8 to Be Honored By UB Alumni Association

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The former chair and CEO of Fay's Inc., the president of NOCO Energy Corp., a physician known internationally for his pioneering work in developing dermatology as a medical specialty and a man considered the most powerful individual in talent management in the entertainment industry are among eight individuals to be honored at the University at Buffalo Alumni Association's annual awards dinner.

The dinner will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 1, in the Center for Tomorrow on the UB North (Amherst) Campus. Tickets for the dinner are $50 per person. For further information and reservations, call 829-2608 by April 17.

UB President William R. Greiner and Jean C. Powers, chair of the awards committee, will present awards to the eight honorees.

Henry A. Panasci, Jr. (B.A.,'48, B.S.,'52), of Camillus, will receive the Samuel P. Capen Award for notable and meritorious contributions to the university and its family. Chairman of Cygnus Management Group, LLC, Panasci is one of the most dynamic and accomplished graduates of the UB School of Pharmacy. He formerly was chair and CEO of Fay's Inc., a diversified specialty retail chain he co-founded with his father in 1958. Under his leadership, Fay's diversified beyond its core drug-store business by launching The Paper Cutter and Wheels Discount Auto Supply. At the time of its merger with a large national retailer in 1996, Fay's had grown to more than $1 billion in annual revenues and more than 270 retail store locations.

The Walter P. Cooke Award recognizing non-alumni who have made notable and meritorious contributions to UB and its family, influencing growth and improvement for the university, will be presented to Reginald B. Newman II of Amherst, president of NOCO Energy Corp. of Buffalo, a family-owned petroleum products supplier and terminal operator that supplies home heating oil, industrial fuels, lubricants, aviation fuels and asphalt throughout Western New York. A major supporter of the university, Newman is chair and a member since 1989 of the board of trustees of the University at Buffalo Foundation, Inc. The UB School of Management in 1997 named Newman its "Niagara Frontier Executive of the Year."

Timothy J. Klein (B.S.,'84), of Amherst, co-founder, president and CEO of ATTO Technology, Inc., will receive the George W. Thorn Award, presented to a UB graduate under age 40 in recognition of outstanding national or international contributions in their career field or academic area. Klein, who received a degree in electrical engineering, has distinguished himself as an engineer and in the design and production of "small computer system interface" devices that are integrated into computers by other companies to enhance performance.

Ronald A. Poling (B.S.,'76) of St. Paul, Minn., will receive the Clifford C. Furnas Memorial Award, presented to a graduate of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences or the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. A professor of physics at the University of Minnesota, Poling is widely recognized for his contributions to the field of elementary particle physics and is an expert on the "bottom-quark," one of the fundamental building blocks of matter.

• Dennis J. Block (B.A.,'64) of Manhasset, managing partner of the prestigious international law firm of Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP and a leader in the area of corporate law. A widely respected specialist in the complex field of corporate mergers and takeovers, he is the co-author of a monthly column in the New York Law Journal, serves on the editorial boards of several legal publications and has co-authored two books.

• Eugene M. Farber (M.D.,'43) of Portola Valley, Calif., known world-wide as an authority on treatment of diseases of the skin, especially psoriasis, and for his pioneering work in developing dermatology as a medical specialty. Farber is president of the Psoriasis Research Institute in Palo Alto, Calif., which he co-founded, and Center Professor and Chairman Emeritus in the Department of Dermatology, Stanford University School of Medicine. He has practiced clinically for more than 40 years and has taken care of more than 10,000 patients with psoriasis.

• Seymour Gitin (B.A.,'56), Dorot Director and professor of archaeology with the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, the oldest American research center for ancient Near Eastern studies in the Middle East. His contributions to the field of archeology are legion.

• Brad A. Grey (B.A.,'79) of Pacific Palisade, Calif., chairman and CEO of Brillstein-Grey Entertainment (BGE), a leading management, television and motion-picture production company. He has changed the face of talent management in the entertainment industry and is considered the most powerful man in the talent business. His client roster includes more than 150 television and movie performers, including Brad Pitt, Nicolas Cage, Sylvester Stallone, Cher and Courteney Cox. BGE has 10 shows on the air, including "NewsRadio," "Just Shoot Me" and "Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher." Grey has been nominated for six Emmy Awards, has won several Cable Ace Awards and received the George Foster Peabody Award as executive producer of "The Larry Sanders Show."