Lingren Remembered as Kind, Caring Human

Herbert G. Lingren, professor and extension family scientist in department of family and consumer sciences, died Nov. 11 of complications from heart surgery.

Lingren, who was 65, joined the College of Human Resources and Family Sciences (then Home Economics) faculty in 1980 and compiled a long list of professional and academic achievements and awards, most-recently the college's Outstanding Extension Team Program Award in 1997.

But his faculty colleagues said they remember him more for him human qualities.

"He touched many people, just countless people, in many ways," associate professor Kathy Prochaska-Cue told the Lincoln Journal Star. "He was a warm, caring person, and he helped people make decisions and face things that they needed to face, and he did it in a very nonjudgmental way."

Lingren, who was a licensed mental health practitioner and a certified marriage and family therapist in Nebraska, earned a bachelor's degree in education (1957), a master's in rural sociology (1965) and a doctorate in sociology (1967) from Iowa State University, then taught at Idaho State University for 13 years before coming to Nebraska.

He was president of the National Council of Family Relations from 1992-97 and was regular on KOLN-TV's "Better Parenting" segments. He was an Army veteran of the Korean War.

Lingren is survived by his wife, Janet, two daughters, two sons and grandchildren.

Funeral services occurred Nov. 14 in Lincoln and Gowrie, Iowa.

Memorials are suggested to the Brain Injury Association of Nebraska.

Timm, McGill Earn Kudos for October

By Andrew Washburn, Public Relations

Christine Timm and Barbara McGill were Regents' Kudos recipients in October.

Timm, (shown at right), assistant director of Career Services, went above and beyond her normal service as a career counselor when she assisted in the uniting of the databases of Career Services and Student Registration over the last several months. The complex process involved the upgrading of systems and handling more than 10,000 student records, 10,000 employer records, and 7,000 job records. Additional work had to be done to confirm the system's Year 2000 compliance issues. She spent a great deal of time doing work that had to be done after hours or on weekends to avoid disruptions in the normal working day. Her unique abilities and understanding of technological systems saved the university thousands of dollars in technical and consulting fees.

Officer McGill, (shown at left), a 26-year member of the University Police force, has worked relentlessly in the past few months with an outstanding level of enthusiasm and dedication. Her work led to the arrest of 26 individuals for various crimes and aided in the recovery of $27,000 of stolen computer equipment and more than $24,000 in other miscellaneous university equipment in the last fiscal year. Her continuous desire to further her knowledge in investigation procedures and tactics has made her one of the most effective officers on campus. Her work has also been an inspiration to her fellow officers who recently named her the department's "Outstanding Officer of the Year."

Ferguson Assisting Chancellor In Gender/Diversity Matters

Moira Ferguson, who holds the James E. Ryan Chair in English and Women's Studies, has been working this semester as special assistant to the chancellor on gender and diversity. As part of the newly created part-time position for the fall semester, she has been involved in priority areas concerning race and gender at the university, including the Dr. Martin Luther King Celebration committee, the chancellor's commissions, and the Faculty Task Force on Diversity. Last year Ferguson was faculty associate to the chancellor.

NU Extension Dean Bolen Announces Retirement

by Cheryl Alberts, IANR news writer

Kenneth Bolen, dean and director of University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension, will retire Sept. 30, 1999.

Bolen made the announcement at the end of his remarks during the Nebraska Cooperative Extension Association's annual meeting at Scottsbluff Nov. 18.

"This has been a great career. I have enjoyed working with people through my assignments with land grant universities," Bolen said. "I have found this responsibility with the University of Nebraska to be stimulating and enjoyable."

After 35 years in public service, Bolen, an Illinois native, and his wife Mary look forward to moving back to southern Illinois, where he will manage a farm operation.

Bolen's entire career has been devoted to Cooperative Extension, first in his native Illinois, and then Colorado and Nebraska, where he became dean of NU Cooperative Extension in 1990. Bolen has administrative responsibility for extension staff, programs and budget. Bolen also reports to the vice chancellor for NU's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources and is a member of IANR's administrative council.

Irv Omtvedt, IANR vice chancellor, noted that Bolen is nationally recognized as a strong and effective leader of cooperative extension in the land-grant system.

"Obviously, we are sorry to lose Dr. Bolen as dean and director for Cooperative Extension Division because he has provided very strong and visionary leadership for the program during his tenure," Omtvedt said.

One of the highlights in Bolen's career came in the last year, as the Nebraska Association of County Extension Boards sought additional funds from the Nebraska Legislature to help support extension educator and assistant positions. This property tax relief proposal sought to continue extension programming and access throughout the state. The Legislature approved $2.3 million in additional funding, helping stabilize the extension network and demonstrate positive support for extension's educational programs, Bolen said.

Electronic access via satellite downlink sites and Internet accessibility also helped link Cooperative Extension to the public during Bolen's tenure.

Bolen said he takes pride in extension's faculty and staff and inter-disciplinary approach as they provide high-quality, responsive programs to help Nebraskans in all 93 counties improve their social, economic or environmental well-being.

Bolen said he hopes the future brings even more NU educational resources to Nebraska citizens.

Among the challenges extension faces at the national level are moving to a multi-county delivery system; to have greater coordination and integration between research and extension; and even greater use of electronic technologies, Bolen said.

Omtvedt said that because Nebraska is so well known for its strong extension programs, he expects the director's position to be very attractive to prospective candidates. He anticipates a search advisory committee will be appointed soon to conduct a national search.

Bolen also was director of Cooperative Extension in Colorado from 1986-1990; assistant director of NU Cooperative Extension from 1981-1986; and held a variety of extension positions while at the University of Illinois from 1962-1981.

Bolen was raised on a general livestock farm in southern Illinois. He earned his bachelor's and doctorate degrees in vocational agriculture and agricultural economics from University of Illinois, and his master's in agricultural industries from Southern Illinois University. He also served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army.

UNL Spin-Off Company Wins SBA Award

Safety by Design, Inc., may be a small company, but its potential is big. Its founders were recognized Sept. 17 in Washington, D.C., with a national award honoring that potential and their success thus far.

Dean Sicking, John Rohde and John Reid, all of Lincoln, are recipients of a 1998 U.S. Small Business Administration Tibbetts award. They, like other honorees from around the country, have joined with the SBA in technological innovations that enhance both the U.S. and their states' economies. Reid accepted the award for the company.

The three UNL faculty members founded Safety by Design in 1996 as a spin-off of the University of Nebraska roadside hardware design program. The company is located in the university's Technology Park.

Sicking is the director of UNL's Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, and Rohde and Reid are faculty researchers with the facility. Sicking and Rohde are associate professors of civil engineering in the university's College of Engineering and Technology, and Reid is assistant professor of mechanical engineering.

The three engineers have garnered an international reputation for design and full-scale testing of roadside safety hardware, such as guardrails, safety treatments for roadside drainage structures, breakaway sign and luminaire supports, and mailbox support systems. At the University of Nebraska they and their colleagues have developed a research program generating about $1 million per year in funding. While this has had a significant impact in terms of jobs around the country, the bulk of the funding for development of hardware products is undertaken by companies outside Nebraska. Safety by Design was established to bring the benefits of these Nebraska-based developments back to the state in terms of manufacturing and sales. With sales of licensed products developed by the three men reaching $30 million annually, the potential impact of Safety by Design on Nebraska's economy is great. The company is also well positioned to optimize developments that enhance safety for the motoring public.

This is the third year that faculty from the College of Engineering and Technology have received a Tibbetts award. Samy Elias, associate dean for research and director of the college's Engineering Research Center, was the first, in 1996. Last year John Woollam, founder and CEO of Lincoln's J.A. Woollam Co. received the award. A nomination committee appointed by the SBA selects the awardees on the basis of nomination documents and bestows awards on a state-by-state basis. The awards ceremony caps two days of activities on Capitol Hill, and members of the U.S. Senate and the House are expected to attend. The Tibbetts awards are named after Roland Tibbetts, recognized as the father of the SBA's Small Business Innovation Research program.

Hage Appointed to Editorial Board

David S. Hage, associate professor of chemistry, has been asked to serve on the editorial board for the "Journal of Chromatography." Hage's appointment will begin Jan. 1, 1999.