Common
bond
Success in life
began at the College of Education
What do a state supreme court justice, an executive with a
large city chamber of commerce, and the CEO of a successful insurance and
finance company have in common?
Have their careers been marked
with a variety of experiences and successes? Have they provided community
leadership? Have they been advocates for persons who have not experienced the
same degree of success? Are they recognized as individuals whose achievement is
known by many throughout the community and state?
The answer to all of the above
is yes.
But there is another common
bond. Each has earned a degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in the
field of education. They have used their skills and education to achieve
success beyond the schoolhouse door. Following are their profiles.
Wendy
Boyer's broad smile and welcoming personality served as a magnet for the
elementary students with whom she worked for 11 years as a teacher and
elementary administrator with Omaha Public Schools. She was an accomplished
educator who earned two degrees from the College of Education — her bachelor's
degree in elementary education (1982) and her master's in educational
administration (1991).
Boyer's training and personal
skills continued her success after leaving the schoolhouse, first as manager of
corporate learning at Mutual of Omaha then as executive director of ministries
for St. Andrew's United Methodist Church. Today she is vice president-education
and workforce development for the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.
Boyer's chamber post provides a
city-wide impact. She works to create partnerships among business, education
and workforce development communities to ensure that Omaha has a skilled and
educated workforce to support the needs of existing businesses, as well as the
targeted industries for economic development in the future.
"The skills and knowledge I
gained from my education at UNO have transferred across various careers," Boyer
says. "Many of the skills successful teachers utilize in their classrooms are
the same skills found in successful managers and leaders: setting goals,
coaching, giving feedback, evaluating, developing, planning and organizing, as
well as strong communication and human relation skills.
"I have found that I am and
continue to be a teacher in any of the roles or positions I'm put in. The
education I received at UNO has helped me to be successful both in and out of
the classroom."
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Retired
Nebraska Supreme Court Judge D. Nick Caporale attained his degree in 1949, one
year before the College of Education was formally established. He majored in
biology. At that time education students took classes in the department of
education within the College of Arts and Sciences. Caporale also earned a
master's degree in educational administration in 1954 from the University of
Omaha and later his juris doctor degree with distinction from the University of
Nebraska College of Law in 1957.
After earning his bachelor's degree
Caporale worked as a public health educator with the then-Omaha-Douglas County
Health Department until entry into the armed services in 1952. Caporale, a
lieutenant with the U.S. Army from 1952 to 1954, served in Korea and earned a
Bronze Star.
He currently is "of counsel"
with the Omaha law firm Baird Holm, LLP, specializing in arbitration/mediation
and litigation.
Caporale indicated, "My interest
in the law developed while in the army through assignments on court martial
boards and as a non-lawyer prosecutor and defense counsel. At the time, in
matters in which imprisonment could not exceed six months, defense counsel did
not need to be a lawyer if the prosecutor was not a lawyer."
Caporale was selected by
Governor Thone in 1982 to be on the Nebraska Supreme Court and served through
July 1998. He previously was a judge of the district court for the Fourth
Judicial District and he also practiced law for more than 20 years in the
private sector.
He has been active in the
community, serving, for instance, as president of the Omaha Community
Playhouse.
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Professional, as in football,
was the most common tag that Dick Davis had as he left its ranks for a career
in education. Today if you mention Dr. Dick C. E. Davis, people think about a
successful insurance and finance executive who has devoted considerable
personal and financial support for young people to succeed.
More than
200 African-American, Latino and Native American students have received Davis
Chambers Scholarships. Of those receiving the awards, 63 percent have completed
their college degree. That compares to 29 percent of similar groups of
students.
"As a newly named vice principal
of North High School at the age of 24," says Davis, "one critical key
validation was missing in establishing a different professional creditability:
the master's degree. UNO provided the bridge to success."
Davis later served in other
administrative capacities, including an assignment as principal at McMillan
Junior High School.
Davis, who earned his master's
degree in educational administration from UNO in 1972, left education more than
25 years ago and now is CEO of the Davis Companies. The family firm was
established in 1971. Today the Davis
Companies consist of Contractor Development Services, Davis Insurance Agency,
Commercial Finance and Investments, and Public Risk Management.
Davis was recognized in 2005 as
a Nebraska Distinguished Entrepreneur and was inducted into the
Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of
Business Administration. In recognizing Davis they cited that he increased
revenues from the Davis companies 10 times in 10 years since his involvement.
Davis also was the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the
Year in 2000.
Davis also has served on
numerous educational committees state-wide and currently is serving on the
Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Post-Secondary Education. He also serves
on the State Board of Directors for Teammates.
Yes, large numbers of College of
Education graduates are excelling in classrooms, in counseling roles, in
educational leadership roles, or in careers directly related to health,
physical education, exercise science and recreation. But College of Education
alumni also are providing leadership in all sectors of our community and
nation.
We encourage all College of
Education alumni to share unique or interesting stories about their careers or
activities. Send such information to: Dean's Office, University of Nebraska at
Omaha, College of Education, Kayser Hall 334, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE
68182-0131.
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Happenings schedule
College of Education alumni can read more about fellow
alumni, faculty and current students in Happenings, a newsletter mailed in
June.
