The facility, expected to open in late October (2013), will allow the Zags’ tennis practices and home matches to return to campus.

SPOKANE, Wash. – Gonzaga University has begun construction of a
$6 million indoor tennis and golf center. The facility is being built on a vacant 3-acre parcel at 1220 N. Superior St., a few blocks east of campus, south of Mission Park, and near the Spokane River. The 72,000-square-foot (approximate) structure will offer six regulation tennis courts and a golf practice area.

The facility will be constructed of steel and insulated concrete with a brick facade and will include on its main floor men’s and women’s locker rooms, an athletes’ lounge, training room, and coaches’ offices, said Ken Sammons, Gonzaga’s director of plant services.  A small, second-floor area will provide for a viewing space and restrooms. Gonzaga bought the property for the project in 2007.

Walker Construction was selected as the general contractor for the project from a field of six local construction companies who submitted bids on the project. The building was designed by Gonzaga’s professional in-house architectural staff with assistance from ALSC Architects and other Spokane-based mechanical, electrical, and structural engineering firms. Gonzaga Architect Mac McCandless is architect of record for the project. Both Walker Construction and ALSC have significant project experience working for Gonzaga.

The facility, which is expected to open in late October, will allow the Zags’ tennis practices and home matches to return to campus. Gonzaga removed its tennis courts in 2008 to make room for soccer field improvements on the southwest portion of campus and has used the Spokane Racquet Club facilities since then.

For more information, please contact Peter Tormey at (509) 313-6132 or via email.

Father C. Hightower, S.J., with students. Photo by Rajah Bose.

By Natalie Nordeen
Class of 2014

SPOKANE, Wash. – Father C. Hightower, S.J., whom many students and alumni identify with most regarding Gonzaga University’s Jesuit character, will leave his post as director of University Ministry after being assigned as superior in Sacramento, Calif.  A goodbye party was held for him May 8 at the Crosby Student Center.

Fr. Hightower arrived at Gonzaga in fall 2008 after having taught at Gonzaga Prep (2004-07) and Bellarmine Prep (2007-08) in Tacoma, Wash. Gonzaga students were abuzz upon learning of Fr. Hightower’s departure. Twitter, the social media utility, became an outlet for many students to share their goodbyes to the popular Gonzaga priest.

May graduate Greg Talbott tweeted, “Late to the party, but can’t believe Fr. Hightower is leaving. One of the people who makes GU what it is. #PartyWithIntergrity.” Many others shared their favorite memories of Fr. Hightower and wished him well.

From the widely tweeted and discussed poster of him that appeared in The Gonzaga Bulletin in March with the words “I Gave Up Losing for Lent,” to his spot on the bench for the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, Fr. Hightower has become a most visible presence at Gonzaga over the years.

Junior Lauren Abrams said she and many others students would miss Fr. Hightower in the coming school year.

“Having Fr. Hightower in my freshman dorm was a really positive experience. He was a friendly, helpful Jesuit to have on campus. He really exemplified the Gonzaga spirit, and I think I can speak for the student body when I say we will all miss him next year.”

Sean Brennan, also a junior, called Fr. Hightower “a remarkable Jesuit leader who captured the true meaning of what being a Zag is all about.”

Michelle Wheatley, who served as assistant director of University Ministry the past two years, was appointed acting director. A decision on the appointment of a new director is expected this summer.

Gonzaga’s planned University Center, northeast view.

Modern, Ecologically Sustainable Center
to Transform Campus and Student Experience

SPOKANE, Wash. – Gonzaga University, concluding its 125th anniversary celebration, has formally approved plans to build a new University Center. Construction on the 167,726-square-foot, three-story facility is scheduled to begin this July.

The new Center, currently in the final design phase, will be built on the site of the existing COG and its adjacent parking lot, and is expected to be complete summer 2015. The COG – an acronym derived from the original (contrived) Latin name of the building, “Circulus Omnium Gonzagaorum,” or “Center of Gonzaga” – has served as Gonzaga’s primary student center for nearly 60 years.

“Creating a cutting-edge, contemporary center for our students is an essential part of transferring the integrative, Jesuit and Catholic educational experience for which Gonzaga has become known,” said President Thayne McCulloh. “As we look to the future, we understand what a transformational impact this facility will have for our campus. We are so grateful to the benefactors whose gifts will make this Center a reality.”

The total cost is estimated at $60 million, making it the largest-value construction project in Gonzaga’s history and one of the largest in the City of Spokane in the last decade. The University’s goal is to fund the project through private contributions and fundraising efforts, which are expected to continue through 2015. Gonzaga’s Board of Trustees formally approved the proposal in April.

Hoffman Construction, based in Portland, Ore., is the general contractor. Opsis Architecture, of Portland, is the lead design firm along with Bernardo-Wills Architects of Spokane. An estimated 1,000 local jobs will be added for on-site labor as well as approximately 500 regional jobs for off-site fabrication and administration.

Images of renderings and floor plans of the University Center can be found at gonzaga.edu/universitycenter. The planned facility includes a two-level residential dining experience and several retail dining locations, as well as the new home of University Ministry, the Center for Global Engagement, and an 800-plus seat multipurpose ballroom. Some event facilities have been designed with community use in mind.

“The new University Center will provide students and the campus with a wonderful environment for collaboration and activities that will support their social, academic and spiritual growth,” said Sue D. Weitz, vice president for Student Life at Gonzaga.

The facility will also house the new Center for Experiential Leadership, offices for student government, and a center to support the University’s 100-plus student clubs and organizations. New headquarters for the Center for Community Action and Service Learning, Unity Multicultural Education Center, and space for non-traditional and Veteran student populations are also planned.

Plans are to demolish the COG this July. The 650-stall parking garage within the new Boone Avenue Retail Center (BARC), on the corner of Boone and Hamilton, is expected to incrementally open for use starting in mid-May. Student dining services will relocate to the BARC in mid-June until construction of the University Center is complete. The Zag Shop (campus bookstore) will permanently relocate to a 16,000-square-foot, ground-level space inside the BARC.

“This project is a game-changer for Gonzaga and its students,” said Nathan Heinrichs, president of the Gonzaga Student Body Association. “Students were involved with the design, and it will provide so many more opportunities for them to interact and collaborate.”

During a “Kiss Our COG Goodbye” event May 8, the campus community and media viewed renderings of the University Center and spoke with University leaders – as well as representatives from the design-build teams – about the project. President McCulloh and project lead Executive Vice President Marty Martin shared brief remarks.

View a related story about the COG’s history.

Kelly Olynk, an All-American on the court and in the classroom, took part in Gonzaga’s commencement Sunday, May 12. GU student-athletes excelled in school this academic year as 40 percent earned at least a 3.5 GPA; 50 student-athletes made the Dean’s List (3.5-3.69 GPA) and 52 made the President’s List (3.7-4.0). 

SPOKANE, Wash. — Gonzaga University celebrated its 120th commencement exercises May 10-12. Following are briefs about the distinguished honorees, and some of the University’s outstanding graduates.  The ROTC Commissioning led the ceremonies Friday, May 10 in St. Aloysius Church. The Law School Commencement was held Saturday morning, May 11 in the McCarthey Athletic Center, featuring as keynote speaker famed defense attorney Judy Clarke, who has gained a national reputation for her superior advocacy for defendants in high-profile cases. Clarke and retired GU law Professor John Morey Maurice received honorary doctor of laws degrees. The Graduate Commencement began Saturday evening in the McCarthey Athletic Center; Rev. Peter Balleis, S.J., international director of the Jesuit Refugee Service, delivered the keynote address and received an honorary doctor of laws degree. Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh delivered the keynote address at the Senior Commencement, Sunday morning, May 12, in the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. Felix Aripa, elder of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, received an honorary doctor of laws degree at the Senior Commencement.

OUTSTANDING GRADUATES

Gabe Castellanos: A Profile in Courage

Gabe Castellanos

Blinded by a diabetic coma as a high school freshman, Gabe Castellanos came to Gonzaga from Brophy College Preparatory School in Tempe, Ariz., four years ago to study computer science. In the process he has developed his gifts of music as a guitar-playing singer and songwriter who inspires others. Castellanos was featured on an episode of the television series “The Real Winning Edge,” which features high-performing youth in arts and sports who have faced and overcome significant challenges. One of thousands of nominees, Castellanos was chosen for his musical ability to serve as a role model. A student member of Gonzaga’s Board of Regents, Castellanos received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science during the Senior Commencement on Sunday, May 12 at the Spokane Arena. In addition, he completed the Comprehensive Leadership Program, and is a member of the Multi-Cultural Honor Society and Upsilon Pi Epsilon, the international honor society for computing and information sciences. View a video of Gabe’s story.

Click the icon below to view a video of a few of Gonzaga’s outstanding senior student-athletes.

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Student-Athletes to Collect Degrees 

Mike Hart will receive his MBA on Saturday, May 11.

The 2012-13 academic year was marked by many firsts for Gonzaga, particularly in men’s basketball as the Zags achieved the school’s first No. 1 ranking, first 30-win season (32-3) and first No. 1 seed (in the West) into the NCAA Tournament in their 15th-straight trip to the Big Dance.  The women caught fire as well, earning their fifth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The inimitable Mike Hart, who shared Gonzaga’s Male Senior Athlete of the Year honors earlier this spring with Elias Harris, received a Master of Business Administration degree in the Graduate Ceremony on Saturday evening.  

Eight Gonzaga hoopsters received bachelor degrees in Senior Commencement ceremonies Sunday (May 12) at the Spokane Arena.

Kelly Olynyk, a consensus first-team All-American in basketball and a Capital One Academic All-America first-team selection, received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree. The 7-foot forward completed his undergraduate accounting major in December (2012) with a 3.53 grade-point-average and has since been working toward an MBA degree. Gonzaga is the only NCAA Division I school with two men’s basketball players who have earned both first-team All-America and first-team Academic All-America honors in the same year since 2001. Gonzaga’s Dan Dickau was the previous Zag to earn the dual honors in 2002. The others who have accomplished the feat are: Shane Battier, Duke, 2001; Emeka Okefor, Connecticut, 2004; and DJ Augustine, Texas, 2008. Olynyk burst on the scene this season after redshirting the 2012 season and re-tooling his game.  In April, Olynyk announced he would forego his final year of eligibility and enter the NBA Draft.

Center Sam Dower received a Bachelor of Arts degree, forwards Guy Landry Edi and Elias Harris each received a Bachelor of Education in Sports Management, and guard David Stockton received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. Stockton and Dower will return to play for the Zags next season and will begin graduate school. For the Zags’ women, guard Meghan Winters received a Bachelor of Arts degree, guard Taelor Karr, the WCC Player of the Year, received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and guard Haiden Palmer received a Bachelor of Education in Sports Management degree. Palmer returns for another season in the fall as well. Golfer Victoria Fallgren, Gonzaga’s Female Senior Athlete of the Year, received a Bachelor of Arts degree Sunday.  

Diplomas in the Morning, Baseball in Afternoon
Six Gonzaga baseball players picked up their diplomas Sunday morning before playing in their last home game in the afternoon; the graduates were shortstop Steven Halcomb, pitcher Tyler Olson, catcher Travis Forbes and outfielders Clayton Eslick, Billy Moon and Alex Bonczyk. The Zags clinched the WCC regular-season title May 4 with a 6-1 win over Santa Clara. They are the No. 1 seed entering the WCC Championship Tournament in Stockton, Calif., May 23-25.  Click the following link for a list of all student-athletes who graduated. 

Gamboas Have Helped Gonzaga SMILE
While Gonzaga is well known for basketball and academics, students and alumni are equally familiar with its dedication to service. For the Gamboas, service at Gonzaga has been a family tradition.

Nicholas Gamboa

On May 12, Nicholas Gamboa, from Boise, Idaho, received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. His siblings – Christina and Joseph – were student mentors and group leaders for Gonzaga’s Self-Esteem Mentors Increasing Life’s Excitement, or SMILE, throughout their four years here. Nicholas has spent much of his time the past four years serving the Spokane community as a SMILE leader. SMILE is part of Gonzaga’s Center for Community Action and Service-Learning. Students mentor youth from eight area elementary schools. Each week, mentors lead children in lessons through stories, games, and interactive discussions. The lessons help children develop a positive self-identity. Service is not the only area in which Nicholas aims to follow in his siblings’ footsteps. Christina, a 2008 alumna, will graduate from the University of Washington School of Medicine in June. Their brother Joseph, a 2010 alumnus, is approaching his second year at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Nicholas also plans to pursue medical school. Fall of 2013 will mark the first time since 2004 that a Gamboa hasn’t been involved in SMILE. However, the Christina, Joseph and Nicholas Gamboa all know Gonzaga’s dedication to service will continue.

Act Six Scholar, National Leadership Award Recipient

Thuy-Anh Vo

Thuy-Anh Vo, a member of Gonzaga’s first graduating class of Act Six scholars, is one of only 21 recipients of the College Women’s Leadership Award – a national award for social activism and political engagement. The national award honors social activism and political engagement and recognizes emerging young leaders.  Recipients of the award represent a diversity of political and social interests. Sugati Publications has chosen to honor these exceptional college women student leaders to highlight the commitment, aspirations and potential of women in politics and social change. This theme, changing the future of politics, is also the focus of an upcoming book, “51%:  Women and the Future of Politics” to be released later this year. The book features exclusive statements from Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., former Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and many other women leaders. Vo and the other award recipients and honorable mentions also will be recognized in the book as “young women to watch in the future.”

The Act Six Leadership and Scholarship Initiative at Gonzaga is a unique urban leadership program that cultivates young scholars to develop their passions as emerging leaders and to apply their diverse talents to serve their communities. In addition, Vo completes Gonzaga’s Comprehensive Leadership Program, and is a member of Phi Sigma Tau, an international honor society open to all Gonzaga students who’ve completed a minimum of 12 philosophy credits and have met grade requirements. While a student on the Washington Semester program at American University in Washington, D.C. last year, Vo worked on federal legislation to enable Amerasian children to obtain American citizenship. She also did an internship with the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. For more information about the award, visit the following link.

Betty Horak Graduates – 70 Years After Finishing High School

Betty Horak graduates. Photo by Rajah Bose

Betty Horak received her Bachelor of General Studies Degree on May 12, 70 years after graduating from high school. The 88-year-old is the oldest individual ever to earn a bachelor’s degree from Gonzaga. When she was young, Horak says, women didn’t have a lot of options. “When I grew up, if you did go to college you became a nurse or a schoolteacher,” she explained. “Otherwise you became a beautician or an office worker. Or if you didn’t get that far you scrubbed somebody else’s floors.” A lifelong Spokane resident, Horak worked as the office manager for the Long Lake Lumber Company. Upon retirement, she decided to do all the things she hadn’t had time to do previously. She took ballet lessons at 70, voice lessons at 75, and in 1998 enrolled as a Zag.

Law School Commencement Launches New Career for Mike Waters
Mike Waters’ graduation from Gonzaga Law School on May 11 launched a new career, but not his first. Waters came to law school after 10 years as a pilot and flight instructor, a fellowship at Harvard Kennedy School, and a career as a policy analyst for the Congressional Budget Office in Washington, D.C. A U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Waters handled issues ranging from NASA to Veterans’ Benefits for the CBO. He was driven by a desire to transition to the private sector, to move to Washington state, and to “get more fully involved in the law and policy arenas.” In law school, Waters also served as respected peer tutor within the Academic Resource Program. Now, Waters says, he “looks forward to getting back to work, and focusing on not money, but on clients in the private and public sector.” 

From Custodian to Law School Graduate
Anthony Martinez’s relationship with Gonzaga began much differently than other 2013 law graduates. In 2006, he began working as a custodian at Gonzaga and took on a full load of academics to earn a bachelor’s degree in 2010, his bridge to law school. “Considering law school has always been a dream, I jumped at the opportunity,” Martinez said. In 2012, he was offered a job with a local attorney while attending law school was able to appear before the Washington State Supreme Court and take part in creating a legal precedent in the state. “I will be pursuing a career as a criminal defense attorney with the hopes of handling more appeals and ultimately helping those wrongly convicted and incarcerated,” he said. Click the following link to view a video of his appearance at the State Supreme Court. 

Hunt Whaley Fights Back from Near-Fatal Accident to Earn Law Degree
Hunt Whaley had always planned to attend law school. In 1996, he graduated from the University of Hawaii and took what he had thought would be a 2-year break to teach and work on a parasail boat in Saipan, Micronesia. While there, however, Whaley was involved in a near-fatal motorcycle accident. Seventeen years after receiving his undergraduate degree, Whaley received his law degree from Gonzaga on May 11. While his 27 surgeries have left him with some physical limitations, Whaley, his wife and their two young children will celebrate his graduation and his new job with the City of Spokane. “I have thoroughly enjoyed my three years in law school, am thrilled that they are now reaching an end,” he said. “I am immensely looking forward to entering the legal profession in my home town.”

DISTINGUISHED HONOREES

Honorary Degree Recipient, Senior Commencement
Felix Aripa

One of two remaining native speakers of Coeur d’Alene, Felix Aripa works to transmit the language and culture of his forebears so younger generations may employ these stores of knowledge and understanding to serve their people, the region, and crucial principles of humanity. He and his family have long married Coeur d’Alene tribal customs with Jesuit traditions. In fact, his ancestors not only anticipated the Jesuits’ arrival, they invited the Jesuits to this area. Currently, Felix Aripa teaches and consults for the Coeur d’Alene tribe in multiple ways, including through the language revitalization program. He works as an adviser for a multitude of programs and projects that serve the interrelated constituents of his tribe, the region, and the environment. Felix Aripa has received many awards and much praise as a Coeur d’Alene elder and environmental and social justice advocate. 

Honorary Degree Recipient & Speaker, Graduate Commencement
Rev. Peter Balleis, S.J.

Rev. Peter Balleis, S.J., has made it his mission to reach out to those who have been driven from their homes and forced to become refugees. In 1994, he became regional director of Jesuit Refugee Service in Southern Africa and coordinated responses to refugee crises in Rwanda and Angola. He went on to serve the Society of Jesus in 2000, raising and distributing funds to support Jesuit missions worldwide. Since 2007 he has served as the international director of Jesuit Refugee Service, coordinating responses to crises more than 50 countries, serving men and women of all religions in a spirit of charity and justice. In this capacity, he has fostered a hope-filled future by empowering displaced persons through educational opportunities, especially for young girls. “Education,” he says, “is a key in combatting the evil of hatred, violence, and war.”

Honorary Degree Recipient & Speaker, Law School Commencement
Judy Clarke

A graduate of Furman University and the Law Center at the University of South Carolina, Judy Clarke has a most distinguished record as a defense attorney. She is equally renowned as a passionate foe of the death penalty, and is known for her willingness to defend individuals shunned by society. Her defense of those facing capital crimes aligns with the teachings of the Catholic Church on the sanctity of life and human dignity of all persons, embodying the Jesuit, Catholic and humanistic values upon which Gonzaga University is founded. 

Honorary Degree Recipient, School of Law Commencement
Professor John Morey Maurice

Gonzaga School of Law Professor John Morey Maurice’s academic accomplishments as a student have been recognized in prestigious scholarships; Fulbright, Wilson and White House Fellowships; and Phi Beta Kappa membership. His public service includes as a member of the Spokane Civil Service Commission; president of the Board of Federal Defenders of Eastern Washington and Idaho, as well as of The Inland Empire Association of Phi Beta Kappa. All of his ventures into the world of law ultimately served to prepare him for what his students would identify strongly as his true calling: law professor. Since 1975, he has spent nearly four decades teaching generations of Gonzaga law students. He has imprinted sound basic and advanced principles related to the intersection of law and business. Over time, he has shared his insights in many learned publications and has served as associate dean. Professor Maurice created both the Thomas More Scholarship Program and the Florence Summer Program, which takes Gonzaga law students overseas to learn about international law.

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SPOKANE, Wash. – Fernando Ortiz, Ph.D., director of the Counseling Center at Gonzaga University, has been appointed to the National Review Board by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Board was established by the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” to collaborate with bishops to prevent sexual abuse of U.S. minors by persons in service of the Church.

The selection followed a lengthy process that included 12 nominated psychologists from across the United States. The NRB is a consultative body – comprised of lay attorneys, psychologists and other professionals – that advises the USCCB on implementation of the Charter and the prevention of sexual abuse.

“It is truly an honor to represent Gonzaga University at the national level on this important issue,” said Ortiz, a native of Mexico who moved to Los Angeles in 1990, at age 18. “Ultimately, this is about voicing the needs of victims.”

Ortiz spent five years at St. John’s Seminary College, Camarillo, Calif., where he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, before discovering his calling as a psychologist. He was hired as assistant director of the Counseling Center at Gonzaga in 2009, and named director in 2011.

Ortiz holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology from Santa Clara University, and a master’s in religious studies from Gonzaga. He earned a doctorate in counseling psychology from Washington State University with a specialization in cross-cultural psychology, personality and culture, and ethnic minority mental health. Ortiz, who finished a post-doctoral specialization at University of California at Santa Barbara in cross-cultural counseling, was an assistant professor of clinical psychology in the doctoral program at Alliant International University, San Diego. A licensed psychologist, Ortiz is certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in Counseling Psychology.

‘Critical Conversations’ Begin in Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Co-Sponsored by Gonzaga
While Ortiz’s first meeting with the National Review Board is in June, his work has already begun at the local level. Ortiz and Rev. Gerard J. McGlone, S.J., Ph.D., director of the Saint John Vianney Center in Downingtown, Pa., (33 miles west of Philadelphia) conducted two, three-hour workshops Thursday, May 16 at the St. Thomas More Parish Center in Spokane to implement the Critical Conversations Program in all Catholic parishes and schools in Spokane and neighboring dioceses.

Critical Conversations is an educational training and prevention program that presents case studies for priests, deacons, and lay ministers. In the morning workshop, Ortiz and Rev. McGlone trained those who will then implement the program and teach it to others in all Catholic Diocese of Spokane churches and schools. In the afternoon session, Ortiz and Rev. McGlone conducted an actual training of the Critical Conversations Program for all Spokane Diocese priests. The trainings are co-sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Gonzaga, and VIRTUS. Critical Conversations is a collaborative and groundbreaking effort of the Archdiocese of Chicago, the Saint John Vianney Center in Pennsylvania, and the VIRTUS Programs. 

VIRTUS is the brand name that identifies best practices programs to help prevent wrongdoing and promote “rightdoing” within religious organizations. The word “virtus” derives from Latin, and means valor, moral strength, excellence, and worth. In ancient times, virtus denoted a way of life and manner of behavior that always aspired to the highest, most positive attributes of people and aspects of human interaction. Critical Conversations training differs from the Protecting God’s Children program in that there are separate and distinct case studies for priests, deacons and lay ministers. Critical Conversations is based on the highly regarded Instruments of Hope and Healing Program that most religious have used in the United States. The focus in Critical Conversations is on healthy adult boundaries and the emerging role of technology and the Internet.

For more information, please contact Peter Tormey, associate director of community and public relations at Gonzaga, at (509) 313-6132 or via email.

Gonzaga hosted a special appreciation reception for Paul A. Redmond on May 8 at the Jundt Art Museum. (From left) Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh; Paul Redmond; Avista Corp. Chairman, President and CEO Scott Morris; and Stephen Silliman, dean of the Gonzaga School of Engineering and Applied Science. Photo by Rajah Bose.

SPOKANE, Wash. – Avista Corp. has established the Paul A. Redmond Endowed Engineering Scholarship at Gonzaga University School of Engineering and Applied Science in honor of the leadership of former Washington Water Power/Avista Corp. Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Paul A. Redmond, a 1959 Gonzaga alumnus.

The fund, according to its purpose statement, seeks to honor the legacy of Redmond’s leadership at Avista and to promote excellence in the field of engineering “such that scholars become innovators, problem-solvers and diverse, talented employees of our future.”

Scholarships will be awarded to engineering students who are entering juniors and possess a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.0, with preference given to women and minority students, and to students with U.S. military experience – including active-duty military personnel, veterans and ROTC students.

Scott Morris, chairman, president and CEO of Avista Corp., said the honor recognizes Paul Redmond’s considerable contributions to the company and to the entire Inland Northwest.

“We’re pleased to honor Paul’s legacy of leadership at WWP/Avista and to recognize the significant impacts he made in our community and our region,” Morris said at a special appreciation reception for Redmond on May 8 at Gonzaga’s Jundt Art Museum. “Creating an endowed scholarship at Paul’s alma mater, Gonzaga University, seems a fitting way to help prepare the engineers of the future and bring his legacy to life for others for years to come.”

Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh singled out Redmond’s leadership style that placed great value on an uncanny ability to bring people together.

“Whether developing a company, a city, a region or a whole industry, Paul Redmond consistently and creatively demonstrated the power that comes with bringing people together to work toward a greater goal,” President McCulloh said. “This is why I am so pleased we have a scholarship that bears Paul Redmond’s name so that all future recipients will come to know his name, his story, and the power of collaboration.” President McCulloh also offered special thanks to Avista for its generous support of Gonzaga’s 125th Anniversary Celebration; Avista and Washington Trust Bank were premier sponsors.

Stephen Silliman, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, credited Redmond for building upon Gonzaga’s historic partnership with Avista, a collaboration responsible for development of Gonzaga’s Transmission and Distribution Program, establishment of the Avista Scholars program and creation of the Redmond Engineering Scholarship.

“The relationship that Avista has developed with Gonzaga University is an exciting model of how industry can partner with schools to create exceptional opportunities for students, faculty, industry, and the regions we serve,” Silliman said. “It’s fitting that this scholarship seeks to develop in our students those leadership skills important in the engineering profession and exemplified by Paul Redmond. It is also fitting that this scholarship provides a unique opportunity to build a more diverse engineering profession through focusing support on women, those with military experience, and others traditionally underrepresented in our engineering programs.”

This is not the first endowed scholarship in Redmond’s name at Gonzaga. In 2008, the Paul and Barbara Redmond Engineering and Nursing Endowed Scholarship was established; it funds one engineering and one nursing student annually.

Paul A. Redmond began his WWP/Avista career in 1965 as an assistant electrical engineer after earning undergraduate degrees from Gonzaga in electrical engineering and biology. In 1985, he was elected as Washington Water Power’s chairman of the board, president, and CEO. Redmond served as a Gonzaga Regent from 1980-1991 and was honored in 1984 with Gonzaga’s Distinguished Alumni Merit Award. He played a crucial role in the revitalization of downtown Spokane. Beneficiaries of his community leadership and civic involvement are too numerous to list but include service as: vice-chair of the Washington State Economic Development Board; chair, the Spokane Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Trustees; chair and president, United Way of Spokane County; president, the Spokane Lilac Festival Association; executive committee, Spokane Area Economic Development Council; chair, Washington Roundtable; board member, Catholic Family Services; chair, Fairchild Air Force Base Blue Ribbon Committee (1986-1990); chair, Washington Health Care Commission (1990) – among others.

Paul A. Redmond served in a multitude of corporate and industry leadership roles as well, including as chair of the Pacific Coast Gas Association, Itron, and the Pentzer Corp., and as a director on the boards of Hecla Mining Company, U.S. Bancorp, and Sacred Heart Medical Center, among many other entities. A retired lieutenant colonel in the Washington National Guard, he earned the Air Force Commendation Medal. A graduate of Gonzaga Preparatory School, Paul A. Redmond also is a member of the school’s Hall of Fame.

For more information, please contact Avista: Jessie Wuerst, senior communications manager, (509) 495-8578 or via email; or Mary Joan Hahn, Gonzaga’s director of public and university relations, at (509) 313-6105 or via email.

Father Michael Barber, S.J., bishop-elect of Oakland, is a 1978 Gonzaga alumnus. Photo courtesy of the Oakland Diocese.

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis announced the selection of Gonzaga University alumnus Rev. Michael Barber, S.J. to become the fifth Bishop of Oakland, Calif. Bishop-elect Barber will be ordained to the episcopate and installed as bishop on May 25 at 11 a.m. in the Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland. Apostolic Administrator Archbishop Alex J. Brunett will continue to lead the diocese until that date.

Rev. Barber has deep roots in the East Bay area of California. His father, Adlai Barber, was born in Oakland and his mother, Dolores, in San Francisco. Rev. Barber himself was born in 1954 in Salt Lake City during a temporary job assignment for his father. As a child, the bishop-elect lived in San Francisco, Novato and Sacramento, graduating from St. Pius X Preparatory School in Galt, Calif. He has fond memories of holidays spent with relatives in Oakland, San Leandro and Castro Valley, and of teaching at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park.

Rev. Barber entered the seminary of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1973. He received his undergraduate degree in 1978 (history and philosophy) from Gonzaga and earned graduate degrees in theology from Regis College at the University of Toronto and the Gregorian University in Rome. He served as a Visiting Scholar at the University of Oxford, England in 1992-93. He also taught at Gonzaga Preparatory School in 1977-78.

After being ordained a priest in San Francisco in 1985, Rev. Barber continued his studies in Rome and at Oxford University.  In 1991 he became a commissioned officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve and achieved the rank of captain in 2012. He has served as group chaplain for the Marine Aircraft Group, as deputy division chaplain for the 4th Marine Division and deputy force chaplain for reserve affairs for Marine Forces Pacific, among many other assignments.

Rev. Barber has been director of the School of Pastoral Leadership in the Archdiocese of San Francisco. From 2002-10 he taught at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, Calif., and was director of spiritual formation there. Presently he is director of spiritual formation at St. John’s Seminary in the Archdiocese of Boston.

In addition to his native English, the bishop-elect speaks Italian, French, Samoan and liturgical Spanish.

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By Stephanie Plowman
Special Collections Librarian
SPOKANE, Wash. – “Meet me at the COG after class” was the opening sentence for The Gonzaga Bulletin’s story Oct. 15, 1954 about the newly named student union building. While students called the building the “COG,” the structure was formally referred to as the “Student Union Building.”

The moniker “COG” is an acronym for the phrase “Circulus Omnium Gonzagaorum,” which is fake Latin for “circle of company of all Gonzagans.” The COG was one of four final names presented to the student body to determine the official name. Other suggestions included: “Pup,” “Kennel,” and “Zaga.” The prize-winning name was suggested by Father John Martin, S.J., and submitted by senior Dick Noble.

The COG was initially built as two distinct units: the student dining hall located upstairs, and the student lounge located in the basement, which also contained a snack bar, table tennis, student offices, restrooms, and other amenities. Gonzaga administrators asked the Associated Students of Gonzaga to raise $80,000 for the lower level, and each student was assessed a $5 semester fee.

To help pay for the first women’s residence hall (Madonna Hall) and the COG, the University received a $967,000 federal Housing and Home Finance loan. Construction on both buildings began in August 1953 and was completed in September 1954. Madonna Hall and the COG both were dedicated on Oct. 24, 1954.

The decision to build the COG proved fortuitous if not visionary. While the COG was being built, the Canteen burned to the ground in June 1954. Gonzaga had held many events, including lectures, at the Canteen, a St. Aloysius Church structure, and its loss made the COG even more important. The COG’s dining room doubled as a dance or banquet hall. The snack bar downstairs served as a popular meeting place for students.

For eight years, the student center remained without any major changes, except for the signing of the contract with Saga Foods (later Marriott, now Sodexo) in 1959 to handle food service.

In preparation for the University’s 75th anniversary year in 1962, Gonzaga spent $3.5 million to improve several buildings, including the COG, and to construct a few others. In November 1962, the University announced acceptance of bids on construction of a west-end annex to the COG. The 2,100-member student body voted to provide three-fourths of the money – $333,000 – for the project by paying a $10/semester student building fee.

Designed by architects Swoboda, Waldowski-Whitehouse, Price and DeNeff, the new annex was constructed by general contractor William Spilker and Sons for $465,000. At the same time, an east-end annex included a new kitchen and storage space. Constructed under a separate contract by the Purvis Construction Company, the addition was built for $165,000 and included new kitchen equipment.

The lower level included a modern bookstore, 300-seat snack bar, mailroom, game room, meeting rooms, and a landscaped garden and patio with a walkway ramp. The lounge featured a wall-sized mosaic mural designed by Richard Ingalls, director of Gonzaga’s art program, 28 feet long and 10 feet high. The mural portrayed Native Americans in the early days, the arrival of Jesuits, the symbols of the various Gonzaga schools and departments, and students. The pattern was made up of 30,000 pieces of colorful ceramic glass from Monterey, Mexico. The room also included cushioned seats, and a large fireplace ornamented with a big “G.”

The main floor included a lounge and president’s dining room, stage, Saga office, and enlarged dining room to seat 600 students at one meal. The 70-by-50 foot mezzanine floor was devoted to student government facilities and included a boardroom, workroom, and offices.

The COG, which has been remodeled or renovated several times, will be demolished soon to make room for the new University Center. Over the years, Gonzaga has tried to repurpose and renovate its buildings to accommodate its growing enrollment and needs.  A rich source of memories for so many members of the Gonzaga family over the years, the COG could not be renovated to meet the University’s needs. Alas, Gonzaga has decided it is time to bid adieu to the COG. Soon, Gonzaga students will gather at the new University Center, which is expected to open in approximately two years.

By Peter Tormey
SPOKANE, Wash. – World-renowned primatologist and conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall wowed a near-capacity crowd April 9 at Gonzaga University’s McCarthey Athletic Center with tales of her life’s work doing groundbreaking chimpanzee behavioral research in Africa, and her reasons for hope in the future.

A United Nations Messenger of Peace and the founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, Dr. Goodall was introduced by Gonzaga President Thayne M. McCulloh, who asked her to be part of the Gonzaga Presidential Speaker Series in this, Gonzaga’s 125th Anniversary Year.

People from throughout the West and as far away as Hawaii attended. Andrew Takuya Garrett, from Honolulu, surprised his wife with tickets to the event. Afterward, both said they loved every minute of the program.

Called “the Einstein of behavioral sciences” by The Los Angeles Times and “a heroine, in a hero-less time” by The Christian Science Monitor, Dr. Goodall started her speech underscoring the importance of family, and mothers.

“I was blessed in having a very remarkable mother,” she said, relating her childhood love of animals and endless fascination with the natural world from the moment she begin to explore nature, crawling to watch earthworms wiggle in the dirt. She spoke of the “enormous treat” of going to a farm in the country as a 5-year-old.

“And it was a treat because this animal-loving little girl lived in London,” she said. “But now I had the opportunity to be face-to-face with cows and pigs and horses and there were no cruel intensive farms in those days. The animals walked around in the fields the way they should.”

She was given the job of collecting eggs and sought to witness the egg-laying process firsthand.

“Seeing a hen going into her little hen house thinking, ‘ah, she’s going to lay an egg and crawling in after her, big mistake,” Dr. Goodall recalled. “So, with squawks of, I suppose fear, she flew out.  . . . So I crawled out and I went into an empty hen house and I hid in the corner at the back, sort of covered in straw, I suppose.

“And I waited.

“And I waited.

“And I waited,” she said.

Meantime, her family had no idea where she was and began searching for her as it grew dark outside. Suddenly Jane rushed toward the house covered in straw.

“How many mothers would have seized that child and said, ‘How dare you go off without telling us! Do you know how worried we would be? Don’t you dare do that again!’”

Instead, Dr. Goodall said, her “wise mother” saw her bright eyes and listened to her story of how a hen lays an egg.

“Now, if we look with hindsight at that story, isn’t that the making of a little scientist?” she asked. “The curiosity, asking questions, not getting the right answer. Deciding you have to find out for yourself. Making a mistake, not giving up, and learning patience. It was all there by the time I was five. If I hadn’t had that wise mother to support this curiosity, I might not be standing here today.”

Goodall also touched on familiar themes supporting her Roots & Shoots, the global environmental and humanitarian youth program that began with a dozen high school students and has grown to include hundreds of thousands of youth in 133 countries who take action to make the world a better place for people, animals and the environment.

An activist, Dr. Goodall travels an average of 300 days a year speaking about the threats facing chimpanzees, other environmental crises, and her reasons for hope that humankind will solve the problems it has imposed on the earth. She has not been in the same place for more than three consecutive weeks in decades.

Roots & Shoots promotes “a philosophy which honors what Gandhi said when he said ‘the earth can provide enough for every man’s need but not enough for every man’s greed,’” Dr. Goodall said. “We’re growing young people around the world to understand, yes, we need money to live. But we must not live for money.”

In closing, Dr. Goodall offered reasons for hope.

“The energy of youth. The human brain. The resilience of nature. And the indomitable human spirit,” she said. “We are moving toward the point of no return if we carry on with business as usual, but all around the world I meet more and more young people who are absolutely determined to make change. And that’s the greatest hope of all. And we need to support them. And we all need to jump in ourselves. Because if we just sit back and say, ‘Well, it’s nothing to do with me,’ then we may reach the point of no return, which none of us wants to see, for our great-grandchildren.”

Slideshow of Dr. Goodall’s Visit

Gonzaga accounting students took time away from their classes at the Jepson Center to help low-income people file their taxes.

14 EWU Students Contribute

SPOKANE, Wash. – The final tally is in from the work more than 60 Gonzaga University accounting students did earlier this spring as certified volunteer tax preparers for the Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (at the United Way site, 920 N. Washington St., Suite 100). The students helped file 744 returns generating $918,532 in refunds for low-income taxpayers.

The VITA program offers free tax return preparation for low-income individuals in the community, many of whom depend on the earned income tax credit and other payments from the IRS (such as tax refunds) to make ends meet. The United Way site is one of nine Spokane County locations free to qualifying filers from Feb. 1 through April 15.

The Gonzaga students work one-on-one with folks every Tuesday and Saturday. Fourteen Eastern Washington University students also volunteer at the United Way site on Fridays as well. The AARP provides four volunteers to review the students’ work.

For more information, please contact Tara Dowd with the Spokane County United Way at (509) 838-6581 or via email.