Alumni honored at Commencement

Congratulations to the following FIU alumni who were honored at the Dec. 2004 Commencement ceremonies. Here, in alphabetical order, are the honorees and some career highlights. Their accomplishments speak for themselves:

Stephanie Burns '77

Distinguished Alumni Service Medallion

Burns is president and chief executive officer of Dow Corning, a multibillion-dollar technology-driven corporation that leads the world in the manufacture of silicone. She is responsible for directing innovation and growth across the company's major businesses, which employ some 8,200 workers in 33 locations around the globe.

Burns' ascendancy to the boardroom began when she joined Dow in 1983 as a researcher specializing in water-based and high temperature rubber-like substances known as elastomers. She was promoted from within and in 2000, she was named executive vice president and elected to Dow Corning's board of directors, which put her in charge of science and technology as well as marketing and sales. Three years later, she was named president and chief operating officer of the 60-year-old company and, in 2004, its chief executive officer.

A 1977 graduate of the University, Burns majored in chemistry at a time when few women were entering the field. Her professors recall her dedication and inquisitiveness as she carried a full course load and maintained a nearly perfect grade point average, even while caring for an infant daughter. She went on to complete a PhD in organic chemistry at Iowa State University and post-doctoral studies at the Universite Montpellier in France. An award-winning professional, this grandmother of two was named the 2003 Michigan Woman Executive of the Year.

Manuel Garcia '90

Distinguished Alumni Service Medallion

Garcia is the city editor for The Miami Herald, Florida's leading news daily. He joined the organization as a staff writer after completing an internship at the Boston Globe and earning a bachelor's degree in 1990 from the School of Journalism & Mass Communication. Garcia began his professional career covering the police beat and writing about Miami's Little Havana neighborhood, the Cuban-American enclave in which he grew up after moving to the United States from Cuba as a boy. He subsequently took the position of night reporter for the paper's Metro section and simultaneously began covering Miami City Hall. Garcia's contributions to a series of stories on widespread voter fraud in the 1997 mayoral election netted the newspaper a Pulitzer Prize, journalism's most prestigious honor. The revelations also led to the arrest of 56 people and an overturning of the election.

After formally joining the Herald's investigative team, Garcia served as lead reporter and writer on articles related to the 2000 federal raid that returned child refugee Elian Gonzalez to his family in Cuba. He ably led a team of reporters that included several other FIU graduates, and coverage of the event once again led to the paper's receiving a Pulitzer Prize. In 2003, Garcia became the Herald Metro editor with responsibilities for local news coverage. In 2001, he was recognized by the FIU Alumni Association with an Outstanding Achievement Award.

Justo Luis Pozo '80

Distinguished Alumni Service Medallion

Pozo is president of Preferred Care Partners, an organization licensed by the State of Florida as an alternative to the traditional Medicare HMO health plans. Preferred Care Partners began operating in 2002 following a four-year pilot program and now offers 7,800 South Florida enrolles (representing $78 million in annualized revenues) all the same or more benefits as most Medicare HMOs while including in its network an impressive 700 physicians. Prior to forming Preferred Care Partners, Pozo served two years as executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Excalibur Health Systems, a health management firm. He is a certified public accountant formerly with the accounting firm of Rodriguez, Trueba & Pozo. As a partner, he helped develop and advise health care clientele that included physician groups, dental groups, medical centers and other related organizations.

Pozo earned a bachelor's degree in business administration with a major in accounting in 1980. He is a member of the leading professional organizations in his field and this year the South Florida Business Journal recognized him as a Health Care Heavy Hitter. Last spring, he was named to the College of Business Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.

Pozo is a member of the Alumni Association Board.

Adalio T. Sanchez '87

Distinguished Alumni Service Medallion

As general manager of eServer pSeries with IBM Systems & Technology Group, Sanchez has created bridges between IBM and the University that have advanced the missions of both institutions. A 1987 graduate of the Master's of Business Administration program, Sanchez is an active member of the College of Engineering's Industry Advisory Council, which is comprised of senior-level managers from national and local companies that span the breadth of the College's departmental programs. As chairperson of the group's Research & Technology Transfer Committee, Sanchez has promoted meaningful collaborations between IBM and the University.

His guidance and interaction with the faculty of the School of Computer Science and its High Performance Database Research Center led to the donation earlier this year of a $3.6 million supercomputer cluster for FIU.

In his current position, Sanchez is responsible for all facets of IBM's UNIX server business, including product development, marketing, sales, operations and overall financial performance. Prior to that, he was vice president of operations of the IBM Server Group. In that capacity, he acted as chief operating officer, with responsibility to improve Server Group's operational efficiency and accelerate execution of the IBM eServer strategy.

Allen Susser '78

Cal Kovens Distinguished Service Medallion

Susser is the creative genius and business mastermind behind the successful Chef Allen's, the Aventura restaurant that has helped redefine Florida cuisine. Harnessing a vast energy, he has built a reputation for inventive dishes as well as tireless charitable work. Calling food "my life, my profession, my charity and my diversion," he has deftly combined his kitchen and business talents with a strong desire to improve the community in which he lives and beyond.

Susser received his bachelor's degree from the FIU School of Hospitality & Tourism Management in 1978 and went on to earn a certificate from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. The author of several cookbooks, he worked in Paris and New York prior to opening Chef Allen's in 1986. In 1994, the prestigious James Beard Foundation paid tribute to Mr. Susser with an award for excellence in his field, the most recognized honor within the foodservice industry.