Alumni News - December 2021

A special holiday roundup of news about Roanoke College alumni!

Michael Martino ’79 has been appointed interim Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Ampio Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company based in Englewood, Colorado.

Martino has served as CEO, president or director of a variety of drug development and biotechnology companies. Ampio is focused on the advancement of immunomodulatory therapies for prevalent inflammatory conditions. (Immunomodulatory is defined as capable of modifying or regulating one or more immune functions.)

From 2016 to 2020, Martino served as a member of the Roanoke College Board of Trustees. He holds a B.B.A. from Roanoke and an M.B.A. from Virginia Tech.

Lisa (Franzino) Richards ’97 is a new member of the Forbes Business Council. The council is an invitation-only organization where top executives and entrepreneurs build professional skills, and gain connections and visibility on Forbes.com.

Richards, who will be contributing 12 or more articles annually to Forbes.com., is the founder and CEO of Piper LLC, an investment and marketing firm to fund beauty and fitness start-up ventures. She also is co-founder of RPZL, a state-of-the-art hair extension and blowout bar, described as a business that “disrupted the beauty industry by providing unprecedented access to quality hair extensions and introducing cutting-edge ultrasound application technology.”

Previously, Richards served as senior vice president for YOU On Demand, a leading multi-platform entertainment company. She also held management positions at WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) and Starz Encore [Channels] Group. Richards holds a B.S. in criminal justice from Roanoke.

James Pennix ’88 has been appointed senior associate director of undergraduate admissions at Virginia Tech.

Pennix most recently served as assistant vice chancellor for enrollment management at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina. Prior to that position, he served as vice president for enrollment management at Ferrum College; dean of admissions and assistant vice president of enrollment management at Radford University; and director of admissions at Roanoke College.

Pennix holds a B.S. in mathematics from Roanoke and an M.S.W. from Radford University.

Sarah Pauline (Finch) Jackson '03 has received the Early Career Award from the National Association for Gifted Children's Special Populations Network.

The NAGC’s Special Populations Network develops initiatives aimed at increasing the recognition of special populations of gifted children and promote equitable services to address their diverse needs.

Jackson, currently an instructional specialist for Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools, was recognized for work she has done for gifted and twice-exceptional students during her 10 years in the field of gifted education. Jackson also serves on the Maryland Gifted and Talented Advisory Council.

Jackson holds a B.A. in environmental policy and B.A. in political science from Roanoke, an M.S. in education from Johns Hopkins University; and an M.A. in teaching from Hollins University.

Nicholas Zgorski ’10 has been promoted to director of digital marketing for Prognos Health, a leading health tech company headquartered in New York City. Zgorski moves into his new position after serving for two years as senior manager, digital marketing for Prognos.

Zgorski has held marketing positions for several other companies as well, including DataBank, Ltd., The Strouse Corporation and MOS Creative. Zgorski holds a B.B.A. from Roanoke.

A group of alumni gathered in Christiansburg, Virginia, in October to hold a surprise party for Taryn Thompson ’18 (pictured front row, center), who successfully defended her master’s thesis at Virginia Tech in the Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences Department. In photo, left to right, are Haylee McGuire ‘19, Pope Sy ‘20, Taryn; Alexandra Wegley ’18, Anita Lane ’18, Garrett Ruggieri ’20, Hayley Moe ’18, Brian Kerr ’18, Ben Campbell ’21, Kent Griffith ’18 and Matthew Puryear ’18.

Have news to share? Send it to us at rcmagazine@roanoke. Happy Holidays!