Three alumni from Stevens Point are among the seven who will be honored for
achievement and service as the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point marks 120
years and Homecoming weekend.
The Alumni Awards Banquet Saturday,
Sept. 27, recognizes a Distinguished Alumnus from each of the four colleges:
Stevens Point native Peggy Rajski, ’75, of the College of Fine Arts and
Communication; Rick Kaminski, ’72, of the College of Natural Resources; Chad
Felch, ’95, of the College of Letters and Science; and Jodie Woodruff, ’02, of
the College of Professional Studies.
The Trailblazer Award will be
presented to Danny Mitchell, ‘06, a Stevens Point native, for exceptional
achievement within 10 years of graduating. The Mary Ann Nigbor Volunteer of the
Year Award will be given to Michelle Thorp, ’94 and ’97, for outstanding service
to the Alumni Association. The Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to
Jim Anderson, ‘89, of Stevens Point, for going above and beyond throughout his
career.
Rajski is an Academy
Award-winning filmmaker who won an Oscar for Best Live Action Short for her
directorial debut, “Trevor.” She also founded The Trevor Project, a nonprofit
organization and free 24-hour suicide hotline for gay and questioning youth.
She has won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Feature and has produced or
directed several films and television shows, including “ER,” “Little Man Tate”
and “Eight Men Out.”
Kaminski, a professor of wildlife
ecology and management at Mississippi State University for 30 years, is the
James C. Kennedy Endowed Chair in Waterfowl and Wetlands Conservation. He has
been honored for his numerous contributions to conservation, teaching and
wildlife research, and is a fellow in The Wildlife Society. He earned his
master’s and Ph.D. degrees from Michigan State University.
Felch is a central Wisconsin
native who works at Siemens Water Technologies’ Rothschild location. He has
developed more than 200 inventions, authored or co-authored 15 patents and
received the 2007 Inventor of the Year Award from Siemens. He donates time to
assist with science experiments, internships and demonstrations at local
schools.
Woodruff is the creator and
director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Metropolitan
Regional Career and Technical Education in Providence, R.I. Woodruff’s students
have placed highly in national entrepreneurship competitions. She won the 2014
Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship Global Enterprising Educator Award.
Mitchell works as a pianist,
singer, composer and songwriter in Nashville, Tenn. He has performed around the
country and released four studio albums, and his compositions have been
performed in Carnegie Hall. He also created Music on a Mission, an annual
holiday concert that raises funds for central Wisconsin charities.
Thorpe, a Phelps native, led the
Milwaukee chapter of the Alumni Association for three years and has volunteered
for UW-Stevens Point in countless ways since 2002. A speech-language
pathologist, she works with children with disorders such as autism, cerebral palsy
and Down syndrome. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from UW-Stevens
Point.
Anderson is president of Ellis
Stone Construction Company in Stevens Point and serves as an associate lecturer
in the Department of Business and Economics at UW-Stevens Point. In addition to
his four decades at Ellis Stone, he serves on many local, regional and national
boards of directors and was the president of the UWSP Foundation Board of
Directors for four years. He has been honored with several local awards.