2021 Alumni Awards
Eight remarkable alumni were honored on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021, during a Welcome Home Reception at the Kent State University Hotel and Conference Center. The Alumni Awards are the highest honors presented to Kent State University graduates for outstanding contributions to their chosen profession and the university.
“The nominations we received were truly impressive and represented the diversity and success of our graduates,” says Barbara Smith, BS ’84, president, Kent State Alumni Association National Board of Directors. “These eight award recipients epitomize the Golden Flash spirit, and each one has made a profound impact at Kent State and in their communities.”
Golden Flash Award (Student Award)
Tiarra Monae' Reddick, BS ’21
Willowick, OH
“I came to Kent State to get a good education. I wasn’t going to let anything get in the way of graduating, so I worked hard to get to where I am today.”
For Tiarra Reddick, the journey to earning a college degree was filled with challenges. Despite once being placed on academic probation, the fashion merchandising and marketing alumna worked diligently to achieve academic success. She also excelled in extracurricular and on- and off-campus activities. She is passionate about helping others and inspiring students to be authentic and confident in themselves, an important lesson she learned during her time at Kent State.
Outstanding New Professional Award
Gordon Stumpo, MA ’16
New York, NY
“I believe that if you learn the minimum, you do the minimum, so I have a tremendous drive to advance my experiences and expertise.”
While working for Naeem Khan, a designer and fashion house, Gordon Stumpo created many stunning outfits worn by high-profile celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift and Oprah. He now works in New York for Proper Cloth, the country’s largest custom shirtmaker. As the company’s first in-house technical designer and patternmaker, he manages the digital pattern department and is creating the first pattern archive. He helped launch new product categories, including custom chino pants, sweatshirts, T-shirts and highly rated face masks. He also mentors fashion students from schools across the country, including Kent State.
Kent State Advocacy Award
Michael John Gallagher II, BA ’19
Lake Zurich, IL (Deceased)
“In his short and remarkable life, Michael built camaraderie and community across four continents. He represented Kent State with enthusiasm and integrity during his many travels.”
On Dec. 10, 2020, Kent State University and communities around the world lost a vibrant, creative and kind individual when Michael John Gallagher II died in a car accident two days after celebrating his 24th birthday. He graduated magna cum laude with a degree in communications in 2019 and joined the Peace Corps, teaching English to children in Benin, West Africa, before he was evacuated due to the pandemic. In June 2020, he was accepted into the American University in Paris to pursue a master’s degree in global communications. Before his tragic death, his travels had taken him to countries in Asia, Europe and Africa, and he left a lasting impact on the people he met. His family has established the Michael John Gallagher II Memorial Scholarship in his honor.
Kent State Advocacy Award
Robert E. Ross, BBA ’70
Lake Forest, IL
“The confidence and connections I gained at Kent State helped me immensely. That’s why I think it’s so important to give back to places and organizations that strike a chord with you.”
Robert E. Ross, who worked in the financial services industry before retiring in 2014, has served on the Kent State University Foundation Board since 2003. He leads the Philanthropy and Alumni Engagement Committee, and his dedication to the university is exemplified through the many connections he has fostered with alumni and donors over the years, while strengthening their ties to Kent State. His work helps lessen the financial burden on students and empowers donors who support them. He also has supported several university funds, including the Last Dollar Scholarship and the Kent State Emergency Grant Fund.
Professional Achievement Award
Richard E. Breedon, BS ’77, PhD
Davis, CA
“I was inspired by the respect and confidence that Professor Franklin had in me as a mere undergraduate student and appreciated the invitation to his discussions and unique research endeavors.”
Richard E. Breedon is a physicist with a focus in experimental high energy particles and is the author or co-author of more than 1,200 scientific papers. His work in experimental physics began in the Kent State mass spectrometry lab, where he designed and built a readout system to collect data from the analog mass spectrometer. He analyzed the data using a minicomputer he programmed and maintained. He found a mentor in Professor Wilbur Franklin, a liquid crystal transport theorist. Breedon has conducted research and experiments at Fermilab in Illinois, KEK in Tsukuba, Japan, and CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, where he was a founding member of the CMS experiment that led to the discovery of the Higgs boson particle in 2012. He also teaches at the University of California, Davis, and Yale-NUS College in Singapore.
Professional Achievement Award
Retired Col. David H. Carstens, BA ’88
Bucharest, Romania
“Good deeds are contagious; when we pay it forward, we motivate others to do the same.”
Retired Col. David H. Carstens gained his first military experiences in the Kent State ROTC program and went on to command US Army units at echelons up to brigade. As a highly accomplished military intelligence officer and counterintelligence special agent with 32 years of experience, he has served in locations around the world through peacetime, contingency and wartime operations. He was awarded the German Army Cross of Honor in Silver for strengthening US and German security partnerships. He currently serves as chief of the military coordination office for the US Embassy in Bucharest, Romania. He also is a member of the board of trustees for the American International School of Bucharest, where he helps develop policy and infrastructure improvements.
Distinguished Citizen Award
James Luther Raper, BSN ’79, PhD, DSN, CRNP, JD
Birmingham, AL
“In providing direct patient care as a nurse practitioner and participating in HIV health services and outcomes research as a senior scientist, I have participated in many scientific advances and their application to improve and extend the lives of people living with HIV.”
In addition to serving as a professor, senior scholar and senior scientist at the University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB), James Raper directs the UAB 1917 HIV Outpatient, Dental and Research Clinic, which treats more than 3,600 patients annually and provides compassionate and comprehensive healthcare for those living with HIV and AIDS. The clinic’s first non-physician director, Raper serves as a mentor, advisor and educator to the many graduate students who work there. During his career, he has secured more than $75 million in grant funding, which supported research and medical advancements that have touched communities across the globe. Recently, he committed to a principal gift, creating endowed funds in Kent State’s College of Nursing to support a professorship as well as a research and innovation fund.
Distinguished Alumni Award
Beverley Laubert, BA ’84
Lewis Center, OH
“I believe that each of us has a responsibility to make an impact, whether through our vocation, volunteer endeavors or other contributions.”
Beverley Laubert has dedicated her career to improving the lives of others, both in her community and across the nation. She has been at the Ohio Department of Aging for 31 years and has led its Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman for 27 years. As an advocate for older adults and those with disabilities, she influences public policy to improve their access to quality care. In 2020, she was selected to serve on a 25-member nationwide Coronavirus Commission for Safety and Quality in nursing homes. She was responsible for recommending best practices in infection control and care delivery and for identifying opportunities to improve infection control policies. She and her husband established the Delaware County Student Assistance Scholarship in 2017 to support students from the Columbus area as they pursue degrees at Kent State.
Read more about the recipients.