OCR Text |
Show StatesmanCampus News Page 4 Monday, Jan. 28, 2008 Monson: Possible successor? Koch: Grant funded by industrial company ^continuedfrom page3 represented the church on the boards of KSL, Mountain Bell, Commercial Security Bank, Beneficial Life Insurance Co., National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America and President Ronald Reagan's Task Force for Private Sector Initiatives. Monson was an envoy for the church, dealing with governments wary of the LDS MONSON Church's presence in their nations and the legal issues involved. His two decades of quiet efforts in Eastern Europe culminated in the announcement of an LDS temple in Freiberg, Germany, behind the Iron Curtain. In November 1985, Monson joined the church's governing First Presidency as second counselor to President Ezra Tafl Benson. He remained as second counselor in Howard W. Hunters subsequent eight- [M continued from page 1 month presidency and, in 1995, became Hinckley s first counselor. In that capacity, Monson took on ecumenical and welfare issues. He had many, regular meetings with lead-' ers of Utah's other faiths and developed friendships with then-Cathoh'c Bishop George H. Niederauer and his predecessor in the Salt Lake Diocese, William K. Weigand. Under Monson's direction, the LDS Church joined with other Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups in causes such as homeless shelters, food banks, nursing homes and disaster relief efforts in the United States and abroad. "We don't ever meet on doctrinal ecumenism; it's strictly on the social side of the fabric of the community," Monson explained. "But I'm a great believer that by working together we eliminate the weakness of one standing alone and substitute the strength of many standing together." Born in Salt Lake City on Aug. 21,1927, he served with the U.S. Navy toward the end of World War II. Back in Utah, Monson graduated from the University of Utah with honors in 1948 with a business management degree. That same year, on Oct. 7, he married Frances Beverly Johnson in the Salt Lake Temple. They have three children and eight grandchildren. two other professors in the political science department - Randy Simmons and Roberta Herzberg - had to create a type of partnership with Koch Industries to help the company meet its broader social goals and to help students learn economic principles that will help them when they enter the workforce. Koch Industries is headed by Charles Koch, one of the wealthiest industrialists in America, Fawson said, and part of his business strategy is to link "business methods to concepts of liberty and freedom and foundations of economics and economic philosophy." Encouraged by his business success, he created the Koch Foundation in Washington, D.C., to continue to promote his principles of success, Fawson said. "We started thinking about things we could do to really anchor the profile of the Huntsman school. We contacted the foundation and said we had some ideas about how we might bring a group of students together and really create an intensive learning experience that would be aligned with some of the ideas that Charles Koch thinks are important in creating free societies and sustainable societies," Fawson said. The result? A $32,500 grant, a partnership with one of the largest industrial companies in the world and a unique program Fawson said is found only "at elite Ivy League schools, not necessarily funded by Koch Foundation, but by other foundations that are interested in students having an intimate experience with faculty to talk about great ideas, to read books, to have a dialogue among very divergent interests and to learn to be respectful of that dialogue." So what does Koch Industries get out of this? Fawson said they are interested in "the broader social objective of helping students learn" and using this program as a away to find talent and potential hires that understand their business philosophy. Before the Christmas break, this program was opened to applicants. Out of 40 applicants, 13 were chosen and were each given a $1,500 stipend for the semester to participate, Fawson said. The selected students come from a variety of backgrounds - biology, natural resources, philosophy, political science and business - and range from freshmen to graduate students, Fawson said. Will Israelsen, a Koch Student Scholar and senior dual majoring in biology and economics, said, "It's a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I've never really been in a setting like this before where you have a lot of diverse opinions and ideas being able to share." Another Koch Student Scholar, Natali Naegle, said, "It's such an opportunity because I had opinions before, but it's just opened up my eyes because what we discuss is not a typical conversation you'd have with friends on the weekend, not a typical conversation you could have in a class because it's too big. It's just an opportunity for me to hear opinions that are very different from my own, and a way to broaden my horizons, my views of the world and understand why people think the way they do. It helps strengthen my own and sometimes weaken my own, and think maybe I'm wrong and there are other ways to see the world that I'd never even thought about before." Fawson said the varied backgrounds help the students bring different ideas to the table and encourage a productive dialogue. Kjersten Adams, a sophomore majoring in economics and accounting and a Koch Student Scholar, said even though there are many different ideas, the conversations are always civilized. "There's sometimes when one person has a very strong opinion and everyone else kind of attacks their idea, but it's always in a civilized manner, and we always listen and learn from those because there are so many different perspectives that we're listen- ing to that sometimes it can completely change my opinion about something. We're always civilized. No food fights yet," Adaftis said. Not only does this program allow students to discuss economics in an open forum setting, it increases the marketability of the students and the quality of education students at USU are receiving, Fawson said. Whitney Larsen, a senior Koch Student Scholar majoring in accounting, said, "It's obviously increasing my human capital and marketability. I think that's the biggest thing because it gives me an edge, because for one, it's the only program, not only in the U.S., but in the world, founded by Koch, so that alone will give me an edge." "We look at it as a way to demonstrate to the world that we have incredible students at Utah State University, and we're using the Koch Foundation to help demonstrate that," Fawson said. "One of the core messages is it's really a way for Utah State students to differentiate themselves as scholars and as students that can compete with the very best students in the world, and to be exposed to literature that allows them to create a framework for building confidence about their place in the world." -seth.h@aggiemail.usu.edu Hinckley: LDS prophet dies Custom Make a Unique Ring\ at Utah's oldest jewelry store with today's newest technology in custom jewelry S.E. Needham Jewelers now have a state-of-the-art jewelry milling machine which takes commands from computer generated modeling. We provide a 3-dimensional design review with guaranteed satisfaction. With this new technology we can custom make, with precision, the ring of your dreams. Store Hours: Monday-Saturday 10:00-7:00 mam Where Utah Gets Engaged! 141 N. Main* 752-7149 www.seneedhanucom FNA (Friday Night Activity) Vollyball Tournament! Friday, Feb i st 8:oo pm Please register your team a few days in advance at the main office. Middle of the block at the sign of the clock. Restoration for Spring 2008 is still open Register @ wise.Idsces.org Dl continued from page 1 Hinckley told Mike Wallace on "60 Minutes" in 1996. "The more people come to know us, the better they will understand us," Hinckley said in an interview with The Associated Press in late 2005. "We're a little different. We don't smoke. We don't drink. We do things in a j little different way. That's not dishonorable. I believe that's to our credit." Hinckley s grandfather knew church founder Joseph Smith and followed Brigham Young west to the Great Salt Lake Basin. He often spoke of the Mormon heritage of pioneer sacrifice and its importance as a model for the modern church. "I think as long as history lasts there will be an'interest in the roots of this work, a very deep interest," Hinckley said in a 1994 interview with the AP. "Because insofar as the people of the church are concerned, without a knowledge of those roots and faith in the validity of those roots, we don't have anything," he said. In 1997, Hinckley seemed to drive that point home in his orchestration of the lavish sesquicentennial celebration of the Mormons' arrival in the Salt Lake Valley. The yearlong festivities featured a TV-friendly reenactment of the dramatic Mormon exodus from the Midwest by handcart and covered wagon. Born June 23,1910, in Salt Lake City, Hinckley graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in arts and planned to attend graduate school in journalism. Instead, a church mission took him to the British Isles. Upon his return, he became executive director of the newly formed Church Radio, Publicity, and Mission Literature Committee at $60 a month. Hinckley always worked for the church, except for a brief stint during World War II as a railroad agent. Hinckley was preceded in death by his wife, Marjorie Pay Hinckley, whom he married in 1937. She died April 6, 2004. Religion In Life Fri. 11:30 Lanelle Moore Former member of the Relief Society General Board and served with her husband who was Mission President in the Argentina Buenos Aires West Mission. Lunch for S i after |