P AR L E U S M INDI E N NO T T ’ SE SM E S S A G E
A Holy Cross Education Unites Students and Alumni Across Decades Lori najvar, MLA ’05
George E. Martin, PhD
President George E. Martin talks with Ramin Pouriran, ’09, after the Medallion Ceremony welcoming freshmen into the university’s academic community in August.
St. Edward’s University Board of Trustees Officers Chair, Myra A. McDaniel Vice Chair, Peter Winstead Treasurer, F. Gary Valdez, MBA ’78 Secretary, Stephen Jones, MBA ’94
Members Mike Aviles John Bauer, ’62 Brother Donald Blauvelt, CSC, ’67 Roxann Thomas Chargois Manuel Chavez Margaret E. Crahan Brother Richard Critz, CSC, ’72 Isabella Cunningham Brother Richard Daly, CSC, ’61 Carolyn Lewis Gallagher Timothy F. Gavin, ’76 Brother Richard Gilman, CSC, ’65 Monsignor Elmer Holtman Margie Diaz Kintz Gregory A. Kozmetsky, ’70 Margaret Krasovec, MBA ’98 Edward E. Leyden, ’64 Sister Amata Miller, IHM Victor Miramontes
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John Mooney Pat Munday, ’97 Kevin O’Connor, ’73 Marilyn O’Neill, ’74 Theodore R. Popp, ’60 J. William Sharman Jr., hs ’58 Jim A. Smith Ian J. Turpin Duncan Underwood, ’95 Donna Van Fleet Melba Whatley
Ex Officio George E. Martin James E. Payne Eliseo Elizondo, ’87, MBA ’98 Amhir Hidalgo, ’06
T r u s t e e s Em e r i t i Charles A. Betts Edward M. Block, ’50 Guy Bodine, hs ’68 Leslie Clement Fred D. George, ’69 Lavon P. Philips, ’74 Bill Renfro
As I write this letter, the university is welcoming 650 new freshmen to campus. In 1999, when we began our plan to grow, the freshman class had 368 students. The young men and women who have recently joined the St. Edward’s community differ in many ways from the alumni you will meet in this issue. They are more diverse ethnically, racially and socioeconomically. They come from a greater number of regions in Texas and the United States. Given our recent retention rates, about 85 percent of them are expected to continue on to their sophomore year at St. Edward’s and eventually be part of the largest graduating class in the university’s history. After graduation they will enter a world very different from that of their predecessors. No longer is the world economy dominated by the United States, as it was as little as 40 years ago. Emerging economies like those of India and China are redistributing market share, wealth and influence. Culture and religion now compete with nationalistic interests and values to influence world events. And war is waged, anywhere and at any time, by loosely organized, semi-autonomous groups motivated by ideology and the desire to upset the world order. These global developments require a new approach to higher
education, a shift that St. Edward’s is anticipating with the curriculumwide global education initiative currently being developed. Today’s students must become more familiar with the perspectives and practices of other societies around the globe. And, in a world inundated with information, they must learn how to ask the right questions, evaluate data and create new knowledge. With these skills, students can adapt successfully to the changes that swirl around them. Yet, for all these differences, our newest students have much in common with our alumni. They seek a learning community in which small classes allow for meaningful dialogue among students and faculty. They define success, both professionally and personally, as a life that is guided by ethical and moral principles. Serving others in the hope of realizing social justice is as important as any personal gain that might come from the rewards of one’s career. Our students and more than 20,000 alumni are united across decades and generations by the Holy Cross commitment to educate both the mind and the heart. That commitment assures the university’s future and gives rise to much optimism in the face of daunting change. ■