aquinas magazine :: fall 2002
DESCRIPTION
1 Online: [email protected] Mail: Aquinas Magazine, College Relations Department College Web site: www.aquinas.edu Aquinas College, 1607 Robinson Road, S.E. Alumni news: www. aquinas.edu/alumni Grand Rapids, MI 49506-1799 We will maintain the diversity of our Board of Trustees, faculty, student body, and staff and appreciate the different gifts each brings to this community regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, or disability. Design Greg BeckerTRANSCRIPT
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Editorial Team
Marty FaheyNicole Hagen
Joelle Kwiatkowski ’02Sally Reeves
Julie RidenourMelvene Tardy ’87
Contributors
Rick AlbroTerry Bocian ’70
Michelle Bottrall ’97Eric Bridge ’92
Mary Clark-Kaiser
Cecilia Cunningham
Gary EberleV. James Garofalo, Ph.D.
Harry J. Knopke, Ph.D.Shirley Lewis, Ph.D.
Paula Meehan ’75Sister Jean Milhaupt, O.P.
Bob Niedzielski ’58Jennifer Rybski, junior
Tonya Schafer ’02Nicole Selzer
Melissa Spagnoli, seniorCynthia VanGelderen
Brad Vedders
Greg VeddersBill Weitzel
DesignGreg Becker
Desktop PublisherSilvija Visockis
Photography
Mikel CahillBrian Kelly
Joelle Kwiatkowski ’02John Niedzielski ’97
Mark Schmidbauer
Aquinas magazine is a publication of the College Relations Department, Aquinas College, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
It is published semi-annually, spring and fall. Comments/suggestions are encouraged:
Online: [email protected] Mail: Aquinas Magazine, College Relations DepartmentCollege Web site: www.aquinas.edu Aquinas College, 1607 Robinson Road, S .E.
Alumni news: www. aquinas.edu/alumni Grand Rapids, MI 49506-1799
Fax: 616-459-2563 • Phone: 616-459-8281, Ext. 4422
Aquinas College, an inclusive educational community rooted in the Catholic Dominicantradition, provides a liberal arts education with a global perspective, emphasizes career
preparation focused on leadership and service to others, and fosters a commitment tolifelong learning dedicated to the pursuit of truth and the common good.
Aquinas College conducts an array of educational programs whose quality andeffectiveness cause it to be considered consistently as a premier Catholic liberal arts College
in the Midwest. In doing so, it is the College of choice for increasing numbers of studentswho seek a diverse, but inclusive, learning community that will enable them to increase
their knowledge, hone their competencies, develop their character, and answer God’s callingto use their gifts and talents to make a positive difference in our world through their lives,
work, and service. Aquinas strives to graduate students of competence, conscience,compassion, and commitment.
Aquinas College is committed to equality. This statement of the College speaks to this
commitment, as do our history and heritage. We believe that diversity is a blessing, whichbrings a richness of perspective to our intellectual, cultural, social, and spiritual life. All
members of our community—faculty, staff, students—will demonstrate respect for eachother regardless of our differences. All of us will be sensitive in our actions, words, and
deeds. We will demonstrate these sensitivities in our classrooms, curricula, offices, meetingplaces, and living environments.
We will maintain the diversity of our Board of Trustees, faculty, student body, and staff
and appreciate the different gifts each brings to this community regardless of age, gender,race, ethnicity, religion, or disability.
DIVERSITY STATEMENT
MISSION STATEMENT
VISION STATEMENT
AQUINAS COLLEGE
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Aquinas Web site . . . . . . . . . . . www.aquinas.eduMain line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 616-459-8281Admissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5150
1-800-678-9593Advising/Registrar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5140Alumni & Parent Relations . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4415
[email protected] Office fax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 616-732-4481Bookstore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4136Bookstore Web site . . . . . . . .www.aqbooks.comBookstore email . . . . . . . . . . [email protected] Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5550College Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4422Development Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4490President’s Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4413Student Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5120
Aquinas College Contact Information
Parking Access Map of Aquinas College
CONTENTSPresident’s Message page 6
Trustee Profiles page 7
Alumni News page 10Alumni Web Site — New Look page 14
Community OutreachCommunity Leadership Institute page 16Woodrick Institute page 18Emeritus College page 20
Campus News page 24International Programs page 26Elementary Reading Clinic page 29College Conferencing page 30
Deans’ News page 34Reggio Emilia-Inspired Programs page 36
Faculty News page 38
Student News page 40
AthleticsCoach Wood Commended page 42Athletic Schedules page 45
Admissions page 48
Development page 50Hall of Fame Gala Event page 51
Class Notes page 54
AQUINASFALL 2002 VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2
Coach Wood, Pg. 42
Cover: ReggioEmelia-inspiredprogram at ChildDevelopmentCenter in GrandRapids
Reggio Emilia,Pg. 36
Emeritus College,Pg. 20
Woodrick InstitutePg. 18
AQUINAS COLLEGEPERFORMING ARTS CENTER
KNAPEHALL
WEGESTUDENTCENTER
Oak Circle Drive Honeysuckle Lane
Whi
te P
ine
Lane
Redw
ood Lane Wege Way
Beech Lane
Elderberry Lane
WegeCircle Drive
Gin
kgo
Lane
COOKCARRIAGE
HOUSE
CAMPUSSAFETY
W O O D W A R DPA R K I N GL O T
WILLOWBROOKPRESIDENT’S
HOME
BROWNECENTER
MEIJERHALL
JOHN F.DONNELLY
CONFERENCECENTER
KNAPEHALL
DOMINICANHALL
REGINAHALL
(Residence)
GATEWOODWARD
HOUSE
FULTONHOUSE
WOODCOCKHALL
HRUBY HALLStudent Services Center
TEMPLEEMANUEL
HOLMDENE
GATE
ALBERTUS MAGNUSHALL OF SCIENCE
ACADEMIC BUILDING(Woodhouse Library)
ART AND MUSICCENTER
GARDEN
PHYSICAL EDUCATIONASSEMBLY BUILDING
(Field House)
MAINTENANCEBLDG.
GATE HOUSE(Campus Ministry)
ST. JOSEPHHALL
(Residence)
ST. THOMASPARISH
Entrances forHandicapped Students
DOWNTOWNGRAND RAPIDS
W I L C O XP A R K
ROBINSON RD.ENTRANCE
MAYFIELDLOT SOFTBALL
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PARKING( PARKING AFTER 12 NOON )
P L Y M O U T H L O T
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96 ML
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HistoricalMarker
BALDWINOBSERVATORY THEATRE ARTS
ANNEX
JORDANHALL
Restricted (Special Permit Only)
D – Upper St. Joseph Hall LotF – Wege LotG – Academic Building Front LotH – Holmdene LotI – Regina Hall LotN – West Science LotO – Gate House LotP – Hruby Hall Lot
Restricted to Residents OnlyA – Mayfield Lot (Gold Permit)Q – Browne Center Lot/North Section (Brown Permit)S – Donnelly Conference Center Lot (Green Permit)U – Dominican Hall Lot (Blue Permit)V – Meijer Hall LotW– Knape Hall LotP – Hruby Hall Lot - East (Red Permit)
Restricted for Emergency Use OnlyNo parking at any time. Use Woodward Lot.
J – Carriage House LotK – Jordan Hall Lot
General Parking (Commuter/Guests)
B – Fulton LotC – Bukowski Chapel LotE – Lower St. Joseph LotL – Plymouth Lot (Noon to Midnight)M – East Science LotQ – Browne Center LotT – Woodward Lot (Visitor Overnight Parking)
4
Hope all is well. The newmagazine is an excellentpiece—great job! I’m proud todisplay this magazine in myoffice so that others may take apeek into my alma mater. Also,the reception at the countryclub was super and I thoughtwell attended. Keep up thegood work.
Richard De Loof ’85Director/Capital Campaigns
St. John Health System Foundation,Detroit
Hello —The Aquinas magazine is
terrific! The team did an awesomejob on this!
Maggie (Studrawa ’01) Holmgren
Congrats on the new Aquinasmagazine. It truly puts theCollege into a new league foralums like me.
One thought: Back in 70s, asI recall, there was an attempt,very successful at times I thought,to have several “intellectual”articles in the magazine inaddition to all that importantinformation about the schools,the students, the faculty, thealums, etc.
Considering the wealth oftalent in the alumni pool, itseems you could developstimulating articles on topics ofcurrent interest to all. But, nocomplaint, keep up the greatwork!
George A. Colburn ’59
Dear EditorsI have just finished reading
from cover to cover the firstAlumni magazine (spring 2002issue). Congratulations for a jobwell done! It brought back manyfond memories of my fourwonderful years at Aquinas. Itwas especially great to see howservice oriented AQ has becomeover the last decade.
Service and learning was abrand new concept when I wasat AQ. It is truly rewarding torealize how far the smallinitiatives that were taken in thebeginning have expanded andgrown into such wonderful andinspiring programs.
For me, it was especiallyinspiring to read that the servicetrip to Wilderness State Park isactually still going on. In 1993
Editor Marty Fahey
Editor’s NoteLast March, we published and distributed the first edition of Aquinas magazine.
A great deal of time and effort was committed to its design and to developing acommunication vehicle that would share, clearly and effectively, the messages ofAquinas and its alumni.
Aquinas magazine will continue to grow with your help. Just as the sun and raincontribute to nature’s growth around us, your ideas feed us, guiding the magazine’scontinuing development—a “work in progress.” We hope you enjoy it as muchas our editorial team has enjoyed pulling it together.
We feel the inaugural edition achieved what we had envisioned last fall—creating a publication that accurately reflects what is happening here on campusas well as with the 16,000-plus alumni worldwide.
The response has been tremendous. We thank you for that overwhelmingvote of confidence. It is our hope to maintain that level of confidence whilecontinuing to improve the magazine’s quality with each issue. Help us by telling usabout your new job, family news or unique and interesting stories. Send us yourcomments, too. Send them to [email protected]. Look for the next editionin mid-February.
Letters to the Editor
57
’94 Kelly (Serwick) and JeffVanSkiver, a girl, Meredith Claire,Dec. 2001
’95 Kathy (Lund) and Dan Dean, aboy, Harrison John, Dec. 2001
’96 Deedra and Christopher Everett, aboy, Parker Jaymz, June 1999
’96 Deedra and Christopher Everett, aboy, Martin Alexander, Sept. 2000
’96 Jennifer (Lee) (MM, 2002) andRandy Reeves, a boy, CameronLee, April 2002
’96 Shannon (Kerridge) and John M.Redding, a girl, Mariah Marie,Sept. 2001
’97 Angela (Walden) ’99 and DarrellFaraci, a boy, Jacob Peter, April2002
’99 Angela (Walden) and DarrellFaraci, ’97, a boy, Jacob Peter,April 2002
’02 Christina (Wedeven) Wierengaand Jeff Wierenga, a boy, Joshua,May 2001
’02 Shawanna Rapier and ScottieFootman Jr., a boy, Scottie, Aug.2001
Marriages’92 Anne Marie Bonardelli to Dario
Matteocci, 1999’93 Lynn Block to Mark Rocca in 2002’97 Angela Walden ’99 to Darrell
Faraci, July 2000’98 Jess Fung to Jeffrey Kloosterman,
January 2002’98 Margaret (Meg) Roberts to
Richard Killips, May 2000’98 Rose Stempkey to Scott David ’98,
July 2002’98 Rose Stempkey to Scott David ’98,
July 2002’99 Angela Walden to Darrell Faraci
’97, July 2000’99 Tammy Elkins to David Cramer,
March 2002’00 Dawn Wierzbicki 2001 to Ryan P.
Smith, March 2002’00 Tricia Markovich 2001 to Anthony
Mosley, Nov. 2000’01 Shannon Eggebrecht to Joseph
Rinckey, July 2001’01 Rebecca Kupiecki to Matt Early,
July 2001’01 Tricia Markovich to Anthony
Mosley ’00, Nov. 2000
’01 Maggie Studrawa to RobHolmgren, Nov. 2001
’01 Dawn Wierzbicki to Ryan P. Smith2000, March 2002
’02 Anne Bukrey to Michael DirckMoyer, June 2002
’02 Alison Ray to Seth Van Andel,June 2002
Deaths’43 Lorraine Popma, wife of Gerald
Popma ’41, Jan. 2002’48 Edward Sypniewswi, March 2002’50 Robert Bechtold, brother of
Patricia Rademacher, Jan. 2002’51 Helen Hanson, Jan. 2002’51 Neola Wolf Winstrom, Dec. 2001’53 Catherine (Kay) Murray, April
2002’54 Lloyd Brown, March 2002’57 Mariette Hill, sister of Sister
Kenneth Fitzgerald, O.P., March2002
’58 Evangeline Ferguson, mother ofSister Mary Ann Ferguson, O.P.,Feb. 2002
’59 Sister Eileen Prueter, O.P., March2002
’62 Patricia Godlewski, April 2000’66 Al Anderson, brother of Sister
Catherine Anderson, O.P., Feb.2002
’66 John A. Otterbacher, father ofDr. John R. Otterbacher, Jan.2002
’69 Anthony Silva, brother of SisterLupe Silva, O.P., April 2002
’70 Boyd Gleason, father of Mary(Gleason) Harig, Feb. 2002
’78 Richard Wolters, husband of KatePew Wolters, June 2002
’82 Paul Zirkelbach, brother of Julie(Zirkelbach) Von Tilius, June2002
’88 Estelita (Stella) Ferris, Jan. 2002’93 Michael Lynch, father of John
Lynch, May 2001’97 Michael Lundstrom, father of
Jason Lundstrom, April 2002’98 Richard Leduc, June 1999’00 Michael Lynch, father of Miriam
Lynch, May 2002
5
I wrote the grant proposal toMichigan Campus Compact and,having the proposal accepted,took the first group of 10 studentswith Sister Catherine Williamsto Wilderness State Park.
And today, eight years later,to read that the service trip con-tinues to happen really mademy day on a very wet andgloomy day here in Sri Lanka.
Similarly, it’s so wonderful toknow that Project PRIDE stillflourishes and that all the ‘old’service trips such as the one toOaxaca [Mexico] still continuealong with the new and excitingtrips to Haiti, El Salvador, etc.I was part of the first group ofstudents that went to Mexicowith Brother Ben.
My four years at AQ playeda vital role in making me intowho I am today. Being so faraway from Aquinas, I oftenwonder about the latest hap-penings, news of other alumni,etc. and this magazine brings itall back so well and vividly. Keepup the good work. I look forwardto the next edition. Good Luck!
Peace. Marisa Fernando ’94
The following two letters were sent toPresident Knopke; excerpts are reprintedhere with permission. - Editor
As a recent graduate of AquinasCollege, I feel it necessary toexpress my thanks to theAquinas community. Of all ofthe decisions that I have madein my life, the decision toattend Aquinas College was, byfar, the most influential. As I
look back at my college career,I can easily identify the decid-ing factor in my success.
The faculty and staff con-tinuously saw me as more thanjust another student. I wastreated as a unique person withindividual talents, possibilitiesand interests. The Aquinascommunity went out of its wayto encourage me to identifymy talents, explore the endlesspossibilities and nurture mydiverse interests. In this, thefaculty and staff helped me todiscover who I was and how Iwanted to affect the worldaround me. This individualtreatment made my experiencewith the Aquinas communitypriceless.
Aquinas College offered meopportunities that no otherinstitution would have. Themission statement expresses thedesire to provide students witha ”global perspective,” a focuson “service to others,” and“the pursuit of truth and thecommon good.” With a facultyand staff that truly cared aboutme as a person, I have come tosee myself not only as a citizenof the United States, but as acitizen of humanity, as well.
Congratulations in achievingthe goals of your missionstatement. My sincerest thankyou to everyone who helpedmake this possible.
Beth M. Laux ’02 Rossford, Ohio
I have to take just a momentand tell you how thankful I amfor Aquinas College. I startedmy college education many years
ago at Grand Rapids Junior College[now Community College] …but quit after two years to putmy husband through school andstart our family.
God gave me the opportunityto teach music in some of theChristian schools in my com-munity. [However], the schoolsI teach in gave up [the musicprogram] when they found out Iwas uncertified. I owed it to theschools to become certified.
I was scared! I felt too old togo back to college. [After ex-ploring several other options] Ilooked into Aquinas. I knew thiswas where God intended I go toschool. He did not always makeit easy these past two years,but He gave me professors whotook an interest in me andencouraged me.
I have been blessed by myexperience at Aquinas. My fearhas been replaced by pride andthankfulness! In September, atthe ripe old age of 44, I will bea certified teacher! Thank youfor your part in making AquinasCollege a quality institutionwhere students are people andlearning is accompanied bycaring.
Joan Haagsma ’02
Let us hear
from you!
www.aquinas.edu/alumni
Letters may beedited for space.
56
1997Pam Bacon has returned to Aquinas asan assistant to the Registrar.
Lisa Marie (Kachur) Piatek is the newDirector of Adult Student Recruitmentof Aquinas College. Lisa will beresponsible for the planning andimplementation of the recruitmentefforts for adult learners in the continu-ing Education and Graduate Manage-ment programs. Lisa is the formerDirector of Corporate Relations andSpecial Events at the College.
1998Margaret (Meg Roberts) Killips waspromoted as Activity Director for theWoodland Terrace RetirementCommunity in Grand Rapids.
Greg Stielstra, a graduate of the Masterof Management program, works as adisc jockey with Bill Worst ’78, owner ofthe Pinnacle Center in Hudsonville.
Rose (Stempky) David received herDoctor of Optometry degree in May of2002 from the Michigan College ofOptometry.
René Palileo has joined Grand RapidsYouth Commonwealth as its Director ofDevelopment. He had been with theVolunteer Center of United Way inChicago as a Corporate PartnershipAssociate
1999Tammy (Elkins) Cramer is theCommunity Outreach ProgramDirector at Flint Circuit on FamilyViolence, Inc. in McDonough, Georgia.
John P. Rice has joined GreenridgeRealty, Inc. of Grand Rapids. He is aformer financial consultant at MerrillLynch.
Kathryn Kupiecki is the Coordinatorof Gift Processing at Aquinas Collegewhere she had been the Coordinator ofthe Aquinas Fund.
2000Amanda Spitzley opened LandwirteLoft, a restaurant serving Germancuisine in Westphalia, Michigan, onApril 1, 2002.
2002Cecilia Tran will be attending LawSchool at Michigan State University inthe fall.
Julie Fredrick joined the Peace Corpsand is working in the Philippines.
Martha Weaver will be studentteaching this fall at Eastern Elementaryin Traverse City. She was recentlyinducted into the math honor society(Pi Mu Epsilon).
Beth Pochert will be attending WayneState University in Detroit to obtainher Ph.D. in Microbiology andImmunology.
Victoria Sackett, an outstanding trackathlete, is the first woman in Aquinashistory to be named as an All-Americanfour years in a row.
Omar Flores and Josh Greenwald havejoined Aquinas as Admissions Represen-tatives. Flores will be recruiting fromhigh schools in the Grand Rapids, KentCounty, and Detroit Areas. Greenwaldwill be recruiting in mid-Michigan andThumb-area (eastern Michigan) highschools.
Joelle Kwiatkowski has also joined theAquinas staff as a Staff Assistant to thePresident.
Karl Schantz recently left his positionas the Coordinator of Gift Processing atAquinas to accept a teaching position inTexas.
Timothy Stafford is also on the Aquinasstaff an as an accountant.
Births’87 Laura (Grabinski) and Thomas
Usakowski, a boy, Daniel Joseph,Oct. 2000
’87 Sharon (Monty) and Greg Moody,a boy, Adam Gregory, Oct. 2001
’89 Tamie (McCarthy) and DanielRosenburg, a boy, Atlas Xavier,July 2001
’90 Rita (Visockis) ’92 and JosephTomaszewski, a boy, MatthewAntons, August 2001
’93 Mary Jo (Mangutz) and BryanSkiendziel, boys, Thomas Jamesand Andrew David, July 2001
2001Rick Mills will begin law school this fallat the University of Detroit MercySchool of Law. He is a Credit Analystfor Federal-Mogul Corporation ofSouthfield and resides in Royal Oakwith his wife, Mary.
Elizabeth Dudek is a ProductionSpecialist at CCH, Inc., a legalpublishing house in Riverwoods,Illinois, a Chicago suburb.
Lanae Gill is the new Resident Directorfor St. Joseph Hall at Aquinas College.
Ellen Harburn is the Coordinator ofSpecial Events/Outreach at Aquinas.
2002
Heidi Hilton has joined NewEngland Financial in Grand Rapidsas a Managing Associate intraining. Her duties include salesand sales management, recruitingand developing business relation-ships with other companies thatare interested in partnerships withthe agency. Currently, she is focusing onthe women’s professional sector,contacting area women businessowners and executives to developa consortium that will offer theirskills and services to each other,their clients and the clients ofNew England Financial. Heidi believes that active in-volvement within the communityprovides the personal and profes-sional rewards so important in herdaily life. Heidi and her husbandZan, have three children, Hunter,Marshall and Ember.
6
Pres
iden
t’sM
essa
ge
“A good deal is
happening here … ”
As I write on this lovely, quiet, midsummer evening, the thought ofMatthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach” comes to mind. The air is sweet withthe fragrances of summer; yet it’s not the roar of pebbles with theirtremulous cadence on the strand I hear resounding through Holmdenebut the sounds from across the green of the equipment deployed inconstructing our new performing arts center.
Unlike the melancholic environment Arnold was describing, however,this is an energetic, optimistic campus, fresh from a Commencementthat capped an outstanding academic year. The construction sounds—even the seemingly incessant beeping of trucks backing up—are pleasantones indeed as they signal the emergence of our latest building thatwill house one of the country’s most unique collaborative efforts intheatre arts education and theatrical productions.
The new performing arts facility will be completed next summer;facets of our collaboration with Circle Theatre and the CatholicSecondary Schools have already been initiated, however, led by jointlymounted teaching-learning efforts now underway.
In addition to the access they have to a range of new theatre artsopportunities, our traditional students this year are enrolling in coursesorganized according to the curriculum revisions passed by the facultylast spring. These revisions decreased the overall number of core coursesrequired of each student while retaining the integrity of the essentialliberal arts enterprise. In making these changes the faculty has providedour students with flexibility to achieve breadth as well as depth in theirstudies, to take more electives—and even an additional major— andyet graduate in the traditional time frame. The new curriculum will besupported, in part, by the College’s new advising system, which providesfor closer ongoing relationships between faculty and students pursuingmajors in their departments.
One major described in this issue, Community Leadership, is enteringits fourth year of enabling students to develop a foundation of leadershipskills they can use in community-centered work. This major alsoconnects students with our Community Leadership Institute, whichfocuses on external community leadership development. It is one ofthree college institutes that provide nexus points between the collegeand the broader community.
Another is the Woodrick Institute, also featured in this issue, whichconnects Aquinas with the community in multiple ways in its diversity-centered work with corporations, organizations, businesses, and schoolsystems, building on Dominican tradition of hospitality andinclusiveness. Finally, the Aquinas Emeritus College, the oldest of ourinstitutes, is thriving by the efforts of new administrative leadershipand an expanded board of governors active in, and committed to, lifelonglearning.
A good deal is happening here; Aquinas College is a vital place wherewe continue to pursue the highest of standards in the classroom andthe community. We are able to do so as the result of your continuingsupport of time, talent, and treasure.
President Harry and Sheila Knopke
55
1989Elizabeth Kubik now teaches at theDetroit School of Industrial Arts whereshe is an English instructor for 9ththrough 12th grades.
Tamie Anne (McCarthy) Rosenburg ofInterlochen, Michigan received the2000 Presidential Award for Excellencein Mathematics and Science Teaching(PAEMST), honoring her as one of thenation’s best K-12 math and scienceteachers. She is a mathematics teacherat Traverse City West Senior HighSchool.
1991Alexa Finkler has recently accepted aposition with the Minute Maid Com-pany as a Human Resources Generalistin Highstown, New Jersey.
Michele Knabe,D.D.S., who earned herdoctorate from the University of IllinoisCollege of Dentistry in 1999, has joinedthe dental practice of Patricia Gilleran,D.D.S., in Chicago.
Mary Nicholson, a graduate of theMaster of Management program, has beenappointed the Director of Marketing andProject Management at AutodieInternational in Grand Rapids.
1992Anne Marie Bonardelli, a Master ofManagement graduate, has relocated toRochester Hills, Michigan, after livingin Rome, Italy for five years where shehad been on assignment with heremployer, EDS.
Derek Schafran was promoted toRegional Manager for Enterprise Rent--A-Car in Cary, North Carolina, wherehe resides with his wife, Annie, andtheir two children.
1993Valerie Holtrop moved to Dallas,Texas, where she works from her homeas a Manager of International Logisticsfor Schreiber Foods, Inc., of Green Bay,Wisconsin.
Apologies to...
John Lynch ’93 for erroneouslylisting him in our Spring 2002edition as having died. John is verymuch alive and well and living inMt. Prospect, Illinois, where heworks for Maplechase Co. ofDowners Grove.
However, we wish to extend oursympathies to John and his sister,Miriam Lynch ’00, on the death oftheir father, Michael Lynch in Mayof 2001. We deeply apologize forthe distress the erroneous informa-tion caused some of our readers.
1994Alec Hosterman recently took a full-time position at Indiana University-South Bend in the Communication Artsprogram.
1995Katherine Lund Dean, Ph.D., a Masterof Management graduate, recentlyearned her doctorate from St. LouisUniversity where she will be an adjunctprofessor this fall. She and her husbandrecently welcomed a son, Harrison, intotheir family.
1996Christopher Everett is now theNetwork Administrator for Meetings &Events International in Evansville,Indiana where he and his wife, Deedra,live with their two sons.
Krista Kahle is an Associate with Trkla,Pettigrew, Allen & Payne, Inc., inChicago.
Jennifer (Lee) Reeves, a 2002 graduateof the Master of Management program,is working as a news producer forWOOD-TV in Grand Rapids.
Jennifer (Sturm) Lilly is an elementaryschool teacher in Turlock, Californiawhere she resides with her husband.
1987Jodie (Schrock) Southwell wasnamed the new vice president ofsales and marketing for PriorityHealth, West Michigan’s largestmanaged-care company. Southwellis responsible for the planning andcoordination of business developmentand overall sales and marketing.Southwell, wife and mother of two,is celebrating her 15th year atPriority Health.
1988Patrick A. Miles, Jr., was elected tothe Policy Committee at Varnum,Riddering, Schmidt & Howlett LLPin Grand Rapids. He is the firstAfrican American to serve in a topleadership capacity at a majorGrand Rapids-based law firm. Thesix-member Policy Committee isresponsible for management over-sight, strategic decision-making andleadership in firm-wide policies andprocedures.
Miles joined the firm in 1991following graduation from HarvardLaw School. Miles is a Trustee forthe Grand Rapids Bar Associationand a Trustee Emeritus of AquinasCollege.
Recorded memoirs of Aquinas’ history available on
CD and cassette (see p. 13).
7
TrusteeProfilesAquinas College Loses a Friend: Fr. James Cusack(1929-2002)By Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned Giving
With a rich Irish brogue and precise timing, no one could bring thepunch line of a story to a laughing conclusion better than the Rev. JamesCusack. Ordained in June 1956, Fr. Jim carefully guarded the Irish historybrought by his grandparents from Ireland during the Potato Famine of 1845.From a farm in Hubbardston, Michigan, he entered the seminary in 1946to become a parish priest in the Grand Rapids Diocese.
While inspiring parishioners in churches throughout West Michigan,Fr. Jim founded Our Lady of Consolation in Rockford and retired in 1995from Holy Family Parish of Caledonia. Never one to rest, Fr. Jim served asa spiritual mentor to men in need of guidance.
Fr. Jim served three terms on theAquinas Board of Trustees. Afortuitous meeting with SisterAmata Fabbro, O.P., chair of theTheology Department, fueled hisinterest in Catholic highereducation and resulted in theestablishment of the Father JamesC. Cusack Endowment forTheological and InterfaithStudies.
The endowment, the oldestprogrammatic endowment at theCollege, provides for the latest inreligious education materials.
Fr. Jim penned a Morning Prayerthat we want to share with you:
Good Morning, Lord.I am healthy.I am happy.I am successful.Today, is the greatest day of my life.And, tomorrow will be better.Yesterday is history.Tomorrow is a mystery.Today is a gift.That is why we call it the presentOrder the beginning.Direct the progress.Perfect the achievement of all I undertake this day.In all that I undertake this day—
not to me, O Lord, but to Thy name give glory.
Fr. Jim (left) with Sister Amata and President Knopke at a reception hosted byHarry and Sheila Knopke in 2000 honoring Fr. Jim’s loyalty to Aquinas College.
54
Cla
ssN
otes
The deadline for
submitting
class notes
for the
spring
Aquinas magazine
is December 1, 2002.
1975Jesse Young, who teaches and coachesat Rockford Public Schools, was selectedby the Michigan Inter-scholastic GolfCoaches Association as its Division 1Boys Golf Coach of the Year.
1976Verna Teeuwissen , who has the dis-tinction of being the College’s oldestgraduate, celebrated her 90th birthdayin August 2001with an open house.She resides in Grand Rapids where shekeeps busy, helping her fellow residentsat Porter Hills learn more aboutcomputers and e-mail.
1978Bill Worst is the owner and creator ofthe newly opened Pinnacle Center inHudsonville, Mich. The Center offersmusic alternatives in an intimate setting.Greg Stielstra ’98 has also joinedWorst at the Pinnacle Center, as apart-time DJ.
1981Sister Justine Kane, O.P., was selectedthis year as one of the 32 finalists for theChicago-area Golden Apple Award forExcellence in Teaching.
1984Joseph Dodge recently opened up alaw office in Charlotte, North Carolina,specializing in trial law. He lives inCharlotte with his wife and threesons.
Anthony “Tony” Lafferty works forEnvironmental Systems ResearchInstitute as its Government AccountManager responsible for the State ofCalifornia.
Judy (Sturm) Crawford is an activemember of St. Mary Magdalen FaithCommunity where she is involved inMusical Liturgy, and Youth and AdultFaith Formation.
1985Robert M. Worth, Jr. was honored by the Wyoming-Kentwood (Michi-gan) Area Chamber of Commercewith the 2001 Volunteer of the Yearaward.
1958Arthur Lee has retired from WashtenawCommunity College and the University ofMichigan, where he taught mathematics.He and his wife live in Ann Arbor.
1967Sister Constance Fifelski graduatedfrom Catholic Theological Union ofChicago, Illinois, in May 2002.
1972Wayne Postma was recognized bythe Kidney Foundation of Michiganas its 2002 Galaxy Award Recipientfor Community Service April 17 inGrand Rapids. Wayne (pictured withhis wife, Barbara) became involvedwith NKF shortly after his ownsuccessful kidney transplant in1986. Postma founded the WestMichigan chapter and serves aschairman of NKF of Michigan andcontinues to lead the organizationsgrowth and development.
1974Susan (Marcoux) Rowe is the firstfemale to be principal of the presti-gious 930 student University ofDetroit Jesuit High School andAcademy (founded in 1877). Roweworked at the all-boys school for17 years having started as a theologyteacher moving to campus ministry,dean of students and then academicassistant principal.
8
Bringing National Issues to Aquinas Students:Trustee Emerita Yvonne SimsBy Michelle Bottrall ’97, Freelance Writer
Charles Dickens once said that charity begins at home and justice be-gins next door. It’s pretty obvious that ol’ Charlie never visited with AquinasTrustee Emerita Yvonne Sims. In the Sims house, charity and justice spenda great deal of time working hand in hand.
Sims spends many days volunteering for the National Issues Forum (NIF),a nationwide network of educational and community organizations thatdeliberate about controversial issues that affect the nation such as racialharmony, alcohol abuse, poverty and welfare reform.
She brought the NIF to Aquinas College, folding it into the CommunityLeadership program. Aquinas now has several student study groups com-mitted to discussing pertinent issues.
“Here at Aquinas we recognize that there are enrichment experiences inaddition to career preparation experiences,” said George Heartwell, direc-tor of the Community Leadership Institute. “The National Issues Forumdoes a lot to prepare students for life after college and without Yvonne itwouldn’t be here at the College let alone here in Grand Rapids. She is abulldog with this organization.”
This last year, Yvonne spent time on several panel discussions through-out the community, talking about the effects of 9/11 and how we couldprevent similar tragedies.
“Of course we have to be ready and do what we can action wise if this[9/11] occurs again,” she said. “But what surprised a lot of us is that so manypeople in the world have bad feelings about us as a country. We becamevery interested in what we project as an American persona. People gener-ally felt that we hadn’t thought about projecting an image, but that we justgo blithely along not lending an ear to people’s problems.”
Her work with the NIF got people looking at different ways they couldbe more sympathetic to world problems.
But the NIF is just one of several organizations this 65-year-old grand-mother devotes her time. Charity work runs in her blood. It began withher mother, Marcella Alvis, who started the Grand Rapids Silver Charmsover 25 years ago. Her mom still works actively with them today, givingout good citizenship awards, and Thanksgiving and Christmas baskets tothe needy.
When her son, Eugene II, left to go to Brown University, Yvonne put theword out that she had some free time. That’s all it took, she said. Soon, shewas so busy with worthwhile causes she didn’t have the heart to say no.
Since then she has devoted her time to over 20 different communityorganizations including the National Issues Forum, the Women’s ResourceCenter, the Grand Rapids Study Club and the local investment club, LesMeres.
Although an alum of the University of Michigan where she graduatedwith a Master’s in Education and Social Work, Yvonne became interestedin Aquinas after her husband, Eugene, graduated from here.
Yvonne Sims
53
Baldwin ReceptionAquinas College honored Ralph Belknap Baldwin, Ph.D., a
friend of the College at a reception last May, commemorat-ing an astronomy photo exhibit made in memory of Baldwin’sfriend, Alfred Hewitt. The exhibit, which is housed in AlbertusHall, features a series of stunning planetary and lunar photo-graphs filmed in outer space and presented to Baldwin byNASA.
Baldwin, a world-renowned physicist and astronomer,earned degrees in astronomy and astrophysics. He publishedhis research in several books, including The Face of the Moon
and the Measureof the Moon, and The Moon: A Fundamental Survey. His work was creditedwith leading indirectly to the U.S. exploration of the moon, and hisresearch data also were used in selecting Apollo’s 11 lunar landingsite.
During World War II, the Applied Physics Laboratory tappedBaldwin to work at Johns Hopkins University to conduct militaryresearch. His latest book, They Never Knew What Hit Them, explains theimportance of the proximity fuse, a device that made artillery shellsmore effective against ground and aircraft targets.
The Baldwin Observatory, which bears his name, was dedicated in1994.
Ralph Baldwin (right) with President Knopke.
Guests enjoy the photo display
The College continues to flour-ish because of the significant sup-port of our benefactors to theAquinas Fund, Performing ArtsCenter collaboration and the En-dowment. In appreciation of thisgenerosity, Board of Trustee mem-ber Roger Schiefler and his wifeKathleen hosted the second an-nual President’s Reception at theirEast Grand Rapids home this pastJune.
President Harry Knopke high-lighted the tremendous progressthat has taken place this year to-ward achieving financial stabilityand growth. The Aquinas Fund hasincreased 31 percent to a record$1.7 million, the Performing ArtsCenter collaboration was suc-cessfully completed with a May 6
groundbreaking ceremony, andthe Endowment continues to growwith outright gifts and bequests.
Omar Flores, a 2002 graduate,personally thanked attendees forhelping to fund his Aquinas schol-arship and shared what the Ireland
Roger and Kathleen Schiefler host the 2002 President’s Reception for benefactors.
President’s Reception for College BenefactorsBy Cecilia Cunningham, Director of Aquinas Fund
program and community serviceprojects have meant to him. KarenPalmore ’89 spoke of the blessingher Aquinas education has been inshaping her successful businesscareer while offering a positiveChristian environment.
9
“What I like about Aquinas is the spirit, the caring spirit about the studentsand by the students here on campus. There is real compassion here and Ilike that.”
She has devoted her life mostly to children and spent many years work-ing within the public school system. She retired as director of the KentEducation Center last March and just finished nine years as an AquinasTrustee.
Despite her avid community involvement, Yvonne works behind thescenes, said her cousin Sharon Smith, the director of career and counselingat Aquinas.
“It’s very rare that you find out what Yvonne has done until long after,”she said. “She is one of my role models and my mentor for doing things inthe community.”
Still, a life that is committed to the community cannot go completelyunnoticed. She received the Giants’ Award for Community Service, theGrand Rapids Public School Award for Innovative Contributions, the LifeEnricher Award from the Amway Foundation and the NAACP Award nam-ing her the Grand Rapids Administrator for Due Process.
“I was never surprised by the awards, but I wasn’t sure if I was always themost deserving. There are lots of other people that deserved them as well,but that’s a good thing because there is always more than enough work togo around.”
Alumni DominateNew Trustee Ranks
A record number of alumni willjoin the College’s Board of Trust-ees this fall. Four of the six newboard members, elected in May2002 are former students atAquinas.
Carretta Cooke ’78, a native ofDetroit, is the Director of AfricanAmerican Student Affairs atNorthwestern University (Evans-ton, Illinois), placing her as thehighest ranking African Americanin the University’s administration.
Rich Cook ’92, a graduate ofthe College’s Master of Manage-ment program, is President/CEOof X-Rite Incorporated (Grand-ville) and is active in severalcommunity organizations inGrand Rapids, including the
Board of Directors of the WestMichigan World Affairs Council.
Marilyn Quinn Drake ’81 isactively involved in the GrandRapids Art Museum, where shealso serves as a member of its Boardof Trustees.
Tim McGuire ’71 is the retirededitor of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Minneapolis Star Tribuneand Senior Vice President of theStar Tribune Foundation. He isalso the former president of theAmerican Society of NewspaperEditors. He received the AquinasCollege Outstanding Alumnus Awardin both 1992 and 2001.
The Honorable William B.Murphy received his law degreefrom Wayne State University af-ter attending Aquinas College andnow serves as judge for the Michi-gan Court of Appeals.
Dr. Luis Tomatis receivedhis medical degree at theRosario Medical School inArgentina in 1954. In 1995,he finished his surgicalcareer to become theFounding President of theVan Andel Institute and iscurrently the Director ofMedical Affairs for theRichard M. DeVos Family.Dr. Tomatis was honoredwith the 2001 AquinasCollege Reflection Award. Hisdaughter, Gabriela Minhaar-Tomatis, is a 1982 Aquinas grad.
Trustee Profiles
52
An Evening ofEleganceBy Lisa Piatek ‘97,
Director of Special Events
Aquinas College presented itssecond annual Evening of Eleganceat Gibson’s Restaurant (Grand Rap-ids) last May. Current and formerAquinas Board of Trustees Gregand Sally Alksnis, Kirk and LoriBush, John and Chris Wheeler andAmbassador Peter and JoanSecchia hosted the specialevening.
Nearly one hundred of theCollege’s alumni and friends at-tended the evening in support ofthe Aquinas Fund for studentscholarships and core liberal artsprograms.
Guests were treated to a gour-met cuisine featuring “A Taste ofthe World,” prepared by Executive
Chef Andrew Smith of Gibson’s,and an exclusive wine tasting pre-sentation between each course byAndrew Gessell of Veuve Clicquot,Inc., a Newton, California winery.The intimate setting, unique meal
and personal wine tasting presen-tation delighted the guests. Thegenerosity of our many guests andcorporate sponsors helped Aquinasraise more than $10,000 for studentscholarships.
(Left to right) Dr. Lois Ganzi, Dr. Rick Ganzi, Lori Bush (standing), Dr. Barbara DePree,Kirk Bush (standing) Kris DePree, Dr. Maria Hoekstra, Dr. Bill Hoekstra
When the Saints, go marching in…isn’t just a song. It is the rally call for Aquinas alumni this year. The messageis “Get involved!” There are opportunities for your time, talent and treasure.
If it’s from the treasure chest, here’s a financial incentive—the Wege Foundation has generously agreed tomatch all new or the increased portion of a gift up to $200,000 for the 2002-2003 fiscal year. So, whateverlevel of your financial gift, $25, $100, $500, $5,000 or more, get involved and take this opportunity todouble the value of that contribution.
Since the mid-90s, Aquinas has seen its alumni support fall below 20 percent while other familiar collegescontinue to experience strong financial support from their alumni like Calvin (32%), Hope (39%), Alma (32%),Albion (43%), and Kalamazoo (34%). Each Alumni gift, small or large, makes an impact on the campus, evenin the national rankings of colleges. The stronger the percentage of Alumni participation the better. Nextyear, we will publish the participation for each class and the percentage increase over this past year.
Gifts to the Aquinas Fund help to support student scholarships and core curriculum programs. Gifts to theendowment help the College in perpetuity. In a recent address, President Harry Knopke stated that “if ouralumni would give an average of $100 annually, the College would flourish financially.”
Join the parade … When the Saints go marching in … and make an impact by giving to the Aquinas Fund.If you’d rather give of your time and talent, great! Contact us and tell us how you can help, and we’ll let you
know where we can put your talents to work. - Cecilia Cunningham, Director of the Aquinas Fund
Development Office 616-459-8281, ext. 4408 [email protected]
Let the Rally Call Be Heard!
10
Alu
mni
New
s Alumni Association Board MessageChange is inevitable.The world around us changes
daily and we ourselves are certainlynot the same persons we werewhen we attended Aquinas.Change is in the air at AquinasCollege too. Recently ground wasbroken on campus for a newtheatre.
Scheduled for completion insummer 2003, the theatre is theresult of a unique collaborationinvolving Aquinas College, CircleTheatre of Grand Rapids, and theCatholic Secondary Schools ofGreater Grand Rapids. The resultwill be a new performing artscenter in the area, which willpresent a significant opportunityfor Aquinas students.
Academically, there have beenchanges too. The AcademicAssembly, after months ofdiscussion, adopted new GeneralEducation requirements.
The num-ber of credit hoursrequired to fulfill the GeneralEducation standard has beenreduced from 67 to 50 semesterhours. The revision brings theAquinas requirement more in linewith that of colleges similar toAquinas.
The Aquinas College AlumniAssociation has not been immune
Bob Niedzielski ’58Vice President,Alumni Association
to change. Beginning this fall, theAssociation will operate underupdated bylaws. The change willmake the Association morecompatible both with the goals ofAquinas College and with collegeand university peer models, orbenchmark schools, which theCollege has been using in itsongoing Program Review.
This second edition of Aquinasmagazine typifies the changingAlumni Association.
One thing has not changed,however. That is the need toinclude “U” in the affairs of theAl_mni Association. The revisedbylaws call for greater use ofsubcommittees, allowing forgreater involvement of alumniin hands-on activities.
It also calls for greater diversityof participants, both on the Boardand in its activities, with respectto age, ethnicity, gender, anddegree earned and geographicrepresentation.
If you would be interested inbecoming involved in the AquinasAlumni Association, please contactMelvene Tardy, Director ofAlumni and Parent Relations, at616-459-281, ext. 4415. She willbe happy to send you informationon the volunteer opportunities
Corrections & Apologies
In the spring 2002 issue of Aquinas magazine, we erroneouslylisted Outstanding Alumni Award honoree Tim J. McGuire ‘71as a 1977 graduate.
In that same article, we listed Distinguished Service Awardhonoree David Weinandy, Ph.D., as having received hisdoctorate in Interpersonal Relations from Michigan StateUniversity. Weinandy received his doctorate from BowlingGreen University.
51
Endowment Society DinnerAlan R. Ryan has been a part of Aquinas College since
1985, serving as Board Chairman and now a Trustee Emeri-tus. Last April, the College honored Ryan during its 2002Aquinas College Endowment Society Dinner, which alsorecognizes new members of the Endowment Society.
“Alan is a great and dedicated believer in planning andplanned giving. His membership in the Aquinas CollegeEndowment Society comes from a carefully charted courseof philanthropy and commitment to Catholic higher edu-cation,” says Bill Weitzel, director of planned giving.
The E.C. “Jack” and Irma Ryan Scholarship Fund wasestablished in memory of his parents in 1989. Ryan giftedthe main section of the Cook Carriage House to the Col-lege in memory of his late first wife, Carolyn Ryan.
During his after dinner remarks, Ryan highlighted thenew property, new buildings, new systems, programmaticinvestments that have evolved and how key decisions,though risky at the time, were made with prayer, hope and,above all, vision and expectation.
The important message he stressed is that each of ourcollege constituencies will have a role to play in a long-term endowment building program.
There must be realistic planning that will detail strate-gies, time tables, resources and responsibility to assureachievement, to become a truly “premiere Catholic liberalarts college in the Midwest.”
Aquinas College Hall of Fame Gala EventBy Sister Jean Milhaupt, O.P., Archivist
On September 27, 2002, Aquinas College will host its inaugural Hall of Fame Gala Event inthe Wege Center Ballroom. The climax of the Gala will be the inauguration of the AquinasCollege Hall of Fame. The AQ Historical Commission will honor two persons for long-termdistinguished achievements that reflect the mission of the College. One is granted to anAlumnus/a and one to a person who has served within the College or supported it from out-side.
Plaques showing the recipients and their achievements will be displayed in the main lobbyof the Academic Building. A committee including representatives of the Historical Commis-sion, faculty, staff and alumni made this year’s selections. Future annual awards nominationswill be solicited from the Aquinas community and alumni. For additional information or toobtain tickets for the Gala, contact the Development Department at 616-459-8281, ext. 4490.
Alan Ryan pictured with his wife, Margaret, wasrecognized for his contributions to Aquinas.
Alan Ryan (left) introduced byTrustee Lyle Morrison.
11
Arizona Alumni:Staying ConnectedBy Cecilia Cunningham,Director of the Aquinas Fund
Maintaining meaningful con-nections with Aquinas alumni isvery important and fun! In an effortto reconnect with alumni, Davidand Michelle Bottrall ’97 hosted afabulous and well attendedPresident’s Reception at the DesertMountain Country Club inScottsdale, Arizona (February 21).
We had a champagne toast tothe continued prosperity of theCollege, as we watched a beauti-ful sunset from the terrace of theGeronimo Clubhouse.
There are already plans for thenext reception. Jack ’70 and TamiHebert are hosting a fall receptionat the Wrigley Mansion Club in
Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada,Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idahoor Texas, please call Cecilia A.Cunningham at:
616-459-8281, ext. 4408(direct line) or800-748-0186(during regular office hours);e-mail: [email protected]
Scottsdale on October 29, 2002,at 6 p.m. Please mark your calen-dar and watch for invitations inearly October.
Here’s a call to alumni in theWest and southwestern states—Would you like an Aquinas recep-tion or gathering in your city? Ifyou are in the states of Arizona,
An oak-paneled room of the Country Clubof Detroit was the setting for a gathering ofDetroit-area alumni, prospective students andfriends in April. The reception, hosted by Mrs.Jane (Forton) Cracchiolo ‘53, featured a musicprogram by two outstanding Aquinas students,Sarah Makowski and Brook Baragar, as well asrecent graduate, Bill Marfink. The meeting wasan opportunity to renew old friendships and
Michelle Bottrall ’97 (left), President Knopke (2nd from left) and Trustee DavidBottrall (3rd from left) join with Aquinas alumni in watching an Arizona sunsetat a reception hosted by the Bottrall’s last February in Scottsdale.
Detroit Alumni Reception
make new acquaintances. The group also heard fromAquinas President, Dr. Harry Knopke, who reviewed theprogress of the new Performing Arts Center building nowunder construction on campus.
(Above) left to right: Dan Timmis ’00, Rob Tubman ’88,Dr. James Karam ’76, Ernest Mathis ’91.
(Right) left to right: Bill Marfink ’87, Barbara Witham McCargar ’77,Chair, Aquinas Music Department, Jane (Forton) Cracchiolo ’53,Margaret (Mayan) Glinke ’56, and Sarah Makowski (senior).
50
Dev
elop
men
t Contemporary WriterSeries Fifth AnniversaryBy Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned
Giving
Aquinas College recently hon-ored alums Linda Nemec Foster ‘72and Tony Foster, M.D., ‘73 for theiroutstanding support of AquinasCollege and especially for the fifthanniversary of the Aquinas CollegeContemporary Writers Series.
Linda also studied at GoddardCollege in Vermont, where she re-ceived her Master of Fine Arts increative writing in 1979. Linda, anaccomplished poet, has been pub-lished in numerous journals, re-views and magazines. She won theNational Writers’ Voice PoetryProject Fellowship in 1999; Nicho-las Roerich Poetry Prize finalist forher book Living in the Fire Nest in1997; and the Arts Foundation ofMichigan Creative Artist Award inPoetry in 1996, just to name a fewof her awards. Late last year, Lindawas published again with herbook Amber Necklace from Gdansk.
The book was inspired by her Pol-ish American heritage and her firstvisit to her family’s homeland in1996.
Linda has shared her talents inother ways and from 1980-1998she taught, lectured and conductedworkshops in creative writing forthe Michigan Council for the Arts’Creative-Writers-in-School Pro-gram. Linda also was an adjunctprofessor at Aquinas College in1999 and was a featured poet atthe Aquinas College Writing Con-ference in 1998.
Dr. Foster continued his educa-tion at Wayne State University,where he received his Doctorateof Medicine in 1977. Tony is cur-rently a general surgeon in prac-tice with Michigan Medical P.C.
Tony and Linda have supportedAquinas College in many wayssince their graduation. One ofthese projects is the Foster PlanetWalk, which was dedicated in1996 on the Aquinas campus. TheFoster Planet Walk is a to-scale-distance replica of our solar system.Each planet is a topographicallycorrect bronze cast created by RonPederson, mounted on bouldersproportionately placed through-out campus and designed to showthe relative spacing between theplanets.
The Contemporary Writers Se-ries was established in 1997. Theseries is funded through annual andendowment gifts from Tony andLinda and provides students andthe Grand Rapids community withthe opportunity to meet and lis-ten to readings of nationallyprominent writers.
Fall 2002 Aquinas CollegeContemporary Writers Series
Thursday, October 3,7:30 p.m. • Free
Speaker: Poet Linda Pasten,Poet and Author
Jarecki/Lacks Center, Room 141, 159Woodward Lane S.E.
Thursday, October 17,7:30 p.m. • Free
Speaker: Peter Carey,award-winning short story
writer, novelist andscreenplay writer
Wege Student Center Ballroom
Linda Nemec Foster joined byhusband Tony (right) andPresident Knopke reading aselection from her book. h
12
Alumni Golf OutingBy Jennifer Rybski, Contributing Writer
The Aquinas College AlumniAssociation held their 36th annualgolf outing for alumni and friendsat Boulder Creek Golf Club inGrand Rapids on June 8. With thegracious hospitality of AmyPollock, Manager Jerry Robersonand his staff, the event was flawless.The beautiful weather broughtforth 59 golfers in light-heartedcompetition, and many newmemories that will not be soonforgotten.
Chicago ReceptionBy Melvene Tardy ’87, Director of
Alumni & Parent Relations
Last May, Chicago-area alumniand President & Mrs. Knopke en-joyed the wonderful hospitalityand spectacular view from Kathryn(Burrer ’70) and Richard Hyer’slakefront home.
While some reminisced, othersdid some professional networkingas still others took the opportunity
to take in the breathtaking viewfrom the 13th floor as a small classof sailboats practiced their tackingmaneuvers on Lake Michigan be-low. Many of the alumni, surpris-ingly, discovered that they livedwithin blocks of each other!
The Class of 1987 had the mostalumni in attendance. They in-cluded Ann Marie Mahoney, Col-leen Ranieri and Alumni DirectorMelvene Tardy. Recognition alsogoes to Bill Doerres ’39 for repre-
senting the earliest graduating year.Members of the Chicago alumnidiscussed the possibility of arrang-ing a Chicago Cubs baseball out-ing yet this season and anotherhome-based reception for the fall.
We’re looking for locations!Would you like to host an alumnireception in your hometown? Ifso, contact the Alumni & ParentRelations Office at 616-459-8281,ext. 4415, and we’ll arrange to holdan event in your area.
Golf Committeemembers surroundFred Hesse ’63,playing in his 23rdconsecutive outing.(Left to right) TonyNolan ’67, MelveneTardy ’87, Directorof Parent & AlumniRelations, Hesse, andMichelle Bottrall ’97.
Historically SpeakingRecorded memoirs of Aquinas, featuring interviews with
alumni, faculty and staff—past and present—are available incompact discs and audio-cassettes.
1. Modest Beginnings: 1931-19452. Beginnings on Robinson Road: 1945-19583. Expansion of Facilities: 1959-19684. Changing Times:1969-19865. Expansion to the Future:1986-1998
Single discs: $10 each or a set of 5 for $40Single cassettes: $5 each or a set of 5 for $20
On-campus purchases can be made at the Wege Center Book Store. Telephone or e-mail orders will betaken through the Alumni Association at 616-459-8281, ext. 4415, or e-mail: [email protected]. Setswill be displayed for audition and purchase at Homecoming 2002.
Narrative Recollections of Aquinas College History
49
The Saints Network: Prospecting theProspectsBy Jeremy Wood, Admissions Representative
Each year, a number of dedicated alumni assist the AdmissionsOffice with recruiting efforts. The Saints Network volunteers writecongratulatory letters to high school seniors who have been ac-cepted for admission to Aquinas, providing unique insights intothe College for each of our prospective students and many timesmaking the difference in their college decision.
Every three to four months, Saints Network members nation-wide take time to congratulate prospective Aquinas students and
offer assistance in their college search. Their letters provide prospective students with Aquinas highlights anddemonstrate how Aquinas alumni use their degrees—one of the best ways to illustrate success. They also showstudents how much Aquinas means to its graduates and leave a lasting impression on those considering Aquinas astheir college choice. In fact, most of the admissions staff and student workers remember the letters that theyreceived.
A few of these alumni also attend college fairs in areas that aren’t easy for admissions representatives to reach suchas Alaska, Illinois, Indiana, New Mexico, and New York. The response from students and volunteers alike has beenincredible.
Because the Saints Network volunteers help Aquinas reach students in unique ways, the time they give to theadmissions process is invaluable. Become a part of this unique outreach effort.
Join the Saints Network team by contacting Jeremy Wood in the Admissions Office at: 1-800-678-9593 [email protected].
R. Paul Nelson ScholarshipJeanne GilewskiNorthview High School
St. Catherine ScholarshipLaura BrizzolaraForest Hills NorthernHigh School
St. Catherine ScholarshipDavid DoppelUtica High School
St. Anselm ScholarshipJennifer CoulonAdams High School,Rochester
St. Anselm ScholarshipShannon BoggsLowell High School,Lowell
The recipients presented a cu-mulative 3.8 grade point average
and an ACT composite score of30. In addition they bring an im-pressive resume of extracurricularinvolvement.
If your son or daughter meetsthe qualifications for this compe-tition, please contact the Admis-sions Office for more informationabout future competition at:
[email protected] or1-800-678-9593.
HistoricallySpeaking
13
AlumniCalendar
2002
Friday-SundaySeptember 27-29
Homecoming andGalaWeekend
• Aquinas Hall of Fame Gala Event:Dinner and Induction of Honoreesinto the Aquinas College Hall ofFame, the Aquinas College AthleticHall of Fame and the Presentationof the Aquinas College AlumniAssociation Awards
• Alumni Association Annual Meeting.All alumni are welcome!
• Science Department AlumniReunion with Dr. John PojeScholarship Dinner
• Master of Management 25thAnniversary Reunion
• Joe McCarthy Golf Outing andDinner
• Ireland Studies Program 30thAnniversary Reunion
• Golden Saints Alumni Reunion.A Celebration for All Alumni ofClasses 1930-1952
• Dr. Bruce Early Memorial JazzBrunch Featuring the AquinasCollege Jazz Ensemble
Date TBD, October
Detroit-Area Alumni Reception
Tuesday, October 29
• Arizona Alumni Reception• Wrigley Mansion Club, Scottsdale,
Arizona
Saturday, November 16
• Sightseeing, Shows & Shopping inChicago
• Alumni & Friends
For additional information on any listedevent, please call the Alumni & ParentRelations Office at 616-459-8281, ext.4415, or e-mail to [email protected] sure to check the AQ Web site fordetails on these events and others atwww.aquinas.edu.
West Michigan Lakeshore Alumni and FriendsReceptionBy Lisa Piatek ‘97, Director of Corporate Relations & Special Events
The evening of July 11 could not have been more perfect as 42 of Aquinas’alumni and friends from the lakeshore area gathered for a reception at thehome of Kirk and Lori (Aquinas Trustee) Bush on Lake Macatawa in Hol-land.
Father Bill Duncan, Kay Donnelly, and Peter and Ulrike Wege playedco-hosts for the evening event. The gathering allowed an opportunity forour Lakeshore Alumni and Friends to hear more about the College and theinitiatives planned for the school from President Knopke and about therestructuring of the alumni association from Melvene Tardy. The guestsenjoyed wonderful cuisine, a beautiful setting, and had an opportunity tosee old friends.
Homecoming and Gala Weekend 2002Plans are being finalized for Homecoming and Gala Weekend to be
held Friday-Sunday, Sept. 27-29 and you won’t want to miss the fun andexcitement. The alumni festivities kick off Friday night with the Hall ofFame Dinner and Induction Ceremony.
Anniversary celebrations will mark 30 years for the Ireland Studies Pro-gram and 25 years for the Master of Management Program. In addition, aGolden Saints Alumni Reunion will be held for graduates from the Classesof 1930-1952. Activities wrap up Sunday with the Bruce Early MemorialJazz Brunch. Watch your mail or check the alumni page on the AquinasWeb site (www.aquinas.edu) for more details.
Left to right: Trustee Katherine Donnelly with Esther and Seymour Padnos.
48
Adm
issi
ons Spectrum Scholarship Competition Attracts
Top Prospects in FebruaryMore than 150 prospective students from half a dozen states competed
for a share of the school’s scholarship pot last February. The competitioninvolves a battery of assessment tests including a writing sample, a decisionmaking exercise, and critical thinking/problem solving. Faculty members,more than two dozen, serve as judges for the critical decision-making exer-cise.
These top applicants to the freshman class of 2002 came to AquinasCollege last winter to compete for the ultimate prize, one of several full-tuition scholarships. Sponsored by the College’s Admissions Office, the10th annual Spectrum Scholarship Competition saw students vying for theJerome Byrne full-tuition and room scholarship, the John Veneklasen full-tuition scholarship, the R. Paul Nelson full-tuition scholarships, the St.Catherine scholarships, and the St. Anselm scholarships.
High school grade point average and ACT composite test score are thefactors used to determine eligibility to compete. Qualifying students auto-matically receive a $7,500 merit award.
In addition, they can compete for full tuition or an additional $1,000 or$500 through the St. Catherine and St. Anselm scholarship funds.
The competition is one of the largest admissions-sponsored events ofthe year. Since competition began 10 years ago, the number of studentsparticipating has more than doubled, from 60 to more than 150 this year.
Faculty members designed the competition, not only as a reward foracademically talented students, but as an opportunity to identify personalattributes which are not found on a student’s high school transcript.
“One of the unexpected results of the Spectrum Competition is the friend-ship that develops among the students who come to campus to compete,”says Paula Meehan, dean of admissions. “
Those friendships have contributed to an enrollment rate of over 60percent among scholarship competition participants.”
Another positive outcome has been the increase in the cumulative gradepoints and ACT test scores of incoming students.
Parents also get involved on the day of competition. A program of eventsis designed for parents, including panel discussions, campus tours and anintroduction to the city of Grand Rapids. A President’s Reception for par-ents and students concludes the day’s activities.
This year’s scholarship winners are:
Jerome Byrne ScholarshipKelly DittmarWaubonsie Valley High School, Aurora, Illinois
John Veneklasen ScholarshipMegan BolichWest Catholic High Schoool
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New Look — Alumni Web Site!The new alumni section of the
Aquinas Web site demonstrates thelatest in Web-based communi-cation technology. This innova-tive portal keeps alumni andfriends of the College connectedwith current campus develop-ments. Similar technology hasbeen used to develop “The Moose”and “Acorn”, the on-line portals forAquinas students and employeesrespectively.
In addition to the features foundon the home page (shown onopposite page), the Main Menuprovides links to the tools andresources listed in the next column.
Alumni Association - meet the members or volunteer for a committeeBook Store - shop on-line at www.aqbooks.comCalendar - check out college events and activities at the click of a mouseFAQ - ask questions and get answersGallery - view photo albums from recent eventsGroups - join discussion boards with alumni sharing common interestsMembers List - search the database of registered alumni and friendsMessages - send, receive, and store messages internally within the siteYour Account - customize your own interface and profileSearch - search the site’s stories, members lists, and moreTopics - browse through archived news stories by categoryUpdate Info - update your official College contact information
from one convenient location
alumni web site – links
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Kyle Verlin (Northview High School) joinedSaints 1000-Point Club and received AllAmerican honorable mention this past year.
Date OpponentNov. 12 Univ. of Michigan/Dearborn**Nov. 16 Marygrove CollegeNov. 18 Rochester College**Nov. 20 @ Grace BibleNov. 26, 30 Select Bank Classic at VanAndel ArenaDec. 3 Ferris State**Dec. 6 Brann’s/Aquinas Classic
Hope vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary’sSt. Clair (Windsor) at Aquinas
Dec. 7 Brann’s/Aquinas ClassicThird place , 1 p.m.; Championship
Dec. 10 @ IUPU-Fort WayneDec. 13/14 @ Taylor University TournamentDec. 20-22 @ St. Xavier Tournament TBAJan. 4 Calvin CollegeJan. 8 Siena Heights UniversityJan. 11 @ Tri-State UniversityJan. 14 @ Madonna UniversityJan. 18 Indiana tech University**Jan. 21 Concordia University**Jan. 25 @ Spring Arbor UniversityJan. 28 @ Cornerstone University**Feb. 1 @ Siena Heights University**Feb. 4 Tri-State UniversityFeb. 8 Madonna University**Feb. 12 @ Indiana Tech UniversityFeb. 15 @ Concordia UniversityFeb. 18 Spring Arbor University**Feb. 22 Cornerstone University**Feb. 26 WHAC Tournament
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Photo from the Aquinas Herald (student newspaper) published March 3, 1954.
Lloyd Brown ’54 RememberedLloyd Brown ’54, one of the most prolific scorers in Aquinas College
basketball history, passed away last spring in Grand Rapids. Brown stillholds the single game scoring mark of 72 points set in 1954. He captainedthe first Aquinas basketball team that defeated Calvin College.
His career scoring average of 19.5 points per game was extraordinarygiven that the games of that era were normally not high scoring affairs.That average is still 13th on the all-time list of basketball scorers at theCollege, where he was also active in musical and theatrical productions.
Brown, who was a retired salesman for Ameritech Yellow Pages, will beamong the first inductees into the Aquinas College Athletics Hall of Fameduring the Homecoming Gala Event on September 27.
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The header bar provides fre-quently used links, the currentdate, and a search engine ex-clusive to this site.
The Main Menu provides adrop-down list of links to allof the features offered withinthis site.
Look here to see Who’sonline. This block will alsodisplay the number of privatemessages waiting for you.
All Grand Rapids-areaweather information is deriveddirectly from the NationalWeather Service and NOAA.In case you’re wondering,
MooseCast refers to theweather program used on thestudents’ Web portal, “TheMoose!”
Buddy is the Alumni Website’s very own instant messag-ing system, allowing you to chatwith other online members.
The center panel contains thelatest alumni News stories. Theicon next to the story representsthe general topic of the story. Alist of the topic areas can befound by clicking “Topic” in themain menu or on the header bar.You can also submit your ownstory by clicking “Submit News”
in the main menu or on theheader bar.
Integrated Surveys provide aninstant pulse of the alumni andfriends of the College.
Today’s big story shows youthe most popular story amongyour peers.
Links to the College’s mostrecent News Releases can befound here.
Look here for the latest head-lines from the Aquinas Times, thestudent-run newspaper oncampus.
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Date OpponentSept. 7 Aquinas Invitational/Riverside ParkSept. 14 Bulldog Invitational/Big RapidsSept. 21 Natioanl Catholic Inv./South Bend, Ind.Sept. 22 Aquinas Open/Riverside ParkOct. 6 “Stars” Open Invitational/LansingOct. 12 Michigan Intercollegiates/MilfordOct. 20 WHAC Championship/JacksonNov. 3 NAIA Regional/JacksonNov. 17 NAIA Championships/Kenosha, Wis.
Date OpponentAug. 30/31 @ Alma College Tournament
Sept. 3 @ Tri-StateSept. 6/7 @ Defiance College Tournament
Sept. 12 @ Cornerstone UniversitySept. 14 @ Spring Arbor University
Sept. 17 Madonna UniversitySept. 20-22 @ Palm Beach Atlantic Tournament/Florida
Sept. 24 Concordia UniversitySept. 27/28 @ St. Francis Tournament, Joliet, Ilinois
Oct. 1 @ Siena Heights UniversityOct. 4/5 @ Grace College Tournament
Oct. 8 @ Albion CollegeOct. 10 Palm Beach Atlantic
Oct. 12 Tri-State UniversityOct. 15 Spring Arbor Universiiy
Oct. 22 @ Madonna UniversityOct. 25/26 @ Trinity Christian Tournament
Oct. 29 Cornerstone UniversityNov. 2 @ Concordia University
Nov. 5 Siena Heights UniversityNov. 8 Goshen College
Nov. 12 1st Round WHAC Tournament/TBANov. 15 Semi-finals WHAC Tournament/TBA
Nov. 16 Championship WHAC Tournament/TBA
Date OpponentNov. 10 Purdue-Calumet UniversityNov. 13 @ Goshen CollegeNov. 16 Kendall CollegeNov. 22/23 Aquinas College TournamentNov. 29/30 @ Calvin College TournamentDec. 6/7 @ Olivet College TournamentDec. 11 @ Calvin CollegeDec. 13 Taylor UniversityDec. 27-29 St. Xavier University TournamentJan. 3/4 @ Alma College TournamentJan. 8 Siena Heights UniversityJan. 11 @ Tri-State UniversityJan. 15 @ Madonna UniversityJan. 18 Indiana Tech UniversityJan. 22 Concordia UniversityJan. 25 @ Spring Arbor UniversityJan. 29 @ Cornerstone UniversityFeb. 1 @ Siena Heights UniversityFeb. 5 Tri-State UniversityFeb. 8 Madonna UniversityFeb. 12 @Indiana Tech UniversityFeb. 15 @ Concordia UniversityFeb. 19 Spring Arbor UniversityFeb. 22 Cornerstone UniversityFeb. 26– WHAC Tournament
Mar. 1 & 3
Date OpponentSept. 5 @Adrian (Devils Lake CC)Sept. 12 @KalamazooSept. 16 @AlmaSept. 20 @AlbionSept. 22/23 @Tri-State Fall invitationalSept. 26 Ferris StateOct. 3 Aquinas InvitationalOct. 6 @CalvinOct. 10 Tri-State
Date OpponentSept. 5 @Tri-State* (Zollner GC)Sept. 7/8 @Olivet Invitational (Bedford Valley/Marywood GC)Sept. 11 Aquinas* (L.E. Kaufman GC)Sept. 15 @Siena Heights* (Lenawee GC)Sept. 20 @Spring Arbor* (Cascade GC)Sept. 21 @Tri-State Invitational (Zollner GC)Sept. 26 Aquinas Invitational (L.E. Kaufman GC)Sept. 28 @WHAC/MCC Ryder Cup (Zollner GC)Oct. 1 Cornerstone (Thousand oaks GC)*WHAC Conference Jamborees
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By George Heartwell, Director of
Community Leadership
There never was a time whencollege and community could af-ford to be disengaged oruninvolved in the life of the other.The “ivory tower” and the “town-gown divide” are remnants of anera when academic pursuit suppos-edly prepared students to take theirplaces in some distant “real world.”
Students today, however, al-ready live in that real world. Itschallenges are their challenges; itssuccesses and failures shape theirlives. Many Aquinas students areemployed in the community or liveoff campus in the neighborhoodsaround the College. The qualityof life in Grand Rapids is of deepand immediate concern to them.
The Aquinas Community Lead-ership Institute (CLI) provides abridge between the campus andthe community. The Institute co-ordinates internal academic workand external community leader-ship development.
Aquinas undergraduate studentscan now major in CommunityLeadership. Directed by 28-yearAquinas faculty member MichaelWilliams, Ph.D., this innovativeprogram combines academic rigorand experiential learning to helpstudents develop a foundation inleadership skills that they will em-ploy in the community duringtheir student years and followinggraduation. In the three years the
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Community Leadership Institute
Community Leadership major hasbeen available, Aquinas studentshave contributed in the fields ofeconomic development, children’sadvocacy, minority leadershipdevelopment, minority businesscultivation, and environmentalprotection. Certainly the studentsare richer for the learning experi-ence, but also the community isstronger for the skills, energy, andcreativity that our Aquinas stu-dents and faculty bring to thework.
The Institute also has a missionto develop leadership in the largercommunity of West Michiganthrough dialogue, organizationalconsultations, and the incubationof new community problem-solv-ing initiatives.
As the CLI Lead Partner, I con-duct organizational consultationswith many non-profit and publicsector organizations, teaching inthe community leadership major,and coordinating student place-ments.
One significant CLI program isthe Congregational LeadershipCenter. Under the direction of theRev. Victoria Menning, the Cen-ter provides leadership develop-ment and consultation services toCatholic and Protestant parishes.Its innovative Congregational As-set Mapping program has beenlauded as a new tool of parish de-velopment and ecumenical inter-action.
The Rev. George Heartwell
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Athletic
Schedules
For updates,
check our Web site:
www.aquinas.edu
Date OpponentAug. 27 @ Grace Bible/Grand RapidsAug. 31 @ Missouri BaptistSept. 1 @ McKendree CollegeSept. 7/8 @ Alma College TournamentSept. 14 Alma CollegeSept. 18 Cornerstone University (non-conf.)Sept. 22 Univ. of Illinois/SpringfieldSept. 28 Concordia University* (Homecoming)Oct. 2 Saginaw Valley UniversityOct. 7 @ Madonna University*/LivoniaOct. 9 Hope CollegeOct. 12 @ Cornerstone University*Oct.16 Tri-State University*Oct.19 @ Spring Arbor University*Oct. 23 Indiana Tech University*Oct. 26 @ Siena Heights University*Oct. 30 Calvin CollegeNov. 2, 6, 9 WHAC TournamentNov. 13, 16 Regionals
*Denotes WHAC Conference game
Date OpponentAug. 30 @ Taylor UniversityAug. 31 St. Joseph’s College (@ Grand Valley State)Sept. 6 @ Calvin CollegeSept. 7 @ Hope CollegeSept. 14 Trinity InternationalSept. 21 Grand Valley State UniversitySept. 22 @ St. Francis University, IndianaSept. 26 @ Indiana WesleyanSept. 28 Concordia UniversityOct. 1 Goshen CollegeOct. 3 Ferris State UniversityOct. 5 @ Cornerstone UniversityOct. 8 @ Madonna UniversityOct. 15 Tri-State UniversityOct. 19 @ Spring ArborOct. 22 Indiana TechOct. 24 Robert MorrisOct. 26 @ Siena Heights UniversityNov. 2 First Round WHAC Tournament/TBANov. 5 WHAC Semi-Finals/TBANov. 9 WHAC Championship/TBA
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Get The Lead Out! is an exampleof CLI functioning as incubator.Paul Haan, Program Partner ofCLI, directs a community collabo-rative addressing the public healthconcern of lead poisoning of chil-dren. When the three-year pilotproject is completed and Get TheLead Out! is financially viable, theinitiative will become independentof CLI. Until then, CLI will assistby bringing diverse organizationsto a common table for strategicplanning, followed by capacitybuilding and creative problemsolving that leads to systemicchange.
The Greater Grand RapidsNational Issues Forum, a 23-year-old dialogue organization, is nowbased in the CLI and directed byAquinas alumna Lisabeth Keegan’98. This year the National IssuesForum hosted dialogue sessions onthe aftermath of 9/11 and on raceand ethnic tensions. Recently theNational Issues Forum, in partner-ship with the Grand RapidsMayor’s Youth Council, facilitateda dialogue among area high schoolstudents on the issue of race.
Aquinas College is invested inthe community of Grand Rapids.CLI is but one example of thatinvestment. The Dominicancharisms and the Aquinas Collegemission statement shape CLI’s en-gagement with the community.Since 1886, this city has been theCollege’s home. The CommunityLeadership Institute intends tomake it the best home it can be.
James Ayers protects children from lead hazards by stabilizing the painton homeowner’s window. Ayers is a member of the CLEAR Corps programhosted by Get The Lead Out! partner agency Home Repair Services.
Asset mapping helps Catholic and Protestant parishes with development andecumenical interaction.
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Senior StudentAthletes Recognized
The Aquinas Athletic Depart-ment recognized two seniorstudent athletes this past spring fortheir academic strength, service toothers, and athletic involvementand success.
Denny Briggs of Belding, whograduated cum laude with a bach-elor of science degree in businessadministration, received the JosephBaker Memorial Award, which isgiven to the outstanding seniormale athlete.
Briggs was a member of themen’s soccer team as well as thetrack team. During his four years,the men’s soccer team won three
Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Con-ference (WHAC) championshipsand the track team won sevenWHAC championships. In 2000,the Aquinas Pat Hoatlin Awardwas awarded to Briggs by his team-mates as the outstanding under-classman.
Briggs, a member of the Pi MuEpsilon National Math Honor
Spring 2002 HonorsAthletic All-Americans
Aaron Bush (softball), KurtBrummel (tennis), Henry Holmes(track), Brendan Gary (track), EricEssick (track), Shawn Gast (track),Lars Petzke (track), Keelin Baine(track), Jaime Anderson (track),Kerry Lucas (track), Sarah Ellis(track).
Academic All-AmericansTom Huizing (tennis), Jason
Ladd (baseball), Erik Essick (track),Nate Kaiser (track), Lars Petzke(track), Eric Johnson (track), KirkKahner (track), Kerry Lucas(track).
Society, had a triple major ofeconomics, mathematics andbusiness. He has also been in-volved in the student athlete advi-sory board.
Kristen Brady of BloomfieldHills was awarded the HelenLouise Brogger Award, which isgiven annually to the outstandingfemale senior student athlete.
A four-year letter winner on theAquinas volleyball team, Brady wasnamed to the Wolverine Hoosier
Athlete Conference All-Academicteam as a junior and a senior.
“Kristen possesses the outstand-ing quality of making those aroundher better players and betterpeople,” said Marc Schulz, hercoach. “She is a true teammate inevery sense of the word.”
She is actively involved in tu-toring in reading and English atCreston High School in GrandRapids and works with severalyouth and high school volleyballteams as a volunteer coach.
During her years at Aquinas, shehas volunteered for Project Uniteand Habitat for Humanity.
Athletic Hall ofFame EstablishedThe Aquinas College Ath-
letic Hall of Fame will be in-augurated on September 27.That night, its first inducteeswill be recognized for theiroutstanding achievements inthe area of athletics. The cer-emony will also generateawareness in current student-athletes of the outstanding in-dividuals that have allowedAquinas College to be success-ful in the past.
“This ultimate recognition islong overdue on our campus.We have had many successstories and it is time that theseare told and retold,” statedAquinas Athletic DirectorTerry Bocian.
The initial inductions willtake place Friday night ofhomecoming weekend. Tick-ets or information about theevent can be found by callingthe Athletic Department at616-459-8281, ext. 3101.
“… Students are richer for the learning experience, but also thecommunity is stronger for [their] skills, energy and creativity . . . . ”
Kristen Brady, an English major,graduated with a 3.68 GPA.
Denny Briggs graduated with a3.54 GPA.
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By Tonya Schafer ’02, Freelance Writer
The mission of the WoodrickInstitute for the Study of Racismand Diversity is to help businessesembrace what has become an ex-citing fact of life.
“The world is more diverse nowthan ever before,” says DirectorSteve Robbins.
“It’s true: the workforce justdoesn’t look like it used to. So it’scritical to move people along in thejourney toward diversity—notsimply because it’s ‘the right thingto do,’ but because it’s a businessimperative.”
“Organizations unable to ac-commodate the needs of their mi-nority personnel suffer from lowmorale and decreased productivity.The first step toward accommoda-tion is understanding,” Robbinssays.
To that end, the Institute spon-sors a variety of diversity-aware-ness programs for members of thelabor force. The organization’stwo-day Healing Racism work-shops allow attendees of all racesto discuss their perceptions ofprejudice in open, non-confronta-tional environments.
Local professionals get a chanceto network and delve into diver-sity issues at the Institute’s monthlyAntiracism and Diversity AlliesLuncheons, held on the AquinasCollege campus. And DiversityAllies Book Club meetings allowthe dozens of people who attendthem each month to discussthemes included in notable worksof multicultural literature.
Steve Robbins, Ph.D., Director ofOperations, Woodrick Institute
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Woodrick Institute:Helping Business Embrace Diversity
Tolerance presentations, inclu-sion workshops, newsletters, andconsultation services round out thespate of programs the WoodrickInstitute offers.
It’s all geared toward onething—helping businesses adjustto the changes wrought by an in-creasingly diverse workforce andensuring that workers feel includedregardless of their race andethnicities.
In May, Project Blueprint, a sub-sidiary of the United Way thattrains people of color to serve oncommunity boards, awarded theWoodrick Institute its Championof Diversity Award for the contri-butions it has made to the promo-tion of multicultural awareness.
In announcing the Award,Project Blueprint ChairpersonLinda McCarter told the audiencethat the Woodrick Institute wasdeveloped to carry on that “legacyof passion and commitment and tobe a community resource and in-fluential force in dismantling rac-ism and celebrating diversity.”
“It’s humbling,” Robbins says.“But it gives us confirmation thatwe’re doing good work in the com-munity.”
He points out that confrontingissues of diversity is not simply a“black thing” or a “white thing.” It’sa human thing.
“We might have had the curefor cancer by now, but we’ve leftso much intellectual power behindbecause of prejudice that we’llnever really know,” he says. “Whenit comes to racism, everyone loses.”
That means everyone must takeresponsibility for its elimination.And thanks to the Woodrick In-stitute, an increasing number ofpeople are joining the effort.
Since its 1999 inception, theInstitute has seen corporate mem-bership climb to 15 companiesthat, for an annual fee, take advan-tage of diversity-related programs.
More than 400 people from avariety of local businesses havegone through the Healing Racismworkshops. The number is so highthat the Institute has changedthem from twice yearly to twicemonthly affairs and is trainingmore facilitators to lead them.
The Institute, based in a fewmodest offices tucked into the
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(Excerpts from letter addressed to AthleticDirector Terry Bocian)
“Even when realizing it wouldcost his women’s team the confer-ence championship, [CoachWood] corrected the final score,thereby taking second place ratherthan first. The fact that this emailis generated from the Cornerstonecampus, the team that was raisedto first, should in no way lessenthe significant moral lesson andauthentic personal credibility dueto your Coach Wood, andAquinas athletics, for his keensense of fairplay and honesty.
Since, as athletic director, I’msure you receive your fair [or un-fair] share of grief by virtue of yourposition, I thought it was the leastI could do to commend you andyour coach for this marvelous ges-ture of good will. I hope this actgets press, not about the newchampionship, but about the de-cision of sportsmanship.”
Sincerely,Mark A. Lamport, Ph.D.Professor of Educational MinistriesGrand Rapids Baptist Seminary
Contact: Bryan RizzoMedia Director
Phone: (734) 432-5604
E-mail: [email protected]
Aquinas, Champions of Character But Not Women’s Outdoor Track
April 24, 2002
The Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) has announced a change in the results
of the conference Track Championships held last Friday in Grand Rapids. Due to a
computer input error, Cornerstone University has been awarded the conference
championship.
The original results were:
Aquinas 170
Cornerstone 168
Spring Arbor 136
Siena Heights 108
Tri-State 49
Concordia 13
As the host of the event, Aquinas College head coach Dave Wood was reviewing the scoring
when he noted an error. The discrepancy took place in the high jump. Melissa Abood
(Siena Heights University), Cathi Velzen (Cornerstone University) and Vicky Scheffler
(Aquinas College) all cleared the same height in the high jump. Velzen and Scheffler tied for
third because they both cleared the height on their first attempt while Abood finished fifth
because she cleared the same height on her second attempt. When the results were entered
in the computer Abood and Velzen’s places were switched by mistake.
As a result, the corrected result subtracted three points from Siena Heights’ total and added
an additional three points to Cornerstone’s total giving them a winning total of 171 points to
Aquinas’ 170 total. The corrected totals are:
Cornerstone 171
Aquinas 170
Spring Arbor 136
Siena Heights 105
Tri-State 49
Concordia 13
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has undertaken a “Champions
of Character” initiative the last two years, emphasizing sportsmanship and integrity. The
WHAC commends Aquinas College for demonstrating these ideals in finding and
immediately reporting and correcting the scoring error even when it cost them a conference
championship.
-WHAC-
“Fair Play and Honesty”
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lower level of the Academic Build-ing, is dedicated to helping orga-nizations achieve diversity; it istruly a group effort statesRobbins. Student assistants lendhelping hands and a number ofprominent local businesspersonsserve on the Institute’s advisoryboard.
They offer insight as to ways inwhich their organizations havefound success in fostering racialunity and implementing inclusionefforts.
“We also get a lot of supportfrom [Aquinas President] HarryKnopke,” says Robbins, who notesthat the Woodrick Institute falls inline with the school’s mission ofcreating an academic and work en-vironment that is inclusive to all.
It was Knopke, in fact, whoserved as a driving force behind theWoodrick Institute’s foundation. “Ithought that such an organizationwould help the College serve as anexus point with the community,”Knopke says. “And issues of diver-sity are important ones. They’rerelevant to our purpose here atAquinas.”
Bob Woodrick, co-founder ofthe D&W chain of grocery storesand a long-time proponent of di-versity-awareness measures in theGrand Rapids area, provided fund-ing for the Institute that now bearshis name.
D&W employees are amongthose who have taken part inWoodrick Institute programs, ashave employees of Meijer,
Steelcase, and lawfirms like WarnerNorcross & Judd.Bruce Christensen,executive director ofWarner Norcross &Judd, said he was initially hesitantabout attending a Healing Racismworkshop. According to Robbins,such hesitancy often indicates de-nial, or a mentality among mem-bers of majority races that says, “Ifeel included, why don’t otherpeople?”
But Christensen’s boss had facili-tated a similar event and had rec-ommended that Christensen at-tend one as well. “I did what anyother person would do when theirboss ‘suggests’ they do something– I went,” he says.
“It was a very powerfulexperience. I came back thinkingthat I would like to be more activein the diversity arena.” Christensennow sits on the Institute’s Board ofAdvisors.
The Institute embraces itscorporate connections, but is alsobranching beyond them. It is in themidst of creating a DiversityDevelopment Program that willsponsor similar awareness andeducational efforts in schools inthe Kent Intermediate SchoolDistrict.
To fund the program, the Insti-tute solicits memberships fromarea businesses, which will receive$3 worth of Institute programs forevery $1 they invest.
Likewise, the Institute hopes toincrease its corporate membershipsand to forge partnerships similarto its alliance with DiversityTheater, a local organization thatsponsors discussions of workplace-related scenarios reenacted bylocal performers.
In the end Robbins, a formertelevision news producer and mar-keter who moved to the UnitedStates from Vietnam at the age offive, says the mission of theWoodrick Institute boils down toone thing—eliminating the mis-understandings that result in non-inclusive work environments.
“We need to challenge people,to expose them to different per-spectives,” Robbins says. Referringback to the prejudice that mayhave left society without suchtechnological breakthroughs asthe cure for cancer, he asks onesimple question: “Do we reallywant to make that mistake again?”
Healing Racismworkshop
“ … confronting issues of diversity is not simply a‘black thing’ or a ‘white thing.’ It’s a human thing.”
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Ath
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s AQ Captures Fifth ConsecutiveWHAC All-Sports AwardBy Rick Albro, Sports Information Director
The Saints have won the Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference(WHAC) All-Sports Trophy for a record-setting fifth consecutive year. Theaward is given to the college having the highest score based on the bestfinishes of six sports teams at each school, including men and women’s teams.
The WHAC, which originated in 1992, is comprised of Aquinas College,Concordia University, Cornerstone University, Indiana Tech. University,Madonna University, Siena Heights University, Spring Arbor University,and Tri State University. Aquinas began its run of President’s Cup all-sportsawards in 1997-98.
“What an accomplishment! It is the culmination of a great deal of time,energy and commitment on behalf of our staff and our student athletes”,stated Director of Athletics, Terry Bocian. “We are proud to offer the mostcomprehensive athletic program in the WHAC,” Bocian added, “to haveearned the success we’ve worked hard for is an outstanding reward.”
Fourteen sports are recognized as league-sanctioned sports. Aquinas wontitles this past year in Men’s Soccer, Men’s Indoor and Outdoor Track andField, and Women’s Indoor Track and Field.
The Aquinas WayBy Terry Bocian ‘70, Athletic Director
Last April 19, Aquinas College swept, or so we thought, the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Men’s and Women’s Outdoor TrackChampionships. Several days later, Dave Wood, coach of the Women’steam, stopped in my office to tell me that following a careful review of theresults, he felt that Cornerstone should have been awarded two additionalpoints in the women’s meet. Because the initial results had been so close,this correction would reverse the finish, giving Cornerstone the Women’schampionship by one point, positioning Aquinas as runner-up.
Apparently, Coach Wood was the only person to meticulously analyzethe results. His findings simply could have been swept under the rug. How-ever, the Aquinas way is to do things the right way. Although somewhatdisheartening, we knew that it was imperative that we contact the WHACleague commissioner, the WHAC media director, and Cornerstone offi-cials to correct the situation.
The sportsmanship and sense of fair play that we instill in our studentathletes starts with the administration and coaches who must set the ex-amples. This correction was definitely the proper approach.
What follows is a copy of the WHAC Release that was sent to confer-ence members informing them of the error and an excerpt taken from aletter addressed to me from a director at Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary, anaffiliate of Cornerstone College, after he learned of our handling of thematter.
Coach Dave Wood
Men’s & Women’s Track Coach,
Cross Country Coordinator
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By Tonya Schafer ’02, Freelance Writer
The Aquinas Emeritus Collegetraces its history back to the early1970s when then-PresidentNorbert Hruby recognized—wellahead of many other college anduniversity leaders—that opportuni-ties for lifelong learning for olderadults were sorely missing in theWest Michigan area.
“We knew it was a populationthat would enjoy a liberal arts edu-cation, maybe more so than the‘regular’ student population,” ex-plains Sister Aquinas Weber, O.P.,Emeritus College Consultant andAquinas College Chancellor.
Backed by a committed vision, asupportive and imaginative CollegeBoard of Trustees, and the tirelessefforts of both Sisters Aquinas andAgnes Claire Thiel, the EmeritusCollege was launched in the fall of1975 with 115 students attendingclasses throughout the year. Nearlythree decades later, annual enroll-ment has grown to well over 1,000.
Representatives from suchschools as Eastern Michigan Uni-versity and Kalamazoo ValleyCommunity College have used theAquinas curriculum as a model forsimilar programs on their owncampuses. Faculty members fromacross West Michigan call Aquinasand ask, “How do I sign up to teachfor Emeritus?”
The program offers a diversity ofcourses that correspond to the goalsmaintained by Aquinas College asa whole, says Director of Programsand Development, Rabbi AlbertLewis. Both colleges seek to pro-vide a quality liberal arts educa-
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Lifelong Learning at Emeritus College
tion regardless of a student’s sex,race, religious affiliation, or—most appropriate in this case—age.
Courses have run the gamutfrom the Ethics of Espionage toCreative Writing, from investiga-tions of the Kennedy assassinationto analyses of Picasso’s works.They are offered during five four-week long sessions—two in thefall, two in the spring, and a win-ter program in Grand Rapids. Thefour-week Naples, Florida programruns in February and is attendedby retirees from throughout theMidwest and East Coast who nowlive in Florida as well as native Flo-ridians alike.
The Curriculum Committee ofthe Board of Governors offers sug-gestions for course topics, as dostudents. The College also offersclasses that relate to activities go-ing on in the Grand Rapids area.When a local theater company fea-tured a production by TennesseeWilliams, the Emeritus College
offered a course on this famousAmerican playwright. A class onthe Dead Sea Scrolls was offeredduring the spring 2002 semester,as the documents will soon be fea-tured in an exhibition at the VanAndel Museum Center in down-town Grand Rapids.
History classes are among themost popular courses according toSr. Aquinas. “Anytime we offer aclass on World War II, we are go-ing to have the room filled,” sheadds. A book seminar is also heldsix times a semester, allowing stu-dents to discuss a work of theirown choosing under the directionof a facilitator.
The Emeritus College hasgrown since its beginnings, start-ing in the Academic Building,moving to Willowbrook (the cur-rent President’s home), and even-tually taking up residence in theBrowne Center (a former estatemansion at the corner of RobinsonRoad and Woodward Lane).
Emeritus College has become a benchmark for other Institutions.
41
Covert works with ProjectPRIDE, tutors, and visits the sis-ters at Aquinata Hall. Schneiderworks with Campus Ministry andplans high school retreats.
Avery coordinates the SigsbeeElementary tutoring program.Lindemyer is the founder of CasaHogar, a student organization thatraises money for an orphanage ofthe same name in Peru and thatalso raises awareness of povertyissues in general. She, along withCovert and Schneider, dedicatesmany service hours to the organi-zation.
“These four demonstrate howactively involved Aquinas studentsare in the community,” said EricBridge, coordinator of servicelearning. “I think it ties into theDominican tradition very well inthat we have students who are ac-tively living out their faith. [They]use their gifts and abilities to makethe world a better place.”
Semester in CaliforniaBy Melissa Spagnoli, Aquinas senior
It’s amazing how many oppor-tunities Aquinas College has tooffer. Some opportunities are morevisible than others, like the semes-ter in Ireland or the wide range ofService Learning trips. However,towards the end of my sophomoreyear, I came across an opportunitythat would become one of thegreatest experiences in my life.
Aquinas is one of 19 Domini-can colleges and universities in theUnited States. The exchange pro-gram allows students at one sisterschool to attend another for onesemester. When I heard about this,I decided to take advantage of the
program in my junior year, choos-ing Dominican University of Cali-fornia. There were several motivat-ing factors—the desire to do some-thing on my own, to apply whatmy parents had taught me all theseyears, to discover a new place, andof course, to live in sunny Califor-nia for four months, too.
While at Dominican University,I found things were quite differentfrom Aquinas College. Dominicanoffered the chance to travel andexplore on the weekends as SanFrancisco and Oakland were onlyten minutes away. Aquinas pro-vides many on-campus opportuni-ties to get involved during theweek and on the weekends, suchas bands, comedians, and commu-nity service.
The Bay area’s big city environ-ment presented new experiences,including the HomecomingDance on a Yacht in San FranciscoBay and Christmas caroling on acable car. Like Aquinas, Domini-can is a small college that offers alow student-to-faculty ratio and,thus, more personal attention.I was fortunate to have great pro-fessors at both schools who werewilling to offer assistance.
The semester at Dominicangave me the independence to de-velop my feeling of self-confidence—oh, and yes, a tan. Although mytime in California went fast, it wasnice to return to Aquinas. I admirethe College’s strong campus min-istry program, particularly in theway Bukowski Chapel fills for Masson Sunday nights. Further, thecommunication and business de-partments continue to challengeme.
Perhaps, more importantly, Imissed my family and the snow—because we all know that you can’thave Christmas without the snow!
AQ Student Melissa Spagnoli enjoyingthe warm benefits of the Dominican
Exchange Program in California.
21
Courses are also held at retirementcommunities throughout the cityas well as several nursing homes.
Classes have been scheduled toaccommodate the needs of the re-tirement-aged individuals who at-tend them. Most are held no ear-lier than 9:30 a.m. and no later than3:30 p.m. to help students avoidrush hour traffic. They are not heldon Monday mornings, which al-lows attendees to enjoy three-dayweekends. Coffee and cookiebreaks are held every hour, provid-ing an easy means to socialize withfellow students.
In the early days, the EmeritusCollege received a number ofgrants from such institutions as theGrand Rapids Foundation, theMichigan Humanities Council,and the National Endowment forthe Humanities.
The College is now funded withtuition payments, which equal $60per four-week course ($40 for thebook seminars, $80 for the Naplesprogram), as well as by ticket salesfor the Emeritus Dinner, whicheach year honors an individualwho has made significant contri-butions to the community.
The Aquinas Emeritus Board ofGovernors is composed of peoplefrom throughout the community,including some former Emeritusstudents and, in addition to courseplanning, offers advice on eventcoordination, and financial concerns.
Scholarships to the College areavailable and, in fact, are part ofthe next phase of its communityoutreach efforts. Lewis says that heforging partnerships with area
churches in the hopes that theywill offer partial scholarships, andthat he is also consulting with areabusinesses to underwrite the costof some courses offered by theCollege.
According to Sr. Aquinas, theEmeritus College is developing ini-tiatives that will allow its expan-sion into minority communities.“Many older minorities do not feelcomfortable attending classesmade up mostly of white students,so we need to go where that popu-lation is,” she says.
In addition, the College plansto present a series of eveningcourses designed for Aquinasalumni who are members of the“Baby Boomer” generation. Theseclasses will cover such topics as fi-nancial planning for retirementand adjusting to an “empty nest.”
The College hopes to createnew strategic partnerships with anumber of businesses and indus-
tries in the western Michigan areaas well. Advertisements in AquinasEmeritus brochures reach over3,500 people in the 50 and olderage group, and local businesses arerealizing the opportunity to en-hance the lives of older adults thatsuch advertising affords.
Ultimately, the Emeritus Col-lege provides a rewarding experi-ence for students and professorsalike, Sr. Aquinas says. “There’s alot of give and take. The studentsare not there because they have tobe there, they want to be there.They’re not afraid to ask questionsbecause they’re not getting gradedor tested,” she says.
“One of our teachers was offer-ing a course on Harry Truman andshe said that the students knewmore about the topic than she did!”Sr. Aquinas adds. “They really en-joy the opportunity to challengethemselves and we enjoy the op-portunity to provide it for them.”
Writing classes are popular as well as art, history and computer courses.
40
Student and AlumnaWin Coveted AddyAwards
To say it’s been an exciting yearfor Alicia Mey is an understate-ment. This December, Mey willcomplete her studies at Aquinasand receive her Master of Manage-ment degree.
Earlier this year, she received aprofessional honor when the AdClub of West Michigan selectedher marketing project forZondervan Books (Grand Rapids)for an Addy Award.
Her challenge was to createsomething that would address the
increasing com-petition in thereference bookcategory.
She borroweda promotion ideashe saw else-where and cus-tomized it to fitZondervan’s re-q u i r e m e n t s .“InfoShades”, shesays, presents auni-que design,offering a lot ofinformation in asmall amount of
space that is placed on the front ofshelf racks offering customers ex-planations for available referencematerials.
“They help customers under-stand which reference books willbest meet their need, educate cus-tomers on the importance ofmatching reference books withtheir preferred Bible translation,and promote Zondervan referencebooks in retail outlets,” said Mey.She also won a Silver Addy Awardat the District level.
Her efforts didn’t go unnoticedby her employer, either. Shortlyafter her award recognition, Meyshe received a promotion, movingfrom Senior Promotions Managerto Associate Marketing Director.
The Ad Club also recognizedanother Zondervan employee.Kathy Needham ‘02, marketingdirector for Zonderkidz, receivedfour Addy Awards for a radio cam-paign designed for the children’sbook division of Zondervan. TheAddy’s were for two radio cam-paigns for children’s Bibles in theNIrV (New International Reader’sVersion) translation written at athird grade reading level. She wontwo awards for the individual ra-dio ads, one for the advertisingcampaign and one for “best ofshow” in the broadcast category.
Michigan CampusCompact RecognizesFour Aquinas StudentsBy Sandy Hines (article appearscourtesy of The Aquinas Times)
Michigan Campus Compact(MCC) recognized four Aquinasstudents earlier this year for theircommitment to service in thecommunity.
MCC, an organization of col-lege and university presidents fromaround the state, recognizes stu-dents who have demonstrated out-standing dedication to communityservice throughout their educa-tional careers.
Junior Allison Lindemyer re-ceived the Commitment to Ser-vice Award, while senior MandySchneider and juniors Mary ClareAvery and Andrea Covert receivedthe Heart and Soul Award.
Stud
ent
New
s
“Students are not there because they have to be there, they want to be there.”
Alicia Mey, Aquinas master of management student,displays the “infoShades” which earned her the AddyAward.
22
Emeritus College:Albert LewisBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, freelance writer
Rabbi Albert Lewis has longbeen one of Grand Rapids’ mostoutspoken advocates for the socialand economic rights of senior citi-zens. Throughout his three de-cades in the city, Lewis has workedto expand public transportation,helped establish a Hospice, andwritten a column on senior issuesin The Grand Rapids Press.
Lewis was also one of the “thinktank” members who 28 years agohelped create the Aquinas Emeri-tus College. Two years after retir-ing as head of Temple Emanuel,Lewis is back at Aquinas as theEmeritus College’s Director of Pro-grams and Development. He hiresfaculty members and plans classes,sometimes even serving as an in-structor himself.
Emeritus College:Mary ShefferlyBy Tonya Schafer, ‘02, freelance writer
Working at Hospice of GreaterGrand Rapids gave Mary Shefferlyan appreciation for the determina-tion, the judgment, and above all,the wisdom of older adults. That’swhy she jumped at the chance totake over as Director of Operationsfor the Aquinas Emeritus Collegein October 2001.
Shefferly says that interactingwith seniors eager to keep theirbodies active and their minds sharpis infinitely rewarding.
“They’re encountering thingsthat are so different from whatthey’re used to,” Shefferly says.
Shefferly worked for a time asa hospital social worker but saysshe has found her niche planningbudgets, scheduling classes, andinteracting with students in theEmeritus College.
“Our program is thriving. It’samazing how much studentslove the classes,” Shefferly says.“There’s a real hunger for knowl-edge out there and I love it. Thisis where I was meant to be.”
will hit store shelves soon. “It’s de-signed for adults in nursinghomes,” Lewis says. “It helps themlook back on their lives using thePsalms as a context.”
This past spring, Lewis receivedJunior Achievement’s Edward J.Frey Sr. Distinguished Achieve-ment Award. “But I have a lot moreliving to do,” he says. “Seniors havesuch different life experiences andevery day I continue to be chal-lenged and encouraged by work-ing with them.”
The position is a perfect fit. “I’mnot working crazy hours,” Lewissays, noting that he now hasplenty of time to spend with hiswife, Shirley, who is Dean of theSchool of Arts and Sciences atAquinas, and with their twodaughters and four grandsons.
Semi-retired he may be, butLewis is as busy as ever. In addi-tion to his Aquinas duties, Lewishas written a book, The Lord is MyShepherd: Psalms to Accompany Us OnOur Journey through Aging, which
“We’ve had 90-year-olds take com-puter classes because they want tolearn how to e-mail their grandchil-dren.”
Shefferly studied social work atFerris State University, takingclasses while her two sons attendedhigh school. The family came toGrand Rapids in 1997 when herhusband, Bill, took over as VicePresident of Finance and Opera-tions at Aquinas.
“We’ve had
90-year-olds
take computer
classes because
they want to …
e-mail their
grandchildren.”-Mary Shefferly
Mary Shefferly, Operations Director, and Rabbi AlbertLewis, Programs and Development Director
39
Retiring FacultyReceive EmeritusStatusBy Tonya Schafer ‘02,
Freelance Writer
Ask Leo “Bill” Graff, Jr., whathe’ll remember most about his timeat Aquinas and you’ll get a readyanswer. “The people. When I wasa young faculty member, I hadgreat mentors—Lew Clingman,Ken Marin, George LaMountain,and Fred Bernard. All were won-derful teachers and became life-long friends,” he says.
In the coming years, many pro-fessors will likely say the samething about Graff, the School’slongest-serving faculty memberwho retired this summer afterthirty years at Aquinas College.
Graff was one of five profes-sors granted Emeritus Facultystatus by the College’s Board ofTrustees in May. Michael Denty,professor of philosophy, JohnTeusink, professor of biology,Michael Blomme, professor ofchemistry, and Andrew Jefchak,professor of English, retired af-ter many years of service to theAquinas community.
Being awarded Emeritus Facultystatus “reflects distinguished ser-vice,” says President HarryKnopke, who nominated the pro-fessors for this honor. “They’veprovided wonderful service. Andthis is an honorific title they’ll beable to use the rest of their lives.”
“It is a great honor to join theranks of the emeritus faculty. Theyare a distinguished group that hasgiven much to the college,” saysGraff, who now plans to fill histime with travel, research, writing,and volunteer work.
Welcome to Our NewFull-Time Faculty
Thomas E. Bahl, associate pro-fessor of biology, holds a Ph.D.from Emory University, an M.S.from the University of Georgia anda B.S. from Penn State University.
Jennifer Dawson, assistant pro-fessor of English, earned a Masterand Ph.D. at Michigan State Uni-versity and has a B.A. from theUniversity of Michigan.
Jason Duncan, Ph.D., assistantprofessor of history.
John Hogan, assistant professorof accounting, earned an M.B.A.,a B.B.A., and a C.P.A. from GrandValley State University.
Lisa Morgan, assistant professorof education, holds an M.A. fromCalifornia State University and aB.A. from Bridgewater State Col-lege.
Lisa Nowak, Ph.D., assistantprofessor of Spanish.
Michel Pichot, visiting associ-ate professor of French, holds aPh.D. from Penn State University,M.A.’s from Michigan State Uni-versity and Eastern Michigan Uni-versity and a B.A. from AtlanticUnion College.
RETIRING FACULTY
Leo “Bill” Graf, Jr. (left)with Provost Ed Balog.
Michael Blomme
Michael Denty
John Teusink
Following the reception, guestswere treated to the new IMAX fea-ture “Space Station 3-D,” an in-credible 45 minute voyage intospace filmed in state-of-the-art,three-dimensional film by the as-tronauts and cosmonauts aboardthe International Space Station.
Contributions may still be madeby contacting the DevelopmentDepartment at Aquinas College at616-459-8281, ext. 4490.
“Jefchak in Space” Lifts Off to Benefit EndowmentBy Gary Eberle, English Department Chair
On June 19, over 120 friends of Aquinas College blasted off to the Inter-national Space Station as part of an event benefiting the Andrew JefchakEndowment for Cinema Studies. The event, held at Grand Rapids’ newIMAX theater, capped a year of fundraising efforts and featured the presen-
tation of the very first “Jeffie”award to Aquinas alumna andTrustee Emerita Carol Duba Holm’61 and her husband Bob.
The “Jeffie,” an Oscar-like statu-ette, created by Aquinas art fac-ulty member Ron Pederson, showsJefchak standing with a book inone hand and a 16 mm film reel inthe other as if on his way toclass.The endowment was startedin spring of 2001 to honor Jefchakon his retirement from full-timeteaching after 30 years at Aquinas.
During that time, he introducedcinema studies to the English De-partment curriculum and taughtthousands of students to love mov-ies and to view them intelligently.Funds generated by the endow-ment will be used to continue todevelop the Aquinas library’s col-lection of classic and contempo-rary feature films for use in theclassroom in both cinema and lit-erature courses.
After an initial fundraising campaign on campus, the fund was jump startedby the Holms with a $5,000 matching fund grant for money raised in thefirst year of the campaign. Kathy Fore, director of special gifts, and I puttogether an alumni and corporate campaign, which, by year’s end, hadachieved its goal of raising in excess of $5,000. The Grand Rapids Press, theJohn Loeks Theaters, and Goodrich Quality Theaters, contributed moneyto honor Jefchak’s work as a film critic. Those contributions were enhancedby ones from faculty, staff and alumni. The Holms’ $5,000 challenge waseasily met.
During a June 19 reception, Aquinas President Harry Knopke and JohnLoeks, owner of the IMAX Theater, offered tributes to Jefchak.
23
Emeritus DinnerBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance
Writer
Lifelong AchievementEnrollment has been steadily in-
creasing and now 280 studentstake advantage of the continuingeducation classes offered each se-mester. The experiences of severalof the College’s students show thatonce a thirst for knowledge kicksin, it can’t be quenched. In May,
Accepting the 2002 EmeritusAward during a dinner held in hishonor this past May, Grand Rap-ids Mayor John H. Logie expressedappreciation for the supportAquinas College has given himthroughout his 11 years in office.
“I call Aquinas my ‘strong anchor’on the eastern edge of the city,”Logie said. “I know it will continueto be so in the future.”
Over 250 people attended theEmeritus Evening, which raised$45,000 for the Aquinas EmeritusCollege. The amount raised by thedinner was “a big chunk of ourbudget,” noted Emeritus CollegeDirector of Programs and Devel-opment, Albert Lewis.
Logie’s selection as 2002 Emeri-tus Award recipient pays tribute to
the years of service he has providedto the Grand Rapids community.Since being elected in 1991 Logiehas made it his mission to revital-ize the city’s downtown area.
“I took a walk down DivisionAvenue right after I was elected andcounted 76 vacant storefronts,”Logie said. So he helped establishRenaissance zones and has over-seen such major constructionprojects as the Van Andel Institute,the Van Andel Arena, and the up-
coming DeVos Place ConventionCenter.
“The future is so exciting.” Logiesaid.
Aquinas President Harry J.Knopke presented Logie with theaward. Previous recipients haveincluded former President GeraldFord, Amway co-founder RichDeVos and his wife, Helen, andWege Foundation Chair andAquinas College Trustee EmeritusPeter Wege.
the Emeritus College sponsored anawards ceremony that honored 25individuals who had taken over100 and 1,000 credit hours each.100 – Lee Abbott100 – Sister Marie Joseph Ryan100 – Marion Strodtman100.5 – Nancy Hubert
100.65 – Lou Papale101.1 – Eleanore Green122.25 – Henry Guzzo200 – Gladys Folkema200 – Jay Folkema200 – Marguerite McGraw200 – Virgilia Wade210.75 – Dorothy Michael300 – Helen Carr300 – Sister Ann Frederick Heiskell300.3 – Louise Neller325.55 – Cina Young400 – Mary Margaret Rapp410.85 – David Neven500.7 – Millie Page600 – Rita Fallon601.1 – Margaret Cook700 – Hazel Barnes800 – Thomas Overkleeft1050.7 – Isabel Butkiewicz1130.40 – Louise Harley1360.05 – Elizabeth Vittands1500.8 – Betty Anderson1680.45 – Florence Jefferies
Left to right: Mayor John H. Logie, Susie Logie, Sheila Knopke, andPresident Knopke.
“I call
Aquinas
my ‘strong
anchor’ on
the eastern
edge of the
city.”-Mayor Logie
Achieving over 1000 credit hours each are (left to right) Isabel Butkiewicz, LouiseHarley, Betty Anderson, Elizabeth Vittands and Florence Jefferies.
38
Facu
ltyN
ews
The “Jeffie.”
Andy Jefchak addresses the crowdwith the “Jeffie” on the podium.
Carol Duba Holm and husband Bobaccept the first “Jeffie” for theirendowment support.
24
Cam
pus
New
sCommencement 2002
Aquinas President Harry Knopke told graduates and family membersgathered for the 2002 Commencement that the College’s true measure ofsuccess is how well we help students “develop a better understandingtheir own strengths and talents and encouraging them to make a differ-ence in the world around them.”
Aquinas College conferred degrees on more than 500 graduates May11 with 350 of those students participating in the two and a half-hourceremony.
In addition, three community and civic-minded individuals receivedhonorary degrees.
“Those who know me, know I am praising God,” said Ella Sims, TrusteeEmerita, upon receiving her Doctor of Humane Letters degree for herwork as an activist and advocate for the underserved in the Grand Rapidscommunity.
“From the cotton fields of Mississippi to here … I had dreams. Butwhen you’re in God’s will, you don’t know where it will take you,” shetold the audience.
Mary Caroline “Twink” Frey received an honorary Doctor of SocialScience degree for nearly a quarter of a century of work on behalf ofwomen and children in the community. She said she would cherish themany ways in which Aquinas has touched her life. But she drew applauseand laughter when she noted that her degree puts her with an infamousgroup of women— “Dr. Ruth, Dr. Laura and Dr. ’‘Twink.’” Twink Frey andher husband, Trustee Jim McKay, established an Endowment Fund thatsupports the Jane Hibbard Idema Women’s Studies Center at Aquinas.
David Mathews, Ph.D., the president and CEO of the research-basedKettering Foundation in Ohio, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Lawsdegree for “leadership that has furthered the public’s understanding andpractice of American democratic principles.” The Foundation has been astrong advocate for civic activism.
Delivering the commencement address, Mathews, the former Secre-tary of Health, Education and Welfare under President Gerald Ford, praisedAquinas’ Community Leadership Program as a model for communitiesnationwide. The program, he said, teaches people how to make theircommunities more leaderful by teaching them how to make decisionstogether.
Mathews offered some historical perspective on more than two centu-ries of grassroots involvement in American democracy. And now, in thewake of the 9/11 crisis, he issued a call for civic involvement among thefuture leaders who were sitting in the graduate ranks.
He pointed out that everything that made America a better countrybegan with six people sitting around a kitchen table.
“Everyone in this building has access to a kitchen table and knows sixpeople,” he said. “We are not powerless as citizens, even in a 9/11 world.”
He encouraged these future leaders saying “democracy still starts wherewe live, in our communities. I think our message for this new generationwhich is facing more uncertainty, perhaps, than any other is that thefuture is more in your hands than anybody else.”
David Mathews, Ph.D., president and chief executiveofficer of Kettering Foundation, delivers thecommencement address to the Class of 2002.
Mary Caroline “Twink” Frey expressing gratitude afterreceiving an honorary Doctor of Social Science degree.
Ella Sims, Trustee Emerita, being hooded by her daughter,Mary ’86, receives an honorary Doctor of HumaneLetters degree.
37
They learned communicationskills by going to each of the class-rooms in the school and telling theteachers and students about theplay said Baker. They learnedmath by counting tickets and theylearned about writing and drawingby making posters and flyers.
Implementation of the ReggioEmilia program began two yearsago as part of Aquinas’ commit-ment to community relationshipsand quality education in the com-munity and also as a way to giveAquinas students first-hand expe-rience with the innovative program.
When Aquinas decided to takethe program into the community,one of the first things Aquinasneeded to do was find a coordina-tor. Enter Reggio expert DavidKelly. Kelly brought several yearsof experience to the table as a stu-dio coordinator for the ReggioEmilia inspired program in Chi-cago area schools. He now servesas an assistant professor of educa-tion at Aquinas in addition to his
duties as consultant to the threeschools.
The Reggio philosophy chal-lenges some of our culture’s basicassumptions about young children,from the way we shape their mindsto the pace at which they movethrough their days. In 1991,Newsweek hailed the program as anexemplary model of early child-hood education, yet its philoso-phies have been slow to catch holdin our country, and the Reggioapproach is still rare, especially ineducation after preschool.
“These ideas are incredibly im-portant around the country,” Kellysaid. “We are bringing a worldviewpoint into this city and we areasking people really hard questionsabout what does it mean to be ateacher and what does it mean tobe a learner. Confronting thesenew ideas can be challenging.”
“The program works to the ben-efit of [Aquinas] students as wellas small children. The over 900students in our School of Educa-
tion program have the opportunityto explore the Reggio principlesthrough their college courses andtheir practicum or student teach-ing stints. In fact the program isconsidered so cutting edge that wereceive calls from other collegeswanting to get their students intothese schools for their own Reggioexperience,” said Kelly.
“Aquinas is very interested inseeing how these schools can pro-vide different thinking for the stu-dents at Aquinas,” Kelly said.“Here they see [the Reggio pro-gram] in action. Otherwise theyjust learn a lot of theory. Aquinaswants to give many different ex-periences to their students. Thisis only one, but it’s a good one.”
Kate Girard ’02 did her practi-cum at the Aquinas College ChildDevelopment Center, which re-quired 160 hours of experience tosatisfy graduation requirements.
“I was taking 19 credits a semes-ter and the additional hours werenot easy,” she said. “But after com-pleting Reggio, it was just the mostvaluable experience. I reallylearned what kind of teacher I wantto be.”
Kate recently accepted a posi-tion as a kindergarten teacher inthe Chicago area where she plansto use key elements of her Reggiotraining to impact the lives of herstudents.
“I want to take the Reggio envi-ronment with me,” she said. “Thecreative, exciting, exploring envi-ronment will help me discoverwhat my children are interested in.Then I can incorporate those in-terests into every area of theirlearning—the books that they readand the art that they do. Reggiohas just integrated itself into myphilosophy. It has taught me theincredible power of a child’s mind.”
Students at East Academy present a play that provided them learning opportunities inwriting the play, designing and building the set, creating and distributing advertisingposters, and selling tickets.
25
Peace Corps Draws AQ Grad to PhilippinesBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance Writer
Community service has beenpart and parcel of Julie Fredrick’slife for as long as she can remem-ber. While attending Aquinas(1998-2002), Fredrick tutored stu-dents at St. Andrew’s elementary,worked with Campus Ministry,
and even volunteeredat a national park inMaine.
“But I’d alwayswanted to do mission-ary work,” says theAquinas alumna, whograduated this pastMay.
That’s why Fredrickhas decided to put herteaching abilities to usenot in a fluorescent-lighted Americanclassroom, but ratherin the sultry mountainsof the Philippines.
Fredrick began atwo-year stint in thePeace Corps this sum-
mer, using the skills she learned inAquinas education classes to teachEnglish in a rural community.
“I’ll be helping teachers improvetheir English fluency and I’ll workwith kids in the classroom,”Fredrick says. “I love volunteeringand children and travel so this is aperfect fit.”
Fredrick will be living with ahost family and traveling to sev-eral communities, making class-room observations and participat-ing in training workshops.
Conditions will likely be moreprimitive than what she is used to,but Fredrick says the semester shespent living in a teepee on a Na-tive American reservation as part
of the Aquinas study program inMontana has prepared her for thatpossibility.
“I’ve taken so much for grantedand I want to learn an apprecia-tion for what I have,” she says.
Staff members who haveworked with Fredrick say that thislatest effort testifies to her selflessnature. “Julie is an excellent ex-ample of someone who uses hergifts and abilities to make a differ-ence in the world today,” says Co-ordinator of Service Learning EricBridge.
The College acknowledged thatfact formally in May when it pre-sented Fredrick with the Monsi-gnor Bukowski Award, an honorgiven annually to a senior whoexhibits outstanding servicethroughout his or her four years atAquinas.
Fredrick doesn’t miss anychance to give back to the com-munity. When she cut her foot-long hair in preparation for thetropical temperatures she will en-counter the next two years,Fredrick donated it to Locks ofLove, an organization that pro-vides wigs to disadvantaged chil-dren who suffer from health-re-lated hair loss.
She insists that she isn’t nervousabout her adventure. Unrest in theMiddle East has touched areas ofthe Philippines, but the PeaceCorps places participants in safelocations, she says, and her senseof mission is enough to see herthrough.
“I’m more excited than nervous,”she says. “I find fulfillment in help-ing others and in trying to add totheir lives in whatever way I can.”
Julie Fredrick (right) with Beth Goyette as they prepareto receive their diplomas last May
36
The Reggio WayBy Michelle Bottrall ’97,
Contributing Writer
Have you heard about the newguy in town? His name is ReggioEmilia and he is Italian.
But it’s not Reggio’s good looksthat are creating a stir. It’s Reggio’sexciting environments, investiga-tive techniques and innovativeideas that have people talking. Yousee, Reggio Emilia is an Italian sys-tem of education that is quicklychanging the lives of the childrenat three Grand Rapids area schools.The Reggio approach is spreadinglike wildfire.
Two years ago, East Academy inWyoming, the Child DiscoveryCenter in Grand Rapids, and theAquinas College Child Develop-ment Center introduced theReggio Emilia inspired program totheir students. The system hasworked so well that this fall theprogram will be expanded to in-clude fifth grade students.
So where did Reggio come fromand how does it work?
After World War II, the smallItalian town of Reggio Emilia wasso ravaged that its citizens bandedtogether and decided to invest asmuch as possible in their youngchildren, especially in their educa-tion. Reggio Emilia’s municipalitycreated programs which serve in-fants and children up to age six.The plan creates conditions forlearning that stimulate thinking inchildren using the children’s ownideas, observations and creativityto help shape the curriculum.
In a typical Reggio classroomyou would find a sunlight filledspace with children working in sev-eral small areas. One area mightbe partitioned off with a curtain andhave a puppet stage, one might
teacher does everything else, thisplay involved the children fromthe beginning to the end.
Students who were good atpainting and building helped de-sign and build the set. Childrenwho liked to read and write helpedwrite the play based on a favoritebook of theirs, Henny Penny. An-other group of children talkedabout advertising and designedposters, flyers and tickets for theshow. Every step of the way, thechildren were involved.
“Not only does theater givethem a limitless imagination, ithelps them learn how to problemsolve,” said parent Sherry LeeAllen, whose daughter, Jamie, wasGoosy Loosey in the production.“Just the fact that they can accom-plish it and it can be so wonderfulgives them a real sense of not onlyaccomplishment but that theirimaginations can become real.They are only limited by whatthey can dream up.”
In the end, the productionended up being a learning experi-ence that was so much fun, thechildren didn’t even realize theywere fulfilling the state’s require-ments regarding their education.
have two or three children craft-ing their ABC’s out of clay, anothermight have the children writingletters and posting them in the“mail center.”
“It’s all about the environmentof the classroom,” said MarciaBaker, kindergarten teacher andlead teacher for the Reggio Emiliaprogram at East Academy. “Youhave to look at the room you comeinto and think ‘Is it about learningand investigating things or chil-dren listening to someone tellingthem what they need to know?’What are the most importantthings for kindergartners to be?You want them to be readers andwriters and thinkers and be ableto show what they know. Theycan’t do that sitting in rows ofdesks.”
An emergent curriculum is alsoa mainstay of the program. Top-ics for study are taken from the talkof children and their interests. Forinstance, when Baker discoveredthat many of her afternoon kinder-garten students liked to play actduring their free time, she encour-aged them to do a play. However,unlike most school plays where thechildren learn a line or two and the
Aquinas student Gretchen Webber helps guide child creativity at the Child DiscoveryCenter at Aquinas.
26
For the past four years Aquinas College has pursued an ambitious pro-gram of internationalization. The College created a series of semester-long, intensive study-abroad and cultural-immersion programs.
Last year, the In-ternational and Cul-tural Studies Programsent over 100 stu-dents to study sites inCosta Rica, France,Germany, Haiti, Ire-land, Japan, Mexico,Montana (BlackfeetIndian Reservation),and Spain.
Aquinas is com-mitted to the ideathat a liberal arts edu-cation is a transforming education. As such, it develops the whole personas a contributing citizen of the world community. A liberal arts curriculumfocuses on the development of values, addressing ultimate questions, whileproviding specific skills that contribute to the development of the wholeindividual as a social agent.
In this, our students should acquire the life skills of self-confidence, in-dependence, curiosity, appreciation for diversity and adaptability, throughwhich they can better apply professional competencies.
Off campus/international, cultural immersion programs represent a pow-erful blend of experiential and classroom learning that accomplishes thesegoals.
These programs are excellent vehicles for challenging students to leavetheir comfort zones, to substitute understanding for suspicion and knowl-edge for ignorance, to discover their strengths and abilities, for demon-strating the possibilities of community from the family to global level, andfor fostering an orientation to lifelong learning.
International education, service-learning, and/or internships all have thepotential to provide the basis for deep, tacit learning, which in turn inspiresand motivates students to become community leaders and positive changeagents.
The proof of these grand ideals, however, is in the pudding. Accord-ingly, this year, we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the AquinasIreland Program.
This program has produced well over 600 alumni with more than fondmemories of the beauty of the Irish people and land. These alumni, liketheir newer counterparts returning from Japan, Costa Rica, Spain, and othercountries, will testify to the transformative power of cultural immersion.
An Irish Experience By Jennifer Brown ‘02
When I was asked to write aboutmy experience in Ireland, I wasboth excited and apprehensivebecause I was afraid I would notfind the words to express howamazing this experience was forme. Tully Cross became my homeaway from home.
At the trip’s beginning, I wastold that if you thought leavinghome was hard wait until youleave Ireland.
I soon realized the truth of thatstatement. The semester I spent onthe Emerald Isle was the best se-mester I have ever had.
As we drove to Tully Cross, Iheard my fellow students makingcomments like “I didn’t know Ire-land had palm trees” or “look at thepainted sheep.”
I was one of 25 Aquinas studentsaccompanied by professors CurtBechler, Ph.D., and Lorraine Straw,Ph.D. Curriculum for the four-month semester included IrishHistory, Irish Literature and IrishCulture. The Irish Culture classtaught us about the area, an eth-nography report, and group tripsto historical sites.
We also were given the oppor-tunity to complete Global Explo-rations of Meaning and/or a Ser-vice Learning Project. The ServiceLearning Projects included a com-munity assessment for ConnemaraNational Park; an organizationalassessment for a weekly radio pro-gram; assistance with theChildren’s Theater Program in thenational schools; assistance toYouth Reach (i.e., work with strug-gling teens); classroom aides forthe national schools; and visitingthe Cleggan Nursing Home.
The Global Perspective: International StudiesBy Kris Lou, Assistant Dean of International and Cultural Studies
Kris Lou, Ph.D.
35
School of ManagementThe faculty and staff are looking forward to the beginning of another
great school year. We welcome new faculty member John Hogan to theAccounting Department and continue to see excellent students enter bothour graduate and undergraduate programs.
As faculty members prepare for new classes and students, they will alsobe continuing the initiatives of self-study and program assessment begun inprior academic years, considering new directions and opportunities as wemove forward. A new advising program, in which faculty members aremore directly advising and mentoring majors, will also begin.
In March, 2001 the School of Management presented a seminar titled,Being Your Best in the Workplace: Creating Positive Interactions through Positive Commu-nication. Penny Avery, Ph.D., and Dave Weinandy, Ph.D., two outstandingCommunication Department faculty members who also teach in the Mas-ter of Management Program, conducted it. We expect to continue to hosta range of seminars in the future. If you are interested in being placed on amailing list for such events, please contact Lynn Atkins-Rykert, ext. 8000,in the School of Management office ([email protected]).
In celebration of the 25th year of the Master of Management program,the School of Management will be hosting an open house in Jarecki Centerfor Advanced Learning during Homecoming weekend (Sept. 27-29). Allare welcome whether you have graduated from the MM program or under-graduate Business, Accounting or CIS. In addition, we would like to knowhow best to stay connected with you as we move forward. We hope to seethe increased involvement of many of our alumni in order to provide thegreatest educational opportunity for our students.
School of EducationIt has been a refreshing and productive summer as we prepare for an-
other year of increased enrollments and teacher innovations. Our Masterof Science Education and Master in the Art of Teaching students are work-ing on their action research projects, which positively impact their class-room and building-level teaching. The Master in Education and under-graduate students continue to be very successful in finding the teachingpositions for which they have prepared.
The cooperative charter school with Grand Rapids Public Schools andthe cooperative magnet school with Wyoming Public Schools show in-creased enrollments for the third straight year. The Conductive EducationPrivate School is now a recognized non-profit school with a separate boardof directors, which has a cooperative arrangement with Aquinas Collegefor training Physically and Otherwise Health Impaired (POHI) AquinasCollege pre-service teachers. Our summer reading clinics, both elemen-tary and secondary, were very successful programs. The International Con-ference of Education Through Music (ETM) that the School of Educationand Music Department co-hosted in July was extremely well received. CathyTucci and her husband were able to receive their first daughter in Chinathis summer, adding a new dimension to our joy and wonder for life.
V. James Garofalo, Ph.D.Dean, School of Education
Cynthia VanGelderenDean, School of Management
27
The courses and projects weredesigned to immerse us in the lifeand culture of Tully Cross and tolet us experience life in rural Ire-land in a very personal way.Friendships with the locals, Irishdancing lessons with the ladies ofthe town, afternoons over a pot oftea while studying, and long talkswith new friends enriched ourdays, nights and weekends.Classes were made more specialwhen they were taught out in theopen where Bechler had to lectureover the “moos” of our neighbors.This is truly the experience and theopportunity of a lifetime. My travelcompanions and I returned filledwith stories, treasuring the friend-ships we made and a little sad tosay goodbye to the life we leftbehind.
Some of my favorite memoriesare waking up in the morning andlooking out the window to see therain falling and the clouds cover-ing the mountains as the windwhistled along. I looked forwardto seeing the painted sheep graz-ing in the mountains behind thelittle white cottages or a cow ortwo running down the street withfarmers not far behind. The tinytown of Tully Cross became a
home where I learned to live at aslower pace and to appreciate thebeautiful scenery that is oftenpushed aside.
This trip helped met to treasurethe culture and to slow my life’space. The locals became myfriends and the town became ahome to me. I find myself long-ing to go back to the pub, to listento the traditional Irish music thatwas played every Sunday evening,and to go for a walk along theocean or hike in the mountains.Even walking a mile for groceriestook on an entirely new meaning.
The Irish cultureis amazing andtaught me morethan anyone couldever imagine. Iknow now that Iwould not be whoI am today with-out this dream-ful-filling experience.
Curt Bechler, Ph.D.,teaching Irish Literature atSky Walk near Tully Cross.
IrelandStudiesProgramCelebrates30thAnniversary
SaturdaySept. 28, 2002
DonnellyCenter
Jennifer Brown’02, BridgetClark, senior, andRenae Rankin,senior, take ashort break at a friend’s sheep farm.
34
News from the Deans
School of Arts and SciencesDuring graduation ceremonies last May, I placed the baccalaureate hoods
on students majoring in degrees from the School of Arts and Sciences (SAS).I was moved by the impact that faculty members have on our traditionalage and adult students. There was an exchange of warm feelings, smiles ofrecognition, handshakes and hugs with faculty as students walked throughcommencement ceremonies.
We have really played an important part in helping students shape theirlives as they enter adulthood. One graduate crossed the stage with herbaby, both wearing mortarboards! For this woman, motherhood and col-lege life were not mutually exclusive, but rather entwined in her daily rou-tine. It’s quite remarkable how our adult students are able to juggle school,jobs and families.
So much effort, energy, knowledge and care go into the making of asuccessful Aquinas student. I often have the opportunity to speak with alumniwho are almost unanimous in saying that Aquinas was a life-giving and life-sustaining experience during their formative years. And everyone recallshow much they loved being here! I, too, realize how much I love Aquinas.
The College represents so much more than a degree … it is the small,yet priceless, gem that creates, enhances and molds character with goodvalues, impressive and challenging knowledge and fulfilling expectations.Such are the characteristics of the 2002 graduating class in the School ofArts and Sciences.
The School of Arts and Sciences has had an active year, ranging fromour collaborative nursing program with the University of Detroit Mercy toseveral new faculty who will begin their careers at Aquinas in fall 2002.About two dozen faculty members from SAS have spent time teaching inthe Aquinas Emeritus College, an institution that focuses on the continu-ing education of our senior population, adults 55 and older.
Our Arts and Sciences faculty continues to partake in professional de-velopment, making presentations and presenting papers at national andinternational conferences. Chair of the History Department Chad Gunnoe,Ph.D., spent this summer in Poland, studying and touring. English Depart-ment Chair Gary Eberle and Deborah Wickering, Ph.D., assistant profes-sor-in-the-College have books coming out this summer and fall.
Shirley Lewis, Ph.D.Dean, School of Arts and Sciences
28
September 11, 2001:A View From AbroadBy Jeanette Pierce, Junior
Obviously, for the world, ourcountry and myself, this has beena year unlike any other. It was filledwith difficult times, amazing cour-age and small victories. It beganwhen I first arrived in Spain lastfall as part of Aquinas’ Global Ex-plorations and Meanings (GEM)
program. I faced obstacles neverbefore experienced. As I overcamethem, I developed physical, men-tal and emotional muscles which Ihave used to help others overcomesimilar obstacles.
September 11, 2001: Wherewas I? I was in Spain, far away fromanything familiar. My only conso-lation was my knowledge of worldpolitics that surrounded the issue.Unfortunately, none of the otherstudents experienced that samecomfort. They could only ask“Why?”
I was able to answer that forthem. I offered explanations andworked to help them grasp theevents that were happening. I alsohelped non-Americans understandthings from our point of view.Helping others through that diffi-cult time also helped me. It mademe realize the importance of edu-cation and the magnitude of thegift that made it possible.
Returning to the United Stateswas as difficult as leaving it hadbeen four months earlier. It hadchanged and so had I. More im-portantly, I had the opportunityto be that teacher once again.This time, I educated others onthe importance of experiencingother cultures. I related my trialsand tribulations, as well as my vic-tories and ventures. I openedpeople’s eyes to a world never be-fore conceived, and I considerthat one of my greatest accom-plishments ever.
The GEM course taught us tothink about the “Hero” formula:a person leaves home to face un-known challenges but eventuallyreturns to share stories of battlesfought and lessons learned thatchange people’s lives. I have neverfelt better, knowing that I haveshared my story, both throughwords and deeds, and it has madea difference in the world.
A sign and candle placed on a sidewalk inSpain last September echoes global senti-ments to the 9/11 tragedy: “For the victimsof the United States and for a better world”
33
Performing Arts Center —The Curtain is RisingThe new $7.0 million Performing Arts Center moved from the drawing
board to the construction phase with an official groundbreaking ceremonyon May 6. More than 300 people crowded the south campus site whererepresentatives of Aquinas, Circle Theatre and the Catholic SecondarySchools of Grand Rapids turned dirt to mark the start of construction.
The Theatre, a collaborative venture between Aquinas, Circle Theatreand the Catholic Secondary Schools, will be 28,500 square feet with 410permanent seats arranged in a stepped-stadium style wrapping a thrust stage.
After foundation work was completed in early July, a 250-ton crane movedonto the site to begin placing 80 pre-cast concrete slabs into place, formingthe outer perimeter for the two upper floors of the building. The wall slabsweighed between 37,000 and 45,000 pounds and measured between 36 and41 feet high and eight feet wide. Floor panels were to be placed in earlyAugust and work was scheduled to begin on the roof trusses. The Theatre is
scheduled to open next summer.It’s not too late to get involved with
the Theatre project. Reserve a seat foryourself or someone close to you. You can have a seat named for $1,000 throughthe “We’ve Saved a Seat for You” chair campaign. For more information,contact Kathy Fore, Director of Special Gifts, at 616-459-8281, ext. 4423, orvia e-mail at [email protected]
Visit the Aquinas College Web site for weekly progress reports on con-struction, including site photographs. There’s a link on the main page or typewww.aquinas.edu/news/theatre/.
Circle Theatre/Aquinas College CapitalCampaign Co-Chair Kyle Irwin (center)flanked by Sue Jandernoa (left) andArnette Kraus.
Representatives of Aquinas College, Circle Theatre andCatholic Secondary Schools break ground May 6.
Crews place 20-ton pre-cast concrete walls into place in mid-Julyforming a portion of the exterior wall of the 28,500 sq. ft. theatre.
Over 300 people came together to celebrate the groundbreaking on May 6, 2002.
Aquinas Welcomes New ChaplainBy Mary Clark-Kaiser, Director of Campus Ministry
On August 1, the Rev. CharlesSantoro, O.P., began his duties asthe new chaplain at Aquinas Col-lege. Father Charles, who has mas-ter degrees in both Philosophy andTheology, has spent much of hiscareer as a priest serving in Cam-pus Ministry.
He has ministered at Catho-lic Newman Centers on largeuniversity campuses such asSouth Dakota State University,the University of Arizona andthe University of Wisconsin. Hehas also served as chaplain at aprivate catholic college, Domini-can University near Chicago. Forthe past seven years, Fr. Charleshas served as Pastor of a Domini-can Parish in Minneapolis. Hesays he looks forward to return-ing to campus ministry.
Fr. Charles is interested inecumenism, politics, includingpeace and justice issues, moviesand sports. He is sure to beamong those rooting on the
Saints this year as he admits to be-ing an enthusiastic sports fan.
Fr. Santoro replaces Fr. RonKreul, O.P., who after two yearsat AQ moved on to EdgewoodCollege in Madison, Wisconsin,where he will apply his knowledgeand expertise in the School’s Mas-ter of Marriage and FamilyTherapyprogram.
Father RonKreul
Father Charles Santoro
29
Three times per year, AquinasCollege hosts the ElementaryReading Clinic. The clinic is opento all first through sixth grade chil-dren in the community. In con-junction with the Reading Assess-ment and Classroom Practiceseducation course, Aquinas studentstutor these children in founda-tional reading skills with an em-phasis on comprehension andword identification.
Because only one-third offourth-graders in America readskillfully at grade level, AquinasSchool of Education students aretaught to identify student-readingchallenges early and to intervenequickly. If gone unnoticed or un-attended before the fourth grade,reading problems compound and become exponentially more difficult torectify.
A solid foundation of self-esteem is critical for children. When childrenstruggle with reading, they feel stupid in comparison to their peers. Frus-tration increases, a poor attitude develops, and behavior problems emerge,potentially resulting in even more devastating social implications.
Proficient literacy in youth is paramount. Teachers need the knowledgeto instill literacy skills in their students. Aquinas College equips its Educa-tion students with the expertise they need to empower and educate chil-dren.
The Elementary Reading Clinic operates every fall and spring semesterfrom 4 to 5:30 p.m., one time per week for 11 weeks at a cost of $150 perstudent. The clinic also operates every summer from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.five times per week for three weeks at a cost of $300 per student.
Through the Frederic H. Chappell Endowment, scholarships are avail-able on a limited basis. Before his death in February 2000, Frederic Chappellwas the consummate educator, devoting his life to helping children. In hishonor and memory, Luthene Chappell, former Reading Clinic Director of18 years and Frederic’s wife, established the fund to provide scholarships tothose families unable to afford tuition.
Donations for the clinic may be made to the Frederic H. ChappellEndowment in care of Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned Giving, at (800)748-0186 or [email protected].
For further information regarding the Elementary Reading Clinic, pleasecontact Sue Liberatore, Reading Clinic Director, at 616-459-8281, ext.5500, or [email protected].
Reading Empowers Students and Impacts Their FutureBy Anna Goddard, Fieldwork Coordinator, School of Education
Aquinas instructor Phi Tran assists Clinic student, Tierney, with her assignments.
32
Poetry WorkshopsAttract High SchoolStudents to AquinasBy Pam Waterbury, Assistant Professor
of English
In the 1989 cinematic produc-tion “Dead Poets Society,” actorRobin Williams plays an eccentricNew England prep school profes-sor who inspires his studentsthrough poetry. Though his un-usual method of teaching is de-signed to encourage his studentsto challenge conventional wisdom,his character, perhaps, embodiesthat spirit which every English pro-fessor attempts to instill in students—a passion for life that manifestsitself through their writings or per-formance.
That same effort was evident fora group of high school studentswho came to Aquinas in mid-May.The students, spoken word poets,came to campus on May 17, per-forming original works developedduring an all day workshop.
Forty students and four teach-ers from several Grand Rapids areaschools—Christian High, EastKentwood, Hudsonville, and Ot-tawa Hills—participated in thethird annual Poetry Out Loud.
Poetry writing, propmaking,and performance workshops ledby faculty from the English, Art,and Music Departments ofAquinas and guest presenters cul-minated in a “Happening” in whichstudents performed their music ac-companied by Aquinas PercussionBand in the Moose Cafe.
Students were introduced to theconcept of Performance Poetrythrough videos and original musi-cal compositions by Rupert Kettle,which were performed by percus-sion musicians in the Amphitheater
of the Kretchmer Art and MusicCenter. English Department faculty—Associate Professors MichelleDeRose and Miriam Pedersonand Assistant Professor VickiMcMillan—led the high schoolstudents in poetry writing work-shops. Aquinas alumna and poet,Linda Nemic Foster ’72 also led apoetry writing session.
The students also learned aboutmask and prop making in a work-
shop led by Dana Freeman, asso-ciate professor of art. They pickedup performance techniques fromBarbara McCargar and GaryEberle, chairs of the Music andEnglish Departments, respec-tively. The workshops not onlygave students the opportunity todevelop new skills in the creativearts, but the chance to interactwith their peers from the otherarea schools. The “Happening”concluded the daylong workshopwith students performing theirpoems for an audience of friendsand parents.
The event provides an impor-tant venue to showcase the talentsof students whose interests are notoften celebrated or even recog-nized in most high schools.
More importantly, students areexposed to a creative means forexpressing their voices and truths.
The unqualified success of thisprogram can be seen in the stu-dents’ desire to return each year.
“My students loved the ‘Hap-pening’, the mask making, and thepoetry writing. On the bus ridehome, the students were alreadyplanning for next year,” said EastKentwood High School teacherAnne Keller. She added, “One ofmy students says she wants to goto AQ!”
Students perform at the “Happening”following the daylong poetry workshop.
Poetry writing
workshops,
directed by
Aquinas faculty,
guide the
students in
developing the
foundation for
their creative
efforts.
30
College ConferencingServices: Open forBusiness.By Nicole Selzer, Conferencing Services
At Aquinas, education occurson many levels. Professional work-shops, long-distance learning,seminars and a variety of social ac-tivities are among the opportuni-ties made available through theCollege’s Conferencing ServicesDepartment. Aquinas offers nearlya dozen meeting spaces, in addi-tion to classrooms, for any varietyof events whether social, profes-sional development or generalmeeting. The Conferencing De-partment handles event schedul-ing and coordinates setup, cater-ing, and equipment needs for largeor small group functions.
In 1998, the College openedthe Jarecki Center for AdvancedLearning, which houses state ofthe art communications technol-
Women’s StudiesCenter Brings JaneGoodall to AquinasCollegeBy Jennifer Kotenko, student/
Aquinas Times reporter
Jane Goodall, renownedenvironmentalist and hu-manitarian, visited AquinasCollege Feb. 13 to share someof her experiences and to im-part her reason for hope.
Goodall’s visit was held in con-junction with a promotional tourfor Roots and Shoots, the environ-mental education program shefounded that involves people ofall ages, races, financial situations,and cultures who are committedto making a difference.
Goodall is famous for begin-ning the longest-ever continuousstudy of animals in their naturalhabitats and for making discover-ies about her subjects that revolu-tionized the way animals areviewed.
Now she works to improveconditions for the animal king-dom, the environment, and for allmankind. Roots, according toGoodall, provide a firm founda-tion. Shoots, insignificant as theymay seem, have been known tobreak through brick walls. Likethose shoots, people—throughtheir commitment to extendingawareness—are making the worlda better place.
“Every individual has a role toplay and every one of us mattersand can make a difference,”Goodall said at Aquinas. “Onlylove and compassion and respectfor all life can dissolve the barri-ers between groups.” (Article ap-pears courtesy of the AquinasTimes.)
ogy. The Center is equipped toprovide teleconferencing, videoconferencing, and Internet accessto meet the technological require-ments of our students, staff, facultyand clients.
The Conferencing aspect ofAquinas helps to expose the busi-ness community to the College, itsbeautifully wooded surroundings,and the community at large. It’s notuncommon to find one or twowedding receptions or other socialevents taking place in the WegeBallroom and the Donnelly Con-ference Center on any given week-end. An added bonus is the allur-ing escape that awaits those at-tending campus events. Guests cantake in the serene beauty of thecampus with a walk through thegardens, around Wege Pond oracross the campus.
Throughout the academic year,Aquinas also hosts events that areopen to the public, offering avariety of speakers, musical perfor-mances and other activities. Formore information, contact JuliGalle at 616-459-8281, ext. 5306,Judi Creamer at ext. 5304, orNicole Selzer at ext. 5305.
The Jarecki Center
for Advanced
Learning provides
an ideal setting for
technology-based
business meetings
as well as social
gatherings.
Susan Haworth-Hoeppner, director of theWomen’s Studies Center, with guest lecturerand renowned environmentalist Jane Goodall.
31
U of M Interim President Draws Huge Crowd forWege Speaker SeriesBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance Writer
Emphasizing the need for environmental conservation efforts, formerUniversity of Michigan Interim President B. Joseph White got right to thepoint.
“There isn’t another ozone layer,there are no more rivers, and wecan’t keep moving into what’s leftof our green spaces. We must actsmarter, more responsibly, andmore efficiently when it comes tothe environment,” White told acrowd of faculty, staff, students,and community members thatpacked Aquinas College’s WegeStudent Center Ballroom April 2.
His speech, “From Pollution toSolution: Environmentalists andBusiness Join Forces” was held inconjunction with the WegeSpeaker Series, which each yearbrings to campus an individualwho has devoted himself or her-self to the conservation of naturalresources.
Local philanthropist PeterWege founded the series in 1997. In the years since, it has featured suchnoted individuals as environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., son and name-sake of the former U.S. senator, and economist Herman E. Daly.
White, who completed a six-month term as interim president of theUniversity of Michigan on July 31, is a former dean of Michigan’s BusinessSchool and has launched such initiatives as the Erb Environmental Man-agement Institute and the Corporate Environmental Management Program.
He said that the bulk of responsibility for environmental preservationfalls on businesses, which must maintain an ethical duty to ensure that theirpractices help—and not hinder—conservation efforts. White cited the caseof his own university, which maintains a thriving recycling program, em-ploys a fleet of alternative fuel vehicles, and makes use of energy-savingappliances, as an example of environmental stewardship in action.
“It takes more than action, though. It also takes education,” said White.He noted that offering courses in such areas as urban planning, the Univer-sity is laying a foundation for future conservation efforts and is providingtomorrow’s leaders with “the kind of forward thinking Peter Wege offersour generation.”
WegeSpeakerSeries
Joseph White, Ph.D. (stage right), former University of Michigan interimpresident, speaks to an overflow crowd in the Wege Center Ballroom forthe 2002 Wege Speaker Series. Series founder, Peter Wege (stage left), andPresident Knopke (center) listen.
2003
Series
April 10
Speaker:John Knott Jr.BuilderDeveloperPreservationist
UrbanRevitalizationExpert
Wege Ballroom
4 p.m.
30
College ConferencingServices: Open forBusiness.By Nicole Selzer, Conferencing Services
At Aquinas, education occurson many levels. Professional work-shops, long-distance learning,seminars and a variety of social ac-tivities are among the opportuni-ties made available through theCollege’s Conferencing ServicesDepartment. Aquinas offers nearlya dozen meeting spaces, in addi-tion to classrooms, for any varietyof events whether social, profes-sional development or generalmeeting. The Conferencing De-partment handles event schedul-ing and coordinates setup, cater-ing, and equipment needs for largeor small group functions.
In 1998, the College openedthe Jarecki Center for AdvancedLearning, which houses state ofthe art communications technol-
Women’s StudiesCenter Brings JaneGoodall to AquinasCollegeBy Jennifer Kotenko, student/
Aquinas Times reporter
Jane Goodall, renownedenvironmentalist and hu-manitarian, visited AquinasCollege Feb. 13 to share someof her experiences and to im-part her reason for hope.
Goodall’s visit was held in con-junction with a promotional tourfor Roots and Shoots, the environ-mental education program shefounded that involves people ofall ages, races, financial situations,and cultures who are committedto making a difference.
Goodall is famous for begin-ning the longest-ever continuousstudy of animals in their naturalhabitats and for making discover-ies about her subjects that revolu-tionized the way animals areviewed.
Now she works to improveconditions for the animal king-dom, the environment, and for allmankind. Roots, according toGoodall, provide a firm founda-tion. Shoots, insignificant as theymay seem, have been known tobreak through brick walls. Likethose shoots, people—throughtheir commitment to extendingawareness—are making the worlda better place.
“Every individual has a role toplay and every one of us mattersand can make a difference,”Goodall said at Aquinas. “Onlylove and compassion and respectfor all life can dissolve the barri-ers between groups.” (Article ap-pears courtesy of the AquinasTimes.)
ogy. The Center is equipped toprovide teleconferencing, videoconferencing, and Internet accessto meet the technological require-ments of our students, staff, facultyand clients.
The Conferencing aspect ofAquinas helps to expose the busi-ness community to the College, itsbeautifully wooded surroundings,and the community at large. It’s notuncommon to find one or twowedding receptions or other socialevents taking place in the WegeBallroom and the Donnelly Con-ference Center on any given week-end. An added bonus is the allur-ing escape that awaits those at-tending campus events. Guests cantake in the serene beauty of thecampus with a walk through thegardens, around Wege Pond oracross the campus.
Throughout the academic year,Aquinas also hosts events that areopen to the public, offering avariety of speakers, musical perfor-mances and other activities. Formore information, contact JuliGalle at 616-459-8281, ext. 5306,Judi Creamer at ext. 5304, orNicole Selzer at ext. 5305.
The Jarecki Center
for Advanced
Learning provides
an ideal setting for
technology-based
business meetings
as well as social
gatherings.
Susan Haworth-Hoeppner, director of theWomen’s Studies Center, with guest lecturerand renowned environmentalist Jane Goodall.
31
U of M Interim President Draws Huge Crowd forWege Speaker SeriesBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance Writer
Emphasizing the need for environmental conservation efforts, formerUniversity of Michigan Interim President B. Joseph White got right to thepoint.
“There isn’t another ozone layer,there are no more rivers, and wecan’t keep moving into what’s leftof our green spaces. We must actsmarter, more responsibly, andmore efficiently when it comes tothe environment,” White told acrowd of faculty, staff, students,and community members thatpacked Aquinas College’s WegeStudent Center Ballroom April 2.
His speech, “From Pollution toSolution: Environmentalists andBusiness Join Forces” was held inconjunction with the WegeSpeaker Series, which each yearbrings to campus an individualwho has devoted himself or her-self to the conservation of naturalresources.
Local philanthropist PeterWege founded the series in 1997. In the years since, it has featured suchnoted individuals as environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., son and name-sake of the former U.S. senator, and economist Herman E. Daly.
White, who completed a six-month term as interim president of theUniversity of Michigan on July 31, is a former dean of Michigan’s BusinessSchool and has launched such initiatives as the Erb Environmental Man-agement Institute and the Corporate Environmental Management Program.
He said that the bulk of responsibility for environmental preservationfalls on businesses, which must maintain an ethical duty to ensure that theirpractices help—and not hinder—conservation efforts. White cited the caseof his own university, which maintains a thriving recycling program, em-ploys a fleet of alternative fuel vehicles, and makes use of energy-savingappliances, as an example of environmental stewardship in action.
“It takes more than action, though. It also takes education,” said White.He noted that offering courses in such areas as urban planning, the Univer-sity is laying a foundation for future conservation efforts and is providingtomorrow’s leaders with “the kind of forward thinking Peter Wege offersour generation.”
WegeSpeakerSeries
Joseph White, Ph.D. (stage right), former University of Michigan interimpresident, speaks to an overflow crowd in the Wege Center Ballroom forthe 2002 Wege Speaker Series. Series founder, Peter Wege (stage left), andPresident Knopke (center) listen.
2003
Series
April 10
Speaker:John Knott Jr.BuilderDeveloperPreservationist
UrbanRevitalizationExpert
Wege Ballroom
4 p.m.
29
Three times per year, AquinasCollege hosts the ElementaryReading Clinic. The clinic is opento all first through sixth grade chil-dren in the community. In con-junction with the Reading Assess-ment and Classroom Practiceseducation course, Aquinas studentstutor these children in founda-tional reading skills with an em-phasis on comprehension andword identification.
Because only one-third offourth-graders in America readskillfully at grade level, AquinasSchool of Education students aretaught to identify student-readingchallenges early and to intervenequickly. If gone unnoticed or un-attended before the fourth grade,reading problems compound and become exponentially more difficult torectify.
A solid foundation of self-esteem is critical for children. When childrenstruggle with reading, they feel stupid in comparison to their peers. Frus-tration increases, a poor attitude develops, and behavior problems emerge,potentially resulting in even more devastating social implications.
Proficient literacy in youth is paramount. Teachers need the knowledgeto instill literacy skills in their students. Aquinas College equips its Educa-tion students with the expertise they need to empower and educate chil-dren.
The Elementary Reading Clinic operates every fall and spring semesterfrom 4 to 5:30 p.m., one time per week for 11 weeks at a cost of $150 perstudent. The clinic also operates every summer from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.five times per week for three weeks at a cost of $300 per student.
Through the Frederic H. Chappell Endowment, scholarships are avail-able on a limited basis. Before his death in February 2000, Frederic Chappellwas the consummate educator, devoting his life to helping children. In hishonor and memory, Luthene Chappell, former Reading Clinic Director of18 years and Frederic’s wife, established the fund to provide scholarships tothose families unable to afford tuition.
Donations for the clinic may be made to the Frederic H. ChappellEndowment in care of Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned Giving, at (800)748-0186 or [email protected].
For further information regarding the Elementary Reading Clinic, pleasecontact Sue Liberatore, Reading Clinic Director, at 616-459-8281, ext.5500, or [email protected].
Reading Empowers Students and Impacts Their FutureBy Anna Goddard, Fieldwork Coordinator, School of Education
Aquinas instructor Phi Tran assists Clinic student, Tierney, with her assignments.
32
Poetry WorkshopsAttract High SchoolStudents to AquinasBy Pam Waterbury, Assistant Professor
of English
In the 1989 cinematic produc-tion “Dead Poets Society,” actorRobin Williams plays an eccentricNew England prep school profes-sor who inspires his studentsthrough poetry. Though his un-usual method of teaching is de-signed to encourage his studentsto challenge conventional wisdom,his character, perhaps, embodiesthat spirit which every English pro-fessor attempts to instill in students—a passion for life that manifestsitself through their writings or per-formance.
That same effort was evident fora group of high school studentswho came to Aquinas in mid-May.The students, spoken word poets,came to campus on May 17, per-forming original works developedduring an all day workshop.
Forty students and four teach-ers from several Grand Rapids areaschools—Christian High, EastKentwood, Hudsonville, and Ot-tawa Hills—participated in thethird annual Poetry Out Loud.
Poetry writing, propmaking,and performance workshops ledby faculty from the English, Art,and Music Departments ofAquinas and guest presenters cul-minated in a “Happening” in whichstudents performed their music ac-companied by Aquinas PercussionBand in the Moose Cafe.
Students were introduced to theconcept of Performance Poetrythrough videos and original musi-cal compositions by Rupert Kettle,which were performed by percus-sion musicians in the Amphitheater
of the Kretchmer Art and MusicCenter. English Department faculty—Associate Professors MichelleDeRose and Miriam Pedersonand Assistant Professor VickiMcMillan—led the high schoolstudents in poetry writing work-shops. Aquinas alumna and poet,Linda Nemic Foster ’72 also led apoetry writing session.
The students also learned aboutmask and prop making in a work-
shop led by Dana Freeman, asso-ciate professor of art. They pickedup performance techniques fromBarbara McCargar and GaryEberle, chairs of the Music andEnglish Departments, respec-tively. The workshops not onlygave students the opportunity todevelop new skills in the creativearts, but the chance to interactwith their peers from the otherarea schools. The “Happening”concluded the daylong workshopwith students performing theirpoems for an audience of friendsand parents.
The event provides an impor-tant venue to showcase the talentsof students whose interests are notoften celebrated or even recog-nized in most high schools.
More importantly, students areexposed to a creative means forexpressing their voices and truths.
The unqualified success of thisprogram can be seen in the stu-dents’ desire to return each year.
“My students loved the ‘Hap-pening’, the mask making, and thepoetry writing. On the bus ridehome, the students were alreadyplanning for next year,” said EastKentwood High School teacherAnne Keller. She added, “One ofmy students says she wants to goto AQ!”
Students perform at the “Happening”following the daylong poetry workshop.
Poetry writing
workshops,
directed by
Aquinas faculty,
guide the
students in
developing the
foundation for
their creative
efforts.
28
September 11, 2001:A View From AbroadBy Jeanette Pierce, Junior
Obviously, for the world, ourcountry and myself, this has beena year unlike any other. It was filledwith difficult times, amazing cour-age and small victories. It beganwhen I first arrived in Spain lastfall as part of Aquinas’ Global Ex-plorations and Meanings (GEM)
program. I faced obstacles neverbefore experienced. As I overcamethem, I developed physical, men-tal and emotional muscles which Ihave used to help others overcomesimilar obstacles.
September 11, 2001: Wherewas I? I was in Spain, far away fromanything familiar. My only conso-lation was my knowledge of worldpolitics that surrounded the issue.Unfortunately, none of the otherstudents experienced that samecomfort. They could only ask“Why?”
I was able to answer that forthem. I offered explanations andworked to help them grasp theevents that were happening. I alsohelped non-Americans understandthings from our point of view.Helping others through that diffi-cult time also helped me. It mademe realize the importance of edu-cation and the magnitude of thegift that made it possible.
Returning to the United Stateswas as difficult as leaving it hadbeen four months earlier. It hadchanged and so had I. More im-portantly, I had the opportunityto be that teacher once again.This time, I educated others onthe importance of experiencingother cultures. I related my trialsand tribulations, as well as my vic-tories and ventures. I openedpeople’s eyes to a world never be-fore conceived, and I considerthat one of my greatest accom-plishments ever.
The GEM course taught us tothink about the “Hero” formula:a person leaves home to face un-known challenges but eventuallyreturns to share stories of battlesfought and lessons learned thatchange people’s lives. I have neverfelt better, knowing that I haveshared my story, both throughwords and deeds, and it has madea difference in the world.
A sign and candle placed on a sidewalk inSpain last September echoes global senti-ments to the 9/11 tragedy: “For the victimsof the United States and for a better world”
33
Performing Arts Center —The Curtain is RisingThe new $7.0 million Performing Arts Center moved from the drawing
board to the construction phase with an official groundbreaking ceremonyon May 6. More than 300 people crowded the south campus site whererepresentatives of Aquinas, Circle Theatre and the Catholic SecondarySchools of Grand Rapids turned dirt to mark the start of construction.
The Theatre, a collaborative venture between Aquinas, Circle Theatreand the Catholic Secondary Schools, will be 28,500 square feet with 410permanent seats arranged in a stepped-stadium style wrapping a thrust stage.
After foundation work was completed in early July, a 250-ton crane movedonto the site to begin placing 80 pre-cast concrete slabs into place, formingthe outer perimeter for the two upper floors of the building. The wall slabsweighed between 37,000 and 45,000 pounds and measured between 36 and41 feet high and eight feet wide. Floor panels were to be placed in earlyAugust and work was scheduled to begin on the roof trusses. The Theatre is
scheduled to open next summer.It’s not too late to get involved with
the Theatre project. Reserve a seat foryourself or someone close to you. You can have a seat named for $1,000 throughthe “We’ve Saved a Seat for You” chair campaign. For more information,contact Kathy Fore, Director of Special Gifts, at 616-459-8281, ext. 4423, orvia e-mail at [email protected]
Visit the Aquinas College Web site for weekly progress reports on con-struction, including site photographs. There’s a link on the main page or typewww.aquinas.edu/news/theatre/.
Circle Theatre/Aquinas College CapitalCampaign Co-Chair Kyle Irwin (center)flanked by Sue Jandernoa (left) andArnette Kraus.
Representatives of Aquinas College, Circle Theatre andCatholic Secondary Schools break ground May 6.
Crews place 20-ton pre-cast concrete walls into place in mid-Julyforming a portion of the exterior wall of the 28,500 sq. ft. theatre.
Over 300 people came together to celebrate the groundbreaking on May 6, 2002.
Aquinas Welcomes New ChaplainBy Mary Clark-Kaiser, Director of Campus Ministry
On August 1, the Rev. CharlesSantoro, O.P., began his duties asthe new chaplain at Aquinas Col-lege. Father Charles, who has mas-ter degrees in both Philosophy andTheology, has spent much of hiscareer as a priest serving in Cam-pus Ministry.
He has ministered at Catho-lic Newman Centers on largeuniversity campuses such asSouth Dakota State University,the University of Arizona andthe University of Wisconsin. Hehas also served as chaplain at aprivate catholic college, Domini-can University near Chicago. Forthe past seven years, Fr. Charleshas served as Pastor of a Domini-can Parish in Minneapolis. Hesays he looks forward to return-ing to campus ministry.
Fr. Charles is interested inecumenism, politics, includingpeace and justice issues, moviesand sports. He is sure to beamong those rooting on the
Saints this year as he admits to be-ing an enthusiastic sports fan.
Fr. Santoro replaces Fr. RonKreul, O.P., who after two yearsat AQ moved on to EdgewoodCollege in Madison, Wisconsin,where he will apply his knowledgeand expertise in the School’s Mas-ter of Marriage and FamilyTherapyprogram.
Father RonKreul
Father Charles Santoro
27
The courses and projects weredesigned to immerse us in the lifeand culture of Tully Cross and tolet us experience life in rural Ire-land in a very personal way.Friendships with the locals, Irishdancing lessons with the ladies ofthe town, afternoons over a pot oftea while studying, and long talkswith new friends enriched ourdays, nights and weekends.Classes were made more specialwhen they were taught out in theopen where Bechler had to lectureover the “moos” of our neighbors.This is truly the experience and theopportunity of a lifetime. My travelcompanions and I returned filledwith stories, treasuring the friend-ships we made and a little sad tosay goodbye to the life we leftbehind.
Some of my favorite memoriesare waking up in the morning andlooking out the window to see therain falling and the clouds cover-ing the mountains as the windwhistled along. I looked forwardto seeing the painted sheep graz-ing in the mountains behind thelittle white cottages or a cow ortwo running down the street withfarmers not far behind. The tinytown of Tully Cross became a
home where I learned to live at aslower pace and to appreciate thebeautiful scenery that is oftenpushed aside.
This trip helped met to treasurethe culture and to slow my life’space. The locals became myfriends and the town became ahome to me. I find myself long-ing to go back to the pub, to listento the traditional Irish music thatwas played every Sunday evening,and to go for a walk along theocean or hike in the mountains.Even walking a mile for groceriestook on an entirely new meaning.
The Irish cultureis amazing andtaught me morethan anyone couldever imagine. Iknow now that Iwould not be whoI am today with-out this dream-ful-filling experience.
Curt Bechler, Ph.D.,teaching Irish Literature atSky Walk near Tully Cross.
IrelandStudiesProgramCelebrates30thAnniversary
SaturdaySept. 28, 2002
DonnellyCenter
Jennifer Brown’02, BridgetClark, senior, andRenae Rankin,senior, take ashort break at a friend’s sheep farm.
34
News from the Deans
School of Arts and SciencesDuring graduation ceremonies last May, I placed the baccalaureate hoods
on students majoring in degrees from the School of Arts and Sciences (SAS).I was moved by the impact that faculty members have on our traditionalage and adult students. There was an exchange of warm feelings, smiles ofrecognition, handshakes and hugs with faculty as students walked throughcommencement ceremonies.
We have really played an important part in helping students shape theirlives as they enter adulthood. One graduate crossed the stage with herbaby, both wearing mortarboards! For this woman, motherhood and col-lege life were not mutually exclusive, but rather entwined in her daily rou-tine. It’s quite remarkable how our adult students are able to juggle school,jobs and families.
So much effort, energy, knowledge and care go into the making of asuccessful Aquinas student. I often have the opportunity to speak with alumniwho are almost unanimous in saying that Aquinas was a life-giving and life-sustaining experience during their formative years. And everyone recallshow much they loved being here! I, too, realize how much I love Aquinas.
The College represents so much more than a degree … it is the small,yet priceless, gem that creates, enhances and molds character with goodvalues, impressive and challenging knowledge and fulfilling expectations.Such are the characteristics of the 2002 graduating class in the School ofArts and Sciences.
The School of Arts and Sciences has had an active year, ranging fromour collaborative nursing program with the University of Detroit Mercy toseveral new faculty who will begin their careers at Aquinas in fall 2002.About two dozen faculty members from SAS have spent time teaching inthe Aquinas Emeritus College, an institution that focuses on the continu-ing education of our senior population, adults 55 and older.
Our Arts and Sciences faculty continues to partake in professional de-velopment, making presentations and presenting papers at national andinternational conferences. Chair of the History Department Chad Gunnoe,Ph.D., spent this summer in Poland, studying and touring. English Depart-ment Chair Gary Eberle and Deborah Wickering, Ph.D., assistant profes-sor-in-the-College have books coming out this summer and fall.
Shirley Lewis, Ph.D.Dean, School of Arts and Sciences
26
For the past four years Aquinas College has pursued an ambitious pro-gram of internationalization. The College created a series of semester-long, intensive study-abroad and cultural-immersion programs.
Last year, the In-ternational and Cul-tural Studies Programsent over 100 stu-dents to study sites inCosta Rica, France,Germany, Haiti, Ire-land, Japan, Mexico,Montana (BlackfeetIndian Reservation),and Spain.
Aquinas is com-mitted to the ideathat a liberal arts edu-cation is a transforming education. As such, it develops the whole personas a contributing citizen of the world community. A liberal arts curriculumfocuses on the development of values, addressing ultimate questions, whileproviding specific skills that contribute to the development of the wholeindividual as a social agent.
In this, our students should acquire the life skills of self-confidence, in-dependence, curiosity, appreciation for diversity and adaptability, throughwhich they can better apply professional competencies.
Off campus/international, cultural immersion programs represent a pow-erful blend of experiential and classroom learning that accomplishes thesegoals.
These programs are excellent vehicles for challenging students to leavetheir comfort zones, to substitute understanding for suspicion and knowl-edge for ignorance, to discover their strengths and abilities, for demon-strating the possibilities of community from the family to global level, andfor fostering an orientation to lifelong learning.
International education, service-learning, and/or internships all have thepotential to provide the basis for deep, tacit learning, which in turn inspiresand motivates students to become community leaders and positive changeagents.
The proof of these grand ideals, however, is in the pudding. Accord-ingly, this year, we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the AquinasIreland Program.
This program has produced well over 600 alumni with more than fondmemories of the beauty of the Irish people and land. These alumni, liketheir newer counterparts returning from Japan, Costa Rica, Spain, and othercountries, will testify to the transformative power of cultural immersion.
An Irish Experience By Jennifer Brown ‘02
When I was asked to write aboutmy experience in Ireland, I wasboth excited and apprehensivebecause I was afraid I would notfind the words to express howamazing this experience was forme. Tully Cross became my homeaway from home.
At the trip’s beginning, I wastold that if you thought leavinghome was hard wait until youleave Ireland.
I soon realized the truth of thatstatement. The semester I spent onthe Emerald Isle was the best se-mester I have ever had.
As we drove to Tully Cross, Iheard my fellow students makingcomments like “I didn’t know Ire-land had palm trees” or “look at thepainted sheep.”
I was one of 25 Aquinas studentsaccompanied by professors CurtBechler, Ph.D., and Lorraine Straw,Ph.D. Curriculum for the four-month semester included IrishHistory, Irish Literature and IrishCulture. The Irish Culture classtaught us about the area, an eth-nography report, and group tripsto historical sites.
We also were given the oppor-tunity to complete Global Explo-rations of Meaning and/or a Ser-vice Learning Project. The ServiceLearning Projects included a com-munity assessment for ConnemaraNational Park; an organizationalassessment for a weekly radio pro-gram; assistance with theChildren’s Theater Program in thenational schools; assistance toYouth Reach (i.e., work with strug-gling teens); classroom aides forthe national schools; and visitingthe Cleggan Nursing Home.
The Global Perspective: International StudiesBy Kris Lou, Assistant Dean of International and Cultural Studies
Kris Lou, Ph.D.
35
School of ManagementThe faculty and staff are looking forward to the beginning of another
great school year. We welcome new faculty member John Hogan to theAccounting Department and continue to see excellent students enter bothour graduate and undergraduate programs.
As faculty members prepare for new classes and students, they will alsobe continuing the initiatives of self-study and program assessment begun inprior academic years, considering new directions and opportunities as wemove forward. A new advising program, in which faculty members aremore directly advising and mentoring majors, will also begin.
In March, 2001 the School of Management presented a seminar titled,Being Your Best in the Workplace: Creating Positive Interactions through Positive Commu-nication. Penny Avery, Ph.D., and Dave Weinandy, Ph.D., two outstandingCommunication Department faculty members who also teach in the Mas-ter of Management Program, conducted it. We expect to continue to hosta range of seminars in the future. If you are interested in being placed on amailing list for such events, please contact Lynn Atkins-Rykert, ext. 8000,in the School of Management office ([email protected]).
In celebration of the 25th year of the Master of Management program,the School of Management will be hosting an open house in Jarecki Centerfor Advanced Learning during Homecoming weekend (Sept. 27-29). Allare welcome whether you have graduated from the MM program or under-graduate Business, Accounting or CIS. In addition, we would like to knowhow best to stay connected with you as we move forward. We hope to seethe increased involvement of many of our alumni in order to provide thegreatest educational opportunity for our students.
School of EducationIt has been a refreshing and productive summer as we prepare for an-
other year of increased enrollments and teacher innovations. Our Masterof Science Education and Master in the Art of Teaching students are work-ing on their action research projects, which positively impact their class-room and building-level teaching. The Master in Education and under-graduate students continue to be very successful in finding the teachingpositions for which they have prepared.
The cooperative charter school with Grand Rapids Public Schools andthe cooperative magnet school with Wyoming Public Schools show in-creased enrollments for the third straight year. The Conductive EducationPrivate School is now a recognized non-profit school with a separate boardof directors, which has a cooperative arrangement with Aquinas Collegefor training Physically and Otherwise Health Impaired (POHI) AquinasCollege pre-service teachers. Our summer reading clinics, both elemen-tary and secondary, were very successful programs. The International Con-ference of Education Through Music (ETM) that the School of Educationand Music Department co-hosted in July was extremely well received. CathyTucci and her husband were able to receive their first daughter in Chinathis summer, adding a new dimension to our joy and wonder for life.
V. James Garofalo, Ph.D.Dean, School of Education
Cynthia VanGelderenDean, School of Management
25
Peace Corps Draws AQ Grad to PhilippinesBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance Writer
Community service has beenpart and parcel of Julie Fredrick’slife for as long as she can remem-ber. While attending Aquinas(1998-2002), Fredrick tutored stu-dents at St. Andrew’s elementary,worked with Campus Ministry,
and even volunteeredat a national park inMaine.
“But I’d alwayswanted to do mission-ary work,” says theAquinas alumna, whograduated this pastMay.
That’s why Fredrickhas decided to put herteaching abilities to usenot in a fluorescent-lighted Americanclassroom, but ratherin the sultry mountainsof the Philippines.
Fredrick began atwo-year stint in thePeace Corps this sum-
mer, using the skills she learned inAquinas education classes to teachEnglish in a rural community.
“I’ll be helping teachers improvetheir English fluency and I’ll workwith kids in the classroom,”Fredrick says. “I love volunteeringand children and travel so this is aperfect fit.”
Fredrick will be living with ahost family and traveling to sev-eral communities, making class-room observations and participat-ing in training workshops.
Conditions will likely be moreprimitive than what she is used to,but Fredrick says the semester shespent living in a teepee on a Na-tive American reservation as part
of the Aquinas study program inMontana has prepared her for thatpossibility.
“I’ve taken so much for grantedand I want to learn an apprecia-tion for what I have,” she says.
Staff members who haveworked with Fredrick say that thislatest effort testifies to her selflessnature. “Julie is an excellent ex-ample of someone who uses hergifts and abilities to make a differ-ence in the world today,” says Co-ordinator of Service Learning EricBridge.
The College acknowledged thatfact formally in May when it pre-sented Fredrick with the Monsi-gnor Bukowski Award, an honorgiven annually to a senior whoexhibits outstanding servicethroughout his or her four years atAquinas.
Fredrick doesn’t miss anychance to give back to the com-munity. When she cut her foot-long hair in preparation for thetropical temperatures she will en-counter the next two years,Fredrick donated it to Locks ofLove, an organization that pro-vides wigs to disadvantaged chil-dren who suffer from health-re-lated hair loss.
She insists that she isn’t nervousabout her adventure. Unrest in theMiddle East has touched areas ofthe Philippines, but the PeaceCorps places participants in safelocations, she says, and her senseof mission is enough to see herthrough.
“I’m more excited than nervous,”she says. “I find fulfillment in help-ing others and in trying to add totheir lives in whatever way I can.”
Julie Fredrick (right) with Beth Goyette as they prepareto receive their diplomas last May
36
The Reggio WayBy Michelle Bottrall ’97,
Contributing Writer
Have you heard about the newguy in town? His name is ReggioEmilia and he is Italian.
But it’s not Reggio’s good looksthat are creating a stir. It’s Reggio’sexciting environments, investiga-tive techniques and innovativeideas that have people talking. Yousee, Reggio Emilia is an Italian sys-tem of education that is quicklychanging the lives of the childrenat three Grand Rapids area schools.The Reggio approach is spreadinglike wildfire.
Two years ago, East Academy inWyoming, the Child DiscoveryCenter in Grand Rapids, and theAquinas College Child Develop-ment Center introduced theReggio Emilia inspired program totheir students. The system hasworked so well that this fall theprogram will be expanded to in-clude fifth grade students.
So where did Reggio come fromand how does it work?
After World War II, the smallItalian town of Reggio Emilia wasso ravaged that its citizens bandedtogether and decided to invest asmuch as possible in their youngchildren, especially in their educa-tion. Reggio Emilia’s municipalitycreated programs which serve in-fants and children up to age six.The plan creates conditions forlearning that stimulate thinking inchildren using the children’s ownideas, observations and creativityto help shape the curriculum.
In a typical Reggio classroomyou would find a sunlight filledspace with children working in sev-eral small areas. One area mightbe partitioned off with a curtain andhave a puppet stage, one might
teacher does everything else, thisplay involved the children fromthe beginning to the end.
Students who were good atpainting and building helped de-sign and build the set. Childrenwho liked to read and write helpedwrite the play based on a favoritebook of theirs, Henny Penny. An-other group of children talkedabout advertising and designedposters, flyers and tickets for theshow. Every step of the way, thechildren were involved.
“Not only does theater givethem a limitless imagination, ithelps them learn how to problemsolve,” said parent Sherry LeeAllen, whose daughter, Jamie, wasGoosy Loosey in the production.“Just the fact that they can accom-plish it and it can be so wonderfulgives them a real sense of not onlyaccomplishment but that theirimaginations can become real.They are only limited by whatthey can dream up.”
In the end, the productionended up being a learning experi-ence that was so much fun, thechildren didn’t even realize theywere fulfilling the state’s require-ments regarding their education.
have two or three children craft-ing their ABC’s out of clay, anothermight have the children writingletters and posting them in the“mail center.”
“It’s all about the environmentof the classroom,” said MarciaBaker, kindergarten teacher andlead teacher for the Reggio Emiliaprogram at East Academy. “Youhave to look at the room you comeinto and think ‘Is it about learningand investigating things or chil-dren listening to someone tellingthem what they need to know?’What are the most importantthings for kindergartners to be?You want them to be readers andwriters and thinkers and be ableto show what they know. Theycan’t do that sitting in rows ofdesks.”
An emergent curriculum is alsoa mainstay of the program. Top-ics for study are taken from the talkof children and their interests. Forinstance, when Baker discoveredthat many of her afternoon kinder-garten students liked to play actduring their free time, she encour-aged them to do a play. However,unlike most school plays where thechildren learn a line or two and the
Aquinas student Gretchen Webber helps guide child creativity at the Child DiscoveryCenter at Aquinas.
24
Cam
pus
New
s
Commencement 2002Aquinas President Harry Knopke told graduates and family members
gathered for the 2002 Commencement that the College’s true measure ofsuccess is how well we help students “develop a better understandingtheir own strengths and talents and encouraging them to make a differ-ence in the world around them.”
Aquinas College conferred degrees on more than 500 graduates May11 with 350 of those students participating in the two and a half-hourceremony.
In addition, three community and civic-minded individuals receivedhonorary degrees.
“Those who know me, know I am praising God,” said Ella Sims, TrusteeEmerita, upon receiving her Doctor of Humane Letters degree for herwork as an activist and advocate for the underserved in the Grand Rapidscommunity.
“From the cotton fields of Mississippi to here … I had dreams. Butwhen you’re in God’s will, you don’t know where it will take you,” shetold the audience.
Mary Caroline “Twink” Frey received an honorary Doctor of SocialScience degree for nearly a quarter of a century of work on behalf ofwomen and children in the community. She said she would cherish themany ways in which Aquinas has touched her life. But she drew applauseand laughter when she noted that her degree puts her with an infamousgroup of women— “Dr. Ruth, Dr. Laura and Dr. ’‘Twink.’” Twink Frey andher husband, Trustee Jim McKay, established an Endowment Fund thatsupports the Jane Hibbard Idema Women’s Studies Center at Aquinas.
David Mathews, Ph.D., the president and CEO of the research-basedKettering Foundation in Ohio, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Lawsdegree for “leadership that has furthered the public’s understanding andpractice of American democratic principles.” The Foundation has been astrong advocate for civic activism.
Delivering the commencement address, Mathews, the former Secre-tary of Health, Education and Welfare under President Gerald Ford, praisedAquinas’ Community Leadership Program as a model for communitiesnationwide. The program, he said, teaches people how to make theircommunities more leaderful by teaching them how to make decisionstogether.
Mathews offered some historical perspective on more than two centu-ries of grassroots involvement in American democracy. And now, in thewake of the 9/11 crisis, he issued a call for civic involvement among thefuture leaders who were sitting in the graduate ranks.
He pointed out that everything that made America a better countrybegan with six people sitting around a kitchen table.
“Everyone in this building has access to a kitchen table and knows sixpeople,” he said. “We are not powerless as citizens, even in a 9/11 world.”
He encouraged these future leaders saying “democracy still starts wherewe live, in our communities. I think our message for this new generationwhich is facing more uncertainty, perhaps, than any other is that thefuture is more in your hands than anybody else.”
David Mathews, Ph.D., president and chief executiveofficer of Kettering Foundation, delivers thecommencement address to the Class of 2002.
Mary Caroline “Twink” Frey expressing gratitude afterreceiving an honorary Doctor of Social Science degree.
Ella Sims, Trustee Emerita, being hooded by her daughter,Mary ’86, receives an honorary Doctor of HumaneLetters degree.
37
They learned communicationskills by going to each of the class-rooms in the school and telling theteachers and students about theplay said Baker. They learnedmath by counting tickets and theylearned about writing and drawingby making posters and flyers.
Implementation of the ReggioEmilia program began two yearsago as part of Aquinas’ commit-ment to community relationshipsand quality education in the com-munity and also as a way to giveAquinas students first-hand expe-rience with the innovative program.
When Aquinas decided to takethe program into the community,one of the first things Aquinasneeded to do was find a coordina-tor. Enter Reggio expert DavidKelly. Kelly brought several yearsof experience to the table as a stu-dio coordinator for the ReggioEmilia inspired program in Chi-cago area schools. He now servesas an assistant professor of educa-tion at Aquinas in addition to his
duties as consultant to the threeschools.
The Reggio philosophy chal-lenges some of our culture’s basicassumptions about young children,from the way we shape their mindsto the pace at which they movethrough their days. In 1991,Newsweek hailed the program as anexemplary model of early child-hood education, yet its philoso-phies have been slow to catch holdin our country, and the Reggioapproach is still rare, especially ineducation after preschool.
“These ideas are incredibly im-portant around the country,” Kellysaid. “We are bringing a worldviewpoint into this city and we areasking people really hard questionsabout what does it mean to be ateacher and what does it mean tobe a learner. Confronting thesenew ideas can be challenging.”
“The program works to the ben-efit of [Aquinas] students as wellas small children. The over 900students in our School of Educa-
tion program have the opportunityto explore the Reggio principlesthrough their college courses andtheir practicum or student teach-ing stints. In fact the program isconsidered so cutting edge that wereceive calls from other collegeswanting to get their students intothese schools for their own Reggioexperience,” said Kelly.
“Aquinas is very interested inseeing how these schools can pro-vide different thinking for the stu-dents at Aquinas,” Kelly said.“Here they see [the Reggio pro-gram] in action. Otherwise theyjust learn a lot of theory. Aquinaswants to give many different ex-periences to their students. Thisis only one, but it’s a good one.”
Kate Girard ’02 did her practi-cum at the Aquinas College ChildDevelopment Center, which re-quired 160 hours of experience tosatisfy graduation requirements.
“I was taking 19 credits a semes-ter and the additional hours werenot easy,” she said. “But after com-pleting Reggio, it was just the mostvaluable experience. I reallylearned what kind of teacher I wantto be.”
Kate recently accepted a posi-tion as a kindergarten teacher inthe Chicago area where she plansto use key elements of her Reggiotraining to impact the lives of herstudents.
“I want to take the Reggio envi-ronment with me,” she said. “Thecreative, exciting, exploring envi-ronment will help me discoverwhat my children are interested in.Then I can incorporate those in-terests into every area of theirlearning—the books that they readand the art that they do. Reggiohas just integrated itself into myphilosophy. It has taught me theincredible power of a child’s mind.”
Students at East Academy present a play that provided them learning opportunities inwriting the play, designing and building the set, creating and distributing advertisingposters, and selling tickets.
“Jefchak in Space” Lifts Off to Benefit EndowmentBy Gary Eberle, English Department Chair
On June 19, over 120 friends of Aquinas College blasted off to the Inter-national Space Station as part of an event benefiting the Andrew JefchakEndowment for Cinema Studies. The event, held at Grand Rapids’ newIMAX theater, capped a year of fundraising efforts and featured the presen-
tation of the very first “Jeffie”award to Aquinas alumna andTrustee Emerita Carol Duba Holm’61 and her husband Bob.
The “Jeffie,” an Oscar-like statu-ette, created by Aquinas art fac-ulty member Ron Pederson, showsJefchak standing with a book inone hand and a 16 mm film reel inthe other as if on his way toclass.The endowment was startedin spring of 2001 to honor Jefchakon his retirement from full-timeteaching after 30 years at Aquinas.
During that time, he introducedcinema studies to the English De-partment curriculum and taughtthousands of students to love mov-ies and to view them intelligently.Funds generated by the endow-ment will be used to continue todevelop the Aquinas library’s col-lection of classic and contempo-rary feature films for use in theclassroom in both cinema and lit-erature courses.
After an initial fundraising campaign on campus, the fund was jump startedby the Holms with a $5,000 matching fund grant for money raised in thefirst year of the campaign. Kathy Fore, director of special gifts, and I puttogether an alumni and corporate campaign, which, by year’s end, hadachieved its goal of raising in excess of $5,000. The Grand Rapids Press, theJohn Loeks Theaters, and Goodrich Quality Theaters, contributed moneyto honor Jefchak’s work as a film critic. Those contributions were enhancedby ones from faculty, staff and alumni. The Holms’ $5,000 challenge waseasily met.
During a June 19 reception, Aquinas President Harry Knopke and JohnLoeks, owner of the IMAX Theater, offered tributes to Jefchak.
23
Emeritus DinnerBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, Freelance
Writer
Lifelong AchievementEnrollment has been steadily in-
creasing and now 280 studentstake advantage of the continuingeducation classes offered each se-mester. The experiences of severalof the College’s students show thatonce a thirst for knowledge kicksin, it can’t be quenched. In May,
Accepting the 2002 EmeritusAward during a dinner held in hishonor this past May, Grand Rap-ids Mayor John H. Logie expressedappreciation for the supportAquinas College has given himthroughout his 11 years in office.
“I call Aquinas my ‘strong anchor’on the eastern edge of the city,”Logie said. “I know it will continueto be so in the future.”
Over 250 people attended theEmeritus Evening, which raised$45,000 for the Aquinas EmeritusCollege. The amount raised by thedinner was “a big chunk of ourbudget,” noted Emeritus CollegeDirector of Programs and Devel-opment, Albert Lewis.
Logie’s selection as 2002 Emeri-tus Award recipient pays tribute to
the years of service he has providedto the Grand Rapids community.Since being elected in 1991 Logiehas made it his mission to revital-ize the city’s downtown area.
“I took a walk down DivisionAvenue right after I was elected andcounted 76 vacant storefronts,”Logie said. So he helped establishRenaissance zones and has over-seen such major constructionprojects as the Van Andel Institute,the Van Andel Arena, and the up-
coming DeVos Place ConventionCenter.
“The future is so exciting.” Logiesaid.
Aquinas President Harry J.Knopke presented Logie with theaward. Previous recipients haveincluded former President GeraldFord, Amway co-founder RichDeVos and his wife, Helen, andWege Foundation Chair andAquinas College Trustee EmeritusPeter Wege.
the Emeritus College sponsored anawards ceremony that honored 25individuals who had taken over100 and 1,000 credit hours each.100 – Lee Abbott100 – Sister Marie Joseph Ryan100 – Marion Strodtman100.5 – Nancy Hubert
100.65 – Lou Papale101.1 – Eleanore Green122.25 – Henry Guzzo200 – Gladys Folkema200 – Jay Folkema200 – Marguerite McGraw200 – Virgilia Wade210.75 – Dorothy Michael300 – Helen Carr300 – Sister Ann Frederick Heiskell300.3 – Louise Neller325.55 – Cina Young400 – Mary Margaret Rapp410.85 – David Neven500.7 – Millie Page600 – Rita Fallon601.1 – Margaret Cook700 – Hazel Barnes800 – Thomas Overkleeft1050.7 – Isabel Butkiewicz1130.40 – Louise Harley1360.05 – Elizabeth Vittands1500.8 – Betty Anderson1680.45 – Florence Jefferies
Left to right: Mayor John H. Logie, Susie Logie, Sheila Knopke, andPresident Knopke.
“I call
Aquinas
my ‘strong
anchor’ on
the eastern
edge of the
city.”-Mayor Logie
Achieving over 1000 credit hours each are (left to right) Isabel Butkiewicz, LouiseHarley, Betty Anderson, Elizabeth Vittands and Florence Jefferies.
38
Facu
ltyN
ews
The “Jeffie.”
Andy Jefchak addresses the crowdwith the “Jeffie” on the podium.
Carol Duba Holm and husband Bobaccept the first “Jeffie” for theirendowment support.
22
Emeritus College:Albert LewisBy Tonya Schafer ‘02, freelance writer
Rabbi Albert Lewis has longbeen one of Grand Rapids’ mostoutspoken advocates for the socialand economic rights of senior citi-zens. Throughout his three de-cades in the city, Lewis has workedto expand public transportation,helped establish a Hospice, andwritten a column on senior issuesin The Grand Rapids Press.
Lewis was also one of the “thinktank” members who 28 years agohelped create the Aquinas Emeri-tus College. Two years after retir-ing as head of Temple Emanuel,Lewis is back at Aquinas as theEmeritus College’s Director of Pro-grams and Development. He hiresfaculty members and plans classes,sometimes even serving as an in-structor himself.
Emeritus College:Mary ShefferlyBy Tonya Schafer, ‘02, freelance writer
Working at Hospice of GreaterGrand Rapids gave Mary Shefferlyan appreciation for the determina-tion, the judgment, and above all,the wisdom of older adults. That’swhy she jumped at the chance totake over as Director of Operationsfor the Aquinas Emeritus Collegein October 2001.
Shefferly says that interactingwith seniors eager to keep theirbodies active and their minds sharpis infinitely rewarding.
“They’re encountering thingsthat are so different from whatthey’re used to,” Shefferly says.
Shefferly worked for a time asa hospital social worker but saysshe has found her niche planningbudgets, scheduling classes, andinteracting with students in theEmeritus College.
“Our program is thriving. It’samazing how much studentslove the classes,” Shefferly says.“There’s a real hunger for knowl-edge out there and I love it. Thisis where I was meant to be.”
will hit store shelves soon. “It’s de-signed for adults in nursinghomes,” Lewis says. “It helps themlook back on their lives using thePsalms as a context.”
This past spring, Lewis receivedJunior Achievement’s Edward J.Frey Sr. Distinguished Achieve-ment Award. “But I have a lot moreliving to do,” he says. “Seniors havesuch different life experiences andevery day I continue to be chal-lenged and encouraged by work-ing with them.”
The position is a perfect fit. “I’mnot working crazy hours,” Lewissays, noting that he now hasplenty of time to spend with hiswife, Shirley, who is Dean of theSchool of Arts and Sciences atAquinas, and with their twodaughters and four grandsons.
Semi-retired he may be, butLewis is as busy as ever. In addi-tion to his Aquinas duties, Lewishas written a book, The Lord is MyShepherd: Psalms to Accompany Us OnOur Journey through Aging, which
“We’ve had 90-year-olds take com-puter classes because they want tolearn how to e-mail their grandchil-dren.”
Shefferly studied social work atFerris State University, takingclasses while her two sons attendedhigh school. The family came toGrand Rapids in 1997 when herhusband, Bill, took over as VicePresident of Finance and Opera-tions at Aquinas.
“We’ve had
90-year-olds
take computer
classes because
they want to …
e-mail their
grandchildren.”-Mary Shefferly
Mary Shefferly, Operations Director, and Rabbi AlbertLewis, Programs and Development Director
39
Retiring FacultyReceive EmeritusStatusBy Tonya Schafer ‘02,
Freelance Writer
Ask Leo “Bill” Graff, Jr., whathe’ll remember most about his timeat Aquinas and you’ll get a readyanswer. “The people. When I wasa young faculty member, I hadgreat mentors—Lew Clingman,Ken Marin, George LaMountain,and Fred Bernard. All were won-derful teachers and became life-long friends,” he says.
In the coming years, many pro-fessors will likely say the samething about Graff, the School’slongest-serving faculty memberwho retired this summer afterthirty years at Aquinas College.
Graff was one of five profes-sors granted Emeritus Facultystatus by the College’s Board ofTrustees in May. Michael Denty,professor of philosophy, JohnTeusink, professor of biology,Michael Blomme, professor ofchemistry, and Andrew Jefchak,professor of English, retired af-ter many years of service to theAquinas community.
Being awarded Emeritus Facultystatus “reflects distinguished ser-vice,” says President HarryKnopke, who nominated the pro-fessors for this honor. “They’veprovided wonderful service. Andthis is an honorific title they’ll beable to use the rest of their lives.”
“It is a great honor to join theranks of the emeritus faculty. Theyare a distinguished group that hasgiven much to the college,” saysGraff, who now plans to fill histime with travel, research, writing,and volunteer work.
Welcome to Our NewFull-Time Faculty
Thomas E. Bahl, associate pro-fessor of biology, holds a Ph.D.from Emory University, an M.S.from the University of Georgia anda B.S. from Penn State University.
Jennifer Dawson, assistant pro-fessor of English, earned a Masterand Ph.D. at Michigan State Uni-versity and has a B.A. from theUniversity of Michigan.
Jason Duncan, Ph.D., assistantprofessor of history.
John Hogan, assistant professorof accounting, earned an M.B.A.,a B.B.A., and a C.P.A. from GrandValley State University.
Lisa Morgan, assistant professorof education, holds an M.A. fromCalifornia State University and aB.A. from Bridgewater State Col-lege.
Lisa Nowak, Ph.D., assistantprofessor of Spanish.
Michel Pichot, visiting associ-ate professor of French, holds aPh.D. from Penn State University,M.A.’s from Michigan State Uni-versity and Eastern Michigan Uni-versity and a B.A. from AtlanticUnion College.
RETIRING FACULTY
Leo “Bill” Graf, Jr. (left)with Provost Ed Balog.
Michael Blomme
Michael Denty
John Teusink
Following the reception, guestswere treated to the new IMAX fea-ture “Space Station 3-D,” an in-credible 45 minute voyage intospace filmed in state-of-the-art,three-dimensional film by the as-tronauts and cosmonauts aboardthe International Space Station.
Contributions may still be madeby contacting the DevelopmentDepartment at Aquinas College at616-459-8281, ext. 4490.
21
Courses are also held at retirementcommunities throughout the cityas well as several nursing homes.
Classes have been scheduled toaccommodate the needs of the re-tirement-aged individuals who at-tend them. Most are held no ear-lier than 9:30 a.m. and no later than3:30 p.m. to help students avoidrush hour traffic. They are not heldon Monday mornings, which al-lows attendees to enjoy three-dayweekends. Coffee and cookiebreaks are held every hour, provid-ing an easy means to socialize withfellow students.
In the early days, the EmeritusCollege received a number ofgrants from such institutions as theGrand Rapids Foundation, theMichigan Humanities Council,and the National Endowment forthe Humanities.
The College is now funded withtuition payments, which equal $60per four-week course ($40 for thebook seminars, $80 for the Naplesprogram), as well as by ticket salesfor the Emeritus Dinner, whicheach year honors an individualwho has made significant contri-butions to the community.
The Aquinas Emeritus Board ofGovernors is composed of peoplefrom throughout the community,including some former Emeritusstudents and, in addition to courseplanning, offers advice on eventcoordination, and financial concerns.
Scholarships to the College areavailable and, in fact, are part ofthe next phase of its communityoutreach efforts. Lewis says that heforging partnerships with area
churches in the hopes that theywill offer partial scholarships, andthat he is also consulting with areabusinesses to underwrite the costof some courses offered by theCollege.
According to Sr. Aquinas, theEmeritus College is developing ini-tiatives that will allow its expan-sion into minority communities.“Many older minorities do not feelcomfortable attending classesmade up mostly of white students,so we need to go where that popu-lation is,” she says.
In addition, the College plansto present a series of eveningcourses designed for Aquinasalumni who are members of the“Baby Boomer” generation. Theseclasses will cover such topics as fi-nancial planning for retirementand adjusting to an “empty nest.”
The College hopes to createnew strategic partnerships with anumber of businesses and indus-
tries in the western Michigan areaas well. Advertisements in AquinasEmeritus brochures reach over3,500 people in the 50 and olderage group, and local businesses arerealizing the opportunity to en-hance the lives of older adults thatsuch advertising affords.
Ultimately, the Emeritus Col-lege provides a rewarding experi-ence for students and professorsalike, Sr. Aquinas says. “There’s alot of give and take. The studentsare not there because they have tobe there, they want to be there.They’re not afraid to ask questionsbecause they’re not getting gradedor tested,” she says.
“One of our teachers was offer-ing a course on Harry Truman andshe said that the students knewmore about the topic than she did!”Sr. Aquinas adds. “They really en-joy the opportunity to challengethemselves and we enjoy the op-portunity to provide it for them.”
Writing classes are popular as well as art, history and computer courses.
40
Student and AlumnaWin Coveted AddyAwards
To say it’s been an exciting yearfor Alicia Mey is an understate-ment. This December, Mey willcomplete her studies at Aquinasand receive her Master of Manage-ment degree.
Earlier this year, she received aprofessional honor when the AdClub of West Michigan selectedher marketing project forZondervan Books (Grand Rapids)for an Addy Award.
Her challenge was to createsomething that would address the
increasing com-petition in thereference bookcategory.
She borroweda promotion ideashe saw else-where and cus-tomized it to fitZondervan’s re-q u i r e m e n t s .“InfoShades”, shesays, presents auni-que design,offering a lot ofinformation in asmall amount of
space that is placed on the front ofshelf racks offering customers ex-planations for available referencematerials.
“They help customers under-stand which reference books willbest meet their need, educate cus-tomers on the importance ofmatching reference books withtheir preferred Bible translation,and promote Zondervan referencebooks in retail outlets,” said Mey.She also won a Silver Addy Awardat the District level.
Her efforts didn’t go unnoticedby her employer, either. Shortlyafter her award recognition, Meyshe received a promotion, movingfrom Senior Promotions Managerto Associate Marketing Director.
The Ad Club also recognizedanother Zondervan employee.Kathy Needham ‘02, marketingdirector for Zonderkidz, receivedfour Addy Awards for a radio cam-paign designed for the children’sbook division of Zondervan. TheAddy’s were for two radio cam-paigns for children’s Bibles in theNIrV (New International Reader’sVersion) translation written at athird grade reading level. She wontwo awards for the individual ra-dio ads, one for the advertisingcampaign and one for “best ofshow” in the broadcast category.
Michigan CampusCompact RecognizesFour Aquinas StudentsBy Sandy Hines (article appearscourtesy of The Aquinas Times)
Michigan Campus Compact(MCC) recognized four Aquinasstudents earlier this year for theircommitment to service in thecommunity.
MCC, an organization of col-lege and university presidents fromaround the state, recognizes stu-dents who have demonstrated out-standing dedication to communityservice throughout their educa-tional careers.
Junior Allison Lindemyer re-ceived the Commitment to Ser-vice Award, while senior MandySchneider and juniors Mary ClareAvery and Andrea Covert receivedthe Heart and Soul Award.
Stud
ent
New
s“Students are not there because they have to be there, they want to be there.”
Alicia Mey, Aquinas master of management student,displays the “infoShades” which earned her the AddyAward.
20
By Tonya Schafer ’02, Freelance Writer
The Aquinas Emeritus Collegetraces its history back to the early1970s when then-PresidentNorbert Hruby recognized—wellahead of many other college anduniversity leaders—that opportuni-ties for lifelong learning for olderadults were sorely missing in theWest Michigan area.
“We knew it was a populationthat would enjoy a liberal arts edu-cation, maybe more so than the‘regular’ student population,” ex-plains Sister Aquinas Weber, O.P.,Emeritus College Consultant andAquinas College Chancellor.
Backed by a committed vision, asupportive and imaginative CollegeBoard of Trustees, and the tirelessefforts of both Sisters Aquinas andAgnes Claire Thiel, the EmeritusCollege was launched in the fall of1975 with 115 students attendingclasses throughout the year. Nearlythree decades later, annual enroll-ment has grown to well over 1,000.
Representatives from suchschools as Eastern Michigan Uni-versity and Kalamazoo ValleyCommunity College have used theAquinas curriculum as a model forsimilar programs on their owncampuses. Faculty members fromacross West Michigan call Aquinasand ask, “How do I sign up to teachfor Emeritus?”
The program offers a diversity ofcourses that correspond to the goalsmaintained by Aquinas College asa whole, says Director of Programsand Development, Rabbi AlbertLewis. Both colleges seek to pro-vide a quality liberal arts educa-
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Lifelong Learning at Emeritus College
tion regardless of a student’s sex,race, religious affiliation, or—most appropriate in this case—age.
Courses have run the gamutfrom the Ethics of Espionage toCreative Writing, from investiga-tions of the Kennedy assassinationto analyses of Picasso’s works.They are offered during five four-week long sessions—two in thefall, two in the spring, and a win-ter program in Grand Rapids. Thefour-week Naples, Florida programruns in February and is attendedby retirees from throughout theMidwest and East Coast who nowlive in Florida as well as native Flo-ridians alike.
The Curriculum Committee ofthe Board of Governors offers sug-gestions for course topics, as dostudents. The College also offersclasses that relate to activities go-ing on in the Grand Rapids area.When a local theater company fea-tured a production by TennesseeWilliams, the Emeritus College
offered a course on this famousAmerican playwright. A class onthe Dead Sea Scrolls was offeredduring the spring 2002 semester,as the documents will soon be fea-tured in an exhibition at the VanAndel Museum Center in down-town Grand Rapids.
History classes are among themost popular courses according toSr. Aquinas. “Anytime we offer aclass on World War II, we are go-ing to have the room filled,” sheadds. A book seminar is also heldsix times a semester, allowing stu-dents to discuss a work of theirown choosing under the directionof a facilitator.
The Emeritus College hasgrown since its beginnings, start-ing in the Academic Building,moving to Willowbrook (the cur-rent President’s home), and even-tually taking up residence in theBrowne Center (a former estatemansion at the corner of RobinsonRoad and Woodward Lane).
Emeritus College has become a benchmark for other Institutions.
41
Covert works with ProjectPRIDE, tutors, and visits the sis-ters at Aquinata Hall. Schneiderworks with Campus Ministry andplans high school retreats.
Avery coordinates the SigsbeeElementary tutoring program.Lindemyer is the founder of CasaHogar, a student organization thatraises money for an orphanage ofthe same name in Peru and thatalso raises awareness of povertyissues in general. She, along withCovert and Schneider, dedicatesmany service hours to the organi-zation.
“These four demonstrate howactively involved Aquinas studentsare in the community,” said EricBridge, coordinator of servicelearning. “I think it ties into theDominican tradition very well inthat we have students who are ac-tively living out their faith. [They]use their gifts and abilities to makethe world a better place.”
Semester in CaliforniaBy Melissa Spagnoli, Aquinas senior
It’s amazing how many oppor-tunities Aquinas College has tooffer. Some opportunities are morevisible than others, like the semes-ter in Ireland or the wide range ofService Learning trips. However,towards the end of my sophomoreyear, I came across an opportunitythat would become one of thegreatest experiences in my life.
Aquinas is one of 19 Domini-can colleges and universities in theUnited States. The exchange pro-gram allows students at one sisterschool to attend another for onesemester. When I heard about this,I decided to take advantage of the
program in my junior year, choos-ing Dominican University of Cali-fornia. There were several motivat-ing factors—the desire to do some-thing on my own, to apply whatmy parents had taught me all theseyears, to discover a new place, andof course, to live in sunny Califor-nia for four months, too.
While at Dominican University,I found things were quite differentfrom Aquinas College. Dominicanoffered the chance to travel andexplore on the weekends as SanFrancisco and Oakland were onlyten minutes away. Aquinas pro-vides many on-campus opportuni-ties to get involved during theweek and on the weekends, suchas bands, comedians, and commu-nity service.
The Bay area’s big city environ-ment presented new experiences,including the HomecomingDance on a Yacht in San FranciscoBay and Christmas caroling on acable car. Like Aquinas, Domini-can is a small college that offers alow student-to-faculty ratio and,thus, more personal attention.I was fortunate to have great pro-fessors at both schools who werewilling to offer assistance.
The semester at Dominicangave me the independence to de-velop my feeling of self-confidence—oh, and yes, a tan. Although mytime in California went fast, it wasnice to return to Aquinas. I admirethe College’s strong campus min-istry program, particularly in theway Bukowski Chapel fills for Masson Sunday nights. Further, thecommunication and business de-partments continue to challengeme.
Perhaps, more importantly, Imissed my family and the snow—because we all know that you can’thave Christmas without the snow!
AQ Student Melissa Spagnoli enjoyingthe warm benefits of the Dominican
Exchange Program in California.
19
lower level of the Academic Build-ing, is dedicated to helping orga-nizations achieve diversity; it istruly a group effort statesRobbins. Student assistants lendhelping hands and a number ofprominent local businesspersonsserve on the Institute’s advisoryboard.
They offer insight as to ways inwhich their organizations havefound success in fostering racialunity and implementing inclusionefforts.
“We also get a lot of supportfrom [Aquinas President] HarryKnopke,” says Robbins, who notesthat the Woodrick Institute falls inline with the school’s mission ofcreating an academic and work en-vironment that is inclusive to all.
It was Knopke, in fact, whoserved as a driving force behind theWoodrick Institute’s foundation. “Ithought that such an organizationwould help the College serve as anexus point with the community,”Knopke says. “And issues of diver-sity are important ones. They’rerelevant to our purpose here atAquinas.”
Bob Woodrick, co-founder ofthe D&W chain of grocery storesand a long-time proponent of di-versity-awareness measures in theGrand Rapids area, provided fund-ing for the Institute that now bearshis name.
D&W employees are amongthose who have taken part inWoodrick Institute programs, ashave employees of Meijer,
Steelcase, and lawfirms like WarnerNorcross & Judd.Bruce Christensen,executive director ofWarner Norcross &Judd, said he was initially hesitantabout attending a Healing Racismworkshop. According to Robbins,such hesitancy often indicates de-nial, or a mentality among mem-bers of majority races that says, “Ifeel included, why don’t otherpeople?”
But Christensen’s boss had facili-tated a similar event and had rec-ommended that Christensen at-tend one as well. “I did what anyother person would do when theirboss ‘suggests’ they do something– I went,” he says.
“It was a very powerfulexperience. I came back thinkingthat I would like to be more activein the diversity arena.” Christensennow sits on the Institute’s Board ofAdvisors.
The Institute embraces itscorporate connections, but is alsobranching beyond them. It is in themidst of creating a DiversityDevelopment Program that willsponsor similar awareness andeducational efforts in schools inthe Kent Intermediate SchoolDistrict.
To fund the program, the Insti-tute solicits memberships fromarea businesses, which will receive$3 worth of Institute programs forevery $1 they invest.
Likewise, the Institute hopes toincrease its corporate membershipsand to forge partnerships similarto its alliance with DiversityTheater, a local organization thatsponsors discussions of workplace-related scenarios reenacted bylocal performers.
In the end Robbins, a formertelevision news producer and mar-keter who moved to the UnitedStates from Vietnam at the age offive, says the mission of theWoodrick Institute boils down toone thing—eliminating the mis-understandings that result in non-inclusive work environments.
“We need to challenge people,to expose them to different per-spectives,” Robbins says. Referringback to the prejudice that mayhave left society without suchtechnological breakthroughs asthe cure for cancer, he asks onesimple question: “Do we reallywant to make that mistake again?”
Healing Racismworkshop
“ … confronting issues of diversity is not simply a‘black thing’ or a ‘white thing.’ It’s a human thing.”
42
Ath
letic
s AQ Captures Fifth ConsecutiveWHAC All-Sports AwardBy Rick Albro, Sports Information Director
The Saints have won the Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference(WHAC) All-Sports Trophy for a record-setting fifth consecutive year. Theaward is given to the college having the highest score based on the bestfinishes of six sports teams at each school, including men and women’s teams.
The WHAC, which originated in 1992, is comprised of Aquinas College,Concordia University, Cornerstone University, Indiana Tech. University,Madonna University, Siena Heights University, Spring Arbor University,and Tri State University. Aquinas began its run of President’s Cup all-sportsawards in 1997-98.
“What an accomplishment! It is the culmination of a great deal of time,energy and commitment on behalf of our staff and our student athletes”,stated Director of Athletics, Terry Bocian. “We are proud to offer the mostcomprehensive athletic program in the WHAC,” Bocian added, “to haveearned the success we’ve worked hard for is an outstanding reward.”
Fourteen sports are recognized as league-sanctioned sports. Aquinas wontitles this past year in Men’s Soccer, Men’s Indoor and Outdoor Track andField, and Women’s Indoor Track and Field.
The Aquinas WayBy Terry Bocian ‘70, Athletic Director
Last April 19, Aquinas College swept, or so we thought, the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Men’s and Women’s Outdoor TrackChampionships. Several days later, Dave Wood, coach of the Women’steam, stopped in my office to tell me that following a careful review of theresults, he felt that Cornerstone should have been awarded two additionalpoints in the women’s meet. Because the initial results had been so close,this correction would reverse the finish, giving Cornerstone the Women’schampionship by one point, positioning Aquinas as runner-up.
Apparently, Coach Wood was the only person to meticulously analyzethe results. His findings simply could have been swept under the rug. How-ever, the Aquinas way is to do things the right way. Although somewhatdisheartening, we knew that it was imperative that we contact the WHACleague commissioner, the WHAC media director, and Cornerstone offi-cials to correct the situation.
The sportsmanship and sense of fair play that we instill in our studentathletes starts with the administration and coaches who must set the ex-amples. This correction was definitely the proper approach.
What follows is a copy of the WHAC Release that was sent to confer-ence members informing them of the error and an excerpt taken from aletter addressed to me from a director at Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary, anaffiliate of Cornerstone College, after he learned of our handling of thematter.
Coach Dave Wood
Men’s & Women’s Track Coach,
Cross Country Coordinator
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By Tonya Schafer ’02, Freelance Writer
The mission of the WoodrickInstitute for the Study of Racismand Diversity is to help businessesembrace what has become an ex-citing fact of life.
“The world is more diverse nowthan ever before,” says DirectorSteve Robbins.
“It’s true: the workforce justdoesn’t look like it used to. So it’scritical to move people along in thejourney toward diversity—notsimply because it’s ‘the right thingto do,’ but because it’s a businessimperative.”
“Organizations unable to ac-commodate the needs of their mi-nority personnel suffer from lowmorale and decreased productivity.The first step toward accommoda-tion is understanding,” Robbinssays.
To that end, the Institute spon-sors a variety of diversity-aware-ness programs for members of thelabor force. The organization’stwo-day Healing Racism work-shops allow attendees of all racesto discuss their perceptions ofprejudice in open, non-confronta-tional environments.
Local professionals get a chanceto network and delve into diver-sity issues at the Institute’s monthlyAntiracism and Diversity AlliesLuncheons, held on the AquinasCollege campus. And DiversityAllies Book Club meetings allowthe dozens of people who attendthem each month to discussthemes included in notable worksof multicultural literature.
Steve Robbins, Ph.D., Director ofOperations, Woodrick Institute
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Woodrick Institute:Helping Business Embrace Diversity
Tolerance presentations, inclu-sion workshops, newsletters, andconsultation services round out thespate of programs the WoodrickInstitute offers.
It’s all geared toward onething—helping businesses adjustto the changes wrought by an in-creasingly diverse workforce andensuring that workers feel includedregardless of their race andethnicities.
In May, Project Blueprint, a sub-sidiary of the United Way thattrains people of color to serve oncommunity boards, awarded theWoodrick Institute its Championof Diversity Award for the contri-butions it has made to the promo-tion of multicultural awareness.
In announcing the Award,Project Blueprint ChairpersonLinda McCarter told the audiencethat the Woodrick Institute wasdeveloped to carry on that “legacyof passion and commitment and tobe a community resource and in-fluential force in dismantling rac-ism and celebrating diversity.”
“It’s humbling,” Robbins says.“But it gives us confirmation thatwe’re doing good work in the com-munity.”
He points out that confrontingissues of diversity is not simply a“black thing” or a “white thing.” It’sa human thing.
“We might have had the curefor cancer by now, but we’ve leftso much intellectual power behindbecause of prejudice that we’llnever really know,” he says. “Whenit comes to racism, everyone loses.”
That means everyone must takeresponsibility for its elimination.And thanks to the Woodrick In-stitute, an increasing number ofpeople are joining the effort.
Since its 1999 inception, theInstitute has seen corporate mem-bership climb to 15 companiesthat, for an annual fee, take advan-tage of diversity-related programs.
More than 400 people from avariety of local businesses havegone through the Healing Racismworkshops. The number is so highthat the Institute has changedthem from twice yearly to twicemonthly affairs and is trainingmore facilitators to lead them.
The Institute, based in a fewmodest offices tucked into the
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(Excerpts from letter addressed to AthleticDirector Terry Bocian)
“Even when realizing it wouldcost his women’s team the confer-ence championship, [CoachWood] corrected the final score,thereby taking second place ratherthan first. The fact that this emailis generated from the Cornerstonecampus, the team that was raisedto first, should in no way lessenthe significant moral lesson andauthentic personal credibility dueto your Coach Wood, andAquinas athletics, for his keensense of fairplay and honesty.
Since, as athletic director, I’msure you receive your fair [or un-fair] share of grief by virtue of yourposition, I thought it was the leastI could do to commend you andyour coach for this marvelous ges-ture of good will. I hope this actgets press, not about the newchampionship, but about the de-cision of sportsmanship.”
Sincerely,Mark A. Lamport, Ph.D.Professor of Educational MinistriesGrand Rapids Baptist Seminary
Contact: Bryan RizzoMedia Director
Phone: (734) 432-5604
E-mail: [email protected]
Aquinas, Champions of Character But Not Women’s Outdoor Track
April 24, 2002
The Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) has announced a change in the results
of the conference Track Championships held last Friday in Grand Rapids. Due to a
computer input error, Cornerstone University has been awarded the conference
championship.
The original results were:
Aquinas 170
Cornerstone 168
Spring Arbor 136
Siena Heights 108
Tri-State 49
Concordia 13
As the host of the event, Aquinas College head coach Dave Wood was reviewing the scoring
when he noted an error. The discrepancy took place in the high jump. Melissa Abood
(Siena Heights University), Cathi Velzen (Cornerstone University) and Vicky Scheffler
(Aquinas College) all cleared the same height in the high jump. Velzen and Scheffler tied for
third because they both cleared the height on their first attempt while Abood finished fifth
because she cleared the same height on her second attempt. When the results were entered
in the computer Abood and Velzen’s places were switched by mistake.
As a result, the corrected result subtracted three points from Siena Heights’ total and added
an additional three points to Cornerstone’s total giving them a winning total of 171 points to
Aquinas’ 170 total. The corrected totals are:
Cornerstone 171
Aquinas 170
Spring Arbor 136
Siena Heights 105
Tri-State 49
Concordia 13
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has undertaken a “Champions
of Character” initiative the last two years, emphasizing sportsmanship and integrity. The
WHAC commends Aquinas College for demonstrating these ideals in finding and
immediately reporting and correcting the scoring error even when it cost them a conference
championship.
-WHAC-
“Fair Play and Honesty”
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Get The Lead Out! is an exampleof CLI functioning as incubator.Paul Haan, Program Partner ofCLI, directs a community collabo-rative addressing the public healthconcern of lead poisoning of chil-dren. When the three-year pilotproject is completed and Get TheLead Out! is financially viable, theinitiative will become independentof CLI. Until then, CLI will assistby bringing diverse organizationsto a common table for strategicplanning, followed by capacitybuilding and creative problemsolving that leads to systemicchange.
The Greater Grand RapidsNational Issues Forum, a 23-year-old dialogue organization, is nowbased in the CLI and directed byAquinas alumna Lisabeth Keegan’98. This year the National IssuesForum hosted dialogue sessions onthe aftermath of 9/11 and on raceand ethnic tensions. Recently theNational Issues Forum, in partner-ship with the Grand RapidsMayor’s Youth Council, facilitateda dialogue among area high schoolstudents on the issue of race.
Aquinas College is invested inthe community of Grand Rapids.CLI is but one example of thatinvestment. The Dominicancharisms and the Aquinas Collegemission statement shape CLI’s en-gagement with the community.Since 1886, this city has been theCollege’s home. The CommunityLeadership Institute intends tomake it the best home it can be.
James Ayers protects children from lead hazards by stabilizing the painton homeowner’s window. Ayers is a member of the CLEAR Corps programhosted by Get The Lead Out! partner agency Home Repair Services.
Asset mapping helps Catholic and Protestant parishes with development andecumenical interaction.
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Senior StudentAthletes Recognized
The Aquinas Athletic Depart-ment recognized two seniorstudent athletes this past spring fortheir academic strength, service toothers, and athletic involvementand success.
Denny Briggs of Belding, whograduated cum laude with a bach-elor of science degree in businessadministration, received the JosephBaker Memorial Award, which isgiven to the outstanding seniormale athlete.
Briggs was a member of themen’s soccer team as well as thetrack team. During his four years,the men’s soccer team won three
Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Con-ference (WHAC) championshipsand the track team won sevenWHAC championships. In 2000,the Aquinas Pat Hoatlin Awardwas awarded to Briggs by his team-mates as the outstanding under-classman.
Briggs, a member of the Pi MuEpsilon National Math Honor
Spring 2002 HonorsAthletic All-Americans
Aaron Bush (softball), KurtBrummel (tennis), Henry Holmes(track), Brendan Gary (track), EricEssick (track), Shawn Gast (track),Lars Petzke (track), Keelin Baine(track), Jaime Anderson (track),Kerry Lucas (track), Sarah Ellis(track).
Academic All-AmericansTom Huizing (tennis), Jason
Ladd (baseball), Erik Essick (track),Nate Kaiser (track), Lars Petzke(track), Eric Johnson (track), KirkKahner (track), Kerry Lucas(track).
Society, had a triple major ofeconomics, mathematics andbusiness. He has also been in-volved in the student athlete advi-sory board.
Kristen Brady of BloomfieldHills was awarded the HelenLouise Brogger Award, which isgiven annually to the outstandingfemale senior student athlete.
A four-year letter winner on theAquinas volleyball team, Brady wasnamed to the Wolverine Hoosier
Athlete Conference All-Academicteam as a junior and a senior.
“Kristen possesses the outstand-ing quality of making those aroundher better players and betterpeople,” said Marc Schulz, hercoach. “She is a true teammate inevery sense of the word.”
She is actively involved in tu-toring in reading and English atCreston High School in GrandRapids and works with severalyouth and high school volleyballteams as a volunteer coach.
During her years at Aquinas, shehas volunteered for Project Uniteand Habitat for Humanity.
Athletic Hall ofFame EstablishedThe Aquinas College Ath-
letic Hall of Fame will be in-augurated on September 27.That night, its first inducteeswill be recognized for theiroutstanding achievements inthe area of athletics. The cer-emony will also generateawareness in current student-athletes of the outstanding in-dividuals that have allowedAquinas College to be success-ful in the past.
“This ultimate recognition islong overdue on our campus.We have had many successstories and it is time that theseare told and retold,” statedAquinas Athletic DirectorTerry Bocian.
The initial inductions willtake place Friday night ofhomecoming weekend. Tick-ets or information about theevent can be found by callingthe Athletic Department at616-459-8281, ext. 3101.
“… Students are richer for the learning experience, but also thecommunity is stronger for [their] skills, energy and creativity . . . . ”
Kristen Brady, an English major,graduated with a 3.68 GPA.
Denny Briggs graduated with a3.54 GPA.
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By George Heartwell, Director of
Community Leadership
There never was a time whencollege and community could af-ford to be disengaged oruninvolved in the life of the other.The “ivory tower” and the “town-gown divide” are remnants of anera when academic pursuit suppos-edly prepared students to take theirplaces in some distant “real world.”
Students today, however, al-ready live in that real world. Itschallenges are their challenges; itssuccesses and failures shape theirlives. Many Aquinas students areemployed in the community or liveoff campus in the neighborhoodsaround the College. The qualityof life in Grand Rapids is of deepand immediate concern to them.
The Aquinas Community Lead-ership Institute (CLI) provides abridge between the campus andthe community. The Institute co-ordinates internal academic workand external community leader-ship development.
Aquinas undergraduate studentscan now major in CommunityLeadership. Directed by 28-yearAquinas faculty member MichaelWilliams, Ph.D., this innovativeprogram combines academic rigorand experiential learning to helpstudents develop a foundation inleadership skills that they will em-ploy in the community duringtheir student years and followinggraduation. In the three years the
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Community Leadership Institute
Community Leadership major hasbeen available, Aquinas studentshave contributed in the fields ofeconomic development, children’sadvocacy, minority leadershipdevelopment, minority businesscultivation, and environmentalprotection. Certainly the studentsare richer for the learning experi-ence, but also the community isstronger for the skills, energy, andcreativity that our Aquinas stu-dents and faculty bring to thework.
The Institute also has a missionto develop leadership in the largercommunity of West Michiganthrough dialogue, organizationalconsultations, and the incubationof new community problem-solv-ing initiatives.
As the CLI Lead Partner, I con-duct organizational consultationswith many non-profit and publicsector organizations, teaching inthe community leadership major,and coordinating student place-ments.
One significant CLI program isthe Congregational LeadershipCenter. Under the direction of theRev. Victoria Menning, the Cen-ter provides leadership develop-ment and consultation services toCatholic and Protestant parishes.Its innovative Congregational As-set Mapping program has beenlauded as a new tool of parish de-velopment and ecumenical inter-action.
The Rev. George Heartwell
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Athletic
Schedules
For updates,
check our Web site:
www.aquinas.edu
Date OpponentAug. 27 @ Grace Bible/Grand RapidsAug. 31 @ Missouri BaptistSept. 1 @ McKendree CollegeSept. 7/8 @ Alma College TournamentSept. 14 Alma CollegeSept. 18 Cornerstone University (non-conf.)Sept. 22 Univ. of Illinois/SpringfieldSept. 28 Concordia University* (Homecoming)Oct. 2 Saginaw Valley UniversityOct. 7 @ Madonna University*/LivoniaOct. 9 Hope CollegeOct. 12 @ Cornerstone University*Oct.16 Tri-State University*Oct.19 @ Spring Arbor University*Oct. 23 Indiana Tech University*Oct. 26 @ Siena Heights University*Oct. 30 Calvin CollegeNov. 2, 6, 9 WHAC TournamentNov. 13, 16 Regionals
*Denotes WHAC Conference game
Date OpponentAug. 30 @ Taylor UniversityAug. 31 St. Joseph’s College (@ Grand Valley State)Sept. 6 @ Calvin CollegeSept. 7 @ Hope CollegeSept. 14 Trinity InternationalSept. 21 Grand Valley State UniversitySept. 22 @ St. Francis University, IndianaSept. 26 @ Indiana WesleyanSept. 28 Concordia UniversityOct. 1 Goshen CollegeOct. 3 Ferris State UniversityOct. 5 @ Cornerstone UniversityOct. 8 @ Madonna UniversityOct. 15 Tri-State UniversityOct. 19 @ Spring ArborOct. 22 Indiana TechOct. 24 Robert MorrisOct. 26 @ Siena Heights UniversityNov. 2 First Round WHAC Tournament/TBANov. 5 WHAC Semi-Finals/TBANov. 9 WHAC Championship/TBA
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The header bar provides fre-quently used links, the currentdate, and a search engine ex-clusive to this site.
The Main Menu provides adrop-down list of links to allof the features offered withinthis site.
Look here to see Who’sonline. This block will alsodisplay the number of privatemessages waiting for you.
All Grand Rapids-areaweather information is deriveddirectly from the NationalWeather Service and NOAA.In case you’re wondering,
MooseCast refers to theweather program used on thestudents’ Web portal, “TheMoose!”
Buddy is the Alumni Website’s very own instant messag-ing system, allowing you to chatwith other online members.
The center panel contains thelatest alumni News stories. Theicon next to the story representsthe general topic of the story. Alist of the topic areas can befound by clicking “Topic” in themain menu or on the header bar.You can also submit your ownstory by clicking “Submit News”
in the main menu or on theheader bar.
Integrated Surveys provide aninstant pulse of the alumni andfriends of the College.
Today’s big story shows youthe most popular story amongyour peers.
Links to the College’s mostrecent News Releases can befound here.
Look here for the latest head-lines from the Aquinas Times, thestudent-run newspaper oncampus.
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alumni home page – quick tour
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Date OpponentSept. 7 Aquinas Invitational/Riverside ParkSept. 14 Bulldog Invitational/Big RapidsSept. 21 Natioanl Catholic Inv./South Bend, Ind.Sept. 22 Aquinas Open/Riverside ParkOct. 6 “Stars” Open Invitational/LansingOct. 12 Michigan Intercollegiates/MilfordOct. 20 WHAC Championship/JacksonNov. 3 NAIA Regional/JacksonNov. 17 NAIA Championships/Kenosha, Wis.
Date OpponentAug. 30/31 @ Alma College Tournament
Sept. 3 @ Tri-StateSept. 6/7 @ Defiance College Tournament
Sept. 12 @ Cornerstone UniversitySept. 14 @ Spring Arbor University
Sept. 17 Madonna UniversitySept. 20-22 @ Palm Beach Atlantic Tournament/Florida
Sept. 24 Concordia UniversitySept. 27/28 @ St. Francis Tournament, Joliet, Ilinois
Oct. 1 @ Siena Heights UniversityOct. 4/5 @ Grace College Tournament
Oct. 8 @ Albion CollegeOct. 10 Palm Beach Atlantic
Oct. 12 Tri-State UniversityOct. 15 Spring Arbor Universiiy
Oct. 22 @ Madonna UniversityOct. 25/26 @ Trinity Christian Tournament
Oct. 29 Cornerstone UniversityNov. 2 @ Concordia University
Nov. 5 Siena Heights UniversityNov. 8 Goshen College
Nov. 12 1st Round WHAC Tournament/TBANov. 15 Semi-finals WHAC Tournament/TBA
Nov. 16 Championship WHAC Tournament/TBA
Date OpponentNov. 10 Purdue-Calumet UniversityNov. 13 @ Goshen CollegeNov. 16 Kendall CollegeNov. 22/23 Aquinas College TournamentNov. 29/30 @ Calvin College TournamentDec. 6/7 @ Olivet College TournamentDec. 11 @ Calvin CollegeDec. 13 Taylor UniversityDec. 27-29 St. Xavier University TournamentJan. 3/4 @ Alma College TournamentJan. 8 Siena Heights UniversityJan. 11 @ Tri-State UniversityJan. 15 @ Madonna UniversityJan. 18 Indiana Tech UniversityJan. 22 Concordia UniversityJan. 25 @ Spring Arbor UniversityJan. 29 @ Cornerstone UniversityFeb. 1 @ Siena Heights UniversityFeb. 5 Tri-State UniversityFeb. 8 Madonna UniversityFeb. 12 @Indiana Tech UniversityFeb. 15 @ Concordia UniversityFeb. 19 Spring Arbor UniversityFeb. 22 Cornerstone UniversityFeb. 26– WHAC Tournament
Mar. 1 & 3
Date OpponentSept. 5 @Adrian (Devils Lake CC)Sept. 12 @KalamazooSept. 16 @AlmaSept. 20 @AlbionSept. 22/23 @Tri-State Fall invitationalSept. 26 Ferris StateOct. 3 Aquinas InvitationalOct. 6 @CalvinOct. 10 Tri-State
Date OpponentSept. 5 @Tri-State* (Zollner GC)Sept. 7/8 @Olivet Invitational (Bedford Valley/Marywood GC)Sept. 11 Aquinas* (L.E. Kaufman GC)Sept. 15 @Siena Heights* (Lenawee GC)Sept. 20 @Spring Arbor* (Cascade GC)Sept. 21 @Tri-State Invitational (Zollner GC)Sept. 26 Aquinas Invitational (L.E. Kaufman GC)Sept. 28 @WHAC/MCC Ryder Cup (Zollner GC)Oct. 1 Cornerstone (Thousand oaks GC)*WHAC Conference Jamborees
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tOne of the most popular features of the new alumni site is the Members List. Registered users canaccess and search this database of fellow alumni who are members of this on-line community. Click-ing on a member’s user name will allow you to to view their profile or to drop them a line via thebuilt-in messaging system.
New Look — Alumni Web Site!The new alumni section of the
Aquinas Web site demonstrates thelatest in Web-based communi-cation technology. This innova-tive portal keeps alumni andfriends of the College connectedwith current campus develop-ments. Similar technology hasbeen used to develop “The Moose”and “Acorn”, the on-line portals forAquinas students and employeesrespectively.
In addition to the features foundon the home page (shown onopposite page), the Main Menuprovides links to the tools andresources listed in the next column.
Alumni Association - meet the members or volunteer for a committeeBook Store - shop on-line at www.aqbooks.comCalendar - check out college events and activities at the click of a mouseFAQ - ask questions and get answersGallery - view photo albums from recent eventsGroups - join discussion boards with alumni sharing common interestsMembers List - search the database of registered alumni and friendsMessages - send, receive, and store messages internally within the siteYour Account - customize your own interface and profileSearch - search the site’s stories, members lists, and moreTopics - browse through archived news stories by categoryUpdate Info - update your official College contact information
from one convenient location
alumni web site – links
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Kyle Verlin (Northview High School) joinedSaints 1000-Point Club and received AllAmerican honorable mention this past year.
Date OpponentNov. 12 Univ. of Michigan/Dearborn**Nov. 16 Marygrove CollegeNov. 18 Rochester College**Nov. 20 @ Grace BibleNov. 26, 30 Select Bank Classic at VanAndel ArenaDec. 3 Ferris State**Dec. 6 Brann’s/Aquinas Classic
Hope vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary’sSt. Clair (Windsor) at Aquinas
Dec. 7 Brann’s/Aquinas ClassicThird place , 1 p.m.; Championship
Dec. 10 @ IUPU-Fort WayneDec. 13/14 @ Taylor University TournamentDec. 20-22 @ St. Xavier Tournament TBAJan. 4 Calvin CollegeJan. 8 Siena Heights UniversityJan. 11 @ Tri-State UniversityJan. 14 @ Madonna UniversityJan. 18 Indiana tech University**Jan. 21 Concordia University**Jan. 25 @ Spring Arbor UniversityJan. 28 @ Cornerstone University**Feb. 1 @ Siena Heights University**Feb. 4 Tri-State UniversityFeb. 8 Madonna University**Feb. 12 @ Indiana Tech UniversityFeb. 15 @ Concordia UniversityFeb. 18 Spring Arbor University**Feb. 22 Cornerstone University**Feb. 26 WHAC Tournament
** denotes JV contest also.
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Photo from the Aquinas Herald (student newspaper) published March 3, 1954.
Lloyd Brown ’54 RememberedLloyd Brown ’54, one of the most prolific scorers in Aquinas College
basketball history, passed away last spring in Grand Rapids. Brown stillholds the single game scoring mark of 72 points set in 1954. He captainedthe first Aquinas basketball team that defeated Calvin College.
His career scoring average of 19.5 points per game was extraordinarygiven that the games of that era were normally not high scoring affairs.That average is still 13th on the all-time list of basketball scorers at theCollege, where he was also active in musical and theatrical productions.
Brown, who was a retired salesman for Ameritech Yellow Pages, will beamong the first inductees into the Aquinas College Athletics Hall of Fameduring the Homecoming Gala Event on September 27.
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AlumniCalendar
2002
Friday-SundaySeptember 27-29
Homecoming andGalaWeekend
• Aquinas Hall of Fame Gala Event:Dinner and Induction of Honoreesinto the Aquinas College Hall ofFame, the Aquinas College AthleticHall of Fame and the Presentationof the Aquinas College AlumniAssociation Awards
• Alumni Association Annual Meeting.All alumni are welcome!
• Science Department AlumniReunion with Dr. John PojeScholarship Dinner
• Master of Management 25thAnniversary Reunion
• Joe McCarthy Golf Outing andDinner
• Ireland Studies Program 30thAnniversary Reunion
• Golden Saints Alumni Reunion.A Celebration for All Alumni ofClasses 1930-1952
• Dr. Bruce Early Memorial JazzBrunch Featuring the AquinasCollege Jazz Ensemble
Date TBD, October
Detroit-Area Alumni Reception
Tuesday, October 29
• Arizona Alumni Reception• Wrigley Mansion Club, Scottsdale,
Arizona
Saturday, November 16
• Sightseeing, Shows & Shopping inChicago
• Alumni & Friends
For additional information on any listedevent, please call the Alumni & ParentRelations Office at 616-459-8281, ext.4415, or e-mail to [email protected] sure to check the AQ Web site fordetails on these events and others atwww.aquinas.edu.
West Michigan Lakeshore Alumni and FriendsReceptionBy Lisa Piatek ‘97, Director of Corporate Relations & Special Events
The evening of July 11 could not have been more perfect as 42 of Aquinas’alumni and friends from the lakeshore area gathered for a reception at thehome of Kirk and Lori (Aquinas Trustee) Bush on Lake Macatawa in Hol-land.
Father Bill Duncan, Kay Donnelly, and Peter and Ulrike Wege playedco-hosts for the evening event. The gathering allowed an opportunity forour Lakeshore Alumni and Friends to hear more about the College and theinitiatives planned for the school from President Knopke and about therestructuring of the alumni association from Melvene Tardy. The guestsenjoyed wonderful cuisine, a beautiful setting, and had an opportunity tosee old friends.
Homecoming and Gala Weekend 2002Plans are being finalized for Homecoming and Gala Weekend to be
held Friday-Sunday, Sept. 27-29 and you won’t want to miss the fun andexcitement. The alumni festivities kick off Friday night with the Hall ofFame Dinner and Induction Ceremony.
Anniversary celebrations will mark 30 years for the Ireland Studies Pro-gram and 25 years for the Master of Management Program. In addition, aGolden Saints Alumni Reunion will be held for graduates from the Classesof 1930-1952. Activities wrap up Sunday with the Bruce Early MemorialJazz Brunch. Watch your mail or check the alumni page on the AquinasWeb site (www.aquinas.edu) for more details.
Left to right: Trustee Katherine Donnelly with Esther and Seymour Padnos.
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Adm
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ons Spectrum Scholarship Competition Attracts
Top Prospects in FebruaryMore than 150 prospective students from half a dozen states competed
for a share of the school’s scholarship pot last February. The competitioninvolves a battery of assessment tests including a writing sample, a decisionmaking exercise, and critical thinking/problem solving. Faculty members,more than two dozen, serve as judges for the critical decision-making exer-cise.
These top applicants to the freshman class of 2002 came to AquinasCollege last winter to compete for the ultimate prize, one of several full-tuition scholarships. Sponsored by the College’s Admissions Office, the10th annual Spectrum Scholarship Competition saw students vying for theJerome Byrne full-tuition and room scholarship, the John Veneklasen full-tuition scholarship, the R. Paul Nelson full-tuition scholarships, the St.Catherine scholarships, and the St. Anselm scholarships.
High school grade point average and ACT composite test score are thefactors used to determine eligibility to compete. Qualifying students auto-matically receive a $7,500 merit award.
In addition, they can compete for full tuition or an additional $1,000 or$500 through the St. Catherine and St. Anselm scholarship funds.
The competition is one of the largest admissions-sponsored events ofthe year. Since competition began 10 years ago, the number of studentsparticipating has more than doubled, from 60 to more than 150 this year.
Faculty members designed the competition, not only as a reward foracademically talented students, but as an opportunity to identify personalattributes which are not found on a student’s high school transcript.
“One of the unexpected results of the Spectrum Competition is the friend-ship that develops among the students who come to campus to compete,”says Paula Meehan, dean of admissions. “
Those friendships have contributed to an enrollment rate of over 60percent among scholarship competition participants.”
Another positive outcome has been the increase in the cumulative gradepoints and ACT test scores of incoming students.
Parents also get involved on the day of competition. A program of eventsis designed for parents, including panel discussions, campus tours and anintroduction to the city of Grand Rapids. A President’s Reception for par-ents and students concludes the day’s activities.
This year’s scholarship winners are:
Jerome Byrne ScholarshipKelly DittmarWaubonsie Valley High School, Aurora, Illinois
John Veneklasen ScholarshipMegan BolichWest Catholic High Schoool
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Alumni Golf OutingBy Jennifer Rybski, Contributing Writer
The Aquinas College AlumniAssociation held their 36th annualgolf outing for alumni and friendsat Boulder Creek Golf Club inGrand Rapids on June 8. With thegracious hospitality of AmyPollock, Manager Jerry Robersonand his staff, the event was flawless.The beautiful weather broughtforth 59 golfers in light-heartedcompetition, and many newmemories that will not be soonforgotten.
Chicago ReceptionBy Melvene Tardy ’87, Director of
Alumni & Parent Relations
Last May, Chicago-area alumniand President & Mrs. Knopke en-joyed the wonderful hospitalityand spectacular view from Kathryn(Burrer ’70) and Richard Hyer’slakefront home.
While some reminisced, othersdid some professional networkingas still others took the opportunity
to take in the breathtaking viewfrom the 13th floor as a small classof sailboats practiced their tackingmaneuvers on Lake Michigan be-low. Many of the alumni, surpris-ingly, discovered that they livedwithin blocks of each other!
The Class of 1987 had the mostalumni in attendance. They in-cluded Ann Marie Mahoney, Col-leen Ranieri and Alumni DirectorMelvene Tardy. Recognition alsogoes to Bill Doerres ’39 for repre-
senting the earliest graduating year.Members of the Chicago alumnidiscussed the possibility of arrang-ing a Chicago Cubs baseball out-ing yet this season and anotherhome-based reception for the fall.
We’re looking for locations!Would you like to host an alumnireception in your hometown? Ifso, contact the Alumni & ParentRelations Office at 616-459-8281,ext. 4415, and we’ll arrange to holdan event in your area.
Golf Committeemembers surroundFred Hesse ’63,playing in his 23rdconsecutive outing.(Left to right) TonyNolan ’67, MelveneTardy ’87, Directorof Parent & AlumniRelations, Hesse, andMichelle Bottrall ’97.
Historically SpeakingRecorded memoirs of Aquinas, featuring interviews with
alumni, faculty and staff—past and present—are available incompact discs and audio-cassettes.
1. Modest Beginnings: 1931-19452. Beginnings on Robinson Road: 1945-19583. Expansion of Facilities: 1959-19684. Changing Times:1969-19865. Expansion to the Future:1986-1998
Single discs: $10 each or a set of 5 for $40Single cassettes: $5 each or a set of 5 for $20
On-campus purchases can be made at the Wege Center Book Store. Telephone or e-mail orders will betaken through the Alumni Association at 616-459-8281, ext. 4415, or e-mail: [email protected]. Setswill be displayed for audition and purchase at Homecoming 2002.
Narrative Recollections of Aquinas College History
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The Saints Network: Prospecting theProspectsBy Jeremy Wood, Admissions Representative
Each year, a number of dedicated alumni assist the AdmissionsOffice with recruiting efforts. The Saints Network volunteers writecongratulatory letters to high school seniors who have been ac-cepted for admission to Aquinas, providing unique insights intothe College for each of our prospective students and many timesmaking the difference in their college decision.
Every three to four months, Saints Network members nation-wide take time to congratulate prospective Aquinas students and
offer assistance in their college search. Their letters provide prospective students with Aquinas highlights anddemonstrate how Aquinas alumni use their degrees—one of the best ways to illustrate success. They also showstudents how much Aquinas means to its graduates and leave a lasting impression on those considering Aquinas astheir college choice. In fact, most of the admissions staff and student workers remember the letters that theyreceived.
A few of these alumni also attend college fairs in areas that aren’t easy for admissions representatives to reach suchas Alaska, Illinois, Indiana, New Mexico, and New York. The response from students and volunteers alike has beenincredible.
Because the Saints Network volunteers help Aquinas reach students in unique ways, the time they give to theadmissions process is invaluable. Become a part of this unique outreach effort.
Join the Saints Network team by contacting Jeremy Wood in the Admissions Office at: 1-800-678-9593 [email protected].
R. Paul Nelson ScholarshipJeanne GilewskiNorthview High School
St. Catherine ScholarshipLaura BrizzolaraForest Hills NorthernHigh School
St. Catherine ScholarshipDavid DoppelUtica High School
St. Anselm ScholarshipJennifer CoulonAdams High School,Rochester
St. Anselm ScholarshipShannon BoggsLowell High School,Lowell
The recipients presented a cu-mulative 3.8 grade point average
and an ACT composite score of30. In addition they bring an im-pressive resume of extracurricularinvolvement.
If your son or daughter meetsthe qualifications for this compe-tition, please contact the Admis-sions Office for more informationabout future competition at:
[email protected] or1-800-678-9593.
HistoricallySpeaking
11
Arizona Alumni:Staying ConnectedBy Cecilia Cunningham,Director of the Aquinas Fund
Maintaining meaningful con-nections with Aquinas alumni isvery important and fun! In an effortto reconnect with alumni, Davidand Michelle Bottrall ’97 hosted afabulous and well attendedPresident’s Reception at the DesertMountain Country Club inScottsdale, Arizona (February 21).
We had a champagne toast tothe continued prosperity of theCollege, as we watched a beauti-ful sunset from the terrace of theGeronimo Clubhouse.
There are already plans for thenext reception. Jack ’70 and TamiHebert are hosting a fall receptionat the Wrigley Mansion Club in
Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada,Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idahoor Texas, please call Cecilia A.Cunningham at:
616-459-8281, ext. 4408(direct line) or800-748-0186(during regular office hours);e-mail: [email protected]
Scottsdale on October 29, 2002,at 6 p.m. Please mark your calen-dar and watch for invitations inearly October.
Here’s a call to alumni in theWest and southwestern states—Would you like an Aquinas recep-tion or gathering in your city? Ifyou are in the states of Arizona,
An oak-paneled room of the Country Clubof Detroit was the setting for a gathering ofDetroit-area alumni, prospective students andfriends in April. The reception, hosted by Mrs.Jane (Forton) Cracchiolo ‘53, featured a musicprogram by two outstanding Aquinas students,Sarah Makowski and Brook Baragar, as well asrecent graduate, Bill Marfink. The meeting wasan opportunity to renew old friendships and
Michelle Bottrall ’97 (left), President Knopke (2nd from left) and Trustee DavidBottrall (3rd from left) join with Aquinas alumni in watching an Arizona sunsetat a reception hosted by the Bottrall’s last February in Scottsdale.
Detroit Alumni Reception
make new acquaintances. The group also heard fromAquinas President, Dr. Harry Knopke, who reviewed theprogress of the new Performing Arts Center building nowunder construction on campus.
(Above) left to right: Dan Timmis ’00, Rob Tubman ’88,Dr. James Karam ’76, Ernest Mathis ’91.
(Right) left to right: Bill Marfink ’87, Barbara Witham McCargar ’77,Chair, Aquinas Music Department, Jane (Forton) Cracchiolo ’53,Margaret (Mayan) Glinke ’56, and Sarah Makowski (senior).
50
Dev
elop
men
t Contemporary WriterSeries Fifth AnniversaryBy Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned
Giving
Aquinas College recently hon-ored alums Linda Nemec Foster ‘72and Tony Foster, M.D., ‘73 for theiroutstanding support of AquinasCollege and especially for the fifthanniversary of the Aquinas CollegeContemporary Writers Series.
Linda also studied at GoddardCollege in Vermont, where she re-ceived her Master of Fine Arts increative writing in 1979. Linda, anaccomplished poet, has been pub-lished in numerous journals, re-views and magazines. She won theNational Writers’ Voice PoetryProject Fellowship in 1999; Nicho-las Roerich Poetry Prize finalist forher book Living in the Fire Nest in1997; and the Arts Foundation ofMichigan Creative Artist Award inPoetry in 1996, just to name a fewof her awards. Late last year, Lindawas published again with herbook Amber Necklace from Gdansk.
The book was inspired by her Pol-ish American heritage and her firstvisit to her family’s homeland in1996.
Linda has shared her talents inother ways and from 1980-1998she taught, lectured and conductedworkshops in creative writing forthe Michigan Council for the Arts’Creative-Writers-in-School Pro-gram. Linda also was an adjunctprofessor at Aquinas College in1999 and was a featured poet atthe Aquinas College Writing Con-ference in 1998.
Dr. Foster continued his educa-tion at Wayne State University,where he received his Doctorateof Medicine in 1977. Tony is cur-rently a general surgeon in prac-tice with Michigan Medical P.C.
Tony and Linda have supportedAquinas College in many wayssince their graduation. One ofthese projects is the Foster PlanetWalk, which was dedicated in1996 on the Aquinas campus. TheFoster Planet Walk is a to-scale-distance replica of our solar system.Each planet is a topographicallycorrect bronze cast created by RonPederson, mounted on bouldersproportionately placed through-out campus and designed to showthe relative spacing between theplanets.
The Contemporary Writers Se-ries was established in 1997. Theseries is funded through annual andendowment gifts from Tony andLinda and provides students andthe Grand Rapids community withthe opportunity to meet and lis-ten to readings of nationallyprominent writers.
Fall 2002 Aquinas CollegeContemporary Writers Series
Thursday, October 3,7:30 p.m. • Free
Speaker: Poet Linda Pasten,Poet and Author
Jarecki/Lacks Center, Room 141, 159Woodward Lane S.E.
Thursday, October 17,7:30 p.m. • Free
Speaker: Peter Carey,award-winning short story
writer, novelist andscreenplay writer
Wege Student Center Ballroom
Linda Nemec Foster joined byhusband Tony (right) andPresident Knopke reading aselection from her book. h
10
Alu
mni
New
s Alumni Association Board MessageChange is inevitable.The world around us changes
daily and we ourselves are certainlynot the same persons we werewhen we attended Aquinas.Change is in the air at AquinasCollege too. Recently ground wasbroken on campus for a newtheatre.
Scheduled for completion insummer 2003, the theatre is theresult of a unique collaborationinvolving Aquinas College, CircleTheatre of Grand Rapids, and theCatholic Secondary Schools ofGreater Grand Rapids. The resultwill be a new performing artscenter in the area, which willpresent a significant opportunityfor Aquinas students.
Academically, there have beenchanges too. The AcademicAssembly, after months ofdiscussion, adopted new GeneralEducation requirements.
The num-ber of credit hoursrequired to fulfill the GeneralEducation standard has beenreduced from 67 to 50 semesterhours. The revision brings theAquinas requirement more in linewith that of colleges similar toAquinas.
The Aquinas College AlumniAssociation has not been immune
Bob Niedzielski ’58Vice President,Alumni Association
to change. Beginning this fall, theAssociation will operate underupdated bylaws. The change willmake the Association morecompatible both with the goals ofAquinas College and with collegeand university peer models, orbenchmark schools, which theCollege has been using in itsongoing Program Review.
This second edition of Aquinasmagazine typifies the changingAlumni Association.
One thing has not changed,however. That is the need toinclude “U” in the affairs of theAl_mni Association. The revisedbylaws call for greater use ofsubcommittees, allowing forgreater involvement of alumniin hands-on activities.
It also calls for greater diversityof participants, both on the Boardand in its activities, with respectto age, ethnicity, gender, anddegree earned and geographicrepresentation.
If you would be interested inbecoming involved in the AquinasAlumni Association, please contactMelvene Tardy, Director ofAlumni and Parent Relations, at616-459-281, ext. 4415. She willbe happy to send you informationon the volunteer opportunities
Corrections & Apologies
In the spring 2002 issue of Aquinas magazine, we erroneouslylisted Outstanding Alumni Award honoree Tim J. McGuire ‘71as a 1977 graduate.
In that same article, we listed Distinguished Service Awardhonoree David Weinandy, Ph.D., as having received hisdoctorate in Interpersonal Relations from Michigan StateUniversity. Weinandy received his doctorate from BowlingGreen University.
51
Endowment Society DinnerAlan R. Ryan has been a part of Aquinas College since
1985, serving as Board Chairman and now a Trustee Emeri-tus. Last April, the College honored Ryan during its 2002Aquinas College Endowment Society Dinner, which alsorecognizes new members of the Endowment Society.
“Alan is a great and dedicated believer in planning andplanned giving. His membership in the Aquinas CollegeEndowment Society comes from a carefully charted courseof philanthropy and commitment to Catholic higher edu-cation,” says Bill Weitzel, director of planned giving.
The E.C. “Jack” and Irma Ryan Scholarship Fund wasestablished in memory of his parents in 1989. Ryan giftedthe main section of the Cook Carriage House to the Col-lege in memory of his late first wife, Carolyn Ryan.
During his after dinner remarks, Ryan highlighted thenew property, new buildings, new systems, programmaticinvestments that have evolved and how key decisions,though risky at the time, were made with prayer, hope and,above all, vision and expectation.
The important message he stressed is that each of ourcollege constituencies will have a role to play in a long-term endowment building program.
There must be realistic planning that will detail strate-gies, time tables, resources and responsibility to assureachievement, to become a truly “premiere Catholic liberalarts college in the Midwest.”
Aquinas College Hall of Fame Gala EventBy Sister Jean Milhaupt, O.P., Archivist
On September 27, 2002, Aquinas College will host its inaugural Hall of Fame Gala Event inthe Wege Center Ballroom. The climax of the Gala will be the inauguration of the AquinasCollege Hall of Fame. The AQ Historical Commission will honor two persons for long-termdistinguished achievements that reflect the mission of the College. One is granted to anAlumnus/a and one to a person who has served within the College or supported it from out-side.
Plaques showing the recipients and their achievements will be displayed in the main lobbyof the Academic Building. A committee including representatives of the Historical Commis-sion, faculty, staff and alumni made this year’s selections. Future annual awards nominationswill be solicited from the Aquinas community and alumni. For additional information or toobtain tickets for the Gala, contact the Development Department at 616-459-8281, ext. 4490.
Alan Ryan pictured with his wife, Margaret, wasrecognized for his contributions to Aquinas.
Alan Ryan (left) introduced byTrustee Lyle Morrison.
9
“What I like about Aquinas is the spirit, the caring spirit about the studentsand by the students here on campus. There is real compassion here and Ilike that.”
She has devoted her life mostly to children and spent many years work-ing within the public school system. She retired as director of the KentEducation Center last March and just finished nine years as an AquinasTrustee.
Despite her avid community involvement, Yvonne works behind thescenes, said her cousin Sharon Smith, the director of career and counselingat Aquinas.
“It’s very rare that you find out what Yvonne has done until long after,”she said. “She is one of my role models and my mentor for doing things inthe community.”
Still, a life that is committed to the community cannot go completelyunnoticed. She received the Giants’ Award for Community Service, theGrand Rapids Public School Award for Innovative Contributions, the LifeEnricher Award from the Amway Foundation and the NAACP Award nam-ing her the Grand Rapids Administrator for Due Process.
“I was never surprised by the awards, but I wasn’t sure if I was always themost deserving. There are lots of other people that deserved them as well,but that’s a good thing because there is always more than enough work togo around.”
Alumni DominateNew Trustee Ranks
A record number of alumni willjoin the College’s Board of Trust-ees this fall. Four of the six newboard members, elected in May2002 are former students atAquinas.
Carretta Cooke ’78, a native ofDetroit, is the Director of AfricanAmerican Student Affairs atNorthwestern University (Evans-ton, Illinois), placing her as thehighest ranking African Americanin the University’s administration.
Rich Cook ’92, a graduate ofthe College’s Master of Manage-ment program, is President/CEOof X-Rite Incorporated (Grand-ville) and is active in severalcommunity organizations inGrand Rapids, including the
Board of Directors of the WestMichigan World Affairs Council.
Marilyn Quinn Drake ’81 isactively involved in the GrandRapids Art Museum, where shealso serves as a member of its Boardof Trustees.
Tim McGuire ’71 is the retirededitor of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Minneapolis Star Tribuneand Senior Vice President of theStar Tribune Foundation. He isalso the former president of theAmerican Society of NewspaperEditors. He received the AquinasCollege Outstanding Alumnus Awardin both 1992 and 2001.
The Honorable William B.Murphy received his law degreefrom Wayne State University af-ter attending Aquinas College andnow serves as judge for the Michi-gan Court of Appeals.
Dr. Luis Tomatis receivedhis medical degree at theRosario Medical School inArgentina in 1954. In 1995,he finished his surgicalcareer to become theFounding President of theVan Andel Institute and iscurrently the Director ofMedical Affairs for theRichard M. DeVos Family.Dr. Tomatis was honoredwith the 2001 AquinasCollege Reflection Award. Hisdaughter, Gabriela Minhaar-Tomatis, is a 1982 Aquinas grad.
Trustee Profiles
52
An Evening ofEleganceBy Lisa Piatek ‘97,
Director of Special Events
Aquinas College presented itssecond annual Evening of Eleganceat Gibson’s Restaurant (Grand Rap-ids) last May. Current and formerAquinas Board of Trustees Gregand Sally Alksnis, Kirk and LoriBush, John and Chris Wheeler andAmbassador Peter and JoanSecchia hosted the specialevening.
Nearly one hundred of theCollege’s alumni and friends at-tended the evening in support ofthe Aquinas Fund for studentscholarships and core liberal artsprograms.
Guests were treated to a gour-met cuisine featuring “A Taste ofthe World,” prepared by Executive
Chef Andrew Smith of Gibson’s,and an exclusive wine tasting pre-sentation between each course byAndrew Gessell of Veuve Clicquot,Inc., a Newton, California winery.The intimate setting, unique meal
and personal wine tasting presen-tation delighted the guests. Thegenerosity of our many guests andcorporate sponsors helped Aquinasraise more than $10,000 for studentscholarships.
(Left to right) Dr. Lois Ganzi, Dr. Rick Ganzi, Lori Bush (standing), Dr. Barbara DePree,Kirk Bush (standing) Kris DePree, Dr. Maria Hoekstra, Dr. Bill Hoekstra
When the Saints, go marching in…isn’t just a song. It is the rally call for Aquinas alumni this year. The messageis “Get involved!” There are opportunities for your time, talent and treasure.
If it’s from the treasure chest, here’s a financial incentive—the Wege Foundation has generously agreed tomatch all new or the increased portion of a gift up to $200,000 for the 2002-2003 fiscal year. So, whateverlevel of your financial gift, $25, $100, $500, $5,000 or more, get involved and take this opportunity todouble the value of that contribution.
Since the mid-90s, Aquinas has seen its alumni support fall below 20 percent while other familiar collegescontinue to experience strong financial support from their alumni like Calvin (32%), Hope (39%), Alma (32%),Albion (43%), and Kalamazoo (34%). Each Alumni gift, small or large, makes an impact on the campus, evenin the national rankings of colleges. The stronger the percentage of Alumni participation the better. Nextyear, we will publish the participation for each class and the percentage increase over this past year.
Gifts to the Aquinas Fund help to support student scholarships and core curriculum programs. Gifts to theendowment help the College in perpetuity. In a recent address, President Harry Knopke stated that “if ouralumni would give an average of $100 annually, the College would flourish financially.”
Join the parade … When the Saints go marching in … and make an impact by giving to the Aquinas Fund.If you’d rather give of your time and talent, great! Contact us and tell us how you can help, and we’ll let you
know where we can put your talents to work. - Cecilia Cunningham, Director of the Aquinas Fund
Development Office 616-459-8281, ext. 4408 [email protected]
Let the Rally Call Be Heard!
8
Bringing National Issues to Aquinas Students:Trustee Emerita Yvonne SimsBy Michelle Bottrall ’97, Freelance Writer
Charles Dickens once said that charity begins at home and justice be-gins next door. It’s pretty obvious that ol’ Charlie never visited with AquinasTrustee Emerita Yvonne Sims. In the Sims house, charity and justice spenda great deal of time working hand in hand.
Sims spends many days volunteering for the National Issues Forum (NIF),a nationwide network of educational and community organizations thatdeliberate about controversial issues that affect the nation such as racialharmony, alcohol abuse, poverty and welfare reform.
She brought the NIF to Aquinas College, folding it into the CommunityLeadership program. Aquinas now has several student study groups com-mitted to discussing pertinent issues.
“Here at Aquinas we recognize that there are enrichment experiences inaddition to career preparation experiences,” said George Heartwell, direc-tor of the Community Leadership Institute. “The National Issues Forumdoes a lot to prepare students for life after college and without Yvonne itwouldn’t be here at the College let alone here in Grand Rapids. She is abulldog with this organization.”
This last year, Yvonne spent time on several panel discussions through-out the community, talking about the effects of 9/11 and how we couldprevent similar tragedies.
“Of course we have to be ready and do what we can action wise if this[9/11] occurs again,” she said. “But what surprised a lot of us is that so manypeople in the world have bad feelings about us as a country. We becamevery interested in what we project as an American persona. People gener-ally felt that we hadn’t thought about projecting an image, but that we justgo blithely along not lending an ear to people’s problems.”
Her work with the NIF got people looking at different ways they couldbe more sympathetic to world problems.
But the NIF is just one of several organizations this 65-year-old grand-mother devotes her time. Charity work runs in her blood. It began withher mother, Marcella Alvis, who started the Grand Rapids Silver Charmsover 25 years ago. Her mom still works actively with them today, givingout good citizenship awards, and Thanksgiving and Christmas baskets tothe needy.
When her son, Eugene II, left to go to Brown University, Yvonne put theword out that she had some free time. That’s all it took, she said. Soon, shewas so busy with worthwhile causes she didn’t have the heart to say no.
Since then she has devoted her time to over 20 different communityorganizations including the National Issues Forum, the Women’s ResourceCenter, the Grand Rapids Study Club and the local investment club, LesMeres.
Although an alum of the University of Michigan where she graduatedwith a Master’s in Education and Social Work, Yvonne became interestedin Aquinas after her husband, Eugene, graduated from here.
Yvonne Sims
53
Baldwin ReceptionAquinas College honored Ralph Belknap Baldwin, Ph.D., a
friend of the College at a reception last May, commemorat-ing an astronomy photo exhibit made in memory of Baldwin’sfriend, Alfred Hewitt. The exhibit, which is housed in AlbertusHall, features a series of stunning planetary and lunar photo-graphs filmed in outer space and presented to Baldwin byNASA.
Baldwin, a world-renowned physicist and astronomer,earned degrees in astronomy and astrophysics. He publishedhis research in several books, including The Face of the Moon
and the Measureof the Moon, and The Moon: A Fundamental Survey. His work was creditedwith leading indirectly to the U.S. exploration of the moon, and hisresearch data also were used in selecting Apollo’s 11 lunar landingsite.
During World War II, the Applied Physics Laboratory tappedBaldwin to work at Johns Hopkins University to conduct militaryresearch. His latest book, They Never Knew What Hit Them, explains theimportance of the proximity fuse, a device that made artillery shellsmore effective against ground and aircraft targets.
The Baldwin Observatory, which bears his name, was dedicated in1994.
Ralph Baldwin (right) with President Knopke.
Guests enjoy the photo display
The College continues to flour-ish because of the significant sup-port of our benefactors to theAquinas Fund, Performing ArtsCenter collaboration and the En-dowment. In appreciation of thisgenerosity, Board of Trustee mem-ber Roger Schiefler and his wifeKathleen hosted the second an-nual President’s Reception at theirEast Grand Rapids home this pastJune.
President Harry Knopke high-lighted the tremendous progressthat has taken place this year to-ward achieving financial stabilityand growth. The Aquinas Fund hasincreased 31 percent to a record$1.7 million, the Performing ArtsCenter collaboration was suc-cessfully completed with a May 6
groundbreaking ceremony, andthe Endowment continues to growwith outright gifts and bequests.
Omar Flores, a 2002 graduate,personally thanked attendees forhelping to fund his Aquinas schol-arship and shared what the Ireland
Roger and Kathleen Schiefler host the 2002 President’s Reception for benefactors.
President’s Reception for College BenefactorsBy Cecilia Cunningham, Director of Aquinas Fund
program and community serviceprojects have meant to him. KarenPalmore ’89 spoke of the blessingher Aquinas education has been inshaping her successful businesscareer while offering a positiveChristian environment.
7
TrusteeProfiles
Aquinas College Loses a Friend: Fr. James Cusack(1929-2002)By Bill Weitzel, Director of Planned Giving
With a rich Irish brogue and precise timing, no one could bring thepunch line of a story to a laughing conclusion better than the Rev. JamesCusack. Ordained in June 1956, Fr. Jim carefully guarded the Irish historybrought by his grandparents from Ireland during the Potato Famine of 1845.From a farm in Hubbardston, Michigan, he entered the seminary in 1946to become a parish priest in the Grand Rapids Diocese.
While inspiring parishioners in churches throughout West Michigan,Fr. Jim founded Our Lady of Consolation in Rockford and retired in 1995from Holy Family Parish of Caledonia. Never one to rest, Fr. Jim served asa spiritual mentor to men in need of guidance.
Fr. Jim served three terms on theAquinas Board of Trustees. Afortuitous meeting with SisterAmata Fabbro, O.P., chair of theTheology Department, fueled hisinterest in Catholic highereducation and resulted in theestablishment of the Father JamesC. Cusack Endowment forTheological and InterfaithStudies.
The endowment, the oldestprogrammatic endowment at theCollege, provides for the latest inreligious education materials.
Fr. Jim penned a Morning Prayerthat we want to share with you:
Good Morning, Lord.I am healthy.I am happy.I am successful.Today, is the greatest day of my life.And, tomorrow will be better.Yesterday is history.Tomorrow is a mystery.Today is a gift.That is why we call it the presentOrder the beginning.Direct the progress.Perfect the achievement of all I undertake this day.In all that I undertake this day—
not to me, O Lord, but to Thy name give glory.
Fr. Jim (left) with Sister Amata and President Knopke at a reception hosted byHarry and Sheila Knopke in 2000 honoring Fr. Jim’s loyalty to Aquinas College.
54
Cla
ssN
otes
The deadline for
submitting
class notes
for the
spring
Aquinas magazine
is December 1, 2002.
1975Jesse Young, who teaches and coachesat Rockford Public Schools, was selectedby the Michigan Inter-scholastic GolfCoaches Association as its Division 1Boys Golf Coach of the Year.
1976Verna Teeuwissen , who has the dis-tinction of being the College’s oldestgraduate, celebrated her 90th birthdayin August 2001with an open house.She resides in Grand Rapids where shekeeps busy, helping her fellow residentsat Porter Hills learn more aboutcomputers and e-mail.
1978Bill Worst is the owner and creator ofthe newly opened Pinnacle Center inHudsonville, Mich. The Center offersmusic alternatives in an intimate setting.Greg Stielstra ’98 has also joinedWorst at the Pinnacle Center, as apart-time DJ.
1981Sister Justine Kane, O.P., was selectedthis year as one of the 32 finalists for theChicago-area Golden Apple Award forExcellence in Teaching.
1984Joseph Dodge recently opened up alaw office in Charlotte, North Carolina,specializing in trial law. He lives inCharlotte with his wife and threesons.
Anthony “Tony” Lafferty works forEnvironmental Systems ResearchInstitute as its Government AccountManager responsible for the State ofCalifornia.
Judy (Sturm) Crawford is an activemember of St. Mary Magdalen FaithCommunity where she is involved inMusical Liturgy, and Youth and AdultFaith Formation.
1985Robert M. Worth, Jr. was honored by the Wyoming-Kentwood (Michi-gan) Area Chamber of Commercewith the 2001 Volunteer of the Yearaward.
1958Arthur Lee has retired from WashtenawCommunity College and the University ofMichigan, where he taught mathematics.He and his wife live in Ann Arbor.
1967Sister Constance Fifelski graduatedfrom Catholic Theological Union ofChicago, Illinois, in May 2002.
1972Wayne Postma was recognized bythe Kidney Foundation of Michiganas its 2002 Galaxy Award Recipientfor Community Service April 17 inGrand Rapids. Wayne (pictured withhis wife, Barbara) became involvedwith NKF shortly after his ownsuccessful kidney transplant in1986. Postma founded the WestMichigan chapter and serves aschairman of NKF of Michigan andcontinues to lead the organizationsgrowth and development.
1974Susan (Marcoux) Rowe is the firstfemale to be principal of the presti-gious 930 student University ofDetroit Jesuit High School andAcademy (founded in 1877). Roweworked at the all-boys school for17 years having started as a theologyteacher moving to campus ministry,dean of students and then academicassistant principal.
6
Pres
iden
t’sM
essa
ge
“A good deal is
happening here … ”
As I write on this lovely, quiet, midsummer evening, the thought ofMatthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach” comes to mind. The air is sweet withthe fragrances of summer; yet it’s not the roar of pebbles with theirtremulous cadence on the strand I hear resounding through Holmdenebut the sounds from across the green of the equipment deployed inconstructing our new performing arts center.
Unlike the melancholic environment Arnold was describing, however,this is an energetic, optimistic campus, fresh from a Commencementthat capped an outstanding academic year. The construction sounds—even the seemingly incessant beeping of trucks backing up—are pleasantones indeed as they signal the emergence of our latest building thatwill house one of the country’s most unique collaborative efforts intheatre arts education and theatrical productions.
The new performing arts facility will be completed next summer;facets of our collaboration with Circle Theatre and the CatholicSecondary Schools have already been initiated, however, led by jointlymounted teaching-learning efforts now underway.
In addition to the access they have to a range of new theatre artsopportunities, our traditional students this year are enrolling in coursesorganized according to the curriculum revisions passed by the facultylast spring. These revisions decreased the overall number of core coursesrequired of each student while retaining the integrity of the essentialliberal arts enterprise. In making these changes the faculty has providedour students with flexibility to achieve breadth as well as depth in theirstudies, to take more electives—and even an additional major— andyet graduate in the traditional time frame. The new curriculum will besupported, in part, by the College’s new advising system, which providesfor closer ongoing relationships between faculty and students pursuingmajors in their departments.
One major described in this issue, Community Leadership, is enteringits fourth year of enabling students to develop a foundation of leadershipskills they can use in community-centered work. This major alsoconnects students with our Community Leadership Institute, whichfocuses on external community leadership development. It is one ofthree college institutes that provide nexus points between the collegeand the broader community.
Another is the Woodrick Institute, also featured in this issue, whichconnects Aquinas with the community in multiple ways in its diversity-centered work with corporations, organizations, businesses, and schoolsystems, building on Dominican tradition of hospitality andinclusiveness. Finally, the Aquinas Emeritus College, the oldest of ourinstitutes, is thriving by the efforts of new administrative leadershipand an expanded board of governors active in, and committed to, lifelonglearning.
A good deal is happening here; Aquinas College is a vital place wherewe continue to pursue the highest of standards in the classroom andthe community. We are able to do so as the result of your continuingsupport of time, talent, and treasure.
President Harry and Sheila Knopke
55
1989Elizabeth Kubik now teaches at theDetroit School of Industrial Arts whereshe is an English instructor for 9ththrough 12th grades.
Tamie Anne (McCarthy) Rosenburg ofInterlochen, Michigan received the2000 Presidential Award for Excellencein Mathematics and Science Teaching(PAEMST), honoring her as one of thenation’s best K-12 math and scienceteachers. She is a mathematics teacherat Traverse City West Senior HighSchool.
1991Alexa Finkler has recently accepted aposition with the Minute Maid Com-pany as a Human Resources Generalistin Highstown, New Jersey.
Michele Knabe,D.D.S., who earned herdoctorate from the University of IllinoisCollege of Dentistry in 1999, has joinedthe dental practice of Patricia Gilleran,D.D.S., in Chicago.
Mary Nicholson, a graduate of theMaster of Management program, has beenappointed the Director of Marketing andProject Management at AutodieInternational in Grand Rapids.
1992Anne Marie Bonardelli, a Master ofManagement graduate, has relocated toRochester Hills, Michigan, after livingin Rome, Italy for five years where shehad been on assignment with heremployer, EDS.
Derek Schafran was promoted toRegional Manager for Enterprise Rent--A-Car in Cary, North Carolina, wherehe resides with his wife, Annie, andtheir two children.
1993Valerie Holtrop moved to Dallas,Texas, where she works from her homeas a Manager of International Logisticsfor Schreiber Foods, Inc., of Green Bay,Wisconsin.
Apologies to...
John Lynch ’93 for erroneouslylisting him in our Spring 2002edition as having died. John is verymuch alive and well and living inMt. Prospect, Illinois, where heworks for Maplechase Co. ofDowners Grove.
However, we wish to extend oursympathies to John and his sister,Miriam Lynch ’00, on the death oftheir father, Michael Lynch in Mayof 2001. We deeply apologize forthe distress the erroneous informa-tion caused some of our readers.
1994Alec Hosterman recently took a full-time position at Indiana University-South Bend in the Communication Artsprogram.
1995Katherine Lund Dean, Ph.D., a Masterof Management graduate, recentlyearned her doctorate from St. LouisUniversity where she will be an adjunctprofessor this fall. She and her husbandrecently welcomed a son, Harrison, intotheir family.
1996Christopher Everett is now theNetwork Administrator for Meetings &Events International in Evansville,Indiana where he and his wife, Deedra,live with their two sons.
Krista Kahle is an Associate with Trkla,Pettigrew, Allen & Payne, Inc., inChicago.
Jennifer (Lee) Reeves, a 2002 graduateof the Master of Management program,is working as a news producer forWOOD-TV in Grand Rapids.
Jennifer (Sturm) Lilly is an elementaryschool teacher in Turlock, Californiawhere she resides with her husband.
1987Jodie (Schrock) Southwell wasnamed the new vice president ofsales and marketing for PriorityHealth, West Michigan’s largestmanaged-care company. Southwellis responsible for the planning andcoordination of business developmentand overall sales and marketing.Southwell, wife and mother of two,is celebrating her 15th year atPriority Health.
1988Patrick A. Miles, Jr., was elected tothe Policy Committee at Varnum,Riddering, Schmidt & Howlett LLPin Grand Rapids. He is the firstAfrican American to serve in a topleadership capacity at a majorGrand Rapids-based law firm. Thesix-member Policy Committee isresponsible for management over-sight, strategic decision-making andleadership in firm-wide policies andprocedures.
Miles joined the firm in 1991following graduation from HarvardLaw School. Miles is a Trustee forthe Grand Rapids Bar Associationand a Trustee Emeritus of AquinasCollege.
Recorded memoirs of Aquinas’ history available on
CD and cassette (see p. 13).
5
I wrote the grant proposal toMichigan Campus Compact and,having the proposal accepted,took the first group of 10 studentswith Sister Catherine Williamsto Wilderness State Park.
And today, eight years later,to read that the service trip con-tinues to happen really mademy day on a very wet andgloomy day here in Sri Lanka.
Similarly, it’s so wonderful toknow that Project PRIDE stillflourishes and that all the ‘old’service trips such as the one toOaxaca [Mexico] still continuealong with the new and excitingtrips to Haiti, El Salvador, etc.I was part of the first group ofstudents that went to Mexicowith Brother Ben.
My four years at AQ playeda vital role in making me intowho I am today. Being so faraway from Aquinas, I oftenwonder about the latest hap-penings, news of other alumni,etc. and this magazine brings itall back so well and vividly. Keepup the good work. I look forwardto the next edition. Good Luck!
Peace. Marisa Fernando ’94
The following two letters were sent toPresident Knopke; excerpts are reprintedhere with permission. - Editor
As a recent graduate of AquinasCollege, I feel it necessary toexpress my thanks to theAquinas community. Of all ofthe decisions that I have madein my life, the decision toattend Aquinas College was, byfar, the most influential. As I
look back at my college career,I can easily identify the decid-ing factor in my success.
The faculty and staff con-tinuously saw me as more thanjust another student. I wastreated as a unique person withindividual talents, possibilitiesand interests. The Aquinascommunity went out of its wayto encourage me to identifymy talents, explore the endlesspossibilities and nurture mydiverse interests. In this, thefaculty and staff helped me todiscover who I was and how Iwanted to affect the worldaround me. This individualtreatment made my experiencewith the Aquinas communitypriceless.
Aquinas College offered meopportunities that no otherinstitution would have. Themission statement expresses thedesire to provide students witha ”global perspective,” a focuson “service to others,” and“the pursuit of truth and thecommon good.” With a facultyand staff that truly cared aboutme as a person, I have come tosee myself not only as a citizenof the United States, but as acitizen of humanity, as well.
Congratulations in achievingthe goals of your missionstatement. My sincerest thankyou to everyone who helpedmake this possible.
Beth M. Laux ’02 Rossford, Ohio
I have to take just a momentand tell you how thankful I amfor Aquinas College. I startedmy college education many years
ago at Grand Rapids Junior College[now Community College] …but quit after two years to putmy husband through school andstart our family.
God gave me the opportunityto teach music in some of theChristian schools in my com-munity. [However], the schoolsI teach in gave up [the musicprogram] when they found out Iwas uncertified. I owed it to theschools to become certified.
I was scared! I felt too old togo back to college. [After ex-ploring several other options] Ilooked into Aquinas. I knew thiswas where God intended I go toschool. He did not always makeit easy these past two years,but He gave me professors whotook an interest in me andencouraged me.
I have been blessed by myexperience at Aquinas. My fearhas been replaced by pride andthankfulness! In September, atthe ripe old age of 44, I will bea certified teacher! Thank youfor your part in making AquinasCollege a quality institutionwhere students are people andlearning is accompanied bycaring.
Joan Haagsma ’02
Let us hear
from you!
www.aquinas.edu/alumni
Letters may beedited for space.
56
1997Pam Bacon has returned to Aquinas asan assistant to the Registrar.
Lisa Marie (Kachur) Piatek is the newDirector of Adult Student Recruitmentof Aquinas College. Lisa will beresponsible for the planning andimplementation of the recruitmentefforts for adult learners in the continu-ing Education and Graduate Manage-ment programs. Lisa is the formerDirector of Corporate Relations andSpecial Events at the College.
1998Margaret (Meg Roberts) Killips waspromoted as Activity Director for theWoodland Terrace RetirementCommunity in Grand Rapids.
Greg Stielstra, a graduate of the Masterof Management program, works as adisc jockey with Bill Worst ’78, owner ofthe Pinnacle Center in Hudsonville.
Rose (Stempky) David received herDoctor of Optometry degree in May of2002 from the Michigan College ofOptometry.
René Palileo has joined Grand RapidsYouth Commonwealth as its Director ofDevelopment. He had been with theVolunteer Center of United Way inChicago as a Corporate PartnershipAssociate
1999Tammy (Elkins) Cramer is theCommunity Outreach ProgramDirector at Flint Circuit on FamilyViolence, Inc. in McDonough, Georgia.
John P. Rice has joined GreenridgeRealty, Inc. of Grand Rapids. He is aformer financial consultant at MerrillLynch.
Kathryn Kupiecki is the Coordinatorof Gift Processing at Aquinas Collegewhere she had been the Coordinator ofthe Aquinas Fund.
2000Amanda Spitzley opened LandwirteLoft, a restaurant serving Germancuisine in Westphalia, Michigan, onApril 1, 2002.
2002Cecilia Tran will be attending LawSchool at Michigan State University inthe fall.
Julie Fredrick joined the Peace Corpsand is working in the Philippines.
Martha Weaver will be studentteaching this fall at Eastern Elementaryin Traverse City. She was recentlyinducted into the math honor society(Pi Mu Epsilon).
Beth Pochert will be attending WayneState University in Detroit to obtainher Ph.D. in Microbiology andImmunology.
Victoria Sackett, an outstanding trackathlete, is the first woman in Aquinashistory to be named as an All-Americanfour years in a row.
Omar Flores and Josh Greenwald havejoined Aquinas as Admissions Represen-tatives. Flores will be recruiting fromhigh schools in the Grand Rapids, KentCounty, and Detroit Areas. Greenwaldwill be recruiting in mid-Michigan andThumb-area (eastern Michigan) highschools.
Joelle Kwiatkowski has also joined theAquinas staff as a Staff Assistant to thePresident.
Karl Schantz recently left his positionas the Coordinator of Gift Processing atAquinas to accept a teaching position inTexas.
Timothy Stafford is also on the Aquinasstaff an as an accountant.
Births’87 Laura (Grabinski) and Thomas
Usakowski, a boy, Daniel Joseph,Oct. 2000
’87 Sharon (Monty) and Greg Moody,a boy, Adam Gregory, Oct. 2001
’89 Tamie (McCarthy) and DanielRosenburg, a boy, Atlas Xavier,July 2001
’90 Rita (Visockis) ’92 and JosephTomaszewski, a boy, MatthewAntons, August 2001
’93 Mary Jo (Mangutz) and BryanSkiendziel, boys, Thomas Jamesand Andrew David, July 2001
2001Rick Mills will begin law school this fallat the University of Detroit MercySchool of Law. He is a Credit Analystfor Federal-Mogul Corporation ofSouthfield and resides in Royal Oakwith his wife, Mary.
Elizabeth Dudek is a ProductionSpecialist at CCH, Inc., a legalpublishing house in Riverwoods,Illinois, a Chicago suburb.
Lanae Gill is the new Resident Directorfor St. Joseph Hall at Aquinas College.
Ellen Harburn is the Coordinator ofSpecial Events/Outreach at Aquinas.
2002
Heidi Hilton has joined NewEngland Financial in Grand Rapidsas a Managing Associate intraining. Her duties include salesand sales management, recruitingand developing business relation-ships with other companies thatare interested in partnerships withthe agency. Currently, she is focusing onthe women’s professional sector,contacting area women businessowners and executives to developa consortium that will offer theirskills and services to each other,their clients and the clients ofNew England Financial. Heidi believes that active in-volvement within the communityprovides the personal and profes-sional rewards so important in herdaily life. Heidi and her husbandZan, have three children, Hunter,Marshall and Ember.
4
Hope all is well. The newmagazine is an excellentpiece—great job! I’m proud todisplay this magazine in myoffice so that others may take apeek into my alma mater. Also,the reception at the countryclub was super and I thoughtwell attended. Keep up thegood work.
Richard De Loof ’85Director/Capital Campaigns
St. John Health System Foundation,Detroit
Hello —The Aquinas magazine is
terrific! The team did an awesomejob on this!
Maggie (Studrawa ’01) Holmgren
Congrats on the new Aquinasmagazine. It truly puts theCollege into a new league foralums like me.
One thought: Back in 70s, asI recall, there was an attempt,very successful at times I thought,to have several “intellectual”articles in the magazine inaddition to all that importantinformation about the schools,the students, the faculty, thealums, etc.
Considering the wealth oftalent in the alumni pool, itseems you could developstimulating articles on topics ofcurrent interest to all. But, nocomplaint, keep up the greatwork!
George A. Colburn ’59
Dear EditorsI have just finished reading
from cover to cover the firstAlumni magazine (spring 2002issue). Congratulations for a jobwell done! It brought back manyfond memories of my fourwonderful years at Aquinas. Itwas especially great to see howservice oriented AQ has becomeover the last decade.
Service and learning was abrand new concept when I wasat AQ. It is truly rewarding torealize how far the smallinitiatives that were taken in thebeginning have expanded andgrown into such wonderful andinspiring programs.
For me, it was especiallyinspiring to read that the servicetrip to Wilderness State Park isactually still going on. In 1993
Editor Marty Fahey
Editor’s NoteLast March, we published and distributed the first edition of Aquinas magazine.
A great deal of time and effort was committed to its design and to developing acommunication vehicle that would share, clearly and effectively, the messages ofAquinas and its alumni.
Aquinas magazine will continue to grow with your help. Just as the sun and raincontribute to nature’s growth around us, your ideas feed us, guiding the magazine’scontinuing development—a “work in progress.” We hope you enjoy it as muchas our editorial team has enjoyed pulling it together.
We feel the inaugural edition achieved what we had envisioned last fall—creating a publication that accurately reflects what is happening here on campusas well as with the 16,000-plus alumni worldwide.
The response has been tremendous. We thank you for that overwhelmingvote of confidence. It is our hope to maintain that level of confidence whilecontinuing to improve the magazine’s quality with each issue. Help us by telling usabout your new job, family news or unique and interesting stories. Send us yourcomments, too. Send them to [email protected]. Look for the next editionin mid-February.
Letters to the Editor
57
’94 Kelly (Serwick) and JeffVanSkiver, a girl, Meredith Claire,Dec. 2001
’95 Kathy (Lund) and Dan Dean, aboy, Harrison John, Dec. 2001
’96 Deedra and Christopher Everett, aboy, Parker Jaymz, June 1999
’96 Deedra and Christopher Everett, aboy, Martin Alexander, Sept. 2000
’96 Jennifer (Lee) (MM, 2002) andRandy Reeves, a boy, CameronLee, April 2002
’96 Shannon (Kerridge) and John M.Redding, a girl, Mariah Marie,Sept. 2001
’97 Angela (Walden) ’99 and DarrellFaraci, a boy, Jacob Peter, April2002
’99 Angela (Walden) and DarrellFaraci, ’97, a boy, Jacob Peter,April 2002
’02 Christina (Wedeven) Wierengaand Jeff Wierenga, a boy, Joshua,May 2001
’02 Shawanna Rapier and ScottieFootman Jr., a boy, Scottie, Aug.2001
Marriages’92 Anne Marie Bonardelli to Dario
Matteocci, 1999’93 Lynn Block to Mark Rocca in 2002’97 Angela Walden ’99 to Darrell
Faraci, July 2000’98 Jess Fung to Jeffrey Kloosterman,
January 2002’98 Margaret (Meg) Roberts to
Richard Killips, May 2000’98 Rose Stempkey to Scott David ’98,
July 2002’98 Rose Stempkey to Scott David ’98,
July 2002’99 Angela Walden to Darrell Faraci
’97, July 2000’99 Tammy Elkins to David Cramer,
March 2002’00 Dawn Wierzbicki 2001 to Ryan P.
Smith, March 2002’00 Tricia Markovich 2001 to Anthony
Mosley, Nov. 2000’01 Shannon Eggebrecht to Joseph
Rinckey, July 2001’01 Rebecca Kupiecki to Matt Early,
July 2001’01 Tricia Markovich to Anthony
Mosley ’00, Nov. 2000
’01 Maggie Studrawa to RobHolmgren, Nov. 2001
’01 Dawn Wierzbicki to Ryan P. Smith2000, March 2002
’02 Anne Bukrey to Michael DirckMoyer, June 2002
’02 Alison Ray to Seth Van Andel,June 2002
Deaths’43 Lorraine Popma, wife of Gerald
Popma ’41, Jan. 2002’48 Edward Sypniewswi, March 2002’50 Robert Bechtold, brother of
Patricia Rademacher, Jan. 2002’51 Helen Hanson, Jan. 2002’51 Neola Wolf Winstrom, Dec. 2001’53 Catherine (Kay) Murray, April
2002’54 Lloyd Brown, March 2002’57 Mariette Hill, sister of Sister
Kenneth Fitzgerald, O.P., March2002
’58 Evangeline Ferguson, mother ofSister Mary Ann Ferguson, O.P.,Feb. 2002
’59 Sister Eileen Prueter, O.P., March2002
’62 Patricia Godlewski, April 2000’66 Al Anderson, brother of Sister
Catherine Anderson, O.P., Feb.2002
’66 John A. Otterbacher, father ofDr. John R. Otterbacher, Jan.2002
’69 Anthony Silva, brother of SisterLupe Silva, O.P., April 2002
’70 Boyd Gleason, father of Mary(Gleason) Harig, Feb. 2002
’78 Richard Wolters, husband of KatePew Wolters, June 2002
’82 Paul Zirkelbach, brother of Julie(Zirkelbach) Von Tilius, June2002
’88 Estelita (Stella) Ferris, Jan. 2002’93 Michael Lynch, father of John
Lynch, May 2001’97 Michael Lundstrom, father of
Jason Lundstrom, April 2002’98 Richard Leduc, June 1999’00 Michael Lynch, father of Miriam
Lynch, May 2002
358
Aquinas Web site . . . . . . . . . . . www.aquinas.eduMain line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 616-459-8281Admissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5150
1-800-678-9593Advising/Registrar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5140Alumni & Parent Relations . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4415
[email protected] Office fax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 616-732-4481Bookstore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4136Bookstore Web site . . . . . . . .www.aqbooks.comBookstore email . . . . . . . . . . [email protected] Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5550College Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4422Development Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4490President’s Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 4413Student Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ext. 5120
Aquinas College Contact Information
Parking Access Map of Aquinas College
CONTENTSPresident’s Message page 6
Trustee Profiles page 7
Alumni News page 10Alumni Web Site — New Look page 14
Community OutreachCommunity Leadership Institute page 16Woodrick Institute page 18Emeritus College page 20
Campus News page 24International Programs page 26Elementary Reading Clinic page 29College Conferencing page 30
Deans’ News page 34Reggio Emilia-Inspired Programs page 36
Faculty News page 38
Student News page 40
AthleticsCoach Wood Commended page 42Athletic Schedules page 45
Admissions page 48
Development page 50Hall of Fame Gala Event page 51
Class Notes page 54
AQUINASFALL 2002 VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2
Coach Wood, Pg. 42
Cover: ReggioEmelia-inspiredprogram at ChildDevelopmentCenter in GrandRapids
Reggio Emilia,Pg. 36
Emeritus College,Pg. 20
Woodrick InstitutePg. 18
AQUINAS COLLEGEPERFORMING ARTS CENTER
KNAPEHALL
WEGESTUDENTCENTER
Oak Circle Drive Honeysuckle Lane
Whi
te P
ine
Lane
Redw
ood Lane Wege Way
Beech Lane
Elderberry Lane
WegeCircle Drive
Gin
kgo
Lane
COOKCARRIAGE
HOUSE
CAMPUSSAFETY
W O O D W A R DPA R K I N GL O T
WILLOWBROOKPRESIDENT’S
HOME
BROWNECENTER
MEIJERHALL
JOHN F.DONNELLY
CONFERENCECENTER
KNAPEHALL
DOMINICANHALL
REGINAHALL
(Residence)
GATEWOODWARD
HOUSE
FULTONHOUSE
WOODCOCKHALL
HRUBY HALLStudent Services Center
TEMPLEEMANUEL
HOLMDENE
GATE
ALBERTUS MAGNUSHALL OF SCIENCE
ACADEMIC BUILDING(Woodhouse Library)
ART AND MUSICCENTER
GARDEN
PHYSICAL EDUCATIONASSEMBLY BUILDING
(Field House)
MAINTENANCEBLDG.
GATE HOUSE(Campus Ministry)
ST. JOSEPHHALL
(Residence)
ST. THOMASPARISH
Entrances forHandicapped Students
DOWNTOWNGRAND RAPIDS
W I L C O XP A R K
ROBINSON RD.ENTRANCE
MAYFIELDLOT SOFTBALL
FIELD
PARKING( PARKING AFTER 12 NOON )
P L Y M O U T H L O T
ROBINSON ROAD SE
FACULTYPARKING
FULTON ST.ENTRANCE
P A R K I N G
E A S T F U L T O N S T .
FIRELANE
S O C C E RF I E L D
PA
RK
I NG
WO
OD
WA
RD
RAVINEAPARTMENTS
JARECKICENTER FOR ADVANCEDLEARNING
96 ML
J
I U
SW
V
T
Q
P
H
N
O
GF
BE
A
D
K
C
BUKOWSKICHAPEL
F
LACKS CENTERFOR
GRADUATESTUDIES
LA
NE
HistoricalMarker
BALDWINOBSERVATORY THEATRE ARTS
ANNEX
JORDANHALL
Restricted (Special Permit Only)
D – Upper St. Joseph Hall LotF – Wege LotG – Academic Building Front LotH – Holmdene LotI – Regina Hall LotN – West Science LotO – Gate House LotP – Hruby Hall Lot
Restricted to Residents OnlyA – Mayfield Lot (Gold Permit)Q – Browne Center Lot/North Section (Brown Permit)S – Donnelly Conference Center Lot (Green Permit)U – Dominican Hall Lot (Blue Permit)V – Meijer Hall LotW– Knape Hall LotP – Hruby Hall Lot - East (Red Permit)
Restricted for Emergency Use OnlyNo parking at any time. Use Woodward Lot.
J – Carriage House LotK – Jordan Hall Lot
General Parking (Commuter/Guests)
B – Fulton LotC – Bukowski Chapel LotE – Lower St. Joseph LotL – Plymouth Lot (Noon to Midnight)M – East Science LotQ – Browne Center LotT – Woodward Lot (Visitor Overnight Parking)
59
ALUMNI GIFT ITEMSAquinas College Bookstore
Order Form (prices good through December 2002)Name _____________________________________ Phone (______)_____________________________________
Address_________________________________________________________________________________________
City_________________________________________________ State________ ZIP __________________________
Credit Card: VISA M/C AMEX DISCOVER
Card No.__________________________________ Exp. Date _____________________________________
1607 Robinson Road SE • Grand Rapids MI 49506-1799
(616) 459-8281, ext. 4137 • Fax (616) 732-4599
See more items on our Web site at www.aqbooks.com
DESCRIPTION QTY SIZE/COLOR PRICE TOTAL
A Blanket GRAY $29.95
B 15" Sweater Bear (TAN, GRAY OR BLACK) $28.95
C Baseball Cap ONE SIZE (RED OR BLACK) $17.50
D License Plate Holder N/A $9.95
E Red Crew Sweatshirt (S-XXL) $34.99
F 3' x 5' Flag RED $59.95
Editorial Team
Marty FaheyNicole Hagen
Joelle Kwiatkowski ’02Sally Reeves
Julie RidenourMelvene Tardy ’87
Contributors
Rick AlbroTerry Bocian ’70
Michelle Bottrall ’97Eric Bridge ’92
Mary Clark-Kaiser
Cecilia Cunningham
Gary EberleV. James Garofalo, Ph.D.
Harry J. Knopke, Ph.D.Shirley Lewis, Ph.D.
Paula Meehan ’75Sister Jean Milhaupt, O.P.
Bob Niedzielski ’58Jennifer Rybski, junior
Tonya Schafer ’02Nicole Selzer
Melissa Spagnoli, seniorCynthia VanGelderen
Brad Vedders
Greg VeddersBill Weitzel
DesignGreg Becker
Desktop PublisherSilvija Visockis
Photography
Mikel CahillBrian Kelly
Joelle Kwiatkowski ’02John Niedzielski ’97
Mark Schmidbauer
Aquinas magazine is a publication of the College Relations Department, Aquinas College, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
It is published semi-annually, spring and fall. Comments/suggestions are encouraged:
Online: [email protected] Mail: Aquinas Magazine, College Relations DepartmentCollege Web site: www.aquinas.edu Aquinas College, 1607 Robinson Road, S .E.
Alumni news: www. aquinas.edu/alumni Grand Rapids, MI 49506-1799
Fax: 616-459-2563 • Phone: 616-459-8281, Ext. 4422
Aquinas College, an inclusive educational community rooted in the Catholic Dominicantradition, provides a liberal arts education with a global perspective, emphasizes career
preparation focused on leadership and service to others, and fosters a commitment tolifelong learning dedicated to the pursuit of truth and the common good.
Aquinas College conducts an array of educational programs whose quality andeffectiveness cause it to be considered consistently as a premier Catholic liberal arts College
in the Midwest. In doing so, it is the College of choice for increasing numbers of studentswho seek a diverse, but inclusive, learning community that will enable them to increase
their knowledge, hone their competencies, develop their character, and answer God’s callingto use their gifts and talents to make a positive difference in our world through their lives,
work, and service. Aquinas strives to graduate students of competence, conscience,compassion, and commitment.
Aquinas College is committed to equality. This statement of the College speaks to this
commitment, as do our history and heritage. We believe that diversity is a blessing, whichbrings a richness of perspective to our intellectual, cultural, social, and spiritual life. All
members of our community—faculty, staff, students—will demonstrate respect for eachother regardless of our differences. All of us will be sensitive in our actions, words, and
deeds. We will demonstrate these sensitivities in our classrooms, curricula, offices, meetingplaces, and living environments.
We will maintain the diversity of our Board of Trustees, faculty, student body, and staff
and appreciate the different gifts each brings to this community regardless of age, gender,race, ethnicity, religion, or disability.
DIVERSITY STATEMENT
MISSION STATEMENT
VISION STATEMENT
AQUINAS COLLEGE
A B C D
FE
160
1607 Robinson Road, S.E.
Grand Rapids, MI 49506-1799
View of the Ravine Apartments from the soccer field.
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