St. Thomas dedicated the Murray J. Harpole Legacy Fountain on Monday during a ceremony on John P. Monahan Plaza outside the Anderson Student Center. The fountain is a gift from Pentair Ltd. and five current or former directors of the company in honor of the late Harpole, its founder and first chief executive officer.

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St. Thomas is one step closer to becoming a tobacco-free campus on Jan. 1, 2014. The President’s Staff has endorsed the tobacco-free concept and a committee will work out an implementation plan before returning to the President’s Staff this fall for final approval.

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With retirement in sight, Father Dennis Dease reflects on two decades of extraordinary change.

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Dave Nimmer has many fond memories of Father Dennis Dease and the 22 years they have worked together at St. Thomas. As Dease prepares to retire next month, Nimmer pauses to offer his thanks today in The Scroll to “a man of uncommon decency.”

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John N. Allen has worked with real estate developers, investors and executives around the country, and as much as he respects them and values their perspectives and their role as mentors, he believes his success boils down to one intangible element.

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May is a month ripe with possibilities, and it always evokes “a sense of celebration” for Dr. Salina Renninger, director of training in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology. The arrival of spring brings “a sense of potential and possibility,” she writes today in The Scroll, whether it be the trees becoming full with leaves or our graduates celebrating their accomplishments and embarking on a successful path beyond St. Thomas.

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There sure was a lot of Purple on the Plaza on Tommie Tuesday, and for good reason. More than 1,500 students, faculty and staff gathered in the lower quadrangle and on John P. Monahan Plaza over the noon hour to pay tribute to Father Dennis Dease, who will retire June 30 after 22 years as president of St. Thomas.

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Have you ever had a “Rainbow Experience”? Susan Alexander writes today in The Scroll about three (so far …) she has had this month. The first two were not that all enjoyable but, arm in sling and with encouragement from her friends, the self-described “klutz” has learned to grin and bear it, and it won’t be long before she is typing with both hands.

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Lisa Weier was, in her own words, “a mess.” Breakfast covered the hand of The Scroll’s Rome correspondent, in the Eternal City this semester for studies as a St. Thomas junior, and Pope Francis hovered near by. What was she to do? Read The Scroll today to find out.

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Coach Johnny Tauer repeats several words -– “unselfish” and “great senior leadership” -– over and over when he analyzes the three St. Thomas men’s basketball teams that have advanced to the Elite Eight round of the NCAA Division III tournament in the last five years.

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A travel package to the Elite Eight tournament in Salem, Va., has been canceled.

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Dave Nimmer wants to talk about change. The timing is good for the conversation, he writes today in The Scroll, because a new president will arrive soon with a load of challenges and will need our help.

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Susan Alexander has run across an interesting study about the effect of exercise on rat intelligence, and she suggests today in The Scroll that the results that be useful to us humans, too.

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Susan Alexander was intrigued when she read that Google had been named Fortune magazine’s best place to work in the world for the fourth consecutive year. Just what kind of amenities does Google offer? She checked them out and offers a report – and her analysis of how St. Thomas stacks up – today in The Scroll.

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Junior Lisa Weier is studying in Rome this semester – studying and, of course, checking out the Italian culture and bargaining with street vendors for their wares. In The Scroll today, read about her adventure in buying a scarf.

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When Diane Kulseth graduated from St. Thomas in 2011, she decided not to get over-involved with activities for a year. Then she saw the Take a Tommie to Lunch invitation and couldn’t resist, having been mentored by an alumna during her senior year. Diane writes about that experience today in The Scroll in hopes that you – students and alumni alike – will sign up for the program by March 5.

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Tuition rates will increase 4.5 percent for undergraduate students and an average of 3.3 percent for graduate students beginning this summer, the St. Thomas Board of Trustees decided Thursday. The board approved the increases as part of the university’s 2013-2014 budget, which also calls for a 2.5 percent increase in overall funding for the faculty and staff salary pool.

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The St. Thomas Board of Trustees elected Dr. Julie Sullivan, executive vice president and provost of the University of San Diego, as the first woman and the first lay person to serve as president of the University of St. Thomas in its 128-year history.

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Over the last four years, Dr. John Tauer has had the pleasure of coaching five outstanding student-athletes who will be honored Wednesday at “Senior Night” when the men’s basketball team takes on St. Olaf in Schoenecker Arena. In The Scroll today, Tauer reflects on the special character of these men, who have contributed to a 98-15 record and four consecutive MIAC championships.

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St. Thomas junior Rachel Murray didn’t think she would have anything in common with Cierra, a Cristo Rey High School student, when they began working together last fall as part of a St. Thomas class. But then Cierra stepped up and comforted Rachel as she dealt with the death of a friend, and Rachel’s impression of the teenager changed dramatically. Carol Bruess writes about their encounter today in The Scroll.

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Dave Nimmer has some suggestions – he calls them “obstreperous observations” – that he wants to share about what’s going on at St. Thomas, and he hopes people take him seriously. Read about what’s on his mind today in The Scroll.

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(Mis)information drives Susan Alexander crazy, regardless of whether the issue is as global as the effectiveness of the gold standard or as local as whether St. Thomas has special programs to recruit and support veterans. She addresses those issues today in The Scroll and also offers a quiz!

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I will never forget the looks on the faces of three St. Thomas coaches when their teams won national championships.

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Marianne Short considers herself fortunate to have been counseled by brilliant lawyers and wise judges throughout her career, but she believes the best advice she ever received was from her father when she was a child – and it had little to do with her chosen profession.

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There is nothing like a foot of snow to turn Tommies into roving Good Samaritans, Doug Hennes writes today in The Scroll. He cites three thank-you notes written about students whose good deeds helped neighbors deal with the nasty weather and, in the process, spread “the true Christmas spirit” and inspired a girl to act with kindness toward others.

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