April 2008 Development Newsletter

Article Body: SIFE Team Set for National Competition in Chicago May 13-15. It is crunch time for our 2006 National Champion, second-in-the-World Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team. They were named Regional Champions in March and are headed to Chicago to compete with 142 teams from across the country - the winner goes to the World Cup this fall in Singapore. They have been named Regional Champions 9 out of the last 10 years. For details, visit http://www.sife.org/. To view the team's annual report, go to www.graceland.edu/sife. The Graceland Alumni Board of Directors will host a reception in Chicago for the team to network with area alumni.

Invest in Us. Director Andy Simpson and the team invite Kansas City-area Gracelanders to 'Invest in Us' at a special reception/fundraiser from 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m., Friday, May 2, at our Independence, MO, Campus, 1401 W. Truman Road. Visit www.gusife.org/investinus.html for details and to RSVP. The team will give their 2008 competition presentation and SIFE students will be on hand to talk about projects they have worked on this year. The event is being held to raise funds for the SIFE team's continued success and efforts to change the world. Bring a friend and introduce them to Graceland University SIFE.

Sandage Center Hosts 17^th Annual Entrepreneurial Roundtable. The Sandage Center for the Study of Free Enterprise and Entrepreneurship and the SIFE team held their 17^th Annual Entrepreneurial Roundtable on our Lamoni Campus on April 10. Students, faculty, and staff worked together with community members, alumni, and successful entrepreneurs exploring many issues, including Lamoni community economic development. Johnny Huntsman '62 was keynote speaker and shared the inspiring story of how he built up a pizza restaurant empire in Louisiana. Johnny and his wife, Sharon, funded the new artificial field-turf last summer for Graceland's football field. View a photo gallery of the event at Entrepreneurial Roundtable and read more at SIFE on the Move.

SIFE Team Publishes Entrepreneurial Spirit Newsletter. This year's edition is titled WorldView and is available online at http://www.gusife.org/spirit.html. WorldView features writers Andy Simpson, SIFE Director of the Sandage Center; Sherri Kirkpatrick, Vice President of Graceland's Independence Campus; Richard Webb, founder and CEO of ProWorld; Dave Heinze, Graceland's Campus Minister; and two current SIFE students, Abraham Forth and Kirk Tabor.

Commencement 2008 Activities Set for May 16-18. The time draws near for another well-prepared, soundly-educated Graceland graduating class to transition from students to alumni. Commencement is a very special time when all Gracelanders wish graduates good luck as they take their "Graceland Experience" out to make their mark in the world. The Nursing Recognition Ceremony comes first at 7 p.m., Friday, May 16, in The Stone Church Sanctuary in Independence, MO. Baccalaureate takes place at 7 p.m., Saturday, May 17, in The Shaw Center for the Performing Arts, on the Lamoni Campus. David '73 and Carolyn Brock will share in the service. David is Presiding Evangelist and Carolyn is Spiritual Life Ministries Specialist with the Community of Christ. The President's Reception will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday in the Memorial Student Center Main Room. The annual Candle Lighting Ceremony will be at 9 p.m. Saturday on the Alumni Brick Plaza in front of the Higdon Administration Building. Commencement takes place in the Eugene E. and Julia Travis Closson Athletic Center at 10 a.m. Sunday, May 18. Iowa Congressman Leonard Boswell '55 will be Commencement speaker. Hope you can join us for these annual rites of passage.

No Time to Lose With the Science Building "Extreme Makeover." Monday, May 19, the day after Commencement, the mammoth task of emptying the classrooms, offices, and labs of the Platz-Mortimore Science Hall will begin - the first step of a 15-month, complete renovation of the 1956 structure. Everything will be new when interior demolition, construction, and move-in are completed by the projected goal of the fall of 2009. Interim Facility Services Director Kurt Remmenga said the Science Building Task Force has been working hard with architects Gould-Evans to fine-tune the plan for the "Extreme Makeover." Plumbing, heating and A/C, electrical, ventilation, offices, labs, classrooms ... everything will be new. "The shell of the building may be old, but we are going to have a state-of-the-art science building," Remmenga said. Science and Math Division Chair Dan Pratt and his colleagues are revving up for the 2008-09 academic year when classrooms, offices, and labs will occupy temporary quarters all around campus. "It will be absolutely crazy, but we will work through it," Pratt said. When the 'craziness' ends, Graceland will have a beautiful new science building, one of the many results of the successful Graceland Forever Capital Campaign.

Nursing Students Attain 100% NCLEX Pass Rate - for Third Year in a Row. The accelerated option BSN students of Graceland's School of Nursing, one of the best in America, have done it again. They achieved a 100% pass rate on the National Council Licensure Exam (NCLEX). Only four of Missouri's 22 BSN programs achieved the 100% pass rate last year. GU's School of Nursing, located at our Independence, MO, campus, is the only one to do it two years in a row, and now they have done it for a third year. Andrea Garner, acting associate dean of the BSN program, couldn't be more proud of these exemplary students, many of whom have now landed hard-to-get jobs in 'specialty' nursing fields. "This shows again what a quality program Graceland provides," Andrea said. "I am extremely proud of our faculty for the outstanding leadership and education they provide our students." About the NCLEX pass rates, President John Sellars said, "I am so proud of our Nursing program! This is such an outstanding accomplishment, something that uplifts the entire Graceland community." New GU nursing classes begin in June. If you or someone you know would like to learn more about nursing education at Graceland, contact Admissions Counselor Laurie Hale at 816-833-0524, option #2. Visit School of Nursing to peruse their Web site. Don't put off planning for your future!

Homecoming 2008 Theme Announced. "Great Moments: Memories and Destinations" is the theme for this year's Graceland Homecoming. Professor Emeritus in Religion Howard Booth, left, and Professor of Sociology Bill Norman submitted the winning theme. Keep the weekend of October 10-12 reserved for our annual fall reunion. To make the weekend very special, the Inauguration of President John Sellars will also take place that weekend, with the Homecoming theme carrying over into a number of events to celebrate the arrival of President Sellars and First Lady Bette Sellars. Visit the Homecoming Web site and watch for the next issue of Horizons for details.

Christmas Card Design Contest Deadline Looms. Don't delay submitting your designs for the 2008 Fine Arts Christmas Card Design Contest. There are two categories: Graceland Themes and Christmas Designs. You can enter both categories. Winning designs will be reproduced on Christmas cards and sold at Homecoming 2008. Proceeds support fine arts scholarships and art camps. Scanned submissions in any medium (at 300 dpi) should be emailed to Randy Meline, Horizons editor: meline@graceland.edu before July 8.

Keep that Special Student in Your Life Fueled Up During Finals. A student care package (funded by parents or friends) program called Fuel for Finals was begun about 10 years ago and it is still going strong today. Graceland's International Club sponsors this great way to show your GU student you support their efforts during finals week. Go to Fuel for Finals to order a package of treats and learn more about how it works. As their web page says, "having a little fuel for finals could make all the difference."

Donor Spotlight Shines on Alberta Mae (Thomas) Hitch. Alberta Hitch, Class of 1951, wrote to us in Development recently and made a special gift. When at Graceland between 1949 and 1951, there was a glitch with her tuition payments ($1,000 was misplaced) and there was a question about whether she would be able to continue. She did babysitting and cleaned a house (she lived off campus) but could not raise enough money. Graceland stepped in and paid the $1,000 for her. She was able to graduate and she never forgot the kindness shown her. "I always appreciated that," she said in a recent phone conversation from her home in Independence, MO, "and now I am able to pay Graceland back." Alberta, who still lives at home, is a retired elementary teacher (37 years) and her husband, Charles Hitch, a retired banker, also of the Class of 1951, recently moved to The Groves in Independence after suffering a stroke. They lived many years in the Detroit area. One of their five children, Joy, attended GU in 1979. Alberta and Charles have been back to Graceland for Homecomings and they still have great memories from their time on "the Hill." Thank you, Alberta, for remembering your alma mater after more than half a century.

Participation Matters,
Event Date: 4/17/2008 2:15 PM