Art McWilliams, food service manager at Hewit Dining Center, loves food, but he loves his interaction with students best. McWilliams was one of 850 UNL employees honored for service milestones this week. McWilliams celebrated his 40th anniversary at UNL.

Art McWilliams: Nourishing Leadership Through Attitude

Food's Been Good for 40 Years

By Kelly Bartling, Public Relations

Food is serious business to Art McWilliams. Has been for 40 years.

But don't try to get any recipes off this guy who has outfitted the salad bars, protein bars and pasta bars for UNL athletes and planned banquet meals that left visiting dignitaries delighted.

McWilliams will tell you his favorite recipe - his only recipe - is one for leadership.

"My signature recipe?" McWilliams reflects aloud. "Well that's easy. My attitude."

The eager eaters, student-athletes, co-workers and employees at Hewit Dining Center, where McWilliams is food service manager, would agree. After 40 years at UNL, McWilliams has many friends and fans. He's known for being a pleasant, loyal and hard-working employee - and he makes a pretty mean barbecue. One of 850 UNL employees honored this week for service milestones, McWilliams' attitude is representative of the many other dedicated individuals who serve the university, according to those who know him.

"Art has great rapport with the students. They enjoy him. He works hard to make them feel at home," said Robert Hicks, an academic counselor at Hewit. "And he's cheerful. You never see Art with a frown on his face."

"Art does an outstanding job for the athletic department," said Bill Byrne, athletics director. "He's always there, it seems. He's liked and respected by our athletes, staff and coaches. He's a real professional."

McWilliams said that when he joined the university in 1961 he had no idea he would be here this long.

"I didn't plan on it," he said. "I really didn't plan to start in food in the first place. I more or less fell in to it." He attended junior college in Wahoo and started working in the kitchen, doing everything from charbroiling and kitchen production to waiting tables and baking. Then he came to work at the university where he learned the entire food system, later managing the dining and food service at the Nebraska Center for Continuing Education, catering, conferences and receptions. He moved on to the Nebraska Union, doing catering and event planning for everything from chancellors' galas to dinners at the governor's mansion.

Chef and food manager to Nebraska's student-athletes since 1994, McWilliams sees food service as his vocation, but says his true passion is his role as supporter and leader for the students.

"Nebraska has always been open to minorities and has always been here as a way for everyone to better themselvesthrough education. Nebraska just offers so much and I am grateful for what the university has meant to me and done for me. I want to pass that on and share that message with the students and encourage them to do the best they can," he said.

McWilliams is known to work closely with the students, offer his friendship, lend an ear, and encourage feedback on his food. Over the years, and with his position in athletic nutrition, his cooking and knowledge has evolved. Not only are his eaters looking for more healthy food, they are more knowledgeable about their diets and their daily nutritional needs. They also come from diverse backgrounds where kosher, ethnic or cultural food is part of their life and their comfort.

"I've done so much now with lean and low-fat products and we lay it out so it is easy for the student to understand what they need for their nutrition system. Today's diets are so much healthier and the students like variety."

His grandmother taught Art and his brother to cook when they were kids. McWilliams' great-grandfather was a former slave and founding minister of the historic Christ Temple Mission, and Art grew up with the university as his neighbor. The family kitchen was an extension of their massive garden, where Art tended tomatoes, green beans, greens, beets, learning to can and bake. He never gave much thought to cooking as being girls' work.

"My family just grew up with it. My grandmother made us think we were the best."

Jamaican, Cajun and other ethnic foods have earned a way into Art's "Performance Buffet" at Hewit, where he plans six entrees daily. He makes a tasty rotisserie chicken, loves to cook ribs, and makes an interesting cashew chicken. Byrne likes Art's split pea soup, "really thick with lots of ham." Hicks likes his barbecue, and Art is pleased to have heard that Warren Buffett loved his tenderloin at a catered function.

"The satisfaction comes from when you set a plate in front of someone and they are pleased," McWilliams said. "It's in the presentation."

Managing 4,500 meals a week and 45 employees, McWilliams admits to long hours and lots of planning and oversight. Still he finds time to take students fishing or work on his garden at home. Although he has no plans to retire anytime soon, he'd like to try his hand at entrepreneurship - culinary, of course.

"The best part of my job is teaching and working with others. Food's been good to me and I'd like to share that," he said, as well as continuing his camaraderie with the students. He hopes his hard work and friendship makes a difference.

"You bet I have a leadership role here. Everybody needs to take one."

3 Students Snare Goldwater Scholarships

Three UNL students have been named 2001 Goldwater Scholars. The honor is the premier undergraduate award of its type, designed to encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in mathematics, natural sciences, and engineering.

The students are Dorea Claassen, a junior mathematics and music major from Denver; Lucas Sabalka, a junior mathematics and computer science major from Lincoln Northeast High School; and Ellen Veomett, a junior mathematics major from Lincoln Pius X. The students all plan to pursue graduate degrees in mathematics with hopes of careers in mathematics research and teaching.

Claassen, Sabalka and Veomett are among 302 winners nationwide, selected based on academic merit from a field of 1,164 mathematics, science and engineering students. They receive either one- or two-year scholarships valued at $7,500 per year.

"Dorea, Lucas, and Ellen are exceptional students who have enriched our program through their energy, intellect and enthusiasm for mathematics in particular, and the pursuit of knowledge in general," said Gordon Woodward, associate professor of mathematics and statistics and adviser to all three students. "They exemplify the best of what our department hopes to accomplish and add to our tradition of Goldwater Scholars."

Fifteen UNL students have been named Goldwater Scholars since the program began 13 years ago.

The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established to honor the late Sen. Barry M. Goldwater, who served his country for 56 years as a soldier and statesman, including 30 years in the U.S. Senate.

IANR Policy Aims to Stave Off Disease Outbreaks

By Heather Corley, IANR News

Spurred by recent foot-and-mouth outbreaks overseas, IANR has created a farm visitor policy to protect the university's livestock from potential outbreaks of foreign animal disease.

An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, or another foreign livestock disease, could devastate the university's research efforts. All animals at a research facility likely would have to be killed if an outbreak occurred, said Darrell Nelson, dean and director of NU's Agricultural Research Division.

"We have an obligation to ensure that the university's livestock are not exposed to these very damaging diseases," Nelson said. "We have a huge investment in these animals and their worth is not just their stock value. They have been selected over generations for specific traits that meet our research needs."

The new policy, adopted the week of April 16, requires all domestic and international visitors to animal research facilities complete a questionnaire. Answers will provide information about the visitor's country of origin, countries visited in the past two weeks and contact with animals in the past two weeks.

"Visitors from countries with foot-and-mouth or other serious disease outbreaks will not be allowed to enter IANR animal research facilities," Nelson said. "Visitors from countries without disease risks will be allowed to visit research facilities with the permission of the unit administrator, provided that they have not been in a country with a disease outbreak in the past 14 days."

American visitors also will need to wait 14 days after traveling outside the United States before visiting IANR animal research units. Domestic visitors who only traveled to disease-free countries, did not visit farms or had no animal contact may receive special permission to enter, Nelson said. Such requests will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Under the new policy, IANR faculty, staff and graduate students who work at animal research units are discouraged from visiting countries with foot-and-mouth disease or other serious diseases.

"The same 14-day waiting period applies to employees or students who have traveled outside of the United States," Nelson said. "Employees should also take precautions to avoid contamination if any of their family members have traveled to at-risk countries."

The following additional safety precautions will be followed by all visitors, employees and students:

- People entering animal research facilities should wear clean clothes that have been washed since being in a foreign country.

- Shoes worn in a foreign country must be washed and disinfected before they are worn.

- Research facilities should provide boots, overshoes or disposable plastic foot covers for visitors.

- No food from foreign countries should be brought onto the premises. Luggage that may contain these products also is prohibited.

"Our main goal in creating this policy was to protect our livestock and the huge public investment and time investment that we have in them," Nelson said. "There is also a nationwide effort to make international and domestic travelers aware of their role in transmitting these damaging diseases. USDA is part of it, individual livestock producers are part of it and we want to be part of it, too."

Sculptor Tom Palmerton (left) puts the finishing touches on his sculpture of former Gov. Robert W. Furnas as Rockport, Mo., resident Jeff Broady (right) watches. The sculpture will be unveiled at the Governor Robert W. Furnas Arboretum in Brownville April 28. (IANR photo)

Furnas Arboretum Celebration April 28

By Molly Klocksin, IANR NEWS

Gov. Mike Johanns will unveil a life-sized bronze sculpture of former Gov. Robert W. Furnas at 11 a.m. April 28 at the Furnas Arboretum in Brownville. The Brownville native became Nebraska's second governor in 1872. The public celebration will include a groundbreaking ceremony for the Governor Furnas Steamboat Trace Connector Trail.

"Furnas loved plants and worked with J. Sterling Morton to establish Arbor Day, so we're happy to commemorate his contributions through this sculpture on Arbor Day weekend," said John Lauber, Furnas Arboretum curator. Johanns, sculptor Tom Palmerton, Jackie Spahn, executive director of the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation and Jeff Broady of Rockport, Mo., will participate in the ceremony. Broady is a charter member and first treasurer of the Brownville Historical Society. He and his family contributed a $5,000 challenge grant toward the sculpture as a memorial to his late wife, Dorothy.

Representatives from the primary contributors to the trail - Nebraska Department of Roads Transportation Enhancement, Nemaha Natural Resources District, Nebraska Statewide Arboretum and the Nebraska Environmental Trust, a beneficiary of the Nebraska Lottery, will address guests. A tree planting will follow nearby in the arboretum.

Arboretum tours will be offered throughout the day. Many Brownville attractions - the Baily House Museum, Governor Furnas Museum, Carson House, excursion boat, shops and restaurant - also will be open to visitors.

"These projects at the arboretum show what can be accomplished when local individuals and different levels of government work together," Lauber said. The sculpture and the extended trail have been a community effort involving, in addition to the entities listed above, the arboretum, Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation, Brownville Town Board and Brownville Fine Arts Association, along with many state and regional units, including the Southeast Nebraska Development District and Nemaha County Commissioners.

The Governor Furnas Arboretum became an affiliate site of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum in 1996. The NSA is a horticultural organization headquartered at the University of Nebraska's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Brownville is about 30 miles south of Nebraska City on Highway 136, along the Missouri River. Visitors can follow signs to the arboretum.