Wartburg College Endowed Professorships

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Endowed Chairs Distinguished Professors Wartburg College Convocation

Thursday, October 21, 2010 11:30 a.m.

Wartburg Chapel Wartburg College

Wartburg College is dedicated to challenging and nurturing students for lives of leadership and service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning

Wartburg College Convocation

Endowed Chairs & Distinguished Professors Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010

PROCESSIONAL .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Karen E. Black

College Organist INVOCATION .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Rev. Ramona Bouzard

Dean of the Chapel and The Herbert and

Cora Moehlmann Chaplaincy Chair WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS .. . . . . . . . . Dr. Ferol S. Menzel

Vice President for Academic Affairs

and Dean of the Faculty MUSIC .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Karen Black presentation of .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Darrel D. Colson The Rudi Inselmann Endowed Professorship President in Organ presentation of .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . President Colson The Harry and Polly Slife Endowed Professorship in Humanities presentation of .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . President Colson The Grant L. Price Endowed Department Chair DONOR RECOGNITION .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scott Leisinger

Vice President for Institutional Advancement ADDRESS .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Scott Fullwiler

The James A. Leach Endowed Chair

in Banking and Monetary Economics Finance As If People and Planet Matter BENEDICTION .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pastor Bouzard RECESSIONAL .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Black

The Carl and Dorothy Hagemann Endowed Professorship in Business and Economics Established in 1989 through the generosity of Carl and Dorothy Hagemann

A member of the Wartburg College Professor Gloria L. Campbell faculty since 1979, Professor Gloria Campbell was named the Carl and Dorothy Hagemann Professor in Business and Economics in 1998.

Campbell is well known for establishing connections between the college and business communities. These relationships provide opportunities for students to better understand careers in business and for business executives to share their experiences with the college community. Professor Campbell has developed internships in the Cedar Valley that provide students with an important bridge to employment. As a result of her leadership, Corporation Education Day is an important annual event bringing faculty, students, and executives together to learn about current issues in business.

Campbell earned her B.A., M.A., and M.B.A. degrees from the University of Northern Iowa. She is a frequent presenter at conferences on business communication and was chosen the Outstanding Business Educator in 1989 by the Iowa Business Educators Association.

Carl and Dorothy Hagemann recognized Wartburg’s positive impact on the City of Waverly and its quality of life. Carl Hagemann was a Waverly native.

After earning a law degree from the University of Iowa, he returned to Waverly to practice law. He became president of State Bank of Waverly in 1952 and chairman of the board in 1980. He also served on the Wartburg Board of Regents. Dorothy Hagemann was a graduate of Carleton College and was active in many Waverly civic organizations.

The Ralph E. Otto Endowed Professorship in Chemistry Established in 1995 through a gift from Dr. Ralph Otto, former Board of Regents member

Dr. Shawn Ellerbroek received a B.A. degree in biochemistry from the University of Iowa and earned a Ph.D. degree in cell and molecular biology from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.

Dr. Shawn M. Ellerbroek

Prior to coming to Wartburg, Ellerbroek was an American Cancer Society postdoctoral fellow at Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C. He was named to the Ralph E. Otto Professorship in Chemistry in 2007.

Ellerbroek has contributed significantly to the growth of the chemistry department. His restructuring of the curriculum now provides biochemistry majors with the ability to perform research through a structured set of classes. Ellerbroek’s own research, in collaboration with Pharmgen L.L.C., centers on the creation of a new reagent called a monoclonal antibody. This reagent is currently undergoing testing for research viability. Ellerbroek has published more than 20 research articles related to the study of cancer.

Dr. Ralph E. Otto ’63 earned his M.D. degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., and became a successful cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon in the greater Chicago area. He and his wife, Diane, also established the Professor A.W. Swensen Scholarship for chemistry majors to honor his former Wartburg teacher and mentor. Dr. Otto served on the Board of Regents.

The James A. Leach Endowed Chair in Banking and Monetary Economics Established in 1994 by O. Jay Tomson and community bankers

Dr. Scott Fullwiler has held the Leach Chair since joining the faculty in 2001.

Dr. Scott T. Fullwiler He is co-director of Wartburg’s social entrepreneurship program and also serves as a research associate with the Center for Full Employment and Price Stability in Kansas City, Mo. Fullwiler’s academic research focuses on the details of monetary and fiscal policy operations, macroeconomic policy, interest rates, and large-scale macroeconometric models. He has published journal articles, book chapters, and working papers and recently co-edited Institutional Analysis and Praxis: The Social Fabric Matrix Approach (Springer, 2009). He frequently presents his research at regional, national, and international conferences.

During the summer of 2010, Fullwiler was an invited Franklin Fellow at Franklin College in Lugano, Switzerland, where he taught a new course on emerging social capital markets. It was the first time a course on this topic had been offered at the undergraduate level anywhere in the world.

Fullwiler earned his Ph.D. in economics at the University of Nebraska.

James A. Leach is an Iowa native and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. O. Jay Tomson, a banker and former member of the Wartburg Board of Regents, led an effort among Iowa community bankers to fund the chair in honor of Leach, who at the time served on the House Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs and was ranking member of its Subcommittee on International Development, Finance, Trade, and Monetary Policy. Alan Greenspan, then chair of the Federal Reserve, spoke at a Wartburg event announcing the chair.

The Franklin I. and Irene List Saemann Endowed Chair in World Communities Established in 1989 through a generous donation from the Saemann Foundation

Dr. Peter Nash came to Wartburg after Dr. Peter Nash serving as a professor of Old Testament and Semitic languages at the Lutheran School of Theology and Ecumenical Institute of Graduate Studies in Theology in Sao Leopoldo, Brazil.

He has been a visiting professor at Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, Augustana Theologische Hochschule in Neuendettelsau, Germany, and Seminario Unido de Ricatla in Maputo, Mozambique.

He also served on the initial evangelization and outreach work group for Book of Faith: Lutherans Read the Bible, a special consultation team for an initiative of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He authored the book, Reading Race, Reading the Bible, published by Fortress Press.

Nash earned a Ph.D. degree in Near Eastern languages and civilization from the University of Chicago. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s degree in humanities, Hebrew and Greek from Concordia Senior College in Fort Wayne, Ind. Nash was appointed to the Saemann Endowed Chair in World Communities in May 2007.

Irene List Saemann was the granddaughter of the Rev. Georg Grossmann, first president of Wartburg College. Born in Waverly, she became a nurse and married Franklin I Saemann, a pioneer in the field of orthopedics.

Together, they founded Orthopedic Equipment Company in Warsaw, Ind., which became a worldwide operation. The Saemann Foundation, established following the death of Franklin Saemann in 1987, perpetuates the couple’s philanthropy and has provided substantial funding for Grossmann Hall and Saemann Student Center.

The O. Jay and Patricia Tomson Endowed Professorship in Social Work Established in 1984 through the generosity of O. Jay and Patricia Tomson

Professor Lynn Peters joined the social Professor A. Lynn Peters work faculty at Wartburg College in 1992, having previously taught at Southeast Community College in Nebraska and Fort Hays State University in Kansas. He has held the Tomson Professorship in Social Work since 2005.

Peters’ scholarly focus is on the study of aging. He is a frequent presenter at national conferences and works closely with students to promote the study of gerontology on campus. He also provides consultation to professional agencies and community groups serving older adults and their families and is a member of several professional boards and advisory groups.

Peters earned his B.A. degree from the University of Kansas and holds an M.S.W. degree from the University of Alabama. His social work practice experience includes 13 years with public agencies in Kansas and Nebraska as a program developer, unit supervisor, and agency administrator.

O. Jay and Patricia Tomson have supported many Wartburg initiatives. He is a former member of the Board of Regents, chairs the board of First Citizens National Bank of Mason City, and is past president of the Iowa Independent Bankers Association and the Independent Community Bankers of America.

Patricia Tomson is a retired family therapist, former executive director of Parents United in Mason City, and former member of Wartburg’s National Social Work Advisory Board. Their daughter, Sara Tomson-Hooper ’89, is a Wartburg social work graduate and will be recognized with a 2010 Alumni Citation.

The R.J. McElroy Endowed Chair in Communication Arts Established in 1981 with gifts from the R. J. McElroy Trust

Professor Jeffrey Stein holds B.A. and J.D. degrees from the University of Iowa. He is the fourth holder of the R. J. McElroy Chair in Communication Arts, serving in that capacity since 1998.

Professor Jeffrey L.L. Stein

Students at Wartburg College have earned numerous awards under Stein’s guidance, including multiple best newscast and best documentary awards from the Northwest Broadcast News Association, the Iowa Broadcast News Association, and the national Society for Collegiate Journalists. Stein is the author of three books, including One Week in June: The Iowa Floods of 2008, and is the administrator of the Archives of Iowa Broadcasting, located at Wartburg College. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the State Historical Society of Iowa.

Stein received the 2009 Jack Shelley Award, the highest honor given in Iowa broadcasting.

Stein is executive secretary of the Iowa Broadcast News Association. He is past president of the Northwest Broadcast News Association and was the first Iowan to serve as president of the six-state group in 40 years.

R.J. McElroy founded Black Hawk Broadcasting Company, which first operated radio station KWWL, then KWWL-TV and later several other radio and television stations. When McElroy died in 1965, a provision in his will established the R.J. McElroy Trust. The Trust funded Wartburg’s first endowed chair and renovation of the former fine arts building into McElroy Communication Arts Center. It also has supported the Vogel Library, Wartburg Science Center, Walter Cunningham Memorial Teacher Preparation Project, student research, and student scholarships.

The Harry and Polly Slife Endowed Professorship in Humanities Established in 1994 to honor Harry slife, former Chair of the Board of Regents, and his wife, Polly Slife

A member of the Wartburg faculty since 1999, Dr. Survilla was named the Harry and Polly Slife Professor in Humanities in 2010.

Dr. M. Paula Suvilla

An active researcher, Dr. Survilla is currently working on two book manuscripts related to her established specialty in Belarusian studies/ethnomusicology and another on new research interest in the ethnography of sound. She also has authored numerous peerreviewed articles and papers and has presented her research at the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies, the Canadian Association of Slavists, and the Association for the Study of Nationalities. Her book, Of Mermaids and Rock Singers: Placing the Self and Constructing the Nation through Belarusan Contemporary Music, was published in 2002.

From 2005 to 2010, Dr. Survilla was president of the North American Association for the Advancement of Belarusian Studies. She currently serves as executive director of the Center for Belarusian Studies, leading initiatives to encourage development of democracy through higher education.

Harry and Polly Slife created the college’s first endowed professorship and a Slife Minority Scholarship Fund during the time Harry chaired the Wartburg Board of Regents. He was a former president of Rath Packing and Black Hawk Broadcasting Company in Waterloo, served as a state senator, and taught at Wartburg in retirement. Polly Slife supported a variety of Cedar Valley organizations, including the Girl Scouts and the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony. The Slifes’ three daughters are Wartburg graduates: Polly Slife McDonald ’77, Peggy Slife Gaard ’77, and Sarah Slife Salzwedel ’82.

The Patricia R. Zahn Endowed Chair in Choral Conducting Established in 1990 with a gift from Patricia R. Zahn

Dr. Lee Nelson holds the Patricia R. Zahn Chair in Choral Conducting and is conductor of the Wartburg Choir and Ritterchor. Nelson earned a Bachelor of Dr. Lee D. Nelson Music degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn. He pursued graduate work at Westminster Choir College (New Jersey) and earned his M.M. and D.M.A degrees from the University of Arizona.

In 2005, Nelson won the National American Choral Directors Association Conducting Competition in Los Angeles, Calif. He also was awarded the Outstanding Young Choral Conductor of the Year award, presented by the American Choral Directors Association of Minnesota in 2001. Nelson made his conducting debut at Carnegie Hall in May 2010.

Prior to his appointment at Wartburg College, Nelson served on the faculty at St. Cloud State University, where he received the Professional Achievement Award. Under his direction, the university choir toured Germany, France, and Switzerland and presented the European premiere of Stephen Paulus’ Holocaust oratorio, To Be Certain of the Dawn, in Natzweil-Struthof, a former Nazi concentration camp.

Patricia Zahn was involved with Wartburg College in the 1970s, when she served on the national leadership committee for the Design for Tomorrow fundraising campaign. As a Waterloo businesswoman, she was a partner in Thunderbird Acceptance Corporation, a loan company, and Charles M. Young Associates, an insurance and bonding agency. She also served on the board of associates of Life Investors of Iowa, a legal reserve stock life insurance company. She had a special interest in the Wartburg Choir, and after retiring to Florida, created a trust to support the choir and its director.

The Herbert and Cora Moehlmann Chaplaincy Endowed Chair Established in 1990 through the generosity of Chaplain F. Herbert and Cora Moehlmann and Lutheran Brotherhood Pastor Ramona S. Bouzard Pastor Ramona Bouzard was installed as the Herbert and Cora Moehlmann Chaplaincy Chair in 2009 after being called by the college to serve as Dean of the Chapel. From 1994 to 2009, she was director of church relations and associate in campus ministry at Wartburg, assisting the college in building partnerships with synods and congregations and helping interpret and voice Wartburg’s mission as a college of the church.

Bouzard’s comprehensive service to the college includes outreach to the college community through preaching, worship leadership, and campus ministry programming. She serves as the administrator for the Educational Partners in Covenant matching grant program and the Graven Award, and she provides active support for Wartburg’s mentoring and service programming.

Bouzard received her bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Texas and her Master of Divinity degree from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn.

Chaplain F. Herbert Moehlmann ’15 graduated from Wartburg Seminary in 1918 and was the first pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Waterloo.

He entered the Army chaplaincy in 1930 and was stationed in Hawaii at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack. He attained the rank of Colonel while supervising as many as 242 chaplains in the European Theater during World War II. When ill health forced his retirement in 1946, he became a visitation pastor in Winter Park, Fla., working until the age of 87. He established the Moehlmann Memorial Fund in memory of his wife, Cora.

The Dr. Myrle Burk and Vera Burk Will Endowed Chair in Biology Established in 1988 to honor sisters Dr. Myrle Burk and Vera Burk Will

Dr. Roy M. Ventullo serves as professor of biology and director of undergraduate research. He was named the Dr. Myrle Burk and Vera Burk Will Chair in Biology in 1994.

Dr. Roy M. Ventullo

He received B.S. and M.S. degrees in biology and zoology, respectively, from State University of New York-Brockport. He went on to earn a Ph.D. degree in microbiology from the University of Georgia in Athens.

Before joining the Wartburg College faculty in 1994, Ventullo was a senior scientist in the Environmental Science Department at the Procter & Gamble Company. He also served on the biology faculty at the University of Dayton and was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.

His research interests include biofilm microbiology, antibiotic resistant bacteria, biodegradation of dyes by white rot fungi, and the microbiology of Bromeliads. Ventullo and his student and faculty research partners have presented their findings at academic conferences across the country.

Myrle Burk and Vera Burk Will were sisters who grew up in Black Hawk County and eventually returned to the Waterloo area to operate the family farm. Dr. Myrle Burk earned a Ph.D. in biology from the University of Illinois and was a former president of the Iowa Chapter of the Nature Conservancy and the Waterloo Audubon Society. Vera Burk Will pursued a career in business advertising and investment management.

The Irving R. Burling Endowed Chair in Leadership Established in 1989 through the generosity of Irving R. Burling, Century Companies of America, and CUNA Mutual Insurance

Dr. Fred Waldstein, professor of political science and director of Wartburg’s Dr. Fredric A. Waldstein Institute for Leadership Education, was appointed by Gov. Terry Branstad to serve as a founding member of the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service and was a founding member of the American Association of State Service Commissions. He is especially interested in building mutually reinforcing collaborations among organizations committed to service and volunteerism.

Waldstein co-chaired Engaging Students: First in the Nation, an interdisciplinary collaboration between Wartburg College and Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, N.H. This initiative focused on educating and engaging students and the public regarding the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary during the 2008 presidential election cycle.

Waldstein is a graduate of Wartburg College and holds a Ph.D. degree from Washington University in St. Louis.

He recently traveled to France to accept a MacJannet Prize for global citizenship, which recognized the Wartburg Community Builders program he developed.

Irving R. Burling is a former chair of the Wartburg College Board of Regents and retired president and chief executive officer of Century Companies of America in Waverly, now part of the CUNA Mutual Group. Gifts from Burling and the company funded the chair, which the Board of Regents named in his honor.

The Gerald R. Kleinfeld Distinguished Professorship in German History Established in 2007 through a generous contribution from Dr. Gerald R. Kleinfeld

An active researcher, Dr. Dan Walther is Dr. Daniel J. Walther the author of numerous articles and reviews and is a frequent presenter at national and international conferences. Since joining the Wartburg faculty in 1996, he has revised the history curriculum and developed new courses in German, African, and Russian history as well as “Colonialism and Culture.” Dr. Walther became the Gerald Kleinfeld Distinguished Professor of German History in 2007.

Walther’s interest in German colonialism resulted in a book, Creating Germans Abroad: Cultural Policies and National Identity in Namibia. He earned his Ph.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. degree from Indiana University, and a B.A. degree from Northwestern University. His professional experience includes a transatlantic doctoral seminar in German history at Bochum, Germany, and several fellowships and teaching assistantships.

He served as co-editor of an article in the Journal of the History of Sexuality, entitled “Masculinity and Homosexuality: Germany and the German Colonies, 1888-1945.”

Dr. Gerald Kleinfeld is founder and former executive director of the German Studies Association and a professor emeritus of history at Arizona State University. His professorship recognizes Wartburg as the last Germanimmigrant-founded college in the United States that still supports active programs and relationships with Germany and encourages those ongoing connections.

The Lowell J. Walker Athletics Directorship Endowed Chair Established in 1999 with a gift from the Lowell J. Walker estate

Rick Willis is director of athletics and head football coach. He came to Wartburg in 1997 as head football coach and left that position in 2005, when he was named Eric R. Willis director of athletics. He resumed his coaching career in 2008 and led the Knights to their 11th Iowa Conference football championship, eighth NCAA Division III playoff berth, and a run to the national quarterfinals.

Willis was named GTE Regional Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association following an unbeaten 1999 campaign.

During his initial tenure as defensive coordinator and head coach, Willis guided the Knights to one of the nation’s 10 best winning percentages, Iowa Conference championships in 1999, 2002, 2003, and 2004, and NCAA Division III playoff appearances in those same seasons. As an interim head softball coach, Willis took the program to national prominence during the 2003 season, leading Wartburg to an NCAA regional title and a tie for fifth at the Division III College World Series.

Before coming to Wartburg, Willis was the football defensive coordinator and head baseball coach at Wittenberg University. He graduated from Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, and earned his M.S. degree at the University of Illinois.

Lowell Walker had family ties to Wartburg. He enjoyed attending Artist Series, Christmas with Wartburg, and athletic events. His son, the late Dr. Richard Walker, chaired the health and physical education department and was head wresting coach. Two grandsons, Matthew ’84 and Steven ’91, graduated from Wartburg. Steve is now assistant athletic director, and his wife, Jennifer, is head volleyball coach. Walker spent 50 years at Waterloo Savings Bank as president and chairman of the board. A community leader and philanthropist, he also created a Wartburg scholarship in his son’s memory.

The Grant L. Price Endowed Department Chair Established in 2006 to honor the extraordinary generosity of Grant L. Price

Dr. Pier teaches a variety of communication courses and coordinates the Oral Communication Across the Curriculum Dr. Penni M. Pier component of the Essential Education Plan.

She serves on the Mid American Forensics League Executive Board, is past president of the Iowa Intercollegiate Forensics Association and serves on the Publications Board for the American Forensics Association.

Pier is a member of the National Communication Association and International Communication Association. She is the co-author of three books, Campaign ’96, The Primary Decision: A Functional Analysis of Debates in Presidential Primaries, and Campaign 2000. She also has published in Political Communication, Communication Quarterly, and Quarterly Journal of Speech as well as regularly presenting at the National Communication Association and the Iowa Communication Association.

Dr. Pier holds a B.A. degree in communication from Minnesota State University at Moorhead, an M.A. degree in communication from Missouri State University at Springfield, and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Grant L. Price taught at Wartburg College from 1990 to 1996, following a distinguished career in broadcasting that included pioneering work in television. He led development of Wartburg’s first television studio, the electronic media major, and the renovation of the former fine arts building into the McElroy Communication Arts Center. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Archives of Iowa Broadcasting in Wartburg’s Vogel Library. He also created two endowed scholarships in communication arts.

The Rudi Inselmann Endowed Professorship in Organ Established in 2010 with a gift from the Rudi Inselmann estate

Dr. Karen Black, chair of the music department, professor of music, and college organist, was named to the Rudi Inselmann Endowed Professorship in Organ in 2010.

Dr. Karen E. Black

Black has coached with organist Heinrich Walther in Freiburg, Germany, and has performed with the Wartburg Choir on European tours. She has performed organ recitals in the Castle Church at Wittenburg and St. George’s Church in Eisenach, Germany, and has appeared on Minnesota Public Radio’s nationally broadcast “Pipedreams” program. Her essay, “Musical Gifts for the Worshipping Body,” appears in Translucence: Religion, the Arts, and Imagination.

Black served as dean of the Waterloo, Iowa chapter of the American Guild of Organists and as Region III president of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians.

A faculty member since 1993, Black received her bachelor’s degree in church music from St. Olaf College and her Master of Music degree in organ and church music and Doctor of Music degree in organ performance and literature from Indiana University.

Dr. Rudolf Inselmann ’56 graduated from Wartburg as a piano major.

He earned a master’s degree in music and studied pipe organ at Indiana University, then attended Capital Bible Seminary and became an ordained Lutheran pastor. Later, he earned a doctorate in organ and sacred music at the University of Southern California. He was a longtime adjunct professor of piano and organ at Concordia University in Irvine, had a private organ studio, and was organist at two Orange County Catholic churches.

The Board of Regents Endowed Chair in Ethics

About Wartburg College

Established in 1989 by a gift from the Wartburg College Board of Regents

This endowed chairWartburg was held College

by Dr. Lake Lambert four-year III and was vacated Founded in 1852, is a selective liberal in the spring of 2010. arts college of the Lutheran Church (ELCA), nationally recognized for community engagement. The college offers more than 50 academic The College is currently undertaking a search to fill leading the Board of majors and preprofessional and certificate programs to the Regents Endowed Chair in Ethics for Fall Term 2011. bachelor’s degree.

The academic program strives to create a learning community that educates the whole person by developing students’ intellectual talents, The late Harry Slife of Cedar Falls, then chair of the Wartburg Board of cultivating their personal convictions, and engaging them in active Regents, led the effort to establish a chair in ethics, noting that “since the participation in the community. An intentional focus on leadership, transmission of the ideal and the ethical value-centered life is an integral global and multicultural education, and hands-on learning adds value of what Wartburg is all about, we felt there was no better place for to part the Wartburg educational experience. the board to leave its mark.” A long list of Regents contributed funding for the chair.

The Princeton Review ranks Wartburg among the “Best Midwestern Colleges.” Peterson’s Top Colleges for Science lists Wartburg among 200 schools with outstanding programs in science and mathematics.

Wartburg is among 109 schools named “with distinction” to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, recognizing volunteer service by Wartburg students. It is also ranked among the country’s top three chapters by Break Away alternative break organization, based on percentage of students who participate in service-related trips.

Rudi Inselmann Before he was a year old, Rudolf Inselmann amazed his family by keeping time with his feet whenever his father played the accordion. A few years later, when his family moved from the Papua, New Guinea, mission field to Waverly, their rented house was furnished with a piano.

Rudi began taking piano lessons, and at age 11, he played the organ for a wedding.

Dr. Inselmann graduated from Wartburg College in 1956 with a major in piano, earned a Master of Music degree in organ from Indiana University, and completed a doctorate in organ and sacred music at the University of Southern California. For 30 years, he was known in the music circles of Orange County, Calif., as an outstanding musician and a patient, gentle teacher. His home was furnished with an antique reed organ, a 1924 Steinway grand piano, and a large pipe organ that he played daily.

He served as organist at St. Kilian Catholic Church in Mission Viejo, Calif., and Our Lady of Queen of Angels Catholic Church in Newport Beach, Calif. He was a former dean of the Orange County Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and a longtime member of the Music Teachers Association of California, Orange Coast Cities Branch. An enthusiastic traveler, he viewed and played some of the world’s best known organs during his trips.

Dr. Inselmann contributed to Wartburg College and many other causes during his lifetime. He also accumulated significant assets through properties he purchased to supplement his income as a church musician and teacher. After his death in 2007, a gift from his estate funded the Rudi Inselmann Endowed Professorship in Organ and created an endowed scholarship fund for Wartburg music students.

Although Dr. Inselmann never taught at Wartburg, his gifts will ensure that continuing generations of Wartburg students can develop their talents in the field to which he devoted his life.

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