NEWS BRIEFS

CJA Names Boyajian Man of the Year

The Consolidated Jewelers Association (CJA) of Greater New York named GIA President William E. Boyajian its 2003 Man of the Year during a ceremony at the Copacabana in New York City Oct. 26.

Boyajian joins a group of industry luminaries who have previously been awarded the CJA Man of the Year Award, including the late Richard T. Liddicoat, former president and chairman of the board for GIA.

“I really appreciate this award and I accept it with great honor on behalf of GIA,” Boyajian said during the event. “Like many of you, I live a dream life. I have a great career in a great industry, and maybe the best job of all. I will always strive to meet the high ideals that this award and our organization represent. Thank you for your support of GIA and our great industry.”

The CJA donated the proceeds from the dinner to the Make-A-Wish Foundation in honor of Boyajian.

Graduate of the Year Announced

GIA has selected Graduate Gemologist Carolyn A. Segars, of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, as its 2004 Outstanding Distance Education Graduate of the Year. The award is presented annually by the Distance Education Training Council (DETC) to a GIA Distance Education student who has achieved extraordinary standards of academic and personal excellence. DETC is the national organization that accredits GIA’s Distance Education courses and programs.

Segars began working in the jewelry industry in 1996 and moved to Charleston, South Carolina, in 2001 when she began to work at Skatell’s Manufacturing Jewelers as a sales clerk. She enrolled in GIA’s Graduate Gemologist (G.G.) program in October 2002, and since receiving her G.G. diploma in June 2003, has been moved to the company’s corporate office where she is in charge of all appraisals.

“Anytime you further your education, you improve yourself,” Segars said. “Being a GIA Graduate Gemologist gives you instant respect in the jewelry industry. Whether dealing with customers, vendors or fellow workers, your opinion and ideas are automatically appreciated. I recommend that everyone in the industry seek this diploma.”

Alice Keller Receives RTL Award

Alice Keller, editor-in-chief of Gems & Gemology, was awarded the Richard T. Liddicoat Award for Distinguished Achievement at GIA’s annual Board of Governor’s Reception Nov. 10, 2003.
The award, GIA’s highest honor, is given to employees who demonstrate extraordinary talent and commitment to furthering the Institute’s nonprofit mission. Keller, who joined GIA in 1980, is the ninth recipient of the award since it was initiated in 1994.

“It is impossible to measure the benefits that your efforts have meant to the Institute,” GIA President William E. Boyajian said to Keller during the award presentation. “You truly exemplify the traits imbued by your mentor, Richard Liddicoat: hard work, dedication and selfless commitment.”

Boyajian also announced that the Board of Governors unanimously voted to elect past GIA President Glenn Nord as a Board member for life.

G&G Managing Editor Presents Lecture on Copyright

Gems & Gemology Managing Editor Tom Overton gave a presentation on “Copyright Issues in Electronic Back Issue Republication” during the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America Nov. 2-5. Overton, who is also a lawyer, discussed the steps G&G has taken to comply with copyright law as it makes the journal’s 70 years of back issues available on the GIA Web site.

Overton was also asked to speak at the Professional Issues Forum held by the Geoscience Information Society (GSIS). He discussed the recent Eldred case that upheld Congress’s 1998 extension of copyright terms.

Dona Dirlam, director of the Richard T. Liddicoat Gemological Library and Information Center, also attended the conference as chair of the exhibit booth of GSIS. The theme was Digitization in Geoscience Libraries. 

It included the new digital asset management system under development in GIA’s Visual Resources department under the leadership of Judy Colbert and Glenn Meyer.

GIA Wins Six PRSA Awards

GIA recently took home six awards from the 2003 Edward L. Bernays Mark of Excellence Awards competition hosted by the San Diego chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). It was the second consecutive year that the Institute won multiple Bernays awards.

Trophies included a Silver Bernays Award of Merit for the Institute’s annual Education Campaign and Bronze Awards for the GIA Insider; the GIA Endowment Fund Brochure, the GIA Tower of Brilliance Dedication Invitation and two videos – “Richard T. Liddicoat: A Celebration of Life” and “Diamond Laser Inscription.”

“It was an amazing night for GIA,” said Kathryn Kimmel, GIA’s vice president of Marketing and Public Relations. “Being recognized in this manner by our peers with so many awards was really a great tribute, not only to the consistently high quality of work performed by GIA’s communications professionals, but also to their superb talent and commitment. Everyone – individually, and through their teamwork – has contributed significantly to these awards, and I’m very proud of them.”

Twenty-Four Karat Club Elects Yonelunas to Membership

Thomas C. Yonelunas, chief executive officer of the GIA Gem Laboratory, has been elected as a member of the Twenty-Four Karat Club of the City of New York. For more than a century, club members have focused on bringing together business leaders who are dedicated to fostering the best interests of the jewelry industry. Yonelunas was chosen because he exhibits the high ideals imparted by the club, said Paul W. Nordt III, chairman of the board of directors.