Campus News

We are excited to share with you the Eric J Bartleson Alumni Scholarship. This scholarship enables you, our alumni, to give directly to a current Waldorf student in their junior or senior year who needs financial assistance to continue their Waldorf education.

The scholarship was named after Dr. Eric J. Bartleson '64, a former alumni board member, who passed away in 2020. Eric’s love and dedication to Waldorf was apparent both as a student and an alum. Eric realized that Waldorf was not only a place of academia but also a place of self-growth. Eric held the belief, as our other board members do, that Waldorf alumni is a family that supports each other.

Our goal is to endow this scholarship by raising $25,000. Visit the Waldorf Lutheran College Foundation website at waldorffoundation.org to donate or you may mail a check to:

Waldorf Lutheran College Foundation 106 South 6th Street Forest City, IA 50436

Your donation is tax deductible

Gabby Munoz Labaleta '20 holding Naven. A long-time member of the Biology Department has passed away. Naven, our 9-ft, 25-lb Red-tailed Boa Constrictor has died. Naven lived in the Biology labs since the late 1990’s, when John Robinson asked if we would like to keep him for his brother (Jamie) – it wasn’t a difficult decision. Naven instantly became a star attraction to the Department – not for everyone, no, but for hundreds of Biology students, Naven became a celebrity as well as a wonderful example of an ectotherm (cold-blooded critter). Despite his appearance and size, Naven was docile when handled and he loved to be handled; some students (who asked to study in the labs during the evening) would ask me to take Naven out of his cage while they studied. They enjoyed having Naven wrap around their arms and chest as they studied – Naven enjoyed it, too! Many had their pictures taken with Naven in the Atrium, and he was the “star” on the Biology float during one of Waldorf’s Homecoming parades.

According to Jamie Robinson, Naven was born in 1987, making him 34 years old when he passed away. My former advisor in Idaho (a snake authority who himself had a boa in his lab) told me the record age for a captive Red-tailed Boa was 37 years (I was hoping Naven could at least tie that record). When born, Naven was the size of a pencil; he ate “pinkies” back then (baby mice). In our lab he ate rats – and ONLY rats – he refused gerbils, small rabbits, or anything else. Some on campus will remember the “magic shows” that I advertised in the summers, when I would “change a rat into a snake”. Something about watching Naven capture then eat a rat was captivating – many enjoyed the shows.

Naven is survived by his owner (Jamie), doting Biology faculty members, many fans on the Waldorf staff, and hundreds of Waldorf Biology students and alumni.

Thank you, everyone, for your years of interest in Naven and the “wonders of Nature”. Special thanks to Jami Robinson for his “long-term loan” of Naven. Naven will be missed!

Paul Bartelt, PhD, Professor of Biology

The passing of a challenging and very different academic year meant it was time for another class of Waldorf Warriors to go forth into the world and celebrate their accomplishments with a commencement celebration honoring two classes: 2020 and 2021. The commencement ceremonies were held on May 8, 2021, and this year saw a change in setting as celebrations were held, for the very first time, on the Bolstorff football field.

Baccalaureate service was held on Friday evening, May 7th at 4:30 pm with Rev. Steven Smith officiating. The Prayer of the Day reflected upon remaining thankful to God throughout the hidden lessons of the past pandemic year and lessons learned in and out of the classroom over the course of study at Waldorf. Schola Cantorum provided the beautiful music accompanied by our composer in residence, Nancy Farndale, on piano.

Assistant Professor and Chair of Religion and Philosophy Rev. Steven Smith opened up the commencement event with a prayer, and Waldorf University President Robert Alsop gave welcoming remarks, congratulated the graduates and awarded the annual President’s Award to graduates Savanna Cordle ’20 and Jennet Hojanazarova ‘21. Professor David Damm gave remarks on behalf of the faculty and Dr. David Weber provided greetings from the Board of Trustees.

Ray Beebe was honored with an honorary doctorate of humane letters and provided the commencement address. Mr. Beebe received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Iowa State University in 1964 and his Juris Doctor degree with distinction from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1967. Mr. Beebe joined Winnebago Industries where he served as general counsel for 38 years. Mr. Beebe has invested his philanthropic energies toward supporting the youth of North Central Iowa. He chairs both the Forest City Educational Foundation and the Waldorf Lutheran College Foundation. Through these foundations, Mr. Beebe, has kept the dream of attending college, or at least making it much more affordable for countless students.

During Mr. Beebe’s address to the students, he described the Waldorf classes of 2020 and 2021 as driven by purpose, vision, passion, and positive energy. Mr. Beebe reminded the students: “You’ll always be a member of the Waldorf family, come back and see us”.

Following Mr. Beebe’s inspirational address, the Waldorf choir performed "Baba Yetu" by Christopher Tin and "Beautiful Savior" arranged by F. Melius Christensen for the full audience. Dr. Emilie Bertram conducted the choir.

University Registrar Mr. Darrell Barbour succeeded the choir with the conferring of degrees to the new graduates. To wrap up the day’s exciting events Waldorf Alumni Association Board President Dr. Tom Wicks ‘88 gave a speech reminding the graduates “You will always be a part of Waldorf, Waldorf will always be a part of you”.

Between both the online and residential campuses, a record number of graduates received their degrees in 2020 and 2021. 2020 was recordbreaking in terms of number of graduates at 1,136 total online and on campus. 2021 even surpassed 2020 with 1,461 total graduates. “You did this in the midst of a pandemic,” President Alsop said. “I have never been more proud of two classes”.

Do you have a passion or skill that you would be willing to share on campus? Are you looking to continue your education with a certificate or degree that Waldorf doesn't have? Are you interested in becoming a mentor for a student in your field/industry? Is your business looking to hire interns/recent graduates? Have you ever considered serving on the Alumni Board of Directors? Do you or a classmate have a story that would inspire?

We would love to hear from you! All of these (and more!) are ways to get involved with your alma mater. Please don't hesitate to reach out to alumni@waldorf.edu if any of these apply to you.

Thank you for your continued support of Waldorf University and the Waldorf Lutheran College Foundation.

We appreciate everything you do for Waldorf University!