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CORVALLIS, Ore. - Four distinguished Oregon State University alumni - and one rising star - have returned to campus for OSU's Homecoming (Oct. 30-Nov. 1) as part of the Alumni Fellows Program sponsored by the OSU Alumni Association.

The five alums meet with OSU students, staff and faculty today and teach courses in the popular "Classes Without Quizzes" program. They also will be honored at a luncheon and a dinner, also today, and appear in both Saturday's Homecoming parade and the Beavers' football game against Arizona State University.

This year's fellows include:

• John Gray, a graduate from the College of Business;
• Leila Keltner, a graduate from the College of Home Economics (now the College of Health and Human Sciences);
• Margaret Leinen, a graduate from the College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences;
• and Robin Richardson, a graduate from the College of Pharmacy.

The fifth honoree is Chad Tackett, a graduate from the College of Health and Human Sciences, who is the third-ever recipient of the alumni association's Young Alumni Award.

Gray, of Portland, graduated from OSU with a BS in business 1940, and is perhaps best known as developer of the premier Northwest destination resorts Salishan, Sunriver and Skamania Lodge. After his time at Oregon State, he served in World War II and then earned an MBA from Harvard in1947. He went to work for the Oregon Saw Chain Corp., which became Omark Industries, and rose to be CEO during his 37 years with the company. He has been a leader in a wide variety of civic and philanthropic organizations and was named Oregon's Outstanding Philanthropist in 1991.

Keltner, of Portland, earned her two degrees in family life - a BS in 1976 and an MS in 1978 - from OSU. She also holds an MS, a PhD and an MD from Case Western Reserve University. She is medical director of CARES Northwest of Portland, which serves 1,400 children each year, providing child abuse assessment, prevention and treatment and recovery services. She is actively involved in providing medical care for CARES clients, and she is a nationally recognized expert in the field of child abuse prevention and treatment.

Leinen, of Alexandria, Va., earned an MS in geological oceanography from OSU in 1975 and a PhD from the University of Rhode Island in 1980. She has had a distinguished career as a researcher and science administrator, and now works on the scientific front lines of the fight to control greenhouse gases. Her career includes seven years as assistant director for geosciences at the National Science Foundation, and she is now vice president and chief science officer of San Francisco-based Climos, Inc., which seeks to develop commercially viable ways to mitigate carbon emissions.

Richardson, of Tigard, earned a BA in pharmacy from OSU in 1984. A vice president of The ODS Companies, he is a recognized expert in pharmacy management and community practices, and in managed care. He has a special passion for the fight against diabetes, and is on the national board of the American Diabetes Association.

Tackett, this year's honored young alumni, is a Portlander who earned a BS in exercise and sport science from OSU in 1994. He specializes in personal training and weight management, and is founder and president of Global Health and Fitness, a web-based consulting company with more than 50,000 worldwide clients. The company provides customized nutrition and fitness plans online, and seeks to help people make gradual changes in their lifestyle to improve their health and quality of life. Tackett also has dedicated himself to volunteer support of efforts to feed Oregon's hungry, working with the Oregon Food Bank.