Alumni Focus

The Adrian Schools Educational Foundation named its outstanding teachers for 2012, and they include Dawn Huggins, Cammy DiPietro and Ryan Bills. All three are Siena Heights graduates. They were recognized Oct. 4 at a reception.

Ryan Bills ’02, 09/MA is currently an art and technology teacher at Adrian High School. He is also the International Baccalaureate Programme art instructor. He teaches the Stage Craft class at AHS where students design and build scenery for all the districts plays and musicals. He has taught middle school and elementary school art, coached middle school boys track and high school cross country and served as the technical director for high school musicals and plays. Bills has both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in fine arts from Siena Heights.

Cammy DiPietro ’87, ’00/MA is a fifth- and sixth-grade language arts, reading and social studies teacher at AMS 5-6, where she has been for eight years. She taught the same subjects at the seventh- and eighth-grade level at APS, where she also served for many years as student council and peer mediators supervisor. She is the school liaison for the “Reading is Cool” program, and also has her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from SHU.

Dawn Huggins ’93, ’98 is currently a kindergarten teacher at Lincoln Elementary School. She has also taught first and second grade. She has two bachelor’s degrees from Siena Heights University. Huggins’ nominators recognized her ability to understand each student’s learning style and use the right combination of emotional and academic support to challenge her students to learn.

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Lloyd Carr Travels to Siena Heights Campus

The Siena Heights football team had a special guest this fall when former University of Michigan football coach Lloyd Carr visited practice (left). Carr, who guided the Wolverines to a national championship in 1997, was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame last year. Carr was able to provide some feedback to the SHU coaching staff as well as visit with longtime friend, SHU head coach Jim Lyall. Carr finished his visit by talking to the team before the Saints’ first game against Robert Morris.

Saints Second in WHAC Directors Cup standings

The Saints finished 32nd in the final NAIA Learfield Sports Directors Cup standings. The cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each school’s finish in up to 12 sports—six women’s and six men’s. Siena Heights earned the second highest score in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, with Indiana Tech finishing 22nd overall.

Track and Field

Women: Lenzey Stidham (right) won the women’s pole vault at the NAIA national championships with a vault of 12 feet, 7 1/2 inches. Brianna Nordby was seventh in the javelin with a distance of 140-7 to also earn All-American honors. Phoenix Duncan, just a freshman, was second in the women’s high jump to earn All-American honors. She was also second in the indoor national meet and is the school record holder. Stidham (pole vault) and Duncan (high jump), each won events and Taylor Byron set a school record in the shot put as the women placed second at the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference outdoor championships. Byron was also named the meet’s Most Valuable Performer after scoring 24 points. She recorded a throw of 43 feet, 7.75 inches in the shot put and was third in the discus. Stidham took the pole vault (11-11.75) and Duncan the high jump (5-7.75). Cassie Keeping, a junior, and seniors Lyndsay Payne and Morgan Choszczyk were each named Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

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