Scene Magazine Summer 2013

The Magazine of St. Ambrose University | Summer 2013

Focus on Fitness ALSO INSIDE: SAU’s Major Impact on QC Economy

Scene

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The Magazine of St. Ambrose University Summer 2013 | Volume XXXIX | Number 2 Managing Editor Linda Hirsch Editor Craig DeVrieze Staff Writers Jane Kettering Emilee Renwick Staff Assistant Darcy Duncalf ’12 Contributing Writers Sara Clifton ’13 Steven Lillybeck Dustin Renwick ’10 Ted Stephens III ’01, ’04 Designer Sally Paustian ’94 www.sau.edu/scene scene@sau.edu Photo and illustration credits: Greg Boll: pages 3; John Mohr Photography: inside front cover, pages 4, 5, back cover; Kevin Schmidt: page 10; Dan Videtich: front cover, inside front cover, pages 1, 2, 7, 12, 15–19, 21–22, .

Scene is published by the Communications and Marketing office for the alumni, students, parents, friends, faculty and staff of St. Ambrose University. Its purpose is to inform and inspire through stories highlighting the many quality people and programs that are the essence of St. Ambrose’s distinguished heritage of Catholic, values-based education. Circulation is approximately 23,000.

St. Ambrose University—independent, diocesan, and Catholic—enables its students to develop intellectually, spiritually, ethically, socially, artistically and physically to enrich their own lives and the lives of others.

St. Ambrose University, 518 W. Locust St., Davenport, Iowa 52803

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17 2 Under the Oaks The Engineering and Occupational Therapy Departments team to bring assistive technology to Brazilians in need; Ambrosians rally to help an ailing faculty member and his family; a former ski coach finds a fit in the Kinesiology Department; and guess who once guarded an NBA star?

Features 12 Working it Out

26 31 Alumni Profile 24 Cross Trainer Tim Dempsey ’85 developed a talent for athletic training while earning a degree in sociology. He has combined both disciplines to help Paralympians and Wounded Warriors through cross-pattern training.

26 Alumni News St. Ambrose classmates become travel mates; retired faculty and staff find a way to stay Always Ambrosian; classes are

Since Play Hall opened in 1888, St. Ambrose has made

building their own Homecoming reunions; and McCarthy

a priority of providing students a place to stay healthy

Hall will be named in honor of a community leader.

and well.

14 A Tight Fit

30 Class Notes

St. Ambrose students are defying a generational trend by working hard to stay fit, but does the 31-year-old PE Center still fit their needs?

17 Lessons in Motion Reflecting the growing interest in health science careers, the Kinesiology Department needs room to grow, too.

20 Major Impact A recent study shows St. Ambrose University’s impact on the local economy is significant. And behind the numbers, real people benefit.

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DPT Program Will Celebrate 20th Anniversary

Phi Eta Sigma Leader Wins National Scholarship With a double major in chemistry and biology and a minor in psychology, St. Ambrose senior Averi Wilson hopes to enroll in medical school after graduation.

Having served a prestigious summer internship at the Perinatal Research Center at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora, Colo., Wilson has a potential head start on her desired career in obstetrics.

Those kinds of ambitions and accomplishments are among the criteria the Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society considers when selecting scholarship winners from across the country. Wilson’s active agenda as 2012–13 president of the SAU Phi Eta Sigma chapter also helped her develop a winning application.

Wilson was one of 35 national undergraduate winners of a $6,000 scholarship awarded in the spring by the national Phi Eta Sigma organization.

As president of the SAU chapter, Wilson led the group’s efforts to assist King’s Harvest Ministries in its work for the homeless in Davenport. Efforts included donating food and litter to the King’s Harvest pet shelter program and working monthly shifts at the Saturday morning breakfasts for the poor. The chapter also raised $400 to contribute to the shelter.

As assistant director of the SAU Dance Marathon this year, she hopes to help exceed the $40,000 raised in 2012–13 for the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital. “I’m very excited to take on the challenge,” she said.

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The Physical Therapy Department at St. Ambrose will turn 20 this fall, and a Homecoming Weekend celebration is planned around a continuing education course built for SAU graduates.

The program will take place Sept. 28 at the Center for Health Sciences Education at Genesis. It will include six hours of continuing education focused on ways that physical therapists can use outcome measures to guide patient management, said Michael Puthoff, PT, PhD, program director.

More than 500 program alumni also have been invited to a reception afterward to visit with former professors, former classmates and friends from other classes.

Tours of the Center for Health Sciences Education, which opened in 2010, will be included. “Many of our alumni have not had the opportunity to see our facilities,” Puthoff said.

St. Ambrose welcomed its first cohort to what was then a Master of Physical Therapy program in 1993. In 2004, St. Ambrose graduated the first class of students with a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree. It was the university’s second doctoral program and a sign of growth, both for St. Ambrose and the importance of physical therapy.

“As health care expands and knowledge of the importance of the rehabilitation process gets larger, the preparation that goes into training physical therapists increases,” Puthoff said. “We have to make sure they are prepared for all that is expected of them.”

Read more about the Doctor of Physical Therapy program and its 2oth anniversary celebration at sau.edu/scene.

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he pack of 800-meter runners spread three lanes wide down the home stretch at the NAIA National Track and Field Championships in May, and less than a second separated fourth through eighth place.

“I was thinking, ‘You have a chance to win.’ It was a matter of who sprinted a little faster,” John Darmody ’12 remembered of his final collegiate race.

A seventh-place finish initially brought disappointment for the St. Ambrose University standout. Later, the greatest distance runner in SAU history forgot about that unsuccessful sprint, and viewed his historic career from a distance.

“Talking to the coaches and to my dad, they were very reassuring, putting the entire season and my entire career into perspective,” Darmody said. “I don’t think I could have even imagined everything I’ve done five years ago when I was a freshman.”

Decorated Darmody Succeeds in the Long Run That “everything” amounts to a remarkable lot. Paired with an eighth-place finish in the 1500 meters earlier in the May meet, the seventh-place run in the 800 made Darmody the only seven-time All-American in St. Ambrose history. Only six SAU athletes have been three-time All-Americans.

Darmody, who earned his undergraduate degree in 2012 and took graduate classes this past school year, left St. Ambrose for law school at Indiana University in June holding 11 St. Ambrose records in indoor and outdoor track and cross country.

Darmody spent his final season in the spotlight. He won Midwest Collegiate Conference Athlete of the Year honors in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track—a triple-crown feat never before accomplished in the MCC. He represents the new bar for St. Ambrose athletes, said Dan Tomlin ’05, ’10 MBA, men’s and women’s head track coach. “When you look at the history of St. Ambrose athletics, it starts with John Darmody,” Tomlin said.

Darmody said lessons he learned in cross country and track reflect the values of the university, something exemplified by the March selection of the men’s indoor team for the NAIA Champions of Character team award, a school first.

“I definitely don’t think I would be the athlete I am if I hadn’t come here,” Darmody said. “The things that the coaches expected of me are the same things the teachers expect.

“A lot of it is not taking any opportunity you have for granted. Coach Tomlin talks about that a lot. You can look at going to class or going to practice or competing as something you have to do or something you get to do.”

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Choose what is life-giving.

Be wise. Be loving.

This is my prayer for you.

Congratulations.�

Those concluding words of the Spring 2013 Commencement address delivered by Sister Barbara Moore, CSJ, PhD, summed up so many of the life lessons learned by the nearly 680 degree candidates who gathered for the pomp and circumstance of commencement on May 11. online extra: photo galleries at sau.edu/scene

COMMENCEMENT

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Ambrosians Help Albert Fight On Oct. 28, Albert Chan, PhD, suffered a major stroke while teaching his philosophy class. Students, faculty and medical personnel responded swiftly, and his life was saved.

By early November, a St. Ambrose “meal train” had been organized for the Chan family, who live in Iowa City. That’s where Chan spent two weeks in intensive care at University Hospitals before being transferred to a Cedar Rapids, Iowa, rehabilitation facility.

“I think it’s a natural response, to feed people,” said Sherri Erkel, director of First Year Experience. Erkel and others wanted Chan’s wife, Cora, and daughters, Sharla and Kayden, to be free of that concern. “Literally, every major, every department contributed,” said Erkel. “The calendar filled up immediately.”

Erkel, who also lives in Iowa City, delivered home-cooked meals or pizza gift cards each night on her way home from work. “I had a cooler in my office and Cora had one on their porch,” she said.

St. Ambrose faculty, staff and administrators visited Chan in the hospital. Students stopped by Erkel’s office to ask about him. Cards of encouragement were sent. Rides

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were provided for the Chans’ out-oftown relatives. When their family car broke down, a retired faculty member contributed three-quarters of the $4,000 repair bill.

Before his stroke, Chan, a volleyball aficionado, had practiced with the Fighting Bees JV team and played on the faculty/staff team along with Lindsay (Miller) Schaefer ’05, English instructor and graduate writing coordinator. “After the stroke we all wanted to honor him— and his fight,” Schaefer said.

A March men’s varsity volleyball game at the PE Center was transformed into a fundraiser and morale-booster.

Chan, who by now had been transferred to a rehabilitation center, was able to watch online. The stands were filled with Ambrosians wearing “Fight Like Albert” t-shirts. The team won its match, and the Chan family was presented with a $3,000 check from T-shirt and raffle ticket sales.

Chan, who is now walking, continues to improve and gain strength. The Chans plan to move back to California this summer, to be closer to family as Albert Chan continues his rehabilitation.

“We are so indebted to St. Ambrose for such a generous and gracious response to our family,” said Cora Chan. “There have been so many angels that have helped us in so many countless ways, even now. It is a testimony of God’s love.”

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Andy Milton has a master’s degree in sports administration—and a passion for staying active. His mom says he was always on the go as a child. Now he is SAU’s director of Campus Recreation.

So What’s Campus Rec? Club sports, exercise classes, intramurals, wellness programming, and a surprisingly high level of student employment (more than 40 on staff). “We’re providing opportunities for students to learn something new or continue something they already enjoy,” said Milton.

“It’s about helping them develop awareness, tools and lifelong healthy habits.”

A Typical Day No such thing, according to Milton.

“That’s one of the things I like about the job,” he said. “Lots of planning, programming, building relationships—and putting out fires. I’m active, moving, doing different things; I have to be resourceful and ready for anything.”

Milton in Three Words “Energetic, outgoing and young-hearted,” responded campus rec student worker Shelby Gruntorad.

Embarrassing Moment: A Ref in ‘Capris’ Milton, who officiates for NCAA Division III games, showed up for an out-of-town basketball game without his black officiating pants.

“I had to borrow the football coach’s pants,” said the 6-foot-3 Milton.

They were about six inches too short and despite pulling up his black socks “as high as they could go,” colleagues were quick to text and picture-message Milton’s plight.

Milton Tidbits: > Right-handed, but a leftie at Frisbee and shooting pool > Used to be a huge professional wrestling fan as a kid and teen > Once guarded (“or at least attempted to guard”) future NBA Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett in a high school basketball game

> If he wasn’t directing campus rec, he’d probably be a veterinarian

“I have to be resourceful and ready for anything.”

Who is SAU? Andy Milton 7

The takaway is that it is really nice to use knowledge to help people and make a positive change.”

Engineering, OT Programs Team to Fill A Need It was a feeling Chris Donnelly ’12 still can’t quite put into words.

Like a virtual hug, perhaps?

As a St. Ambrose engineering major, Donnelly traveled to Ilheus, Brazil, in the summer of 2011, in the company of Christine Urish, PhD, a professor of occupational therapy, Jodi Prosise, PhD, an assistant professor of engineering, and fellow St. Ambrose engineering and OT students.

They took with them a compression vest Donnelly and others had developed through the Program for Assistive Technologies for the Underprivileged (PATU), a course of study taught by Prosise in collaboration with Urish and the engineering science program at Sweet Briar College near Lynchburg, Va. The vest was meant for Max, a 15-year-old Brazilian with severe autism, and it was designed to address Max’s constant desire to be hugged. “He absolutely craved hugs,” Donnelly remembered. “He was kind of hyperactive unless he was being hugged.”

Donnelly and his partners developed the vest without ever having met Max, and then traveled to Ilheus, a sister city to Davenport, to present the device. “We put the vest on Max and it was instantaneous,” he said of the calming effect of the mechanical embrace.

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That’s when Donnelly felt his own internal hug.

“You kind of felt something inside to see it work so well,” he remembered. “I can’t imagine what it was like for him to always be seeking out that hug, that touch.

It was just kind of amazing.”

Amazing stories like that have become the norm since Urish and Prosise created this Study Abroad partnership that represents a natural synergy between the Occupational Therapy and Engineering Departments at St. Ambrose.

Healthcare for the indigent is lacking in Ilheus and Itabuna, a pair of Quad Cities-sized communities located in northeastern Brazil.

Urish began trips there to provide occupational therapy assistance in 2005, and ultimately recognized a keen need in clients like Max for affordable adaptive assistance.

Enter Prosise, who was completing her doctoral thesis in biomedical engineering when she joined the St. Ambrose faculty in 2009.

“I went into biomedical engineering because I wanted to do stuff to help people,” she said. “One of the draws for me coming to St. Ambrose was the strength of the health science programs.”

As it happened, Urish was assigned as Prosise’s faculty mentor. Prosise’s interest in creating an engineering study abroad trip merged with Urish’s interest in developing adaptive solutions for underserved Brazilians.

The partnership with Sweet Briar’s engineering program already had been formed, and faculty at that women’s college were eager to launch an engineering trip abroad that addressed medical needs as well.

The engineering-OT partnership works like this: Urish will travel to Brazil with OT students in even years. While there, she will identify adaptive needs that engineering students might be able to meet.

“I take pictures, I take video and I come back and share with Jodi,” Urish said. “We talk about options,

A Project Built to Sustain Creating a generation of Ambrosians committed to the cause of Sustainability is the aim of the St. Ambrose University 2013–14 academic project.

“This has to be the age of sustainability,” said Rev. Robert “Bud” Grant ’80, PhD, coordinator of a campus-wide initiative led by the College of Arts and Sciences.

Although Sustainability represents a number of ideas and approaches, SAU primarily will focus on the “green” side, Fr. Grant said. Most of the lectures have been

she turns them over to students, and they choose their projects.”

This year, Chris Lorenzon, a senior engineering major from Bettendorf, Iowa, went to Brazil with Prosise. There, he delivered a third iteration of an eye-blink communication board designed to help Emanuelle, a 15-year-old girl with severe cerebral palsy, communicate basic needs to her parents and caregivers.

For Lorenzen, as for Donnelly, the reward is learning while creating something that solves a real human need. “The takeaway is that it is really nice to use knowledge to help people and make a positive change,” he said.

The June trip also resulted in promising preliminary discussions about involving engineering students from the Universidad Estadual de Santa Cruz, who served as hosts to the SAU-Sweet Briar traveling contingent, in ongoing assistive technology projects in the region.

Read a blog about this year’s trip to Brazil, and learn more about engineering, occupational therapy and study abroad at St. Ambrose at sau.edu/Scene

set and 13 courses will be taught that tie in with the theme.

First Year Experience will make the book Living Downstream required reading, and author Sandra Steingraber will visit SAU for a public reading on Oct. 22.

Ideas beyond the podium and the classroom have been proposed by GreenLife, SAU’s student environmental club. From staging a “don’t drive in” movie night to hydroponic gardens, the club hopes to introduce activities that get students in the habit of being green.

Fr. Grant said raising awareness of current and looming environmental issues and encouraging students to reflect on the topic, are key focuses of the project. The final hope is to change behavior.

“That last step can’t be forced, it can’t be required,” Grant said.

Read more about the Sustainability Project and scheduled lectures and events at sau.edu/scene.

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by Craig DeVrieze

Coaching Students to Endure, Succeed

S

omewhere in the middle of a 50-kilometer cross country ski race, the hands and feet begin to sting from the cold, the lungs ache from exhaustion, the hamstrings scream from the exertion, and any sane person begins to question the wisdom of pushing on.

Life—and school—can sometimes feel like an endurance race, as well.

In each case, Darla Baumgarten—a former competitive cross-country skier and coach and a current assistant professor of kinesiology at St. Ambrose— exhorts her students to endure. To push on. To succeed.

Eight years into a career in higher education for which she said she always felt destined, Baumgarten carries an established reputation as a knowledgeable and engaging instructor, as well as a compassionate and perceptive student adviser.

“Darla is loved by the students,” said Suzanne Wiese, the Kinesiology Department’s administrative assistant.

“She is just really all there for the students’ success.”

Mark Brauweiler ’13 graduated cum laude in May with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science and human performance and fitness. He said Baumgarten brings her endurance coaching mentality to the classroom. And, as his adviser, he

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facultyPROFILE

particularly remembered her coaching him through the challenging process of applying to the Doctor of Physical Therapy program, which he will begin at SAU this fall.

“I might not have made it into the DPT program if it hadn’t been for her,” Brauweiler recalled. “Where there is a problem, she will say ‘OK, let’s work through this.’”

Sara Lopata ’11 recognized Baumgarten’s “all there” passion for students long before she needed it most.

But when the young student suffered a serious brain injury from a single-

falls each year. After competing for a time on the national cross-country ski circuit, she earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education and a master’s degree in exercise physiology from Northern Michigan University. She also served as a graduate assistant coach of an NMU women’s crosscountry ski team that finished second in the nation.

Baumgarten taught grade school physical education for a couple of years before spending 13 years as an exercise physiologist at Marquette General Hospital. After her husband’s work brought the family to the Quad Cities, she

of far-too-sedentary American grade schoolers comes of age.

Baumgarten looks forward to preparing future kinesiology students to help both groups shape up. “I am passionate about the field of kinesiology, and I teach them to be passionate as well,” she said.

One of her passions has necessarily cooled. Baumgarten doesn’t get much long-distance skiing done in the Quad Cities, and her original hope to launch a junior cross-country skiing club here melted long ago. “The snow doesn’t stay down long enough,” she said. “You can’t count on it.”

“I am passionate about the field of kinesiology, and

I teach them to be passionate as well.” car accident in the summer of 2008, Baumgarten was chief among the SAU faculty and staff who helped her battle back to gain a degree.

“There were times when I was hardcore struggling and her personality helped keep me motivated,” said Lopata, who, as a brain injury specialist in West Des Moines, Iowa, now strives to inspire her therapy clients with a similar “push-through” brand of positivity.

Skiing drew Baumgarten from her native Colorado to Marquette, Mich., where an average of 200 inches of snow

learned of an opening in the St. Ambrose Kinesiology Department, where her clinical experience proved to be a welcome asset.

At SAU, Baumgarten has watched the exercise science field grow in stature and the school’s Kinesiology Department expand from two full-time faculty members to six.

Now in the process of completing her doctoral dissertation, Baumgarten expects the need for exercise and fitness specialists will continue to rise as baby boomers become senior citizens and a generation 11

Being Fit Isn’t Play Today

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he first gymnasium on the St. Ambrose campus was called Play Hall.

Built in 1888, the building measured a cozy

In 2013, an important segment of our student population is here specifically to learn how to enhance the physical

25 feet by 50 feet. It was replaced in 1909 by

development of others through our

a larger exercise space in the lower portion

expanding health sciences curricula.

of a new addition to Ambrose Hall. That was

Meanwhile, St. Ambrose students and

bigger, but not big enough.

prospective students of all educational

LeClaire Hall—with its (then) expansive

disciplines are keenly interested in truly

state-of-the-art gymnasium, basement

modern recreational facilities, where they

swimming pool and balcony running track—

can work to stay or become physically fit

came along in 1917, built to fit the college’s

through all the means modern exercise

growing needs and expanding student body.

science can provide. That desire is keener

And in 1982, that finally outdated facility

still in athletes.

made way for the PE Center.

Rev. William Hannon, the fourth president

The construction of a new health and wellness center to meet the expanding

of St. Ambrose, stressed at the LeClaire

needs of the modern student and our

Hall dedication: “ We must not forget that

growing university has been designated as

our mental training is as important as our

the highest priority on a 10-year Master Plan

physical development.”

approved by the Board of Trustees.

That admonition never has been forgotten

Both the need and the value are clear.

at St. Ambrose, where, from the outset, the physical and mental development of Ambrosians each have been viewed as essential elements of the school’s mission.

What the builders of Play Hall, LeClaire Hall and even the PE Center could not have foreseen, however, is how intertwined those once seemingly separate mission elements would become in the 21st century.

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A Tight Fit

Fitness-focused Ambrosians Show Need to Grow

Kate Ross didn’t come to St. Ambrose to get fit. She arrived that

by Craig DeVrieze

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way. Still, a date with a set of barbells or a treadmill is a routine part of the sophomore’s weekday agenda.

“Monday and Thursday are arm days,” said the nursing major from Champaign, Ill. “Tuesday and Wednesday are leg days.”

Ross—who weighs 125 pounds, but can lift 160— spends an hour-and-a-half each of those days in the very busy weight-lifting and elliptical workout facility on the second floor of the PE Center, continuing a passion she developed as a high school track and field competitor.

“When I got to college, I bumped it up a notch,” she said of her workout routine. “I think it boosts my self-esteem and it really brings me into an atmosphere where everyone else is passionate about lifting, working out, and sports. It is a good community.”

It also is a large and growing community.

Although national studies show the current generation of American collegians are less fit and fitness-focused than preceding generations, that isn’t necessarily true at St. Ambrose.

More than 750 of the 3,500-plus students who enrolled at SAU for the 2012–13 academic year were athletes, and 40 percent of all undergraduate students participated last year in intramural sports and recreational activities.

Meg Halligan ’89, assistant vice president for admissions, said prospective St. Ambrose students and their parents increasingly are interested in knowing what amenities the school has to offer that can help students stay strong and healthy.

It is a trend that has paralleled the growth in undergraduate and graduate programs offered through the College of Health and Human Services.

“I think this is really important for recruitment,” Halligan said. “The interest in wellness has increased.”

This is good news. Yet, it also amplifies a significant campus need.

The PE Center was built in 1982 to accommodate the growth at that time of both varsity athletics and general enrollment at St. Ambrose.

It was not built to accommodate the substantial growth that is happening in the present.

“They built what they could afford back in 1982,” said Mike Poster ’88, vice president for finance at St. Ambrose. “It was a huge improvement from what they had at the time, but our on-campus population has probably grown by a factor of four since then, and we are still in that same building.”

Cramped, yet spread out Actually, not everyone who ideally would be in the building is. The PE Center’s cramped quarters have forced more than two-thirds of the SAU athletic staff into offices in Davis and Ambrose Halls or, in the case of football coaches, to an annex a mile from campus.

Football players have had their own weight room in that annex since 2010, a change that was made to ensure the on-campus workout room would be available to other students most hours of the day.

The PE Center also offers limited locker room space, forcing a majority of athletes to use lockers in the basement of LeClaire Hall or to dress in their residence hall rooms.

Then there is the matter of making use of the one

gymnasium on campus. The volleyball teams have been known to practice as late as 10 p.m. on basketball game nights. And, to accommodate women’s basketball, the men’s hoops team routinely stages its afternoon practices at the Beyond the Baseline facility on the former Marycrest College campus.

“A lot of it just comes down to needing more space,” said Ray Shovlain ’79, ’82 MBA, the men’s head basketball coach and SAU athletic director. “If we could practice three teams at the same time in the same building, it would free up more time for general student use.”

Student use of the gymnasium is, indeed, another piece of the puzzle. To accommodate the 40-plus volleyball teams and more than 55 basketball teams that participated in intramural leagues this past year, Recreation Director Andy Milton had to become a circus-worthy juggler.

Ross, the sophomore nursing student, played intramural volleyball and said she was on the court as late as 11 p.m., which was not exactly helpful when it came to acing a pop quiz in an 8 a.m. biology course.

“We get to bed pretty late some times after games,” she said.

Milton said that is a problem.

“To me it’s a customer-service issue for the students,” he said. “At the same time, I will tell you campus recreation is just as big a cause for the overcrowding at the PE Center. When we are in there, that thing is booked from 4 p.m. until 11 p.m. There is no time for that informal game of pick-up basketball or volleyball or badminton.”

Since Milton became director six years ago, the campus recreation offerings have grown extensively.

Last year, three club sports were added to the campus activity roster. In August, that number will grow to 10.

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Also growing in popularity, especially among female students, are aerobic dance activities such as Zumba. Space constrictions at the PE Center have forced Milton to schedule those classes, some of which number 50 students, in the ballroom at the Rogalski Center. And that, of course, is subject to the ballroom’s availability.

“It’s a strain,” Milton said of attempting to fit a fitness-driven student body into currently available space.

Which means it is past time to grow.

New Wellness Center High Priority Construction of a new health and wellness center was identified as the highest priority in a 10-year Master Plan approved by the Board of Trustees in the fall of 2011.

“A building like this is an absolute necessity,” said Sister Joan Lescinski, CSJ, PhD, university president.

“It will complete the outstanding range of new and renovated facilities available to serve our students.”

Preliminary plans call for a new building to be constructed just west of the PE Center, utilizing space that currently is used as a practice football field.

Poster said the new building could be as large as 100,000 square feet. It ideally would include three to four basketball courts, an indoor running track, and an expanded cardio workout and weight-lifting center.

In conjunction with the reconfigured space in the PE Center, the addition would allow Kinesiology 16

Department classrooms, labs and offices—most but not all of which are currently located in Hayes Hall— to find a common home.

Additional locker room space and an expanded sports medicine area also would be accommodated.

And the men’s and women’s basketball teams could practice—on campus—simultaneously, while accommodating a more customer-friendly student recreation schedule as well.

A detailed construction plan, a final budget, and a definitive timetable are pending, Poster said, but ideally the new facility would be completed within the next five years.

That won’t be a minute to soon, according to Shovlain.

The longtime coach said he frequently visits suburban high schools with larger and more modern workout facilities than he can show recruits here. He said many of the colleges that SAU coaches compete against on the recruiting trail also have better facilities.

Shovlain, Halligan and Poster all said the state-ofthe-art residential halls and an expanding catalog of first-class academic offerings at St. Ambrose have been major assets in recruiting athletes and non-athletes alike.

As for wellness and athletics facilities? “We have worked around it,” Halligan said.

That is getting harder to do.

“It’s the third leg of recruitment,” Poster said. “And we don’t feel we have as quality a facility as a lot of other schools. Our board members who have taken their sons and daughters on college trips would say those are things that really are noticed when you are visiting a campus.

“If we can make a new structure include all the things that would be important to students and to student-athletes, it is certainly going to improve our recruiting.”

See an SAUtv video of student reaction to health and wellness facilities at sau.edu/scene.

Through 41 years of teaching at St. Ambrose, Barb Walker, PhD, has seen her share of growth and expansion.

A college became a university. A campus practically doubled in size, and student enrollment grew with it. A curriculum founded upon the liberal arts was broadened to include one of the most extensive and respected ranges of health science programs in the Midwest.

Yet, even Walker cannot help but marvel at the rapid growth of one such health science-related program—the Kinesiology Department chaired by the longtime educator herself.

“The growth we’ve experienced in the past few years has truly been incredible—going from 50 students four years ago to nearly 400 today,” she said. “Things just keep moving on up for us.”

Kinesiology in Motion > > > > > > > > > Creatively adapting space and programs has allowed health science programs to flourish

by Ted Stephens III ’01, ’04 17

renewed emphasis on physical fitness—from First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign to television shows like The Biggest Loser.

“But I also think it has to do with the fact that kids have been involved in athletics throughout their lives,” Walker said. “And even though some of their athletic careers may end after high school, their ambitions to help themselves and others lead a healthy life do not.”

Early and intense athletic specialization also is leading to injuries at a younger age. As a result, children are being exposed to the type of care that a professional athlete might get from a physical therapist. “They expeIt only makes sense that the Kinesiology Department

rience firsthand what physical therapy can do, and they

is moving forward. Kinesiology, after all, is the study of

think, ‘I want to do that,’” said Michael Puthoff, PT, PhD,

human motion—or human “kinetics.”

director of the Doctor of Physical Therapy program.

“Kinesiology isn’t just about physical activity or how

Sandra Cassady, PhD, dean of the College of Health

we move, but about the impact the way we move has

and Human Services, said the growing interest also

on our lives,” Walker said. “Many students aren’t exactly

results from an awareness young adults gain by watch-

clear what kinesiology is, but they are resolute in their

ing their parents and grandparents get older—real life

desires to make an impact on the lives of others and

experiences and challenges that continue to reinforce

feel like they can do that through a career in the health

the importance and need to live a healthy life.

sciences.”

This year, St. Ambrose will welcome some 60 new students who have declared interest in one of the four

Then, too, a number of students simply want to help people.

“Much satisfaction can come from helping others

majors within the Kinesiology Department—physical

obtain optimum health and fitness,” Cassady said. “This,

education, sports management, human performance

coupled with our strong service commitment across

and fitness, and exercise science. Walker said the latter

the university, is a good match for many of our new

two are especially popular with incoming students.

students.”

Many new students will have hopes of earning a coveted spot in SAU’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program,

Adapt: The Ambrose Way

which continues to be recognized as a top program in

Growth of the health science programs has forced St.

the country. This year, more than 500 students applied

Ambrose to adapt and expand.

for one of 36 seats in the DPT program. Other under-

“As long as I can remember, we have been creatively

graduate kinesiology students will go on to careers

using the facilities available to us, whether that is turn-

in physical fitness, coaching or training, among many

ing a racquetball court in the PE Center into a dance stu-

others.

dio, or a classroom in Hayes Hall into a fully functioning

Meanwhile, undergraduate enrollment in other

kinesiology lab,” Walker said. “We make it work. We do

health-related fields of study, such as nursing, biology

whatever it takes to make things good for our students.

and chemistry, as well as the number of graduate

It’s the Ambrose way.”

school applicants for physical therapy and occupational

That includes opening the three-year-old Center for

therapy, have noticeably spiked in the past four years.

Health Sciences Education at Genesis in Davenport. It is

It is growth that could be attributed to America’s

home to the Doctor of Physical Therapy program, as well as the Master of Occupational Therapy and undergraduate nursing program, and it offers more laboratory space and access to the technology that students will use after they graduate. The proximity to the Genesis Medical

18

“Much satisfaction can come from helping others obtain optimum health and fitness”

Center-West Campus facility, as well as to the St. Am-

build on core strengths that are common denominators

brose Children’s Campus across the street, also means

across the SAU health sciences curricula—outstanding

that students have opportunities to learn in real-world

faculty members working together in innovative and

settings.

ever-adaptive ways.

This summer, a 13,000-square foot addition is under-

“Time and time again we survey the applicants to our

way at the Center for Health Sciences Education, mak-

DPT program, and what continues to be reinforced is

ing room for the Master of Physician Assistant Studies

that the reason they want to get into our programs is

program that plans to seat its first class next fall.

the faculty,” said Puthoff. “They see and hear, or have

Meanwhile, Cassady and others hope the expanding

experienced firsthand, how our faculty members are

kinesiology program soon will find a home in the form of

responsive to student needs, and are experts in this

a new health and wellness center on the main campus.

field. They understand how current they are in health

“Expanding space for recreation will not only serve our health science programs, but will help us in furthering the mission of the university,” said the dean. “The integration between what we teach in the classroom and what we offer our students outside of it must always go

and wellness practices of today.

“Ultimately, that’s why they come here.”

Read more about the Kinesiology Department and College of Health and Human Services at sau.edu/scene.

hand-in-hand.”

A new facility would help the Kinesiology Department 19

major {impact} SAU strengthens local economy, lifts QC people

by Steven Lillybeck

At the heart of St. Ambrose University beats an economic powerhouse. And the beat of that heart is felt throughout the Quad Cities.

Consider the numbers: According to an independent study conducted by the Strategic Economics Group, Des Moines, Iowa, St. Ambrose accounted for $188 million in business spending and $73 million in personal income for the Quad City area in 2012. Campus construction alone created 118 jobs and $5.8 million in personal income.

Consider this impact: In 2008, in the face of a worldwide recession, St. Ambrose built the $10 million Center for Health Sciences Education at Genesis in Davenport, providing jobs and incomes for dozens of workers and families who might otherwise have been without.

Not only is St. Ambrose a major economic force, the university adds more—much more—to the local community. Many St. Ambrose alumni choose to stay in the Quad City area, supplying local businesses, manufacturers and health care providers a steady stream of educated, skilled and motivated young people ready and willing to go to work.

Thousands of SAU alumni work, pay taxes, raise families, buy food and contribute significantly to the well being of the Quad Cities. They are a living, breathing asset in every sense of the word.

Behind the numbers are faces; real people working real jobs and spending real money; sharing the benefits of their St. Ambrose education with the community in which they live.

20

Builds Opportunity Here, in their own words, is testimony to the economic vigor of St. Ambrose University and its impact on the people who live, work, play and learn in the Quad Cities.

Creates Jobs In 2012, St. Ambrose created 1,913 Quad City area jobs.

Mike Poster St. Ambrose Vice President for Finance “The figure that really stood out to me is the 1,900-plus jobs generated by the university. The fact that another 1,300 jobs were created beyond our 600 employees is a very significant number when it comes to economic activity.

The money generated from those jobs continues to ripple through the economy.

“The other thing I believe deserves attention is what the university did during the recession. We did not lay anyone off; we powered right through the recession. We continued to build.”

$90 million was spent on construction in the past decade.

Steve Tobin Jobsite Superintendent, Estes Construction “The health sciences building was a very important job for us as the recession hit, and it was important for the community. It kept us, and a lot of sub-contractors, busy during a very slow time. It was easily one of biggest projects during a time when there were not a whole lot of projects around—big or small.

“Beyond that, the health sciences building gives the community something special. It meets the needs of the community for nurses, physical therapists and other health-care professionals.

“St. Ambrose is a very important customer for Estes, and they are a pleasure to work with. We’ve done a lot of projects for them over the years and they make us feel like we are part of the family.”

21

Employs Quad Citians Attracts Visitors Nearly 82,000 visitors per year attend St. Ambrose events.

Dan Huber President/Co-Owner, Frontier Hospitality Group “The amount of business we do with and because of St. Ambrose is significant. We started partnering with St. Ambrose a little more than a year ago when the Best Western Plus SteepleGate Inn in Davenport was named their preferred hotel provider. It has been an incredibly positive business relationship. We are fortunate to host their guests when they are visiting the university.

“We take our relationship with St. Ambrose very seriously. It’s more than just transacting business. We feel that it’s imperative that we are invested in the St. Ambrose mission and reflect the core values of St. Ambrose in terms of how we take care of their guests.

“St. Ambrose is one of the more vital and important institutions in our community. We will do everything we can to support their growth and overall success. We live here, we have a business here, and our employees reside here. We know what St. Ambrose means to Davenport and the Quad City community as a whole.”

22

St. Ambrose’s $63 million in payroll, benefits and expenses, generated another $53 million of indirect economic activity in 2012.

John Byrne, PhD St. Ambrose Professor of Marketing “I’ve always felt that St. Ambrose is an important part of the community, but when I saw the numbers from the study I was blown away. I was thrilled.

It confirmed the thoughts I had long held about the impact of the university on the community.

“And the impact is more than just dollars. Look around the Quad City community and you will find people everywhere who are St. Ambrose grads, occupying positions of leadership.”

Creates tax revenue SAU operations resulted in $356,000 in 2012 sales taxes and $2.8 million in property taxes.

Supports local economy Each student spends an average of $5,800 yearly outside the university.

Randi Rockwell St. Ambrose Coordinator of Young Alumni and Philanthropy “I knew from a young age that I wanted to attend college at St. Ambrose, but I never anticipated everything I would get from coming here. This is a special place and it’s something you carry with you your entire life.

“My husband and I recently purchased a new home, and, fortunately, we have a financial cushion.

We don’t have to live paycheck to paycheck. We can provide for our daughter, and we just bought a new swing set for her.

“St. Ambrose is more than just a degree.

St. Ambrose taught me to think in a different way and because of that, I can contribute to my job in a completely new way.”

Luke Staudt Junior Management and Marketing major “As a student, I don’t have a lot of disposable income, but on the weekend my friends and I like to branch out, get off campus and visit local restaurants. We also like to attend local sporting events, like the Mallards and River Bandits. I don’t track my spending as well as I should, but typically I spend between $10 to $15 when I go out.

“In addition to my studies, I also work in the Admissions Office as a campus tour guide and as a tutor in the Student Success Center.

“I knew the moment I stepped on the St. Ambrose campus that this was the place where I wanted to go to school. St. Ambrose is an amazing place. I knew instantly I would be able to learn and grow and be cared for during my four years in school.”

Supports business Students annually spend $31 million beyond campus borders.

Read more about SAU’s economic impact at sau.edu/scene.

Dan Bush Owner of two Jimmy John’s franchises, one a block from campus “St. Ambrose is a very important to us. When their students go on break, we see a sales drop of 10–15 percent, and we definitely plan our scheduling around that. They are absolutely a big part of our business. At the beginning of the semester, on move-in day, and at the end of the semester, on move-out day, we see a big boost in business.

“But not only are they great as customers, they also provide us with an important part of our employee base. St. Ambrose students make great employees. We are very happy with St. Ambrose students who work for us. They are easily some of our best employees.”

23

Tim Dempsey crosses disciplines to train bodies, heal hearts

Tim Dempsey ’85 specializes in combinations. He sees overlaps that others might miss.

Such crossovers have been part of Dempsey’s life since he started as a college student at the former Marycrest College yet competed for the St. Ambrose club track team.

Lured by a work-study opportunity as an assistant football trainer, Dempsey decided to transfer to St. Ambrose just before the 1983 school year.

Within three days, he’d moved into the dorms and begun work with the football team. “I got so much responsibility with athletic training at St. Ambrose,” he said.

He graduated with a degree in sociology, but has made personal training his vocation. He said the mix fits well.

“You learn how to listen to people, deal with people from all walks of life,” said Dempsey, who worked in Mexico for several years.

Now at Riekes Center for Human Enhancement in Menlo Park, Calif., he brings his sociology-sports blend to a workplace that represents his “dream situation.”

by Dustin Renwick ’10 24

Dempsey has found a niche where weaving two concepts becomes an everyday adventure. “We’re moving personal training into the medical profession,” he said.

In the past few years, Dempsey has started working with wheelchair athletes—Paralympians, and wounded war veterans from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan who have experienced Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or effects of traumatic brain injuries (TBI).

He has explored a cross-pattern training regimen that has gained notoriety in the sports and medical disciplines. The technique forces athletes to complete exercises by working across their bodies and can activate muscles that might be atrophying in wheelchair athletes.

He recently presented the early results of his techniques at the US Olympic Training Center in Colorado, and is working with researchers at Stanford University to explore how to rigorously test the benefits of cross-pattern workouts.

Sharing a trait with wounded warriors who have hidden scars helps him to help them heal, he said.

During his senior year at St. Ambrose, Dempsey struggled with severe depression. He credited the concerned and attentive faculty and the intimacy

alumniPROFILE

’’

“We’re moving personal training into the medical profession.

that comes with attending a small school for helping him overcome it. Similar to the athletes with whom Dempsey now works, he also found healing in sports.

He can recall one day when a runner, someone from town, joined the mid-distance crew on a training run.

The man didn’t stay long.

“He says, ‘Is this a group therapy session or are you the St. Ambrose track team?’” Dempsey remembered.

“When you weren’t pushing the pace, you had in-depth conversations with those guys. We were very close. The physical exercise and the conversations, that was my only outlet.”

Dempsey now serves as a resource for people who might need such an outlet, even if they only think of him as their strength and conditioning coach. What his athletes get is someone who knows not only the toughness needed for sports, but also the fortitude necessary to keep an open mind for new ways to train.

Crossing those two will keep anyone busy.

25

Sting Breaks

Ambrosian Alumni Enjoy Vacationing Together above: “The Girls of Third Floor South Hall” at right: “The Girls from 2020 Gaines”

26

alumniNEWS

by Jane Kettering

Sunning on a Florida beach in March of 2012, Lori Foley ’80 and three fellow members of the “Girls of Third Floor South Hall” at first stood out as a curiosity amid the clusters of college students reveling in spring break.

Before long, they were an inspiration.

“It was the most amazing trip,” Foley said. “At first, we felt a bit odd in and amongst the spring-breaking college students. In the end, they gravitated toward us, fascinated that we were former college friends still spending time together.”

Foley and her fellow, fun-loving Class of ’80 Ambrosians—Cheryl (Mason) Lunardi, Terri (Reid) Zumbahlen and Sandy (Larson) Bahe—dubbed the inaugural vacation “Sting Break,” and immediately planned another trip for 2013.

In October, Dolly Grupalo ‘59 and fellow nursing grads will reunite in the Napa Valley region of California. The 23 alumnae plus spouses will hail from 11 states and stay within walking distance of each other in the small town of Yountville, where Grupalo lives.

The itinerary includes a ride on the Napa Valley Wine Train, a private bus trip to a 12th-century-style castle winery, and a Western barbeque at Grupalo’s home.

“We’ve always been in contact with each other,” said Grupalo. “It’s the camaraderie, the joy of being together.

To celebrate where we’ve been; to be who we are. There are always a lot of laughs—and some tears too.”

This is not their first trip. “There was the Florida cruise; Arizona in 2007; the 50-year reunion at St. Ambrose in 2009; and San Antonio, Texas, in 2011,” Grupalo recalled.

It’s the camaraderie, the joy of being together.

To celebrate where we’ve been; to be who we are.

Those trips were the result of an enduring relationship the classmates established at St. Ambrose.

“We lived together, nursed each other, shared heartbreaks,” said Foley, whose group also has gathered at one another’s homes for girls weekends several times a year since 1980. “It’s a bond like no other friendship I’ve ever known.”

Many St. Ambrose alumni feel the same way and have made certain not to let miles and years keep them apart.

Chad Driscoll ’08 is part of a group that has traveled to be together each summer, starting with back-to-back summers highlighted by classmate’s weddings. “Then the third summer came and we said, ‘Oh, no one is getting married this summer,’” Driscoll recalled. “But we really enjoyed our time together, so we decided not to wait for another wedding.”

Meeting mid-point in Des Moines, Iowa, the past several years, the group has gathered at the state fair, played disc- and mini-golf, shared meals, and simply enjoyed each other’s company.

A group of more recent graduates who have scattered across the country also have kept a busy, common travel log, said Jessica (Leonard) Holberton ’02.

The “Girls from 2020 Gaines” (an address they all shared while at St. Ambrose) have come together at the customary weddings, and bridal and baby showers. But for various members of the group, there also were treks to SeaWorld in Florida, New York City, Las Vegas, and, three years ago, a nostalgic trip “home” to St. Ambrose, where all six were present for a new picture, sitting on the stoop of 2020 Gaines once again.

What transforms classmates into travel mates?

“It’s about deep friendship,” Foley said. “There’s something about that Ambrose bond. The connection, like none I’ve ever known. We take care of each other and say, ‘Keep me in your prayers.’ Whatever happened those magical four years have stayed with us our entire life.”

Read more about alumni vacation trips and view a photo album at sau.edu/scene.

27

HOMECOMING 2013

alumniNEWS

Build Your Own Reunion While classes with a few more years between themselves and their St. Ambrose experience made use of more formal settings two floors above them this past October, the Class of ’02 was perfectly content to celebrate its 10th reunion in the former game room on the lower level of the Rogalski Center.

They called it “The Kid’s Table.” And loved every minute,

especially when members of those older classes crashed their party as the night rolled on.

“We were glad it was open and something people felt

comfortable coming to as Ambrosians,” said Matt Ehlman, who helped plan the party over the span of two months along with four fellow ’02 classmates.

Paul Thompson, the former senior class president, led a

weekly teleconference with Ehlman, Dorothy (Anello) Lange, Kylene Canham and Julie Kronlage. As members of the class, they assumed ownership of their reunion in a manner SAU Alumni Director Anne Gannaway applauds.

Gannaway hopes “Reunion Volunteers” can help the Classes

of ’63, ’73, ’88, ’03 and ’08 put together similarly self-constructed reunions for this year’s Sept. 27–29 Homecoming celebration. “We are trying to help it be more alum-to-alum interaction, a personal connection that is different from being invited by a staffer,” she said.

One thing planners of the ’02 reunion set their sites upon early

was inviting faculty members and administrators who had been a part of their SAU experience. That proved to be a big draw for the turnout of between 50 and 60 class members.

Joined by additional class members as the planning continued, the reunion committee also chose the music, collected donations for an open bar, and contacted other class members to encourage attendance. At the reunion, class members pledged to raise an additional $75,000 by 2017, matching what the group had donated to the university since graduation.

Thompson said group members invested perhaps an hour each week over the course of two months to make the party their own.

“I think it is a good template going forward for any class,” he said.

It is indeed an “own your reunion” approach that Gannaway hopes will spread. And it just might. David Burke ’73 is among the volunteers who began working this past spring to make their September reunions a success.

Read more about Homecoming 2013 at sau.edu/scene.

28

Theatre Alum Acts to Save Junior Program A proud graduate of the St. Ambrose University theatre program and holder of a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Connecticut, Daniel DP Sheridan ’05 is equally proud of the program that gave him his first taste of the spotlight.

He also is fiercely protective of that Davenport Junior Theater program, which is why he returned to his hometown after obtaining his MFA in 2008.

“The program had been deteriorating and was on the verge of being cancelled,” said Sheridan, who stepped in as the program’s coordinator and brought it back to life. “A world without Davenport Junior Theater did not compute. It was too important to let go.”

That’s not a concern any longer.

Under Sheridan’s direction, the 61-year-old Davenport program, the second-oldest junior theater program in the United States, has grown from 350 enrolled students when he arrived to 1,500 and counting.

“I hired more staff and we took everything back to the basics,” Sheridan said. “Theater classes and main stage performances.

We eliminated some programming. We wanted to grow.”

His staff includes close to 10 St. Ambrose graduates or current students, and a few of his junior actors have gone on to pursue degrees at SAU. Sheridan likes to call that “a circular progression,” and he credits theater professor and department chair Cory Johnson, PhD, for teaching him true Ambrosian lessons he works to pay forward.

“We are always asking ‘what are we doing for the kids now and what aren’t we doing that we could be?’” Sheridan said.

“We want it to keep growing and changing with the needs of the kids.”

A recent addition to the program, Spectrum Theater, will aim to help children with autism through their participation in theater. “I have learned to never count a student out,” Sheridan said. “Seeing students make discoveries in themselves or in the play… seeing that light go on. That’s the most rewarding part.”

alumniNEWS

The Gift of Giving Mac’s Legacy To hear John Callas talk about Richard At the dedication of the St. Ambrose McCarthy ’46 is to hear a son tell stories Health Sciences Education Center at Genesis about his father. Because to Callas, that is three years ago, St. Ambrose honored exactly what McCarthy was. A father. A McCarthy’s contributions to the Quad City confidant. A friend. community by naming the new building’s “When Tom Brokaw talks about the student commons area in his honor.

Greatest Generation, he’s talking about In August, his legacy at St. Ambrose will people like Dick McCarthy,” Callas will be further celebrated when West Hall is McCarthy Hall Dedication tell you. “He grew up during the Great renamed McCarthy Hall.

Wednesday, Aug. 14 at 4 p.m.

Depression—which meant he grew up “He probably would have hated that his Open to the public hungry. For food, yes. But really, hungry for name was on a building,” Callas said, “but Reception and tours following life. It is the way he lived every single day.” we hope the students who pass through its SAU campus, Gaines at Lombard Though he never married and had no doors will understand that success in life has children of his own, McCarthy, who passed everything to do with a genuine connection away in 2008 at age 85, considered Callas his son. He hired Callas with people, loyalty, honor, and putting your head down to do the right out of law school and mentored him into the “attorney I am work. That’s who Dick was.” today,” Callas said.

Ed Littig, PhD, former vice president for advancement at St. Ambrose, described McCarthy as a strong, intelligent man, a “Dick was like a rabbit. He was in the office by 6 o’clock every “quiet force” with a variety of interests who never wanted to be morning, was already full throttle by 7, and always had some the center of attention. “But that quiet force was a force to be commentary about the previous evening’s Larry King Show the reckoned with,” Littig said. minute I walked in the door,” remembered Callas. “His clients McCarthy practiced law in Rock Island County for more than knew that if they wanted to see Dick, it was best to drop by first 60 years, first as assistant state’s attorney and assistant attorney thing in the morning because by 8 he would have three different general. He was a founding member of McCarthy, Callas and clients in three different offices.”

Feeney, where he worked until his death.

Illinois Supreme Court Judge Thomas Kilbride, who credited McCarthy’s financial gifts to St. Ambrose—in excess of $2 McCarthy with helping him rise to his current rank, called the million—came as legacy gifts, which he planned for in his trust. early morning whirlwind The McCarthy Tornado.

In recent years, gifts from will and estates have composed more “It was amazing what he could juggle—and do so with accuracy than 20 percent of the philanthropic support received by SAU, and attention and integrity,” Kilbride said. “Even when he had said Sally Crino, assistant vice president for advancement. those three different clients in three different offices, you had his “Legacy gifts allow the donor to shape how they want to leave full attention. To this day, I’ve never seen anything like it.” a mark on a community—it can be for an academic program A veteran of World War II, McCarthy earned a Purple Heart or scholarship or for a building,” Crino said “In Dick’s case, he and four Bronze Stars—honors most of his friends didn’t know was interested in helping the university grow while also offering about until shortly before his passing. He participated in the financial assistance to veterans from Rock Island interested in invasion of Europe at Utah Beach and fought at the Battle of the attending St. Ambrose.”

Bulge.

After the war, he enrolled at the DePaul University School of Read more about McCarthy Hall and Planned Giving at sau.edu/scene.

Law, where he sold peanut butter and jelly sandwiches during lunch to pay for school.

29

classNOTES

50

70

Thomas McGinn ’51 was inducted

Thomas Abel ’75 is a pastor at the

into the Newman Central Catholic

Santo Nino Catholic Church in El

High School Hall of Fame in his

Cajon, Calif.

The Fifties

native Sterling, Ill. He worked 36 years for GE before founding the Thomas A. McGinn and Associates human resources consulting firm.

He taught business and management courses at the University of Virginia and Piedmont Community

The Seventies

Lorie (King) Rupp ’87 is the chief

Logan College of Chiropractic/

accounting officer for First Citizens

University Programs, Chesterfield,

Bank, based in Raleigh, NC.

Mo., has named Clay McDonald ’97

Doug Tripp ’88 is the senior

MBA as the college’s president.

director of safety and security for

Mary (Keith) Combs ’98 graduated

Orange County Public Schools in

with a Master of Educational Policy

In May, Ray Shovlain ’79, ’82 MBA

Orlando, Fla. Tripp is responsible

and Organizational Leadership de-

was inducted into the Quad City

for all health, fire safety, life safety,

gree from the University of Illinois

Sports Hall of Fame.

police safety and security services

in May.

80

for the 10th largest public school

The Eighties

system in the nation.

Christina (Taylor) Henzen ’98 is the director of project of manage-

Steve Collins ’89 is the senior busi-

ment for Triumph Consulting in

Patrick Peters ’81 is the chief

ness relationship manager for Wells

Bettendorf, Iowa.

Harassed—100 Women Describe

executive officer of the Guthrie

Fargo in the Quad Cities.

Inappropriate Behavior in the Work-

County Hospital in Guthrie Center,

place. He now is retired in Arizona.

Iowa. Peters was previously the

Vincent O’Neill ’58 was named the

president and CEO of Mount

90

College and co-authored a book,

2013 Irish Person of the Year by the

Graham Regional Medical Center in

The Nineties

Carolyn Ehlert Fuller ’90 MBA,

Dennis McDaniel ’98 has been named to the Des Moines Business Record’s 2013 Top Forty Under 40, an award given to young professionals in the Des Moines area who

Fr. Abram J. Ryan Division of the

Stafford, Ariz.

Ancient Order of the Hibernians,

Scott Johnson ’82 works for Fleet

Louisville, Ky. O’Neill also served as

to the Western Illinois University

Advantage in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.,

Board of Trustees.

Windsor Heights, Iowa.

the grand marshal for the St. Pat-

as vice president business develop-

rick’s Day parade. O’Neill is a certi-

ment.

Terry Seligman ’91 MBA was

Jarod Powell ’98, Bettendorf, Iowa,

fied insurance counselor and senior

Milan, Ill., has been reappointed

recognized by Continental Who’s

are recognized as leaders in their field. McDaniel is the police chief in

chief operating officer of Powell Financial Group, was given the

Advanced Business Systems, Inc.,

Who as a Pinnacle Professional in

Davenport, has hired Richard Kohl

the field of health care. Seligman is

’82 as a sales specialist.

the president and CEO of Navitus

Michael Smith ’82 is Centrue

Health Solutions, LLC, Monona,

Bank’s new vice president/regional

Wis.

chapter annual awards banquet.

business development officer in

Jeff Nelson ’93 has been promoted

In February, Kathryn Kell ’99

Princeton, Ill.

to sergeant in the Bettendorf

spending time with his grandchil-

Tina Schindler ’85, Bettendorf,

(Iowa) Police Department. Nelson

dren, traveling, volunteering and

Iowa, is manager of employee

is assigned as the crime prevention

practicing his hobbies of photog-

services in the human resources

officer in the field services division.

dental practice and teaches and

raphy and woodcarving. He and

department at Modern Woodmen

Reagan (Natrop) Rossi ’94 has

his wife, Babbette, celebrated their

of America.

been promoted to assistant athletic

World Dental Association and the

50th wedding anniversary in 2009.

Michael Avgenackis ’86 MBA is the

director for the College of Idaho,

senior vice president at Triumph

where she also serves as the head

Consulting in Bettendorf, Iowa.

women’s basketball coach. Rossi

Avgenackis will oversee all staffing,

resides in Caldwell, Idaho, with

compensation and outplacement

her husband, Rudy, and their twin

client services.

daughters, Darby and Maggie.

account executive for Neace Lukens insurance agency. O’Neill and his wife, Jane, live in St. Matthews, Ky. Lawrence Smith ’58 retired from the Upjohn Co., Portage, Mich., as a business communications manager in 1998. In retirement, Smith is

30

Member of the Year award at the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors Quad Cities

MBHA was inducted in the Davenport West High School Hall of Honor. Kell has a private holds leadership positions in the Women in Dentistry Division of the International Federation of Dental Education Collaboration.

classNOTES

Retired Ambrosians Stay Connected

00

The Zeros

Yvonne Savala ’05, Moline, was appointed to the Western Illinois University Board of Trustees. Savala

Vicki (Van Herzeele) Carrington

is the operations director at the

’00, ’04 MBA received a Master

Midwest Intellectual Property

of Science in Contract Manage-

Management Institute.

ment from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif. In 2012, she received certification as a federal contracts manager from the

Matt Stinocher ’06 has been hired as a police officer for the city of Bettendorf, Iowa.

National Contract Management As-

Matt MacCrindle ’07 is a math

sociation. Carrington is employed

teacher at Crystal Lake (Ill.) Central

at the Rock Island Arsenal as a

High School, where he also serves

contracting officer.

as the head sophomore football

Amy (Hoover) Jones ’02 has been named the 2013 Young Professional

coach and an assistant varsity track coach.

of the Year by The Network,

Emily Balestri ’08 DPT has earned

a program of the Quad Cities

certification in ASTYM through Per-

Chamber of Commerce.

formance Dynamics Inc. With this

Central State Bank of Muscatine, Iowa, has promoted Trista (Calvert) Sotelo ’02 to assistant vice president. She has been with Central State Bank since 2003.

Lori Sundberg ’03 DBA was recognized by Knox College, Galesburg, Ill., with an Alumni Achievement Award at the college’s 2013 Founder’s Day Convocation in February. Sundberg is president of Carl Sandburg College, Galesburg.

Michael Weipert ’03 has joined Northwest Bank and Trust Company as a commercial lending expert.

Sr. Mary Anthony (Jennifer) Worrell ’04 professed first vows toward becoming a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Christ the Divine Teacher at St. Alphonsus Church in Davenport in Aug. 2012.

certification, Balestri will focus on identifying and treating abnormal soft tissue conditions. She is an employee at St. Margaret’s Center for Physical Rehab in Spring Valley, Ill. Emily Olson ’08 graduated from the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Des Moines University in May. Olson will begin a residency in psychiatry in July and will complete a geriatric psychiatry fellowship.

Erica (Pence) Bell ’09 is a case manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Knox County (Ill.). She recruits and enrolls volunteers for the program.

Nicole Lindstrom ’09 works as a public services librarian for the Newton (Iowa) Public Library. Lindstrom received a Master of Library Sciences degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

For many graduates, former professors such as Jim Van Speybroeck ’60, PhD, are the most enduring link to their collegiate past.

Van Speybroeck, a professor emeritus of business, is among a growing group of retired faculty and staff members who are eager to maintain their own links to St. Ambrose.

Always Ambrosians, a year-old organization consisting of 35 SAU retirees, plans to more actively work to keep the school’s history alive in the 2013–14 academic year.

Working with Margaret Babbitt from the Advancement and Alumni Relations office, Always Ambrosians will begin enlisting the memories of former campus icons such as Michael Kennedy ’60, theatre professor emeritus, Ed Henkhaus ’64, SAU’s longtime vice president for finance, and Richard Geiger, a professor emeritus of history. The plan is to capture in detail the history of growth and change that occurred while those retirees were here—and, in many cases, occurred because they were here.

“We will videotape people who have been here so many years and ask ‘What about the St. Ambrose story?’” said Van Speybroeck, who taught at St. Ambrose from 1963 until his retirement in 2011. “There are a lot of people who have done innovative things on this campus. We want to find those people and document their history.”

For the retirees, Always Ambrosians provides an opportunity to maintain a connection that always was about much more than work. “It’s different than retiring from the typical 9 to 5 job,” Van Speybroeck said. “There is such a personal connection.”

Because that connection leads back to former students, Van Speybroeck said Always Ambrosian members will plan to be present at more alumni events this coming year. According to Sister Joan Lescinski, CSJ, PhD, the president of St. Ambrose, that is among many ways this group can serve the university.

“Our retired staff and faculty are a treasured part of St. Ambrose University,” Sr. Lescinski said. “They truly are and always will be Ambrosians.”

31

classNOTES

MBA-Packing Intern Was On the Ball Interning after you have obtained your Master of Business Administration degree isn’t the normal order of things.

Of course, 2007 and 2008 were not the best years to be entering the job market, no matter your credentials. And, besides, the passion Alyse LaHue ’04, ’07 MBA has for the sport of soccer is just a little out of the ordinary as well.

Still, LaHue said her offer to intern for the start-up Chicago Red Stars women’s pro soccer team in the fall of 2007 caught even the Red Stars owner and general manager off guard.

“The first thing they asked was ‘Why,’” she said. “I was very honest with them. I said I wasn’t getting called back for any interviews and I needed to start somewhere. I thought this would an interesting thing to do.

“So there I was, an MBA grad interning for a start-up sports league. I guess I made it work out.”

It would seem so. Six years later, at the age of 31, LaHue is the general manager of the Red Stars, a team whose roster includes Olympians from Mexico, Canada and last summer’s gold medal-winning US team.

She still is not making the kind of money she might command in the corporate world, but LaHue is fairly certain she is having more fun.

“I played soccer at St. Ambrose, so it has always been a passion,” said LaHue, who also served as a graduate assistant coach for the Queen Bees while pursuing her MBA degree. “I just feel there is a need for me to be working where I am, and trying to make this women’s pro soccer thing work.”

That’s no small challenge. The Red Stars this spring were back in a new league, the National Women’s Soccer League, after seeing two other leagues fold since 2007.

LaHue believes the new league’s partnership with the three North American Olympic programs gives it a fighting chance.

She also said watching young girls with a love for soccer interact with their Olympian idols steels her resolve.

“It makes all this worthwhile,” said the former intern. “I am exactly where I want to be right now.”

32

2012 from the University of Iowa

■

College of Law and has joined the

Heather Dewey ’97 and Nicholas

law firm of Lane & Waterman LLP,

Schmidt, Peterstown, Ill.

Kelsey Marquard ’09 received a Juris Doctorate with distinction in

Davenport, as an associate.

10

The Teens

Ven. Somnieng Houern ’10 received a Master of Public Administration degree from the Kennedy

Marriages

Andrew Stamer ’01 and Marie Potter, Davenport Joel Porch ’02 MBHA and Casandra Wagner, Hartland, Ill. Ryan Holtmann ’04 and Lynn Truitt, Columbus, Ohio

School of Government at Harvard

Dan Tomlin ’05, ’10 MBA and Mar-

University in May.

geruite Day, Moline, Ill.

The Universal Therapy Group’s

Bradley Johnson ’05 and Kassondra

West Burlington clinic announced

Keller, Keosauqua, Iowa

Karla Steffensmeier ’10, ’11 DPT

Kendall (Haskins) Leonard ’06, ’07

has joined the staff as a physical therapist.

Air Force Airman Alex Stevenson ’10 has graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas.

Andrew Benson ’11 is a theatre artist at the St. Croix Festival Theatre in Saint Croix Falls, Wis. Kewanee Hospital announced the addition of Breanne Christiansen

MOT and Jeffrey Leonard, Visalia, Calif.

Nicholas Edwards ’09 and Barbara Fleming-Wiegand ’11, Davenport Angie Guy ’10 DPT and Sean Stender, Davenport Tamara Killion ’10 and Emmanuel Rivera ’10, Geneseo, Ill. Taylor Bryant ’11 and Allyson Holliday ’11, Davenport

’11, ’12 DPT to the Rehabilitation

Courtney Cosley ’12 and Diego

Services and Sports Medicine staff.

Cevallos, Rockford, Ill.

Christiansen will work with the rehab team and area physicians to provide preventative and rehabilitative services.

Mary Therese Krueger ’11, ’12 DPT is a physical therapist at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Ill.

■

Births

Krista (Matug) Yock ’99 and her husband, Patrick, welcomed daughter Elizabeth Mary to their family on March 23, 2013. Elizabeth was welcomed home by siblings Patrick and William.

Lizzie (Irmen) Sander ’00 and her husband, Ryan, celebrated the

classNOTES

birth of son Owen on April 19, 2012.

Burton Malone ’50, Milwaukee,

Barbara (Rogers) Bronemann ’64,

Jan (Kuehl) Robinson ’84, Daven-

Owen is younger brother to Sidney

Wis., Sept. 12, 2003

Tucson, Ariz., Aug. 6, 2012

port, May 8, 2013

James “Jim” McGrath ’50, Phoenix,

Robert “Bob Bob” Granack ’65,

Paul Becker ’85, Davenport, April

March 7, 2013

Charlotte, N.C., Feb. 14, 2013

27, 2013

Rev. M. Joseph Rogers ’50, Daven-

Gary Hall ’65, Rock Falls, Ill., April

Mark Polaschek ’86, Davenport,

port, March 3, 2013

22, 2013

March 25, 2013

was welcomed home by siblings

Orrin R.J. Stribley Jr. ’50, Colorado

Joseph Krippel Jr., ’65, Montgom-

Caroline Toohey ’94, Davenport,

Kayla and Brendan.

Springs, Colo., Aug. 24, 2008

ery, Texas, April 22, 2013

March 28, 2013

Douglas Neumann ’03, ’04 MAcc

Richard Ijams ’51, Clearwater, Fla.,

Frank Ortman ’65, Northville,

Derrek Drexler ’10, Dubuque, Iowa,

and Kristin (Kelchen) Neumann

Dec. 29, 2012

Mich., Jan. 2, 2010

March 23, 2009

’04 are the proud parents of Elliott

Robert Huyvaert ’52, West Palm

Gerald “Cowboy” Hageman ’66,

Sarah Garvey ’11, Chicago, May

Ambrose, who arrived on Jan. 25,

Beach, Fla., Oct. 27, 2011

Henry, Ill., April 17, 2013

13, 2013

Adolph Gebel ’53, Peachtree City,

John Schaffner ’66, Altoona, Iowa,

Ga., Aug. 7, 2008

March 1, 2013

Albert Roels ’53, Rock Island, Ill.,

James “Jim” Leu ’67, Iowa City,

Nov. 7, 2012

Iowa, Feb. 4, 2013

Lester Starner ’53, Liberty, Mo.,

Michael Leginski ’68, Wadsworth,

March 29, 2013

Ill., Jan. 24, 2013

F. Sullivan “Sully” Greaber ’54,

James “Jim” Moore ’68, ’91 MBA,

Sandy Springs, Ga., March 12, 2013

Scottsdale, Ariz., Jan. 29, 2013

Glen Hutcheson ’54 Academy,

Hon. Joseph Beatty ’70, Rock

Davenport, April 7, 2013

Island, Ill., April 14, 2013

Frank Day ’37, Rock Island, Ill, April

Eugene Smith ’54, Omaha, Neb.,

Curtis Carlson ’72, Punta Gorda,

16, 2013

Feb. 20, 2013

Fla., June 1, 2012

Carl Stahler Sr. ’42. , Davenport,

Rev. Robert Mann ’55, Sun City

Michael Murphy ’72, Chicago, Feb.

April 7, 2013

West, Ariz., March 19, 2013

15, 2013

Joseph Sbuttoni Sr. ’43, Nashville,

Frank Coulon III ’56, Covington,

William Roberts ’72, Naperville, Ill.,

Tenn., Jan. 8, 2013

Ga., Oct. 3, 2007

April 21, 2013

Terrence Lenaghan ’47, Rock

Leonard Malloy ’56, Pasadena,

Mark Kentner ’73, Mt. Pleasant,

Island, Ill., Feb. 14, 2013

Calif., March 3, 2013

Iowa, Feb. 9, 2013

Bartholomew Vogel Jr. ’47, Silvis,

Gerry Riemersma ’56, LaGrange

Patrick “Fred” Winne ’78, Peoria,

Ill., March 21, 2013

Park, Ill., April 23, 2010

Ill., Nov. 8, 2012

John Goodall ’48, Davenport,

John Zack Jr. ’58, Aurora, Colo.,

Kevin Smith ’79, Jacksonville, Fla.,

March 4, 2013

April 30, 2009

April 7, 2013

Elmer Mapes ’49, Bettendorf, Iowa,

Benjamin Beh ’62, Goleta, Calif.,

Paul Yellman ’79, Clinton, Iowa,

May 23, 2013

May 8, 2013

March 2, 2013

Thomas Hughes ’50, Rock Island,

Richard Marriott ’62, Elk Grove

Steve Lunn ’84, Chicago, April 25,

Ill., March 5, 2013

Village, Ill., May 21, 2013

2013

and Isaac.

Kristie (Rogers) Porter ’03, ’04 MOT and her husband, Michael, announced the birth of their son Gavin, born March 24, 2013. Gavin

2013. Elliott is little brother to Isaac.

Matt MacCrindle ’07 and his wife, Amy, are the proud parents of son Cooper, born on Feb. 10, 2012.

Sarah (Neece) Redman ’09 and her husband, Zachary ’09, celebrated the birth of son Elijah on Sept. 21, 2012.

■

Deaths

Staff Corinne Potter, Rock Island, Ill., March 23, 2013

Honorary Degree recipients Jane Folwell ’01 (Hon.), Davenport, May 6, 2013 Sr. Mary Virginia Smith ’87 (Hon.), Clinton, Iowa, March 10, 2013.

What’s New? Let us know what you’ve been up to! Drop us a note at Alumni Relations, St. Ambrose University, 518 W. Locust St., Davenport, Iowa 52803 or go online to share updates. Include your full name, class year and phone number or email where we can contact you to verify your information. online extra: tell us what’s new at sau.edu/Scene/keepintouch

33

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518 West Locust Street Davenport, Iowa 52803

Help us clean up our mailing list Do we need to update your contact information? Are you receiving a duplicate? Do you have a winter address to share? Do you wish to be added or removed from our mailing list? Contact us at: 800/SAU-ALUM alumni@sau.edu

HOMECOMING 2013

Rekindle your college memories Sept. 27–29 This year’s reunions will celebrate the Classes of 1963, 1973, 1988, 2003 and 2008.

Highlights include a Friday night lecture by acclaimed environmentalist Winona LaDuke, then Saturday morning’s Killer Bee run/ walk, followed by the Bumble Rumble, Taste of St. Ambrose and the annual Homecoming football battle.

Read more about the Homecoming 2013 schedule at sau.edu/scene.