Throughout 2012, St. Edward’s University lost a group of professors near to the heart of the university. Although a year has gone by, the community remembers the impact that these professors had on them personally and on the university as a whole. Each professor left their unique mark on the university and their legacy will continue to live on.

Marilyn Schultz 1945-2010

Humanities Professor – 

Communications

“I think I would remember her mostly as the linchpin who held the Communication Department together …  she was a great neighbor and a good friend. We would sit on the front porch with her dogs and sip wine.”

“Her legacy beyond St. Edward’s … was her work at NBC.”

-The Rev. Lou Brusatti, professor of religious studies

Michele Kay 1944-2011

Humanities Professor – Journalism

“Certainly her legacy at St. Edward’s is going to be Hilltop Views … moving it into the School of Humanities.”

“She was working on a journalism minor before she left…”

“She was a firecracker.”

-The Rev. Lou Brusatti, professor of religious studies

Marcia Kinsey 1940-2012

Humanities Professor – English Writing & Rhetoric

“Marcia was blessed with a great talent for compassion, and she blessed those around her.  She was funny, sometimes devilishly so, and easy with people.  It was easy to love Marcia.  Students didn’t just like her, they adored her.  She became their ally, the one they’d go to, their person.  Me too.  She was my person, too.

  It was easy to love Marcia, and now it is utterly difficult to find ourselves without her.  I only hope that she understood and felt and could enjoy knowing how much she meant to those of us who were lucky enough to have her in our lives.   

What I am holding very close these days is the memory of Marcia’s beautiful brown eyes.  All that compassion and humor came through in her eyes and could be seen from a very far distance. 

 When I was in the early, horribly-exhausted-all-the-time part of my pregnancy and teaching with Marcia in the Science & Theology section of Freshman Studies, I’d sometimes sit and wait to see Marcia coming, to see her enter the lecture hall. 

I knew that, though all I wanted to do was sleep, if I could get one of those knowing looks from Marcia, even if only from across Jones Auditorium, I would make it through the day.  And there she’d come, walking briskly, her trench coat billowing around her, a stack of papers in her arms.  I love the way Marcia made her approach. 

 It was so instructive – a lesson in kindness – the way she would reach her arm up and out to you long before she was actually near.  She was already giving you a hug, already taking you in, even before she was there.”

– Carrie Fountain, assistant professor for humanities

Cecil Lawson 1946-2012

Humanities Professor – Literature and Language

“He personally mentored and tutored just about every new Asian student on our campus. He spent hours and hours of his own time helping them with their studies and playing tour guide around Austin and Texas … 

Cecil was passionate about teaching and his enthusiasm for learning was contagious to the students. I know he touched many, many lives on this campus … Not many St. Edward’s people knew that Cecil and his wife Ayako were avid bowlers. They bowled on about five leagues per week and he owned about 100 bowling balls. And he was an excellent bowler, a 280 average most of the time.

 When I joined a bowling league, Cecil took me under his wing and every Sunday for as long as he was alive we would practice bowling for about three to four hours.  He was serious about bowling, but we also had fun. And the thing that I liked best is that he was always the “teacher”. No matter how poorly I bowled he would find something positive to say about my bowling.”

– Emily Salazar, career counselor

Edward Shirley 1955-2012

Humanities Professor – Religious Studies

“The university was blessed with a vibrant and colorful instructor, he was genuinely a friend … He had a wit that was sharp and distinct. You never wanted to miss a word he said, because later you’ll understand what he meant.”

– Nora Irvin, senior English and photocommunications major

“Dr. Shirley also taught me to laugh at life. He constantly made fun of himself, and any student he could manage too. But never in an insulting way, in a way that let you know he was welcoming you.”

– Phil Oates, senior psychology major

There will be a memorial auction for Shirley on May 5, 11:30-3:30 p.m. and 8-11 p.m., as well as on May 6 , 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Harald Becker 1954-2012

Humanities Professor – German

“Dr. Becker was so insightful and made every lesson super enjoyable. He always suggested books and played music at the beginning of every lecture, usually Simon and Garfunkel. I will always remember Dr. Becker and hope to have a professor as cool and collected as he was one day. I always looked forward to the days he lectured and haven’t enjoyed a class as much since.”

– Breanne Devaney, junior secondary education major

Jean McKemie 1954-2012

Natural Sciences Professor

“She embodied the characteristics of a lifelong teacher: she was a person of positive influence and character … She was the voice of wisdom. She had a strong knowledge of mathematics and was a expert problem-solver. She was generous, understanding, and kind.”

– Cynthia Naples, associate dean for natural sciences

“She was responsible for establishing and developing the undergraduate research program in mathematics.

 She made it clear to me and others who worked with her that she was most interested in teaching undergraduate students how to do research, and not in furthering her own personal research goals…

A significant amount of effort is currently being made by the mathematics department on how best to serve the students’ needs, for both majors and non-majors. 

Much of this effort comes from the commitment of the current math faculty, but it is in part fueled by Dr. McKemie’s legacy.”

– David Naples, associate professor of mathematics