PSU Magazine Spring 2004

ALUM NOTES ' Michael Fritz MBA is a deputy mission direcLOr with USAlD Central Asia. Fritz has served in Almaty, Kazakhstan, for the past two years. The federal govern– ment agency extends assistance Lo countries recovering from disaster, trying LO escape poverty, and engaging in democratic reforms. Amelia Joseph is a family law and criminal defense attorney practicing since 1985 in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Virginia Silvey is executive director at Friends of the Chil– dren in Portland, an agency which provides long-term adult mentors for children in need. Carl Christensen MSW is a visiting assistant professor and director of field education at the Rochester Institute of Technol– ogy Department of Social Work in Rochester, ew York. ' Richard Donaldson MSW is employed as a mental health clinician for Stanislaus County's (California) Behavioral Health. He works with families referred by Child Protective Services as an alternative Lo court. Donald– son, who has been with Stanis– laus County since 1991, says he finds the work exciting and challenging. Clayton Brainerd , an interna– tional opera performer, will sing the role of Sir John Falstaff in Verdi's comic opera Falstaff on July 5 to 25 in the Liberty The– ater at the Astoria Music Festi– val. Brainerd (featured as the cover story in the fall 2002 PSU Magazine) has recently appeared in operas in Edinburgh, Carnegie Hall, Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, and at Paris Opera. Robert Countryman is senior vice president of client services at Capital Pacific Bank in Portland. Michael Osborne is chairman of the March of Dimes Greater Oregon chapter in Portland. Scott Stafford is a sales opera– tions supervisor with Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon in Portland. 7 Brad Hall is a marketing con– sultant with ChaseDesign, Inc., a brand and corporate identity development company for both national and international clien– Lele. Hall lives in Skaneateles, New York. Kevin Wong MS '90 is an assis– tant research scientist at the University of Maryland - Col– lege Park and senior associate at the Center for International Development and Conflict Man– agement. He is working on dis- Lance learning and education network projects for Kenya and Rwanda. Wong is married LO Christina Blume! MA '9 1, a senior research analyst with the Africa Bureau Information Cen– ter, USAlD Development In formation Services. M. Bradl ey Mill er is a police corporal with the Pearl Harbor Police Department in Hawaii. Dena Stock MAT '99 teaches Spanish al St. Mary's Academy in Portland. ' Ronald Graybeal is managing partner at Deloiue &: Touche, LLP, in Portland. David Lovell is an associate pro– fessor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Maryland - College Park. Philip Ratliff is the assistant circulation supervisor al PSU's Millar Library Ratliff received Serving the U.S. Senate for over a decade ARK PRATER '81 STAFFS THE TOUGH but important U.S. Senate Committee on Finance. It's a pressure cooker job, bu t he has stayed with iL for 14 years and through three stron g chairmen. Prater became th e commiuee's chief Lax counsel when Sen. Robert Packwood was chair. Packwood was one of the architects of the 1986 Tax Reform Act, which Prater describes as the last major Lax reform effon. From 1995 to 2001, he worked with then chair, the late Sen. William Roth, Jr., co-author of the Roth IRA. Prater now advises Sen. Chuck Grass– ley, who is working Lo reform the pension system, provide Lax relief for families with children, and lower marginal Lax rates across the board. Given the shifting personalities and the rigors of the Finance Commiuee's work, staff tu rnover is high. In fact, Prater is the only staff member remaining from the Packwood era. He attributes his longevity in pan Lo the committee's interest in maintaining continuity. 24 PSU MAGAZINE SPRING 2004 "There's a lot of detailed , deliberate compromising as a part of the tax code," he says. "It's helpful to have someone who knows the story behind why something turned out the way it did. " Prater stays because he still finds the job compelling, and it offers a unique position for a tax lawyer. He earned a law degree from Willamette University and a master of laws in taxation from University of Florida. Tax lawyers typically work to show the implications of the law, but Prater's job is the only one where a tax lawyer can actually change the law. He enjoys being able to make a difference. "Tax law affects everyone," says Prater. "With so many competing issues at stake, you have to find a balance between the way a law affects various groups of people. " He admits that politics can be frustrating at times; especially when they ensnare an act that he believes is good policy. Prater has found, however, that if a proposal has merit and support, it will eventually make its way into law. -Kelli Fields