Prospect Magazine, Summer 2019

THE MAGAZINE OF ELMHURST COLLEGE

Elmhurst is preparing an environmentally engaged generation to tackle pressing challenges

THE GREEN ISSUE

SUMMER ����

Summer 2019 volume ii, number

The Magazine of Elmhurst College

From their home on top of the Schaible Science Center, 24,000 bees produce honey and pollinate plants throughout the campus and in surrounding neighborhoods.

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F E AT U R E S

24

30

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A new academic program offers options for an environmentally engaged generation.

A dynamic partnership with the College has helped Elmhurst-based Brewpoint Coffee grow and thrive.

An innovative study-abroad course prompts students to explore new ways of seeing the world.

Green Degree

D E PA R T M E N T S

3 P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S AG E 6 CAMPUS NEWS 12 COMMENCEMENT

From the Grounds Up

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41 ALUMNI NEWS

I N T H E CLASS ROOM

The Role of Great Personalities in History B E YON D T H E CLASS ROOM

Brenda Guan and the Power of Fitness Evans Afenya, Solving the Cancer Equation

4 3 C L ASS N OT E S

Heather Schneider’s Plant Advocacy

4 8 M Y C A R E E R PAT H

20 Read the magazine online at elmhurst.edu/prospect.

The City as Text

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S P O RTS S P OT L I G H T

Jake Rhode, Comeback Kid A RTS S P OT L I G H T

Susan Moninger’s Lyrical Legacy

Edith Mercado ’22 prepares to plant green peppers in the College’s Heritage Garden, which produces organic vegetables for the College cafeteria and local food pantries.

For more on the garden, see page 29.

The Magazine of Elmhurst College

Summer 2019 volume

11, number 1

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

Jonathan Shearer EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Desiree Chen CREATIVE DIRECTION & DESIGN

Laura Ress Design CONTENT STRATEGY

Margaret Currie COPY EDITOR

Leo Ebersole CONTRIBUTORS

Judith Crown, Dave Roos, Andrew Santella PHOTOGRAPHY

Bob Coscarelli, Digital Alliance, Thomas Lindfors, Sarah Nader, Justin Runquist, Genevieve Lee, Emma Wilkin PHOTO COORDINATORS

Lauren Altiery, Lauren Galvin, Yuma Nakada ILLUSTRATION

Andrew Bannecker, Josie Portillo, Jing Zhang CONNECT WITH US

We welcome your comments!

Email us at marketing@elmhurst.edu.

Prospect is published twice a year by the Office of Marketing and Communications.

Elmhurst College 190 Prospect Ave. Elmhurst, Illinois 60126 © 2019 Elmhurst College All rights reserved.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

TOWARD A GREENER FUTURE

Our arboretum campus is especially beautiful this time of year, when our trees are in full leaf and the grass is lush and green. It’s a powerful reminder of the urgent need to protect our natural resources and build a sustainable future for us all.

In that spirit, this issue of Prospect highlights several green initiatives at Elmhurst, including a new major in environmental studies. Launching in the fall, this interdisciplinary program taps into growing interest in sustainability and prepares students to engage some of today’s most critical problems.

We’re advancing our mission in other areas as well. We’ve updated our campus facilities master plan and set a new record for alumni giving. And this year, Annette and I traveled across the country to raise a glass with many dedicated alumni and friends.

This issue of the magazine also highlights the President’s Circle, our elite donor group. As we approach our 150th anniversary, I invite you to join the President’s Circle and help even more of our students succeed.

Whether or not you joined us during our travels, I hope to see you at Homecoming in October—the campus is especially beautiful that time of year, too.

TROY D. VANAKEN

President

SUMMER 2019

P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

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IN THE

CLASSROOM

AN EYE FOR EVIL

THE CLASS

The Role of Great Personalities in History

THE PROFESSOR

A COURSE RETHOUGHT

ANCIENT AND MODERN EVIL

Robert Butler

When I first came to Elmhurst in 1989, I was assigned to teach a course called The Role of Great Personalities in History, a title that suggests a somewhat old-fashioned way of thinking about history. A colleague jokingly suggested I change the name to Great Degenerate Perverts Throughout Time. I thought that was brilliant, so I adapted the idea.

Examining instances of great evil, it turns out, opens all kinds of avenues of inquiry—about values, about changing cultural contexts, about historical methods.

We look at some ancient examples of evil, like the Roman emperors Nero and Caligula, and more recent instances, like the Holocaust. There is enough distance from someone like Nero that it’s possible for students to see him as merely weird and fascinating. But then we get to Hitler, and the documentary record is so immediate; it’s literally there in black-and-white photographs.

Suddenly, the topic starts to seem very real.

JOAN AND LESTER BRUNE CHAIR IN HISTORY

Is there such a thing as evil?

Have ideas about what constitutes evil changed over time? In Robert Butler’s popular history course, known on campus simply as “the Evil Class,” students tackle such questions as they consider villains from the Roman emperor Nero to Adolf Hitler.

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P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

EVIL AND GENDER

One of the basic questions we ask is, does evil exist as a thing, as a noun?

Or can we only talk about evil as an adjective, a way of describing people?

And that leads to still more questions.

For example, when you ask students for a list of great evil people, the lists almost always consist entirely of men.

Why? Can’t women be evil? Or when we talk about great evil, are we also talking about who is in a position to do great evil?

SUMMER 2019

EVIL ON FILM

We watch a 1956 documentary film about the Nazi death camps called Night and Fog, by the French director Alain Resnais. I always warn the students that the film is extremely disturbing and invite them to leave the classroom if they think they are not up to watching it. It is a film everyone should see once, but no one should ever have to see more than once.

ONE OF A KIND

If there is another class exactly like this one in the country, I haven’t been able to find it. No one else looks at this topic in exactly this way. But the conversations this course provokes are important ones to have.

THE STUDENT VIEW

“It isn’t in every history class that you talk only about the bad guys.

The readings are detailed and full of interesting facts, and Dr. Butler’s lectures and anecdotes make the class a very rewarding experience.

I was surprised to learn about Vlad the Impaler, the ruthless prince who was the model for the legend of Dracula. And I’d never really considered all the different ways societies have depicted the devil.

Even if you are not a history buff, the course pushes you to think about history in new ways.”

— KENNY O’LEARY ’20 POLITICAL SCIENCE/HISTORY MAJOR

PHOTO B Y TH OM AS L IN D FO R S

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CAMPUS

NEWS

SPEAKER

Q&A CAMPUS TREES ���

Doris Kearns Goodwin visited the College on March 7 to discuss what we can learn from Abraham Lincoln about leadership in turbulent times.

Shortly before addressing a sold-out crowd in Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel, the historian and best-selling author sat down with Prospect to talk about today’s college students, her favorite books and summer pleasures.

What do you hope people will take

away from your lectures? That history

not only teaches us about our country’s past but provides perspective on what’s happening now. When you can really learn about the struggles and triumphs of people who lived before you, you’ve broadened your understanding of the present.

Everyone loves the weeping European beech just east of Old Main. In summer, children hide beneath its thick canopy of leaves and groundsweeping branches. Longtime groundskeeper Ragnar Moen planted the beech in 1977— it was his favorite. “I don’t think so much of the trees that stand straight up,” said Moen, who died in 2014. “Give me a little character in a tree.”

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How did college prepare you for your career? I went to a liberal arts school, Colby College in Maine. Literature, history, political science, art and languages were all part of my studies, and that interdisciplinary experience laid the intellectual foundation for the rest of my life. I’m so grateful for it.

What are you reading in your spare time? At night I’ve been reading

As you visit college campuses, what’s your impression of today’s students?

What’s exciting is that, however troubled the situation may seem today, young people are fascinated by politics—they’re talking about it, they’re following it. They’ve got things they care about, and they’re getting caught up in public life.

SUMMER 2019

mysteries—it’s fun to put the puzzles together. I’ve also been reading novels

by Ann Patchett, whom I met on a book tour. She gave me a couple of her books, including State of Wonder, and I’ve loved them. Also Jennifer Egan—Manhattan Beach is an incredible book, and now I want to read all of her writing.

What do you do for fun in the summer?

Definitely baseball. We’ve had season tickets to the Red Sox for decades, so I go to lots of games. It’s so great to walk into the ballpark and take your seat.

You’re thinking only about the game, and everything else just fades away.

HASHTAG

HIGHLIGHTS

It’s been an exciting year at Elmhurst College, and social media has captured it all!

Join us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to make sure you don’t miss a thing.

BY THE

NUMBERS From beekeeping and composting to eco-friendly lighting, green practices at Elmhurst are making an impact. Here are a few green facts about our campus.

TREES IN OUR ARBORETUM

893 @ecmenssoccer And we are off...see you soon! #rolljays #earnthejersey

SPECIES OF NATIVE PLANTS IN THE PRAIRIE GARDEN

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@elmhurstcollege Hope you’ve all had a great spring break! Rev. H. Scott Matheney went to Washington, D.C. with students to tour the @Smithsonian Museum of African American History.

HONEYBEES LIVING ON THE ROOF OF SCHAIBLE HALL

24,000 @elmhurstcollege_cheer We are “flipping” out because tryouts are two weeks away!! April 27th at 9am in Faganel Hall Dance Studio!!

@HabitatRoaringFork Students from Elmhurst College EC Habitat For Humanity Campus Chapter are spending their Spring Break building with us and helping in our ReStore.

These kids have the best attitude and we are inspired by their desire to “give back” thank you leaders of our future!

BIRD SPECIES SPOTTED ON CAMPUS

BLUEJAYS ARE BLOGGING

1,000

Visit the College blog for fun and

80+ POUNDS OF VEGETABLES HARVESTED ANNUALLY FROM OUR ORGANIC GARDEN

insightful reads. You’ll find professorpenned articles and timely advice on grad school and careers.

Check it out at elmhurst.edu/blog!

STUDENTS WHOSE LAST NAME IS GREEN

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CAMPUS

NEWS

A FOND FAREWELL Several beloved faculty members retired from the College this spring, having accumulated a combined 93 years of teaching and mentoring Elmhurst students. Join us in wishing them well in their next endeavors.

CHEMICAL BOND Eugene “Gene” Losey was considering a career in ministry when a college chemistry teacher inspired him to pursue science instead. “I realized that as a teacher I could make a difference in people’s lives,” says Losey, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, who joined the College in 1977.

PASSING THE BATON

COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE

Since joining the music faculty in 2009, Assistant Professor of Music Joanne May has built the College’s orchestra program from just a handful of students to a full-size symphony orchestra that tours the country and performs throughout the Chicago area.

Recently, the orchestra performed the world premiere of a work by a prominent Indian musician at Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park.

In retirement, May plans to continue conducting, teaching and presenting at conferences. She’s also been invited to teach in England and India.

As director of the A.C. Buehler Library and a professor of English, Susan Swords Steffen has devoted her career to sharing knowledge. As the daughter of two revered faculty members, she has carried forward her family’s role in College history: Together, they have contributed 90 years of service to Elmhurst. Swords Steffen grew up on campus but didn’t begin working at the College until 1997, seven years after the retirement of her parents, Robert and Barbara Swords.

HEALTHY PRACTICE

“Retiring is bittersweet. I would teach until I’m 100 if I could.”

The winner of this year’s Andrew K. Prinz faculty award and two President’s Awards in teaching, Losey led an overhaul of the College’s organic chemistry lab curriculum and served as interim dean of the faculty in 2005–06.

Looking ahead, he plans to continue traveling, playing Cajun music and exploring the history and culture of wine.

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Associate Professor Mary Teresa “Terry” Johnson joined the Elmhurst faculty in 2000 after 19 years on the front lines of public health as a certified family nurse practitioner. Since then, she’s taught everything from mother-baby nursing to health assessments, while maintaining her clinical practice. Nineteen years later, she’s retiring from Elmhurst and refocusing on her practice at the DuPage County Health Department.

“I’m so proud of our students and what they go on to do,” Johnson says. “As a clinician I’ll be working with some of our graduates, and that’s so rewarding.”

SUMMER 2019

“In many ways, Elmhurst College is always going to be home.”

Under Swords Steffen’s leadership, the library received the Excellence in Academic Libraries Award from the Association of College and Research Libraries in 2010. In 2014 she was named the Illinois Academic Librarian of the Year. She also developed and led the Great Chicago Libraries and City as Text courses. She’ll miss working with her library team but will most miss teaching. “That’s what it’s really about,” she says, adding that one of her favorite experiences was just this past fall, when she taught a First-Year Seminar for the first time. She plans to read and travel to the parts of Europe she hasn’t yet explored. And to find time to visit campus.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS ELMHURST? WE’RE GOING GLOBAL! THIS SUMMER, OUR STUDENTS, FACULTY AND ARTWORKS ARE TRAVELING WORLDWIDE, AND WE’RE WELCOMING VISITORS FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE GLOBE TO CAMPUS.

NEWS BRIEFS RILEY SCHWEIG ’20, a softball player

THE COLLEGE

and president of Relay for Life, was

HAS APPOINTED A

named the 2019 Senior of the Year during

NEW DIRECTOR OF

the Founders’ Honors Convocation

ATHLETICS. Wendy

on May 2. View all of this year’s award

McManus, who

winners at elmhurst.edu/honorsreview.

previously served as associate director of athletics for internal NEW PROGRAMS IN DIGITAL MEDIA,

operations/senior woman administrator

MULTIMEDIA JOURNALISM AND DIGITAL

at Minot State University in North

MARKETING COMMUNICATION launch this

Dakota, will join the College in July.

fall. Explore them in full at by visiting elmhurst.edu/digital-media.

SUMMER 2019

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CAMPUS

NEWS

JAZZ MASTER

M E D I A S P OT L I G H T

IMAGISTS ABROAD

Five works of art from the College’s renowned Imagist collection traveled to London this spring, part of the How Chicago! Imagists 1960s and ’70s exhibition in the new Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art. Suellen Rocca, director of exhibitions at the College and one of the original Imagists, attended the opening and spoke on a panel about the Imagist movement.

PREMIERE PUNDIT Throughout Chicago’s tumultuous mayoral campaign earlier this year, media outlets like Fox News, Politico and WGN spoke almost weekly with Constance Mixon, director of the urban studies program, for her take on the race. On April 2, the day of the runoff election, Mixon gave interviews to Voice of America and two French newspapers, then guested live on CLTV, WTTW’s Chicago Tonight and WGN Radio that evening.

“It was gratifying to take my expertise out of the classroom and apply it during this historic election,” Mixon said. “It was a great opportunity to bring theory to life.”

Congratulations to Doug Beach, director of jazz studies, on four decades of teaching at Elmhurst. Since joining the College in the fall of 1978 as a part-time instructor, Beach has turned one jazz band into a thriving program with more than a dozen ensembles, an academic major and an international reputation. But it’s the premier band’s many appearances with jazz giants such as legendary trumpeter Doc Severinsen that stand out in Beach’s mind.

“A couple of years ago Doc invited us to go on the road with him as his backup band,” he said. “That was definitely a crowning achievement.”

This summer, Beach is leading the band on a European tour, with performances at three major festivals in the Czech Republic and on stages throughout Poland and Germany.

NEWS BRIEFS ON SATURDAY, MAY 11,

HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR DENNIS

ELMHURST COLLEGE cele-

ARREAZA WON A FOUR-YEAR,

brated 20 years of graduate

FULL-TUITION SCHOLARSHIP

studies with a festive recep-

in the College’s inaugural

tion that brought together

Niebuhr Service to Society

more than 90 alumni,

competition. Arreaza, who’s

students, faculty and staff.

from Melrose Park, was

JEFF MCDONALD JOINED THE

View a story and photos at

recognized for his extensive

COLLEGE THIS SPRING AS HEAD

elmhurst.edu/graduate20.

service work in Guatemala,

FOOTBALL COACH. He comes to

where he has family.

Elmhurst from Illinois Wesleyan University, where he was the defensive coordinator.

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A GR EE N LIGH T FOR T H E FACI LIT I E S

MASTER PLAN

On March 16, the Elmhurst College Board of Trustees approved an updated Campus Facilities Master Plan, guiding the College’s vision for how the campus can best support students in the years ahead.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

WE LOVE A PARADE

Developed in collaboration with campus stakeholders and architectural firm Ayers Saint Gross, the plan calls for a mix of new and reimagined spaces for academics, student life, parking and engagement with the broader community.

In addition to long-term projects, the plan identifies projects that can be completed over the next five years.

The Bluejay community turned out in force for the City of Elmhurst’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 9, with some 225 students marching, cheering, handing out treats and providing security. One of the largest St. Patrick’s Day parades in the Chicago area, the parade featured more than 80 floats.

NEWS BRIEFS CINDY GONYA IS

ALUMNI, FRIENDS, FACULTY, STAFF AND

ELMHURST COLLEGE RECEIVED

THE COLLEGE’S

STUDENTS came together to set a new

A CLEAN BILL OF HEALTH ON

NEW VICE

fundraising record of $346,586 during

ITS ACCREDITATION REVIEW

PRESIDENT FOR

the College’s third annual #JayItForward

from the Higher Learning

BUSINESS AND

Giving Day on May 2.

Commission. Reaffirmation

FINANCE. Before

of accreditation means the

coming to Elmhurst

College is following best

in May, she was

practices for an educational

the associate vice president for budget,

institution and is doing what

planning and analysis at Columbia

it should to provide students

College Chicago.

with a premiere educational experience.

SUMMER 2019

P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

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C O N G RAT U LAT I O N S ,

GRADUATES!

The College celebrated its 148th Commencement this spring, launching more than 1,000 newly minted graduates into the world. Please join us in congratulating our newest alumni!

See the highlights at elmhurst.edu/commencement.

BEYOND T H E C L A S S RO O M

STUDENTS

EMPOWER ED Brenda Guan ’19 has always had a passion for health and fitness. An exercise science major at Elmhurst, she developed an interest in how the body responds to exertion as a track and cross-country runner in high school.

But it wasn’t until she got involved in internships at Elmhurst College that she figured out how to translate that passion into a career.

First, Guan explored occupational and physical therapy as an intern at the Easter Seals aquatic program in DuPage County, working with children with disabilities. Then she gained firsthand clinical experience as an intern with a physical therapy clinic in Elmhurst.

“After seeing what physical therapists do, I fell in love with the field and decided to run with it,” she says.

“The education aspect of PT— teaching people to stay healthy— is what most appeals to me.”

Now, Guan is preparing for a career in physical therapy with a focus on women’s health. “My mom used to have back pain, but I got her into 14

P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

SUMMER 2019

Brenda Guan has a passion for helping women become strong and healthy.

yoga and Zumba and now the pain has gone away,” she says.

“My goal is to educate women about the importance of working out and being healthy—and to show them that it’s OK to be strong.”

An active participant in student life at Elmhurst, Guan traveled to Australia, volunteered for the Food Recovery Network, tutored exercise science students and more. In recognition of her achievements, she was Elmhurst College’s 2018 recipient of the Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Award from The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. The award honors outstanding seniors at Illinois colleges for leadership, service and excellence in academics and co-curricular activities.

“Brenda blossomed during her time at Elmhurst,” says Charles Goehl, professor and chair of the Department of Kinesiology, who nominated Guan for the honor. “She gained confidence and self-assurance, and that will enable her to succeed.”

BEYOND T H E C L A S S RO O M

FACULTY

SOLVING THE

CANCER EQUATION Cancer stem cells were once dismissed as a myth. But now scientists believe these self-renewing cancer cells may be the chief cause of deadly relapses and conventional treatment failures.

Evans Afenya, professor and chair of the Department of Mathematics at Elmhurst College, is unraveling the mystery of these cells using a hybrid discipline called mathematical biology.

Growing up in Ghana, Afenya thought about becoming a doctor, but his true passion was math. He first combined the two interests when he came to the University of Illinois at Chicago for his Ph.D. and began creating mathematical models that represent the inner workings of complex biological systems. Over the past 20 years, Afenya has won several National Science Foundation grants to model the seemingly unpredictable behavior of cancer cells.

Now, with help from cancer researchers at Chicago’s Rush University Medical Center, Afenya has turned his attention to cancer stem cells. Using mathematical models, he’s learned

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Evans Afenya is using math to tackle one of today’s most dreaded diseases. that not only can cancer stem cells “go to sleep” for years before spontaneously regenerating, but they may also guide the growth of nonstem cancer cells.

“Even though the population of cancer stem cells is very small and can’t be seen, they may be helping the non-stem cancer cells to multiply very quickly,” Afenya says.

Afenya’s findings, published recently in two scientific journals, indicate that the most effective way to keep cancers like leukemia in remission is to attack both cancer stem cells and conventional cancer cells during treatment. And that’s exactly what he and his colleagues at Rush are working on next.

“Cancer is such a versatile disease.

You find one piece of the puzzle and you think, ‘Aha, we have it!’ But a cure remains elusive,” Afenya says.

“For us, there is a will to do it.

We are definitely going to get there.”

BEYOND T H E C L A S S RO O M

ALUMNI

FIELDWORK OF DREAMS Heather Schneider ’05 will never forget Paul Arriola’s ecology class.

Heather Schneider cultivates rare plants—and a thriving career in ecology.

“What I love about my job is that everything I do every day directly contributes to the conservation of California’s rare plants,” Schneider says.

“For the first time, I wasn’t just memorizing information, but synthesizing everything I had learned to solve real-world problems,” Schneider says.

“We do research, we have a regional “That’s when I really got hooked conservation seed bank, and there’s on botany.” also a big outreach component with local schools, the public and the Schneider earned her Ph.D. at the scientific community. Our motto is: University of California, Riverside, Understand, protect, restore and which is ranked in the top 50 univeradvocate.” sities for plant and animal sciences in the world by U.S. News & World Report.

Schneider and her colleagues also are involved with California’s new After a stint as an ecologist with the statewide biodiversity initiative and U.S. Geological Survey and a postdoc have traveled to the state capital to at the University of California, help craft legislation and advocate for Santa Barbara, Schneider landed her plant conservation. current job as the first rare plant biologist at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, a 93-year-old institution that “Every plant has its own story,” Schneider says. “The three biggest put an early and exclusive focus on threats to plants are habitat loss and native plants. development, invasive plants, and climate change. We’re trying to do The most botanically diverse state everything we can, either on a species in the union, California is home level or a habitat level, to ensure that to 6,500 native plant varieties— the ecosystem is functional enough including 2,300 that are “at risk of to support all plants, not just the disappearing forever,” according to rare ones.” the Botanic Garden.

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SUMMER 2019

SPORTS SPOTLIGHT

COMEBACK KID After a debilitating injury, point guard Jake Rhode returns to the court stronger than ever.

In his first game as a college player, point guard Jake Rhode ’20 scored an impressive 29 points—and set the stage for an exceptional first season. As men’s head basketball coach John Baines put it, “Jake really set the world on fire.”

But during the second game of the season, Rhode felt his knee pop. He played a few more games—scoring 38 points in one—but it became clear that he needed surgery, and he spent the rest of the 2016–17 season on the sidelines.

It wasn’t Rhode’s first serious injury. He tore a ligament in fifth grade and has had trouble with his knee ever since, including a torn meniscus and a total of three surgeries.

“This kind of injury takes a lot out of you, especially when it keeps happening,” said Rhode, a sport management major who plans to coach basketball. “But it’s taught me to make the most of my opportunities. You never know when something will get taken away from you.”

Rhode was still recovering when he returned to the court the following year. “I was nervous, so I was a little bit cautious in my playing,” he said. “Injuries take a toll on your body, but also on your mind.”

Even so, he played well enough to win 2018 Freshman of the Year honors from the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW). (Technically a sophomore, he was

considered a freshman because he had received a medical waiver for the 2016–17 season.) But it wasn’t until the fall of 2018 that he fully conquered his hesitation and began to live up to his early promise.

The Bluejays’ leading scorer for 2018–19, Rhode closed out the season by winning CCIW all-conference honors as a firstteam selection. He also ranked fourth in the league in scoring and won CCIW Player of the Week honors in December.

“The last two years were rough for Jake, but he’s grown and matured,” Baines said. “If he stays healthy and keeps doing what he’s doing, he’ll be one of the best guards who ever played here.”

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ARTS SPOTLIGHT

LYRICAL LEGACY When Susan Moninger became the Elmhurst College choral director in 1989, she was charged with rebuilding a diminished program. She headed to the cafeteria and asked every student in line whether they liked to sing. Rounding up 40 candidates, she called them her “cafeteria choir.”

Moninger quickly built a powerhouse program whose vocal groups tour nationally and perform with top artists.

Along the way, she’s conducted at Carnegie Hall, performed at Walt Disney World and judged hundreds of choral competitions.

Now, after 30 years as director of choral activities and professor of music, Moninger is retiring. Her students and

Under the leadership of Susan Moninger, Elmhurst’s vocal program has built a national reputation.

After 30 years of growth, Elmhurst’s vocal program is more powerful than ever.

colleagues honored her with a reception following her last choral concert on April 14.

Moninger began her career as a jingle singer for clients such as United Airlines (“Fly the Friendly Skies”) and Green Giant (“Ho Ho Ho”). At Elmhurst, she leveraged her vast professional network to boost her students’ budding careers.

“She’s helped me get paid professional gigs like singing on soundtracks,” said Shawndell Young ’20, who sings with the Concert Choir and Late Night Blues, the College’s vocal jazz group. “She’s a great connector. But she’s also the choir mom who helps us through life issues.”

Soprano Lauren Carr ’19 performs with the Concert Choir, one of six vocal ensembles at the College.

Moninger expanded the choir program by recruiting talented students from across the country and showing off the choral groups on tour. “When high school singers hear these groups perform, they want to be a part of it,” she said.

The Concert Choir has performed at Ravinia Festival and Carnegie Hall, with virtuoso Andrea Bocelli, and in A Christmas Carol on PBS. And the vocal jazz ensemble placed second nationally in the 2014 Next Generation Monterey Jazz Festival.

“Sue and the vocal program have shared their talents and their passion for music with countless numbers of people

across the nation,” said Peter Griffin, chair of the music department. “We will greatly miss her as we work to build upon her legacy.”

Some of Moninger’s former students have gone on to illustrious careers, from opera star James Kryshak to singer-songwriter Brett Eldredge, who has three No. 1 country hits to his name.

“This job is more than a career,” Moninger said. “It’s a lifestyle you choose because you love students and you’re passionate about music. You feel a calling to help students realize their dreams and their goals.”

S U M M E R 2 0 1 9 P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

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BY A N D R E W S A N T E L L A P H OTO G R A P H Y BY B O B C O S C A R E L L I

A new academic program offers options for an environmentally engaged generation.

Like a lot of Elmhurst College students, Nicolle Omiotek ’20 is eager to see the August launch of the College’s long-planned environmental studies program.

But Omiotek (pictured at right) has uniquely personal reasons for looking forward to the program’s debut: She helped plan it.

Omiotek, a biology major, is part of a task force that has been working for more than a year to develop Elmhurst’s new academic offering. Developed with the help of a planning grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the program promotes collaborative work among students from a variety of academic disciplines and introduces two new degree options: a policy-focused bachelor of arts degree and a science-based bachelor of science degree.

“This program is about creating solutions to environmental problems,” Omiotek said. “I’m so excited that Elmhurst students are going to get this opportunity.”

Her role in the program’s development is apt, considering that Elmhurst’s faculty developed the program partly in response to the concerns and career prospects of a rising generation.

“Students have expressed significant interest in learning more about the environment. This is a generation that is very aware of the environmental

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GREEN DEGREE

“Our goal is for our students to become informed and compassionate stewards of the environment.”

— C O N S TA N C E M I XO N

challenges it will face,” said Constance Mixon, associate professor of political science, director of urban studies and acting director of the new environmental studies program. “Our goal is for our students to become informed and compassionate stewards of the environment.” The new program builds on a strong foundation of existing coursework and research at the College on issues related to the environment.

“There is so much environmentally related scholarship and teaching being done on our campus, whether it’s in the sciences, in philosophy, in business or in urban studies,” Mixon said.

“Because of the Arthur Vining Davis planning grant, we were able to bring all these diverse faculty together from different disciplines to create something truly collaborative and interdisciplinary. Our students will be better prepared because they are able to draw on so many areas of expertise and so many different ways of approaching environmental problems.”

Students will be able to major in environmental studies with a focus on either environmental policy or environmental science, or choose an environmental studies minor. During their junior year, students will team up across disciplines to solve real-world problems.

“This program is really a reconceptualization of what environmental studies can mean,” said Kimberly Lawler-Sagarin, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and coordinator of the B.S. program in environmental studies.

“We’ve broadened it to include not just biology and the other sciences you might associate with environmental studies, but also disciplines like computer science and geographic information systems. This is good news for students as managing data becomes increasingly important in various environmental fields.”

As a member of the task force planning the new environmental studies program, Omiotek conducted a study of similar programs at other liberal arts 26

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Hanna Sicurella ’20 and Associate Professor Kyle Bennett are examining whether it’s possible to improve the yield of heirloom tomatoes by grafting them onto diseaseresistant roots.

IN THE WEEDS Even as Elmhurst prepares to launch its new environmental studies program, students are already working with faculty on research related to the

Last summer, biology major Sarina Mitchell ’19 joined Professor Tamara Marsh’s ongoing study of microorganisms that thrive in the extreme geothermal conditions of Yellowstone National Park’s hot springs.

PERMIT NUMBER YELL-05866

Michael McGuire ’19 worked with Professor Kimberly Lawler-Sagarin to examine how acetic acid reacted on contact with solids, part of an investigation that may provide insight into environmental remediation processes.

environment.

Gus Showley ’19 collaborated with Professor Constance Mixon during Fall Term on an analysis of how cities, states and private enterprise have embraced Paris Climate Accord standards.

GREEN DEGREE

“This is a major for difference-makers.

We want to help students develop the tools to solve problems, then watch them go out and make an impact.” — T E R I WA L K E R

colleges. Her research was funded by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations and supported by Elmhurst’s Creative and Scholarly Endeavors program. She was particularly interested in how other schools track the careers of graduates.

“This is a major for difference-makers,” said Teri Walker, professor and chair of political science and coordinator of the B.A. program in environmental studies.

“We want to help students develop the tools to solve problems, then watch them go out and make an impact.”

Omiotek has spent the past two summers doing field research on terrestrial orchids, first in a Puerto Rican rainforest as part of a National Science Foundation–supported Research Experiences for Undergraduates project, and more recently in Wisconsin’s Cedarburg Bog, as part of an internship with the Chicago Botanic Garden.

“I love being out in the field, working hands-on,” Omiotek said.

“You see how diverse the world really is and how everything is connected.”

The number of green jobs available for students like Omiotek is growing.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts dramatic growth in employment opportunities for environmental scientists and specialists in the coming decade.

Students with a degree in environmental studies will be prepared for careers in environmental policy analysis, advocacy, natural resources management and other fields.

“Students will get the best of both the policy world and the world of science in this program,” Walker said. “They’ll have all the tools they need to make a difference in the world.”

Learn more about the program at elmhurst.edu/envstudies.

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Der Garten 1914

BACK TO OUR ROOTS The Heritage Garden is a reminder that sustainable agriculture is an Elmhurst tradition as old as the College itself.

Students tend the organic garden year-round, prepping, planting, weeding and watering the 4,000-square-foot plot. The produce includes tomatoes, carrots, rhubarb, cucumbers, cantaloupes and three varieties of kale, all destined for use on campus or donation to local food banks. The garden is part of a tradition that dates back to the College’s earliest years, when students grew cabbages, potatoes and other produce on the campus farm for use in the dining hall.

A strong partnership between Elmhurst College and Brewpoint Coffee benefits both parties—and a community of coffee lovers.

FROM THE GROUNDS UP

BY D E S I R E E C H E N

P H OTO G R A P H Y BY B O B C O S C A R E L L I

Kelly Cunningham likes to open the first day of his business classes by asking students what companies and brands they most admire. They respond with household names like Amazon, Trader Joe’s and Apple. And, to his great satisfaction, Brewpoint Coffee.

It’s a dramatic change from just over four years ago, when the owners of the Elmhurst-based coffee company came to Cunningham for help in getting the word out about their fledgling business.

Since then, the business has expanded beyond a single shop in downtown Elmhurst to encompass three shops, including a roastery and event space, and a wholesale business that supplies outlets in 46 states.

Brewpoint Coffee founders Melissa Villanueva and Angelo Sepulveda say they wouldn’t be where they are without key partners like Elmhurst College.

Over the past few years, Brewpoint and Elmhurst faculty and students have been steady partners on projects ranging from running focus groups to analyzing supply chains. Most recently, communication professor Sarah Strom Kays’ senior seminar reviewed Brewpoint’s employee training materials.

The partnership gives Brewpoint’s owners important insights into how to improve their operations, and Elmhurst students gain valuable skills by working with a real-world client. In addition, Brewpoint has brought on numerous Elmhurst College students as interns and full-time employees.

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“OUR VISION IS TO CREATE AND EMPOWER COMMUNITY SPACES THROUGH COFFEE. AT ELMHURST WE FOUND KEY PEOPLE TO SHARE OUR VISION.” — M E L I S S A V I L L A N U E VA

Brewpoint founders Melissa Villanueva and Angelo Sepulveda have partnered with Elmhurst to build their business.

Brewpoint’s head roaster, Ben Tanen ’16

Sarah Strom Kays (center left) and her class reviewed Brewpoint’s training materials.

FROM THE GROUNDS UP

(Brewpoint’s general manager and head roaster are both alumni.) And Elmhurst College students and employees are among the shops’ core customers.

FUELING A TREND

Elmhurst’s partnership with Brewpoint is just one example of the many ways the College contributes to the local community and helps sustain the city’s recent economic boom. The College maintains numerous partnerships and outreach programs with local businesses, schools, the hospital, parks and municipal government. Each year, more than 7,000 people flock to campus for music festivals, lectures and other cultural offerings, spending their money in the city’s restaurants and hotels while they’re there.

“Having Elmhurst College in the community is an amenity that all of our businesses benefit from, and certainly plays a role in the city’s economic success,” says Erin Jason ’15, the city’s business development coordinator. “The students, faculty and staff contribute to the economic vitality of the community as employees and patrons. And as a cultural and academic resource, the College is one of the city’s jewels, adding so much to our appeal as a place to live and work.”

A ROBUST RELATIONSHIP

“LEARNING THEORY IS ONE THING, BUT GETTING THE OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY IT IS SOMETHING OUR STUDENTS WILL REMEMBER FOR LIFE.” — SONI SIMPSON

The Brewpoint/Elmhurst College partnership is particularly strong and multifaceted. It began in the fall of 2014, a couple of months after Villanueva and Sepulveda opened their first coffee shop, which they had literally purchased on Craigslist.

Back then, no one had heard of Brewpoint. What’s more, Villanueva freely admits that she and Sepulveda, her boyfriend at the time, had no experience with running a business, and that at least two other coffee shops had already tried and failed at the same location.

But those other coffee shops never reached out to Elmhurst College, says Cunningham, an associate professor of business at Elmhurst and director of the MBA program. Brewpoint’s owners did, recognizing that the College was a potential source of customers—and information.

Cunningham set up focus groups with the seniors in his capstone business course. “Melissa asked them a ton of questions: What do you want to see?

Should we serve breakfast? Do we need sofas?” he says. “The students were happy to share their ideas, so she got quality feedback.”

“The best part of working with Kelly and his students was getting their thoughts about what works and what doesn’t,” Villanueva says. “And the fact that it was S U M M E R 2 0 1 9 P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

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FROM THE GROUNDS UP

an interesting opportunity for the students to see something at the ground level, it just seemed like a win-win.”

The relationship grew from there. In the spring of 2018, students from the College’s supply chain management program took on Brewpoint’s inventory and ordering processes.

“The moment we went from one shop to two and then to three, it just really got out of hand,” Villanueva says. “We had 40 vendors at that point. I knew it was inefficient, but I didn’t know any other way.” The students helped Brewpoint cut that number nearly in half without sacrificing quality.

CREATIVE COLLABORATION

Last fall, Brewpoint General Manager Mike Horwath ’17 approached Soni Simpson, associate professor of business administration, with a project for her advertising class—to develop a marketing campaign to increase rentals of Brewpoint’s event space.

Simpson divided her class into four competing agencies. Each developed a detailed media campaign after interviewing and surveying hundreds of target audience members, researching consumer media behavior, and creating messages and materials. At the end of the term, the agencies presented their campaigns to Villanueva and Horwath. Both were “astounded” by the depth and quality of the work, and Horwath promised to implement many of the ideas.

“WE WERE ASTOUNDED

BY THE QUALITY OF THE STUDENTS’ WORK, AND WE WILL DEFINITELY PUT THEIR IDEAS INTO ACTION.” — M I K E H O R WAT H ’ 1 7, B R E W P O I N T

The coffee company has long been a favorite client for Elmhurst students, Simpson says, not only for the experience but because Brewpoint appreciates their work.

“With a small business, students can wrap themselves around it and provide a service the business can’t afford otherwise,” Simpson says. “Learning theory is one thing, but getting the opportunity to apply it is something they’ll remember for life.”

It’s been an educational journey for Brewpoint, too, and Villanueva hopes she and her colleagues can keep learning.

“If the College weren’t here, I think we would’ve had a much harder time,” she says. “It’s been absolutely invaluable to work with not just any college, but Elmhurst College. The resources and connections they provided really helped us, both in the beginning and as we’re going forward.”

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Student-created marketing campaigns

GROUND ZERO: CENTRAL AMERICA IN ADDITION TO ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH ELMHURST, BREWPOINT IS BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH COFFEE FARMERS THROUGHOUT CENTRAL AMERICA IN AN EFFORT TO ENSURE THAT PRODUCERS

S U P P O R T I N G P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y T H E A DA M KOV I P H OTO G R A P H Y, B O B C O S C A R E L L I , G L A S S & G R A I N P H OTO G R A P H Y, M I K E H O R WAT H

ARE PAID FAIRLY FOR THEIR WORK.

Brewpoint’s management team is invested in getting to know the company’s partners. On a visit to Guatemala, store owners Melissa Villanueva and Angelo Sepulveda met farmers, gathered coffee cherries and took part in the production process. More recently, General Manager Mike Horwath ’17 traveled to the village in Costa Rica where the store’s popular Naranjo roast is grown. He tasted fresh coffee cherries, watched pickers carry their heavy sacks up the mountains— and developed a new appreciation for what it takes to produce great coffee beans.

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BY M A R G A R E T C U R R I E P H OTO G R A P H Y BY E M M A W I L K I N

In an innovative travel course, students look beyond typical tourist haunts for deeper meaning.

THE CITY AS TEXT Emma Wilkin ’20 admits to being a bit nervous about the prospect of spending three weeks in Europe with 23 classmates and two professors.

“I had never been out of the country before, so I didn’t know what to expect,” said Wilkin, who traveled to Rome, Prague, Berlin and Amsterdam during January Term 2019 with the College’s City as Text course. “But as soon as we started exploring Rome, I realized that I could get around in an unfamiliar city, and that boosted my confidence.”

That’s part of the point of the course, said Susan Swords Steffen, director of the A.C. Buehler Library, who led this year’s trip along with Carmi Neiger, assistant professor of geography and geographic information systems (GIS).

“For many of our students, this is the longest they’ve been away from home,” Swords Steffen said. “Navigating foreign cities and local transportation reinforces their independence.”

The course, offered each year during January Term, takes students to Europe for a three-week immersion in history, culture, architecture and modern city life.

From the soaring Gothic spires of Prague to the clean modern lines of Berlin, students visit some of the world’s most iconic sites.

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R O M E

PRA GUE

BER LIN

AMS TER DAM

THE CITY AS TEXT Traveling together fosters deep bonds and close friendships among City as Text students. Here, friends pose at the

But this is no mere sightseeing trip. Modeled on the City as Text™ pedagogy developed by the National Collegiate Honors Council, the course asks students to “read” each city—going off the beaten path to explore hidden neighborhoods, meet local residents and observe daily life. Seminar-style classes, assigned readings and journal writing give students the opportunity to reflect on what they’ve seen.

“It’s not just tourism, It’s about learning why the city is the way it is,” said Kaylee Johnson ’21. “What can you derive from the people, the streets, the architecture and the environment?”

The course has a transformational impact on students, said Swords Steffen, who retired in June. “It’s an intense experience, and it can give them a new perspective. One student, for example, worked a lot of hours as a triple major.

On the trip she learned that there are other ways to learn, and maybe she needed to find a better balance in her life.”

Many students also develop a taste for traveling. “This experience opened my eyes to a whole new world,” Wilkin said. “Maneuvering in all these cities brought out my adventurous side. Now I can’t wait to see where my next adventure will take me.”

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S P EC I A L T H A N K S TO J O C E LY N E C U E VA S , K I R A S E A R S , T H O M A S S U L L I VA N A N D E M M A W I L K I N

Capitoline Museums in Rome.

R O M E

PRA GUE

BER LIN

AMS TER DAM

M A K E Y O U R G I F T elmhurst.edu/give

EMPOWER Join a growing community of alumni and friends who are helping transform lives.

Your gift to the Elmhurst College Annual Fund helps open our doors to deserving students from every background.

Please make your gift by June 30 to help us end our fiscal year on a high note. Thank you for supporting Elmhurst students.

Donate today at elmhurst.edu/give.

ALUMNI NEWS On the Road with the President President Troy D. VanAken and Dr. Annette M. VanAken hit the road this year, traveling from coast to coast to meet with alumni and share updates from the College.

In Mesa, Ariz., the VanAkens joined more than 50 alumni at a spring training game featuring an all-Chicago matchup: Cubs against White Sox. In Indianapolis, attendees enjoyed a performance by the Elmhurst College Concert Choir. At all locations, alumni and friends gathered to reconnect, share memories and learn about plans for Elmhurst’s 150-year celebration in 2021.

S T. LO U I S , M O

See more pictures from the President’s Road Trip at elmhurst.edu/roadtrip/recap.

MESA , AZ

“Annette and I visited 15 cities across the country to celebrate Elmhurst with alumni and friends. We had a wonderful time, and we can’t wait for the next opportunity to celebrate our alumni!” — P R E S I D E N T T R OY D . VA N A K E N SAN FR ANCISCO, CA

NAPLES, FL

DENVER, CO SUMMER 2019

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THRIVE Advance your career with a graduate degree from Elmhurst College.

Graduate programs at Elmhurst are tailored to the demands of the marketplace.

Choose from 20-plus programs in health care, business, education and technology—and prepare to take your career to the next level.

Join us for our Graduate Programs Open House.

G R A D U AT E C O U R S E VOUCHERS

Wednesday, June 26 5:30 p.m.

Alumni of Elmhurst under-

RSVP at elmhurst.edu/ChooseElmhurst

graduate programs can take their first graduate course for free. Learn more at elmhurst.edu/freecourse.

CLASS NOTES

1904 Student bakers and cooks helped prepare meals in the College’s early years.

1941 Women participated in most sports at Elmhurst, including archery.

1959 The addition of a steeple marked the final phase of construction at Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel.

1950s & 1960s

1970s & 1980s

Marvin Albright ’52 and Jo Ann (Ehlert) Albright ’54 are enjoying retirement life in Pleasant Hill, Tenn.

Steven W. Jemison ’72, an active volunteer and retired chief legal officer and secretary for Procter & Gamble Company, joined the Elmhurst College Board of Trustees on March 1. A Cincinnati resident, Jemison graduated from Elmhurst College with a bachelor’s degree in history and earned his law degree from The Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law.

Donald Mayer ’55 and Lynnea (Almquist) Mayer ’58 received documents from the Catedral de Santiago on May 30, 2016, certifying completion of 116 kilometers of the Camino de Santiago.

The trip, which their granddaughter encouraged them to take, was the longest backpacking excursion they have ever undertaken.

Ambassador Jacques Paul Klein ’61 was awarded the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit by Andrzej Duda, president of the Republic of Poland. Klein, a retired U.S. Air Force general and leader of three United Nations peacekeeping missions, was honored for his work in conjunction with Polish special forces that resulted in the arrest and trial of a war criminal in the former Yugoslavia, as well as for his sustained efforts in furthering cooperation between Poland and America. Elmhurst awarded him an honorary degree in 2002.

Robert Mills ’64 reached out to the Elmhurst College football team for help shoveling snow during the January 2019 snowstorm. Players Chandler Cowan and Mitchell McNitt came to his aid and Mills thanks them.

Chris Kurth ’76 is enjoying his second year of retirement from the Special School District of St. Louis County— trout fishing, baking, walking, reading and co-teaching a training course for pastoral lay chaplains. His favorite moments of retirement so far have been attending the Sept. 15, 2018, ordination of his son Michael to the Episcopal priesthood, and babysitting his granddaughter Avery, 2. Kurth and his wife, Carla, recently celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary.

Joyce (Scharmer) Turner ’77 moved to Arizona to live with her son, Bob Olson ’83, and his wife, Renee. She is enjoying the milder winter climate and developing new friendships through her church.

Annette (Holtmeyer) Pugnetti ’78 celebrated the birth of her first granddaughter, Skylar, on June 28, 2018. Pugnetti lost her husband, Gregory, to pancreatic cancer on Sept.

28, 2018.

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CLASS NOTES

1990s & 2000s

A TOP PICK Estrella Vargas ’18, a firstgeneration college student who majored in political science, urban studies and intercultural studies at Elmhurst, has been named a 2019 Pickering Fellow.

Funded by the U.S. Department of State, the prestigious Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship prepares historically underrepresented students for careers in the U.S. Foreign Service through internships, professional development and financial support for graduate study. Vargas will begin a master’s program in foreign service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., this fall. After graduation, she’ll be assigned to a diplomatic post overseas.

“I’ve always wanted to dedicate my life to improving the lives of others, and the Foreign Service is the most impactful way to do that,” Vargas said. “This is something I’ve dreamed of doing, and now it’s going to become reality.”

Sara Guralnick ’81 recently published her third children’s book, What’s So Special About Grandparents?

Mike P. Wagner ’87, a partner and director of client portfolio services at LSV Asset Management in Chicago, has joined the Elmhurst College Board of Trustees. Wagner earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Elmhurst and an MBA in finance from Loyola University of Chicago. A Chicago resident, he officially joined the board on Oct. 3, 2018.

Jack Wengrosky ’88 played lead and section trumpet on John Daversa’s 2018 album American Dreamers: Voices of Hope, Music of Freedom, which won three Grammy Awards in February 2019.

Wengrosky also played lead trumpet

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on The 14 Jazz Orchestra’s album The Future Ain’t What It Used to Be, which was released in January 2019.

E.J. Donaghey ’88 recently was named the president and chief executive officer of Citizens Community Credit Union.

Donaghey has more than 30 years of experience working in the credit union industry at the retail, state, national and international levels.

Jordan Baugh ’89 was recently named chief technology officer of the American Dental Association.

Kelly (Jourdan) Duff ’92 wrote a short story that is featured in The Love Anthology: Stories and Poems About the Ties That Bind. Duff has won several awards for her soon-to-be-published works, mostly contemporary romance, and is excited to finally be a published author.

She is also the employee engagement leader for Allstate Insurance at its Merchandise Mart location in Chicago.

Lance Marshall ’93, head baseball coach at Franklin College (Franklin, Ind.), led his team to an impressive 39–5 record during the 2018 season. The Grizzlies finished the year with the best winning percentage in the nation. In 2018 Marshall won his fourth Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honor and was named Mideast Coach of the Year by D3 Baseball. com. In his tenure at Franklin College, Marshall has guided the Grizzlies to four HCAC regular season championships. Marshall also serves as an assistant athletic director at Franklin.

Scott LaMorte ’95, ’04, recently was appointed vice president of business development at Itasca Bank & Trust Co. He has more than 20 years of business development and philanthropic experience in DuPage County.

Maria Veronica (Jimenez) Tarala ’95 recently earned a master’s in nursing and became a certified family nurse practitioner.

Dan Fries ’99 was named a Top 250 Wealth Advisor by Forbes and both a Top 1,200 Financial Advisor and a Best-in-State Wealth Advisor by Barron’s for 2018 and 2019.

James Magrini ’00 has published two new philosophy monographs: Plato’s Socrates, Philosophy and Education (Springer 2018) and The Ethical Call of Nature: Reticent Imperatives (Routledge 2019).

Tess Kossow ’04, MBA ’07 is the author of I’m Very Ferris, a children’s book that explains in vitro fertilization as told through the eyes of a child.

D. Josiah Montgomery ’12 graduated in December 2018 from the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University with a master’s of theological studies.

Brendan Chaplain ’15 married Kristina Terry on Nov. 24, 2018, in Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel.

Groomsmen included Ben Meza ’14 and

Michael Randick ’14. Other alumni in attendance were the groom’s mother, Catherine Miller Chaplain ’92; the groom’s sister-in-law, Ashley Moore Chaplain ’14; uncles Marty Miller ’92, Steven Miller ’86 and Michael Miller ’88; and aunt Yvonne Miller ’90.

Christa Payton ’15 was honored with the Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award, which pays tribute to St. Louis-area educators for their achievements and dedication to the field of education.

George Vlasis ’05 recently published a children’s book titled Helmet Man and the Chocolate Cake.

Erin (Joyce) Jackson ’07 is currently researching the impact that politicized state-mandated abortion informedconsent requirements have upon a woman’s choice to terminate a pregnancy across different populations.

She recently published two articles, one on the global problem of spousal rape and another on sexual violence and autonomy. Jackson serves as a health care attorney, taking a particular interest in issues of bodily autonomy.

Andrea Cladis ’11 was married on Sept. 22, 2018, and recently bought a home in Geneva, Ill. An English professor at Waubonsee Community College in Sugar Grove, Ill., Cladis also is a fitness professional and serves on the Cambridge Scholars Advisory Board for Literature.

She received her MFA in writing from Fairfield University in July 2018. In the past two years she has published three books, Finding the Finish Line; Tatsimou, Hold On!; and Forgotten Coffee.

YES TO THE DRESSES Two wedding dresses worn by brides with College connections were featured in “Heart’s Desire: Reflections on Love and Marriage,” a recent exhibit at the Elmhurst History Museum. In 1927, Martha Mayer wore a cream silk-satin sheath (left) when she married academic dean Theophil Mueller. Laura Scharringhausen ’71 wore a Jackie Kennedyinspired A-line dress for her June 1968 wedding to Robert Hyde ’57 in Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last summer.

CONNECT

WITH

US

Share your news with your classmates!

Go to elmhurst.edu/classnotes to submit your updates.

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CLASS NOTES

Ruth L. Behle ’46 Dec. 4, 2018, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Andrew J. Wolf II ’46 March 10, 2019, Solana Beach, Calif.

Dorothea Fleer George Schuch ’47 Sept. 26, 2018, Green Cove Springs, Fla.

IN MEMORIAM HEALTH CARE HERO

Tyree Carr ’72, M.D., an ophthalmologist who traveled the world to bring eye care services to underserved communities, passed away on December 7, 2018, at the age of 69. In addition to practicing medicine in Las Vegas, Carr provided medical and surgical eye care to people in need in Samoa and Haiti. In 2006, he was honored for his work as a “health care hero” by Nevada Business magazine. A biology major at Elmhurst, Carr was a faithful contributor to his alma mater and established several scholarships to support African American students at the College.

Roy W. Joellenbeck ’50 Sept. 7, 2018, Towson, Md. Fred H. Gunzel Jr. ’51 Nov. 10, 2018, Villa Park, Ill. Mary E. Kohlhagen ’52 March 18, 2019, Pompano Beach, Fla. Rev. William L. Nagy ’52 Feb. 11, 2019, St. Charles, Ill. Dr. Warren H. Winkler ’52 Feb. 25, 2019, Miami, Fla. Edward H. Buchman ’53 Sept. 17, 2018, Portland, Ore. June E. Dewsberry ’53 Dec. 19, 2018, Kansas City, Mo. Rev. Harley C. W. Tretow ’53 March 15, 2019, Oshkosh, Wis. Dr. R. Elliot Politser ’54 Nov. 1, 2018, Wheaton, Ill. Betty Joens ’55 Nov. 25, 2018, Downers Grove, Ill. J. David Wagner ’55 April 17, 2019, Louisville, Ky.

An Early Environmentalist

Rev. Jack Schauble ’56 Nov. 12, 2018, Mendota, Ill.

Paul Ries, a professor emeritus of geography who taught at the College for nearly 40 years, passed away on Feb. 16, 2019. He was 77. Joining the faculty in 1968, Professor Ries served as chair of the geography department and created an environmental management major in the 1970s that was popular for a couple of decades. An enthusiastic traveler who shared his experiences with students through slideshows, “he was an environmentalist before it was cool,” said Michael Lindberg ’83, a former student of Ries’ and current chair of the geography and GIS department. Several alumni who graduated at least a decade ago attended Ries’ memorial service in March, Lindberg said, “a tribute to his dedication to students.”

Judith A. King ’58 Oct. 23, 2018, Paxton, Ill.

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Carol A. Hedeman ’59 April 6, 2019, Peoria, Ill. James J. Helm ’59 Oct. 29, 2018, Oberlin, Ohio Bruce W. Ranis ’59 March 14, 2019, La Crosse, Wis. Nancy E. Curtis ’60 Sept. 23, 2018, St. Louis, Mo. Mary A. Schroeder ’60 Sept. 16, 2018, Defiance, Ohio Joseph C. Bicchinella ’61 Feb. 9, 2019, West Chicago, Ill. Rev. William F. Johnson ’61 Sept. 19, 2018, Chicago

Sharon E. Kindred ’61 Sept. 12, 2018, Lemont, Ill. John A. Pecoul Jr. ’61 Jan. 29, 2019, New Orleans, La. Rev. Fredrick P. Suedmeyer ’63 May 18, 2018, Clermont, Fla.

FAMILY LEGACY

David D. Hoefer ’66 Sept. 23, 2018, Salinas, Calif.

Rev. Dennis J. Carroll ’68 Feb. 2, 2019, Easton, Pa. Christine E. Rasche ’68 June 30, 2018, Neptune Beach, Fla.

Rudolf “Rudy” G. Schade Jr., a highly respected attorney and 23-year member of the Elmhurst College Board of Trustees, died on March 20 at the age of 77.

Mark I. Hamilton ’69 Nov. 26, 2018, Portland, Maine

A founding partner of the law firm Cassiday Schade LLP in Chicago, Schade was a trial lawyer specializing in the defense of civil actions with an emphasis on health law. On campus, he was well-known not only as an active trustee but also as the son of revered professor Rudolf G. Schade Sr. In 1984, alumni established the popular Rudolf G. Schade Lectures as a tribute to Professor Schade. Recent Schade lecturers include presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin and journalist Bob Woodward.

Doris Hastings ’69 Aug. 18, 2018, Greenville, Ill. Dr. John H. Meyer ’69 Sept. 27, 2018, Fairhope, Ala. Marguerite A. Hubbard ’70 Oct. 14, 2018, Poplar Grove, Ill. Susan M. (Rozehnal) Fredrickson ’72 Nov. 20, 2018, Hinsdale, Ill. Paul J. Dopke II ’73 Nov. 2, 2018, Cherry Hill, N.J.

“Rudy literally had a lifelong connection to Elmhurst College, growing up on this campus and then serving as a trustee for 23 years,” said President Troy D. VanAken. “We will never forget the rich Schade family legacy that benefits us to this day.”

Louis F. Gilberti ’73 March 29, 2019, Bay Village, Ohio

A Devoted Teacher

Keith Groenwald ’73 March 25, 2019, Nashville, Tenn.

Eileen “Bobbe” Hackman, professor emerita of physical education and former chair of the College’s Department of Physical Education, died on Dec. 20, 2018, at age 96.

An Elmhurst faculty member for nearly 30 years, she joined the College in 1965 after teaching in the Denver Public Schools and at Wheaton College. In 2000, an annual student achievement award was established in her honor.

Harold C. Hamilton ’73 Dec. 30, 2018, Lubec, Maine Felicia Moreno ’74 Oct. 24, 2018, Arlington Heights, Ill. Dixie Ragsdale Jr. ’74 Feb. 8, 2019, Oswego, Ill. Larry D. Bowen ’75 May 18, 2018, Leesburg, Fla. Nathaniel A. Busteed ’75 July 5, 2018, Nokomis, Fla.

Brian C. Templeman ’79 April 6, 2019, Geneva, Ill.

Kenneth G. Stenzel ’83 April 7, 2019, Vonore, Tenn.

Olga Ruth Najacht ’75 Dec. 8, 2018, Wheaton, Ill.

Donald A. Fafara ’80 April 27, 2019, Cary, Ill.

Gretchen M. Spreitzer ’84 Feb. 3, 2019, Marengo, Ill.

Eula M. Sforza ’75 March 30, 2019, Geneva, Ill.

Roberta H. McCaffrey ’82 Jan. 16, 2019, Arlington Heights, Ill.

Joan W. Bell ’86 Nov. 5, 2018, Elmhurst, Ill.

Paul A. Mollicone ’76 April 4, 2019, Bella Vista, Ark.

Robert V. Ford ’83 Sept. 11, 2018, St. Charles, Ill.

Gavin Douglas Lux ’16 Oct. 19, 2018, Rochester, Minn.

Mark L. Krueger ’78 Nov. 19, 2018, Fort Wayne, Ind.

Deb L. Peterson ’83 Dec. 2, 2018, Libertyville, Ill. S U M M E R 2 0 1 9 P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E

47

MY CAREER

PATH

THE GREEN GUIDE Jason Teliszczak ’03 has carved out a distinctive career helping business owners reduce their carbon footprint.

When I was a senior at Elmhurst, I had an internship at ElmhurstChicago Stone, the quarry not far from campus. One day I met a Chicago-area business owner.

When he learned that I was majoring in geography and environmental planning, he started complaining to me about his environmental consultant. “He’s terrible and too expensive,” he said.

I ran into this business owner again when I was about to graduate, and this time he told me that he needed more

48

environmental assistance and wanted to bring me in.

I thought this sounded like the greatest thing ever—he was offering me a job! But then the business owner explained what he had in mind: I would consult and audit his company.

Next thing I knew, I had started my own business and I was helping my first client get his environmental management certification.

My business, JT Environmental Consulting, Inc., assists businesses in meeting and maintaining

P RO S P E C T M AG A Z I N E S U M M E R 2 0 1 9

environmental certification standards, as well as standards for safety, quality and security. Our clients are in industries as diverse as aerospace/ defense, textiles and electronics, and they range from small not-for-profits to Fortune 500 companies.

I still work at educating myself about everything I can—which is why I have an alphabet soup of initials after my name, for all the training certificates I’ve earned. I strive to be the best I can, and to set JT Environmental apart from the competition. You never stop learning.

OCTOBER 3–6

L E A RN MO R E elmhurst.edu/homecoming

JOIN US IN OCTOBER TO SHARE MEMORIES AND RECONNECT. Celebrate with

old friends and meet a new generation of students. Cheer on the Bluejays as they take on the Carthage Red Men and enjoy alumni reunions, performances, tailgating parties, a bonfire and much more. WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU!

Elmhurst College 190 Prospect Avenue Elmhurst, Illinois 60126-3296

The grass is always greener on our arboretum campus, home to 893 trees, 24,000 honeybees and a prairie garden with 75 species of plants.

FOR MORE GREEN FACTS, SEE PAGE 7.