Universitas - Issue 44.1 (Winter 2018)

Winter 2018 issue of Universitas: the magazine of Saint Louis University.

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Universitas - Issue 44.1 (Winter 2018)
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title_short Universitas - Issue 44.1 (Winter 2018)
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description Winter 2018 issue of Universitas: the magazine of Saint Louis University.
publisher Saint Louis University Libraries Digitization Center
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spelling sluoai_alumni-472 Universitas - Issue 44.1 (Winter 2018) Universitas: the magazine of Saint Louis University St. Louis University St. Louis University -- Periodicals; Universities and colleges -- Missouri -- Saint Louis -- Periodicals; Winter 2018 issue of Universitas: the magazine of Saint Louis University. 2018-01 2019-02-05 PDF universitas-2018-winter 2010 LD4817 .S52 U5 Copyright Saint Louis University. All rights reserved. Saint Louis University Libraries Digitization Center text eng Saint Louis University Marketing and Communications A Landmark Celebration SLU’s bicentennial begins pg. 10 PARTNERSHIP IN BELIZE pg. 16 ADVANCED COLLEGE CREDIT pg. 20 A PLAN FOR THE FUTURE pg. 24 SLU’S FIRST FIRST LADY pg. 26 1 WWW.SLU.EDU 2 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 As I reached the top and looked out at the congregation, I witnessed 6,000 people from all creeds gathered together underneath the spectacular curve of the Gateway Arch. Right there on the banks of the tran-quil Mississippi River — the very birthplace of our University, we prayed together with 47 members of the clergy from here and abroad. It is truly a privilege to be given the opportunity to serve Saint Louis University during this time in our history. It is a history that is sometimes hazy, full of the unexpected, and entirely based on faith and hope. This is also a fitting analogy for me as the first lay president of SLU. Learning from those who have come before me, especially the founders of our University, has provided immeasur-able wisdom and guidance. While today’s challenges are certainly different from those of 200 years ago, the lessons that our past teaches us still hold true. The most prominent of which is that our students and our patients must continue to be at the forefront of all that we do. Could our founders have known what Saint Louis University would one day become? Could they have imagined five campus sites in two countries? Could they have imagined having alumni doing good throughout the world? Could they have imagined the critical role we would play in St. Louis? Could they have imagined a Billiken as our mascot!? Doubtful. But they had hope. And they had faith. And they worked hard with the dream of a substantial Catholic and Jesuit university engaged with the region and the world. We are a university that throughout the course of its existence, has witnessed, and created, some of the biggest flashpoints in the narrative of the United States and the planet. We witnessed the end of polio, and at SLU, the discovery of Vitamin K and the first successful open-heart surgery. We saw the beginning and end of two world wars and the building of barracks on the quad to accom-modate the influx of veterans coming home from war, enrolling in school and creating prosperity at a level of which the world had never dreamed. We witnessed the end of chattel slavery and partic-ipated in the integration of universities. We are an institution that observed history, made history, researched history and documented history. While the future remains unclear, I can say with certainty that SLU will play a part in it. We will continue to make a differ-ence because our faculty, our clinicians, our staff, our students, our alumni, and our partners and collaborators are engaged in the world, contributing to its successes and grappling with its problems and challenges. I look forward to this, our bicentennial year, knowing, that because of each of you, our best years are yet to come. May God bless you. Dr. Fred P. Pestello P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S A G E As Communion began to draw to a close, I started to make my way to the stage to share remarks at the closing of the bicentennial Mass. I walked up the ramps behind the stage, feeling the presence of the Spirit in the spirit of the moment, running my comments though my head and scribbling last minute edits. I wanted my words to be just right for such an auspicious occasion. After all, the bicentennial is a once-in-a-lifetime event. 10 A Landmark Celebration SLU’s bicentennial began with a bang under the Gateway Arch. — By Carrie Bebermeyer 16 2020 Vision A collaboration between SLU and Ignatian partners aims to change lives in Belize. — By Molly Daily 20 Higher Learning SLU’s 1818 Advanced College Credit program helps high schoolers get ahead. — By Marie Dilg 24 Transforming SLU The University sets a course to become a world-class research university. — By Clayton Berry 26 The Original Dr. Pestello Dr. Frances Pestello embraces her role as SLU’s first first lady. — By Amy Garland VOLUME 4 4, ISSUE 1 EDITOR Laura Geiser (A&S ’90, Grad ’92) ASSOCIATE EDITOR Amy Garland (A&S ’97) ART DIRECTOR Matt Krob CONTRIBUTORS Carrie Bebermeyer Clayton Berry Molly Daily Marie Dilg (Grad SW ’94) Amelia Flood ON CAMPUS NEWS STORIES University Public Relations Billiken Media Relations ON THE COVER The Gateway Arch frames SLU’s bicentennial fireworks on Sept. 23. Photo by Steve Dolan Universitas is published by Saint Louis University. Opinions expressed in Universitas are those of the individual authors and not necessarily those of the University administration. Unsolicited manuscripts and photographs are welcome but will be returned only if accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Letters to the editor must be signed, and letters not intended for publication should indicate that fact. The editor reserves the right to edit all items. Address all mail to Universitas, DuBourg Hall 39, One N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63103. We accept email at universitas@slu.edu. Postmaster: Send address changes to Universitas, Saint Louis University, One N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63103. Website: slu.edu/universitas Universitas is printed by Henry Wurst Inc. Worldwide circulation: 112,500 © 2017, Saint Louis University All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The congregation at the bicentennial Mass at the Gateway Arch on Sept. 23 PHOTO BY SARAH CARMODY PHOTO BY JAY FRAM 2 On Campus New residence hall /// SSM Health SLU Hospital groundbreaking /// Top rankings /// Second-largest freshman class /// Fulbright awardees /// Madrid’s half-century 29 Class Notes 30 Alumni Spotlight Gail Miller Bisher (Grad A&S ’01) 33 How I Got Here G.J. Meyer (A&S ’62) 38 In Memoriam 40 Feedback 41 The Last Look F E ATU R E S D E PARTME NTS 3 WWW.SLU.EDU 2 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Grand Hall Debuts Grand Hall — a residence hall at Saint Louis University — opened its doors in August. Located at the corner of Grand Boulevard and Laclede Avenue, the new building joined Spring Hall as SLU’s second new student living space in two years. The $71 million Grand Hall houses 528 first- and second-year students on six floors in single and double suite-style rooms. The hall features classrooms, a conference room, meeting rooms, study rooms, floor lounges, and kitchens and laundry areas on alternating floors. Grand Hall is also home to a 740-seat dining hall that includes restaurant-style seating, a fireplace, food stations and an outdoor courtyard. Alberici served as general contractor on the building, which was designed by Hastings+Chivetta. The hall meets LEED Silver standards as part of the University’s commitment to sustainability. ON C AMPUS PHOTO BY JUSTIN BARR 5 WWW.SLU.EDU 4 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 New Academic Deans Dr. Thomas Burroughs INTERIM DEAN OF THE COLLEGE FOR PUBLIC HEALTH AND SOCIAL JUSTICE Burroughs came to SLU in 1999 as an adjunct professor. He joined the University full time as executive director of the Center for Health Outcomes Research in 2003. Burroughs also holds appointments in the College for Public Health and Social Justice as a professor of health management and policy, as well as in the School of Medicine as a professor of internal medicine. He is serving a three-year term as interim dean. Dr. Tracy A. Chapman DEAN OF THE SCHOOL FOR PROFESSIONAL STUDIES Chapman previously was associate dean for adult and e-learning for Creighton University’s College of Professional Studies, as well as executive director of Creighton’s Center for Academic Innovation. She also served as Creighton’s lead administrator and central point of coordination for the university’s summer sessions. Dr. Gary Ritter DEAN OF THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION Ritter is the 21st Century Endowed Chair in Education Policy at the University of Arkansas. There, he also is the founder and director of the Office for Education Policy, a resource for state legislators, school board members and other policymakers in matters of K-12 education in Arkansas. His SLU appointment is effective Aug. 1, 2018, until which time Dr. Molly Schaller will serve as interim dean of the School of Education. 6,000 attendees 5,000 souvenir seat cushions on the Grand Staircase under the Arch 45 concelebrants, plus 2 deacons 55 singers 15 musicians 12 food trucks 2 participants from the Osage Nation, who signified the history between the Osage and the Jesuits 1 altar used originally by Pope John Paul II when he visited St. Louis in 1999 For more on the Mass, see page 10. BY THE NUMBERS Bicentennial Mass Academic Tech Commons Welcomes Innovators A new, 14,000-square-foot creator space in Pius XII Memorial Library provides students access to the latest technologies, innovative spaces and support. The Academic Tech Commons includes 3-D printers, 360-degree cameras and hologram technology, as well as SLU’s own Genius Bar. Studios and lab spaces foster collaboration and creativity. SLU Is Ranked a Top-100 University, Named Top-50 Best Value by U.S. News According to U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges 2018” guidebook, SLU ranked No. 94 among the country’s top 311 national universities. SLU also was named a top-50 “Best Value School.” U.S. News calcu-lates value by comparing a school's academic quality vs. the net cost of attendance for a student who received the average level of need-based finan-cial aid. TOP BUSINESS PROGRAMS SLU’s undergraduate business programs were ranked No. 91 among nearly 500 business schools in the country. The entrepreneurship, international business and accounting programs ranked at 9, 12 and 33, respectively. BEST COLLEGES FOR VETERANS SLU also made the magazine’s list of top schools offering benefits that can make pursuing a college education more affordable for military veterans and active-duty service members. Bicentennial Lecture Series Kicks Off Greg Boyle, S.J., signs a book for a fan after calling for those gathered at SLU’s Center for Global Citizenship to “go to the margins” and create kinship with others during his lecture, “Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion,” in November. Boyle’s talk was the first in SLU’s bicentennial speaker series. PHOTO BY AMELIA FLOOD A-10 HONOR ROLL FEATURES 143 BILLIKENS Sa int Loui s Univer s i t y s tu-dent- athletes continue to be recognized for their work in the classroom, as 143 Billikens were hon-ored on the Atlantic 10 Conference’s Commissioner’s Honor Roll, which was released in August. Members of the Commissioner's Honor Roll posted a GPA of 3.5 or better in the spring 2017 semester. O N C A M P U S Senior Lauren Tondl of the women’s soccer team has a 3.973 grade point average and double majors in health sciences and psychology. She has made multiple appearances on the Atlantic 10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll. PHOTO BY BILL BARRETT First SLU Giving Day a Success In just 24 hours, Saint Louis University’s first SLU Giving Day raised $116,141 through 887 gifts from alumni, staff, faculty, students, SLU families and friends of the University. The Office of Alumni and Donor Engagement spearheaded the fundraising effort, which was on Nov. 16 from midnight to midnight. Held on the University’s Founders Day, the event was designed to benefit a variety of needs across the University, including scholarships, book funds and priorities desig-nated by individual college and school deans. Donations were encouraged with special fundraising challenges that unlocked additional funds when certain dollar amounts or donor participation goals were met. Many challenges were school-specific, and individuals pledged to provide their own donations once a cer-tain number of gifts had been reached. For example, Dr. Mardell Wilson, dean of Doisy College of Health Sciences, pledged $1,929 in honor of the school’s found-ing year once 40 gifts were made to the school. GIVING DAY 2017 NOV. 16 PHOTOS BY STEVEN LONG 7 WWW.SLU.EDU 6 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 SLU Enrolls Second-Largest Freshman Class in University History SLU started the first day of the 2017 academic year with 1,640 first-time fresh-men, a more than 4 percent increase over last year. Hailing from 43 U.S. states and 40 countries, the new class is the second-largest in University history. The freshman class has an average high school GPA of 3.9 and an average ACT composite score of 28.1 — an all-time high for SLU — placing these new Billikens among the top 10 percent of all students tested in the United States. MORE ENROLLMENT MILESTONES First-day undergraduate enrollment increased over last year. Jay Goff, SLU’s vice president for enrollment and retention management, said the boost was aided by the University’s retaining students at record levels and new growth among international students. For three consecutive years, SLU’s retention rate (the percentage of first-year students who return for a second year) has been 90 percent or higher. Nationally, the average first-to- second-year retention rate for private doctoral universities is about 82 percent. More than 260 new international students started classes on the St. Louis campus, compared to 165 in 2016. Thousands of Billikens ‘Make a Difference’ As SLU anticipated the kickoff of its 200-Years-In-One Challenge, nearly 2,500 Billikens volunteered on Oct. 28 to give back to the St. Louis community at 100 different sites as part of SLU’s annual Make A Difference Day. Here, students help with landscaping at the St. Louis Science Center. Awards and Honors Thomas Campbell, who is pursuing a doctorate in chemistry, won a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship for 2017-18. Dr. Ethel Frese (Grad Doisy ’06), professor of physical therapy, was named a 2017 Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association, the highest honor the organization awards. Dr. Michael Graham (A&S ’73, Med ’77), professor of pathology, was honored with the College of American Pathologists Lifetime Achievement Award. Jen Tennison, a doctoral student in aerospace and mechanical engineering, won one of 10 CADRE Fellowships awarded by the National Science Foundation for 2017-18. Dr. Gina Yosten (Med ’10), assistant professor of pharmacology and physiology, received the 2017 New Investigator Award from the American Physiological Society. More than 170 SLUCare physicians from a variety of specialties were recognized by St. Louis Magazine as best doctors of 2017. The list is based on the annual “Best Doctors in America” database. SLU’s Department of Public Safety received a Department of Defense Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve “Above and Beyond” award for its support of staff who are also active in National Guard or Reserves service. This summer, four DPS officers — Chief Jim Moran, Capt. Darryl Walker, and Sgts. Dan Lalor and Edward Agnew — received DOD Patriot Awards for their support of Mark Breckenridge, a DPS officer and Army reservist. PHOTO BY MICHELLE PELTIER SLU, SSM Health Break Ground on New Hospital University President Dr. Fred P. Pestello (third from left) and representatives from SLU, SSM, government and private partners turn over the project’s first dirt. The new SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital will occupy 15 acres adjacent to the current facility off Grand Boulevard between Rutger and Lasalle streets. The new hospital is set to welcome its first patient on Sept. 1, 2020. O N C A M P U S PHOTO BY AMELIA FLOOD Oberle Institute Supports Trauma Patients The St. Louis man who was nearly killed by chimpanzees in 2012 is putting his name and energy behind a new initiative to support trauma patients. Andrew Oberle is a peer patient advocate and development officer for the Oberle Institute at Saint Louis University, which treats patients who have suffered severe trauma. Oberle recently saw his first patient at the Oberle Institute, which was named by generous benefactors. Now in its pilot phase, the institute provides wrap-around, supportive care to help trauma patients recover. Dr. Bruce Kraemer, a SLUCare plastic surgeon who has become one of Oberle’s best friends since treating him, is on the Oberle Institute’s team. The team also includes a trauma nursing coordinator, counselor, occupational therapists, chaplain, music therapist, dog therapist and trauma social worker. At Dr. Bruce Kraemer's outpatient clinic, Andrew Oberle (left) talks with patient Benjamin Sliva. Two Grants Will Help Students from Disadvantaged Backgrounds MCNAIR SCHOLARS PROGRAM GRANT SLU has received a $1.2 million Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program (McNair Scholars Program) grant from the U.S. Department of Education to prepare eligible, high-achieving undergraduate students for doctoral studies. The grant, which will provide $240,000 per year for five years, will serve 25 students each year. The McNair Scholars Program is funded through TRiO, a collection of federal programs that provide services to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The scholars receive ongoing academic counseling, faculty mentoring and research experience, and participate in many educational and professional development activities. HRSA NURSING WORKFORCE DIVERSITY GRANT SLU’s School of Nursing will receive $1.5 million in federal funds over the next four years to support disadvantaged students by providing them student mentors, faculty mentors and pre-entry work experiences. The HRSA Nursing Workforce Diversity Grant will help the nursing school increase the recruitment, enrollment, retention and graduation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, especially for students who are African American or Hispanic/Latino. Both groups are underrepresented in nursing education. The grant funding will aid 40 students (10 each year). PHOTO BY NANCY SOLOMON PHOTO BY STEPHANIE MUELLER Freshmen at convocation at Chaifetz Arena in August 9 WWW.SLU.EDU 8 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Record Number of SLU Applicants Earn Fulbright Awards Seven applicants from Saint Louis University received prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program awards for the 2017-18 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. It’s a record number of Fulbright awards for SLU. Since the program’s inception in 1946, 78 SLU appli-cants — including this year’s awardees — have been offered awards. Christopher Hart (Grad A&S ’17) is investigating China’s propaganda films from the 1960s to study how black power and the rhetoric of armed self-defense influenced China’s self-introduction to the world as a nuclear power. Scott Hessel (A&S ’13, Grad A&S ’17) is using an English Teaching Assistant grant in South Africa to continue developing as a teacher and to experience the personal enrichment of cross-cultural interactions and relationships. Renee Richter (PH ’15) is in South Africa on an English Teaching Assistant grant. Alejandra Rios Gutierrez (Cook ’17) is interning in Mexico City. The program includes an internship with a Mexican-based company along with courses taken at a local university. Courtney Sciarratta (PH ’15, Grad PH ’17) is attempting to disrupt the spread of mosquito-borne diseases in Argentina through targeted public outreach to urban areas she identifies as at-risk. Samuel Shreve (A&S, PH ’17) is in Italy on an English Teaching Assistant grant. Dzuliya Vasileva (Parks ’17) is teaching university-level students in science and engineering in Poland. SLU-Madrid Marks Half-Century While kicking off the University’s bicentennial in St. Louis, SLU also is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Madrid Campus, which was founded in 1967. Alumni, faculty and staff honored the milestone at the 50th Anniversary and Distinguished Alumni Celebration in Madrid with dinner, cake and cava. UNIVERSITY THEATRE A new agreement with the Kranzberg Arts Foundation means SLU’s University Theatre are performing in two Grand Center venues this year. At the end of the three-year lease agreement in 2020, all four of SLU’s main stage productions will take place on Grand Center’s stages. The two remaining productions of the 2017-18 season are: RHINOCEROS By Eugene Ionesco /// March 1-4 University Theatre, 3733 West Pine Mall The sublime and the ridiculous propel this story of one man’s effort to maintain his identity in a world of conformists. Directed by Tom Martin. BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON By Alex Timbers Music and Lyrics by Michael Friedman April 26-29 The Grandel, 3610 Grandel Square A rock score anchors this fictionalized, irreverent look at the rise of Jackson and the beginning of the Democratic party. Directed by Nancy Bell. All performances begin at 8 p.m. except Sunday matinees, which start at 2 p.m. For tickets, contact Metrotix at 314-531-1111 or metrotix.com. MOCRA Museum of Contemporary Religious Art TRANSFORMATIONS: Highlights from the MOCRA Collection From Jan. 15 Explore the range of artists and works at MOCRA. Plus, learn about the art and science of conservation as MOCRA prepares to display a major recent acquisition, “Cruz to Bishop Oscar Romero, Martyr of El Salvador” by Michael Tracy. SLU Honored at Thanksgiving Parade In honor of its bicentennial, Saint Louis University was co-grand marshal of this year’s 33rd annual Ameren Thanksgiving Day Parade. SLU marchers took part in the downtown St. Louis event on Nov. 23, a first in University history. Business School Receives $1 Million Gift for Named Deanship The business school received a $1 million gift from brokerage and investment firm Edward Jones. The gift, which will establish the Edward Jones Deanship and is the first named deanship in the business school’s 107-year his-tory, will be given over five years. It also marks the first time in Edward Jones’ 95-year history that the firm has attached its name to a business school dean’s title. New Book Celebrates 200 Years of SLU Commissioned in honor of SLU’s bicentennial, Always at the Frontier: Saint Louis University 1818-2018 is an immersive look at the two centuries that shaped SLU and the city of St. Louis. Written by Dr. Dolores Byrnes, with John Padberg, S.J. (A&S ’49, Grad A&S ’54) and John Waide (A&S ’73), the book breaks down the University’s history — from its beginning on what became the Gateway Arch grounds to the present-day community — into six eras that are explored in depth with archival photographs, illustrations and historical documents. A historical exhibition of the same title will be showcased at Saint Louis University Museum of Art March 2 through Dec. 30. For more information, visit sluma.slu.edu. The hardcover book is available for purchase online at www.slu.edu/bicentennial/book.php. Look for more on the book and the exhibi-tion in the next issue of Universitas. Arts at SLU FROM LEFT: Sciarratta, Shreve, Rios-Gutierrez, Annie Neidel (Honors Program coordinator), Beth Petitjean (alternate for the Italy research grant), Provost Dr. Nancy Brickhouse, Hessel, Hart and University President Dr. Fred P. Pestello. PHOTOS BY DEPARTMENT OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS – SLU-MADRID World-Class Iranian Chess Player Finds a Team and a Home at SLU In 2016, Dorsa Derakhshani earned the titles of Woman Grandmaster and International Grandmaster from the World Chess Federation. Now, she is a freshman at Saint Louis University and part of SLU’s seven-member chess team. Derakhshani moved from Tehran, Iran, to Barcelona, Spain, in 2016 to pursue opportunities in chess. She learned earlier this year that she was officially barred from playing for Iran, allegedly because she didn’t wear a headscarf during a tournament. Iran has required women to wear the hijab in public spaces and when represent-ing the country internationally since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. “It seemed like it came from out of the blue,” she said. “I wasn’t even really playing on the national team. They weren’t sponsoring my tournaments — my parents were.” Derakhshani will now compete as an official U.S. player. She found out while at an Icelandic tournament in April that her visa was approved and she could start school this fall. She moved to St. Louis in July. Dorsa Derakhshani (left) is a freshman at SLU and part of the seven-member chess team. She is playing a match against teammate Nozima Aripova while a few other team members practice in the background. PHOTO BY ELLEN HUTTI PHOTO BY LAURA GEISER PHOTO BY JUSTIN BARR PHOTO BY ANNIE NEIDEL 11 WWW.SLU.EDU 10 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Fireworks erupt over the Gateway Arch at the conclusion of the bicentennial kickoff event. Photos by Sarah Carmody, Steve Dolan and Kevin Lowder 13 WWW.SLU.EDU 12 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 The altar and coordinating furniture used at the bicentennial Mass were originally used during the Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II when he visited St. Louis in 1999. Members of the Osage Nation took part in the bicentennial Mass in recognition of the shared history between the Osage and the Jesuits. Ronald Mercier, S.J., provincial of the Jesuits’ Central and Southern Province, was the homilist, and princi-pal concelebrants were Lawrence Biondi, S.J., president emeritus of Saint Louis University; Christopher Collins, S.J. (Grad A&S ’01), SLU’s assistant to the president for mission and identity; Michael Garanzini, S.J. (A&S ’71), secretary of higher education for the Society of Jesus; and Douglas Marcouiller, S.J., regional assistant for Canada and the USA for the Society of Jesus. “With gratitude and awe we celebrate this liturgy of thanksgiving to God for what began with Bishop DuBourg and has been continued by women and men who have helped that not only take root but flourish,” Mercier said. “What a vision. Not simply being caught up by one’s limits but being aware of a vision to which one lay hold and of a future one wished to create with God.” Mercier ref lected on the ways in which SLU has achieved the vision that Bishop DuBourg laid out for it: directly in students, alumni, faculty and staff and indirectly through those they have served. “What extraordinary achievements SLU has seen,” Mercier said. “From those first seeds planted by DuBourg in health care, in engineering, in basic sci-ences, in humanities, in social sciences. From a school founded on the frontier of the United States, it has become one that blazes new frontiers in the intellectual, the social, the faith, the common life of this commu-nity, and this world. And those endeavors, that harvest, continues unabated. We need to remember how the alumni of SLU and SLU High have enriched this city, this country and this world.” close up of stage n Sept. 23, Saint Louis University began its bicen-tennial celebration back where it all began — on the banks of the Mississippi River. SLU invited the entire community to Mass, entertainment and fireworks near the site of its first classes in 1818, which were held in a small rented home on what are now the grounds of the Gateway Arch. Approximately 6,000 SLU students, faculty, staff, alumni and people from throughout the St. Louis region attended the event. It is believed to be the first Mass ever held beneath the Arch. Originally known as Saint Louis Academy, the school that Bishop Louis William DuBourg founded in 1818 laid the groundwork for both Saint Louis University and St. Louis University High School, whose students and alumni were invited to partic-ipate in the bicentennial Mass. St. Louis Archbishop Robert J. Carlson presided. “Saint Louis University has been a great institution for 200 years since its foundation as the first institu-tion of higher learning west of the Mississippi River,” Carlson said. “As we gather for this historic Mass under the Gateway Arch, we are reminded of those early missionaries who brought Christ with them as they ventured into the West. Their courage then should strengthen our faith now, and embolden us to share anew the joy of the Gospel with the modern world.” ABOVE: Ronald Mercier, S.J., delivers the homily during Mass. RIGHT: A crowd of nearly 6,000 people sit on the steps of the Gateway Arch during Mass. FAR RIGHT: Osage Princess Jasmine Phetsacksith processes in before Mass begins. Behind her is Geoffrey Standing Bear, principal chief of the Osage Nation. 15 WWW.SLU.EDU 14 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 In closing remarks, SLU President Dr. Fred P. Pestello told the crowd he wished each person could be standing in his location, looking out at the sea of peo-ple gathered there. He noted that it is fitting to begin SLU’s bicentennial year by coming together to celebrate Mass. Pestello shared with the crowd the ways in which he experiences SLU each day, beginning with his drive in from the west each morning. “I see the shimmering Arch in the sunlight,” Pestello said. “I’m reminded that St. Louis is the Gateway to the West, and Saint Louis University and St. Louis University High are gateways to education. To upward mobility. To forming the citizens of the future.” Pestello reminded the audience that each person helps shape the trajectory of SLU, noting that it was once said that it would require a miracle to come to fruition. “I may need to follow up with Pope Francis on this one, but if that is the case, it seems that we are a living miracle every day in all we do,” Pestello said. “To be here in this place, at this time and for this reason is a miracle. I’m so grateful we could all be here to share and celebrate Saint Louis University and St. Louis University High together.” UTAS The bicentennial Mass featured new music composed specifically for the celebration, but even the more traditional pieces had some SLU history. Much of the Mass’ music was composed in the 1970s and ’80s by a group of SLU scholastics known as the St. Louis Jesuits. More than 100 Catholic and religious leaders joined Saint Louis University for the Mass, including the presider, the Most Rev. Robert J. Carlson, Archbishop of St. Louis, and Deacon J. John Heithaus, the grand-nephew of SLU’s Claude Heithaus, S.J. FROM ABOVE, CLOCKWISE: University President Dr. Fred Pestello delivers closing remarks at the Mass. A. Thomé leads the student choir and orchestra during Mass. Trustee Kevin Cullen, S.J. (A&S ’80) distributes communion to Mass attendees. The LustreLights perform for the crowd following Mass. Students Maggie Quinn (left) and Mary Nink enjoy the post-Mass festivities. Guests line up for food truck fare after Mass. Children dance amid bubbles from the Bubble Bus following Mass. MAKING TIME FOR SERVICE SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY IS CELEBRATING ITS BICENTENNIAL NOT BY LOOKING BACK, BUT BY GIVING BACK. On Nov. 14, the University launched the 200-Years-In-One Challenge. It is an effort to give back to the community and society by inviting everyone in St. Louis, the nation and around the world — whether they are SLU-affiliated or not — to download a special app that will help track their volunteer and service hours. Once submitted, these service/volunteer hours are added to the running total on a large illuminated clock that has been installed at the southeast corner of Grand and Lindell boulevards, across from St. Francis Xavier College Church. “In addition to reflecting upon our past, we are going to celebrate our bicentennial by giving back in a mission-centered way,” said SLU President Dr. Fred P. Pestello. “This is an effort that speaks to who we are as an institution and what this community means to us.” To reach 200 years of service, students, faculty, staff, alumni and others will need to submit 1,753,176 hours (the number of hours in 200 years) between Nov. 14, 2017, and Nov. 14, 2018. The clock updates in real time as hours are submitted. Dr. Bobby Wassel (Grad Ed ’09, ’17), assistant director of SLU’s Center for Service and Community Engagement, is confident the SLU community will achieve this goal. “Saint Louis University has a long history of volunteerism and service,” Wassel said. “If in addition to our campus community we get alumni, parents and others from the area serving to help us celebrate, I have no doubt we will succeed.” The free app is available through the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. In addition, those who wish to participate can also submit volunteer hours online at slu.edu/200years. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4 6 5 7 17 WWW.SLU.EDU 16 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Matt Ruhl, S.J., describes Belize as if it were paradise. “On the Caribbean shores, on the Yucatan peninsula, lies a country so lovely that the locals refer to it as the Jewel,” he said. But he knows as well as any that not all of the facets of this jewel are beautiful. Since 2011, Ruhl (Grad A&S ’86) has been pastor of St. Martin de Porres Parish, a 50-year-old Jesuit apos-tolate in Belize City. He contends that the area suffers the same social problems any major city might face: unemployment, poverty and family instability, drugs and gang violence. “I worked all over St. Louis, and I’ll tell you that Belize City is a mirror image, except it’s in Central America,” he said. Surrounded by crime and overwhelming poverty, Ruhl eventually turned to the Saint Louis University community for help. He reached out to friends and colleagues, including philanthropist and education advocate Tom Nolan (A&S ’69, Grad ’70) and Chris Collins, S.J. (Grad A&S ’01), SLU’s assistant to the pres-ident for mission and identity. Collins — recognizing that “there is some activity in Belize from almost every school or college we have at SLU” — brought together Saint Louis University, members of the business community and Belizeans for a symposium. Out of the symposium came Belize 2020: An Ignatian Partnership, aimed at improving the lives of Belizean children and families by the year 2020. Together, the partners focus on health, continuing edu-cation and development in Belize. START AT THE BEGINNING: PROJECT HEAL To improve the lives of Belizeans for generations to come, Belize 2020 began by focusing on the city’s youngest residents. Tina Cuellar-Augustus (A&S ’03), a Belizean native who finished her degree at SLU after attending St. John’s Jesuit Junior College in Belize City, witnessed firsthand the toll that gang violence, domestic abuse and poverty took on her students at St. Martin de Porres. The only counselor for a grade school of more than 700 students, Cuellar-Augustus knew these chil-dren needed help — but she also knew she couldn’t put a plan in motion without a full understanding of the situation. Cuellar-Augustus met Beth Embry (Doisy ’09, Grad Cook ’13), a former public health administrator and researcher at SLU, through Belize 2020. Embry and her team provided nutritional and trauma assessments on nearly half of the grade school’s students. Embry, now pursuing her doctorate at the University of Colorado Boulder, considered herself a background worker of Belize 2020’s trauma initiative; she worked AN INNOVATIVE IGNATIAN PARTNERSHIP AIMS TO IMPROVE LIVES IN BELIZE BY THE NEXT DECADE. By Molly Daily < TOP, LEFT TO RIGHT: Volunteer Jessica Buck (Grad PH ’16) talks with a young St. Martin de Porres student; a large cross marks the entrance to the parish church; more than 700 students attend St. Martin grade school. BELOW: In the parish center, children wait to have their height and weight taken for a nutritional assessment. SUBMITTED PHOTOS 19 WWW.SLU.EDU 18 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 behind the scenes to equip Cuellar-Augustus with the best tools to help her students, their parents and teach-ers. Embry provided quantitative, research-based data and resources to back up what Cuellar-Augustus sees every day. “Intuitively, Tina has always known how bad the sit-uation is,” Embry said. “But to engage donors, engage the community and track progress, what she needed was the data to support what she was seeing.” To get that data, Embry acquired the UCLA Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder instrument and modified it to be culturally and age appropriate for the students at St. Martin de Porres. Embry and two SLU gradu-ate students, Jessica Buck (Grad PH ’16) and Monica Kavanaugh (PH ’15, Grad PH ’16), assessed more than 300 students. The researchers expected strong results, but no one was prepared for the severity of the heartbreaking responses. Seventy-eight percent of students experienced at least one traumatic event in their lives, and nearly half received at least a partial diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder. More than half of the children inter-viewed had witnessed gang violence firsthand, and 43 percent had lost a loved one in a violent manner. The researchers were disheartened by the responses. “You look at this 7-year-old and think, you’re not sup-posed to have witnessed your uncle die in front of you from gang violence,” Embry said. Kavanaugh felt the same way, recalling the experi-ence of a young boy who told her that every time he hears gunshots, he runs outside to be sure his father hasn’t just been killed. “This research really painted the picture of the per-son behind the problem,” Kavanaugh said. “I realized it wasn’t one faceless person — but very acute and indi-vidual needs.” Those needs were addressed through a series of intensive, child-focused programs, under the umbrella of Project HEAL (Hope and Education Altering Lives). Spearheaded by Cuellar-Augustus, Project HEAL treats the “worst of the worst” cases of PTSD. Cuellar-Augustus and her team provide play-based cognitive behavioral therapy for students and teachers to help them cope and learn to process emotion. While in Belize, Embry trained teachers to implement a trauma-informed classroom, the first of its kind outside the United States; she gave them tools to de-escalate and identify trauma-influenced acting-out in children, rather than simply resorting to punishment. Other aspects of Project HEAL include HEAL Academy, a program that allows for longer school days and extended school years, giving students who have experienced trauma the extra attention and nutrition they need to thrive. A literacy coach helps students gain confidence and knowledge in reading. And a school greenhouse pro-vides nutritious food for school lunches. While Project HEAL has existed for only a few years, the students have already shown major improvements. The work has been far from easy, and progress is slow at best, but Embry and Cuellar-Augustus are proud of the progress they have made. Embry recalled a group of teachers who attended trauma management training in the middle of a country-wide strike. Cuellar-Augustus took pride in a young boy who just a few years ago was in the principal’s office for acting out nearly every week, but who this year only visited the principal three times. The women have stayed in touch with their first cohort of students, who are now in high school and are succeeding academically. Misty Michael, director of Belize 2020, said Project HEAL is changing lives. “A lot of these kids think they’ll be dead by the time they’re 30,” Michael said. “So a lot of our job is to give them hope — that your life has more meaning than you think it does right now.” A CYCLE OF GROWTH: EDUCATING THE EDUCATORS Hope permeates everything Belize 2020 does — and it has inspired a trajectory of education that goes from St. Martin de Porres to St. John’s College to Saint Louis University. Saint Louis University educators and researchers provide teaching resources, education and training for students at St. John’s College, Belize City’s Jesuit junior college. There, future teachers and social workers receive a trauma-informed educa-tion with the most up-to-date teaching practices provided by Saint Louis University’s schools of education and social work. After St. John’s College, some students head to Saint Louis University to finish bachelor’s degrees and even pursue graduate work. Belize 2020 provides scholarships for education and social work students to continue their studies. Since the early 2000s, SLU’s School of Social Work has offered scholarships to a handful of Belizean students each year. According to Dr. Sue Tebb, professor and former dean of SLU’s School of Social Work, many of those students ended up returning to Belize to give back to the com-munity. One such student was Cuellar-Augustus, whose degree in psychology from SLU came thanks to Belizean scholarship funding. When the Sisters of Mercy, who are heavily involved in Belize’s education system, approached Tebb about bringing SLU’s social work resources directly to Belize in 2006, she jumped at the opportunity. “I’ve found if you go outside our borders, you realize what we have to offer,” Tebb said. “But we also learn so much from other countries.” In Belize, that meant creating practicum positions for SLU social work students, as well as providing training for all of Belize’s social workers — essential for a country whose social workers do not tend to hold bachelor’s degrees. Belize 2020 also works to foster excellence in teaching by offering scholarships for graduate work. In exchange, the recipient promises to return to Belize and serve its children for at least five years. The hope is that these educational endeavors will instill an attitude of paying it forward, propelling real and lasting change for gener-ations to come. This year, the first two recipients of the Saint Louis University-Belize 2020 School of Education scholarships received their post-graduate degrees. After their programs, Melissa Mendez Valladares (Grad Ed ’17) and Rosita Rose Mes (Grad Ed ’17) returned to Belize to make a difference. AN IGNATIAN PARTNERSHIP At its roots, Belize 2020 is “a Jesuit enterprise,” Ruhl said. The Jesuits stand as con-nectors and mission bearers in Belize and in St. Louis — and they are often the reason St. Louisans find their way to Belize 2020. That was the case for Nolan and his wife, Maureen, philanthropists who jumped in when approached by Collins. The couple became partners in Project HEAL and have dedicated themselves to the educational aspects of Belize 2020. Mark LaBarge, an old friend of Ruhl’s and the president of SFP Landscaping Inc., brought his entrepreneurial skills and network to the project because of the Jesuit connection. “If the Jesuits are there, there’s a reason,” LaBarge said. “More importantly, you know there’s hope.” For others, the process begins with prayer. Community members and SLU alumni embark each year on a retreat to Belize City, where they live and pray with the people of St. Martin de Porres for three to four days. They visit the school and parish, see SLU’s work in the community and pray together at the vibrant Sunday evening Mass. LaBarge credits these retreats as the catalyst for donors to get involved and spread the word. “The people who go on the retreat, they come back here and talk to their neighbors,” he said. “We have board meetings where people come up to us and say, ‘Let me know when the next retreat is, because I want to go down there.’ And we reply, ‘Yes, you do want to go down there.’ Because it is life-changing.” Collins sees the role of alumni and donors as providing support and capacity for Belize so it can begin to flourish — from continual educa-tion to on-the-ground infrastructural projects. Recently, St. Louis-based board members have focused on a capital campaign to build Swift Hall, a multipurpose recreational center for par-ish and community members. Named after Karl Swift, S.J., a Belizean brother who spent more than 15 years at St. Martin de Porres, the space was christened this September in celebration of St. Martin’s 51st anniversary. While specif ic campaigns will develop and change as the needs of Belize change, the mission of Belize 2020 will remain the same. Everything that the partnership does filters through its Ignatian roots. Ruhl credits the 1973 speech by Jesuit Superior General Pedro Arrupe, S.J. — in which he called on Jesuit alumni to be men and women for others — for inspiring Belize 2020’s volun-teers and a full generation of people to enter into a life of service, bringing hope and joy to others. That hope and joy, at the end of the day, is what the Jesuits are trying to spread in Belize — and it’s how Ruhl measures success. He says that the smiles of the young children in Belize are what he cares most about. “After a while, those smiles start to fade, and reality hits them hard,” he said. “Every time I see those kids smiling and enjoying the campus, that’s a victory. Our job is to keep those smiles on their faces.” UTAS > Matt Ruhl, S.J. (above) Outdoor artwork at St. Martin de Porres School < Swift Hall, a fully funded multipurpose center shown here under construction, was dedicated and opened to the public this fall. 21 WWW.SLU.EDU 20 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 When Abby Unverferth (A&S ’12) enrolled at SLU in 2008, she was assigned to live on the freshman floor of Marguerite Hall, though she hardly was a first-year student. The then-18-year-old from Red Bud, Illinois, had 31 college credits under her belt, vaulting her to sophomore status. By taking several core and general education courses at Gibault Catholic High School through SLU’s 1818 Advanced College Credit Program, Unverferth had a leg up on her peers. “Because I’d done so much of the basic coursework ahead of time, I had the luxury of taking things a little slower than other students,” said Unverferth, who entered SLU as a still-deciding/undeclared student. “Even though I didn’t know anything about the subject, I took a course in art history my freshman year. It turned out I loved it and chose it as one of my majors.” Bretton DeLaria (Ed ’12) is director of the 1818 Advanced College Credit Program. “Having dual credit opens pathways for students,” he said. “Many students today are taking up to five years to earn bachelor’s degrees because they don’t have the room to discover who they are. Students with dual credit typically graduate in four years because they have that room.” DeLaria enrolled at SLU with dual credits, and even though he changed his major three times, he still managed to graduate in four years. During her four years at SLU, Unverferth triple-majored — art history, history and French — spent a semester in France and earned two bachelor’s degrees. She is now a French teacher and a teaching assistant at St. Margaret of Scotland School in St. Louis. SLU’s advanced college credit program gives high school students a head start. By MARIE DILG ILLUSTRATION BY TRACI DABERKO 23 WWW.SLU.EDU 22 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 liaisons offer guidance, answer questions and give feedback for teaching SLU courses. Liaisons also make annual visits to the high school classrooms and share their observations with the adjunct instructors. Patiño said what he has learned from SLU profes-sors and his colleagues has given him the confidence to teach community college courses. “What we’re doing for high school students and their teachers is phenomenal,” DeLaria said. “If you’re look-ing for an example of how SLU is living its mission and being a part of the community, the 1818 program is it.” The community went global this fall. The 1818 Advanced College Credit Program has established its first international partnership with a high school in China. UTAS MAKING THE GRADE Established in 1959, SLU’s 1818 Advanced College Credit Program is one of the oldest dual college credit programs in the country. It was the first west of the Mississippi. The program allows high school students to get both high school and college credit by taking college-level courses taught by specially qualified high school teachers. The tuition rate for dual credit courses is sig-nificantly reduced — $65 a credit hour for high school students versus $1,100 for SLU students. SLU started the 1818 program by partnering with two local Catholic high schools — St. Louis University High School and the now-closed Xavier High School — to promote academic excellence, improve college access and encourage students to matriculate at SLU. The pro-gram grew in the 1970s to include other metro-area high schools, both public and private. “We saw the program as an opportunity not only to connect with Catholic high schools but to help change the culture of education in St. Louis by creating access for all,” DeLaria said. In the 1980s, SLU became one of the first universi-ties in the country and the only Jesuit university at the time to offer dual credit courses in high schools nation-wide. The 1818 program now has partnerships with more than 100 schools in six states (Missouri, Kansas, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and Hawaii). A majority of SLU’s 1818 partners remain Catholic high schools. SLU’s dual credit course selections have quadrupled in the last decade. SLU offers nearly 70 different dual credit courses in 35 disciplines including history, sci-ence, math, foreign languages, women’s studies and political science. High school juniors and seniors can take up to 18 dual credit hours per semester. Dual credit students are invited to luncheons with department deans, have access to SLU’s network of libraries, are eligible for 1818 scholarships and get preferential enrollment status over other incoming freshmen. As part of a pilot program, dual credit high school students have been invited to campus for a for-eign language immersion day. “We do everything we can to make 1818 students feel connected to SLU,” DeLaria said. “Even if they don’t choose to attend SLU, I tell students they’ll always be Billikens.” Of the more than 6,000 high school students who participate in the 1818 program each year, approxi-mately 350 enroll at SLU. PREP SCHOOL DeLaria said dual credit not only helps students get a head start in college and save money, it exposes them to the rigors of college learning. “There are no makeup exams, no credit for late assignments,” he said. “If it doesn’t happen in a col-lege course, it doesn’t happen in our dual credit course. Students learn to do research using the University’s database and submit papers that are college-level work. We’ve created a culture around excellence and are indoctrinating students with the SLU approach to learning.” More than 100 col-leges and universities in 50 states accept 1818 dual college credits. “The number of col-leges and universities that accept 1818 credits speaks to how widely respected SLU is as an academic institution,” DeLaria said. “Educators recognize we’re offering students an authentic and legitimate college education.” DeLa r i a s a id p ro-fessors at colleges and universities report that 1818 students are their top per-formers, with GPAs of 3.5 or higher. 1818 students also tend to be more involved in campus activities, includ-ing student government and service work. In addition, a growing number of studies show that dual credit students are more likely to enroll in four-year colleges, earn higher grades than peers who haven’t taken dual credit classes and are more likely to earn a degree. Mario Patiño, a high school biology teacher at a charter school on the island of Hawaii, can attest to this. He became an 1818 adjunct instructor four years ago while teaching at a private school. Patiño said 100 percent of his 1818 students enrolled in four-year col-leges and universities. “Even though the 1818 courses are tough and stu-dents struggle at times, their confidence grows,” he said. “Students learn to become independent, self-directed thinkers. They’re ready for college and are motivated to achieve.” HIGH STANDARDS Patiño and other 1818 adjunct instructors are required to meet the same criteria SLU uses to hire the University’s on-campus adjunct instructors. 1818 instructors participate in SLU workshops and professional development courses to maintain their cre-dentials, and they are offered stipends to pursue advanced degrees at SLU. High schools are awarded grants to encourage their teachers to train as 1818 instructors. Every summer, SLU hosts a symposium for its more than 500 adjunct instructors to discuss academic trends and program protocols. Patiño wakes at 4 a.m. in Hawaii to participate in the dialogue online. Each high school instructor has access to an appointed SLU faculty member as a resource. These Associate professor of chemistry Paul Jelliss (fifth from right) facilitates a conversation among teachers receiving 1818 training on SLU’s campus. PHOTO BY KEVIN LOWDER HAVING DUAL CREDIT OPENS PATHWAYS FOR STUDENTS — BRETTON DELARIA 6,312 Students who took 1818 dual credit courses in 2016 45,000 Dual credits earned in 2016 500 1818 adjunct instructors 6S tates with 1818 partner schools 100 1818 partner schools in six states 50 New 1818 adjunct instructors in 2017 10 New 1818 partner schools in 2017 95 Percentage of alumni who report their 1818 course was as challenging, if not more challenging, than their university studies MORE THAN MORE THAN 25 WWW.SLU.EDU 24 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 The answer: A world-class research university. One that delivers excellence in education and medical care. One that serves as a catalyst for groundbreaking change in the region. One that is innovative and entre-preneurial in all that it does, while always staying true to its mission and values. It’s a lofty destination, to be sure. To get there, the University must navigate current trends in higher education that include rising costs and declining revenues, student debt and greater compe-tition for fewer high school graduates. In response to these and other factors, institutions all across the coun-try are being challenged to change like never before. occupancy, student advising, faculty research and corporate partnerships, among other priorities. For all initiatives, the University is using a team-based approach to help cultivate leadership, enhance cross-training and reduce bureaucracy. “At its core, Operational Excellence is about supporting a shift in our culture and changing the way — and speed — we develop and implement solutions,” said Dr. Eric S. Armbrecht (Grad PH ’07), associate professor in the Center for Health Outcomes Research and School of Medicine and co-leader of the Operational Excellence Program Coordination Team. CAMPUS MASTER PLAN As University operations become more effective and SLU positions itself for the future, it’s important that its buildings and physical plant are ready for the future, too. With this in mind, the University has developed its first campus master plan since 1989 — looking at where SLU is today and how its strategic priorities will impact facilities during the next 10 to 20 years. The plan identifies a number of needs. Among them are new academic buildings, including a new interdisciplinary facility for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs; renovation of Macelwane Hall, which was damaged in a fire last May; street enhancements on Grand Boulevard to address pedestrian safety; and investment in the University’s utility infrastructure. SLU also plans to partner with Great Rivers Greenway on a trail project to con-nect Forest Park to the St. Louis Gateway Arch. The project also will connect the University’s north and south campuses. While the master plan doesn’t call for anything specific on the site of the for-mer Pevely Dairy at Grand and Chouteau Avenue, it does note that the prominent corner should be home to a significant structure one day. “In the process of building the master plan, we engaged many different stake-holders and identified a number of desires within our campus community,” said Michael Lucido (A&S ’98), vice president for facilities. “This plan gives us direction and will help us prioritize the strategic use of our capital dollars in the most mean-ingful way.” With the campus master plan now com-pleted, feasibility work for identified needs has begun. CORE CURRICULUM For educational institutions, curriculum is the backbone of teaching and learning. While academic units at Saint Louis University have had their own core curricula for varying years, there isn’t one University-wide core curriculum for every student pursuing a baccalaureate degree at SLU. To direct the development of a University Core Curriculum, the Office of the Provost has collaborated with deans and faculty to develop a new core of learning outcomes for all undergraduate students, regardless of major or degree. In essence, these outcomes are what all SLU students are expected to know or be able to do by the time they graduate. “The new outcomes demonstrate SLU’s expectation that our graduates will signifi-cantly advance their understanding of themselves, others and the world we share,” said University Provost Dr. Nancy Brickhouse. The core learning outcomes are expected to be finalized by the end of the calendar year. Upon their adoption, a faculty-led committee will use them to design a new, University-wide core curriculum, starting with a general framework expected to be completed by fall 2018. CONVERSATIONS FOR THE DECADE AHEAD No discussion about SLU’s tomorrow can begin with-out a clear understanding of what’s happening in higher education today. Through a new speaker series, “Conversations for the Decade Ahead,” the University is bringing national experts to campus for presentations open to the entire SLU community. Some speakers also are participating in small-group workshops with fac-ulty, staff and administrators. During this academic year, thought leaders and best-selling authors will explore a number of critical topics, including trends currently impacting higher education and the challenges that colleges and univer-sities can expect to face in the near term. Participants will also learn about innovations taking place in the industry and the steps SLU may take to become the leading innovator among Catholic universities. “Successful transformation of an institution as com-plex as SLU can only come through an engaged and informed conversation across our community,” said Doug Williams, professor, co-leader of Operational Excellence and organizer of the speakers series. “Our speakers and workshop series will kick-start that process.” GROWTH Some industry experts have called the current state of higher education a “perfect storm.” When the skies clear, colleges and universities that were able to adapt and innovate will emerge ready to grow and thrive in the years ahead. To help Saint Louis University grow, SLU appointed Justin Daffron, S.J. (Grad Ed ’00) special assistant to the president for growth in February 2017. In this newly created role, Daffron is leading a group of deans and vice presidents charged with developing recommendations for programs and opportunities that have the potential to generate new net revenues, raise SLU’s national prominence and extend the University’s educational mission to new markets. “The strong commitment of our faculty and admin-istration to innovate, coupled with a diverse array of strong academic programs, positions SLU well to advance within the competitive landscape of higher education,” Daffron said. The Growth Initiatives Committee has analyzed more than 400 ideas generated by faculty, staff and students — categorizing areas with the greatest poten-tial for growth. To refine the list further, there will be conversations with deans, faculty, staff, students, clinicians, industry partners and trustees. Ultimately, the committee will put forward three to five efforts that will help SLU grow and give the University the resources it needs to pursue a path to even greater excellence. For more information and updates about Transforming SLU initiatives, visit slu.edu/transforming-slu. When the skies clear, colleges and universities that were able to adapt and innovate will emerge ready to grow and thrive in the years ahead. Saint Louis University’s strategic plan — developed by the SLU community and approved by the board of trustees in September 2015 — sets the University’s course for the future, answering the question: “What must we become?” SLU is not immune to these pressures. To realize change, to become the institution boldly envisioned in the University’s strategic plan, there are five key initiatives underway that comprise an effort known as Transforming SLU. These initiatives are charting the course for everything from an enhanced undergraduate experience to future building needs. OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE The most established of the Transforming SLU initiatives is the Operational Excellence Program. Launched in February 2016, the program seeks to foster an institution-wide culture of excellence, effectiveness and efficiency that is deeply rooted in the University’s institutional mission and Catholic, Jesuit values — a goal directly described in the strategic plan. Guided by an internal steering committee, the program began with a comprehensive review of SLU’s operations and extensive stakeholder engagement. The result was a diagnostic report that detailed opportunities for cost savings, revenue growth and other improvements across 25 focus areas. After reducing expenses and flattening organizational layers last spring, attention has turned to growth and process improvements with a focus on enrollment, housing 27 WWW.SLU.EDU 26 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 The Original Dr. Pestello DR. FRANCES PESTELLO FINDS HER WAY AS SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY’S FIRST FIRST LADY. — By Amy Garland r. Frances Pestello describes herself as “a sociologist of law and deviance,” and she has the curriculum vitae to prove it. Her research has examined the effect of punishment on behavior, the impact of psychiatric medi-cations on the sense of self, and the relationship between attitudes and behavior with her spouse, Fred. She’s taught abroad in Italy and England. She’s been a professor for more than three decades. Her husband, University President Dr. Fred P. Pestello, has referred to her as “the original Dr. Pestello,” hinting affectionately at the fact that she earned an advanced degree before he did. He might also call her original for another reason, though: Fran is the very first first lady of Saint Louis University. The Origins of a Life in Higher Ed Fran grew up in suburban Philadelphia, in a town called Berwyn, “the next stop over from the very last stop on the Main Line,” she said. One of six children in the Geyer family and the oldest daughter, Fran took care of her siblings. And although she always knew she wanted eventually to be a mother, she also knew she was destined to get a degree. “My father had a Ph.D. in chemistry, and my mother entered Vassar College at 16 and got a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. “They were huge advocates of education, particularly at small, liberal arts colleges,” she said. “All of my siblings ended up at similar kinds of schools, and all went on to get professional or advanced degrees.” Fran chose the College of Wooster in Ohio and fell in love with higher learning. “I hadn’t been a great high school student, in part due to a spinal fusion for scoliosis at 16, which took me out of most of my junior year,” she said. “I got to college and thought, if this is what education can be, I love it. Everything I took my first year, I thought, I could major in this.” She graduated in 1973 with a degree in sociology. But instead of continuing to graduate studies, she got a place in Kent, Ohio, with two college friends and spent a year working full time at a fast-food restaurant while figuring out her next step. “It was a great sociological experiment,” she joked. “I quickly decided: This is not what I want to do with the rest of my life.” Dr. Frances Pestello in the library at Samuel Cupples House, one of her favorite places on campus PHOTO BY STEVE DOLAN Fran in academic attire in 1985, ready to attend graduation at the University of Dayton 29 WWW.SLU.EDU 28 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Leap of Faith A year later, while taking a graduate course about social stratification at the University of Akron, she met Fred Pestello, who was just beginning graduate school. “He remembers being in the class together, but I don’t remember that detail,” she admitted. “I do remember being in the same graduate student cohort, and after a few years as friends we began dating.” They married in 1981. “Fred thought it wasn’t a good idea at that point because neither of us had a job, but we took a leap of faith,” she said. “Marriage is always a leap of faith, right? And you know what? It all worked out.” It all worked out. If Fran Pestello has a mantra, that might be it. Marianist affiliation in a bigger city — a place that suited both of them. Dayton created a shared position for them, the second one in the department. “It was pretty innovative on Dayton’s part,” she said. “The deal was that we had half-time teaching, but we were not defined as part-time faculty; we were both treated as full-time faculty, each with one full vote on all matters.” In due course, they earned their own faculty posi-tions. He eventually took the administrative route, ultimately becoming Dayton’s provost and senior vice president for educational affairs. She ended up as the chair of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, a position Fred held a few years ear-lier. And in the meantime, they started their family, having a daughter, Vitina, and son, Freddie. Eventually, Fred left Dayton to become president of Le Moyne College, a Jesuit institution in Syracuse, New York. This time, they lived separately for two years while he settled into his position and she finished up her term as department chair. She arrived at Le Moyne as a full-time, tenured fac-ulty member, but a third of her time was dedicated to the president’s office. “It was a good transition,” she said. It seemed to lay the groundwork for the next role she’d take. All-In In March 2014, Fred Pestello was appointed the 33rd president of Saint Louis University. Fran found herself facing yet another decision about career and place. “I did think about staying at Le Moyne brief ly, because my department didn’t want to lose me and I liked my students and colleagues, but quickly I decided to go unscripted and jump all-in and see what presented itself in St. Louis,” she said. “And that’s worked out.” What worked out this time is an arrangement that allows for all kinds of work she loves. She teaches part time in SLU’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology. She’s on the board of the Library Associates of Saint Louis University and of her neigh-borhood association in the nearby Central West End. She recently joined the board of the International Institute, another venerable institution in St. Louis. And of course, she supports the president’s office. “I’m happy to extend Fred’s reach, while adding my own touch and perspective,” she said. “I think the most value I can add is being at things he can’t be at, on the academic side especially. I’ve been an academic and a faculty member since 1983. I know the academic world.” And what does the husband of “the original Dr. Pestello” think? “I learned a long time ago that little of significance is accomplished alone,” he said. “My time at Saint Louis University has absolutely been made possible by Fran’s support, guidance and presence. I appreciate the sacri-fices she has made in her career and the investments she has made in SLU and St. Louis. I feel blessed to be here together, continuing to share our life now in St. Louis.” “We’ve had intertwined lives wherever we’ve been,” she said. And you know what? It always works out. UTAS First Lady Firsts First Name: Harriet. Frances is actually her middle name. First Course Taught at SLU: “Intro to Sociology.” She also teaches “Deviant Behavior.” First Trip as SLU’s First Lady: Madrid, Spain. She recently visited again to celebrate the 50th anniversary of SLU-Madrid. First Date with the President: “Our first ‘official’ date was an evening walk in one of the parks in Akron. He arrived at my door with a bouquet of pink sweetheart roses. To this day, he surprises me with fresh flowers.” First Child: Vitina. She also has a son, Freddie. First Place to Look for Her at SLU: Samuel Cupples House, her favorite campus building. She also loves Chaifetz Arena during men’s and women’s basketball games. First Time She Felt Like a St. Louisan: When she used the landmark Amoco sign at Highway 40 and Skinker Boulevard to navigate. The Pestellos in Pella, Iowa, where Fran had her first teaching job After her wedding reception, in 1981 1950 Richard Ampleman (A&S ’50, GRAD COOK ’57) is happy living at Leisure Care in St. Charles, Missouri, after spending 60 years in two homes in Florissant. Dr. Wilbur Manchette (DENT) continues to work three days a week at All in The Family Dental, a practice he founded in Evansville, Indiana. He has practiced dentistry for 65 years. 1951 A. Joseph Yungman (PARKS) is retired in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. He has traveled to many parts of the world and spends his time volunteering. 1952 William Compas (A&S) and his wife, Patricia, celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in August in Carlsbad, California, surrounded by family. 1953 Sr. Dorothy Helbling (A&S ’53, GRAD ED ’56) celebrated 70 years as an Ursuline sister. She taught in Illinois and her native North Dakota for 22 years before serving as provincial superior and general superior for the Ursuline Sisters of Belleville, Illinois. She lives in Maple Mount, Kentucky, where she is active in the Powerhouse of Prayer. Albert Hrubetz (IT), president of Hrubetz Oil Co., published a book about his 64 years of international oil exploration, A Geophysicist’s Memoir: Searching for Oil on Six Continents. He lives in Dallas. 1955 Evelyn Knight (A&S ’55, GRAD SW ’60) lives in Long Beach, California, and works as a justice commissioner for the South Coast Air Quality Management District. She has spent her life as an activist fighting for justice. Dr. Gerald Luebbe (DENT) retired in 1995 after 40 years of dentistry. He’s been married to his wife, Sarah, for 61 years, and they have four children, 12 grandchildren and three great-granddaughters. He lives in Evansville, Indiana. John Rumford (PARKS) is serving his second four-year term as mayor of Fort Lawn, South Carolina. He served in the Office of the Governor of South Carolina for nine years and was a faculty member at Winthrop University for seven years. 1956 Dr. Joseph Lawrence (DENT) received a Volunteer of the Year award for his hospice work. He lives in Orlando, Florida. 1957 Hon. Gerald J. Mossinghoff (IT), former head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, has testified in more than 140 patent lawsuits as an expert witness. He is an adjunct professor of patent law at the George Washington University. He and Jeanne, his wife of 58 years, live in Arlington, Virginia. 1958 Dr. Robert L. Duncan (A&S) is a clinical child psychologist in private practice. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Rita (Witte) Moran (GRAD ED) is a drama and classical music critic for the Ventura County Star, and a restaurant critic. She lives in Ventura, California. 1959 Elizabeth (Noone) Aragona (A&S) is a retired teacher in Michigan who has traveled the world. She has five children and nine grandchildren. Dr. J. Daniel Kelley (A&S) coauthored Problems in Classical and Quantum Mechanics with Jacob J. Leventhal. He lives in St. Louis. Mary Stuart Lanahan Laflamme (A&S) and her husband, Tom Fleming, moved to Douglas, Arizona, to continue their work with the border ministry of the School Sisters of Norte Dame. She teaches a quilting class at a women’s cooperative in Agua Prieta, Mexico, across the border from Douglas. 1960 Mary Helen (Klinge) Drucker (A&S) is a writer and editor who lives in Freeport, Illinois. James Owens (A&S) is a member of the Ignatian Volunteer Corps and spends his time finding jobs for marginalized people in the St. Louis area. 1961 John P. “Nick” Carter (IT ’61, GRAD ’64) retired from Boeing after working as an aerospace engineer for 40 years. He lives with his wife, Jacquelyn, in Chesterfield, Missouri. Sr. Thelma Mitchell (NURS) lives in St. Louis. She is retired and volunteers at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital and SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital. 1962 John R. “Bob” Long Jr. (IT ’62, GRAD COOK ’69) owns a business in Cape Coral, Florida. He and his wife, Karen Hennelly Long, met at SLU and have six children and 12 grandchildren. John Mellen (PARKS) retired from a second career in executive education with Loyola Marymount University. His first career was in aerospace with the U.S. Air Force, Hughes Aircraft Co. (now Boeing) and TRW Inc. (now Northrop Grumman). He lives in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Mary O’Hara Wyman (A&S ’62, GRAD ED ’68) made the 500-mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage alone at age 70. Her journey is chronicled in her book, Grandma’s on the Camino. She lives in San Francisco. Bonnie (Boehler) Owens (A&S) is a volunteer for a hospice company and a certified spiritual director. She and her husband, Tom, downsized from their home of 45 years. They live in Tigard, Oregon. 1963 Richard Ashley (A&S) retired in 1997 after 33 years with a sales career at Champion Products. He volunteers as a sixth-grade religion education teacher at his local parish. He lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Hon. James Hartenbach (A&S ’63, LAW ’66) belongs to the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals, a professional association of mediators and arbitrators. He is a mediator at U.S. Arbitration and Mediation. He lives in St. Louis. 1964 Mary (Meyer) Dill (A&S ’64, GRAD SW ’66) has lived in Atlanta since 1970. She has two sons and four grandchildren. She retired from serving at an adult day care center. John Dorenkamper (COOK) retired after 46 years as an investment real estate professional. He lives in northern Colorado where he enjoys skiing and hiking in the Rocky Mountains. Doris Wild Helmering (A&S ’64, GRAD SW ’68) wrote The Boy Whose Idea Could Feed the World. She lives in St. Louis. 1965 Dr. George M. Bohigian (MED) received the Presidential Award from the St. Louis Ophthalmological Society. He is a professor of clinical ophthalmology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Dr. Terry L. Heyns (A&S) is professor emeritus at Lake Superior State University. After retiring from the U.S. Air Force as a career officer, he served in Lake State’s fire science and emergency medical services department for 26 years. He is a training and hazardous material adviser with the Sault Ste. Marie (Michigan) Fire Department and with the Chippewa County, Michigan, Office of Emergency Services. Bob McAndrew (PARKS) retired in 2015 after 50 years in aviation. Initially with Boeing, he spent 25 years with Lockheed in international sales. In 1994 he established an aviation management consulting company. He lives in Edmond, Oklahoma. James Thole (COOK) retired from U.S. Bank and serves on the board of directors of the Route 66 Association of Missouri. He lives in Manchester, Missouri. Cristine Vennari-Caton (A&S) wrote and published a series of children’s picture books called The Adventures of Cefa the Cat. She is in the process of animating them for Android and Apple devices. She lives in Ocala, Florida. 1966 Dr. Anthony V. Cervone (GRAD A&S) published Indelible Roots: An Italian’s Journey in America. He retired after 52 C L A S S NOT E S BASKETBALL GAMES Cheer on the Billikens this season at pregame receptions before men’s basketball games in St. Louis and across the country. For more information and to register, visit alumni.slu.edu/mensbasketball. East Coast Girl, Cleveland Boy The couple was about to embark on a series of leaps of faith, as they hop-scotched around for academic positions. In 1983, both Pestellos entered the job market. While he finished his graduate work, she interviewed at Central College in Pella, Iowa. “I came back and said to him, ‘I think they liked me. I think they’re going to make me an offer. And I don’t think you’re going to like it there,’” she said with a smile. “I was an East Coast girl, and Fred was a Cleveland boy. We were both out of our element in small-town Iowa,” she said. “Let’s put it this way: If you wanted Italian food, you had to go all the way to Des Moines.” But the couple had made a deal that whoever got the first job offer would take it. Central College wanted her — and within weeks, the University of Dayton made him an offer. They made the difficult decision to start their careers apart. “We thought it would be for one semester,” she said. “It ended up being a year and a half.” “For many who work in the academy, working in the same city, let alone the same institution, is rare,” Fred said. “Fran and I worked in separate cities twice. It was tough. But during those times, we operated as a team — we always have.” Eventually, Fran joined Fred at Dayton, which offered not just more opportunity but also a Catholic, 31 WWW.SLU.EDU 30 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 GAIL MILLER BISHER She doesn’t mind the barking. In fact, it’s followed her most of her career. For Gail Mi l ler Bisher (Grad A&S ’01), a lifelong love of dogs led her down a path that includes look-ing out for the health and happiness of man’s best friend and to the “Super Bowl” of the show dog world, the Westminster Kennel Club. Beginning with her parents’ bearded collies when she was a kid, Bisher was never far from a dog show. Her parents introduced her to the sport. She went on to become the first junior han-dler to qualify for the Westminster Kennel Club’s prestigious Junior Showmanship compe-tition with a bearded collie, and the first to place in that competition. By age 12, she had handled her first dog to a championship title. While other college undergraduates were waiting tables, Bisher became a professional handler of show dogs. She took clients’ dogs as well as her own to numerous awards, including National Specialty Best of Breed and All-Breed Best in Show wins. Bisher went on to become a dog show judge, certif ied canine f itness trainer and, most recently, the first female analyst to call the Westminster Kennel Club show in 30 years. As the club’s director of communications, she fol-lows the “Road to Westminster,” conducting interviews, shooting video and running the club’s communications strategy. The videos, she said, give viewers a sneak-peak not only of the sport but also of the “players” before they set paw on the green carpet of Madison Square Garden. “The Road to Westminster allows me to meet top dogs from across the U.S. and to learn more about what makes them unique,” she said. “I get to talk with breeders and owners about their passion, purebred dogs. The more breeds I meet and spend time with, the more dogs I want to own!” Bisher’s role blends her love of showing dogs, stints in advertising and the education she received at Saint Louis University. The Arnold, Missouri, native had been working at a St. Louis-based adver-tising f irm when she was d rawn to SLU’s graduate program in communication. “I was looking for a graduate program that was close by, and I liked that it was in the city,” Bisher said. “It felt more urban and in the middle of everything.” Tod ay, when not expl a ining the di f-ference between an Afghan hound and a beagle, Bisher is busy raising her daughter and working on another dog-related passion project: a book about how to keep dogs healthy and in shape. “Growing up in the sport of dogs, I’ve always physically conditioned, trained and cared for a lot of canines,” she explained. “When I looked outside the dog-sports world and saw that the pet population is falling into the same patterns as humans regarding obesity, it occurred to me that I could help. If I can use my knowledge based on 30-plus years of experience to help a pet lose weight and live a longer life, I will.” — By Amelia Flood ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT PHOTO BY J. GRASSA FOR WKC PHOTO BY S. DUKES FOR WKC Bisher (second from left) appears on Good Morning America with (from left) GMA’s Michael Strahan, handlers Liz Oster and Kent Boyles with their children, GMA’s T.J. Holmes, and Rumor, the 2017 Best in Show winner. After Best in Show is awarded at Madison Square Garden, Bisher leaves the telecast booth to conduct a press conference on the floor. Here, she’s joined by handler Kent Boyles and Rumor. years of teaching Italian, Spanish and Latin in the university system of Florida (Tampa and Orlando). He directed a summer study program for 50 years in Urbino, Italy. He misses the years at SLU, where he met his wife, Nancy (Newstreet) Cervone (A&S ’62, GRAD A&S ’64), and many friends. He lives in Winter Park, Florida. Dr. Peter J. Dempsey (MED) was honored in April with the Gold Medal Award from the Society of Breast Imaging. He lives in Houston. Dr. Thomas J. Farrell (A&S ’66, GRAD ED ’68, ’74), professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota Duluth, published a series of essays about Walter J. Ong, S.J., that are available online through the University of Minnesota Libraries’ Digital Conservancy, including his essay “Rudolf Voderholzer’s Book on Henri de Lubac and Walter J. Ong’s Thought.” William Stone (PARKS) retired from Trans World Airlines as an engineering manager at the beginning of 2001. Since then, he has enjoyed volunteering for Habitat For Humanity, the Airline History Museum and his local church food pantry. His six children and their families keep him busy. He lives in Leawood, Kansas. 1967 Dr. Daniel Durbin (PARKS) retired after 45 years as a professor at the University of Cincinnati, where he served as chair of the architectural engineering program. He lives in Spain and teaches at the Polytechnic University of Valencia. Mary Beth (Hoemeke) Gagnepain (ED) and her husband, Gary, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in July. They live in St. Charles, Missouri. William R. Haine (A&S ’67, LAW ’73) took his oath of office for the fifth time as a member of the Illinois Senate. He was named assistant majority leader of the Democratic caucus. Haine and his wife, Anna (Schickel) Haine (A&S ’70), have seven children and 31 grandchildren. Dr. Neil H. Katz (A&S ’67, GRAD A&S ’69) received the William Kreidler Award from the Association of Conflict Resolution. He has been a faculty member at Syracuse University and Nova Southeastern University for 45 years. Alan Steinberg (LAW) is a partner at Steinberg and Steinberg, which received the Gerald R. Ortballs Outstanding Law Practice Award from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri in August. Steinberg lives in St. Louis. 1968 David Barbeau (COOK ’68, GRAD COOK ’72) retired from TI Automotive in December 2016. He has been active with his company, Barbeau Consulting, with projects primarily in China. He lives in Sugar Land, Texas. Bridget (Lawler) Brennan (A&S ’68, GRAD A&S ’94) and her husband, Dr. Jerome Shen (A&S ’62), published their second book on the spirituality of marriage, Falling In Love ... Finding God: Marriage and the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. They live in St. Louis. Mary (Sestric) Heyde (A&S) retired from Parkway School District in the St. Louis area. She is trying to play golf and enjoys time with her four grandchildren. Dr. Robert J. Muller (A&S) published a textbook, Hospital Emergency Management: A Bible for Hospital Emergency Managers. He is in private practice and is the sector chief of the InfraGard section of FBI New Orleans. He is also president of Emergency Management, a hospital consulting firm. His two previous books were published for internal use in the federal government. He lives in Slidell, Louisiana. Paul Rothermich (COOK) is a “shoe guy” at Helping Hands of St. Louis, a free clothing store that operates out of a former parish church in Toledo, Ohio. While attending SLU night classes in the early 1960s, he worked in the downtown office of Edison Brothers, the women’s shoe retailer. 1969 Dr. Lawrence Gettleman (DENT) received the Distinguished Alumnus Medal from the Harvard School of Dental Medicine for innovative research in biomaterials and prosthodontics. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Mildred (Lucas) Patterson (GRAD ED) is happily retired in North Carolina. She is enjoying the sunshine, the beach and the mountains. Edward W. Rataj (COOK ’69, LAW ’72) coaches four grade school/middle school chess teams, including the Immacolata School third and fourth grade Catholic Youth Council St. Louis City/County champions. He also coordinates the chess programs at homeless shelters at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church and Biddle House. Larry Zetterlind (PARKS) retired in June after 21 years as chief pilot for Hartzell Propeller. He looks forward to more flying, bicycling and hiking adventures, and time with his wife, Maureen, kids and grandkids. He lives in Piqua, Ohio. 1970 Barbara (Braveman) Paster (GRAD ED) has spent more than two decades as a historic role-player at the Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She has seven grandchildren. Dr. Mary C. Brucker (NURS ’70, GRAD NURS ’71) co-edited Pharmacology for Women’s Health, which received the American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award in Maternal Child Nursing. She lives in Arlington, Texas. Michael Lobstein (PARKS) retired from Luhr Bros. as chief pilot after 38 years. He and his wife, Cathy, live in Belleville, Illinois. 1971 Elvera (Goering) Johnson (SW) retired after 19 years as a social worker at Plaza West Care Center in Topeka, Kansas. She worked as a social worker for 45 years, with a focus on long-term care. She is involved in various volunteer projects. Terry Love (PARKS) has been retired from Northwest Airlines/Delta Airlines for 12 years. One of his hobbies is writing aviation books, and he recently published his 20th, U.S. Army Twin Beeches. He lives in Shawnee, Kansas. Marianne Muellerleile (A&S) appeared in two episodes of Elementary this spring and in several recent commercials for McDonald’s. She lives in Los Angeles. Raymond Schlanser (PARKS) retired from flying for American Airlines and is driving an RV across the country with his wife, Carolyn. 1972 Jessie Knight (A&S) is managing director of Knight Angels Consulting. He lives in San Diego. Patricia Preckel (A&S) and Robert Killoren (A&S) celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary in August. They live in Gahanna, Ohio, and have four children and three grandchildren. Dr. Dennis Maher (A&S) celebrated his 52nd year as an actor by appearing in a one-man show, Einstein: A Theatrical Portrait, at Theatre Arlington in Texas. Maher has taught at the University of Texas-Arlington since 1982. 1973 Frank Dunne (LAW) retired from his law practice and spends his time traveling and exercising. He lives in Chesterfield, Missouri. 1974 Dr. Mervyn D’Souza (GRAD A&S) retired after nearly 40 years as a professor at Kean University. He served as chairman of the Department of Philosophy and Religion, as well as chairman of the faculty senate. He lives in Edison, New Jersey. Richard Humphrey (PARKS), who retired from Boeing, is a railroad engineer at the St. Louis Zoo and bus driver for McKendree University. 1975 Gerard Carmody (LAW), director of the Missouri Coalition for the Right to Counsel, was honored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for being a longtime board member. He lives in St. Louis. Robert Sontag (A&S ’75, GRAD SW ’77) was selected as “Social Worker of the Year” by Social Work Leaders in Health Care of Metro St. Louis. 1976 Lawrence Altman (LAW) wrote a book, From Bullying to Sexual Violence, which was published in December 2016. He lives in Overland Park, Kansas. Donna (Robinson) Barnes (SW) is a part-time education assistant at St. Louis Community College. Kenneth M. Chackes (LAW), with Chackes Carlson, has joined the mediation panel of U.S. Arbitration and Mediation. He lives in St. Louis. Cynthia Clisham (NURS) is an assistant nurse manager and clinical educator in the operating room at St. Luke’s Hospital in Chesterfield, Missouri. Carole S. Dabbs (GRAD NURS ’76, GRAD ED ’92) received the distinguished alumnus award from Perryville High School in Perryville, Missouri, in 2015. She lives in Tuscumbia, Alabama. C L A S S NOT E S BASEBALL Join alumni, parents and friends of the University in your city for a pregame party before a Major League Baseball game next summer. For more information and event dates, visit alumni.slu.edu/baseball18. Easter Egg Hunt Hop over to campus for the annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 24. alumni.slu.edu/easter18 33 WWW.SLU.EDU 32 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 HOW I GOT HERE G.J. Meyer, A&S ’62 BEST-SELLING AUTHOR, JOURNALIST By Marie Dilg Meyer is born in north St. Louis to a postal-worker father and a homemaker mother. “My parents assumed that any degree was a ticket to the middle class, so they didn’t fret when I majored in English rather than something ‘practical.’ I was free to go my own way.” He lies about his age to work as a soda jerk. He receives a National Merit Scholarship and goes to SLU. “I joined The University News, where I found fun, bright, intellectually lively people. That transformed college for me.” He becomes a copy boy at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and then a reporter for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. He summers in Alaska de-blubbering seal skins. He is “saved from law school” by a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship for graduate work at the University of Minnesota. He completes a master’s degree, joins the Navy and serves as a lieutenant aboard a destroyer in the South China Sea during the Vietnam War. Bored by his job with an Iowa magazine publisher, he appeals to the Des Moines Register and is hired as a police reporter. He later gets an offer at the St. Louis Post- Dispatch by “applying persistently.” The wife of a serial killer sees Meyer’s byline and asks him to tell her story. This becomes his first book, The Memphis Murders, which wins an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America. “The deal was that the wife would get a percentage of my royalties. Suffice it to say that neither of us got rich.” He spends a year at Harvard on a Nieman Fellowship. He returns to St. Louis and joins FleishmanHillard, a public relations firm. His biggest client is McDonnell Douglas, where he later becomes vice president of communications. His second book, Executive Blues: Down and Out in Corporate America, receives critical praise. “I do a lot of my writing in longhand and am a compulsive rewriter. I set first drafts aside to cool, until I can look at them objectively. Doing a second draft, I’ll often change almost every line. Writing is a hard, hard process for me.” He moves to Manhattan to join an investor relations agency. He eventually gets a publisher’s contract to complete A World Undone: The Story of the Great War, 1914- 1918. “Travel in Europe made me aware that we Americans have little sense of how terrible a tragedy WWI was because it was a relatively easy war for us. It was the destruction of a generation, a world-changing horror.” He writes full time, teaches at colleges part time. He moves to England. He goes on to write: The Tudors: The Complete Story of England’s Most Notorious Dynasty (2011) The Borgias: The Hidden History (2014) The World Remade: America in World War I (2017) He collaborates on a documentary about the papacy while beginning work on a first novel. “I feel I’ve established myself in nonfiction. Fiction, I think, is a new, possibly higher challenge for me. It’s my Mount Everest.” 1940 1971 1988 1996 2005 2017 1954 1958 1962 1968 James Kubicki, S.J. (A&S ’76, GRAD A&S ’77) is director of the St. Francis Mission on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota. Sr. Suzanne Sims (GRAD ED), director of faith formation at St. Pius X Church in Owensboro, Kentucky, is celebrating 50 years as an Ursuline sister. 1977 Don Nutting (PARKS) is the general manager of BearCat Mfg. in Wickenburg, Arizona. Dr. Raphael Pollock (MED) is the Kathleen Wellenreiter Klotz Chair in Cancer Research and a professor and director in the Division of Surgical Oncology for The Ohio State University Health System. He lives in Columbus, Ohio. Cornelia Tolbert (ED) received an Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding service in music and education. She lives in St. Louis. Patrick Ward (DOISY) produced an award-winning short video, “I Am Not Your Friend,” about the Miami VA Healthcare System that saved his life and the physical therapist who turned it around. Ward lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 1978 Dr. Patricia Conley (NURS ’78, GRAD NURS ’89) was promoted to charge nurse on the progressive care unit at Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. J. Collins Corder (MED) is the 2017 president of the St. Louis Metropolitan Medical Society, which represents physicians in the St. Louis area. He practices internal medicine with BJC Medical Group. He is married to radiologist Dr. Patricia (Guithues) Corder (A&S ’76, GRAD A&S ’77, MED ’82), and they have two grown children. Jeffrey Frankel (LAW) is chief legal officer and an equity partner of StarCycle Franchise, an indoor cycling fitness class business based in Portland, Oregon. Stephanie (Clabby) Madan (ED) is a paralegal for the Department of the Attorney General in Rhode Island. She has two daughters, Nitasha and Smriti. 1979 Joyce Aboussie (A&S) was named to the St. Louis Magazine “Power List” in 2016. Dr. Jeffrey Dean (A&S) received a doctorate in computer science with a specialty in cyber security in September at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. He is a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force. He and his wife, Marla S. (Hendricks) Dean (A&S ’78), live in San Antonio, Texas. She is a retired Latin teacher. The Deans have five children and six grandchildren. Richard Joliet (COOK) is beginning his fifth year providing new and small businesses financial guidance in Prescott, Arizona. Dr. Richard Schwend (MED) has a new granddaughter, Ada. He is a professor of orthopedics and pediatrics, and president of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America. He lives in Kansas City, Missouri. 1980 Karen Glines (PS), a writer, collaborated with artist Billyo O’Donnell to create Painting Missouri: The Counties en Plein Air. The book is in its fourth printing; it received the Governor’s Award in 2009 in the literary category from the Missouri Humanities Council. Glines lives in St. Louis. Dr. Donald P. Hallmark (GRAD A&S) and his wife, Linda, celebrated their 50th anniversary in June. He is a museum administrator, having retired in 2009 from his position as director of the State of Illinois’ Dana-Thomas House Historic Site. He lives in Petersburg, Illinois. Dr. Sheila (Adams) Leander (GRAD NURS) is an associate professor at Milwaukee School of Engineering’s School of Nursing. She lost her husband of 39 years in September. Sr. (Charles) Maureen O’Neill (GRAD ED) is celebrating 50 years as an Ursuline sister. Since 2006 she has served as a caseworker at the Sister Visitor Center in Louisville, Kentucky. Dr. Gary Pontrelli (MED) received the 2017 Catholic Doctor of the Year award from Mission Doctors Association. He lives in Ventura, California. Dr. Charles B. Puskas (GRAD A&S) is a lecturer in the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. His book, Hebrews, the General Letters, and Revelation, was published in 2016. 1981 Dr. Brian Willoughby (MED) practices internal medicine in Hettinger, North Dakota. 1982 Kevin Cavanaugh (LAW) practices family law, real estate and estate planning with the Law Firm of Kevin Stuart Cavanaugh in Overland Park, Kansas. Rev. Dr. Susan Imbs (A&S ’82, GRAD A&S ’85) celebrated her 10th anniversary as an ordained minister in May. She serves on the executive committee of the Ecumenical Catholic Diocese of Mid-America in the Ecumenical Catholic Communion. She lives in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. 1983 Christi (Stubblefield) Griffin (LAW) is celebrating 10 years as the founder and president of the Ethics Project. The nonprofit works to raise the bar on ethics among attorneys, judges and law enforcement to reduce wrongful convictions and mass incarceration. Griffin has served on several boards and has received numerous awards, including the President’s Award for Service and the Dr. Martin Luther King Drum Major Award. She lives in St. Louis. 1984 Julie (Steinman) King (A&S) has lived in Rhode Island since 1992. Her oldest daughter is a SLU sophomore studying nutrition and dietetics, and the third generation attending SLU. 1985 Jeanne (Menke) Carey (NURS) is the simulation lab manager at Baylor University School of Nursing. She received her master’s degree in higher education in August 2016 and her certification as a health care simulation educator in October 2016. She lives in Dallas. Peter DiMarco (PARKS) lives in Philadelphia. He is the director of strategy and planning for Comcast/NBC. Dr. Susan M. (Hickey) Donovan (GRAD ED) is president of Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. Dennis Gehrt (ED), city administrator for Platte City, Missouri, received the 2017 Jay T. Bell Professional Management Award from the Missouri City/County Management Association. Hon. Andrew Gleeson (LAW), a chief judge with the State of Illinois 20th Judicial Circuit, was selected as a 2017 McCormick Foundation executive fellow. 1986 Paul Gore (A&S) is dean of the College of Professional Sciences and a professor of psychology at Xavier University in Cincinnati. Mike Isaacson (A&S ’86, GRAD COOK ’96), a Tony Award-winning producer and artistic director and executive producer of the Muny, received the Commercial Theater Institute’s Robert Whitehead Award for outstanding achievement in commercial theatre producing. Isaacson lives in St. Louis. Lisa (Schorb) Meyer (DOISY) joined Life Care Centers of America as regional rehab director for Missouri. Suzanne (Arena) Passarelli (A&S) is serving in an assignment in Australia with the United States and Australian governments to support national security and their intelligence communities. Paul Steger (A&S) is the director of the Virginia Tech School of Performing Arts. He is also an arts administrator, an actor, a theater director and a fight choreographer with Broadway credits. 1987 Dr. Don Kikkawa (MED) is a professor of clinical ophthalmology. He is chief of the Division of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and vice chairman at the University of California at San Diego Department of Ophthalmology and UCSD Shiley Eye Institute in La Jolla. Tom McConnell (DOISY), a physical therapist and certified athletic trainer for Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, won championships with women’s basketball in 2016 and 2017. He is the owner of Greater Pittsburgh Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine, with four clinics throughout the area. Wayne Mehrhoff (GRAD A&S) is the academic coordinator for the Museum of Art and Archaeology at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Susan (Kennedy) Stranquist (A&S) enjoys managing a global team at Wells Fargo as technology relationship manager and vice president responsible for technology offshoring governance. She lives in St. Louis. 1988 Wendy Wiedemann Hudson (LAW) is chief counsel-torts for the U.S. Postal Service National Tort Center. She worked in private practice for 11 years before joining the U.S. Postal Service law department. She lives in St. Louis. Dale Lauderback (PARKS) and his wife, Gloria Guzman, had twins, Michelle and Alexander, in November 2016. They live in Long Beach, California. Dr. Sharon Paltin (MED) practices family medicine in rural Northern Mendocino County, California. 1989 Margaret Flavan-Brown (A&S ’89, ED ’93) is in the organizational leadership C L A S S NOT E S Reunion 2018 UNDERGRAD CLASSES OF 1968, 1993, 2003, 2008 AND 2013 Help plan the perfect reunion weekend for your class. Visit slu.edu/reunion or email reunions@slu.edu for more information. A BILLIKEN’S TABLE SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PASSION AND A MEAL Health sciences alumni are invited to host a meal for current SLU students. Sign up to host a dinner in St. Louis for students in your area of study. The next round of meals will be held in April. To learn more, visit: alumni.slu.edu/ ABillikensTableHost 35 WWW.SLU.EDU 34 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 doctoral program at the University of Oklahoma. She married Michael G. Brown in 2012. Their son, David, was born in 2015, and their daughter, Aine, in 2017. Flavan-Brown and her husband teach on an Army base overseas, though their home of record is in Oklahoma. Dr. Mahalakshmi “Lakshmi” K. Halasyamani (A&S) holds the Davis Family Chair in the NorthShore University HealthSystem. She is also NorthShore’s chief quality and transformation officer. She lives in Chicago. Patrick G. McCarthy (A&S) owns and operates Woodline Design, a woodcraft, furniture design and antiques restoration company he established in 2003. He lives in St. Louis city where he participates in various urban renewal projects. Erin O’Loughlin (NURS) is a utilization review manager at BJC Healthcare. She lives in Ballwin, Missouri. Dr. Richard Steinberg (MED) is a diagnostic radiologist at Marine Park Radiology and NYP Community Hospital in Brooklyn, New York. 1990 Shari (Widder) LeKane-Yentumi (A&S ’90, GRAD A&S ’94) writes articles, literary critiques, poetry and prose. She wrote a novel in verse, Poem to Follow, and a book of poetry, Fall Tenderly. She is a consultant for not-for-profit, business, community development, education, leadership development, disability and elderly advocacy, and she teaches creative writing to special needs students and through the St. Louis County Department of Corrections. Lynn Schulte (DOISY) founded the Institute for Birth Healing and is treating mothers and teaching courses to professionals to help women give birth more easily and recover more completely. She is a single mom to two teenage boys. She lives in Longmont, Colorado. 1991 Paul Nager (PARKS) is a logistics engineer at Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama, which builds the aluminum littoral combat ship for the U.S. Navy. He also coaches chess at an area high school. During the past Thomas Downey (A&S ’86) Downey is senior vice president of communications for the Boeing Co. He began his career as a writer at McDonnell Douglas, eventually leading communications during the company’s merger with Boeing. He also served as president of the Boeing Employees Community Fund, which raised money for local communities through charitable giving. Frank Friedlein Jr. (PS ’76) Friedlein, chief financial officer and treasurer at O.J. Laughlin Plumbing Co., has been in senior financial management for nearly half a century. While at SLU, he was vice president and controller at Brooks Erection and Construction Co. Friedlein later formed Construction Accounting Services. He is a founding member of the nonprofit Friends of the Dominican Sisters Sparkill-STL. Dr. Linda Heitman (NURS ’87, GRAD NURS ’01) Heitman’s experience as a clinical nurse specialist and coordinator at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, led to a faculty position in the Department of Nursing at Southeast Missouri State University. She specializes in cardiovascular nursing and has presented nationally and internationally on clinical nursing topics. Thomas Hillmeyer (COOK ’64) Hillmeyer worked for his family’s wholesale meat business during college. After graduation, he became a managing partner and owner-operator for two St. Louis McDonald’s restaurants. He advanced with the company and retired in 2015. He also helped open the first St. Louis Ronald McDonald House Charity and served on the Ronald McDonald-St. Louis board for nine years. Patrick Lee (PARKS ’59) Lee’s engineering skills enabled him to create his own company, Enidine Inc., a manufacturer of shock-absorption and vibration-isolation products. A holding company, International Motion Control, formed in 1996, grew into a worldwide conglomerate. After its sale, Lee established the Patrick P. Lee Foundation, which supports scholarships at Parks College, among other endeavors. J. Barry McCormick (IT ’62, GRAD IT ’67) McCormick joined the McDonnell Aircraft Corp. as an instrumental engineer. His work landed him at Edwards Air Force Base in California, where he oversaw flight testing for the F-15 fighter aircraft. By the 1990s, he was manager of advanced planning on the National Aerospace Plane Program. He has been a professor at Fontbonne University and an active volunteer. J. Breezer Rickey (GRAD SW ’92) Rickey’s drive to help others led her from Chicago to Calcutta, India, where she worked with Mother Teresa. She has dealt with isolated populations: children with HIV/AIDS, women struggling with homelessness and mental illness, and neighborhoods overrun by gang violence. She has been a dean of student affairs in China and a faculty member at Loyola University-Chicago. Michael Riley Sr. (DOISY ’75) Riley is founder and president of Professional Therapy Services, which provides care to hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, home health agencies and freestanding outpatient clinics. He is also the president of the Illinois Physical Therapy Association and a member of the advisory board for SLU’s Department of Physical Therapy. Dr. William Sly (MED ’57) An internationally known physician and scientist, Sly was the inaugural holder of SLU’s James B. and Joan C. Peters Endowed Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Microbiology. An emeritus professor since 2014, Sly is credited with significant research contributions, including leading the first group to describe a patient with MPS VII, also known now as “Sly syndrome.” Dr. Margaret Vandeven (GRAD ED ’14) Vandeven most recently was Missouri’s commissioner of education. She began her education career as a communication arts teacher. She taught English and was a school administrator in Maryland and Missouri, and later earned tenure at the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. She is passionate about ensuring all Missouri students are prepared for post-secondary success. Saint Louis University’s annual Alumni Merit Awards recognize exceptional alumni and acknowledge their success. Below are the 2017 honorees, who were recognized during Homecoming and Family Weekend in September. 2017 Alumni Merit Awards five years, his teams have won a state championship and three local league championships, and have achieved three Top-10 finishes at nationals. Dr. Richard Shaw (MED) is a family physician with Regal Medical Group, a primary care group in Simi Valley, California. 1992 Dr. Terry Jo Vetters Bichell (NURS) earned a doctorate in neuroscience from Vanderbilt University in 2016. She completed a Master of Public Health and midwifery certification at Boston University in 2007, working as a nurse-midwife until her youngest child was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome. She now serves as the director and scientific officer of the Angelman Biomarkers and Outcome Measure Alliance. She lives in Brentwood, Tennessee. Alice Kelly (A&S ’92, LAW ’96) joined the Chicago office of Ice Miller in the litigation and intellectual property group. She “married a Cubs fan but makes it work.” Jennie (Del Cecato) MacGoy (A&S) opened a yoga studio, Breathe with Jennie, where she teaches vinyasa and yin yoga. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, Jon, and four children — all yoga practitioners. Michael Miglioranzi (GRAD A&S) retired from the Air Force in 2006 and has been an Air Force Junior ROTC high school instructor in Daytona Beach for 11 years. He has two sons, and he and his wife of 33 years, Julie, enjoy life in Florida and cruise travel. 1993 Dr. Tracey (Handal) Clark (A&S) earned a doctorate in education from Maryville University. She is the reading specialist at Kirkwood High School and lives in Webster Groves, Missouri, with her husband, Chris Clark, and three children, Jack, Kathryn and Cillian. Tim Curtin (A&S) and his family made the move from Abuja, Nigeria, to San Salvador, El Salvador, in late 2016. He continues his work as a foreign service officer for the U.S. Agency for International Development, managing education programs focused on poor and vulnerable communities. Marie (Waller) Higgins (COOK) published a book, Sprouting Spiritual Growth: A Memoir and Guide to Spiritual Journaling. In 2009 she left corporate America after more than 15 years in human resources management and became a massage therapist. Higgins is also a speaker on topics concerning the body, mind and spirit connection. She lives in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. Verna (Pfister) Nelson (DOISY) is a senior clinical specialist with Terumo Medical. She has been happily married for 32 years to her husband, Tom, and has a son, Michael. She lives in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Keith Stilwell (PARKS) recently completed an overseas tour in a Department of the Army civilian position serving as the U.S. Army’s aviation liaison officer to the U.S. Forces Central Command, supporting Army aviation operations throughout the Middle East. 1994 Lisa (Ives) Brunette (A&S) writes books and games. All three books in her Dreamslippers Series won indieBRAG medallions, and the second book was also named a finalist for the Nancy Pearl Book Award and nominated for a RONE Award. Brunette’s game-writing credits include hundreds of titles for Big Fish and other publishers. She also has a long list of bylines as a journalist, short-story writer and poet. She lives in Chehalis, Washington. Monica Lynch (SW) opened a private therapy practice, Counseling Center of Southwestern Illinois, in Freeburg. Dr. Miguel Paniagua (A&S) reported that he ran into several SLU alumni at the National Board of Medical Examiners: Dr. Anna Chang (MED ’00), Dr. Joe Flaherty (MED ’90) and Dr. Gail Furman (NURS ’85, GRAD NURS ’88, GRAD ED ’92). Paniagua lives in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Mary Ellen Ruff (A&S) is an art therapist in the Washington, D.C., area. She has a private practice, runs programs for court-involved youth in Alexandria and is an adjunct faculty member in the graduate art therapy program at George Washington University. Although her work life is busy, she makes time for as much travel as possible and time with family and friends. James Weiss (A&S) was promoted by Fifth Third Bank to Tampa Bay city president and senior commercial banking executive for North Florida. 1995 Hon. Michael C. Blanton (LAW), a federal administrative law judge for the Social Security Administration, transferred from the Tacoma, Washington, Office of Disability Adjudication and Review to the Seattle office in July. Julie (Connors) Taylor (LAW) practices law with her husband, Charles W. Taylor. They opened a second office in September 2016 in University City, Missouri. 1996 Pedro Sañudo Martínez (A&S) moved from Logroño, Spain, where he was working as project manager for Arsys, to work as computer engineer and developer in Fundación Centro Tecnológico in Miranda de Ebro, Spain. Kathryn Miles (A&S) wrote Quakeland: On the Road to America’s Next Devastating Earthquake. She lives in Portland, Maine. 1997 Matt Blevins (DOISY ’97, GRAD, LAW ’03) is the CEO of Barstow Community Hospital in Southern California. Kenneth Danzinger (LAW) is a shareholder at Simmons Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s largest mass torts firms. He lives in Hinsdale, Illinois. Dr. Angela Dietz (A&S ’97, GRAD A&S ’00, ’08), director of digital initiatives for the Missouri Historical Society in St. Louis, received the Missouri Author Award for nonfiction for Capturing the City, which she co-authored with Dr. Joseph Heathcott. Dr. Birdean (Hudson) Williams (GRAD A&S) is a retired psychologist. She lives in Chesterfield, Missouri. 1998 Dr. Malik Ahmed (MED) is a psychiatrist at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. William Corley (GRAD PH) retired as an investigator for the Food and Drug Administration in December 2012 after years of federal service in the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Army, U.S. Farm and Home Administration, and U.S. Food and Drug Administration. He lives in St. Louis. Steven R. Morrison (A&S), an associate professor of criminal law and procedure at the University of North Dakota School of Law, is on the board of directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He also maintains the Morrison Law Practice, a private criminal defense practice. 1999 Carolyn Griesemer (LAW) is the founder and CEO of Children’s Legal Services of San Diego. Anthony Holdener III (A&S) married Julie Knoll in June. They live in Ballwin, Missouri. Katey (Marcinkowski) Howes (DOISY ’99, GRAD DOISY ’01) celebrated the release of her debut picture book, Grandmother Thorn. A second book, Magnolia Mudd and the Super Jumptastic Launcher Deluxe, is scheduled for a January 2018 release. She lives in Chesterfield, New Jersey. Jennifer Parker (A&S ’99, LAW ’02), a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, serves as the staff judge advocate for the Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma, Arizona. C L A S S NOT E S TRUE BLUE FAN FEST SATURDAY, FEB. 3 5 p.m. party; 7 p.m. tip-off Join alumni for the biggest pregame party of the year before the Billikens play the Fordham Rams. alumni.slu.edu/fanfest18 Do you know of an outstanding Saint Louis University alumna or alumnus whom you would like to nominate for the 2018 Alumni Merit Award? Visit alumni.slu.edu/nominationform for more information. Pioneer Award This year, SLU’s Office of Alumni Engagement introduced the Pioneer Award as an annual recognition of an alum who is committed to Jesuit ideals, is a trailblazer in his or her field and whose actions have helped pave the way for others. Any living or deceased alum is eligible. The first Pioneer Award was presented in September. Dr. Stanley L. Anderson (A&S ’91, GRAD A&S ’96, MED ’01) The Kansas City region’s only African-American male OB-GYN physician, Anderson was one of his area’s first da Vinci robotic surgeons. In 2014, he simultaneously chaired the OB-GYN department at HCA Research Medical Center and served patients in two other offices. Anderson also was a preceptor instructor of future doctors for Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. He died in August after battling cancer. 37 WWW.SLU.EDU 36 UNIVERSI TAS WINTER 2018 Amy Rubin (LAW) joined Stock Legal. She lives in St. Louis. 2000 Marlene Hammerman (SW) was honored as a 2017 Woman of Achievement for her social justice efforts by Women of Achievement in St. Louis. She also was named to the University City High School Hall of Fame. For more than 35 years, she has been a social justice and women’s rights activist as a volunteer for the National Council of Jewish Women. Troy Walton (LAW) is president of the Madison County Bar Association. He lives in Glen Carbon, Illinois. 2001 Dr. David B. LeMay (A&S ’01, GRAD ED ’16), principal of Lift for Life Academy High School in St. Louis, earned his Ph.D. in educational leadership from Saint Louis University. Matthew Morrissey (A&S) lives in Omaha, Nebraska, with his wife and two children. 2002 Sam Conedera, S.J. (A&S) entered the Society of Jesus in 2006. In 2014, he began studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, receiving a bachelor’s degree in sacred theology in 2017. Ordained a deacon last spring, Conedera’s training has taken him to Uruguay, Argentina, Mexico, France and Germany. His first assignment is at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Phoenix. James “J.R.” England (COOK) is a partner at Hunton and Williams. He lives in Dallas. Dr. Andrea Lynch (A&S ’02, GRAD A&S ’08) earned a doctorate in education from the National University of Ireland Galway. She lectures and supervises research at NUIG. Joel Blazquez Sargatal (PARKS) moved to San Diego in April after more than 10 years living in several locations across Europe. 2003 Amanda (Addison) Pelletier (COOK) works at BMC Software and lives in Tampa, Florida. She married Paul A. Pelletier II in July 2016 on the beach in St. Petersburg, Florida. Leland Roider (COOK) is a senior vice president at Stifel Financial. He and his wife recently built their dream home and welcomed their first child, Sampson Harland. They live in Waterloo, Illinois. Kristena (Galeski) Rudloff (A&S) and her husband, Peter (A&S ’01), welcomed their first child, Raymond James, in June. They live in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Sarah Wilde-Jockel (A&S ’03, LAW ’08) is an associate attorney at Page Law in Kirkwood, Missouri, practicing domestic law. 2004 Thomas Crocco (LAW) was named Defender of Distinction by the Missouri State Public Defender System. He is the district defender for the 45th Judicial District covering Lincoln and Pike counties. Dr. Brian Hartley (A&S) is vice president for academic affairs, dean of the faculty and professor of theology at Greenville University in Illinois. Danielle (DeLassus) Nicolosi (A&S ’04, GRAD COOK ’08) and Elio Nicolosi (GRAD COOK ’08) welcomed their second daughter, Jade Alexandria, in June. Their first daughter, Clelia, was born in 2014. They live in the Boston area. Dr. Joy Packard-Higgins (GRAD) became principal of Sacred Heart School in Lombard, Illinois, in 2012. She has been principal in both public and private schools in the Chicago area, and has taught graduate and undergraduate classes at Benedictine University. Tamara Vaughn-Walker (A&S) is working to impact positive youth outcomes through policy reform and collaboration as the juvenile justice council coordinator for the St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office in Belleville, Illinois. She and her husband have two young daughters. 2005 Bobby Metzinger (A&S) is a product support sales representative with Yancey Power Systems, the Caterpillar dealership in Atlanta. He lives in the Buckhead neighborhood and is excited to connect with Billikens in Georgia. Dr. Tommy Smith (LAW) is the dean of pharmacy, natural and health sciences at Manchester University in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He has been associate dean of assessment and administration, and has taught pharmacy law courses since joining Manchester University in May 2015. Dr. Burton St. John III (GRAD A&S) is a professor at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and the interim chairman of the communication and theatre arts department. This year he published two books — one on crisis communications and the other on public relations and the corporate persona. He has a third book slated for release that features the previously unpublished writings of PR pioneer Ivy Lee. David Sweeney (LAW) is a member in the St. Louis office of Lewis Rice. 2006 Kevin Antes (COOK) is senior vice president of merger and acquisition financing at Enterprise Bank and Trust. He and his wife, Christine (Prusak) Antes (COOK ’07), and daughters live in Overland Park, Kansas. Dr. Brien Ashdown (GRAD A&S ’06, ’09) received tenure and was promoted to associate professor of cultural psychology and Latin American studies at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Katherine Biagi-Rickert (COOK, SW) is director of stewardship at the Community Foundation of Louisville in Kentucky. Hector Bird (PARKS) completed graduate school at the University of Florida in 2015 to become a physician assistant. He practices emergency medicine in Northwest Florida. Lauren (Bloomfield) Clancy (A&S) is a development coordinator for Saint Louis Effort for AIDS. She and her husband, Sean, have a son, Liam. Michael Hodge (LAW) and his wife, Leanne, have three children, Preston, Dylan and Emily. Hodge has been general counsel for the Special School District of St. Louis County for six years. He recently was named a board member at the World Pediatric Project, a nonprofit that brings lifesaving medical care to children in Central America and the Caribbean. This fall, he was an adjunct professor in the SLU School of Education teaching a school law course to students pursuing master’s degrees in school administration. 2007 Elizabeth (Procknow) Gabriel (A&S ’07, GRAD DOISY ’13) married Jeremy Gabriel in June 2016 in Eagle River, Wisconsin. She is a hospitalist physician assistant in Milwaukee. Dan Greco (COOK) is the director of the new St. Louis office of Thomas McGee, a Midwest risk management company. Joyce Stewart (SW) moved to Southern California and started Holistic Healing Consulting, where she provides counseling services. She has written two books: Interconnected by God: Healing for your Spirit, Soul and Body, and God is Love: A Spiritual Journey from Fear to Love. Dr. Rick Wilson (GRAD COOK) was granted tenure and promoted to associate professor of marketing at Texas State University in San Marcos. 2008 Carly (Caminiti) Barner (A&S) married David Barner in August. The couple lives in Boston and is active in the young adult group at St. Cecilia Parish. David Deterding (LAW) is a partner at the litigation firm HeplerBroom. He lives in Columbia, Illinois. Dr. Sarah Kuehnle (A&S ’08, MED ’13) and Jared Walsh (A&S ’08, LAW ’11) were married in September at St. Francis Xavier College Church. She works as an ER doctor at St. Anthony’s Medical Center, and he clerks for a federal judge in southern Illinois. They live in Sunset Hills, Missouri. Peter J. LeBlanc Jr. (LAW) is an associate at the law firm of Shands, Elbert, Gianoulakis and Giljum. He lives in St. Louis. Katie Lewis (A&S) wrote a book of short stories called Cheers, Somebody. In July, she and her husband, Brian Laczko (A&S) welcomed Aviva Rose. They live in Nashville, Tennessee. Erin Luke (LAW) was one of the “Five to Watch in Law” in Crain’s Cleveland Business in April. After law school, she practiced in St. Louis as a construction lawyer until 2014, then moved to Cleveland to join Thompson Hine’s construction group. She is married to Jonathan Todd (LAW), who is of counsel in the transportation group at Benesch law firm. Luke is also on the leadership committee of the Cleveland SLU Alumni Club. Madeline (Brophy) Murack (A&S) married Brett Murack at St. Monica’s Catholic Church in Dallas. She works as a realtor. Dr. Jason Burke Murphy (GRAD P&L) was awarded tenure and promoted to associate professor of philosophy at Elms College in Chicopee, Massachusetts. He published “Plato, Habermas, and the Demonic Cobb” in The Philosophy of Christopher Nolan. He also has had photographs published in THAT Literary Review, Meat for Tea, Freeze Ray and Blinders Literary Journal, and had poetry published in the Dead Mule Literary Review. David Shirley (PARKS) is assistant general manager of the MN Wind Chill, Minnesota’s pro ultimate Frisbee team. He has played on the team for four years and “would love to give free tickets to any SLU alumni in the area.” He also works at Medtronic as a senior risk and reliability engineer. 2009 Emily Farinacci (A&S, COOK) is a corporate lawyer at Thompson Hine in Cleveland. Sufia (Alikhan) Orbe (A&S ’09, LAW ’12) and Jeff Orbe (PARKS ’10, PARKS ’11) were married at St. Francis Xavier College Church in July. 2010 Jessica Bauer (A&S) is president of Aurora Sinai Medical Center and Aurora St. Luke’s South Shore in Milwaukee. Dr. Amanda “Mandi” (Kimber) Chu (MED) is in a private practice radiology group in St. Charles, Missouri. She and her husband have a son. Lucy (Duethman) French (NURS) and Tim French (COOK) were married in September 2016 in Kansas City, Missouri. She is a pediatric ICU nurse at Stanford, and Tim is a field marketing manager at Equinix. They live in San Francisco. Many SLU alumni were in the wedding and attended. Dr. Tyler Gibb (LAW ’10, GRAD ’15) is the co-founding chief of the program in medical ethics, humanities and law at Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. Nico Gibson (A&S) is a senior designer at Digital Kitchen working on everything from branding and environmental design to title sequences for HBO and Netflix. He worked previously at MNML, a product design and brand incubator in Chicago. He recently married Montse Lusarreta in Mexico City. Melinda Krum (A&S) is an investment representative at American Century Investment in Kansas City, Missouri. Sean Long (COOK) married Caley M. Creech in June in St. Louis. He graduated from Washington University with an MBA in May. Lauren (Lobosky) Sullivan (PARKS) married Sean Sullivan (PARKS ’09) in July 2015. They live in Mooresville, North Carolina, and continue their interest in auto racing along with some alumni in the area, Steven Sander (PARKS) and James Dieckhaus (PARKS ’12). 2011 Brittany Beggs (GRAD A&S) joined the WRCB weather team in Tennessee in June. She previously was a meteorologist in Columbia, Missouri, for nearly four years. Beggs started her career in Hagerstown, Maryland, as the chief meteorologist; during her time there, she covered Superstorm Sandy on the eastern seaboard. In 2015 she received the CBM Seal from the American Meteorological Society. In her free time, she enjoys hot yoga, hiking and exploring the Tennessee Valley with her husband, Kevin. Amelia Blanton Hibner (A&S) married Nathaniel Hibner in October 2016 at St. Louis University (St. Louis, Mo.), http://www.geonames.org/4407081 http://cdm17321.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/alumni/id/472

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