Donna Shalala '62, current president of the University of Miami, was profiled in U.S. News & World Report October 31, under the headline "A Whirlwind's Winning Ways." The article not only highlights her career path -- from Peace Corps volunteer upon graduation from Western, to chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, to secretary of Health and Human Services on President Clinton's cabinet -- but also provides vivid glimpses behind the scenes into her personal biography.

No one who knew Donna at Western will be surprised to see her called "a whirlwind." A history major from Cleveland, Ohio, she was never satisfied to stand still. Whether it was organizing a tennis tournament or a conference on race relations, Donna always had a plan to rally the troops. She was Western's first Peace Corps volunteer, and as she climbed the academic ladder -- from dean of women at the University of Ahwaz, Iran, to the faculty of Columbia University, to president of Hunter College -- with stops along the way in government service -- most notably in the financial management of New York City and in HUD during the Carter administration -- she remained loyal to her alma mater. A trustee of the college when Western closed, she fought hard to save it. But she could wax sentimental too. It was Donna who said in an early video produced by the WCAA, "If you haven't been to the Duck Pond to talk to the ducks about a problem, you haven't been to college. Indeed, we carry Western with us the rest of our lives."

Bill Thompson III '84 was one of 16 honored in October by the Ohioana Library Association, a state-funded organization that archives the work of Ohioans and annually recognizes people who have lived or worked in the state for their "cultural contributions." He received the James P. Barry Award for Editorial Excellence. Editor of Bird Watcher's Digest since 1995, Bill has engineered the burgeoning growth of the bimonthly magazine's circulation from 3,000 in 1980 to more than 50,000 today. A skilled birder himself, he has written numerous articles and books, including the best-selling Bird Watching for Dummies. His most recent work, Identify Yourself: Birding's 50 Most Common ID Challenges, illustrated by his wife, artist and author Julie Zickefoose, was published in 2005. Much in demand as an entertainer and trip guide, Bill frequently appears on nature radio shows, at festivals across the country and consults on editorial projects and product development. His Internet blog, "Bill of the Birds," has generated -- in his words -- "a bit of a cult following in the world of birders." He lives with his family on an 80-acre farm outside his home town of Marietta, Ohio.

Bill loved his years at Western, a setting "ideal for a budding birder with Four Mile Creek, the bluffs, and Pfeffer Park so close by," he says. He credits the small core classes with his ability to "think critically," and got his first "real" job (at New York giant ad agency Ogilvy & Mather) because of all the papers he had to write and re-write. Most of all he enjoyed the "sense of community," declaring most of his "favorite people in the world" are friends from Western.