Members of the J.C. Matthews (’25) family were honored with the inaugural Generations of Excellence Award in fall 2009. The former University president and his wife, Rena Mae (’25), passed their passion for education along to their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, many who also earned UNT degrees.
Legacy
UNT is a place where imagination, creativity and individual ideas are nurtured. The result is a growing legacy of uncommon achievement. From education pioneers like former UNT president J.C. Matthews (’25) to business trailblazer David Rosenbaum (’09), UNT alumni are reinventing the future by capitalizing on their UNT education.
Inventing a Solution
In 2008, Inc. magazine singled out 18 "Cool, Determined and Under 30" entrepreneurs to watch. Adam Smith (’03), a graduate of UNT’s Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science, was one of them. Smith had gone on to study computer science at MIT, where he turned his determination to improve how people use and manage their e-mail into a software start-up named Xobni — "inbox" spelled backward. By 2007, Smith had earned millions in venture funding, and in 2008 he received kudos in the form of onstage recognition from his hero, Bill Gates. The launch of a new Xobni application for BlackBerry users is anticipated for 2010.
In 1981, Terry Brewer (’65, ’70 Ph.D.) gathered his collection of patents from working as a chemist for Texas Instruments and Honeywell, sold his home and moved into an RV to start his own company. He was one of the first U.S. scientists to conduct photochemical decomposition of metallics. Today, Brewer Science Inc., an international company headquartered in Rolla, Mo., is a leader in specialty chemicals and equipment for micro- and optoelectronics. Almost a third of its 300 employees are patent-making inventors. "UNT helped me see that the future is about people," Brewer says. "It’s about moving beyond boundaries to make our world better than before."
"If I can look at the dome and feel I’ve helped move the ball down the field, then I know I’ve made a difference."
— Lorraine C. Miller, U.S. House of Representatives clerk
Lorraine C. Miller, 35th clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, in her office on Capitol Hill
Lorraine C. Miller (’75) stepped outside to hear her name over the loud speakers at the UNT commencement ceremony. Then, she went back in to finish her shift at the local grocery store.
"The manager said he was short handed and I couldn’t have the day off," Miller says.
By the time she graduated with a degree in political science, it was evident that perseverance and dedication would define her life. In 2007, she was sworn in as the 35th clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives — the first African American and only the third woman to serve as a House officer. The clerk manages the day-to-day operations of the House.
"It is truly an honor to serve in this nonpartisan position," Miller says.
UNT awards about 7,700 degrees each year.
She previously was senior advisor and director of intergovernmental relations for Speaker Nancy Pelosi and had worked for Speakers Jim Wright and Tom Foley. Miller was suggesting candidates for Pelosi’s cabinet when the speaker asked if she was interested in any of the positions.
"It was wonderful to get such a positive reaction from her," Miller says. "And here I am today."
Creating a Niche
When David Rosenbaum (’09) graduated, he had been president of his own company, North Texas Pyrotechnic Productions, for three years. After earning the $25,000 grand prize from UNT’s Murphy Center for Entrepeneurship’s New Venture Creation Contest and being ranked seventh in the world at the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards competition, he wanted to "prove that fireworks aren’t just for the Fourth of July." In demand for sporting events, corporate parties and, increasingly, weddings, Rosenbaum forecasts a 50 percent growth in sales for 2010. Also on the horizon: custom fireworks that he ordered on his trip to China in 2009.
UNT alumni boost the Dallas-Fort Worth area economy by more than
$10 billion
each year.
Diane Cheatham (’73) quit her job as a real estate developer in 1991 to create Dallas’ first sustainable residential community, Urban Reserve. She is transforming a former construction dumping ground into a nature-friendly neighborhood of one-of-a-kind, contemporary homes built from non-toxic, high-quality materials. The Reserve’s 50 homes will have energy efficiency ratings that are 20 percent better than city code, a rainwater irrigation system and access to a rapid transit rail station to help minimize street traffic. Cheatham’s innovative living ideas have earned numerous accolades, including more than a dozen awards from the American Institute of Architects.
Enriching a Society
Before earning his master’s degree in music, countertenor Augustine Mercante (’09 M.M.) had debuted at the Salzburg Festival and Carnegie Hall, and inspired a Philadelphia Inquirer critic to write, "His voice alone was worth the show." He also had earned a Fulbright Scholarship and, within six months of arriving in Germany to study, made his European opera debut in a lead role at one of Munich’s most historic performance venues, the Prinzregententheater. Mercante is eager to return to community service in his home state of Delaware, where, in 2005, he founded LifeSongs. The nonprofit produces benefit concerts for individuals with special medical needs and provides scholarships, free financial counseling and budget management to young singers.
