May meeting includes annual election
During the business portion of our May 22 meeting, members will elect UMRA’s leadership for 2018–19. The Board of Directors presents the following for your approval:
For officers:
President: Jerry Rinehart, pictured right (will automatically move from his current position as president-elect to president)
President-elect: Bill Donohue
Secretary: Lynn Anderson
Treasurer: Carl Adams (continuing his service)
For Board of Directors:
Frank Cerra
Claudia Parliament (for a three-year term)
Kaimay Yuen Terry
Gloria Williams (for second three-year term)
Please see page 4 of print newsletter for profiles of the candidates.
After their election the above members will join in leading the organization with UMRA’s new and immediate past presidents, Jerry Rinehart and Chip Peterson, respectively, and with the Board members who are continuing to serve out their terms: Vernon Cardwell, Will Craig, Cathy Gierke, Judy Leahy Grimes, Cherie Hamilton, Jeanne Markell, Kathleen O’Brien, and Richard Poppele.
Board members who are completing their terms are: past President Donna Peterson, Secretary Judy Garrard, and Board members John Howe and Steve Benson.
Please join in the festivities of the May reception and annual meeting to celebrate a successful year and to thank these members for their service and leadership.
— Nominating Committee: Donna Peterson, chair; Ginny Hanson, Earl Nolting, Jerry Rinehart, Pat Tollefson
President Kaler to keynote Annual Meeting in Campus Club West Wing
Tue, May 22 2018, 4pm
We are excited to welcome University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler as the keynote presenter at UMRA’s 2018 Annual Meeting on Tuesday, May 22, in the West Wing of the Campus Club. It has been a while since we’ve had the University president join us, and this perhaps makes the general theme of his talk particularly relevant: “Perspectives on the U Today and Tomorrow.”
We’re also excited about the new time, new format, and new location chosen for the meeting as part of the Board’s exploration of options to increase capacity and improve participant experience at UMRA’s monthly gatherings. The event will be an afternoon reception from 4 to 6 p.m. with a sumptuous buffet of hearty hors d’oeuvres for us to enjoy while socializing with friends and colleagues. The brief business part of the meeting will include the election of new Board members before it will be time for us to hear from our keynote speaker, President Kaler.
Among the important issues the president may include are the following:
- Legislative issues update
- President's Initiative to Prevent Sexual Misconduct
- System-wide Strategic Planning initiative
- Update on Grand Challenges efforts
- NCAA athletics issues; President Kaler is the Big Ten representative to the NCAA and chair of the NCAA Division I Board of Directors
Eric Kaler took office as the University’s 16th president in 2011. Since then, he has focused on core priorities: academic excellence, access for qualified students, stewardship of tuition and public dollars, diversity and a welcoming and respectful campus climate, a world-class research enterprise that aligns with the needs of the state of Minnesota and its industries, and a deep commitment to public engagement and outreach, locally and globally.
In 2014 and 2015, he led a strategic planning process with the Twin Cities campus that called for a rejection of complacency, a deep culture change, and curriculum and research approaches to the “grand challenges” facing our state, nation, and world. That plan is now being implemented.
President Kaler received his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University in 1982 and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2014. He is also the current chair of the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors.
—Gerry Rinehart, Program Committee chair
Upcoming Events
We are fortunate to have UMRA member and former Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director Peter Moe to lead this approximately 3.7-mile hike at the Arboretum on Monday, May 6. Plan to have lunch together after the hike at the Eatery café inside the Oswald Visitor Center.
This session will continue the discussion begun in the May 8, 2023 session. See that article for details.
If you currently live in your own home or apartment, have you looked ahead to when you might want to consider a senior living option? Do you have any idea what those options might be? How much they cost? What they provide? UMRA’s May 14 workshop will provide an overview of the world of senior living and the basic information you need.
You’re invited to join the final Family History Interest Group meeting for 2023–24. This will be an opportunity to ask questions related to family history, share insights, talk about recent projects, and suggest topics for next year.
Stephanie Daily will lead the discussion of Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by best-selling author Mary Roach when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17.
The May 20 hike will start at the Historic Lift Bridge in Stillwater and go along the river to the new bridge, cross over and then back on the Wisconsin side, a total of approximately 5 miles. Most of the route is paved. We will eat lunch after at Brian's Bar and Grill in Stillwater. Car pooling will be available.
Climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley joined the U of M faculty in 1978 and has been a weekly commentator on Minnesota Public Radio since 1992. We are honored to welcome him as our guest speaker for UMRA’s May Luncheon Forum and 2024 Annual Meeting. He is always entertaining and informative.
UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club welcomes back, for the second time, author Julie Schumacher, U of M Regents professor of creative writing and English, for a conversation about her novel The Shakespeare Requirement.
We are in for a treat on June 3! Lynn Anderson, will lead us on trails at two parks near her Monticello home. Bring a bag lunch and we will gather in Lynn's yard along the Mississippi River for eating and socializing after the hike.
Get out to the ballpark with fellow UMRA members for the annual U of M Day at Target Field as the Minnesota Twins take on the Oakland Athletics on June 14 at 7:10 p.m.
Please join us at 9:30 on June 17, 2024 for a walk around Lake Como in St. Paul before attending the UMRA Summer Social and Picnic starting at 11 at the Como Pavilion. A perfect opportunity to get in a walk before we gather to celebrate summer.
Picnic under the covered, open-air Como pavilion, gaze at the water, spy some birds, catch up with friends and former colleagues, and meet new members. We’ll have lunch with plenty of time for visiting and then compete in teams as we are challenged by our Quiz master(s)!
Healthy aging, mindfulness, fighting ageism, and more will be the focus of the third annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus.