Fall 2007
1980s
Mustafa Adamu, '82 BS Hotel Administration,
is the owner and CEO of Hotel
de France, an 18-room property located
in Kano, Nigeria. He lives in Kano with his
wife and two children.
Genie Garner, '82 BA Communication Studies, recently received a Peabody award for excellence in journalism for serving as executive producer of a 21- part series called Left Behind. The series focused on the failure of the East St. Louis, Ill., school system. The ceremony took place at New york's Waldorf Astoria Hotel in June. She works as assistant news director at television station KMOV in St. Louis. She began her journalism career at The Rebel Yell, starting as a writer and becoming editor her senior year. Her first job after graduation was at KTNV.
Linda Iniquez-Taylor, '82 BA Communication Studies, works as an employment program representative for the job service of California's employment development department. She has been married for three years and has one 14-year-old child. She enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, dancing, and photography. She lives in Cypress.
Sally Jean Jones, '83 Master of Education, is a special education teacher for seventh- and eighth-graders at a U.S. department of defense (dOd) school in Germany. She began teaching for dOd schools in 1987, when she moved to England. She spent 15 years teaching there and was selected as the 1999 United Kingdom Teacher of the year. She relocated to Germany in 2002. Her hobbies include reading, aerobics, kickboxing, line dancing, and cooking. She and her husband, Eric Measells, live in Wiesbaden.
Dave Matthews, '83 BS Hotel Administration, is co-owner of Century 21 Act 1 Realty. He specializes in residential and commercial real estate with an emphasis on corporate relocation.
Ron Schratter, '83 BS Hotel Administration, has worked in the industry for more than 15 years, mostly with Fairmont and Hyatt Hotels. For the past 10 years, he has been the president of Elite Hospitality Group, an executive recruiting firm specializing in luxury hotels, resorts, and casinos. Previously, he was general manager for a premier country club, hosting numerous Ladies Professional Golf Association events. He lives in Atlanta with his wife and two daughters.
Jeff Jarvis, '87 BS Business Administration, is senior vice president and team leader of the business development department for Service 1st Bank of Nevada. In that position, he is responsible for loan and deposit generation. He has more than 18 years' experience in the financial industry. Previously, he worked as vice president/development officer for Bank of America.
Ed Conway, '88 BS Hotel Administration, is the general manager for Sedona Rouge Hotel in Sedona, Ariz. The hotel was given AAA's fourdiamond award last year and its restaurant, Reds, has received a Wine Spectator award. In the early 1990s, he served as general manager for various Marco Polo Hotels, which allowed him to work in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Novgorod, Russia. He then returned to the United States as a general manager in the San Francisco area for several properties, including Savoy Hotels, Greenhorn Creek Resort, and Radisson Hotel. He enjoys spending time with his two sons, Steven, 13, and Alex, 7; participates in a men's ice hockey league; and serves as co-chair of the 2007 Sedona Miracle Charity event benefiting the Sedona Community Foundation. He lives in Cornwell.
Tony Sanchez, '88 BA Political Science, was named corporate senior vice president at Sierra Pacific Resources. Sanchez received his law degree from Arizona State University in 1991. He most recently was a partner in the Jones Vargas law firm. Previous positions include associate legislative counsel for then U.S. Sen. Richard H. Bryan, assistant general counsel for the Nevada Public Utilities Commission, and executive assistant to then-Nevada Gov. Bob Miller. He serves on the boards of the UNLV Alumni Association, Latin Chamber of Commerce, Nevada Partners, the Latino Bar Association, and Clark County Pro Bono Foundation. He and his wife, Elaine, have two children, Antonio and Tomas.
Amy Watner-Freeman, '88 BS Secondary Education, is vice president of human resources for the Fulfillment Fund, a nonprofit college-access program that helps promising, yet underserved, students graduate from high school and attend college. She previously had a successful career in social services. She and her husband, Will Freeman, have been together 10 years. She loves trivia and board games. She skis and also enjoys the desert with her husband. They live in Altadena, Calif.
1990s
Kristen Alderson, '90 BS Hotel Administration,
has been named general manager
of the new Sheraton Fort Worth
Hotel and Spa in Texas, which is slated to
open late this year or early next year. She
lives in Fort Worth.
Loralee Boughton, '91 MS Hotel Administration, has worked with USA Hosts-Las Vegas since 1989, both full and part time. USA Hosts is a full-service, nationwide destination management company.
Laura Tramposch, '95 BS Recreation Management, is a police officer at UNLV. She said she enjoys serving her alma mater. She helped found the UNLV Police Vocal Ensemble with the help of music professor david Weiller. Her hobbies include biking, hiking, music, and camping.
Margaret Erstad, '96 MS Hotel Administration, has worked in England since graduating from UNLV. In 2001 she joined Hand Picked Hotels as deputy operations director in Kent. Hand Picked is a collection of 14 country house hotels located across the United Kingdom. In 2004 the company was voted Hotel Group of the year by the Automobile Association in the United Kingdom. She previously worked for the Forte Hotel Group. She lives in London.
Chris Roe, '96 BS Hotel Administration, is customer service manager for the southwest division of Micros–Systems Inc. Micros is the world's largest hospitality technology firm for point-of-sale products. He previously served as implementation manager for the company. He and his wife, Susan, have a daughter, Taylor.
Jung Hoon Lee, '97 MS Hotel Administration, is the director of human resources for Sun@Food Co., a leading restaurant operation company that owns and operates seven Tony Roma's, seven Italian wine bistros named Mad for Garlic, 30 pasta restaurants named Spaghettia, and four Japanese steak restaurants named Pepper Lunch in Korea.
Thomas Castleberry, '98 BS Hotel Administration, is general manager of the southwest division of Micros–Systems Inc., the world's largest hospitality technology firm for point-of-sale products. He previously served as customer service manager. He and his wife, Leslie, are the parents of Carter and Claire.
Michael Peltyn, '98 MS Hotel Administration, is vice president of staffing for MGM Mirage CityCenter. He will oversee the recruitment and selection process for the 12,000 employees expected to be hired at the project. CityCenter is a 76- acre mixed-use project that is slated to open in November 2009.
Beth Appelbaum Weinstein, '98 MS Hotel Administration, is the director of summit operations for the Academy of Achievement. The nonprofit organization annually hosts an international summit at which world leaders share their wisdom and experience with graduate students. She previously worked in convention services at the Bellagio. She now works from home in Phoenix when not traveling for an event. Her husband, Todd Weinstein, '99 MS Hotel Administration, is a manager of learning and organizational development at PetSmart's corporate headquarters in Phoenix. Previously, he worked in human resources on the opening team for Paris Las Vegas, as well as at its sister property, Bally's. He then joined Expedia.com to work in human resources and in learning and development both in Las Vegas and at corporate headquarters in Bellevue, Wash.
Christian Augustin, '99 BA Political Science and '03 Master of Education, has been coaching volleyball for nine years — the last four as head coach for the men's volleyball program at Shadow Ridge High School. The team won the 2007 4A Nevada State Championship — the first statewide championship for the school. He was named coach of the year by fellow coaches in his area in 2005 and 2006. In 2006, he became a USA Volleyball certified coach. He is proud that more than half of his graduating senior players during the past four years have gone on to play at the collegiate level. He also serves as assistant head coach of the women's team and teaches government and sociology. He also coaches a men's team for the Vegas Valley Volleyball Club, which recently participated in the Junior Olympics in Atlanta. The team finished 18th nationally among 61 teams. He previously worked as a political and diversity issues analyst for MGM Mirage.
Ruben Curiel, '99 BS Hotel Administration, received his master's degree in hospitality administration from Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne in Switzerland. Previously, he worked as a general manager at Hotel Coral & Marina, a 147- suite hotel with a marina in Ensenada, Mexico. He is married with a 2-year-old daughter and another child on the way.
Marni Moorhead, ‘99 BS Hotel Administration, joined Sunriver Resort in the heart of central Oregon as a sales manager in 2006. She joined Sunriver, a premier golf, meeting, and vacation destination, after working in San Francisco as a catering manager for six years. She lives in Bend, Ore.
Rodney Woodbury, '99 Bachelor of Music, has taught music at Century High School in Pocatello, Idaho, for the past eight years and has seen the band program grow in both size and quality. In February, Century's symphonic band performed at the northwest division biennial conference of the National Association for Music Education. He and his wife, Cassie, are the parents of twins: a son, Topher, and a daughter, Millie.
2000s
Don Mitchell, '00 BS Business Administration,
is a project manager with
dynalectric.
Blake Rudman, '00 BS Hotel Administration, is president of Pink Taco. He helped develop and re-engineer the first Pink Taco outside Las Vegas, located in Scottsdale, Ariz. He then opened the restaurant's first California location in Century City. He previously managed a restaurant chain called Chaucer's; worked for Rosa Mexicano in both New york and Washington, d.C.; and worked for El Torito Grill. He lives in Los Angeles.
Michelle Scher, '00 BS Hotel Administration, '06 MS Hotel Administration, teaches hotel accounting and operations management at UNLV. An avid traveler, she has visited 15 countries so far.
Rebecca Kimbrough, '01 BA Education, recently was honored as a finalist for teacher of the year for the North Little Rock (Ark.) Public School district. She teaches third grade.
Marco Benvenuti, '02 BS Hotel Administration, recently joined Wynn Las Vegas as a director of information technology for the hospitality account. He is in charge of system architecture, configuration, design, and development for all hotel systems. His special project for the next two years will be to contribute to a smooth opening of Encore at Wynn Las Vegas.
C. Michelle North, '02 BS Hotel Administration, is a project development assistant for Big World Villas in Santa Catalina, Panama. She assists in sales and development of a resort community in an area known for its surfing and diving. She enjoys snorkeling, sport fishing, languages, travel, and consulting with young professionals who want to begin businesses in Panama. She lives in Panama City.
Dan Cormany, '04 MS Hotel Administration, returned to UNLV this fall to begin work on his doctorate in hotel administration with an emphasis on convention/ trade show study. Previously, he worked at Loews/Hyatt Lake Las Vegas and on the preparation and opening of Wynn Las Vegas.
Renato N. Estacio, '04 Bachelor of Music, joined the Las Vegas Philharmonic as director of marketing in March. He also oversees public relations for the orchestra. In 2008 he will receive a master of music degree with an emphasis in applied voice as well as an MBA. He helped get the Philharmonic's young professionals program off the ground. He sits on the board of directors of the Southern Nevada Musical Arts Society and teaches voice and music appreciation at the Reed Whipple Cultural Center. He joined the Las Vegas Philharmonic Guild in July. He enjoys singing opera, cantata, and anything Mozart; spending time with his dogs; and traveling. He recently visited, Belgium, France, and the United Kingdom.
Kymberly Platt-Foley, '04 BS Hotel Administration, recently graduated from St. Mary's University Law School in San Antonio. She now is an attorney with Kornblit & Associates, practicing in the area of wills and estate planning. She lives in Houston.
Jennifer Eskin Smith, '04 MS Sport and Leisure Services Management, is a development officer for the School of Humanities at the University of California, Irvine. She previously spent four years working in marketing and catering sales at the Thomas & Mack Center. During that time she served as a member of the Harrah Hotel College Alumni Board.
Gabriel A. Gordon, '05 BS Business Administration, is a financial advisor at Wachovia Securities where he is a member of a team that helps people effectively manage their wealth. He enjoys studying the capital markets and watching sports. His goal is to visit every major league baseball stadium by the time he is 30.
Nolan Halterman, '06 BS Hotel Administration, works at Pronghorn, a high-end private golf club in the Pacific Northwest. He previously worked at a private golf club in Park City, Utah. He lives in Bend, Ore.
