The American Gem Society has announced the appointment of Nancy Sprague as director of membership development. Sprague will plan, direct, and coordinate membership recruitment.

Aurafin OroAmerica has announced several appointments. Joseph Pennacchio, whoserved as president and chief operating officer for the past five years, has been appointed chief executive officer. David Meleski, formerly executive vice president of sales and marketing, has been named president of the company. Assuming senior management roles are Cindy Cohen as senior vice president of merchandising/OroAmerica brand, Beppe Dal Monte as vice president of product development and technical support, and John Goldman as vice president of product development. Additional promotions include the appointment of Michael Schwartz to senior vice president of sales, Lauri Aronson as vice president of customer administration, Julie Young as vice president of merchandising/Aurafin Brand, Bill Lahey as vice president of human resources, and Edward Leshansky as vice president of marketing. Michael Gusky , founder, chairman, and chief executive of Aurafin, will remain chairman of Aurafin OroAmerica.

Claudia Hollingsworth has been named president of Michael Anthony Jewelers Inc. Hollingsworth previously was with M.Z. Berger & Co. Inc., where she served as chief customer officer, as well as OroAmerica.

Cartier Inc. has appointed Martin Gatins vice president of its wholesale divisions. Gatins began his career with Cartier in 1992.

Sterling Jewelers Inc. recently promoted several members of its management staff. Mark Light, the new president and chief operating officer, began his career at Sterling in 1978 as a part-time sales associate and became executive vice president of store operations in 1993. Bill Montalto has been named executive vice president and chief administrative officer. He joined Sterling in 1986 as vice president of management information systems, and in 1990 was promoted to senior vice president. Ed Hrabak is the new senior vice president/general merchandising manager. His previous positions at Sterling include buyer, divisional manager, and vice president of merchandising. Terry Klein has been appointed senior vice president of finance and will assume additional responsibility for financial planning, corporate taxes, and insurance. George Murray has been promoted to senior vice president of marketing, advertising, and visual merchandising. He joined the company in 1992 and was responsible for starting the company’s marketing department. Steve Venezia is now senior vice president of management information systems and distribution center services. He had been vice president of MIS since he joined Sterling in 1990.

Ambros & Associates, a brand and business management company, has named Larry Boland vice president. Scott Mesnick has been appointed director of business services.