Four Hispanic Educators Honored

Richard Thome, a Capistrano Unified School District administrator, Elizabeth Cotton of Rancho Santiago College, John Martinez of UC Irvine and Serafin Zasueta of Saddleback College have been selected as recipients of the ninth annual Outstanding Hispanic Educator Awards by the Irvine Council of the League of United Latin American Citizens.

The four, cited for their contributions to future Latino leaders in Orange County, were honored at a special educators’ recognition awards program held recently at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station Officers Club.

The League of United Latin American Citizens’ primary goal is to promote and provide educational opportunities for Latino youth.

Irvine resident Sue Wilbur, who completed bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history from USC and is completing her doctoral studies at UCLA, has been appointed director of UC Irvine’s office of relations with schools and colleges.

She will oversee the office, which includes developing cooperative educational relationships between UC Irvine and California schools and colleges.

Wilbur has been acting director of the office since April, 1991.

Daniel Stetson, with 12 years of seafaring experience as well as seven years in the Coast Guard reserve, has been named director of maritime affairs at the Dana Point-based Marine Institute. Stetson, a director of the National Foundation of Wheelchair Tennis and chairman of the Wimbledon West Charity Tennis Tournament will direct the institute’s programs aboard the tall ship Pilgrim in Dana Point.

Newport Beach resident George Paley, who over the years has left a trail of philanthropic contributions in New York, Florida and California, will be honored Nov. 1 at the Irvine Marriott by the Orange County Bureau of Jewish Education for those accomplishments.

Susie Vanderlip, actress and dancer from Orange, and her producer, Terri Quinlan of Seal Beach, received first place in the Orange County Fair Educational Video competition with their production of “Legacy of Obsession.”

Vanderlip blended modern and jazz dance, contemporary music and dramatic monologues in a 20-minute performance that tells the story of a teen-age girl growing up in an alcoholic home.

Goal Strikers, a soccer team of girls aged 15 and 16 and sponsored by the Mission Viejo/Saddleback Valley Elks Lodge, won first place in its division at the recent Rainbow Cup tournament in Honolulu. Theresa Summa led the team, scoring six goals, the most of any players at the competition.

Fullerton resident JoAnn C. Brannock, a Fullerton College psychology instructor, has been named president-elect of Psi Beta National Honor Society Council and next year will lead the national community and junior colleges psychology group.

Citing his research on white-collar crime, Gilbert Geis, UCI professor emeritus of criminology, law and society, received the third annual Donald R. Cressey Award from the National Assn. of Certified Fraud Examiners. Geis has been with UCI since 1971 and has received other prestigious awards for his research.

Cypress College theater arts instructor Kaleta Brown of Garden Grove received the college’s Outstanding Development Award while Sheila O’Connor, a Cypress resident and Cypress College student, was honored with a $250 scholarship from the Southern California Health Information Assn.

Orange Coast College has named its computing center after longtime faculty member John R. Clark, who recently retired after 32 years of teaching as a math professor.

The 1990-91 Faculty Member of the Year also assisted in the college’s computer department and is credited with teaching 24 different computer classes, 15 of which he developed.

The facility will be called the John R. Clark Computing Center.

Submit items and pictures to Three Cheers, The Times, c/o Herbert J. Vida, 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, Calif., 92626.