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HLC Team recommends 10-year accreditationThe site visit team from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the NorthCentral Association of Colleges and Schools reported that full 10-year accreditation forthe University of Southern Indiana would be recommended to the HLC. The teamalso said it would recommend approval of USI’s distance learning application.The team’s recommendations were announced at an exit interview followingtwo-plus days of meetings with students, faculty, and staff in late September.An extensive self study during 2005-06 preceded the team’s visit.Team chair Dr. Roberta Teahen said the 10-year recommendation is made becauseUSI met the HLC criteria and, in many cases, exceeded the expectations.University budget request stresses institutional responsivenessThe University of Southern Indiana biennial budget request to the State of Indianastresses the University’s need for additional funding to remain affordable and accessible,address economic and workforce development, and structure new programs benefitingthe state and region.Funding for enrollment change continues to be an important component of theUniversity’s operating budget request because the state’s enrollment funding formulahas not been fully funded since 2003-04. The University is requesting funding at 3,500 per full-time-Hoosier student based on the four-year rolling average for anadditional 260 full-time students. Among the public baccalaureate-granting institutions,there is a large disparity in state funding on a per-student basis. USI receives only 58percent of the weighted statewide average per-FTE-Hoosier student as compared tothe other four-year residential institutions. USI also has the lowest tuition amongthe state’s baccalaureate-granting institutions.President H. Ray Hoops says, “The existence of large disparate differences makesit difficult for USI to implement new programs, expand existing programs, or respondto requests for assistance from individual businesses and organizations to support community economic development initiatives. As implied by its name, USI is embeddedin southern Indiana and responds, as resources permit, to regional expectations.”In addition to the request for a per-student appropriation increase, the USI budgetrequest includes requests for: a three percent increase in the base budget for maintenance of current programs; plant expansion to support the new Rice Library; support of USI’s involvement in regional workforce and economic developmentby expanding activities of the Center for Applied Research, creating a new centerfor business economic studies, and developing an entrepreneurship program; establishment of a center to focus on recruitment and retention of studentsplus professional development programs for teachers in the academic areas ofscience, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); an increase in the operating budget of Historic New Harmony to support thepreservation, education, and interpretive programs of the program managed bythe University.In its capital budget request, USI also is requesting bonding authorization in theamount of 29.9 million for construction of the College of Business/General ClassroomBuilding. The 2005 Indiana General Assembly appropriated money for planning anddesign of the building. In addition, the University is requesting full funding of therepair and rehabilitation formula to maintain existing facilities.The request goes to the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, State BudgetAgency, and the Indiana General Assembly for consideration and action next spring.Winter 20074Greg Valentine on panelat international conferenceDr. Gregory P. Valentine was inWarsaw, Poland, in September to serveon an expert panel at an internationalconference addressing the need forinstruction ineconomics andpersonal financeat the high schoollevel. Valentine isdirector of the USICenter for Economic Education inValentineSouthwest Indianaand professor of business education.The conference was sponsored jointlyby the Federal Reserve Bank of NewYork and the National Bank of Poland.Valentine represented the NationalBusiness Education Association.Eva Jermakowicz presentsat global accounting meetingDr. Eva Jermakowicz ’87, professorof accounting, made two presentationsrelated to international accountingissues in Novemberat the World Congress of AccountingEducators inIstanbul, Turkey.In addition,she will co-authorthe 2007 editionof the bookInterpretation andJermakowiczApplication ofInternational Financial Reporting Standards,published by Wiley.Effective January 1, Jermakowiczwill become chair of the Departmentof Accounting and Business Law andprofessor of accounting at TennesseeState University in Nashville.University of Southern Indiana

Students perfect sales skills in Coslett LabStudents interested in careers insales prepared video portfolios duringfall semester using state-of-the-art technology in the new Joe Coslett FamilySales Management DevelopmentLaboratory. The portfolios will introduce students to potential employersand showcase their sales skills.Lab technology enables studentsto hone their professional skills as theyvideo-tape and play back presentationsand demonstrations.Completed in the Orr Center overthe summer, the lab was made possibleby a generous gift from retired Evansville businessman Joe Coslett, whoseinnovative career in sales spannedmore than 40 years. When Cosletttoured the lab in September, facultyand students video-taped a conversationwith him about his distinguished career.He recalled that he began taping commercials as spokesman for his furniturebusiness in 1973.Coslett was impressed with thetechnological capabilities of the lab,saying that experience and practice inthe facility would provide the equivalentof several years of sales experience andbe a serious advantage for USI students.Lab equipment includes three digitalvideo cameras; wireless and wired microphones including a boom microphone;Dr. Beth Mott-Stenerson, right, assistant professor of marketing, tells June and Joe Coslett howstudents will use the new Joe Coslett Family Sales Management Development Laboratory.a professional-quality studio lightingsystem; a high-quality video and audioswitching system; an intercom systemfor communication between the controlroom and studio; DVD recording equipment; three multimedia computers thatact as non-linear video editing systems;and advanced editing software that allowsstudents to create professionally craftedvideo projects.Students can create video recordingsthat can be stored on DVDs, videotapes,or video clips that can be streamed overthe Internet. These recordings mayinclude graphics and video effectscomparable to those used on networktelevision. Installation of three multimedia computers allows two students topolish, edit, and refine their creationswhile another records new material.This design minimizes downtime andstill creates an atmosphere where students are encouraged and able to dotheir best work. The video and audiocan be piped into the adjacent lecturespace so a classroom of students mayobserve and provide critical feedbackto students working in the studio.Workforce Development grant enhances USI nursing educationThe undergraduate nursing programin the College of Nursing and HealthProfessions has received a grant of 324,555 from the Indiana Departmentof Workforce Development’s StrategicSkills Initiative, a program that addressescritical occupational and skill shortages.The grant will allow the undergraduate nursing program to increasethe number of students admitted eachyear from 60 to 80.The nursing programhas obtained new simulation equipmentto enhance training opportunities andadded faculty to support the increasednumber of students. Deaconess HospitalUniversity of Southern Indianaand St. Mary’s Medical Centerare providing additional clinicalunits and clinical instructors.Dr. Nadine Coudret, deanof the USI College of Nursingand Health Professions, said,“This grant will move ourcollege to the forefront incomputerized simulation training for students in nursing andthe health professions. It mergesthe technology advances thatare occurring in both healthcare and health care education.”5Beth Johnson, associate professor of nursing, demonstrates the new SimMan model that will help nursingstudents develop clinical and decision-making skills.Winter 2007

Deem scholarship fund reaches 100,000John Deem earned a master’s inbusiness administration from MurrayState University on a Friday andstarted to work at the University ofSouthern Indiana the following Mondayin September 1967, just two years afterUSI opened its doors. Currently associatevice president for Student Affairs andassistant professor of accounting, heand his wife Pam established a scholarship fund in the USI Foundation in1990 that has now reached the 100,000 level.Deem and his wife created theLowell L. Deem Memorial Scholarshipfund in memory of John’s father. Theyhave contributed to the fund over theyears. This year their gift plus the LillyEndowment’s matching gift pushedthe fund total to 100,000. The LillyEndowment offered a 1.25 matchinggrant for every 1 gift this year.“We saw the opportunity toenhance the amount of the scholarshipfund with the matching gift and justcouldn’t pass it up,” Deem said. “Itwould have taken significantly moreyears to reach this level without theLilly match.”Others also have given to the fund,including the Deems’ two sons, Tim ’93and Brian, and their families. Friends andfamily also gave in memory of JohnPam and John DeemDeem’s mother Virginia when she diedin 2004.Deem has worn a number of hatsat USI. When he began teaching at age22, he was younger than many of thenontraditional students who enrolledin the University’s early years.“I had no business experience,”said Deem, “so we used the students’experiences as examples in class.”In 1968, with a high school basketball career in Fairfield, Illinois, to hiscredit, Deem became USI’s first basketball coach. That first team finishedYour gift also canGO toSecure online giving:https://www.usi.edu/onlinegivingBy phone:812/464-1918By mail:USI FoundationUniversity of Southern Indiana8600 University BloulevardEvansville, IN 47712-9989Winter 20076with a break-even season, six wins andsix losses.Deem was USI registrar for 33 years,seeing technology advance from punchcards to online Web registration. He alsohas served as director of Veterans’ Affairs,assistant vice president for StudentAffairs, assistant vice president forAcademic Affairs, and acting vicepresident for Student Affairs. Deemserved three terms on the EvansvilleVanderburgh School Board.Pam’s employment in Evansvillehas included positions as a kindergartenteacher, director of a large day-care center, vice president of a local corporation,and others. She retired in December 2005from Fifth Third Bank, where she hadworked for 13 years.The Deems have indicated theywant to make a number of scholarshipawards from the fund each year. BecauseJohn is a business faculty member andPam is a 1983 elementary educationgraduate, they are especially interestedin recognizing students majoring inbusiness and education. They also wantto help students involved in athletics.The Deems have been active with theVarsity Club since its founding.The USI faculty/staff and studentsare important to John Deem.“The quality of the employees andtheir dedication to getting things doneand meeting the needs of our studentsare exceptional,” he said. “There hasalways been somebody who would stepforward and take care of any issue thatcame about. Also, the quality of ourstudents is special. They are dedicatedto learning and want to succeed.“USI has been a major part of ourlives. I can’t imagine having the opportunity anywhere else that I’ve had here.This is our chance to give back.”All five of the Deems’ grandchildrenhave been involved in USI activities suchas sports camps, art classes, ActivitiesProgramming Board events, and Dayat the Zoo.University of Southern Indiana

USI Foundation presents awardsfor excellence in learningTen students, two from each of the University’s five colleges, are thefirst recipients of USI Foundation Awards recognizing excellencein learning.Because of generous donors to the USI Annual Fund, the Foundationwas able to establish these awards in 2006. Student awards are 1,000 each.The criteria for the awards vary among colleges, but have a general theme.They recognize academic excellence, effective communication skills, and ashow of promise in a chosen field.Bower-Suhrheinrich College ofEducation and Human Services2006-07USI FoundationwardsAfor earningLLindsey Hasenour,elementary education,Ferdinand, IndianaAmber Wischmeier,elementary education,Seymour, IndianaCollege of BusinessCollege of Liberal ArtsJennifer Heidler,business/marketing,Merrillville, IndianaCharles Aull,history,Boonville, IndianaJacey Riggs,marketing,EvansvillePott College of Scienceand EngineeringAshley Marshall, healthservices/Spanish,IndianapolisAllison Czubik, mathteaching,Merrillville, IndianaUniversity of Southern IndianaWorks of art from the diversecollection of Evansville native BettyZutt are on view in the McCutchanGallery in the Wright AdministrationBuilding.Zutt died February 2, 2006, atage 91, leaving bequests to the USIFoundation toenhance theElizabeth ZuttArt StudentEnrichmentProgram, whichshe establishedin 1998, as wellas a collectionof 22 works ofart. The enrichment fund, nowvalued at morethan 400,000,Indian Buddha bustsupports studentfrom the Zutt collectiontravel andprovides awards that enable studentsto purchase art supplies and admissionto exhibits, lectures, and other artrelated events. The sculptures andpaintings which she bequeathed forthe University’s teaching collectionwere accumulated over a lifetime oftravel throughout the world.Megan Fallon,theatre/art,Columbus, IndianaCollege of Nursing andHealth ProfessionsRachel Marie Scheu,pre-nursing,EvansvilleZutt collection on viewNicole Kuhlman,biology,Evansville7USI President H. Ray Hoops, thirdfrom left, presented a framed copy ofReflections, the newsletter of the USIFoundation planned giving society,to members of Betty Zutt’s family at areception in October. Accepting theremembrance are John Weber, a cousin,along with his wife Shirley, right. At leftis the Webers’ daughter, Susan McCool.The fall issue of Reflections featuredZutt’s gifts.Winter 2007

President’s Medal winnersWhere are they now?Anumber of years have come and gone since manyof the President’s Medal recipients earned theirundergraduate degrees and set out for careers or advancedstudy. Recently we caught up with some of these outstandinggraduates to see what they are doing today.President’s MedalThe President’s Medal recognizes commitment to academicexcellence and service to the University and community.It is the highest honor a University of Southern Indianagraduate can receive. From 1984-90, the award was presentedin the spring during Honors Week. The presentation hasbeen a feature of Commencement since 1991.Blending engineering with lawRonald K. Aust1985, electrical engineering technologyNow: Patent Attorney, Taylor & Aust PC, IndianapolisAustWinter 2007A guest speaker in a one-hour seminar course sowed the seed for the career thatRonald K. Aust pursues today.“There was a GE patent attorney who gave a presentation one day,” Aust said.“I don’t remember exactly what he said, but he planted the seed in my mind that thiswas a potential path.”A native of Huntingburg, Indiana, Aust grew up on a farm operating heavyequipment and went to work in area coal mines after high school. He was 25 yearsold when he enrolled at USI.“I had had five mining jobs in one year. I was so frustrated that I did what myfather wanted me to do. I decided to check into going to college,” he said.On a visit to USI he talked to Paul E. Bennett and Dr. William Thayer of thefaculty in electrical engineering technology.“Between the two of them, they convinced me to give it a shot,” said Aust, apartner in the Indianapolis law firm of Taylor & Aust.The firm provides legal counsel on matters relating to intellectual property law,including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. The legal practice of thefirm is both national and international in scope. Clients include Lexmark International,John Deere, Black and Decker Corporation, German-based Voith Paper, and NovatorAB of Sweden. The firm has eight attorneys.The years on the farm and in the coal mines turned out to be an asset to Aust’s work.8University of Southern Indiana

“Having the knowledge of heavy equipment helps when you’re working witha company like Deere. I was able to marry that knowledge with my undergraduateexperience and bring it all together in my current field. Those years became partof an overall education that helped prepare me for what I’m doing now,” he said.Before becoming an attorney, Aust had engineering jobs with Indiana TubeCorporation and ALCOA. He also was electronics program chair for IndianaVocational Technical College and was an adjunct instructor for USI. He completeda law degree at Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis in 1992.Confidence to leadJanet L. Seiler1986, managementNow: Vice President of Sales, mii Inc., Lincoln, IllinoisWhen Evansville native Janet Seiler enrolled at USI at age 21, she was a volunteerfirefighter for Perry Township and held a full-time job at the law firm of Kahn, Dees,Donovan, and Kahn.Upon graduation she joined the production management training program atAristokraft in Jasper, Indiana, and eventually became a plant manager. In 1990, sherelocated to Newton, Kansas, where she managed two facilities for Norcraft Company.With mii Inc. in Lincoln, Illinois, since 1994, she personally manages three largeaccounts and is responsible for the overall sales strategy. She also provides leadershipfor the project management group, purchasing, and inventory control. The companysells its store fixtures nationwide. Their metal and wood fixtures can be seen at almostany Walgreen’s drug store.Mentoring and nurturing by the USI business faculty were important to Seiler’sgrowth and development during her college years.“The skills they helped me develop gave me the confidence to lead an organization and the foundation to go on for advanced study,” she said.Seiler earned an M.B.A. from Ball State University through distance learningin 1991. In the area of community service, she has been involved over the years withthe Chamber of Commerce, the United Way board of directors, and the LincolnJunior Women's Club.PresidentialMedal recipien

USI Magazine is published three times annually by the University of Southern Indiana for its alumni and friends. Vice President for Advancement Sherrianne Standley Director of News and Information Services Kathy Funke Director of Alumni and Volunteer Services Nancy Johnson '83 M'95 Editor Betty R. Vawter Contributing Editors Wendy Knipe .