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UNW Retirees Association (UNWRA)
 
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University of Northwestern Retirees Association
(UNWRA)

UNWRA Vision: to promote on-going relationships between retirees/spouses and Northwestern by providing opportunities for retirees/spouses to enhance the mission of the university.

 

UNW Mission Statement

University of Northwestern – St. Paul exists to provide Christ-centered higher education equipping students to grow intellectually and spiritually, to serve effectively in their professions, and to give God-honoring leadership in the home, church, community and world.

Vision Statement

Because of God's compelling love, we will teach wisdom and understanding to reach all nations for Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:14, Proverbs 1:7, Matthew 28:19

President Cureton
Announces Plans to Step Down

Dr. Alan Cureton, president of the University of Northwestern-St. Paul (UNW) and Northwestern Media, announced his intention to step down as chief executive in the coming months. Cureton, who became Northwestern’s eighth president in January 2002, will serve in his current capacity until the board of trustees appoints a successor, likely in the summer of 2022. Thank you, Dr. Cureton and Gayle, for serving UNW faithfully for the past 20 years! Read more about Dr. Cureton's time at UNW here:

https://bit.ly/3y2LOfu

Dr. Alan Cureton announced that University of Northwestern and Northwestern Media has collectively raised over $170 million in gifts and pledges since 2014! Learn more about what these funds have accomplished in the last seven years here: https://bit.ly/3IuYfFu
Congratulations to Caleb Hustedde and Emily Compaan for their Irene Ryan Nominations with KCACTF. (Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival). Caleb was nominated for his role as Peter Pan and Emily was nominated for her role as Tinker Bell in "Peter Pan, A Musical Adventure"!
UNW Volleyball legend Sydney Schwitters accepted her The NCCAA Player of the Year award at the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) banquet in Ohio to cap off her incredible career! 👏
Watch her award acceptance here: https://bit.ly/30Sx3iW
News from Dr. Janet Sommers

FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS 

Jonathon Bartsch contributed to two insurance-related articles that were published on a popular finance website: Best and Cheapest Car Insurance for High-Risk Drivers | MoneyGeek.com and How You Can Get Same-Day Car Insurance | MoneyGeek.com. 

Wendy Burgett-Richards, Co-President of Minnesota Academy of Reading (MAR), along with the MAR executive board, sent their members and members of the Minnesota Reading Association a survey focusing on the impact COVID-19 had on their teaching in their context and on their students, teaching practices, tools, and future instructional strategies. Respondents (largely P-12 literacy educators) participated by identifying the resources and tools they utilized and by expressing the ways their literacy instruction shifted, along with their plans to continue integrating the new tools or strategies they learned from teaching during the pandemic. 

Five of Brianna Flavin’s poems were published in October in Radar Poetry: "FIRST SNOWS," "POSTPARTUM," "MOLLUSK & SPIDER," "OAK AS DUIR" and "SPIDER." Brianna was a finalist for their Coniston Prize. 

Dale Lemke served as guest co-editor for a special edition (Fall 2021) of Christian Education Journal on “Technology in Ministry During a Time of Pandemic.” 

Ruth McGuire was appointed by the ACL Board to serve as the Conference Presentation Coordinator for 2021-2024. The Association of Christian Librarians (ACL) is an international organization that fosters the integration of faith and the library profession. Planning for the 2022 annual conference is already underway. 

Matt Miller presented at the national convention of the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) in New Orleans, Louisiana, on November 18, 2021. His paper title was “Paul B. Anderson and the 1956 Delegation of US Church Leaders to Moscow.” 

Jordan Monson wrote a piece for Christianity Today, which is one of the cover package articles. https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2021/december/jewish-construction-worker-jesus-vocation-profession-stone.html. 

Anna Rask presented her paper "A Comparative Analysis of the Wilderness Complaint Stories in Light of the Uniqueness of Numbers 20:1-13" at the Evangelical Theological Society in Fort Worth, TX, in November 2021. 

Walter Schultz has two new publications: “Contingency in the Late Metaphysics of Jonathan Edwards” Jonathan Edwards Studies 11.2 (2021), 117-146; and “Edwards and Kant on God’s End in Creation,” in Jonathan Edwards and Germany. Rhyss Byzzant (ed.) Göttingen, Germany: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht Verlage, 2021), 133–148. 

Boyd Seevers co-presented a paper with UNW students Gabrielle Lingenfelder and Kelsey Kuball at the annual conference of the Near East Archaeological Society in Fort Worth, TX, in November. Their paper was entitled, “New Archaeological Evidence about Israelite Religious Practice in Iron Age II.” Gabrielle presented her portion via Zoom from Canberra, Australia. 

In October James Smith spoke on the topic "Cybersecurity in 2021" to the Lake Elmo chapter of the Civil Air Patrol. He also will be leading a free study group for students on Thursday evenings in spring semester on the topic Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP). The goal is for attendees to become CISSP certified prior to graduation in May. 

STUDENT/ALUMNI NEWS 

Congratulations to Elijah Hager ’22, baritone, for winning first place in the Minnesota Sings Vocal Competition in the 21 and over division. Hager received a cash prize along with other gifts, including a recording session with Garage recording studios. Contestants were judged on vocal and presentation skills, audience response, judge’s overall impression of the performance, and choice of material. 

Chenue Her ’13, Media Production major, became anchor on Good Morning Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa, earlier this month. As morning anchor with WOI-TV Local 5 News, Chenue became the first Hmong male news anchor in the United States. Previously he worked with WXIA-TV in Atlanta, Georgia, and with KEZI-TV in Eugene, Oregon. 

Several students from the voice studio of Professor Carol Eikum placed in the 2021 virtual National Association of Teachers of Singing student auditions. Joy Jasik, Linnea Lee, and Emma Davis were semi-finalists, and Joy and Emma each went on to win 3rd place in their respective classes. 

Congratulations to the music students who were selected to the MMEA Intercollegiate Honor Band. These students will perform at the Minneapolis Convention Center on February 19, 2022: Kallie Kreutz, flute; Emily Vold, clarinet; Elaina Carsten, tenor saxophone; and Arn Huizinga, trombone. 

Carson Mithelman ’20, Media Production—Film major, worked as health and safety production assistant for Nope, Jordan Peele’s newest movie, scheduled for a July 2022 release. Mithelman is currently working with Daisy Jones & The Six, an Amazon Prime series produced by Reese Witherspoon under her Hello Sunshine production company. Based on Taylor Jenkins Reid’s bestselling 2019 novel of the same name, the 13-episode series is expected to release in 2022. 

Peter Paulson, Andrew Skoglund, and Grace Watkins presented their research project “Genetics Analysis of Antibiotic Production in Pseudomonas sp.” at the Tiny Earth Winter Symposium on December 3. This international event is designed to showcase student research presentations as well as engage the community in learning more about antibiotic resistance and the science of discovery. 

John Screnock ’06, Biblical Studies major, wrote a chapter in Part III, The Septuagint and Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Screnock is Research Fellow in Hebrew Bible at University of Oxford and was recently appointed to Tutor in Old Testament at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Screnock has taught Old Testament, Dead Sea Scrolls, Hebrew, and Ugaritic at Oxford. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Toronto. 

Astri Swendsrud ‘04, Art major, has an exhibition titled The Receivers on view at Irenic Projects in Pasadena through December 18, 2021. Swendsrud’s sculptures and paintings are arranged in the entrance hallways and sanctuary of Missiongathering Church in Pasadena, a space shared with Irenic Projects that aims to create an exhibition space that intersects religious, political, and cultural imagination. 

Cellist Ingrid Tverberg ’24 was awarded the Senior Division Givens Violins Gift Certificate Winner in the Minnesota Chapter of the American String Teachers Association Mary West Solo Competition. Ingrid performed in the Winners' Recital on November 14 at the University of Minnesota. 

Alumna Kourtney White '19, Media Production - Film & Video Track, recently landed a job with Apple TV in Los Angeles, California. 

Share your story with UNWRA!

Have you taken a trip recently, volunteered with some organization, or reached a significant milestone?

Send your photos and captions to tkowalik@unwsp.edu and I will post them on the next UNWRA eNewsletter.


UNWRA Website is NOW Live via the unwsp.edu website!

Retirees can navigate on the website by selecting “Resources” and then “Retiree Resources”.
You can access the UNWRA home page directly with this URL - https://unwsp.edu/unwra

Take a tour of our website. Let us know what you think. We want to expand the website with useful information. Send suggestions to tkowalik@unwsp.edu
New Opportunities to serve in UNWRA

Have you considered volunteering for one of the UNWRA committees? Now is the perfect time to help grow the organization. We are in the early stages of developing the following committees:
 

Committees

  • Program: Arranges for luncheon speakers and handles logistics of luncheon.
  • Membership: Recruits new members and manages membership database.
  • Nominating: Proposes slate of officer and Board candidates for the membership.
  • UNWRA Cares: Provides support to spouses and families grieving a death or coping with hospitalization or disability.
  • UNWRA History: Compiles and organizes material for an annual UNWRA contribution to the University Archives.
  • Prayer: Shares prayer requests with membership.

Email tkowalik@unwsp.edu to inform of us of the committee you would like to join. Working together, we can build a stronger UNWRA!

 
Having your correct email address on file is crucial for us to keep you informed!
 
Help Spread the Word About UNWRA

We want every University of Northwestern retiree to be included in the UNWRA but we need your help in getting the word out. Sometimes our initial contact information is incorrect or obsolete. Would you be willing to help us update our database by contacting former UNW colleagues you know personally to see if they are receiving and reading the UNWRA eNewsletter? A simple phone call or email to them would be appreciated. Click on the icons below to share  this eNewsletter with colleagues. We don't want anyone to miss out. Send any email updates to Tim Kowalik at tkowalik@unwsp.edu.
 
Want to find other UNWRA members
contact information?


Use the link below:

Access to the UNWRA Digital Directory


 



LInk to KTIS Prayer Works site:

https://nwm.onlineprayerworks.com/ktis/prayers
Past Issues of UNWRA eNewsletter Available

Read past issues of the UNWRA eNewsletter. Click on
Read eNewsletter in your browser.  Click on the Past Issues tab in the upper left-hand corner of this eNewsletter. Catch up on all the news from previous issues.
Stay Connected
Please update your contact information so we can send you future announcements. 

Send updates, questions or comments to:
Tim Kowalik
UNWRA President

tkowalik@unwsp.edu
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