Sightings | Class Notes

Donald L. Ham MF’67, PhD’71 recently received the Golden Acorn Award from the South Carolina Urban Community Forestry Council for his work in community forestry and arboriculture. Ham has been with Clemson University since 1985 and is a professor in the Department of Forest Resources.

Victor B. Shelburne III T’74, MF’75 was recognized by the South Carolina Wildlife Federation with an award for Youth Conservation honoring his work as leader of a Boy Scout Troop that won the state award for outstanding conservation projects over the past several years. Shelburne is an associate professor teaching forest ecology, landscape ecology, and ecophysiology at Clemson University.

Peter C. Griffith T’78, Marine Lab ’77 and Nicholas School Alumni Council member, has been selected by the Duke Alumni Association as a recipient of the 2002-2003 Charles A. Dukes Award for Outstanding Volunteer service. This is Duke’s highest honor for volunteer service. Griffith has given his time and efforts both to the Nicholas School and to Duke University. He has been a member of the Nicholas School Alumni Council since 1997, helping to organize Marine Lab reunions for his class and working to raise funds for the Marine Lab Undergraduate Research Endowment Fund. He also is a member of the Baltimore Alumni Admissions Advisory Committee and has served as its chair. Griffith works as a senior scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

Hans Georg Schabel PhD’74 has received the Medal of the 600th Anniversary of the Refounding of the Krakow Academy from Jagiellonian University in Poland. The award recognized his efforts to promote international education by conducting an annual international tour for the past 25 years. What began as an international resource management minor and course by that name developed into a master’s internationalist program in conjunction with the Peace Corps. The program is located in Stevens Point at the College of Natural Resources, University of Wisconsin, where Schabel is a professor of forestry.

The Michael Vasievich MF’74, PhD’77 family is once again a strong presence at Duke. Mike and Marianne’s daughter, Beth Ann, has joined the Duke class of 2007. She is enrolled in the Pratt School of Engineering and intends to major in biomedical engineering. Beth’s brother, Matt (class of 2005), also is at Duke majoring in biology and public policy. Mike spent a week on campus last December (2002) helping out with a short course for Forest Service silvicultural specialists. Mike says, “It’s great to reconnect with Duke and all of our friends in Durham. Now with two students there, we’ve got only one place to go for Parent’s Weekend. Except for ice storms, the weather in Durham sure beats Michigan winters! Now, if I could only find a place to park when I get to campus.”

Frank S. Gilliam MF ‘78, PhD ‘83 is co-editor of a book to be published in May 2003 by Oxford University Press, The Herbaceous Layer in Forests of Eastern North America. His co-editor is Mark R. Roberts PhD‘83. Gilliam is professor of biological sciences at Marshal University and Roberts is teaching at the University of New Brunswick. A chapter of the book is authored by Norm Christensen, Nicholas School professor of ecology, who was the faculty advisor for both Gilliam and Roberts.

Rob Jacobs T’84-Geology was promoted to senior vice president business development and planning, at the Encore Acquisition Co. in Fort Worth, Texas, in April. His responsibilities at Encore now include the technical management of three of its core regions. Jacobs also is in charge of all acquisitions, exploration, capital budget and planning.

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