USD Magazine, Summer 1996

hen Lynn Schenk ' 70 (J .D.) was cam– paigning for election to the student bar association at USD's School of Law, she spoke first to a tort class. As she walked

through the door, the first student she noticed in the large audience was a nun in full habit. Schenk remembers thinking, "Well, there will be no hollow promises in this campaign." This first meeting of sorts with Sister Sally Furay, fe llow student and then-academic dean of the College for Women, led to a close working relationship between the two, who eventually created and team-taught a course at the School of Law called Sex Disc rimination and the Law. Schenk went on to a legal and political ca reer that included a post with the U .S. H ouse of Representatives and, like countless other students and administrators since 195 2, carried with her lessons she learned from Sister Furay. In her 44 years at USD, Sister Furay touched many lives as she helped shape the uni versity. Through her faith, wisdom and sage advice, Sister Furay was a role model for students, faculty and administrators. As head of the academic community, she preserved and honored the heritage of the university while she tirelessly introduced new programs and improved existing curricula. Th is issue's cover story, "Love's Labour's Gained," celebrates Sister Furay's lifetime of work at USD. In "Down to Earth ," we discover the living classroom at USD's back door - the T ecolote Canyon Natural Park. Students and professors from several academic disciplines have teamed up with park officials to preserve the canyon and its wildlife while they furth er their studies in biology, geology, meteorology, even environmental ethics. See what one student means when she says she plans to "reopen the frog files." "The H ero Next Door" reminds us that we don't have to look far to find people worth admiring. While bad news often steals the media spotlight, this story applauds three good news stories - three USD folks who have risen above the fray and are making a profound difference in others' lives.

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