summer 1999 - UNO Alumni Association

alum
UNO
THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA AT OMAHA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION SUMMER
AT THE
CORE
The Debate Heats Up Over
UNO Academic Requirements
We were there . . .
When the Gala Day Maypole
Dance went ‘round . . .
Streetcars rode past the Science
Building . . .
contents
and the feisty Omaha University
Feathers shook it up
Su mm er 1999
departments
on the cover
around campus...........................4
AT THE CORE
A Tradition of Alumni Giving
The very phrase “core curriculum” calls
to mind an extensive, balanced and
fundamental course of study. Just how
extensive, balanced and fundamental a
core curriculum should be — and
whether the current academic requirements of the University of Nebraska at
Omaha fit that definition — has
become a matter of often hotly debated opinion. (Cover photo by Michael Malone).
PAGE 16
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features
Find out why the new CWS
statue might look familiar.
WAITING GAME 10
Anticipating the start of
UNO women’s soccer.
The 1999 UNO Annual Fund
. (Payable to UNO Annual Fund)
in
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ALUMNI GIVING
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class notes..................................25
Movin’ On Up in the Real World
RISING STAR 14
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• Citation for Alumnus Achievement
• Israel Trip Offered For Alumni
• Outreach to Washington, D.C.
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• Mavs Get New Baseball Coach
• Peter Kiewit Building Opens
• Dorm Update
• Summer Commencement
• Women’s Walk
The career of UNO receiver
MarTay Jenkins heads south.
Card No.
A UNO alumna makes noise
with her first book — at 80.
Address
Signature
City
REACHING
FOR THE STARS
LIP SERVICE 20
Name
State
Zip
Class Notes/Page 25
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
3
around campus
the 14th annual Diet Pepsi/UNO Women’s Walk
for women’s athletics in April.
More than 1,300 women took part in the
event, which has raised more than $1.2 million
dollars for the UNO women’s athletic department.
Spring Commencement
Adds to Alumni Roll
N early 1,000 students — 986, to be exact —
received degrees during the University of
Nebraska at Omaha’s spring commencement
May 8 at Aksarben Coliseum.
Christine Mixan (above) addressed the audience as the student commencement speaker.
Mixan graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in communication/broadcasting
and a minor in speech.
Several community members and university figures were honored during the ceremony
James Suttle, executive vice president and
director of corporate development for HDR Inc.
of Omaha, received the Order of the Tower
Award, UNO’s highest non-academic award. It
is bestowed upon community leaders whose service and/or financial support has made it possible for the university to address academic, cultural and economic needs of the people of Omaha
and Nebraska.
Former UNO faculty member Marion Marsh
Brown, 90 years old and an author of 19 books,
received an honorary doctor of humane letters
degree. JoAnne Lofton, assistant dean of UNO ’ s
College of Public Affairs and Community Service,
received the 1999 Chancellor’s Medal.
Jack Koraleski, a 1972 UNO graduate,
received the UNO Alumni Association’s Citation
for Alumnus Achievement (see story page 6).
Former Maverick All-
American Bob Herold has followed “the Gator” before; 22
years later, he follows him
again.
A standout for the Mavs
during his playing days from
1969 to 1971, Herold was
named head coach of the UNO
baseball program during a
press conference in early June.
He replaces Bob Gates, who
retires July 1 after 23 seasons
and more than 450 wins at
UNO. Herold previously
served as an assistant to Gates
from 1974 to 1977.
“I was majorly excited to try
for this position, but I was trying to temper that with a little
selfishness,” Herold said. “I just wanted to see the same commitment. If
there’s a high expectation for a particular sport, you want the commitment
to go with it, otherwise you’re going to be spinning your wheel sand probably gone in a couple of years.
“So, in a roundabout way, I was asking, ‘Will the commitment match the
expectation?’ And they [UNO Athletic Department] assured me it would.”
Most recently, Herold was a hitting instructor with the Omaha Golden
Spikes (formerly Royals), a Triple A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. He
had served with the K.C. organization in various capacities since 1987. In
1997 he led the Royals’ Class A Lansing team to a league championship.
Herold, culled from a field of more than 70 applicants, also has served as
an assistant coach at Creighton University and the University of Louisville.
He becomes just the third head coach at UNO in the past 50 -plus years.
alum
UNO
EDITOR: Anthony Flott
SUMMER 1999
CONTRIBUTORS: Tim Fitzgerald, Eric Francis, Rich
Kaipust, Don Kohler, Mike Malone, Hugh Reilly,
Nick Schinker, Ted Schlaebitz, Eric Stoakes, Kevin
Warneke.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERS: Chairman of the
Board, Michael Jones; Past Chairman, Michael
De Freece; Chairman-elect Kathleen Olson; Vice
Chairmen, Bruce Bisson, Adrian Minks, Rodney
Oberle, Michele Sperle; Secretary, Stephen
Kleinsmith; Treasurer, Dan Koraleski; President &
CEO, Jim Leslie; Legal Counsel, Deb McLarney.
ALUMNI STAFF: Jim Leslie, President and CEO;
Roxanne Miller, Executive Secretary; Sue
4
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
around campus
In the Gator’s shoes
Gerding, Joyce Sheibal, Kathy Johnson
Records/Alumni Cards; Sheila King, Activities
Coordinator; Greg Trimm, Alumni Center
Manager; Anne Packard Kotlik, Accountant;
Anthony Flott, Editor; Loretta Wirth, Receptionist.
The UNO Alum is published quarterly – Spring, Summer,
Fall and Winter – by the UNO Alumni Association, W.H.
Thompson Alumni Center, UNO, Omaha, NE 68182-0010,
(402) 554-2444, FAX (402) 554-3787 • e-mail address:
[email protected]. • Member, Council for the
Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) • Direct
all inquiries to Editor, W.H. Thompson Alumni Center,
(402) 554-2989 • Send all changes of address to attention of Records • Views expressed through various articles within the magazine do not necessarily reflect the
opinions of the University of Nebraska at Omaha or the
UNO Alumni Association.
TIM FITZGERALD
A projected $150,000 was raised by walkers in
Events & Happenings on the UNO Campus
TIM FITZGERALD
Going the Extra Mile
for the Lady Mavs
Events & Happenings on the UNO Campus
Finishing touches are all that remain for completion of the Peter Kiewit Institute Building at the Aksarben Campus. Faculty and staff
occupied offices in early May in preparation for the fall semester.
Kiewit Institute Building Opens Its Doors
Think you had headaches the last
time you moved? Try on Jim Veiga’s
shoes.
The manager of UNO’s Facilities
Management and Planning, Veiga and
his crew were responsible for moving
more than 225 UNO faculty and staff
into the new Peter Kiewit Institute
Building in early May, an effort that
involved nearly 4,000 packing boxes by
the time the transfer was complete.
By June, most of the heavy work had
been completed, and the home for the
College of Information Science &
Technology (IS&T) was open for business. Classes will be held this fall in the
building, situated on the Aksarben
Campus near 67th & Pacific streets.
But that won’t bring construction
to an end at Aksarben. In March, the
University of Nebraska Board of
Regents approved an agreement with
the Suzanne and Walter Scott
Foundation to build and operate a student housing complex on the site. The
$15 million, four-story residence hall
will house 164 students, primarily
those attending IS&T. A 7,550-squarefoot commons building to house food
services and facilities for conferences,
seminars and other special events also
will be built.
Construction began in June and is
expected to be completed by the fall
2000 semester.
Residence Halls Preparing For First Tenants
Tmany
he UNO campus has always felt like home to
students. This fall, it really will become
home to some when the first tenants occupy
University Village.
Construction of the seven buildings remains on
schedule and the six residence halls that will
house 562 students will be ready for the start of
classes in August.
“ The day University Village opens,” said
Mary Mudd, vice chancellor for
student
affairs, “UNO will become a year-round institution with the students living on campus.”
The nine-month leases will cost each student
$247 plus $30 for furniture rental. Students also
will be responsible for their electricity, telephone
and cable TV charges. Meal plan options will be
available through the Student Center.
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
5
association in action
UNO Alumni As s o c i a t i o n N e w s & I n f o r m a t i o n
News from University Archives
and publicity materials.
University Archives announces the spondence,
Special thanks to Mike Markey,
The UNO Alumni Association bestowed its
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UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
association in action
Homecoming 1999
Koraleski Receives
UNO Citation for
Alumnus Achievement
Citation for Alumnus Achievement on Jack
Koraleski during the university’s spring commencement May 8. The award, which began
in 1949, is presented each year at UNO ’ s
three commencement ceremonies to graduates who have achieved distinction in their
careers. Mike Jones, 1999 UNO Alumni
Association chairman of the board, presented
the citation.
Koraleski received a bachelor’s degree in
business administration from UNO in 1972
and in June of that same year went to work
for Union Pacific Railroad.
He has held a variety
of positions with Union
Pacific since then,
applying his expertise
to areas such as
Information
Technologies, Real
Estate and various
Administrative departments. Also a UNO
MBA graduate (1981),
Koraleski has been conKoraleski
troller of the U.P.
Corporation, executive vice president of
Finance and the chief financial officer responsible for all financial planning and management functions for the railroad’s expansive
23-state system.
In March of this year Koraleski was promoted to executive vice president for
Marketing and Sales. He also is a member of
the Board of Trustees for Union Pacific
Foundation and serves on the Board of
Automated Monitoring and Controls,
International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Union Pacific.
He serves on various boards, including
those for Bridges Investment Fund, Nebraska
Methodist Hospital, the American Institute for
Managing Diversity, and UNO’s College of
Business Administration’s National Advisory
Committee. Koraleski also has been a tireless
worker for the YWCA, having sponsored the
U.P. YWCA campaign drive for the past 10
years and twice serving as co-chair of the
City-wide campaign.
UNO Alumni As s o c i a t i o n N e w s & I n f o r m a t i o n
opening to researchers of materials
documenting the history of the
Nebraska Shakespeare Festival.
Each summer since 1987, the festival has sponsored several performances of two plays by William
Shakespeare. These performances
take place in Elmwood Park, just
south of the UNO campus, and
attract thousands of persons each
year.
The Nebraska Shakespeare
Festival Collection documents the
years 1986 through 1993 and
includes photographs, slides, corre-
Managing Director of the festival,
for transferring these documents to
UNO Archives where they may be
preserved and made accessible.
Les Valentine
University Archives
Your Spirit” and attend UNO Homecoming
Saturday, Sept. 25.
The family-centered festivities begin 11 a.m. at
the W.H. Thompson Alumni Center (67th &
Dodge) with a pre-game picnic/tailgate party.
Activities include games and prizes for children,
an appearance by UNO mascot Durango, band
music, “Arthur the Amazing” and his mystifying
yo-yo, juggling act and balloon animals, free face
painting and Ollie the Trolley rides to Caniglia
Field. The fun continues with defending North
Central Conference champion UNO’s 1 p.m.
game against Morningside at Al F. Caniglia Field.
Cost is $9.95 for adults, $5 for kids 12 and
under. The price includes food, beverages and a
ticket to the game. For more information call
Activities Coordinator Sheila King at (402) 5544802.
Golden Circle Reunion
Cast of “All in the Timing” with Dramatic Arts Chair Bob Welk (far right).
The annual Golden Circle Reunion will be held
on campus at the W.H. Thompson Alumni Center
Friday, Sept. 24. The gathering of Omaha
University graduates from 1949 or before will
include an archives show, entertainment, dinner
and more. For more information, or to reserve a
spot, call Activities Coordinator Sheila King at
(402) 554-4802.
Students Wow Washington
Standing ovations were in order
during April at the Kennedy
Center in Washington, D.C., as a
group of UNO drama students
performed before two sellout
audiences. The students, and their
production of “All in the Timing,”
were chosen in a national competition by the American Theatre
Festival (ATF) to perform in
Washington. Three other schools
also were represented.
Sens. Kerrey and Hagel with UNO
Chancellor Nancy Belck.
The two presentations of
“All in the Timing,” which drew
more than 500 people each night, were the first sell-outs in the 31-year history of ATF at the Kennedy Center. The performances coincided with the
UNO Alumni Association’s first-ever alumni gathering in the capitol area.
About 125 UNO alumni gathered for a reception prior to the second
night’s performance, including Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, a 1971
UNO graduate. Nebraska Senator Bob Kerrey also attended.
Bob Welk, chair of UNO’s dramatic arts department, said the
Washington performances were a wonderful experience for the UNO
performers and crew. “They’ve taken very good care of us and we’ve had
two wonderful audiences,” Welk said. “We’ve been very pleased with our
trip and I think the Kennedy Center has been equally impressed with
what we did.”
So were the UNO alumni in attendance. Nearly 700 UNO graduates
live in the D.C. area. The Washington reception was one of a series of
alumni association visits around the country. Previous visits were made to
Colorado Springs, Denver, Dallas, Phoenix and Kansas City. Future stops
include Chicago, Los Angeles and Minneapolis.
All UNO graduates are encouraged to “Show
Visiting the Holy Land
The UNO Alumni Association and UNO ’ s
International Studies and Programs invite all alumni to join a VIP Millennium Tour of Israel March
18-27, 2000.
Alumni Association President and CEO Jim
Leslie, his wife, Nancy, and former International
Studies director Dr. Richard Freund will host the
tour. The itinerary includes visits to various sites,
including Caesaria, Mount of the Beatitudes,
Megiddo, Capernaum, Nazareth, Qumran,
Masada, Jerusalem, and Bethsaida, site of
From left, Reeder, Volkman, Peters, Eickhoff-Shemek, Sather, Carlson, Hoburg, Fulkerson. UNO’s ongoing archaeological excavation.
The trip will coincide with a visit to Israel by
Pope John Paul VI.
Cost for the VIP Millennium Tour of Israel is
$2,750 per person for double occupancy,
$2,999 single occupancy. The package includes
he UNO Alumni Association presented its third annual Alumni
airfare from Omaha, two meals per day, all
Outstanding Teaching Awards (AOTA) in April to eight faculty members.
entrance fees and transportation within Israel. A
The awards, presented during UNO’s Honors Week, were established
deposit of $300 per person must be made by
in 1997 to honor distinguished teaching in the classroom. Each recipient
Sept. 15 with final payment due Nov. 1.
was chosen by a committee of peers in each college and received a $1,000
Space is limited. For more information, call
award.
(402) 554-2902, or write to: Bethsaida
Excavations Project, UNO, Omaha, NE 68182Receiving 1999 AOTA awards were: Robert Carlson, Communication;
0265.
JoAnn Eickhoff-Shemek, School of Health, Physical Education and
Outstanding Teachers Honored
T
Recreation; Robert Fulkerson, Computer Science; Roger Hoburg,
Chemistry; Kermit Peters, Music; Philip Reeder, Geography-Geology; Paul
Sather, School of Social Work; and David Volkman, Banking and Finance.
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
7
FEATURE
Athletes dream of lining their mantelpieces
with trophies.
For 13 UNO students, that dream has taken a
very different turn:
They will be part of the trophies lining the
mantels of the next 100 Most Valuable Players
of the College World Series, as well as a lifesized bronze statue outside Rosenblatt Stadium
commemorating the 50th anniversary of the
event in Omaha.
The 13 students are physical
education K-12 majors who took
Josie Metal-Corbin’s Dance in the
Elementary Schools class during
the fall 1998 semester. It was during that term that Metal-Corbin
got a call from sculptor John Labja
(pronounced Lie-ba) asking for
dancers to model for a sculpture
had for her Dance in The
Elementary Schools students.
“This was the perfect culminating activity for the class,” she
said.
Instead of dancers from the
company, she volunteered the services of her physical education
majors, whose experiences on the
Familiar Faces
J a n e t
S t y f f e
he was commissioned to create in
honor of the 50th anniversary celebration.
Smaller versions of the sculpture
will be used for the Jack Diesing
Sr. Most Valuable Player trophies
for the next 100 years.
As a former UNO student,
Labja had originally thought of
dancers from the Moving
Company, UNO’s dance company,
as models. When he called MetalCorbin, the company’s director,
she realized the opportunity she
8
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
playing field helped them add an
element of realism to the scenes.
“Being a college athlete, I
know what it is like,” said Brad
Guenther, a senior physical education major from the class.
Labja also found that the student models had the youthful
enthusiasm he was trying to capture in the sculpture.
“They could feel pride in their
dance skills integrated into something relevant to them,” MetalCorbin said of the students. All
TIM FITZGERALD
B y
plan to teach dance or physical education in the future. Many attend the
College World Series whenever possible.
“I’m especially excited because I’m a
big sports fan,” said Russell Howard, a
junior, of the chance to be a part of the
sculpture.
In December of last year, Labja visited
the class with photographer Kent
Behrens, giving the students situations
to enact in groups of four while Behrens
and the students who were not part of
the grouping shot still photographs and
video.
“Everyone had a part,” said MetalCorbin.
It was from those pictures that Labja
drew his inspiration for the piece, but
the students might not immediately recognize themselves in the finished product.
“I used elements of them, features,
but it is not them,” said Labja. “I didn’t
want to limit the piece.”
From the pictures, he made plaster
models of figures in the poses that
would appear in the piece and dressed
them in uniforms to see how the folds
would lay. The plaster then was covered
with clay and the details of the sculpture, such as facial expressions, were
worked out.
The clay then was used to make a
mold for the approximately 1,500
pounds of molten bronze that became
the final sculpture, unveiled outside
Rosenblatt Stadium June 7.
“I hope it will be something everyone
wants to look at,” said Howard.
Labja has involved the students in
the sculpture process. “It was interesting to see how he was going about making it real,” said Carrie Muell, a senior
from the class.
Student Danny McLarty went to
Labja’s downtown Omaha studio in the
days following the photo session to
have his face molded for a facial study
to be used in the sculpture. The class,
now disbanded, was invited to see the
nearly-finished clay model, and Labja
also invited them to stand with him at
the unveiling ceremony.
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
9
SPORTS FEATURE
While Klosterman — the coach —
prepares for the beginning of UNO
women’s soccer by shuffling papers,
signing recruits and scheduling
games for future seasons, Hobbs —
the player — continues to work out
on her own.
UNO hired Klosterman last July to
build the university’s women’s soccer
program from scratch. Klosterman
quickly signed Hobbs, a 1998 graduate of Platteview High, as his first
While Klosterman waits, he wonders what that first game will be like.
He has this vision:
It’s a mild September evening and
he’s invited 1,500 to 2,000 soccer fans
to watch UNO’s debut under the
lights at Omaha’s Tranquility Park.
UNO students are numerous and
noisy; Klosterman’s players look
sharp in their new uniforms.
“The final ingredient is a win,” he
says.
Conference, which will include
three other new teams next year:
“Not to sound arrogant or bragging,
but maybe putting my foot in my
mouth, I think we’ll be competitive
in the NCC right away — and we
plan that.”
l UNO’s style of play: “We tried
to recruit some athletes. We tried to
recruit girls we felt would be the
best athletes to play a style that
would be aggressive both from the
ERIC FRANCIS
At least Don Klosterman and Katie Hobbs have each other.
Together, they’re the first — and only — members of UNO’s women’s
soccer program. Together, they’re willing to wait for something they
know will be quite good.
Waiting Game
B y
K e v i n
W a r n e k e
recruit.
Then, they began to play the waiting game.
Klosterman, formerly head girls
soccer coach at Millard South High
School, admits he’s become a little
impatient during his 14-month wait
for UNO’s Sept. 1 debut. “I’m really
very anxious and, at times, frustrated
because what I’ve done for so many
years I’m not doing: coaching.”
But then he adds: “I don’t see how
it could have been done any other
way — starting a program without
having a full year to get things
going.”
Hobbs, a freshman at UNO, is
spending her year studying, running
and lifting weights. Still, she can’t
help but be envious of UNO’s other
soccer recruits — who are still in high
school. “They’re playing and I’m
not,” says Hobbs, who will have four
years of eligibility. “I’m nervous
about how I’ll do, not how the team
will do.”
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UNO ALUM
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UNO
SPRING 1999
SUMMER
1999
Whether Klosterman’s vision is
folly won’t be known until his
Maverick squad battles Creighton
University’s women’s soccer team.
Regardless of the weather, the attendance and the outcome, Klosterman
can’t wait.
He’s spent the past year scheduling
opponents, recruiting local talent and
handling the little details that come
with starting something new:
Choosing office furniture, holding
summer clinics and selecting uniforms.
He’s also talking up what can and
will be when soccer comes to UNO:
l UNO’s Sept. 1 opponent,
Creighton University: “It’s perfect. It’s
natural. I knew from the beginning if
we got them on the schedule it would
be instant interest by the community.
We’ve got nothing to lose; they do.
I’ve said it publicly at a dinner. The
Creighton coaches were there. I
thanked them.”
l Competing in the North Central
WINTER
defending and attacking standpoint.
We would like to be a team that will
be able to attack, that’s exciting. Even
though it’s going to be our first year,
we’re not going to say maybe we
should defend and win games 1-0.”
l His approach to recruiting: “We
want to get kids from this area. We
want to stay local. We want to stay
regional. I hope it’s always going to
be that at least 60 percent of our team
is from Nebraska.”
l His desire to coach at UNO: “I
really had a great situation at Millard
South. I think what swayed me was
that over the last three to four years
how positive things have been at
UNO.”
l The response from the community: “Fabulous. Just incredible. My
opinion, the community has been
waiting for this kind of program, a
program that’s saying to them ‘We
want your girls.’ We want the Omaha
girls, the Nebraska girls to come
here.”
Cherri Mankenburg, associate athletic director, predicts the community
will embrace UNO soccer in a fashion
similar to the way it welcomed another recent addition to the Maverick
athletic program. “We feel this town
is as soccer crazy as it is ice hockey
crazy.”
Credit UNO’s hockey team with an
assist for the emergence of Maverick
soccer. Klosterman isn’t shy about
telling recruits, their parents and anyone else who will listen: He loves
hockey.
Hockey at UNO, because of gender
equity, means four new women’s programs: swimming and diving, tennis,
golf and soccer. The success of UNO’s
football and volleyball teams has
increased interest in Maverick athletics as well.
Jessie Butler looked at Southwest
Missouri State, Central Missouri State,
Rockhurst College and others before
settling on UNO. The midfielder from
Millard North High says she was
impressed with what she saw at
UNO: the training room, weight room
and dormitories.
She’s also impressed with what she
didn’t see. Klosterman took Butler to
the Ak-Sar-Ben property and asked
her to use her imagination.
Sometime next season, UNO will
play its first home game on its home
field. Klosterman says he’s excited
about the prospect of his Maverick
squad playing so close to campus.
The Maverick home field runs
north and south, perpendicular to the
Ak-Sar-Ben grandstand. Two UNO
recreational fields are next door. The
field, Klosterman says, will grow as
the program matures. For now, green
grass, bleachers and scoreboards will
suffice. Lights and more bleachers
will come in time. A booster club has
promised to help.
Klosterman expects to field a team
of 22 next September, including 15
recruits. He expects to see 35 to 40
players try out for the team.
“My phone keeps ringing,” he says.
“Maybe we’ll have even more.”
Soccer Like Swimming
Todd Samland knows what Don Klosterman must be feeling. Sort of. While Samland
worked as UNO’s swimming and diving coach for 12 months before his squad first competed, he still had a distraction.
While he built UNO ’ s p rogram, he continued to serve as director of the university’s
Maverick Master’s swim program.
“My situation wasn’t the same,” Samland says. “Yet, it wa s . ”
Samland had nothing but praise for the way Klosterman is building UNO ’ s wo m e n ’ s
soccer program. He’s building interest while he talks up the program. “People are really giving our university a look. ”
SPRING 1999
SUMMER
1999
UNO
UNO ALUM
ALUM
11
11
PROFILE FEATURE
When the phone rings and the caller is Jerry
Jones, it's not your ordinary Sunday in
Waterloo, Iowa.
Jones, the flamboyant owner of the Dallas
Cowboys, could probably own the city by writing out a single check. But Jones wasn't calling
to close one of his million-dollar deals.
He was calling to tell MarTay
Jenkins that he was on the verge of
becoming a Dallas Cowboy.
It was April 18; the second day of
the NFL draft. And a day Jenkins
won't soon forget.
"I was talking to him in the five
minutes they had on the clock,"
he has to do. He knows he has some
talent, but he also knows he has to
develop some skills to play at the
next level. If he
knows that going in, then he has a
chance of doing it."
Jenkins developed as a pro prospect after coming to the University of
Rising Star
R i c h
K a i p u s t
Jenkins said. "He asked me if I was
healthy and if I was ready to be a
Cowboy, then they picked me next."
Jenkins, a speedy wide receiver,
was the first UNO player taken in the
National Football League draft in 11
years when Dallas selected him in the
sixth round. He took his first step
toward converting from Maverick to
Cowboy when he attended the team's
minicamp for rookies and free agents
on the first weekend in May.
Now Jenkins' goal is to become the
first former Maverick since Brad
Beckman to appear in an NFL game.
Beckman, a seventh-round pick by
Minnesota in 1988, broke in with the
Atlanta Falcons in 1989 before being
killed later that season in an automobile accident.
"He's absolutely keeping a great
perspective on it," UNO Coach Pat
Behrns said. "He knows exactly what
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SUMMER
1999
Nebraska at Omaha in the spring of
1995, transferring after a year and a
half at North Iowa Community
College. Sidetracked once by a broken arm and once by a major knee
injury, the 6-foot, 203-pounder managed to fight his way back and realize at least the start of his dream.
Now his foot is in the NFL doorway. "The hard part is yet to come,"
Jenkins said. "I've still got to make
the roster. I've got to go out there
and definitely make the team. I've
got to prove myself."
Jenkins was the 21st receiver taken
and the 193rd pick overall in the
draft. Dallas took another receiver
before him, fourth-round pick Wane
McGarity of Texas. Overall, Jenkins
was one of just 13 players drafted
from NCAA Division II schools.
"We thought he was a good competitor," said Walter Juliff, the
WINTER
TED SCHLAEBITZ
B y
Cowboys' assistant director of college
and pro scouting. "When he went to
places like the Blue-Gray Game and the
NFL Combine — where the competition was mostly Division I — we
thought he handled that challenge well.
"It's hard sometimes for a Division
II kid to come to an all-star game
because the ball arrives a little
quicker and the defensive backs
close a little quicker than what
they're used to. Now it's going to be
even a hundred times faster on his
next jump, because you're talking
Troy Aikman throwing the ball and
guys like Deion Sanders covering
him."
Jenkins knows about Dallas stars
like Aikman, Sanders and Emmitt
Smith, and plenty of Cowboys
before them. He grew up in
Waterloo, Iowa, with Dallas as his
favorite pro football team.
Now he's willing to do anything
he has to do to join them.
"I would venture to say the first
place anybody sees him will be on
kickoff coverage or kickoff return
teams, or punt return or punt coverage," Behrns said. "To me, that's the
best way of staying around early."
It might seem like dirty work, but
Jenkins will roll up his sleeves as
necessary. Jenkins played on several
special teams with the Mavericks.
"Everybody has to make the team,"
he said. "Therefore, I feel like I have
to do something extra, and that definitely means being on every special
team. But I still want to try to do my
thing at receiver.
"This is totally different. This is a
business now and I realize that. If
you go in there slacking, you're
going to get cut. If you had a few
bad days of practice at UNO, the
worst thing is you maybe fell from
the first team to the second team."
Jenkins had mostly good days at
UNO. As a junior in 1996, he made
the All-North Central Conference
team after catching 36 passes for 848
yards and eight touchdowns. He
was the big-play threat teams ached
to have at the Division II level.
He went into the 1997 season with
expectations beyond what is normal
at UNO. Over the summer, he had
posted a 4.39-second time in the 40yard dash. Professional scouts started flooding in before the season and
there already were some predictions
about him emerging as an NFL draft
surprise in 1998.
Less than two quarters into the
1997 season, however, Jenkins ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in
his left knee and was finished for the
year. At best, doctors said, it would be
eight months before he was 100 percent again.
"When I hurt the knee," Jenkins
said, "I had a lot more work to do to
get back to where I was."
Jenkins returned from the injury
and redshirt season to lead UNO in
receiving again last fall, catching 31
passes for 572 yards. When he went
to the NFL Combine in February and
ran well and stood up to every possible test on his
knee, it brought him the second
chance he needed.
And the call from Jones.
Now it's mostly up to Jenkins, who
headed to Dallas on May 15 to start
working out with Cowboys personnel. Rookies and free agents go
through another minicamp in June
before the Cowboys all report in July.
UNO has sent nearly two dozen players into pro football over the years,
including current Athletic Director
Bob Danenhauer, who played briefly
for the Seattle Seahawks. Among
those with memorable careers were
Rod Kush, Marlin Briscoe and Joe
Arenas.
Jenkins knows it's another world.
One minor brush with the law late
last season was enough to tell him he
can't afford another one.
"Once you get to that level, your
lifestyle is going to change," Jenkins
said. "You definitely have got to be a
lot more careful. Being on the professional level, your whole life is under a
microscope. People are waiting for
you to do something wrong. But I'm
still going to be pretty much the same
person."
A few years from now, Jenkins
hopes to have some great stories to
tell his 5-year-old son, DeMar. "He
kind of knows Dallas Cowboys if he
sees it on TV, but I don't think he
knows what it's all about right now,"
Jenkins said. "But if you ask him his
two favorite teams, it's the Mavericks
and the Cowboys."
SPRING 1999
SUMMER
1999
UNO
UNO ALUM
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13
FACULTY PROFILE
Chuck Powell of Omaha walked proudly last
week in Berlin among former pilots who saved
the city and its people 50 years ago during the
first engagement of the Cold War.
The Berlin Airlift was the biggest in history.
There's been nothing like it before or since.
Powell, a gerontology professor at
the University of Nebraska at Omaha,
was honored Wednesday with about
300 others who participated in the airlift against a Soviet blockade of land
Germany when I reached Powell at
the Hotel Berlin. Still wide awake, he
said the ceremony had touched him.
"I got a little choked up," he said.
"My country has done some stupid
Saving Berlin
B y
M i k e
K e l l e y
and water routes. The anniversary
event brought back memories.
"I landed a load of coal at
Tempelhof (Airport) on May 12, 1949
- just a dumb kid doing something
they said couldn't be done."
Later that day, the Soviets
announced they were lifting the
blockade. To be safe, fliers brought in
coal, food and other supplies through
September.
Powell and his mates, along with
Britain's Royal Air Force, possibly had
headed off World War III. In all,
277,000 flights covering 92 million
miles carried in 2.3 million tons of
cargo - to the largest city of a recently
vanquished enemy.
Pilots took off in C-47s every three
minutes, often in bad weather. They
had to hold a steady speed, landing
within a 30-second scheduled window, or turn around and go back.
Thirty-one planes crashed.
Last week, it was nearly 2 a.m. in
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things, but this was one of the things
we did right. We saved a city and
didn't fire a shot."
Powell grew up in the east Texas
town of Tyler and became a Navy
pilot in World War II, flying in the
Pacific. He also flew during the
Korean War.
After World War II, when Germany
was divided into zones of military
occupation, the Soviet Union's Josef
Stalin was intent on reducing
Germany to a weak, agrarian society.
The Western Allies wanted the country to rebuild itself and avoid a repetition of the post-World War I Treaty of
Versailles, which caused chaos and
led to the rise of Adolf Hitler.
The Soviets blockaded surface
transportation and cut off electricity
from the outside. Army Gen. Lucius
D. Clay, U.S. military governor, called
Lt. Gen. Curtis E. LeMay, commander
of U.S. air forces in Europe and soon
to head the Strategic Air Command
TIM FITZGERALD
Reprinted with permission from the Omaha World-Herald
near Omaha.
"Curt," Clay said, "we need to generate power in Berlin. Can you haul
coal?"
LeMay replied: "We can haul
almost anything. How much coal do
you want?"
The United States called it
Operation Vittles, the Brits called it
Operation Knicker and then
Operation Plainfare. By whatever
name, it was an incredible effort.
Chuck Powell was one of the pilots.
"It wasn't frightening," he said.
"After you went through World War
II, nothing much scared you. But
nobody, especially the Russians,
thought we could do it. I had my
own doubts."
Berlin has played a key role in the
second half of the century. The
Soviets put up a wall. President John
Kennedy stirred thousands there in
1962, proclaiming, "Ich bin ein
Berliner."
The wall stood as a symbol of
world tensions, and when the Soviet
Union collapsed in 1989, the wall fell.
Powell came to Omaha and Offutt
Air Force Base in 1964, retiring as a
commander in 1971. He soon began
teaching at UNO, still doing so at 78 -
a gerontology professor who says
chronological age is a poor measure
of anything, especially retirement.
Some of the old soldiers honored
by the German government, Powell
said, are not in good shape, but their
heroism was remembered by today's
residents of Berlin, a thriving city said
to be the fastest-changing in Europe.
Powell and his friends walked into
Olympic Stadium through the same
gate that Jesse Owens used in winning four gold medals in 1936. About
35,000 people gave the heroes of the
Berlin Airlift a standing ovation.
Bands played dramatic music, fire-
works exploded in tribute and joy.
Old men accepted flowers from
German children and felt lumps in
their throats.
The airlift had saved the west of
Berlin, preserved the freedom of people there and shown that the victors
of war would lend a helping hand.
The Berlin Wall and Checkpoint
Charlie are gone, but guys named
Chuck can stand tall. Powell said the
airlift was the most important work
of his life.
As for the ceremony, he said simply: "You would have been proud of
your country."
SUMMER 1999
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15
C O V E R
S T O R Y
As the old children’s song lyric indicates, “reading, writing and ‘rithmetic”
constitute the base of every pupil’s preliminary education.
But when it comes to an institute of higher learning, the very phrase
“core curriculum” calls to mind an extensive, balanced and fundamental
course of study. Just how extensive, balanced and fundamental a core curriculum should be — and whether the current academic requirements of
the University of Nebraska at Omaha fit that definition — has become a
matter of often hotly debated opinion.
During a University of Nebraska
Regents meeting in Lincoln earlier this
year, Regent Drew Miller of Papillion
let loose with a string of adjectives
describing UNO’s core curriculum,
calling it a weak effort at political correctness and “an embarrassment.”
Rather than serve as a rallying cry to
really where my concern lies, not only
with UNO but university-wide.
“The good news, I suppose, is that
UNO is following the national trend.
The bad news is the national trend is
toward weakened core curriculums.”
Embarrassment or not aside, what
is UNO’s core curriculum, and has it
that semester, UNO had no core curriculum. Each college had, and still
has, its own set of requirements.
Getting each college to agree on a
single core curriculum for all students
took more than 10 years from first
suggestion to adoption, said Otto
Bauer, professor of communications
At the Core
MICHAEL MALONE
B y
16
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
strengthen the core curriculum, however, Miller’s words draw defensive
rebuttal from across the campus.
Was Miller right? Is UNO’s core
curriculum, those specific subjects and
number of credit hours required of
every student before qualifying to
receive an academic degree, an embarrassment?
“Hardly at all,” says Shelton
Hendricks, professor of psychology
and president of the UNO Faculty
Senate. “Core curriculums across the
country are all about the same. Regent
Miller just likes to see his name in the
paper.”
Miller, in an interview with UNO
Alum, agreed with at least a portion
of Hendricks’ comment: “The nationwide trend is to see a weakening in
core curriculums,” Miller says. “That’s
N i c k
become weak in recent years? Is some
shoring up necessary? What is
deemed essential to a core curriculum? Whose responsibility is it to propose and adopt core requirements?
How do UNO’s requirements compare to those of peer institutions?
To find answers, the UNO Alum
posed those questions — and many
more.
The 1999 Undergraduate Catalog
for UNO is 288-pages long. The
Student Code of Conduct runs nearly
six pages. The Core Curriculum of All
Colleges is on page 63. It barely fills
half the sheet. The rest of the page is
blank.
The core curriculum became
required of all students who enter,
reenter or transfer to UNO beginning
with the fall semester of 1990. Prior to
S c h i n k e r
and vice chancellor emeritus.
“When I arrived here in 1979, there
was none,” Bauer recalls. “At that
time, the campus was decentralized in
terms of requirements. Each college
took care of its own general education
requirements.”
John Farr, associate professor of
political science and associate vice
chancellor for academic affairs, agrees
that there was no clear-cut set of
requirements applicable to all programs at the university.
“But it isn’t fair to leave it as saying
there was no common requirement,”
Farr says. “The covenants of the university give each college the authority
to set its own degree requirements.
Every college had a general education
requirement. There was a lot of overlap. So, in an ad-hoc manner, there
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
17
were some common requirements.”
Several factors were key to the
effort to adopt a formal core curriculum, Bauer says, including the establishment of a special committee on
admission and graduation requirements.
“The central administration immediately separated those two topics,”
Bauer says. “The regents had to
approve admission requirements, but
that wasn’t so with graduation
requirements.”
Ultimately, a set of general education course requirements was circulated among the colleges for approval by
faculty.
“Two colleges voted for it and three
voted against,” Bauer says. “But I didn’t give up the idea.”
He went on to form a faculty committee to continue probing the idea of
a core curriculum. “This group then
went into it, I believe, with greater
seriousness.”
Psychology Professor John Newton,
who at the time served as dean of the
College of Arts and Sciences, recalls
the mood that helped persuade Bauer
to continue his quest.
“I think every college and university in the country was developing a
core curriculum,” Newton says. “It
was considered an appropriate thing
to do.”
Prescribing specific courses, rather
than areas of study, as the substance
of the core curriculum was an idea
that was debated and subsequently
abandoned.
“The reason is reality — the reality
of having to accept transfer credit,”
Bauer says. “We have a lot of transfer
students here. If we were to have said
they must take this course and that
particular course as part of the core
curriculum, then if a student transferred in they would have had all
these extra courses to take. They’d
simply go elsewhere.”
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SUMMER 1999
natural and physical science including one laboratory course, a minimum
of eight hours in humanities and fine
arts, and a minimum of eight hours in
social and behavioral sciences;
l A total of six hours in Cultural
Diversity, with a minimum of three
The committee decided to propose a hours in study of U.S. racial or
Hispanic minority groups, and three
distribution requirement — that each
student must take a certain number of hours in course work in women’s
studies, course work with an internahours in a particular field of study in
order to qualify for receiving a degree. tional or foreign focus, or an additional three hours of minority studies.
A distribution requirement such as
That adds up to 51 hours of
UNO currently has involves many
required general education courses —
options, a characteristic some
or approximately two-fifths of the 125
observers may consider a weakness.
credit hours necessary to obtain a
Even Bauer has had reservations.
bachelor’s degree in the College of
“I used to make fun of it myself,”
Arts and Sciences.
he says. “We called it ‘The Cafeteria.’
Not nearly good enough, says
If you go to a cafeteria, you’re not
guaranteed to get a good meal. It’s up Regent Miller, who adds that a core
curriculum requiring cultural and ethto your ability to make choices.”
nic studies but nothing in mathematBauer pursued the goal of a core
ics beyond algebra “looks like the core
curriculum for more than a decade.
curriculum of a public university
He says that by its very nature, it
struggling to be politically correct.”
remains an easy target.
“A broad liberal arts education is
“People like to criticize our core
the core of the core,” Miller says.
curriculum as not being a coherent,
“Good math, computer science, forintegrated package,” he says. “If it
isn’t, it’s because advisers and the stu- eign language.” Much like the requiredents themselves have different objec- ments Miller experienced when he
attended the Air Force Academy,
tives. Often that objective is graduawhere he was graduated in 1980. “I
tion.
“They want the courses they take to had a double major, history and international affairs,” he says. “I went way
count.”
beyond calculus and algebra. I had
The reason for a core curriculum is
three semesters of physics.”
stated in UNO’s Undergraduate
Today, Miller serves as president of
Catalog:
Financial Continuum, a financial ser“To ensure that each graduate of
vices company. He says a broad backUNO possesses certain academic
skills, experiences the breadth of a lib- ground in liberal arts has served him
well. “I’m in fields now that if you
eral education, and develops an
appreciation for the cultural diversity had told me I’d be doing this in colthat exists in the nation and the world, lege, I’d say you were out of your
mind.”
the faculties of the several colleges
One of the concerns Miller vented
have adopted the University general
in the recent regents’ meeting was that
education requirements indicated
UNO does not require study in comhere.”
puter science.
Those requirement are:
“How can a college graduate be a
l A total of 15 hours in Fundamengraduate today with no computer scital Academic Skills, specifically nine
ence? The Kiewit Institute (of
hours of English and writing, three
hours in mathematics and three hours Information Science and Technology)
was deemed so critical to filling jobs,
in public speaking;
to Omaha’s economy, yet the core curl A total of 30 hours of
riculum requires no computer sciDistribution Requirements, which
ence.”
include a minimum of eight hours of
After later meetings with members
of UNO’s faculty, however, Miller
conceded that "that's not exactly true.
Computer science study is required
by several colleges; only the precise
requirement varies by college and
major.
“So there is a requirement for computer science, you just don’t see it in
the core curriculum,” Miller says. “I
think the core curriculum should
reflect the fact that the university does
require computer science.”
Hendricks of the Faculty Senate
says requiring computer science today
is unnecessary.
“Students have to use computers in
nearly every course,” he says.
“Everyone has a computer at home,
and they’re coming from high school
better prepared than in Regent
Miller’s day.
“Saying they must have computer
science is like saying they ought to be
taught how to use a pen.”
An area that also attracted criticism
from Miller is the requirement for
study in Cultural Diversity.
“What does stand out when I look
at the core curriculum is the PC (politically correct) courses,” Miller says.
“Again, it is merely a reflection of the
national trend toward multi-cultural
liberalese. I’m not opposed to minority rights and women’s awareness. But
to list it in the core curriculum, to me
it just jumps out. You require six
hours in PC courses when the math
requirement is not that impressive.
“If I were considering attending
UNO, I’d look at the core curriculum
and see no computer science, I’d see
that foreign language and math are
weak, but boy, I’m going to have
some politically correct classes to help
me get that job.”
Regent Chuck Hassebrook of
Walthill says it’s unfortunate for
someone to view the study of minorities and the world as merely politically correct.
“One thing we do as a university is
to prepare people to be good citizens,
not just to count beans but to be influential human beings,” Hassebrook
said. “To do that one needs to have an
understanding of society.
MICHAEL MALONE
“Students have to use computers in nearly
every course ... Saying they must have computer science is like saying they ought to be
taught how to use a pen.”
“When I look at the core curriculum, I see that half of the six hours
that is required calls for a student to
have some course of an international
nature. Does that mean learning about
the world in which we live is politically correct? That’s just being prepared for modern society.
“To label it politically correct is
unfair . . . and very misguided.”
Professor Bauer says that when the
core curriculum was first being considered twenty years ago, those who
fashioned it felt they were on the
leading edge in requiring study in
cultural diversity. “That was 1979,
1980, remember,” Bauer says. “I do
know our faculty and that committee
was very open-minded for the time.”
Farr says it is ironic that Miller
refers to the cultural diversity require-
ments as PC. “Actually, we provided
for cultural diversity long before the
term ‘politically correct’ even became
popular,” Farr says. “The PC concept
then is not the PC concept today.
Diversity carried a different connotation then. What we had was a belief
students ought to get some different
perspectives of the world. My impression is we really succeeded.”
Is there a nationwide trend toward
a weakening of college degree
requirements? Columnist George F.
Will thinks so.
Will has many times decried the
declining prestige of a college education, citing statistics to back his opinion. He says America’s 3,600 colleges
and universities have more than 14
million students, and yet only 50 of
those institutions are what he considSUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
19
ers highly selective, meaning they
reject more applicants than they
accept.
He also quotes a National
Association of Scholars report that
found “a general abandonment of
rigor” at 50 select, elite schools. The
report states that in 1964, 90 percent of
those 50 universities had requirements
in the physical and biological sciences;
by 1993, only 34 percent did. In 1964,
there were mandatory history courses
at 60 percent of the institutions; in
1993, at only 2 percent.
The report suggests the abandonment of rigor accelerated in the late
1960s, coinciding with an increased
reverence by academics for the idealism and wisdom of their students. The
reason for all this is simple, Will
writes. “The less rigor there is, the
easier it is to attract and retain students and their tuition checks.”
The Rev. John J. Piderit is president
of Loyola University Chicago, where
the core curriculum consists of
required and elective courses in literature, theology, philosophy, history, the
social sciences, math, science and two
intensive writing courses.
Piderit, in a letter published in the
Wall Street Journal, says a university
has a profound intellectual and moral
obligation to respond to a student’s
high expectations. “Among many
other things, this means providing a
solid core curriculum for undergraduates, at least for their first and second
years. Yet for many universities today,
this is an impossible task.”
UNO’s core curriculum has not
changed since its adoption by a vote
of the faculty and subsequent implementation nine years ago. Therefore, it
has not weakened over the years.
How does it compare to the core
requirements of other universities?
Hendricks of the Faculty Senate says
UNO’s requirements are neither weak
nor unique. “When Regent Miller went
ballistic I downloaded a bunch of core
requirements for other universities off
the Internet,” Hendricks says. “From
the University of Iowa to Harvard, they
all looked the same.”
Granted, it would be unrealistic to
compare UNO to an Ivy League uni20
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SPRING 1999
versity. But, Farr says, when compared to a list of schools perceived to
be peer institutions, UNO fares well.
“With all candor, it’s not particularly
striking,” Farr says. “It’s actually fairly standard.”
According to information compiled
by the Office of Institutional Research
at UNO, the core requirements at nine
other universities — the University of
Arkansas at Little Rock, Cleveland
State University, Northern Illinois
University, Portland State University,
the University of Missouri at St. Louis,
the University of Colorado at Denver,
Wichita State University, the
University of Northern Iowa and the
University of Texas at San Antonio —
come very close to the requirements at
UNO.
Each of the universities examined
requires between 31 (Northern
Illinois) and 60 (Cleveland State and
Texas-San Antonio) credit hours of
core requirements. Three others beside
UNO (Cleveland State, Portland State
and Colorado-Denver) require from
three to six hours of study in cultural
diversity. The requirements for
English, math, science, fine arts and
social science vary by only a few
hours.
“I thought ours came off pretty
good,” says Farr, who reviewed the
above-mentioned results. “Our core is
a minimum core. I think it’s representative of our peer institutions. It compares favorably with them. Various
people would have hoped for different requirements. This represents a
consensus.”
Miller calls it an embarrassment.
“It’s not as bad as it looks, but it
still looks embarrassing,” he says. “It
still needs to be fixed, but I’m not sure
it will be.”
Changing UNO’s core curriculum
today would require basically the
same events as took place prior to
1990. A committee would have to propose a new set of requirements, either
specific courses or areas of study and
credit hours. The committee’s proposal would then be submitted to the
individual deans for review. Then,
every full-time faculty member in
each college would be asked to vote
on the proposal. If passed, UNO students would face a new set of requirements for graduation.
“It’s one area where the administration has very little power,” says
Hendricks. “If the faculty says this
course is needed, no one can override
it.”
Not Chancellor Nancy Belck, who
declined to be interviewed for this
article, nor the university regents. Yet,
nearly everyone who commented said
they would like to see some requirements strengthened. They just couldn’t agree on which. “We all have
slightly different views of what we’d
like to see,” Hendricks said. “I’d like
to see (the students) write better.”
Regent Miller says he’d like to see a
greater emphasis placed on math, foreign language, and business and economics.
Regent Hassebrook says UNO’s
requirements are solid as is.
“That’s not to say it can’t be fine
tuned or improved,” he says. “Every
core curriculum needs to be reviewed
periodically, and this one is no exception. If someone were to make a good
case for revising those requirements,
there may well be ways to strengthen
it. But the general outlines are satisfactory.”
But even fine-tuning might be difficult, Hendricks says, as more students
apply themselves toward specific professional degrees.
“The major and specialized requirements keep seeking more space,
crowding out the more general
requirements,” he says. “I’m very
much in favor of a liberal, broad, basic
education. I think we over-specialize
our students at the bachelor level
right now.
“What they really need is to learn
how to write and think.”
Any change would require considerable effort to achieve passage, Bauer
says. It would not be as easy as it may
look to an outsider.
“I don’t think people really understand what it takes to build a curriculum, a consensus among a diverse
group of faculty, a diverse group of
students, a diverse community,”
Bauer says. “To look at it on the sur-
face and call it an
embarrassment, that’s
oversimplifying things.”
That “harder-than-itseems” attitude is one reason no one is willing to
make the attempt.
Economics Professor
and syndicated columnist Thomas Sowell, a
frequent critic of higher education, writes that such attitudes require profound
institutional changes “to
rein in professors and
allow a campus to have
some coherent principles,
rather than be simply a
collection of baronial fiefdoms run by tenured faculty members.”
Miller says he, too, perceives a need for additional
voices in the process.
“I would rather see more input
from alumni,” he says. “I’m not sure
the students would serve as the best
source for recommendations. Students
would probably be happier with a
weaker core curriculum, but they’re
not in a good position to decide.” He
doubts, however, there is a majority of
support among the necessary participants to bring about a stronger core
curriculum. “Everyone I’ve talked to
says they can’t do any better than this.
The administration doesn’t want to
fight the faculty, and the faculty doesn’t want to go through it. I just don’t
see the willingness that’s necessary.”
If changing the current universitywide core curriculum proves too difficult a task, Miller has an alternative —
an optional, voluntary core curriculum that is more rigorous than the
current requirements. “I would call it
the ‘Best in Class’ core curriculum,”
Miller explains. “It would require taking more math, more computer science and more programs in business.”
It would also call for an expanded
partnership with the local business
community, he says. “I’d like to see
businesses involved in endorsing the
program. In turn, those businesses
would give those graduates preference in internships and hiring. If they
How UNO Stacks Up
UNO Office of Institutional Research
Core Requirements for UNO and Peer Institutions
Univ
Nebraska
Omaha*
Hou r s
Univ
Arka ns a s
L it t l e R oc k
H ou rs
C l e v e l a nd
State
University
Ho ur s
Univ
Missouri
S t. L oui s **
Ho ur s
English Comp Wr itt en
9
6
15-16
6
Speech Comm. Oral
3
3
Math/Stats/Comp. Science
3
3
6
Science
8-14
8
8-9
F i ne A r t s / H u m a n i t i e s
8-14
9
Social Science
Non-Western Culture Civ.
Western Culture Civ.
8-14
15
CATEGORY
Diversity
6
Univ
Texas
San Antonio**
H ou rs
6
14
18
9
9-14
12-13
9
3
3
9-14
18
3
6
6
*Total distribution requirement for science, fine arts and humanities and social science is 30 hours.
* * T h e n u m b e r s p r o v i d e d i n b e t w e e n t h e l i n e s i n di c a t e t h at t h e i n s t i t u t i o n r e qu i r e s s t u d e n t s t o c o m p l e t e t h e h o u r s s h o w n f r om a
selection of approved courses in two of the categories appearing on the far left of the table.
go through the more demanding program, they’d receive a leg up in terms
of job opportunities.”
Miller says his idea is simply an initial proposal, something for which he
still needs to develop specifics.
“It sounds, though, like it would be
feasible to do something voluntary.
I’ve been talking with administration
and faculty, and there is some interest.
So I’m certain we’ll be having some
talks on it.”
Hendricks calls Miller’s proposal
“silly.” “It wouldn’t be a core curriculum if it were voluntary,” he says. “It
would crumble in a second.”
Professor Newton, a veteran of 39
years at UNO who retired after the
spring semester, says a voluntary curriculum is an interesting idea. “I
wouldn’t reject it out of hand,” he
says. “It would depend on what’s in
it. For one thing, we have some programs that do that now -- that have
more stringent requirements.”
Such as the program Newton developed 30 years ago for psychology students intent on entering graduate
school. “That program requires calculus, philosophy, more science —
things that are not in the core curriculum,” he says.
As far as the current core require-
ments are concerned, Newton advises
critics to remember what it took to
achieve them -- a compromise. “Each
college is autonomous. Getting them
all to agree was quite a challenge.
Sure, I’d like to see some things
strengthened, but that’s my opinion.
Everyone has theirs.”
Miller says that at the very least, he
will fight any attempt to lessen or
weaken the current requirements. “I
think it’s more a holding factor rather
than rebuilding,” he says. “It’s my
opinion we’ll be lucky to hold on to
what we’ve got.”
Hendricks, too, doubts enough faculty members would agree on a significant change to increase the core
requirements. “Coming to a consensus
on a core curriculum is a very difficult
process. What we have in place is a
minimum. I would hope (the students) would go beyond that minimum.”
One must keep in mind, he says,
that the current core requirements are
better than none at all. “I think it’s
unconscionable that we used to certify
teachers who never had a college
math course,” Hendricks says. “At
least we don’t do that any more.”
SUMMER
SPRING 1999
1999
UNO
UNO ALUM
ALUM
21
21
PROFILE FEATURE
Like millions of elderly Americans, Betty Woerner Carter didn’t recognize
the signs that she was losing her hearing.
“When people get older they get a natural hearing impairment. Their hearing tends to slip a little,” Carter said. “Gradually, they find it harder to communicate. I was beginning to experience that feeling, and when your friends
start saying to you, ‘You’re hard of hearing,’ you begin to believe them.”
Carter, a 1969 University of
Nebraska at Omaha alumna, heeded
those warnings and soon after was fitted with a hearing aid. She also realized there was a lesson to be learned
from her sudden setback: When communicating with someone who is
hearing impaired, it is just as impor-
experiences learning the techniques of
lip reading. The book is being used a
resource in college classrooms and by
audiologists, Carter said, and by
groups and individuals who are
studying lip reading on their own.
“When someone asks me when I
started writing the book, I tell them I
the relationship with that person will
improve and there are simple things
to do that. For instance, if I am going
to a play or to the theater I will read
the manuscript first so I can better
understand what is going on in the
play.”
Another important component to
Lip Service
B y
D o n
K o h l e r
tant to be seen as to be heard.
A career educator who worked
with adolescents and adults alike
throughout her professional life,
Carter put her retirement on hold 13
years ago to embark on a campaign to
teach the techniques of lip reading to
the hearing impaired.
Carter, who recently celebrated her
80th birthday, taught lip reading at
Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College
and throughout the greater-Phoenix
area. Though she has since left the
classroom her impact is still being felt
among the hearing impaired thanks
to the release of her first book: “I
Can’t Hear You in the Dark: How to
Learn and Teach Lip reading.”
The book, which was published by
Charles C. Thomas Publishing of
Springfield, Ill., includes a series of
easy-to-follow lessons that Carter
developed through her research and
22
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
actually got started 13 years ago
when I began to teach lip reading,”
Carter said. “When I retired and
began to take lessons because of my
impairment, I was intrigued by the
concept of lip reading and wanted to
teach it to others. I couldn’t find a
curriculum on lip reading, so I did a
lot of research on my own and went
to several workshops to study it. I
learned through a period of time
what worked.”
Through her studies, Carter discovered that becoming an effective lip
reader helped her bridge the everyday communication gap she was
experiencing with others. “Through
my teachings and in developing the
book, I tried to look at how you can
cope with hearing loss and what you
can do to make communication better,” she said. “If you can improve
your communication with someone,
WINTER
lip reading, Carter said, is for the
hearing impaired to stay focused on
their subject, which is where the
book’s title was derived.
“I wanted a title that would call
people’s attention to the problem and
that would convey that they must see
the face of the speaker,” she said.
“Facial expressions and gestures are
very important and tell a lot about
what a person is thinking. Those type
of expressions are important whether
you have a hearing impairment or
not. Linguists say you can get 60 percent of your information during a
conversation from those things other
than words. Unless you have had
some experience with the hearing
impaired, you really don’t know how
to be helpful. I thought the book was
quite an accomplishment and something that would be helpful to older
people.”
Helping people has been Carter’s
focus since she graduated from the
University of Nebraska at Lincoln in
1947 with a degree in sociology. She
served as executive director of the
Girls Scouts Council in Omaha from
1954 to 1967. She finished her master’s studies in sociology at UNO in
1969, thanks to some prodding from
her late husband, Carroll Carter, a
1947 UNL graduate. “I remember
when I was finishing my thesis at
UNO my instructor had moved to
Greece,” she recalled. “They didn’t
know what to do with me, but I
finally finished. My husband kept
telling me ‘You can’t quit now,’ and
I’m glad that I didn’t.”
After earning her master’s
degree, Carter worked briefly at the
Madonna Hospital in Lincoln,
where she developed a volunteer
program and trained licensed nurses on how to care for the elderly. “I
learned a lot at that job, but I think I
also gave a lot,” she said. “It was
my first experience working with
the elderly, and it was a wonderful
learning experience.”
Carter served as Director of the
Denver YWCA from 1971 to 1973,
then joined the New Jersey Chapter
of the Girls Scouts of America,
where she worked from 1974 to
1981. She also worked on the
national staff of the Girls Scouts of
U.S.A. in Boston. Carter said she
enjoyed her work and helping
shape the lives of young people.
“It was really satisfying for me,
because many times when those
young people get older they look
back at that Girls Scouts experience
and know that it really helped their
lives,” she said. “I enjoyed my part
in helping the young people work
together on their leadership skills
and on their value system . . . those
things that you need to lead a productive life. I also enjoyed the
adults I worked with. Most of the
people were volunteers, and the
women who helped out also would
grow in their life experiences. And
training those volunteers was fun,
because they were not there because
they were a captive audience. They
were there because they enjoyed it.”
Carter, too, has enjoyed serving
people, even in her retirement.
“That was the kind of philosophy
that I was brought up with,” the
Superior, Neb., native said. “My
mother and father were always doing
things for other people. Doing for
others was just a natural way of living, and I’ve enjoyed having the
opportunity to do good things for
people.”
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
23
future alums
Sons & Daughters of UNO Alumni
class notes
Send us news of your baby – we’ll send a T-shirt and certificate and
publish the good news. Include address, baby’s name, date of birth, parents’
names and graduation year(s). Please send the announcement within one
year of the birth to: Future Alums, UNO Alumni Association, 60th & Dodge,
Omaha, NE 68182. FAX (402) 554-3787. E-mail: [email protected]
Su mme r 1999
A New Generation of UNO Mavericks
Ador-A-Bull TShirts have been
sent to the following future alums:
• Aidan Gallagher Kocsis,
son of Brien and Colleen
(Gallagher, ‘ 91) Kocsis of
Offutt Air Force Base.
• Alexander Michael
MacGregor, son of
Michael and Melissa (‘98)
MacGregor of Omaha.
• Celeste Star Kenworthy,
daughter of Brenton and
Linda (Carter, ‘ 8 0 )
Kenworthy of Schertz,
Texas.
• Danielle Rose Lemke,
daughter of Tyler and Tori
(‘96) Lemke of Omaha.
• Derek Joseph Smith, son
of Clifford and Nancy
(Bosse, ‘90) Smith of
Olathe, Kan.
• James Alan Nekola Jr.,
son of Angie (‘90)
Biscanto Nekola and Jim
(‘95) Nekola of LaVista.
• Joshua David Wonder,
son of Brent Wonder and
Tricia (Wolf-Wonder, ‘95) of
Omaha.
• Logan Riley Nelson, son of Kim and Rick (‘95)
Nelson of Page, Neb.
• Kaitlyn Rae Andreessen, daughter of Robert and
Carla (loseke, ‘98) Andreessen of Carson, Iowa.
• Brendan Michael Gunter, son of Michael and Traci
(Bennett, ‘92) Gunter of Omaha.
• Eden Grace Placzek, daughter of Kris and Dan
(‘85) Placzek of Omaha.
• Laura Jean Kaufmann, daughter of Leland and
Lorene (Wolverto n , ‘ 87) Kaufmann of Earling, Iowa.
• Lauren Alexis Shymkewicz, daughter of Scott (‘88)
and Jodell (‘91) Shymkewicz of Ralston.
• Jared Thomas Remar, son of Diane and Jim (‘86)
Remar of Ralston.
24
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
• Rachel Jeanette Klatt,
daughter of Michael and
Holly (‘95) Klatt of
Columbus.
• Jayden Ryan Billings, son of
Carri (Costanzo, ‘95) and
John (‘96) Billings of Omaha.
• Jacob Michael McNeill, son
of Kathy and Michael (‘92)
McNeill of Omaha.
• Shannon Elizabeth Hire,
daughter of Brian and Patricia
(Mayhan, ‘86) Hire of
Omaha.
• Easton James Whitcomb,
son of Marianne (‘95) and
Jim Whitcomb (‘99) of
Bellevue.
• Brooke Suzann Rishel,
daughter of Mary and Peter
(‘75) Rishel of Kearney.
• Jack Randall Gunderson,
son of Laurie and Greg (‘88)
Gunderson of Omaha.
• Camden Duane Pearson,
son of Ben and Sandy (‘94)
Pearson of Oakland, Neb.
• Matthew Jeffrey
Gromowsky, son of Jeff and
Amy (‘95) Gromowsky of
Omaha.
• Heidi Renae Hufford, daughter of Lee (Winterfeld, ‘87) and John (‘87) Hufford
of Denver, granddaughter of Dav i d ( ‘ 6 0 , ‘ 67)
Hufford and great-granddaughter of Gertrude (‘60,
‘ 67) Hufford of Omaha.
• Payton Alyssa Wheatley, daughter of Bryan and
Jana (Osborn e , ‘ 94) Wheatley of Omaha.
• James Michael Marshall, son of Debbie and David
(‘83) Marshall of Centerton, Ark.
1937
E. Elbert Hoisington,
BSBA, now lives in
Covenant Village in
Plantation, Fla., after a
39-year career as an
executive in five local
scout councils and 24
years on the national
staff of the Boy Scouts
of America.
Joseph I. Barker, BA,
lives in Sherman Oaks,
Calif., and recalls with
fondness his days as a
University of Omaha student. He was active in
athletics, participating in
tennis and football. “Every time our
team had to punt from deep in our
territory,” he writes, “[Maurice] Loder
kicked spirals of 60 to 70 yards. It was
amazing, the knack he had for kicking long spirals. We needed his talent
to keep the scores reasonable.” Barker
also was active in the university’s
move to its present site, circulating a
petition to Omaha voters toward that
end. “And I was fortunate enough to
attend classes in that first building,”
he notes. “I have fond memories of
my university life — some of the best
days of my life]. I remember two faculty members especially well — Dr.
Dean Holt [history] and Mildred
Gearhardt [poetry]. There remains
one coincidence. My friend, George
Stearns, went to school with me at
Central High. We then were in the
same class at the University of
Omaha, and then we worked together
at Burbank Airport and Los Angels
Airport for United Airlines.”
Flashback
Parking woes? Not
in the 1920s.
University of Omaha
students rode to
their classes on
street-cars, one of
the stops being in
front of OU’s
Science Hall.
1940
Jane Cook Cawthon, BA, resides in
Dallas and writes: “I am now living in
a retirement home as of July 27, 1998
due to a severe heart attack May 30,
1998. I sold my home on lake in
Granbury, Texas, and am happy to see
my three children and four grandchildren enjoying so many of the special
things they chose to keep from family
traditions and memories. I am truly
blessed and in my blessings I include
the super days at O.U. on 24th and
Pratt streets — walking the streets of
Omaha to petition the move to Dodge
and to live to see the dreams of those
in the ‘30s fulfilled.”
1943
Marjorie J. Winter, assoc., has
returned to the family farm in
Glenwood, Iowa, to take care of her
104-year-old mother. Winter taught
for 20 years, did missionary work in
the Colorado Rockies and worked in
the library at Grace University in
Omaha for nine years.
1944
Ernest Jaul, BA, lives in Auburn,
Calif., and for the last 10 years has
been active in downhill skiing in Utah
during the winter. He received a silver medal in a master’s race at Park
City in 1997. Jaul most recently was
director of research for Fisher Body.
He took up that post after retiring
from Union-Carbide in 1984. He also
has a master’s degree in polymer
engineering, received from the
University of Detroit.
1949
George and Patricia Sweetman, BA,
lives in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and
write: “Two years ago the UNO Alum
published an article about Pat and I
finding each other after over 50 years,
after the death of our spouses, via the
UNO Alum. June 17 is our second
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
25
class notes
class notes
“ I ’ d e n j oy hearing from college friends and acquaintances at my e-mail
address, [email protected], or at 5371 South Garland Way, Littleton,
CO, 80123-7447. ”
“ I am truly blessed and in my blessings I include the super days at O.U. on
24th and Pratt street s . ”
Jane Cook Cawthon, 19400
1952
Karl Dankof, BS, is retired from the
U.S. Air Force and lives in San
Antonio, Texas. He originally was a
member of Omaha University’s Class
of 1942 but graduation was delayed
for 10 years due to World War II. He
was a member of the “O” Club (football) from 1939-1941.
Shirley A. H. Anderson, BA, says
“not much [has] changed.” The
Wichita, Kan., resident teaches water
aerobics, arthritis water classes and
baby swimming lessons for the
YWCA. She also sings frequently,
including at church and in the
Wichita Musical Club.
1954
Maggie Claeson Gibson, BA, writes
from her home in Littleton, Colo.:
“Recently retired after a lifetime in
the oil and gas exploration industry.
I’m now enjoying life with a totally
new agenda — including the joy and
excitement of frequent travels, four
grandchildren, and my recently discovered favorite hobbies, genealogy
and the wonders of cyberspace. This
summer our travels will take us back
to Sweden for the third reunion of our
Swedish-American family. I’d enjoy
hearing from college friends and
acquaintances at my e-mail address,
[email protected], or at 5371
South Garland Way, Littleton, CO,
80123-7447.
1955
Arnold Kriegler, BS, lives in Plano,
Texas, and will marry fellow UNO
alum Joan Willey Frost (‘55) in June of
this year. Frost is retired from the
Omaha Public Schools system where
she supervised art programs. Kriegler
is retired from his consulting business, AMK Associates. The couple
will spend time in both Omaha and
Plano.
1960
Ray Friesen, BS, retired from a career
with the city of Omaha and “enjoying
some traveling and family.”
Bert Pryor, BS, is spending May and
June touring England, France,
Germany and Luxemborg. He currently is president of the Sarasota
County Retired Educators Association
in Sarasota, Fla.
Reaching for the Stars
ue Gambianna Gibson has wanted to be a
teacher ever since she was 6 years old. It was that
simple — and that complicated.
Gibson had always done well in school and she
tried to keep her goal of being a teacher in mind,
but it wasn’t always easy. Many people tried to
discourage her.
“ They told me that teachers were a dime a
dozen,” Gibson recalls, “and that I should really
train to be an accountant because I was good in
math . ”
Gibson struggled with her decision and began to
think that maybe she should abandon her dream of
teaching.
“ I remember my government teacher saw me
moping around and asked what was wrong,” said
Gibson. “When I told him I was feeling discouraged, he told me you do what you want to do —
you teach ! ”
Gibson started out as a physical education major
at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 1977,
then added biology to make herself a little more
“uniqu e . ”
“My favorite professor was Dr. [Dale] Bunsen,”
Gibson remembered. “He was so down to earth
S
26
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
and really tried to make class fun. We made
boomerangs and got to shoot off rockets. We used
flight simulators and he even took us up in his small
plane and let us follow flight plans
we had designed in class.”
After graduating from UNO in
1981, Gibson began teaching science at Omaha Central High
School. While there, she helped
introduce soccer as a varsity
sport. She coached both soccer
and tennis at Central and later at
South High School as well.
She moved to Kansas City in
1991, continuing as a science
teacher at Shawnee Mission West
High School and adding honors
classes. Four years ago she was
asked if she would be interested
in teaching a class called “World
Futuristics.”
Gibson jumped at the opportunity, which involved four teachers,
one each from science, social
studies, math and English, teaching together as a team. The idea
1961
Norman L. Girdler, BGE, has been
retired since 1985 and lives in Bend,
Ore. He is a volunteer at a VA hospital, his church, and on the home owners association board of directors.
He’s also active in the Retired Officers
Association, with golf (weather permitting, he notes) and in the athletic
club of Bend. He recently celebrated
his 55th wedding anniversary.
1962
Jinny S. Ditzler, BA, has moved to
Aspen, Colo., after spending 18 years
in the United Kingdom, “Wimbledon
for 18 years.” She is the author of
“Your Best Year Yet!”
1963
Jeanette Knudsen, BSW, became a
diabetes educator at a hospital in
Harlan, Iowa, where she lives.
was to be flexible and unify the themes of the four
subject areas.
The teachers were allowed to design their own
curriculum. There were no standard texts and they
selected their own reading materials. They studied
things like genetic engineering, designed communities and new technologies. Even the tests were nontraditional. Students participated in discussions and
James C. Struthers, BGE, retired form
the U.S. Army in 1974 as a colonel,
then went to work with Hilton
Hotels. He retired from that career in
1996. He now lives in Homosassa,
Fla., and is “traveling the world.”
1964
Donald L. Stensrud, BGE, plays the
piano in local combos and musical
shows in Colorado Springs, Colo. He
attended the University of Omaha as
a Bootstrapper, going on to complete
his career in the U.S. Air Force before
retiring as a Lt. Col. He also earned a
master’s degree and a Ph.D.
1966
Chuck Ihrke, MS, will retire this summer after 30 years with the University
of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He served as
chairman of the Human Biology
Department.
Carl T. Rogers, BGE, is a retired high
were graded on the logic of their reasoning, as well
as their ability to cite articles they had read to support their arguments.
Two years ago, while teaching World Futuristics,
Gibson encouraged student Katie Griffin to enter a
national contest sponsored by NASA. Her paper on
“ terraforming” Mars attempted to show that by
melting Mars’ polar ice-caps it could be made habitable in 300 years. Griffin was one of
the ten winners in her eight-state region
and she and Gibson went to
Washington, D.C., to present the paper
to NASA scientists.
After receiving feedback from the scientists the contestants had three weeks
to rewrite their papers and then resubmit
them. Griffin won the national contest
and she and Gibson were invited to travel to the Kennedy Space Center and
watch a launch of the Space Shuttle.
“It was phenomenal, “ recalls
Gibson. “We looked across that short
stretch of water and when that rocket
took off, I could feel the vibrations in my
chest.”
Gibson’s students have participated
in the contest for several years now and
she has had at least one winner at the
regional level each year. Last year that
consistent excellence was rewarded
when she was named National Space
TODD FEEDBACK/Kansas City Star
wonderful wedding anniversary. We
will attend the 50th UNO reunion this
fall. Our journey together has taken
us to a cruise of the Hawaiian Islands
and Pearl Harbour, England, Scotland
and Rome. Plus many states in the
USA. We both agree that these last
two years have been the happiest of
our lives. Thank you, UNO Alum.”
Maggie Claeson Gibson, 1954
school teacher/counselor living in
Ontario, Calif. He earned a master’s
degree in education from Chapman
College in Orange, Calif., and a Ph.D.
in counseling psychology in 1981.
Ray A. Young, BGS, lives in Oakton,
Va., and is retired after a career as a
company executive.
1967
Howell L. Broxton, BGE, lives in
Camarillo, Calif., and is a member of
the American Legion, the P-47 WWII
Thunderbolts Pilots Association and
the Retired Officers Association. He
retired in 1980 as a U.S. Government
contract administrator.
Clarence Blizzard, BGS, retired from
the U.S. Air Force in 1978 and since
has pursued careers in real estate and
in education. He owns Blizz Blizzard
Realty in Honolulu and also is presi-
Educator of the Year by the National Space Society.
Despite that high honor, it is the rewards that she
gets from students that really matter to Gibson.
“ When they come back and tell me, ‘I remember
when you did this,’ or, ‘You influenced me so
much , ’ that’s what makes it all worthwhile. I love
being able to look at one of the rowdy kids in my
class and tell th e m , ‘You know, you could be a
great teacher. ’ At first, they are taken aback, but I
can see that light go on behind their eye s . ”
Several years ago, Gibson got to thank that government teacher who had helped her so much. She
tracked him down, called him on the phone and
told him, “I just wanted to thank you and let you
know that I’m a teacher because of you.”
She knew how much it would mean to him
because she knows how much it means to her. -
Hugh Reilly
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
27
class notes
class notes
“ The training/education I received at UNO has been the most valuable possession contributing to my current accomplishments/promotions. So as we say in our language
Lakota, Wopila Tanka! [Thank You Very Much!].”
After his second retirement: “So busy don’t know how I had time to work. ”
Will N. Cox, 1967
dent of Education America on the
Honolulu campus. He lives in
Makakilo, Hawaii.
Will N. Cox, BGS, lives in San
Antonio, Texas. “Just a few notes,” he
writes. “I retired from the U.S. Air
Force as a CMSGT (E-9) July 1979.
Became employed with a part of
Texas A&M University system in San
Antonio as chief accountant in
September ‘79 and retired from that
position in July 1991. Have an RV and
traveling at least three months each
year. Also, belong to RV club. At
times we sponsored raffles, drives,
garage sales for SAMM Shelter and
other non-profit activities. So busy
don’t know how I had time to work.”
Howard Wills, BGE, writes from his
home in Tacoma, Wash., “Had my
second open heart operation last year
— first one 15 years ago. Doing fine.
Skied this winter, walking and playing golf. 80 years old next year.”
Jack Zook, BGS, was in the Vietnam
War during the Tet Offensive in 1968.
He retired from the US. Air Force in
1972 and was a U.S. Air Force civilian
safety officer until 1989. They live in
Springfield, Ohio, and winter in
Naples, Fla.
1969
Gordon W. Anderson, BGS, is “fully
retired” after 25 years in the Army, 10
years as an accountant and 15 years
as a substitute teacher in high school.
“My wife of 50 years and I now live
in a colony of patriots in historical
Williamsburg, Va., and couldn’t be
happier.”
Karen Hannigan, BS, this June will
have been retired from Bellevue
Public Schools for one year after a 28year teaching career as a media specialist.
28
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
Jay O. Erdmann, BA, is a retired federal law enforcement officer with the
U.S. Customs Services. He lives in El
Cajon, Calif.
1971
Northeast College in Norfolk since 1971.
1975
Pam (Beckwith) Beinlich, MS, was
promoted to human resources officer
and IRA administrator at Pinnacle
Bank in Ogallala, NE. She’s been
employed with Pinnacle since 1993.
Lloyd E. Roitstein, BS, was recognized
for 28 years of service to the Boy
Scouts Mid-America Council as
1976
Quality Council. He also was honored
John C. Owens, BGS, is “enjoying
as Distinguished Executive by the
retirement immensely in Florida.
national boy scout organization. He
Divorced, no children.” He is a retired
lives in Omaha.
master sergeant with the U.S. Army
Special Forces, having spent 30 years
Charles P. Clawson, BGS, became a
in active/reserve service. He was
Christian and an ordained pastor in
trained in intelligence and communi1984. Since 1988 he has been pastorcations, as well as anti-terrorism. H
ing Covenant Bible Fellowship in
served two years in Vietnam and in
Petersburg, VA.
the Panama invasion.
Jose Luna, BGS, is twice retired, first
1977
as a major in the U.S. Army (1972),
then after a career with DFA - D.O.D. Geraldine L. Young, BS, is retiring
from Lucent Technologies in August
(1996). he lives in Pearland, Texas.
as an auditor, then leaving for a trip
to London this fall. She previously
1972
Richard A. Bean, BS, recently moved worked for AT&T as an account execfrom Ovideo, Fla., to Southlake, Texas utive for federal systems sales. Prior
to that she worked at KETV Channel
(Dallas-Forth Worth area) after being
7 beginning in 1979 as a cameraman
promoted to president of Eby
Construction. His responsibilities will and producer/host of a public affairs
program.
include the day-to-day management
of the company and all construction
1978
operations. He has been with Eby
Construction since 1973 and has held James Ecker, BS, is director of land
engineering, superintendent, estimat- development at Hearthstone Homes
and is a member of the American
ing and project management assignInstitute of Certified Planners. He
ments. He also served as a division
manager in Austin, Texas. Prior to his lives in Omaha.
promotion he was Executive Vice
Robert Mitchell, BA, was named vice
President and Southeast Division
president for Parkway Mortgage,
Manager.
Licensed Mortgage Bankers. He is
responsible for opening a branch in
Barbara Schmitz, MA, won the
Kansas City for the company. Mitchell
Nebraska Arts Council Award for
has more than 18 years of experience
Poetry in 1997. Schmitz, who lives in
in financial services working for
Norfolk, will have a full-length book
Security Pacific and Avco. He has
of poetry, “How to Get Out of the
been an auditor, trainer, district manBody,” published in September by
ager and vice president.
Sandhills Press. She has taught creative writing and literature and coordinated the visiting Writer Series at
1979
Stephanie Andersen, BS, plans to
return to UNO this fall to begin work
on a master’s degree on communications. She is a full-time customer service representative at Physicians
Mutual Insurance Co. She previously
was a substitute teacher for Omaha
Public Schools and surrounding districts. She lives in Papillion.
1980
Christopher Cold, BS, lives in
Marshfield, Wisc. He received a master’s degree from the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln in 1984. From 1983
to 1993 he was in he U.S. Navy
Medical Corp as a Lt. Cmdr. He currently works in anatomic and clinical
pathology at the Marshfield Clinic in
Wisconsin.
1982
Carol R. Gamble, MS, lives in
Savannah, Ga.
Loretta J. Jordan (McClarnon), 1982
Loretta J. Jordan (McClarnon), BA,
has worked at Rosebud Sioux Tribe
Alcohol Program in Mission, S.D., as
a therapist for more than three years
now. She recently was promoted to
clinical supervisor, Adult Inpatient
Unit. She also achieved Level II State
of South Dakota Counselor
Certification in November 1998 and is
fulfilling requirements for Level III.
“The training/education I received at
UNO has been the most valuable possession contributing to my current
accomplishments/promotions,” she
writes. “So as we say in our language
‘akota, Wopila Tanka! [Thank You Very
Much!].”
Robert Suvalsky, BSBA, has been
employed with GE Capital for the
past three years. He currently is the
manager of Mortgage Administration
with GE Capital’s Rela Estate
Commercial Loan Servicing division
in Houston. In addition, he has
attained the status of a Black Belt in
GE’s Six Sigma Quality initiative. “Six
Sigma focuses on changing processes
within a business to attain a zerodefect environment,” Suvalsky writes.
1983
Mason L. Adams, BGS, has been with
the U.S. Postal Service since 1987,
working as a forklift operator and
part-time supervisor. Adams, who
lives in Chattanooga, Tenn., retired
from the U.S. Air Force in 1986 after
23 years.
1985
Paul Currier, BA, has worked in the
pharmaceutical industry for the past
11 years and currently is with TAP
Pharmaceuticals, Inc., of Deerfield,
Ill., as a regional training manager. A
Houston resident, his position with
TAP covers Texas, Oklahoma and
New Mexico.
Fast Lane
They ’ re beautiful, brainy and bach-
elorettes. That is, all four of the
Rizzuto sisters comprising the up-andcoming Mulberry Lane are graduates
with bachelor’s degrees from the
University of Nebraska at Omaha.
The “alternative acoustic” foursome
recently sang on ABC’s “Good
Morning America,” and have
signed a six-album deal with MCA
Records. Of course, their classmates
at UNO always knew they’d be a
success. Each one (Jaymie, Rachel,
Heather and Allison) was voted a
UNO Homecoming Queen. To visit
them, log on to www.mulberrylane.com.
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
29
class notes
class notes
“I hope some alumni might be interested in sponsoring chess clubs at their kids’
schools. It’s cheap, and great for the kids’ confidence and mental skills.
Bart Wormington, 1989
1986
Jim Remar, BS, has worked at Mutual
of Omaha since 1980 and currently is
a systems associate in the Small
Group Actuarial Department. He was
married in August 1996 and lives in
Ralston.
1987
Stephen E. Caskey, BS, was promoted to vice president of international
implementation for Inacom Inc. The
Papillion resident is married to fellow
1987 UNO graduate Ann Gunia. The
couple has four children.
then take the presentations on the
road.” Galus also notes that thanks to
the encouragement of UNO English
instructor Virginia Frank, “I began
submitting my writing for publication
during my college experience and
had a couple of publications under a
pen name. After becoming stable in
my career, I again began writing and
have had about a dozen publications
in local and national magazines and
the World-Herald; I now proudly
publish under my own name.”
1994
Timothy E. Becker, BGS, is selfemployed as a paper carrier with a
motor route. He lives in Omaha and
Bart Wormington, MS, is teaching
writes, “Recently, some friends and I
eighth-grade science at Millard’s
opened another house; the new roof
Russell Middle School. He also
was put on in November and concoached the school’s chess team
crete was also played in November. I
which won the 1999 state champihad the opportunity to present
onship and tied for third at nationals
in Phoenix, Ariz., novice division. He research information on a monorail
between Omaha and Lincoln. A new
also sponsors the Millard West High
book was produced [not yet pubSchool team which has lost just one
Metro League match in four years. “I lished], “Peace Is a Way.” Hopefully,
all races will benefit. Lastly, I’ve been
hope some alumni might be interestworking on state license tests as an
ed in sponsoring chess clubs at their
kids’ schools. It’s cheap, and great for arborist/pesticide applicator; I scored
the kids’ confidence and mental skills. at 67%.”
1989
1992
Pamela J. Galus, BS, has taught science at Omaha South High School for
the past seven years, currently focusing on Physical Science this year and
Earth Science next year. She also has
served as the science resource instructor for the Banneker Partnership, a
program to improve student achievement in math and science, for the past
two years. She adds that, “For the
past six years I have sponsored the
Science Club at South, implementing
a successful teen teaching approach to
education. Students are transformed
into teachers, which challenges the
roles of education. We practice our
presentations for the Special
Education students at our school and
30
UNO ALUM
SUMMER 1999
1995
Russell Hadan, BS, joined Midwest
Laboratories as an environmental lab
technicians. The company provides a
full range of laboratory analysis
services to the
agricultural,
food water and
environmental
industries.
Hadan also
earned a master’s degree
from UNO in 1998.
John Kozak, BSBA, was recently promoted to director at Salomon Smith
Barney as manager of the
Philadelphia Municipal Bond Desk.
He lives in Wayne, Pa.
1996
Stephanie Himel Nelson, BA, is a student at George Washington
University School of Law in
Washington, D.C. and working at the
Pentagon for the Office of the Chief
Attorney for the Army. She lives in
Centreville, Va.
1997
Eddie F. Thompson, BGS, recently
received his commission as a naval
officer after completing Officer
Candidate School at Naval Aviation
Schools Command, Naval Air Station,
Pensacola, Fla. During the 13-week
training program Thompson received
extensive instruction on a variety of
specialized subjects, including navigation, ship handling, engineering,
naval warfare and management.
Thompson also completed a demanding daily physical fitness program
that involved running, swimming and
calisthenics.
1998
Catherine A. Woells, BGS, is working on a master’s degree in communication at UNO while working at the
law office of Tom Wik, a 1988 UNO
graduate.
Rene Munchrath, BS, joined Midwest
Laboratories as an environmental lab
technicians. The company provides a
full range of laboratory analysis
services to the
agricultural, food
water and environmental industries.
In Memoriam
1935
1936
1937
1938
1941
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1954
1958
1960
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1976
1975
1977
1980
1982
1985
1988
Eileen Hanlin
John Borg
Bahngrell Brown
Melvin Boldenow
Betty-Jayne Cole
Sadie M. Buck
Ruth M. Duffield
James Velehradsky
Eddie Kuklin
Maxine Becker
Zelda L. Nelson
Ted McCartney
Harold Crawford
Wanda Wittmuss
John Bergmann
Robert Hardy
William Broach
Marjorie J. Johnson
Lawrence Higgins
James E. Green
John A. Martin
Robert Pershing Felder
Helen Olsen
Col. (Ret) Alfred R. Novak
Norman Shaw
Margaret Zellers
James Maertens?
Frances D. Ness
Paul L. Bach
Judith R. Jenson
Donald L. Wells
Robert Wernett
Betty Knox
John Weathers
Lowell Thomas
Wayne L. White
William Skar
John Frederic Zinnecker
Thelda Vaughn
Charles Chesire
Russell Robert Nietfeld
Daniel Pesavento
James Wintle
CLASS NOTES
What have you been doing since graduating from UNO? Your fellow
alumni would like to know! Give us an update by filling out the form
below. We'll publish the news in the next available issue of the UNO
Alum. Send the news about yourself or classmates to Class Notes
Editor, UNO Alum, 67th & Dodge, Omaha, NE 68182-0010. Or FAX to
(402) 554-3787. Or e-mail [email protected].
Name
Address
City, State, Zip
New Address?
Phone
Year Graduated/Degree
News
SUMMER 1999
UNO ALUM
31
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA AT OMAHA
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W.H. THOMPSON ALUMNI CENTER
OMAHA, NE 68182-0010
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