January 1, 2013 Valencia Collects NSCAA Academic Honor KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Senior midfielder Mollie Valencia was one of only five MIAA women's soccer players to be named to the 2013 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) College Division Women's Scholar All-North/Central Region list. January 1, 2013 World Cinema Festival Feb. 11-15 : Women Make Movies 2013 The Saint Mary's College Center for Women’s Intercultural Leadership (CWIL) will host the World Cinema Festival: Women Make Movies, Monday, February 11 through Friday, February 15. The award-winning films, which are free and open to the public, will be shown in the Vander Vennet Theatre on the ground level of the Student Center each night at 7 p.m. January 1, 2013 College Announces Major Gifts Director Saint Mary’s College is pleased to announce and welcome Emily James as major gifts director. James brings an energetic and dynamic approach to this position, which she began in September. In her new role, James will initiate and strengthen relationships with donors, resulting in increased investment in the College. Her arrival comes at an opportune time, as the College is in the midst of the $80 million Faith Always, Action Now campaign, the largest in Saint Mary’s history. January 1, 2013 Saint Mary’s College Announces 2013 Commencement News The College is proud to announce the 2013 Valedictorian is Allison Sherman, a computational mathematics major from Batavia, Illinois. The 2013 Commencement Speaker is social entrepreneur Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book, a non-profit that provides new books to children in need. She will receive an honorary doctor of humanities degree, as will Jennifer Mathile Prikkel ’95, a philanthropist, mentor, advocate, and entrepreneur whose list of priorities includes women’s access to quality education and fulfilling employment. January 1, 2013 Choirs to perform in Spring Choral Concert 2013, May 2 The Saint Mary’s College Department of Music will present the Spring Choral Concert with performances by the Saint Mary’s Women’s Choir and Collegiate Choir. The concert will take place on Thursday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Little Theater of the Moreau Center of the Arts. January 1, 2013 Political science professor on the impact of Sequestration (Fox 28) President Barack Obama signed the sequester order Friday night that triggered $85 billion in mandated budget cuts. The cuts will be gradual, for the most part, taking months for most Americans to feel. Maybe that’s why most Americans don’t seem to care about the issue. Political science professor Patrick Pierce told Fox 28, “This seems like the same old game played out again. There seems to be a fatigue on the part of the public…if there was great public outrage it would change the politics that’s there.” January 1, 2013 Zimmer to be Commencement Speaker (The Observer) Social entrepreneur Kyle Zimmer will be the Commencement speaker for the Saint Mary’s College Class of 2013. Zimmer is the president and CEO of First Book, a non-profit organization that provides books to children in need. She founded and became president of First Book in 1995, and the organization, under her leadership, has distributed over 100 million books to children nationwide, according to the press release. Senior Silvia Cuevas, senior class president, said she is looking forward to Zimmer’s address. January 1, 2013 Four New Members to the Board of Trustees Announced Saint Mary’s College welcomes four members to the Board of Trustees. Elected to the board are Sister Alma Mary Anderson, CSC ’65, Russell L. Blackwell, and Anne Meagher Northup ’70. Malea Schulte ’14 was appointed as the student trustee. The terms began in June. January 1, 2013 Professor Emerita of Business Named Fulbright Scholar Saint Mary’s College is proud to announce that the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board has selected Susan Vance, professor emerita of business law and accounting, as a Fulbright Scholar Grantee to Thailand. Beginning in November, Vance will spend four months as a Fulbright Scholar in Residence at the College of Management at Mahidol University (CMMU) in Bangkok.