Countdown to College welcomes 72 students

Saint Mary’s is conducting its third annual Countdown to College through Aug. 4. This two-week program for students from under-resourced communities is offered each summer for four years, beginning just after they complete eighth grade and continuing until they reach college age — helping to assure each student is prepared for a successful college experience.

The camp is free to student participants from San Miguel and Nativity middle schools and Cristo Rey and Lasallian high schools, their parents (who come the first weekend) and teachers from their schools, who co-teach with SMU instructors, and help prepare SMU instructors on how to effectively work with this growing population of students. SMU welcomed back 22 participants for the third time, 24 participants for the second time, and 26 new incoming ninth-graders. Each group stays on campus for two weeks.

This is one portion of the First-Generation Initiative, which helps students prepare and succeed at college.

Fund established at Wells Fargo for Saint Mary’s accident victim

Senior Sabrina Larson Bushlack, 21, of Mapleton, Minn., was critically injured in a car accident July 16 in Fort Wayne, Ind.

According to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, Bushlack was injured after the taxi she was riding in was struck by a car that police said ran a red light.

Bushlack — a biochemistry major and three-year regular for the Cardinal volleyball team — remains under sedation because of swelling on her brain and is in intensive care at Lutheran Hospital, in Fort Wayne, Ind. Doctors are optimistic about her prognosis.

A fund has been set up at Wells Fargo Bank to help the Bushlack family with rising medical expenses — including flying Sabrina back to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Donations may be made by contacting any Wells Fargo Bank (including Wells Fargo at 875 34th Avenue, Winona, MN 55987) and indicating that the donation is for the benefit of Sabrina Bushlack.

A “Team Brina: Sabrina’s Biggest Fans” Facebook page has been set up for family and friends to share their thoughts and prayers. More than 1,200 members have joined in support of Bushlack.

“Our thoughts remain with Sabrina and her family during this difficult time,” said Brother William. “The entire Saint Mary’s community joins me in prayers for recovery and strength, and we look forward to the day when Sabrina is able to return to campus. She’s a very special student who is loved by many.”

APO to celebrate 45th reunion Aug. 3-5

In 1967, the Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity established the Sigma Theta chapter on the Winona campus. On the weekend of Aug. 3-5, the alumni brothers of the chapter will gather again to celebrate its 45th year. With over 330 members, the chapter has produced hundreds of business, professional and community leaders in the areas of law, medicine, finance, law enforcement, and entrepreneurship around the United States.

Based on the fraternity principles of leadership, friendship, and service, the Sigma Theta chapter will once again gather to celebrate its brotherhood and honor its members that had an important and meaningful impact on the development of Saint Mary's.

Tegrity updates to include new features

Information Technology will perform Tegrity updates this summer which will bring many new features and further improve reliability. For a complete list of enhancements, please visit a techfaq article, at http://techfaq.smumn.edu/index.php?action=artikel&cat=23&id=307&artlang=en.

Some of the new features include:

    • The ability to create recordings from Android and iOS devices

    • Clicking the Tegrity Classes link within Blackboard while on a mobile device will now launch the Tegrity mobile app

    • Kindle Fire support

    • Improved Mac OSX recorder

This will result in two Tegrity outages. The first outage will be the longest and will occur starting July 30 at 8 p.m. until noon on July 31. A second phase of this upgrade will occur during the early morning hours of Aug. 13.

To view recordings during either of the outages listed above, please follow these directions located on http://techfaq.smumn.edu/index.php?action=artikel&cat=28&id=126&artlang=en to download them to your device in advance.

Instructors will still be able to create recordings by launching the recorder from the system tray; however they will not upload immediately. Please contact the HelpDesk at Ext. 7800 if you plan on creating recordings during either of these upgrades.

Congratulations to Putz, Windley-Daoust families

Jason Putz (maintenance) and his wife Jaimie had a son, Daniel John, on Sunday, July 15. 

Susan Windley-Daoust (Theology) and her husband Jerry adopted a 5-year-old boy on June 12 named Alexander Joseph.

The Saint Mary’s community extends its congratulations to the Putz and Windley-Daoust families.

Brother Finbar’s work on display at SMU gallery

“The Eye & Hand of the Craftsman — The life work of Finbar McMullen, FSC” is on display through Aug. 19 in the Lillian Davis Hogan Galleries, Toner Student Center. Brother Finbar, a retired educator, 1946 SMU alum and Christian Brother for 70 years, is showing a variety of his hand-crafted art and mechanical inventions. The exhibit — free and open to the public — is open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.