CSU – Pueblo Alumni Announce 2005 Distinguished Alumni Class
 
Pueblo- The Colorado State University – Pueblo Alumni Association will honor the achievements of five exceptional alumni at its annual Distinguished Alumni Awards Banquet on Saturday, October 15, as part of the Homecoming weekend celebration activities. The event will take place in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom, beginning with cocktails at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner and the awards presentation. The cost of the event is $25 per person. For information or reservations, contact the Alumni Office at (719) 549-2810 or via email at alumni@colostate-pueblo.edu.

The 2005 recipients are: Dr. Robert Novak, ’70, professor of medical entomology and scientist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, Illinois; Michael Konshak, ’81, senior advisory development engineer in research and development for Sun Microsystems, Louisville, Colo.; Priscilla Lucero, ’99, president, Wells Fargo Bank, Pueblo; Patricia Erjavec, ’79, president & CEO, El Pueblo Boys and Girls Ranch, Pueblo; Kiyoshi Ukon, ’99, assistant director of technical support in Auxiliary Services, CSU-Pueblo.

The Outstanding Alumni Achievement Award will be presented to Dr. Robert Novak. Known as the “bug man” when studying biology at CSU-Pueblo, then Southern Colorado State College, Novak received his B.S. degree in 1970, before going on to earn an M.S. from University of Utah, Salt Lake City; a Ph.D. from University of Illinois, Urbana, and an N.I.H. Post-Doctoral Fellow in Vector Biology and Parasitology from the University of Notre Dame. Novak’s selection was based on his fundamental biological studies of mosquitoes and for leadership in mosquito control in the U.S., Africa, and the Caribbean. He also was among 348 scientists elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2003. Novak has appeared on 20/20 and authored more than 100 publications. He is highly respected as a worldwide consultant and member of the Expert Panel of the World Health Organization’s Vector Biology and Control, as well as the WHO’s Pesticides Evaluation Committee.

Priscilla Lucero, president of Wells Fargo Bank, Pueblo, will receive the Outstanding Alumna Award. A Pueblo native, Lucero began her banking career while a student at South High School, and found her way to Wells Fargo in 1987 as a bank clerk and secretary. Recognizing the importance of education, Lucero earned her B.S. and M.B.A. from CSU-Pueblo in 1999. In addition to rising through the ranks of Wells Fargo, Lucero has been an active community volunteer, serving on numerous boards, including PEDCo, Latino Chamber of Commerce,
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CSU-PUEBLO ANNOUNCES DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI CLASS/ PAGE 2

Business Women’s Network, and Parkview Medical Center, to name a few. Among her many honors are the United States Hispanic Chamber’s Corporate Business Advocate of the Year, the Business Women’s Network’s Woman of the Year, and the Latino Chamber’s Most Distinguished Woman Award.

The Outstanding Alumnus Award will be presented to Michael Konshak. After graduating from high school in Colorado Springs, Konshak served as a 2nd class Petty Officer and Aviation Electronics Technician before earning a degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology from CSU-Pueblo in 1981. Konshak holds 20 patents related to disc and tape drive designs, rotating memories, cartridge mechanisms and robotic libraries, with 12 patents pending. Konshak’s other noteworthy accomplishment include building and competing with robotics, where his championship team was featured on Discovery Channel, TNN, Nickelodeon, and Comedy Central, writing screenplays, composing music, piloting his Cessna, road racing on the national circuit, karate, and building an energy self-sufficient cabin in the Colorado Rockies. Konshak founded the Colorado Springs Computer Society and High Noon Solar Electric. He holds one of the world’s largest slide-rule collections with more than 800. Since 1997, the Konshaks have taken in a family of Kurdish refugees, two of whom are now attending college.

Patricia Erjavec will receive the Alumni Association’s Outstanding Service to the Community Award. Erjavec received her B.S.B.A. degree in Accounting from CSU-Pueblo in 1979, and an M.A. in Non-Profit Management from Regis University in 2002. Her career has taken her from Cost Accountant at Alpha Beta Packing Company in 1979 to controller at Magnum Gas & Oil, to general manager at PCL Packaging, and vice-president of finance & development and President and CEO today of El Pueblo Boys’ & Girls’ Ranch. Erjavec’s community involvement has expanded over the last 10 years, serving on countless nonprofit, educational, youth and children’s agency boards and commissions. In 2003, she chaired the State Board of Community College and Occupational Education and served as the interim President of the Community College System. She has been recognized professionally as Administrator of the Year by the Colorado Child & Adolescent Mental Health Coalition, Pueblo Public Library’s Outstanding Woman Award, the YWCA’s Anna Taussig Tribute to Women Award, and the Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce’s 2002 Business Person of the Year.

The Outstanding Service to the University Award will be presented to 1999 alum, Kiyoshi Ukon. Ukon came to the University in 1993 from Tokyo, Japan to attend the American Language Academy program at the then University of Southern Colorado. Speaking very little English at the time, he chose Pueblo because of its location and low Japanese population. After graduating with a Computer Information Systems degree, Ukon was hired by the University as a technician, and is currently employed as the Assistant Director of Technology in Auxiliary Services. Ukon is an active member of the Alumni Association, serving his second three-year term on the alumni board. His commitment and assistance with numerous campus organizations, including International Programs, Office of Student Activities, Student Life, and the Experiential Learning Center resulted in award nominations from five different campus departments.


 Colorado State University - Pueblo is a regional, comprehensive university emphasizing professional, career-oriented, and applied programs. Displaying excellence in teaching, celebrating diversity, and engaging in service and outreach, CSU-Pueblo is distinguished by access, opportunity, and the overall quality of services provided to its students.