By the 1974 Golden Grads Reunion Committee

Looking out the windows of the O’Hare/Rockford bus or from the comfort of our parents’ cars, we drove past endless cornfields as we made our way to a college campus many of us had not ever set foot on, in a city we hadn’t heard of before the first recruitment letter arrived. Excited, curious, anxious, and hopeful, we arrived from large cities, small urban communities, and foreign countries, (from 32 states and 7 countries to be exact) to become the faces that would make up Rockford College’s Class of 1974.

We arrived in the summer of 1970 with the war in Vietnam still raging and the threat of being drafted, the Kent State (in Kent, Ohio) shootings still raw in our minds, and riots in East Los Angeles being front page news. Soon to be given the right to vote with the swipe of a pen by President Nixon, we would finally have a voice and we were ready to be heard.

Over the next four years, dressed in our bell-bottom, hip-hugger jeans with frayed hems, wide belts, and sandals, we fought for “freedoms” from the restrictive social rules left over from the 60’s and did not acquiesce to new rules without protest! Freshman women had curfews and did not receive key cards for their dorms until the second semester.

There were strict visitation hours, and no alcohol was allowed. Change did not come as quickly on campus as it was coming on the news broadcasts. January 1973, saw the passage of Roe v. Wade; in October 1973; and the legal age for beer and wine changed from 21 to 19 in Illinois.

Distrust of government officials and authority, in general, permeated much of our thinking at the time and affected our relationship with the College administration. Outrage over the required forum series and requisite punch cards to ensure attendance along with disbelief over a student being suspended for stealing toilet paper led to animated and often heated meetings on campus. Our shared sense of righteous indignation brought us closer together!

Perhaps one of the most consequential choices we made 50 years ago was the decision to attend a small liberal arts college. Here we were taught to think critically and creatively. We were inspired by professors who cared about their students, were passionate about their disciplines, and challenged us. Who can forget the required reading our freshman year—African Genesis and The Medium is the Massage. Clark Arts Center was dedicated in the spring of 1970 and offered access to the studio arts to many of us for the first time.

In 1970, Rockford College sat at the edge of the city. One would pass it on the way in or out of town, but the beautiful new buildings and campus were self-contained. We ate, slept, and played there. And did we ever play! 

The small, intimate classes made it easy to meet other students, and we soon felt like we knew everyone including the townies who were very much a part of campus life. Without cell phones, we had to venture out into the hallways, common areas, and other dorms to find out who was doing what and where the parties were on any given night.

We looked forward to October Day when classes were suddenly canceled, in the winter we “borrowed” trays from the cafeteria to go traying at the dam, went to “tape” dances, played tug-of-war in the mud, listened to music in our own “coffee house,” and cheered on the soccer, baseball, basketball, and IM (intramural sports) teams. We were especially proud of our champion swimmers!

We are the Golden Grads this year! In September (of 2024) we will come together again to laugh and share memories and see each other just as we were in 1970. It will be time to come clean—How often did you sneak out after curfew? How often did you stay in the wrong dorm? 

Was a freshman men’s dorm a good idea? Did you ever return your trays after sledding on them? Do you remember that earthquake? Who got caught climbing out of a dorm room? 

The story of our class is as unique as our classmates. Thanks for the friends and memories, RC. Looking forward to seeing you again in September!

–-

1974 Golden Grads Reunion Committee:

• Pam Brueckner Tannura
• Emily Kehoe Johnson
• Robert Herdegen
• Nancy Magnuson Gough 
• Robert “Huffer” Gough 
• Michael Anthony 

—

This article is from the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

By Sara Myers, Digital Media & Communications Specialist

RU Student Faith Gomez was mentored by Dr. Filiz Dik, Dr. Deepshikha Shukla, and others in the SMN (Science, Math & Nursing) College and was awarded a $2,500 grant to create a STEM camp for middle school girls called “InnovateHer.” 

The event will be held tentatively this fall 2024 and include 30 girls from local middle schools. 

Gomez is majoring in biochemistry and minoring in gender studies. 

“Despite coming in on a grant for women in STEM I didn’t see a lot of outreach specifically for women in STEM even though we’re still underrepresented in the professional space,” Gomez said. “As a historically women’s college, I thought that it might be beneficial both for our history and for outreach purposes to create a more women-centric event, for STEM specifically.”

She had the idea for the camp for a while but it finally came to fruition when she started looking for grants when she was working on her capstone project. 

“I want the activities to be focused on what the mentor is doing with their career in STEM,” she said. “For example, there’s a student who wants to get a master’s in forensic chemistry and she got into chemistry programs. I want her to feel like she can do a fingerprinting experiment and she can talk about how she found chemistry as a viable career path and what they have in Rockford.”

Gomez graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Biochemistry in May 2024. 

—

This article is from the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

Though she grew up in San Diego, California, RU Alumni Emily Hartzog’s mother convinced her to look at a small, private school in Illinois when Hartzog was looking at colleges. 

Her mother grew up in Rockford and suggested she look at Rockford University while Hartzog was originally looking at bigger schools in California to attend. Schools like the University of California San Diego (UCSD), the University of California, Los Angeles, and Pepperdine University were originally on her list.

“They (Rockford) were the only school that took the time for personal attention, and UCSD is not going to call you personally and say we hope you attend,” Hartzog said. “You’re one of 100,000 students.”

She said she remembers receiving the Rockford viewbook and seeing the campus with its shades of green that she had never seen growing up on the West Coast. 

“I started as an anthropology, sociology major,” she said. “I think I wanted to go into corporate mediation, which is pursuing a law degree. I think over time, I just found myself leaning toward business. It was unintentional.”

Some of Hartzog’s favorite classes at Rockford were with business professor Gary Lubbert. She said he brought in a lot of practical business knowledge and went beyond the textbook.

“It was fundamentals and you just have to have been in the business world, especially on the marketing side. He was just so passionate about it. His classes were so fun and engaging.”

Hartzog also enjoyed Jeff Fahrenwald’s classes, where the professor discussed leadership and the organizational side of business. 

During her time at Rockford, she was very involved as a member of the dance team, a student activities committee member, and a resident advisor. She said it was nice how quickly she was able to get involved on campus, and how you don’t have to be in a leadership position. She recalls going to a national conference with the student activities committee and winning an award.

After graduation in 1998, Hartzog was offered a full-time position in Rockford’s admissions office. She had been working part-time in the office during her last semester in undergrad when her friend in the admissions office went on maternity leave and she was asked to help fill the gap in the intermission.

Once her friend came back from leave, the office asked if she was interested in taking on transfer recruitment and performing arts recruitment. She took the position and started to study for her MBA during night classes.

“It was a lot of fun and travel and in admissions,” she said. “I was still close to the college world. I could speak authentically to the experience and I got my MBA at the same time, so it was great.”

Hartzog went on to work at SupplyCore after meeting the HR director in her MBA classes. This position was a big learning curve and her first step into the business world. There, she wrote press releases, reviewed government contract proposals, and helped with training other employees.

She said it was not easy to leave SupplyCore and move on to the Rockford Public Library, she got to be a director, which ultimately solidified her decision to move into that role. 

“It was a step up in my career and being the one responsible for managing a budget and taking on all sorts of projects,” she said. “In my time at the library, we rebranded, which was huge. It’s a huge project. I integrated a whole new library system, which had a technical component but also had a communications component and a training component.” 

Since 2013, Hartzog has worked at Chartwell Agency, where she recently was promoted to President. She was initially recruited when the agency was a “traditional public relations agency.”

Since then, the agency has grown immensely. It has a fully in-house creative team that includes videography, photography, and web development. She adds that the agency’s roots are still in public relations and storytelling.

“I think our growth and my changing role are almost kind of symbolic of marketing as a whole and continue to evolve, the mediums we use continue to change the expectations of people receiving our messages, and how brands need to connect continues to change,” she said. “It’s almost like a metaphor, how much we’ve grown, how much we’ve evolved, and how much you have to do as a marketing agency.”

—

This article is from the 2023-2024 issue from Catalyst. 

By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

Rockford University MBA (Master of Business Administration) Alumnus Quentin Hernandez came to the U.S. to get his bachelor’s degree first in 2018.

Hernandez was recruited to attend RU by a former basketball coach. The opportunity was very appealing to him because, in his home country of France, he could not attend college and play basketball simultaneously. Hernandez studied Computer Science Management with a minor in Business Administration 

“I really got to experience the honeymoon phase when I first came in 2018,” he said. “Everything is amazing, you love the food and it’s a dream coming true. A few months later, you get to notice the differences and you get to see that it’s not as perfect as you wish it was.”

He adds that he was able to make great friends and get lots of support through this time. He ended up sticking it out, and realizing that there are a lot of differences but that they aren’t good or bad, he said. 

After graduating with his bachelor’s in fall 2021, Hernandez returned home to France and worked briefly with Airbus Helicopter as a data analyst. In the fall of 2022, he returned to RU to get his MBA in Finance.

“I came back for my master’s for multiple reasons. I was working in France after graduating with my bachelor’s degree. I moved back and found a job. I wanted to get a master’s degree, and I liked my experience of moving to a new country. I got the chance when I was contacted by the Office of Global Affairs. RU offered me a graduate assistantship.”

When Hernandez came back to RU to get his MBA, he learned about the complex admission process for international students as he worked alongside Executive Director of Global Affairs Maria Diemer, Associate Director of Global Affairs Julie Griffith, Coordinator of Global Affairs/ English as a Second Language Maggie Kasicki and more. 

“Global Affairs was an amazing experience,” he said. “First of all, it’s an amazing team. Maria Diemer is a great leader, and working with Maggie, Julie, and Fred was amazing. It was an amazing thing to go to every day. It was a positive office where things were getting done and we were all helping each other out.”

One of the most memorable events for Hernandez that he helped put together was Saudi National Day. He said it was great to see Saudi students getting more involved after the COVID-19 crisis, and he loved getting to dress in traditional Saudi Arabian clothes with his friends from Saudi Arabia and the whole Global Affairs office. 

During his time studying for his MBA, Hernandez had a great time getting to know his professors like Dr. Luis Romero, Chair of the PURI School of Business, Associate Professor of Economics, Business, and Accounting; and Director of the MBA Program; and Professor of Economics, Business & Accounting, and Ludwig Von Mises Chair of Economics, Masoud Moallem. 

“I feel like we have such diversity among the teachers that you can more or less connect with all of them as long as you’re interested in what they teach,” he said. 

Hernandez’s favorite class was the MBA capstone class, the final class he took to get his MBA. 

“It was a group project and I got to have amazing people on my team, who were all from different backgrounds,” he said. “One person had experience teaching in college when he worked as an accountant. Another was an international student like me.”

His favorite moment at RU was when he graduated alongside his MBA classmates. For Hernandez, walking on the stage to receive his diploma was the final check in the box for him. Hernandez’s family came to Rockford from overseas to see him graduate which meant a lot for him, he said.

“I was working within our Office of Global Affairs, doing a good job, getting my MBA with a 4.0,” he said. “I had expected myself to accomplish all these things. Doing it with my close family and friends was something I cherish forever.”

Hernandez now works as a Data Governance Manager at Airbus Helicopter in Grand Prairie, Texas.

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

by Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

Rockford-born and raised graphic design graduate Geniss Scharnweber ‘24 was described by some as a “nontraditional student.”

Scharnweber did not decide to attend college until she was in her late 30s. She said she married young and had four children during her 20s.

Before attending Rock Valley College for her associate’s degree, Scharnweber worked as a chef for 8 years. During that time she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder, psoriatic arthritis. She could not work long hours on her feet anymore and went to study at RVC.

She graduated with her associate’s in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. She spent the next year and a half homeschooling her children. She realized during that time that she wanted to continue her education and pursue a bachelor’s degree. 

“I realized that I need to be able to do something more than just work in an office,” she said. “I looked at the opportunities around us, and RU was such a good fit, and it’s a great university.”

During her time at RU, she discovered she enjoys working with ink and can usually be found working on ink painting, printmaking, or sewing. During our interview, Scharnweber motioned to her purse, which had an original design she created on it. She adds that she enjoys multimedia projects and figuring out ways to make her art “useful.”

She also said she has not had a professor she did not love. Scharnweber has thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Bethany Twitty’s Abnormal Sociology, and art history classes taught by Dr. Jennifer Langworthy.

“Professor (Christopher) Sisson taught me so much about just hierarchy and how to lay my stuff out,” she said. “I had all the tools and ways to use them, but now he’s teaching me to make it the best can with those tools. Professor (Dave) Menard is just great all the time; he’s hilarious. I love them; it’s been a really good experience.” a half homeschooling her children. She realized during that time that she wanted to continue her education and pursue a bachelor’s degree.

Scharnweber does not yet have a plan for after graduation but she is hoping to find a remote job so she can work from home in a setup she’s comfortable in. Scharnweber graduated in May 2024 as a MacLeish Scholar with a BFA in Studio Art and Graphic Design.

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

by Kayla Eddy, Social Media & Web Coordinator

On Saturday, April 28th, the Rockford University Performing Arts Department and Friends of the Performing Arts (FOPA) hosted

A Celebration of 41 Years of Costume Design. The fashion show honored former RU professor and designer, Jeff Hendry, showcasing 41 of the costumes he designed for shows on campus and beyond.

The show also served as a fundraiser for the performing arts trip to Scotland in which students performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August. While FOPA set a goal of $5,000 for the event, the Rockford community came together and raised $7,500!

Notable models included Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara, State Representative Dave Vella, and State Senator Steve Stadelman, who walked the runway alongside students, alumni, faculty, staff, and community members! 

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

Some may say that Ari Norris was born to be an artist, having been raised by two artists. Norris’ parents taught art classes at Muskegon Community College in Muskegon, Michigan, where he grew up. 

However, Norris differentiates from his parents regarding medium. His parents are painters, whereas Norris found his love of sculpting during his first year at Muskegon Community College. 

That’s where Norris took a class on the history of the Civil War, which included a field trip to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

“I just thought it was a trip to Gettysburg for a weekend,” Norris said. “I just thought it was a great way to see something new. I met Gary there, and I wrote (to) him later. That was just an attempt at finding an opportunity.”

Gary Casteel is a nationally recognized sculptor and the last living artist to produce a monument in the Gettysburg National Military Park. Casteel presented his sculpture of General James Longstreet during Norris’ class trip. 

Norris was inspired by Casteel’s work and wrote to him to ask if he needed an apprentice. Casteel agreed, and Norris spent two summers in Pennsylvania working with him. Toward the end of his second summer, Norris started to work on his sculpture “The Doris Rucks Memorial Sculpture,” located at Muskegon Community College.

“He instructed me through it and showed me not just the sculpting process but also how to invoice a client, and manage those tasks as a 21-year-old.”

Norris’ piece was sculpted in clay during the summer of 2017 and dedicated in 2018 once the bronze cast was done. 

He met Professor Frank Trankina at a portfolio review day at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. That interaction convinced him to attend Northern Illinois University. In 2018, he transferred to NIU in DeKalb, where he received a BFA in sculpture and an MA in metalwork, jewelry design, and digital fabrication. 

Once he graduated with his master’s, Norris became an artist-in-residence for 18 months at the Art Casting of Illinois, Inc. in Oregon, Illinois. He used the foundry to cast his sculptures. 

It was in August 2022, when he had a conversation with a friend who was leaving their job as Art Gallery Director at Rockford University. Norris’ friend asked him if he would be interested in the job. It was part-time, which was perfect for Norris as he wanted to spend the rest of his time working on another sculpture of his that would eventually become “Band Together” at Rowan Park in Muskegon Heights, Michigan. 

Norris took the job and has been Art Gallery Director at RU ever since. As the director, his main job is to curate shows. He searches for two artists that work well together and asks the artists around 6 to 12 months in advance if they would be interested, and if they say yes, that gives them enough time to start planning. Norris will often travel and meet artists in their studios. Sometimes he will book solo shows for just one artist. 

For example, a recent show by artist Esau McGhee examined the 10 years after he completed his MFA at Northwestern University in 2013. The retrospective survey show was called: “Long Time No See (Exhibit A).” 

When he’s not working on his duties as gallery director or working on his art, Norris has recently started teaching drawing classes at RU.

“I’m really glad I got my MA from NIU, otherwise, I would not be able to do that,” he said. “It’s been a blast learning, and learning through teaching.”

Norris’ last sculpture, “Band Together,” took about 22 months to complete. He worked out of his parents’ studio in Muskegon to create the piece. 

“The studio was my parents’ studio, but they don’t work on that scale anymore,” he said. “They made a series of collaborative paintings for about 15 years that are in the 12-foot range. I just started moving more things (in the studio). As long as I was getting commissions (they said) they can justify holding on to it for me.”

He adds that most of his sculpture work has been commissioned by Michigan groups, so it made sense to keep his “statue studio.”

When it comes to balancing his artwork and working as a gallery director, Norris is still trying to achieve that balance.

“Gary always stressed the idea of rotating in threes,” he said. “You have one piece at a Foundry being made, one piece that you’re sculpting, and back at the studio, the third piece is in the works. I just haven’t gotten to that rotation yet. Right now after this large piece (has been completed), I can enjoy a little bit of a breather.”

You can see all of Norris’ work on his two websites: arinorris.us and norrisstatues.com.

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

by Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

For alumna Lisa Blakeley-Snyder (‘17), traveling far from home was not in the cards for college. She did not want to go too far from Rockford, her home since middle school. She looked at schools in Wisconsin and near Chicago, but she also knew she wanted to continue playing softball.

It was her Winnebago High School softball coach, Annie Getschel, who told her about Rockford University, where Getschel was coaching softball at the time. 

“She didn’t persuade me by any means, but it had the best financial aid package of any of the schools that I toured,” Blakeley-Snyder said. “Which was important because throughout my time at the university, I never took out any student loans and I just paid as I was going.”

Blakeley-Snyder received her B.S. in psychology and a minor in business from RU in 2017. She said that earlier in life, she wanted to “change the world” and help people, so she originally planned to pursue a career in counseling or social work. 

Some of her favorite classes at RU were taught by Dr. Joel Lynch in the Psychology Department. In those classes, she realized she could help people be happier in their careers if she worked in the human resources (HR) realm and decided to pursue a minor in business.

Though she did not live on campus, she made sure to be involved during her undergrad years. One of Blakeley-Snyder’s good friends was an RA (Resident Advisor) who hosted many dorm events that Blakeley-Snyder would attend and help coordinate. 

“One of my favorite ones was when she had a luau-themed spring event,” she said. “I helped her set up the punch bowl. Then we made sure to decorate a little gathering space in the dorm room with Hawaiian decorations, and we had our Hawaiian shirts on.”

She also participated in intramurals, like basketball and dodgeball, and attended student life events like Casino Night and Bingo. In addition, she played on the softball team while she pursued her bachelor’s degree. 

She decided to further her education and received her Master of Business Administration (MBA) in 2020. During that time she worked in the RU’s Office of Admissions and coached softball. Blakeley-Snyder had multiple roles in the admissions office including Undergraduate Admissions Office Aide, Adult & Graduate Admission Specialist, and Adult & Graduate Admission Recruiter. 

She left RU in 2020 to pursue a career at Road Ranger where she still works today.

At Road Ranger, she started as an HR representative. She had known for a while that she wanted to get into the HR field, but she was having trouble finding a company that would hire her due to her lack of HR experience. She explained that Road Ranger was the company that gave her a chance.

Blakeley-Snyder soon moved into a recruiting manager role. She knew that with her recruiting background, it would be something that she could excel in.

“One of my favorite parts of my job is I have a lot of autonomy and I make a lot of important decisions for the company. I’m interested in doing that, and I travel almost once a month.”

She’s been able to meet and train people for in-person, entry-level jobs like a cashier for one of the local truck stops. She adds that her MBA program helped her grow confidence in herself for the position she’s in now.

“The MBA program helped me—not that I was super reserved— but it helped get me more elevated and out of my comfort zone,” she said. “To the point where I said, ‘We’re a bulk-hiring group, I have no problem doing group presentations in front of 40 people or directing different big top items, including partnering with people in a much higher position, and then also knowing my voice has a reason.’”

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist 

David M. Koch always tells his friends and anyone curious that he didn’t mean to end up in the restaurant business, he found himself there by accident. Koch obtained an accounting degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1970 and later in 1986, received his Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Rockford University. 

By 1992, he became CFO at the plastic manufacturing company the Nordic Group in Baraboo, Wisconsin. He was there for 10 years and through that position got to know a man named Craig Culver. Craig Culver started the now-popular restaurant Culver’s in Wisconsin. 

Culver is from Sauk City, the town next door to Baraboo. Culver and Koch became friends and Koch watched as Culver’s restaurant became successful. In 1999, Koch thought starting a Culvers store in the Rockford area would be a good investment.

“I did not intend to go into the restaurant business,” Koch said. “My oldest son (David K. Koch) started the store that was on Harrison Avenue. That was in 1999. We started the business. We built the second one and the third one. Pretty soon it’s this business that’s arrived and it’s growing.”

The investment was a big success. Koch and his son own the Culvers in Rockford and Roscoe, one in Lombard, Illinois. He’s currently working on building four more Culvers in Sarasota, Florida, and Parish, Florida. In total, there will be 10 Culvers stores that the Kochs own.

Around nine years ago, he purchased Mary’s Market in Rockford. Koch had known the previous owners from doing shows and events together like the Rockford Airfest that previously happened at the Chicago Rockford International Airport. When the previous owners wanted to sell the restaurant, they immediately thought of the Koch family.

Koch also owns a small tool manufacturing company in Rockford called TECm. 

“Being a CPA, I do the business,” Koch said. “We have a little corporate headquarters on 4343 State Street next to Mary’s (Market) there. I have a small group of professionals there who really do all of the staff work there. We have 500 employees when you look at all the locations combined and they do the payroll for 500 employees every two weeks.”

Koch, who now lives in Sarasota with his wife (also an RU grad), adds that both of his sons, David and Aaron, are his business partners and managers who update him constantly on the day-to-day aspects of the stores. 

“I’ll be honest with you, I don’t work that many hours anymore,” he said. “I just am involved in the key decisions. Then I still get a paycheck. The second thing is, I’m building a business to pass along to the family.” 

Koch said he’s fortunate to have a good brand like Culvers that has done well. 

“I learned from Craig Culver along the way and he started the same way, his family was always in the restaurant business,” Koch said. “He had an idea. It really didn’t go well at first, the first couple of stores just kind of bumped along. The key to business success is persistence. Now, he’s got 900 stores.”

Koch adds that his family tries to bring good products to our customers with both brands, Culvers and Mary’s Market.

“I think it’s true of anybody whatever opportunities become available to you, analyze those and take advantage,” he said. 

—

This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst. 

Rockford, Ill. (Sept. 4, 2024)– The students, faculty, staff, and alumni of Rockford University — the region’s leading private four-year institution — will spend Wednesday, September 11, 2024, giving back to the Rockford community during its annual Day of Service.

In celebration of Rockford University’s most famous alumna, Jane Addams — and her September birthday — the campus is joining as a community to celebrate her legacy and our institutional commitment to her values. 

“Jane Addams Day of Service recognizes the birthday and the enduring legacy of Addams and her commitment to working for the common good,” said Mary Weaks-Baxter, Ph.D., Director of the Jane Addams Center for Civic Engagement at Rockford University. “Our hope is that this Day of Service can be an opportunity for us to consider ways we can reach out to communities in need and recognize how community engagement and activism can unite us in the common goal of working for the betterment of our society and world.”  

The 2024 Day of Service will benefit local organizations, including Burpee Natural Museum of History, Discovery Center, Rockford Rescue Mission, Beyer Stadium, Midway Village, and more. 

Students, faculty, and staff will also participate in on-campus projects to spruce up Scarborough Hall, create care bags for the Amberwood Nursing Home in Starr Science Center, and help renovate the Colman Library. 

Local media is invited to attend the event starting at 8:30 a.m. The volunteers, students, staff, and faculty will check in for the day in Lot A at Rockford University’s campus at 5050 E. State St. in Rockford. Media should meet RU Marketing/Communications at check-in.

Off-Campus Photo and B-roll Opportunity:

• Media can also go to the Discovery Center, 711 N. Main St. in Rockford from 10 to 11 a.m. to meet with RU Marketing/Communications to take b-roll, as well.

Please RSVP to the event by emailing Sara Myers at SMyers@rockford.edu or Communications@rockford.edu by 8 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11.

CONTACT:

Sara Myers-Hogshead

RU Marketing & Communications

SHogshead@rockford.edu

815.394.5052

ABOUT ROCKFORD UNIVERSITY

Rockford University is a private four-year, co-educational institution founded in 1847 offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in traditional liberal arts and professional fields. The University offers more than 80 majors, minors, and concentrations, including the bachelor’s degree completion program for a B.S. in Management Studies. Through its Graduate Studies department, degrees are extended to include the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT), and Master of Education in Urban Education, (M.Ed.). 

Rockford University is home to one of only 11 Phi Beta Kappa (PBK) chapters in Illinois, the most prestigious honor society in the United States. Named by The Princeton Review as a Best Midwestern College and a U.S. News & World Report Best Midwest Regional University, Rockford University currently serves approximately 1,250 full- and part-time students.