20 Years Ago - Inspiration, Hope, and A Reason To Be Involved

NOTE: I am live at the Indiana State Fair today - blogging about the Barack Obama Rally for Change. I'm including just a small portion of it here - just cause it really applies to what I write about on Child of the Fort.

For information on today's rally, check out Fort Wayne Politics later - where my stuff will appear.

This is my first time blogging about anything remotely political but after thinking things over, I felt strongly that not being here today would be a big miss on my part.

Back in my younger years, I was quite the activist. Maybe I wasn't as "radical" as people wanted me to be but in my own way, I stood up for what I believed in and I was all about stickin' it to 'da man'.

I did a lot of that as a student at IPFW. After flunking out of school (I stopped attending because - I don't know - I was bored, indifferent, caught up in teenage angst...)...I decided to go back and try to get serious.

One of the electives I signed up for was Introduction to Sociology. Yawn. Snoozer. I mean really - a frickin lecture class which was three hours in length on some weekday night (I'm thinking it was a Tuesday night).

I couldn't have been more wrong in my assessment of this class.

I had one of the best professors ever - Patrick Ashton. He made me think. He made me care. At whatever age I was 18-19? - I started thinking about things other than myself. Along with my classmates, we took a long, hard look at the world around us....our community...poverty....child abuse....other social injustices. And by golly - that professor guy, he lit a fire of passion in my belly. But not just mine - others were affected as well.

Just when I thought I was home free, he mentioned towards the end of the semester that the chancellor at that time (NOT Joanne Lantz) had not supported his application/petition - whatever it was - for tenure. Seems that that administrivia person thought that he spent too much time teaching and not enough time researching.

James Craig and I, who became friends because of this class, looked at each other. So did Ashton totally blow off his responsibility for research? We did our own research and the answer was NO. There was oodles. And oodles. Maybe he did 10 things and the norm was 12 but then he taught 2x the amount of classes (to underclassmen) as others up for tenure.

It just didn't seem fair.

And I was pissed.

So, naive as I was, I did something that literally changed the course of my life. James Craig and I stayed after class one night and put together a petition. We worked tirelessly for two weeks. There were at least 10,000 students at IPFW at that time and we were able to procure thousands of signatures. I can't remember how many off the top of my head but it was a HUGE number.

I know that we pretty much stunned the IPFW Administrivia team. We hand-delivered a copy of our petitions but then we took it a step further. We got in a car and drove to Bloomington to see President Tom Ehrlich.

He saw us too. We were give 15 minutes with him in which we explained what was going on, why we were very passionate about this professor and how we spent two weeks gathering the signatures of fellow students.

I don't know what happened after that - but the next thing I knew - that Chancellor was gone, Joanne Lantz was in place and Patrick Ashton was now a tenured associate? assistant? professor.

When I saw him (Professor Ashton) next semester, I wasn't thinking at all about what *I* did. I was beaming at him because he made a tremendous difference in my life. And what I did? Oh my - it was the very least I could do.

19 & Addicted to Return of the Jedi

The year was 1986.

I was attending IPFW.
I was studying (and I use this term lightly) music.
I was young.
I was restless.
But I did not watch soap operas.

Instead, a fellow music major by the name of Andy Simmons - well he and I became friends.

And because he was ADHD challenged (like myself), we would often find excuses to skip out of our classes (me: Dr. Ator's) (him: still a mystery to me today).

Where would we go?

Glenbrook Mall of course.

What would we do?

We'd hit the arcade.

Although I was well-versed in the "usual" games (thanks to Gary and David), the stuff at Glenbrook - the recent batch they got in - was a little more intimidating to me.

Have no fear - Andy (or Squiggy as I called him) taught me the finer points of playing some of these new-fangled games. And one of those games was Return of the Jedi.

Confession: I've never seen Star Wars. Ever. Any of it. I've seen some movie stills. Maybe I've passed a poster. That's it.

Note: This is a sore point between my husband and I as in his view, I have not yet experienced true movie-going if I haven't seen Star Wars. People have often wondered if Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and other such media nonsense would end up driving us to divorce court. I'm happy to report - not yet.

So back to the game - Return of the Jedi. I used to stand to the side and watch Andy play it. I was charmed by the hoo-cha's! (that's so cute!) and yub-yub.

Other adorable phrases
Wonderful, we are now a part of the (?)
I have a really bad feeling about this....
We've got to give him more time!
Oh man oh buddy don't let me down!
The shield is down muffled talk
Here goes nothing!
It should be the power generator
Go for the power regulator on the north tower!

Here was the action going on
Look out for the trees! Ridin' a motorcycle is tricky.
Cool! A robot shooting at the logs and stones randomnly falling past you.
Don't run into the iron walls.
The fire is chasing me!

Let's face it. This game was Tron on steroids and buddy - I loved it.

June 1992 - "Two Roads Diverged In A Yellow Wood..."

June 1992.

Commencement was over. I had my bachelor's degree. I finished my stint at IPFW as Student Body President. I had a plan for the future. That future was not going to be in Fort Wayne - at least - temporarily.

You see, in 1992, the State of Indiana believed that if you wanted a Master's Degree in just about anything (aside from Elementary/Secondary Education), that meant that you had to either forego your education OR you needed to uproot yourself and your family and move to either West Lafayette or Bloomington.

But more on that later. (And much more - I might add.)

A few weeks prior to graduation, I.U. Board of Trustee member, John Walda (a Fort Wayne citizen, lawyer, and all-around - decent human being), had invited me to speak before the board in Richmond, Indiana (Indiana University East).

I had absolutely no clue what I would say. I mean really. I was a chick - from Fort Wayne - who wasn't a traditional student, who had no inclination to suck up to anyone (regardless of who they were), and most importantly - I was a chick who no longer had the official podium as a voice of the student body of IPFW.

Not one to do a lot of preparing (I like to fly by the seat of my pants), I waited until about 2 in the morning (the day of) to pull together my "speech". Thank gawd even Richmond, Indiana had a 24 hour store open. I had to have some props to accompany my last hurrah.

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MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF INDIANA UNIVERSITY
Indiana University East
JUNE 13, 1992

Trustees Present: President Richard B. Stoner, Vice President Harry L. Gonso, Dr. Joseph M. Black, Frederick F. Eichhorn, Milton "Josh" Fineberg, Robert H. McKinney, Ann W. Swedeen, John D. Walda, and Eric A. Todd.

University Representatives: President Thomas Ehrlich; Vice President and Chancellor: Gerald L. Bepko Vice Presidents: J. Terry Clapacs, Judith G. Palmer, George A. Walker, and Douglas M. Wilson; Steven A. Miller, Treasurer, Secretary of the Board, J. Susan Parrish; Chancellors: Gerald Bepko, H. Daniel Cohen, Peggy Elliott, Emita B. Hill, Joanne Lantz, Charlie Nelms, Leon Rand, Lloyd Rowe.

Attendees: Larry Baker, Ray Bonhomme, Ray Casati, Phyllis Clapacs, John F. Dalphin, Walter Daly, Bette Davenport, Tiffany Edwards, Kristina Frazier-Henry, Richard Fredland, Juliet Frey, David Fulton, James L. Green, Charles O. Hardy, Nancy Hardy, Ben Hunter, Margaret Mitchell, Jeanetta Nelms, Norman Overly, Jim Perin, Richard Peterson, Virginia Stoner, James Swedeen, Cliff K. Travis, Tambrey Williamson, Larry Willis; also, Melissa Tarrant, Recorder; and the staff of the University News Bureau. Also present were representatives of the news media.

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Remarks from Kristina Frazier-Henry, Past President, Student Association, Fort Wayne

Trustee Walda introduced Ms. Kristina Frazier-Henry, the past president of the Student Association at Fort Wayne. Ms. Frazier-Henry commented that though she has attended Trustee meetings for three years, this was her first opportunity to formally address the Board.

She reported that attending Board meetings had afforded her a clearer understanding of University operations.

In reflecting on the past three years, Ms. Frazier-Henry selected three items she urged the Trustees to consider.

First, she commended the Trustees for holding meetings on the regional campuses biennially, but recommended that one meeting be held on each campus annually.

Second, she stated that being a student at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne is like being the child of two parents who share custody because of the IU-Purdue management agreement. When both universities agree, the students certainly reap the benefits. However, it is very difficult when they do not agree. She stated that IPFW students need Indiana University as an advocate in matters that are not related to fiscal operations. She expressed her hope that the next review of the management agreement would bring better terms for IU's share of management. She recognized that it would be unrealistic to change the fiscal management of IPFW, but stated that she would like to see IU carry more weight in matters relating directly to students' rights.

Third, she addressed the issue of sexual orientation. She reported that all IU campuses except Fort Wayne include sexual orientation as a protected class in their student code of conduct. She stated that she understood that Purdue's legal counsel believes that this class is unacceptable. She pointed out that this class was deleted from the clause on protected classes a year ago, and since then, the IU Board of Trustees has not formally addressed the issue. She expressed disappointment on behalf of the student body at IPFW at the lack of attention to this item. She assured the Trustees that this issue will continue to come up until it is resolved, and she hoped it would be resolved soon.

Ms. Frazier-Henry expressed her gratitude to Trustee Walda for the positive impression he has made on her and other students. She praised his eagerness to discuss the students' ideas and criticisms, and his keen interest in the happenings of the individual campuses. She noted that he has always responded positively to her, even if they did not always agree. She stated that he has allowed the Student Affairs Committee to be a forum for some very important issues, and because of his leadership some of those issues have been resolved. She stated that the incoming student body presidents will bombard him with issues and concerns, she expressed concern because she knows he has many important tasks to accomplish. To assist him at the meetings next year, she presented him with a small troll figure holding a sign stating "Please, I can only do 12 things at once," and she urged him to put it in front of him at the committee meetings.

Ms. Frazier-Henry thanked Trustee Todd for his efforts on behalf of students in the past year. She noted that he had been the unanimous first choice to fill the position of Student Trustee, and that as Trustee, he has far exceeded her expectations. She conveyed her hope that his second year on the Board will be as successful as his first.

She thanked him for addressing the health insurance issue. She presented Trustee Todd with a toy medical kit which he could take to the campuses with him to help out if needed.

She stated that in addition to serving on the Student Affairs committee, Trustee Gonso is in charge of the compensation and benefits committee.

Although Purdue is IPFW's fiscal agent, the campus does have an IU affiliation, so she provided Trustee Gonso with $5 million in play money to give to IU faculty.

She addressed President Ehrlich, noting that he was indirectly responsible for her initial involvement in student government.

She cited a situation four years ago at the IPFW campus involving difficulty between a former chancellor and Dr. Patrick Ashton of the Sociology department. Ms. Frazier-Henry and Mr. James Craig sent a petition containing 3,500 signatures to President Ehrlich.

That fall, Dr. Ashton received tenure and that chancellor left Indiana. She stated that this situation convinced her that change could occur.

To help President Ehrlich deal with frustration, she presented him with a Supersoaker Water Gun, with the assurance that it has a range of thirty feet, and urged him to use it wisely.

In closing, she reported that she is not leaving IU, only changing campuses as she moves to Bloomington to pursue a master's degree in college student personnel administration. She thanked all the Trustees for the knowledge they have shared with her, especially concerning higher education.

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Trustee Walda stated that it has been a great pleasure working with Ms. Frazier-Henry over the last few years on multiple issues in Fort Wayne as well as University-wide issues.

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Walk On The Ocean - Toad the Wet Sprocket
We spotted the ocean at the head of the trail
Where are we going, so far away
And somebody told me that this is the place
Where everything's better, everything's safe

Walk on the ocean
Step on the stones
Flesh becomes water
Wood becomes bone

And half and hour later we packed up our things
We said we'd send letters and all those little things
And they knew we were lying but they smiled just the same
It seemed they'd already forgotten we'd came

Now we're back at the homestead
Where the air makes you choke
And people don't know you
And trust is a joke
We don't even have pictures
Just memories to hold
That grow sweeter each season
As we slowly grow old

David Parmer Swinehart

I started out as a music major in college.

I wandered around, stopped attending classes (nothing I would recommend - as it constitutes a "flunking out" black hole on your transcript), sat out, enrolled elsewhere, and came back to where I started - IPFW.

When I came back - heck - I didn't know what I wanted to do. I just knew that I needed to get a degree. Also, I wanted to take courses that would not bore me to death. After all, interest was key for me and that attend-your-class- thing.

After inhaling the "bulletin", one of the classes I settled on was an Introduction to Supervision. Boss people around...CHECK! That's something I was interested in :).

My professor was David P. Swinehart.

Now Swinehart - he wasn't outgoing and vivacious. He wasn't loud and obnoxious. He wasn't flashy.

What he was though, was thoughtful, insightful, and interesting. He was most excellent at bridging the classroom with reality. He was a good storyteller (the stories we heard about his time working as personnel director for Mayor Lebamoff - yowsa!). He was a good listener.

After taking his class, I decided to major in Organizational Leadership and Supervision and Professor Swinehart became my "official" advisor.

He was frickin' awesome because he got me. I think this was because he was a Libra (something which he used to laugh at when I brought up) . Regardless, Swinehart used his practical/pragmatic approach to keep me focused on the prize (i.e. get your damn degree already). He was honest and truthful (in a non-slam-on-your-fellow-colleague-way) about who were the best instructors (caveat: for ME).

I took classes from Pat Ashton and Bill Bruening because he said so.

I stayed away from classes with "X" and "Y" because he said so.

It was a good advisor/advisee relationship.

As time went on, Swinehart's availability became more limited because he was attending Law School at IUPUI (in the evenings). Literally, he would drive to Indy several days a week just to attend class. Dedication!!!

And the next part of the story should be - and they lived happily ever after....right? Well no.

Sadly on April 20, 1991, Professor Swinehart died at Parkview Memorial Hospital. It was quite upsetting and shocking for many of us and OLS was never the same. It was upsetting for me that he never got to see me earn my first degreee - and lord knows - the man pestered me enough to be there to see it happen!

The good news in this tragedy is that the students and faculty from OLS came together and created the David P. Swinehart Memorial Scholarship.

"This scholarship is given to an OLS major who most exemplifies Swinehart’s outstanding qualities of leadership ability, high academic performance, service to the school and community, and career development."

Seventeen years later - his legacy continues and if you're the lucky recipient for 2008 - know that this wasn't just some anonymous, scholarly, old-fogie, who pontificated from his tower about theories and what-if's. This was a man who left his mark on the world.

P.S. Who knew that way back then, one silly little intro class would have been the pebble that rocked my world - aka change my destiny forever?

"Two Men Look Out A Window...One Sees Mud, One Sees Stars," --- Oscar Wilde

Walb Memorial Student Union
Photo Credit: IPFW Web Site

October 15, 1991 - Should have been a regular fall day but it was not. We were all busy that day preparing the Walb Memorial Union Ballroom for the mayoral debate between current Mayor Paul Helmke and his democratic challenger, Charlie Belch.

While my friends Janet Ausbury (IPSGA right hand woman) and Mike Wills (IPSGA Senator extraordinaire) were ensuring that the meat of the questions were coming together, I was in my office (Walb 224?) juggling the phone calls of local reporters.

The people who served (whether they liked it or not) as my surrogate parents -

Marian Adair Zimmerman, Dean of Students and Bill Frederick, Presiding Officer for the IPFW Faculty Senate and the two men who kept the campus on its toes - Steve Hollander (Prof - English) and

Mike Downs (Chair - Political Science) checked in on me to make sure that everything was going smoothly.

As the evening grew near, everything seemed to be under control. I thought that my biggest issue was about which dress I was going to wear to the event (p.s. - the more "grown-up" version won - it was red/white/blue - I kid you not).

I had responsibility to greet the candidates, introduce them to the audience, ensure that the place didn't get out of control during the formal debate, and then, wrap it up at the end.

A girl had to look good. And yes Virginia - everything had shoulder pads.

The moderator, Victor Locke, arrived.

You're going to laugh. I was a bit star-struck by Victor because I literally grew up listening to him on WOWO and then I watched him daily on WPTA 21Alive. He spent time with the appropriate individuals getting to know the logistics. Always the one who has the appearance of being under control, I was in admiration mode when I met him.

Mr. Belch and his entourage were the first to arrive. I walked with them to their official green room, making small talk along the way.

Mayor Helmke arrived soon thereafter and while he was polite and cordial, his handlers were keeping his busy so the small talk? Not so much.

Although I have extremely strong opinions about issues which are bantered about by the politician of the week, my head wasn't in that space that night. As the hostess with the most-ess, I was all about the guests - the logistics - and keeping to the time schedule.

With only a short time before kick-off, I stopped by Mr. Belch's room to ensure that he had what he needed before going on. Some question was asked by one of his campaign DUDES - something about the questions that were being asked and the order in which they would be asked. That was too detailed for me. There were two students that were appointed by the Student Senate from two separate Student Organizations and they were tasked with working with a group of individuals to come up with the questions. Beyond that - I didn't know if they were being asked in random order or if they were being grouped together by a theme...

As I started to open my mouth to say someone's name (who would obviously know more details than me), Senator X (who still to this day - wishes to remain nameless) - came rushing in to tell me that Paul was here and it was urgent that he speak to me.

This was most excellent news. With about fifteen minutes to spare, my friend Paul had manage to pick up my shoes from Glenbrook - the pair I had ordered - and they went perfectly with the dress I was wearing. This was a huge load off of my mind. I was concerned that I would have to wear these shoes with these tremendous high heels that didn't have any traction on the bottom of them. I surely didn't want to be poked fun at in The Communicator next week!

I smiled and said to Senator 'X', can you please ask Paul to meet me up in my office? I'll be there in just a few minutes.

When I turned back to talk to Mr. Belch and his entourage, I was met with the following:

ARE YOU TRYING TO SET ME UP?

Huh? I just looked at him. Stunned and confused look on my face. I didn't know what to say. I had never been yelled at by a mayoral candidate.

No sir I said.

And then I pretended that he had random Tourette's Syndrome and I pulled Mike W. over to answer Mr. Belch's logistical questions.

With eight minutes left to spare, I high-tailed it upstairs to my office and thankfully, Paul and my shoes were waiting for me. I swapped out bad heels with good heels and ran back down to start the show.

It wasn't until I was getting ready to wrap up the event (debate) that it finally hit me - Charlie Belch thought that I was meeting PAUL HELMKE up in my office. I started giggling uncontrollably and I came thisclose to being unable to perform my closing remarks duties.

After it was over, Senator 'X' and I laughed until we nearly pee'd our pants.

So you know the rest of the story - Helmke went on to win.