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Outstanding Faculty Award
IRMA BECERRA FERNANDEZ ’94 Associate Professor, College of Business Administration, Miami, Florida
- Irma Becerra Fernandez is founder and director of the Knowledge Management Lab (KM), which began operations in 1997. She is also faculty director of the Master’s of Science in Management Information Systems and teaches Data Mining and Knowledge Management, Organization Information Systems and e-business. As director of the KM Lab, Becerra Fernandez works with students to create, manage and maintain database systems for private entities such as banks and government entities such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The lab enjoys $2.4 million in funding from NASA, the Goddard Space Flight Center and the Air Force Research Center. A committed advocate for her students, the award-winning Becerra Fernandez is known for encouraging creativity among her students and welcoming new opportunities. The Cuban native came to teaching after working as an engineer at Florida Power & Light (FPL) for six years. While instructing others as an FPL corporate trainer, she discovered the joys of teaching.
Outstanding Achievement Award
REGYNALD G. WASHINGTON ’74, School of Hospitality & Tourism Management, Vice President and General Manager, Disney Regional Entertainment, and Vice President of New Business Initiatives, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Burbank, California
- Regynald Washington is an elected officer and member of the Board of Directors of the National Restaurant Association and served as its chairman for the administrative term 2003-’04. Washington has dual responsibilities for two businesses within the Walt Disney organization. He is the vice president and general manager for Disney Regional Entertainment where he has responsibility for the strategy, direction and growth of Disney’s ESPN Zone sports entertainment and food and beverage brand, based in Burbank, California. He is also vice president of New Business Initiatives for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts where he is responsible for particular focus on ventures outside of existing theme parks and resort hotels. He leads the exploration and development of new business lines domestically. Washington was named one of the Top 50 Taste Makers in America’s restaurant industry in 1999 by Restaurant News. A frequent guest lecturer in educational forums, Washington serves on the advisory boards of several universities’ hospitality management programs. He is also a trustee of the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation.
Distinguished Alumni Awards (Colleges and Schools)
CAROLE E. BERNSTEIN ’73, College of Education, Owner, Get Smart, Miami, Florida
- A dedication to children determined Carole Bernstein’s professional life. Combining theory and practical application from her master’s degree in educational administration and her Ph.D. in elementary education, Bernstein created Get Smart for teachers and parents who were searching for education materials to enhance their children’s development. What began with a dream and $2,000 has expanded into a multi-million dollar company with stores from Miami-Dade to Palm Beach County. Additionally, Get Smart exports educational materials in Spanish and English
throughout Central and South America. Bernstein began her career as a teacher and has served as an adjunct professor and a guest lecturer at Florida International University and the University of Miami. Currently, she is a volunteer reading teacher for special-needs children at Blue Lakes Elementary School. Bernstein and Get Smart stores are involved in many civic and community service initiatives, including Kids 4 Kids. For that initiative, Get Smart has provided new backpacks filled with school supplies to 37,000 homeless, abused, migrant, foster and low-income children in the community.
PAMELA CRAWFORD ’91, School of Architecture, Garden Author & Landscape Architect, Lake Worth, Florida
- Pamela Crawford’s passion for gardening and design was the genesis of a life-altering career change. Working in medical-supply sales in the 1980s, the Vanderbilt University graduate decided to follow her heart and enrolled at Florida International University to pursue a master’s degree in landscape architecture. After graduating, she started a nursery and garden-design business that specialized in residential landscape renovation. While designing 1,500 gardens,
she created trial gardens to determine which Florida plants give the highest performance with the least amount of care. Crawford now writes and publishes consumer gardening books, both self-authored as well as by others. Her first book, “Easy Gardens for South Florida,” is a best-seller and in its fifth printing after only three years. That book was followed by her recently released “Best Garden Color for Florida.” Her third book in the series, “Container Gardens for Florida,” is scheduled for publication next year.
PRINCELL L. HAIR ’00, School of Journalism & Mass Communication, Executive Vice President & General Manager, CNN/U.S., Atlanta, Georgia
- Princell Hair is executive vice president and general manager of CNN/U.S., responsible for the network’s day-to-day news operation, encompassing all aspects of programming and production, including oversight of CNN.com’s U.S.-based operations. Hair joined CNN from Viacom where, as vice president of news for the Viacom Television Stations Group, he oversaw news coverage across the Viacom portfolio of 39 television stations operating in 15 of the 20 top markets in the United States. The division includes 16 CBS owned-and-operated stations, four CBS satellite
stations, 18 UPN-affiliated stations and one independent station. Prior to his promotion into the corporate ranks of Viacom, Hair was news director at KCBS-TV in Los Angeles and, earlier, at WBAL-TV in Baltimore, where the station’s 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts rose to No. 1 in the market. Hair serves on the Board of Directors of the Radio and Television News Directors Association and is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists. He is a frequent lecturer at the Poynter Institute.
ROY R. LUSTIG ’76, College of Law, Attorney, Coral Gables, Florida
- Roy Lustig has been one of the country’s leading advocates for people with developmental disabilities for more than 25 years. As pro bono counsel for United Cerebral Palsy of South Florida, South Carolina and Georgia, Lustig plays a prominent role in guiding these organizations’ business and legal affairs. Additionally, he advocates on behalf of individuals with disabilities on a wide range of issues, including access to services, civil rights, employment and fair housing. Following Hurricane Andrew, he was instrumental in resolving legal challenges involved in relocating more than 100 severely disabled children and adults whose homes had been destroyed. Having held key leadership positions within the United Cerebral Palsy Association locally and nationally, Lustig has helped influence public policy for the better. A recipient of the
Distinguished Service Award of the Dade County Bar Association, Lustig has also been honored with United Cerebral Palsy’s national Ethel Hausman Volunteer of the Year Award. Lustig received his bachelor’s degree from Florida International University in 1976 and his law degree from Nova University Law Center in 1979.
NANCY O’SULLIVAN HUMBERT ’93, College of Health & Urban Affairs, Deputy Secretary for Health, State Public Health Nursing Director & Florida Women’s Health Officer, Tallahassee, Florida
- Nancy O’Sullivan Humbert was appointed to her current role by Dr. John Agwunobi, secretary, Florida Department of Health (DOH) on July 12, 2004. In this position, she oversees the Office of Public Health Nursing, the Emergency Operations Division, the Division of Health Access and Tobacco, the Office of Statewide Research and the DOH Labs. Previously, O’Sullivan Humbert was the deputy administrator for the Miami-Dade County Health Department. In this capacity, she was responsible for the Environmental Health Office; epidemiology; Healthy Start; HIV/AIDS initiatives; refugee health assessment; school health; sexually transmitted disease initiatives; the Special Immunization Program; vital records; women, infant and child health; and women’s health. She was also instrumental in leading the Miami-Dade County Health Department (MDCHD) on the performance excellence journey that resulted in the MDCHD being the first health department to win the governor’s prestigious Sterling Award. A nurse since 1976, O’Sullivan Humbert served formerly as an intensive care nurse at the Miami Heart Institute and St. Francis Hospital in Miami Beach. Her passion is public and child health.
ELIOT PEDROSA ’95, Honors College, Attorney, Greenberg Traurig, Miami, Florida
- Eliot Pedrosa is an associate in the Litigation Department of Greenberg Traurig’s Miami office. His practice involves all aspects of complex commercial litigation before federal and state courts, including representation of business clients in civil disputes, securities litigation, class actions, and other civil and regulatory matters. Prior to his current position, Pedrosa worked as an attorney for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Division of Enforcement. A summa cum laude graduate of Florida International University, Pedrosa graduated from Harvard University Law School in 1999. Later that year, his high marks on the Florida Bar examination score afforded him the honor of delivering a speech on behalf of inductees at the Florida Bar induction ceremony at the Third District Court of Appeals in Miami. Pedrosa participates in many professional and community service organizations, including the Federalist Society, in which he is a member of the Miami Lawyers’ Division Board of Directors. Already making his mark in the legal community, Pedrosa was named one of 50 “Up and Comers” in the 2003 South Florida Legal Guide.
ANA MARIA POLO ’84, College of Arts & Sciences, Attorney and Television Judge, Coral Gables, Florida
- Blending legal expertise, common sense and humor, Ana Maria Polo has won the hearts of Spanish-speaking television audiences through her work on Sala de Parejas, Telemundo’s award-winning courtroom drama. On the hit show, Polo mediates and arbitrates husband-and-wife disputes with a wicked sense of humor. Her decisions are legally binding and participants sign a contract agreeing to abide by the final ruling prior to appearing on the show. Broadcast nationwide, the show leads in its time slot among Spanish-language shows and consistently ranks among the top 10 shows in Costa Rica, Chile, Paraguay and beyond. The expertise Polo dispenses on camera is an extension of her work at her Coral Gables law firm Polo & Perez. Along with partner Emmanuel “Manny” Perez and a team of lawyers, Polo represents
clients in family matters, financial disputes and criminal cases. A graduate of the University’s Political Science program, Polo holds a law degree from the University of Miami. A breast cancer survivor, Polo devotes considerable time to raising public awareness of the illness among Hispanic women.
JORGE J. RAWICZ ’81, College of Engineering, Founder and President of Peninsula Mortgage Bankers Corporation, Miami, Florida
- When Jorge Rawicz founded Peninsula Mortgage Bankers Corporation in 1984 on a shoestring budget, little did he know it would become a leader in the minority lending market. Today he presides over a company that employs 70 individuals in South Florida and Kansas City, Missouri, and enjoys a positive reputation locally and nationally. Despite his busy schedule, Rawicz volunteers his time in both professional and civic arenas. He has a distinguished history serving on advisory boards at Fannie Mae and is proud of his efforts to make the organization aware of low-income housing and minority lending long before it became fashionable to do so. Today he is a member of Fannie Mae’s advisory board for the southeast region. An active member of the local Jewish community, Rawicz is president elect of the Dave & Mary Alper Jewish Community Center in South Dade. A native of Venezuela, Rawicz obtained degrees in civil engineering from the Universidad Santa Maria in Caracas, Venezuela, prior to earning a degree in construction management from Florida International University.
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