Social Sciences and Public Affairs Honors Alumni

Five alumni were honored by the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs at an Oct. 6 luncheon. Ada County Sheriff Gary Rainey, a criminal justice graduate, was chosen as the 2006 Outstanding Alum by the college. Four other nominees were also honored at the Oct. 6 recognition luncheon.

Honorees were:
Gary Raney was nominated by the Department of Criminal Justice. Raney received his bachelor’s degree in 1986 and his master’s degree in 2005, both at Boise State. While in the graduate program, he received the Graduate Academic Excellence Award for 2003-04. Raney has served a number of Idaho agencies, including as chairman of the board for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Southwest Idaho and for the Ada County Youth Foundation and as a board member for the Family Advocacy Center and Drug Free Idaho. Criminal Justice chair Andy Giacomazzi noted that Raney “truly believes in the benefits of higher education and routinely recommends Boise State, the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs and the Department of Criminal Justice to his colleagues and deputies.”

Michael Renner was nominated by the Department of Psychology. Renner earned his bachelor’s in psychology from Boise State in 1977, then went on to earn a master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma and a master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He has been in his current position as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania sinc

e 2005. Prior to that, he served as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Nazareth College in Rochester, N.Y. While there, he oversaw the development of the College of Arts and Sciences as part of an academic reorganization. The position involved the oversight of 13 academic departments, the campus honors program, three interdisciplinary undergraduate programs and one interdisciplinary graduate program.

Michael Zuzel was nominated by the Department of Communication. After earning his bachelor’s degree magna cum laude in communication with a mass communication emphasis in 1982, he worked as an education reporter at The Idaho Statesman. In 1984, Zuzel moved to Vancouver, Wash., to work at The Columbian newspaper as first a features and education reporter, then as an editorial writer and columnist. In December 1998, he was named a fellow of the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism. He currently serves as assistant to Boise Mayor Dave Bieter. Zuzel has served on the board of the National Conference of Editorial Writers, and edited the group’s quarterly journal The Masthead. He has published several monographs and articles, as well as the book “Beyond Argument: A Handbook for Editorial Writers.”

Jeanette Rose Davis was nominated by the Department of Public Policy and Administration. A 2005 graduate of the master of public administration program, Davis is the public affairs specialist for the U.S. Forest Service at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise. In that role, she is the visible face of the federal government in the wake of fire and other natural disasters, restoring calm and respect to both the public and those public servants who are putting their lives on the line. In addition, she has worked to produce and staff community education events and written articles on a variety of natural resource management topics. Davis is a member of the Public Relations Society of America.

Sadie Babits was nominated by the Department of Political Science. She graduated from Boise State with honors in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in political science and communications. While at Boise State, Babits reported and hosted programs for Boise State Radio. After moving on to host “Morning Edition” for Arizona Public Radio, she won a 2004 Pew International Journalism Fellowship to report for National Public Radio on water resource issues in Kenya. She also did freelance reporting at the 2005 Tour de France for NPR’s “Only a Game” and “Day to Day.” She is currently the news director at Boise State Radio and the host of “All Things Considered” on NPR. Babits is winner of the 2005 National Edward R. Murrow Award for Investigative Journalism and 2005 Society of Environmental Journalists Award for Small Market Radio.