Nichols college alumni magazine summer 2017

MAGAZINE Volume 11, Issue 2 | Summer 2017

The Entrepreneurial Instincts of Marty Allen ’75

From the President For the past three years, President Susan Engelkemeyer has given a student the opportunity to be “President for a Day.” In exchange, Dr. Engelkemeyer follows the student’s schedule.

This year, the honor went to Emily Barden ’18. Read about both of their experiences below.

President for a Day

My Day as a Student

by Emily Barden

by Susan Engelkemeyer

My day as president was one of the best days I have had at Nichols. The opportunity to learn more about the operations and inner workings of our school as well as to learn more about President Engelkemeyer and her position, was one that I could not pass up. I am thankful for applying and will encourage anyone to apply in the subsequent years.

On April 4, I traded places with junior Emily Barden who was selected to be “President for a Day.” I wanted to live the day as Emily does, so that included taking on her schedule while she assumed mine.

I began the day presenting to the President’s Council on the changes I would like to implement that would benefit current students, staff/faculty, future students, and alumni. That was a great experience on its own. I presented to a group of very remarkable and vital members of our institution and it was very rewarding hearing their input as well as the questions they had for me.

From there, I had various meetings where I learned about and discussed enrollment, marketing, fundraising within our capital campaign, the honors program, and other plans Nichols has in store. I even had the opportunity to call various alumni who have recently created their own endowed scholarships and thank them for their contribution. The conversations I had with the alumni I spoke to were very interesting and it was great to hear that they have all given back to Nichols because they are so thankful for their time on the Hill.

My day was amazing, to say the least. I loved learning about the various responsibilities President Engelkemeyer has, the different departments she works with, and how valuable her role is. I am so thankful I had the opportunity to switch places with the president and hope many others decide to apply next year.

Emily’s Tuesday schedule includes two required business core classes. My first class of the day was Operations Management with Professor Art Duhaime. I taught operations management for 14 years at Babson College, so it brought back fond memories of discussing supply chain and inventory management issues and methods. I had fun giving a brief presentation on operations in the news with classmates Isabella, Daisy, and Alexandra.

M A G A Z I N E Vo l u m e 1 1 , I s s u e 2 Summer 2017

EDITOR Susan Veshi VICE PRESIDENT FOR ADVANCEMENT Bill Pieczynski CONTRIBUTORS Brent Broszeit, Pete DiVito, Jim Douglas, Megan Fields ’17, Rae Glispin, Lorraine Martinelle, Jenna McAssey ’19, Jillian Riches, Ron Schachter, Len Suprise, Molly Thienel DESIGN Steve Belleville PRINTING Puritan Capital, Hollis, NH

My second class was Business, Government, and Regulations with Professor Paul Lambert. The preparation for this class involved reading and watching an eye-opening video on supplements.

The lack of regulation and quality control for these products is startling. No trips to the supplement stores for me anytime soon! Both classes were interesting and great learning experiences.

My afternoon included working in Student Life, and getting in trouble with Dean PJ Boggio for emailing on my phone while I was working. While there, I enjoyed chatting with Kathy, Carmen, DJ, and Andrew, and seeing students come through for their interviews for orientation leader.

But the highlight of my day was a scheduled workout in the weight room with women’s ice hockey. The team was very welcoming and took their workout quite seriously. Not wanting to look like someone my age, I was determined to keep up. It felt good at the time, but I had to nearly crawl up the stairs to bed Tuesday night, and my thighs were still killing me the next day. One lesson I’ve learned is that age 20 was so very long ago. It also reminded me why I chose equestrian sports as a young person–the horse does all the hard work!

Looking back on the experience, I am excited about the lessons I learned and the students I met and am already looking forward to the experience next year!

Reprinted from President Engelkemeyer’s blog, Direct Connections from the Hill.

COVER PHOTO Dan Vaillancourt Patrick O’Connor Photography Shrewsbury, MA

Nichols College PO Box 5000 123 Center Road Dudley, MA 01571-5000 508-213-1560 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m., M–F www.nichols.edu Periodicals postage paid at Webster, MA, and additional mailing offices.

Nichols College MAGAZINE (UPSP 390480) is published twice a year by Nichols College, Dudley, MA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Office of Advancement Nichols College PO Box 5000 Dudley, MA 01571-5000

Cover: Marty Allen ’75, former CEO of two mega retail chains, shares some secrets to his success.

CONTENTS

ON CAMPUS

2–3

Olympic gold medalist addresses Women in Business conference

2

Former head of London Fog returns to the Hill

2

New report card shows slow progress for women at the top in Massachusetts

3

Bison Give Back

3

A T H L E T I C S

10–11

4-5 Nichols turns up the heat

Failure leads to success

10

Boyd Brown knows bones

12

From the Archives

14

to 480 degrees Amid the traditional pomp and circumstance of commencement, Nichols bestowed a record number of degrees, as featured speakers dispensed words of wisdom and encouragement to the Class of 2017.

6-7 The Entrepreneurial Instincts

of Marty Allen ’75 C L A S S N O T E S

16–22

Catching Up With Stephanie Cafiero ’10

17

Catching Up With Mark Johnson ’89

22

NICHOLS REMEMBERS Donors can increase their impact with IRA charitable rollovers

Marty Allen once dreamed of sailing around the globe but instead went on to navigate the highest echelons of the retail world at the helm of two major chains, California Closets and Party America.

23 24

8-9 Nichols in uniform Dating back to Nichols Academy and the Civil War, members of the Nichols community have served their country, which in turn, has had an enduring effect on the campus culture.

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ON CAMPUS

Olympic gold medalist addresses Women in Business conference

by Megan Fields ’17 More than 200 business professionals and students gathered for the 7th annual Empowering Women in Business Conference on March 23 at Nichols College to hear the inspiring words of keynote speaker Angela Hucles.

Hucles, who is chief empowerment officer of Empowerment Through Sport, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist for U.S. Soccer (2004 and 2008), two-time World Cup bronze medalist, and former member of the Boston Breakers. A self-proclaimed introvert, she commanded the attention of her audience with an honest and inspirational reflection of her life on and off the field—holding a soccer ball while she spoke.

Hucles related that it had been difficult to see herself as a leader early on because of her reserved personality. It took her years to become comfortable with herself and her leadership style, before finally understanding her own

variety of leadership. “There are many different ways to approach problems, many different styles. Mine is just one of them,” she said.

Her path to success was not without obstacles. “I always dreamed of being on the national women’s soccer team,” she recalled. “Then I learned that the odds of being struck by lightning, about one in a million, were greater than becoming an Olympic athlete. But I still found a way to make it happen.”

She spoke about a time when she contemplated quitting the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, only to persevere through her doubts to attend the Olympics the following year.

Speaking of her personal struggles, Hucles learned to turn what she once thought were her “disadvantages” into strengths. She shared the difficulty of being successful while also being a woman, Hispanic, and a member of the LGBTQ community.

Keynote Speaker Angela Hucles

“Once I started to become more comfortable with who I was, I realized I’m a triple threat,” she said. “…I was able to empower others by empowering myself.”

Former head of London Fog returns to the Hill Doug Hillman ’68, former president of London Fog, was the featured speaker at the annual Faculty Dinner sponsored

by Bob Kuppenheimer ’69 on March 21. Earlier in the day, Hillman led two marketing classes and was joined by John Harrison ’68, owner of the Brand Compound, and Kuppenheimer, retired vice president at Nuveen Investments, for lunch with the Marketing Club.

World Cup, including the 1999 World Cup in the U.S., which was the single largest watched women’s sporting event in history.

Hillman, who distinguished himself with a decades-long stewardship of the iconic London Fog clothing brand, spoke of seeking out opportunities, finding success through passion, taking risks, and learning from mistakes.

Hillman has also managed some of America’s best known apparel and accessory brands, including Levi’s, Dockers, Keds, and Sperry Topsiders. In 1996, he founded Forum Quest and served clients such as L’OREAL, Hormel Foods, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Cablevision, U.S. Soccer, and the FIFA Women’s

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Pictured from left to right: Bob Kuppenheimer ’69, John Harrison ’68, President Susan West Engelkemeyer, and Doug Hillman ’68

New report card shows slow progress for women at the top in Massachusetts

Bison Give Back

The Institute for Women’s Leadership (IWL) at Nichols College released in March the second edition of its Massachusetts Women’s Leadership Index (MWLI), a biennial report that assesses the representation of women in leadership roles across multiple sectors in the commonwealth. The report indicates that while progress is being made, it’s happening at a slow pace.

By all accounts, April 11th was a proud day to be a Bison. “This is a day for us to show that we are proud to live in and be part of this community, and that we can, as a college, come together,” said Erica Sullivan ’19. She’s referring to Bison Give Back, a day devoted to service, when Nichols College students, faculty, and staff fan out into the region to volunteer their time and talent to needy organizations.

The MWLI—whose research was conducted and compiled by Jean Beaupré, faculty director of the IWL, and intern Alexandra Vojtila ’17—gives Massachusetts a letter grade based on the percentage of women in positions of power as compared to the rest of the United States.

And which grade does one of the most progressive states in the nation get? “F,” or a 39—albeit three points higher than the score it received in the 2015 index.

“With this, our second release of the MWLI, we are able to begin tracking progress over time, and the results are again mixed,” said Beaupré. “Although in some places we are able to see progress, in the aggregate the movement is slow. Our calculation results in a score of 39 out of 100. There is, however, reason for optimism. In addition to pockets of improvement, there has been an increased focus on the issues related to women and leadership in academia, the media, and private and public sectors.”

by Jenna McAssey ’19

From food and clothing drives to yard work, to letters to veterans to blankets, cards, and toys for critically ill children, the Nichols community was out in full force to support others. “I am so proud to be a part of a college community that comes together and supports our local community,” said Marissa Piedmonte ’19, class vice president.

Among the organizations who received a helping hand were Heart to Heart, Petfinder, Webster-Dudley Food Share, Autism Awareness, Blessing Bags for the Homeless, and Hasbro Children’s Hospital.

According to the Index, women represent 51 percent of the U.S. population yet only 20 percent make up the U.S. Congress; 5.3 percent are CEOs of S&P 500 companies; 18.6 percent hold corporate board seats; and they experience a wage gap of 17 percent (for every dollar a man earns, a woman earns 83 cents).

The Index also notes that at the current rate of change, women won’t reach parity in corporate board seats or wages for nearly four decades, and it could be more than a century before women have equal representation in U.S. Congress.

“It is discouraging that corporate leadership and nonprofit leadership indicators are down, albeit slightly,” said Nichols College President Susan West Engelkemeyer, Ph.D. “We collectively have much work to do.

“Organizations in Massachusetts and across the nation are leading the way with programs and policies that enable and promote leadership in their female employees,” she said. “Boston’s citywide commitment to offering free salary negotiation workshops for women, and the pay equity bill which passed unanimously by both legislative branches in the commonwealth, will hopefully lead to better results for the MWLI. Diversity in the workplace is a distinctly identified competitive advantage. Progress has been made, but it is my hope that we will see the MWLI increase significantly over time. We stand ready at Nichols College to do our part as we prepare the leaders of tomorrow.”

Students, faculty, and staff show their true Bison colors in the community, volunteering at the Pearle Crawford Library in Dudley (top), painting the Dudley Middle School bathrooms (left) and helping with crafts at the Webster-Dudley Boys and Girls Club.

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Nichols turns up the heat to 480 degrees Graduates get cool advice from speakers Nichols awarded a record number 480

will copy you, and while copying you,

(Master of Business Administration,

degrees at its May 6th commencement

they will improve upon your product or

Master of Science in Organizational

ceremony held at the DCU Center in

process and ultimately leapfrog you and

Leadership, Master of Science in

downtown Worcester. Thousands of

be in the lead… But here’s what’s very

Accounting) were awarded.

family members and guests were on

difficult to copy: Go into your business

hand to applaud their graduates and

and find 100 things that you can

Reflecting on the achievements of the

experience the rousing messages

do 1 percent better.”

class, President Engelkemeyer said: “We estimate the full-time students

delivered by keynote speaker, former California Closets Co. President Marty

Prior to his address, Allen received

in the Class of 2017 have given over

Allen ’75; Nichols College President

the Honorary Doctor of Business

2,500 hours of community service and

Susan West Engelkemeyer, Ph.D.; two

Administration degree for his lifelong

delivered over 10,500 presentations.

valedictorians, Brieanna L. Baron and

record of achievement and extraordinary

Alexandra Morrow; and Senior Class

understanding of business. Honorary

President Paola M. Solano.

degrees were also given to Shirley Becker (Doctor of Humane Letters) and

“Learn what a 1 percenter is,” Allen

her husband, Herman, posthumously

told the Class of 2017. “The concept

(Doctor of Business Administration) for

is simple; you

their humanitarian and philanthropic

cannot do

contributions to the Webster-Dudley

anything 100

communities.

percent better than your

During the ceremony, 294 Bachelor

competitor. If

of Science in Business Administration

you do, what

degrees; 37 Bachelor of Arts degrees;

happens? Your

two Associate in Business Administration

competitor

degrees; and 147 graduate degrees

Honorary Degree recipient Shirley Becker with President Engelkemeyer

Keynote Speaker Marty Allen

“You will experience it all—the good, the bad, and the ugly. Up until today, you have been programmed by teachers, professors, and parents. Starting tomorrow, it truly is your life.

How your life turns out from this point forth is determined 100 percent by your actions— or your inability to take action. Let me repeat that: Everything that happens to you from today forward will be a result of your taking or not taking action.”

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“Think of all the times you were challenged to do more. It doesn’t matter if you succeeded or failed; what matters is how you faced those challenges, and what you did with those opportunities. That is how you will define your own success, and that is what makes you a Bison.”

You have interned at organizations that include the Boston Celtics, Massachusetts State Police, PwC, and the Center of Hope Foundation.

Thirty-eight of you are continuing your graduate studies at Nichols. Most of you will soon begin your professional careers at companies ranging from KPMG and the Kraft Group to MEDITECH, the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office and the Walt Disney Company.

“With our Graduate and Professional Studies students,” she continued, “We have 75 ‘double bison’ [two Nichols degrees] and 19 ‘triple bison’ [three Nichols degrees]. You, the Class of 2017, are truly amazing. You have inspired us as we watched you grow and develop, and we’re confident you’re ready to start down a new path on your life’s journey.”

President Engelkemeyer offered the graduates a piece of advice: “Don’t follow your dreams. Dreams are aspirational, and you need that. But those aspirations are useless without the planning and perspiration to transform those dreams to reality.

Your Nichols education has equipped you with the tools you need to be more than a dreamer.”

Senior Class President Paola Solano

“Our graduating class is now ready for the world. I know that we have complained about all the times we’ve had to update our resumes, our LinkedIn accounts, and cover letter samples, but in the end, after sitting through four different Professional Development Seminar classes, we can conquer interviews and get the jobs we aspire to have.

In the end, it has all been worth it.”

Co-Valedictorian Brieanna Baron

“Embracing experiences, living life as an endless rookie, always being open to learning new things, and seizing opportunities are some of the most humbling and rewarding moments that we can have. If there is one piece of advice you remember from my speech, it is this: Every experience—good or bad—is an opportunity to apply advice you’ve been given, make it your own, and then pass it along.”

Co-Valedictorian Alexandra Morrow

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The Entrepreneurial Instincts of Marty Allen ’75

by Ron Schachter Marty Allen almost didn’t return to Nichols.

“After my sophomore year, I actually did not want to return to college,” Allen recalls. “At the time National Geographic was following a guy sailing around the world. I wanted to take some time off, buy a boat, and do the same thing.”

After some additional contemplation and a conversation with his father, Allen stayed the course, earning his Nichols degree in 1975. He went on to navigate the highest echelons of the retail world, where he eventually took the helm of two major retailers struggling to stay afloat and guided them to the safe harbor of profitability and years of record sales growth.

Allen acknowledges that he began to develop his leadership skills—a major part of today’s Nichols curriculum— while still an undergraduate. During junior and senior year, he was president of the Photography Club and editor of

the college yearbook, as well as winning election as senior class president and selected to Who’s Who in Colleges and Universities.

“At that time, I didn’t think of leadership as leadership per se,” Allen admits, adding that his entrepreneurial instincts and convictions about how to treat customers and employees alike contributed to his career success.

“You can teach the fundamentals of leadership but you have to have the right vision and the ability to get people to want to follow you. It’s got to be part of your personality.”

After graduating from Nichols, Allen leveraged his publishing, photography, design, and business skills to get his first job at Jostens, the country’s largest producer of high school yearbooks and class rings, eventually running the company’s marketing and product development.

Allen moved on to found his own company, Scholastic Video, which produced video versions of yearbooks and high school curricula. “I’ve had entrepreneurial instincts as far back as I can remember,” he says, pointing to the highly successful lemonade and sandwich stand at a local country club when he was 15.

Allen’s career took its most intriguing turn—and posed its sternest tests— when he became the president of the home organizing company California Closets and, then CEO of the national party supplies chain Party America.

The common challenge? Each company was failing.

“In both jobs that I took, even the Board of Directors was not aware of the problems. I had no idea what I was walking into. It was scary at times and also a lot of fun,” he says.

At California Closets, Allen steered the nearly insolvent business to profitability, achieving record sales and opening new company stores and franchises along the way. “It’s a lot of fun to go out and make money,” he says. “It’s a scorecard.

Companies are measured by their profits, by the overall experience that they provide to each and every customer.”

Before Party America could claim a profit, meanwhile, Allen had to take the company into and out of bankruptcy.

“I remember many times wondering whether I was going to make next week’s payroll for 2,000 employees,” he confesses. Under his guidance, what is typically a several year ordeal, turned into an almost unheard of six-month process.

At California Closets, Allen steered the nearly insolvent business to profitability, achieving record sales and opening new company stores and franchises along the way.

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By the time Allen left, the company had expanded to 4,000 employees, 300 stores and a profitable bottom line and nine consecutive years of increased profit and sales.

At both companies, Allen says he paid personal attention to his customers, leaving little doubt that they were always right, even when they were wrong. “Any customer who called our corporate office was routed to only me and no one else,” he emphasizes.

“One time in a board meeting, my assistant came in and told me there was a customer calling. I got up and left.

The board will still be there 10 minutes later. The customer won’t be.”

Allen’s approach involved more than being polite. “I needed to know the problem so I could fix it,” he insists.

“Especially in a day and age when social media could amplify anything that goes wrong in a company.”

In particular, he remembers a call from one customer whose extensive California Closets structure had just fallen from the wall, leaving a wilderness of once-hanging clothes and neatly stored shoes in a pile covered with the debris.

“She was irate,” Allen says. “She tore into me.”

In addition to dispatching a crew to fix the problem the next morning, Allen wrote the customer a blank check after placing a $20,000 limit with the company’s bank. He told her to fill in the amount that she wanted to

In his spare time Allen can be found sailing the San Francisco Bay in his 38′ C&C.

penalize the company for the damage.

With her closet restored, “and lots of TLC,” Allen reports, the woman wrote in a zero on the check. “She told me, ‘You really care. I’m not going to take advantage.’”

Allen has called upon other retailing principles that offer lessons for all businesses. His mantra of doing the 1 percenters has emphasized sweating the details and creating an environment that customers enjoy. He stresses that the difference in winning is not doing something 100 percent better than everyone else, but to do 100 things, 1 percent better.

“Look at what makes Starbuck’s so successful,” he explains. “They can sell you a 45-cent coffee for four bucks because they provide an environment that you can experience, and they execute it perfectly.”

On the details side, he observes that Nordstrom department stores locate the men’s room in the men’s department. “What a novel idea!” he

He stresses that the difference in winning is not doing something 100 percent better than everyone else, but to do 100 things, 1 percent better.

quips. “And when the sales people give you a bag, they walk around the counter and hand it you. They execute on all the little things, which I call the 1 percenters.”

Lately, Allen has been taking his message to conferences and also free of charge to local businesses in and the around San Francisco Bay area in California, where he’s lived for the past 25 years.

He also has extended his 1 percent approach to his personal life as well, including how he treats his guests.

“I have a photographic printer at home, so I take and give away pictures in a cardboard frame to everyone who comes to dinner,” he says.

Allen notes that his dinner companions are not his primary photographic subjects. “It’s my dog. I’ve got a lot of good pictures of my dog. And he never criticizes my work.”

Besides photography, Allen avidly continues another early passion— sailing. As to that original itch to circumnavigate the world? “It probably won’t happen,” he concedes. “But it’s still high on my list.”

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Nichols in uniform

by Jim Douglas

From the Academy days to the present, Nichols men (and more recently women) have served their country with honor and distinction. Some have paid the ultimate sacrifice.

Here’s a brief history, starting with World War II. By 1943, Nichols had a number of students enrolled in the Army, Navy, and Army Air Forces Reserve Corps of the Armed Forces. Other programs in place before the war for students interested in military careers were a Quartermaster course and Civilian Pilot Training program.

These courses were endorsed by military authorities and were considered useful to men who were planning on entering the Army or Navy through selective service.

During World War II, more than 300 students, alumni,

administrators (including President James L. Conrad), and faculty went to war.

According to a special Nichols yearbook, published in 1946 and titled “The Way Ledger,” 227 students enlisted in the Army, 69 in the Navy, eight in the Marine Corps, six in the Coast Guard, and four in the American Field Service; 28.7 percent were enlisted men, 36.8 percent were non-commissioned officers, and 34.5 percent were commissioned officers. In fact, so many enlisted that Nichols had to cease operations between 1943 and 1946.

Following the war, Nichols benefited greatly from the influx of veterans who were now able to obtain a college education thanks to the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, better known as the GI Bill. Indeed, as James L. Conrad, Jr. noted in his Nichols: A College for the Hill, more than half and

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perhaps as many as 90 percent of the class entering in 1946 were war veterans. In 1948, the college dedicated a new dining hall, Alumni Memorial Hall (now the site of the Fels Student Center), to Nichols men and their colleagues who died or were killed in World War II. And to house the new wave of post-WWII students, a new residence hall, Daniels Hall (1954-2004), was built down the hill behind Budleigh Hall using government surplus material from WWII military barracks.

In 1950 Nichols Junior College established the first college-based unit of the Army Organized Reserve

Corps (ROTC) as the 3rd Battalion of the 376th Infantry Regiment of the 94th Infantry Division. By 1952, six companies of reservists were in place at Nichols. The program ended in 1963 but was then offered again to Nichols students in 1968 in conjunction with Worcester Polytechnic Institute. By the 1980s, it was again available on campus to Nichols students

along with military science courses.

During the Korean War, the student newspaper reported on the events; by 1951, The Nichols Alumnus was publishing news from recent graduates headed to Korea as well as service in other parts of the world.

Except in 1965 and the early 1970s (the first lottery drawing for the draft since 1942 occurred on Dec. 1, 1969), the student newspaper had little to say about the war in Vietnam.

But by 1972, The Alumnus News was again printing news of former students receiving medals for distinguished service, only this time in Southeast Asia.

During the 1980s, Nichols had an ROTC office on campus, staffed by Roger

Carney (later dean of student services and then director of the Fischer Institute) and Frank LeBrec.

For a brief time, between 2004 and 2008, graduate and undergraduate degree programs were offered at military bases in the Northeast and as far south as the District of Columbia.

which the Department of Veterans Affairs matches up to the full cost of tuition and fees. Nichols has also earned the coveted “military friendly campus” designation two years in a row, making it one of the 15 percent of colleges, universities, and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace America’s military service members, veterans, and spouses as students and ensure their success on campus.

Nichols has been a longtime participant in the Post 9/11 GI Bill’s “Yellow Ribbon Program,” offering veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and their dependents scholarships

Nichols College is proud of its many service men and women and wants to recognize the patriotism, honor, and courage of all who have defended our great country.

Please help us by completing and returning the form below.

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Use the enclosed envelope Mail to Nichols College Alumni Relations, PO Box 5000, Dudley, MA 01571 Fax to 508-213-2418 Email to alumnioffice@nichols.edu

In exchange for your information, we will send you a Nichols College challenge coin (pictured) in November in commemoration of Veterans Day. Thank you!

Name Class year Branch of service Years of service/war Names of a few classmates who also served Additional comments

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AT H L E T I C S

Failure leads to success

by Pete DiVito

It’s been said that in order to truly appreciate success, you must first experience failure. The great Edmonton Oilers teams of the 1980s were swept by the New York Islanders in their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in 1983 before capturing Lord Stanley in four of the next five seasons. Before Michael Jordan led the Bulls to three-straight NBA titles (1991-93), he and his teammates were swept by the Detroit Pistons in the conference finals in both 1989 and 1990. So, to truly appreciate what the 2016-17 Nichols College men’s basketball team accomplished this past season, one must first go back three years to see where the story began.

The 2013-14 version of the men’s basketball team surprised everyone when it posted the first 20-win season in program history and finished first in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC). Following wins over Western New England and Salve Regina in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Nichols hosted its first-ever CCC Men’s Basketball Championship when it welcomed Gordon College to Dudley. With the college’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance at stake, the Bison held a 17-point lead over the Fighting Scots with 10:32 remaining before the wheels came off and they suffered a heartbreaking 69-65 defeat in front of the home crowd.

Photo by Parker Fish

The Bison trailed by seven at halftime (44-37) and fell behind by as many as 18 points (71-53) with 9:54 remaining in the second half. Showing the heart of a champion, the Bison refused to go away, tightening up on defense and making clutch basket after clutch basket at the other end. In less than six minutes, Glynn’s squad erased its deficit and tied the game at 72 on three free throws from Koumare, who finished the contest with a career-high 38 points.

During the team’s 19-1 run, however, Eggleston picked up his fifth foul and was forced to watch the final 4:38 of the contest helplessly from the bench.

Nichols found themselves behind by three with five seconds remaining in the contest, still time for one last shot.

Echevarria drove the right side of the court and put up a three-pointer that fell short, giving the Gulls the win….but

Photo by Pete DiVito

wait! He was fouled! Suddenly, the Lynn, Massachusetts, native who shot 86 percent from the charity stripe during the season had a chance to force overtime if he could sink three from the line. Echevarria stepped up and calmly sank the first, making it 82-80.

Following a timeout by Endicott, Echevarria returned to the line and— after making his first eight from the line in the contest—missed long on his second attempt. He missed the third on purpose to force a rebound and possibly give his team one last put-back attempt, but the Gulls snared the rebound and, for the third-straight season, the CCC Championship trophy went to someone other than the Bison.

The image of Echevarria pulling his jersey over his head and collapsing in tears following the final horn was the lasting image Nichols fans took into the offseason. The freshman took the loss harder than anyone and returned for his sophomore campaign determined to avenge that missed free throw and bring a championship home to Nichols College. Echevarria led the conference and finished among the leading scorers in the nation in 2016-17 en route to earning CCC Player of the Year honors. His backcourt running mate, freshman DeAnte Bruton, was named CCC Rookie of the Year while

Photo by Parker Fish

The following season brought with it a new head coach, Tom Glynn, who arrived from local powerhouse MIT. The Springfield graduate guided the Bison to their second-straight 20-win season, led by CCC Player of the Year Irving Eggleston, who helped NC earn the No. 1 seed for the second-straight season.

However, the Bison were upset in the playoffs yet again, this time in the form of a buzzer-beating three-pointer in a 50-49 loss to No. 8 seed University of New England in the opening round.

Two-straight playoff disappoints. Twostraight stomach-punch losses. But, with a roster laden with veterans such as then seniors, Eggleston, Christian Horton, and Gustave Koumare, as well as freshman sensation Marcos Echevarria, the 2015-16 season was shaping up to be a memorable one for Glynn and the Bison. The team steamrolled through the regular season, posting a 22-3 record (16-2 CCC) and, for the third-consecutive season, earned the top seed in the conference. Nichols dismantled Western New England in the quarterfinals, setting up a semifinal contest with defending CCC Champion Endicott College. The Gulls were an extremely talented squad who battled injuries throughout the season, which allowed them to slip to the No. 4 seed.

Emotions ran high for the team and player Marcus Echevarria, as the 2016-17 Bison basketball team finally got their championship.

classmates Jerome Cunningham and Tyler Dion made up four of the Bison’s starters, along with senior Devin Stallings.

Picked to finish fourth in the conference following the loss of three seniors, the Bison surprised everyone and finished atop the conference’s regular season standings for the fourth-consecutive season. Wins over Western New England in the quarterfinals and Wentworth in the semifinals paved the way for a rematch with the Endicott Gulls. And while it seemed nearly impossible at tip-off that this year’s incarnation could possibly top last year’s thriller, fans of both schools were in for another memorable battle.

community.nichols.edu

Continued on page 13

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Boyd Brown knows bones

by Ron Schachter

For more than a decade Boyd Brown, assistant professor of criminal justice management, has steered Nichols students through core courses such as Criminal Justice and Society and Criminal Law Practice. But one day a week, he gets to dig deeper into crimes and other mysteries.

As a biological anthropologist, Brown specializes in analyzing skeletal remains, currently for the Connecticut chief medical examiner’s office in Farmington.

His weekly commute continues the journey he began during college in Maine, followed by his doctoral work at Ohio State University.

“When I went to the University of Maine, I took an anthropology class,” Brown recalls. “We did a section on biological anthropology, and I said, ‘This is cool.

They dig up bones.’”

Nowadays, Brown continues the practice of solving mysteries with only bones or bone fragments as the clues.

He reaches into an office cabinet and takes out two medium sized paper bags of those bones (from animals, not humans, he emphasizes).

As he lays out almost two dozen examples—cranial fragments, vertebrae, tibias, and ribs among them—Brown delivers an impromptu lesson in mammal anatomy. “This one’s a little moldy,” he observes, “I haven’t cleaned it yet.”

“All of these bones were found by people who called the police,” Brown points out, adding that to the untrained eye many of the specimens could be mistaken for human remains. “Pigs’ teeth are really similar to humans, and bear paws are almost identical to a human hand or foot. It’s uncanny.”

“In most of these situations we get a person walking his dog, and the dog comes back with a bone,” Brown explains, adding that his next step is to determine the species, usually an animal. After Easter, ham bones start showing up, but when these discoveries are reported to the police, Brown and his colleagues still take the remains seriously.

Of the more than 100 cases he’s worked on in Connecticut, Brown estimates that as many as 50 have been human.

If the bones fall into the latter category, Brown gets busy.

Professor Boyd Brown

“Our skill set is to find answers that other traditional methods can’t,” Brown explains, noting that he examines human bones to determine the gender, age, stature, and ancestry for their owner. The proportions of particular bones to the overall stature of the deceased, Brown continues, will change according to sex and race.

When it comes to age, how the skeleton is “wearing down,” including evidence of arthritic conditions, provides a guidepost, although Brown and others in his field usually can only assess the actual age only within a 10-year range.

“There’s something particularly intriguing in knowing absolutely nothing about somebody and having a bare minimum to tell their story.”

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Summer 2017

A T H L E T I C S Continued from page 11 Photo by Parker Fish

Brown remarks that television shows featuring forensics have taught viewers to expect more precise calculations.

His work is not as high tech as some forensic crime shows make it appear.

“A lot of that tech is certainly not in existence,” he says. “There is no machine which projects the remains in a three-dimensional hologram.”

Instead, Brown’s job depends on more basic investigation, including an unusual group of contributors outside of the laboratory. “Hunters and dogs are our best friends because they go into places others don’t go,” he admits.

“My human cases have run the gamut,” he says—from the bones of an Alzheimer’s patient who had wandered off four years earlier to the skeletal remains of a murder victim spread around three different locations.

“There’s something particularly intriguing in knowing absolutely nothing about somebody and having a bare minimum to tell their story.”

Some of those stories also make their way into Brown’s curriculum at Nichols.

“When I teach the Investigations class, I talk about some of the cases when appropriate, and I’ll bring in animal bones or demonstrate with plastic facsimiles,” he points out. “It’s not anywhere near as glamorous as it’s made out to be on TV or in the movies, but it’s an incredibly rewarding thing to do.”

Not that Brown objects to his trade being highlighted on the small and big screen. “It’s certainly drawn a lot more people, especially women, to biological anthropology,” he reports. “It’s a great field for people in criminal justice who don’t want to be corrections or police officers.”

“I feel like forensic anthropologists are able to speak for who that unidentified person is,” Brown concludes. “For me, that’s important.”

Senior Devin Stallings reacts to the Bison clinching the CCC Championship against the Endicott Gulls.

Nichols jumped out to an early 11-point halftime lead, but the Gulls buckled down defensively and tied the game at 50 midway through the second half.

Endicott took its first lead of the half with 7:44 remaining and pushed it to 64-57 with 1:41 remaining. It was almost too surreal to believe—for the fourthstraight season, the Bison were going to lose a playoff game on their home court. For senior Jared Thompson— the only remaining member of the team that lost to Gordon three years earlier— it was déjà vu all over again. The Endicott students were celebrating while the Nichols students watched in utter disbelief as their team and their school would once again be rendered second fiddle to their neighbors from the north. That’s when Echevarria ran into a phone booth and returned donning a red cape. Following a pair of free throws from Cunningham to make it 64-59, Echevarria knocked down back-to-back three-pointers— including one that put the Bison ahead by one with 13 ticks on the clock— and suddenly the Nichols Athletic Center resembled the Northlands Coliseum or Chicago Stadium when the Oilers and Bulls were running wild on the NHL and NBA. But there was one more hill to climb for the Bison. Leading by one with two seconds remaining, the Gulls were forced to foul to stop the clock. They fouled the one student-athlete who would write the perfect fairy tale ending

to this game—Marcos Echevarria.

The 5’10 sophomore stepped to the free throw line with a chance to make it a three-point game and possibly secure the championship for the Bison—the same free throw line where he missed from one year earlier. There was no denying Echevarria this time as he buried both free throws, giving the Bison a 67-64 lead. Endicott’s last gasp effort from half court fell short, setting off a celebration four years in the making. Statistically speaking, Echevarria did not have a good day.

He made just seven of his 25 shots, but he made shots when they counted and when his team needed him. Bruton finished with 12 points and Cunningham posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, but the day belonged to Echevarria.

NHL Hall of Famer and former Oilers captain Wayne Gretzky always spoke about how losing to the Islanders in 1983 taught a young Oilers team how to win. For Echevarria, the heartbreak he suffered one year ago helped motivate him to work harder and finish the job this season.

(NOTE: The Bison traveled to Aston, Pa., for the NCAA Tournament, where they defeated No. 11 Neumann 96-93 for their first-ever NCAA Tournament win. They were defeated in the second round and ended the season with a record of 24-6.)

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From the Archives a

Piety and Virtue Contributed by Jim Douglas

Character development was a primary goal of education in 18th and early 19th century schools and colleges. Education was intended to shape students’ attitudes and values as much as to stretch their intellect and expand their knowledge of the world. Nichols Academy was founded by a religious denomination (Unitarian) to, in part, preserve an important facet of character: its religious heritage, beliefs, and values. The original 1819 Act incorporating the Academy proclaimed: “That an Academy is hereby established…for the promotion of piety and virtue [emphasis added], and for the instruction of youth in such languages, and in such liberal arts and sciences as the trustees hereinafter provided shall order and direct.”

school reports” would remain an admissions requirement from the early thirties to 1978, when it became strongly recommended instead.

While the Academy was proud of its non-sectarian curriculum, religion (Protestant Christianity) was not absent from students’ daily lives. Bible readings (later termed devotional exercises) were a normal part of students’ daily morning schedule and students were required to attend public worship on the Sabbath unless excused at the request of a parent or guardian.

Faculty rated each student on Cooperation, Responsibility, Courtesy, and Industry. If a student’s rating was below the standard set by the faculty, a written warning was issued. A continued low standard would result in a faculty request that the parents withdraw the student.

If piety was important, so was virtue (i.e., good behavior encompassing such things as integrity, fairness, trust, respect, and empathy), even as education shifted focus from a theological foundation to a practical and secular moralism. Together, piety and virtue were the foundations for good character and the formation of good character was a part of the Academy’s mission throughout the 18th and early 19th centuries.

Character development would continue to be important for the Academy’s successors on the Hill. “Satisfactory evidence of a high standard of character as indicated through character references and high

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A description of the “Education Plan” in the 1938-39 Nichols Junior College of Business Administration and Executive Training catalog commented on the importance of character: “…Education is a process of growth and development of the entire individual, and its influence is used to inculcate and foster principles of gentlemanliness and culture…we are accepting young men of character; we consider it our obligation to send them out, if not better men than when they came to us, at least as good.”

When Nichols became a four-year college in 1958, students were still required to fulfill “Satisfactory character as determined by the faculty,” as well as academic requirements. Traditionally, a list of senior candidates was forwarded to the Faculty Senate prior to graduation. If there were no objections, the secretary would cast a single vote of approval for the list.

The process worked fine until 1989 when, for the first time, there was a question concerning a student. Ultimately, the student received his degree but it highlighted faculty unease over the process and the requirement itself.

The college consulted an attorney who recommended that formal criteria for “unsatisfactory character” be established, as well as a student notification and appeal procedure. Unacceptable conduct

was drawn up to include felony conviction; extreme physical or psychological intimidation or abuse; academic or other dishonesty; and flagrant disregard for the health, welfare, safety, or reputation of the college and its community.

Faculty questions about the character requirement surfaced again in 1996 over concerns about another student. An ad hoc committee established to investigate concluded that a number of issues and questions remained, including the precise definition of the term “satisfactory character.”

The college ultimately removed the character requirement for graduation. The Class of 1996 were the last to hear “…and who have been voted by the faculty as worthy in character and conduct” in the presentation of degrees at commencement.

Although the college no longer has a formal character requirement, today’s students are guided by a Code of Conduct, which outlines the institution’s core values, pertinent policies and procedures, and sanctions for violations.

The comprehensive document ensures that all members of the Nichols community understand the shared responsibility of maintaining an environment of mutual respect and integrity. As further assurance, a student creed developed by the Student Government Association has been posted in campus buildings (pictured), reminding us all what it means to be a Bison and recognizing that whether or not it is a requirement for graduation, character is still an important part of a good life and an important part of Nichols College.

FIRST RESPONDERS TUITION DISCOUNT

In recognition of the important services that First Responders fulfill, Nichols College offers a 20% discount on our already

20% DISC OUNT

ON TUIT ION

competitive tuition costs for police officers, firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and correctional officers enrolling in undergraduate or graduate programs at Nichols College. Combine our cost-effective courses with credit you may get for prior learning and you have the power to define your future on your terms.

Undergraduate Admission

Program Questions

Graduate Admission

Beth Graham Associate Director of Enrollment 508-213-2141 beth.graham@nichols.edu

Kim Charbonneau Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Management/ Criminal Justice Management Program Chair 508-213-2174 kim.charbonneau@nichols.edu

Marie Leonard Assistant Director of Recruiting 508-213-2264 marie.leonard@nichols.edu

www.nichols.edu

YOUR FUTURE IS WAITING. WE’LL INTRODUCE YOU.

CLASS NOTES

1952

I personally feel blessed that I

event which once again was

Nichols has provided me

Daniel E. Berman reports that he

had the chance to attend Nichols,

outstanding. I have heard from

with a list of names and email

not only for the opportunities

Dick Knoener who, with his wife,

addresses of members of the

that the college offered us, but

owns a landscaping store and

Class of ’63 known to them.

for the chance to interact and

business in NY; Bart Henkle in

In the months ahead, I plan to

grow with a group of outstanding

the Villages, FL, has a rental unit

contact everyone for updates

Class Scribe: Arthur Fries

people. I took some time recently

if you need one; and I get the

on you, your family and what’s

917 Jordan Ct.

to revisit the Bicentennial Edition

occasional note from Paul

going on in your life, as well

Nipomo, CA 93444-6625

of NC Magazine published in fall

Zimmerman. We had a nice chat

as get your help in finding

805-343-6400

2015. What great memories from

and note from Pete Whitney in

classmates who, for one reason

friesart@hotmail.com

the past! Amasa Nichols, James

Boca Raton. All is well. Would

or another, have become

L. Conrad, history of the Bison,

enjoy hearing from more of you

unknowns to Nichols.

Hal Chalmers, the Nicholodians,

if you have some time. If not,

Bazzie, the first mayors in the

remember that many years ago

I am planning a 30-day motor-

early ’60s, woodsmen weekend

you were a part of something

cycle trip around New England.

on the Hill, Coach Vendetti,

that became something big,

I will probably depart North

even a copy of the old Justinian

important and wonderful. It

Carolina in middle to late

Handbook, and pictures of Jim

deserves your support! “Bison

May and visit Connecticut,

Jr., Dr. White and John Katori.

Pride” til we meet again, Charlie.

Massachusetts, New Hampshire,

is still working full time!

1956

1957 Class Scribe: Kent Tarrant 45 Valley View Dr. P.O. Box 496 Hampden, MA 01036-0496 413-566-5130 kent100@charter.net

As we get older, memories like these are important. And to those

Walter Urtz reports, “After 60

of you going through middle age

years, I still remember the good

or living the college experience,

times on the Hill and delivering

always remember how history,

sandwiches to the dorms

and those with whom you

from Bazzie and his love of

lived it, will end up having a

the Celtics.”

tremendous impact on your life.

1963 Class Scribe: Art Tozzi 3710 Marion Ct N Wilson, NC 27896 toz1369@earthlink.net 252-292-6592 From the Class Scribe…

1958

And to my friends and classmates:

Class Scribe:

We’re back North for the summer

Reverend Paul Price

and hope to be able to attend

3214 Sudbury St

what will be our 55th reunion.

Springfield, OH 45503

Nothing is planned, but Kate and

pprice@woh.rr.com

I plan to stay at the Southbridge Conference Center Hotel. We

1962

had an opportunity to attend the gathering this year at Grey

Class Scribe: Charlie Howe

Oaks in Naples, along with Dick

May-September

and Pam Makin, Hugo and Carol

212-22nd St.

Pagliccia, and longtime friend,

Surf City, NJ 08008-4926

Fred Levitan ’50. President

charleskatehowe@gmail.com

Engelkemeyer and all of her

609-494-5450

staff made everyone feel very connected to the college. And a

From the Class Scribe…

special thanks to John and

I would like to say how sorry I was to read that my good friend,

Janet McClutchy for hosting the

Today, March 15, 2017, I took on the daunting task of class scribe, recently relinquished

by Bruce Haslun. Bruce had a helluva run and did a fantastic job as the Class of ’63 scribe.

He should receive the Nichols College Class Scribe Award at a college awards banquet. Since there isn’t such an award, I’ll buy him a beer when I see him. A couple of beers (off campus) was always a banquet for him.

Maine, Vermont, and Rhode Island. I will have my portable bar in the trailer behind the motorcycle so Manhattans are in order. It would really make my trip worthwhile to meet up with a bunch of you.

I plan to stop at Nichols. I’ve been told that classes end in early May but hopefully some of the administration will still be there, like Bill Pieczynski, VP of advancement. I owe him lunch.

During my last visit to Nichols, I attempted to pay for my lunch with Southern Bluebacks from my carpetbag but the cashier would not accept them. Bill saw my dilemma and, without hesitation, stepped forward and paid for my lunch with crisp U.S. currency. Thank you, sir.

Thanks, Bruce, you kept us in the know for all these years.

Bruce Haslun ’63 will be retiring as his class scribe. (Hopefully, the demand will be so great that he can’t resist doing one more.)

Whatever the case may be, Bruce, it was a pleasure teaming up with you and Warren Bender ’64 over these many years to make sure that, as Warren always says, “And the beat goes on.”

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Please send your news directly to your class scribe. If you do not have a class scribe, news may be forwarded to classnotes@nichols.edu.

Digital images are preferred, but please do not crop them! The higher the resolution the better – 300 dpi (dots per inch) is best. Digital images may be sent directly to the Alumni Relations Office – classnotes@nichols.edu.

Prints may be sent to: Nichols College, Alumni Relations Office, and P.O. Box 5000, Dudley, MA 01571.

Summer 2017

I had an email from “Buddha” Brusman in March congratulating me as the new class scribe. Buddha lives in Virginia. He had traveled to Charleston, SC, where he figured it would be warmer and he could play some golf. Well, the temps in Charleston were running in the low 20s to the high 30s and the ponds were probably all frozen so he wouldn’t have to worry about losing his balls. My advice was to wear heavy gloves, boots and a babushka. After the first hole, return to the 19th hole and finish early.

In October, I had the pleasure of attending a Nichols get-together at the Top of the Town in Alexandria, VA. Lou Stroller was the guest speaker. I hadn’t seen Lou since we graduated so it was really great reuniting with him and his lovely wife, Evie, and his equally lovely daughter, Leah. Lou told a fascinating story of how he, as a marketing major, got involved in the movie business and became an executive producer for such great movies as Scarface, Carlito’s Way, and The Rock.

Louie, it was great to see you.

Next time I’m in the D.C. area, we’ll have dinner at that fantastic Vietnamese restaurant, the Four Sisters.

I spoke to Gene Cenci recently.

Our prayers are with his lovely wife, Anne, who is recovering from some medical problems and they are vacationing in Naples, FL, if you can call it a vacation. Gene had his right knee replaced on March 7. He had his left knee done by a doctor in Naples a few years ago and he wanted a match pair. I guess you won’t be playing in the U.S. Open this year, but there’s always next year. Stowe and the Round Hearth won’t be the same without you. Me thinks I may have outdated us. I don’t know if the Round Hearth still exists or if it’s just a fond memory.

Finally, I received an email from Bry Beeson. Bry lives in Orford, NH, which is just a few miles from Nowhere which is one of the larger towns in New Hampshire. Bry heard of my proposed motorcycle trip and offered me the opportunity to attend the Orford Knitting

Group’s weekly knit and purl session at the Orford Social Library. I have my needles and feel confident with a cocktail, a little instruction and a couple of hours, I will leave with a sweater for the next grandchild. Get us the tickets, Bry, and if they have a 50/50 or a silent raffle, I’m in.

So ends my first attempt at scribe. Your positive comments will be appreciated. Negative comments will be handled by my secretary. Have a great summer.

Catching Up With

Stephanie Cafiero ’10 For Stephanie Cafiero ’10, her professional destination after Nichols has gone much the way she had hoped—an interesting and challenging position with the federal government. That position, though, isn’t any government job.

Since she graduated Nichols with a dual major in criminal justice management and accounting, Cafiero has worked for the FBI, where she has risen to become the most senior administrative specialist in the evidence department at the FBI’s Las Vegas field office.

One of Cafiero’s main responsibilities is logging and keeping track of the flood of evidence that pours in from around Nevada. “We handle everything from drugs and valuables to digital evidence,” she explains, adding that she frequently visits crime scenes to make sure that evidence is handled properly.

Along those lines, she does group presentations and one-on-one training with the office’s field agents, for whom she stresses the agency’s sacrosanct rules, including to never let evidence out of their sight and to always use gloves.

While her work might call to mind the stuff of prime-time crime shows, Cafiero emphasizes that her life at the FBI is less dramatic. “I just make sure the integrity of the evidence is maintained,” she says.

“I could become a field agent—that was

my first intention— but I found my calling in the Evidence Program.”

Cafiero started the FBI application process as an undergraduate, with the considerable help of CJM department chair Kim Charbonneau and the added familiarity provided by two Boston-based FBI agents, whom she met at a CJM presentation at Nichols.

Cafiero was also the recipient of the coveted ASIS Scholarship, funded by Jim Dunbar ’51, founder and chair of Dunbar Armored, which supports two Nichols CJM students each year to attend the annual conference of the American Society for Industrial Security.

“I was very close with Professor Charbonneau and she knew what my interests were and where I wanted to go,” Cafiero admits, adding that Charbonneau set up an introductory meeting with the visiting Boston agents.

“It was a great experience attending Nichols,” says Cafiero. “The programs helped build my credentials. I don’t think I’d be where I am today, without that education.”

community.nichols.edu

– Ron Schachter

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CLASS NOTES

1964 Class Scribe: Warren Bender 3604 Kingsley Dr. Myrtle Beach, SC 29588-7714 843-492-6727 wbender@sc.rr.com From the Class Scribe…

First, a few words about my fellow scribe, Bruce Haslun ’63.

After 13 years (two to three times a year), he has always submitted thoughtful and interesting notes that I always read first before rereading mine. For some reason my notes never came up to the level of his writing, which usually showed lots of compassion and humor.

Bob Hood ’66 had a health problem that is being treated at the Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL. Diagnosis is extremely positive.

He’ll be back to his ornery self in four to five weeks. Just in time for them to be leaving their winter “digs,” and returning to Lake Candlewood, CT. Had lunch again with Duke (the Mayor) MacNair ’65 and Bruce Siegal ’63. A great couple of hours filled with good stories and laughter. Even the waiter got involved. Somewhere close by is a picture of the three of us.

Amazing how we still look the same! And the Beat Goes on.

Sadly, South Carolina is now down to one Nichols scribe: me.

Bruce was a Yankee because he moved out, but I’m a “Damn Yankee,” because I stayed (45 glorious years and counting).

Nichols College Magazine

Mark G. Scolnick says he and his wife had the pleasure of meeting the Nichols baseball team at the Russ Matt Tournament held in nearby Winter Haven, FL. He comments that he enjoyed the game and the company, and that it was very nice to hear “proper” (New England) English again.

“Glad the team is doing well and representing the college,” he adds.

1969 Class Scribe: Robert Kuppenheimer 4627 Tremont Ln. Corona del Mar, CA 92625-3130 rkuppy@gmail.com

I spent 45 minutes talking with Robert “Bob” Mann and catching up on the past 45 years of what’s happening in the world of finance and other topics.

Wonderful to talk with him!

Rick George ’68 and Bill “Woody” Wood were lucky enough to attend a practice round of the Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta this year with their wives. Rick and Diane visited with Donna and Bill in Georgia on their way back from Florida. Check out the picture of the four of them soaking up the good life. The Georges typically visit with the Woods on their way North.

From the Class Scribe…

Lew Gelman ’65 was nice enough to drop me a line. We do the email thing every now and then.

Most times he is correcting me on facts about Nichols sports ’61 through ’65. Anyway, last time I saw him was at a dinner I arranged in NJ when I was returning from my sister’s home in NY, about 15-20 years ago.

There were five of us, and Lew was the only non-’64 alumnus.

I also got to meet Lew’s wife, Carol, for the first time, and talk about him marrying up. Lew has kept up with Hank St. Cyr ’66, and Lew invited him to the PGA at Baltusrol in NJ. Nice tickets to have. If it’s about golf, Lew can’t be far behind. In addition, he keeps busy with five grandchildren, two of which play high school sports. Lastly, it’s golf that takes most of his time, but a knee problem has not hampered his handicap. Hope it doesn’t lead to a new knee. June of 2016 brought a milestone to the Gelman household…50 years of marital bliss. (God bless you, Carol.)

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1967 > 50th Reunion

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1965 Class Scribe: John (Jack) MacPhail 2726 SW English Ln. Portland, OR 97201-1624 jackmacphail1@gmail.com

1966 Bob Hildebrand reports that he and his friend, Aleksandra Geyer, had a wonderful time in Italy, visiting Lake Como, Tuscany, and Cinque Terre in 2016. They returned to Italy in 2017 and visited the Amalfi Coast, Capri and Pompeii. Bob and classmates, Towner Lapp and Bill Nelson, have seen the Red Sox in a few spring training games in Sarasota, FL. He resides in Tyringham, MA, in the Berkshires, and in Northport, FL. He welcomes any Nichols grads who would like to visit.

Summer 2017

I recently spoke with Mike LaFoley, which is always uplifting. Mike and his bride live in Denver. In addition to having ten grandchildren, he has a seven-month-old right hip. His only lament was he is 69, but then said he felt much better about it knowing I’m 70!

It was rumored by Joe’s Stone Crab that Jim Kerley was in Miami, ostensibly for business....

Saw a great picture of Bob Mayer on Facebook. He looks ten years younger than me (damn).

Doug Hillman ’68 and John Harrison ’68 were at a Nichols function, along with Tom Hall.

It was wonderful to see those two class of ’68 guys who have flourished for the almost 50 years that they have been gone from the Hill!

Gil Rochon is heading back to Alaska to catch the one remaining fish he has not caught on the previous hundred trips!

Color me jealous!

Tom Hall welcomed grandchild #6, thereby completing the future Nichols hockey team.

1970 Charles J. Mangini reports that he is retiring! “After 53 years in accounting, I’m done at the end of this year!”

1972

> 45th Reunion

Class Scribe: Mark Alexander mark1alex12@gmail.com

1973 Class Scribe: William (Jay) Reese jay.reese@verizon.net

1977 > 40th Reunion

1979 Woodstock, CT, artist Michael Saari was featured in the Fall/ Winter 2017 edition of Connecticut East magazine in an article titled, “Michael Saari – Blacksmith, Ship Smith, Sculptor and Sailor.”

1982 > 35th Reunion Chris Pecce and Jeff Anderson ’83 celebrated at a Patriots party at Kirby’s Ale House in Houston, the day before the historic 5th Super Bowl win. Pecce says, “Jeff’s hand signals apparently predicted the win...”

1983 Class Scribe: Michael Donehey 508-376-5469 (phone) 509 376-5043 (fax) mdonehey@live.com

1985 Class Scribe: John P. Donahue 10 Corsham Drive Medford, NJ 08055-8434 609-257-8191 jdonahue5@csc.com From the Class Scribe…

It was nice to connect and re-connect with some classmates. We established a Facebook page and started the process of reconnecting. We’re 27 members strong. That might be half the class.

Maryann O’Connell Hoenig writes: “I have been a business teacher at Bartlett High School in Webster for 19 years now and the advisor of a Business Club.

Nichols recently invited me and my students to the campus for a leadership conference and a mini-business competition between Bartlett and Bay Path.

It was a great experience.

The students in my club, and my classes, are taking either marketing, accounting, or business law. Many are hoping to major in one of those areas in college in the future…. I am married and I live in Thompson, CT. I have two daughters; one is a registered nurse and the other works for Nature’s Classroom in Freedom, NH.” Ken Wood reports that he is married to Janice, who is working and teaching, and they have three daughters and a son: Courtney is out of college working in marketing/graphic design for a few years; Victoria is a senior at Salve Regina and plans to attend PA school; Jackie is attending Westfield State; and Jake got a football package at Stonehill College. He still manages time to frequent with former Budleigh residents Jack Will, a man known as Steve “Lim” Limeric, Kevin Richitelli, Spencer Graham, and Ed Plant at least a couple times per year as well as Ed Kus and Jay Kunkel.

Lim wishes to inform that they still can’t handle his left.

Barry Kromer MBA writes that until 2009, he was in his first career serving as either a quality manager or quality engineer (Certified Quality Engineer, ASQ) for American Optical, their Safety, Custom Molding, and Fiber Optics divisions, DANA Corporation (used to be in Webster), then at various aerospace and medical companies. In 2010 he and his wife moved to Albuquerque where she works at Presbyterian

Hospital and he attended Central New Mexico Community College and “had a perfect 4.0, Summa Cum Laude, I guess, and on the Dean’s List—that unfortunately never happened at Nichols!”

He received an Airframe and Powerplant certificate, passed the FAA tests, and earned an Airframe and Powerplant license. (“Yes, Virginia, I can fix your Southwest jet!”). He worked for Bode Aviation Maintenance on airplanes and helicopters, retired in 2015, and now serves as a “volunteer mechanic” on the EAA’s (Experimental Aircraft Association) B17 bomber. A pilot, he flies his Piper Cherokee and is active in the local EAA chapter, giving kids aged 8-17 free flights to get them interested in aviation. He also volunteers at Sunport airport, and runs between nine and 14 miles every day. He ran the Bataan Death March Memorial Marathon at White Sands Missile Range, NM, three times and got a medal for his age group in 2014. “I have to just keep doing things,” he says.

“If you stop going, you get old, so keep going....”

William Martin notes that he still resides in the “thriving metropolis of Dudley.” He and his wife, Pam (Nolin), are celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary.

Bill fondly remembers Professor Hunter telling the management class that he does not give “As,” yet he received an “A-” overall in his classes. “My personal memory is a gathering sometime close to finals at a cabin on the lake and some questions to the final exam were shared. I am sure for our concern and well-being!”

Steve “Lim” Limric says that while not performing his ZZ Top act or looking for Lou Haley, he coaches his triplets on the basketball court and lacrosse field. He also has another son and daughter who both play lacrosse. He is thinking about putting a band together.

1986 Class Scribe: Susan Zimonis 18930 Misty Lake Dr. Jupiter, FL 33458 561-707-8781 susanzimonis@bellsouth.net

1987

> 30th Reunion

1988 Class Scribe: Diane Bellerose Golas 90 Lebanon St. Southbridge, MA 01550-1332 508-764-6077 spongedicat@aol.com

1991 Class Scribe: Donna Small 4905 Bay Harvest Ct. Clemmons, NC 336-712-1053 (home) 336-692-5157 (cell) Dsmall924000@yahoo.com Joanne J. Rapuano has joined Robinson + Cole. She will focus her practice on international trade and federal regulatory compliance matters, including government enforcement.

Spencer Graham owns and operates New England Resort Rentals. He says, “All profits are being redirected to pay off dorm damage to Budleigh that were obviously not Spencer’s. CSI is looking for a one Guy Guarino regarding these invoices.”

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CLASS NOTES

1992 > 25th Reunion

2000

2003

2006

Lee Cappola, vice president of information technology at Injured Workers Pharmacy (IWP), was a recipient of the 2016 CIO 100 award, recognizing organizations around the world that exemplify the highest level of operational and strategic excellence in information technology.

He implemented two innovative solutions focused on streamlining prescription management and improving patient care. He was also among the first graduates of the Management Information Systems Program.

Class Scribe: Andrea Sacco Andrea.j.Sacco@gmail.com

Class Scribe: Jillian (Hayes) Smerage Jnhayes80@gmail.com

Class Scribe: Erica (Mello) Boulay Erica.boulay@hotmail.com

1994 Class Scribe: Danielle (Troiano) Sprague thedwoman@yahoo.com

Jennie L. Caissie MBA was re-elected to the Massachusetts Governor’s Council for the 7th District (primarily Worcester County). She is the only Republican on the eight-member council, which is the final approval of all lifetime appointed judges in Massachusetts.

2001 Class Scribe: David Twiss 978-979-7658 (cell) David.twiss@comcast.net Stephanie Zaccaria Clune and her husband, John, welcomed son, Conor John, on November 22, 2016.

1997 > 20th Reunion 1998 Class Scribe: Emily (Seiferman) Alves Millie.176@hotmail.com

From the Class Scribe…

A group of Nichols friends got together in Meredith, NH, at Mill Falls for a relaxing and fun weekend away. We had such a great time talking, drinking, eating and relaxing at the spa!

We also got to celebrate Kerry Barnes’ engagement! In attendance were Amy Oman ’04, Amy (Champagne) Johnson ’03, Meg (Messier) Linde ’04, Jillian (Hayes) Smerage ’03, and Kerry Barnes ’05 MBA ’07. Sara (Fuller) Tibbott ’04, Tamar Lawrence ’03, and Michelle Lariviere ’05 were very much missed on this first getaway! Here’s to the next one at the beach, ladies!

2007

> 10th Reunion

Class Scribe: Meaghan Larkin meaglark@gmail.com From the Class Scribe…

John Kostas and his wife, Kim, welcomed their first child, daughter Anna Rose, to the world on August 31, 2016.

2002 > 15th Reunion

BISON IN NEW JERSEY RECEPTION

Erika (Buxton) Browning and her husband, Mark, are pleased to present daughter, Nina Viktoria, who was born February 18, 2014.

Debra (Scanlon) Minor completed her master’s degree at Nichols on May 6. She is now a triple Bison!

2005 Class Scribe: Melissa Jackson msmeljackson@gmail.com Kerry Barnes MBA ’07 celebrated her engagement to Steve Cole, who proposed in early March during a romantic surprise weekend away in Vermont.

The wedding is planned for December 2017. Congrats to the happy couple!

From left, Thomas Horner ’18 and Leah Baxendale ’19 converse with Ron Schmitt ’65 at a reception at the Plainfield Country Club in Edison, N.J., hosted by Bill Fredericks ’67. Other receptions this spring included Naples, FL, and Nashua, NH.

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Kari Harvey, Zack Lindsay and big sister, Charlee, welcomed baby girl, Virginia “Gigi” Robin, to their family on September 22, 2016.

Gary Dalton was married to Meagan Amaral on August 6, 2016, at the Cruiseport in Gloucester, MA. Matt Francis ’08 and Cory Dalton were part of the wedding party, and many Bison were in attendance!

2011 Class Scribe: Alexandria M. Hallam aliemchal@gmail.com

In case you missed it on social media…

Alyssa (Chase) and Christopher Paquin ’10 welcomed Ayla to the world.

Bison “Best Friends” sport Nichols gear!

2012 > 5th Reunion 2013

2009 MaryLynn Skarzenski was named head women’s basketball coach at Nichols College. She previously served as head coach Kristen (Colasuonno) and Jeff Bates welcomed a little girl, Finley, to their family on August 1, 2016.

Paul Caprera, MA, LMHC, has achieved licensure from the State of New York and become a licensed mental health counselor with his master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling from Denver Seminary. He has been practicing at CCA Hope in Albany, NY, since 2014.

Liz Alvarez and her fiancé, William Deluca, welcomed their daughter, Emma Leigh, on January 10,

at Mitchell College, where she twice tied the program record for wins (16) and guided the Mariners to the New England Collegiate Conference semifinals. She earned a master’s degree in University. One of the most decorated student-athletes in Nichols’ history, Skarzenski was inducted into the Nichols College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015.

2010 Class Scribe: Katelyn Vella katelyn.vella@yahoo.com Meg (Lily) and Eric Burrington welcomed Isabelle, born on Thanksgiving

2008

November 24,

Nicole (Silvio) Curley nms31@msn.com

#BisonBestFriend

sport leadership at Northeastern

2017.

Class Scribe:

Taylor Ross and Brianne (Callahan) MOL ’11 welcomed son, Bodie, on February 3, 2016.

They report that Bodie is a happy toddler and always smiling, and that they are enjoying every moment as new parents. Taylor is the associate manager, financial reporting, at Prudential in Hartford, CT. Bri is the associate director of alumni relations and annual giving at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI).

2012

morning, 2016.

Courtney Carey and Mike Simoni met at Nichols in 2010, graduated together in 2012, got engaged in 2015, and most recently became husband and wife! They even had three fellow Bison in their immediate bridal party: maid of honor, Corrine Barry; bridesmaid, Hannah Tardif; and groomsman, Paul Finnell. Check out more of their pictures at #BisonLoveStories.

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CLASS NOTES

Catching Up With

Mark Johnson ’89 Mark Johnson ’89 is the global director of visual merchandising at New Balance, headquartered in Brighton, Mass. New Balance designed this role exclusively for Johnson to support the athletic shoe and apparel company as it shifts focus to articulate an elevated consumer experience.

Johnson is driving this mission, with a goal to be “profoundly more relevant, intimate, and engaging across all platforms.” His team focuses on creative development in flagship retail, anything seen and touched by the customer. The family-owned New Balance, established in 1906, is a forward-thinking company that Johnson says, “operates like a start-up.” He and his team envision and strategize to design the store of the future.

Since he began in this role in 2015, he has designed and built out seven global flagship stores across Tokyo, San Francisco, Boston Landing, London, Milan, Berlin, with Shanghai opening later this summer.

Johnson had intended to be an artist, but, “My parents encouraged me to attend Nichols as they thought getting a solid business degree as a baseline would serve me well.”

The marketing major made the most of class work requiring creative writing, expression, and problem solving. “My time at Nichols prepared me not only with a solid business acumen, but provided me with life skills that helped me to assimilate to life outside of school, being on your own, and taking responsibility for your life’s direction,” he states.

After graduation, Johnson moved to Boston and started in the store windows at Gap, where he discovered a passion for styling and merchandising. This led to creative professional opportunities with Adidas and then Uniqlo, as the executive director of visual merchandising, based in Tokyo, Japan. “My ability to engage deeply with key stakeholders in business, to establish professional relationships with colleagues and cross functional partners, were skills developed during my time at Nichols College,” he says.

Johnson recently hosted a group of Nichols students on a tour of the flagship store and corporate headquarters in Brighton, where students could preview some of the 2018 apparel and renderings of retail development. He advised students to travel and take opportunities that lend new experiences, even far away from home. He considers himself incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to live in different parts of the world, such as Portland, Los Angeles, Beijing, Shanghai, and Tokyo. “Living abroad has humbled me tremendously and has given me an incredible perspective on my career and my personal life,” Johnson says. While living in Shanghai, he met his husband, David, and they still have a home in China. After seven years in Asia, Johnson has happily returned to the United States. Outside of work, he and David enjoy investing time and energy into renovating and transforming their home in Newton, coincidentally the same age as the company he professionally calls home (1906).

– Molly Thienel

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NICHOLS REMEMBERS Andrew J. Vogel ’47, of West Hartford, CT, Feb. 10, 2017. A pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, he was a production and materials manager at Pratt & Whitney, American Thread, Russell Manufacturing and Whitney Chain, retiring in 1985.

Survivors include three children; eight grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

Richard W. Adams ’47, of South Hadley, MA, April 5, 2017. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He was the vice president of Hampden Papers Inc., where he worked for over 40 years, retiring in 1990. He is survived by four children; 11 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren.

David P. Graham Sr. ’50, of Fairmount, NY, May 23, 2017.

A Navy veteran, he owned and operated the David P. Graham Co., which specialized in banking supplies. Predeceased by his wife, Sharon, a grandson, and son-in-law, he is survived by four daughters; five sons; 22 grandchildren; and 27 great-grandchildren.

Sears C. Winslow ’50, of North Andover, MA, Feb. 12, 2017.

After attending Nichols College, he joined the Naval Air Reserve Training Program during the Korean War. He and two partners formed Systems Automation Inc., providing Boston area companies with office automation, computer networking, and training during the early years of computers.

He later co-owned a travel agency. He is survived by his wife, Carolyn; two daughters; three grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and a sister.

Peter W. Stearns ’50, of Ukiah, CA, March 31, 2017. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War, and later owned and managed a wholesale lumber company, and built and ran The Sunhouse Tennis Club. In 2003, he published the book, “A Journey in Time,” which showcased the wildflowers and landscapes of Mendocino County. He is survived by four children; and a grandson.

James W. Peterson Jr. ’51, of Torrington, CT, Jan. 31, 2017. He was a veteran of the Korean War after which he began a long career at Travelers Insurance Co. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; three children; three grandchildren; and a sister.

Paul J. Opacki ’63, of Monument Beach, MA, Dec. 31, 2016. He was president of the family business, Middlesex Cleaning Co., before owning the Maypop Antiques Shop in Sandwich, MA, for more than 25 years. Survivors include two brothers; and three sisters.

Lyman W. “Phil” Phillips Jr. ’53, of Destin, FL, Nov. 16, 2016. He served in active military service at Fort Myers, VA, and was a sales and purchasing agent at Container Corp. of America. He is survived by his wife, Gail; four children; seven grandchildren; a great-grandson; and a brother.

Robert A. Szlyk ’65, of Northborough, MA, Jan. 4, 2017.

He began his career as an assistant credit manager at the W.T. Grant Co. and later the American Supply Co. In 1969, he became a business teacher at North High School, where he taught until his retirement in 1997. He is survived by his wife, Patricia; and a brother.

Ronald J. Swenn ’55, of Westport, CT, Feb. 3, 2017. He served as a Westport firefighter for 24 years, retiring as a lieutenant. He also ran a landscaping business and owned and operated a Carvel Ice Cream store. Predeceased by his wife of 47 years, Martha, he is survived by two daughters; three grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.

Robert R. Landry ’58, of Skowhegan, ME, March 23, 2017.

He served as the guidance director at Boothbay Region High School. Predeceased by his first wife, Nancy, he is survived by his wife; Judith McCarthy; two daughters; three grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; a stepson; and two stepgrandchildren.

John L. “Jack” Lubbers ’62, of Charleston, SC, April 24, 2017.

He served in the Marine Corp Reserves. He worked as a law enforcement distributor for Smith & Wesson, and later as sales manager for Smith & Wesson Electronics. He served as a manufacturing representative in law enforcement and the sporting goods market until 1986, then as a manufacturer of specialty advertising products to the sporting goods and law enforcement industries, retiring in 2014. He leaves his wife, Theresa; a sister-in-law; a nephew; three cousins; and a mother-in-law.

Kenneth A. Racicot ’65, of Estero, FL, March 29, 2017. He spent most of his career working in the information systems field, at companies such as New England Electric Systems, Wyman-Gordon, and the MBTA. He then partnered with his wife, Carolyn, to own and operate Elder Day Services of Southern Worcester County. In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons; two grandsons; and a sister.

Patrick H. Walsh ’69, of Kennebunk Beach, ME, Dec. 30, 2016. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard, and was employed for over 40 years as an executive in the printing forms industry. He is survived by his wife, Karen; two children; and five grandchildren.

Edward G. “Ned” Chew ’75, of Merrimac, MA, July 24, 2015. He previously served as manager of Surfwood Inc. in Topsfield.

Sharon C. Chauvin ’76 MBA ’98, of Dudley, MA, March 23, 2017.

She worked as a business manager for Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston. She is survived by her father, Michael; her husband, Eugene; two children; a grandchild; two brothers; and a sister.

Peter J. Dodier ’84, of Amesbury, MA, March 12, 2017.

After graduating from Nichols, he secured a job in the ocean shipping industry in Baltimore, and continued in this line of work until his passing. He is survived by his mother, Lorraine; his wife, Joanna; two children; three sisters; and a brother.

community.nichols.edu

Clifton L. Trethewey Jr. ’88, of Melrose, MA, Feb. 20, 2017. He worked as a manufacturer’s rep in the heating and cooling industry. He is survived by his father, Clifton; his mother, Jane; three children; and a brother.

Patricia R. Doyle MBA ’96, of Blackstone, MA, March 9, 2017. A mortgage banker for many years, she worked at Metro West Bank and Framingham Savings Bank.

She is survived by two children; three grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.

Hugh T. Briody ’98, of Charlton, MA, Jan. 14, 2017. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam era, and worked at Jamesbury Corp. for 31 years, becoming director of manufacturing and managing plants in Worcester, Mexico and England. He finished his career at Circor International, serving as vice president of manufacturing in Oklahoma City and later general manager in Suzhou, China, retiring in 2011.

He leaves his wife, Susan; a daughter; and two grandchildren.

Michael J. McKay MBA ’00, of Shrewsbury, MA, Dec. 31, 2016.

He worked at Digital/Intel Corp. for over 28 years. He is survived by his father, James; his wife, Mary Williamson; two daughters; a brother; and a sister.

Matthew E. Charette ’05, of Charlton, MA, March 27, 2017.

He was employed as a sales representative for Exagrid in Marlborough, and was also the CEO of Redphone Records, recording and promoting hiphop artists. He leaves his father, Ronald; his mother, Virginia; two children; and a brother.

Nicholas J. Gayton ’05, of Southbridge, MA, Jan. 20, 2017.

He worked as a social media specialist for the Staples corporate headquarters in Framingham. He is survived by his father, Timothy; his mother, Diane; his wife, Lauren; one son; and a sister.

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Donors can increase their impact with

IRA charitable rollovers In the spring of 2000, Nichols College launched the Colonel Conrad Society to honor and recognize the generosity of those who have provided for Nichols in their estate plans.

With just a handful of charter members, the legacy society has grown to more than 50 alumni and friends. They have documented their commitment to the future of the college in a variety of ways—through bequests, deferred gift annuities,

Several Nichols College donors have taken advantage of

charitable lead trusts, and gifts of life insurance. These and

this program—one used his transfer to establish an endowed

other deferred gift vehicles offer Nichols long-term security

scholarship. Another donor summed it up this way: “This

and allow donors to make the type of significant gift they

is an opportunity to lower taxes, benefit Nichols College,

might not otherwise be able to during their lifetimes.

and feel good about yourself and about giving back to the institution that gave you the opportunity to make the money

Now there’s a way for donors to see and experience

that’s gone into this IRA.”

the impact their gifts can make and reap a tax benefit in return.

Donors are urged to review and discuss this opportunity with their financial advisers. In the meantime, for more information

The individual retirement account (IRA) charitable rollover,

on this and deferred giving options at Nichols College,

which first appeared as a temporary measure in the Pension

please contact the Advancement Office at 866-622-4766

Protection Act of 2006, was made permanent by legislation

or advancement@nichols.edu.

signed in December 2015. This popular provision allows people who are 70½ years or older to transfer all or part of their required minimum distribution each year directly from a traditional or Roth IRA to qualified charities without being taxed on the distribution. By donating the distribution directly to a charity, say, Nichols College, donors can exclude it from their adjusted gross income, resulting in a lower taxable income for the donor.

A donor’s total combined charitable IRA rollover contributions cannot exceed $100,000 in any one year.

A couple with separate IRAs can each give up to $100,000 tax free, provided they have both reached the age of 70½ in a given tax year. The rollover does not count toward total charitable donations for purposes of itemizing deductions. So, for individuals who may have already capped out what they can donate and deduct, donating from their IRA allows them to go beyond their maximum, and increase their impact.

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Benefits of an IRA charitable rollover • Avoid taxes on transfers of up to $100,000 from your IRA to Nichols College • Satisfy your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year • Reduce your taxable income, even if you do not itemize deductions • Make a gift that is not subject to the 50 percent deduction limits on charitable gifts • Support the Nichols College mission of transforming today’s students to tomorrow’s leaders!

S TAY C O N N E C T E D

Jam session Cheerleaders!

CLASS OF ’67

Family time

IT’S 50th REUNION TIME! FRIDAY, SEPT. 29 AND SATURDAY, SEPT. 30

Coach Hal

Woodsman in action

Best buds

Baccalaureate

We made it!

Hanging at the Senior Picnic

Moments in Time Your alma mater and classmates want to keep in touch with you! Sign up for the alumni email newsletter Nichols & Sense by sending your email address to: alumnioffice@nichols.edu.

alumnioffice@nichols.edu | community.nichols.edu

` Nichols.College

t @NicholsAlumni

NON-PROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #375 NASHUA NH

P.O. Box 5000 Dudley, MA 01571-5000

Don’t miss out on homecoming activities…

Football vs. Dean College, Alumni Bubble Soccer, Bison Letter Art, Taste of Nichols, Golden Bison, Hall of Fame…

Watch for the full schedule at community. nichols.edu.

Homecoming 2017

September 29-30

In the meantime, Nichols may be popping up near you...

SUMMER STAMPEDE

SUMMER STAMPEDE

SUMMER STAMPEDE

Bison in Beantown

Nichols in New York

Bison at the Beach

Boston - June 22

NYC - July 18

Cape Cod - August 8

Check it out at community.nichols.edu and on social media.