Allen Alumni Magazine - Fall 2023, Issue 3

allenalumni ISSUE 3 | FALL 2023

IN THIS ISSUE:

Endowment Board of Directors Nikki Peters | Angel Kaufman | Brett Lisher | Blake Mueller | Kay Lewis | Kim Ensminger |Hannah Brown | Mark Larson | Kristin Ballard | Jessica McGinnis| Toni Manbeck | Nathan Cope | Emily Baughn | Preston Frazell

3 See the Impact Graduates & Alumni

Campus News

5

See what Allen is up to

Administration Bruce Moses

Allen Community College President

9 Centennial Celebration 100 years of serving students

11

Annual Scholarship Luncheon

Tonya Johnson

Vice President of Finance & Operations

Cynthia Jacobson

Vice President of Student Affairs

Kara Wheeler

Vice President of Academic Affairs

Special connections being shared

13 Red Devil Athletics Latest updates from fall sports

A Parade for the Decades Having fun at Farm City Days

17 Red Devil Relations

15

Learn updates from other Allen Alumni

Find us online at www.allencc.edu/alumni-endowment Email us at endowment@allencc.edu

@AllenCCEndowment

@allenalumni

@allenccalumni

Meet your

ENDOWMENT STAFF: Lauren Maisberger Director of Development O: (620) 901-6218 C: (785) 806-9105 maisberger@allencc.edu

Alison Fees Administrative Assistant of Development & Student Life O: (620) 901-6270 fees@allencc.edu

Allen Alumni Newsletter is published twice a year and maintains the copyright of the materials contained within these pages. All rights are reserved.

Send feedback, updates or questions to Allen Community College, 1801 N. Cottonwood St, Iola, KS 66749, or by emailing maisberger@allencc.edu or calling 620-901-6218.

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SEE THE IMPACT On Saturday, May 6, Allen welcomed over 200 students at commencement, but overall Allen awarded over 300 degrees to students. Commencement was held on campus, in Allen’s gymnasium. There was not a spare seat in sight as loved ones gathered to support our fine students on their achievement.

We are proud of all of our students for their accomplishments. Congrats to all of the graduates! We can’t wait to see what you achieve.

Giving her graduation speech is Student Senate President, Morgan Baska.

Above, Distinguished Alumni, Vicki Curry, speaking at commencement.

Curry also currently sits on Allen’s Board of Trustees.

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Wrapping up on the successes of the last academic year, we want to highlight our donors.

Because of their generosity, the Endowment awarded over 305,000 dollars in scholarships for last year. This is the highest amount that the Endowment has been able to give to our students to date!

We thank you all for your assistance in making this happen. Your support does change lives!

All pictures are courtesy and property of the Iola Register.

WE’RE SEEKING DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI NOMINATIONS

Do you know an outstanding Allen Alumnus who deserves special recognition for their recent or lifetime achievements? Nominate them to be honored as Allen’s 2024 Distinguished Alumni.

Send in your nominations by February 5, 2023 to Allen Endowment for consideration.

Submissions can be sent to endowment@allencc.edu or call us at 620-901-6218.

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CAMPUS NEWS WELCOME WEEK! Each fall, Allen Alumnus ’11, Josiah D’Albini, Director of Student Life and Housing, hosts a Welcome Week for students. This week consists of several on-campus activities to engage the students throughout the week.

This year, the Welcome Week activities included Casino Night, $1 Dairy Queen Night, A Shot of Reality – Educational Speaker, $1 Movie Night and most notably the Block Party. All of these events had a large student turnout. We are thankful to have staff, faculty & administration chip in and help put on these activities for our students. We can’t wait to see more events that unfold throughout the year!

Above are students playing at the craps table with Allen President Bruce Moses.

Court of Appeals Action Our Allen Criminal Justice Program was invited to attend the Kansas Court of Appeals on September 19. Which was held at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center in Iola.

The Court of Appeals travels throughout the state of Kansas to have cases heard in different locations. This experience it allowed the program students to hear three real cases of appeals. Talk about seeing our justice system in action! Over 30 students attended this event and said it was “surreal, yet so intriguing to witness in person.”

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Trail Clean-Up with PTK Allen’s Tau Eta Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa-International Honors Society is active again. One of the hallmarks of the society is service within the community.

Allen students decided to partner with Thrive Allen County to help promote getting outdoors and enjoying the area surrounding Iola. Five students and two PTK advisors participated in this volunteer day.

Students not only participated in maintaining trails at the Lehigh Portland Trail, but volunteers also assisted in caring for the Thrive trail that circles the Allen Community College campus. The group helped clear 40 feet of underbrush, allowing for the lake to be viewable from the main trail.

The How and the Why Production!

Allen Theatre hosted The How and the Why show on campus this fall. Written by a female and having two very talented theatre women in lead roles, Maddie Hodgden and Nautianna Goforth, brought the impact of this show to life.

The play is about a 56-year-old female biologist named Zelda Kahn and a 28-yearold female graduate student in the field of biology named Rachel Hardeman. Zelda is a Professor at Harvard who is very well known for her Grandmother Hypothesis and Rachel is just beginning her career with her own hypothesis about “the how and the why” of human menstruation. Rachel wants to show that she can be the next up-and-coming leader, as Zelda has done.

If you didn’t catch the play, it was emotional, impactful, scientific, and very entertaining to watch. Our theatre department keeps getting better with their performances! Be sure to catch their upcoming shows this spring!

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OUTSTANDING EMPLOYEES Allen was honored to have two League of Innovation Award recipients this past academic year. Travis Robb, Biological Science Instructor and Frankie Chapman, Administrative Assistant to the Athletic Director, were both honored with this recognition.

The League of Innovation Award recognizes outstanding faculty and staff in the community college field who have made a significant difference in their students’ lives and local communities. The winners of these awards are nominated by their peers and voted on by a committee of previous award winners. This is a prestigious award given to selected community college faculty and staff across the United States.

We are very thankful for all that Travis and Frankie do for our students and our community here at Allen. Having employees like them is what helps Allen standout against other community colleges. Join us in congratulating both of them on this outstanding achievement!

Pictured are: Travis Robb, Allen employee for 14 years Frankie Chapman, Allen employee for 30 years

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Once a Red Devil, Forever a Red Devil.

BANK WITH

STAY CONNECTED

ALLEN PRIDE Invest in a custom Allen Community College Debit Card and support Allen at the same time.

They are now available through Community National Bank & Trust. Learn more at: https://www.mybankcnb.com

Allen Endowment sends a newsletter each semester of the academic year.

It’s filled with features from campus, alumni recognitions, special announcements, events, student involvements and what’s to come!

Subscribe by visiting www.allencc. edu/alumni-endowment to update your information and get your newsletter delivered right to your mailbox.

Allen Endowment & Alumni is also active on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter at: @AllenCCEndowment @allenccalumni @allenalumni

GATHER & CELEBRATE Allen Endowment is excitedly planning Centennial Celebration activities and events for 2023 and 2024.

For a complete list of upcoming events, visit allencc.edu/alumni-endowment/allen-centennial

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CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION

T

uesday, September 12, was a day for the history books as Allen celebrated its 100th Anniversary of serving students.

The build for this celebration was through several community events but capped off with a ceremonial celebration. During the celebration, guests were welcomed by Allen President Dr. Bruce Moses and led on tours around the school by several of our Allen athletes, student ambassadors and activity involved students.

After the tours, Iola Chamber of Commerce President Miles Mentzer spoke highly about the importance of Allen in our community and also, in conjunction, our community to Allen.

Following Mentzer’s remarks, the Allen Board of Trustees along with Dr. Moses and Allen’s Director of Development Lauren Maisberger performed a ceremonial ribbon cutting to honor the remarkable milestone Allen achieved.

Pictured above, Allen President Bruce Moses welcomes guests for the event.

Concluding the celebration, patrons, students and employees got to hear from Kansas Rep. Fred Gardner and Lieutenant. Gov. David Toland.

Gardner spoke about how the access to education is not always equal for each person. He reflected upon his time spent in Bangladesh where education is not a priority due to the need to work and survive. Those experiences, Gardner said, made him appreciate the access and commitment to education his family encouraged while he was growing up. He concluded by reminding us that earning a quality education can allow a person to accomplish whatever he or she desires. Allen is helping provide our students with the access, resources and support they need to accomplish their goals.

Pictured on the right are, from left to right, Director of Development Lauren Maisberger, Lt. Gov. David Toland, Allen President Bruce Moses and Kansas Rep. Fred Gardner.

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Pictured from left to right, Miles Mentzer, Bruce Moses, Board Trustee Lonnie Larson, Board Chairman Jenny Spillman, Board Trustee Vicki Curry, Board Trustee Jessica Thompson, Board Trustee Gena Clounch, Lauren Maisberger and Board Trustee Rebecca Nilges.

Lieutenant Governor Toland had similar remarks about how important education is to young adults as well as the importance of being available to students, when they need it. He continued by stating that having a college such as Allen in a smaller community allows the students near us to feel at home while preparing themselves for the next steps in life.

Not only is Allen providing convenience, but quality, due to vast online classes, expansion into more career and technical education programs and offering fundamental general education courses to our students. Toland, who also is Secretary of Commerce and is a native of Iola, spoke about his personal experiences at Allen.

He admired the care, passion and superior support he recieved from his professors. Without the access to Allen, he wouldn’t have stayed on track to reach his goals. We’d like to say he made an excellent choice!

Toland then read the Governor’s Proclamation citing that September 10th, 2023 is the 100th Anniversary of Allen Community College.

A big THANK YOU to all who helped support Allen not only on this celebration day, but every day. We truly appreciate all the love, kindness and support from our Allen community! Here’s to Allen’s next 100 years!

Pictured to the right, Lt. Gov. Toland reading the Governor’s Proclamation.

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24th ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP LUNCHEON Special. That is the word that comes to mind when we see our donors or family members of donors who established endowed scholarships meet the current scholarship recipients. The connections made at this event continue to last long after this lunch.

Over 250 students, donors, board members and Allen colleagues gathered together to share a meal and listen to keynote speaker and alumnus, Gary Amble.

Gary recently retired as a decorated meterologist from KCTV 5 in Kansas City after almost 30 years. During his time at Allen, Gary was a member of the cross country and track teams for two years. Through Allen, Gary met his wife Lori who is also an Allen Alumnus.

His speech to our crowd was one of great wisdom and aspirations. He spoke about his path to Allen, growing up in Iola and at first Allen Community College was the convenient option since he lived in a rural community. But once a part of Allen, he realized how great the opportunity to go to college was. Gary talked about his path after Allen and how the experiences here helped him become who is he today. Gary posed an interesting question to the group to conclude his speech, asking “how can I make it better?”

This phrase was said in order to prompt students to think about their lives and careers now, not to wait until they reach their four year university, trade school or heading into the workforce. Gary encouraged them to think about their opportunities at Allen, and make the most of it.

We thank Gary and his wife Lori who took the time to come speak at our luncheon. We are honored to have so many alumni that have succeeded after Allen but have never forgotten how Allen is a part of them.

Allen Alumni Lori Amble, ’82 and Gary Amble ’78, pose for a picture after the luncheon concluded with Lauren Maisberger.

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Keynote speaker, Gary Amble giving his speech to the luncheon attendees.

We were excited to be joined by new donors at the luncheon this year. This was the first year their endowed scholarships were awarded to students. Congrats to these donors we love to see our scholarship family grow!

Donors Teresa Clounch and Gena Clounch, who established the Eugene & Naomi Clounch Scholarship.

Donors Marsha Burris and Oliver Bunker ,who established the St. Timothy’s Episcopal Scholarship.

Donors Paula Brown, Lee Brown and Susan Brown, who established the M. Lee Brown Family Scholarship.

Donors and students enjoying their lunch with one another.

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RED DEVIL ATHLETICS

OUR NEW FACES

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Patrick Nee, new Head Men’s Basketball Coach, may look familiar to some of you. Nee previously coached at Allen in the 2021-2022 season as assistant coach under Andy Shaw.

Nee left Allen to be the Head Coach at Northern Oklahoma College. After one year at NOC, Nee has returned to Allen. He brings with him, also from Northern Oklahoma, his assistant, Tyre Pinder.

CROSS COUNTRY

VOLLEYBALL Meet Maria Aikins, new Volleyball Head Coach at Allen. Aikins hails from Hutchinson where she recently finished coaching at Hutchinson High School for the past six seasons. Out of those six seasons, three included making 5A state appearances.

During her final season at Hutchinson High, Aikins and her team set a best overall record in school history, finishing 33-5. Her team also earned several accolades upon her final season with them including a third place finish at 5A State and 2023 Program of the Year.

Aikins earned League Coach of the Year and 5A Coach of the Year for such an impressive season.

Aikins’s husband, James will serve as her assistant coach this year. We are thrilled to have Maria and James at Allen.

#AllenPride

The cross country had an excellent season this year. The men finished 3rd in the conference and 5th in the region. Sophomore Prince Ntozo was able to achieve 3rd place in conference and overall 14th in region. The men finished with a ranking of 9th in the nation and qualified to compete at Nationals in Atlanta, Georgia. Allen also had two women individually qualify for Nationals too.

We are very proud of all the accomplishments this season and look forward to the spring track season!

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MEN’S SOCCER The team ended the season with an overall record of 8-5-4 and was ranked within the top 20 in the nation all year long. Their season ended with an overtime lost in the Central Plains District finals game to Neosho Community College. Several players are to be named All-Conference and All-Region for their performances.

A few key successes the team accomplished this season were beating the #10 team in the nation, Johnson County Community College, and #18, Southeast Community College. Congrats to the men’s team on another great season!

VOLLEYBALL The Lady Red Devils finished the regular season 19-9, under first year Head Coach, Maria Aikins, which is the best overall record since record keeping for volleyball started in the mid 1990s. The team advanced to the post-season, winning the first round of playoffs against Kansas City Kansas Community College and advancing to the championship.

In the championship match, they faced the #1 ranked team in the nation, Cowley Community College, who had a record of 36-0 (only dropping 4 sets all season).

The team lost the final match in 3 sets, ending their tremendous season 20-10.

Noting that this was the first time in program history, the team advanced to the campionship game in the conference tournament. Head Coach Maria Aikins said, “This was a special group. They bought in and did not want to give up, especially hitting tough losses early on.”

FALL SPORTS

We can’t wait to see what successes this program can bring in the future.

Congratulations ladies!

WOMEN’S SOCCER The women’s soccer team finished this season with a record of 9-5 and ranked #20 in the nation. The Lady Red Devils won their first round semifinal game against #10 in the nation, Neosho Community College.

Allen Head Coach Jeremy McGinnis secured his 100th win at Allen with this playoff victory! We wish him a big congratulations on this accomplishment!

The team ultimately fell in the final of the Region tournament to #7 ranked Johnson Community College. This year was another successful year for our women’s program that continues to perform as one of the best D2 women’s soccer teams in the nation.

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A PARADE FOR THE DECADES In celebration of Allen’s 100 year celebration, we decided to join in on the local Farm City Days event. Farm City Days was established as a celebration of the rural fellowship and comaraderie between farmers and city folk. This event brings hundreds of people both locally and regionally to participate.

Our parade entry consisted of a decade themed approach that would represent all the decades Allen has been serving education to students, and our students highlighted the 1920’s - the present. Allen’s fabulous Theatre Department not only participated but helped create the costumes that were worn in the parade. The success at this event is largely attributable to them.

Not only did we have students in decade themed costumes, but we also had several athletes, clubs and our international students walk as well! It was so fun showing off the diversity that Allen has on campus and what opportunities there are to be involved in.

Check out some of the highlights from our parade walk , courtesy of the Iola Register newspaper. We love the community engagement and outreach our students do!

We are definetly ALLEN PROUD! PAGE 15

All pictures are courtesy and property of the Iola Register.

GEAR

SHOP ALLEN

CHECK OUT ALL OF THE OPTIONS AT IOLA JOCK’S NITCH! ESPECIALLY THEIR ALLEN ALUMNI SECTION! connect with them on Facebook @jocksnitchiola

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RED DEVIL RELATIONS

1960s John Masterson, was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award from Emporia State University, the highest honor Emporia State gives.

1970s Gary Amble, ’78 retired after almost 30 years with KCTV-5.

1980s Teresa Clounch, ’85, was recognized by the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA) Foundation, as a 2024 “Pillars of the Profession.” honoree.

1990s Jon Shockley, ’96, started a new position as Senior Claims Representative at Farm Bureau Financial Services.

2000s Kenna Burns, ’04, celebrated over 14 years as Housing Director at East Central Kansas Community Action Agency.

Nikki Peters, ’08, graduated with a Master of Business Administration and Management from Emporia State University.

2010s Josiah D’Albini, ’11, graduated with a Master of Science in Student Affairs for Leadership in Higher Education from Baker University Toni Manbeck, ’12, is the new owner of Audacious Boutique in Iola, Kansas.

Emily Steimel-Handy, ’13, started a position as Statewide Training & Education Coordinator at the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence PAGE 17

Matthew Lara, ’14, was promoted to the Chief of Staff at the Kansas Department of Heath and Environment.

Travis Bryan, ’15, started a new position as KC-135 Instructor Pilot at United States Air Force.

Stefano Pezzino, ’16, graduated from the University of Kansas with a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree.

Riley Murry , ’18, graduated from the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy with her Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.).

2020s Erica Yvette Garcia, ’22 was the 2023 National Runner-Up Miss Agriculture USA.

In Memoriam of Friends of Allen Nelda Cuppy ’62, passed away on June 17, 2023.

Don Snavely, ’79, passed away on October 5, 2023.

DeWayne Vance, Iola, passed away on October 2, 2022.

Larry Manes, Moran, passed away on May 3, 2023.

SHARE YOUR NEWS! WHERE HAS ALLEN TAKEN YOU?

Share your news, life updates, accomplishments, and any celebrations to be included in the next issue of the Allen Alumni Magazine. Submit your highlights to: https://www.allencc.edu/alumni-endowment/alumni-update-form We look forward to hearing from you!

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1801 N Cottonwood St, Iola, KS 66749

www.allencc.edu

JOIN THE LEGACY Do you know someone who is interested in becoming a Red Devil?

At Allen, you can begin pursuing any dream you have. You are a crucial part of a community of support and success that knows anything you believe you can achieve. Our goal at Allen is to help guide you to your finish line, but it’s up to you to start your journey!

admissions@allencc.edu

620-901-6268

ALLENCC.EDU