
Lifetime achievement award
General Frank J. Grass, ’97
Four-star General Frank J. Grass works in the Pentagon and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He advises federal leaders, such as President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, on matters such as homeland security and natural-disaster response. He communicates the positions of the more than 460,000 men and women in the National Guard, and is responsible for ensuring they are ready to mobilize.
Grass, who is from Arnold, Mo., enlisted in the Army National Guard in 1969 at age 18.
He earned an associate’s degree in 1975, then went to work for the Army Corps of Engineers in St. Louis. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1985 in Minnesota, and was next assigned to Missouri State’s ROTC program.
From 1988-91 he was a military science instructor here. “I loved teaching at MSU.” At night, he took classes for a master’s degree in resource planning. He completed his thesis in 1997.
On Sept. 11, 2001, he was a colonel working just three miles from the Pentagon attack. The experience of handling operations that day, combined with his advanced degrees, started him on a path toward the highest levels of military leadership. He took over the National Guard Bureau in September 2012.
How did your time at Missouri State help you succeed?
I would not be wearing this uniform today, as a four-star, without the master’s degree. Without it, I wouldn’t have gotten into the National War College, which pushed my career forward. The master’s program also changed the way I think about things. You have to start making decisions, then justifying those decisions, and being able to fight for your decisions. Doing the research, taking a position and fighting for the position is a lot of what I do now.
This year’s Homecoming theme was “Bears Forever!” Besides a Bear, what will you be forever?
I will be a father, a grandfather and a husband forever.
The Late Show with David Letterman
In June 2014, Grass was interviewed on The Late Show with David Letterman. During his interview, he discussed recruiting for the National Guard and told stories from his career.
More about General Frank J. Grass
- Career:
- Chief, National Guard Bureau
- Residence:
- Washington, D.C.
- Family:
- Wife, Patricia
- Five children

Outstanding alumni award
Barry E. Johnson, ’74
Barry E. Johnson is a leader in Miami, presiding over the largest business organization in South Florida.
He wasn’t always in the habit of meeting with Fortune 500 moguls. He earned a broadcasting degree at MSU, and still has the resonant voice to prove it.
At 23, he was one of the youngest TV anchors in the nation at Springfield station KMTC 27, then an ABC-affiliate owned by long-time MSU supporters Jane and Ken Meyer. He also worked for their KTXR radio station, then for radio stations KTTS in Springfield and WIL in St. Louis.
He shifted into corporate work, building a career at AT&T. For more than 25 years, he moved up the ladder — and eventually moved to Miami as vice president of AT&T Corporate Affairs.
About seven years ago, he was chosen to lead the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.
You attend Florida alumni gatherings, and helped re-establish Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at MSU. Why is it important to stay involved in your alma mater?
Your undergraduate work is a defining part of your life — that common thread can be powerful. Life is a lot like Legos. You build on the base and make wonderful things happen. For me, life started when I came to college in Springfield. My base was, and is, Missouri State.
What tips do you have for alumni who visit Miami?
Miami is what the U.S. is going to look like in the future. The community is a minority-majority area, with Hispanics, African-Americans and people from Caribbean countries leading the demographics. Sure, you should see beaches, the Miami Heat, the luxury areas with Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bentleys — but the real Miami is the neighborhoods. Go to Little Haiti, try a Cuban restaurant, explore the Everglades or visit the Freedom Tower (our version of Ellis Island where tens of thousands of Cubans were processed into the U.S. in the 1960s). Come with an open mind and enjoy the diversity!
More about Barry E. Johnson
- Career:
- President and CEO, Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce
- Residence:
- Coral Springs, Fla.
- Family:
- Wife, Cathy
- Two grown children
- Three grandchildren
- Brother, Chris is also a Bear!

Outstanding young alumni award
Gloria Cohen Shomo, ’08
When you’ve worked on blockbuster movies, married someone you’re crazy about and overcome cancer, what’s next? Move to paradise, of course, and work in Hawaii’s growing film and television industry.
It’s interesting that Gloria Cohen Shomo pursued an electronic arts degree, since she didn’t see any movies as a child in a large Mennonite family. It wasn’t until college that she discovered a passion for film that inspired her to move to Los Angeles after graduation.
Her first film job was serving as a production assistant on Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.” She went on to assist on “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol,” and has since worked as a visual effects coordinator on “Moneyball,” “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked” and “Little Fockers.” She was part of the company that won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects in “Life of Pi.”
In her most recent projects, she was on production teams as a liaison between creative types (artists who animate characters, create models, light scenes, etc.) and supervisors who oversee a film’s artistic direction.
Why is Missouri State special to you?
It was in college that I found my love for technology and film, and I grew by leaps and bounds because of a well-rounded program and professors who encouraged creativity.
You moved to Hawaii to explore work opportunities and have a fresh start after beating breast cancer in 2012. What would you say to alumni fighting cancer?
Remember that this will pass and you CAN beat it. When you’re in the middle of treatments and surgeries, it seems like it is never going to end. But it will. Keep a positive outlook. Keep close with family and friends, because they are your biggest support system and they will help you get through this.
This year’s Homecoming theme was “Bears Forever.” Besides a Bear, what will you be forever?
True to my beliefs and my values — faith, integrity and honesty. That’s my core.
More about Gloria Cohen Shomo
- Career:
- Freelance coordinator in the film industry
- Member of the producers Guild of America
- Residence:
- Honolulu, Hawaii
- Family:
- Husband Chris Shomo
- Parents Phil and Gina Cohen
- Eight siblings

Excellence in public affairs
Judith Rowland, ’11
This is not likely the last time you hear of Judith Rowland.
Some day she may be acknowledged as one of the people who helped eradicate polio, or she may be on a ballot near you — her long-term goal is to run for a Missouri office.
She’s only been in the workforce a few years, after earning a bachelor’s degree in political science at MSU and a master’s at the London School of Economics, but she’s already connecting with national and global policymakers as the manager of a campaign called The End of Polio, part of the Global Poverty Project.
In 2012, there were only 223 worldwide cases of polio, a highly contagious disease that attacks the nerves and may cripple or kill. It is prevented by vaccine and is currently endemic only in Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan, but was recently confirmed in war-torn Syria. Polio spreads rapidly among those who have not been immunized — so any outbreaks cause concern that the tremendous progress made against the disease might be rolled back.
Rowland was recently part of the largest international meeting about polio since 1988, in which heads of state pledged to increase commitments to global initiatives and finally rid the world of the disease by 2018.
What do you do during your time off?
I love to travel; I have been to 68 countries. I come home every month or so — I love my parents! I also like to check in with campus and my sorority (Gamma Phi Beta). In New York, I study dance for fun at the Joffrey Ballet School. And this is an odd one, but I am a really passionate kayaker! I have done trips and races in New York and the U.K.
This year’s Homecoming theme was “Bears Forever!” Besides a Bear, what will you be forever?
I will forever be optimistic about the prospect of ending extreme poverty. I have been able to meet the most incredible people, entrepreneurs and community leaders. I see inspiration, I see love,
I see compassion.
More about Judith Rowland
- Career:
- Global campaigns coordinator, Global Poverty Project
- Residence:
- New York City, NY
- Family:
- Parents Mark and Laura (MSU alumna)
- Siblings Samuel and Olivia

Award of appreciation
Ivan Milton
Ivan Milton retired from Missouri State in 2009 after 33 years of service, with the distinction of being the longest-tenured athletic trainer MSU has ever had.
Milton established the curriculum for athletics training at MSU. In his first year at Missouri State, he opened and supplied the athletics training room in the then-new Hammons Student Center. Four years later, he opened another training room in the Forsythe Athletics Center.
Milton was the driving force behind a bill passed by the Missouri General Assembly that requires all Missouri athletic teams to have a licensed certified athletic trainer available. He also played an instrumental part in the establishment of a regional sports medicine clinic at the University for the treatment and rehabilitation of athletics injuries. He partnered with southwest Missouri physicians to establish a consulting physicians program in which some 30 doctors are available to MSU athletes in many specialties.
He was inducted into the Missouri Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame in 1992.
What are your favorite MSU memories?
Taking care of the student athletes on a daily basis. Seeing them recover and get back to what they like doing was incredible.
Why is Missouri State special to you?
The University administration, the coaches and the athletes in sports medicine gave me such a great opportunity. I was allowed to do what I wanted to do personally, and that was the most satisfying. Their willingness to let me take the program and run with it was outstanding. They let me bring together the opportunities that were in Springfield and really develop the combination of sports and health care.
This year’s Homecoming theme was “Bears Forever.” Besides a Bear, what will you be forever?
I think I’ll be an athletic trainer forever. But there’s that old saying “Proud to be a Bear,” and I will be a Bear forever as well — and I’m proud to be.
More about Ivan Milton
- Career:
- Emeritus professor of Missouri State athletic training
- Residence:
- Springfield, Mo.
- Family:
- Wife, Janet (who worked for MSU as an administrative assistant)
- Three children including daughter, Heidi Duff, who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from MSU
Leave a Reply