Bloomsburg

WINTER 2018

T H E

U N I V E R S I T Y

Success!

It’s Personal campaign
raises record $62 million. Page 8.
ALSO INSIDE

Keeping the Trust

Marc Steckel brings pragmatic
leadership style to FDIC. Page 14.

Balancing Act

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

Nancy Vasta juggles career, family
and service to BU. Page 18.

BLOOMU.EDU

M A G A Z I N E

Bloomsburg:
The University Magazine

From the President

President Bashar Hanna congratulates
a graduate at December commencement.

AS I SAT DOWN TO WRITE my first letter
for Bloomsburg: The University Magazine, I
reflected on my first seven months as president
of Bloomsburg University and couldn’t believe
how quickly the time has passed. It seems like
only yesterday I was walking into Carver Hall to
meet the staff and begin this incredible journey,
one that started 40 years ago, as a child coming
to the U.S. and not speaking a single word of
English.

In August, I joined the the Orientation Workshop Leaders (OWLS) and many others to
welcome our largest fall freshman class and their parents to campus and the BU family.
That was followed in October by the grand finale of the It’s Personal capital campaign
that will impact our university for decades, while in December I participated in my first
graduation ceremonies as president. In between, I have met many warm and wonderful
people who have made me feel so welcome. I have interacted with alumni, faculty, staff and
students along with leaders of the local community, including government and industry
leaders, and the one common denominator is they all share the same feeling, a love for BU
and a desire to take it to an even higher level.
As you read this issue of our award-winning magazine, you’ll see stories highlighting the
incredible alumni, students, faculty and staff that make BU such a great place and who give
back with their time, talent and treasure. We highlight dedicated people like trustee Nancy
Vasta who gives back to BU in so many ways. Also, read about Marc Steckel who serves on
the BU Alumni Board and Foundation Board and returns to campus regularly to work with
students through Professional U, and about two students, Bethany Noll and Derek Berger.
Bethany, a doctoral candidate, has already made an impact with her work bringing the
gift of hearing to children around the world, while Derek has landed a job with the NSA
months before his graduation.
I am honored to be part of the BU family. We have so much to build upon and so much
yet to accomplish. Over the coming months, I will continue to meet and talk with as many
individuals as is possible. Together we will be stronger in our pursuit of excellence. Until
then, GO HUSKIES!

FEATURES

it personal
08 Making
Celebrating an ambitious capital campaign.

It’s Personal far exceeded anyone’s
expectations, but more importantly has shaped
the BU student experience for years to come.

PHOTO: BRETT SIMPSON

p. 08
Winter 2018

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA IS A MEMBER
OF THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Cynthia D. Shapira
David M. Maser
Harold C. Shields
Sen. Ryan P. Aument
Rep. Matthew E. Baker
Audrey F. Bronson
Sarah Galbally
Rep. Michael K. Hanna
Shaina Marie Hilsey
Donald E. Houser Jr.
Barbara McIlvaine Smith
Marian D. Moskowitz
Thomas S. Muller
Secretary, Pedro A. Rivera
Sen. Judith L. Schwank
Samuel H. Smith
Brian Swatt
Neil R. Weaver
Governor Tom Wolf

ON THE WEB

Bloomsburg University
Council of Trustees
Patrick Wilson ’91, Chair
Judge Mary Jane Bowes, Vice Chair
Nancy Vasta ’97/’98M, Secretary
Ramona H. Alley
Robert Dampman Ph.D. ’65
Edward G. Edwards ’73
Brian D. O’Donnell O.D.’87M
Charles E. Schlegel Jr. ’60
John Thomas
Secretary John E. Wetzel ’98

President, Bloomsburg University
Bashar W. Hanna
Co-Editors
Eric Foster
Tom McGuire
Designer
William Wiist
Interim Sports Information Director
Dave Leisering

COVER PHOTO: Brett Simpson

Keeping the Trust

18

Balancing Act

Marc Steckel ’93 makes a big impact at the
FDIC and gives his time and talent back to
Bloomsburg students.
Trustee Nancy Vasta ’97/’99M juggles a family
and a fast-paced career, but enjoys coming
back to her alma mater where she has led
initiatives to benefit others.

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine is published three times a year for
alumni, students’ families and friends of the university. Bonus content and
back issues may be found at bloomu.edu/magazine.

Marketing/Communications
Coordinator
Irene Johnson

Address comments and questions to:
Bloomsburg: The University Magazine
Waller Administration Building
400 East Second Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301

Communications Assistants
Maggie Farrer '18
Megan Hawbecker ’18
Hannah Miller ’18

www.BLOOMU.EDU

14

Briheem Adger overcame many obstacles
to obtain his BU degree. An emergency
scholarship fund helped him clear his final
hurdle.

03 Around the Quad
06 Focus on Students
22 Focus on Faculty
24 Husky Notes
32 On the Hill
34 Over the Shoulder
36 Calendar of Events

Tabl e o f Con ten ts
Interim Chancellor, State Systemof
Higher Education
Karen M. Whitney

The Power of a Second Chance

Departments

Boenell Kline ’17 shared her story at the It’s Personal campaign finale in October.

Pennsylvania State System
of Higher Education Board
of Governors

12

Email address: magazine@bloomu.edu
Visit Bloomsburg University on the Web at bloomu.edu.

HUSKY NOTES
SPORTS UPDATES
ALUMNI INFO, MORE
TM

Bloomsburg University is an AA/EEO institution and is accessible to
disabled persons. Bloomsburg University does not discriminate on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age,
national origin, ancestry, disability, or veteran status in its programs
and activities as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of
1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and
other applicable statutes and University policies.
© Bloomsburg University 2018

WINTER 2018

1

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

unleash your inner husky

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

BU GOSPEL CHOIR members Filomena Alves, Iris Chase and Rianna Daughtry
sing at BU’s Fall Gospel-Rama held in Carver Hall in November. The choir will
schedule another concert in spring semester.

2

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

around THE quad

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

From left: John Huckans,
associate professor of physics,
students Rachel Yenney
and Zhipeng Li, and physics
professor Ju Xin in BU’s
UltraCold Laboratory.

Exploring quantum physics
in Paris and at BU
TO THE NON-PHYSICIST, the laboratory at Université Paris 13 in
Paris would be right at home in a science fiction film. The worktable
is overwhelmed by machined metal, tubes, wires, and lasers
beaming through prisms and lenses.
But for Rachel Yenney, a December physics graduate from
Collegeville, it was familiar setup. Bloomsburg has been building a
similar apparatus in a project directed by physics professors John
Huckans and Ju Xin.
The science underlying the laboratories at BU and Paris is
staggeringly complex. An apparatus consisting of custom machined
aluminum chambers, lasers tuned to specific wavelengths,
powerful magnets and liquid nitrogen cooling lines are the physical
manifestation of that complexity. When all parts of the apparatus
work in concert, investigators can observe how microscopic
particles behave.

Huckans says that about 40 students have been involved in the
project over six years, gaining hands-on experience in several areas
of physics, including optics, electronics, mechanics, and quantum
mechanics.
“The opportunity as an undergraduate to work with an apparatus
that is normally found only at Research 1 institutions, tended by
teams of graduate students and postdocs, is extremely rare,” says
Huckans.
“BU helped prepare me for this experience in many different
ways. The diversity on campus and in my classes taught me to
appreciate and understand many different cultures,” says Yenney,
who plans on pursuing a graduate degree in civil engineering. “Most
importantly, my work with professor Huckans prepared me so well
for the work I was doing at Université Paris 13.”l

WINTER 2018

3

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

around THE quad

Dancing to make a difference

THE BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY Dance Ensemble held its first dance marathon in November. The afternoon-long
event raised $5,378 for the Children’s Miracle Network at Geisinger to benefit the Janet Weis Children’s Hospital.

Professors awarded National Geographic Society grant
TWO BU PROFESSORS were awarded
a National Geographic Society grant to
continue their investigation of water
management practices at the Classic
Maya (250-900 CE) city of El Perú-Waka’
in Petén, Guatemala.
Matthew Ricker, assistant professor
of environmental, geographical and
geological sciences, and Damien Marken,
instructor of anthropology, received
a $25,300 grant for their research
“Living with water: Classic Maya pond
management at El Perú-Waka’.”
They are investigating how Classic
Maya peoples created and cultivated
water resources in their tropical
environment. They are using archaeology
and soil science to understand how
the ancient Maya managed surface
water systems. They will be part of the
international multi-institutional Waka'
Archaeological Project (PAW), which
has been investigating this capital of

4

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Classic Maya civilization since 2003
with permission from the Guatemalan
government’s Institution of History and
Anthropology.
The Bloomsburg team's research is
based on the idea that the Maya living
in El Perú-Waka’ needed to construct
landscapes specifically to capture and
distribute water due to the scarcity of
potable rivers or lakes in that area, which
are not adequate for the high settlement
density of 6,000 people living within
less than a square kilometer. Their
research also suggests that the Classic
Maya not only collected rainwater to
drink but created “living ponds” where
contaminants were filtered by plant and
animal life.
Accompanied by Bloomsburg students,
this will be Ricker’s third year at the site,
and the 13th year for Marken, who is also
a PAW co-director.

Ricker

Marken

Playground pops up on campus

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

COMMUNITY CHILDREN and parents took over the Student
Recreation Center in November at BU’s Pop-Up Adventure Playground.
The free event featured repurposed materials such as recyclable items,
household wares, and natural materials. The event was organized by
Michael Patte, professor of teaching and learning, and a leading expert
on “playwork,” the theory and practice of maintaining spaces for
children to play in a way that is freely chosen, directed and intrinsically
motivated by the children. Bloomsburg University recently instituted a
minor in playwork, the first of its kind in the U.S. Shown at the event are
Seol Go and her son Shane Oh.

BU business honor
society recognized
THE CAMPUS CHAPTER of Beta
Gamma Sigma, the business honor
society, has earned highest honors
from its national organization. The
highest honors distinction allows the
BU chapter to submit nominations
for multiple society-wide awards
and gives one free registration to
a BU member to attend the Global
Leadership Summit.

BU Magazine honored

New certificate in
game design

THE 2017 ISSUES OF Bloomsburg,
The University Magazine, won the
Gold Award in the 2017 Marcom
Awards, administered and judged
by the Association of Marketing and
Communication Professionals. Over the
past decade, BU publications have won
seven gold and three platinum Marcom
Awards. Approximately 15 percent of
entries won platinum awards and 20
percent of entries gold awards.

BU IS OFFERING a new five-course,
15-credit graduate Instructional Game
Design certificate. The certificate
provides students with specialized
knowledge to develop interactive learning
games or add "gamification" to existing
instructional content. The certificate is
for individuals who already have some
experience in the field of instructional
technology but seek a specialized track of
courses focusing on instructional game
design and development.

Trustees approve out-of-state tuition scholarship
THE COUNCIL OF TRUSTEES has
approved a new "Good Neighbor"
program that will invest more than $1.7
million over four years in a renewable
out-of-state tuition scholarship program.
The investment is projected to increase
enrollment by yielding almost 80

additional high-quality out-of-state
students annually.
The Trustees were responding to a
plan that seeks to develop an out-ofstate enrollment plan that provides for
student access while ensuring student
quality. It is similar to the successful

scholarship program for Pennsylvania
residents established last academic
year known as the Academic Success
scholarship. That program awards 60
renewal scholarships to high academic
achieving in-state students.

WINTER 2018

5

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

PHOTO: JAIME NORTH

Focus ON Students

Digital forensics major lands NSA job
DEREK BERGER KNEW as early as
ninth grade that a future in digital
forensics was possible. Today, that
future isn’t just possible — it’s
happening.
Berger, a senior digital forensics
major, is BU's first Department of
Defense Information Assurance
scholar, a program which will
land him a full-time job when he
graduates this spring.
This opportunity — sponsored by
the DoD and executed by the NSA
— was made possible through BU’s
recent designation as a National
Center of Academic Excellence
(CAE) in Cyber Defense Education.
"This scholarship opportunity
came from the hard work and
dedication my professor, Diane

6

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Barrett, has towards the (digital
forensics) students,” says Berger.
To receive the CAE designation,
the digital forensics program had
to meet stringent criteria regarding
curriculum, faculty and research,
and BU had to show a commitment
to information assurance practices
and education.
Jointly sponsored by the NSA
and the Department of Homeland
Security, CAE programs reduce
vulnerability in the national
information infrastructure by
promoting higher education and
research in information assurance
by producing a growing number
of professionals with information
assurance expertise in various
disciplines.

“Starting from no knowledge
of digital forensics, I’ve grown
immensely in the field in four short
years,” Berger says. “This program
is designed exceptionally well in
getting you on your feet and starting
from the basics of computers and
forensics.”
Since coming to Bloomsburg,
Berger chose to also major in Arabic
to become a better candidate for
a government agency. “Arabic
has made me open my eyes to the
world around us culturally and
linguistically,” says Berger. “Without
this study, I believe it would have
lowered the chances of me receiving
a federal job.” l
– Hannah Miller ’18,
Communications Assistant

The gift
of hearing
BETHANY NOLL, a third-year
student in the clinical doctorate
of audiology program, has put her
knowledge and training to good use
in helping Third World countries.
First fitted with hearing aids when
she was 4, Noll understands what
it’s like to be a child who wears
hearing aids. “It helps me interact
with patients. I have a personal
perspective related to them,” she
says.
Noll began her charitable work
two years ago in Haiti and has made
several trips to Guatemala and
Zambia. “I became involved with
Entheos Audiology Cooperative
through my boss at A&E Audiology,”
Noll said. “I began working for her in
2012. She invited me to go with her
in 2015 to Haiti. Since that first trip, I
have been hooked.”
“This trip captured my heart,”
Noll said. “I saw some of the most
impoverished areas in Haiti. I fit a
middle-aged woman with hearing
aids in both ears. She told us she

believes she lost her hearing during
the earthquake that struck Haiti in
2010.”
In Haiti Noll also fit her first child
with hearing aids. “He had profound
hearing loss. When we fit him with
bilateral hearing aids a smile lit
up his face. He rushed over to his
friends to show off his new hearing
aids.”
Later that year, she continued her
service in Zambia. There she fitted
hearing aids for a 4-year-old girl,
Sylvia, whose family was having
trouble paying for her schooling.
Noll made it her mission to help find
a solution, traveled to the school
and met the founder. He agreed to
sponsor Sylvia to go to his school and
receive a proper education.
On a 2017 trip to Panajachel,
Guatemala, Noll met a 16-year-old
girl, Esmerelda, who she had fitted
with hearing aids the previous year.
“The hearing aids had helped her
tremendously, but her ear molds
were deteriorating,” says Noll. “She

told us how she was planning to go
to school to become a teacher the
following year. We wanted to fit her
with new hearing aids that are a
receiver in the ear style so it does not
require an ear mold. We didn't have
hearing aids that were suitable for
her hearing loss.”
In that moment, Noll and her boss
decided to take Noll’s hearing aids
off her ears to reprogram them for
Esmerelda. “My hearing aids at that
time were considered one of the
top-of-the-line hearing aids in the
United States, and we gave them to
Esmerelda,” says Noll.
Noll said she hopes to travel to
Zambia or India this year. “I’m
looking to help at the nonprofit
audiology clinic that my boss has
started in Lancaster County while
I’m still in graduate school,” Noll
said. l
– Megan Hawbecker ’18,
Communications Assistant

WINTER 2018

7

Making it
Personal

It’s Personal Campaign
transforms the university
By Jaime North and Thomas Schaeffer

8

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHOTOS: BRETT SIMPSON

BU president Bashar Hanna thanks former BU
president David Soltz for his campaign leadership.

One person can make a difference. And when it
becomes personal, it leads to a big difference.
A difference of more than 2,800 students
having new scholarships. A difference
of nearly 11,000 students having career
development opportunities to help them
land that first job. A difference of nearly
20,000 donors and volunteers having a new
sense of engagement and school pride.
An unprecedented transformation.
This fall, Bloomsburg University
celebrated the conclusion of its most
successful capital campaign ever, It’s
Personal. The seven-year campaign raised
more than $62 million for new scholarships,
new faculty professorships and fellowships,
and new learning opportunities for each
student to receive career experience every
year until graduation.
“When the Council of Trustees selected
me to serve as president of Bloomsburg in
2008, they assigned me the task and priority
of putting the infrastructure in place that
would allow us to begin building a culture
of philanthropy,” says former BU President
David Soltz.
The assignment couldn’t have been
timelier. A shift in demographics in the state
and a sharp drop in the number of college-

aged students meant that the competition
to attract new students would soon increase
immensely. After extensive research and
planning, in 2010 Soltz, in collaboration
with Council of Trustees, university
administrators and the Bloomsburg
University Foundation Board, launched It’s
Personal: The Campaign for Bloomsburg
University.

•••

But the campaign was always about more
than money. It was about people.
“This campaign was our opportunity to
engage alumni and friends and ask them to
be more than just donors,” says Erik Evans,
vice president for university advancement.
“Our goal was to create a philanthropic
culture where they would be valued as
partners who would invest in our students
and faculty and contribute to the continued
growth and success of the university.”
“It’s Personal grew very quickly and
organically into much more than a campaign
name or slogan,” Evans adds. “By connecting
our supporters with their own passions at
Bloomsburg, we created exactly the types of
partnerships we were hoping for.
CONTINUES ON NEXT PAGE
WINTER 2018

9

That inspired donors to make gifts
that were not only strategic to our
continued success, but that were also
personally meaningful to them.”
At the time of the public campaign
launch on Oct. 16, 2015, contributions
already received from more than
14,800 donors had raised nearly $37
million.
The It’s Personal theme served
as both a framework for the stories
that inspired alumni and friends to
give back, and a guiding principle to
focus the campaign on four specific
areas — academic and athletic
scholarships; recruitment, support
and retention of outstanding faculty;
professional experiences for students;
and emerging opportunities for the
university.

•••

By early November 2016, the
university had already exceeded its
initial goal by more than $10 million.
This success led to the campaign
officially closing six months earlier
than anticipated to coincide with
Soltz’s retirement in June 2016.
On Oct. 6, 2017, the BU community
of donors, alumni, faculty and staff
celebrated the milestone and the
impact it will have on the future
of the university. The evening
culminated with a fireworks display
that served as both a celebration
of the campaign’s success and the
kickoff to the weekend’s Homecoming
festivities.
“Seven years ago, when Dr. Soltz
and Bloomsburg University began
to build their vision for what they
thought this effort could accomplish,
these were the results we were
hoping for,” says Duane Greenly,

chair of the It’s Personal campaign.
“I always had faith that we would
reach our goal, but it is hard for me
to express how proud I am to be a
part of the Bloomsburg University
community and to see how we have
come together to turn this dream into
a reality.”
For BU President Bashar W.
Hanna, the success of the campaign
represents an opportunity to build on
a solid foundation.
“The success of the campaign is
an extraordinary milestone, but we
won’t stop here,” says Hanna. “These
are challenging times in higher
education, but Bloomsburg is well
positioned to meet those challenges.
I look forward to taking the next
steps together with the Bloomsburg
University community as we build on
the positive momentum and energy
created with this campaign.” l

From left: BU president Bashar Hanna, campaign cabinet members Steph Pettit, Mike Boguski, Pat Mica, chair Duane Greenly, Terry Zeigler, Ed Breiner, Nick
Giuffre and former BU president David Soltz. Not shown are cabinet members Barbara Hudock, Drew Hostetter, Susan McDowell and the late Joseph Mowad.
10

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHOTOS: BRETT SIMPSON

The celebratory evening featured performances by the Huskies Marching Band and Concert Choir. Choir
members and campaign chair, Duane Greenly, announced the final campaign total by holding up numbers.

Impact By The Numbers
$62,075,064
raised over seven years.

17,860

individual donors
have made a total of

71,929

11

New Professional
Experience Grants

gifts through the
It’s Personal campaign.

in support of Professional U,
providing every student with one
professional experience each year
until graduation.

9

3

New Endowed
Professorships and
Fellowships

supporting recruitment,
retention and recognition of
outstanding faculty devoted to
student success.

3

1

• Danny Hale Field
• The Burt Reese Tennis Center
• Steph Pettit Stadium

New Academic and
Athletic Scholarships
totaling more than

$26 million
A total of

439

scholarships now support the
commitment to admit students
from all backgrounds based on
academic ability, not ability to pay.

2

New Institutes

• Zeigler Institute for Professional
Development
• McDowell Institute for Teacher
Excellence in Positive Behavior
Support
• Confer Radio Talent Institute

New Named
Athletic Facilities

137

New Location in the Community
The Greenly Center, home to
the Bloomsburg University
Foundation in downtown
Bloomsburg

New Centers
for Experiential Learning

• Giuffre Center for Supply Chain
Management
• Benner-Hudock Center for
Financial Analysis

and...
1

Newly Named College:

Zeigler College of Business

Read and see more stories about the impact of the
It’s Personal campaign at itspersonal.bloomu.edu.
WINTER 2018

11

The Power
of a

Second
Chance

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

By Thomas Schaeffer

IN THE FALL OF 2016, Briheem Adger
got the news every future graduate
wants to hear. Just one semester shy of
graduation, he had already been offered a
full-time position at Enterprise Rent-ACar based on his excellent performance as
an intern.
And then he got bad news. The salary
from his internship wasn’t enough for
him to pay for spring semester. His
financial aid had run out and he couldn’t
borrow additional funds. His job offer was
contingent upon graduating.
Five years earlier, this story might have
ended there, another instance of a degree
almost completed and a young person’s
career path derailed. But this story
doesn’t follow that path. Adger’s fellow
students in the Community Government
Association had established the It’s
Personal Emergency Scholarship Fund in
2016 for this type of situation.
Adger applied for an Emergency
Scholarship and he, like 54 other students,
received the support he needed. He was
able to finish his career at BU and begin
his new career at Enterprise.
“I almost gave up. I was so frustrated. I
needed something to go right and it did.”

12

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Adger says. “I felt like every time I took
two steps forward to better myself, I kept
getting pushed back. But I kept working
hard and thanks to people who gave of
themselves to help someone they didn’t
know, I made it to the finish line.”
Adger had already overcome a host of
obstacles on his road to a degree. As a high

Thanks to people who
gave of themselves to help
someone they didn’t know,
I made it to the finish line.
– Briheem Adger
school student in Downingtown, he sat
in his living room with his mother during
a visit from a guidance counselor, who
advised that he shouldn’t pursue college
because he “probably wouldn’t do well”
because of his scores on an aptitude test.
Adger was a good student, so the advice
surprised him and shook his confidence.
But he didn’t let this deter him from his
goal of becoming the first member of

his family to graduate from college. His
father, a longtime custodian in the West
Chester School District, and his mother,
a data entry clerk for the Chester County
Health Department, always stressed the
importance of education to their son.
“I knew I wanted to go to college, and
I did well in high school,” Adger says.
“My dad was always telling me that
education was the most important thing,
and stressing that he wanted me to take
advantage of my opportunities to make a
better life for myself.”
Positive feedback from friends and
a visit to campus steered Adger to BU,
and he enrolled as a summer freshman
in the ACT 101 program in 2011. But the
next two years were rocky — a strong
semester followed by a weak semester.
A failed introductory writing class in his
sophomore year pushed his GPA below
a 2.0. He wouldn’t be able to return to
Bloomsburg for his junior year.
“When I got that letter saying I couldn’t
come back, it was like I was sitting in
my living room all over again, listening
to them tell my mom that I ‘probably
wouldn’t do well in college,’” says
Adger. “So I said ‘no, I am going back to
Bloomsburg, that’s where I started and

that’s where I’m going to finish.’ I was not
going to let that man define my story.”
With a renewed sense of purpose, he
enrolled at Luzerne County Community
College and improved his GPA to return to
Bloomsburg.
“I received a call, and they told me that
I was accepted back to Bloomsburg, but
I would have to take the writing course
again,” Adger says. “I thought I would
never escape that class, but they set me
up with an academic coach, Dr. Robert
Wislock, who helped me immensely, and I
completed the course.”
This time around, Adger was determined
to take full advantage of all the resources
available to him. He engaged with Toni
Barrile, Assistant Director of TRiO Student
Support Services, and pushed himself to
become the student he knew he could be.
“Briheem came to TRiO Student Support
Services on a weekly basis,” says Barrile.
“We mapped out his goals and his classes
he needed to take for each of his remaining
semesters and what grades he wanted to
achieve in each of his classes.”
With his newfound focus and his
commitment to doing everything he could
to succeed, Adger set a goal of reaching a
3.0 GPA to get back to the academic level
he had achieved in high school. “I never
did reach that goal, but it kept me hungry,”
says Adger. “I kept pushing myself to reach
it, and I knew that I was never going to get
there by sitting on the couch playing video
games or hanging out with my friends.”
Barrile went on to work with Adger,
tutoring him and offering help in areas
where she knew just a quick push would
get him over the hump. “He was the kind of
student that you couldn’t help but root for,”
Barrile adds. “He was committed to doing
his best, so you always wanted to do what
you could to help him.
“I will be forever grateful to Bloomsburg
University for not giving up on me,” says
Adger, “and for giving me a second chance,
thanks to the support from the Trio
Upward Bound office and the scholarship I
received.” l
Thomas Schaeffer is communications
coordinator for the BU Foundation.

Digging for
Experience
WHEN ISABEL MISKE ’17 found
herself as the only American in a group
of 10 students preparing to sleep on
the floor of an underground museum
in Italy, she wasn’t sure what she had
gotten herself into, but she knew she
was up to the challenge.
An anthropology major from
Pottsville, Miske was at the beginning
of the biggest adventure of her life — an
archaeological field school in Abruzzo,
Italy. It was a trip she had dreamed of,
but never thought would happen.
After completing an internship in
her junior year at The Hershey Story
museum. Miske was convinced that she
wanted to work in the field of museum
study. She met with her adviser,
anthropology professor Deanne Wymer,
and asked about the next step toward
achieving her goal.
“I was glad she was excited about
this potential career, but I told her this
was a very competitive field and if she
were really serious about it, she would
have to get out of the classroom and get
some hands-on experience that goes
beyond the course work.” Wymer says.
“The beautiful thing about Isabel was,
once I told her about the opportunities
available to her, she took the initiative.”
Miske worked with Wymer to
complete her application and was
accepted to the field school, but now
she faced another dilemma — she had

no way to pay for the trip. Miske also
applied for a Professional Experience
Grant (PEG), provided by donors
through Bloomsburg’s Professional
U initiative that helps students
supplement the costs of real-world
experiential learning opportunities.
Thanks to funding from the PEG,
Miske was able to attend the field
school in the summer of 2017, with the
cost of her flight and most of the tuition
covered.
Over four weeks, she and nine
other students from Ireland, Canada,
Bulgaria, Argentina, Australia, and
Italy lived, slept, worked and learned
together in two large rooms of a
museum in the remote countryside of
Italy.
The field school was split between
two dig sites where Miske and her
counterparts unearthed prehistoric and
ancient Roman artifacts. They awoke
each day at 5 a.m. and worked in the
blazing sun in the morning, while the
afternoon was spent hearing lectures
from University of Pisa professors or
cleaning the artifacts they discovered.
“I had no idea how much work goes
into digging and moving the rocks
and dirt with pick axes and shovels
to get to the artifacts,” says Miske. “It
was empowering to leave the country
knowing what I’m capable of achieving
if I work hard enough.” l

WINTER 2018

13

PHOTO: GORDON WENZEL/IMPRESSIONS

Marc Steckel, vice president of the BU Alumni Association, talks
with students at a luncheon sponsored by the Alumni Association.

14

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Keeping the Trust
Marc Steckel brings a pragmatic leadership style to the FDIC
and shares his experience with BU students
By KELLEY FREUND
GROWING UP in Slatington, a town of
5,000 in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley,
Marc Steckel ’93 recalls being a bit
wild and giving his parents ulcers.
Two decades later as a leader at
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
(FDIC), Steckel helped protect
residents of small towns like Slatington
from financial ruin as the Great
Recession of 2007-2009 tore through
communities.
“As long as deposits are under the
insurance limit, a person is guaranteed
their money if a bank fails. $250,000
is a lot to most people,” says Steckel.
“And when you give them that
satisfaction that they’re going to get
their money, it’s great to be able to do
that for people.”
The scope of the 18-month crisis
was vast, large enough to strain the
resources of even the FDIC. The
pragmatic problem-solving skills of
Steckel — described by a colleague
as the antithesis of an ivory-tower
bureaucrat — played a role as the FDIC
worked to ensure that the needed
financial resources were in place by
working with banks and having them
prepay their insurance to pay current
losses while avoiding the use of
taxpayer funding.
Credit his blue-collar upbringing.
Credit his experience at Bloomsburg
University. Either way, Steckel has
worked his way up the FDIC ladder
over the course of 24 years, and kept
his alma mater in his heart.
Steckel chose Bloomsburg because
the campus was far enough from home,

but close enough that he didn’t have
to get on an airplane. It was a good fit
for his family financially as well. BU
offered him a Mitrani Scholarship,
which allowed Steckel to get through
college without needing a student loan.
“But there was also a performance
component,” says Steckel, who was in
the Scholars Program (now Honors
Program) and was a Tau Kappa
Epsilon brother. “I was effectively
guaranteed the money the following
year if I maintained a 3.5 GPA in the
current year. It kept me focused.”
He had worked for a year to save up
money before coming to Bloomsburg,
so when he arrived, Steckel adopted a
workday view of school. “School to me
was 9 to 5,” he says. “During the day I
was typically in the library if I wasn’t
in class.”
Steckel’s courses taught him critical
thinking skills, including a 400-level
finance class that he remembers as
a special challenge. “The professor
would randomly pick a student, and
that student was on stage for the whole
class. You didn’t know if it was going to
be you, so you had to come prepared.
The pressure of not knowing what the
questions were going to be, to have a
deep understanding of what you were
talking about, and having to defend
yourself in front of someone who’s a
smart questioner, it was a worthwhile
experience. It was probably the closest
thing to what real life in the workplace
is like.”
Those skills prepared him well for
his career. In the fall of Steckel’s senior
year, the FDIC came to recruit on
CONTINUES ON NEXT PAGE
WINTER 2018

15

As an adult, I’ve come to
understand the mandate of
BU and how transformative
it can be.

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

– Marc Steckel

Marc Steckel talks with students in BU’s Honors
Program. Steckel joined the students on a trip
to Poland in December.

campus — he joined the organization
in June 1993 as a bank examiner in
Harrisburg, traveling to banks across
central Pennsylvania. Since then he
has worked his way up, serving in
different roles for the FDIC across
the country and gaining a broad
understanding of the organization.
Throughout the financial crisis, the
FDIC resolved over 500 failed banks
(in contrast to just seven from 2003 to
2006), and while these were typically
smaller, community banks, there was
a need to address issues related to
large institutions as well. In 2011, a
new group was established to focus
on that, with Steckel at the helm as
deputy director of complex financial
institutions in Washington, D.C.
“In my job, I deal with fascinating
public policy issues. I absolutely love
it,” Steckel says. “And I like the FDIC’s
mission. Regular working people can
put their life savings in a bank and not

16

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

have to worry if they’re going to get
their money back.”
Sean Cassidy ’87, a colleague at
the FDIC, says Steckel is seen as an
inspiring leader. “In addition to taking
on the new responsibilities, he went
on a road show to ensure others in
the division understood the mission
of this new branch, including the
challenges ahead,” Cassidy says.
“Marc is well respected, values
relationships and connects well
with people at all levels of the
corporation.”
Much of Steckel’s success
comes from his ability as a great
communicator. Not only is he very
personable, Cassidy says, but he also
has a talent for explaining complex
topics to ensure everyone, whether
they are executives, managers or
staff, has a clear understanding of the
content.
Once established with a successful

career, Steckel said he and his wife,
Diane, were in a place financially
where they could start being
charitable. They began to donate
to some organizations, but felt
something was missing.
“It felt like we weren’t having the
best impact,” Steckel says. “People
come and ask you for $100 or $500.
You write the check, and then you’re
not quite sure what happens with
it. You can do that all day long, and
maybe you give away a good bit of
money, but we weren’t sure what the
lasting impact of any of it was.”
They became more strategic with
their donations. Since the Mitrani
Scholarship had played a pivotal role
in his career, Steckel wanted to repay
that kindness.
“As an adult, I’ve come to
understand the mandate of BU and
how transformative it can be. If I had
not gone to Bloom, and not gotten

PHOTO: BRETT SIMPSON

Diane and Marc Steckel with their
scholarship recipient Clarissa Hoke ’17.

the financial assistance, I might have
ended up in another career, maybe a
less-impactful one,” says Steckel. “I
realize how important BU was for me
and I want that for the students now.”
The Steckels began directing
money to scholarships for students
in the Honors Program. And that was
the beginning. Steckel went from
coming back to campus periodically
for a homecoming to becoming a key
member of BU’s alumni community.
He has been an active alumni
network leader for the Washington,
D.C. region, hosting Bloomsburg
students for internships and for a
Husky Career road trip to the FDIC.
Now serving as vice president of
the Bloomsburg University Alumni
Association, he also comes to campus
to work with students through the
school’s Professional U initiative.
“That was a catalyst for getting to
know a lot more people,” says Steckel.
“It was fun to be able to connect back
to the university as an adult. There
are lots of interesting things to learn,
getting to know the organization,
learning the reasons behind the
decisions that are made — as a student
I didn’t have a window on this side of
the university.”
Steckel received the William T.
Derricott ’66 Volunteer of the Year
Award last April in recognition for his

volunteer activities in 2016. “I was
actually a little embarrassed,” he says.
“I’m not doing it for the recognition —
I’m doing it because the interactions
are rewarding. I enjoy being able to
help students.”
One of the key themes Steckel
stresses when he speaks with students
is recognizing that success comes
from both situational awareness —
recognizing the problems that need
to be solved — and self-awareness —
what you can bring to the situation to
help solve it. “You can be a leader or
you can be a boss. If you want to lead
people somewhere, it’s an act of faith.
There must be a sense of trust that
you’re taking them somewhere they
want to go,” he says.
“I’ve never had a bad reception
from students,” says Steckel. “Every
time I speak with students they are so
grateful, they’re engaging, and they
ask great questions. To say, ‘Hey, I was
just like you a few years ago …’ I think
a lot of students connect to that, and
they seek advice.”
Steckel says a common theme
throughout all his volunteer activities
is that he never knew there was a
need for alumni to give time to the
university. But he now recognizes
how essential alumni are to the
Bloomsburg experience for students.
“I think it’s important for alumni

like Marc to give back to the
university so that students can learn
from their experiences and expertise,”
says Barbara Romano, president of
the BU Alumni Association. “If we
can bridge the gap for one student
and make them feel more comfortable
as they begin their journey after
Bloomsburg, then I consider that a
success.”
Many Bloomsburg students come
from working-class roots, like Steckel,
and he says it’s one of the unique
things about his alma mater.
“There’s a pragmatism that comes
with that, the recognition that
this is not esoteric stuff that we’re
working on, that things need to get
done,” he says. It’s the same attitude
that his parents instilled in him,
the same concept his Bloomsburg
experience reinforced, and it’s how
he tries to lead his team at the FDIC.
Asking questions, getting things
accomplished. No B.S.
“I don’t know what the opposite
of wonkish-ness is,” Steckel jokes,
“but Bloomsburg graduates tend to
not be wonks. We try to understand
something, then figure out what to
do. But then actually being able to get
things done is key.” l
Kelley Freund is a freelance writer
based in Virginia.

WINTER 2018

17

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

Balancing act
By WILLIE COLÓN

Nancy Vasta juggles family, career, and giving back to Bloomsburg
NANCY VASTA LEADS the busy, fastpaced life of a highly successful corporate
executive. But inside beats a small-town
heart, and it’s Bloomsburg that gave it a
pulse.
“When I think about Bloomsburg
University, I think about the camaraderie
and the balance of academics, having fun,
and being in a relaxing environment,”
says Vasta, ’97/’99M , vice president of
Consumer Health Engagement at Cigna.
“To this day I love small towns because
of the experience I had at Bloomsburg
University.

18

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

“I’ve always lived close to Philadelphia,
and sometimes you don’t realize the pace
and stress when you’re in it,” she adds. “To
be able to extract yourself from that and be
in a place that’s so conducive to focusing —
I long for that.”
Vasta seems to have learned her smalltown, life-balancing lessons well. In
addition to juggling family and career, this
magna cum laude graduate shares her time
and talents generously with the university
that she says prepared her well for the
demands of the corporate world.
She has recruited Bloomsburg grads for

Cigna and enthusiastically participated
in a variety of fundraising efforts. She
also has served on the Zeigler College of
Business Advisory Board and, since 2009,
Bloomsburg’s Council of Trustees.
“Bloomsburg has given me so much,”
Vasta says, “that I feel honored to have the
opportunity to give back.”

•••

“Fresh off the boat” is how Vasta
laughingly refers to her Sicilian-born
parents. Growing up in Bucks County,
family and community were of prime

Nancy Vasta at a meeting of the Council of Trustees, above, and with
her husband Mike Reynolds '99 and son Jack before a commencement
ceremony.

importance. Education also was highly
valued, and like many Bloomsburg alumni,
Vasta was the first in her family to graduate
from college — at least, in the U.S.
“For my generation, there was a sense of
pride in going to college,” she says.
Vasta transferred to Bloomsburg after
two years at the University of Pittsburgh. It
was a decision spurred by several reasons,
including romance.
“My boyfriend at the time — now my
husband, Mike Reynolds ’99 — was also
at Bloomsburg. So that had something
to do with it,” Vasta says. She adds
that Bloomsburg roots run deep in her
husband’s family: Mike’s great-greatgrandmother graduated from Bloomsburg,
as did both of his parents, Pete ’70 and
Mary ’70, and his sister, Caroline ’06.
Vasta had also decided she wanted to
teach. Among the benefits of pursuing a
teaching degree at Bloomsburg was the
lower cost, she says. “And it was good for
me to be in a smaller environment with
more access to professors,” Vasta adds.
“They know you by name.”
Ultimately, she decided that teaching
wasn’t a good fit.
But Vasta has a curious mind, broad
interests, and a lot of energy. She
graduated with a major in secondary

education and history, and a minor in
computer science.
Those varied interests and experiences
found a perfect outlet in BU’s instructional
technology master’s program. The
program, which focuses on the creation
of web-based instruction, fused her
background in education and technology
into one.
In ways she could not have predicted,
it would set the stage for her career and
the many ways she would give back to
Bloomsburg.

•••

Chip Peters, ’93/’95M , says he knew
Vasta would be a corporate star from the
moment he saw her. Peters was part of the
Corporate Advisory Council that evaluated
the final project of Vasta’s graduate school
cohort.
“She was the most polished — the
absolute standout,” says Peters, who
worked for Cigna at the time. He
remembers turning to another Cigna
colleague and saying, “She’s the one we’re
getting.”
“It’s like when you see the person you
know you’re going to marry,” Peters adds.
The company wined and dined her, he
remembers, until Vasta accepted a position

at Cigna’s office in Connecticut. She’s been
with Cigna ever since.
“Because of the Bloomsburg connection,
I was endorsed and mentored at Cigna,”
Vasta says. “That setting, that network, was
unique to Bloomsburg and the way that
program was structured.”
The program and her many experiences
at Bloomsburg also prepared her for the
different roles she was to play at Cigna.
Vasta explains that she’s held several
positions in different areas within the
global health services company. Her focus
is now is on redefining the healthcare
experience for Cigna customers to improve
health and save money.
It’s clear that Peters’ first impression
of Vasta was on the nose. But as he got
to know her better as a co-worker and
friend, Peters was equally impressed by her
genuine desire to support others. “She’s
always willing to go the extra mile for a
friend,” Peters says. “She’s someone you
can rely on.”
Vasta is also someone who values paying
it forward, something she’s been doing for
well over a decade.
“When I started with Cigna, there was
more work than people,” Vasta says. “So I
was told, ‘You’re doing a great job. Go find
more like you at Bloomsburg!’”

WINTER 2018

19

Nancy Vasta with student scholarship
recipient Jaime Carroll.

And for several years after she
graduated, Vasta, like Chip Peters and
other Bloomsburg alumni before them,
was a member of the Corporate Advisory
Council that evaluated the informational
technology master’s candidates’ final
projects.
That role evolved, and Vasta was soon
helping to recruit Bloomsburg grads from
other disciplines — accounting and nursing
grads, for example. Her connections
and networking continued, and former
Bloomsburg Trustee Lee Davis, a longtime
family friend who knew both Vasta and her
husband as they grew up, recommended
Vasta for the Council of Trustees.
“She was the right fit for the trustees,”
Davis recalls. “I was always impressed with
her love of Bloomsburg and how it changed
her life, but she’s also pragmatic. And she
has a wonderful personality. She engages
with people; she’s a good listener.
“If she spends enough time on the
Council of Trustees, she will be a
significant factor at Bloomsburg for the
next several decades,” Davis predicts.
And Davis notes that Vasta sees the big
picture in any situation. For Bloomsburg,
that means understanding the necessity
of raising money given relatively flat state
funding.
“She’s a conversationalist, endearing,
passionate, enthusiastic,” says Erik
Evans, BU’s vice president for university
advancement. “And when she touches
something, she’s all in.”
Her role as the first chair of the Henry
Carver Fund, BU's annual fund, is a case in

20

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

point. Evans notes that with her business
skills, Vasta helped develop the marketing
plan that grew the Carver Fund from
$450,000 to $1.6 million over a seven-year
period.
“She modeled for others the ways that
you could volunteer with passion and
energy — how you can be involved with
your alma mater in a way that’s rewarding
personally and can have a huge impact on
the university,” Evans says.
“As Henry Carver helped lay the
foundation for Carver Hall, Nancy helped
lay the foundation for the $62 million
It’s Personal campaign as the first Henry
Carver Fund chair,” he adds.
Vasta also took the title of the It’s
Personal campaign to heart. In 2013, she
and her husband established the Mary
L. Reynolds scholarship in memory of
Mike’s mother, a Bloomsburg alumna and
elementary school teacher who lost her
battle with breast cancer in 2012.
“We gave the scholarship to my fatherin-law as a Christmas present,” Vasta says.
As a scholarship recipient herself, Vasta
says she understands the impact it can
have on a student’s life. At the same time,
she and her family are also supporting the
university’s mission.
The scholarship is for elementary
education students, preferably from a
rural background and with financial need.
Various family members now regularly
contribute to it. “It has become a good way
to honor and recognize Mary,” Vasta says.

•••

How does Vasta find enough hours in the
day to juggle her various responsibilities?
A flexible work environment helps as
does a supportive family. And her close
ties to Bloomsburg play a part as well. As
Vasta explains, Bloomsburg is the one place
where the major threads of her life can
come together.
“When I go to Bloomsburg, I get
rejuvenated,” Vasta says. “It brings me back
to the small-town atmosphere I want to be
living in. And I turn it into quality family
time.”
For example, while she won’t take her
9-year-old son, Jack, to a business meeting
in Texas, she often does take him to
Bloomsburg.
“When I go to a trustees meeting, it’s not
odd for my mom, son, husband or some
combination of the three to come with me,”
Vasta says. “For my mom, in some small
way, it’s like she’s experiencing higher
education.”
Her remarkable and seemingly effortless
balancing act has not gone unnoticed.
“What’s amazing to me is that she can
balance so many things — an incredible
career, a beautiful family, her volunteer
roles — and take each seriously and invest
in Bloomsburg in so many ways,” Erik
Evans says. “It’s inspiring.” l
Willie Colón is a freelance writer based in
Philadelphia.

Vasta with instructional technology faculty, from left,
Mary Nicholson, Karl Kapp and Helmut Doll.

Duane and Sue Greenly with
BU President Bashar Hanna, left.

Greenlys establish grants to
support student science research
A NEW ENDOWED GIFT from Bloomsburg University
Foundation board member Duane Greenly ’72 and his wife Sue
Greenly ’72 will support experiential learning opportunities for
students in the College of Science and Technology.
The $575,000 gift will provide Professional Experience
Grants (PEGs) to help fund outside-the-classroom opportunities
for students to work with faculty members on research
collaborations. The gift is consistent with the university’s
Professional U focus, which is to provide high-impact practices,
integrating student academic experience with professional
experience in “real world” settings.
Duane Greenly, who served as chair of the Bloomsburg
University’s recently-concluded It’s Personal campaign, and Sue
both graduated from Bloomsburg in 1972; Duane with a degree in
chemistry and Sue in special education.
“The commitment we made to support the university

throughout the It’s Personal campaign was important to us
because our gift was very personal,” Greenly says. “We thought
for a long time about how we could take this next step with our
support to help sustain one of the campaign priorities, which
was to create more hands-on experiences for BU students.”
The couple's history of support for BU extends back to 1991
with their first gift to the Henry Carver Fund and includes
significant contributions, including the establishment of the
Greenly Center in downtown Bloomsburg along with the Duane
and Sue Greenly Scholarship.
“Sue and Duane’s continued support and their recognition of
the importance of experiential learning as an integral part of a
BU education is inspiring,” said BU President Bashar W. Hanna.
“This extraordinary gift will expand experiential learning
opportunities for our science and technology students ensuring
success in their chosen discipline after graduation.”

WINTER 2018

21

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

PHOTO: : ERIC FOSTER

Focus ON Faculty

Robin Drogan interacts with children
at Danville School District’s Liberty
Valley Intermediate School.

An educator for every child
ROBIN DROGAN found her career
path as a special educator when
she was 16 and working as a camp
counselor in Maryland. Her inspiration
was a fellow camper.
“The camp supported children
with disabilities. The children with
disabilities were included with their
peers and participated in all activities,"
recalls Drogan. “I was paired with
a child named Jay. He taught me so
much about appreciating life and
working hard. The experience allowed
me to think openly and creatively,
to foster independence for Jay, and
encourage him to believe that he could
do it all.”
For Drogan, that camp experience
was transformational. “There was
never a question that I had chosen the
right path.”
She became a special educator,

22

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

working in Maryland and Pennsylvania
for 15 years and earning her master’s
degree in special education at BU in
2008. Before joining BU’s faculty in
2013, her experience ranged from
teaching individuals with disabilities
from preschool to adults. “My area of
concentration initially was supporting
individuals with complex instructional
needs who are affected significantly
by a disability. I broadened my
area of interest to include students
who display significant challenging
behavior.”
Today, the assistant professor of
exceptionality programs shares her
wisdom with a new generation of
teachers, both in the classroom and as
a supervisor for students participating
in the Danville Professional
Development School practicum
experience (BU has similar practicums
in other districts).

“The six-credit practicum
experience is unique,” says Drogan.
“The standards are high.” BU students
are paired with a cooperating teacher
as support for two days each week
at the school in the fall semester
and with whom they will student
teach in the spring. The continuation
from practicum to student teaching
increases both rigor and depth of the
field experiences.
“The rapport that the teacher
has with the students is critical to
understanding the learner,” says
Drogan. “Children learn differently.
Teachers need to understand what
motivates each student and use data to
make educational decisions.”
The other half of being a great
teacher is planning. “To truly meet the
needs of all learners, teachers need to
be intentional about their teaching.
Planning the lesson is as important
as teaching the lesson. Each time you
teach, you learn from the students and
you use what you learn to shape the
next lesson,” says Drogan.
“For example, a student may need
a personal connection to the material
to write a paragraph,” says Drogan.
“A picture of a positive or negative
event that actually occurred helped
this student to give information in her
sentences. But instead of providing
a picture as a prompt for just this
student, the teacher could provide
pictures for all of the students and
plan to include the student based on
learning strengths.”
“All children can learn,” says
Drogan. “For me, working with
students with diverse learning needs is
about the presumption of competence.
It is our job as teachers to find the
most successful, research-based,
strategies to support that learning.”
— Eric Foster

A Legacy of Family
GREG VIOLA ’71 will always hold Bloomsburg University
close to his heart. Family trips taken to BU with his wife
Barbara would eventually lead to both of their children,
Gregory ’93, and Gina ’98, choosing Bloomsburg for their
undergraduate degrees.
That’s why, when Greg, a loyal donor since 1982, was
approached with the idea of creating a scholarship through
a planned gift in his will to the Bloomsburg University
Foundation, he was intrigued by the idea.
“What many of my classmates don’t realize is that
when we went to school here, tuition was minimal at a
state school,” says Greg. “That funding from the state has
decreased drastically over the years.”
For Greg, a retired educator and technology consultant in
Sarasota, Fla., this was the perfect opportunity to increase his
support and create a legacy for his family at BU.
“We were in a position where we had the means to create
the scholarship and it really didn’t take a lot,” Greg says.

“It was easy to spread it out and to grow it over the years.”
And it wasn’t long before the Violas would have the
opportunity to grow their scholarship. A few months after it
was established, Greg’s son, Gregory, learned about the gift
and asked how he could contribute too.
Gregory, a retired US Coast Guard lieutenant commander
and accountant/consultant who also met his wife Stephanie
’93 at BU, is helping to grow the endowment of the
scholarship by making an annual gift each year.
“As soon as I found out about the scholarship, I wanted to
be a part of it,” Gregory says. “Bloomsburg has always taken
care of its students. I know it has done a lot for our family, so
I’m glad we can help as a family to continue that tradition.”
“Bloomsburg has played such an important role in
our family and has given us so many memories,” Greg
added. “Including the university in our will and creating a
scholarship for students who will come here in the future
seemed like the best way for us to honor those memories.”

To learn more about how you can create your own legacy at BU, visit

giving.bloomu.edu/plannedgiving

WINTER 2018

23

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

husky notes

FULL
THROTTLE
Gwen Wiscount with a student in
Kenya. In 2017, Wiscount climbed
Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for
a school in Kenya.

Bloomsburg alumna takes all-out
approach to career and life

GWEN WISCOUNT doesn’t believe in half measures.
When she goes after something, she goes after it all the
way.
At age 23, Wiscount ’09, a business administration and
marketing major, managed a $2 million business for a
multimillion-dollar environmental packaging company.
At age 27, she co-founded a sales and marketing company
and was named partner at age 28. And now at age 31,
Wiscount’s firm is generating $6 million dollars in revenue
and recently made its first acquisition.
Her success is no surprise to those that know her.
“I’m not even a little surprised. She’s a superstar,” says
Steph Pettit ’89, president of the Tampa-based Clean Earth
Systems, Inc. and Wiscount’s employer for four years.
“She’s very well-defined in who she wants to be and how
she goes about it. She’s extremely bright, articulate, and
driven.”
And while launching a company in the fall of 2014, she
trained for, and completed, the Chicago Marathon.
In 2017, Wiscount received Bloomsburg University’s
24

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

By SUSAN FIELD
Maroon and Gold Excellence Award. The award
recognizes young alumni who have made significant
achievements in their professions, to Bloomsburg
University, the alumni association, or humanity, and has
demonstrated the potential for further contributions.
Wiscount’s company, FullFunnel, is a sales and
marketing advisory firm that helps businesses increase
sales and income.
“We started the company to provide organizations
access to top sales and marketing talent, but without
the cost and risk they typically face when hiring these
revenue-generating roles. FullFunnel is different from
a traditional consulting firm in that we work with you,
as an extension of your team to execute and optimize
the programs over time,” says Wiscount, who is based in
the Boston area and oversees six companies within her
portfolio.
A Pine Grove native, Wiscount approaches her
professional career in the same way she did her student
career: with great ambition. At BU, Wiscount excelled

at academics, was in a sorority, student
government, worked at the football office
and was a cheerleader.
“I learned how to juggle my academics
with my extracurriculars because I wanted
to do it all, and do well,” Wiscount says.
Wiscount also credits her experience
with Pettit’s Clean Earth Systems Inc., as
building a foundation for her career today.
Wiscount met Pettit, a member of the 1985
Huskies football team and the namesake
of the university’s soccer/field hockey/
lacrosse stadium, through alumni football
events. As the company’s northeast
regional sales manager, Wiscount managed
a $2 million territory spanning 11 states.
“For me to be in the position I am now,
where I consult C-level executives of
multimillion dollar companies, having that
exposure early on in my career allowed
me to be better at this stage in the game,"
Wiscount says.
Despite her booming career, Wiscount
finds time to be active in a Boston-based
charity called Flying Kites. One of the
organization’s goals is to provide students
with access to high-quality education.
Flying Kites recently built a primary
school and home for at-risk and orphaned
children in the Aberdares Mountains of
Kenya. In early 2017, Wiscount traveled to
Kenya to work with the non-profit — and
climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds
for the school.
Upon winning the Maroon and Gold
Excellence Award, Wiscount was excited
to return to BU to share not only how
happy she was with her education and how
it helped to launch her career, but also to
share more about her experience in Kenya.
“Being there, meeting the kids firsthand,
and seeing the positive impact that Flying
Kites has had and how it’s shifted their
lives is unimaginable,” Wiscount says. “It
makes you realize that being a little more
generous can give a child an opportunity
to change their life’s path. Giving back to
humanity is so important me.” l
Susan Field ’11/’12M is a freelance writer
based in Philadelphia.

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

Recognizing Service

Retired? Not Really
JIM POMFRET retired a decade ago (in 2008) as a professor and
chair of BU’s department of mathematical and digital sciences. But
you wouldn’t know it based on how often he’s on campus.
On most days during the academic year, Pomfret is working as
executive director of the BU-based Global Awareness Society and
tutoring high school students taking classes at BU.
Pomfret came to Bloomsburg in 1972. The Boston native had done
missile-related research in the corporate world and taught in the
SUNY (State University of New York) system, South Carolina, New
Mexico and Oklahoma.
“Bloomsburg students have a work ethic that not everyone has,”
says Pomfret. “And there are a lot of first-generation students.”
Bloomsburg has become part of the Pomfret family tradition. His
son, Jim '95, graduated from BU with a degree in anthropology; his
daughter, Deborah '87, graduated with a degree in Spanish. His wife,
Penny, is active in the community as a preschool teacher.
“Students are capable of more than they think they are. They
need to be pushed," says Pomfret.
Pomfret had a push of his own in 1991 when he took his first
big international trip to China for eight weeks to lecture on using
computers to teach math. The experience was transformative and
many other trips, both as part of BU courses and through the Global
Awareness Society, followed.
Since then the Pomfrets are still helping give students the “push”
they need by funding a scholarship that enables a student to study
abroad.
“Students are going to work in an international environment,”
says Pomfret. “Even if they work for a firm in Allentown or
Harrisburg, they are going to work with people internationally.”
— Eric Foster

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25

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

husky notes
’50s
Irene Zielinski McCarthy ’57 taught
Spanish and English before raising four
children, three of whom are teachers.

’60s
James McCarthy ’60 was inducted into
the Jackson School District, Jackson, NJ.
Alumni Hall of Fame.

’70s
Alan E. Jones ’75 retired as a colonel
from the Army Medical Service Corps.

’80s
Rebecca Funk
Campbell ’83 was
named president
of The Walt Disney
Company Europe,
Middle East and
Africa. Campbell
was the president
of ABC Owned
Television Station
Group and ABC Daytime, responsible
for the company's eight local TV stations
and their digital assets in New York,
Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San
Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham
and Fresno. In addition, Campbell also
oversees ABC National Television Sales,
and ABC Daytime. Campbell is on the
board of the Broadcasters Foundation
of America, Girls Inc., and serves on the
board of directors of Broadcast Music,
Inc.
Edward Schicatano ’86 is a professor of
psychology at Wilkes University, WilkesBarre. Schicatano is the co-director of
the NeuroTraining and Research Center
at Wilkes and is the coordinator of the
psychology degree program, as well as
the head of the neuroscience program.

26

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Barry Hamp ’88
MBA, has been
named executive
director of Beebe
Healthcare’s
Oncology Service
Line at Tunnell
Cancer Center,
Rehoboth Beach,
Del. Hamp previously served as the interim
director of Oncology Services at Northern
Arizona Healthcare.

’90s
Carl Risch ’92 is assistant secretary
of state for consular affairs in the U.S.
Department of State. Risch heads an
agency that employs more than 12,000
and is in charge of approving passports
to Americans and visas to foreigners.
He previously served as acting chief of
staff in the Department of Homeland
Security's U.S. Citizen and Immigration
Service. Risch and his wife, Wendy
Taylor Risch, have two daughters,
Anneka and Ilse.
Crystal Reustle Patil ’93 is the associate
dean for academic affairs in the Honors
College at the University of Illinois at
Chicago (UIC). Patil was an associate
professor of anthropology in the College
of Nursing at UIC. She is a global health
researcher who focuses on health
disparities and has conducted projects
in several African countries and in the
United States.
Keith Bailey ’94 is dean of online
learning and continuing professional
education at West Virginia University.
Bailey was the director of the Office of
Online Learning at the University of
Georgia.
Scott Ungemach ’95 is a chiropractor
for De Jesus Family Chiropractic,
Sugarloaf Township. He has provided
chiropractic care in the area for 18 years.
Andrew Dunning ’96 is senior vice
president and general manager of Digitas
Health in San Francisco.

Robert Walton ’96 is chief zoning
administrator in Fauquiers, Va. Walton
previously served as assistant chief of
zoning. He and his wife, Barbara, have
two children and live in Bealeton, Va.
Christie VanHorn Livengood ’97 is
executive director of Lancaster Dollars
for Higher Learning. Livengood was
director of operations for the Power
Packs Project.
Aimee Johnson Metrick ’98 received
the Communicate Award from The
Washington, D.C. and Baltimore Chapter
of Women in Cable Telecommunications
for her work as vice president of
communications for Comcast's
Beltway Region.
Laurie Tarantola Notari ’98 is vice
president of Baltimore Life, Westminster,
Md. Notari previously served as assistant
vice president of human resources at
Euler Hermes North America, where she
was the administrator of human relations
of approximately 450 employees.
She is a member of the Society for
Human Resource Management and
the Chesapeake Human Resources
Association.
Desiree Anderson ’99 was named to the
Council of the Pennsylvania Institute of
Certified Public Accountants for a twoyear term. She is a supervisor with Jones
Kohanski & Co. PC in Sugarloaf Township.

’00s
Nafeez Amin ’01, president of Sherpa
Prep, a Washington, D.C.-based test
preparation company, has co-authored
a series of textbooks geared towards
helping people with the quantitative
portion of the Graduate Record
Examination (GRE).
Angela Runciman ’03 received a
Graduate Student Excellence in Teaching
Award from Binghamton University.
Runciman is a Ph.D. candidate in
comparative literature.

Jake Miller ’05
received the
Pennsylvania
Teacher of
Excellence award.
He is a seventhgrade social studies
teacher in the
Cumberland Valley
School District. He is the author of the
website theeducatorsroom.com and a
former community columnist for the
Harrisburg Patriot-News.
Jared Owens ’06 has opened Owens
Audiology and Hearing Aid Center
in Shamokin. Owens is a doctor of
audiology with a Certificate of Clinical
Competency through the American
Speech and Hearing Association.

Mark Strunk ’10 is assistant vice
president of PNC Bank for northeastern
Pennsylvania.
Darrin Doran ’11 received a doctor
of osteopathic medicine degree from
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic
Medicine. Doran is continuing his
medical training in family medicine at
Geisinger Wyoming Valley, Wilkes-Barre.
Sean Duffy ’12 is an investment
analyst with Conrad Siegel Actuaries,
Susquehanna Township. Duffy supports
the defined contribution and defined
benefit investment team.
Kelsey Gallagher ’12 is girls basketball
coach at Emmaus High School in the
East Penn School District.

Crystal McCaffrey Meinert ’08 is
director of human resources GWC
Warranty, Wilkes-Barre. Meinert spent
four years with CVS Health in a variety
of roles, including successful tenures
as an HR consultant, HR manager and
senior HR adviser.
Alison Myers ’08 is a legal assistant with
Vinsko & Associates PC, Wilkes-Barre.
Her past experience includes call center
operator at Martz Group and social
media coordinator at EnergyBits.
Cara Bolton Sarubin ’09 is director
of content marketing for Altitude
Marketing, Emmaus. Sarubin designs
marketing plans for clients.

’10s

Justin Shirk ’13 was the 2017 Indoor
Football League’s championship game
MVP for the Arizona Rattlers. Shirk
registered 1.5 sacks and a tipped pass in
Arizona's 50-41 win over the Sioux Falls
Storm in the 2017 United Bowl.
Seth Lewis ’14 is a technology
consultant in the sales department of
DOCEO Office Solutions. Lewis provides
office solutions to customers in the
Maryland market.
Shelby Pealer ’14 is curriculum and
instruction specialist at Spectrum Center
Schools and Programs, Inglewood, Calif.

Jackie Eddy ’14 is associate director of
communications for the Patriot League
Division I athletic conference. At BU she
spent nearly two years working in the
sports information department.
Danielle Empson ’15 is director of schoolbased behavior health in the McDowell
Institute at Bloomsburg University.
Jessica Byra ’16 is an associate at Boyer &
Ritter CPAs and Consultants, Camp Hill.
Charles Evans ’16 is an associate at Boyer
& Ritter CPAs and Consultants, Camp Hill.
Rachel Hillibush Seitzinger ’16/MSN is
a nurse practitioner at St. Luke's Family
Medicine in Coaldale and St. Luke's
Primary Care Nesquehoning.
Santino Stancato ’16 is the athletics
digital content coordinator for Temple
University Athletics. Previously Stancato
was the marketing manager for the
Brooklyn Cyclones (New York Mets
SS-Affiliate) and a marketing assistant at
Marshall University.
Olivia Best ’17 is a graduate student in
Villanova University’s Master of Science
in Experimental Psychology Program.
She is research assistant in the Cellular
and Molecular Neuroscience of Behavior
Laboratory and project director of a
personality and eating attitudes study.
Best is also a psychiatric technician at
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Nicholas Wolfgang ’17 is an associate
at Valley National Financial Advisors,
Bethlehem.

Hudock family honored with philanthropy award
Barbara Benner Hudock ’75 and the
Hudock family of Williamsport received the
Philanthropist of the Year award in October
from the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of The
Association of Fundraising Professionals as
part of the group's 2017 National Philanthropy
Awards (NPD).
National Philanthropy Day recognizes the
contributions of volunteers, professionals,
community and business leaders, who are active
in the philanthropic community.
The Philanthropist of the Year award honors
an individual or family with a proven record

of exceptional generosity who, through direct
financial support, demonstrates outstanding
civic and charitable responsibility, and
whose generosity encourages others to take
philanthropic roles in the community.
The Hudock Capital Group and the Hudock
family have donated more than $3.8 million to
their community.
Firm owners Barbara Hudock and her son
Michael, as well as their spouses, Mike Sr. and
Lyneah, have championed the importance of
cutting-edge health care and the healing power
of the arts.

WINTER 2018

27

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

husky notes

the line up

Class of ’69 meets up in D.C.

Six alumnae from the class of '69 met for a mini
reunion in Washington D.C. in October. Shown
from left are, back row: Glenanne (Zeigenfuse)
Farley, Chris (Gruss) Ketz, Nancy (Strauss)
Boos, Boby (Cramer) Huffard. Front row: Cathy
(Owen) Raggio, and Nancy (Geiger) Smith.

Nursing Legacy

Cheri Rinehart ’79 and her daughter Amber
Le Cadre ’06 were panelists for the College of
Science and Technology Career Day in October.
Rinehart is the president and chief executive
officer of The Pennsylvania Association of
Community Health Centers. Le Cadre is a
registered nurse with UPMC Pinnacle.

28

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

reunions, networking and special events

Sixties-era wrestlers hold picnic

Shown from left, front row: Mike Smith ’69, Ron Russo ’70, Tom Vargo ’67, Joe
Gerst ’68, Steve Peters ’68 (on ground) Keith Taylor ’71 and John Stutzman ’70.
Second row: Frank Yartz ’69, Bob Bartoletti ’70, Wayne Heim ’69. Back row: Bill
Paule ’65, Jim Rolley ’67, Doug Grady ’72, Wayne Smythe ’71, Mike Cunningham
’69, John Weiss ’71, Ed Ladamus ’66, Rich Lepley ’70, Joe Bordell ’72, Jim Owen
’70, Carl Poff ’79, assistant coach Russ Hughes and head coach Marcus Gordan.

Husky Road trip to Vanguard

A Husky Career Road Trip visited Vanguard Financial Services in October.
Shown are 12 BU students from the accounting, economics and finance
departments, with Jonathan Ohn, chair of the finance department and two
alumni, Brad Ungard ’13 and Michael Baranowski ’97. Alumni who participated
in the visit included: Kimberly Laudenberger ’98, Ian Kennedy ’13, B. Scott
Hendershott ’15, James Fazio ’16, Kyle Defelice ’10, Austin Pfeiffer ’15 and Wade
Cooper ’17. While at Vanguard the students had an opportunity to meet the
founder of Vanguard, John C. Bogle. More than 100 BU alumni are employed by
Vanguard today.

IN MEMORIAM
Trustee Dr. Joseph
Mowad
COUNCIL OF TRUSTEES
MEMBER Dr. Joseph Mowad
of Danville passed away
Nov. 7, 2017. Dr. Mowad was
appointed to the Council
of Trustees in November
1994, and served for more
than 23 years. He is survived
by his wife, Josephine, and
daughters, Dr. Christen
Mowad and Nicole MowadNasser and their families.
In 2008 he was named an
Honorary Alumnus of Bloomsburg University by the school’s Alumni
Association.
Dr. Mowad was senior vice president of Geisinger Health System
and director emeritus of the urology department at Geisinger Medical
Center, Danville, where he had worked since 1968. l

Foundation Board
member Victoria
Mihalik
VICTORIA LOEFFLER
MIHALIK, a longtime
member of the Bloomsburg
University Foundation Board,
died Dec. 5, 2017, at the age
of 69. Born and raised in
Pittsburgh, Mihalik attended
George Washington University
in Washington, D.C. and lived
in the Bloomsburg area since
1972.
Mihalik served on the
foundation board since 1993, serving as chair for two and a half terms
and was instrumental in hiring full-time foundation staff. She was
director of the Bloomburg YMCA Preschool, where she taught for
more than 40 years.
She is survived by her husband John (Jack) Mihalik; son Dennis
Mihalik; grandchildren Donovan Mihalik, Deidre Mihalik and Derek
Mihalik and three great-grandchildren. She is also survived by sisters
Karen Loeffler, Christine Findlan and Laurie Assadi. l

Liberal Arts Symposium
brings graduates to campus

The College of Liberal Arts held a symposium for
students featuring alumni speakers in October.

Art Department panelists were from left: Brock
Dent ’08, Professor Ron Lambert, Erik Pedersen ’13
and Martin Wixted ’79.

Theatre Department panelists were from left:
Abbi Parker ’10, Titus O’Neil ’17, Phil Czekner ’13,
Maggie Korell ’16, Liz Nugent ’12, Zach Knoll ’05,
Rebecca Kestle ’14, and professor Karen Anselm.

History Department panelists were from left:
professors Jeff Long, Jennifer Oast and Jeffrey
Davis, Rachel Grim ’05, Andrea O’Neill ’06,
Elizabeth Kaminski ’04, Michelle Geczy ’94,
Christina Zamon ’99, and professors William
Hudon and Lisa Stallbaumer-Beishline.

WINTER 2018

29

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

husky notes

the line up

Volleyball club alumnae meet up

reunions, networking and special events

A group of former Club Volleyball players met in May to catch
up. Shown left are: Allie (Lucik) Bauer, Meghan (Nairn) Pettine,
Ellen Miller, Laura (Shawaryn) Perkins, Susan Kim, Katie
(Labenberg) Kluge, Justine (Miller) Biechler, Alana Cassidy,
Danielle (Cooper) Rosado, Amy (Wolfgang) Keener and Nicki
(Heiland) Miller.

Tri Sigma 1980 alumnae gather

Tri Sigma sisters and 1980 alumnae gathered in San Antonio,
Texas, in May 2017 for their annual reunion. Shown from left
are: Terry Mizdol Giordano (S.C.), Marianne Deska Braithwaite
(Pa.), Nancy Whitman Peterson (Col.), Mindy McMaster (N.C.),
Jill Laylon Confair (Pa.), Annie Silvonek Dempsey (N.Y.) and Sue
Kingeter Puderbach (N.J.).

Class of ’67 holds reunion

The class of 1967 held a reunion at Homecoming in October. Attendees included: Diane (Brzowski) Davis, Marcia (Earnhart) Bryan,
Carol (Cox) Chamberlain, Eileen (Albertson) Chapman, Janet (Space) Curcio, Hedy Davis, Laroy (Lee) Davis, Brenda (Harleman)
Dorshimer, Kerry Fetter, Alexandra Fitzpatrick, Michael Fitzpatrick, Thomas Fowles, Carole Gerhard-Hostetter, John Hatton, Susan
Hicks, Joan (Van Durick) Jordan, Pat (Zelner) Kaczmarek, Phillip Landers, Robert Logue, Ruth (Oberdorf ) Lunger, Gerald McBride,
Michael Mehle, Alana (Matter) Remley, Angelica Sacco, Harry Saxton, Joan (Heiser) Shirk, Ray Shirk, Laird Shively, William Jack
Shope Linda (Vansaders) Stirling, Regis Stirling, Betty Swartz-Fetter, Pat (Szymanek) Mica, James Walsh, James (Feimster) Walters,
John Wise, Frank Gilotti, Kathleen (Shanoski) Mulligan.
To learn more about regional alumni
networks, visit bloomualumni.com

30

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

VITAL STATISTICS
Births

Obituaries

M. Raphael Vantine ’73 and husband, John ’73, a granddaughter,
Makena, April 13, 2016
M. Raphael Vantine ’73 and husband, John ’73, a granddaughter, Camila
Inez, April 13, 2016
Melissa Snyder Wolf ’01 and husband, Mark ’06, a son, Maddox James,
Aug. 31, 2017
Peter S. Umlauf ’03 and wife, Marie, a daughter, Malia, Sept. 17, 2017
Sheila Zilinski Hughes ’04/’06M and husband, John, a daughter, Reese
Emilee, Aug. 2, 2017
Katie Hershour McMahon ’04 and husband, Brian ‘02, a son, Patrick
Joseph and daughter, Elizabeth Rose, July 11, 2017
Michael Espinosa ‘06 and wife, Ashleigh, a daughter, Kadence Lynn, Dec.
11, 2016
Karalyn Eifler ’06 and husband, Norman ’06, a son, Ethan Oliver, Nov. 1,
2017
Christopher Shaffer ’06 and wife, Nancy, a daughter, Julianna Reese,
Sept. 7, 2016
Christine Whitehead Litsch ’07 and husband, Erik ’04, a son, Henry
Robert, March 18, 2017
Heather Krohn ’09, a son, Grayson William, 8-14-17
Emily Kowalski Moffat’10 and husband, Steven ’08, a daughter, Reagan
Jann, Sept. 19, 2017
Emily Schwartz ’09 and husband, Harry ’02/’10M, a son, Cooper Joseph,
May 4, 2017
Brittany Costa Fritz ’10 and husband, Dereck ’10, a son, Lawson Michael,
Jan. 14, 2017

Marion Defrain Danowsky ’33
Edna Zehner Long ’42
Nancy Berlew Lyhne ’45
Grace Funk Crawford ’49
Stanley Semic ’49
Shirley Boughner Treon ’49
John Carl ’50
Alice Smolski Peterson ’50
Ronald Steinbach ’54
Hope Horne Cunfer ’55
George Derk ’55
Mildred Ertel Lay ’56
Donald Hare ’57
Alice Swartz Ludwick ’57
Isaiah McCloskey ’57
William Hand ’58
Marjorie A. Corrao Myers ’58
Joseph Thiroway ’58
Alton Pellman ’59
Joseph Devaney ’60
Albert Francis ’60
Gary Makuch ’61
H. Claude Rhodes ’61
Gail Sorce Timbrell ’62
Robert Hartman ’63
Joan Stackhouse Bankus ’65
Lawrence Splitt ’66
Daniel Wolfe ’66
Carol Campbell Logue ’67
David Keefer ’68
James Carter ’69
Ronald Rupert ’69
Timothy Knecht ’70
Robert Marquette ’70
James Valania ’70
Barbara Hershey Myer ’71
Brenda Stoneback Shoemaker ’71
Rita Strohl ’71
Michael Bickhart ’72
Michael Poremsky ’72
Ronald Woodring ’72
Marcella Fallon ’73

Marriages
Carol Vance Wary ’60 and Robert Edwards, Feb. 4, 2014
Ryan Yarmel ’01 and Joell Martinelli, Aug. 6, 2016
Steven Herman ’02 and Elizabeth Reagan, June 11, 2017
SuAnn Ritter ’02 and Michael Hoffman, Nov. 19, 2016
Benjamin Riley ’03 and Lisa Goldman, March 8, 2012
Anthony Tini ’03 and Danielle Kravitz, Oct. 14, 2017
Anysia Ensslen ’05 and Christopher Boggs, May 20, 2017
Jerrod Ferrence ’05 and Ariel Yordy, Sept. 1, 2017
Michael Espinosa ‘06 and Ashleigh Wetzel, June 13, 2015
Kathryn Guenther ’06 and Craig Vagell, Jr., July 27, 2017
Christopher Shaffer ’06 and Nancy Kruger, Nov. 28, 2015
Sandra Dinnella ’07 and Joseph Starkey ’07, Nov. 3, 2017
Christine Whitehead ’07 and Erik Litsch ’04, May 28, 2017
Meghan Nairn ’09 and John Pettine ’12, Sept. 2, 2017
Nathan Glose’09/11 and JadeLee Strella, Nov. 10, 2017
Amanda Lockard ’10 and Kenneth Schetroma, Aug. 12, 2017
Karie Yefko ’11 and Jared Lukowski, June 24, 2017
Caitlin Harrison ’12 and Michael Ossont
Erin Johnson ’12 and Stephen Rittle, June 17, 2017
Zachary Edwards ’13 and Lindsey Schadler, Sept. 30, 2017
Jennifer Kurtz ’13 and Patrick Norton, Sept. 17, 2017
Lauren McLain ’13 and Stephen Franchak, June 20, 2017
Klarese Donnelly ’14 and Andrew Rector ’15, Aug. 26, 2017
Danielle Rieland ’15 and Nicholas Constantino, March 18, 2017

Sandra Fuhrman Northrup ’73
Ralph Snyder ’73
Robert McNamara ’74
Milton Morse ’74
Joseph Piccolo ’74
Carl Bilotta ’75
Wayne Brokenshire ’77
Peggy Markey Knaub ’77
Mary Evelyn Clune Kuprevich ’78
Joanne McCurdy ’79
Shirley Ann Newell Smith ’79
Patricia Campbell Emanuel ’80
Audrey Smith Hibbs ’81
Karen Schick Rampulla ’81
Jo Ann Highland Haggerty ’83
Scott Alan Flinchbaugh ’85
Roger Gatti ’85
Bryan Snyder ’85
Scott Wilcox ’86
Kim B. Rook Kuhn ’87
Laurie Powell Skillman ’88
Kristen Turner ’88
Cynthia Donlan ’93
Jeffrey Frey ’93
Christopher Lazur ’93
Lori Mutchler Crowder ’96
Daniel Grim ’96
Kimberlee Kullman Pisarek ’97
Sharon Sylvester ’98
Steven Thompson ’99
Paul Hauspurg ’01
Kristy Ryczak ’01
Clayton William Nungesser ’05
David Nowicki ’07
Joseph Mowad ’08
Michael Phillips ’10
Nikitah Maczuga Farver ’13
Hitoshi Sato (Faculty)
Nancy Coulmas (Faculty)
Robert “Bob” Reeder (Faculty)
Joseph Mowad (Trustee)
Victoria Loeffler Mihalik (Foundation)

The Alumni Association celebrated Homecoming
under tents on the Academic Quad in October.

Send information to: magazine@bloomu.edu

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine • Waller Administration Building • 400 East Second Street • Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301
WINTER 2018

31

ON THE HILL

sports

FOR UP-TO-DATE SCORES
AND COVERAGE, GO ONLINE
BUHUSKIES.COM

Doing more through the Army
THERE’S AN OLD Army recruiting slogan — “In the Army, we
do more before 9 a.m. than most people do all day.”
That’s why Ali McKay, a field hockey player and Army ROTC
member, starts her day at 5 a.m. She’s got a lot to do. This past
fall, McKay was sworn into the Army. She participates with the
Army ROTC at the university and is also a starter at forward.
Coming from a military background, McKay always knew that
she wanted to serve her country. “My grandfather was in the
Army, my brother just switched from the Navy to the Army, and
my dad was in the Army. My dad told me about the opportunities
for nursing in the Army, so I applied for the scholarship and was
accepted,” says McKay.
The 5 a.m. alarm allows McKay enough time to be ready for
ROTC workouts, also known as PT (physical training) from 6 to
7 a.m. The PT usually consists of push-ups, sit ups and running
exercises. Following PT she will get a quick bite to eat and then
head to field hockey practice from 9 to 11 a.m. three days a week,
with class starting at 11 a.m.
“My day starts earlier when we go on rucks ranging from three
to 14 miles,” McKay says. “A ruck is when you are carrying a

32

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

35 pound backpack and jog/walk the required the distance in a
certain amount of time.”
“I balance my responsibilities by planning my schedule and
dividing my time,” says the sophomore from Dover, Del. “Nursing
is a difficult major but the topics interest me and my professors
are very supportive. I enjoy learning and it makes it easier to find
time to study for a subject I like.”
For McKay, her time playing for the nationally ranked field
hockey team is the relaxing part of her day.
“I use field hockey as a stress reliever and I love going to
practice, getting a good workout and spending time with my
teammates,” says McKay. “ROTC helps me train for a future
career in the military and it just really excites me. The timeline
of events can sometimes seem overwhelming but I just take each
day at a time and do my best and focus on whatever I'm doing at
the moment.”
“It helps me with time management a lot. I know I can't stay
up until 2 a.m. knowing I have to be up at 5 a.m., so it motivates
me to get all my work done.” l

Soccer coach Payne retires

HEAD MEN’S SOCCER COACH Paul Payne announced his retirement
following the 2017 season and departed as the all-time winningest coach
in school history. In his 19 seasons at the helm of the Huskies’ men’s soccer
team, Payne amassed an overall record of 146-174-32.
Payne has led the Huskies to seven PSAC playoff berths, PSAC
Championship appearances in 2011 and 2014, an NCAA playoff berth in
2014. He coached four Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-Americans in
Bryce Shaffer (twice; 2011 and 2012) and Josh Smith (twice; 2015 and 2016)
as well as 2014 Daktronics All-American Matt Zima. Overall, Payne coached
34 All-PSAC honorees, 22 All-Region selections, and two PSAC East
Freshmen of the Year. He was twice named the PSAC Coach of the Year.
In 2009, Payne created the national “Red Card Cancer” program which
is designed to raise awareness of and money for cancer research. All gifts to
Red Card Cancer benefit research, teaching and patient care at the Johns
Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. l

HALL OF FAME

THE 36TH ANNUAL Athletic Hall of Fame dinner and induction
ceremony was held in October in the Kehr Union Ballroom. The
first women’s soccer coach in program history, Chuck Laudermilch,
was inducted as part of the Hall of Fame Class of 2017. The other
five inductees were former athletes — Michele Baylor Kane ’00
(women’s lacrosse), Kathy Frick ’90 (field hockey/women’s lacrosse),
Eric Jonassen ’91 (football), Ralph Moerschbacher ’70 (swimming),
and Michelle Wolyniec ’00 (women’s cross country/track and field).
Frick also was the head coach of the women’s lacrosse team for
six seasons. The induction of six individuals brings the number of
members in the Bloomsburg University Athletic Hall of Fame to 175.
To make a nomination for the Hall of Fame, visit buhuskies.com and
click on the traditions tab at the top of the page. l

Foran named head strength
and conditioning coach
ANDREW FORAN is the Huskies’
new head strength and conditioning
coach. Foran joins Bloomsburg
after serving as the strength and
conditioning coach at Albright
College. He is a certified Strength
and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
through the National Strength and
Conditioning Association (NSCA)
and he holds a certification from the
national USA Weightlifting (USAW)
organization. Foran also owns a
certification in Reflexive Performance Reset (RPR).
Foran, a native of Warminster, is a 2013 graduate of
Shippensburg University and also earned his master’s degree from
East Stroudsburg University in 2014. l

Bloomsburg awarded
NCAA Choices Grant
BLOOMSBURG was awarded an NCAA Choices
Grant to educate students about the risks of misusing
alcohol. Through the support of the NCAA Foundation
and Anheuser-Busch Company Inc., Bloomsburg is
one of 13 schools nationwide to receive the threeyear, $30,000 grant. The NCAA Choices program
provides funding for NCAA member institutions and
conferences to integrate athletics departments into
campus-wide efforts to reduce alcohol abuse.
The focus of the grant will be to reduce the
prevalence of underage drinking; reduce the academic
consequences of alcohol use; reduce experiences of
sexual misconduct, harassment or violence due to
alcohol use. l

WINTER 2018

33

over THE shoulder

The Haas family in 1930.

The Haas years:

An era of transformation

Francis Haas in 1930.

by Robert Dunkelberger
TWO ANNIVERSARIES IN 2017
commemorated the connection
between Bloomsburg University and
former president Francis B. Haas.
One was 90 years since his hiring as
principal of the newly designated
Bloomsburg State Teachers College
and the other 50 years since the
dedication of the building named in
his honor. Haas is best remembered
for guiding the college through the
Great Depression, serving 18 years
as state superintendent of public
instruction, and devoting his entire
life to education.
Francis Buchman Haas was born
June 6, 1884, in Philadelphia and
earned a teaching degree from the
Philadelphia School of Pedagogy in

34

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

1906. He spent the next 14 years in the
public schools, receiving a bachelor’s
degree from Temple University in
1913. Haas began working in the State
Department of Public Instruction
in 1920, earned his M.A. from the
University of Pennsylvania in 1922
and a Doctor of Pedagogy from
Temple in 1925. That year he was
appointed state superintendent.
Two years later, January of 1927,
another superintendent was named,
and just three months later, when
the Bloomsburg State Normal School
was looking for a new principal,
Haas was the unanimous choice.
He was praised in the Morning
Press newspaper as possessing, to
a high degree, “the combination

of professional, administrative,
and executive skill of which great
educators are made.”
For the next 12 years, Haas
broadened and expanded
Bloomsburg’s physical campus,
academic curriculum, and
relationship with the town. The
new training school, Ben Franklin
Hall, was dedicated in 1930, along
with a laundry building (Simon
Hall). Later construction came from
federal money financed by New Deal
programs: a recreation field that
opened in 1936, tennis courts, and in
1939 Centennial Gymnasium, Navy
Hall, and a shop building.
During his tenure, the teachers
college started to develop specialties

BU president Harvey Andruss speaking at
the dedication of Haas Center in 1967.

The Haas Center construction site in 1966.

in education. The first was a
commercial department founded
in 1930 under Harvey A. Andruss.
It offered a four-year course for
training teachers to educate students
intent on a career in business and
was the forerunner of the College of
Business. Five years later, Haas added
the second new program, special
education, which developed into the
current Department of Exceptionality
Programs.
For community outreach, Haas
inaugurated the Rotary-KiwanisCollege night dinners, held yearly to
bring community leaders to campus.
Alumni became more involved
thanks to the annual Homecoming
celebrations begun in 1928. The largest
single event to bring the college,
alumni, and community together
was the 1939 Centennial Celebration,
commemorating 100 years since the

college’s founding.
Haas resigned as president in August
1939 when he was reappointed state
superintendent. He was missed at
Bloomsburg because of the respect he
had won and his ability as an organizer
and builder. Francis Haas died Feb. 28,
1966, at the age of 81. But the building
that would honor his legacy was
already under construction. As early as
1930, Haas dreamed of a much larger
campus, one that would include a
separate auditorium to replace the one
in Carver Hall.
With state funding approved,
construction began in July 1965 and
finished in August 1967. The college
now had a $1.2 million facility with a
seating capacity of nearly 2,000. Haas
Auditorium was dedicated Oct. 12,
1967, when Dr. Andruss announced the
building would bear the name of the
former president. Within four years, it

became the Francis B. Haas Center for
the Arts, recognizing the center’s role
in promoting art, music, and theatre.
Since then, several renovations have
occurred in Haas. In the mid-1980s, an
acoustic shell and a new sound system
were placed in the auditorium, paid for
with a donation by Marco and Louise
Mitrani, for whom the hall was named.
The stage and lighting were renovated
at that time and the seating replaced
in 1996. The latest major work on the
Haas Center, completed in 2008, was
a $7.9 million project that provided an
addition to house the music program
and renovations to the interior. For 50
years, the Haas Center for the Arts has
acknowledged the place that art and
the performing arts have in society,
named for an individual who helped to
shape Bloomsburg University for the
better. l

Haas Center construction
nearing completion in 1967.

WINTER 2018

35

calendar
Academic Calendar
SPRING 2018
Classes Begin
Monday, Jan. 22
Spring Break Begins
Monday, March 12
Classes Resume
Monday, March 19
Mid-Term
Tuesday, March 20
Classes End
Friday, May 4

Mary Anne Mitchell
Haas Gallery of Art
March 22 – May 3
Reception and Gallery Talk:
Thursday, March 22,
11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Spring 2018 Senior Exit Show
The Gallery at Greenly Center
April 24 – May 11
Reception: Tuesday,
April 24, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Celebrity Artist Series

Undergraduate Commencement
Saturday, May 12

Events in the 2016-2017 Celebrity
Artist Series season will be presented
in Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani
Hall, and Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross
Auditorium. For more information and
to order tickets, call the box office
at 570-389-4409 or visit cas.buzz.
Programs and dates are subject to
change.

Alumni Events

The Berlin Philharmonic Piano Quartet
Saturday, Feb. 10, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Finals Begin
Monday, May 7
Graduate Commencement
Friday, May 11

Visit bloomualumni.com for details
on these and additional events or to
register for Homecoming events. For
information, contact Alumni Affairs at
800-526-0254 or alum@bloomu.edu.

Dublin Irish Dance
Friday, March 2, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Philadelphia Area Alumni Social
Wednesday, March 7, 6 – 8 p.m.
General Warren, Philadelphia Area

The Cashore Marionettes
Friday, April 6, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross
Auditorium

Art Exhibitions

Mostly Monday Film Series

Exhibitions in the Haas Gallery of Art
and The Gallery at Greenly Center, 50
E. Main St., Bloomsburg, are open
to the public free of charge. For more
information, gallery hours and
reception times, visit departments.
bloomu.edu/art.
Lauren Kalman
Haas Gallery of Art
Feb. 8 – March 9
Reception and Gallery Talk:
Thursday, Feb. 8, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Maria Lux and Katrina Majkut
The Gallery at Greenly Center
March 8 – April 19
Reception: Thursday, March 8,
11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

36

Independent film series that
brings quality films, directors and
cinematographers to Bloomsburg
University. Each documentary is
screened at 7 p.m. in Carver Hall,
Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium.
Admission: $3.50 in advance/$4 at the
door. For more information and tickets,
call the box office at 570-389-4409 or
visit cas.buzz.
Little Stones
Wednesday, Feb. 14
Big Sonia
Monday, March 26
Ghost Town to Havana
Monday, April 9

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Activities and Events

Concerts
Listed events are open to the public
and free of charge. For information
and additional events, see bloomu.
edu/music-events or call 570-3894286. All programs, dates, times and
locations are subject to change.

Jazz Concert
Thursday, April 12, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium
University Concert Band Spring
Concert
Wednesday, April 25, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Faculty Recital
Thursday, Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Percussion Ensemble
Thursday, April 26, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Student Recital
Sunday, Feb. 4, 2:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

University-Community Orchestra
Concert
Saturday, April 28, 7:30 p.m
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
Masterclass: Friday, April 27, 7 p.m.
Haas 166.

Student Honors Recital
Thursday, Feb. 8, 7 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
Guest Recital
Wednesday, Feb. 14, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Knoebel’s Grove “Pops” Concert
Sunday, April 29
2 p.m. - Concert Band
5 p.m. - Jazz Band

Student Recital
Thursday, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Guitar Ensemble
Tuesday, May 1, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Student Recital
Friday, Feb. 16, at 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Piano Studio Recital
Wednesday, May 2, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

University-Community Orchestra
Sunday, Feb. 25, 2:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Young Artists’ Recital
Saturday, May 5, 3 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Faculty Recital
Tuesday, March 6, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium

Other Events

Voice Studio Recital
Wednesday, March 28, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Machinal
Wednesday, Feb. 21 – Sunday, Feb. 25
Alvina Krause Theatre, 226 Center St.

Student Jr. Recital
Wednesday, April 4, 7:30 p.m.
Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, Main
and Iron St.

8th Annual Dance Minor Concert
Sunday, April 22 & Monday, April 23
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Women’s Choral Ensemble
Thursday, April 5, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Special Events

Husky Singers
Friday, April 6, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
BU Concert Choir
Saturday, April 7, 7:30 p.m.
Carver Hall, Gross Auditorium
Student Jr. Recital
Wednesday, April 11, 7:30 p.m.
Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, Main
and Iron Streets.

Siblings and Children Weekend
Friday to Sunday, April 13 – 15
Renaissance Jamboree
Saturday, April 28

For the latest information on
upcoming events, check the
Bloomsburg University website
bloomu.edu.

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CHOOSE A HIGHER DEGREE
Bloomsburg University’s leadership-focused MBA program includes
an optional experiential learning component culminating in a climb
of the highest peak in the Northeastern U.S., Mount Washington in

New Hampshire. In addition to Bloomsburg’s campus, the
program is offered in Philadelaphia with a convenient hybrid
online and in-person format.

Learn about this and BU’s other graduate programs at bloomu.edu/gradschool
A NOTE TO PARENTS

If this issue of Bloomsburg: The University Magazine is
addressed to a daughter or son who has established a
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Bloomsburg

SPRING 2018

T H E

U N I V E R S I T Y

M A G A Z I N E

Bloomsburg
Family Values

The Inauguration of President Bashar Hanna. Page 10.

ALSO INSIDE

Commitment to Connect

Juli Miller ’92 enjoys giving back
and connecting to students. Page 14.

A Passion for Mystery

Alumna Lisa Regan ’02/M’05 uncovers
a career as a mystery writer. Page 18.

Bloomsburg:
The University Magazine

From the President
MY BU FAMILY. As I near the end of my first year serving as
the 19th president of this wonderful institution, I am reminded
daily what makes Bloomsburg University such a special place.
It’s the people.
Each day I see how the hard work of our faculty and staff
helps transform the lives of our students. More than a third of
our incoming freshmen are first-generation college students.
And we’re honored that such a large percentage of students
from families without experience at universities have chosen
BU to help them achieve more in their lives through education.
Our alumni are active partners in that mission as they engage
with the campus and share their time and expertise with
current students. Like a pack of Huskies, we’re unified in a
common mission and purpose. As a leader, that’s inspiring.
In this issue of Bloomsburg: The University Magazine, we
share the many accomplishments of the BU family. You’ll read
President Bashar Hanna
about our student-athletes, working through the Make-A-Wish
Foundation, to grant a wish to a little girl who has brain cancer
and the inspirational story of how a simple hello from baseball player Austin Edgette to a
boy who has autism led to a lasting friendship. You’ll read how Juli Miller credits BU as her
pathway to an avenue of opportunity and how she, in turn, gives back to the less fortunate
through Operation Smile.
This issue also features mystery novelist Lisa Regan, who recently signed a three-book
deal for a detective series, and former BU Council of Trustees and Foundation board member
John Dorin, former long-time mayor Montoursville, who was honored by the city. Also read
about Ronn Cort, the COO of Sekisui SPI. Though not a graduate of BU, Cort is a frequent
visitor to campus, where he has shared his business insights with students and has hired
many BU graduates. We close the issue with a retrospective about the various homes of BU’s
library and how Andruss Library has adapted to new technology to become a place where
students learn, collaborate and relax as well as find knowledge.
The next year and a half will be a busy time in the life of this university. We will embark
on a comprehensive branding campaign that will lead to a new a strategic plan as well as
conduct searches for several key leadership positions on campus. Together we will continue
to grow this university and impact the world in ways we may not have ever imagined!
GO HUSKIES!

FEATURES
Family Values
10 Bloomsburg
The inauguration of President Bashar Hanna
14

Commitment to Connect

18

A Passion for Mystery

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

22
24

p. 10
BU ROTC students prepare to carry the flags into the inauguration ceremony for Dr. Bashar Hanna.

celebrated family, both personal and university,
and what can be accomplished by working together.

Juli Miller ’92 enjoys giving back and connecting to
students. The Johnson & Johnson VP credits her
BU experience for developing her skills in leadership
and caring.
Alumna Lisa Regan ’02/M’05 has turned her love
of reading and hobby of writing into a career as an
author. Regan takes every advantage of spare minutes
in her day to put words on paper.

Learning Locally, Working Globally
When Sekisui president and COO Ronn Cort
connected with BU several years ago, he found
graduates who came ready to work at his growing
global enterprise.

Husky at Heart

Husky dad John Dorin found an affinity to the
university his three children attended. Seeing what
BU could be inspired Dorin to help resurrect the
foundation and serve on its board and the Council of
Trustees for many years.

DEPARTMENTS
02 Unleash Your Inner Husky
Spring 2018 04 Around the Quad
08 Focus on Students
20 Focus on Faculty
26 Husky Notes
30 On the Hill
34 Then and Now
36 Calendar of Events

Table of Contents
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA IS A MEMBER
OF THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Pennsylvania State System
of Higher Education Board
of Governors

Interim Chancellor, State System
of Higher Education
Karen M. Whitney

Cynthia D. Shapira
David M. Maser
Harold C. Shields
Sen. Ryan P. Aument
Audrey F. Bronson
Sarah Galbally
Molly E. Gallagher
Rep. Michael K. Hanna
Shaina Marie Hilsey
Donald E. Houser Jr.
Barbara McIlvaine Smith
Marian D. Moskowitz
Thomas S. Muller
Secretary, Pedro A. Rivera
Sen. Judith L. Schwank
Samuel H. Smith
Brian H. Swatt
Neil R. Weaver
Governor Tom Wolf

Bloomsburg University
Council of Trustees
Patrick Wilson ’91, Chair
Judge Mary Jane Bowes, Vice Chair
Nancy Vasta ’97/’98M, Secretary
Ramona H. Alley
Robert Dampman Ph.D. ’65
Edward G. Edwards ’73
Brian D. O’Donnell O.D.’87M
Charles E. Schlegel Jr. ’60
John Thomas
Secretary John E. Wetzel ’98

President, Bloomsburg University
Bashar W. Hanna

Executive Editor
Jennifer Umberger
Co-Editors
Eric Foster
Tom McGuire

Designer
Kerry Lord

Interim Sports Information Director
Dave Leisering

Marketing/Communications Coordinator
Irene Johnson
Communications Assistants
Maggie Farrer '18
Megan Hawbecker ’18
Hannah Miller ’18

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine is published three times a year for
alumni, students’ families and friends of the university. Bonus content and
back issues may be found at bloomu.edu/magazine.
Address comments and questions to:
Bloomsburg: The University Magazine
Waller Administration Building
400 East Second Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301
Email address: magazine@bloomu.edu
Visit Bloomsburg University on the Web at bloomu.edu.

ON THE WEB

www.BLOOMU.EDU

COVER PHOTO: Eric Foster

HUSKY NOTES
SPORTS UPDATES
ALUMNI INFO, MORE
TM

Bloomsburg University is an AA/EEO institution and is accessible to
disabled persons. Bloomsburg University does not discriminate on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age,
national origin, ancestry, disability, or veteran status in its programs
and activities as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of
1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and
other applicable statutes and University policies.
© Bloomsburg University 2018

unleash your inner husky

PHOTOS: JAIME NORTH

Six-year old Rose Adams
takes a raft ride across
the Nelson Field House
pool with Shikellamy High
School student Rubie Natal,
dressed as Ariel, the “Little
Mermaid.” Below, Rose’s
father Brandon Adams
carries her into Nelson Field
House, where she was guided
by BU student Siena Cerra
to the pool for her raft ride.
Opposite page, Rose was
greeted by a court of Disney
princesses and princes,
including Shikellamy High
School student Destiny
Lopez as Moana, who sang
the song “How Far Will
I Go” from the film.

22

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

A Wish Made True
WHAT DO YOU GET when you combine the
dreams of a little girl with the determination,
hard work and imagination of student-athletes?
You get a Make-A-Wish reveal like no other.
Life hasn’t been fair to 6-year-old Rose Adams of
Bloomsburg. Diagnosed with brain cancer a year ago,
Rose survived surgery to remove the tumor as well as
chemotherapy. A big fan of the Disney movie Moana, her
dream has been to meet the princess. That’s when the
Bloomsburg University Student-Athlete Advisory
Committee (SAAC) and adviser Courtney Noll got to
work to make Rose’s dream come true. BU studentathletes raised more than $5,000 (the amount required
to grant a wish) and, working with the Make-A-Wish
Foundation, brought Rose’s wish to life.

In one of the most elaborate reveals Make-A-Wish has
ever seen, one that took months of planning, the Huskies
took Rose on a guided tour of the upper campus athletic
facilities meeting various Disney princesses along the
way. A stop at the Nelson Pool included a boat ride, followed by a walk through the field house decorated in a
Hawaiian theme. When Rose reached the field house gym
floor, she was met by members of SAAC, hundreds of BU
student-athletes and her classmates from school and
learned she and her family would be going to Hawaii to
meet her favorite princess in person.
The wish reveal was extra special for the Huskies
student-athletes since Make-A-Wish president and CEO
David Williams ’81 is a BU graduate and former member of
the men’s tennis team. Williams was impressed by the video
he saw of the event. “This is an awesome story,” Williams
wrote in an email. “It makes me proud to be a Husky.”
SPRING 2018

3

around THE quad

STUDENTS came together to raise nearly $25,000 for this year’s Wish
Upon a Cure Relay for Life event. Students from fraternities, sororities,
clubs and organizations raised money by charging fees to participate in
activities or buy food. The walk also featured the Survivors Lap with
members of the community participating.

State System Unveils New Suite at Center City Site
BU HAS A NEW PRESENCE in
Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania State
System of Higher Education academic
and classroom suite at 701 Market
Street. Philadelphia Mayor James F.
Kenney was among several key officials
and special invited guests who spoke
at the April public debut of the newly
expanded and renovated University
Center. The new suite features
additional high-tech classrooms,
videoconference capabilities,
collaboration rooms, faculty offices,
44

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

a computer lab, a student lounge and a
student success center. State System
universities at the center have been
serving adult learners since 2012.
BU president Bashar Hanna spoke
at the event along with BU student
Alena Mialanich, majoring in the
BASTL (Bachelor of Applied Science
in Technical Leadership) program.
Mialanich, a native of Belarus, shared
how she had started her college
education at age 30 at Community
College of Philadelphia, where she

graduated with highest honors
in architecture and construction
management. Mialanich expects
to complete her degree this
year. Employed by Albert Taus
and Associates, Architects, of
Philadelphia, she plans to continue
her career in architecture and
construction, focusing on green
building design. “I believe that
BASTL program equipped me with
all the necessary skills for a leadership
role in the field of sustainable building.”

PHOTOS: JAIME NORTH

Walking For A Cure

Second Chance Program Featured in

CHRONICLE of HIGHER EDUCATION
BU’S PARTICIPATION in the U.S. Department
of Education pilot program offering a chance for
education through Pell grants to incarcerated
students was recently featured in The Chronicle of
Higher Education. Writer Kelly Field looked at the
program that aims to reduce the rate of recidivism.
Second Chance Pell enrolls about 7,000 prisoners
across the country. BU enrolls 25 Pell-eligible
students in the program, now in its third semester
focusing on the State Correctional

Institution-Muncy and State Correctional
Institution-Mahanoy. Most participating prisoners
are scheduled for release within the next five years.
“This initiative has the potential to change
the trajectory for the life of numerous inmates and
their families and communities,” said Pennsylvania
Secretary of Corrections John Wetzel when the
program was announced in June 2016. Wetzel
graduated from BU in 1998 and serves on its
Council of Trustees.

Umberger Named
Associate VP for
Marketing and
Communications
JENNIFER
UMBERGER
comes to BU
after serving as
the director of
university
marketing at
Kutztown
University
since 2012. She
created a comprehensive marketing
and advertising program and led the
institutional market research and
brand development projects. She has
received numerous higher education
marketing advertising awards for
her work as well as CUPRAP, ADDY
and People’s Choice awards. Before
AMELIA GARBISCH, assistant professor of music (shown in center),
Kutztown, she worked in undergraduate
spent five days in April teaching elementary music education pedagogy in
recruitment at Albion (Mich.) College
Shanghai and Hangzhou, China. While there, the Chinese equivalent of
and Franklin (Ind.) College solutionClassical Billboard magazine covered her visit for both print and television based sales in the furniture industry,
stories. Garbisch’s student-centered methodology is in contrast to traditional and commercial real estate marketing,
Chinese teacher-centered classrooms. China is one of the world's largest
public relations and branding.
markets for classical music, instruments and instruction, and she has been
invited to return to teach there next year.

BU Music Professor
Gets Media Attention in China

SPRING 2018

5

One of the

BIGGEST
Big Events

PHOTOS: JAIME NORTH

WITH ROUGHLY 2,000 student
volunteers tackling more than 225
job sites in Bloomsburg, the ninth
annual CGA Big Event became one
of the largest yet. Sponsored by
the CGA, the single-day community
service event gives students the
opportunity to say “thank you” to
local residents by putting words into
action.

BU Nursing Program Links With LCCC Borland Appointed
BU AND LUZERNE COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE signed an
agreement that will help LCCC nursing graduates transfer to Bloomsburg University to complete their bachelor’s degree. LCCC graduates
will be guaranteed admission into BU’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing
(B.S.N.) online degree program with third year ( junior) status. BU has
similar agreements for nursing with Reading Area Community College
and Westmoreland County Community College.

Byrum Named to Public Relations
Accreditation Board
KRISTIE BYRUM, assistant
professor of mass communications, has been appointed
to serve a two-year term on
the University Accreditation
Board (UAB), representing
the Public Relations Society
of America (PRSA).
Byrum is a PSRA Fellow
and accredited public relations
(APR) professional.
The UAB oversees the accredi-

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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

tation programs and its
direction within the PSRA
and other participating
organizations. The group
sets policies, evaluates examination content, conceptualizes new accreditations
products and develops
marketing strategies and
materials. Since the program began
in 1964, more than 6,000 members
have earned the APR distinction.

to Toxicology Board
MICHAEL
BORLAND,
associate
professor of
chemistry and
biochemistry
and Education
Fellow of the
American
Society of Biochemistry and Molecular
Biology, was recently appointed to
a three-year term on the Society of
Toxicology Undergraduate Education
Subcommittee. The subcommittee
works to increase awareness of the
toxicology field to undergraduates
and educators, to promote the
integration of toxicology principles
into undergraduate science
curriculums, and to inspire and
recruit undergraduate students to
join the field of toxicology.

Care Totes for Children in Foster Care
and Children Who are Seriously Ill
PSYCHOLOGY PROFESSOR Mary Katherine
Duncan, the students in her Positive Psychology
course, and members of the Psychology
Association supervised by psychology professor
Jennifer Johnson, assembled 150 tote bags
for children in foster care and children who
are seriously ill.
Each tote contained a collection of children’s
picture books, a blanket, a plush stuffed Husky,
colored pencils, and a Life Book assembled
by her students. Based on a model of human
virtues and character strengths, the Life
Books contain affirmation quotes and spaces
for children to tell their own stories. Last
year, her Developmental Psychopathology
class assembled 100 tote bags for children in
Columbia County’s foster care program.
BU’s Good Work initiative is designed to
encourage students to reflect upon what it
means to do good work in academia and in
their prospective professions.
Duncan used funds awarded to her as Fred
and Joan Miller Distinguished Professor of
Good Work to purchase items for the totes.

Above: Students assemble Life Books to be included in
tote bags for children taken into foster care.
Right: Paul Price ’11 (special education), a family resource
specialist for Kids Peace foster care program, accepts
several sample totes from psychology professor Mary
Katherine Waibel-Duncan in her Positive Psychology course.

EGGS Faculty Member Co-Coordinator
of State Geography Bee
DARYL WENNER, instructor of environmental, geographical and geological sciences, was a
co-coordinator for the Pennsylvania State Geography Bee through the National Geographic
Society. In April, more than 100 students tested their geographic knowledge at the Pennsylvania
State Geography Bee championship held in the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg.
Wenner’s involvement in geography bees spans nearly 20 years, including eight years at the
Tennessee event before coming to Pennsylvania.
SPRING 2018

7

Focus ON Students

CATCHING
BUSINESS

Success
By Eric Foster

A YEAR AFTER WINNING
two business competitions,
Nathaniel Treichler’s The
Fly Crate, a subscription
service for fly fisherman
to purchase flies, is going
strong, with more than
3,000 customers and is
on track for more than
$100,000 in sales this year.
Artist Tyra Berta ’18 and business
In 2017 Treichler, a
founder Nathaniel Treichler.
Berta has hand lettered the
senior management major
Sleazygreetings logo on her IPad.
from Northampton, won
both the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s
Student Business Plan Competition and BU’s inaugural
Husky Dog Pound entrepreneurship competition.
This year, Treichler again won first place and the
$5,000 prize in BU’s Husky Dog Pound competition,
sponsored by the Zeigler College of Business. “Some
people play video games,” says Treichler. “I play
business — it’s my hobby.”
His new business venture — an edgy and irreverent
online greeting card company Sleazy Greetings —
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

launches its website (sleazygreetings.com) in June.
For the new venture, Treichler has partnered with
Tyra Berta, a senior BU art studio major from Jessup,
who specializes in whimsical lettering and illustration.
While a love for the outdoors and fishing spawned his
first business, the origins of Treichler’s new venture are
similarly personal. “For my family’s birthdays I make
cards that tease them and they love the cards,” he says.
Berta brings a passion for traditional calligraphy. “I’ve
always been a traditional artist and I grew up with
calligraphy kits,” she says. “I still take all my class
notes in cursive.”
His experience at BU and in the Husky Dog Pound
helped Treichler unleash his inner entrepreneur.
“Standing up in front of all the judges and presenting
an idea you’ve worked so hard on is, honestly, nervewracking, but oddly thrilling,” he says. “Once you put
your all into something and
a successful entrepreneur
tells you it’s a great
idea, you feel like
you hit it big.”

Foster Care Mentor
By Hannah Miller ’18

Wanda Tarvin has a passion for helping children in
foster care because she knows what they are going
through.
“These are the things I went through and as a
foster alumna, and I want to help them,” Tarvin says.
“Sometimes you need someone who has been there,
done that, rather than hearing someone tell you what
you need without them ever being in your shoes.”
Tarvin ’18, a senior social work major pursuing
minors in psychology and aging studies and
gerontology, has been researching foster youth since
her sophomore year. She presented her research at the
Eastern Sociological Society Annual Meeting and the

Pennsylvania Sociological Society Annual Meeting.
Tarvin’s interest in foster youth led led her to be a crew
leader this summer in the Anchor Program, a oneweek opportunity for foster youth ages 15-18 to live on
campus and see what attending college is like.
Participants stay in the residence halls, eat on campus
and attend workshops on subjects ranging from art to
digital forensics.
“We want them to see college as a realistic goal,”
Tarvin says. “We want them to think about what they
want to do for the rest of their lives, not think they can
only get a job at a fast-food restaurant. The purpose of
the Anchor Program is to feel at home at BU. They will
know someone when they get here.”
Tarvin is continuing her work with foster youth after
graduation as a teacher’s aid for an afterschool program
in Philadelphia.

Wanda Tarvin, front, far right, with other student mentors for BU’s
summer 2017 Anchor Program.

“When I came here, I didn’t
know anyone, but there are
people who care. You can
create another family here.”
PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

– WANDA TARVIN ’18

SPRING 2018

9

PHOTOS: JUNG WI

Bloomsburg
Family Values
The INAUGURATION of BASHAR W. HANNA
By Tom McGuire

ashar W. Hanna knows firsthand that a
strong family can accomplish great things
working together. That came through loud
and clear at his inauguration as the 19th
president of Bloomsburg University in April.
Since first visiting campus in April 2017,
Hanna has spoken often of family — both the university
family and his personal family.
And family was a tangible reality at the inauguration,
held Friday, April 27, in Haas Center for the Arts’ Mitrani
Hall. With Hanna’s 84-year old mother, wife and two
children, six sisters, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews
in attendance, the strong bond of this family filled nearly
three rows of seats at Mitrani Hall.
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Representatives from the Board of Governors, BU
Council of Trustees, Pennsylvania State System of
Higher Education, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and
Bloomsburg University Foundation brought greetings
centered on working with the new president to advance
the mission of the university.
From the podium, Hanna noted he did not feel
qualified to walk in the footsteps of the giants who
have guided this institution from its humble beginnings
in 1839. Many things have changed. What began as
an academy serving the residents of the town and
county now educates students from 27 states and 33
countries. And some things have not changed, such
as Bloomsburg’s mission. Hanna pointed out how BU

Left: President Hanna with his wife Deanna and children Christian and Lauren. Right: Hanna with his sisters and mother Rahmeh.

continues to serve the first-generation college student back with some predicting our extinction. Maybe
we need to look no further than the mascot of this
with more than 35 percent of our incoming freshmen
fine institution, the Husky. Why the Husky? It was
each year being the first in their families to attend
selected by the student body of Bloomsburg in 1933
college.
Hanna also touched on the challenges higher education to be the mascot because of its fine, noble qualities
of being a hard worker, graceful under pressure and
is facing today: public perceptions, state funding,
having the ability to work well in a team.”
accountability and affordability. “But with the noble
Husky that excels at working in a team — the symbol
MR. JOAR DAHN, CGA President, Student Greetings
of the institution — leading the way, good things will
“One thing that Dr. Hanna and I have in common is that
happen,” he said. “We need to come together as a pack
we are both immigrants. I remember sharing my story
of Huskies, unified in the common mission of serving
about how I had a hard time in elementary school because
our commonwealth and beyond
I could not speak English. I was that
to the next generation of citizens
foreign kid who did not know how to
who will go out and impact the
Bashar never settles for average— order his lunch or answer whatever
world in ways we may never have
he pushes himself and others to grow question was being asked. He shared
imagined.”
a story very similar and that became
and change, and he understands
Anne Zayaitz, provost of Kutztown
motivation for me. If an immigrant
and values detail and heritage.”
University who worked with Hanna
who could not speak English at one
for several years, talked about
— Anne Zayaitz, Kutztown University provost
point in his life, like myself, could
how family helped shape the new
become the president of this wonderful
president’s character.
institution, that reassured me that I can indeed be
“With strong family support and the opportunities
anything I wanted to be in America.”
of education, Bashar’s personality and leadership
DR. ERIC HAWRELAK, Faculty Greetings
developed into an individual who is authentic,
“The most important principle on this campus is shared
who will listen, who will give praise, who inspires,
governance. We all have a common direction and sense
and who sometimes won’t take no for an answer and
of community, and we can reach a goal more quickly
will move forward when others might hesitate, with
and easily if we utilize our collective energy, enthusiasm,
deliberate action. Bashar never settles for average — he
and initiative. Please, keep the faculty enfranchised,
pushes himself and others to grow and change, and he
part of the decision process, as we face every challenge.
understands and values detail and heritage.”
We believe your leadership will be based on inspiration
“So how do we face, deal with and overcome the
and collaboration. We also believe your legacy will be
fact that higher education today has a target on its

SPRING 2018

11

determined by your ability to connect your vision with
the purpose of others, to lead by reason and the gift
of cooperation. The faculty believe we are all in this
academic journey together.”
MRS. DIANN SHAMBURG, Staff Greetings
“As our university community continues to grow larger
and stronger, our shared priorities should focus on
supporting our students at multiple levels (morally,
emotionally and spiritually) as they move forward
to becoming a productive and contributing citizens
in an increasingly complex global environment. This
solid partnership provides the varied services that our
employees effectively deliver on a daily basis to ensure
our university achieves a high level of excellence.”
MRS. BARBARA ROMANO on behalf of the alumni
“Today, on behalf of all BU alumni, and with their full
support, I officially welcome you to our alma mater.
The vitality of Bloomsburg University is our shared
responsibility and, as such, we stand committed to
growing it together. Best wishes to you, President Hanna,
as you officially begin your tenure as the 19th president
of Bloomsburg University. Welcome to the BU family
and this ‘friendly college on the hill’.”

MR. DUANE GREENLY,
Bloomsburg University Foundation
“I would like to join in congratulating Dr. Hanna on his
appointment as president of Bloomsburg University —
we are so glad to have both Bashar and his wife, Deanna,
join our community. I would also like to welcome all our
distinguished guests and visitors today. As Chairman of
the Bloomsburg University Foundation, it is a pleasure
for me to officially welcome Dr. Hanna as our new
partner at the university.”
JUDGE MARY JANE BOWES, Council of Trustees
“There is a strong commitment and dedication at this
campus to teaching, learning, leading, cooperation,
collaboration and serving others. We know your vision
and goals for the university embrace those ideals. You
have the full support of the Council of Trustees as you
take the helm of this wonderful university.”
MS. CYNTHIA SHAPIRA,
chairperson of the Board of Governors
“With President Hanna at the helm, we are confident
Bloomsburg University will thrive and will build upon
its strong foundation with new, innovative programs
that meet the evolving needs of students and employers
across the commonwealth.”

PHOTOS: JUNG WI

The inauguration platform party.

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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

President Hanna with Anne Zayaitz,
provost at Kutztown University
and a former colleague.

President Hanna with James H. McCormick, who
served as Bloomsburg’s 13th president and as
the first chancellor of the Pennsylvania State
System of Higher Education

DR. ANNE ZAYAITZ, provost, Kutztown University
“With strong family support and the opportunities of
education, Bashar’s personality and leadership developed
into an individual who is authentic, who will listen, who
will give praise, who inspires, and who sometimes won’t
take no for an answer and will move forward when others
might hesitate. Bashar never settles for average — he
pushes himself and others to grow and change, and he
understands and values detail and heritage.
I have had the privilege of getting to know his family.
I met Deanna, Christian, and Lauren. As you may
know, he has six sisters. It took me a long time to keep
this information straight.
But eventually, as I learned everyone’s name I learned
that his six sisters—Nadia, Nina, Ida, Nahla, Nayla, and
Bushra — all had a favorite brother: Bashar. I had the
honor of meeting his parents — his father Wajih, whom the
grandchildren called Jido, and his beautiful mother,
Rahmeh, who is known to her grandchildren as Tayta.
PRESIDENT'S REMARKS
“For an immigrant who spoke no English at the age of 10
to have been selected as the 19th president of this wonderful
institution is both a tremendous honor and a formidable
responsibility, a responsibility that I do not take lightly and
something that I strive to get better at every day. And with

“Our previous presidents have included both local
individuals as well as natives of England and Germany.
And today, we can add a native of Syria to that list. Our
past presidents have served for as little as three months
(so I’m already not last in length of service) to as long as
30 years (I promise you that I will not be here in 2047).”
“We have seen the first and only woman president in
Jessica Kozloff, as well as the first chancellor of the
Pennsylvania System of Higher Education come from
Bloomsburg. (Dr. James McCormick, who served as
BU's 13th president from 1973 to 1983.) And I am now
the second Temple University graduate to serve as
president — joining Francis Haas (honored with the
naming of this building). And much like Temple, which
was founded as a night school to serve first-generation
students, BU is still a place that takes pride in this noble
mission where over 35 percent of our freshmen each
year are the first in their families to attend college.”
Editor’s note: On May 6, 2018, Dr. Hanna’s mother, Rahmeh Khouly
Hanna, passed away surrounded by her seven children and their families.

BU faculty and
administrators
prepare for the
ceremony.

PHOTOS: ERIC FOSTER

The Leading Tones, BU’s a cappella ensemble, performs at the
inauguration ceremony.

the steadfast support of my BU family, we will face every
challenge head-on as, we together, propel this wonderful
institution to greater heights.”

SPRING 2018

13

PHOTOS: GORDON WENZEL/IMPRESSIONS

Ctoommitment
Connect
14
14

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Juli Miller ’92 helps new generations of Huskies
make the transition to life after Bloomsburg
By Willie Colón

A

ctions speak volumes about a person’s true nature.
A story about Juli Miller ’92 reveals much about this
successful business executive.
“When we were at Bloomsburg, a sorority sister was diagnosed
with cancer, and Juli took charge of the whole thing,” recalls
Kirsten Singley ’92, one of Miller’s Alpha Sigma Tau sisters. “She
led the effort to raise money for her treatment. Juli is very kind
and puts others before her. Even when she’s had tough times, it’s
always, ‘What can I do for someone else.’”

Juli Miller talks with a student
at a luncheon sponsored by the
Alumni Association.

This is just one example among many that displays Miller’s generosity
and caring instincts. Lucky for Bloomsburg, some of the newest examples
include the ways that she’s making time to share her hard-earned insights
with new generations of Huskies, despite a full schedule.
“I want to provide opportunities for today’s students that I got from
Bloomsburg,” says Miller, a vice president at Johnson & Johnson and
member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors. “And I get a lot of
fulfillment by helping others.”
One thing becomes very clear in conversation with Miller and those
who know her well: she likes people, and people like her back. “Everybody
knows Juli,” Singley says. “She’s like the mayor.”
Another of Miller’s sorority sisters, Kerri Donald Sears ’92, adds: “I don’t
think she’ll like this word, but I’ve always thought of her as a dynamo. She
has a great interest and involvement in so many things.”
That’s no exaggeration. In addition to her family — husband Christian,
and their two children, Natalie and Brandon — and demanding career,
Miller volunteers for an array of
groups and causes. “She’s always
Even when she’s had tough
involved in something,” Singley
times, it’s always, ‘What can
agrees. “I feel like she should
have a cape. She’s like Wonder
I do for someone else.’
Woman.”
— Kirsten Singley ’92
Her employer, Johnson &
Johnson, offers many service
opportunities, which Miller takes advantage of as often as she can. She’s
active with the company’s women’s leadership group and the Open and
Out LGBTQA Ally group. She’s also the executive sponsor of a resource
group for employees of Middle Eastern descent, and has volunteered with
Operation Smile, which provides free medical procedures for children with
cleft palates and ties to Johnson & Johnson.

SPRING 2018

15

“Johnson & Johnson lives its community service,
which has been important to me from the time I was in
the Girl Scouts through what I do today,” Miller says.
For the past five years, her volunteer activities have
included work with the Alumni Association. Miller
says she had drifted away from Bloomsburg until an
alumni event reconnected her with the university. That
connection only grew stronger thanks to Sears, a past
president of the Alumni Association Board of Directors.
“Kerri is a huge Bloomsburg philanthropist and so
excited about it,” Miller says. That excitement was infectious.
When Sears encouraged her to apply for the board, and
after giving it consideration, Miller went for it.
“It wasn’t a hard sell, but Juli is always very thoughtful
about making a commitment,” Sears says. “She doesn’t
want to let anyone down, and anything she does, she
does 100 percent.”
For Miller, the clincher came when she learned about
newer university initiatives that resonated with her.
“I was inspired by how far Bloomsburg had come,
especially in developing young professionals,” she says.
That inspiration has led to participation in activities
organized by the Alumni Association as well as the Zeigler
Institute for Professional Development and Professional U
— activities that connect students with alumni.
“One thing I’ve learned about the Bloomsburg of
today is that Professional U provides opportunities
for people like me to help students get ahead,” Miller
says. “I encourage other alumni to get involved — get
involved with Professional U, supporting with your
time, talent or treasure.”
Miller also enjoys mentoring students, especially
those she feels have the spark and talent to reach for
and achieve
their goals.
They give me as much as
But Miller
I give them — probably more. doesn’t see
herself as an
Their stories are inspiring,
all-knowing
and they’ve touched me.
guru. “I
— Juli Miller ’92
approach
every
conversation as a two-way street,” she says. “Yes, I can
impart some wisdom, but it’s a conversation. I like to
know where people come from and find points of
relatability.”
That approach sounds familiar to Sears. “She’s a very
caring person, a strong listener — she gets to know
people for who they are, not just on a superficial level,”

16
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Juli Miller and Angela Montano

Sears says. “I like to watch the expression on Juli’s face
when she’s listening. She’s always so attentive and so in
the moment.”
Miller is currently walking her talk as a mentor for
several young women from Philadelphia — a world
removed from Miller’s rural upbringing in Bangor. Yet
she says that, like her, these young women were not
born into privilege. “While there are things I can offer,
I admire learning about their resilience, spirit and
tenacity,” Miller says. “They give me as much as I give
them — probably more. Their stories are inspiring, and
they’ve touched me.”
Angela Montano ’19 is one of those young women.
She remembers meeting Miller at the Alumni
Association’s networking and mentoring event, Day of
Dialogue, when she was a sophomore. “Juli and I sat at
the same table and we just hit it off. She was so cool, so
down-to-earth,” Montano says. “She wanted to know
my story instead of just talking about herself.”
Montano is a secondary education major who dreams
of one day opening a charter school that provides young
students of color with the educational role models she
didn’t have in high school. “When I told Juli my dream,
her eyes opened wide. She said, ‘You have to do this!’”
Montano remembers. “To get that from someone who
doesn’t know you is really beautiful.”
The key to understanding Miller boils down to one
word: acceptance. “I have an Afro, wear big hoop
earrings — I just am who I am,” Montano says. “And
when Juli sees me, it’s with arms wide open.”

To be sure, “accepting” is one word that describes
freshman shell. “They taught me a lot about relating to
Miller. Caring and thoughtful are two more. Then
people, service, and fundraising,” Miller says.
there’s determined — because there’s no doubt that
Those sisterly bonds remain strong today, and periodic
Miller is determined.
“girls’ weekends” with a group of her AST sisters have
Miller describes her hometown of Bangor as a tight-knit, become a fixture in Miller’s life. “She just puts up with all
blue-collar community. And when she was growing up,
of us,” Singley says. “She’s sort of the den mother. We ask,
going to college was by no means a given. However,
‘Are you JV or varsity?’ And she says, ‘I’m JV, strictly JV.’”
Miller says she never doubted what would come after
It’s a comment that points to another aspect of Miller’s
high school. “I always knew I’d go to college, but I grew
personality. “You’d never know that she’s a vice president
up in a less-than-rich family,” she says.
at Johnson & Johnson,” Singley says.
Bloomsburg offered an attractive
“She’s very humble about what she
I have an Afro, wear big hoop does.”
combination of affordability plus
academic rigor, but the gregarious
Add another word to the list you
earrings — I just am who I am.
and popular teen had to cope with
can use to describe Juli Miller.
And when Juli sees me, it’s
the growing pains familiar to many
Miller recently gave a ZED talk —
college freshmen. “In high school,
a Bloomsburg riff on the popular
with arms wide open.
I’d been a big fish in a small pond,”
TED talks — about the need to
— Angela Montano ’19
she says. “Now I became a small
adapt to and understand change.
fish in a big pond. It was a tough
The audience included Miller’s
adjustment.”
daughter Natalie, a freshman at Bloomsburg. Miller
Over the course of her four years at Bloomsburg,
says that while her daughter had more options than
Miller says she benefited from internship opportunities, she did, Natalie still chose Bloomsburg. “She said, ‘You
as well as the encouragement and mentorship of her
had such a great experience. I want that’,” Miller says.
work-study bosses and professors. “My professors gave “She’s in a totally different field, but she already has a
me the professional acumen which is foundational to
commitment to service and to Bloomsburg.”
who I am today,” Miller notes.
Miller’s own commitment to Bloomsburg shows no
One fond memory in particular left an enduring
sign of waning. But how does she fit so much into her
impression. Miller says that her work-study boss at the
schedule? Refreshingly, Miller isn’t afraid to admit that
College of Business was a tactful administrative assistant it’s not easy. “You can’t have it all. You do have to make
who had a deft touch with people. “She handled people
trade-offs,” she says. “The giving back piece can be a lot
with grace, dignity and wit. And she was very direct,
at times, and I always prioritize my family.”
which I loved,” Miller says. “She also showed me how to
But she insists that giving back to Bloomsburg will
be a working mom in a professional setting.”
continue even after her tenure on the Alumni Association
Miller also credits Alpha Sigma Tau with providing
board ends in another year. “It’s not a one-time event,”
leadership opportunities that helped pull her out of her Miller says. “It’s a journey and a passion of mine.”
Willie Colón is freelance writer based in Philadelphia.

Juli Miller with children
helped by Operation
Smile, an organization
she volunteers with that
provides free medical
procedures for children
with cleft palates.

SPRING 2018

17

Alumna Lisa Regan ’02/M’05
has turned her love of reading
and hobby of writing into a
career as an author. Regan
takes every advantage of
spare minutes in her day to
put words on paper.

A Passion
for Mystery
By Kelley Freund

A

t an age when many other girls would ask for dolls, makeup or video games,
11-year-old Lisa Regan’s parents bought her a typewriter. A passionate
reader and writer, Regan already had binders of stories and poems.
Inspired by the mysteries she had seen on “Scooby-Doo” and the Nancy Drew
books she devoured, the pre-teen sat down to write a full-length mystery novel.
Today, Regan ’02/M’05 is an award-winning novelist with her eighth book
due out this summer. Bloomsburg played a key role in both nurturing her love
for writing and laying the foundation for her success.
Regan chose Bloomsburg because of its proximity to friends in the area. She
attended for a semester before withdrawing due to health issues, but came back
several years later. When she returned, Regan wanted to take as many courses
as possible with Danny Robinson, an influential English professor from her
first semester, but it turns out he wasn’t the only professor who would have an
impact on her writing career.

18
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

“I didn’t have a course that I didn’t like. All the
a rural Pennsylvania town. The town is fictional, but
Regan incorporated aspects of the small communities
professors were so passionate,” she says. “Bloomsburg
is a hidden gem. You’re challenged, and you’re exposed she lived in (including Bloomsburg) and traveled to
when she was a nursing assistant.
to all the enthusiasm and knowledge in people who
In the series’ first book, Vanishing Girls, Quinn is on
really want to launch you into the next stratosphere.”
suspension from the police department when a teenage
Regan considered being a teacher and even went on
girl goes missing. Quinn starts her own investigation
to earn her master’s in curriculum and instruction
and uncovers the town’s dark secrets.
at BU. But while she loved the
The book was released in January,
education program, the passion of her
with the next two in the series
undergraduate literature professors
You can’t wait for the time
coming out in April and August.
inspired an excitement for reading
to write. I write in every nook
Regan finds she creates better
and writing, and it was in these classes
and cranny during my day
with a little bit of chaos, writing
that she felt most in her element. Her
from a love seat in her living room
heart was with writing, so Regan set
that I can find.
while her dog sits on the other
out to work on her novel.
— Lisa Regan ’02/M’05
side, her 10-year-old daughter
She wrote Finding Claire Fletcher
is doing art projects, and her
while working as a nursing assistant.
husband is watching the Military Channel. She keeps a
Regan would work a double shift, get home at 8 a.m.,
notebook in her purse so she can jot down ideas while
write furiously until noon, sleep a few hours and then
waiting at the doctor’s office or standing in line at the
go back to work and do it all over again. During the
post office. “When you have a busy life, you can’t wait
overnight shift, she kept little scraps of paper in her
for the time to write,” says Regan, who also works as a
scrubs pocket, and if she had any down time, she could
be found scribbling the book’s next scene. On her days off, paralegal. “You have to adapt. I write in every nook and
cranny during my day that I can find.”
Regan wrote for 16 hours at a time.
Writing a manuscript can be easier than getting it
Being an author is not always glamorous, says Regan.
published, however. Although Finding Claire Fletcher
And of course there are the rejections and bad reviews
received positive feedback from agents and publishers, that every writer deals with, and sometimes, as Regan
it took Regan four years to find an agent and she was
puts it, it seems like madness to continue.
then turned down by two dozen publishers before a
But she wouldn’t trade the opportunity to create for
small press gave her a shot.
anything. “For me, the creative outlet is the best part,”
In 2013, the eFestival of Words Best of the Independent Regan says. “You sit down at the page and the sky is the
eBook Awards named Finding Claire Fletcher the runnerlimit. You get to go wherever your mind wants to take you.”
up in Best Novel and reached number one on Amazon’s
Kelley Freund is a freelance writer based in Virginia
“kidnapping crime fiction list.” Her second novel, Kill for
You, was the 2014 winner for Best Twist.
For Regan, putting together these mysteries in
a way that doesn’t reveal things too quickly for
readers is so challenging that it’s stimulating
— especially in a way that other genres aren’t
for her. Early on, Regan took a stab at literary
fiction and romance. “What I found was that no
matter what I was trying to write, I was always
injecting more suspenseful elements into it,”
she says. “I couldn’t write a story unless there
was a crime taking place.”
In May of last year, Regan was offered a
three-book contract for her Josie Quinn series,
which revolves around a female detective in
SPRING 2018

19

Focus ON Faculty

BUILDING a Better Soybean
By Eric Foster

Professor George Davis, center, with student Jerome Betz, left, and alumnus Brendon
Juengst, check on the health of Arabidopsis plants, which they are using to develop
ways to make plants able to thrive in poor soil.
20
20

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHOTOS: ERIC FOSTER

WHEN MOST PEOPLE THINK of genetically modified plants, they think of
plants modified to thrive when used with pesticides, or tomatoes designed to
last longer on supermarket shelves.
George Davis, BU professor of biological and allied health sciences, is working
to modify plants so they are more nutritious and able to grow in poor alkaline soil.
Aware of the controversy around genetically modified plants, Davis points
to two numbers. The first, “815 million, the number of hungry people in the
world,” says Davis. “And 2 billion, the number of people in the world suffering
from iron deficiency, anemia.”
The soil in sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, is very alkaline, which makes it
difficult to grow crops rich in iron, explains Davis. The alkalinity of the soils binds
iron so most plants can’t absorb it. Grasses, however, are an exception, as they secrete
molecules that are strong enough to break the iron’s bond with the alkaline soil.
Davis, assisted by graduate student Jerome Betz ’17/’19M and former student
Brendon Juengst ’15, now a doctoral student in plant molecular biology at Penn
State, is developing a way to insert specific proteins from grasses into other
types of plants. “Few students have completed the trajectory from student to
colleague as quickly as Betz and Jeungst have,” says Davis.
“The goal of the research is to help feed people without enough iron in their diet,”
says Betz. “If we can engineer soybeans so they grow in alkaline soil, that will have a
big impact.” The impact will also be felt in the U.S. For example, in North Dakota,
soybean yields are reduced by 30 percent due to alkaline soils. In addition to being
important to human nutrition, iron is an important element for plant health.
Betz, who transferred to BU from Luzerne County Community College as a
junior, was attracted to research opportunities in molecular biology. “At BU, it’s
great that students can request to work with faculty on research,” says Betz.
Davis has obtained a patent for his method of inserting the beneficial proteins
into plants and has already worked on several kinds of plants, including tomatoes.

A Legacy of Commitment
Dr. Brian Johnson’s commitment to Bloomsburg University
began in 1967 when he joined the Department of Geography
and Earth Science as a professor of geography and planning.
That is where he would stay for the remainder of his career
as an educator until he retired in 1999.
A lot has changed since then, including the name of the
department, which is now the environmental, geographical
and geological sciences or EGGS department. However,
one thing that remains constant is Johnson’s dedication to
his department and its students.
“This is where I spent most of my career, and I have very
strong positive feelings about BU,” Johnson says. “I’ve built
so many great relationships with students and colleagues
that I am still in touch with today. That’s why I wanted to
give back.”
In 2011, Johnson and his wife established the Professor
Brian and Marty Johnson Geography and Planning
Scholarship.

“During my time at BU I encountered several students
who struggled financially,” Johnson says. “I had been thinking
about establishing a scholarship, and after discussing it with my
wife, we felt it was the right time to go ahead with it. When
we found we could establish a scholarship and also increase our
giving through contributions from my IRA, it really seemed
like a great way to show our support to the university.”
In addition to his continued involvement on campus as
a donor and active member of the BU community, Johnson
also kept in touch with a group of retired faculty members
who would meet each Tuesday morning.
It was through those meetings that Johnson learned of
the then deteriorating health of one of his good friends
and mentors, the late Dr. John Enman, a fellow retired BU
geography professor.
Johnson, along with several other members of the EGGS
department - past and present - came together to help Dr.
Enman, which inspired Enman to include his Bloomsburg
University department in his estate plans.

To learn more about how you can create your own legacy at BU, visit

giving.bloomu.edu/plannedgiving

SPRING 2018

21

LEARNING LOCALLY,

Working Globally
By Tom Schaeffer

I

don’t have to train them. They come ready to work,” says
Ronn Cort, describing the Bloomsburg University students his
company has hired since he first visited campus in 2013. Cort,
president and COO of Sekisui Polymer Innovations (SPI), LLC,
needed employees who understood supply chain management,
logistics and how to move their product into the international
marketplace. He found that BU graduates were ready to do just that.

“It’s easy to make things in a lab or
create prototypes,” Cort says. “The
hard part is then commercializing
that product and figuring out how to
distribute it. At Bloomsburg, students
are learning how do to that.”
SPI is the thermoplastic sheet
manufacturing division of Sekisui
Chemical Co., Ltd., an $11 billion
company headquartered in Tokyo.
The Bloomsburg plant produces
specialty polymers used for
components in airline passenger seats
and tray tables, trains, and medical
devices throughout the world.
“If you touch a tray table in any
aircraft on any of the commercial
airlines flying today, there is an 85
percent chance that the material
used for that tray table was made
in Bloomsburg,” Cort says. “Our
focus is on creating products that
will reduce the environmental
impact on the next generation as
the global population increases and
the production of these materials is
growing faster than ever before.”
Since 2005, Cort, who lives in
New Jersey, has been on a mission
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

to grow global business from the
Bloomsburg plant. Before his arrival
at SPI, they had little sales outside of
the U.S. In 2012, the company netted
$32 million in international sales
revenue. Following that success,
Cort considered leaving to pursue
another job offer, but his employers
convinced him to stay.
“I was ready to leave. I thought I
had accomplished all I could here,”
Cort says. “That was because I was
only seeing profit and not people.”
In his first six months as president,
that mindset changed. Cort spent all
of his time on the production floor,

assessing the business, and quickly
learned that the answer to how he
would grow the company had been
there the whole time.
“I learned that we had incredibly
talented people working here who had
brilliant ideas,” Cort says. “They were
nearly geniuses, but they didn’t know it.”
In 2013, Cort, who had no prior
affiliation with Bloomsburg University,
was invited by professors John and
Christian Grandzol to speak at the
Zeigler College of Business. The
experience opened his eyes to
an abundant resource just a few
miles away.
“I found students who were working
hard to do something meaningful with
their lives,” says Cort. “I was blown away
by their work ethic and their drive.”
Immediately after visiting BU,
Cort ensured that SPI was present
at events where BU students were
learning about potential career
opportunities. He also invested in
the university through Professional U

Cort, far right, speaks on a panel as part of the Zeigler
College of Business annual fall Business Conference.

PHOTOS: TOM SCHAEFFER

Cort with four recent BU grads currently working at SPI. From left: Keara Hozella ’14, communications coordinator, Kyle Keefer ’16, commodity
buyer, Blake Iman ’15, aviation business coordinator and Brooke Felker ’16, accounts payable specialist.

event sponsorships and increased
scholarship donations.
Cort has hired four BU graduates
since 2015 and currently employs 13
Bloomsburg alumni at SPI in positions
ranging from marketing and
communications to international
purchasing.
Blake Iman ’15, a business
management graduate from Muncy,
began her career in SPI’s customer
collaboration department just after
graduation thanks to a connection
she made during a visit to the
Bloomsburg plant for an assignment
for her supply chain class.
“I’ve been a part of SPI for about
two and a half years, starting in
customer collaboration and then
transitioning into my current position
as aviation business coordinator,”
says Iman. “It has been an amazing
opportunity to come to my office
in Bloomsburg every day and work
with different people from more
than 30 countries. I’ve been to
Germany twice for business trips.
There is so much to learn every day
from that.”

Kyle Keefer ’16 also started
Brooke Felker ’14, an accounting
working at SPI directly after
major from Bloomsburg, has been
graduation, having been introduced
with SPI for just over a year as an
to the company as a supply chain
accounts payable specialist and
management major. Keefer, a
Keara Hozella ’14, an English major
native of nearby Benton, was often
and gender studies minor from Pine
intrigued about what they did at the
Grove, started with the company in
Bloomsburg plant as he drove by on
2017 in the role of communications
his way to campus.
coordinator.
“The first time I ever learned anything
“At first I thought maybe we were
about Sekisui was when we went there just excited about hiring BU students
with our supply
because of our
chain operations
proximity to the
After seeing what these
class to tour the
school,” says
facility,” says
students have brought to our Cort, “But after
Keefer. “I was
seeing what
company,
I
would
put
them
up
amazed to learn
these students
against people from any school have brought to
that this plant
in Bloomsburg
our company, I
in the country.
was shipping
would put them
—
Ronn
Cort,
president
and
COO,
commercial
up against people
Sekisui Polymer Innovations, LLC
products all over
from any school in
the world.”
the country.”
After touring the facility, Keefer
“We’re a part of the community,”
said that SPI had reached out to BU
Cort says. “If we’re not investing
in search of applications from supply locally, then we’re not investing in
chain management students and he
ourselves or our future and that
applied right away. Keefer has been
would be a big mistake.”
with company since he graduated and Tom Schaeffer ’02 is communications manager
works as a commodity buyer.
for the BU Foundation.
SPRING 2018

23

A Husky at Heart
J
By Tom
BySchaeffer
Thomas Schaeffer

ohn Dorin is not a Bloomsburg University
graduate, but he will always be a Husky.
Both Bloomsburg University and the BU
Foundation recently honored the 81-year-old Taylor
native for his 29 years of service to the Bloomsburg
community as a chairman of both the Council of
Trustees and the Foundation Board of Directors.
Through a lifetime of public service, Dorin has
inspired members of the various communities he has
so loyally served. His most significant contributions
were in Montoursville, where he retired in 2017 after
a 36-year run as the borough’s mayor.
Dorin and his wife, Ann, moved to Montoursville
after he graduated from Temple University with a
degree in engineering and he took a job with GTE
Sylvania Electrical Products, Inc. They fell in love
with the small-town lifestyle and Dorin didn’t
waste any time connecting to his new community.
He quickly became well known among neighbors
and business owners and revealed a touch of
showmanship — playing the cordovox accordion with
three friends in a band, Just Four.
In Montoursville, Dorin also discovered an affinity
for public service. “When I was at Sylvania, we had
several issues in Williamsport that got me thinking
about getting more involved in the community,” says
Dorin. “A position opened on the borough council in
1977, so I ran for it.”
From that moment on, Dorin became the face
of the community. From his second term on the
borough council, through his nine consecutive terms as
mayor, he never lost an election. In addition to serving
on a myriad of state councils and committees, he
also served as president of the Pennsylvania State
Association of Boroughs.
In the 1980s, all three of Dorin’s children were
attending Bloomsburg University. Dorin saw potential
in what BU could become. “I liked what was happening
at the university,” says Dorin. “I knew it could serve
as a valuable resource for the members of my own
community going forward.”
In 1983, soon after becoming mayor of Montoursville,

24
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BLOOMSBURG
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY OF
OF PENNSYLVANIA
PENNSYLVANIA

Dorin joined the BU Council of Trustees. A year later,
he was elected chairman, a position he held until 1989.
As chairman, Dorin helped resurrect the BU
Foundation, strengthened town-gown relations
and built in-roads with community leaders. After
stepping down from the trustees, Dorin joined
the Bloomsburg University Foundation Board of
Directors, where he served as a director until 2014.
His passion for Bloomsburg was as strong as his
passion for every other project that he took on,
with his loyalty equally as steadfast. Recalling all
the boards and organizations he remained involved
in throughout his career, he credits his family for
helping him to balance it all. “I don’t know how I did
all that really,” says Dorin. “I think I even managed
to play some golf in there too. The key was that I had
a beautiful wife and three great children who were
very supportive.”
Dorin’s son, Jim, graduated from BU in 1984,
followed by his daughter Cynthia ’85 and his
youngest daughter, Michelle ’87.
“Looking back, I don’t remember a time thinking
about my dad being on campus frequently while
we were there,” says Michelle. “Though as a young
college student, I’m sure that subconsciously,
knowing his position did help me make ‘better
decisions’ about how I spent my free time.”
Loyalty appears to be a Dorin family trait.
After graduating from Bloomsburg, Cynthia began
teaching in the Southern Fulton School District in
Warfordsburg and has worked there for 30 years.
Michelle took her first job after BU at Weis Markets
and is now the director of sales. Jim, who passed
away in 2006 at the age of 44, was a sales manager at
WEPCO Material Handling Specialists in Pittston.
“Eight years ago, when I found my diploma and
had it framed, I realized that my dad’s signature was
at the bottom,” Michelle says. “It means more to me
today than it did back then, and I look at it every day.
It’s a nice reminder for me about my dad’s sacrifices
and how much he gave back to the community.”

Tom Schaeffer ’02 is communications manager for the BU Foundation.

John Dorin’s long service to BU,
its students and the larger community
is a testimony to his sterling
character. His remarkable example
of leadership, serving with humility,
loyalty and dedication calls on us not
only to aspire for improvement but to
actively to create better communities.

PHOTOS: TOM SCHAEFFER

— Jerome Dvorak, executive director,
BU Foundation

John Dorin in front of the Montoursville municipal building that
has been named in his honor. Dorin retired as Montoursville
mayor after serving 36 years.

SU
PR
MIM
NE
G R2 0
20
1 81 8

25

husky notes
’60s

Marsha Loeper Hubler ’68 published
The Keystone Stables series for kids with
Harper Collins/Zondervan from 2004 to 2008.
Hubler is a best-selling author with over
220,000 copies of her eight books in print.
Dennis Siegmann ’68 retired from teaching
and coaching wrestling at Northeastern
Oklahoma A&M College. Siegmann resides
in Sarasota, Fla.

’70s

David J. Lee ’75 retired from Susquehanna
Community School District after 34.5 years
of service. He taught psychology, U.S.
government and world history. He and his
wife, Susan Nied Lee, reside in Susquehanna.
Lisa Mortensen ’75/’76M retired speechlanguage pathologist from Maryland public
schools, is the author of the children’s book
Aiden Goes to Speech.
Allan Weikel ’76 retired as a engineering
manager after a 36-year career in the nuclear energy field.

’80s

David Bulzoni ’81 is vice president,
government banking sales at FNCB Bank,
Wilkes-Barre. Bulzoni is responsible for
managing and developing local government
banking relationships. Previously, he was the
business administrator for the city of Scranton
and township supervisor in Newton Township.
Lisa Dellinger Smithgall ’83 is chief
nursing officer of Ballad Health, Kingsport,
Tenn. Smithgall was the vice president
of patient care services and chief nursing
officer of Holston Valley Medical Center.
She also served as associate vice president
of nursing at Geisinger Medical Center in
Danville, and vice president of women’s and
children’s strategic service unit at Mountain
States Health Alliance.
Charles F. Warner ’83 was acknowledged
in the book A Surgeon with Custer at the
Little Big Horn: James DeWolf ’s Diary and
Letters, 1876. Warner, a collector and evaluator
of original 19th century images (daguerreotypes, ambrotypes and tintypes), shared his

26

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

knowledge of these types of early photographs
with book editor Todd Harburn. Warner’s
private collection of images includes images of
Seventh Calvary soldiers in civilian settings
and and he discovered an image that was
published in the book.
Philip Husick ’85 is the publisher of Tioga
Publishing Company, Wellsboro, where
he oversees four newspapers in Tioga and
Potter counties. Husick was formerly with the
Elmira Star-Gazette for 18 years, starting as a
sales representative and working his way up to
become the display manager.
Jeffrey Sutherland ’86 is Cape May County,
N.J., prosecutor. Sutherland was in private
law practice for 27 years in South Jersey,
leading The Sutherland Law Firm, P.C., in
South Seaville and Linwood since 2006.
Annette Lint Jurkowski ’89 is an assistant
Bank Secrecy Act compliance officer at
Wayne Bank, Honesdale. Jurkowski joined
the bank in November of 1997 and most
recently served as the BSA/compliance
associate.

’90s

Michelle Seibert Appel ’90 became president
of the Association for Institutional Research
(AIR) at the organization’s Forum in Orlando
in May. With over 4,000 members from
more than 1.800 higher education institutions
and organizations across the world, AIR helps
higher education institutions use data, information and analysis.
Steven Piascik ’90 is partner and chief
financial officer of Goalz Restaurant Group,
Cheyenne, Wy. Piascik has over 28 years of
financial expertise with a focus on complex
accounting and tax consulting. He founded
PIASCIK, a boutique tax and financial firm.
Prior to founding his firm, he served as a senior
tax manager for international accounting firm
KPMG LLP, where he managed finances for
technology and emerging growth companies.
Barry Eichner ’92 is the co-editor in chief
of Lipgloss + Aftershave, a personal care
and lifestyle review site. Eichner began
his spa career in 2000, working as vice
president for a chain of medical spas. He
has been an industry consultant since 2011,
specializing in digital media strategy and

content creation. He writes for national spa
trade publications and is a published editorial photographer and a speaker at various spa
industry trade shows.
Jason S. Kirsch ’96M
is a senior counselor with
PRworks in Harrisburg.
He brings to the role
more than 20 years
of strategic public
relations and marketing
experience and holds
the Accredited in Public Relations credential,
a mark of distinction in the profession.

bank for 11 years.

Tammy Rae
Benscoter ’97 was
promoted to assistant
vice president, business
solutions specialist at
First Columbia Bank &
Trust Co., Bloomsburg.
She has been with the

Heather Laubach Pascual ’98 is executive
director of the Danville Area Community
Center. She was previously the program
director at Chrysler’s employee fitness centers in Newark, Del., Agilent Technologies
in Wilmington, Del., and Campbell’s Soup
WHQ in Camden, N.J.
David A. Bradbury ’99 is a certified alcohol
and drug counselor and a certified DUI
instructor at Lehigh Valley Health Network.
Jason Brubaker ’99 is vice president of
worldwide sales at Distribber, Los Angeles.
Thomas L. Murray, Jr. ’99 has opened a sex
and couples therapy practice in Greensboro,
N.C., after 10 years serving as director of
the University of North Carolina School
of the Arts’ Counseling Center. Murray
is a certified AASECT sex therapist and
licensed marriage and family therapist in
North Carolina and Florida.
Jeffrey Witts ’99 is vice president for NBT
Bank of Norwich, Vt. Witts has more than
20 years of experience in the banking industry,
working in retail banking and as a branch
manager. He is the retail training manager
for the bank’s branch network with more
than 150 locations in six states.

’00s

David Marcolla ’00 joined Addison Wolfe
Real Estate in New Hope.
Tracy Wirth ’00 is commander in the
United States Coast Guard. She has been
stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii, but will be
transferring June 2018 to US Coast Guard
Sector North Carolina in Wilmington, N.C.
She will take over the duties as response
department head where she will be responsible
for search and rescue, law enforcement,
and environmental response for the entire
North Carolina area.
Angela Shoffler Charnosky ’01 is the
director of the Project Management Office
at Geisinger Health System, Danville.

2018 ALUMNI AWARDS HONOREES | The 2018 Alumni Awards honorees were named at a banquet
May 5. Shown from left are: BU tennis coach Martin Coyne ’83 (Distinguished Service Award); former
Ames True Temper President and CEO (retired) Duane Greenly ’72 (William T. Derricott ’66 Volunteer
of the Year Award); Pennsylvania Bar Association Director of Member Services, Elizabeth Swivel ’84
(Distinguished Service Award); family of longtime BU Board of Trustee member, LaRoy “Lee” Davis
’67 (Distinguished Service Award), son Glenn and wife Hedy Davis; President and CEO of the United
Way of Columbia County, Adrienne Mael ’08 (Maroon and Gold Excellence Award).

Lamar Oglesby ’07 is assistant director of
grants and contracts accounting at Rutgers,
The State University of New Jersey. Oglesby
is responsible for the financial management
and post-award administration of Rutgers’
research enterprise. Lamar completed
graduate coursework at Temple University
in Educational Leadership — Higher Education,
while also earning a graduate certificate in
Steven Scott ’03 is a marketing instructor
at Bloomsburg University. He teaches Principles Institutional Effectiveness. He is a Certified
Research Administraor, earning the
of Marketing, Advertising Management,
and Retail Management. He previously was profession’s only recognized certification
an instructor at McCann School of Business. from the Research Administrators
Advisory Council.
Michael Sapyta ’04 CFP, CLU, is vice
Edward Pawlak ’07M has joined the
president, Advanced Planning Financial
partnership group at The Hartman Agency,
Services Monitor Worldwide at Highland
Inc., Williamsport. Pawlak is on the Lycoming
Capital Brokerage, Inc. in Amman, Jordan.
County United Way Board, serving on the
Sapyta is a member of the Association for
steering committee as well as the chair of
Advanced Life Underwriting (AALU), the
the Panel III Citizen's Review Board. He
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council, and
also serves on the Hope Enterprises Board
the Financial Planning Association.
of Directors.
Jamie Longazel ’05, associate professor
Alex Lipyanik ’09 is assistant vice president
in The John Jay College of Criminal Justice,
City University of New York (CUNY) lectured and commercial lending officer at QNB
Bank in Quakertown.
on his current book, Undocumented Fears:
Immigration and the Politics of Divide and
Megan Smith Tunon ’09M is a council
Conquer in Hazleton, Pennsylvania at the
member in Etna, Maine.
Liberal Arts symposium in October. A native
of Hazleton, Longazel earned his Ph.D. at the
University of Delaware, where he was the
Outstanding Graduate Student, and began his Ashley Roble Carnuccio ’13 is an enrollment
specialist for Lackawanna College’s Sunbury
career at the University of Dayton.
Center.
Trisha Grace ’06 is director of development
at The Arc of Cumberland & Perry Counties Lauren Ellis ’13 is assistant women’s
basketball coach at Colgate University.
Foundation, Carlisle.
Nicholas James Seier ’01, CPA, CGMA, is
a senior manager at CBIZ MHM, LLC. He
provides financial, asset securitization and due
diligence reviews on collateral/warehouse
lines of credit to the financial services
community, including private equity firms,
hedge funds, and venture capital firms.

’10s

She started coaching as an assistant at
Widener for the 2013-14 season, then
jumped to Salisbury, Md. for two seasons.
Paige Ormont ’13 spoke on "Finding the
Perfect Job" at BU’s Liberal Arts symposium in October 2017. Ormont was a communications studies major, sociology minor and
has been a senior account executive for the
Porter Group in Princeton, N.J. Her talk
addressed how to write a resume, network,
and interviewing techniques.
Kacy Allen ’14M is a senior associate at
The Siegfried Group, LLP, Atlanta, Ga.
Most recently, he was a senior associate at
KPMG, Amstelveen, Netherlands.
Briana Gallagher Button ’14 is community
outreach and social justice programs
coordinator at Kings College in Wilkes-Barre.
She is responsible for individual and group
volunteer efforts, as well as managing the
social justice education programs, such
as Hunger for Justice Week. Button was a
kindergarten teacher from 2015 to 2017 at
Rice Elementary School.
Michael Bryan ’17 has been accepted to the
TAPIF program (Teaching Assistant Program in France). The program is a joint
initiative of the French Ministry of National
Education, and the cultural services division
of the French embassy. A French major at
BU, he has been offered a position to teach
English in Nantes, France, for one semester.

SPRING 2018

27

husky notes

the line up
MARRIAGES
Christopher Peck ’00 & Alicia
Youngblut, Nov. 20, 2017

Colleen Logue ’12 &
Brent Bull, Sept. 14, 2013

Shawna Beyer ’03 & Dave
Latorre ’05/’08M, Jun. 3, 2017

Emily DuBruille ’14 & Aaron
Krause, July 28, 2017

Chris Ashcroft ’07 &
Valerie Herb, Sept. 30, 2017

Erin Long ’14 & Thomas
Machovec ’14, Sept. 24, 2017

Mandie Jordan ’09 & Dustin Brooke Miller ’14 & Adam
Blannard ’14, Aug. 25, 2017
Hendricks, Sept. 9, 2017

Erin Long ’14 to Thomas Machovec ’14

Bloomsburg alumni Erin Long, RN ’14 (Ronkonkoma, N.Y., nursing 2014)
and Thomas Machovec, CPA ’14 (Dallas, accounting 2014) were married
Sept. 24, 2017 on Long Island, N.Y. with fellow alumni in the wedding and
in attendance. Shown from left are: David Arnold, James Gould ’14, Jake
Ribecky ’14, bride Erin Long ’14, groom Thomas Machovec ’14, Joshua
Matz ’17, Geoffrey Matz ’17, and Masy Tincher ’17.

Alex Lipyanik ’09 & Gwendolyn Kasey Jones ’15 & Zachary
Gilbert ’15, Sept. 9, 2017
Freed, Jun. 6, 2015
Brittney D. Parks ’09 & Andre Angela Lewis ’15 & Garrick
M. Robinson ’09, Sept. 8, 2017 Hakanson, Sept. 24, 2017

BIRTHS
Marissa Barrett ’99 and husband Eric Harvilicz, a son,
Cassius Robert, June 15, 2017
Kelly Waugh Bankes ’05 and husband Drew ’03, a son,
Landon Joseph, Oct. 10, 2017
Crystal Litzenbauer Kovacs ’05 and husband Charles ’05,
a son, Christian Michael, Mar. 13, 2017
Hayley Mutter Quigley ’05 and husband Zachary ’06, a
daughter, Tanner May, Aug. 8, 2017
Jamie Ace Bisbing ’07 and husband Shawn, a daughter,
Charlotte Pamela on Sept. 25, 2017
Jessica Corliss Habas ’07 and husband Owen, a daughter,
Teagan Olivia, Sept. 5, 2017
Julie Jakubowski Stone ’07 and husband Ragon, triplets,
Sawyer, Brooks and Graeme, May 25, 2017

Chris Ashcroft ’14 to Valerie Herb

Chris Ashcroft, ’07 was married to Valerie (Herb) Ashcroft on Sept
30, 2017. Bloomsburg alumni at the wedding were, from left, back row:
Eric Nolting ’07, Rob Kulak ’05, Bill Heras ’04/’06, Jarryd Bauder
’07, Mark Malcein 07, Matt Green ’07, Tim Flipovits ’08, Gabe
Hutchinson ’05, Jon Nemeth ’07. Front row: Caroline Scott ’09, Nicole
(Bunting) Bauder ’07, Chris Ashcroft ’07, Valerie Ashcroft, Brittany
(Kleiner) Hoask ’10, Rachael (Bennington) Hutchinson ’08, Jackelyn
(Featherston) Smith ’08.

28

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Kelly Ziegler Lisachenko ’09 and husband Gregory,
a daughter, Anastasia Lee, May 12, 2017
Kristen Bueki Scheier ’11 and husband Michael ’08,
a daughter, Noelle Sophia, Nov. 24, 2017
Tara Beck McGuire ’11 and husband Ryan, a son,
Brooks Thomas, Sept.1, 2017
Colleen Logue Bull ’12 and husband Brent, a daughter,
Taylor Mackenzie, Feb. 4, 2015 and a son, Brendan Matthew,
June 16, 2017
Curtis Snowden ’16/’18M and wife Devon, adopted a
daughter, Tasha Ann

IN MEMORIAM
LaRoy G. “Lee” Davis

1967 and an M.A. in economics
and sociology from College of New
Bloomsburg’s longest-serving
Jersey in Trenton in 1972.
trustee, LaRoy G. “Lee” Davis,
Lee was awarded two Fulbrightage 73, of Feasterville, died Feb. 28,
Hays
Scholarships to study abroad;
at Jefferson-Abington Hospice in
in India in 1971 and Egypt in 1974.
Warminster.
He was a past member of the
Raised in Ashland, Lee was a
Pennsylvania Council for the Social
resident of Feasterville for 45 years.
Studies and the World Affairs Council.
He served as a teacher at Bensalem
Lee was a former legislative aide and
High School, retiring in 1999 after
education adviser for former state
33 years of service.
Sen. H. Craig Lewis, D-6th District,
A past member of the Bloomsburg
and a former legislative aide for
University’s Council of Trustees,
former state Rep. Edward Burns,
Lee served for 37 years, the second
R-18th District.
longest serving trustee in the
He is survived by his wife Hedy
Wolf.
He
represented
BU
on
the
Pennsylvania System of Higher
Fuchs
Davis, a son Glenn J. Davis
Pennsylvania Association of Council
Education. First appointed in 1979
and his daughter-in-law Amy, sisters
of Trustees.
by Gov. Richard Thornburgh, he
June Brenneman and Lynn Davis
He
earned
a
B.S.
in
comprehensive
served every succeeding governor
(Sandra) and grandson Grayson Davis.
social
sciences
from
Bloomsburg
in
including current Gov. Tom

OBITUARIES
Richard Nolan ’39
Stella Williams Grant ’44
Betty Burnham Rosell ’45
Eileen Falvey McGovern ’46
Dorothy Hornberger Rhodes ’47
Rose Marie Kraiser Schieber ’48
Margaret Suchy Baron ’49
Wayne Von Stetten ’50
Jacob Dailey ’52
George A. Smith, Sr. ’52
Mary Lou Krunkosky ’53
Rudolph Holtzman ’55
Harvey C. Boughner ’56
William Harrell ’57
Donald Hutchinson ’57
Joseph Barros ’58
Wilbur Frable ’59
Mary Pomes Hess ’59
Ruth Davis Ritter ’59
Sylvester Schicatano ’59
Donald Straub ’59

Emma Kovalevich Traher ’59
Daniel Fegley ’60
Michael Wisdo ’61
Gloria Gilbert Boyer ’62
Thomas Foley ’62
Patricia Hetzendorf ’62
Gary Fallon’63
James Diehl ’64
Joan Dahlhausen Fattorini ’64
Richard Greenly ’64
Karen Nespoli Lylo ’64
Robert Wiest ’64
Edward Beck ’65
Mary McCord ’66
Sandra Ryan Olson ’66
LaRoy Davis ’67
Richard Greco ’67
Donna Morgan Rhodes ’67
Barbara Schall James ’69
I. Ray Kline ’69

Michael Smith ’69
David Kozma ’70
Karl Kramer ’70
Kenneth Solomon ’70
K. Vicki Gross Sproesser ’70
Ronald Cianni ’71
David Homa ’71
William Leitzel ’71
Edward Thompson ’71
Marijean Gattelli Vlassenko ’71
Jackie Scheuren-Klees ’72
Martin Kleiner ’73
John Zalesak ’73
Joseph Kempski ’74
Michael Warfel ’74
Mary Goodenow ’75
Mary Bowersox ’76
Patricia Yost Essip ’78
Carole Ackerman ’79
Donna Beaver ’79

Scott Findlay ’79
Thomas Portanova ’79
Marion Smith ’79
Frank Coll ’81
Harold Egli ’82
John Hancock ’83
Barbara Sibson ’83
Harriet Yeager Blank ’84
Mark Bonshak ’86
Diane Alexander Stone Kent ’92
Nancy Anthony ’94
Matthew Fidler ’94
Mary LaCrosse ’94
Ryan Yanoshak ’03
Pamela Collier ’06
David Rute ’07
Jacee Bell ’09
Thomas Lebeau ’12
Derek Day ’16
Curtis Harris ’16

Send information to: magazine@bloomu.edu

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine • Waller Administration Building • 400 East Second Street • Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301

SPRING 2018

29

ON THE HILL

sports

A Bond Built on Baseball
By David Leisering, Interim Sports Information Director

Austin Edgette and 9-year-old ThomasJames (TJ) Skinner watch a fireworks display.

BASEBALL HEROES DON’T HAVE TO PLAY in the
major leagues. Just ask 9-year-old Thomas-James (TJ)
Skinner.
This story begins in Fayetteville, N.C., in the summer
of 2017 when BU outfielder Austin Edgette, Exton, was
playing for the Fayetteville Swamp Dogs in the Coastal
Plains League.
TJ, who lives in nearby Hope Mills, N.C., was at the
game for his team’s postseason banquet. It was his first
season of playing “regular” baseball. TJ has autism and,
until then, had only played Buddy Baseball — a sports
program for special needs children.
Edgette was the first player TJ noticed at the game
because he happened to wear the same number, four,
and was also an outfielder.
TJ really wanted Edgette to sign his bat. “I told him
to go ask and he shook his head no,” says Kathleen Skinner,
TJ’s mother. “Speaking to people on his own is a very big
hurdle for him.” But a few minutes later TJ returned
30

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

and excitedly told his mother all about Edgette. “After the
game, I thanked Austin for taking a few minutes
and why it meant so much that TJ had talked to him.”
TJ and his mother went to another Swamp Dogs’
game days later and Edgette again made it a point to
talk with TJ. The boy was ecstatic.
“His mom told me that TJ is often excluded and
bullied due to his autism,” says Edgette. “I made it
a point to become friends with him because I hate
bullying and nobody should be excluded for something
they have no control over.”
They have become fast friends. Before Swamp Dogs
home games, TJ and Edgette play catch and say a prayer.
One night the team held a fireworks night. TJ is afraid of
loud noises but wanted to face his fears with his friend,
so the two of them watched together on the field.
“Austin appreciates TJ for who he is. They text and
talk on the phone each week,” says Skinner. “Austin
wants to see how he is doing in school and his practices.
Austin is so supportive and caring that TJ is able to be
himself. The friendship helped bring out TJ’s personality.”
TJ drew his own Edgette number four jersey to wear
to school. That was until Christmas when BU head
coach Mike Collins surprised TJ with his very own
Edgette jersey and BU hat.
In January, TJ and his mother turned the tables and
surprised the team by coming to Bloomsburg for the
Huskies winter baseball camp. “They couldn’t believe that
he would make such a long trip just for baseball camp,” says
Skinner. “But, it wasn’t about the camp — it was about
learning and playing baseball with his best friend.”
Several months later, the Huskies made their spring
trip to Wilson, N.C. — a short trip for TJ and his
mother. They were at every game, with TJ serving as
the team’s bat boy. “I was hoping Coach would ask me
since I already had my batting helmet in the van,” jokes
TJ, who calls the team his “Husky family.” In turn, the
team has dubbed him “the littlest Husky.”
“Playing baseball gives me a platform to use for
something greater than just the game,” says Edgette. “I
help him find purpose, I help him feel special, and in
return I get a loving, funny, and great friend.”

TJ Skinner with the Huskies in North Carolina during spring break.

“I feel completely blessed by their relationship.
Austin has reached a part of TJ that, as his
mother, I can’t reach,” says Skinner. “Austin
has bolstered his confidence, his personality,
and his passion. Austin doesn’t allow him to use
his autism as an excuse. He gives TJ room to be
himself but holds him to the standard that even if
he doesn’t succeed, at least he can always say that
he gave it his best effort. And, as a parent, that is
an important lesson for any child to learn.”
“TJ’s relationship with Austin is wonderful, but
it’s hardly a surprise,” says Collins. “Our studentathletes love baseball and sharing their passion
for the game with kids is very natural for them.
We get as much from him as he does from us.”
“Our guys understand we are a small part of
a greater whole and we have a responsibility
to support everyone around us,” says Collins.
“When people speak about Huskies baseball, I
hope they talk of our victories, but we have failed
if that’s all they talk about.”
“I really like being best friends with Austin,”
says TJ. “He’s nice and funny and is always there
for me — even when I’m sad. He helps bring me
up. He is my best friend for life.”

Austin Edgette and TJ Skinner share a hug after camp.

David Leisering is interim sports information director.

Austin Edgette and TJ
Skinner pray before a
Swamp Dogs game.

SPRING 2018

31

Bloomsburg Announces Apparel
Deal with Under Armour
GLOBAL APPAREL MANUFACTURER Under
Armour has entered into a five-partnership with BU to
be the official outfitter of the Huskies’ 21 NCAA varsity
athletic programs.
“We have taken significant steps to grow the BU Husky
brand and take pride in partnering with the industry
leader Under Armour,” says athletics director Michael
McFarland. “Our collaborative partnership with Under
Armour affiliates us with a successful and powerful
leader in athletic apparel. Our student-athletes and staff
will benefit greatly from this partnership.”
As part of the five-year agreement with options for
renewal in subsequent years, Under Armour will provide
on-field and training gear for Bloomsburg’s 21 varsity sports.
Additionally, Under Armour will outfit members of the
athletic department including coaches and staff. Teams
are expected to be fully compliant beginning in 2018-19.

Wheelan Named Head
Men’s Soccer Coach
DANNY WHEELAN ’14M has
returned to Bloomsburg as the
new head men's soccer coach,
after four seasons as assistant
coach for the women's soccer
program at Barry University in
Florida. Wheelan replaces Paul
Payne, BU’s all-time winningest
coach, who retired at the end of
the 2018 season.
Wheelan served as Payne’s graduate assistant coach
in 2012 and 2013 while also serving in the same capacity
for the women’s soccer program in 2012. He completed
his Master of Business Administration degree from BU
in the summer of 2014.

32

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Mortellite Becomes Men’s
Basketball All-Time Leading Scorer
IT WAS A HISTORIC SEASON for men’s basketball
standout Christian Mortellite ’18. On a layup against
Kutztown at the Nelson Field House on Jan. 31, he
became the program’s all-time leading scorer when he
surpassed Mike Ellzy’s 1993–97 record of 1,911 points.
Then on Feb. 10, Mortellite became just the eighth
player in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
(PSAC) history to record 300 career three-pointers.
Finally on Feb. 21, he became just the 12th player in
PSAC history to record 2,000 career points.
Mortellite finished his career with 2,037 career points —
ninth on the PSAC’s all-time scoring list, while his 314
career three-pointers put him in a tie for sixth in league
history. Mortellite earned All-PSAC East First Team
honors for the third consecutive season, joining Ellzy
as the only two players in program history to earn the
honor in three straight years.
Mortellite departs as the program’s record-holder in
eight categories, including most career points (2,037),
most points in a season (613), most three-pointers in
a season (110), most career three-pointers made (314),
most career free throws made (441), most three-point
attempts in a season (255), and most career three-point
attempts (751). He also broke the school-record for highest
career free throw percentage at 88.7% (441-of-497).

Coyne Announces Retirement Following 2018-19 Season

Marty Coyne, head coach,
men’s and women’s tennis

HEAD MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS
COACH Marty Coyne ’83 has announced
that he will retire from the position after the
conclusion of the 2018-19 spring tennis season.
Coyne is in his 25th season as the head
coach of the men’s program and 23rd season
coaching the women’s squad. Between the
two programs, Coyne has 561 victories.
“I never wanted to stay too long and got to
the point where I felt like I was burned out
and not willing to give that energy and effort
to the teams,” says Coyne. “We are at a point
right now where I feel like it is a comfortable
spot to turn it over to a new coach.”
Coyne has led the BU tennis teams to 29
NCAA Division II Championship appearances,
16 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference

(PSAC) team titles, 55 PSAC singles
champions, and 21 PSAC doubles champions.
He is a 14-time PSAC Coach of the Year
award winner and an ITA Regional Coach of
the Year recipient four times.
A former player at Bloomsburg, Coyne
holds the distinction as being the only
person to win PSAC titles as both a player
and as a coach. He posted a career singles
record of 112-29 and is one of only three
players in PSAC history to win singles,
doubles, and team championships in each
of his four seasons. In 1998, Coyne was
inducted into the BU Athletic Hall of Fame
and then, in 2013, became a member of the
United States Tennis Association Middle
States Hall of Fame.

All-American Honors for Winter Athletes
JUNIOR KIRSTEN O’MALLEY of
the indoor track and field team earned
her first collegiate All-American
honor when she finished 10th in the
triple jump at the 2018 NCAA Division
II Indoor National Championships
in March. She became just the second
indoor All-American in program
history as she joined two-time long
jump All-American Kaylee Caruso.
O’Malley’s best mark of 12.12 meters
at the championships broke her own
school record of 12.06 meters she set
earlier in the season.
Kirsten O’Malley

In the pool, redshirt senior Nikki
Young ’18 earned a pair of AllAmerican honors at the 2018 NCAA
Division II National Championships
finishing sixth-place in the 100-yard
breaststroke and 12th in the 200-yard
breaststroke. Young broke the school
record in both events, posting a time
of 1:01.58 in the 100 and 2:16.54 in the
200. She wraps up her career as a
three-time All-American.
On the men’s side, senior Sam
Feiser became the program’s first
athlete to earn the Athlete of the
Nikki Young

Meet Award at the 2018 PSAC
Championships in February.
Competing in seven events he earned
seven titles at the conference meet.
He went on to participate at the
NCAA D-II Championships and
earned All-American status as
part of the 200-yard freestyle
relay team (along with senior Josh
Grzech, sophomore Colin Bauer
and freshman Collin Hummel) that
placed 16th overall. He wraps up his
career as an eight-time All-American
and a 16-time PSAC champion.
Sam Feiser

SPRING 2018

33

then AND now

The Normal School Library in 1916,
still little more than a study hall.

Andruss Library:
Heart of the University
By Robert Dunkelberger

later called Waller Hall. The first
formal library was filled with standard
works of fiction, history and reference
books, newspapers, and periodicals.
Five years later, the first professionally
trained librarian was hired.
The library remained in the dormitory
for 76 years, expanding as new space
became available. It moved to the
second floor in 1908 and then back
to the first 50 years later, into space
formerly occupied by the dining room.
Originally little more than a study
hall with desks surrounded by books,
a 1921 remodel gave it the look of
The remodeled Waller Hall Library, 1938
a standard library. Even though its
final location in Waller Hall provided
WHEN BLOOMSBURG’S SECOND holdings had more than doubled.
Harvey A. Andruss Library opened
The growth of Bloomsburg’s library seating for more than 100 students and
20 years ago, the new building was
collections and spaces is a barometer room for the collections, enrollment
projections of 3,000 students by 1970
desperately needed to house more
that traces the transformation of
meant a separate library building
books.
Bloomsburg University in its history
was desperately needed. Funding
The former library, now the
in size, mission and technological
was provided, and the 1957 master plan
Warren Student Services Center, was sophistication.
bursting. Designed in the 1960s to
Bloomsburg’s library history began placed the building on the baseball
diamond and athletic field.
hold 200,000 volumes and seat 750
in 1890. The book collections of two
That library was built at a cost
students, in the ensuing decades both literary societies were merged in a
the university’s enrollment and library room on the first floor of the dormitory, of $1.1 million and opened on Sept.

34
34

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

14, 1966. Featuring a large central
reading area in the atrium, the
building's size and location were
primed to support the research
needs of a growing college. Dedicated
Oct. 12, 1967, it was named for
longtime president Harvey A.
Andruss, who called the library “the
heart of the college.”
As time went by and an aggressive
acquisition campaign brought in
new materials, study tables in the
central reading area began to be
replaced with tables holding
periodical indexes. In the early
1990s, Andruss Library responded to
advances in information technology
by providing students and faculty
with an automated public catalog
and computers which accessed
databases through CD-ROMs and
the internet. Originally accessible
only in the library, eventually
research could be conducted from
anywhere on campus.
The size of the collections, combined
with the rapid growth of the college
into the 1970s, filled the building,
and by the 1980s a new library was
imperative. Beginning in 1986, it
became the top priority in the
university’s capital budget request
to the State System, with the project
approved for design in 1992.

While the state
would eventually
allocate $7.125 million
for the building, the
university had to raise
nearly $3.5 million.
A campaign, A
Treasury of Ideas,
The dedication of the new Harvey A. Andruss Library, Sept. 11, 1998.
launched in 1993 and,
Seen here are President Jessica Kozloff, Lt. Governor Mark Schweiker,
due to the generosity
and Chancellor and former Bloomsburg President James McCormick.
of more than 8,000
individuals, the
and off campus. The online catalog of
goal was reached
thousands of e-books, web-accessible
within a year. Thanks to the efforts
databases with content from more
of 1975 Bloomsburg alumnus
than 50,000 journal titles, and digitized
and Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Mark
historical publications from the
Schweiker, the state’s share was
university and community, is accessible
released in the fall of 1995 and
from any place with an internet
construction began the following
connection.
spring on the site of the softball field
Even as the digital capabilities of
near the Waller Administration
the
library increased, the importance
Building. The new library opened
of the human element has become
on May 26, 1998, with 105,000
greater.
square feet, seating for 900, 20 group
The new Andruss Library has
study rooms, a computer classroom
transformed
into a place for students
for library instruction, nearly 200
to come together and work
computers, and room for 400,000
books and other collections, including collaboratively, to grab a cup of
coffee, or enjoy one of the library’s
the University Archives. Schweiker
exhibits of art and artifacts. And
was the featured speaker for the
for students navigating an ocean
dedication Sept. 11, 1998.
of global information, the research
In the ensuing 20 years, the library
has continued to expand its resources skills of an experienced librarian are
more important than ever.
and make them accessible both on

The west side of Andruss Library, with the priceless Tiffany windows, 1972; Right, top: The reading room
in 1979, as the collections began to take over study space; Right, bottom: The first computers used to
access library databases, 1993.

SPRING 2018

35

calendar

Activities and Events

FALL 2018

ART EXHIBITS

CONCERTS

Classes Begin

Selected Student Show

Fall Choral Festival

Faculty (Summer Show)

Percussion Ensemble

Monday, Aug. 27

Labor Day —
No Classes

Monday, Sept. 3

Reading Day

Tuesday, Nov. 20

Thanksgiving Break

Wednesday, Nov. 21,
through Sunday, Nov. 25

Classes End

Friday, Dec. 7

Finals Week

Monday, Dec. 10,
through Friday, Dec. 14

Graduate
Commencement
Friday, Dec. 14

Undergraduate
Commencement
Saturday, Dec. 15

ALUMNI &
SPECIAL EVENTS
Visit bloomualumni.com
for details on these and
additional events or to
register. For information,
contact Alumni Affairs at
800-526-0254 or
alum@bloomu.edu.

The Gallery at Greenly Center
Through July 18
Haas Center Gallery of Art
May 31 — Sept. 18
Reception: Sep. 18, 11 a.m. — 2 p.m.

Summer/Fall Show —
Blaine Cooper

The Gallery at Greenly Center
July 19 — Sept. 27

Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium
Sunday, Oct. 14, 2:30 p.m.

Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
Tuesday, Nov. 6, 7:30 p.m.

Wind Ensemble

Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m.

Charisse Baldoria, piano and voice recital

THEATRE

Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7:30 p.m.

The Importance of Being Ernest
by Oscar Wilde

University-Community Orchestra

Alvina Krause Theatre
Center Street, Bloomsburg
Oct. 31 to Nov. 4

Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall
Sunday, Nov. 18, 2:30 p.m.

Jazz Ensemble

Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium
Monday, Nov. 29, 7:30 p.m.

Guitar Ensemble

Carver Hall, Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium
Wednesday, Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m.
Alan Poltorak ’17 is a wizard of the piano keyboard
and the recording soundboard. The December
graduate in music has both played Carnegie Hall
in New York City, engineered an album and recently
accompanied the BU Jazz Ensemble on their
tour of Germany and Czechoslovakia.
Read more about his story
at bloomu.edu/music.

Homecoming Weekend

Parents and
Family Weekend
Friday, Oct. 12,
through Sunday,
Oct. 14

For
the latest information on upcoming events, check the Bloomsburg University website bloomu.edu/events.
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

36

PHOTO: ERIC FOSTER

Saturday and Sunday,
Oct. 6 and 7

Wherever summer takes you,
take a bit of BU with you.

NOW IN STOCK: Insignia totes, cooler bags, beach towels and summer apparel.
THE UNIVERSITY STORE

OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

SEE BLOOMUSTORE.COM
400 East Second Street
FOR THIS WEEK’S HOURS
Bloomsburg, PA 17815
General Information: 570-389-4175 AND TO SHOP ONLINE.
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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

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Bloomsburg

FALL 2018

T H E

U N I V E R S I T Y

Sound of

Success

Enrique Josephs ’14 has made a career as one
of the nation's top voice-over artists. Page 14.
ALSO INSIDE

Meet the Class of 2022

Generation Z brings a new outlook to
Bloomsburg. Page 10.

From the Service to Student

Three veterans tell their stories of transition
into college. Page 20.

M A G A Z I N E

Bloomsburg:
The University Magazine

From the President
Dear BU Family,
As we begin a new academic year, I am excited about what
lies ahead for Bloomsburg University and all of you!
In my last letter, I mentioned a comprehensive branding
initiative that begins this fall for the first time in more than
a decade. Today we are facing ever-increasing competition
from institutions across our region and the nation. Now is
the time for BU to discover and deliver our own brand. When
we achieve this, we will define the story and identity of the
institution as a whole. To begin this process, we will engage
the campus community, alumni and influencers, along with
prospective students and families in our target recruitment
area in market research. Through this process of confirming
who we are and what we do well, we will lay the foundation
for a true and authentic brand. (Don’t worry, the Husky
and maroon and gold identifiers are not going away.) This
comprehensive study and the brand outcome will ultimately
help shape our university’s next strategic plan.
The coming year will also be the Year of Retention at BU. As an institution, we will
redouble our efforts to make sure our students have all the tools and support needed to
succeed. Through programs like Professional U, which connects BU students with alumni
and employers, and opportunities integrating the academic experience with professional
experience, and our growing study abroad initiative, we will ensure that our students
graduate and become productive citizens of our world. Only by making sure they are
properly prepared can we make that a reality.
I hope you enjoy this issue of Bloomsburg: The University Magazine, as we celebrate our
students, faculty and alumni who are accomplishing so much here on campus and beyond,
and making us all very proud.
In the coming weeks, we will also celebrate Homecoming and Parents’ and Family
weekends. I hope you can join us and be part of the excitement.
As always, thank you for your support and GO HUSKIES!
Bashar W. Hanna,
President

FEATURES
the Class of 2022
10 Meet
Generation Z students are the largest living
14

Sound of Success

20

From the Service to Student

24

p. 20

generation, 26 percent of the U. S. population.
Meet our Gen Z Huskies.

This Husky’s dreams come true on a daily basis.
The booming voice of Enrique Josephs ’14 has opened
doors he never could have imagined.
The Office of Military and Veterans Resources plays a
big role in welcoming and helping military students or
dependents ease into college life. Three students tell
their stories of transition.

Forging a Path to Success

George Antochy ’79 built a career in information
technology on strong foundations from BU and the
U.S. Army. He comes back to campus regularly to
share his experience with students.

BU student Julia Nicolov, center, with her mobile public affairs detachment team in Kuwait in 2003.

DEPARTMENTS
02 Unleash Your Inner Husky
Fall 2018 04 Around the Quad
08 Focus on Students
24 Husky Notes
32 On the Hill
34 Then and Now
36 Calendar of Events

Table of Contents
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA IS A MEMBER
OF THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Pennsylvania State System
of Higher Education Board
of Governors

Chancellor, State System
of Higher Education
Daniel Greenstein

Cynthia D. Shapira
David M. Maser
Samuel H. Smith
Sen. Ryan P. Aument
Audrey F. Bronson
Joar Dahn
Sarah Galbally
Rep. Michael K. Hanna
Donald E. Houser Jr.
Rodney Kaplan, Jr.
Barbara McIlvaine Smith
Marian D. Moskowitz
Thomas S. Muller
Secretary, Pedro A. Rivera
Sen. Judith L. Schwank
Harold C. Shields
Brian H. Swatt
Rep. Mike Turzai
Neil R. Weaver
Governor Tom Wolf
Janet L. Yeomans

Bloomsburg University
Council of Trustees
Judge Mary Jane Bowes, Chair
Nancy Vasta ’97/’98M, Vice Chair
Brian D. O’Donnell O.D.’87M,
Secretary
Ramona H. Alley
Edward G. Edwards ’73
Charles E. Schlegel Jr. ’60
John Thomas
Secretary John E. Wetzel ’98
Patrick Wilson ’91

President, Bloomsburg University
Bashar W. Hanna
Executive Editor
Jennifer Umberger
Co-Editors
Eric Foster
Tom McGuire
Designer
Kerry Lord

Sports Information Director
Dave Leisering
Marketing/Communications Coordinator
Irene Johnson
Communications Assistant
Jenna Fuller ’18

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine is published three times a year
for alumni, students’ families and friends of the university. News about
Bloomsburg University can be found at bloomu.edu/today.
Address comments and questions to:
Bloomsburg: The University Magazine
Waller Administration Building
400 East Second Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301
Email address: magazine@bloomu.edu
Visit Bloomsburg University on the Web at bloomu.edu.

ON THE WEB

www.BLOOMU.EDU

COVER PHOTO: Douglas Benedict

HUSKY NOTES
SPORTS UPDATES
ALUMNI INFO, MORE
TM

Bloomsburg University is an AA/EEO institution and is accessible to
disabled persons. Bloomsburg University does not discriminate on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age,
national origin, ancestry, disability, or veteran status in its programs
and activities as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of
1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and
other applicable statutes and University policies.
© Bloomsburg University 2018

unleash your inner husky

Iconic Landscapes Serve
as Textbook For Field Study
By Jaime North

It began like any normal college course in
a class led by a professor’s lecture. A week
later, the class traveled nearly 2,500 miles to
spend 12 nights camping under the stars and
closely studying some of the country’s most
picturesque geological sites.
In the end, it was anything but normal.
“This was definitely a highlight of my
college career,” says Myra Nethery, a senior
environmental geoscience major. “I made
so many new friends, as well as created
great relationships with my professors.
If anything, this class has made me more
passionate about my major.”
EGGS 330 Field Geology brought together
10 students and three department faculty
members — Brett McLaurin, Cynthia Venn
and John Hintz — after spring graduation for
an early summer learning experience. They
spent a week on campus learning the basics
of camping and setting the stage for their
fieldwork. A cross-country flight to Las Vegas
was followed by a several hour drive in several
rental cars to sites in northern Arizona and
southern Utah, which itself was another phase
of the learning experience.
Students switched cars every few days
so they could all spend time with each
professor and hear their interpretation of
the landscape.

2

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

“Dr. McLaurin and Dr. Venn have a vast
knowledge of the geology of the area, and
Dr. Hintz was very knowledgeable about
Bureau of Land Management land,” says
Nethery, who is also pursuing a spatial
analysis and GIS minor.
Each student researched two topics and
prepared posters on those topics for the first
week to present to the rest of the class in the
field, according to Venn. They also learned to
keep field books while they were away from
camp, then had both a final exam and a synthesis
paper due after they returned.
The group visited dozens of geological
sites with some of the most memorable views
along the north rim of the Grand Canyon,
Arches National Park, Horseshoe Bend and
slot canyons near Escalante, Utah.
“When we were slot canyoning (a slot
canyon is significantly deeper than it
is wide), we had to hike through very
narrow canyon walls which got pretty
claustrophobic after a while,” says Nethery.
“The class taught me way more than any
other semester-long course sitting in a
classroom. I saw some of the most iconic geology
in the world, learned to interpret different
types of landscapes and learned about the
geological history of the area, and the ancient
civilizations of the Colorado Plateau.”

The group explores the Bristlecone Trail in Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah.
Seated below, from left: Erin Boulger, Myra Nethery, Emily Brodeur and Alison
Evans. Standing: Ashley Barebo, professor Cynthia Venn and Meg Ronan.

FALL 2018

3

PHOTO CREDIT: Jaime North

Campus Hosts Science Adventure Camp
NEARLY 1,000 STUDENTS from four schools converged
on campus in June for a week of exploring ways to
grow their science, technical, engineering and math
interests and abilities. The camps, coordinated by BU’s

STEM Education Center, also investigated the arts. BU
education majors and graduate students led many of
the STEM sessions, which included making handmade
catapults, balloon shooters and hurricane-proof structures.

CGA President Named to Board of Governors
JOAR DAHN,
PRESIDENT
OF BU’S
Community
Government
Association,
was confirmed
by the state
Senate to
serve on the
Board of Governors of Pennsylvania’s
State System of Higher Education,
4

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

the board that oversees the state's 14
public universities. Dahn, a senior
political science major, was elected
CGA president in April 2017. He
is responsible for supervising the
CGA-owned University Store,
Honeysuckle Student Apartments
and the organization’s employees
and professional staff. A Board of
Governors Scholar, he also serves as
the president of the Class of 2019 and
the African Student Association at

Bloomsburg. As CGA president,
Dahn developed the initiative,
“Beyond the Fountain,” a day
of dialogue among residents of
Bloomsburg and students about the
issue of racism in the community. He
has received numerous awards and
honors while a student at Bloomsburg,
including the Bloomsburg University
Legacy of Leadership award and the
International Student Association
Award of Excellence.

Judge Mary Jane Bowes Named Chair of Council of Trustees
JUDGE MARY JANE
BOWES has been
named chairperson
of the BU Council
of Trustees. Bowes
serves as a judge of
the Superior Court of
the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania.
Bowes earned a
bachelor’s degree from
Georgetown University
and juris doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh
School of Law. Upon graduation, she worked as a judicial
law clerk for Chief Justice Henry X. O’Brien of the
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and Superior Court
Judges Harry Montgomery and John P. Hester. She
then entered general legal practice before joining the
legal department of an environmental remediation firm.
A member of the Allegheny County and Pennsylvania
Bar Associations, she was named one of Pennsylvania’s

Best 50 Women in Business by Gov. Tom Ridge in 1997.
She was elected to the Superior Court in 2001 and
retained for a second 10-year term in 2011. During
her time in office, Bowes has fought to increase the
transparency of that court by advocating for online
posting and increased publication of its decisions.
She serves as the statewide administrative Wiretap
Judge, and was appointed by the Supreme Court
to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and
Juvenile Delinquency and the Pennsylvania Appellate
Procedural Rules Committee.
Active in her community, Bowes has served on the
boards of numerous civic and social service organizations,
primarily addressing the needs of at-risk children. She
is chair of the St. Anthony School for Exceptional Children
in Allegheny County, and sits on the board of the University
of Pittsburgh Law Alumni Association.
Bowes was appointed to the Bloomsburg University
Council of Trustees in 2013, and has served on the
Student Affairs and the Finance Committees and
recently chaired the Presidential Search Committee.

Zeigler College Of Business Granted Membership For International Business
THE ZEIGLER COLLEGE OF BUSINESS has earned
full membership in the Consortium for Undergraduate
International Business Education (CUIBE). Established
in 2003, CUIBE promotes innovation in international
business education. Full members are academic
institutions that have demonstrated an ongoing
commitment to undergraduate international business
education through the development of an academic
program (degree, major or concentration). BU earned
membership in CUIBE by establishing a Global
Business Institute, led by Lam Nguyen, professor of
management and international business, to support

international programs. In addition, BU launched a
new major in international business in collaboration
with the College of Liberal Arts with concentrations
in economics and policy and globalization. BU also
signed agreements with partner institutions in China
(Shandong University) and Vietnam (University of
Economics Ho Chi Minh City and Foreign Trade
University). BU is one of just of three institutions in
Pennsylvania with membership in CUIBE and the
only one in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher
Education.

FALL 2018

5

BU To Offer Online Master’s Degree
in Information Technology
BU WILL OFFER A MASTER OF SCIENCE
in Information Technology beginning
in Fall 2019. The online program within
the Zeigler College of Business responds
to the rapid and dynamic technology
changes and challenges that businesses
encounter. The 30-credit hour program
will focus on how information technology
affects corporate strategy and operations.
Targeted students for the degree program

University Chief of Staff Named
PETER T. KELLY, J.D. has been
named university chief of staff.
Kelly comes to BU from St.
Thomas University in Miami,
where he has served as the law
school’s assistant dean for alumni
relations as well as the special
assistant to the president.
As assistant dean, Kelly helped
establish the law school’s alumni
association, served as the liaison
to the law school’s Board of Advisors and its alumni
council, and was the Title IX coordinator. After earning
his bachelor’s degree in Classics at Cornell University,
Kelly lived in Guangzhou, China, where he taught
English at Guangdong Peizheng College. He earned his
law degree from Catholic University’s Columbus School
of Law. He worked as a law clerk at Catholic University’s
Office of General Counsel and later served as a legal
analyst at the Administrative Office of the United States
Courts, Office of Judges Programs, in Washington, D.C.

can have a wide variety of academic
backgrounds and professional experience.
Some technology students may enter into
the program to continue their education
or update their existing technology skills
to gain a rapid competitive advantage to
quickly advance from an entry-level to
a higher-level information technologyrelated job.

Shawver Interim Dean
of Zeigler College of
Business
TODD SHAWVER,
current chairperson
in the Department of
Accounting and Business
Law, will serve as interim
dean of the Zeigler
College of Business for
the 2018-19 academic
year. Shawver, who has
been at BU for seven
years, received his
Doctorate in Business Administration from Nova
Southeastern University, MBA from Plymouth
State University, and bachelor's degree from
New England College. He brings over 12 years of
academic experience to his new role. In addition,
he has over 15 years of corporate experience
in industries ranging from startup software
integration, real estate and a Fortune 500
corporation in the high tech industry.

Student Research Honored
at Regional Symposium
Benjamin Maust, a criminal justice major from Mechanicsburg, was honored for
having the best abstract at the 2018 Susquehanna Valley Undergraduate Research
Symposium held in August at Bucknell University. Maust’s research, “Fatal Police
Shootings in the National Media: An Exploratory Analysis,” was conducted with
the mentorship of Bob Moschgat, assistant professor of criminal justice. Maust
was also selected to give an oral presentation on his research.
6

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

BU Faculty, Alumna Earn College Personnel Association Awards
THREE PEOPLE WITH BU CONNECTIONS
won awards from the Pennsylvania College
Personnel Association (PCPA) this year for
contributions to the organization.
Faculty member Mindy Andino, Ed.D.,
won the Joseph Merkle Award for Outstanding
Contribution; Tamika Austin ’14/’16M earned
the Outstanding New Professional Award,
while Frederick Douglass Fellow Kristin
Austin ’02 received the 2018 PCPA Ronald
Lunardini Mentoring Award. The trio will
be recognized next spring at the American
College Personnel Association annual
conference in Boston and PASSHE/PCPA
student affairs conference.

Mindy Andino, Ed.D.

Tamika Austin ’14/’16M

Kristin Austin ’02

McCormack Named Assistant Vice-President for Student Affairs
BU ALUMNUS and longtime employee
James McCormack ’90/’93M has been
named assistant vice president for Student
Affairs for Residence Life and Integrative
Learning. McCormack has served BU for
more than 30 years in a variety of areas
including associate director of residence
life and for the last three years, director of
student affairs business functions.
McCormack holds a bachelor’s degree in
business economics and a master’s degree

in business administration from BU as well
as a master of strategic studies from the
United States Army War College.
McCormack is also a member of the
Pennsylvania Army National Guard. Having
begun his military career as an infantryman,
he now holds the rank of colonel, and is
the land component commander for the
state. He is now under consideration for
promotion to the rank of brigadier general.

Associate VP for Student Success Named
MARTHA (MARTY)
WYGMANS, Ed.D. has been
named the new associate vice
president for student success.
Wygmans comes to Bloomsburg
University after serving as
the project director for TRiO
Programs and executive
director of student services at
Binghamton University.
She oversaw a number of
programs at the university, including Student Support
Services, Upward Bound, and veterans services. As part

of her duties she also wrote the grant proposals which
funded Upward Bound and Student Support Services.
Wygmans also served on the Board of Directors for the
Association for Equality and Excellence in Education.
She has also worked at Illinois Valley Community
College as director of student support services and at
St. Joseph’s College in Indiana as director of counseling
and dean of freshmen.
She has a Bachelor of Arts in Business and Master
of Arts in Agency Counseling and recently earned
her Doctor of Education in Higher Education
Administration from The George Washington University.

FALL 2018

7

Focus ON Students

Fueling a

Passion
for Learning
By Tom McGuire

History buffs know Oak Ridge National Laboratory
esoteric to the non-scientist.
(ORNL) in Tennessee as the site where the nuclear
“I am predicting structures and properties of
bomb was developed through the Manhattan Project.
uranium fluoride compounds that have never
Today ORNL is synonymous with
been observed from a solid
atomic energy and cutting-edge
theoretical basis,” says Staros.
“I do not feel even slightly
science. For BU senior chemistry
“I use supercomputers for the
major Daniel Staros, it was his
calculations, which are extremely
disadvantaged coming from
classroom for a summer internship.
huge and computationally
Bloomsburg,
and
my
chemistry
Staros, from Thompson, was
expensive.” In layman’s terms,
education could not have prepared his work will provide an
one of just 57 interns accepted
into the Nuclear Engineering
understanding of uranium’s
me better for this work,”
Science Laboratory Synthesis
behavior in solid compounds. This
— Daniel Staros ’19
(NESLS) program and one of
knowledge is relevant to every
only two in the Nuclear Security
stage of the nuclear fuel cycle,
Advanced Technologies lab at the Oak Ridge National
where uranium oxides and fluorides are abundant.
Laboratory. He worked daily on projects that are
While Staros worked alongside interns from some

8

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

nationally prominent schools like
MIT, Harvard and Vanderbilt, he
never felt like he was handicapped
coming from BU.
“I didn't feel even slightly
disadvantaged coming from
Bloomsburg, and my chemistry
education could not have prepared
me better for this work,” adds
Staros. “Just last summer I did
research at Bloomsburg which
prepared me for the discipline
required for this type of problemsolving. Although I needed to learn
multiple new skills while here, the
work ethic ingrained in me by the
BU chemistry program has kept
this from being a problem.”
The goal of every internship is
to gain knowledge and experience
in a particular field, and Staros has
taken advantage of the opportunity.
“This internship has added to
my skill set,” Staros says. “These
skills, which include Python, Bash
scripting, genetic algorithms,
and several others, have useful
applications in countless other
areas, increasing my professional
marketability. The interdisciplinary
nature of the lab has allowed me to
see many new areas of science
and the beneficial aspects of
inter-group collaboration.”
The knowledge Staros gained at
ORNL will lead directly to the next
stage of his education.
“Becoming a staff scientist in a
national lab requires a graduate
degree and The University of
Tennessee has a joint center with
ORNL called the Bredesen Center.
I am strongly considering this
program for obtaining my Ph.D.,
with the goal of landing a career in
nuclear physics.”

Two Students Earn Army ROTC
Nursing Awards

Alison McKay

BU NURSING STUDENTS Alison McKay
(Dover, Del.) and Grace Sullivan (Macungie),
members of the Army ROTC, both earned
top nursing cadet honors at the U.S. Army
Cadet Command Advanced Camp this
summer in Fort Knox, Ky. Attending camp
at different times, both McKay and Sullivan,
the youngest members of their regiments,
were recognized for stellar leadership and
the ability to perform under stress.
Advanced Camp is a 31-day training
event that is designed to assess a cadet’s
proficiency in basic officer leadership tasks.
Cadets are evaluated on their ability to
lead at the squad and platoon levels, both
in garrison and tactical environments.
Cadets are also mentally and physically
tested during a 12-day consequence driven
field training exercise that replicates a
combat training center rotation. Successful
completion of the Advanced Camp is a
prerequisite for commissioning.

Grace Sullivan

Accounting Students,
Alumnus Earn Awards
CALEB JACKSON ’17 was
honored with the Elijah Watt
Sells Award by the American
Institute of Certified Public
Accountants. The award is given
to candidates who have obtained
a cumulative average score of
95.50 across all four sections
of the CPA Exam and who
have passed all four sections of
the examination on their first
attempt. Jackson is one of three
test takers in Pennsylvania who
have received this recognition.
Also, BU accounting majors
have received scholarships from

the Pennsylvania Institute of
Certified Public Accountants
(PICPA). Justin Dickerson,
Julie Nicolov and Matthew
Swales earned $2,000 statewide
scholarships, and David Lopatka
earned a $1,000 northeastern
regional scholarship. In
addition, accounting major
Victoria Moyer ’18, a Masters of
Accountancy student, received
a Global Fraud Conference
Student Scholarship to attend
the Association of Certified
Fraud Examiners annual Global
Fraud Conference in Las Vegas.

FALL 2018

9

Meet the

CLASS OF 2022
By Eric Foster

they connect nearly constantly,
with some studies finding that
Generation Z. Born between members of Generation Z check
1996 and 2010, they are a generation their phones, on average, every
three minutes.
that has grown up in a world more
Yet this group can be surprisingly
startlingly connected than any
old-fashioned. “I equate Generation Z
generation before them. That
to the silent generation, a boomerang
connection has had an effect
back to the
on how they
values of
communicate,
their greatwhat they value
“I equate Generation Z to the
grandparents,
and even how
silent generation, a boomerang
but different,”
they think.
back
to
the
values
of
their
greatsays Bill Faust,
Among the
senior partner
members of
grandparents, but different,”
and chief
Generation
— Bill Faust, Ologie
strategy officer
Z are the
at branding
approximately
and marketing firm Ologie. Faust
1,630 new fall freshmen who
has spent much of his career
started classes this August and are
researching the underlying
members of Bloomsburg’s largest
motivations of college students.
fall freshman class ever.
Specializing in higher education,
For this connected generation,
Ologie has conducted its own studies
phones have always been miniature
of Generation Z as it began to emerge,
computers you can put in your
with keen focus on the impact these
pocket. They’re digital natives,
students will have on the colleges
having never known a world that
and universities who seek to recruit
wasn’t internet connected. And

THE
GENERATIONS

10

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

them. The firm will partner with
BU for three years to refine BU’s
marketing messages, branding
elements and find new ways to
reach potential students. The goal
is to come up with clear positioning
statements and talking points that
will set BU apart from competitors,
a consistent system of graphic
identifiers, and publications
and web content that will guide
university communication for the
next 15 to 20 years.
For Chris Lapos, BU’s director of
admissions, Generation Z has already
had an effect on how the university
communicates with prospective
students. “We’re refining and focusing
the recruitment process so we
communicate with potential students
in a more personal way. We’re using
more electronic communication
and sending more information
to prospective students based on
what they’re interested in.”
“They are the first generation that
grew up with digital as the primary
means of communications. Online

LOST
GENERATION

G.I. GENERATION

SILENT
GENERATION

The generation
that came
of age during
World War I.

Born starting in
the early 1900s
and ending in the
mid-1920s.

Born in the
mid-to-late
1920s to earlyto-mid 1940s,

STEPHANIE SHANNON

Bloomsburg, Accounting

Online research and word-of-mouth steered Stephanie Shannon to BU’s
accounting program over some larger universities where she felt like she
“was just a number.”
Like about 10 percent of BU students, Shannon is local to the university.
“I did a lot of research online and BU has a great accounting program,” says
Shannon. “The program also has a lot of connections.”
Though a freshman, Shannon comes to BU having already completed an
internship and having worked in the family business. “I thought I was going
to be in the medical field, but did an internship and found it wasn’t for me.
I’m glad I did because I changed my entire path.”

MARCOS GONZALEZ

Philadelaphia, Business

Marcos Gonzalez learned about BU in the most old-fashioned way … a
high school visit from a BU admissions counselor. But from that point of
a contact, he got a glimpse of BU from the inside out. “I followed all the
social media, especially Instagram and Snapchat, to see everything that
was going on and what things I wanted to be a part of.”

is oxygen to them,” says Faust. “But,
the biggest myth is that everything
is all digital all the time.”
“Millennials (the generation born
in the early 1980s to mid-1990s)
weren’t purely digital. They grew
up when it was hot and shiny, they
were constantly experimenting with
technology,” says Faust. “Generation Z
is looking at their older siblings and
cousins and thinking ‘maybe it’s OK
to read a book.’ I think there’s a little
bit of retrenchment about technology

and they are more selective about
how they live out loud.”
Events outside the digital world
have shaped Generation Z profoundly.
Since they were in kindergarten,
Iraq has always been a place where
thousands of U.S. soldiers are
deployed. And the economic downturn
of 2008 of 2008 cast a shadow over
many of their families as they grew up.
“They’ve watched the Great
Recession that devastated families.
They’ve welcomed family members

back into the home. They are more
communal than previous generations,”
says Faust. “They’re driven, but the
definition of success is different. It’s
not about climbing to the top of the
corporate ladder. They don’t trust
institutions. The dream job has to do
with having a sense of purpose … doing
good. They want to make money …
they’re not completely altruistic.”
Purposeful. Open. Communal.
Those are the three words Faust
would use to describe Generation Z.

BABY
BOOMERS

GENERATION X

MILLENNIALS

GENERATION Z

Born earlyto mid-1940s
to the earlyto-mid-1960s.

Born in the
mid-1960s
to the early
1980s.

Born in the
early 1980s
to the
mid-1990s.

Born in the
mid-1990s
to the
mid-2000s.

FALL 2018

11

visiting family in New York, I
drove through Pennsylvania
and just fell in love with the
area so I started looking for a
school in Pennsylvania,” says
Dickerson. “While researching
the school, I mostly just looked
at majors, the volleyball
program, and the atmosphere
of the campus. My parents
SARA DICKERSON
were very excited for me to
California, Nursing
branch out and experience
the world. They believed that
Distance was no obstacle for
going away to school was a
California native Sara Dickerson’s
very good experience and a
choice to attend BU. A little less
good idea.”
than 10 percent of BU students
A campus visit sealed the
come from outside Pennsylvania,
decision. “The weather, the
mostly from New Jersey. Dickerson colors, and the brick buildings
chose BU from the other side of the attracted me to BU. The
country. “I always knew that I wanted campus was gorgeous and I
to go away for school and while
just knew it was right for me.”

KAMRAN SHAMS

South Williamsport,
Health Sciences

Kamran Shams was looking at
private colleges last spring when
he learned of BU’s Honors Program.
“(Honors director) Dr. (Julie)
Vandivere is the reason I came here.
I saw a great opportunity,” says Shams,
who is one of 86 new students who
came into BU’s honors program,
Kamran Shams with his mother
topping last year’s record of 60.
Lisa and brother Kayvan.
BU now has 210 students in the
honors program.
“We come from a small town and all
the colleges we applied to were private
colleges,” says his mother Lisa Shams,
who anticipates keeping connected to
her college student. “He’s going to get a
nightly text. He doesn’t need to answer
it, but I’m going to send it. It will be like
saying goodnight.”

Sources: Beloit College Mindset List, commscope.com,
googleapis.com, Mediakix.com, tech.co., thinkwithgoogle.com
12

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

DEFINING
GENERATION

Z

Today, they represent more than
a quarter of the U.S. population
and will be a third of the
population by 2020.

96% own a smartphone.
Most got their first
smartphone at age 12.

Nearly half are connected online
for 10 or more hours a day.

One in 10 will check their
smartphone in the shower.

Amazon.com has

always existed.

27% watch TV shows on their
smartphone. Just 34% watch
TV shows on the TV.

The least popular way to
communicate is by telephone
call (4%). Texting is most
popular at 52%.

“They’ve witnessed parents working two jobs
“Be authentic. Be transparent,” says Faust. “When
rather than one. And they’re going ‘I’m not going to
many schools do case studies, they pick the best
let that happen to me. I’m not going to rely on a big
students. For Generation Z, show someone who
company,’” says Faust. “This generation is much more
struggled. Show real people. Show flaws. They hate
community oriented. Their circle of friends is bigger.
fake, they hate spin. They don’t want something that
Their relationships are different.
feels contrived. Generation Z are
They have friends they’ve never
investigators on the internet. If you
“We’re refining and focusing
met in person because of social
make claims, it better be backed by
the
recruitment
process
so
we
media. They’re socially open, more
evidence.”
embracing of eclectic community.
What will the future
communicate with potential students
They care less about race, religion
hold as Generation Z grows into
in a more personal way.”
or whether someone is trans or
responsibility?
—
Chris
Lapos,
Director
of
Admissions
gay.”
“I’m super optimistic about
And for all of their
them,” says Faust. “Their openness,
connectedness, “Generation Z tremendously values
willingness to accept others … especially gender. They
their relationships with their parents,” says Faust.
are more willing to accept people for who they are.
“More so than other generations. Earlier generations
They’ll make sure organizations will have values that
didn’t talk about taboo topics with their parents
they live.”
like this generation.” Keeping it real is critical to
marketing and communicating to Generation Z.

MIKAYLA LYNCH

MILES PLUNKETT

Miles Plunkett,
second from
left, with
brother Josh,
father John,
mother Brenda
and sister
Lorelei.

Royersford, Nursing

Massachusetts, Chemistry

For Mikayla Lynch, BU was just the right distance
from home. Not too close ... and not too far.
“While looking at colleges my most important factors
were the nursing program had to be great, [there had
to be] a good lacrosse program and coach, a nice
campus, and the distance from home to be not too
far. Bloomsburg had every single item on that list,”
says Lynch. “I loved the lacrosse team and Coach
Shannon Hertz really sold me on being a Husky.”
“Because I wanted to play lacrosse, I first started
looking at colleges in my freshman year of high
school,” says Lynch. “I learned about BU by looking
at Division 2 schools for lacrosse. I first came up
my sophomore year of high school for a clinic the
lacrosse team was holding.”

Massachusetts native Miles Plunkett had one hard
rule to adhere to when choosing a college.
“He couldn’t be far enough to require a plane ticket.
Five hours was the limit,” jokes his mother Brenda
Plunkett. A passionate outdoorsman, Miles Plunkett
began his college search by checking out online
college guides with friends. “I visited with my dad and
I loved the size of BU and the distance away from
home,” says Plunkett, who is already keen on testing
the climbing wall on upper campus.
“The tour helped a lot,” says his father, John. An avid
ukulele player, Plunkett joked with his parents that all
he needed for school was his ukulele. By coincidence,
on the campus visit, the first thing they encountered
was a student with a ukulele on the quad.
FALL 2018

13

THE

SOUND

OF

SUCCESS

14

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHOTOS: Douglas Benedict

By Tom McGuire

Enrique Josephs ’14 was cooling his jets at LAX waiting
for a flight. A call came in on his cell from his agent.
He made a quick trip to the men's room where he opened up a suitcase on
a changing table to reveal his mobile recording studio. Ten minutes later …
mission accomplished. Spot recorded and delivered to the client.
For a voice-over artist, working in strange locations at all hours of the day
and night is part of the business. It’s a career that Josephs, better known to
his friends as EJ, never even knew existed if not for a chance meeting at a
summer event on campus.
It’s already been a meteoric
journey for the 26-year old with
many big dreams still in his future.
Among his credits is work for NFL
Films, the History Channel, MLB
Network, ESPN and the Emmynominated Harry Connick Jr.
television show. Along the way
though, there were lots of twists
and turns and a bit of luck.
Josephs was a highly-recruited
football offensive lineman from
West Chester. One of his high
school teachers, John Adams, the
father of a former BU football player
Stefan Adams ’10, suggested he
give BU a serious look for both its
football team and its strong mass
communications program.
“The late Mr. Adams really influenced me to attend BU,” says Josephs.
“I loved playing football and had dreams of becoming a news anchor. He
thought Bloomsburg University would be good for me with both a strong
football team and mass communications department.”
“My early goal was to be a news anchor,” says Josephs. Those dreams
of being an on-camera celebrity soon changed. “I realized I liked being
behind the scenes as an editor or on the radio more. I could let my
personality come through without being worried about the camera.”
After his football career ended due to injury, fate would intervene for Josephs
when former teammate Franklyn Quiteh ’13 recommended his friend to
the BU athletic department for a job as an announcer at the school’s home
games. Once the staff heard him on the microphone, Josephs was quickly hired.
“Working as a PA announcer taught me how to make adjustments on-thefly in a stressful situation,” Josephs continues. “Initially I was fearful of what
people would think of my voice, but I grew into enjoying the interaction I had
with the fans as well as still being part of a sport without actually playing.”
He got involved with other activities on campus as well. “I started
volunteering more for projects the mass comm department was working on
with Jason Genovese, now chair of the department, and the instructional
media services,” Josephs adds.

Editing his work entails many
late nights for Josephs.

FALL 2018

15

PHOTO: Douglas Benedict

“EJ always had the talent,
the golden pipes, but you
need more than that, and
he knew it. He had a work
ethic that has already
carried him to great
heights in the television
industry and will continue
to do so.”
— Jason Genovese, Ph.D.

“EJ always had the talent, the golden pipes, but you need
more than that, and he knew it,” says Genovese. “He had
a work ethic that has already carried him to great heights
in the television industry and will continue to do so.”
“As a senior, I attended the first Confer Radio Institute
held at BU,” says Josephs. “I met Pat Garrett, one of the
top voice-over guys. I never knew doing that kind of
work could be a career. Pat let us use his equipment to
record demos and also told us to keep working and not
give up. It was great advice that I never forgot.”
But a journey from ‘keep working hard kid’ to NFL
Films doesn’t just happen. Along with skill, Josephs
needed some luck and a few breaks.
By day Josephs was working as a video instructor at
the Glen Mills school for troubled youth. By night he
was interning for an independent baseball team, the
Camden River Sharks, learning as much as he could
and getting tips from the announcer Kevin Casey,
now the voice of the Philadelphia Union professional
soccer team.
On a career day at Glen Mills, an engineer from
NFL Films was on site and a co-worker of Josephs’
introduced him to the engineer. After a brief
conversation, he was asked to send in a demo.
“I scrambled that night at home to put something
together and quickly sent it in,” Josephs continued.
“The company surprised me by calling me in for an
interview. It went so well, a few months later I was

16

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

offered a job as a production assistant, ironically just
a few days after landing a full-time position with the
school.” (He quickly left his job at the school.)
Josephs’ big break came just months later when
he was tabbed to be the voice of the post-game spot
announcing the opportunity to purchase gear and a
highlight DVD of the Super Bowl. Later he worked on
a highlight film of the Super Bowl, becoming the first
seasonal production assistant hired for that role.
“I had to sleep at NFL Films multiple nights to meet
the deadline,” says Josephs. “The same producers who
recorded his demo gave him a shot to do the narration on
the Super Bowl 50 highlights. It was huge. They loved it.”
Later that year Josephs caught another big break
and landed a spot as the voice of the NFL’s Top 100
when the original voice of the show was arrested. “I
was working with the show’s Emmy Award-winning
producer doing some training. After the original
voice-over artist was dropped, the producer hired me
to be the new voice that year. We had to re-record two
episodes which had aired already and now I am one of
three regular voices of the program.”
Most recently Josephs did the narration for the
History Channel’s summer show “Evel Live,” which was
the most-watched live show outside of a sporting event
on television in 2018 with more than 3.5 million viewers.
“The production company for the show, Nitro
Circus, had heard some of my work and asked me to

audition,” says Josephs. “A short time after sending
in my audition, my agent called me to tell me I got
the job.” Of course, that day was also his first day of
vacation in Virginia.
“I had to call a friend, who called someone he knew,
and I landed time in a studio. In all, it took about two
hours to record all the narration so I didn’t lose too
much of my vacation.”
While the profession may seem simple to an outsider,
just like an athlete, Josephs has to train, practice and of
course take care of his most valuable asset … his voice.
“Each week I work with a voice coach because it’s
easy to strain the vocal chords if you’re not careful,”
says Josephs. “Recently, I went to a concert, but
couldn’t scream. I also drink a lot of water, tea
with honey, and eat lots of apples. I’ve also stopped
drinking milk because lactose creates too much
mucus. And, my girlfriend’s grandmother put me on
to echinacea and I haven’t been sick in more than
three years (knock on wood),” Josephs says laughing.
“Originally I was very hard on myself and would
critique all my work. I don’t do it as much now. Now
I’m just interested in making sure my clients are
happy with my work.”

So what’s next for the guy who originally was
hoping to be a news anchor?
“It’s been an amazing few years for me, but I do
not want to be complacent,” says Josephs. “I see my
future in promos, commercials and narrations. It
would be great to be able to do a long-term series
for Nat Geo or the Discovery Channel. I’d love to be
synonymous with one show.”
“Ultimately, the Olympics for voice-over artists are
movie trailers. Right now two guys have most of the
work in this area. I’m not rushing things; I’ve still got
a lot to learn about the industry. But movie trailers is
where I hope to one day land.”
Despite his growing status in the voice-over world,
Josephs still finds time to give back. “I’m mentoring
three young men at my church in the voice-over
business and recently spent an hour on the phone
with an intern from NFL Films answering her
questions. For me, it’s about helping others on their
journey,” he says. “I learned a lot by trial and error.
My goal is to help others achieve their dreams.”
Where Josephs’ dream takes him, only time and his
voice will say.

PHOTO: Douglas Benedict

A mobile studio allows Enrique Josephs to record
voice-overs on the road.

FALL 2018

17

Focus ON Giving
My Husky Experience
JILLIAN DILLINGER, a native of

York, wasn’t always sure where she
wanted to attend college, but she
did know that wherever she went,
she would have to help pay for her
education.
As she was approaching the end
of her senior year in high school,
Dillinger learned she was awarded
the BU Scholarship for Academic
Success, a scholarship provided
through donations to the Henry
Carver Fund, the annual fund for
Bloomsburg University.
“I was in such a state of anxiety, but
then I received this award, which
gave me instant relief,” says Jillian. “I
remember just filling with gratitude
and I could not wait for my mom to get

18

“My parents work so hard to help me pay for
college. Thanks to this gift, that burden is a
bit less, and that feels amazing.”

home from work to show her, so I
drove to her job to show her the letter.”
Dillinger, now entering her

sophomore year as a psychology
major, chose to attend BU because of
the school’s psychology department
and her interest in pursuing a career
in the mental health field. She first
became interested in psychology
when she started a mental health
awareness group at her high school
to help fellow students who were
struggling.
“I am so appreciative and grateful
to have received such a generous
scholarship. What students choose
to do in their high school years is
so important for the well-being and
outcome of their years in college, and
I personally feel as if this scholarship
has set a helpful bar to remind
myself to keep working hard.”

Making the Right Gift

A Legacy of Gratitude

VICTORIA WYLIE ’11 received
a scholarship that gave her
the opportunity to succeed
when she was a student at
Bloomsburg.
To pay it forward after she
graduated, she wanted to make
a gift that represented her own
Husky experience, but she
wasn't sure of the best way to do that.
Wylie found a perfect way to give back that was
close to her heart and would have an immediate
impact: She supported a book scholarship offered
through the Henry Carver Fund to help students
who were unable to afford the books they needed.
“I came from a family that didn’t have a lot of
money,” Wylie says. “So receiving that scholarship
was a blessing, which eliminated a lot of the
financial burden that purchasing books presented
for me during my freshman year.”

ARLENE SUPERKO ’45 recognizes

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

and appreciates the positive return
on her Bloomsburg University
education. “I started to save up
some money after many years
working as a teacher thanks to my
experience at Bloomsburg, so I
thought I should do something to
give back,” Superko says.
In 1982, 37 years into her 55-year career as an
educator, she began donating to BU each year and
continued well after she retired from the New York
school system in 2000. After meeting with a financial
adviser while doing some retirement planning, Superko
learned she could do even more to support BU.
In 2013, Superko secured her own BU legacy
by adding Bloomsburg as a beneficiary to her life
insurance policy and creating the Arlene Superko ’45
Scholarship to benefit students interested in exploring
careers in the fields of math and science.
“My hope is that this scholarship will encourage
students like my younger self to excel to their fullest
potential.”

Bloomsburg University Donors
Supporting the Husky Experience
Thank you to our donors for your generous support to Bloomsburg University. Here are a few
highlights of how your gifts made a meaningful impact on our campus and our students:

$
6
.
2
million

4,546

by

Alumni, parents, faculty, staff,
students and friends who made
a gift to Bloomsburg University

Overall dollars contributed

OUR DONORS HAVE DESIGNATED GIFTS TO
Henry Carver Fund 30%

6%

7%

Endowed Scholarships 30%
Professional Experiences 27%
Emerging Opportunities 7%
Faculty Support 6%

99.6%

30%
27%
30%

of every dollar contributed to the BU
Foundation goes to support Bloomsburg
University students, programs and initiatives.

$2,236,113
Dollars in scholarships and grants
that were provided to Bloomsburg
University students

35%
86%

$1,830,704

Total dollars were raised through the
Henry Carver Fund,
the annual fund for Bloomsburg University

of the Class of 2018
made their first gift
to BU

1,337

undergraduate
students benefited from
scholarships and grants

of gifts to annual funds
were less than $250

$2,264,205
Total dollars were realized in gifts
committed to Bloomsburg University
through estate intentions

The Bloomsburg University Foundation fiscal year ran from July 1, 2017 — June 30, 2018

Learn More >>

giving.bloomu.edu

FALL 2018

19

FROM THE SERVICE
to Student
By Jack Sherzer

A sense of duty, a passion to succeed and a can-do
attitude. Purpose-driven, mission-oriented and
motivated. For the men and women who have
served in the military, these traits are as apparent
as their uniforms.
But when the uniform comes off and veterans
find themselves on campus, those same traits can
make the transition to college a challenge.
“In the military, we’re disciplined and good at time
management. But when you get to school, no one is giving
you direct oversight,” says Bob Heckrote, adviser for military
and undeclared students at Bloomsburg University’s Office
of Military and Veterans Resources. “That can be a strange
adjustment for military folks. They have to learn to be
self-led and self-directed.”
A 12-year veteran of the Army National Guard who
served in Iraq and Afghanistan and retired in 2015 as a
staff sergeant, Heckrote knows firsthand how alone and
disconnected military students can feel. They’re often older
than other students, and if they’ve deployed in trouble
spots, they might feel there’s no way anyone who hasn’t
experienced conflict can understand how they feel.
From help navigating the complex world of military
benefits and academic advising to connecting students with
the university’s Student Veterans Association and other
organizations, the office is a place where veterans can find
others, including office staff, who have walked in their boots.
That’s the case for three students from different backgrounds
who share a common bond: service to their country.
Julie Nicolov in the seat of a military helicopter that landed on campus for
Touch a Truck Week last fall.
20

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHOTO CREDIT: Jaime North

Veterans, including Raul E. Santana (far left), march on campus for
Veterans Day.

ARMY VETERAN JULIE NICOLOV
She was the last person any of her friends or family
expected to enlist in the Army.
After graduating from Penn State with a bachelor’s
degree in English and creative writing in 1999, Julie
Nicolov, 41, moved to Selinsgrove. She freelanced for
area newspapers and worked in a restaurant. One day
she joined her now ex-husband for an appointment at
a recruiter’s office.
“The recruiter is telling everything to my ex, and
then he looks at me and says, ‘What are you doing
with your life?’” she recalls.
He showed her a brochure depicting two female
soldiers rappelling down a mountain captioned,
“These soldiers will go anywhere to get the story.”
“I signed that day,” says Nicolov. Enlisted as a
noncommissioned public affairs officer, she served
nearly six years. She deployed twice to Iraq, mostly in
Baghdad. She accompanied patrols and wrote stories,
and worked with embedded civilian journalists. Though
she was never in a firefight, shots were fired at her
patrols, and danger was ever-present.
Nicolov returned to civilian life in September 2006
and worked as an assistant photography editor at The
News-Item in Shamokin. She met her partner, Andy
Bendas, and they had a son, Dylan, now 7. She kept
the financial books for Bendas’ coal-delivery company
as she contemplated the next step in her career.
“I had until 2021 to use the benefits through my
GI Bill, and I decided to give accounting a try,” says
Nicolov, who enrolled at BU in 2016 and will graduate
with an accounting degree in December. “Bloomsburg
is close to home and has a respected business school,
and had more to offer than Harrisburg Area Community
College or Penn State.”
In 2016, a decade after her military service, Nicolov
was still coming to terms with the stress of her service

Julie Nicolov sighting a .50 caliber sniper rifle.

in Iraq — she always looked for the exits in any room,
she woke at night to check the door locks, and would
cross the street if she saw something suspicious on
the sidewalk.
At BU, she encountered veterans with similar
wartime experiences, and said “I was accepted right
away.” She appreciated the weekly emails Heckrote
sent from the Office of Military and Veterans Resources,
noting that “It felt like one more person was looking
out for me.” She took a work-study position in the
office last year, which provided her with a safe space to
“work through everything that I hadn’t made peace with.”
Veterans, especially those who have been in lifeand-death situations, can have trouble adjusting,
Nicolov acknowledges. The key is to make sure your
military strengths of punctuality and perseverance
work for you. And use your support system, she says.
“If you are having trouble, talk to someone,” she
continues. “And if you are at BU, talk to someone at the
military office. Whatever we can do to help someone
succeed at Bloomsburg, we are going to do it.”
FALL 2018

21

Bradley Beda (above far left with glasses) with his submarine crewmates. Beda served a decade in the Navy with more than two years at sea.

GUARDSMAN RAUL E. SANTANA
Before he graduated from
Bloomsburg in December
2017 with a bachelor’s
degree in communications
studies, Raul E. Santana
would walk around campus
carrying his Army backpack,
hoping it would spark
conversations with fellow
veterans.
Santana, 23, joined the
Pennsylvania National Guard
in 2014, serving on a Paladin howitzer crew. Before
attending BU, he earned an associate degree in general
studies from Luzerne County Community College.
The 23-year-old, who came to Hazleton from the
Dominican Republic when he was 16, says friends of
the family spoke highly of military service and he also
wanted to set a good example for his younger brother.
“It was a path to success for me,’’ Santana says
of military service. “The values that the military
stand for align with what it is to be a man: Honesty.
Integrity. Service. Honor.’’
Adjusting to college life was a challenge, and the
lack of structure made him uncomfortable at first.
“When you’re exposed to military training, you get
used to that lifestyle, and it took time to adapt to the
life I’m living now,” says Santana, who was an intern
for the Student Veterans of America in Washington,
D.C. this summer.
When he toured Bloomsburg in 2015, he found a
family of veterans, which convinced him to enroll and
become involved.

22

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

“It helps to have a strong network to help you
succeed,” says Santana, who became president of
the BU Student Veterans of America chapter and
helped lead an effort to find funding for the Town of
Bloomsburg’s Fourth of July fireworks display this
summer. “I appreciated Bloomsburg University’s
military community, and Bob tries to make real
connections with the students.”
Veterans expand the campus culture in a positive
way, says Santana. “We offer a different perspective.
We have walked different paths than the traditional
students, just as older students can offer a different
viewpoint. We all bring something to the table.”
NAVY VETERAN BRADLEY BEDA
Bradley Beda graduated from the University of
Cincinnati College of Business in 2003 with a
bachelor’s degree in information systems and into
the teeth of a looming recession. Unable to find work
in his field, the Ohio native worked for his father’s
construction company.
With few prospects in the civilian world, Beda
turned to the Navy. He chose submarine service
because he’s not claustrophobic and boot camp for
service on subs started right away.
“I wanted to go on with the next part of my life, and
I was burning out working construction,” said Beda,
38. With his technical background, he went into fire
control, which used familiar computer networks.
After serving a decade in the Navy — about two and
a half years of it at sea — his wife, Megan, whom he
met while serving in Connecticut, didn’t want him
shipping out anymore. He left the service in 2016.
They moved to Danville, and he worked as a

maintenance mechanic for
Kawneer Co.’s door-manufacturing
plant in Bloomsburg. While the
plant’s many military veterans
helped him with his adjustment to
civilian life, working the night shift
got old, and he began looking into
his GI Bill benefits.
“Bloomsburg’s record with
accounting is really first-rate,”
Beda says. “The people in the
Office of Military and Veterans
Resources made sure I was able to
get my benefits, and made me feel
welcome.”
An intern at accounting
powerhouse Ernst & Young’s
Pittsburgh office, Beda will
graduate in December with a
B.S. in accounting. “The only real
adjustment was Bloomsburg’s
small class size, and that’s a good
adjustment,” he says. “I think the
largest class I’ve had was about 30
students, and it’s been nice getting
to know the professors.”
Though he misses the bond he
had with fellow submariners, Beda
appreciates BU’s efforts to bring
its veterans together. He worked
in the military resources office,
helping students with GI benefits,
class registration and other needs.
“One of the biggest issues I’ve
seen is when it comes to their
studies,” he points out. “In the
military, when you are in a school,
you are pushed to study and
succeed. In college there is nobody
to push you but yourself, and some
students don’t know how to budget
their time. I’ve helped students
study — the office provides that
kind of support.”
“It’s good to find a group that
really knows where you come from
and what you’ve done. That’s what
the military office and everyone
working there provide.”

A Personal Mission
By Jack Sherzer
When veterans or military
dependents enroll at Bloomsburg
University and indicate their
service connection, they hear from
Bob Heckrote, the adviser for
military and undeclared students
at Bloomsburg’s Office of Military
and Veterans Resources, where his
team serves the nearly 400 activeduty personnel, veterans and
dependents that are BU students.
The office helps military
students access their benefits and
financial aid and keep on track
academically. It also provides
“Green Zone Training,” a kind
Bob Heckrote, BU Office of Military
and Veterans Resources
of military 101 class to educate
professors, staff and civilian
students who haven’t served about the armed forces.
When those students walk into the office, they find staffers who
also have served their country.
“It’s personal to me,” said Heckrote, who deployed to Asadabad,
Afghanistan, in 2008 with the Army National Guard and started
taking classes at Bloomsburg in 2006 after a tour in Ramadi, Iraq.
That was before BU’s military resources office existed.
“I came to Bloomsburg right after an intense combat deployment,”
he said. “I watched myself and my veteran peers struggle a lot.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Heckrote began
working at the office when it opened in 2013. He went on to earn a
master’s degree in education and counseling, and makes a point of
trying to connect with every military-affiliated student.
Heckrote is helping create a unique program at Bloomsburg:
The Military Academic Credit Review Board, which will determine
whether the skills and training experiences that students bring
with them from the military qualify for college credit.
“For the past three years, we’ve been working on this program to
find the right way to give them proper credit for their experiential
learning,” he says. “A lot of military education is technical, like
welding or engine repair, and wouldn’t help them in their Bloomsburg
degree. But within that, you do have some items like leadership and
management that may qualify, depending on their major.”

FALL 2018

23

George
Antochy ’79
and his wife,
Laura J.
Adolphson ’79
on campus in
the 1970s
and recently.

Forging a Path to Success

By Thomas Schaeffer

“I believe it’s the foundation you build that sets you on the right
path to success and for me, that foundation was Bloomsburg,” says
George Antochy ’79, retired Army Reserve colonel and information
technology professional.
That’s why he jumped at the opportunity to return to campus
last year to help students taking part in Career Intensive Boot
Camp, a two-and-half-day experience for juniors, seniors and
recent graduates that is held twice a year as part of the university’s
Professional U initiative.
“I’m a strong believer in mentorship,” says Antochy, who now lives
in Mansfield, Texas. “And I hope that’s what I’ve been able to do since
being asked to come back to Bloomsburg and work with students.”

24

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Antochy says that although his experience at
Bloomsburg became especially helpful when he
became a mentor, college wasn’t a sure thing for him
growing up. His mother and father emigrated from
Germany in the mid-’50s after surviving World War II,
and settled in Pennsylvania, raising five boys.
Calling himself just an average student in high
school, Antochy never was sure that he wanted to
go to college. No one else in the family had gone. But
a history teacher who graduated from Bloomsburg
always spoke highly of his time there. “Since history
was the only subject I’d really took an interest in, I
guess he made an impression upon me,” he says.
Antochy left his decision to a coin flip. “Heads was
Bloomsburg and tails was the Navy. It landed on heads
and the rest was history.”
But it wasn’t quite that simple. He enrolled as a
history major with every intention of becoming a
social studies teacher, but in his sophomore year he
joined the ROTC to help with the costs of going to
school, which led him to pursue a bachelor of arts
degree in history instead of education.
He had no idea this would be the first step toward
his career as an IT professional, but the change in
majors led to a few courses working with computers.
Since it was the mid-1970s, “I didn't know what IT
was, nobody did,” says Antochy. “Back then, if you
worked in computers, it meant you were wearing a
white jacket and working in an air-conditioned room.”
As an ROTC scholarship recipient, he was obligated to
serve eight years in the Army. On his last assignment
Antochy’s military supervisor had a vision that they
were going to bring personal computers to the unit level.
“He turned to me and said ‘Here’s a box with the
parts to build a computer, and the software for an
operating system and a word processor,’” Antochy
says. “He told me that I had 10 students coming next
week, and I had to teach them how to use it and take
their computer with them.”
Antochy was successful in building the computer
and then teaching the students to use it. “The lesson
I learned from that experience was that the most
important thing you can do is to educate yourself as
you go,” he adds.
After nearly eight years of active duty, Antochy
spent an additional 30 years in the Army Reserve
while he also parlayed his BU and military experience
into a 28-year career in the IT industry. He spent the
first two years at a sales and management position

George Antochy as a panelist for a Husky Career Boot Camp, above,
and reviewing a student’s resume at a mock interview session.

and the next 26 as an IT Specialist with the Federal
Aviation Administration. His last assignment was as
a manager of a remote office responsible for all the
FAA’s administrative personal computers.
“What I learned at Bloomsburg and in the military
was that you can do anything you want to if you are
willing to take direction and respond to constructive
criticism,” Antochy says. “And you don’t truly know
what you’re capable of until you do it.”
That’s the message that he delivered to students
when he returned to campus as he stressed that the
best way to set the foundation for success was to learn
to successfully present themselves and build their
own self-confidence.
“I was very excited to see so many students
participating in these opportunities,” adds Antochy. “They
are already laying the first blocks for a solid foundation
that will certainly set them on the right path.”
George is married to Laura J. Adolphson of
Bergenfield, N.J., who also graduated from BU in
1979 with a degree in special education. She recently
retired and is enjoying the life of being ‘Gigi’ to
their grandsons. They are empty nesters with two
daughters and a son.

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25

husky notes
’60s

Donald Noll ’61 is head football coach of
Middletown Area High School. Noll is also
a teacher at Feaser Junior High School. He
previously served as head football coach at
McLean High School in Virginia.
Francis Fennell ’68M served as
commencement speaker and received an
honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree
from McDaniel College in Westminster,
Md. Fennel is a mathematics education
expert and professor emeritus from
McDaniel.
Stanley Kucharski ’68 is the Scranton
Lions Club Man of the Year.
Robert Reed ’68 is an adjunct instructor in
the Department of Mathematics and Digital
Sciences at Bloomsburg University. Reed
retired from Shamokin Area High School
after 35 1/2 years.

Sharon Spry Reed ’69 is an adjunct
instructor in the Department of Exceptionality
Programs at Bloomsburg University.

’70s

Robert Catina ’71M received the 2018
Liberty Bell Award from The Pennsylvania
Bar Association Young Lawyers. The award
honors individuals for their outstanding
community service and for promoting the
"blessing of liberty" guaranteed by the
Constitution. Catina serves as tipstaff to
President Judge Margherita Worthington of
the Monroe County Court of Common Pleas.
Rita Kelly Cook ’76 retired after a 40-year
career in banking technology. She worked
for several companies including Citibank,
Wells Fargo, and PNC.
Allan Weikel ’76 retired as an engineering
manager after a 36-year career in the nuclear energy field.

Richard F. Jerr, Jr. ’78 retired from Killingly
Public Schools after 33 years of service. He
was the Special Education Department chair
at Killingly High School and the head coach
for girls’ track and field. He and his wife,
Katherine, live in Killingly, Conn.
Lawrence Mussoline ’79 is superintendent
of the Haddonfield School District. He
recently retired from the Downingtown
School District.

’80s

Sam Rubbico ’82 is a consultant with
Yuhuang Chemical in St. James, La.,
helping the company with its finances
and to secure business loans. Rubbico,
a CPA since 1989, was with Shell Oil for
over 25 years. He lives in a suburb of
Houston, Texas.

Lisa Mantineo with Dan Rather and,
at right, with the Radio Andy team.

Mantineo Makes Mark as NYC Radio Producer
Lisa M. Mantineo ’01 has been working in the radio
industry in New York City since graduating from BU, and
has made some famous connections.
She is senior producer for Sirius XM Radio’s Radio Andy
channel (102), created by TV personality Andy Cohen, the
executive producer. Mantineo works with Cohen twice a
week on his live two-hour program.
She is also the producer of the weekly radio program
Dan Rather’s America, and worked with the legendary
26

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

broadcaster on a special radio event when he sat down
with five high school students from Parkland, Fla., to reflect
on their “March for Our Lives Event” and the work they
have been doing since the shooting tragedy at their school.
Mantineo also produces Sandyland, the daily program of
actress and comedian Sandra Bernhard. She also worked
with Bernhard on a live event with the cast of the TV
reboot of “Roseanne.”

“Alisa is an excellent writer and performed admirably
with her research assignments,” Bowes says. “I am proud
to have the opportunity to employ BU grads in my summer
program and I have never been anything but delighted
with the exceptional level of the work from these high
performing students. Alisa exemplifies the tremendous
quality of a Bloomsburg University education and the
outstanding students who graduate from there.”
Petersen credits her professors at BU and an internship at a
local law office for preparing her for the rigors of law school.
“Professors Neil Strine and Peter Doerschler were great
mentors and assisted me getting into law school,” says
Petersen. “Also, during my senior year, I spent six months
interning at Kreisher and Gregorowicz in Bloomsburg, gaining
valuable experience being exposed to different types of law.”
After graduating from BU and receiving full scholarship
offers to seven law schools, Petersen says working with
Judge Bowes this summer helped her in two different ways.
“First, my legal writing improved dramatically,” Petersen
By Tom McGuire
says. “While law school gives students the tools they need to
be effective legal writers, you do not truly learn to write until
Growing up in the small town of Hunlock Creek never
you are on the job. Second, it helped me better understand
kept Alisa Petersen ’17 from dreaming big. Those visions
Pennsylvania’s appellate procedure, which is much different
of being successful led the second-year law student at Penn than trial level courts, especially regarding their scope,
State Dickinson Law to a paid summer internship with
standard of review, and courtroom proceedings.”
Pennsylvania Superior Court Judge and BU Council of
One thing Petersen is entirely sure of is that law is the
Trustees chairperson Mary Jane Bowes in Pittsburgh.
right career path for her.
“Interning for Judge Bowes was truly a blessing,” says
“Although I am not yet sure what type of law I will want
Petersen. “Not only is she a brilliant and influential legal mind, to practice, I am positive that these experiences helped to
but she is also kind, funny, and always willing to teach.”
assure me that the legal profession is the right career choice
Bowes was equally impressed with the work Petersen did for me,” says Petersen.
for her this summer.
“She may very well end up being on the bench,” says Bowes.

COURTING Dreams

Charles Warner ’83 was acknowledged in
the book A Surgeon with Custer at the Little
Big Horn: James DeWolf's Diary and Letters,
1876. Warner, a collector and evaluator of
original 19th-century images, shared his
knowledge of these early photographs with
book editor Todd Harburn. Warner's private
collection of images includes images of Seventh
Calvary soldiers in civilian settings and he
discovered an image that was published in
the book.
Caroline Muraro ’87 is president of LNP
Media Group, Lancaster. Muraro is the first
woman to hold that post in the company’s
224-year history. She has spent her career
in technology supporting newspaper and
magazine publishing and has been a leader

in the transition to digital publishing. She
will oversee LNP’s circulation, print and
digital-client solutions, production and
information-technology departments.
Daniel Dimm ’89 is director of business
development at Strategic Information Group,
Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Calif. He has designed,
developed and implemented multiple Progress
and WebSpeed e-commerce applications
across North American and Europe.
John Zukus ’89 is vice president at
Alliant in Wayne where he provides
risk management and insurance to the
company's clients throughout the Eastern
United States.

’90s

Diane Rhine Longenecker ’91 is a
commercial relationship officer with
Jonestown Bank and Trust, Jonestown.
She works with commercial lending clients
in the Lebanon Valley area.
Mark Jobes ’92 is senior vice president/
chief banking officer at Merchants Bank,
Bangor. Jobes was senior vice president of
commercial lending at Lafayette Ambassador
Bank. He is a graduate of the Leadership
Lehigh Valley program, treasurer for the
ArtsQuest Board of Directors and is a
member of the LVEDC Board of Directors.

FALL 2018

27

Pi Kappa Phi Reunion

Pi Kappa Phi graduates celebrated their 20th consecutive year reunited in Pond Eddy, N.Y., for two days of camping, horseshoes and
canoeing on the Delaware River. This year 26 alumni from 1997 to 2002 attended the event organized by Dan Madara ’99. Attendees
included: Mike Krause ’97, Jeremy Landis ’97, Jason Messner ’97, Robert Shoemaker ’97, Paul Archembault ’98, Brian
Baldinucci ’98, Dave Decanzio ’99, Tom Lacert ’99, Dan Madara ’99, Dan McIntyre ’99, Shawn O’Keefe ’99, Nick Pagano ’99, Dan
Peters ’99, Matt Regn ’99, Joe Symons ’99, Matt Wagner ’99, Joe Wood ’99, Dan Ziegler ’99, Mike Ellis ’00, Dave Marcy ’00, Chris
Blankenship ’01, Adam Burghardt ’01, Dan Cincotti ’01, Anthony Jingoli ’01, Mike McLaughlin ’01 and John Motsney ’01.
Timothy McMahon ’93 is responsible
for the Tuscon territory at Valpak, a
cooperative direct mail company.

He will serve as an adviser and partner in
advancing and partner in advancing the
university's strategic plan.

Rob Kutchi '94 is a diplomate of The
American Board of Radiology, having
attained ABR certification in Therapeutic
Medical Physics.

Jessica Cooper Rinker ’98 has written
three books for publication, Gloria Takes a
Stand: How Gloria Steinem Listened, Wrote,
and Changed the World, Send a Girl: The
Brenda Berkman Story, and The Dare Sisters
(books 1 and 2).

Kathy Baylor Price ’94 is senior district
executive of the Community ColumbiaMontour Boy Scout Council. Price is
responsible for program development,
fundraising, membership recruitment and
retention and supervision of the council's
camping program at Camp Lavigne. She
provides guidance to leaders of the Cub
Scout packs, Boy Scout troops, Venture
crews, and Explorer posts and clubs in the
council, which serves about 1,000 youth
members and more than 700 adult
volunteers in Columbia and Montour counties,
parts of Lower Luzerne County and
Riverside in Northumberland County.
Cole W. Camplese ’96M is vice president
for information technology and chief
information officer at Northeastern University
in Boston. Camplese was an associate vice
president at the University of Chicago.
28

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Jason Brubaker ’99 is vice president of
worldwide sales at Distribber, Los Angeles.
Jeremy Kipp ’99 is men’s and women’s
swimming coach at Northwestern University,
Evanston, Ill. Kipp coached at Boise State
and as an assistant coach at the University
Southern California and California-Santa
Barbara.

’00s

Michael Bromirski ’00M is superintendent
of Hempfield School District, Landisville.
Bromirski has 22 years of education
experience, 12 of which were at Manheim
Township School District. He has served
as an elementary school teacher, assistant
principal, principal and acting superintendent.

Eleanor Vaida Gerhards ’02 was named
to the 40 Under 40 list by the Philadelphia
Business Journal. Gerhards is a partner in
the firm and co-chair of Fox's Franchising,
Licensing & Distribution Practice Group
in Philadelphia. Gerhards leads a team of
more than 40 attorneys in 21 offices who
represent franchise and distribution
companies in industrial, retail, food,
entertainment, service, technology and
home-based businesses.
Liz Krewson-Ross ’02 is the manager
of marketing and social media at the
Evergreen Family of Companies in
Wyoming. Previously she was the marketing
and communications specialist at NiUG
International.
Jennifer Bushinger ’07 is director of
community impact Loveland Center, Venice,
Fla. Bushinger has three years of experience
in the field of intellectual and developmental
disabilities and more than 15 years of professional theater experience. She directed
200 productions across the United States,
performing in two national tours. Bushinger
also taught elementary and middle school
children with developmental disabilities in

husky notes

the line up

Jillian Gibson ’12 to Matthew Lorefice ’12

Jillian Gibson ’12 and Matthew Lorefice ’12 celebrated their wedding April 21. Shown from left are, back row: Ryan Olaf,
Even Overholt, Joseph Crossin, Clint Clevenstein, Danielle Bowles (Volm), Gina Stillman. Front row: Alyssa Olaf
(Kakareka), Amanda Overholt (Welker), Lindsay Kupferschmidt, groom Matthew Lorefice, bride Jillian Lorefice
(Gibson), Nikayla Loy, and Alyssa Bartlett.

MARRIAGES

BIRTHS

Todd Garafalo ’02 & Kelly
Campbell, April 7, 2018

Jillian Gibson ’12 & Matthew
Lorefice ’12, April 21, 2018

Rebecca Hummel ’06/’08M
& Eugene Shiu, Nov. 18, 2017

Joseph Ianiero ’13 & Megan
Wagner, July 22, 2017

Stefanie Sanders ’04/’05M
and husband Keith, a son,
Jude August, Aug. 4, 2017

Melissa Mattioli ’06 and husband
Bill Reilly, a daughter Olivia Nicole,
June 23, 2017

Kerri Sheridan ’06 & Michael
Mottola, March 24, 2018

Emily Uetz ’14 & Daniel
Staskowski, Oct. 1, 2016

Jake Miller ’05 and wife Devin,
a son, Isaiah Daryl, May 4, 2018

Carly Kukish ’07 & Scott Doll,
April 2018

Heather Vink ’14 & Daniel
Fisher ’14, June 17, 2016

Lauren Kopich Esser ’09
and husband Vincent ’09,
a daughter, Brea Elizabeth,
April 24, 2018

Amy Ward Morrison ’09
& Timothy Day, April 18, 2018

Katie Kolesar Senycz ‘05
and husband Michael ’03,
a daughter, Sloane Patricia,
April 30, 2017

Heather Vink Fisher ’14
and husband Daniel ’14,
a son, Bennett, March 2, 2017

FALL 2018

29

a therapy program aimed at improving
social skills, communication and
interpersonal relationships through
musical theater.

BU graduates separated
by 60 years
Rachel E. Green ’18, who graduated in
anthropology and Arabic, was joined at
spring commencement ceremonies by her
grandmother Alice Faux Green ’58.
Alice Green graduated from Bloomsburg
State Teachers College 60 years ago with
a degree in secondary mathematics
education and retired from the
Philadelphia School District. Rachel Green
plans to attend graduate school.

Rob Cywinski ’08 was honored with
a Commendation for Valor from the
Department of Corrections for his service.
Cywinski as honored for putting himself
at risk to protect the life of an officer
who had been shot.
Jessica Menkin
Kontelis ’09
successfully defended
her doctoral dissertation in English:
Rhetoric and
Composition at
Texas Christian University in April. In 2011,
she earned an M.F.A. in Creative Writing:
Fiction at Mills College in Oakland, Calif.

’10s

Amy Malecki Lynott ’10 is a senior client services associate with Jacobi Capital
Management in Berwyn. She previously
worked in client services at a national
warehouse firm.
Makala Ashmar ’13 is the properties
coordinator at the Lehigh Northampton
Airport Authority, Allentown.
Brian J.
Kutz ’13/14M is
supervisor and CPA
of the Tax Services
Group at Boyer &
Ritter, Camp Hill.
Chad D.
Levan ’13/14M is
supervisor and CPA
at Boyer & Ritter,
Camp Hill.

Kayla Oxenrider ’13 joined the University
of North Florida women’s basketball
coaching staff in Jacksonville, Fla.
Oxenrider began coaching in 2013 at
Albright College and had stints at
St. Francis and Austin Peay.

Leah Cover ’14 earned several end-ofyear awards from the Columbus Blue
Jackets of the National Hockey League. She
earned President’s Club honors for generating more than $600,000 in sales, the Art
Ross Award for top group sales revenue
and achieved 100 percent Club season
ticket sales (coming in at
152 percent).
Shea DeNoia ’14/Au.D. is a doctor at
Ambrose Hearing Center, Pottsville.
Kyle R. Evans ’14M
is supervisor in the
Business Services,
Internal Audit and
Government
Services groups
at Boyer & Ritter,
Camp Hill.
Jenna Montone ’14 is a social worker in
the mental health field at Wernersville
State Hospital, Wernersville.
Jared Wolfgang ’14
is supervisor and
CPA of the
Government
Services Group at
Boyer & Ritter,
Camp Hill.

Emily J.
Griffith ’15/16M
is a senior associate
in the Forensic,
Litigation Support
and Consulting
Group at Boyer
& Ritter, Camp Hill.
Scott A. Koman ’15
is supervisor and
CPA of the Forensic,
Litigation Support
and Consulting
Group at Boyer &
Ritter, Camp Hill.
Jake Miller ’15 is assistant sports
information director/new media manager
at Lees-McRae College, Banner Elk, N.C.
Michael Bryan ’17 was accepted into
the TAPIF program (Teaching Assistant
Program in France). The program is a joint
initiative of the French Ministry of National
Education, and the cultural services division
of the French embassy. He will teach English
in Nantes, France, for one semester.
Morgan Kerstetter ’17 is the owner of
the Catherine Treon School of Dance in
Sunbury and Danville.
Michael Menapace ’17 is a patrol
officer with the Coal Township Police
Department. He is scheduled to attend
Harrisburg Area Community College
Police Academy in June.
Brittani Shearer ’17 is a preschool
teacher in Kongiganak, Alaska.

30

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN MEMORIAM
Elbern Alkire, former Foundation Chair
Elbern H. “Ed” Alkire Jr. ’95H, age 81 of Allentown, a former director and
chair of the Bloomsburg University Foundation Board, died June 2.
Alkire was extensively involved in supporting higher education, both
at Lafayette College and Bloomsburg University. He won a full tuition
merit scholarship to Lafayette College, where he majored in chemical
engineering. He was recruited by the General Electric Company to
work at the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory in Schenectady, N.Y.,
where he was involved in the design and testing of power plant
systems for nuclear submarines. He also earned a master's degree in
chemical engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in
Troy, N.Y. Alkire later joined Air Products Company in Allentown as a
development engineer. Over the next 33 years, he held technical and
management positions of increasing responsibility. In 1975, he was a
loaned executive to Pennsylvania serving on the Governor's Review of
state government, where he focused on Bloomsburg University.
At Bloomsburg, in addition to his service on the Foundation Board,
he chaired the advisory board of the College of Business and was a
chair and founding member of the advisory council of the department
of nursing. The State System of Higher Education awarded him Eberly
Medal for Volunteerism and he was an honorary alumnus of BU.
He was predeceased by his wife of 54 years, Gratia Greene Alkire.
Family survivors include a son, Dr. Ti Alkire of Ithaca and a brother, Dr.
Richard C. Alkire and his wife, Melissa Huff.

OBITUARIES
Frances Riggs Young ’36
Sara Tubbs ’39
J. Richard Zerby ’47
Nadine Tracy ’48
George Gehrig ’49
Robert Burns ’52
Robert Thurston ’52
Wilma Jones Kennedy ’53
Jack Soberick ’53
Delsey Collins ’54
John Johnson ’54
Nancy Tovey Phillips ’54
James Brunn ’57

D. Ron Fox ’58
Robert Poller ’58
Mary Mattern Penny ’59
Lorraine Taylor Thoma ’59
James Bray ’60
Robert Lee Johnstone ’61
Edward Szymczak ’61
Helen Pershing Hoffman ’63
Walter Jacobs ’63
Thomas DeGraziano ’65
Joseph Nutaitis ’65
Russell C. Rudy, Jr. ’68
Kathryn Dehaven ’69

Stanley Wasilewski ’70
Edward Boudman ’71
John Dimhele ’71
John Hollander ’71
Henry Larsen ’71
Henry Nyberg ’71
Karen Sosna Pezzuti Snyder ’73
Shirley Logan Kozerski ’75
Susan Hummel ’76
Mark Foucart ’78
Lynne Elizabeth Miller ’83
David Komara ’84
George Jenkins ’85

Marie Moyer ’85
David Day ’87
Joelane Lindberg ’91
Susan Kutz Egan ’93
Elbern Alkire ’95
Barry Barosky ’96
Rachelle Quick Rivera ’96
Jeremy Grad ’04
Kimberlee Kemp Stout ’04
Stephen Werner ’13
Melanie Powers ’14

Send information to: magazine@bloomu.edu

Bloomsburg: The University Magazine • Waller Administration Building • 400 East Second Street • Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301

FALL 2018

31

ON THE HILL

sports

A Passion
for Helping
By Jake Miller ’15
RACHEL YENNEY ’17 has always had a passion for
helping others. Combine that with her passion for
environmental issues impacting underdeveloped
countries, and she finds herself traveling across the
country to satisfy both of her interests.
Yenney, a four-year member of the women’s soccer
team from Collegeville, graduated from BU last
December with a bachelor of science in physics and a
3.78 grade point average. She began studying for her
master’s degree in civil environmental engineering at
Stanford University’s School of Engineering this fall.
Yenney chose civil environmental engineering because
it combines her two passions.
“It is the best combination of my desire for helping
others and the environment as well as the engineering and
science side of things,” says Yenney. “I’m really excited to
see what options this field opens up for me in my future.”
“My dream would be to travel to the world and help
establish new or improve existing water quality
infrastructures in under-developed and developing
countries,” says Yenney. “I’d like to spend a year in the Peace
Corps helping others who are less fortunate than me.”
Adventures are also nothing new for Yenney, who has
already seen parts of the world that include Université
Paris 13 where she completed a summer internship
working in the school’s laboratories.

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BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

“BU helped prepare me for the experience in Paris
in many different ways,” said Yenney. The diversity on
campus in my classes taught me to appreciate many
different cultures.”
Yenney also cites her volunteer work as a reason for
choosing to study civil environmental engineering.
“During my time at Bloomsburg, I participated in a lot
of volunteering and service events that instilled in me
a desire to help those in need in some capacity in my
life,” says Yenney. “I’ve been on a mission trip to the
Dominican Republic, a service trip to Jamaica, a volunteer
trip for Habitat for Humanity, and have also done a lot of
volunteering on campus and in the local community.”
Yenney chose Stanford not only for its great
academics, but also because her father is originally
from Palo Alto, Calif., where Stanford is located.
“Having a chance to go to school in the town where
my dad grew up was very appealing to me. I love
Pennsylvania, but Palo Alto is an absolutely beautiful
area and having relatives still living there will help me
with the transition of being so far away from home.”

Edgette Selected by Giants in MLB Draft
BASEBALL STANDOUT
Austin Edgette ’18, a native
of Exton, was selected by
the San Francisco Giants
in the 33rd round (976th
overall) on the final day
of the 2018 Major League
Baseball (MLB) draft.
Edgette became the second player in the last two
seasons to be drafted during the MLB amateur draft
as Tyler Benson (Montville, N.J.) was taken in 2017 by
the San Diego Padres in the 31st round. Edgette joins
Benson in the Arizona League and, as of press time,
was batting over .300 for the AZL Giants Orange.
Benson, meanwhile, plays for the AZL Padres.
Edgette earned seven postseason honors after a
remarkable 2018 campaign including three

All-American nods. He was named Second Team AllAmerican by the Division II Conference Commissioners
Association (D2CCA) and earned Third Team AllAmerican honors from both the American Baseball
Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings and the National
Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA).
Edgette also claimed First Team All-Region accolades
from all three organizations while collecting All-PSAC
East First Team honors for the third consecutive season.
Edgette finished the 2018 season with a team-leading
.436 batting average (72-of-165). He also led the team,
or tied for the team lead, in hits (72), triples (2), home
runs (7), total bases (113), on-base percentage (.530),
slugging percentage (.685), and stolen bases (24). He
finished his career as the school’s all-time leader in
career hits with 236 passing the mark of 235 set by
BU Hall of Famer John Stillo ’98.

BU Announces Radio
Agreement with
Bigfoot Country 106.5

friends can follow Huskies football.”
Kristin Cantrell, CEO of Seven
Mountains Media, is pleased to
see the relationship evolve with
BU. “We are excited to expand the
relationship we currently enjoy
with Bloomsburg University. They
are an excellent partner with the
National Radio Talent Institute,
where we train the next generation
of broadcasters every summer.”
All broadcasts of BU football
during the 2018 season will also be
available via Bigfoot Country's online stream at
www.thisisbigfootcountry.com.
Bigfoot Country 106.5 is centered in Bloomsburg
and provides coverage well beyond Columbia County,
including Snyder, Union, Lycoming, Northumberland,
Dauphin, Lebanon, Sullivan, Montour, Luzerne,
Schuylkill, Berks, Wyoming, and Carbon counties.

BIGFOOT COUNTRY 106.5 (FM) will
broadcast all BU football games during
the 2018 season. Bigfoot Country is owned
and operated by Seven Mountains Media,
LLC, based out of Selinsgrove.
In conjunction with the announcement,
the longtime broadcast team of Jim Doyle
and Andy Ulicny will once again serve as
the “Voices of the Huskies.”
“We are pleased to partner with Seven Mountains
Media to air our football games this fall,” says President
Bashar Hanna. “Our new partner has a broad geographic
reach that aligns with our recruitment strategies and
where many of our alumni reside. This collaboration
will ensure that prospective students, alumni, and

Hall of Fame Class Announced
SEVEN INDIVIDUALS WILL BE INDUCTED as the
37th Athletic Hall of Fame class, bringing the total number
of honorees to 182. Members of the Hall of Fame Class
of 2018 are former women’s basketball coach Joe Bressi,
Susan (Brophy) O’Donnell ’81 (women's swimming),
Adam Clay ’05 (men's soccer), Jahri Evans ’07 (football),

Megan LaBuda ’02 (women's basketball), Jennifer Lefever
’96 (softball), and Tom Vargo ’66 (wrestling).
The induction dinner and ceremony will take place
on Friday, Oct. 19, at Nelson Field House. Festivities will
begin at 6 p.m. with a cocktail hour followed by the dinner
and induction ceremony starting at 7 p.m.
For tickets to the dinner or to learn more about this
year’s inductees, visit www.buhuskies.com.
FALL 2018

33

then AND now
Freshman Customs,
1925-1970
By Robert Dunkelberger

Faculty member Scott Miller introduces freshmen to the library, 1967.

New students coming to Bloomsburg University today receive
a thorough orientation to life on campus, providing them with
a firm foundation for college. But this was not always the case.
When an orientation program started in 1925, it was referred
to as Freshman or College Customs and was more a means
for upperclassmen to have some fun with the new students. It
was what colleges across the country were doing to build unity
among members of the incoming class.
Although relatively mild, the
“Customs” activities could be looked
on as a form of hazing. That first year,
women were required to tie green
ribbons in their hair, wear black
stockings but no cosmetics, eat their
Friday dinners left-handed with a
spoon, and learn the Alma Mater and
sing it whenever asked. The men
had to wear black hats, socks, and
ties every day but Sunday, attend all
athletic games, and could not smoke
in public, grow a mustache, put their

hands in their
pockets, or loiter
in pool halls.
During these
early years, firstyear students
A woman dressed up for the
were required to
Kid Party, 1937.
participate in an
event called a Kid Party, where
women wore their hair in pigtails and
all wore clothing making them look like
children. They would engage in games
and dancing and eat cookies, candy, and
ice cream. This custom went on until
1946, when it was followed until 1963
by a talent show that showcased the
abilities of the freshmen.
Freshman Customs were suspended
during World War II, but later returned
in full force. As described in the
student handbook, “College customs
are traditional requirements to orient
incoming students with the history

Women in 1947 showing off their hats made from green crepe paper.
34

BLOOMSBURG
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY OF
OF PENNSYLVANIA
PENNSYLVANIA

Fun and games in
1967 during Monte
Carlo Night.

and life of Bloomsburg State Teachers
College. Ours is a friendly college
and customs are not meant to
intimidate or embarrass the student.
They are a wholesome, democratic
way for freshmen to meet the
upperclassmen and faculty.”
Examples of what new students
had to endure at this time include
wearing signs, carrying umbrellas,
and wearing sweaters backwards. The
climax was the “Green Hat Parade,”
where all freshmen women wore
hats they had made from green crepe
paper. In the early years, men wore a
small hat called a dink, usually black,
while the women wore maroon and
gold armbands. By 1949, all students
were required to purchase and wear
dinks, which now featured alternating
maroon and gold stripes and either a
maroon or a gold “B” on the front.
Beginning with the fall of 1962,
College Customs for freshmen was
officially referred to as Orientation.
The main purpose for the change,
according to Student Affairs, was
“to help the student adjust to college
life more easily and to develop a
wholesome attitude toward the
college community life.”
As a student-originated venture, it
continued to be run by a committee
overseen by the Community Government
Association. It was essentially only for
freshmen coming to campus straight
out of high school, and so military
veterans, transfer students, and those
over 21 were exempt.

become mature college students.
But even so, some traditions such as
wearing dinks and signs with name
and hometown, singing college songs,
and memorizing cheers, were retained.
For new students who did not
comply with the rules, a tribunal
and jury made up of members of
the Orientation Committee passed
judgment. Punishment for the
guilty consisted primarily of being
bombarded with sticky items such
as honey, syrup, and shaving cream.
Throughout the rest of the decade, Freshmen could, however, retaliate
against the Orientation Committee
the orientation process gradually
changed and was more about getting in similar fashion.
While orientation programs have
new students acclimated to college
continued, the rituals that had their
life. By 1967 there were sessions
origins in 1925 were enacted for
where the freshmen would find out
about the library, the bookstore, and one final time in the fall of 1970.
meet in small groups with members Anything that seemed to even have
the appearance of hazing was
of the faculty. Fun events were still
eliminated at that time, and since
held, such as Monte Carlo Night,
where students were given play money then Orientation has focused solely
to gamble and enjoy games of chance. on helping each student get the most
out of their experience as a student
The activities comprising
Orientation Week at this time were at Bloomsburg University.
developed to prepare freshmen to

Women, and a few men, with their umbrellas, 1953.

FALL 2018

35

calendar

Activities
and Events
FALL 2018

SPECIAL EVENTS

ART EXHIBITS

Mid-Term

Homecoming Weekend

Exhibits in the Haas Gallery of Art and The Gallery
at Greenly Center, 50 E. Main St. Bloomsburg,
are open to the public free of charge. For more
information, gallery hours and reception times,
visit departments.bloomu.edu/art.

Tuesday, Oct. 16

Reading Day

Tuesday, Nov. 20

Thanksgiving Break

Wednesday, Nov. 21
through Sunday, Nov. 25

Friday, Oct. 5 through Sunday, Oct. 7
Visit bloomu.edu/homecoming for details on these
and additional events or to register. For information,
contact Alumni Affairs at 800-526-0254 or
alum@bloomu.edu.

Parents and Family Weekend

Classes End

Friday, Oct. 12 through Sunday, Oct. 14
Visit bloomu.edu/parents-family for details.

Finals Week

Celebrity Artist Series Headline Event:
Viva MOMIX!

Friday, Dec. 7
Monday, Dec. 10
through Friday, Dec. 14

Graduate
Commencement
Friday, Dec. 14

Undergraduate
Commencement

Saturday, Dec. 1, 7 p.m.,
Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Blaine Cooper: Images From A Local Soldier
In Vietnam
The Gallery at Greenly Center
July 25 through Oct. 11

Catherine Haggerty: 2018 Cola Alumni
Symposium Exhibition
Haas Gallery of Art
Oct. 4 — Nov. 15

Senior Exit Show

For more information and to order tickets call the
box office at 570-389-4409 or visit cas.buzz.
Programs and dates are subject to change.

Haas Gallery of Art
Nov. 27 — Dec. 14

Student Theme Show: ‘Identity’
The Gallery at Greenly Center
Oct. 18 — Dec. 4

Saturday, Dec. 15

Va: Mayumi Amada & Kirsten Nelson
The Gallery at Greenly Centert
Dec. 12 — Feb. 14

CONCERTS
Listed events are open to the
public and free of charge. For
information and additional
events, see bloomu.edu/musicevents or call 570-389-4284.
All programs, dates, times and
locations are subject to change.

Student Recital

Sunday, Sept. 23, 2:30 p.m.
Gross Auditorium, Carver Hall

Young Person’s Concert
Tuesday, Oct. 9, 10 a.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

BU Choirs Fall Choral Festival
Sunday, Oct. 14, 2:30 p.m.
Gross Auditorium, Carver Hall

Octuba Fest

Saturday, Oct. 20, at 3 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

36

Student Recital

Percussion Ensemble

Jazz Ensemble

Student Recital

Faculty Recital
Dr. Charisse Baldoria

Guitar Ensemble

Saturday, Nov. 10, 2:30 p.m.
Gross Auditorium, Carver Hall

Wednesday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Wind Ensemble

“Carols by Candlelight”

Wednesday, Oct. 24, 7:30 p.m.
First Presbyterian Church,
345 Market St., Bloomsburg
Wednesday, Oct. 24, 7:30 p.m.
Gross Auditorium, Carver Hall

Concerto Competition Friday,
Oct. 26, 6:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall
Piano Day

Saturday, Oct. 27,
10 a.m. — 3 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Northern Appalachian
Wind Symphony

Sunday, Oct. 28, TBD
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Tuesday, Nov. 6, at 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Wednesday, Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Bloomsburg University
Community Orchestra

Sunday, Nov. 18, 2:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Thursday, Nov. 29, 7:30 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

Thursday, Dec. 6, and
Friday, Dec. 7, at 7:30 p.m
First Presbyterian Church,
345 Market St., Bloomsburg.
No admission fee but tickets
are required. Available at the
Mitrani box office (389-4409)

Tuba Christmas
Saturday, Dec.8, at 7 p.m.
Haas Center for the Arts,
Mitrani Hall

ForBLOOMSBURG
the latestUNIVERSITY
information
on upcoming events, check the Bloomsburg University website bloomu.edu/events.
OF PENNSYLVANIA

Get ready for the cool days
of autumn.

Pictured: Rachel Miller ’19,
a business management
major from Catawissa.

NOW IN STOCK: Heavyweight cotton knit blankets and other fall favorites.
THE UNIVERSITY STORE

400 East Second Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815
General Information: 570-389-4175
Customer Service: 570-389-4180
bustore@bloomu.edu

OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
SEE BLOOMUSTORE.COM
FOR THIS WEEK’S HOURS
AND TO SHOP ONLINE.

BLOOMUSTORE.COM
FALL 2018

37

1011050113
Office of Marketing and Communications
400 East Second Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815-1301

CELEBRITY ARTIST SERIES HEADLINE EVENT:

Viva MOMIX!
SATURDAY, DEC. 1 |

7p.m.

Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall

Known internationally for presenting
work of exceptional inventiveness
and physical beauty, MOMIX is
a company of dancer-illusionists.
Suitable for the entire family,
Viva MOMIX! is a compilation of
company favorites.

For more information and to order tickets call the box office at 570-389-4409 or visit cas.buzz
Programs and dates are subject to change.

A NOTE TO PARENTS

If this issue of Bloomsburg: The University Magazine is
addressed to a daughter or son who has established a
separate residence, please notify us of that new
address by sending an email to: magazine@bloomu.edu

38

BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

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