On Sunday, September 17 the Bexley High School Alumni Association (BHSAA) will honor six recipients of the Distinguished Alumni Award and welcome them as the first class inducted since 2011. Over the years, BHSAA has recognized Distinguished and Honorary Alumni, those individuals who have made outstanding accomplishments and received honors for their achievements in their work and community.
This year’s inductees range in age and career profile, from basketball coaching to urban landscape, accomplished writer to news coverage, plastic surgery to advocacy. All alumni are more than accomplished in their fields.
Congratulations to the following alumni:
Sue Ramsey
Sue Ramsey, BHS Class of ’74, was the first woman to receive a basketball scholarship from Indiana University. In 2015 she retired from an illustrious 35 year coaching career having spent 20 years at Ashland University as their Head Women’s Basketball Coach. She is the recipient of the Kay Yow Heart of a Champion Award from the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and has been inducted into the Athlete’s In Actions Hall of Faith, Miami University’s Cradle of Coaches and the Bexley Athletic Hall of Fame. She is the first female recognized as an FCA Ohio Sports Legend.
Lisa Switkin
Lisa Switkin, BHS Class of ’92, was a principal at landscape architecture and urban design firm James Corner Field Operations, the lead firm in the design of the High Line. The High Line is a 1.45-mile-long New York City linear park built in Manhattan on an elevated section of a disused New York Central Railroad spur. Switkin’s design and planning experience included numerous public/private partnerships, including the Hudson River Park and the Fresh Kills landfill project. She studied urban planning at the University of Illinois and landscape architecture at the University of Pennsylvania.
Daniel H. Pink
Dan Pink, BHS Class of ’82, is recognized as one of the world’s leading business thinkers. He is the author of five books — including New York Times bestsellers, A Whole New Mind, Drive, and To Sell is Human. His books have been translated into 35 languages and have sold more than 2 million copies worldwide. He appears frequently on NPR’s Hidden Brain and the PBS News Hour. Pink’s TED Talk on the science of motivation is one of the 10 most-watched TED Talks of all time. He received a BA from Northwestern University, and a JD from Yale Law School.
Richard L. Nafzger
Richard Nafzger, BHS Class of ‘59 was the lead man directing the ground processing TV team for NASA during the pioneering era of space flight. It was through his work that the US and the world first witnessed close up views of the moon. Nafzger led TV teams for the Apollo 7-17 space missions and provided similar leadership for the Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz and the Shuttle program. Nafzger received both the Exceptional Achievement and Exceptional Service Awards from NASA and accepted an Emmy on behalf of NASA for the Apollo lunar landing TV production.
Jeffrey E. Janis, MD
Dr. Jeffrey Janis, BHS Class of ’89 is Executive VP/Chief and Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery at The Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center and an Adjunct Professor in the departments of Neurosurgery, Neurology and General Surgery. Janis is a leader in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery, but is also focused on the pursuit of providing the highest level of patient care and educating others to do the same. Janis has written, researched and/or co-authored over 100 published journal articles. He was part of the team that performed the ground-breaking, first full face transplant in 2009. In 2017, Janis will become the youngest to president ever of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
Joel Goldman
Joel Goldman, BHS Class ’81 is a well-known HIV/AIDS Advocate, nonprofit leader and fundraiser who is the first Managing Director of the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Goldman has led outreach projects, fundraising campaigns and produced entertainment industry events that have raised tens of millions of dollars for pediatric AIDS and other causes. His work with young people and his twelve years of speaking to more than a million high school and college students as well as at conferences and for Jewish youth groups, earned him many awards including the Ryan’s Angel Award from the Ryan White Foundation. Goldman graduated with a B.S. in Public Affairs from Indiana University’s School of Public & Environmental Affairs.