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Melissa Rothermel Biernacinski, '06 BA Journalism & Media Studies, has been named director of public relations/reputation manager of Henderson-based Imagine Communications. Previously, she served as director of media relations. Her experience includes local and national story pitching and coordination for print, TV, radio, and online; award nominations; crisis communication; press conference coordination; and legislative support. She is also Imagine’s resident editor. She has served as an industry speaker and author and has been honored by local organizations with several awards, including induction in 2014 into the Women’s Chamber of Commerce’s Women’s Hall of Fame. She and her husband, Marek Biernacinski, '05 BA Communication Studies, live in Henderson.  

Lonnie Wright, '78 BS Hotel Administration, '84 Masters of Secondary Education, '15 PhD Curriculum and Instruction, is a tenured professor at CSN where he has taught for 25 years. At CSN he has served as program director for the hospitality program, two terms as department chair in hospitality management, and as dean and associate vice president of the Hospitality Institute. He previously taught at UNLV's William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration and served as a dean of the Hotel School at the American College of Singapore. An entrepreneur, he launched the Urban American Television Network — one of the first African-American television networks — as chairman/CEO and majority stockholder. Later he bought the controlling shares of Shetakis Wholesaler, a distributing company. He now has a partnership in a Carl's Jr. restaurant at McCarran International Airport. He and his wife have a consulting company, Hospitality International, that has trained Native American tribes to open hotels and casinos throughout the U.S. and Canada. He has been appointed by three governors to serve on the Governors Commission on Juvenile and Adult Corrections. He also serves on the board of Innovation International Charter School of Nevada and just finished serving as chairman of the Executive Board of the Better Business Bureau of Southern Nevada. He says he is most proud of having been a founder in 1977 of the UNLV Basketball Alumni Association, which helps former student-athletes return to finish their degrees; starting a program at CSN to train homeless people in culinary arts with the Salvation Army; and the Hospitality International Training program, which provides culinary training for prisoners. He says he loves giving back to the community, just as the community gave to him when the Upward Bound program paid for him to take college courses while he was a student at Western High School. His hobbies include chess, golf, traveling, and spending time with family. He and his wife, Sherrie, a retired hotel executive, have three grown children and four grandchildren.  

Darin Prescott, '15 DNP, is the CEO of the new Lower Sioux Health Care Center, an entity of the Lower Sioux Indian Community located in southwest Minnesota. This was the tribe's first medical clinic ever. He is an enrolled member of the Lower Sioux Indian Community. He lives in Morton.

Mason Trafford, '09 BS Business Administration Accounting, is a professional soccer player with Miami FC. He recently married Claudia Sarti Sturge. His hobbies include movies, travel, and food. He lives in Miami.  

Laurel Hill,  '15 BS Hotel Administration, is part of Marriott International's Voyage leadership development program. She is based at the Irvine Marriott in California. While she initially asked to be part of Voyage's sales program, she switched to housekeeping because the program was seeking someone who was fluent in Spanish and had experience in that area. She had gained experience in housekeeping while at UNLV when she participated in MGM Resorts International's hospitality internship program at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino. In her current job she is involved with an innovative next-generation housekeeping system and in-room recycling program. Next-generation housekeeping expedites the rooms to the housekeepers based on priority, using ITouches rather than old-school clipboards. She said that allows for enhanced communication with special requests, better guest service, and higher departmental productivity. The in-room recycling program is a gage for the company to see how the guests feel about recycling. She lives in Irvine.

Willanne Winchester, '82 BS Hotel Administration, is a memorialist and managing member of Memorials Worldwide, a family-run business offering memorials with the scattering of cremated remains (ashes) at spiritual, cultural, and historic sites around the world. She lives in Vail, Arizona.

Patricia McAtee, '03 BS Hotel Administration, has accepted an offer as a child and family therapist and moved to the West Coast in August. Previously, she had lived in Illinois where she worked first with domestic violence perpetrators, then in the substance abuse field, and finally in the chemical dependency field. After leaving UNLV she earned a master's degree in counseling psychology.

Miranda Kitterlin-Lynch, '10 PhD Hospitality Administration, is a hospitality administration professor in the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Administration at Florida International University. She and her husband, Jeremy Lynch, recently had their first child, daughter MaryJane. The family lives in Miami. 

Tony Canepa, '03 BA Film, is the creative director for the Tacoma Rainiers baseball team, the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. His sports career began at UNLV as Hey Reb!, which led to a role with the Las Vegas 51s. He is also a freelance designer and illustrator, creating work for clients around the world. His work has garnered numerous awards, including three National ADDY awards presented by the American Advertising Federation. He enjoys drawing, sculpting, and mixed martial arts, which he began as a member of the UNLV boxing club. He, wife Kelly, and dog Desilu live in Seattle.

Staci Shute Shelman, '11 BS Hotel Management, is the head of the group sales department at an 8,000-seat concert and Broadway theatre in Kansas City, Missouri, called Starlight Theatre. She is also a member of the marketing department, so has had the opportunity to be creative, learn marketing strategies for Broadway consumers, and also dip her toes in some public relations. Previously, she worked at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, where she originally had worked as an intern while in college. Later she moved to the South Point as events manager for the arena. There she learned a great deal about arena operations at a venue where the main events included equestrian competitions, rodeos, and BMX and dirt bike racing. She recently married and is busy painting, refinishing, and furnishing their new home. The couple lives in Lawrence, Kansas.

Jonathan Bell, '00 BS Hotel Administration, is senior vice president of global casino credit for the Las Vegas Sands Corp. In 2009, he earned an MBA at Arizona State University.

Craig Tolchin, '95 BS Hotel Administration, is the team lead for integrations at Amadeus Hospitality. Celebrating his 15th year with the company, he leads a worldwide team that implements integrations between Amadeus sales & catering solutions and hotel property management systems. He works remotely from his home office outside Denver. He and his wife have two dogs. They live Highlands Ranch, Colorado.