To all who know him, it came as no surprise that the World Affairs Council in Seattle awarded Ezra Teshome, class of 1975, with its 2010 World Citizen Award. His involvement in his native Ethiopia and his efforts in Seattle have impacted thousands of men, women, and children. Although particularly known for his work to eradicate polio in Ethiopia, he helped develop low-income housing, construct a library, create a computer center, and build wells in rural areas. He also was instrumental in building an Ethiopian Church in Seattle. A modest, unassuming man, Ezra is the personification of “Service Above Self,” a motto he has on his business card.  

Ezra grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The oldest of 12 brothers and sisters, he attended the Nativity Boys School run by Jesuits. On a friend’s recommendation, he enrolled in Highline Community College and later transferred to Seattle University. He worked nights at the Sheraton in Renton, took classes during the day, and graduated in 1975 with a degree in political science.

The unrest following the overthrow of Haile Selassie derailed his plans to return immediately to Ethiopia. Encouraged by a chance encounter with a State Farm manager, he embarked on a 30-year career with the insurance company. He now owns his own agency within blocks of Seattle University.

Ezra and his wife Yobi, School of Nursing class of 1986, decided to make Seattle their home. Ezra joined the University District Rotary Club and became a U.S. citizen. By 1982, it was safe to return Ethiopia, but life there had changed.

“People were afraid,” he recalled. “There was so much destruction.  A once abundant nation now had people lining up for bread.”

Back in Seattle, Ezra dedicated himself to bringing his relatives to the United States and working with the local Ethiopian community. He became president of his Rotary club, and when Rotary International held its annual conference in Addis Ababa, he returned to Ethiopia in 1996. A massive influx of refugees into the capital from war-torn Eritrea led to a severe housing shortage, with the aid of eight local Rotarians, Rotary Village was started to provide low-cost housing for families. Today, Rotary Village provides housing for more than 600 men, women, and children.

Another chance encounter, this time with an Ethiopian doctor, led to an ambitious program to eradicate polio in Ethiopia. For 15 years, Rotarians from the United States and Canada have gone door to door in rural areas to encourage the vaccination of children. Thanks in large part to this effort, no new cases of polio have been recorded in Ethiopia for the past two years, If that trend holds for one more year, Ethiopia will have eradicated polio.

During the vaccination campaign, Ezra saw first-hand the need for sanitation facilities in rural Ethiopia where children were walking 3 to 6 hours a day just to get water. He engaged Rotarians in this next effort and, with additional support from World Vision, Ezra was instrumental in developing water and sanitation facilities in more than 40 villages. More are on the way.

Ezra works endlessly to help others, whether he is leading a fundraising campaign to send ambulances to Ethiopia, encouraging Rotarians around the world to improve living conditions in Africa, or helping recent immigrants in Seattle. He serves on the Dean’s Leadership Council, always mindful of the value of his Seattle University education.

 “It’s a blessing to give back,” Ezra said. “”A Jesuit education teaches you not to forget how you got where you are.”

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Recent Alumni Profile: Michael Leigh, ‘07, Deputy U.S. Marshal

He wears a black suit, speaks softly, and carries a gun. Michael Leigh followed in the footsteps of his older brother David (class of 2007) and chose Seattle University for its academics and small classes. He originally planned to become a grade school teacher, and majored in liberal studies. After accompanying his friend Tuseef Chaudhry, '05, to a presentation by the U.S.  Marshals Service, he decided to apply. He added a second major in criminal justice to his academic portfolio. 

“I was always interested in law enforcement along with many other areas of public service,” he said recently.  “I got an internship with the Marshals Service before graduation, and I realized that I couldn’t let the opportunity to be part of such a respected federal agency pass me by.”

When he was accepted into the highly competitive program, he set out for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia. In addition to a rigorous physical program, the curriculum included criminal investigations, constitutional law, national security topics, firearms training, defensive tactics, and arrest techniques.

“You learn how to de-escalate a situation and when it’s appropriate to escalate a situation,” he recalled. “Using sound judgment is essential, and that’s one of the skills I learned at SU.”

Michael honed his interpersonal skills as an undergraduate by participating in service learning projects, holding leadership positions in student government, and facilitating retreats for Campus Ministry. He also worked for the public safety department during which time he helped establish the nighthawk and airport shuttle programs in addition to serving as a liaison with students.

“My volunteer work and my paid work contributed to my ability to work with all kinds of people,” he emphasized. “Being a deputy marshal requires a lot of common sense and the ability to interact and communicate well with people, especially when you need to obtain important information.”

Michael provides protection and investigates threats to the federal judicial process, including those against federal judges, attorneys, court staff, and witnesses. He also investigates and apprehends fugitives, transports federal prisoners, serves court orders and process, and manages assets seized by the federal government. In one of his first assignments, he joined the high-threat security detail for convicted terrorist Ahmed Ressam, known as the Millennium bomber. Ressam, who was apprehended in Port Angeles in December 1999 after trying to enter the United States by car ferry from Victoria, B.C., had planned to bomb the Los Angeles airport. Michael was part of the team that transported Ressam from the federal detention center in the city of SeaTac to the U.S. Courthouse in downtown Seattle for his re-sentencing hearing in 2008. Ressam received a 22-year prison sentence.

Michael’s responsibilities cover a wide geographic area—all of Western Washington from the Canadian border in the north to the Oregon border in the south and from the Cascades to the Pacific Ocean.  After three years in the main office in Seattle, he was appointed Deputy-in-Charge of a satellite office outside of the Seattle area, where he conducts investigations for the Justice Department while taking on more responsibilities. His work often requires cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, ATF, Secret Service, Washington State Patrol, Department of Corrections, county sheriffs, and local police departments.

“My work is challenging, exciting, and very rewarding; sometimes it’s like a roller coaster ride,” he said. “One day I could be forcing entry into a home to execute an arrest warrant and another day simply providing protection in a courtroom.  On top of that, I sometimes have to go out of the state for a case.”

Last year Michael traveled overseas to bring a fugitive who had been on the run for over 15 years back to the United States. He has also joined law enforcement in different parts of the country for short-term special assignments and for advanced trainings.

As his career progresses, Michael is handling more complex cases and assignments.

“The U.S. Marshals Service is a big agency with lots of opportunity,” he noted. “I’m just getting started.”

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Student Profile: Ruby Blum, Chair of the Student Executive Council, Class of 2011 

Ruby Blum, scholarship student, political science major, and Chair of the College’s Student Executive Council, is a strong advocate for Dean David Powers. Speaking before the Dean’s Leadership Council last December, she supported the dean’s priority to raise funds for student research stipends. The Summer Research Fellowship Program would engage students in the high-quality research of Arts and Sciences faculty and provide them with a modest income during the summer.

“So often students have to take summer jobs just to make money, rather than to help them gain insight into their field,” she said. “Summer stipends would provide meaningful experiences beyond the classroom.”

“I was fortunate to take an independent studies course with Professor David Watkins,” she continued. “For ten weeks, you pursue one idea extensively — researching, questioning, and meeting weekly with a faculty mentor.  This type of independent research and writing better represents the type of work I hope to be doing in public policy. Summer research grants would definitely provide a terrific opportunity for students who need to work during the summer and would certainly help with their resumes.”

Blum, who chose Seattle University for its liberal arts program, grew up in Eugene, OR, and was a member of her high school debate team. For the past four years, she has enjoyed the challenges and rewards of coaching the debate team at Holy Names High School, an all-girls school close to the Seattle University campus. In 2010 she accompanied the team to the national debate tournament in Kansas City, MO.

“It’s a natural fit for me on many levels,” she said. “Because debate is so research-heavy, you have to immerse yourself in the literature and look at both sides of the issue, which is perfect for a political science major. Holy Names is similar to Seattle University in its emphasis on social service and community involvement. Of course, it’s also wonderful to watch the girls come together as a team and then compete at the highest level.”

Blum hopes to pursue an internship that combines her interests in public policy and international studies and eventually obtain a doctorate degree.

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Student Profile: Michael Ruiz, ‘11, Student Intern

Michael Ruiz, double major in psychology and philosophy, came to Seattle University with a clear sense of what he wanted to do and how he was going to do it.  By his senior year, he had a long list of awards, scholarships, and leadership posts under his belt. After attending a career fair run by Career Services, he was offered an internship with the Social Security Administration in its Center for Disability. Full-time last summer and part-time during the school year, he primarily prepares statistical reports in the Seattle office, a skill he honed for his psychology major.

“The Psychology Department has a strong emphasis on statistical analysis,” Ruiz said recently. “It’s a rigorous approach, and I found that I loved working with data.”  After taking an advanced statistics class and setting up a data management system as a volunteer at Hilltop House Retirement Community, he was ready and eager to enter the workforce.

“I just felt that I needed to work during my senior year,” he added. “I wanted to be more financially independent and use what I had learned.”

In addition to generating reports and analyzing data for the Center for Disability, he utilizes his statistics skills to assist in fraud investigations for the agency. At the same time, he is learning that time management, working in groups, multi-tasking, and critical thinking are skills he must use every day. He has had lots of practice.

By the start of his senior year, Ruiz had been president of the Psychology Honor Society and president of the video game club. In addition to working part-time and majoring in two academic programs, he is currently a member of the Costco Scholars Student Advisory Board, a member of the Ignatian Leadership Honor Society, and the Psychology Department representative on the College of Arts and Sciences Student Executive Council.

Ruiz came to Seattle University for its small class sizes, Jesuit education, and welcoming environment. He was first exposed to psychology and philosophy in his small Catholic high school in Salem, OR, and when he realized he could major in both, he didn’t hesitate.

“Both psychology and philosophy have to do with the mind, and they both look at incredibly difficult questions,” he said. “With psychology, analysis of empirical data is a key component in research and analysis. With philosophy, critical thinking and making good arguments are essential.  A double major was a natural fit for me, and now with this internship, I’ve been able to use what I’ve learned in both of areas.”

Ruiz plans to continue through the summer at the Social Security Administration and then go to law school.

Analysis of data, argument, and critical thinking – a perfect combination for an up-and-coming lawyer.

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Support Strengthens for Dean’s Priorities

Advancement Director David Chow reports that fundraising in support of the Dean’s priorities has exceeded expectations.  Thanks to our alumni, friends, faculty, and staff, we raised an additional $41,000 compared to this time last year.  This increase is due to our recent work with the Global African Studies Program, spearheaded by Professors Femi Taiwo and Saheed Adejumobi, and our ongoing relationship with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and their support of the The Center for Strategic Communication and Professor Barry Mitzman’s work o family homelessness.  

“Dean Powers has emphasized the importance of student-faculty fellowships, global engagement, and community service,” Chow said. “Because of the overwhelming response from alumni and friends of the college, more students will have opportunities to engage in academic, service, and international learning.”     

The annual fundraising campaign closes on June 30. You can make a gift online today.         

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Winter 2011