UNO Alum - Summer 2006 by UNO Magazine

U N I V E R S I T Y

O F

N E B R A S K A

A T

O M A H A

A L U M N I

A S S O C I A T I O N

www.unoalu j16mni.or

Summer 2006

FOCUS ON

UNOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hi-Tech Connections

BARD!

WITH THE

Wednesday,

Shakespeare on the Green Picnic & “Antony & Cleopatra” performance

July 5

Wednesday, July 5

Picnic: 6 to 7:15 p.m. Performance: 8 p.m Thompson Alumni Center

Just $10 per person!

(rain or shine)

Here’s what your $10 gets you!

• Picnic Buffet (Chicken, BBQ pork, potato salad, baked beans, cole slaw, cookie, beverages). • Reserved spot “down front” at the play.

• Transportation to or parking near “The Green.”

• “Antony & Cleopatra” preview by UNO Professor Cindy Melby Phaneuf, cofounder/artistic director of Nebraska Shakespeare Festival.

• Satisfaction knowing part of your fee helps underwrite a donation to the NSF.

To register, send a check (payable to UNO Alumni Association) for $10 per person with the form below to: Shakespeare Picnic UNO Alumni Association Questions? Call Sheila King at 554-4802 or e-mail 6705 Dodge St. sking@mail.unomaha.edu Omaha, NE 68182-0010

“Antony & Cleopatra” Shakespeare on the Green UNO Alumni Picnic Registration -- Submit by June 30!

Name

Address

City

I (we) will attend “Antony & Cleopatra” AND the picnic!

I have enclosed $ Charge my:

for

Names for Name Tags

Zip

I (we) will only attend the picnic.

people to attend at $10 each. (Make checks payable to UNO Alumni Association).

q Visa q MasterCard q Discover.

Exp. Date ___/___

State

Phone

Signature:

Card No.

Send to: Shakespeare Picnic UNO Alumni Association 6705 Dodge St. Omaha, NE 68182-0010

Contents

Summer 2006 Cover illustration by Ward Schumaker

Cover Story Page 24

College Pages Arts & Sciences

6-9

Students earn Presidential Fellowships.

CPACS

10-11

Finally, a place to call home.

IS&T

12-15

Indian students visit UNO.

CCFAM

Gail Baker named new dean.

Education

Golf outing set for Sept. 21.

Features

Editor: Anthony Flott

Finding his way

Recent grad James Peters puts off a career for a seven-month trek through South America.

Keeping blank slates clean Lorraine Carter has put Milwaukee children at the center for 35 years.

High-Tech Connections

UNO students are connecting in class— even when they’re not in class.

In the Pits

Former UNO Mav hockey goalie Brian Haaland changes sports—and tires—in NASCAR’s pits.

Hopes 30 Heavy UNO four-time national wrestling champ Les

Sigman pins his sights on the 2008 Olympics.

Association Departments Alumni Association in Action

Papillion native tabbed to head UNO Alumni Association; Omaha attorney receives 140th Citation award; Nine UNO teachers receive Association’s teaching award.

Class Notes

Contributors: Jim Bovin, Sonja Carberry, John Fey, Tim Fitzgerald, Eric Francis, Tom McMahon, Elizabeth Merrill, Eric Olson, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ward Schumaker, Jack Stark, Wendy Townley, Caelan Millerd. Alumni Association Of ficers: Chairman of the Board, Mike Kudlacz; Past Chairman, Adrian Minks; Chairman-elect Deb McLarney; Vice Chairmen, Rod Oberle, Angelo Passarelli, Kevin Warneke, John Wilson; Secretary, Patricia Lamberty; Treasurer, Dan Koraleski; Legal Counsel, Martha Zajicek; President & CEO, Jim Leslie. Alumni Staff: Jim Leslie, President and CEO; Roxanne Miller, Executive Secretary; Sue Gerding, Diane Osborne, Kathy Johnson, Records/Alumni Cards; Sheila King, Activities Coordinator; Greg Trimm, Alumni Center Manager; Joan Miller, Accountant; Anthony Flott, Editor; Loretta Wirth, Receptionist. The UNO Alum is published quarterly by the UNO Alumni Association, W.H. Thompson Alumni Center, UNO, Omaha, NE 68182-0010, (402) 554-2444, FAX (402) 554-3787 • web address: www.unoalumni.org • Member, Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) • Direct all inquiries to Editor, W.H. Thompson Alumni Center, (402) 5542989. Toll-free, UNO-MAV-ALUM • email: aflott@mail.unomaha.edu • Send all changes of address to attention of Records • Views expressed through various articles within the magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the University of

Promotions, marriages, births and more. w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

Summer 2006 • 3

Letter from the

Chancellor

The march of time . . . and UNO I

t’s certainly true that “time flies”—nine years ago this month, Jack and I were preparing to move to Omaha to begin my UNO career as chancellor. The excitement we felt then continues, as every year the campus grows stronger and more focused. UNO truly has emerged as a metropolitan university of distinction, fulfilling its mission and achieving its strategic goals: focusing on students, promoting academic excellence, and engaging with the community and region. Much of the credit for this transformation goes to the men and women who serve UNO daily—our 1,200 faculty and staff. Dedicated and driven to excel, they are committed to helping our students reach their educational potential and achieve their professional and personal dreams. Working together, we’ve seen some remarkable advances over the past nine years: • Retention of freshmen to the sophomore year has climbed from 61 percent in 1997 to more than 74 percent now; an increase of 20 percent; • Minority student retention is up from 60 percent to 69 percent, a jump of 14 percent; Student credit hour production has risen 13 percent to more than 152,000 each semester; • The six-year graduation rate has skyrocketed from 24 percent to 39 percent; • The percentage of minorities and women on faculty has grown 43 percent, up from 36 percent to 52 percent; and, • Submissions to external funding agencies rose 70 percent, while awards improved 63 percent. Likewise, our alumni and other benefactors have helped create a campus of enviable beauty and functionality. If you’ve driven down Dodge Street, you’ve no doubt seen the exciting changes taking place at the University Library. Combining both private gifts and state funds provided by LB 605, this renovation and expansion prepares the library to serve current and future generations of UNO students. The new spaces will house a café, improved group and individual study spaces, better lighting and computer access, enhanced climate controls and an updated décor. Also on the construction horizon, the College of Public Affairs and Community Services (CPACS) renovation soon will begin on the Engineering Building. The offices and classes of CPACS, created in the 1970s, have been spread across campus, so moving into this renovated and expanded space will bring the college together for the first time in its history. Dean BJ Reed and his faculty and staff waited patiently over the past decade for resources to become available. Now, thanks to LB 605, and with help from alumni, donors and friends, these plans will see fruition! Beginning my 10th year at UNO, I can’t help but believe that our best years still are ahead. Building on a strong foundation, committed to ongoing strategic planning, supported by an outstanding staff and faculty, and with the vision and confidence of our alumni and friends, the future looks bright indeed. I feel very privileged to be a part of this progress and can’t wait to see what the future holds for UNO. Until next time,

4 • Summer 2006

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Campus SCENE

P h o t o b y Ca e la n M i lle rd , The Gat ew ay w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;er the Land of the Free: The UNO Democrats on April 25 placed 2,390 United States flags in the Pep Bowl in memorial of U.S. troops killed in Iraq. Soldiers from Nebraska who were killed were honored through 22 carnations placed on flags. Summer 2006 â&#x20AC;˘ 5

College of

Arts & Sciences

Students make mark with Presidential Fellowships he beauty of light playing upon

Tone brilliant facet, then another,

is the beauty of a liberal arts education. One subject illuminates another, and in the sum of the parts is the power to change the world. So it is with the beauty of the students of the College of Arts and Sciences. Their passion for knowledge and determination for success are consistently honored by the University of Nebraska system. One such honor is the University of Nebraska Presidential Fellowship. In the past two years, three Arts and Sciences students have been awarded Presidential Fellowships to further their research, their education and their causes.

Natural Sciences rom the general area of the

FNatural Sciences, Taylor

Quedensley, biology major, received the master’s level fellowship for 2005-2006, in addition to the Outstanding Graduate Student award and a NASA Space Grant scholarship. Quedensley’s passion for knowledge and changing the world took flight in 1998 when he began working with Latin American

Lafontant bids adieu etiring after nearly 30 years of service to UNO, Dr. Julien Lafontant is looking forward to having more time to manage his real estate but also is committed to continuing to teach French on a part-time basis, as he says, “as long as I am needed.” In an interview with Gateway reporter Angie Schaffer, Lafontant explained his passion for teaching: “Monolingualism is a disease. In this world, you must be bilingual, trilingual, if it is possible.” A native of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Lafontant grew up in a world divided by two languages: Creole, the common language, and French, the language of the elite. He has seen firsthand the doors literacy will open and, conversely, the doors illiter-

6 • Summer 2006

cloud forest plants at Strybing Arboretum in San Francisco. Cloud forests are rain forests that only occur in specific tropical mountain areas. Immersed in clouds most of the time, they have distinctive weather conditions that make them suitable for many species of plants and animals not found elsewhere. Quedensley has made five trips to Guatemala to conduct research. The survey he conducted on the Sunflower Family (Asteraceae), one of the most conspicuous floral components of the highland regions of Mexico and Central America, is invaluable to the understanding of the area’s ecosystem. “I am using this abundant plant family and multi-spectral satellite imagery to illustrate how land use is causing a decrease in Guatemalan cloud forest diversity,“ Quedensley says. “The long-term goal of this research project is to implement conservation efforts in the region of Volcán Zunil and protect this diminishing cloud forest ecosystem.“ Quedensley is graduating from UNO with an MS in biology and will begin a Ph.D. program in plant biology this August at the University of Texas at Austin. acy will hold shut. Lafontant earned his Ph.D. from SUNYBinghamton in 1976 and was hired by UNO in 1977 as an associate professor in both the foreign languages department and the department of black studies. From 1977 to 1985, he served as department chair for black studies and in 1981 was awarded the UNO Excellence in Teaching Award. Dr. Carolyn Gascoigne adds, “He has written books on Montesquieu, Understanding Culture, and French Phonetics, along with numerous articles and presentations. And, for nearly 20 years he has been the faculty sponsor of UNO’s Table Francaise.” Lafontant was promoted to full professor in 1985. He also is a faculty member of the International Studies program and has been consistently active in UNO’s Third World Studies Conference.

Social Sciences he Social Sciences are well repre-

Tsented in Anne Herman, psychol-

ogy major and recipient of the doctoral award for 2005-2006. Herman is a Ph.D. student in the I/O psychology program. She explains her passion: “As an industrial organizational psychologist, my work allows me to investigate human behavior in the context of the workplace. “I am able to help predict and describe how people will (and do) react in certain organizationally relevant situations (e.g., motivation and creativity). I feel that through my practice, I am able to help people be better at their jobs, be happier in their jobs, as well as help organizations to maximize their most important resource—the people they employ.“ Professor Reiter-Palmon, chair of Herman’s dissertation committee, writes, “Without a doubt, Anne is one of the best students in our program. She is hard-working, bright, analytical, thoughtful, motivated. I can go on and on. In the classroom, Anne is always prepared, asks very good questions, and contributes to the discussion.

Photo by Josh Williamson/The Gateway

UNOALUM

“However, it is her behavior outside the classroom that really distinguishes her from other students. She is the one who will come and talk to me after class about the course material. She is the one who will follow up on a side comment and really want the reference that I mentioned—and then read it! She is the student that is open and interested in a variety of topics, but somehow still manages to stay focused. I have been very impressed with her ability, thoughtfulness, and ability to integrate material.“ Herman spent her fellowship year working on independent research and on her dissertation investigating the affect of motivational aspects on creative problem solving. She will be going through the academic job search process this coming academic year (2006-2007) but is looking for “the right situation“ either in academia or in an organization. Herman writes, “I want to contribute to my field as both a scientist and practitioner.“

Humanities nglish major Amanda Linder is

Ethe recipient of a Presidential

Fellowship for 2006-2007 and rounds out this picture by representing the third general area of our college, the Humanities. Linder is specializing in technical communication, and, somewhat similar to Herman, is passionate about both the theory and the practice of her discipline. Regarding theory, Linder writes, “My interest right now is the influence of technology on culture. The invention of the printing press drastically influenced the way we think about ownership of text and literacy; communication tools like the telephone even changed the way we culturally perceive time and space. I think it’s important to realize and understand the forces that shape us, not to be afraid of them, but to realize the potential and make critical decisions about innovation, technolw w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

ogy, and who we want to be. I’m not just passionate about coming up with ‘What’s Next,’ but realizing what the ‘Next’ means. Knowing what it means is the first step to influencing what it means.“ More specifically of late, Linder has been exploring gaming theory. According to another of her mentors, Dr. Joan Latchaw, word of Linder’s work has reached “the international community of technical communicators. . . . She has been cited on listservs and in newsletters. Her paper, “The Tales of the Land: Visual Space in Interactive Narrative,“ on gaming clearly situates Amanda as a budding scholar who will contribute to cutting edge work in her field.“ One of the ways that Linder practices the theory is as an instructor in her technical writing class. Using a game called Anarchy Online, she leads her students to establish virtual identities within certain subcultures in order to both provide context for their writing as well as to establish virtual communities in which they can practice collaboration. Linder is looking forward to the theory at Games + Learning + Society, a national conference on game theory hosted by the University of Wisconsin. There she will speak on “Writing on Rubi-Ka: Anarchy Online, Technical Writing, and the case for games in the humanities classroom.“ Also in her plans for this summer is some very special practice. Linder explains, “I’ve been offered an internship with Time, Inc., and will be participating in a 10-week editorial internship with Business 2.0 magazine, a technology industry business magazine in San Francisco.“ The fellowship stipend is $12,000 plus tuition remission for master’slevel students and $15,000 plus tuition remission for doctoral students. Funding for the fellowships is provided through the University of Nebraska Foundation.

Biology major Taylor Quedensley.

Doctoral student Anne Herman.

English major Amanda Linder. Summer 2006 • 7

College of

Arts & Sciences

French research on hyenas makes big news effrey French’s study of nature has made the pages of

charted. The cubs born to mothers with high levels of androgen during pregnancy displayed higher levels of The Varner Professor of Psychology and Biology at both aggressive and sexual behavior during their play UNO, French is investigating the relationship between bouts than cubs born to mothers with low levels of endocrine function and reproductive success among androgen, French says. members of a hierarchical society of hyenas, doing so “Play is serious business for hyena cubs, where they with Michigan State University zoology faculty Kay learn much about the kinds of behavior that will make Holekamp and Ph.D. student Stephanie Dloniak, them successful as adults.” In the world of the spotted hyena, nature’s experiment Though the research team was unable to weigh indiin behavioral endocrinology, high-ranking mothers may vidual cubs, French says, it’s likely that cubs born to provide their cubs with a hormonal “gift” in the womb mothers with high androgen levels weighed more at birth that may make them more successful when they become and were more competitive for nursing bouts, given the adults. The trio’s study of this, reported in the April 26 anabolic effects of androgen. issue of Nature journal, is the first demonstration that a The Nature paper highlights a novel finding in behavfemale mammal’s hormones influence her offspring’s ioral development. National Geographic magazine and behavior and appearance in apparently adaptive ways. Natural History magazines have done pieces on the Their findings are the story; the article also was result of nearly two featured on CNN.com, decades of National MSNBC.com, and Science Foundation-fundFOX.com. ed field research on wild “Modification of offspotted hyena populations spring morphology and in the Masai Mara Game behavior by early horReserve in western Kenya. mones has been docuFrench was assisted by mented for about a decade field assistants hired from in birds,” French notes, local Masai tribes. “Many “but the hyena work is the pursue further education first demonstration that a after leaving the project,” female mammal’s horhe says. mones influence her offFemale hyenas are a spring’s behavior and particularly interesting appearance in apparently study as they are larger adaptive ways.” and more aggressive than Mammalian mothers the males, are first to the Professor Jeff French with field assistants from a Masai tribe. play an important role in kill and are dominant in how their offspring develclan life—the reverse of the norm in mammals. op, and the hyena study suggests that a mother’s influThe team monitored androgen hormone levels of domence includes her hormone levels during pregnancy. inant and lower-ranking hyena mothers during their pregFrench’s Endocrine Bioservices Lab on the UNO camnancies. No differences were noted in the first trimester. pus has developed non-invasive research techniques that During the third trimester, however, the androgen levels allow scientists such as the Michigan State team to moniof the dominant females were substantially higher than tor subtle changes in the hormone concentrations of their lower-ranking counterparts. mammals that live in social groups in complex environ“It has been known for decades that pregnant female ments. The techniques also minimize the need to restrain hyenas have high levels of the male-typical androgen animals for sample collection or to disrupt ongoing hormones,” French says, “but our study is the first to social interactions. show that levels in pregnant females differ by the domiThe research in French’s UNO lab has been supported nance status of the soon-to-be moms.” by grants from the National Institute of Health and the These differences in hormones have important conseNational Science Foundation since 1987. quences for behavior after the cubs are born. French and Since 1991, his lab at UNO has focused on the black colleagues analyzed play bouts in the cubs, and tufted-ear marmoset and the white-faced marmoset, two instances of both aggressive and sexual behavior were of South America’s endangered primate species.

JNature.

8 • Summer 2006

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Schmidt ends 42-year UNO career fter 42 years serving UNO students and the Omaha community, UNO Associate Professor of Physics Robert Schmidt has retired, A teaching his final class this spring. Schmidt’s career was marked by service outside the classroom as well as in it. Among his many outreach efforts was his participation as a CAPOW! team member. The CAPOW! (Chemistry and Physics on Wheels) team is a group of dedicated teachers of physics, chemistry and geography who bring a basic understanding of the wonders of science to elementary and secondary students throughout Nebraska and Western Iowa. In addition, Schmidt was the Kountze Planetarium coordinator from 1987 to 1995, helping to offer thousands of area school children a trip to the stars. Between 1977 and 1987 he also offered numerous astronomy and electronics workshops to area school children. When he was not spreading the joy of physics to area schools, Schmidt kept busy teaching UNO students. He writes, “Although I have taught several lower-division courses during my time in the department, my primary teaching responsibilities have been in Introduction to Physics and Principles of Astronomy. I designed the Introduction to Physics course and the associated lab, and was a primary participant in development of our

Principles of Astronomy Course.” In 2001 Schmidt authored Physics Foundations, published by McGraw Hill/Prismis, a new text designed for the Introduction to Physics course. “I have always liked writing. I am having fun now experimenting with some fiction and anticipate expansion of those activities in the time that lies ahead.” In addition to writing, Schmidt looks forward to painting, woodworking, fishing, photography, travel and reading. He adds, “I also sing bass in a quartet, the Rusty Hinges, that’s been averaging about 3035 programs a year.” Professor Robert Schmidt retired after The Schmidts will be the spring semester, ending a 42-year retiring in Omaha. “We like career at UNO. the city. Two of our children and three grandkids live here, we enjoy the near presence of numerous good friends, and we like the church we attend. Staying put also enhances opportunities for keeping in touch with colleagues and friends at UNO.”

Blackwell remembered as good leader, good friend adical change and challenge characterized the coun-

Rtry and the campus in the early 1970s.

When UNO needed a rock-solid leader through the transition from municipal to state university, John Victor Blackwell left his post as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences to become interim chancellor. In addition to dealing with a faculty embittered by inequities between UNO and “big sister” UNL, Blackwell faced a student body that was increasingly Blackwell’s 28-year UNO career included a stint in 1971 as the diverse and sensitive to that university’s interim chancellor. diversity. “Vic tried many times to get equalization in pay for his faculty,” remembers Gordon Hansen, then-assistant dean of Arts and Sciences. “It was a good battle, but neither he nor anyone else could get it done.” Among the clear victories of Blackwell’s brief administration were the establishment of the black studies department and the Chancellor’s Commission on the Status of Women. Blackwell passed away in November 2005 at the age

w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

of 87, preceded in death by his wife, Jane, and survived by son John and daughter Susan. He was a man in love with art, education, family, friends and all that life had to offer. He was born in Yale, Okla., in 1919. During World War II he served in the military and married Jane. He began his undergraduate work after leaving the military and ultimately earned his MA, MFA and Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. He was hired as an associate professor of art history in 1957 by the Municipal University of Omaha. In addition to teaching art history for many years, Blackwell served as chair for that department. When his term as interim chancellor ended, he returned to his post as dean of Arts and Sciences for several years, then returned to teaching once more. He retired from UNO in 1985. After his retirement, Blackwell had more time for his many other interests, including biking with Jane, woodworking, and winemaking. Those who worked most closely with him at UNO remember him as a good friend and a lot of fun. There are stories of Blackwell playing pool in the student union after lunch with friend and assistant dean Dick Lane. “Much to the chagrin of our chancellor, who thought it was inappropriate for administrators to shoot pool here in River City,” adds Hansen. Karen Ressegieu, then the assistant to the dean, recalls with fondness Blackwell’s time as dean. “We worked our tails off,” she says, “but we had a lot of fun.” Summer 2006 • 9

College of

Public Affairs & Community Service

CPACS family to occupy former Engineering Building

A place to call home uch like a big family whose members are scattered across the country, the schools and departments of the College of Public Affairs and Community Service since its inception in 1973 have been spread about the UNO campus. In three years, though, the CPACS family finally will come together in the former Engineering Building, which is to be substantially redesigned and modernized to become the college’s new home. CPACS administrators are eager for that day to come. Currently, CPACS administrators, faculty and the nationally-recognized programs they oversee are housed in eight buildings stretching from Annex 24 to Arts and Sciences Hall. When the 150 full- and part-time staff members come together in 2009 at the former Engineering Building, to be known as the CPACS Building, the end result will reflect the mission of the college—to foster a comprehensive, high-quality learning environment, conduct research and provide professional services to the commu-

Alumni Awards Presented he College of Public Affairs and Community Service presented the 2006 Hubert Locke Award for Distinguished Service to Alvin M. Goodwin, former president of the Omaha Economic Development Corporation. The award honors the first permanent dean at CPACS and recognizes exemplary commitment to the ideals of public service through professional activities, community service and philanthropy. Eight CPACS graduates received Alumni Awards for

10 • Summer 2006

nity. While some work will be done to the exterior of the Engineering Building—most notably two planned additions—the majority of the changes will take place inside. The building’s 1957 high school design featuring long hallways and rows of anonymous classroom and office doors will be replaced with open areas, seminar and meeting rooms, multi-use classrooms and offices where the emphasis is on space separated by little more than light and glass. “We want it to reflect the culture of our college,” says Sara Woods, assistant dean. The open areas, which will include community open spaces that lead to labs and classrooms, are designed to facilitate increased student access to faculty and collaboration between the departments and faculty, students and the community, Woods says. “We are a Ph.D.-granting college with many, many award-winning programs,” she adds. “We want the building to be an open, interactive

Excellence in Public Service: • Carlos Barrientos, video producer and former WOWT photographer; • Connie Benjamin, state director, American Association of Retired Persons; • U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel; • Terri S. Harder, judge, Nebraska’s Tenth Judicial District; • Kim Kern, assistant director for social work, Mary Lanning Behavioral Services, and her husband, Pat Kern, director of social services, Mary Lanning Memorial Hospital in Hastings; • Ann O’Connor, vice president, Nebraska community

environment that emphasizes our outreach.” George Killian, manager of planning and architectural services at UNO, says the renovation, funded with state support to be allocated over the next three years, will cost approximately $14.2 million. The two additions, which will total 20,000 square feet of space, will by funded by private dollars and cost approximately $4.43 million. HDR, Inc. provided the architectural design. W. Boyd Jones Construction Co. is the construction manager. Completion is planned for August 2009, but could be accelerated if the funding were available more quickly. If private dollars for the additions are obtained early in the project, that construction could run con-

Here and There CPACS and its current locations: • Aviation Institute—Allwine Hall • Department of Criminal Justice—Durham Science Center • School of Social Work—Annex 40 • Division of Continuing Studies—Arts & Sciences Hall • Department of Gerontology—Annex 24 • Goodrich Scholarship Program—Annex 24 • School of Public Administration—Annex 27 • William Brennan Institute of Labor Studies—Peter Kiewit Conference Center • Center for Public Affairs Research— Engineering Building

services, Heartland Family Service; and, • Douglas Russell, M.D., cofounder, Oak View Internal Medicine. The awards were presented at a luncheon April 12

CORE Initiative Links UNO, Community overnmental and non-profit service providers challenged by tight budgets or an increasing demand from public and private donors to demon-

strate sustainable outcomes now have an ally in the UNO Center for Organizational Research and Evaluation (CORE). Administered by the College of Public Affairs and Community Service, CORE is a multi-disciplinary initiative that brings together the university’s extensive resources in organizational and program performance analysis, planning and applied research. CORE draws from a campus-wide pool of faculty, staff and graduate students to provide evaluations, technical assistance, strategic planning and focused research studies. UNOALUM

Sketches courtesy HDR, Inc. Larger sketch shows the remodeled north entrance of the CPACS building. Inset photo shows the open spaces of a seminar room.

current with the renovation, Killian says. He credits Steve Shogrin of HDR with designs “that will update the building, yet not date the building. We wanted something that would be complementary to the university and

Through its base in CPACS, CORE serves as the primary point of contact and management for organizations to take advantage of the university’s collective expertise. Dr. Russell Smith, director of the School of Public Administration, is CORE’s director. To date, 25 UNO faculty members have agreed to participate. CORE is contacting representatives of governmental and non-profit agencies to make them aware of the center’s services. For more information, contact Smith at (402) 554-2625 or email him at rsmith@mail.unomaha.edu. w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

in 20 or 40 years people would still be able to admire.” The open floor plate within the building, he says, “conveys a collaborative statement, one that is very flexible, very user-friendly and very high-tech.”

CPACS, OPPD to Administer Energy Initiative aving energy and saving money are good things. The College of Public Affairs and Community Service aims to help people do both. The Omaha Public Power District and UNO have tapped CPACS to administer a campuswide initiative that will explore how the demand for energy by individuals and small business-

One faculty member looked at plans for the building’s open center space and called it “the living room.” “Actually, that’s the comfortable, welcoming feel we’re after,” Killian says. “It really will be CPACS’ living room.”

es may be substantially reduced through the application and use of the science and technology for energy conservation, says CPACS Dean B.J. Reed. The Energy-Saving Potential (ESP) program also seeks research and application models to better assist individuals and small businesses in reducing consumption and the cost of their energy needs. Reed says research clusters of faculty, students and staff will examine energy conservation through research, modeltesting, public policy analysis and development and assessment of pilot programs and

services. While CPACS will administer the program, an advisory board of representatives from OPPD and UNO will oversee its implementation. OPPD will fund ESP up to $500,000 annually through 2010. OPPD President Gary Gates says finding ways to apply new technologies to conserve energy can cut costs for producers and assist budget-conscious consumers. “We believe this is something that makes a lot of economic sense and potentially will benefit everyone,” Gates says. Summer 2006 • 11

College of

Information Science and Technology

Indian Institute students take in global focus at UNO workshop

escribing it as an opportunity of a lifetime, 50 MBA students and 10 faculty members and administrators from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Kharagpur visited UNO in May for the International Marketing & Strategy Workshop. The students were from the Vinod Gupta School of Management at IIT. Gupta, founder, chairman and CEO of Omaha-headquartered infoUSA, Inc., is a 1967 graduate of IIT Kharagpur, near Kolkata. He created the IIT Foundation and the school which bears his name. InfoUSA President Rakesh Gupta (no relation to Vinod) also is an IIT graduate and assisted in developing the IIT/UNO program. The students’ visit was sponsored by infoUSA and hosted by UNO’s International Studies and Programs, College of Business Administration (CBA) and College of Information Science and Technology (IS&T). UNO and IIT signed a sister university affiliation agreement in 2004 that has brought six students, two at a time, to study at IS&T. To further this relationship and make a larger impact on the lives of students, infoUSA’s Vin Gupta and IIT administrators signed an agreement with UNO to fund three years of student exchange groups. This was the first of three groups from IIT to visit UNO. Three groups of UNO students will have a similar one-week program in India. Gupta and infoUSA fund all but the students’ airfare. “Bringing in a group of 60 at one time is really a grand way to kick off our ‘sister university’ relationship with IIT,” says Merry Ellen Turner,

12 • Summer 2006

Photo by Tim Fitzgerald / University Affairs

Bob Batt of the Nebraska Furniture Mart addresses the group of IIT students.

director of International Programs at UNO. While in Omaha, the IIT group visited Gallup University and the offices of ConAgra Foods, infoUSA, Berkshire Hathaway and Union Pacific. They toured Nebraska Furniture Mart and had lunch with Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett. “The interaction has given us a real perspective on the community and America,” says Anushka Nagban, a 24-year-old MBA student. “I loved meeting with the teachers and the business leaders.” MBA graduate Shilpi, 25, says she was impressed by UNO’s global focus, “which we miss sometimes in India.” IS&T Professor Deepak Khazanchi also is an IIT Kharagpur graduate. “The IIT students commented that this has been a life-changing experience for them,” he says. “The UNO faculty and Omaha executives who met with the students spoke of being enriched by the experience.” As did several IIT faculty members. “The humbleness and readiness of the faculty and corporate leaders to

Wide Focus essions attended by groups visiting UNO from the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur were led by faculty from the College of Business Administration, assisted by faculty at the College of Information Science and Technology. Topics included: • Strategic leadership; • Global business and finance; • Innovation management; • Creativity and entrepreneurial planning; • Facilitation of electronic collaboration using information technology; and, • E-commerce and marketing in a high tech environment.

exchange ideas in a very precise way is extremely impressive,” says Professor Sadhan K. De. “Chancellor (Nancy) Belck, the vice chancellor and the deans all speak in a single voice about the university’s goals of student focus, academic excellence and community engagement. Our faculty shares those goals.” IIT Professor H.R. Tewari says the relationship forged by Vinod Gupta and the two institutions should expand. “Our eagerness to meet the challenges together, not to live in isolation, is something very significant. We’d like to further it.” UNOALUM

Fost eri ng di ver sit y w it h a handshake eaching out each year to shake the hands of hundreds of young students, including many women and minority youths, Judy Monarrez Diaz-Kelsey sometimes has a problem. She finds it difficult to let go. “I see so many bright kids who have so much to offer,” says Kelsey, student recruiter for the College of Information Science and Technology (IS&T). “I just want them all to give higher education a shot.” For six years the Sioux City, Iowa, native has served as IS&T’s student recruiter and academic advisor. In April she was named the staff recipient of the Chancellor’s Commission on Multicultural Affairs Diversity Award. A

Photo by Tim Fitzgerald / University Affairs

Judy Monarrez Diaz-Kelsey and her Chancellor’s Commission on Multicultural Affairs Diversity Award.

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nominator wrote that the notoriety UNO has received regarding multicultural opportunities “is a direct result of Judy’s selfless hard work bringing our students and community together.” She is no stranger to hard work—or to the value of pursuing a dream. Her father, Juan Monarrez, toiled in the meatpacking plants in Sioux City and Omaha. Her mother, Gloria, cleaned houses, did some factory work and worked in restaurants. Today her parents are the proud owners of Club Mex, a restaurant near 93rd and Maple Streets that has built a satisfied and loyal following for more than 15 years. Kelsey earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in counseling from UNO. The first of the three Monarrez children to attend college, she personally relates to the uncertainty many young women and minority youths experience in similar situations. “It’s a very new, difficult, maybe even scary experience for some of these families,” she says. “Their parents may have only an elementary school education, yet they came here to find better educational opportunities for their children. I can help.” The IS&T recruitment effort includes summer workshops for computer-savvy students as young as 11 up to high school age, as well as opportunities for the public to tour the Peter Kiewit Institute. Kelsey tracks kids’ current technology interests while visiting area high schools, participating in college fairs and talking with her 14-year-old son, Jovan. “He’s who I consult with to find out what the kids might like in the summer workshops. If I can impress him, I know I can keep them interested.” She is seeing results. “Little by little, our diversity here at IS&T is improving.” The scarcity of women and minorities studying information technology is a national trend, she says. “It’s not just a UNO problem.” To boost those enrollments, Kelsey has helped organize events including “Diversity in Information Science & Technology Week” and “Latino Day for the College of IS&T and Engineering.” She and others, including Doug Bahle, coordinator of the Peter Kiewit Institute (PKI) Career Resource Center, are committed to turning degrees into careers. Bahle keeps students posted on hundreds of job and internship openings through emails and personal visits. “We work together to make it as easy as possible for students to achieve their academic goals,” she says. “There’s really no reason for them to wonder where they will work after graduation. They can pick and choose where they’ll go. “From the resources that we bring directly to our students, to the supportive faculty and staff, I don’t think it gets any better.” She loves to prove it, starting with a handshake. Summer 2006 • 13

College of

Information Science and Technology IS&T students delve into second generation of wireless robotics

Bots are Hot n his workshop at the Peter Kiewit Institute, computer science graduate Christopher Williams taps away at the keyboard of his laptop, its screen displaying a blueprint of rooms, walls and hallways. Behind him, “Yellow” makes a sort of whirring sound as it begins rolling. Williams glances back and shakes his head. “Right now, the big wheel on one side is turning slightly faster than the other side. That makes it curve a little,” he explains apologetically, “but we’ll fix it.” “Yellow” is the second generation of five robots Williams and other students have programmed as part of a wireless remote robotics project at UNO’s College of Information Science & Technology (IS&T). Rather than give the backpack-sized, floor-hugging robots traditional names, they are referred to simply by their color. Along with Assistant Professor Jon Youn and others, Williams has been working since January on a project that will allow Yellow, Blue and the other “bots” to interact with and be tracked by wireless sensors. The grantfunded project has many commercial applications, including facility security. “For example, the robots could automatically patrol the halls in a building, using their ultrasonic and infrared sensors to detect open doors, break-ins or the heat of an intruder,” Williams says. “We also can put a sensor on the robot and track it through the building’s wireless sensor network.” The native of Elk Horn, Iowa, says linking the College of IS&T and the University of Nebraska College of Engineering within the Peter Kiewit Institute provides students with unique opportunities. “It’s a great environment, having engineering and IS&T side-by-side. Sometimes we need circuits soldered, sometimes they need software, and we’re right around the cor-

14 • Summer 2006

Photo by Tim Fitzgerald / University Affairs

Williams and “Blue,” one of the second-generation wireless remote robots IS&T students have programmed.

ner from each other. It creates a synergy that’s beneficial to both.” As for his professional career, Williams has options. “I can see myself in the corporate field, then taking that experience and applying it to a classroom, because I love the college environment. In the classroom, I could use my corporate experience to focus on the functional part of the lesson, not just the theory.”

“It’s a great environment, having engineering and IS&T side-by-side. It creates a synergy that’s beneficial to both.” UNO graduate Christopher Williams UNOALUM

Professor Victor Winter::

In for the Long Haul ack when Victor Winter was a col-

Blege student playing piano in a

rock band in Albuquerque, N.M., his fellow band members urged him to drop out and join their quest for a recording contract. He turned them down, choosing instead to focus on “the long run.” Today, Winter is an associate professor of computer science at UNO’s College of Information Science and Technology. He still has a passion for music—and for considering the longterm consequences when it comes to teaching, research and his students. “Research helps students develop problem-solving skills that are difficult, if not impossible, to pick up in a traditional classroom setting,” he says. “Solving a research problem requires patience, perseverance, initiative and a long-term view.” Those problem-solving skills are highly valued in industry, Winter says. “Facing a vaguely defined problem, an experienced professional will see an ‘opportunity’ for a creative solution. An inexperienced person will see only chaos.” Winter’s students have benefited from his perspective. Prior to coming to UNO in 2001, Winter worked at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque. Sandia is a government-owned, contractoroperated facility with diverse operations ranging from research in military and energy technologies to providing stewardship over the nation’s nuclear stockpile. Winter has kept active his connection with Sandia, conducting research projects, obtaining grants and helping secure internships and jobs for IS&T students and grads. “Sandia is a fabulous place to work,” he says. “Internships there are ‘enablers.’ They look great on a resume and they open doors.” w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

It did for Brent Kucera. An intern at Sandia the summer of 2004, Kucera graduated in May 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. Today, the 23-year-old is employed full time at Sandia working with Field Programmable Gate Arrays. “I was always interested in programming, starting when I was 13 or 14,” Kucera says. “Victor Winter stretched me past regular programming to find my potential.” Kucera praises Winter, Dr. Blaine Burnham and other IS&T faculty for taking the time to get involved with students. “I talked with some friends, and compared to their college experiences, the teachers at IS&T aren’t weeding people out but helping them to succeed. That puts UNO programs way above other programs.”

Jason Beranek graduated in May 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. Based in part on a recommendation from Winter, the 24-year-old got a job as a system software engineer with the MITRE Corp., a federally-funded, not-forprofit research and development organization whose Department of Defense clients include U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base. “Victor got me involved in more research-based computer science than what the normal class load required,” Beranek says. “Without that, there would have been no chance to have the job I have today.” Winter says IS&T presents students a unique variety of projects from which to choose. “We can get you to the river,” he says. “What you drink and how much is up to you.” As for that rock band back in Albuquerque, it did get a recording contract and a shot at fame. “But in the long run,” Winter says, “it didn’t last.”

Photo by Tim Fitzgerald / University Affairs

Victor Winter, center, with students (from left) Ryan Lankin, Arpit Jain, Chris Scalzo and Azamat Mametjanov.

Summer 2006 • 15

College of

Communication, Fine Arts and Media

New dean brings love of journalism, fine arts to UNO By Hugh Reilly he grew up on the south side of Chicago, in the shad-

Sow of old Comiskey Park. Her heroes were people like

“Mr. Cub” Ernie Banks and the Bears’ Gale Sayers. She had two driving ambitions: one was to be a schoolteacher; the other was to be a photographer and journalist. Dr. Gail Baker, though, says her greatest influence was her schoolteacher mother, who had the foresight to push Baker and her sisters to high goals. “She insisted that we be good students,” Baker recalls. “More importantly, she urged us to constantly work on becoming better people.” Other family shaped her, too. From her father, Baker learned to appreciate sports and strategy and how to lose Gail Baker. gracefully. Her sister Linda “taught me to appreciate all types of music, art, museums and literature. “Because she liked these things and I wanted to emulate her, I became interested in classical music, the Art Institute of Chicago, the museums and even the Adler Planetarium. She opened my mind to unlimited possibilities.” Her combined love of journalism and fine arts should serve Baker well in her new job. Effective July 1 she becomes the dean of UNO’s 1-year-old College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media. “UNO is a very impressive and vibrant university that takes its metropolitan mission very seriously,” Baker says. “There is a palpable sense of positive momentum on the campus.” Much like Baker’s career. Her love of journalism began while she was in high school. “I was impressed by the journalists of the day who fearlessly covered the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement and the political turmoil of the times,” she says. Her first experience was as editor of her high school yearbook, for which she combined her writing skills with 16 • Summer 2006

a flair for design to produce a yearbook unlike anything her school had seen before. “At that point,” says Baker, “I was hooked.” She worked as an intern for the Chicago Daily Defender in high school, later joining the paper as a reporter after graduating from college. She has a bachelor of science degree in journalism from Northwestern University, a master in marketing communication from Roosevelt University and a doctorate in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Baker was an editor, city editor and reporter for the Chicago Daily Defender and has worked in public relations for IBM and International Harvester. She comes to UNO from the University of Florida, where she was an associate professor and department chair of the College of Journalism and Communications, director of University Communications and vice president of the University of Florida’s Office of Public Relations. Previously she was a faculty member and program director at the University of Missouri Columbia, School of Journalism. Baker is looking forward to joining the UNO family. “I have found Omaha to be extremely gracious and very cosmopolitan—with a lively and dynamic arts and cultural community,” she says. “I learned that Nebraska tends to be a dichotomy. People here seem to be very vocal and engaged about things that matter to them. Ironically, people are quietly modest about the high quality of living they enjoy. When people ask me about Nebraska, I tell them, ‘It’s not what you think.’”

CCFAM Calendar of Events T h e a t r e , 2 0 0 6- 0 7 Performance start at 7:30 p.m. in the UNO Theatre, Weber Fine Arts Building, unless otherwise noted. For ticket information, call the UNO Theatre Box Office, 554-2335.

October 5-7, 11-14 Man of La Mancha Nov. 16-18, 29 - Dec. 2 The Hamlet Project Feb. 22-24, 28 – March 3 The Colored Museum March 29-31 Student Showcase, location TBA April 12-14, 18-21 Our Country’s Good

UNOALUM

College of

Education

Fun on the links set for Sept. 21 tourney even miles and nearly 50 years separate Dean and

SRosemary Johnson from UNO.

The distance is calculated from Champions Run golf course, where the Johnsons live and frequent. The time is measured from their final days as students—Rosemary graduated from the College of Education in 1957, Dean from the same college in 1959. In September, time and place will unite, as will the Johnsons’ love of golf and their alma mater. The couple on Sept. 21 sponsors a hole at the College of Education’s “Building a Legacy of Excellence” Golf Outing at Tiburon Golf Course. The tournament is a first-ever, one-time-only event to support COE’s “Building a Legacy of Excellence” Campaign. While one of the purposes of the event is to raise financial support for college activities, the outing also will afford those with a connection to the college an opportunity to be with friends, to renew acquaintances from years past, and to meet others with a common interest in the college. All while having fun on the links. Teachers first The Johnsons’ journey from then-Omaha University to Champions Run began as teachers in the Omaha Public Schools. Rosemary began teaching at Benson West Elementary School during the 1957-58 school year. After beginning their family she continued as a substitute teacher for 14 years. Dean began teaching in 1959 as a traveling physical education teacher. After his first year he was assigned as a shop and physical education teacher to Highland School, which served K-through-8 students. He also was the track and flag football coach. In 1961 he was called by then-Superintendent Harry A. Burke and advised to begin his work toward an advanced degree in educational administration. Johnson immediately was assigned assistant principal at Technical Junior High School. In 1964 he earned his master of education degree. Dean was assistant principal at Tech Junior from 1961 through 1967. He recalls the first year as especially challenging—the principal suffered a heart attack shortly after the beginning of the school year and didn’t return until later in the spring. Johnson was left in charge of the w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

school, and he gained considerable respect for the many outstanding teachers on the staff. Dean’s assignment to Technical Junior High brought him back to familiar territory. As a student and graduate of Technical High School he had played on a championship baseball team that included future Major Leaguer and Hall-of-Famer Bob Gibson. Dean himself would play professionally, spending two years with a farm team for the St. Louis Cardinals. Still on the move In 1968 Dean left education, joining Sam Marvin to develop a group operating Arby’s restaurants. Today the Johnsons own DRM Incorporated with 64 Arby’s stores in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska. Sons Marc and Matt own and manage the company. Family is and has been an important part of the Johnson’s life. They have four children—Mike, Marc, Matt and Melissa—and eight grandchildren, whose sporting events keep Dean and Rosemary on the move. In May they traveled to watch their oldest granddaughter compete in the NCAA national golf tournament as a member of the Texas A&M golf team. Daughter Melissa “Missy” Orlando has continued the Johnson legacy with the College of Education. Currently principal at Rose Hill Elementary School, Missy received her master’s degree from the college in 1997. She taught at Miller Park and Hartman schools for 10 years and has been the principal at Rose Hill for seven years. Dean, meanwhile, has returned to education in his partial retirement. He currently serves as a mentor to one student at Rose Hill School and has mentored other students as well. Both of the Johnsons enjoy their time on the fairways of Champions Run. They also enjoy traveling, most recently to Russia. In 2005 they traveled to Africa. On September 21 the Johnsons will travel to Tiburon Golf Course. Those interested in joining Dean, Rosemary and many other alumni and friends can get registration information for the tourney through the college website http://coe.unomaha.edu/excellence or by sending an email to jsorrels@mail.unomaha.edu. The 4-person scramble begins with a noon shotgun start.

Happenings schedule ollege of Education alumni can read more about fellow alumni, faculty and current students in Happenings, mailed in late June.

Save the date! A one-time only event, Building a Legacy of Excellence Golf Outing, is being planned for Sept. 21, 2006, at Tiburon Golf Course. The four-person scramble will have a 12 p.m. shotgun start. Mark your calendar and look for additional information in the future.

Summer 2006 • 17

Finding his way BY SONJA CARBERRY

Photo courtesy James Peters Forty minutes of climbing put Peters high above the ancient Incan city Machu Picchu in Peru’s Andes Mountains. “Once you are there, the views just take your breath away,” he says. The journey came on the last of four days of hiking that took Peters 26 miles along the Inca Trail. 18 • Summer 2006

UNOALUM

ack in Omaha after a seven-month trek through South America, UNO grad James Peters has cut the hair he let grow into an unruly mop and trimmed his bushy beard to a midnight shadow. In a yellow button-down shirt and crisp jeans, he looks very 20-something Omaha. But part of Peters is still south of the border. Though three weeks back in the states, for example, Peters still has to stop himself from putting extra restaurant napkins in his back pocket. “Toilet paper is hard to come by there,” he explains. Experience and perspective, however, are not. Peters backpacked through a handful of countries on around $8,000, staying in hostels and riding cramped “steel box” buses. He sums up his travel style as “part planning, part improvisation,” and “what you do when you have more time than money.” Along the way he filled two journals and a blog with his experiences at soccer games, historical sites, festivals and much more. High points included mountain biking from La Paz to Corico, Bolivia, on the “world’s most dangerous road,” spending some surreal days in the desert-like salt flats of Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia, and watching the Perito Moreno Glacier calve near Patagonia, Argentina. In an unexpected side trip, Peters joined an expedition to Antarctica, where penguins waddled by as he shivered in “every layer of clothing I had.” Some experiences weren’t exactly guidebook material. Sitting on a park bench with a homeless man in Santiago, Chile, Peters gave up a page of his journal so the man could write a somewhat confused thanks for what was left of Peters’ dinner. And on his last day abroad, on the subway in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Peters found out what he’d do if someone tried to pickpocket him. “I shoved him against a wall, hard,” the 6-foot-6, 240pound Peters says. “I was yelling at him in Spanish, ‘What is your hand doing in my bag?’” Peters’ goal, by all accounts realized, was to get outside his comfort zone. “I didn’t go to a lot of clubs. I tried to do the things you can’t do at home,” he says.

Continued next page

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Summer 2006 • 19

Finding his way From Page 19

Leaving Omaha Peters, 26, had been living reasonably comfortably, putting himself through college by driving rusty cars and living with “Ma and Pa.” He played baseball for the Mavs as a pitcher, walking on and eventually earning the No. 2 starting post. “The coaches were great,” he says. “They challenge you and will not settle for mediocrity, and every year they have improved. UNO is very lucky to have the coaches they have.” After graduating in May 2005 with master’s degree in management information systems (he earned a BS in 2003), he found himself dodging the inevitable question: “So what’s next?” Peters didn’t have a ready answer. After church one Sunday, a friend of his mother’s gave Peters an Omaha World-Herald article about Dean Jacobs, a Fremont, Neb., resident who spent two years backpacking the world. Jacobs had lowered his expenses by staying with host families through an organization called Servas International. Peters was inspired and called Jacobs to find out more. “I realized this is something I could do now or when I’m 75,” Peters says. His parents were less than enthusiastic, primarily for safety reasons. “We tried talking him out of it,” says Daniel Peters, a two-time UNO grad (BS, real estate, 1979; MBA, 1981). “But that was almost futile. It was his life and his money.” Peters had saved money through various odd jobs. “All of my friends saved for cars, I saved for a trip,” Peters says. He worked as an intern at Union Pacific and did some video editing for a project collaboration between UNO’s Peter Kiewit Institute and the National Park Service’s Lewis and Clark National Historical Trail. He mowed yards in the summer and shoveled driveways in the winter. And he worked in the clubhouse for the Omaha Royals baseball team. “Being a clubbie is like being the minion or babysitter for 30 pro ballplayers,” he

Bi k e s & B l o g s Ja m es P et e r s , w h o a l s o ri d e s a u n i c y c l e f o r f u n , k e p t a b l o g o f h is t r a v e l s a t theunicycleguy. bl ogspot. com. A fe w o b s e r v a ti o n s : • “ B o l i v i a n Ti m e c a n m e a n anything. Ten minutes in Bo l i v i a n Ti m e ca n m e a n t w o h o u r s in A m e r i c a n T i m e . ” • “ So u t h A m e r i c a n c a bb i es must think that gringos are thee l azies t peopl e in the w o r ld a n d h o n k a t u s a ll t h e ti m e . T h e y h o n k a t y o u w h e n

20 • Summer 2006

says. “It’s a great job, if you like baseball.” By August last year he was on his way, attending a language school in Cuernavaca, Mexico, to bolster his college Spanish. On Sept. 10, 2005, he took a one-way flight from Mexico City to Lima, Peru, and officially began his winding journey through Peru, Panama, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay and Antarctica. It was in Mendoza, Argentina, that Peters used his new membership with Servas, which encourages cultural exchange by connecting travelers with host families. Peters was the 401st guest of Francisco Morón, a well-traveled chain smoker with a guest house and a scratch-happy kitten named Chopin. Morón regaled Peters with stories of his own travels over steak and pasta. They also talked about their families and their countries. “It really gave me a chance to work on my Spanish,” Peters says. “And it just shows you that people are people, no matter where you are. Everyone has at least one good joke.” In Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost city in the world, Peters stumbled onto an opportunity to join an expedition to Antarctica. “I thought, ‘I’m not going to be any closer to Antarctica than I am right now,’” he says. Peters boarded the Marco Polo with 500 other passengers, some backpackers, but most retirees. After riding a zodiac boat from ship to shore, Peters stood on Half Moon Island to observe chinstrap penguins, seals and albatrosses in what amounted to a real-life zoo. “You can feel like Ernest Shackelton until you realize you’ve got three bars on the ship,” he says.

Back Home Today in Omaha, Peters recently mulled over a job offer, trying to reconcile a full-time position and its two weeks’ vacation time with his desire to continue traveling. He turned down the offer. “I’d like to see Asia, India, Africa. I’ll hit Europe last,” he says. His parents notified him that he has two weeks to move out, and Peters jokes that they’ll donate his belongings to Goodwill to give him a push. But he’s not too concerned. In fact, he’s pretty relaxed. “I think a lot of people in the y o u l e a st n e ed t he m a n d a r e states don’t realize how good they n ev er ar ou nd w he n y ou d o. ” have it. They’re so caught up in • “ W o m e n s p e c t a t o rs a t materialism and ostentation,” Peters s occ er gam e s hav e s om e of says. “In Argentina, they have no t he m o st vul g ar m o ut hs . . . money, but they go out with friends You cannot believe what two to three times a week.” c o m e s o u t o f th e i r m o u t h s .” Peters is still organizing his • “ A re S o u t h A m e ri c a n c a r impressions of South America and n i va l w or k er s l o ok e d at as di f the people he met in his third jourf e r e n t l y a s t h e y a r e i n th e nal and on his blog. It’s something US A[ ?] ” he doesn’t want to slip away. To • “ Be n i c e t o p e o p l e y o u anyone considering extended travel, m ee t al o n g t h e w a y be c au s e I Peters says it’s worth every penny. g u a r a n t e e t ha t y o u w i l l s e e “You can get more out of that them again.” $8,000 traveling than you would out of, say, a car.”

UNOALUM

Movie Magic Life and times of former UNO great Marlin “The Magician” Briscoe being produced for the big screen

hey are the legends of integration in professional sports—Jackie Robinson, Arthur Ashe, Joe Louis. Like them, Marlin Briscoe was a trailblazer—the first black man to start as an NFL quarterback. Decades after black athletes were a common sight on athletic teams of all types, the myth prevailed that an AfricanAmerican could not successfully lead a football team as a quarterback. Marlin Briscoe proved the critics wrong. His rise to the top of the football world—becoming the first black starting quarterback, an all-pro receiver and a member of the only undefeated team in NFL history—are only part of the story, however. After his football career was over, Briscoe fell into a vicious cycle of drugs, a lifestyle that put him at the barrel-end of a drug dealer’s gun and, later, behind bars. Briscoe eventually took adversity head on. He faced his addictions, his fears and his critics to become what he is today, a mentor to young people in Los Angeles, coaching them about overcoming life’s barriers and the dangers of drugs. Now Briscoe’s life and times are headed for the big screen—thanks to help from some UNO folks. Noted Omaha actor John Beasley, Terry Hanna and David B. Clark, in cooperation with Briscoe, are producing “Third and Long,” a movie about Briscoe’s life. The trio makes up West Omaha Films. Beasley was a former UNO student who in 2005 received from UNO an honorary doctorate of humane letters. Hanna (1996) also is a UNO grad. Briscoe’s tale begins in Oakland, Calif., where he was born. Briscoe’s parents separated when he was young and his mother moved Marlin and his sister to Omaha. They lived in south Omaha at Southside Terrace Homes. Briscoe attended Omaha South High School, then UNO— Omaha University at the time—playing football and basketball. He became a gridiron star, leading OU to league championships in 1965, 1967 and 1968. He set 21 records and was named to several All-American teams his senior year. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos and eventually got a shot at quarterback—only because that was stipulated in his contract. On Sept. 29, 1968, an injury-depleted Broncos team put Briscoe at quarterback in the fourth quarter of an AFL game against Boston. One week later, against Cincinnati, he became the first black starting quarterback in pro football. Briscoe showed that not only could the black quarterback

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play, he could excel. In an astounding rookie season he set numerous team records, several of which still stand. He holds the rookie record for most combined rushing and passing yards in a season and still holds the rookie record for most touchdown passes in a season (14). He would go on to play receiver in Buffalo from 1969 to 1971, leading the AFC in receptions in 1970 and earning AllPro status. He then put in three years with Miami, winning two Super Bowl rings and playing on the 1972 Dolphin squad that went 17-0, the only NFL team ever to go undefeated. Briscoe finished his pro career at New England and left the NFL after playing nine years. He was 31. Nearly 30 years later, his story is going Hollywood. Beasley, a one-time OU student, played with Briscoe at OU in the 1960s. Later in life he became a noted actor, starring in movies and, most recently, as a regular on the WB Network’s “Everwood.” Beasley says in a news release that his former teammate’s story needs to be told because “it’s important to African-Americans, football fans and to the city of Omaha.” Briscoe also is co-founder of the Field Generals, a nonprofit organization featuring black NFL quarterbacks, including greats such as Doug Williams, Randall Cunningham and 2006 NFL Hall of Fame inductee Warren Moon. “If any aspiring African-American quarterback had doubts, and saw Marlin out there playing, he saw the possibility of getting that same opportunity,” Moon says. “No question Marlin was a trailblaz-

Photo by Tim Fitzgerald/University Affairs Briscoe, far, left, joined the UNO Alumni Association’s Homecoming 2005 celebration last October, bringing with him John Beasley and fellow UNO graduate Rudy Smith.

er for African-Americans who wanted to play quarterback. I think his story is important to tell. The truth needs to be told about what we went through.” The Omaha World-Herald reported that the film is at least two years from hitting the screen. For info about the movie and West Omaha Films, visit www.marlinbriscoemovie.com. For a story on Briscoe from the winter 1998 UNO Alum, visit www.unoalumni.org/briscoe Summer 2006 • 21

PHOTO BY JIM BOVIN PHOTOGRAPHY UNO graduate Lorraine Carter at one of her child development centers: You can’t provide for the children unless you help change their environment, Carter says.

KEEPING BLANK SLATES CLEAN S

eventy-five was the magic number for Lorraine Carter. She’d cut out the 10-hour days, the long nights on the home computer, the meetings that stretched through lunch. She was 74 years old. “At some point you have to turn it over,” Carter says, “cut it loose. It’s almost like having a child.” The body has its own palm pilot. In September, Carter, founder of the V.E. Carter Child B Y E LIZABETH M ERRILL Development Center, advocate for low-income African-American children, mover and shaker in Milwaukee, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Everything changed. And then it didn’t.

22 • Summer 2006

She’s relaxing at home in Milwaukee on a late-spring afternoon, but her computer, fax and phone are within grabbing distance. She’s talking about helping Sudanese refugees, her charter elementary school and her drop-in day-care centers. She runs a social service program to help non-violent offenders. And a housing development project for single-parent families. You can’t provide for the children, she says, unless you help change their environment. “I’m doing fine,” she says. “As a matter of fact, I was considering some treatment and went in for a consultation but the doctor said it looked as though the tumor was shrinking. I saw on TV a woman in Baltimore drinking breast milk to cure pancreatic cancer. I’ve been getting frozen breast milk. “I feel very good, and everyone says I look good. I do what I want to do.” UNOALUM

A NICE PACE TO BE FROM It’s been that way since Carter, a 1952 Omaha University grad, was growing up on the north side of town. The old neighborhood on 27th and Corby is gone—there’s a freeway running through it today—but it’s fresh in Carter’s mind and keeps her going through red tape, hard stories and cancer. She loved that neighborhood. Segregation was all around, money was tight, but Carter remembers it as wholesome. Her dad worked in the packinghouse, her mom in a bomber plant during World War II. Lorraine went to Girl Scouts, camp and Sunday school; her mom was in the PTA. “We always felt that we had to reach out and help others, and of course there were so many people in our neighborhood who motivated and helped us,” Carter says. “Our family lived down the street from attorneys and teachers. “We had camps and community sings. It was just a good time to be a child. We say now that Omaha’s a nice place to be from.” Omaha, she says, had de-facto segregation in the 1930s and ’40s. Most of the African-American families lived on the north side or an area in south Omaha. As a kid, Carter didn’t see any overt discrimination. She remembers going to movie theaters and being directed to the balcony with other black folks. “But we were pretty young at the time,” she says. “When the civil rights movement began, I was an adult and away from Omaha. That’s when you begin to look back.” One thing stood out from those days—nearly every teacher white. There was one black teacher in grammar school, and none in high school at Central. Carter volunteered at the YMCA in high school and taught children in the neighborhood. Her parents and friends used to tell her, “You’d make a good teacher.”

nearly 500 children. Veledis, whom the center was named for, died in 1984. Today, the center is known as one of the oldest child-care centers in Milwaukee owned and operated by a black woman. And Carter is known as its resident workaholic. “I don’t discourage her from being active. She’s the best judge,” says Dr. William Finlayson, her longtime physician who serves on the daycare board. “She’s a very energetic person, a very bright person, and she’s committed to this community. “She’s gone out of her way to do things for those who are less fortunate. She’s very unselfish the way she does it.” In February, Carter received a Black History Month award from the Milwaukee county board. She casually says she has too many awards to mention. That’s not why she started this 35 years ago, anyway. As her body tells her to slow down, Carter has had time to sit back and savor some of the stories. Like the wide-eyed, poor 4year-old who started in daycare but wound up as a social worker. She’s married now and has a child she’s putting in the center. Or the youth worker who went on to get his degree and now is their director of transportation services. Now it’s time for somebody else to build more success stories. Carter has turned much of the daily work over to her son, Michael. She still manages to slide in board meetings and roughly three days a week in the office. But finally, the Girl Scout from the north side has found time for herself. She spent about a month in Florida. She went to New York and saw “The Color Purple” on Broadway. Carter always liked working with young children because they’re a blank slate. But she’s filled in so many sheets. She was on the phone recently with a friend she hadn’t seen in 40 years. They talked for three hours. “She had written a journal,” Carter says, “and part of it was on the difference our friendship had made. People don’t often share their inner thoughts and feelings. I had that pleasure of knowing that. “Since I’ve been ill, I’ve heard from so many people that I’ve forgotten who has sent cards and called to say what a difference their involvement had made. We’ve had some great successes.”

help

““We always felt that we had

others, and of course to reach out and

there were so many people in our neighborhood who

motivated and helped us. We had camps and community

be a child. We say

sings. It was just a good time

now that Omaha’s a nice place to be from.”

OFF TO BREWTOWN She earned her bachelor’s degree in education and sociology from Omaha University, then went to Chicago and became a social worker. In 1958, she moved to Milwaukee and worked as a special education teacher. She immediately was struck by the massive number of single mothers in the community. Her husband, Veledis, also was a teacher, and in 1971 they opened the V.E. Carter Child Development Center. They started with 35 kids. Two decades later, it mushroomed into five centers and

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Summer 2006 • 23

UNO faculty and students connect in and out of class

HIGH-TECH CONNECTIONS

hen Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer, introduced the world to the iPod in October 2001, few outside technology’s inner circle could anticipate the impact of the nifty white gadget. For $400, consumers of all ages could carry 1,000 of their favorite songs on a device slightly larger than a deck of playing cards. The coveted piece of modern pop culture—with white headphones to match—would change the way the world listened to its music. But the iPod also would change the way college professors conducted lectures. The phrase “podcasting” was born from the iPod, meaning any type of digital audio file that can be listened to on an iPod, similar MP3 device or personal computer. Translation: the spoken word could be heard round the world at any time,

24 • Summer 2006

day or night, according to the user’s schedule. UNO professor Timi Barone purchased an iPod for personal use in early 2005 and soon thereafter began considering the idea of recording class lectures and posting them online for student download. An associate professor in the department of sociology/anthropology, Barone a few days before fall classes began in 2005 B Y W ENDY T OWNLEY spoke with technology experts at UNO’s A RT BY WARD S CHUMAKER Information Technology Services (ITS) about the potential of podcasts. That first semester was spent working through the logistics of recording and sharing class lectures. Barone purchased a microphone and recording software for her iPod, which she wore around her neck during class. Barone would download

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the recorded lecture from her iPod to her computer then email the file to ITS employees who posted the lecture on Blackboard, UNO’s online bulletin board system used by students and faculty to exchange curriculum assignments and information. The lecture was converted by ITS to be listened to using two applications: QuickTime, by Apple Computer, and Windows Media Player. In the spring of 2006, with the technological and logistical kinks fixed, Barone conducted an informal study on the use of podcasts in class. She taught two Introduction to Anthropology classes that semester—one class of students had access to her recorded lectures, the other class did not. “By that point, we were hearing more about podcasting at other universities, but couldn’t determine its pedagogical value,” Barone says. “Just because it’s cool doesn’t mean it’s going to improve the lives of our students.” A November 2005 Newsweek article suggested the availability of classroom podcasts could encourage student skipping. Barone read that article but wanted to learn more about student podcast use. Barone’s lectures—which usually lasted less than an hour— were posted to Blackboard one week after each class. Barone limited the podcast to her lecture only, not including student questions or discussion in the recording. At the semester’s end, Barone saw zero differences on exam grades between her two classes. There was very little difference in classroom attendance numbers, too. Out of 25 lectures, the class with podcast access had an average attendance of 18.6 students; that compared to a 19.5 average for the class without podcast access. During the semester, six students enrolled in the podcast class dropped, while 10 withdrew from the no-access course. Barone attributes the numbers to homework. “Our students are juggling a lot and can fall behind for a variety of reasons, despite their best intentions,” Barone explains. “Podcasting helps them get caught up, even if it’s at 2 in the morning.” Barone says her students used the recorded lectures not as way to miss class, but as a supplement to their notes. Students who didn’t grasp a particular concept could listen to Barone’s lecture as many times as necessary to understand the topic and move forward in the coursework.

courses to 20, explains John Fiene, associate vice chancellor for technology at UNO. Each semester that followed, Blackboard use by faculty continued to expand at a quicker pace, doubling every five to six months. “The growth rate was so phenomenal that we reorganized the IT services department to get behind it and support those using it,” says Fiene, who’s responsible for campus-wide technology systems at UNO. “We went from offering training in Word and Excel to almost exclusively putting all of our training efforts into development curriculum and using Blackboard.” The department even hired a full-time person to administer the Blackboard application. Fiene says there wasn’t a “formal push” on campus for faculty to supplement Blackboard with their coursework. “The people who were using it were sharing their success,” Fiene says. “That was the biggest impetus.” Today, more than 1,500 courses at UNO use Blackboard

Using A Digital Blackboard What made Barone’s podcasting project a relatively easy reality for her students was the Blackboard Academic Suite— simply known as Blackboard around the UNO campus. Since 1998, UNO, along with educators at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Nebraska at Kearney and University of Nebraska Medical Center, have used Blackboard to supplement classroom discussion, assignments and exams. The Web-based application allows faculty to post coursework and other materials for students to download, most often as Microsoft Word files. Blackboard also offers an online bulletin board, which serves as a method to continue discussion and discourse about a particular classroom topic. In its second semester, Blackboard use jumped from 12

every semester—a 75-percent course penetration rate. Fiene says 93 percent of students are taking at least one course that uses Blackboard, with 70 percent of UNO faculty using Blackboard. The increased use of Blackboard created a great need for back-end support at UNO. Additional on-site servers were needed to store Blackboard files. And those servers needed to remain online 24/7 for students and faculty working at all hours of the day and night. “The server uptime has been very good,” Fiene says. “We made a decision early on to oversize the hardware so that issues could be dealt with, even when demand jumps.” Fiene says he can predict when Blackboard will be busiest, and when demand will dwindle. Continued on next page

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Summer 2006 • 25

High-Tech Connections From Page 25

“As you move toward the middle of the semester, with midterms, and the end of the semester, with final exams, usage goes up,” Fiene explains. “The demand on Sunday and Sunday nights is high, but it drops off Friday and Saturday evenings.” Fiene says Blackboard has had another impact on student education besides increased access to course materials. The online application has allowed student discussion to continue long after class ends, and it offers more reserved students to pose questions and offer opinions in a virtual classroom environment. “Students also post their work and have others critique it, with a greater emphasis on writing skills,” Fiene explains. “People who are perhaps shy in class, or even ESL (English as a Second Language), who might have difficulty in the oral part of class now have a chance to reflect on things.” Little Learners Long before students set foot on college campuses, they’ve completed 12 years of education that taught them the basics. Technology is becoming part of the package. UNO associate professor Wilma Kuhlman studied firsthand the impact technology has on students as young as first-graders. Kuhlman spent several weeks monitoring and examining a group of 17 first-graders at Rockbrook Elementary School in Omaha. The teacher, Elizabeth Campbell, allowed her students to use handheld computers to aid in pre-writing exercises. When Kuhlman first arrived at Rockbrook, she was greeted by a first-grade girl who informed Kuhlman that she was “beaming,” meaning she and her pint-sized classmates were wirelessly exchanging information among their handheld computers. She then asked Kuhlman, “Do you know what beaming is?” Kuhlman recalls the moment as “adorable,” but one that opened her eyes to the power of technology at an early age. 26 • Summer 2006

The first-grade students drafted words and phrases on their handhelds and beamed them to Campbell for her to review. They used the handheld computers in creative ways. For example, rather than storing phone numbers in the address book, the students saved word lists for quick reference when writing. The notepad feature allowed students to jot down (and save) classroom notes at various points throughout the day. Campbell would beam assignments to her students’ handhelds, who then would get to work writing phrases. Kuhlman was surprised at how comfortable the students reacted even when their handhelds froze or presented them with an on-screen error message. “That was one of the challenges of using the handheld computers,” Kuhlman explained. “Because the technology is not always 100 percent reliable, they knew what to do as a matter of routine.” The use of handhelds in the classroom was an ideal method to assist students with their pre-writing skills, Kuhlman said. However, the technology should not be a replacement for traditional penciland-paper writing. “The handhelds can’t make them writers,” Kuhlman explains. “It’s not a magic pill. It’s just a tool. And that’s the rule of technology in (Campbell’s) classroom: it’s a tool for learning. Even the pencil is a piece of technology.” Kuhlman believes that introducing students to technology at an early age allows them the opportunity to learn in a flexible working environment paired with the confidence to explore new technology in the future. “This experience, simply put, allows them to understand the variety of tools that are available to support them for whatever they do,” Kuhlman explains. “It can’t but help give them an advantage. “Technology is part of their world. And to a certain extent, it’s going to give them flexibility, because they may not have the same tool next year. That will provide them that kind of flexibility with any kind of technology they are given.”

Play a Podcast

Sample a UNO podcast. Visit the UNO Radio News Line at www.unomaha.edu/news/radionewsline

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Popping Off

College, Larson taught industrial arts for two years at Plattsmouth Junior and Senior High Schools. It was there that he met Ruth, who also was a teacher. They married and moved to Omaha in 1967. Vic taught at the newly opened Burke High School and pursued his master’s degree in secondary education at UNO. He later earned a Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. From 1971 until his 1998 retirement, Larson served in OPS’ Vocational and Adult Education Department. “OPS wasn’t work; I enjoyed it,” Larson says. “I loved working with the kids and the teachers.” When the Larsons decided to pursue their popcorn venture B Y T OM M C M AHON in 1980, Vic approached the Korn Popper, a Lincoln business Vic Larson was hit in the head by a U.S. vice president, that was part of his capital city childhood. “We always stopped there. They had the best popcorn anywhere.” earned two graduate degrees, and popped enough The Korn Popper agreed to start the Omaha Corn Popper . corn to fill Al Caniglia Field several times over. with Larson as manager, and the franchise took off. “We made But the 1969 UNO graduate says his biggest claim to fame 15 bucks the first day; $250 the should be the more than 30 first month,” Larson says. But years he spent as an Omaha by the end of month three, the Public School teacher and store was turning a profit.” administrator. “My best work Hybrid white popcorn was was with OPS,” he says, “but the key. Ninety-five percent of no one would recognize that popcorn sold at that time was because my name is here.” yellow; popcorn lovers gobbled “Here” is Vic’s Popcorn, up the new gourmet treat. which Larson describes as a The Larsons bought the “small hole-in-the-wall” side business and added two more business he and his wife, Ruth, stores and several satellite locabegan in 1980 at Omaha’s 50th tions. In 1984 they sold the corand Leavenworth Streets. “We poration, which today has outneeded a second income,” he lets in all 50 states. He and Ruth says. “We had started a family kept three Omaha stores, which and it was tough to make it on he hires others to manage. a teacher’s salary.” Larson’s Larson keeps the books and hole in the wall grew and the puts in about 10 hours a week. business expanded. Today you As Larson recalls his boycan pick up a bag or canister of hood visits to Lincoln’s Korn Vic’s Popcorn in all 50 states. Popper, Vice President Dick Common threads run Cheney’s name pops up. through Larson’s educational Cheney and Larson were neighand business endeavors. The bors and often stopped at the 63-year-old’s enthusiasm store. Along with their brothers, explodes like a corn kernel hitthey dubbed themselves the ting hot oil whenever he talks 44th Street Gang. about his popcorn stores or his Larson remembers throwing OPS days. And it’s young peorocks and bricks into a large ple who provide the spark. puddle one day after a rain. Larson calls his teenage Photo by Eric Francis “(Cheney) threw a brick and hit store employees “surrogate “OPS wasn’t work; I enjoyed it,” Larson says. “I loved working me in the back of the head. My children” now that his are all with the kids and the teachers.” older brother chased him grown. He stops by the stores most evenings to check up on them and calls their parents reg- down.” But a brick to the head didn’t end their friendship— the two “gang members” stay in touch today. ularly with updates. Vic and Ruth work homecoming and “I’ve had a boring life,” Larson muses. “Same house, same prom nights so the high school workers can attend. wife, same kids, same dog. But, it’s not been boring to me. I’ve He brought that same attentiveness and energy to his had a great life.” teaching and educational administration assignments. Bricks, popcorn, classrooms and all. After graduating from what was then Kearney State

Popcorn made his a household name, but the classroom was where Vic Larson says he had his biggest bang

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In the Pits

Former Mav goalie Brian Haaland changes careers—and now tires B Y J OHN F EY

yle Busch guides his 2006 Chevy Monte Carlo in for a pit stop and seven men leap over a 2-foot-high concrete wall. The pressure is on —get Busch’s No. 5 car back onto the track in 14 seconds or less. Changing Busch’s rear tires is former UNO hockey goalie Brian Haaland. His heart accelerates as he replaces the right rear tire, then sprints to the left rear side for another change. His mission: remove the five lug nuts on each tire in a total of 1.3 seconds and replace them in 1.1 seconds. Haaland’s progress with the Hendrick Motorsports team seems almost as rapid. Clearly, the 2003 UNO grad’s four years in the net have served him well in the pits.“I’m telling you,” Haaland says, “there are a lot of similarities there. Tire changers can make or break the driver if you don’t get the lug nuts tight or get them on right. Hockey goaltending goes without saying.” Photo courtesy Jack Stark

28 • Summer 2006

UNOALUM

Haaland, 26, is pleasantly amazed at how far he’s come since starting a career in professional racing just two years ago. His interest in NASCAR had caught the eye of Dr. Jack Stark, an Omaha psychologist who worked with the UNO hockey team and who now is in his fifth year as a consultant to the Hendrick outfit. During Haaland’s 2003-04 senior season, Stark had noticed Haaland wearing a Dale Earnhardt Jr. hat at a Maverick practice. A conversation was struck. Recalls Stark: “He said, ‘Hey, I’m a big NASCAR fan. My dream some day would be to work with those guys.’” Haaland won’t forget the call he eventually got from Stark: “Jack said, ‘I’ve got this opportunity for you to be a tire changer,’” Haaland says. “I thought he was pulling my leg.” In the spring of 2004, half a year after graduating from UNO as a physical education major, Haaland began the transformation from hockey to auto racing. Just 12 days after he began his training, Haaland made his debut on June 12, 2004, in a race near Grand Rapids, Mich. The driver that day was Kyle Krisiloff. “It was something new for me,” Haaland says, “and something I wasn’t real confident about what I was doing. I remember calling somebody up and saying I played in some big hockey games, but being in that first race was right up there.” Krisiloff finished in the middle of the pack that day, but both men are seeing their racing careers advance. Krisiloff made his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut earlier this year; Haaland in 2005 was assigned to work with Kyle Busch, one of five drivers on the Hendrick Motorsports team that includes stars Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. A rookie in 2005 on the premiere Nextel Cup circuit, Busch became the youngest NASCAR winner ever when he took the checkered flag at the Sony HD 500 at California Speedway. He won again two months later at Phoenix International Raceway, helping him finish 2005 20th in points with two wins, nine top-fives and 13 top-10s. He was named rookie of the year. Through races of June 4 this year, Busch stood 10th in the Cup standings, trailing teammates Gordon (ninth) and Johnson (first) in points with $1,890,380 in winnings. Busch also competes in the 35-event Busch Series and after 14 races stood fifth out of 101 drivers in points with $379,080 in winnings. Busch also has two starts this year in the Craftsman Truck Series, winning May 19 at Concord, N.C., for the second-straight year. Haaland is in the pits for all of Busch’s races in the second-tier Busch Series. No matter the series, says the former Mav goalie, all drivers expect the same thing—fast turnaround times in the pits. “The driver’s main concern is the car and how it’s running,” he says. “He just expects good pit stops.” In addition to pit crews being well paid—Haaland says the top salary can reach $150,000—he gets to fly on one of Hendricks’ private jets to each race on the weekends. Haaland spends Mondays through Thursdays working at the Hendrick Motorsports Complex in Charlotte, N.C., w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

where he now lives. The Busch team practices in the mornings, and when he’s not sharpening his skills, Haaland coaches the pit crews of developmental drivers. Physical training is important to both the pit crews and the drivers. Haaland serves as a strength coach during the week for pit-crew members and drivers like Busch and Johnson. He’s seen weight training pay off. “Jimmie explained to me that in a 600-mile race you can see guys falling out of their seats and he still feels fresh,” Haaland says. “He’s in unbelievable shape.” Tire changing also requires stamina and many of the skills Haaland developed as a hockey goalie, quickness and hand-eye coordination being the two most important. And just as a goalie wants to stay square in front of the net, Haaland squares himself in front of the tires he changes.

Photo Courtesy Hendrick Motorsports Haaland in action on the No. 5 car driven by Kyle Busch.

Keeping his head on a swivel also is vital—pit areas can be dangerous, and with cars coming in at speeds up to 50 mph, it’s not uncommon for a crew member to be brushed by a car during a race. Haaland guesses he’s had a dozen or so close calls, but rarely is there a serious injury. Though NASCAR is his full-time job now, Haaland even has had a couple of chances to put the goalie pads back on. He signed briefly with Charlotte’s East Coast Hockey League team and with the Augusta (Ga.) Lynx, though didn’t see ice time. “I miss the game a lot,” he says, “but more than anything, I miss being in the locker room. I miss that team camaraderie.” For now, Haaland sees a long stay with Hendrick. “I feel totally lucky every day I come to Hendrick Motorsports,” Haaland says. “They treat you so great here. I can see me working here for 20 years. I’d say my future is in coaching and the strength and conditioning part. Right now, I’m just trying to learn as much as I can.” Stark sees Haaland moving up quickly in his new profession, possibly to the position of crew chief. “Mark my words,” he says, “in 10 years you’re going to hear about him. He’s going to play a major, major role.” So for Haaland, life is the pits. And that’s a good thing. Summer 2006 • 29

PHOTO BY ERIC FRANCIS Qualities Les Signman will need in pursuing the chance to wrestle in the 2008 Beijing Olympics? The four-time national champ is surrounded by them.

E RIC O LSON

30 â&#x20AC;¢ Summer 2006

Heavy Hopes UNOALUM

be very successful at it,” Denney says. R.J. Nebe, a national champion 177-pounder for UNO in 1988, has been a mentor to Sigman the last few years. Sigman, who eclipsed Nebe’s UNO career win mark, has done handyman work on Nebe’s rental properties. Nebe calls Sigman a “jack of all trades.” “You give him a job, and he doesn’t like to read the instructions,” Nebe says. “He figures out a way to finish it.” So, like Denney, Nebe doesn’t count out Sigman in his quest to wrestle internationally. “He’s got a lot of things going against him,” Nebe says. “Probably the biggest thing is his size. He’s not a very big heavyweight. But international This is a guy who failed to make the varsity wrestling team wrestling is down to six weight classes, and he would have to at Brown High School in Sturgis, S.D., until his junior year. He cut a ton of weight if he went down.” finished second in the state that season, then won the 189Mark Rigatuso, a two-time national champion for UNO as pound championship as a senior. a 205-pound heavyweight in 1982 and 1983, believes Sigman He didn’t become a heavyweight until he showed up at can make a smooth transition and that UNO, then was an undersized one at 250 his size actually could work to his pounds. But time and again he whipped advantage. the giants who outweighed him by 35 College wrestling emphasizes control pounds, overcoming five major surgeries of an opponent. In freestyle, throws are along the way to become only the fourth encouraged and rewarded. Once a four-time national champion in Division wrestler takes down his opponent, he has II history. a matter of seconds to turn him onto his back. If he isn’t successful, both wrestlers INTERNATIONAL INCLINATIONS return to a standing position and face off The small-town boy’s next challenge again. undoubtedly will be his toughest. The 24Rigatuso says Sigman’s speed, year-old Sigman wants to wrestle in the strength and balance and knack for 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. shooting at opponents’ legs will allow He got his first taste of the bigger him to catch bigger opponents off-balstage May 27-28 at the U.S. World team UNO Wrestling career win leaders ance and score takedowns and, thus, trials, for which he qualified by winning Wrestler Career Record acquire points quickly. the Northern Plains Regional. Sigman Les Sigman 2002-06 179-7 R.J. Nebe 1983-88 153-31-4 Sigman’s timing is good. Some of the was seeded fifth at the U.S. team trials Braumon Creighton 1995-99 139-39 elite heavyweights are in the twilights of and in his first match defeated No. 4 seed Steve Costanzo 1991-95 133-40-2 Brad Hildebrandt 1983-88 131-37-2 their careers. Tolly Thompson, the top Michael Irving 3-2, 5-0. He lost in the Chad Wallace 1999-2003 130-25 heavyweight in the United States, probasemifinals, though, 1-0, 4-0 to NCAA Mack LaRock 1996-2001 123-40 bly has only a couple years left. Sigman Zach Stalder 1999-2003 122-37 Division I runner-up Steve Mocco of Pat Kelley III 1992-97 122-42 could be among the new crop of young Oklahoma State. Sigman dislocated his Mark Manning 1981-84 121-23 heavyweights that will carry the U.S. shoulder twice in the match and had to banner for years. pull out of the event. “It just depends on if Les wants to put the time in,” Nebe The bum shoulder already was scheduled for surgery this says. summer—add that to three knee surgeries, one on his lower The answer to that is a resounding yes, Sigman says. leg and another for a broken foot. After surgery he’ll continue his training while serving as a volunteer assistant coach at the UNO’S BEST University of Nebraska-Lincoln under Husker Coach Mark Sigman already has earned his place as UNO’s most decoManning, himself a former UNO star. rated wrestler ever. He finished his career with wins in 179 of UNO coach Mike Denney has seen Sigman rise to the occahis 186 matches. That includes a 47-0 record this past season. sion numerous times the last five years, so he has confidence His last loss was in January 2005, when Bode Ogunwole of his prized pupil will do it again. Harvard beat him 5-3 in a tournament at Northwestern “You have to have a burning desire and wherewithal to be University in Chicago. The wins kept coming after that, windsuccessful, and he has that desire,” Denney says. “These guys ing up with a 1-0 victory over the University of Nebraska at aren’t like football players. They’re not getting paid.” Kearney’s Tervel Dlagnev in the national championship match In college, athletes are limited to 20 hours a week for trainon March 11. Sigman joined the select club of four-time ing and competition. Wrestlers at the international level treat Division II champions, which also includes Tim Wright of training as a full-time job, taking outside jobs that allow for Continued on next page flexible scheduling. “He wants to do this, and I think he can

eed your plumbing fixed, some drywall hung or a car repair? No problem—it’s a snap for Les Sigman. Wrestling? You’d think Sigman is a natural at that, too. His four NCAA Division II national championships and status as UNO’s all-time wins leader should be proof enough. But make no mistake about it; nothing has come easily for the soft-spoken heavyweight.

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From Page 31

Not once did Sigman complain about his high school coach’s decision to keep him on the junior varsity. “I didn’t earn it,” the South Dakota straight-shooter says. “I didn’t have the mental side. I didn’t want it as badly as I should have. My junior year I matured a lot mentally. I had most of the technique. I just got more confidence in myself, and that helped tremendously.” After winning a state title as a senior, he went on to finish second in the high school nationals. Suddenly, Sigman was a hot prospect. Division I programs such as Northern Iowa and Nebraska banged on his door. But Sigman would only answer for UNO, which was the first school that tried to recruit him.

Southern Edwardsville (1984-87), Dan Russell of Portland State (1988-91) and Cole Province of Central Oklahoma (200104). “I don’t know if it’s hit me, as far as what I’ve accomplished,” Sigman says. “I was pretty disappointed with the [championship] match, but it was a relief, a load off my shoulders. I was feeling the pressure a little bit. I don’t feel I was at my best at nationals.” But, as he always does, he got the job done. Sigman’s father, Alen, says Les has always been determined to accomplish whatever he set out to do. Growing up on a farm 15 miles east of Sturgis, Les was counted on to work NO PLACE LIKE UNO hard cutting hay, repairing fences and all the other chores “UNO did a great job recruiting me,” Sigman says. “The associated with farm life. environment here is so welcoming for everybody. I felt comAlen and Donna Sigman set high standards for their four fortable here right away. Right from the start when I met children. Excellence was expected. What leisure time Les did Coach Denney, I couldn’t believe how great a guy he is. He’s have he spent on motorcycles. Think never let me down my whole career here, again, though, before jumping to the never disappointed me one bit.” conclusion that everyone in Sturgis is Alen Sigman echoed his son, saying, naturally inclined to ride motorcycles “I don’t know if any other school would because of the world-renowned Harley have taken care of him like they did in Davidson rally held there each summer. Omaha. They treat the athletes like peoLes liked motocross bikes, not ple. They’re not just pieces of meat.” Harleys; neither Alen nor Les thinks Until the early 1990s, Division II much of the annual Harley circus that champions were qualified to wrestle in comes to town every year. the Division I national tournament. The “He was really immersed in motorcylast UNO wrestler to do so was Joe cle riding,” Alen says. “When he started Wypiszenski in 1990. Wypiszenski fingoing to college and got a little bigger, I ished eighth to earn All-America status. encouraged him not to do much riding. That was long before Sigman joined We didn’t think it would be good for his the college ranks, and he says he doesn’t “This was the place for him. This was wrestling if he got hurt on one of those waste time wondering how he would the right fit.” things. Now he’s taken up golf.” have fared at the higher level. He wresUNO Coach Mike Denney. Not surprisingly, he’s driven to tled enough D-I opponents to know he become as good as he possibly can at could have more than held his own. that sport, too. He’s played two years and already is shooting There’s a UNO precedent for such, though, in two-time in the low 80s for 18 holes. champ Rigatuso. Back when there was no 285-pound limit, That’s just the way Sigman is. When Alen taught Les how Rigatuso successfully wrestled opponents twice his size (Tab to weld, the boy showed a knack for it. In fact, he worked as a Thacker, North Carolina State 1984 national champ, was 450 welder last summer in Omaha. Nebe can vouch for Sigman’s pounds), earning Division I All-America honors in 1982 (sixth skills at household repairs and renovation projects. Denney place) and 1983 (fourth). says it all goes back to Sigman’s background. “The lighter guys did real well when I was at nationals,” The discipline ingrained in Sigman as a youngster has Rigatuso says. “With Les, he’s remarkable in his ability to served Sigman well as a wrestler. But even Alen expresses sur- score, and he would have definitely been a Division I Allprise at his son’s level of achievement. “He’s one in a million,” American if he would have been able to go to nationals like Alen says. “You don’t see people like that very often. He’s we did.” self-motivated and always striving for excellence.” Denney says he can’t resist wondering what if. “Ah, Les Alen Sigman won a state championship for Brown High in would have been right in the thick of it, boy,” Denney says. 1970, and he encouraged Les to try the sport as a second-grad“But this was the place for him. This was the right fit. He er. He showed talent at a young age. Still, in high school he had great success here and had the opportunity to be a great couldn’t crack the varsity lineup for what at the time was a leader on a great team. When he was a freshman, we were very average team. third in the nation, and now he’s been on three national cham“I took my lumps,” Sigman says. “I stuck with it. I didn’t pionship teams. You can’t do that at every place.” make varsity until I was a junior, and that was one of the Sigman couldn’t agree more. “The opportunity I’ve had tougher times I went through as a wrestler. But that helped me here,” he says, “is better than any other I could have had.” to keep improving.” More opportunity awaits. 32 • Summer 2006

UNOALUM

Association in Action

News & Information

Papillion native tabbed to head Alumni Association T

he UNO Alumni Association found its new president and CEO more than 1,200 miles away, but his Nebraska and UNO ties are much closer to home. Lee Denker, executive director of the Boise State University Alumni Association in Boise, Idaho, will assume the UNO alumni post July 1. Denker was chosen from among nearly 50 applicants and three finalists. The UNO Alumni Association Board of Directors affirmed his hiring during its April 18 board meeting. Denker will replace Jim Leslie, president of the association since 1973. Leslie announced his impending retirement in November 2005. After Denker’s arrival Leslie will remain with the association in a fund-raising capacity until retiring in December, when he turns 65. “Following a legend like Jim Leslie will not be easy,” Denker said. “He has done so much for UNO and the alumni association through the years. That is one of the things that attracted me to this job.” Denker said that attraction grew during his visit to campus in midMarch. “The alumni leadership, led by Chairman Mike Kudlacz, and the university administration, led by Chancellor Belck, is outstanding. There is a very talented staff in place, and the university administration is extremely supportive of alumni programs. I’m confident that we’ll all be able to work together to keep moving in the right direction.” Denker was born and raised in Papillion, Neb., graduating from Papillion-LaVista High School in 1988. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism (1992) and a master’s degree in communication (2000) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He has been at his Boise State University post since 2001. Prior to that Denker was manager of university relations for zHuskers.com, a division of web portal

w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

zUniversity.com. From 1996 to 2000 he was director of campus relations for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Alumni Association. "The Alumni Board of directors feels fortunate to have an individual with Lee Denker’s experience and enthusiasm coming in to fill the void created by Jim Leslie’s retirement,” said Kudlacz, 2006 association chairman of the board. “Jim will be a tough act to follow, but Lee’s experience in alumni affairs and his ties to Nebraska made him a great fit for the

Denker assumes the UNO Alumni Association presidency July 1.

position. We are looking forward to working with him.” Like UNO, Boise State University is a metropolitan university in a growing city. In five years with the Boise State Alumni Association Denker redesigned its dues-paying membership program and established a lifetime membership endowment fund. He also completed fundraising on the association’s alumni center campaign. A student relations program launched under his direction

earned national recognition from the Association of Student Advancement Programs. Denker also oversaw revenuegenerating affinity programs and an alumni center, introduced various programming activities, and served on the advancement management team for university development activities. He serves on the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) District 8 Board of Directors representing membership in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Western Canada. “Lee Denker not only has an impressive alumni relations background, but is even more impressive in person,” UNO Chancellor Nancy Belck said. “The UNO Alumni Association has found a tremendous leader as the university looks ahead to its centennial and far beyond. We are excited to have Lee back in Nebraska.” Though he is a UNL grad, Denker took undergraduate classes at UNO during summers; he also began his graduate studies at UNO before completing that program at Lincoln. His ties to Nebraska and to UNO extend to other family members as well. His wife, Julie, is a native of Holdrege, Neb., where her family still farms. She completed her dietetic internship at Omaha’s University of Nebraska Medical Center in 1994 and worked at UNMC as a clinical dietitian until 1996. The couple’s first home was just blocks from what now is UNO’s south campus. Denker’s grandfather, Ernie Gorr, was a teacher and coach at Omaha University for more than 20 years. Denker’s parents currently live in Papillion, Neb. “We are Nebraskans who couldn’t be happier about bringing our family back home,” said Denker, who has three children (Sadie, 10; Sam, 8; Sophie, 4). “There is just something special about Nebraska that never leaves you.”

Summer 2006 • 33

Association in Action

Citation presented to Omaha attorney Mike Jones T

he UNO Alumni Association bestowed its Citation for Alumnus Achievement upon Michael D. Jones during the university’s spring commencement ceremony May 5 at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. Jones is a partner in the law firm of Ellick, Jones, Buelt, Blazek & Longo. The Citation is presented at each UNO commencement. The Alumni Association’s highest honor, it encompasses professional or career achievement, community service, involvement in business and professional associations, and fidelity to UNO. Mike Kudlacz, 2006 chairman of the Association’s board of directors, presented the award. Jones is the 140th recipient of the Citation, first Jones. bestowed in 1949. Born in Naval Hospital Bremerton (Wash.), Jones lived in Omaha until he was 5, then moved with his family to Wahoo, Neb. The family returned to Omaha when Jones was 17. He graduated from Benson High School. Jones attended then-Omaha University, joining Lambda Chi Alpha. As a senior he was chosen as one of six Chi Omega Knights. Jones first was a science major but, after taking an aptitude test following his sophomore year, switched to history with his sights on a career in the law. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1966. He then studied at Creighton University School of Law and received his Juris Doctor degree in 1969, graduating in the top 10 of his class. While at Creighton Jones was on the Dean’s List and was a Law Review staff editor. In 1969 Jones joined Ellick, Spire & Langdon as an associate. Five years later he was made a partner. He simultaneously was a captain with the U.S. Army Reserve (1969 to 1977), serving in a number of JAG (Judge Advocate General’s) units. Ellick, Jones, Buelt, Blazek & Longo is a general practice firm that specializes in estate planning and probate. It also represents a number of small businesses and does work for the University of Nebraska. Jones handles estate planning, probate and trust work, and business sales, acquisitions and mergers. He has been named to the annual “Best Lawyers in America” list every year since 1989. He is a member of the Omaha, Nebraska State and American Bar Associations, a fellow in the American College

34 • Summer 2006

of Trust and Estate Counsel (Nebraska State chair, 1997-2003), and a national member of the Transfer Tax Committee (1995present). Throughout his career Jones has maintained several ties to the University of Nebraska. He served 15 years on the UNO Alumni Association Board of Directors (1987–2001), one year as chairman. Jones also was chairman of the Association’s Chancellor’s Scholarship Swing golf tournament (2000-2004), an event that now raises $50,000 annually. Since 1976 he has been an adjunct assistant professor in the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s College of Medicine, and from 1985 to 1990 was head of the UNMC Medical Jurisprudence Department. Jones also has been a trustee with the University of Nebraska Foundation since 1995. Jones has served numerous community organizations: Combined Health Agency Drive; Rotary Club of West Omaha; Rotary Club of Omaha West Foundation; Estate Planning Council of Omaha; The Adah and Leon Millard Foundations; The Meridith Family Foundation, Inc.; The Stanley M. Truhlsen Family Foundation; and, the Gifford Foundation, Inc. He is a member of Omaha’s Countryside Community Church. He and his wife, Marjorie (Holmquist, UNO, BS, 1968; MS 1985), have two daughters, Allison and Elizabeth. Jones received the UNO Alumni Association’s Outstanding Service Award (OSA) in 1992. He is the eighth individual to receive the OSA and Citation.

Roskens to host trip to Japan F

ormer UNO Chancellor Ron Roskens (1972-77) and his wife, Lo i s , a r e h os t i ng a 1 5- d a y “ Au t u m n i n J a pa n ” t o ur t ha t wi l l i n c l u d e a s t a y i n S h i zu o k a , O maha ’s Sister City. R os ken s, w ho al so w as p r e s i d e n t o f th e U n i v e r s i ty o f N e b ra s k a s y s t e m u n t i l 1989, is an honorar y con s ul ge ne r al of Ja pa n f or t he N e b r a s k a r e g i o n , a d i p l om a t i c p os t a i m e d a t enhancing Japan’s trade a n d i n v e s t m e n t in t h e area. Among the trip’s highlights: • Si ghts eein g st ops at M t. Fuj i, th e Im pe rial Pal ace Plaz a, Asakusa Kannon Templ e in Tokyo, Kyoto’s Golden Pavi lion, the N i j o C as t l e i n O s ak a , t h e A t om i c B om b D o m e an d t h e P ea c e M em or i a l M u s eu m i n H i r os h i m a ; • S t a y s a t de l u x e h ot e l s ; • D i s c u s s i o n s w i t h J a p a n e s e e x e c u t iv e s a n d g o v e r n m e n t o f f i cials; • Travel in Japan on express trains. F o r m o r e in f o r m a t io n v is it t h e U N O A lu m n i A s s o c i a t i o n w e b site at www.unoalumni.org/roskens.

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Asked and Answered T

he questions were asked, and UNO graduates answered, giving their opinions on three online surveys since the last UNO Alum was mailed in March. Monthly survey results: MARCH What should be the first step taken to deal with illegal immigration? • Keep the status quo—3% • Find best way to seal and protect borders to keep out additional illegal immigrants—28% • Allow illegal immigrants to apply for legal, temporary-worker status—21% • Permit illegal immigrants to apply for citizenship without first having to return home and by undergoing a background check, paying a fine, learning English, studying American civics and showing payment of taxes—26% • Offer all illegal immigrants amnesty now—2% • Deport all illegal immigrants whenever they are discovered—8% • Make it a felony to be an illegal immigrant or to help one—12% APRIL How would you rate race relations in the United States? • Excellent—5% • Good—38% • Fair—41% • Poor—16% • Not sure—0% MAY How concerned are you about Avian Influenza—Bird Flu—spreading to humans in the United States? • Very concerned—16% • Somewhat concerned—30% • Not very concerned—36% • Not concerned at all—17%

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News & Information

Shakespeare Picnic set for July 5 J

oin the UNO Alumni Association Wednesday, July 5 and help us celebrate the 20th anniversary of Shakespeare on the Green! The Association is hosting grads and friends for a picnic, followed by a performance of “Antony & Cleopatra.” Cost is $10 per person. Here’s the lineup: Picnic: 6 to 7:15 p.m. (rain or shine) at the William H. and Dorothy “Antony & Cleopatra” Thompson Alumni Center Directed by D. Scott Glasser June 29–July 2; July 5, 7 & 9 Performance: 8 p.m. All for just $10 per person! Here’s what your $10 gets you: • Picnic Buffet (Chicken, BBQ pork, potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, cookie, beverages). • Reserved spot “down front” at the play. • Transportation to or parking near “The Green.” • “Antony & Cleopatra” preview by UNO Professor Cindy Melby Phaneuf, co-founder/artistic director of Nebraska Shakespeare Festival. • Satisfaction knowing part of your fee helps underwrite a donation to the Driven by his passion for Cleopatra, Mark Antony Nebraska Shakespeare Festival. sacrifices his career, his friends, and his standing as the champion of Rome to be with his To register, complete the Egyptian Queen. Reason battles emotion in this Shakespeare Registration form on Page epic portrayal of love, leaving us to wonder 2 and mail with payment by June 30. whether Antony’s devotion to the reckless and Questions? Call Sheila King at 554intoxicating Cleopatra is but foolishly human or 4802, or e-mail transcendent and redemptive. sking@mail.unomaha.edu.

Association to publish second alumni directory

o r t h e s e c o n d t i m e i n 1 0 y e a r s th e U N O A lu m n i A s s o c i a t i o n is p a r t n e r i n g w it h H a r r i s C o n n e c t to produce a UNO Alumni Director y. T h e A s s o c i a ti o n l a s t p u b l i s h e d a d i r e c t o r y o f i t s a lu m n i in 1 9 9 7 w h e n m e m b e r s h i p n u m b e r e d ne a r l y 7 0, 0 00 gr a du a t es . Th a t s i nc e ha s j u m p ed t o n ea r l y 9 0, 0 0 0 l i vi n g g r ad u at e s . T h e n ew U N O A l u m n i D i re c t o r y w i l l b e p u b l i s h e d i n 2 0 0 7 a n d w i l l b e a v a i l a b l e a s a p ri n t e d b o o k o r o n a C D RO M. Member entri es will include name, address, phone number, academic data and employ ment/ professional information of each al um. Graduates will be li st ed al phabeti cally, by class ye ar, geographical ly and by car eers. T h e d ir e c t o r y is f o r o f f i c i a l u n i v e r s i t y a n d a lu m n i a s s o c i a t i o n u s e , a n d f o r i n d i v i d u a l c o m m u n i c a t io n o f a p e r s o n a l n a t u r e b e t w e e n m e m b e r s li s t e d t h e r e i n . T h e c o p y r i g h t s t r i c t l y p r o h i b i t s . u s e fo r a n y o th e r p u r p o s e . Those who prefer not to be listed in the director y can contact the association’s Sue Gerding via email (sgerdi ng@mail. unomaha. edu), phone ( toll- free, UNO-MAV-ALUM) or in writing (UNO Al u m ni A ss oc i at i on , 67 t h & D od ge , O m ah a, N E 68 18 2) . Information about the Association and the University also will be included in the director y. Harris soon will begin researching and compiling the information to be printed in the director y. Contact of alumni by Harris via phone, mail and email began in May. More det ails will be made avai lable on our websit e ( www.unoalumni.org) and in future i ss ue s o f t h e U N O Al u m m ag az i n e.

Summer 2006 • 35

Association in Action

Association issues 10th Outstanding Teaching Awards

he UNO Alumni Association celebrated the 10th year of its Alumni Outstanding Teaching Awards program, presenting the honor to nine faculty members at the Faculty Honors Convocation Breakfast April 6. Jim Leslie, Association president & CEO, presented the awards, established in 1997 to honor distinguished teaching in the classroom. Peer committees in each college chose recipients, each of whom received a $1,000 award. Leslie presented recipients with commemorative tablets during the convocation breakfast. Since the program’s founding in 1997 the UNO Alumni Association has issued $86,000 in Alumni Outstanding Teaching Awards. The 2006 UNO Alumni Outstanding Teaching Award recipients: W. Meredith Bacon Political science Professor Bacon teaches political science and international studies courses on the politics of post-communist countries and various aspects of international relations. Her current research is in the field of identity politics, concentrating on the politics of transgender identity. She twice has been president of the UNO Faculty Senate and serves on the Community Board of the Nebraska Shakespeare Festival. Bacon, who began teaching at UNO in 1976, earned a bachelor’s degree from Colorado College in 1968 and master’s (1972) and doctorate (1975) degrees from the University of Denver. Joseph S. Brown, Psychology Dr. Brown is involved in a variety of pedagogical interests. He has taught courses for students of all levels and topics, from research methods to the scientific study of consciousness. Recently, his primary teaching innovations have been in the area of students’ first-year experience. In this program, traditional

36 • Summer 2006

faculty and student affairs professionals collaborate in an intensive course for first-semester students. It integrates an understanding of a content area like psychology with college and life skills to help students succeed through the rest of their college career. Brown has conducted research on a broad range of topics in cognitive psychology, including attention, skill acquisition and word recognition. Recently, his research interests have expanded to include research ethics. Brown first taught at UNO in 1989. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Drury College in 1984. He also earned a master’s degree (1987) and doctorate (1991) from Michigan State University.

Gregor P. Henze, Architectural engineering Dr. Henze’s teaching focuses on thermal environmental engineering, control theory, building control and automation systems, building mechanical systems design, and measurement systems. His research emphasizes model-based predictive optimal control and model-free reinforcement learning control of thermal energy storage systems. He is an active member of the American Society of Heating, Ventilating and AirConditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), chairing the technical committee on building operation dynamics (TC7.4). Before joining the University of Nebraska in 1999, Henze worked in the

“Although t ea c hi ng is a core mission of UNO and, indeed, any university, it is a nearly invisible activity. It generates no grant dollars, or research reports. It is rarely even witnessed by anyone except our students. Therefore, it is e s p e c ia l ly i mp o rta n t to have a visible reminder that it is a valuable (and valued) endeavor. Thank you for putting your name and your money behind this important task. I am honored to be recognized.” Joseph Brown, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Department of Psychology Kathy Everts Danielson, Teacher education Dr. Danielson’s primary focus is literacy education, in which she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses. She also coordinates the graduate elementary education program and advises graduate students in that program. Danielson earned three degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: a bachelor’s (1981), master’s (1984) and doctorate (1987). She began teaching at UNO in 1989. Prior to that she was a graduate assistant and instructor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In the early 1980s she was a teacher for both Lincoln and Trenton Public Schools.

energy services industry at Johnson Controls, a manufacturer of building automation systems. He received an undergraduate degree from the Technical University of Berlin in 1992. He also earned a master’s degree from Oregon State University (1991) and a doctorate from the University of Colorado (1995). Dennis E. Hoffman, Criminal justice Hoffman teaches classes on topics including organized crime, terrorism and a survey of criminal justice. His main area of interest is organized crime in Chicago. His first book, “Scarface Al UNOALUM

News & Information control, production and operations management; statistics; and, mathematics. He began teaching at UNO in 1989. Najjar earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the University of Tehran in 1974 and three degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: a bachelor’s (1984), master’s (1987) and doctorate (2002).

PHOTO BY TIM FITZGERALD / UNIVERSITY AFFAIRS UNO Alumni Outstanding Teaching Award recipients, from left, Sherrie L. Wilson, Jonna L. Holland, Lotfollah Najjar, Dennis E. Hoffman and Kathy Everts Danielson. Not pictured, W. Meredith Bacon, Joseph S. Brown, Gregor P. Henze and John T. Price.

and the Crime Crusaders” highlighted the role of urban vigilantes in bringing Al Capone to justice. He currently is writing a sequel, “No One is Above the Law: The Trial of Al Capone.” Hoffman has a bachelor’s degree (1971) from the University of Northern Iowa, a master’s from Drake University (1974) and a doctorate from Portland State University (1979). Hoffman began teaching at UNO in 1980. Prior to that he taught at the University of South Florida and Portland State University. Jonna L. Holland, Marketing and management Dr. Holland’s primary teaching focus is consumer behavior and marketing communications. She also is the internship coordinator for the College of Business Administration, where she places approximately 150 interns a year in the Omaha business community. Holland also provides her students opportunities for service learning by working with area nonprofit agencies to develop marketing communications. Her own service includes activities in w w w. u n o a l u m n i . o r g

the community with organizations such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of Omaha and the New Community Development Corporation. Holland earned a bachelor’s degree (1980) and doctorate (1996) from the University of NebraskaLincoln. She earned an MBA from UNO in 1991.Holland began teaching at UNO as an instructor in 1996. Prior to that she had spent three years as a research assistant in the University of NebraskaLincoln’s marketing department. Lotfollah Najjar, Information systems and quantitative analysis Dr. Najjar’s research interests center on: quality information systems (data quality) in the service and manufacturing industries; business process reengineering and IT; data mining; and, total quality management (TQM) and IT in both service and manufacturing industries. His teaching interests: quality information systems; business process reengineering and IT; business data communications; introduction to management information system, quality

John T. Price, English Dr. Price’s primary focus is on nonfiction writing and American literature, particularly Great Plains and environmental literature. He is co-coordinator of the advanced writing graduate certificate program in the English Department. His nonfiction has appeared in numerous journals, magazines, and anthologies, including Orion, The Christian Science Monitor, Creative Nonfiction and Best Spiritual Writing 2000. He is a recipient of a 2004-05 Creative Writing Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, and his first book, “Not Just Any Land: A Personal and Literary Journey into the American Grasslands,” was published in 2004 by the University of Nebraska Press. He is an associate professor and UNO’s Jefferis Chair of English. Price earned three degrees from the University of Iowa: a bachelor’s (1988), master’s (1995) and doctorate (1997). Sherrie L. Wilson, Ph.D., Communication Dr. Wilson has taught media writing, mass media ethics, public affairs reporting, news editing, communication law, and news writing and reporting during a career at UNO that began in 1996. She also coordinates the School of Communication’s internship class. Wilson has taught at the University of Minnesota and Iowa State University and has worked for several newspapers. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern College (1977), a master’s degree from Iowa State University (1992) and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota (2001). Summer 2006 • 37

Association in Action

Centennial Campaign nears century donor mark

he UNO Alumni Association continues its Alumni Center Centennial Campaign supporting renovations and and addition made to the building in 2005. Central to the campaign is fundraising efforts for

Centennial Hall, named in honor of the universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s upcoming 100-year anniversary and in honor of the 100 donors who will contribute $10,000 or more to the campaign. As of June 5 the campaign was near the 100-donor mark. Centennial Hall donors will be recognized on a unique plaque (concept pictured at left) outside the room and matching the elegant decor of the Alumni Center. The plaque will incorporate donor names, each accompanied by their brassengraved signatures. UNO graduate and former Association Board Chairman John Jeter is heading a concurrent campaign, raising funds in honor of the Arthur Andersen Hospitality Room. Jeter was a longtime employee of that firm, as were numerous other UNO graduates. More information, including news of a dedication ceremony, will be released as the Association nears the end of its campaign. For more information on the Alumni Center Centennial Campaign, contact President & CEO Jim Leslie at (402) 5543367 or toll-free UNO-MAV-ALUM (866-628-2586).

The UNO Century Club T he UNO Century Club was formed in 1973 with 44 members. Today, the Club features thousands of members. Membership consists of individuals who support their alma mater with gifts of $100 or more. Gifts support various alumni association programs and services that make for a stronger, more vibrant university. With their UNRESTRICTED gift, Century Club donors receive one of five personalized mementos (pictured at right), special recognition in an annual report and invitations to select events throughout the year.

Welcome to the Club! Thanks to these upgraded Century Club donors! Jan. 1 through May 31, 2006

Welcome to these firsttime Century Club donors! Jan. 1 through May 31, 2006

To Platinum ($2,500 or more) Steven M. Frye Daniel F. Koraleski Dorothy & Leland Olson Duane & Joan Post Michelle M. Stromp

Diamond ($1,000 or more) Allen F. Jacobson Laura McCormick-Holmes James R. Young Gold ($500 or more) Robert & Theresa Kehm

To Silver ($250 or more) Mary Ferdig Robert L. McKaig Donald R. Petersen Dorothy H. Petersen

Bronze ($100 or more) Tammy Anderson

To Gold ($500 or more) Michele L. Gehringer Gary L. Pritchard

38 â&#x20AC;˘ Summer 2006

Silver ($250 or more) Loy & Mike Flanagan John & Jackie Gerard Yano & Cindy Mangiameli Richard F. Ortman L.LaRue & Del P. Roberts

Emillo A. Arispe Kimberly Ash Leon G. Benschoter Denise Burma Julie M. Carstens Gretchen Christensen Douglas & Rebecca Clark Everette L. Cook David W. Dorr Francis A. Dyman Jeanne Eibes Joann Eickhoff-Shimek Robert S. Fry Mary A. Gerken Marvin G. Henderson Joseph R. Hower Peter Kink Bob Kirby Kathleen K. Klaas John A. Kozak

Robert M. Lyles Melvin L. Masek Vicki R. McGuire Dana W. Meyer Dennis R. Miller Beverly A. Murray Virginia M. Nieland Patrick J. Noonan Ronald A. Olsen Daniel & Kristie Ondracek George Warren Otto, DDS Pat & Jean Paul Brent & Kim Rasmussen William F. Templin Paul B. Trawicki Karen Wanek-Voien Kathryn Welch Robert & Nancy Whitmore Joseph & Denise Wypiszenski Patty Yager UNOALUM

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Class Notes

1938 Joseph Anderson writes from his home in Arnold, Calif., where he lives with his wife, Jean. “I was reading the spring issue of the UNO Alum and the name of Clitus Olson (1939) jumped off the page. We were in the sciences program at the 24th and Ames campus. I attended U. of Omaha from 1936 to 1938. In the fall of 1938 I went to Seattle and enrolled at the University of Washington. In 1941 I received my BS degree in aeronautical engineering. That summer I went to work at the NACAAmes Aeronautical Laboratory located at Moffett Field. I went into the Navy and was commissioned and continued work at Ames during WWII. In 1958 NACA became the backbone for the space agency, NASA. I worked through the transitions until I retired in the fall of 1979. In the spring of 1944, I married Jean Wilson, a grad of San Jose State. In March we celebrated our 62nd wedding anniversary. We both are relatively healthy and both still drive. In fact, each month we commute between a house near Arnold and a retirement complex in Fresno. We have traveled extensively. In May 2005 we visited my sister June Rose Soderlund (Anderson). She is a grad of UNO (1943) and edited the Tomahawk yearbook. Lives in Omaha. 1944 Griffith R. Fryer Jr., BA, lives in Vancouver, Wash., and writes: “Seeking evaluation of and comments on two math projects—mine and my son’s (Griffith E. Fryer). Mine: robotic vision and participation in a simulated/realtime activity (positional data determined by a non-directional cosine method allowing for/facilitating peripheral vision). His: a link between his new recursive math and String Theory revealing how oscillations occur in ‘n’ number of dimensions.” For details send email to grusfryrjr@webtv.net 1947 Mary Paulson Carey, BA, writes from Lincoln that she “recently moved back to Nebraska after 20 years in Virginia. Good to see old friends and family. My grandson David Carey is a Walter Scott scholar at UNO. He is a junior and plays wide receiver on the football team. I am looking forward to games this fall and will remember that 60 years ago I was homecoming princess. Time flies! Best to classmates of 1947.” 1952 George Marling, BA, in April received the Faye Brill Service Award from the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP), the only global not-for-profit membership organization for those involved with the development and use of competitive intelligence (see www.scip.org). Marling is operating executive officer of Intergalax

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S U M M E R

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Flashback File

Henry Fonda judges Beauty Contest

From the 1939 Tomahawk yearbook

“I

never realized before what a tough job this Beauty Contest judging could be—I may say I am a novice at it—and particularly unqualified to pick three out of twelve, when they’re all so attractive,” said Henry Fonda in a letter to the Tomahawk editor. Continuing, Mr. Fonda said, “First I was sure number 10 was the winner, then I got a good look at number 7’s smile, and from then on I just couldn’t seem to make up my mind—I’d get to looking at number 11’s eyes and thinking this Fonda and the “10” he finally tabbed— Alice Jane Vickery. is the one until I’d see 9’s hair— and I’d be off again—“I wanted to call the whole thing a draw—but I understand you can’t run a Beauty Contest that way— “So, getting a firm hold on myself, I finally clocked them—10, 6, and 7, to win, place, and show—and the field wasn’t trailing far behind—.” The queens, therefore, are Alice Jane Vickery, number “10,” who was sponsored by Theta Phi Delta fraternity and is a senior in Sigma Chi Omicron; Doris Jean Nelson, number “6,” a freshman member of Phi Delta Psi; and Barbara Hatfield, number “7,” another freshman, who is a member of Pi Omega Pi.

Systems, Unlimited. His intelligence career spans five decades. He previously was a military and civilian intelligence officer for the U.S. Department of Defense and a senior intelligence officer with the CIA. He also consulted extensively, including 13 years at the MITRE Corporation. One of his most notable career achievements was his appointment to executive secretary of the U.S. Intelligence Community executive steering group for the Open Source Intelligence Program. A member of SCIP since 1986, Marling has contributed to the organization’s growth at every level. He has two master’s degrees and has completed two years of postgraduate studies in economics at the University of Cologne in Germany. 1956 Clarence Sage, BS, writes from Spring City, Tenn.: “Retired from Lockheed Martin and U.S. Navy Reserves. Volunteer for county fire department, Homeland Security and VITA. Have three children, six grandchildren. Travel to Omaha twice a year to visit family members. Send him email at Lyngene3@msn.com. 1957 Stan Schaetzle, BS, says he is “alive and well in Sumter, S.C., where I have lived going on 30 years. This is where I ended

up after 25 years in the Air Force (which began via Air Force ROTC at Omaha U. and ended at nearby Shaw AFB). I spent most of my time in the Air Force as a rescue helicopter pilot. Probably the most interesting non-flying job I had was a four-year tour in the Pentagon. I enjoy keeping up with all UNO activities (especially all intercollegiate athletics) via the newsletters/magazines and the Internet. I enjoy the Class Notes of fellow “Omaha U. Indians” from the early 1950s era. Although my allegiances will always be to UNO and NU, I have become a pretty avid fan of the University of South Carolina Gamecocks. In fact, I have been part of the press box statistics team during football since 1984. Lastly, let me say that the UNO Alumni Association will not be the same without Jim Leslie! Thanks for doing a super job all these years, Jim!” Send email to Stan, who also has an MS from UNO, at stanleyo@sc.rr.com 1959 William R. Benoit, BGE, lives in Laconia, N.H., and writes: “I completed my 28-year Army career as an experimental test pilot in 1981 and retired in the rank of colonel with a master’s degree in systems management from USC. I entered academia in 1981 and Continued next page

Summer 2006 • 39

Class Notes From page 39

received my doctor of business administration degree in 1989. Having retired in 2003, I now am a professor emeritus at Plymouth State University (PSU) in New Hampshire. I continue to teach part time at PSU. You will find me on the golf course!” Send him email at william.r.benoit@verizon.net 1959 Fred P. Schoning, BFA, lives in Omaha and writes: “Retired curriculum specialist for Bryan Senior High (Omaha Public Schools). Have continued lecturing on world literature for OPS in AP and honors classes, as well as writing poetry and giving readings at various locales. Wife, Susan, is also retired from OPS as a paraprofessional in special education. Daughter, one grandchild.” Schoning also has a BS (1961) and MA (1965) from UNO. 1966 Bob Lane, BA, lives in Overland Park, Kansas, and says he “is still alive and well and teaching, getting ready to start 40th year. Widowed from Jane (Carter, 1966) since 1975. Two kids, three grandchildren. Anyone out there from the English or Theatre department, class of ‘66?” Send him email at rlconsult@aol.com Roy David Petersen, BGE, lives in Atlanta, where he has been an attorney since 1973. In November 2005 he received with high distinction his doctor of ministry degree in conflict management from Trinity Theological Seminary. This is his fourth advanced degree. Petersen has authored numerous textbooks and currently is completing a Ph.D. dissertation on preventing

clergy sexual abuse of women by examining court decisions. He has four doctorates, a J.D. and an M.D. (alternative and traditional medicine).” Send emails to DoctorPetersen@alum.emory.edu

National Guard. I retired in 1988 and moved to Maine, where I spend my time as a lobsterman and part-time school bus driver.” Send him email at phoebe19@verizon.net

Joseph Jolin, BGS, writes: “I’m a retired U.S. warrant officer after serving 20 years in the military. I’ve been residing in North Fort Myers, Fla., since 1990 after retiring from the Hartford Insurance Group of Hartford, Conn. I’ve been married since September 1953 and was ordained a deacon in the Catholic Church on June 17, 1981. My wife and I are the proud parents of four sons, five grandchildren, three step-grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. I have been a deacon in several parishes and have been a consultant under the Diocesan Commission of Respect Life of the Diocese of Venice in Florida. I presently am an assistant chaplain for the Knights of Columbus All Saints Council 8440. I also am vice president of Freedom to Learn, an organization dedicated to restoring a culture of life back into our public and private schools. In this capacity, I minister as an ordained deacon among people of various faiths that schools can now deal legally with the life issue openly and honestly without censorship. I am presently serving as an ordained deacon in retired status at St. Therese parish.” Send Jolin email at jolin@swfla.rr.com

1969 Ed Peniche, BGS, was recognized in a tribute by U.S. Rep. John Abney Culberson of Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives Dec. 14. Peniche emigrated from Mexico to the United States in 1942. He became an airborne infantryman with the U.S. Army, serving with the 101st Airborne Division during the Battle of the Bulge and elsewhere. He was awarded the Purple Heart and two Bronze Stars. He later served briefly in the Mexican Army, cofounding its parachute school. He returned to the United States in 1952, later becoming a U.S. citizen and re-enlisting in the Army. He served more than three years in Vietnam. He retired from active duty as a sergeant in 1970. He earned an MA in SpanishAmerican Literature in 1971 from Murray State University in Kentucky. Peniche later became a college professor at Central Virginia Community College and at Kingwood College, Texas, until retiring from active teaching at 74. He keeps busy speaking at veterans’ events.

1967 Robert E. Jacobson, BGE, lives in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, and writes: “Left Air Force active duty in 1968, then spent 20 years as a marketing representative with IBM while continuing my Air Force career by flying 18 years with the Rhode Island Air

Lost Alums - 1960

William A. Adams Louis E. Arczynski William T. Backof Thomas W. Bailey Lenora A. Bartels Bartels Robert L. Bass Kenneth R. Beno George E. Bergquist Walter P. Blanton Leonard I. Bockman Jesse V. Booker Ronald K. Bowen George R Bromley Eldridge W. Brown William R. Cady Thomas J. Caniglia Leonard A. Carter Ralph F. Chaffee

40 • Summer 2006

Errol D. Clark Keo S. Clark William C. Cole Richard W. Condon Lawrence D. Corcoran William H. Cox Walter A. Czekaj Mabel I. Dall Robert W. Deiz Michael A. Dickerson Kay D. Douglass Sharon L. Merten Ellis Frances Malcom Falk George A. Farias Earl G. Fletcher Edmond L. Fortin Errico Giannarelli Cardenas L. Gilberto

Alice S. Goodreau James L. Gordon Allan C. Haile Robert L. Hall William R. Harris Allan J. Hedges Denise Green Green Hinders Jay Hoogeveen Charles E. Hunt Thaddaeus Iglehart Austin A. Julian John A. Keightley Don H. Kitzrow Eddie B. Larson Daniel A. Lenz Clara A. Leslie Jimmie M. Locke

James F. Bard Jr., BGS, lives in Westminster, MD, and writes that “I would like to hear from other Bootstrappers.” Send him email at jimbardjr@adelphia.net 1970 Jon R. Van Wagenen, BSBA, is a surety bond underwriter in Seattle. “I still visit Omaha regularly to see relatives and friends.” Send email to jonvw@comcast.net

Claude L. Westerfield, BGS, lives in Farragut, Iowa, and is celebrating his eighth year as pastor of the Farragut Iowa Congregational Church. “This past October churches in the Southwest Association gathered in Farragut to celebrate the 130th year of the church. A mule team was used to transport attendees around the town and get the feel of how the underground railroad worked. The church has a 50year roof, new sidewalk, and is freshly painted inside and out. Insulated and looking forward to building a fellowship hall that will be used to encourage young people to have fun at church.” Send him email at meltedclaude@earthlink.net 1971 Albert J. Bartz, BGS, lives in Anchorage, Alaska, and sends this Class Note: “Retired after 24 years military service and another 20 years of civilian service with the United States Air Force. Good life thanks to Airmen Education and Commissioning Program of the USAF and UNO. Second degree from University of Alaska thanks again to the military and the GI Bill. Married to UNO master’s grad Lettie Lee Bartz (1969).” Send him email at alaskal123@ak.net Stephen W. Kinzy, BS, lives in St. Charles, Mo., and writes: “I graduated from UNO with a BS and MA in geography. For the last 35 years I have worked as a geographic information system (GIS) professional involved in information system planning, spatial database management, software methodologies, and the implementation of GIS systems for land records and infrastructure management. I have received my GIS professional cer-

Help us find these “Lost Alums” from the Class of 1960. Send news of their whereabouts to sgerding@mail.unomaha.edu Richard J. Losh Robert W. Malone Norton E. Marks Sam C. Marzicola George Mathews Raymond W. Mayville Lee C. McDonald Kenneth L. McLain Bernard E. McMahon James H. McNevin Mary J. Dugan Michaelson John Molczyk Robert B. Moore Francis G. Morrill Charles E. Moyers Donald M. Nethery Peter M. Nichols John J. Oswald

Henry L. Page David J. Patten Michael J. Pavlo Eldred E. Peyton Sherrill L. Powell Charles F. Primm Harry W. Protzeller Emmett C. Reese Richard D. Renken Vidal Rodriquez-Anaro William Rosenbrook Donald E. Sabol Robert M. Sargent William F. Schmidt Robert H. Scoggin Richard C. Sharp John Sherman William R. Skidmore

Paul F. Slowiak Ronald C. Speirs Max Springer Ralph J. Stearman Michael J. Sullivan John L. Swanson James F. Taylor Thomas J. Thomas Donald C. Tisch John G. Vaile William Vanmeter James J. Walde Thomas P. Walsh Noyes Weltmer Malvern R. Whitaker William Wilson Robert L. Worden Joseph J. Yurko

UNOALUM

S U M M E R tification (GISP) and I am the recipient of URISA’s Leadership Award for GIS education, the McDonnell Douglas VIP Award for GIS software development and HDR’s Excellence in Service Award for GIS consulting. I currently am the regional manager for an eight-state region for Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) and I am a board member with the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA).” Send Kinzy email at skinzy@esri.com Roger A. Young, BGS, lives in Fort Smith, Ark., and is the student ADA services coordinator for the University of Arkansas. Young retired as an army officer in 1979. He taught 25 years as a history professor at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith. He also served on the Arkansas Board of Counselor Examiners for six years. Send emails to Young at ryoung@uafortsmith.edu 1972 Michael W. Jinks, MA, notes that he retired after 20 years as school superintendent in Warrensburg, Mo., where he lives. Jinks, who also earned an Ed.S. from UNO in 1976, now will teach full time in the graduate college at Central Missouri State University. Prior to his tenure in Warrensburg Jinks was a teacher and administrator in the Papillion, Neb., school system and a superintendent in Benedict, Neb., Bedford, Iowa, and Ballard, Iowa. Send him email at mjinks@warrensburg.k12.mo.us Albert F. Hodapp, MA, presented a paper, “Media and Homework,” at the National Association of School Psychologists Convention March 2006 in Anaheim Calif. Joseph T. Soboul, BGS, lives in Browns Mills, N.J., and sends this Class Note: “Retired Air Force Master Sgt. with 25 years service (1946-71). While attending UNO (1971-72), I worked full time for the Omaha WorldHerald as circulation/distribution manager for Douglas and Sarpy counties. Upon graduation, I went back to work with the Air Force as a civilian employee, director of youth programs (affiliated with the Boys and Girls Club of America) at Misawa Air Base, Japan (197377). Also held same position at

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Barksdale AFB, La., (1977-80) and McGuire AFB, N.J., (1980-2002), when I retired from civil service. Browns Mills, my home, is a 45minute drive to Philadelphia and one-hour drive to New York City. However, the area is rural as this part of New Jersey is known as the ‘Garden State.’ Earned master’s degree in education from University of Southern California (1976) while at Misawa, Japan. USC sent profs overseas to us. One of my professors was Leo Buscaglia, the famous ‘Dr. Hug.’” Send Souboul email at jishtar@comcast.net Don B. Crinklaw, assoc., lives in Omaha and is twice retired— from the Omaha Police Department (1990) and from Wells Fargo Banks (2005). He earned a BS from UNO in 1974.

Send him email at donovicci@cox.net 1973 Michael L. Dean, MA, lives in Martinez, Calif., and begins his Class Note with, “Well, here goes. My daughter, born the year I left UNO, is now a VP with Bank of America in their investments division, a graduate of UC-Davis, and the mother of two lovely grandchildren, boy 5 and girl 1. My seventh-grader son was the Oakland Archdiocese CYO champion in the 1,600meter run, and medley relay. He placed second in the high jump. I continue to write—near the publishing date for my masterpiece, “Chess for Children,”—and to teach ‘data analysis’ in a small group environment.” Send Dean email at mdean@xn1.com

Future Alums

Got a picture of your little tyke? Send it our way as a print or in electronic format and we’ll post it on our website! Nathan Alan Harsh, son of Kris and Anne

(‘96) Harsh of Omaha.

Olivia Marie Schumacher, daughter of

Heather and Thad (‘01) Schumacher of Fremont, Neb., and granddaughter of Nancy and John (‘01) Fiene of Elkhorn, Neb.

Benjamin Lane Christensen and Tyler George Christensen, twin sons of Angela and Nate

(‘02) Christensen of Littleton, Colo.

Mikayla Lynn Sauer, daughter of Richard and

Jerrica (Gebhart, ‘02) Sauer of Bismarck, N.D.

Camryn Elle Petersen, daughter of Clayton and Michelle (‘01) Petersen of Omaha.

Dylan Brian Fletcher, son of Brian and Jami

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Roy J. Stovall, BGS, lives in Lompoc, Calif. Send him emails to roystovall@msn.com 1974 Clyde F. Waite, BGS, lives in Norton, Mass., and is a student network social worker at Wareham, Mass., public schools. “Plan to retire next year,” he writes. “I retired in 2006 from the Department of Veterans Affairs, readjustment counseling service Region 1A Northeast Region after serving as regional manager for eight years. I completed my master of social work from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1975 and completed an Med. in organizational management at Endicott college in Beverly, Mass., in 2003. My son Andrew Continued next page

Sons & Daughters of UNO Alumni

Tyler Morgan O’Neil, son of Shannon and Sandy (Statz, ‘04) O’Neil of Wauneta, Neb.

Madalyn Rose Harrison, daughter of Jeff and

Aimee (Goodman, ‘92) Harrison of Omaha.

Paul Wesley Carlson, son of Rhonda and Brian (‘92) Carlson of Omaha.

Peyton Lynn Marie Hizer, daughter of Jeff

(‘99) and Melissa (Tschauner, ‘97) Hizer of Omaha.

Emmett John Knight, son of Wayne and Amy (Gilroy, ‘01) Knight of Omaha and grandson of Cindy (Hollins, ‘71) and John (‘70) Gilroy of Waterloo, Neb. Dakota James Egert, son of Chris and Kate

(Kalamaja, ‘97) Egert of Orlando, Fla.

Bryce and Brennen Williams, twin sons of Billy and Ginger (Henry, ‘90) Williams of Sugar Land, Texas.

Katherine Ann Harner, daughter of Brad and

Liz (Hope, ‘96) Harner of Coral Springs, Fla.

L. (‘01) Fletcher of Grand Junction, CO.

Zachary James Herbert, son of Marisa and

Thomas (‘69) Kahley of O’Fallon, Ill.

Brooke Elizabeth Bohan, daughter of Lisa

Mark Alin Kahley, grandson of Linda and Lucas Shane Reeves, son of Stephanie

(Lewis, ‘03) and Joshua (‘04) Reeves of Phoenix, Ariz.

Submit a Future Alum on the Web —

Jamie (‘95) Herbert of Omaha.

and John (‘93) Bohan of Omaha and granddaughter of Carolyn and Phil (‘68) Bohan of Omaha.

www.unoalumni.org/magazine/submit_future_alum Provide a birth announcement (within 1 year of birth) and we’ll send a T-shirt and certificate, plus publish the good news. Do so online at www.unoalumni.org/magazine/submit_future_alum. Mail announcements to: Future Alums, UNO Alumni Association, 60th & Dodge, Omaha, NE 68182. FAX info to: (402) 554-3787. Include address, baby’s name, date of birth, parents’ or grandparents’ names and graduation year(s).

Summer 2006 • 41

Class Notes

From Page 41

Schofield is enrolled at UNL. I currently live in Norton with my wife, daughter and two of my sons. I will forever be thankful for my education and the great experiences I received from UNO and UNL.” Send him email at waitensea@prodigy.net 1975 Barbara J. Wochner Ruh, BS, lives in Lakeside Park, Ky., where she and her husband own investment property in the Greater Cincinnati area. “One of our buildings is dedicated to providing studio space for Christians in the arts. Located in Covington, Ky., directly across the river from Cincinnati, we are part of an arts district the city is cultivating in their historic neighborhoods and beautiful older buildings. We believe God is using the arts as an outreach to the youth of this generation as well as a means of providing healing and restoration to many with broken lives. It is interesting that in the process, He is also bringing the inner city back to life. We are blessed to be part of this remarkable plan.” Send emails to ruhzoo@fuse.net 1976 Terry Stickels, BA, saw his latest “The Pocket Book of FRAME GAMES” (Fair Winds Press) undergo a second printing less than a month after its debut. FRAME GAMES are clever word puzzles contained within small picture frames. An example: HIS PANTS (Solution: “Ants in his pants”). FRAME GAMES puzzles are a regular feature in USA WEEKEND magazine, which is carried by more than 600 newspapers with an estimated readership of 50 million people. Wireless providers Verizon and Alltel recently contracted with Stickels to make FRAME GAMES puzzles available on cell phones. Similar agreements with other wireless providers are being negotiated. Stickels’ first FRAME GAMES book, published in 2004, has sold more than 80,000 copies and remains a strong seller. The release of “The Pocket Book of FRAME GAMES” follows the success of Stickels’ calendar, “SUDOKU 2006, 365 Fiendishly Difficult Puzzles,” which became the No. 2 best-selling calendar at Barnes & Noble Booksellers during the recent holiday season. Stickels’ 2007 FRAME GAMES boxed calendar is being pub-

42 • Summer 2006

Aerospace Alumni

Flashback File

Three UNO grads made aerospace-related news in 1964. Their stories:

Alfred Eggers Named to Top NASA Post

From the May 1964 University of Omaha Alumni Newsletter amed to one of the top posts in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) this past month was Dr. Alfred J. Eggers Jr., BA ‘44. Dr. Eggers, 41, is to become deputy associate administrator for advanced research and technology with headquarters in Washington. He has been assistant director of NASA’s Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, Calif., where he has been employed since receiving his masters and doctorate from Stanford. NASA said Dr. Eggers has made “many contributions to the theories of hypersonic aerodynamics.” Dr. Eggers was recipient of OU’s Alumnus Achievement Award in 1958 and in 1957 was named as one of the 10 outstanding young men in the nation by the Junior Chamber of Courtesy National Aeronautics and Space Administration Eggers in the NACA Ames Research Center Pioneer Program Wind Tunnel Commerce.

O.U. Alum to Moon?

From the October 1964 University of Omaha Alumni Newsletter raveling to the moon may soon be a reality for one OU alum. He’s Capt. Jerry D. Bowline, BGE 64, who has been chosen to attend the Air Force’s Aerospace Research Pilot school. One of ten chosen for the school, he began a year of astronaut training in September. The school is located at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in the Mohave desert northeast of Los Angeles. While at the school, Bowline will study calculus, space navigation and astronaut engineering and fly several types of planes. On completion of the course, he could fly space vehicles or test experimental airplanes. For the past three years he has been a B-52 aircraft commander for Strategic Air Command at Ellsworth AFB, near Rapid City, S.D.

Aerospace Nurse

From the April 1966 University of Omaha Alumni Newsletter oing through some of the paces of an astronaut for her new role in the U.S. manned space flight program was Capt. Dorothy R. Novotny (1962), BS. Capt. Novotny recently completed specialized “aerospace” nurse training at Brooks AFB, Tex. During the eight-week course she underwent some of the rigorous tests given astronauts to learn first hand the effects of high altitude operations on the human body. She is now assigned to the Bioastronautic Operational Support Unit at Cape Kennedy, Fla. Previously she served as an operating room nurse and flight nurse at Tachikawa AB, Japan.

lished by BrownTrout Publishers of San Francisco. A native of Omaha, Stickels has authored or co-authored 20 books, card decks and calendars of puzzles. His STICKELERS puzzle column is syndicated daily by King Features and appears in many of the largest U.S. and Canadian

newspapers. His popular website, www.terrystickels.com, offers a sampling of his puzzles. Stickels lives in Fort Worth, Texas. 1977 Randy R. Beavers, BA, lives in Stafford, Va. Last spring earned

an MA in procurement and acquisitions management from Webster University. He previously earned an MA in human resources development. A retired career Air Force officer, Beavers currently is a U.S. Defense Department civil service employee assigned to the Air Force

UNOALUM

S U M M E R Petroleum Office at Fort Belvoir, Va. He and his wife, Kathy, enjoy living in Virginia and the national DC Capital area with their three Basset hounds. Send Beavers emails at RandyBeavers@member.afa.org

on my dissertation in the educational administration department. I plan to be finished in December.” He received an MS in educational administration from UNO in 1994. Send him emails at ldmurry@msn.com

Lloyd W. Mulick, BS, lives in Omaha and takes emails at lcrbigred@cox.net

1979 Patricia A. Rustand Lee, BSBA, lives in Cypress, Texas, and writes: “Senior Tax Director for Enron Corp.—still! My husband owns his own heating and A/C company in Houston. Two sons, one graduated from Rice University and one currently at Texas A&M.” Send her email at patricia.a.lee@enron.com

Marilyn J. Fricke Paulsen, BGS, retired in 2000 after practicing dental hygiene for 40 years. She is a volunteer at Midlands Hospital in Papillion, Neb., and currently is president of Midlands Community Hospital Auxiliary Inc. “We have 146 active, 33 inactive members,” she writes. “It is not part of the Alegent Health System. We raise funds by selling fruitcakes we bake—we give $35,000 in grants to the hospital and community.” Edward J. Conrath, BS, was elected a committee chairman for ASTM International, one of the world’s largest management systems for the development of voluntary standards for materials, products, systems and services. It has more than 30,000 members around the world representing industry, government, academia and consumers. Conrath is a structural engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Omaha. He was elected chair of Committee F12 on security systems and equipments, which consists of 120 members responsible for 20 standards related to security systems, components and equipment, and product counterfeit protection. Conrath has been an ASTM International member since 1987. With the Corps of Engineers he is part of the protective design center, where he writes criteria on designing structures to resist the effects of terrorist weapons. He also is involved in developing standards, criteria and design methods for using glazing in blast environments. He previously was a structural engineer at the Air Launch Cruise Missile Support Facilities and on the Underground Munitions storage complex at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico. 1978 Larry Murry, BA, lives in Bellevue, Neb., and is an administrator at a local high school. “Married for 27 years with two sons and one daughter. Working

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Scott Weir, BS, joined the University of Kansas Cancer Center as the first director of its Office of Therapeutics, Discovery and Development. The move is designed to speed the development and use of new drugs to fight cancer and other diseases. Weir has spent nearly 20 years in pharmaceutical research and development. From 1999 to 2005 he was with Quintiles Inc. in Kansas City, first as executive director of biopharmaceutical sciences and later as vice president for early development and laboratory services. Prior to that he held senior positions with Hoechst Marion Roussel Inc., Marion Merrell Dow Inc. and Marion Laboratories, all in Kansas City. At KU’s Lawrence campus, Weir holds an appointment in the department of pharmaceutical chemistry. He is a professor with tenure at the KU Medical Center Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutics. He also is the Frank B. Tyler Professor in Cancer Research. 1980 Vicki L. Beyer, BA, lives in Tokyo and is an employment lawyer for Morgan Stanley, based in Japan and covering the entire Asian region. She also teaches part time at Meiji Gakuin University’s law school. An avid traveler, her most recent trip destinations include India, Turkey and Bulgaria. Katherine Hamilton-Smith, BA, lives in Libertyville, Ill., and recently was promoted to director of cultural resources for the Lake County Forest Preserve District in Chicago’s north suburbs. “I am in charge of the Lake County Discovery Museum, the

Adlai E. Stevenson Historic Home, the Bonner Heritage Farm and the Greenbelt Cultural Center. Information about these locations can be found at www.LCFPD.org. I live in Libertyville with my husband, Omaha native Jess Smith, and two sons, Jack and Ben.” Send emails to Hamilton-Smith at khamilton-smith@sbcglobal.net Tim Mathern, MSW, lives in Fargo, N.D., and is a senator for the North Dakota Legislature. He recently was named to the Bush Foundation Board of Saint Paul, Minn. Send him email at tmathern@nd.gov 1981 Ted R. Wilz, BGS, lives in Greenbackville, Va., and is senior meteorologist at NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Va. “Responsible for all daily meteorological support, weather warnings, rocket launch briefings, daily TV weather briefings and all project and staff support,” he writes. Send emails to Theodore.R.Wilz.1@gsfc.nasa.gov Debra Paris, BS, was one of two UNO grads (see Athena Ramos, 2002) to receive a 2006 UNO Women of Color (WOC) Award during a luncheon attended by more than 400 people. The awards acknowledge outstanding contributions and leadership by women of color in the Omaha area. Organizations and individuals were nominated in six categories: arts and humanities, business/entrepreneurship, community service, education, science and technology, and youth leadership. Paris, the Education Award honoree, is a librarian/ media specialist at Benson High School. A news release noted that, “she is an active and committed advocate of public education and the teaching profession. One nominator wrote: ‘Paris models the characteristics that she expects students to demonstrate, such as respect for self and others, hard work and love of learning.’ At Benson, Paris oversees sponsorship of the school mascots and the cheerleading squad. She believes that school spirit is crucial in maintaining a positive school climate.” 1982 Joseph J. Jirka, BSBA, lives in Papillion, Neb., and is a cost accountant for Syngenta-US Crop Protection in Omaha. Send him

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email at joseph.jirka@gte.net Theri L. Forey Wyckoff, BS, notes that she “is currently seeking tenure as a professor at the Community College of Southern Nevada, where she has been teaching future teachers both live and online in the education department.” She also has an MS (1992) from UNO. She was married to fellow UNO graduate Mark Wyckoff at the UNO Alumni Center on Labor Day 2001. Theri writes that, “Although they had crossed paths many times on campus and Theri’s mom was secretary to Mark’s advisor, Dr. Judy Watanabe, the two never officially met until Theri posted a letter online in July of 2000 and Mark answered her letter.” The couple lives in Las Vegas. Mark runs his own accounting firm, Wyckoff Accounting Services, and recently received his master of science in accounting with a specialization in tax from the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Send emails to theriwyckoff@cox.net 1983 Jan Schwee, BS, lives in Omaha and has been a realtor at N.P. Dodge Co. for five-plus years. “In my spare time I have worked on and am receiving a master’s degree in healthcare on June 3, but will continue practicing real estate at N.P. Dodge. I also have been writing a regular column on real estate for Northwest Corner magazine since its inception in April 2005.” Send emails to jschwee3@cox.net 1984 Marie L. Beard Snyder, MA, lives in Longmont, Colo. (north of Denver) with her husband, Mike, and three boys. “Working in the medical field and loving it!” she writes. “Would love to hear from other grads!” Email n8vnyer@mesanetworks.net Steven P. Westby, BA, lives in Indianapolis and writes, “I have been with Temple-Inland for the past 16 years as a district human resources manager. My father and sister also are UNO alumni. My daughter is slated to graduate this summer.” Send emails to stevenwestby@templeinland.com 1985 Clif A. Banner, MPA, lives in Nashua, N.H., and is chief engineer for the U.S. Department of Continued next page

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Class Notes From Page 43

Defense Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment (JEFX), an Air Force-sponsored biannual event involving more than 40 sites, 85 to 100 aircraft, and participants from all military services and the UK, Canada and Australia. His wife, Linda, is a member of several Nebraska Quilt Guilds and an active bead-maker. They have two sons, Ben and Aleks. Send him email at clif.banner@baesystems.com Randall L. Behm, BS, lives in Papillion and says, “There’s more to flood protection than just levees and dams.” Behm should know—he’s put in 21 years of service with the Omaha District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is the chief of the flood plain management services section. Behm also is a certified floodplain manager and member of the National Nonstructural Flood Proofing Committee. Send him email at randall.l.behm@usace.army.mil 1987 Donald E. Swanson, BGS, lives in Phoenix and writes, “Having decided to proactively maintain a lifelong attitude of service to others, I have recently completed a six-month teacher certification course and passed my Arizona teacher proficiency exams. As a result, I will be teaching political science/American government at a local metro area high school in the fall. Retirement just seemed too boring!” Send emails to badger2z@cox.net Scott Roberts, BSBA, returned to infoUSA, an Omaha online database marketing company, as vice president of corporate services. He formerly was the vice president of finance and administration with the Omaha Performing Arts. Prior to that, until 2004, Roberts was infoUSA’s controller. He also served as acting CFO and president of one of the company’s sales units. Mark Allen, BS, notes via email that he is “still in Los Angeles working in television production. This fall I’ll be back with ‘Supernanny’ on ABC as supervising producer. When I’m in Omaha I love speaking to classes of students studying communications. My son, Nick, attends UNO studying broadcast journalism. If there are any grads out

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there considering a leap to Los Angeles or working in television, I’d be happy to answer your questions.” Send him email at markla123@aol.com 1988 Lisa A. Cuevas-Jorgensen, BS, lives in Omaha and is chief development officer for the Girl Scouts-Great Plains Council. Cuevas-Jorgensen, who earned an MPA from UNO in 1992, also is owner of InFocus Coaching, LLC. “Helping experienced professionals re-energize their careers and enhance work/life balance,” she writes. In January 2006 she was appointed District 4 representative to the Metro-politan Community College Board of Governors. Send emails to bljorgensen@cox.net 1989 David W. White, BA, lives in Omaha and says that in 2000, “I started my own Internet Radio station via Live365.com called Whitester Radio. It is still going strong six years later. I have four different Whitester Radio streams featuring music from the 1960s, 1970s, Smooth Jazz and Classic Rock. All four streams have a very strong following, which makes this venture a very worthwhile and fulfilling one for me. I get several smooth jazz CDs from independent artists on independent labels from all over the world in hopes that I will play their music on Whitester RadioSmooth Jazz. More times than not, I will put their music into the playlist. I have to credit UNO for the success of Whitester Radio. My broadcasting education and experiences started at UNO in the 1980s with studentrun KBLZ, KVNO and KYNE-26, then moving on to KOIL and KGOR in the 1990s. All UNO alums are invited to listen to any of the Whitester Radio streams and to visit my website at: http://listen.to/whitester-radio.” Send emails to whitester@cox.net Martin A. Fehringer, BS, is a sergeant and detective in criminal investigations in the Lincoln Police Department. Send emails to lpd801@cjis.ci.lincoln.ne.us Brenda Kummer Brooks, BSCJ, lives in North Platte, Neb. 1990 Carl M. Carlson, MSW, lives in Redding, Calif., and says, “I really miss connecting with my 1990

graduate cohorts at UNO. Currently, I work as a clinical supervisor at New Directions To Hope, a mid-sized counseling agency with home offices in Redding, Calif. We provide therapeutic services to many children and families in far Northern California.” Send him email at carlsoncarl@netscape.net 1991 Judith Ann Ciociola Fleming, MA, lives in Penhook, Va., where she is an educational consultant for Care Connections for Children. She also serves on the Governors Education Committee. She received her doctorate in early childhood education at Johns Hopkins University in 2000. Send emails to drfleming@charter.net 1993 Karen Miller Dulany, BGS, lives in LaVista, Neb. She writes that she “graduated by going to night classes for several years and then graduated in 1993. I have been working at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for 38 years. I am the manager of the Histology Lab at Eppley Cancer Research facility.” Send her email at kkdulany@unmc.edu Michael Homan, BA, in April was named Distinguished Alumnus by UNO’s religious studies program. Homan is an assistant professor of theology at Xavier University of Louisiana. He has master’s and doctorate degrees in ancient history and the Hebrew Bible from the University of California at San Diego. He has lectured at Notre Dame Seminary, Loyola and Jerusalem University College. He has authored a number of books, including the forthcoming “Over, Under, and Through the Bible: An Archaeological, Historical, and Satellite Atlas” with coauthors Jeffrey C. Geoghegan and Robert A. Mullins. Find out more about Homan at webusers.xula.edu/mhoman. Read blog accounts of his escape from a flooded New Orleans and life since at michaelhoman.blogspot.com 1994 Christopher R. Bilder, BS, lives in Lincoln, Neb. He was awarded tenure and promoted to associate professor in the department of statistics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Send him email at chris@chrisbilder.com

Hillary A. Tripp Luton, BGS, writes, “Well, its time to move on, yet again. We are heading to Atlanta at the end of June to start a new job. Every time I think life is going to slow down a little, it seems to get yanked into high gear again. But I can honestly say, life has been anything but boring for us. The new job will be with the U.S. Army Reserve Command Headquarters in the marketing and media relations section of public affairs. I’m excited about the opportunity and the knowledge I will gain working in this job. Our time in Seattle has been short, but we have made the most of it. We will continue to serve our country, and God Bless to our fellow military who are currently serving in harm’s way. Stay safe. Our thoughts are with you.” Send emails at hillary.luton@us.army.mil 1995 Kimberly A. Esch Scherrer, BSBA, lives in Omaha. Send her email at kscherrer@cox.net 1996 Ken Archer, BS, lives in Summerfield, Fla., and is executive producer at a Central Florida television station. It captured a 2006 Telly Award for producing two 30-minute specials: “Faces of Freedom—America’s Airborne Heroes.” Notes Archer: “The shows looked at our nation’s veterans who took part in World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Gulf War in some aviation capacity. Was up against 12,000 entries from all 50 states and five continents.” Send him email at ken.archer@ thevillagesmedia.com Diane Richwine Osborne, BS, has worked in the UNO Alumni Association’s records department since 2003. Mark Wyckoff, BS, received his master of science degree in accounting with a specialization in tax from the University of Nevada Las Vegas in May. He was one of only seven graduates in the program. He is married to fellow UNO graduate Theri L. Forey Wyckoff (see Class Note 1996). Send him email at mawyckoff@prodigy.net 1997 Javine Horani, BSBA, is completing her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at

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and the program director for ARMA Nebraska. My wife and I recently celebrated our 10-year anniversary and we have two children. In my free time, I enjoy playing baseball in the Omaha Men’s Senior Baseball League.” Send him email at mark@markgraves.com

Service with the Scouts

t’s not a baker’s dozen, but UNO graduates still are cooking up good things with the Boy Scouts of America’s Mid-America Council. Twelve UNO grads currently serve as professionals in the Mid-America Council, headquartered in Omaha. The council is the largest youth-serving agency in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota, serving nearly 33,000 youth in 58 counties. The 12 UNO graduates recently posed for a group photo. Their names, job titles and degree information: Seated, left to right: Melissa Stricherz (MPA, 1998), director, finance service; Stephanie E. Rall (BSCJ, 1997), field director, Learning for Life; Jeff Barnhart (BS, 1995), field director, Omaha Metro; Daryl Milius (BS, 1989; MS, 1994). Standing, left to right: Brandon Raddish (BGS, 1999), district executive; Ken Ostdiek (MPA, 2005), Venturing executive; Danielle VanNorman (BS, 2003), executive, Learning for Life/Exploring; Lisa A. Asmussen (BS, 2005), executive, Learning for Life/Exploring; Happy Slater (BGS, 1997), executive, Annual Popcorn Sales; Lloyd E. Roitstein (BS, 1971), Scout executive/president, Mid-America Council; Brian J. Nastase (BA, 1994), director, Field Services; Mike Simcho (BS, 1997), Moderate Risk Juvenile diversion specialist.

Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. She will be moving to Colorado Springs, Colo., in July and will join Colorado Springs Health Partners’ OB/GYN group. Send emails to jhobgyn@gmail.com Suzan L. Valenzuela Huntington, BA, lives in Newberg, Ore. On July 8 she graduates from Pepperdine University with a doctorate in organizational leadership. She has an MPA from UNO in 2000. Currently she is the director of planned giving at Linfield College. Send her email at suzan.huntington@ pepperdine.edu Akin U. Tosyali, BS, lives in Chicago and in March joined ShopLocal to lead the search engine marketing team for ShopLocal.com. Joseph I. Peters, BGS, lives in Tokyo. He is a consultant and

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specialist in insurance and direct marketing who has spent 17 years in Japan and 11-plus more in SE Asia (Singapore & Malaysia). Peters owns an executive search firm in Tokyo, with offices in Singapore, Taipei, Manila, Shanghai and Kuala Lumpur. He writes, “Able to assist any company—or person— who wants to do business in Japan (or other areas of SE Asia). Just contact me and let me know what you need.” Send him email at jpeters47@yahoo.com 1998 Tugba Kalafatoglu, BA, lives in Caddebostan, Istanbul, and recently received an “Outstanding Intellectual of the 21st Century” medal in honor of an outstanding contribution in the field of politics and business. The honor was issued by the International Biographical Centre of Cambridge, England, a world leader in biographical publishing. Founded more than 30 years

ago, IBC since has published more than 1 million biographies of people of note from all over the world in more than 200 editions of its reference works. Kalafatoglu is president of Tugba Kalafatoglu & Associates, a global management and public affairs consulting firm providing strategic public relations, government relations, communication, marketing and lobbying services. Send her email at tugba@tugbakalafatoglu.com Jennifer Glessman Sumner, MPA, lives in Sacramento, Calif. She writes that she “was married at the top of the Stratosphere in Las Vegas, Nev., to Colin Sumner on April 23, 2006!” Send her email at smfjen@sbcglobal.net Mark A. Graves, BSBA, lives in Omaha and since 2002 has worked as a FileNet developer for Northern Natural Gas in Omaha. “I am the president of the Omaha FileNet User Group

1999 Shelly Asplin, MA, was awarded a 2005 Leadership in Community Nutrition Award from the Dairy Council of Nebraska. The award is given annually to recognize an individual or organization for their unique contributions to community nutrition in Nebraska. Asplin is a Hy-Vee Dietitian. A registered dietitian since 1993, she earned a degree in human nutrition and food service management from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and completed her dietetic internship at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. An active member of national and local American Dietetic Associations, Asplin currently serves on the board for Omaha District Dietetic Association.” Sherri L. Jacobsen Frey, BSW, lives in Omaha and notes that on May 20, 2006, she married Johnny Ray Gomez IV in a small ceremony at Lake of the Ozarks, Osage Beach, Mo. 2000 Anna L. Phillips Todd, BS, lives in Tampa, Fla., and says that after graduating and moving back to Cocoa Beach, Fla., “I taught high school at Merritt Island High, where I was nominated for teacher of the year. I also appeared in multiple editions of Who’s Who of American Teachers and won regional and national journalism awards for my work in high school journalism. During those years at the Space Coast, I also was vice president of the Junior League of Central & North Brevard. In 2004 my family relocated to Tampa and celebrated the birth of our first child, Scarlett Avery, on March 28, 2005. We will be relocating to North Carolina in June so that I can begin my graduate work at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. I will be working toward my Ph.D. in education, specializing in the culture, curriculum and change program. I chose to attend UNC Continued next page

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Class Notes From page 45

after being accepted to the graduate programs at Vanderbilt, Virginia, Georgia, Florida State, Auburn and North Carolina State University. I attribute my acceptance rate to my success as an educator and the time I spent at UNO. The teacher education program at UNO is top-notch.” Send her email at annatodd@gmail.com 2000 Nicholas Miner, BSBA, lives in Tempe, Ariz., and in April was elected to the board of directors of CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) Institute, the governing body of the largest commercial real estate network in the world. The election took place at business meetings held in Vancouver, British Columbia. Those elected to the board of directors are responsible for voting on policy, procedural and financial issues pertaining to CCIM Institute, its membership and education programs. Miner will serve a three-year term starting October 2006. Send emails to nminer@ccim.net 2001 Debra Allwardt, BSW, will become an assistant professor at Western Illinois University in the department of social work beginning in fall 2006. She has an MSW from UNO, earned in 2003. Send her email at dalllwardt@mail.unomaha.edu

Class Notes

2002 Lisa A. Winkler Elsasser, BS, lives in Omaha and is a kindergarten teacher in the PapillionLaVista School District. In May she earned from UNO a master’s degree in reading. Send her email at elsassers1@cox.net Joe R. Hanson, MBA, lives in Carlisle, Iowa, and recently was named business department chair of the Des Moines Area Community College-Urban campus. He currently is pursuing a Ph.D. in education at Iowa State University. 2002 Athena Ramos, BS, was one of two UNO graduates (see Debra Paris, 1981) to receive a 2006 UNO Women of Color (WOC) Award. The awards acknowledge outstanding contributions and leadership by women of color in the Omaha area. Organizations and individuals were nominated in six categories: arts and humanities, business/entrepreneurship, community service, education, science and technology, and youth leadership. Ramos, the Community Service Award honoree, is president of the Metro Omaha Tobacco Coalition (MOTAC). A news release for the award noted: “In her non-paid position with MOTAC, she has worked to change the social climate regarding smoking policies in Omaha and Nebraska in an effort to improve the health of the public. She is a strong role model in the Latina/o communi-

ty. She completed the Heartland Blueprint Class, a program of the United Way of the Midlands, to increase minority participation on not-for-profit boards and committees. Currently, she is president of the South Omaha Neighborhood Association and has worked with a task force against predatory lending.” 2003 Pamela Ray Koch, MPA, a doctoral student in the University of South Carolina’s sociology department, took top honors in a national research competition by the Society of the Study of Social Problems Family Division. Her paper, “Blood is not Always Thicker than Water: Parental Discipline of Adopted and Biological Children,” examined whether adopted, biological and stepparents disciplined children differently. Koch found no differences between adopted and biological parents but did find that having a stepfather in the home increased the number of spankings a child received. Koch expects to earn her doctoral degree from USC in 2008. 2004 Jason B. Gaskin, BSBA, lives in Omaha and writes: “I was joined at the hip with my college sweetheart, Victoria. We finished our undergrad requirements in April 2004, got married in April 2005, and in April 2006 Victoria gave birth to our first child, Jason B. Gaskin II. He’s the light of both of our lives. There’s definitely

not a better feeling in this world than parenthood!” Send emails to jason.gaskin@coxmedia.com 2004 Angie Kritenbrink, MA, lives in Federal Way, Wash. In December 2005 she took a position in the risk management department at Group Health Cooperative, a non-profit health plan and health care delivery organization in Seattle. “I feel very comfortable working at Group Health so far because of the internal philosophy of the company and its positive impact on the community. I am also editing a book about Great Plains poetry criticism and continue to have book reviews published, most recently in Seattle Weekly, one of Seattle’s two major alt-weeklies.” Send her emails at akritenbrink@comcast.net Roy D. Reichle, BS, lives in Saint Helena, Neb., and writes, “I’m currently unemployed and pursuing freelance writing and professional photography. I’m also working as a rock climbing instructor and climbing guide.” Send him email at reichle@gpcom.net 2006 Adam J. Bender, BSBA writes that “Becoming a financial advisor was a dream of mine for years. Thanks to my wonderful teachers and classmates for helping me get where I am today.” Send emails to adam.bender@smithbarney.com

Submit your class note over the web at www.unoalumni.org

What have you been doing since graduating from UNO? Your fellow alumni would like to know! Give us an update by filling out the form below. We’ll publish the news in a future issue of the UNO Alum and on our website. Send the news to Class Notes Editor, UNO Alum, 67th & Dodge, Omaha, NE 68182-0010, or Fax to (402) 554-3787.

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In Memoriam 1929 1935 1939 1941 1946 1947 1949

1950 1951 1952

1953 1954 1955

1957

1958 1959 1960 1960 1961

1962 1963

Marguerite Allen Norene A. Frankeberger Denton Alice E. Shapland Chatfield Marietta Koop Dorothy J. Toohey Ralph H. Thornton, Jr. Elaine C. Hough Ammons Jeanne L. Rudd Roberts Oscar H. Beasley Jr. Keith E. Eck James C. Horejs Virginia A. Larsen Moriarty Jane H. “Blackie” Johnson Robbins Lois L. Ulrich Miller Clement R. “C.R.” Healey Alfred E. Smith Lloyd G. Wood Meliora M. Jensen Catherine L. Weber Dorothy Stewart Gallagher James L. Sweetman George W. Truka Frederick S. Geihs Billy G. Hyland Charles J. Adams Sr. LeRoy P. “Pete” Mitchell Patrick G. Coughlin Robert L. Draper James B. Penrod Thomas J. Eastlack Roy “Al” Hudson Dean S. McDermott Joseph U. Weaver Jr. Gordon Sandercox George H. Albers Donald L. Hansen Lon E. Dunn Leon B. Evans Richard A. Johnson Jessie F. Rhoten-Johnson

1963 George H. Thomas Albert K. “Red” Travis Earl J. Campbell John W. Robinson Jr. Julius F. Lane 1964 Robert J. Dillard Marjorie D. Fishel Harry L. French Martin A. Jarosick William E. Matulka Joseph M. McNulty Elizabeth Shaw Randall Consetta M. “Tena” Campagna Serfass George E. Toomey Donald Frederick Dixon Karl R. Morton Ivan G. Montes 1965 George D. Watson 1966 Dennis E. Eddy Lorena Gibson Robert E. Holland Sr. Francis P. Mulvey Flora G. Thompson 1967 Marion R. Wamsat 1968 Jane J. Blackwell Bernie E. Ramsey Elswick John D. Fulton Robert J. Jarvis 1969 Gordon W. Anderson Marcia A. Awsumb Carol S. Skoland Colchin Harvey D. Kegley John V. Ohnstad Kenneth G. Place 1970 Charles A. Mills Jr. Chuck Gilreath Ezekiel Longoria 1971 Clifford J. Tegler Edgar F. Todd Robert Ray Douglas

2006 UNO Annual Fund Donation Form

STEP 1—Check level

Alumni Card Donor Less than $25

q Calendar Donor $25 or more

q Gold Card Donor $50 or more

q Bronze Century $100 or more

q Silver Century q

$250 or more

Golden Century $500 or more

STEP 2—Mark payment information A.q Check enclosed for $ B.q Bill me for $

Visa

MasterCard

Expiration Date:__________

Card No.:

$1,000 or more

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Name month

C.q I authorize the UNO Alumni Association to collect my through my: gift of $

q Diamond Century Platinum Century $2,500 or more

STEP 3—Complete Name and Address

Payable to UNO Annual Fund.

Signature

Discover

1972 Susan Martin Betcke Joseph W. Fruga Alice “Pat” Pope George Meredith P. Harrold Fritz C. Hyde III. John J. Walsh 1973 Doris L. Andersen Thomas L. Coffelt 1974 Leon R. Olson Marguerite “Joan” Beste Spratlen Lois B. Troop Robert J. Warsocki 1975 Thomas J. Jaksich Margaret Gannon Jensen Jeannie Eggert Platt Stella M. Onik Riley Gerald T. Law Lloyd T. Navarro 1976 Frank H. McPherson III. 1977 Anthony Aipperspach Terrence L. Mauro 1978 Florence E. Schindler Bone Isaac Sims Jr. 1979 Getachew Ayalew Beverly A. Wilkerson Johnson Robert Warren Johnson Ellen Canar Joseph 1980 Rita A. Oseka 1981 Debra J. Tomlinson Hartmann Jackie R. Gilstrap 1985 William D. Burg Susan M. Clarke 1988 Michael A. Gaebel 1989 Timothy G. O’Kane 1991 Linda Ann Knox Catherine R. McIntyre-Sims Kevin A. Mollner 1993 Keith J. Faur 1995 Michael A. Bryant 2003 Kyle R. Kemmet

As you wish it to appear in our 2006 Annual Report

Address City/State/Zip Phone E-mail Save time and a stamp . . . Donate online at www.unoalumni.org

Summer 2006 • 47

It’s in the Cards 2006 Annual Fund

ow does UNO make a difference? The UNO Alumni Association is telling Annual Fund donors “It’s in the Cards.”

All donors of $25 or more in 2006 will receive a customized deck of playing cards, each one telling of an impressive UNO-related fact. Something else will be in the cards, too—after donors are recorded for each quarter, we’ll randomly select five donors to receive an iPod “Shuffle” MP3 player (cards, shuffle—get it?). How can you tell if you’ve won? Shuffle through the cards and see if you’ve received a special “Prize Card” indicating so!

e to r mor Fund o 0 5 ual te $ Dona UNO Ann random 6 00 na the 2 entered i ing for e aw and b d Prize Dr Grand Gran inch Sony a 50- EGA(tm) W TV! ction e j o r P

Also in the cards for 2006—all donors of $50 or more also will be entered in our random Grand Prize Drawing for a 50-inch Sony Grand WEGA(tm) Projection TV (2005 model shown above). We’ll conduct the Grand Prize Drawing in early 2007 after all 2006 donations have been recorded.

Donate today at www.unoalumni.org/give_to_uno or fill out the form on page 47 and return it to us today. Questions? Call us toll-free at UNO-MAV-ALUM (866-628-2586).

University of Nebraska at Omaha Alumni Association

William H. and Dorothy Thompson Alumni Center

Omaha, NE 68182-0010 Address Service Requested

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #301 OMAHA, NE