Northern Magazine Winter 2014-15

northern kentucky university

M A G A Z I N E

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THIS APP COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE

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How one smartphone app will change emergency response forever

Media’s Big Bang: Is this journalism’s golden age, or its darkest hour?

A disease detective takes his toughest case: Ebola

Checking in halfway to full NCAA Division I membership winter 2014-15

M A G A Z I N E

volume 12, no. 2 Editor Brent Donaldson ’05

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designer Dionne Laycock ’90

copy Editor Jackie Birtcher

photographer Timothy D. Sofranko

EDITORIAL INTERN Kyle Thompson ’14

publisher Deidra S. Fajack Director of Alumni Programs Eric Gentry Vice President for University Advancement

CONTRIBUTORS Ian Aldrich Mike Anderson Carol Beirne Ryan Clark ’10

Bryan McEldowney Tom Ramstetter ’01, ’08 Katie Rogers Molly Williamson

Alumni association executive committee Jim Cutter ’81, President Frank Birkenhauer ’92, ’95, President-elect Janet Brinkman ’95, ’98, ’09, Vice President Tracy Schwegmann ’95, ’08, Immediate Past President Deidra S. Fajack, Secretary/Treasurer

CORRESPONDENCE Northern Kentucky University Office of Alumni Programs 421 Old Johns Hill Rd. Highland Heights, KY 41046 PHONE: (859) 572-5485 WEB: alumni.nku.edu EMAIL: alumni@nku.edu NORTHERN magazine is published by the Office of Alumni Programs at Northern Kentucky University for its graduates, donors, and friends. Copyright 2014-15 Northern Kentucky University.

Comments, questions, concerns? We want to hear from you! Email us at northernmagazine@nku.edu.

north e rn M AG A Z I N E

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A message from the president In a previous issue of Northern Magazine, I told you that I was planning to travel throughout Kentucky to tell people about the great things that are happening at NKU. You and I know that something special is happening here. But, too often, I’ve heard that our university is a “hidden gem” and “the best kept secret” in the commonwealth.

As I stated at the fall convocation, it’s great to be a gem. But it’s not good to be hidden. And it certainly isn’t good to be a secret.

In that spirit, I joined other NKU colleagues on visits to seven regions of the state. We hosted receptions for prospective students, alumni, and friends in several cities and towns. I met community and business leaders, education leaders, and elected officials. I also spoke to thousands of students at more than 20 high schools.

My visits included a presentation on our outstanding students, faculty, staff, graduates, programs, and facilities. I was delighted to meet the diverse people of the commonwealth— shaking their hands, sharing a meal, touring their schools, and learning about their dreams.

In an age of high-tech communication, you might ask why I chose a low-tech method to promote NKU. We can reach prospective students through Twitter, Facebook, and other social media. And technology continues to improve the quality of lives. For example, in this issue’s cover story, you will learn about the life-saving PulsePoint mobile app developed by NKU’s Center for Applied Informatics—an app that is revolutionizing emergency response and 911 dispatch operations across the country.

But I particularly value speaking face-to-face with a young person I hope to persuade—and to inspire. Choosing a college is an important and complex decision. I’ve learned that meeting prospective students in person can clarify the process for them. I’ve also learned that a genuine human relationship establishes trust and credibility—qualities that are much harder to convey electronically.

The Road to NKU tour took a lot of time and effort to plan and execute. But it was well worth it. I am confident that many people beyond this region have a greater understanding and appreciation for what we are accomplishing here at NKU. There is something special happening at our University—and something equally special about our alumni and their many successes.

Best wishes for a happy and healthy holiday season!

Geoffrey S. Mearns President

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Contents NORTHERN MAGAZINE

Winter 2014-15

Departments

Features

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president’s page

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norse nuggets

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NORTHERN NEWS

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THE DOWNLOAD THAT SAVED DREW’S LIFE

Alu

mn

Drew Basse’s heart attack should have killed him. But as he sat alone in his car inching toward death, a smartphone app sent Basse a hero. And now the app, originally developed at NKU, is about to revolutionize emergency response.

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THE GOOD DOCTOR

alumni journal

This summer, Kpandja Djawe, a 2006 alumnus who works for the CDC, headed straight into heart of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa to fight against the disease. The day he was nearly killed, it wasn’t from the virus.

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NORTHERN ATHLETICS

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class notes

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THE FINE PRINT

Is this journalism’s golden age, or its darkest hour? A panel of professionals takes stock of their field.

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Previous Page: Students Sherida Zijderlaan from the Netherlands, Analia Villagomez from Ecuador, Lisa van Gastel from the Netherlands, and Saud Albugami from Saudi Arabia, chat on the plaza as the sun begins to set over NKU. The group and their story were featured in an online project called "NKU After Five." See more at Inside.nku.edu.

Northern magazine is online! Check us out at northernmagazine.nku.edu,

and then write us at northernmagazine@nku.edu to share your story!

winter 2014-15

NORSE nuggets

Norse Nuggets

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Something Special at NKU

Log Cabin— of the Future!

Of the incredible events hosted each year at your alma mater, the NKU Alumni Awards Celebration shines among the brightest of all. Mark your calendars now for Tuesday, April 7 in the James C. and Rachel M. Votruba Student Union Ballroom, where a preevent reception will kick off an inspiring evening that includes the award presentation, silent auction, and dessert. Tickets can be purchased at alumni.nku.edu or by calling (859) 572-5486.

Did you ever drive by the tiny log cabin near the entrance to NKU and wonder what was inside?

The cabin, first brought to campus in the late 1970s originally served as a symbol of Kentucky’s progress in education.

Now the former one-room schoolhouse has been renovated and updated with wi-fi and other technologies to serve as a learning center for English, history, and biology students. Read about the project here: is.gd/LOGCABIN.

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Les Misérables

Kill the Messenger

Javert tries to catch Jean Valjean, while Jean Valjean can’t catch a break. And throughout their struggle, the two characters unleash some of the most timeless melodies and songs to ever grace the stage. Don’t miss the classic “Les Misérables” beginning on Feb. 19. By Boublil, Schönberg, and Kretzmer; directed by Ken Jones with musical direction by Jamey Strawn. Feb. 19–Mar. 1; NKU Robert & Rosemary Stauss & Corbett Theatre; 859-5725464; boxoffice@nku.edu.

If you missed the critically acclaimed thriller “Kill the Messenger” when it hit theaters across the country this past October, fear not.

The movie, based on the “Dark Alliance” series of newspaper articles written by former NKU student and investigative reporter Gary Webb, is being released on DVD on Feb. 25. Based on Webb’s reporting for the San Jose Mercury News, the film examines the courageous reporting of one of the greatest investigative journalists of our time.

February 7

13th Annual Alumni Chili CookOff & Alumni Homecoming Party See left for details. alumni.nku.edu.

Alumni Association

Photography by Chris Smith from his Hoosier Hardwood Photo Project. See more at hoosierhardwood.blogspot.com

February 14 Norse Nuptials See left for details.

March 27, 8 p.m.

March 29, 3 p.m.

NKU Opera presents two comedic operas (in English): Bizet’s “Doctor Miracle” and Tom Johnson’s “The Four Note Opera,” accompanied by the NKU Orchestra. Greaves Concert Hall; (859) 572-6399; musicoffice@nku.edu.

March 13 & 14

Monster X Tour The Bank of Kentucky Center will be the motorsport entertainment’s epicenter when the nation’s most competitive monster trucks and FMX motocross riders invade The BOKC. bankofkentuckycenter.com.

April 7 Norse Nuptials

Homecoming Time!

Art of the Professor

Did you and your spouse or significant other both attend NKU? Then you are invited to the secondannual Norse Nuptials Celebration! This special Valentine’s event features access to The BOKC Lightning Deck, where you’ll enjoy a Norse basketball game, raffle prizes, gifts, delicious food, a private cash bar, and special recognition from the game announcer. Feb. 14 at The Bank of Kentucky Center. Call 859-572-5485 or visit www. alumni.nku.edu for more details.

A chili cook-off. Back-toback Norse basketball games. A blowout Homecoming after-party.

All in one day. That’s right— it’s time to mark your calendars for Homecoming, 2015! Any day that starts off with chili and ends with a party—and is stuffed with Norse basketball in between—is going to be a great one. Don’t miss it!

Feb. 7 at The Bank of Kentucky Center. Call 859-572-5485 or visit www.alumni.nku.edu for more details.

It’s time to showcase art by the NKU professors who teach it! Representing a wide range of styles and mediums, this year’s NKU faculty art exhibition will feature painting, drawing, printmaking, ceramics, video, mixed media, photography, visual communication design, and sculpture. The exhibition runs from Jan. 16 through Feb. 6 on the Main and Third Floor Galleries of the Fine Art Center. Contact David J. Knight at Knight@nku.edu or (859) 572-5148 for more info.

NKU Alumni Awards Celebration See left for details.

Apr. 16 –26

The Year End Series (YES) Festival Be the first to see the three world-premiere plays at NKU’s 17th Biennial Year End Series Festival of New Plays. Titles and exact performance schedule will be announced in January 2015.

NKU Robert & Rosemary Stauss & Corbett Theatre; 859-572-5464; boxoffice@nku.edu.

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NORSE NUGGETS

UPCOMING EVENTS

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NORTHERN NEWS

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Being (T)here What’s it like to grow up at NKU? Meet Amanda Smiley, a 19-year-old nursing major who is one of a growing number of students and alumni who attended NKU’s Early Childhood Center (ECC) as a preschooler and then came back to attend the university as a student.

As Amanda tells it she really never left. —Brent Donaldson

For more than 35 years, NKU’s Early Childhood Center (ECC) has provided care for children of NKU students, faculty, staff, alumni, and other community members.

I was born and raised in Kentucky and have lived all around this area.

I first came to [the ECC] when I was 4 years old. My mom went to school here so she would take us (Amanda and her twin sister) and drop us off before her classes.

As soon as you would walk in the door, I remember that my room—where I was for my first 2 years—was past the cubbies down the main hallway. Outside they had tricycles and we would go to [Loch Norse] to see the ducks and geese. We would go to the big open areas of grass and play the stoplight game or just run around like crazy kids.

I remember Miss Valerie and I remember her peas. I would only eat her peas; I wouldn’t eat anyone else’s. To this day I won’t eat peas but I would eat hers because I used to love them.

I was kind of intimidated by the college kids on campus. I just remember thinking, “Let’s not get in their way, they’re in a hurry!” I had no idea what college was. I just thought it was a place for little kids so when I saw all these big kids I thought, “Why are they here?”

I was [at the ECC] until I went to first grade at age 6. But really I was here through all of my school years because my mom has worked [at NKU] almost all my life. So I would come and go to my mom’s office and chill out, or if we had a snow day at school she would take us into her office and we would sit and draw or play at the computer that nobody was using.

When I came back as a student I pretty much knew my way around. Being back was weird. Just the other day I was doing homework in the library and there was this room where all these little kids went into and they passed by me and they were looking at me like, “What are you doing?”

They were so confused.

n o rt h e r n M AG A Z I NE

• As of June 2012, the ECC is one of the 117 of 2,219 Kentucky childcare centers—and the only one of five in Northern Kentucky—to be accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

• The ECC provides care for about 100 children per year.

• All full-time ECC staff have a bachelor or master’s degree in teaching or early childhood education.

• ECC services are available to students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community members. Children of NKU alumni receive a special discount.

• Over the past decade, nearly 70 of the students who worked at the ECC became teachers or early childhood professionals, with two serving as directors.

Learn more about the ECC at earlychildhoodcenter. nku.edu.

Ending violence one green dot at a time

The Homestead-er Ken Katkin, unsung hero of indie music Before he graduated from Princeton with a math degree, before he programmed computers on Wall Street, and well before he became a beloved Chase Law professor at NKU, Ken Katkin was in charge of one of the most respected post-punk/independent music labels of its time. From 1984 to 1996, Homestead Records released albums by legends of the indie and punk scenes, including Sebadoh, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Big Black, and Swans.

For two of those glorious years (1990–1992), Katkin helmed the flagship NYC-based indie label, which—as many non-major labels still experience— was running on a shoestring. “I never got into it for commercial success,” Katkin says from his office in Nunn Hall. “If I’d wanted that I would have gone to the majors where you saw bands like Soundgarden or Pearl Jam getting really big. I never wanted to work with those kinds of bands.”

After leaving Homestead, Katkin went on to earn his law degree and practice broadcasting law in Washington, D.C. In 2000, he accepted an offer to teach entertainment, broadcasting, and constitutional law at NKU. But his convictions about the business of music have never changed.

“Philosophically, I wanted to put out records that I thought I would want to listen to for the rest of my life. That was the standard that I was trying to apply at Homestead. That’s what it was really about.”

—Brent Donaldson

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NORTHERN NEWS

A Different Kind of ‘Green’

Green dots are popping up all over campus.

The Norse Violence Prevention Center has adopted the Green Dot Prevention Strategy in an effort to end powerbased violence and has trained more than 800 members of the NKU community this semester alone.

“I’m simply overcome with the amount of support we have received from faculty, staff, and students,” says Gabby Maloney, the coordinator of the Norse Violence Prevention Center.

Green Dot is a movement, a program, and an action with the goal of preventing and reducing power-based violence at NKU by training and encouraging the campus community to step in and speak out against it.

So where does the “green dot” fit in?

Imagine any act of power-based violence as a figurative red dot. Any action to prevent or stop any of those violent offenses is a figurative green dot. The more green dots on campus, the fewer the red dots.

Maloney says the strategy won’t work without the support of the entire campus community’s involvement.

“The Green Dot movement is about gaining a critical mass of students, staff and faculty who are willing to do their small part to actively and visibly reduce powerbased personal violence at NKU. We know this is a huge issue and we can’t possibly do this work alone.”

—Tom Ramstetter

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NORTHERN NEWS

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8:00 AM

A Calculated Approach

Dionne Laycock

An NKU experiment leads to big changes on the ACT After a hard-fought battle that played out in state and national media, an experiment conducted by three NKU faculty and staff members has led to changes in calculator policies for national ACT exams.

The experiment focused on whether calculators equipped with the algebra software program Zoom Math artificially inflates scores on the math portion of the ACT exam. The exam is taken annually by millions of students nationwide to determine college readiness.

Earlier this year, NKU math professors Steve Newman, Mike Waters, and NKU Director of Learning Assistance Programs Diane Williams took the multiple-choice exam 10 times with a Zoom-Math-equipped calculator that, at the time, was permitted by ACT. For certain math questions, they entered an equation into the calculator and selected the calculator’s answer if it matched one of the test’s multiple-choice options (or selected choice ‘A’ if it did not). Using this process, which required no mathematical knowledge or skill, they obtained scores ranging from 49 to 65—well above the college readiness benchmark of 36 required for placement into a collegelevel math class at any public college or university in Kentucky.

After sending the results to the Kentucky Department n o rt h e r n M AG A Z I NE

of Education, the KDE used the same approach to confirm the results of the NKU experiment. KDE Commissioner Terry Holliday then banned, effective immediately, all Zoom-Math-equipped calculators on ACT Compass exams in Kentucky public high schools.

But even as state media began to pick up on the story, getting ACT to change its national calculator policy was no easy task.

“ACT made clear in newspaper articles that they believed that math scores achieved under their former policy were valid,” says Newman. “We needed to get KDE to use the NKU experiment to confirm our claim that math scores could be inflated significantly by using calculators equipped with Zoom Math.”

After confirmation by the KDE and dogged media coverage of the story this past spring, ACT initially banned Zoom Math on the ACT Compass exam. Finally, on Sept. 1, ACT banned Zoom Math on all of its exams.

“This change will level the playing field in mathematics testing, make it fairer for all, and provide a more realistic assessment of the mathematics students know,” Newman says. “It will also provide more accurate placement information for colleges and universities, and thereby promote student success.” —Brent Donaldson

NORTHERN athletics

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Support Your Norse!

Upcoming Norse basketball home games 12/30/2014 1/3/2015 1/3/2015 1/6/2015 1/14/2015 1/17/2015 1/22/2015 1/24/2015 1/29/2015 1/31/2015 2/7/2015 2/7/2015 2/12/2015 2/14/2015 2/19/2015 2/21/2015 2/25/2015 2/28/2015 3/6-15/2015

Women's Basketball Women's Basketball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Men's Basketball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Women's Basketball Women's Basketball Men's Basketball Men's Basketball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Women's Basketball Women's Basketball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball

vs IUPUI vs Wright State vs Toledo vs Georgetown (Ky.) vs Kennesaw State vs USC Upstate vs North Florida vs Jacksonville vs Stetson vs Florida Gulf Coast vs Lipscomb vs Lipscomb vs Florida Gulf Coast vs Stetson vs Jacksonville vs North Florida vs Kennesaw State vs USC Upstate at Atlantic Sun Conference Championship

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a full season schedule,

For visit nkunorse.com. For more information regarding 2014-15 NKU basketball season tickets, please contact Alicia Lawrence at (859) 572-7894 or LAWRENCEAL@nku.edu.

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NORTHERN athletics

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Halfway There The Norse march onward toward full NCAA Division I membership From the humble beginnings of the 1971-72 men’s basketball team that played its games in a high school gymnasium, a national power emerged in Norse Athletics.

Hall of Fame players such as Richard Derkson, Michelle Cottrell, LaRon Moore, Steven Beattie and Angela Healy,

storied coaches like Nancy Winstel, Ken Shields, and Bill Aker, and the legendary coach-turned-athletic-director Jane Meier, all helped Northern Kentucky University make a name for itself both locally and nationally.

During its former life in Division II, the Norse amassed three national championships (women’s basketball in ’00 and ’08; men’s soccer in ’10), 25 regional titles, and 72 conference crowns. They were known for competing at the highest level on the national landscape, but it was time for a new chapter in NKU’s storied history.

Then, at 2 p.m., on Dec. 8, 2011, NKU held a press conference to announce perhaps the biggest news to ever emerge from Norse Athletics: Northern Kentucky University was about to join the Atlantic Sun Conference and reclassify from NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I. The stage for athletic competition was about to get much, much bigger.

“Participating in NCAA Division I athletics and the Atlantic Sun Conference is an important step for our university," said NKU President Geoffrey Mearns.

“Intercollegiate athletics help to increase the public’s awareness and enhance the perception of colleges and universities. For years, Northern Kentucky University has competed at the highest level academically. Now it is time for our student-athletes to do the same.”

Starting with the 2012-13 season, NKU’s programs began competing with full DI schedules and, as of the beginning of the 2014-15 campaign, the Norse are eligible to compete in Atlantic Sun Conference tournaments.

The reclassification process began on the strength of NKU’s DII heritage and has continued as the University navigates through the NCAA’s policies and procedures to reach full Division I membership.

While new challenges emerged for the Norse as a DI athletics program (such as transitioning from being

Get Pumped What song gets you pumped up before a game?

—Interviews by Katie Rogers

Courtney Roush (junior, forward): “It would have to be ‘Super Bass’ by Nicki Minaj. The beat is great.”

n o rt h e r n M AG A Z I NE

Jordan Jackson (senior, guard): “Jeezy’s ‘Enough.’ It gets me really hyped up, which I need for each game.”

Kelley Wiegman (sophomore, guard): “‘Cinderella Man’ [Eminem]. I really love the beat.”

Daniel Camps (sophomore, forward): Sam Smith’s ‘Nirvana’ because it soothes my mind, which gets me ready for the game.”

Rianna Gayheart (junior, guard): “Anything by Mumford and Sons. It gets me calm and relaxed before the game.”

Chad Jackson (senior, guard): “‘Money on My Mind’

by Lil Wayne. It has a great beat and he is my favorite rapper of all time, so it’s a double whammy.”

Melody Doss (senior, forward): “I listen to Miley Cyrus’ ‘Wrecking Ball’ because it’s a great song and gets me going.”

Jalen Billups (junior, forward/ center): “‘The Sky is the Limit’ [Lil Wayne] has such an awesome beat.”

at a competitive level and ensure that it is preparing its student-athletes to be successful. The University is currently going through the NCAA’s Institutional Performance Program (IPP) as part of the process.

To be sure, the IPP process isn’t glamorous. It isn’t meant to be. What it is, however, is a chance for NKU to look at itself in the mirror and receive an honest evaluation. Areas in which NKU excels and where it is deficient will be identified during this process.

The committee tasked with leading NKU through the IPP is large—57 members—and reaches all corners of the University, including President Mearns, coaches, professors, former student-athletes, current studentathletes, and members of the Board of Regents. Dr. Sue Hodges Moore, senior vice president of Institutional Effectiveness, chairs the committee.

“Having a steering committee and subcommittees with both athletic and non-athletic membership ensures that multiple perspectives are brought into the mix and that no stone goes unturned while navigating through the IPP process,” Hodges Moore says. “Ultimately, the entire Northern Kentucky University community benefits by increasing campus-wide awareness and knowledge of the athletics program, confirming its strengths, and developing plans for improvement."

“This is an exciting time for athletics at NKU,” says Director of Athletics Ken Bothof. “NKU is a distinguished academic institution and, after years of being a dominant Division II program, is well on its way to becoming a highly competitive DI athletic program.

The path to success after reclassifying is neither quick nor easy, but is much more navigable thanks to the foundation laid by the student-athletes, coaches and administrators in the DII era. After a successful completion of the IPP process, the opportunity to participate in the NCAA Tournament awaits. But, the process doesn’t end there. We aren’t going to be content with just competing in national tournaments. We want to experience success in them as well.”

—Bryan McEldowney

Kaitlyn Gerrety (senior, center): “My song is ‘It’z Just What We Do’ by Florida Georgia Line. I’ve always loved them so they always get me pumped.

Molly Franson (freshman, forward): “‘Getting Jiggy With It’ [Will Smith] because it is such a great song.”

Dean Danos (sophomore, guard): “My favorite pump-up song is ‘Not Afraid’

by Eminem, because Jalen said so.”

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NORTHERN athletics

a powerhouse in DII athletics to new members of DI), NKU is striving to keep the same identity that brought about its former successes and, ultimately, led to reclassification.

“The core values and culture of the athletic department are what have sustained us through the reclassifying process,” says Liz Holmes Hart (’08), who was an American Volleyball Coaches Association allAmerican during her playing career at NKU and has served as the program’s coach through the transition.

“The Division II Norse were characterized by hardnosed work ethic, success on the national level, a deep sense of pride in our university and our region, and an incredible amount of competitiveness displayed by our student-athletes, coaches, staff and administration.

We, as coaches, still work to recruit tough, driven and relentlessly competitive student-athletes who we know will exemplify the Norse spirit.”

Conversations of a transition to Division I trace their roots back into the 1990s and, in the mid-2000s, a study was conducted to determine the feasibility of a move.

While it was deemed that a move would help NKU at the time, it didn’t appear fiscally responsible. Only a few years lapsed before the conversation resurfaced, and this time the lure and benefits far outweighed the drawbacks. Northern Kentucky was going to make the move.

The amount of work that the administration put into the preparation and proposals for the membership reclassification is staggering, but the behind-the-scene labors didn’t end with that Dec. 8, 2011 press conference.

During the final Division II season, NKU’s coaches and administrators worked around the clock to elevate recruiting, coordinate full Division I schedules, and start providing the resources necessary to compete both academically and athletically in DI. In the two years since NKU has been competing as a Division I program, members of both the athletic and University communities have worked side by side with the NCAA to demonstrate NKU’s ability to function

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The download that Saved Drew's Life

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By Brent Donaldson

n o rt h e rn north r n M AG A Z I N NE E

THERE WERE NO WARNINGS. NO PAIN, NO DIZZINESS, NO SIGNS THAT DREW BASSE WAS ABOUT TO DIE. It was May 9, and the last thing Drew remembers is sitting in his silver 2007 Saturn View, driver-side door open, dome light on, alone in the muted shadows of a parking garage.

And then.

“My heart just stopped,” he says. “I was dead.”

Until that moment, Basse had spent years working as a truck driver, hauling apples and paper up to 14 hours a day from Portland to California.

Two months prior to his collapse, Basse had gone through a divorce with his wife of 30 years. Ready to shed excess weight and emotional fatigue, Basse had begun exercising.

It had been working. The 57-year-old father of two had lost more than 30 pounds from cardio workouts at fitness centers located along his driving routes, like the 24 Hour Fitness in Clackamas, Oregon. That was where, shortly before his heart attack, Basse broke his personal record on the treadmill—28 minutes. After his workout, Basse hit the Jacuzzi and sauna, then showered and dressed back into his khakis and polo before heading to the parking garage.

At the same time at the same 24 Hour Fitness, firefighter and paramedic Scott Brawner was also working a treadmill. He was listening to classic rock on his iPhone’s Pandora app when the music suddenly stopped. An alert sounded through his headphones and a map appeared onscreen.

Brawner looked down at his phone to see a push notification banner at the top of the screen: CPR Needed. The map below the banner was marked with two pins—one representing his location, the other representing the victim’s—along with the location of the nearest automated defibrillator device (AED).

“I looked around the room,” Brawner says, “I’m doing a quick survey. I went down to the first floor and asked the front desk, ‘Is there a medical emergency here?’ They said no, they hadn’t heard anything. So I went outside and out of the corner of my eye I caught a security guard in the parking structure. He didn’t look right, he looked odd … the look on his face.”

Brawner ran toward the guard then into the garage where he found Drew Basse sitting in his car, eyeglasses crooked, not breathing.

Brawner managed to pull Basse onto the concrete floor. He began giving Basse no less than 100 chest compressions per minute—what people like Brawner call “high-performance CPR.” As he administered the compressions, Brawner realized that he’d seen Basse at the gym that morning. He remembered Basse looking out of place, like a new member who didn’t know how to navigate the facility. “And that’s the first thing I thought,” Brawner says. “I just saw this guy downstairs a few minutes ago, and now I’m doing CPR on him.”

Brawner determined that Basse’s heart was in PEA, or pulseless electrical activity, and was not in the “shockable rhythm” necessary to use the defibrillator. A few minutes passed before two EMTs arrived. When they did, Brawner kept administering CPR while they gathered their gear and waited for fire and rescue to show up with more equipment.

When backup responders showed up minutes later, the team moved Drew Basse to the middle of the parking garage and took over his care. A week later in a hospital room at the nearby Portland Adventist Medical Center, Drew Basse’s son introduced his dad to Brawner. “Dad, this is Scott,” the young man said. “The one who did CPR.” Basse squeezed Brawner’s hand and gave him a wink.

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Scott Brawner visits Drew Basse in the hospital after saving Basse’s life. Here, Brawner shows Basse how the PulsePoint app alerted him to Basse’s medical emergency.

Former San Ramon Fire Department chief Richard Price.

Price brought the idea for PulsePoint to NKU where students developed the prototype.

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The technology that facilitated Brawner’s lifesaving CPR that day is called PulsePoint, a mobile smartphone app originally developed at Northern Kentucky University. Drew Basse’s rescue was the first time PulsePoint made national news. But outside of the dramatic media coverage of lives saved using the app (just Google “PulsePoint saves”), it is equally remarkable that PulsePoint exists at all. While original development of the app began at NKU, the concept and technology behind it represent an incredible convergence of social consciousness, technical knowhow, and stubborn determination.

Consider the following sequence of events that led to the moment 2004: NKU drafts a plan to create the College of Informatics. Included in Scott Brawner found Drew Basse the plan are three academic departments (computer science, business dying in his car. Take away any single informatics, and communications) plus one non-academic department that item, and everything falls apart: will become known as the Center for Applied Informatics (CAI). Within a couple of years, mobile app development begins at CAI through a “virtual coop” outreach program developed for students.

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January 29, 2007: Apple introduces the iPhone. NKU becomes one of the first universities in the country to partner with the company for mobile app development.

2007

2007–2009: Students working at CAI produce a number of mobile apps for iPhone and Android devices. NKU establishes a national reputation as a toptier mobile tech development university.

2007-2009

2009

2011

2012

2013-2014

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2009, San Ramon, California: San Ramon Fire Department chief Richard Price is eating lunch at a deli when a fire engine pulls into the parking lot.

Medics tend to a man next door who had fallen unconscious from a sudden cardiac arrest. Price, a 30-year veteran emergency responder, realizes that he could have responded to the situation much sooner than the medics had he known about the incident.

2009: Price conceptualizes a mobile app that would allow CPR-trained citizens to assist nearby victims of sudden cardiac arrests. After repeatedly failing to find developers for the project, he receives a tip from a source at Apple, Inc. to contact Northern Kentucky University.

2009: Price calls Tim Ferguson, executive director of NKU’s Center for Applied Informatics. At the end of the conversation Ferguson agrees to take on the project. “We can do this,” he tells Price over the phone. “It’s a great idea and I know our staff and students can pull it off. Let’s get going.”

2011: After nearly two years of collaboration between Price’s team and staff and students from NKU, the PulsePoint prototype app is released.

2012: Upon realizing the app’s potential to save lives, the San Ramon Fire Department and NKU administration create the nonprofit PulsePoint Foundation. All intellectual property for the app’s technology is placed into the foundation. Price and Ferguson are appointed to the foundation board.

2013–2014: The PulsePoint Foundation contracts a private company to continue with further improvements to the app. The San Francisco-based company, called Workday, hires NKU students who had originally worked on its development. NKU students and staff continue to play a role in Pulsepoint via the board membership and with further deployment of the app in cities across the country.

May 9, 2014: Drew Basse collapses in his car outside of a 24 Hour Fitness in Clackamas, Oregon. The PulsePoint app notifies nearby firefighter Scott Brawner, who saves Basse’s life.

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DI G ITAL SHOWCASE:

A peek into NKU’s Innovations Gallery at the Center for Applied Informatics, where CAI students are developing prototype apps for emerging technologies.

Blood Pressure Mobile health is impacting patient care by providing low cost, ultra portable devices that allow monitoring of blood pressure, ultrasound, and other vital health metrics.

Smart Watch New and emerging wearable technology devices include watches, bracelets, clothing, and glasses that can be used for messaging, gathering health metrics (blood pressure, pulse, steps walked), and more.

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Google Glass Google Glass can be used for facial recognition, augmented reality, and video capture.

Classrooms can also use these devices for quickly looking up facts.

Virtual Reality (at left) It may look low-tech, but this prototype was sent from Google for testing virtual reality goggles that will one day transform entertainment, education, scientific research, and even surgery.

Augmented Reality Augmented Reality provides additional informational that supplements what is available in the physical world. For instance, Google Glass might show a someone at a zoo additional information about an exhibit.

Leap Motion (above)The Leap Motion controller can interact in 3D environments where a traditional mouse and keyboard would limit the experience. Devices like the Leap provide an intuitive, natural interface to virtual worlds. winter 2014-15

Alert! (at right) Two screenshots from the actual message that appeared on Scott Brawner’s phone when the PulsePoint app alerted him to Drew Basse’s medical emergency.

18 18 People Map: PulsePoint uses GPS information to allow crowd sourcing of CPRtrained citizen responders.

“I don’t know how old you are, but I am from an era where we didn’t even have 911.” On the phone from his home in Milwaukee, Oregon, Drew Basse speaks haltingly at times. It’s best to reach him between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., he says, when he is at his most alert. He says that he’s recovering well but still uses a walker for mobility and experiences problems with balance and numbness in his legs and neck—all likely manifestations of the brief amount of time that passed between his cardiac arrest and the moment Scott Brawner found him.

When the security guard made the initial 911 call about Basse, it set off a chain of events. From the time the dispatcher relayed the caller’s information to the moment the emergency responders arrived at Basse’s location, less than 10 minutes had elapsed.

While that may seem fast, more than 90 percent of victims who do not receive treatment during the first nine minutes of an attack will not survive. With each passing minute after a cardiac arrest, the victim’s chance of survival decreases substantially. Sudden cardiac arrest is—by far—the greatest killer among adults over the age of 40. Nine out of 10 victims die.

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PulsePoint was created to allow citizens trained in CPR to assist victims immediately. It means that in cities that have integrated the app into their emergency dispatch systems—nearly 900 from coast to coast so far, including Los Angeles, Cleveland, San Diego, Houston, Portland, and Dallas—anyone who has downloaded PulsePoint can be a first responder.

With more than 1,000 people dying per day from sudden cardiac arrest in the United States alone, the app’s potential to save lives is hard to imagine.

Here’s how PulsePoint works: For each new city that adopts the app, a tech team installs an application programmer interface (API) directly into the city’s dispatch system. When a 911 dispatcher submits location information about a cardiac arrest victim into the database, the API grabs that information and sends it to the cloud-based PulsePoint system. The app finds the GPS coordinates of the victim and sends a push notification alert to each PulsePoint user located within a specific radius of the victim.

All of this takes place within seconds.

“We were a fire department; we had no budget,” Richard Price says, thinking back to the moment he first told his colleagues about his idea for the app. “We had no app developers on staff. We had no idea if it would work or if the technology would even be available. It was a radical idea, to dispatch citizens to major cardiac emergencies. So we just started looking into how we could get the app developed. We started talking to people, and somewhere during that time we learned of NKU’s program. It came highly recommended; this was a university that was ahead of the curve on this.”

“To me,” Brawner says, “that’s the cool tie-in. It started from somebody’s idea and turned into a university project that ended up having a direct effect on Drew’s life. A lot of people come up to me and say, ‘Wow, that was a great thing you did. I want to download that app; I want to be that person.’ The takeaway is really about how precious life is. This is an app that everyone could have. Taking the opportunity to help someone is so rewarding and touches so many people.”

“I wish this was in all 50 states,” Basse says from his home in the Portland suburbs. “In every fire department, every police department. This is something that really needs to take off. Because the next person’s life that is not saved, could have been saved.”

To learn more about PulsePoint, visit www.pulsepoint.org.

H ow to Build an App App Development 101 from CAI Executive Director Tim Ferguson and College of Informatics Dean Kevin Kirby Students at NKU’s Center for Applied Informatics have developed websites, analytics work, and mobile apps for clients from Canada to California to Switzerland. Here, Tim Ferguson and College of Informatics Dean Kevin Kirby talk about the all-hands-on-deck nature of app development at Northern Kentucky University. It all starts with a phone call.

Ferguson: So the first thing that happens is that we get a call. We sample apps developed by cai chat with that company to see if there’s a fit for what they’re looking for and what we can provide. The criteria we use there is not only whether Best Upon Request can we do it, but whether our students are going to get a great learning Best Upon Request is a concierge experience out of it. company headquartered in Cincinnati, OH. The CAI developed an app that Kirby: These projects that students do are not course projects; they allows customers of the company to are projects for external clients driven by the client’s needs. Which is order services on their mobile devices. an entirely different universe from a faculty member coming in with an assignment. The students interact with clients to deliver specific things Scopia Rx on time. You might have a computer science major working side by side ScopiaRX is a medical startup company with a business informatics major working next to a visual arts major that cross-references medications doing the graphic design. They’re all working as a team, building up their and provides a personalized summary of FDA-approved safety information technical sophistication but also learning about the outside world and that assists patients, caregivers, and how organizations work. doctors.

Ferguson: If it’s a good fit then we invite the client to sit down and do what I would call a requirements session. We listen to them, to what CINCINNATI CHEMICAL they want, to what they have in place today and how we would integrate ADDICTION TREATMENT (CCAT) The CCAT app is intended for people into their infrastructure. We map that out and make sure that it’s a fit for that have gone through the center’s us as well. treatment program. The app provides Kirby: If you look at a mobile app, so much of it is about design. It’s a calendar of events, support phone numbers, and motivational resources. not just about writing code. You have to understand both written and visual communication—the art of design. You have to have a sense of the business context of the application. It all gets interleaved—the social Freestore Foodbank The Freestore Foodbank app connects implications, legal implications, the privacy implications and so on. It’s people with 325 member agencies in all entangled up together. So it’s not just, “I’m hiring a person to write the 20-county Greater Cincinnati region.

The app can help people find places to some code in a vacuum.”

Ferguson: If everything is in place then we create an agreement and donate goods and services as well as receive help from the organization. write specifications and possibly wireframes and mockups so they can see what we’re going to build. We then go to prototyping. We show them Dots – Connect the Box what the screens are going to look like and get them to sign off on that.

“Dots – Connect the Box” is a modernized version of the classic When everything’s good there, we then go into design and development. pencil-and-paper game Dots. The game We create the product. We develop it, then test and document and supports multiplayer and allows users deliver it to the client. We ask the client to test it and certify that we’re to play multiple games simultaneously. delivering what was requested. Once they sign off on it, we’re done with that project and then start the process all over again. pulsepoint

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Kpandja Djawe’s battle against Ebol a nearly cost him his life, but not fr om the disease

By Ian Aldrich

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For much of this past spring and into the fall, Kpandja Djawe (’06), an epidemiologist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was stationed in the middle of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa that has ravaged large swaths of the region. Djawe, who grew up in nearby Togo, Africa, was tasked with case identification and contact tracing—the detailed, often complicated work of tracking those who’ve had contact with infected individuals.

The morning that Djawe was nearly killed began like most of his days there. He was up before 6 a.m., in a meeting by 7:30, and on the road at 9. On that sultry May day in the Guinean town of Guékédou—the epicenter of the Ebola epidemic—Djawe traveled the bumpy dirt roads for three hours to the village of Bamba, located in southeastern Guinea not far from the Sierra Leone border.

For this particular assignment, Djawe had been asked to follow up on reports coming out of Bamba that indicated a local woman was showing signs of illness.

Djawe’s traveling partners to the village include the mayor of Guékédou, a nurse, and a local supervisor.

When the team arrived, Djawe and his companions began explaining their visit to the village chief. At first things were cordial—the mayor and the village chief were acquaintances, and a few jokes were shared between the two. But when the subject turned to the sick woman, the chief’s tone changed.

No, the chief told them. Nobody here is sick.

Moments later, chaos ensued.

As Djawe and his team tried to negotiate their position with the chief, villagers emerged from the bush, armed with machetes and yelling at the visitors. Djawe and his team scrambled to get back into their vehicle.

“They started screaming that they didn’t want to see us here again,” Djawe recalls. “By the time we reached the car, they started throwing rocks at us, and when the car started they ran toward us, banging the car with machetes. The driver was very vigilant, otherwise it would have been a disaster.”

“They started screaming that they didn't want to see us here again”

Djawe’s journey from Togo to Kentucky and back to Africa is a tale of triumph and determination. Djawe was raised as one of 15 children, and grew up in a small farming village on a dry stretch of land in the central section of his home country. Though his family was poor, life was stable for Djawe until the age of 11, when his father suddenly died. To help keep food on the table and pay for his schooling, the young Djawe began working on the weekends with his uncle, an herbalist who lived five miles out of town. Djawe made the long journey to his uncle’s farm every Saturday and Sunday. Eventually, the work launched Djawe’s interest in the world of medicine and treatment. “From my uncle I learned how to combine leaves to treat some tropical diseases such as malaria,” he says.

The real game changer, however, arrived on the day that Djawe met Andy Long, an associate professor of mathematics at NKU who at the time was stationed in Djawe’s village as a Peace Corps volunteer. It was in Togo that Long met and married Djawe’s older sister and first got to know his brother-in-law. “He was just this little spud,” Long remembers, “but he’s always just been so responsible. I thought, if I could ever help him out, I would.”

That chance came some 10 years later when Long moved to the West African country of Benin for a Fulbright Scholarship. He and his wife needed someone to watch their young son, and thus offered Djawe a deal: If he provided child care for their son, they would cover Djawe’s schooling. Djawe finished high school in Benin and a few years later followed Long to Kentucky, where Djawe enrolled at NKU to study biology.

America proved challenging—the fast-paced life, the culture, the weather. But Djawe’s limited English proved to be his biggest obstacle. In his early days, he struggled to associate the names of the materials listed in the lab protocol with what was in the classroom. What’s a beaker?, he remembers asking. What’s a spatula?

“After that terrible experience, I decided to Google the images of all the materials before the class session,” he says.

Soon enough, Djawe’s English improved, and along with it his standing within the NKU community grew.

The guy everyone came to know simply as KP made friends and developed a strong rapport with his biology professors. winter 2014-15

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“He is so caring and giving,” says Regents Professor Dr. Miriam Kannan. “There would be other students struggling to get their notes together and KP would seek them out, sit with them and help them organize their thoughts. He wasn’t a teacher’s assistant, he didn’t have to do it, but that’s just him. That’s his personality.”

After graduating from NKU in 2006, Djawe went on to earn his master’s and doctorate in epidemiology.

He then landed a job with the CDC and its Epidemic Intelligence Service program as a “disease detective”—a role that eventually brought Djawe back to Africa where he worked on a number of health issues. When the Ebola crisis emerged, the CDC determined that Djawe, recently married, would be an obvious choice to return to West Africa.

In Guinea, Djawe’s days were long.

Each day between 6 a.m. and one in the morning, Djawe organized outbreak coordination meetings, updated databases, and tried to contain a disease that has thrived in countries where the health-care systems are already in a fragile state.

The challenges seem overwhelming. The Ebola virus disease is acutely severe and often fatal—especially in this current outbreak in West Africa that spreads from Guinea to Sierra Leone and Liberia. The disease, which can be transmitted to humans from wild animals such as fruit bats, monkeys, forest antelope, and porcupines, spreads between humans by direct contact with the bodily fluids of those who have been infected.

Health care workers are frequently infected, as are the mourners of the deceased who come in direct contact with someone who died from the disease.

In the four decades since Ebola was first detected, there have been 19 outbreaks. But according to the World Health Organization, this latest outbreak, first detected in March 2014, has accounted for more deaths than all of the other incidents n o rt h e r n M AG A Z I NE

Kpandja Djawe meets with community agents assisting with Ebola contact tracing in the Guinean town of Guéckédou. During these meetings, agents brief Djawe regarding the status of their contacts and “any rumors (going) around the village.”

After meeting with the community

agents, Djawe and his team visit village families to verify the community agents’ reports.

“[Guéckédou] is the epicenter of the Ebola epidemic,” Djawe says. “It is very rural with bad roads. Electricity (only) comes at specific times of the night. But this is the last thing we have to worry about.”

After meeting with the community

agents, Djawe and his team visit village families to verify the community agents’ reports.

Djawe (center) and colleagues from the World Health Organization in Guéckédou.

combined. Nearly 5,000 have died so far from the current outbreak. Using computer modeling, the CDC has estimated that by early 2015 in Sierra Leone and Liberia alone, the disease could spark as many as 1.4 million total cases. The WHO estimates that only 50 percent will survive. But it’s not just poorly resourced health care that Djawe and others are up against.

The fear of being stigmatized by Ebola is so great that some residents of West African communities are in denial about its existence. As such, resentment against health workers like Djawe has sparked anger and backlash.

In September, residents near the Guinean city of Nzerekore attacked and killed a team of doctors, local officials, and journalists. The group included Djawe’s close friend, Dr. Ibrahima Fernandez. “[When I got the news], that was just a terrible day for me,” says Djawe. “I cried in my office because we lost a great guy who was making a difference.” Beneath his sorrow, Djawe thought about how lucky he was to have survived the attack back in May. Still, despite all the challenges, frustrations, and heartbreak, Djawe, who returned to the United States in October, feels called to his work.

“I understand the disease,” he says, “and I know the impact it will have if I don’t do it.”

NKU professor Andy Long, Djawe’s old friend and brother-in-law, marvels at what Djawe has achieved.

“He’s the best success story of my life,” Long says. “I just happened to help this guy, but everything he achieved was already in him. He’s done it all on his own. And he’s doing what I’d always hoped he’d do. He’s out there helping people in an ugly situation. That’s a wonderful thing.”

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Five professional journalists weigh in on the ever-changing, low-paying, UNRELENTING, highly stressful, hugely gratifying world of modern journalism.

As Hollywood honors one of the country’s greatest investigative reporters— former NKU student Gary Webb, whose investigative series called “The Dark Alliance” was just portrayed in the feature film “Kill the Messenger”—we thought it a good time to survey the field of journalism in this age of information overload. So we reached out to several professional journalists across the country (all alums, of course) to take stock of the past, present, and future of journalism. While the medium and methods may have changed, the message remains the same: without journalists shining a light on the most important topics of our time, the world would be a much darker place, indeed. —Brent Donaldson

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Forrest Berkshire (’01)

Debbie Cafazzo (’78)

Tom Embrey (’97)

Tim Funk (’77)

Travis Gettys (’13)

is head editor of The Kentucky Standard based in Bardstown, KY.

has covered education in Washington state since 1982.

She is currently the education reporter for The News Tribune in Tacoma, WA.

is a senior writer for The Pilot Newspaper in Southern Pines, NC, where he covers the police and fire beat, as well as sports.

is the faith and values reporter at The Charlotte Observer, the largest daily news provider in the Carolinas.

is an editor for The Raw Story, an independent progressive online news site based out of Washington D.C.

Northern Magazine: Most journalists we know are headstrong, intelligent, and want to serve a greater purpose than simply making money. What is it about the field that attracted you?

Debbie Cafazzo: I attended NKU as a child of the Watergate era, a scandal that broke when I was still in high school. Many people saw journalists as heroes, changing the world. Also back then, there was a decent economic model to support the industry.

Travis Gettys: I’ve been reading the newspaper daily since I was a kid and worked for my high school newspaper and yearbook, yet when my dad asked what I’d major in at college, I told him that I wouldn’t choose journalism. “Dad, I don’t want to do something I love for my job,” I said in my infinite, 17-year-old wisdom. “Well,” my dad told me, “then you’re a damned idiot.”

Tim Funk: What attracted me to journalism was the chance to write nearly every day, to get a byline, to travel, to be the eyes and ears of readers, to cover what was happening RIGHT NOW, and to report, on deadline, what would soon become history. Decades later, even as the journalism biz changes by the hour, those are still the thrills that get me up in the morning.

Northern Magazine: CareerCast.com ranked newspaper reporter as the worst job of 2013. The study cited in its reasoning the field’s negative environment, lowest pay, most stress, and bleakest outlook. Soon before that, Kiplinger listed journalist as one of the “worst jobs of the future,” and suggested that reporters find work in PR. Do you agree with these findings and suggestions?

TOM EMBREY: No. Journalism has and always will serve a valuable purpose. Journalism is not for everyone and neither is a career in PR. I worked in the sports information office at NKU for a few years while I was a student. It was a great learning experience thanks to some really great people, but it wasn’t for me. I enjoy the deadline pressure and the stress that comes with being a journalist. And as for the low pay, I make enough to have everything I need and most of what I want.

Forrest Berkshire: Low pay, long hours, deadline stress, personal attacks from public officials as well as the general public—what’s not to love? Reporter is the worst job in the world if your heart isn’t in it. But if you think writing a city council story is boring, try writing a press release. Reporter is the best job in the world if you have a passion for it. I will take hard work and job satisfaction over a little more money and mind-numbing boredom any day.

FUNK: Yes, reporters should be paid much better than we are. And we work crazy hours. Those two things have always been true.

What’s new and distressing is that there are fewer bodies in newsrooms, so everyone is being asked to do even more.

GETTYS: Workers are too fungible in today’s U.S. economy, and our employers let us know. But I don’t agree that this is an industry with a bleak future; the Internet offers too many opportunities for talented writers with something to say.

Northern Magazine: Versatility is becoming increasingly vital for new journalists. What skills besides interviewing/ editing/writing have you acquired since you entered the field?

CAFAZZO: Writing is my first love, but the job now demands

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These staff members from The Northerner circa 1976 include Gary Webb (in background, second from the left), Tim Funk (third from left), and Debbie Cafazzo (standing, far right).

pictures, videos, Tweeting, etc. I love the instant feedback of social media. While I’m not the best photographer or videographer in the world, I can hold my own, thanks in no small part to skills I learned at NKU. The technology has changed drastically, but the basics of storytelling are the same.

BERKSHIRE: We have a small newsroom and everyone does everything. During any given day a reporter will interview and write, shoot photos, shoot video, help proof other reporters’ work, maybe lay out a page and everything associated with that and post a tease on our Facebook page and maybe our Twitter feed. If you can’t—or aren’t willing to learn how—then you won’t get hired at my newspaper.

EMBREY: During my time at NKU, I learned a number of valuable skills, including writing, editing, photography, and page design that gave me a great foundation for the future.

Now, posting to social media and writing for and updating our website are key responsibilities of my job.

Northern Magazine: Is the future of journalism on the

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Web? Is it on YouTube? Is it on paper? Smartphones and tablets? All of the above?

FUNK: I’ve been in the biz long enough to know that we probably have no clue what the future will bring. Voters and readers still value investigative journalism and watchdogging and the local angle—our franchises. We need to stay true to our true calling and not become mere purveyors of celebrity buzz and other cheap chatter that flourishes on Internet “news” sites.

CAFAZZO: As a student at NKU in the 1970s, I read about Marshall McLuhan’s media theories. He’s the one who talked about the “medium as the message,” the global village and even predicted something like the Web. While media continues to morph, people still need to communicate with each other and they still need a source of professionally vetted information.

BERKSHIRE: I don’t care if newspapers are still around in 20 years, as long as there is still good journalism.

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Northern Magazine: How is citizen journalism or blogging changing news reporting? How do they differ from professional journalism?

FUNK: In some ways, the democratization of journalism is refreshing, exciting, and even history-making. Just look at how citizen journalists have shown the world what’s really happening in turbulent places like Ukraine, Egypt and Iran.

But, in the United States, where partisanship reigns and civility is gone, too many so-called citizen journalists confuse opinion with news. We joke “It must be true, I read it on the Internet,” because that’s where you’ll find so much unsubstantiated garbage masquerading as news.

"While media continues to morph, people still need to communicate with each other and they still need a source of professionally vetted information."

NORTHERN MAGAZINE: What advice would you give to a freshman who thinks she wants to be a journalist after college?

FUNK: Don’t, in your rush to be ultramodern, neglect the basics. Read a lot of other writers. Work on your writing. Be clear and concise. No unnecessary words. Make sure you spell every word correctly. And fact-check EVERYTHING. If you fail at these things, you will fail at journalism.

GETTYS: Get published in your college newspaper, for goodness sake. Employers are going to want to see what you can do, and not too many other outlets will publish you before graduation. If someone will, go for it.

CAFAZZO: Think about the news, what matters, what the world needs to know and the forces arrayed against your uncovering that knowledge. Then think some more about the many creative ways there are to portray what matters, thanks to the tech revolution.

Then, just do it. It’s the best way to learn.

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Media’s Big Bang How one of the country’s top media companies is changing the business of journalism

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The world of journalism changed forever in the 1990s when traditional newspapers began to publish online. Here, E.W. Scripps Chairman, President, and CEO Rich Boehne (’81) explains how his company is leading the next generation of digital platform storytelling.

On the digital revolution: I think of the digital revolution as, in some ways, the development that all of media had been waiting on for 150 years. Other forms of distribution—more linear sorts of distribution such as a printing press or a broadcast tower—I think all of it was warm-up until the grid could be assembled.

And the grid is now assembled—the creation of a unified platform for both video and static content and the way people interact. I guess I would say this is media’s Big Bang. I think it’s that dramatic.

On teaching modern journalism: When I came through journalism school at NKU—and I’m part of the Gary Webb generation, we all came through school together—there were very predictable tracks for our careers. But we’re in a period now when those tracks are not predictable at all. Today, there should be no such thing as broadcast students versus journalism students. For a student coming in, they should not really think of the world that way. Because if you’re not understanding digital platform storytelling, it doesn’t matter which one of those tracks you’re following; you’re going to have a very difficult time.

On creating an economically sustainable media business model: WCPO.com is so different from most of the media industry.

We don’t use a per-piece meter [for online articles]. So if you visit WCPO.com you don’t get 30 or 20 or 10 stories for free.

All of our content uses a time-based meter. We may do a story that immediately goes behind the pay-wall, or there may be stories that are out front for a day or two days. There may be some that we think serve the best purpose and drive the best audience if they’re out there for 10 days and then in essence go into a paid archive. And that’s all based on monitoring demand. We are learning all the time. It’s really about working the dials and trying to learn about consumer behavior.

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Chairman, President, and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Company, Rich Boehne, joined the Scripps corporate staff in 1988 as manager of investor relations. Boehne was named vice president in 1995 and in 1999 was elected the corporation’s executive vice president. The board elected Boehne as chairman in 2013.

On taking risks and the new industry approach to media consumption: I think [WCPO] is the only TV station in the county that has made these investments on the digital side. I get questions from shareholders all the time about it: “So you’re the only one in the county; none of your peers are trying this. What should this tell us?” I say, “This tells you we’re absolutely brilliant or we’re completely crazy!” There’s probably nothing in between, but that’s okay. We have time.

An awful lot [of our model] you don’t see because it’s the data and loyalty engines that we are building behind. We have purchased a mobile news network, Newsy, which we’re building. We’ve added an aggressive digital sales force across the country, which is a big investment. But I think we’ve proven over a long period of time that good, long-term, thoughtful investments pay off. So what I have to do in the meantime is sort of hold them off and take a beating here and there.

ON LEARNING TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE CHAOS OF MODERN MEDIA: I love changing, chaotic, confusing environments. That’s where there’s such opportunity. That, and I’m personally not so skilled at navigating steady, staid environments. That’s not my skill set.

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Remembering the Messenger From his days at NKU until his death in 2010, Gary Webb changed the world of investigative journalism After being attacked by major media outlets and discredited by his own editor at the San Jose Mercury News for the groundbreaking “Dark Alliance” series, former NKU student and investigative reporter Gary Webb was finally vindicated with the release of the feature film “Kill The Messenger.” The movie, based on Webb’s reporting on the CIA and its knowledge of cocaine smuggling that ultimately funded Contra rebels in Nicaragua, was released this past October to widespread critical acclaim. Debbie Cafazzo, Webb’s former Northerner colleague and current reporter for The News Tribune in Tacoma, WA, offers this remembrance of her old friend. —Brent Donaldson I think Gary never graduated, but instead left school for a job with the Kentucky Post, where he first developed a taste for investigative reporting. Several of us in that old Northerner photograph talked for a time after Gary’s death about setting up a scholarship at NKU in Gary’s name, but we never thought we could raise enough money. Probably because so many of us at the time were still working journalists!

Well, I still am. I’ve had my moments, but never anything on as grand a stage as Gary’s.

I spoke with Gary twice after we both left NKU. In the early ’90s, he was a star panelist at a meeting of the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) that I attended in Portland, Oregon. I think he was just starting at the Mercury News then. We talked and drank beer and laughed. And Gary still smoked like a chimney.

I was working at the time for a small, stingy daily in suburban Seattle, and Gary graciously picked up the dinner tab for me. He laughed and said he was putting it on his paper’s expense account. Typical Gary.

The last time I spoke to Gary was when he was working for the state of California and, I suppose, working on his

“Driving While Black” piece for Esquire. It was around the time of the scandal involving the Cincinnati Enquirer and its reporting on Chiquita. I remember Gary and I talked a bit about how that reporter was also being hung out to dry by his editors, just as Gary had been.

I could tell Gary hated being out of the news game. He sounded unhappy. But with typical Gary attitude, he was going to do the best-damned job he could. It was such a contrast from our meeting in Portland, where he was an honored IRE speaker. And in retrospect, it was heartbreaking.

Still is.

I would be the last person to nominate Gary for sainthood.

But he was a great guy to know and he turned out to be a fearless journalist. I have a quote from him tacked to my cubicle at The News Tribune: “If you’re a rabble-rouser and a shit-stirrer, they don’t want your type on television. They want the pundits.”

So typically Gary.

“Kill the Messenger” is scheduled for release on DVD and Blu-ray in February 2015.

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alumni journal Gatherings A Season to Celebrate At this time of the year many of us take stock of the blessings in our lives.

Personally, I am thankful to have a loving family and the opportunity to live in a great country. I am also thankful to be here at NKU, where every day I meet the most wonderful alumni, faculty, staff, and students.

As you read this issue of the magazine you will find that these very same people are making a global impact. From alumnus Kpandja Djawe, who works with the CDC to fight the Ebola epidemic in West Africa (pg. 20), to the staff, faculty, and students who helped create the lifesaving Pulsepoint mobile app (pg. 14), it’s clear to see that NKU is helping to make the world a better, safer place.

I know that many of you are making a difference every day through your work, and I encourage you to share your story with us. We want to hear from you.

As we head into basketball season we’re providing opportunities to travel to watch the men’s team play while enjoying time with fellow Norse fans. We will host pre-game receptions when the Norse take on Lipscomb in Nashville on Jan. 10, and Florida Gulf Coast in Fort Myers on Jan. 31. Of course, we also have our annual Homecoming festivities and Norse Nuptials event at The BOKC in February. Please check the alumni website for details at alumni.nku.edu.

Finally, don’t forget that on April 7 we will host our annual Alumni Awards Celebration, where we recognize those alumni who have served their community and the university at the highest level.

Please join us!

I hope to see you on campus soon!

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1. NKU young alumni celebrate at a Young Alumni Council happy hour at Brothers Bar & Grill at Newport on the Levee. 2. Approximately 100 Norse alumni, family, and friends enjoyed NKU Day at Kings Island including a visit from Victor! 3. “Kill the Messenger” director Michael Cuesta visits with NKU students before a screening of the film. 4. Randy Watkins (’10) and other guests registering for the 12th Annual Alumni Golf Outing at Kenton County Golf Courses. 5. Jake Lehnert (’10), Betheal Ande (’12), Eric Ashworth (’10) and Rob Carmack (’03) teeing off at alumni golf outing. 6.

Members of the Haile/US Bank College of Business Alumni Council. 7. Matthew Spille, son of Meredith Spille (’05) and Tim Spille (’98, ’05) enjoying time with Victor E. Viking at NKU Day at Kings Island. 8. Norse basketball coaches David Bezold and Dawn Plitzuweit, along with Athletic Director Ken Bothof and President Geoffrey Mearns at the YAC Happy Hour. winter 2014-15

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CLASS NOTES 1973 Barry Kienzle's (business) book, “The Crossings,” has received a silver award from Mom’s Choice Awards, an organization that recognizes excellence in family-friendly media, products, and services.

1987 Bob Thinnes (law enforcement) has had an active career in law enforcement including his role as director of safety and security at the Cincinnatian Hotel; then personal assistant/executive secretary to the Kentucky Speedway; and currently in public safety at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

Thinnes has also been involved on the Crime Stoppers board for 25 years and volunteers in several other projects. He thanks NKU for his experiences and is proud to share that his daughter Julie is currently at NKU in the English program.

1989 Dane Houston (political Science; Chase ’92) has been named vice-president of software engineering at Wynright Corporation, a leading US-based provider of intelligent material handling systems.

Houston has worked for Wynright for 22 years.

Nick Borschert (finance) is celebrating his 25th anniversary at Procter & Gamble by being named F&A Master for his work on F&A Information Systems.

1990 Tom Wiedemann (management) is celebrating his 25th anniversary at AAA Allied Group. In 2012, he was named Chief Operating Officer of AAA Allied Group. Wiedemann recently joined the NKU Alumni Board of Directors.

1992 Jim Rider (Business Administration) has n o rt h e rn north r n M AG A Z I N NE E

recently been promoted to vice president at Fifth Third Securities, a division of Fifth Third Bank.

1993

and senior high school young women from the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky region for their school prom.

Annamae Giles (psychology) has joined the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work as clinical instructor and field faculty in the Winston Salem Distance Education master’s of social work program.

Benjamin Mulling (accounting) was recently named as finalist for the 2014 CFO of the Year from The Business Courier. He was also voted chair-elect of the Institute of Management Accountants, one of the fastest growing accounting associations in the world.

1997

2004

Gary Ruschman (music) has recently accepted the position as choir director at St. Timothy Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Ruschman previously spent 10 years touring and recording with the internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble Cantus, with whom he gave more than 800 performances and served multiple terms as artistic co-Director and member of the company’s Artistic Council and board of directors. Gary appeared on the group’s latest album, A Harvest Home, released this past fall.

Jamee Flaherty (M.Ed.) after serving as principal at Beechwood Elementary School, Flaherty has become the district’s first director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

1998 Angela Laflen (English), an associate professor of English at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York, recently had her third child and published her second book, “Confronting Visuality in Multi-Ethnic Women’s Writing.”

Mark Nadobny (M.Ed.) was awarded a 10-day study tour scholarship to travel and study in Japan with the Keizai Koho Center. Nadobny visited numerous historic, cultural, and educational locations throughout the country.

Tye Mortensen (organizational studies; M.Com. ’08) and his wife Kristi Mortensen (speech ’05) have welcomed their daughter Paige Catherine.

Aaron Seyfried (finance) has completed the relocation of Waddell & Reed’s Fort Mitchell office, which will allow for greater growth within the practice.

Tim Spille (RTV, ’05), a litigation, insurance coverage and small business lawyer with Freund, Freeze and Arnold, has been selected to the Redwood Board of Overseers. Spille, his wife Meredith (Chase ’05), and their two sons live in Cincinnati.

2006

2001

Brad Davis (integrative studies) enlisted in the Army shortly after graduation from NKU and was commissioned as an officer in the Adjunct General Corps and deployed to Afghanistan in both 2011 and 2014. Davis is currently serving as a Captain in the 4th Brigade, 4th Infantry Division and hopes to return to Kentucky this summer.

Nancy Ritzenthaler (nursing) has been promoted to associate professor as the skills lab coordinator in the nursing division at Gateway Community & Technical College.

2003 Amanda Fessler (speech) has been named as a new member of the board of directors at Kenzie’s Closet, a nonprofit organization that works to help outfit financially disadvantaged junior

Chris Guidugli (finance, M.Acct. ’10) has been named one of the three finalists for the 2014 Next Generation Leader Award for business and financial services.

2007

2008 Tiffani Carter (speech, M.Com ’11) has received the Petta and Ron Khouw

An Archduchess Among Us notable norse Introducing Her Imperial and Royal Highness Kathleen of Habsbourg-Lorraine (’08) NKU alumni can count among our ranks a representative of nearly every profession, occupation, pastime, and pursuit. And, as of 2012, when His Imperial and Royal Highness Imre of Hapsbourg-Lorraine, married NKU’s 2008 journalism graduate Kathleen Walker, we can now add royalty to that list. Here Kathleen—whose formal title is Her Imperial and Royal Highness Kathleen of HabsbourgLorraine, Archduchess of Austria—talks about meeting her husband Archduke Imre, his marriage proposal in Krakow, Poland, and a typical day in Luxembourg for the young royal family of three. —Brent Donaldson After I graduated from NKU in 2008, I went to Washington D.C. where I worked as director of communications for the American Life League (ALL). After two years at ALL, I joined Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington as their communications director.

Imre was doing a political internship [in Washington, D.C.] and was invited to attend a mass in honor of his great-grandfather, Blessed Emperor Karl of Austria. A friend of mine was helping to publicize the event and invited a group of us. After mass, Imre gave a speech about his great-grandparents. His English wasn’t perfect at the time and we were all impressed he had the courage to speak in front of 300 people. After the speech, we

introduced ourselves and I told him of my admiration for his great-grandmother Empress Zita, who suffered so much and lived a life devoted to her family and to the poor.

We have a wonderful group of friends in Washington and Imre easily fit in with an open-mindedness I thought was wonderful. We quickly became good friends and our friendship became deeper and more profound.

He proposed in Krakow, Poland right before Christmas.

We had been touring the city all day and ended at the Divine Mercy Shrine as the sun went down. In the church, he got down on one knee, launched into a beautiful little speech and took a box from his coat. But before he had a chance to pop the big question, a security guard tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the door. “No talking, no talking.”

“But I’m proposing!” protested Imre. “Quick, quick,” the security guard said. It was romantic, meaningful and funny.

Some people are fascinated by the idea of royalty, but have a deep mistrust of monarchy in general as being incompatible with the will of the people. On the contrary, modern constitutional monarchies can be a wonderful complement to a democratically elected legislature and provide a stability and constancy that is, in a way, outside of and above politics.

Living in Luxembourg, we are the intersection of so many cultures and languages. It’s full of rolling hills, villages, farms and forests but at the same time a thoroughly modern capital city. Nearly every rock has a history, a legend and/or a ghost story.

Imre is working in consulting and advisory for Ernst and Young, I’m working full time taking care of a wonderful, funny, curious and cuddly little person named Maria-Stella born in November 2013. I’ve also started a small events planning business and will soon begin work for an expat website.

We are a pretty typical little family of three, dividing time between work and home. (Maria-Stella) recently started walking, so you can imagine that life has become a little more “exciting” these days. On weekends we can usually be found traveling, hiking, exploring or lately with a paintbrush working on our apartment.

I have great memories of late Tuesday nights in The Northerner office, of so many Northern Right to Life events, of great friends and professors, of classes rooted in preparing us for the real world. But on a more personal level, I will always remember Mary Cupito, my adviser and first journalism professor. She’s tough! But she has that hardhitting, questioning, uncompromising, but always human and compassionate journalism ethic. She’s NKU’s Rosalind Russell in “His Girl Friday.”

Of course I miss my family and friends in the United States, especially my little sisters and brothers who are growing up so fast! But thank to Skype and WhatsApp and the good, old post office, we’re constantly in touch. We try to come back to Cincinnati as often as we can.

We’re discovering Luxembourg more every day and we feel blessed to be able to start our little family in this beautiful fairy-tale country. w i summ wint nter 2 e0 r1240- 1 4 5

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development corner

The Founders Club

John Wagner revisits old friends to help new students If you blindfolded John Wagner and dropped him from a helicopter onto Northern Kentucky University’s campus, he couldn’t tell you where he was. The campus has changed that much since he graduated in 1973 as a member of NKU’s first graduating class.

“When I was a student here, there were just two buildings: Nunn Hall and Regents Hall,” Wagner says. “I came here a few years ago, and I didn’t even recognize the campus. Who would have ever thought we would have ivy growing on the walls of some of the buildings?”

But Wagner hasn’t been that far removed from his alma mater. After graduation, he and a small group of alumni launched the first alumni giving campaign as members of Northern Kentucky University’s first Alumni Council. Wagner and other alumni challenged the Founders Club to give a small donation to establish a pattern of giving back. A plaque now hangs behind the University Center commemorating the Founders Club, the first 100 alumni donors to support their alma mater.

Now, Wagner is undertaking a new project. As NKU approaches its 50th anniversary, Wagner is reconnecting with the original Founders Club members and asking them and all alumni to support the NKU Alumni Family Scholarship, an annual scholarship established in 1984 by the NKU Alumni Board of Directors (formerly the Alumni Council) that benefits legacy students. Students whose parents or family members graduated from NKU are eligible for the scholarship. n north north north o rt h eeern rrn rn n M MAG AGA AZZIIN NE NEE

For several years, Wagner has worked with students in the Haile/US Bank College of Business and has seen how his gifts impact students. As the vice president of labor relations at Kroger, Wagner talks with business students about negotiations, labor-management relations, collective bargaining, and managing pension and health trust funds.

He also is a member of the Haile/US Bank College of Business Human Resource Advisory Council.

Though Wagner has always been involved with his alma mater, an old friend helped him re-engage with the Haile/US Bank College of Business. More than 15 years ago, Wagner met NKU Haile/US Bank College of Business lecturer Lou Manchise, then a federal mediator, when Manchise mediated labor/management contract negotiations between Kroger (which Wagner represented) and the United Food and Commercial Workers.

“John is an excellent representative of Kroger’s interests,” Manchise says. “He has a tremendous national reputation inside the retail food industry and the labor and management community. People know that he is an honest person. On any given day, he could be in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, or the Pacific Northwest taking care of Kroger’s business.”

The two men kept in contact over the years, and Manchise invited Wagner to sit in on one of his classes.

“One of the great things about John is that whenever NKU asks him to help in some fashion, he willingly does so,” Manchise said. “He is a tremendous ambassador for NKU because he so dramatically demonstrates the success our students can achieve.”

Wagner started taking classes at NKU’s Park Hills campus, an extension campus for UK, and had planned on transferring to the Lexington main campus. But in 1968, the Kentucky General Assembly signed the bill creating NKU, and Wagner decided to stay to become part of something new.

Today Wagner still remembers enthusiastic, caring professors like Dr. George Manning with whom he still stays in contact. Manning taught Wagner psychology and later did consulting work for Kroger.

“You could tell that everyone on campus really wanted to be there,” Wagner said. “The students wanted to get an education, and the professors wanted to help students learn. It was an exciting time to be on campus.”

NKU also helped Wagner get a job after graduation.

His solid educational background in finance, economics, human resources and business made him attractive to a major retailer. Five years later, Kroger recruited him, and he has been climbing the corporate ladder ever since, working for Kroger in Cincinnati, Louisville and Atlanta.

To join the Founders Club in supporting the NKU Alumni Family Scholarship, contact Michelle McMullen at (859) 572-6910 or mcmullenm3@nku.edu. To learn about planned giving options, contact Nancy Bratton Perry ’73 at (859) 572-5839 or perryn@ nku.edu.

Scholarship from Kent State University’s School of Library and Information Science. The scholarship is awarded to the student enrolled in the Master of Library and Information Science degree program who best demonstrates an interest in reference librarianship or academic reference services.

Tami Lawson (accounting) has joined Rudler, PSC as a tax supervisor focusing on accounting tax and management advisory services with a specialty in business and individual taxation.

Sara Renauer-Reid (theatre) lives in San Francisco where she recently finished a six-month run as Catherine in the world premiere production of Speakeasy. Sara is beginning her graduate work at the California Institute for Integral Studies toward a master’s degree in clinical psychology with a concentration in drama therapy. She also continues to work as a teaching artist and actress in the Bay Area.

2009

2011

Michael Grote (criminal justice) married Jennifer Corbett (journalism) in August 2013 and the couple currently live and work in Bardstown, KY. Michael works for Pretrial Services for Hardin County and is studying for his master’s degree in criminal justice, while Jennifer is a reporter for The Kentucky Standard in Bardstown. She has won three first-place awards in the 2013 Kentucky Press Association Awards.

Tanner Hall (management) is currently employed at Procter & Gamble in the purchasing department with global sourcing responsibilities of aroma chemicals. Tanner and his wife Rachel (human resources management ’10) welcomed their daughter, LeAnn, in August.

Jessica Hare Lynch (human resources management; M.A. counseling ’11) and her husband Chris Lynch (accounting ’10) have welcomed their daughter, Kyla Jenae.

Melissa Koppenhoefer (political science) has accepted a position with the United States Air Force as a contract negotiator after receiving her J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law.

Cassandra Metze (biology) has received her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree and is working as a physical therapist at Cincinnati Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center.

2013 William Burchfield (leadership) announces the birth of a new Norse, Piper Ellynn.

2014 Samuel Benner (communication studies) is currently working at Fidelity Investments, while his wife, Taylor Reynolds Benner (nursing and theatre) serves as a registered nurse at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, KY.

Leave a Legacy You can support NKU by making the university a beneficiary of your will, annuity or insurance policy. Learn more about your planned giving options today by visiting givingyourway.org/nku or contacting Nancy Bratton Perry (’73) at (859) 572-5722 or perryn@nku.edu.

Tell us what you’re up to!

north e rn

Name: __________________________________________________________________________Address: __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Telephone: (___________)_____________________________________________________Email: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Grad year/major: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What’s new with you? New baby? Spouse an NKU grad? New job or a promotion? Earn another degree since you left Northern? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Send to: NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY Office of Alumni Programs 421 Old Johns Hill Road Highland Heights, KY 41099

Are you firmly planted in the digital age? Then fill out our online form to let us know what’s new with you. If you’ve got a new baby, we’ll send a gift for your baby! alumni.nku.edu.

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NKU Schlacter Archives presents...

Mystery Photo!

Coif. It’s just a funny word.

There’s no harm in being well coiffed, even if you do eventually end up appearing on the back cover of your alumni magazine.

Because let’s face it: like hairstyles, everything—including technology— exists in a continuous state of change. Much like the tightly coiled perm of the 1980s slowly relaxed into the 1990s wave, yesterday’s massive desktop computer could well become tomorrow’s teleportation machine. Yet the questions for our NKU historians remain: from whence are these wellcoifed futurists? What might they

Solve the mystery for NKU history!

be doing, and where? Let us know at northernmagazine@nku.edu.

As for the why: The technology for PulsePoint (page 14) may not have existed back when this photo was taken, but we’d like to believe that they were paving the way.