1. MARCH 2012 l 1
EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER MARCH 2012
Student Activities
takes learning beyond
a four-year degree
Behind
Door #20
» Spencer Allen: Junior, Communication
Little was known about door number 20. Freshman Mike
Jacobson and his roommate Dave Carlson eyed the door as they
paced through the halls of the apartment complex. Doing his
best to remember the three-sentence pitch, Jacobson approached
the door, clinched his fist, and knocked. As footsteps inside grew
louder, the two braced for the unknown. Anticipation peaked as
the door cracked open. Through the nine-inch gap, an elderly
woman emerged—75-year-old Margaret Emery.
“When we asked if she was willing to be adopted by a student
for the Adopt-a-Grandparent program, she responded she
would only participate on conditions that either Dave or myself
adopt her,” Mike recalls of that first encounter over 11 years ago.
“Without much thought, I accepted her invitation. Little did I
know it would change the rest of my life.”
As Margaret and Mike began spending more time together,
his immediate family took notice and also joined in. His mother
sent Margaret food from southern England to remind her of
her childhood; and Mike’s father, an airline pilot, sent postcards
from the many countries he visited. As Mike turned 19, a mission
created a two-year separation from Margaret, but as he came
home in 2002, he returned with a new outlook on life and a little
more — 104 letters from his adopted grandmother.
“From an outsider’s perspective, it’s an incredible story,”
pointed out Justin Garner, director of Student Activities. “I have
followed Mike throughout the years and have seen his influence
bless various organizations everywhere he goes.”
thousands of Participants
Adopt-a-Grandparent is only one of the hundreds of offerings
sponsored by Student Activities. Having an assortment from
competitive sports to rock climbing to swing dancing, the variety
keeps students involved. Last year alone there were more than
135,000 participation opportunities taken and more than 2,400
served in leadership positions. Considering that over the past
year the university enrolled a total of about 22,000 students, the
numbers indicate that individuals are participating in several
opportunities per semester.
“Our hope is that students will learn the power of acting
for themselves,” said Garner. “We’re a leadership development
program. Here, students learn that personal success will be
determined by the success of others.”
Garner and the 16 other full-time employees in Student
Activities often receive calls from former students. Though each
call is different, the theme remains the same. Lessons learned and
experiences applied from Student Activities have set them apart
from other graduate students or job applicants. Mike Jacobson
shares similar sentiments of many other alumni. “So many of the
things I learned at BYU-Idaho and in Student Activities have had
real-world applications in my career and in life. Participating in
the activities and programs was a huge plus for me,” he said.
Jacobson graduated in 2005 and is now a schoolteacher
in South Dakota. And at age 87 in the summer of 2011, Ms.
Margaret Emery passed away. Much has changed since Mike left
BYU-Idaho — marriage, baby, and a successful career. But he’ll
always remember door number 20 and the friendship he built that
will last eternally. Reflecting on his experience, Mike said, “What
I thought was a small service for a grandparent turned out to be a
priceless life lesson that will stick with me forever.”
Top: Margery Tompson. Bottom: Makayla Scott and Eleanor Davidson. Images taken at The Homestead Assisted Living.
What I thought was a
small service for a grand-
parent turned out to be a
priceless life lesson that
will stick with me forever.

2. 2 l BYU-IDAHO NEWS & NOTES
University launches
mobile website
The accessibility of the BYU-Idaho website
just became more convenient with a new
mobile website — m.byui.edu — providing
the most-used university web tools.
Features include campus maps, directories,
my.byui.edu, and directories.
“Using mobile devices to browse the
web is getting more popular everyday. As
we continue to improve the website, we
want to ensure we improve the mobile user
experience as well,” said Jeff Dunster, Web
Services coordinator.
Users who visit www.byui.edu on their
mobile devices will automatically be given
the option between the regular BYU-Idaho
site and the mobile site. Mobile tools can
also be used on a desktop computer and can be accessed from www.byui.edu by clicking
“Mobile Tools” in the top right corner of the homepage.
In the near future all web pages viewed on a mobile device will adjust to the size of
individual browser windows, making them more reader friendly.
Commissioned to research and develop new technologies to enhance the Learning Model,
the Department of Academic Technology Services recently launched a way for faculty to
share innovative teaching tools with fellow educators through an internal social network
called the BYU-Idaho Toolbox.
With its debut to I-Learn earlier this month, the Toolbox allows instructors to post
descriptions of their favorite third-party tools, such as Dropbox, WordPress, Qualtrics, etc.
Instructors can also explore tools others are using and comment on currently posted tools
to rate their experiences with them.
“When faculty members enter the Toolbox, it displays each tool available, areas of the
Learning Model it complements, its cost, how each instructor rates it, its category, and
how many other instructors use it,” said Steve Hancock, Academic Applications group
lead. “When an instructor adds a new tool to the Toolbox, then he or she becomes a
resource for other faculty who are looking for technology tools to use in their instruction.”
The Toolbox is now only available for faculty, but in the future will serve all employees.
“Keeping up with the times in teaching and learning technology requires constant
effort,” said Arlen Wilcock, Academic Technology Center manager. “The Toolbox
solves this by helping faculty across various disciplines unite their efforts to share their
innovative ideas with one another and meet increasing technological demands.”
To watch a tutorial on how use Toolbox, go to www2.byui.edu/ATS/tutorials/toolbox.
Instructor hits high notes
on the big stage
Andrew Peck, adjunct faculty with the
Department of Music, teaches full-time
voice lessons — but until Feb. 17 was
hitting the high notes on the big stage
with Opera Idaho in their production
of Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme. Peck
played Parpignol, a toy maker, as well as
the understudy for Rodolfo, the leading
character.
Peck is participating in a one-year
contract with Opera Idaho, taking
part in monthly events, helping with
auditions, teaching classes, giving
private voice lessons, and acting as the
artist in residence.
“I work with a lot of students that
want to be professional singers, so
keeping up my professionalism teaches
them what it is like and what it takes
to become a full-time singer,” said
Peck. “I am working with Opera Idaho
to explore options that would allow
BYU-Idaho students to perform in
a professional setting without being
absent from classes for weeks at a time.”
Department receives new
name, majors, and minors
The Department of Foreign Languages
and Literatures has been renamed the
Department of Languages and Interna-
tional Studies to appropriately reflect
new majors that were recently added.
Previously, the department only had
one major — Spanish education. With
the addition of international studies and
foreign languages, however, the number
of students served has quadrupled.
The major had previously required
a disciplinary emphasis and a minor
in a foreign language. The new major
requirements will require advanced
language proficiency but will not dictate
disciplinary emphases or minors, allow-
ing students to prepare more specifically
for their desired career paths.
The Department of Languages and
International Studies will be adding
seven new minors, including Asian,
Latin American, Slavic, and European.
Taking the foreign language achievement
test offered by BYU can help students
complete many of these minors. These
changes will occur Fall 2012.
University News Briefs
One more tool in your toolbox
I-Learn enables faculty to share technology tips

3. MARCH 2012 l 3
Help Desk now operational 24/7
From Alaska to Africa and at any time day or night, the Help Desk
is there to ensure BYU-Idaho web services are running smoothly,
no matter the time or place. And as of Feb. 16, the Help Desk
and Response Center now have student employees working 24/7,
continuously monitoring all BYU-Idaho online services to be the
first to know when systems experience complications.
“These two additions go hand-in-hand,” said Randy Beard,
director of infrastructure for Information Technology. “The Help
Desk is the public face, continually communicating with campus,
informing what is going wrong and what is being fixed. The
Response Center, directed by Tony McCarty, is behind the scenes
catching problems before students or employees do.”
These changes will create 12 new student employee jobs. The
Help Desk website also offers live chat, the ability to submit a help
request, up-to-date information about system maintenance, and
contact information for whom to call with a problem.
The Help Desk will only be closed from 2 a.m. – 6 p.m. on
Sundays, but services will still be monitored during this time.
Secondary teacher education obtains accreditation
After four years of extensive planning and preparation, the
Department of Teacher Education was recently reaccredited to
have their graduates certified to teach in public schools.
The department was first accredited in 2004, but because of
state regulations they must be reaccredited every seven years.
With this second accreditation, Teacher Education has revamped
and improved the education process for its students by fine-tuning
course materials and curriculum.
“This is quite a strenuous process because it demands that
each faculty member evaluate their course material against
state requirements,” said Kevin Stanger, Department of Teacher
Education chair. “Being accredited is essential if we want our
students to have a chance of obtaining jobs after graduation.”
Because secondary education majors study specific content
as a major in other departments, 21 other departments have also
implemented enhancements in their course material, tests, and
teaching methods.
Clinical capstone course created for students
Starting this fall, graduating nursing students will work with full-
time nurses at hospitals and clinics throughout Southern Idaho
during their last block at part of a clinical capstone.
“All nursing students experience clinical courses throughout
their education, but this clinical capstone will be different,”
said Susan Dicus, Department of Nursing chair. “For six weeks
students can solely focus on their work in their assigned hospital
and not be distracted by other classes and assignments.”
Dicus also stated that this change has come about because of
responses from students and the nursing industry. “The need for
students to gain as much practical hands-on experience is crucial,”
she said. “When they graduate they will be the nurse that could be
saving the life of your son, granddaughter, husband or friend, so
they need every ounce of practice they can get.”
Biddulph Hall soon
to get new tenants
One of the oldest buildings on campus will be
repurposed this fall. Biddulph Hall, currently men’s on-
campus dormitories, is scheduled to undergo renovation
for administrative use this summer.
To accommodate for the resulting shortage of men’s
beds, Lamprecht and Ricks Halls will be converted from
women’s to men’s housing.
New tenants in Biddulph Hall will include the growing
departments of Online Learning, Pathway, and
Curriculum Development.
“With these three departments currently occupying two
floors on the south end of Rigby Hall, very few people
currently have their own office,” said Ric Page, associate
academic vice president. “Moving members from these
departments to Biddulph Hall will create more breathing
room for many individuals who currently share a small
office space with two or sometimes three people. It will
also free up space in Rigby Hall to handle additional
growth from academic and administrative areas
throughout the rest of campus.”
Additional offices that have plans for relocation to
Biddulph are parts of University Communications and
Academic Support.
An architect has been hired to design how the spaces
should be laid out to fit the needs of individual
departments and offices. The current goal is to have
renovations complete in late summer so people can
begin occupying the space by early September.

4. 4 l BYU-IDAHO NEWS & NOTES
QUESTION 1
Q: Is there a reason why we can only
remain logged in to my.byui or email
for fairly short periods of time when
accessing these resources off campus?
A: The time-out is set to prevent potential
security breaches. However, a work order
has been issued in IT that will ensure work
is not lost when a time-out occurs.
QUESTION 2
Q: Do BYU-Idaho’s dress & grooming
standards apply to students pursuing
online degrees away from Rexburg?
A: A BYU-Idaho student is always a BYU-
Idaho student whether he or she is on
campus or off campus, and the Church’s
principles of modesty apply worldwide —
not just at this university. Students studying
online or others who are at home or on
an internship during an off track are still
required to live the Honor Code. However,
there is a slightly different standard for
literally being on our physical campus as
opposed to being at some other location.
QUESTION 3
Q: The McKay Library has PG-13 movies
and at least one R-rated movie available
for checkout. Does having these movies
available inadvertently endorse them?
A: We shouldn’t have inappropriate movies
available to check out. The movies we have
on hand do indicate that the university
promotes them and we don’t want to
mislead anyone about what we think is
appropriate and invites the Spirit. We’ll
look into removing them.
QUESTION 4
Q: What has happened Thor?
A: Thor now resides in a high school that
has a Viking mascot. The rationale for
donating the statue is primarily because we
chose to repurpose the space he occupied
in the north end of the Hart Building. In
determining where Thor should go, the
decision was made to benefit students
at a local high school who could enjoy
the statue.
President’s Q&A Recap
FROM FEB. 1, 2012
Shane Snow
Department of Business
Standing in a line for Di Fara Pizza
in Brooklyn, Shane Snow mentally
runs through what he did that day:
finalized his article for WIRED,
conducted an interview for a story,
filed paperwork for his company, and
now pizza.
Having graduated in May 2008
with a degree in business, Snow
has since received his master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University; writes
about the Internet and technology for different magazines, blogs, and journals; designs
infographics and websites; and has cofounded a new business called Contently.
Shane got his first taste of entrepreneurship during the Integrated Business Core and
the Internet marketing course from Kent Lundin. “These classes helped lay a foundation
for what I am doing now,” said Snow. “Especially with the time I spent working with
Scroll and Harvard Business School case studies. They all propelled me along the path I
needed to go, adding rocket fuel to my career.”
Now residing in New York City, Shane is living his dream. “I wanted to be a scientist
or a writer when I was a kid. I guess in a sense I am doing that,” said Snow, “writing
nonfiction about science and technology and building a company around that.”
D. Joshua Taylor
Department of History
For the average 10-year-old, life
consists of baseball games, coloring
books, and mac-n-cheese. But for
D. Joshua Taylor, life at that age was
consumed with genealogy. He began
by searching out his own family and
soon after started branching out and
doing genealogy for others.
“Watching someone discover
family history for the first time is always a rewarding experience,” said Taylor. “The
combination of mystery, excitement, and emotion reminds me of why I do what I do
everyday.”
After graduating in 2006 with a major in history and minor in business, Taylor
is now a professional genealogist working for Brightsolid. He travels around the U.S.
finding historical content for the company, building educational tools, and working with
development teams.
“Being a BYU-Idaho graduate has helped me tremendously. The university taught
me integrity and honesty, which I never forget going into a meeting,” said Taylor. “One
of my most memorable instructors was David Peck — he taught me how to write. When
I look at a blank page, I picture him as I begin to outline and organize my thoughts.”
Last year, Taylor was featured on NBC TV’s Who Do You Think You Are?. He was
on two episodes with celebrities Sarah Jessica Parker and Ashley Judd, helping them
discover their family history. To watch Taylor on Who Do You Think You Are?, follow
this link: http://tinyurl.com/7eqra8x.
Top: Shane Snow presenting at a conference. Bottom: Joshua Taylor (left) talking to Ashley Judd about her genealogy (middle).
Successful Graduates
Examining the accomplishments of Byu-idaho alumni
» Jessica McIntyre: Senior, Communication

5. MARCH 2012 l 5
Upon first glance, college students standing
on desktops and others balancing on
chairs would cause even the most naïve of
instructors to violently slap a ruler against
a desk with disgust. However, with a desire
to mold the minds of their students, BYU-
Idaho instructors teaching college algebra
stand back with delight.
Mathematical principles are brought
to life as algebra instructors use everyday
materials and scientific instruments to aid
their classes. As students step off the chairs
and desks with homemade pendulums
in hand, learning becomes real. Students
experience — not just read about — the
effect lengths, speeds, and angles have on
moving objects. Once the experiment is
finished, instructors teach their students
➝ LEARNING MODEL
special
feature
Modernized math class ignites learning
Algebra instructors take real-life examples to aid their students
» Spencer Allen: Junior, Communication
how to use math to analyze and make
predictions about real-life situations. Real-
life examples are now becoming the norm
in teaching mathematical principles.
In 2008, the Department of
Mathematics communicated with the
Department of Chemistry in efforts
to enhance the math course as well as
prepare students for potential chemistry
classes. The desire to change stemmed
from students struggling to connect their
algebraic understandings to chemistry.
Taking a more hands-on laboratory
approach, the course has revolutionized
college algebra on campus.
“The way math instructors apply
real-world situations is very fitting for
students,” said freshman Wilson Carter,
a student currently enrolled in Math 110.
“When I know I’m going to be using these
math functions in the future, it provides
more meaning and motivation to learn
them now. My desire to learn has changed
because I can see how it’s going to apply.”
BYU-Idaho’s college algebra course is
one-of-a-kind with instructors writing
their own curriculum. “It’s a shock for
most students because it’s not like a
normal math class,” shares Department of
Mathematics chair Ann Marie Harmon.
“They come in and think they’re supposed
to solve for ‘x’. However, we just finished
Unit 1 and we did not solve for ‘x’ — not
even once.”
Throughout the course students study
how to model disease spread, the world’s
population growth, and a satellite’s orbit,
among other examples. “We’re trying to
show the students that you use math all
over the place in real-world situations,”
Harmon said. Revolutionizing the course
has created a stir beyond Rexburg. Last
month the math department was accepted
to present at a conference in Seoul, Korea.
Nine instructors will make the trip this July
and present the changes made to BYU-
Idaho’s college algebra curriculum and
the results that have been measured. With
time, other universities may adapt the
teaching methods used at BYU-Idaho.
Ann Marie Harmon’s Math 110 class participates in an experiement using a pendulum where they actively learn the effect that
lengths, speeds, and angles have on moving objects.

6. 6 l BYU-IDAHO NEWS & NOTES
Department Spotlight: Horticulture
» Spencer Allen: Junior, Communication
Everything in the Ricks Gardens was created by students. Last year’s project,
which will be completed in spring, was an oval garden with a fireplace.
Two living walls in the Benson Building produce oxygen and consume indoor
pollutants. They also help beautify the building.
BY THE NUMBERS
6..............Greenhouses on campus
36............Years the Ricks Gardens
has been a laboratory for students
80............Types of poinsettias sold
150..........Types of apples grown
250..........Majors in the department
Students create the large floral bouquets that adorn the podium at the front of the BYU-Idaho Center for each devotional.
Once covered in knee-high grass, then mowed down and paved
for a miniature runway for single-engine planes, the Thomas
E. Ricks Gardens has evolved over time. As the Department of
Horticulture has developed throughout the years, the landing
strip has been replaced with horticulture labs and flower beds,
and students can now choose from more than 35 different courses
focusing on subjects from landscape construction to vegetable and
fruit production. And with a goal to provide a number of hands-
on opportunities, the department turns over many recognizable
projects to the students.
The finishing touch at devotional
With discretion from instructors, small teams of students are
assigned each week to pick and plan the floral arrangement for devotional. The group
can choose from a variety of plants coming from locations including South America,
the Middle East, Europe, and Australia. Once ideas are approved and the flowers have
been selected, the team gathers in the BYU-Idaho Center to assemble the bouquet. The
size of arrangement has increased 300 percent since moving devotional from the Hart
Auditorium. The larger devotional setting requires the floral designers to accommodate the
additional space.
Horticulture Olympics
This March a small lineup of students will participate in the Student Field Career
Days hosted by the Green Industry, a group collaboration among a variety of professional
horticulture organizations. This three-day nationwide tournament will include 28 different
contests from landscape design to plant identification to business management. This
year the team will travel to Kansas State University to challenge 60 other universities.
Some of the most prominent schools in the country will be there including Michigan
State, Mississippi State, and BYU. BYU-Idaho has placed in the top three for the past 10
consecutive years, including three first-place awards in 2004, 2007, and 2009.
Farmer’s market
Every Friday and Saturday from April to October, students in the Department of
Horticulture participate in farmer’s markets in Rexburg and Idaho Falls. With produce
ranging from apples to asparagus and dozens of freshly cut flowers and plants in stock, the
group shares their passion and products with others.
Improvements in the gardens
Rain or shine, Byron John, an instructor in the Department of Horticulture, requires
his landscape construction class to meet outside. The lessons are 100 percent hands-on
as students devote their time in the Ricks Gardens to design and construct new projects.
“Everything you see in the gardens is a creation by students,” said John. This past year John
and his class created an oval garden complete with a large fireplace, checkerboard paving,
and retaining walls. The finishing touches will be added this spring with the planting of
perennial flowers. Each project is chosen yearly. Students create and edit plans during the
winter semester and then put the plan to action during the spring and fall semesters.
Living Walls
Last semester 24 students worked together to create two “living walls” near the east
entrance of the Benson Building. Needing constant nourishment, the walls include an
irrigation system, organic moss, and are finished off with a variety of plants situated on
the walls. Not only is the project a unique type of décor for the building, it also provides
positive health benefits for the student body. The living walls produce oxygen as well as
consume indoor pollutants from carpet and paint.

7. MARCH 2012 l 7
There are 4,064 miles between Rexburg
and Cusco, Peru. Health Science Instructor
Larry Shaw has made this journey twice
already and will make his third trip in
March to instruct Peruvians on how to
efficiently clean their drinking water.
Shaw’s first trip was in March 2011
where he presented at a Reach Out and
Learn conference teaching Peruvian public
health leaders about water pasteurization
indicators (WAPI), which had been
created by BYU-Idaho students. WAPIs
are inexpensive devices that help people
know when water is safe to drink, and
Shaw and fellow faculty member Tyler
Watson distributed hundreds of them
during the trip.
“The reason we go on these trips is to
help students realize that even though they
are over 4,000 miles away they can have
a huge impact on individual lives,” said
Shaw. “It helps students see how much
people need help and that even though
they are in Idaho they can improve the
Clean drinking water for thousands
instructors, students bring Peruvians a safer lifestyle
» Jessica McIntyre: Senior, Communication
Student Erika Hathaway helps a Peruvian student learn the correct way to brush his teeth by practicing on a toy.
quality of life for people on the other side
of the world.”
During his upcoming trip, Shaw will
once again present at the Reach Out and
Learn conference and will teach about
WAPIs as well as introduce a Fit for Fall
program, which helps senior citizens adjust
their home and work environments to be
more friendly.
“There is so much work that can
be done there. We have done multiple
humanitarian projects in the past, each of
them helping Peruvians gain more control
of their lives,” said Shaw. “This time we are
really focusing on teaching them how to be
more self-sufficient.”
Along with Shaw, Erika Hathaway,
a junior studying health science who
accompanied Shaw last March, will be
presenting at the conference on upper
respiratory infections in children. She has
been doing research for the past year on
the subject.
“I have struggled with a respiratory
illness most of my life, so my knowledge
about the subject made me interested in
learning how it affects children in remote
areas of the world,” said Hathaway. “I
want to leave public health officials at the
conference with tangible knowledge they
can implement. This really has been the
best learning experience I could receive.”
Along with being invited to Peru,
Shaw was asked to speak with Colombian
government officials last fall, helping them
find ways to clean their water. Plans are
still being formulated, but he anticipates
going back to Colombia this summer to be
updated on the status of the plan.
Night classes go hybrid
» Nikhil Chabra: Senior, Communication
The Department of Continuing Education
is developing an initiative to transition the
majority of evening school courses to into
a hybrid style.
Evening school typically offers
approximately 52 courses per semester.
Four or five of the 34 Foundations courses
will undergo curriculum development
this coming spring to prepare for
implementation in the fall.
Instead of meeting for three hours once
a week in a standard classroom setting,
students taking evening classes
will typically meet for half the time
and complete the remaining course-
work online.
“With a hybrid class you take the best
of a face-to-face class and the best of an
online class and merge them together,”
said Chad Price, director of the
Department of Continuing Education.
“Each one of them has strengths and
weaknesses, but when combined you
can create a course that offers the best
of both worlds.”
There are approximately seven
evening courses currently running as
hybrids. Academic Vice President Fenton
Broadhead and Academic Operations
Coordinator Larry Thurgood will direct
the transition of the remaining 45 evening
school courses. The Foundations courses
will be developed and implemented in
phases with 14-16 developed during fall
and 14-16 more during the winter. Evening
school courses not within the Foundations
program will then be transitioned into the
hybrid mode of delivery.
“We want to ensure that the quality
of students’ education isn’t compromised
solely to accommodate greater numbers of
students,” said Thurgood. “Some courses
and labs may not fit the hybrid model.”
Evening classes will be the pilot for this
initiative but may encourage more day-
school courses to switch to hybrid in the
future. This initiative has a goal of having
the majority of evening classes transitioned
to hybrid by Fall 2013.

8. 8 l BYU-IDAHO NEWS & NOTES
News & Notes
A monthly publication of University Communications
AD V ISO R / E d i t o r Andy Cargal
Wr i t e r s Spencer Allen, Nikhil Chabra, Jessica McIntyre
Photographers Michael Lewis, Doug McKay
If you have any ideas for future issues, please e-mail newsdesk@byui.edu
University Communications
215 Kimball Building • Rexburg, ID • 83460-1661 • Phone: (208) 496-2000
for sale
Cul-de-sac Home. 4 beds, 3 baths,
2-car garage, 2,900 sq. ft., finished
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1 mile from campus. $207,900.
Call 709-6040. See more at http://
perfect-home-for-you.blogspot.com/.
Home in St. Anthony. 2,600 sq. ft.,
4 beds, 2.5 baths, 2-car garage,
parking for RV/boat, sprinklers. Call
313-0720 or 313-4190.
Island Park Village Resort. 2 beds,
1.5 baths, 2-car garage, furnished,
located on the third fairway, winter
access, resort amenities. Asking
$178,000. Call 356-0255 or email
jonesc@byui.edu.
Children’s Activity Table. Round,
white with storage, $25. Six
Ladder-back Chairs. $100.
Call 201-3070.
Small Trailer. Asking $100. Call
Mark at 206-1169.
2005 Dodge Grand Caravan.
97,000 miles, built-in car seats.
Call 206-6430 or Ext. 4657.
Full-sized Violin. Comes with a
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Emergency Essentials. 55-gallon
barrels for water storage, $20.
Flares for emergencies, $2.50. Call
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Presto SaladShooter. New, $25.
Email powellp@byui.edu.
Pomeranian. White, female, 8
years old, not spayed, comes with
kennels. Call 206-8609.
While growing up in the saddle of a horse,
Renae Zollinger learned two things: Your
horse will never talk back, and it takes
more than a pretty face to win the crown.
“I participated in rodeos growing up,
mostly becoming a rodeo queen,” said
Zollinger. “I always felt awkward doing
the appearance and speech segments, but
I loved the horsemanship pattern and
herding the cows out of the arena.”
During her time as a rodeo queen
Zollinger won multiple rodeos in Eastern
Idaho, such as Dubois, West Jefferson, and
War Bonnet Round-up. She also competed
at the Miss Idaho Rodeo and was on the
Ricks College rodeo team. But Zollinger
had more than a natural talent for horses.
Growing up on her family’s cattle ranch,
she learned everything about the animal.
“While doing rodeos I learned how to
make the horse do whatever I needed and
it became my best friend; my favorite part
about rodeos was the association with
the people and working with my horse,”
Zollinger said. “I really enjoyed goat tying
— even broke my leg once doing it. I still
tied the goat though.”
Now as an office assistant for the
Department of Agribusiness, Plant &
Animal Sciences she is able to keep up with
all her favorite hobbies, and the farm is
never too far away. Because of her help in
the department and with FFA she received
her honorary state FFA degree in 2009.
“My favorite thing to do now is
anything that involves my grandkids. We
go camping, attend dance recitals, and have
wrestling tournaments,” she said. “A couple
years ago we created a “man cave” in our
shop where the boys can go and wrestle.”
At the age of eight, Thomas Hennefer
became fascinated with anything involving
World War II. With a father, multiple
cousins, and even more neighbors who
served in the war, Hennefer began to learn
everything he could about it.
Hennefer is the proud of owner of 200-
plus books (many first editions) on World
War II and has documented conversations
from Flying Tigers and soldiers from either
side about their reactions on D-day. For the
past 30 years Hennefer has been a military
historian and a part of the National Guard.
He is currently a commander in the Texas
3rd battalion 19th regiment.
“When there is any kind of disaster here
in the country we are the first ones there
and the last ones to leave,” said Hennefer.
“Being the old man in the regiment, I do
everything I can to keep up, and I have
never finished last during training.”
Hennefer is able to spend the majority
of his time in Kansas with his family and
teaches online business and information
technology courses for BYU-Idaho.
“I came into the industry by teaching
myself when I saw the need in the company
I worked for. That led me to continue my
education and eventually get my dual
doctorate in organizational management
and leadership.”
But Hennefer had never planned to go
this far with his education. “I didn’t feel
the need to go back to school and finish
my bachelor’s, but that nagging voice
started in and I went back,” he said. “The
same thing happened for my masters and
doctorate, but it’s a little like eating Peanut
M&Ms,” he said jokingly. “After the first
bag, it’s too late to stop.”
Renae Zollinger
Agribus., Plant, & Animal Sci.
Office Assistant
Start Date: March 1992
Hometown: Hamer, Idaho
Thomas Hennefer
Online Instruction
Remote Adjunct Faculty
Start Date: September 2011
Hometown: Olpe, Kansas
Employee Profiles