Bell Tower Fall 2009

THE MAGAZINE OF CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY

FA L L 2 0 0 9

The First 100 Days DR. JOHN SMARRELLI JR.

CBU’s first permanent lay president dedicates himself to the Lasallian values of Faith, Service, and Community

belltower T H E M A G A Z I N E O F C H R I S T I A N B R O T H E R S U N I V E R S I T Y • FA L L 2 0 0 9

news@cbu

NIH Awards $1 Million Renewal Grant to International Research Program............... 2 Commencement Awards for CBU’s Class of 2009...................................................... 3 Jane Goodall Gives “Reason For Hope” to Vanderhaar Symposium Audience............ 4 Steinfels Discusses the Future of Catholic Faith in the 21st Century.......................... 5 Brother Ed Siderewicz Honored with Dozier Award for Peace and Justice.................. 6 CBU Designated Yellow Ribbon University, Offering Tuition Benefits to Vets........... 7 New CBU Athletic Hall of Fame Will Induct Its Inaugural Class in January.............. 8 All-American Stephen Hill Recognized with GSC Commissioner’s Trophy................ 9 ZTA Chapter Starts Scholarship at CBU in Memory of Jennifer Hicks Aertker........ 10 Fray Scholarship Informed by ‘Non-Traditional’ Experience.................................... 11 University Art Collection Grows with Donations, Including First BFA Grads.......... 12 and more…

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studentprofiles

A Candlelit Path to Success: Zamyra Lambert (’12) balances business with biochemistry....................................................................................................... 16 On the Trail of Cats (and Scat): Caroline Mitchell (’10) trades history for big cats in Brazil............................................................................................................... 17 Cultivating Community and Crops: Social Justice Committee breaks new ground on learning.......................................................................................................... 18

alumniprofiles

Considering the Consequences: Karen Ellis (’90) is helping FedEx learn environmental lessons.......................................................................................... 19 Not Your Grandmother’s 3D: Paulo Aur (MBA ’92) and Mike McKinney (’92) are adding an extra dimension to entertainment.................................................. 20

coverstory

The First 100 Days: As CBU’s first permanent lay president, Dr. John Smarrelli Jr. offers a lot of energy and a lot of new ideas, but he’s determined to maintain the core Lasallian values of Faith, Service, and Community....................................... 22 Faith, Service, and Community: The Inaugural Address..................................... 32

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classnotes

Notes and Announcements from your former classmates.................................... 36 Passings: Death notices of alumni and friends of CBU........................................ 43

backpage

Larger Than Life: Clay Tidwell Jr. (’00) and his family are living large on a downtown Memphis mural................................................................................. 44 CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY is a private, Catholic, comprehensive university committed to preparing students of all faiths and backgrounds to excel in their professional and public lives by providing challenging educational opportunities in the arts, business, engineering, the sciences, and teacher education.

SEND NEWS FOR CLASS NOTES to Christian Brothers University Alumni Office, 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104. Or send email to alumni@cbu.edu.

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SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO Bell Tower, Christian Brothers University Office of Advancement, 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104.

BELL TOWER is published by the CBU Office of Advancement, 650 East Parkway South, Memphis, TN 38104.

Non-profit postage is paid at Memphis, TN. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to: Bell Tower, 650 East Parkway South Memphis, TN 38104 —————————————————————— BELL TOWER STAFF Editor/Director of Publications Cory Dugan Associate Editor/Fund for CBU Director Aimee Lewis (’92) Director of Advancement Services Linda Dunlap Alumni Director Stephen Kirkpatrick Sports Information Director Eric Opperman Assistant Director of Publications Jacob Edwards Editorial Contrubutors Raquel Darling (’10), Lindsay Hanlen (’10), Melissa Hanson, Emily H. Sharpe, Andrew Prislovsky —————————————————————— UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION President John Smarrelli Jr., Ph.D. Vice President for Advancement Michael R. Ryan, Ph.D. Executive Director for Communications & Marketing Elisa C. Marus 2008-2009 Board of Trustees Willis H. Willey III, Chairman Charles C. Gerber, Vice Chairman Robert G. McEniry, Vice Chairman Joyce A. Mollerup, Secretary John H. Pontius, Treasurer Dr. James W. Adams II (’80) Leo P. Arnoult (’70) Joseph F. Birch Jr. (’78) Albert T. Cantu Brother Francis A. Carr Brother Konrad Diebold Charles B. Dudley III H. Lance Forsdick Sr. (’61) Richard T. Gadomski (’62) James Wesley Gibson II W. Jerry Gillis John Mitchell Graves William W. Graves Monsignor Val Handwerker James E. Harwood III Brother Bernard LoCoco Brother Terence McLaughlin David E. Nelson Lori M. Patton (’91) Dr. Stephany S. Schlachter Joshua Shipley (’01) John Smarrelli Jr., Ph.D.

FRONT COVER PHOTO BY DAN BALL

president’smessage I LOVE A GOOD STORY. If there was one thing I knew about the South before coming to Memphis, it was the region’s great storytelling tradition. In fact, I quoted the great Southern novelist Flannery O’Connor in my Inaugural Address on October 11: “Stories are not considered quite as satisfying as statements, and statements not quite as satisfying as statistics; but in the long run, a people is known, not by its statements or its statistics, but by the stories it tells.”

As president, I am expected to make numerous statements and to quote many statistics. Fortunately at CBU, we have so many great things to say in our official statements. Our stats, faithfully compiled by our Institutional Effectiveness office, are always proof positive of the wonderful things that occur here and that emanate from our campus, classrooms, labs, athletic venues, and residential halls alike. So, I never really mind proudly proclaiming those official statements and quoting those official statistics.

But my true joy is telling stories, because I think that the stories of our great students and our wonderful alumni and our outstanding faculty and staff always outshine everything else we can display as our window into CBU for the rest of the world. It’s always about the people who live the mission of CBU, complete with their distinctive stories, who are best qualified to tell the world the story of CBU far better than I can.

In this issue of Bell Tower, you will read my story as the new president in town. I would ask that you pay a little extra attention to the theme of my Inaugural Address—Faith, Service, and Community. It’s not only the theme of my address, but it’s also the guiding cornerstone of the Lasallian educational mission.

Sharing equal importance, you will also see this underlying theme in many of the stories told by and about other members of the CBU community highlighted in this issue. Students founding a community garden. An alumna whose job is guiding a major corporation in the path to become a better global citizen.

A current student who is already providing an example to future minority entrepreneurs. Another current student who traveled to South America to study and protect the native wildlife.

If there is one thing I’ve noticed in my first few months at CBU, it is the fact that while we may sometimes forget to sing the theme of “Faith, Service, and Community” as loudly as we should, we never forget to live it. And we live it loudly. The stories in this issue sing out our mission—loudly and proudly just as the ringing of the bell tower on East Parkway serves as tangible evidence of our proclaiming this mission.

But that does not mean we should be quiet or content. Quite the contrary.

We must continue to shout and sing and live the Lasallian mission articulated by our Founder, St. John Baptist de la Salle, as that mission requires constant nurturing and cultivation in an ever changing world. Thank you, dear beloved Christian Brothers, for teaching us and bringing out such a wonderful mission in all of us. Our shared mission will surely echo loudly to all generations to come.

“Faith. Service. Community.”

Say it loud. Say it proud. Then go out and live it.

I intend to do my very best to lead and join you in this challenge as a member of this vibrant CBU community.

John Smarrelli Jr., Ph.D., President

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news@cbu

NIH Awards $1 Million Renewal Grant to International Research Program

Ting Wong (Biology ’10) was one of the CBU students presenting research at the MHIRT Project Symposium in September. She conducted her research in Brazil this summer.

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THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES of Health (NIH) renewed its award to CBU’s Minority Health International Research Training (MHIRT) Program in May, in the amount of $242,208 per year for five years, totaling over $1 million. The grant allows the program to continue training students in basic science, qualitative and clinical research.

MHIRT is an innovative science and research initiative involving CBU, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and Tennessee State University. It provides funded summer research opportunities for students in basic science, public health education, and qualitative projects in Brazil, Thailand ,and Uganda. The Mid-South Coalition for National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities has been funded by NIH since 2000.

This year’s award expands CBU’s program and initiatives. A new art therapy research site in Northern Uganda will investigate the use of art therapy for children affected by the civil war. An association has been formed with Mbarara University to focus on public health education in Uganda. In Brazil, more clinically relevant projects, utilizing multifocal visual evoked potentials, will be expanded to study the visual function in patients.

Past projects, including the collaboration on conservation of carnivores in select areas of Brazil, will

be continued. “We continue to work with investigators in Sao Paulo and Florianopolis on basic science projects that relate to neurotransmitter systems, learning and memory, as well as, using biological indicators in aquatic organisms as evidence of environmental pollution,” says Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald, CBU professor of biology and the program’s principal investigator.

Student participants in the 2009 MHIRT Program presented their Project Symposium and Wrap-up in September. CBU presenters included: Caitlin Ashley (’10), “Comparing the Amplification of White Spot Syndrome Virus Genes with Different Primers”; Casey Carr (’12), “Calbindin D-28k, Calretinin, and Parvalbumin as Markers of Specific Neuronal Groups in the Mammalian Brain”; Caroline Mitchell (’10) [with Rachel Dutkosky], “Advantages and Disadvantages of Two Non-Invasive Research Methods for the Study of Wild Jaguar Populations” [see article on page 17]; and Ting Wong (’10), “Role of the alpha-1-adrenergic Receptors on the Reconsolidation of Olfactory.”

“This is the second competitive renewal,” Fitzgerald explains. “The competition gets harder every year.” The renewal of this grant enables the continued research, training and service projects that address the needs of the underserved populations across the globe.

For more information visit www.cbu.edu/mhirt. n PHOTO BY JULIA HANEBRINK (’01)

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Commencement Awards for CBU’s Class Of 2009 CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY held its 2009 Commencement Ceremony on Friday, May 15, at the Desoto Civic Center in Southaven, MS. More than 400 undergraduate and graduate students received degrees. The University and each of the academic schools presented awards to graduating seniors in recognition of academic and personal distinction during the commencement ceremony.

UNIVERSITY AWARDS

• Samantha Almanza and Burton Bridges were awarded the Brother I. Leo Outstanding Student Leadership Award. This award is presented annually by the Student Affairs Division, in memory of Brother I. Leo O’Donnell, to the outstanding graduating seniors who have provided distinguished student leadership to the student body, to the Student Affairs Division, and to the University community.

• Boris de Souza was awarded the Thomas Lipsmeyer Award, which is presented to the graduate considered by fellow classmates as the “ideal senior student” and as being the student who has most actively contributed to the senior class and to the University.

• Gregory Davis and Amanda Pitt were awarded the Christian Brothers University Alumni Award, which is presented to the undergraduate student(s) who have the highest GPA. This year CBU had two students who maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA during their entire undergraduate careers.

The following awards were presented by the individual academic schools: SCHOOL OF ARTS AWARDS

• Jessica S. Henderson, Kenneth W. Mathis Award for Outstanding Education Graduate • William Reece Daughtery, Literature and Languages Faculty Award for English Major • Amanda Pitt, Outstanding History Student Award • Russell Brandon, Margarette J. Sather Outstanding School of Arts Graduate Award, Behavioral Sciences Faculty Award, and the Psi Chi Outstanding Leadership Award • Margaret Denise Walker, Christine Ladd Franklin Award for Outstanding Non-traditional Psychology Major SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AWARDS

• Emily Ellis, Memphis Chapter of the Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants Award • Gregory O. Davis, Delta Sigma Pi Scholarship Key • Hayley Gil, Wall Street Journal Award

• Burton Bridges, Wall Street Journal Award • Lisa A. Dailey, Faculty Achievement Award • Linda Gaye Sunshine Johnson, Faculty Achievement Award SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AWARDS

• Amanda Taylor, T. Herbert Darnell Award • Laura Velasco, Phillip M. Becker Award in Chemical Engineering • Thomas O’Bryant, Tommy G. Morrison Award • Andrew Assadollahi, Outstanding Civil Engineering Graduate Award • Nicholas Brown, Brother Philip Morgan Electrical Engineering Design Award • Stephen Hill, Outstanding Engineering Graduate Award SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AWARDS

• Edward Derrick, Outstanding Chemistry Graduate Award • Daniel Darnell, Brother Dominic Dunn Award • John Legge, Brother Dominic Dunn Award • Tuyetdung Tran, Brother Dominic Dunn Award • Kelly Towns, Biology Faculty Award n

Going for the GOLD

Challenge grant targets first-time alumni donors THIS FALL THE Alumni Office has launched the Graduates of the Last Decade (GOLD) program to engage, and in some cases re-engage, those alumni from all CBU programs who graduated between 1999-2009. This accounts for approximately 4,800 of our 12,000 alumni and while this is 40% of our alumni base, fewer than 10% of this same group gives back to the University.

As National Alumni Board President Josh Shipley (’01) pointed out at the Inaugural Dinner & Alumni Celebration, a minimum $10 gift from each GOLD alum would accomplish two vital needs for CBU. First, the $48,000 raised would fund two full-tuition scholarships. This scholarship aid is necessary for deserving students to attend CBU– the same scholarship aid that made it possible for most alumni to afford a CBU education.

Second, that many alumni donors would increase our alumni giving percentage to more than 40%, thereby vastly improving our regional and national rankings in college guide publications like those by U. S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review.

To augment this program, the University has received a challenge gift to the Fund for CBU this year, from Flo and Dick (’62) Gadomski. If CBU receives 250 gifts of any amount from first-time donors, they will donate an additional $3,000 for scholarships.

Gifts—first-time and otherwise—may be made securely online at www. cbu.edu/giving or by calling (901) 321-3270 or (800) 283-2925. n

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news@cbu

Jane Goodall Gives “Reason For Hope” to Vanderhaar Symposium Audience

Left: Dr. Jane Goodall, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace.

Right: Dr. Goodall observes as students operate a large puppet in the shape of a dove.

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by Emily H. Sharpe “IF WE THINK of our life as an effort to fly always that little bit higher and reach a goal that’s always just a little bit beyond our grasp, how high can any of us go?” With these words, Dr. Jane Goodall, renowned primatologist and U.N. Messenger of Peace, ignited a sense of wonder in the crowd of over 500 students and community members who filled the University Theater at CBU in March. Her lecture, “Reasons for Hope,” was part of the annual Gerard A. Vanderhaar Symposium.

CBU trustee Leo Arnoult (’70) and his firm, Arnoult & Associates Inc., helped organize a city-wide coalition that brought Dr. Goodall to Memphis also to speak to over 600 Bridge Builders at BRIDGES, St. George’s High School students and parents, and a crowd of over 2,000 at the Memphis Zoo. In her lecture, Goodall described her realization that chimpanzees were being endangered by the destruction of their habitat, even up to the borders of the 30-squaremile Gombe National Preserve she established 50 years ago in Tanzania.

She confessed to feeling “a kind of desperation” when contemplating environmental degradation, which she described as having two main causes: “the needs of the very poor living in the rural areas, who have no other choice, and the unsustainable lifestyles of the elite

communities, who take far more than our fair share of non-renewable natural resources.” She recounted words from an Inuit colleague: “My brothers and sisters… up in the north the ice is melting. What will it take to melt the ice in the human heart?”

But Goodall went on to say, “it’s not right that there’s nothing we can do about it.” She laid out her four ‘reasons for hope’ with disarming simplicity: the energy of young people, organized in groups like Roots & Shoots (a program she founded in 1991 through her institute); the resilience of nature, which restores itself; the indomitable human spirit, personified in famous leaders and in “people just living all around us, living lives that unless we know about them, we may just walk by and never know that … [they’ve] had to overcome seemingly impossible odds”; and finally, the human brain. “Feeling our backs to the wall … we’re using our brains to work out how each one of us can walk through life with a smaller ecological footprint.”

Toward the end of Goodall’s talk, five young people approached the stage at her invitation, bearing a large puppet in the shape of a dove. A song written for the U.N. International Day of Peace, celebrated annually on September 21, played as they solemnly ‘flew’ the peace dove around the stage.

“If we don’t dare to envision peace,” Goodall concluded, “peace will never come.” n PHOTOS BY LINDSAY HANLEN (’10)

news@cbu

Steinfels Discusses the Future of Catholic Faith in the 21st Century

Dr. Peter Steinfels discussed “The Future of Catholic Faith” in an address in the University Theater in September.

DR. PETER STEINFELS, director of the Fordham Center on Religion and Culture and religion columnist for the New York Times, presented a lecture entitled “The Future of Catholic Faith: Surviving and Thriving in the 21st Century” on September 29 in the University Theater.

Steinfels is the author of A People Adrift: The Crisis of the Roman Catholic Church in America. He has also served as an editor of Commonweal magazine, the independent journal published by Catholic lay people, and The Hastings Center Report, the leading journal of medical and scientific ethics. With his wife, Margaret O’Brien Steinfels, he now directs the Fordham Center on Religion and Culture. He has been a visiting professor at Georgetown University, Notre Dame, and the University of Dayton.

In his address, Steinfels quoted the controversial opening statement from his book: “Today the Roman Catholic Church in the United States is on the verge of either an irreversible decline or a thoroughgoing transformation.”

He explained that, in this oft-quoted statement, he referred to two important changes in American Catholic life: the fact that leadership in the Church is being carried out predominantly by laity, and that Catholicism has changed rapidly in the wake of the Second Vatican Council. In particular, he discussed evolving understandings of sexuality, the role of women in the Church, and the efforts to re-engage worship and education.

Speaking of the need to revisit and possibly modernize the Church’s delivery of its message, he added that “the Church will need to change the way it PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN

brings the gospel to people, especially young people, so they will better understand how to live and understand faith in the 21st century.”

“We must never forget that God sees what we cannot,” Steinfels said in closing. “Even when I feel that we are perishing, I have been taught not to be terrified. Our hope is ultimately in the Lord, who is with us, and for whom all things are possible.” n

Seminar Explores Shared Values of Judaism and Christianity CBU HOSTED AN interactive evening seminar in July, exploring shared spiritual values of Judaism and Christianity featuring the writings of theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-72).

A devout Jew, Heschel played an important role in bringing Christians and Jews together in the era of Vatican II and in the aftermath of the Holocaust. He influenced the reformulation of the Catholic Church’s expression toward Judaism through liturgy and theology. Heschel was also active in the Civil Rights Movement in the late 1960s and marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He worked tirelessly to find common ground among various communities of faith.

Stuart Cohen, president of Temple Emanu-El in Marblehead, MA, and Dr. Ellen Faith, professor of education at CBU, led the seminar with the goal of engaging in interfaith dialogue. Informed by Heschel’s ideas, the seminar explored Jewish-Christian dialogue and how these two religious traditions foster a similar spiritual relationship with God and share values that support the pursuit of human dignity. n BELLTOWERFALL2009

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Brother Ed Siderewicz Honored With Dozier Award for Peace and Justice

Brother Ed Siderewicz (center) was presented the Bishop Carroll T. Dozier Award for Peace and Justice by Dr. John Smarrelli Jr. and Dr. Evelyn McDonald.

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BROTHER ED SIDEREWICZ (’79) received the Bishop Carroll T. Dozier Award for Peace and Justice in a ceremony on October 8 in the University Theater.

The Dozier Award is named for Bishop Carroll T. Dozier, the first bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis and a leader in race relations, peace, and justice. He served as Bishop of Memphis in 1971-82.

“I am very humbled and honored to be standing here this evening at my alma mater, and I accept this award on behalf of the many holy men and women that God has raised up to bring the Lasallian charism and the poor closer together,” Brother Ed told the audience at the ceremony, which was also included in the calendar of events associated with the inauguration of Dr. John Smarrelli Jr. as the 22nd president of CBU. After earning his a B.A. in mathematics from CBU, Siderewicz earned a master’s degree in educational administration, and a M.Ed. from the University of Minnesota. After teaching for eight years in Guatemala, Brother Ed returned to the U.S. with a dream of continuing the Lasallian tradition of providing “a human and Christian education” for children of innercity Chicago. This dream became reality in 1995 when he cofounded the first San Miguel School in Chicago.

A second campus was established in the Austin neighborhood in 2002. Today the San Miguel Schools

serve over 350 middle-school and high school youth in Chicago’s most challenged neighborhoods. ““If you recognize something in one of your sons this evening, it is because you recognize something within yourself,” Brother Ed said in his acceptance remarks.

“Something deep within your own soul that you are embracing, that you are affirming as contributing to the human and Christian education of the young, and especially of the poor. For, as they say, ‘the fruit does not fall far from the tree.’”

The early success of the San Miguel Schools Chicago attracted the attention of Chicago Public Schools, and Siderewicz was invited to apply for the Renaissance 2010 program to open new charter and contract schools. These K-8 values-based schools also serve to transform inner-city communities by developing highly educated, concerned, and committed citizens of character who understand their role as agents of change within the community. All four schools are a part of the NativityMiguel Network, a nationwide movement of 64 schools, working to improve innercity education throughout the nation.

Brother Ed is an Executive Scholar at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and serves on the board of directors for the NativityMiguel Network of Schools, on the provincial council for the Midwest District of Christian Brothers, and on the board of trustees for Lewis University.

“I invite you today to focus your abundant efforts in creating a seamless system of Lasallian education,” Brother Ed challenged the audience in his closing remarks. “This would be something new for our day.

This could be a refoundation of the Lasallian charism in the U.S. today….

“Could you imagine a seamless system of Lasallian education that covers every pocket of the United States?

Could you imagine CBU being a visionary leader in helping to stitch together that seamless system so that the children of the artisans and the poor would be placed front and center in our institutions and allowed the same opportunities as every other student in this country?

“Could CBU consider throwing it all up to the wind, allowing the living Spirit of God to work through you and your ministry in a powerful new kind of way…. In a way that starts not from one system or another but, rather, starts with the need of children— inviting private, public, philanthropic, and business partners to bring their gift to the table and make the starting point the needs of students?” n PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN

news@cbu

CBU Designated Yellow Ribbon University, Offering Tuition Benefits to Vets

by Aimee Lewis (’92) QUALIFIED VETERANS MAY now attend CBU at significantly reduced tuition as a part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Yellow Ribbon Program. As a provision of the Post 9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program allows veterans to receive additional funds up to 100 percent of the out-of-pocket tuition and fees (including book and housing stipends) for degree programs that may exceed the normal Post 9/11 GI Bill tuition benefit. CBU provides scholarship aid, as well, which may enable a veteran to receive full tuition.

Veterans who have served at least three years active duty since the devastation of 9/11 may receive full benefits of the new GI Bill. Those veterans who have not served the full three years can still receive pro-rated benefits.

Though the program at CBU officially rolled out this fall, Nicholas Brown, a 2009 Electrical Engineering graduate, can speak to the benefits this program will offer. Prior to graduating Bartlett High School in 1999, Brown entered the Navy as part of the Delayed Entry Program with the guarantee that he would go to basic training to be an electrician. Brown attended Electrician’s “A” school, graduated with military honors and went on to serve in the Middle East during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

His unit was on a return flight from a training exercise in Lima, Peru when they learned of the tragic events of September, 11, 2001. Not long after, they were also notified that they were to return to their home port to begin immediate preparation for, as Brown puts it, “more important deployments.”

“Some of the most amazing men and women in the world—and myself—truly went into the unknown in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and, eventually, Operation Enduring Freedom,” says Brown.

In 2003, Brown began his long return home to the United States. En route, he was researching educational opportunities and in a “best colleges” book under the engineering section, noted CBU’s listing.

Brown attributes CBU’s proximity to his family and its reputation for quality as significant factors in his selection.

The Yellow Ribbon Program is in keeping with CBU’s Lasallian tradition. Dr. Evelyn McDonald, PHOTO BY MANGIANTE PHOTOGRAPHY

Nicholas Brown (’09) is a Navy veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He graduated in May with a degree in electrical engineering and received the Brother Philip Morgan Electrical Engineering Design Award.

vice president of student life, states “Our campus is a peaceful oasis that offers a welcoming community where a student doesn’t get lost, physically, spiritually or intellectually. We are honored to be able to promote this extra benefit to the men and women who served our country.”

Brown concurs: “Christian Brothers (University) has a long history of standing behind its students and supporting them and the community. Watching this program develop while attending and knowing that veterans after me will be able to walk on campus and get the support, knowledge, and general comfort they need to start a new chapter in their life is food for the soul.”

This May, Brown accepted a job with the engineering firm Fisher & Arnold as a project designer and is currently working on a Master of Engineering Management at CBU. “The engineering program at CBU is one of the most challenging things I have ever done in my entire life. Looking back, it is also one of the things I am most proud of. Being an older student, having to work a full-time job while being a full-time student, almost made my dream impossible. The CBU staff and engineering professors in particular are the only reason I can claim success,” said Brown.

For more information on the Yellow Ribbon Program at CBU, contact vets@cbu.edu or call (901) 321-3291. For more information about the Post/911 Veterans Educational Assistance from the Department of Veterans, visit www.gibill.va.gov. n BELLTOWERFALL2009

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New CBU Athletic Hall of Fame Will Induct Its Inaugural Class in January

by Eric Opperman

Bob Stephenson

Kristi Key Long (’85)

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THE CBU ATHLETIC Hall of Fame has announced its inaugural class, featuring 10 of the biggest names in CBU’s athletic history. The class will be inducted as part of Homecoming weekend at the Hall of Fame Banquet on January 29 at 5:00 p.m. in the Alfonso Dining Hall. Tickets are $35 each, and a table of eight is $280.

The inaugural class includes Joe Alfonso, Julie Bowen, Al Cash, Brother Stephen Eamon Gavin, Kristi Key Long, Bill Lowry, Joe Nadicksbernd, Hank Raymonds, Jerry Seessel, and Bob Stephenson.

Joe Alfonso operated CBU’s cafeteria—now named the Alfonso Dining Hall in his honor—for many years, and he consistently rose above and beyond the call of duty to keep CBU’s athletes well-fed, especially during breaks in the school calendar.

Julie Bowen (’84) starred for the Lady Bucs in basketball and volleyball from 1980 to 1984, leading the teams to an 80-30 record during her career, including a 23-3 record and a VSAC West Division Championship in 1983. Bowen is CBU’s all-time rebound leader with 1,128, and she is third with 1,366 points. She led the Lady Bucs to four VSAC championships, four NAIA Bi-District championships, and three NAIA National Tournament appearances.

Al Cash (’65) starred in basketball from 1960 to 1964. Cash ranks 12th on CBU’s all-time scoring list with 1,512 points. He also ranks seventh in career rebounds with 784.

Brother Stephen Eamon Gavin was instrumental in the beginning of the CBU athletics department, and he served as CBU’s first athletic director from 1954 to 1961.

Kristi Key Long (’85) starred in volleyball and basketball from 1981 to 1985. She was the Lady Bucs’ first-ever female All-American athlete as she led the Lady Bucs to four straight VSAC volleyball championships, three straight NAIA District Championships and National Tournament appearances. CBU amassed a 123-24 record in her four years. She also excelled in basketball, scoring 796 points in four years, helping the Lady Bucs to a winning record all four years including the 1983 VSAC West Division title.

Bill Lowry (’60) starred for the basketball team from 1956 to 1960. Lowry is CBU’s all-time leading rebounder with 1,689, and his 1,958 points rank second in school history. He led the Bucs to three

straight 20-win seasons, including two NAIA District Championships and two NAIA National Tournament appearances.

Joe Nadicksbernd (’71) has been an icon of CBU athletics for more than 40 years. He starred in baseball and basketball from 1967 to 1971. On the baseball field, Nadicksbernd hit .329 with 17 homers and 104 runs batted in. As a junior, he led the Bucs to a 38-12 record, the best mark in school history. In basketball, he ranks third in school history with 963 rebounds and 19th in scoring with 1,246 points. He coached the baseball team from 1975 to 1999, and he coached the basketball team from 1978 to 1982. He won 586 games in 25 years as baseball coach, and he won 47 games in four years as basketball coach. He served as assistant athletic director from 1994 to 1998, associate athletic director from 1998 to 2003, and the athletics director since 2003.

Hank Raymonds coached the CBU men’s basketball team from 1955 to 1961, leading the Bucs to a 110-50 record in those six years. He led the Bucs to backto-back district championships and NAIA national tournament appearances in 1958-59 and 1959-60. He led the Bucs to three straight 20-win seasons and six straight winning records.

Jerry Seessel spearheaded the beginning of the women’s soccer program at CBU. His vision helped lead to one of CBU’s most successful programs, including the school’s only national championship in 2002 as well as the 2001 national runner-up finish.

Bob Stephenson served as athletic director from 1969 to 1996, and he coached the men’s basketball team from 1969 to 1978, accumulating a 130-111 record. He led the Bucs to a 23-11 record in 1976-77, the fourth-most wins in a season in school history.

Former student-athletes, coaches and staff, and other individuals who have contributed to the advancement of CBU athletics are eligible for the Hall of Fame. Student-athletes are eligible ten years after their graduation (or the end of their playing career).

Selections are made by the Hall of Fame Committee from nominations by the public. The Hall of Fame Committee comprises members of the Athletics staff as well as representatives of the offices of Alumni, Advancement, Student Life, and the Hall of Fame membership. n If you’d like to attend the Hall of Fame Banquet, please return the registration form on the inside back cover of this issue.

PHOTOS FROM THE FILES OF THE GALLEON

news@cbu

All-American Stephen Hill Recognized with GSC Commissioner’s Trophy

CBU cross-country runner Stephen Hill wrapped up his college running career in the NCAA Division II National Championships last November.

by Eric Opperman BUCCANEER CROSS-COUNTRY runner Stephen Hill (’09) was awarded the highest award for a Gulf South Conference (GSC) student-athlete in June. The Commissioner’s Trophy recognizes excellence beyond outstanding athletic prowess; included are leadership qualities, school and community service, academic success, character, and sportsmanship. Each year, the Conference recognizes its most outstanding male and female athlete with the presentation of this most prestigious award.

Hill, a native of Collierville, TN and a graduate of Houston High School, excelled in all three phases during his career at CBU, leading the University to its four highest finishes in the GSC and South Regional Championships. He won four races, including three as a senior, and he led CBU to two race crowns as a senior.

Hill was a four-time first-team All-GSC and first-team All-South Region selection, earning an individual berth in the NCAA Division II National Championships three times. He was a first-team U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-American as a freshman, narrowly missing the award as a sophomore and again as a senior.

He finished 63rd of 152 runners in the 2009 Nationals.

Hill’s unparalleled success and leadership at CBU extended well beyond the cross-country course. Hill graduated this May with a 3.85 GPA as he earned his bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering, PHOTO BY LON HILL

with a minor in chemistry. He won the Chemical/ Biochemical Engineering Award and the Outstanding School of Engineering Graduate award at CBU. He was a unanimous choice for Academic All-GSC as a senior, his third straight year winning the award. He was also a three-time USTFCCCA All-Academic Team member.

Hill’s excellence on the course and in the classroom is matched by his community service record. On campus, Hill was a four-year officer in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, including a term as president as a senior. He helped CBU’s Up ‘til Dawn program raise over $30,000 annually for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and earned CBU’s Creative Program of the Year award for directing an 11-mile fundraising run.

His service extended well beyond Memphis, as he served on two mission trips to Managua, Nicaragua, where he worked providing free vision clinics and renovating seminaries. He also served on two missions to Panama City Beach, where he helped provide a safe environment for Spring Break students in Florida.

Hill is CBU’s second Commissioner’s Trophy winner, following Lady Buc soccer standout Margaret Saurin, who won the 2003 women’s trophy. He was the Bucs’ third finalist in four years, following baseball third baseman John Raymond Hehn in 2006 and soccer midfielder Matt Werakso in 2007. Hill is the first cross-country runner since 1987 to win the award, and only the third in its history. n BELLTOWERFALL2009

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ZTA Chapter Starts Scholarship at CBU in Memory of Jennifer Hicks Aertker

The first recipients of the Jennifer Hicks Aertker Scholarship are Leigh Hill (’10), Raelyn Pirtle (’10), and Shannon Smith (’11), pictured above (l-r) with Jennifer’s mother, Lorraine Hicks.

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by Sara Jasper Clark (’97) JENNIFER HICKS AERTKER graduated from CBU in 2000 and was an active member of the Iota Xi chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha. After graduation, Jennifer married her college sweetheart, Erick Aertker (’00), and moved to the New Orleans area. She worked as an electrical engineer for Bellsouth/AT&T and the couple had one son, Christian.

Three years ago, Jennifer was diagnosed with a brain tumor and her mother, Lorraine Hicks, moved to Louisiana to help the family. Sadly, in January, Jennifer lost her hard-fought battle with this disease.

When the ZTA chapter at CBU heard this news, it decided to start a scholarship in Jennifer’s name.

When the chapter told Erick Aertker of its plans, he spread the word to family and friends. His college roommate and fraternity brother, John Voitier (’99), answered with an amazing offer—he was participating in a triathlon in New Orleans in April and wanted to raise scholarship funds through pledges for this event.

Voitier spoke to CBU alumni and others who knew Jennifer and Erick and succeeded in raising more than $3,500. The ladies in the ZTA chapter were overwhelmed by everyone’s generosity and by Voitier’s hard work. It also showed that the chapter’s choice to honor Jennifer this way truly meant a lot to her family and friends.

Through donations by the local alumni association of John and Erick’s fraternity, Memphis ZTA alumnae, current chapter members’ families, and other activities held by the chapter, the scholarship amount grew

to over $5,000. Over the summer, the Scholarship Committee met and decided to award scholarships to three deserving young women in Jennifer’s chapter.

Leigh Hill (History ’10), from Baton Rouge, LA, is very involved in Campus Ministry at CBU and is a resident assistant. She spent last semester studying abroad in Capetown, South Africa. Hill plans to join the Lasallian Volunteers after graduation and then attending either graduate school in international relations or law school to study environmental law.

Raelyn Pirtle (Biology ’10), from Bartlett, TN, plans to be a veterinarian and hopes to attend veterinary school next fall. She volunteers at the Bartlett Animal Shelter to gain experience and to help the animals.

Shannon Smith (Psychology ’11), from Collierville, TN, plans to attend law school after graduation.

A reception was held in honor of Jennifer, the scholarship recipients, and the donors on October 10.

Mrs. Hicks came from New Orleans to speak about her daughter and what the scholarship meant to her.

Leigh Hill summed up everyone’s feelings: “I am really honored to have been given this scholarship named for such an amazing young woman, who truly shaped the lives of all who know her. ZTA has really helped to shape me into the confident woman I am today.” n For more information or to make a donation to the Jennifer Hicks Aertker ZTA Scholarship, contact Zeta Tau Alpha, c/o Christian Brothers University at 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104.

Lasallian Fellows Program CBU is proud to announce the establishment of the Lasallian Fellows program, made possible by the generosity of trustee Joyce Mollerup and her husband, Bob Buckman. Every year the Lasallian Fellows program will recognize five rising seniors whose scholarship, leadership, and service reflect the Lasallian values upon which CBU was founded.

Nominated by faculty and staff, students chosen as Fellows will have demonstrated that they think creatively and imaginatively; possess innovative problem-solving skills; and make a difference in the world and lives of others. Each Fellow will be awarded a stipend of $5,000 with the intention that the funds enable the student’s continued growth and aid his/her ability to positively impact humankind.

PHOTO BY SARA JASPER CLARK (’97)

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Fray Scholarship Informed by ‘Non-Traditional’ Experience

by Andrew Prislovsky FAYE AND EARL (’59) Fray established the Earl and Faye Fray Endowed Scholarship this spring, primarily to help non-traditional CBU students who need assistance with their education—although all students are eligible.

At age 16, Earl Fray joined an Air Force reserve unit which was activated during the Korean conflict.

He was discharged two years later. Since he had not completed high school, he took and passed a GED examination and went to work. He and Faye were married shortly thereafter; he was 19, she was 20.

“Finally, almost five years after leaving high school, Faye and I committed to the objective of me gaining a degree in electrical engineering and CBU was kind enough to accept me as a student,” Fray recalls. “By the time I graduated four years later, we had a three-yearold son and a six-month-old son, somehow with very little debt.”

Earl was considering teaching as a career, and Faye urged hm to follow his interest. “I was fortunate enough to find a position as a full-time instructor

with a major university while continuing my education,” he says. “Three years later, I had my master’s degree, another son, and a decision to not pursue a teaching career.

So I began my engineering and business career.”

Fray says that he hopes his story will encourage others to pursue their dreams, even in the face of difficult financial and personal challenges. “We want our scholarship fund to help other ‘non-traditional’ students who have serious educational goals but face uncommon obstacles,” he adds.

The Frays took an uncommon educational and career path, and that pattern continues on into their retirement years. Not content to just sit back, they lead a very active life filling their days biking across the U.S. or cruising the world on cargo ships. n

Faye and Earl (’59) Fray

Year-End Giving The When, Why and How of Making a Difference WHEN DO I BEGIN? From October through December, Americans respond to charitable appeals more than at any other time during the year.

WHY NOW? Generosity knows no season, but this is historically the time most people give and receive—and begin income tax planning.

HOW DO I HELP? • Give cash. To document a cash gift of any amount, you must have a “contemporaneous written acknowledgment” from us. Make certain you receive one. A cancelled check provides sufficient documentation only for gifts by check if they are less than $250.

• Give stock or other property. If the property has depreciated in value, sell it and deduct the loss as allowed by law. Then donate the cash received from its sale. That way you have another deduction.

If it is worth more than what you originally paid for it, do not sell it. Give the property to us—we’ll sell it and you will avoid all the capital gains tax you would have paid had you sold it. Your gift will be deductible at its full fair market value on its date of delivery if you have held it for more than one year.

• Sell an appreciated asset for less than its current value to us (a bargain sale gift). The difference between the fair market value of the property and what you receive in the sale is considered the gift—and the charitable deduction.

• To receive the greatest tax advantage, give to qualified charitable organizations such as CBU. If in doubt, ask to see a Letter of Determination from the IRS. For more information options for a planned gift to CBU, please contact Andrew Prislovsky, senior director of advancement, at (901) 321-3270, (800) 283-2925, or aprislov@cbu.edu. n

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University Art Collection Grows With Donations, Including First BFA Grads CBU’S ART COLLECTION has grown over the years from donations by artists and collectors. This year, its acquisitions also included works by CBU’s first Bachelor of Fine Arts graduates, Dan Thompson and Jamie Jaynes (both ’09). Pictured is a selection of new pieces (clockwise from top right): Dan Thompson, Endless Desire, acrylic on canvas; Ann M. Moore, Sanctuary, color photograph (from a group of works donated by members of the Memphis Camera Club); Jamie Jaynes, Hidden Identities, mixed media on canvas; and Cliff and William Valentine, Sycamore Range Rider Hat, sycamore (from a group of works donated by members of the Mid South Woodturners Guild). n

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PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

kudos@cbu

SCHOOL OF ARTS 4 Voices of Vietnamese Boat People, a book by Dr. Mary Terrell Cargill (Literature & Languages) was featured with other books on the subject at the Library of Congress for three weeks in the spring in conjunction with “A Boat People Retrospective Symposium.” In September, Cargill read Lan Nguyen’s story from Voices at the Saigon Arts, Culture, and Education Institute Conference in Vienna, VA. Dr. Lan Nguyen (Chemistry ‘98) now practices medicine in Houston where she lives with her husband and daughter.

4 Dr. Roger Easson’s (Literature & Languages) collaboration with Judge D’Army Bailey, The Education of a Black Radical: A Southern Civil Right’s Activist’s Journey 1959-1964, has been published by LSU Press. This is Judge Bailey’s memoir on which Dr. Easson acted as developmental editor and literary agent. The catalog of Easson’s library of books about William Blake has been published by John Windle Antiquarian Bookseller, San Francisco. This 176-page catalog lists the trade collection and rare materials not given to the University of Tulsa. This catalog is being called by some in the Blake community of scholars as the most important catalog since the 1946 catalog of the Graham Robertson collection.

4 Dr. Scott Geis (Religion & Philosophy) presented a paper at the third annual Symposium on Faith and Culture held at Baylor University in October, entitled “Suffering (and) the Consolations of the New Atheism: A Case for Kierkegaard.”

4 Dr. Paul Haught (Religion & Philosophy) received an alumni appreciation award from the University of North Texas in September. He also presented his paper, “Environmental Virtues and Environmental Justice,” to the students and faculty in UNT’s doctoral program in philosophy and environmental ethics.

4 Dr. Emily Holmes (Religion & Philosophy) organized and led the conference “Incarnating Words: Women, Writing, Theology” in Atlanta in May. The conference was supported by a grant Holmes received from the Louisville Institute. As an American Academy of Religion/Luce Foundation Fellow, Holmes also attended the AAR/Luce Summer Seminar on Theologies of Religious Pluralism and Comparative Theology in New York in June.

Holmes was also awarded a Lindsay Young Visiting Fellowship at the Marco Institute for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at the University of Tennessee for her project, “This Soul Which is Not One: The

PHOTO BY BILL CUPO

Dr. Ann Marie Wranovix (Literature & Languages), pictured above with interim president Lance Forsdick and Brother Louis Althaus, was honored with the 2009 Distinguished Lasallian Educator Award at the Faculty/Staff Recognition Reception in April. The award -- the highest presented by the University to faculty or staff -- annually honors a CBU educator, nominated by his/her peers, who exemplifies the ideals of St. John Baptist de La Salle in the 21st century.

Eligible nominees must have been a Lasallian educator for at least five years, be actively involved in fostering the mission of Lasallian education, and exemplify in his/her life the spirit of St. John Baptist de La Salle and demonstrate an enthusiasm for the Lasallian tradition.

Decreation of Marguerite Porete.”

4 Dr. Talana Vogel (Education) conducted a roundtable session entitled “Growing Their Own: The Executive Leadership Program” at the Southern Regional Council on Educational Administration 50th Annual Conference held in Atlanta in October.

The session shared the Executive Leadership Program that is a component of the Urban Education Center at the Teaching and Learning Academy, a center for professional development in Memphis City Schools. Vogel serves as the Advisory Board Chair for the Urban Education Center. Dr. Vogel was also featured in the cover article, entitled “Internal Affair: The Mechanics of Picking Better Teachers,” of the October 17 edition of The Memphis News.

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS 4 CBU’s Epsilon Psi Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi was awarded five regional awards and two provincial awards — including the Most Outstanding Chapter in the Southern Province — this summer at the Grand

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Chapter Congress in Washington, DC. 4 Phillip Bryant (Management/Marketing/ Economics) has an article entitled “Emerging organizations’ characteristics as predictors of human capital employment mode: A theoretical perspective” published in Human Resource Management Review (December 2009, Vol. 19 Issue 4, p347-355). The article is coauthored with David G. Allen.

4 Dr. Bev Pray (Finance) was the luncheon speaker for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) in June. Her topic was “Moral Competency: How Intelligent are your Ethical Decisions?” She also presented twice in a train-the-trainers format to the facilitators of the Memphis Youth Leadership Program. This is an eight-week program for atrisk youth between the ages of 14-17 sponsored

by Memphis Challenge and Memphis Regional Chamber of Commerce. Her topics were “Personal Responsibility to your Community” and “Character Development.” Pray also presented a half-day workshop to managers and supervisors in Shelby County Government on “Ethical Decision-Making and Moral Competency.”

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING 4 Dr. K. Madhavan (Civil Engineering) was selected by the Pile Driving Contractors Association to attend the 5th Biennial Professors’ Driven Pile Institute held at Utah State University in June. This was a week-long workshop and 25 university professors from the U.S. and Canada attended.

4 Dr. Siripong Malasri (Civil Engineering & Packaging) was inducted into the Pi Alpha Kappa Honorary Society of the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP) in July for his work with packaging programs/activities and his services to the Mid-South packaging community. The award is the highest honor a member can achieve for service to a chapter or committee, recognizing outstanding active participation, service, and longevity.

4 Mr. Gene McGinnis (Civil & Environmental Engineering) conducted a Bridge Design Workshop for middle school students in the Memphis area on October 8. Approximately 40 students attended the workshop, where they learned the basics of designing bridges, built gum drop bridges, and tested them to failure. Evan Boulanger (Civil Rngineering) helped the students during the building and testing phase of the workshop. Dr. Randel Price (Chemical & Biochemical Engineering) organized the workshop.

4 Amanda Taylor (Mechanical Engineering ‘09) and

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Nicholas Brown (Electrical & Computer Engineering ‘09) won first place in the oral competition at the 2009 Ninth Annual Student Design Contest at the Rochester Institute of Technology in May for their presentation on “Thermoelectric Light.” Projects were evaluated by judges experienced in the field of engineering and six awards are given based on specific criteria.

4 Dr. John Ventura (Electrical & Computer Engineering) has been elected vice-chair of Memphis-Area Joint Engineers Council (MJEC).

MJEC is an umbrella organization for over 20 engineering organizations and engineering educational institutions in the Memphis area.

4 Students from the CBU Student Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers participated in an impromptu contest at the TN Section Meeting of the American Society of Civil Engineers in Symrna, TN. Evan Boulanger, Mallory Bailey, Greg Carrico, Katie Godwin, and Katie McGinnis brought home a second place trophy and $400 cash price for their efforts. They competed against the seven other universities in Tennessee that produce civil engineering graduates.

SCHOOL OF SCIENCES 4 Dr. Leigh C. Becker (Mathematics) is the author of a computer application entitled “Constant Delay Differential Equations and the Method of Steps,” which was recently published by the Maplesoft Application Center. Becker was also the author of the paper “Uniformly Continuous L1 Solutions of Volterra Equations and Global Asymptotic Stability,” which appears in the August issue of the research journal CUBO: a Mathematical Journal, which is published by the Universidad de la Frontera TemucoChile and the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco Recife-Brazil. The paper is in a special issue devoted to the qualitative properties of functional equations.

4 Dr. Pascal Bedrossian (Mathematics & Computer Science) was recognized by the School of Sciences with the Dr. Marguerite Cooper Distinguished professor Award for 2009. The award was presented at the Faculty/Staff Recognition Reception in April. The award is given annually in tribute to a School of Sciences professor who exemplifies excellence in teaching effectiveness; service to the department, university, and students; professional growth; and administration.

4 Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald (Biology) co-authored two presentations that were presented at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology in

kudos@cbu

Ft. Lauderdale, FL in May. “A Signal to Noise Comparison Between Pattern Reversal and Pattern-pulse mfVEPs” was also co-authored

by Hope Shackelford (Biology ‘09). “Chromatic Discrimination Measured With mfVEPs: Luminance Contrast Influence Evaluated With a Signal to Noise Protocol” was also co-authored by Stephanie Johnson (Biology ‘09).

4 CBU forensic anthropology students and adjunct lecturer Julia Hanebrink traveled to the West Memphis School District (WMSD) Instructional Center in West Memphis to introduce Mrs. Madeleine Boiles’ middle school students to forensic science on September 30. Approximately 50 students from the WMSD Gifted and Talented Program participated in a forensic anthropology seminar led by Hanebrink.

After the seminar, the CBU forensic anthropology class led the WMSD students through mock criminal investigations using hands-on lab experiments.

The students got a glimpse of what it means to be a forensic investigator and how bones can help address questions about life and death.

4 Anmol Khan (Biomedical Science ‘10) presented a selected poster at the Pediatric Research Day symposium at LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center on September 23. The topic of the poster was “Cystic Fibrosis: Defining a Novel and Rare Mutant 5549NCFTR.” 4 Brother Kevin Ryan (Physics) was a member of the winning “Super Seniors” team at the State Tennis Tournament in Knoxville on September 1820. They were the only team from Memphis to win at the tournament and now advance to the Sectional Tournament in Birmingham, AL in March. Brother Kevin, who played doubles, won his matches 3-0 with two tie breakers.

ATHLETICS 4 Lady Buc goalkeeper Christina Barone (‘10) was named the Gulf South Conference Soccer Defender of the Week twice this season, for the periods ending October 7 and October 28.

4 Buccaneer midfielder Clark Bradford (‘10) was named Gulf South Conference Soccer Player of the Week for the period ending October 7 after leading the Bucs to a pair of wins over Delta State, scoring twice and assisting on the game-winner.

4 Lady Buc pitcher Nikki Dunn (Psychology ‘09) was voted to the All-GSC West Softball First Team.

Dunn is a four-time All-GSC West pick, with three years on the All-GSC First Team, becoming the 41st

player in GSC history to be a three-time first-teamer.

She finished her career ranked third in GSC history with 8.68 strikeouts per seven innings, fourth with 868 total strikeouts, sixth with three no-hitters, eighth with 130 appearances, and ninth with 725 innings pitched. As a senior, she went 16-12 with a 2.11 ERA, both career-best numbers. She struck out 211 batters in 192.1 innings.

4 Buccaneer first baseman Joseph Kaminski (Mechanical Engineering ‘10) was named to the AllGSC West Baseball First Team. Kaminski hit .394 with 10 homers and 39 RBI as he played all 45 games for the Bucs in 2009. He also hit 16 doubles and two triples, finishing with 113 total bases and a .706 slugging percentage.

4 Lady Buc first baseman Casey King (Management ‘12) was selected to the All-GSC West Softball Second Team. King hit .345 for the 2009 season with seven doubles, four homers, and 24 RBI. She was also a perfect 10-for-10 in stolen base attempts.

4 Lady Buc outfielder Victoria Mathews (Management ‘11) was voted to the All-GSC West Softball First Team. Mathews broke the school single-season hit record with 66 as she hit .431 for the 2009 season. Her 35 runs and 106 total bases are also school records, as she hit 14 doubles, seven triples, and three homers. She tied the NCAA record for triples in a game with three against Williams Baptist.

4 Morgan Mills (History ‘10) became the first CBU tennis player to be named to the All-Gulf South Conference West Division Tennis Team since 1999.

Morgan, who went 6-7 at No. 1 singles and 5-6 at No. 1 doubles for the Lady Bucs, was selected to the All-GSC West Second Team, as selected in a vote of the league’s coaches.

4 Lady Buc middle hitter Hanna Orendorff (Natural Science ‘10) was named the Gulf South Conference West Division Offensive Player of the Week for the period ending September 1. She led the Lady Bucs to a 3-1 weekend, hitting .350 for the weekend with 50 kills in 103 attempts, reaching double figures in each match.

4Buccaneer runner Nate Spears (‘12) earned a spot on the All-GSC Cross Country Second Team with his 13th-place finish in the Gulf South Conference Championships in October.

4 Buccaneer forward Zach Tubinis (Business Administration ‘10) was named Men’s Soccer Player of the Week by the Gulf South Conference for the period ending September 15. n

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studentprofile

A Candlelit Path to Success

Zamyra Lambert (’12) balances business with biochemistry... BY RAQUEL DA R L I N G ( ’ 1 0 )

Zamyra Lambert has turned a hobby into a successful business; her long range plans include a career in medicine.

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ZAMYRA LAMBERT IS not your typical sophomore at CBU. As a transfer student from Alabama State University, she comes to the campus with a very colorful history and an even brighter future. For over eight years now she has stepped out and engraved her place in the entrepreneurial world. As owner and founder of Arymaz Aromas & Collections, she has managed to succeed at what very few people dare to attempt.

“I just enjoy making them,” Lambert says about the candles that are the core of her business. She started making them in May 2001 as just a hobby taught to her by her babysitter. About a year later for Mother’s Day, Lambert thought that she would give her candles a chance in the market and started Arymaz Aromas & Collections (Arymaz is Zamyra spelled backward), selling the candles as holiday gifts. Today, her customer base has grown considerably with a sizable amount of her sales coming from repeat customers. The candles, she says, are for everyone, and there is one that will fit any type of person—whether their decision to purchase them is based on price or aroma.

Lambert manages to keep her business afloat and running smoothly with very little help. She creates many of the fragrances based on her customers’ requests while other fragrances are bought from an outside

source and used to scent her candles. Even with the very detailed and unique work, the price range for the custom candles is only $5.00 to $25.00. This method seems to have worked for her, as she still posts a very considerable profit on her merchandise.

As if owning her own business is not enough, there is more on Lambert’s plate. As a full time biochemistry major with an additional part-time job, she only makes it all look easy. She admits that juggling everything can sometimes be hard but it is hard work, she says, that pays off. Plus, work is always better when it doesn’t seem like work—making the candles for her is “just fun.”

Owning her own business does not make education any less important. Lambert chose CBU because of its exceptional sciences program with a belief that education, no matter what the discipline, is what will broaden all roads to success whether they are headed towards entrepreneurship or other areas.

Becoming a successful business owner at her young age has not gone unnoticed. Since the start of Arymaz Aromas & Collections, Lambert has been awarded a great many accolades, including the Better Business Bureau 2004 Award for Outstanding Young Entrepreneur and the 2005 NAACP ACT-SO Award for Entrepreneurship. She was invited by the Mid-South Minority Business Council to join CBU president Dr. John Smarrelli on its panel discussion on the topic of “Developing the Next Generation of Minority Entrepreneurs” in August.

She also has been featured in several magazines, newspapers, and news broadcasts. Her candles are sold in various shops in the Memphis area, including the MLGW gift shop and by contacting her via her Web site at arymaz.com.

Lambert is leaving her options open and keeping in mind that the possibilities for her business are endless. She is working for the continued success of Arymaz Aromas & Collections and hopes to expand her business even further and possibly include clothing design.

After college, Lambert plans to enter the medical field. Whether through her candles or through the practice of medicine, it seems that her ultimate goal in life is to simply make people feel good. n PHOTO BY AIMEE LEWIS (’92)

studentprofile

On the Trail of Cats (and Scat) Caroline Mitchell (’10) trades history for big cats in Brazil... BY LINDSAY HAN L E N ( ’ 1 0 ) CAROLINE MITCHELL HAD always had a yearning to study abroad. She never really saw herself in the normal study abroad locales—France, Spain, or England. Something more called to her, and when the opportunity to track animals in Brazil through the Minority Health International Research Training (MHIRT) program was offered, she jumped at it.

As a freshman, Mitchell was introduced to the MHIRT program. She filled out the application with a bit of trepidation, but decided that “the worst thing they could tell me was ‘no.’ I took the chance that Dr. [Malinda] Fitzgerald would be willing to include a history major.” Having worked at the Memphis Pink Palace Museum on exhibits such as the recent “Scoop on Poop,” Mitchell was accustomed to unusual tasks; when she was approached to possibly track animals in Brazil by their waste remains, she did not shy away.

Mitchell was assigned to her first choice—Parque Nacional das Emas in Goías, Brazil—to work with the Instituto Onça-Pintada/Jaguar Conservation Fund (IOP/JCF). To begin her preparation, she studied elementary Portuguese. She adorned the furnishings of her apartment with masking tape labels in Portuguese to help her learn the names of various items.

“The result of that was arriving in Brazil with a very thorough knowledge of the words for different pieces of furniture and fruit,” she jokes. “I did learn some things quickly once I got there, like dog commands—which have the added benefit of working on three-year-olds.”

Leandro and Anah Silvera, cofounders of the IOP/JCF, became her site mentors. Mitchell lived in a guest house on their property, which borders the Parque Nacional das Emas, one of the only remaining grassland biomes in a country that is otherwise almost entirely corn and soybean plantations. Her neighbors— macaws, parrots, toucans, and the park’s namesake emus—visited her on a regular basis. From her front porch, she looked over a valley and into the park.

As a field assistant to Rahel Sollmann, a German Ph.D. candidate, Mitchell helped to track the distribution of jaguars through scat (fecal waste) collection and camera trapping. Two “scat dogs,” Tupã and Xingu, sought out scat and when a positive scat identification occurred, Mitchell bagged it. At Sollmann’s house, they collected data on the samples PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLINE MITCHELL (’10)

and prepared it for mailing to Spain for genetics testing.

Mitchell also quickly learned that time is different in the South American country. “Everything gets accomplished, but it gets done at an individualized pace,” she says. She recounts an example: “We woke up at 4:30 a.m. to go out with the dogs. The truck got a flat tire outside of the kennel, so I watched as two of the guys put on a spare. Then we drove up the road to a bar where the owner also fixes tires. By the time we got the tire fixed, it was 7:00 a.m. and too late to go out to the park.”

A month into the stay, Mitchell and other assistants took part in a four-day expedition up the Araguaia River, the third largest river in Brazil outside of the Amazon basin. They camped along the way, met other researchers, and caught glimpses of river dolphins. It was a break from scat collection that allowed her the chance to see another jaguar habitat.

Following her summer of jaguar tracking and scat collecting, Mitchell returned home with a smile of accomplishment on her face. She had met new people, made new friends, and lived the life most people wish they could be adventurous enough to try. Her studyabroad experience did not include classes and professors, but the lessons she learned were invaluable—and ones that she never expected from going abroad. n

Caroline Mitchell took a chance that CBU’s MHIRT program would take a history major for its research project in Brazil; it paid off.

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Cultivating Community and Crops Social Justice Committee breaks new ground on learning... BY LINDSAY HANL E N ( ’ 1 0 )

Right: Social Justice Committee members and community gardeners Chris Peterson, Kenny Latta, and Dylan Perry (all senior Religion & Philosophy majors).

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CBU’S SOCIAL JUSTICE Committee broke ground on a community garden in June in hopes of promoting nutrition, education, environmental awareness and fostering community. The garden, which has already sprouted watermelon, herbs, tomatoes and eggplant, is supplying food to the CBU community—students, faculty, staff, and alumni—in addition to neighboring households that have nurtured it.

The initial summer harvest produced a few tastings of each vegetable but the fall crops are flourishing abundantly. As fall fades, onions and garlic will be planted for winter harvesting. The relatively small 120 x 45 foot plot is divided into rows for various vegetables and herbs. The garden also has a section for compost, which will be used later for fertilizing.

“Fresh fruit and vegetables are sometimes too expensive for college students to afford,” says garden leader Chris Peterson (’10). “Here we know what goes on our food, where our food comes from, and have a healthier selection.”

One goal of the garden is to promote service learning. Several CBU students believe that the plot is an opportunity to create a senior project that will benefit more than their GPA. Engineering students have offered to build a more economical and earthconscious irrigation system. Biology majors hope to

study the plants, while chemistry students plan to test the soil.

In addition, the service learning reaches beyond the sciences to the liberal arts, as the garden is designed to highlight social justice through topics such as fair trade and localization of food supplies. “This is the start of a new conscience,” Peterson says. “We are becoming more aware of fair trade problems and the need to reduce financial and environmental costs by not hauling food in from all over the world that we can grow here.”

Dylan Perry (’10), president of the Social Justice Committee, underlines the community aspect, stating, “This area is for everyone. It is meant not only as a healthy alternative to fast food and a good way to exercise but as a site for meeting, learning and growing.”

Upholding the Lasallian tradition that was a cornerstone in the founding of the University, the garden is designed to teach and give back to the community that has given so much to the garden and the gardeners.

“We hope, in the bigger picture, to one day have such a supply from the garden that we can donate to local soup kitchens and even the CBU cafeteria,” says Perry. n PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

alumniprofile

Considering the Consequences

Karen Ellis (’90) is helping FedEx learn environmental lessons... BY MELISS A H A N S O N FOR MANY COLLEGE students, the road from matriculation to graduation winds through a few different interests, plans, and majors along the way.

For Karen Blanks Ellis (’90), it was as straight as the interstate that brought her from St. Louis to Memphis.

As a student at Cardinal Ritter College Prep, Ellis participated in externships through the INROADS program, an international organization that develops and places talented minority youth in business and industry and prepares them for corporate and community leadership. Through these experiences, she discovered her interest in chemistry, but, at the same time, realized that she “didn’t want to be in a lab or doing research and development.”

The field of chemical engineering provided the perfect combination of scientific knowledge and practical applications for Ellis, and CBU proved to be the right place for her to continue her studies.

“I had always gone to small schools,” Ellis explained, “and there weren’t many with good engineering programs.” Her principal at Cardinal Ritter was a Christian Brother and had connected many students to CBU. “We took a bus to Memphis and spent the weekend there,” she recalls. Her principal’s influence, CBU’s outstanding engineering program, and the chance to join her classmates and alumni from Cardinal Ritter all convinced Ellis to spend her next four years in Memphis.

“CBU felt like a family to me,” Ellis said. “The professors were readily available, and they cared whether you learned or not.” Her coursework helped her to “think beyond traditional chemistry” and apply her technical knowledge.

As a chemical engineering major, Ellis took a co-op position at Cummins, which led to a full-time job after graduation. It also led her to look at a new way to apply her knowledge: environmental engineering. She helped Cummins refine the chemical cleaning processes used in remanufacturing diesel engines, served as environmental engineering manager for facilities in Memphis and California, and provided technical support on environmental issues to plants in Mexico.

After nine years at Cummins, Ellis joined FedEx Corporation as a member of their Environmental Operations Support team, a group that deals with a variety of issues, from shaping legislation through PHOTO COURTESY OF KAREN Y. ELLIS (’90)

work with government affairs and trade associations to choosing which FedEx facilities should receive solar panels to deploying the company’s growing fleet of hybrid diesel-electric trucks. The team includes technical experts from a broad range of fields working together, as Ellis explains, “to better understand the consequences of our decisions.”

Ellis’ team also provides input for FedEx’s philanthropic ventures. By targeting issues such as pedestrian safety and transportation in developing countries, she explains, the company can “take advantage of lessons learned” through its business activities.

In the same way, Ellis believes that the “engineering imagination,” as she calls it, can help business and community leaders “ask the right questions” to “provide a solution that’s sustainable” for a variety of environmental concerns and other pressing needs.

“If we were asking the right questions all along, and had the right technology,” she notes, “we might have done things differently and designed infrastructure differently.”

Ellis encourages those with an interest in environmental issues to become actively involved on a number of levels.

“Plug into the political processes that will affect continued on page 21 PHOTOS COURTESY OF SAMANTHA DURNETT NOLAND & KYLE EDMUNDSON BELLTOWERFALL2009

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Not Your Grandmother’s 3D

Two CBU alums are adding an extra dimension to entertainment... BY AIMEE L E W I S ( ’ 9 2 )

Mike McKinney (’92) and Paolo Aur (MBA ”92) both work for the world’s largest manufacturer of 3D glasses.

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YOU KNOW THE famous black-and-white photo: the early ’50s movie audience outfitted in dapper attire, transfixed by the images reaching out to them made possible by the 3D glasses they all wear. Well, as two CBU alumni working in the contemporary 3D industry Paulo Aur (MBA ’92) and Mike McKinney (’92) like to point out, today’s 3D is not your grandmother’s 3D. Aur and McKinney work for Memphis’ American Paper Optics (APO), the world’s largest manufacturer of 3D glasses, having produced and sold over 1 billion pairs. Yes, that’s billion, with a “b.”

McKinney, who works in sales, admits that when he first saw the ad for the position he was skeptical about the market for 3D glasses. Aur, the company’s chief financial officer, agrees: “Coming from big corporate America, I was kind of like Mike. I thought 3D glasses, are you serious? But you get here, and you see all the different products, all the different opportunities, and it just looked like a fun place to work. I’m still involved with accounting, but I’m also involved with every facet

of operations, and it’s been a breath of fresh air.”

Although the first 3D film tests were shown as early as 1915, because of movies like It Came from Outer Space, Kiss Me Kate, and Dial M for Murder the 1950s are considered the real heyday of 3D. Thanks to greatly-improved technology, the film industry is again embracing 3D movies as a way to capture the imaginations and dollars of today’s theatergoers.

The new technology involves polarized 3D glasses (as opposed to the blue and red anaglyph glasses most people are familiar with), as well as specialized projection systems that vary among theatre chains.

APO’s movie business is primarily concerned with DVD sales that come with their glasses.

A large portion of their business isn’t tied to movies at all. “We get a lot of ideas about uses from our customers but sometimes they get protective, they think we’re going to steal it,” explains McKinney.

APO manufactures a wide variety of holograph glasses for holidays—think of those glasses used for looking at lights on the Christmas tree or for New Year’s Eve PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

Just a few of the products for which American Paper Optics makes 3D glasses. Besides DVDs, APO designs and manufactures glasses for 3D toys, games, books, comics, advertising, and novelties.

with “2010” surrounding the light source. They also produce countless specialized glasses with logos for corporations, small businesses and schools.

Two unusual projects involve education and compassion regarding diminished eyesight. For the first, APO produces films for an eye doctor that simulate eye diseases like glaucoma and retinopathy. “I always thought that was pretty neat,” says Aur. “And we did some for a retirement home, or an assisted living facility.

They wanted the employees to be more sympathetic to the elderly, and they made them wear the glasses to show them what it was like for the residents.”

Sporting events are another promising venue for APO’s wares. They produced 34 million glasses for Super Bowl ads last February. But for McKinney, it was a job for Ohio State University that posed a fun challenge. “They hired a comic book artist to create a version of all these Big 10 mascots and the Ohio State Buckeye was in the middle with the rest falling by the

wayside. And we did the 3D conversion for them—it was a 70’x20’ banner. The original plan was to hang it outside during the Ohio State/Michigan game and people would see it with 3D glasses. That was the first time we’ve done something of that size.”

Current work for DVD releases like Monsters vs.

Aliens and an 11-hour Channel 4 3D TV broadcast in England keeps the company busy. “Year after year, growth is just amazing,” says Aur. “Since we started hiring former CBU students,” adds McKinney, laughing. n KAREN ELLIS continued from page 19

regulations,” she recommends. “Engage in your community; stay plugged into what the needs are. Ask the correct questions and consider the consequences.”

As part of her engagement, Ellis has written essays and articles on environmental issues for various publications, including The Black Perspective, Denver Urban Spectrum and Black Urban Times. She has been appointed to regional environmental boards by the Mayor of Memphis and selected to serve on the Alaska Climate Change Mitigation Advisory Board.

Ellis sees her work as an extension of her faith, and of her experiences at CBU. “As Christians, we’re called to be good stewards,” she explains. “CBU has a Christian environment of caring for the individual and the task ahead. Being a full citizen of that environment prepares you to be invested in the larger community.” n

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PHOTO BY DAN BALL

The First 100 Days As CBU’s first permanent lay president, DR. JOHN SMARRELLI JR. offers a lot of energy and a lot of new ideas, but he’s determined to maintain the core Lasallian values of Faith, Service, and Community.

BY CORY DUGAN

T

he students in Dr. Stan Eisen’s “Principles of Biology I” class were filing in slowly and quietly, as is probably normal on a

Monday morning. They seated themselves in seemingly random, scattered clumps around the still-new classroom in the Cooper-Wilson Center, unpacking books and arranging laptops and soft drinks on their patch of tabletop territory. A few snatches of small talk were exchanged, and a few students cast curious glances at the man at the front of the room as he also busily prepared for class.

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Dr. Smarrelli teaches a class in “Principles of Biology I” in September.

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At 11:00 a.m. sharp, this substitute professor stepped forward and greeted the class with a cheerful “Good morning.” There was a polite murmured response.

“I’m filling in for Dr. Eisen, who couldn’t be here today,” he said. A few heads nodded. It was Yom Kippur, and Eisen had explained to the class that there would be a substitute.

“Do any of you know who I am?” the substitute asked.

The room was silent for a long moment.

“Aren’t you the president?” a young man in the rear of the room finally ventured, hand half raised.

DR. JOHN SMARRELLI JR. is the first permanent lay president in the history of Christian Brothers University, and quite possibly the first CBU president ever to teach a freshman biology class.

The Syracuse, NY native took office on July 1, assuming a post that had been vacant since the death of Brother Vincent Malham in May of 2008 and filled on an interim basis by H. Lance Forsdick Sr. (’61). One hundred days later, on October 8, a series of events began to celebrate his inauguration; the official inauguration and commissioning ceremony was conducted at St. Peter Catholic Church on October 11.

It had been a busy 100 days. Smarrelli had spoken at Masses, community organization meetings, and seminars addressing minority economic development and family business enrichment. He’d addressed gatherings of prospective new students and parents, Head Start teachers, and MBA students. He’d met with alumni, traveled to raise money, and attended a Harvard workshop for new university presidents.

He toured the campus, office by office, bearing doughnuts and talking to staff members about their responsibilities, their suggestions, and their concerns.

He’d met with the faculty in small groups of three of four members, in 30-minute sessions, with “no subject off the table.” He threw out the first ball at a Memphis Redbirds game. He plays center field for the faculty/ staff intramural softball team (and has a pretty decent batting average). And Smarrelli shows no evidence of slowing down.

“It’s humbling. It’s a great honor,” Smarrelli says of his role as the first lay president of a University that has been operated by Christian Brothers for 138 years. “My interaction with the Brothers has been very important to me. The Brothers have seamlessly welcomed me into their community. They’ve provided me with a key to the residence, which is quite an honor.” He meets with the Brothers Community at their regular monthly

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meeting and says he intends to keep them informed and as involved as ever in the day-to-day operation of the University.

“They’ve even including me in some serious golf outings,” he adds with a chuckle. “A word of advice: Don’t play for money with Brother Kevin Ryan.”

THIS IS NOT Smarrelli’s first experience as a “first lay president.” He served in 2007-08 as interim president of his alma mater, Le Moyne College, a Jesuit institution in his hometown of Syracuse that had been led by Jesuit priests since its founding in 1946. Prior to accepting the presidency of CBU, he served in 200709 as special assistant to the president at Le Moyne, and previously as provost and professor of biology.

Before returning to his alma mater, Smarrelli served from 1998 to 2001 as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Loyola University in Chicago, where he had served on the faculty since 1983 and as chair of the Department of Biology, 1993-98. He earned his doctorate and master’s degrees from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, a bachelor’s degree from Le Moyne College, and has conducted postdoctoral work in biology at the University of Virginia. Over the years in his role as a researcher on molecular biology, Smarrelli published numerous articles and authored textbooks as well as multiple College Board publications.

Smarrelli says that was drew him to research was the opportunity to do something no one else did. “In my early days, I was thinking about medicine,” he says. “But I was mentored by a faculty member at Le Moyne—Dr. Louis De Gennaro—who introduced me to research, and that research meant a lot to me.

Taking something that no one’s ever done and trying it out. If you do that and you succeed, that’s pretty amazing.”

Smarrelli still counts De Gennaro as a mentor.

“Dr. D made a huge difference in my life in 1974; he changed my life from the medical to the academic,” he says. “I came back to Le Moyne in 2001, and he was still there. When we decided to give an award to a faculty member annually who was the best mentor, we called it the Lou De Gennaro Award. Now it’s part of the culture, it’s part of the fabric of the institution, it won’t go away.”

He counts his academic research as an influence on his administrative style as well, claiming to have “backed into” administration from teaching. “In some ways administration is the same as the process in science,” Smarrelli says. “In science, you try a lot of PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

different things, and administration is the same thing.

As a scientist, you try a hundred things and maybe one of them—or two, or five—will send you out in a direction. So, as a president, my approach is to throw out a lot of different kinds of ideas.”

Smarrelli says he sometimes has to remind people that he’s just offering ideas. “What I’ve got to be careful of is people saying, ‘He’s the president and he threw out this idea, so it’s the best idea and we have to do it.’

I’ve got to get them to realize that not all of my ideas will work. But provide me with an alternative. Bring me a better idea.”

IN HIS FIRST 100 days, Smarrelli has offered a lot of ideas. But he’s also listened to a lot. He says that his “doughnut tours” not only taught him where obscure offices were located and what the people did in them, but there are many commonly held goals at CBU. “There’s a real love of this institution, a real appreciation of the family values and the warmth of this place,” he says. “It’s welcoming—I felt this even without the doughnut tours. People like the small size, they like the easy interaction.”

Now that the doughnut tours have been completed, Smarrelli has instituted what he calls “Community continued on page 28

Dr. Smarrelli addresses a group of prospective students and parents at an open house in July.

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THE FIRST 100 DAYS IN PHOTOS

More photos available online at www.flickr.com/photos/cbualumni/collections

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1. The Smarrelli family with the Christian Brothers: (seated l-r) John Smarrelli Sr., Elizabeth Smarrelli, Kristina Smarrelli, Eloise Smarrelli, John Smarrelli Jr., Nicholas Smarrelli, Caitlin Smarrelli; (standing l-r) Br. Francis Carr, Br. Jeff Gros, Br. Kevin Ryan, Fr. Maury Smith , Br. Francisco Martin, Br. Stan Sobczyk, Br. Robert Werle, Br. John McGoldrick, Br. Terence McLaughlin, Br. Louis DeThomasis, Br. Ignatius Brown, Br. Michael Schmelzer, Br. Bernard LoCoco, Br. Alan Parham, Br. Matthew Smith, Br. Rob Veselsky, Br. Joel Baumeyer, and Br. Louis Althaus 2. Dr. Smarrelli with Kenny Latta, president of the SGA 3. Smarrelli with Mayor A C Wharton (formerly of Shelby County and currently of the City of Memphis) 4. Eloise and John Smarrelli Jr. at Freshman Orientation 26

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PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN, EXCEPT #7 BY M. MUKARRAM

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5. Smarrelli with student volunteers on Freshman Move-in Day 6. Smarrelli with Dr. Kriner Cash, superintendent of Memphis City Schools 7. Smarrelli greets the Dalai Lama during the exiled leader’s visit to Memphis for the National Civil Rights Museum’s Freedom Award.

8. Smarrelli throws out the first pitch at the last home game of the Memphis Redbirds’ season.

9. Smarrelli posing for photos with students at the Service Day Celebration, the opening event of the Inaugural Week events BELLTOWERFALL2009

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Dr. Smarrelli speaks to the Mid-South Minority Business Council’s conference on “Developing the Next Generation of Minority Entrepreneurs” in August. At left is Dr. Johnnie Watson, president of LeMoyneOwen College; at right is Dr. Nathan Essex, president of Southwest Tennessee Community College.

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THE FIRST 100 DAYS, continued from page 25

Conversations,” a monthly series of open, no-agenda dialogues with faculty and staff. “We need more opportunities to listen and dialogue with each other,” he says. “People want to get involved and need information more than ever. Each of us has a job to do, whether it’s the president or any other job on campus, and they’re equally important. We need to get on the same page as to where were going with this institution.

We succeed as a community or fail as a community.”

In his convocation address to the CBU community at the start of the academic year, Smarrelli addressed what he termed a “humility crisis” at the University. “Not that these studies should serve as our only barometers, but the Princeton Review and U.S. News rate us very strongly,” he said “Our [National Survey of Student Engagement] surveys by our students are extremely positive in most categories. Our athletes are students—and they graduate!” He stated that he was more than willing to act as a cheerleader, but challenged the assembled that too many graduates and faculty members were not as positive as they could—or should—be.

“I don’t think we realize how good we are already,” Smarrelli explains later, sprawled comfortably across the sofa in his Barry Hall office. “Part of being ‘Christian Brothers’ is that humility factor, and I don’t

want to get too far away from that. But we’re very good at carrying out the mission of St. John Baptist de La Salle, and there’s a celebratory component to that.”

Smarrelli worked in his parents’ corner grocery store on the east side of Syracuse when he was growing up, slicing deli meat, waiting on customers, and doing accounting.

He enjoys talking to people about what they did similarly in their lives that now informs their success—what jobs did they have as a kid, how did they grow in their jobs?

“I like to learn from people like that,” he says. “I like to explain that we are educating kids that are just like they were, just like I was, from similar backgrounds, with the same ambition and the same promise.

“So, my largest frustration with this humility is when I talk to some of our alums. It’s as if they’re saying, ‘CBU was good enough for me, but maybe not good enough for my children.’ We need to turn that around and show that CBU is even better now than it was in the ’60s, the ’70s, the ’80s, and the ’90s. I think it’s time to proclaim the specialness of CBU to others out there.”

FROM THE IVORY tower to the bell tower. Smarrelli says the phrase occurred to him at 3:00 a.m. on “one of those all-too-often nights that keep presidents awake.”

He has since taken it as his working vision statement, applying it to various components of what he sees as PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN

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the future role and responsibility of CBU. “We have to move the University from facing inside to facing outside,” he says. “The day of the ivory tower is over. We cannot just focus on what happens on our campus. I see the CBU bell tower as a metaphor, I hear it ringing out not just to the campus but to the rest of the world.”

Although he understands and appreciates the semi-cloistered culture of the Christian Brothers and the nurturing appeal that its inwardness has had for generations of students and alumni, he also understands and plans to emphasize the more outward side of the Lasallian mission.

“Looking outward is not a passive activity. We’re not going to get away from our community, we’re going to enlarge our community. Our campus will be the Memphis region, or this tri-state region. Our campus can be the world.”

At various speaking engagements, from the Rotary Club to the Mid-South Minority Business Council, Smarrelli has repeated the “ivory tower to bell tower” mantra and emphasized the need for CBU to create partnerships outside the boundaries of its campus.

The first partnership he sees is with other schools— city schools, diocesan schools, private schools, other colleges and universities. “We’ve got to get involved in pre-K through 16,” he says. “We need to be players at every level, not just college. We need partnerships with private and public schools throughout this area to make a difference. It is only through education that this economy and the social conditions of this area will change.”

At a panel organized for the Mid-South Minority Business Council’s Economic Development Fair in August, a consortium of business education programs for minority entrepreneurs was announced, comprising CBU, University of Memphis, LeMoyne-Owen College, and Southwest Tennessee Community College. Smarrelli told the audience: “We need to develop a culture where role models are entrepreneurs, and that culture comes from education.” He went on to challenge higher education to create within its education programs an “entrepreneurial spirit in teachers.”

The second partnership he advocates is with industry. “Workforce development is a way of life in terms of an academic institution,” Smarrelli says. “At CBU, we need to be responsive to the needs of the economy and corporations here. We need mutually beneficial partnerships where both the University and the industry will benefit from these partnerships.

We send valuable, well educated graduates their way, and they reciprocate by supporting us with donations PHOTO BY MELISSA HANSON

and foundational grants, as well as by sending their employees to us for their further educational needs. It’s a tremendous two-way street here.”

Additionally, citing statistics that most people change careers several times over their lifetime, Smarrelli sees CBU potentially serving industry by providing it with lifelong learners.

“Whether you begin your first vocation as an auto mechanic or a biochemist, what happens when the field changes and you have to go on to your second or third career?” he asked the audience at the Minority Business Council’s Economic Development Fair. “Are you ready for that second or third career? That’s the true value of an education. Are you ready to respond and ready to learn new techniques?”

CBU competes for students with state schools, Smarrelli points out. “Not to belittle a state school, but their mission is very, very different,” he says.

“Everything we do, there’s a value added to a Christian Brothers education, and that’s a critical piece that I think industry understands and appreciates.”

He underlines the centrality of academics in this partnership. “Academics has to play a more crucial role,” he says. “We have to demand more sustainable, nimble programs that are based on the needs of the community.”

Dr. Smarrelli accepts a scholarship donation from Jean Morton of Suntrust Bank.

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Five CBU presidents (l-r): Brother Terence McLaughlin, Brother Stanislaus Sobczyk, Dr. John Smarrelli Jr., H. Lance Forsdick Sr., and Brother Bernard LoCoco.

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BEING THE FIRST lay president of CBU brings with

it other “firsts.”

The first president to wear a necktie instead of a collar—although the necktie is not a constant; John Smarrelli is regularly seen around campus in a polo or even a CBU t-shirt.

The first president to have photos of his wife and children on display in his office—or, for that matter, the first president to have a wife and children.

John and Eloise Smarrelli have been married for 34 years. Eloise is taking the year off from her career as an elementary school teacher to help the family settle into their new life and to aid in her husband’s University and alumni events. Kristina, their 33-yearold daughter who has Down syndrome and moved to Memphis with them, has taken a job in the CBU cafeteria. Nick, their 26-year-old son, got married in July, and he and his new bride, Caitlin, are planning a move to Indianapolis from their current home in Atlanta. Elizabeth, their 22-year-old daughter, graduated in May from Loyola University Maryland and is now in law school in Philadelphia.

“My family is doing very well with the transition,” Smarrelli says. “It’s a partnership, and Eloise and I interviewed as a partnership. We talked about her role in the presidency. She understands the public nature

of our lives, and she’s good with that. It’s been a warm environment for Kristina, working here at CBU. The Brothers and the students have made an effort to make her feel welcome, coming up to talk with her during the day. All of my kids have been very, very supportive of this change to Memphis.”

Smarrelli says the relocation to the South hasn’t been as big an adjustment as he originally expected.

The family purchased a house in Germantown, and he makes a point of driving himself to appointments around town so he can learn the city. He jokes that all of his spare time is still being spent unpacking, then admits that he likes to unwind with athletics and reading. He likes to play tennis and softball, and served as a CYO basketball coach in Syracuse. He says he always reads two books at a time, usually an escapist novel and a non-fiction book. “I don’t have as much time to read as I’d like, so I usually take a few minutes at the end of the day just to read and be quiet,” he says.

“It depends on my mood whether I pick up the novel or the non-fiction book.”

From his various public statements, Smarrelli has obviously studied his new home—he accurately assesses the economic and racial disparities that plague the city’s political and educational systems.

He attended a presentation of “Memphis 101” this PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN

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summer, the Leadership Academy’s crash course that covers Memphis history from its first charter, through yellow fever, the second charter, Mayor E. H. Crump, the sanitation workers’ strike, and the election of the city’s first black mayor.

When posed with the quintessential Memphis test question—“Wet or dry?”—Smarrelli seems visibly pleased that his answer (dry) pleased the locals.

“People in the East told me life in the South would be so different, but it isn’t,” he says. “People are people.

The culture at academic institutions is an interesting one. Generally people who gravitate toward an academic institution are the same kind of people.”

While he regularly jokes with CBU staffers about their Southern accents, he has apparently taken to heart a few retorts that, in Memphis at least, he is the one who “talks funny.”

In Dr. Eisen’s biology class—after being identified as, yes indeed, the president—Smarrelli asked the students not to pay attention to his “funny accent” and promised them that he was working on perfecting his “y’all.”

SMARRELLI SAYS THAT students can expect to see him in the classroom “three, four, maybe five” times per semester.

Does he miss teaching? Yes and no.

“I don’t miss the dissemination of information,” he explains. “What I miss about teaching is the opportunity to develop a relationship with students. Teaching is an interpersonal kind of thing. It’s getting to know your students. It’s a process whereby the professor and the students grow during the course of a semester.”

He admits that he misses that sort of relationship with students, but says that as president he thinks he can still develop and maintain that interaction.

“The transition between being an effective teacher and an effective administrator is not as great as you might think,” he says. “It’s all about relationships.

It’s motivating, it’s supporting, it’s being tough, and sometimes it’s backing off. Being a president is about making a difference on a broader scale, but it’s still about the relationships. It’s about watching the growth together—me growing, as the community grows.

“If I don’t grow in this position, then I’m not being truly participatory.”

He acknowledges that the presidency of a university can be an isolating and insulating factor. “The president can say, ‘I balanced the budget, I raised X amount of dollars, the institution is running,’” Smarrelli says.

“But that’s the reason I like to go into the classroom,

to remember why you’re doing this. It’s all about these youngsters. I feel comfortable with students, and I like to get to know them.

“It’s humbling. It’s refreshing.”

FAITH. SERVICE. COMMUNITY.

It’s the threefold cornerstone of Lasallian philosophy, and it was the title of Dr. Smarrelli’s inaugural address (see page 32).

Smarrelli has told audiences again and again in his first 100 days that he believes “Education is the bridge out of poverty.” He ties this belief to the Lasallian mission of educating the poor.

“Education is the way that Memphis will raise its standard of living, will reduce its crime rate, and will be an economic driver,” he said in an interview with the West Tennessee Catholic. “We have a responsibility as a Lasallian institution to reach out to this Memphis community.”

By the same token, he thinks that CBU needs to proclaim its Catholic faith roots. In an area where Catholics are a small minority of the population, the tradition of quality Catholic education is nonetheless widely recognized and respected, and CBU needs to capitalize on its own tradition. “We can be and should be very overt in proclaiming ourselves Catholic, Lasallian, and distinctive,” Smarrelli says. “We are a proud Catholic institution.”

He recognizes and even relishes the fact that much of his time will be spent in the community outside the campus, spreading awareness of CBU’s academic programs and raising money to fund the maintenance and expansion of those programs.

“I enjoy fundraising,” he says. “I enjoy explaining to people that they are donating to something transformative, and that they will benefit from any gift to CBU. It’s an investment that will pay dividends, sometimes monetarily and always spiritually.”

Smarrelli, the product of Jesuit education, is a willing and vocal convert to the Lasallian mission.

“This mission is built on a strong foundation, and we’ve got to return to that foundation in order to be distinctive,” he says.

“I want every student to understand that mission and every employer to know what is special and distinctive about a CBU graduate. I think that’s the challenge out there. The distinctiveness of an education that goes beyond the four years here and transforms the lives of these individuals. I think it’s very Lasallian. I think that’s our distinctive approach to education.” n

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Faith, Service, and Community THE INAUGURAL ADDRESS OF DR. JOHN SMARRELLI JR., 22ND PRESIDENT

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rother Francis Carr and beloved members of the Lasallian Christian Brothers, Bishop Terry Steib, Members of the Board of Trustees, past-presidents of Christian Brothers University Mr. Lance Forsdick, Brothers Terence McLaughlin, Bernard LoCoco, and Stan Sobczyk, Honorable Myron Lowery, Honorable A C Wharton, Honorable Steve Cohen, Jesuit colleagues, including Father Charles Currie, President of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, Dr. Claude Presnell, President of TICUA, presidents and chancellors, delegates, CBU alumni, invited guests, students, faculty and staff, friends and colleagues from Memphis and Le Moyne College, members of my family present including my father John, Aunt Theresa, three siblings (Connie, Anne, and Bob and their respective spouses), and two nieces (Tina and Tracey and their spouses)… Thank you for joining me for this celebration Faith, Service, and Community, core values so vital to the past, present, and future of Christian Brothers University.

At this time, I wish to offer to my wife, Eloise, a loving thank-you for all of your unconditional love, support, guidance, and friendship over the past 34 years of our marriage. You have been with me at every step along the journey that Dr. [Stephanie] Schlachter so eloquently described, a journey that I could not

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have taken without you.

I wish to acknowledge my three wonderful children who traveled with us through the world of higher education, Kristina, who has been with us from almost the very beginning, through our days in graduate school, and three additional states prior to our arrival to Tennessee; to Nick, who joined the journey in Virginia and who has taken on a partner this year in his lovely wife Caitlin; and to Liz, who joined us in Illinois and is now attending Law school in Pennsylvania.

Thank you, children, for keeping me humble and for the balance you have maintained in my life. I love you very much.

This inauguration is in tribute to my mother, such a driving force in my life, who is now with the Lord, pushing God to greater levels of excellence as she did me. I would like to add a second tribute to Brother Vincent Malham, president of CBU, who died tragically in office last year. God works in mysterious ways.

Father Tom Condon, thank you for bringing us back to our roots where CBU’s first president, Brother Maurelian, was inaugurated at this lovely venue of St. Peter Church. What better place for CBU’s first permanent lay president to be inaugurated?

Special thanks go to Brother Robert Werle and to the hard-working inauguration team who assembled and implemented the events of this inauguration, showcasing this wonderful University.

Although I previously mentioned his name, I would like to offer a special recognition to Lance Forsdick, CBU alum, who left me with a University upon which to build, and who truly embodies all that a Lasallian education has to offer. You have been friend, colleague, and mentor, and for that I will always be grateful.

A second recognition goes to Father Charlie Beirne, 11th president of Le Moyne College, and today’s inauguration Mass celebrant, who taught me by example that the foundation of every university lies in its mission and whose life’s actions have always been dictated by that mission, as difficult and unpopular the challenges you are facing. When I reflect upon both Lance and Charlie’s presence at this event, I find myself in a very interesting position of having two of my immediate presidential predecessors and three former CBU presidents at this venue. I have some very large shoes to fill.

PHOTO BY DAN BALL

the22ndpresident

This is a significant moment in the history of Christian Brothers University. This inauguration also delineates my first one hundred days as CBU’s president. These days have been filled with much listening, with the infamous “donut tours,” visiting every department on campus, meeting with faculty in groups of three or four, and becoming an active member of the Memphis community.

During these first 100 days, I have had the opportunity to witness those core values upon which this Institution stands proudly by observing the actions of members of the CBU community, its students led

by SGA president Ken Latta, its gifted and committed faculty, staff, and administrators. It is no coincidence that Faith, Service, and Community remain as significant now as they did when this University was founded in 1871, and these core values are evident in daily lives our nearly 12,000 alumni.

What stories did I hear during my listening sessions?

Here are just a few: I heard about the journey of Joseph Atem, one of the lost boys of Sudan, who came to CBU from Sudan with limited English and a mathematics background, who with the support of the faculty and with a generous scholarship from a benefactor, graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering and is currently employed at FedEx. I heard the amazing story of CBU business major Travis Hill, who donated his kidney to his life-long friend, Reburto Lawson, and was quoted as saying, “He doesn’t owe me anything, just to live.”

I heard about the story of Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald, professor of biology, who has spoken around the world about her research in neuroscience, who regularly places CBU students at St. Jude and other sites in the area to do research projects, and who has obtained a multi-million dollar grant that sends students to Brazil, Thailand, and Uganda as part of the Minority Health International Training Program. One of Malinda’s favorite quotes is from Einstein: “Live to learn, learn to live, and then teach others.”

I heard the story about Dr. Rose Deal, CBU’s first woman faculty member, who began her teaching career here in 1961. She has taught numerous languages, and although now retired, still remains a driving force behind CBU’s push toward enhancing quality and excellence in the arts and languages, while remaining very close to the Lasallian Christian Brothers and to CBU. To quote Rose: “I came to campus to talk about my son’s class and remained a lifetime to teach.”

CBU has brought out the best in students like

Michelle Perry, mother of five, the first woman to complete the biochemical engineering program at the young age of 41.

I heard about CBU’s LANCE Program where young men and women are called to service to dedicate two years of their lives to helping others in Catholic schools in the Diocese of Memphis while living in communities, sharing practical responsibilities, providing social support, and praying together.

I heard about a cross-country team with 10 members who are on the Gulf South Conference Honor Roll, multiple All-South Regional honorees, and an NCAA All-American. What makes them distinctive CBU students is that they formed a rock band and performed at a disaster relief fundraiser, the annual CBU Christmas tree lighting, and have raised funds for St. Jude Children’s Hospital. Talk about going the extra mile!!

Stories such as these pervade the fabric of CBU. They exemplify the foundations of Faith, Service, and Community. To quote Flannery O’Connor from a recent America article, “Stories are not considered quite as satisfying as statements, and statements not quite as satisfying as statistics; but in the long run, a people is known, not by its statements or its statistics, but by the stories it tells.”

And let me tell you, as I travel the Memphis region and speak with educators, politicians, and business leaders, the high esteem in which CBU is held should make anyone associated with this University extremely proud. One of my goals will be to capitalize on the high regard upon which the university is held.

My commissioning by Brother Francis Carr, provincial superior, and members of the De La Salle Christian Brothers shares equal significance to my installation as president of CBU by the Board of Trustees. For nearly 330 years, the De La Salle Christian Brothers have carried out a mission to be “visible examples of the Good News of the Gospel to all of the world, particularly the disadvantaged, the poor, and the oppressed.”

From the beginning, De La Salle understood that laypersons should play a critical role in helping to carry out this mission “together and by association.”

With nearly one million students receiving a Lasallian education by about 6,000 Christian Brothers and 75,000 lay persons in 84 countries, fortunately the mission of our founder continues to thrive across the world. Brothers, thank you for the trust you have placed in me. I vow that as layperson, I will be committed to enhancing the mission that De La Salle has set forth for us.

It is no coincidence that Faith, Service, and Community remain as significant now as they did when this University was founded in 1871, and these core values are evident in daily lives our nearly 12,000 alumni.

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the22ndpresident

Our commitment to the poor must be unwavering, and we must deal with health care and social service issues that impede the educational opportunities for our children.

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So as I stand humbly before you as the 22nd President of CBU, now installed and commissioned, how do I see the core values of Faith, Service, and Community guiding us into the future? In his book, The Passing of the Baton, Brother Terrence McLaughlin, former president and current trustee, describes a CBU education as featuring “a well prepared and well taught lesson, delivered by caring and innovative teachers and mentors, to interested and willing students, in classrooms where various races and ethnic and religious groups are living in harmony, and where all are being challenged to live ethical lives of service.”

During this era in our history, and in a Memphis community and a world that needs CBU and its graduates, I wish to take the liberty to propose a guiding symbol for my presidency—the bell tower on East Parkway loudly ringing these core values, not only to the Memphis community but also to the world in which we live. CBU, with its mission as a Catholic university in the Lasallian tradition, must now take on a role in which society will benefit from its existence. Together, we must transform the society in which we live. CBU has a crucial role to play, and I vow to be a strong leader in carrying out a mission so that the ringing of the bell tower can be heard by the entire world through the actions of all on this campus community.

After only 100 days as a Memphian and president, how do I envision this transformation to occur while we remain true to our mission? Our commitment to academic excellence must be unwavering. We need to continue to provide our faculty with opportunities to engage our students as active, life-long learners.

We need to encourage the CBU community to be a true learning community, whereby students’ growth in intellect and spirituality becomes the culture on the campus and beyond. We must hire for mission, expecting each member of the CBU to play a significant role in promoting Faith, Service, and Community.

We must be proud to be “Catholic, Lasallian, and Distinctive.”

As the only Catholic university in about a 300mile radius, we need to remain true to that Catholic tradition, while providing a nurturing environment for members of our community from all faith traditions, so that all members of our community have opportunities for spiritual growth. We have a very strong relationship with Bishop Steib and the Diocese of Memphis, and under my leadership, we will continue to strengthen that relationship through programs with parishes and diocesan schools.

CBU’s classrooms must extend beyond the 75 acres it occupies on East Parkway. Memphis must be our first campus, whereby service learning occurs in all of our disciplines. Through our excellent Education department, we must continue to reach out to Memphis and Shelby county schools, Catholic, public, and private in meaningful partnerships. As an institution, CBU must work to increase the graduation rates of Memphis city schools, providing bridges out of poverty through higher education opportunities. I see those actions beginning with pre-K and culminating with earning a degree from CBU, an educational imperative that involves so much more than providing an outstanding education only on our campus.

Our commitment to the poor must be unwavering, and we must deal with health care and social service issues that impede the educational opportunities for our children. These endeavors will require CBU partnerships with other institutions of higher education in the area, and these partnerships are already being developed. We are not competitors; we are partners. To quote Harry Truman, “You can accomplish anything in life as long as you do not worry who gets the credit.”

We need to enhance our partnerships with local industries, so that CBU graduates will have jobs tailored to the new knowledge and service- based economy. We need to continue to obtain private, foundation, and government support to enhance our programs while continuing to make a CBU education affordable.

We live in a flat world in which globalization is critical for our students to gain a true understanding of the world in which they live. The world is our community and we need to find ways for our students to leave the CBU campus and travel to countries where significant learning can occur. Conversely, we need to engage in partnerships with universities from other countries so that those students can attend CBU. As an institution, we owe it to our students to provide them opportunities to view the entire world as their community.

Each of us has a role to play as we move CBU to greater levels of excellence. As president, my role will be to be to function as the face of CBU in efforts to catalyze the building of communities. I view this role as servant leader, and one that values the contributions of each member of this community. I am fortunate to have been provided with the opportunity to serve the world and God through the presidency of CBU. We have much to do, so I conclude with a quote from John Baptist de La Salle, “Lord, the work is yours.” n

the22ndpresident

More Inauguration photos available online at www.flickr.com/photos/cbualumni/collections

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: Dr. John Smarrelli Jr. delivers his Inaugural Address; Dr. Smarrelli is commissioned as 22nd President by the Christian Brothers and their affiliates, led by Brother Francis Carr, Provincial Superior; the Brothers perform the commissioning ceremony in unison; Dr. Smarrelli receives the final blessing from the Most Reverend J. Terry Steib, Bishop of Memphis.

PHOTOS BY DAN BALL

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Above: Indian alumni from the late 1960s and their families gathered in Sabbatini Lounge in July. For some, it was the first time they’ve been back at CBU since they graduated.

Below: V. T. Gala (‘67), one the organizers of the reunion, with Dr. John Smarrelli, CBU president.

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Memphis Masala CBU alumni from the late ’60s return to their alma mater for a reunion.

INDIAN ALUMNI FROM the late 1960s gathered on the CBU campus for a reunion in July. For some, it was the first time to be back on campus since they graduated. While some still live in the Memphis-area, many traveled a great distance, some from as far away as India. Since most of the attendees were engineering alums, after touring campus Dr. Eric Welch, dean of the School of Engineering, took the group through St. Benilde’s engineering labs.

The evening culminated with CBU president Dr. John Smarrelli Jr. and his wife, Eloise, welcoming them to a dinner in Sabbatini Lounge. Over dinner alumni shared stories about navigating life at CBU, having to learn English as a second language and even adapting to American cafeteria food. Although their career paths have varied from running an engineering firm to playing professional cricket, the common theme was how much their CBU education has benefitted them in their lives.

This event reconnected these alumni not only to each other but to CBU as well. Their continued dedication to CBU and its mission was evident when the group presented Dr. Smarrelli with a gift during Alumni Weekend for Fund for CBU scholarships so future students will be afforded the same opportunities they had. Reunion attendees were Babulal Gala (’68), Pravin Thakkar (’67), Jitendra Patel (’68), Bharat Sheth (’67), Lalit Mehta (’68), Jagdish Doshi (’68), Dhiraj Maru (’67), Kishore Badani (’67), Manu Shah (’68), Sharad Dalal (’67), Ashok Gupta (’67), V.T. Gala (’67), former faculty member Prabhakar Parikh, and many of their wives and friends. n — Stephen Kirkpatrick

PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

classnotes World of Beers @ Alumni Weekend...10/9/09 additional photos are available online at www.cbu.edu/alumni

1966 Walter H. Delashmit has been selected as an Invited Judge for Annual Celebration of Excellence

by Students (ACES) at the University of Texas at Arlington to review students’ graduate and undergraduate research activities. He has also had the following two technical papers selected for publication: “Infrared Based Object Tracking,” SPIE Defense, Security and Remote Sensing Symposium, Paper No. 7298-133, April 2009 (J. Gervais, A. L. Youngblood, W. H. Delashmit); and “Photographic Based Target Models for LADAR Applications,” SPIE Defense, Security and Remote Sensing Symposium, Paper No. 7323-133. April 2009 (J. T. Jack, W. H. Delashmit).

Michael Dudas has been appointed to senior electrical engineer at Askew Hargraves Harcourt & Associates in Memphis.

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A large crowd of Gammas showed up for the World of Beers (and every other Weekend event), thanks to the reunion organized by Jack King (’74).

1967 Suresh Shah recently accepted a position at Aldine Independent School District located in Houston, TX as teacher. Suresh was recently employed at IBM as a senior software specialist.

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1969 Thomas Lott has accepted the position of vice president with BancTrust Financial Services in Fairhope, AL. ——————————————————————

1980 Robert Leech is vice president for Home Health at HealthSouth Corporation. Robert, his wife, and their two children reside in Birmingham, AL. ——————————————————————

Julie Gilmore (’01), Alexis Bickel Giannini (’02), and Josh Giannini (’03)

1983 Donna Thorpe Crone was appointed to the newlycreated position of assistant athletics director/ compliance coordinator at CBU in June. Donna retains her duties as the Athletic Department’s senior woman administrator, but is resigning as head softball coach after serving in the position for 10 years. As compliance coordinator, she will be responsible for all NCAA compliance issues.

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1984 Terry Atienza was named the new director of the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Grand Junction, CO. Terry has worked in the Veteran Affairs system since graduating from CBU over 20 years ago.

PHOTOS BY JACOB EDWARDS

Dorrie Newman Thomas (’83), Jami Sammis Gattuso (’83), Soheila Noroozi Kail (’83), and Kathleen Bruen Brown (’84) BELLTOWERFALL2009

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classnotes Inaugural Dinner & Alumni Celebration @ Alumni Weekend... 10/10/09 additional photos are available online at www.cbu.edu/alumni

2009 Distinguished Alumni

LT. COLONEL JOHN M. VERHAGE (above left) was honored as CBU’s 2009 Distinguished Alumnus, and ERIC CRISWELL, PE (above right) was named 2009 Distinguished Young Alumnus at the Inaugural Dinner and Alumni Celebration during Alumni Weekend.

Verhage (Civil Engineering ’90) was commissioned into the United States Air Force after graduation. He earned his Navigator Wings in 1992, Air Battle Manager Wings in 2003, and has flown on numerous missions during combat operations.

Currently, Verhage is the director of operations for the 128th Airborne Command and Control Squadron 116th Air Control Wing at Robins Air Force Base in Georgia where he is responsible for all flying operations, training, and readiness for his squadron.

Since commissioning, Verhage has been presented with 16 major awards and decorations, including a Bronze Star.

Criswell (Civil Engineering ’99) is vice president of Davis Patrikios Criswell, Inc. and president of DPC Construction, LLC. (His partners in both businesses are his CBU classmates, Marshal Davis and Gerry Patrikios). Criswell is responsible for the design and project management of residential and commercial construction projects. Most recently, he completed design and construction management of Justin Timberlake’s Mirimichi Golf Course in Millington, TN, which was designed following LEED “green” standards. The firm also constructed the TERRA House in downtown Memphis (see Bell Tower, Fall 2008). Criswell was named among the Memphis Business Journal’s “Top 40 Under 40” in 2008, is youth pastor at Arlington Assembly of God, and has served on mission trips to Belize. n

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Golden Grads from the Class of 1959: (front row, l-r) Dr. Michael Harty, Dave Lloyd, Bill Nabholz, Bill Fitzgerald, Don Glaser, and William Face; (back row, l-r) Dr. John Smarrelli, Tom McCarthy, and Ronald Lindsay

Analice Hosey Sowell (’02, MAT ’05), Christina Brown (’06), David Tran (’05), and Sharon Langley Shipley (’03)

Jose Angel Rodriguez (’09) and Gillian Smoot

PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN

classnotes Saturday Fun @ Alumni Weekend... 10/10/09 additional photos are available online at www.cbu.edu/alumni

He wants to expand health care opportunities to veterans through smaller, community-based clinics and Telehealth services.

Eddie Belk received the prestigious Corps of Engineers Bronze de Fleury Medal during ceremonies on April 27 at the Tikrit (Iraq) compound. He was recognized for superb support provided to the Engineering Regiment as it performs its primary missions of mobility, counter mobility, survivability, sustainment, and topographic engineering.

Presentation of this medal is indicative of the respect and admiration garnered from superiors, peers and subordinates alike—an award “by engineers, for engineers.”

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Alumni members of the Mu Epsilon Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha gathered for a reunion in Sabbatini Lounge, organized by Crystal Shelton (‘09).

1987 Cliff DeBerry was profiled for his work with the Leadership Academy Fellows Program and raising awareness for adoption in the April 18 edition of The Commercial Appeal.

Karen Gilbreath-Sowell, previously the U.S. Treasury Department’s deputy assistant secretary for tax policy, rejoined Ernst & Young to serve national accounts and to be co-leader of the National Tax Mergers and Acquisitions Group.

While at the Treasury Department she participated in the legislative process for the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 and the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. For her work she received the Treasury Distinguished Service Award. She is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the Tax Section of the New York State Bar Association and co-chair of the Corporations Committee.

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Current CBU students guide alumni families through fun lab demonstrations in the new Cooper-Wilson Center for Life Sciences.

1988 Marvin Szeto and his wife, Amy, are proud to announce the birth of their new baby boy on March 24, 2008.

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1989 Belinda Watkins, a member of the Engineering Advisory Board, was profiled in the February 24 edition of the University of Memphis’ Daily

ALUMNI WEEKEND PHOTOS BY JACOB EDWARDS

Khai H. Nguyen (’13) helps alumni and their families with the Pinewood Derby, sponsored by the School of Engineering and Roadshow BMW.

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babybuc

Lindsay Haley Good (’98) and her husband, Jason, are proud to introduce their first child, HENLEY BLAIR GOOD. She was born on October 28, 2008.

Helmsman. The following day she spoke to campus groups about job opportunities for black people in technology.

—————————————————————— 1990 Imran Jaferey was featured in the February 10 edition of Wicked Local Wilmington in Wilmington, MA. He was recently promoted to vice president for water and wastewater at Koch Membrane Systems in Wilmington.

Lt. Col. John “Mike” Verhage gave a lecture about America’s military might at American Legion Post No. 29 in Greenwood, MS. (Editor’s note: For more on Mike, see “2009 Distinguished Alumni” on page 38.)

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1993 Denny Bardos began as dean of enrollment at Wheeling Jesuit University on August 20, 2008.

Denny began his career in admissions at CBU as associate director of admissions. He and his wife, Amanda, have two children, Daniel and Breana.

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1995

Sohil Shah (‘99) & Punam Chopra Shah (’00) are proud to announce the birth of a baby boy, ARMAAN SHAH, born on March 10 in Germantown, TN. Proud parents and big brother Arjun are all happy.

Aimee Rempter-Shepherd and her husband, Todd, are proud to announce the birth of a baby girl, Natalie Elizabeth. She was born on January 21 in Livingston, NJ and weighed 7 lbs., 1 oz. Natalie joins her older brother Logan, now 3, who is still adjusting. Mom and Dad are doing fine.

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1997 Gary Lee Kieffner Jr. was a candidate for Olive Branch (MS) Alderman-at-Large election held in May. Demetra L. Liggins was among 37 attorneys with Thompson & Knight LLC who were named to the Texas Rising Stars 2009 list. She works for the Thompson & Knight offices in Houston and New York.

Tracy Simmons Settle is happy to announce her marriage to Raymond Settles on March 7. They currently reside in Cordova, TN. Brian Thompson was named to the 2009 class of the Memphis Business Journal’s “Top Forty Under 40.” Brian is the CEO of Versatile Technology Group in Memphis.

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1999 Laura Anderson Bell is a business analyst with CoreMatrix in the greater San Diego area.

Dr. Matthew Dress has joined Pathology Group of

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the MidSouth in Memphis as its newest pathologist.

Before joining Pathology Group, Matthew served as the chief resident in anatomic and clinical pathology at the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Tennessee. He then completed a fellowship in hematopathology at the University of Rochester Medical Center-Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y. Dr. Laura B. Haskins joined the Memphis MidSouth Ob/Gyn Alliance in August.

Emily Pattat graduated with an MBA from Union University in December 2008. She is currently the director of marketing research and analysis at ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Dr. Zachary Werle and his wife, Denise, welcomed their first child, Myles Benjamin, on January 4 in Fairbanks, AK. Dr. Werle finished his family medicine residency at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in June of 2008 and accepted a full time position as a family practice physician with Tanana Valley Clinic.

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2000 Rob Bell is the vice president of business development at Troop Transition and a reserve Marine captain. In September he volunteered to return for active duty for several months. He will report to Kandahar, Afghanistan to act as the Afghan National Security Forces development liaison officer to NATO’s Regional Command (South). Rob has previously deployed twice, both to Iraq while on active duty in 2003 and 2004.

He looks forward to contributing to the growth and training of the Afghan Army and Police. His permanent residence is in Carlsbad, CA where he lives with his wife of eight years, Laura Anderson Bell (’99).

Katie Brown was married September 20, 2008 in Memphis to Jason Dyer, who is originally from Maine. Jason is a drummer in a band called One Less Reason. Katie has been an epidemiologist with the Memphis and Shelby County Health Department since 2006.

Maureen O’Connor was included as one of the “People on the Move” in the February 13-19 edition of the Memphis Business Journal.

Amy Fallon is happy to announce her marriage to Christopher Phillips on March 9. They are living happily in Little Rock, AR. Amy is currently working at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences as faculty OB/GYN.

classnotes

John Raacke has been appointed associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. John is also an assistant professor of psychology at UNCP. Clay Tidwell and his wife, Casey, welcomed a new baby boy, Jacob Shuler Tidwell, on October 8, 2008. He joins older brother, Joseph. Jacob was 21 inches long and tipped the scales at 8 lbs., 7 oz. Clay is a senior supply chain specialist in the Air Operations Division of FedEx Express in Memphis. (See more on the Tidwells on page 44.)

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2001 Tyree Daniels was recognized for his work with Leadership Academy, an organization that stresses the good that members of the Memphis community can do for their city, during the March 4 broadcast of WMC-TV. He was also featured in an article in The Commercial Appeal on September 15.

Amanda Crider was named principal at Hope Sullivan Elementary School in Southaven, MS. Brian Lawrenz and Kristina Townsend (’03) were married on March 14, 2008 in Memphis.

Josh Shipley has been elected as a 2009-2010 Phoenix Club board member.

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2002 Andrew Britton III married Robyn J. Jackson on October 4, 2008 at the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis. They honeymooned in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and currently reside in Memphis.

Jenny House married Greg Herzig on December 29, 2008, at Christ the King Catholic Church in Little Rock, AR. Jenny is a speech language pathologist at Mathias Elementary School in Rogers, AR. Greg is a sixth-grade teacher for Hellstern Middle School in Springdale, AR. Kimberly Ray was recently promoted to director of human resources at Wesley Housing Corporation of Memphis.

Teresa Fuller Waineo and Al Waineo (’03) are proud to announce the birth of a baby boy, Nathan Thomas Waineo, on December 27, 2008 in Fredericksburg, VA, and weighed 7 lbs., 14 oz.

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2003 Dino Basic is proud to announce his marriage to Merima Besic on June 20. They live in Michigan.

Joshua Giannini, PE has joined Pickering Engineering firm in the Memphis office as a civil project manager.

Beau Lotz and his wife, Ashley Newbern Lotz (’04), are proud to announce the birth of a baby girl, Bella Anne Christine Lotz. She was born on August 31, 2008 in Memphis at Baptist Women’s Hospital and weighed 7 lbs., 13 oz.

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babybucs

2004 Marina Aronchik received a Juris Doctor with Honors from Chicago-Kent College of Law in May. Bethany King Robinson (MEM) has been elected chair of the Memphis-Area Joint Engineers Council. Bethany is assistant director of Graduate Engineering at CBU. ——————————————————————

2005 Michael Beebe and Kelly Nichole Swingholm were married in California on November 22, 2008. Michael is currently an M4 at University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center.

Meredith Crum is working toward a masters’ degree in speech pathology at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. In her free time, she enjoys surfing at Folley Beach.

Jennifer Longo and Lee Allen are proud to announce their marriage March 21 in Memphis.

Kelley Ward is in the accelerated nursing program at Union University in Jackson, TN. She will graduate with a BSN in December.

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Dawn Leatherwood Rose (’98) and John Rose (’99) proudly announce the birth of MATTHEW ROBERT ROSE on June 13. Matthew was seven weeks early and weighed in at 3 lbs., 7 oz. and was 16 inches long. After spending some time in the hospital, both Mom and baby are doing extremely well.

2006 Ashley Miller has been accepted to the Master of Science program in Epidemiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis.

Christie Spencer has been accepted to the doctorate nursing program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She graduated from the UT accelerated BSN program in January and is currently working in the ICU at Methodist Hospital North in Memphis.

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2007 Jeffery Hall received a Master of Art in Higher Education Administration from the University of Mississippi in May. Dory Sellers has been accepted to the DDS program at University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center College of Dentistry.

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2008 Shanta Wilson has been accepted into the Community Agency Counseling graduate program

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at the University of Memphis.

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2009

Christian Brothers High School in Memphis has undergone some administrative reorganization this 2009-10 academic year. Brother Chris Englert (’77, above left) is now president of CBHS and will continue his primary work with the development office, the Board of Trustees, and the alumni association. Since his return to Memphis in 1989, Englert served one year as assistant principal then became principal a year later. Chris Fay (’98, MSEL ’03, right) takes on the role of principal, the first lay person to do so in the school’s 138-year history. Fay is responsible for CBHS’ day-to-day operations. A Brothers’ boy from New Orleans­—and former CBU staff and faculty member—Fay joined CBHS in 2003 as associate principal. Brother Joel McGraw (’68, center), remains as the sole associate principal, having previously shared those duties with Fay. Brother Joel has taught English and Religion during several stints at CBHS since 1969 and has been associate principal since 1990. He continues to teach either Religion or English each year, along with his administrative duties.

Ryan Blankenship was commissioned as an Ensign in the Navy in May. He started Nuclear Power School at the end of the summer.

Burton Bridges is working as a national program marketing representative at ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital located in Memphis.

Adam Luka has been accepted to Louisiana State University School of Medicine at Shreveport.

Thomas O’Bryant was commissioned as an Ensign in the Navy in May. He is currently assigned to the destroyer USS Chafee.

Amanda Pitt was one of 28 student members of Alpha Chi, the national college honor society, to receive prizes at the group’s national convention in Indianapolis in April. As the recipient of the Prize in Political Science/Economics/Social Science, she presented “National Socialist Exploitation of the Myth of ‘Stab in the Back.’”

Chermella Woods has recently been accepted to the Human Resources and Employee Relations Master of Professional Studies graduate program at Penn State University.

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2010 Binh Nguyen, chair of the IEEE student branch at CBU, was awarded a $1,200 stipend from Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Talented Youth program. Binh was assigned a group of very bright and talented middle and high school students at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and served this summer as a teaching assistant in a fast-paced Electrical Engineering course. He was responsible for teaching the labs, study sessions, and assisting in class lectures. The students built three different solar-powered robots, each capable of performing a specific task.

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2011

Russ Williams (’83, left) and Mauricio Calvo (’97, right) celebrated with Cynthia Magallon Puljic, executive director of the Mason YMCA in Memphis, for reaching her “We Build People” campaign goal at AutoZone Park this spring. Russ, president of archer>malmo, is chair of the Y’s campaign. Mauricio, executive director of Latino Memphis, is a board member for the Mason YMCA.

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Anthony Maranise has been notified that his article entitled “Fight the Good Fight: A Spirituality of Cancer Survivorship” has been accepted for publication in the January issue of The Word Among Us, a Catholic publication released monthly in more than twelve different languages. Anthony also published his research paper, “Practice Makes Perfect: Spiritual Development in Athletics,” in the July/August issue of The Catholic World, an

PHOTOS BY JOHN MORRIS (TOP) AND COURTESY OF YMCA OF MEMPHIS & THE MID-SOUTH (BOTTOM)

passings

academic journal produced by the Paulist Fathers.

He also published an article highlighting the Hurricane Katrina survival story of fellow CBU student Carol Recinos (’13) in a July issue of the West Tennessee Catholic for the Diocese of Memphis as well as in the July 25 issue of the Clarion-Herald for the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

Jasmine Perkins worked as an advertising and sales intern for Essence magazine in New York this summer.

PASSINGS May all the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.

JOHN R. McCABE JR. (’60) passed away on July 15 after a brief illness. Mr. McCabe was a Certified Public Accountant, most recently serving as CFO of OfficeScapes. He graduated from Christian Brothers High School in 1956 and CBU in 1960.

He served on the Board of Trustees of CBU and was a member of the Finance and Executive committees. In 1982 he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award. Mr. McCabe was also very active in professional societies, having served as president of the Memphis Chapter of the Tennessee Society of CPA’s as well as having served as president, vice president and secretary of the Tennessee Society of CPAs, and was a member of the Society’s Federal Tax Committee. He also was a life associate of the Society’s Education and Memorial Foundation as well as a life associate of the Society by virtue of his leadership and the positions he held over the years. In addition, he served as a member of the Board of Trustees of St. Dominic School for Boys and served a term as president of that board. He is survived by Doris, his wife of 50 years, along with their sons Rick McCabe (’84) and Michael McCabe, daughter Lauren Volpe (’84) and her husband Paul Volpe (’84), and daughter Kelly Tidwell. Grandson Jason Volpe and granddaughter Cameron Volpe are both current students at CBU. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be sent to Christian Brothers University or the American Cancer Society.

—————————————————————— BLANCHE THOMAS SPAIN, a longtime donor, former trustee, and friend of CBU, passed away on August 8 at age 93. Mrs. Spain is the widow of Douglass J. Thomas (in whose honor the Thomas Center is named) and W. Waddington Spain. She was an extraordinary philanthropist providing donations throughout her life to various

organizations including Christian Brothers University, where she was also an active member of the Board of Trustees for a number of years. Her name and portrait also grace Spain Auditorium.

She was a member of Second Presbyterian Church.

Mrs. Spain was a graduate of Southside High School in Memphis where she was salutatorian of her class. Her beloved husband, Douglass Thomas, was a farmer, machinist, and candy-maker. He was a pioneer in the candy industry inventing Super-Bubble Bubble Gum. They were members of Chickasaw Country Club and were active in the Memphis organization for many years. After Mr. Thomas’ passing, she married Mr. Spain and moved to Charleston, SC where they lived in the Elizabeth Arden Antebellum home for several years.

Relocating back to Memphis, she lived out the remainder of her days surrounded by family and friends. She is survived by two nieces, Jo Anne McLellan and Linda Sullivan; great niece Rena McLellan Booth and great nephews Milton McLellan Jr. and Shannon Sullivan; and great-great niece and nephews Camryn, Alec, and Ryan Booth.

—————————————————————— JACQUELINE “JACKIE” MOORE (’06), a CBU alumna in Natural Science and an All-Gulf South Conference basketball player for the Lady Bucs from 2003 to 2005, died suddenly on November 4 while working out at Eastern Illinois University, where she was assistant basketball coach and had recently earned a master’s degree. She was in her third season as an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois. After graduating from CBU, she played professionally in Austria for a year. She is survived by her parents, William Moore and Rosemarie Gignac, brother Eddie and sister Stephanie. n

Expectancy, a 1993 portrait of BLANCHE THOMAS SPAIN by artist Billie Price Carroll, hangs in Buckman Hall outside Spain Auditorium, which was named in her honor.

The Thomas Center was named in honor of her first husband, Douglass J. Thomas.

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Larger Than Life Clay Tidwell Jr. (’00) is pictured here with wife Casey and his children, Joseph and Shuler. Clay, Casey, and Shuler were among the subjects chosen for a massive 152’ x 58’ mural outside Memphis’ Autozone Park, which was funded by entrepreneur Chick Hill and organized by Rhodes College’s Center for Outreach in the Development of the Arts. The mural, entitled A Note of Hope, was painted by Chicago artist Jeff Zimmerman and has been featured nationally on NBC’s Today Show and in the New York Times. For photos of the full mural, visit www.jazim. com/memphis.html.

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PHOTOS BY AIMEE LEWIS (’92)

FRIDAY, JANUARY 29, 2010 • ALFONSO DINING HALL, THOMAS CENTER 5:00 p.m. Reception • 5:45 p.m. Dinner • 6:45 p.m. Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony REGISTRATION FORM (Registration deadline Friday, January 22, 2010) ___________________________________________________________________ LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

MI

___________________________________________________________________ STREET ADDRESS

CITY

STATE

ZIP

( ______ ) ______________________ ___________________________________ AREA CODE

TELEPHONE #

ENTER ADDITIONAL NAMES IN YOUR PARTY BELOW Vegetarian/vegan entrée available, mark name with asterisk (*) 1 ____________________________________________________________ 2 ____________________________________________________________

EMAIL ADDRESS

3 ____________________________________________________________ Individual Guests: Dinner/Ceremony _______

@ $35.00 = $ _________

Table of Eight (8): Dinner/Ceremony _______

@ $280.00 = $ _________

Total Amount = $ _________

4 ____________________________________________________________ 5 ____________________________________________________________

Make checks payable to CBU Athletics. Include a note on check for “CBU HOF”

6 ____________________________________________________________

Please mail form and payment to: CBU Athletics / Attn: Hall of Fame

650 East Parkway South, Box T-1

Memphis, TN 38104

7 ____________________________________________________________

OFFICE OF ADVANCEMENT 650 EAST PARKWAY SOUTH MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE 38104

The Memphis City Council passed a special resolution in May 2009, proclaiming that Central Avenue between East Parkway and Hollywood Street shall be named honorarily as Brother Vincent Malham, FSC Avenue in honor of the late 21st president of CBU.