IN THIS ISSUE Feature Articles
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cover story:
Luther Turns 500
Ag to Riches After a year as Alice in Dairyland, Ann O’Leary ’14 knows the value of Wisconsin farming.
A full five centuries years after the Ninety-five Theses, Carthaginians show where the Lutheran faith stands — and where it’s headed.
36 Nein Barriers
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Dirty Tech Jobs Computer science professor Perry Kivolowitz won an Academy Award by automating drudgework.
Teaching in Germany, Fulbrighter Michelle Nuetzmann ’16 formed a group to improve refugees’ English skills.
Back cover photo: Casey Korb ‘19 arranged several hundred pinch pots for this ceramic exhibit in the annual juried student art show.
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IN THIS ISSUE Departments
THE CARTHAGINIAN Volume 96, Number 2 Carthage College combines an environment of reflection and self-discovery with a culture of high expectation so our students uncover and ignite their true potential. A four-year, private liberal arts college with roots in the Lutheran tradition, Carthage has a prime location in Kenosha. The campus, an 80-acre arboretum on the shore of Lake Michigan, is home to 150 scholars, 2,600 full-time students, and 400 part-time students.
4 On Campus
New Carthage president John R. Swallow brings an entrepreneurial approach and highly relevant experience as a senior administrator, trustee, and professor.
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Faculty Notes
Distinguished Teaching Award winner Paul Martino credits summers with “the knife sharpener” for his educational passion.
Carthaginian Editorial Team
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Athletics
Molly O’Shea Polk
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Vice President for Communications
A circuitous route brought Herman Abban ’18 from Ghana to Carthage, where he set a new men’s tennis standard.
Managing Editor
Photographers Luke Bajda ’18 Mike Gryniewicz Steve Janiak Jawaune Johnson ’19
Mike Moore
Contributing Writers Design & Art Direction
Class Notes
Alumni share milestones in their careers and families.
Steve Janiak Kim King ’06 Rebecca Krahn ’16
Page From the Past
Production Dana Moore
Meet the Lutheran missionary who crossed paths with Carthage at critical junctures.
Reflections from Pastor Kara
Ben Clohesey ’18 Nicole Etter Karen Anne Mahoney Mike Moore Danelle Orange Emmy Schwerdt ’19 Linc Wonham
Chairman of the Board of Trustees David A. Straz Jr.
Notes from the Alumni Director
President John R. Swallow
CMYK
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Transparent PMS
For More Information The Carthaginian Office of Communications 2001 Alford Park Drive, Kenosha, WI 53140 262-551-6021 • editor@carthage.edu
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Farewell from a Carthage admirer There is no way that I will ever understand Albert Einstein’s theory that time is curved. It is way past me. My life experiences and my memories do seem to suggest, however, that time is circular. July 1, 2012 — five years ago — seems like a long time past, yet it also feels like yesterday. My energy was boundless as I began this new daunting job as president of Carthage, just as it is now. My hopes and dreams for the College were vast and high, just as they are now. And the future looked bright, just as it does now. We were constructing a new Science Center then; we are breaking ground on a new residence hall, “the Tower”, now. We were thinking about new academic programs back then; today, we are getting ready to release our first Bachelor of Science in Nursing graduates.
In 2012, we knew the demographics of high school graduates were more diverse than ever before; today, we see first-year classes composed of almost 30 percent students of color. Our business plan called for a few more students; today we enjoy the largest enrollment in College history. I remember saying five years ago that we would raise the retention of first-year students by 10 percent. Last year, we moved the needle from a low of 71 percent to a high of 81 percent, with more students graduating than ever before. Doubling the endowment seemed like an impossible dream, but the College sat at $60 million then and at a high of $107 million last week. Achieving our Campaign for Carthage goal of $35 million seemed like a stretch until
“ … I would do it all over again, with even greater joy, knowing what I was about to experience.”
we closed it June 30, almost two years ahead of schedule with $45 million raised. Growing the faculty; creating Carthage in Chicago; restoring a robust Academic Senate and creating a Staff Council; and managing new initiatives in career preparation, academic divisions, and institutional research all seem part of the past, present, and future. All of these things were accomplished by all of you — by Carthaginians in the world, on the staff, and in the student body. As a result of this collective effort and success, the College looks different now than it did in 2012, but in most ways still the same: poised for greatness, preparing talented and skilled graduates of unusual character, and pushing forward as a national leader in liberal arts higher education. Keep pushing! Do not accept anything but excellence! Be bold! My dreams for the College are higher now than they were five years ago. One thing has changed, however, and that is my deeper love and affection for Carthage and the people who work and study here. If time is curved, or even circular, I would do it all over again, with even greater joy, knowing what I was about to experience. My very best wishes to all of you, my sincere appreciation for your friendship, and my fondest hopes for this amazing college, Carthage. All the best,
Greg Woodward
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ON CAMPUS
A glimpse of what’s happening in the Carthage community
Welcome President Swallow Newly installed Carthage president John R. Swallow brings an entrepreneurial approach and highly relevant experience as a senior administrator, trustee, and faculty member at three small, private liberal arts institutions. Elected on a unanimous vote by the Board of Trustees in May, he took office July 1. President Swallow comes to Carthage from The University of the South, known informally as “Sewanee” for the Tennessee community in which it’s located. As chief academic and operating officer, he oversaw notable strides in the university’s curriculum, fundraising, equity and inclusion, enrollment, student life, faculty and staff development, and strategic planning. He became the 23rd president in Carthage’s 170-year history, succeeding Gregory S. Woodward. After a distinguished five-year term, President Woodward left to assume the presidency at the University of Hartford in his Connecticut hometown. President Swallow arrives at a time of unprecedented prosperity for the College, evident in its record enrollment, 30 consecutive years of operating surpluses, and $200 million investment in campus facilities since 1999. “I was immediately drawn to Carthage College as one of so few liberal arts institutions that can
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claim both long-standing excellence and profound momentum,” he said. “Carthage’s deep heritage, exceptional faculty and staff, and state-of-the-art facilities are a special and rare combination, and the opportunity to lead Carthage to become ever stronger was truly captivating.” The hire capped a nationwide search that esteemed firm Myers McRae coordinated with input from Carthage faculty, staff, students, and trustees. Echoing a hearty recommendation from the search committee, the board voted at its May meeting. “I am proud to welcome John Swallow to Carthage as our next president,” said Ambassador David A. Straz Jr., chairman of the board. “The breadth and caliber of his distinguished career at prestigious liberal arts colleges has prepared him for this outstanding opportunity.” Starting his undergraduate studies at 15, he earned a doctorate in 1994 and joined the faculty at Davidson (North Carolina) College later that year. He taught there for 17 years — 10 of them in an interdisciplinary humanities program. He was elected leader of the faculty, and students honored him with the Omicron Delta Kappa Teaching Award in 2010. His combination of analytical and communication skills impressed Carthage faculty. Aaron Trautwein, a professor on the presidential search committee, attributes that to the incoming president’s dual interests in the sciences and humanities.
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“The Carthaginians we met demonstrated such a genuine welcome, and such a deep commitment to transforming the lives of students, that we knew we had found the right place for us for many years to come.” “He has a very authentic voice,” Prof. Trautwein said. “He sees the world through many lenses. It’s really powerful to have someone who can do that.” President Swallow returned to Sewanee, his undergraduate alma mater, in 2011. Appointed provost the next year and executive vice president in 2014, he held responsibility for strategic planning and execution, day-to-day operations, and operating budget. Under his leadership, applications increased by 63 percent and diversity among the faculty rose to 18 percent, in line with the student body. President Swallow put in place financial models to more precisely forecast university revenue, shaped print and video marketing materials for a $250 million fundraising campaign, and sought out ways to collect face-to-face input from students, professors, and staff members. Externally, he embraced the unofficial role of “deputy mayor” in Sewanee by overseeing its downtown planning and partnering with civic groups on park redevelopment and other community projects. “His experience in innovative and interdisciplinary approaches to teaching and problem-solving, his commitment to community, and his vision for educating our students in a global world make him the perfect leader to continue the tremendous momentum at Carthage,” Ambassador Straz said. Even before joining the administration, President Swallow took an active role in Sewanee’s
governance as an elected trustee and, later, regent. He moved to cut tuition and fees by 10 percent, which contributed to a spike in visits, enabled admissions officers to more selectively screen applications, and raised the university’s public profile. More recently, he served as a trustee at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia. In 2015, the women’s college implemented the SUMMIT curriculum, which features global learning and leadership development and pairs each student with a personal career mentor and board of advisors. President Swallow has written articles in The Chronicle of Higher Education and The Huffington Post, plus an undergraduate textbook and more than two dozen research articles in mathematics. “Our faculty will really respect that he’s a scholar-teacher,” Prof. Trautwein said. “He’s an experienced researcher who also knows how to relate to students. That’s something we want all faculty members to model on campus.” Besides the similarities of the institutions, he was attracted to Kenosha’s size and the chance to move closer to relatives in the Chicago area. “My wife, Cameron, and I are thrilled to join the Carthage community,” President Swallow said. “The Carthaginians we met demonstrated such a genuine welcome, and such a deep commitment to transforming the lives of students, that we knew we had found the right place for us for many years to come.”
MEET THE PRESIDENT
John R. Swallow Born: Houston Age: 46
family •W ife, Cameron, high school math and English teacher •T wo children, Ruth and Sophie, undergraduate college students
education •B .A. (summa cum laude) – English literature and mathematics, The University of the South, 1989 •M .S. and M.Phil. – mathematics, Yale University, 1991 • Ph.D. – mathematics, Yale, 1994
academic experience •D avidson College, 1994-2011 – professor of mathematics and humanities, co-director of first-year humanities program, vice chair of faculty •T he University of the South, 2011-2017 – professor of mathematics and humanities, associate provost for planning and administration, provost, executive vice president)
board service •T he University of the South, 2001-2011 – member of Board of Trustees and secretary of Board of Regents •A gnes Scott College, 2013-2017 – vice chair of academic affairs and enrollment planning committees
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I shall deeply miss his counsel, his devotion, his breadth of interest in the work of the university, and the quiet competence he brings to every task he undertakes.
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JOHN MCCARDELL, VICE CHANCELLOR AT SEWANEE
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tower
THE
Heavy on common areas, new res hall coming in 2018
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Construction has begun on a new, 43,000-square-foot residence hall that will house up to 126 Carthage students and set aside two floors for versatile common spaces where those across campus can gather. The eight-story tower, which has not been assigned a formal name, will connect Joseph Johnson and Madrigrano Family residence halls. The estimated $21.5 million project won’t displace any existing residents. Carthage leaders expect the new hall to welcome its first residents in 2018. The additional housing aligns with the College’s strategic plan, which calls for an enrollment increase from the current 2,600 traditional undergraduate students to 2,700 by 2019. The project will more than triple the square footage of common space in the adjacent halls, where growth has forced Carthage to convert many original lounges to rooms. Spaces could invite study and reflection, gaming, group collaboration, or cooking. Changes are coming to the area surrounding the residence halls, too. The outdoor portion of the project will feature a new recreational area, lakeside plaza, volleyball court, and pedestrian boulevard.
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ON CAMPUS
Seed money to grow the ranks of science teachers The National Science Foundation has awarded Carthage a $1.2 million grant through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program to recruit strong STEM students to the teaching profession. The U.S. Department of Education reports an acute shortage of high school teachers in mathematics and the sciences throughout Wisconsin and much of the Midwest. The Carthage Noyce Scholarship program is designed to address that need. While it’s natural for faculty to encourage top STEM students to consider graduate school, program director Julie Dahlstrom makes the case that faculty should also promote secondary teaching as a fulfilling career. Prof. Dahlstrom, who teaches physics and astronomy, likens it to a farmer’s long-term mindset: “You hold back some of the seeds from the healthiest crop to ensure a good crop next year.” With this grant, Carthage can provide partial scholarships for up to 26 students over the next five years. The program is open to students majoring in biology, chemistry, mathematics, or physics. Noyce scholars will complete either a secondary education minor or the Accelerated Certification for Teachers program. Each participant can receive up to two years of scholarship support, rising from $16,000 to $20,000 per year over the life of the grant. For each year of funding, a student commits to two years of teaching in a high-need school. By partnering with schools in the Kenosha Unified district, Carthage aims to equip STEM teachers for success in that environment. In addition to required coursework, scholarship recipients will complete a math or science summer research project. They’ll also join a community of practice featuring networking events, formal mentoring, retreats, and seminars. The NSF funding provides a dual benefit, offering support and professional development to participating middle and high school teachers. They, too, can engage in authentic research to deepen their subject knowledge. “Carthage is excited to begin a program that will have far-reaching impacts on math and science education in the region,” Prof. Dahlstrom said. For more information, see the program website: carthage.edu/noyce
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Faculty, staff, and students folded 1,000 peace cranes, which were displayed in A. F. Siebert Chapel for the Interfaith Baccalaureate service May 20.
COMMENCEMENT 2017
“ You don’t have to save 1,000 or a million lives to feel like you’re making a difference. Just start with one.”
Vivian Onano ’14, a global youth and women’s advocate, flew in from South Africa to deliver the Commencement address.
Political science major Tim Tennyson ’17 gave the senior class address.
ON CAMPUS
GRADSPOTLIGHT First destinations for Class of 2017: A sampling
ARJUN SEHGAL
ARIELLE HAY
HERBERT TRIPLETT
KYLE NUSH
major: Chemistry hometown: Cedar Grove, Wis.
majors: Neuroscience, Biology hometown: Saint Paul, Minn.
major: History hometown: Joliet, Ill.
what’s next: For the time being, Arjun works as a professional caregiver at Eagle House, a group home in Yorkville, Wisconsin. He encourages and helps residents with mental disabilities to learn daily living requirements. After gaining some work experience, he hopes to enter medical school with a specialty in oncology.
what’s next: Arielle was awarded a post-baccalaureate research position with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease in Hamilton, Montana. The lab focuses on viruses like Zika and West Nile, building on research she conducted last summer at the University of Minnesota. She expects the one- to two-year paid position to narrow her graduate program interests.
what’s next: Herbert returns as part of the first class in Carthage’s 10-month Master of Science program in business design and innovation. Using those business principles, he wants to develop more innovative approaches to the history profession. It’s the next in a series of educational steps for Herbert, who aims to become a college professor.
majors: Environmental Science, Geography and Earth Science hometown: Round Lake, Ill.
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what’s next: After completing a similar internship on the East Coast in summer 2016, Kyle landed a job at the other end of the country as an outdoor naturalist guide at Yosemite National Park in California. Initially, he’s working with teens — teaching camping and survival skills, plus sharing the “vast knowledge of flora and fauna” he’s accumulated.
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JESS RUEDA
RYAN CASEY
GINA SIPKA
LINDSEY WATSON
major: Psychology hometown: Waukegan, Ill.
major: Finance hometown: Kenosha
majors: Graphic Design, Studio Art hometown: Frankfort, Ill.
what’s next: Jess starts classes at Antioch University Seattle in October, pursuing a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling with a concentration in art therapy. Always a fan of nontraditional therapeutic options, Jess hopes to open an art therapy practice. She would especially like to work with kids or those with eating disorders.
what’s next: This summer, Ryan has worked as an advisory intern for KPMG, one of the Big Four professional services firms. Always an admirer of the armed forces and their professionalism, he will accept a commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, beginning active duty at Quantico, Virginia.
what’s next: GoodFoods Group, based in the Kenosha area, hired Gina as a graphic designer. Her advisor, Professor Laura Huaracha, alerted her to the opening. Gina influences how the company “visually communicates with the world” by designing packaging for its products, which include dips, salads, and juices.
major: Physics (Secondary Education minor) hometown: Dunlap, Ill. what’s next: Lindsey will return to her former high school as a science teacher. She’s scheduled to teach physics and physical science at Washington Community High School, with a side goal to become an assistant volleyball coach. She takes “some comfort in knowing what the atmosphere and rules of the school are before going in on my first day”.
Learn about more graduates’ plans at carthage.edu/list/hired-before-graduation
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ON CAMPUS
1,873 DONORS
$324,392 RAISED
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REGIONAL EVENTS
An even more bountiful Giving Day Significantly raising the stakes for the second annual Giving Day, Carthage still exceeded its goal thanks to the generosity of alumni, students, parents, employees, and other supporters on April 7. Total contributions to support Carthage programs included a $200,000 gift from the Board of Trustees for surpassing the target of 1,847 donors, a threshold that commemorated the College’s founding in 1847. In setting the ambitious goal, organizers took a leap of faith based on the success of the first Giving Day in 2016. “What an incredible community we have,” said Theresa Kevorkian, executive director for institutional advancement. “When we raised the goal by a thousand donors this year, we didn’t know what to expect. But Carthaginians came through, as always.” Campus “celebrities” — popular professors, staff members, and coaches — staffed the call center in one-hour shifts. Among the highlights in a daylong series of events were a trivia showdown, performances by student ensembles, a magic show, and a display of exotic lizards. The celebration ranged far beyond the campus boundaries, as alumni
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chapters welcomed 119 attendees to regional events. Half of each $10 ticket went to the Carthage Fund. Alumni also set up a half-dozen giving challenges, offering to match contributions from their classmates, teammates, or supporters of the fine arts. Each of the six challenges topped its goal.
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CAMPUS NOTES snl stars perform at carthage In the midst of a ratings resurgence for “Saturday Night Live”, cast member Colin Jost and alumnus Jay Pharoah performed in Tarble Arena on March 16. Co-anchor for the “Weekend Update” sketch, which has special primetime episodes scheduled this summer, Mr. Jost joined SNL as a writer in 2005. Mr. Pharoah was a six-year cast member best known for celebrity impressions like President Barack Obama, Will Smith, and Kanye West.
new pact smoothes transfers from gateway Through a new partnership, eligible graduates of Gateway Technical College can receive guaranteed admission to Carthage to complete their bachelor’s degrees. Up to 68 credits can be applied toward a Carthage degree, and many graduates can enter with junior status. Leaders from the two institutions finalized the agreement at a signing ceremony May 8.
golden globe winner debuts play The latest work commissioned for Carthage’s New Play Initiative, “The Regina Taylor Project: A Seat at the Table”, premiered March 3 in the Wartburg Theatre. The script was based on the life of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer. Ms. Taylor, the playwright, has segued between television, film and theatre. She earned a best actress Golden Globe in 1993 for her role as Lilly Harper in the TV drama “I’ll Fly Away”, later adding four Helen Hayes awards for her musical, “Crowns”.
native american rocketry competition Based at Carthage, the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium hosted the nation’s largest high-powered rocket competition for Native American college students. The First Nations Launch drew teams from 11 states, with a culminating launch April 22 at Richard Bong State Recreation Area in western Kenosha County. John B. Herrington, the first Native American in space, gave a public talk on campus that night.
teaming up to boost college access In partnership with College Possible Milwaukee, Carthage welcomed 25 high school students to campus for a tour and presentation Feb. 4. The Americorps nonprofit aims to improve college admissions and success for low-income students.
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FACULTY NOTES
Updates on faculty and staff achievements
Sharpener of blades and minds All across Long Island, residents simply knew Nick Martino as “the knife sharpener”. Each summer, the third-generation tool grinder brought his two sons along to work in his mobile shop. Driving a van that resembled an ice cream truck, he’d ring a bell to draw out customers with all kinds of dull blades. The goal wasn’t to steer the boys toward a life of manual labor. Just the opposite, in fact. There was nothing romantic about the grimy, 16hour workdays the patriarch endured for 55 years. “We’d look black at the end of the day because of all of the metal shavings,” said Paul Martino, an associate professor of biology at Carthage. Both Italian immigrants, Nick Martino and his wife, Teresa, dropped out before reaching high school. Understanding well how much they had missed, the couple insisted that their children persevere. “They expected us, my brother and myself, to go to school,” Prof. Martino said. Accepting the 2016-17 Distinguished Teaching Award at the College’s annual Spring Gathering, he paid tribute to their lesson on the value of education. Prof. Martino came to Carthage in 2009. He holds a Ph.D. in physiology from the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he and a pair of colleagues continue to study the cells and areas of mammals’ brains that control breathing. His approach to teaching is simple — no gadgets, no trending strategies. A quote from the late Chuck Noll, who coached the Pittsburgh Steelers to four Super Bowl titles, sums it up:
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“Champions are champions not because they do anything extraordinary, but because they do the ordinary things better than anyone else.” Nominations poured in, featuring firsthand testimonials about Prof. Martino’s dedication and passion. “Inside the classroom,” one student wrote, he “talks about the inner workings of the body with such vigor that it is a miracle that anybody walks out of the class not wanting to be a physiologist!” English professor Alyson Kiesel, the previous year’s recipient, reflected on conversations she had with her biology counterpart at a recent scholarship competition. “My fellow interviewer was so brimming with details about (Abraham) Lincoln that I found myself glancing at his nametag to confirm that he was, indeed, a scientist,” she joked. “That’s the beauty of the liberal arts!”
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Faculty/Staff Notes Douglas Arion, professor of physics and
Eduardo García-Novelli, professor of
astronomy, helped author a supplementary document to a new report provided by the Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Preparation. The report focuses on the needs in science education for job preparation in the 21st century.
music, conducted Mozart’s “Coronation Mass” at Carnegie Hall. He led the New England Symphonic Ensemble, four professional soloists, and a festival choir of more than 150 national high school and college students.
Jonathan Bruning, associate professor
John Kirk, associate professor of chemistry,
of communication and digital media, gave his presentation “Pele’s Cosmos, Beckham’s Galaxy, and Drogba’s Impact: Imported Superstars and American Professional Soccer” at the national conference of the Popular Culture Association.
co-authored the ninth edition of “Chemistry in Context: Applying Chemistry to Society”, a textbook published by the American Chemical Society.
Sandie Bisciglia ’94, assistant professor of religion and women’s and gender studies, was honored with a Susan B. Anthony Women of Influence Award in the arts and education category. Three Kenosha area women’s organizations sponsor the event.
David Brownholland, assistant professor of chemistry, published a paper titled “Synthesis of Side-Chain Oxysterols and Their Enantiomers Through Cross-Metathesis Reaction D22 Steroids” in the journal Steroids. Oxyterols are compounds related to cholesterol known to be significant in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, and Niemann-Pick type C diseases.
Jacqueline Easley, associate professor of education, gave a paper presentation at the national meeting of the Association of Teacher Educators. Her paper, titled “Teaching Future Teachers: Modeling Methodology While Delivering Content”, demonstrated various research-based and self-designated teaching methods.
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Diane Levesque, assistant professor of art, had her painting of poet Anne Sexton, titled “Circa 1968,” selected as the cover for the Spring/ Summer issue of the Oklahoma Humanities magazine poetry issue.
Martin McClendon, associate professor of theatre, won the regional ATHE (Association for Theatre in Higher Education) Prize for Innovative Teaching. He was recognized in January at the Kennedy Center’s Region III American College Theater Festival in Indianapolis.
Frank Hicks, director of nursing and professor of nursing, was among 40 academic nursing leaders chosen to participate in the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and Wharton Business School’s Executive Academic Leadership program, a competitive fellowship.
Ed Kawakami, assistant professor of music, gave a presentation titled “The Effect of Congruent Text to the Enjoyment of Orchestral Music” to the College Orchestra Directors Association national conference in Salt Lake City.
Distinguished Staff Award For her work in the Office of Student Financial Planning over the past decade, Judy Steinbrecher received the 2016-17 Distinguished Staff Award. Christopher Grugel presented the award on behalf of the Carthage Staff Council. It recognizes exceptional performance in service, teamwork, attitude, and reliability. “(She) has a quiet strength that directly impacts a student’s ability to stay at Carthage, by serving as a guide who helps students and parents navigate how they can afford the cost of higher education,” Mr. Grugel said. “While the conversations can be difficult, they are carried out with grace and sincerity.” Mrs. Steinbrecher plans to retire from her position as assistant director of financial aid near the end of the calendar year.
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CATCH YOUR RED MEN AND LADY REDS at your desk, at home, or on the go!
No matter where you are in the world, stay connected with Carthage Athletics. Watch dozens of free live video streaming events all year on your television, computer, smartphone, or tablet.
Check schedules at gocarthage.com Check teamteam schedules at gocarthage.com
FACULTY NOTES
Faculty/Staff Notes Kevin Morris, professor of chemistry,
Carol Sabbar ’82, director of
published a paper titled “Investigation of Chiral Recognition by Molecular Micelles with Molecular Dynamics Simulations” in the Journal of Dispersion Science and Technology. The paper describes a class of biocompatible molecules used in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries. Three Carthage students are credited as co-authors: Jordan Ingle ’17, Stephanie Zack ’16, and Kevin Krause ’17.
information services, earned a Ph.D. in information studies from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her dissertation was titled “The Information-Seeking Strategies of Humanities Scholars Using Resources in Languages Other Than English”.
Jan Owens, associate professor of management and marketing, supplied the case study project for the National Sports Forum Case Cup Competition 2017. The case focused on the alliance between Major League Soccer and SeatGeek, an online ticket sales platform.
Mark Petering, associate professor of music, received honorable mention in the chamber music composition division for his clarinet concerto “Three Psalms” from the American Prize, a competitive and prestigious set of annual performing arts competitions.
David Rademacher, assistant professor of psychological science, had his research-based paper “Relationships Between Family History of Alcohol Addiction, Parents’ Education Level, and Smart Phone Problem Use Scale Scores” published in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions. This is the first paper he has published in which the entirety of the work was done at Carthage.
James Ripley, director of instrumental
Brian Schwartz, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, was selected for the Council of Independent Colleges seminar on “The Verbal Art of Plato” He was one of only 21 faculty members selected through peer review.
Richard Sjoerdsma, professor emeritus of music, received a 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award from The Ohio State University School of Music on April 24 in Columbus, Ohio. The award recognizes his contributions to the music profession as “scholar, teacher, performer, and editor”, including an ongoing position as editor in chief of the Journal of Singing.
Ingrid Tiegel, professor of psychological science, contributed to a chapter in the new book “Stress in the Modern World: Understanding Science and Society”.
Elizabeth Young, executive director for marketing and communications, directed a student-run video and photography team that won a Silver Davey Award for producing Carthage’s new virtual campus experience. The Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts judges the awards.
Thomas Carr, director of the Carthage Institute of Paleontology, led an international team of scientists that identified and named a new species of the tyrannosaur clan: Daspletosaurus horneri. The dinosaur covered almost 30 feet in length, about three-quarters the size of T. rex. After the study’s publication March 30 in Nature Publishing Group’s online journal Scientific Reports, dozens of media outlets reported on it. The fossils discovered in Montana literally change the face of tyrannosaurs. Based on facial bones, the researchers proposed a lipless mask of scales and patches of armor-like skin that could have protected the species during hunting and feeding. However, the face also exhibited a softer side. Prof. Carr’s team determined that nerve openings made a tyrannosaur’s snout and jaws as sensitive as a person’s fingertips.
studies, headed a panel presentation of music education leaders at the College Band Directors National Association convention. Prof. Ripley also serves as the chair of the group’s Music Education Committee.
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ATHLETICS
Highlights from the court, field, track, pool, and course
How to break fate’s serve
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Summer Carthaginian 2017
With NCAA double, African transfer prevails over injury, hardship As a child in the North Kaneshie neighborhood of Accra, the capital of Ghana, Herman Abban ’18 and his brothers occasionally went to bed hungry and often longed for nicer clothes — even a decent pair of shoes. “Growing up was very tough, because we lacked so many things,” Herman says. “I would get back from school and have to go sell on the streets to help my mother, because my father was away in Europe working different jobs trying to support us. “I also washed cars on the weekends, and I worked at a poultry farm. I was a jack-of-all-trades kind of guy.” One of those jobs George Abban Sr. held in Europe was tennis instructor. He comes from a family of competitive players in Ghana, so Herman naturally found work as a ball boy at the upscale Alisa Hotel’s tennis club. He’s grateful to the hotel chairman and the many club members he met there. The property is located in Accra, a business hub on Africa’s Atlantic coast. “Basically, that is how I fell in love more with tennis,” Herman says. “They all supported me by giving me a place to eat and a place to train at the hotel. They were all successful businessmen, so they really advised me and pushed me to work very hard.” That labor quickly paid dividends at Carthage, where Herman’s first season was arguably the best in Red Men tennis history. He set a single-season school record for singles victories (30) and teamed with Pawel Jaworski ’17 to tie the doubles mark (34), as the tandem advanced to the NCAA Division III semifinals in May.
Coming to America As Herman’s tennis game gained national recognition in Ghana, the prospect of moving to the U.S. by way of the sport motivated him. Although several uncles had achieved the goal before him, Herman’s chances appeared slim. A recurring injury to his left arm required multiple surgeries by the time he was 16. “After the third surgery, the doctor told me I couldn’t play tennis anymore,” he says. “My mother (Ruby) told me that doctors can say you can’t do something, but God can change your story.” Herman credits belief and hard work for the plot twist in his story. He secured a visa, as well as financial support from extended family and ardent supporters on two continents, and landed a scholarship to play for the New Mexico Military Institute. Arriving at the two-year junior college in Roswell in 2013 presented challenges.
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“It was very hard for me,” he jokes, “because I thought I was coming to enjoy the college life of wearing slim jeans and Timberland boots. Instead, we woke up at 5:45 a.m. for marching tours and wore military uniforms to class.” But the rigid lifestyle helped him to excel, says Herman, who graduated from the institute with a 3.0 GPA and a host of offers to play out his athletic eligibility at the Division I level.
A perfect fit One of those tennis-playing uncles sold Herman on the benefits of the smaller Carthage program and its head coach, Brady Lindsley. That was Alex Donkor ’07, who competed for the Red Men in 200405 and still has the second-highest career winning percentage (.849). “Herman asked me for advice, and I told him that Carthage would not only help him grow as a player and a student, but also as a person,” says Mr. Donkor, now a tennis instructor at the Midtown Athletic Club in nearby Bannockburn, Illinois. “I also told him that I would be close by if he needed anything, and that I wouldn’t go back and change anything about my own decision to come to Carthage.” To the relief of the Red Men, Herman followed his uncle’s advice to finish out his final two years in Kenosha. As a junior in 2016-17, he became the second Carthage player to qualify for the NCAA tournament in both singles and doubles. Only Dane Schmidgall ’06 had done it previously, in 2005. Herman won both Newcomer and Player of the Year awards in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, while the Intercollegiate Tennis Association named him its Player to Watch in the Central region. “He instantaneously lifts our team to a new level,” Coach Lindsley says. “We’ve historically been a regional power, but having Herman really puts Carthage on the map nationally. He works very hard, and, as good as he is, he understands that it’s a team sport. He does a great job of working with the other guys to make us better as a group.” After graduation and five years away from his closest loved ones, the physical education, sport and fitness instruction major hopes to return to North Kaneshie. “I want to be a nurse and help people in my community,” Herman says. “I also want to use my story to impact the people who are struggling back home, because they think they can’t succeed in life. Hopefully, by the grace of God, I can touch and change a lot of lives.”
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Sporting a sharper image After 14 years, Carthage Athletics is getting a new look — one that will update and unite the visual identity of its 24 teams. The strong, new primary “Carthage Athletics” logo is complemented by two secondary logos: an updated version of the well-known shield and a standalone “C”.
Rolled out this summer, the refreshed brand features design changes to the athletics logos, website, and uniforms. With Art Keller Field and the Tarble Arena floor due for updates, the timing was right to tackle that project. “The new visual identity provides more flexibility in uniforms, apparel, and merchandise for coaches and the bookstore,” said Molly Polk, vice president for communications. “Feedback from athletics administrators, coaches, and student-athletes ensured that the final designs were representative of our competitive teams and program.”
A new website, team uniforms, and merchandise will be phased in.
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ATHLETICS
Baseball
Two join region’s best Second baseman Matt Rave ’17 and pitcher Kevin Tibor ’18 were selected for the American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-Central Region third team. Matt battled .403, while Kevin led the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin with a 2.76 earned run average.
Men’s Basketball
CCIW title drought ends Picked eighth out of nine teams in preseason, the Red Men went 11-5 in the CCIW (18-7 overall) to tie for their first regular season conference title since 2009-10.
Coach Keller enshrined in state Hall of Fame The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association posthumously inducted Art Keller ’44 into its Hall of Fame on March 25 in Middleton, Wisconsin. Carthage’s home field is named for Coach Keller, who died in 1990. He led the Red Men football program from 1952 to 1982, when his teams won 177 games and eight conference championships. Coach Keller’s widow, Beverly, and his daughter Sharon accepted the award on his behalf. Several other family members attended, along with more than a dozen former players from both the Illinois and Kenosha campuses.
Women’s Track and Field
Third place nationally Strongest in the field events, the Lady Reds placed third at the D-III outdoor championships in May — their best team finish ever. Elanta Slowek ’18, Morgan Young ’17, and Mia Bennett ’18 all made the outdoor All-America team. Elanta took second in both the javelin and discus, Morgan was runner-up in the shot put and fifth in the discus, and Mia finished fourth in the hammer throw. Mia and Elanta also made the indoor All-America team in March.
Mia Bennett ’18
Center Brad Perry ’20 was named CCIW Freshman of the Year and D3hoops.com’s Rookie of the Year in the Central Region. Bosko Djurickovic shared conference Coach of the Year with two others.
Women’s Basketball
The first meeting will take place in September 2018 at Art Keller Field. UW-Oshkosh will host the second in September 2019. “We will see exactly where we stand in terms of the elite programs in the country,” Carthage head coach Mike Yeager said.
Men’s Golf
Twice a regional honoree
Madie Kaelber ’20 became the Lady Reds’ second straight CCIW Newcomer of the Year. She averaged a team-best 13 points per game.
The Golf Coaches Association of America selected Matt Meneghetti ’18 for the D-III All-Central Region team for the second straight year. His career scoring average, 74.24, is the lowest in Carthage history.
Football
Women’s Golf
D-III runner-up scheduled
Freshman makes all-region
Carthage has scheduled a pair of games with the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, a perennial D-III football power that reached the national championship game last year.
The Women’s Golf Coaches Association placed CheyAnn Knudsen ’20 on its D-III All-Central Region team. Her scoring average of 80.05 set a Carthage freshman record.
Top conference freshman
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Softball
Two seniors recognized Katie Herron ’17 earned CCIW Pitcher of the Year honors, going 11-6 with a 2.45 ERA. Darian Pelsor ’17, a utility player, made the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s all-region first team with a CCIW-leading nine home runs.
Elanta Slowek ’18
Men’s Volleyball
Swimming and Diving
Five voted All-America
Men dominate conference pool
The American Volleyball Coaches Association voted five Red Men to AllAmerica teams. Carthage went 18-1 in the Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (21-3 overall) to top the Western Division. Griffin Shields ’17, now a three-time honoree, and Cody Bolin ’17 received first-team honors. Marc Hansen ’17, Zach Lillig ’18, and Matt Reinsel ’19 (nation-best 10.92 assists per set) made the second team. In 2018, Carthage will host the NCAA Division III Final Four at Tarble Arena.
For a seventh time, the Red Men won the CCIW team championship. Three brought home individual honors: Chris Russo ’18 (Most Outstanding Performer); Cooper Hawkins ’20 (Rookie of the Meet); and Seth Weidmann (Coach of the Year). Zoe Rodriguez ’18 swept the women’s CCIW diving titles.
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HERE I STAND LUTHER 500 • REFORMATION During anniversary year, Carthaginians examine Lutheran tradition — then, now, and to come
R
a ther than wait for a souped-up laptop or a celebratory trip to a warm beach somewhere, Olivia Wallace ’17 asked for an advance on her graduation gift. Olivia’s parents fronted her the extra money she needed to visit the birthplace of a Christian denomination that isn’t even hers. Luther and the Reformation, a J-Term study tour to Germany, was too enticing to pass up. Such is the lingering impact, five centuries after German theologian Martin Luther toppled the first big domino in the Reformation. “I don’t think anyone needs to be religious to appreciate him,” Olivia says. That’s why Carthage chose the theme “Here I Stand” to mark the 500th anniversary of the Ninety-
five Theses. It comes from a popular quote that’s often attributed to Luther. “We decided on ‘Here I Stand’ because it’s universal,” says the Rev. Kara Baylor, campus pastor and director of congregational relations. “Luther took a stand in his time, just as people in the 21st century are taking stands on different issues around the world.” True, some of the 16th century reformer’s stances are reviled rather than revered today. Luther’s hateful antiJewish statements, in particular, have been denounced widely in Protestant circles. But, in refusing to back down from his nobler objections when accused of heresy, he serves as a model for religious and nonreligious people alike. (Right) Eboo Patel, founder and president of the “Luther backed up Chicago-based Interfaith Youth Core, gave the keynote address to Carthage's Luther 500 series. his position with his writing and actions,” (Far right) A new religion course examines the massive Pastor Baylor says. Lutheran growth in places like Africa. In January, two
HERE I STAND
Carthage professors will lead a tour to Tanzania.
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Over the past two J-Term sessions, the Luther and the Reformation study tour visited landmarks like the All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg, Germany. The Ninety-five Theses are inscribed on the bronze doors.
A snapshot of Americans in the mainline* Lutheran tradition
56%
have household income of $50,000+
32%
have a college degree
“We would all be better off if we took time to write out or articulate our stands and have conversations about them face to face.” Welcoming all but maintaining its roots in the Lutheran tradition, the College is using this milestone year to reassess the religious movement that Luther unintentionally created — where it began, where it stands in 2017, and where it’s headed. Influenced by early reformers’ teachings, European immigrants brought their Lutheran beliefs to the upper Midwest. Since the 1970s, though, Carthage sociology professor Wayne Thompson points out the church’s ethnic ties have loosened. He writes in a new research paper that American Lutherans, no longer bound by heritage, have separated along political and social lines, as well as differing interpretations of the Bible. Many have drifted away from the church altogether. Not so in Africa and Asia, where Lutheranism flourishes. Religion professor Andrea Ng’weshemi covers that shift in-depth in his Christianities of the Global South course. He’s from Tanzania, where membership in
mainline Lutheran World Federation churches has soared to 6.5 million — second only to Ethiopia. Prof. Ng’weshemi offers two main reasons for the African growth. First, people’s trust grew after decolonization, as foreign missionaries gave way and indigenous church leaders stepped forward. “Christianity is no longer associated with the colonial yoke or viewed as a foreign religion; rather, it has become an indigenous religion,” he says. “This is our faith. It’s all about us.” Second, Prof. Ng’weshemi says religion comes up organically in conversations at church-run schools, health clinics, and other social service agencies. “It’s evangelism through a different door.” During a two-day colloquium the College is hosting in October, he and other speakers will try to predict Lutheranism’s course over the next 500 years. Not that Carthaginians plan to sit out that half-millennium as spectators. Pastor Baylor hopes events like the seriesopening talk by Eboo Patel, a national leader in the push for interfaith cooperation, will spur people to seek a deeper understanding of spiritual beliefs — their own and others’ — and how they impact personal and professional lives. A practicing Muslim, Mr. Patel described a diverse mix of historic figures who shaped his spiritual worldview: activist Dorothy Day, anti-Nazi dissident Dietrich Bonhoeffer, South African archbishop Desmond Tutu, and even the biblical Good Samaritan. “What can we learn from people whose doctrines we disagree with?” Mr. Patel asked. “How can we partner to make a better world?”
47%
pray daily
52% live in the Midwest
81%
believe in heaven
57%
believe in hell
17%
take the Bible literally
26%
attend services weekly or more
42%
are or lean Democratic
44%
are or lean Republican
* Survey defines “mainline” as ELCA and similar bodies Source: 2014 Religious Landscape Study, Pew Research Center
LUTHER 50 0
Just causes Most Sundays, the Rev. James Holmberg ’77 is preaching at congregations around Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, explaining the ministry of Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan and how their partnership is making a difference. “My background and passions give me a unique vantage point to connect with the work that is central to the LSS mission,” said Pastor Holmberg, the nonprofit’s director of church relations. Just looking at family photos acts as a reminder. Parents of seven, he and his wife adopted their two oldest daughters through LSS of Minnesota while he attended seminary. Their three youngest have developmental disabilities, another focus of the ministry. In all, LSS runs more than 240 programs for people in all phases of life, including refugee resettlement and human trafficking. “We offer residential treatment to girls who have been victims of human trafficking,” said Pastor Holmberg. “We opened a facility in northern Wisconsin this February to offer a place for girls to regain their ability to function in daily life and work through the trauma they have experienced.” Pastor Holmberg explained that Lutherans are seen as the people who respond to the needs of the world around them without asking if the recipients are worthy or worship the “right” way. “We are known as the first to respond to a disaster and the last to leave,” he said. “At LSS and in my personal life, we see each individual having infinite worth and we are changing the world one grace-filled life at a time. The Lutheran church is alive and strong with so much to offer the world.”
“God does not need our good works, but our neighbor does.” GUSTAF WINGREN, LUTHER ON VOCATION
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36.2%
of ELCA pastors are female
Novel to normal After immigrating to the United States from South Africa with her family at age 11, Sharai Jacob ’19 prayed nightly for guidance about how to use her God-given talents. One word kept floating into her mind. Preach. For a long time, Sharai fought the idea. Preaching isn’t an obvious vocation for someone with mild social anxiety and a general fear of public speaking. Sharai Jacob ’19 Besides, she had seen the demands of ministry up close. Sharai’s father, then a Protestant minister, once spent three months as a political prisoner while working to end apartheid. Typical of a “PK” — pastor’s kid — she never got comfortable in one town. One place kept her rooted. “When I walk into a church, I feel at home,” Sharai said. Over time, the firm tug overpowered her doubts and she accepted a Bridges Scholarship. Available to minority students, it covers full tuition for both a pre-seminary bachelor’s program at Carthage and graduate studies in the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Two years into that journey, the gifts that others saw in Sharai are finally visible to her. She’ll enter a landscape where about half of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America seminarians are women. Compare that to another Carthage alumna, the Rev. Kathleen Panning ’75, whose seminary class was 89 percent male. The Rev. Dudley Riggle, a longtime Carthage professor and campus pastor, first urged her to consider the seminary in 1971. Less than a year earlier, the forerunner to the ELCA had ordained its first woman. Despite serving under a progressive bishop, Pastor Panning waited nine months for her first call — longer than most of her male classmates. Rev. Kathleen Panning ’75 She got that start in a rural Wisconsin parish
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Bobbleheads, beer, and belief with two locations, including one that awkwardly shared a driveway with another church whose synod only ordained men. Never a stereotypical “militant feminist”, as she puts it, the rookie pastor broke the ice by keeping the emphasis on God’s message. Presiding at 14 funerals in her first 5 1/2 months, Pastor Panning grew close to her flock. “They realized the outside wrappings didn’t change the inside gift,” she said. The joys outweighed the challenges over years of pastoral service in multiple states. Now retired in South Carolina, one of Pastor Panning’s ongoing ambitions is to create a “mastermind group” for women clergy to guide one another.
Old Lutheran merchandise uses humor to encourage deeper discussion.
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After seeing some logo T-shirts at Old Navy, David Hunstad ’79 thought it’d be funny to have one with Martin Luther on the front. “We started selling the shirts to friends, and my company, Old Lutheran, took off from there,” he says. Mr. Hunstad opened the business in 1999. The gift shop in Moorhead, Minnesota, has a large online presence and ships all over the world. The former Lutheran camp director and youth director receives both accolades and criticism for the company’s quirky products, such as Sin Boldly lager T-shirts, socks, jewelry, hats and life-sized cutouts of Martin Luther and his wife, Katharina von Bora. He feels it’s important to view life with a healthy sense of humor. “We actually had a very angry letter from a large Lutheran organization condemning the frivolity of our Martin Luther bobblehead doll when it first appeared on the market,” he said. “Later, the same organization placed a large order of them and gave them as gifts at a convention.” Through the unusual products, Mr. Hunstad hopes to find the balance between humor and deep theological discussions. “When we have a product like Sin Boldly beer, it opens the opportunity to discuss the depth of what it means to sin boldly and to live in grace,” he said. “Luther didn’t say we should live recklessly, or sin without thinking. It really isn’t drinking beer that is the sin, but rather overconsumption. It is excess that becomes the problem. I hope that our themes and our products help with the conversation.”
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LUTHER 50 0
In terms of racial diversity, the Rev. Louis Tillman ’13 serves a denomination that ranks second-to-last among all U.S. religious groups. Unashamedly devoted to the ELCA, the newly ordained African American pastor is doing his part to correct that statistical imbalance. “This is the church that God has called me into,” he said. “My prayer is that I will finally be recognized and valued in this church as the rest of my European American colleagues were.” He took to heart the Elisha’s Call discernment initiative to identify and equip potential ELCA leaders of African descent between 18 and 35. Encouraging others to heed the call, Pastor Tillman was instrumental in bringing dozens of African Americans into ministerial work — including two from Carthage. Called to serve the church as a child in Atlanta, he began preaching at 15. At Carthage, he co-founded a chapter of the Lutheran Student Movement. Since graduating from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago in spring, Pastor Tillman began serving Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Philadelphia’s inner city. His work in racial justice and advocacy has several prongs. He supports the “Ban the Box” campaign to remove the criminal history check box from job applications. He’s planted more than 30 community gardens in “food deserts” across the Midwest. And he has worked to curb recidivism among black residents in inner city Chicago. “Through Galatians 3:28,” he says, “it is our duty as social justice champions to create a holistic space to produce human capacity, political tenacity, and spiritual veracity.” Awarded a scholarship from the Vincent L. Hawkinson Foundation, Pastor Tillman is eager to replicate those successful ministries in his new community and ensure that the City of Brotherly Love is an accurate moniker.
2.1%
of ELCA pastors are African American
PHOTO CREDIT: TRICIA KONING
A more colorful faith
Creation’s custodians Once quiet and introspective, today’s Lutheran church is increasingly active in social causes. The Rev. David Rhoads, a retired seminary professor who taught at Carthage and received an honorary doctorate from the College in 2009, exhibits a particular passion for environmental stewardship. For years, he’s championed creation care through conferences, presentations, and green programs for churches and the wider community. The 500th anniversary struck Pastor Rhoads as an ideal time to amplify that effort. The result is an initiative dubbed the Eco-Reformation, driven by a working group of about 70 ELCA clergy, theologians, and lay members. Pastor Rhoads sees a clear parallel to the 16th century Reformation. Just as reformers’ priorities then centered on human salvation, advocates view “salvation of our whole Earth community” as the biggest challenge facing today’s church. “It is our conviction that changes taking place on our planet due to human activity are the greatest threat to our humanity and to our life as Earth community,” says Pastor Rhoads, who lives in Racine, Wisconsin.
Views on stricter environmental regulations among U.S. Lutherans in the mainline* tradition:
60%
Worth the cost * Survey defines “mainline” as ELCA and similar bodies
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KARA BAYLOR FACULTY NOTES
Entrenched roots, open arms Spring is always a busy time on campus. One Wednesday evening last semester, I was thrilled to see three events happening simultaneously: • Emily Mazius ’19, who will become president of the Jewish Awareness Association this fall, led a chocolate seder in Walter Fritsch Meditation Chapel. The chocolate version substitutes sweets for traditional Passover foods. • The Carthage Meditation Club met in the upper chapel of the A. F. Siebert Chapel building. Aaron Freeman ’19 leads the group. • Open Table, a weekly fellowship and worship gathering, took place in the Joan C. Potente Chapel. Adam Pugh ’19 helped with music, and Mandy Ehlert ’18 helped to lead an activity based on the stations of the cross.
HERE I STAND He formerly directed Lutherans Restoring Creation, the grassroots organization that hatched the EcoReformation. One fellow Carthaginian, the Rev. Richard Perry Jr. ’73, joins him on the working group, while the Rev. Louis Tillman ’13 (see related story to the left), serves on the LRC board. The group argues that Lutherans need to go beyond “adding a few hymns or using green cleaning products.” Pastor Rhoads and other members have developed an array of new resources for use in ministry and the ELCA’s network of seminaries, colleges, social service agencies, and camps. To access those resources, click on the Eco-Reformation tab at www.lutheransrestoringcreation.org.
LUTHER 500 • REFORMATION All at the same time, people on campus were learning about Jewish and Christian traditions and participating in a spiritual practice that crosses many religious boundaries. It was a great night, and I would love to see these spaces used more often for those types of activities. You may be thinking, “Wait a minute, this is a college rooted in the Lutheran tradition, right? Why would you encourage other faith traditions?” We do this because we are a college rooted in the Lutheran tradition. Lutherans believe we are saved by grace through faith, and that this grace gives us the freedom we need to love and serve the world — the whole world, not just the Lutheran world. At Carthage, we welcome people from all faith and non-faith traditions to engage in meaningful learning and dialogue with one another. Lutherans want to learn more, ask questions, and dig deeper into ideas, theories, and concepts. We can’t forget that Martin Luther was a pastor and a professor. For that reason, Lutherans highly
value education and what we can learn from others. Because we are Lutheran, we want to bring people together to share their thoughts and ideas that can help make the world a better place for all people. We welcome people from all faith and nonfaith traditions because we truly believe in radical hospitality. It’s easy to welcome those who are just like you — who think like you, act like you, and believe like you. What’s really radical is to sit down with folks who don’t think exactly like you and to share viewpoints that differ, in respectful ways. Because we are rooted in the Lutheran understanding of radical hospitality and accompaniment, it is an awesome night when all the chapel spaces are used for different faith and spiritual practices. As we move closer to the actual 500th anniversary date of the Reformation’s origins, it’s good for us to remember our Lutheran roots. The desire for higher education in a faith-based tradition that wanted to ask big questions is the reason Carthage came to be in 1847. And it is because we are Lutheran that we continue to be strong institution of higher education, one that wants to help our students ask the big questions and to root them in their own understandings of the diverse faith and non-faith traditions that make up our student body, faculty, and staff. Here I Stand,
Rev. Kara Baylor Campus Pastor and Director of Congregational Relations
36%
Hurt the economy Source: 2014 Religious Landscape Study, Pew Research Center
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IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Fitness regimen for body and spirit By Sara L. Wilson ’05 I’m a preacher, teacher, and traveler. And I am excited to be a leader in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America today, because I love being part of a faith community that is energized for mission by gathering together in worship, fellowship, and learning. My Carthage experience gave me courage and confidence to live boldly and take a leap of faith to leave my homeland of Wisconsin. In 2005, I joined AmeriCorps and wrote grants for HIV/AIDS programs in California. Four years later, I said “Yes!” to follow my call to be a pastor. I left my job to study at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (PLTS) in Berkeley. During my second year of seminary, I lost 100 pounds, and the experience transformed my whole life and being. I wanted to lose another 50 pounds (which I did!), as well as to find out how congregations can nurture bodies as much as souls. My weight loss journey led me to try new things in community with people. As an intern pastor in Tempe, Arizona, I took on the Soul2Sole project — an experiment to unite faith and fitness.
I worked with church members to organize a walk/run group, circuit training in the parking lot, yoga classes, and Zumba during worship one Sunday. We even held a 12-mile torch run/walk relay between our two church sites, to go with a Summer Olympics party. It turns out Lutherans do like to have fun and invite friends to church! It continued when I got back to the seminary. I started a walk/run group, completed a triathlon, and finished the Big Sur Marathon during my last year. I graduated in 2013 with a Master of Divinity and a concentration in evangelism and justice. I was approved for ordination, but the Holy Spirit called me to become the associate director of seminary relations at PLTS instead of heading straight into parish ministry. For the past four years, I have worked in the vocation of preacher and gift officer. I travel around the western region of the ELCA, sharing the Gospel and mission of PLTS and California Lutheran University (which merged in 2014). The people I serve live up and down the West Coast, plus Arizona, Colorado, Alaska, and Hawaii. Sometimes I get to take people with me on adventures. In January, I helped lead a group of 30 PLTS students, alums, and friends on a twoweek pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The experience
affirmed my call to ministry in many ways; when I visited Golgotha and put my hands on the rock where Jesus died, I heard Him pray into my heart, “Lead my people.” My latest wellness project is the Reformation 500 Miles Challenge. Nearly 200 individuals and congregations have signed up to walk, run, swim, or bike 500 miles by Oct. 31 (the anniversary date) and, if they can, donate $500 to an ELCA charity. Between grief over my mom’s death in 2014, the difficulty of work travel, and being an emotional eater, I gained some of that lost weight back, but I still enjoy these activities and am still active. This time of life has taught me a lot about patience, that it’s OK to question and doubt like Martin Luther did, and that I am human. As I reflect on this 500th anniversary of the Reformation, I am thinking about the miles I have traveled and all of the amazing people I have met. I’m so grateful for this life I have to serve in the ELCA. As we look ahead to the next 500 years, I want our church to continue evolving into a place where all are truly welcome, included, and invited. I want us to be creative, involved, and committed. I want us to remain rooted in Christ while we live boldly in this present moment and into God’s future.
mark your place in Carthage history Granite walkways paved with commemorative bricks lead to sidewalks that connect the entire Carthage campus. Names of alumni and friends of the College are etched in sections of these attractive walkways. Have your name etched in granite and show your Carthage pride to future generations. For more information, contact the alumni office at 800-551-1518 or alumnioffice@carthage.edu.
carthage.edu/give/bricks
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Summer Carthaginian 2017
The Carthage Fund
Enables 1/3 of campus to
compete as varsity student-athletes in the classroom and on the field
Elevates 95 artists to share
their craft with international audiences at performances around the world
Supports 90% of students through financial aid, making their education possible
Empowers dozens of
researchers to dive into their fields and advance their skills
Make your gift
carthage.edu/givenow 29
FE AT U R E S TO RY
If you enjoy humiliation, challenge Ann O’Leary ’14 to a game of farming trivia.
Envoy for farmers Alumna’s year as Alice in Dairyland
take the
quiz 30
By the end of her yearlong term as Alice in Dairyland — Wisconsin’s agricultural ambassador —her head overflowed with “fun facts”. You need bushels of those to make it through 300-plus public appearances and 100-some talks to fourth-grade classes. “I always joke that I’m a walking statistics booklet for Wisconsin agriculture,” Miss O’Leary says. So the message she conveyed while zigzagging 35,000 miles across the state came with just a hint of irony: There’s nothing trivial about farming. As Alice, she emphasized the industry’s economic impact on both the state and the world, while encouraging people to buy Wisconsin farmers’ products. Growing up in rural Evansville, tagged as the “Soybean Capital of Wisconsin”, Miss O’Leary showed Jersey and Holstein dairy cattle during 13 years in 4-H. The family didn’t live on a farm, so others in town would trailer their animals to show or set aside space in a barn for the cows. “The feeling of support really stuck with me,” she says. At Carthage, Miss O’Leary majored in biology and neuroscience. Earning a prestigious biomedical research scholarship and graduating with all-College honors, she proved the aptitude was there. The enthusiasm wasn’t. The timetable for medical school stretched out too far for her liking. Lab work felt too isolating. After working as a corporate recruiter for a while, she felt the magnetic pull of the farming community again.
1. Among U.S. states, Wisconsin ranks No. 1 for production in which of these categories? (choose all that apply) a. Ginseng d. Mink pelts
b. Mozzarella cheese e. Carrots for processing
c. Oats
2. If Wisconsin were a country, it would rank _______ in the world in cheese production.
Summer Carthaginian 2017
PHOTO CREDIT: JIM PLANSKY
The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection held three days of very public hands-on job interviews in spring 2016 to choose the 69th Alice in Dairyland. Miss O’Leary beat out five other finalists. Shortly before her term ended in June, Carthage honored her with a 2017 Beacon Award. A dozen relatives and friends accompanied her at the ceremony. Despite what you might infer from the sash, the tiara, and sometimes the mink coat Alice wears, it’s not a pageant. The amethysts and citrines in the tiara represent Wisconsin gemstones, just as the mink highlights the fur industry. Miss O’Leary filled up her Ford Explorer exclusively with the E-85 ethanol blend. Wrapped in a corn design and nicknamed “Maizey” — insert groan — it prompted a few stoplight conversations. The farming community supported 20-something Ann as Alice, just as it did for Ann the 4-H fairgoer. By touring a variety of
farms and related industries, she could grasp the importance of the statistics that jammed her brain. “I have a lot more admiration for what our farmers do every day,” Miss O’Leary says. The job carried plenty of perks. She got to saw down the Christmas tree that was shipped to the White House. She sampled 20 different types of maple syrup. She explained to kids that a “cow carousel” was a milking parlor, not a bovine amusement ride. Although the whirlwind gig kept her on the road for weeks at a time, Miss O’Leary already misses “the heck out of it”. The daily duties solidified her interest in marketing and public relations. Being interviewed more than 250 times as Alice made her comfortable as a spokesperson, even on camera. “My first interview, I didn’t move a muscle on TV,” says Miss O’Leary, who learned it’s OK to be demonstrative and joke around. She’s relieved that Carthage diversified her skillset. The unique role demanded a combination of scientific knowledge, writing skills, and even a smidge of acting. “I had to break down complex farming practices and jargon into language that everyday consumers could understand,” Miss O’Leary explains. When her year as Alice was up, the title, the tiara, and the keys to Maizey had to be turned back in. The memories, she gets to keep, along with that enviable databank of facts.
2017 BEACON AWARD RECIPIENTS Carthage recognized the work of five alumni at its annual Beacon Award ceremony April 29. Four of them received awards for a specific accomplishment, act of service, professional or personal achievement, event, or program, and a fifth was given a lifetime service award. The recipients were: Wayne Cramer ’82 Ingleside, Ill. Mr. Cramer founded Andean Aid, a nonprofit that fights poverty and helps at-risk children in mountain regions of Venezuela and Colombia. In January 2017, the organization opened its 10th Help and Hope Center. Richard E. Custin ’80, M.Ed. ’96 Escondido, Calif. In recognition of his expertise in mediation, Mr. Custin was appointed as an affiliate professor in the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego for 2016-17. Pat (Thoennes) Hamilton ’78 Silverthorne, Colo. Mrs. Hamilton won a 2015 Midwest Book Award for her biography, “Hidden Treasure: The Life and Art of Theodore Czebotar”. Ann O’Leary ’14 Evansville, Wis. In May 2016, Miss O’Leary won the right to serve as Alice in Dairyland, Wisconsin’s agricultural ambassador. Distinguished Alumni Lifetime Service Award Tom Lentz ’63 St. Petersburg, Fla.
3. T rue or false: State farmers make more revenue from fresh cabbage than fresh sweet corn.
4. I n 2015, _______ percent of the farmland sold in the state remained in agricultural use. a. 20
b. 48
c. 65
d. 96
Answers: 1. a, c, d, e; 2. fourth; 3. True; 4. d.
carthage.edu
Mr. Lentz served four terms on the Carthage Board of Trustees, earning emeritus status in May 2016. His legacy of giving includes an endowed scholarship that encourages ethical business management.
FE AT U R E S TO RY
Terminator of the tedious
When someone in the motion picture visual effects industry referred to his business team as “the Preparation H people,” Carthage computer science professor Perry Kivolowitz wasn’t sure how to take it.
“
”
You guys solve problems nobody wants to talk about, the technical director clarified. Gross. But accurate. The strange compliment pegged the niche that Prof. Kivolowitz has occupied throughout a career in enterprise technology. He has co-founded five companies, specializing in computer graphics and visual effects. “You think, to be an engineer, you have to invent the fancy, shiny widget — the iPhone or Facebook,” he says. “Pioneers end up with arrows in their back.” Instead? “You find the most awful job people must do over and over again, and you automate it.” Sticking to that dimly lit path, Prof. Kivolowitz grew his first company into a multimillion-dollar enterprise, “retired” before turning 40, and won both an Academy Award and an Emmy certificate. No paparazzi follow him to the grocery store, yet Hollywood relies heavily on his work. Specifically, which of the latest blockbuster movies make use of the professor’s inventions? “All of them,” he says.
Winning over the Academy Although he rarely bothers to point out the distinction anymore, it’s inaccurate to say Prof. Kivolowitz has an Oscar. Those are the statues you see handed out to the best whatever each winter during the live broadcast. His 1996 Academy Award for scientific and technical achievement came as a certificate embossed in gold leaf.
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Actress Helen Hunt presented it, and Prof. Kivolowitz delivered a short acceptance speech. Squeezed in between the five awards handed out for “Braveheart”, his award was spotlighted in the separate televised ceremony. Filmmakers had sought an alternative to an existing visual effects technique called warping and morphing that demanded months of extra labor and added tens of thousands of dollars to the budget. Prof. Kivolowitz spotted a business opportunity. “It was easy for computers to compute. It was horrible for users to use,” he says. “After my invention, kids do it on their phones.” Modifying existing technology that was originally designed for telescopes, he created a user-focused process called shape-driven warping and morphing. Suddenly, studios could add effects to old film clips or more artistically shift from one scene to another. Big-budget movies like “Forrest Gump” and “Titanic” made use of it. The Academy was harder to impress. In contrast to the lovefest surrounding the acting and directing nominees, industry insiders are sent to scrutinize candidates who nominate themselves for technical contributions to filmmaking. For Prof. Kivolowitz, that meant “a brutal and terrifying meeting” overseen by Ed Catmull, who’s now president of the Pixar and Walt Disney animation studios. “He sat in the back of the room, silent,” Prof. Kivolowitz says. “He had some of his people attack, and he just watched.” Apparently the pack didn’t rip too many holes in his pitch.
Summer Carthaginian 2017
Teachable moments Not every project Prof. Kivolowitz takes on turns to gold. One tech firm he launched admittedly “left a very big, smoking hole in the ground” when the dot-com market crashed. Work stress robbed him of sleep even when money wasn’t on the line. He testified as an expert witness in federal and state criminal cases, determining whether photographic evidence had been doctored. Besides, he learned that success is a moving target. Like when one of his companies tried — and failed — to make software for film editors to automatically remove wires, cables and ropes from their recordings. Later, some insurance executives came looking for a solution to a much different problem:, scratches on the one-and-only originals straight from the camera. The team dusted off the shelved software, tweaked it to successfully remove scratches instead of wires, and sold it to the company. “You really need to understand the business you’re in, because sometimes it’s not necessarily the business you think it is,” Prof. Kivolowitz says. In the classroom, he siphons lessons from all of those experiences — the successes, the duds, and the lucky breaks.
1. Avatar
2. Forrest Gump
continued on next page
Visual Effects in Action 1. Rotoscoping Lead character Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) wasn’t wearing the mask you see. Industry rules require a working air feed, which would complicate filming if the mask fogged up or the supply ran out. So it was added later, using a rotoscoping and painting technique that also covers the tracks.
3. Titanic
2 . Warping After drinking too many Dr. Peppers in this scene, Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) makes President John F. Kennedy laugh by admitting, “I gotta pee.” The warping technique is used to match Kennedy’s mouth movements to the dialogue and make their handshake look authentic.
3. Morphing As young Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) poses for a sketch by love interest Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), the camera zooms in on her eye. Using the morphing tool, the scene shifts seamlessly to the eye of elderly Rose (Gloria Stuart) as she recounts her time on the Titanic.
carthage.edu
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FE AT U R E S TO RY
Students talk up the professor’s breadth of knowledge and enthusiasm. Joe Wonsil ’19 came from Royal Oak, Michigan, wavering on his tentative plan to major in computer science — at least until a first-semester course with Prof. Kivolowitz. “While I was in his introduction class, he had such a passion for the course that I felt encouraged to try and be the same way,” says Joe, who returned to the class as an embedded tutor. Prof. Kivolowitz previously taught for 10 years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earning computer science students’ vote as professor of the year in 2015. He’s extremely proud of that “COW award”, a bovine-topped trophy that stands taller than an Oscar but lacks its gold coating. He moved to Carthage that fall and immediately sensed a difference in collegiality. Even before he was officially hired, the Theatre Department sought out the professor’s help on a video montage for its original play “The Breath of Stars”. Other collaborations followed. “In Madison, sometimes you can’t get professors in the same department to talk to each other,” Prof. Kivolowitz says. “Here, everybody talks to each other, and that blows me away.”
The poetry of code With his guidance, the Computer Science Department is branching out to new areas in the field. Computer giant NVIDIA designated Carthage a GPU Education Center, giving the College access to hardware, software, experts, and educational resources in the emerging sector of parallel programming. Where a traditional computer processor tackles tasks sequentially, parallel programming employs thousands of processing units to work on separate tasks simultaneously. The accelerated calculations are valuable for cars, mobile devices, drones, robots, and other components. Questioning whether a stereotypical, one-dimensional computer programmer can cut it in the workforce, Prof. Kivolowitz adamantly backs the liberal arts. Courses that emphasize critical thinking and writing — in standard English, not C++ — top his priority list. They should. He’s won seven-figure contracts on the quality of written proposals. “You have to be able to convince other people of the merit of your ideas,” Prof. Kivolowitz says. “If you can’t write, you can’t do that.” Married with children, he traces his interest in computers to a novel he read as a 13-year-old. Written by the late Michael Crichton, “The Terminal Man” explores the two sides of scientific progress: promise and danger. Although you’ll naturally find his office in the Science Center,
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Prof. Kivolowitz views himself as an artist or craftsman — on par with a painter, poet, carpenter, or musician. He counsels students to use “a sculptor’s chisel rather than a sledgehammer” as they shape their work. “I want them to recognize the opportunity for beauty in their code,” he says. Mindset matters, even deep in the syntax. Especially there. Consider the trust modern society places in computer systems, from air travel to banking. “If your life depends on software,” Prof. Kivolowitz asks, “don’t you want the person who created the code to take pride in their work?”
Fortunate cab ride The real equation for success? A lot of pride plus a little luck. His path to the entertainment industry started with a chance encounter in a taxi. Grudgingly, he shared that cab ride with an exasperated executive who had just left a computer trade show in Atlanta. In conversation, the man grumbled that he needed software for what would be the first color desktop scanner on the market — something squarely in Prof. Kivolowitz’s wheelhouse. One job led to another, and he soon landed on Hollywood’s radar. His first direct contribution to the screen came when one of his companies designed a new visual effect for sci-fi TV show “Babylon 5”. That work earned him an Emmy certificate and an invitation to the swanky awards ceremony in 1993. “I was so far back that I couldn’t see the giant monitors put up for the folks too far back to see the podium,” Prof. Kivolowitz remembers. Sensing his annoyance at the seating assignment, someone pointed to a familiar figure sitting even farther back: George Lucas. His complaints halted. Almost 25 years later, Prof. Kivolowitz remains tied to the industry. He’s a partner in SilhouetteFX, whose products include software that converts two-dimensional movies to 3-D. What if he had taken the bus that day in Atlanta? He shrugs. “I probably would’ve become one of the suits at the trade show.”
Summer Carthaginian 2017
not all
# carthageviews are of the lake
Check out amazing views of campus at
carthage.edu/carthageviews
Acclimation project
Fulbrighter boosts refugees’ English skills
T
he bright, curious 10th-grader from Afghanistan prepared to sit through another English class he would barely understand, despite his best efforts. Like many of the approximately 50 refugee students at IGS Obernkirchen, a secondary school in Germany, the boy was proficient in German but had little to no background in English. Yet, for the next hour, he was forced to struggle through class with students who were already six or seven years into their English studies. “The refugee students have to be in normal English classes as part of their integration into our school, and I often noticed them being left on the wayside, doing pretty much nothing each period,” says Michelle Nuetzmann ’16, a Fulbright U.S. student who spent the 201617 year at the school as an English teaching assistant. “The English teachers weren’t quite sure what to do with them.”
Summer Carthaginian 2017
FE AT U RE S TO RY
Ms. Nuetzmann had an idea. With the support of her school’s administration and colleagues, she soon launched a supplemental English language group for refugee students. “These students tend to be motivated, polite, and engaged,” she says. “They’re just at a huge disadvantage with English, and the (regular English) classes don’t suit their needs.” The group started in February with seven refugee students from seventh grade, with great results. “I noticed their confidence, comfort levels, and ability slowly rise over the weeks,” says Ms. Nuetzmann, who returned to the U.S. in late June and is weighing graduate school options in music or international studies. About 10 percent of the students at IGS Obernkirchen are refugees, mostly from Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and Iran. Her young pupils rarely talked about the hardships that forced them to leave their home countries. “I don't ask them too much about it, they don't talk about it much themselves when prompted, and some don’t seem to even know how bad it is,” Ms. Nuetzmann says, but they made it clear they’re grateful to be in Germany. During the English group’s Wednesday morning sessions, she focused on the basics: vocabulary for colors, animals, school supplies and family members, plus some basic phrases, pronunciation, and verb conjugation. Students delighted in saying, “Wir können besser Deutsch als sie!” (“We can speak better German than her!”) While Ms. Nuetzmann found that debatable, she also thought it was sweet. “It is, I think, a major reason why they felt comfortable around me: because I am also foreign and do not speak German as a native language,” she says. Ms. Nuetzmann strived to make the lessons fun and engaging, from a fly swatter game where students quickly smack the right vocabulary word — “That’s their absolute favorite activity,” she says
carthage.edu
— to a free-writing exercise she always loved during her own student days. “I felt it was important for them in the midst of a hectic school day to take some quiet time for themselves and their thoughts, removing attention from phones, peers, etc. And they didn’t have to show me what they wrote, but it was beautiful (and a privilege) to have a chance to see what some did write,” she says. “I hoped to use such activities — and my general approach to the class — to show that, yes, I’m here to teach English, but I also care about them and want to enrich their lives.” That attitude doesn’t surprise Dan Choffnes, Carthage’s director of student fellowships and an associate professor of biology and Asian studies. “Michelle really stands out as a compassionate and warmly expressive person,” he says. “In her previous study in Germany and travel in China, she seemed to derive the most satisfaction from getting to know local people and seeing things from their perspective. She approaches her role as cultural ambassador with such kindness and empathy.”
fulbright: apply. win.
repeat.
For a second straight year, Carthage was recognized as a top producer of Fulbright U.S. Students. In February the Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange, announced the schools with the most recipients in 2016-17. Four Carthage students completed the fellowships in that period, the highest total among bachelor’s degree institutions in Wisconsin. Recent graduates have since extended the College’s record of success. Five applicants received Fulbright English Teaching Assistant positions next year, tying a Carthage record. The 2017-18 awardees and their host countries are: Alex Ash ’16 (Thailand), Jessica Livingston ’17 (Czech Republic), Jamie Tyrrell ’17 and Paige Whitney ’17 (South Korea), and Alexa Wesselhoff ’16 (Taiwan).
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CLASS NOTES
1948
1977
Wisconsin, celebrated his 90th birthday Dec. 7.
Indiana, married Scott Dickey on Jan. 15. Her first husband, John Powley, passed away in 2012.
Frederick Marks – Racine,
Susan Dickey – Fort Wayne,
1957
Ronald Stamer ’57 and Barbara (Boyd) Stamer ’58 – Spring Hill, Florida, celebrated
Isabel Rossey – Racine,
Mike Thomas – Austin, Texas, retired in December after 44 years in education. He served as a band director, school psychologist, instructional coordinator, and most recently as district administrator for data management and compliance. He maintains an active musical career as a trumpeter and arranger.
1975
Bruce Hansen – Stoughton, Wisconsin, retired from the Rayovac Division of Spectrum Brands in spring 2016 after a 40-year finance and management career in retail and consumer packaged goods.
38
Alabama, feel “blessed and over the moon” about the birth of their first grandson, Bruce Harvey Wilson, on Feb. 18. He weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces, and measured 20 inches long.
1994
Amy Gillmore – Kenosha, was inducted to Westosha Central High School’s inaugural Athletic Hall of Fame.
1995
Andrea Stoutenborough – Broomfield, Colorado, retired
1965
1972
James and Deborah (Wozniak) Pindras – Prattville,
1985
their 60th anniversary with family members on a cruise ship.
Wisconsin, celebrated her 100th birthday Jan. 18 during a family dinner in her honor. She originally attended Carthage from 1934 to 1936, returning later to graduate and continue her education.
1980
Linda (Lord) Julian – Roscoe, Illinois, received a Golden Apple award in April for her work as a choir, speech, and music teacher at Willowbrook Middle School in South Beloit, Illinois. Five recipients from a two-county area were recognized for their commitment to educational excellence.
from her position as coordinator of investigations for Chicago’s Independent Police Review Authority.
1987
Tracy Pellett – Ellensburg, Washington, was selected to serve as the president of Glenville State College. He left a position as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the College of Coastal Georgia.
Glen Prasser – Cincinnati, retired
announce their son, Matteo Anthony, born Nov. 9. Matteo joins his proud sisters Sevilla, 12, Lydia, 7, and Gianna, 5.
1997
Carl Binger – Marana, Arizona,
in January after seven years as CEO for Beacon Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. He helped the group see exponential growth.
married Marie Solan on Oct. 22 in Sedona, Arizona. They welcomed newborn daughter Abigail Emily Binger on Dec. 26.
1979
1998
Tom Bosworth – Elmhurst, Illinois, retired after 37 years of service with Philips Lighting NA. He served in numerous roles in operations, sales, and marketing. He and his wife, Debbi (Evoy) ’80, have been married for 33 years and have two children.
Victor LaBarbera ’95 and Andrea (Adkins) LaBarbera ’98 – North Webster, Indiana,
Sigma Alpha Chi alumnae Carthage alumnae and Sigma Alpha Chi sisters Bonnie (Dumke) Lindstrom ’87, Laura Peccarelli-Anderson ’87, Jena (Edgar) McCall ’88, Lori (Groshek) Christian ’89, and Sara (Busack) Joswiak ’89 traveled to Panama City, Panama, to visit Gina (Mastellari) Icaza ’89. Ms. Lindstrom writes that they had a wonderful time in the beautiful weather reminiscing about old memories and making new ones.
David Wiers – Chicago, announced that his company, Satori Energy, acquired the assets of Energy Choices Inc. in March — its eighth acquisition since 2014. Besides his role as the firm’s president, he serves on the Carthage Board of Trustees.
Summer Carthaginian 2017
EILEEN BALDWIN
A mutually warm welcome In June, Carthage brought in Eileen Baldwin to oversee programs for alumni and parents. She brings several years of knowledge and experience from a similar role at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Greetings! I am so excited to be your alumni director — I have had a wonderful welcome on campus already and look forward to meeting you, too! I was able to be part of Reunion Weekend in June and enjoyed every minute of my time spent with alumni and their guests. The excitement was contagious, and the sense of community was undeniable. I consider myself very fortunate to join such a fantastic community. Together we will continue to build on the momentum already in place. We’ll continue the Homecoming and Reunion Weekend traditions, Family Weekend activities, and mentoring and networking opportunities — all while expanding current offerings for engagement.
Please get involved! For those who aren’t close to campus, consider joining a regional chapter to keep your Carthage connection strong. Regional activities continue to expand, so watch the events list for ways to join other alumni in your area. Send life updates to alumnioffice@carthage.edu or through the Class Notes section of the alumni website — we’d love to celebrate with you during important life events! And, for those who come back regularly, please let me know when you’re on campus. I’d love to introduce myself and hear your Carthage memories. Warmly,
Eileen Baldwin Director of Alumni and Parent Relations ebaldwin@carthage.edu 262-551-5816
we want to hear from you. Submit your stories for Class Notes today! Update your contact information and share your life changes so we can celebrate with you in the next issue of The Carthaginian.
Learn more about staying connected, upcoming events, and ways to give back at carthage.edu/alumni.
alumnioffice@carthage.edu 800-551-1518
CLASS NOTES
1999
Tom Kelley –
Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, and wife Tracy had a baby boy, Tanner Joseph, on April 20. The Milwaukee Business Journal also chose Mr. Kelley, the vice president and CFO at United Hospital System, for its “40 Under 40” award.
Kristine (Burdick) O’Sullivan – Janesville, Wisconsin, received a 2016 “Forty Under 40” award from the Association Forum of Chicagoland and trade publication USAE. The award recognizes potential for success and commitment to association management and nonprofit industries. Ms. O’Sullivan is the member engagement and communications Manager at the American Health Information Management Association.
2002
Colleen (Robertson) Abel –Beach Park, Illinois, won Sundress
Nicolette (Howells) Cutright – St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, married Michael Cutright on Jan. 20 in St. Thomas. She works as a licensed clinical child and adolescent psychologist.
on adolescent literacy and literacy coaching. Her dissertation was titled, “High School Science Teachers’ Interpretations and Perceptions of Reform and Literacy in the Discipline of Science”. She thanked current or emerita Carthage education professors Prisca Moore, Marilyn Ward, and Judith Schaumburg.
2006
Publications’ chapbook contest for her book “Deviants”. Her first full-length collection, “Remake”, won Unicorn Press’ 2015 Editor Prize.
Jason Atanasoff – Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, was named athletic director at The Prairie School in Wind Point, Wisconsin. Jason has served as the Upper School dean of students and physical education teacher, and he remains the boys’ basketball head coach. He and his wife, Callie, have two children: Braden, 2, and Brynn, 1.
Becca (Cowan) Ferraro – Deerfield, Illinois, and her husband,
Bryan Boatright – Akron, Ohio, was named registrar at the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio. He’s also working toward a Doctor of Education in organizational leadership and higher education administration.
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Tony, welcomed their second baby, Parker Anthony, on Dec. 2. Parker measured 20 inches long and weighed 7 pounds, 6 ounces. She joins big sister Paige, 3.
2003
Rachel Lesinski-Roscoe – Grayslake, Illinois, completed
Diana (Moberg) Bauknecht – Green Bay, Wisconsin, married Benjamin Bauknecht. Bridesmaids included Carthage alumnae Kara Grudzien ’06, Liz (Perillo) Lenahan ’06, and Karissa (Kleven) Gretebeck ’06.
McKenzie (Ryan) Ferguson – Edwardsville, Illinois, received Southern Illinois UniversityEdwardsville’s annual Teaching Excellence Award. She is an associate professor of pharmacy practice in the SIUE School of Pharmacy and director of the Drug Information and Wellness Center.
2007
Jennifer (Cobb) Bentley – Waukegan, Illinois, married Rick Bentley on Nov. 26 in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Shannon (Burke) Boeckx ’08 and Allison Hull, adjunct music faculty, were bridesmaids, and Gregory Berg, assistant professor of music, accompanied the Silver Strings Quartet for the ceremony. Mrs. Bentley is an account manager at Shaker Recruitment Marketing, as well as a founder and board member of the Kenosha Chamber Choir.
Karissa (Kleven) Gretebeck – Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, and her husband, Kyle, welcomed daughter Evie Grace on April 2, 2016. Evie is their first child.
a doctorate at Northern Illinois University in curriculum and instruction: reading, with a focus
Summer Carthaginian 2017
SHOW YOUR
PRIDE!
Visit us online at
carthage.bncollege.com or in the Campbell Student Union!
Barnes & Noble at Carthage is the official campus bookstore. Find Carthage apparel and souvenirs, reading or textbooks, and an assortment of gifts and gift cards, in addition to all of your supply needs!
262-551-5778 • 800-551-6202 • 2001 Alford Park Drive • Kenosha, WI 53140
CLASS NOTES
2008
Brigid (Rodgers) Harris –
2015
Kenosha, married Ron Harris on Aug. 6, 2016.
2013 Marilyn A. Wilkner – Kenosha, Louie Anne (Batac) Nguyen – Keyport, New Jersey, married Khanh Nguyen of Wichita, Kansas, on March 10.
2009
was one of 125 U.S. choir members to perform at the Mid Am International Choral Festival at St. Peter’s Church in Vienna, Austria, in June 2016. Carthage professor Eduardo Garcia-Novelli was among the guest conductors for the festival choir, which performed pieces by Mozart, Beethoven, and Handel.
2010
Chris Allen – Kenosha, became Allison (Benthusen) Remnes – Sugar Grove, Illinois, married Brian Remnes on Sept. 16 in St. Charles, Illinois. Included in the wedding party were Heather Johnson ’10, Katie (Los) Anderson ’08, and Tarah (Ellington) Geye ’08.
executive director of the Kenosha History Center in January. While at Carthage, he spent two years as an intern at the center and developed a passion for the city’s history. After working in the mortgage industry, he returned to the center in 2014. Chris also coaches boys’ volleyball at Tremper High School.
Yvanne Marie Batac –
Sharon (Talbert) Ciskowski – Kenosha, and her husband, Andrea (Winbigler) Eiter ’13 and Tim Eiter ’12 – Mundelein, Illinois, married Aug. 13, 2016, in Carthage’s A. F. Siebert Chapel. More than 20 of their fellow Carthage alumni attended.
Katarina McGuire – Monroe, Wisconsin, received a Master of Science in innovation management and entrepreneurship after studying at the University of Manchester in England.
Kimberly (Arlington) Parks ’13 and Dan Parks ’12 – Palatine, Illinois, married Aug. 24, 2016.
Andrew, welcomed son Jackson Andrew on April 7.
Michael Kastel – St. Charles, Illinois, was selected as director of investor relations for Rockspring Capital, a Houston-based real estate investment firm.
Andria (Bowlsby) Sedig and Logan Sedig – Hartford, Connecticut, married April 13 while on vacation in Vermont. Andria works as a middle school literature teacher, and Logan is pursuing a degree in nursing.
2016
Okinawa, Japan, married Jorden Castaneda on Jan. 9 in Subic Bay, Philippines.
2012 Chris Steenrod ’09 and Sandy (Livingston) Steenrod ’08 – Freeport, Illinois, married Aug. 27, 2016, in Bowl Valley, Illinois.
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Kaitlin (Lowry) Fuller ’12 and Brendan Fuller ’11 – Franklin, Wisconsin, married April 23, 2016, in Madison, Wisconsin. They met through their Greek organizations, Alpha Chi Omega and Delta Upsilon. Six Carthage alumni were a part of the ceremony: Maggie (Knowles) Kamm ’13, Erica (Dahl) Skaar ’11, Maggie Burton ’11, Coty Tatge ’12, Dana Peters ’10, and Matt Read ’09. .
Brittany Coriaci – Gurnee, Carissa Pearlman – St. Charles, Illinois, married longtime love Francisco Jimenez in his hometown of Cozumel, Mexico on July 27, 2016. Guests included maid of honor Meredith (Gilly) Blakey ’14 and Nicholas Blakey ’14.
Illinois, joined iMusical, a children’s music theatre company in Shanghai, China, on a nine-month contract. She works with children 5 to 14 as a choreographer, director, private dance teacher, and music theatre teacher. She’s thankful for the opportunity to teach what she loves in a different environment, language, and culture.
Summer Carthaginian 2017
Be involved from wherever you are in the world.
Carthage
connections
ways to connect: • Mentor a Carthage student • Become a Social Media Ambassador • Attend an event near you
learn about all alumni volunteer opportunities
carthage.edu/alumni/volunteer
Eileen Baldwin, Director of Alumni and Parent Relations alumnioffice@carthage.edu | 800-551-1518
news for you
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Wendell G. Mathews
IN MEMORIAM 1943 Margaret (Beckstrand) Roth
Helen (Habermann) Simpkins
Minneapolis, Sept. 23, 2016
Springfield, Ill., April 1, 2017
Carlos VanAuron Rantoul, Ill., March 19, 2017
1945 Don West Forest Grove, Ore., Feb. 13, 2017
1948 C. Dean Thomas Cape Girardeau, Mo., Dec. 31, 2017
1949 Shirley (Rau) Hileman Knoxville, Tenn., Feb. 17, 2017
1950 Kathleen Greenland
1956 Louis Peters Jr. Keene, N.H., Dec. 28, 2016
Hans Thomsen
Palm Springs, Calif., Feb 15, 2017
Janet Washburn
Sanford, Fla., Oct. 29, 2016
1957 Leland Gleasman
Ronald Betker
Mercer, Wis., Jan. 8, 2017
1958 Wayne Torgeson Hancock, Mich., Nov. 20, 2016
1959 Oltman “Sonny” Goldenstein Crete, Ill., Oct. 23, 2016
Arthur Winking Springfield, Ill., Jan. 14, 2017
1960 Wayne Stegman Colorado Springs, Colo., Dec. 13, 2016
Pleasant Prairie, Wis., Feb. 16, 2017
Debra “Debbie” Donaldson 1973 Christine Swannel Milwaukee, Dec. 14, 2016
Landis Thompson
1952 Glenn Birkholz Jacksonville, Fla., March 16, 2017
Kathleen Bradley
Ellison Bay, Wis., Dec. 16, 2016
1962 Rev. James Martin Blaine, Minn., Jan. 21, 2017
Rev. Robert Swanson Jr. Johnstown, Pa., Jan. 21, 2017
1965 Frances von der Ehe
La Harpe, Ill., Feb. 15, 2017
Chicago, March 16, 2017
Lawrence Krahn Jr.
1967 Joyce Vande Bunt
Kewanee, Ill., Nov. 30, 2016
Racine, Wis., Sept. 9, 2016
1954 Marvin Kempel Lena, Ill., Aug. 9, 2016
1970 Lee Meyerpeter West Allis, Wis., Dec. 9, 2016
See full obituaries at carthage.edu/alumni/inmemoriam/
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Kenosha, Dec. 14, 2016
William Holleman Libertyville, Ill., Dec. 18, 2016
Stone City, Iowa, Nov. 8, 2016
Mary Ann Krome
1974 Jim Gillen
Frank Missurelli
Lake Bluff, Ill.
1976 Barbara Kleeman
Chicago, Jan. 2, 2017
Kenosha, Jan. 8, 2017
Nat Nelson Rockford, Ill., April 25, 2017
Mystic, Conn., Feb. 28, 2017
Caroline (Raczykowski) Renzoni Sanford, N.C., Nov. 29, 2016
David Hoffman Jon Peterson
Racine, Wis., Feb. 9, 2017
Venice, Fla., Nov. 12, 2016
Lake Frederick, Va., May, 26, 2016
Rockford, Ill., Dec. 5, 2016
Racine, Wis., Dec. 20, 2016
Marcel Dandeneau Larry Theis
Bath, Mich., Nov. 7, 2016
Lena, Ill., Jan. 12, 2017
James Anderson
Kendall Gentz
1951 Janet (Goodsman) Burlingame
Sylvia Stevenson
Edwin Andersen
Poynette, Wis., Dec. 18, 2016
1977 Jacquelyn Hopkins
Milwaukee, Jan. 8, 2017
Wilpen, Pa., Jan. 17, 2017
Tempe, Ariz., Nov. 18, 2016
1961 Marilyn (Driskell) Behrendt
Arlene (Lundberg) Groen
Edith Acerbi
Kenosha, March 16, 2017
1972 Timothy Cagle
Tolleson, Ariz., Oct. 29, 2016
Clinton, Iowa, Feb. 4, 2017
friends of carthage
Pottstown, Pa., Feb. 24, 2017
Oak Creek, Wis., Jan. 16, 2017
John Turlo
Columbia, Mo., Nov. 25, 2016
Mary Tilton
Rockford, Ill., Dec. 31, 2016
Dorothy (Gruhn) Kasel
Daniel Plautz
1979 Carol Peltier Sheboygan, Wis., Nov. 15, 2016
1986 Dick Polzin Racine, Wis., Jan. 3, 2017
1990 Leslie (Culver) Sigmund Somonauk, Ill., Dec. 24, 2016
1991 Michael Simon Des Plaines, Ill., Dec. 29, 2016
1997 W. Jean McCoy-Garner Milwaukee, Jan. 20, 2017
2005 Gayle (Frye) Schultz Kenosha, Nov. 17, 2016
Longtime art professor Wendell G. Mathews ’53 passed away Dec. 22 in Eustis, Florida. In the early 1950s, he nearly gave up his plans for divinity school, but Carthage president Harold H. Lentz encouraged him to pursue both religion and fine arts. Prof. Mathews called that “a turning point” in his life. After a short stint as a Lutheran pastor in Lena, Illinois, he cofounded Sacred Design Associates in the Minneapolis area. He served as the religious publishing firm’s lead artist and vice president. Hired at Carthage in 1965, Prof. Mathews taught until his retirement in 1994 and chaired the Art Department for 14 years. He was instrumental in recruiting famous German artist Diederich Kortlang to teach. Prof. Mathews wrote 13 books, covering topics such as religious art, Wisconsin history, real estate, and sod production.
Alonzo Kenniebrew
Rebecca Romeis Sacramento, Calif., Dec. 12, 2016
James Seliga Kenosha, Dec. 29, 2016
Georgia Wegmeyer New Straitsville, Ohio, Dec. 31, 2016
Celia Winston Moravia, Ill., Nov. 18, 2016
Alonzo Homer Kenniebrew ’54 of Moline, Illinois, passed away Jan. 9. He was 84. Mr. Kenniebrew conducted clinical research that led to the development of the BCG vaccine to prevent tuberculosis in 1962. It remains commonly used in parts of the world where the disease is widespread. The College honored him as a Distinguished Alumnus in 1976. A four-year letterwinner in football and co-captain in track and field and boxing on the Illinois campus, Mr. Kenniebrew was inducted into the Carthage Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984. His survivors include alumna Ashley Kenniebrew Easterwood ’08, a daughter. Summer Carthaginian 2016
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Carthage has surpassed the $35 million goal which helped to position the College as a regional and national model.
The Science Center
The Carthage Fund
Internships and Experiential Learning
Endowed Scholarships
The Science Center has increased classroom and laboratory space by 40%, providing the resources required of Carthage’s advanced natural science departments.
Internships and Experiential Learning has enabled students to pair their liberal arts education with real life experience, making them qualified and competitive job candidates and increasing their skills and cultural competence.
The Carthage Fund has strengthened the College’s highest priorities and areas of growth including the introduction of two new degree programs and improved student enrollment, retention, and graduation.
Endowed Scholarships have provided additional financial aid dollars, allowing qualified and deserving students to attend Carthage regardless of their means.
Thank you for your continued support. To learn more and see the total amount raised during the Campaign for Carthage, please visit the website.
campaign.carthage.edu 262-551-5703 43
2017 Alumni
reunion weekend The Class of 1977, Class of 2007, members of the Chi Omega sorority, and men’s and women’s tennis players were invited back to campus in early June for a weekend of reuniting with friends, meals, programming, and lodging in the Oaks Residential Village.
Class Notes Submission Form Deadline for the next issue is Sept. 1, 2017
Name (first/maiden/current last name)
Professional Title
Spouse’s Name (first/maiden/current last name)
Class Year
Employer
Class Year
SPRE ADING THE WORD
Street Address
City
Home Phone
State ZIP
Business Phone
News
(attach additional sheets as necessary)
Marriage Announcement
Photos are welcome! (Please send non-returnable photos) Name (first/maiden/current last name)
Class Year
Spouse’s Name (first/maiden/current last name)
Class Year
Date of Marriage
City and State of Current Residence
Birth/Adoption Announcement Mother’s Name (first/maiden/current last name)
Class Year
Father’s Name (first/last)
Class Year
Daughter’s Name (first/middle/last)
Son’s Name (first/middle/last)
Date of Birth
Place of Birth
Death Announcement Name of Deceased (first/maiden/current last name)
City and State of Residence
Class Year
Date of Death
Survivor (first/maiden/current last name)
Relationship
Class Year
Survivor (first/maiden/current last name)
Relationship
Class Year
Tear off this form along the perforated edge and mail back to: Carthage College, Alumni Relations, 2001 Alford Park Drive, Kenosha WI 53140 Class notes and photos also may be submitted online: carthage.edu/alumni/class-notes
PAGE FROM THE PAST
A slice of Carthage history from the Staubitz Archives
The missionary behind the College’s first two moves Even as he attended to the nomadic life of a Lutheran missionary, the Rev. Conrad Kuhl’s route kept intersecting with Carthage’s at pivotal moments in College history. Most of what we know about the man comes from the syndicated publication of his journal. The candid account speaks to his work with local communities, his deep faith, and his desire to unify in the face of religious and ethnic strife. Pastor Kuhl came to the United States as a German immigrant in 1834, when he was 13. According to an anthology of “American Lutheran Biographies” by Jens Christian Roseland, the boy corresponded with the Rev. Francis Springer and later enrolled at the preparatory school where the prominent pastor taught. Entering the Gettysburg (Pennsylvania) seminary in 1845, he arrived in the middle of a cholera outbreak. He performed 21 funerals in 17 days. After graduating in 1850, Pastor Kuhl became a missionary. That November, he crossed paths with Pastor Springer, who by then was president of the fledgling Hillsboro College (the forerunner to Carthage). Life was hard for all missionaries in early American history, involving travel to the sparsely populated West. In four months, Pastor Kuhl traveled more than 1,700 miles through Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri, baptizing 14 children and preaching 54 sermons. He walked about 200 of those miles after his horse died. At the end of the whirlwind tour, Pastor Kuhl and his wife, Eveline, settled in Springfield. He was chosen for a committee that decided to move the College about 50 miles north, from Hillsboro to the state capital. In Springfield, the school assumed the name Illinois State University, and it seems that Pastor Kuhl paid the institution little further mind until later in his career. During the Civil War, Pastor Kuhl was placed in Payson, Illinois, near the Missouri border. The congregation banished him for preaching that the gospel should be shared with everyone, including African Americans.
In the resulting furor, he wrote, “every expression that passion could distort was readily seized upon”. Tolerance was a virtue befitting the young pastor, who once complained in his journal that none of the local stores had a copy of “The Book of Mormon”. At his next stop in Carthage, Illinois, Pastor Kuhl found himself at the center of another divisive conflict in 1867. He and other members of a synod representing German-language churches met in the small town to discuss whether to split from the general Lutheran synod. Pastor Kuhl argued that faith, not language, should bind Lutherans together. He was in the minority, however, and the schism commenced. Putting aside their disappointment, he and other German pastors began to work extensively with Zion Lutheran Church of Carthage. In 1868, Pastor Kuhl became pastor for both its English and German members. He took over as president of the synod the next year and proved instrumental in the relocation of Illinois State. A competing college had opened in northern Illinois, much to the irritation of the Southern Illinois Synod, which felt its counterpart to the north had abandoned Illinois State. The synod wanted to pool its resources to give the university a new start, and Pastor Kuhl called a meeting in Carthage to discuss options. Although he wasn’t necessarily advocating for the town as the new home, officials liked Carthage’s central location and deemed it the right fit. While continuing to preach, Pastor Kuhl served on the faculty and Board of Trustees at the renamed Carthage College until 1893 and received an honorary doctorate. After moving to Florida to be closer to his daughter and her family, he died in 1898. Lesser-known than some of the names we typically invoke, Pastor Kuhl was nonetheless a key figure in Carthage history.
Explore the rich history of Carthage at carthage.edu/library/archives
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Summer Carthaginian 2017