admin
Fri, 02/02/2024 - 19:16
Edited Text
California University

VOLUME 11, NUMBER 26 OCT. 19, 2009

TV News Reporter Accepts
Jennie Carter award

L

Lynne Hayes-Freeland entertains the audience as she
delivers the keynote address at the Jennie Carter Day
Celebration. The longtime KDKA-TV reporter said
reading about Cal’s first African-American graduate was
motivating and inspiring.

ynne Hayes-Freeland, a reporter for KDKA-TV,
called Elizabeth “Jennie” Adams Carter a leader
whose courage, commitment and conviction
women must emulate if they hope to achieve success.
On Oct. 9, Jennie Carter Day at Cal U, HayesFreeland received the inaugural Jennie Carter
Leadership Award honoring the University’s first
African-American graduate.
The award recognizes individuals who embody the
spirit and ideals of Jennie Carter, Class of 1881, an
educator and a gifted public speaker.
“This was a woman who was ahead of her time,
and as I read about her I became motivated and
inspired,” Hayes-Freeland said as she accepted the
award. “Like all people who are ‘firsts,’ she was a
leader whether she knew it or not.”
Hayes-Freeland, who joined KDKA-TV in 1976,
volunteers in her community and serves on several
boards. As she shared anecdotes of her own successful
career in a male-dominated workplace, she asked the

audience to imagine what Jennie Carter had
experienced as a student.
“Think of the reactions she would have caused
simply by raising her hand and asking a question,”
Hayes-Freeland said. “People were watching her every
move, and the courage it must have taken to keep her
hand up was no small feat.”
She praised other women who made breakthroughs,
such as Susie King Taylor, the first African-American
Army nurse and the first to teach openly in a school for
former slaves.
“People like these unknowingly opened doors for all
African-Americans and minorities,” said HayesFreeland, an active member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha
sorority. “They opened doors then and are still doing so
in 2009.”
She emphasized that although Jennie Carter never
saw herself as a leader, she must have hoped that
strong,
— Continued on page 3

Professor, Students Continue Cancer Conference
Addresses
Research in Cal U’s Frich Lab
School
Security

W

orking in a renovated faculty
lounge on the third floor of
the Frich biology building,
Dr. Paula Caffrey and her students are
conducting research that may help to
improve chemotherapy for cancer
patients.
In the new cell culture laboratory, the
researchers are working with cells grown
from ovarian tumor samples, testing a
chemical mix that could make
chemotherapy more effective and easier
for patients to tolerate. By 2010, Caffrey
also will be working with cell lines
derived from human lung tumors.
This year’s project builds on work
done by 2009 graduates John Praskavich
and Robert Bilotto, whose cancer
research was part of an Honors Program
project and Caffrey’s Biological
Investigations course.
Praskavich is now a graduate student
in cancer research at Rutgers University
in New Jersey. Bilotto is working at
Precision Therapeutics of Pittsburgh, a
cancer therapy laboratory.
“What we’re doing now is using
some of the work that John and Robert
pioneered to test a different chemical to
improve chemotherapy,” Caffrey
explains. “Ovarian cancer and lung
cancer were selected because they very
quickly become resistant to
chemotherapy.”
Cancer treatments may stop working
because the tumor cells no longer
respond to the chemotherapy drugs.
“But the chemicals that we add to
improve chemotherapy can themselves
be toxic to the patient,” Caffrey says.
“We want to find a less toxic cotreatment to improve the patients’
outcome and allow them to tolerate
chemotherapy better.”
Caffrey has been conducting cancer

S

Pam Buchheit, a senior majoring in biology, applies a dose of cinnamon extract to ovarian
tumor cells as Dr. Paula Caffrey looks on.

research for 20 years, including 18 years
at Rutgers as a postdoctoral fellow and
later as an assistant research professor
with Dr. Gerald Frenkel. A clinical trial
based on their work began in 2003, after
14 years of groundwork in the lab.
Patient responses still are being recorded.
Special laboratory equipment is
required for working with human cells,
Caffrey says, so Praskavich and Bilotto
trained at Frenkel’s lab in 2008 before
the one at Cal U was operational.
This year’s Cal U researcher is senior
Pamela Bucchheit. In addition to
conducting lab work, she teamed with
Caffrey to submit a funding proposal to
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Universities Biologists, an organization
that provides support for teaching and
research activities of biology professors
in Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned

universities. The proposal was accepted.
“All three students practice working
with the cells in a controlled
environment, so they don’t contaminate
the cell lines,” Caffrey says. “They put in
their own time to master those skills, so
when they officially start the research,
they don’t have any downtime learning
everyday lab procedures.”
Along with talent and dedication,
patience is essential for success as a
cancer researcher, Caffrey says. “As in all
areas of science, there are weeks and
weeks, months and months of frustration
and failure for each small step ahead.
“I think it’s amazing that these
students will now go forward and use the
skills they’ve acquired here to actually
work on finding a solution to the bigger
problem. It’s a wonderfully gratifying
experience.”

chool Security: Preventing the
Disaster” is the topic of the third
annual Conference on Corporate
and Homeland Security, set for 8 a.m.
to 5:30 p.m. Oct. 28 in the
Performance Center.
The conference is presented by the
Department of Justice, Law and
Society. Speakers will include state
Education Secretary Dr. Gerald
Zahorchak; Robert French, director of
the Pennsylvania Emergency
Management Agency; Col. Frank
Pawlowski, commissioner of the
Pennsylvania State Police; and Steven
Toprani ’01, district attorney for
Washington County. Faculty members
Dr. Emily Sweitzer, associate professor
of justice and behavioral crime, and
professor Sam Lonich, chairman of the
Psychology Department and director of
Cal U’s Child and Family Studies
Institute, also will give presentations.
Opening remarks will be delivered
by University President Dr. Angelo
Armenti, Jr. Dr. Michael Hummel,
interim dean of Cal U’s College of
Liberal Arts, will give closing remarks.
Students, faculty, school
administrators, law enforcement
officers and the general public may
attend. Registration is not required,
and Act 48 credits are available.
For more information, contact Dr.
Cassandra Kuba, associate professor of
the Department of Justice, Law and
Society, at kuba@calu.edu or 724-9384283. For a link to the complete
conference schedule, visit

Murder-Mystery Spoof Opens Theater Season

W

ho killed the Mysterious Host? The Department
of Theatre and Dance will open its 2009 fall
season with that question as first-year students
present Jonathan Rand’s Murder in the Knife Room.
Curtain time is 8 p.m. Oct. 22, 23 and 24, with a 2 p.m.
matinee on Oct. 24. All performances are in the Gerald
and Carolyn Blaney Theatre, a “black box” theater in
Steele Hall on the Cal U campus.
Directed by Dr. Michele Pagen, a professor in the
Department of Theatre and Dance, this hilarious spoof of
the murder-mystery genre takes place in the knife room of
a mansion. There the Omniscient Inspector questions the
Respected General, the Wealthy Dowager and other
suspects in an attempt to solve this “thrilling and baffling
murder case.”
Murder in the Knife Room marks the 14th annual firstyear student show at Cal U. The University’s Bachelor of
Arts in Theatre is just one of 146 programs nationally to
earn accreditation from the National Association of
Schools of Theatre.
All performances are open to the public. Cost is $10 for
adults, $9 for seniors and children. Students with valid
CalCards and a $5 deposit are admitted free.
For ticket information, or to order tickets (with a credit
card) by phone, call the Steele Box Office at 724-938-5943.

xxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxx

Coalition Seeks Federal Funds for
Broadband Network

A

broad coalition of colleges and
universities, health care
organizations and economic
development entities across Pennsylvania
is seeking nearly $100 million in federal
funding to build and maintain a
broadband network that would greatly
expand educational opportunities and
health care services to millions of
residents and thousands of businesses
throughout the commonwealth.
The Pennsylvania Research and
Education Network (PennREN) has
applied for funding through the American
Recovery and Revitalization Act. Another
$29 million in private funds would support
the proposed $128 million initiative.
Pennsylvania is among only a handful
of states without an extensive broadband
network. This has prevented the
expansion of distance learning and other
educational opportunities, has delayed the
universal availability of telemedicine, and
has limited the ability of many of the
state’s leading research universities to
access and share critical information
throughout the United States and the
world.
The proposed network would reach
every region of the commonwealth,
providing access and services to more
than 5 million individuals in more than 2
million households and to 200,000
businesses. It would include 13 primary
switching centers and approximately 50
secondary facilities within a 10-mile
radius of designated anchor institutions.

O

The Pennsylvania Research and Education Network (PennREN) has applied for funding to
build and maintain a broadband network that would greatly expand educational
opportunities and health care services to millions of Pennsylvania residents.

The system would rival any in the United
States and would provide the capability to
connect regional networks across the
commonwealth.
PennREN’s founding members include
the Pennsylvania State System of Higher
Education, Penn State University, the
University of Pittsburgh, the University of
Pittsburgh Medical Center, the MidAtlantic Gigapop for Internet 2 (MAGPI)
at the University of Pennsylvania,
Bucknell University, Drexel University,
Lehigh University, Three Rivers Optical
Exchange (3ROX), the Pennsylvania
Commission for Community Colleges, the

Upward Bound
Dr. Jon R. Serra ’93 (right) receives the inaugural TRIO Achiever
Award from Gary Seelye, director of Cal U’s Upward Bound
program. The award is presented to Upward Bound alumni who
have distinguished themselves through their educational
attainments or by dedicating their life’s work to the ideals of
TRIO programs, which serve low-income, first-generation
college students or students with disabilities. Serra earned a
bachelor’s degree in chemistry, with honors, after participating
in Cal U’s Upward Bound program. During his undergraduate
years, Serra also spent summers as a resident tutor for the
Upward Bound Program at Cal U. Serra earned his doctorate
from Penn State University and now is an assistant professor of
chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh-Titusville.

2

Funding
Sources
are Focus
of Free
Workshop

Association for Independent Colleges and
Universities of Pennsylvania, the Hospital
& Healthsystem Association of
Pennsylvania and EINetworks, a
collaboration of the Allegheny Library
Association and the Carnegie Library of
Pittsburgh.
“This project is essential to the
continued growth of PASSHE,” said
PASSHE Chancellor John C. Cavanaugh.
“It would expand our ability to offer
distance learning and collaborative
programs among our member universities
while greatly benefiting the citizens of the
commonwealth.”

wners of small businesses
involved with technology
and innovation can learn
how to obtain federal funding at a
free workshop 4-6 p.m. Nov. 3 in the
Kara Alumni House.
Faculty and other members of
the Cal U community also may
attend “Show Me the Money!
SBIR/STTR: The Basics.”
Greg Rice, of the Small Business
Development Center at the
University of Pittsburgh, will
explain how business owners can
qualify for funding through SBIR
and STTR, the Small Business
Innovation Research and Small
Business Technology Center
programs.
Both programs are administered
by the U.S. Small Business
Administration through its Office of
Technology.
Through these two competitive
programs, the SBA ensures that the
nation’s small, high-tech,
innovative businesses are a
significant part of the federal
government’s research and
development efforts.
The workshop will focus on:
• Steps for applying for federal
SBIR research.
• Pre-qualification issues for
potential participants.
• Proposal-writing tips for making
your innovation stand out.
• Strategies for making your
technology appeal to funding
providers.
• An overview of participating
agencies.
The workshop is free, but space
is limited; reservations are required
by Oct. 23.
To register, call 724-437-7913
and ask for Joe Podolinski, or send
e-mail to joep@faypenn.org.

Book Project a Lesson in Typography

R

obert Meyers, an assistant
professor in Cal U’s
Department of Art and Design,
has finished designing a history book
about Shady Side Academy.
The 250-page, coffee-table-style
book, Inspire Us Through the Years, was
a two-year project.
“I spent many, many hours in the
attic of Shady Side’s admissions office
hunting through anything and
everything,” said Meyers, who has his
own design firm.
He collaborated on the book with
writer Mary Brignano and selected all
the images, designed the layout and
typography, and handled re-touching.
“For us in design, which is a
growing field, this was a big project to

be involved with,” said Meyers, who
earlier this year had five projects
designed by his firm published in
American Corporate Identity 2009.
Meyers is incorporating the $40,000
Shady Side project in his typography
class at Cal U.
“Absolutely, it’s been a big help in
the classroom,” he said. “Showing the
students the use of typography in
certain pages relates directly to the
projects we are working on here.”
In the future, Meyers hopes a
similar project can be done about Cal
U.
“We would love to be apart of
something like that here,” he said.
Meyers joined the Cal U faculty in
the 2008-2009 academic year.

xxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxx

Campus BRIEFS
Dan Dorgan,
business
development
account
manager for
Black Box
Network
Services and
Debbie
Wojcik greet
attendees at
last year’s
procurement
fair. This
year’s event
will take
place from
9 a.m. to 3:30
p.m. on
Oct. 28 in
Mars, Pa.

F

Art Education Workshop on Friday

GACO Fair Set for Oct. 28

or the 22nd consecutive year, Cal U’s
Government Agency Coordination
Office (GACO) will host a Procurement
Opportunities Fair to help businesses obtain
government contracts.
The 2009 fair will be held from 9 a.m. to
3:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at the Four Points by
Sheraton Pittsburgh North in Mars, Pa.
About 80 booths and tables will be staffed
by representatives of government agencies,
corporations, regional service organizations and
area businesses that can provide companies
with contracting and subcontracting
information.
Participants include Defense Supply Centers
in Richmond, Va., Philadelphia and Columbus,
Ohio; the General Services Administration;
Naval Supply Systems Command; U.S. Army
TACOM; Langley Air Force Base; Naval
Inventory Control Point; Pennsylvania

Department of Corrections; Port Authority of
Allegheny County; BAE Systems; Bechtel
Bettis; DRS Technologies; Lockheed Martin
Aeronautics; and Rand Corp.
Admission to the GACO fair is $40 per
attendee and includes a buffet lunch. Make
checks payable to “California University of
Pennsylvania” and mail to: GACO Office,
California University, 250 University Avenue,
Box 20, California, PA 15419-1394.
Cal U’s GACO has been in operation for 24
years. In that time it has helped the region’s
businesses obtain more than 29,000 contracts
totaling more than $2.2 billion.
For more information about the
Procurement Fair, call Tracy Julian at 724-9385881 or send e-mail to julian@calu.edu. For a
brochure about the fair, visit
www.calu.edu/advancement/gaco.

Cal U’s Department of Art Education is conducting a
workshop-conference, “Journey to Learn: Making
Connections,” from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Friday in the Performance Center of the
Natali Student Center.
Admission is free, and Act 48 credits
are available.
Jamie Kasper, the fine arts and
humanities advisor for the Pennsylvania
Department of Education, will give the
keynote address at 10:45 a.m. Her current
projects include Arts Educator 2.0, a federally-funded grant
project co-directed with Intermediate Unit 1, and the new
statewide model curriculum framework in the arts, which is
part of Pennsylvania’s Standards-Aligned System.
For more information, call the Consortium for Public
Education at 412-678-9215 or the Arts Education
Collaboration at 412-201-7405.

Study Trips Begin With PASSHE Summit
Faculty members who are interested in taking students on
short-term study trips abroad are urged to attend the second
annual PASSHE International Summit Friday at the Dixon
University Center in
Harrisburg.
Participants will hear
from other PASSHE
faculty who have
developed short-term
study trips abroad or who
have collaborated with
colleagues within the State
System on joint ventures.
For more information, contact Mary Randall in the
Modern Languages and Cultures Department at
randall@calu.edu or call 724-938-5575.

Accepting Inaugural Award, Reporter
Cites Jennie Carter as Inspiration
— Continued from page 1

Bill Carter, great-grandson of Jennie Adams Carter, presents the inaugural
Jennie Carter Leadership Award to Lynne Hayes-Freeland.

independent women would follow her example.
“More than 100 years since her death she is
being followed and talked about,” Hayes-Freeland
said. “How will you be remembered?”
Dr. Carryl Sheffield, chair of the Department
of Early Childhood/Elementary Education,
delivered opening and closing remarks, drawing
comparisons between her life and Jennie Carter’s.
William B. Carter, great-grandson of Jennie
Carter, asked the audience to support the
endowed scholarship fund created in her memory.
“This university has embraced diversity as a
critical part of education,” he said. “This
scholarship will honor students who will follow
Jennie as leaders of our communities.”
Dr. Carole W. Hancock, a professor at

Washington State Community College, shared
facts drawn from her doctoral thesis about early
African-American teachers, including Jennie
Carter.
“She proved to her family, friends and foes
what could be accomplished,” Hancock said.
“She shed stereotypes and broke barriers with
dignity, poise and humor.”
In addition to Hayes-Freeland’s award, Carter
presented certificates of appreciation to Hancock
and to the officers of Cal U’s Black Student
Union. He praised the BSU for its commitment
to his great-grandmother’s legacy and their efforts
in building Carter Hall, dedicated in 2007.
The 352-bed residence hall, which also houses
the Multicultural and Health and Wellness
centers, is named for Jennie Carter. Her diploma
is on display in the lobby.

3

’58 football standout praises ‘great team’
Editor’s Note: Cal U held its 15th annual Athletic Hall of
Fame Banquet Oct. 16 at the Performance Center. Throughout
the fall, The Journal will profile each of the 2009 Hall of
Fame inductees.

J

oe Sarra ’60 is impressed by physical changes to
the Cal U campus, but the former Vulcan football
standout and longtime coach believes the
University’s impact goes far beyond it’s state-of-the-art
facilities.
“Some places may look fancy on the outside, and
Cal has a beautiful campus, but it’s what’s inside those
new buildings that’s important,” said Sarra, who was a
standout linebacker and fullback for the Vulcans from
1957 through 1959.
“Cal has always had great people to direct the
students. They develop leaders.”
On Friday, Sarra became the ninth player from the
undefeated 1958 PSAC championship team to earn
induction into the Cal U Athletic Hall of Fame.
“I am glad to be chosen, but I really accept this on
behalf of all the players on that team,” he said. “I
sincerely mean that, because there are a lot of players
on that team who could be accepting this award.”
Coached by 2004 Hall
of Fame inductee Ted
“Academically I
Nemeth, Cal had a perfect
8-0 season in 1958,
could not have
outscoring its opponents
gotten a better
by a per-game average of
education from
25.9 to 3.9, with four
shutouts. In 1959, Sarra
professors who
helped the Vulcans win
really cared.”
six of their eight games.
— Joe Sarra ’60
“We had a lot of
qualities that it takes to
have a great team,” said
Sarra, who was also a catcher and outfielder on the Cal
baseball team. “We were loyal to each other, dedicated,
hard-working and tough. We also disciplined ourselves
and respected each other. When you have these things,
you’re going to be successful.”
Sarra earned his bachelor’s degree in social studies
education in 1960. Four years later he received his
master’s degree in secondary administration and
guidance from West Virginia University.
“I am glad I went to Cal State,” he said.
“Academically I could not have gotten a better
education from professors who really cared. When you
went to class, it was expected that you were going to
listen to the direction they gave you, and they took the

During his playing days in the 1950s, Joe Sarra was a
physical linebacker and fullback for the Vulcans, who went
undefeated and won the PSAC championship in 1958.

time to talk to you. It wasn’t one of those closed-door
situations, and the professors were top-notch. You
wanted to perform in class.”
After he graduated, Sarra taught and coached at
several high schools before coaching at Miami
University of Ohio for one season and at Lafayette
University for 12 seasons. From there he joined the staff
of The Second Mile, a State College-based organization
concerned with the welfare of young people.
There he met former Penn State defensive
coordinator Jerry Sandusky, and Sarra joined the
Nittany Lions staff in 1984. For 15 years he coached
the defensive line and then inside linebackers before
becoming an administrative assistant for special projects
under head coach Joe Paterno for two seasons.
Sarra received the Michael Duda Award for athletic
achievement from the Cal U Alumni Association in
1992. In 1998, he received the All-American Football
Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

After earning his bachelor’s degree, Sarra enjoyed a
distinguished coaching career. His final 15 seasons were
spent at NCAA Division I perennial power Penn State.

In 2000, Sarra was inducted into the Bernie
Romanoski Chapter Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame,
and the following year he was inducted into the Mon
Valley Sports Hall of Fame.
While he was at Miami of Ohio, Sarra met current
Cal football head coach John Luckhardt. The two
competed when Luckhardt was at Lehigh and Sarra at
Lafayette, yet Luckhardt asked Sarra to speak to the
Vulcans in the spring of 2007.
“Even though we competed against each other,
we’ve been good friends for a long time,” Sarra said.
“He’s done a tremendous job with the California
football program.”
Sarra said he remains in contact with many of his
Vulcan teammates.
“I keep in touch with a lot of the guys and hate to
mention just one or two,” he said. “I have had some
health problems, and many guys have called to offer
encouragement. What we had was special — and it still

Cal Wins First Coal Bowl

R

Cal U President Angelo Armenti, Jr. hoists the Coal Bowl trophy as Vulcans eighth-year head
coach John Luckhardt (far left) and Bob ’68 and Barry Lippencott look on.

eceiving the first Coal Bowl
trophy added to the thrill of
victory for the Cal U football
team after its 41-28 win at IUP on Oct. 3.
The Coal Bowl was conceived by Bob
Lippencott ’68, a 2002 inductee in the
Cal U Athletic Hall of Fame, and his
brother, Barry, an IUP graduate.
Bob Lippencott played linebacker for
the Vulcans, and Barry was a standout
end for the Crimson Hawks. The
Lippencott family has a long history of
working in the coal industry and felt the
game would be an excellent platform to
honor their families and the region’s coal
miners.
The Pennsylvania Coal Association
sponsored the 2009 Coal Bowl. Proceeds

from the sponsorship will be split evenly
between the two universities and will be
used to fund scholarships for studentathletes.
The Coal Bowl trophy resembles a
coal miner’s lunch pail. The winner of
the game will keep it on display until the
teams meet again.
Cal U and IUP began their football
rivalry in 1918. Since 2000, either the
Vulcans or the Crimson Hawks have won
or shared the PSAC-West title. The
schools have combined for five NCAA
post-season appearances in that time.
The Vulcans will defend their Coal
Bowl title when IUP travels to Adamson
Stadium’s Hepner-Bailey Field on Sept.
18, 2010.

The California Journal is published weekly by California University of Pennsylvania, a member of The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
Dr. Angelo Armenti, Jr.
University President

Dr. Allan J. Golden
Vice President for Administration and Finance

Geraldine M. Jones
Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs

Dr. Lenora Angelone
Vice President for Student Development and Services

Dr. Joyce Hanley
Executive Vice President

Dr. Charles Mance
Vice President of Information Technology

Angela J. Burrows
Vice President for University Relations
Christine Kindl
Editor

Bruce Wald
Writer

OfficeofCommunicationsandPublicRelations,
250UniversityAvenue,California,PA15419
724-938-4195wald@calu.edu

The Journal is printed on paper made from trees harvested under the principles of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (www.SFIprogram.org).

4

Wendy Mackall
Writer