UB Alumni Association to honor university alumni and friends at awards ceremony

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Frank Clement (BS ’66) hasn’t let a distance of 2,600 miles keep him from remaining close to the University at Buffalo.

A native of Silver Creek, New York, Clement worked at Eastman Kodak before moving in 1973 to Seattle, Washington, where he stayed connected to the university by helping to build a strong alumni presence in the region.   

The UB Alumni Association will present its highest honor, the Samuel P. Capen Award, to Clement during its annual awards ceremony at 6 p.m. May 5 in the UB Center for the Arts. UB President Satish K. Tripathi and Mary Garlick Roll (MS ’88, BS ’84), alumni association president, will present 11 awards at the event. Tickets may be purchased online at www.alumni.buffalo.edu/events or by calling 1-800-284-5382.

Clement moved to become a financial advisor for Paine Webber in Seattle; in 2002, he retired from the company, now UBS Financial Services, as the vice president of investments.  He’s also served on the boards of Red Hook Ale Brewery and Caravali Coffees, the wholesale division of Starbucks.

During his decades in the Northwest, Clement hosted alumni events under then UB presidents William Greiner and John Simpson, served on the national alumni board and became a member of the UB School of Management dean’s advisory council. He and his wife gave to the school to create the Frank and Marilyn Clement Undergraduate Community Hub and the Clement Café.

Other alumni association awardees include

Community Leadership Award

Frank Cerny, a retired UB professor who chaired the physical therapy, exercise and nutrition sciences department. Cerny became executive director of the Rural Outreach Center, which serves hundreds of Western New York residents.  

Walter P. Cooke Award

SUNY Distinguished Professors Diane Christian and Bruce Jackson co-direct the UB Center for Studies in American Culture, cofounded the popular Buffalo Film Seminars and recently pledged to the university a $1 million bequest to create undergraduate scholarships and a graduate fellowship for UB students in the creative and performing arts.

Distinguished Alumni Awards

Robert Bennett (MS ’76) spent 23 years at the United Way of Buffalo and Erie County — the last 15 as president and CEO — developing initiatives that included the Child Advocacy Center for victims of child sex abuse. He also spent two decades on the New York State Board of Regents, serving three terms as Eighth Judicial District regent, then as chancellor from 2002-09. During his tenure, he oversaw toughening of high school graduation requirements and raised awareness of the importance of early childhood education programs.

Richard Kurin (BA ’72) is provost and undersecretary for museums and research at the Smithsonian Institution, overseeing all the national museums, and research from astrophysics to zoology. Long involved in cultural heritage work, he helped draft an international preservation treaty and oversees emergency projects around the globe. A fellow of the American Academy for the Arts & Sciences, Kurin hosted UB’s presidential event at the Smithsonian Castle in 2015.

Eileen Silvers (BA ’70) had a prominent career in law and business, spending some 20 years as a partner at the firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton and Garrison, then holding significant positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb; Deloitte & Touche and Genpact Limited. She made a generous pledge to help establish the Eileen Silvers WBFO Visiting Professorship in the Arts and Humanities. Silvers serves on the College of Arts and Sciences dean’s advisory council.

International Distinguished Alumnus Award

Ashutosh Sharma (PhD ’88) was named secretary of the Department of Science and Technology for the Government of India in 2015. He also served as the chair of the chemical engineering department at the Indian Institute of Technology and was the founding coordinator of the Nanosciences Center and the Advanced Imaging Center at the school in Kanpur. While at UB, he worked closely with Eli Ruckenstein, a National Medal of Science recipient.

Clifford C. Furnas Memorial Award

Meherwan Boyce (MS ’64) has 45 years of experience in turbo machinery in industry and academia. He is managing partner and chairman for the Boyce Consultancy Group LLC, an alliance of engineering and industrial consultants with keen knowledge and experience in power generation. As a mechanical engineering professor at Texas A&M University, Boyce founded the TurboMachinery Laboratories and Symposium, now in its 45th year.

Richard T. Sarkin Award for Excellence in Teaching

Thomas Nochajski (PhD ’90, BA ’82) is a research professor in the UB School of Social Work, where he is lauded as an outstanding teacher and mentor to students and to his fellow faculty members. Nochajski co-directs the school’s Institute on Trauma and Trauma-Informed Care and also serves as an associate research scientist at the Research Institute of Addictions, studying prevention of alcohol and drug problems.

George W. Thorn Award

Brian King (PhD ’10, MPH ’06, BS ’04) is deputy director for research translation in the Office on Smoking and Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He joined the CDC as an epidemic intelligence service officer in 2010 and works to provide sound scientific evidence to inform tobacco control policy at state, national and international levels.

Philip B. Wels Outstanding Service Award

Jeremy M. Jacobs (AAS ’60) is chairman of Delaware North, a global leader in hospitality and food service. He is also owner of the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, and chairman of the league’s Board of Governors. His family recently gave $30 million to name the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, the first school naming in UB history. The gift propelled the Jacobs’ family total giving to UB to more than $50 million. A member of the UB Council since 1997, he has served as chairman since 1998.