2009_Fall_ISSUU

Fall 2009
In this issue:
SENIOR STORIES P.13
“Live the life you want to live on your terms
and with a good heart and clear conscience.”
Commencement 2009 P.24
Fall preview: TOBIAS WOLFF P.26 + 35

The Ties
That Bind
President’s message
One hundred years ago, the Southwestern family gathered for the University’s first
Homecoming. Even without the assistance of e-mails or instant messaging, the University
contacted a significant number of alumni and friends so that attendance was nearly 1,000.
Published reports described the attendees as a “who’s who in Texas.” A huge “dinner on
the grounds” was enjoyed as participants joined in singing the popular hymn “Blest Be the
Tie That Binds” in recognition of their close association with Southwestern. Alumni and
friends posed on the downtown square for a photo that has now been immortalized on the
wall of Georgetown’s visitor’s center. It was truly an extraordinary event.
In 1909, William H. Taft was president of the United States, the population of the country
was just over 90 million and a first-class stamp was two cents. The NAACP was founded
under its first leader, W.E.B. DuBois, and American explorers Robert Peary and Matthew
Henson reached the North Pole. Yale was the NCAA football champion, and the Nobel
Prize in Physics was awarded to Guglielmo Marconi for the development of the wireless
(even though some believe Southwestern President Robert S. Hyer sent a wireless message
before Marconi).
Southwestern University had few peers in Texas in 1909. Famous people like William
Jennings Bryan visited our campus; the first literary societies in Texas, founded at
Southwestern, were well-established and robust; and Professors Hyer and Cody had assembled
a faculty, albeit still small in number, which was second to none in the Lone Star State. Even
though the First World War was only a few years away and very difficult financial times
lay ahead for our University, 1909 was a perfect time to beckon the Southwestern family
home for a grand celebration.
Now 100 years later, Southwestern enjoys the admiration of its higher education peers in
Texas and beyond. As the first and best national liberal arts college in Texas, we continue
to lead the way through innovative programs like Paideia®
and our leadership of NITLE,
the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education.
Our alumni and friends continue to give Southwestern the resources and the inspiration
to move forward and to challenge our students. None of our progress would be possible
without you. Therefore, it is with gratitude and appreciation that I invite you to join the
campus community for a Southwestern family celebration Nov. 6-8 commemorating the
100th anniversary of our first Homecoming.
See you there!
Jake B. Schrum ’68
President, Southwestern University

Fall 2009 www.southwestern.edu 3
Fall 2009
On the cover
Paideia®
Scholar Crystal Jackson ’09, reflects on her
Southwestern Experience in Senior Stories (Page 18).
TAYLORJONES‘97
13 24
In every issue
2 | President’s Message
26 | Kiosk
27 | On Campus
32 | Athletics
35 | Engaging Find
37 | Alumni News
38 | Class Notes
47 | Academics in Focus
50 | Last Word
Features
4 | The Care and Feeding of a
Southwestern Education
Keeping financial assistance
alive at Southwestern.
6 | Mission: Dixon
How to choose when outstanding
grades and test-scores are a given?
10 | In the Field with
Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton
Walking her talk on campus
and around the world.
13 | Senior Stories
Instrument petting zoo?
Check. Cannibalistic snails?
Check. Predictable college
experience? Not a chance.
24 | Capturing the Moment
Commencement 2009.
10
Fall 2009
In this issue:
SENIOR STORIES P.13
“Live the life you want to live on your terms
and with a good heart and clear conscience.”
Commencement 2009 P.24
Fall preview: TOBIAS WOLFF P.26 + 35

students faculty resources
The Care and Feeding of a
Southwestern
Education
CARE INSTRUCTIONS for
Educatio Australoccidae
In the current economic environment, a growing
gap exists between the demonstrated financial
need of our students and the resources available
on campus to assist them.

The Princeton Review calls Southwestern University one of “America’s Best Value Colleges,”
noting that Southwestern is “$10,000 to $15,000 lower than what you’d expect for a liberal
arts college of its academic caliber.”
Even so, the full sticker price of a Southwestern education—including tuition, fees, room
and board, books and a realistic estimate of personal expenses—is more than $41,000 for
the next academic year.
While about 67 percent of the average student’s needs are met by the University through
need-based and/or merit scholarships, these students receiving financial aid still pay around
$18,000 a year for a Southwestern education.
A Southwestern education is resource intensive, but extremely beneficial to students.
• Employing exceptionally talented and qualified “teacher-scholars,” 99 percent of whom
hold the most advanced degree in their field, encourages collaborative student-faculty
research and publication.
• The University upholds rigorous academic expectations
and offers the Paideia®
Program, a distinctive learning
seminar that emphasizes intellectual curiosity and civic
engagement.
• A 10:1 student-faculty ratio allows for small class sizes and
mentoring relationships between faculty and students.
• A modern living-learning environment is supported by
comprehensive student services, including a Center for
Academic Success, an Office of Intercultural Learning, an
Office of Civic Engagement and an Office of Career Services,
which was ranked #7 in the country for Best Career/Job
Placement Services in the 2008 edition of The Best 366
Colleges, published by the Princeton Review.
• Volunteer opportunities such as “Destination Service,”
a Spring Break volunteer service program, as well as oppor-
tunities to study abroad and to participate in internships
are offered and encouraged.
• Students have wide access to technology, and are able to utilize extensive campus
facilities including theaters, sports and recreation centers, laboratories, an observatory
and a greenhouse.
Here, Lives Are Changed
In his book, Colleges That Change Lives, author Loren Pope described Southwestern as
“…one of the few jewels of the Southwest whose mission it is to prepare a new generation
to contribute to a changing society, and to prosper in their jobs, whatever and wherever in
the world they may be.”
Providing students with financial assistance allows Southwestern to recruit and retain a
diverse and highly qualified student body, whose contributions to society will continue to
add value to the degrees of future and past graduates alike.
However, in the current economic environment, a growing gap exists between the demon-
strated financial need of our students and the resources available on campus to assist them.
Southwestern must increase the amount of assistance it is able to provide. It is critical to our
students and their families.
The Southwestern Experience has changed the lives of many and continues to transform
the lives of deserving students today. Southwestern invites all alumni and friends to make an
annual gift to support our students. Every gift matters.
If you wish to make a gift, please go to www.southwestern.edu/giving/annual-giving-form.
php or call the Development Office at 800-960-6363, extension 1482, to discuss your plans.
Financial Assistance by the Numbers
54%
32%
67%
80% of Southwestern students receive some form
of financial assistance from the University.
receive need-based financial aid = $26,000
per student per year.
receive merit scholarships = $10,000
per student per year.
of the average student’s needs are met by the
University, thanks in part to the generosity of donors.

6 Southwestern Magazine
The Dixon Scholarship Selection Committee is currently made up of five professionals, four of whom are Southwestern
alumni. Southwestern sat down with the committee to learn more about what’s involved in applying for and possibly
receiving a Dixon Scholarship.
Relying on gifts from alumni and friends to maintain and grow the level of scholarship support offered, the Dixon Fund has
provided full and partial scholarships to 160 deserving students headed to the Southwestern campus over the past decade.
To be considered for a Dixon Award, students must rank in the top 10 percent of their high school class and are selected
based on the quality and rigor of their high school academic record, their performance on the SAT or ACT, their level of
extracurricular involvement, the quality of their written essay, their personal interview with a member of the admission staff
and the content of their recommendation letters.
IN 1999, SOUTHWESTERN PARTNERED WITH THE TEXAS METHODIST FOUNDATION to create the Dixon ScholarshipFund, named in honor of the late Ernest T. Dixon Jr., a leading United Methodist Bishop and advocate of higher education. TheDixon Scholarship Award was created to benefit high-achieving African American, Hispanic and Native American students.
Mission: Dixon
PhotographybyTaylorJones’97

Lynette: Dixon creates interest in
Southwestern and opens doors for
students who might not otherwise
come here. I’ve been on the selection
committee from the beginning, and
it’s gotten harder every year to make
our decisions.
Maggie: This was my first year on the
committee. My grandfather and Bishop
Dixon were friends, so I’m especially
happy to help; it does so much good
for the students and the University.
What drew you to the Dixon
Scholarship Selection Committee?
Curtis: I’ve been part of the committee
for eight years. I value diversity in our
environment, and I believe differences
of opinion allow us all to grow and
become better citizens.
John: I was a Presidential Scholar in the
inaugural year of that Southwestern
scholarship, so when I was asked to be
on the Dixon selection committee, I
saw it as an opportunity to help others
as I’d been helped as a student.
For a committee member, what is
the application process like?
Candy: The Southwestern Office of
Admission receives more than 150
applications each year from minority
students who meet our requirements.
The admission counselors narrow
those down based on academics, test
scores, extracurricular activities and
financial need as well as other subjec-
tive factors. Ultimately, we consider
about 50 applications a year. Each
committee member has to review all
50 within a week’s time.
TaylorJones’97,TaylorJonesImages
Candy Gross
Vice President of Investor
Services and Grants, Texas
Methodist Foundation
John Lopez ’89
Attorney,
Travis County
District Attorney’s Office
Lynette Saterfield
Phillips ’83
Attorney,
Flahive Ogden Latson
Curtis Vick ’83
Senior Vice President
of Operations, Texas
Maggie Smith Wolfe ’06
Account Assistant,
Investor Services, Texas
The Dixon Scholarship
Selection Committee:
five professionals,
635 tough decisions.

Entrepreneurial ventures like a home décor company that advocates fair trade
with suppliers, all of whom are the original artists and live in impoverished regions
of Central America.
John: The application materials are
so interesting to read that you lose
track of time.
How does the committee come to
make scholarship offers?
Curtis: We each spend a long weekend
reviewing applications. Once we make
our selections, the top 25 students are
invited to Southwestern and personal
interviews are held over two days.
The committee makes its final selec-
tions within a couple of days after the
interviews and then offers are made.
It’s a fast process.
Do Dixon recipients have to
reapply every year?
Candy: No. Dixon Scholarships are
awarded annually for up to four years.
Recipients must maintain a minimum
grade point average to keep their
scholarship.
What’s the most rewarding aspect
of being part of the selection
committee?
Curtis: The biggest reward is getting to
know the kids (the applicants). Their
level of maturity and confidence, and
their willingness to answer questions
is amazing. The challenge is trying to
identify the students who will flourish
at Southwestern—students that might
not find their way to the University
otherwise.
Maggie: Going through the applications
was arduous, but I was so impressed
with the caliber of the students. It’s
amazing to see what they’ve already
accomplished and what they can bring
to Southwestern.
Committee, ctd.
10 Years of Success
for Dixon Scholars
High-achieving African American, Hispanic and Native American students arrive each year
at Southwestern with knowledge, skills and life experience, as well as drive, ambition and a
desire to succeed. That’s what is required to be a Dixon Scholar.
Of these students, the University retains 95.7 percent, compared to a 86.4 percent retention
rate among Southwestern students as a whole. Dixon Scholars also maintain an average GPA
of 3.42 with 87.3 percent graduating within four years, while the student body as a whole has
an average GPA of 3.29 and a 75.9 percent graduation rate.
Upon graduation, Dixon Scholars are ready to go out and make a difference in the world. One
graduate says, “Ethical, corporate responsibility … that’s what Southwestern University taught
me. It’s not enough to practice the status-quo, you’ve got to get out there and redefine it.”
Dixon graduates have embarked on a variety of journeys, achieving success and making a
difference in many ways. Some of their accomplishments have included:
Involvement in projects like “Street Law,” teaching Chicago high school students
their basic legal rights.
One of the original Dixon Scholars, Yesenia Yadira Garcia ’03, recently wrote a letter to
Charline Hamblin McCombs ’50, Southwestern’s earliest Dixon donor, filling her in on the
past five years and thanking her for her support. Following is an excerpt of Garcia’s letter:
“Thanks to the Dixon Scholarship Program … I was able to complete my double major in
theatre and communication studies from Southwestern and have since received my MFA in
acting from The University of Texas at Austin and have had the opportunity to perform … my
bilingual multi-media one-person show … originally conceived … at Southwestern. I now
own my own film company…”
Garcia’s personal Dixon testimony can be seen at www.tinyurl.com/mptjw6
Learn about a recent Dixon graduate, Ricardo Levario ’09, in “Senior Stories” on Page 22.
Law degrees from The University of Texas, University of Chicago and HarvardLaw School, to name a few.
High school teaching positions, specializing in speech and debate, humanities
and Spanish.
Medical degrees from Southwestern Medical School and the University of
Texas Medical Branch; one alumna making the commitment to return to the
Rio Grande Valley to practice medicine.
Ph.D.s in economics and computational chemistry at institutions like Emory
University.

With so many applicants, how do committees
choose? Academic achievement and other
technical qualifications aside, how do you
distinguish yourself on an application or in
an interview?
Scholarship selection committees, admission
counselors and employers, for that matter, all
have something in common. They are looking
for something special. How do they choose
the best candidates for the scholarship, the
incoming class or the job? The application and
interview can make all the difference.
These are some things the Dixon Scholarship
Selection Committee looks for:
On Paper: Make it
Memorable
Give a sense of who you are and what you
can bring to the community.
• Write a dynamic essay or cover letter. (See
Page 12 for writing tips.)
• When completing a form or questionnaire,
distinguish yourself with detailed answers.
• Show a level of commitment to an activity
other than that for which you’re applying.
• Demonstrate your leadership experience.
In Person: Speak Up
Express your individuality through the personal
interview.
• Be true to yourself: your activities, family
and faith.
• Communicate your passion.
• Be friendly. Make eye contact. Be comfort-
able, as though you’re sitting down with
a friend.
• Give open, detailed answers and be sure to
include specific anecdotes or examples.
John: It’s really humbling to learn
about the big plans these students
have for themselves, even after—in
some cases—having overcome diffi-
cult circumstances in their lives. They
blow me away!
Candy: Reading about students’ specific
life circumstances can be emotional.
But it’s great to see the plans they have
for their futures.
John: The challenge is making the
decisions. We want to offer something
to all of them.
Do you look for depth or breadth of
experience in activities?
John: What I look for is passion. It may
be passion for one thing—sports, arts,
church—or it may be a passion for
learning in general. Either depth or
breadth can be good, it just depends
on the student.
Curtis: Personally, I like to see both.
You can’t have one without the other.
If (the applicant) has depth in only one
area, have they really explored enough
to know what they like or what they
want to do? On the other hand, we
need to see some depth, otherwise
it looks like their activities are just
résumé fillers.
Lynette: I hate to see kids who’ve
spread themselves too thin. It depends
on the student and what he or she has
done in their activities, but I like to
see quality over quantity.
What makes an application
memorable?
Curtis: Those students that stick out
in my mind are the ones that clearly
want to make a difference. They have
a plan and an expectation that they
will succeed.
Lynette: Each year it seems we have
groups of students who all do the
same thing; one year we have a lot of
athletes, another year a lot involved
in the sciences. So, for me, the essay
is the best way to get to know them
as individuals. The most memorable
for me was an essay written by a girl
about her grandmother. She ended up
graduating from Southwestern and
going on to law school.
John: I like to read an essay that gives
me insight into the student’s life.
What’s memorable to me is a student
who demonstrates strong character
and the ability to succeed even in the
face of adversity.
Maggie: The essays distinguish one
applicant from another, but the inter-
views are also really eye-opening. It’s
inspirational to hear some of the back-
ground stories and see the motivation
of these goal-oriented students.
Candy: What’s memorable? Students
who have a passion for learning, who
recognize the possibilities in front of
them, who are able to articulate what
they will bring to Southwestern.
For more information on applying
for the Dixon Award and other schol-
arships, go to www.southwestern.
edu/assistance.
If you would like to make a gift to
the Dixon Scholarship Fund, please
call the Southwestern Development
Office at 512-863-1482.
How Do You
Stack Up?

In the Field with
Elisabeth Piedmont-MartonAssociate Professor of English, Director of the Deborah S. Ellis Writing Center, Paideia®
Professor
Photograph by Lance Holt, Holt Images

M
ost Southwestern students choose the latter option.
That’s one reason Piedmont-Marton loves her job.
“At Southwestern, we see a majority of students
start careers that include strong elements of social activism,”
she says.
Piedmont-Marton herself sets the standard to follow. “It’s
Elisabeth’s curiosity, creativity and passion for social justice
that combine to make her one of the premier intellects and
teachers I know,” says David Gaines, associate professor
of English and Director of the Paideia®
Program. Delilah
Dominguez ’09 says, “Dr. Piedmont-Marton is not just a
professor out to teach literary theory but a person concerned
about connecting with people.”
That connection begins in the classroom and continues
off campus and even to remote parts of the world. Whether
discussing civic engagement with a student over coffee,
weighing in on local politics or helping to raise more than
$23,000 to build a school in Vietnam, Piedmont-Marton puts
her words into action.
Gaines says, “Elisabeth is the embodiment of intellect turned
to good works on campus and in the world. She is the best
kind of political activist, always willing to walk her talk.”
Piedmont-Marton brings that focus on civic responsibility
to students through the University’s Paideia Program, in
which she is a professor. Paideia, meaning the “sum total
of one’s education,” is a distinctive learning seminar that
serves to intensify the students’ educational experience, she
explains. “We reflect on the connection between our roles
as citizens and as intellectuals. We read about and discuss
what our responsibilities are and how to participate; how to
give back to the community and to society as a whole.”
Having traveled to Vietnam twice in three years, Piedmont-
Marton has read extensively about the region across a wide
range of disciplines: politics, history, ethnography and
literature. “Thanks to my involvement with Paideia,” she says,
If Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton
asked you, “Do you consider your
education to be a private asset
or a vehicle for public good?”
how would you answer?
“I’ve been thinking of how I can take up the responsibilities
of intellectual citizenship and bring my work as a professor
and writer into fuller engagement with the world.”
She explains that most writing about Vietnam from the last
two decades focuses on the policy of doi moi, or economic
reform, and how it affects Vietnam’s status as one of the
few remaining countries with a communist government.
Currently, those interested in learning about contempo-
rary Vietnam will have to look to writing that is at least 10
years old.
Helping build a much-needed school near the market town
of Bac Ha in the Lao Cai Province led Piedmont-Marton to
the idea of writing a book that would explore the world of
modern day North Vietnam. “The book will bring together my
scholarly work in war and literature, a grassroots civic engage-
ment project and my ambitions as a writer,” she says.
It could also position Piedmont-Marton as a “concentrated
messenger of a culture,” just as food is perceived to be in
one of her favorite books, Heat, by Bill Buford.
Getting to SU
Piedmont-Marton didn’t take a traditional path to
Southwestern. She lived in Chicago, Ill., Washington, D.C.
and Austin, and worked as an aerobics instructor, waitress,
sports stringer and mentor to college basketball players, all
the while earning her master’s degree and doctorate. She’s
happy to share her real life examples and knowledge in the
classroom. “I learned to be a better teacher because of those
experiences,” she says.
Piedmont-Marton is an example to her students. Sophomore
Griffin Ferry says, “All the things you wouldn’t expect
a professor to do, she does … even when my First-Year
Seminar with her was over, she still checked in to see how
I was doing.”

“Elisabeth is a populist with refined tastes,” says Gaines.
“She appreciates the beauty in everything from a text to the
dinner table to social justice.”
Piedmont-Marton and her husband, Bruce Marton, live
in South Austin and enjoy backpacking, camping, running,
reading, watching sports, cooking and entertaining. She
also loves to travel and cites Budapest, Hungary; Dubrovnik,
Croatia; North Vietnam; and Glacier National Park, Mont. as
her favorite places, but has been happy to call Southwestern
home for 10 years.
Students say Piedmont-Marton’s humility and humor help
make her classroom feel like home. Dominguez says in the
midst of a student’s often-chaotic campus life, “Her classes
are like Robert Frost’s definition of poetry—momentary
stays against confusion.”
To read more about Piedmont-Marton’s journeys to
North Vietnam, visit her blog at www.brightenthecorner.
blogspot.com.
Write Like A Pro
Five Tips from Elisabeth
Piedmont-Marton
1. Read a lot.
2. Writing is messy.
Be willing to make
mistakes in the process.
3. Don’t lose sight of your
reader.
4. Find actual readers to
provide feedback.
5. Revision often means
getting rid of your
favorite parts.
Deborah S. Ellis Writing Center
In 1999, Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton came to Southwestern and developed
the Deborah S. Ellis Writing Center, named for the late Debby Ellis, a scholar
of medieval literature, beloved English teacher and a founder of the women’s
studies program. Now in its 10th year, the Writing Center is considered by
Piedmont-Marton to be a success.
Student consultants receive training on how to help other students with their
writing, working one-on-one with writers at all levels, on all texts and at all
stages in the process. Piedmont-Marton is confident in that training. “I trust
the students to make decisions,” she says. “It’s a collaborative culture, and
the students don’t want to let each other down.”
“Through the Writing Center, Dr. Piedmont-Marton tries to understand what’s
at work in the writer, without regard to academic level or discipline,” says
Delilah Dominguez ’09.
Of Piedmont-Marton’s writing expertise, Emily Northrop, associate professor
of economics and chair of the economics and business department, says,
“Over the years I’ve had many conversations with Elisabeth on how to be
more effective in teaching students to write. In telling me and other faculty
what we don’t particularly want to hear, her advice has always been expert,
convincing, encouraging and fun.”
During her travels to North Vietnam, Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton visited with school children in Tong Thuony, hiked through rice fields from Can Cau
market to Bac Ha and got to know Mr. Duong, assistant headmaster of the school.

C
R
KC
NSENIOR
STORIES
Kevin, Natalie, Crystal, Colin, Ricardo:
Five Southwestern seniors whose faits
accomplis beg the question, “What’s next?”
Photography by Taylor Jones ’97
Manage a portion of the University’s endowment . . . . . . .
Have personal values and listen with an open mind . . . . . .
Prove that art benefits from being informed by
different subjects—even accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Kick around ideas on the soccer field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Work to save the planet from giant snails (yes, really!) . . . .
When in Rome: Salsa dance in Uruguay, play
ice hockey in Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Create an arts festival with an instrument petting zoo. . . .
Pursue a Ph.D. in quantitative ecology
and mathematical modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Return home to Dallas as a Cowboys Cheerleader?
You never know! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Put theory to work: major in physics and business . . . . . .
Make music a career—one that doesn’t
freak out my parents in McAllen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Get published: give Odessa a claim-to-fame . . . . . . . . . . .
Next winter: report on wind-chill factor
when calling home to Arlington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Care about my community: teach senior citizens
to use e-mail. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Next stop? Boston: “not a big college town”. . . . . . . . . . . .
Be honored as a Dixon Scholar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Barcelona, minus Vicky Cristina: set up a painting
studio in Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Thank the King Creativity Fund, twice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kevin O’Neil has played soccer
since he can remember, and he’s
known for years that he wanted to
be an engineer.
Southwestern was a good fit—he
could study business as a precursor
to engineering, while continuing
his passion for soccer. “I received a
handwritten letter from Head Coach
Don Gregory which really meant a
lot,” he says. Then, a week before
signing with the team, O’Neil found
out he’d received a Brown Scholarship,
Southwestern’s most prestigious
academic award.
A physics and business major, O’Neil
felt playing on the soccer team helped
him create balance in an otherwise
busy campus life. “With soccer, I had
a routine, I stayed in shape and I got
to travel,” he says. He also received
the Southwestern Athletics Pirate
Anchor Award, presented annually
by the Student Athletic Advisory
Committee to one male and one
female athlete who best display the
traits that embody the spirit of the
Southwestern community as decided
by a student vote.
For O’Neil, the Southwestern
Experience included being a member
and officer of Pi Kappa Alpha frater-
nity, the Student Foundation and the
Homecoming Committee. He was also
a campus tour guide and a resident
assistant. “I discovered I’m not good
at saying ‘no,’” he laughs.
Coming from a high school twice
the size of Southwestern, O’Neil
thought he’d have to go to Austin for
fun. “I was wrong,” he says. “There’s
a lot to do on campus.”
Beginning this fall, O’Neil will be
spending time in Austin after all. He
is going to The University of Texas at
Austin to pursue his master’s degree
in mechanical engineering, with a goal
of working in the field of renewable
energy. “I want to combine the busi-
ness skills I learned at Southwestern
with an engineering degree,” he
says.
“At Southwestern I learned that
hard work really does pay off,” O’Neil
says, adding that he was able to apply
classroom knowledge to real world
scenarios through his involvement
in the University’s Financial Analyst
Program, which allows a select group
of students to manage a portion of
the University’s endowment fund.
(Additional information about the
program can be found at: www.
southwestern.edu/departments/
economicsbusiness/fap.)
“Dustin James ’79—a fraternity
alumnus and a research scientist/labo-
ratory manager at Rice University—
thought I’d be a good fit for a program
sponsored by the National Science
Foundation called the Research
Experience for Undergraduates
(held at Rice),” says O’Neil. “Bart
Koontz ’78, was instrumental in
helping me secure an internship with
Koontz McCombs, a commercial real
estate company in San Antonio.”
In addition to the business connec-
tions he’s made through Southwestern,
O’Neil says, “I made lifelong friends
here, including coaches and profes-
sors. That’s what I’ll miss … that, and
being able to play golf for free!”
Put theory to work: major in physics and business . . . . . .
Manage a portion of the University’s endowment . . . . . .
Enrollment size matters: SU is smaller than my
San Antonio high school . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Kick around ideas on the soccer field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Kkevin
o’nEIl
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The Fayez Sarofim Passion for the Arts Award winner for
2009, Natalie Moore demonstrated an unusual passion for
the arts throughout her undergraduate career.
Creator of the Southwestern University Arts Festival,
Moore’s goal was to bring the arts—music, art and theatre—
together through a day-long event, which included an instru-
ment petting zoo, arts and crafts, an art exhibition and a jazz
band performance. Two consecutive King Creativity Grants
made that goal a reality.
Taking a summer job as a camp counselor at Blue Lake
Fine Arts Camp in Twin Lake, Mich. sparked Moore’s desire
to bring different art disciplines together. “The kids were
talented, but naïve about arts other than their own,” she says.
“I found SU students, including myself, to be the same. I think
having a general knowledge of all of the arts is beneficial to
one’s creativeness.”
NNATALIE
MOORE
Create an arts festival with an instrument petting zoo. . . .
Thank the King Creativity Fund, twice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Make music a career—one that doesn’t freak out
my parents in McAllen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Next stop? Boston: “not a big college town”. . . . . . . . . . . . .
4
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Professor of Music Michael Cooper says the festival was
“one of the most remarkable undergraduate achievements I’ve
seen.” Moore says the experience highlighted Southwestern’s
commitment to its students because “the University showed
it will support our ideas and showcase our work.” She also
says working on the project helped her see her strengths
and weaknesses. “I realized that there’s no such thing as an
inadequate idea!”
Moore was also involved with Delta Omicron, the music
fraternity on campus, a member of the Southwestern
University Chorale and president of the Southwestern
University Composers’ Collective.
It was participation in the Southwestern Chorale that led
Moore to her music major, and a passion for music and the
arts that is leading her to Boston University to study arts
administration. “My hope is to someday create art programs
for inner-city kids,” she says.
Thissummer,MoorewashiredbyProfessorEmeritusofMusic
F. Ellsworth Peterson ’55 as a paid intern for the Georgetown
Festival of the Arts, which includes an art festival and the
performance of works by a single composer. The festival
featured the music of Antonin Dvorák. Peterson is the
festival’s artistic director.
As she moves forward to the East Coast, Moore reflects
back. “Southwestern teaches you to think outside the box—to
answer questions with questions—and sets us apart from
other students.” She advises new students, “Have a voice,
don’t hold back.”
˘

With volleyball in hand and thoughts
toward law school in mind, Crystal
Jackson arrived at Southwestern in
the fall of 2006 with a plan … or so
she thought.
Two days into her second semester,
Jackson changed her major. “I loved
my public speaking class and loved
how Dr. Olson wanted his students
to excel,” she says. It was then that
she became a communication studies
major. Having graduated in three years,
Jackson is now pursuing a master’s
degree in mass communication at
Louisiana State University. She plans
to then join the busy world of agency
public relations.
Jackson’s plan to play collegiate
sports also changed. After one season
with the women’s volleyball team, for
which she was recruited to SU, she
was ready to trade in her tennis shoes
for jazz shoes. An avid dancer since she
was three years old, Jackson and two
friends founded the “Southwestern
University Dance Squad,” the first SU
dance team. “I knew that if I wanted
to dance in college, I’d have to make
it happen for myself,” she says.
Jackson thought about continuing
her dance career as a Dallas Cowboys
Cheerleader, but for now she’s just
holding her dance team memories
close to her heart. She says wistfully,
“I’ll miss dancing with my friends
at Southwestern, but I’m glad to be
leaving something for other students
who share my passion.”
Jackson also leaves the Georgetown
community more educated. A long-
standing belief in the importance
of community service led her to
volunteer as a computer skills teacher
for local senior citizens. “It reminded
me of helping my grandma when she
got her first e-mail account,” she says,
happy that her knowledge helped
others.
While juggling sports, studies and
civic engagement, Jackson was a
Paideia®
Scholar, a member of Sigma
Delta Pi (the Spanish honor society)
and Lamda Pi Eta (the communication
studies fraternity), and a member and
officer of EBONY, whose purpose it
is to promote unity among African
Americans and the SU community.
Jackson says the biggest and best
lesson she learned at Southwestern
was that “I can learn from others
without losing my personal values.”
She advises incoming students to not
be afraid to embark on new experi-
ences even if that means starting
something new at SU. In other words,
she says, “Light your own candle.”
Have personal values and listen to others with an open mind . . . . . . . . . . . .
Realize that I actually love public speaking (Thanks, Professor Olson!) . . . . . . .
Care about my community: teach senior citizens to use e-mail . . . . . . . . . . . .
Return home to Dallas as a Cowboys Cheerleader?
You never know! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CCRYSTAL
JACKSON
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Colin Kyle came to Southwestern and less than four years
later found himself studying Pomacea insularum, commonly
known as the channeled apple snail, in Uruguay!
Kyle and Romi Burks, associate professor of biology,
traveled to Uruguay in November 2008 to study the native
population of P. insularum, which is very similar to the
exotic population they had been researching locally. “These
snails are interesting to study,” Kyle says. “They have both
gills and lungs, a swim bladder so they can float and swim,
and they’re cannibalistic” … not to mention as big as apples!
Hence the common name.
“These snails are scientifically important because they
are an exotic invasive species and can cause a lot of envi-
ronmental damage. They could potentially eat all the plants
in a wetland and irreversibly change the ecosystem,” Kyle
explains.
“That research was the hardest work I’ve ever done,” he
says, “but going to Uruguay was the most fun experience I’ve
had.” Scratching his head in a bit of disbelief, he says, “I found
myself Salsa dancing with world-renowned researchers!”
Both Kyle and Burks will continue to study the data collected
in Uruguay, with a long-term goal of “turning the work into a
paper, with help from the South American researchers who
participated in the experiments,” he says.
Back on campus, Kyle says he was “devoted to academics
and research.” Much as apple snails are considered super
snails, Kyle became somewhat of a super researcher in the
Southwestern biology lab, which he says “opened my eyes
to the respect SU professors have for their students.” He
advises new students to “get to know your professors, and
allow them to get to know you.”

His devotion to academia led Kyle to the University of
Chicago where he is working on a Ph.D. in quantitative
ecology and mathematical modeling. Ultimately, he would
like to be known on a college campus as Professor Kyle.
Kyle credits Southwestern with providing opportunities
for personal growth, independence and freedom of expres-
sion, and for teaching him how to make a career of doing
research.
The only thing missing from Kyle’s Southwestern
Experience? “Ice hockey!” he says. Captain of his high school
varsity hockey team, Kyle hopes to play some “pond hockey”
now that he has the advantage of being in a place more
suited to the sport. “Chicago’s great,” he says. “I’ll have at
least three months of solid ice!”
CCOLIN
KYLE
Work to save the planet from giant snails (yes, really!) . . . . . . . . .
When in Rome: Salsa dance in Uruguay, play
ice hockey in Chicago. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Pursue a Ph.D. in quantitative ecology and
mathematical modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Next winter: report on wind-chill factor
when calling home to Arlington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4
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You may have already seen Ricardo
Levario’s nationally recognized
paintings.
Levario had two paintings accepted
and published in the Spring 2009 issue
of Creative Quarterly, a journal that
highlights the best student and profes-
sional work in the areas of graphic
design, photography, illustration and
fine arts.
Southwestern’s Sarofim School of
Fine Arts is listed in the Fiske’s Guide
to Colleges’ top 25 small colleges and
universities strong in art or design,
but Levario says, “It’s still encouraging
when someone outside the University
appreciates and values my work.”
To create one of the paintings—a 44”
x 72” oil painting titled “Asphyxia”—
Levario worked from a photograph
he took of plastic sheeting. “I wanted
to make something beautiful slightly
dangerous,” he says. Doing so took a
year and a half as he tirelessly worked
to capture both the beauty of the
plastic and the realization that it could
be turned into a weapon. “I wanted to
present tension within the painting—a
sense that a two dimensional image
could envelop the viewer into its illu-
sionistic depths, drawing them in but
threatening them at the same time,”
Levario explains.
In fact, Levario didn’t come to
Southwestern to paint or sculpt, but
to major in psychology and go on
to medical school. All that changed
when he took a drawing course with
Professor of Art Victoria Star Varner.
He was surprised to find himself
immersed in his art projects, spending
countless hours on each assignment.
His untitled painting, which earned a
silver award from Creative Quarterly,
took a total of 120 hours over three
weeks to complete. So, when he asked
Varner how to decide what his major
should be, she told him to consider
what he was putting the most time
into. “My decision was clear,” he says.
After getting his Teach English as a
Foreign Language certification, Levario
will teach and paint in Barcelona,
Spain, for a year. He plans to then
pursue a master’s degree in fine art and
hopes to teach at the university level.
Levario’s job at the 8th Street Gallery
in Georgetown provided the Dixon
and Mood Scholar with an opportu-
nity to teach the process-oriented
art of ceramics. “I had to learn how
to simplify things to make them
Be honored as a Dixon Scholar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prove that art benefits from being informed by different
subjects—even accounting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Get published: give Odessa a claim-to-fame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Barcelona, minus Vicky Cristina: set up a painting studio in Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . .
More stories are a click away at
www.southwestern.edu/magazine
SENIOR
STORIES
RICARDO
LEVARIO
R
appealing and attention-grabbing for
children,” he says.
As President of the SU Art
Association, Levario organized a
biweekly showing of the PBS program
“Art:21—Art in the Twenty-First
Century,” a series of documentaries
about contemporary artists, which
was open to all students.
Along with his attention-to-detail
personality, Levario says, “Taking time
to explore all different subjects—
anthropology, accounting, science,
psychology, philosophy—has ulti-
mately made me a better artist.”
Writer/editor Kristina Moore is
happy to have had the opportunity
to get to know Southwestern through
the eyes of its bright and talented
students.
Continued
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2009 marked the celebration of
Southwestern University’s 165th
annual commencement ceremony.
President Jake. B. Schrum ’68,
shook hands with 277 graduates as
they crossed the stage at the Corbin J.
Robertson Center on May 9. Keynote
speaker, Stephen Joel Trachtenburg,
President Emeritus of The George
Washington University, advised
graduates to “live the life you want
to live on your terms and with a good
heart and clear conscience.”
Capturing
the Moment

Southwestern’s annual
Student Art Exhibit was
held April 23 – May 1.
September 30
This year’s theatre season opens with
Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning
Juliet), a comedic play written by
Ann-Marie MacDonald and directed by
Mark Pickell ’98, in which Constance
Ledbelly, a young English literature
professor from Queen’s University, goes on
a subconscious journey of self-discovery.
November 6-8
“Get into the picture!” Mark your
calendars now for Homecoming and
Reunion Weekend. Visit www.sualumni.
net for the latest details.
November 10
Tobias Wolff is coming to campus for
“Writer’s Voice,” the annual A. Frank
Smith, Jr. Library Center series. Wolff is
the author of the memoirs This Boy’s Life
and In Pharaoh’s Army, and the novel
Old School. (See a review of Old School in
“Engaging Find” on Page 35.) For further
information and tickets visit: www.
southwestern.edu/library/writers-voice/
wvoice.html
on campus
Music fraternity Delta Omicron sponsored
the second annual Southwestern
University Arts Festival. The event
included activities like an instrument
petting zoo and face painting.
}
For the latest campus news,
follow Southwestern on Twitter:
www.twitter.com/SU_News
}
twitter
Books:AndrewLoehman
STUDENTARTEXHIBIT:ClaireMcAdams’10
}
Curl up
with a Wolff!
Write to magazine@
southwestern.edu with
your ideas for improving
Southwestern magazine.
The readers who submit
the top 10 best ideas will
receive a complimentary
copy of one of Tobias
Wolff’s books.

On campus
NITLE: Innovation
at Home at SU
Over the summer, Southwestern
became the new home for the National
Institute for Technology in Liberal
Education (NITLE—pronounced
“nightly” by those in the know), a
technology initiative that serves more
than 130 colleges in the United States
and abroad.
NITLE was established in 2001
with funding from The Andrew W.
Mellon Foundation to provide small
liberal arts colleges with enhanced
technological solutions. NITLE has
operated through a network of centers
and regional offices, with staff in nine
states.
W. Joseph (Joey) King ’93, a
Southwestern graduate who holds a
Ph.D. in human-computer interaction
from the University of Washington,
was named the new executive director
of NITLE when Jo Ellen Parker left
to become president of Sweet Briar
College in Virginia on July 1. He has
also been named vice president for
innovation at Southwestern.
“I am tremendously excited about
the future of NITLE,” King says. “Our
goal is to provide participating institu-
tions with technological solutions that
add to their effectiveness in teaching.
Being campus-based will allow NITLE
to develop best practices and both test
and demonstrate them in a real world
learning environment.”
Southwestern was one of the first
institutions to participate in NITLE
and currently serves as a regional host
campus for NITLE staff who design
and deliver professional development
and networking programs for faculty,
technologists and librarians from
participating campuses.
The Mellon Foundation played
a critical role in the transition of
NITLE to Southwestern, including
the transfer of $4 million in existing
grants and operating funds.
“When NITLE’s full team of distrib-
uted experts is marshaled under
Southwestern’s innovative and efficient
leadership, valuable synergies are sure
to emerge,” says Philip E. Lewis, vice
president for the foundation’s Liberal
Arts Colleges Program.
Southwestern President Jake B.
Schrum ’68, says the move should
greatly raise Southwestern’s visibility
within the liberal arts community. He
described it as a “watershed event”
that resulted from the quality of
Southwestern’s faculty, students, staff
and academic programs. Read about
King’s vision for NITLE on Page 50.
Environmental Studies
Program Unique in Texas
Southwestern’s environmental
studies program has received a major
boost thanks to $1.3 million in funding
from three recent grants.
Laura Hobgood-Oster, chair of
the environmental studies program,
Southwestern:
Environmental
Leader
Southwestern President Jake B.
Schrum ’68, furthers the University’s
commitment to environmental leader-
ship by signing the American College
and University Presidents Climate
Commitment as internationally
known environmental activist, 2004
Nobel Peace Prize recipient and 2009
Shilling Lecturer, Wangari Maathai,
looks on. For more information on
the Presidents Climate Commitment,
visit www.presidentsclimate
commitment.org.
AndrewLoehman

On campus
says the new additions the funds
will provide to the program will give
Southwestern “a unique approach to
environmental studies that no other
school in Texas has and few others in
the country have.”
A $750,000 grant from The Andrew
W. Mellon Foundation is designed
to expand the global emphasis of
Southwestern’s Environmental Studies
Program.
A portion of the funds will be
used to develop a new course titled
“Introduction to Cultural Studies”
in collaboration with the Modern
Languages and Literatures Department.
“Unless we understand the cultures
that are engaging in environmentally
destructive practices, we can’t begin
to change the way we live,” says
Hobgood-Oster.
It will also enable Southwestern
to hire its first full-time tenure-track
faculty member dedicated to envi-
ronmental geography, which is a
branch of geography that offers tools
for measuring human impact on the
environment.
“An environmental geographer will
bring critically important analytical
tools to our program,” Hobgood-Oster
says. “Students will learn skills that
will translate into better research
design and into more informed and
measurable sustainability and advo-
cacy projects.”
To go along with the grant,
Southwestern will create a new Mellon
Environmental Fellows program. Five
students a year will be offered a $5,000
fellowship to participate in a study
abroad program that has an emphasis
on environmental issues.
The Mellon Environmental Fellows
will provide key student leadership
to the new Center for Social and
Environmental Justice, which will
facilitate environmental research proj-
ects on campus and in the community. A
major goal of the Center will be to help
students integrate their study abroad
experiences into local projects.
A $436,000 gift from the Kendeda
Fund will be used to buy the equip-
ment for the Geographic Information
Systems lab as well as support various
sustainability projects on campus
such as the Environmental Fellows
program.
An additional $129,000 grant
from the Associated Colleges of the
South has enabled the Environmental
Studies Program to hire Jinelle Sperry,
a postdoctoral fellow who recently
completed a Ph.D. in conservation
biology at the University of Illinois.
She began teaching a biodiversity
course this fall.
Admission Goes Green
Southwestern’s new admission
center opened this spring to positive
reviews from visitors and employees
alike.
The new Wilhelmina Cullen
Admission Building is located behind
the original Cullen Building, and
enables all of Southwestern’s admission
counselors and financial assistance
staff to be in the same area.
Tom Oliver ’98, vice president for
enrollment services, says the new
building gives his staff the space they
need to accommodate the growing
number of visitors to campus. This
year campus visits were up 15 to 20
percent. The new building has three to
four times the reception space of the
old admission office on the first floor
of the original Cullen Building.
“The admission office is where first
impressions are made,” says Oliver.
“The new building is definitely one
of the nicer facilities of its type in the
region. It’s hard not to be impressed.”
The new building is a “green”
building, and was designed to earn
Gold LEED certification under the U.S.
Green Building Council’s Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) program. At least 20 percent
of the materials used in the building
were extracted and manufactured
within 500 miles of the project site. All
paints, finishes, adhesives and sealants
used on the interior of the building
had low VOC content. The building is
also surrounded by landscaping that
uses native plants. Construction was
funded by the Cullen Trust for Higher
Education of Houston.
The new Wilhelmina Cullen Admission Center is beautiful, practical and green.
LucasAdams

It’s 1905 All Over Again
A lost tradition returned to
Southwestern this spring as students
revived the Brooks Prize Debate as
well as an oratory competition.
Matthew Maschino ’09, a political
science major, brought back the debate
with the help of Sarah Gould, who is
now a senior English major.
Last summer, Maschino spent
hours doing research in the Special
Collections section of Southwestern’s
A. Frank Smith, Jr. Library Center. He
especially looked into the four literary
societies—two male and two female—
which were the focus of social life at
Southwestern in its early years.
In 1878, the two men’s societies
began holding a debate with each
other during commencement week.
Within 10 years, it was the most
significant campus event of the year
The 2009 Brooks Prize Debate topic, “Resolved:
That Multinational Corporations Are a Menace
to Societies Around the Globe,” echoed the topic
of 1905’s debate, “The Gigantic Industrial
Combinations Are a Menace to the Public.”
More Students
Than Ever Say
Yes! to SU
In a year when the economy hit record
lows (Are you there 401k? It’s me,
Retirement…) the Office of Admission
had more than a few families ask, “Is
a Southwestern education worth it?”
Judging by the numbers, the answer
is a definitive, “Yes!”
Southwestern received a record
number of admission applications for
the 2009-10 academic year—nearly
30 percent over the previous year.
The strong applicant pool translated
to more acceptances and 2009-10
enrollment is tracking to be one of the
largest in SU history.
Of the incoming class: 49 percent
graduated in the top 10 percent of
their high school class. Out-of-state
students account for 11.8 percent of
the incoming class and 23.8 percent
are from minority populations. Both
overall SAT and ACT scores are up from
last year.
Students debate in hopes of receiving the Brooks Prize.
and eventually came to include all
students. The debates focused on
prevalent, controversial issues of the
day, such as women’s suffrage and
the future of telegraphs and railroads.
Local and state leaders attended, as
well as nationally recognized guests
and speakers.
In 1904, Southwestern named the
event the Brooks Prize Debate after
1884 graduate Richard Edwards
Brooks. As a student, Brooks had
been a debater and helped establish
the campus literary magazine. After
graduation, he provided funds for a
gold medal and book scholarships for
the winners of the debate.
The 2009 debate was won by Alex
Caple, a senior communication studies
and political science major, and Brian
Tidwell, a junior anthropology major.
Both received $2,000 as well as a
medal that was specially designed for
the occasion.
Gould says the Student Foundation
is considering taking over the coor-
dination of the Brooks Prize Debate,
with hope that it will continue for
many years to come.
ShelleyDormont‘11

STUDENT NEWS
Twenty-Something Makes
Major Musical Discovery
Megan McCarty ’09 was taking a music seminar on song
cycles during her junior year when Professor of Music Michael
Cooper told his students they had to write about something
not covered in class for their final paper. Unsure what to do,
McCarty asked Cooper for an idea.
“He suggested I look into Franz Liszt,” McCarty recalls. “I
was confused at first because, to my knowledge at the time,
Liszt had not written any song cycles—only individual songs.”
Nevertheless, McCarty set to work. The results of her
research surprised even Cooper, who is one of the world’s
foremost music scholars.
McCarty discovered that Liszt did, in fact, write a song
cycle based on four poems—all based on love—by Victor
Hugo, a prolific French writer who lived from 1802-1885.
Song cycles are collections of songs written about a single
theme or subject, often telling a story or tracing some sort
of narrative. In addition to studying the texts of the four
songs, she studied their musical composition to determine
a common thread among them.
“What Megan did is really extraordinary,” Cooper says.
“I have never seen this level of work in an undergraduate
thesis. This is advanced doctoral work in all but name.”
Cooper believes McCarty may be the first twenty-something
to discover a previously unrecognized song cycle by a major
composer. “Most people who do this are in their 40s, 50s
or 60s,” he says. “But most scholars go their entire career
without discovering anything this important.”
“Because of Megan’s research,
future music textbooks
will need to be altered.”
–Michael Cooper, professor of music.
Cooper says he suggested the project to McCarty because
Liszt is among the least researched of the major composers.
“There is a huge portion of his life we don’t know much
about from a scholarly viewpoint,” he says.
Liszt, who lived from 1811-1886, was a world-famous piano
player before he became a composer. Cooper says that even
though Liszt set 80 poems to music, most scholarship has
focused on his piano works, for which he is best known.
Cooper and McCarty believe Liszt may have reconstituted
the four songs into a song cycle in an effort to become taken
more seriously as a composer.
“Since Liszt wrote cycles in every other genre in which he
worked—including symphonic poems and piano pieces—it
was logical to assume he would have written a song cycle,
but no one had ever looked for this,” Cooper says. “I knew
Megan had the combination of curiosity and perseverance
to find something if it was there.”
McCarty expanded her original paper for the seminar into
a 40-page honors thesis, which she successfully defended
in April. McCarty graduated cum laude in May with a
degree in music literature. She plans to spend the next year
reworking her Liszt paper, as well as several other papers
she has written. She hopes to submit them to the Journal of
Musicological Research, and present them at regional meet-
ings of the American Musicological Society and the College
Music Society. She would like to enter a Ph.D. program in
musicology in the fall of 2010.
In the coming year, McCarty will also continue her work
as Cooper’s research assistant and will be his co-author on
the Historical Dictionary of Romantic Music, which will be
part of a series to be published by Scarecrow Press in 2013.
She is also helping Cooper on his book, Secular Religion in
Music from Mozart to Schoenberg, to be published in 2012.
Megan McCarty discovers song cycle by composer Franz Liszt.
ShelleyDormont’11

Two Seniors Headed to Bavaria on Fulbrights
Carolyn Acker ’09 and Erin Osterhaus ’09, were awarded
Fulbright English Teaching Assistantships in Germany and
will be be teaching at schools in Bavaria for the 2009-10
academic year.
Acker graduated with a double major in German and
anthropology and Osterhaus graduated with a degree in
Spanish and French, and a minor in German.
The Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant
Program is one of several academic exchange programs
administered by the U.S. Department of State. “Fulbright
Teaching Assistantship awards are very competitive and
very prestigious,” says Erika Berroth, associate professor
of German.
Acker and Osterhaus are following in the footsteps of
2008 graduates Amy Tanguay and Chelsea Edge, who
also received Fulbright English Teaching Assistantships in
Germany.
After her year in Germany, Osterhaus plans to attend
graduate school for international affairs or Latin American
studies. Acker plans to attend graduate school for social
work or public health.
Students Design the Phone Infrastructure
for a New Country in Four Days
A team of Southwestern students received a prestigious
award as the result of their participation in an international
mathematical modeling competition held earlier this year.
The competition was the 25th annual Mathematical Contest
in Modeling sponsored by the Consortium for Mathematics
and Its Applications. Students participated in the competition
via computer in February. During a four-day period, they
had to research, model and submit a solution to one of two
modeling problems. More than 1,675 teams from 14 countries
participated in the contest.
The Southwestern team, consisting of Stephen
Foster ’09, Bobby Potter ’09 and junior Tommy Rogers, was
one of nine teams named “Outstanding Winner” for their
work modeling “Problem B,” in which students were asked
to design the phone infrastructure for a new country.
Foster, Potter and Rogers also won the prestigious SIAM
Award in the Mathematical Contest in Modeling for their
solution to “Problem B.” The SIAM Award is given by the
Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.
Preserving Local History
Thanks to the efforts of a group of students in
Southwestern’s Paideia®
Program, a piece of Georgetown
history has been documented and preserved.
Three years ago, students in Michael Kamen’s Paideia
cohort were looking for a community service project. They
met with Kimberly Garrett, parks and recreation director
for the City of Georgetown, who suggested they research
the history of a house that used to be located in Rivery Park,
along the San Gabriel River hike and bike trail.
The house was built in the mid-1800s by the Shell family,
who used the surrounding land as a ranch. The family sold
the 263-acre property in 1972 and it traded hands several
times before Georgetown acquired it for parkland in the
mid-1990s. Today, all that remains of the house is part of
the foundation and steps, as well as a cistern.
Students visited the property, went to the Georgetown
Library and the Williamson County Museum to get informa-
tion on the house and talked to several descendants of
the Shell family before using $1,500 from a 3M grant to
Southwestern to develop a sign that gives the history of the
house. Carlos Barron, a senior art major, was hired to create
a drawing of the house, which was “like reconstructing a
suspect in a crime scene,” says Kamen, associate professor
of education.
Fulbright Scholars Erin Osterhaus (left) and Carolyn Acker (right) say
“Auf Wiedersehen” to Associate Professor of German Erika Berroth.
Paideia®
Professors David Gaines and Michael Kamen join Carlos
Barron and Derek Sample ’09 in preserving Georgetown history.
Also pictured right: Kimberly Garrett, City of Georgetown.
ShelleyDormont’11

Pirate Baseball
Brings the Heat
Starting pitcher, sophomore Brantley
Freeman, was named to the 2009
CoSIDA ESPN The Magazine Academic
All-District baseball second team for
his outstanding sportsmanship and his
3.93 GPA. Freeman helped the Pirates
close out the season with a fourth place
finish in the SCAC.
DaveJohnson
ATHLETICS

Lady Pirate Golfers Above Par
for Third Year Running
For three years in a row the SU women’s golf team has placed first in their confer-
ence, the NGCA All-West Region, and for each of those years Coach Dan Ruyle has
been honored as Coach of the Year. There are 10 available positions on the NGCA
All-West Region Team; four of those positions were filled by SU women’s golf team
members: Marisa Mauldin ’09 and juniors Emily Bartholet, Kristen Davenport
and Cody Wallace. Sophomore Victoria Dominguez earned the honor of selection
to the SCAC Women’s Golf All-Sportsmanship Team.
The team’s outstanding conference ranking led them to the NCAA Championships
in Port St. Lucie, Fla., the week after final exams. The team finished the tournament
in fourth place. Mauldin earned third place individually. Mauldin and Bartholet were
named to the NGCA Division III All-American First Team.
First Year’s a Winner
In its inaugural season, the SU women’s softball team performed like a seasoned
team, finishing in first place in the SCAC West Division with a record of 9-3. Their
high placement brought the team to the SCAC Conference Tournament where they
finished the season with an overall record of 19-16.
Coach Angela Froboese was named a 2009 SCAC Coach of the Year. First-year
student Kaitlyn Pavlicek (pictured) was named to the first team All-SCAC Softball
team. Receiving all-conference honorable mentions were junior Katelyn Gola and
first-year students Taylor Turpin and Blair Wallace. Turpin was also the recipient of
the SCAC All-Sportsmanship award.
Baseball: Named to the 2009 All-
SCAC Baseball team were pitcher
Wes Willis ’09 and catcher Michael
Murphy ’09. Willis had the best ERA
at 3.54, most wins with six, and led
Southwestern in complete games
with four, including a complete game
shutout against conference rival Trinity
University. Murphy led Southwestern
at the plate with a .367 batting average,
55 hits, a .493 slugging percentage and
doubles with 13, including three in one
game against Austin College. Murphy
was also named to the first-ever SCAC
All-Sportsmanship team.
Men’s Golf: Finished in sixth place
at the SCAC Championships, held in
Tunica, Miss.
Track: Five new school records were
set at the SCAC Championships, where
the Southwestern men placed eighth
and SU women placed seventh.
Tennis: The women’s tennis team
finished seventh and the men eighth at
the SCAC Championship Tournament.
Swimming: Jessie Carrier ’09
was Southwestern’s first Academic
All-American. Both the men’s and
women’s teams received All-American
Team Awards. The women had the
fourth highest GPA in all of Division
III. Interim Head Swimming and Diving
Coach Nicole Kaupp and Interim
Assistant Coach Scott McLean were
named to the 2009 SCAC Women’s
Coaching Staff of the Year.
Leadership: Glada Munt, associate
vice president and director of inter-
collegiate athletics, was named the
2008-09 Under Armour Athletics
Director of the Year for the Division
III West Region.
New Athletics Staff: Southwestern
announces Dan Carrington as its new
head swim coach for men and women.
Dan Mulford is the new assistant
lacrosse coach and Bill Bowman is
a volunteer assistant lacrosse coach.
Megan Hardin is the new sports infor-
mation director.
New Web Site: This summer, SU
Athletics launched its newly redesigned
Web site: www.southwesternpirates.
com. New features allow fans to follow
and support the Pirates in a variety of
ways: follow the department on Twitter
or Facebook, purchase photos or shop
for Pirate gear with a portion of the
proceeds going to SU Athletics.
DaveJohnsonDanRulye
ATHLETICS SCOREBOARD

Estate planning can be a complex endeavor, but one that brings
great rewards as well. Southwestern University’s development
team can help facilitate the process.
For useful tools and resources, please visit our new Web site at:
www.southwestern.plannedgifts.org

A book review by Larkin Tom
Director of Foundation Relations
Old School takes place in 1960 at a boys’ prep school in
a wooded arcadia, a long train ride north of New York City.
“I pictured the black-beamed dining hall loud with voices.
The chapel windows blazing red on winter afternoons. The
comradely sound of the glee club practicing, the scrape of
skates on the outdoor rink, a certain chair in the library. . .”
The speaker is the book’s nameless narrator, a scholarship
boy from the Pacific Northwest adrift in the chilly waters of
WASP privilege.
In just a few years that world of certainties would fracture.
Though the old order would eventually knit itself back together
again, the iron imperatives of class would never be quite the
same. But the mad sprint of the Sixties still lay ahead, and
the protagonist must come of age in a world of rules no less
binding for being unarticulated. “Class was a fact. Not just
the clothes a boy wore, but how he wore them. How he spent
his summers. The sports he knew how to play. His way of
turning cold at the mention of money, or at the spectacle of
ambition too nakedly revealed. You felt it as a depth of ease in
certain boys, their innate, affable assurance that they would
not have to struggle for a place in the world.”
But the school has its routes to earned success as well. All
the boys worship at the shrine of literature. Leading writers
are invited to campus to address the student body, and to
meet with the boy who submits the winning entry to writing
contests judged by the authors themselves. Like his fellows
and like adolescents everywhere, the protagonist desires both
to conceal his inner life and to reveal himself in a burst of
authenticity. In this charged state, he enters upon a quest to
write something that will demonstrate his superiority and
win him an audience with the most thrilling celebrity author
of all: Ernest Hemingway. The plot turns on his ambition and
the lengths to which it drives him. As the headmaster of the
school says, “Make no mistake … a true piece of writing is a
dangerous thing. It can change your life.”
The title Old School, both ironically reverent and dismissive
toward the citadels of WASP culture, expresses the book’s
deep duality. Like Fitzgerald’s Midwestern dreamers before
him, Wolff’s narrator is more than half in love with gothic
chapels and the fine green lace of New England woods edging
into spring. But the longest shadow the book casts is into the
future—into the protagonist’s tour as a soldier in Vietnam;
into years of work transforming himself into a writer; into a
reconfigured, unexpected world. The most compelling aspect
of this complex, successful novel is its artful positioning at a
turning point in time, when for a moment the “Old School”
still reigned.
Looking for other recommendations? Visit the A. Frank
Smith, Jr. Library Center Web site: www.southwestern.edu/
library/reviews/what-reading/html/
Engaging Find:
Tobias Wolff’s Old School

“Through Southwestern Snapshot admission events,
alumni convinced more than 60 percent of undecided
students to attend Southwestern.”
Dear Southwestern University Alumni,
A characteristic that defines the Southwestern community is a commitment to service
—a willingness to give to causes that benefit others. Last year, 527 alumni volunteered
their time and talents in support of University and Association initiatives. Their involve-
ment ranged from planning class reunions to engaging alumni through local events to
serving as career mentors to students. Their contributions help the Association achieve
its vision of “a lifelong Southwestern Experience.”
With the recruitment of the Class of 2013, 383 incoming students have already begun
their Southwestern Experience and alumni are contributing to that experience.
Between the Admission Recruiting Efforts by Alumni (A.R.E.A.) volunteers and the
local associations that helped sponsor admission events, nearly 21 percent of deposited
incoming students encountered alumni at least once during their admission process. As
recruitment for high-caliber students becomes more competitive with other colleges
and universities, alumni involvement is critical to Southwestern’s success. Are you
wondering how you can help? One of the easiest ways to help is to identify gifted
students who may be a good fit for Southwestern. To refer a student to Southwestern,
visit www.southwestern.edu/alumnireferral/
As we enter the next school year, I hope you will consider your place in the Southwestern
family and offer to share your pride with others. The energy and enthusiasm of volunteers
will help propel Southwestern for years to come. All alumni have the opportunity to be
advocates for the University in ways that are meaningful and gratifying. As members
of The Association of Southwestern University Alumni, we are making significant
contributions to the University and are setting a high standard for future generations
of graduates. Help keep the tradition alive by volunteering to support Southwestern.
If you are interested in volunteering, I invite you to contact the Office of Alumni and
Parent Relations at 800-960-6363 or alumni@southwestern.edu.
I look forward to seeing you at the 100th anniversary of Southwestern’s first Homecoming,
Nov. 6-8.
Sincerely,

Ann Tyrrell Cochran ’72
President, The Association of Southwestern University Alumni

ALUMNI NEWS
New and Improved
www.sualumni.net
The Association of Southwestern
University Alumni is pleased to
announce its newly redesigned Web
site, www.sualumni.net. The Web site
offers a more comprehensive source of
information and services available to
alumni. Connect with alumni groups,
post your own class note, register for
events, volunteer your time, offer
ideas, participate in lifelong learning
activities and utilize the online alumni
directory. If you have not already done
so, register to use the redesigned Web
site by Oct. 30 to enter your name in a
drawing for a Southwestern ring. Visit
The Association’s Web site today to see
what is available for you!
Get Into the Picture
at Homecoming
Homecoming and Reunion Weekend
is a special time to celebrate cher-
ished memories and friendships
formed at Southwestern. This year’s
Homecoming and Reunion Weekend,
Nov. 6-8, marks the 100th anniversary
of Southwestern’s first Homecoming
held in 1909. The Association of
Southwestern University Alumni is
planning a number of activities and
events to commemorate this historic
event. All are encouraged to attend.
Class reunions will be celebrated, local
associations will gather for receptions,
alumni connection groups will meet
and a panoramic photo will be taken
in honor of this historic occasion.
More information can be found by
visiting www.sualumni.net. You may
also contact the Office of Alumni
and Parent Relations at alumni@
southwestern.edu or 800-960-6363.
Of course you are coming. You cannot
think of missing it.
2010 Volunteer
Leadership Weekend
If you have an interest in planning
your class reunion, helping with a
local association, forming an alumni
connection group, recruiting prospec-
tive students or assisting the University
with fundraising initiatives, you will
not want to miss this informative
and fun weekend. It will provide an
opportunity for volunteers to meet
one another, share ideas and get a head
start on planning for the year. The
2010 Volunteer Leadership Weekend
is scheduled for Jan. 29-30. Contact the
Office of Alumni and Parent Relations
at alumni@southwestern.edu or
800-960-6363 for more information.
Alumni Propose University
Columbarium
Motivated by the sentiment that
Southwestern played a sacred role
in their lives, a committee of alumni
have proposed building a colum-
barium next to the Lois Perkins
Chapel on Southwestern’s campus.
A columbarium is a structure with
niches that serve as a burial vault
for the containment of urns holding
cremated remains. Many churches
have built columbaria on their
grounds. Southwestern’s architec-
tural firm drafted some conceptual
drawings so that the committee could
share the idea of a columbarium with
alumni and measure interest. Should
they determine that there is enough
interest to garner the necessary early
commitments, they will ask the
Board of Trustees to consider the
columbarium as one of Southwestern’s
building projects. Niches in the colum-
barium would cost $5,000, which
would include the cost of construc-
tion, maintenance for perpetuity and
a scholarship contribution to the
University Endowment. In order to
proceed, 125 initial commitments are
needed. Contact the Office of Alumni
and Parent Relations at alumni@south-
western.edu or 800-960-6363 for more
information.
Express your interest.
Visit www.sualumni.net/
columbarium

I just received, and read, the latest issue
of Southwestern. The first class note listed
was from the class of 1952. It seems to me
that we older alumni have more to offer than
is represented in Class Notes. Members of
my class and those before had fought in
WWII, returned home and started families
all before the members of ’52 got sized for
their mortarboards. At any rate, my wife,
Catherine “LaVerne” Walden Melbert
’43 and I are celebrating our 65th wedding
anniversary this year.
LaVerne and I attended Southwestern from
1939 to 1943. Old history, but she was Miss
Southwestern and queen of the Golden
Bowl in 1943. Those were two of Mrs. Ruth
Ferguson’s (dean of women) most important
achievements for the Ladies of the Laura
Kuykendall Hall. (We unappreciative men
always called them “the gracious and lovely
girls of LK Hall.”)
We didn’t have a golf team, but LaVerne
did enjoy the game as part of her physical
education classes. During the war years,
there were no intercollegiate sports except
football, so students golfed the former 9-hole
course on the Southwestern campus, as well
as the three holes located in front of LK Hall.
Really, it was mainly used for courting in the
evenings.
I haven’t been to the SU campus since our
50th reunion in 1993. But I do remember how
it was back in the “good ole days.”
Life at SU Didn’t
Start in ’52
An e-mail from James Melbert ’43
CLASS NOTES
Class Notes: The Original Social Network
Long before Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, Class Notes kept alumni informed about marriages, births, job promotions, cross-country moves, first
marathons, books authored, Ph.D.s earned, gatherings held, fun had and more.
Tried and true, Class Notes is still a great way to share your good news, promote your business, update classmates and friends, and celebrate
the lifelong Southwestern Experience.
Submit your own Class Note and read others at www.sualumni.net.

1931
Lola Haden McDaniel, La Marque,
received her 50-year membership pin from
the George Washington Chapter of the
Daughters of the American Revolution,
Texas, the first and oldest DAR chapter in
Texas. McDaniel served as Regent of the
George Washington Chapter from 1967
to 1969. She and her husband, the late
Moran Kuykendall McDaniel ’33, met
at Southwestern and married in 1937. The
McDaniels contributed significantly to the
history of Galveston County, particularly
the City of La Marque. Local history recalls
that the petition to incorporate La Marque
was written and signed on the McDaniels’
kitchen table in 1953. McDaniel has
served on the Galveston Museum Board
of Directors, taught school in Galveston,
and, as a member of the Texas Historical
Survey Committee, researched historical
churches in Galveston, contributing plaque
and marker information. Her current
passion, along with playing bridge, is the
McDaniel Charitable Foundation. In 1999,
the Foundation created a scholarship
program for Galveston County students “to
support programs, projects and education
that enhance the quality of life within
the local community and the state of
Texas.” Its mission is “to produce profound
good that is inspired by the directors
and which implements the McDaniels’
desire for education and knowledge.”
1941
Marvin Henderson, Georgetown,
placed second in the Men’s 85 Singles
bracket at the United States Tennis
Association (USTA) National Indoor
Tennis Tournament. He and his doubles
partner also placed first in the Men’s 85
Doubles bracket at the USTA National
Hardcourt Tennis Championships.
1949
J. Roy Moses, Kerrville, was honored
with an Edith Fox King Award by the
Interscholastic League Press Conference
of the University Interscholastic League in
recognition for distinguished contributions
and outstanding devotion to scholastic
journalism education in Texas. Moses is an
assistant professor emeritus of journalism
at the University of North Texas.
1952
Betty Jasperson Smith,
Canyon Lake, [see 1985].
1953
Myron Dees, Canyon, has been inducted
into the Llano High School Athletic Hall
of Fame for his athleticism in football,
basketball, baseball, track and tennis.
Robert Sledge, Abilene, is a distinguished
professor emeritus of history at
McMurry University and was honored
in Indianapolis, Ind., as the 11th Alpha
Chi National College Honor Society
Distinguished Alumnus. His wife,
Marjorie Stout Sledge ’57, accompanied
him. He has recently published two
books: James Winford Hunt, Founder
of McMurry College, and A People, A
Place: The Story of Abilene, 1880-1940.
1955
F. Ellsworth Peterson, Georgetown,
was named the recipient of the 2009
Community Arts Leadership Award
given by Georgetown’s Performing
Arts Alliance. Peterson, Southwestern
University professor emeritus of music,
was recognized for his work in initiating
the Festival of the Arts in Georgetown and
for his contributions to the Georgetown
Symphony Society. In honor of his 75th
birthday, the Georgetown Symphony
Society initiated The Ellsworth Peterson
Society as a fundraising organization for
the Georgetown Festival of the Arts.
Rev. Jerry Jay Smith,
Canyon Lake, [see 1985].
1957
Rev. Gordon Roe, Lewisville, is enjoying
his eighth year of retirement. In addition
to playing golf and bridge regularly, he
teaches English as a Second Language
to adults and sings in several choirs. He
is chair of the Rotary District Teacher
Exchange committee, sending teachers
to Mexico to teach English and hosting
Mexican teachers coming to Texas to
teach Spanish. He also is chair of the
Lewisville Cultural Arts Alliance.
Marjorie Stout Sledge,
Abilene, [see 1953].
1961
Mary Louise Meyers Gulley, Houston,
came out of retirement to work on a
special 18-month project for ExxonMobil.
William Seale Jr., Jasper, is an
independent historian and one of the
United States’ leading experts on the
restoration of historic homes and build-
ings, specializing in state capitols and
other public buildings. The Johns Hopkins
University Press recently published a
second edition of Seale’s two-volume
work, The President’s House: A History.
1964
Buckley O’Day, Santa Fe, served in
the United States Army Special Forces.
He is a former member of Mensa and the
Society of Petroleum Engineers, which is
part of The American Institute of Mining,
Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers.
1965
Charlotte Darden Reed, Boerne,
wrote a cookbook, Enjoyment of
Life, which has been well-received
both locally and statewide.
1967
John Ozmun, Dallas, completed his
seventh Bike MS ride in May. The race is
a 150-mile plus ride to raise awareness
and money for people with multiple
sclerosis. Ozmun says, “One of the
lessons I have learned over the years
is that this ride is not about me. It is all
about the people who have MS and the
debilitating effects on them. People who
have this are just like you and me.”
1968
Claire Cole Lillie, Houston, is in her
23rd year as a substitute teacher and
tutor in Klein ISD. She and her husband
of 40 years, John, have three children
and four grandchildren. They enjoy
extensive travel in the United States
and Europe. Most recently, they took
a 17-day land tour of Scandinavia and
Saint Petersburg, Russia. Lillie is active
in four historical organizations, having
served at the local and state levels.

1969
Rev. Dr. Roberto L. Gomez, Mission, is
in his 11th year as pastor of El Mesías
United Methodist Church. He serves on
the Texas Methodist Foundation board
of directors and acted as the Rio Grande
Conference clergy delegate to the 2008
United Methodist General Conference.
He is a member of the Texas Methodist
Foundation Publishing House board of
directors, where he serves on the execu-
tive committee and chairs the committee
on marketing and sales. He has published
sermons in Abingdon Preaching Annuals
for 2007, 2008 and 2009. Gomez also
serves on the Southwestern University
Board of Trustees.
1970
Jan Tankersley Boeckel, Fair Oaks
Ranch, is a licensed professional counselor
and works as a school counselor.
Rev. Fred Winslow, Leander, retired
in 2007 after 35 years of ministry in the
United Methodist Church. He and his
wife, Sharon, are enjoying retirement and
highly recommend it. Says Winslow, “We
are able to combine travel with mission
work and love this phase of ministry.”
1972
Rev. Dr. J. Eric McKinney, Georgetown,
was named a consultant for the Institute
for Clergy and Congregational Excellence
for the Texas Methodist Foundation,
where he will continue to facilitate two
clergy development groups. McKinney
has served in the United Methodist
Central Texas Conference for more
than 30 years in a variety of settings,
including senior pastor of First United
Methodist Church of Georgetown,
district superintendent and interim
chaplain at Southwestern University. He
also is a member of the Southwestern
University Board of Trustees.
Dr. Claire Peel, Birmingham, Ala., was
named associate provost for faculty
development and faculty affairs at The
University of Alabama at Birmingham
(UAB), before which she served as interim
associate provost since November 2006.
Peel joined UAB’s department of physical
therapy in 1996. She served as assistant
dean of the school and interim chair of
the department of critical care before
becoming associate dean for academic
and student affairs for the School of
Health Professions. She holds a certificate
in physical therapy from The University
of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston,
a master of science degree in physical
therapy from the University of Southern
California and a doctorate in physical
education from The University of Iowa.
1974
MARRIAGE: Cate Foster to Neil Ormond,
Nov. 29, 2008, living in Clovis, Calif.
1975
Carol Armitage McCall, Cedar Park,
graduated from Dallas Theological
Seminary with a master’s degree
in media and communication.
1976
Bill Ashley Jr., Houston, retired after
30 years of working at IBM. He looks
forward to catching up with old friends.
Ashley and his wife, Mary, have two
children, William III and Victoria.
Kim Tipton, San Antonio, retired
from teaching after 28 years. She
now works part time for Pearson
Publishing Company. She states, “I
have traveled all over the world but
love to come home to my two dogs.”
1977
Edith Brown Tunstall, Waco, teaches
K-2 music at Whitney Elementary School.
1979
Lisa Pelosi Butterfield, Spicewood,
participated in the filming of the HBO
movie “Temple Grandin” when her
two Great Danes appeared in the
scenes filmed in Bastrop. Her dog,
Lucy, appeared on the July 2008
cover of Austin Monthly magazine.
Rev. Andrew Smith, Lakeway, [see 1985].
Bill Williams, Houston, joined Lockton
Companies LLC in 2006 as a senior
vice president and team leader after
25 years with another consulting firm.
Williams lives with his partner, Juan,
and their four Italian greyhounds.
1980
Carol Bender Maak, Houston, teaches
fourth grade in Katy ISD. Maak has 28
years experience as a teacher. She and
her husband, Bill, have a son, Brooks.
1981
Dr. Edward R. Sherwood, Galveston,
serves as director of the M.D.-Ph.D.
combined degree program at The
University of Texas Medical Branch.
Sherwood is professor and vice chair for
research in the department of anesthe-
siology and holder of the James F. Arens
endowed chair in anesthesiology. He also
holds a joint appointment in the depart-
ment of microbiology and immunology.
Highly praised for his teaching, Sherwood
received the James F. Arens Award for
Excellence in Teaching from the residents
in the department of anesthesiology. He is
well known for his research on the immune
response after burn injury and sepsis, and
his contributions have led to the discovery
of new treatment modalities for the
critically injured and septic patient. He has
an outstanding publication record and has
been continuously funded for his work,
with current awards from the National
Institutes of Health and Shriners of North
America. In addition to his scientific
accomplishments, Sherwood is active as
a clinician, providing care for critically
injured burn patients. He has been listed in
the Best Doctors in America (2007-2008).
1983
Diana Nelson Meadows, Boonville,
Md., recently relocated from Corinth,
and is enjoying retirement with
her husband, Joe.
1984
Michael English, Georgetown,
works for the City of Austin Water
Utility as a treatment operations
and maintenance technician.
Dr. Ray Page, Aledo, was named president
of the Center for Cancer and Blood
Disorders, a large oncology group with
eight practice locations across North Texas.
He will continue to serve as its director
of research and will maintain cancer
education and research collaborative
efforts with the National Cancer Institute‘s
pharmaceutical clinical trials. Page is also

an associate professor at the University
of North Texas Health Science Center.
BIRTH: Chessica and Brian Burton,
Sherman, a son, Brennan Jackson
Burton, Jan. 22, 2009.
1985
Randy Bowden, Haubstadt, Ind.,
works as assistant vice president and
senior loan review officer for Integra
Bank N.A. He has 24 years experience
in the banking industry. He and his
wife, Felicia, have three sons.
Sharon Walker Fillion, Austin,
earned a doctorate in education/school
improvement at Texas State University.
Samuel Jay Smith, New York, N.Y., was
awarded a master of divinity degree from
General Seminary, the United States’
oldest Episcopal seminary, May 20, 2009.
Smith won the preaching prize for the
year at General and preached the sermon
at the commencement ceremony. He will
be ordained a deacon in the Episcopal
Church. Smith is the son of Jerry Jay
Smith ’55 and Betty Jasperson Smith
’52, brother to Andrew Smith ’79, and
uncle to Maggie Smith Wolfe ’06.
MARRIAGE: Patti Ross to Joe Loya,
Dec. 20, 2008, living in Danbury.
1987
Lisa Auanger, Hampton, Va., has been
named Foreign Language Teacher of
the Year for Hampton City Schools.
Shed Boren, Miami, Fla., serves as
CEO of Sister Emmanuel Hospital. He
earned a Ph.D. in sociology from the
University of Miami. His dissertation,
“Ignoring Ambiguity: Legitimating
Clinical Decisions,” explores end-of-life
decision making by health care ethics
committees in American hospitals.
Amy Wink, Austin, has published her
second book, Tandem Lives: The Frontier
Texas Diaries of Henrietta Baker Embree
and Tennessee Keys Embree, 1856-1884.
1988
Mike Timlin, Tarpon Springs, Fla., of
the Boston Red Sox, won the 2008
Lou Gehrig Memorial Award. The
award is presented annually to the
major league baseball player who best
exemplifies the giving character of
Baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig.
1990
BIRTH: Christopher Damon and
Judith Manriquez, a daughter,
Alana Winn Damon, May 12, 2008.
1991
Roxanne Barnes, Cincinnati, Ohio,
designed and published her second book,
Wide Open Spaces, Selected Poetry
2002-2008. This book, along with her
first, New Life and Joy: Songs in the
Shadow, are available for purchase at
www.stores.lulu.com/roxannebarnes/
Cile Spelce Elley, Austin, and her
husband, Chris Elley, were honored by
the National Academy of Television Arts
and Sciences Lone Star Region with an
Emmy®
for Outstanding Achievement
in Documentary for their film “Ghost
Town: 24 Hours in Terlingua.” The Elleys
own the documentary film production
company Electro-Fish Media, which
specializes in films, tourism marketing
and media coaching. Electro-Fish was
also honored with an Emmy®
award
nomination for Outstanding Achievement
in Editing. Through The University of
Texas System, Elley worked on the team
of producers for the public television
series “State of Tomorrow,” which was
also recognized by the National Academy
of Television Arts and Sciences Lone
Star Emmy®
awards for Outstanding
Effort in Broadcasting in Texas. “State
of Tomorrow” was recognized for three
episodes of the 13-part series: “Shadow
of a Doubt,” about the innocence clinics
formed within public higher education
institutions in the wake of scientific
advancements in DNA evidence; “Aging
College President:
B. David Rowe ’87
The Centenary College Board of Trustees
announced the appointment of B. David
Rowe, Ph.D., as the next president of
Centenary College of Louisiana, beginning
August 1, 2009.
A Texas native and an ordained United
Methodist minister, Rowe served for the
past nine years as the Vice President for
Advancement at LaGrange College in
LaGrange, Ga.
“The Board of Trustees and I are excited
that Dr. Rowe will be assuming leader-
ship at Centenary College,” says William
Anderson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees. “David brings substantial
experience in institutional advancement as well as a deep passion for higher
education and expanding opportunities for the college and our students.
We are very fortunate to have someone with his background in college
development, experience and vision to assist the College in continued success
and progress.”
Rowe received his undergraduate degree in chemistry from Southwestern,
his Master of Divinity from Emory University and his Ph.D. in higher education
from Georgia State University. Prior to assuming his position at LaGrange
College, he held administrative posts at Wesleyan College (Ga.), Oxford College
of Emory University and Candler School of Theology at Emory.
He and his wife, Jodi, have two sons, Carter and Philip.

With Dignity,” in which physicians explore
treatments for age-related illnesses;
and “The Future of Energy,” regarding
higher education experts across the
state working to solve the world’s
energy crisis. The series also received
two Lone Star Emmy®
awards in 2007.
BIRTH: Michele and Bohdy Hedgcock,
Rumson, N.J., a son, Connal James
Hedgcock, June 24, 2008.
1992
Kimberly Long Harmer, Weatherford,
is a full-time mother of six, ages 3
months to 11 years. She teaches the
16-18 year-old girls at her church, where
her husband, Dr. Jon-Paul Harmer,
is bishop of the congregation.
Kyla Lawson Hastie, Amherst, Mass.,
serves as assistant regional director for
external affairs for the northeast region of
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
after nine years in the Service’s southeast
region. Hastie oversees communications
in the 13-state region, including interac-
tions with the news media, Congress
and Native American tribes, as well
as the region’s Internet presence, and
audiovisual and publication production.
Joseph “Joe” Wilson, Austin, [see 1993].
BIRTHS: Dr. Jon-Paul and Kimberly
Long Harmer, Weatherford, a son,
Brigham Alexander Harmer, Dec. 3,
2008; Thomas and Maria Gil Murray,
Marble Falls, a daughter, Mallon
Addison Murray, Jan. 29, 2009.
1993
Steve Alex, Houston, is the chief financial
officer for Environmental Tree and Design
Inc., a company that moves large trees for
preservation during construction projects.
Environmental Tree and Design Inc. has
been awarded the tree services contract
for the World Trade Center Memorial
grove. The design calls for the delivery of
437 custom-grown mature trees in time for
the memorial’s opening. Alex and his wife,
Suzanne, have two children, Will and Kate.
Kim Goldsmith Kobersmith, Sharon,
Conn., relocated from Alaska. Her
current vocation is full-time mom to
her two children, Sayer and Cavan.
Alyssa Perz-Edwards, Durham, N.C.,
accepted the position of assistant dean
of Trinity College at Duke University,
after teaching in the biology department
for eight years. As assistant dean, she
advises undergraduate students about
major selection. She states, “I have
developed an interest in mentoring
students that come to Duke academically
underprepared and helping them to
develop the skills and find the confidence
to succeed in a challenging academic
environment.” She will also work closely
with pre-medical students and members
of the basketball and football teams.
W. Joseph “Joey” King, Fort Worth,
has been named the new executive
director of the National Institute for
Technology in Liberal Education (NITLE),
a technology initiative that serves more
than 130 colleges in the United States.
Southwestern has become the new home
for the NITLE. King assumed his new
position in mid-May and, as a result of
NITLE’s relocation to Southwestern, he
will hold the title of vice president for
innovation at Southwestern. (Refer to
Page 27 for a detailed story.) Additionally,
Phi Beta Kappa, a society that champions
and fosters the value of study in the
liberal arts and sciences, honored
King with a membership in March.
Dr. Paul Tatum, Columbia, Mo., serves
as assistant professor of family and
community medicine at the University
of Missouri, where he teaches
geriatrics and palliative medicine.
Darien Kubik Wilson, Austin, and
husband, Joe Wilson ’92, announced the
acquisition of their baby sling company,
ZoloWear, by Today Baby Holdings Inc.,
based in Houston. Wilson says of the
acquisition, “We’re thrilled that ZoloWear
slings will continue to be manufactured
in Texas, and by a family that shares
our passion for babywearing.”
MARRIAGE: Sonya Irani to Bill Wooley,
Nov. 22, 2008, living in League City.
BIRTHS: Drs. Bibby and Lisa Jacob
Mathew, Millinocket, Maine, a son,
Alexander Bibby Mathew, Oct. 3, 2008;
Miguel and Amy McDaniel Molina
’93, Fort Collins, Colo., a son, Mateo
Enrique Molina, May 1, 2008.
1994
MARRIAGE: Leslie Williams to Luis
Cerezo, Nov. 29, 2008, living in Houston.
BIRTHS: Mauricio and Dr. Amy Kizer
Cuellar, Pearland, a son, Lucas Mateo
Cuellar, Jan. 28, 2009; Dr. Chris and
Shannon Irish Foster ’95, Corpus
Christi, a son, Aiden Thomas Foster,
Feb. 28, 2008; Sherry and Ajay
Thomas, Austin, a daughter, Jenna
Marie Thomas, Aug. 12, 2008.
1995
Maria Hanke-Boley, Round Rock,
serves as associate project scientist
at Weston Solutions Inc., working
on environmental engineering
projects throughout the country.
Robin Dutton-Cookston, San Francisco,
Calif., published The Foggiest Idea: Tales
of a Displaced Texan in San Francisco
Mamaland, a collection of non-fiction
essays about the transition to parenthood
while adjusting to the culture of a new city.
Cathy Syverson Incardona, Bryan,
serves as an English as a Second
Language teacher at Bryan High
School. She lives with her husband,
three children and two dogs.
BIRTHS: Dr. Chris ’94 and Shannon
Irish Foster, Corpus Christi, a son,
Aiden Thomas Foster, Feb. 28, 2008;
Drs. David and Dannette Smith
Johnson, Clinton, Miss., a daughter,
Cadia Noel Johnson, Oct. 2, 2008.
1996
Elizabeth Albin, Falls Church, Va., serves
in United States embassies around the
world as a foreign service officer.
Patrick Dempsey, Austin, [see 1997].
Denise Flinn, Ann Arbor, Mich., has
completed her geriatrics fellowship at the
University of Michigan. She plans to return
to Texas to join The University of Texas
Health Sciences Center in San Antonio as
a clinical assistant professor of geriatrics.
MARRIAGE: Bronwyn Stewart
to David Sutherland, Sept. 27,
2008, living in Houston.
BIRTHS: Patrick and Amy Robins
Dempsey ’97, Austin, a daughter, Vivian
Ruth Dempsey, July 16, 2008; Hayden

2009_Fall_ISSUU

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