SDSU Month 2009
Seventh Annual Celebration Spotlights Aztecs for Life

March 2009 marks the seventh annual celebration of SDSU Month. The yearly observance is designed to showcase the university’s achievements and contributions to the San Diego community. It provides a great opportunity for San Diegans to join students, faculty, staff and other alumni in a celebration of San Diego State’s proud history.

This year’s theme, Aztecs for Life, spotlights the more than 200,000 San Diego State alumni invited to reconnect with the university in a multitude of exciting ways. Our alumni are sports heroes and astronauts, entrepreneurs and military brass, fire chiefs and film producers, award-winning teachers and university presidents; each has a unique story to tell. Read the stories of four Aztecs for Life and then tell us what being Aztec for Life means to you. You may win a 32GB iPod Touch

AZTECS FOR LIFE ON TV

During the month, some of our very own Aztecs for Life will be making their television debut. The new SDSU Month TV spot highlights the profound impact of our alumni across the nation and features many accomplished alums, including Tracy Jarman (’78), City of San Diego fire chief; Leigh Pierce (’91), founder and president of PacificGMP; and Ralph Rubio (’78), chair and co-founder of Rubio’s. Before the end of March, the spot will run more than 1,000 times on Cox Communications, KPBS, NBC 7/39, Univision KBNT-17 and Time Warner Cable. The SDSU Month radio campaign is also airing on several Clear Channel stations, KPBS Radio 89.5, La Nueva 106.5 and Recuerdo 102.9.

AZTEC FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

Explore SDSU 2008

The month-long SDSU Month celebration features something for everyone–art exhibits, academic lectures, athletic events, concerts and theatre productions. A signature event you won’t want to miss is Explore SDSU: Open House 2009 on Saturday, March 21 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Come see what’s new on campus, tour a high-tech lab, dance to live entertainment and bring the kids for a full day of fun, including a jump house, kayak painting, coloring and special appearances from KPBS’ most popular characters. There’s never been a better time to reconnect with your Aztec family!

MONEY-SAVING SPECIAL OFFERS

To thank our loyal alumni, SDSU has aligned with several local businesses to provide special offers such as discounts on SDSU clothing, movie tickets, and athletic events. Join us for Alumni Night on Saturday, March 7, as the Aztec men’s basketball team takes on UNLV at the last home game of the year. SDSU Alumni Association members receive one FREE general admission ticket with the purchase of a regular general admission ticket by showing a current membership card. Go Aztecs!

For a complete list of events, special offers and other SDSU Month information, please visit www.sdsumonth.com.

Become a lifetime member of the SDSU Alumni Association at www.sdsualumni.org.

Hard Work Pays Off
Two Students Receive Alumni Scholarships

First-year student scholarship winner Melissa Bunn.

Eighteen-year-old Melissa Bunn was talking on the phone with her boyfriend when the email came.  It was notification that she would receive the $5,000 scholarship the SDSU Alumni Association awards an outstanding first year student.  

“I started crying I was so excited,” remembers the freshman kinesiology major known as “Missy” to family, friends, and SDSU cross country teammates. “I was so happy that all my hard work finally paid off.”

The Simi Valley native maintained a 3.4 grade point average her first semester as an Aztec.  It was enough to land her on the fall 2008 academic all-Mountain West Conference team.  Still, Bunn, who has been a runner since she was five years old, wasn’t satisfied.

“To be honest, I was disappointed with that,” she says of the GPA most students would be thrilled to earn. “I think it was just adjusting to the new school, new life, new running program, the whole mix of things, but this semester I’m already looking to do way better.” 

LEGACY SCHOLARSHIP

Like Bunn, fellow freshman Katie Martin is working harder this semester.  She was dissatisfied with the 3.74 GPA that qualified her for a $5,000 scholarship.

Legacy scholarship winner Katie Martin.

“I got my first B ever, which did not make me happy,” says the Poway High graduate who is studying international security and conflict resolution at SDSU. “My goal is to get all A’s this semester.”

Martin, who turns 19 this month, is the winner of the Legacy Scholarship, which requires the recipient’s parent, grandparent, or guardian to be an alumnus or alumna of SDSU and a current lifetime member of the Alumni Association.  Both of her parents are SDSU alumni and her maternal grandfather was a chairman of the communicative disorders department and assistant dean of the College of Health and Human Services. 

“WE ALL JUST STARTED SCREAMING”

Word of Martin’s scholarship award arrived on her father’s birthday, which she describes as “a really good present” for him.  As great as that news was, however, Martin says it may have been eclipsed more than a year ago by the moment she realized she was to become an Aztec.  

“It was Christmas Eve,” she recalls. “I got an email as a holiday card greeting from San Diego State before I even got my (SDSU acceptance) letter in the mail and I remember just sitting there in shock.  My parents came up behind me and I showed them and we all just started screaming.  We ran around the house together and it was really exciting.”

Martin says the Alumni Association scholarship will take some financial pressure off her family.  Her major requires Martin to study abroad and medical issues she experienced in high school piled up the bills.
 
“Those were a lot of out-of-pocket expenses because insurance coverage wasn’t very good,” she explains, “so the scholarship is helping me with tuition and study abroad, essentially.”

Martin envisions a life of humanitarian service after graduation. “I want to start my own non-profit in eastern Africa helping the rehabilitation of child soldiers,” she declares. 

Scholarship winner Katie Martin thanks SDSU Alumni Association board members for her award.

Like Martin, Bunn sees herself in a career helping others. “I want to be a physical therapist,” she says. “As a cross country runner, sports mean so much to me.  I want to be able to help people to be active and to be able to live their lives to the fullest and not have any pain.”

EXPRESSING GRATITUDE

Bunn and Martin were selected from a group of more than 50 scholarship applicants.  Each had to write an essay.  Finalists were chosen and interviewed by a panel of judges composed of alumni and university administrators.

Both young women appeared at last month’s SDSU Alumni Association Board of Directors meeting to express their gratitude for the scholarships.  Each wants Alumni Association members and others who donate to the scholarship fund to know how much they appreciate the generosity.

“I just think it’s really great what they do,” says Bunn. “It gives students like me an opportunity.”

Martin confirms that sentiment.  She wants to make sure alumni know she is putting their donations to good use.

“I’m a very dedicated student and I’ll always work very hard and make sure that money goes a long way,” she says. “This scholarship, literally, is changing my life and I really cannot express my gratitude enough.” 

Make a gift to the SDSU Alumni Association Scholarship program at giveonline.sdsu.edu.

Bigger and Better
Surprising Spaces Take Shape at New Alumni Center

Exterior walls are installed as scaffolding surrounds the rotunda of the new Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center.

Now that the interior spaces are framed in with exterior walls surrounding them, the new Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center is taking on a surprising appearance at the northwest corner of 55th Street and Hardy Avenue.

Construction manager Steve Nelson (’96) of Midwest General, Inc. has been involved with the project since 2001. He says the completed framing reveals larger interior spaces than he had imagined.

“From looking at it on paper all these years, I knew all the spaces were going to be nice, but now that I see them, everything is a lot bigger, which is a good thing,” he says. “It’s going to be really nice.”

Nelson says the so-called “rough-in” for the building’s electrical and mechanical elements along with the plumbing and sprinkler system continues. He describes construction of the roof in the coming weeks as “the next big push.” Workers won’t begin installing interior walls until the roof is complete.

“You don’t want to start hanging drywall until you have a roof,” Nelson explains. “Weather is always a concern up until May.”

Completion of the new $11 million home of the SDSU Alumni Association is scheduled by the end of the year.

To view the latest progress on the new Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center, visit the construction progress page.

World Premiere in Rehearsal at SDSU Opens at Autry
SDSU’s Randy Reinholz is Producing Artistic Director

Redbird asks her father about the story of Monahwee in an SDSU rehearsal for "Wings of Night Sky, Wings of Morning Light."

Greater Los Angeles-area alumni are invited to a world premiere stage production that has been in rehearsal at SDSU. Randy Reinholz, director of SDSU’s School of Theatre, Television, and Film, is the producing artistic director of Native Voices at the Autry’s “Wings of Night Sky, Wings of Morning Light.”

The play by Joy Harjo is based on Native American tales and traditions of the author’s people. It is billed as “a deeply compelling personal journey of struggle, displacement, self discovery, and healing” utilizing spoken word, storytelling, music, and song.

Aztec alumni are invited to the production’s March 12 opening night performance at the Autry National Center – Wells Fargo Theater Griffith Park Campus in Los Angeles. The performance begins at 8:00 p.m. To learn more about “Wings of Night Sky, Wings of Morning Light” and to purchase tickets, visit the Autry National Center Web site.

Ahead of the Curve Randy Reinholz on Native American Cultural Arts and SDSU’s School of Theatre, Television, and Film Randy Reinholz is director of SDSU's School of Theatre, Television, and Film. For a little more than a year, Randy Reinholz has served as director of SDSU’s School of Theatre, Television, and Film. He has been associated with the department as head of acting since 1997. Reinholz is co-creator and artistic director of Native Voices, which is dedicated to developing and producing new works for the stage by Native American playwrights. He answered questions from the SDSU Alumni Association about the Autry premiere, his Choctaw heritage, and his hopes for the school he now directs. How are things going with rehearsals for Joy Harjo’s “Wings of Night Sky, Wings of Morning Light” set to premiere March 12? “It’s really exciting. It’s a 90-minute show that has some really great new songs since we went into rehearsal. The story is tighter and leaner than even I thought it was going to be. It’s the story of a woman’s coming of age and finding out her own strength and power within her own need and it’s just beautiful.” You helped create Native Voices as an instructor at Illinois State. How and why did that get started? “I had tried to do some research on Native American theater. We found a number of really great plays and some wonderful playwrights, but we couldn’t decide what our mostly non-native student population might look like in those plays. “We did a series of presentations that weren’t as expensive as a full production to see what the students might look like and everybody was really interested in the work - the playwrights, the actors, the faculty – and then that just became an on-going event at Illinois State. We did it two years and produced a play. “The playwrights had stories. One playwright, as a young person, was an actor. This was back in the ’60s (when) they said, ‘Well, you know, you can’t really be an actor because there aren’t any parts for Indians.’ So he started writing plays and they said, ‘Well, we can’t really produce your plays because there aren’t any Indian actors.’ And that story sort of encapsulated what the generation before was up against.” So how does your involvement in Native Voices tie into your position at SDSU? “We’re actually getting more ties to San Diego State. We did a playwright’s retreat here last summer. We’re going to do another one this summer and from that the La Jolla Playhouse is involved and we’re going to read the plays and do presentations of the plays at the Playhouse. So we’re getting more aspects of Native Voices on campus at San Diego State. “The play ‘Wings,’ opening at the Autry on March 12th, is rehearsing here. I have two students who are paid interns to work on the project. So there are more opportunities to involve the students in meaningful ways as it becomes important for me to physically be on campus more. So we’re hoping that there might be smart ways that everybody benefits.” Did you grow up in Choctaw culture or did you get in touch with it later in life? “Actually, it was sort of a combination. I grew up mostly in the Midwest - rural Missouri and other places. We moved a lot. Missouri is not where Choctaw people live. They live in Oklahoma or Mississippi, but my grandmother, who is the Choctaw lineage, always talked about being Choctaw. More family stories than ‘Our people think this way’ or ‘Our people have these values.’ It was more, ‘Oh, back when, we used to move all the furniture and we would have a dance and the people would come around,’ so it was kind of a combination of country and Indian.” What’s your vision for SDSU’s School of Theatre, Television, and Film? “The big thing for the department is the fact that we’re the School of Theatre, Television, and Film. Theater was sort of a bastardized part of English or communication back in the ’30s and ’40s and then theater departments gradually started to spring up across the country as more universities came around. Film schools are only in the last 15 to 20 years and there are some great models of pedagogy in theater that are really easy to apply to film and television, but it takes a really large group of people coming together for a single purpose to integrate it and make it work. “I can see San Diego State being a leader in that field. A lot of theater departments around the country are trying to teach some aspects of what would be in film school and a lot of film schools around the country are trying to teach some of what would be traditionally in theater, but often, the faculty don’t know how to talk to each other or they’re envious or they’re sometimes just not aware of what’s there. We’re 10 years ahead of the curve with how we’ve put our school together. When we did it there were about five or six. Now there are a dozen.” So how do you use that model to move forward? “We shot a television pilot (“Hollywood Heights”) this year, so 200 different students worked on this huge project that really makes the university look great. And I can see ways that we can work together on these large projects where we have public events that make people go, ‘Wow, great work at San Diego State!’ That’s what we can do. We’re on that precipice. “We have the right faculty. We have adequate facilities. We have interested, engaged alumni who really could be beneficial as we start to have things happen like winning at Sundance and so forth. I think that’s really going to energize the alumni to say, ‘That’s my school’ and they have a lot of talent, experience, and energy that they could give back and create possibilities for these students coming out of here and pretty soon we’re one of the important schools. “We have the premier Native American theater company in the country associated with the university. We’re connected in this theater school with the major theater companies in this region. We have amazing alumni, one of whom produced a film that was nominated for 13 Academy Awards. We have current students who are winning major awards. This isn’t your mother’s San Diego State. This is a major university where really exciting things are happening. That’s the reason I took on this position. I want to see that happen. I don’t know if this will be a lifetime position for me or if there’s a window of opportunity where my skill set could really make something happen, but I feel like we can.”

The Perfect Graduation Gift
Medallion, Cap and Gown with Lifetime Membership

Looking for the perfect gift for that Aztec grad in your life? Now you can mark the occasion of commencement with a graduation gift that will last a lifetime!

Just for 2009 graduates, SDSU Alumni Association is offering a complimentary cap, gown, tassel, medallion and alumni gift pack to grads who become lifetime members during Gradfest, April 14-16th. The alumni gift pack includes:

• SDSU beach chair
• alumni T-shirt
• alumni hat
• travel mug
• alumni sunglass case

More significantly, there’s the lifetime membership itself. It’s a gesture that’s both practical and enduring. The $500 membership may be covered through a special affordable payment plan designed for the Class of 2009 grads. The first payment towards the lifetime membership is only $80, then $20 per month for only 21 months.

Through your thoughtful gift, a 2009 graduate will stay connected to SDSU for a lifetime no matter where life’s amazing adventures may lead. It’s a fitting tribute to your grad’s achievement, pride, and Aztec spirit. This is one gift that will never be forgotten.

For details and to check out our easy payment plans, call Robin Breen at (619) 594-5097.

Student Etiquette Workshop
Alumni Needed as Dinner Participants

SDSU students at the 2008 Student Alumni Etiquette Dinner.

The SDSU Student Alumni Association is sponsoring a dinner that will serve as an etiquette workshop for students. The organization seeks alumni willing to participate and interact with students during the event.

Set for 6:00 p.m. Wednesday, March 11 at Scripps Cottage on the SDSU campus, the Student Alumni Etiquette Dinner is intended to teach students the social rules of a formal dinner. During the three-course meal, students will be seated with alumni who have graduated in their major or school, as they learn the basics of proper dining.

From use of the napkin, silverware, and glassware to what to do at the conclusion of the meal, a professional instructor will guide students and alumni through simple etiquette techniques. The goal is to help equip SDSU students with the skills necessary to navigate career-related social situations.

The event is sponsored by Aztec Parents. A limited number of alumni seats will be available. The cost is $20 and includes a three-course meal, parking and the workshop.

Register on-line by March 9 at www.sdsu.edu/saa or for more information, contact Jen Ranallo at jranallo@mail.sdsu.edu.

Paris Johnson (#32) and the Aztecs travel to Las Vegas for the Mountain West Conference Championships March 10-14. (Aztec Athletics Photo)

MWC Tournament Reception
Aztec Fans to Gather in Las Vegas

SDSU fans backing the men’s and women’s basketball teams at the Mountain West Conference Championships are invited to cheer the Aztecs at a reception in Las Vegas. The Thursday, March 12 event will be held at the Embassy Suites Las Vegas from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. or following Game #8 if the Aztecs are in that game.

Official practice times permitting, the reception will feature Aztecs coach Beth Burns and members of the women’s basketball team. The event includes a make-your-own pasta bar, turkey carving station, appetizers and more. A cash bar will also be available.

Admission is $14 for SDSU Alumni Association members and Aztec Athletic Foundation members, $16 for all others. The address of Embassy Suites Las Vegas is 4315 Swenson Street, across from the Thomas and Mack Center.

The first 75 people making reservations online receive a complimentary “Go Aztecs” Athletic T-Shirt at the door. Reserve your spot at the Aztec reception at www.sdsualumni.org.

For more information on the Mountain West Conference Basketball Championships, visit www.themwc.com.

Reserve Montys Tickets Now
Awards Gala Registration Deadline March 20

March 20 is the registration deadline for tickets to the 2009 Monty Awards. This year’s gala dinner and awards presentation honoring 11 distinguished alumni and friends of the university will be held Saturday, April 11, at 6:00 p.m. at the new Hilton San Diego Bayfront downtown. Individual tickets for registration by March 20 are $165 or $1,550 for a table seating 10.

For tickets and additional information, visit alumni.sdsu.edu/montys or contact Cheryl Trtan at (619) 594-ALUM (2586) or ctrtan@mail.sdsu.edu.

Learn more about this year's Monty Winners at alumni.sdsu.edu/montys.

Great Gifts Coming Your Way!
Alumni Association Lifetime Members to Win Great Prizes

It’s great to be an Aztec for life! Starting next month, SDSU Alumni Association lifetime members will be eligible to win great prizes like ipods, Tommy Bahama men’s and women’s watches, and $150 Costco gift cards. Winners will be selected in monthly drawings and profiled in each issue of the Aztec enews.

Look for details in upcoming editions of the Aztec enews. Prizes are a benefit of membership for SDSU Alumni Association lifetime members only. If you are not a lifetime member of the SDSU Alumni Association, join now.

View a list of Aztecs who are the newest lifetime members at alumni.sdsu.edu/lifetime_members.

“Agents of Change: Improving the Health of a Nation”
Campus Lecture Open to Public

SDSU alumni are invited to attend the 2009 Albert W. Johnson University Research Lecture on campus this Friday, March 6. John P. Elder, Distinguished Professor of Public Health, is scheduled to deliver the lecture, "Agents of Change: Improving the Health of a Nation" at 2:00 p.m. in the Arts and Letters Building, Room 201.

The lecture will focus on the use of a volunteer and paraprofessional model to promote community health. Professor Elder will speak about projects that include lay health advisors, promoters and others who offer messages of healthy lifestyles to their communities.

Professor Elder joined the faculty of SDSU in 1984 and directs the Center for Behavioral and Community Health Studies (BACH). Since arriving at SDSU, he has won more than $60 million in extramural funding, authored or co-authored 250 scientific articles and developed health promotion programs in 30 countries in the Americas, Africa, Southeast Asia and Europe.

More information about the lecture is available on the Graduate and Research Affairs Web site: gra.sdsu.edu/grad/research/lectures.

The Albert W. Johnson University Research Lectureship, awarded for outstanding achievement in research and scholarship, is sponsored by Graduate and Research Affairs and the University Research Council.

Venture Challenge 2009
Annual Business Plan Competition Celebrates 20th Year

San Diego State University's Entrepreneurial Management Center (EMC) is pleased to announce Venture Challenge 2009, the 20th annual international new venture competition, to be held March 12-14 at the San Diego Marriott Mission Valley. All SDSU alumni are invited and encouraged to attend.

Over the past two decades, groups of students from universities across the United States and around the world have come to present their business ideas to judging panels consisting of entrepreneurs, investors and professional service providers involved in the new venture process.

This year, 22 top universities from throughout the United States will be represented, including the University of Michigan, Johns Hopkins University, Georgetown University and the University of Virginia. International teams from the Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship in Sweden and Queen’s University of Ontario, Canada are also expected.

Teams will compete for more than $25,000 in awards. Semi-finalist presentations will be held Friday morning, March 13, with finalist presentations on Saturday. For more information, visit the Venture Challenge Web page or contact Kiley Peters at kiley.peters@projects.sdsu.edu or (619) 594-8873.

Facing Late Life Adult Transitions
Baby Boomer Lecture Series Examines Research

SDSU’s Interwork Institute is introducing a four-part lecture series presenting the latest research on so-called “baby boomers” and late life adult transitions. The Baby Boomer Wine, Cheese, and Lecture Series runs from March 13 through June 12 in both San Diego and North County locations. For more information visit boomerlectures.sdsu.edu.

OC Aztecs Host Alumni Mixer
Orange County Event Features Business Dean

Aztecs living in or near Orange County are invited to meet and network with other SDSU alumni at a March 11 Costa Mesa mixer. Special guest Gail Naughton, dean of SDSU’s College of Business Administration will provide an update on what’s new at SDSU.

Sponsored by the Orange County Aztecs Alumni Chapter, the mixer is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Chronic Cantina, 1870 Harbor Boulevard. Appetizers are complimentary for SDSU Alumni Association members and $10 per person for future members and guests. A no host bar will be available.

Please let us know you’re coming by registering at chapters.sdsu.edu/oc.

20/30s Young Alumni Bowling Mixer
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Location: East Village Tavern and Bowl
For information, visit the 20/30s Young Alumni Web site.