University of Dubuque to Honor Alumni at Awards Ceremony
Oct 15, 2019
DUBUQUE, Iowa – University of Dubuque will honor six alumni at the Alumni/ae Recognition Brunch on Saturday, Oct. 19, in Heritage Center. The awards ceremony is part of UD’s Homecoming festivities.
The alumni being honored this year are:
Alumnus of Distinction Award: John Couchman (C’69), of Saint Paul, Minnesota
John Couchman graduated from University of Dubuque in 1969 with a major in history. John was a well-rounded student while at UD. He served as a student ambassador and was a member of the cross country and track teams, D Club, Phi Omicron fraternity, and the Union Board. John was also named to the Dean’s List and Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities.
Post-graduation, John attended graduate school at the University of Minnesota. He graduated in 1971 with a masters in social work. Following graduate school, John spent 17 years working in the mental health field, first as a psychotherapist and then as assistant director of Hamm Memorial Psychiatric Clinic in Saint Paul, Minnesota, which provides outpatient psychotherapy services to adults regardless of their ability to pay. While helping to lead the clinic, John developed a highly regarded continuing education program for mental health professionals, bringing nationally recognized clinicians to the Twin Cities as speakers.
John worked for the next 25 years in the field of philanthropy for a group of four foundations led by the Saint Paul Foundation, one of the 10 largest community foundations in the nation. At the time of his retirement, these foundations had combined endowments of $1 billion. During John’s 14 years as vice president of grants and program, the Saint Paul Foundation and its affiliates were principal partners with the public and for profit sectors in multiple projects to strengthen the vitality of the greater Saint Paul area. These foundations created grants totaling more than $685 million to improve the lives of people throughout the community through economic and community development, the creation of affordable housing, education, health care, human services, and the art and humanities. In addition, he led the creation and implementation of a number of foundation initiatives including Word Work!, a 10 year research-based early literacy program in partnership with Head Start that significantly improved the school readiness of hundreds of low-income preschool children; Facing Race, a community-wide initiative to bring together people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds to better understand and address the impacts of racism in the community; and the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative, a 10 year effort of 14 local and national foundations that generated tens of millions of philanthropic investment dollars for community development in economically distressed neighborhoods along a newly constructed light rail line connecting the downtowns of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.
Since 2006, John has served on the University of Dubuque Board of Trustees. Currently, he is a member of the House of Hope Presbyterian Church in Saint Paul. Over the years he has served in a variety of capacities in local Presbyterian congregations and with the Presbytery of the Twin Cities. Since retiring almost nine years ago, John has remained active in the Saint Paul community helping to secure the funds needed to build Prior Crossing, a 44 unit housing facility for homeless youth. John serves on the boards of the Hardenbergh Foundation, a private foundation which makes grants in the greater Saint Paul area, and Ujamaa Place, an organization founded by fellow UD graduate Bill Svrluga (C’66) and others, to transform the lives of marginalized African American young men.
John’s life has focused on living and working for 50 years in his adopted home of Saint Paul, Minnesota, with his family. He has been married for almost 50 years to his wife, Peggy (C’70), whom he met at UD. Peggy taught elementary school for 30 years in the Saint Paul Public Schools while they raised two sons, Jeff and Tim. John and Peggy are retired and enjoy watching their six grandchildren grow up.
Award of Merit: Dominique A. Anthony (C’07), of Dallas, Texas
Dominique Anthony graduated from University of Dubuque in 2007 with a bachelor of science in elementary education. While attending UD, Dominique played basketball, was a member of the Student Government Association and Black Student Union, and was in the inaugural class of Wendt Scholars. She had several jobs as a student including resident assistant, student ambassador, and first-year orientation leader. Dominique’s honors at UD were being crowned Homecoming Queen and Lady of May, participating in the Golden Key Honor Society, and winning the University Leadership Award.
Following her undergraduate work, Dominique pursued her master of business administration with a concentration in management and leadership skills at Texas Tech University. She went on to work in the real estate field for 10 years in the conventional and student housing aspects of real estate as a real estate analysis and operations manager of University House. There she learned the full spectrum of real estate including acquisitions, development, and operations. Dominique found and discovered that there were CEOs, start-up leaders, and business owners that had areas of growth within their companies. She decided to start her own company, Anthony Avery Consulting, working as an independent consultant and project manager. With consulting experience in the fields of healthcare, landscape architecture, currency trading, and financial management, Dominique has been able to transform companies and assist leaders to be more efficient. Other professional career highlights include project management certification, Six Sigma Green Belt, and Lean Management Training.
Outside of work, Dominique is dedicated to being a leader in her community, giving back as much as she can. Dominque is a board member for Community Ministries Council, Stewpot Alliance, West Dallas Community School, and Dallas Autumn Ball as well as a foundation board member and executive committee member for West Dallas Community School. She is a Normie Film assistant producer and project manager, and she volunteers for Stewpot Alliance, National Prayer Breakfast, St. Philip’s Community School, TangoTab, and the Dallas Sports Commission.
Dominique is always looking to evolve and grow as a person. She enjoys being able to create a career where she has the autonomy and freedom to focus on her volunteer and philanthropy work and create change in her neighborhood, community, and family. She focuses on three main areas: education, poverty alleviation, and economic empowerment.
Dominique resides in Dallas, Texas
Professional Achievement Award: Barbara (Glovik) Rechterman (C’85), of Cave Creek, Arizona
Barbara (Glovik) Rechterman graduated from University of Dubuque in 1985 with a bachelor of arts in accounting. As a student, Barbara spent the majority of her time studying in the library. As a result, she graduated from UD a semester early.
After graduation, Barbara went on to get her license as a certified public accountant, but she soon realized this wasn’t her true vocation. She started working at Parson’s Technology where she served as vice president of application development. Barbara then served as president during the company’s acquisition by Intuit, Inc. When Bob Parsons, founder of the GoDaddy group of companies, decided to move to Arizona to start GoDaddy he asked Barbara to join his team.
As chief marketing officer and chief customer officer, Barbara was responsible for all facets of corporate marketing and strategic end-to-end customer relationships. She created programs and promoted consumer-related functions with a unified vision to provide a consistent customer experience and value, all while including strategic planning and business development for marketing, global branding, and product management. Under Barbara’s leadership, name recognition for GoDaddy in the United States soared with an aided brand awareness score of more than 80 percent. In 2014, Barbara was ranked on the Forbes list of Most Influential Chief Marketing Officers. She was the mastermind behind the edgy and viral GoDaddy commercials. After working for GoDaddy for over 20 years, Barbara retired last June, staying on as a consultant.
Barbara works with the local St. Vincent De Paul to help the homeless during the hot summer months. She also volunteers at St. Gabriel the Archangel Catholic Church, Phoenix Rescue Mission, St. Mary’s Food Bank, Diocese of Phoenix, Catholic Rescue, and Catholic Charities. Barbara also volunteered in the schools to help students in need who come from broken homes. It warms her heart to see those students grow into amazing adults.
Barbara resides in Cave Creek, Arizona, with her husband, Frank. In their spare time they enjoy riding Harley-Davidsons and training their four horses in dressage.
Service to Community Award: Keith Kephart (C’66), of Pawleys Island, South Carolina
Keith Kephart graduated from University of Dubuque in 1966 with a bachelor of science in biology and physical education. During his time at UD, Keith was a member of the Phi Omicron fraternity, and he also participated in football, where he earned All-Conference honors his senior year. After graduating from UD, Keith received his master of education and psychology from Iowa State University in 1977.
Keith went on to serve in the United States Marine Corps. He had a passion for strength and conditioning and knew the importance of it in athletics. He served as the president of the National Strength and Conditioning Association from 1980 to 1982. Keith received the honor of being named the National Strength Coach of the Year in 1981. While coaching at the University of South Carolina, he initiated and developed the South Carolina High School Strength Coaches Association. Keith was recently inducted into the South Carolina’s High Schools Strength Coaches Hall of Fame for his work as a strength coach.
In addition to his professional career, Keith has been a member of the Kairos Prison ministry for 20 years. He has been working with government officials on addressing prison reform and developing programs that will enhance a productive future for inmates when released. As a member of The Abbey, an Anglican Mission in America Church, Keith serves on the Pastoral Care team that tends to those in need, whether it be in the home, in the hospital, or transporting them to their appointments. Along with being a Certified Christian Life Coach, he is also a team leader of the Christian Leadership Concepts men’s group. Keith’s other community involvements include being the coordinator of developing teams to serve “Teach My People,” a program developed for low-income students in the area to reach their full God-given potential.
Keith turned his childhood dream of being a coach into a reality, coaching for 20 years at four different universities. Keith does not plan on retiring anytime soon and is always available to train athletes who seek to go on to the “next level.”
Keith resides in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. He met his wife, Sue (C’66), at UD and they have been married for 53 years. They have three daughters and are proud grandparents of six grandchildren.
Volunteer Recognition Award: Paul Clayton (C’68), of Stamford, Connecticut
Paul Clayton graduated from University of Dubuque in 1968 with a bachelor of arts in mathematics. During his senior year, Paul served as the class president, vice president of the Phi Omicron fraternity, and was crowned the May Fete King.
After graduation, Paul began working for IBM in one of their New York City offices. Six months later he was drafted into the U.S. Army where he spent two years until returning to work at IBM. During the mid-1970s, as a customer systems engineer at IBM, Paul decided to take a two year sabbatical to teach. Paul taught computer programming and operations skills to unemployed and under-employed young adults in Harlem, New York. Each session was a three month course and dozens of graduates were placed in well-paying entry level jobs in the field of computer data processing. It was a very rewarding experience for Paul.
He returned to IBM and was offered a position to work overseas in their Asia/Pacific offices located in Tokyo, Japan, in the mid-1980s. Paul accepted the position and moved to Japan with his wife and two daughters. He spent three years working overseas and was able to travel to different parts of Asia he never thought he’d see as a kid from the South Bronx.
After retiring from IBM, Paul volunteered in Future Five, a local organization in Stamford, Connecticut. Future Five’s mission is to help connect motivated low-income high school students to their full potential, leading to independence and productive citizenship. They strive to strengthen a student’s self-esteem through character building workshops, job and college preparation programs, and one-on-one coaching.
Paul currently helps keep alumni connected to UD with his Homecoming email newsletter that goes to over 250 alumni from different generations. Additionally, Paul volunteers his time to help with UD projects such as Ahead of the Curve and has served on alumni panels held on campus. Paul cherishes everything in his life especially his family and friendships made at UD.
Paul and his wife, Yvonne, have been happily married for 45 years. They have two daughters, Kimberly and Lauren, and one grandson, Romell. They reside in Stamford, Connecticut.
Veterans Award for Distinguished Service: Colonel Robert Wicklund (C’53), of Bellevue, Nebraska
Colonel Robert “Bob” A. Wicklund graduated from University of Dubuque in 1953 with a bachelor of science in physics. During his time at UD, Bob was a member of the Athenaean fraternity and football team. Being a member of the football team was especially meaningful to Bob because Coach Moco Mercer was like a second father to him, and he helped Bob prepare for life after college.
At UD, Bob was introduced to meteorology and aviation by veteran Isaiah Zamarripa (C’52), which led him to graduate school at Oklahoma State for meteorology. He also earned a master of science in engineering administration from Southern Methodist University. Bob felt that UD prepared him to be academically competitive with influences from professors including Dorthy Taylor and Hazel Rothlisberger.
Based on his academics, Bob achieved a commission in the United States Air Force. He became a meteorologist, later serving as a navigator during the Vietnam War. He also worked as a severe weather recon officer and completed Air Navigation School, becoming a navigator on B-47, B-52, and FB-111 aircrafts in Strategic Air Command. He saw action as a fire control officer on AC-130 gunship aircraft in which he flew more than 25 missions in Southeast Asia. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross among numerous other medals. Over the course of 30 years in the U.S. Air Force, he worked his way through the ranks until retiring in 1983 as a colonel at Strategic Air Command Headquarters.
After retiring from the Air Force, Bob served as a member of the University of Dubuque Alumni Association Board of Directors, where he helped support several projects for the entire athletic department.
Bob was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Distinction in 2003. His devotion to athletics began while he was attending UD. As a member of the Spartan football team, he earned four letters, was elected team captain, and was honored as a selection to the All-Iowa Conference football team in 1952. Bob also played on the men’s basketball team for one season.
Bob stays busy volunteering with his wife, Joan (C’53), whom he met at UD, on the Neighborhood Association Board. He is also a board member of Omaha Tennis Association. Bob and Joan have been happily married for 65 years. They have three children, Kirk, who passed away in 2018, Kristyn, and Eric; four grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. The couple reside in Bellevue, Nebraska.
