Three Southwestern College graduates will be inducted into the Natural Science Hall of Fame on Saturday, Nov. 10, at 5 p.m., in Deets Library on the campus of Southwestern College.  

The new members are Angela Mayorga May, Shawnee; Kenneth Renner, Beresford, S.D.; and C. Clifford Conaway (deceased).

The celebration will begin with dinner at 5 p.m. (cost is $25 per person, seating is limited, and RSVPs are necessary) followed immediately by the induction ceremony.  To make reservations, contact Charles McKinzie, director of alumni engagement at Southwestern College, at (620) 222-1135 or email Charles.mckinzie@sckans.edu. 

This hall of fame honors Southwestern College alumni who have made significant contributions in the natural sciences.

“We are always excited to welcome new members into our halls of fame,” says McKinzie.  “It reminds us of how much we have to be proud of and how important it is for us to continue our tradition of excellence for current students. We are privileged to welcome these Moundbuilders into this prestigious hall.”

Inductees include:

• C. Clifford Conaway ’60 was a toxicologist, research scientist, and college professor whose distinguished career continued until a year before his death at age 78 in 2017. Conaway spent seven years as a project toxicologist for Texaco before moving to the American Health Foundation (Institute for Cancer Prevention) in 1986. For 17 years he did cancer research focusing on basic research on mechanisms of carcinogenesis and dietary approaches to cancer chemoprevention. He was author of 41 publications at the institute before it closed in 2004. Conaway was a consultant in environmental toxicology, carcinogenesis, and risk assessment, and was project leader for health risk evaluations on emissions from hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal facilities for the EPA. He concluded his career teaching topics related to toxicology at Pace University and at New York Medical College. 

• Angela Mayorga May ’97 received her M.D. degree from Creighton University and completed residency training in the combined internal medicine/psychiatry program at the University of Kansas. She was recipient of the Shawn Storm Memorial Award, presented to a graduating psychiatry resident who consistently demonstrates excellence in all aspects of patient-centered care. She was selected one of four chief residents in internal medicine, holding a joint appointment in the department of psychiatry. She joined the psychiatry faculty at the University of Kansas Medical Center in 2007 and holds a joint appointment as assistant professor of psychiatry and internal medicine at KU Medical Center. She also functions as residency director of the psychiatry residency program. Her principal duties are educating residents, staffing the outpatient clinic, and working as a psychiatric consultant to the solid organ transplant service.

• Kenneth J. Renner ’76 has spent his career in education and research, mostly focusing on investigating how steroid hormones affect monoaminergic transmission (dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine pathways) to alter the expression of behaviors, in particular female sexual behavior and stress responses. A faculty member at the University of South Dakota from 1994 to the present, his recent studies have examined the potential roles of organic cation transporters in mediating rapid changes in monoamine neurotransmitters in response to the stress hormone corticosterone. This raises the possibility that the corticosterone blockade of organic cation-mediated transport may contribute to rapid actions of stress hormones in the brain and affect behavioral outcomes. Dr. Renner has spent consider time optimizing and applying techniques for analysis of monoamines in his own lab and has generously shared this knowledge with other investigators. Nominated multiple times for excellence in teaching awards, Dr. Renner continues to be active in science education as a volunteer instructor for the South Dakota Governor’s camp (middle school students) and Ambassadors Camp (high school students).