22 minute read
Diversions
Small Things Print Co.
The Makers: Interdisciplinary studies major Clare (Elfelt) Rogers, BA ’14, and her sister Mary Kate Elfelt, BA ’18, a ceramics major, went into business together in January 2020. Clare conceived the idea for their company at a coffee shop after a hard day of teaching in fall 2019. In a Nutshell: The company’s motto is “small things to encourage great love.” Mary Kate wrote, “I want this company to be able to provide people with comfort and inspiration in tough times — even if it’s something as small as rereading one of our prayers or sharing joy by gifting our stickers and other products.” Start Gifting: Visit their shop at smallthingsprintco.com and etsy. com/shop/SmallThingsPrintCo.
Zelie Beans Coffee
The Owners: Victoria (Sequeira) Mastrangelo, BA ’10, and her husband, Joseph Mastrangelo, named their small-batch coffee roastery in Sugar Land, Texas, for St. Zelie Martin. The company’s motto is “Families helping families through specialty coffee.” The Mastrangelos also had a booth at the Alumni Business Fair during the most recent Alumni and Family Weekend. In a Nutshell: According to their website, “People are at the heart of everything we do.” Zelie Beans Coffee only sources beans from suppliers that provide fair and above-fair prices for the unroasted beans, also seeking sources that invest in women, their families and their communities. Start Sipping: Visit zeliebeanscoffee.com.
Seasons: My Journey Through Grief
The Author: Retired English, speech and theater teacher (and mother of four grown sons) Ernestine Rose, MA ’00, lost her husband of 41 years, Art, to sarcoidosis. This book evolved out of the 800-page journal she kept from the onset of his illness through her subsequent grief. In a Nutshell: “Mourning has its own season, and if I’ve learned nothing else … it’s that you have to face your loss head on, and you have to do it at your own pace … you have to follow your own seasons,” wrote Ernestine. “For some, this may take a year, for others, longer. But we all have to endure and survive through our seasons after loss in order to live fully again.” Start Reading: Buy the book at udallas.edu/ journey-through-grief. It is available in e-book, paperback or hardcover.
REAP THE HARVEST
Grapes, Wine and Beauty in Due Santi
By Aaron Claycomb
Students handpick merlot and cabernet sauvignon grapes from the Due Santi vineyard each fall in what is called the vendemmia, or grape harvest.
The fertile soil beneath UD’s pristine Eugene Constantin Campus sustains a rich history indeed, where Roman antiquity converges with the present, and where winemaking has been part of life at Due Santi for millennia. Nurtured by ancient soils composed of mostly petrified volcanic ash, the soil lends itself to a high acid structure in fruit, with gobs of tasty minerals to raise the pH and balance the finished wines. In cultivating the lush hillside country, a rewarding bounty has fermented a distinct epoch blend of Due Santi Wines.
If you’re a Constantin alumnus, chances are you went to Rome for a semester — where if so, it probably helped define not only your undergraduate experience but also the person into whom you have grown since.
CellarBrowser is pleased to offer the chance to reconnect with your definitive semester abroad with a variety of vintages directly from the foothills of Rome:
2019 Rosso —
a hearty deep red blend of cabernet and merlot.
2020 Cammin —
the first sparkling rosé and perfect bubbly merlot.
2020 Rosato —
a beautiful amber-tinted merlot rosé aged and matured in stainless steel.
Special Offering: Receive 15% off and free shipping when you order 6+ bottles of Due Santi Wines with promo code TOWER at cellarbrowser.com.
THE BUSINESS OF POLITICS
UD Education Bolstered First Female MBA’s Political Career
By BeLynn Hollers, BA '21
t was the late 1960s, and Jo Ann (Shoaf)
Gasper, BA ’67 MBA ’69, had completed her degree in politics at UD. But when she looked around at the options for a woman with a liberal arts degree, her options did not excite her.
“I got my bachelor’s and started looking for a job, and it was kind of like, ‘Can you type, or do you want to be a librarian?’ In other words, typical female jobs — secretaries, librarians, those sorts of things. And I knew that I didn’t want that,” Gasper said.
Bob Lynch, the founding dean of UD’s Graduate School of Management (now the Satish and Yasmin Gupta College of Business), suggested that Gasper enroll in the Master of Business Administration program that was being established at UD. This made Gasper not only part of the first cohort but also the first woman in the Class of 1969.
Gasper recalls Lynch’s Price Theory course. Lynch asked Gasper, “Why should women be paid less than men?”
“So I told him the reason why women should be paid less than men. And then, I turned around and told him why women should be paid more than men,” Gasper said.
Thinking Expanded by Liberal Arts
When Gasper entered the university as a freshman at 17, she was the youngest student the school had ever had. Because of her age, Gasper had wanted to begin college close to her home in Grapevine, Texas. Additionally, her stepfather had worked with the Hungarian refugees coming to the United States after the Hungarian Freedom Fighters were overthrown by the Soviet military. Having Hungarian Cistercians teaching at the university made UD more attractive to her family.
Gasper explained that her background in political philosophy, studying under Willmoore Kendall, taught her to always go to source documents — primary sources. When studying the United States Commercial Code (USCC) in the MBA program, one of her professors, Bob Perry, asked her a question about the USCC. When she answered, Perry said her answer was incorrect. Gasper referred her professor to the primary source, the USCC, to prove she was right. Studying the original sources earned her an A.
“Willmoore always said to go to the source documents. Don’t take what somebody else says about something,” Gasper emphasized.
For Gasper, her education at UD through both undergraduate and graduate programs allowed her to flourish.
“The MBA in conjunction with a University of Dallas undergraduate degree in political philosophy provided the practical analytic skills necessary for effective planning, evaluation and program management,” Gasper said.
The most important course for her career that she took during her MBA was Business Law with Perry.
“This course combined with the broad-based liberal arts education enabled me to write regulations and manage a program, the constitutionality of which had been challenged,” she said.
From MBA to a Political Career
Gasper served as the Family Policy adviser to the Reagan/Bush presidential campaign in 1980.
“Under the Reagan administration, I was asked to be the deputy assistant secretary for social services policy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,” Gasper said.
Jokingly, she noted that her father thought she was a typist.
“So I told him that I had the responsibility for a $30 million demonstration project, and then he realized that it was a significant job,” she laughed.
Gasper is thankful for the impact UD’s education had on her political career.
“Thanks to UD and the UD education, there were several issues that I was active in that went to the Supreme Court, and the court ultimately sided with my position,” she said. One of those issues was the parental notification regulations proposed by the Reagan administration, which require minors seeking an abortion to notify their parent. “While the Supreme Court declared the regulations unconstitutional, a provision that I had inserted was declared constitutional,” she explained.
As deputy assistant secretary for population affairs, she was responsible for the administration of the National Family Planning Program and the Adolescent Family Life Program.
As a Catholic, she had to adhere closely to Catholic ethical standards while managing a program that was inconsistent with Church teaching regarding contraception. She eventually was removed from her position in 1987 for her refusal, on ethical grounds, to sign a grant to Planned Parenthood. The secretary had not allowed her to review the grant to make sure federal money was not going to be used to promote abortion — an illegal use of the funds.
“As Catholics, we are called to what is right and proper. We are obligated to do the best job we can and provide full measure of value. No matter what one’s chosen field, there will be ethical challenges,” Gasper said.
For Gasper, though, her UD education helped her navigate those tough questions. “A UD education enables a person to recognize the dilemma and find an appropriate response to the problem,” she concluded.
Left: Gasper's MBA was
a step toward her work on former President Ronald Reagan's campaign in 1980. Photo courtesy of the Reagan Library.
Below: Gasper is part
of UD's Class of 1967, a class profoundly affected by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy just a few months into their freshman year and his famous words, “Ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.” In this spirit, they later established the Class of 1967 Memorial Scholarship, which now benefits current UD students.
CYBER STARS
GUPTA ALUMNAE BREAK BARRIERS
Alexa Reubens, MS ’22, went from entry-level analyst at Citrix to its cybersecurity chief of staff. UD’s M.S. program has bolstered her theory of "empowered thermoelectricity": “As women in cybersecurity, we often feel additional heat. If this heat starts to bring me down, I convert it to electricity — motivation, energy and gratitude in knowing I have the opportunity to break some stereotypes.”
Dominique West, MS ’19 DBA ’24, started a cybersecurity-focused newsletter and podcast called “Security in Color” to give back to the larger community. West began her DBA at UD this past fall; she hopes to forward research in cutting-edge technology and future security concerns. She advised, “It is OK to be afraid or overwhelmed by the field, but never to let that stop you from pursuing something.”
Teresa Merklin, MBA ’05, has worked for Lockheed Martin for nearly two decades. After beginning in software management, she is now a fellow specializing in cyber risk assessment and engineering for cyber resiliency. Of her UD MBA, she said, “It was the right information, the right education, the right degree at the right time, and it opened doors for me that I didn’t even know I wanted opened.”
Read more about these amazing graduate alumnae and others at udallas.edu/cyber-stars.
The full version of this essay was published in The University News on Oct. 6, 2021.
TOWARD SOME GOOD
Independent Thinking in the Light of Truth
By Elizabeth Regnerus, BA ’22
D is unique among institutions of higher education, both secular and Catholic. We pride ourselves on our delightfully absurd traditions, our incisive education and the eccentric individuals who seem to characterize our spirit.
Our penchant for “independent thinking” is key to our intellectual and spiritual development. However, it seems that we often use this motto to justify nearly all behavior, both good and bad. While independent thinking is crucial, I argue that it must follow after UD’s true mission: to seek truth and justice.
During my time here, I’ve heard students account for a multitude of virtues and vices under the guise of independent thinking. Why do we drink so much? Independent thinking. Why do we feel free to chant expletives against political leaders we dislike? Independent thinking. Why do our outdoor spaces reek of cigarette smoke? Independent thinking!
This might not cross your mind when you choose to do or not do any of the above; however, I’ve heard arguments that critique our norms and values by claiming they constrict our ability to think and act for ourselves, which puts forth an inverted and distorted vision of acting for the Good. My intention is not to condemn or argue specifically against any of the habits above. Reasonable people disagree about the complexities of these issues. Rather, I want us to push ourselves to a rational account for what we practice.
Read more at udallas.edu/ in-the-lightof-truth.
The freedom of independent thought can tend toward a free-floating morality, where one does not truly examine the ends of one’s actions. In the Tradition, we find that free will is not an end in itself. To be free without an end is misery. Rather, every action we freely assent to is ordered toward some good.
In the case of UD’s emphasis on free inquiry, in no way should it point us toward any action we choose. Our university is distinctively radical in the sense that we are deeply rooted in the pursuit of truth, justice and virtue toward which liberal education is ordered.
Liberal education frees us and enables our independence from the deceptions and false promises that the world offers us. The formation we receive gives us the tools to sift through the dust of worldly opinion to find the nuggets of truth that instill us with life.
Our curriculum ought to allow us to put into practice the command of Romans 12:2, to “not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of [our] mind[s].” We encounter the best and the most heinous of men in our curriculum, reading the church fathers alongside Marx, studying Aquinas while examining the First World War, absorbing Dante as we learn about Nietzsche. These great books are given to us to cause deep reflection in our souls, to challenge us to incorporate into ourselves the finest virtues and recognize our most tender wounds.
Prioritizing pure individual will over grounded truth leads down a path of despair. Before we decide what we ought to do, we must plunge into what it means to love truth and justice.
Whatever habits we choose to cultivate while under the mantle of our alma mater, we ought to hold ourselves to this high standard — to understand what the good life is and independently charge our wills with full pursuit of every action that fulfills that eudaimonic end.
Elizabeth Regnerus is a senior philosophy
major with a politics concentration. She is a fellow of the Dallas Forum on Law, Politics and Culture and a Ropke-Wojtyla fellow at the Catholic University of America. A cross-country runner, Regnerus also serves as the commentary editor for The University News and as a philosophy tutor for the Office of Academic Success.
THE QUEST
INSPIRING COURAGE
The Power of Story
By Shannon Valenzuela, Ph.D., BA ’00
s a writer, I believe that there are stories I am meant to tell. But I also believe that there are stories that we are meant to encounter as an audience. If you’ve ever had the experience of a stranger’s words cutting straight through to your heart like a knifestroke, you know exactly what I mean. … We never know how our words and our witness may touch someone else’s heart.
We might be tempted to think that the only stories that can inspire a moment of recognition, a recommitment to a vocation or even a total conversion of heart are the stories of Scripture or the saints. And so we might be tempted to dismiss all those other stories — the ones about distant galaxies or elf-haunted woods or even stories about our own past — as somehow less important. … But … if a story about a lion, a witch and a wardrobe brings someone to their knees and then back to their faith, is it really less important?
Every story is an opportunity for a moment of recognition. Stories are a mirror — they give us back an image of ourselves so that we can reflect on and recognize ourselves. … And we want to be shown — not told — that change is possible. … [W]hat moves people to change is often not a rational argument or a demonstrative proof. What moves people to change is an emotional experience that resonates in every fiber of their being. And that’s exactly what stories give us.
In his Grammar of Assent, St. John Henry Newman says, “The heart is commonly reached, not through the reason, but through the imagination, by means of direct impressions, by the testimony of facts and events, by history, by description. Persons influence us, voices melt us, looks subdue us, deeds inflame us. Many a man will live and die upon a dogma: No man will be a martyr for a conclusion.” … I think this is why the Scriptures are a collection of stories. … [T]hey are a narrative that shows us who we are as God’s people: fallen, broken, yet worthy of love and capable of change.
Stories transform us because they transport us. They move us out of ourselves and into a strange other world for a time — a world where we quite literally live through the emotional arc of a character’s journey. Stephen King once said that “we make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.” Our brain doesn’t care that these stories are fiction; neurochemically, narrative transport lights our brains up with oxytocin in exactly the same way that a real encounter with another human being does. We develop emotional resilience, stronger interpersonal connections and greater empathy by “living through” fictional experiences.
Yes, Aristotle, we are rational animals. But we are so much more than that. We are storytelling animals. Stories connect us to one another and foster community. And they inspire us with the courage to make a change in our lives, no matter how hard the road ahead might be.
Shannon Valenzuela is an affiliate
assistant professor of English and the content director for the Liberal Learning for Life Program at UD. She is the writer and director of The Quest, a limited series produced by UD about discovering one’s purpose and living it with courage. It aired on ETWN on Nov. 15. Discover more at quest. udallas.edu.
ou might not know FB Society, but if you call Dallas/Fort Worth home, chances are you know its brands or have dined in one of their locations: Whiskey Cake, The Ranch, Mexican Sugar, Sixty Vines, and the Legacy Food Hall in Plano, among others. Creating great dining experiences is something FB Society’s CEO, Jack Gibbons, MBA ’05, learned during his 25-year career with the Pappas Brothers, another successful restaurant group that operates nine restaurant brands, including Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen.
But it was the mentorship he gained from UD professors while pursuing an MBA that gave him the confidence he needed to venture out on his own. We sat down with him to talk about his journey, what inspires him, and where he sees the Dallas dining scene heading in the coming years. FB Society represents some of the most recognized dining concepts in DFW — Whiskey Cake, Mexican Sugar, Ida Claire and more. How was FB Society conceived and born?
It was born from a shared desire to change the hospitality business and dream a little bigger than most! Randy DeWitt, our chairman, and I met while I was working in Houston for the Pappas Group and began discussing our ideas, thoughts and hopes. Seventeen years later, we’ve traveled the world, dreamed lots of dreams and birthed more than 20 concepts together. We probably learned more from our failures than the successes we’re most recognized for.
Growing up, did you ever imagine being an entrepreneur or in the restaurant business?
I could have never imagined doing what I do for a living. It’s really not “working” at all. I get to work with incredibly talented and creative people, build experiences that bring joy to people and make visions a reality on the daily. There is no way I could have ever dreamed this would be my real life!
Where did you grow up, and how did you get into the restaurant business?
I grew up in Pennsylvania, then went to the University of Houston for my undergraduate degree, where I majored in business. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do and was just trying to figure it out when I got a part-time job first as a waiter. It was the early ’90s, and restaurants weren’t trying to necessarily get people with degrees. But at Pappas, to become a general manager, you had to have a college degree to move up. So I started as a waiter and worked my way up to general manager. I ran multiple Pappadeaux locations in Houston and helped grow that into Dallas and Chicago. I spent 25 years there, so FB is the second job I’ve had.
JACK GIBBONS
By Clare Venegas
What motivated you to pursue an MBA at the University of Dallas?
Learning with the Pappas was amazing. I had been working in a senior operations role at Pappas for quite a while and felt it was time to invest in myself to grow beyond the role I was in. The independent thinking that the University of Dallas is known for was most attractive to me.
How would you describe your UD experience? What was the most valuable aspect of the MBA program?
The professors had all been in the trenches. The program allowed me to gain perspective necessary to help me shape my own career beyond operations. Hearing the professors talk and reading about Peter Drucker and other inspiring people helped me think differently about business. So I’d say it wasn’t one class or experience, but the whole well-rounded education, from accounting and looking at P&Ls to marketing and learning about branding.
Your email signature includes a description of your “superpowers,” which sound like a recipe for an entrepreneur — Ideation, Achievement, Maximizer, Competition, Command. What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly those in the food and hospitality space?
Those are actually my top five strengths from Gallup’s Strengthsfinder program. We took the time to assess each FB Society team member and learn their top five, which allows us to leverage each other’s strengths and build diverse and dynamic teams. As far as advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, I’d say two things: Dream bigger and be prepared to work harder than you have ever imagined.
Top: Inside the silver trailer at Ida Claire. Bottom: Mexican Sugar's patio.
What are your “kryptonite” traits as a business leader/entrepreneur, and what can others learn from those?
Falling in love with my own ideas is certainly kryptonite, not just for me, but any entrepreneur. It’s critical to gather thoughts and opinions from a diverse group of trusted partners before moving too far down any path.
COVID has decimated so many restaurants and small businesses. How have you, your partners and your employees navigated through the pandemic?
We worked our ***** off. Honestly, I’ve begun to hate this question because my answer is similar to what I share about success in general in the hospitality business. We had to adapt quickly, identify how to translate each brand’s DNA into a to-go model and then find ways to best support our team and keep them employed. We hosted a daily strategy session with our brand leaders and made fast, continual improvement daily. From a finance side, we tightened our belts and became as savvy as possible about government plans, and then our CFO, Dan Lawler, worked to quickly ensure our businesses were first in line to leverage available funds. The collective efforts of our leaders and field teams ensured we survived, and the trust built among our leadership team is unmatched. Do you have a role model, or role models, who shape your approach to business and entrepreneurialism?
I have many. I really see every successful entrepreneur as a role model in some way. I’m an avid learner so I listen to podcasts and read articles and will always find time for coffee or a Haywire “Jack style” [Haywire’s signature whiskey cocktail in which agave replaces simple syrup] to hear someone’s story.
How has the Dallas food scene changed — for better or for worse — over the course of your career?
I love the evolution of the Dallas food scene. We’ve abandoned the idea that “celebrity chefs” are necessary to build high-volume, over-the-top experiences, and I love the way our dining scene is embracing emerging talent. Chef Skyler Gauthier, our culinary executive at Haywire, is a prime example of the kind of talent we’ve begun to nurture in Dallas.
We’ve also become a destination for bigger brands to thrive. They know Dallasites appreciate incredible hospitality, and they show up to support. I’m proud of the way folks like Iris Midler [founder of the Chefs for Farmers Food & Wine Festival] have also created food experiences outside the confines of traditional restaurants and really encouraged exploration and discovery. Dallas is a place where you can color outside the lines and experiment — which suits FB Society brilliantly.
If you were a fortuneteller and could summarize the future of food in Dallas and the Metroplex in three words, what words would you choose?
Global, boutique, automated.
