A milestone
for our
University

The term "endowed chair" is somewhat unfamiliar to those outside the world of higher education.

If your initial reaction, then, to news of the first fully endowed chair in the history of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is "sounds important, but what does it mean?" you're not alone in asking that question. Fortunately, this issue of "Inside" should provide the answer.

Establishment of an endowed chair can move an already strong academic program to an elite level. For UW-Green Bay, addition of another senior faculty position consolidates strength in our already well-known program in communications.

The $1.5 million gift from Dorothy Blair and the Blair Foundation goes directly to enhance the educational experience for our students. And the benefit is not only for communications majors and media students, but for countless students from all parts of campus who take elective courses. Notable, too, is the fact that the gift's impact will be enjoyed by undergraduate students. At many larger institutions, the endowed chairs benefit only a select group of graduate students. Not so at UW-Green Bay.

This University's first endowed chair, in communications, is a prestigious step forward. We hope it will inspire others, by example, and hasten the development of UW-Green Bay as a university where private giving gives rise to additional endowed chairs and their related centers of excellence across the curriculum.

We hope for that day, but we will never forget this one... and the magnificent investments that our friends continue to make in Green Bay's University of Wisconsin.

Sincerely,




Bruce Shepard
Chancellor

Blair gift links media's 'Golden Age,' University programs in communications

The massive, boardroom oil painting of one of 20th century America's most prominent men of broadcasting will hang in a place of honor in UW-Green Bay's principal classroom building.

Daily, thousands of students and visitors will pass the portrait honoring the late John P. Blair. He and his wife, Dorothy, never lived in Northeastern Wisconsin but are earning praise today for the single largest gift to a specific academic program — $1.5 million — in UW-Green Bay history.

Annual interest from the gift will underwrite an additional faculty position reserved for a distinguished professor in communications and media — the University's first endowed chair.

"How this gift came about is a wonderful story," Chancellor Bruce Shepard said at an October celebration on campus. "And it starts with John Blair, the visionary, and Dorothy Blair, whose generosity makes this possible."

John Blair was an early and influential promoter of national radio advertising. Said one admiring colleague, "In 1933, John Blair listened to the radio, and saw the future." Years later, in 1948, Blair plunged into television advertising when the number of sets still numbered in the thousands. He hastened development of the business model that would fuel TV's "Golden Age" boom.

By the time of his death, in 1983, his New York-based media conglomerate, John Blair & Company, represented or owned some 300 radio and TV stations, printing operations and the largest direct mail business in the country.

An alumnus of the University of Wisconsin, Blair grew interested in the Green Bay campus in the 1960s. Advocates for environmental education, he and Dorothy took in the open fields surrounding Chancellor Edward Weidner's farmhouse office and, yet again, saw the future.

Shepard says the endowed chair is a fitting legacy, given the Blairs' affection for the University and Green Bay area, and the quality of the undergraduate program in communications.

'Endowed Chair' defined

Annual interest from the $1.5 million Blair gift will underwrite an additional faculty position in communications and media. Students will benefit as an enhanced curriculum offers new courses, more and smaller sections in existing courses, and expanded internship and research opportunities.

Deer friends

A previous major gift from John and Dorothy Blair was the bronze "Doe with Fawns." Formally dedicated in 1989, the piece by renowned wildlife sculptors William and David Turner is located along Nicolet Drive at the southwest entrance to campus and the Cofrin Arboretum.

Blair Chair serves local specialty: communications

UW-Green Bay's campus lies very near the center of a communications and media hub.

The city of Green Bay anchors a bigger and better broadcast market than population alone would indicate. It persists as a two-newspaper town, one of few in America.

The region is known not only for its paper industry, but printing companies, as well. And major corporations from Schneider National to ShopKo to Fort Howard all got their start here, and with them the high-end production shops that employ top marketing and creative talent.

Then, there's UW-Green Bay, a fine public university with respected offerings in communications. Are these academic programs a contributor to, or beneficiary of, all this activity? The answer, say those in the know, is a little of both.

"We have always depended heavily on the community, particularly with regard to professional internships," says Prof. Emeritus Donald Larmouth, a longtime faculty member and academic administrator. "At the same time, these companies have access to a quite valuable resource in our graduates and student interns. And, with the interns, these aren't 'make the coffee' internships. They're real experiences."

The Communication Processes unit took shape in the mid-1970s. Dean O'Brien was the print journalism specialist. Jerry Dell taught photography and electronic media. As those areas expanded, Tim Meyer was lured from the University of Texas to a teaching and research position in electronic media. Larmouth and Cliff Abbott taught linguistics. In the 1980s, the always-fluid boundaries with faculty units in marketing, the arts and others allowed for new combinations. Organizational communication arrived with Phil Clampitt. Graphic arts with Evelyn Teikari, Caroline Beckett, and now, Jeff Benzow and Christine Style, would draw students. More recently, Victoria Goff and Colleen Fitzpatrick and Sarah Detweiler would join in the interdisciplinary tradition... and the focus on connecting students and community.

"I started the internship program while we were still at the Deckner campus," O'Brien recalls. "Outside of teaching (education) we were one of the first programs to do so. I think that's part of the reason our graduates have been successful in getting big jobs."

Manufacturing CEO touts upbringing in communications

Bob Rupp is CEO and president of Appleton International Inc., an established, growing specialty-equipment manufacturer for the paper and converting industries.

He is also a walking, talking advertisement for the value of a liberal arts education and its application in technical and corporate settings.

"This company already has highly competent technical and functional people," Rupp says. "I see myself operating in more of a general leadership position... connecting all the pieces, using my ability to sell people on our vision as a flexible, innovative, customer-oriented firm."

Rupp majored in Communication Processes at UW-Green Bay. Along the way, he was a D.J. with campus radio station WGBW. His "Cumberland Ramblers" show with colleague Steve Austin scored in-studio interviews with bluegrass stars Lester Flatt and Marty Stuart, among others. He also enjoyed the classroom, taking a variety of courses in a variety of fields.

"I really related to the interdisciplinary aspect," Rupp recalls. "I liked being in communications but still getting to know Prof. Paul Sager in the sciences, Prof. Bill Laatsch in regional studies, and Prof. Bob Obenberger in marketing."

When he graduated in 1978 he signed on as a sales rep with Shade Information Systems, then a rapidly growing Green Bay-based manufacturer of business forms. With Shade, his career included transfers to New York and back and progressively challenging assignments as a marketing manager, product manager and ultimately, vice president of sales and marketing.

When Shade was acquired by a Dallas company in 1997, Rupp and his wife, Jolyce, herself a former UW-Green Bay student, elected to stay here. Bob accepted a position as president and CEO of American Finishing Resources, a metal-products manufacturer in Chilton. In 2001, he was recruited by Appleton International Inc.

Rupp says he suspects it is still true that "many of our communication graduates will wind up, not only in media, but in sales and marketing, and they will do well.... We're seeing today that leaders in modern organizations benefit from having that multi-disciplinary background."

Communication Processes

The academic program in Communication Processes is among UW-Green Bay's largest, with more than 200 students pursuing majors or minors, and hundreds of others from across campus enrolled in elective courses. Areas of emphasis within UW-Green Bay's communication/media array are:

• Electronic Media
• Organizational Communication
• Photography
• Journalism
• Public Relations
• Linguistics and English as a Second Language
• Graphics (offered by Communication and the Arts academic unit)

Laughs, liveliness and a little 'revolution': the 'Fourth Estate' delivers

Constant on campus through 35 years has been a student newspaper. Scattered across the tables at the Garden Cafe. Competing with faculty for students' attention in large lecture halls. Inspiring water cooler and elevator chatter among faculty and staff.

By best guess and unofficial poll, virtually all of the more than 20,000 graduates of UW-Green Bay have picked up a Fourth Estate at one time or another. Students have used the Fourth Estate for expression, enjoyment, employment and enlightenment. And Fourth Estate staff members have gained important hands-on experience in writing, editing, and managing a newspaper.

Originated as the Bay Badger in 1966, the student newspaper was renamed the Fourth Estate in 1970 and has remained so ever since. Editor Pat Madden '71 (now Iron County Judge Patrick Madden) initiated the name change in a move to establish a separate identity from UW-Madison.

"The 1970 paperback edition of Roget's Thesaurus listed the fourth estate as representing the power of the press, and the fourth estate's role in the French revolution," explains Madden. "I was caught up in the educational revolution at UWGB so I changed the name. No committee, no meeting, no adviser."

Madden was appointed editor by editor-in-chief Bob Laux. Sports editor Tom Loomer, Madden says, was instrumental in pushing for big-time athletics. Theresa Quinn, now a physician in the Twin Cities, was an environmental editor, and Pete Poplaski drew the cartoon strip. Together they had a staff of 44 that year. Popular content included artistic photography, poetry and lots of politics.

Madden says that from the beginning, the paper didn't shy from controversy.

"We were advocates of the UWGB approach to education and problem solving," Madden says. "In 1969, we ran a front-page editorial calling for President Nixon's impeachment for invading Cambodia. We opposed the Vietnam War. We pointed out the pollution then rampant in Green Bay. We witnessed, in writing, the birth of the University."

Pat Whiting, a sports editor in the early 1980s, says the paper connected with students. "They (students) would just stand in the hall waiting for the paper to be delivered and there would be this mad rush. It was a really cool thing to be a part of."

Although it was tough to be a news-breaking paper being a weekly, Whiting recalled breaking the story that former Packers staffer Chuck Lane would be the the new point man for Phoenix sports publicity. "We had to go to the printer with that story on Sunday, and it wasn't delivered until Wednesday, but we still managed to have it before the other Green Bay papers."

Retired faculty member and longtime Fourth Estate adviser Dean O'Brien remembers a breaking story about attempted sexual assaults along the campus paths — "up to that point the community hadn't been aware of what was going on" &3151; and a reaction from the school's administration that the reporting had been sensationalized. But the paper stood its ground.

Like all college papers, the Fourth Estate has always carried its share of record reviews, shoot-from-the-hip student essays and humor. Most years, the April Fool's Day "Fourth Mistake" was a popular success even if the satire was hit-or-miss. In some corners, the 1980 "Kermit the Frog" spoof of the move to Division I basketball is remembered as a classic. In other years, tasteless attempts at humor — some will recall something about horses, or a deer reference deemed racially insensitive — would fall flat and inspire letters to the editor for months.

The occasional missteps did not detract from creative people doing fine, creative work. Columnists from Dave Wielgus and Anita Van Amber through Tom Breuer and Kris Elwood were weekly favorites. Cartoonists including Greg Brecht (a pun master of the late 1970s whose work is featured above) and Kevin Lison are fondly recalled.

Whiting notes that the paper also had some exceptional photographers through the years, mentioning Ed VanCampenhout and Mike Roemer by name. There have been many others, now distinguished in their field.

On the editorial side, the roster of reporters and editors including Michelle Zich, Dave Willems, Dan Flannery, Sandra Micheau, Althea Reetz, Kimberly Myles, Katie Karcz, Doug Ritchay and Andy Behrendt — to name far too few — should be familiar to alumni readers. Many have continued on to professional success.

"Many of our students have gone on to launch successful careers in journalism after leaving here," O'Brien says. "I do think those who worked for the Fourth Estate had steady practical experience and they cashed in on that."

Exclusive! Teary editor admits to tomato tampering

According to former editor Patrick Madden, the campus legend of the "Fighting Tomatoes" receiving more votes than the Phoenix in the 1970 pick-the-mascot contest has been told and retold so many times it's hard to separate fact from fiction. Here is Madden's recollection:

"The Fourth Estate sponsored a mascot contest for the purpose of giving our University its own identity, not a (Bucky) Badger on water skis. There were two simple rules: Entrants had to write a reason for the mascot, and they needed to submit a drawing that could be printed in the newspaper. On the last day a fellow dropped off a piece of notebook paper with a ballpoint pen circle and said, 'that is a tomato.' At that time blue would not copy or print, so I took a black marker and drew over the lines and added a couple of leaves, and printed it. The tomato got more votes than the Phoenix. It was my responsibility, (my fault) and I went to the wildlife sanctuary and cried. I was not going to cheat, and I was not going to tell the chancellor that the students did not care about their University sports teams. The solution came to me that the drawing in the paper was mine. If I withdrew my drawing, the tomato did not meet the rules. Chancellor Weidner teases me that he has spent way too much time trying to smooth the feathers ruffled by the Fourth Estate."

'Fourth Estate' is on the Web

Alumni who want to keep up with their favorite campus weekly can point their Internet browsers to the URL www.uwgb.edu/4e/. Content includes news, sports, opinions and more. The Fourth Estate and its student staff members have won several regional awards in recent years for the quality of their printed publication. This year's edition has a staff of about two dozen. The editor-in-chief is Ryan Bandoch; the faculty adviser is Prof. Victoria Goff.

The WGBW alternative: when college students ruled the airwaves

Student-run radio station WGBW-FM 91.5 was as much a fixture of UW-Green Bay's early years as purple shag carpeting and January interim.

WGBW was one of the campus and community's most popular venues for progressive music, news, entertainment and expression. It also featured live coverage of Phoenix athletics.

The station debuted in 1974 with a 30-mile signal and a goal to be "alternative radio." Glen Slaats, station manager since 1979, recalled popular programs such as the late Vernon Taylor's "VT, the Fat Cat from Philly." Listeners came to know D.J.s "Johnny Dread" and "Taste O' Honey" like members of their family. Students hosted a popular, high-profile bluegrass show called "Cumberland Ramblers," featuring music and live interviews with big-time stars.

"In reality, it's one of the main reasons I chose UWGB," says the animated and outgoing Steve Brenzel, a Green Bay radio and TV personality better known as "Ned the Dead." "I always knew I wanted a radio career. At other schools, you couldn't get on the air as a freshman. There is no way I'd be doing what I'm doing now if it wasn't for WGBW. I lived to be on that station. The day I went on-air, I called home as proud as I've ever been of anything in my entire life."

By the mid-1980s the station, not directly supported by an academic unit, was seen more as luxury than necessity. In 1986 WGBW entered an agreement in which Wisconsin Public Radio would provide daytime content, with student shows at night. Two years later, with rising costs arguing against full-power student radio, the University investigated a total transfer to WPR.

That news upset some student listeners and staff. Days before the deal was to be complete, two student D.J.s violated station rules and used inappropriate language while drinking alcohol in the broadcast booth in what they said was a protest. The incident sealed WGBW's fate and brought a bitter ending to what had been, through the years, a sweet adventure.

"That was a sad day," Brenzel recalls. "It took away a wonderful learning tool, and an opportunity to try new things... real world, but protected. That's where you learn to be yourself."

Broadcasting creativity 101

WGBW gave students — whether communications majors or not - a prime creative outlet.

UWGB alumnus Steve "Ned the Dead" Brenzel &3151; a morning talk show host on Green Bay radio station "The Eagle" 106.7-FM &3151; honed his craft at WGBW.

Mike Steavpack, who went on to work with TV's Fox Sports, was doing sports talk radio (see graphic this page) years before the format really took off.

In the mid-'80s, two ambitious students, Joe Smrekar and Dave Spangler, and alumnus Jeff Schmidbauer, put together a show called "Rock 'n' Roll Chronology," scrounging for every single No. 1 pop hit of the week, 1955-1985.

Radio station powered up as 1-watt, bootleg 'signal'

In retrospect, more than 30 years later, it's okay to admit to a questionable start if the motives were noble. Isn't it? Rick Conn '75, WGBW's first student manager, has come clean. Conn says student broadcasts were hitting the air well before WGBW was official and University sanctioned.

A handful of students at the Bay Apartments (now Residence Life) would experiment from time to time via secret broadcasts with reel-to-reel tape machines and record players, using the power outlets to carry a 1-watt transmitter signal through the apartments. Anyone plugging a radio into the wall outlet could pick up the signal. As interest (and risk of being caught) increased, the students decided to make a formal request for a student-run campus station.

With the support of the late Dick Christie, director of student life programs, students called hundreds of stations for old equipment, and 25 of them traveled to Chicago to take the test for an FCC broadcast license. W. Werner Prange, the director of instructional resources, caught wind of the student-forged plans and called a meeting of the would-be broadcasters. "Halfway through he told us he had heard enough," Conn recalled. "We thought we had lost our battle. But two weeks later he granted our request."

The University would build a station, offer technical support staff, hire a professional station manager and have ultimate oversight. Staffing and programming would be student managed. The result was a state-of-the-art soundproof studio, brand-new equipment including a 3,000-watt transmitter and broadcasts reaching beyond Brown County. It was, says Conn, a wonderful partnership.

"It was a great marriage of all interested parties," Conn says. "It gave students an outlet. At a time when the University didn't have much student life, it created a purpose."

Now a senior executive and project manager for Procter & Gamble, and a former board member of UW-Green Bay's Founders Association, Conn credits his post-college success, in great part, to WGBW's pioneering times. "I learned about leadership in those days," he says. "In my 28 years with the same company, many of my leadership examples draw from those early experiences. Many people took a great risk for us."

Hopes today ride on the Internet

Current campus radio station WFPR is gaining momentum to be more than an in-house and campus-only station.

The "station," in actuality, is composed of a group of students broadcasting from Studio Arts Room 260 to the University Union and Residence Life with little more than two CD players, two or three microphones and two mixers.

With an official Web site in the works &3151; and an opportunity to broadcast over the Internet that comes with it — the more than 35 active members will have an outlet to the rest of the world. Student managers say the Web site is "in the works." Look to future "Insides" for more information.

UW-Green Bay rose with his help

John M. "Jake" Rose counted among his proudest civic achievements his work to ensure success for the new four-year University of Wisconsin campus in his hometown of Green Bay.

It was a volunteer assignment that was entirely successful, yet in Rose's mind, something he would never declare completed. He approached his role as perhaps UW-Green Bay's premier community advocate with characteristic passion and effectiveness for four decades, right up to the moment he passed away Oct. 17 at the age of 87 following a traffic accident.

"He was the warmest supporter of this University in many, many different ways," said Founding Chancellor Edward Weidner. "He was my closest community friend."

Rose and his wife of 62 years, Meredith, will forever be friends of UW-Green Bay students through the Meredith B. and John M. Rose Scholarship Fund. Established in 1985, the fund remains the University's largest with, this year alone, an impressive 29 students receiving grants from $500 to $1,000.

As an influential community leader and longtime executive of Associated Bank, he helped secure the campus site and supported early development of UW-Green Bay via philanthropy, counsel and behind-the-scenes advocacy. He was a recipient of the University's first Chancellor's Award in 1970. He was a charter member of the Council of Trustees and an active supporter of the Founders Association. In recent years, he was the driving force behind the preservation of the endangered Point au Sauble wetland a few miles north of campus and its transfer to University management. He and Meredith were regular attendees at campus and student events.

In 1990 the former Community Sciences Building was renamed John M. Rose Hall in his honor.

Rose is survived by his wife of 62 years, Meredith; his sister, Betty Rose Meyer (herself a generous benefactor of UW-Green Bay and student scholarships); and children Polly, Alexandra, John P., Ann and Victoria, and their families. For more on Rose and his remarkable contributions to Green Bay and its University of Wisconsin campus, go to the Web at www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/page/thenews.htm#rose.

Connecting learning to life: Students learn bear essentials

UW-Green Bay faculty, graduate and undergraduate students and the U.S. Forest Service trapped 30 bears this summer in a new five-year study of bears in Oconto and Forest counties that may, in the long run, benefit the bears and the humans who live near them.

Eight of the 30 were females, and fitted with collars so their movements can be tracked. All of the bears were given exams to determine their health status. This included sampling their blood, which is being examined for about 15 different diseases; some of which can be transmitted from animals to humans, such as West Nile, and some that can be transmitted between wild and domestic animals. They're also looking at things like blood count and thyroid function, and they're assessing blood levels of lead, mercury, and arsenic. The bears are also being tested for fecal parasites, and they had ticks removed and sent on for identification by the Veterinary Medical School in Madison.

The study is believed to be the first in Wisconsin to use geographic information systems technology to accomplish two primary goals — documenting the movements of bears in relation to people and landscape, and comparing the health of bears in an area of high human density to that of bears in an area where few people live.

"We hope our results will contribute to the sustainable conservation of black bears in Wisconsin and to the health and safety of humans who live in proximity to these bears," says Prof. Robert Howe, director of the Cofrin Center for Biodiversity at UW-Green Bay.

Howe says he saw the project as a good research opportunity for UW-Green Bay students. Primary team members include biologist Scott Anderson of the U.S. Forest Service, Nicole Waliszewski, a student in the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, and UW-Green Bay graduate student Andrew Hinckle. Other UW-Green Bay students involved include graduate student Mike Stiefvater, who has helped with programming the high-tech collars, and undergraduate Barbara Sullivan, who has assisted with the fieldwork. Other students assisted with the project during summer and fall 2003.

Howe says the data will enable researchers to learn whether human activity attracts bears, or if it seems to drive them farther into the forest.

Gateway ceremony honors Doug Cofrin

Friends and family of the late Doug Cofrin gathered with campus and community officials Aug. 29 to remember his family's legacy and dedicate the G. Douglass Cofrin Arboretum Gateway. The Gateway is a link between UW-Green Bay's central campus and the larger Cofrin Memorial Arboretum. The Gateway path extends from the courtyard of Mary Ann Cofrin Hall to the Arboretum's main trail system at South Circle Drive. Cofrin, whose career interests included law, broadcasting and politics, died in February 2002.

Women's basketball tickets going fast

A record 500-plus season tickets have been sold for the Phoenix women's basketball season. Ticket manager Marilyn McCarey says that many fans took advantage of an early-bird promotion following the team's history making season last March. With six sell-outs last year (more than 1,800 fans), walk-up tickets will be at a premium. As an added bonus, season ticket holders will have first option to purchase seats for the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Championship, should the Phoenix be seeded in the top 4 of the tournament. In addition, if UW-Milwaukee is eliminated in the quarterfinals, the remaining highest seeded team will also host the semi-final and championship games — sure sell-outs if the venue is the Phoenix Sports Center.

Excellent seats also remain for Phoenix men's basketball games at the Resch Center. Call 920-465-2625 to reserve your tickets. An expanded and tiered section for UW-Green Bay students and pep band should make for an electric atmosphere at the Resch. Point your Web browser to www.uwgb.edu/athletics for schedules and breaking news.

More campus news

Students 'make a difference' with $4,000

The "Steps to Make a Difference" walk in the Cofrin Arboretum, organized by students in the Public and Nonprofit Management class, raised $4,000 for four local nonprofit organizations: N.E.W. Community Clinic, New Community Shelter, Habitat for Humanity, and the ALS Therapy Development Foundation (Lou Gehrig's Disease).

Johnson returns to campus a pro

Former Phoenix women's basketball player Chandra Johnson has returned to campus to complete her degree in business marketing after playing a season with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA — the Women's National Basketball Association. The Eau Claire native signed a two-year contract with the Sparks in May. She is one of only two women's basketball alumnae to join the professional ranks in the United States. (Kim Wood played two seasons in the now defunct ABL.) Johnson saw limited action as a backup to L.A. center and women's basketball superstar Lisa Leslie. The Sparks reached the league finals.

Visual arts find an advocate in Cepress

A few years ago Mike Cepress was "Rocking City Hall," fighting to stage a battle-of-the-bands concert in his hometown of Wausau. Now he's making his mark, visually, in Green Bay. The UW-Green Bay senior is exhilarated after his first solo art exhibit, "Media Constructions," was displayed in the gallery space of the Green Bay Community Theatre building earlier this fall. GBCT initiated the exhibits to enhance the theatre-going experience for patrons, and student Cepress was the first artist highlighted. "It was a fabulous and exciting experience," Cepress says. He is planning his next exhibit for May. He'll graduate in spring and plans on attending graduate school soon after, with a focus on textiles and sculpture.

Kolars make music for fun, scholarships

Miss Green Bay, Laura Kolar, a UW-Green Bay music education major, put on a summer benefit to raise scholarships for high school students attending UW-Green Bay's summer choral and band camps. Kolar's Miss Green Bay platform is "CAN DO: Cultivating Arts Now Delivers Opportunities." She seems to be following in the footsteps of her mother, Sandra (Parmentier) Kolar, a 1971 UW-Green Bay grad and fourth-grade teacher in the Green Bay area. Sandra was also involved in dance and music and proudly proclaims herself one of the Green Bay Packers' original Golden Girls.

PSC project requires donor support

UW-Green Bay already has lead donors for expansion and remodeling of the outdated Phoenix Sports Center. That would be the University's students, who have committed for half of the projected $30 million project through increases in their student fees.

A priority during 2004 will be private fundraising to match a state pledge of $7.5 million contingent upon local support. Naming rights for the entire complex or portions of the facility are being discussed with potential donors. Officials are hopeful for ground breaking in 2005.

Booklet outlines youthful take on philanthropy

Increasingly, donors to higher education are younger, value-conscious and eager to enjoy all the satisfaction and many of the benefits — in the here and now.

That trend is described in "Ideas for the Gift of a Lifetime," a new booklet available to alumni and friends detailing ways donors can make an immediate difference for UW-Green Bay and its students.

"Years ago, the phrase 'Gift of a Lifetime' might have conjured images of somber faces, final readings and surprise bequests straight out of an old black-and-white movie," the booklet observes. "Today, things have long since gone Technicolor."

Emerging options such as life-income plans and charitable remainder trusts provide significant tax benefits. In addition, gifts of greatly appreciated real estate or securities can help donors achieve immediate charitable contributions of a magnitude they might not have dreamed possible.

The University Advancement Office notes that, despite the trends, bequests by wills — often made via simple, one-sentence amendments — remain a common deferred gift. For your copy of the "Gift of a Lifetime" booklet, call the Advancement Office at (920) 465-2074.

Alumni news

'Miss UW-Green Bay' is nearly Miss America

Tina Marie Sauerhammer, Miss Wisconsin, who enamored the judges with her intelligence, talent, sophistication and elegance, and nearly claimed the Miss America crown, was a proud UW-Green Bay graduate well before all the hoopla.

Sauerhammer (at left in photo with Nancy Redd of Virginia) won the preliminary talent competition and made the final five of the nationally televised event in Atlantic City, N.J., in September. She was second runner-up and earned a $30,000 scholarship.

She was UW-Green Bay's youngest ever graduate at age 18 in May of 1999, and was co-recipient of the Outstanding Student Award and commencement speaker that year. She left Green Bay to go to medical school at UW-Madison where she has since become that school's youngest graduate, and she will apply for medical residency in pediatric surgery in the months ahead.

She had hoped to become Miss America to promote organ-donor awareness. Her father, Randall, died on his 45th birthday in January 2002, after a decade-long battle with an autoimmune disease and a four-year wait for a kidney transplant that never came. Sauerhammer expressed happiness to the media following the competition, saying that her prominent finish will enhance her reign as Miss Wisconsin and help her raise awareness about organ donation.

A full calendar of speaking engagements before Wisconsin's medical community awaits — as does her proud alma mater, hoping she will accept an invitation to speak on campus in the coming year.

Packers fans, Bears fans — they're all fans of Heide

Thousands who saw the production "Packer Fans from Outer Space" at Peninsula State Park and the Meyer Theatre in Green Bay left their seats with a renewed appreciation for the Packers-Bears rivalry, and a new jingle to share with generations. This, in thanks to Fred "Doc" Heide '74 (analysis synthesis). Heide is musician and co-playwright behind the American Folklore Theatre production.

"Packer Fans From Outer Space," based (very) loosely on actual events, follows the exploits of Juddville fruit farmer Harvey Keister. Harvey, a big fan of the Green Bay Packers, is called upon by a group of Packer aliens to save their planet from the evil Space Bears. The production has been the rave of critics and attendees &3151; even among (gasp) Bears fans who frequent Door County and the America Folklore Theatre's home stage at Peninsula Park.

By weekday Heide is a professor of psychology at California's Alliante University. By night, weekend and summer, he's an actor, musician and playwright. For this fall's show at the Meyer, Heide traveled between California and Wisconsin a few times a week. "It's such a remarkable experience to be a licensed shrink and in my secret life thrive on stage as Doc, and to be able to say the words that you actually wrote yourself," Heide says. "I wish it was something my clients could do. I think it would be a cure for depression. It's tremendously empowering."

If you're on the right side of the Packers-Bears rivalry, you probably like Heide's jingle on the subject: "Welcome to Wisconsin, we've got heaven here. The tourists come from all around to drink our cup of cheer. Naturally our state would be the place they most enjoy, 'cuz if heaven's in Wisconsin, you know what's in Illinois!"

Greg Santaga, president: He's 'excellent' in business

Greg Santaga '84, business administration, received the Excellence in Business Award at the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce's 23rd Annual Recognition Bash in October.

Santaga is president and CEO of Green Bay Converting Inc., a nationally-known paper converting company. In presenting the award, the Chamber cited Santaga's success in growing a thriving and innovative business while encouraging community involvement. With 190 employees, Green Bay Converting realized a 65 percent increase in sales for the year ending July 31, 2003. Since the company's inception four years ago, it has enjoyed continued growth as a result of its stated commitment to quality, cost reduction and maximum efficiency.

Santaga, a relatively young CEO at 41, shares a positive message for today's students. Featured in the campus 2003-2005 campus viewbook sent to prospective students, he says many of his experiences at UW-Green Bay helped shape his business career.

"The opportunity to learn and gain lifetime personal relationships with UW-Green Bay faculty, staff and community leaders involved with the University has truly fast-tracked my business career," he says. "Those experiences, along with playing Division I athletics (soccer) and working both on and off campus as a part of my business internship, accelerated my maturity and early success in the business world."

American Legion post empowers DeBaker

Give her a challenge and Nellie DeBaker proves up to the task. The 1974 growth and development major uses her life as a battering ram, knocking down the walls that restrain people from empowering themselves or getting the services they deserve.

DeBaker currently serves as American Legion Department Vice Commander - the second highest elected position in the organization. Chartered in 1920, the Legion posts and their 76,000 members are devoted to bettering America through community service, youth activities, and volunteerism to serve veterans' needs.

Her passion for service to country began in the Vietnam War, where she worked in a naval aviation office, tracking aircraft near Vietnam. Practically unheard of in the day, she worked side-by-side in an office with 12 men. In the 1970s she accomplished what was only a pipedream to many, attaining a college degree despite working full-time as a mom and homemaker. Despite the difficulty, she cherished those days. "Having come from a small, Catholic community (Luxemburg) it was wonderful to meet people from outside of the community and of other ethnicities," she says. Since, she has used her education in various roles for the Legion.

"Through the Legion I've been able to do all the things I've dreamed: writing, traveling and speaking," she says. She's the Legion's unofficial historian, and lobbyists think twice before going head-to-head with her on matters such as veterans' benefits and youth welfare.

Her next mission? To start a state chapter of women who served in the Navy. If her past is any indication, it is only a matter of time before she'll be saying, "mission accomplished."

20,000 candidates, but only one 'Distinguished' 2004

The Alumni Association is taking nominations for the 2004 Distinguished Alumni Award. Individuals can complete the nomination form found on the Web (www.uwgb.edu/alumni) or e-mail Director of Alumni Relations Mark Brunette at alumni@uwgb.edu for more information. Eligible candidates hold either a graduate or undergraduate degree from UW-Green Bay and fit the following criteria: outstanding personal achievements in their field, civic responsibility and contributions to their community, continuing interest in the University, and highest integrity in professional, public and personal relations.

Book dedication a way to honor faculty or friends

Have you always meant to let that favorite faculty or staff member know how much you appreciated them? Have you thought about reconnecting with a college classmate? Do we have an opportunity for you! The Friends of the Cofrin Library launched a new "honor" book program that offers an opportunity to honor or memorialize a friend, colleague or family member with a gift toward purchase of a book for the Library. A plate inscribed with the names of the honoree and the giver is placed in the book and the honoree receives notice of the thoughtful gesture. For more information, contact the Cofrin Library at (920) 465-2333.

A shift and a return: Advancement promotes Kohl, welcomes back Brunette

Shane Kohl is the University's new director of annual giving, with responsibilities for growing UW-Green Bay's comprehensive annual giving program. Kohl moved into the position from his prior position as the University's director of donor and alumni relations.

Kohl is a 1996 UW-Green Bay graduate with a degree in communication processes. He joined the UW-Green Bay Advancement Office in 2001 after serving as district director of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Kohl's primary responsibilities in his new position include the development and implementation of the annual alumni phone-a-thon and service as a liaison and support staff for the Founders Association. He also will work to cultivate relationships and support for UW-Green Bay.

Mark Brunette returned to UW-Green Bay to succeed Shane Kohl as director of donor and alumni relations. Brunette served as assistant director of alumni relations from 1991-96. He most recently was a territorial sales specialist for Modern Business Machines.

Brunette is a 1985 UW-Green Bay graduate with a degree in business administration. His responsibilities include serving as the primary liaison between the University and its 20,000 graduates, establishing and maintaining positive communications with alumni and financial donors, and developing alumni networks in support of the University's mission.

Funds generated by the UW-Green Bay Advancement Office and its donors are used for student scholarships, academic and facility improvements and research support.

Awards Night is March 20

Alumni Awards Night will be held on March 20, 2004. The program includes presentation of the Distinguished Alumni Award, the Distinguished Service Awards and the Honorary Alumnus Award. The third annual Cornerstone Dinner precedes the awards presentation.

Alumni notes

Long (and random) list of successful communications alumni

Dave Spangler '85, is vice president of affiliate marketing for Warner Television, Los Angeles. "I still get excited when I drive past the "Friends" fountain each day," he says. His role is to help local stations achieve higher ratings and higher revenue.

Spangler is just one of a long list of alumni who majored in communications at UW-Green Bay and moved on to careers in the field. Here's more:

John Devroy '84, chief photographer, WBAY-TV, Green Bay

Dale O'Brien '79, copy editor, Green Bay Press-Gazette

Dan Mitchell '00, document specialist for the financial services operations department, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Appleton

Charles Cooper '01, morning show producer, WGBA-TV, Green Bay

Peter Griggs '79, chief photographer, WLUK-TV, Green Bay

David Horst, '79, communications specialist, Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region

Mike Counter '84, senior media production specialist, St. Norbert College, De Pere

Sue (Klaubauf) Bodilly '87, editor, UW-Green Bay

Don Klingseisen '94, marketing, Kimberly-Clark

Heidi Frei '96, manager of communications, Arizona Society of CPAs

Trisha (Schmidt) Ossmann '98, senior news producer and internships coordinator, WBAY-TV, Green Bay

Amy (Milner) Hageman '99, morning news producer, WKOW-TV, Madison

Sheila Blackman '99, assistant sports information director, UW-Green Bay

Althea Reetz '99, magazine editor, Krause Publishing

Branden Borremans '98, meteorologist, WBAY-TV, Green Bay

Tony Giese '00, sports writer, Marinette Eagle Star

Rick LaFrombois '02, reporter, Wausau Daily Herald

Dan Flannery '80, managing editor, Appleton Post-Crescent

Julie Vanderwall '97, copy editor, Green Bay Press-Gazette

Femi Cole '97, copy editor, Green Bay Press-Gazette

David Willems '83, owner of Willems and Company public relations firm

Monica Schultz '03, production assistant, WFRV-TV, Green Bay

Samantha Andrews '95, internal communications coordinator, Bellin Health Systems, Inc. Green Bay

Adam Hatfield '03, morning show producer, WKBT-TV, La Crosse

Kari Polczynski '01, news producer, WBAY-TV, Green Bay

Eric Pigo '03, tape editor, WLUK-TV, Green Bay

Patrick Ferron, '91, photojournalist, Green Bay Press-Gazette

Scott Emerson '89, video producer, USAV Group, New Berlin

Amy (Milner) Hegeman '99, morning news producer, WKOW-TV, Madison

Sara Marks '93, senior account executive, FedEx Corporate Services, Maple Grove, MN

Nikki (Curtis) Engelbrecht '01, editor, West Publishing

Jennifer Danz '02, graduating in May 2004 with a master's degree in marketing communications from Emerson College, Boston

Jennifer M. Baker '01, meeting coordinator, Capitol Indemnity Corporation, Madison

Melissa (Tjader) Corbo '97, training specialist, Stillwater Heights and Oak Park, MN prisons

Andy Berendt '03, reporter, Green Bay Press-Gazette

Chris Nerat '01, sports card authenticator and newsletter editor, Krause Publishing

Mike Heine '02, sports editor, Delavan Enterprise

Kevin Wood '00, business development representative, Skyline Technologies, Green Bay

Mike Roemer '86, photojournalist, Associated Press

Todd Truttman '88, commercial photographer, Green Bay

Jenny Justus, '00, account specialist, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Katie (Karcz) Eastman '00, public relations coordinator, N-sight

Brad Spakowitz '80, meteorologist, WBAY-TV, Green Bay

Melissa (Strauss) Schamburek '00, public relations assistant, Holy Family Memorial Health Network, Manitowoc

Leigh Ann Wagner Kroening '98, customer service specialist with Schneider National, Green Bay

Erran Bennett '97, owner of two top-200 "The UPS Store" franchises in Mequon and Milwaukee

Matthew Castor '97, studio manager for a nationally recognized neon artist and sculptor in the Washington, D.C. area

Marie Peasley '00, project coordinator, DMiNTERACTIVE, Green Bay

Leslie Ricker '00, media relations assistant/membership services liaison, Sunshine State Conference.

An archive of alumni notes is available online at www.uwgb.edu/alumni/. Check the Website often for the latest news on your fellow graduates.