Distinguished Alumnus Award
The Charlotte Latin School Distinguished Alumnus Award was established in 2008 by the Charlotte Latin School Alumni Association and Alumni Governing Board.Â
The annual Charlotte Latin School Distinguished Alumnus Award recognizes the Charlotte Latin Alumnus whose outstanding achievements and extraordinary service have distinguished himself or herself and have demonstrated extraordinary service to society. Such achievement may be made in various forms, which may include business, military service, philanthropy, pubic service, medicine, or entertainment. The recipient shall conduct himself or herself with strong character and high honor and shall be a role model for today's Charlotte Latin students.
The Distinguished Alumnus Award shall be open to any alumnus who graduated not less than ten years prior to that nomination year. Nominations will be accepted from all alumni and current faculty members.
Each year the Alumni Governing Board appoints a Distinguished Alumnus Award committee which includes the President of the Alumni Governing Board, two other members of the Alumni Governing Board, the Director of Alumni Affairs, the Headmaster, one upper school faculty member and one member of the senior class.Â
Distinguished Alumnus Nomination Form
Distinguished Alumnus Award Recipients
2009-2010
Dr. Rich Vinroot '88 received the 2009-2010 Distinguished Alumnus Award on Friday, March 26.
Since his graduation from Charlotte Latin, Vinroot has traveled the world to bring medical care and comfort to his patients, who are often struggling to maintain some semblance of human dignity in the most desperate conditions. He remained in New Orleans immediately following the destruction of Hurricane Katrina and for months afterward, treating patients in tent hospitals and temporary facilities such as the Superdome.
Vinroot has participated in medical mission trips to Nicaragua and Mexico, and for eight months he supervised a tuberculosis prevention program in the Mathare slums outside of Nairobi, Kenya. He most recently treated patients in Haiti following the horrific earthquake there in January.
Vinroot was accepted by Doctors Without Borders in 2008 after completing his residency in emergency medicine at Louisiana State University. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in history and Medical Doctorate degree from UNC-Chapel Hill, as well as a Master’s in Public Health from UNC-Chapel Hill. In 2008, the Louisiana State University Health Science Center presented Vinroot with the Acadian Ambulance Senior Excellence in EMS Award for exemplifying the best in emergency medicine practice.
Vinroot currently serves on the medical staff of the Ochsner Clinic Foundation and lives in New Orleans.
Dr. Vinroot is featured in the current issue of Charlotte Latin magazine. Click here to read the article.
2008-2009
Mr. David C. Keesler '80 is the first recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award. Keesler serves as a United States Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina. Previously a partner with the Charlotte law firm of Moore & Van Allen, Keesler won acclaim for his management of the infamous "Loomis Fargo Heist" case as an Assistant United States Attorney. His effective prosecution led to convictions of the perpetrators and earned him the Director's Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant United States Attorney in 1999. Keesler also was the recipient of two Department of Justice Special Achievement Awards in 1999.
Keesler earned his undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Scholar and Phi Beta Kappa, and his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia Law School. A member of the Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference, Federal Magistrate Judges Association, and the Mecklenburg County Bar, Keesler is active in local and civic affairs. He also is a past president of the CLS Alumni Governing Board.