UNK Today - UNK Alumni Association Homepage

FROM
THE CHANCELLOR
Check out new building progress
These days, one of the most interesting views of the
University of Nebraska at Kearney is through the large
north window in my office in Founders Hall. As I move
through my daily schedule of appointments, I often glance
through that window to catch a glimpse of the progress
that is being made on UNK's new residence halls.
Construction teams conspire with all manner and sizes of
machinery, and daily developments are not difficult to
chart. When you have a spare minute, I think you might
enjoy checking it out for yourself on UNK's "Web Cam"
at www.unk.edu/offices/facilities/index.php?id=14438.
Another refreshing result of the construction is the number of students that detour past that same large window
in my office. They file by singly and in groups, books and
bags (and cell phones) in hand, heading to and from classes or other commitments. Approximately 400 of them
will take a giant step forward on Friday, December 15, as
they receive their diplomas at UNK's Winter
Commencement. As they reach this milestone, there is
no doubt that you, as alumni, have played a tremendous
role in their success - through the legacy you have left,
your past and present accomplishments, and your generous support of your university. Especially at this time of
year, it is appropriate for all of us, students, faculty and
staff, to say "thank you!" We couldn't do it without you.
You’ll get
or
Never F
.
Kearney
Chancellor Kristensen
INSIDE
On behalf of your friends and colleagues at UNK, I wish
you a safe, joyous, and relatively stress free holiday season.
And as you make your New Years resolutions for 2007, I
hope you will include your alma mater on your list: stay
engaged, visit often, share our good news whenever and
wherever possible.
THIS ISSUE
2
VIC’S CORN POPPER
10
HOMECOMING HIGHLIGHTS
A week of activities featured events for alumni,
students and friends at Homecoming 2006.
In 1980 when he was teaching in Omaha, Vic
Larson and his wife, Ruth, started a popcorn business for added income. The result is a product that
is now available nationally.
ATIONAL TOURNAMENTS AT UNK
13 N
NCAA National Championships in wrestling and
women's basketball will be contested in the UNK
Health and Sports Center in March.
ALUMNI PRESIDENT, BOARD
14 Larry
Edwards '64 of Fort Collins, Colorado, is the
new president of the Alumni Association.
My best regards! Go Lopers!
Sincerely,
Douglas A. Kristensen
Chancellor
UNK Today l Winter 2006
ON
THE COVER
PRIDE OF THE PLAINS MARCHING BAND
Flag squad member senior Adrienne Olin of Paonia,
Colorado, helps put Blue and Gold spirit into the
Homecoming celebration. Under the direction of Dr. Gary
Davis and Dr. Neal Schnoor, the marching band plays a key
role in creating enthusiasm with performances at parades and
sporting events. Photo by UNK senior Stephanie Fielder.
3
+
Top
D
+
Docs
Dr. Gary
Pederson:
Optometrist of
the Year
Dr. Brian Buhlke: Young Physician of the Year
A
Dr. Brian Buhlke D.O.
'93 of Central City has
been chosen as the
Nebraska Medical Association
Young Physician of the Year.
Dr. Buhlke's nominator
described him as "selfless and
dedicated to the field of medicine." He is currently a UNMC
preceptor, who gives talks to the
community and school on a regular basis. He writes a biweekly
article in the local paper,
"Healthful Living," on topics
that the community selects.
He is the medical director for
five EMS services representing
three Nebraska counties. He was
recipient of the Health and
Human
Services
Medical
Director of the Year in 2004. Dr.
Buhlke volunteers regularly at
the Third City Clinic in Grand
Island, a United Way Clinic for
indigent patients.
In 2005, Dr. Buhlke was recognized by Nebraska Organ
Retrieval
System for
his heroic
efforts in an
organ procurement
during
a
Nebraska
ice storm.
His efforts
Dr. Brian
were pubBuhlke
lished in
"Nebraska
Medicine, a gift of life."
Dr. Buhlke attended the Des
Moines Medical University and
completed residency at the
University of Iowa, Mason City,
graduating as chief resident.
IN 2002, he returned to
Nebraska and joined Lone Tree
Medical Associates in Central
City. In 2003, he joined Park
Street Medical Clinic in Genoa.
He is chief of staff at Litzenberg
Memorial County Hospital and
medical director at Genoa
Community Hospital.
While at UNK, Dr. Buhlke
was the recipient of the Award
of Academic Excellence from
the College of Natural and
Social Sciences and the
Department of Biology. He was
also chosen for membership in
Mortar Board for his academic
achievements
and
social
involvement.
He recognizes Dr. Doug
Lund and Dr. Brad Ericson for
their mentorship.
Dr. Buhlke, who lives in
Central City with his wife Amy
Fries '95 and their two children,
is dedicating the honor to his
family for their unwavering support. His parents, Don and Judy,
live in Kearney.
"Everything in medicine
requires your family's support
and consideration. Often times,
it's your family who gets neglected in the end," he said. „
Dr. David Demuth: Family Physician of the Year
D
r. David Demuth of
York has been selected
as Nebraska's Family
Physician of the Year by the
Nebraska Academy of Family
Physicians.
ORIGINALLY from rural
Staplehurst, Dr. Demuth did premedicine at Kearney State
College from 1968 to 1971
before graduating from UNMC
in 1975. He then went to Waco,
Texas, for a three-year family
practice residency program and
served two years in the U.S.
N a v y
b e f o r e
moving to
York where
he has practiced medicine for 26
years.
Marcia
DeRoin,
Dr. David
Demuth
executive
vice president of the
Academy of Family Physicians,
said the organization received
many letters praising Dr.
FEATURE
Demuth.
"Patients think the world of
him. We have gotten letters from
people who are not even his
patients," she said.
ONE OF his patients, Helen
Grosshans, who nominated him,
said she recalled a time when
her husband, Don, now
deceased, needed medical care.
"He came over after he was
through with his rounds at the
hospital that night. It must have
been 9:30 p.m. He didn't even
charge us one penny." „
r. Gary Pedersen of
Grand Island was
named the Nebraska
Optometric
Association's
Optometrist of the Year in
October. The honor goes to the
member who has contributed
time and
talent in the
most outstanding
manner for
the betterment of the
v i s u a l
health and
welfare of
the public
Dr. Gary
Pedersen
and to the
profession.
Dr. Pedersen grew up in
Franklin and attended Kearney
State College from 1971 to
1974 before entering the
Illinois College of Optometry
in Chicago. He graduated
magna cum laude in 1978.
Dr. Pedersen was an associate for two years in North
Platte before he purchased a
practice in Grand Island in
1980. He has worked since
1986 in a group practice now
known
as
Eyecare
Professionals of Grand Island.
He has been a member of
the Nebraska Optometric
Association board of directors
and has headed the Volunteer
Optometric
Services
to
Humanity (VOSH) organization in Nebraska for 17 years.
He has taken more than 17
VOSH trips to more than seven
countries.
He received the Rotary Club
Distinguished Service Award
for 1992-93 and the Sertoma
Service to Mankind Award for
1994-95. Nationally, Dr.
Pedersen received the 1996
National
Head
Start
Humanitarian Award. „
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
1
FEATURE
OPPING UP p
P
s
i
g
osit
in
h
t
y
ive
r
e
for
Ev
„ College years
propelled Larson
to success in
education and
business
By Jim Rundstrom
Editor
N
ationally-distributed
and a household name,
Vic's Corn Popper was
nothing more than an idea for a
second income when Omaha
educator Vic Larson '65 and his
wife, Ruth, started the business
in 1980.
At the time, the Larsons had
started a family and were looking
to help with their expenses. "It
was tough making it on a
teacher's salary," he said.
Larson approached the Korn
Popper, a Lincoln business that
he had fond memories of while
growing up in the Capital City.
"We always stopped there," he
said. "They had the best popcorn
anywhere.
The Korn Popper agreed to
help start Vic's Corn Popper in a
"small hole-in-the-wall" location
at 50th and Leavenworth Streets
in Omaha.
"We made 15 bucks the first
day; $250 the first month,"
Larson said. "But by the end of
month three, the store was turning a profit."
Hybrid white popcorn was the
key, Larson said. Ninety-five
percent of popcorn sold at the
time was yellow. Their intent was
to introduce gourmet white popcorn in selected flavors and other
specialty items. The popping
method chosen was to use pure
corn oil and flour salt so that as
kernels exploded in the kettle, the
desired flavor would coat the
entire piece.
During the next four years, the
Larsons added two more stores
and several satellite sites. "It's
one of those things that just grew
on its own so to speak. We
2 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
MOM AND ‘POP’ SHOP: Vic Larson ’65 and his wife, Ruth started
Vic’s Corn Popper in 1980 to supplement their teaching income.
offered a product that a lot of
people seemed to want and we
built a reputation of providing a
consistent high quality popcorn
product. Our business grew and
grew, primarily by word of
mouth. Being first in this type of
business was important, too,"
Larson said.
Vic's Corn Popper grew to the
point that in 1984, Larson said
they needed to make a decision
whether to go full time or sell.
"We decided to accept an offer
from several investors, remain as
a part owner and allow them to
grow the business. A year later
we got out of the business completely and concentrated on our
family and my full-time employment with the Omaha Public
Schools."
Larson, who has a master's
degree from UNO and a doctor
of education degree from UNL,
spent 31 years with Omaha
Public Schools, including 27
years as an administrator in the
vocational office.
However, he never strayed far
from his Vic's Corn Popper roots.
The Scoular Grain Company,
a world-wide agricultural marketing company headquartered in
Omaha, assumed control of Vic's
in the late 1980s and expanded
the distribution throughout the
country.
In 1990, Larson got a call
from Scoular. "They wanted to
know the history of how Vic's
started. I met with them and a
day or so later they called and
told me they would like to get me
back into the business," he said.
The result is Larson now has
three Omaha stores.
Although not active in the
stores on a daily basis, "I do pay
the bills so I know what's going
on. I really enjoy 'hanging'
around the stores to talk with
many of our customers who have
been regulars for many years. It
boosts my ego when they tell me
we have the best popcorn anywhere. In fact, I get emails at
least once a week from all over
the United States telling me how
good our popcorn is. Those positive comments and our great
employees are two of the main
reasons that I enjoy owning the
business and plan to continue for
some time."
Larson said his years as a student at Kearney State and his
years as a professional educator
helped with his Vic's Corn
Popper career.
"My college experience at
KSC was probably my most
memorable and enjoyable life
experience outside my family. It
was a perfect fit for me - small
enough to not be overwhelming
but large enough to provide a full
college experience.
"Several of my life-long
friends were the result of living
in the dorm and being in the
Sigma Upsilon Nu (Theta Xi)
fraternity. You might say we
grew up together since we were
living away from home for the
first time and had to depend on
each other to get through all the
stupid things we did."
Larson said that almost without exception, his professors
were people oriented who truly
cared about their students.
"My freshman English professor was Mrs. (Miriam) Drake,
who had taught my mother in the
1930s. She had remembered my
mom and frequently asked about
her which really made me feel
like she cared."
Dr. Floyd Krubeck was chairman of the Vocational Education
Department and one of Larson's
most influential teachers.
"He always had time for me
when I needed to talk with someone about school, my future as a
teacher and life in general.
Through the years I have thought
about Dr. Krubeck many times.
One conversation with Dr.
Krubeck has stuck with me
throughout my career in education and business experience. He
told me that people 'learn by
doing' and that is why so many
students of all learning levels do
well in vocational classes. I have
tried to apply that when I was in
the classroom and when working
with employees in our stores."
Larson said many of the skills
learned in education have been
applied to running Vic's Corn
Popper business.
"Being well organized, treating all people with respect, motivating people to be the best they
can be, having a positive outlook,
and of course, working hard are
just a few characteristics that
transcend education and running
a business." „
To get in contact
with Larson, go to
www.vicspopcornomaha.com
FEATURE
4
9
’
r
e
n
t
r
e
Dr. H
k
c
a
r
t
n
o
s
y
a
st
By Jim Rundstrom
Editor
W
hen Dr. George
Hertner '94 was looking for a 'home' after
medical school, he found it in
Colorado Springs.
He had graduated from
UNMC in 1998 and finished a
residency at the University of
South Carolina. A job offer from
Colorado Springs Memorial
Hospital in the Department of
Emergency Medicine as well as
the Department of Hyperbaric
Medicine fit his medical interests. Although he grew up in
Kearney where his father, Dr.
John Hertner, is a professor of
biology and chairman of the
department, he was born in
Colorado Springs.
"I have great friends from
Kearney and the Sig Tau house
here, family in Denver, and I
love the mountains and activities in the area," he said. "I
couldn't pass it up."
Those activities now concern
velodrome bicycle racing where
he rides for Excel Cycling after
turning pro two years ago.
"I first became interested in
bicycle racing somewhat in college. I raced mountain bikes and
participated in the Bike Bowl,"
he said. However, during medical school and residency, there
was little time for exercise, let
alone competition.
That all changed when
friends introduced him to track
cycling at the velodrome. Dr.
Hertner said this brought back
what he was missing since college track and field where he
was a middle distance runner for
the Lopers.
He said racing at the track
has all the great parts of a bike
race - attacks, sprints, break-aways, team work and fast finishes. "All of this racing is done in
a very fan-friendly environment
where you can watch the entire
race. This is different from any
other form of cycling. It is very
different from watching running, too. Cycling on the track is
more of a combination of chess-
CYCLING: Dr. George
Hertner credits riding in the
Bike Bowl in college for his new
passion of velodrome racing.
like strategy pumped up with
fast action and adrenaline. The
crowds and the announcers with
blazing music are inspiring."
It hasn't taken Dr. Hertner
long to make his mark.
He recently competed in
Manchester, England, at the
World Championships against
more than 400 of the world's
best track cyclists from 22 countries. He raced in two different
events but saved his best performance for the Muratti Cup
where he finished as the Bronze
Medalist.
The Muratti Cup race has
been contested since 1899 and is
known as the race of champions.
It is a scratch race with riders
starting at the same time. Like a
running event, the riders all
cover the same distance, with
the winner being the first rider
to cross the finish line at the end
of that distance.
DR. HERTNER said that
although speed is important, tactics and teamwork are equally
vital. Groups of riders often take
an early lead, then work together to increase it while their teammates try to block and slow
down the rest of the field.
"On a small track, the leaders
may gain an entire lap on the
other riders and then join in with
the main group again."
Now in his fourth season of
track racing, Dr. Hertner trains
in and around Colorado Springs
as well as at the Olympic
Training Center. He finished this
year ranked third among all riders by the Colorado Velodrome
Association. In contrast to many
riders, he said sometimes he
competes in races where he is
the only person with a 'real' job.
Dr. Hertner said his most
common races include:
Individual Pursuit - two riders start on opposite sides of the
track and chase each other for a
given distance. If one 'catches'
the other before they've gone the
professional 4000 meter distance, the race ends immediately. Otherwise, it goes the full
distance.
Team Pursuit - this 4000
meter race is similar to the
Individual Pursuit except it
involves two teams of riders
instead of two individuals.
There are four men on each
team, and they ride in a single
file 'pace line.' Each of the four
riders takes a turn at the front,
changing the lead every lap or
every half lap. The front rider
swings up the track's banking,
letting his teammates pass, and
then drops back down to catch
on the back of the line. Only
three of the four riders need to
go the full distance because the
team's total time is taken as the
third rider crosses the line.
Mass Start Races - these are
much more common especially
in Colorado. These include
Keirin races, in which riders
jockey for position behind a single motorbike used to pace the
riders, most closely resembles
the old Roller Derby with riders
jostling and jabbing each other
with elbows to get into the
'sweet spot' behind the motorcycle. Then, just before the last
lap, the motorbike pulls off the
track, and the riders sprint
madly to the line.„
When not cycling . . .
Dr. George Hertner has spent
part of the past two winters in the
Amazon with a group of researchers
from National Geographic and the
Smithsonian.
The Miami Museum of Science in
conjunction with researchers from
National Geographic, Smithsonian
and the Denver Museum of Natural
History worked to develop an
exhibit called "Amazon Voyage:
Vicious Fishes and other Riches."
This project is now a traveling exhibit, recently on display at the
Smithsonian, which focuses on the
"perils" of the Amazon such as anacondas, as well as, discussing biodiversity and the culture of central
Brazil. “My contribution was focused
on providing medical care and a
spare hand in specimen collection
which got pretty interesting when
we were capturing large caiman,
snakes and swimming with the piranhas. I was a contributing photogra-
pher for the exhibit as well. I also
participated in an archeological dig in
central Brazil, the results of which
should be published soon,” he said.
Last year, Dr. Hertner was the
physician taking care of Lance
Armstrong during the Tour of Hope,
a nine-day bicycle ride across
America held each year to raise
awareness for cancer research. Dr.
Hertner provided the medical support for Lance Armstrong and others including a group of people trying to raise awareness for cancer
research as they road bicycles from
San Diego to Washington D.C. His
interest in doing this stems from his
passion for bicycles and he is a cancer survivor after being diagnosed
and treated for melanoma in 1997.
"So, there shouldn't be any shortage of things to do in the near
future," Dr. Hertner said. „
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
3
FEATURE
„ Fire nearly
destroyed
renovation
plans
W
hen a group of
investors, that included six UNK alumni,
were three days into gutting and
renovating a building in the Old
Market area of Omaha in 2004,
their project nearly went up in
smoke.
A welder's torch set the
building ablaze and collapsed all
three floors and the roof, leaving
only the exterior brick.
Plans for the brewpub restaurant didn't look promising.
After long discussions with
the City of Omaha, insurance
companies, building contractors,
historical societies and others,
the decision to rebuild was made
and Jobber's
Canyon
Restaurant and Brewery started
taking shape, according to Rob
Pugsley ’98, one of the UNK
alumni investors.
Rob, along with UNK alumni
Charley ’94 and Melody Snyder
Pugsley ’93, Ryan ’96 and
Becky ’96 Wiens Bertucci, Joel
Staehr ’98 and others forged
ahead with their project.
Jobber's Canyon opened in
October 2005. The brewpub
became an instant hit and was
recently voted "Omaha's Best
New Restaurant" by the Omaha
publication, The Reader.
The name "Jobber's Canyon"
has a rich history in the Old
Market District, dating to 1804.
Captain William Clark
described the Omaha area in his
4 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
PHI DELTA THETA: Nearly 70 Phi Delta Theta fraternity alumni attended a reunion at Jobber's Canyon
Restaurant and Brewery in the Old Market district in Omaha in November.The restaurant is owned by six
UNK alumni, four of whom are Phi Delta alumni. Rob Pugsley said this was their first event in several years
and the fraternity is working to contact others for additional events. Their website is www.phideltathetanebraskabeta.com.
1804 journal as "a proper place
for a trading establishment and
fortification . . . the soil well
adapted for brick."
Whether it was wagon trains,
steamboats or railroads crossing
through the area, Omaha
became a magnet for the midwestern growth and prosperity.
The first mercantile and
warehouse center to be established in Omaha was called
"Jobber's Canyon" also known
as "The Old Market." Even the
hand crafted micro brews carry
the names of colorful characters
from Omaha's past, like
Underworld Anna Unfiltered
Wheat, Doc Brown Ale and
Fatty Flynn Stout.
Fruits, vegetables and foodstuffs lined the cobbled streets
along 11th and Howard Streets,
the site of the current restaurant.
This was an area in which
many of the city's largest and
most notable wholesale businesses built their ultimate warehouse structures in the early
20th century. The area, listed as
a National Historic District, contained 27 warehouse-style buildings. The name refers to the jobbers who worked in the warehouses and the 'canyon-like'
effect the buildings created.
The restoration of the Old
Market District today preserves
its noteworthy place in time,
Rob said. "You can still stroll
along the cobbled brick streets,
explore the buildings and hear
from the locals how the Old
Market contributed to the latter
decades of the 19th century.
Today, the restored building
has three floors - a first floor that
consists of a quaint bar and dining area, a second floor that
showcases five stainless steel
brewing tanks which serve as
the back drop to a beautiful 20
seat bar, and a third floor that
can accommodate 200 people
for diverse gatherings. The third
floor, called the Loft, also has a
view of the Old Market. The
restaurant also operates a thriving catering business for off-site
events, small or large. „
FEATURE
:
a
n
i
v
TraslaFaces new recruiting challenges
R
ecruiting students is
nothing new for Andres
Traslavina '01, MSE'05.
After earning his bachelor's
degree he spent five years working for the admissions office
promoting UNK.
Now he has a new challenge.
Traslavina is director of
admissions/marketing, responsible for recruiting freshmen for a
new Catholic High School in
Omaha that will open next fall.
The school, St. Peter Claver
Cristo Rey, is a college-prep
school, designed for students
from low-income families.
Traslavina said it is the only
school in Nebraska of its kind
because it will feature a workstudy approach.
"The school is unique in that
students will hold entry-level
clerical jobs off campus to cover
most of their tuition," he said.
"They will spend four days a
week in class and one day at
work through the school's cor-
porate internship program."
Traslavina said the corporate
community has been supportive
of the concept, he said. They
understand the opportunity students will have to enhance their
education by acquiring work
experience and knowledge of
the corporate world.
The Cristo Rey school concept was begun in Chicago in
1996. Since then it has expanded
to 12 other cities across the
country.
"With nationwide drop out
rates high, models such as the
one Cristo Rey offers can serve
as a safety net for students who
would, in other circumstances,
get involved in drugs, gangs,
underage drinking and other distracting activities taking
them away from pursuing
their education," he
said.
Located in south
Omaha, St. Peter
Claver Cristo Rey will have
M a r k
a total enrollment of 500 when
all four high school classes are
filled. Even though the school is
part of the Archdioceses of the
Omaha Catholic School network, students will be recruited
from various faiths and
diverse backgrounds.
"Cristo
Rey
brings back memories of my own
youth back in
Bogota, Colombia,
where
standards
were high, academics were rigorous
and preparing
to attend college was the
only option.
We had a
dress code
m u c h
similar to what St. Peter Claver
will have - shirts and ties for
young men, dress blouses and
skirts or slacks for women," he
said.
Traslavina said Cristo Rey is
not for everyone, but it is for
students who qualify for free
or reduced-price lunch programs and who want a quality, college prep experience.
"We are looking for young
people with passionate
desire to make the most of
themselves for their own
sake, for the sake
of their parents
and
families,
and for the
sake of the
community where
t h e y
live.” „
S e i e r
Outstanding National Biology Teacher for 2006
M
ark
Seier's
'75,
MSE'82 students only
need to walk out their
front doors to see the importance of what they are learning
in his biology classes.
"The kids find a real value in
research that gets them out in
the real world," said Seier, a 32year Newman Grove Schools
teacher who has been named
Outstanding Biology Teacher
for 2006 by the National
Biology Association of Biology
Teachers.
For the past four years, a
small group of Seier's students
have been doing research on
Shell Creek for the Shell Creek
Watershed Improvement Group.
The group is a branch of the
Wahoo-based Lower Platte
North
Natural
Resources
District. Students have spent
summers doing research to
study water quality in the creek.
The watershed drains a 465
square mile area, nearly 300,000
acres, and begins in Boone
County,
crosses
Madison
County and Platte County and
ends in Colfax County. The
creek's north and south branches
converge northwest of Newman
Grove and run through Lindsay,
Platte Center, Columbus and
Schuyler before emptying into
the Platte River.
Seier's students take water
samples and observe the water,
vegetation and animal life in the
waterway. A variety of tests,
such as measuring pH, nitrogen
and phosphate levels and turbidity, are performed with the data
collected turned over to the
watershed group and NRD.
Over time, the data collected
on the creek should begin to
reveal trends that will promote
better conservation practices,
Seier said. "The watershed project allows students to see realworld applications for their
classroom learning."
Seier has taught biology and
chemistry at Newman Grove
since graduating from what then
was Kearney State College.
"I've been able to develop a
good biology program with the
help of excellent support from
the school, parents and community," Seier said. „
HONORED: Dr. Mark Seier
(right) was honored at a
Homecoming reception by Dr.
Ed Scantling Dean of the College
of Education.
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l 5
ALUMNI NEWS
BAHAMAS
B
ahamian alumni gathered in Freeport in
November to become
the first group to have an event
outside the United States.
Vice chancellor Finnie
Murray, international education
director Jerry Fox and alumni
director Jim Rundstrom shared
news from UNK with more than
30 attendees. The event was
organized by Cecilia Bodie, who
was elected first president of the
Bahamian Alumni Association.
Crystal Cooper served as master
of ceremonies for the evening.
The dinner program also included a welcome from Kayla
Bullard, prayer from Tennille
Smith, Bahamian pledge led by
Shorn Malcolm and raffle of
UNK items by Latoya Smith.
Also assisting with the event
was Gia Stubbs-Minns.
Lincoln
LOPERS
Sixteen foursomes participated in the second Lincoln Loper
golf scramble in September.
Proceeds from the golf and the
raffle generated $1,600 to begin
a scholarship with the NU
Foundation. That scholarship
will go to a graduate of a
Lincoln high school. Golf tour-
BAHAMAS: Kelly Albury,
Kiera Ramsey, Gayety WilliamsRobinson and Kayla Bullard
attended the alumni dinner in
Freeport.
6 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
Aluumni Assoociatioon gooes inteernatioonal
nament organizers Ken Vergith
and Dave Slagle said the group's
goal is to endow the scholarship
at $5,000 as soon as possible.
Gifts to that fund may be sent to
the UNK Alumni Association.
Make checks to the NU
Foundation, earmarked to
Lincoln Loper Scholarship
Fund.
They also announced that the
date for the third Lincoln Loper
golf scramble will be Sunday,
September 16, at the Yankee
Hill Country Club. The Lincoln
Lopers will also host an evening
of Sousa music on Thursday,
February 15. That event is also
open to alumni and friends.
Ft. Collins,
COLORADO
Nearly 30 alumni and friends
attended an after-work social in
Fort Collins in October.
Organized by past president
Tom Smith, current alumni president Larry Edwards of Fort
Collins and board member Larry
Feather of Grand Junction, the
event was the first in Fort
Collins.
V
TEXAS
North Texas alumni gathered
for lunch in November. Nearly
30 attended the event at Dave
and Busters organized by board
members Mary Howington and
Candy Fernau.
One highlight of the program was a report by Joe
Davenport that the Texas
Alumni Scholarship had reached
$11,500. The scholarship is
awarded to Texas students who
attend UNK. This year's recipients are Tervel Dlagnev and
Chance Hartman. Dlagnev is
from Arlington High School. He
is a biology major and was
national runner-up as a heavyweight wrestler last spring.
Hartman is a theatre major from
Round Rock High School.
Anyone interested in making
a gift to the scholarship fund can
do so by sending a check,
payable to the NU Foundation
and earmarked for Texas
Scholarship, to PO Box 2678,
Kearney, NE 68848-2678. „
Upcoming Events
Sat, Feb 3: Southern California Alumni
Luncheon in Buena Park
Sun, Feb 4: Phoenix, Arizona, Alumni Luncheon
Mon, Feb 5: Tucson, Arizona, Alumni Social
Thurs, Feb 8: Sousa Band Alumni Social - Omaha
Thurs, Feb 15: Sousa Band Alumni Social - Lincoln
Sat, Feb 17: Northwest Alumni Luncheon Portland
Sun, Feb 18: Northern California Alumni Luncheon
- Bay Area
Thurs-Fri, May 3-4: Golden Anniversary
Celebration, Class of 1957
BAHAMAS: Dr. Timothy Williams, Ceeney Russell-Butcher, Cassandra Albury, Kayla Bullard, Latoya
Smith, Quistal Stubbs-Cooper and Cecilia Bodie helped make the first alumni gathering outside the
United State a big success. Director of International Education Jerry Fox (back) is also pictured.
ALUMNI NEWS
FORT COLLINS: Tom and Carol Ballain socialize with Denny
Renter at the Fort Collins alumni cocktail party.
FORT COLLINS: Carrie Sears and Thomas Tweedy enjoy the
welcoming atmosphere of an alumni gathering.
LOPER CUP: Undergraduate golfers defeated the alumni in
the 8th annual Loper Cup, a competition played with a format similar
to the Ryder Cup.
Undergraduate golfers Nick
Hodge and Nick Swaney
are on either side of
coach Dick Beechner.
Alumni players C.J.
Farber of Kearney and
Dr. Steve Samuelson of
Fremont are on the
right.
LINCOLN GOLF: Mick McConkey, Rick Kort, Chuck Bacus,
Dick Dworak celebrate their victory at the Lincoln Loper golf gathering in September.
NORTH TEXANS: Joe Davenport, Dave Walker, Sharon Finn,
Lucas Dart, Ken Nickman and Nancy Lloyd enjoy conversation and
reminiscing about Kearney at Dave and Busters.
NORTH TEXANS: Sue and
Barry Samsula visit with Francis
Osentowski at a Dallas luncheon.
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
7
CAMPUS NEWS
GOLD TORCH:
Lighting the path of opportunity
W
hat do alumni women
and UNK undergraduate women have in
common? They can learn a lot
from each other.
The Gold Torch Society met
in September at the UNK
Alumni House for its seventh
annual meeting.
Sponsored by the UNK
Alumni Association, The Gold
Torch Society provides 25
women alumni the opportunity
to return to campus and share a
weekend of networking, motivational activities and special
events with a select group of 25
UNK undergraduate women.
"THE SOCIETY'S alumni
members are vibrant, successful
women from a variety of backgrounds including finance, education, mangement and astronomy," said Jim Rundstrom, executive director of the UNK
Alumni Association. "The relationships formed will be invaluable because of the Gold Torch
Society."
Alumni are nominated for a
three-year membership in the
society. Student membership is
for one year and is by application only.
UNK alumni Gold Torch
GOLDEN ADVICE: Maureen Nickels ’74, Jacqueline Hubl, sophomore from Nebraska City and Barbara Ann Schroeder ’74 formed
an invaluable bond during The Gold Torch Society Retreat weekend
in September at the Alumni House.
members are: Maureen Nickels
'74 from Chapman; Tammie
Blaha '84, Dr. Kimberly Carlson
'92, Denise Christensen '80,
Krista Sheldon Fritson '88, and
Tammy Hayden '90.
Lee Ann Hogins '82, Dee
Dee Schutte Kitzleman '90, Julie
Slaughter Larsen '77, Kimberly
M. Ziola Oliphant '89, Marsha
Rodehorst Wilkerson '90, Sandy
Rosse '93, Catherine Luebbe
Sanchez '99 and Renae Riddle
Zimmer '91 from Kearney.
Lexie Hollertz '00 from
Lincoln; Brenda Snodgrass
Christensen '83 from Minden;
Norma Deeb '70, Barbara
Schroeder '74 and Jeanette
Keller Wojtalewicz '84 from
Omaha; Tiffanie Welte Gauchat
'92 from Papillion; Jennifer L.
Johnson '94 from Atlanta,
Georgia; Alison Peck '94 from
Hilo, Hawaii; and Holly Nikels
'93 from Bettendorf, Iowa. „
Fall enrollment reaches 6,468
F
all enrollment increased
to 6,468, its highest headcount since 2000. The figure represented a 0.4 percent
increase from last year.
Chancellor Doug Kristensen
characterized the fall numbers
as "encouraging in this tough
competitive environment, especially with the continuing
decline in numbers of high
school students in Nebraska.
Just to be holding our own,
overall, is really a positive statement about UNK's ability to
attract and hold students."
SOME OF the trends within
the overall, steady enrollment
numbers are significant, perhaps
8 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
giving a hint of future direction,
not only for UNK but for public
higher education in Nebraska
and the region.
Graduate headcount is up significantly, 12 percent. This year's
level is the highest since 1996.
The trend is being fueled by an
increase of 34.2 percent in offcampus, online graduate students,
achieving an all-time record
enrollment in this category.
Ethnic representation is at an
all-time high. International and
American minority students
total 779.
Nonresident headcount is up
by more than eight percent,
while Nebraska students are
down by one percent. Students
have come to UNK this year
from 41 countries, 44 states and
all 93 counties in Nebraska.
On-campus enrollment is
down, though these numbers,
especially undergraduate, are
expected to increase with the
completion of three new residence halls in the next two years.
Chancellor Kristensen said,
"The numbers also indicate to us
areas where we need to reapply
our energy in telling UNK's
great story of the high quality
scholarship of our students and
faculty, the many wonderful
career and graduate/professional
school successes of our alumni,
and the unparalleled community
support at UNK and in Kearney
that helps students and faculty
achieve that success while
enjoying a wonderful quality of
life." „
UNK ranking
improves
U
NK is again ranked as
one of the top colleges in a 12 state
region, according to U.S.
News and
W o r l d
Report's
"America's
B e s t
Colleges'
a n n u a l
ranking.
U N K
placed 18th
among public universities and 65 overall
in a region that includes
Illinois,
Indiana,
Iowa,
Kansas, Michigan Minnesota,
Missouri, North Dakota, South
Dakota and Wisconsin.
The university's freshman
retention rate of 83 percent is
higher than any of its traditional peer group campuses.
Smaller class sizes and low
student-to-faculty ratio of 17-1
were major factors contributing to the ranking.
The magazine ranked more
than 1,400 colleges and universities in various categories
on academic reputation, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and
alumni giving. „
Family of the Year
T
he 2006 Family of the
Year,
chosen
on
Family Day during the
fall, has deep ties to UNK. The
award went to the family of
Justine Derr, daughter of Bob
'80 and Judy Derr of Kearney.
In addition to Justine, a
junior majoring in family
studies and social work, older
sister Jenna is also a UNK student. Both are members of the
Sapphires Dance Team. Jenna
is a biology major who plans
to graduate in May and attend
medical school.
Their mother, Judy, is also
a UNK student. She will graduate in May with a major in
social work. Their father, Bob,
earned his degree in construction management.
Two other children, Olivia
14 and Margaret 9, have visited UNK classes with their
mother. „
$150,000 Foundation grants benefit
band and communication disorders
U
NK received two
grants
totaling
$150,000 from the
University
of
Nebraska
Foundation.
The grants were made to the
music department and the communication disorders department.
A $100,000 grant will make
it possible for the Department of
Communication Disorders to
invest in a custom-made mobile
clinic to provide speech, language and hearing testing services at off-campus sites, including at schools, preschools, daycare centers, agencies and
events.
Service
areas
include
Kearney, Lexington, Arapahoe,
Cambridge, Minden, Ravenna,
Holdrege, Elm Creek, Gibbon
and Grand Island.
"The mobile clinic will allow
us to provide services in a quality, sound-controlled environment," said Dr. Kenya Taylor,
former professor who is now
dean of Graduate Studies and
Research.
"It also allows us to expand
our services and increase our
outreach throughout the western
part of the state while providing
opportunities for students to
obtain practicum hours with
diverse clients."
The Department of Music
and Performing Arts already has
put its $50,000 grant to use
replacing aged and irreparable
musical instruments.
Dr. Valerie Cisler, chair of
the department, said the department concentrated on obtaining
"family woodwind and percussion instruments. The goal is to
help ensembles achieve uniformity in sound quality within
each instrumental section.
"When we had eight sousaphones from nearly as many
decades and models, the possibility of achieving that uniformity was remote," Dr. Cisler
said. "The new instruments provide a much richer, fuller quality of sound."
The music department is
coming out of a 35-year period
during which there was no
budget available for replacing
old instruments, resulting in the
need for major repairs and
replacements, she said.
"On our last accreditation site
visit, we were cited for the lack
of sufficient numbers and quali-
Weins FirsTier room at Cope
SOUND OFF: A grant from the NU Foundation helped replace
old and irreparable musical instruments.
ty of instruments for practice,
technique classes and performance and for the lack of adequate budget for the repair and
replacement of instruments," Dr.
Cisler said.
The University of Nebraska
T
he community room on
the third floor of the
Ron and Carol Cope
Stadium at Foster Field was
named the Weins/FirsTier
Special Events Room in ceremonies at halftime of the UNKAdams State football game in
October.
THE NAMING was in
recognition of a $250,000 gift
by Joel and Elena Weins. A
large portion of that gift benefited the athletic renovation/addition with the remainder to be
used to make improvements in
the Health and Sports Center.
Weins is the majority owner
of FirsTier Bank, with locations
in Colorado, Nebraska and
Wyoming. He also owns
FirsTier Events Center in
Kearney, the Tri-City Storm
hockey team and First Inn Gold
Motel in Kearney. „
Foundation's grants committee
awarded 10 grants totaling
$1.05 million for 2006-2007
across the university campuses.
Much of the annual grants come
from unrestricted donations to
the foundation. „
Student athlete initiative leaders
M
NAMED:The community room of the Ron and Carol Cope Stadium
at Foster Field was named the Weins/FirsTier Special Events Room.
Posing for a picture at the ceremony are UNK Athletic Director Jon
McBride, Jack and Elena Weins and Chancellor Doug Kristensen.
FOUNDATION
embers
of
the
Leadership Group for
the Student Athlete
Initiative were announced during the fall.
The initiative is an on-going
effort to improve athletic and
recreational facilities, as well as
build a substantial athletic
scholarship endowment with
private support.
The leadership group members are among those who have
pledged at least $1,000 to the
initiative.
They are Dan Bahensky, Bill
Beavers, Dick Beechner, Claire
Boroff, Don Briggs, Butch
Brown, Tony Caputo, Wayne
Gappa, Brian Hamilton, John
Higgins, Doug Holtmeier, Jerry
Hueser, Dr. Shane Jensen, Mitch
Johnson, Susan Johnson Hood,
Brad Kernick, Loren Killion,
Tom Kropp, Steve Lancaster,
Mark Lundeen, Mike McGlade,
Rosella Meier, Dan Mowrey, J.
Scott Nelson, Jeff Norblade,
Rich Osentowski, John Payne,
Randy Rasmussen, Dr. Brad
Rodgers, John Sahling, JoAn
Scott, Dr. L.R. Smith, Brenda
Van Lengen, Ken Vergith and Al
Zikmund.
Athletic
Director
Jon
McBride said the initiative is an
important step in bringing outstanding students to our campus.
During
a
November
phonathon,
student-athletes,
coaches and administrators contacted athletic alumni to discuss
the importance of the initiative.
Jon Abegglen, vice president of
the foundation on the Kearney
campus, said many donors have
come forward with their largestever gift to their alma mater as a
result of the effort. „
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
9
HOMECOMING 2006
BRATS AND DOGS: Alumni
Association board member Fred Arnold
tends to grilling at the Loper Luncheon.
A
backdrop of beautiful
October fall weather
set the scene for
Homecoming 2006 that was
filled with a myriad of activities
for students, alumni and friends.
Five alumni received awards
from the Alumni Association at
the 27th annual awards banquet.
Receiving
Distinguished
Alumni Awards were Dr. Norris
Haring '49, professor emeritus
of special education at the
University of Washington;
Nancy Montanez Johner '94,
undersecretary of agriculture
for food, nutrition and consumer services; Dr. Gary Smidt
'59, professor emeritus in the
College of Medicine at the
University of Iowa where he
was a professor of physical therapy; and Ron Williams '71,
president and chief executive
officer
of
Gary-Williams
Energy Corporation in Denver.
Sue Batie '73 of Cypress,
California,
received
the
Distinguished Alumni Service
Award for her 30 years of contributions to the Southern
California Alumni Association
where she has served as president, vice president, secretary
and treasurer of that organization.
Five individuals were inducted into the Athletic Hall of
Fame.
They are Steve Altmaier '77
of Kearney, who spent 24 years
as the voice of the Lopers for
Kearney radio stations KGFWAM and KQKY-FM before
moving to other duties with the
stations last spring; Ginger
Keller Marx '94 of Seibert,
Colorado, the all-time leading
scorer for the women's basketball team; Jerry Stine '67,
MAE'76, of Bertrand, a fouryear letterman in track who was
a successful coach and athletic
director; Hylke 'Hike' Van der
Wal '62, was a NAIA national
steeplechase champion in 1962
and runner-up in 1961; and Bill
Windhorst '78, was a four-year
letterman and first-team NAIA
All-American as an offensive
lineman.
Dr. Dan Mowrey '73 was the
26th Don Fox Chemistry
Lecturer. Dr. Mowrey, who
received
the
Alumni
Association's
Distinguished
Alumni Award in 1995, is a
research advisor in the Animal
Health Division of Eli Lilly and
Company. He has worked for
Eli Lilly since receiving his
Ph.D. in statistics from Iowa
State in 1980.
Dean Dahlke '63 received the
Gary Thomas Distinguished
Music Award. Dahlke, who
retired in 2003, spent 40 years
as an instrumental and vocal
teacher
with
Bertrand
Community School.
Mark Seier '75 of Newman
Grove was recognized by the
College of Education for his
award as the Outstanding
Biology Teacher for 2006 by the
National Biology Association of
Biology Teachers.
In sporting events, Colorado
Mines defeated the Lopers 2014 in the Homecoming football
game. The Loper volleyball
team won two matches during
the weekend over RMAC rivals
Metro State and Colorado
Christian.
Stacy Jegel, a junior from
Topeka, Kansas, and Joel
Hochstein, a junior from
Hartington, were named king
and queen. The crowning was
part of a Thursday night celebration that featured the popular lip
sync competition. More than
2,500 students attended the
event that was won by Alpha
Omicron Pi Sorority and Pi
Kappa Alpha Fraternity.
Mantor Hall and Men's Hall
combined to win the sweepstakes competition among student organizations. The week's
events for students were the
limbo, banner, spirit, trike, lawn
display, float and lip sync competition.
The always popular Loper
Luncheon tailgate at the Alumni
House attracted more than 250
following the Homecoming
parade.
Other events included a gathering of the Loper Gridiron Athletic
Club, a group of former football
players, at the Ramada Inn following the football game. „
WAVE: Sue Batie of Cypress,
California, who received the
Distinguished Alumni Service
Award, waves to the parade
crowd.
ROYALTY: Stacy Jegel and
Joel Hochstein were elected
2006 Homecoming Queen and
King.
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HOMECOMING 2006
REUNION: Professor Mary Iten visits with Ginger Keller Marx
and her husband, David, at a reception hosted by the College of
Education. Marx was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame.
IN STEP: Performances by the "Pride of the Plains" marching band
are always a popular part of the halftime activities.
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AWARD
RECIPIENT:
Undersecretary of Agriculture
Nancy Montanez Johner was
one of four alumni to receive
Distinguished Alumni Awards.
PARADING: Larry Edwards
and Kent Holen enjoy the
Homecoming parade crowd.
Holen served as alumni president the past year. Edwards was
elected president at the fall
board of directors meeting.
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IN THE SPIRIT: The winning team from the spirit competition
showed off their cheer at the volleyball game Friday night.
LIP SYNC: More than 2,500 students participated in an evening
of activities that included lip sync competition among campus
organizations and the crowning to the Homecoming royalty.
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LOPER SPORTS
Lickteig comes from
out of nowhere
By Buck Mahoney
Kearney Hub Sports Editor
K
aci Lickteig's credentials certainly didn't
foreshadow what hap-
pened.
No college coaches gave her
a recruiting call, and no one
expected she would somehow
become UNK's first-ever national qualifier for the NCAA
Division II cross country championships. She finished 39th at
the national meet, missing out
on All-American honors by one
second.
"I can't believe it. I never
thought I would be there,"
Lickteig said.
Why?
"I wasn't very good,"
Lickteig said of her one-year
cross country career at Centura
High School.
SHE WON the 15th place
medal when she finished last in
a race of 15 runners.
The highlight of her high
school cross country career, she
said, came at the Ord
Invitational "the first race I didn't walk in."
Three years ago, when her
mother bought a treadmill,
Lickteig admits she couldn't run
for 10 minutes without stopping.
But it was her mother who convinced Kaci to enter the 2004
NATIONAL QUALIFIER: In her first year of cross country, Kaci Lickteig became UNK's first
woman to qualify for the NCAA championship meet.
Shamrock Shuffle, a two-mile,
St. Patrick's Day run at
Cottonmill Park. She won her
division with a time that wouldn't
impress any serious runner.
But she was on the road to
running again.
"It's a way to get away from
the world. I love it. It's something I have a passion for,"
Lickteig said.
She also ran with her mother
in the Lincoln Marathon.
Bothered by a leg ailment, the
last 18 miles became a painful
endurance test "after the Aleve
worked off," but she learned a
valuable lesson that cross country races are much shorter and
no matter the pain, the finish
line isn't that far away.
"That marathon made me
Fall Sports
H
Volleyball
aving to replace eight
players from last year's
national runner-up volleyball team, The Lopers
regrouped, compiled a 28-8
record, captured the RMAC East
title, tied for the league's best
mark and qualified for an eighth
straight trip to the NCAA
Tournament.
Senior outside hitter Kellie
Bunger of Grand Island, a unanimous All-RMAC selection,
12 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
earned All-American honorable
mention honors. Bunger lead the
team in kills (469) and set a
school record for attack attempts
in a single season (1,416).
Sophomore Julie Minicz of
Waverly was named to the second all-conference team.
Football
UNK's football team compiled a 6-4 record with a defense
that will be remembered as one
of the best in history. The 2006
squad allowed just 14.5 points
stronger - that much pain for that
many miles," she said.
Lickteig took classes at
Central Community College in
Grand Island after high school.
She was running more and
more. Her times were getting
better, too.
After two years at CCC, she
looked around at physical therapy schools and found UNK. She
wanted to run, too, and took her
times from summer road races
to see if they were good enough
for the Lopers.
COACHES WELCOMED
her to the team.
"I love the team atmosphere
and being involved with everybody," Lickteig said. "We motivated each other because we're
per game, the lowest since the
1987 team's 14.3 points.
A season-ending 20-13 win
over RMAC newcomer Western
New Mexico gave UNK its sixth
win, the fifth time since 2000
the Lopers reached that mark.
Head coach Darrell Morris is
now 49-25 at UNK.
Senior safety Paul Jimenez of
Chico, California, was named to
the RMAC first team for the third
consecutive year.
Center Jack Hiett of Arvada,
Colorado, was named the
league's Freshman Offensive
Player of the Year while sophomore Kirk Peterson of Nelson
all going through the same pain
and torture. Everybody is
always uplifting you."
After a slow start, even
among her own team, she
moved to the front of the pack
finishing eighth in one meet,
third in another and 17th in the
RMAC,
no
easy
task.
Conference members and traditional powers Adams State and
Western State finished first and
second at the national meet with
the individual champion and six
other runners among the top 20.
"It's amazed me. I'm in awe."
Lickteig said. "I thank the Lord
he blessed me with this talent. . .
And how I've progressed with
my times and getting better
training with the team has done
me wonders." „
was the Special Teams Player of
the Year.
Cross Country
UNK's cross country teams
finished fifth (women) and
eighth (men) among 132 teams
in the tough RMAC meet.
Adams State and Western State
went on to capture first and second in the women's national
meet. Adams State was second,
Western State third and
Colorado-Colorado Springs seventh in the men's division of the
national championship. „
7
7Win
nter
r Sports 7
LOPER SPORTS
T
he long winter sports
season got an early start
in November with high
expectations.
Wrestling
UNK's wrestlers expect to be
in the hunt for a national title
with the tournament to be held
in the Health and Sports Center.
Since Marc Bauer took over
the program prior to the 19992000 season, UNK has won six
RMAC/West Region titles, had
six top 10 NCAA finishes and
placed national runner-up last
year and in 2003.
A Loper squad that features
three seniors will be led by
national
champion
Brett
Allgood of Bennington at 133
lbs. and national runner-up
Tervel Dlagneve of Arlington,
Texas, at heavyweight.
The team also features AllAmericans Trevor Charbonneau
of Clay Center, Kansas, at 125
lbs. and Jeff Rutledge of Lincoln
at 141 lbs. National qualifiers
Matt True of Mitchell at 149
lbs., Paul Sutton of Wahoo at
174 lbs. and Dan Hospodka of
Gretna at 174 lbs. return.
Swimming
Coach Teresa Osmanski's
swimming and diving squad that
features 16 athletes, including
five divers.
TRANSFER MIKI Wilson
of Powell, Wyoming, a transfer
For the latest
on ALL 16
UNK Sports visit
www.lopers.com
from Florida Southern, has had
some early success. Other top
swimmers are senior Becky
Tompkins of Scottsbluff and
sophomore Jena Lynch of
Lincoln.
With top returning diver
Jennifer Kirkland of Kearney
sidelined, freshman Annie
Moyer of Lincoln and sophomore Ellie Jorgensen of North
Platte have been the diving leaders.
Men’s Basketball
Nationally ranked and capping off a 23-8 season a year
ago, the men's basketball team
returns four starters in quest of
another regional tournament
berth.
Co-head coaches Tom Kropp
and Kevin Lofton said they were
optimistic heading into the year.
"The big thing we have to look
at is our early season schedule,"
Kropp said.
"We
are
going
to
have to play
well on the
road."
Leading
the veterans
is 6-6 senior forward
Dusty Jura
Dusty Jura
o
f
Columbus,
an All-American who led UNK
in every statistical category in
2006.
Jura is on pace to become the
fourth Loper to reach 2,000
career points and another solid
year will propel him into national recognition. He was named
the RMAC pre-season player of
year. Sophomore guard Ryan
Moore of Beatrice was named
the pre-season defensive player
of the year.
FELLOW SENIOR starters
6-7 Chad Burger and 6-1 James
Lane, both of Colorado Springs,
give UNK a solid trio to start
with.
Women’s Basketball
Fifth-year head women's
coach Carol Russell, who has
won 85 games in her tenure, has
four starters back from last
year's squad that finished 21-8.
The Lopers would like to get
back to the NCAA Tournament
after a two year absence.
UNK has extra incentive to
get an NCAA bid this year as
Kearney is the host of the Elite
Eight Tournament in March.
"WE'RE PRETTY optimistic. Our future is bright as
our young kids got a lot of minutes last year," Russell said.
Heading the list of returnees
is senior guard Liz Fischer of
Leigh, a second team AllRMAC East Division pick a
year ago. She led UNK in scoring at 14.0.
Junior forward Melissa
Hinkley of Lincoln and Jade
Meads of Elm Creek, last year's
RMAC Freshman of the Year,
will play key roles for Russell.
Track & Field
National champion senior
Lance Pfeiffer of Eustis heads a
strong contingent of track and
field athletes.
The outdoor shot
put champion,
the
three-time
A l l American
will team
up
with
sophomore
Lance Pfeiffer
Dan Tobey
of Waco,
another All-American, to form a
tough combination in the throws.
Junior Ross Fellows of
Kearney was a NCAA qualifier
as a freshman, fellow junior
Darrel Branz of York was among
the RMAC's best hurdlers last
year, junior Joshua Hofer of
North Platte should be one of the
Lopers top sprinters and Derrick
Murphy of Cheyenne should
give UNK another national contender in the jumps.
The women's team will be in
a bit of a rebuilding mode with
the loss of key athletes.
Sophomore Kelli Dring of
Kearney will be among the nation's
best in the long and triple jumps
with distance runners Jacquelyn
Dibbern of York and Kaci Lickteig
of Dannebrog expecting to make a
push for nationals.
Junior Megan Heathers of
Ravenna and Samantha Murphy
of Franklin will lead a young
group of throwers. „
UNK to host two NCAA Division II
national
tournaments in March
NK has been selected and the 2008 Women's Elite hosted the national event with
U
to host upcoming
NCAA national events
in two sports.
The 2007 Division II
National
Wrestling
Championships will come to
the Kearney Events Center on
March 9-10.
The NCAA Championship
Committee awarded the 2007
Eight Basketball Tournament,
also held in March. Those tournaments will be played at
UNK's Health and Sports
Center. The 2007 event will be
played March 21, 22 and 24.
The 2008 tournament will be
March 26, 27 and 29.
For wrestling, the event will
be the second time UNK has
the first being in 1995.
UNK has hosted two other
NCAA national events, the
1994
Cross
Country
Championships at the Kearney
Country Club. In 2005, the
Lopers hosted the national volleyball tournament to recordbreaking crowds. „
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l 13
ALUMNI NEWS
8
LARRY
EDWARDS
leads
Association -
Fred Arnold
Sue Batie
Candy Fernau
Andy Romatzke
Chad Rutar
Deb Schwenka
Bob
Warren
Stephanie
Vogel
Eight begin
three-year terms
L
arry Edwards ’64 is the
newly-elected president
of the UNK Alumni
Association.
Edwards, who lives in Fort
Collins,
Colorado, is
owner and
CEO of The
Light Center,
a
lighting
sales company in Fort
Collins he
founded in Larry Edwards
1971. He has
served on the
National Board of the American
Lighting Association, Bank
One, Centennial Banks, First
Western Trust and the Fort
Collins Country Club.
He assumed the duties at the
association's annual board of
directors meeting in conjunction
with 2006 Homecoming activities. Edwards replaces Kent
Holen ’61 of Holdrege.
Other officers for 2006-2007
are Maureen Gaffney Nickels
’74
president-elect;
and
Brenda
Snodgrass
Christensen ’83 of Minden,
secretary. Maureen Nickels is
the Uniserv Director for the
Nebraska State Education
Association.
Brenda
Christensen is Office Manager
of Post Rock Gas, an Affiliate of
Seminole Energy in Holdrege.
SEVEN BOARD members
completed three-year terms on
the board of directors and are
now trustees of the association.
They are Jenny Apel Lydiatt ’93
of Colorado Springs, Colorado;
Casey Anderson ’95 of Omaha;
Duane Tucker ’68 of Hayward,
California; Connie Swanson
Franzen ’64 of Hastings; Tanis
Hall-Goedert ’94 of Overland
Park, Kansas; Bob Whitehouse
’67 of Papillion; and Cindy
Sims Pille ’79 of Papillion.
Chuck Lindly ’52 of Rapid
City, South Dakota, who served
as Alumni Association president
in 2004-2005, completed his
term on the executive committee.
Eight board members were
elected to three-year terms that
began with the annual meeting.
Andrew Romatzke ’01 of
Kearney is an attorney with the
law firm of Ganz, Romatzke and
Stamm.
Deb Schwenka ’76 of
Minden is a first grade teacher
with the Minden Public Schools.
Fred Arnold ’83 of Fairbury
is owner of The Fairbury
Journal-News and McBattas
Packing & Printing.
Chad Rutar ’97 of Omaha is
a financial advisor with
Renaissance Financial.
Stephanie Hueftle Vogel
’89, MAE ’96 of Lincoln is vice
president and corporate and
community relations manager
for TierOne Bank. She also
earned a doctor of education
degree from UNL in 2002.
Candy Fernau ’96 of Dallas,
Texas, owns her own company,
Card Diva, that provides credit
card processing, electronic
check guarantee, gift card services and other merchant services.
Bob Warren
’64 of
McMinnville, Oregon, is retired
from Evergreen International
Airlines where he was a pilot
and vice president of flight operations.
Sue Batie ’73 of Cypress,
California, is in the banking
business in Southern California.
She is a long-time officer of the
Southern California Alumni
Association. „
Two alumni elected to NU Board of Regents
T
wo alumni were elected
to the University of
Nebraska Board of
Regents in November.
Bob Phares '62, former
mayor of North Platte, was
elected for a six-year term. He
had been appointed to the board
by Gov. Dave Heineman in
August.
Phares was first elected
mayor of North Platte at the age
of 28 and served two terms from
1969 to 1978. He is currently
14 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
president
of
P h a r e s
Financial
Services Inc.
HE HAS
been past president of the
Bob
League
of
Whitehouse N e b r a s k a
Municipalities
and chair of
North Platte Chamber of
Commerce. He has been a member of the University of
Nebraska President's Council.
Phares received the UNK
Distinguished Alumni Award in
1984.
Bob Whitehouse '67 of
Papillion is a retired educator
who won his first term on the
board. He spent
34 years with
Omaha Public
Schools. When
he retired he
was
Omaha
Bryan
High
School princiBob Phares pal.
Whitehouse
is a past president of Omaha
School
Administrators,
Nebraska High School Sports
Hall of Fame Board of
Directors, Youth Emergency
Services Board of Directors and
a member of the University of
Nebraska President's advisory
committee.
Whitehouse completed a
three-year term on the Alumni
Association Board of Directors
in October. A four-year letter
winner in track and basketball,
Whitehouse was inducted in the
Athletic Hall of Fame in 1988.„
1963
Kathy Kuchar spent 34 years teaching
art at Fort Hays State University in
Kansas before retiring in 2001. She continues to be active in the art world by
teaching art workshops around the country and in her home studio in Hays. Her
artwork is exhibited at Gallery A in Taos,
New Mexico, and at Hand Artes Gallery
in Truchas, New Mexico. Examples of her
work can be seen at www.gallerya.com.
1965
Sarah Jane Day Graham is teaching at
Round Hill Elementary School with the
Broken Bow Public Schools.
1966
Carol Remaly Pohlenz MSE'77 of
Republican City retired in June after 48
years in education. She began her career
teaching in Ansley. She taught in
Republican City and Franklin where she
was also a counselor and media specialist.
Dee Schaad is a professor and chair of
the Art Department at the University of
Indianapolis. He is the 2006 Professor of
the Year.
1967
Dr. Richard Ender retired as professor
emeritus after 28 years at the University
of Alaska-Anchorage. During his career
he was department chair, director of
urban observatory, director of institutional research, chief information officer.
He was a board member of Alaska
Housing Finance Corporation and
Anchorage Telephone Utility. He now
lives in Scottsdale,Arizona.
1968
Al Klaasmeyer is vice president of
Nebraska
Hospital
Association
Subsidiaries in Lincoln. He has been a
hospital administrator for 23 years, most
recently with Community Memorial
Hospital in Syracuse.
Judy Sikes teaches family and consumer
science at Callaway.
1969
Dr. Virginia Wheeless is provost and
vice president of academic
affairs at Texas A&M UniversityCorpus Christi. She had been
dean of the College of Arts and Sciences
at Central Missouri State University.
1970
Carol
Lungrin
received
the
Michaelanean Society Award at the Alpha
Phi International Fraternity's 2006
Convention. The award is presented for
loyalty and support at the local level.
Carol served as president, treasurer and
in several positions of the UNK alumnae
chapter for 13 years. She and her husband, Dick, now live in Mesquite, Nevada.
1971
Dehn Renter of Grand Island is president of the Nebraska chapter of the
National Association of Certified
Valuation Analysts State Chapter
Foundation. Renter has been with
Countryman Associates, Certified Public
Accountants, since 1973 and serves on
the firm's board of directors.
Swanson ’85 first woman to earn
PGA Golf Professional of the Year
K
athy Nelson Swanson
'85, a PGA teaching
professional
at
Minneapolis
Golf
Club,
achieved two major milestones
this fall, including becoming the
first woman in Association history to be named a Section PGA
Golf Professional of the Year.
Swanson was also elected
president of the Minnesota PGA
Section in October, joining
Northern California's Sue Fiscoe
as the only women to hold that
office.
The
Section
presented
Swanson the Golf Professional
of the Year award, the culmination of a career in which she has
served 12 years as Section cochair of the Junior Golf
Committee. She was a finalist
for this year's Section Teacher of
the Year award.
Swanson was a two-time AllAmerican in softball for the
Lopers. In 2000, she was inducted into the UNK Athletic Hall of
Fame. She still holds a number
of school records, including hits
(239), triples (38), total bases
(449) and runs in a career (221).
Although she was a prolific
athlete at Eden Prairie High
School in Minnesota where she
earned an unprecedented 12 letters - four in tennis, four in basketball, two each in softball and
track, she never played golf until
after college, picking up the
game in earnest in 1986, when
she joined her mother in
women's league play at a local
club.
That year, Swanson found
herself out of a job a director of
security at the Carlton Celebrity
Theater in Bloomington because
the theater was to be torn down
to make room for the Mall of
America. She took a part-time
position at Dahlgreen Golf Club.
"I had the opportunity to get
into the golf profession and I
have been hooked on the game
ever since," she said. "I met my
husband in 1987 (Purple Hawk
Country Club head professional
Jonathan Swanson) and it really
began a wonderful career. I have
never had a day when I did not
want to get up and go to work."
Swanson said she was honored and privileged for the honor
that was bestowed on her by the
Section. "I am so proud of all the
600+ members in our section.
We all work together to make
our section one of the best. Golf
has meant so many good things
to my family. All the work is so
very worth it. I am looking forward to the next two years as
president, knowing that our
Minnesota Section PGA board
of directors is comprised of the
best PGA professionals. I feel
lucky to be working together
with such great PGA members. I
dedicated my Golf Professional
of the Year award to my dad
(DeWayne) who died from lung
cancer in 2005 and I wish he
were here today, I know he
CLASS NOTES
1972
Chuck Schwartz of KOOQ-KELN stations in North Platte is secretary and
treasurer of the Nebraska Broadcasters
Association.
1973
Tim Aylward has completed his 22
years as head football coach at Pius X
High School in Lincoln. He is chair of the
physical education department, athletic
director and assistant track coach. He
was named the USA Football Champion
Award winner for Nebraska. His wife,
Gaylene Thies '77, is a medical technologist for Bryan LGH Hospitals. She is the
technical supervisor in charge of point of
care testing for Bryan LGH East and West.
Marla Bauerle-Hill is principal of
Danville High School in Illinois. She began
her career at DHS in 1981 as a home
economics teacher. After her position
was eliminated in a reduction in force at
the end of that school year, she went to
Oakwood High School, where she also
worked primarily as a home economics
teacher until 1992, returning to teach at
DHS in 1994. She was assistant principal
from 2001 to 2004.
1974
Debra Jacobs is principal at Pike High
School in Indianapolis.
1976
Bev Holbein Patterson is a first grade
teacher with Broken Bow Public Schools.
Melvina Clinger Bundy is a fourth and
fifth grade teacher with Broken Bow
Public Schools.
1979
Ron Schneider is the new branch president of FirsTier Bank in Kearney.
1980
Karne Trambly is the K-12 counselor
with Litchfield Public Schools.
1984
Wendel Cass EDS'06 is superintendent and elementary principal with
Wallace Public Schools. He has been a
professional educator for 32 years.
1987
PGA
RECOGNITION:
Kathy Swanson pictured here
with National President of the
PGA Roger Warren was
named Golf Professional of the
Year and president of the
Minnesota Section.
would be very proud."
Swanson's career has also
included
positions
as
Woodhaven Country Club in
Palm Desert, California; Purple
Hawk Country Club, Edinburgh
USA Golf Club and Minneapolis
Golf Club, a private club established in 1917 in St. Louis Park.
The Swansons are parents of
two children, Matthew 11 and
Lauryn 9. „
Kevin Peterson is publisher of the
Wayne Herald.
Philip 'Phip' Ross, an English teacher at
Southeast Community College (SCC) in
Lincoln, has been awarded a Fulbright
Scholar grant to teach composition at
EARTH University in Guacimo, Costa
Rica. Ross will travel to Costa Rica in
April to teach at the university for five
months. Ross has taught at SCC the past
four years.
1988
Judith Blakeman MAE is K-12 music
teacher with Arcadia Public Schools.
Launa Kudrna works for Methodist
Hospital in Omaha as a community counselor. She earned her master's degree
from UNO in clinical social work in 1990.
Her position is funded by the Methodist
Hospital Foundation allowing services to
be offered free of charge.
Terry Wilhelms is administrative services manager with Eakes Office Plus. He
and his wife,Tammy, live in Hastings.They
have three children.
1990
Debra Clark Schilz was elected president of the Independent Insurance
Agents of Nebraska at their fall convention. She is vice president and agency
manager with Western Insurors in
Ogallala.
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
15
CLASS NOTES
✬ ΑΦ ✬ ΑΦ ✬ ΑΦ ✬
The Alpha Phi sorority at UNK was named the Most
Outstanding Collegiate Chapter on a small university campus
during the Alpha Phi International Fraternity's Biennial
Convention in June.The chapter was also recognized for their
excellence in scholarship programming, excellence in financial
management and excellence in public relations.
The Delta Xi chapter at UNK is one of 140 collegiate chapters throughout the United States and Canada.
1991
Dan Schiefelbein is the superintendent at
Walthill Public School. In addition to earning his master's degree from UNK in 1991,
he earned his specialist degree in 2000.
1992
Bob Caldwell was named President/CEO
of Hampton Enterprises Inc./Hampton
Commercial Construction, Inc. in
September. Hampton is one of Lincoln's
oldest and largest companies in commercial
real estate, land development and commercial construction. Caldwell was previously
general counsel for Linweld, one of the
nation's largest independent welding supply
and gas companies. He and his wife, Beth
Krause '93, have a daughter, Annely 3.
Caldwell earned his law degree from UNL
in 1996 and his MBA from UNL in 1998.
Dr. Brent Gage has been named assistant vice provost for enrollment management at Northern Illinois University in
DeKalb. Brent and his wife Andrea have
two sons, Carter and Luke.
1994
Sarah Elizabeth Vaughn lives in the
greater New York City area and is a composer. She recently finished a composition
that was commissioned by Christ's Church
in Rye, New York. Other works have been
published by Santa Barbara Music
Publishing. Her music has won national
acclaim by the ACDA Choral Journal.
Stacie Lundgren Winkelmann is a
trooper with the Nebraska State Patrol
in Lincoln. She and her husband, Phil, an
officer with the Milford Police
Department, were married in 2004.They
live in Milford.
of the KC Olathe operation of Cintas
Corporation. He and his wife, Cari
Kuebler '95, live in Olathe, Kansas.They
have two children, Aidan James and
Bennett Duane.
1996
Brent Estsergard has joined the diversified professionals claims team of Zurich
North America, a division of Zurich
Financial Services group based in Zurich,
Switzerland. He manages veterinary professional liability claims and works in the
Chicago office.
1997
Laura John Christensen has been promoted to E-commerce E-mail and site content manager for Oriental Trading
Company, Inc. She and her husband, Joe
'97, live in Omaha. Joe is a chemist and
supervisor for Novartis Consumer Health.
Tom and Heather Lux Tang '99 of
Colorado Springs, traveled to China in
July to adopt daughter, Ella Meilien. She
was born February 16, 2005 in Yiyang,
Jiangzi.They have three other children, son
Devon, and daughters Kaiya and Miyana.
1998
Corey Santo Bergsten and her husband, Lamar, live in Winona, Kansas,
where Lamar is a teacher at TriPlains
School. Corey is a stay-at-home mother
for their daughter, Lacey Jean, born May 4.
Stephanie Noden Deeds MSE of
Lincoln has been promoted to regional
vice president for Arbonne International,
a health and wellness company.
Cory Dosland is a teacher and coach
with North Platte Public Schools.
Chad Eickhoff is outreach coordinator
with Winneshiek Medical Center in
Decorah, Iowa. He and his wife, Mindy
were married in November 2005.
Nichole Chada Kneep MS'02 is a unit
director and family therapist for
Children's Home Society of South
Dakota working at Black Hills Children's
Home in Rapid City, a residential facility
working with youth ages 3-14 with behavorial and emotional issues. She and her
husband,Tracy, have two sons.
Ryan and Dana Kottich McCabe live
in Papillion where Ryan is a physical therapist and owns a private physical therapy
clinic, Premier Physical Therapy, and Dana
is a physician assistant in ER at Bergan
Mercy Hospital.They have two daughters,
Taylor 3 and Peyton 1.
David McClure of Omaha is an associate attorney with Woods & Aitken LLP, a
law firm in Omaha and Lincoln.
1999
Alison Gitt has been promoted to facility manager for Mecklenburg County
Parks and Recreation Department in
Charlotte, North Carolina.
Tracy Pelster is attending Palmer College
of Chiropractic in Port Orange, Florida.
2000
Mary Ellen Schwab Beshaler is guidance counselor at Callaway Public Schools.
Ron Ready MAE, EDS'05 is 7-12 principal and activities of Callaway Public Schools.
Cory Grint MAE is principal at Sargent
Public Schools.
Annette Moser received her Ph.D.
from UNL in May. She is a visiting assistant professor of chemistry at UNK.
Amanda Serle Renfro is a family and
consumer science teacher at Liberty
Middle School in Missouri. She and her
husband have two-year-old twins, Jocelyn
and Jaxson. Amanda will graduate from
William Woods University in May with an
athletic administration degree.
Mary Billings Senff works at Applied
Underwriters in Omaha. She and her husband,Jeff,were married September 4,2005.
Nancy Spresser Smith teaches kindergarten at Broken Bow Public Schools. She
and her husband, Dustin, have two children, Brandon 10 and Kara 3.
2001
Jay and Melanie Johnson Dostal '00
live in Omaha where Jay is an assistant
principal at Millard North High School
and Melanie is a special education teacher
at Millard South High School. They have
two children, Breanna 3 and Mason 1.
1950’s alums gather in Tennessee
1995
Cara Whited Colvert has been promoted to an underwriting analysts with State
Farm and has relocated to the corporate
headquarters in Bloomington, Illinois.
Laura Steel Ghormley has transferred
to the Office of Ombudsman in
Anchorage after working at the Alaska
Department of Law the past four years.
Newsha Makooi has launched
Exit272.comTM to facilitate free online
advertising. Exit272.com seeks to provide
users a way to connect with their community members regarding services and
items for sale and wanted. Users can post
online ads for free and search for items
and services. Exit272.com does not handle any online transactions and only facilitates community connections.
Jeffrey Mooney has been promoted to
fire captain for the Green Valley Fire
District in Tucson, Arizona. He is the Bshift captain of a ladder company and is
the technical rescue team coordinator.
Ryan Williams is the general manager
16 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
TALKIN’ IN TENNESSEE: A group of UNK alums, who get together every three to five years,
recently renewed old friendships in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The group, hosted this year by Lucy
Hahn, spent four days shopping, dining out and reminiscing.
Those alums from the 1950s who attended were: Back Row: Paul Wagner and Karen Wagner,
Fort Collins, Colorado; Earl Rademacher, Kearney; Al Lybarger, Murietta, California; Don Lewis,
Bloomington, Indiana; Don Welch, Kearney; Middle Row: Bob Hanson, Fort Collins, Colorado;
Duane Freeman and Bev Freeman, Hastings; Addie Lybarger; Joan Rademacher, Dick Hawes,
Hastings; Marcia Welch; Front Row: June Lewis, Jean Hansen, Phyllis Hawes, and Lucy Hahn,
Westbury, New York.
The group chose Estes Park, Colorado, and its Irish-Scottish Festival for the next reunion in
three years. „
CLASS NOTES
What’s happening?
Gordon Eggers MAE is the 7-12
industrial technology teacher with
Litchfield Public Schools.
Lt. James Hill is an aviator in the U.S.
Navy. He is an electronic warfare mission
commander on the EP-3E. He and his
wife, Christina, live in Oak Harbor,
Washington. They have two sons,
Jaymeson 8 and Cameron 5.
Marcus 'Farley' Kloepping has relocated to Des Moines, Iowa, from
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with Henkel
Corporation. In April he was selected for
Henkel's 2005 Sales Leadership
Conference held in St. Thomas.
Zachery VanEiest is a radiation therapist with Mary Lanning Hosptial in
Hastings. He and his wife, Trisha, live in
Doniphan. They a son, Benjamin 1.
2002
GOLDEN CELEBRATION: Three
couples met in
August at Solitude
Mountain Resorts in
Utah to celebrate
their 50th wedding anniversaries. They were all engaged the
same evening at a Phi Tau Gamma fraternity dance and were
married in 1956. They are Jim and Nancy Wise Buterbaugh of
Salt Lake City, Utah, Dayne and Bernie Ecklund Smith of Lone
Tree, Colorado, and Larry and Ally Holtman Ferguson of
Boulder, Colorado. Jim, Dayne and Larry were roommates on
the third floor of Men's Hall. They also were dorm council
members. The inset picture is the Smith wedding with the
Fergusons on the left and the Buterbaughs on the right.
Alumni
Update
First Name
Send your update for UNK Today to: UNK
Alumni Association, Campus Box 21,
Kearney NE 68849-6120 or “sign” our online
guestbook at http://www.unk.edu/alumni
Middle Initial
Street
City
Last Name
Maiden Name
State
Zip+4
Phone
Date of Birth
E-Mail Address
Grad Month & Year
Employer Name
Spouse Name
News
Major/Minor
Occupation
Is he/she a grad of †UNK †UNL †UNO †UNMC
Year
Steve Ortmeier has completed his first
year as a pilot for Mesa Airlines. He flies
United Express and America West
Express out of Chicago. He and his wife,
Tiffany Conley '97, live in San Diego with
their two children, Caden and Tristen.
Rhoda Ottun Woods is an English and
speech teacher with Sargent Public Schools.
2003
Briana Duffy graduated with a bachelor
of science in education degree from Peru
State College in 2005. She is the gifted
and talented facilitator at Lewis and
Clark Middle School in the Omaha Public
School District.
Garrod Fernau is a teacher and coach
with Ansley Public Schools.
Bia Duarte Hyatt is an assistant principal for Crossroads Alternative High
School with Alief High School. She and
her husband live in Sugar Land.
Deependra Rayamajhi graduated in
June from Bellevue University with a
master's degree in computer information
system.
2004
Allison Bowker works for Omaha
Public Schools in the multi-handicapped
primary classroom at Oak Valley
Elementary School.
Matt Jochum and his wife, Amanda
'05, live in Omaha where Matt is assistant
manager at Scheels All Sports and
Amanda is a registered dietitian at HyVee.
Lana Miller Schneider is assistant
manager with Wal-Mart in Moscow,
Idaho. She and her husband, Greg, have
three children, Riley 6, Tyler 3 and
Delaney 1.
Pamela Hilton Snow MA is executive
director of the Nebraska Cultural
Endowment in Omaha.
Janice LaFayette is a second grade
teacher at Druid Hill Elementary school
in Omaha.
Rebecca Roe is K-2 teacher with
Oconto Public Schools.
2005
Erin Arnold is assistant volleyball coach
at UNK.
Derek Buckley is an art teacher at
Lincoln Southwest High School. He and his
wife, Andrea Hiatt '04, live in Lincoln.
Melissa Carbonneau is a kindergarten
teacher at Cedar Elementary, part of the
Beatrice Public School system.
Tamela Jo Smith is a social studies
teacher with Broken Bow Public Schools.
2006
Amber Thompson Brown MSE is K-4
resource teacher with Holdrege Schools.
David Cushing MSE is a middle school
science teacher with Cedar Hollow
School in Grand Island.
Cory Ciccone is a medical school student at Lake Eire College of Osteopathic
Medicine in Bradenton, Florida.
Joe Horky MSE is principal at
Northeast Elementary School in
Kearney.
Tammie Robinson Runions MSE is
an English teacher with Hayes Center
Public Schools. She and her husband,
James, have a daughter, Mollie JoLee.
Chris Schwager is a regional director
for Wal-Mart in Bella Vista, Arkansas.
Shirley Schmidt Squires MAE is a
special education teacher with GordonRushville Schools.
Matthew Sullivan is a law student at
Oklahoma City University School of Law.
Julie Tetschner MSE is a counselor
with Humphrey St. Francis Schools.
Boyd Weller is an officer with the
Kearney Police Department.
Marriages
Kathryn Alt '04, MSE'06 and Brent
Gehring '06 June 24 in Humphrey. They
live in Bellevue where Brent is a business
teacher and coach at Bellevue East and
Kathryn is a speech language pathologist
with Papillion-LaVista Schools.
Megan Anderson '06 and Nathan
Blazek June 10 in Kearney.
Jill Andreasen '05 and Zach Friesen
'05 September 30 in Henderson.
Emmy Arens '05 and Blake Power
November 4 in Ainsworth.
Kaysie Bowman '04 and Travis Haas
December 9 in Kearney.
Mindy Brady '04 and Christopher
Heilman September 3.
Abby Carr '02 and Jason Evans
February 25 in Kearney. They live in
Imperial, Missouri.
Nicole Clark '05 and Josh Weaver July
29 in Gothenburg.
Marcus Donner '05 and Jessica
Loveless June 24 in Madison.
Heather Fries '03 and Trevor Pierce
'02 October 7 in Minden.
Jennifer Glessman '97 and Colin
Sumner April 23 in Las Vegas. Jennifer is
captain on a Hawker jet for Netjets
Aviation. Colin owns an appraisal business in Sacramento where they live.
Misty Herbert '03 and Russel Becker
August 5 in Oahu, Hawaii.
Elizabeth Hoehner '04 and Jeremy
Yilk '05 June 24 in Kearney.
Sandra Hollister '06 and Jason Hawley
May 26 in Castres, St. Lucia.
Rebecca Knapp '96 and Heath Tuttle
December 18 in Mexico. Rebecca is a
sixth grade teacher at Park Middle
School in Lincoln.
Amber Kotschwar '02 and Samuel
Nelson September 30 in Lincoln.
Casey Lewis '01 and Timothy Smith
October 21 in Kearney.
Billie Jo Livermore '05 and Blake
Anderson '06 July 22 in Omaha.
Katie Ludden '05 and Rob Bishop '02
September 9 in Kearney. Katie is a paraeducator for Beatrice Public Schools and
gymnastics director for Beatrice YMCA.
Rob is program director for Beatrice
YMCA.
Sarah Mahlin '94 and Jimmy Feckner
'93 October 14 in Las Vegas. They live in
Citrus Heights, California.
Amber Marshall '04 and Ryan Ross
'04 June 3 in Grand Island.
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
17
CLASS NOTES
UNK Today, official alumni publication of the
University of Nebraska at Kearney is published three times a year by the Alumni
Association, Kearney, Nebraska 68849. Third
class postage paid, Kearney, NE 68847.
Phone: (308) 865-8474
FAX: (308) 865-8999
E-m
mail: [email protected]
Internet: http://www.unk.edu/alumni
BOARD OF
DIRECTORS
OFFICERS
Larry Edwards ’64, President - Fort Collins, CO
Maureen Nickels ’74, President-elect - Chapman
Brenda Christensen ’83, Secretary - Minden
DIRECTORS
TERM EXPIRING 2007
Ronald Cropp ’65 - Kearney
Erik Estes ’01 - Highlands Ranch, CO
Larry Feather ’66 - Grand Junction, CO
Shane Jensen ’96 - Kearney
Keith Jorgensen ’50 - Mission Viejo, CA
Teresa Thomsen Paper ’84 - Iola, KS
Lee Ann Hogins ’82 - Kearney
Rich Rehnberg ’71 - Holdrege
Kelli McBride '04 and Jesse Arens '04
August 12. Kelli teaches family and consumer science at Ainsworth Community
Schools and Jesse is a loan officer for
First National Bank of Ainsworth.
Brian Moritz '00, '04 and Rebekah
Fritzler October 21 in Kearney.
Imogene Murillo '87 and Cameron
Swearingen September 2 in Kearney.
Gale Nichols '04 and Matt Albrecht
'94 June 10. They live in Aurora, Colorado.
Kelly Ondrak '98 and Adam Sortino
Marcy 25 in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
Kelly is a technical writer for CSG
Systems in Omaha.
Julie Ostdiek '05 and Brad Bornemeier
August 19 in Hastings.
Audrey Peterson '06 and Justin
Patterson September 2 in Neligh.
Abby Pinkerton '04 and Chris Clark
November 25 in Lincoln.
Lydia Pochop '06 and Weldon
Loewenstein II '06 May 26 in Kearney.
Sarah Poston '04 and Neil Hammond
June 24.
Troy Powers '92 and Joni Galusha
November 18 in York.
Janah Rimpley '05 and Scott Nickel
July 1 in Kearney.
Jackie Sack '04 and Mike Fitzgerald
'03 May 27 in St. Paul.
Jaime
Schoneberg
'01
and
Christopher Jasmine September 16 in
18 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
Ken Vergith ’78 - Lincoln
TERM EXPIRING 2008
Tammy Adelson Hayden ’90 - Kearney
Greg Shea ’89 - Kearney
Marsha Rodehorst-Wilkerson ’90 - Kearney
Judy Johnson Hall ’64 - Lincoln
Bill O’Neill ’95 - Omaha
Jerry Stine ’67, MSE ’76 - Bertrand
Mary Howington ’62 - Fort Worth, TX
Shelly Marks ’02, MSE ’05 - Atlanta, GA
Christa Boroff Spencer ’88 - Overland Park, KS
EXPIRING 2009
Fred Arnold ’83 - Fairbury
Sue Batie ’73 - Cypress, CA
Candy Fernau ’96 - Dallas, TX
Andy Romatzke, J.D. ’01 - Kearney
Chad Rutar ’97 - Omaha
Deb Schwenka ’76 - Minden
Bob Warren ’64 - McMinnville, OR
Stephanie Hueftle Vogel ’89 - Lincoln
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION STAFF
Jim Rundstrom ’64 Executive Director and Editor
Michelle Widger ‘90 Assistant Director and Assistant Editor
Suzanne Exstrom - Office Associate
Reno, Nevada.
Katherine Semin '06 and Derek
Bailey '04 July 1 in Kearney.
Leroy Sprague '58 and Joan Castlebary
October 21 in Redding, California.
Ashley Stec '06 and Casey Clausen
June 3 in Grand Island.
Angie Stiff '98 and Scott Classen May
20 in Kearney.
Marsha Vodehnal 'MAE'97 and Eric
Edquist June 3 in Grand Island.
Amanda Weir '99 and Kenny Kirby
September 10, 2005. They live in
Wilmington, North Carolina.
Ronda Warford '92 and Lowell
Duerksen June 3 in Kearney.
Amber Westerbeck '05 and Brinton
Strohmyer '06 October 28 in Kearney.
Christina Whitney '01 and Jeffrey
Weber December 21, 2005 in Bellevue.
They live in Columbus, Georgia, where
both are pursuing careers in theatre arts.
Brandon Zavala '00 and Becky Vester
September 9 in Rapid City, South Dakota.
Births
Matthew and Janell Musil Armstrong
'98 of Grand Island are parents of a son,
Thomas Edward, born October 31. They
also have a son Charles.
Mitch and Michele Davis Arnold '00,
MBA'03 of Kearney are parents of a
son, Huston Chance, born August 18.
Ikrom and Stacey Sentelle Artikov
'03 of Des Moines, Iowa, are parents of a
son, Aiden Sanakul, born October 31.
David and Emily Classen Bahl '97 of
Papillion are parents of a son, Bryson
Edward, born October 5. They have two
other children, Jordyn 4 and Broden 2.
Chad and Mary Stegman Baker '92 of
Lincoln are parents of a daughter, Emma
Katherine, born April 21. They also have
two sons, Maximilian 7 and Alexander 4.
Rick '91, MSE'02 and Renee Florell
Bauer '92 of Elm Creek are parents of a
daughter, Ashley Jo, born August 22. Both
are teachers in Elm Creek. They have
three other girls, Justine 9, Allison 6 and
Whitney 4.
Eric '99 and Bridget Ellingson
Bredenkamp '02 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Ivy Carol, born
October 22.
Garrett '99 andAmy Larson Burns '99
of Fremont are parents of a son, Garrison
Joel, born May 2. Garrett is a floor manager at Lou's Sporting Goods in Fremont.
Amy teaches third grade at Bell Field
Elementary. They have two other children,
Jaren Patrick 4 and Hayden Roy 1.
Mark '97 and Holly Waller Carnes
'01 of Kearney are parents of a daughter,
Londyn Vea, born August 23.
Dave and Kiffany Dulitz Conner ’00
of Kearney are parents of a daughter,
Sophia Lee Ann, born May 14. They also
have a son, Hunter.
Miguel and Brenda Scheppers Cortes
'98 of Omaha are parents of a daughter,
Mia Rose, born October 27. They also
have a son, Julius John.
Lucas '97 and Kim Koch Dart '99 of
Kearney are parents of a daughter, Lydia
RaeAnn, born August 29. They also have a
son, Nolan.
Kevin and Andrea Hofts Dzingle '00
of Kearney are parents of a daughter,
Payton Grace, born September 22.
Brad '92 and Lori Ehmke '94 of
Julesburg, Colorado, are parents of a son,
Jace Preston, born July 22. They have two
other sons, Brennan 7 and Jared 4.
Cynthe and Luke Ford '04 of Papillion
are parents of a daughter, Ella Grace,
born September 4. Luke is a teacher at
Papillion LaVista South High School.
Justin '95 and Julie Swanson
Halbgewachs '94 of Kearney are parents of a daughter, Carly Justine, born
November 1.
Stephanie and Brian Hemmer '01 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Carson
Michael, born July 31.
Brad and Lona Poland Henry '04 of
Fort Eustis, Virginia, are parents of a
daughter, Tessa Rae, born October 5.
Forrest '94 and Tanya Peterson
Holoubeck '94, MSE'99 of Kearney
are parents of a son, Zane Henry, born
August 5.
Michelle and Greg Hood '95 of Lincoln
are parents of a son, Sean, born August 8.
Greg is the administrative operations
manager with Nebraska Health and
Human Services System. They also have a
daughter, Danielle 2.
Paul and Adana Moore Horst '95 of
Olathe, Kansas, are parents of a son, Jack
Kenneth, born March 22.
Matt '00 and Stacy Rice Houska '00
of Omaha are parents of a son, Henry
Hunter, born August 7.
Bret and Amanda Deutsch Howard
'01 of Boise, Idaho, are parents of a
daughter, Maizey Ranae, born June 8.
Ben and Michelle Frauendorfer Huls
'94 of Kearney are parents of a daughter,
Katelyn Ann, born September 3.
Dr. Aaron and Elissa Bosley Hurd '98
of Knoxville are parents of a son, Lucas,
born August 7. Dr. Hurd is completing his
surgery residency at University of
Tennessee Medical Center.
Mick and Eileen McDole Jahn '96 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Heath
Alexander, born September 13. They also
have a son, Matthew, and daughters, Sarah
and Courtney.
Traci and Scott Javins '98 of Kearney
are parents of a son, Rylan August, born
September 26.
Casey '92 and Julie White Jensen '90,
MSE'98 of Aurora are parents of a
daughter, Kaylee Sue, born October 9.
Harlan and Alison Peck Jones '93 of
Frisco, Texas, are parents of a daughter,
Jessica Kaye, born March 23. They have
two sons, Trevor 5 and Ryan 4.
Kim and Brett Joneson '92, MAE'01 of
North Platte are parents of a son, Caden
Matthew, born April 24. Brett is a teacher
and coach at North Platte High School.
They also have a son, Cole 9.
Kristina and Brent Karsten '02 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Xander
Louis, born February 2.
Steve '91 and Jody Real Kiburz '92 of
Greeley, Colorado, adopted twins, Isabel
Sophia and Daniel Joseph October 24.
They were born April 8, 2005. Steve
works for Aztech Softward and Jody is a
self-employed speech language pathologist. They have three other children,
Caleb 10, Joshau 9 and Hannah 6.
MOVING?
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UNK Today!
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return to:
UNK Alumni
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Campus Box 21
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68849-6120.
Name
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Phone
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Zip+4
Melissa and Ryan Knapp '02 of Elm
Creek are parents of a daughter, Halle
Renae, born July 24.
Stephanie and Jason Kounovsky '93 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Cody John,
born November 2.
Barry and Shayla Hanke Kriha '94 of
Omaha are parents of a son, Bryce
Anderson, born August 31.
Rusty and Cassandra Halllowell
Lashley '00 of Lincoln are parents of a
son, Lawson Bode, born August 30. They
also have a son, Mitt 2.
Mark '01 and Jennifer Jezbera
Liljehorn '01 of Beatrice are parents of
a son, Isaac Scott, born July 24.
Alan and Jami O'Brien Lind '99 of Tilden
are parents of a son, Jacob Lyle, born June
28.They also have a daughter,Alexis 2.
Marty '05 and Tara McCann Madden
'02 of Bennington are parents of a son,
Tyler Thomas, born August 24.
Dee and Nathan McClenahan '92 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Luke
William, born September 19.
John and Jodi Boughtin Meyer '05 of
Omaha are parents of a daughter, Alaina
Marie, born September 14.
Kristin and Sean Murphy '94 of Lincoln
are parents of a daughter, Makenna Lyn,
born June 10.
Jerry '97 and Connie Jezbera
Neubauer '99 of Kearney are parents
of a son, Fletcher Allen, born July 25.
Danielle and Josh Peisiger '03 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Dylan
Steven, born November 5.
April and Rob Pugsley '98 of Elkhorn
are parents of a son, Colby David, born
October 25.
Susan and Jason Rowling '94 of San
Antonio are parents of a son, Jackson
Alexander, born November 13.
Troy '00 and Janisha Jurjens Ruda '01
of Cozad are parents of a son, Dawson
Amos, born August 1.Troy is the sprayer
marketing rep for Husker Ag Sales of
Lexington. Janisha is a respiratory therapist for Great Plains Regional Medical
Center in North Platte.
Nathan '00 and Tina Madsen Sherrill
'02 of Council Bluffs, Iowa, are parents of
a son, Jeremiah Theodore, born July 25.
Troy and Wendy Willets Shotkoski
'98 of Columbus are parents of a son,
Spencer Joseph, August 4.They also have
a daughter, Emma 2.
John and Tamara Kanode Snider '01
of Kearney are parents of a son, Trayvin
Blaine, born July 30.
Chad and Amy Bogard Softley '01 of
Kearney are parents of a daughter,
Elizabeth, forn April 19.
Jerod '02 and Michelle Troyer Spahr
'02 of Milford are parents of a son, Cole
Christopher, born September 5.
Mike and Heather Sittler Stalder '04
of Beaver City are parents of a daughter,
Laurel Anne, born July 6.
Trent MAE'06 and Karla Falk Steele
'96, MSE'04 of Kearney are parents of a
daughter, Kitt Marydith, born August 15.
Shannon '02 and Charisse Hoops
Stenger '00, EDS'04 of Papillion are
parents of a daughter, Aleah Marie, born
April 21.
Curtis and Amber Abood Taylor '01
of Garland,Texas, are parents of a daughter, Claire Julianne, born September 1.
Austin '06 and Joni Gruntorad
Thornburg '04 of Kearney are parents
of a daughter, Makayla Lea, born
September 23.
Jamie and Daniel Warrington '01 of
Gibbon are parents of a daughter, Isabelle
Rose, born July 24.
Two alumni publish books
T
wo alums have published books.
Dr. Robert Shanks '67 has
released, A Father's Stories
for His Children, A
Christian
Reader
for
Students Grade 5-9. It is
available on Amazon and
Barnes and Noble or through
the publisher Xulon Press in
Florida.
DR. SHANKS, who lives
in Prescott, Arizona, is an
adjunct professor at Northern
Arizona University. He is also
an adjunct professor with
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical
University (ERAU) Global
Security and Intelligence
Gregory and Tracy Olmstead
Weiland '99 of Overton are parents of
a daughter, Emma Jo, born July 10.
Brett and Kristy Hatch Weis '97 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Zachary
Alan, born October 2.
Andy '00 and Robyn Bredenkamp
Weismann '01 of Gibbon are parents
of a son,Tyler Adam, born October 11.
Stacia and Bo Whaley '96 of Kearney
are parents of a daughter, Margaret Mae,
born May 22. They also have a daughter,
Grace, and a son, Cade.
Dana and Jennette White Tompkin
'97 of Wood River are parents of a
daughter, Kaycee Sue, born October 18.
Jennette teaches third grade at Kenesaw
Public School and Dana owns Eclipse
Drafting and Construction.
Kevin and Monica Dow Whitmore '98
of Clay Center are parents of a son, Kaleb
Martin, born May 1. Monica is a personal
banker for First Bank & Trust Co.
Marc '01 and Melissa Wilcoxson
Willis '00 of Kearney are parents of a
daughter, Isabella Louise, born October 8.
Marc is a sales associate with Morton
Buildings. Melissa is a prosecutor/deputy
county attorney for Buffalo County.
Travis and Christine Rupprecht
Winberg '93 of Hazard are parents of a
son, Jesse Robert, born August 24.
Todd '00 and Jennifer Krab Winder
'01 of North Platte are parents of a son,
Logan, born August 4. They also have a
son, Carson 2.
Shannon and Corey Winten '00 of
Kearney are parents of a son, Tyler
Matthew, born October 17.
Stephen and Tami Tully Zamborelli
'96 of Colorado Springs are parents of a
daughter, Lucy Beth, born September 12.
They also have a son,Andrew August.
Deaths
William E. 'Billy' Bohannon '74 of
Omaha died September 5. He was 53.
Dr. Mary Beth Brown ‘73 of
Scottsbluff died July 30. She taught at
Studies Department teaching
international relations and
global policy studies, similar
to what he taught at the USAF
Air War College.
Val Vierk '96 is releasing
her second book about her
father's memoirs from his
time in the U.S. Coast Guard.
It is titled, Sailing the
Troubled Sea - A Nebraska
Boy Goes to War. Her first
book, published in 2005, was
titled Gold Stars and Purple
Hearts - the War Dead of
Ravenna, Nebraska.
Vierk works for the
Department of Sociology,
Geography
and
Earth
Sciences at UNK. „
Gering and was principal at Rawlins,
Wyoming. She was 55.
Kenneth Carlson '36 of Kearney died
Sepember 21. He was a professor emeritus at UNK where he taught industrial
arts for 38 years before retiring in 1982.
He was 92.
Genieve (Sue) Christiansen ’68 of
Ansley died November 26. She was 62.
Martha Wilson Deist '65 of
Longmont, Colorado, died September 12.
She was 90.
Willa Jean 'Billie' Fishburn '50 of Grand
Island died September 11. She was 78
CLASS NOTES
Gary Gillham '73 of Hastings died
September 18. He was 55.
Sgt. Jeffrey Hansen '97 of Cairo died
August 27 from injuries he received in
Iraq. He was 31.
Marcia Mader Johansen '67 of
Dannebrog died October 22. She was 61.
Gene Lammers '62 of Grand Island
died September 6. He was 66.
Lesley MacFarlane Loutzenheiser
'62 of Wahoo died November 14. She
was 95. A career educator, she was the
first librarian at North Platte Junior
College in 1965.
Dr. Dan McPherson of Custer, South
Dakota, died October 15. Dr. McPherson
served as chair of the Department of
Education Administration at UNK from
1982 to 1993. He was 74.
Pamela Jo Watts Meyer '86 of Grand
Island died September 20. She was 42.
Avis Hendrix Nelson '49 of Chadron
died October 14. She was 85.
James Olson '47 of Lincoln died
November 16. He was 82.
Timothy Nelson '59 of Randolph died
November 27. He was a teacher and
Educational Service Unit speech pathologist supervisor. He was 71.
Terrence 'Randy' Pahl '67 of Tempe,
Arizona, died from injuries suffered in a bicycle accident August 13. He had been
employed as a contamination specialist by
TRANSWEST GEOCHEM Labs.He was 61.
Colonel Robert Pruckler DDS of
Cherry Hills Village, Colorado, died
September 4. He was 55.
Janice Jones Schuh '40 of Glendale,
California, died August 12. She was 89.
Jason Smith '04 of Cozad died August
24. He was 29
C. J. 'Cal' Sutherland '38 of Kearney
died October 19. He was a career educator in Kansas, Nevada and Nebrask7a
whose service include serving as an
administrator at Kearney State College.
He was 93.
Deb Caspers Weitzel '95 of Grand
Island died October 30. She was 50. „
TWO Spring 2007
CAREER FAIR EVENTS
m
ALUMNI: Are you an employer
looking to hire?
Are you seeking a different career/job?
Spring Career & Graduate School Fair
Wed., February 21 from 10:00-2:30
Nebraskan Student Union, 2nd Floor
Educator’s Employment Fair
Tues., March 27 from 9:30-2:00
Nebraskan Student Union, 2nd Floor
For information, see UNK Career Services
website at http://careers.unk.edu
or call 308-865-8501
Winter 2006 l UNK Today l
19
20 l
UNK Today l Winter 2006
As the University of Nebraska at Kearney begins
its second century of providing outstanding educational opportunities your support will ensure that continued success.
Your gift can be made to the Chancellor’s Excellence Fund,
Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship Fund, the Alumni
Association General Fund that supports the alumni magazine
UNK Today, alumni activities and alumni programs, or any
other university program or scholarship of your choice.
To make a gift, complete the following information and place it in
an envelope addressed to:
UNK Alumni Association
Campus Box 21, Kearney, NE 68849
Or, for more information, visit:
www.unk.edu/alumni
www.nufoundation.org
Thank you for making a gift to the
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA AT KEARNEY.
Gift amount: ❑ $25
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❑ or other:
This gift should be designated to:
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❑ Other______________________________________________
❑ Gift by Check: Enclosed is my (our) gift of $___________________
Make checks payable to the UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA FOUNDATION.
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Card Number ________________________________ Exp. Date ______________
Cardholder’s Signature ________________________________________________
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Address __________________________________________________________
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Your gift will be directed
to the program you designate.
Please check with your employer
for matching gift opportunities.
308-865-8474
www.unk.edu/alumni
UNK TODAY
University of Nebraska at Kearney
Alumni Association
Kearney, NE 68849-6120
MONA Gallery
JUN KANEKO
lithograph
Museum of Nebraska Art Collection
I
PAID
NON-PROFIT
U.S. POSTAGE
PERMIT NO. 14
KEARNEY, NE 68847
n 1942, Jun Kaneko was
born in Nagoya, Japan where
he studied painting during
his high school years. He came to
the United States in 1963 to continue those studies at Chouinard
Institute of Art when his focus
was drawn to sculptural ceramics
through his introduction to Fred
Marer. He studied with Peter
Voulkos, Paul Soldner, and Jerry
Rothman in California during the
time now defined as the contemporary ceramics movement. The
following decade, Kaneko taught
at some of the nation's leading art
schools including Scripps
College, Cranbrook Academy of
Art, and Rhode Island School of
Design.
Jun established his third studio in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1990
where he primarily works. He
has also created work in several
experimental studios including
European Ceramic Work Center,
Otsuka Omi Ceramic Company,
Fabric Workshop, Bullseye
Glass, and A.S.A.P. He He created series of large-scale sculptures
from 1982-1983 at his Omaha
Project, from 1992-1994 at his
Fremont Project in California,
and currently at his Mission Clay
Project in Kansas. His prolific
roster of diverse work appears in
numerous international solo and
group exhibitions annually. His
work is included in more than 40
museum collections and his has
realized over 25 public art commissions around the world. He
has been honored with national,
state, and organization fellowships and an honorary doctorate
from the Royal College of Art in
London.
The Museum of Nebraska
Art, official collection of the
State of Nebraska, is located at
UNK. The Museum, 2401
Central Avenue, is open to the
public Tuesday through Saturday
from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and
Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. It is
closed major holidays. „