Spring 2010 | 1

M O N T A N A S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y

The magazine for members of the MSU Alumni Association | Spring 2010

In this issue:Capturing polar bears on film

Living the high life: Grads contribute in Morocco

Silent Partner: Establishing schools for the deaf

A Place for Spirit: Alumni Plaza dedicated

Spring 2010 | 1

THE MAGAZINE FOR MEMBERS OF THE MSU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION | SPRING 2010 | VOL. 87, NO.1

D E P A R T M E N T S

From the President 2

Mail Bag 3

Blue & Gold 4

Class Notes 28

Association News 30

9 Film grad’s success in LA

20 MSU Student Profile: Nate Carroll

21 MSU Alumni Profile: Denise Juneau

25 Estate gifts reflect deep commitment

30 2010 Commencement Reunions

F E A T U R E S

10MSU alumni capture polar bears…on film16

A Place for Spirit

26Pro ’Cat

18Waller becomes first MSU

Mike Mansfield Fellow

22Living the High Life

14Silent Partner:

Investing in the lives of others brings great fulfillment

MSU ALUMNI AS SOCIAT IONChairLois (Fulker) Norby, ’65, Excelsior, Minn.Chair-ElectBill Perry, ’02, BozemanPast ChairTodd Eliason, ’74, BozemanTreasurerRick Reisig, ’82, Great FallsBoard of DirectorsWilliam Breeden, ’65, ’68 M, Anchorage, AlaskaBrian Clark, ‘82, KalispellFlorence Garcia, ’99, BozemanStephanie (Good) Bunkley, ’89, Bothell, Wash.John Green, ’70, Littleton, Colo.Dave Johnson, ’67, ’68 M, BigforkLea (Anderson) Moore, ‘93, Miles CityJeanette “Tootie” Rasmussen, ’60, ChoteauMichael Sanderson, ’94, ’96 M, BillingsShaun Shea, ’98, ClancyMark Sherman, ’97, KalispellMary Beth (Holzer) Walsh, ’86, Twin BridgesBrant Weingartner, ’98, Irving, TexasStudent Alumni AssociationLaura Anderson, LewistownNate Carroll, Ekalaka

MSU ALUMNI STAFFPresident and CEOJaynee Drange Groseth, ’73, ’91 MAssociate DirectorKerry Hanson, ’93, ’08 MMembership DirectorJennifer Ward, ’94Program ManagerRose (Healy) Hanson, ’82Administrative AssistantJennifer Anderson Communications SpecialistMegan (Koehler) Walthall, ’06

Vol. 87, No. 1, Spring 2010

EDITORIAL BOARD Jodie DeLay, ’93, Tracy Ellig, ’92, Jaynee Drange Groseth, ’73, ’91 M, Kerry Hanson, ’93, ’08 M, Julie Kipfer, Suzi Taylor, ’99 M, Meghan Walthall, ’06, Caroline Zimmerman, ’83

EDITOR Caroline Zimmerman, ’83

CRE ATIVE DIRECTORRon Lambert

DESIGN AND PRODUCTION MSU Office of Creative Services

PHOTOGR APHY by Kelly Gorham, ’95, MSU Photography (unless otherwise noted)

The Montana State Collegian (ISSN 1044-7717) is published four times a year by the Montana State University Alumni Association. Foundation & Alumni Center, 1501 S. 11th Ave., Bozeman, Montana 59717. Periodicals postage paid at Bozeman, Mont., and additional offices.

Web address: http://alumni.montana.edu

Postmaster: Send address changes to Montana State Collegian, 1501 S. 11th Ave., Bozeman, MT 59717 • (406) 994-2401 • E-mail: alumni@montana.edu

Dear Alumni and Friends,

Greetings! This is my first letter to you in the Collegian as MSU’s new president. I am very pleased to have this opportunity to visit with you.

First, I would like to say thanks to all of you who have welcomed me during my first months on the job. I’ve been deeply touched by your warmth and kindness. I’m looking forward to meeting more of MSU’s wonderful alumni in the coming months.

As you know, the economic downturn has caused state government and the Montana University System to look at budget cuts. Though I am writing this in February—before any specific budget decisions have been made—I want to take a moment to explain two of my guiding principles in this situation.

First and foremost, protecting the quality of instruction our students receive is our highest priority. We will do everything in our power to make sure students get the best education we can provide them.

Second, while budget cuts dominate media coverage, my attention is also on ways to increase our revenues. At the top of my list is increasing student retention, some-thing that is good for our students and improves our financial picture by increasing our overall enrollment.

Retention refers to the number of entering freshmen who continue into their sophomore year. Currently, about 28 percent of freshmen do not continue into their next year. Many of these students drop out for reasons beyond our control, but there are some for whom we can provide the support needed to complete a university degree.

It will require us to address class size, the times of common-hour exams—an ob-stacle for some students with child care and jobs—and, most importantly, the amount of individual assistance available to students. It can be done.

As alumni, you can help us by continuing to spread the news about MSU’s dedica-tion to student success. You are one of the university’s most important voices and carry our message to neighbors, community leaders, and high school students and their parents. And, just as important, you succeed in your own careers and civic life. You demonstrate with your accomplishments the lasting value of your educational experience at MSU.

Thank you for all you do.

Waded CruzadoPresident, Montana State University

F R O M T H E M S U P R E S I D E N T

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On the CoverThe newest addition to campus is the bronze Bobcat, “Spirit,” in the Alumni Plaza north of Montana Hall. Photo by Kelly Gorham.

The Collegian magazine welcomes letters from alumni and friends of MSU. Send them to alumni@montana.edu or MSU Alumni Association, P.O. Box 172940, Bozeman, MT 59717-2740.

Scholarship Recipients Say ThanksDear Mrs. Jaynee Groseth,Thank you so much for awarding me the Alumni Scholarship. It will be very helpful in paying for my education. Right now I am ending my first semester at MSU, and I have enjoyed my time here. I am leaning towards a career in speech pathology, as my linguistics class has been one of my favorites.

Thank you again,Molly Johnson

Dear Mrs. Jaynee Groseth,Thank you for allowing me to further my education and enabling me to have the op-portunity to achieve my goal of becoming a nurse. I also thank you for decreasing the financial burden that paying for school is for me. This award of a $1,000 Alumni As-sociation Scholarship is greatly appreciated and will be of great help to me.

Sincerely,Rachel Keil

Bobcat Football HospitalityDear Jaynee and All,We want to thank you for the opportunity to sit in the alumni box on Saturday. You really go all out to entertain. We enjoyed all the wonderful food and drink and company (and a great win for the Cats!). You do a great job.

Thanks again,Barb, Ex’67 EHHD, and Jack Palmquist, Ex ’63 Arch, P.S. Jack wanted me to mention how much we enjoy the alumni magazine. It’s always interesting and well done.

Dear Jaynee, Kerry and Jennifer,Oddlaug and I want to thank you so much for having us as guests at the MSU/SDU football game. It was a great place to view the game and visit with alumni. Great to know we have such a great and enthusiastic team at the Alumni Association. We are also

honored to have Lea on the board. She is very excited to represent MSU.

Thank you,Don Anderson, ’64 Ag, ’66 M AgBus

Dear Jaynee, Kerry and Jennifer,Thank you so very much for the wonderful afternoon of the MSU-ISU game. We so enjoyed meeting all of you and having the opportunity to sit in the Alumni Associa-tion seats—nice view! The food was great as was the outcome of the game.

With Thanks,Tom,’65 ChemE, and Joanne Bernasek

Jaynee, Kerry and Jennifer,Thank you for the wonderful hospitality this weekend at the Bobcats vs. Idaho State game. We really enjoyed ourselves, and it was a pleasure to meet all of you. We’re very proud of Nathan. It is a great experience for him to be able to participate on the Alumni Board.

Best Regards,Kevin, ’87 Bus, and Beth Bailey, ’89 Bus

Alumni PlazaJaynee,Would you pass on to everybody in the Alumni Association how nice the “Spirit” ceremony was today? I think the plaza turned out great and is really going to be a wonderful gathering place. It made me really proud to be a Bobcat!

Gary A. Grame, ’76 Fish & Wildlife Biology

Hi Guys,I hope you are proud of today’s events. What a nice addition to Montana State Uni-versity. Did you notice the people lining up to have their photos next to Spirit? What a wonderful way for students to preserve their time at MSU.

Jeffrey Bondy, ’94 SecEd, ’00 M PubAdmin

Jaynee and All,You should be so proud of your endeavors. Today was outstanding. The luncheon-taste, the music-comforting, the honors—beyond belief. My gosh! How is it that you all pull together to do such great work? I know! You are “great people.” The dedication was just special—weather couldn’t have interfered—

it enhanced. Just wished Bob and Mary could have joined the group. The rest of the weekend is already a gigantic success. My compliments to all.

Bill and Pat Oriet, ’69 Nurs

Thank YouGreetings, The fall 2009 issue of the Collegian is special for me. Evelyn Boswell’s article about the 463 recipients awarded retroactive Master of Architecture degrees is especially so for me. Thank you for presenting such a great image for Montana State University. When I entered MSC in the fall of 1945, enroll-ment was less than 2000. Quite a contrast to MSU now winning $98.4 million in research dollars during the fiscal year.

Appreciatively, Vince Werner, ’48 Arch, ’09 M Arch

Alumni Association,Thank you for your support of our 100th anniversary. We couldn’t have had such a fabulous year without you!

Sincerely,Bozeman Chamber of Commerce

Awards for ExcellenceKerry,I was pleased to be honored at the banquet last evening. You and your co-workers created a superb example of effective event planning. Thank you,

Jann Spizziri Business Mgmt. senior from Ryegate, Mont.

I just wanted to say thank you for the great evening last night. I especially thought that it was nice to recognize the spouses and par-ents as none of what has been accomplished could be done without them. I think that this was a pretty special event, and I am honored to have been a part of it.

Thank You,Marques JonesUndergraduate ResearcherMSU Chemical and Biological Engineering Dept., from Ronan, Mont.

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M A I L B A G Y O U R L E T T E R S

MSU

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B L U E & G O L D M S U N E W S

MSU satellite to ride NASA mission into spaceIt’s official. A small research satellite that Mon-tana State University students built to commem-orate the 50th anniversary of the first successful U.S. satellite will ride into space this fall on a NASA launch.

Calling it “a historically huge moment,” David Klumpar, director of MSU’s Space Science and Engineering Laboratory, said this will be the first time that an MSU satellite will be launched from the United States. It will also be the first time that miniature satellites made at any U.S. university will fly on a NASA mission. MSU’s satellite is one of three that will accompany the NASA mission.

“It’s a tremendous break-through,” Klumpar said.

MSU’s “Explorer-1 Prime” and satellites from two other universities were nominated for flight about 11/2 years ago, but the universities didn’t know until this year if, or when, the satellites might be launched or the mission that would carry them. NASA announced on Jan. 26 that

the three satellites are scheduled to be launched in late November with Glory, a climate mission to measure the sun’s energy output and the distribu-tion of tiny airborne aerosol particles. The other university satellites were made at the University of Colorado and a consortium of Kentucky universi-ties. The satellites are expected to be launched on the Taurus XL launch vehicle from the Vanden-berg Air Force Base in Santa Maria, Calif.

All three satellites are called CubeSats because of their shape. They are aluminum cubes that

measure about four inches on each side and weigh no more than 2.2 pounds.

MSU’s satellite will replicate the scientific mis-sion of the Explorer-1 mission launched on Jan. 31, 1958, Klumpar said. That mission detected the existence of a band of energetic charged particles held in place by the Earth's magnetic field. The band was named the Van Allen Radia-tion Belt after the late James Van Allen, who directed the design and creation of instruments on Explorer-1.

Van Allen was also Klumpar’s mentor when Klumpar was working on his master's degree at the University of Iowa. Van Allen was the guest speaker, too, at Klumpar’s 40th class reunion from Washington High School in Iowa. While at the re-union, Klumpar told Van Allen about the satellite his students were building at MSU. Van Allen sug-gested that the satellite be named the Explorer-1 Prime because of its relationship to Explorer-1. He offered to give Klumpar some Geiger Tube radia-tion detectors from the Pioneer 10 mission.

One of those Geiger tubes will go into space in the Explorer-1 Prime to measure the inten-sity and variability of the electrons in the Van Allen belts. MSU’s satellite will also carry solar cells for power, a radio receiver and transmit-ter and a computer system to operate the entire device, Klumpar said. The satellite—funded by the Montana Space Grant Consortium based at MSU—is expected to orbit the Earth at least 15 years before it disintegrates in space.

Approximately 125 undergraduate students have worked on MSU’s satellite in some capacity since the summer of 2006, Klumpar said.

—Evelyn Boswell

MSU alumnus receives solar physics prizeA third solar physicist affiliated with Montana State University has received the Karen Harvey Prize from the Solar Physics Division of the American Astronomical Society.

Brian Welsch, ’98 M Phys, ’02 Ph.D. Phys, received the 2010 prize for his role in developing correlation techniques to measure velocities on the surface of the sun. While at MSU, Welsch worked in the research group

of physics professor Dana Longcope. Welsch now works in the Space Sci-ences Laboratory at the University of California-Berkeley.

Longcope received the first Karen Harvey Prize awarded. His came in 2003. Jiong Qiu, assistant professor of physics, received the prize in 2007.

The Karen Harvey Prize was estab-lished in May 2002 to honor the late Karen Harvey. She was a solar physi-

cist, president of the Solar Physics Research Corporation, and treasurer of the Solar Physics Division before dying of cancer at age 59. The Karen Harvey Prize recognizes significant contributions to the study of the sun early in a person’s professional career.

—Evelyn Boswell

Dave Klumpar holds a solar panel that will provide power for an MSU satellite that will ride into space this fall. The satellite structure, located behind the so-lar panel, is a cube that measures about four inches on each side.

B L U E & G O L D M S U N E W S

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Cold Chamber HighlightedMSU was included in Skiing magazine’s list of “Bright Ideas: The 28 People, Products and Inventions Revolutionizing Our Sport.” The article highlighted MSU’s avalanche crash-test dummy and Subzero lab, which was described as a “one-of-a-kind cold chamber that allows scientists to test snowpack strength in a controlled, slide-free environment.”

A Montana State University alumnus has given $500,000 to MSU to improve facilities for MSU’s student-athletes.

Great Falls attorney Alexander “Zander” Blewett, ’67 Math, gave MSU Athletics the gift to help student-athletes succeed based on the importance of wrestling in his career and life. Wrestling at MSU while a student-athlete during the 1960s taught Blewett many things, but he said the most important lesson he learned is the importance of a strong work ethic. To succeed, one simply must work harder than every-one else. That lesson has carried over into Blewett’s life as a trial lawyer.

Blewett, who practices law in Great Falls, is probably most noted for the $21.4 million dollar verdict he obtained against a high-powered law firm in Seltzer vs. Morton, a case that found in favor of Western art expert Steve Seltzer of Great Falls, who refused to authenticate a painting he believed to be a fake Charlie Russell. Blewett is also one of only 100 lawyers named to the Inner Circle of Advocates, a group whose minimum membership requirement is winning 50 or more trials with verdicts in excess of $1 million.

Blewett, who was recently elected to his second term on the MSU Foundation Board of Directors, hopes the gift will help advance the visibility of MSU’s athletic programs and draw more student-athletes to the university. He also said it will help student-athletes perform better—a sentiment others at MSU echo.

“Mr. Blewett’s gift is a wonderful way for the university to start the New Year,” said MSU President Waded Cruzado. “His thoughtful gen-erosity will help our student-athletes for many years to come.”

“State-of-the-art facilities add power and strength to every athletic program,” said Peter Fields, MSU’s athletic director. “Athletes who are well-conditioned not only perform to higher standards in their chosen sports, but are also mentally and academically sharper.”

Just as wrestling helped Blewett, he hopes his gift will do the same for MSU’s student-athletes, even though MSU no longer has a wrestling team.

“Sports are hard, and doing hard things is good for people,” Blewett said. “In my view, anything that is difficult to do is very important in building character. You improve yourself by working hard, and then you do better and get better results.”

Blewett hopes the gift will attract student-athletes to MSU and enable them to do their best while they’re here,

so they’ll be better equipped to succeed once they leave, Blewett said.

And, he considers sharing what he has earned as his duty.

“A lot of us have had good fortune, whether through hard work or taking the right fork in the road, and giving back seems like the appropriate thing to do,” Blewett said. “Especially now, if you’re in a position to help out your alma mater, it’s probably time to step up and do so.”

Blewett’s is the third gift in three years of $500,000 or more from members of the Great Falls community in support of Bobcat Athletics.

“As a former wrestler, Zander understands the impact athletics can have on our student-athletes,” Fields said. “And, as a booster, he truly understands the impact that a successful athletics program will have on the university, the commu-nity and the state of Montana.”

—Anne Pettinger Cantrell

MSU alum gives $500,000 to help MSU’s student-athletes succeed

Noted Great Falls attorney Alexander “Zander” Blewett has given $500,000 to MSU to improve facilities for MSU’s student-athletes. Photo courtesy of Zander Blewett.

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B L U E & G O L D M S U N E W S

Beekeeping hobby becomes base of research and classesIn David Baumbauer’s beekeep-ing class the participants take an oath: “I am a beekeeper and I will get stung.”

Baumbauer, manager of Montana State University’s Plant Growth Center, quickly follows with an explanation, “If you work the bees when the weather is nice and pay atten-tion to what you are doing, you can usually avoid getting stung.”

Although Baumbauer does feel the sting of an irritated bee once or twice a year—always his fault, he said—he hasn’t let that stop his beekeeping hobby from morphing into research and classes.

In January, Baumbauer began offering his fifth hobby beekeep-ing course. Open to the public and limited to 50 participants, the class fills up every year.

“It’s a neat addition to the ag-ricultural experience,” Baumbau-er said. “It’s a fun hobby, kids seem to be naturals at it and gardeners reap wonderful ben-efits from having bees around (to pollinate their crops).”

His bees also make an appearance in Baumbauer’s organic market gardening class, taught in the summer on MSU’s horticulture farm. While learning about small-scale direct market enterprises, students get a primer on beekeeping.

“There are a lot of products that come out of beekeeping, such as honey, lip balms and candles, that can supplement a gardener or farmer’s income,” Baumbauer said.

Baumbauer got hooked on beekeeping after working bees with a friend. He currently has

five bee colonies on MSU’s Bozeman Area Research and Training Farm, and his daugh-ters have another five colonies in friends’ yards. (Five colonies per hobbyist and two hobbyists per household are allowed by the Montana Department of Agriculture.)

Researchers at MSU see the bees living on campus as more than honey and pollina-tors; they see them as research subjects and life savers.

Lee Spangler, faculty in chemistry and biochemistry, Joe Shaw, engineering faculty, and researchers from the Na-tional Energy Technology Lab use bees for carbon sequestra-tion work. By analyzing the pollen a bee collects for tracers that have been added to carbon dioxide, he can tell whether buried carbon dioxide is staying stored underground or leaking out of the ground.

University of Montana professor Jerry Bromenshenk; Kevin Repasky, MSU engi-neering faculty; John Carlsten, MSU physics faculty; Shaw and Spangler have figured out a way to use bees to detect land mines.

Bromenshenk conditioned honeybees to be attracted to land mines by adding trace amounts of the chemicals used in explosives to their food. When honeybees are released into a minefield they will pause over the landmines in their search for food. To be able to detect the pausing of the bees, the MSU researchers developed lidar, a measuring system that detects and locates objects on the same principle as radar but uses light from a laser.

Bees can also help improve the lives of people around the world. In October, Baumbauer volunteered at a Heifer Inter-national beekeeping class in Perryville, Ark. Heifer Interna-tional is a nonprofit develop-ment organization dedicated to improving communities through sustainable agriculture.

“Bees are good for interna-tional development because you don’t need any land to raise them,” Baumbauer said.

“They are a great enterprise for women in developing countries because women do most of the chores and don’t have a lot of extra time.”

— by Melynda Harrison

MSU Fitness Center Receives Top AwardMSU’s Marga Hosaeus Fit-ness Center has received the Outstanding Sports Facilities Award from the National Intramural-Recre-ational Sports Association for creative, innovative designs of new, renovated or expanded collegiate recreational facilities. Judging criteria includes architectural design, functionality and how well it meets its intended purpose.

David Baumbauer, manger of Montana State University’s Plant Growth Center, sits on bee colonies at MSU.

B L U E & G O L D M S U N E W S

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MSU grad student returns to African bush to learn, serveA Montana State University graduate student who studies wildlife in the African bush has a box seat at an exotic parade.

Lions, baboons, spotted hyenas and warthogs pass by the cameras that Paul Schuette set up around his research area in southern Kenya. So do el-ephants, ostriches and secretary birds. Women carrying bundles of sticks walk by the cameras, as do Maasai herders.

“Lions and hyenas share the same areas with people and livestock,” said Schuette, a doctoral student in ecology.

“It’s really interesting to see how there’s kind of a spatial and temporal shift.”

Now in his third field season, Schuette lives in a canvas tent from January through August while studying the interactions of wildlife, livestock and Maa-sai on two community conser-vation areas and Maasai group ranches in the South Rift Valley. The overseers are interested in Schuette’s findings, because they want to protect wildlife and improve livelihoods.

Funded by the National Sci-ence Foundation and affiliated with two African organizations, Schuette uses radio collars and battery-powered cameras to survey the wildlife and see how people, wildlife and livestock share the land. Some of his methods expand on those used by his adviser, Scott Creel, to study elk-prey interactions in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

“There are some basic pro-cesses underlying predator-prey interactions in any system, and

the Olkiramatian-Shompole area provides an excellent op-portunity to understand how large carnivores affect prey spe-cies in ways beyond the obvious effects of directly killing prey,” Creel said. “Also, the Maasai are notable for their success in conserving large carnivores and ungulates on the same landscape that people use for all of their everyday activities, including grazing livestock, which is the focal point of their economy.

“If we can understand their success in conserving large carnivores outside of protected areas and avoiding or mitigat-ing conflicts, there may be some basic strategies that can help with these issues in other parts of the world,” Creel said.

“This is certainly a hot-button issue in Montana since wolves have recolonized their historic range.”

Schuette and Creel have placed radio collars on four lions and two spotted hyenas so far, Schuette said shortly before returning to Kenya. They also monitor 56 sites with trail cam-

eras. The cameras take photos day and night and have yielded 250,000 photos so far, Schuette said. After analyzing them, he will describe his findings in his doctoral thesis and provide that information to the African Conservation Centre, the South Rift Association of Land Owners (SORALO) and the Maasai tribes.

Schuette said he already knows that 20 kinds of carni-vores live on the 193 square miles of his study area. He’s especially focused on lions, leopards and spotted hyenas, because they kill more prey than any of the other carnivores.

It’s interesting to see animals and humans sharing the same spot at different times of the day, Schuette added.

—Evelyn Boswell

Breaking the Track RecordMSU Bobcat Patrick Casey became Montana’s first col-legiate athlete to run a sub four-minute mile on Montana soil in January 2010. His altitude-adjusted time of 3:59.17 won the event, broke the MSU school record and was good for eighth on the Big Sky Conference All-Time list in the event.

Paul Schuette, left, and Scott Creel place a radio collar on a lion for research they are conducting in southern Kenya. (Photo courtesy of Paul Schuette).

Paul Schuette and Scott Creel of MSU conduct their research on the Olkiramatian and Shom-pole group ranches in southern Kenya. The ranches are indicated at the center lower portion of this map. (Map cour-tesy of Paul Schuette).

MSU receives $1.37 million to create “viral tree of life”

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B L U E & G O L D M S U N E W S

Montana State University researchers are looking more closely at the most abundant form of life-like entities on earth—viruses.

Last fall, the university received a grant of $1.37 million over five years from the National Science Foundation. The money will allow fac-ulty members and students at MSU to broaden

the understanding of the viral world and its rela-tionship to cellular life.

“We are known for finding bizarre viruses,” said Mark Young, profes-sor in the Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology and the grant’s principal investigator.

Young and his team will be using molecular technology to identify and categorize viruses from extreme environ-ments around the world, primarily very hot and very acidic places. They are looking for viruses with no known relatives.

They will collect hundreds to thousands of viruses and try to match their genetic material to genes scientists have already categorized. When Young and his group find a virus whose genes do not match known genes, they will know they’ve found something special.

Young will then classify the new viruses and create a “viral tree of life.” Much like a tree of life

for other life forms, this tree will show who is related to whom. Unlike the better known tree of life, the viral tree of life will almost certainly be more than one tree; it may even be a forest.

“Whereas cellular life has one common ances-tor, viruses have had multiple, individual ances-tors,” Young said. “We don’t know how many there are, but we hope to contribute to finding out how many trees are in the forest.”

The results of Young’s work will be added to the National Institute of Health’s National Center for Biotechnology Information’s database. Genetic information from all over the world is collected in this database and is accessible to other scientists and the public. Young will also distribute information from the tree(s) of life through scientific journal articles.

In addition to the advancement of science, there are other benefits to Young’s project. Ac-cording to Young, 20 percent of the microbial life in the ocean is killed every day by viruses. That means most of the life in the ocean is turned over every five days. That likely holds true for terrestrial life, too.

“There are more viruses than cells on the planet. It’s impossible to imagine making good policy decisions on ecosystem management without knowing what life is on the planet,” Young said.

“Just knowing what earth supports is critical.” — Melynda Harrison

A team that recently reaccredited Mon-tana State University has commended the university for an “extremely high level of productivity and effectiveness” and creative use of resources during current fiscal challenges.

MSU learned in February that it had received reaccreditation from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities on the basis of an NWCCU comprehensive evaluation conducted this fall. The NWCCU is the accrediting body for all institutions of higher learning in the Pacific North-west. It is one of six regional accredi-tation bodies that grant accreditation

on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education.

“Receiving reaccreditation is, at the same time, a validation and a recogni-tion that demonstrates the university is doing the job entrusted to it by the people of Montana by providing a quality education for our students,” said MSU President Waded Cruzado.

“It’s one of our foremost indicators of quality, performance and a commit-ment to constant improvement.”

She said the university was pleased that the report was complimentary of MSU faculty, staff and administra-tion for being named to the Carnegie

Foundation’s highest classification for research universities on a budget that was much less than peer institutions.

“This confirms to us that we have been good stewards of the resources available to us,” Cruzado said. “We are proud of the hard work done by our faculty, staff and administration to make this recognition possible.”

Conversely, the committee’s first recommendation was that new funds be generated or reallocated, if the university wanted to maintain its rank on the Carnegie Foundation’s list of the 96 top research institutions.

— Carol Schmidt

MSU wins reaccreditation with praise for productivity and effectiveness

Mark Young and his team recently received a grant from the National Science Foun-dation to identify and categorize viruses from extreme environments around the world.

9Spring 2010 |

Aria Stewart, ’05 MTA, will tell you that

moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career

in film after graduating from Montana

State University is lots of hard work and not

a fairy tale. However, Stewart was recently

involved with the latest Walt Disney animated

fairy tale, “The Princess and the Frog.” Stew-

art worked in the Effects Animation (EFX)

Department on the first hand-drawn feature

animation released by the studio in six years.

“It’s a fantastic film and I’m trying to remem-

ber how many times I’ve seen (“Frog”) since it

has come out,” Stewart said. “I am proud of it.

I think it has been refreshing to have the hand-

drawn (animation) style come back. I grew up

with those films, such as “The Little Mermaid”

and “Aladdin,” so it’s nice to see the return of

the traditionally animated musical.”

Stewart said she heard about the job with

Disney Animation two years ago after a fellow

MTA graduate e-mailed the MSU community

in Los Angeles that Disney was interviewing

for production assistants. Stewart said she was

applying for several film-related jobs at the

time and had a current resume, so she sent

one in. After a hiring process that took several

weeks, she was hired and shortly after was as-

signed to “The Princess and the Frog.”

“When I was in school (at MSU), we visited

Scott Seiffert, ’84 MTA, who was working for

Disney Animation at the time. I thought then

that it would be an interesting place to work if

an opportunity ever came up. I wasn’t plan-

ning on working in animation, but I didn’t

want to pass up the opportunity to work at

Disney.”Stewart works at the Disney Animation Stu-

dios in Burbank. She worked with a team of

30 Effects Animators for 16 months, helping

keep the EFX Department on track.

Stewart said that after “The Princess and the

Frog” wrapped up in August, she was assigned

to another animated Disney feature. This one

is computer animated rather than hand-drawn.

“We go from project to project,” she said.

“We will work with a crew for a year or two

and then move on to the next film.”

One constant in Stewart’s life is that she and

partner, Ryan Stumpe, ’03 MTA, continue to

host periodical wine parties at their home in

Los Feliz for MSU graduates who are now in

Los Angeles.“The nice thing is there’s still a huge Mon-

tana group here,” Stewart said. “They bring

other people as well. People come who have

been here for awhile, and there are a handful

of recent graduates who get in touch with us

and we make sure they’re always invited. (The

parties) are a good opportunity to connect

with everyone.” She said about 80 people

attended the most recent gathering.

In fact, Stewart said she and Stumpe

moved in September, and they made

sure that their new house was equipped

with plenty of entertaining space for

the parties.“If we stopped having the parties,

there would be a lot of disappointed

people, I think,” she said. The gather-

ings continue to be a great source of

networking for the Montana com-

munity in Los Angeles.

“We’re happy to host the wine

parties and, with everyone’s busy

schedules, it’s great to find ways

to get the MTA alumni together.

“One of the great things about

being in L.A. is there is so much more

opportunity here for work in the film

industry. The competition is steep, but

I’m proud to be part of the MTA com-

munity, whose attitudes are positive and

work ethics are strong.”

LA Story: Hard work and

networking bring success to film grad

BY C A ROL S C H M I D T

10Collegian |

Spring 2010 | 11

The alumni were on staff for Polar Bears Interna-tional (PBI), a nonprofit dedi-cated to polar bear conservation.

BJ Kirschoffer, ’00 FTV, and KC Lewis, ’09 Engl, were employees, while John Shier, ’05 MFA, was a volunteer. Over the course of about 10 weeks, the team took photos, wrote articles and shot video, all of which are distrib-uted via the Web and other avenues.

Kirschoffer said PBI advocates for the conservation of polar bears and their habitat. Recent climate changes have adversely affected the ice fields where polar bears live and hunt, and PBI’s goal, he said, is to capture natural footage of polar bears in the Hudson Bay area and help audiences connect with the bears and better understand their situation.

Kirschoffer said PBI has worked with many major news agencies interested in covering polar bears, but that the organization has more recently shifted gears.

“(The media) often have some sort of agenda in mind, or some story in mind. We help them get up here and we help them do a story, and then our message ends up on the cutting room floor. So that’s why we started moving toward producing this stuff ourselves and putting it out on the Web. It’s a pretty new and exciting angle,” he said.

The team uses Web-based tools like You-Tube and Facebook to share their work, as well as posting videos and updates on the PBI Web site (polarbearsinternational.org).

“Social media is a great way to get out there,” said Lewis. “We’ve been using the Web as a tool. It’s a great way to establish ourselves.” PBI currently has about 7,000 fans on Face-book and 1,500 followers on Twitter.

The group also relies heavily on videoconfer-encing and Webcasting technologies, interact-ing with classrooms, zoos and museums as far away as Australia and as close as Winnipeg. But simply establishing an Internet connection is not to be taken for granted, as the team is encamped off the grid—on the ice about 40 miles north of Churchill, Manitoba.

continued

MSU alumni capture polar bears…on filmBY S U Z I TAY L O R

A trio of Montana State University

alumni spent their fall on the frozen

Arctic tundra, immersing themselves

in the lives of polar bears and

documenting the animals’ habits and

habitat through film and photography.

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Collegian | 12

“Everywhere you look, it’s white” said Kirschoffer. “It’s like being on Mars,” added Lewis.

The team lives and works in a Tundra Buggy, a high-clearance, all-terrain vehicle that travels across the snow at about 3 m.p.h. and keeps tourists, scientists and the crew off the ground and away from the bears, who come quite close and can be aggressive. The team eats, sleeps and showers in an at-tached Tundra Buggy lodge.

“It’s pretty dangerous to be walking around on the ground,” said Kirschoffer. Instead, the team films out the windows, off the back deck and via an external camera that is controlled by a joystick from inside the buggy.

“Last week a very curious bear came up and bit the camera,” said Kirschoffer.

Kirschoffer said he starts each day with a quick breakfast and a mechanical check of the Tundra Buggy followed by a run-through of the buggy’s communications technologies. The scientists arrive soon

after, and the buggy heads out across the ice. Kirschoffer says they often spot bears just outside the windows within a 5- or 10-min-ute drive.

“We then spend the day connecting to schools, zoos and organizations via the technology on Buggy One to help educate on the plight of the polar bear and its Arctic habitat,” he said. “Every waking hour is filled to the brim.”

In mid-December, just before finals, the three alumni connected via videoconference to the MSU campus, speaking with and

answering questions from students in MSU’s natural history film-making program.

Nadeen Baldridge, who manages vid-eoconferencing for Extended University’s Burns Technology Center, said she has hooked up with sites all over the world, but never to a vehicle on the Arctic ice, 40 miles from civilization.

Baldridge routinely tests her connections prior to a videoconference and was surprised to see—just during the 10-minute test—a polar bear walk across the ice and come right up to the camera.

“I was joking with BJ while we were doing the test and asked if there was any chance I might see a bear,” said Baldridge. “He said, ‘Definitely!’ and turned the camera around. There was a bear right there!”

Kirschoffer said the PBI team is accus-tomed to being on camera but that their audiences are usually kids who want to know whether you can pet the bears instead of college students interested in shooting angles and editing techniques.

During the course of the one-hour meeting, the MSU alumni showed the film students live and recorded footage of bears and answered questions about the complexi-ties of filming in the Arctic.

“It was great to get back in touch with MSU and reconnect with the program that helped shape my passion for the natural world,” Kirschoffer said.

Shier, an award-winning wildlife cinema-tographer who used to teach at MSU, said the temperatures near Churchill can drop to 40 below, but that the fall of 2009 had been relatively warm, with temps in the 20s and 30s. Stiff wind is always a looming fac-tor for filmmakers, he added, and the cold definitely impacts the equipment. Batteries drain quickly, and cameras are left on the back deck in between shoots rather than risk condensation as they move between outdoor and indoor climates.

For safety, the crew must always film from the buggy and never be on the ground.

Shier is owner of 45 North Films, a docu-mentary film production company based in Livingston, Mont., and has worked across the globe, from Peru to Mongolia. He said he came to the Arctic for the rare opportunity to study a unique and threatened ecosystem.

“There’s no place else in the world where you can get access to this many bears,” he said.

Shier added that, as a natural-history filmmaker, he strives not just to shoot film but to help people connect with animals. Shier said people who can observe animals in the wild often come away with a pro-found understanding and interest in their welfare, but that the personal experience is not always possible.

“Film is a medium where, if you do it prop-erly and you do a good job, you can duplicate that experience to some extent,” said Shier.

“Obviously we can’t bring everyone up here to sit for a day, but (we try to) make them just connect with the bears a bit and have that message hit home that small changes can make a big difference to these guys.”

“I was joking with BJ while we were doing the test and asked if there was any chance I might see a bear,” said Baldridge. “He said, ‘Definitely!’ and turned the camera around. There was a bear right there!”

Above center: KC Lewis, MSU alumna, and staff member of Polar Bears International

Left: MSU alumni BJ Kirschoffer works to spread the word about polar bears and their habitat and was featured in a video segment on polar bears that aired on Feb. 15 during NBC’s coverage of the Olympic Winter Games. (Photos courtesy of BJ Kirschoffer)

Spring 2010 | 13

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Submit photos electronically to: Julie Kipfer jkipfer@montana.edu. Include the photographer’s name, address, and phone number along with the location of the image.

Show us your Bobcat Spirit. MSU announces the Spring 2010 photo contest. We are looking for images of alumni and friends wearing Montana State University and Bobcat gear. Send us photos of your family and friends in Bobcat gear on vacation, at home, at work, or at play.

Categories include:

•Most Exotic Locale—How far did your Bobcat gear travel?

•Bobcats at Work—Display your pride where you work or volunteer.

•Most Creative—Judges’ discretion.

One winner in each category will receive a $100 gift certificate to the MSU Bookstore. Prizes will be awarded April 30.

Deadline for entries is April 15th and prizes will be awarded April 30. Select entries will be posted on the www.montana.edu/bobcatspirit Web site or in the Collegian.

Bobcat Spirit Photo ContestSpring 2010

Collegian | 14

W hen he was a student at Montana State University, G. Dennis Drake, ’76 FTV, en-

rolled in a sign language class, thinking an “easy” course would be a relief in the midst of an unusually challenging academic load. To his surprise, Drake found that he loved sign language, and his coaster class has actually shaped his life in surprising ways.

Drake is the founder of the Interna-tional Deaf Education Association, a nonprofit foundation that is commit-ted to educating deaf children in the Philippines. In the 28 years since the foundation was established, Drake estimates that his organization has educated between 1,000 and 1,200 deaf kids.

Drake admits it’s an unlikely path for someone who was born and raised in Bill-ings, Mont., but he says he wouldn’t want to change it.

Drake’s grandfather homesteaded south of Billings, and his dad, Vernon Drake, ’48 Arch, owned an architectural firm there. In fact, Dennis Drake said his father even de-signed some buildings on the MSU campus in Bozeman. With such deep Montana and

MSU connections, Drake said it was an easy decision to enroll in the university.

And, Drake’s time at the university helped steer the course of his life. Several weeks after enrolling in the sign language class, Drake joined the Theater of Silence, an internationally recognized program directed by Jack Olson, former faculty member from Speech and Communications. Through the program, a small group of MSU students and performers toured deaf schools across the West, presenting entertaining programs for both hearing and deaf audiences.

Even though he enjoyed his sign language class and his work with the Theater of Silence, Drake was still committed to other pur-suits. Even before he graduated from MSU, he had started work-ing as a graphic designer—a career that spanned just under a decade.

But Drake didn’t love his job. After nine years, he found he was making payments on a couple of cars in the garage and had a 30-year mortgage, a failed marriage and deep-seated disillusionment.

“I decided I was just burned out on the whole thing,” Drake said. “The whole concept of the American dream just kind of left me feeling flat.”

He decided to make a complete life switch and, at the age of 30, applied to join the Peace Corps. When it was time to be placed, Drake said he was given a choice between Africa, the Caribbean or the Philip-pines.

“I thought the Philippines was about the farthest away from my comfort zone as I could get, so I chose that,” Drake said.

SILENTPARTNERBY A N N E PE T T I N G E R C A N T R E L L

“I THOUGHT THE PHILIPPINES WAS ABOUT THE FARTHEST AWAY FROM MY COMFORT ZONE AS I COULD GET, SO I CHOSE THAT.” — DE N N IS DR A K E

G. Dennis Drake with students

Spring 2010 | 15

At the time, the Philippines had a population of about 60 million people and the capital city of Manila, where he did much of his Peace Corps training, was home to about 12 million people. Once he arrived for training, it seemed to Drake that living in a place of that size might be a more difficult adjust-ment than he had originally thought.

“It was tough for me, being from Montana,” Drake said. “I thought I might be getting more than I signed up for.”

So, for his permanent placement, Drake asked Peace Corps officials to send him to a smaller site. He landed on Bohol, an island province of the Philippines that, at the time, was home to about 900,000 people.

Drake and another Peace Corps volunteer worked on the island in a classroom with seven deaf teenagers. Drake thought that much more could be done.

“I estimated that there were probably about 400 kids on the island at the time who were deaf,” Drake said. “I saw that there was a huge need.”

Drake spent two years with the Peace Corps, growing the program for the deaf, and then stayed in Bohol for another year on his own after that. At the end of his third year on Bohol, Drake decided to head back to the U.S., and he and his new Filipina bride, Marilou, moved to California.

But the American dream hadn’t changed much, Drake said. After a few months in California, Drake realized he really missed the work he had been committed to in the Philippines. So, about a year after leaving Bohol, Drake established the International Deaf Education Association, or IDEA, a Christian-based organization.

That was in 1985. In the years since then, the foundation has grown to include six different schools, five of which are in Bohol and one that is in Leyte, a neighboring island. Five of the schools are incorporated in elementary school campuses connected with the

government. Each school has three or four classrooms for deaf kids. In every elementary school, IDEA also built and operates dormitories where the impoverished deaf children stay for free. The latest addition to IDEA’s schools is a private deaf high school. Known as Bohol Deaf Academy, it is run entirely by Drake’s foundation. This year, a total of 339 deaf children are living in the IDEA dormitories and attending IDEA-supported special education classes.

In addition to the schools to which the foundation is committed, IDEA runs several different businesses and employs a number of the schools’ graduates at them.

“We realized that companies are very reluctant to hire the deaf,” Drake said.

“There wasn’t anything for deaf people to do there, and work is important to help them become self-sufficient and independent.”

IDEA’s businesses include several restaurants, a hotel, a bed and breakfast, and a fly-tying business, which pro-duces flies for Yellowstone Fly Goods, a wholesaler in Billings. Drake estimates that more than 120 deaf adults are em-ployed through these IDEA businesses.

Now, Drake and Marilou live in the Philippines full-time except for about six to eight weeks per year, when they visit Drake’s hometown of Billings. Their two grown sons, Aaron and Andrew, maintain strong ties to the Philippines. Several occasions have prompted Drake and his wife to be in the U.S. for longer periods of time, but the Philippines are where they intend to stay long-term.

“I’ve pretty much committed the rest of my life to that place,” said Drake, who added that he has started looking for his successor to run the foundation.

“I couldn’t get it out of my system. This is much more satisfying than chasing the dollar. Investing in the lives of the impoverished and neglected deaf chil-dren in the Philippines is much more fulfilling for me.”

To learn more about Drake’s work, visit IDEA’s Web site at www.ideadeaf.org.

Top: Bohol Deaf Academy, one of the six schools established in the Philipines, serving more than three hundred deaf students.

Center left: Famous Tarsier primate from Bohol (Photos courtesy of G. Dennis Drake)

16Collegian |

Clockwise from top: Alumni Plaza and “Spirit” bronze dedication, Bobcat Tour, fabrication, and sculptor Bob Stayton, ’51

17Spring 2010 |

A PLACE FOR SPIRITW hat began as a simple idea to place a bronze

Bobcat on campus became what we now proudly call the Alumni Plaza. The centerpiece, “Spirit,”

stands elegantly with Montana Hall in the backdrop, looking north to the Bridger Mountains and the “M.” Surrounding Spirit is the beautifully landscaped plaza, carefully designed and constructed to be a place of gathering.

The site has long been a place where people gather. Be-fore MSU, and even before the settlers, the site of the Alumni Plaza was a passage to hunting grounds for Crow Indians. Bozeman historian John Russell, ’78 Hist, affirmed that the location is a place where “many have come together.” To honor this long history, the site was blessed by David Yarlott, ’94 Bus, ’96 M Bus, ’99 EdD, a Crow Elder, who spoke in his native language of the many Indians who passed through this valley during the dedication ceremony.

Beneath the monument, artifacts that represent MSU’s rich history and traditions have been buried. The items include: a Circle of Gold pin, worn by those who graduated more than 50 years ago; a Go Cats button, symbolizing our campus spirit and remembering a favorite Bobcat, Torlief Aashiem, ’37 LRS, ’54 M Agron, ’96 HonDoc; a whitewashed rock from the “M” on Mount Baldy; a piece of the goal post from the 2003 Bobcat victory over the Grizzlies; a brick from the Rockin’ R Bar, destroyed in the 2009 downtown Boze-man explosion; and a diploma representing the educational journey at Montana State.

To reflect MSU’s pride around the state, members of the Alumni Association Board of Directors placed stones from their hometowns in the plaza’s rock bed during the dedica-tion ceremony. Montana farms and ranches, gardens, yards, roads and neighborhoods are all represented by these special rocks.

Maybe sometime you’ll want to bring a stone from your home area to place at the Plaza.

Top: Alumni Plaza aerial view, students prior to homecoming game, the first Undie Run, President Waded Cruzado welcoming Spirit, and coming over the border from the Canadian foundry to his new home on the MSU campus.

18Collegian |

Waller becomes

first MSU

Mike Mansfield

Fellow

Spring 2010 | 19

One day federal buildings may be friend-lier to aging populations because of Tony Waller, ’81 Art, and his recently completed Mike Mansfield Fellowship.

Waller was just the fourth Montanan, and the first Montana State University graduate, to complete the two-year fellowship that honors the late senior senator from Mon-tana. Open to government employees, the fellowship provides for training in Japanese language and culture as well as an all-ex-pense-paid study and internship opportunity in Japan. Waller completed his fellowship in September, studying the Japanese approach to universal design as well as sustainable energy techniques in Japanese government buildings.

“The experience was incredible,” Waller said of the inspiring mid-career program. “It was like being all at once at the finest educa-tional institutions from around the world.”

There was circularity with his recent Mansfield Fellowship and a fellowship he won in his senior year at MSU, Waller said. Twenty-eight years ago, Waller won an internship with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He said Kennedy and Mansfield were also close friends and colleagues.

Waller likened the Mansfield Fellowship to a Fulbright Fellowship, which provides grants for graduate students, scholars and professionals to study internationally. Sen. J. William Fulbright, for whom the Fulbright is named, was also a contemporary of Man-sfield’s. The U.S. Congress created the Mans-field Fellowship in 1994 as a first-of-its-kind government-to-government exchange for the U.S. and Japan..

Waller said he applied for the fellowship because it fit nicely with his goal of a study experience in another country.

“I had a five-stage plan for my life, and the only thing left was an overseas experience,” Waller said.

The experience also fit into Waller’s pro-fessional development. A tenant representa-tive in the Office of the Chief Architect in the General Services Administration, Waller recommends design elements for federal buildings, and he knew that the Japanese were doing innovative design in their public buildings accommodating aging populations as well as improving energy efficiency.

The first 10 months of the fellowship, Waller studied at the George Shultz Foreign Service Institute in Arlington, Va., which is near his current home. He was then sent to language training in Kanazawa, Japan.

“My host mother was a noted Japanese chef and my host father a noted kimono art-ist, the Asano family,” Waller said.

Waller then spent a year based in Tokyo at the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastruc-ture and Transport’s Government Build-ings Department, which Waller said is very similar to the U.S. Government Services Ad-ministration’s Public Building Service. From there he traveled throughout the country studying historic preservation, construction, seismic retrofit and eco-design as well as universal design.

Waller said that with the oldest popula-tion in the world, Japan is in front of design for the disabled and elderly. In particular, he admired Japanese sensitivity to the aging eye as well as handrail and cane holder design and office space lighting.

“America is just coming to grips that we will have the oldest population on the planet by the 2040s,” said Waller, who said

he hopes to incorporate some Japanese advances in new government buildings in America. “Government design requires extreme creativity.

“And, because Japan is an island nation that imports 95 percent of its oil, they have worked hard to be on the tip of energy in-novation,” he said.

“We are going to be using a lot of these ideas and design concepts,” Waller said.

“There are a lot of things we can learn from (the Japanese).”

In addition to his new passion for all things Japanese, Waller is also an avid col-lector of contemporary Montana art. He and his partner have accumulated what is thought to be one of the best independent collections of contemporary Montana art-ists. The collection is displayed in their Falls Church, Va., home.

While his work is based in the nation’s capital, Waller frequently returns to his home state and his alma mater. Waller said he remains appreciative of the university because it exposed him to the world beyond his Hi-Line hometown. Waller grew up in Homestead, Mont., attended school in Wolf Point, and had not visualized a career much beyond the area until he came to Bozeman.

“I had no professional prospects until (MSU) opened my eyes,” Waller said, credit-ing his MSU art professors with helping him develop successful habits.

“The university gave me so much, and that led to so many opportunities to see the rest of the world.”

“America is just coming to grips

that we will have the oldest

population on the planet by

the 2040s,” said Waller, who

said he hopes to incorporate

some Japanese advances in

new government buildings in

America. “Government design

requires extreme creativity.”

BY C A RO L S C H M I D T

Collegian | 20

Some people love dinosaurs so much that they drive across the United States to dig for fossils in Montana.

Nate Carroll had it much easier. Grow-ing up 10 miles south of Ekalaka, Mont., the Montana State University junior found dinosaur bones just by looking around the family ranch while checking on 500 head of Angus cattle. If he wanted to meet world-fa-mous paleontologists, he could drop by their tents with cold sodas or invite them over for a steak dinner.

Just staying in southeast Montana, Car-roll met paleontologists from MSU, the Smithsonian Institution, the Natural His-tory Museum of Los Angeles County, the University of Manchester, England, the Burpee Museum of Natural History and elsewhere.

“I have been doing field seasons since I was 15 or 16,” Carroll said recently. “Before that, we would walk around the pasture and look for arrowheads and dinosaur bones.”

Early exposure to fossils—and the oppor-tunity to conduct research at Carter County High School—set him on his course, Carroll said.

Now majoring in paleontology, Carroll said his research into Tyrannosaurus rex teeth took him to national and international com-petitions as a high school student and a Soci-ety of Vertebrate Paleontology conference as an MSU student. For the past two summers, Carroll has worked on Jack Horner’s field crew in the Hell Creek Formation around Jordan, Mont. Horner is the Regent’s Profes-sor of Paleontology at MSU’s Museum of the Rockies. For three years before that, Car-roll worked on Luis Chiappe’s field crew in the Hell Creek Formation around Ekalaka, Mont. Chiappe is director of the Dinosaur Institute at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

“I was lucky enough to grow up in Eastern Montana where there are dinosaurs,” Carroll said. “It snowballed from there.”

Carroll, like his sister at the University of Montana, is a presidential scholar. A fourth generation Bobcat, he is in the Univer-sity Honors Program. He is president of the MSU chapter of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and president of MSU’s Student Alumni Association. He is a cartoonist and humor columnist for the Exponent. In his spare time, when conditions

are right, he makes snow sculptures. One of his latest showed a bobcat overpowering a grizzly.

“I enjoy art in general,” Carroll said. It’s really a good escape.”

Edis Kittrell, an adjunct instructor in English, said she enjoyed co-teaching a freshmen honors seminar with Carroll in the fall. Kittrell was the Faculty Fellow. Carroll was the Student Fellow.

“Nate is just a fantastic student,” Kittrell said. “He’s the ideal person to work with.”

Growing up on a ranch seemed to benefit him in many ways, she added.

“He clearly knows how to work hard and independently,” Kittrell said. “He makes things happen, whether he has the resources or not. He doesn’t have a problem with long hours.”

After graduating from MSU, Carroll said he expects to go to graduate school and work as a research scientist. Eventually, he may return to Ekalaka. The town already has a great museum, he said, and he thinks “it would be kind of cool” to have the museum become a research station, too.

M S U S T U D E N T P R O F I L E

Early fossil hunting on family ranch set Nate Carroll’s career course

BY E V E LY N B O S W E L L

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Nate, with his bison snow sculpture in the Honors Quad.

Spring 2010 | 21

M S U A L U M N I P R O F I L E

Denise Juneau honored as Educator of the YearBY A N N E PE T T I N G E R C A N T R E L L

T he National Indian Education As-sociation has named Montana State University alumna and Montana Su-

perintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau, ’93 Engl, Educator of the Year for 2009. Juneau was honored for the award at an NIEA banquet last fall.

“To be honored by my peers across the country was a great privilege,” Juneau said.

“I am humbled by it.”Juneau was elected to the post of Mon-

tana’s Superintendent of Public Instruction and took office in January 2009. She previ-ously served as a division administrator at the Office of Public Instruction, overseeing the Indian Education for All program and working on student achievement issues.

Juneau is the first American Indian to serve in a statewide executive level office in Montana.

Her election to the position, Juneau said, proves that “becoming educated opens so many doors, no matter who you are, or what your background and geographic location are. Education can provide you with op-portunity.”

Juneau is a member of the Mandan and Hidatsa Tribes. She grew up in Montana on the Blackfeet Reservation and graduated from Browning High School, where both of her parents were educators. She earned a master’s degree in education from the Har-vard Graduate School of Education and a law degree from the University of Montana.

Doing her undergraduate work at Mon-tana State started her well on the path to her career, Juneau said.

“I had great professors at MSU who were very supportive,” she said. “MSU gave me a really good background. I have fond memo-ries of my time there.”

After earning her English and education degrees, Juneau taught high school English, both in New Town, N.D, and Browning. Her law career includes clerkships for Mon-tana Supreme Court Justices Jim Regnier and Brian Morris and working for a national law firm that specialized in federal Indian law.

Law and education are closely inter-twined, Juneau said, and she draws on her background in both in her current position.

School funding is a top priority in Ju-neau’s office, she said.

“We’re always concerned that we’ll have enough money to be able to operate and provide the quality education for Montana’s schoolchildren,” Juneau said. “We want to make sure students are graduating and get-ting a quality education.”

Juneau “takes the role as chief educa-tor beyond its traditional place, into the Montana community at-large, into the higher education community, into the tribal colleges and their communities…. She is a scholar and an activist who has devoted her entire career to our most precious tribal members, our children, and to the children of Montana,” wrote Janine Pease, ’70 Soc, ’87 M Educ, ’94 PhD, another NIEA Educa-tor of the Year and a member of the Mon-tana Board of Regents, in a letter supporting Juneau’s nomination for the award.

Since 1977, NIEA has recognized Native leaders who have changed and improved the lives of schoolchildren and impacted the dialog concerning Native education issues, both locally and nationally.

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Collegian | 22

Just as Cloe Medina Erickson, ’00 M Arch,, has always known that it was her destiny to work in Morocco, Kris Erickson, ’97 Photo, has

known that he was made to climb moun-tains. The two have found a way to combine their passions by helping villagers restore an ancient building located in a remote and mountainous area of Morocco.

Cloe and Kris Erickson are the principals of Erickson Creative Group, a community development organization based in Livings-ton, Mont. Erickson Creative is organizing efforts to renovate a very large 400-year-old Moroccan fortified granary, or igherm, into a library and community center for a cluster of five Berber villages.

Last year six MSU architecture students traveled to Morocco to work with Cloe on the renovation of the igherm in Zawiya Ahansal, a remote area of Morocco’s central High Atlas Mountains. This year, she hopes to take 10 students to help villagers com-plete the project.

The Ericksons first saw the igherm in 2003 while on their honeymoon in Moroc-

co. The two had met while students at MSU, she an architecture student from Bigfork, Mont., and he a photography student from Havre, Mont. They didn’t start dating until after both had graduated. By then Kris had already made a name for himself as a world-class ski-mountaineer and alpinist and photographer, and Cloe had a successful business.

For both, coming to MSU was natural.Kris had lived in Bozeman for a time

growing up while his mother, Joanne Erick-son, ’89 EdD, got a doctorate in education at MSU. She is currently interim head of the MSU Department of Education and

program leader of the MSU Ed Leadership Graduate Program.

“I was always an athlete,” he said.“I played sports and climbed and skied all my life.”

He started out as a landscape design major, but “I was always the one taking pho-tographs, so photography was a natural fit.” While in college he became acquainted with Gordon Wiltsie, an adventure photographer based in Bozeman, as well as the late Alex Lowe, ’88 Math, the MSU graduate who was considered one of the finest climbers of his time.

“Having a guy like Alex Lowe call you by name when you are a 19-year-old climber was a little like having Michael Jordan know your name when you are a playground bas-ketball player,” Kris said. The two became colleagues and Erickson was on the expedi-tion in Tibet where Lowe was killed by an avalanche in 1999.

Erickson said at the time he started there weren’t a lot of alpinists who were also photographers, so he served a niche. Since then, he has criss-crossed the globe many times, compiling an enviable list of first

Living the highlife MSU grads use talents to help develop

community in mountainous Morocco

“I always knew Morocco was in my destiny. My parents fell in love there, and my middle name, Medina, is a tribute to the country.”—Cloe Erickson

B Y C A R O L S C H M I D T

Local craftsmen employ traditional rammed earth techniques to renovate a 400-year-old igherm, or Moroccan fortified granary. When complete, the igherm will house a library, computer room and community center that will serve a cluster of five villages and 10,000 people in Morocco's remote Central High Atlas region of Zawiya Ahansal.

Spring 2010 | 23

ascents that can be found on his Web site: www.kristoffererickson.com, as well as an impressive portfolio of expedition-based photography. Kris is a sponsored athlete for The North Face, and his photographs are now a staple in adventure magazines includ-ing National Geographic Adventure, Climbing, Powder and Skiing, among others. Known in mountaineering circles as “the invisible man” because he is usually behind the camera during noted alpine adventures, he is now considered one of the world’s finest climbers and alpinists.

Cloe has also had an adventure develop-ing her chosen career as an architectural preservationist. She came to MSU knowing she wanted to be an architect. However, within two years of working for an architec-ture firm in Bozeman following graduation, Cloe decided she “didn’t want to spend the rest of my life designing trophy homes.” She quit and built up a successful business mak-ing architectural models for area firms. Her new business provided her enough flexibility for her to return to MSU to take classes

in Arabic at the university’s prize-winning Arabic language program.

“I wanted to do something…larger,” she said. “And, I always knew Morocco was in my destiny. My parents fell in love there, and my middle name, Medina, is a tribute to the country.”

She traveled to the Middle East periodi-cally to study Arabic in Morocco, Egypt and Yemen and is now nearly fluent in Mod-ern Standard Arabic. When she and Kris decided to marry, the mountains of Mo-rocco seemed a natural destination for their honeymoon. Before departing they learned about Zawiya Ahansal and the phenomenal climbing in the area from a French climber who had visited the region several times.

“We just fell in love with it,” Cloe recalls. “The climbing was amazing, and we were the first Americans to ever climb there.” It was on that visit that they first saw the igherm, which looks nothing like Montana granaries.

“It’s just such a great building,” Kris said. “It’s like the castle for the area.”

Cloe said the 300-400-year-old fortified granary is located in what is considered a

holy village in Morocco. Founded centuries ago by a Muslim saint, the village is on a historic pilgrimage route between Marrakesh and Timbuktu and populated by descen-dents of the saint. Caravans pass near the remote Berber villages in the area, which are poor and agrarian based.

The Ericksons couldn’t get the people, the place or the building out of their minds. Four years ago, from her base in Livingston, Cloe began organizing the Igherm Resto-ration and Library Project, www.igherm.wordpress.com, working with the people in the villages to develop a project of most benefit to them.

“We decided that we were going to keep going to this place, we needed to do more than just enjoy the natural surroundings there,” she said.“Plus, the building had this amazing architecture, and that’s my number one passion.”

In 2006 Kris convinced The North Face, which supports service projects in moun-tainous areas, to fund a climbing/social service expedition to the area. Climbers Conrad Anker (a close friend of Kris’ who

PHOTOS BY KRISTOFFER ERICKSON

Kristoffer Erickson rests at a belay during the first ascent of “La Bas,” a 700-meter route in the Taghia Cirque. “La Bas” was the first American route pioneered in the region.

Below left: Cloe Erickson(right) and The North Face athlete Heidi Wirtz(left) enjoy a laugh with local children in the village of Taghia.

Below: Mustapha Jini runs to school with fellow classmates. The Moroccan government only provides a sixth grade education in remote regions such as Zawiya Ahansal.

Collegian | 24

now lives in Bozeman), Heidi Wirtz, Renan Ozturk and Kevin Thaw and Erickson made a first ascent in the Taghia Cirque of Morocco, which is near the igherm, then helped build trails for the herders and helped rebuild the village’s school roof. “La Bas: Climbing and Philanthropy in the Enchanted Taghia Cirque, Morocco,” a film by The North Face and Rush HD, is a documentary of that trip. The North Face has hosted benefit showings of the film to fund scholarships for students who wish to accompany the Ericksons.

Last summer Bill Rea, an MSU architec-ture professor, and six MSU students, and another from Colorado State, worked with Erickson and the villagers on the renova-tion and lived with local families. Erickson and Rea hope to take another 10 students to work on the project this summer. “To go to another country and be a part of a real project and work with locals on an innova-tive concept is something I am really proud to offer to students,” Cloe said.

“Working with Cloe has been a pure joy for me,” Rea said. “As a faculty member, she is the type of alum that inspires. She is able to blend her passions into a career while having a positive impact on a community. She is also an eternal optimist, always ready with ‘It’s going to be good’ and you know what she’s always been right.”

Cloe hopes that the renovation of the rammed-earth building will largely be com-plete this year. Erickson is now helping the community to outfit the library with books

and computers and training the villagers to operate them. The library, which Erickson estimates will be used by about 10,000 Berbers, will be a source of money for the community and for future maintenance of the igherm as travelers will pay a small fee to use the computers and Internet.

“You don’t want to go and just do some-thing for a community,” Erickson said. “It’s important that it becomes their responsibil-ity and the people there really have owner-ship of the project.”

Recently, there has been another Erickson on the Moroccan project. Year-old Noor, whose name reflects her parents’ love for Morocco, has accompanied Cloe to work on the igherm. “The people there are so family oriented that they just love having Noor there,” Cloe said.

“She is the door that opens for us when we are there,” Kris adds.

Both Ericksons say it is definitely a chal-lenge to schedule time together with two dynamic, globally based careers. But they are careers they both feel fortunate to have developed.

“The work is extremely rewarding,” she said. “You feel like you are living life and just not going through the motions.”

To learn more about the Ericksons and the work of the Erickson Creative Group, see: www.ericksoncreativegroup.com

“To go to another country and be a part of

a real project and work with locals on an

innovative concept is something I am really

proud to offer to students,” —Cloe Erickson

PHO

TO B

Y KELLY G

ORH

AM

The Ericksons, Kris, Cloe and daughter Noor at home in Livingston.

The igherm stands as a sentry on the landscape in the village of Amzrai and reflects the region's history, traditions and way of life.

Below: A young woman in the village of Taghia walks home after a day of working in the fields.

Spring 2010 | 25

M ontana State University students will have more opportunities in years to come thanks to the gen-

erosity of a group of donors, whose estate gifts totaling more than $1 million in direct student support were announced in the span of just a few weeks last fall.

The largest of the estate gifts came from Sami Wafa Dajani, ’32 Chem, ’33 M Chem, ’82 HonDoc

“I traveled (to almost) every country of the Western World and met very nice people, but none were so charming and loving…as the people of Bozeman and MSU,” Dajani wrote in a 1999 letter to MSU Alumni Asso-ciation Executive Director Jaynee Groseth, ’73, ’91

“MSU and the (citi-zens) of Bozeman were very kind to me,” he told Groseth in the same letter.

“It was through their help I was able to complete my university education.”

Dajani was a native of Palestine and came to Montana State to study chemistry. After graduat-ing, his career included positions with the United Nations and with the governments of Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Kuwait.

His love for his alma mater was strong and continued for years after he graduated. He died in 2006, and last fall the Alumni Association and MSU Foundation learned that Dajani had left a significant portion of his estate for MSU student scholarships and support.

In the span of about a month last fall, three other large estate gifts in addition to Dajani’s were announced. A bequest from Lorraine (Rene) Jones Lock, ’45 Ag, ’54 M Ag, created a scholarship endowment to sup-port students in the College of Agriculture.

Lock passed away in 2009. Mark Cook, ’28 Eng, died in 1974, and his estate will sup-port student research, thanks to a plan put in place in 1971. And, John Magaret, who passed away in 2008 and is not an MSU alumnus, provided scholarships for students in the Department of Mathematical Science.

While it is not unusual for the university to benefit from a number of estate gifts each year, it is uncommon for four estate gifts totaling more than $1 million to be revealed in just a few weeks’ time.

“These four gifts are representative of the commitment both alumni and non-alumni have to MSU—its students, its faculty and its future,” said Melanie Bury Schell, ’95 Sp-

Com, MSU Foundation assistant vice presi-dent for gift planning and counsel.

“On average, about 10 estate gifts are distributed to the Foundation each year, and we learn from another 10 to 15 people that they have included MSU in their plans,” Schell continued. “The amounts vary from one gift to the next, but what is most im-portant is the impact the gift has on campus. Our students and the university as a whole will benefit from the generosity of these individuals for generations to come.

“An estate gift really carries on the legacy of the individual who has given it, and it serves as an ongoing example of that person’s

deep commitment to MSU,” Schell said. “For someone to include MSU as a ‘loved one’ in his or her estate plan is beyond heartwarming—it’s inspir-ing.”

Groseth agrees. She said she and her husband, Rolf, feel so strongly about the importance of giving back to the place that has helped shape them that they have made

provisions to leave a portion of their estate to MSU, too.

“We’re committed to making sure an individual’s wishes are carried out, so it’s important that people let us know their plans,” Schell said. “Also, knowing gives us the opportunity to thank those people for their commitment and their loyalty.”

People who have supported or are considering supporting Montana State University or any of its departments, col-leges or other campus entities are invited to contact Schell in the MSU Foundation’s Office of Gift Planning at 406-994-2053 or 800-457-1696.

Estate gifts reflect deep commitment to MSU

BY A N N E PE T T I N G E R C A N T R E L L

“I traveled (to almost) every

country of the Western World

and met very nice people,

but none were so charming

and loving…as the people of

Bozeman and MSU.”

—Sami Wafa Dajani

Mark CookSami Wafa Dajani Lorraine (Rene) Jones Lock

BY M E LY N DA H A R R I S O N

26Collegian |

Pro ’Cat Bobcat head coach leaves the Tour behind

L E S L I E S PA L D I N G H A S PA S S I O N F O R H E L P I N G O T H E R S E N J O Y T H E G A M E

ontana State Univer-sity head golf coach Leslie Spalding is on par for a winning season this spring. Four of her top play-ers graduated last year, leaving a young, but

promising, team behind.“We have three freshmen and a sopho-

more as our top four players this year,” Spalding said. “It’s definitely an adjustment period, but it is exciting to be such a young team with so much talent.”

Spalding became MSU’s third women’s golf coach in 2007 after an impressive pro-fessional career.

Spalding grew up in Billings, Mont. She was the youngest of three girls and “always bored.” When her father joined the local golf club for business purposes, Spalding tagged along. The golf pro, George Winn, saw she had natural talent and encouraged her to take lessons and practice. She was soon spending a lot of time there.

“I learned to love practicing and playing, but I especially loved winning trophies,” Spalding said.

Spalding played high school golf in Billings. She was the 1986-87 Montana State Class AA High School champion. She went on to win the 1991-92 Montana State Women’s Amateur Championships.

Spalding attended the University of Alabama on a golf scholarship and was the 1990 Neva McCall/Alabama Intercollegiate champion and the 1991 Women’s Southern Intercollegiate (WSIC) champion. While at Alabama, she earned a B.A. in telecommu-nications/film with a minor in marketing.

Spalding turned professional in 1992 and began on the LPGA tour in 1996. Her best career finish was a tie for third at the 2001 ShopRite LPGA Classic, posting a career-low 64 in the final round. In 2002, she posted back-to-back, top-10 finishes with a tie for ninth at the LPGA Corning Classic and a tie for seventh at the Kellogg-Keebler Classic.

“After my 10 years on tour, I was ex-tremely burned out. I searched for a career doing something other than golf. I taught golf for two summers in Billings during this search and found a true passion for help-ing other people enjoy golf,” Spalding said.

“Finally I discovered that my love of golf never went away. I don’t have to play it to love it, because I get more satisfaction out of helping other people improve than anything I’ve ever done.”

Spalding came to MSU at the request of her friend and former MSU head golf coach, Britney Basye. Until this year, Spalding’s team was made up of players recruited by Basye. This year she has her own recruits and her own team.

“I can mold them the way I want to,” Spalding said.

Despite the absence of seniors, Spalding’s 10 players ended the fall season with the lowest round in Bobcat golf history.

“I think we can play even better than that,” said Elise Nelsen, a junior in business marketing from Albuquerque, N.M.

The team’s goals for the year include scoring even lower than in the fall, placing in the top three in the Big Sky Conference rankings and winning the Big Sky Confer-ence Championships.

“If we win Conference we go on to the Re-gionals in Phoenix,” Spalding said. “I really believe this is the team that can do that.”

An indoor practice facility that opened in spring 2009 is helping the team lower their scores. Previously they practiced in the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse during Bozeman’s snowy winters.

“All we had was a mat and a soccer net,” Spalding said.

The new facility located in Bobcat Sta-dium has training aids such as video equip-ment and mirrors, and they can hit at targets on the football field from mats.

“It gets frustrating in the winter when you want to go out and play on grass and you can’t,” said Nelsen. “The new facility helps because we can hit balls and chip.”

When February rolls around the team begins traveling to warmer climes including Arizona and California.

Another goal Spalding emphasizes is teamwork—to be a team, rather than an aggregate of individual players.

“This is the best team I’ve seen in a long time,” said Nelsen. “Right away everybody clicked—we’re like a family—and I’m confi-dent we will play well this year.”

Join us at the MSU Golf Tournament May 21: shotgun start, scramble format, hors’ d’ ouvers and fabulous auction with proceeds benefit-ting the women’s golf team. Register by calling Coach Spalding at 406-697-4500 or e-mail lspalding@msubobcats.com.

M“Finally I discovered that my love of golf never went away. I don’t have to play it to love it, because I get more satisfaction out of helping other people improve than anything I’ve ever done. —Leslie Spalding

Spring 2010 | 27

The 2010 Bobcat golf team

Class Notes

Collegian | 28

Class Notes are compiled by Jennifer Anderson. Alumni Association members will receive priority listing in Class Notes. If you would like to submit information, please submit to her via e-mail to alumni@montana.edu or through the Alumni Web site http://alumni.montana.edu/classnotes/. Or drop a line to the MSU Alumni Association, P.O. Box 172940, Bozeman, MT 59717-2740.

1930s

Bernard “Barney” Myers, ’34 GenStu, ’54 M Sci & Tech, Bill-ings, will be celebrating his 100th birthday this year.

1940s

Thomas Shiplet, ’49 ME, Arvada, Colo., retired from NASA. He and wife, Eleanor (Meyer) Shiplet,

’51 ME, have four children, 12 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

1950s

Leland Cade, ’50 AgEd, Lavina, Mont., retired from Montana Farmer-Stockman in 1987 and has since written 11 local history books about Golden Valley County, Mont., and other areas. Wife, Janet Elliott of Ft. Benton, died of brain cancer in 1998. Sister, Marian (Cade) Sutton, ’50 Bus, resides in Renton, Wash.

Doris (Nye) Swan, ’50 HmEc, lives on a ranch in Highwood, Mont. She currently has four grandchil-dren attending MSU. Another grandchild graduated last year.

Ethel (Hinerman) Maki, ’57 Nurs, and husband, Lloyd, ranch north-east of Cascade. Their son, Ken, is a retired Lieutenant Colonel USAF and is presently a director of Home-land Security in Washington D.C.

Willis Wetstein, ’57 CE, Clancy, Mont., was inducted in to the Mon-

tana Professional Engineers Hall of Fame the beginning of November. He has worked at Morrison-Maierle for his entire professional career of 52 years and counting. Since Mon-tana began enforcing a licensure program for professional engineers in the 1940s, Willis is only the 11th P.E. to be honored in the Hall of Fame.

Esther (Elliott) Finlayson, ’59 Nurs, Conrad, Mont., remembers the “Hello Walk” from Montana Hall down the hill as having been a great part of MSU tradition. It used to be painted with “hello.., hi.., how are you,” cheers and made for wonderful contacts and friendships.

Larry Johns, ’59 IArt, Sumner, Wash., retired from the Boeing Company in 1993.

Karen (Munson) Morgan, ’59 Micro, Portland, Ore., served as a member of a team of clinical laboratory scientists who trav-eled to Beijing and Xian China in November. The team of 16 visited seven medical facilities to exchange information. They also visited Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Great Wall of China and the Terra Cotta Warriors Museum.

1960s

Gayle (Wheat) Gransbery, ’62 Nurs, ’93 M, and husband, Don Gransbery, ’64 AgBus, moved from Lewistown, Mont., to a subdivision near Park City, Mont., in January. They now live between oldest son, D.J., and middle son, Wayne, and family. Everyone in the whole fam-ily, including daughters-in-law, are proud MSU grads.

Ronald Phillips, ’68 Arch, Yakima, Wash., has retired from practicing architecture in Yakima after 40 years. He and wife of 41 years enjoy going to California and Seattle to visit their two sons, their wives and grandchildren.

1970s

William Anceney, ’70 Bus, Lake-wood, Colo. The wine he and his

partner have produced in the Idaho Snake River Appellation is sold out up to the 2009 vintage. Try a taste at Fraser Wines, 1004 La Pointe Street.

Jean (Salvevold) Park, ’70 HmEc, and husband, Gerald Park, ’69 IArt, Anchorage, Alaska, have just celebrated their 41st wedding an-niversary. They are retired educators and spend their time split between Anchorage and Tempe, Ariz.

Mike Frisina, ’72 F&WL, ’74 M, ’04 HD, was recently invested with the designation Most Distinguished Mongolian Conservationist, dur-ing a ceremony at the Ministry of Nature, Environment and Tourism, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. He and wife, Margaret (Miller) Frisina,

’72 Psy, make their home in Butte, Mont.

Wayne Leininger, ’72 RSci, ’74 M, Lewistown, Mont., earned his Ph.D. from Oregon State University in December 1983.

Bobbi (Ponke) Haugen, ’73 Bus, ’97 BuEd M, Billings, Mont., cur-rently teaches business and health occupation courses at MSU-Billings College of Technology.

Mylen Bohle, ’75 AgEc, ’79 Agron, Prineville, Ore., has started his 21st year with Oregon State University. He serves as Central Oregon Area Extension Agronomist.

Dale Alger, ’76 ElEd, works for the Roundup public school system as a librarian in the Roundup Commu-nity Library. The library serves both the public and school system. His wife, Tomi, graduated from Eastern Montana College in 1975. She acts as librarian at Roundup Central Elementary School.

Karen (Antonietti) Buley, ’78 Nurs, Missoula, Mont., works in obstetrics at Community Medical Center. Her recently completed anthology of nurses stories, “Nurses on the Run-Why They Come, Why They Stay,” is available from Dog Ear Publishing. The collection includes essays from 25 nurses, including four MSU alumni. See www.karenbuley.com.

Loren Willis, ’79 Bus, St. Paul, Minn., enjoyed a bike ride on the Cannon Valley Trail, Minn., with his wife in August. He said the trail runs from Red Wing to Cannon Falls, along the former roadbed of the Chicago Great Western railroad. Many of the old mile markers the railroad used are still present.

1980s

Russell Crawford, ’81 Bus, lives in the Netherlands with wife, Lora, and son, Patrick. Russ acts as the partner in charge of the KPMG U.S. Tax Center.

Danny Choriki, ’83 Psy, ’85 M, New York, N.Y., has served as vice president of product support for nearly 2 1/2 years at ADTECH, a subsidiary of AOL. ADTECH uti-lizes the software system that puts advertising into Web pages. He still loves New York City after 25 years.

Gerald Landby, ’84 Hort, East Helena, has been elected to join the National Board of Directors of the Professional Grounds Management Society (PGMS) and was installed as the new Northwest regional director in September 2009.

C L A S S N O T E S

Spring 2010 | 29

Paul Funk II, ’85 Spcm, Harker Heights, Texas, has been promoted to the grade of Brigadier General. He is currently serving as Deputy Commander, Combined Arms Center–Training, U.S. Army Train-ing and Doctrine Command, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

Douglas Davis, ’88 CET, and wife, Deborah (Thompson) Davis, ’85 Nurs, have two sons playing sports at MSU. Leo plays football and Steven plays basketball. Son Mat-thew is 16, Ryan, 11, and Daniel, 8. They make their home in Billings, Mont.

Bruce Larsen, ’89 Econ, serves as a director in the Washington National Tax Office of Pricewa-terhouseCoopers, LL.M. program, from which he graduated in 2001 as an adjunct professor.

1990s

Karen (Kuhry) Hickey, ’93 ElEd, Moore, Mont., was awarded the Pam Atchison Memorial Award from the Montana State Reading Council in October 2009. The award recognizes the Outstanding Teacher of the Year.

Julie (Peterson) Christensen, ’94 Spcm, Saint Paul, Minn., is a real-tor with Edina Realty and enjoys serving on the Board of Directors of the St. Paul Figure Skating Club.

Cynthia (Mesko) Hufnagel, ’97 ElEd, Bakersfield, Calif., has earned her master’s in education technology from Fresno Pacific. Her husband is an accountant for Nabors Well Service. She is in her 13th year teaching in Arvin, Calif., at Sierra Vista. She enjoys her little first graders. Cynthia would like to hear from any MSU friends.

Kristin (Johnson) Wilson, ’97 HHD, and husband, Ryan, Boze-man, have been recently awarded the Small Business Person(s) of the Year Award for Bozeman by the Bozeman Area Chamber of Com-

merce. The couple own and operate Rockford Coffee. Currently, Rock-ford Coffee has nine employees.

2000s

Jed Erickson, ’02 Hort, Bozeman, earned the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Bozeman, from the Bozeman Area Chamber of Commerce. He founded Bear Paw Landscapes six years ago when he was just 23 and fresh out of the Horticulture and Landscape Design program at MSU.

Matt McCune, ’02 ME, Bozeman, recently served as keynote speaker at the Bozeman Chamber Business Expo.

Paul Quick, ’03 ME, Denver, Colo., is employed by the Denver Zoo. He is currently developing a small scale demonstration system that will utilize event waste to cre-ate energy to power all processing equipment, as well as blenders, light, and other event equipment. He stays very busy overseeing other projects at the zoo as well.

BIRTHS

Bryon Agan, ’97 CE, and wife, Tara, had a baby girl, Bailey Michelle, on Oct. 25. They live in Lacey, Wash.

Amy (Sterling) Borger, ’97 ElEd, and husband, Mike, have been blessed with their fourth child, a baby boy, Keaton Jack, born May 20. Keaton joins siblings, Troy, Shane and big sister Jordan. They make their home in Great Falls, Mont.

Chad Farrington, ’97 Bus, and wife, Jane, Boston, Mass., wel-comed a healthy baby boy, Jackson Walker, born April 18, 2009.

Curtis Konvalin, ’97 Bus, and wife, Jennifer (Mahler) Konvalin, ’99 Bus, Rapid City, S.D., welcomed a baby boy, Conor, on Jan. 26, 2009. He joins big brother, Colby 4.

Robert Turner, ’97 Hist, and wife, Erin (O’Connell) Turner, ’99 Hort, Polson, Mont., welcomed their first child, Conner Samuel, on July 7.

Chad “Chip” Lippert, ’99 Bus, and wife, Christina, welcomed their second child into the world. Baby girl, Ella Yvonne, was born on Sept. 29. They live in Billings, Mont.

Brandon Arntson, ’03 AnSci, and wife, Apryl (Sweeney) Arntson,

’05 RSci, Drummond, Mont., an-nounce the birth of son, Hazen, born April 3, 2009.

IN MEMORY

Doris (Plumlee) Brinck,* ’34 Chem, Sweetwater, Tenn., died Aug. 13.

Marvin Daniels,* ’38 SciTech, Bigfork, Mont., died Aug. 5.

James Boyd,* ’39 HmEc, ’42 Ag-Bus M, ’53 AgBus PhD, Bozeman, died Dec. 19.

Marion (Mitchell) Kelly,* ’40 HmEc, Vancouver, Wash., died March 22.

William Lodman, ’40 AgEc, ’40 AgEc M, Lewiston, Mont., died Aug. 26.

Jane (Henk) Martin,* ’40 HmEc, Chaska, Minn., died Aug. 28.

Ernest Hogan, ’41 AgLandRes, Idaho Falls, Idaho, died Oct. 21.

Francis Ramstad,* ’42 ChE, Guy-mon, Okla., died June 11.

Ruth (Grainger) Dreyer,* ’43 HmEc, Glasgow, Mont., died April 10.

Donald Gumprecht,* ’43 PreMed, Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, died Nov. 26.

Robert Durnford,* ’44 EE, ’49 EE M, ’65 EE PhD, Bozeman, Mont., died Dec. 5.

Lorraine “Rene” (Jones) Lock,* ’45 Ag, ’54 Ag M, Billings, Mont., died Sept. 17.

Dorothy (Olsen) Balch,* ’47 Nurs, Milwaukie, Ore., died Nov. 21.

Clyde Hinton,* ’47 EE, Poulsbo, Wash., died Aug. 30.

Phyllis (Davey) Lindeen,* ’47 Nurs, Pompeys Pillar, Mont., died Jan. 10.

Mary (Hammond) Devine, ’48 Art, Butte, Mont., died Aug. 5.

Wallace Quammen,* ’48 Eng, Seattle, Wash., died Oct. 04.

Lois Jenkins, ’51 Micro, Twin Bridges, Mont., died Aug. 28.

Marvin Costello, ’52 AgEd, ’57 SciTech M, Stevensville, Mont., died Nov. 17.

William Heckman,* ’52 Arch,

Bozeman, Mont., died Oct. 6.

James Henshaw, ’52 AnSci, Spo-kane, Wash., died March 2.

Quentin Brawner,* ’54 AgEdu, Livingston, Mont., died Nov. 4.

Roland Mosher, ’54 AnSci, Au-gusta, Mont., died Dec. 4.

Elaine (Mason) Risken,* ’55 Nurs, Liberty Lake, Wash., died Feb. 20.

Robert Thomas,* ’55 Arch, San Jose, Calif., died Nov. 15.

James Thurston,* ’55 ChE, ’57 ChE M, Brigham City, Utah, died Dec. 5.

Thomas “Tom” Glennie, ’56 AgEc, Judith Gap, Mont., died Oct. 5.

John Harris,* ’56 AgEd, ’64 Educ M, Belt, Mont., died Aug. 23.

Susan (Kade) O’Neill, ’56 Nurs, Eugene, Ore., died Oct. 3.

Robert Turner, ’56 AgEng, Silver-ton, Ore., died Oct. 12.

Jim Peterson,* ’57 SecEd, Peoria, Ariz., died July 27.

John Robischon,* ’57 CE, Olym-pia, Wash., died Aug. 5.

Walter Russell, ’57 EE, Bozeman, Mont., died Aug. 3.

Wynne Calvert, ’58 Phys, Iowa City, Iowa, died Nov. 10.

Clayton Landa, ’59 GenStu, Sandy, Utah, died Nov. 24.

Martin Perga, ’60 ChE, Joliet, Mont., died May 30.

Marve Robinson, ’60 EE, East Wenatchee, Wash., died Nov. 1.

Ann Sandberg,* ’60 GenStu, ’64 GenStu PhD, Bozeman, Mont., died Dec. 31.

William Trewhella, ’60 EE, Fort Collins, Colo., died July 19.

John Parkins,* ’61 Eng, Las Vegas, Nev., died July 11.

William Clanton, ’63 AgLandRes, ’71 Sci&Tech M, Bozeman, Mont., died Oct. 23.

Larry Morrow,* ’64 AgEd, ’65 AgEd M, Columbia Falls, Mont., died April 6.

Beatrice Barton-Whitehead, ’64 Micro, Sun City, Calif., died Oct. 18.

Richard Hazen, ’65 EE, Redondo Beach, Calif., died March 4.continued on page 32

Attention Classes of 1960, 1950 and 1940!

Make plans to be in Bozeman and at MSU for your GOLDEN, DIAMOND and SAPPHIRE reunions, respectively.

• Start calling your college friends now and plan to all come together at Commencement.

• Register now for Commencement Reunion 2010.

• See the finalized Schedule of Events for Commencement 2010.

• See Lodging and Transportation information.

Come home to don the MSU cap and gown once again in recognition of your Golden, Diamond and Sapphire Reunions!—This is the perfect time to come together with friends and get reacquainted with today’s faces and places of Montana State University.

The Montana State University Alumni Commencement ReunionMay 6, 7 and 8, 2010

To register go to alumni.montana.edu

Jane Edwards, ’58, from Anaconda, Mont. and her granddaughter

Collegian | 30

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S

Dear Friends,

It certainly feels like a new year and a new decade at Montana State University. We welcomed our new President, Dr. Waded Cruzado, to her position of leadership. Our Student Alumni Association is now under the leadership of Nathan Carroll. The Alumni Plaza and “Spirit” are becoming a noted feature

on our campus. The Alumni Association Board of Directors has embarked on exciting and aggressive plans for engaging students and alumni in the life of the university. It doesn’t get much better than that.

The Alumni Association will be planning events around Montana and the nation, intro-ducing Dr. Cruzado to our alumni and allowing her to see the beauty of our state and the amazing accomplishments of our graduates. Please take the time to join us at one of these gatherings or come to campus for an event, game or activity.

I know that you will enjoy this issue of the Collegian. The stories are amazing and inspira-tional. The photos of our Alumni Plaza should make you proud. You will see how students today enjoy their university experience, much like you did. Faculty and staff are committed to Montana State today, just as they have been in the past. Telling the MSU story is easy. I hope that you take the opportunity to tell others about your alma mater.

For all of you who have joined the Alumni Association as Life Members, your dues have been invested in the Alumni Endowment. It was this source of funds that was used to build

the Alumni Plaza. If you aren’t a life member, join today. You will be helping advance MSU as part of the Alumni Association.

Your university is doing well. It is the loyal support and dedication of alumni that continues to make Montana State University an institution of excellence. When you are in the area, drop by the Alumni Office.

Remember, there is always a pot of coffee or a soft drink awaiting you.

A Proud Bobcat,

Jaynee Drange Groseth, ’73, ’91President and CEOMontana State University Alumni Association

F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T & C E O

Leave an Enduring LegacyThe Alumni Association is pleased to introduce the Alumni Plaza, a project to instill pride and provide a focal point for spirit on campus. The vision for the Alumni Plaza is to capture the rich tradition of spirit at MSU and express it in a physical space built around a six-foot high bronze bobcat, where the campus community and visitors alike can gather, connect and celebrate. The Bobcat was selected as MSU’s mascot in 1916 for its cunning intelligence, athletic prowess and independent spirit. These attributes are elegantly reflected in Spirit, the plaza’s centerpiece, a bronze sculpture named for Montana State’s first bobcat.

The Association is offering for sale two versions of collector quality, limited edition small copies of Spirit to fund the project.

To learn more about the Alumni Plaza and how you can help support it through a limited edition Spirit bronze pur-chase, visit www.bobcatspirit.com or call 406-994-2401.

S P I R I T , T R A D I T I O N A N D L O Y A LT Y

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Blue and Gold FridaysShow your Montana State school pride by wearing MSU apparel on Fridays throughout the year. Check out the latest Bobcat gear at the MSU Bookstore’s Web site www.msubookstore.org. Look sharp, be proud. Let the world know that you are an MSU graduate.

Alumni Calendar of EventsMarch 24 Women’s History Month reception—Keynote: President Waded Cruzado BozemanMarch 30 Listening/Learning session with President Waded Cruzado BozemanApril 2-3 MSU American Indian Club Pow Wow BozemanApril 3 Native American Alumni brunch BozemanApril 5-9 MSU Senior Week BozemanApril 7 Graduation Information Fair BozemanApril 9-10 Triangle Classic Spring Football Weekend

Friday night banquet; Saturday spring game Great Falls

April 20 Dessert Dialogues with MSU Libraries BozemanApril 22 College of Business new alumnae graduation celebration BozemanApril 30 Bobcat Fest – downtown BozemanMay 6-8 Commencement Reunion Weekend for classes of 1960, 1950 and 1940 BozemanMay 8 MSU Commencement BozemanMay 13-14 College of Business Women’s Circle of Excellence conference BozemanMay 19 MSU Retired Faculty dinner BozemanJune 26 Cat-Griz Golf Battle Deer Lodge

Summer golf outings for the Bobcat Club and Athletics can be found at www.msubobcats.comWatch Montana State-ments for updated calendar of events or check the Web at alumni.montana.edu/events.

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People are enjoying a great time on MSU’s organized tours. Check out our trips for 2010 at http://alumni.montana.edu. Send us your traveling “wish list” and we’ll look into it. Watch for 2011 travel in this sum-mer’s Collegian.

The Romantic Rhine: Switzerland, France, Germany and HollandSept. 18-26, 2010 $2287/person

A seven-night cruise aboard the newest Avalon ship being introduced to the fleet this year.

Aegean Adventures CruiseSept. 21-Oct. 4, 2010 $3699/person (includes airfare from many major cities)

Twelve nights of luxurious and highly personalized accommodations and cruising to historic and scenic ports of call

including Isatanbul, Kusadasi, Rhodes, Delos, Mykonos, Santorini, Katakolon, Corfu, Dubrovnik, Crete and Athens.

Mediterranean Inspiration CruiseOct. 17-30, 2010 $3699/person (includes airfare from many major cities)

Twelve nights on board Oceania Cruises visiting some of Italy’s most amazing ports with stops in Monte Carlo, Corfu,

Montenegro and Croatia. An amazing itinerary with diverse ports of call is sure to create your own Mediterranean Inspiration.

Israel & Jordan: A Grand Journey Nov. 19–Dec. 1, 2010 $3495/person

Discover the magnificent wonders of Israel and Jordan and immerse yourself in local cuisine, architecture and land-

scapes, people and culture. Limited passenger numbers encourage camarade-rie with unique opportunities to explore a region in a more expansive manner.

For more informationAll trips are listed on the Cat Treks Web site—alumni.montana.edu/resources/travel Or, call to request a brochure: 1-800-842-9028.

2010 MSU Alumni Association Adventure and Educational Travel

IN MEMORY continued from page 29

Ronald Godbout, ’70 Hist, Butte, Mont., died Aug. 22.

Vernon Hendrickson,* ’70 Bus, Littleton, Colo., died April 6.

William “Kelly” French, ’71 AgMe, Hobson, Mont., died Nov. 2.

Robert Louie,* ’71 Bus, San Gabriel, Calif., died June 14.

George Poston, ’71 I&ME, ’72 Educ M, Hel-ena, Mont., died July 22.

Harold Smith, ’71 Sci&Tech, Helena, Mont., died July 19.

William Kloos, ’73 CE, Portland, Ore, died Nov. 4.

Robert Zychek, ’75 FTV-Photo, Post Falls, Idaho, died June 25.

Lona (O’Connor) Corey, ’78 Nurs., Albuquer-que, N.M., died Feb. 27.

Clinton Fairbanks, ’78 AgBus, Geraldine, Mont., died July 27.

William Giroux, ’83 ME, Council Bluffs, Iowa, died Sept. 13.

Shane Powell, ’88 Art, Pocatello, Idaho, died Sept. 21.

Carla Albrecht-Allen, ’90 Bus, Billings, Mont., died Sept. 18.

William “Bill” Talbott, ’98 FTV-Photo, ’98 HHD, Sheridan, Wyo., died Dec. 26.

Thomas Hartford, ’05 Bus, Browning, Mont., died Feb. 3.

*Life member of the Alumni Association

A

Outfit your Bobcat crew with gear from the MSU Bookstore

Jen, ’95 PE, and Mitch, ’97 Hist, Kayser, and son Spencer and daughter Bailey Jen is the granddaughter of Brick Breeden, for whom the fieldhouse is named

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shop online at www.msubookstore.org

1501 South 11th Ave. Bozeman, MT 59717

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