Alumni G - K
W. Anthony Gamron '71
Gamron is a retired Vice President and Treasurer for Kimberly-Clark Corporation (Dallas, Texas) and a member of the Dean’s Executive Council for the Scott College of Business. He joined Kimberly-Clark in 1980 as a business analyst, was named assistant treasurer in 1984 and became vice president and treasurer in 1986. Prior to his work at Kimberly-Clark, Gamron held financial and management positions with Pfizer, Inc., and Chrysler Corp. Gamron was a first-generation college student from Seymour, Indiana. After ISU, he earned his MBA from IU and later earned his private pilot's license.
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Daniel Gmelich '01
Vice president and corporate banking officer with Old National Bank, Gmelich previously served as a team leader for the commercial credit analyst group and as a commercial analyst, also with Old National. In addition to his finance degree, Gmelich earned his master's in business administration (MBA) also from ISU. He is also a member of the Scott College of Business' inaugural Young Professionals Board.
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Business students make connections with speed networking (February 15, 2012)
Benjamin Gradle '06
Benjamin Gradle is a risk management examiner with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He was formerly an analyst with the Office of Thrift Supervision, a branch of the Department of the Treasury, in Seattle, Washington. There, he helped to oversee the safety and soundness of banks nationwide. In addition to finance, Gradle also majored in business administration, with a minor in insurance and risk management. He's a member of the Scott College of Business' inaugural Young Professionals Board.
Jon Greenlee '85
Jon Greenlee, (ISU degree in finance, 1985) is Managing Director of Financial Services Regulatory Practice, for KPMG, LLP, in Washington, D.C., and was formerly with the Federal Reserve Board there as Associate Director of the Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation.
He brings over 24 years of senior bank regulatory experience dealing with financial services risk management issues, developing regulatory policies, and representing the Federal Reserve in Congressional and public forums. His experience as a member of the Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System allows him to help clients identify and address key regulatory and risk management issues facing the financial services industry and develop effective responses to the challenging regulatory environment.
He was the "Leader in Action" 2011-2012 and on September 22, 2011 delivered a presentation named "After the Crisis: The Transforming of Financial Services"
Leader in Action Flyer
Indiana State to Host Prominent Financial Services, Insurance Industry Speaker
Ex Fed member: Poor Risk Management, Fragmented Supervision Contributed to Crisis
Photo Gallery
Sarah Hadley-Aikman (B.S. '90 Business Management, M.S. '94 College Student Personnel)
Hadley-Aikman was formerly an assistant director of Student Life Programs at ISU. In August 2000, she accepted the position of assistant director of the Reeve Memorial Union/Student Activities at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Today, she serves as a member of the Reeve Union leadership team and is involved in a $20.5 million union renovation project. Hadley-Aikman was recently nominated for the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Outstanding Staff Award.
Alumni Association announces G.O.L.D. recipients (September 4, 2003)
Cathy Harbin '84 (Business Management)
Cathy Harbin graduated in 1984 with a major in Business Management and a minor in Accounting. Cathy's energy and passion for golf seems endless, she was a Sycamore Golfer and in the 1980s won two Terre Haute Women’s Golf Tournament championships. Since then she has gone on to do great things for the game. By 2021, Cathy was a PGA of America Master Professional, Northern Texas PGA member, and Secretary of the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA) Board of Directors and owner of Pine Ridge Golf Course, then in January 2020, it was announced that she had joined the PGA Board of Directors as an At-Large Director.
Cathy was instrumental in ClubCorp’s drive to recruit and engage more women, youth and casual golfers. She has held Class A membership in the PGA of America since 1992 and enjoyed PGA Master Professional status since 2000. Cathy helped drive the World Golf Foundation mission to increase awareness and participation in the game of golf. In 2006, she was named the most admired golf course operator by Golf Inc. magazine. In 2009 she launched the PGA's Get Golf Ready program and started her own Golf Management company, OnCourse Operations, in 2016.
Golf News magazine named her as Woman of the Year and United Athletes Foundation named her Athlete of the Year. In addition to receiving numerous PGA Chapter and Section awards from the PGA of America, Cathy has been honored by the community at-large with recognition from the Florida Times Union as one of the 7 Most Powerful Women in Sports.
NTPGA Section Member Cathy Harbin Named At-Large Director on the PGA Board of Directors (January 26, 2021)
Cathy Harbin, Women Today || ‘Know Your Value’ (eExtra News, November 2020)
Golf Origin Stories Podcast (August 25, 2020)
Cathy Harbin Launches Management Company (Golf Inc. Magazine, January 25, 2016)
Bob Heaton '08
Bob Heaton, played alongside Larry Bird on the 1978-79 men's basketball team that competed for a NCAA championship. He was known as "Miracle Bob" for his late-in-the-game shots that kept the Sycamores' dream season alive.
Heaton is a member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and was a Blue Beret while he earned a business administration degree with a concentration in marketing.
President of Heaton Financial Services since 2003, Heaton (R-Terre Haute) has represented District 46 in the Indiana House of Representatives since 2010. He was voted chief majority whip of the House Republican caucus and serves on the financial institutions committee as vice chair, insurance committee and natural resources committee. Heaton previously worked for Forrest Sherer Inc. as an insurance sales person.
Heaton and his wife, Jane Ann, have two children and four grandchildren. Lifetime residents of the Wabash Valley, he serves the community through several community organization boards including the Terre Haute Convention and Visitors Bureau, Terre Haute Boys and Girls Club, Wabash Valley Youth for Christ and Leadership Terre Haute Class 5.
Distinguished Alumni Awards Announced (August 1, 2016)
Image Gallery of the Awards Ceremony (September 30, 2016)
Jason Paul Hendrickson '03
Hendrickson, who teaches business at Danville Community High School, received the Emerging Professional Award from the Indiana Business Educators Association in 2006. He has served as an advisor for Danville's BPA chapter and has been a member of the Indiana Business Education Association. "My program within the College of Business allowed me to discover who I was as a person and professionally advance to become the educator that I am today," Hendrickson said. He is continuing his education at ISU by pursuing his master's in curriculum, instruction and media technology.
Jason died on March 9, 2022, aged just 40. He was a member of Indiana Business Education Association, National Business Education Association, and Indiana State Advisor to Business Professionals of America. He loved travelling, making Christmas shopping a planned-out sport, and loved Disney, especially anything Mickey Mouse. Above all else he loved his students and teaching. He was a longstanding educator for 17 years, dedicating his life to his students. He taught at Danville Community Schools, J. Everett Light Career Center. His last position was with Cengage.
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Two ISU alumni earn business educator awards (December 18, 2006)
Christine "Christi" M. Hill '93 (Business)
Hill was selected as an Alumni Scholar in 1989. In 1993, Hill was named ISU's NCAA Woman Student-Athlete of the Year and the Indiana State Outstanding Marketing Student. She is currently employed by Eli Lilly and Company. Her first position with Lilly was as a pharmaceutical representative in the Lexington, Ky., area. In 1997 she moved to Birmingham, Ala., as Lilly's training and development coordinator for 200 sales representatives and managers. During this time she became certified in psychological profiling of social styles with business application. This led to her transfer to the position of marketing analyst for Prozac Market Research.
Christi Hill is senior director of Global Customer Engagement for Eli Lilly and Company in Indianapolis. Prior to this, she was Senior Director of Marketing and also Neuroscience Director of Sales for Lilly. She is a member of the Scott College of Business' Dean's Executive Council and the ISU Alumni Association Board of Directors and is very involved in the life of the university as well as her local community.
Related Stories, Photos and Video
Grads share selfies; speakers urge accountability, helping others (May 9, 2015)
Alumna Profile: Christi (Olson) Hill, '93 (May 7, 2015 - Internet Archive)
Alumni, student speakers named for spring commencement (April 7, 2015)
Alumni Association announces G.O.L.D. recipients (September 4, 2003)
Photo Gallery 1 | Photo Gallery 2 | Photo Gallery 3 | Photo Gallery 4
April Huey '07
As a member of the first graduating class of Networks Scholars, April Huey has worked in both public and corporate accounting, including the past seven years in the not-for-profit health care provider sector within Indiana University Health’s finance department.
Huey, who majored in accounting and finance with a forensic accounting minor, has served in various finance roles, including integrating financial services functions for a hospital group in the east central region of Indiana. She did accounting and reporting for the same hospital group after integration. Huey consolidated eliminations and internal and external reporting for Indiana University Health, financial statement and employee benefit plan audit testing and reporting facilitation. She also managed projects and analyzed and managed the accounting and reporting for the IU Health system’s administration.
Alumna Profile: April Huey '07 (October 1, 2017)
Forensic Accounting Minor: Alumni Spotlight (PDF)
April Huey Visits Business Classroom (Photos, March 3, 2009)
Forensic Accounting Minor Attracts Attention (PDF, 2008)
FMA Field Trips (Photos, November 2006)
Accounting education all adds up for ISU student (October 31, 2006)
Accounting Intern April Huey (Video, 2006)
Indiana State University's Networks Financial Institute honored by Indiana House and Senate (February 21, 2006)
ISU Networks Scholars receive laptop computers as part of welcome to campus (September 15, 2003)
Kris Hughes '97
Kris Hughes is Logistics Center Manager for Caterpillar Logistics Services, Inc. in South Carolina. She was formerly global account manager and Six- Sigma/CPS (Caterpillar Production System) Black Belt in Manufacturing Logistics for Caterpillar. She led teams in the use of SixSigma and LEAN tools to reduce waste in material handling and distribution processes. She has worked in several positions for Caterpillar including Server Administration, Data Center Planning and Logistics Operations. She graduated from ISU in 1997 with a double major in Operations and Supply Chain Management and Management Information Systems.
Dena Irwin, ’94
Business education is about more than teaching for Dena Irwin, ’94. The Indiana State University graduate and teacher is ready to take her passion for the subject to the state level after being named the state program leader for business, information technology, entrepreneurship and marketing education.
“I was invited by the Indiana Department of Education to apply for the position this fall, and I was honored to be a candidate and to be interviewed,” she said. “As program leader at the Indiana Department of Education, I will work with Indiana business teachers and school administrators to develop new courses and update existing ones with new standards and content. I will be working with Indiana’s universities on their pre-service education programs while seeking educational resources that help teachers to be more effective.”
<< Dena Irwin is Leading the State Program for Business, Information Technology, Entrepreneurship and Marketing Education (January 1, 2016 - Internet Archive) >>
Michael Jack '65
Michael Jack was only 17 when he graduated from high school and headed off to college. “I didn’t have a sense of what I wanted to do,” he said.
However, he quickly discovered that finance and business were a good fit for his interests. So Jack became a member of the first class to graduate from Indiana State University — which actually not as long ago as it sounds. The Class of 1965 was the first to graduate when Indiana State College changed its name to Indiana State University.
The class will celebrate its 50th reunion on Aug. 1. “My first reaction is it can’t be 50 years,” Jack said. “My second reaction is it is great to remember and celebrate one of the memorable times in my life and to also celebrate the 50th anniversary of Indiana State becoming a university.”
To help honor the occasion, Jack and close classmate Ed Andrews have established a 50th anniversary scholarship fund.
“Ed gets the credit for coming up with the idea,” Jack said. “It seemed like a terrific idea to me. Scholarship and availability of funding were very important to both of us, and we felt it would be an excellent recognition for our class if we could create the same type of help for potential candidates.”
Having companies come to Indiana State to recruit potential employees provided a big boost in his career, Jack added.
“I received a number of offers and picked one that in retrospect gave me a sound foundation to build on for my next career moves,” he said.
When Jack retired as senior vice president and corporate controller for Telephone and Data Systems Inc. — a Fortune 500 company with co-locations in Madison, Wisconsin, and Chicago — he and his family moved from Madison to Fishers, Ind. Jack and his wife, Judi, have four children: Jennifer, Michael, Amy and Christina.
But Jack is not one to rest on his laurels. “I flunked retirement,” he joked. “I am engaged in the CPA peer review process and have volunteered for nonprofit projects.”
He is also enjoying his lifelong interests in racecars and photography. Growing up in the Indiana community of Brazil, Jack said he “finally got on the race track in the 1980s and have been hooked ever since.
“Initially I did track days, eventually got my SCCA license and raced briefly. After that, I graduated to being an instructor for students at high-performance driving events. Those who understand what goes on, know one has to be mentally ill to get into a fast car with a student and have no control other than voice. “
Meanwhile, Jack started taking photographs at major races which piqued his interest in photography. This year, he said, “will be the first year I have completely given up the track for photography. My track car has been sold and a portion of the money reinvested in photography equipment and travel related to photography. I take mostly landscape, architecture and car images and have a website and exhibit my work in some galleries.”
Looking back over the past half century, Jack said he is so glad he discovered Indiana State and would recommend it to prospective students.
“It has a focus on the needs of the student, it offers a wide variety of educational opportunities and outstanding educators, it is right-sized — neither too small, hence expensive or too large, thus impersonal, and it offers a great educational value for the expense,” he said. “March on!”
<< Read Original Article (July 1, 2015 - Internet Archive) >>
John F. Kane, '58 (business administration), Gr '59 (economics)
Dr. James F. Kane graduated from Indiana State Teachers College in 1958 and received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1976. Kane earned a national reputation for his work in professional organizations fostering higher education in the field of business. When he received the Distinguished Alumni Award he was the dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of South Carolina and served on the Accreditation Committee of the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business.
James was born on November 23, 1931 and while at Indiana State majored in Business Administration. He was active in Beta Iota Sigma and taught classes for a while. After leaving Indiana State James earned a doctorate in business administration from Washington University in 1964. He was an assistant professor in the School of Business at Saint Louis University from 1960 to 1964. Prior to his university experiences, he served in the U.S. Air Force as a navigation instructor from 1953 to 1957.
At thirty-four, he was named dean of the University of South Carolina College of Business, now known as the Moore School of Business. One of the longest-serving deans in the nation, he led the college for twenty-six years, returning in 1993 to the classroom, where he taught marketing to undergraduate students for an additional thirteen years. The hallmark of his tenure as dean of the Moore School of Business was the internationalization of the master of business administration program and the establishment of the world-renowned master of international business studies program, which dramatically raised the academic stature of the university.
In 1993, he was appointed as a founding member of the Coastal Carolina University Board of Trustees, a position he held until his death. Kane provided leadership and vision as Coastal's Wall College of Business Administration gained accreditation from the prestigious AACSB, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. His wisdom made him trusted counsel for Ronald R. Ingle throughout Ingle's fourteen-year tenure as Coastal's first president. Kane's experience as a seasoned university administrator brought deep perspective and keen business sense to Coastal's board when the university was established in 1993 and during the subsequent period of growth and maturity.
James served as a member of several boards, including those of SCETV, the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce, the accreditation committee of AACSB, Delta Woodside Industries, First Union Bank of South Carolina, Intertec Data Systems, Liberty Corporation, Glassmaster Company, Roper Temporary Services, and Kendall Drug Company; and
In 1976, he received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Indiana State University, and, in 1993, South Carolina Governor Carroll A. Campbell, Jr., bestowed upon him the State's highest civilian award, the Order of the Palmetto; more than a businessman of high acumen, James will long be remembered for the personable way he listened to and respected all, as well as for his careful resolve, kindness, and abundant humor. James was married to D'Ann and had six children. James passed away in 2007.
Maulik Khatadia ’06, Gr ’09
Maulik Khatadia knew exactly where he wanted to go to college. “The reason I preferred the Midwest was to be somewhat central to places I could easily visit outside of college,” he said. “I chose ISU, because it has a reputable College of Business program and faculty.”
Although his parents still live in India, Khatadia now lives in Indianapolis and is a senior in the audit and assurance services at Sponsel CPA Group. As a 2009 master’s degree graduate of the Scott College of Business, Khatadia says his college experience prepared him well for his career and for personal success.
Alumni Profile (November 1, 2014 - Internet Archive)
Awards given to those supporting international efforts at ISU (June 2, 2006)
Rankin Awards honor outstanding seniors (May 1, 2006)
International student to deliver commencement address (April 27, 2006)
Brian Kooistra, ’99
Brian Kooistra, ’99, is inarguably a busy man. He serves as this year’s board chair for the Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce, is a YMCA board member and serves on the Wabash Valley Community Foundation finance committee. But the married father of three and Chief Operations Officer for Garmong Construction Services decided to take on just one more thing when he returned to Indiana State this summer to begin work on his second degree – a Master of Business Administration.
“As I’ve climbed the ladder at work, the challenges I deal with have become bigger and the opportunities more complex. I felt a need to catapult my capabilities to the next level,” he said. “I definitely wanted to take classes in-person and the convenience of having it right next door made the MBA at Indiana State too good to pass up.”
Kooistra has been in the construction industry for 20 years, 19 of which have been at Garmong Construction Services, a full-service general contractor. Founded in 1923 in Terre Haute, Garmong has grown to include offices in Indianapolis and Evansville.
“Right after college, I took a job with a company in Cincinnati and spent a little over a year there,” he said. “Then, I came to Garmong as a Project Manager in May of 2000. I’ve progressed through the company over the years and have had opportunities placed before me that allowed me to develop as both a business and civic leader. Giving back to my employer and my community is important to me and I’m genuinely grateful for those opportunities and experiences.”
Kooistra worked his way up to become the company’s Chief Operations Officer in 2015. He oversees all of the firm’s construction activities, project management, estimating, safety, equipment management. Brian oversees more than 100 employees companywide and multiple departments including Safety, Project Management, Estimating, Equipment, Project Supervision, and Garmong Field Operations.
“When I started school, I wasn’t set on a particular major but I had friends in the construction program so I took an introductory class and thought it really fit my personality and interests well,” he said. “I didn’t come from a family of constructors, per se, and didn’t have any real background in it, but I found the classes I took as a student interesting. I like the variety that the field of construction brings because it’s ever-changing.”
That requires Kooistra to be on his toes to pursue projects that come the company’s way.
“From day-to-day, my job is a lot about problem solving, troubleshooting and trying to be forward-thinking and proactive so we can anticipate issues before they happen,” he said. “Then, there’s pursuing new jobs, relationship building and the closing of deals. They are all a team effort and I am fortunate to be surrounded by talented people who are just as hungry as I am for the win. It’s also exciting to pursue new projects and see them through to a successful completion when you can hand over the keys to the satisfied owner of a new building. Every day is a new opportunity waiting to happen.”
<< Read Original Article >>
Kent Kramer '90
As a high schooler, Kent Kramer worked part time in a grocery store in his Muncie hometown. That’s when he discovered the profession he would like to pursue.
“I loved working at the grocery and knew that I wanted to get into the retail business,” he said. “Although retail is just a part of what I do today, I still enjoy it a great deal.”
In his senior high school year, Kramer was offered an Indiana State academic scholarship and visited the campus. “I fell in love with it,” he said. Once a Sycamore, Kramer became involved in campus activities, which added immensely to his college experience and future career.
“I greatly appreciate the leadership opportunities that ISU provided,” Kramer said. “I held officer roles with my Sigma Nu fraternity, was an SGA senator, participated in Leadership Task Force, worked on Tandem and Greek Week steering committees. I also enjoyed the classes and internship opportunities provided by the school of business.”
As president and CEO Goodwill Industries of Central Indiana, Kent Kramer credits State for the leadership opportunities (February 29, 2016 - Internet Archive)
Mindy Krol '00
Mindy Krol is a quality engineer in the Diabetes Care division at Roche Diagnostics Operations, Inc. at their North American Headquarters in Indianapolis. She supports the diabetes test strip manufacturing operations by leading product investigations and implementing process improvements. She also assists the processing development group with determining various requirements for validations. She graduated from ISU in 2000 and later earned her master's in technology from IUPUI.