Although two University of Wisconsin Oshkosh physical education graduates blazed very different paths since leaving Oshkosh, enriching the lives of those around them was always their top priority.

Jerilyn (Jeri) Jank, of Larkspur, California; and Jim Miazga, of Rhinelander, will both receive the Distinguished Alumni Award as part of Homecoming 2018 activities in October.

Jerilyn (Jeri) Jank

Jank, a 1967 physical education graduate, packed her yellow Ford Mustang convertible the summer after graduation and hit the road for California with two other UWO graduates.

She secured a job teaching science at Roosevelt Junior High in San Francisco in fall 1967, thus beginning her distinguished 41-year career as an educator.

Known as an innovator in the classroom and a mentor to endless student teachers, Jank spent 37 of her 41 years teaching physical education at Lowell High School in San Francisco, including the final 11 as the head of the physical education department.

Along with being a physical education instructor at Lowell, Jank also was an incredibly successful gymnastics coach, leading the Cardinals for 34 years. In that span, Jank and the Cardinals won 19 consecutive All-City Championships, beginning with her first year at the helm in 1974 and seven more titles as competing schools dropped their gymnastic programs.

She also coached the dance team for 11 years (sewing the costumes herself) and softball for two seasons.

By the end of her career, Jank was named a mentor teacher for the San Francisco United School District and an S.F.U.S.D Outstanding High School Physical Education Teacher. She received national board certification, was inducted into the Lowell Prep Hall of Fame, and became the first woman inducted into the San Francisco Prep Hall of Fame.

“My greatest achievement was staying at the same school for so long,” she said. “I was able to build up programs, one year after the other. I think my students benefited from my being there that long. My teaching confidence got strong, and I passed that on to them. I didn’t just take over a program at Lowell. I built it and grew it to make it a great experience for the students. That’s what I am proud of. And all of our champions, we ruled.”

As a coach, Jank taught students more than “a kick-ball-change and a cartwheel, she taught them about leadership, integrity, compassion, creativity and the game of life,” said Angela James Ried, a 1993 graduate of Lowell.

“Ms. Jank opened doors, kicked down doors for women, and always closed doors when we needed to talk,” Ried said. “We did not need a softy or someone to ride us down, we needed a mentor, someone to encourage us to be better and someone to give us the space to grow.”

Jank, a four-year cheerleader and a member of Alpha Phi Sorority while at UWO, suffered a traumatic brain injury in spring 2017. She has used the same determination and fight she once used to keep the gymnastics team alive at Lowell in her recovery.

Jim Miazga

Miazga, a former UWO football student-athlete, graduated in 1974 with a bachelor of science in secondary education/physical education.

He returned to Rhinelander after graduation and began working with his father’s wholesale beer and liquor distribution business, a company he worked at for many summers while growing up.

Using the skills he learned as a student at UWO, Miazga dove head first into learning all aspects of the business and wearing as many hats as possible. By the early 1980s, he began buying parts of the company from his father and finally purchased and became full owner and president of Oneida Sales and Service in the 1990s.

“I am thankful for the great professors at UWO who taught me many of the skills I used as I progressed through my career,” Miazga said. “The foundation that the university gave to me helped me to learn commitment, discipline, how to work hard and how to follow through with the work I had to complete.”

As the company expanded–and covered most of northern Wisconsin–Miazga never forgot about UW Oshkosh or the Titan football program.

He and his wife, Jean, became great advocates as well as generous financial supporters of UW Oshkosh. He has been a major sponsor for the UWO football golf outing for 18 years. He also has supported the UWO Final Four Party, and the Jim Miazga Leadership Scholarship is given out each spring.

Patrick Cerroni, UW Oshkosh head football coach, is thankful for Miazga’s guidance and perspective over the years.

“Jim has been an outstanding supporter of UWO since graduating,” Cerroni said. “He built a great business and always boasts that being a student-athlete at Oshkosh helped him throughout his career. He has become a great friend to me and our program.”

Miazga’s generosity has not been limited to his alma mater. He has long supported his local community, including the Rhinelander School District’s environmental education programs at Treehaven for grade school children and updates to the high school auditorium, a new media center and remodel of the gymnasium.

Aside from his professional and philanthropic success, Miazga is most proud of overcoming a massive stroke when he was 47 years old. He continued to operate and grow Oneida Sales and Service, and he completed the Great American Birkebeiner ski race from Cable to Hayward–three more times for a total of 10.

“My 10-year Great American Birkebeiner plaque sits proudly in my home today. I was so elated to have been able to ski these 55 km races after having suffered many disabilities caused by the stroke.”

The 2018 Alumni Awards Celebration will be held Friday, Oct. 19, at the Alumni Welcome and Conference Center, with a reception at 5 p.m., followed by the dinner and program beginning at 6 p.m. The cost of the event is $30 per person.

For more information, contact UWO’s Alumni Relations Office at (920) 424-3449 or send an email to alumni@uwosh.edu.

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