The Tack wishes to celebrate those who are retiring from their career at Buena Vista University (BVU). Check out the Q&A section below to see what each retiree had to say about their experiences at BVU.

BOB FERGUSON

How many years have you worked at BVU?
I started in the fall of 1985

How many positions have you held?
Professor of Psychology and Director of Academic Assessment

What will you miss most about BVU?
The personal connections with students and colleagues. BVU is truly composed of really interesting people and I’ll miss daily interactions with all those students and colleagues.

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
Most memorable came shortly after I arrived and I was still a very junior faculty member. A student doing research in one of my courses decided, without telling me, to substitute 190 proof Everclear for beer in an experiment, leading to some very “interesting” behavior by the participants in the study. Thank goodness I had an understanding boss and no IRB or I never would have made it to the next year!

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
There are two, both involving BVU’s Wythe Award. The first came in 1991, when I had the pleasure of presenting that year’s award to Dr. Marilyn Wikstrom, a professor of education and published poet. Marilyn was the first woman recipient and, tragically, passed away from cancer a few years later. Though I never talked directly with her about it, I’ve always thought the recognition by her colleagues represented by the award must have been of some comfort to Marilyn. The second memory is much more recent, coming in 2011 when I had the chance to watch a colleague and former student, Dr. Wind Goodfriend, receive her Wythe Award. Although she was a student of mine, I can claim no credit for her accomplishments. Instead, it was clear from the moment she first set foot on campus before her freshman year that Dr. Goodfriend was on a fast track to success, declaring that henceforth she wanted to be known as Wind. I recall her explaining that she liked the word because it evokes a sense of freedom and energy, traits that are undoubtedly part of the reason she received the Wythe Award.

PHYLLIS CARADINE

How many years have you worked at BVU?
13 1/2 years

How many positions have you held?
Three—Institutional Advancement Office Manager, Alumni Director Pro Team, and Assistant to Vice President for Institutional Advancement

What will you miss most about BVU?
My co-workers and the BVU community

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
Being involved with all the American Heritage Lecture events—-especially Colin Powell

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
I enjoyed coming to work each day, so it’s all a favorite memory.

LANNY GRIGSBY

How many years have you worked at BVU?
53 years

How many positions have you held?
I coached football, basketball, and baseball. Also, I taught mathematics at Buena Vista.

What will you miss most about BVU?
The interaction with students. They have bright ideas, and some foolish ones also.

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
Listening to Margaret Thatcher in Schaller Chapel

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
Winning the first NCAA overtime football game at Carroll College, Wis.

PATSY DONOVAN

How many years have you worked at BVU?
I have worked for BVU for 19 years.

How many positions have you held?
I held three positions: Office Manager, Site Director, Regional Director.

What will you miss most about BVU?
I retired on March 31 and I miss the amazing staff that I worked with, the faculty members, and especially the students.

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
The most important day of the year for most of us is graduation. That day is filled with amazement and joy to watch our students, with the challenges many of them had in life, process across that stage to greet President Moore.

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
I had an opportunity to deliver a diploma to a student in a ceremony in her home as she requested. Her father was ill and near death and would not be able to attend the graduation ceremonies in Storm Lake. I was honored to have that day with her and her family.

CAROL LYTLE

How many years have you worked at BVU?
I have worked at BVU for 12 years. I came in June 2001.

How many positions have you held?
I have had just one position: Director of Career Services.

What will you miss most about BVU?
I will miss so many wonderful, talented students I’ve had the privilege of working with. I will miss those one-on-one meetings with students where I’ve not only guided them through the nuts and bolts of a resume or a cover letter, but also helped them believe that they have the “right stuff” to succeed. I’ll miss seeing many of them when they return as alums for events like the Career Symposium. I’ll miss the people I work with obviously, both in my office and all across campus, and I’ll miss being part of the Student Affairs family. I’ve always been proud to represent BVU in my meetings with other Career Services professionals, and I’ll miss that. I’ll miss the intellectually stimulating nature of my day-to-day work environment, which I try not to take for granted.

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
As was written in the BVU News recently, my very first presentation for a group of students was “Senior Meeting” – an hour presentation for all seniors where I talked to graduating seniors about how our office can assist them in their job search. The meeting was at 10:00 a.m. on September 11, 2001, just one hour after the planes hit the World Trade Center. Some students came to the meeting knowing about it and some didn’t. I made an announcement at the beginning of the meeting, hurried through a few things and dismissed everyone. Related to that, I was looking forward to having Madeleine Albright on campus a few days later for the American Heritage Lecture, but she had to speak to us via satellite because she wasn’t allowed to travel.

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
Wow, I have a lot of favorite memories. One of them has to be my AWOL trip to Puerto Rico with Ken Meissner and President Moore and seven students in 2002. We helped at an orphanage and cleaned up a Presbyterian campground; I had my first rice and red beans and plantains. It was a week of fun and service that I’ll never forget.

STEVE HERRON

How many years have you worked at BVU?
Started in summer 2001, so almost 12 years

How many positions have you held?
Two. First job was Manager of Advancement Communications, then Assistant Director of University Marketing and Communications (my current position)

What will you miss most about BVU?
Working with students, alumni, and faculty to learn about their success stories, and then getting that good news to area news media. My wife has worked at BV for 37 1/2 years. Over that period of time we have regularly attended campus events (ACES, athletic events, etc) and I have gotten to know many current and retired faculty and coaches, as well as alumni who worked in her office when they were students. After starting to work at BVU, I soon discovered why she found it so enjoyable to be part of the campus community.

What is a memorable event that you experienced while here?
Working behind the scenes on program scripts for the William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture Series has always been an enjoyable part of my job. The 2001 American Heritage program in which former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was the speaker is among the most memorable because the terrorist attacks on 9/11 forced her to cancel her trip to Storm Lake and instead give her Sept. 14 lecture from Washington, D.C. via an interactive satellite link.

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
As a writer for BVU, I have done a lot of interviews with students and alumni and have always been impressed by the goals that students set for themselves and how they go on to achieve them not only during their time on campus, but as they have success in their chosen careers. So my favorite memories are actually a collage of all of those student/alumni success stories.

DONNA SCHONEBOOM

How many years have you worked at BVU?
23 years

How many positions have you held?
I have essentially held two positions, both in the President’s Office. I was hired as Executive Assistant to the President and later became “Assistant to the President.”

What will you miss most about BVU?
I will miss the people with whom I’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with: students, faculty, staff, trustees, and some high profile people who’ve been to campus such as the William W. Siebens American Heritage lecturers.

What is a memorable event that you experienced while here?
Probably one of the most memorable events was 1994 when Margaret Thatcher was the American Heritage lecturer. Justice Harry Blackmun and his wife came for that event and I was able to spend time with them in the President’s Office.

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
I have a lot of memories, but my overall memory will be the wonderful opportunity I’ve had to work for a great president and first lady and to interact with such dedicated trustees and their spouses.

JANET MCCLURE

How many years have you worked at BVU and how many positions have you held?
I started at a part-time position, 30 hours a week, in accounts payable in April of 1990. I worked part time for about two weeks and then I became the “Cashier” in the Business Office. I have stayed cashier for the last 23 years. My last day at BVU was May 3rd.

What will you miss most about BVU?
I will miss being a part of the BVU community. We were like one big family. I loved being a part of our students’ lives. I felt like I was their mom and I enjoyed hearing what was happening in their lives. I truly cared about them and their success. The Business Office staff will always be dear to me, too. We all worked and cared about each other and made a great team. This is the reason I stayed in the position as the cashier. I got to know all the employees and students and be a part of everyone’s life.

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
There are so many to mention. I will always remember the fun our office had decorating for birthdays. You never knew what you would find. I had a Bob the Builder cake one year because my husband and I remodel homes. I had a Hawaiian themed party when I went with the jazz band in 2004 to Hawaii, and look out for those big birthdays (like turning 50). That is when the wheel chair and walkers came out. On my last day of work, my desk was decorated again with streamers, balloons, and clever signs and those crazy swimming suits from the Hawaiian theme party surfaced again. You never wanted to get your picture taken because it they would always pop up when you least expected it.

Another great memory was helping to serve the Christmas Dinners. It was so fun to see all the students dress up that night and enjoy the Christmas spirit. I loved the school plays and concerts too.

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
I think my favorite memory is just seeing students come in as freshman and mature into responsible citizens. BVU is such a great institution where our students learn so much and go out and get great jobs. Having alumni keep in touch and stop by after several years really meant a lot to me. I will always look back with fond memories and feel so fortunate to have been part of this great place.

LAVONDA HERRON

How many years have you worked at BVU?
37 1/2 years

How many positions have you held?
One, but I have been located in four different places.

What will you miss most about BVU?
The students

What is a memorable event that you remember while here?
Spending time at pizza parties with work-study students

What is your favorite memory from your time here?
The opening of Siebens Forum

Pictures of Donna Schoneboom, Bob Ferguson, Lavonda Herron, and Steve Herron by Tyson Domingo
Picture of Lanny Grigsby courtesy of the BVU website
Picture of Carol Lytle courtesy of Carol Lytle
Picture of Janet McClure courtesy of Janet McClure

If you would’ve told me a year ago that I would miss Buena Vista University (BVU) when it came time to graduate, I probably would’ve laughed at you. I definitely was not going to miss going to school here or many people. This is mostly because, for a large part of my time at BVU, I haven’t really felt like a part of the school. More specifically, I haven’t always felt truly connected to the people here. I’ve spent much of time alone, shied away from social and school activities, and I wasn’t ever as involved as I could’ve or should’ve been.

Those of you who know me know that I’m a bit eccentric and kind of flat out weird. I admit to being both. I’ve found that very few people here share many of my personal interests or care about some of the same things I do. This has always been frustrating for me and one of the main sources of my discontent while being here.

However, in the past few months, I’ve found that I really will miss BVU and several of the people here. What, you may ask, has changed? I have discovered that I don’t need to find people who share all or really any of my interests in order to connect with them and enjoy their company. I’ve found out that there’s a more fundamental, basic connection that unites us as human beings.

It’s the kind of connection that allows us to share jokes and stories with complete strangers, makes videos go viral on YouTube, that enables us to understand each other without even saying words and helps us to feel both each other’s deep pain and immense joy. It’s always there; we just may not always be aware of it. This connection has helped me see that it’s not about whether someone also enjoys talking about the endangerment of losing civil liberties, alternative energy, animal rights, or U.S. foreign policy. It’s about relating to someone on a very real, common, ever-present, human level. It’s what community is all about.

This doesn’t mean that, all of a sudden, cold, distant, complete strangers all became my closest of friends. That’s far from true. It does, however, mean that I was able to share time, food, laughter, and, most importantly, part of myself, with people I would’ve never expected. It can be so easy to focus on the differences we have. I should know because I did just that for a really long time.Yet, we share more than we realize and we should be really thankful for that.

I really wish I would’ve figured this out sooner, as it would’ve made my time here much more enjoyable. However, I’m certainly glad I didn’t leave without finding it out at all, because I think I’ve made more friends, acquaintances, and good memories in this short period of time than I would have had I not.

So if I as a not-as-wise-as-I-think-I-am senior could share what tiny tidbit of knowledge upon which I’ve just so happened to stumble upon these past four years (which, as incredibly cliché as it sounds, really seemed like a blink of an eye), it would be to find that basic, human connection with the community and the people around you, ESPECIALLY those who are “not like you” or don’t share your interests. I can assure you that you’ll be happier for it.

Photo by David Ekstrom

As the year comes to an end, I think back on SDP’s history. We have had many struggles to overcome and many changes have come to the department. Currently we don’t have an official director, but soon this will change. SDP will be different once again. However as one of the members of the graduating class I feel the need to share some of the stories that have led us to be where we are today. One of them is being invited to the Scholarship Recognition dinner.

Upon arriving on campus my freshman year I quickly learned that as a Multicultural Scholarship Recipient I was not going to be part of the prestigious dinner and I would also would not be considered to have a prestigious scholarship. A former student wrote an opinion article criticizing the scholarship, my scholarship. However, this writer forgot to mention that the scholarship comes with a lot of expectations. Recipients from my class and the younger generations are required to hold executive positions within SDP ant to also be involved with organizations outside of SDP. Most of us are busy and involved students who are contributing to the campus without much recognition. Last year, this lack of recognition lead some of us to begin to write letters to President Moore in order to find out why Multicultural Scholars were not invited.

It is my understanding that those who are invited get to meet their sponsor. However, my scholarship does not have specific sponsors. This is why in previous years recipients of this scholarship have not been invited to the dinner.

Long story short, somehow we got invited to the dinner without having to send President Moore any of the letters. One of our biggest reasons for writing the letters and requesting to be invited was to finally receive some of the recognition that we deserve. Thus being invited to this dinner became an important landmark in our SDP journey, especially to Multicultural Recipients.

The recent scholarship dinner for some unknown reason failed to recognize with accuracy most recipients. I am not aware that this was done intentionally. Though, upon seeing that most of my fellow scholarship were not listed it left me upset. I felt insulted that we have been fighting to be recognized for our hard work and there were people listed to have the Multicultural Scholarship when in fact they did not have such scholarship. They were also being misrepresented and they were not being given the proper recognition.

SDP has had many changes throughout its history; many periods of uncertainty have come along in this journey. Thus, as I begin to prepare myself to leave this place and SDP, I can only hope that the battles we have fought for, such as the one described above, will not be forgotten by SDP members or the rest of campus. I can only hope that the generations staying behind will continue to fight for the recognition they deserve.

And just like that, another school year is in the books. Amazing how fast it goes, really. I can’t wait to get out on the golf course or in the water somewhere. A HUGE thanks to everyone that has read these blogs, day after day, week after week. After the end of the year, you know you have to count down the top plays. So here are my Top Five plays of this school year. Obviously I’m biased toward basketball because I was there. Any problems can be taken up with my agent.

FIVE – BVU Men’s Tennis with best season since 1997- The Beavs finished fourth in the regular season conference standing and finished fifth overall after the conference tournament. I’ll be the first one to tell you, the amount of heart, determination, and sheer will these guys displayed on the court was nothing short of phenomenal. I mean, how often do you see six guys that treat every match like it’s the French Open? It was something special. Honorable mention goes to my dude Kyle Weeden when I watched him play the six spot in an epic battle against Luther. I swear I watched him for 10-15 minutes and did not see him score a single point. Now if that doesn’t get you going, you better check your pulse.

FOUR – BVU Men’s Basketball wins the Conference Title- Two moments stick out in my mind about the basketball season this year. The first was Wes Nordquist absolutely dominating future “Conference MVP” Tyler Wedemeier in Sieben’s Fieldhouse. I remember sitting next to the bench at the beginning of the game, and Joe Frost says to me, “Who is Conference MVP?” I immediately replied, “Wes, no question.” He then said, “I don’t know, Wedemeier. Kinda good.” I then said, “We’ll see.” Wes went on to have 21 and 10 in 23 minutes. We also won by 30. The next memory is Mike Kaufmann hitting the game winner at Simpson, where only a year before, he had made the dumbest foul I had ever seen. Redemption in its sweetest form. I asked Mike how he felt after the game. His response, “I wonder if Norris Cole has heard of me now.”

THREE – BVU JV Men’s Basketball- C’mon, just the title tells you something big is coming. I must speak about two things. The first is the rim rattling fury that is Tyler Kastintin at Dordt College. Just the night before we had invented the Sunday SeshTM where T-Kast began rising and found his true calling: Punishing the rim of the basket. The opening tip was directed toward Tyler. He caught the ball at the top of the key. Turned to drive down the lane and found an opening. What happened next I did not expect. Number 3 took flight and sent the ball through the hoop with outstanding force and an emphatic, “MYYYYYYY HOUSEEEEEEE.” Before that point, I had not known T-Kast formerly lived in Sioux Center. Nice. Honorable mention here is Cole Darrow (finally) throwing down a big jam against Dubuque at home in the last game of the year. I remember I was sick for that game but I was watching the live stream. I remember saying, “Dats right, Cole!” The other JV moment that stands out is Sam Lipps (@SlippyBeaver) scoring 21 second-half points at Briar Cliff. He was not afraid to let it go; he didn’t care what the haters said. Personally, I’ve never seen anyone with worse field goals attempted to assist ratio. It’s literally impressive.

TWO – BVU Softball makes the Conference Tournament- One of the more intense battles I’ve seen on the diamond in a while. Both Loras and BV playing for their spot (the last spot) in the conference tournament this year. Backs against the wall, the Beavs had just surrendered the first game in the top of the 6th by giving the Duhawks (What’s a Duhawk?) three runs to win 3-2. The second game of the double header was nothing short of a primetime drama on TNT (They know drama). With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, bases loaded, down 3-0, Brooke Berkey came to the plate and swung at the first pitch. The rest is history. (Pause) Ok, that’s not how it went down, and if it was, how could this only be number two on the list? It was a really exciting and intense game in which the Beavers prevailed. Gatorade baths all around.

ONE – J Hen goes 88- A beautiful Saturday of college football in Storm Lake, Iowa. What more can you ask for? I think this was the best play of this school year. Here’s the setting: Beavers deep in their own territory against Luther and needed a big play. “Hometown” Bobby Brown takes the snap and begins to drop. He realizes (freshman) Jalen Henningsen has man coverage on the outside. Bob looks left and lofts the ball perfectly about 35-40 yards down the sideline. By this time, Henningsen has a step on his man and begins to look back for the ball. He knows if he catches this, he’s gone. With no safety in sight, J Hen corrals the ball and begins his dash to the goal. Fortunately, I had a timer in hand when he caught the ball at the 50 yard line. I pressed start and stopped it as he crossed the goal line. 3.34 seconds. I kept this to myself all this time. Now maybe I’ll be able to sleep at night. The crowd was going crazy, and it was definitely the most memorable play for me this year. Hopefully next year we can see a lot more of the same.

Well jeez, I guess this is it. Hopefully they let me do this again next year. It’s been a blast. Have a fantastic summer everyone. Thanks so much for all your feedback, comments, and chuckles. Remember to follow @Gdeuce1two! Peace out!

#MuchLove

Photo by Makensie Brown

The academic advisors at Buena Vista University (BVU) always have their advisees best interest in mind, but they may not always be knowledgeable in certain interest areas. This is the why the second advisor policy was created. One hundred and fifty-two students are currently taking advantage of the policy.

“The idea behind the second advisor policy is to ensure that every student has access to an advisor that is completely knowledgeable in the major that the student is working towards,” Associate Dean of Faculty Peter Steinfeld said. “The program really started with the transfer students. Faculty members that might not necessarily be in the field that the students are in were running the transfer seminars. There was some of the transfer students that didn’t have adequate advising in their major.

The policy was put into effect late October 2011, but not all students initially knew about it. The policy was initially focused on transfer students. They were to work with the instructor of University Seminar,as well as with someone within their major. Steinfeld says this is because transfer students already have part of their schooling done and are closer to graduation.

“The transfer students are in the situation where they are trying to get through programs quicker because they only have two or three years left. Some may only have one. We need to make sure they get all the courses they need,” Steinfeld said.

The University Seminar instructors have the same situations with indirect advising. The incoming freshmen may be placed in a seminar that is not necessarily part of their major; they may chose to take a particular course because of a different interest, which is what is encourage with the program.

“In order to ensure that every student has adequate advising in their major, we wanted to ensure that they also have access to a second advisor. So every student on the Storm Lake campus has access to one,” Steinfeld said. “They can choose and change the second advisor as much as they would like with the appropriate form. All it takes is going and asking that person if they are will to do it. They should explain to them what their interest and their career plans are.”

The rules for the primary advisor are stricter for the transfer and first-year students. The transfer students are required to stay with their seminar instructor for their first semester. After that, they are welcome to change to anybody else or can pick up a second advisor.

As for the incoming first-years, they are required to stay with their university seminar instructor for the first whole year. The second advisor can be added at any time.

“I do think that we need to promote it more, and I do think that is why there was questions arising. It was clear that there wasn’t enough,” Steinfeld said. “We promoted it pretty well with the transfer students, but not so well with the rest of campus. We just need to do more to make sure everybody knows what is going on.”

Every year, the graduating class donates a gift to the campus community. In the past, there have been gifts such as the clock in the Buena Vista University (BVU) forum and the beaver outside the Siebens Fieldhouse. The graduating class of 2013 has decided that their gift to the university will be a fire pit located outside of the Outdoor Recreation House.

“The senior gift for the class of 2013 is a fire pit, seating area, and hopefully grilling area behind the Outdoor Rec House. We’re talking about a full patio with stone fire ring in the middle and built in stone/cement seating surrounding it. Then if we have enough remaining funds we also hope to sink a BBQ into the patio, similar to the ones between Pierce and the field,” one of the leaders of the senior project Justus Harris said.

Four students, including Harris, were nominated to be chairs of the senior class campaign. These seniors are Seth Lindokken, Cassie Sinclair, and Kylie Swanson. They were the first to begin brainstorming what to give as a gift to the university.

Lindokken explained there were several facilities and steps to go through when working on the final decision.

“We had to work with Facilities, Student Affairs, and check with local authorities to make sure that our idea would be in compliance with local ordinances,” Lindokken said.

The chairs also made goals for how much their class should raise for the campaign.

According to the BVU website, the senior class campaign goal this year is to raise $2,500 and have a 100 percent participation rate.

The BVU website also continued to explain how Bernie Saggau, graduate of Storm Lake class of 1949, pledged to match each donation with his own donation of $25. ]

After several sessions of brainstorming amongst the co-chairs of the Senior Campaign, they had to look through several ideas and decide how much money needed to be raised and was available to the team. The co-chairs then had to take their ideas to faculty and staff.

Harris commented on the other steps the students had to take after approaching the faculty and staff.

“We then took a handful of ideas we came up with and all asked people we know what they thought of them, as well as input from faculty and staff. After much deliberation, we landed on the fire pit/gathering area because we thought it would get the most use, it would draw more people to that area of campus, and it was a great way to add to the beauty of BVU’s campus,” Harris said.

Nine more seniors took part in the project as team leaders. These seniors included Kyle Auffert, Brian Broll, Dominique Daily, Rachel Held, Whitney Nelson, Tyler Reed, Jarrod Roth, Troy Ticknor, and Meg Williams. Senior Keyla Calles Sosa was also involved in the publicity for the campaign.

Graphic by Keyla Sosa