Spring 2016 Saber - Saint Thomas Academy

Transcription

SABER
SAINT THOMAS ACADEMY
SPRING 2016
Cover Story
Cross-disciplines.
Creativity.
Critical thinking.
Collaboration.
Communication.
Fueling Learning Through STEAM
Story on page 1.
From the Headmaster
Teaching new ways to
approach problems
T
“
he public discourse about K-12 education is often narrow and
uninspiring, leaving educators searching for ways to keep the focus
“If we are teaching STEM,
on the entire educational experience and the full development of
we are also inherently
our students.
teaching the arts. For those
In an era where technological advances and scientific breakthroughs
transform the world around us, it is quite understandable why a significant
students who may not be
amount of this discourse has focused on STEM (Science, Technology,
motivated by the math,
Engineering and Mathematics) education. Yet, narrowing the focus only to
the science, or even the
STEM can ignore the impulse to create and the need to nourish the soul and
technology, it may be the
the mind.
Thankfully, Saint Thomas Academy, as a private Catholic school, has the
creative piece that gives
latitude to chart an independent course anchored in our core mission to fully
them the spark they need
develop the young men entrusted to our care. In this issue of Saber, we have
to truly engage.”
highlighted how the Academy has developed opportunities for STEAM
(STEM + the Arts) education. From the nationally recognized EVT program and
Mary Beth Hertz, 2/1/16
Edutopia.org
the new FIRST Tech Challenge team to the digital art classes, our teachers
have helped make STEAM education a core part of the Academy experience.
One of my goals as Headmaster is to find ways to expand these options
for more students in both our middle and high school programs. Our graduates
will be expected to apply, analyze, synthesize, evaluate and create — not just
in college, but in any field of work they choose. STEAM education exposes our
cadets to new ways of approaching problems and will prepare them for a
dynamic future.
Matthew C. Mohs ’90
FEATURES
1
10
Generating some STEAM
Alumnus Profile
IN EVERY ISSUE
1
10
11 Academy News
20 Advancement News
23 Alumni News
27 Class Notes
It is our mission to help each student
discover and develop his potential talents
and abilities by providing an excellent
college-preparatory education that instills
qualities of everlasting value: leadership,
a sense of brotherhood, a strong moral
compass, self-confidence, a faith guided by
the Catholic tradition, and an awareness of
the importance of service to others.
949 Mendota Heights Road
Mendota Heights, MN 55120
11
651-454-4570
651-454-4574 fax
cadets.com
Chemistry teacher Derrick Rink
turns a lesson on how water
molecules bond into an aesthetic
adventure by having students
create their own tie-dye t-shirts.
Cover Story
CROSS-DISCIPLINES CREATIVITY CRITICAL THINKING COLLABORATION COMMUNICATION
STEAM's outside-the-box learning
builds skills for the future
From French students building robots to biology students exploring issues of racism and
ethics, a lot of STEAM-powered learning is going on at Saint Thomas Academy.
Just what is STEAM? It started as STEM, an acronym that
caught hold in the 1990s for the teaching of science and
math — Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics —
in an integrated way to better reflect how these disciplines
actually apply in careers and professions.
In recent years, STEM has morphed to STEAM,
incorporating the “A” for the arts — not just the fine arts,
but the liberal, social and manual arts. At its heart, STEAM
is about finding connections between subject matter and
engaging students in active learning.
“I call STEAM a new way of describing our efforts to
promote more cross-curricular learning,” said David Meyer,
Dean of Academics at Saint Thomas Academy. “STEAM helps
us be more intentional about interdisciplinary opportunities.
Why? Because these activities help equip our students with
the knowledge and abilities needed for their future. It’s about
making learning more relevant and meaningful.”
At the Academy, STEAM manifests itself in different ways
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from class to class and teacher to teacher — there’s no set
template. And, it is found beyond the regular school day.
Many after-school co-curriculars offer invaluable cross-subject
learning opportunities. Whatever their settings, the examples
of STEAM in action featured in this issue of Saber share a
common emphasis.
“A big part of STEAM to me is helping our students
develop the big C’s — creativity, critical thinking, collaboration
and communication — in all subjects. These skills are so
important for our students, not just in college, but once they
join the workforce,” said Sonya Jaworski, chair of the STA
Science Department.
“As educators, we are always trying to find fresh, new
ways to help our students develop these skills, offering
opportunities for them to think outside the box, to develop and
design new solutions to problems, to work in teams and to
express their ideas,” Jaworski said. “These are key for our
students’ future.”
SABER Spring 2016 | 1
ross-disciplines Creativity Critical thinking Collaboration Communica
Cover Story | Academics
FRENCH
Building language skills by doing
It’s time to review verb tenses in preparation for the
semester exam in Level I French. To that end, Caroline Little’s students are building
mini-robots. As they work, they listen to their teacher, follow
instructions and ask questions all in French, using the past,
present and future tenses of verbs.
“I’ve found that getting my students engaged in
hands-on activities in which they have to use the language
is really effective,” she said. “I want my students to think
and speak in French as much as possible. Not only are they
less self-conscious about speaking French when doing a
project, they have fun and enjoy learning. And, of course,
the boys loved making robots!”
Little impresses on her students the importance of
foreign language as part of their education. “While they may
not go on to be a language teacher or a linguist, I want them
to know how important foreign languages are in today’s
global economy,” she said.
Little says teaching French in an all-boys school has
its challenges. “I have to keep their attention, keep them
engaged and keep them excited about learning new verb
tenses and grammar topics,” she said. “Most importantly,
I have to keep them speaking the language.”
Caroline Little and her Level 1
students speak in French while
making tiny robots, like the one
at right named “Geri.”
2 | SABER Spring 2016
cadets.com
ation Cross-disciplines Creativity Critical thinking Collaboration Com
Middle school students James M.
and Zach J., Class of 2021, are
creating a list of characteristics
about invertebrates in Garry
Loufek’s Life Science class.
LIFE SCIENCE AND EARTH SCIENCE
Out of their seats for hands-on science
Garry Loufek well remembers his science classes when he
was in junior high. “The teacher mostly sat at a desk while
we read the textbooks,” he said. “It was pretty boring.”
It’s quite a different scene in Loufek’s Middle School
science classes at STA. “The textbook is a good resource
but we never just sit and read it in class. The boys are out of
their seats and learning by actually doing science,” he said.
For example, in the 8th grade Earth Science course,
students investigate the problem of run-off pollution, with
each boy constructing his own watershed map of the STA
campus. The students then gather samples of lake water
and observe the growth of algae after adding varying
amounts of liquid fertilizer to each sample.
“Boys see first-hand the results of over-fertilizing and,
through their maps, how fertilizer drains into the watershed
and makes its way to rivers and lakes,” he said.
Each year, Middle School students are issued iPads,
which are used constantly in Loufek’s classes for
reference and research.
Loufek’s hands-on approach involves
considerable preparation, but the result is
worth the effort. “The boys come to class
very enthusiastic, asking me, ‘What are we
going to do today?’ ” said Loufek. “They
see how science can be used to address
real-life problems.”
“The textbook is a good resource but we never just sit
and read it in class. The boys are out of their seats
and learning by actually doing science.”
— Garry Loufek, STA science teacher
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Student-issued iPads are used every
day in Middle School classes.
Cover Story | Academics
AP BIOLOGY AND AP ENGLISH
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by author Rebecca
Skloot tells the story of an African-American woman whose
cervical cancer cells were used, without her knowledge or
consent, to create the first known human immortal cell line
for medical research.
Last year, biology teacher Sonya Jaworski and English
teacher Rebecca Benz teamed up to use the bestseller for an
interdisciplinary project with their respective Advanced
Placement (AP)
students.
“My AP
English class is
heavy on fiction,”
said Benz. “I was
looking for a way to
incorporate nonfiction and also to
collaborate with
other staff. So when
Sonya brought up
the idea of working
together with this
Biology teacher Sonya Jaworski
and English teacher Rebecca Benz
book, I was very
teamed up for a cross-disciplinary
intrigued.”
project with their AP students.
After students
in both AP English
and AP Biology classes read the book, the teachers
addressed it from their respective disciplines.
With the AP English students, Jaworski led a discussion
of the science involved in the cell line development and a
hands-on exercise to understand the unique chromozonal
make-up of Lacks’ cells.
Benz engaged the AP Biology class in an analysis of
the book’s literary elements and a discussion of the
significant ethical questions it raises around such issues as
race, poverty and consent.
While students in both classes may have been a bit
skeptical about the unusual project, they quickly became
engaged in discussions both scientific and literary. In fact,
Benz said several of her AP English students said the book
was one of the best they had ever read. “It showed them how
science and literature are connected and how both
disciplines are relevant to their world.”
Rogers Lake, at the edge of the STA campus, is an
Exploring literary and
scientific intersections
Water quality: From testing
to testifying
ecologically healthier lake than it was a decade or so ago.
Years of water quality testing by students in Tony Kinzley’s
Environmental Studies high school class may have
contributed in some small way to that improvement.
“Our student-driven data about Rogers Lake goes back
20 years, from when science teacher Joe Reymann ’57, now
retired, started this effort,” Kinzley said. “It was a genius idea
to engage students in this work and it has been such a great
learning activity for our students.”
Besides collecting and evaluating water samples,
students are involved in calculations of results, graphing and
analyzing results, and creating a PowerPoint presentation of
the year’s findings. Several students are selected annually to
present the results to the Mendota Heights City Council.
Over the years, the research has helped pinpoint
potential trouble spots at the lake. For example, results once
suggested run-off in a certain area. The city conducted its
own investigation and eventually, new curbs and gutters
were installed.
“Every year, the boys take this project very seriously,”
said Kinzley. “They are not just doing real-world science but
effectively communicating its results in a way that nonscientists will understand.”
Students in
Tony Kinzley's
Environmental
Studies class
gather water quality
samples from
Rogers Lake.
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Small-group work in which students jointly tackle
difficult problems is part of the weekly routine in
Erick Westerback's mathematics classes.
MATHEMATICS
Doing math the “big picture” way
In the 1980s, when mathematics teacher Erick
Westerback ’82 was a student at the Academy, solving
a single advanced algebra problem might consume an
entire class period. Today, with graphing calculators and
laptop computers, Westerback can assign as many as
20 such problems in a class session.
“Small-group work is excellent preparation for the work
world where the vast majority of people work in teams...”
tough problems. They share ideas and help each other and
are much more likely to arrive at the right answer,” he said.
“Small-group work is excellent preparation for the work
world where the vast majority of people work in teams, not
just by themselves.”
Despite these changes, math textbooks and penciland-paper work remain part of the pedagogy. “Tests always
include a non-calculator section to make sure the boys
understand the ‘nuts and bolts’ of the math before they tackle
the more difficult problems with the aid of a calculator.”
— Erick Westerback, STA math teacher
“Technology has dramatically changed the way much
of math is taught, and in a good way,” he said. “We have
much more time for discussion, group work and applying
math concepts to different scenarios. Students gain more of
the big picture about the role and importance of
mathematical concepts.”
Several days a week, boys in Westerback’s classes
work in small groups on a particularly challenging problem.
“Working together is a good way for students to tackle these
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“STEAM isn’t really new — we’ve done this type of teaching
integrating STEM subjects with the arts for years. One thing
that has changed is the technology. It’s more user-friendly
and it’s in the hands of our students. From iPads to graphing
calculators to 3D printers, these tech
tools enable students to do more and
go deeper into their projects.”
— Mark Westlake, STA physics teacher
Cover Story | Co-Curriculars
EXPERIMENTAL VEHICLE TEAM
Turning heads in
New York City
Over the summer, STA’s Experimental Vehicle Team (EVT)
gained some press when it earned first place in the
Electric-Solar Powered Division of the 2015 Solar Car
Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway.
But the championship team’s notices really soared in
September, when their solar vehicle took to the streets of
New York City to promote The National Geographic
Channel's new series, Breakthrough, about cutting-edge
scientific developments.
“Of the three teams selected to showcase alternative
energy vehicles as part of the Breakthrough promotion, we
were the only U.S. team and the only one from a high
school,” said Caroline Little, co-moderator of EVT with
Mark Westlake.
Team members tooled around Manhattan in their
sporty car drawing interest from passersby as well as folks
like Tom Cassell of the The Syndicate Project. After a spin
with the cadets, Cassell, a popular Internet blogger, posted
a video blog about his ride that has been viewed by more
than 450,000 subscribers.
Introduced as a co-curricular at STA in 1998, EVT has
grown to be one of the top engineering clubs in the country.
STA’s nationally known Experimental
Vehicle Team challenges budding
engineers to create innovative vehicles.
Elliott Hays, codirector of VISTA
Productions, guides
students in making
sets for productions
like Shrek, at right.
VISTA PRODUCTIONS
Learning to create
theater magic
Creating those on-stage magical moments for VISTA Productions’
theatergoers has more to do with science, technology,
engineering and math than most people in the audience realize.
While young student actors are out front, their fellow stage
crew members are behind the scenes handling both the
mechanics and the aesthetics of lighting, sound, sets, props,
costumes and make-up.
“All sorts of engineering goes into making thrilling moments
on stage. Our kids learn a lot putting on our plays and musicals,”
said Elliott Hays, co-director of VISTA Productions, the joint
after-school theater program of STA and Visitation School.
VISTA engages about 200 boys and girls each year in three
major productions.
Co-director Wendy Short-Hays calls theater “a great
laboratory for applying skills and knowledge from a wide range
of subjects. In creating theater, our young people put to use
much of what they’ve been learning in the classroom.”
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STA’s FIRST Tech Challenge team
celebrates making it to state
competition in its very first year.
FIRST TECH CHALLENGE
Young minds at work for fun
They call themselves Team 9801: Titanium Minds. Their
mission? Create a robot from scratch that can navigate a
game course and beat out droids from other schools. And that
is just what Team 9801 did in their inaugural season of FIRST
Tech Challenge (FTC), a new co-curricular at the Academy.
The group of 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th graders was among
six teams at a recent regional competition to advance to the
FTC state tournament in February.
John Geroux, STA’s AV Coordinator and former science
teacher, who moderates the team with wife Nanette, said FTC
gives cadets the opportunity to use science, technology,
engineering and math skills to build something cool and fun.
The team has been meeting three days a week since
September.
“Our young guys are adept at gaming and the virtual
world, but for many of them, working in the real world with
hand and power tools is totally new,” Geroux said. “They
gain hands-on experience in actually creating something
by learning how to work together to achieve a goal.
This really is a practical application of what
they do every day at the Academy.”
“They gain hands-on experience in actually creating
something by learning how to work together to
achieve a goal.”
— John Geroux, STA AV Coordinator
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The team competes with its
robot at regionals.
Cover Story | Alumni Perspectives
BIOCHEMISTRY
ARCHITECTURE
In lay terms, the career of biochemist Andrew Manning
Ph.D. ’03 revolves around the world of bacteria, both the
microorganisms’ potential for good as well as the risks they
can pose to society.
As an undergraduate at the University of Minnesota,
Manning bioengineered bacteria to efficiently produce plant
chemicals. At Duke University, where he earned his Ph.D. in
microbial biochemistry, his focus was novel bacterial
pathways of antibiotic resistance. Now in postdoctoral work
at the University of Chicago, Manning is exploring the
mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis in crop pathogens —
learning how bacteria interacts with the environment,
specifically infectious disease in plants.
Manning traces his fascination with biochemistry
back to his honors biology class with the late David
Bassett ’62 and honors chemistry with Dr. Lori Pearce. “I
discovered a real interest in those two fields of science and
how they intersected,” he recalled. “They provided the spark
for my career path.”
But Manning says the emphasis on liberal arts at the
Academy was equally important to his development as a
scientist. “The study of world religion, history, English and
the arts all play a critical role for scientists in understanding
society and the world,” he said.
According to Manning, the science of the future is
integrated science, which involves working across various
fields and disciplines. “The scientists of the future need to
be flexible, well-rounded people with a broad understanding
of the world.”
As a senior associate with Albertsson Hansen Architecture in
Minneapolis, Mark Tambornino ’84 has designed everything
from private homes to commercial
properties to large-scale cultural and
institutional projects. He also has taught
aspiring architects in the School of
Architecture at the University of
Minnesota for more than a decade.
In Tambornino’s design studio
class, he routinely invites professionals
across a wide range of disciplines, from
mechanical and electrical engineering to
interior and landscape design, to talk
with students about the collaborative
Mark Tambornino ’84
nature of design.
is a practicing architect
as well as a teacher
“It’s important for my students to
in the University of
understand the connections across the
Minnesota’s School of
various fields and how people come
Architecture.
together in the creative process,” he said.
“Architecture is very cross-disciplinary
and collaborative. The role of the architect
is to orchestrate these talents and blend them into a place
that will enrich people’s lives.”
Tambornino himself started college intent on a degree
in engineering. But he found himself drawn to the liberal arts
and studied the humanities. Eventually, he chose architecture
for its blend of both tracks.
“I enjoy how architecture brings together the hard
sciences and aesthetics in the quest to create something
lasting and meaningful,” he said.
Tambornino credits his education at STA for instilling in
him what he calls “the discipline of learning,” a process that
he says has served him well throughout his career.
“At the Academy, I learned how to learn,” he said. “It
was much more than just acquiring facts; we learned how to
research knowledge, how to connect it to our own world and
how to express what we were learning.”
In classes with teachers like Joe Reymann ’57 and the
late Skip McMahon, the focus was not just on getting the
right answer, Tambornino added.
“It was about understanding how you arrived at the
answer. They taught in a way that we could see the
connections and the possibilities in what we were studying.
Liberal arts essential for
today's scientists
Andrew Manning Ph.D. ’03
is a biochemist doing
postdoctoral work in
bacterial pathogenesis.
Exploring connections
and possibilities
I try to do the same with my students today.”
cadets.com
Lighting designer Tony
Stoeri ’09, left, is in a
master’s program in lighting
design at Indiana University.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
EVT led the way to
his specialization
Photo by Carrie Barton
LIGHTING DESIGN
Thinking like an engineer
and an artist at the
same time
As a Middle School student, Tony Stoeri ’09 took his first
step into the world of theater with a small role in VISTA
Production’s The Miracle Worker. But it was backstage with
the crew where Stoeri’s passion for the dramatic arts really
blossomed — eventually leading him to a career as a
professional lighting designer.
Throughout his years at STA, Stoeri spent countless
after-school hours with VISTA, learning stagecraft and
gaining responsibility with each production. “Early on in my
years with VISTA, Elliott Hays and Wendy Short-Hays gave
me ownership of a lot of tasks, and I thought that was cool,”
he said.
At some point, Stoeri recalled, an older student showed
him the lighting console and how to use it. “I began to see
how important lighting was in the theater,” he said.
“To me, lighting is the ultimate meeting of the left and right
brain. You have to think like an engineer and an artist at the
same time.”
By his senior year at the Academy, Stoeri was
freelancing in the Twin Cities theater community. That year,
he was given full responsibility for scenic and lighting design
and technical direction for the VISTA musical Aida. “That’s
when I really knew I wanted to do this as a career.”
Stoeri has since handled lighting design and lighting
electrical work for many Twin Cities theaters. Today, the
Carleton College graduate is working on a master’s degree in
lighting design at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN.
“Theater started as a fun thing to do after school but
slowly became very important to me,” he said. “I can’t
imagine doing anything else with my life.”
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As a freshman at STA, David Riehm ’07 remembers peering
in the Experimental Vehicle Team (EVT) room after school,
intrigued by the older students working away on a strangelooking vehicle. The
following year, he
made the team, and by
senior year, he was its
co-captain. That year,
the team won the first
National Indoor Electric
Ice Vehicle Challenge.
“Without a doubt,
EVT was pivotal in
turning me on to
chemical engineering,”
said Riehm, a
University of Notre
David Riehm ’07 is a
Dame graduate who is
doctoral student in
chemical engineering
completing a doctorate
at the University of
in chemical engineering
Minnesota.
at the University of
Minnesota.
“EVT was my first real hands-on experience in
engineering. I was very interested in the materials part
of it — which materials could improve the car — which led
to my interest in chemical engineering.” Looking back at his STA days, Riehm says the
communication skills he developed at the Academy
have also served him well.
“So much of a career in science requires
communicating results — writing reports, giving
presentations, speaking at conferences,” he said. “I credit
my teachers at STA with helping me develop good writing
and presentation skills that I use all the time.”
Editor’s note: Other Riehm family members include
brothers Mark ’10, a computer software developer at
Epic Systems, Kevin ’13, a computer science major at
Notre Dame, Joseph ’15, a freshman at Notre Dame
and D. ’17, a junior at STA.
SABER Spring 2016
| 9
Alumnus Profile
Costa and his wife Pam are pictured at Burning Man,
an annual experimental festival in the Nevada desert
that draws many people from Silicon Valley.
Paul Costa ’94
His first job at a struggling company leads to a career with a giant
When Paul Costa ’94 got a job offer from Apple Inc. right
out of college, the company was in a period of decline that
some industry analysts felt could not be reversed.
But the fledgling engineer didn’t hesitate to grab the
opportunity — it was doing something he loved.
It was at Saint Thomas Academy that Costa developed
his fascination with computers, mainly from hanging out long
hours in the school computer lab. He also discovered he
enjoyed science and math. He went on to Marquette University
to study electrical engineering and was paired with a heating
and air conditioning company for a three-year internship that
promised a job after college.
When graduation came, however, Costa realized he didn’t
care much about heating and air conditioning. He cared about
computers. So the same week he graduated, he married his
college girlfriend and headed to California for a job with an
uncertain future.
“It was a scary step to move across the country to join an
unstable company but I loved Apple products. Steve Jobs had
recently returned to the company and I liked what he was trying
to do, so it was an easy decision,” he recalls.
Since then, Costa has been intimately involved in the
engineering and design of products that have made those lean
years at Apple a distant memory. Today Apple is not only a
global technology leader but also one of the world’s most
influential companies.
In his first eight years as a design engineer at the
company, he worked on various products including the Power
Mac G4, Airport Base Station and iMac. In 2008, he was
promoted to hardware engineering manager, overseeing teams
working on the iMac and Apple Thunderbolt Display. Four years
later, he was charged with creating a new hardware engineering
team for Apple TV.
Today, as an Apple senior hardware engineering manager
working on special projects, Costa draws on his extensive list
of engineering specialties — electrical design and system
integration of cost-sensitive, high-volume, all-in-one
computers and embedded systems. He has eight patents to
his credit, including developments focused on mitigating
acoustic noise and environmentally friendly low power modes.
Job tenure with a single company in Silicon Valley rarely
lasts as long as Costa has been with Apple. Costa says he has
stayed in large part because of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.
“Steve used to say that great products reflected the
intersection of technology and the liberal arts,” Costa said.
“He believed that great design involves a direct connection
between the people who make the product and the people
who will use it. That philosophy has been very important
to me.”
Costa grew up in North Oaks and followed his brother
Bill ’86 to Saint Thomas Academy, somewhat reluctantly.
“I wanted to go to the local public school,” he said.
“My parents said I had to go to STA for at least freshman
year, which was a smart thing because by then I didn’t want
to leave.”
He recalls at the outset thinking he wasn’t a very
good student, a perception that began to change with the
influence of teachers like Mark Westlake and the late Mike
Rongitsch and computer lab manager Carole Loufek. “With
their encouragement, I came to believe I could pursue a career
in engineering,” he said. Costa is concerned that many students shy away
from pursuing math and science because of fear. “I think it’s
because we have allowed people to believe that science is
an aptitude and not a learned skill,” said Costa, who lives with
wife Pam and eight-year-old son Edison in the hills outside of
Cupertino, CA, where Apple is headquartered.
“Science and math can be hard and we all have selfdoubt. The best teachers help students overcome that doubt
and develop a belief in themselves. I was fortunate to have
that experience at the Academy.”
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Academy News
STA
Band honors
The annual Veterans Day ceremony featured keynote speaker U.S.
Representative Tom Emmer ’79 (right), and Fleming Alumni Veteran
Award recipients Dennis Wier ’76 and Chris Moritz ’02 (not pictured).
Alumni honored at Veterans Day ceremony
Receiving the Fleming Alumni Veteran Award at the 2015 Veterans Day ceremony
were the following alumni:
Dennis R. Wier, STA Class of 1976, U.S. Air Force
After his graduation from Saint Thomas Academy, Colonel (Ret.) Wier attended
Marquette University where he majored in Biomedical Engineering, graduating in
1981. He completed Officer Training School, as the distinguished graduate, and was
commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1982. He earned his pilot wings in 1983 and
began his career as bomber (B-1), reconnaissance and command and control aircraft
(KC-135) pilot. As a Colonel, he commanded the 55th Operations Group, the largest
operations group in the Air Force and he was the Director of Operations for the B–1B
Flying Training Unit. In his last assignment he served as the military assistant to the
Commander, United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), Offutt AFB, Nebraska.
He is a command pilot with more than 3,600 hours in bomber and recon aircraft.
The following students were
named to the Metro East
All-Conference Band:
J. Boyle ’17, G. Budzius ’19,
N. Chaffee ’16, P. Garry ’17,
D. Lund ’16, B. Sullivan ’16
and J. Weinstein ’18.
Students participating in the
annual South East Metro
Band Directors Association
(SEMBDA) Honor Band were:
J. Bartlett ’20, G. Budzius ’19,
A. Groh ’21, D. Klein ’20,
J. Ogle ’19 and
B. Reppenhagen ’20.
Chris B. Moritz, STA Class of 2002
After his graduation from Saint Thomas Academy, Moritz received a four-year Army
ROTC scholarship and attended the University of Wyoming, where he majored in
Criminal Justice. He graduated and received his commission as a second lieutenant
in 2006. He has served in Iraq and is often deployed around the world.
cadets.com
Academy News
STA
Senior officer promotions
C/COL B. Quinlan ’16 is pictured with Headmaster Matthew Mohs after the promotion
ceremony.
Quinlan named Cadet Colonel
N. Lunsford ’16 was
nominated by LTC DePuglio
for the prestigious
MacArthur Cadet Award.
The criteria for the award
is “the most soldierly
performance by a senior
class cadet considering
academics, athletics and
leadership… qualities
that most emulate the
determination exemplified
by General Douglas
MacArthur…” The award
was presented in January.
B. Quinlan ’16 was named the 108th cadet colonel, taking leadership of the corps of
cadets following the annual promotion ceremony in November.
“Brendan is a motivated, hardworking individual, who leads by example and
motivates others to excel,” said Commandant of Cadets LTC Michael DePuglio (Ret.), U.S.
Army. “His contributions to our student body are important and measurable, and I know
that he will be an effective, respected, community-building leader of the corps of cadets.”
Quinlan has attended Saint Thomas Academy for four years, during which time he
has been actively involved in co-curricular activities, served in leadership and mentoring
roles, and maintained high academic standards. He is the Citation newspaper co-editor,
captain of Model UN Team, a Campus Minister, the Spanish Club co-president, and the
Experimental Vehicle Team co-captain. He also played soccer and served as co-captain his
senior year, participated in Math Team and served as a Peer Mentor. He has maintained a
4.28 GPA while taking five Advanced Placement classes this year and has been an Eagle
Award recipient every year. He received the Sons of the American Revolution award in
2014-15 in recognition of his leadership qualities.
“I never could have imagined the profound and transformational impact Saint
Thomas Academy has had on me the last four years,” Quinlan said. “I am incredibly
indebted to the teachers, staff, coaches and students who have influenced me in my
academic, spiritual and co-curricular life, pushing me always to pursue excellence,
to never quit, and to strive to be a better young man each and every day.”
For college, Quinlan is considering the University of Notre Dame, Stanford University
or Northwestern University.
cadets.com
Brigade Executive Officer
C/LTC N. Lunsford
Lunsford, a resident of Shakopee, has attended STA for four years. After graduation, he will
attend the United States Military Academy at West Point. “The Academy has taught me how to
persevere through difficult times, how to lead others, and most importantly, how to be a man.
STA has elevated me to a level of success — academically, athletically and spiritually — unlike
any other institution. Truly, the Academy has been a life-changing place for me, and a place I call
my home.”
Brigade Chief of Staff
C/LTC W. Borwege
Borwege, a resident of Apple Valley, has attended STA for three years. For college, he is considering
the University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin-Madison or the University of Notre Dame. “For
me, STA is worth much more than just a high school. This incredible institution has instilled values
of independence, leadership, faith and brotherhood within me. Components such as vigorous
academics, high teacher expectations, applied leadership, daily religion classes and amazing friends
have truly played an instrumental part in shaping me into the young man and leader that I am today.”
Battalion Commander
C/LTC A. Allen
Allen, a resident of Inver Grove Heights, has attended STA for four years. He has aspirations to
attend Boston College, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
or Creighton University. “Because of the many hours and days that I have spent at the Academy,
this great institution has become a permanent part of me. From the sports teams to the cocurriculars and clubs, STA has offered me various special opportunities that I would not have
had at any other institution, something that I am truly grateful for.”
Battalion Commander
C/LTC T. D’Agostino
D’Agostino, a resident of Woodbury, has attended STA for four years. He is considering Santa Clara
University, Boston College and Villanova University. “Ever since I stepped foot on the campus, the
Academy has played an instrumental role in shaping me into the man I am today. STA offers rigorous
academics, competitive sports, and unique clubs/activities which have fostered many of the
relationships and skills I hold to this day. I am extremely thankful for the teachers, coaches and STA
community who have dedicated their time to shaping young men into successful leaders for the future.”
Battalion Commander
C/LTC J. Cordero
Cordero, a resident of St. Paul, has attended STA for four years. He will attend the
United States Naval Academy. “I am lucky enough to have attended the Academy and reap the
benefits and experiences it provides. STA has created a unique environment that has enabled me
to develop as a leader, a student and an athlete. The sense of pride and tradition at the Academy
cannot be found at any other school. It is at this school that I have formed a strong moral base,
a demand for excellence and brotherly bonds that will support me for the rest of my life.”
cadets.com
Academy
AcademyNews
News
STA
Class of 2016
military
appointments
and scholarships
W. Sullivan
Naval ROTC (4) Notre Dame
and USAFA
W. Dietz
West Point
J. Cordero
USNA
Cadets try out Google Cardboard virtual reality viewers as part of the Expeditions Pioneer Program.
STA participates in Expeditions Pioneer Program
STA middle school and high school students were among the first in Minnesota to
participate in the Google Expeditions Pioneer Program, which allows teachers to take
their classes on virtual field trips, immersing students in experiences that bring abstract
concepts to life and giving students a deeper understanding of the world beyond the
classroom.
In early March, STA classes experienced destinations including the Galapagos
Islands, the Palace of Versailles, the Great Wall, Machu Pichu, Gettysburg, the moon
and the Roman Ruins. These trips are collections of virtual reality panoramas — 360°
photo spheres, 3D images and video, ambient sounds — annotated with details, points
of interest, and questions that make them easy to integrate into curriculum already used
in schools. The Wildlife Conservation Society, PBS, the American Museum of Natural
History, the Planetary Society and the Palace of Versailles contributed to developing the
curriculum for students.
The Expeditions Pioneer Program is made possible by Google Cardboard, a virtual
reality viewer comprised almost entirely of actual cardboard. Cardboard allows anyone
with a modern smartphone to experience virtual reality.
V. Wren
Naval ROTC (4) U of MN
N. Lunsford
West Point
M. Rudisill
USMA
C. Johnson
Army ROTC 3 year
(SJU or Portland)
Dignitaries were in town in February to announce that the 2016 Medal of Honor Convention will
take place in the Twin Cities, October 4-8, 2016. The convention allows the country’s 77 living
recipients to get together, honor fellow recipients who have passed away and spread a message
of honor. STA Honor Guard members (Z. Apitz ’17 is pictured here) participated in the
announcement and were invited back as part of the convention.
cadets.com
FIRST Tech Challenge team makes it to state
In December, the STA FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Team 9801 Titanium Minds competed in
an all-day qualifying event against 22 other teams for a spot in the FTC state tournament.
The team members were J. Bartlett ’20, T. Finken ’20, E. Hiew ’21, J. Curran ’19,
D. Hau ’19, T. Hopkins ’18, C. Larson ’19, C. McGrath ’19 and F. Pulkrabek ’19. After
completing a judging interview, robot inspections and preliminary testing rounds of their
all-student constructed, wirelessly-controlled 18 inch-cubed robot, the team made it to the
finals of the competition. In a thrilling final match, Team 9801 successfully became one of
the top six teams to go on to the state tournament in February, where the cadets enjoyed
taking part with teams from around the state.
The Academy was privileged to welcome
Admiral William Gortney, one of the
highest-ranking military officials in the
world. The Commander of North
American Aerospace Defense
Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern
Command (USNORTHCOM), Admiral
Gortney shared his experience leading
military operations and commanding
thousands of American and allied
troops. Admiral Gortney invited senior
student leaders to attend a dinner with
local business leaders in Minneapolis, at
which the Honor Guard greeted guests.
B. Philbin ’16 was selected to
perform in the Minnesota
Thespians’ 2016 All State Show,
A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
He played the role of Nick
Bottom in the classic
Shakespearean play. The
production process takes a
year, from auditions to
performance.
Mark your calendar
VISTA spring schedule
Mark these dates on your calendar:
Art Show Reception
Recap of VISTA fine arts shows
The students at Saint Thomas Academy and Visitation School presented
a full array of performances this fall and winter. The fall play, Our Town,
showcased many talented students. The annual Variety Show, Full
Circle Show and musical concerts highlighted the various talents at
both schools. Middle School students at both schools had a great time
performing Mulan, Jr. in February.
cadets.com
»
April 27 @ 7:00 p.m.
VISTA Productions will present the spring musical,
The Wiz:
April 22-23, 29-30 @ 7:30 p.m.
April 24 and May 1 @ 2:00 p.m.
»
»
Band Concert
»
May 6 @ 7:00 p.m.
Middle School Pops Concert
VISTA Pops Concert
»
»
May 19 @ 7:00 p.m.
May 20 @ 7:00 p.m.
Academy News
STA
V. Wren ’16 and partner
N. Brzezinski ’16 took home top
honors at the recent Edina High
School Model United Nations
Conference. The pair successfully
debated and put forward a plan
to help solve social and economic
recovery in post-conflict countries.
As part of the Military Leadership
Senior Speaker series, Tom
Klein ’89 (far left), former STA
teacher and now president of
Hogland Bus Company, and his
business manager Jim Gruber,
instructed seniors about the
expectations of interns and new
managers within the business
world. Their talk included topics
such as effective résumés,
work performance, interviewing
techniques, delegation, being a
team player and problem solving.
SUMMER CAMPS
T. Farrell ’21, pictured here
with Middle School Director
Jamie Jurkovich, qualified to
compete in the state level
competition of the National
Geographic Bee. The
Minnesota State Bee
will be held in April.
STA summer camps
are back!
In addition to the popular Cadet
Camp and LEGO Robotics, Saint
Thomas Academy has partnered
with Visitation School to offer a
wide range of summer activities
for boys and girls of all ages. Art,
swimming, lacrosse, football,
basketball, drones, writing, Jump
Start, crafts and robots are just a
few of the many camps available.
Visit Cadets.com/Camps for the
full list.
cadets.com
In April, the Experimental Vehicle Team (EVT) will travel to the streets of downtown Detroit
for Shell’s three-day annual Eco-marathon. Team members will drive six miles, making
three 30-second stops to emulate city driving. Afterward, judges will determine the winner
based on which of the competing teams’ lithium-battery-powered car used the least
electricity. This year’s event has an international twist — in July, the winner and runner-up
will go to London to compete in Shell’s first Driver’s World Championship.
Admissions Director
John Kenney ’85 created a
new annual Cadet Classic
Basketball Tournament taking
place over Christmas break.
This inaugural year, STA
hosted 82 teams — more than
1,000 participants — from
grades 4-8 throughout the
metro area.
Saint Thomas Academy rifle team members shot well in the 2016 American Legion
Postal Competition, with S. Olson ’18 placing first in the state and proceeding to the
national qualifying round. Other team members, J. Sotamba ’17, S. Frame ’17 and
G. Hoerth ’18, took second, third and sixth in the state, respectively. Overall, the team
placed 17th nationally. At this time, the team has won six state championships and
qualified for nationals.
cadets.com
Divisional winners:
4B — St. Paul
4C — Inver Grove Heights
5B — Burnsville
5C — Mahtomedi
6A — Inver Grove Heights
6B — Rockford
6C — Mendota Heights
7A — St. Paul
7B — St. Paul Slam
7C — Mendota Heights
8A — Eagan
8B — Owatonna
8C — Salvation Army
Academy News
STA sports
The varsity Cross Country team placed third in the conference. The JV team
finished first in the conference.
The varsity Football team had a 7-1 record for the regular season. The team
won the section championship and placed second in the state in Class AAAAA.
Dave Ziebarth retired as head coach after the season and assistant coach Jason
Sedlak ’93 was named head coach. See a team photo from state on
the back cover.
The varsity Soccer team had a 13-3-1 record for the regular season and won the
section championship. In Julius Tangwe’s final game as head coach, the team
placed third in the state in Class A. See a team photo on the back cover.
The Swimming and Diving team placed first in the conference and the
section; the team won the True Team championship. The team then won its fifth
consecutive state Class A championship (for the second time in school history).
W. Sexson ’16 set meet records in the 200 free, the 500 free and the 400 free
relay (with teammates H. Nielsen ’16, E. Ruzicka ’16 and T. Weiss ’16). See a
team photo from state on the back cover.
Swimming and Diving coach John Barnes set a Minnesota record by earning 15
state titles (his first was at Minnetonka).
N. Chaffee ’16 signed with
Harvard to play football.
The Wrestling team sent three wrestlers — D. Rascher ’16, P. Skeps ’19, and
Q. Spiering ’16 — to the Class 2A state tournament. See their photo on the
back cover.
The Hockey team placed second in the conference. The team was seeded #1
in the section and ended the season as section runners-up. B. Jerry ’16 was
named Metro East Conference Player of the Year.
The Basketball team had a regular season record of 7-19. They were seeded #5
in the section and were the section runners-up.
W. Sexson ’16 signed with
University of Denver to swim.
The Alpine Ski team placed second in its section and sixth in the state with
J. Folkman ’20, J. Muske ’18, C. Steel ’21, J. Steel ’18, and J. Zirnhelt ’18
representing the Cadets. See a team photo on the back cover.
The Nordic Ski team placed fifth in the conference and tenth in the section.
The Junior Gold B Team was the league champion and the state champion.
The Junior Gold 16U was the state consolation champion.
G. Dumler ’16 signed with
Xavier to play soccer.
18 | SABER Spring
Summer
2016
2013
cadets.com
STA
Peter Wynia
Meet the Faculty
Started at STA
Fall 2005
Subjects
Honors Chemistry and Physical
Science, moderator of the Middle
School Knowledge Bowl
First Teaching Job
STA
Hobbies
Biking, hiking and gaming
A Favorite Teaching
Moment
“Watching a student who has been
struggling see that a few nights of
tutoring and hard work have paid off
and are reflected in his test scores.”
Peter Wynia at the state Knowledge Bowl with members of
the Class of 2014 — Walker Lee, Chris Huberty, Connor
Plunkett and Alex Kies.
Brush with Fame
“I once saw Mr. Westlake get his photo taken with Kristi Yamaguchi.”
Favorite Experience that deals with your field
“The student dive trip to the Cayman Islands. I went in 2006 and 2007 and am blessed with the
opportunity to go again this summer.”
Why I teach at STA
“I started applying for teaching jobs in the summer of 2005. The first school where I interviewed
said I would have class sizes between 40 and 45 kids. The next place I interviewed was STA and
I was told I’d never have a science class of more than 24 students with an average closer to 18.
It was an easy decision and I can’t imagine a better place to have landed. The friendships I’ve
formed with my colleagues and the quality of our students are among the reasons I’ve stayed.”
Favorite Music
“Anything but country.”
Favorite Vacation Spot
Naples, Florida
Family
Wife Giselle and two young daughters
cadets.com
Advancement News
STA Give Day 2015
A Five Star Sequel!
By David Hottinger ’85, Director of Institutional Advancement and
Mike Maxwell ’84, Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations
O
{
n November 11, 2015, the second-ever STA Give Day
commenced early, ran for hours, and ended big. Once
again STA and our friends at Visitation School dedicated
the day to support each school’s annual fund and formulated a
friendly challenge. Which school could raise the most dollars in a
24-hour period? At stake was the coveted Give Day Trophy and the
claim of victory for being the school that raised the most annual fund dollars and pledges.
In 2014, that honor went to Visitation, but not this time — STA came out on top! Total
giving to the Academy for the 24 hours of generosity exceeded $596,000, an increase from the
$550,000 given in the event’s first year. And together, the two schools combined raised more
than $1.1 million.
The results of STA Give Day have given a tremendous boost to the Aquinas Annual Fund
toward its goal of $1,500,000 for the fiscal year. We are so grateful for this astonishing
outpouring in support of the Academy’s future. The final-results tally showed increases
across the board in numbers of donors and gift sizes and demonstrates the deep
commitment of so many generous people to Saint Thomas Academy. And, in an interesting
related note, the Academy’s total was larger than any of the nonprofit groups taking
part in the annual Minnesota Give to the Max Day (November 12, 2015).
Highlights of the day are featured on the opposite page, but let us make
special note of two classes who did a particularly outstanding job: the
Class of 1985 and the Class of 2015. The Class of
1985 had the most participation with 47 donors
and the Class of 2015 (our youngest
alums) included 28 donors.
Thank you to everyone
who invests in the
Academy, our cadets
and our mission!
)
See our stats
from STA
Give Day 2015
The next STA Give Day
will be November 9, 2016.
cadets.com
STA Give Day 2015 | Generosity by the numbers
More than
$596,000
given or pledged to STA during the 24-hour period!
MORE
THAN
1,380
125
FIRST-TIME
DONORS
MADE A GIFT
donors, including current Saint Thomas Academy students,
generously gave or pledged — a new record for the most gifts
ever made to STA on a single day, week, month or half a year.
Proof there is strength
in numbers
More than 1,255 gifts less than
$1,000 and 133 gifts of
more than $1,000 were made.
The combined “younger alumni” group
of the Classes of 2000-2015 —
126 donors — surpassed
the 78 donors during last year’s
Give Day. A matching gift of
$12,600 was added to their total.
Top 5
Class Ranks
1985 1984 2015 1979 1986 cadets.com
47 donors
($1,985 matching gift for the Class)
43 donors
($1,984 matching gift for the Class)
28 donors
16 donors
15 donors
STA Give Day
donors included
590
Alumni
256
170
Parents
Parents of Alums
104
40
Grandparents
STA Faculty and Staff
Friends of the
31
Academy
15
Retired Faculty
13
Members of the
Board of Trustees
Advancement News
The 51st Annual Saint Thomas Academy
Community Auction
Carry High the Blue and White
April 15-16, 2016
Co-Chairs Mike and Kathleen Ruhland, Burke and Molly Stucker,
and Mark and Beth Waterloo
How can you help with the Auction?
Donate to the Auction
Do you have a time share/vacation home and could donate a
week stay to the Auction? Do you work at a retail store and
could donate a gift card? Do you work at a local restaurant
and could donate a gift card? Do you want to thank STA for your
college-prep education and send us a sweatshirt from your alma mater?
Every level of participation helps the Academy’s cadets and teachers.
Your donation form is on our Web site — cadets.com /auction.
Contribute to the Gala Wine Frenzy
The wildly popular STA Wine Frenzy is back! This area allows
guests to have the opportunity to join in the excitement, win a
spectacular bottle of wine, and contribute to the cause. For our
Frenzy to be successful, we need donations of wine. Whether you have a
bottle of Pinot Gris valued at $10, or a lovely 1998 Bordeaux valued at
PLEASE JOIN US
FOR AUCTION
WEEKEND!
All activities take
place in Flynn Hall
Friday, April 15
• Fun and entertainment for
the entire family
• C
hance to win $1,000 cash
in the Heads and Tails Game
$100, we are accepting all donations. Your donation form is on our
Web site — cadets.com /auction.
Purchase Raffle Tickets
Do not miss out on your chance to win a 27-month lease on a
new 2016 Cherokee Latitude 4x4, made possible by a generous
Saturday, April 16
• Social and catered dinner,
with silent and live auctions
• Buy your tickets at
cadets.com /auction
grant from the Walser Foundation. Second prize is $1,000 cash.
Third prize is an Apple watch. Other opportunities include the Tuition
Raffle, the Gasoline Card Raffle and My Favorite Teacher. Your raffle form
is on our Web site — cadets.com /auction.
The 51st annual Auction is your chance to support the STA
Cadets. Say ‘thank you’ for your education or your son’s
education by contributing to the Auction with a donation
or purchase.
Visit cadets.com /auction
for all the details and
information about
Carry High the Blue
and White.
cadets.com
Alumni News
Nominations open for STA awards
You are invited to nominate someone for one of the annual awards presented by the Academy.
Details about each award and nomination information are available at cadets.com/awards.
The Opus Sancti Thomae Award, presented at the Opus Sancti Thomae dinner in
the fall, was established to honor friends and affiliates of Saint Thomas Academy. This award
recognizes both men and women who have made outstanding contributions to business,
civic, church, educational and professional communities.
Attention Class of 2013!
The Edward G. Hames Alumni Honors Award, presented during Homecoming
Week, seeks to give due recognition to those alumni who have exemplified the ideals of Saint
Thomas Academy, and in doing so distinguished themselves in their communities. Such
alumni enrich the lives of those about them through their personal and family lives, or their
professional occupations, or their civic leadership, or human welfare activities, or their
intellectual or cultural pursuits, or their efforts to advance the goals of the Academy.
The Fleming Alumni Veterans Award, presented during the Veterans Day
ceremony, honors our graduates who have served this nation in our armed forces.
The award is named after Captain Richard Fleming, Class of 1935 and recipient of the
Medal of Honor and our highest decorated graduate.
The STA Athletic Hall of Fame was established to instill and preserve pride in
the rich tradition of Saint Thomas Academy by celebrating the outstanding athletic
accomplishments or contributions to the athletic history and traditions of the Academy.
The induction ceremony takes place during Homecoming Week.
Annual Ft. Snelling
National Cemetery
Spring Clean-Up
STA Networking Opportunity
The STA Alumni Office asks for your help again
sponsored by Bobby Ebert ’99 of Fortune Financial, is an
this spring as we assist the Ft. Snelling
Maintenance staff prepare the grounds for
Memorial Day ceremonies. The date has not
been finalized yet, but our clean-up will take
place the week leading up to Memorial Day. If
You are invited to attend any of the upcoming networking
events for the STA community. This networking series,
opportunity to connect with other STA alumni, parents of
current students and parents of alumni. The quarterly series
allows for the STA community to connect over appetizers in
the privacy and comfort of the Pool & Yacht Club in Lilydale,
MN. Bring your business cards and mingle.
you have questions contact Mike Maxwell ’84
UPCOMING DATES – ALL AT 5:00 PM
at [email protected] or 651-683-1577.
May 18, 2016
November 9, 2016
August 17, 2016
February 15, 2017
cadets.com
Alumni News
Save These Dates!
Make plans to join us for these upcoming events
52nd Annual Saint Thomas
Academy Alumni
Golf Open
2nd Annual Saint Thomas
Academy Sporting
Clays Classic
Monday, June 13
Wednesday, August 24
Southview Country Club
239 Mendota Road East
West St. Paul, MN 55118
11:30 a.m.
Minnesota Horse and Hunt Club
2920 220th St. E.
Prior Lake, MN 55372
A portion of the proceeds benefits the
Alumni Sons Endowed Scholarship Fund.
For more information, please contact
Mike Maxwell ’84, Director of Annual Giving
and Alumni Relations, at [email protected]
or 651-683-1577.
A portion of the proceeds benefits the
More details will be available at
More details will be available at
Cadets.com /ClaysClassic in April.
Cadets.com/AlumniOpen in April.
4th Annual Saint Thomas
Academy Taste of STA
Thursday, October 6
6:00-9:00 p.m.
Flynn Hall – Holtz Gymnasium
FREE
Taste of STA will feature wine, beer and food
from purveyors with a connection to the Academy.
Presented by the Saint Thomas Academy
Alumni Association, Mothers’ Club and
Fathers’ Club.
Make plans to join us for this fun
and casual STA Community Event.
Alumni Sons Endowed Scholarship Fund.
2016 Saint Thomas
Academy Alumni Reunion
Weekend
October 13-15
Planned Events:
• Alumni Memorial Mass
• Alumni Honors Breakfast
• E
dward G. Hames Alumni Honors
Award Presentation
• Alumni Review
• Senior Stag Dinner
• All Alumni Gathering
• C
lass Specific Events for class years
ending in 1 or 6
If your class year ends with a 1 or 6, you are celebrating a
reunion this year. Please contact Mike Maxwell ’84,
Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations,
to assist you in planning your reunion.
cadets.com
Alumni News
Update
Another successful STA internship seminar
In December, the STA Internship Program completed its fifth successful two-day seminar,
providing STA grads with opportunities to interview for summer internships. We had more
Attention
Class of 2015!
than 35 graduates from the Class of 2014 participate this year. Since many STA alumni
attend colleges far beyond the Twin Cities, this opportunity for a summer internship in
Minnesota aims to strengthen their STA connection once they return after college. It also
expands and enhances future career opportunities by providing the significant advantage
of a quality internship experience.
Keep your eyes open for
information about the
2016-17 STA Internship
Program.
cadets.com/Intern
The Saint Thomas Academy Alumni Office thanks the following
people and organizations for helping put together this year’s
internship program:
Professional Skills Day Training
STA Internship Program
Nancy Burke — Career Consultant
Business Partners, continued
Internship Planning Committee
Cummins N Power — Russell Sheaffer, father of
Andrew ’08, David ’11 and Daniel ’14
Chris Lee ’73 — father of Brennan ’09 and Reilly ’11
Franchise Times
Dave Carlson — father of Brock ’14
HighMark Wealth Management — Kurt Altrichter ’10
Jeff Tolke — father of Jackson ’13
Inspiration Medical Technology — Stephen Miller —
George Turner ’79 — Alumni Association President
Bob Moeller ’86 — father of A. ’18
father of A. ’17
Kraus Anderson Construction — Rich Jacobson,
father of Michael ’15
Kurt Altrichter ’10
Al Paterson — father of Edward ’06, William ’11,
A. ’16
Martin & Squires, P.A. — Mike O’Neill ’81
STA Internship Program
Business Partners
Minnesota Medical Specialists — Jim Kane ’87
Metro Urology — Dr. Christopher Knoedler, father of
Chris ’07, Thomas ’09, and Colin ’13
All, Inc. — Ryan Rutzick ’99
Mount Yale Capital Group — John Sabre ’75 and
Mike Sabre ’77
Colliers International –
Northwestern Mutual — The Bohannon Group
Steve Nilsson ’89
Pergola Management LLC — Brian Pergament ’89
Eric Rapp ’86
Saint Thomas Academy
Peter Mork ’85
Scanlan International — Tim Scanlan ’64, father of
Kevin O’Neill ’84, father of D. ’17
Bill Wardwell ’74, father of Michael ’05
Compaction Technologies — Jeff Tolke, father
Russell ’02 and Adam ’07
Wells Fargo Advisors — Chris Lee ’73 — father of
Brennan ’09 and Reilly ’11
of Jackson ’13
@
cadets.com
Could your business provide a summer internship opportunity?
To learn more, please contact Mike Maxwell ’84 at [email protected].
Alumni in the News
John Lenzi ’55 shared the following news
about two sons:
“Jack Lenzi ’79 is back in town after 31 years.
He is working at CHS as vice president of Corporate
Compliance. Welcome home! Jason Lenzi ’88 was
in London in November at the BAFTA (British Academy
Film and Television Arts) Awards for the 35th anniversary
reunion of the Flash Gordon movie. Jason had the
privilege of interviewing the cast onstage, in front of an
audience. A big event for the UK and Flash fans.”
T.J. Feely ’70 was featured in
The Tampa Tribune. The photo caption
reads, “Jesuit and national kicking
coach Tom Feely has coached
hundreds, perhaps thousands, of
youths in various sports, but he is
known especially for his work in football.” Read the full article
at http://tiny.cc /y0qv9x.
Leighton Johnson ’73 has had his second computer
security book published. According to publisher Syngress
Press, “Security Controls Evaluation, Testing, and
Assessment Handbook provides a current and welldeveloped approach to evaluation and testing of security
controls to prove they are functioning correctly in today's IT
systems. This handbook shows how to evaluate, examine
and test installed security controls in the world of threats
and potential breach actions surrounding all industries
and systems.”
John Haugh ’80 was named the CEO of Iconix Brand
Group in New York. "Our board has identified in John a
talented and experienced executive who can focus Iconix on
accelerating organic growth with our portfolio of brands and
on exploring opportunities for new acquisitions," Interim CEO
Peter Cuneo said in a statement.
During its annual convention in January,
members of the Passenger Vessel Association
(PVA) voted Gus Gaspardo ’82 as the
association’s secretary-treasurer. Gaspardo is
Vice President of Padelford Packet Boat Co.
Inc. in St. Paul. The Padelford actively participates in drills
and exercises with local Coast Guard, police and fire
agencies. Gaspardo currently serves on the PVA Board of
Directors, is Chairman of the Regulatory Committee for PVA,
participates in the PVA/Coast Guard Quality Partnership
meetings, and also participates in PVA-sponsored
Congressional Fly-Ins.
Patrick O’Neill ’82 was featured on the cover of the
Irish Gazette in February.
Kevin Lovegreen ’87 published his eighth children's
book – Fishing Frenzy – in his successful series about Lucky
Luke's hunting and fishing adventures.
Ramsey County Attorney John Choi ’88 was presented
with the Minnesota County Attorneys Association Award of
Excellence. The award honors an individual who has engaged
in activities that show a high level of dedication,
professionalism and commitment to public service. The
award also recognizes those who demonstrate extraordinary
leadership, initiative or innovation in the performance of their
duties.
Officer Tom Tanghe ’90 was among the St. Paul officers
who helped children shop for food at Target before
Christmas. He was pictured in a Pioneer Press story about
police officers and firefighters helping out families on the
East Side. Approximately 44 families from two St. Paul
schools were assisted.
Four former STA hockey players coached St. Paul Academy
and Summit School to its first state boys’ hockey tournament
appearance. The coaching staff includes Phil Angell ’01,
Matt Funk ’95, Charlie Hammel ’04 and Eddie
Wynne ’95.
David Raih ’99 was recently
promoted to assistant offensive line
coach for the Green Bay Packers. Read
the story on ESPN.com ( http://tiny.
cc /2vqv 9x ) about his foray into coaching
and the path that led him there.
Edward Gadient ’04, a teacher in the Chicago
Public Schools, was a national finalist in the Igniting
STEAM for Student Innovators Challenge to promote STEAM
projects — science, technology, engineering and math
(STEM) hands-on learning activities that also incorporate the
arts (the A in STEAM) — in classrooms around the country.
Nick Morreale ’15 has signed with Georgetown to
play baseball.
Peter Tufto ’15 has signed with Quinnipiac to
play hockey.
cadets.com
Class Notes
of the 1975 STA State
75
Members
Football Championship team
gathered before the November 14, 2015,
championship game — exactly 40 years
later to the date. Among those reminiscing
about the game were Coach Gerry
Brown ’58, Mike Bann ’77, Tom
Culligan ’77, John Doyle ’76, Mike
Flood ’77, Frank Hamel ’77, Ed
Kieger ’76, Tim McGough ’76 and
Bill Miley ’77.
In 1975, two 10-year-olds from the
82
neighborhood were ball boys for
the STA championship football team. In
1980, the same two lads were co-captains
of the ’80 team that was ranked number one
in the state for eight straight weeks.
Dan Murray ’82 (left) and Dave
Steveken ’82 (right with Gerry
Brown ’58 in center) are also sons of
two alums, Jim Murray ’59 and Dave
Steveken, Sr. ’53. The beat goes on…
58 Gerry Brown ’58 writes: “All the men in the STMA Class of ’58 know
that it is the women who can really get things done.” The wives organized a
class trip to Savannah, GA (led by Lael Fruen and Rita Miller), and the classmates
automatically replied, ‘Yes Dear.’ Thirteen couples (twelve classmates and one “adopted”
alum) made the trip in October and a good time was had by all in the beautiful and
historic city.”
Pictured in front row (L-R): Barb Thompson, Cyndee Smith, Evie Theisen, Paige
Schweizer, Rita Miller, Sandee Pates, Janelle Schlick. Behind (L-R): Fox Thompson,
Bob Schweizer, Gerry Brown, Barb Gleason, Tom Gleason, Jerry Janicke,
Dan Eldredge (partially hidden), Diane Janicke, Kathy Eldredge, Roscoe Black,
Susan Black, Ingrid Peterson, Tom Theisen, John Pates, Terry Miller, Lael
Fruen, Homer McMahon, Dave Fruen, Frank Schlick (holding personalized
dinner menu!).
86
Lou Schaefer opened the
Trail Stop Tavern at 525 Diffley
Road in Eagan, MN. “Stop by if you are in
the area.” www.trailstoptavern.com
Jim Welters ’81 reports: “After 25 years
with Northwest Family Physicians in
Plymouth, I'm excited to join Park Nicollet
Clinic in St. Louis Park at a pilot project
called SmartCare, which attempts a new
model for primary care that is team-based,
uses technology to improve access, and is
price transparent. I attended a talk there
recently given by Mike Schueppert ’81,
a vascular surgeon at PNC.
For my work at NWFP (which was
recognized as one of 11 exemplary primary
care practices in the country by Stanford
University and the Peterson Foundation for
Health Care), I was named Health Care
Practitioner of the Year for 2015 at the
Leaders in Health Care Awards sponsored
by Minnesota Business magazine. I still live
in Plymouth with my wife Joan, college-age
son Jason and dog Otto.”
cadets.com
03
Pictured together (L-R) are
Sean Anderson (U.S. Navy),
Carter Schlank ’10 (U.S. Coast Guard)
and Jeremy Harris (U.S. Navy).
09
01 Christina andwere married in Shelby
Patrick (O’Kane)
Gramith
Township, MI, on April 11, 2015. In May,
both graduated from Midwestern Medical
School in Chicago, IL. They are now in the
first year of their Family Practice Residencies
in Shelby Township.
1st Lt. John Bellomo, USAF
shared: “I moved out to Fairchild
AFB in July to fly the KC-135. Spokane is a
cool area and I'm a part of a great squadron.
I just deployed to the Mideast, so I'll be flying
out here until mid-March, which is a longer
than normal length for us. It should definitely
be a great learning experience for me. Hope
all is well at STA!”
Class Notes
joined the
13
U.S. Marines after graduation.
Jeremiah Kraker
Excerpt of an e-mail he sent to LTC
DePuglio: “I just wanted to get in contact
with you and let you know how my military
career is going so far. After boot camp in
2013 I went to infantry training bn and
became an 0311 rifleman. From there I
went on to Basic Reconnaissance Course
where I earned the mos 0321
Reconnaissance man. I then checked in to
1st Reconnaissance Bn. and joined Force
Company. Since then I have gone to Basic Airborne, SERE, Ranger, and military
freefall school. I have also done extensive amphibious, reconnaissance, and cqb training.
If there is student who comes through and is interested in the military, you could definitely
give them my email. I would be happy to talk to them. God Bless and Semper Fidelis.”
12
Luke and Sam ’15
Johanns at a swim meet
together at Xavier University. The Johanns
brothers competed in the February 2016
Big East Championship and won. This
was a three-peat for the Johnanns boys!
Luke took six gold medals and Sam two.
Every year over Christmas break,
Coach John Barnes hosts an alumni
lacrosse game (pictured) and an
alumni swim meet.
Ski Adventures
Alumni Association President George Turner ’79 and friends travel in the winter
to great powder skiing locations. Any alum interested in going on a trip or two should
contact Turner at [email protected].
, a Rat
15
(freshman) at Virginia Military
Mac Chapman
Institute, came back to STA to help with
quarterly inspection.
@
We want to hear from you! Please send
your contributions to Class Notes via
e-mail to [email protected], via the
Internet at cadets.com (Alumni Online
Community), or by mail, attention
Alumni Office.
(L-R) Joe Slater ’78, Tom
Leighton ’78, Mike Wier ’78,
Bill Bard ’78, Pat Diamond ’78
and Dr. Kevin Hallman ’77 have
been taking ski trips together for about
15 years. This photo is from Snowmass,
CO, in February.
Taking part in a back-country guided
powder skiing trip to British Columbia in
January were (L-R) Dave Norris ’79,
Peter Mork ’85, Kevin
O’Neill ’84, Peter Wilhoit ’85,
Jim Donovan ’84, Will
Stewart ’84, Jon Riley ’89, and
George Turner ’79.
cadets.com
In Memoriam
Please remember in your prayers these classmates and friends of the Academy who recently passed away
[October 13, 2015 to March 1, 2016] or of whose death we were recently notified.
Thomas J. Beck ’57
(December 2015)
Richard A. Klein ’51
(December 2015)
Clifford T. Riordan ’32
(August 2015)
Samuel Wertheimer ’54
(December 2015)
Robert M. Burns ’68
(February 2016)
Richard P. Lynch ’50
(February 2016)
Francis S. Ryan ’43
(October 2015)
Earl V. Wetzel ’65
(February 2016)
Leo J. Carroll ’56
(February 2016)
Raymond B. Malark ’53
(October 2015)
Joseph R. Sexton ’43
(February 2016)
James A. Zachman ’49
(November 2015)
Daniel P. Commers ’59
(November 2015)
Allan R. Markert ’46
(February 2016)
John A. Sherzer ’45
(January 2016)
SHEILA CULLIGAN, mother of
John ’72, Tom ’77 and Paul ’85
Robert M. Doody ’44
(January 2016)
John F. Markert ’46
(December 2015)
Thomas Shukay ’50
(December 2015)
William A. Glendenning ’47
(December 2015)
A. Terry McMenomy, Jr. ’59
(January 2016)
Thomas M. Summers ’59
(November 2015)
KATHLEEN FLYNN, wife of
Terry ’55, mother of Dan ’78,
Pat ’80, Vince ’84 (dec.),
Kevin ’86 and Tim ’88
William E. Healy ’40
(February 2016)
John M. Palmer ’46
(January 2016)
John W. Tackett ’84
(November 2015)
Leighton R. Johnson ’50
(February 2016)
Robert A. Pollmann ’65
(December 2015)
John J. Waite ’45
(December 2015)
Calendar of Events
APRIL
SABER
07 BFI
02
08 Father-Son Banquet
13Alumni Golf Tournament @ Southview
20 Graduation at Cathedral of Saint Paul
Country Club
College Fair at Visitation
22-24 VISTA Spring Musical, The Wiz
27 Archbishop Ireland Review
27
Art Show Reception
28 Mothers Mass and Luncheon
29May 1 VISTA Spring Musical, The Wiz
MAY
06
Spring Band Concert
14
Military Ball
16
Piano Recital
17-27
Senior Service Projects
18
Military Awards
19
Middle School Pops
20 VISTA Pops
24 Closing School Mass
31Senior Academic Awards and
Baccalaureate Mass
cadets.com
JEANNE SCHNELL, wife of
George, mother of Tom ’68 and
Steve ’72
SAINT THOMAS ACADEMY
JUNE
15-16 Community Auction
ROBERT HOBBINS, father of
Brian ’97, Pat ’99 and Teddy ’01
Visit cadets.com for the
complete school calendar.
Saber, a publication of Saint
Thomas Academy, is published
three times a year for alumni,
families and friends of the
Academy. Your comments,
story ideas and suggestions are
welcome. Please call editor
Mary Machgan Culbertson,
Director of Communications,
at 651-683-1532 or email
[email protected].
Feature and Profile writer:
Cynthia Hill
Design and Printing:
Sexton Printing
PHOTO CREDITS
Andy King Photography
Ann Bastiaens
Gerry Brown ’58
Susan Brown
Chuck Nields Photography
Competitive Photography
Jared Fasching ’15
John Geroux III
Lifetouch Photography
Mary Machgan Culbertson
Michael Murray Photography
The Photographers Guild
STA Alumni
SABER
2014 |
STA FamilyWinter
and Friends
29
NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
TWIN CITIES, MN
PERMIT NO. 857
949 Mendota Heights Road
Mendota Heights, MN 55120
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
Snapshots
Cadet athletic teams made their mark at state tournaments this year!
WRESTLING
Congratulations to (L-R)
P. Skeps ’19,
SWIMMING
The Swim/Dive team won the Class A
state championship for the fifth straight
time — earning the Cadets a second
“5peat” in team history.
D. Rascher ’16 and
Q. Spiering ’16 for
wrestling in the state
tournament.
ALPINE SKIING
The Alpine Ski team placed sixth in
the state with J. Folkman ’20,
J. Muske ’18, C. Steel ’21,
J. Steel ’18, and J. Zirnhelt ’18
representing the Cadets.
FOOTBALL
The Football team played in the
2015 Prep Bowl, placing second
in the state in Class AAAAA.
SOCCER
The Soccer team
placed third in the
state in Class A — one
of the highest finishes
in recent years.

Spring 2016 Saber - Saint Thomas Academy

Transcription

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