Category: Top Stories

Kathryn Anderson, PhD, OLLU’s 2015-2016 Moody Professor, will present her public lecture, “Are you threatening me? Tests of the General Aggression Model with Brilliant McNair Scholars,” on Jan. 28 at 12:30 p.m. in Main Building, Room 311.

Dr. Anderson is chair and professor of the Psychology Department. Throughout the last 25 years, she has conducted research on situational and personality factors that cause aggression and violence, and she has recently focused on violence prevention and intervention.

She is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) and has served on the Executive Committee of the Psychology of Women Division of the APA. Her greatest professional accomplishment is conducting research with undergraduates, many of whom were in the McNair Scholars Program and whom she has helped to be admitted to and succeed in graduate school.

The Moody Professorship is a shared program with the University of the Incarnate Word (UIW). It was established in 1971 through a gift from the Moody Foundation of Galveston. It provides two endowed professorships each year – one at OLLU and one at UIW. Moody professors from both universities present lectures on each campus.

Yvette Benavides, MFA, professor of English, is the recipient of the 2015 Department for Culture and Creative Development Award for Literary Arts grant, presented by the Artist Foundation of San Antonio.

The awards are designed to recognize artistic achievement, dedication to an artistic discipline and the potential for further professional development. Awards are made for a proposed project, which may already be in progress.

Professor Benavides will be using her award to work on her novel-in-stories, “Pobrecito Texas,” about life on the U.S./Mexico border.

The west side of campus, with the exception of Main Building, will not have any heat today due to repairs in the Thermal Plant.

The President’s Council approved a revised version of the OLLU Nondiscrimination Policy in Dec. 2015. The entire policy can be viewed online at www.ollusa.edu/nondiscrimination or downloaded here.

Janie Barrera, member of the OLLU Board of Trustees and founding president and chief executive officer of LiftFund, will serve as commencement speaker during ceremonies on Dec. 19 at Freeman Coliseum, where OLLU will confer degrees for more than 300 undergraduate and graduate students.

Barrera has led LiftFund — created in 1994 — to hold the nation’s largest microlending portfolio. The nonprofit agency provides small loans and management training to microenterprises of all kinds — from startups to long-established businesses — and operates in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas.

Barrera is responsible for the LiftFund’s financial management, oversight of its annual budget and the development of methodology and loan delivery procedures. She has been named the Small Business Administration Financial Services Advocate of the Year and the Minority Enterprise Development Consortium’s Corporate Advocate of the Year. The San Antonio Business Journal listed Barrera as one of “Twenty Defining Players: People Who Have Helped Shape the City,” and also named her as one of 2013’s “Legacy Leaders.” She has served on many national, state and local boards, including the Federal Reserve Board’s National Consumer Advisory Council. President Barack Obama appointed Barrera to the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability and she also was named to the board of directors for the Federal Reserve of Dallas’ San Antonio Branch.

Graduation celebrations and preparations begin Friday with Ring Blessing and Graduation Liturgy.

The following is the schedule of events:

Friday

Ring Blessing – Noon – Sacred Heart Chapel
Students will have the opportunity to have their graduation rings individually blessed by OLLU Chaplain Very Rev. Kevin Fausz, CM, VU.

Graduation Liturgy – 3 p.m. – Sacred Heart Chapel
Graduating students and their families and friends are invited to celebrate Mass. Graduates put on their graduation hoods during the ceremony.

Saturday

Commencement Ceremonies – 11 a.m. – Freeman Coliseum located at 3201 E. Houston Street, 78219 – Check in for graduates begins at 9:30 a.m. Graduates should arrive no later than 10 a.m.

An Our Lady of the Lake University charm featuring an image of the Main Building is now available. The sterling silver charm is the perfect graduation gift. It is available for $50 through the Institutional Advancement Office in Moye Hall, Room 108. Cash, checks and credit cards will be accepted. Proceeds from the sale of the charms will go to The Lake Fund.

For more information, contact Alex Garcia at 210-434-6711, ext. 3955.

Physical Plant will be inspecting fire alarms next week. The alarms will go off during testing. The schedule for testing is below:

Dec. 21

• Main Building
• Walter Center
• Providence Hall
• Moye Hall
• International Folk Culture Center (IFCC)

Dec. 22

• Main Building (if not completed from previous day)
• Ann’s Hall
• Fine Arts Building
• University Wellness and Activities Center
• Pacelli Hall
• Ayres Hall
• Flores Hall
• Centennial Hall

Dec. 23

• Elliott House
• Metz Hall
• Casa Caritas
• Bookstore
• Sueltenfuss Library
• Jersig Center
• Worden School
• Martin Hall Annex

OLLU will close for Christmas break beginning Wednesday, Dec. 23. All offices will reopen Jan. 4, 2016. Have a blessed Christmas and New Year.

This will be the last edition of The Lake Weekly for the year. The newsletter will return at the beginning of the spring semester.

The President’s Council has approved a revised version of the smoking policy for the OLLU community. The update includes new designated smoking areas and applies to cigarettes, cigars, pipes, e-cigarettes, vaping and chewing tobacco.

Click here to see the entire policy.

Click here to view map of designated smoking areas.

Several students in the Leadership Studies PhD program will be defending their dissertations next two week in preparation for commencement. The OLLU community is invited to attend the defenses. The schedule is as follows:

• Dec. 14: Karina Guevara – “The relationship between operating philosophy and leadership styles and behaviors of pre-service and in-service teachers” at 10 a.m. in Providence Hall, Blue Room.
• Dec. 14: Sandra D. Garza – “Psychological capitol and leadership: A study of differences in psychological capitol among leaders in various careers,” at 1 p.m. in Providence Hall, Blue Room.
• Dec. 14: Karen Tanguma – “Investigating the differences between leadership preferences of native English and ESL speakers,” at 4 p.m. in Providence Hall, Blue Room.