C A M P U S
B E A T
St. Edward’s University announced a $1.5 million gift from the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation for business scholarships April 3 at a public celebration in the Ragsdale Center’s Mabee Ballroom. St. Edward’s University is the first private institution to be funded by the Mitte Foundation. The gift, which is among the largest in the university’s history, will provide fifteen $5,000 scholarships a year for the next 20 years. Twelve scholarships will go to undergraduate business students, and three will go to graduate business students. Scott Mitte, Mitte Foundation executive director, as well as George Martin, St. Edward’s University president, were on hand to help celebrate the event, which was attended by approximately 100 faculty, staff, students and friends of the university. The Mitte Scholars at St. Edward’s University will enjoy interacting with other scholarship winners from Mitte-funded institutions like Ohio State University, Penn State
University, University of Arizona, Indiana University, Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at Austin. They will also enjoy becoming part of a prestigious group of business profession(left to right) Vice President of College of Professional and als beyond their col- Graduate Studies John Houghton, Business major Melonie Martinez, ’02, and President George Martin listen as Mitte lege years; by the year 2020, there will Foundation Executive Director Scott Mitte speaks in April. Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte established be more than 15,000 the Mitte Foundation in 1997 to encourage alumni of Mitte scholarship programs. students to accomplish great things in their Mitte scholars are selected based on personal, professional and community lives on their excellence in academics and community behalf of humanity. The Mitte Foundation envileadership. “They are the top students in the sions its scholars becoming involved in social nation, they are the torchbearers of excellence issues identified by the Mittes in order to creand they will be our future Nobel Prize winate solutions to the problems that plague ners, members of Congress, Pulitzer Prize humanity. winners and ambassadors of peace throughout the world,” said Mitte.
BRET BROOKSHIRE
‘THE MEDEA STORIES’ A GREAT SUCCESS
The Medea Stories highlighted the MMNT stage this spring.
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The St. Edward’s theater department garnered a great deal of acclaim this spring for its production of The Medea Stories, an experimental adaptation of the Greek play Medea by Euripides. The last play of the season, The Medea Stories was the result of student collaboration with guest artist J. Ed Araiza, of Saratoga International Theatre Institute (SITI). In the beginning scene of The Medea Stories, Medea is tried in a modern-day courtroom for murdering her two children. The role of Medea was divided between Elizabeth Wakehouse, ’02, and Shannon Riley, ’02. Gina Houston, ’05, played the defense counsel who tries to convince the jury that there were reasons behind Medea’s crime. The prosecutor, played by Brent Werzner, ’03, portrays Medea as an angry, vengeful woman who has destroyed her only legacy by murdering her own children. By using the courtroom setting, the play attempted to show the audience that the issues of the ancient story are still relevant today. In addition to working with Araiza, students were able to collaborate with other professionals from SITI Company, including attending a master class held by the company’s founder, Anne Bogart. The Medea Stories ran April 10-21, and the play was so successful that SITI members may be returning this fall to help with another production. The cast received an Austin Critics Table Award for Best Ensemble Cast. The theater department has planned an entertaining lineup for the fall season to follow the success of The Medea Stories, including performances of All My Sons by Arthur Miller Sept. 18-Oct. 6, and Araiza’s C/O The Grove, a play based on Anton Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard, Nov. 6-24.
MARC SWENDNER, ’92
MITTE FOUNDATION DONATES $1.5 MILLION FOR SCHOLARSHIPS