Cardinal ‘M’ Club Weekend events planned for Sept. 11-13

The seventh annual Cardinal ‘M’ Club weekend is Sept. 11-13. This weekend has grown tremendously in the last seven years.

Major events include:
• Friday, Sept. 11 — Men's Hockey Alumni Game, 7 p.m. SMU Ice Arena
• Saturday, Sept. 12 — Golf Outing, 10:30 a.m., Cedar Valley Golf Course; Athletic Awards Ceremony and Sports Hall of Fame Inductions, 7:30 p.m., gymnasium; Friends and Alumni Social, 9:30 p.m., Wellington Pub & Grill
• Sunday, Sept. 13 — Alumni Games and Porkmaster's Pig Roast, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Along with the induction of this year’s Hall of Fame class, SMU’s 2008-09 postseason award-winners, as well as last year’s outstanding male and female athletes and outstanding scholar athletes will also be recognized during Saturday night’s ceremony.

SMU HALL OF FAME, CLASS OF 2009

SMU HALL OF FAME, CLASS OF 2009

Tom Pepper, Chicago

A three-year letterwinner and an NAIA All-District performer his senior season, Tom Pepper still remains one of the premier scorers in SMU men’s basketball history. His 1,281 points and 16.9 career per-game scoring average rank him ninth all-time, despite having only played three seasons at Saint Mary’s, after transferring from NCAA Division I Loyola Marymount University. Upon graduation, Pepper traded in his sneakers for a coach’s whistle, coaching high school basketball at St. Mel’s and Farragut Academy in Chicago.


Sue Otto, Santa Monica, Calif.

A four-year letterwinner, Sue Otto was a stabilizing force for the Saint Mary’s University women’s soccer team — a team that won three Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles and made three trips to the NCAA Division III national tournament, including a semifinal appearance in 1986. An All-MIAC First-Team selection in 1988 and 1989, Otto and the Cardinals lost just two conference games in her four-year career, going 47-2-0. Along with her all-conference honors, Otto was also a two-time First Team All-West Region pick in 1988-89, as well as a Third-Team All-American during her junior year, and a First-Team All-American and team MVP during her senior season. Otto appeared in 77 games during her four-year career, compiling 17 goals and 27 assists for 61 points. Her 27 assists rank No. 5 all-time in SMU women’s soccer history, while her 61 points are 11th and her 17 goals put her 12th.

Chad Doerre, Joliet, Ill.

A four-year letterwinner, Chad Doerre is one of the most accomplished pitchers to come through the Saint Mary’s baseball program. As a freshman, Doerre helped pitch the Cardinals to their most recent Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and a second-place showing in the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament. A two-time First-Team All-MIAC selection in 1995 and 1996, Doerre closed out his career with a 22-7 record with 11 complete games. He threw 197 innings, compiling a 2.38 earned-run-average, while walking 43 and striking out 143. His 22 wins and 197 innings pitch rank No. 1 all-time in SMU baseball history, while his 11 complete games and 143 strikeouts are No. 5 all-time. Doerre is also among the top 10 in ERA, ranking ninth at 2.38, while also proving productive at the plate, boasting a .330 career batting average and a .346 slugging percentage in 188 at-bats.

Faculty and staff are invited to join in the weekend events and reconnect with SMU alumni. SMU faculty and staff are welcome to golf with us for a reduced price of $80. Visit the Cardinal ‘M’ Club website at www.smumn.edu/mclub to register and see additional information, including a list of golf participants. You may also contact Nikki Fennern at nfennern@smumn.edu or Ext. 1638 for more details or to sign up for events.

Inaugural Young Alumni Weekend is Sept. 11-13

Graduates from the last decade have been invited back to campus for the inaugural Young Alumni Reunion Weekend, Sept. 11-13.

As part of the weekend, a Faculty/Staff & Young Alumni Social is planned for 5 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 11, in the Toner Student Center Lounge.

Approximately 200 students are planning to attend the special weekend of events which will also include a bonfire, a community outreach project, ropes course activities, disc golfing and a pig roast picnic. The weekend also coincides with Cardinal ‘M’ Club Weekend, giving SMU alumni opportunities to cheer on Cardinal athletics. A special barbecue is planned for the anniversary class of 2004.

Former students often express their interest in reconnecting with faculty and staff. Please make plans to attend! To see a complete schedule of events, as well as a list of the young alumni who are planning to attend, go to www.smumn.edu/youngalumniweekend.aspx.

To RSVP, call the Alumni Office at alumni@smumn.edu or Ext. 1499.

Fiddling poet Ken Waldman to perform Sept. 8

In a unique fusion of music and verse, Ken Waldman, “Alaska’s Fiddling Poet,” will perform 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8, at Saint Mary’s.

This event, free and open to the public, will be held in the President’s Room.

Waldman combines old-time Appalachian-style fiddling, original poetry, and Alaska-set storytelling for a performance uniquely his own. Waldman has published six full-length poetry collections, a memoir about his life as a touring artist (“Are You Famous?”), and seven CDs. Since 1994, he’s worked full-time as “Alaska’s Fiddling Poet,” performing at some of the nation’s leading universities, festivals, art centers and clubs — including Millennium Stage at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Event sponsors include Academic Affairs and Student Activities Offices, and the English Department.

For more information, contact Dr. Carolyn Ayers at cayers@smumn.edu or Ext. 1523.

MinnPost founder to discuss newspaper industry Sept. 15

Joel Kramer, founder, editor and CEO of MinnPost.com, will discuss the changes taking place in today’s newspaper industry on Tuesday, Sept. 15.

Kramer founded an online newspaper seen by some observers as a model that might succeed while traditional print newspapers fall by the wayside. His presentation, “The collapsing business model for journalism: What's next?” will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Figliulo Recital Hall.

Kramer served as the editor of the Minneapolis Star Tribune from 1983 to 1991 and as publisher and president from 1992 to 1998. In summer 2007, Kramer launched MinnPost.com, a nonprofit online newspaper with a mission “to provide high-quality journalism for news-intense people who care about Minnesota.” The site features high-quality video and audio, as well as written stories and commentary pieces.

As Matt Snyders of City Pages said in a March 2, 2009 article, “the ink-stained community went abuzz.” Snyders continued, “For an industry wracked by massive layoffs and plummeting ad revenue, any news not involving job loss was a good thing.”

MinnPost.com has garnered quite a bit of attention as both critics and supporters have questioned whether this type of nonprofit journalism — one that aims to eventually break even with the support of corporate sponsors, advertisers and donations from members — can thrive in today’s struggling newspaper climate.

In a report for the Nieman Journalism Lab, Kramer wrote, “A lot of pixels are being spilled these days reflecting on the future of newspapers, news, journalists, and journalism. I spent my career in newspapers, first as a journalist and later as a publisher, and I left when the business was financially near its peak. With the for-profit model now shriveling, I’ve spent the past 16 months trying to build one example of what might be coming next—a not-for-profit enterprise providing high-quality regional journalism on the web.”

A question-and-answer period will follow Kramer’s presentation. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Steve Schild, at Ext. 1753 or sschild@smumn.edu.

Saint Mary’s art show titled ‘A History of the Plains’

St. Cloud artist David Sebberson is exhibiting a portion of his on-going series, “A History of the Plains,” through Sept. 27 at the Lillian Davis Hogan Galleries.

Sebberson began his series after visiting what was left of his family farm and noticing that the farm buildings that once dotted the landscape were “burned, bulldozed and buried beneath high-yield fields whose ever increasing economic productivity has been erasing the immigrant culture I grew up in, a harvest of forgetfulness at 150 bushels per acre.”

Sebberson currently chairs the St. Cloud State University Department of Art.

A closing reception for the artist will be held 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26, at the galleries.

Admission is free and open to the public, and gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. For more information, call Ext. 1652.

O'Shea, Ek to be invested in Order of the Holy Sepulchre

Dr. Patrick M. O'Shea, associate professor of music, and Susanne C. Ek '85, executive director for the U.S. Office of the Billings Ovulation Method will be invested as a Knight and Lady of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem at the annual meeting and investiture weekend of the U.S. Northern Lieutenancy of the Order, Sept.18-21 in St. Louis.

Tracing its origin to the First Crusade, the Order was reorganized and revitalized in 1847 with the restoration of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem by Pope Pius IX. At the December 2008 world ‘consulta’ of the Order at the Vatican, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI stated that the Order came into being as “a ‘guard of honour’ for the protection of the Holy Sepulchre of Our Lord,” and since its foundation “has attracted the particular concern of Roman Pontiffs, who have given it the spiritual and juridical instruments necessary for it to carry out its specific form of service.”

Today, the Order is an association of both lay and religious men and women with a special devotion to the support of the church in the Holy Land. Appointed directly by the Holy Father, the Cardinal Grand Master of the Order is His Eminence John Cardinal Foley, and the Grand Prior of the Order is the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Fouad Twal.

Among the schools that receive support from the Order of the Holy Sepulchre is our sister Lasallian institution, Bethlehem University.

Other members of the Order from the Saint Mary's community include Brother Chancellor. Louis DeThomasis, FSC, The Most Rev. Bernard J. Harrington, Bishop Emeritus of Winona, and The Most Rev. John Quinn, Bishop of Winona.

The speaker for the investiture weekend will be Brother A. David Carroll, FSC.

History Department Book Prizes announced

Since 1995, the Saint Mary’s University Department of History has awarded book prizes to recognize students for outstanding work in history courses. The following students were chosen for their work during spring semester:

Maria Biebel, Emily Degallier, Joseph Richards and Anna Szyszkiewicz won the book awards for H125 Europe and the World.

In H150 American Experience, Alison Hill and David Spriegel were the book winners.

Katherine Drazkowski won the prize in H211 Modern America.

Travis Fick was acknowledged for his work in H311 US Foreign Relations, Timothy Van Cleave for H332 The Renaissance, and Brian Bakalyar for H343 Environmental History.

Finally, Dan Corcoran won the book prize in H450 History without Boundaries and Danielle Zauhar won the award for H461 Historical Research and Writing, the capstone course for history majors.

Season tickets for Page Series on sale until Sept. 18

Individual tickets for the 2009-2010 Page Series — now in its 23rd season — are now on sale. A full season of performing arts from around the world begins Oct. 2.

New this year, you may still purchase season tickets for the Page Series through Sept. 18 online, by phone, or in person. Purchase tickets for just three events and receive 10 percent off your total ticket cost. Returning subscribers are eligible for a 25 percent discount.

Whether you enjoy classical ballet, Irish music, family-friendly theatre, tap, swing or Canadian folk, the Page Series delivers again this year. Order online at www.pagetheatre.org, by phone at Ext. 1715, or at the box office from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Volunteer committee funds to help food shelf, students

This fall the SMU Volunteer Committee will use funds from the “Let’s Do Lunch” events for Volunteer Services Food Shelf, and “Jeans for a Cause” funds will go toward student assistance, especially first generation students.

If your department or office would like to host a “Let’s Do Lunch” this year, contact Laurie Haase at Ext. 1464. Tentative dates have been set for Fridays, Oct. 2, Nov. 13 and Dec. 4. The committee provides water, plates, napkins, silverware and desserts. Hosts are asked to bring food for the main course.

Cochran to host first biology seminar Sept. 10

The Biology weekly seminar series is starting up again for the fall semester. The first presentation is 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, in Room Hoffman 112. Dr. Philip Cochran, Biology Department, will discuss “Willowcats for Sale? The Large Role of the Little Catfish in the Mississippi River Valley,”

Conservatory registration open house is Sept. 9

The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts will conduct a semester I registration open house from 4 to 7 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 9, at the Valéncia Arts Center, 1164 West 10th St.

Registration for semester I dance classes and MCA’s tuition-free youth choir – the Winona Area Youth Singers — will be accepted at the open house. Tours of the facility will be available, refreshments will be served, and students will have the opportunity to meet new and returning faculty and staff. Additionally, students can be fitted for dance attire at the open house. MCA’s dance attire boutique offers quality basics, including leotards, tights, ballet slippers, jazz shoes and tap shoes.

Classes begin Sept. 14. Dance class offerings — available for children age 3 through adults — include beginning through advanced levels in classical ballet, tap, jazz, modern, hip hop, Pilates, and a special tuition-free boys program which offers a Dance Technique for Boys class and performance opportunities. Semester I also provides programming in partnership with Winona County Community Education for teens and adults including: Teen and Adult Ballet, Clogging I, Clogging II, Dance Fitness, and Piyo.

MCA’s music division offers a youth choir – Winona Area Youth Singers, for students in grades four through eight. In response to the current economic climate, MCA is waiving WAYS tuition for any and all students who desire to participate for the 2009-2010 academic year. This tuition waiver is made possible by a grant from the Saint Mary’s University Friends of the School of the Arts.

Now in its second year, WAYS seeks to take young people who have been introduced to choir/music in their elementary, middle schools, or junior highs and further encourage and nurture their talent.

Academic credit is available through Cotter High School and Saint Mary’s dance minor program for a variety of MCA dance classes.
Semester I classes will provide 10 weeks of instruction, concluding with a demonstration week, Nov. 16-21.

Dance students ages 5 to 13 are also invited to audition for MCA’s Dance Repertory Company II Winter Showcase. Auditions are 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, at the Valéncia Arts Center. The Winter Dance Showcases will be Dec. 4-5 at Valéncia Arts Center Academy Theatre.

Winona Area Youth Singers will conclude Semester I following their winter concert, Dec. 6, at the Valéncia Arts Center Recital Hall.

Tuition for MCA classes varies depending on course length and level. Discounts and scholarships are available.

For more information, visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500.

Jazz notes

John Paulson and Swing Inc. will perform 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13, at Jefferson Pub and Grill, Winona.

Dr. Rodgers receives chapter advisor award

Dr. James Rodgers, professor of Social Science, has been selected to receive a Chapter Advisor Recognition Award from Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society. The award, one of two given in 2009, recognizes a faculty advisor who has shown extraordinary dedication, commitment and leadership to a student chapter. Dr. Rodgers has served as the Nu Nu chapter advisor for 25 years and has been commended for guiding a chapter that has been consistently active and productive.

Recipients of the Chapter Advisor Recognition Award will be announced in the fall issue of the Pi Sigma Alpha newsletter, in the journal PS: Political Science and Politics, and at a display at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association.

Knights of Columbus at SMU earns top award

The Brother Elzear Council 5202 of the Knights of Columbus at Saint Mary’s has earned the distinction of “Double Star Council” for the 2008–2009 fraternal year. This distinction is the organization’s top award.

In correspondence received from Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson by Nate Kuhn, Grand Knight of the council and a senior at Saint Mary’s, Anderson stated, “…You and your council have gone above and beyond your membership quota and have attained at least 200 percent growth, thus making you a “Double Star Council.” Your council was one of only around 400 councils that received the elite “Double Star Council” recognition…”

“ ‘The Double Star Council Award’ is an extraordinary honor for our council and its members,” said Kuhn. “We are extremely proud of this accomplishment. It reflects onto the entire Saint Mary’s community.”

The award, the highest distinction any council can realize, recognizes overall excellence in the areas of membership and insurance growth as well as programming activities.

In addition, Council 5202 was awarded the Columbian Award for outstanding effort in conducting at least 20 service program activities (four in each category: church, community, council, family, and youth), the Father McGivney Award for outstanding recruitment and retention efforts, and finally the Founders’ Award for excellence in insurance promotion and attainment of the council’s insurance quota.

With more than 1.78 million members, the Knights of Columbus is the world’s largest Catholic lay organization. It provides members and their families with volunteer opportunities in service to the Catholic Church, the community, families, and young people.

Applications accepted for Mayo Innovation Scholars Program

Interested Junior and Senior business and science majors are invited to apply to participate in the Mayo Innovation Scholars Program. Selected scholars will work on intellectual property cases investigating the opportunity for product/treatment development and marketability. Participants will receive a $1,000 stipend, academic credit, and a superb experience working with Mayo Clinic staff.

To apply, students are asked to submit a resumé and a cover letter stating their interest and any personal qualities that may add to — or be enhanced by — participation in the program. Two students majoring in business and two students majoring in the sciences will be selected for the program.

Faculty and staff are asked to encourage interested students to apply. Complete applications must be submitted by 5 p.m. Sept. 21. More details about this opportunity are available from the advising faculty, Dr. Shelly McCallum (Ext. 7279, Room 429-A Saint Mary’s Hall), Dr. Debra Martin (Ext. 1628, Room 223 Brother Charles Hall) or Dr. Randy Krainock (Ext. 8703, Room 122 Hoffman Hall).

Fine Arts Commission to honor SMU School of the Arts

On Monday, Sept. 21, at 7:30 p.m., SMU’s School of the Arts is being recognized by the City of Winona’s Fine Arts Commission for outstanding contributions to the City of Winona and its arts community.

Dean Michael Charron will accept the award on behalf of SMU and the School of the Arts.
Everyone is invited to attend. The Fine Arts Commission will meet in the council chambers at city hall.

Sympathy to Patterson, O’Neill families

Mary Ann Patterson mother of Dr. Ann Gibson, director of Counseling Services, mother-in-law of Tom ’68, and grandmother to William, M ’02 and Tom ’95, passed away Wednesday, Sept. 2.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at the Chapel of Saint Mary of the Angels on the Saint Teresa campus. The visitation will be at 9 a.m. until time of service on Saturday, Sept. 5.

Condolence cards can be sent to Ann at Campus Box 80.

Father Thomas M. O'Neill, vice president for Mission and Ministry, chaplain, director of Campus Ministry, and an instructor in the Department of Religious Studies/Philosophy at Viterbo University died Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Father Tom served as chaplain and campus minister at Saint Mary’s from June 1991 through May 1994.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at San Damiano Chapel on Viterbo University campus. Bishop Jerome E. Listecki will officiate. A visitation will be held at 9 a.m. until time of service today.

The family asks memorials to be directed to Viterbo University, 900 Viterbo Drive, La Crosse, or the Diocese of La Crosse Priest Fund, P.O. Box 4004, La Crosse, WI 54602-4004.

The Saint Mary’s community extends its sympathy to these families.