Gino Torretta becomes Alumni President

Continuing a Legacy

e led the University of Miami to back-to-back national football championships in the early 1990s, scoring two straight perfect regular seasons, an NCAA national title, and the Heisman Trophy. Gino Torretta (B.B.A. ’91), a financial advisor for Prudential Securities, is now ready to lead the Alumni Association to victory as its new president beginning this June.

A member of the Board of Trustees and the President’s Circle national chair, Torretta also has served as president-elect of the association for the past year. But it’s his role as an alumnus that will serve him best in his new position.

“As an alumnus of the University, I certainly am aware of the activities and organizations that catch my interest,” says Torretta. “And through the Alumni Association’s strategic plan, in which we formed eight focus groups to identify alumni needs, we also know what type of programming appeals to the many different groups that comprise our alumni. There is something for everyone. We have a lot going on, and we want to get the word out to our alumni.”

Torretta also will draw on his expertise from years on the field to aid him in his newfound role. “As a quarterback, you have to help coordinate your team to all move in the same direction,” he says. “Just taking that attitude and trying to bring everything together will strengthen our unit. Whether it’s business, engineering, or the medical school, all interests would be better served if they united forces under the Alumni Association.”

One of outgoing President Betty G. Amos’ (B.B.A. ’73, M.B.A. ’76) goals that Torretta would like to see come to fruition is a new alumni house. “I think that is an excellent idea. Many students aren’t really involved with the Alumni Association and don’t know what it is all about,” he says. “A new house on campus would really help. We want to tell them who we are while they are still students, and explain the mutually beneficial relationship that we can have once they graduate.”

Torretta is especially excited to take over the reins of the Alumni Association during a time of great change for the University. He points to major developments such as the opening of the Ryder Center, and even more importantly, a new president, as contributing to a bold new direction for the University.

“I think Donna Shalala will be an incredible president. I remember when we played Wisconsin in 1989, and they had an awful football program. She did a tremendous job of raising funds for the university and turning that around,” he says. “You can be great in athletics and academics; I don’t think you have to have one and not the other. We showed that at UM, and she showed that at Wisconsin. She’ll be awesome for the University.”

The Alumni Association and other constituencies around the University are just as enthusiastic about Torretta coming onboard. It is their hope—as well as his—that his presence will bolster enthusiasm and draw support from alumni and others who were previously uninvolved with the University. “I’m really looking forward to furthering the momentum of UM,” says Torretta. “I want to get as many people excited about the University as possible, and capitalize on all the great things that can happen when we come together as a team.”

Trendsetting Alumna Lectures on Secrets of Success

arbara Milo Ohrbach didn’t know her career moves would cause a series of waves throughout the fashion industry, but she knew she was doing what she loved. And that is the most important thing, she says. As the fifth featured speaker of the University’s Distinguished Alumni Lecture Series hosted by Stuart (A.B. ’64) and Julia Chang Bloch and recently held in New York City, the well-known author of 17 books on home decor, gardening, antiques, and travel relates her story with rich anecdotes and keen insights.

“There is only one success: to be able to spend your life in your own way, and that’s what I’ve done,” she says. “I don’t believe you should do things for too long, only as long as they interest you and help you grow.” Jumping headfirst from one pursuit to another has always come natural to her, having built a successful career in retailing, the corporate world, and now as a best-selling author and lecturer.

She credits the University of Miami for the start of her success. “I went to UM because of the reputation of the art department; I wanted to be a painter in those days,” she says. “It was a wonderful place filled with creativity. We were like a family.” A turning point for Ohrbach came when one of her professors cosigned a $1,200 loan for her to travel to Europe with a group from the department. That summer—spent touring London, Paris, Rome, Greece, and visiting couture houses—opened up a whole new world to Ohrbach. “It took me six years to pay off the loan, but the trip made me decide to go into the fashion business.”

She was a trailblazer everywhere she worked—as a buyer and fashion director for Jordan Marsh, a vice president who revitalized Vogue and Butterwick patterns, and proprietor of the well-known New York boutique, Cherchez. Among her customers were Jackie Onassis, Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, Grace Kelly, and designers Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. Her popular book, A Scented Room, gave rise to the potpourri craze.

“There is so much ugliness in the world; it lifts our spirits to appreciate beauty,” says Ohrbach, who serves as editor-at-large of Arts and Antiques magazine. “I love beautiful things. Once you have such a passion, it never leaves you.”

A Parent’s Job Is Never Done

ttention empty nesters! You thought your job was finished once your child went away to college—an important achievement and transition symbolic of all their hard work—and yours. Still, as they draw closer to fulfilling their dreams, your encouragement and support are as important as ever. You can continue to enhance your student’s formative college years through your affiliation with the University of Miami Parents Fund.

The Parents Fund serves as a vehicle for increasing parental support of the Annual Fund, which aids the University in a wide variety of ways. By providing student financial aid scholarships; underwriting the scholarly research of faculty members; enhancing student life inside the classroom and beyond; and supporting values, ethics, and leadership education programs, Annual Fund dollars are vital.

Through programs such as the Parent Involvement Luncheon, the Parents Fund educates parents on opportunities to become more involved with their student’s educational experience at the University. One major outlet for such opportunities is the University of Miami Alumni Association, which is not exclusive to alumni but often includes parents, family, and friends as well. There are several National Alumni Clubs located across the country that provide a variety of educational, service, networking, and social activities for parents, including spirited tailgating and game-watching parties. You also can take advantage of alumni travel programs that offer fun and educational adventures throughout the world as well as those that provide the thrill of Hurricane football travel packages.

If playing 18 holes appeals to you, you may be interested to know that parents are invited to participate in the ’Canes Alumni Golf Tour, which has six tour sites for the 2001 season. Is hospitality your forte? Then your involvement with the Miami Circle, which provides support to the Office of Admission, will find you volunteering at college fairs and hosting student send-off parties for new students. For those of you interested in mentoring and career development activities, programs such as the Career Mentor Program, offered through the University’s Toppel Career Center, puts students in touch with others in their chosen career fields—like you—for valuable guidance and advice. The result is a mutually rewarding experience.

For more information on the Parents Fund or the University of Miami Alumni Association, please call Bill Tallman at 305-284-2872. Since many of you might be swapping stories and photos with your child via e-mail, why not keep abreast of University news and events online as well by subscribing to the free online newsletter, E-Alumni Connections. To sign up, go to http://listserv.miami.edu/archives/alumni.html.

Alumni Satisfaction Drives Focus of Study

hat has your Alumni Association done for you lately? This is precisely the question that the association, along with the Office of Alumni Relations and Division of University Advancement, set out to discover through the hiring of a major consulting firm, the Art & Science Group, Inc.

“With the dawn of a new millennium, major technological advances sweeping the nation, and a new president for our nation as well as for our University, change is undoubtedly in the air,” says Kathy Uitvlugt, outgoing assistant vice president for Alumni Relations. “We realized it was the perfect time to employ the skills of a professional consulting group to ensure that we are best serving our alumni, and if not, to discover ways in which we may serve them better. Our effectiveness as a University depends on it.”

This fall the firm conducted some 483 in-depth interviews with alumni to find out what were our strengths—and our weaknesses—in reaching out to our main constituency. Polled alumni spanned all generations, representing five enrollment eras, pre-1960, and then the four subsequent decades of the 1960s through the 1990s. They also represent all geographic areas throughout the United States.

Among some of the study’s highlights, it was no surprise to discover that a rising percentage of alumni are interested in electronic communications with their alma mater, especially from the 1990s era. Nearly all polled alumni reported a strong affinity for their alumni publication, Miami magazine, which 88 percent said was their primary source of information about the University. Surprisingly, however, more than half did not know that they are members of the Alumni Association; in fact, all alumni are members.

When asked about their undergraduate years at the University, most alumni rated their experiences moderately high, noting their classes and professors as having had the greatest impact on them. This certainly explains why study results show that alumni are most interested in hearing about or supporting their specific departments.

“By identifying these perceptions, we have assessed the wants and needs of our alumni—across generations, schools and colleges, and states,” says Uitvlugt. “Their University will respond accordingly by continuing to enhance the lifetime relationship between alma mater and students, and ultimately alumni.”

Perry Clark: A Great Score for Men’s Basketball Team

e got his start in the college ranks as a recruiter for a high-profile Division I college. He took over the reins of an ailing basketball program, suffering through losing seasons early on but then raising eyebrows with a string of winning seasons and NCAA tournament appearances. He has been named his conference’s coach of the year. In many ways, Perry Clark, new head coach of the Hurricane Men’s basketball team, is a lot like his predecessor and close friend Leonard Hamilton, who recently resigned to take the head coaching job with the NBA Washington Wizards.

Clark joined the University after 11 seasons as head coach at Tulane University.

If any head coaching performance is akin to reinventing the wheel, it’s the job Clark did at Tulane after arriving there in 1988 to resurrect a program that had been dismantled following a point-shaving scandal.

What he accomplished after only three years is nothing short of miraculous, leading the Green Wave to a 22-9 record; a national ranking—the school’s first in four decades; a Metro Conference title; and a first round win in the NCAA tournament. Now here, Clark finished his first season after leading the Hurricanes to their fifth straight postseason appearance, where they were narrowly defeated in the closing seconds of the game—losing 60-58 to the Auburn Tigers in the National Invitation Tournament.

“I think we had a very, very good year,” he says. “Not too many teams can lose four starters and play in a conference like the Big East and still go to postseason play.”

Hurricane Football Gains Ground with Larry Coker

hough a new college football season is still months away, Larry Coker has been keeping very busy with his plans to improve an already potent offensive attack. “We’re in the process now of becoming better than what we were,” says the new head coach of the University’s storied football program.

An improved offense sounds scary, especially for Miami’s opponents. Last season, the Hurricane offense averaged almost 43 points per game, finishing the season with an 11-1 record, a Sugar Bowl victory, and a number 2 national ranking. Next season’s squad returns most of its offensive starters.

But Coker, the team’s former offensive coordinator, is dead serious about his squad getting better. He’s been described as a calm, affable man who thinks everything through and doesn’t make hasty decisions. Patience, however, may be his greatest attribute.

The Miami promotion is his first collegiate head-coaching job after several assistant-coaching stints that took him to some of the most legendary programs in college football, including the University of Oklahoma, Ohio State, and finally the University of Miami. Coker came to UM in 1995, when former head coach Butch Davis hired him from Ohio State. He becomes Miami’s first head coach in 26 years to be hired from within the staff.

Don’t expect Coker, though, to copy his predecessors. “I’m going to be my own person,” he says. “Things that we did with Butch that I really liked, we’ll keep. But I don’t want to try to be somebody I’m not. Like all the past coaches here, I’ll put my own personal stamp on this program.”

Kathy Uitvlugt Says Goodbye After Nine Years

fter nearly a decade of leading alumni troops, Kathy Uitvlugt, assistant vice president for Alumni Relations, will be leaving her post to relocate to Austin, Texas. Donna Arbide (M.B.A. ’95), having worked in the Division of Advancement for nearly 15 years, has been named her successor.

“It is with much regret that I am leaving,” says Uitvlugt. “I feel as though UM and its alumni have become part of my family, and hope that I have made some impact by assessing their needs and enhancing our outreach.”

She need not hope. Under her leadership, alumni programming was bolstered tenfold, not only locally but across the nation. She and her dedicated “Team Alumni” reinstituted class reunions, enhanced alumni education programs, developed the President’s Council, increased alumni participation through the Annual Fund, and recently completed a new five-year strategic plan to lead the Alumni Association into the next decade.

“Using our new strategic directives, we pushed forward to develop our online community, MiamiAlumni.net,” she says. “It’s a great way for alumni to stay in touch.”

Uitvlugt will leave her mark as a fun-loving and spirited leader who got things done, and had a good time while doing it. “Throughout my time at UM, I have been blessed with wonderful staff members and fabulous volunteers. I am proud and excited about the work that will continue over the next decade,” she says. “It definitely has been ‘great to be a Miami Hurricane.’ ”