Scholarships, distinguished alumni and student success Greetings from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay! Student scholarships and rising costs are topics of this Inside UW-Green Bay, but the real focus, as always, is people — our alumni, students, faculty, staff and the many private citizens who assist and encourage student success. This University is rich in examples of campus and community scholarship donors giving back to the next generation. That generosity reverberates when UW-Green Bay graduates, most from Northeastern Wisconsin and many from modest backgrounds, go on to become difference-makers themselves. Two prominent personalities are featured here. Mark King ’81, whose global sales strategy made TaylorMade-adidas the world’s largest golf manufacturer, is today a UWGB scholarship supporter. Julie Wojta ’12 is a rising star, an amazing athlete and talented accounting student with an exceedingly bright future. Later this month, UW-Green Bay will present one of its Distinguished Alumni Awards to the remarkable Mrs. Maria Hinton ’79. When she graduated she was the oldest person to receive a UW-Green Bay degree, at 68, and she went on to teach at the Oneida tribal school for more than two decades. In truth, her “retirement” at age 91 freed time for major projects including an oral dictionary of the endangered Oneida language with friend and fellow linguist Prof. Cliff Abbott (below). Also honored at Alumni Awards Night on April 28 will be nationally respected surgeon and cancer researcher Dr. Mokenge Malafa ’82, whose path to UW-Green Bay started in a small village in Cameroon. We will recognize outstanding young alumni in Jacqueline Frank ’00 and Dr. Laura Rammer ’01. It promises to be a special evening. We cap the semester in grand fashion on May 12, when the 800-strong Class of Spring 2012 joins the ranks of UWGB’s 30,000 alumni. We anticipate a full house at the Kress Events Center and another record graduating class. Although I have presided at many such ceremonies over the years, I always share anew the participants’ excitement. Graduates are thrilled, friends and family and professional mentors are proud, and it’s a day that never fails to remind me how lives are changed when we help others pursue their dreams. The next Mokenge Malafa, Maria Hinton or Mark King will be crossing the stage that day — even if we don’t yet recognize all their names. It all ties together. To those of you who in any way contribute to student success, commencement is your celebration, too. Thank you for your ongoing interest in this University, and your continuing support, and Go Phoenix!
Thomas K. Harden Chancellor