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News Release

Last modified: Friday, November 30, 2007

IU Alumni Association to present President's Awards

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 3, 2007

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana University Alumni Association will honor eight alumni with the 2007 IUAA President's Award for volunteer service to IU and their local communities. The awards will be presesented Friday (Dec. 7) during a ceremony at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in Indianapolis.

Established in 1993, the President's Award is the highest award given by the Alumni Association to a volunteer leader. This year's recipients, all from Indiana, are A. Bruce Burkart, of South Bend; Greg Chamness, of Richmond; Debra L. Fawcett, of Kokomo; James N. Grandorf, of Bloomington; Jennifer McIntosh-Elkins, of Lowell; Deborah A. McMahan, of Fort Wayne; C. Diego Morales, of Sellersburg; and Roselle Partridge, of Indianapolis.

"The IUAA President's Award recognizes these unique and gracious individuals who work hard on behalf of Indiana University," said Tom Martz, BS'71, president and CEO of the IU Alumni Association. "For that, we offer our thanks and heartiest congratulations."

Following are brief bios for each President's Award recipient:

A. Bruce Burkart

A. Bruce Burkart received a bachelor's degree in business in general management in 1972 from IU South Bend. Burkart, a senior vice president at 1st Source Bank in South Bend, and his wife, Cindy, are ardent supporters of the university, the Alumni Association, and particularly, the IU South Bend Alumni Association Scholarship Program.

He is a former member of the IU South Bend Alumni Association Board of Directors, the IU South Bend Advisory Board, and a former chairman of the IU South Bend Alumni Association Scholarship Program. Burkart has been a key player in the program's decade-long track record of awarding 137 scholarships and raising more than $560,000.

The Michiana community also has benefited from Burkart's commitment to service. He has been active in the Kiwanis Club and is past treasurer of Camp Fire Girls, past president of Catholic Social Services, and a former board member of United Health Service and the Diabetes Association of St. Joseph County.

In recognition of his community service, Bruce received the Ernestine M. Raclin Community Leadership Award from 1st Source Bank in 2000.

Greg Chamness

Greg Chamness completed a bachelor of general studies degree from IU East in 1984. As early as the late '70s, Chamness began working with the IU Alumni Association as a member of the Wayne County Alumni Club.

In 1989, he was instrumental in starting the IU East Alumni Association under the direction of then-Chancellor Charlie Nelms. He became charter president of that board and worked on several scholarship events early in its history.

In 1988, he led the effort to bring the IU Hoosiers to Richmond for a scrimmage football game. The proceeds benefited the library building on campus.

Chamness and his wife, Victoria, work jointly with other volunteers on the Mighty U — a program that brings elementary school students to the IU East campus to experience college and that helps plant the seed of the benefit of an IU degree. Chamness recently returned as an IU East Alumni Association board member after a few years of being an avid volunteer.

He works as the director of business development for Barnhizer & Associates Inc.

Debra Fawcett

Debra Fawcett earned her associate of nursing degree in 1980 and her bachelor of nursing degree in 1988 from IU Kokomo. She is assistant professor of nursing at IU Kokomo and has been an active volunteer for the IU Alumni Association for a number of years. Fawcett served as the chairwoman of IU Kokomo's nursing alumni event, The Nightingale Dinner, for several years. She is an active supporter of Hoosiers for Higher Education, each year requiring her nursing classes to attend the Statehouse Visit Day.

Fawcett has served as vice president and president of the IU School of Nursing Alumni Association Board of Directors and, during her presidency, she guided the association through a strategic planning process. Fawcett was the first regional campus representative to the board and was instrumental in bringing the regional campus perspective to the board's activities.

For her service to the IUKAA, the IUAA, the IU Kokomo campus, and to her profession, in 1994 Debra was chosen to receive the IU Kokomo Alumni Association's Distinguished Alumni Award — the highest honor the IUKAA bestows upon an alumnus/a of IU Kokomo.

James N. Grandorf

James N. Grandorf earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Indiana University in 1963 and a master of business administration degree in 1964. He worked as an analyst and manager for Exxon Corp. for more than 30 years before joining the Kelley School of Business faculty.

Grandorf served two terms on the Kelley School of Business Alumni Association board and is a former member of the IUAA Executive Council. He is a life member of the association and a member of the Woodburn Guild board. Grandorf serves on the IUAA Audit Committee, where he advises on various financial policies. He also serves on the association's Dues Committee, where he has helped focus discussions around how the association's dues should enhance the IUAA's mission.

Grandorf served as the faculty adviser for three MBA classes that took on consulting projects for the IUAA. These classes conducted semester-long studies and made recommendations regarding the association's dues structure, online voting in the trustee election, and the I Association.

Jennifer McIntosh-Elkins

Jennifer McIntosh-Elkins graduated from IU Northwest with a bachelor's degree in Spanish and organizational communication in 1991 and a master of business administration degree in 1998. She was president of the Student Government Association in 1990-91. McIntosh-Elkins was also vice chairwoman and founding member of the All-University Student Association.

McIntosh-Elkins began her association with Hoosiers for Higher Education in 1991 and was a member of the first HHE delegation that traveled to Indianapolis to lobby state lawmakers on behalf of higher-education funding. She has served as an HHE member and community chair ever since.

McIntosh-Elkins is a longtime member of the IU Northwest Alumni Association and served as vice president in 2000-01 and president in 2001-02. She also served as an at-large member of the IUAA Executive Council from 2002 through 2005.

Deborah McMahan

Deborah McMahan earned her bachelor of science degree at IPFW in 1986 and then received her doctor of medicine degree from IU's School of Medicine in 1990. She has served Indiana's Allen County as its health commissioner since 2000.

A member of the American Medical Association, McMahan is a member of the Indiana State Medical Association, the Fort Wayne Medical Society, and the American Public Health Association. The past few years have found McMahan preparing Allen County for the impending flu pandemic. McMahan has also presented her seminar to IPFW and its employees, helping the university create its medical disaster plan.

In 2006, McMahan lent her support to the IPFW alumni membership campaign by appearing on a billboard featuring her name, occupation, and photo with the message "I'm an Alumni Association member. Won't you become a member, too?" McMahan serves on the boards of Super Shot Inc., St. Joseph Community Health Foundation and Healthier Moms & Babies.

C. Diego Morales

Diego Morales graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications with minors in political science and Spanish in 2004. While attending IU Southeast, he was active in student and community organizations, including serving as a student ambassador, a Student Government Association member, a student senator, and a member of the College Republicans.

Since graduating from IU Southeast, Morales has served as a member of the Indiana National Guard and will be attending the National Guard Officer Candidate School in January 2008. He also works as the only paid staff person on Mike Sodrel's 2008 congressional campaign.

Morales is often seen on campus attending alumni events, serving soda at a welcome event for new students, or volunteering at the alumni booth at various festivals. He has integrated himself into the familiar faces around campus and the community and is also a familiar face for members of Hoosiers for Higher Education. During his days at the Capitol, he was always there to greet HHE advocates, support Indiana University, and promote higher education.

He currently serves on the IU Southeast Alumni Board and continues to mentor and recruit students.

Roselle Partridge

Roselle Partridge received her bachelor of nursing and master of nursing degrees from the Indiana University School of Nursing in 1959 and 1976, respectively.

She has served the IU Alumni Association as a board member for the IU School of Nursing Alumni Association since 1997. Partridge has held every officer position, culminating in her service as president from 2005-07. During her tenure as president, she successfully guided the board through two strategic planning processes, which redirected the board's priorities. She hosted several student, alumni, and reunion activities not only on the campus, but also at many regional nursing alumni events, including her winter home in Phoenix.

Partridge continues to serve the IU School of Nursing Alumni Association as immediate past president and at-large member. Among her many accolades for outstanding service, she was the recipient of the Special Recognition Award from the School of Nursing Alumni Association in 2004.

Partridge is a member of the Sigma Theta Tau honorary society for nursing, the American Nursing Association, and the Indiana State Nurses Association.

The Indiana University Alumni Association is dedicated to serving the university and its diverse alumni, students, and friends. As one of the nation's largest alumni organizations, serving more than 500,000 graduates worldwide, the IUAA provides many programs and services to its members, non-member alumni, and the university. For information, visit www.alumni.indiana.edu or call (800) 824-3044.

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