Linda B. Sayed ’78, '85M
Distinguished Alumna of the Year
Linda B. Sayed '78, '85M, is a North Carolina Certified Family Law Specialist. Since 2005, she has been a partner at Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, with an office in downtown Wilmington. She previously practiced as an associate attorney with Ward & Smith, P.A. Before becoming an attorney, she taught chemistry at John T. Hoggard High School and UNCW and worked as an assistant principal with New Hanover County Schools. She has served as president of the Fifth Judicial Bar and vice president of the local chapter of the N.C. Association of Women Attorneys. Sayed has received the Addison Hewlett Jr. Award for exemplary pro bono service and has been recognized for her pro bono work by the Wilmington office of Legal Aid of N.C., Inc.
She is a member of the UNCW Foundation Board, UNCW Society (Visionary Level), Clocktower Society and the Wilmington Society (Platinum Level). In 2017, she and her husband, Dr. Yousry Sayed, and Quality Chemical Laboratories (founded by Dr. Sayed in 1998) committed a $5 million gift to the university to support the development of innovative pharmaceutical sciences and chemistry programs.
Sayed holds a B.A. in chemistry and an M.Ed. from UNCW. In 1998, Sayed earned a J.D. from the Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law at Campbell University, and she was admitted to the North Carolina State Bar that same year.
Sergio Madera-Garcia ’21
Distinguished Young Alumnus of the Year
Sergio Madera-Garcia '21, is the Leadership Development Program director in N.C. State's Student Leadership and Engagement Office. Before arriving at N.C. State, Madera-Garcia was the program assistant and translator for UNCW's Centro Hispano. He is actively involved in the Alpha Psi Lambda National, Inc, where he served as a chapter director and also southeast regional director in 2022-23. In 2022, Madera-Garcia was awarded Outstanding Chapter Advisor and National Office Volunteer.
Madera-Garcia is a Latinx Ed Fellow, a program that invests in Latinx leadership to advance educational equity and opportunity in North Carolina. He is also a graduate ambassador at N.C. State. In 2023, he received the NCSU College of Education Leadership Award. He graduated with a bachelor's in communication studies with a double minor in Spanish and leadership from UNCW. He is pursuing a Master of Education in Higher Education at N.C. State.
James Stasios ’70
Distinguished Citizen of the Year
James Stasios '70, is semi-retired from Lincoln Financial Group after a successful insurance career. He is a member of the Wilmington Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors and was the association’s president from 1889-90. Stasios is a 40-year consecutive donor to the university and a member of the UNCW Clocktower Society and UNCW's Seahawk Club, where he served as a board member and a chairman in 2011-2012. He is also a UNCW ambassador and was the Alumnus of the Year in 2002.
He is actively involved in the community, serving on the Cape Fear Area United Way board, and he is a member and past president of the Kiwanis Club of Wilmington and the Brigade Boys and Girls Club. He has organized and co-chaired Stop Hunger Now! /Rise Against Hunger meal packaging events, packing more than 10,000 meals. He received his bachelor's degree in business administration from UNCW. He was a member of the Collegiate Civitan Club and Delta Upsilon Fraternity at the university. He also served as the senior class vice president.
Dr. Melissa Batchelor ’96, ’00M
Distinguished Diversity Award
Dr. Melissa Batchelor '96, '00M, has dedicated her career to improving the lives of older adults through her clinical practice, teaching, research, policy experience and service. She was a lecturer for UNCW's School of Nursing from 2005-11, earning her post-master's certificate as a nurse educator and her doctoral degree. Batchelor was an associate professor at the Duke University School of Nursing from 2011-18. She is board-certified as a gerontological registered nurse.
She serves on the UNCW Alumni Association Board of Directors and is a member of the UNCW Society (leader level). Batchelor is a member of the American Academy of Nursing's Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, the past chair of the academy's Expert Panel on Aging and serves on several national advisory boards and boards of directors. She is also involved in the Health Careers Futures National and Statewide Advisory Board for the Pennsylvania Teaching Nursing Home Collaborative, Brookings Institute Older Adults and Healthy Aging Working Group, and the American Assisted Living Nurses Association Advisory Council.