01/14/2026 1:40 pm
30th Annual Alan Hutchcroft Alternative Spring Break01/12/2026 4:22 pm
Saturday, March 7-Saturday, March 14.
You’re invited to the 30th annual Alan Hutchcroft Alternative Spring Break!
Rockford University students and alumni will travel to Starksville, Mississippi, to build a home for a family in need. Fill out the form linked below to confirm your interest and stay up to date with the latest AHAASB news.
Seaver Swish01/12/2026 3:50 pm
Saturday, January 17, at 1:00 p.m. in the Seaver Center.
Alumni are encouraged to join us for Seaver Swish, a special Regents Basketball game day hosted by the Campus Activities Board. In addition to the women’s and men’s games, Seaver Swish features family-friendly activities, mini-games, prizes, and giveaways throughout the afternoon!
Women’s Basketball begins at 1:00 PM, followed by Men’s Basketball at 3:15 PM in the Seaver Gymnasium. No RSVP is needed for this event.
Take a look at the full Rockford Regents athletic schedule at rockfordregents.com.
A Professor’s Influence: An Update on the Slavens Ware Scholarship Endowment03/28/2025 12:47 pm
The Office of Advancement and Alumni is thrilled to announce that the Slavens Ware Scholarship Endowment has reached its funding goal and is now officially an endowed scholarship here at RU! The first awards will be given out in the 2026-2027 academic year. Below, learn more about the Slavens Ware Scholarship Endowment, and the impact both Professor Slavens and Professor Ware had and continue to have on their students.
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I didn’t think they did anything like that until after you died,” said Dr. Marjorie Slavens, former professor at Rockford University, when asked how she feels about having an endowed scholarship made in her name. Her former students, now friends, who sat next to her, laughed at this response.
Dr. Slavens, and former Professor Sally Lo Ware, are both being honored with an endowed scholarship put together by many of their former students. Alumni Dave & Paula Hougan ‘72, along with alumna Mary Parisoe ‘75, came together at the Rockford University Reunion in September 2024 with Dr. Slavens to talk about why and how they decided to put together this scholarship to honor their two professors.
“This is an absolute way for us to pay tribute to these two professors that were so meaningful in terms of our careers, and to all our experiences at Rockford College,” Dave Hougan said. “It’s unfortunate we didn’t do this earlier when Ms. Ware was around. (Ware passed in 1990). But we now can do this, and we probably weren’t in the place to do it at that time.”
Dave and Paula Hougan, who first met at Rockford College and later married, both studied language in school. Paula was a French and Spanish major, while Dave studied Spanish. Parisoe was a French major.
Ware taught at Rockford College from 1960 until her passing in 1990. She was the first faculty member hired by then-President Dr. John Howard. During Ware’s tenure, she was the chair of the French department and the director of the Language Lab.
When Ware passed suddenly in 1990, it was Parisoe who took her place after Dr. Slavens called her and asked.
Dr. Slavens worked at Rockford College from 1965 to 1998. During her 33 years, she was chair of the Spanish department, chair of the Languages department, and chair of the Language and Literature division.
Parisoe said it was Slavens’ and Ware’s teaching that gave her the career she did not have.
“People say, ‘Oh, the computers do that,’” Parisoe said. “But they don’t know. You would need a meeting of the minds, not a meeting of machines. I think it’s important (the study of language) and it also teaches you about your language in learning a second language.”
Alumna Paula Hougan agrees.
“I’m from a small town in Illinois, and when I checked recently on the demographics of my school district, it continues to be a hundred percent white,” Paula Hougan said.
Through her experience at Rockford College, and her time with Professor Slavens and Ware, Hougan had the opportunity to travel to different countries, and not just as a tourist. Through this endowment fund, she hopes to highlight the importance of people connecting through language.
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This story was originally published in the 2023-2024 Annual Report under Sara Myers-Hogshead’s byline.
Rockford University is pleased to announce that Katherine Trotter has joined the University’s leadership team as the new Vice President for Advancement. A proud alumna of Rockford University (then Rockford College), Class of 2011, Katherine brings with her more than 15 years of experience in education, partnership-building, and leadership development.
Throughout her career, Katherine has been committed to shaping and enhancing learning experiences, with a strong background in curriculum development and student-centered growth. Her passion for education and community is matched by her dedication to fostering meaningful relationships—values that align deeply with Rockford University’s mission.
As Vice President for Advancement, Katherine will lead efforts to engage alumni, secure philanthropic support, and strengthen the University’s role within the broader Rockford region. Her collaborative leadership style, combined with a deep understanding of what makes communities thrive, will be instrumental in furthering Rockford University’s impact and reach.
Katherine is a passionate advocate for both her alma mater and the Rockford community. She believes in the transformative power of education and is committed to using her role to build lasting partnerships, support student success, and ensure the long-term sustainability of the institution.
Outside of her professional work, Katherine enjoys life with her husband, Jake, and their young daughter, Judy. Their strong family dynamic reflects the same values of connection and care that Katherine brings to her work every day.
Please join us in welcoming Katherine back to Rockford University. We are excited to have her leadership, energy, and vision guiding our advancement efforts into the future.
Our Story09/09/2024 4:27 pm
By the 1974 Golden Grads Reunion Committee

Looking out the windows of the O’Hare/Rockford bus or from the comfort of our parents’ cars, we drove past endless cornfields as we made our way to a college campus many of us had not ever set foot on, in a city we hadn’t heard of before the first recruitment letter arrived. Excited, curious, anxious, and hopeful, we arrived from large cities, small urban communities, and foreign countries, (from 32 states and 7 countries to be exact) to become the faces that would make up Rockford College’s Class of 1974.
We arrived in the summer of 1970 with the war in Vietnam still raging and the threat of being drafted, the Kent State (in Kent, Ohio) shootings still raw in our minds, and riots in East Los Angeles being front page news. Soon to be given the right to vote with the swipe of a pen by President Nixon, we would finally have a voice and we were ready to be heard.
Over the next four years, dressed in our bell-bottom, hip-hugger jeans with frayed hems, wide belts, and sandals, we fought for “freedoms” from the restrictive social rules left over from the 60’s and did not acquiesce to new rules without protest! Freshman women had curfews and did not receive key cards for their dorms until the second semester.
There were strict visitation hours, and no alcohol was allowed. Change did not come as quickly on campus as it was coming on the news broadcasts. January 1973, saw the passage of Roe v. Wade; in October 1973; and the legal age for beer and wine changed from 21 to 19 in Illinois.
Distrust of government officials and authority, in general, permeated much of our thinking at the time and affected our relationship with the College administration. Outrage over the required forum series and requisite punch cards to ensure attendance along with disbelief over a student being suspended for stealing toilet paper led to animated and often heated meetings on campus. Our shared sense of righteous indignation brought us closer together!
Perhaps one of the most consequential choices we made 50 years ago was the decision to attend a small liberal arts college. Here we were taught to think critically and creatively. We were inspired by professors who cared about their students, were passionate about their disciplines, and challenged us. Who can forget the required reading our freshman year—African Genesis and The Medium is the Massage. Clark Arts Center was dedicated in the spring of 1970 and offered access to the studio arts to many of us for the first time.
In 1970, Rockford College sat at the edge of the city. One would pass it on the way in or out of town, but the beautiful new buildings and campus were self-contained. We ate, slept, and played there. And did we ever play!
The small, intimate classes made it easy to meet other students, and we soon felt like we knew everyone including the townies who were very much a part of campus life. Without cell phones, we had to venture out into the hallways, common areas, and other dorms to find out who was doing what and where the parties were on any given night.
We looked forward to October Day when classes were suddenly canceled, in the winter we “borrowed” trays from the cafeteria to go traying at the dam, went to “tape” dances, played tug-of-war in the mud, listened to music in our own “coffee house,” and cheered on the soccer, baseball, basketball, and IM (intramural sports) teams. We were especially proud of our champion swimmers!
We are the Golden Grads this year! In September (of 2024) we will come together again to laugh and share memories and see each other just as we were in 1970. It will be time to come clean—How often did you sneak out after curfew? How often did you stay in the wrong dorm?
Was a freshman men’s dorm a good idea? Did you ever return your trays after sledding on them? Do you remember that earthquake? Who got caught climbing out of a dorm room?
The story of our class is as unique as our classmates. Thanks for the friends and memories, RC. Looking forward to seeing you again in September!
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1974 Golden Grads Reunion Committee:
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This article is from the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst.
Faith Gomez ‘24 Awarded Grant09/09/2024 4:15 pm
By Sara Myers, Digital Media & Communications Specialist

RU Student Faith Gomez was mentored by Dr. Filiz Dik, Dr. Deepshikha Shukla, and others in the SMN (Science, Math & Nursing) College and was awarded a $2,500 grant to create a STEM camp for middle school girls called “InnovateHer.”
The event will be held tentatively this fall 2024 and include 30 girls from local middle schools.
Gomez is majoring in biochemistry and minoring in gender studies.
“Despite coming in on a grant for women in STEM I didn’t see a lot of outreach specifically for women in STEM even though we’re still underrepresented in the professional space,” Gomez said. “As a historically women’s college, I thought that it might be beneficial both for our history and for outreach purposes to create a more women-centric event, for STEM specifically.”
She had the idea for the camp for a while but it finally came to fruition when she started looking for grants when she was working on her capstone project.
“I want the activities to be focused on what the mentor is doing with their career in STEM,” she said. “For example, there’s a student who wants to get a master’s in forensic chemistry and she got into chemistry programs. I want her to feel like she can do a fingerprinting experiment and she can talk about how she found chemistry as a viable career path and what they have in Rockford.”
Gomez graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Biochemistry in May 2024.
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This article is from the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst.
Alumna Emily Hartzog Rises to the Top09/09/2024 4:04 pm
By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist

Though she grew up in San Diego, California, RU Alumni Emily Hartzog’s mother convinced her to look at a small, private school in Illinois when Hartzog was looking at colleges.
Her mother grew up in Rockford and suggested she look at Rockford University while Hartzog was originally looking at bigger schools in California to attend. Schools like the University of California San Diego (UCSD), the University of California, Los Angeles, and Pepperdine University were originally on her list.
“They (Rockford) were the only school that took the time for personal attention, and UCSD is not going to call you personally and say we hope you attend,” Hartzog said. “You’re one of 100,000 students.”
She said she remembers receiving the Rockford viewbook and seeing the campus with its shades of green that she had never seen growing up on the West Coast.
“I started as an anthropology, sociology major,” she said. “I think I wanted to go into corporate mediation, which is pursuing a law degree. I think over time, I just found myself leaning toward business. It was unintentional.”
Some of Hartzog’s favorite classes at Rockford were with business professor Gary Lubbert. She said he brought in a lot of practical business knowledge and went beyond the textbook.
“It was fundamentals and you just have to have been in the business world, especially on the marketing side. He was just so passionate about it. His classes were so fun and engaging.”
Hartzog also enjoyed Jeff Fahrenwald’s classes, where the professor discussed leadership and the organizational side of business.
During her time at Rockford, she was very involved as a member of the dance team, a student activities committee member, and a resident advisor. She said it was nice how quickly she was able to get involved on campus, and how you don’t have to be in a leadership position. She recalls going to a national conference with the student activities committee and winning an award.
After graduation in 1998, Hartzog was offered a full-time position in Rockford’s admissions office. She had been working part-time in the office during her last semester in undergrad when her friend in the admissions office went on maternity leave and she was asked to help fill the gap in the intermission.
Once her friend came back from leave, the office asked if she was interested in taking on transfer recruitment and performing arts recruitment. She took the position and started to study for her MBA during night classes.
“It was a lot of fun and travel and in admissions,” she said. “I was still close to the college world. I could speak authentically to the experience and I got my MBA at the same time, so it was great.”
Hartzog went on to work at SupplyCore after meeting the HR director in her MBA classes. This position was a big learning curve and her first step into the business world. There, she wrote press releases, reviewed government contract proposals, and helped with training other employees.
She said it was not easy to leave SupplyCore and move on to the Rockford Public Library, she got to be a director, which ultimately solidified her decision to move into that role.
“It was a step up in my career and being the one responsible for managing a budget and taking on all sorts of projects,” she said. “In my time at the library, we rebranded, which was huge. It’s a huge project. I integrated a whole new library system, which had a technical component but also had a communications component and a training component.”
Since 2013, Hartzog has worked at Chartwell Agency, where she recently was promoted to President. She was initially recruited when the agency was a “traditional public relations agency.”
Since then, the agency has grown immensely. It has a fully in-house creative team that includes videography, photography, and web development. She adds that the agency’s roots are still in public relations and storytelling.
“I think our growth and my changing role are almost kind of symbolic of marketing as a whole and continue to evolve, the mediums we use continue to change the expectations of people receiving our messages, and how brands need to connect continues to change,” she said. “It’s almost like a metaphor, how much we’ve grown, how much we’ve evolved, and how much you have to do as a marketing agency.”
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This article is from the 2023-2024 issue from Catalyst.
Alumnus Quentin Hernandez ’18/’24 Finds His Footing in the U.S.09/09/2024 3:54 pm
By Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist
Rockford University MBA (Master of Business Administration) Alumnus Quentin Hernandez came to the U.S. to get his bachelor’s degree first in 2018.
Hernandez was recruited to attend RU by a former basketball coach. The opportunity was very appealing to him because, in his home country of France, he could not attend college and play basketball simultaneously. Hernandez studied Computer Science Management with a minor in Business Administration
“I really got to experience the honeymoon phase when I first came in 2018,” he said. “Everything is amazing, you love the food and it’s a dream coming true. A few months later, you get to notice the differences and you get to see that it’s not as perfect as you wish it was.”
He adds that he was able to make great friends and get lots of support through this time. He ended up sticking it out, and realizing that there are a lot of differences but that they aren’t good or bad, he said.
After graduating with his bachelor’s in fall 2021, Hernandez returned home to France and worked briefly with Airbus Helicopter as a data analyst. In the fall of 2022, he returned to RU to get his MBA in Finance.
“I came back for my master’s for multiple reasons. I was working in France after graduating with my bachelor’s degree. I moved back and found a job. I wanted to get a master’s degree, and I liked my experience of moving to a new country. I got the chance when I was contacted by the Office of Global Affairs. RU offered me a graduate assistantship.”
When Hernandez came back to RU to get his MBA, he learned about the complex admission process for international students as he worked alongside Executive Director of Global Affairs Maria Diemer, Associate Director of Global Affairs Julie Griffith, Coordinator of Global Affairs/ English as a Second Language Maggie Kasicki and more.
“Global Affairs was an amazing experience,” he said. “First of all, it’s an amazing team. Maria Diemer is a great leader, and working with Maggie, Julie, and Fred was amazing. It was an amazing thing to go to every day. It was a positive office where things were getting done and we were all helping each other out.”
One of the most memorable events for Hernandez that he helped put together was Saudi National Day. He said it was great to see Saudi students getting more involved after the COVID-19 crisis, and he loved getting to dress in traditional Saudi Arabian clothes with his friends from Saudi Arabia and the whole Global Affairs office.
During his time studying for his MBA, Hernandez had a great time getting to know his professors like Dr. Luis Romero, Chair of the PURI School of Business, Associate Professor of Economics, Business, and Accounting; and Director of the MBA Program; and Professor of Economics, Business & Accounting, and Ludwig Von Mises Chair of Economics, Masoud Moallem.
“I feel like we have such diversity among the teachers that you can more or less connect with all of them as long as you’re interested in what they teach,” he said.
Hernandez’s favorite class was the MBA capstone class, the final class he took to get his MBA.
“It was a group project and I got to have amazing people on my team, who were all from different backgrounds,” he said. “One person had experience teaching in college when he worked as an accountant. Another was an international student like me.”
His favorite moment at RU was when he graduated alongside his MBA classmates. For Hernandez, walking on the stage to receive his diploma was the final check in the box for him. Hernandez’s family came to Rockford from overseas to see him graduate which meant a lot for him, he said.
“I was working within our Office of Global Affairs, doing a good job, getting my MBA with a 4.0,” he said. “I had expected myself to accomplish all these things. Doing it with my close family and friends was something I cherish forever.”
Hernandez now works as a Data Governance Manager at Airbus Helicopter in Grand Prairie, Texas.
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This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst.

New Opportunities Offer a Brighter Future09/09/2024 3:40 pm
by Sara Myers-Hogshead, Digital Media & Communications Specialist
Rockford-born and raised graphic design graduate Geniss Scharnweber ‘24 was described by some as a “nontraditional student.”
Scharnweber did not decide to attend college until she was in her late 30s. She said she married young and had four children during her 20s.
Before attending Rock Valley College for her associate’s degree, Scharnweber worked as a chef for 8 years. During that time she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder, psoriatic arthritis. She could not work long hours on her feet anymore and went to study at RVC.
She graduated with her associate’s in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. She spent the next year and a half homeschooling her children. She realized during that time that she wanted to continue her education and pursue a bachelor’s degree.
“I realized that I need to be able to do something more than just work in an office,” she said. “I looked at the opportunities around us, and RU was such a good fit, and it’s a great university.”
During her time at RU, she discovered she enjoys working with ink and can usually be found working on ink painting, printmaking, or sewing. During our interview, Scharnweber motioned to her purse, which had an original design she created on it. She adds that she enjoys multimedia projects and figuring out ways to make her art “useful.”
She also said she has not had a professor she did not love. Scharnweber has thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Bethany Twitty’s Abnormal Sociology, and art history classes taught by Dr. Jennifer Langworthy.
“Professor (Christopher) Sisson taught me so much about just hierarchy and how to lay my stuff out,” she said. “I had all the tools and ways to use them, but now he’s teaching me to make it the best can with those tools. Professor (Dave) Menard is just great all the time; he’s hilarious. I love them; it’s been a really good experience.” a half homeschooling her children. She realized during that time that she wanted to continue her education and pursue a bachelor’s degree.
Scharnweber does not yet have a plan for after graduation but she is hoping to find a remote job so she can work from home in a setup she’s comfortable in. Scharnweber graduated in May 2024 as a MacLeish Scholar with a BFA in Studio Art and Graphic Design.
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This article is part of the 2023-2024 issue of Catalyst.


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