A Publication for Alumni and Friends SPRING ISSUE 2006

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DEAR RIO GRANDE ALUMNI, Please let me introduce myself as your very proud Interim President of the University of Rio Grande. Dr. Dorsey departed in January after 15 years of excellent service to Rio Grande. During the last 12 years I have served Rio’s faculty and students as Provost and Academic Vice President, My wife’s name is Jane (the “other Dr. Sojka”) and we are blessed with three daughters, Laura, 20; Ann, 17; and Joan, 16. My new position will enable me to meet both on and off campus with many alumni and friends of Rio Grande. Although snowflakes are flying across the sky as I am writing, spring cleaning will soon begin both in our homes and at your alma mater! Several campus improvement projects are underway this spring. Dirt will be moved and temporary inconveniences will occur, but the results will add many beautiful features to our campus to serve students, faculty, staff, alums and guests. These projects are benefiting from the current “Lighting the Way” Capital Campaign which has raised $16 million of the $21 million goal, with 18 months to conclusion. Through the generosity of Jack and Jane Kidd, their son, Larry, and daughter-in-law, Cindy, a totally renovated greenhouse will sparkle in the Kidd Math and Science Center. Other improvements, including new classroom furnishings and a comfortable lounge with wireless Internet access will also serve the many students who attend classes in this facility. Our swimming pool is undergoing a complete infrastructure renovation. Around 800 swimmers each week use the pool, and all the lifeguard training for local pools takes place at Rio Grande. We also teach swimming lessons for children and adults who fear the water. A local community group, headed by Tom Blodgett, M.D., his wife Heidi, and Naci Bozkir, M.D., has volunteered to chair the Swimming Pool Campaign to raise the money for the renovations. Another project involves the expansion of the Evan E. and Elizabeth E. Davis University Center. Cafeteria seating will increase from 350 to 500, and additional student meeting and game rooms and an open terrace will revitalize the campus core. A Great Hall and other special features will enable Rio to host larger campus and community events. The admissions staff has moved into new offices in a renovated home across from Lyne Center. The Campus Beautification Committee works hard at making our campus an even more attractive place for living and learning. I plan to join them in planting some additional perennials and annuals around the President’s Home! I had the privilege to attend several alumni meetings in Florida this February, and enjoyed meeting our friends there. This May, many former Rio Grande basketball players will participate in a “roast” hosted by Bob Leith, honoring Bernie Bickerstaff, currently head coach and general manager of the NBA Charlotte Bobcats, and his former coach, Art Lanham. Commencement will follow on May 6, with a record of 500+ graduates receiving their diplomas in a ceremony held on the Campus Green. For all the success we have had to date with the Capital Campaign, we must continue to “light the way” for future projects. Included on this list are equipping a psychology laboratory, funding an endowed faculty chair in technology, creating a simulated “trading floor” in our School of Business, and forming a School of Allied Health Sciences with a new building to follow. None of these projects can take place without your assistance. When asked, please volunteer your time, energy, and resources. Accept my sincere thanks on behalf of your alma mater. I look forward to meeting with you in the future! Dr. Gregory Sojka About the Cover: Drs. Greg and Jane Sojka are shown in the living room of the President’s Home. The home, located on the URG campus, has undergone a thorough and professional cleaning, including a repainting of both the first and second floors, carpet shampooing, and drapery cleaning. The Presidents’ Home opened in 1994. Pool Under Repair Campaign Makes Upgrades Possible More than two months ago, Rio Grande was forced to close its swimming pool located in Lyne Center. The pool, built in 1969, is in good shape structurally, but needs immediate repair of its filter, filter houses, intake pipes, and circulation pipes. When operable, the pool is used by numerous people on a regular basis, including Rio’s athletic teams who use the facility for training, conditioning and rehab, area seniors for exercise and the ease of their arthritis, and a competitive community swim team. While not an original part of the Lighting the Way Campaign, the raising of $500,000 has been undertaken by the Campaign’s leadership and a committee formed to assist in this effort. Petrea Brown Named To University Board Petrea Brown, Jackson, was named to the University of Rio Grande Board of Trustees on February 4. The wife of the late Dean S. Brown ’65, Petrea received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974, and her master’s degree in classroom teaching, also from Rio Grande, in 1995. Petrea is a teacher in the Jackson City School District, where she has taught for the past 20 years. “I go back a long way with the University. It’s been a major part of my life,” said Petrea. “I will do whatever I can (to help), wherever I can.” 2/www.rio.edu A PUBLICATION FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS SPRING ISSUE 2006
Koby Named Interim President Of Rio Grande Community College A long-time former employee of Rio Grande, Dr. Herman L. Koby, Gallipolis, has been named the interim president of Rio Grande Community College by the RGCC trustees. Dr. Koby served the institution in a number of positions between the years 1966 and 2000. In 2002, he joined the RGCC Board of Trustees, and for the past two years has served as its chairman. Koby said his new position would enable him to further define, strengthen, and solidify the relationship between the two institutions. Nursing Students Assist In Katrina Relief Service-learning project of the RN-BSN Students in Pass Christian, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina “It humbles you.” This was a statement made by nursing instructor, Kathy Carlisle, and a feeling shared by those who accompanied her, upon her return from Katrina-devastated Pass Christian, Mississippi. Four Rio nursing students organized and funded the trip, taken in late 2005, as a community service project. While in Mississippi, the group passed out food and supplies at a distribution center, and worked in a soup kitchen. The group included Sara Lash, McArthur; Sarah Deel, Gallipolis; Lacey Bunting; Gallipolis, and Danielle Thomas, Asheville; Donna Mitchell, chair of the Holzer School of Nursing; and Carlisle. These students are enrolled in the Bachelor of Science Nursing Program. Of the trip all agreed that they got more out of the experience than they gave. SPRING ISSUE 2006 Danny Goes To College Danny, a yellow labrador retriever and star of his own adventure series written for children, was accompanied by his owner, author Mia Simpson Coulton ’72, upon their visit to campus on November 30. At a luncheon hosted by the Friends of Davis Library and the URG Alumni Association, Mia, a former reading intervention specialist, and her husband Rob ’72, explained the writing process that has resulted in the publication of 26 children’s books. The Coultons reside in Shaker Heights. Dorsey Says Farewell, Undertakes New Challenge Former President Barry M. Dorsey addresses attendees at a farewell reception held in his honor. At right is Gregory Fields ’71, Chairman, URG Board of Trustees Dr. Barry M. Dorsey, immediate past president of the University of Rio Grande/ Rio Grande Community College, is now the executive director of the New College of Virginia Planning Commission in Martinsville, Virginia. Dr. Dorsey noted that the Planning Commission has worked for nearly two years to lay the groundwork for establishing a new four-year state institution in the Martinsville- Henry County region of Southern Virginia. Said Dorsey, “My initial responsibility will be to implement an evolving two-stage plan to create the institution...literally ‘from the ground up.” Dr. Dorsey continued, “I will very much miss…all of the alumni, friends, and supporters of Rio Grande. I am grateful to each of you for your work to grow and develop the institution.” A PUBLICATION FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS Kidd Family Extends Further Support To Center Major improvements to the Kidd Math and Science Center are underway, due to the extended support of the Jack Kidd Family of Jackson, Ohio. A long-time trustee of the University, Jack, and his wife, Jane, have enlisted the help of their son, Larry, and Larry’s wife, Cindy, in providing for improvements to and the upkeep of the facility. (See President’s Message, p. 2) The Center’s greenhouse is receiving new windows, cabinets, and floor, and a new watering system is being installed. New stools are being put in the labs, and new desks in the classrooms. The lobby is being redesigned to be more conducive to study, and will have wireless Internet accessibility. “We are just really enthusiastic about the University and everything it represents,” Jack Kidd said. Adds Larry, “We really believe in Rio Grande.” W. Todd Johnson ’88 Named To University Board W. Todd Johnson ’88, Gallipolis, became a member of the URG Board of Trustees during its October 2005 meeting. Todd is serving as a representative of the Alumni Board of Directors. The former accounting major is an internal controls coordinator for the Ohio Valley Bank Co. www.rio.edu/3
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A Publication for Alumni and Friends SPRING ISSUE 2006

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