Source: Debby Hiett, hiett@k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Jane Marshall, 785-532-, jpm2@k-state.edu

Monday, Sept. 20, 2010

COLLEGE OF HUMAN ECOLOGY HONORS OUTSTANDING ALUMNI

MANHATTAN -- A dietitian in Thailand, a philanthropic hotel manager and an advocate to end child hunger are among the alumni being honored Friday, Oct. 8, at the Kansas State University College of Human Ecology's Celebration of Excellence.

Honorees, selected for their contribution to their professions and to K-State, will be recognized at an 11:30 a.m. luncheon at the Manhattan Country Club. They are:

* Amy Chu, Young Professional Award. Chu, a registered dietitian, is Asia Pacific regional regulatory affairs operation manager with Mead Johnson Nutrition in Hong Kong. She works with training, product compliance, product registration, regulatory assessment and quality assurance. Chu graduated in 1997 with a bachelor's in dietetics and received a master's in hospitality management with a food science emphasis in 2000. She was in the college's honors program. She received certified baker credentials from the American Institute of Baking, Manhattan.

* Brad Everett, Friend of the College Award. A former city commissioner and mayor of Manhattan, Everett is general manager of Marriott's Fairfield Inn in Manhattan. He has been with Marriott since graduating in 1987 with a degree in social sciences. He has been recognized for his civic leadership, service to Kansans with disabilities and honors he brought to the Fairfield. Everett presents a profit and loss course to students in hospitality management each year. He and his staff at the Fairfield Inn also assist the college by providing complimentary rooms for visiting speakers and professors, and donate packages for student-led fundraising programs including the annual Travel and Dining Auction.

* Jo Staffelbach Heinz, Entrepreneur Award. A 1971 graduate in interior design, Heinz serves as president and CEO of Staffelbach Design Associates in Dallas, Texas. Her expertise is in the complexities of today's interior work environment, as well as its impact on productivity and the business bottom line. Heinz, a fellow of the International Interior Design Association, has served as president of the National Council for Interior Design Qualification, alumni fellow of the K-State Alumni Association, co-chair of the development committee of the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research, chair of the jury committee of the National Council for Interior Design Qualification, president of the Institute of Business Designers and chair of the Institute of Business Designers' Foundation. Heinz has been named Women in Business Industry Leader by the Dallas Business Journal and was the first recipient of the IBD Distinguished Merit Award for outstanding contributions to the contract design industry.

* Janice R. Hermann, Distinguished Research Award. Hermann, a registered/licensed dietitian, is a professor and associate department head in the department of nutritional sciences at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Okla. She was an extension nutrition specialist in Oklahoma for 25 years. She received her bachelor's in 1977 and master's in 1979, both in foods and nutrition. She earned a doctoral degree in home economics in 1983. Hermann's research focuses on community nutrition with emphasis in older adult nutrition. Building from research-based formative assessments, Hermann developed and implemented programs on nutrition issues faced by Oklahoma's citizens. She has published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly and Journal of Extension. She received the Marguerite Scruggs Award for meritorious research in human environmental sciences and the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service outstanding state specialist and program awards.

* K-State Student Governing Association, Human Ecology Partner Award. The Student Governing Association led the way to establish Powercat Financial Counseling, which opened in fall 2009. Matt Wagner and Lydia Peele, student body presidents in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 respectively, envisioned a place where students could get assistance with personal finance issues. They worked closely with K-State administration and the College of Human Ecology to create the student financial counseling center. The governing association and its student leaders continue to support the Powercat Financial Counseling Center, which is in the office of student activities and services in the K-State Student Union.

* Ruth Johnson Stemler, Public Advocacy Award. Stemler, a registered dietitian, is the Colorado state director of Share Our Strength, Denver, Colo., a national nonprofit organization with a mission to end childhood hunger in the U.S. She directs the organization's Colorado nutrition education program, Operation Frontline, which is the largest of 25 programs in the country and reaches more than 7,000 families each year. The native of Saline County, Stemler received her bachelor's in dietetics and institutional management in 1972 and a master's in health promotion from Oklahoma State University in 1992. She has served as a volunteer of the American Dietetic Association at the international, national, state and local level. She is currently the board chair of Hunger Free Colorado, a statewide advocacy organization. She is also director of Share Our Strength's Colorado Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, a partnership of Gov. Bill Ritter Jr. of Colorado, Share Our Strength and Hunger Free Colorado.

* Janice Wanklyn Wissman, Distinguished Service Award. Wissman has served K-State as an administrator, professor and adviser for four decades. As associate dean of the College of Education, she has been responsible for state and national accreditation of all K-State professional education programs. Following graduation in 1963, Wissman taught high school home economics in Anaheim, Calif. As a General Foods Fellow, she returned to K-State for a master's degree in home economics education, and later earned a doctoral degree in higher education administration from the University of Kansas. Her focus has been on teacher education practice and administration with special interest in family and consumer sciences. She is adviser to Mortar Board, a national college senior honor society, and recipient of its National Excellence in Advising Award. Wissman has served as president of the Kansas Home Economics Association and president of two national family and consumer sciences teacher education organizations. She was named one of 10 American Home Economics Association leaders in 1991.