Regis University Magazine - Spring/Summer 2021 by Regis University

VOLUME 29 ISSUE 1

SPRING/SUMMER 2021

SET UP TO WIN Porter-Billups Leadership

Academy celebrates 25 years of helping kids soar

100 YEARS AS REGIS

NAME CHANGE GAVE RISE TO ‘RANGERS’

MUON STRUCK

FRED GRAY, FERMILAB AND THE FUTURE OF PHYSICS REGIS.EDU

IN THIS ISSUE

F E AT U R E S MEET OUR NEW PROVOST 14 Karen Riley talks challenges, inclusion and Regis’ future. VOLUME 29 ISSUE 1

SPRING/SUMMER 2021

Regis University Magazine is published biannually by Marketing and Communications for the University community of alumni, benefactors, faculty, staff, students and families. ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS Todd Cohen DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS Jennifer Forker EDITOR Karen Augé SENIOR ART DIRECTOR Marcus Knodle EDITORIAL STAFF McKenna Solomon Sara Knuth DESIGN/ILLUSTRATION Daniel Alarcon PHOTOGRAPHER Skip Stewart CONTRIBUTORS Ted Betsy Barry “Bear” Gutierrez Meredith Sell ON THE COVER: Porter-Billups Leadership Academy helped put Monique Gonzales on the path to becoming a pharmacist. Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez.

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HELP, HEALING AND HOPE 16 Rangers are blazing trails toward healthy post-pandemic life. GIVING VACCINES A SHOT 18 Stephanie James’ passion is educating doubters about immunization safety. TREE WHISPERER 20 When it comes to Regis’ arboretum, volunteer extraordinaire Sonia John just won’t leaf it alone. CLINICAL DETERMINATION 22 An alumnus’ vision and drive, and Regis support, have brought decades of health care to those in need. LIFE LESSONS 26 Porter-Billups Leadership Academy celebrates a quarter-century of giving at-risk kids a game plan for success. A CHANGE OF HEART 32 How an ambitious priest and athletic trash talk helped Regis become Regis. A SEASON LIKE NO OTHER 34 Empty auditoriums, nasal swabs and canceled games presented Ranger athletes unexpected challenges.

THIS IS R EGIS LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 2 LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT 3 IN BRIEF 4 FACULTY FOCUS 6 RISING STAR 7 WHY JESUIT MATTERS 8 LESSONS LEARNED 9 RESEARCH 10 RANGERS IN THE WORLD 12 SCHOLARSHIP STORIES 13

A LWA Y S R A N G E R S ASK REGI 37 CLASS NOTES 40 IN MEMORIAM 44 WHERE'S REGI 48

Generous donations from Donald Dillon (’61) and Luisa Staerkel (’75) gave the Our Lady of Loretto grotto new life, and light. The restoration also added a water feature and made it wheelchair-accessible.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Thank you for the amazingly poignant story about Walter Springs. His life now holds a tender place of sincere admiration in my heart. I’m thankful you took the time to write about him. And I’m thankful his life will be memorialized in the University’s history curriculum. Linda Ann Waggoner Las Vegas, NV 

I enjoyed reading the feature on Regis alumnus Walter Springs, which was a well-deserved, overdue recognition of an impressive gentleman, as well as the segment on Coach Joe B. Hall who was the basketball coach and athletic director during my four years’ attendance. The history of Walter Springs’ attendance at Regis raised a question. My father attended Regis for one year in the early 1930s and played on the football team for Coach Red Strader. However, he transferred to Creighton University in Omaha after one year where he also played on the football team. It has always been my impression that the reason he left Regis was due to the school’s decision to terminate football. The article about Walter Springs doesn’t reconcile with my father’s history since Walter was a member of the Regis football team in 1941. My father very much enjoyed Regis and my enrollment at Regis was influenced by his encouragement, which I have always viewed as one of my better life decisions, thanks to my experience and friendships I continue to enjoy today. As an aside, my father graduated from Creighton and met my mother in Omaha, so the decision to transfer wasn’t all bad.

I very much enjoy the Regis University Magazine and look forward to each edition. Michael J. Scherr Class of 1964 Editor’s Note: Records indicate that when Coach Red Strader left in 1931, football was suspended, likely due to the Great Depression. Regis football returned in 1936, but ended permanently in 1942 due to World War II, when many students went to the battlefield.

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Editor’s Note: Regis University Magazine received comments questioning the decision to place Christopher Pramuk's column discussing the murder of George Floyd alongside the story about Walter Springs. Some felt it inappropriate to compare Floyd, who was killed by police attempting to arrest him, with Springs, who died serving the United States in World War II. Mr. Pramuk Responds: I, too, yearn for the day we can “remove the color” from our public discourse and the struggle for a more perfect union. We’re not there yet. While I understand how terms like “whiteness” can be used in ways that alienate and obscure our common humanity, my meditation on the murder of George Floyd was just that: a meditation, an Ignatian examination of conscience for “white folks like me” to place ourselves humbly under the cross of Black suffering. The editors were thoughtful, I believe, to place such a call for solidarity and conversion next to the story of Walter Springs.

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Their inclusion of the image of the sculpture of the Black crucifixion on our Regis campus invokes the prayerful spirit I hoped the piece would convey. I belong to a multiracial family. If the murder of a fellow human being by an officer can be rationalized as “a serious error in judgement,” if our horror at such casual disregard for the dignity of human life can be soothed by calling the victim a “criminal,” then I worry about the future for my two Black children. Our youngest is a large pre-teen with mental illness. It takes little imagination to see our son’s beautiful face and name snuffed out with so many others. Respectfully, I submit that Walter Springs and George Floyd are intimately connected. Both are beloved of God. The beauty and burden of my Catholic faith, and of a humane society, lay in that realization. Christopher Pramuk, Ph.D., is University Chair of Ignatian Thought and Imagination.

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We graciously welcome all your comments and correspondence! Send letters to: editor@regis.edu

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

DEAR FRIENDS,

Highlights of those strategies include:

This year, the change of seasons brought more than warm temperatures. Along with the crocuses and budding leaves on campus trees, something even more precious emerged this season: renewed hope and optimism.

Our Higher Learning Partners • (HLP) and the Online Consortium of Independent Colleges and Universities (OCICU) created online networks that link member institutions, allowing them to share content. The results are substantial savings to them and a growing revenue stream to the University.

After a year of pandemic and ever-changing guardrails for protection, spring 2021 brought the promise of vaccines to faculty, staff and students, and the prospect of a campus returning to near normal in the fall. On May 1 and 2, hundreds of students participated in-person — masked and socially distanced — in graduation ceremonies. As we anticipate our new normal, we want also to give thanks to the Regis University faculty and staff who have done their utmost to preserve our core business and the health and welfare of our students during this time. Now, Regis needs to join our peers and confront the realities of higher education in the post-COVID-19 world. We know that world will be challenging. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, undergraduate enrollment dropped in fall 2020 in twothirds of colleges, and higher education institutions face, on average, a 14 percent revenue loss due to COVID-19. All that was unexpected and came on top of a declining enrollment driven by shifting demographics. Anticipating that, we have taken numerous steps to tighten our belts. But we know that cuts in spending are not a long-term solution. That is why, long before the pandemic, Regis developed strategies to reduce our dependence on tuition revenue, and we already are seeing benefits of that foresight.

Last year, the Rueckert-Hartman • College for Health Professions (RHCHP) began a partnership with HealthONE, the area’s largest health care system. The partnership, which provides students scholarships and valuable, hands-on experience in HealthONE facilities, elevates the desirability of our already top-ranked health care programs. • Despite a nationwide drop in pharmacy school applications, the School of Pharmacy’s reputation and results have allowed it to maintain robust enrollment, welcoming 71 new students in fall 2020. The creativity and dedication of our faculty and staff, coupled with the continued and much-needed generosity of our alumni and friends, will assure that Regis remains on sound financial footing. And regardless of the difficulties we face, one thing will never change: Our commitment to the Jesuit Catholic mission and the core values that are the hallmark of Regis University. Gratefully,

Rev. John P. Fitzgibbons, S.J. President

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IN BRIEF

Highlights, happenings NURSING SCHOOL GOES TO THE HEAD OF ITS CLASS With a student to faculty ratio of 14:1 and evening classes that make it easy for adult learners to pursue a degree, it’s no surprise that, for 2021, Regis is ranked Colorado’s best college for nursing by Niche.com. Still, it’s nice to get those official bragging rights. To determine rankings, Niche analyzes data including acceptance rates, cost, student to faculty ratio and posted student reviews.

BOWIE STEPS DOWN; BARKER STEPS UP After leading Regis College for seven years, Dean Tom Bowie, Ph.D., is trading his dean’s desk for a classroom. Bowie will step down June 1 and, after a sabbatical, return to teaching in the fall of 2022. Bowie, a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, is a noted authority on the literature of war. He joined Regis in 2004 to lead the University’s honors program. Heidi Bulmahn Barker, Ph.D., associate dean of Academic Programs and of the Division of Education, will serve as interim dean.

A MILITARY SALUTE Regis loves the military, and the military loves us back. MilitaryFriendly.com promoted Regis to number four in its 2021-22 rankings of private institutions offering doctorate degrees. Military Friendly® measures an organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful benefits for the military community.

FROM ZOMBIE DEAN TO FULBRIGHT SPECIALIST Bryan Hall, Ph.D., dean of the School for Professional Advancement, professor of philosophy and Regis’ resident zombie scholar, can add Fulbright recipient to his list of accomplishments. Hall was named to the Fulbright Specialist Roster in Higher Education Administration, joining a program that matches faculty experts with host institutions worldwide. Hall will be eligible to participate in up to two short-term projects during the four-year program.

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IN BRIEF

and noteworthy news FOND FAREWELL TO ONE-OF-A-KIND GUYER There isn’t much the Rev. James B. Guyer, S.J., hasn’t done at or for Regis. He made his mark as a student, then faculty member — 1985 Faculty Member of the Year, in fact — as co-founder of the Center for the Study of War Experience and as alumni chaplain. So, it’s no surprise that students, staff and faculty braved January cold to wave goodbye as he departed for retirement in St. Louis. We wish him well, although we’re not sure how we’ll manage without him.

TEACHING TEACHERS SUSTAINABILITY We know we should incorporate sustainability in our lives, but many of us need someone to teach us how. Joan Armon, professor of education, and colleagues from Villanova and Canterbury Christ Church universities, have compiled a roadmap showing teachers how to instill sustainable goals and behaviors among students across disciplines. Prioritizing Sustainability Education: A Comprehensive Approach provides strategies for engaging students with ecosystems in all aspects of their lives.

LOTS OF SHELTER For six months starting June 1, a parking lot on the Northwest Denver Campus will be transformed into a safe, secured shelter for 60 people temporarily unhoused due to the pandemic. Residents, screened and selected by service agencies, will receive shelter, cots, food, wellness checks and assistance finding permanent housing. The shelter is the combined effort of Regis University, the Colorado Village Collaborative, the St. Francis Center and the city of Denver. Visit regis.edu/safespace

MUSIC DIRECTOR HITS A NEW NOTE Mark Davenport has stepped down from his post as the first director of the Regis Music Program. Davenport, who launched the program in 2002 and has directed it ever since, will continue to teach at Regis, work on a book and orchestrate the growth of the Recorder Music Center, Regis’ repository of recorder music. Associate Prof. Trudi Wright will pick up the director’s baton in August.

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FACULTY FOCUS

Jessica Micono and David Morelos

From serial killers to cults, professor’s podcast delves into psychology’s dark side

LIFE-LONG FAN OF HORROR FILMS AND TRUE CRIME SHOWS, JESSICA MICONO KNEW AT AGE 12 THAT SHE WANTED TO BECOME A FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST. She just never imagined she’d go on to create her own version of the entertainment she grew up on, exploring high-profile crimes, cults, alien abductions and psychological experiments.

Growing up, her passion for the unexplained remained, so she earned a Ph.D. in psychology and pursued a career in corrections. Now a Regis adjunct professor, Micono works as a forensic psychologist for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and her work day is like something out of a movie. Most days, she conducts evaluations to determine a defendant’s competency to stand trial and serves as an expert witness across the United States. It’s safe to say Micono achieved her dream. But Micono and transpersonal psychologist and prison treatment specialist David Morelos, noticed something missing from the podcasts they found themselves bingeing: psychology. And since they were already talking about high-profile crimes and psychological phenomena, why not set up a mic and hit record?

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The result was Psychology After Dark, a podcast that over three seasons, has explored the dark side of the human condition. The couple’s intuition that listeners might want more analysis out of podcasts proved correct. Five-star reviews in podcast streaming apps praise them for adding an academic tone to well-known stories, from the 17thcentury Salem witch trials to the 1978 Jonestown massacre. Since they launched the podcast in 2019, Micono and Morelos have heard from listeners worldwide, from Canada to Australia. At Regis, the platform also has become a way for Micono to stay in touch with previous students, who often share ideas for new topics to cover. For new listeners, Micono recommends starting with any topic that looks interesting. Since the podcast isn’t in chronological order, listeners don’t have to start with the first episode, which covers the true story of an attempted exorcism that ended in death. “Demonic possession is not everyone’s cup of tea,” Micono said. “But maybe you’re into serial killers and you want to listen to Ed Gein or you’re into the supernatural and you want to start with Amityville. I think there’s probably a little something there for everybody.” To listen to the podcast, visit psychologyafterdark.com. — SK

RISING STAR

For this student leader, Regis University offered the right chemistry

F ALL THE THINGS THAT STEPHANIE BOBADILLAREGALADO HAS ACCOMPLISHED – including mastering two languages, getting accepted at several major universities, and being a finalist for the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation’s 2021 Student Leader of the Year award – one of the toughest was deciding on a major. “One day I wanted to be a marine biologist, the next day a firefighter,” she said. It was her grandfather who, inadvertently, steered her toward a major in biochemistry and a minor in criminology. “He started getting me to watch CSI Miami. And I got into it.” So much that the Regis senior’s ambition now is to work as a DNA analyst in a crime lab. Studying biochemistry will give her the science background the field demands; her passion for social justice will give her a perspective the field needs. An internship in Washington, D.C., solidified her ambition. Her work there, behind a desk translating research for non-scientists, “taught me I have to be in a lab. I have to get my hands dirty.” Before deciding on Regis, Bobadilla-Regalado was accepted to colleges including UCLA and the University of California, Irvine. She toured their campuses but didn’t experience that “this is it” feeling. Then she visited Regis. The inviting campus and Regis’ small classes attracted her. “I was in the IB [international baccalaureate] program in

high school, and we had small classes. So, going from 12 students in class to an auditorium – that was not for me.” What ultimately sold her were Regis students. When a student recognized a lost look on her face, the student didn’t merely give Bobadilla-Regalado directions to the admissions office, she took her there. Bobadilla-Regalado has impressed others at Regis with her “tremendous leadership gifts, intellectual talents and passion for helping others in the service of her peers,” Director of Student Life Dave Law wrote in his letter of recommendation for the student leader award. Law works with Bobadilla-Regalado in RegisCorps, a leadership development program for undergraduates. Her family immigrated from Mexico so her father, an engineer, could work here. Bobadilla-Regalado was born in San Diego, but the family frequently returned to Mexico, then re-entered the United States to maintain legal status. Growing up, that process seemed like a pain to Bobadilla-Regalado. It wasn’t until she started applying for jobs that she appreciated the importance of the legal residency her parents, who are now citizens, worked so hard to maintain. “I appreciate the things my parents had to do for me to be able to be at a private institution studying something I’m so passionate about. My success is their success. We build each other up.” — KA

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WHY JESUIT MATTERS

Sowing seeds for the psyche

N HER DAY JOB, AMY BERRYMAN HEALS DAMAGED BODIES WITH PATIENCE, science and therapies honed by painstaking research. In her spare time, she heals psyches. With flowers. In 20 years as an occupational therapist, Berryman has helped people recover life skills — from brushing their teeth to grocery shopping — lost to accident or injury. She said her role as occupational therapy supervisor at Craig Hospital, which is renowned for its work with patients who have suffered spinal cord and brain injury, means using her “logical brain.” It’s her other job, as manager of the Infinite Garden at The Infinite Monkey Theorem Winery, in Denver’s RiNo neighborhood, that gives Berryman a creative outlet. “The garden is a way I can be wildly imaginative, use my hands, and nurture my own mind, body and spirit,” Berryman said. “It makes me think of the Jesuit value of cura personalis.”

Berryman earned her master’s in health services administration from Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions in 2007. Last summer, as the COVID-19 pandemic was hurting so many people in so many ways, Berryman found herself wondering how she could help. She hit on a perfect solution: invite them to drink wine and create bouquets. So, last August and September, Berryman and the winery invited the public — masked and socially distanced — to come, sip wine and choose their own zinnias, cosmos and sunflowers from her Infinite Garden.

Infinite Garden manager Amy Berryman and The Infinite Monkey Theorem hope to repeat their wine-sampling and flower-harvesting events this summer.

“Work is stressful, life is stressful, but we just spent a couple hours cutting and arranging flowers and it felt great. Like we’re ready to tackle life. Nature is healing,” she said. Berryman is working with the winery to reprise the wine-sampling, flower-cutting events this summer. The Infinite Monkey Theorem winery is hugely supportive of the garden, Berryman said. Their support is generous, and also benefits them: an urban oasis of blooms beckons to customers. Berryman discovered her knack for gardening in 2009, when she started a couple of backyard garden beds. From there, things just — ahem — blossomed. Two vegetable garden beds became three, then four. She added flowers,

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and eventually a friend asked her to arrange her wedding flowers. A couple years ago, her hobby had outgrown her yard and Berryman was searching for empty lots to support a burgeoning botanic life when a friend offered her the Infinite Garden space. During her second season managing the garden, in the midst of a shutdown, quarantining world, she got to interact with people, safely. And experience first-hand the universal truth that when you make others feel better, you feel better, too. “It was a healing experience for people in the middle of such a stressful summer. And it was a good boost for me to share something so beautiful.” — KA

LESSONS LEARNED

The Class: PJ 432G - Gender and Homelessness ABOUT THE COURSE: In this course, students learn about the injustices faced by people experiencing poverty and homelessness, and they gain a broader understanding of justice and the common good. Students come away with greater compassion for men, women and children experiencing homelessness and a clearer sense of how to address the inequities that perpetuate this problem. Students examine poverty and homelessness through the lens of gender and explore how understandings of masculinity, femininity, sexuality, race, ability and other social identities impact inequality. They understand the root causes of homelessness. Integrating knowledge and experiences from multiple perspectives, we identify strategies to alleviate these problems. When safe and appropriate given COVID-19, we engage with members of Denver’s homeless community and the organizations that serve them to see more vividly the root causes of these issues and to support efforts to respond to homelessness. We explore these questions: • What is homelessness? What’s unjust about it? • How do gender and other intersecting issues impact poverty and homelessness? • How are children or those living with mental illness impacted by homelessness? • What can you do to create a more just and equitable world for people living in poverty or who are homeless? INSTRUCTOR: Geoffrey Bateman, Ph.D., associate professor, Peace and Justice Studies, and associate dean for Student Support and Experiential Learning, Regis College. STUDENTS ARE: Undergraduates fulfilling their Justice and the Common Good requirement and students majoring or minoring in Peace and Justice studies and/or Women’s and Gender Studies.

TEXTS & MATERIALS: • Two or Three Things I Know for Sure, by Dorothy Allison Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, • by Matthew Desmond • Hard Lives, Mean Streets: Violence in the Lives of Homeless Women, by Jana L. Jasinski No House to Call My Home: Love, Family, • and Other Transgressions, by Ryan Berg One Day, One Night at a Time: Women Write • of Poverty, Homelessness, and Hope, by Members of The Gathering Place • Documentaries: On the Edge: Family Homelessness in America; The Homestretch; When I Came Home. CLASSWORK: In non-COVID years, this course integrates service learning and students volunteer at a local overnight shelter, helping check clients in, cooking and serving dinner and assisting children and parents. They complete an interview-based research project with The Gathering Place, Denver’s daytime refuge for women and transgender individuals and their children who are experiencing homelessness. Students research how we might respond in ways that foster a more just and humane world. MAJOR LESSON LEARNED: I’ve taught a version of this course for 15 years, and it remains one of my favorites. For many students, it provides new understanding about justice and the common good, helping us see what we need as humans to flourish and lead lives grounded in our intrinsic dignity. Students rethink the stereotypes that plague this issue and confront the humanity of people marginalized by housing instability. For students who faced these issues in their own lives, there is validation in understanding their own experience from an academic perspective.

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Photo: Brett Stakelin

RESEARCH

A Regis researcher and a tiny particle upend the laws of physics

HEN SCIENTISTS CREATED INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES AND EARNED A NOBEL PRIZE after discovering the Higgs boson, or “God” particle, in 2013, they completed a piece of a puzzle that physicists had been putting together since the 1970s. Their transformative work was confirmed by what’s known as the Standard Model, a theory that explains physics well. Almost too well. That’s why, as Regis associate professor and Physics and Astronomy Department Chairman Frederick Gray puts it, “everyone is trying to break it. Everyone would love to discover the thing that goes beyond the Standard Model." Now, Gray and colleagues at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, or Fermilab, have, if not broken the Standard Model, certainly bent it. At Fermilab, a physics and accelerator lab operated through the U.S. Department of Energy outside Chicago, Gray and more than 200 collaborators from seven countries have closed in on the results of an experiment that mark a transformative scientific accomplishment. How close does it come to breaking the Standard Model? “Our little experiment, let’s say, it almost does it,” Gray said. The first results of the experiment, known as Muon g-2 (pronounced G minus 2), show strong evidence that the Standard Model is incomplete — and new, undiscovered forms of matter or forces might exist outside it. As they started the experiment, the scientists had a good reason to believe this matter could exist. In an earlier experiment at Brookhaven National Laboratory, the subject of Gray’s 1998 dissertation, “we measured a value that was just a little different than what the Standard Model would predict,” he said.

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The experiment works like this: Focusing magnets help transport a beam of particles called muons into a large ring. Once the particles are there, they travel inside a vacuum chamber via a magnetic field that causes the particles to wobble on their axes, like spinning tops. Because they’re moving so quickly, time slows down for the muons, making the short-lived particles exist long enough for scientists to measure how fast they’re spinning. If a new, undiscovered particle is present, the muons will behave differently than what the Standard Model would predict. That’s exactly what happened at Fermilab — but scientists don’t yet know what types of matter or forces are causing the discrepancy. As Fermilab scientists continue to release and analyze data, their research could begin to transform our understanding of physics, from the tiny particles scientists are researching at Fermilab to unexplained dark matter in the expanses of the universe. “It’s unlikely that we would have to throw out the book on particle physics,” Gray said. “But it’s more like we would have to add another chapter, or maybe even another whole volume of the book.” During the experiment, which started in 2013, Gray has dedicated weekends and school breaks to working at Fermilab. Regis students began to make an impact on the experiment after Gray secured funding from the National Science Foundation to bring students to Chicago. Next year, he plans to take a sabbatical to work on the experiment full-time. “Over the years, it became clear that this is one of those pieces of science in our field that held the potential to be transformative,” Gray said. “If it’s really right, this may be the key to knowing what physics is out there.” — SK

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RANGERS IN THE WORLD

Courtesy: David Dye

Changing course to capture history incapacitated him, he’d already captured unforgettable images, including the faces and actions of those who carried out the attack.

INCE GRADUATING FROM REGIS IN 2009, Dan Steinle has been a high school English teacher, a butcher, and a customer service rep. But throughout those career changes — and in high school and college — he nurtured one consistent passion: photography. Then, in 2020, “everything everybody was going through” — the pandemic, the election, the protests for racial justice — hit him. The turmoil prompted him to think about what he wanted to contribute to the world. So, he quit a “soul-sucking” job and made his passion his profession: He became a full-time photojournalist, which is how he ended up getting pepper sprayed on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, as a violent mob launched a failed insurrection. But by the time chemicals in his eyes

Eight years ago, his winding career path led Steinle to Portland, and last summer that city became an epicenter for Black Lives Matter protests and sometimes violent clashes between police, protestors and federal officers. As he embarked on his new career chronicling the events, that front-row seat to history could have been a ticket to riches, or at least a burgeoning reputation. Steinle, though, didn’t see it that way. “I purposely didn’t try to sell those photos because I had issues with being a white male profiting off that.” The experience did, however, teach him to prepare physically for the events at the Capitol. Steinle arrived at the scene wearing a helmet and bullet-proof vest and carrying a walkie-talkie and firstaid kit. What he wasn’t prepared for was how easily the mob got inside the halls of government. “I’ve seen better security at concerts,” Steinle said. Steinle came to Regis by way of Marquette University High School in Milwaukee, Wisc. He was drawn by the chance to build on the Jesuit foundation Marquette provided and

Courtesy: Dan Steinle

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to play in the great Colorado outdoors. He double-majored in visual arts and English literature (as a student his “Hemingway obsession” took him to Spain where he ran with the bulls in honor of the late author). In February, he returned to Regis, briefly and virtually, to share his experiences — and his philosophy on careers and difference-making — with Student Life Director Dave Law’s Heroic Leadership course, offered through the RegisCorps Leadership development certificate program. When a student asked why Steinle traveled all the way to Washington, D.C., that day, Steinle had an answer any veteran photojournalist would appreciate: “I had to be there. There wasn’t any question.” He hopes that soon he’ll no longer need to live off money saved during previous careers. (He encourages fans to support his work with a donation.) In the meantime, he’s proud that he’s turning a lens toward what’s happening in the world we all share. “I’m documenting things as a service. I show [people] pictures so they can think,” he said. “So people can decide for themselves what to think about what’s happening.” — KA

Photo: Rachel Schmanke

SCHOLARSHIP STORIES

McCormick Scholarship attracts and aids high-achieving students

OLLY SCHMANKE CAN PINPOINT EXACTLY WHEN HER PASSION FOR SCIENCE BEGAN. When she took a biology class in middle school, she became fascinated with how organs worked. By the time she was in high school, she looked forward to chemistry every day. “I don't know what it was about it, but I just understood it really well,” she said. “I liked learning about stuff that I honestly didn't know anything about before.” Schmanke, who just completed her sophomore year at Regis studying biochemistry, said she feels the same about her courses today. “It’s kind of nerdy, but I actually really like being busy with homework,” she said. “I’m really excited about it.” She’s exactly the type of student who exemplifies the criteria for the McCormick Scholarship. Named for Richard and Mary Pat McCormick, the endowed scholarship is awarded to high-performing students who demonstrate strong character and academic credentials. The first scholarship was awarded in 2014 after the McCormicks provided $1.25 million, allowing the four-year scholarship to be awarded to as many as four students at a time. Mary Pat McCormick is a lifetime trustee of the university.

As the endowment grows, additional students will be awarded the scholarship, creating a pipeline of high-achieving students to Regis. For Schmanke, who received the scholarship as a freshman, the award means she can study pre-dentistry, working toward a long-term goal that she said combines her passion for science and art. “I always knew I wanted to do something in the sciences because I find it really interesting and I also like working with my hands,” she said. “I like how dentistry combines science and art, in a way. You can create new teeth, you can create dentures and all this stuff with your hands, and it's almost like artwork.” Schmanke, who is from Conway Springs, Kan., remembers exactly where she was when she learned she had won the McCormick Scholarship, too. “I actually got the email on my senior spring break,” she said. “All my friends and I were in Colorado skiing and I ran into the room yelling that I got the scholarship to all my friends.” Two years later, Schmanke said she’s still grateful. “I’m just appreciative of the scholarship because without it, I wouldn't be able to be here at Regis,” Schmanke said. “I wouldn't have been able to afford it so I'm just very thankful for the scholarship.” — SK

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MEET OUR NEW PROVOST

Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez

Regis welcomes new chief academic officer New Provost Karen Riley shares her goals, plans and perspectives.

You have a long history with the University of Denver, as a graduate student and dean of the college of education. What made you want to come to Regis?

The University of Denver will always hold a special place in my heart as it provided me with so many experiences. The simple answer is that I was drawn to Regis because of the mission. I believe in the Jesuit mission and want to work in an organization that allows me to marry my commitment to education and my faith.

What kinds of steps can you, and Regis, take to assure that the University reflects values of inclusivity and diversity, and the Jesuit mission?

We all have the opportunity within our individual spheres of influence to affect change. It will be my responsibility to engage with faculty and staff to ensure that our curricula and policies reflect the Jesuit mission. I envision taking a three-step approach. First, we must name our commitment to living our values. Second, provide training and support to ensure individuals have the opportunity to not only understand our values but to apply them. Finally,

Thank Yo u ! With your generous support, we raised $117,000 to benefit our students this year. We are forever grateful!

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we need to examine our policies and determine if they really move us toward the goal of living our values or if they perpetuate the status quo.

You are becoming Provost as both the campus and the country emerge from an extremely difficult period. What challenges do recent events add to your role? How will you meet those challenges?

This will be an unprecedented year, filled with challenge and opportunity. We will be charged with addressing the pain and consequences of the past year. There will be challenges helping individuals heal and opportunities to embrace the call

to action regarding social and racial justice. We will also have the privilege of helping to define the future of higher education. Our students’ academic and social experiences over the past 18 months have been extraordinary and we will need to be intentional in meeting their academic needs while promoting wellness. There may not have been a time in our recent history in which the Jesuit principle of cura personalis has been more important in higher education. Finally, we as a community also have an opportunity to intentionally evaluate our culture. It will be important to listen and evaluate what we have learned over the past

few months and determine what we want to maintain and what we want to change.

What do you think you'll look forward to the most at Regis University?

That is a challenging question because there are so many things. I am excited to learn more about the faculty’s academic programs and research agendas. I am looking forward to exploring opportunities for growth and development. And last, but certainly not least, I am excited to work with others across the campus to support students and engage with the community.

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Sept. 16 - 20, 2021 Celebrate and connect with alumni, students and families of Regis University

IN PERSON, VIRTUAL AND HYBRID EVENTS regis.edu/blueandgold | Health and Safety Protocols Observed

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COVID-19

RANGERS DELIVER HELP AND HOPE IN THE MIDST OF A TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD YEAR, RANGERS PITCHED IN TO DO THE HARD, SOMETIMES RISKY, WORK OF EASING PANDEMIC-CAUSED SUFFERING.

hroughout 2020, students and alumni helped with testing, made masks and served in myriad ways. In December, when vaccines to prevent COVID-19 were approved for widespread use and brought us all a glimmer of hope, Regis students, professors and alumni raised their hands, rolled up their sleeves and got busy. They answered the call to serve and made us proud. Here are just a few of their stories: Eustacia Bean To some, Eustacia Bean may be a second-year pharmacy student. But to dozens of seniors in northern Colorado, she’s a hero. When the first COVID-19 vaccines won emergency approval last winter, Bean had no intention of sitting by while watching others deliver the hope, relief and return to normal life the vaccines promised. “I really wanted to help. There’s 330 million people who need a vaccine and then they need a booster. I just have a general opinion that those of us who can help really should,” Bean said. She contacted everyone she could think of — local pharmacies, faculty in the Regis School of Pharmacy — seeking a way to connect syringes to people. As she waited to be dispatched to vaccinate the first eligible group — those 70 and older — she studied videos on how to administer the vaccines.

Pharmacy student Eustacia Bean volunteered at vaccine clinics around the state.

I GAVE SHOTS TO MORE THAN ONE PERSON WHO SAT DOWN AND STARTED CRYING, AND SAID, ‘I’M SO HAPPY, SO OVERWHELMED TO GET THIS VACCINE.’ ~ EUSTACIA BEAN ~

Eventually, Walgreen’s sent her to a care facility in Fort Collins. Bean, who lives in Erie, Colo., returned to Larimer County often to vaccinate elderly residents. And each time, she found seniors who were apprehensive, and very grateful. “The elderly have seen more friends and family die than we have,” Bean said. “So, I gave shots to more than one person who sat down and started crying, and said, ‘I’m so happy, so overwhelmed to get this vaccine.’” Once winter break ended, classes took up much of her time. But Bean is still squeezing in weekend clinics whenever possible. She was notably present delivering vaccines into the arms of Regis community members at a March 22 pop-up clinic. “As long as I’m not failing any classes, I’ll keep doing it,” she said. Bean, a Marine Corps veteran who grew up in a small, upstate New York town where her family were volunteer firefighters, can’t imagine not pitching in. “I was raised to help.” — KA

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Courtesy: Erin Winterrowd

Courtesy: Josh Gallegos

THE THING THAT MAKES ME THE PROUDEST IS THAT I’M MAKING A DIRECT IMPACT WITH THE COMMUNITY. ~ JOSH GALLEGOS ~

Erin Winterrowd

Josh Gallegos

Long days inside the Denver Coliseum helping women experiencing homelessness find housing, get mental health treatment or remember to take their insulin isn’t exactly the way Erin Winterrowd expected to spend her summer vacation.

When Pueblo residents drove up to Josh Gallegos to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, their joy was palpable.

But then, hardly anyone spent the summer of 2020 the way they’d expected. Among the pandemic-created upheaval was the closure of Denver shelters and services for those experiencing homelessness. So, the city provided a 24-hour home, with showers and daily meals, to 300 women and transgender people at the coliseum, which otherwise would have stood empty. The National Western Complex sheltered 600 men. Most of the women needed more than food and a bed, and that’s where Winterrowd came in. Besides directing Regis’ Women’s and Gender Studies program and serving as associate professor in the psychology and neuroscience department, she’s a volunteer with Spark the Change Colorado, which connects mental health professionals with people in need. Last summer, they put out a call for help meeting the varied and complex needs of women housed in the coliseum, and Winterrowd answered. Over the summer, she met women who had never been homeless before, and some who had lived on the streets for years. Some had jobs. Others had debilitating mental illness. And many were somewhere in between. “We had one woman who worked in an Amazon warehouse. She worked nights and got off at 3 a.m.” For safety reasons, residents weren’t allowed to come and go late at night. So, the woman “slept in her car and came inside during the day for meals,” Winterrowd said. The work required social-work skills as well as clinical skills. And it was exhausting. But, Winterrowd said, at a time when so many felt helpless, “I felt like I was doing something. Like I was helping society.” — KA

“It’s amazing you can make a direct impact and see people so happy and joyous that they’re getting the vaccine,” he said. A 2013 Regis biochemistry and molecular biology alumnus, Gallegos worked as an environmental health specialist and public information officer at the Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment, which serves the City and County of Pueblo. Gallegos recently started a new job at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. At the start of the pandemic, Gallegos helped manage the city’s COVID-19 information center. Now, the health department is distributing hundreds of vaccines per day. When the vaccine rollout began, he put in 10- to 12hour days. But the long hours were worth it. “The thing that makes me the proudest is that I’m making a direct impact with the community.” Gallegos said Regis prepared him for pandemic’s challenges. “I’m thankful for my time at Regis and the lessons I’ve learned, just understanding that it’s greater than yourself and what you do can make a direct impact,” he said. Gallegos said he thinks often of all of his classmates who are making an impact during the pandemic. “All my friends at Regis – we went to school together and were taking biochemistry and biology classes,” Gallegos said. “Little did we know that we were going to be in the history books.” Gallegos knows better days are ahead. “There’s going to come a day we can take that mask off and be able to hug someone again,” Gallegos said. “Every single day that I work out there is another day closer. That’s what keeps me going.” — SK

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Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez

COVID-19

VACCINE BOOSTER FIGHTING FEAR, AND DISEASE , WITH FACTS AND SCIENCE BY Karen Augé

round Regis, Stephanie James, Ph.D., MBA, is known as a vaccine warrior.

She has other titles, too. Associate professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the School of Pharmacy. COVID-19 testing site organizer. COVID-19 vaccine clinic organizer. Contributing writer for The Denver Post’s YourHub section. Go-to witness when Colorado lawmakers need an expert to weigh in on the science of vaccines. And one more: “Absolute rock star,” offered by Samit Shah, Ph.D., pharmacy school dean. When the pan-

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demic emerged in Colorado, James spearheaded the effort to set up testing on campus, Shah said. “She had to coordinate insurance billing and a lot of things outside her comfort zone. Many of us said, ‘we’ll support you, but I don’t know how you’ll pull this off.’ But she did.” James is tireless in her efforts, through articles she writes and direct advocacy, to educate the public that vaccines are safe, and that they work. That’s earned her the admiration of colleagues and the science community. It’s also earned her the enmity of those who disagree with her.

MANY OF US SAID, ‘WE’LL SUPPORT YOU, BUT I DON’T KNOW HOW YOU’LL PULL THIS OFF.’ BUT SHE DID. ~ SAMIT SHAH, PHARMACY SCHOOL DEAN ~

James harbors no illusions that a few words from her, even backed by science, will erase years of conspiracy theories and misinformation. “You can tell [vaccine opponents] the sky is blue, but if they believe it’s red, I don’t know how to change that.” But for vaccine vacillators, James hopes she, and facts, will prove persuasive. “All I can do is put out appropriate messaging and provide relevant, interesting and scientifically accurate information to individuals who have concerns,” she said. She has her work cut out for her: Colorado often ranks last in the nation in the percentage of children who are fully vaccinated against diseases like measles, mumps and rubella when they enter kindergarten. That she’s made a name for herself on campus and beyond as a vaccine advocate is a little ironic, since her background is not in pharmacy, but viruses and infectious disease. Her research focuses on the impact of infectious diseases on people with Down Syndrome. Interacting with parents of children with disabilities has given her a measure of empathy for those who fear vaccines, or who believe — despite reams of scientific evidence to the contrary — one of the most common misperceptions about vaccines: that they cause autism. “With autism, you want so badly to know why it happens. And if you don’t get the ‘why,’ it’s easy to latch onto something, anything,” that offers an explanation, she said. James suspects another contributor to vaccine skepticism might be that, until last year, few Americans had experienced the devastation diseases like smallpox or polio wreaked in the

past. In that way, vaccines may have been a victim of their own success. Smallpox, which killed an estimated 300 million people in the 20th century alone, was eradicated in 1980. And, as of 2020, the potentially crippling and deadly polio virus circulated only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. If there is any silver lining in COVD19, it might be that seeing firsthand how a virus can ravage populations and decimate the economy may help some people become more receptive to vaccines. Regardless, the pandemic has added urgency to James’ efforts. As of February, 22 percent of the public say they won’t get a vaccine unless forced by an employer or school, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) study. The good news is that the numbers of people who do trust the vaccines and want to be inoculated against COVID-19 have been steadily rising since December 2020, according to KFF. James can take a bit of credit for that. James and fellow researcher Amy Bernard have spoken to numerous civic groups about COVID-19 vaccines, and each speaking gig seems to create another one. A presentation to Colorado Parents for Vaccinated Communities led to a request to speak to a Rotary group. Then a Rotarian wanted them to speak to employees of the City of Westminster. “We laughed that we should get an RV and take our show on the road,” James said. The advantage of speaking to smaller groups is that they can ask questions. One common theme

among those questions is whether the vaccines were created and approved too quickly, and James does her best to allay that fear. “This is a form of a virus that’s been around for years,” so scientists have experience working on preventing disease in the coronavirus family, she reminds people. In addition, the urgency of stopping a deadly virus eliminated some time-consuming hurdles, she said. “Right away the government made money available, so [drug companies] didn’t have to worry about raising funds.” And public fear of the virus made it much easier than normal to recruit volunteers for the clinical trials that evaluated the vaccines’ effectiveness. In fact, James was one of those study participants. The trials were “blind,” meaning that James, like everyone else who volunteered, didn’t know if she’d gotten a real vaccine, or a placebo. When she didn’t experience any side effects, she figured it was the latter. “When I found out I’d gotten the real thing, I was so excited!” It's been a rough year, and an especially busy one for James. But she’s optimistic. People in Colorado are lining up for COVID-19 vaccines. And, she pointed out, “We pay so much attention to the vaccine-hesitant that we forget we are the majority. Most people believe in science.”

WE PAY SO MUCH ATTENTION TO THE VACCINE-HESITANT THAT WE FORGET WE ARE THE MAJORITY. MOST PEOPLE BELIEVE IN SCIENCE. ~ STEPHANIE JAMES ~

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REGIS’ TREE WHISPERER HELPS DIVERSE SPECIES TAKE ROOT

Tucked away on the eastern side of the Northwest Denver Campus and fenced off from the rest of the world, more than 100 young trees are protected and cared for in a nursery until they are big and strong enough to become part of Regis’ celebrated arboretum. Much of that care is provided by the woman who paid for many of them out of her own pocket, who has given countless hours to planting, growing and tending Regis trees, and for whom that secluded nursery is now named: Sonia John. Since 2015, John, a retired artist and local tree lover, has lent her self-described “tree energies” to the Regis University arboretum. But her interest in trees took root long before she set foot on campus and saw hundreds of species thriving despite Denver’s dry, tree-hostile climate.

BY Meredith Sell

“When I was a kid, I’d climb trees, but doesn’t everybody climb trees?” John said. She remembers growing up around maple trees and their winged seeds, which spun like helicopter blades on their way to the ground. And she remembers collecting foliage in high school for a biology class assignment. Using a key that asked about distinguishing features — Was the leaf veined? Symmetrical? Were its edges smooth or jagged? — she learned to identify a tree based on its leaves.

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John plants a baby Plateau Live Oak Tree.

of tree lovers and enthusiasts. And for more than five years, she has supported the Regis University Arboretum as its volunteer curator. Officially designated since 2000, the Regis University Arboretum encompasses the entire Denver campus tree collection, from the state champion Weeping American Elm near O’Connell Hall that turns a stunning yellow in the fall to the Sawtooth Oak that is one of a handful of trees lining Boettcher Commons. The Arboretum started informally in the mid-80s with the efforts of Jack Callahan, a Jesuit priest who took it upon himself to start planting trees on campus.

That skill stuck with her. Decades later, on a walk in Denver, a friend pointed out a tree. John could tell it was an oak, but her friend wanted to know what kind of oak. John didn’t know.

That was in 2004. Since then, John has become both tree expert and tree nurturer. She turned her patio and backyard into her own mini greenhouse and nursery. She volunteered with the University of Denver’s campus arboretum. She started an annual Tree Diversity Conference in partnership with Denver Botanic Gardens. She’s traveled the globe to visit arboretums in New Zealand, France, Spain and England. She’s developed relationships in the world

In the nursery, where John keeps an eye on the irrigation system and clears out weeds and bug infestations, more trees wait to join the arboretum. When a tree is ready for its permanent home, John and Schlanger drive a cart around campus and size up potential planting spots. Is there too much sun? Not enough? Too much wind for this type of tree? “It’s so hard to grow trees here,” John said on a Wednesday in early March, when the high temperature was 61 degrees — a week and a half before a winter storm and three feet of snow effectively shut down northeastern Colorado. “For years, it was kind of the received wisdom ... that you can only grow this very restricted list of trees here because of lack of water, the intense sunshine, the very low temperatures and the drastic swings in temperature in the fall and spring. It’s just really hard on trees. And that is true, but they underestimated what could be grown here.” With John’s help, the Regis University Arboretum is resetting expectations. Regis' hundreds of tree species thrive thanks to volunteers like John. Brett Stakelin.

At home, she flipped through a book about North American trees, skimming its pages of oak listings to identify the mystery oak. To no avail. Not until John took to the internet could she identify the tree: It was an English Oak. Not a species native to North America. “Oh, so oaks from other parts of the world are grown here,” she remembers thinking. It seems silly to her now, but in the moment, the realization was like a match taking light. And it lit her curiosity like dry tinder. I’ve got to find out more.

When Patrick Schlanger, director of physical plant operations, started as a landscaper at Regis in 1991, the Arboretum was talked about a lot, but there wasn’t any real energy behind making it official—not until nine years later, when a donation from alumnus Martin Hart provided resources to identify and label the trees, create maps of their locations, and build a kiosk for the maps. (The kiosk is located near the sidewalk directly across from Parking Lot 4.) Currently, a small endowment provides enough funding to purchase a few trees each year, keep them labeled, and update the arboretum maps.

Grotto and a canopy over benches and boulders across campus.

Before John started volunteering at Regis, Schlanger’s team added five to 10 new species of trees to the Arboretum each year. They set up a small nursery so trees could build some girth before being exposed to errant frisbees and other hazards on the broader campus. “When Sonia became the curator, [the planting] accelerated,” Schlanger said. Now, they add 15 to 25 species annually, some purchased by John and replanted from her backyard nursery. “Given her knowledge and her networking through the tree world, we are more easily able to get new varieties.” According to John, the Regis University Arboretum currently contains 328 different species. They line the outer edge of campus. They stand along the outfield of the baseball field. They provide depth to Our Lady of Loretto REGIS.EDU

Jim Garcia is Tepeyac Community Health Center's first chief executive.

“Initially, I heard a lot of, ‘That’s a nice idea, Jim, but it ain’t gonna happen.’” ~ Jim Garcia, Tepeyac Community Health Center chief executive

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A VISION OF HEALTH Faith, hard work and Regis support bring caring and wellness to a Denver community.

BY Karen Augé

few years after graduating from Regis University, as he was settling into a career, Tepeyac Community Health Center Chief Executive Jim Garcia went searching for a church that would put him to work serving the community. He found that within the tan brick walls of Our Lady of Guadalupe church in northwest Denver. He also found something he hadn’t realized he was looking for: a calling. That discovery is the reason that, for more than two decades, low income, uninsured Denver residents have had a clinic they can count on for dependable, accessible, affordable and culturally sensitive health care. Clinica Tepeyac — now called Tepeyac Community Health Center — is an idea conceived by a concerned Catholic congregation, brought to life by Jim Garcia’s caring, smarts and tenacity and nurtured by a long and productive partnership with Regis University. That partnership has shepherded the clinic from its beginning as an idea discussed in a parish council meeting, to the first patient seen in a converted 800-square-foot house in 1995, and then to its current location in a struggling neighborhood a few blocks north of where Interstates 70 and 25 converge. Now, Tepeyac is planning an ambitious expansion in services and square feet, and in mission. In addition to treating and preventing illness, clinic leaders now envision a holistic approach that fosters wellness through secure housing and fresh food. And the clinic’s Regis connection is once again playing a role in making that happen.   

Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez

When 17-year-old Jim Garcia won a basketball scholarship to Regis, he became the first of the 11 kids in his family to leave his home state of New Mexico to attend college. Off the court, he was an English major who hadn’t settled on a career direction. But his time at Regis helped make it clear what he didn’t want to do. Through his involvement in campus ministry, Garcia spent weekends volunteering at St. Anthony Hospital, a trauma center then just north of Colfax Avenue in west Denver. It was, Garcia recalled, an eye-opening experience. “I realized I was not suited for the medical profession. But it did give me an orientation toward health care.” REGIS.EDU

TEPEYAC BY THE NUMBERS

91.5

PERCENTAGE OF PATIENTS WHO ARE LOW INCOME

18K PATIENT VISITS EACH YEAR

PERCENTAGE OF PATIENTS LIVING BELOW POVERTY LINE

After graduation, Garcia taught English in an underserved middle school, then counseled troubled youth before going to work for former Colorado Democratic Sen. Tim Wirth. When he found his way to Denver’s Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, its location at 36th Avenue and Kalamath Street was then a neighborhood of immigrants and working class, mostly Latinx, residents living in small, aging homes. When Garcia joined the historic congregation, he planned to participate in community service, but a persistent nun had other ideas. She pestered Garcia to run for parish council and kept after him until he agreed. He eventually ran, and, to his surprise, he won a council seat. At Garcia’s first council meeting, the parish priest laid out the congregation’s priorities for serving the community, and there was no question about what would top the list: improving access to health care. “He said, ‘we have people coming by asking for help with that almost every day.’” As the discussion turned to ways to improve community health, the priest mentioned that the congregation owned a tiny, rundown house across the street. Turning that little house into a clinic was an improbable, an almost impossible notion for a small congregation with few resources. But Garcia took on the project. First, the congregation had to prove on paper what everyone in the neighborhood knew: that a clinic was needed. That’s when Garcia’s Regis connection started paying off. As a student, Garcia had known the Rev. Vincent O’Flaherty, S.J., who was the Regis rector. But O’Flaherty had recently added another entry to his long resume: First director of Romero House, the University’s community of undergraduate students who dedicate an academic year to a simple, spiritual life of service. Documenting the neighborhood’s need for health care became one of Romero House’s first projects. At the time, Lauri Pramuk was a Regis senior and a member of the first class of Romero House students. That inaugural class’s assignment was to survey the residents around Our Lady of Guadalupe, Pramuk said. “We had a list of questions, and we went door to door asking what people’s health care needs were. We met so many people and learned about their lives.” The surveys uncovered societal differences as well as medical needs. Many of the residents had heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes, Pramuk recalled. And most 24

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could not get treatment for those conditions. Nor did they have any place to turn for help with domestic abuse, substance abuse or mental health issues. The experience was about serving others, but Pramuk benefited, too. Throughout her studies at Regis, she struggled to reconcile her science-loving side, which had guided her toward a biology major, with the part of her that loved the humanities and had led her to a second major, English, with an eye toward becoming an English professor. Over those weeks talking with residents of northwest Denver, Pramuk discovered that it was possible to marry her two interests. “I thought, ‘Wow, there’s a whole different side of medicine that brings in the humanities-degree side,’” she said. “That whole experience changed my life,” and set her on a course to become a pediatrician and to address the social and cultural needs of her patients. For Garcia, the data compiled from those surveys “confirmed what we already knew: The need for health care among the community was great.” Getting the means to meet that need — proved difficult. “Initially, I heard a lot of, ‘That’s a nice idea, Jim, but it ain’t gonna happen.’” Garcia’s search for a hospital partner that would work with clinic doctors and, when necessary, treat its sickest patients, initially turned up a lot of good wishes, but little else. “I got a lot of pats on the back, and ‘good luck.’” By the time he explained the clinic concept to Sister Mariana Bauder, chief executive of Denver’s St. Joseph Hospital, Garcia was fairly discouraged. But, Garcia recalled, “She looked at me and said, ‘whatever you need, we’ll help you with,’” and began a partnership that continues today. Then, another Regis alumnus stepped in to help. Don Gallegos, longtime King Soopers chief executive, provided $10,000 to refurbish the parish’s house on Kalamath. With that financial head start, members of the Our Lady of Guadalupe congregation provided much of the manual labor, swinging hammers and running saws on weekends. It took a year, but they transformed the house into a tworoom clinic. After all that, choosing a name for the clinic name was easy. According to Catholic tradition, in December 1531, the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant named Juan Diego on a hill outside Mexico City, instructing him to build a church there. Now, Mexico City’s Basilica de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe) is the most frequently visited Catholic shrine in the world. And Our Lady of Guadalupe is a beloved figure, particularly among Latinx Catholics and culture. The name of that hill: Tepeyac. By April 1995, the dilapidated old house had been transformed into a clinic, and opened its doors, with Garcia at the helm, to uninsured and medically underserved patients. That year, some 14 percent of Colorado’s residents under age 65 lacked health insurance, according to an Urban Institute study. It’s no surprise that within five years, the clinic had outgrown its renovated bungalow.

  

Today, the clinic, which is no longer connected to the Our Lady of Guadalupe congregation, sits within Globeville and Elyria-Swansea, neighborhoods that gentrification forgot. Once home to immigrants from Eastern Europe who worked in nearby mining and smelting companies, the neighborhoods make up the nation’s most polluted zip code.

to offer a full spectrum of services including, medical, dental, behavioral health and pharmacy, Garcia said. Altogether, it’s far more than Jim Garcia could have imagined when that nun goaded him into taking a spot on a parish council. “It’s been a humbling experience,” he said. “In the beginning, I never had any idea we would even get the project off the ground.”

While the 2009 Affordable Care Act has expanded access to health care for many who lacked insurance, Denver is still home to an estimated 90,000 low-income people who aren’t consistently seen by a health-care provider. By the clinic’s own estimates, nearly 80 percent of its patients lack insurance of any type, and more than 90 percent are classified as low income. For Gina Millan, the trouble getting health care started after she left her job in 2011. But her connections and work as an activist meant she knew where to go. “I knew about Clinica from my work sharing resources with the community,” she said, through an interpreter. She’s been a patient ever since. And with her history of activism — she once worked for the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition and now hosts a radio show, Mujeres de Color — Millan wasn’t shy about pointing out ways for improvement. In February, Millan landed a spot on the Tepeyac board with the goal of helping the clinic retain medical staff, most of whom could earn higher salaries elsewhere, and to improve services for the LGBTQ community. Millan is deeply proud to be on the board. If Tepeyac didn’t exist to care for people who lack insurance or money “more people would die,” she said. Millan’s fellow board members include Regis faculty: Samit Shah, Ph. D., dean of Regis’ School of Pharmacy, and Linda Osterlund, Ph.D., dean of Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions. When Shah learned about Tepeyac, shortly after coming to Regis, “I was awestruck by the incredible work they are doing,” he said. “It aligns perfectly with our mission at Regis.” Part of that mission now is to expand Tepeyac’s work beyond treating and preventing illness to provide important components of good health — like stable, affordable housing and fresh food in the Globeville and Elyrea-Swansea neighborhoods, which are food deserts. The expansion plans include adding a pharmacy to Tepeyac’s services. Shah is collaborating with clinic leaders so that when that pharmacy opens, Regis faculty members will take their turns behind the counter. The clinic is on its way to raising the $13 million needed to open new services in a new location. With a pharmacy, housing, a grocery store, imaging, more patient examination rooms and dental suites, the new clinic would be a major step up from a tiny house converted into an 800-square-foot clinic. The clinic also has a new name: Tepeyac Community Health Center. The change reflects how Tepeyac isn’t just a place that treats illness but has grown

A VISION FOR MORE COMPREHENSIVE CARE, AND MORE OF IT Tepeyac Community Health Center leaders hope to raise half the $13 million needed for a new facility at 48th Avenue and Race Street. The new site, which Tepeyac plans to open in early 2023, would almost quadruple the facility’s size to 24,500 square feet, and increase the annual patient visit capacity to 37,000. The new facility would include, under one roof: 

Retail space offering groceries and fresh food;

 Comprehensive imaging services; 

Pharmacy services;

 Comprehensive dental care;  Behavioral health care, including treatment

for children;



150 units of affordable housing;



Play areas in a neighborhood that lacks them.

To contribute to the Tepeyac Community Health Center fund, visit www.tepeyachealth.org/ our-future-location.

REGIS.EDU

PBLA founder Lonnie Porter surprised Monique Gonzales at her graduation from Regis School of Pharmacy in 2019. Photo: Brett Stakelin.

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AHEAD OF THE GAME BY Sara Knuth

AT AN NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL RULES -MAKING MEETING IN HIS HOMETOWN OF INDIANAPOLIS SEVERAL YEARS AGO, LONNIE PORTER WAS LOST IN THOUGHT. Looking out the window, he could almost see it: A boy in an alley shooting a basketball through a makeshift hoop cobbled together with an old fruit crate attached to a shed. Porter grew up poor. But he had a support system of teachers who believed in him. In seventh grade, they even encouraged him to run for student body president. As often as he could, he’d head over to the alley to set up his hoop. He didn’t know that he’d grow up to not only coach university-level basketball but also to mentor kids growing up in circumstances like his. But here he was, years later, representing Regis alongside some of the biggest basketball universities in the nation, making rules for the game just blocks from where he’d played crate basketball. As he looked toward the alley, picturing that boy, the rules discussion went on around him. “Lonnie, what do you think about that?”

LEADERSHIP IS STANDING UP WHEN YOU FEEL AT ODDS, OR MAYBE YOU’RE SCARED, OR MAYBE YOU’RE NOT SURE THIS IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO… THAT IS A SKILL I DEVELOPED WHEN I WAS REALLY SMALL.” – MONIQUE GONZALES, PBLA GRADUATE

The question snapped Porter back to the moment, on the verge of tears. Porter’s legendary career as Regis University’s head men’s basketball coach landed him in the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. But that’s only half of his Regis story: For 25 years, Porter has mentored, educated and enriched the lives of at-risk Denver kids. This year, as the Porter-Billups Leadership Academy (PBLA) celebrates a quarter-century of helping kids grow

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to become doctors, teachers, nurses and leaders, the academy is looking ahead to its next 25 years of making a difference. Porter founded the Lonnie Porter Leadership Academy in 1996, and in 2006, NBA and University of Colorado legend Chauncey Billups joined as co-executive director, ushering in an era of growth. Each summer, PBLA welcomes more than 200 at-risk students in fourth through 12th grade to the Regis campus. With the help of Porter’s daughter, educator, Regis graduate and co-founder Staci Porter-Bentley, the academy developed a curriculum tailored to each grade level. Over three weeks, students participate in learning experiences, including a class about Jackie Robinson’s leadership for fourth graders, human rights discussions in seventh grade and a course about transitioning into high school for incoming ninth-graders. For high-schoolers, the academy provides year-round academic support by working with a teacher who acts as a personal college counselor. All of this comes free for students; the academy is funded by private contributions and the University.

The answer was yes. If he hadn’t become a basketball coach, Porter might have become a headmaster. “I wanted to run a whole program from the time they were little shorties, little kids, until they graduated,” he said. “Reynolds said, ‘Why so young, Coach?’ And I said, ‘You can mold them. You can get your hands on them and shape them into someone who has purpose.’”

“BEING ON THIS BIG COLLEGE CAMPUS AND GETTING THIS DIFFERENT KIND OF EXPERIENCE, GOING THROUGH ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT BUILDINGS, WALKING AROUND—IT SEEMED LIKE A DREAM.” – MONIQUE GONZALES, PBLA GRADUATE

Forming the academy, Porter thought about kids in inner-city Denver, growing up a lot like he did: poor and at risk of dropping out of high school. Like the kid who shot hoops in the alley, they needed someone to make a difference for them.

______________________ Stepping onto the Regis University campus as fourth-graders, Dominique Newton and Monique Gonzales weren’t exactly thinking about college. At the time, “I'm nine. I don't think about the future,” Newton said. “I just want to know what's for dinner tonight.”

PBLA kids get to experience being on a college campus. Photo: Brett Stakelin.

Each year, teachers, counselors and principals nominate elementary-school students for spots in the academy. Nominees must demonstrate leadership and academic skills, positive behavior, parental involvement and community service. Running the academy is not how Porter envisioned his Regis career. “I thought my mission was to come here and play a bunch of basketball games and take life as it came to me,” Porter said. “And then, in 1995, something happened.” He remembers the day clearly. Walking across campus, then-Vice President for Student Life Tom Reynolds asked Porter: “Coach, have you ever thought about an academic camp?” 28

Lonnie Porter celebrates with PBLA graduates, Dominque Newton and friends at their Regis graduations.

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PBLA and Regis graduate Dominique Newton cares for COVID-19 patients as a Denver Health charge nurse. Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez.

The daughter of a single mom, Newton grew up going to “not the worst schools, but not the best schools and, just the situations I was in, sometimes the future can become a little dim.” What Gonzales remembers most from her early days at the academy are the unlimited grilled cheese sandwiches offered at the cafeteria and racing to be first onto the PBLA vans that took students to and from the academy. Whoever got on first was allowed to choose the music. Like Newton, she wasn’t yet thinking about college when she first attended PBLA. But, Gonzales said, “... being on this big college campus and getting this different kind of experience, going through all of these different buildings, walking around — it seemed like a dream.” Years later, the women better appreciate the magnitude of their experiences.

Now a charge nurse at Denver Health, Newton leads a team through their workday, lately caring for COVID-19 patients and administering vaccines. The thought comes up now and then: Would she be there without PBLA? “And the answer is probably: ‘Not as easily as I’m doing it now,’” Newton said. The program, she said, took kids “who didn't see themselves having a future and showed a lot of us that we do, and we can do it — and do it well,’” Newton said. “That gave us a lot of self-worth.” Since she completed the program, Newton earned a full scholarship to Regis, where she earned a nursing degree. For students like Newton who meet certain criteria and Regis admissions requirements, college becomes a real possibility: PBLA awards a minimum of $5,000 to all eligible candidates per year. More funding is available to students with unmet financial needs.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT OUR ACADEMY IS THAT MOST OF OUR KIDS AREN’T SET UP TO WIN AT ALL. THEY’RE DEALING WITH A LOT OF DIFFERENT ADVERSITY... SO, WHEN THEY GO OFF AND WIN, THAT WIN FEELS A LOT BETTER.” – CHAUNCEY BILLUPS

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PBLA had prepared Newton for higher education. “For me, just having that experience, I felt already ahead of the game,” she said. “I've been on a college campus before, and I feel a little bit ahead of it.” Gonzales considered going to college out of state. But ultimately, she was recruited to play softball at Regis. “It was a blessing in disguise,” she said. “College was such a huge transition — more so than I thought it would be. It was such a huge transition that being someplace familiar was more helpful than I ever thought it would be.” She went on to attend pharmacy school at Regis, and now works as a clinical pharmacist at Lutheran Medical Center in Wheat Ridge, Colo. Now Gonzales’ memories of PBLA stretch far beyond grilled cheese sandwiches. “The biggest thing that carries through is what leadership is,” she said. “Leadership is standing up when you feel at odds, or maybe you’re scared, or maybe you’re not sure this is the right thing to do … That is a skill I developed when I was really small.” The academy generates story after story like this, and for Porter and Billups, that’s the point.

“What I love about our academy is that most of our kids aren’t set up to win at all. They’re dealing with a lot of different adversity at home and some really tough circumstances. So, when they go off and win, that win feels a lot better,” co-executive director Chauncey Billups said. PBLA gives underprivileged kids a shot — and its founders know what it’s like to need one.

______________________ Before he became Most Valuable Player in the 2004 NBA Finals and before he earned the nickname “Mr. Bigshot,” Chauncey Billups was growing up in Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood, a much different place than it is today. “When I grew up there, it was mostly Black. There were a lot of gangs, a lot of drugs, a lot of crime every single day in the neighborhood,” he said. “It was tough.” Billups was fortunate: Both of his parents worked, and his home life was stable. He saw what life was like for the other kids in his neighborhood, though. “Most of my other cousins and my friends and people that I grew up with weren’t so lucky,” he said. “So, I connect with these kids in a way that is beautiful. I know the trials and tribulations and struggles that they all are seeing and that they go through, be it family or pressures of the neighborhood. I’ve seen it all.” Billups was nine years old the first time he met Lonnie Porter. “He was this magnetic personality ... a pillar in the African-American community,” Billups said. “I used to hear so many stories about this great coach, but not only that — this great man that was really raising so many inner-city kids that were hopeless. He was a father figure to so many people.” As Billups made a name for himself in basketball, he occasionally connected with Porter. Their friendship strengthened when Billups moved into Porter’s south Denver neighborhood. Along with one other neighbor, Porter and Billups were the only minorities there. “Our relationship took off from there, and that’s when I learned about the leadership academy,” he said. “I was, at the time, starting my NBA career, and I knew I wanted something like that. I wanted to be able to give back and give hope and help to so many inner-city, at-risk youth, no matter if they were Black, brown, white, Asian. I didn’t care about that. If you were disadvantaged, and it was a long shot for you to make it, I wanted to be a person you could look to to help.” For students, getting to know Billups went past the thrill of meeting a celebrity.

Ahmani Noble, left, and Monique Gonzales and the 2011 PBLA graduates traveled to Los Angeles to tour NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab and have some fun. Courtesy: Monique Gonzales.

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“What struck us is how much he actually cared about us,” Gonzales said. “It’s different when you’re a kid and maybe you go to a [Denver] Nuggets game and get an autograph or something. He cared about us, and that was just a different feeling. He took time out of his busy life to come hang out with us, come sit in on our classes and come teach us some stuff.”

As a kid, Chauncey Billups drew inspiration from Denver athletes who donated their time. Now he’s doing the same for PBLA kids. Photo: Brett Stakelin

Billups remembers the impact visits like that had on him as a kid spending time at the neighborhood recreation center. “And there were so many older males, Black males, Black females that raised me there,” he said. “When I leave my house, I’m in the belly of the beast a lot of times being in the neighborhood. But there were certain times during the year that a Denver Nugget or a Denver Bronco would do community events. I ... never forgot how that made me feel to see a guy like that take time out of his day to come spend time with inner-city, at-risk youth.” At PBLA, the connection is even deeper. “That’s one of the things I love about it,” Billups said. “I can connect to kids. It’s not just a surface relationship. We can kind of go deep and talk about what’s really going on.”

______________________ For Dominique Newton and Monique Gonzales, the PBLA connections have remained strong. At Newton’s wedding, fellow graduates Josie Nolasco and Miriah Abram were bridesmaids. On her graduation day, Gonzales expected to cross the stage and collect her degree from University administration, just like every other graduate. As she accepted her diploma, though, she looked up to see Porter smiling back at her. “I formed that relationship with him through the years, knowing him when I was 10 to finishing pharmacy school at 25,” she said.” Knowing him for that long, and him being the one to show up yet again and give me my degree was just — I don’t even know how to describe it. It was just so special. Watching me grow from when I was being so small to doing what I love and getting my degree—it was unimaginable.”

The annual Porter-Billups Leadership Academy golf tournament and annual gala helps to raise funds for the academy. However, in 2020 the tournament was canceled due to the pandemic. It costs $1,500 to send one student through the academy which typically hosts more than 200 students each summer. This year, the tournament will return to the country club July 26 for another round. For more information, visit porter-billups.org/golf-tournament Regis University has established the Walter V. Springs Memorial Endowed Scholarship to be awarded to PBLA graduates who attend Regis University. See page 36

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College of the Sacred Heart had one building, some trees and plenty of room for baseball games.

HOW REGIS LOST ITS SACRED HEART BUT GOT ITS NAME BY Todd Cohen Photos courtesy of Regis archives

COMMON MISCONCEPTION IS THAT THE COLLEGE OF THE SACRED HEART BECAME REGIS COLLEGE 100 years ago to avoid the wrath of the anti-Catholic Ku Klux Klan, a rising political force in Denver at the time. The real reason, however, had to do with a president’s optimistic goals — and athletic trash talk.

The Very Rev. Robert M. Kelley, S.J, was very much the proverbial young man in a hurry when he arrived at the College of the Sacred Heart in Denver in late summer 1920.

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He was born the same year as the college itself, which had relocated and renamed itself twice since its formation in 1877 in New Mexico. The campus on the outskirts of Denver had one substantial building, Main Hall, surrounded by acres of bare dirt due to a depleted spring, and a ledger that bled red chronically. A speech Kelley made two years later was titled “Idealism and the College President.” The text has been lost, but it certainly reflected his audacious agenda. One of his first acts: Changing the college’s name. It was all precipitated when Sacred Heart began to compete in intercollegiate sports in the 1910s. The Jesuit fathers became so alarmed by opponents’ fans yelling things like “Kill Sacred Heart” they placed in the college catalogs warnings to not use the college name in conjunction with athletic events without express permission. They also lamented that the college’s initials, S.H.C, inspired students to refer to it as “The Shack.” Enter the new president with the ambitious goal of raising $1 million. He saw a revived alumni association and robust athletics as keys to generating enthusiasm. And restrictions on uttering the college’s name stood in his way.

The Very Rev. Robert M. Kelley, S.J.

So, five months into his presidency, he convinced the board to change the name and asked faculty for suggestions. The leading candidates were Newman and Regis, but when it was reported the Jesuit Provincial in St. Louis preferred Regis, the board quickly agreed, making the new name effective July 1, 1921. “The reasons for the change are evident,” the school newspaper reported on page 2 that May. “Our old name was too sacred for the sport yells and athletic columns [in the newspaper].” “… the very reluctance with which the students abandon the title ‘Sacred Heart College,’ is our very best assurance that the same genuine loyalty and college spirit will be ours again and remain ever unchanged,” the students editorialized.

The name did not have the intended firepower. Kelley’s goal – seeking the equivalent of $15.5 million in today’s dollars — was to build new facilities and enroll 1,000 students by 1930. He envisioned a gymnasium, chapel, power and light plant, infirmary, science hall, more residence halls and athletic fields for the high school and college. The effort fell short at $250,000, but resulted in Carroll Hall, the northeast addition to Main Hall (briefly called Gonzaga Hall), and a football stadium. Kelley also acquired 39 acres east to Federal Boulevard, nearly doubling the size of campus, while leaving the college deep in debt. While not the goal, the name change did not deter the KKK from attempting to burn a cross on campus a few years later. When Kelley arrived in 1920, Colorado’s governor had attended a reception to welcome him. But four years later, the state elected Gov. Clarence Morley, a Klansman so vehemently anti-Catholic that, with Prohibition already in place, he tried to also outlaw sacramental wine. In 1926, Kelley left Regis to become president of Loyola Chicago. He returned for a second stint as president in 1935 and once again confronted meager finances. Among his first acts then was to restore intercollegiate football, suspended since the beginning of the Great Depression.

A HUNDRED YEARS OF RANGERS For years the College of the Sacred Heart’s athletic teams had competed against Tigers, Cowboys and Orediggers without a nickname of their own. When the college was renamed “Regis College” in 1921, the opportunity to change that presented itself. The student newspaper, The Brown and Gold, announced a contest that October to choose “a name by which they may be known on the sporting pages and around which new yells will be built.” The next month the paper reported that “Rangers” was the overwhelming favorite, chosen from among hundreds of entries, including Mustangs, Greyhounds, Bob Cats, Crusaders, Regals, Plainsmen and Hillmen. “Besides being a name at once racy, aggressive and full of meaning to a Westerner, when linked with Regis, it possesses the music of alliteration and readily lends itself to yells.” The alumnus behind the winning name remained anonymous and donated the $10 prize to the athletics association. REGIS.EDU

F O R R E G I S AT H L E T I C S ,

JUST HAVING A SEASON COUNTED AS A WIN BY Karen Augé PHOTOS BY Ted Betsy

ostponed practices. Cancelled games. Soccer in spring. Fan-less arenas. Constant testing, masking, bubbling, quarantining. The past year hasn’t been great for anyone. And certainly not for anyone — player, coach or fan — who enjoys sports. But this spring, Rangers put up with a lot, persevered, and, most of the time, played. To say the season was challenging doesn’t begin to cover it. The pandemic “created lot of issues I’ve never had to deal with,” said Joel List, women’s volleyball head coach. Like not being able to coach groups of more than 10 players at a time. Like frustrated parents who don’t always understand many of the restrictions he’s enforcing weren’t his idea, or Regis-made rules, but state mandates. Like the tensions created when players are “bubbled” in close quarters with the same people they practice with all day. In an academic year when everything seemed upside down, all sports, except cross-country, were played in the spring. That was “strange and foreign,” said Jake Brown, a senior soccer player and business major with a minor in Spanish. “We’re used to preparing and practicing all summer, and getting to know teammates, which is super important for creating a cohesive unit.” This season, there are unwelcome distractions. Like, “ ... are we even going to have a game this week?” Brown said. He didn’t know when he asked that rhetorical question that, for the next four matches, the answer would be: No. On April 1, Regis announced that an increase in COVID-19 cases would force a 10-day suspension of all games and practices. In normal times, 2021 would have been Brown’s last year at Regis. But the NCAA, trying to soften the blow of a gut-punch season, offered an additional year of eligibility to all Division 1 athletes. So, like a lot of other Regis athletes, Brown will delay his career plans to spend one more — hopefully normal — season as a Ranger.

Despite a bumpy season, the women's lacrosse team battled its way

Spring /Summer 2021 |toRanother EG I S URMAC N I V Echampionship R S I T Y M AGand A ZIaNnational E tournament bid.

Zach Macasko throws heat in a snowy game against the Washburn University Ichabods.

Senior Jean Carre’s two goals helped Regis soccer post a 3-3 season record.

The NCAA’s generosity may have been a gift to students, but it added to coaches’ already numerous headaches. For List, not knowing how many seniors would return next year meant he didn’t know how many spots there would be on his team — or how many scholarships he could offer — for incoming freshmen. “The struggles are real, and they are all brand new for all of us,” he said. “It’s not like I could call a veteran coach and say, ‘What can I do?’” Despite the obstacles, there was good news, and high achievement on and off the court, for Ranger athletes and teams. Brian Dawson, a senior on the men’s basketball team, scored his 1,000th point as a Ranger. Three men’s basketball players, sophomore Aaron Bokol, junior Michael Bens and sophomore Brady Parris, made Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s All-Academic Honor Roll. On the women’s team, senior guard Tashika Burrell was named to the RMAC All-Academic First Team, while senior forward Whitney Jacob and freshman guard Erin Fry won individual RMAC player-of-the-year honors. And before the season was postponed, the women’s lacrosse team was riding a five-game winning streak. Finally, List’s volleyball team posted a 10-5 record, was ranked as high as 21st in the nation, and earned another trip to the RMAC tournament. “All things considered, I’m just happy to win games,” List said. COVID-19 has come with few silver linings. But if there was anything positive in the past season, the past year, Brown said it would be “not taking anything for granted anymore. You appreciate the moments you do get more.” REGIS.EDU

Scholarship to honor Walter Springs’ legacy

WE’RE BACK. Support your Rangers in-person this fall or watch live at regisrangers.com.

Fall Schedule regisrangers.com

FATHER CHARLIE SHELTON

GOLF TOURNAMENT

In the fall 2020 issue of Regis University Magazine, we told the story of Tech. Sgt. Walter Springs, a Black Regis student who volunteered to serve in World War II and was killed by a military police officer. The story generated significant response, and several readers expressed hope that a scholarship might be established to honor Springs. We are happy to report that Regis University has established this scholarship to honor Walter Springs and the values of inclusion and service that he stood for. The Walter V. Springs Memorial Endowed Scholarship will be awarded to graduates of the Porter-Billups Leadership Academy who attend Regis University. One of 11 children and a Denver native, Walter Springs attended Regis with the help of a partial scholarship. In addition to playing football and boxing for the Regis team, he worked multiple part-time jobs to cover his college costs. Although Springs left Regis to serve in World War II, he was widely remembered for his inspirational spirit. This scholarship will continue that spirit and support students facing similar obstacles, including challenging social, economic, educational, cultural or other circumstances. Since 1996, many Regis students who face such challenges have had an opportunity to prepare for a successful collegiate career through the Porter-Billups Leadership Academy (PBLA). The academy was established “to assist at-risk students with academic and leadership potential to successfully graduate from high school and to have the opportunity to attend college.”

Sept 20, 2021 The Ranch Country Club, Westminster Supporting current and future Regis student athletes

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As PBLA celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, we are pleased that this scholarship will support students who complete the program and continue on to Regis University. Donations to the Walter V. Springs Memorial Scholarship may be made at porter-billups.org

ASK REGI

I always respect and appreciate your enduring sense of optimism. However, I want to know what truly gets your tail in a knot? Funny you should ask. Because lately I've noticed my mind venturing into unfamiliar dens. I keep hearing this pop up again and again like a field of overcaffeinated prairie dogs. It's the word "hate." I find it difficult to even type it (and not because my fingers are the size of jumbo kielbasas). Waaay too much of this going around. Never helps anything or anyone yet so many folks say it, text it and even embrace it nowadays. I'm no Sigmund Fox, but I'd say that's irrational behavior. It even hurts and affects the hatER more than the hatEE. It infects your very soul. I guess we could chalk some of this up to the pandemic, but honestly, we need to nip this trend in the bud. Look. I'm a fox. A professor of nothing. I live the simplest of lives, totally in tune with nature. I donut overthink things. When I see morning light reflecting off a rippling stream, I get foxpimples. I see beauty, life, peace and perfection where someone else may just see a bunch of water. Many non-fox folk miss out on what could be a spiritually uplifting experience because they don’t let themselves open up. To me, it's about choosing how you wish to live. And it's a give and take. What you put out into the universe, you get back. Oooh! Quick side story: When I was just a kit, all my fine furried friends smiled, waved and spoke kindly to me every day. But as I grew up, there weren’t as many waves or smiles

anymore and I thought the world had changed overnight. Then I realized it wasn't the world's fault at all. It was mine. I had been taking and taking and the solution hit me like a ton of multi-colored sprinkles: It was MY turn to give! Well stick my head in an anthill and smear my ears with jelly! So, I began initiating kindness and that made the difference. I became the change I wanted to feel. You want less hate? Then love more. Ignore the hate-filled, disparaging chatter and those soul-draining thoughts like "I gotta be this or I gotta have that." And rise above this silly "triggered" culture. Relax. Just be. That's really the only thing you need to do. Well... that and taxes apparently but that's really not my area. Be the donut in someone else’s morning. You do you and you'll always land on all four feet. So, what gets my tail in a knot? Hating, fearing and when I get tree sap in my fur. And maybe the Broncos last season but other than that I'm A-OK. Don't let hate in your heart. Be the fox others want to hang with. Not a Little Debbie's Donut Downer. Don't let anyone tell you you're anything less than amazing. Stay wonderful. Stay wonder-filled. Stay custard-creme-filled! Nom, nom. ~ Reginator Out!

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Photo: Barry “Bear” Gutierrez

WORLD CLASS

2021 GRADS FROM ALL OVER CONVERGE ON DENVER CAMPUS The paths that brought Pavan Kaur and Anton Iliev to the Regis lawn May 1 to pick up their computer science diplomas were winding, sometimes bumpy, and started worlds apart. For Iliev, the road to Regis began in Bulgaria, included a stint in that country’s military, led him to his wife, and, eventually, to Colorado Springs. He taught himself to repair personal computers – after first building his own – and split his time between his repair business and being a stay-at-home dad to his little girl. He had long wanted a degree to complement his natural skills, but, he said, “I always found an excuse,” not to enroll in college. Eventually, he told himself to “pull on big boy pants,” and get that diploma. Kaur, who grew up in Los Angeles after her family moved from Singapore when she was 2, headed off to college after graduating from high school. When her father died suddenly, she returned home to grieve and care for her mother and younger sister. “I had to re-examine my career goals then,” she said. That meant scrapping her biology major in favor of computer science classes at a local community college. There she became an advocate for women pursuing careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), she said. Iliev and Kaur each found their way to Regis, or rather to online learning at Regis. Until the sunny Saturday they put on cap and gown, walked across the stage and officially became college graduates, neither had met any of their classmates or instructors. Or set foot on the campus of the University that gave them a chance, finally, to earn a degree. When the pomp and circumstance ended, Iliev and Kaur, like many of their online classmates, once again took off in different directions. He wants to be an Android developer. She’s considering earning her master’s degree. Both agree their Regis experience was worth waiting for.

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REENGAGE Flexible online classes Dozens of degree programs

We celebrated the class of 2021 with four socially distanced commencement ceremonies over three days, April 30 through May 2. With approval from local public health officials, we were able to welcome two guests per graduate.

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CLASS NOTES

SHARE YOUR SUCCESS! CAREER CHANGES, WEDDINGS, BIRTHS, YOU NAME IT. WE'LL PRINT IT! SUBMIT YOUR INFORMATION AND JPG IMAGES TO EDITOR@REGIS.EDU.

After more than four decades of helping local businesses navigate the international market, Paul Bergman (RC `71), retired from his role as director of the Denver U.S. Export Assistance Center. Trisha Kagerer (RC `86) has published her second book, The B Words; 13 Words Women Must Navigate for Success. K.L. (Karen) McKee (RC `90) has published her novel, Stolen Heart. The novel was a finalist for a 2020 Colorado Humanities Book Award in the Romance category. Teresa S. Madden (ACB `90) has been elected to the board of directors for CooperCompanies, a global medical device company based in San Ramon, Calif. Tim DeRuyter (ACB `92) has been named defensive coordinator of the University of Oregon Ducks football program.

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Horizon Community Bank has named Tamilyn Fager (ACB `98, `05) vice president/commercial banker. Fager will be responsible for supporting commercial loan activity and residential construction lending in Mohave County, Ariz. KemperSports, an Illinois-based golf and hospitality facilities manager, has named Kristine Rose (ACB `99) as its senior vice president of marketing. Rose will lead KemperSports' marketing strategy, corporate marketing, branding and loyalty initiatives. PJ McDaniel (ACB `00) has been named partner at St. Louis-based Hill Investment Group. Jason Porter (ACB `00) was selected to lead AT&T’s public sector business. Porter will continue to lead AT&T’s FirstNet business, which includes developing advanced communications capabilities for the nation’s first responders.

Meshach Rhoades (RC `01) has been named partner and chief diversity officer at Armstrong Teasdale, a St. Louis-based law firm. Former Congressman Rep. Gil Cisneros (ACB `02) has been nominated by President Joe Biden to lead the Pentagon’s personnel and readiness office. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Cisneros will oversee military readiness issues, as well as the Defense Department’s education and health care benefits programs.

RESKILL

John Hubert, Ph.D., (RHCHP `05) joined the physical therapy provider team at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Jayne Keller (RHCHP `05), has been promoted to chief operating officer of Cappella Living Solutions, a senior living management and consulting organization based in Englewood, Colo. Victoria Stone (RC `06, ACB `15) has joined the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), an organization that works to empower medical professionals, as vice president of marketing.

Spark your passion for lifelong learning

Kris Boccia (ACB `08) has launched an apparel company, East Coast Bias. Beth Helmke (ACB `08) was named Chaffee County, Colorado’s first-ever public information officer. Troy Moore, DPT, (RHCHP `08) has joined the physical therapy department at Ellinwood Hospital and Clinic in Ellinwood, Kan. Family nurse practitioner Jennifer Buckwalter (RHCHP `09, `20) has joined Heart of The Rockies Regional Medical Center at Buena Vista Health Center. Finger Lakes Community College has awarded Brittany Campese (ACBC `10) the 2020 Outstanding Humanities Alumni Achievement Award. Campese founded Vision Driven Consulting, which supports artists, community groups and nonprofit organizations through facilitation and training. Helping Veterans and Their Families, an Indiana-based nonprofit, has named Patrick Daskol (ACB, `10) senior staff accountant. Kate Farner, PT, DPT, (RHCHP `11) was named clinic partner and director of Pro Active Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine’s clinic in Brighton, Colo.

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CLASS NOTES

Artist Collin Parson (RC `11) is one of two artists selected to develop a work for installation on the green at the Lone Tree Arts Center in Lone Tree, Colo. Jade Shaw (ACB `11) has been named diversity & inclusion program manager at Amazon Fashion in Austin, Tex. Alvina Vasquez (RC `11) has been appointed to the Western Colorado University Board of Trustees by Gov. Jared Polis. Biar Atem (ACB `13) has been appointed to the board of directors for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), also known as the UN Refugee Agency. The UNHCR works to educate, resettle and aid refugees and displaced people across the globe.

Amid the complexities of starting a business during the coronavirus pandemic, Abigail Paxton (RC `17) launched Storyhouse Bookpub, a pop-up bookstore in her garage, to serve the Windsor Heights, Iowa community. OnRobot, a Denmark-based producer of automation tools and applications, has announced the appointment of Hunter Schultheis (ACB `17) as area sales manager for the western United States region. Jill McQueen (RHCHP `19) has joined the Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (HRRMC) Neurology Clinic as a family nurse practitioner. McQueen will see patients at the HRRMC outpatient pavilion in Salida.

Josh Gallegos (RC `13) has been recognized by the Pueblo (Colo.) Latino Chamber of Commerce in the Chamber’s inaugural 40 Under 40 Emerging Leaders event. Applied Craft Brewing alumna Kelissa Heiber (`14), is now sole owner and head brewer of Goldspot Brewing in Denver. Kathleen Thimsen, DNP (RHCHP `15) has been named program director for the doctor of nursing practice program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Arriana Acuna

Arriana Acuna, (RHCHP `19) has been named operations associate/talent manager at CareRev, a California-based provider of on-demand staffing for health care providers. She will manage a region of healthcare professionals, assuring full staffing, cost reduction and IT navigation for health systems. Amy Kalisek (RHCHP `20) has joined the cardiology team at Olympic Medical Heart Center in Washington state as an advanced registered nurse practitioner.

Chris C. White

Tego Cyber Inc., an emerging cybersecurity threat intelligence company, has named Chris C. White (ACB, `15) to its board of directors. Jonathon "JC" Elgin (ACB `17) was unanimously elected to fill a vacancy on the Richland County Board of Elections, in Richland County, Ohio.

Spring /Summer 2021 | R EG I S U N I V E R S I T Y M AG A ZI N E

Lindsay Tralene Yost, (RC `20) has celebrated one year as dean of students and high school athletics director at Windsor Charter Academy in Windsor, Colo. Laurrie Lorenzo (RHCHP `21) has been named one of six inaugural residents in the American Pharmacists Association 2021-2022 executive residency program. She will serve in the association’s education department during her residency.

RANGER BABIES

RETURN Jonah Patrick Steller

On April 2, 2020, Jennifer (McNamara) Steller (RC `98) and her husband Conrad Steller welcomed their sixth child, Jonah Patrick, who weighed 6 lbs. and measured 19 3/4 inches.

Start your free application today at regis.edu/return

Margot Jean & Conor Jon Swanton

Padraic (RC `04) and Jennifer Swanton have added twins to their family. Conor Jon and Margot Jean were born on June 11, 2020.

Hollis Erich Haskell

regis.edu/return

Gretchen (Plut), Haskell (RC `10) and Christopher Haskell welcomed their son Hollis Erich Haskell on Oct. 25, 2020.

REGIS.EDU

IN MEMORIAM

MAY THE WINDS OF HEAVEN BLOW GENTLY AND WHISPER IN YOUR EAR HOW MUCH WE LOVE AND MISS YOU AND WISH THAT YOU WERE HERE

Patricia Fortune Tobey was an avid water colorist and baker known for her quick wit, her sense of style, and her enduring passion for helping those in need. At Regis University, her legacy includes playing a key role in the design and funding of St. John Francis Regis Chapel. Born in Denver, Colo., on July 3, 1941, her mother’s birthday, Patricia attended St. Mary’s Academy, Central Business College and the University of Colorado. In 1959, Patricia became one of the famed Pink Poodle Posse, a group of 20 young women who dressed in cowboy hats, holstered toy pistols, and poodle-emblazoned neckerchiefs. The posse served as official greeters for the “Rush to the Rockies” celebration, commemorating the centennial of Colorado’s gold rush. In 1962, she married Ronald Tobey; their son John was born in 1968. Patricia was devoted to helping underserved families and youth, and supported organizations such as Seeds of Hope, Arrupe Jesuit High School and the St. Vincent DePaul Society. She also helped establish the John and Florence Fortune Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization created in memory of her parents. She was devoted to her family: Every Saturday she joined her brother Bill for a pancake breakfast and every Sunday night was family night. Donations in Patricia’s memory may be made to St. Vincent DePaul Society care of Blessed Sacrament Parish, 1912 Eudora St., Denver, CO 80220, or Annunciation Catholic Grade School, 3536 N. Lafayette St., Denver, CO 80205.

Spring /Summer 2021 | R EG I S U N I V E R S I T Y M AG A ZI N E

IN MEMORIAM

Raymond Zoglo went to Regis to play baseball and earn a degree. But World War II intervened, and the years he intended to pass on the diamond and in class were spent aboard U.S. Navy troop transport ships. He rarely talked about the war, said his daughter Karen Millspaugh. When he did, he described conducting Pacific island reconnaissance before the majority of troops were sent ashore. “Without much in the way of guns and ammunition, he had to scout out where the Japanese camps were,” she said. What her father did talk about was decades of service as a firefighter, in Denver, Adams County and at Denver International Airport. “He worked all that time for the fire department and loved every day of it. My mother said there wasn’t a day he didn’t want to go to work,” Millspaugh said. Her mother, Ruth, and Zoglo were high school sweethearts who grew up in Denver’s Globeville neighborhood and married in 1944. When he wasn’t fighting fires, Zoglo crafted stained glass and delighted his kids and grandkids at Easter with an Eastern European tradition he called “egg wars” that involved endurance tests for hard-boiled eggs. “He was a very humble man. All he wanted to do was serve,” Millspaugh said. “He was awesome.”

Dr. Frank “Joe” Giardino spent his 21st birthday storming the beaches at Normandy. Giardino came to Regis from his hometown of Aguilar, Colo. on a football scholarship, and led the team as quarterback. He left college to serve in World War II and on D-Day, June 6, 1944, led an infantry tank battalion ashore with the second wave of troops landing in France. When he returned home, Giardino completed his degree and married Mary DiGiacomo. The couple moved to Omaha, Neb., where he attended the Creighton University School of Dentistry. After graduation, he worked for the Indian Health Division of what was then the U.S. Public Health Service, and he and his family lived for several years on the Southern Ute Reservation in southwestern Colorado. Giardino and his family returned to Denver where he continued practicing dentistry until age 75. Throughout his life he remained active physically, intellectually and spiritually. He was proud of playing a role in the construction of two parish churches, and enjoyed cheering on the Rockies, Broncos and Nuggets. Giardino passed away in January 2021 at age 97. He was preceded in death by Mary, his wife of 72 years. He is survived by his six children, 12 grandchildren many great-grandchildren.

Zoglo is survived by his wife, Ruth, and daughters Karen and Susan; six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by daughter Dianne and grandson Erik. After Zoglo died at age 98, an antique firetruck carried his body to Fort Logan National Cemetery for burial.

REGIS.EDU

IN MEMORIAM

1940s & 50s

1960s

ROSE CECILIA (STAAB) TEEL, LHC ’47

ROSEMARY (BUCKLEY) DINES, LHC ’60

JOAN F. VIALPANDO, LHC ’47

HELEN DANFORD SANKS, LHC ’61

ELIZABETH JAY HARMAN, LHC ’49

SR. M. REGINA BOYLE, RC ’62

EUGENE F. COSTELLO, RC ’51

BARBARA ANN O’CONNOR, ’62

CARL WILLIAM HERMANSON, RC ’51

MARY ANN (NICHOLS) ROGERS, LHC ’62

WILLIAM ARNOLD MILLER, RC ’51

THOMAS A. CERWIN, RC ’63

JOHN EDWARD ZOOK, RC ’51

KAREN DIANE (MULLEN) COTTRELL, LHC ’63

WILLIAM RICHARD COATES, RC ’52

JOSEPH MICHAEL CONNORS, RC ’64

JOHN P. CURRAN, RC ’52

FRANK J. DEFIORE, RC ’64

WILLIAM PAUL DARGAN, RC ’52

ROBERT A. NELSON, RC ’65

KATHLEEN M. (FITZGERALD) SWEENEY, LHC ’53

FRANK E. KAFKA, RC ’66

JUDITH MARIE HIGSON, LHC ’54

JOHN FRANCIS WICK, RC ’67

CONSTANCE LOUISE (SMITH) HALE, LHC ’55

JAMES S. WILSON, RC ’67

FRANK THOMAS SCARDINA, RC ’55

SR. MARGARET POLHEBER, RC ’68

POLO C’ DE BACA, RC ’56

ROBIN J. ROCKNEY, RC ’68

JOHN E. KIRCHNER, RC ’57

CHARLES A. BUSTOS, RC ’69

CHARLES E. CHAPMAN, RC ’58

MICHAEL E. GIMESON, RC ’69

GEORGE F. LUTITO, RC ’58

ROBERT LANE WILLE, RC ’69

MARGARET A. (MCLAUGHLIN) TIGHE, LHC ’58

KENNETH J. BABBIT, ACB ’58

PETER JOSEPH WRENN, RC ’58 WILLIAM J. CLARK, RC ’59 EDWARD EARL ELLIOTT, RC ’59 BERNARD E. PETERS, RC ’59

Spring /Summer 2021 | R EG I S U N I V E R S I T Y M AG A ZI N E

IN MEMORIAM

1970s

1990s

IRENE LEONARD, LHC ’70

LILLY YANAS NUNEZ, ACB ’91

PAUL R. MEDER, RC ’71

DAVID LAWRENCE BROTHERS, RHCHP ’92

LINDA (NAVARRO) SORLIE, LHC ’71

MARGARET ELLEN (GLADBACH) LOUREE, RC ’92

SALLY HENDRICK DAVIDSON-MAROVICH, LHC ’72

ROBERT B. BUSH, ACB ’93

DR. LAWRENCE VINCENT LARSEN, RC ’72

ETHEL MARIE (DICKMANN) SODIA, RHCHP ’93

KATHERINE M. CORDOVA, LHC ’73

JANET L. (ELLIOTT) BARKER, ACB ’94

LARRY BURNSTEIN, LHC ’74

LINDA C. WANNER-HOGAN, ACB ’94

EVERETT MEREDITH, RC ’74

JACQUELINE SUE (LOVATO) LOPEZ, RHCHP ’95

PATRICIA JEAN (POLLOCK) JAMES, LHC ’78

BRETT W. VALERI, ACB ’98

ROBERT JOHN HARRIS, LHC ’79

PAUL J. LAUTENBACH, ACB ’99

GEORGE R. MCMULLEN, RC ’79

2000s

1980s

PERRY STEVEN PEOPLES, ACB ’01, ’06

MARGUERITE C. (STEINHAUER) ROHLFING, RC ’80

DARRELL DAVID WILEBSKI, ACB ’01

JOYCE H. (HABER) SCHUCK, LHC ’82

ROBERT B. FRANCOEUR, ACB ’02, ’09

TRUDY (KOESSLER) DIERSCHOW, ACB ’83

DARRELL D. DUFF, ACB ’04

ROSCOE WILLIAM JOHNSON, ACB ’83

LAWANDA (WEATHERS) JONES, ACB ’06

KEVIN MICHAEL O’SHEA, RC ’84

KEITH A. WILKINSON, RC ’06

JOHN LEO DUFFY, RC ’85

KATHLEEN A. MORAHAN, ACB ’07

JOE G. FLORES, ACB ’85

LAURENCE CURTIS WASHINGTON, RC ’07

DANIEL GUINAN O’LEARY, RC ’86

HOLLY MARIE (SWEENEY) BLACKWOOD, RC ’09

JANIS BALL JUDD, ACB ’86

MIRIAM E. BENNION LEE, RC ’10

SANDRA L. (MONROE) HENSEN, LHC ’87

DANIEL A. CASIAS, ACB ’17

EUGENE ANTHONY NAES, ACB ’87 LAURENCE EDWARD RAY, ACB ’87 DEACON RICHARD WILLIAM MARTIN, ACB ’88 BRIAN PATRICK MCKAY, RC ’89

ACB ANDERSON COLLEGE OF BUSINESS | CCIS COLLEGE OF COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCES | CCLS COLLEGE OF CONTEMPORARY LIBERAL STUDIES LHC LORETTO HEIGHTS COLLEGE | RC REGIS COLLEGE | RHCHP RUECKERT-HARTMAN COLLEGE FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONS

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WHERE'S REGI? BY Daniel Alarcon

Spring /Summer 2021 | R EG I S U N I V E R S I T Y M AG A ZI N E

Regi won't have the Berce Athletic Center courts to herself next year when Regis' athletics seasons resume.

3333 Regis Blvd., Denver, CO 80221-1099

REENGAGE RESKILL RETURN Flexible online classes. Dozens of degree programs. Start your free application today at regis.edu/return

Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Denver, CO Permit No. 3092

Regis University Magazine - Spring/Summer 2021

Articles inside

GIVING VACCINES A SHOT

CLINICAL DETERMINATION

TREE WHISPERER

A CHANGE OF HEART

HELP, HEALING AND HOPE

LIFE LESSONS