8 to be Honored at Alumni Association Dinner on April 19

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- An internationally recognized leader in the automotive industry, a pioneer in medical informatics and a world-renowned scholar in the field of African-American history will be among eight individuals to honored by the University at Buffalo Alumni Association at its Celebration of Excellence Dinner on April 19.

The dinner will be held at 6 p.m. in the Buffalo/Niagara Marriott, 1340 Millersport Highway, Amherst. Tickets are $75 per person. For further information or to make reservations, call 716-829-2608.

James W. McLernon, B.S. '50, retired chairman of American Axle & Manufacturing Inc., will receive the Samuel P. Capen Award, the alumni association's most prestigious prize. The prize is presented for notable and meritorious contributions to the university and its family.

A Kenmore native, McLernon earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from UB and began his career as an hourly worker in a Western New York Chevrolet engine plant. Over the next five decades, he rose to become chairman of the board of American Axle, a company formed by McLernon when he and four partners purchased five under-performing General Motors plants. The company's annual sales volume now exceeds $2 billion.

McLernon is a member of the Dean's Council of the UB School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and serves on President William R. Greiner's Executive Campaign Committee for the university's $250 million campaign. He lives in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Joseph P. Allen, chairman of Veridian, a major U.S. high-tech company, will receive the Walter P. Cooke Award, presented to a non-alumnus for notable and meritorious contributions to the university.

An accomplished entrepreneur, scientist, astronaut and academic, Allen was chairman of the board of Calspan SRL Corp. when it merged with Veda International Inc. in 1997. He became the chairman of the merged company, which took the name Veridian. The company specializes in information and system solutions for the space and defense industries.

A resident of Washington, D.C., he maintains a close working relationship with UB, serving with Greiner on the board of directors of the Calspan-University at Buffalo Research Center (CUBRC). He also chairs the Dean's Council of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Kevin J. Parker, B.S. '76, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at the University of Rochester and director of the Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound, will receive the Clifford C. Furnas Memorial Award for significant contributions by graduates of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences or the disciplines of natural sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences. Parker lives in Rochester.

Internationally known as a leader in the field of medical diagnostic devices and business machines, Parker holds faculty positions as professor of electrical and computer engineering and professor of radiology at the University of Rochester. In 1990, he was named director of the Center for Biological Ultrasound, which provides an environment for researchers from both the medical and engineering fields to investigate the use of very-high-frequency sound waves in medical diagnosis and treatment, along with other medical imaging bioeffects endeavors.

An outstanding scholar and researcher, his work has resulted in 10 patents.

Atif Zafar, B.A. '89, M.D. '94, will receive the George W. Thorn Award, presented to UB graduates under the age of 40 who have made outstanding national or international contributions to their career field or academic area. He lives in Indianapolis, Ind.

A medical computer scientist, Zafar is clinical assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine and is on the staff of the Regenstrief Institute, a 25-year-old research foundation located on the IU medical school campus dedicated to the study and improvement of health and health-care delivery. Faculty members conduct research to improve health care by optimizing the capture, analysis, content and delivery of the information needed by patients, their providers and policymakers. They also conduct interventional studies designed to measure the effect of the application of this research on the efficiency and quality of health care.

Three alumni will receive Distinguished Alumni Awards for their exceptional career accomplishments, community or university service, or research and scholarly activity.

James Oliver Horton, B.A. '64, is the Benjamin Banneker Professor of American Studies and History at George Washington University and director of the Afro-American Communities Project of the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution.

A world-renowned scholar in the field of African-American history, he is the author or co-author of five books and was selected by Oxford University Press to edit the 12-volume series "The Landmarks of American History."

Horton, who lives in Washington, D.C., will deliver two lectures while visiting UB, and the Undergraduate Library will host a travelling exhibit that Horton curated for the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History entitled "Free at Last: A History of the Abolition of Slavery."

Colleen Murphy Miller, M.S. '91, D.N.S. '97, is a nurse practitioner and researcher in the Department of Neurology at Buffalo General Hospital of Kaleida Health and the William C. Baird Multiple Sclerosis Research Center. She lives in East Amherst.

She is a lecturer in the UB School of Nursing and UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences on the subject of managing the health of persons with multiple sclerosis. She also serves as a preceptor to nurse-practitioner and medical students, helping them to master the art of neurological care.

In 1997, she spearheaded a coalition of colleagues that established the International Organization of Multiple Sclerosis, which promotes improved quality care for persons with MS.

Joseph P. Vacca, Ph.D. '83, is executive director of the Department of Medicinal Chemistry at Merck Research Laboratories. A leader in developing and improving drug treatments, he has received more than 20 patents and published nearly 50 scholarly honors. Vacco made leading contributions in the discovery of Crixivan, an HIV protease inhibitor-

He has received numerous awards for his research, including the national "Inventor of the Year" award from the Intellectual Property Owners, a Washington, D.C., inventors group, and the Merck Director's Award from the Board of Directors of Merck & Co., Inc. He lives in Telford, Pa.

The Alumni Association also will present its Community Leadership Medal to the Hon. Joseph S. Mattina, J.D. '56, Erie County surrogate judge. The award is given in recognition of, and appreciation for, outstanding contributions to the university community over an extended period of time, or a single, truly remarkable contribution.

For 20 years, Mattina has served as one of New York's outstanding surrogate judges, giving well-reasoned, intellectually stimulating and innovative opinions. He has taken an active role in proposing and drafting new legislation while serving on the Legislative Advisory Committee established by the Office of Court Administration.

The National College of Probate Judges recently recognized his service, awarding him its Treat Award for Excellence. In 1998, he was one of 16 judges nationwide to be inducted as a charter member of the Hall of Honor at The National Judicial College in Reno, Nev., where he also has served on the faculty.