Arents Awards to be presented to six in June

Arents Awards to be presented to six in JuneMarch 17, 2001

The 2001 George Arents Pioneer Medal for outstanding accomplishments will be presented to six distinguished alumni in June. Four medals will be presented in Syracuse during the annual Arents Awards Dinner June 2 at 6:30 p.m. at the OnCenter in downtown Syracuse. Tickets for the dinner are $50 per person and are available through the Office of Alumni Relations, 443-3516. One medal will be presented on June 5 at the Conde Nast Building in New York City, and one medal will be presented at the Museum of Television and Radio in Los Angeles on June 20.

The award is the highest alumni honor the University bestows. This year’s honorees being recognized at the Arents Awards Dinner are Lansing G. Baker, G’64, Ph.D ’72, former SU senior vice president for university relations; Walter D. Broadnax, Ph.D. ’75, dean of the School of Public Affairs at American University and former deputy secretary and chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Robert Q. Costas ’74, broadcaster with NBC and HBO; Bruce S. Fowle ’60, senior principal in the firm of Fox & Fowle Architects in New York City; Elsa Reichmanis, ’72, Ph.D.’75, director of the polymers and organic materials research department with Lucent Technologies; and Aaron B. Sorkin ’83, award-winning screenwriter and creator of NBC’s “The West Wing.”

Baker retired in December after more than 40 years in the field of education, most recently as senior vice president for university relations at SU. He will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in the field of education.

Broadnax, a member of the SU Board of Trustees and dean of American University’s School of Public Affairs, is a former deputy secretary and chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in the field of public service.

Costas is an Emmy Award-winning broadcaster with NBC and HBO who has been named “National Sportscaster of the Year” an unprecedented eight times. He will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in sports broadcasting.

Fowle is co-founder of and principal-in-charge of design at Fox & Fowle Architects, a leading New York City design firm. He will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in the field of architecture on June 5 in the Conde Nast building in New York City, a building designed by his firm.

Reichmanis is director of the polymer and organic materials research department at Bell Labs, which is the research and development arm of Lucent Technologies. Her research has received international attention and has resulted in 17 patents. She will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in the field of chemistry.

Sorkin is the creator, writer and executive producer for “The West Wing,” the NBC drama that won nine Emmy Awards in its first season, including Best Drama and Best Writing for a Drama Series. He was the creator, writer and executive producer of the critically-acclaimed “Sports Night” on ABC.

He will receive the Arents Pioneer Medal for excellence in the field of dramatic writing June 20 at the Museum of Television and Radio in Los Angeles.