Alumni Association Angle
The Daily Grind—Aspiring journalists at the University of Minnesota have always cut their teeth at The Minnesota Daily. Notable alumni of the paper include Garrison Keillor, Harry Reasoner, Eric Sevareid, and Bob Dylan. This photo shows the Daily newsroom in 1929. Founded by and for students in 1877 as a monthly literary magazine called The Ariel, its name was changed to The Minnesota Daily in 1900. Today it remains student-run and managed as a nonprofit organization.
Photograph courtesy of University Archives.
Phil Esten Named CEO
The Alumni Association Board of Directors announced on February 8 that Phil Esten (Ph.D. ’03) will succeed Margaret Sughrue Carlson as Alumni Association chief executive officer. Esten is currently an associate athletics director at the University, and has taught graduate level courses as an adjunct professor in the University’s department of kinesiology.
Esten was the athletics department’s point person for TCF Bank Stadium, the University’s new on-campus football facility. He served as liaison for all design, construction, operations, and management of the $288.5 million project and was instrumental in stadium fund-raising.
The board of directors chose Esten following a national search that began last August. He will be the seventh CEO in the Alumni Association’s 106-year history. His first official day as CEO will be March 15.
Above, new Alumni Association CEO Phil Esten is pictured in his seat in TCF Bank Stadium.
Photograph copyright 2009 Christy Radecic/Joey Terrill, all rights reserved
Katie Couric to Headline Alumni Gala
Plan
now to attend the 2010 Alumni Association Annual Celebration on April
24 featuring keynote speaker Katie Couric, anchor and managing editor
of CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. Watch for details at
www.MinnesotaAlumni.org/AC10.
Couric photograph courtesy of CBS News
As the Wood Turns
Twenty exquisitely crafted wood turnings by artisan Virgil Leih will be featured in the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum’s “Spring Trunk Show II: Art of Tree Transformations, 2010 Collection” March 19 through May 2. Members of the Alumni Association receive a $5 discount off membership at the Arboretum, which begins at $45 per year.
Leih rescues and re-creates whole tree trunks, otherwise destined for landfill wood chippers, that are discarded from the urban forest. Using his 1917-era, 7,000-pound lathe, Leih transforms Minnesota natives such as ash, elm, walnut, box elder, and maple into stunning works of art. This year’s exhibit features a sculpture created from a walnut tree formerly in the Arboretum’s tree collection. All of the pieces in the exhibit will be for sale, and a portion of the proceeds benefits the Arboretum. For information go to www.arboretum.umn.edu.
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, the largest public garden in the Upper Midwest, is part of the University of Minnesota College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. It is located in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
One of Virgil Leih's turnings is pictured above. Leih often carves away up to 95 percent of a 2,000-pound tree trunk to reveal its unique inner pattern of golden grain and rings. The Arboretum’s exhibition of his works runs from March 19 through May 2.
Photograph courtesy of University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Mini Med School Explores Children’s Health
Members of the Alumni Association receive a discount on registration for Mini Medical School, a popular five-week course presented by the Academic Health Center that introduces participants to cutting-edge thinking on current health topics. Mini Med School is designed for all people who are interested in learning about health-related topics, regardless of background or experience.
This spring’s curriculum, “Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities,” will explore research, treatments, and cures for common health disorders and diseases in children. University of Minnesota researchers and clinicians will provide lectures and hands-on experience on juvenile diabetes, autism spectrum disorders, childhood cancers, allergies, and asthma.
Weekly classes begin March 22 at Coffman Union. Alumni Association members pay $60 for the entire session, a discount of $20. For more information and to register, go to www.ahc.umn.edu/minimed.
Pictured at right is a session during last fall’s mini medical school, which explored the heart and other organs in “Back to the Basics.”
Photograph by Nick Hanson
Hear It from the Experts
Get in on intelligent talk and unique perspectives on current affairs by attending the 2010 Great Conversations. The popular program of the College of Continuing Education pairs University of Minnesota faculty with influential experts from around the world in thought-provoking conversation. Here is this year’s lineup:
April 20: Madelon Sprengnether, Regents Professor in the department of English, and Rafael Yglesias, screenwriter and author of Fearless and A Happy Marriage.
May 25: Humphrey Institute Dean J. Brian Atwood and Hernando de Soto, a Peruvian economist internationally known for his work on the informal economy and the importance of property rights.
June 15: University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment director Jonathan Foley and Lawrence Brilliant, a physician, epidemiologist, author, and philanthropist who has participated in the World Health Organization’s smallpox eradication program.
Alumni Association members receive discounted ticket prices: $23.50 for individual tickets (regularly $28.50) and $65 for the series (regularly $80). All conversations are held at 7:30 p.m. at the Ted Mann Concert Hall, on the West Bank of the University’s Minneapolis campus, and are followed by a dessert reception with the speakers. For more information visit www.cce.umn.edu/conversations.
Life Member Ranks Grow
The Alumni Association reached a new all-time high number of 15,880 life members in January, bringing the total number of members to 59,000. All members are ambassadors for the important work of the University, but life members make a unique contribution: Their dues are invested in a fund that provides a stable source of support for key Alumni Association programs, including recognition for faculty and alumni and advocacy for the University. Additionally, life members are entitled to special discounts on rentals at the McNamara Alumni Center. For information on life membership, visit www.MinnesotaAlumni.org.
Kudos to Dirty Laundry and Other Top Programs
This fall during Homecoming Week the Alumni Association recognized five alumni societies for creative, innovative, and effective programming. The top chapter, society, and student were also recognized. They were: Biology House Dinner, a program of the Biological Sciences Alumni Society. Members host first-year students for dinner and conversation, followed by a trivia game with questions about the U, the College of Biological Sciences, and biology.
A School of Dentistry Alumni Society initiative to recruit student members at the American Dental Association vendor fair.
The Dirty Laundry Program of the College of Design Alumni Society, which brings together alumni and students for candid, often humorous, sharing about best and worst work experiences.
The Food Industry Networking Social (FINS) of the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Alumni Society. FINS brings together nearly 100 alumni, industry professionals, students, faculty, and staff for lively discussions on hot topics in food science and nutrition.
The Speed Mentoring Program of the School of Nursing Alumni Society. The program gives students the opportunity to network with a diverse group of alumni in one evening.
The Outstanding Chapter Award went to Dakota County, Minnesota. Formed just six years ago, it has evolved into one of the Alumni Association’s most vital chapters. Its programming includes bringing alumni and friends to campus for University cultural events and an annual lecture series featuring U experts on current issues such as stem cell research, alternative energy, and climate change.
The Outstanding Alumni Society Award recognized the College of Science and Engineering Alumni Society, which engaged more than 3,000 alumni during the past year. Its programs include the Science and Technology Banquet, a public lecture series, a mentor program that has 180 mentor-student matches, and Techfest, a collaboration with The Works, a hands-on museum.
The Student Volunteer of the Year Award honored Amanda Lange from the College of Design. Lange was instrumental in launching the Dirty Laundry program and created its playful, memorable branding. She also co-chaired the College of Design Alumni Society’s first communications committee and served as student adviser for the college’s Graduating Student Exhibition and Awards Event.
Pictured above are Alumni Association President Archie Givens and Student Volunteer of the Year Award recipient Amanda Lange from the College of Design.
Photograph by Jana Noonan
Record Numbers Advocate for the U
Alumni and friends of the University turned out in record numbers for the 2010 Legislative Briefing on January 27. More than 400 people attended the annual event at the McNamara Alumni Center in Minneapolis and by live video feed at the four coordinate campuses. A portion of the Briefing was set aside for participants to write and call their legislators; in all, they churned out more than 430 letters and 100 phone calls.
President Bob Bruininks presented a sobering assessment of the circumstances the University faces at the Legislature. He said a “near-perfect storm”—a $1.2 billion state budget deficit this year and $5 billion deficit next year, along with rising costs and the continued impacts of the recession—makes it possible that the legislature will cut the U’s budget by up to $36 million. For the first time in history, he said, tuition revenue, grants, and contracts are $100 million beyond the state allocation to the U. The U’s $193 million capital request seeks funds for general laboratory upgrades, routine maintenance on aging buildings, renovation of Folwell Hall, a physics and nanotechnology center, improvements to the Itasca Biological Station, and a new American Indian Learning Center on the Duluth campus.
Veteran political journalist Mary Lahammer (B.A. ’95) also addressed the gathering, offering her insights on the workings of the legislature. She noted that the use of social media—Facebook and Twitter in particular—has exploded at the Capitol, and urged participants to use them when contacting their elected officials.
Continued advocacy on behalf of the U is critical throughout the entire legislative session. To learn more about the University of Minnesota’s legislative agenda, get the latest information on the legislative session, or find out how you can help make a difference, visit www.SupportTheU.umn.edu.
Pictured above are Legislative Briefing participants writing letters to their legislators.
Photograph by Kenny Hoang
A Fond Farewell
Colleagues, family, and friends gathered to honor retiring Alumni Association CEO Margaret Sughrue Carlson (Ph.D. ’83) at two events in January. Nearly 250 people stopped by the McNamara Alumni Center on the afternoon of January 26 for a reception and more than 250 people attended a tribute dinner, also at the McNamara Alumni Center, on January 28. Carlson, who is leaving the Alumni Association after 25 years, will be embarking on a part-time consulting career with Bentz Whaley Flessner to provide guidance to higher education institutions and nonprofit organizations throughout the country. Read the full text of Carlson’s farewell speech at www.MinnesotaAlumni.org.
Pictured at left are former Gopher basketball great Quincy Lewis (B.S. ’06) with Carlson and her husband, Paul Citron at a reception honoring Carlson.
Photograph by Jana Noonan