The Magazine of the University of Indianapolis Fall 2014 Hounds on the hunt The University’s newest crop of freshmen—who set yet another enrollment record—swarmed downtown during a Welcome Week scavenger hunt, “collecting” city landmarks. Page 3. WWW.UINDY.EDU 1 Portico Table of Contents 4 6 8 20 President’s forum Health Pavilion Scholarly pursuits Breath of fresh air We’re making great progress making progress Find out what UIndy AJ Salkowski ’04 ’07 is on on the Vision 2030 strategic Ground has been broken faculty are publishing, a mission to improve the plan, thanks in no small part and foundations are being presenting, and researching. respiratory health of Native to your input and support. laid for the 160,000-square- Plus, archeology students Alaskan children, and he’s Our freshman class is one foot building, where donor dig into a county’s history, visiting remote rural of our most academically support is helping shape and music students soothe villages, one bush plane qualified ever. Plus: the the clinical facilities within. souls at a local hospital. or ice-road ride at a time. Champions Challenge. 7 18 22 5 Selling a school Scripting the 2014–15 arts season Meet the Champions The world of K–12 perfect job The Christel DeHaan Fine Challenge education is competitive, DyNishia Miller ’14 has a Arts Center is celebrating its Launched this summer, and marketing a school may passion for helping people, 20th anniversary! Join us at the one-year Champions offer a big advantage. Two and she’s putting it to good UIndy this year for jazz, Challenge campaign aims UIndy profs collaborated use with her new job as theatre, art shows, writers, to generate funding for on a book that aims to help the press secretary at the musical events, and more. programs and capital schools—whether public, Indiana State Department Be sure to check the full improvements in UIndy’s private, or charter—attract of Agriculture. calendar at uindy.edu/arts! Department of Athletics. the right students. On the cover Greyhounds raced around downtown Indianapolis on August 21, collecting photos and and answers as part of an Indiana-related scavenger hunt. More than 900 freshmen were welcomed to campus this fall, bringing the total enrollment to nearly 5,500 students. 2 PORTICO FALL 2014 Alumni Association Board of Directors 2014–15 Amy Johnson Burton ’94, President Adam Campagna ’07 Jill Davis ’03 Nikki Grotenhuis Reed ’07 Andy Hammond ’06 Tim Harris ’02 Dawn Hay ’10 Zarah Hileman ’07 Kent Holaday ’92 Bonnie Holdrof ’89 Fenrick James ’04 Mike Kenworthy ’09 Wendy Pitts Knapp ’00 Clance LaTurner ’01 David Myers ’95 Juan Paz ’95 ’96 ’99, Past President New freshmen Mikayla Little, Alayna Wozniak, Sam Bennett, and Jamie Gilles snapped this photo Anita Kolkmeier Samuel ’98, in the rotunda of the Indiana State Capitol. The photo was their answer to one of the challenges in President-Elect the “All-In” digital competition designed by Indiana Humanities to challenge Hoosiers to “think, Matthew Redshaw ’07 read, talk, and do.” Challenges were completed by visiting such landmarks as the Soldiers & Sailors Ryan Scott ’01 Monument, Indianapolis public library, and White River State Park. The day ended with a picnic Greg Seiter ’89 and baseball game at Victory Field, where more than 200 UIndy alumni joined in the festivities. Tom Shively ’01 Michael Shurn ’71 Beenu Sikand ’99 Mike Solari ’07 24 28 Vicky Swank ’80 ’99 Homecoming 2014! Class Notes Kelly Thompson ’02 Uche Unogu ’08 A zip line down Hanna Meet Andy Kocher ’98, The magazine of the Avenue, a 5K run/walk, a the new vice president for University of Indianapolis Nick Williams ’10 parade of golf carts, classic alumni engagement, and cars, and bands, plus a read the lastest news from Jen Huber ’07 Nondiscriminatory parking lot full of tailgating your classmates. Portico Editor and Assistant Director Policies Greyhounds are waiting for Publications for you at this year’s The University of Indianapolis 37 does not discriminate on the Homecoming on October R. Peter Noot ’77 ’84 Getting involved basis of race, color, gender, age, 25. See you on campus! University Editor and with UIndy religion, ethnic or national Director for Publications 26 A night at the Indy Eleven origin, marital status, sexual soccer game, a baseball game Jeannine Allen ’10 orientation, or gender identity Sports update with 600 of UIndy’s newest Art Director and expression irrespective of The Greyhounds are gearing students, and a chance to whether the status is legally up for another great year, help on move-in day were Mary Atteberry ’07 protected. The University having garnered several some of the latest alumni Vice President for complies with the Rehab- championships and confer- activities. Check out the Communications & Marketing ilitation Act of 1973 and the ence titles last year. See upcoming events, including Americans with Disabilities Scott Hall what the teams are looking Halloween on campus and Act. This policy applies to Director of Media Relations forward to, and learn about the Dessert Diversion at the applicants and employees and the launch of the new men’s Stierwalt Alumni House. to all aspects of employment. and women’s lacrosse teams! Please send correspondence and address changes to [email protected]. WWW.UINDY.EDU 3 President’s forum Record numbers Starting the year right Another academic year is under way at UIndy. Implementation of the Vision 2030 strategic plan is progressing well. Construction of the UIndy Health Pavilion has begun. Our master’s in public health program began as well. We are close to being able to share with you a new design for our Krannert Memorial Library. We’ve hired our men’s and women’s lacrosse coaches so they can begin building their programs in preparation for our August 2015 launch. Your input and feedback has been crucial to the formation of our strategic plan. Great universities have great alumni, and I am thankful for all of your help in making our past year a success. One way that we judge the success of our work is through the alumni and friends who choose to support us with an annual gift. Giving over the past year included 4,226 donors, more than half of whom are alumni—and the number of alumni donors increased more than 5 percent over last year. Your generosity ensures that we can continue to deliver our unique education to the most worthy students. In August we welcomed our largest freshman class ever. In fact, we are now home to a record 930 freshmen from many states and countries—exceeding last year’s freshman class by nearly 150 Dr. Robert L. Manuel students. And these new freshmen represent one of the most academically qualified new classes in University President University history. The average GPA for our new freshman class is close to 3.5 on a 4-point scale, and includes 21 valedictorians and salutatorians. Almost all of our students come to us with volunteer or leadership experience, making them a nice fit with the traditions we hold dear. Our newest international students hail from Australia, Austria, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rico, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Germany, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, the United Kingdom, Yugoslavia, and Zimbabwe. Some 40 transfer students come from our sister university, Ningbo Institute of Technology, in eastern China. Over the years, you have been supportive of all our University’s efforts. UIndy continues to grow in a number of important ways, and I am hopeful that you will continue to support our work. One new way to support the University is through our new Champions Challenge. All of our athletic programs are now competing consistently on the national level. UIndy had a stellar 2013–14, with four GLVC (Great Lakes Valley Conference) team championships, 19 teams in postseason play, a national NCAA discus champion, and a Division II softball Pitcher of the Year, and a No. 4 national ranking in the Directors’ Cup—our highest ranking yet among the 312 Division II programs. We are building on this momentum with the Champions Challenge campaign (see opposite page) to invest in all our athletics facilities and programs. Our goal is to raise $500,000 to create additional direct investments in our athletics program. I hope you’ll help us meet that challenge. Robert L. Manuel 4 PORTICO FALL 2014 THE CHAMPIONS CHALLENGE: ENHANCING UINDY ATHLETICS Already known for athletic and academic excellence, the University of Indianapolis Greyhounds are seeking support to cement their status among the elite of NCAA Division II. A new one-year Champions Challenge campaign aims to generate funding for programs and capital improvements that will propel UIndy’s athletics program to the next level. An anonymous donor has pledged $250,000 toward a matching gift program, with all new unrestricted gifts of at least $25 to UIndy Athletics qualifying for a 2-to-1 match. For those who provided support last year, the 2-to-1 match also applies to any increase in unrestricted giving of at least $25. Renewed unrestricted gifts to the Greyhound Club booster organization will qualify for a 1-to-1 match. The funds will address a variety of needs. “Our student-athletes have performed extremely well in competition and in the classroom, and they deserve the best experience we can provide for them,” said Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sue Willey ’75, a Greyhound Hall of Fame athlete who was named Under Armour Division II Athletic Director of the Year for 2012–13. The Greyhounds wrapped up the 2013–14 year by placing fourth among 312 Division II institutions in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup, awarded by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics based on overall success in NCAA- sponsored championships.