West Los Angeles resident Victor M. Carter...

West Los Angeles resident Victor M. Carter received the Alexis de Tocqueville Society Award, the highest award given by United Way of America, in a ceremony at the Kennedy Center in Washington. Carter, honored as the outstanding volunteer leader in California, was cited for his lifelong commitment to racial equality.

William M. Kaula, professor of geophysics at UCLA, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences in recognition of his achievements in research. Kaula, 60, studies planetary and orbital dynamics in relation to the solar system’s origin and evolution. He joined the UCLA faculty in 1964 and served as chairman of the department of earth and space sciences from 1982 to 1984.

UCLA historian Eugen Webb’s book, “France, Fin de Siecle,” has been awarded the Commonwealth Club of California Gold Medal for nonfiction in 1986. His book documents the ways in which life was improving for the French masses in the 1880s and 1890s and is described as depicting “the discrepancy between material progress and spiritual dejection.”

Ruth Hirschman, general manager of KCRW public radio station, has been chosen to receive the annual Women of Achievement Award given by the American Assn. of University Women of Santa Monica.

The information systems faculty of the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA presented its first Information Systems Award for Executive Leadership to Sanford C. Sigoloff, chairman and president of Wickes Companies, for his leadership in the use of information systems.

Beverly Hills resident Stanley A. Wainer of Wyle Laboratories and Elvin (Ducky) Drake of Santa Monica, former UCLA track and field coach, were among the UCLA alumni, faculty, students and friends honored recently by the Alumni Assn. at the 42nd Alumni Awards of Excellence ceremony held on campus.

Olive G. Shine of Beverly Hills will become chairman of the Family Service Auxiliary of the Assistance League of Southern California at a luncheon Monday at league headquarters in Hollywood. The auxiliary maintains and promotes counseling and therapy programs, the Hollywood Senior Citizen Multipurpose Center and the Western Region American Project.

Gary Ernst, professor of geology and geophysics, has been appointed director of the UCLA branch of the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics. The research institute also has branches at UC Riverside, UC San Diego and the Lawrence Livermore and Los Alamos national laboratories.

Norma Gonzales has been elected president of the Santa Monica area Chamber of Commerce. Gonzales, district manager of the Southern California Gas Co., came here from Mexico in 1949. She was named Woman of the Year by the Santa Monica YWCA in 1986.

The UCLA Graduate School of Education has honored two educators who have made significant contributions to the field of education. They are Dr. Harry Handler, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, and Madeline Hunter, former principal of UCLA’s Corinne A. Seeds University Elementary School.

UCLA student Robert Orr has been chosen to receive the Chancellor’s Humanitarian Award for 1986-87. John Sarvey and Robyn Engel were first and second runners-up, respectively. The award, which will be made annually, was recently established by Chancellor Charles E. Young to honor undergraduate students who have made outstanding contributions to public service. Orr, founder and director of the Central America Refugee Aid Project, received $300. Sarvey received $100 for his work with the Red Cross and other projects and Engel received $100 for his work at MacLaren Hall, which is a shelter for abused children, the UCLA Medical Center and as a camp counselor.

F. Ken Schonlau, director of the CLARE Foundation for 16 years, was honored at a farewell luncheon at the Bay View Plaza Holiday Inn in Santa Monica. Schonlau helped form the foundation, which began with a one-room storefront on Pico Boulevard in 1971, and is now a community alcohol program with 10 centers in Mar Vista, Venice and the Santa Monica area. His future plans include continuation of his work as a public activist, teaching and the publication of educational papers.

Bernard Briskin will become the new president of Temple Israel of Hollywood, 7300 Hollywood Blvd., during services June 19.

Jennifer Goldstein, a ninth-grader at Webster Junior High School, was recently honored by Jewish War Veterans of the USA, Westwood Post No. 658, for her contributions to the community and excellence in school services. Goldstein was presented with the Albert Silverburg Award, a $200 savings bond and a certificate of merit.

Brentwood resident Peter L. Eppinga is the new vice chairman of the Southern California chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. Eppinga is vice president of real estate services and products for Coldwell Banker Real Estate Group and chairman of the Stop Arthritis Telethon Committee.

Grace Millington of Mar Vista has been named rehabilitation coordinator at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital in Marina del Rey. The nonprofit hospital recently received a three-year accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities.

Dr. Leonard J. Savage was re-elected adviser for the American College of Chiropractic Orthopedists during the national group’s recent convention at the Registry Hotel in Universal City.

Carol Phillips of Century City recently was installed as the new president of the Assn. of Legal Administrators during the group’s 1987 conference in Orlando, Fla.