YOUR NOTE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Fall 2015
Pictured above: University President Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., grants an honorary degree to The Most Rev. Richard J. Malone, bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo, during the University's Opening Mass of the Holy Spirit.
WHAT RISKS WILL you dare for a future full of hope?
When St. Bonaventure University’s faculty and staff gathered together to begin a new academic year, we considered this question — along with many others.
As the current expression of a community that has endured for more than 15 decades, we take seriously the duty and privilege of educating today’s learners and seekers. We turn our lives over to the task of inviting this new generation to become citizens, scholars, agents, and practitioners of all the good things of our Franciscan, Catholic, American intellectual tradition.
I invite you to learn more about our newest degree programs, which include:
Days after Convocation, the University’s Opening Mass of the Holy Spirit allowed our community the opportunity to grant an honorary degree to The Most Rev. Richard J. Malone, bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo. Additionally, we honored Dr. Patrick Panzarella for 50 years of dedication to our students and mission, and we announced the founding of our Center for Arab and Islamic Studies under the direction of Fr. Michael Calabria, O.F.M.
We will soon launch a new strategic planning process as well as address enrollment challenges and opportunities as never before. Your help, advice, and engagement are needed — now and always.
As a valued member of the Devereux Giving Societies, your constant support and intense participation in “all things Bona’s” are a form of deep inspiration and encouragement to us all.
Pax et Bonum,
Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., S.T.D.
President
A "LEGACY" ENROLLMENT
By Monica Mattioli, ’77
Executive Director of Alumni Services
Pictured above: Flavia Pietrobattista, '19, pictured in Italy with a portrait of Fr. Pamfilo da Magliano.
MAGLIANO DE' MARSI to St. Bonaventure: andata e ritorno
The Class of 2019 – this year’s freshmen – includes a “legacy” enrollment, 157 years in the making. Flavia Pietrobattista, pictured above, is the great-great-great grandniece of St. Bonaventure University’s founding president, Fr. Pamfilo da Magliano. Hailing from that same town, also pictured (below) in a photograph taken during the 2015 pilgrimage to Italy led by our current president, Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., Flavia has worked hard to achieve her goal of becoming a St. Bonaventure student.
The dream began some years ago, as Flavia visited campus with her extended family during the University’s 150th anniversary. She returned in the spring of 2015 to immerse herself culturally and linguistically in preparation for enrollment. Quick to adapt and easy to befriend, Flavia now resides in a dorm and attends classes in the very same way that her classmates do. Through Internet-based communications resources, Flavia stays in close touch with her family at home while pursuing typical student life and pursuing her degree.
We thank the Pietrobattista family, past and present, for their dedication to St. Bonaventure University and for encouraging Flavia’s dream of being a Bonnie. And, we thank them for their kind hospitality to the pilgrims who visited their home in Magliano de’ Marsi earlier this year.
THE SUCCESS OF OUR STUDENTS IS ROOTED IN YOUR LEADERSHIP SUPPORT
ASK AMELIA KIBBE, a junior dual journalism and mass communication and English major, what she loves best about being a student at Bona’s, and she will tell you “the strong academics, the many opportunities available, and the powerful  support from professors.”
A recipient of the Presidential Scholarship (St. Bonaventure’s most prestigious academic award), Amelia has been named to the Dean’s List every semester and holds a 4.0 GPA in her majors.
She serves as editor-in-chief of
The Bona Venture, staff writer for
the The Wolfpack, which is the FYE parents newsletter, and
as a lector and leader for University Ministries.
“I’m impressed with the programs here, plus the professors at Bona’s are always more than willing to help,” Amelia said. “I learned a lot from The Bona Venture and by the time I’m a senior, I’ll already have four years of real-world experience.”
An internship this past summer as the New York Press Association
intern with the Wellsville Daily Reporter has her looking forward to a
future career that involves editing or publishing.
The success of students like Amelia is rooted in your leadership support.
Thanks to your gift of at least $1,000 per fiscal year, you help provide the financial foundation our students need to succeed.
THE LOYALTY OF St. Bonaventure University alumni is well known, and the numbers prove it. Not only do alumni surveys repeatedly show that our graduates would select SBU all over again, and our Reunion Weekend attendance grows every year, but Bonnies are known to put their money where their mouths are.
St. Bonaventure is #1 in alumni-giving participation for Western New York private colleges, with 20% of our alumni donating to the University’s unrestricted fund. That’s right; every year since 2011 more than one out of five alumni have made a gift to The Bonaventure Fund.
And not only do Bonnies continue to give back, they are also giving more. Over the last five years, the average gift to The Bonaventure Fund has increased by $62, from $264 to $326.
A BONAVENTURE EDUCATION: BEDROCK FOR CAREER SUCCESS
by Amelia Kibbe, '17
In a photo taken by former Assistant Professor Richard Pavlik in the Journalism Department headquarters in the spring of 1962, are (from left to right): Marie Palazzolo, Helen Stevens, Rosemary Rutherford, Patricia O'Brien, Marie Tuths and Joan Licursi, all Class of 1965.
FOR JOURNALISM SCHOOL alumna Joan Licursi, the education she received at St. Bonaventure University provided the bedrock for more than 45 years of work in national and global companies and non-profit organizations.
As a student at St. Bonaventure in the mid-1960s, Licursi left the women’s dorm that sat across from St. Bonaventure University and headed to work in the school’s journalism department.
Only she didn’t go to the John J. Murphy Professional Building, which would not exist for more than another decade. Instead, she entered Plassmann Hall and descended the stairs, where the one-room department was then located.
“At that time, the whole journalism administrative department was one room,” Licursi, a 1965 graduate, said. “We had a couple of newspaper rooms upstairs, but it was nothing like it is today.”
But the small school just made Licursi and the 14 other journalism students in the class of 1965 work even harder, she said.
“We were all part of The BV, the radio and the magazine,” said Licursi, referring to the campus’s student-run media.
In fact, it was the small, strong school that captured Licursi’s interest in the first place.
“I was looking for a school that had a good communications department,” said Licursi, who had been the editor of her high school’s newspaper. “And Bonas met all the requirements.”
As a junior and senior, she spent much of her time putting together the school’s yearbook and even served as its editor, filling in for a classmate who took a medical leave of absence his senior year.
“I tried to make it something unique,” Licursi, a native of Greenwich Village in Manhattan, said. “I honestly feel having all our memories captured in one place is something special.”
Licursi said while the students were very successful in their work, they couldn’t have done it without great mentorship.
And who better to lead the students than Russell Jandoli, the founder of the school?
“I attended St. Bonaventure in the era of Jandoli,” she said. “I worked in the journalism department and I worked for Russ. He was a huge mentor to me.”
Licursi said Jandoli and other professors in the journalism department required her to work like a professional while in college.
“It’s just my opinion, but I always thought the journalism students worked harder,” she said. “We were working with multiple publications and had to be a team. We had semi-professional things to do and still take all our classes.”
Licursi received the Mark Hellinger Award, the highest award given by the journalism school, in 1965.
Although busy as a leader in the journalism school, Licursi also led another small, but powerful campus group.
“There were only 40 women in our class on campus,” she said. “And we weren’t allowed on the student senate.”
Despite the struggle, as a senior Licursi became president of the school’s Women’s Council, where her work helped make many changes, including advocating for moving the women’s housing to campus. Her class was the last class to live totally off campus, she said.
“I feel we were in a moment of changing history,” she said.
Licursi’s strong work ethic and determination continued far past her four years at St. Bonaventure.
After graduation, Licursi attended American University, where she received her master’s degree in journalism in one year.
Since then, she has worked as a managing director for Burson-Marsteller, a global public relations and communications firm, and as a Senior Vice President for Gilda’s Club Worldwide, a community organization for people living with cancer.
She also worked for Boys and Girls Clubs of America, a non-profit organization that helps community youth. There, she served as publications editor and got involved with branding and program-training efforts.
But she never forgot St. Bonaventure.
“Initially, following graduation, I wasn’t as attached to St. Bonaventure as I was to the journalism school,” she said.
However, that soon changed. A longtime supporter of St. Bonaventure, Licursi has been a member of the National Alumni Association Board and a volunteer for The Bonaventure Fund. She served as a member of the University’s Board of Trustees from 1994 to 2003. Today, she is a member of the Devereux Giving Society and serves on the Advisory Board for the Russell J. Jandoli School of Journalism and Mass Communication. She received the Journalism Alumnus of the Year Award in 1981 and the University’s Alumnus of the Year Award in 1995.
“I loved the idea of giving back,” she said. “My Bonaventure education provided the foundation for my entire professional career.”
Fifty years after her graduation, Licursi once again walked the campus of St. Bonaventure with her friends, celebrating her 50th reunion last June.
She said the top-of-the-line academic skills and lessons in ethics that she learned are still evident in the school’s programs.
“I was blown away with how the campus looks,” she said. “The programs are competitive with some of the best schools in the country. I think other people will see this, too. It’s very evident once you’re there in person.”
PLEASE SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS!
 YOUR OPINION MATTERS, which is why we hope you will take part in our Devereux Giving Societies Survey.
Each issue of the Devereux E-newsletter features a one-question survey. This edition's question is:
In the summer edition of Bonaventure Magazine, University President Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., and Board of Trustees Chair Robert Daugherty, '77, shared an "urgent invitation" for the St. Bonaventure community to play a role in the life of the University and help secure its future.
Will you follow their call to action, and if so, how?
Answer the survey question here.
RESPONSE TO THE MARCH 2015 question of "Would you be interested/willing to attend a University black-tie event?"
72% responded YES
28% responded NO
Huge thanks to all who responded--your time and feedback are greatly appreciated!
GUEST SPEAKERS MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
A number of alumni return to campus each semester to share their knowledge and expertise with today's young Bonnies. When you take the time to talk about what matters to you, the power of conversation can generate new insight or committed action.
To all who have shared their time and talents, thank you! And to those who might be interested in doing so, please let us know at devereux@sbu.edu!
FAMILY BUSINESS TAKES CENTER STAGE
by Keriann Kelly, '16
Pictured above, from left: Jim Stitt Jr., president of CUTCO; Andrew Keyt, executive director of the Loyola University Chicago Family Business Center; Joe Sahlen, Sahlen Packing Company; and Mike Lawley, Partner at Lawley Insurance.
ON TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2015, St. Bonaventure University students had the privilege of listening to author Andrew Keyt speak about his new book "Myths and Mortals: Family Business Leadership and Succession Planning" at the Rigas Family Theater in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.
Keyt, executive director of the Loyola University Chicago Family Business Center, gave an inspiring presentation about family values, using failure as an opportunity to grow, and many other key lessons he learned in writing his book.
Immediately following his presentation, Keyt moderated a panel of guest speakers, all of whom are Bona alumni involved in a family business: Mike Lawley, ’92, Partner at Lawley Insurance; Joe Sahlen, '02, Sahlen Packing Company; and Jim Stitt Jr., MPL '12, President of CUTCO.
The panelists provided helpful insights as to working with family members and the importance of keeping family values and traditions, as well as differentiating yourself from the past. Laurie Branch, MA '04, president of Iroquois Group, Inc., offered closing remarks.
More than 250 students attended the presentation, which was organized by St. Bonaventure's Management Department and Family Business Club and sponsored by the Visiting Scholars Committee and Betty Ramming, in honor of her late  husband, Allan Ramming, class of 1963.
When asked about the main takeaways from the lecture, senior marketing major Ariana Buzzelli (pictured at right) said, "I learned that even if you aren't personally part of a family business, there's a good chance you'll be working for one in the future. It's important to familiarize yourself with their values and how they do business."
Buzzelli enjoyed the keynote address and hearing the panelists' viewpoints. "I thought the lecture was very informative, especially for someone pursuing a career in business like myself," Buzzelli said. "Andrew Keyt and the panelists were all very relatable and had great advice. I feel like I learned a lot from it."
VAN WICKLIN NAMED NEW VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT
BOB VAN WICKLIN has been named vice president for Advancement at St. Bonaventure.
Van Wicklin previously served as assistant dean for Philanthropy and Alumni Engagement at the Universit y at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine and vice president for Advancement at Houghton College.
“It’s a real privilege to join Sister Margaret and the St. Bonaventure team to help build closer ties between the university and its alumni and friends,” Van Wicklin said. “Bonnies are woven into every aspect of society in Western New York and around the world. I look forward to getting out and meeting as many of them as possible.”
Prior to his work in higher education, Van Wicklin spent 17 years (1992-2009) working in various positions — legislative, communications, political and management — in Washington, D.C., for two congressmen from New York’s Southern Tier: Rep. Amo Houghton Jr. and Rep. John R. Kuhl Jr.
“Bob has been a partner to St. Bonaventure in the past during his service to congressmen Houghton and Kuhl,” said Sr. Margaret. “We are delighted that he will be bringing his talents and relationship-building gifts to our Advancement team, and we’re eager to introduce him to the Bonaventure family of more than 28,000 alumni and friends worldwide.”
During his tenure on Capitol Hill, Van Wicklin shepherded several pieces of legislation from concept to public law, authored and managed numerous resolutions to passage through the House of Representatives and Senate, and was responsible for amending many pieces of legislation in various committees and on the House floor.
He traveled to more than 60 nations in various professional capacities, from organizing and leading Congressional Delegations to serving on United Nations-led Election Observation Missions in Africa and Central America.
As an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, Van Wicklin was deployed to Mazar-e Sharif, Afghanistan, as executive officer of the Regional Command North’s Multi-Fusion Cell, a diverse group of U.S. and international (NATO) intelligence professionals serving in the combat zone.
Prior to that, he served at the Pentagon in the office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (J2), as an analyst on the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Afghanistan-Pakistan Task Force. His most recent assignment was at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center at Naval Air Station Fallon in Nevada as an intelligence trainer.
Van Wicklin received his bachelor’s degree in 1992 from Houghton College, and his master’s degree in 2004 from the Naval War College in Newport, R.I.
While at Houghton as an undergraduate, Van Wicklin was an Army ROTC military science cadet and spent a great deal of time at St. Bonaventure for training exercises.
Bob Van Wicklin - Vice President for Advancement
bvanwick@sbu.edu
(716) 375-2331 (office)
(202) 580-9071 (cell)
(716) 375-2139 (fax)
COLLECTION OF MAYAN ARTIFACTS
Photo and text by Amelia Kibbe, '17
THE REGINA A. QUICK CENTER FOR THE ARTS houses a well-known and well-traveled collection of Mayan artifacts, thanks to a 1980 donation by former St. Bonaventure University students Jerome Fishkin and his late brother Jack.
The collection, which contains 66 individual pieces of mostly ceramics, is scheduled to be displayed in The Quick Center in 2016, said Evelyn Penman, the center’s assistant director.
The collection is a large basis for a Mayan artifact exhibition that has traveled to various universities and museums throughout the United States. The exhibition opened at St. Bonaventure in late 2008 before traveling to Wake Forest University and the South Carolina State Museum, Penman added.
It was also displayed at an art gallery at neighboring University of Pittsburgh at Bradford in in late 2013. Bradford, Pennsylvania, is the Fishkins’ hometown.
Although the collection is not currently on display at The Quick Center, Penman said various professors request the collection be brought to their classrooms each year so students can gain a better understanding of the culture during the collection’s time period, between 250 and 900 A.D.
Fishkin said he and his brother purchased the collection from a dealer in 1979.
Fishkin attended St. Bonaventure as a business major during the 1950s, and he said he was happy to donate his collection to a place he had always enjoyed.
Penman said donations such as the Fishkins’ help promote St. Bonaventure.
“The Fishkin collection of Maya Ceramics has helped the whole University,” she said. “By developing an exhibition that can travel to other institutions that carries the name of St. Bonaventure University, we are able to raise awareness of our University.”
THE MILLE GRAZIE SCHOLARSHIP
ESTABLISHED IN THE fall of 2014 in honor of Sr. Margaret's tenth anniversary as our president, the Mille Grazie Scholarship helps new students commit to St. Bonaventure and aids in retaining current students who face otherwise insurmountable financial difficulty.
To date, more than $250,000 has been raised toward the $500,000 goal.
Mille grazie--a thousand thanks!--to the many members of our community who have honored Sr. Margaret's first decade of service with a gift to the Mille Grazie Scholarship.
If you have not yet done so, please join with us in celebrating Sr. Margaret's milestone anniversary with a gift to the Mille Grazie Scholarship.
Pictured above: University President Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., walks in the Swan Business Center with (from left) Azure Collins Anderson, '17; Andrew Bevevino, '16; and Emma Stappenbeck, '17.
WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST MEMBERS
Welcome
to our newest
Devereux and Young Grotto members
Anonymous (3)
Mr. Michael L. A'Hearn '54
Arthur M. Sackler Foundation
Mr. and Mrs. James D. Bardenett Jr.
Mr. Jason Barger
BCMJ Controls, Inc.
Mr. Zachary Collin Michael Beach '07
Mr. and Mrs. David A. Boland '65
Mr. Richard Braun Jr.
Mr. Robert Carey
Mr. and Mrs. W. Brendan Chambers '97
Church of Our Lady of Lourdes
Mr. and Mrs. Donald Ciciarelli '77
Ms. Ana E. Collado '10
Mr. Stephen J. Comber
Mr. Roger J. Consolla '65
Mr. and Mrs. Glenn F. Cunningham '79
Dayton Foundation
Mr. Robert T. Donnelly '91
Ms. Christine M. Dowd '72
Ms. Susan Connors Engel '75 and Mr. John Engel
Mr. John Esselman
Mr. Thomas J. Flanagan '88
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas P. Gallant '93
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Ganey '65
David M. Garfinkle, CPA '89 and Mrs. Carrie A. Garfinkle
Mrs. Susan E. Gibson '83 and Mr. Chris Gibson
Mr. Aloysius J. Gongol '50
Google
Dr. and Mrs. Benedict F. Gullo '65
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur L. Haberman '60
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur L. Harlan
Mr. Thomas J. Hart '65
Mr. Norman C. Heinle '65
Mr. and Mrs. Steven A. Hewitt
Just in Time CNC Machining Inc.
Lt. Col. and Mrs. Peter Kaley '56
Mrs. Jennifer L. Kane '84 and Mr. Stephen M. Kane
Mr. and Mrs. James F. Kelly '65
Mr. Paul E. Kendall '85 and Mrs. Eileen M. Kendall '85
Mr. John F. Kennedy
Mr. and Mrs. Kevin K. Kim
Mr. Kieran M. Malone '10
Mr. and Mrs. Troy R. Martin
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph V. McCarthy '65
Mr. Robert V. McFall '11
Mr. Michael J. McShea '80
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel R. Meador
Mrs. Rebecca A. Miraglia '85
Dr. Alfred J. Morini Jr. '75 and Mrs. Barbara A. Morini '75
Very Rev. Kevin J. Mullen, O.F.M., Ph.D.
Mrs. Patricia G. Nannen '82 and Mr. Jay Nannen
National Philanthropic Trust
Dr. and Mrs. Roger P. Orcutt '65
Mr. Robert Ostrander
Mr. David Padlo
Mr. Roy H. Park Jr.
Mr. David T. Przesiek '89 and Mrs. Raquel A. Przesiek '89
RBC Foundation - USA
Ms. Morgan E. Ribar '11
Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Riley III '01
Mr. and Mrs. Matthew G. Riordan '87
Dr. and Mrs. H. John Roberts '65
Mr. Chad M. Schlee '94
Mr. James C. Sutton '80 and Mrs. Mary K. McGann Sutton '79
Mr. Matthew A. Teribery '13
The Vanguard Group Foundation
Roger D. Upton, CPA '81 and Mrs. Jody Upton
VeriSign Cares
Rev. Richard S. Vosko '65
Mr. and Mrs. Mark J. Ward '75
Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan R. Wright '02
Yahoo!
Mr. James A. Zimmer '77 and Ms. Karen Zandi
CHECK YOUR CALENDAR & SAVE THE DATE
September 26 - October 3
#Francis Week
Campus | Various locations
October 1, 2015
Meet the Bonnies
Jamestown, NY
October 6, 2015
Minneapolis/St. Paul Reception
The Local
931 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN
October 7, 2015
NYC Mass and Reception
St. Francis of Assisi
135 W. 31st Street
New York, NY
October 9-11, 2015
SBU-Pittsburgh Weekend Getaway
Pittsburgh, PA
October 25, 2015
Mass
Philadelphia, PA
November 1, 2015
Mass
Long Island, NY
November 5, 2015
55th Annual Mark Hellinger Awards Ceremony
National Press Club
529 14th Street NW
Washington, DC
November 10, 2015
Social at St. Anthony Shrine
Arch Street
Boston, MA
November 17, 2015
Men's basketball game vs. Syracuse, with reception
Syracuse, NY
November 24, 2015
Men's basketball game vs. Canisius
Buffalo,
NY
BE SURE TO add the following events to your 2016 calendar!
February 12, 2016
Bona Pride Day
Worldwide
Wear your Bona gear and share with Bona's social media!
February 12-14,
2016
Homecoming Weekend
Campus | Various locations
August 15, 2016
Holiday Valley Golf Outing, an annual appreciation event that honors your Devereux-level support of St. Bonaventure
Holiday Valley Golf Resort
Ellicottville, NY
VIEW ALL EVENTS
HOLIDAY VALLEY GOLF OUTING UPDATE
MORE THAN 130 Devereux members and Athletics corporate sponsors joined us on August 17 for the 10th Annual Devereux/Athletics Corporate Sponsors Golf Event at Holiday Valley in Ellicottville, N.Y.
Following an afternoon on the Double Black Diamond golf course, participants enjoyed great views and excellent food as they mingled with friends and alumni.
Be sure to mark your calendar for the next Holiday Valley Golf Outing slated for August 15, 2016.
Pictured above (from left): Tom Perrone, Pat Dolan, Dan Clifton, and Bill Woodard, ’73.
Please Note: As a member of The Devereux Giving Societies, you can request reserved seating at graduation. You are also invited to the annual Devereux/Seraphim Breakfast, held each year as part of the Reunion festivities. Please feel free to contact Kathleen Ryan with any questions or concerns.
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