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14 TH ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology Saturday, February 8, 2014 Traditions Hall, University of South Florida Gibbons Alumni Center, Tampa, FL

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Page 1: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

14TH ANNUAL USF GEOLOGYALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET

Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology

Saturday, February 8, 2014 Traditions Hall, University of South Florida

Gibbons Alumni Center, Tampa, FL

Page 2: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

2 | USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

PROGRAM

RECEPTION

WELCOMEEileen Rodríguez, Event ChairUSF Geology Alumni Society

DINNER

STATE OF THE USF SCHOOL OF GEOSCIENCESJeff Ryan, Chair

USF School of Geosciences

PRESENTATION OF UNDERGRADUATE AWARDWithlacoochee Rockhounds

OVERVIEW OF FELLOWSHIP AWARDSEileen Rodríguez

USF Geology Alumni Society

PRESENTATION OF FELLOWSHIP AWARDSRichard A. “Skip” Davis, Jr.

Emeritus ProfessorUSF School of Geosciences

INTRODUCTION AND PRESENTATION OF GAS AWARD TO BOB BRETNALL

Tom Scott, Charter GAS Award RecipientBruce Nocita, Nominator

CLOSING REMARKSBruce Nocita

2012-2014 ChairUSF Geology Alumni Society

NETWORKING

Page 3: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY | 3

Update your contact information and pay your

USF Alumni Association dues

http://www.usfalumni.net/

CHOOSE USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY FELLOWSHIP ORFIELD SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIP FUND HTTP://USF.EDU/UA/GEOLOGYMAKE A DONATION!

SUPPORT THE USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

2012-2014BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Chair

Bruce Nocita

Vice ChairMike Wightman

SecretaryMatt Wissler

Financial/Membership/GAS Banquet ChairEileen Rodríguez

Communications ChairJon Hull

Symposium ChairDave Dewitt

Commencement ChairsAnn Sava

Expo ChairMike Wightman

Rockbreaker ChairJon Hull

Directors Judy McIlrath, Talia Paolillo and

Tom Scott

Mailing Address:USF GEOLOGY

ALUMNI SOCIETYUniversity of South Florida

30446 USF Holly DriveTampa, FL 33620-3044

Contact

[email protected] (Jon Hull)

www.usfalumni.net/geology

USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY2013 ANNUAL REPORT

FEBRUARY 9 13TH ANNUAL GAS BANQUETThe annual banquet was held at Traditions Hall located at the Gibbons Alumni Center on USF's Tampa Campus. The event netted $36,759 for the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. One hundred and sixty five alums, faculty, students, and friends attended. The GAS awarded two fellowships, one for a Ph.D. student and one for a Masters student, for a total of $3,000 at this event. The annual Geology Alumni Society Award was presented to Len Vacher. There were 12 sponsored tables at this event, including both corporate and personal sponsorships from alumni and faculty. Over forty students were sponsored at the banquet.

APRIL 11 RESUME WORKSHOPThe annual resume workshop was held by Dr. Bruce Nocita with assistance from Matt Wissler. A total of 17 students participated in the workshop which was held in the Marcin Museum.

APRIL 22 SPRING USF GEOLOGY INTERNSHIP SYMPOSIUMThe spring Symposium was held at the Tampa SWFWMD office. Two USF Geology Professional Science Masters degree candidates discussed the results of their professional science masters project: Kristina (Stadtherr) Mallams (SWFWMD: Ron Basso, P.G.): “Borehole Geophysical Investigation of Regional Observational and Monitoring Program Groundwater Well Nos. 45.5 and 41” and Marty Solomon (USGS: Dr. Joe Hughes) "Geochemical Modeling to Assess the Mobilization of Arsenic by Aquifer Storage and Recovery within Different Redox Zones of the Upper Floridan Aquifer” were the two presenters. Over twenty five alums, faculty, students, and friends attended.

APRIL 25 GEOLOGY EXPO AND SPRING ROCKBREAKER SOCIALThe biennial Geology EXPO was held at the USF GeoPark. Ten local contractors and over 60 alumni, faculty, students and friends participated in the event. The semi-annual Rockbreaker was held at the campus Beef O’ Bradys following the Geology EXPO to encourage interaction between students and Alumni.

MAY 3 SPRING GEOLOGY COMMENCEMENT RECEPTIONThree students graduated in the Spring semester and were honored at the Spring reception. Each graduate was given a complimentary one-year membership to the Alumni Association to encourage future participation in the Geology Alumni Society and a Graduation Pack.

AUGUST 10 SUMMER GEOLOGY COMMENCEMENT RECEPTIONFive students graduated in the Summer semester and were honored at the Summer reception. Each graduate was given a complimentary one-year membership to the Alumni Association to encourage future participation in the Geology Alumni Society.

OCTOBER 14-16 EXXON-MOBIL RECRUITING VISITUSF Geology Alumni Dr. Dorien McGee and Dr. Alain Volentik conducted a recruiting visit to meet with geology department undergraduate and graduate students. The three day event included a colloquium detailing the current status of oil exploration careers and a short course on seismic stratigraphy.

OCTOBER 18 FALL ROCKBREAKER SOCIALGeology students, faculty, and alumni attended a happy hour social at Marshall Center to honor the newly retired Mary Haney. This event also welcomed returning students and encouraged the interaction between students and alumni, so students can be made aware of the employment and mentoring programs that are available and so alumni can be made aware of the caliber of students available for employment.

OCTOBER 25 GAS WINS THE USF ALUMNI ASSOCIATION STAR AWARD!Board members Dr. Bruce Nocita and Matt Wissler and School of Geosciences Associate Chair Dr. Steven Reader attended the USF Alumni Association’s Award Ceremony at Traditions Hall. USF GAS won the STAR award excellence in all categories including Communications, Programming, Membership, Student Support, and Group Organization!

NOVEMBER 25 FALL USF GEOLOGY INTERNSHIP SYMPOSIUMThe fall Symposium was held at the Tampa SWFWMD office. Two USF Geology Professional Science Masters degree candidates discussed the results of their professional science masters project: Andrew Raysin (USGS: Dr. Joe Hughes): “Capture Fraction Analysis of the Hillsborough River Basin” and Jerry Mallams (SWFWMD: Eric DeHaven, P.G.) "Evaluation, Documentation, and Recommendations Associated with the District’s Slug Test Methods" were the two presenters. Over thirty alums, faculty, students, and friends attended.

DECEMBER 14 FALL GEOLOGY COMMENCEMENT RECEPTIONOver 25 students graduated in the Fall semester and were honored at the Fall graduation reception. For the first time the reception was held at Marshall Center due to the large number of graduates. Each graduate was given a complimentary one-year membership to the Alumni Association to encourage future participation in the Geology Alumni Society.

Page 4: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

4 | USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

$100,000+ Level

Mary Ann and Richard A. Davis, Jr.

$10,000+ Level

Richard Spechler

SDII Global Corporation

$5,000+ Level

Ann and Robert E. Bretnall, Jr.

Eileen Rodríguez and Steve Camp

Geosyntec Consultants, Inc.

Geoview, Inc.

Sheila Gobes-Ryan and Jeff Ryan

Golder and Associates, Inc.

HSW Engineering, Inc.

Jon Hull

Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure

S&ME, Inc. (formerly QORE)

Terra Environmental Services, Inc.

Mary and Len Vacher

Michael J. Wightman

$2,500+ Level

Laura and Charles Connor

Judy McIlrath

MCD of Central Florida, Inc.

Nestle Waters North America, Inc.

Rare Earth Sciences, Inc.

Pat and Gene Shinn

Subsurface Evaluations, Inc.

Michael Taraszki

Xiaojun Li and Ping Wang

$1,000+ Level

AMEC (formerly BCI)

Meg Andronaco and Don Thompson

Laurie and James Booker

Brame Geoscience

CardnoEntrix

Megan and Michael Hamilton

HSA Engineering, Inc.

Sarah Kruse and Thomas Juster

Sara and Leon Mandell

Silvia and Bogdan Onac

PBS&J

Petra Exploration & Production Company,

Inc.

Thomas M. Scott

Withlacoochee Rock Hounds, Inc.

$500+ Level

Leah and Julian P. Caballero

Michelle and John Clark

Roger A. (Tony) Countryman II

Helen and David DeWitt

Lyle Gallivan

Jim Goetz

Virginia and Terry W. Griffin

Linda and Steve Hardesty

Peter Harries

Fredrika and Jonathan Klay

Jan and Bernard Kuhn

Pamela and Andrew Lawn

Dasheng Lei

Joseph May

Tamara and William McBride

Pamela and David Moore

Peak Exploration Company

Diana Roman & Jonathan Wynn

Streamline Environmental, Inc.

Michael Starks

Amy Swancar

Kenneth Trout

$250+ Level

Anonymous

Anonymous

Thea Barnes

Amanda and Churchill Barton

Ron Basso

Noreen Buster

Todd Chavez

Eric DeHaven

Nicole Elko

Gabrielle Enos

Gary Foster

Sharon Gilberg

Joseph C. Gould

Thomas Griggs

Gary Guerrieri

Karen and David Harro

Loretta & Michael Holtkamp

Hydro-Logic Associates, Inc.

SanTai and Craig Hutchinson

Cathleen Jonas

Judy Fouts and Gregg Jones

Renu and Suresh Khator

Sandra Kinnaman

Malcolm Pirnie

Leslie and John Parker

Angela Spieler and David Pogorilich

Quietearth Consultants, Inc.

Lisa Robbins and Charles Evans

Schreuder, Inc.

Solana Environmental Associates, Inc.

Tara Spieler

Lisa and Jim Spratt

Darren Spurgeon

Zhigin Chen and Yucong Tao

Mary Ann and Sam Upchurch

$100+ Level

Said & Samira Abusada

Advanced Environmental Technologies,

LLC

American Water Resources Assoc., Inc.

Cathy Böhlke

Mark Bordelon

Robert Brinkmann

Bruder Stephens, Inc.

Charles Buckalew

Certified Foundations, Inc.

Kyle Champion

Todd Chavez

Jim Chen

Diedra Ciriello

Annie and Martin Clasen

Coastal Education & Research Foundation,

Inc.

Kathy and Clinton Dawes

Phyllis and Robert Dean

Jim Dozier

Judy and Fred Eilers

Michael Emilio

Enviro Design Products, Inc.

Envirosupply & Service, Inc.

Nana Faulkner

John Folsom Ferguson

Charles Finkl

Cathleen Reas and James Foster

Amanda Shearer Fullerton and Tod

Fullerton

Anne and Jeffrey Gartner

Geologic and Environmental Testing, Inc.

Sue and James Griffith

Gary Guerrieri

Robin Hallbourg

Ronald Herrygers

Joseph Hughes

Bill Hutchings

Rebecca and David Inglin

Pliny Jewell IV

Ian Jones

Janet and Craig Kovach

Laurie and Don Larsen

Bill LaFrenze

Patricia and Donald Lee

Randy Lentell

Gordon Leslie, Jr.

Paul Locascio

Denise and George Lorton

Cheryl and William Mack

Rocco Malservisi

Kimberly and Thomas McKenna

Patricia Metz

Lisann and John Morris

Gwendolyn and Robert Morton

Eric Oches

Maureen and James Palmer

Suzanne Patrick

Cristina and Thomas Pichler

Misty and Michael Puls

Veronica and Paul Putzier

Mark Rains

Holly Reed

Denise & Christopher Reich

Patricia Riggs

Katie and Bruce Rodgers

Susan and Douglas Rosen

Glen Rubis

LIFETIME GIFTS TO THE ENDOWED FELLOWSHIPAS OF 12/31/13

Page 5: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY | 5

RACHEL POWELL, 2014 RECIPIENTRachel Powell was born and raised in Tampa, FL. As a child, she

enjoyed spending time outdoors and was actively involved in

sports. She always loved nature. However, being raised under

peculiar circumstances, Rachel had no formal education prior to

college. She became adept at using computers, spending many

hours designing webpages and computer graphics for small

businesses, musicians, artists, and herself. She incorporated her

love for nature into her artwork, and modeled many 3D landscapes

of fantasy worlds and mountain ranges. However, it wasn’t until

after she began pursuing her B.A. in Computer Animation that she

realized her true passion.

While in art school, she purchased “The Demon-Haunted World:

Science as a Candle in the Dark” by Carl Sagan at a used bookstore.

She was enchanted; she found herself drawn to science. She began

borrowing scientific literature from the library, purchasing monthly

Scientific American magazines, and sifting through textbooks

for pleasure. She spent more time studying science than art! Her

family quickly caught on to her newfound love and obsession,

and encouraged her to pursue a career in science. By then, she

was more than halfway done with her art education. She decided

to finish what she started, and returned to community college to

complete her A.A. in Fine Arts.

She took a year off of school to reevaluate

her life. She still loved the outdoors and

spending time with nature. She thought,

“As long as I can spend time with nature,

I will be alright!” So what could be better

than studying the Earth? After a bit of

deliberation and research, she chose to

major in Geology; in spite of ongoing health

problems—including cancer and chronic

fatigue—she completed her B.S. in Geology

in the fall of 2013 with a perfect GPA.

Rachel is interested in environmental

stewardship, and intends to further her

education through non-traditional means

and field research. She is actively searching

for employment and internship opportunities

that will not only improve her understanding

of the Earth as a geologic system, but also

contribute to her understanding of the Earth

as an ecosystem. She would like to use her

skills as a geologist to protect and care for

the environment through conservation,

mitigation, and/or responsible management.

Asbury and Delores Sallenger

Ann Sava

SDI Environmental Services, Inc.

Wayne Shoemaker

Miriam and David Stamps

Richard Stebnisky

Janet George and Mark Stewart

Richard Walther

Jeffrey Waag

Paul Whetmore

Helen and Henry Woodard

Also

Jean and Melvin Anderson

Arcadis

Brian Armstrong

Patrick L. Barnard

Mary Beck

Terrance Bengtsson

Bio Rem USA, Inc.

Kay and Stephen Bolivar

Costanza Bonadonna

Becky L. Bortnick

Shawn Carswell

Doreen Chan

Linda and James Cross

Michael Decker

Daris Virgin Dew

Ingrid and Jaime Feliciano

Lee Florea

Norma and William Fox

Joseph Fredricks

Anne and Jeffrey Gartner

Linda and James Gibeaut

Brian Goodwin

Anthony Grasso

James Guida

Arthur M. Guilford

Mark Hafen

Jackie Hand

Mary Ann and James Haney

Henry Harrison

Kathleen Heide

Tiffany Hepner

Michelle Hoffman

Robert Hogue II

Barbara Hunt

Integrated Water Solutions

Lynn and Kevin Keller

Julia Kerstyn

Elizabeth and Robert Kick

Jonathan Kim

James Kirby

Sandra and William Klaus

David Kryszak

Randy LaFrenze

Patricia and Jay Lawrence, Jr.

Randy Lentell

Michael Lucas

Jerry Mallums

Joyce and Richard Mansell

Jean and T. Jay McAllister

Dorien McGee

Gustavo A. Morales

Mark Nuckles

Marianne O’Neal-Caldwell and Ken

Caldwell

Robert Peterson

Jack Rink

Felix Rizk

Javier Rodríguez

Joann and Paul Safko

Alyssa St. John

Barbara Savage

Guilio Scarzella

Michael Schackne

Louis Solebello, Jr.

Mark Stewart

Marilyn Suiter

Mary Terry

Judy and Terry Thompson

Sheryl Levine-Turpen and James Turpen

US Biosystems Inc.

Jennifer Weller

Matthew Weiss

Jack Wilhoit

Susan and Tom Wissler

Kristin E. Yale

LIFETIME GIFTS TO THE ENDOWED FELLOWSHIPAS OF 12/31/13

WITHLACOOCHEE ROCKHOUNDS SCHOLARSHIP

Page 6: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

6 | USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

PRIOR FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENTS

2001 BANQUET $250 JIM PALMER (PH.D.)2002 BANQUET $900 IVAN SAVOV (PH.D.); MATT WISSLER (M.S.)2003 BANQUET $1,200 LEE FLOREA (PH.D.); ROY PRICE (M.S.)2004 BANQUET $2,000 J. RICHARD BOWERSOX; MARIANNE O’NEAL-CALDWELL (PH.D.); JUDY HARDEN; KEVIN MCCARTHY; DAVID TIDWELL; JENNIFER WELLER (M.S.)2005 BANQUET $2,500 LEE FLOREA (PH.D.); DON SEALE (M.S.)2006 BANQUET $2,500 ROY PRICE (PH.D.); MATT WEISS (M.S.)2007 BANQUET $2,500 MIKEL DIEZ (PH.D.); KALI PACE-GRACZYK (M.S.)2008 BANQUET $2,500 DORIEN MCGEE (PH.D.); TANYA BECK (M.S.)2009 BANQUET $2,500 ALAIN VOLENTIK (PH.D.); MIKE MEYER (M.S.)2010 BANQUET $2,500 AUREL PERSOIU (PH.D.); ADAM SPRINGER (M.S.)2011 BANQUET $2,500 TIFFANY ROBERTS (PH.D.); MICHAEL LUCAS (M.S.)2012 BANQUET $2,500 LEAH COURTLAND (PH.D.); JAMES WILSON (M.S.)2013 BANQUET $3,000 MEL RODGERS (PH.D.); DENISE DAVIS (M.S.)

FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT

RICHARD A. DAVIS, JR., ENDOWED FELLOWSHIP AWARDEEThe proceeds from our banquets grow the Richard A. Davis Endowed Fellowship fund of the USF Foundation. Interest from the endowment

supports annual awards to outstanding graduate students. The Department’s Graduate Committee selects the awardees from nominations

submitted by the faculty. The policy of the committee established in 2004 is that students can’t win the award in successive years.

Katherine (Katie) Brutsché was born and raised in Herndon,

Virginia. In the fall of 2003, she started her undergraduate degree

at Virginia Tech as an Engineering major, but after two years of

engineering classes, she decided it wasn’t for her, and moved

on to take her first geology classes. She loved it, and knew that

geology was the right place for her. During the summer of 2007,

she interned with the USGS in Reston, VA where she participated

in research on fluvial geomorphology and mass wasting along the

Roanoke River. That experience along with her sedimentology/

stratigraphy course led to her desire to continue her studies in

geomorphology and sedimentology. Following graduation from

Virginia Tech in Fall 2007, with a B.S. in Geosciences, she attended

a course on beach processes at George Mason University, and

knew that coastal research was her passion.

In the fall of 2009, she began her Master’s degree at USF under the

guidance of Dr. Ping Wang in the Coastal Research Lab. During

her time as a Master’s student, she was able to participate in

many research projects including physical monitoring of Pinellas

County beaches, the impacts of the Nor’Ida storm to Delaware’s

coast in November 2009, and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in

2010, as well as her thesis research on an artificial nearshore berm

placed in Fort Myers Beach. Outside of research, she served as

the GGSO Vice President in 2010, and became very active in the

American Shore and Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA).

She completed her Master’s degree in the summer of 2011.

Currently a Ph.D. candidate at USF, Katie is continuing her work

with Dr. Wang on artificial nearshore berm nourishments. In

addition to ongoing research in Fort Myers Beach, her dissertation

studies also include research on nearshore berms placed in Perdido

Key and Egmont Key. Since starting her Ph.D., she also began

working closely with scientists and engineers at the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers on documenting nearshore berm morphologic

and sedimentologic evolution, as well as creating better predictive

tools and numerical models for berm movement. In addition to

her research, she has become the ASBPA Student Involvement

Committee co-chair, which strives to get more students involved

in coastal science. She plans to complete her Ph.D. in the summer

of 2014.

She is honored to be receiving the Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed

Fellowship in Geology, and would like to thank the Geology Alumni

Society for their selection. She would also like to thank Dr. Ping

Wang and her family and friends for their continued support.

KATHERINE BRUTSCHÉ, 2014 RECIPIENT

Page 7: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY | 7

PREVIOUS GAS AWARD WINNERS

Robert Edward Bretnall, Jr. was born September 1955 in Aguadilla,

Puerto Rico. As with all military brats, moving from place-to-

place every three to four years was a way of life; Robert lived in

Mississippi, Massachusetts, Florida, the Azores, and Georgia by the

time he completed the sixth grade. Robert and his family were

able to settle down in June 1967 in St. Petersburg, Florida where his

parents bought the home they still live in today.

During his junior year in high school, Robert’s name was bobbed to

Bob, but he is still Robert to most of his family. After graduating

from high school in June 1973, Bob worked at low-wage, easy-

to-do jobs in the restaurant and hospitality trade and dabbled

in gaining a formal education by attending a few courses at St.

Petersburg Junior College. He was eventually employed by a

general contractor, where he gained an appreciation for hard work

using his hands, and for planning.

Life for Bob improved greatly when he married his high school

sweet-heart and soul-mate, Annie, in March 1975. With Annie’s

and his family’s encouragement, Bob decided higher education

was better than building condominiums, so he began his college

“career” in September 1979 as a Biology major at the Tampa

campus of USF. He made it successfully through three quarters,

where he was staggered by a “C” in a general genetics course.

Pondering his choice of majors, Bob took an introduction to

oceanography course taught from a geological point of view,

and soon after switched his major to geology and loved it (well

most of it). He was particularly interested in hydrogeology and

applied geophysics taught by Dr. Mark Stewart, soon conducting

surface geophysics studies for local consulting firms, with his

trusty side-kick Steve Camp providing assistance. Occasionally,

the two of them would be press-ganged into helping a graduate

student or other professor with their research. Dr. Stewart was

also instrumental in having Bob and Mark Culbreth author the

groundwater section of the May 1982 “Proceedings: Tampa Bay

Area Scientific Information Symposium.” After graduating from

USF in April 1983 with a BA from the College of Natural Sciences,

Bob immediately entered the geology graduate program at USF,

where he completed his studies and thesis. His thesis was funded

by the SWFWMD and titled “Electromagnetic Signature of the Salt-

Water/Fresh-Water Transition Zone, West-Central Florida.” Bob is

still waiting to hear from someone about the movie rights.

While contemplating

the writing portion of

his thesis, he was bitten

by the career-money

bug. Somebody was

actually going to pay

him a good salary to

do what he enjoyed:

planning and executing

major hydrogeological

studies. He began his

full-time professional

career in September

1985 at ERM-South, Inc.

in Tampa, FL. With the

threat of having to start over, Bob finally completed writing and

defending his thesis and graduated with a MS degree in April 1988.

He has worked for a couple other environmental consulting firms in

the Tampa Bay area including Groundwater Technology, Inc. and

Atlanta Testing & Engineering, Inc./QORE Property Sciences, Inc.

and obtained his Florida professional geologist license in February

1990. Bob has been employed by HSW Engineering, Inc. since

September 2000, and has been in Gainesville, FL with HSW since

April 2003.

Along the way, Bob was encouraged by his loving wife to widen his

horizons, to get a hobby, or do something different. In conspiracy

with Eileen Rodriguez, Bob was convinced to attend a meeting

arranged by Dr. Len Vacher. Little did Bob know that by November

1997 he would be the President of the newly formed USF Geology

Alumni Society. Bob served as President through May 2000, and

during that time, oversaw the initiation of the RAD Jr Endowment,

annual alumni banquet, equipment exposition (remember digging

up the university president’s TV cable outside the alumni center

with a drill rig?), career fair, and ice-breaker/rockbreaker. Bob and

Dr. Chuck Conner were also instrumental in obtaining the property

currently used as the Geopark.

Bob began teaching as an adjunct professor at Santa Fe College in

Gainesville, Florida in January 2008 and continues to do so today.

His popular course, Earth and Space Science, has matured from a

strictly lecture course, to one in which open discussion is promoted.

GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY AWARD

2002 TOM SCOTT2003 JIM TERRY2004 DAVE MOORE2005 WALT SCHMIDT2006 CRAIG HUTCHINSON2007 MARY HANEY

2008 SAM UPCHURCH2009 SKIP DAVIS2010 CHRIS LANGEVIN2011 ERIK BOICE2012 BILL HARRISON2013 LEN VACHER

BOB BRETNALL, 2014 RECIPIENT

Page 8: 14 ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET...ANNUAL USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY BANQUET. Supporting the Dr. Richard A. Davis, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Geology. Saturday, February

8 | USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

USF GEOLOGY DEPARTMENT GRADUATE DEGREES

Ph.D.

2013Courtland, LeahPaul, ShubhabrataRodgers, Melanie*Puscas, Cristina Saballos Perez, Jose Armando

2012Cardenas, AndresKiyosugi, KojiO’Neal Caldwell, Marianne*Hutchings, WilliamLehto, HeatherRoberts, Tiffany*

2011Bedaso, ZelalemPersoiu, Aurel*

2010Guha, SwagataLazareva, OlesyaMcGee, Dorien*Pearson, SophieRoberts-Ashby, TinaSliko, JenniferStringer, Christina 2009Volentik, Alain* 2008Diez, Mikel*Fratesi, BethHill, MelissaPrice, Roy* 2006Bowersox, Richard*Elko, NicoleFlorea, Lee A.* Hughes, Joseph 2004Savov, Ivan* 2003Schneider, James 2002Trout, Ken 1998Langevin, Christian D. 1996Yates, Kimberly K. 1995Juster, Thomas C.Wang, Ping Honorary Doctorates:Garald G. Parker, May 1988

Eugene A. Shinn, May 1988

M.S.Thesis Track

2013Brownell, Andrew Davis, Denise*Kiflu, Henok Sampson, Jacqueline Wilson, Jessica

2012Leonard, MichelleJoseph, MichaelWest, AmieHutchings, Jack 2011Brutsché, KatherineCollins, NathanLucas, Michael*Voytenko, Denis

2010Bancroft, StuartBumpus, PeterCallihan, SeanFunderburk, JamesGooch, BradKilgore, WayneLindsey, MeghanMeyer, Michael*Springer, Adam 2009Bellino, Jason Chelladurai, Jennifer Dippold, Angela McKnight, Julie Pechenik, Natalie Sumrall, Jonathan 2008Beck, Tanya*Hintz, AmandaHorwitz, MarkPowell, KatherineRoberts, TiffanyShubhabrata, PaulSpencer, JohnTutak, Fatin 2007Jimenez, AnaKittridge, MichaelLaRoche, JasonLehto, HeatherMurphy, KathrynPace-Graczyk, Kali*Petriello, JohnSava, L. AnnSpencer, John 2006Anderson, JoshuaDaSilva, AshleyHarris, ArnellKnorr, PaulKrivanek, JoeMacNeil, RicWeiss, Matthew*

2005Guha, SwagataHutchings, WilliamKrock, JenniferMcIlrath (Harden), Judy*Seale, DonSoto, LimarisTidwell, David*White, Jeremy 2004Greenwood, WilliamGuggino, SteveGuha, SwagataLazareva, OlesyaMcCarthy, Kevin*Martin, KristinSaint John, AlyssaTiling, GingerWeller, Jennifer*Walther, RichardWilhoit, Jack

2003Chan, DoreenPrice, Roy*Scarzella, GuilioVan Cleave, AndyWissler, Matt* 2002Bryant, Chris Moore, Kelly North, Loren 2001Thompson, Michele Nawrocki, Kerri Meadows, DarrenTournabene, Livio 2000Albury, CarlBoice, ErikBortnick, BeckyBuster, NoreenHepner, TiffanyScruggs, Steve 1999Becker, May LingElko, Nicole A.Ozanne, Colin R.Savov, Ivan P. 1998Andrews, SamanthaBarnard, Patrick L.Emilio, Michael C.Goddard, MicheleHand, JacquelineHilderbrand, DouglasKugler, NoahNorrell, SuzanneShoemaker, W. Barclay1997Ciriello, DeidraFerguson, TomKling, JenniferSchmidt, MatthewSpurgeon, Darren Yale, Kristin E.

1996Austin, PhilBahtijarevic, AidaCargill, John Countryman, TonyPekala, John

1995Fatherree, JamesFitzgerald, MeganHarrison, Holly R.Hawkins, Sharon Kayser, RichardKowalski, KatherineMorrison, Kevin Sedgwick, Peter E.Trout, Kenneth 1994Harrison, Cliff Langevin, ChristainRoulier, Leanne M. Schellenberg, Steven A. Schneider, Tracy Tao, YucongTenthorey, EricWyatt, Jennifer L. 1993Caballero, Julian Chen, Jian Creaser, Gary Fuller, John Haney, Rebecca Ketcher, Kathleen Latham, Dave Spratt, James Taraszki, Michael 1992Farkas, Thomas Parker, JohnPowers, John Sherman, Sarah 1991Calderon-Zanoria, Avena Cuffe, C. Kelly Delfin, Francisco G. Jr. Foss, Daniel Gibbs, Ann E. Hogg, R. Warren Hogue, Robert C. Jones, Ian C. Murphy, Tauna Papetti, Lawrence W. Robinson, JamesTroyer, Paulette 1990Beaudoin, Cathleen Beaudoin, Cathleen Dawson, Roger J.Gaddis-Redmond, Cynthia Herrygers, Ronald F. Jr.Kemble-McKenna, KimberlyRicherson, Phil Ryan, Keith W.Shaw, Stephen K. Wallis, Thomas N. Wightman, Michael York, Debra R.

1989Bohlke, Catherine Clark, Lee Clasen, Martin Kastanowski, John Klay, Jonathan Kohpina, Pramuan Lawn, Andrew Lawrence, Thomas Reas, Cathleen Sussko, Roger Webbers, Ank 1988Bretnall, Robert Culbreth, Mark Hagemeyer, Todd Littlefield, James Lodato, Michael Solebello, Lou 1987Andronaco, Margaret Bengtsson, Terrance Bloomberg, Diane DeHaven, Eric Dehen, Timothy Estes, Carol Goodson, Robert Jewel, Pliny Kwiatkowski, Peter Putzier, Paul Restrepo, Juan Rodríguez, Eileen Stebnisky, Rick Trommer, Jeff 1986Jones, Gregg Starks, Michael 1985Alamri, Abdullah Bland, Michael Lizanec, Theodore Williams, SheilaWood, John 1984Al-wail, Tahir A. Barton, Churchill Gregory, John Kim, JonathanO’Connor, LynnPearce, Edward WRodríguez, Marí Schrader, David

1983Crowe, DouglasGay, Michael Knowles, Steve Kuhn, Bernard Simmons, Douglas E.Spechler, Rick M.Stodghill, Allan M. 1982D’Aluisio-Guerrieri, GaryLayton, MichaelMcFadden, MaureenWilliams, Michael J.

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USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY | 9

1981Aisner, JonathanChacartegui, FernandoKick, Robert Moore, DavidNuckels, MarkSmith, David A.Smith, David STyson, Robert G.Kenneth Weber 1980Cable, MarkLee, DonaldShaw, Jonathan1979Birdsall, BartonColeman, Neil Gallivan, Lyle Kaufmann, RonaldMericle, James 1978Dalton, Matthew Fretwell, Judy Lehman, Linda Tompkins, Robert 1977Bell, Leslie Grace, Scott R.Huang, Hui-LunLynch-Blosse, MichaelRea, Raymond 1976Brame, Jeffrey Brown, MichaelHuse, Scott M. Lawrence, Frederick O’Neill, Charles Razem, Allan Rosen, Douglas 1975Popek, John Ross, Frederick 1974Rust, Aaron 1973Goetz, James McConnell, Cary Wolansky, Richard M.

1972Brown, David Brown, Theodore Heimmer, Donald Jones, Phyllis Kiang, Wen Chao Tedrick, Patricia Wright, Alexandra P.

1971Hutchinson, Craig Vogler, David 1970Reel, David

1969Harrison, William Steingraber,Walt

Professional Science Masters

2013Mallams, JerryRaysin, AndrewSolomon, Marty Szenay, BrianYates, Joshua

2012Cook, MichaelFerguson, JohnWaters, DaphaneeOusley, Jase

2011Theriac, John-ReidFredericks, Joseph

2010Stone, Eric

M.S.Internship Track

2005Haber, JosephKirkpatrick, Jason 2004Armstrong, Brian 2002Foster, Gary 2001Champion, KyleBateman, MichaelSkapik, Terri 2000Basso, RonCoughlin, JohnGoodwin, BrianHood, JillKatoch, VishalKinnaman, SandraLamb, RobertaMorrison, KeithTurner, Jeremy 1999Liau-a-pau, HenriBarnette, Holly

1998Elliott, Meghan 1997Stelman, Kenneth A. 1995Dew, TameraDozier, James R.Fowler, HowardHaller, LeighLei, DashengReich, ChristopherRojas, David Spieler, AngelaSpieler, TaraSwenson, Erik

1994Brendle, DanielBroska, JamesLee, MiaThomas, Terrence 1993Dorsey, KevinRubis, GlenSocash, Joann 1992Leonard, William 1991Craig, Ralph T. 1989Caravati, Kevin C.Casper, RobertSafko, PaulSwancar, Amy 1988Griffin, Terry

* Indicates Fellowship Recipient

USF GEOLOGY DEPARTMENT GRADUATE DEGREES

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10 | USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY

RICHARD A. DAVIS, JR. ENDOWED FELLOWSHIPIN GEOLOGY 2014 TABLE SPONSORS

LEN VACHER

CALCITE SPONSORS$1,250

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USF GEOLOGY ALUMNI SOCIETY | 11

TALC SPONSORS$625

JUDY McILRATH

PING WANG

RICHARD A. DAVIS, JR. ENDOWED FELLOWSHIPIN GEOLOGY 2014 TABLE SPONSORS

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