Makeover. Other shows produced by Howard include Studs, Next!, The Moment of Truth, 72 Hours and Buck Wild. Howard lives in Pasadena, Calif.

*Lifetime member

Owner of Stopol Log Homes Richard Stopol (Psych’75) has been in business since 1976. He builds custom log homes, mostly in the Sun Valley Idaho ski resort area. He also owns and operates Idaho Fizz, selling carbonators that transform tap water into sparkling water for drinking. He and his wife have two daughters. Richard mountain bikes, skis, whitewater kayaks, kite surfs, hikes and writes, “Life is great.”

In January the American Board of Pathology selected Dr. Edward Ashwood (ChemEngr’75, MD’79), a pathology professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine, as one of its trustees. Edward also is president and CEO of ARUP Laboratories, a national reference laboratory and nonprofit in the University of Utah’s pathology department. He lives in Park City, Utah.

For 30 years, Jane L. Peterson (PhDMCDBio’75) has served in an array of positions at the National Institutes of Health, as well as played an integral role in the Human Genome Project managing the mapping and sequencing centers of the project. In April she took on a new task, joining the Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Biology as the nonprofit educational organization’s president and CEO. Throughout her career, Peterson has promoted the role of women in science and chaired the American Society for Cell Biology’s Women in Cell Biology Committee.

After working for the National Institutes of Health, Jane Peterson (PhDMCDBio’75) was appointed CEO of the Keystone Symposia. It is a nonprofit in Silverthorne, Colo., that holds life science research conferences in the Rocky Mountains and around the world.

After 39 years in the mining industry, Clyde Borrell (CivEngr) retired and moved to Venice, Fla., with wife Sarah. He spent the last 17 years working for Murray Energy Corporation (MEC), the largest privately held coal company in the U.S. He worked primarily in business planning and development as part of MEC’s acquisition team. In December 2014 the team finalized the purchase of five large underground coal mines in West Virginia from CONSOL Energy for $3.5 billion. Clyde and Sarah’s son, Stanford, is a sophomore at Stetson University and has already put CU on his list of potential graduate schools.

Hilo, Hawaii, resident Krishna S. Dhir (PhDBusAd) is dean of the College of Business and Economics at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Earlier he served as a chief academic officer of business programs at The Citadel, Penn State Harrisburg and Berry College. His recent book, The Dean’s Perspective, was published by the Decision Sciences Institute and was translated into Japanese. He and his wife, Sheila, a children’s book writer, have twin daughters who work in industrial engineering and business analytics.

Pulitzer Prize-winning opera librettist Mark Campbell (Thtr) returned to CU this year to present seven scenes from Susan Smith, his 1998 opera. The opera is a psychological drama about a woman who drowned her two sons in a South Carolina lake in 1994. Mark has written 15 opera librettos, including Silent Night, which won the Pulitzer Prize for music in 2012.

Whole Foods Market chairman John Elstrott (PhDEcon) gave the 2015 commencement speech at Louisiana State University, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. John, who retired from Tulane in 2013 after teaching there for 30 years, joined Whole Foods’ board in 1994. He lives in New Orleans and Boulder.

Paperclay artist Rosette Gault (Comm) earned a PhD from the National Centre for Glass and Ceramics Art and Design of the University of Sunderland in the United Kingdom. Her work with the paperclay medium began when she began to search for a more versatile clay body for her sculpture and pottery. It took her 20 years until a breakthrough and another 25 years of trial. She has contributed to 39 publications and four books, including her latest, Paperclay Art and Practice: The New Ceramics. Rosette has taught in more than 40 countries.

Continental Who’s Who recognized Stephen Mercer (Art, Psych) as a pinnacle professional in the energy industry. He works as a senior HR process consultant with Williams, an energy company based in Tulsa, Okla., and helps with organizational development, program management and performance assessment. Stephen is fluent in three languages, including Bisaya, which is spoken in the Philippines. He hopes to conduct process improvement training and consulting for businesses in the Philippines.

Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers promoted Beth Robinson (Math) to broker in charge. She specializes in luxury estate and ranch properties in North Kohala, on Hawaii island, where she lives. She was named to Hawaii Business magazine’s top 100 realtors list in 2011 and 2013. She received her doctorate degree in economics from the Colorado School of Mines and spent more than 10 years working as a Wall Street banker. When she moved to Hawaii in 2006, she began her career in real estate.

Television producer Lee Aronsohn is the co-creator of Two and a Half Men and executive producer of The Big Bang Theory. Last November, he returned to Boulder to film a rare concert of Magic Music, Colorado’s first jam band, for a documentary on the group. The performance was the band’s first concert in 40 years.