UNK Today Fall 2016 by UNKAlumni

Fall 2016

UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA KEARNEY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

“Rick Gurley, Arizona” by Virginia Wattles ’65, MAE ’83

Janette Bier, Karen Monson, Connie (Swanson) Franzen, Karen (Harrow) Butolph

GAMMA PHI BETA REUNION: Members of Gamma Phi Beta sorority, representing the 70’s decade, gathered for a reunion on April 23rd on the UNK campus. The group enjoyed lunch at the Nebraskan Student Union, toured campus and spent time at the chapter house.

Calendar of Events September

9/17 Tailgate at Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, Missouri 9/22 College of Business and Technology Ron Landstrom Executive-in-Residence presentation, Nebraska Student Union Ponderosa 9/24 UNK Homecoming (see details on page 34)

October

10/1 Loperville Tailgate prior to UNK vs. Missouri Southern State University football game 10/6 UNK at Grand Island Chamber After Hours 10/15 Loperville Tailgate prior to UNK vs. University of Central Oklahoma football game 10/27 Loper After Hours in Indianapolis 10/28 Loper After Hours in Cinncinnatti 10/29 Loperville Tailgate prior to UNK vs. Lindenwood University football game

November

11/4 Gold Torch Society, through November 5 11/12 Loperville Tailgate prior to UNK vs. Fort Hays State University football game

December

12/7 Blue Gold BriGade Operation Graduation, party for seniors 12/16 Winter Commencement

January

1/9 Start of spring semester 1/25 Loper After Hours in Omaha

Julie (Torpin) Billeter ‘75, pledge daughter, with her pledge mom Deb (Suck) Demuth ’72, enjoyed the weekend with their sisters on campus. Visit unkalumni.org for more UNK Alumni Association events and details and Lopers.com for more information on all sporting events.

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UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA KEARNEY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Dear Loper Friends: What great fun we’ve had this year remembering our earliest beginnings as an institution — up through our adoption by the University of Nebraska — as part of our “Year of Celebration” series. In these pages, you’ll see glimpses of our first event: “A Century Later: From 111 Ballots to Today,” that focused on the drama of siting a state Normal School here in Kearney. Our second event of the celebration year: “Becoming UNK: Reflections and History,” brought together a panel of front-line university leaders and lawmakers, a student/faculty member and myself, to talk about the dramatic changes to Kearney State College in 1988-1991, noting the occasion of our 25th anniversary as University of Nebraska at Kearney. On July 1, a campus-wide breakfast-birthday party under the Peterson-Yanney Bell Tower brought special attention to the anniversary. If you haven’t had the chance to watch our videos, see the photos or read the remembrances from these events, you’ll find ways to get to this exciting content in various places in this magazine, and on our commemorative website: unk.edu/year-of-celebration. As you read the stories of our alumni, I hope you’ll be reminded of your own connection to Kearney: Whether it be through Nebraska State Normal School, Nebraska State Teachers College, Kearney State College or UNK; we’ve always been Lopers. We’re different. We work together through adversity and good times alike. We challenge each other to be our best. And through it all, over the last 111 years, Kearney has been our home. We couldn’t have asked for a better community to support us through each change and challenge. I’m grateful to all of you for your support during this Year of Celebration and for your attention as we move forward to the next 25-111 years. We have so much ahead of us: a new academic building to replace Otto Olsen, the development of a new residence hall and the beginning of University Village and new leadership under Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance, Jon Watts (story page 12). For all you do for UNK, thank you. Continue to celebrate this year as a milestone — looking to the past and all we’ve accomplished; and looking to the future and all we can do, together, for Nebraska and our world. Go Lopers!

DOUGLAS A. KRISTENSEN, J.D. Chancellor

SCRAMBLING FOR SCHOLARSHIPS:

(Top Left) The winning team from the first flight was Steve Samuelson ‘81, Lyn Ramsey ‘81, UNK Athletic Director Paul Plinske and John Sajevic ‘78. (Top Left, Second Picture Down) The second flight winners were Marcus Goldenstein ‘06, Paul Goldenstein, Steve Rolfes and Justin Rolfes ’08. VICE PRESIDENT OF ALUMNI RELATIONS & DEVELOPMENT Lucas Dart ‘97 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI COMMUNICATION Michelle (Thompson) Widger ‘90 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT Tricia (Sunderman) Danburg ‘94 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Toni (Winsor) Meyers ‘93 EDITOR, ART DIRECTOR AND GRAPHIC DESIGNER Michelle Widger ‘90 UNK Alumni Association Assistant Director Communication EDITOR EMERITUS Jim Rundstrom ‘64 UNK Alumni Association Director Emeritus MANAGING EDITOR Dorothy Endacott NU Foundation Vice President Marketing Communications ASSISTANT EDITOR Kelly Bartling UNK Assistant Vice Chancellor Communications & Community Relations PHOTOGRAPHY UNK Alumni Association Corbey Dorsey/UNK Athletics UNK Communications

POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to: U N K To d a y University of Nebraska at Kearney Campus Box 21 Kearney, Nebraska 68849 308.698.5271 unkalumni.org

UNK ALUMNI ASSOCIATION LEAD COUNCIL Jack Kreman ‘04, President, Noblesville, Indiana Dennis Pool ‘70, Past President, Omaha Angela (Reynolds) Davidson ’09, MBA ‘10, Grand Island Jerry Fox ’72, Kearney Dusty Jura '08, MBA ‘15, Axtell Mary (Buchanan) Mach ‘85, Fairbury Barry McFarland ‘00, MAE ’05, ES ’12, Lexington Dusty Newton, MSE ‘02, Kearney Curt Ott ‘07, Kearney Emily Owens, Student, Imperial UNK Today is published twice a year by the UNK Alumni Association and the University of Nebraska Foundation and is the official alumni publication of the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

facebook.com/UNKAlumni twitter.com/UNKAlumni linkedin.com/interests/groups/ University of Nebraska at Kearney Lopers@unkalumni.org

Scrambling for Scholarships:

Golfers from across Nebraska gathered on June 27 for the UNK Alumni Association Scrambling for Scholarships tournament at Oak Hills Country Club in Omaha. This year’s tournament brought out 87 golfers, raising funds for scholarships that are awarded annually each spring to children of UNK alumni.

UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA KEARNEY

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Fall 2016

IN THIS ISSUE 4

Inventing the Future with CSIT

Don Welch Left Lasting Impressions

8 Portrait of a Painter 10

Wojtalewicz Credits Career Growth to Kearney State Roots

Jon Watts Named UNK Vice Chancellor

13 111 - 25 Year UNK History Special Section 16 UNK Second Family to Sergio Ceja 17 Robertson Remembers UNK 18 UNK Fund Sets Bar for Alumni Gifts

19 Lopers Playing a Numbers Game 20 Dlagnev Returns to the Olympics 22

Hall of Fame Inductees Named

20 The University of Nebraska is an affirmative action/equal opportunity institution. Individuals needing accommodation under ADA should contact the ADA Coordinator at UNK, 308.865.8655.

College of Natural and Social Sciences

B y M ichelle W idger UNK A lumni A ssociation

Inventing the Future with CSIT Two computer science majors, two different paths, creating futures for many

hat does a 2015 computer science graduate and a professor of computer science, Emeritus at Princeton University have in common? When asked, Sherri Harms, computer science information technology (CSIT) department chair will tell you, “Larry Peterson ’79, Ph.D., helped engineer cloud computing; while Neil Emeigh ’15 makes a living off of it. They are some of the many technology stars who have graduated from the CSIT department at the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK).” Emeigh grew up and graduated from the small town of Wilber where he earned a regent’s scholarship to UNK. Since Emeigh was 14 years old, he has been busy programming computers and soon found ways to make some income online, mostly related to the search engine optimization (SEO) industry. When Emeigh turned 17, he partnered with a computer science instructor out of North Carolina and created his first business. During the summer of 2014, Emeigh bought out his partner. “This was the start of an everlasting job, stress, hobby …” said Emeigh. “At that point, I began managing the business myself and hiring freelancers to do all the work. I would say I'm the ‘project manager,’ but I also handle customer support, marketing, research and whatever else needs to be done. The majority of what I do these days, in terms of my business, is hire freelancers to create software for a large market. Then, I anticipate customer’s needs rather than deal one-on-one with the actual clients.” “Since graduating in December, I started traveling while I continue building my business from my laptop. There are many perks to being an entrepreneur, but with it comes a load of stress and responsibility that you do not experience in a normal work environment,” said Emeigh. Emeigh’s company, Blazing SEO, provides proxy servers all over the world to more than 3,000 clients, including optical character recognition (OCR), which is the mechanical or electronic conversion of images and captcha solving capabilities as well as other web-based services. Emeigh’s team of developers and system administrators create software to automate his proxy and hosting business. This includes automatic delivery of a customer's servers and proxies after purchase, automatic termination of services, automatic server "health checks" and server help notifications. Emeigh says, “Compared with other competitor's in the proxy niche, no one else has the level of automation that I accomplish with my custom-coded scripts that automate virtually every part of the proxies’ management. Automation is key to my success. Whether it be script or software, build it right the first time, and let it work for you without paying someone to do the labor.” When asked how his education prepared him, Emeigh said,

Neil Emeigh '15 started his first internet business at the age of 14.

“My knowledge from UNK has allowed me to know if a particular freelance developer has any idea what (s)he is doing and if (s)he's a suitable candidate for the job.” In offering words of advice to UNK students, Emeigh said, “What I would say to anyone considering being an entrepreneur is that 1) it’s not as glorious as it seems. Sure I can ‘work from anywhere in the world,’ but I also can't clock out at 5 p.m. every day, and 2) you need to be able to manage people's strengths and weaknesses, which means being sociable. I would be nowhere close to where I am today if I hadn't figured out how to manage my developers.” While Emeigh is just learning how to navigate his internet business, one who is quite familiar with it, because he has been around from the start, is Larry Peterson ’79, Ph.D. “Dr. Peterson is one of the pioneers of cloud computing. He has received numerous prestigious awards for his work in this field. He is the co-author of the best-selling networking textbook Computer Networks: A Systems Approach. Around the world, when university students study computer networks, they learn from his textbook,” said Harms. “Yet, when you meet Dr. Peterson, you are awed by his humble and generous presence.” Peterson grew up in Kearney where he first became interested in computers and programming through Kearney High School math class. They would use punch cards to complete basic math calculations. Those cards would be ran through the “computers” twice a week at what was then Kearney State College (KSC). They then had to wait 1-2 weeks for output.

College of Natural and Social Sciences “It was typical introductory to computers, but it really whet my appetite for more,” said Peterson. He went on to KSC to take broad-based mathematics and programming. At the time, it included a little bit of everything numerical from basic scientific applications to implementing company programs. After earning his bachelor of science in computer science in 1979, Peterson began graduate school at Purdue University where he researched the internet and networking. He was exposed to the earliest software and helping Purdue connect to the internet. It was around that time the internet infrastructure took off. “As the internet went national and companies got on board, applications were continually being developed and used on the internet. However, the internet still had limitations and shortcomings. There needed to be a way to continue to work on solutions,” said Peterson. Peterson earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in computer science from Purdue University in 1982 and 1985. He served as a professor at the University of Arizona and later as the Robert E. Kahn Professor of Computer Science at Princeton University, where he also served as department chair from 2003 to 2009. In March 2002, Peterson and David Culler, of UC Berkeley and Intel research, organized an “underground” meeting of researchers interested in planetary-scale network services and proposed PlanetLab, a consortium of like-minded universities and companies that was continually improving processes to improve the internet. While at Princeton, he co-founded a startup to commercialize content delivery network (CDN) technology developed on PlanetLab. “The internet quickly became part of the national communication infrastructure that people and companies were using. You couldn’t just take down the internet to work on it,” Peterson said, “It is like trying to repair a road while you’re driving on it. Our company would fix the internet on the fly. Improve it and repair it, while using it at the same time.” While PlanetLab's spinoff company, CoBlitz, was acquired by Akamai Technologies, Peterson felt it, “trained a generation of scientists that are working in the industry. Techniques we used, Larry Peterson '79, Ph.D., co-created the cloud technology.

evolved and became important to businesses in the industry. We have people at all the big technological corporations: Comcast, AT&T, Google, etc. Our advances have to be fast enough to keep up with innovations such as Facebook and Google. “Initially, when technology of the internet was introduced, computers were at the edge of society. We are seeing a dissemination of computers that allows for a global vantage point at multiple domains,” said Peterson. “Originally computers were unique, expensive and hard to possess. They were more of a phenomenon. Today, computers are becoming cheap, identical and much more accessible.” He is now emeritus at Princeton University and splits his time between the University of Arizona and his latest endeavor, Open Networking Laboratory. That is Peterson’s next adventure: opensource software, which is software that may be developed to study, change and distribute to anyone and for any purpose. Peterson’s latest company is a non-profit for the sake of changing the industry and providing internet technologies to the masses. Peterson said, “In the industry, we say, ‘Getting computers and the internet into the hands of the next billion.’ ” While excited about the potential of wide-spread technology, Peterson offers some advice, “The explosion of software is exciting! There will always be risks with technology security, protecting data and challenging persuasiveness of computing technology. People need to be educated about technology and understand how to run basic digital equipment.” “What has happened in my lifetime is a phenomenon. Kearney State College gave me a great grounding in basics of programming.” Peterson said, “I received an education that has always served me well. It was practical in nature and not theoretical; and that, in education, is invaluable.” Peterson is the co-author (with Bruce Davie) of the networking textbook Computer Networks: A Systems Approach. He has served as editor-in-chief of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Transactions on Computer Systems, on the editorial board for the IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking and the IEEE Journal on Select Areas in Communication, and program chair for SOSP, NSDI and HotNets. He is an ACM Fellow, an IEEE Fellow, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He is also the recipient of the IEEE Kobayashi Award, the ACM SIGCOMM Award and in April of this year was inducted into the Nebraska Hall of Computing. Even after all Peterson has done, he is excited about contributing more to the field of technology. Peterson says, “Computing technology is not on the edge of our society anymore, but imbedded into it. I’m anxious to see how far open-source software can go. It has game-changing caliber, and I’m going to take advantage of it.” When asked what message Peterson would tell UNK CSIT students today, he responded, “This is an exciting field. You shouldn’t be predicting the future; you should be inventing it. This field is your opportunity to make the future yours and touch it for generations to come!” n

Alumni News S tory P rovided B y K earney H ub P rinted with P ermission

Don Welch Left Lasting Impressions UNK professor, poet, friend, philosopher — Don Welch — through his life, career

ebraska poet and retired University of Nebraska at Kearney English professor Don Welch died Aug. 6, 2016. He was 84. “Don Welch was a Nebraska icon who inspired countless students and readers of his poetry to master the English language and to eloquently and creatively express themselves,” UNK Chancellor Doug Kristensen said. “He was a prominent figure at UNK for decades.” “It is difficult to imagine UNK without him. We salute him for a career and life well-lived and express our sympathy to his loved ones. We will miss you, Dr. Welch,” Kristensen added. That sentiment was echoed by Ruth Behlmann, an office associate in the UNK English Department and a photographer who collaborated with Welch to produce three sets of poem cards. Behlmann said it was a privilege to work with Welch. “He was just a jewel. We will never have another poet like him at UNK,” she said. Welch was the first Reynolds Chair in Poetry, from 19871997, at UNK and held the Martin Chair of English. He was an English professor from 1959-1997, but his ties to the campus go back to his student days at then Kearney State College where he received a bachelor of arts degree with majors in business and English and a minor in French. Don Welch ’54

Welch earned a master of arts degree from the University of Northern Colorado and a doctorate in American literature from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In 1988, Welch received the Pratt-Heins Award for teaching, and in 1990, he received the Board of Trustees of the Nebraska State Colleges Outstanding Teaching Award. Although he officially retired from the English department in 1997, he continued to teach in the UNK Department of Philosophy until 2008. Behlmann said Welch continued to be the most recognized across-campus walker and had maintained his routine of writing a poem a day. English department faculty and staff saw him regularly because they maintained an active in-box for Welch. In a Nov. 19, 2015, Hub article, Welch talked about the relationship between walking and writing. “I’m simply inclined to write. It’s like walking. You put one foot in front of the other, then another step, and pretty soon you’ve found that you completed a block of walking,” he said. “Well, that’s the way it is with one word right after another.” Welch said he encouraged his students to just start something and see where it goes. “You discover things you don’t know by simply putting one word after another,” he said.

Alumni News

Don and Marcia (Zorn) Welch ’52 in their home in Kearney.

Welch published 18 books of poetry. More than 300 of his poems have appeared in magazines, journals and anthologies throughout the United States, and examples of his work have been included in many anthologies. In 1980, he won the Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry, judged by William Stafford. Welch also served for 13 years as a Nebraska Arts Council Poet-In-Residence in the Nebraska Public Schools program, “Poets-in-the-Schools,” and was a consultant and participant in the Nebraska Public Television documentary “Last of the OneRoom Schools,” which was televised in September 1995. His composition handbook, “A Shape a Writer Can Contain,” was published by the Nebraska Department of Education in 1979. The Nebraska Center for the Book declared Welch’s “Morning: Last Poems” as the 2015 winner of the best book of poetry. Welch was appointed in November 1997 to the Kearney Public Schools Board of Education to fill a vacancy. “Serving Kearney Public Schools is really what I want to do,” Welch said at the time, “primarily because Kearney Public Schools has been so good to the six Welch children.” He did not seek election in 2000. Born in Hastings, Welch spent his early years in Gothenburg and Columbus and graduated from Kearney High School. He started his career by teaching English in Fort Morgan, Colo., Gothenburg and Hastings College.

In a Dec. 10, 2007, Hub article about the 20th anniversary of UNK’s Reynolds series, Welch said, “When I taught English initially at UNK, I would teach five courses, sometimes six courses, a semester. I would get a poem started, tear off to class and teach, come back and try to read the lines of the poem to get me going again so I could finish the thing.” As the Reynolds Chair, Welch had more time for writing. His collections include “Deadhorse Table,” “Handwork,” “The Rarer Game,” “The Keeper of Miniature Deer” and “The Marginalist.” Welch also collaborated on projects with Behlmann and other artists. Behlmann said their first sets of poem cards came out in 2013 and 2015. Welch had completed five new poems, and she planned to take the related photos over the summer. Behlmann said she still had images to complete for poems about coneflowers and two horses when she learned of Welch’s failing health. She grabbed her camera, went to work and had color copy images to show Welch on July 18. “We got them (the poem cards) done and went back to see him the next week and he was so pleased,” Behlmann said. “He started reciting the two horses poem from memory.” “He was so good to work with,” she added. Another thing about Welch that remained true for most of his life was his passion for racing pigeons. “He still had those darn pigeons,” Behlmann said. “He would stop in and say he had taken them down to Kansas, and they beat him home to Kearney.” n

L'Envoi by Don Welch Before my dead eyes open, flooding me with nothing, let me speak to you of the few remaining pods of the catalpa trees now hung with snow. What are they if not old flutes against a background of untroubled white, instruments to play the heart to? This morning I am coming home, a small figure on a country road among the occasional brilliance of pheasants. In love a certain music ditches fear; what we hear in love has always been there, waiting for our joining. What other thing can make the moments of our dying sing, or give back the baptismal-simple riches of our names? I'm coming home. My old bones in their sockets slip and sing. 7

College of Fine Arts and Humanities B y M ichelle W idger UNK A lumni A ssociation

Portrait of a Painter

The life of cowboys from a different point of view

irginia (Johnson) Wattles ’65, MAE ’83 paints cowboys and lots of them. Known for detail and beautiful colors, her paintings have sold around the world. Born and raised in Kearney, Wattles holds a bachelor’s degree and a master of arts/education degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. “What I aspire, in a portrait, is to project the entire person, his or her lifestyle and experience.” Wattles says, “I would hope their personality could be easily read by the twinkle in the eyes.” One of Wattle’s techniques is to have someone, usually her husband Mel, talk to the subject if they pose live. That helps with two things: boredom for the model and allows the subject’s personality to shine through. Authentic models do not work as well because it is hard to get someone to sit still for that long, so Wattles likes to take pictures of her subjects and paint them at a later time. When asked how long it takes her to paint a portrait, Wattles used to love to answer, “Whatever my age is at the time.” However, she jokes, “I had to give that up!” Although Wattles has been in art all of her life, she really started getting serious about it in 1992 when she and her husband, Mel, retired from teaching. It was at that point her longing to be an artist got the best of her. Wattles and her husband packed their bags and moved to Scottsdale, Arizona. At the time, Scottsdale, was the third largest art city in the U.S. Wattles talked to a director of a local gallery, which was located in an old courtyard, with fireclay ceramic tile, and asked if she could paint for her. She started with tourists’ idea of the “real cowboy.” She remembers each model by name. She paints realworking cowboys. When asked why cowboys, “Cowboys love to pose. 99 percent of cowboy painters are men,” Virginia said, “Men do action photos. I do classic portraits. I could bring something that people had never seen before, a sort of ‘cowboy panache.’ “Cowboys’ clothing are real utilitarian.” Wattles explained, 8

Known for painting cowboys with panache’, Virginia Wattles ’65 MAE ’83, sits below one of her paintings, "Rick Gurley and his horse Whiskey." Wattles pointed out, that as Gurley needed money, he would sell the silvers off of his horse's bridle.

“You can tell what state each cowboy is from because their gear varies from state to state.” In 1991 she was named Nebraska’s Artist/Educator of the year and is a signature member of the Pastel Society of America since 1991 and the Portrait Society of America. Her paintings, done exclusively in pastel, are in numerous corporate, academic and museum collections in the United States, Europe and Japan. She has participated in many invitational, one-person and juried shows over the years, winning many prizes including a Grumbacher Silver Medal. Grumbacher markets both collegiate and professional-grade artist products internationally. Within the last couple of years, Wattles decided to take on the challenge of painting the founders credited with establishing the Museum of Nebraska Art (MONA). They are the late Gary Zaruba MAE ’67, Larry Peterson ’58, Jack Karraker and the late director of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Sheldon Museum of Art, Norman Geske. When asked why she decided to paint these men, Wattles said, “These four guys had the vision. Without them, MONA wouldn’t be. I’ve been in art all of my life and really respect what they have done. MONA is a major cultural asset to Kearney and central Nebraska.” Wattles started by painting Professor Jack Karraker as a request from Karraker himself. Wattles was a student of Karraker’s during the first year he taught at Kearney. He was her advisor, mentor and friend. Wattles took photographs of Karraker in Kearney and painted him at her studio in Arizona. Karraker’s picture is now hangs in his living room.

College of Fine Arts and Humanities When asked what Wattles remembers most about having Karraker as a teacher, she says, “Jack is one of those fun, positive personalities that would make you love art; he would bring it to life.” As a teacher, “Jack was an entertainer who certainly knew his art. He gets a twinkle in his eye when he is holding art. Everything is a party with Jack.” That is one of the reasons Wattles decided to paint Karraker holding art because he looked more natural that way. “That is how everyone who knows him, sees him.” To this day … people still ask her what artwork Karraker is holding. Karraker helped Wattles get her first teaching job when he called to tell her there was a position at the Boys’ Training School (now known as the Youth Rehabilitation Training Center or YRTC) needed an art teacher for a couple of hours a week. “They were looking for someone pre-graduate.” Wattles said, “I was terrified to start, but at $2 an hour in 1959, the money was too good to pass up.” It was her first teaching job, and she loved it. Wattles went on to teach 27 more years between Kearney and Minden.

“Wattles is a very fine painter,” Peterson recalls. “Jack and I both had her in our class where students would display their artwork, and we would critique it. Even though it has been many years, she still keeps on painting.” Talking about Virginia and the paintings brought back memories to Peterson of the early days of MONA; Peterson says, “I think, it was 40 years ago from this year that we were in the process of forming the Nebraska art collection. Those were trying, yet fun days. “I think back to the days of our humble beginnings when we worked extremely hard to scrape together art and money for the project.” Peterson says, “Now we have Spirit (a biannual fundraiser), some money and 6,000 pieces of artwork in our collection. It is overwhelming to think how far we’ve come.” Whether painting pioneers of Nebraska art or conquering cowboys of the American plains, Wattles has a gift that she enjoys sharing. If you're lucky enough, you will get to see her paintings and hear about her adventures of the people behind the portraits. n

Museum of Nebraska Art (MONA) historical facts: • PICTURED ABOVE: The Collection of Nebraska Arts was conceptualized in 1976 by the late University of Nebraska – Lincoln Sheldon Museum of Art Curator, Norman Geske, and three Kearney State College professors: Larry Peterson '58 , the late Gary Zaruba MAE '67 and Jack Karraker. • At the time, it was the only museum in Nebraska to be dedicated purely to Nebraskan artists. • The Collection of Nebraska Arts started with just 28 works and grew to more than 4,000 pieces by 1998. • In May 1979, the Collection of Nebraska Arts was established and made official by the legislature. • In 1986, the building that had been the Kearney Post Office was purchased and renovated to become the permanent home of the collection. • The Museum of Nebraska Art (MONA) opened to the public in Oct. 1986. • In 1989, Nebraska was one of three states to have museums dedicated to state artists, the other two being Oklahoma and California. • Before renovation, only 500 works of art could be showcased at a time, meaning more than 3,500 works had to be stored in an on-site vault. • More than $2.45 million was raised to launch a renovation of the building in 1991 that included a single-story addition to the building, a sculpture garden, a parking lot for 70 cars and landscaping. • The renovations were concluded on Oct. 2, 1993. • MONA’s collection now has more than 6,000 works of art. 9

College of Business and Technology B y S ara G iboney UNK C ommunications

Wojtalewicz Credits Career Growth to Kearney State Roots

eanette (Keller) Wojtalewicz ’84 always saw herself working in a career focused on service. So when her job as a certified public accountant led her to the healthcare industry, she knew she had found her niche. Wojtalewicz, who grew up in Humphrey, graduated from Kearney State College with a degree in business administration and an emphasis in accounting. “I’ve always loved finance and math. I took an accounting course in high school and just loved it. I also like the creative side of business,” she said. “I feel like I use both my right brain and left brain. I think in business you have to have that balance. There was something about accounting that just spoke to me.” She credits the encouragement, support and guidance from professors, such as Ron Landstrom ’53, with her ability to grow in her career, now as CFO for Catholic Health Initiatives – CHI Health. “Having that background and that knowledge base jumpstarted me in my public accounting career. It’s really been the underpinning of my ability to continue to grow in my career over the years,” she said. “I didn’t realize the potential that I had, but my professors saw things in me that I didn’t at the time. They pushed me and made me work hard, and that made such a difference. They believed in me, they took time for me and they pushed me beyond my comfort zone.” Wojtalewicz transitioned into the medical field, in part, because of advice from her professors. They suggested that she work as a certified public accountant to discover what industry she liked best. She worked for Seim, Johnson, Sestak & Quist, a public accounting firm in Omaha that worked with many clients in the healthcare industry. “That gave me an opportunity to do auditing, consulting and perform analysis for hospitals across the state of Nebraska. I really just found my calling to be in the healthcare field,” she said. “I knew I could never be a nurse or a doctor, but supporting the business side of healthcare had a huge appeal to me.” Wojtalewicz got her start in healthcare at Clarkson Hospital in Omaha as the director of finance. She also served as the director of finance for Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, as director of accounting for the Nebraska Hospital Association in Lincoln and as the chief financial officer for Orchard Place-Child Guidance Center. She began working for Catholic Health Initiatives in 1999 as vice president of finance and the chief financial officer for Saint Elizabeth Health System. In 2008, she became the chief financial 10

Jeanette (Keller) Wojtalewicz ’84

officer for CHI Nebraska, where she was responsible for a $900 million operating revenue. She was accountable for four hospitals, foundations, a physician network, a home care agency and multiple joint ventures. “I work for a Catholic healthcare company now, Catholic Health Initiatives, a faith-based organization meeting the needs of the vulnerable and underserved, and it connects with my values and desire to serve,” she said. She has worked for CHI Health for 18 years now. She now serves as the CFO of CHI Health, a $2.2 billion company comprised of 15 hospitals, two physical enterprises with 750 physicians and a clinically integrated network along with several foundations and numerous joint ventures. “The medical field is complex and constantly changing. There’s never a moment of boredom. You’ll never know it all because of the regulatory changes and the significant amount of money that people (Continued on the top of page 11)

College of Business and Technology spend on healthcare. It’s a job that will keep you on your toes,” she said. “I like the complexity and I like to be challenged.” As the CFO, Wojtalewicz completed a project to centralize and standardize statewide finance functions resulting in a $2.4 million annual savings. She also led the implementation of a $101 million financial improvement plan including revenue growth and expense reduction strategies including the reduction of $22 million in overhead costs. “The healthcare costs across the country – and Nebraska is no exception – are spiraling out of control,” Wojtalewicz said. “CHI Health is really looking at how we can change healthcare and how we can transition from the old model of taking care of sick people to changing how healthcare is provided so we’re providing an environment that keeps people well and that keeps people out of the hospital. We’re really focusing on changing healthcare for the future because it’s just flat out too expensive. We want people to be well.” Wojtalewicz is the 2016-17 Ron Landstrom Executive-inResidence. The program brings successful business executives to UNK to talk with College of Business and Technology students about “best business practices,” as well as their personal career paths and lessons learned. These executives engage students

in several classes, make campus presentations on their area of expertise and participate in a session with the CBT student advisory board and faculty. They also participate in a networking opportunity with members of the business advisory board. “Part of my message to students will be to keep the doors open as you’re getting your education, to get engaged and to accept invitations to be involved. Getting out of your comfort zone every once in a while is important because it’s amazing what you’ll learn. Don’t be afraid to take some risk and make mistakes. In my career, as painful as it is to go down a road and have it not work out, that is the greatest learning opportunity,” Wojtalewicz said. “Failures are gifts in disguise as long as you use them as learning opportunities.” n

Join us! September 22 from 11 a.m. - 12: 15 p.m.

Presentation, "Keep the Door Open - Life After UNK" College of Business and Technology Ron Landstrom

Executive-in-Residence Nebraska Student Union, Ponderosa Room

Campus News B y T odd G ottula UNK C ommunications

Jon Watts Named UNK Vice Chancellor New UNK Business and Finance Vice Chancellor Jon Watts focused on culture of collaboration

on Watts has a focused list of priorities for UNK’s Division of Business and Finance. None more important, he says, than creating a culture of collaboration, being receptive and responsive, and offering a high level of service to everybody who comes into contact with his office. “I am someone people can reach out to when they have questions, concerns or need clarification. I feel strongly about responding to people in a timely fashion and with a professionalism that helps get them where they want to go. I want everybody on our team to bleed a little Loper blue every day. That means a higher commitment to serving campus and creating a stronger mission for service.” Watts, 34, was recently hired as the new Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, where he oversees a $150 million annual operating budget. A Kearney native, he came to UNK in 2010 and worked the previous six years as assistant director, and then director, of business services. “There are very few positions on campus where you build so many relationships and impact so many things,” says Watts. “Business and Finance often gets labeled as the people who control money and the numbers. I want people to see that it’s more than that. “For me, this job is about helping people achieve their goals. I want to formulate relationships that allow the academic mission to move forward.” Watts wants his division to be “incredibly responsive” and approachable. “I am someone people can reach out to when they have questions, concerns or need clarification. I feel strongly about responding to people in a timely fashion and with a professionalism that helps get them where they want to go. “I am someone who will collaborate, work with you and have open dialogue about the benefits, challenges and opportunities that exist at UNK.” UNK’s Division of Business and Finance manages the university’s financial operations that include facilities management and planning, business services, budget, finance, human resources, emergency management, police and parking, and contracted providers that include Chartwells Food Service and Antelope Bookstore. “I’m big on hiring the right people, setting the right vision for where we want to go and empowering them to implement and proceed as they see appropriate,” Watts says. “I want to help move UNK forward each and every day. 12

“UNK has a strong culture of service. I am committed to making sure that every level of our organization is empowered to do what they need to do to take care of our customers. Not just, ‘This is my job and I can help you in this area.’ I want people to step out of their comfort zones and feel empowered to do that.” In his new role, Watts advises the chancellor, oversees operations of the division and works with central administration to plan and carry out financial operations, set rates and fees, and plan for construction and facilities maintenance. It’s a responsibility Watts is excited about. “Higher ed is changing, and that means UNK needs to change. We need to be a division that supports informed changed, carries a sense of urgency to improve, and refines our processes and procedures to make sure we are effective and efficient.” Watts is appreciative of UNK’s proud past and focused on continuing the strong “tradition of success” the university is known for. “I understand the vision of where UNK wants to go. This university is so incredibly positioned. I think, over the next five or 10 years, we are going to amaze people with the things we accomplish here. “I’m truly fortunate to be part of the team helping move UNK forward.” n

P hotos provided by UNK C reative S ervices & UNK L ibrary A rchival S taff

1991: URN/URS opened. These were the first new residence halls to have been built since CTE/CTW in 1968. The eight 50-student capacity dorms are used for Greek housing. New Cushing Coliseum opened after renovations. The new coliseum features a main arena with seating for 6,016 people, a new track, new volleyball and basketball courts, racquetball courts, a new wrestling room, new lockers rooms and new weight-training areas among other amenities. The Loper men’s cross country team earned NCAA Division II national runners up.

C 111 - 25 Year UNK History Special Section D 1992: The Loper men’s cross country team earned NCAA Division II third place. 1993: Computer system added for circulation at Calvin T. Ryan Library. 1994: New “Louie the Loper” mascot introduced. The new mascot for UNK athletics featured a more "cartoonish" look compared to the original realistic costume. The pronghorn antelope

B y M ichelle W idger & R achel S tauffer UNK A lumni

mascot was selected by students in 1910. The Loper men’s cross country team earned NCAA Division II fourth overall. 1995: Ron and Carol Cope Memorial Fountain was completed. Hammer Motel was razed and a West Center addition completed. The $900,000 addition that is located on the west side of West Center and right east of the Frank House was built to serve Central Nebraska-based UNMC health professions students, pre-professional health science and general science students. ROTC building was turned into the College of Education. The ROTC program was deactivated at UNK in 1994 due to military cuts. The building that housed the program was used for the education department offices. The cafeteria of the Nebraskan Student Union was updated for the first time since the 70’s, bringing the décor up to more modern colors and designs and expanding to include four chain restaurants: ChickFil-A, Taco Bell, Blimpies and Freshens. The first phase of the Copeland Hall addition opened a three-story, 25,000 square-foot addition providing classroom and lecture space, a computer lab and other lab spaces for departments housed in Copeland. UNK hosted the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. 1995 - 2001: Women’s basketball won 87-consecutive home games, an NCAA Division II record. 1996: The second phase of Copeland Hall addition opened, which was aimed at renovating the original building that was built in 1917. The addition and renovation converted the building which had been originally used as the home for athletics and health education into a home for the social sciences.

C 111 - 25 Year UNK History Special Section D 1997: The electronic message center was completed. Located directly south of the Health and Sports Center near Highway 30, the sign was a gift from the Alumni Association to promote happenings at UNK to those traveling past campus. 1999: UNK's psychology department earned the university-wide departmental teaching award. Three faculty receive Pratt Heins Awards: Rebecca Umland, Max McFarland and Charlie Pickens. A bronze statue honoring the long-time teacher Phyllis Roberts was dedicated. UNK softball was national runners up, capping a string of four-straight years reaching the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. 2000: $9.5 million education building under way hopes to unite the COE departments into one building. Bronze sculpture erected to commemorate Don Welch '54. Twelve inches of snow put a white cap on homecoming that weekend. Bruner received a $6.5 million facelift. Justin Coleman set a then-NCAA Division II record for career football passing yards (11,213) in a home win over Western State. Coleman went on to finish runner up in the race for the Harlon Hill Trophy, the Division II version of the Heisman. President William Jefferson Clinton visited UNK. 2002: New College of Education building installed and dedicated the sculpture, "The Knowledge Tree," by Don Mitchell which features the silhouettes of eight educators arranged in vanes to form the overall shape of an apple. The eight educators are Mary McLeod, Bethune, John Dewey, Jaime Escalante, Friedrich Froebel, Thomas Jefferson, Anne Sullivan Macy, Horace Mann and Socrates. Nebraskan Student Union was renovated. UNK football reached the NCAA Division II playoffs. 2003: The Loper men’s basketball won a school-record 30 games and reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. 2004: Foster Field received a FieldTurf covering as the first part of a $9 million upgrade of outdoor athletic and recreation facilities. Men’s basketball Nick Branting was named the Daktronics and Division II Bulletin Player of the Year and named the CoSIDA Academic Player of the Year. Joba Chamberlain pitched his freshman season for the Loper baseball. He went on to be a first-round pick of the New York Yankees with an extended Major League career.

2005: The second phase of the upgrade of outdoor athletic and recreation facilities was completed with the Ron and Carol Cope Stadium built on the west side of Foster Field and a field house built in the north end zone. Internet Café was renovated in the Calvin T. Ryan Library. UNK football reached the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Loper volleyball team was national runners up, finishing

38-2. UNK hosted the Volleyball Elite Eight, drawing record crowds on three successive nights. Volleyball player, Erin Gudmundson, was named the AVCA Division II National Player of the Year. 2006: Ludden and Case Halls were razed. Lesley Crutcher (high jump) and Amber Tiedeman (shot put) both won national titles at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Women’s Track Championships. Lance Pfeiffer won the shot put national title at the Men’s Track Indoor NCAA Championships. 2007: UNK hosted the women’s basketball Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament and games aired live on ESPN. UNK hosted the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. Students gift new campus sign for west end of campus. Kearney Power House (north of the Health and Sports Center) razed. Antelope Hall opened. Lance Pfeiffer, again, won the shot put national title at the Men’s Track Indoor NCAA Championships. 2008: UNK wrestling won the national title. UNK hosted the women’s basketball Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament and games aired live on ESPN. William Jacome was named the RMAC Men’s Tennis Player of the Year for four consecutive years (2005-08). Nester Hall opened. Antelope and Nester Halls were dedicated to Dr. William R. Nester in September. 2009: UNK reached the football NCAA Division II Playoffs. Bruner Hall renovations were completed. The existing building was updated with modern laboratories and equipment, and the planetarium and herbarium were added on. The renovations provided more space for the chemistry, biology, physics and health science programs that use the building. The mural on the outside of the new addition, “On the Shoulders of Giants,” was designed and constructed by Jay Tschetter and Tom Meyers, depicts the four sciences housed within the building. The planetarium completed at Bruner Hall is run by the physics and physical science department. It offers shows to UNK students as well as the Kearney community. Mantor Hall was renovated. Fire sprinklers and an audible fire alarm system were added to the hall that was built in 1965. Rest rooms were also renovated, and the heating and cooling units were updated.

C 111 - 25 Year UNK History Special Section D 2010: Men’s Hall was renovated. The hall received fresh paint and polish, as well as air conditioning and a new sprinkler system. The building was also made handicap accessible on all levels. Nebraskan Student Union received additions. A Subway was added to the lower floor of the Union, and the computer lounge was updated into "The Living Room," which offers a limited Starbucks menu. 2011: UNK football reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs. UNK baseball won a school-record 37 games and fell a win shy of advancing to the NCAA Division II College World Series in North Carolina. UNK hosted the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. Men’s tennis players, Josh Raymond and Yeswanth Nadella, finished national runner up in the doubles bracket of the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships in Florida. Vanessa Gunawan placed seventh in the singles bracket of the 2011 USTA/ITA Women’s Tennis National Small College Championships in Florida. Randall Hall was renovated with updates and renovations similar to Mantor Hall were made. The Market @ 27th Street opened. The new dining facility offers a sandwich bar, salad bar, Mongolian grill and fresh pizzas among other options. The cafeteria seats more students. 2012: Brewed Awakening opened in the Health and Sports Center. Brewed Awakening is the first studentowned business on campus. The coffee shop is owned and operated by the organization Enactus. Wrestling won the national title. Heavyweight wrestler Tervel Dlagnev was named the inaugural NCAA Division II Wrestler of the Year in 2008 and reached the Olympic Games. 2013: CTW and CTE renovations were complete. UNK wrestling won the national title. 2014: Men’s tennis players, Joey Richards and Lucas Garces, finished national runner up in the doubles bracket of the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships in South

Carolina. New Mantor/Randall entryway opened. The new entryway provided more meeting space for residents as well as an updated front desk, mailboxes and elevator. The Student Wellness Center in Health and Sports was completed. Open to all UNK students, the Wellness Center has cardio machines, weight-lifting machines and a heavy-lifting area as well as a rockclimbing wall. There are also classrooms, such as the physical activity and wellness lab. Conrad and Martin Halls are no longer used for housing students. 2015: Health Science Education Complex opened. The new HSEC provides expanded education

opportunities for those going into the medical field by bringing UNMC to UNK. The building features classrooms with the latest technology, an anatomy lab, an X-ray suite and a physical therapy lab among other modern educational technology. Women’s cross country junior, Morgan Benesch, earned All-American honors in 2015, becoming the first Loper to do so at the NCAA Division II level. 2016: Heavyweight wrestler Tervel Dlagnev again qualified for the Olympic Games placing fifth. UNK celebrates its 25th year as a University.n

Portraits in Philanthropy B y C olleen F leischer NU F oundation

UNK Second Family to Sergio Ceja Estes scholarship winner talks about what it means to him

ergio Ceja is a beefy guy, one who loved playing football at Lexington High. He’s never been afraid to work hard. Most summers since graduating from high school, the UNK senior (and 2014 Homecoming king) has worked as a “beef pusher” at Tyson Foods back home. What’s a beef pusher? “You push beef that’s on a rail for eight to 10 hours a day,” he says, “and it’s like pushing a football sled eight to 10 hours a day. I love it, because I was getting paid very well to basically do exercise. “But sometimes, when you’re really tired, and you don’t want to be working, I think back to my coach and I hear him say, ‘Sergio, chop your feet! Chop your feet!’ and it’d get me through the day.” He paid for his computer that way. His parents, who’ve worked at Tyson for years, are his biggest role models. They’ve always worked hard. Both came from Mexico. Both were raised by single parents. Sergio saw both of them work eight to 10 hours a day to make a better life for him and his younger brother (who’ll also go to UNK someday). He says his folks are proud Sergio Ceja because he’s first in the family to go to college. He is majoring in elementary education with a minor in sports management. He plans to student teach next spring and then graduate. He wants to teach kindergarten someday or work in the sports management field. Education, he knows, is so important. He came to UNK on a full-tuition scholarship through Kearney Bound a college-prep program for promising high school students who would be the first in their family to get a degree. Kearney Bound pays for the students’ tuition, books, fees and room and board at UNK. Sergio also received the Kent Estes Memorial Scholarship through his UNK fraternity, Pi Kappa Alpha. He says the scholarships help him have the time to get involved on campus. Besides the fraternity, he’s also joined student government. “I like to represent everything I do to the fullest, so I hope to make the Estes family proud that they selected me to win this scholarship. But I also hope to make the university proud and my parents proud. I think about my family, and I think to myself, ‘Where would I be without that money?’ 16 16

FAMILY: The Estes family who include Erik Estes ’01 and son, Evan, Barb (Lehmkuhl) Estes ’74, Luke Estes ’08, ME ’11 and Aaron Estes ’04, MSE ’06 welcome Sergio Ceja, the Kent Estes Memorial Scholarship recipient with open arms.

“The Estes Scholarship has helped me by not only assisting my financial needs, but also my needs as a basic human being. Whenever I see the Esteses around campus or in the community, I never leave without a hug and a quick update on how I am doing. I have become close with the Esteses, and I’m forever grateful because of it.” Three summers ago, Sergio didn’t work at Tyson with his dad. Instead, he was hired to be a news student enrollment host at UNK. He and the other NSE student hosts helped incoming freshmen understand the ropes of the university life. The hosts performed fun skits, answered questions and gave campus tours. “I was there once, where I was really nervous,” he says. “My parents were really nervous. And the fact that I get to help students feel comfortable and look forward to college – I love that.” UNK, he says, has become a second family. “It’s not too big. It’s not too small. I run into people that I know; I run into people that I don’t know. So every single day is a new day. And I just love the whole family atmosphere. It kind of reminds me of home. “When I become an alum of UNK, I want to hopefully donate money to UNK to help other students at UNK become successful.” n Scholarships like the Kent Estes Memorial Scholarship are a priority of the University of Nebraska’s Our Students, Our Future fundraising initiative. The two-year, $200 million initiative runs through 2017. If you would like to help promising students like Sergio, please contact the University of Nebraska Foundation at 800-432-3216.

College of Business and Technology B y J im R undstrom UNK A lumni

Robertson Remembers UNK From work to cheering on the Loper basketball team, Robertson reminisces

oris (Ritzdorf) Robertson ’89 of Lincoln has been named president of Farmers & Merchants, Inc., She was also added to Union Bank’s executive committee, serving as a liaison for holding company activities to Union Bank. In addition to those responsibilities, Robertson continues in her role as vice president of commercial loans, serving business clients. Farmers & Merchants, Inc., is the holding company of Union Bank & Trust and has a number of subsidiaries including Union Title, Zelle, Infovisa, UTS Solutions in addition to Adminisystems and Union Investment Advisors. Robertson’s role includes oversight of holding company operations, regulatory and financial reporting, and participation in the management of holding company subsidiaries. Doris (Ritzdorf) Robertson ’89 “The growth and complexity of our holding company and its subsidiaries require special expertise,” said Angie Muhleisen, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Union Bank. “We are very fortunate to have Doris’ skills, experience and passion for excellence to take on these responsibilities.” Robertson has been with Union Bank for 13 years serving as vice president of financial reporting and controller focusing a portion of her time on holding company regulatory and financial reporting and accounting. When she was a senior in college, Robertson took the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam and, in her words, “was fortunate to pass it in one sitting. It was nice to have that behind me!” She started her career in June at Deloitte & Touche, a “big eight” accounting firm. “One day, I received a call from a former Deloitte & Touche senior manager, Dave Gentry, who had gone to work for a company called Tools Companies, Inc., American Tool. It was a family owned manufacturing company of hand-tool products, most known for inventing the vise grip and quick grip products. “Dave indicated the company was acquiring a power tool company, as well as going through a computer conversion and

he wanted to know if I wanted to come work for him. I spent the next ten years with American Tool and worked my way up to controller of North American operations.” In 2002, American Tool was sold to a public company. At that point, Robertson joined another former Deloitte & Touche manager who was a chief financial officer (CFO) of Union Bank and Trust. While at Deloitte & Touche, Robertson met her husband, Bryan, who also has a CPA and a law degree. He is a trust manager for US Bank. As a student, Robertson was a secretary to coach Claire Boroff ’59 in the football program for four years. “I loved working in the coliseum and talking with Dr. Lackey, Carleen and all the coaches.” Her last two years she was part of the summer orientation crew. “We had a lot of fun.” Robertson said her best memories of what was then Kearney State are long before she attended, “when I would get out of school as a fourth grader to watch my brother Tom play basketball with the Lopers. I loved watching those games. Then I would lay down in the back of the car (no seat belts of course) and sleep the entire threehour drive home to Howells. “Apparently my folks thought I was too little to go down to the national tournament in 1978 in Kansas City, Kansas, so I spent the week with my aunt and uncle. Of course, in Howells, the only place that had a big screen TV at the time was Frank’s Bar. The bar was packed every night watching the game and, being a fourth grader, the patrons were kind enough to make me a special chair up higher on top of stacked cases of beer. The bar absolutely exploded when Tom made the last second shot to beat Quincy, Illinois, in the semi-final game.” Robertson and her husband keep busy with two sons, one who will be an engineering major and marching band member at UNO and one who is a junior three-sport athlete at Lincoln Pius X. She said she is looking forward to more contact with UNK since her nephew, John Ritzdorf, is the new men’s assistant basketball coach. n 17

UNK Fund News

UNK Fund Sets Bar for Alumni Gifts

ne year ago, Kearney grads were asked to step up in a big way for current students with gifts to the UNK Fund – a new way to support the immediate needs of today’s students. To no surprise, Loper alumni answered the call. In its inaugural year, the UNK Fund attracted 1,630 donors and raised more than $145,000 for student scholarships, faculty development, college priorities and other pressing needs of UNK. Alumni and donors provided thousands in additional dollars for these areas, and UNK’s number of individual annual donors grew by nearly 25% during the 2015-16 academic year. “Alumni are so important to their campus,” said Lucas Dart ’97, Vice President of UNK Alumni Relations and Development at the University of Nebraska Foundation. “That we had so many repeat and first time donors this year is a great endorsement of what's happening at their alma mater. We couldn't be more appreciative of the depth of support we received this year.” Entering its second year, the UNK Fund hopes to continue growing the amount of support it can provide immediately for deserving Loper students. Monthly giving options – an automatic debit or credit card gift of $5, $10 or $25 per month – can add up in a big way for students over the course of an entire year. The UNK Fund was created in July 2015 to make it easier for everyone – longtime supporters, parents, faculty members and new graduates – to change the lives of Loper students. Every dollar invested in the UNK Fund provides much-needed assistance for our students, opportunities for attracting and retaining talented faculty, and the means to establish extraordinary programs in our

classrooms. All gifts, whether large or small, have the power to make a difference. When giving to the UNK Fund, supporters can choose how their gift will be used: • Student scholarships: Give the gift of academic opportunity to a deserving UNK student who most needs financial support. • Faculty development: Help UNK recruit and retain the most talented instructors and researchers in the nation. • UNK’s colleges: Continue the giving tradition by providing vital opportunities to one of UNK’s four colleges and its students. • UNK’s greatest need: Whether it’s a student in need, an event to benefit the community, or a special project of the Chancellor, gifts will benefit the highest priorities at UNK. The growth and progress of campus – not to mention thousands of degrees conferred – have been possible because alumni, faculty, and the community decided to invest in University of Nebraska at Kearney. Join our alumni and supporters in growing a tradition of excellence for our students, campus and community. Your contributions, no matter the size, are critical to the Kearney students’ success. Your participation counts – we can’t do this without you. To learn more about the UNK Fund or other charitable options at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, visit nufoundation.org/UNKfund or check out the UNK Fund on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. n

Loper Athletics B y A ndrew H anson UNK A thletics

e m a G s r e b m u N

Lopers Playing a

For the last two road games of the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s 2015 football campaign, the Lopers traveled only 17 defensive players – a stark contrast to the typical 28 that head coach Josh Lamberson prefers. In the MIAA, teams are allotted a travel roster of 60 players. Twenty-eight of those are usually defensive players and another 28 are on the offensive side of the ball with the final four spots reserved for specialists. By the end of the season this fall, Lamberson doesn’t want to have to go through the same roster damage that last year’s squad dealt with. And it all starts by playing the numbers game. “If you really look at our games, we were in every single one of them,” Lamberson said. “Our starting 22 were pretty solid and then after that we just didn’t have a lot of depth.” Lamberson noted that there are two types of depth. There is depth that simply consists of having available bodies to play, but there’s also having reserves that can go out and eliminate any drop off in quality of play, which the top-tiered programs in the MIAA have. “The best teams in the league, between their ones and twos, there’s not a drastic difference in between them,” he explained. “We’re trying to create that depth, but it takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight.” Since Lamberson stepped on campus, he’s had the philosophy to build the program up,

starting from the bottom. It’s why he and his staff have recruited unusually large classes over the last two cycles. In 2015, the Lopers signed 40 kids and this past spring they inked more than 70. This fall, UNK will have 16 seniors, 18 juniors and just 12 sophomores – numbers that will most likely diminish slightly over the coming months simply because of the brutal toll the game of football takes on players. But what the Lopers do have are young players, lots of them. There are 25 redshirt-freshmen that will go through fall camp along with 55 true freshmen – all of whom serve as important base for the program. “We want to recruit those kids coming out of high school, bring them in and have them be the foundation of our program for four or five years,” Lamberson said. “We really want to start it with freshmen and build a sustainable model for years to come.” The downside to having 80 total freshmen on a team is that none of them have the all-important element of college football experience. “That’s one of the challenges that we’re faced with in our program development is playing young kids,” he added. “But I’m committed to that and trying to do things the right way with the right kind of kids that we can be proud of. Even our redshirtfreshmen that have been in our program for a year have never played in the MIAA or Division II football.” Lamberson said they might limit what the Lopers do schematically early on a bit in order to help the new players ease into the system and become comfortable with the schemes. To help create as seamless of a transition as possible for the incoming players, the second-year head coach and his staff decided to separate their players into two groups – “young guns,” who are all of the true freshmen, and the “vets,” who are all of the returning players – that will have different practice sessions for the first five days of fall camp. Despite all of the unknown entities the roster entails, Lamberson sees plenty of potential in the players they’ve recruited over the last year-and-a-half. From now until the Lopers’ season opener at Missouri Western State on September 1, Lamberson is excited to watch the new crop of players step up and build a roster that not only has quantity but has quality as well. “I’m not even worried about September 1 at the moment,” Lamberson said. “I’m worried about what we have in front of us and what we’re trying to do on a day-to-day basis to keep building this roster up and keep this program headed in the right direction.” n 19

Loper Athletics

B y A ndrew H anson UNK A thletics

Dlagnev Returns to the Olympics From humble beginnings to world-class athlete, Dlagnev proves himself on the world stage

s Tervel Dlagnev ’09 prepared for his second summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he made an important stop – a stop in Kearney, the place he developed from a run-of-the-mill wrestler to a force to be reckoned with on the national and world level. A Columbus, Ohio, resident now, Dlagnev likes to reminisce by walking around the University of Nebraska at Kearney campus or cruising down 25th Street. But before Dlagnev frequented all of the hot spots around Kearney, he was a self-described unmotivated teenager going through the motions at Arlington High School right outside of Dallas. “I played video games. I was failing my classes and didn’t do a lot of homework,” Dlagnev, who was born in Bulgaria but moved to the U.S. at a young age, recalled his youth. “I didn’t do anything passionately. I just tried to get through life the easy way.” During his P.E. class, Dlagnev would keep an eye on the wrestlers. Dlagnev’s teacher was the girl’s basketball coach. Another P.E. teacher at Arlington High School, was Henry Harmoney ’82 MSE, a former UNK graduate assistant and the school’s wrestling coach. The two instructors would often pass names along to one another if they thought they found someone who might be good at the other coach’s sport. Harmoney scooped Dlagnev out of class and asked him to become a part of the wrestling team. Wanting to lose a little weight and get in shape, Dlagnev quickly joined, wrestling at the juniorvarsity level as a sophomore.

The heavyweight wrestler quickly learned the ropes and placed third and fourth at the state tournament over the next two years. Dlagnev knew that he wanted to keep wrestling, too. “That’s when I got my grades up, and when I got really motivated about getting into college,” Dlagnev said. “The biggest thing I remember thinking was ‘I don’t want to do this for only two years.’ ” While Dlganev was starting to come into his own as a wrestler, he wasn’t a highly sought after recruit. Harmoney remembers trying to get him into the University of Oklahoma program. “I tried to sell him to Oklahoma because they were close, and I knew the coach a little,” Harmoney said. “But he kind of blew me off.” While Harmoney had ties to UNK, so too, did his assistant Andrew Bauer, who’s the brother of UNK head coach Marc Bauer MAE ’99. In years past, Harmoney had sent kids up from Texas to Nebraska. Harmoney accompanied Dlagnev on his official visit to UNK and the young wrestler hit it off with Loper wrestlers Keenan McCurdy ’09 and Jeff Rutledge ’07. “I don’t know how they hit it off so well but they clicked,” Bauer said. “They liked to joke with each other. They were all playful, light-hearted jokesters.” When Tervel got to UNK prior to the start of the 2004 season, he walked into Bauer’s office on the first day of school and asked for tape on all of the wrestlers from the previous season. Bauer handed Dlagnev a box full of VHS tapes, and on the first day of practice a month-and-a-half later he was emulating every

INSPIRATION: Prior to hitting the Olympic road, Tervel Dlagnev '09 toured local Nebraska wrestling camps to inspire young wrestlers to dream big.

Loper Athletics At the wrestler’s stance and 2008 NCAA motions on the team. Championships in “Our guys Cedar Rapids, Iowa, were all around him the Lopers had laughing and guessing seven wrestlers earn who he was,” Bauer All-American status recalled. going into the final Despite match, including weighing just north Brett Allgood of 200 pounds who had won the when he arrived in 133-pound title. Kearney, the plan for As the Lopers Dlagnev’s freshman went into the final year was to have heavyweight division him wrestle in the match, trailing 184-pound division Minnesota Statesince the Lopers Mankato by threealready had Jeff and-a-half points, the Sylvester, a reigning Lopers national title All-American, hopes were in the coming back at the USA WRESTLING: A part of the team that includes, Tervel Dlagnev '09, Kyle Snyder, Daniel Dennis and Frank Molinaro take time out of opening ceremonies at the Rio Olympics to pose for a selfie. Thanks Kyle Snyder for the picture, in his words, hands of Dlagnev and 197-pound spot. "Opening ceremonies were incredible, the whole world in one arena!" his 235-pound, 6-footShedding weight 2 frame. Fortunately coupled with being for UNK, Dlagnev was no stranger to the stage. 11 hours away from home, took its toll on Dlagnev. He ended up “If he won the match, we won the national title,” Bauer breaking his ankle early on in the season and received a medical remembered. Dlagnev rallied to earn the victory over Central hardship. Oklahoma’s Dustin Finn, 4-1. “Once the season got over, my nerves calmed down,” Dlagnev The final score: Lopers 108.5, Mankato 108. said. “I was able to stop cutting weight. I got to eat.” After Dlagnev scored his second individual championship, he The plan for the following year was for Dlagnev to wrestle at 184 remembered the days that he and all his teammates dreamt about. again, but he packed on some muscle and bulked up to 220 pounds. “Everyone says that you’re going to do it, but for that to Opting to wrestle a little undersized rather than suffering actually culminate was one of the coolest things,” he said. through the season, Dlagnev’s risk paid off, and he finished sixth At the Olympic level, most of the powerhouses are former at the NCAA Championships in the heavyweight division. Soviet Union countries. International meets are often held in He followed his redshirt-freshman year with another places like Russia and Uzbekistan, usually in the dead of winter. All-American performance and captured his first national The places aren’t very tourist friendly, so when Dlagnev championship as a junior in 2007. is over at the world championships, there’s a lot of downtime, Dlagnev’s senior season happened to fall in an Olympic year typically spent at the hotel. when the summer games were held in Beijing. Because he placed With the use of YouTube as a teaching mechanism, he went to third at the U.S. Open, he was qualified to take an Olympic redshirt. work learning the basics of magic. Dlagnev has never been one to “I was contemplating on whether I should take the redshirt take something lightly, and magic was no exception. or transfer to a Division I school,” Dlagnev said. “I’ve never really met somebody like Tervel in terms of his Oklahoma, the school Harmoney tried to tell about Dlagnev, focus,” Bauer explained. “When he does something there’s a very was interested. “(Their coach) calls me up and asked if Tervel narrow focus. It’s not, ‘I’m going to do this and get proficient. It’s, would want to leave UNK,” Harmoney recalled. “I said, ‘Buddy, I’m going to focus so much on it that I’m going to perfect it.’ ” you had your chance.’” Dlagnev likely ended his storied wrestling career with a fifth Before Dlagnev got to campus, UNK’s best placing at the place finish in the 125-kg freestyle division at the Rio Olympics. national meet was a runner-up finish in 2003. The Lopers finished This was the second straight Olympics Dlagnev went 2-2 and second again in 2006 and 2007. finished fifth in his weight class. n Wanting to finish what he started with the class he came in with, Dlagnev stayed at UNK for his senior year.

Loper Athletics B y P eter Y azvac UNK A thletics

Hall of Fame Inductees Named ®

ive former student-athletes will be inducted into the University of Nebraska at Kearney Athletic Hall of Fame during ceremonies on homecoming weekend this September 23-24. The 2016 Hall of Fame members are Doug Banks ’90, MAE ’99 (football); Dr. Nick Branting ’04 (basketball); Dean Carstens ’81 (baseball and football); Amanda Kelly-Jamros ’00 (softball) and Delbert “Del” Prindle ’68 (baseball). The group will be honored at the Hall of Fame Banquet on Friday, September 23rd, in the Ponderosa Room of the Nebraskan Student Union, beginning at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $40 per person and reservations for the evening can be made on the UNK Alumni Association website (www.unkalumni.org/homecoming) or by contacting the alumni office at (308) 698-5271. On Saturday, September 24th, the class will also be recognized at half time of the homecoming game vs. Washburn. That contest kicks off at 2 p.m. Doug Banks

Doug Banks was a standout receiver and return specialist for the Lopers from 1987-90. The Imperial native set new school records for career receptions (121), career receiving yards (2,190) and career receiving touchdowns (20). These marks still rank in the UNK all-time top 10. Doug Banks '90 On special teams, he brought back two kickoffs and one punt for scores in his career. He currently has the fifth highest kick return average (22.99) in a career as well as ranking sixth in career punt return average (10.92). Having nine touchdown catches in 1988 and tallying a career-high 197 yards in a 45-42 win over Northwest Missouri

State in his final collegiate game, Banks was part of UNK’s transition from NAIA into NCAA Division II. He also is one of just seven Lopers to be named a Harlon Hill candidate, earning the honor in 1990. After signing a free agent deal with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles, he played professionally in Europe, helping the Stockholm (Sweden) Nordic Vikings win the 1994 and 1995 European Super Bowls. Holding a bachelor of science and master’s in physical education from UNK, he returned to the Lopers to lead the wide receivers for three seasons. Banks then moved into collegiate athletic administration and currently is an associate athletic director for track and field and development at the University of Kansas. Nick Branting

Dr. Nick Branting was a key member of Loper men’s basketball from 2001-04. Part of three NCAA Tournament teams, he was a starter on the 2002-03 squad that won a school-record 30 games and reached the Elite Eight. One of 11 All-Americans in school history, he was named Nick Branting '96 the 2004 Division II Player of the Year by different two outlets as well as earning the 2004 CoSIDA Division II Academic Player of the Year honor. That season, he averaged 22.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals per game. A three-time All-RMAC (Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) selection, the North Platte native scored 1,765 points in his career, currently ninth most in school history. He went on to play professionally in Portugal and in the United States Basketball League (USBL) as a member of the Kearney-based Nebraska Cranes.

Loper Athletics Holding a degree in molecular biology from UNK, Branting graduated from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 2009. He currently is a musculoskeletal radiologist at Central Oregon Radiology Associates in Bend, Oregon. Dean Carstens

Dean Carstens was a star on the Loper baseball and football teams from 197781. The Lincoln native was a quarterback on two NAIA playoff teams and a 1981 AllAmerican shortstop. A three-year starter on the gridiron, he directed the Lopers to the playoffs in 1979 and 1980. UNK won its Dean Carstens '80 only NAIA playoff game in school history, a 9-6 decision at Mars Hill in North Carolina, in 1980. The dual threat quarterback ran for 14 touchdowns and 537 yards in his career. As a passer, Carstens tallied a then-school record 3,074 yards and 18 scores. He still ranks tenth in school history with 449 career pass attempts. On the diamond, Carstens and the Lopers won or shared the Central States Intercollegiate Conference (CSIC) title all four years. In 1981, the Lopers won 37 games, a record that stood until 2011. As a senior, he batted .369 with six home runs, 42 RBI’s and 45 runs scored. It was a spring in which the Lopers played 16 games against Division I competition. A member of the Lincoln High Athletic Hall of Fame, Carstens resides in Grand Island and has worked at Chief Industries Technical Services for 28 years. He has also been a high school football referee for 25 seasons. Amanda Kelly-Jamros

Amanda Kelly-Jamros was a record breaking pitcher from 1997-00. One of five Division II AllAmericans in Loper softball history, she was a part of four NCAA Tournament teams, including the 1999 national runners up. The Seneca, Missouri, native had one of the best seasons in school history in 1999, going 20-0 with 15 shut outs and a 0.54 ERA. For her career, she was 61-9 with

a 1.14 ERA, 26 shut outs and 631 strikeouts. She currently holds school records for career winning percentage (87.1) and career shut outs. An All-American in 1999 and 2000, Kelly-Jamros helped the Lopers win four RMAC regular season titles and three RMAC tournament titles. Named the RMAC Pitcher of Amanda Kelly-Jamros '00 the Year in 1999 and 2000, she also was a three-time RMAC All-Academic qualifier. Finally, Kelly-Jamros was one of four Lopers named to the RMAC All-Century softball team in 2009. Graduating from UNK in 2000, she has received numerous awards while working in various positions at Wal-mart in Arizona, Missouri and Nebraska. She currently resides in Joplin, Missouri, and is a senior manager, merchandise operations support and store liaison in the community for Wal-mart. Del Prindle

Del Prindle was pitcher on the Loper baseball team from 1965-68. He earned NAIA All-American honors in 1967, helping the Lopers win a then-school record 23 games and reach the National Tournament for the first time. Also part of a 17-win club in 1968, he went 11-1 in his career, setting the school record for Del Prindle '68 career winning percentage at 91.1. The Maywood native posted a 0.66 ERA over 23.2 inning in 1966, still the second lowest average for a single season. Holding a master’s and doctorate in education from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Prindle worked in the Bellevue Public School System from 1968-97. During that time, he was a teacher, coach, principal and assistant superintendent. He then was superintendent at Doniphan-Trumbull from 1997-07. n 23

Photos and stories provided by Nebraska Council of School Administrators, NCSA Today Magazine

r gathered fo rity alumni ro so ta e B i a Ph coln. y and Gamm on July 2, 2016, in Lin lon fraternit g si in p d E d i e h w P a s' igm nzale VE: UNK S MA ’15 Go LOPER LO omas) ’13, h (T n lle E d an Jordan ‘12

legends Sheri (Schneider) Chittenden ’82, MAE ’04

The Nebraska State Association of Secondary School Principals recognized Sheri Chittenden '82 MAE '04, Principal of Paxton Consolidated Schools, as the Nebraska Middle School Principal of the Year for 2016-17. Chittenden is currently in her twelfth year as the secondary principal and activities director at Paxton. Chittenden has been a leader for her school and the surrounding area. She has served on many external review teams for school improvement. In her own school, she led an initiative called ACCESS (Achieve, Commit, Complete, Excel, Study, Succeed) which is a 20-minute daily study period where students in grades 7-12 are divided into 10 cross-age groups where older students in each group are matched with younger students in a mentor/mentee relationship. The ACCESS period is designed to provide time and support for homework completion and has reduced the down list by 50 percent. Delbert Dack, Superintendent of Paxton Consolidated Schools, says, “Mrs. Chittenden is a leader within our school system. She constantly looks for ways in which our school can be a meaningful and opportunistic place for students. She wants students to succeed in all areas of life and will implement necessary programs in school to make this happen.” Deb Meyer, a school counselor and teacher at Paxton Consolidated Schools, indicated, “If you were to visit with parents and local business organizations around our community, you would find that Sheri is a local hero as she is someone who has helped to create a learning environment where there is very high staff morale, great community support, and a goal for educational excellence that is second to none.” n 24

- 2013 era gathered together LOPER TANK TRIP: Several Greek Lopers from the 2012 Phi Epsilon, Gamma Phi Sigma were ented repres s for a tanking trip. Organization Beta, Pi Kappa Alpha and Alpha Phi.

Steve Wolf '10 of DYNAMIC DESIGN: 16 Austin Ad Fed 20 a Austin, Texas, won for Advertising ard Aw dy Professional Ad , Print Advertising Industry Self-Promotion nze winner and Sibling Paper System Bro and had his work ed iew was recently interv tion Arts Magazine. featured in Communica

information technology students, emeriti SMILING THROUGH STORMS: Computer science and in LaVista during what turned out to faculty, alumni and faculty of the came together at PizzaWest and even one funnel cloud to top off the be a three-alarm night with heavy rain, straight-line winds did not dampen their spirits shelter evening. Spending their time reminiscing in a storm

Loper Happenings and Updates

'05, MA ’06 completed her (Tangeman) Wenburg n lia Jil : NS Kansas TIO LA TU CONGRA the University of MissouriEnglish and History from in D. Ph. ry lina do. cip ora rdis inte Durango, Col s at Fort Lewis College in City in 2015. She teache

LIFETIME OF SISTERHOOD: The ladies of the Alpha Xi Delta and Zeta Sororities met in June. Standing from left to right: Sharron (Jacobson) Altmaier ’55, Deb King, Kay Obermiller, Karen (Humphre y) McBride, Heather (Bendfeldt) Brummels '05, Marlene (Fox) McKean '57, Jamie Back, Joyce (Gohl) Spickelmi er '70, Judy (Brigham) Mahnas '69, Dianna Wubbenhorst, Maxine (Erpelding) Wubbenhorst. Sitting from left to right: Linda (Carskadon) Schutte '70, Nora (Van Pelt) Lindner '63, Marcia (Tyner) Trimble '66, Mary (Eckhout) Kenney '65, Carol (Asher) McGahan, Marian (Auble) Mirehouse '55 and Shirley (Gudgel) Urwiller.

legends Dr. Jay Dostal ’01 The Nebraska State Association of Secondary School Principals recognized Jay Dostal '01, Principal of Kearney High School, as the Nebraska High School Principal of the Year for 2016-17. Dostal is currently in his sixth year as the principal for Kearney High School. He also served as an assistant principal at Millard North for four years and a teacher at Millard West for five years. Dostal has made several significant contributions to the profession. At the top of the list is taking a lead position to provide a framework for systematically improving the graduation rate at Kearney High School. After four years of hard work and providing interventions for at-risk students to help them stay on track, the graduation rate rose by almost eight percent. Other schools have used Kearney High as a model to help increase their own graduation rates. Dr. Virginia Moon, Interim Superintendent of Kearney Public Schools, says, “Dr. Dostal is a visionary leader who gets things done. He has been instrumental in the process of transforming the KHS educational model with the development of Small Learning Communities. He has worked tirelessly to establish advisory teams for career fields which actively involves more than 180 business partners. Since arriving at Kearney High, he has increased our advanced placement/college credit courses by 300 percent, implemented a 1:1 Chromebook initiative, started Project Lead the Way, and raised our graduation rate from 84.1 to 93.86 percent in four short years.” Robert Mishou '92, MAE '02, a teacher at Kearney High School, commented, “As a teacher at Kearney High School, I could not ask for a better, more effective principal. Dr. Dostal is an understanding principal who consistently listens to teacher concerns and gives all teachers a true voice in the school. He is a well-informed instructional leader who uses research based information in offering suggestions and guidance to teachers and opportunities for staff development.” n 25

Alpha Tau Omega Celebrates 50th This year, the Alpha Tau Omega (ATO) Fraternity celebrated their 50th Anniversary at UNK. Eighteen of the 45 undergraduate charter members posed with the original picture of when Phi Tau Gamma became Alpha Tau Omega, Chapter Zeta Upsilon on March 12, 1966. Phi Tau Gamma was the first fraternity on campus when James Leslie Rich and 18 others founded Phi Tau Gamma, naming it in December of 1915 and had their first official meeting in early 1916. Festivities included a Friday night cocktail party at the Holiday Inn where more than 200 attended. Saturday morning 45 members golfed at the Elks Club course while others toured campus. Saturday night was the banquet at Kearney's Holiday Inn where more than 230 brothers and wives attended. Photo presentations were shown Saturday night. Bill Muir, an ATO from Kansas State University, was the guest speaker. Honored guests from UNK included Vice Chanceller Dr. Charlie Bicak ’74 and alumni office guest, Trish Danburg ’94. More than 18 members of Phi Tau Gamma, before it was ATO, also attended. Those included emeriti UNK faculty and staff Earl Rademacher ’54, Larry Peterson ’58 and Fred Kempf ’57, MS ’64 as well as distinguished alumnus Mike Yanney ’55, Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters ’88 and many others. Tom Paxson ’68 was toastmaster and chapter adviser Mark Reid ’89 spoke on the future of the chapter. n

ATO VICTORY BELL: Chapter adviser Mark Reid ’89 is standing by the refurbished ATO Victory Bell that was heard during football games to signify touchdowns.

MSE ‘71, Royal Sander and Jim ATO 50TH: Kneeling are John Fowler ‘68, Duane McCan ’69, Blecher ‘68, John Blattner ’69, Ed Roger ‘68, Paxson Tom are row McElfresh ‘68. Standing first Westerbuhr ‘66, Ron Anderson James, Dave Rader ’69 and Ron Siske ‘70. Back row are Norm on ‘67, Jerry Murphy and Fergus Terry ‘72, Ron Stigge ‘69, Don Koller ‘69, Gary Rasmussen ‘67, r of ATO. chapte y Kearne the of nt Rich Waller. Westerbuhr was the first preside

win, these REMEMBRANCE RIDE: Remembering the ATO Bike Bowl we have a like Looks . stance bowl bike alumni enjoyed re-enacting the ders! conten these for out Watch bowl. bike next team ready for the

Class Notes 1971

Les Livingston retired from the Kearney Public Schools where he has been a teacher and tennis coach for 45 years.

1972

Ken Kunze has been elected Nebraska Public Power Board chairman for 2016. Kunze, of York, has been on the board since 2009. He has owned a real estate company in York for more than 36 years, served a mayor from 1988 to 1996 and was president of the Nebraska League of Municipalities.

1973

Dave Atkins of Payson, Arizona, retired from U.S. Forest Service after 30 years of employment in biological research and public land management.

1975

Mark Clymer of Gibbon retired in December as superintendent of the Windmill State Park and Recreation Area near Gibbon after 35 years in the position.

1978

Dr. Ron Dobesh retired from his medical practice in Kearney in June. He had been a board certified internal medicine physician with Platte Valley Medical Group for 31 years.

1981

Rex Barker has been selected as Director of Performing Arts at Midland University in Nebraska.

1983

Kirk Ramsey MSE ’94, a counselor at Barr Middle School in Grand Island was a winner of a $5,000 Kim West Dinsdale Excellence in Teaching Award.

1985

Robert Falldorf has been named police chief in Grand Island. He has been on the Grand Island police force since 1986. Stan Ratzlaff has received his 30-year service plaque from the FDIC. He lives in Spring, Texas.

1987

Randy Mousel has been promoted to senior vice president, brokerage sales, at Mutual of Omaha.

1991

Eugene Vecera, MAE was a 2016 recipient of the Houston Chronicle “Salute to Nurses.” He was one of 150 chosen from 43,000 in the Houston area. He is a nursing faculty member at the College of Health Care Professions. Ann (Dreger) Kasik of Fort Mohave, Arizona is a medical social worker at Desert Trails Homes Health in Bullhead City, Arizona.

contributed to the success of career and technical education through the quality of their work.

1999

Jerome Dubas MAE, an art teacher at Grand Island High School, was a recipient of a $5,000 Kim West Dinsdale Award for Excellence in Teaching.

2001

Travis Hollman of Hollman Media in Kearney presented at the annual MarkeTECH Conference "where marketing and technology meet" in Kearney.

M O V I N G ?

1993

Alan Hauschild is an associate of Heritage Financial Services, LLC in Omaha. Dr. Amber Adair-Morrow, MAE '95 is a faculty member of College of Saint Mary in Omaha. She earned her doctorate in May in educational leadership in higher education. Kevin Needham is chief information officer at Medical Solutions L.L.C. in Omaha, the nation’s third largest core travel nurse staffing company.

1998

Tennille (Gifford) Allison, MSE '10 of Kearney was named the Association of Career and Technical Education of Nebraska (ACTEN) Outstanding Business Teacher of the Year. ACTEN Member Awards recognize exceptional individuals who have

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Class Notes

Jessica (Haverman) Witte will create a massive art project in the shadow of the St. Louis arch. The work will span several hundred feet and be completed by passersby and a team of lead artists. The June 2016 weekend event "Seed the Change" was the first public works project funded by Critical Mass for the Visual Arts.

2002

Dr. Elaine Marie Nelson is an assistant professor of history at UNO where she teaches courses on the American West, Women and Gender and Native American/Indigenous history. Among her publications is a book about the history of tourism, race and gender in the Black Hills. Lauren (Sedlacek) Petersen is zone administrative manager for New York Life Insurance Company in Plano, Texas. Amy (Gusso) Williams MAE is head women’s basketball coach at UNL. She had been head coach at South Dakota. She was a graduate assistant at UNK.

2003

Ron Alexander MBA '12, MA '14 is principal at Springfield Platteview High School. He had been athletic director at Poudre High School District in Fort Collins, Colorado.

2004

Jack Kreman of Noblesville, Indiana was presented the Certified Association Executive (CAE) distinction in May. Aimee Miyazawa MAE ’04 is athletic trainer for the USA Volleyball Beach Department’s Beach National Program facility in Torrance, California.

2005

Often, the people we are today is because of the connections we made at UNK. We want to give you the opportunity to show your gratitude to those special people. Your letters are welcome. Whether it is to express gratitude to a past instructor, alumni or friend or to comment and/or add to a published story, we want to hear from you. Write us at UNK Today, UNK Alumni Association, Campus Box 21, Kearney, NE 68849. Include your name, class year (if applicable), email, city, state and daytime phone number; or email Michelle Widger at michelle.widger@unkalumni.org.

Jack UNL '79 & Therese (Clinch) Horner '83 It was four years ago when I came to Kearney with just 2 suitcases and a heart full of curiosity and courage. Needless to say, that was one of the best decision I've ever made. Words cannot show my gratitude toward Jack and Therese Horner. Some people say that they are my host family, but they are my family to me. I would like to this opportunity to thank you for everything you’ve done for my life and my career. Jack helped my English, and he taught me American culture and “the good life.” Spending time with them enables me to become immersed in the culture. My story wouldn't be possible without their support.” ~ Ryo Suzuki ’16 •

Jillian (Tangeman) Wenburg MA ’06 completed her interdisciplinary Ph.D. in English and History from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2015. She teaches at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.

Jason Luft is an elementary teacher in Scottsdale, Arizona. He coaches football at Horizon High School.

2008

2013

Ross Fellows is co-head track and field coach at University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He had been head assistant track coach at UNK for the past six seasons.

2010

Meagan Smejdir MS '12 is the Assistant Director for Collegiate Experience at Alpha Omicron Pi headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee. Adam Esses MSE of North Newton, Kansas is the head women’s basketball coach at Bethel College.

2011

Megan (Blume) Grimes is public relations coordinator for the Nebraska Ethanol Board. He husband, Mark ’10, is an associate with Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather law firm. They live in Omaha.

2012

Hunter Arterburn is the operations manager/ morning show host at B103 and Big Apple News Radio in Nebraska City. 28

Notes of Gratitude

Abby (Hart) Cyboron is the chief financial officer at Chase County Community Hospital in Imperial.

2015

Daniel Gibbs is K-12 music teacher at Stapleton Public Schools. Stapleton is the 2016 winner of the Music in Our Schools – Give a Note Tour! A Nebraska school has never won that award. The Give a Note Foundation and Radio Disney have paired up to tour the country to present six schools with a grant for the school’s music program. Rebecca Tidwell is the new head coach of the UNK Aqualopers. The Emporia, Kansas, native is just the third head coach in school history. After swimming for Emporia High School, Tidwell came to UNK where she was twice named Academic All-NSIC (Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference). Currently ranked in UNK’s all-time top 10 in the 50 freestyle and 100 backstroke, she swam on three relay teams (400 and 800 free and 200 medley) that broke school records.

unkalumni.org

2016

Ethan Scott of McCook will be joining the McCook Community Hospital staff as an athletic trainer working with McCook Community College and McCook High School.

Marriages

Larry Artz ’67 and Darrell Cirkles Aug. 7, 2015 after 36 years as partners. They live in Channelview, Texas. Paige Beiermann ’13 and Adam Liess ’13 of Kearney June 18. Alyshia Nelson ’13 and Drew Samuelson ’13 of Kearney Sept. 5, 2015. Bradley Green ’11, MAE ’15 and Stefanie Skrdla Oct. 17, 2015 in Gretna. Brad is assistant director of recruitment at UNK. Jordan ‘12 and Ellen (Thomas) Gonzales ’13, MA ’15 were married on July 2, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Jordan, a graduate student at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, serves as assistant director at the Nebraska Alumni Association. Ellen is a two-time graduate at the University of Nebraska at Kearney and works at Morton Elementary School in Omaha.

Class Notes

Claude Louishomme and Nadine Stuehm ’82 Aug. 6 in Kearney. Claude is a professor of political science and Nadine is a social work senior lecturer at UNK. Ty Wisdom ’05 and Crystal Zywiec June 6 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Ty is a teacher and head football coach at Horizon High School in Scottsdale.

Births

Skylee and William Adams ’04 of Kearney are parents of a son, Jonathan Bernard, born Aug. 10. James ’05 and Stephanie (Stoppkotte) Barthelman ’04 of Quinhagak, Alaska, are parents of a daughter, Josey Mae, born Oct. 14. Andrew ’05 and Sarah (Emal) Bartling ’08, MS ’16 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Macie Rae Elizabeth, born Jan. 31. John ’12 and Amy (Drake) Bettles ’10 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Addilyn Claire, born June 23. Brian and Sarah (Gibbs) Birkby ’08 of Ravenna are parents of a son, Connor Joseph, born Aug. 12. TJ and Lauren (Mollard) Brandt ’09 of Kearney are parents of a son, Barker Charles, born May 20, 2015. Brock ’14 and Amie (Lee) Burney ’04 of Doniphan are parents of a son, Grady Lee, born Aug. 25. Ruben ’14 and Jennifer (Asche) Bustamante ’01 of Lubbock, Texas, are parents of a son, Collin James, born Aug. 27, 2015. Ruben is district sales manager of West Texas for Baldwin Filters. Jennifer is associate marketing manager for Baldwin Filters. Justin '08 and Melissa (Ripp) Caha '03, '08 of Kearney are parents of a girl, Avery Ann, born Aug. 4. Sarah Casper ’00 and Brandon Berumen of Minden are parents of a son, Noah Rylan CasperBerumen, born July 7. Blake ’12 and Sarah (Nordhues) Cover ’11 of Omaha are parents of two sons, Micah Robert, born Jan. 21, and Luke Alan, born Aug. 5, 2014. Paul and Hanna (Theone) Cox ’07 of Kearney are parents of a son, Jacob Paul, born Aug. 23. Mike and Stacy (Baxa) Dahlgren ’07 of Kearney are parents of a son, Maddox Alexander, born Sept. 7. Justin and Ariel (Huber) Derr ’03 MSE ’08 of Aurora are parents of a daughter, Adeline Lyndon, born Jan. 30. Matt and Kelsey (Deterding) Dobish ’11 of Kearney are parents of a son, Beau Matthew, born Feb. 20. Tyler and Amy (Kratochvil) Dubbs ’11 of Omaha are parents of a daughter, Annabelle Lynn, born April 4. Madiera and Jared Eggleston ’98 of Oconto are parents of a daughter, Makenna Rose, born July 22. Jason and Abby (Carr) Evans ’02 of Imperial are parents of a daughter, Reese Marie, born Nov. 6. Paul ’10 and Danielle (Einspahr) Ewalt ’09 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Piper Lynn, born Sept. 3. Chad and Kelli (Dring) Fleek ’10 of Lincoln are parents of a daughter, Kennedi JoLynn, born Feb. 4. Spencer and Leslie (Alber) Frazier ’02 MSE ’06 of Milford are parents of a son, Gavin Roy, born April 18. Kate (Bush) and Wade Goodwin ’06, MSE '08 of Kearney are parents of a son, Abel Joseph, born Sept. 2.

Joshua ‘08 and Alisha (Schnackenberg) Hanshaw ’06 of Lincoln pare parents of a son, Elliott Douglas, born March 1. Travis and Kaylene (Vieselmeyer) Hawkins MA ’12 of Akron, Iowa are parents of a son, Richard Andrew, born July 31. Jarrod ’08 and Maggie (Younnes) Holz ’08, MBA '09 of Kearney are parents of a son, Barrett Paul, born Sept. 16. Kirby ’10 and Brooke (Scripter) Johnson ’10 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Zoe Jane, born Sept. 12. Andrew and Alissa (VanMatre) Kern ’09 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Kory Nicole, born Jan. 26. Ryan ’07 and Megan (Lauer) Killion ’09 of Kearney are parents of a son, August Journey, born Aug. 13. Kayla (Cochnar) '11 and Rylan Little '09 of Kearney are parents of a boy, Treyton James, born April 16, 2015. Adam and Kelley (Kinney) Messenger ’06 of Kearney are parents of a son, Kaden Joseph, born Aug. 4.

Jody and Chrysantha (Wiebelhaus) Koch ’04 of Hartington are parents of a daughter, Kyra Elizabeth, born Aug. 18. Matt and Brooke (Peterson) Larson ’03 of Lincoln are parents of a son, Rowan Maxton, born Feb. 11. Mike and Angela (Fredericksen) Lierman ’09 of Kearney are parents of a son, Conner Ray, born April 11. Peter ‘08 and Danielle (Reinke) Longo ’09 of Kearney are parents of a son, Charles Henry, born Feb. 7. Brock and Rheanna (Schneider) Mallam ’05 of Kearney are parents of a son, Burke Charles, born July 15. Jacob ’04, MAE ’08 and Tiffany (Jeffery) Mohs ’03 of Ashland are parents of a daughter, Callie Jewel, born Aug. 31. They also have sons, Landon Jacob 8 and Mason James 5. Matt and Jennifer (Beerman) Nielsen ’03 of Kearney are parents of a son, Hayes Matthew, born Sept. 25.

C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S Jordan ‘12 and Ellen (Thomas) Gonzales ’13, MA ’15 were married on July 2, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Jordan, a graduate student at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, serves as assistant director at the Nebraska Alumni Association. Ellen is a two-time graduate at the University of Nebraska at Kearney and works at Morton Elementary School in Omaha.

Let us know what is happening. Share your life events and Loper gatherings at michelle.widger@unkalumni.org.

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Class Notes Erin and Casey Paine ’13 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Ellasyn Jaymes, born Sept. 30. Marie and Jeremy Peter ’13 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Avilene Lucille, born Oct. 27, 2015. TJ ’09 and Kelsey (Henkel) Peterson ’09 of Gibbon are parents of a son, John Williams, born May 4. Jeffrey and Jeanne (Kicken) Pope MSE ’03 of Ravenna are parents of a son, Johnathon Scott, born July 14. Mark ’07 and Beth (Maryott) Porter ’04 of Wisner are parents of a daughter, Nora Marie, born May 1, 2015.They have two other daughters, Sydney 8 and Leighton 4. Beth is staff accountant at Northeast Nebraska Community Action. Mark is elementary principal at Wisner-Pilger School. Ryan and Hanna (Glathar) Quiring ’06 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Addilyn Claire, born June 23. Andrea and Tyler Rabe ’04 of Bertrand are parents of a daughter, Alyssa Jade, born March 23. Greg ’04 and Kristen (Loshonkohl) Richey '05, MSE '07 of Kearney are parents of twin boys, Jake Michael and Kohl Jeffrey, born June 18, 2014. Todd ’99 and Jacqueline (Johnson) Schepler ’04 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Eva Alexandria, born Sept. 23. Nathan ’00 and Tina (Madsen) Sherrill ’02 of Council Bluffs, Iowa, are parents of a daughter, Isabella Ruth, born Oct. 12. Chevy ’14 and Becky (Berven) Smith ’12 of Imperial are parents of a daughter, Lyla Kay, born Oct 10. Michael and Misty (Buoy) Sorensen ’11 of Axtell are parents of a son, Brayden Michael, born Oct. 23. Jeremy and Misty (Goffena) Spitler ’02 of Kearney are parents of a son, Andrew, born July 6. Michael ’06 MBA ’08 and Shawna (Banzhaf) Strong ’07 MSE ’09 MA ’16 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Allison Faith, born Feb. 20. Cody ’04 and Tanna (Doeschot) Struss ’03 of Kearney are parents of a son, Knox David, born Nov. 5. Meg and Nick Svehla ’04 of Omaha are parents of a son, Joseph Michael, born July 13, 2015. Svehla is a math teacher at Creighton Prep. Damien ’03 and Stephanie (Paulsen) Todd ’04 of Kearney are parents of a son, Dalton Jeffrey, born Jan. 15. Jonathan and Shelby (Lehmann) Uhrich ’06 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Cori Rae, born July 31. Preston and Leah (Karre) Van Amburg ’11 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Rainna Grace, born Sept. 8. Eric and Nickola (Messbarger) Van Horn ’12 of Kearney are parents of a son, John Charles, born Aug. 26. Carson ’07 and Jenna (Stremel) Watt ’13 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Libby McKenna, born April 25. Matthew ’13 and Abbie (Davis) Wecker ’13 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Maisie Ruth, born Sept. 5. Laron ’03 and Amanda (Kamler) Williams ’03 of Columbia, Missouri are parents of a son, Adlai Richard, born Aug. 8, 2015. 30

Brenda VanLengen ’88 wins Mel Greenberg Media Award

AWARD WINNING: Sherri Coale of Oklahoma and Mel Greenberg help Brenda VanLengen ’88 (center) celebrate the honor of being awarded the 2016 Women's Basketball Coaches Association's Mel Greenberg Media Award. Greenberg, the pre-eminent name in women's basketball coverage, was named the winner of the inaugural award in 1991.

Brenda VanLengen '88, a women’s basketball analyst on ESPN and numerous regional sports networks, is the winner of the 2016 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s (WBCA) Mel Greenberg Media Award. Named after Mel Greenberg, the Philadelphia Inquirer sportswriter who founded the Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll, the WBCA’s Mel Greenberg Media Award is presented annually to a member of the media who has best displayed a commitment to women’s basketball and to advancing the role of the media in the women’s game. Selected by past recipients of the award, the candidate must have had a positive impact on the growth and national or regional exposure of the sport, been involved in the media exposure of women’s basketball for a minimum of five years and should be a media ambassador for the women’s game. "I am pleased to announce Brenda as this year's recipient of the WBCA Mel Greenberg Media Award," said WBCA Executive Director Danielle Donehew. "Brenda has been an extraordinary proponent for women’s basketball and has worked tirelessly unkalumni.org

to preserve, promote and protect the priceless stories that make up our game’s historical record. The WBCA salutes and applauds VanLengen for her contribution of time and talent to advance women’s basketball." VanLengen is an Emmy Awardwinning broadcaster working for ESPN women’s college basketball since 1996 and for FOX Sports for 17 seasons. Her vast knowledge of the game and ability to break down the specifics of the game led her to operate the ART-enhanced telestrator for the NCAA Women’s Final Four since 2005 and the WBNA Finals since 2011. Additionally, she has worked seven NCAA Division II National Championships and three NAIA National Championships. VanLengen covers games in seven major conferences (American, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, Missouri Valley, Mountain West and SEC) during the regular season for a variety of networks. She took the lead analyst role for women’s basketball in the Big 12 Conference on FOX Sports. In 2014, VanLengen was named an analyst for women’s basketball on the SEC Network. •

Class Notes

Tony ’07 and Lyndsey (Malone) Wilson ’08 of Spring, Texas, are parents of a daughter, Finleigh Marie, born Oct. 7.

Deaths

Barbara Bancroft ’83 of Kearney died Jan. 22. She was 75. Larry Beitel ’72 of Sargent died July 19. He was 67. David Bradley (Brad) Booth ’65 of Austin, Texas, died Jan. 31. He was 73. John Vincent Bramer ’62 of Omaha died April 23. He was a career educator and long-time counselor in Millard. He was 80. Marian (Wardrop) Brown ’47 of Fremont died July 3. She was a science teacher with the Kearney Public Schools until her retirement in 1983. She was 91. Ronald Cropp ’65 of Kearney died Feb. 22. He was 73. Terry D. Christensen ’64 of Kearney died July 20. He was a career educator and learning materials director at UNK from 1981 until his retirement in 2001. He was 77. Charles Denson ’66, EDS’90 of Minden died July 14. He was 76. Richard (Dick) Detsch of Lafayette, Colorado, died April 3. He was a UNK professor emeritus. He was 80. Janis Kay (Hennig) Felker '88 of Alliance died March 3. She was 49.

Art Ferguson of Tarzana, California, died Feb 19. He was a widely-known radio personality "Charlie Tuna" in Southern California. He was 92. Daniel Herbert Geist ’81 of Gibbon died July 15. He was 68. Robert C. Greene ’57 of Lewiston, Wash., died Feb. 10. He 83. Elmer Holzrichter of Kearney died June 9. He was a professor of art at UNK for 26 years before retiring in 1989. He was 91. Violet (Louden) Jackson ’69 of York died Aug. 20. She was 86. Mary Kalb ’79 of Kearney died May 25. She was a CPA with McDermott & Miller. She was 69. Bettelee (Frahm) Lewis ’47 of Kearney died June 16. She was a career educator and musician having played in the Kearney Symphony Orchestra since 1941. She was a recipient of a UNK Distinguished Alumni Award in 1996. She was 92. Donald ‘Don’ Littler ’63 of Omaha died July 8. He was an architect for more than 45 years. He was 72. Michael Lowe ’00 of Kearney died July 8. He was 39. John Long ’71 of Alexandria, Virginia, died May 1. He was 67. John Mason '56 of Sidney died July 29, 2014. He was 83.

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Warren B. Messman '47 of Omaha died March 9. He was 100 and featured in Spring 2016 UNK Today. Messman taught industrial arts at Nebraska State Teachers College at Kearney for nearly 30 years. Raymond Ozanne Jr. ’61 of Broken Arrow, Okla., died April 20.He was a teacher and coach at Gibbon. He was 81. William (Bill) Ragan of Kearney died April 24. He was an adviser for the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity. He was 78. Mark Shada ’78 of Omaha died April 10. He was 60. Marsha Shada ’69 of Kearney died May 25. She was 68. Melvin Shoemaker ’68, MAE '77 of Kearney died May 25. He taught speech-theater at North Loup-Scotia and Kearney High School for 44 years. He was 68. Dr. Wilma (Kennedy) Stutheit, Ed.D. of Omaha died July 5. She was a faculty member of the College of Education at UNK. She was 87. Barc Wade ’48 of Omaha died April 8. He was a long-time public relations worker for tourism in Nebraska. He received the UNK Distinguished Alumni Award in 1994. He was 89. Gary Welton ’61 of Charles City, Iowa, died Jan. 9. He was a member of the UNK Athletic Hall of Fame. He was 76.

Today is the day I become a difference maker. Steve Sonksen, Texas History, MA University of Nebraska at Kearney “With my degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney I am a difference maker. I started taking history classes at UNK — and I was hooked after the first class. The quality of the curriculum and the professors made me decide to keep going and get my master’s degree. I put in a lot of hard work because I wanted to get the most out of it. I wanted a degree that would mean something. In my last year of classroom teaching, I was named Texas History Teacher of the Year. Now I run the social studies department for my entire district. Getting my degree at the University of Nebraska changed my life.”

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