I-House Celebration & Awards Gala
A festive evening celebrating valued members of our global community and honoring their support and service to I-House. We enjoyed the food of award-winning Executive Chef Abigail Serbins and the entertainment provided by the very talented residents of International House. View and share our Press Release and blog post: Our Vibrant Home Glows: The Return of the I-House Gala
Ticket Pricing:
$275 per person
$200 per person for Young Diplomats (35 years of age and under)
$150 per person to sponsor a current I-House resident
Please note that the initial $65 of each ticket purchase goes toward event food and beverage and is not tax deductible.
Event and Table Sponsorships
2024 Gala Honorees
International House is proud to honor members of our global community who, in their personal and professional lives, promote a world of greater justice and peace. The 2024 Celebration and Awards Gala will highlight the contributions of the following individuals:
Chenming Hu (IH 1969-71)
Global Impact Award
For his contributions to the semiconductor industry which have led to transformative improvements in computing and communications around the globe.
Chenming Hu is the TSMC Distinguished Professor Emeritus of UC Berkeley, where he taught electrical engineering for 40 years and invented the 3D transistor that powers today’s smartphones, 5G, and AI chips. For advancing the semiconductor technology and industry, he received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Obama in 2016 and the Taiwan Presidential Science Prize in 2023. He is a recipient of UC Berkeley’s highest honor for teaching – the Berkeley Distinguished Teaching Award. He also taught at MIT, served as the CTO of TSMC, authored five books and more than 1,000 research articles, and has a portfolio of 150 US patents. Chenming Hu and Margaret Leung met at I-House in 1970 and married in 1972.
Chiara Medioli-Fedrigoni (IH 1993-94)
Alumna of the Year Award 
For promoting cultural heritage preservation efforts at universities, museums, archives, and libraries in Europe and throughout the world.
Chiara Medioli-Fedrigoni chairs the Fondazione Fedrigoni Fabriano in Italy, an archive of papermaking artifacts (tools, documents, paper samples, watermarks) dating as far as 1264, used today by historians, artists, and master papermakers. She has worked in printing/papermaking since 1999, for Bertelsmann and Fedrigoni, in management, product development, sustainability positions. She is curator of Pulp magazine, a magazine on paper stories for graphic designers and of the Festival del Disegno, which aims to help people of all ages regain confidence of the simple and powerful act of drawing. Chiara is also active in energy transition and environmental projects. She holds an MA in economics from the University of Venice, with a one-year scholarship to UC Berkeley, and an M.B.A.from INSEAD Business School in Fontainebleau, France.
Okechukwu Iroegbu (IH 2022-24)
Executive Director’s Outstanding Community Leadership Award 
For his dedication to the mission of I-House and the positive impact his leadership has had on the resident community.
Okechukwu Iroegbu (Oke) is a current I-House resident who has been deeply engaged in the activities of I-House since his arrival in Fall 2022. He has served I-House and his fellow residents both as a member of the Resident Council and as a Global Community Ambassador. He also has established the “Folklore Club” at I-House and encourages cultural exchange by hosting story-sharing events for I-House residents. Oke is a Mastercard Foundation Scholar who came to UC Berkeley to pursue a master’s degree in folklore. His research interests include the role of Indigenous knowledge and folk narratives in managing conflicts arising from human-wildlife contact.
Ronald E. Silva (IH Board Member 2015 - 2024)
Sherry and Betsey Warrick Mission Service Award 
For his dedication to the preservation and improvement of I-House.
Ronald E. Silva (Ron) has served on the International House Board of Directors since 2015 and has dedicated countless hours, expertise, and financial resources to preserve and improve the historic I-House building. Ron’s mix of professionalism, creativity, and dedication to the architectural heritage of I-House is visible in numerous spaces around the building, including our newly renovated front of the House, the Gamble Lounge/Sproul Kitchen, Heller Patio, and Edmonds’ Café. Ron is the Founding Principal, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Fillmore Capital Partners, a private investment firm headquartered in San Francisco. He is also a member of the UCB College of Chemistry Advisory Board. He received his J.D., with honors, from the John F. Kennedy School of Law and a B.S. from the University of California, Berkeley.
