04210
May 4, 2004

by Evan Silverstein

FULTON, MO — Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic candidate for president, appeared at Westminster College on April 30, outlining his plan for stabilizing Iraq, proposing broader roles for NATO and the United Nations. He spoke in the school’s gymnasium, where Winston Churchill made his historic “Iron Curtain” speech in 1946. Kerry was invited to respond to an earlier on-campus speech in which Vice President Dick Cheney accused him of being soft on defense.

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ST. CHARLES, MO — Shandi Finnessey, a graduate student at Lindenwood University, was crowned Miss USA during the pageant in Los Angeles on April 12. The 25-year-old native of Florissant, MO, a former Miss Missouri, has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Lindenwood and is working on a master’s in counseling. She will represent the United States at the Miss Universe pageant in Quito, Ecuador, on June 1.

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SHERMAN, TX — Mary Robinson, the first woman president of Ireland and a former United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights, will present the keynote address during the 2004 commencement ceremony at Austin College on May 16. Robinson is now leading a project at Columbia University, the Ethical Globalization Initiative, whose goal is to apply human-rights standards in the economic globalization process.

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GREENVILLE, TN — Three All-American football players from Tusculum College will join National Football League teams this fall. Offensive tackle Alan Dunn, of Chattanooga, TN, signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; wide receiver Kevin Wolcott, of Crossville, TN, signed with the Tennessee Titans; and cornerback Ricardo Colclough, of Sumter, SC, was chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the NFL Draft on April 24. Colclough, the 38th pick overall, was the first player ever drafted from Tusculum’s NCAA Division II program.

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JACKSONVILLE, IL — Axel D. Steuer was inaugurated as the13th president of Illinois College on April 17. A native of Germany, Steuer succeeds Martha E. Church, who became interim president in 2002 after Richard A. Pfau left to become president of Averett University in Danville, VA. Steuer was president of Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN, from 1991-2002. He has served on the faculties of Princeton University, Haverford College, Swarthmore College and the University of Pennsylvania.

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