Archive for category: Signature Events

Today we are highlighting members of Class of 2016 40 Under 40 who are political figures or work for non-profits. The members highlighted are Allison Alexander, Andres Villegas, Brendan Buck, Brittany Brown, Christina Swoope, Derick Corbertt, Jehan Zweig, Jennie Blake, Katie Childers, and Meredith Seacrest.

Allison Alexander graduated from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication in 1999 with a degree in broadcast news. Mrs. Alexander now lives in Silver Spring, Maryland and serves as the vice president for the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation. While the 1996 Olympics were held in Atlanta, some events were held in Athens, Georgia at UGA venues. “I was a flower and medal bearer in the 1996 Olympics for the soccer and rhythmic gymnastics events held in Athens,” said Mrs. Alexander, “I was interning at the County Executive’s office in New Castle County, Delaware, and the local news misreported that I was competing in the Olympics!”

Andres Villegas is the president of the Georgia Forestry Association. Mr. Villegas graduated in 1998 from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Mr. Villegas now lives in Macon, Georgia. After Mr. Villegas graduated, his first job was with the Georgia Department of Agriculture. He led several trade missions with Cuba during his time there. During these missions, Mr. Villegas and nine other people had the opportunity to have dinner with President Castro. “I still have a couple of cigar boxes that he signed,” said Mr. Villegas.

Brendan Buck graduated from the Terry College of Business in 2004 with a degree in economics. Mr. Buck now lives and works in Washington, D.C. as the chief communications advisor for the Office of the U.S. Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan. Mr. Buck never imagined he would have a job in politics after graduated; he expected to work in finance. He is also a strong proponent of the oxford comma.

Brittany Brown graduated with her first degree in speech communications from UGA in 2007. In 2015, Ms. Brown returned to UGA for her master’s in communication. Ms. Brown now lives in Jacksonville, Florida and works as a combat stress recovery specialist for the Wounded Warrior Project. Did you know Ms. Brown was a Braves girl during her time as undergraduate at UGA? Ms. Brown is also the mother of a Cabbage Patch Kid named Lana and has dabbled in standup comedy.

Christina Swoope works in the Office of the President of the United States of America as a Medicare program examiner. Ms. Swoope received her degree from UGA in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in microbiology. She now lives in Hanover, Maryland. “Even though I was a science major, I chose an undergraduate institution based on the band. Words cannot express how excited I was that UGA also had my major,” Said Ms. Swoope.

Derick Corbett graduated for a bachelor’s degree in economics in 2000. Mr. Corbett lives in Atlanta and works as the Chief of Staff for the Office of U.S. Congressman Rob Woodall. Mr. Corbett has a secret fear of flying, even though his job requires multiple weekly flights. “It’s ironic that I chose a profession that requires weekly plane rides,” said Mr. Corbett.

Jenah Zweig received her law degree from UGA in 2011. Ms. Zweig lies in Washington, D.C. and serves as the supervisor of policy and technical assistance for the U.S. Department of Energy. “At 12-years-old, I made more than $12,000 buying and selling Beanie Babies. This profit was invested, and helped to fund my UGA Law education,” said Ms. Zweig, “I am the first woman in my family to graduate from a four-year university and the first person in my family to attend graduate school.”

Jennie Blake began her education at UGA with a bachelor’s degree in social work and graduated in 1999. Ms. Blake continued her education at Georgia State in pursuing a master’s degree in social work. Ms. Blake now lives and works in Atlanta, where she is the director for the Cox Foundation. Her fun fact? Ms. Blake has met and had a conversation with the Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson. Sarah Ferguson was the ground breaking ceremony for the Ronald McDonald House Charities, where Ms. Blake was attending as a guest of the Ronald McDonald House, one of her clients.

Katie Childers graduated with her bachelor’s degree from the Terry College of Business in 2007. Ms. Childers lives in Atlanta and works as the deputy chief of staff of policy for the State of Georgia Governor’s Office. “My interest in healthcare started when I would spend the night at Athens Regional with my mom while she was on call. I grew up at the nurses’ station on Labor and Delivery, and became fascinated with the healthcare delivery system,” said Ms. Childers, “I knew from an early age that I wanted to be deeply involved in how the healthcare system as a whole functioned.”

Meredith Seacrest lives in West Hollywood, California and is the executive director and COO of the Ryan Seacrest Foundation. Ms. Seacrest graduated from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communications in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in public relations. Ms. Seacrest has traveled to 25 different countries and is always wanting to learn more about the world. “I believe some of the best self-growth and insight can be achieved from traveling, “said Ms. Seacrest.

Meet the rest of this year’s 40 Under 40 class at alumni.uga.edu/40u40.

 

Today we are highlighting members of Class of 2016 40 Under 40 who are involved with real estate. The members highlighted are Chase Lawrence, Kevin Aycock, Lana Chumachenko, Ryan Irvine, and Wes Rogers.

Chase Lawrence graduated from the College of Family and Consumer Science in 2005 with a degree in housing. Mr. Lawrence lives in Athens, Georgia and is the founder and principle of College Town Properties, LLC. Mr. Lawrence says he is always looking to the next endeavor and challenge. “I think it’s important to recognize that life is precious, and that you have to truly enjoy the time you have, rather than being so focused on particular goals,” said Mr. Lawrence.

Kevin Aycock lives in Atlanta and is the president of Kevin Aycock Homes. Mr. Aycock graduated in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in economics and then returned to UGA for his master’s MBA in 2015. Did you know Mr. Aycock used to be a competitive boxer? “I was the 2012 Golden Glove Heavy Weight Champion of Georgia. I won at the age of 34 which is the oldest you can be to compete in the regular division,” said Mr. Aycock, “I have retired from competitive boxing but still very much enjoy the sport.”

Lana Chumachenko graduated from UGA in 2006 with a degree in business. Mrs. Chumachenko is a senior real estate representative for Chick-fil-a and currently lives in Grayson, Georgia. Mrs. Chumachenko is originally from Moldova, one of the poorest Eastern European countries. “During our first year in the United States, we ate at the soup kitchen due to the lack of funds for the family of five,” said Mrs. Chumachenko, “Today, I mentor four business owners overseas in Kiev, Ukraine and Minsk, Belarus. I have come full circle and it feels great to serve others!”

Ryan Irvine graduated from the Terry College of Business in 2004 with a degree in finance. Mr. Irvine is senior vice president of CBRE. Mr. Irvine has lived in Atlanta for 23 years now, but does not see himself leaving any time soon. During his childhood, he moved five times in the first eleven years of his life. “The longest I’ve ever lived in one place was my family’s first home that I purchased right after graduation,” said Mr. Irvine.

Wes Rogers graduated from the Terry College of Business in 2005 and then returned to UGA for his master’s in 2004. Mr. Rogers lives in Athens, Georgia and is the president and CEO of Landmark Properties. Mr. Rogers was born and raised in Athens, Georgia and has never left. “Most people probably don’t realize that I have lived all but about four years of my life in Athens—- with almost all of it within a one mile radius,” said Mr. Rogers, “As we grew Landmark, I often feared we might need to relocate the business to attract the talent we would need to successfully grow the company, but that has fortunately not been the case.”

 

Today, we are highlighting members of the Class of 2016 40 Under 40 who are involved with investment and law. The members highlighted are Brooks Andrews, Heather Ripley, Meredith Forrester, Mitch Reiner, and Ronnie Mabra.

Brooks Andrews graduated in 2007 with a BBA in finance and an MA in business from the Terry College of Business and Franklin College of Arts & Sciences. Mr. Andrews currently lives in San Francisco. He is the vice resident at Essex Woodlands. One little unknown fact about Mr. Andrews is, “My dad and sister went to Georgia Tech, so when I decided to attend Georgia my mom cried every day for two weeks straight, because she thought I was making a huge mistake. Thankfully, my parents trusted my judgment and within a couple years, my mom acknowledged that I had made the right decision after all.”

Heather Ripley currently lives in New York and is a senior associate for federal and international tax at Alston and Bird. Ms. Ripley graduated from the Terry College of Business in 2006 with a BBA in business and a MACC in business. Ms. Ripley continued her education at Harvard Law and graduated in 2009 with her law degree. Ms. Ripley’s favorite place she has traveled to is Cuba and she is considering one day retiring to Cuba to paint on the beach. UGA blood runs deep through Ms. Ripley’s family with both of parents meeting at UGA and Ms. Ripley continuing the tradition of education at UGA.

Meredith Forrester graduated from Terry College in 1999 with a BBA in international business. Mrs. Forrester now lives and works in Atlanta as the senior vice president and senior managing director of internal audit at SunTrust Bank. Besides working in finance, Mrs. Forrester has always loved the arts. She loves music, photography, and sharing this love for arts and crafts with her young daughters.

Mitch Reiner graduated in 2005 with a BBA in finance. Mr. Reiner lives in Atlanta and is the COO of Capital Investment Advisors and the founder and managing partner of Wela. When asked to define success, Mr. Reiner said it is “the desire to build something incredible any time that I get involved. Whether it is my children, my business or my community, I am uninterested in being a passive participant.”

Ronnie Mabra graduated from UGA’s School of Law  in 2004. Mr. Mabra is a State of Georgia Representative and an attorney at The Mabra Firm, LLC. Mr. Mabra lives in Atlanta, Georgia. Did you know Mr. Mabra’s father was an NFL player for the Atlanta Falcons? But that’s not all the unknown facts about Mr. Mabra. He is Kenny Chesney’s biggest fan and lives next to Hip-Hop legend and Rock and Roll Hall of fame inductee Chuck D.

Meet the rest of this year’s 40 Under 40 class at alumni.uga.edu/40u40.