Iowa State University Alumni Association| online edition | winter 2007

WINTER 2007
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Cover Story:
The power of one

Feature Story:
Time to celebrate

Departments:
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ASSOCIATION NEWS

Alumni Center Update
Distinguished: Honoring Iowa State alumni and friends
Thank you, Mrs. McCann
Families of the Year
Homecoming 2006: A return to tradition
Club leaders gather on campus
Calling all Oak-Elm alumni
VEISHEA Alumni: Save the Date
Class of 1957: Alumni Days Reunion May 17-19

Alumni Center Update (Return to top)

It’s been a busy fall on the Alumni Center construction site. There’s been a lot of “dirt work,” and more than 170 shafts have been drilled on the site for the ground-anchoring system. When you consider that next spring more than 80 wells will be drilled – each one 200 feet deep to support the geothermal heating system – we can honestly say that the Alumni Center is on “holey” ground! All of the dirt work has amounted to more than 1,800 dump-truck loads hauled away from the Alumni Center site to other Iowa State construction sites. Be sure to watch our progress on our Web cam at www.fpm.iastate.edu/webcam/alumni/

DONOR PROFILE

VISIONS asked Alumni Center donors Richard and Marijo Marshall about their decision to make a gift to the ISU Alumni Center.

"We were interested in supporting the Alumni Center’s Gallery of Patents, Licenses, and Inventions because it demonstrates the excellence and breadth of Iowa State’s undergraduate education, research capabilities, and history. Iowa State holds more than 350 patents and has nearly 700 active and operating license agreements.

“These patents and licenses would not have occurred without high-quality undergraduate and graduate degree training programs and a sound research philosophy.

“Most of us know that the first digital computer was invented by John Atanasoff and Clifford Berry in the late 1930s, but not many realize that approximately 45% of the hybrid corn grown in the United States contains a genetic background developed at ISU. An important key to the successful operation of first-generation low-cost fax machines was developed at ISU and has been an important source of licensing income to the university.

“Too often people associate ISU only with agriculture, engineering, or veterinary medicine and do not realize the other very important contributions the university has made.”

Marijo and Dick Marshall | Griswold, Iowa

Dick: ’61 DVM, ’67 MS veterinary
clinical science
Retired veterinary researcher

Marijo: University of Northern Iowa,
’62 home economics
Retired teacher

ISU involvement:
Order of the Knoll, National Cyclone Club, Gridiron Club, College of Veterinary Medicine, joint annual members of the ISU Alumni Association, ISUAA travelers

Children:
Lee Ann Berigan, Richard (ag business ’83), John, and Mike

About the Marshalls’ Alumni Center gift:
Named space: The Marshall Hall of ISU Inventions, given in memory of Janet L. Marshall

GIFT-GIVING AND NAMING OPPORTUNITIES

Alumni and friends have two categories (gift-level giving and naming opportunities) to choose from to make a gift to the Iowa State University Alumni Center project. To date, 105 individuals and/or couples have contributed nearly $12.1 million of the $13 million needed to finish the project. All gifts to this project go toward supporting the construction, furnishing, landscaping, and endowment of the Alumni Center. The gifting categories are as follows:

Iowa State University Alumni Center
Giving Levels

Bells of Iowa State - $1,000,000 and above
True and Valiant - $500,000-$999,999
Spirits Great - $250,000-$499,999
Dear Alma Mater - $100,000-$249,999
Love and Loyalty - $50,000-$99,999
Golden Melody - $25,000-$49,999
Green Hills - $10,000-$24,999
Fight for Iowa State - Under $10,000

Iowa State University Alumni Center Naming Opportunities

Third Floor:
Board Room - NAMED
Foyer - NAMED
Library/Memorabilia - NAMED
President’s Suite - NAMED
East Lounge - NAMED
Reception Area - NAMED
Library/Memorabilia Fireplace - NAMED
Travel and Alumni Services Office - NAMED
Executive Conference Room - $150,000
Hall of Alumni Leadership - $125,000
College for Seniors Office - PENDING
Vice President’s Office - NAMED
Business Manager’s Office - NAMED

Second Floor:
Alumni Ballroom - NAMED
Hall of Inspiration - NAMED
Cy’s Den - NAMED
Grand Staircase (interior) / Historic MU Doors Display - NAMED
Hall of ISU Inventions - NAMED
Alumni Living Room - NAMED
Staff Break Room - NAMED
Living Room Fireplace - NAMED
Alumni Ballroom Fireplace - NAMED
East Terrace - $350,000
Communication Production Room - $50,000
Executive Reception Area - $25,000
Marketing Director’s Office - $25,000
Communications Director’s Office - $25,000
Kitchen and Catering Area - $25,000

First Floor:
Student Alumni Leadership Coun. Ste. - $150,000
Grand Staircase (exterior) - $200,000
Multi-Purpose Conference Room - $100,000
General Production Room - $75,000
East Foyer - $75,000
Hall of Student Organizations - $50,000
Outreach and Events Director’s Office - $25,000

Gifts to this project are tax-deductible, count toward one’s total lifetime giving to the university and in the university’s current comprehensive campaign, and qualify or support one’s membership in the Order of the Knoll.

For more information on making a gift to the
ISU Alumni Center, contact:
Kelly Hanfelt, director of development, ISU Foundation
515-294-1849, khanfelt@foundation.iastate.edu
Or Jeff Johnson, president, ISU Alumni Association
877-ISU-ALUM, jjohnson@alumni.iastate.edu

Distinguished: Honoring Iowa State alumni and friends (Return to top)

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION SPONSORED AWARDS:

Distinguished Alumni Award

David P. Campbell**
MS ’58 Psychology
Senior fellow, Center for Creative Leadership
Colorado Springs, Colo.

Nawal El Moutawakel-Bennis
BS ’88 Physical Education
Women in sport commissioner for
Moroccan Association of Sport and Development
Casablanca, Morocco

Charles E. Herbert
BS ’51 Architecture
Retired president,
Herbert Lewis Kruse Blunck Architecture
Des Moines, Iowa

Theodore “Ted” Kooser
BS ’62 English & Speech
US Poet Laureate; retired VP, Lincoln Benefit Life Co.
Garland, Neb.

Honorary Alumnus/Alumna Award

Simon Estes
Professor, Iowa State University
Waverly, Iowa

Helen H. Howe**
Philanthropist
Muscatine, Iowa

Robert W. Stafford**
Retired chairman and president, First National Bank
Ames, Iowa

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION SPONSORED AWARDS

Order of the Knoll Campanile Award

W. Eugene “Gene” Lloyd**
DVM ’42; PhD ’70 Veterinary Pathology
CEO, Lloyd Inc.
Ft. Myers, Fla.

Order of the Knoll Cardinal and Gold Award

John Lawson**
BS ’62 Mechanical Engineering
Retired senior VP, Deere & Co.
Rapids City, Ill.

Order of the Knoll
Corporate and Foundation Award

Caterpillar Inc.
Peoria, Ill.

Order of the Knoll Faculty/Staff Award

Max Rothschild
C.F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor
Iowa State University College of Agriculture
Ames, Iowa

*Annual member, ISU Alumni Association **Life member, ISU Alumni Association
Note: Only ISU degrees are listed

Thank you, Mrs. McCann (Return to top)
I still love her. I still honor her. I’ve even gotten to tell her that during a public ceremony.

She’s still alive. She’s still interested in how I’m doing. She still cares.

I live in Ames now. She still lives in rural Collins, Miss.
I will never forget her, and I will always honor her and her legacy.

Outside of my parents and my first employer, Mrs. Jessie Allred, the teacher who will forever remain central to the person I have become and responsible for my drive for excellence and perfection is Mrs. Ruth McCann.

Mrs. McCann taught my sixth grade English class at Hopewell Elementary School. This was a public school in Collins, educating rural black kids. The school was located on the same grounds as a local church. To put things in perspective, this rural area in Covington County was a mix of black and white families; however, the white families either drove their kids to the in-town public elementary school or sent them to the county’s private school. Until recently, I never really thought about this separation. While I was growing up and going to school, no one ever talked about the separation, either. The focus was always on each child getting an education, staying out of trouble, finding faith in God, and planning for our futures. We believed we had no limits!

When we got to Collins Junior High School, this meant going into town. Our parents and teachers told us we would see all the kids of our community under one roof. They also told us that the competition would be fierce, and that we were ready and could compete. I guess this was their first lesson to us that we were not inferior. Mrs. McCann used to say that we needed our education and our character intact if we were ever going to live out our dreams. She also reminded us every day that we were in charge of our own destinies. She told us that we were smart, and we believed it – and we achieved at the highest levels. Collins Junior High and Collins High School became our next triumphs, and from my sixth grade Hopewell class, the majority of us went on to graduate from high school and college.

Today, Mrs. McCann still pushes me. I hear her (and my parents) in my conscience, telling me how special I am and how proud they are of me. Her steady voice assures me that I am worthy, capable, and deserving of all that has come my way. In this rural community, she was also a true professional – in the way she dressed, in the way she wore her hair, in what she drove, and how she lived. She firmly believed that teachers were professionals, that they needed to look, live, and present themselves like doctors and lawyers. We all wanted to be like her. We all dressed our best. Today, I think I still dress, live, and present myself with her unspoken convictions. She was the consummate professional and my example of success.

All of my classmates – and especially myself – feared Mrs. McCann. Not that we were afraid of her…we just feared failing her. As a result of this fear, we came to respect her.

Today, we honor her. I can still hear her telling us, like she did so many times during test time, “You know this material, folks!” Somehow, we dug deeper and tried harder.

Thank you, Mrs. McCann, and Mom and Dad. I am a better, stronger person today because of each of you.

Yours for Iowa State,

Jeff Johnson
President, ISU Alumni Association

Families of the Year (Return to top)
The Halbur family of Carroll, Iowa, and the Shook-Trumbo family of Des Moines were honored Sept. 30 as the 2006 ISU Families of the Year. The awards are presented annually as part of Family Weekend at Iowa State dating back to 1968.

The Halburs include Jim (’79 farm op) and Barb (’79 phys ed/indust ed) and their five children: Brian (’03 ag studies/farm op); Scott (’05 ag bus/econ); Jay, a current student; Chad, a student at Kuemper Catholic High School; and Bridget, also a student at Kuemper.

While Torin and Rochelle Shook are not alumni of Iowa State, their encouragement of their daughters, Dawniece, Dionne, and Dominique Trumbo, to attend ISU truly qualifies them as a Cyclone family. Dawniece will graduate in marketing this year, Dionne is a junior in psychology/foreign languages and literatures, and Dominique is a freshman in anthropology.

Homecoming 2006: A return to tradition (Return to top)
Homecoming 2006 marked a return to the ISU tradition
of Homecoming royalty, as five students were selected as finalists for the Cardinal Court Scholarship. Nathan Katzer, a senior in agronomy from Creston, Iowa, was chosen from among five finalists. (Other finalists included Andrew Nelson, Charles Fisher, Chris Deal, and Eric Peterson.) Candidates were evaluated on academics, campus involvement, goals and objectives, and their responses to two short essay questions. Katzer and the other four finalists were recognized during 2006 Homecoming festivities.

Club leaders gather on campus (Return to top)
On Sept. 8-9, the ISU Alumni Association welcomed 25 club leaders from around the country to campus for a two-day summit on the role clubs will play in further connecting ISU alumni and friends to the university. The leaders networked throughout the conference, shared best-practice ideas, and attended a tailgate prior to the UNLV football game.

In the end, a mission statement was created for the national clubs program: “To be the premier local resource for strengthening connections with and service to alumni, students, friends and Iowa State University.”

Calling all Oak-Elm alumni (Return to top)
Are you interested in being reconnected to Oak-Elm Hall, knowing what traditions are still alive and what new traditions have been created? A group of alumni is looking for enthusiastic alumni willing to share their stories with current residents and friends of Oak-Elm Hall. If interested, please e-mail your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address to Mickey Fitch at fitchm@iastate.edu and you will be included in the Oak-Elm Society of Alumni and Friends. Plans for the society include newsletters as well as events during VEISHEA and Homecoming.

VEISHEA Alumni: Save the Date (Return to top)
A VEISHEA Alumni and Friends dinner will be held April 21 at 5 p.m. on campus. Details will be sent to this group in the spring. For more information, contact Eric Pille (epille@iastate.edu) or Nick Dial (dialn@iastate.edu).