San Francisco State University, Established 1899, 1600 Holloway Ave. SF, CA 94132

SFSU Public Affairs Press Release

Published by the Public Affairs Office at San Francisco State University, Diag Center.

#060--December 2, 1999
Contact: Office of Public Affairs; MEDIA ADVISORY
phone: 415/338-1665
e-mail: pubcom@sfsu.edu

SFSU's Centennial Gala at City Hall to honor actress Annette Bening, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and other notables on Thursday , Dec. 2

WHAT: San Francisco State University will honor 11 outstanding living alumni at its Centennial Gala on Thursday, Dec. 2, in the Rotunda of San Francisco's City Hall. In addition, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and actress Annette Bening will receive the President's Medal from San Francisco State University President Robert A. Corrigan.

WHEN AND WHERE: Thursday, Dec. 2, at San Francisco's City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, at 6:30 p.m.

DETAILS: At the final event celebrating its 100th anniversary, San Francisco State University will recognize 11 Distinguished Centennial Alumni, selected for their significant contributions to their fields. The honorees (only some of whom will appear) will include Willie L. Brown Jr. '55, San Francisco's current mayor and a 16-term member of the California Assembly; John Burton '54, the current president pro tempore of the California State Senate and a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives; Yvonne Cagle '81, one of four African American women astronauts and a medical doctor at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston; Ernest Gaines '57, the well-known author (The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, A Lesson Before Dying) who has received the National Book Critics Circle Award and a MacArthur Foundation grant; Danny Glover (attended from 1967 to 1972), star of the Lethal Weapon movie series, nominated for the Emmy Award for Lonesome Dove, and an advocate for social causes such as literacy and family violence prevention; George Marcus '65, the founder and chair of Marcus & Millichap Co., one of the nation's largest real estate investment brokerage firms, and a former trustee of the California State University and the CSU Foundation; Johnny Mathis (attended from 1954 to 1957), whose singing career has spanned more than four decades and resulted in more than 60 gold and platinum albums; Janice Mirikitani (graduate student in 1966), a city arts commissioner, the author of three books of poetry, the editor of eight anthologies, and the executive director of Glide Memorial Church; Kent Nagano '76, the music director of France's Opera de Lyon and music director of the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra, who has also been named an officer of the Order of Arts and Letters, France's second-highest civilian honor; and Ronnie Schell '58, whose long career as a stand-up comedian has been supplemented by his regular appearances on several television comedy series ("Gomer Pyle," "That Girl") and who will serve as the event's master of ceremonies.

Note: Alumni honorees slated to attend include Annette Bening, Willie L. Brown Jr., Yvonne Cagle, George Marcus, Janice Mirikitani, and Ronnie Schell, as well as President's Medal honoree Senator Dianne Feinstein.

SFSU's centennial celebration, commemorating the institution's founding in 1899 as the first state normal school, began this past March with a Founders' Week party featuring a 100-foot cake. The week culminated with the groundbreaking for a new, 760-bed student residence and services complex named the Village at Centennial Square.

A special hundred-year commencement ceremony, a series of lectures showcasing aspects of SFSU history, and performances and exhibits have also marked the centennial celebration.

MEDIA WHO PLAN TO ATTEND THE GALA MUST CALL THE S.F. STATE PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE IN ADVANCE AT (415) 338-1665.

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Last modified December 2, 1999, by Office of Public Affairs