THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE OF CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSIT Y S P R I N G 2 014
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CBU: We Innovate low-cost laptops to animation
program in Memphis class of physician assistants...
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FROM THE PRESIDENT:
t this writing, all of us at CBU are preparing to celebrate the graduation of our Class of 2014. We are extremely proud of these graduates, as we are of every graduating class that preceded them, and we are confident that they will distinguish themselves as each generation of alumni has, continuing to make us proud as they go forward in their professional, personal, and civic lives. When looking at the broad theme of this issue—innovation—let’s all consider the promise that these new graduates offer. They will follow in the grand tradition of CBU alumni, paving fresh new paths and finding faster, more efficient ways to traverse our established paths. This is, ultimately, what they’ve been taught to do at CBU. We don’t teach our students to simply memorize, to be repositories of the knowledge that is imparted in their classrooms and labs. We teach them to think. We teach them to take that newly acquired knowledge and use it
to learn something else, something new. In other words, we teach them to innovate. CBU is, after all, the product of innovation. The De La Salle Christian Brothers originated as innovators in education, founded by a true pioneer in the field. The ideas of St. John Baptist de La Salle—classroom teaching, instruction in common vernacular, integrating religious and secular subject matter, wellprepared teachers, universal access to education—may be the norm today, but they were considered radical at the time. Always following the example of the Brothers, we’re continuing to innovate at CBU, individually as indicated by the stories of students, faculty, and alumni in this issue, but also collectively as an institution by growing new programs, initiatives, and facilities, both on our campus and as an active partner with the larger Memphis community. By the time you read this, the members of the Class of 2014 will have graduated and will be taking their first steps toward the future that CBU prepared them to build.
That future is full of promise. Our exemplary faculty has taught them well, not only in their academic studies and fields of expertise but also in the core principles of ethics and community engagement. Our alumni and friends have, through their generosity, made it possible for them to begin that future with far less financial burden than the graduates of many other universities. I close with an open invitation to our readers. Maybe you’re an alumnus, maybe you’re the parent of an alumnus or current student, maybe you are already a friend and partner of CBU, and maybe you’re only a casual acquaintance who might be interested in learning more about us. My invitation to all of you is simple. Come visit us. Connect with us. Learn more about what CBU is doing—how we innovate—and about everything we will be doing in the near future. We are always happy to share our history, our mission, and our dreams. They’re well worth sharing, and we’re confident that you’ll want to share them too.
JOHN SMARRELLI JR., PhD, President B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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Dear Bucs:
Published by the CBU Office of Advancement Non-profit postage is paid at Memphis, TN. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to: CBU Office of Advancement, Attn: Bell Tower 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104 —————————————————————— BELL TOWER EDITOR/DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGIES Cory Dugan SENIOR DIRECTOR OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS & DONOR RELATIONS Wendy Sumner-Winter (’05)
must begin my last letter as Alumni Board president by congratulating our most recent graduates, the class of 2014, whom I hope will take full advantage of the privileges that come with being a CBU alum. I believe CBU alumni are well-positioned to strongly influence the university’s future. Our alumni span the globe, and we want to keep you involved with the university wherever you are. I hope you will get involved with all of the great cultural, academic and athletic programs and events that the Alumni Association sponsors and organizes. Our programs provide a great opportunity to connect with fellow alums, share our common past, and maintain a connection to the university. Looking back over the last two years during which I’ve been privileged to serve as president, I am proud of the strides we have made to move the Alumni Association and the University forward. The National Alumni Board has created a strategic plan to lay a foundation for the future success of the Association. Our points of focus are university support, resource development, community involvement, and alumni and student engagement. We have created new programs to support those goals. In just two years, the Bell Tower Gala, sponsored by the Association, has added over $200,000 to the Annual Fund. The CBU Proven program matches School of Business students with CBU alumni currently employed in their fields of interest to mentor them and give them valuable real-world experiences. Working with Career Services, we have participated in Lunch & Learns to share expertise with current students. We have logged many hours working alongside students and faculty during September of Service. This fall, we are rolling out a Career Roadshow, where we will take students on a road trip to Houston and New Orleans to meet with alumni to network and explore opportunities in those areas. I will close with the exhortation I gave to the newest members of our Association at this year’s Commencement. Wherever you go in life, I hope that you will take very seriously your role as ambassadors of this institution. Speak well of us, and of your time here. Never take for granted this community of which you are and will always be a part. Be Lasallian in all of your actions. Sincerely,
Matt Johnson (’09)
President, National Alumni Board
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SENIOR DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI & VOLUNTEER DEVELOPMENT Karen S. Viotti (’02) DIRECTOR OF CREATIVE SERVICES Jacob Edwards DIRECTOR OF ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS Eric Opperman COORDINATOR OF EXTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS & SOCIAL MEDIA Myiesha Griffin EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS Richard Alley, Christina Brown, Hannah Evon (’15), Johnnie Sue Huddleston (’14), Jessica Love (’16) Claire Rutland (’16), Alvin Siow (’14) —————————————————————— UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION PRESIDENT John Smarrelli Jr., Ph.D. SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR ADVANCEMENT Steve Crisman BOARD OF TRUSTEES, 2014-15 John Mitchell Graves (’83), CHAIRMAN Joseph F. Birch Jr. (’78), VICE CHAIR Richard T. Gadomski (’62), VICE CHAIR Robert G. McEniry, VICE CHAIR Joyce A. Mollerup, SECRETARY Stephen T. Dunavant (’83), TREASURER Dr. James W. Adams II (’80) Louis F. (Bo) Allen Jr. (’95) H. Wayne Brafford Bena Cates Brother Konrad Diebold Brother Chris Englert (’77) H. Lance Forsdick Sr. (’61) William W. Graves Emily Sawyer Greer (’84) Monsignor Valentine Handwerker Matthew Johnson (’09) Christopher Koch Jr. (’87) Brother Bernard LoCoco Douglas J. Marchant Pastor Keith Norman Lori M. Patton (’91) Dr. Barbara U. Prescott Brother Michael F. Quirk James L. Reber (’82) Brother Larry Schatz Joshua Shipley (’01) John Smarrelli Jr., Ph.D. Stephen L. Waechter (’72) Dr. Margaret H. West Laurel C. Williams (’82) H. McCall Wilson Jr. (’89)
THE A LU M NI MAGA Z INE OF CHR ISTIA N B R OTHER S UNI VERSI T Y
SP R I N G 2 014 Just Like CSI: (With Numbers)
Think accounting isn’t exciting? Think again — forensic accounting is the hot new field and CBU’s newest concentration.
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The First in Their Class
CBU graduates the first class of physician assistants in Memphis.
One Entrepreneur at a Time
CBU Enactus, a new student organization, sets its sights on changing the community.
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Dustin and Dylan Perry (’10) carry on the Lasallian mission in their lives and careers.
Meet the five women who make up the newest class of Fellows. Bell Tower Gala .............................................................. 42 Athletic Hall of Fame .................................................. 44 CBU Deckhands ............................................................. 46
Class Notes
1950 & 1960s ................................. 5 1970s ............................................ 11 1980s ........................................... 19 1990s .......................................... 36 2000s ........................................ 40 2010s ........................................ 47
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SEND YOUR PHOTOS TOO! Digital photos should be a minimum of 1200 x 1800 pixels. SEND ADDRESS CHANGES to Bell Tower, CBU Office of Advancement, 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104.
Whenever you see this red “video play” button with an article, look for a “video extra” online at www.cbu.edu/belltower.
FRONT COVER BY JACOB EDWARDS
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Starting from Scratch
From distance education and low-cost laptops to animation software for children, Dr. Juan Carlos Olabe-Basogain finds ways to bring education to the whole world.
Lichens & Tigers & Snakes (Oh My)
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From measuring heavy metal pollutants to counting reptiles, Lynda Miller takes her laboratory into the local parks and waterways.
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In Memoriam .................................. 51 SEND NEWS FOR CLASS NOTES to CBU Alumni Office, 650 East Parkway South, Memphis TN 38104. Or send email to alumni@cbu.edu.
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Brothers for the Brothers
2014 CBU Lasallian Fellows Photo Albums
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Returning Heroes
Wes Parker (’87) volunteers to help veterans of D-Day and the Battle of the Bulge revisit the sites that won WWII
Castings: The Best of 2014
Bell Tower co-publishes the winning enrtries in CBU’s annual literary and arts journal.
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Taking Offense (to the Next Level)
Buc head coach Mike Nienaber explains the Princeton Offense and how he came to install it in CBU’s basketball program.
Faculty/Staff News: New Faces in CFO and AD positions .......... 7 CBU Loses a Legend: Rest in Peace, Coach Nate ........................ 39 Back Page: CBU Champions Come Home ...................................... 52
B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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JUST LIKE
Think accounting isn’t exciting? Think again: A forensic accountant was the only person who could take down the well-known mobster Al Capone. In fact, now-famous forensic accountant Frank J. Wilson was not only responsible for putting away one of the most feared mobsters in history, but he was also instrumental in the capture and prosecution of kidnapper Bruno Hauptmann for the Lindbergh baby case. These are just a few high profile examples of the ever-growing problem society faces with fraudulent businesses. This is where ethical and effective accountants and forensic accountants come in, and the School of Business at CBU is stepping up to the plate with some exciting innovations to an already strong undergraduate accounting major. The new Master of Accounting (MAcc) degree program will arm our graduates with the skills they need to make a positive impact in the world of business. The MAcc degree program offers two different concentrations: one in Forensic Accounting with courses in
BY CHRISTINA BROWN
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Information Security, Compliance Auditing and Forensic Accounting, and a concentration in Financial Management with courses in Accounting Systems as Controls, Asset Valuation and Business Strategy, and Cost Accounting for the Healthcare Industry. The Forensic Accounting concentration is one of a select few on-campus programs in the nation. CBU has a strong department of fulltime accounting professors already and has recently added one dynamic adjunct lecturer to the roster for the forensic accounting concentration, Joe Ford III, who is himself an experienced forensic accountant. “As a forensic accountant, I have always thought it was important for universities to offer training to prepare those students who have an interest in litigation support or the investigation of financial crime,” Ford said. “There are only a few universities nationwide that offer a master’s program with a Forensic Accounting focus. When I discovered that CBU was planning to offer their new Master of Accountancy program with a Forensic focus, I was excited. I have had the opportunity to review the courses that will be offered and have come away very impressed with the program. If you have an interest in becoming a fraud fighter, the Master of Accountancy program at Christian Brothers University will prepare you for service in corporations and government agencies involved in fraud investigation.” Prior to joining the faculty, Ford held a lecture at CBU entitled “Busted!
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William J. Kelty and his wife, Mary Joan (Siena ’59), celebrated 54 years of marriage on June 13, 2013.
Thomas D. McCarthy and Gerry Cody sold their house in Traverse City, MI and now spend roughly half of of each year in Ireland. When were in the U.S., they live in their motor home.
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Walter Sheldon is looking forward to the Class of 1960’s 55th renunion at CBU in 2015!
Bob Luka and Fran Pung Luka (Siena College) celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary on October 12, 2013. Phase One of the celebration was a river cruise out of Paris.
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PHOTO BY CHRISTINA BROWN
Joe Ford III and Dr. Jennifer Weske with future forensic accountants.
Fraudsters, Cheaters, and Thieves!” on financial fraud that was sponsored by the student chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) and professional business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi. The lecture was a popular event and the impetus for his future coursework. Thanks to dedicated faculty in the Accounting department, CBU’s undergraduates now have the option of enrolling in this program as fifth-year students—which allows them to meet the 150 hours requirement for the CPA exam. As the accounting programs at CBU continue to grow, innovate, and offer progressive education in this highly
specialized field, our graduates will be better prepared than ever to meet the demands of today’s competitive job market. As assistant professor Dr. Jennifer Weske reports, “With more than 1,000 accounting alums working for more than 375 different companies in 39 states—500 in Tennessee alone—CBU has an excellent reputation for providing outstanding practitioners in the field. More than 91 percent of 2012 CBU graduates with a bachelor’s degree in accounting are employed in the field and the accounting field is expected to grow by 22 percent within the next five years.” Just wait. A CBU accounting alumnus could well be the next Frank J. Wilson.
Phase Two was a party upon their return with friends in attendance from Memphis, Chicago, Denver, and San Diego. George Whitworth retired to a lakefront community south of St Louis with his wife, Jackie (Siena College) and celebrated their 47th anniversary this year. They have four children and four grandchildren. George and Jackie are looking forward to hearing from their CBU and Siena classmates.
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The engineering faculty at CBU selected Dr. Chadwick Baker as the recipient of the 2013 Memphis Area Joint Engineers Council MJEC Featured Engineer Award for his excellence in teaching and contributions to the university and
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community. John Dlouhy retired in June of 2011 from HDR Inc., in Phoenix and is enjoying life travelling, both in his motor home and abroad. He and his wife, Teresa, celebrated their 33rd anniversary last August. Jagdish Doshi is very successful in his career as a mechanical engineer, working at the same job in the HVAC field for the past 45 years. “CBU gave me the best education,” he says.
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spring 2014 B E LL TOWE R fall 2013
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the First in Their
First Graduating Class of Physician Assistants in Memphis BY MYIESHA GRIFFIN
he United States is a great country to provide disease management, and there are very talented individuals in Memphis to do that,” stated Dr. Mark John Scott, director of the Physician Assistant Studies Program at CBU. “But we don’t do a good job at healthcare.” This spring, Christian Brothers University will claim the distinction of graduating the first class of physician assistants educated in the city of Memphis — 31 of the students who were admitted into the first cohort of the city’s first PA program. “To be a part of not only the first master’s class in Physician Assistant Studies program at CBU, but also the first in the city of Memphis, is truly an honor,” said Cecilia Maxwell (’14). “I am proud to say that we have set the mark which other physician assistant students and programs may follow. To be a part of the first class is truly a humbling experience.” Scott says that the program is not only groundbreaking, but is also much needed in the city. “The fact that this is the first program in Memphis is innovative in itself, 6
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but the PA as well as the BSN programs made CBU competitive in the healthcare market. We literally took a blank sheet of paper and created an entire program.” There was a known need for a program of this sort after a survey gauging the need for physician assistants went out to 100 Mid-South physicians. Eighty percent of the physicians responded positively to the survey and most expressed a desire to employ these students upon their graduation. “We need to step back and look at healthcare,” Scott added. “Memphis is fortunate to have world-renowned expertise in this city, but we need primary care. We need someone you go to when you have a sore throat.” He states that healthcare today is too complex for one person to do it. Adding PAs will help with the patientphysician relationship, by adding more one-on-one time. Studies back up Dr. Scott’s claims. In the everyday hustle and bustle of healthcare, patients are seeing less of their doctors and seeing more impersonal medical technology. Medicine started out as a hands-on profession, where professionals had to listen to their patients to find out exactly how they could help them. A
recent study published by the Journal of General Internal Medicine indicated that new medical residents and interns spent under 10 minutes on average with patients. Interns spent only 12% of their time in direct patient care, 64% in indirect patient care, 15% in educational activities, and 9% in miscellaneous activities. Physician assistants are licensed to practice medicine as part of a team of physicians. They are qualified and licensed to conduct physical exams, diagnose and treat illnesses, order and interpret tests, counsel patients and families on healthcare issues including preventive care, and assist in surgery. Physician assistants are licensed to practice medicine, issue prescriptions, and practice in all medical fields including primary care, internal medicine and subspecialties, as well as surgical and emergency care. The PA’s scope of practice may also include education, research, and administrative services. The CBU program, which currently numbers 106 students, is run and taught by Dr. Scott, along with six full-time and six adjunct faculty members. The cohortbased program consists of 110 credit hours offered over 27 months or seven continuous semesters. The curriculum focuses on PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN
Class
six major competency components: medical knowledge, interpersonal and communication skills, patient care, professionalism, practice-based learning and improvement and systems-based practice. “Although the program is still new at CBU, the years of experience and medical knowledge held by our program director and professors are quite impressive,” said Melissa Foner (’15). “Our professors have been practicing in healthcare for 90+ years.” The graduation of the first PA class also requires a formal addition to CBU’s traditional Commencement ceremony: the recitation of the Hippocratic Oath. “The public affirmation of the Oath will draw attention to CBU’s success in establishing a true medical program on campus,” Scott said. “Its addition is also an excellent way to mark the successful completion of our inaugural class.” Scott is very impressed with tenacity of his graduating PA class. “We need to recognize the courage of the first students to graduate from the first PA program in the city. We weren’t even accredited yet when they first started this journey. They put faith in us that we were going to get them where they needed to be,” he said. “Dreams do come true.”
New Administrators Join CBU Ranks New CFO/Vice President comes to CBU from UT Health Sciences Center; Athletic Director comes from fellow Lasallian university CAROLYN HEAD has been appointed as the CFO and Vice President for Administration & Finance for CBU, effective June 1, 2014. Head is charged with ensuring effective and efficient plant management, food management, fiscal operations, human resources and purchasing, administration and bookstore operations. She comes to CBU from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, where she served as the chief budget officer for the College of Medicine since January 2011, overseeing approximately $400 million in resources from tuition, research, state funding, contracts, practice plans and endowments. Head previously served as accounting and business manager for the UT Medical Group. She was also the owner of her own public accounting firm, Management Consulting & Accounting Services, since 2002. Head received her MBA in accounting from the University of Memphis, as well as her Bachelor of Business Administration. She will step in for Dan Wortham (’71), who is retiring at the end of May from the position after 14 years of service. “We are very pleased to have Carolyn join the CBU family,” said Dr. John Smarrelli, CBU President. “Her depth of experience in higher education and nonprofit finance, as well as her previously existing ties to our community make her an ideal individual to help us chart the course for CBU’s financial stability and long-term prosperity.” “I am very excited about the opportunity to be part of the leadership team of this culturally rich campus with a strong faith based mission,” Head said. Head is also a longtime member of the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception and currently serves as a cathedral cantor, school board member, and finance committee member. BRIAN SUMMERS will become CBU’s seventh Director of Athletics, effective
June 30. Summers comes to CBU after a distinguished 13-year career at Lewis University, a fellow D-II Lasallian school in Romeoville, IL. Since December 2010, Summers has been Associate Director of Athletics/Director of External Relations at Lewis, and he served from 2005 to 2010 as Assistant Director of Athletics/Marketing & Promotions Coordinator. In those roles, he supervised 10 of the university’s 18 sports, overseeing all athletics fundraising and directing the department’s marketing and promotions efforts. He started the school’s first corporate sponsorship program, which has generated more than a half-million dollars since its inception, and expanded the Varsity Club tenfold. Summers also helped build community support for the athletics department. He developed student fan reward programs and marketing and promotions programs that led to an 8.5 percent increase in game attendance. A strong supporter of the NCAA Division II Community Engagement goal, he created a nationally-recognized community engagement program, called “Spread Your Wings.” In that program, Lewis’ teams compete for points in a variety of ways including academic success, attendance at campus events, and community service. In all, the initiative helps generate more than 3,000 community service hours annually. “I am honored to replace CBU icon Joe Nadicksbernd,” Summers said. “I look forward to working with the student athletes, coaches, staff, and CBU community to develop the program into a model NCAA Division II athletics department. Also, I relish the ability to continue serving students in the Lasallian tradition.” Summers earned his bachelor’s degree in English in 2000 at North Central College, where he also played baseball and golf. He earned his MBA, with an emphasis in finance, at Lewis in 2005. B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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CBU Enactus, a new student organization, sets its sights on changing the community
One Entrepreneur at a Time Pictured (l-r), front to back: Jasmine Lewis, Taylor Paladino, Vania Rogers, Justin Lee; (second row) Vanessa Ramirez-Ortega, Daniel D’Alto, Rebecca Henson, David Lawson; (third row) Drew Hildreth, Taylor Pugh, Taylor Seaman, and Jonathan Holliday. Not pictured are Amy Gracia, Amelia Gattuso, Shanice Oliver, and Eric Nelson.
BY CHRISTINA BROWN
n mid-February, a group of highachieving CBU business majors met to discuss the exciting possibility of founding an innovative club with the international non-profit organization Enactus. Enactus is comprised of student, academic, and business leaders across the globe who work together to make a positive impact on their surrounding communities and abroad. Enactus at CBU, the first chapter in the Memphis area, was founded in March with 16 student members. Dr. Bev Vitali, as the Sam Walton Fellow, and Dr. Cayce Lawrence, as faculty advisor, will guide the student chapter, with Christina Brown as staff advisor. 8
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Students in Enactus are provided ample opportunity for personal and professional growth. “Students obtain hands-on leadership management and business experience,” Vitali reported. “A great example is our partnership with Memphis Challenge and their new high school program, 9/10.” This summer, CBU Enactus and Memphis Challenge will host a month-long day camp at CBU for 40 rising ninth-grade minority students, identified by Memphis Challenge as high academic potentials. During the camp, they will learn personal responsibility and goal-setting techniques to assist in their transition into high school. CBU Enactus will develop and deliver a curriculum emphasizing business acumen.
By the end of the camp, student teams will turn in a business plan, complete with financial forecasts and a marketing plan. Enactus members will continue to engage with these ninth-graders during the school year, refining the business plans and preparing the students for Phase II of the program: “The Shark Tank,” which is inspired by the TV show of the same name. There are five phases planned for the project, and it will culminate in the high school students actually starting and running a business. “By this fall, many more projects should be underway,” said Taylor Paladino. “The real work, and the real fun, has only just begun.” Members are planning fundraising events and programs, developing social media outlets and marketing initiatives, and meeting with area high school students and business owners. Within a very short period of time, they have already expanded their understanding of the Memphis community and made a commitment to become change-makers. “This is the first time in my college career that I feel like a true leader,” said Drew Hildreth. He and the other students are already passionately dedicating their time to the organization and planning for next year’s events. “Our vision for CBU Enactus is to improve the future of our community, one entrepreneur at a time,” Vitali added. “We feel passionately that entrepreneurial action can transform lives and create sustainable global change. Through service projects such as the 9/10 program, CBU Enactus hopes to play at least a small part in shaping future entrepreneurs in our community and beyond.” PHOTO BY CHRISTINA BROWN
Left: Dustin Perry in the classroom at CBHS; right: Dylan Perry with fellow alums and Lasallian Volunteers Bryana Polk (’13) and Shanae Farrell (’12)
Brothers for the Brothers
Dustin and Dylan Perry (’10) carry on the Lasallian mission in their lives and careers. BY MYIESHA GRIFFIN
home away from home, a close community, and loving respect for the Christian Brothers are a few reasons the Perry twins decided that CBU was the school for them. But Dustin and Dylan Perry (’10), also graduates of Christian Brothers High School, started along the Lasallian path long before CBU. For four years, they attended the Lasallian Midwest Youth Gathering, a program that gathers youth to promote the Lasallian pillars of faith, service and community. Through the program they visited various Lasallian high schools and colleges throughout the district. Dustin and Dylan have truly embodied the “enter to learn, leave to serve” motto by continuing the Lasallian tradition even after college. Dustin currently works as a teacher at CBHS, while Dylan is now the associate director of the Lasallian Volunteers in Washington, DC. “Through my high school, college and various other experiences, I had met people and seen the impact that people can make in the lives of others through service and in particular education of the youth,” said Dustin. “I wanted to become a teacher for some time, and through my time at CBHS I’ve become more and more enchanted by the spirit of De La Salle.” Dylan also knew he wanted to teach, but his path took a different direction.
“My high school experiences lead me to think that theology could be something to study, so I ended up wanting to teach theology on the collegiate level,” Dylan explained. “Then I decided that I wanted to teach ethics, but I figured that I needed life experience before I could teach. That’s why I decided to be a Lasallian Volunteer.” Dylan credits that decision as the most important in his life, one that changed his life and the way he viewed the world. It led him to the Clinton School of Public Service at the University of Arkansas, where he earned a Master of Public Service degree. “While doing that, my coursework started taking me back to education and to the ability of students to learn.” The Perrys continue their Lasallian efforts daily through their respective careers. Dustin says he’s committed to being a difference-maker with his students by teaching with compassion and zeal and by being a strong example and role model for the boys at CBHS. “I try to embody the pillars of faith, service, and community that support the spirit of De La Salle,” he said. “As the Lasallian Youth Moderator at CBHS, I work more directly with teaching the boys about social justice and concern for the poor by taking them for service and formation experiences. I think it is important that we not only educate the youth, but also that we form them as a whole person—body, mind, and soul.” “In addition to placing Lasallian
Volunteers around the country, a big part of what we do is form young people into young Lasallian educators,” said Dylan. “We do this by having retreats and classes; we want to support their growth. We help to coordinate the support systems they need as they go into their roles of young educators. It’s an explicit part of our mission.” Dustin is also a representative of Young Lasallians RELAN (Lasallian Region of North America, or Région Lasallienne de l’Amérique du Nord), a movement of individuals, age 16-35, involved with Lasallian ministries— including young Brothers, Lasallian school alumni, lay men and women, and Lasallian Volunteers. He recently returned from Rome, where he was one of about 50 delegates to the Third International Symposium of Young Lasallians. The objective of the symposium was to develop common and international mission objectives for the Young Lasallian Movement across the Lasallian Network. Dustin and Dylan are pleased with what both CBU and CBHS are doing for students and the community. “They are certainly doing a good job at tradition, continuing a strong reputation in the city for quality education,” said Dylan. “A lot of folks I graduated with are doing great work even if they aren’t directly working in the Lasallian world. Even if I hadn’t found a job in the Lasallian industry, it would be difficult not to bring the way of thinking into anything I do. Passion, patience, and zeal are what I learned from my education.” B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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BY HANNAH EVON (’15)
This year, Christian Brothers University named Phyo Thoon Htet Aung (Civil Engineering), Anna Birg (Biochemistry), Madeline Faber (English), Rebekah Herrman (Mathematics & Physics) and Julia Keuter (History) as its 2014 class of CBU Lasallian Fellows. Each student is nominated by a member of the CBU faculty and staff because they have demonstrated leadership, innovation, creativity, and change-making as they live out our Lasallian values, which include commitment to the underserved, sensitivity to social and community needs, and putting their faith into action. Each CBU Lasallian Fellow is awarded $5,000 as a means of perpetuating their work in the community. The CBU Lasallian Fellows Awards were made possible by a generous donation from trustee Joyce A. Mollerup and her husband, Bob Buckman. PHYO THOON AUNG A Civil Engineering major with a certificate in Packaging, Aung arrived at CBU in August of 2010 from the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, formally known as Burma. She has coauthored five articles that were published in Mid-South Engineering and Sciences Conferences, The International Journal of Advanced Packaging Technology, and The International Journal of Advanced Packaging Technology. She worked as a quality control lab intern at APAC-Tennessee, gaining experience in construction materials 10
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testing. At CBU, she serves as treasurer of the Society of Women Engineers, vice-president of the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) and is an active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the Intercultural Club. She is a recipient of the Presidential Scholarship, Engineering Scholarship, and placed First in the Mystery Event at the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASME) Deep South Conference in 2010. She has been instrumental in the creation and activities of the CBU Healthcare Packaging Consortium and has also assisted in many high school engineering workshops. What would you tell a younger international student about earning a CBU education?
I am very pleased with the choice that I made four years ago to attend CBU. It was a tough decision to make, as I knew no one and was leaving everything that I loved and had grown accustomed to 29 hours away on the other side of the world. It was an adventure for me to come here with only the faith and hope that everything would turn out well. With the warmth and help of the CBU community, I was able to overcome all the initial difficulties I was presented with in America (food, transportation, and communication, to name a few). It has been a privilege to be able to attend a school that values relationships, enthusiasm, and enlightenment, as these things are often overlooked at larger universities. It is
amazing to think of how unaware and naive I was in the beginning and now to find myself recognized as a Lasallian Fellow. I am so glad to have had the opportunity to attend CBU. I know that I would not have been able to grow if it wasn’t for this small, private college that has so many great things to offer. What does it mean to you to be part of the firstever all female class of Lasallian Fellows?
I am deeply honored to be part of the Lasallian Fellows, and I feel that we represent the empowerment of women in our community. To me, Fellows embody three components: Faith, Service, and Community. They are people who are dedicated to putting their efforts into becoming better students by devoting their time to academics and school programs, and becoming better persons by giving back, leading, and trying to bring Christian Brothers University closer together as a community. What are your plans for after graduation?
To celebrate, I am going on a graduation trip to the Grand Canyon and California! After that, I plan to begin my dream job as a civil engineer. I can’t wait to be entitled as a professional engineer! After gaining a few years of professional experience, I will continue my higher education. Ultimately, I plan to return to my home country. It’s still a developing country, and is in need PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN
of many educated people to enhance it in every aspect. I look forward to the day that I can actually give back to my people and my country. Do you feel it is important for women to distinguish themselves as innovators in fields such as engineering and science?
In my opinion, it’s essential for women to distinguish themselves as innovators in science and engineering fields, because men typically dominate them. Women represent about half of the human population, and we can offer different perspectives that men may not envision. We must stand up, speak up and reach out, especially in STEM fields that are high-tech and engineering-based. For centuries, women were treated as lessthan-equal to men in many ways. Now is the time for us to prove to the world that we are capable of anything. Our motherly perspectives will definitely bring better things for the world, and hence, I would like to encourage the young women out there to distinguish themselves as engineers or scientists who can achieve anything. Where will your Lasallian Fellowship money go?
I am going to contribute half to the orphanage school, Thanhynn monastic school of orphanages, in my home country, Myanmar. I have already started the conversation with the headmaster of the school for the donation when I went back home for the winter break 2013. The rest
of the fellowship money will be used for my graduation trip. ANNA BIRG A Biochemistry major, Anna came to the U.S. as a small child from Ukraine, the granddaughter of devout Jews who were persecuted for their faith. She has been an active volunteer with the Science Olympiad for the last three years, creating tests and presentations for middle school and high school students. As an officer in the Beta Beta biology honor society, she planned and implemented a volleyball tournament as a fundraiser for the Haiti Medical Missions and has begun a partnership with the Church Health Center as Tri Beta’s official local philanthropy. During CBU’s September of Service project, Anna served as a team leader for projects at the Church Health Center and the Humane Society. She also worked in the summers as a CBU Advising Registration Leader to acclimate CBU freshmen to college life, as well as serving as a Peer Counselor and as a “Big Geek” mentor to “Little Geek” Honors Program freshmen. What does it mean to you to be part of the firstever all female class of Lasallian Fellows?
Being chosen as a Lasallian Fellow is certainly a tremendous honor, and it’s even more special knowing that I share this award with four other strong, talented, and driven young women. I love being a role model for underclassmen and reminding them that they really can make changes to this campus—no matter how big or, in
my case, small. Of course, it’s exciting that this year’s Lasallian Fellows are all women, but that doesn’t seem all that unusual to me. We’re all passionate about our school and are eager to make a difference in our community. We’re all Lasallian… and we also happen to be women. Do you have a role model who inspired you?
My family is my role model, but one member has always stood out to me: my grandmother. She was a biochemistry researcher in the Ukraine, and she was the one who inspired me to become a pharmacist, even though I may not have known it back then. Because my parents worked full-time, I stayed home with my grandma until I started going to school. She would tell me about all her intricate lab techniques and experiments at work, and I became intrigued. My grandma was older, however; she had my mother when she was in her early 40s, and even though I was young, I could tell that she wasn’t in as good of shape as my other friends’ grandparents. When my parents asked me that famous question, “What do you want to do when you grow up,” I gave them my answer: “I want to create a magic medicine! It’ll make you and Grandma and Grandpa live forever!” I know now that this is naive and unrealistic, but those memories and my grandmother’s spirit still live on. I want to be kind and care for others like she did, I want to be a scientist like she B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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was, and I’m interested in pharmacy to get one step closer to this metaphorical “magic medicine” for her. Was there a certain resource you utilized more than others at CBU?
As a freshman, I had to take Calculus I as part of my biochemistry degree, and… let’s just say I’m not a huge fan of calculus. When I found out about CBU’s Math Center, I was in there at least three days a week! The math tutors were not only helpful, but very patient. This wonderful campus resource center saved me a lot of stress and anxiety. Do you feel your college experience would have been the same at a non-Lasallian university?
My college experience definitely wouldn’t have been the same at a non-Lasallian school. CBU helped me understand what it means to be Lasallian by opening the doors to the faith, service, and community that were all around me. As a somewhat shy freshman who wanted to fit in at college, I was nervous about becoming involved on campus. As I met more students and faculty however, I realized I was capable of doing way more than joining a club or two just for the sake of a resume booster. I never felt overwhelmed or nervous to join an organization, to talk to one of the Brothers, or to speak my mind to one of my professors. CBU had a way of making me feel right at home. Even as someone who comes from a not-particularly-religious Jewish background, I never felt excluded from the Lasallian mission because CBU let me be my best true self. This university encouraged me to have faith—in others, in myself, and for the future—to do service, through clubs on campus, through the school, and on my own—and to embrace the community, cherish the diversity, learn from my peers, and respect one another. Faith, Service, Community. I wouldn’t have understood those three ideals had it not been for a Lasallian university. In what ways did you contribute to the CBU community? Which achievement makes you most proud?
CBU has countless clubs on campus, but until recently, there haven’t been many opportunities for all CBU students— regardless of their organization affiliations, if they’re residents or commuters, or even of their year—to come together for one big event. This all changed in the fall of 2012 when the new CBU initiative, September 12
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of Service (SOS): 30 Days of Good Deeds, came to life. I was fortunate enough to be chosen as one of the members of the planning and organizing committee, and I could not be prouder of the work we have accomplished. For two years in a row now, we’ve organized volunteering opportunities with 30 agencies across Memphis, and each day in September, a group of students, faculty, staff, parents, Brothers, alumni, and even President Smarrelli join to serve our city. I think this event has had a huge impact on the CBU community because it allows literally anyone to join hands and volunteer for a worthy cause. It’s not limited to just Greek life or the Honors Program or a particular class; September of Service really is for everybody. What better way to embody faith, service, and community than by participating in a campus-wide, month-long volunteer project all over Memphis? I am so grateful to have been a part of the behind-thescenes work for this event, and it thrills me to see that SOS has been such a success two years in a row! I hope to see it continue to flourish in the years to come. In what ways do you plan to give back to the CBU community as an alumna?
It’s a strange yet exciting feeling knowing that I’m about to leave the CBU world as a student and become an alumna. I don’t know exactly what the future of CBU will look like, but I know that I want to remain a part of it to continue to make it even better for future students. I can see that the hardworking staff at CBU are really trying to improve this university to give more people the opportunity to experience it like I did: by taking full advantage of the resources, organizations, and involvement that the school has to offer. I do plan on donating to CBU so that these visions can become realities to virtually all students. Not only do I want to contribute some of my money, but I also want to give some of my time to this university. I’m eagerly awaiting next year’s September of Service so that I can participate as an alumna. I think that when the time comes, I will find even more ways to stay involved with the CBU community. For now, however, I will be enjoying and cherishing my final days as a student. MADELINE FABER An English major with a minor in Behavioral Sciences and a certificate in Professional Writing, Madeline is an active member of Sigma Tau Delta,
the Honors Program, the Sustainability Coalition, and the Gay-Straight Alliance. She has also served as vice-president and treasurer of the Creative Writing Club, the editor of Castings, a tutor in the Writing Center, and is the winner of several awards for writing, including the University of the South Award for Writing and the Southern Literary Festival. She participated in the study abroad program in the fall of 2012 at St. Mary’s University College in Belfast, Ireland. Within the Memphis community, Madeline has been an active member of the Courthouse Co-op, organizing lectures and discussion groups by local speakers as well as an art auction to raise money to start a community garden. She is a trained volunteer with the Memphis Crisis Center, manning their overnight crisis line. What does it mean to you to be part of the firstever all female class of Lasallian Fellows?
It’s exciting but not exceptional. I’m proud to be included in a group of women who have such distinct talents and accomplishments. Sometimes I look at the five of us and think how amazing it is that a small university could encourage us in a way that complemented and challenged our unique strengths. It’s an honor to stand with Anna, Julia, Phyo and Rebekah as a CBU Lasallian Fellow. How will you use your passion for the English language to help people and make a difference?
Language is literally how people make sense of the world. I believe that the skills I’ve gained in the Writing Center also apply to helping people work through and refine their personal voice. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked through an essay before we’ve even put a pen to paper. Communication is one of the most difficult and indispensable skills. I hope that if I keep finding new words and the authors who said them before me, I can edify my understanding. Are you particularly sensitive towards any specific social and community needs?
During my time at CBU, I’ve been able to hold a leadership position in the Sustainability Coalition. Issues related to distributing resources under a socially and ecologically just system are important to me. How do you plan on perpetuating Lasallian ideals in your future community?
I just have a well of appreciation for all of the professors who mentored and believed in me. Receiving this award is like receiving a physical composite of all of their
support. I hope that I can pay it forward by pursuing meaningful personal relationships in my future communities. You spent a semester abroad at another Lasallian school in Belfast, Ireland. How did your time there broaden your understanding of the global Lasallian community? What did you gain from that experience?
I learned that when you’re alone in a foreign country, it’s best to align yourself with a group already renowned for their kindness. REBEKAH HERRMAN A double major in Mathematics and Physics, Rebekah has completed a summer research internship at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and by the time she graduates her work will have been presented at state and national Honors conferences. She has been the president of CBU’s chapter of the Mathematical Association of America, a member of the Honors Program Board of Directors, an organizer of the 2014 Tennessee state Honors conference, and is a two-year leader of CBU’s September of Service project. Rebekah served as a Resident Assistant, a CBU Advising and Registration Leader, a math tutor, an Honors Program mentor, a SEARCH Retreat Team Leader, and a Science Olympiad assistant. She also performs volunteer work at the Beltline Community Center and CBU Campus Ministry. What does it mean to you to be part of the firstever all female class of Lasallian Fellows?
I am honored to be named a Lasallian Fellow, and I believe that it is good that we have a group of women who are willing to make a change in the community. Your time at CBU is marked by great success. Which achievement is the most satisfying?
Academically, I am most satisfied with presenting the poster “Continuous Time Quantum Walks on Graphs,” based on my summer internship at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, at the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference. My poster received first place in the “Business, Engineering, and Computer Science” category. Overall, I am most satisfied with being a founding member of September of Service. The program does so much good for the Memphis community, and makes a huge difference in other people’s lives.
events for the Mathematical Association of America, especially during my sophomore and junior years. I also have been a member of the Honors Program Board of Directors, and was able to implement more programming and classes that were beneficial for science and engineering majors. What are your plans after graduation?
After graduation, I will be attending graduate school at LSU to earn a PhD in physics. I then hope to either go into research, or teach at a small college. Without a Lasallian education, I would not have had as many opportunities to participate in meaningful extracurricular activities, which helped my graduate school application. If I become a researcher, my hope is to help make quantum computing a reality, which will enable computers to function more efficiently and allow other researchers to process data more quickly, That would hopefully help researchers in other fields, especially biology and chemistry, be able to make more scientific breakthroughs. If I become a teacher, I hope to spark students’ interests in mathematics and physics, so that they might become successful researchers. JULIA KUETER A History major, Julia has distinguished herself as a Dean’s List student, a trusted student worker, a CBU Advising and Registration Leader, a Peer Counselor and a CBU President’s Ambassador. She was a member of the pilot team that planned and executed the Honors Program’s first September of Service in 2012. Julia serves on the Honors Program Board of Directors, the CBU Judicial Board and as a Sacristan for Campus Ministry. In addition to her on-campus service, she also finds time to work with Alpha Omega Kids in Memphis as an afternoon program counselor. Her concern for children motivated her to begin a Vacation Bible School at her parish of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in her hometown of Paragould, AR. Julia has volunteered with CBU’s inaugural Bell Tower Gala, the St. Jude Memphis Marathon, the Overton Park Conservancy Membership Advisory Board, and Autism Speaks, among many other groups and fundraisers. Last summer, she traveled to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day and gathered with an international group of Christian Brothers and young Lasallians.
In what ways do you feel you distinguished yourself most as a leader at CBU?
In what ways do you think your education has been distinguished by a Lasallian presence as opposed to other universities?
I have distinguished myself as a leader by creating new programs and holding more
When I started my educational experience here at CBU, my understanding was that
I was here to earn a degree. Over the past four years, I have realized that a Lasallian education is much more than a diploma. Though the receiving of a quality education is most definitely part of the Lasallian tradition, leaving with a changed heart is what distinguishes my Lasallian educational experience from what I could imagine at another university. As I leave CBU, my heart has a greater concern for the poor, understanding and respect for all people, love and concern for my community, and increased awareness of the presence of God in my own life and world. In what ways would you say you’ve been an innovator for campus ministries? What inspired you to develop the program in new ways?
My involvement with Campus Ministry has been of varying degrees since my freshman year. I was most involved during my senior year, when I realized that out of all the programs and organizations I was involved with, my faith trumped all of them. I have served as sacristan since spring of 2013. Through this role I have learned that you have to be keyed into what students need. Most of the time, what students want to see isn’t drastic or economically unfeasible. For example, there was a desire for the sacrament of reconciliation to be offered and for Eucharistic adoration. Both of these are now offered on a weekly basis! In addition, I have worked to organize mass in a new way. We now have a sign-up system, and I try my best to avoid asking students the day of to serve for mass. Again, this was something small, but if you aren’t worried that you will be asked to read as you walk into mass, the environment becomes much more welcoming and inviting. How do you plan on perpetuating Lasallian ideals?
I have been selected as a 2014-15 Lasallian Volunteer and will be living as part of the De La Salle Blackfeet community in Browning, MT. Though Lasallian Volunteers is a one or twoyear commitment, being Lasallian is not something I plan to lose! How will you spend your fellowship money?
I know I want my fellowship money to be spent in a positive way and to be indicative of the Lasallian ideals I embody. Though I am not sure what this spending will look like, I plan to place the money in my investment account to earn some interest until I decide how I want to spend it. B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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Starting from
SCRATCH
FROM DISTANCE EDUCATION AND LOW-COST LAPTOPS TO ANIMATION SOFTWARE FOR CHILDREN, DR. JUAN CARLOS OLABE-BASOGAIN FINDS WAYS TO BRING EDUCATION TO THE WHOLE WORLD. BY RICHARD ALLEY
When approaching the doors of the Nolan Engineering Center on the CBU campus, the eyes are drawn to a small sign on the glass that reads: “Enter to Learn.” Yet entering a building to learn is no longer required. The physical classroom is becoming, if not obsolete, then at the very least augmented by technology and cyberspace. Learning can happen anywhere, everywhere, across all continents and oceans; across all economic, class and demographic lines. 14
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Dr. Olabe training instructors on One Laptop per Child computers in Lima, Peru
This free flow of knowledge is the passion of Dr. Juan Carlos Olabe-Basogain, Electrical and Computer Engineering professor, whose pristine office is in that building, just beyond those doors. Born in San Sebastian, Spain, in the Basque Country near the border of France, Olabe attended high school in nearby Sanguesa, and received an M.S. and Ph.D. in Telecommunication Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Madrid in 1981 and 1983 respectively. The programs are the equivalent to Computer Engineering in the United States. It was a career by default. “Lack of other alternatives,” he said. “I knew I couldn’t be a doctor, blood makes me faint.” He also never intended to be in education—though, once it was determined he would be, he considered first both coasts and Stanford University or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for positions. It was his wife, Mavis NegroniFoosaner, a Memphian, who suggested Christian Brothers University. “My wife said, you know there’s a small university called CBU.’” The idea stuck and Olabe has been with the institution ever since. PHOTOS COURTESY OF DR. JUAN-CARLOS OLABE-BASOGAIN
Despite such humility regarding his beginnings, he’s excelled in his various positions with the university since 1986. And despite any initial, distant feelings towards education, he has become a worldclass, and worldwide, teacher. The democratization of education is an important theme in Olabe’s work and his philosophy of the profession. Over the years, he’s worked with the singular vision to take quality education to those who might not otherwise have such an opportunity. With distance learning, those students might be across the world or across the city. Dr. John Ventura, Chair of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, has worked with Olabe since 1999, and says that “not only is he interested in students, he views students and the community through the eyes of a Lasallian—a mission of teaching, service to the poor, and community service. He has been an inspiration to the faculty and staff at CBU through his initiatives to enhance the educational experiences of high school students, CBU students, and students at Lasallian institutions of higher learning all over the world.”
Olabe has worked since the late 1990s— a time when the Internet was still a toy to many of us—to connect all sister Lasallian institutions in an online infrastructure to share information and online programs that span the spectrum of disciplines of those institutions. The Distance Learning Center at CBU will establish partnerships with Lasallian universities in Europe and the Americas. “The goal was to convince the presidents of the Lasallian universities coordinated in Rome that we have the technology, that we have the willingness of faculty and precedence from around the world to start a project,” Olabe said. “So this is the origin of the idea of having online education brought to people who cannot afford it.” This was the seed of Olabe’s vision—to connect the Lasallians—that is in line now with other Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) such as Coursera. It’s a mission to “bring the best education online to the rest of world” and it has taken him beyond his home campus and become a drive to make the highest caliber of instruction available to all student levels regardless of economic or geographic hardships. The infrastructure among the Lasallians B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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Olabe found Scratch, an online learning tool for students in kindergarten through high school developed by MIT, in 2007 “When I first saw it, I said, ‘Well, what a beautiful work that is.’” An online Scratch tutorial designed by Dr. Olabe at learnscratch.org
was step number one. Step two came from working closely with postsecondary and higher education instructors to develop software to improve upon high school classroom instruction. The Dual Enrollment and Certification program in Shelby County Schools was created to offer high school students postsecondary credit for courses taken during their high school years. Even before the program was instituted through the school system, “Dr. Olabe was providing courses for high school students in which they received both high school credit and credit at CBU,” Ventura said. “He has freely given this technology to high schools and institutions of higher learning along with his technical expertise to use these instructional tools.” He has since worked to develop online courses now available to any high schools in the system that offer AP Computer Science. “Why not begin in Memphis?” Olabe said. “It’s a great idea to help the world, but sometimes we forget our local environment. Our idea has been: Is it possible to help society through lowering the cost of education and to bring education to the schools that, for technical reasons sometimes, and for academic reasons, they can’t have it?” The answer to that question came into focus even more in 2007, when Olabe found Scratch, an online learning tool for students in kindergarten through high school developed by MIT. “When I first 16
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saw it, I said, ‘Well, what a beautiful work that is.’” At Scratch-ED.org, a student will use programming language to create interactive art, stories, simulations and games. The site is a community, as well, for those students to share their creations, and for teachers and educators to exchange resources, stories and ideas. The only downside Olabe saw as he explored this cyber-utopia of learning and creating was that there were no academic materials associated with it. His fear was that teachers, with limited computer knowledge, might not see the value in such software. “So what we did is we developed some sets of materials and curriculum, and before we went public we asked for the blessing of MIT,” he said. “To our surprise, they said ‘this is a great work.’” Those first instructional manuals were hard copies and DVDs, but can now be found as tutorials available free online, and in both English and Spanish, at learnscratch.org. Olabe continues to work closely with MIT to further develop Scratch and its peripheral software. There are more than 10,000 schools in 102 countries using the Scratch sites, though most are in the United States. In addition to the Scratch tutorials, Olabe provided a similar model for Alice, a 3-D computer programming environment for playing games or telling a story, developed at Carnegie Mellon University.
Both of these tutorials were presented in workshops to the Master of Education Program at CBU and to more than 240 students in grades 6-8 from four Shelby County and Desoto County schools. “Juan Carlos is a leader and visionary,” Ventura says. “It is through his constant drive to improve the technology that will enhance the ability of CBU to move into the educational environment needed by the student in the twenty-first century.” His question of whether or not society can be helped by providing quality educational and the basic tools for learning to under-resourced schools is exemplified in the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative created by MIT. In an effort to better educate and empower children in some of the poorest regions of the world, the program has taken rugged and low-cost laptops to students in more than a dozen countries, providing them with specially designed hardware and software to engage them in the sort of learning, creating and sharing enjoyed by their counterparts in more affluent cultures. Olabe calls it “a beautiful idea” and was approached by OLPC to design a set of webinars offered online in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Mexico and Spain; 85 percent of all OLPC computers are in Latin America. The program sends special instructors out to regions to train the teachers who will administer lessons. Olabe has conducted such training himself in Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Mexico.
Going back to his own question of “Why not in Memphis?” Olabe has met with the New Teacher Project in hopes of bringing a program similar to One Laptop Per Child to the innercity. Dr. Olabe conducting a Scratch workshop on OLPC computers in Tepic, Mexico
This free flowing knowledge is the democratization of education that keeps Olabe excited and propels him forward to new projects and challenges. “There are several ways you can help society,” he says. “One is you can bring them health, which there’s a great need for that; then economic development, bring them a job. But there’s another one which is education. I think that through education you can have their own people develop the other two themselves. Technology today allows you to have an industry that you didn’t have a chance for before. Before, you had to be Microsoft to develop some software, today you can be a five-boy group and develop an app that is good enough to be sold.” Going back to his own question of “why not in Memphis?” he has met with the New Teacher Project in hopes of bringing a program similar to OLPC to the innercity. By giving the materials free to high school teachers, he says, the middle and high schools of Memphis could be utilizing the Alan Rankine is now serving as Director of Global Compensation & Benefits for Teck Resources, a Canadian mining and metals company with corporate locations around the world.
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Robert Rimer joined Raymond James & Associates in St. Petersburg, FL as vice president of Annuity Sales.
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same programs, such as Scratch, that some of the most advantaged, and disadvantaged, schools around the world use. For someone who never had as a goal the academic life of administering lectures and exams, Olabe has carved a path that is rewarding as children thousands of miles away latch on to his instructions. Perhaps it would have taken a crystal ball, though, for a student in the 1980s to know that he may one day facilitate intercontinental teaching. Olabe, by his own admission, wasn’t one for long range visions. “I thought Twitter was going to be a waste of time,” he laughs, and as he pinpoints his hometown in Spain on Google Maps, essentially flying over the land of his boyhood, he refers to such access the way those luddites among us might—he calls it “magic.” Distance teaching, however, is something he’s always believed in. Good content for free as a way to help society is something he’s always believed in. And what happens when institutions of higher
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Louis Biester retired from teaching after 40 years. His new job (for now) is watching his grandchildren.
Laura Hron is working for the Law Office of Stuart L. Cochran in Plano, TX. Laura is a paralegal handling catastrophic personal injury and class action cases in all courts, local and federal.
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learning work together with governments and industry has proven again and again to lead to success. “Dr. Olabe has consistently demonstrated his commitment to Lasallian ideals not only at the university but also internationally,” said Ventura. “He has committed his teaching, research, and service to furthering the health, quality of education, and reputation of the Lasallian institutions of higher education.” Olabe and Negroni-Foosaner have raised a son, Ben, and two daughters, Allison and Lorea, in Memphis, but still try to get back to the Basque Country whenever possible to remain close to the family and tradition there. As you leave the Nolan Center, the sign on the door reads: “Leave to Serve.” For Olabe, there is no distinction between teaching and serving, and there should be no physical barrier in the way of learning. His philosophy: “Everybody can learn, everybody should learn.” Thomas Zavodny helped lead a tour in November 2013 of the glycerine recovery section of the PMC Biogenix plant in Memphis (where he works) for the Chemical Engineering Projects class from CBU.
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From measuring heavy metal pollutants to counting reptiles, LYNDA MILLER takes her laboratory into the local parks and waterways. Michael Drake, All-GSC and NABC All-District 18
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When Lynda Miller isn’t inside teaching a biology class or lab at CBU, she spends a lot of time outside in the parks around Memphis and Shelby County. She’s not relaxing or biking or running or walking her dog or tossing a Frisbee. While she might enjoy being out in nature, she’s mainly studying it. And she’s mainly studying the parts of nature that most of us don’t even notice. Or don’t want to. B Y CO R Y D U G A N
Lichens & tigers & snakes [OH MY!]
For the past five years, Miller has headed up the Research in Engineering and Apprentice Program (REAP) at CBU. REAP is funded through the Army Educational Outreach Program in an effort to encourage high school students to pursue education and careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Each summer, between three and five students have worked with Miller, learning the basics of the scientific method and collecting data for their individual research projects. The most recent REAP study has been at Overton Park, where Miller and Brother Thomas Sullivan led a survey of the lichens that are growing in the old growth forest. “People rarely think about lichens or even recognize them,” Miller said. “They’re the grey-green things that grow on tree trunks and branches. The reason they’re of interest to us is because they collect pollution or toxins. Over the last three years we’ve gone in and collected lichens from the trunks and, after storms, from the branches that have fallen. Then we analyze those lichens to see what, if any, heavy metals are present within them.” Lichens readily absorb things from atmospheric pollution and the researchers
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can analyze them and measure the pollutants using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron dispersive x-ray. “This is our preliminary work,” Miller explained. “We’ll be doing further analysis using atomic absorption spectroscopy. So far, we’ve already found a variety of heavy metals and many of them are— unsurprisingly—connected to automobile pollution.” During the recent Spring Break at CBU, Miller and Brother Tom—“He’s the actual lichenologist half of this team,” Miller said—commandeered a biology lab as space for use in cataloging all of their samples and findings thus far. Taking a break from this “bookkeeping” side of the research and surrounded by plastic storage bins filled with labeled specimens, Miller recited a litany of the metals they’ve identified: lead, chromium, titanium, tin, zinc, copper, aluminum, iron. “Some of those might sound exotic, like titanium, but really it’s fairly ubiquitous and is probably just a component of the soil. But zinc and copper are components of brake linings, and we suspect that’s a possible source of those metals.” 20
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Miller and Brother Tom have also led their student researchers to compare lichens that are higher in the tree canopy to the ones grow on the lower tree trunks to see if there are metals more prevalent in the higher level of the atmosphere than on ground level. “Right now we’ve identified what’s there, and the next step will be to quantify how much is there,” she explained. Miller is pleased that the REAP students have learned a great deal about pollution chemistry and about lichens and their microhabitats. Their work will culminate in oral presentations at the Western Collegiate Division of the Tennessee Academy of Science, where several have already won awards. Miller has not limited her research to Overton Park. She has also been involved in similar studies in Shelby Forest in the more rural area of north Shelby County. She and the students are comparing those results with the studies at Overton Park. “Pollution will shape the lichen community in different locations, as to the type of species that exist and thrive,” she said. “What we’re finding in Overton Park is that there are pollution-tolerant species and very few pollution-sensitive species. When we
get out to Shelby Forest—although we find some of the same metals—we’ve discovered that there are far more pollution-sensitive species and very few pollution-tolerant species.” But lichens aren’t the only organisms that collect heavy metals. Another facet of Miller’s research has led her to explore the Wolf River, but in this case she is studying in the fish that live in its waters. She has obtained some specimens from the University of Memphis that were collected in the late 1960s and is looking at them using SEM and atomic absorption spectoscropy. (For the layman and other art majors like this author, atomic absorption spectroscopy is a procedure for the measurement of chemical elements using the absorption of light by free atoms in the gaseous state.) These specimens are particularly interesting because the area of the Wolf River being studied runs alongside the former North Hollywood Dump site in north Memphis. The North Hollywood Dump opened as a municipal landfill in the 1930s and also accepted industrial wastes until its closure in 1967. Unauthorized dumping continued until 1980. As a result of former landfill
activities, ground water, soils and sediments at the Site were contaminated with a variety of pesticides, inorganic chemicals and metals. The site was declared an EPA Superfund site in 1983. Miller is comparing the metals found in the specimens from nearly a half-century ago with those found in fish that she collected last summer and is about halfway through her research. “I’m looking to see if there’s a difference in what’s there and then to see if their amounts have changed at all,” she said. “The question is: Will we be seeing any differences in the amounts of metals and what’s present in those fish. We’re looking at different tissues from the fish, such as gills, muscle, and liver samples.” Fish are much closer to Miller’s original interests than lichens. As a herpetologist, her first area of expertise is reptiles and amphibians. In 2012, she was involved with a study of Shelby Farms Park conducted by the University of Memphis Ecological Research Center and funded by the Shelby Farms Park Conservancy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. Miller was part of a team that studied biodiversity in the 4,500acre park. Their extensive report assessed the populations of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and plant life in the park’s boundaries, as well as studied ecological implications and connectivity and made resource management recommendations. As a herpetologist, Miller headed up the survey of reptiles and amphibians with the aid of CBU students. “As the population of Shelby County grows and expands, Shelby Farms is becoming an island. It’s very important to preserve the biodiversity of the park, so they wanted to find out what is living there. They’re monitoring the populations to make sure they’re maintained.” (For those who are curious, the most common amphibian is the Southern Leopard Frog, and the most common reptile is the Red-eared Slider Turtle [although the several combined varieties of skinks outnumber turtles in general]. And yes, there are snakes—king snakes, rat snakes, garter snakes, water snakes, racers and the dreaded cottonmouths and copperheads.) Miller created the Herpetology course at CBU as a result of the Shelby Farms study.
Lichens aren’t the only organisms that collect heavy metals. Another facet of Miller’s research has led her to explore the Wolf River, but in this case she is studying the fish that live in its waters. She also teaches classes in the Biology of Zoo Animals (having been a former zookeeper) and Environmental Biology. Along with Dr. James Moore, Miller has been instrumental in developing the new Ecology major at CBU, which will offer courses on such new topics as Ecological Census Techniques and Wetland Ecology. When the subject turns to snakes, Miller actually speaks rather fondly of our slithery friends and is apparently considered the go-to person when they actually rear their heads at CBU. “I got a call from Brother Tom one day,” she recalled. “Apparently, he looked out one of those low groundlevel windows at the chapel during Mass
and saw this grey rat snake looking back at him from outside. I came right over and captured it. It’s usually not a good idea to relocate snakes from their home range, but I decided it probably wasn’t safe—for the snake—to leave it here on campus. I took it out to Shelby Forest, and I think it should be fine out there.” In fact, the photo that opens this article is of Miller holding that very snake. “There are a lot of pictures of me holding snakes out there,” she laughed. “There are actually quite a few snakes living in the CBU campus environment,” she said. “Luckily, they’re good at keeping themselves hidden most of the time.”
PRECEDING PAGE: Brother Thomas Sullivan and REAP students gathering lichen samples in Overton Park. ABOVE: A gar that was collected as part of Miller’s study of Wolf River pollutants. ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF LYNDA MILLER
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Wes Parker (’87) is often asked why he became involved in World War II reenactments. “Because I’m the only accountant in the world who doesn’t play golf,” is his stock answer.
Returning
HEROES
A CBU ALUMNUS VOLUNTEERS TO HELP VETERANS OF D-DAY AND THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE REVISIT THE SITES THAT WON
“Actually, I’m a lifelong history buff,” explained Parker, president of A W Parker P.C., a tax and financial consulting firm in Cordova, TN. His fascination with history—“everything from the Roman Empire to the Civil War to World War II”—and his experience as a re-enactor led to an invitation to participate in a Veteran’s B Y CO R Y D U G A N
Day event in Collierville and set up some living history displays. While there, he met Diane Hight, the founder and president of the Forever Young Senior Wish Organization. “I’m self-employed and I work a lot of hours,” Parker said. “But I’d been looking for an organization that I could be involved in and give back. The more I found out about Forever Young, the more interested I became and the more I wanted to get involved.” Forever Young, founded in Memphis by Diane Hight in 2006, started out as an organization dedicated to fulfilling the lifelong dreams of senior citizens. In 2008, the organization found a huge need among senior veterans in the discovery that many had not yet seen the World War II Memorial in Washington, DC. The focus changed at that point, and today Forever Young’s primary mission is to take WWII veterans not only to Washington but also back to Pearl Harbor and to Bastogne, Belgium and Normandy, France where they participated in the Battle of the Bulge and/ or the D-Day Landing. Parker’s involvement led him to accompany a group of veterans last year on a nine-day trip to Bastogne and Normandy
WWII
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ROBERT F. SARGENT / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Wes Parker with Baron “BJ” Wilkes, a Purple Heart recipient from the 130th Infantry Division/ 9th AF, in Sainte Mere Eglise at the famous church where the 82nd Airborne drop zone was located.
ALL OTHER PHOTOS COURTESY OF WES PARKER
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Above: Wes Parker with the citation granted to his father-in-law by the Belgian government. Upper right: James McWillie (right) at a monument at Angoville-au-Plain in Normandy.
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and to a cemetery in Luxembourg near the German border. The veterans, now ranging in age between 85 and 98 years old, were returning to places that undoubtedly changed their lives; Parker said that going with them also changed his. “I’m meeting these guys and hearing their stories,” he said. “These are stories you don’t hear on the History Channel or read about in the history books. Sometimes it’s things that are really shocking. It’s a healing process for a lot of them.” One of the veterans whom Parker accompanied was James McWillie (CBC High School ’33), a longtime volunteer at CBU, affiliated Christian Brother, and recipient of an honorary doctorate from CBU in 2005. McWillie was an airman during the war, flying 23 missions as a gunner and radio operator over France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. “What Forever Young does for veterans is so wonderful and commendable,” said McWillie (who was approaching his 99th birthday at this writing). “The trip was one of the most heartwarming experiences of my life. Everywhere we went, we were welcome and celebrated. Our arrival at each location was a hallmark event, covered in the newspapers and on TV and radio. The local people would come out to meet us, and they’d hug us and kiss us. It just brought me to tears.” The reception of the American veterans by the Belgian and French citizenry also impressed Parker. “It’s like travelling with the Beatles,” he laughed. “In Europe, they teach this history to the little kids. They know about the war by the time they’re 12 years old. They know what we did in Europe. The French people love these guys; the Belgians love these guys. They love talking to them, having their pictures made with them. The French women like to kiss on them. It’s just great to watch.” The Normandy/Bastogne trips have normally attracted about a dozen veterans, Parker explained. A trip to Pearl Harbor drew about 20, as did a trip to the World War II Memorial in Washington—which coincided with the government shutdown in October. “You may have seen some of our guys on TV, breaking through the Park Service blockade,” Parker said with a proud smile. When the vets return to Normandy and Bastogne, they are also awarded a Medal of Honor from the French and Belgian governments. Normally they have to be physically present to receive the award, but
Parker managed to bring home a birthday present for Tom Jacques, his father-in-law. Parker said that the family did not actually comprehend the extent of his father-in-law’s service, thinking he was simply a wartime dentist. But they learned that once the battle began, he was put into the position of being a medic. “He told his commanding officer, ‘But I’m a dentist.’ And he said, ‘Well, if you can pull teeth, you can pull a bullet out of a body. If you can sew up someone’s mouth, you can sew up a wound.’” They learned that Mr. Jacques not only served in the Battle of the Bulge, but also later participated in the liberation of a concentration camp. “Since I was a volunteer,” Parker explained, “Forever Young and Beyond the Band of Brothers arranged for me to receive the award on his behalf. It was a great honor to receive that, and to give it to him. We presented it to him on his 93rd birthday.” As a Forever Young volunteer, Parker also regularly attends a monthly meeting of veterans held at Germantown Baptist Church that features a lunch and speakers on various topics. A recent speaker was Sam Weinreich, a survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp who escaped during a transfer to Dachau and was rescued by American soldiers. “Talking to the vets, some of them talk about liberating the concentration camps,” Parker said. “They all wonder about the survivors, how many of them lived and where they are now. We started making some phone calls and came to discover that there are a number of Holocaust survivors in Memphis. This was a chance for one of those survivors and some of the vets to meet one another after all these years.” Once a Forever Young trip has been completed, planning for the next one begins. “Every year there are more veterans contacting the organization and wanting to take the trip,” Parker said. “But unfortunately, every year there are also fewer veterans still alive. World War II veterans are dying at a rate of more than 500 per day. We’re in a race against time to get these guys back.” This year will be the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion and the Battle of the Bulge. Presidents and ambassadors from every country will be in attendance at memorial celebrations, and Forever Young is also planning trips for the veterans (as well as a trip to Anzio, Italy). Parker hopes to be along to help on those anniversary trips. Although the Battle of the Bulge was
in December, Parker explained that the anniversary trip would actually take place September 20-28. “It will be much warmer for them then,” he said. Parker said that arranging the trips is principally a matter of raising the money to pay for them. “Right now, we need about $60,000 for the 70th anniversary trips,” he said. “We pay for the vet’s trip, but the other family members—the wife or the children who want to accompany them—have to pay their own way. We’re trying to find an airline that will donate the veterans’ flights, which would lower the costs dramatically.” He said they are also actively trying to find veterans for these trips. “If anyone knows a vet who served in these campaigns and battles, we want to know about them and talk to them. If they want to go back, we’ll do everything we can to make that possible.” For more information on Forever Young Senior Wish, visit the website at foreveryoungseniorwish.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ForeverYoungSW.
Donna Ware Clifton married James A. Clifton Jr. on July 20, 2012 and relocated to Portsmouth, VA two days after the wedding. Dr. Laurence Howe sold his dental practice after 28 years and is now assistant clinical professor at the Center for Dental Education and clinical director of the Oral Health Clinic at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock.
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Tim Verner, PE was named the 2013/2014 treasurer for the Board of Directors of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Tennessee, an organization whose membership includes more than 100 firms located across the state.
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Doris Boyd was honored by Girls Inc. of Memphis with its SMART Award at its annual Celebration Luncheon at FedExForum in June 2013. Doris is director of environmental affairs for Valero Memphis Refinery.
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LL TOWE TOWERR spring spring 2014 2014 BBEELL
THE BEST OF 2014
A LV I N S I O W ( ’ 1 4 ) A Gift of Nature First Place for Photography
CASTINGS is a literary journal produced every Spring semester by the Department of Literature & Languages at CBU. It publishes the poetry, prose, fine art, and photography of our students as an opportunity to showcase the talent and creativity within the CBU community. To help promote the journal and motivate students, submissions are entered into a contest in each category. BELL TOWER is pleased to co-publish the first-place winners in all four categories for 2014 and to congratulate all of the students who submitted their work. We are also very glad that someone else had the task of selecting the winners. Thanks to Dr. Karen Golightly for serving as the faculty advisor, and to Hannah Evon (’15) and Madeline Faber (’14) for serving as student editors.
LL TOWE TOWERR spring spring 2014 2014 BBEELL
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Eight Weeks to the Sea B Y J E S S I C A LO V E ( ’ 1 6 ) First Place for Prose
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he was in the bathtub for over an hour last night, just sitting in the water. And you think that is normal?” Jill watched Scott as the question left his mouth, and she saw the unmistakable challenge behind his chosen words: You don’t even know your own daughter. He is in the same boat as me, Jill thought, stuck in this small office with this mouse-faced therapist, Dr. Sally Alexander. Lydia, their thirteen year old daughter, for the past three weeks had been saying that she is a mermaid. She believes that she is a siren from the deep sea, lost from her real home with her fish-tailed family, and must find a way to be reunited with her loved ones. From the minds of children, Jill thought. I refuse to say that the mermaid business is anything more than a phase, a childish phase. But in this office, at the third meeting with the expensive Dr. Sally, Scott continued to insist that it is not normal. Jill folded her arms and as she was about to retort to Scott’s challenge, Dr. Sally cleared her throat. “Scott, we are trying to come to a common understanding to help Lydia. Not hurt your wife,” Dr. Sally said and made a note on her legal pad. No doubt a note about our inept ability to communicate like adults, Jill thought. Scott leaned back into the couch, not saying a word, accepting the rebuke. “Jill only remarked that Lydia started to take longer baths. Scott, do you think that ties into her mermaid belief?” “I don’t think it is normal for a 13-yearold to spend over an hour in the bath every night.” He fidgeted with his hands. His fingers were calloused from his years working in carpentry. He owned his own business, making custom tables and chairs. The dead skin on his thumb was starting to fall off, revealing new undamaged skin underneath. “And, yeah, I think she could be using the bath as mermaid thing.” “Have you spoken to Lydia about the baths? At our last meeting, you two said that you were going to have a family talk about Lydia’s belief. Did you?” Dr. Sally asked. Scott looked to Jill and waited. “We tried,” Jill said. Dr. Sally nodded. “We sat her down one night after dinner and asked her about the strange things she’s been doing. Like the extra salt on everything she eats.” “And the really long baths,” Scott interrupted. Jill bit the inside of her lip. “All the PHOTO BY AIMEE LEWIS (’92) / ILLUSTRATION BY CORY DUGAN
things, like that, we noticed she’s started to do recently. And when we asked her why she was acting strange, she gave us this story about how she was separated from her fish parents and they had turned her human to protect her.” Jill folded her hands in her lap. “That’s all she would say. She had this whole story planned. Like she knew we would be asking detailed questions. What kid does that? It’s got to be some game, right?” Scott leaned forward in the couch and rested his head in his hands, breathing through the tight spaces between his fingers. Jill glanced over at him and noticed the sawdust on his shirt sleeve. He came straight here from his work shop, Jill thought. At least I cleaned up before being examined. Jill crossed her legs, her knees kicking the maroon skirt she was wearing. “Well she’s our kid,” Scott said lifting his head, “and she has a great imagination.” “Jill, do you believe that Lydia would have some reason to pretend to be a mermaid? She’s created this story about abandonment. Do you think that there is any truth in that?” Dr. Sally raised her eyebrows. “What kind of question is that? Are you trying to say that I have abandoned my daughter? That’s ridiculous. I’ve given her everything she’s needed. Food, shelter, care.” Jill clenched her teeth and leaned back against the couch. “Care? You’ve done a great job caring for her, Jill. All the clothes and things you buy her. When was the last time you actually talked to her?” Scott straightened in his seat and looked at Jill. Jill tasted blood; she had peeled the skin off her inner lip while Scott spoke. He’s angry, Jill thought. It’s the most I’ve seen him show emotion in all our fourteen years of marriage. His eyes stared at Jill, but they weren’t focused on her. Scott licked his lips and then fell back into his seat. Dr. Sally watched them both as the ring of Scott’s words faded from the air. “It’s important to say that you both agreed to come here three weeks ago for the first session because you were worried about your daughter. Yes?” Dr. Sally nodded and gestured with her hands to Scott and Jill. “This is our second session together, my third with your family, including the one I had with Lydia last week. There are some things that you two need to work out as a couple in your marriage. But for these meetings the focus is on Lydia. For the next
session, I want you both to talk to Lydia, separately, and go along with her belief.” Jill leaned down and grabbed her purse from the floor while Scott stood. “ Thank you for sharing what you shared today,” Dr. Sally said, “and I will see you both on April 30th.” ttt “Your parents tell me that you have been pretending you are a mermaid,” the therapist said to Lydia after introducing herself as Dr. Sally and offering her a seat on the brown leather couch. The cushions were indented leaving perfect impressions of imperfect people. Lydia sat down in the far right seat of the couch, adjacent to Dr. Sally’s straight-back chair. Her wavy brown hair fell over her shoulders as she looked around the room. Behind Dr. Sally’s chair on the wall there were documents preserved in glass that proclaimed her educated and official. Lydia’s parents were outside the door and sent her into this room. Her dad gave her a hug and whispered to just be herself. While her mom gave her a smile that didn’t reach her eyes and seemed it was more for herself than Lydia. Still, it was the most attention she had received from either of them in weeks. The therapist watched Lydia, waiting for the answer she knew Lydia was going to give. “No,” Lydia said. “Really?” Dr. Sally leaned in her chair as if hoping that the sessions would end, that she had by all her professional education had cured another family’s problems by a shake of her hand. “I haven’t been pretending. I am a mermaid.” Dr. Sally nodded and wrote a note in her legal pad. Lydia watched her, taking in her clothes. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail, slicked down to where there was not a stray hair out of place. She was wearing a loose, blue blouse and gray pants, and everything matched all the way down to the black pointed-toe heels peeking out from the hem of her pants. Dr. Sally doesn’t wear the same clothes that my mom does, Lydia thought. My mom always wears a dress. Lydia’s mom was a teacher at a middle school; she spent her days with fifth-graders and she knew them better than she knew her own daughter. “Well, Lydia, how are you on land if you are a mermaid? I thought mermaids lived in water and had a fin, right?” “I was separated from my family when I was a baby. A ship caught me. To protect
me, my parents made me forget about who I really was and changed my fin to legs. I just now remembered. They must have known that one day I would want to be with them again.” Lydia chewed on the inside of her lip. She had told this same story to her parents, and they had hadn’t believed her. Her mom laughed, and her dad smiled a sympathetic smile, but didn’t say a word. Lydia watched the therapist sitting across from her, and waited to see what she would say. “Lydia, that’s amazing. You must feel loved to have a family who would protect you like that,” Dr. Sally said and Lydia straightened in her seat. She believes me, Lydia thought. “But what about your parents here, Jill and Scott? Will you not miss them when you return to the sea? They have raised you.” “They are like my foster parents. They won’t miss me.” Lydia crossed her ankles. “But how can you be sure?” Dr. Sally asked. Lydia’s feet were sweating in her shoes. She hated wearing shoes. Her mom made her wear socks in the house. She says it is because the hardwood floors are cold, Lydia thought. But Lydia knows it’s because with socked feet her mom doesn’t hear her walk and can pretend she’s not there. Dr. Sally glanced to her right at the table beside her chair, and then folded her hands in her lap. She waited for Lydia to respond and when Lydia didn’t, she began to speak. “Lydia, you have an amazing imagination,” Dr. Sally began. There’s the disbelief, Lydia thought. “I have a question about your childhood. Is that okay?” Lydia nodded. “When you were little, did you ever play games with your parents?” “With my dad.” “What about your mom?” Lydia shook her head. “Why not?” “She was always busy with her school work.” Lydia folded her arms. “Okay.” Dr. Sally scratched her pen across the legal pad. “What games did you play with your dad?” “We would draw pictures and have contests to see whose was better.” “Who would win?” Dr. Sally smiled. “I would.” Lydia chewed on her lip. Her dad taught her to swim at the community pool the summer she turned seven. It was just the two of them on an early Saturday B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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3:28 a.m. B Y C L A I R E R U T L A N D ( ’ 1 6 ) , First Place for Poetry
It’s 3:28 a.m., two strokes on the metal star til ignition. My toes crunch sleet beneath rubber heels, fingers conquering purchase on the manila filter. It’s cold; each breath comes out like sawdust, useless and dead. Frank Fowler’s on the corner with ruined cuticles. He chews them like jerky strips, a habit he picked up from midnights burning up the freeway. I think he’s crazy, but my frame of reference is hazy. It’s 3:48 a.m. We walk a couple miles together because he’s harmless. He tells me the story of the time he shot his wife. It was midnight, and he rode the elevator to the bottom floor, stepped out and remarked, “It’s cold.” He tells me he took the filthy sidewalk to the end of his block today and hailed a cab but the street was silent; so he walked two miles through Arcadia, took off his shoes and left them in a gap where a church wall met an archway. He met Greta, a woman caped in newspaper furs who asked him if he’d seen her son. A fan of war movies, he strapped on a practiced smile. He told her he’d write and left his wallet at her feet. Sometimes, he swallows snowflakes he finds in his pocket. He tells me today he walked backwards through a McDonald’s drive thru. He asked the woman in the speaker for two McDoubles and a cherry coke, and when she said he needed a car to go through the drive thru, he walked to the window and smiled with his teeth until she stopped staring at him. “Like my wife used to,” he muses, and we walk off toward the river bed. He takes off his suit jacket and hangs it on a trash can lid. It’s 4:23 a.m. His feet and mine leave prints on the concrete. He touches the ground, and his hands pull away sticky, uncomfortable and dark. He tells me that yesterday, he spoke in neon colors, and every breath sounded like Grand Central Station. A police car stopped him from going into a 7/11 for Zebra Cakes and smokes. The officer, a balding wraith in sweating polyester, told him “You’re making gestures in a parking lot, buddy.” The 7/11 flickered like 1950s television static. “I’m an adult,” he tells me, running his hands over his knuckles until they feel like rosary beads. He walks off a few feet, and fishes in his pocket for snowflakes. He presses a lint wad beneath his tongue and doesn’t notice the difference. It’s 4:38 a.m.
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morning. She remembered the cold water and the sour taste of the chlorine, and leaving early after her dad got a call from her mom, she thought. “Lydia, do you think that your mom and dad love you?” Dr. Sally asked. “My dad.” “What about your mom? Do you think that she loves you?” After they got home from the pool, her mom and dad started fighting. Her mom yelled at her dad, because she didn’t want her dad to take Lydia to the pool, because she needed him home. Lydia saw her dad sitting in a chair with his head in his hands as her mom paced in front of him shouting. Then she ran to the bathroom and turned all the faucets on high to drown out her mom’s voice, so she couldn’t hear her mom say her name. “I don’t know,” Lydia said. “Lydia, why a mermaid?” Dr. Sally asked and Lydia looked at her eyes. “Because mermaids make people fall in love with them. They sing to sailors on the sea and make them love them.” Maybe my parents will love me, Lydia thought. Dr. Sally scratched a note on her pad and then glanced to her right. “That’s all the time we have for today, Lydia. Thank you for talking to me. I have some homework for you; it’s not like school homework.” She smiled. “Before the next time we meet I want you to try to play a game with your mom. Maybe draw a picture with her. Do you think you could do that?” Lydia nodded. If her mom would try too, she thought. Lydia stood up from her seat. “I’ll see you soon. Okay? Your parents are just outside the door,” Dr. Sally said smiling. ttt “Scott, where’s Jill?” Dr. Sally asked, bringing Scott’s attention away from his hands. “She’s not coming today. But I wanted to come anyway. Is that okay?” Scott licked his lips, the spit burning the chapped skin. “That’s fine. So, what has happened since our last meeting?” ttt Jill stood in the kitchen gripping a blank piece of paper in her hand, while Scott paced across the floor. “Why won’t you just sit down with her for five minutes and just play the game?” Scott said. Jill took a deep breath and folded her
J O H N N I E S U E H U D D L E S TO N (’14), Mike at Moe’s, First Place for Fine Art
arms. “Scott, I don’t have time for her silly games. I cooked dinner, and now I need to go work on things for school.” Scott ran his hands through his hair. She’s not even trying, he thought. “Jill, please, just.” “What Scott? What more can I do? I cooked food and I keep this house clean for the both of you,” Jill interrupted. Scott stopped pacing and turned to Jill. “You come home every day, go to your little office and fix goodie bags for your students. You don’t even know your daughter. She’s been an ‘A’ student since kindergarten. Did you know that? How about how she asks for a dog every year for Christmas on her wish list? That’s right, she has a wish list! Which you never see because you just buy her the right clothes that she needs and
don’t give a damn about what she wants.” Scott walked to the counter and began pulling open drawers. He found the drawer he was looking for and grabbed a pen. “Just take two minutes and at least try to spend time with your daughter.” He held the pen out to Jill. Jill stared at Scott. “You’ve got some blood on your hand.” He looked down at his hand that was holding the pen, and saw a small cut across his knuckles. A small pool of blood was starting to run between the cracks of his fingers. I must have nicked it looking for the pen, he thought. He looked up at Jill, her arms hung by her side with the blank paper still clenched in her fist. “I have tried, Scott.” Jill swallowed. “And I’m done trying.”
Scott watched her leave the kitchen throwing the wrinkled paper in the trash can on her way out. Glancing down at his hand, Scott went to the sink and turned on the faucet. The cut stung as the cold water washed over his hand. ttt “I think Jill wants a divorce,” Scott said leaning back into the soft cushion of the couch. “Do you?” “I want to do what’s best for Lydia. God knows we’ve already ruined her childhood to the point where she thinks the only way to get our attention is to pretend to be a mermaid.” Scott rubbed his eyes. The nights were hard; he was losing sleep because of all the stress. Lydia has stopped outright admitting that she’s a mermaid, B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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but still will not really talk to them. Then there were the increasing fights with Jill. “Do you really think that you’ve ruined her life?” “I don’t know.” Scott began to pull at the flap of dead skin on his finger. “I mean she’s 13. Even though she’s young, at 13 you’ve already decided some things. What if she’s decided that she hates us and we’ve ruined her childhood?” Dr. Sally set her legal pad on the table beside her chair as if she were disarming her shield. “Scott, do you know what your daughter told me?” She asked and watched Scott for a moment. “She hardly told me anything. I know most of what I know from the sessions with you and Jill. It’s what she didn’t say that is important. She feels neglected. And unloved. But she’s a child, and she doesn’t understand little shows of affection. Yes, she is 13 and she has her own opinions, but there is still time to work your way into her life.” “What do I do?” Scott said rubbing his face, the calloused skin scratching his cheek. “I can’t tell you what to do, Scott. You need to decide what is important to you. It may be time to have a serious relationship conversation with your wife. You both have to be on the same page, and if not, it’s better for Lydia if at least one of her parents pays attention to her.” Scott’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He looked at the screen, and saw that it was Jill calling. Probably worried about being home alone with Lydia, Scott thought. His wife was afraid of her own daughter. “Think about it, Scott, and we can talk things over at the next meeting.” ttt This was the sixth week that her family had been seeing Dr. Sally, and was Lydia’s third session with her. During the sessions while the therapist nodded and encouraged Lydia to tell stories about her past, what she got for her fifth birthday and did she know how to ride a bike, Lydia had been analyzing Dr. Sally herself. Despite her tailored pants and perfectly hair-sprayed hair, she’s noticed that while her body may have been turned toward Lydia, her eyes occasionally flickered to the table beside her chair, where at the beginning of each session she placed her phone, hiding it behind a tissue box. And while she nodded to Lydia’s cries, her right hand absentmindedly searched for the left and feels an empty ring finger. 32
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“I was separated from my family when I was a baby. A ship caught me. To protect me, my parents made me forget about who I really was and changed my fin to legs. I just now remembered. They must have known that one day I would want to be with them again.”
Dr. Sally watched Lydia, waiting to see if the hours spent in this room have yielded a success. Lydia crossed her legs, the jeans her mom made her wear stretched in the thigh as she moved. I’m not that skinny, despite what my mom thinks, Lydia thought. “Have you found a way to return to the sea, yet?” Dr. Sally asked. Lydia knew that her parents had come to more sessions than her, and she knew that they were talking about getting a divorce. Lydia could hear them fighting at night. Her dad talked to her in whispers one night, saying he loved her and would never leave her. She had dropped the mermaid thing in light of all that had happened. “I think my parents are getting a divorce because of me. I ruined their life.” Lydia said. “Do you think you’ve done something wrong, Lydia?” “I should have just left them alone. And not started pretending I was a mermaid. Maybe then things would have stayed the same as they were.” Lydia rubbed her eyes. “I hear them saying my name when they fight.” “Lydia, your parents love you. Yes, your parents are getting a divorce. But it’s not because of you. They’re adults who have their own problems. So don’t think for one second that you’ve ruined their life, okay?” Dr. Sally smiled. Lydia nodded, pulling at the hair tie on her wrist. She always wore one, even though she never put her hair in a ponytail. Mom says I look prettier with my hair down, she thought. “I just wish my mom would talk to me. I feel like she doesn’t even want me around.
She’s so mean to my dad, and I don’t want her to hurt him anymore. But I still want her to love me.” Lydia chewed the inside of her lip, accidently biting the skin and drawing a tiny bit of blood. “You’re young, Lydia,” Dr. Sally began, “but you’re smart and mature for your age. Talk to your mom. Tell her how you feel. And talk to your dad, too.” Lydia nodded and grabbed a tissue from the box next to her. She dabbed it at her lip and then rubbed her eyes. The tears and blood mingled together weakening the cheap tissue. ttt Scott watched his daughter wade into the water from the beach. The white sand mixed with the saw dust on his worn shoes. Jill couldn’t handle the stress and after 14 years of marriage, she filed for divorce last week. She packed her things and moved out. Scott begged her to think about it and got to counseling with him, but she refused saying, the counseling wasn’t helping with Lydia. Jill blames me for everything, and doesn’t take responsibility for anything, Scott thought. Rather than keeping Lydia at home with everything going on he decided to take her to the beach. They had met with Dr. Sally the day before and Scott got silent nod from the doctor. It’s been eight weeks since they’ve been seeing Dr. Sally. Lydia is doing great, despite the stress of her mom leaving, Scott thought. He watched her walking farther out, and for a moment he held his breath, but then she stopped knee-deep in the water. Lydia felt the lukewarm water wash up around her knees. Her toes were buried in the wet sand, and her hands dangled at her side with the tips of her fingers hovering just above the water. As a small wave rolled towards her, she bent down and scooped a handful of water. When the water drained out of her hand, she smiled. Scott saw Lydia walking back to the beach. When she reached the sand, she slipped on her sandals. As she got closer he could see her turquoise toenails peeking through the weaving. She was grinning as she gave him a hug. “Thanks, Dad. For everything.” Scott hugged her back. He was happy, despite the mess of the divorce. I just wished Lydia could’ve had a better mom, he thought. The night Jill left, Scott found Lydia collecting all her socks in a bag, and when he asked what she was doing she just said she hated socks. The next day Scott bought her the sandals.
spray paint these dates on YOUR CALENDAR
OCTOBER 3 - 4, 2014
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For coaches at all levels of basketball, from church league to the NBA, instructional videos from the best of their peers are a vital tool in learning how to get more out of their teams. Browsing the Championship Productions basketball coaching DVD catalog, they see a “Who’s Who” of college and pro basketball: Geno Auriemma. Jim Boeheim. Hubie Brown. Larry Brown. Billy Donovan. Tom Izzo. George Karl. Bob Knight. Mike Krzyzewski. Mike Nienaber. Bill Self.
TAKING OFFENSE Wait… Mike Nienaber? Yes, Mike Nienaber. His video, Installing the Princeton Offense, is on sale alongside videos from coaches much more famous than CBU’s 15-year head coach, who has a school-record 266 wins at CBU and 508 overall in his 31-year college career. This season was his tenth running the Princeton offense, during which time CBU has gone 195-98. “When they called to ask me about doing the video,” Nienaber said, “my first thought was, ‘Am I on candid camera?’ I 34
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thought one of my friends was playing a practical joke on me.” The “Princeton Offense” is a complex system featuring constant motion, spacing, passing, back-door cuts and screens both on and off the ball. Aside from center, the offense dispenses with traditional position descriptions. It’s designed to force defenses to make choices – then the offense’s next move is a reaction to that choice. The scheme received its name when Princeton University coach Pete Carril cobbled it together from several other offensive
concepts, winning 514 games in 29 years at Princeton as well as 13 Ivy League championships. Perhaps most of all, he caught the basketball world’s attention in 1996, when his No. 13-seeded Tigers stunned defending national champion UCLA 43-41 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. They also reached the second round in 1998 as a No. 5 seed after climbing as high as No. 8 in the national rankings. Nienaber took note of Carril’s success and began to study the Princeton even
PHOTO BY WADE EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY
to the Next Level BY ERIC OPPERMAN
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then. “I started looking at it as early as the ’90s. When Princeton beat UCLA, every college basketball fan was loving it,” he said. “And as a coach, I wanted to find out, what’s going on here?” While it is best known from its use at Princeton, six NBA teams—including
lessons on how to install the Princeton offense. After all, the old dog had to teach himself a new trick, after 21 years as a college coach. And the new trick was not an easy one to learn, as he found out when he tried to study it in the ’90s. “Ironically, I actually bought the Pete Carril video, the original Princeton video. The reality is, that video really doesn’t give a lot of the trade secrets. You couldn’t figure it out enough to actually go to it. And that’s what I found out when I decided to go to it. A lot of the coaches that run it are really secretive. I watched a lot of film that summer, and I found a couple of high school coaches who were really helpful.” Contrary to most overhauls, Nienaber didn’t choose to install the Princeton offense because he was losing with the previous system. In fact, he switched after what was to that point, his best season, a the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento 23-6 year where CBU started 12-0, went Kings— have used variations of it, and 11-5 in the GSC and was ranked as high as the New Jersey Nets rode it to the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. Numerous other No. 4 in the nation. So…why change? “We went to it off of a very good season, college programs have also adopted it, most notably Georgetown, Northwestern, which was a bit of a concern,” Nienaber Air Force, Richmond and Virginia. Closer admitted. “To make that drastic of a change after such a good season, that’s not usually to home, fellow GSC member Alabamawhen you do that. But the fact is, we were Huntsville also ran the offense. struggling with the best defensive teams in “When we went to it, Vanderbilt was our league. That year, to me, was a lot more running it in the SEC and Northwestern about how good our defense was.” was running it in the Big Ten,” Nienaber The Bucs narrowly missed an NCAA said. “It’s an offense that’s a good fit for a Tournament berth that season due to strong academic school like CBU. People upsets in all three conference tournaments ask me sometimes, ‘How do you recruit against the big schools like North Alabama in the South Region. As he does every year, and Delta State?’ My answer is, ‘We don’t, Nienaber took a step back and analyzed the we’re fishing in a different lake altogether.’” season that had just finished. Specifically, Nienaber was a natural choice to teach he took a long, hard look at what went
How did Nienaber innovate when he realized excellent ball pressure was disrupting his offense and costing them wins? That’s where the Princeton offense comes in.
Scott Mayo has been named senior vice president of Barnes Group Inc. and president of Barnes Industrial. As president of Barnes Group’s Industrial segment, Scott will lead all of the company’s diverse industrial businesses across the globe. Before joining Barnes Group, Scott was a vice president and general manager at Flowserve Corporation in Irving, TX.
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Michael Mosher spoke for a CBU Engineering Lunch and Learn presentation on Cargill Corn Milling in February. Dr. Thaddeus Wilson has been appointed to the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees. Dr Wilson is an associate professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
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Aimee Lewis is the vice president of development at Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region. Lisa Splan and Earl Bracken were married in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico in May. Lisa was also promoted to IT Financial Management Process Lead in the IT function at Huntsman LLC in Houston.
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Mike Haskins helped lead a tour in November 2103 of the glycerine recovery section of the PMC Biogenix plant in Memphis (where he works) for CBU’s Chemical Engineering Projects class.
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Phillip Norton has been appointed as an instructor at the Ross University School of Medicine Center for Teaching and Learning on the
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wrong in those six losses. The more he watched those game films, the more he saw a common thread, specifically in four of them—when CBU went 0-2 against both Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist. “Those were the two most aggressive man-to-man defenses in our league,” he said. “Their ability to pressure the ball was causing us a lot of trouble with our offense. So we started looking at ways to counter that.” How did Nienaber innovate when he realized excellent ball pressure was disrupting his offense and costing them wins? That’s where the Princeton offense comes in. First, it requires all five players—even the center—to be able to dribble, pass, and shoot well. With the center normally nowhere near the basket, and often the primary passer from the top of the key, if the defense overplays on the perimeter, the offense counters with a back-door cut to the basket behind the play, often leading to a bounce-pass for an open layup. If the defense sags inside to take away the easy shots near the basket, the offense’s counter puts its good shooters in position to shoot open three-pointers. “At that time, we were running a matchup zone a lot as our defense, which I later found out was a favorite of many Princeton teams,” Nienaber said. “Initially, my thought was that we would use some of it and blend it with what we were already doing. But the more I watched it, the more I realized it was an all or nothing thing.” Nienaber’s matchup zone defense was his ticket to finding a coach willing to talk and help him begin to learn the intricacies Island of Dominica. He and his wife, Julia, children Elizabeth (15), Deuce (Phillip II, 11) and John Paul (4) are all very excited about the opportunity to relocate to the Caribbean. The family and their four-legged family members Precious and Zapps Domino were featured on the “Puppy Palooza” episode of Pitbulls and Parolees on Animal Planet in November 2013. Vance Clement (MBA) has been named vice president of sales and marketing of BlueInGreen, LLC, headquartered in Fayetteville, AR. Vance began work for the company last November and will oversee the company’s sales and marketing teams as BlueInGreen moves from predominately developing new water quality treatment products to launching and
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of the Princeton offense. “Jimmy Tillette (at Samford University) heard about our matchup zone, and he wanted to learn more about it. So he came up here one day in the summer. In the morning, I explained our defense. And after lunch, he explained some of his offense, but I still had a lot to learn. But the more I learned about it, it surprised me how similar it was to the defense we were running.” While Tillette provided his first window into the Princeton, two other coaches helped Nienaber grasp more of the system. One was Vanderbilt coach Kevin Stallings, and the other was one of Nienaber’s longtime friends in coaching, AlabamaHuntsville’s Lennie Acuff. “Stallings wanted to learn more about our zone,” he said. “So I went up to Nashville to talk with his staff about the matchup, and I watched them practice.” Despite also coaching at a GSC school, Acuff was extremely helpful as well. “Lennie was the one that helped put us in touch with Jimmy,” said Nienaber. “At the time, we were in different divisions, so the only time we were going to play was in the conference tournament, and it was hard enough just to get there.” Simply learning the offense’s sets wasn’t enough; Nienaber had to learn how to put them together in order to make it all work. “There are five different offenses here,” he explained. “You could teach a junior high team any one of them. But the key is blending them. Lennie said it’s like if you open up an old clock, with all the gears. You have to get all the gears working
together.” The best way to figure out how to make the gears work together? Game tape of teams that played it. Lots and lots of game tape. “The Air Force team from 2000 to 2004 was one that I was really focusing on. I watched a lot of their film, and I watched film on Alabama-Huntsville because we had played them.” Success with the new offense didn’t come overnight. In 2004-05 and 200506, the program went through growing pains while installing the new system. In 2004-05, they went 14-13—although they went 3-1 against the prior season’s nemeses, Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State. And in 2005-06, they went 15-13, going 9-7 in the GSC to return to the conference tournament. “We struggled with it early, but we got better as the year went on, and we’ve gotten better and better at it since,” Nienaber said. “Obviously we always tweak things, but the core of it has stayed the same.” But since the Princeton was fully installed, CBU basketball has reached new heights. They went 21-7 in 2006-07, finishing second in the GSC West but again narrowly missing the NCAA Tournament after a 78-71 loss to North Alabama in the GSC quarterfinals. In 2007-08, CBU entered the season with lofty expectations, as they were ranked No. 21 in the preseason NABC poll. But after a 4-1 start, they took losses in four of their next six games. 20 games into the season, they were just 11-9, 3-4 in the GSC after they had been picked to win the GSC West Division. But despite losing that 20th
game, a 64-63 heartbreaker at Harding on a put-back at the buzzer, something clicked with the Bucs during that game. They won their next eight games in the regular season, blowing out Harding 70-56 in the regular season finale to tie for the GSC West crown—but yet again they went into the GSC Tournament without assurance of an NCAA berth. They held off West Georgia 76-68, then they won 80-69 over North Alabama to avenge the prior year’s loss and reach the GSC Finals for the first time since joining the league in 199697. They would win the championship, taking down Harding 93-89 in the finals to run their winning streak to 11 straight, but they dropped a 72-71 heartbreaker to North Alabama in the NCAA Tournament after CBU’s all-time leading scorer, Kevin Weybright, sprained his ankle in the last practice before the tournament. As special as it was, that season was only the starting point for what has become a golden age for Buccaneer basketball. In a decade of running the Princeton, Nienaber’s teams have posted a winning record all 10 years, with an overall mark of 195-98. In 2008-09, they were even better, starting the season 19-3 and climbing as high as No. 8 in the NABC polls. After winning the GSC West Division outright, CBU entered the NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the South Region with a 22-6 record. This time, they didn’t lose an All-American to injury before the NCAA Tournament started. They won 63-54 over Delta State in the first round, then they put on a Princeton-offense clinic in a 72-53 win
successfully distributing new products.
Rob Philyaw (BS, MBA) announced his intention to continue serving the citizens of Hamilton County, TN as Juvenile Court judge and will be on the ballot in the Republican primary to be held in May 2014. He is a current member of the Chattanooga Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Judicial Conference, and the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Law Judges. Prior to serving as the judge of the Juvenile Court he served as a municipal judge and had a diverse law practice.
serves as Oklahoma’s in-house litigation counsel and advises the AT&T Oklahoma president and state External Affairs group. Dr. Bobby Myers worked with the Riverkings from 2003-07. He currently is working at James Chiropractic and Rehabilitation in Memphis and has mentored three CBU students in their senior projects.
Jeffrey Brown completed a fellowship in Cardiac Anesthesiology at UAB in 2011 and is board certified in transesophageal echocardiography and focuses on cardiac anesthesiology. He is in private practice with Metropolitan Anesthesia Alliance in Memphis and lives in Germantown. Roberto Martinez is the new director of curriculum and instruction for National Heritage Academies, a charter school management company in Grand Rapids, MI. Dr. Minoli Perera published a paper entitled “Genetic variants associated with warfarin dose in African-American individuals: a genome-wide association study” in the August 5, 2013 ediiton of The Lancet.
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Kevin Ford completed his MBA at CBU in May 2013. He and his wife, Stephanie, have a 3-year-old son, Ethan, and a 1-year-old daughter, Demi. Thomas Ishmael joined AT&T as senior attorney of litigation in Oklahoma City. He
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Allyson Brown has three daughters: Ariael Towns (16), Leah Brown (6), and Leila Brown (5). Allyson is a member of the Zeta Phi Beta Chi Lambda Zeta chapter and volunteers once a week at Springdale Baptist Church in Memphis as a GED Language Arts tutor.
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Installing the Princeton Offense is on sale alongside videos from coaches much more famous than CBU’s 15-year head coach, who has a school-record of 266 wins at CBU and 508 overall in his 31-year college career.
over No. 10 Claflin, shooting 61 percent against one of the best ball-pressure defenses in the nation—burning them for 11 layups and nine threes in the process. With the win, they advanced to the regional final against the hosts, No. 11 Florida Southern. They won 82-72 over Florida Southern to reach the NCAA Division II Elite Eight, where they dropped a 70-62 decision to future Phoenix Suns center Garret Siler and No. 4 Augusta State. They finished the season 25-7, tying the 1984-85 team for the school record for wins in a season. For the next two years, promising starts gave way to sour endings. In 2009-10, CBU started 14-5 but lost five of the last eight to finish 17-10 and missed the NCAA’s. In 2010-11, the Bucs started 15-3 and reached No. 14 in the NABC poll, but after injuries to All-GSC players Scott Dennis and Zack Warner, they lost eight of their last 10 to finish 17-11, again missing the NCAA Tournament despite being in the Regional 38
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Rankings into the season’s final weeks. In 2011-12, however, the Bucs returned with a vengeance. They started the season 14-2, reaching the top spot in the NCAA South Region Rankings for the first time in school history. They reached the GSC Finals for the second time, losing 58-43 to Alabama-Huntsville and earning the No. 2 seed in the NCAA South Regional for the second time in four years. They rolled to an 85-74 win over Florida Southern in the first round, and they won 60-57 over Eckerd in the semifinals, setting up a fourth meeting with No. 2 Alabama-Huntsville, the top-seeded host. But UAH knocked off the Bucs 68-59 in the regional final. The Bucs finished the year 25-7, matching the 1984-85 and 2008-09 teams for the best win total in school history, and they were ranked No. 8 in the final NABC poll, their best final ranking ever. Losing to Acuff four times in one year didn’t impact their friendship, Nienaber said. “When we’re not playing, we root for each other. I went up to watch them in the Elite Eight after they beat us in the Sweet 16.” After the graduation of star seniors Dennis and Warner, many expected 201213 to be a rebuilding year for the Bucs. Especially when Preseason All-GSC guard Harry Green suffered a season-ending injury after CBU started 8-3. But after two losses, CBU won five of their next six, then guard Cory McArthy sprained his ankle in a win at North Alabama, and the Bucs lost their next game at last-place Union. Yet again they regrouped, winning five of their last six in the regular season to earn the No. 2 seed in the GSC Tournament
for the second year in a row. This time, the Bucs went on to win the GSC, holding off Valdosta State 65-62 in the finals to reach the NCAA Tournament yet again. No. 9 Alabama-Huntsville edged CBU 60-58 in the first round of the South Regional, ending the Bucs’ season at 21-9. This season, CBU had a 4-5 record at the Christmas break, losing all three of their December GSC games. “This was the most unhappy Christmas I’ve had in a decade,” said Nienaber. “We were not getting it done.” But they came back from the holiday break with a four-game winning streak, and ended the regular season with wins in three of their last four games to take a 16-10 record into the GSC Tournament. Their opponent in the first round? AlabamaHuntsville, who had ended the Bucs’ seasons the previous two years. This time, CBU exploded for a 68-48 win in the GSC quarterfinals. Then they took down top seed Delta State, 67-64, to reach the GSC finals for the third straight year. In the finals, North Alabama jumped out to a 15-point first-half lead, but the Bucs came back within two points in the second half before UNA pulled away to win 79-73 and end the Bucs’ season at 18-11. After the poor start, the Bucs won 14 of their final 20 games. “The last two years, we didn’t quite reach all that we hoped to reach, but I really think both teams overachieved, and that was very rewarding,” Nienaber said. “I’d rather go to the Elite Eight and go 25-7, but it’s a different kind of reward when a team gets knocked down to their knees and responds like we have the last two years. They both found a way to fight through adversity. Last year it was injuries. This year, we had lost our big guys. If you look at our good teams, our post players had been All-GSC players. It was a growing year for [center] Sidy Sall, but he grew a lot. But after the rough start, we came back and pieced it together. To be able to go and win the games we won down the stretch and in the tournament, those were really sweet wins.” Nienaber believes the change to the Princeton system was the key to CBU’s run of success. “You’re always changing things as a coach, but that was the most drastic change I’ve ever made,” he said. “I firmly believe if we hadn’t made this change, there would be a lot less of those banners on the wall. It’s been a perfect fit for the kind of kids we recruit here. And it has definitely rejuvenated my career.” PHOTO BY CORY DUGAN
CBU Loses a Buc Legend JOSEPH PAUL NADICKSBERND (’71), athletic director at CBU, passed away on September 18, 2013. Joe Nadicksbernd was an unmistakable icon of CBU for over 46 years as player, coach and administrator. “Coach Nate,” as he was affectionately known, was CBU’s athletic director since 2003. Nadicksbernd graduated from Newport Central Catholic High School in Kentucky and came to CBU in 1967 to play baseball and basketball. After a Hall of Fame career as a baseball and basketball player, he moved to his native northern Kentucky to begin his coaching career. But Nadicksbernd returned to CBU a year later as an assistant baseball coach, and he never left. Nadicksbernd has served the CBU athletics department as a Hall of Fame twosport athlete, a two-sport coach, assistant athletic director, and currently as athletic director. But his ties to the school run much deeper than that. Nadicksbernd met his wife of 42 years, Carol (’82), at CBU, and they were married in December of his senior year in what is now De La Salle Hall, just a few steps away from what would become his office for more than 30 years. In addition, their two sons, Russell (’98) and Spencer (’01), also graduated from CBU.
PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN
As CBU’s head baseball coach for 25 years, he was the University’s all-time winningest coach. He also served as the University’s men’s basketball coach for four years and assistant athletic director. In 1999, Nadicksbernd moved into athletics administration full-time, first as associate athletic director and ultimately serving as athletic director for the last 11 years of his career at CBU. Under Nadicksbernd’s leadership, CBU won six GSC championships and sent seven teams to NCAA Tournaments. He also led CBU to high achievements off the field, with the Athletics Department as a whole carrying a 3.0 GPA and seven student-athletes earning a top-ten finish for the Commissioner’s Trophy, which recognizes the top studentathlete in the GSC each year, recognizing excellence on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. While passionate about athletics, Nadicksbernd took more pride in the individual academic success of CBU students. He often was heard stating, “Our priority in athletics is winning, but our ultimate priority is academics and students receiving their degrees from CBU. That’s our true success.” The most recent honor was the naming
of CBU’s baseball field Nadicksbernd Field commemorating his lifelong contributions to CBU, especially its baseball program. Nowhere on campus is more symbolic of Nadicksbernd’s service to the school than the field now named after him. After all, he helped build it in the summer after his freshman year. As a sophomore, he blasted the first home run ever hit at the field. Nadicksbernd’s impact extended far beyond the Athletics Department. He loved the University that he served and never missed an opportunity to impact others’ lives. Among the many accolades that Nadicksbernd received were the Brother Dominic Dunn Award for Student Service in 1999, the Distinguished Lasallian Educator Award in 2002, and induction into the inaugural class of the CBU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010. Additionally, the CBU baseball program annually presents the “Coach Nate” Award to the graduating senior who best exemplifies Joe’s integrity and excellence on the field, in the classroom and in the community. B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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Katie Dyer has a master’s degree in Public Health from St. Louis University and has worked as an epidemiologist and developed curriculum and taught at Baptist Health College as well as at CBU. She is currently working with Health Memphis Common Table as a data analyst and grant coordinator in a program funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She is particularly interested in maternal and child health.
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Dr. Cina Ali and Dominique Butanwan were married in 2012. Dr. Ali finished his residency in Radiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and has moved to Duke University to be a Musculoskeletal Radiology Fellow. Renata Leimig graduated from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Nursing in May 2013. Kristy Phillips Sullivan was recently promoted to project director with The New Teacher Project in Memphis. In this capacity, Kristy will oversee staffing and human capital management for more than 200 Shelby County Schools. Tawanda M. Williams opened a law office in December 2013 in Memphis. Tawanda received her J.D. from the Mississippi College School of Law.
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Analice Hosey Sowell has been named Chair of the Memphis University School (MUS) Science Department.
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Dr. Robert Appling was married to Jenny Stubbs in August 2013. Robert is a podiatrist and practices in Southaven, MS. He also provides services at Tippah County Health Services. Jessica Hester and Ricardo Callender were married on June 22, 2013 in Ricardo’s home country of Panama. Chuck S. Lawrence was promoted to the rank of Major in December 2013. He and his wife, Christine, are currently stationed in Kaiserslautern, Germany. Chuck was also selected to attend the Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth, KS in August 2014. Dr. April Rebecca Glatt Slagle married Greg Slagle in 2012. They eloped to Myrtle Beach. April is currently teaching A & P at Pellissippi State Community College in Kodak, TN.
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Drew Bringhurst is now the business development manager in the Memphis office of CBIZ MHM. Drew currently holds a board position at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and is also a member of the CBU Career Services Alumni Advisory Board. Natalie Ensminger became a standardized patient training manager at Kaplan Clinical Skills Center in the UTHSC College of Medicine in September 2013. Dr. Bryan Williams (MAT) has been approved by the Board of Trustees of Christ Methodist Day School in Memphis to become Head of School in July. Bryan is currently the Elementary Principal of Briarcrest Christian Schools’ East Memphis campus, where he has served for 13 years.
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Chris Crawford is an account executive for key accounts for the West Tennessee market of UnitedHealthcare. Chris will have the responsibility to deliver affordable quality healthcare solutions to large employers. Reginald McCray started a new business, McCray Roberts Publishing & Photography. From romance novels to comic books, the company’s publishing services help to provide a venue for new authors and poets to get their words to the world. Carrie McIvor has been working since 2006 at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Pediatric Oncology/Hematology. Carrie just started work on her Ph.D. David Tran is on the faculty at St Agnes Academy. “I have not regretted my decision to teach,” David says. “The past four years as a teacher have been amazing. I love educating the young minds at SAA because they are energetic, fun, and willing to learn. Working at a school that has traditions and values similar to the Christian Brothers has been a blessing.”
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Dr. Janet Atkins is currently working at Le Bonheur Germantown and was married to Manny Grillis on August 31, 2013. Jennifer Bernard won the C. L. Davis Student Scholarship Award in Veterinary Pathology, voted on by the faculty at the University of Tennessee. She will finish her veterinary residency in July and take her boards in September. Dr. Oscar Herrera has been named a Clinical Pharmacy Fellow at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center. Jittapong “JT” Malasri (MBA ’12) was selected to The Memphis Flyer’s “20<30 Class
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of 2014,” the newspaper’s annual selection of young Memphians who are shaping the city’s future. JT, who designs utilities for apartments and subdivision for MLGW, was lauded for his work with the Urban Land Institute, an organization that helps real estate and development specialists share best practices for a more sustainable city. Melissa Woods married John Hasselle on March 16, 2013 in Memphis. Melissa is currently an allocation analyst for Freds, Inc. Dr. Justin Carmichael married Jessica Brooks in May 2013. They are currently living in Grapeville, TX. Jessica graduated from a dental hygienist program in January. Justin and Jessica met during an internship Justin had at Baptist Memorial in Advanced Orthopedics and Sports Medicine and have been together since 2010. Ernest Edwards graduated from the American University Washington College of Law has been admitted to the District of Columbia Bar. Dr. Brian Kim graduated with his DDS degree and is moving to Reedsport, OR. Dr. Jordan Klein and Jenna Cherry (’09) were married July 5, 2013. They are currently living in Louisville, KY. Dr. Sana Mujahid successfully defended her PhD thesis, “Regulation of lung development by miRNAs and Hox genes” at Tufts University. She will graduate in May and is currently applying to postdoctoral positions. Dorothy F. Sellers graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry in May 2013 with a DDS degree. She now has her own dental practice in East Memphis, Sellers Dental Studio. Kevin Smith, an investment strategies analyst at Vining Sparks, has earned the prestigious Chartered Financial Analyst CFA designation. The CFA charter is an investment credential which is respected and recognized globally by employers, investment professionals, and investors as the definitive standard by which to measure the competence integrity and dedication of investment professionals. Jermel Ziggy Tucker was selected to The Memphis Flyer’s “20<30 Class of 2013,” a list of 20 young Memphians who are shaping the city’s future. Ziggy is a fashion and portrait photographer. Whitney Heath Vickery, who is in the military with her husband, completed veterinary school and they are now stationed in Misawa, Japan.
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Indrani Biswas has been accepted to the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine at its Atlanta
campus. Dr. Courtney Coletta and Paul Thompson were married on October 19, 2013. Matt Harrell was selected as a “Top 20 under 30 Internal Auditor” by the Institute of Internal Auditors. Michael Herr married Ashley Elliot on November 9, 2013. Michael will defend his PhD thesis at UTHSC in December. He was a graduate student mentor with Jessica Jameson (Biology ’14) last summer, and coauthored her senior thesis—which was accepted for publication in Biochemical and Biophysical Research. Debra Frey and John Waldorf (’09) were married on September 21, 2013 in Antigua. Dr. Frank Ramirez spoke at the summer mini term at SCO during July/August 2013. Frank is currently the manager of the pharmacy at Walmart, and discussed the importance of all individuals prescribing medications to have information about each other that is frequently not disclosed by the patient. William Shepherd is now manager of Central Automotive on Central Avenue, a stone’s throw away from the CBU campus. He invites all alumni and their families to visit the shop for any of their automotive repair and service needs Let’s keep it in the CBU family! Maria Shiue has entered the University of Minnesota School of Pharmacy. Andrew Assadollahi completed his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at the University of Memphis in December 2013. He is currently teaching Geotechnical Engineering, Foundation Design, and Advanced Mechanics of Materials as an adjunct professor in the Civil & Environmental Engineering Department at CBU. This is what he has to say about CBU: “”The education I received at CBU enabled me to successfully complete my graduate degrees. Now, I get the privilege to provide a high quality education to students at CBU like what I experienced when I was a student here.” Jenna Cherry and Dr. Jordan Klein (’07) were married July 5, 2013. They are currently living in Louisville, KY. Jesse East graduated from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Nursing in May 2013. Sherita Flake is the board president of Mid-South Hemophilia and Bleeding Disorders Foundation in Memphis. She
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babybucs Jennifer Chikos Adams (’01) and Brad Adams (’02) welcomed their first child—DUNCAN THEODORE ADAMS—on March 30, 2013. The happy family is living in Chicago. Natalie Hart Guley (’10) and her husband Patrick celebrated the birth of their baby girl, ELOWYN MICHAELA GULEY, on May 12, 2013. Kristin L. Teague-Bartlett (’03) gave birth to a baby girl, BRENNA LOUISE BARTLETT, on June 11. Dr. Tiffany Baldi Rabe (’02) and her husband, Derek, welcomed their new bundle of joy, JULIETTE QUIN RABE, born on July 21, 2013. Adriane and Sam Vitale (’05) were blessed to have their second daughter, SERAFINA MARIE VITALE, on October 1, 2013. Serafina joins big sister, Ariana. Erin Schierer Dorgan (’03) and Kyle Dorgan (’04) welcomed the birth of their daughter, KATELYN GERLADINE DORGAN, on October 26, 2013. Joseph Rodgers (’06) and his wife, Clancy Graham Rodgers, welcomed a new baby girl, JON BRYMER RODGERS, on October 30, 2013. Mallory Poff Loughridge (’09) and her husband, Scott, welcomed AMELIA ROSE LOUGHRIDGE into their lives on October 26, 2013.
is seeking volunteer board members, foundation volunteers, and anyone living with a bleeding disorder. Check out www. midsouthhemophilia.org. John Legge is attending medical school at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. John Waldorf and Debra Frey (’08) and Jwere married on September 21, 2013 in Antigua. John is working for the government in Washington, DC.
Claudia Roldan (’08) was selected as the ExxonMobil employee to be profiled in “The Most Attractive Employers in the US,” an insert magazine in the Wall Street Journal presented by Universum in September 2013. As voted by 75,000 students across the U.S., the magazine showcased the Top 100 employers for business, engineering, IT, natural sciences, humanities and MBA students. In addition to the rankings, it featured interviews with employees from top employers as well as recruiting trends and other survey findings. B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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BELL TOWER GALA The second annual Bell Tower Gala was held November 9, 2013 at the Hilton Memphis. Hosted by Kelly Jo & Mitch Graves, Gloria & Doug Marchant, and Donna & Dave Nelson, the 2013 Gala celebrated Brother Terence McLaughlin, recipient of the Bishop Carroll T. Dozier Award for Peace & Justice in honor of his historic leadership role in the first integrated high school in Memphis 50 years ago. Susan Horn Spencer (’83) and Joshua Shipley (’01) were recognized as the Distinguished Alumna and Distinguished Young Alumnus. All proceeds support CBU’s exceptional academic programs and scholarships.
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B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
Clockwise from top left: tSteve (’72) and Deborah Waechter with Rebecca McLaughlin (center) t,BMMJ ."5 BOE.BUU)BSSFMM
t+FTTF $#)4 BOE+PZDF5VSOFS t1SFTJEFOUT"NCBTTBEPST MS 4BSBI Abdallat (’16), Garrett Burton (’14), Chawan Rasheed (’15), and Anna Baumheckel (’14) t.PZBBOE%BOJFM%FOU .#"
t-BVSB .&E BOE#SZBO ,PDI t%POOBBOE%BWF/FMTPO t#SBEBOE.BSJB-FOTJOH .&.
t(BMB)POPSFFT MS 4VTBO)PSO4QFODFS (’83, Distinguished Alumna), Joshua Shipley (’01, Distinguished Young Alumnus), Ruby Wharton, Brother Terence McLaughlin (Dozier Award for Peace & Justice), Memphis Mayor A C Wharton, Dr. John Smarrelli Jr.
B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME The CBU Athletic Hall of
Fame Induction Banquet was held April 12. This year’s class featured eight inductees: Mike Bennett (’87, Baseball), Kenneth Blake (’97, Basketball), Wayne Clayborne (’61, Basketball), Missy Gregg (’03, Soccer), Dave Loos (Baseball Coach 1971-74, Basketball Coach 198286), Andres Martinez Gonzalez (’89, Soccer & Baseball), Margaret Saurin (’03, Soccer), and Inez Scruggs (Basketball Scorekeeper, posthumous). The 2001-2002 Lady Buccaneer soccer teams (NCAA Runners-up and National Champions) were also honored as Teams of Distinction.
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PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN
Previous page, closckwise from top tBrother Francisco Martin and Andres Martinez Gonzalez (Hall of Fame inductee) t.JLF#FOOFUUBOE%POOB$SPOF JOUFSJNBUIMFUJDEJSFDUPS t/BUJPOBM$IBNQJPO-BEZ#VDT.BSHBSFU4BVSJO #SJEHFU$FOUFMMB Treadwell, Jessica Hester Callender, and Missy Gregg with Tom Burk (center), retired dean of academic services t&E.VSQIZ BOE,FOOFUI#MBLF )BMMPG'BNFJOEVDUFF
This page, clockwise from top t%BWF-PPT DFOUFS XJUINFNCFSTPGUIF#VDDBOFFSCBTLFUCBMM teams that he coached from 1982 to 1986 tWayne Clayborne and Donna Crone, interim athletic director t#SJBO1PXFST &SJD#SBO BOE%BWJE.D-BVHIMJO BMM ‰ members of CBU’s first soccer team and first four-year players. t.JTTZ(SFHHXJUIIFSTNBMMFTUGBO %S5SBDJF#VSLF
B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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THE CBU DECKHANDS Back in August 2103, a few notices popped
up around campus seeking volunteers for something called “The CBU Deckhands.” Modeled after the Grizzly Grannies and Grampas, the then-nescent Deckhands were billed as “a pep/cheer squad” comprised of faculty and staff that would appear from time to time at CBU events. After a soft debut at an October volleyball match, the Deckhands made their full-blown dance routine premiere to much acclaim at a Lady Bucs basketball game on November 16. After several more command performances during the basketball season, the CBU Deckhands henceforth became known as the “Award-Winning CBU Deckhands” when the NCAA recognized their talents with the Division II 2013 Award of Excellence for the Gulf South Conference. The NCAA Award of Excellence is granted to one school in each Division II conference in recognition of an activity or event that exemplifies excellence in any of the areas covered by the Division II six attributes
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TOWE spring2014 2014 BB EE LLLLTOWE RRspring
(learning, balance, resourcefulness, sportsmanship, passion, and service). Ladies and gentlemen, your AwardWinning CBU Deckhands are Dr. Tracie Burke, Dr. Divya Choudhary, Lady Bucs Coach Sarah Condra, Professor Sandra Davis, Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald, Dr. Karen Golightly, Dr. Jeff Gross, Professor Cathy Grilli, Melissa Hanson, Dr. Kelly James, Dr. Anne Kenworthy, Dr. Teri Mason, Professor Chanda Murphy (Deckhands Coach), Dr. Maureen O’Brien, Dr. Mary Ogilvie, Dr. Sandra Thompson-Jaeger, Stacey Trotter, Professor Eliza Warren, Dr. Jennifer Weske, and Dr. John Young. Give them a big hand!
PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN
Lauren Douglass and Matt Warren (‘12) are engaged to marry in September 2014. Natalie Hart Guley is working on an MD/ PhD degree at the University of Tennessee Health Sciemnce Center. Also see “Baby Bucs” on page ?? Cameron Kasmai is a first-year medical student at Meharry Medical College in Nashville. Kristi Prevost began Veterinary School at Louisiana State University last fall. She is engaged to Aaron Camp. Jessica Wright started a new job in October 2013 as an education specialist at the Tulsa Zoo.
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David Breen has the kind of job that leaves most people wondering: How can I get into that? As vice president of sales at Arkansas Craft Distributors, he spends his time getting his company’s craft brews into the coolers and onto the taps of bars across Arkansas. At 25, David considers his post a dream spot for someone who loves quality beer. He took his knowledge of beer to the next level by becoming the first (and so far only )person in Arkansas to become a Certified Cicerone,
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which an expert title like a sommelier is for wine. Shandell Driver is a quality analyst at IPS Corporation in Collierville, TN. Joe Fong is now a medical student at the UT Medical School. Meagan Lamica was married on August 31, 2013 to Matt Cross. She is attending the Nursing School at Baptist College of Health Science in Memphis. Elizabeth Beebe Longo has been accepted to the Lowenberg School of Nursing accelerated program for Fall of 2014. She and Daniel Longo have been married since December 2012. Anthony Maranise, OblSB had his paper entitled “Sport Chaplaincy: Adding a Game Face to the Many Faces of Chaplaincy” accepted for publication in the journal Inside Homeland Security (Winter 2014). Additionally, he released his second book, Sport & the Spiritual Life: The Integration of Playing & Praying, which features a foreword by Rev. Kevin Lixey, former head of the Pontifical Council for the Laity at the Vatican in Rome, and an afterword by Rev. David Knight, an adjunct professor of Catholic Studies at CBU and a popular retreat leader. Sharon Venice Olden retired from Memphis
City Schools. Hanna Orendorff married Zach Orcutt on August 3, 2013. She is currently working as a physical therapy aide at Mercer Island Physical Therapy in Washington. Dana Pabalate is currently at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in the Clinical Nurse Leader program. She and Jacob Zimmerman have announced their engagement. Huong Tran graduated from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Nursing in May 2013. Larry Anderson and Annie Ostrow were married August 3, 2013 in Piperton, TN. They both are working on PhDs in Madison, WI. Samantha Bownes has been working as an Intern at Church Health Center and is working on her Master of Public Health at the University of Memphis. Paige Campbell is now teaching kindergarten at Harding Academy’s Cordova, TN campus. JD Hill was recently promoted to director
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A mini-reunion of past CBU Lasallian Fellows was in attendance at the Fifth Anniversary Fellows Awards Dinner in September (l-r): Taylor Tartera (’13), Lauryn Murphy (’13), Kathleen Nelson Goldberg (’11), Caroline Mitchell Carrico (’10), Johnny Blount (’13), Samantha Noland (’12), Kenny Latta (’10), Jenessa Gebers (’11), and Andrew Greenop (’12).
PHOTOS BY CORY DUGAN & JACOB EDWARDS
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of casino marketing at Hollywood Casino in Tunica, MS. Kelly Jeu is enrolled at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine. Grace Montgomery is the group sales and VIP ticketing coordinator at the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis. Kelly Nolan recently became an associate to the team of CPAs advisors and auditors of Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, the largest certified public accounting firm in the Southeast. Robert Scott Parker has been accepted to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine M.D. program. Johnny Timmerman spoke at the mini term at SCO during July/August 2013. Johnny is currently in physical therapy school. Matt Warren and Lauren Douglass (‘10) are engaged to marry in September 2014. Moses M. Akpoughul-Abunya is just happy to be a CBU graduate! Robert Banks has been accepted to the PharmD program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. Krystyna Clark has been accepted to the PharmD program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. Catherine Delbove and Brent Holmes were married on June 1, 2013. Lauren D’Surney is now a Church Health Center Scholar. For more information about the CHC Scholar Program, please visit wwwchurchhealthcenterorg/chscholars. Melissa Duong is employed as the corporate communications coordinator for First Tennessee Bank. Michalyn Easter has chartered a not-forprofit, grassroots organization called Our Grass Our Roots. It has been established to fight gentrification in Memphis neighborhoods, provide neighborhood citizens with information needed to enhance living conditions, and to assist individuals in progressing in this city. The organization is new and growing, so there is a need for help with internal operations as well as volunteers. For more information, visit www. OurGrassOurRoots.org. Victor Evans (MBA) has joined the TNGOP as its engagement director. His responsibilities include enlisting support from the AfricanAmerican, Latino, and other minority communities across Tennessee. Evans will also direct the TNGOP’s Global Engagement Team, which has already been actively
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David Skull (’13) and Kelsey Miles (’13) were named to the 2013 Gulf South Conference Commissioners Top Ten which is awarded annually to GSC athletes for excellence on the field in the classroom and in the community. Kelsey led the Lady Buc volleyball team to three straight winning records, three straight GSC Tournament appearances, back-toback NCAA appearances, and CBU’s first-ever wins in the GSC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. David was the anchor of the defense on the back-to-back GSC champion Buccaneer soccer team, leading the team to its second and third GSC championships and its second NCAA Tournament appearance. working in Nashville to grow minority support. Jessica Ferrell has been accepted to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine M.D. program. Ja’Lissa Fredrick is attending the University of Memphis in the fall in the master’s program in Mental Health Counseling. Jessica Green was selected to participate in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) annual “So You Want To Be A Coach” program. Each member participated in the three-day workshop held in April in conjunction with the WBCA National Convention in Nashville. Jessica is assistant women’s basketball coach at Mid South Community College. Brent Holmes and Catherine Delbove were married on June 1, 2013. Brent has been awarded a teaching assistantship in the PhD Mathematics Department at the University of Kansas. He also has a paper accepted for publication, “Two Kinds of Frobenius Problems” in the International Journal of Mathematics and Computer Science. Lydia Hyatt moved to Denver and started work as a part-time activities coordinator at New Dawn Memory Care, an assisted living home that specializes in Alzheimer’s and
dementia patients. “Although I haven’t felt a particularly strong draw toward patient care in the past,” Lydia says, “I’ve found a new motivation to improve the lives of the residents at New Dawn. I know there isn’t much I can do for these patients other than be there with them, talk and listen to them, and do my job, but I’ve discovered an overwhelming drive to pursue a career in medical research and potentially improve/ prevent similar cases in the future.” James Johnson has been accepted to Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in Birmingham, AL. Lauryn Murphy is a clinic assistant at the Church Health Center in Memphis. Riley Pace was named a 2013/2014 Church Health Scholar and is working at the Church Health Center in Memphis. He has been accepted to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine M.D. program. Alexander Park has begun the study of law at Dickinson School of Law at Penn State. Brian Ratcliffe received the 2013 Philip M. Becker Chemical Engineering Award at Commencement in May 2013. The Chemical Engineering faculty presents this award to the department graduate who has
demonstrated academic excellence and creativity in solving chemical engineering problems. Jared Roberts is working in advertising, marketing, and communications for Envision Healthcare in Denver, CO. Garrett Russell has been accepted to University of Tennessee Health Science Center Nurse Anesthetist program. Indiana Soliman has obtained her U.S. citizenship. Alecia Stewart is a research intern in the Postbaccalaureate Program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. She is studying bitter compound receptors in the lungs and their potential to relax bronchoconstriction due to asthma. Adam Thornton was presented the Outstanding School Of Engineering Graduate Award at Commencement in May 2013. The School of Engineering faculty presents this award to the School of Engineering graduate who has demonstrated outstanding academic excellence distinguished leadership and dedicated service to the University and/ or community. Adam also received the T. Herbert Darnell Mechanical Engineering Award, which is presented by the Mechanical Engineering faculty to the department graduate who has demonstrated academic excellence and dedicated service to the Mechanical Engineering Department. Martin Tribo was presented the Brother Philip Morgan Electrical Engineering Award at Commencement in May 2013. The Electrical Engineering faculty presents this award to the department graduate who has demonstrated academic excellence and outstanding design ability. Cameron Volpe has been accepted to the University of Tennessee Knoxville School of Veterinary Medicine. Yusef Akbik presented the results of his undergraduate research at the 34th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference hosted by the Department of Chemistry at the University of Memphis in February. The title of Yusef Akbik’s talk was “An Examination of the Factors that Influence Iron Oxide-Gold CoreShell Particle Growth.” Stephanie Allen-Winters presented her senior research in the Health Sciences division at the National Convention of the Alpha Chi Honor Society in March and won first place for her presentation entitled “How demographic factors influence the cortisol levels of infants and young children.”
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Nico Alvarez-Garcia, Buccaneer soccer defender, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC Team. Juste Augustinaite has been accepted into the Accelerated BSN program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center for this fall. Elton Banks was recognized as “Student of the Year” by Citizens for Better Service at their annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Awards ceremony in January. In October, he presented “Analysis of Expression Patterns of Hamartin and Tuberin in Animal Models with High Fat Diets” at the Mid-South Coalition for Minority Health International Research Training (MHIRT) Projects Symposium. Anna Birg has been accepted to the University of Tennessee School of Pharmacy. Anna was also honored by the School of Sciences with the Dominic Dunn Award, which is presented annually by the faculty to the outstanding graduating senior with a major in science or mathematics. Erica Burgess, a guard for the Lady Buccaneer basketball team, was named to the Academic All-GSC Team with a 4.0 GPA in her studies in the MAT Program. Cali Copsey was recognized by the School of Engineering as the 2013-14 Featured Engineering Student for Academic Excellence, Student Leadership, and Service. Cali was president of Tau Beta Pi and served on the Mechanical Engineering Student Advisory Board. She was chapter secretary of the ASME student chapter and a senator in the SGA, as well as an active member of the SAE Mini-Baja team, Up ‘Til Dawn, the Honors Program, and Alpha Xi Delta. She was on the CBU Cross Country Team and served on the Student Athletic Advisory Committee from 2011 to 2013. She currently volunteers as a mentor for the US Dream Academy and works as a Packaging Intern for Olympus Surgical Technologies of America. Kristin Davis has been accepted to the Southern College of Optometry for fall 2014. Jaime Garcia, Buccaneer goalkeeper, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC squad for soccer. Rebekah Herrman won Best Poster in the Business, Engineering, and Computer Science category at the National Collegiate Honors Council conference in New Orleans in November. Her poster, Quantum Computing, was based on her summer REU project at Oakridge National Laboratory. Jessica Jameson had her senior thesis accepted for publication in Biochemical
and Biophysical Research Communications. She worked with Michael Herr (’08) on her thesis, entitled “Pro-MMP-9 Upregulation in HT1080 Cells Expressing CD9 Is Regulated by Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor.” Kyle Johnson has been accepted to the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law. Cory McArthy, a guard for the Buccaneer basketball team, was named to the Academic All-GSC Team with a 3.59 GPA in Business Administration. R. Terry Newsom was inducted into Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society for Nursing. Christine Nguyen presented the results of her undergraduate research at the 34th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference hosted by the Department of Chemistry at the University of Memphis in February. The title of her talk was “Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles of Various Shapes and Sizes.” Jessica Schneider has been accepted to the Church Health Center Scholar program and will start there in June. Shesha (Sheshaben) Shah has been accepted to the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry. She presented the results of her undergraduate research at the 34th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference at the University of Memphis in February. The title of Shesha’s talk was “Computational Investigation of M-Ga-F Triatomics with Row 3 Metals (M=Sc…Zn).” Elizabeth Schriner (MSPAS) was selected from over 700 PA students statewide to receive the J.C. Carey Memorial Scholarship by the Tennessee Academy of Physician Assistants. This is the second consecutive year that a CBU PA student has been granted a TAPA scholarship. Esha Thakore has been accepted into the Fall 2014 entering class of the University of Tennessee School of Pharmacy. Ralph Velasco, Buccaneer soccer defender, earned a spot on the Daktronics NCAA Division II All-South Region Second Team and was also earned First Team All-GSC honors. Alison Welch, Lady Buc outside hitter, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC squad for volleyball. Erika Yates has been accepted into the Fall 2014 entering class of the University of Tennessee School of Pharmacy in Memphis.
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Buccaneer guard TREY CASEY (’15) was named first Capital One First Team Academic All-American in more than a decade. Trey, who carries a perfect 4.0 GPA in Business Administration, was also named to the Academic All-GSC Team. On the court, he was second in the GSC in scoring at 19.0 ppg, and he led the GSC with 2.1 steals per game. He was named GSC Player of the Week twice for the 2013-14 season, and also named Player of the Week by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association twice.
Joanna Arnett has been selected to be a Summer Research Scholar at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Erica Burgess, Lady Buc guard, was named to the 2014 All-GSC Women’s Basketball Team, as well as earning a spot on the Spring Academic All-GSC Team. Sami Gruse, Lady Buc setter, was named Gulf South Conference Volleyball Player of the Week in November. Jonathan Holliday was awarded an accounting scholarship by the Memphis chapter of the American Institute of CPAs at a luncheon on February 12. Breanna Ridgell, Lady Buc guard, was named to the 2014 All-GSC Women’s Basketball Team. Damien Stevenson has been selected to participate in the Tennessee Institute for Preprofessionals this summer at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Mandy Wang was awarded an accounting scholarship by the Memphis chapter of the American Institute of CPAs at a luncheon in February. J. D. Wolfe had a paper on “Growth responses of different aged individuals
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of Xanthium strumarium L. in flooded conditions” accepted for publication in the Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society. He also presented “The Anatomical, Functional, and Electrophysiological Evaluation of the Visual System in Albinism Carriers: A Clinical and Laboratory Study” at the MHIRT Projects Symposium in October. J.D. has also been selected to participate in the Summer Science Program at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock. Chelsea Cassacia, Lady Buc soccer midfielder, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC Team. Alexis Gillis, outside hitter on the Lady Buc volleyball team, was named to the Honorable Mention All-American team by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. She was also named an AVCA First Team All-Region selection. Alexis averaged 3.73 kills and 2.89 digs per set, hitting .176 for the season as she collected 4.20 points per set. Also first-team All-GSC and first-team AVCA All-South Region, she led the GSC and finished 35th in the nation in kills per set and led the GSC and finished 45th in the nation in points per set.
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Drew Hildreth, Buccaneer basketball forward, earned a spot on the Spring Academic All-GSC Team. Katelyn Graham, Lady Buc soccer midfielder, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC Team. Camilla Rodrigues, Lady Buc soccer midfielder, earned a spot on the Daktronics NCAA Division II All-South Region Second Team. She was also named GSC Player of the Week in October. Kevin Tikhomiroff, Buccaneer midfielder, was named to the Fall Academic All-GSC squad for soccer. Brinsley Cooper, middle blocker on the Lady Buc volleyball team, was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association South Region Freshman of the Year. Also Second Team All-GSC and the GSC Freshman of the Year, Brinsley averaged 2.49 kills per set and hit .338 as she led the GSC and ranked 43rd in the nation in hitting percentage. Gabrielle Pilgrim, Lady Buc soccer defender, was named to the Daktronics NCAA Division II All-South Region Second Team.
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in memoriam May all the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace. ALUMNI
DR. DALE BAILS, former professor of Economics and dean of the CBU School of Business, passed away on January 30, 2014.
HOWARD W. BARRON (’65) died November 28, 2013 in Yazoo City, MS.
LENORE BINSWANGER died on January 14, 2014 in Memphis.
KEVIN J. BIESTER (’72) passed away on June 16, 2013 in Yeadon, PA.
TINA LOUISE BIRCHETT passed away on August 18, 2013 in Memphis.
MARK DANIEL BUCKMAN (’76) passed away on October 26, 2013 in Memphis.
FRIEDA FRANKIE COOPER died peaceably on November 19, 2013 in Memphis at the age of 103.
LAWRENCE “LARRY” CAMPBELL (’64) died March 20, 2014 in Southaven, MS.
GILES AUGUSTUS COORS JR. died peacefully at home in Memphis on January 11, 2014.
CASEY S. CARTER (’99) died September 6, 2013 in Memphis.
KEVIN MICHAEL COWAN passed away on September 3, 2013 at his home in Collierville, TN.
KAREN DENISE CHERRY (’90) died on September 11, 2013 in Lansing, MI. ERIC GASTON (’02) passed away on November 1, 2013 in Memphis.
ELIZABETH “BETSY” FAY DE POINCY passed away on March 1, 2014 in Memphis.
BILLY FRANK FINLEY (’91) died December 15, 2013, at his residence in Alpharetta, GA.
JOHN A. GALLINA died on December 20, 2013 in Rochester, NY.
CURTIS W. FOSTER (’71) passed away on February 2, 2014 in Huntsville, AL.
NINA KATZ, a founder of Facing History & Ourselves in Memphis and a CBU Honorary Doctorate, died February 8, 2014 in Memphis.
DAVID LUKE FRIEDRICHS (’??) passed away in February 2014 in Warren, ME.
ANGELO A. LUCCHESI passed away on December 6, 2013 in Memphis.
EDWARD J. GARDNER (’69) passed away December 18, 2013 in Memphis.
DAVID LEO “DAVE” MASTERSON passed away on November 5, 2013 in Memphis.
LARRY GREGANTI (’71) passed away on December 8, 2013 in Nolensville, TN.
PRISCILLA McALPIN passed from this life on January 23, 2104 at her home in Munford, TN.
DAVID MICHAEL LAZARUS (’95) passed away December 29, 2013, in Memphis.
BERNICE ANN MORRISON passed away on February 22, 2013 in Memphis.
THOMAS VINCENT LINDER (’57) died on January 22, 2013 in Wartburg, TN.
PATSY JEAN HAWKINS NICHOLS passed away on February 4, 2013 in Memphis.
MARVIN MEALS (’67) passed away on November 4, 2011 in Indianapolis, IN.
CESAR A. OSPINA passed away on April 15, 2013 in Bartlett, TN.
CAROL P. MINSHEW (’79) passed away on August 30, 2013 at a hospice near her home in Lake City, FL. PRABHAKAR S. OAK (’65) passed away at his home in Vernon Hills, IL on April 7, 2014. NATHAN A. PERA III (’61) passed away on February 11, 2014 in Memphis.
DR. EDWARD GONYEA passed away February 26, 2013 in Memphis.
GERALD CHRISTOPHER PAPACHRISTOU, husband of Patricia Papachristou (Professor of Economics) and father of Mark Papachristou (’97, MBA ’99) and Angela Papachristou (’07), passed away on May 11, 2013. LINDA KAYE BRYANT PEEK died peacefully on January 23, 2012 at her home in Cordova, TN. JOSEPH H. POWELL passed away on August 2, 2013 in Memphis.
JOHN LOUIS PETERMAN JR. (’62) died February 26, 2014 in West Point, VA.
MARY DELLA QUINN, OP passed away on November 1, 2013 in Memphis, TN.
ANTHONY DONALD “”DON”” RUPPEL (’61) passed away on February 17, 2014 in Vincennes, IN.
BEVERLY C. ROSS, namesake of the Beverly & Sam Ross Gallery at CBU, died March 9, 2013 at Ave Maria Home in Memphis.
CHARLES A. SHOWALTER (’68) passed away on November 11, 2013 near his home in Ruckersville, VA.
GLENDA BRIGHT RUST died on August 4, 2013 in Conway, AR.
GRACE SMITH (’84) passed away on August 30, 2013 in Memphis. JAMES DAVID TOWNSEND (MACS ’10) died on February 6, 2014 in Memphis. ALEX THOMAS WARNER (’73) passed away on July 10, 2013 in Nashville, TN.
MADELINE WILLIAMS SMITH passed away on March 16, 2013 in Germantown, TN. BERNADINE E. STUECHELI died on May 21, 2012 in Troy, MI. ROBERT EDWIN TOOMS passed away on September 10, 2013 in Memphis. MARTHA JAMES TOWNE passed away on April 8, 2013 in Memphis.
FACULTY, STAFF & FRIENDS
REV. ROBERT CARROLL WHEATLEY died on October 7, 2013 at his home in Hardinsburg, KY.
MARY ELISE LISA ACKERMANN passed away on February 18, 2013 in Memphis.
DR. WILLIAM EDISON WINGFIELD, former faculty member, passed away on July 26, 2013 in Memphis. B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
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BACK PAGE
Champions Then, Now & Forever Members of the 2002 NCAA Champion Lady Buc soccer team were honored as one of CBU’s first Teams of Distinction at the 2014 CBU Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in April. Pictured below their photo in the new historical timeline that encircles Alfonso Dining Hall are (l-r) Lauren Carpenter Furlong, Margaret Saurin, Missy Gregg, Bridgette Centella Treadwell, Kristen Killough Carothers, and Jessica Hester Callender.
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B E LL TOWE R spring 2014
Save the Date T H E T H I R D A N N UA L
SATURDAY
c NOVEMBER 15, 2014
presenting the BISHOP CARROLL T. DOZIER AWARD FOR PEACE & JUSTICE DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS/A AWARD DISTINGUISHED YOUNG ALUMNUS/A AWARD
For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, contact Karen Viotti at (901) 321-3270 or kviotti@cbu.edu. All proceeds from the Bell Tower Gala support the exceptional academic programs and scholarships at CBU.
NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
OFFICE OF ADVANCEMENT 650 EAST PARKWAY SOUTH MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE 38104
MEMPHIS, TN PERMIT NO. 397
CBU students, faculty, and staff forming a Lasallian Star of Faith on the front lawn.
Published on Jun 2, 2014
The Alumni Magazine of Christian Brothers University • Spring 2104 Edition
