College of Arts + Architecture Announces 2026 Distinguished Alumni
The College of Arts + Architecture is pleased to announce the 2026 CoAA Distinguished Alumni. The College will honor the five alumni on Friday, August 28, in the 12th annual celebration of alumni achievement. The award ceremony will take place at 1:00 p.m. in the Anne R. Belk Theater in Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts and will be open to the public.
The Distinguished Alumni Awards were created by the College of Arts + Architecture in 2015 to recognize the accomplishments of alumni who demonstrate in their work the core themes of the College’s vision: professionalism, global perspective, environmental engagement, connectivity with community, collaboration and the emergence of new ideas, skills and practices. Each department designates one awardee annually, chosen by departmental faculty and administration from a pool of submissions.
The 2026 CoAA Distinguished Alumni are:
Architecture Antonio Nevada Martinez ’11
Art & Art History Hank Foreman ’86
Dance Davian “DJ” Robinson ’20
Music Raven Nicole Pfeiffer ’20
Theatre KoKo M. Thornton ’97
BIOS
Antonio Nevada Martinez ’11 was born in Texas and served in the Air Force in pursuit of becoming a fighter pilot – and a soccer legend. It took only a few moments in the salon of the Storrs building, however, for him to realize his true calling, so he ditched the F-16s and put all effort into studying architecture and being an intramural soccer legend at UNC Charlotte.
Thanks to the wonderful mentorship of the architecture faculty, Martinez became aware of his ability to influence the built environment in a way that benefits both the natural environment and community, locally and globally. He served as a lab assistant in the School of Architecture’s Daylighting and Energy Performance Lab all five years, which was key in understanding the application and importance of building performance.
His studies at UNC Charlotte taught him the value of travel, much more than the military did. Martinez applied for the AIA/SoA Travelling Fellowship twice and in 2009 went to Nigeria to study absolute efficiency in design in overpopulated Lagos. He later participated in the International Design Summer Program at Tongji University in Shanghai, China, where he and another SoA alum won an urban design competition based on their sustainable and inclusive design of the former World Expo site.
After graduating with his Bachelor of Architecture degree, Martinez worked for firms in Charlotte, designing hotels and restaurants, before Dean Ken Lambla presented yet another opportunity: to travel to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and renovate a hospital. A year later, Martinez was living in that hospital, overseeing its evolution and working with the country’s Ministry of Health to design a health center that would become the national standard until this day. Over six years, he led teams all over the country to build 108 health centers and renovate hundreds more, in some of the world’s most remote villages.
Martinez now lives in Costa Rica, where he is a sustainability consultant and permaculture designer focusing on water and sanitation. He still visits Congo regularly, installing solar powered water systems. He is still a private pilot and coaches future soccer legends.
Hank Foreman ’86 is a first-generation college graduate who grew up in rural eastern North Carolina. A proud product of the UNC System, he holds a Master of Arts degree in post-secondary art education from Appalachian State University, and a Bachelor of Creative Arts in Painting and Sculpture from UNC Charlotte.
Foreman’s service to North Carolina began while he was a UNC Charlotte student, working in and eventually serving as chair of student media. As a graduate student at App State, he began focusing his career in the area of education, teaching and mentoring students.
In 1999, after managing App State’s main art gallery for nearly five years, Foreman was selected during a competitive national search as the founding director and chief curator for the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts. Foreman’s vision – to establish a museum that was friendly, accessible and a gateway from the local community to the university – was realized when the museum opened its doors in 2003, displaying works from the most prominent regional artists to national treasures. Foreman’s legacy includes adding significant works by artists such as Andy Warhol to the university’s permanent collection, establishing community art programming for children and adults and ensuring endowed support for major exhibitions.
Foreman’s storied career at App State has included positions as varied and impactful as associate vice chancellor for university communications and cultural affairs; the university’s inaugural chief communications officer; and vice chancellor and chief of staff. During his career, he has worked under five of the university’s eight chancellors, guiding decisions that included arts education and outreach, significant capital projects, the university’s last comprehensive campaign, establishing a crisis communications response framework for the university and supporting the transition of two chancellors. In 2012, in recognition of his efforts to enhance global learning at the university, Foreman was a recipient of the university’s inaugural Global Leadership Award, having built international art education partnerships in China, Mexico, Poland, South Africa and Brazil.
Foreman’s professional activities include solo and group exhibitions and serving as a juror, guest lecturer and consultant. He resides in Boone with his husband, John Baynor.
Davian “DJ” Robinson ’20 is a visually impaired dance artist, choreographer, educator, interdisciplinary collaborator and licensed massage therapist based in Charlotte. At UNC Charlotte, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Dance with a concentration in Performance, Choreography and Theory. His artistic practice explores the intersection of disability, embodiment, accessibility and human connection, using movement to expand how audiences experience performance beyond sight.
Robinson is the founder of Sensory Beyond Sight, an evolving creative practice that combines contemporary dance, improvisation, tactile learning, sound and guided movement to cultivate inclusive artistic experiences. His work invites participants to engage through touch, listening, trust and spatial awareness, demonstrating that accessibility is not an accommodation but a catalyst for innovation and artistic excellence.
His choreography, teaching and collaborative projects have been presented in universities, museums and community settings, including the Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech and the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Robinson has collaborated with acclaimed interdisciplinary artist Janet Biggs on projects exploring perception, mathematics, movement and accessibility, while continuing to develop performances and workshops that bridge dance, disability culture, education and public engagement. In 2023, he was an AXIS Choreo-Lab Choreographer Fellow with AXIS Dance Company in Berkeley, California.
As an educator, Robinson has led workshops for universities, schools serving blind and deaf students, community organizations and professional artists. His work empowers participants of all backgrounds to discover creative expression through curiosity, collaboration and embodied learning.
Before dedicating his career to dance, Robinson was a nationally ranked Paralympic cyclist, earning six U.S. national medals and the 2017 U.S. National Championship in the Men’s 1- kilometer Time Trial. Today, his background in movement science and sports rehabilitation informs both his choreographic process and teaching philosophy.
When he is not creating, performing or working with massage therapy clients, Robinson enjoys listening to audiobooks, spending time with family and friends and training for endurance races. Having completed the New York, Charlotte and Boston marathons in the past year, he remains committed to pursuing artistic excellence, cultivating meaningful relationships and creating work that inspires connection, belonging, and lasting social change.
Raven Pfeiffer ’20 is a Nashville-based percussionist and drummer from Mooresville, North Carolina. She earned dual bachelor’s degrees in music (concentration in percussion) and German translation. Throughout her education, she studied under acclaimed performer, composer and producer Rick Dior, senior lecturer in percussion. She started performing at the age of 12, with roots in rock, funk and classical percussion.
Since relocating to Nashville in 2021, Pfeiffer has established herself as an in-demand touring musician, performing throughout the United States and internationally with artists including Maddie and Tae, Tanner Adell, Girl Named Tom, Emily Ann Roberts, Shane Profitt, Kylie Frey, Brooke Eden, Meagan Allen, the Nashville Symphony and Vienna Light Orchestra.
In 2025, Pfeiffer joined Tanner Adell on her U.S. and European tour, which included opening for Sabrina Carpenter at Hyde Park in London and performing on the main stage at Lollapalooza in Chicago. She is currently touring with Shane Profitt, opening for Luke Bryan’s “Word On The Street” Tour.
Pfeiffer’s recent recording credits include Girl Named Tom’s full-length album “Dust to Dust,” produced and engineered by Mark Needham (Fleetwood Mac, The Killers, Imagine Dragons). She also appeared on Season 18 of “America’s Got Talent” with Kylie Frey and was featured on Episode 65 of the Nashville Drummers Podcast.
In 2026-27, Pfeiffer will be seen on drum set premiering a new show, “Oops…I Sang It Again!” with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Detroit Symphony Orchestra, among others, under the direction of guest conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez. Pfeiffer proudly endorses Ludwig Drums, Paiste Cymbals and Innovative Percussion.
KoKo M. Thornton ’97 graduated magna cum laude from UNC Charlotte where she attended as an North Carolina Teaching Fellow and earned her Bachelor of Creative Arts in Theatre Education. During college, she worked as an actor and professional costumer, including serving as a dresser for the national tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom of the Opera.”
Thornton began her teaching career at Northwest School of the Arts in Charlotte, where she received a North Carolina Theatre Conference award for outstanding direction. She later returned to her hometown of Raleigh to begin a 24-year tenure as theatre teacher and director at Enloe Magnet High School. There, she became department chair of the district’s largest arts department and a certified mentor teacher.
Gifted in curriculum development, Thornton authored theatre arts courses, co-created district theatre curriculum and collaborated on the development of the North Carolina Theatre Standard Course of Study. She also served a term as president of the North Carolina Theatre Arts Educators.
While at Enloe Magnet High School, Thornton directed and produced more than 34 theatre productions, with her shows and students earning numerous honors from NC Thespians, The Capital Awards, and Durham Performing Arts Center Rising Stars. Notably, five of her students have participated in the prestigious National High School Musical Theatre “Jimmy” Awards. Countless former students have gone on to professional careers in theatre as actors, designers, directors, educators and more.
Thornton’s dedication to education and the arts has been recognized with multiple awards, including the 2017 NC Theatre Arts Educator of the Year and the 2025 Inspiring Teacher “Jimmy” Award. In 2024, following her announcement of retirement from the classroom, she was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by the governor of North Carolina for her significant contributions to theatre and education statewide. Now she champions public magnet schools in her role as an outreach and marketing coordinator in Wake County Public Schools System, where she fosters community and family engagement and supports recruitment efforts.
By Meg Whalen