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Issue 4
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R O C K Y. E D U
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READING, ROCK ART, WRITING IN FUTURE PLANS
SHEER & STEEP
FOCU S O N FACULT Y
OUTDOOR ADVENTU RE
Susan McDaniel
Susan McDaniel looks forward to accompanying her husband on trips to historic rock art sites, traveling abroad, “plenty of reading,” and writing for pleasure, not work. Some might wish she will include plenty of writing. Continued on page 4
You Bet!
Date: Saturday, May 5th, 2012 Place: Great Room, Prescott Hall Time: Reception, 5:30 p.m. Dinner: 6:30 p.m. Ticket price: $50/person
(All money raised goes to the RMC Student Scholarship Fund.) For reservations, please contact Vicki Davison, RMC director of advancement, (406) 657-1005 / Vicki.davison@rocky.edu.
Rocky Mountain College has an outstanding outdoor recreation program that exposes students to educational adventures all over the West, but more specifically they make trips to great locations closer to campus. Recently, on a brisk Saturday in March, RMC students formed a climbing party for a trip to Rock Creek Falls near Red Lodge. The elevation of the falls is just under 9,000 feet. The group ranged from experienced to novice climbers, but everyone finished the climb successfully (safely up and back) and enjoyed the beautiful surroundings of the Beartooth Mountains. RMC’s Caitrin Smith flashes a celebratory smile as she completes a difficult summit.
U.S. Senator Conrad Burns will be this year’s honored guest and speaker at the annual RMC President’s Dinner, May 5. Former U.S. Senator Conrad Burns, R-Mont., has always been an avid supporter of education. In 2009, after a remarkable three-term career in the U.S. Senate, he dissolved his Foundation for Scholastic Excellence, and made Rocky Mountain College one of the beneficiaries. RMC received a check for $79,800 from his Foundation. “Different skills are needed for changing times,” he avowed. “Rocky Mountain College knows that and shows that in how they provide education for our next generation.”
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Keeping our friends and supporters informed about what’s new and exciting at Rocky Mountain College
COLLEGE ALWAYS DONS CHANGING WARDROBE INS IDE R
BY M I C H A E L R . M AC E -
Recently I found time for something I’ve been meaning to do for a couple of years. I took all my shirts and pants and suits and ties and did an inventory. This is an exhaustive process that I simply had not been able to find time for, until one weekend when I forced myself to stay away from the office. This spring cleaning was tedious but often humorous and enlightening. Did I really think I’d ever wear that Hawaiian shirt purchased on a whim in Mexico? What on earth was I thinking when I bought that tie? Or that one? A favorite suit from 10 years ago fit a much trimmer model of me. Would I downsize to wear it again? And if I did, what of all the newer clothes purchased to fit the fellow I am today? Outside, spring beckoned the sun, blossoms, birds and green grass, all sirens tempting me to abandon this indoor chore and, as Elizabeth McNamer always cheers, seize the day. I resisted and stubbornly stayed at my dreary task. Suffice it to say, hours later, I made a sizeable dent in the closet space. I sternly kept old favorites from sliding back onto the rack. I refused to let sentiment interfere with practicality. Of course, I could not help thinking this kind of re-evaluation is what we often
President have to do with larger issues than what we’re wearing. It reminded me of how, as a college president, change is a given. An essential part of any president’s job is re-appraisal of everything on campus. When one assumes what one is accomplishing, because it is what one has always done before, it does not necessarily meet the needs for the day. Will the financial aid package help the students; will it help enrollment goals, or retention? How much will the price of gasoline affect pricing; how will the cost of a new building affect the institution? It is actually what makes my job challenging and exciting. It is what I enjoy most about interaction with colleagues and peers. How can we make the college educational experience better? What future needs can we address now to be better prepared? Do we have the right courses, the right people in the right places or the right purpose? My job is made easier because I can rely on a superb cabinet of administrators, an
outstanding Board of Trustees, the faculty executive committee, staff, faculty budget committee, and institutional senate of faculty and staff advisors, as well as the student officers in the Associated Students of RMC. Although I am charged with most of the final decisions, we don’t make decisions in a vacuum. The governance of Rocky Mountain College is in good hands. This time of year, as we prepare to cheer another graduating class and celebrate their accomplishments, I always feel buoyed by our success. I feel an immense sense of pride in the collaborative effort of too many people to name, or thank, from trustees and faculty to donors and friends. We have all been a part of assembling the best we can offer and the best we can do for the best students in the world. We always suit up a new generation in the best fashion.
JIM ANDERSON WILL ADDRESS 2012 GRADUATES 130 T H
CO M M E N C EMEN T
The origins of the proverb, “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day; teach him to fish and he eats for a lifetime,” is uncertain, although scholars generally attribute it to China. But the lesson is evident today in the man who will deliver the 130th Rocky Mountain College Commencement address and receive an honorary doctorate in humane letters. That address, “The Miracle of Saving & Investing,” could not be more appropriate a lesson for college graduates. “In honoring Jim Anderson, we are honoring one of our own who has made a unique and important investment in his alma mater, and whose wisdom in the classroom has made a great difference in the lives of our students and the life of the College,” said RMC President Michael Mace. Anderson grew up in Columbia Falls, Mont., and embarked on his RMC college 2
career primarily through the direction of the local Methodist minister, Rev. Fred Gaston, whose son, Warren, and Jim were best buddies in high school. Anderson graduated in 1967, after marrying his college sweetheart, Linda Lou Langemo, in 1966 in Terry, Mont. They spent their honeymoon night in Miles City and then drifted back into Billings to begin his final semester of college the following Monday. Linda finished her degree in psychology in 1967, and they marched together at commencement. In his junior year, Anderson obtained his first job through a reference from his business professor, Clifford Clark. He was paid $300.00 a month to keep the financial books for Oscar Cook’s (Oscar’s Dreamland) two business operations, Wymo Equipment Co. and his CX Ranch in Decker, Montana. This was the beginning of a 32-year career
Linda and Jim Anderson
in the financial industry. Because he wanted to be more in the investment side of finance, he went to work for Dain Kalman & Quail (now RBC Dain Rauscher) in Billings and was transferred to the company headquarters in Minneapolis. Continued on page 3
RMC’S SIFE WINS REGIONAL, ADVANCES TO NATIONALS F O CUS O N S T UD E NTS
The Rocky Mountain College Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) team was named a Regional Champion at the SIFE USA Regional Competition held March 30 in Seattle, Wash. The event is one of 11 SIFE USA Regional Competitions being held across the United States in March and April. “We pulled together as a team and it paid off. We are all proud of what we accomplished in Seattle and excited to go on to the next level,” according to RMC SIFE team president, Logan Anderson. As a SIFE USA Regional Champion, the RMC SIFE team advances to the 2012 SIFE USA National Exposition in Kansas City, Missouri, May 22-24. Describing the next level of competition, Anderson said, “The teams are much more polished and precise at nationals. We really have to step up our game and get it perfect.” RMC SIFE is one nearly 600 teams in the United States. Participating students use business concepts to develop community outreach projects that improve the quality of life and standard of living for people in need. During this academic year, the RMC SIFE team organized six projects in the Billings community, including: “Suit Up!” a project that teaches college students facing job and internship interviews the importance of dressing appropriately, and provides one free interview outfit per student. “Micro Business Brew,” which was the first annual seminar targeting businesses with 10 or less employees. The event provided training for these “micro business” owners tailored to their specific needs. “Toner Joe 2.0,” a project designed to help a local small business, Toner Joe’s, to increase capacity through time management strategies and technological upgrades. The culmination of the SIFE program is an annual series of competi-
(Courtesy)
SIFE CHAMPS Front row, left to right: Alex Welge, Kimberlie Modlin, Samantha Cook, Jessica Baldwin, Chana Hodosh, Karen Beiser, Amelie Holmquist Middle row, left to right: Anton Larsson, Jason Dix, Justin Arney, Logan Anderson, Angela Stidham, Katarina Isaakson, Qin Qin, Amanda Brouwer Back Row, left to right: Mick Moos, Russell Shelton, Olle Friberg, Hayden Hadley, Zach Pietrocarlo
tions that provide a forum for teams to present the results of their projects, and to be evaluated by business leaders serving as judges. Teams compete first at the regional and national levels, then at the international level when the national champion teams from each country meet at the SIFE World Cup.
JIM ANDERSON WILL ADDRESS 2012 GRADUATES Continued from page 2 Here he worked in the audit department, was a portfolio manager for Investment Advisers, and eventually wound up in the research department where he originated their Technical Analysis Department. The Andersons donated $100,000 in 1997 to RMC to be used in an investment management class. He was asked to teach that class in 1999. It allowed RMC students to learn about investing by using real money in the real market place, and success enriched the Rocky Mountain College Student Endowment Fund, established as a repository for earnings from investments. “Linda and I felt it was a good way to give back something to a place that means a great deal to us,” Anderson said about their donation. Before Anderson retired from teaching in 2010, the fund grew during good times and weathered a couple of significant market downturns, earning a 7.63 percent compounded
annual rate of return over 10 years. By comparison, the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index had only a 0.40 percent annual compounded rate of return over that same time period. The Rocky Mountain College Student Endowment Fund ended 2010 with a market value of $206,534.00. In addition, another $100,000.00 has been paid out in the form of scholarships and other programs at RMC. Anderson teaches a contrarian approach to investing. He lectured against chasing the hot technology issues during the dot-com bubble of the late 1990’s, and also saw trouble brewing before the real estate collapse in 2008. That collapse in stock prices in late 2008 was a prime period for the investment class to acquire some real values that have done very well over the last three years. As you might expect, the stock markets doubling in price since the bottom in March 2009 is being met with skepticism from
Anderson. The old contrarian sees the stock market as currently over-valued and anticipates trouble directly ahead. As for teaching to fish, that’s evident from comments from students who relished his class. In interviews with The Billings Business Journal when it published a feature on Anderson, students praised the real life experience. “It’s an example of learning something in an academic setting where you can honestly take what you’ve learned and put it into a real-life opportunity,” Jarod Roberts, a 2006 RMC graduate, who now works as a financial adviser in Missoula, told the Billings Business Journal. Betsy Kampen, and several other members of the Eagle Investment Club, audited Anderson’s class several times over the years, according to the same article. “I can’t imagine how great it would be as a stuContinued on page 6
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READING, ROCK ART IN FUTURE PLANS Continued from font page The Rocky Mountain College professor of humanities and composition, who is retiring this year, is one of those persons who should be urged to write a book about her life. Her early years, as the daughter of an Army man, exposed her to plenty of travel in the eastern U.S. and in Europe. But most of her growing up years took place in New Mexico where her mom and dad settled after his Army career, and where she, her brother and sister were strongly motivated to get college degrees. “Neither of my parents had college degrees, so it was ingrained in us. All three of us did,” she said. New Mexico made Susan a “Westerner,” but she would spend considerable time in the East and in Italy before returning to those wide-open spaces she cherished growing up. Though she took piano lessons for years, a greater passion always drew her away from practicing piano. “I loved classical ballet and danced from the age of five, continuing to take classes at Smith and through graduate school and beyond,” she said. Yes, Smith, one of the most prestigious and toughest universities in the world, where she earned her bachelor of arts degree before achieving her master’s at Middlebury College, and then a doctorate from Yale University in the study of medieval and Renaissance Italian literature and art. That trifecta of top tier degrees inspired a love for more learning and teaching. “I taught at Middlebury and Sarah Lawrence, but I could tell I wasn’t going to earn enough to live very well in the East, and I was really homesick for the West,” she said. “I made a practical decision to move back to New Mexico.” Back home in the high plains air, she met and married Andrew Elting, a Montana native, working for the USDA. He longed to return to Big Sky Country, a move they were able to make in the 1980s when they started a veterinary practice in Columbus, Mont. Raising sheep and topping the market with her Columbia-Suffolk lambs rounded out her experience, but literature, the humanities and the fine arts were still a major part of her life. Later, Andy and Susan moved to Miles City, where he owned land. Susan wrote grants for research of some of the unique architecture in the area, and became the Custer County Art and Heritage Center director. She also taught at Miles Community College. After her husband died, she was hired at Rocky Mountain College, in 1994, as director of grants, which evolved into her being named as academic vice president and provost in 1996. That same year she married Stuart Conner, a lawyer who is also a recognized “rock art” (petroglyph and pictograph) expert. Conner has roots rich at RMC. His dad, Cloyd, served on the board of Billings Polytechnic 4
Institute when he was superintendent of Montana’s Congregational Churches, and his mom was the first admissions counselor, hopping in her car to drive all over Montana and Wyoming to recruit students. His sister, Patti, and her husband, the late Dr. Charles Morledge, are well known for their service and philanthropy at RMC, from the Morledge Walkway to the newly renovated Morledge-Kimball Hall. Susan takes pride in the fact that she was in the first line of defense to save Kimball Hall from the wrecking ball so it could be renovated. “That was a time – 1996 – when there was a prevailing opinion it could not be saved and the plan was to raze it and use the stones as part of the new student center. I asked the state architect to come in, and he refuted the notion that the building was not salvageable,” she said. It still took more than a decade to find the resources to create the architectural gem that Morledge-Kimball Hall is today. “Good things come to those who wait,” she smiled. 1996 was also a time for a more critical challenge: accreditation. “That was a very challenging time. Our accreditation was in serious jeopardy. We were at a “show cause” status, but we – and I mean a lot of really good people – turned it around,” she said. “Sometimes I wasn’t very popular during that time because there were very tough decisions, but without accreditation, there was no college.” In fact, one of her proudest moments at RMC was when full accreditation was restored in 1997. “I do not take credit for that, but I am immensely proud to have been a part of that,” she said. “That turned a big corner for the College.” By 2003, her desire to be back in the classroom, and away from the stress of the administrative office, resulted in her being named director of the language institute for study abroad, professor of Italian literature and language, and director of the honors program. “I couldn’t have been happier,” she said. “I love teaching, and our students are wonderful. It really is what this place is all about, and having attended some pretty high powered schools and taught at others, I am proud to say our students stack up very well with students at Smith or Yale or Middlebury.” And, while she is happy with her prospects for an enjoyable and rewarding retirement, it is the students that she will miss the most. “That’s a very hard part to give up, that engagement with young people and fresh ideas. I will also miss the professional interaction and intellectual stimulation of my colleagues, but I’m likely to still maintain those connections. But, not mingling with students everyday? That’s going to be tough.” Perhaps that regret can be salved by writing an autobiography of a remarkable life.
R O C K Y. E D U
COMING EVENTS CURTAIN CALL FOR LOGGING & BALLET
The final performance of the Montana Logging & Ballet Company will feature their characteristic slapstick satire and song.
“Yes, no kidding, this really is our final farewell public concert,” said Rusty Harper, one of the founding members of the iconic, if infamous, Montana Logging and Ballet Company. “If you don’t see us here, you’ll just see us around.” The Montana Logging and Ballet Company will perform their last Billings public concert on Friday, April 27, 2012, at the Babcock Theatre, downtown Billings. A second farewell concert will be performed in May in Helena, capping a long career for the iconic satiric slapstick, singing quartet. The troupe is performing a benefit for Rocky Mountain College scholarships for the arts at a 7:30 p.m. show in Billings. Tickets, which are $30 for general admission, are now available at the six City Brew Coffee outlets, Ernie November, the Rocky Mountain College bookstore, the ticket kiosk at Rimrock Mall and online at ticketriver.com. One other farewell concert is planned for Thursday, May 17, in Helena, as a benefit for the Helena Symphony. That concert will be held at the Helena Civic Center at 7:30 p.m. The group of Rocky Mountain College alumni includes Bob FitzGerald, Rusty Harper, Steve Garnaas-Holmes, and Tim Holmes.
RMC MOURNS PASSING OF FOSTER, MATHEW FOCU S O N F R IE N DS
The Greater Love Was The Chaplain’s Love For Us Kristi Foster would not have wanted it any other way. A service celebrating her life and ministry included honesty, humor, mourning, music, and a magnificent community bonding. Chaplain at Rocky Mountain College, Rev. Foster’s role went far beyond that title. Before her death March 26, 2012, after a 10-month battle with colon cancer, she immersed herself not only in the life of the campus, but also of the community and the world. From handing out her delicious free cookies on Monday, to joining in the faculty/staff talent show with her unique dance routine, to hopping on a soapbox derby during homecoming week, Kristi was always present and involved. She was also memorable in her singular devotion to share, to put others first, and to elevate the best in people. She was pastor, counselor, friend, and leader. Her sense of humor was contagious; her hugs consoling. During her final days, she never quit, organizing a “hair raising” event to raise money for cancer research. The outpouring of support for that venture was amazing, raising more than $6,000.
Brad Nason, RMC vice president and dean of student life, summed up best Kristi’s impact at RMC: “Our love for Kristi Foster pales in comparison to the love she has for us.” The RMC community celebrated her life and ministry March 30 in Losekamp Hall, sharing their loss with her husband, Robert Peterson, who was her primary caregiver for the nine months of their marriage, and her family. A video feed was made available to friends who could not attend. According to her obituary, Kristi graduated from Earlham College, Richmond, Ind., where she majored in outdoor education. She received her theological training at Eden Theological Seminary, Webster Grove, Mo., and was ordained into ministry of the United Church at Grace United Church of Christ, Frederick, Md., in 2004. She served at the Congregational United Church of Christ, Vermilion, Ohio, before being called to Rocky Mountain College. Kristi was a champion for justice no matter what the circumstance in which she found it, was a compassionate counselor, a scholar, and a mentor to women in various settings. She enjoyed traveling and learning
Rev. Kristi Foster
(Courtesy)
new cultures, had a special relationship with the people of Simbo Island of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, and became an adopted daughter of the village of Mege, where she taught scriptural studies to women and empowered their economic growth. Kristi was active in community service, co-led a knitting circle, and was always active in helping raise awareness and funds for the American Cancer Society. It was her hope that even though her cancer could not be cured, that through research, others would benefit from the fundraising she promoted. The family requests that memorial contributions be designated for The American Cancer Society or Rocky Mountain College Chaplain’s Fund.
A Coaching Legend, RMC’s Frank Mathew Was Always ‘True To His School’ A letter to the editor of The Billings Gazette stated how one man’s life could mean so much to one person, and that letter, from RMC alumnus Randy Durr, could have been repeated by hundreds of other students who knew Frank Mathew. Durr, now principal at Worland (Wyo.) High School, wrote: “Words cannot express my sadness in the loss of longtime Rocky Mountain College great Frank Mathew. The lives he touched during his tenure at RMC are countless and his contributions to the college unsurpassed. When I was a lost 18-year-old in Forsyth in 1978, Frank per5
Helen and Frank Mathew were in attendance for the RMC Ring of Honor ceremony this year, honoring one of his championship teams.
suaded me to come to Rocky and try out for the football team, helping get financial aid for me to attend. He was my adviser, mentor and friend for the next 34 years as a
student and alumni. God bless you, Frank, and thank you for all the lives you touched in such a positive way.” Indeed, there are few representatives of a life devoted to an institution and its mission as Frank Mathew. As his obituary stated, “Frank walked onto the campus of what is now Rocky Mountain College in the fall of 1937, a skinny, 17-year-old athlete from rural Wyoming, and began the first four years of what would be a lifelong love affair with Rocky and the city of Billings. His father died when Frank was 14, requiring him to rely on relatives and friends while his mother went to work cooking on ranches. His grace and Continued on page 6
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FRANK MATHEW
JIM ANDERSON
Continued from page 5
Continued from page 3
athleticism helped him earn his way through college. He also got jobs on campus, including milking cows at the campus dairy and helping to build one of the dorms from sandstone quarried from the Rimrocks. He lettered in four sports at Rocky. It was during his junior year that he danced one night with a young coed, a ranch girl from Lavina named Helen Slayton. Soon after that first dance, they became sweethearts for life and married three months after they each received their degrees. After service in WWII with the Army Air Corps, Frank earned his master’s degree at the University of Wyoming while working at teaching and coaching jobs, and celebrating the birth of their first son, Hal. According to his obituary, Frank got his big break in 1949 when his former coach at RMC, Herb Klindt, invited him to come restart the football program. He also would coach track and field and the junior varsity basketball team, was the varsity assistant basketball coach and the equipment manager, and taught a full faculty load of classes. Frank’s teams won a couple
of league titles over the years, but it was his relationships with his players on and off the field that mattered most to him. Frank and Helen joined First United Methodist Church soon after arriving in Billings, and last summer held their 70th wedding anniversary celebration there. He was one of the founders of the Midland Empire Round Table, an organization that promotes sports throughout the city. Frank’s 33-year career at Rocky Mountain College required him to wear many hats. In addition to coaching football, basketball and track, he also coached golf and served for two years as athletic director. He stopped coaching football at RMC in 1967 and retired in 1982. He is survived by his wife, Helen; sons, Hal, Mike (Kay) and Larry (Jean); six granddaughters; two grandsons; and five great-grandsons. A service celebrating his life was held on March 27 at First United Methodist Church. The family requested memorials be made to the Frank and Helen Mathew scholarship fund at RMC, the church or a charity of their choice.
CREDITS Photographs appearing in Rocky Now, unless otherwise noted, are by Dave M. Shumway, RMC staff photographer and web content manager. Thanks to Pam Erickson, RMC executive assistant to the president, for going beyond the call of duty to proof Rocky Now. Any errors still remaining are the result of neglecting to correct her proofs.
Heading toward May, the excitement for RMC Commencement builds with a host of concerts, award banquets, and other semester-ending events. dent to take a class like that,” Kampen said. “We just learned a tremendous amount from Jim.” While Anderson retired from teaching, he and Linda are still active in RMC events. He volunteers at the Institute for Peace Studies. Anderson wrote an investment newsletter for 20 years, and he continues to send out essays on financial matters via email. “I’ve always enjoyed writing, and I like to think that I tell it like it is,” Anderson said. “I hope I can say straight forward what I think graduates need to know,” he said of his commencement address. Commencement, which will be held Saturday, May 5, at 1 p.m. in the Fortin Education Center, is preceded by Baccalaureate on Friday, May 4, at 7:30 p.m., at First Presbyterian Church, 2420 13th Street West. Baccalaureate and Commencement are free and open to the public.
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