ALLEGHENY
SUMMER 2021
VOL. 39 • NO. 2
INTRODUCING INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT
ALLEGHENY COLLEGE HEALTH AGENCY UNRAVELS COMPLEXITY
FACULTY SHARE THEIR FULBRIGHT TEACHING, RESEARCH PLANS
Scene on Campus
The Gator women’s lacrosse team opened spring 2021 North Coast Athletic Conference play on April 6 under the lights at the Robertson Athletic Complex, taking on the College of Wooster. Women’s lacrosse joined several other Allegheny winter and spring varsity teams in returning to intercollegiate competition during the spring semester. Prioritizing health and safety, personnel from the Department of Athletics and Recreation worked closely with the Allegheny College Health Agency to develop practice and contest protocols and schedules based on College, conference, and NCAA guidelines.
S U M M E R 2 0 2 1 | Vo l . 3 9 , N o . 2 | a l l e g h e n y. e d u /m a g a z i n e
4 Introducing
Institutional Advancement
College Realignment Merges Fundraising and Alumni Affairs With Additional Strategic Priorities
VICE PRESIDENT FOR ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT Ellen Johnson MANAGING EDITOR Josh Tysiachney EDITOR Rick Stanley ART DIRECTOR Penny Drexel
22 A Matter of Perspectives Allegheny College Health Agency Combines Broad Expertise, Strong Support To Unravel Complexity Amid a Global Pandemic
28 On the Hill
Accolades and Appointments from Campus
LEAD DESIGNER Brian Martone CONTRIBUTORS Patrick Broadwater '93 Heather Grubbs Jesse Lavery Sean O’Connor Bernadette Wilson PHOTOGRAPHY Derek Li Liam Michel '20 Ed Mailliard Corey Nolan Konstantinos Papadopoulos Richard Sayer Bill Owen '74
32 Class Notes
News from Around the Country from Fellow Alumni
40 The Last Word
Allegheny Faculty Share Their Fulbright Teaching, Research Plans
ON THE COVER New Connections, New Roles for Those Inside the Patricia Bush Tippie Alumni Center. (photo by Derek Li)
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TRUSTEES Mary H. Feeley ’78, Ph.D., Chair Yvonne Hobbs Allen ’72, Ph.D. Christian L. Allison ’83 Kevin Baird ’84 Edward Joseph Borkowski ’81 Willow Wilcox Brost ’74 William H. Brown, Jr. ’80 Mark R. Campbell ’82 Curt Cramer ’84 Jennifer R. Daurora ’99 Antonio Francisco Dias ’86 Gary M. Elliott ’72 Terrence L. Hartford ’81 Judith Thomas Horgan ’68 Dusty E. Kirk ’75, Esq. John Kutz ’83 Steven D. Levinsky ’78 Hilary L. Link, Ph.D. Robert A. Marchman ’80, Esq. Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi Christine Scott Nelson ’73 John H. Niles, Jr. ’59, M.D. Thomas John Sadvary ’75 Julie G. Skattum ’85 Robert L. Smith, Jr. ’73, MBA Sue Steven ’75, Ph.D. Hayes C. Stover ’62, Esq. John F. Sutphen ’78 Eddie Taylor, Jr. ’87 Bruce R. Thompson ’86 Karen A. Ubelhart ’77 James O. Wible ’71 Michael R. Young ’78 Nancy A. Yovetich ’87, Ph.D. Douglas F. Ziegler TRUSTEES EMERITI Alice S. Bierer ’59 Ann S. Degenhart ’71 Thomas T. Frampton ’70, Esq. Samuel Hellman ’55, M.D. Isabelle Moss ’67 Silas R. Mountsier III ’52 Herbert H. Myers ’61 James F. Pomroy ’56 Thomas M. St. Clair ’57 Ferd J. Sauereisen ’57 M. Peter Scibetta ’54, M.D. Thomas N. Slonaker, MBA Henry B. Suhr, Jr. ’55 Arthur Tepper ’58 William H. Timbers ’72 Patricia Bush Tippie ’56 Robert A. Vukovich ’65, Ph.D. John D. Wheeler ’61, Esq. Robert C. Woodworth ’69
Allegheny (ISSN 0279-6724) is issued twice a year by Allegheny College, 520 North Main Street, Meadville, PA 16335 for the alumni, parents and friends of the College. Opinions and comments expressed herein are not necessarily those of the College. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Allegheny, Allegheny College, 520 North Main Street, Meadville, PA, 16335. Copyright 2021 Allegheny College.
Renaissance vision
by President Hilary L. Link, Ph.D.
“Say ‘Yes’ whenever you can.” I received that advice from one of my most valued mentors while working at Barnard College. She reasoned that life presents so many situations where, for good reason, one has to say “No.” But when the opportunity to say “Yes” to a request arises, embrace it — so new insights and creativity can thrive. When I arrived at Allegheny, I saw that spirit of affirmation imbued in the College’s educational approach. Allegheny empowers students to say “Yes” by asking (and requiring) them to select a major and minor from different academic disciplines. Or as our “Learn Outside the Lines” brand campaign tells students: “You can be anything you put your mind to. Why put your mind to just one thing?” One of my favorite sayings is: “When you change where you stand, you change what you see.” Through Allegheny’s curriculum, students learn to traverse and experiment with those different vantage points. That journey helps them to consider and discover where and how they want to make a difference. I believe that the multidisciplinary education that Allegheny offers can best educate students to confront the thorniest of challenges in society. But how can Allegheny capitalize on our unique educational approach to elevate the College’s visibility and reach talented students across the nation and the world? Answering that question is critical to the College’s future. We must propel Allegheny forward as we prepare for an
expected “demographic cliff” in 2026, when the number of college-aged students is predicted to drop almost 15 percent. Allegheny has a sterling opportunity to be a destination school for Gen Z students, whom I view as today’s Renaissance thinkers. They want to be a lot of different things, make their own futures, and have a greater impact by solving the problems they care most about; in this way they reflect the multidisciplinary approaches of Renaissance geniuses like Leonardo da Vinci or Michelango Buonarrotti.
Allegheny has a sterling opportunity to be a destination school for Gen Z students, whom I view as today’s Renaissance thinkers.
During my presidency, I have been communicating with thousands of students, alumni, faculty, and staff; consulting higher education professionals and local and national business leaders; and pulling inspiration from international thought-leaders to frame the College’s future. Drawing on those insights and months of planning, I have introduced a Renaissance Vision to position Allegheny to build on our strengths and become a leading college for future generations.
This vision is aligned across four interlocking priorities: • Holistic Student Success/Inclusive Excellence — to make the best student experience at Allegheny the common experience for every student. This will be reflected along a continuum of access, completion, and engagement, from recruiting and enrolling students to career planning and placement and ongoing alumni engagement. • Owning Allegheny’s Distinct Academic Brand — an intersectional approach to educate students for a life, not just a job. • Relevance to Global, Regional, and Local Social Context — expanding on the College’s strong history and work in civic engagement by taking a more active role in economic development and by having a stronger and more cohesive community presence. • Financial Stability — putting in place strategic initiatives intended to balance the College’s budget and steer the College to a continuing robust future. As part of a strategic administrative realignment to advance those priorities, we have transformed the College’s Development and Alumni Affairs office into an Institutional Advancement division. You can read more about the expanded scope of our Institutional Advancement efforts in this issue of Allegheny magazine. In our next issue, we will share more about our planning and work to most effectively support holistic student success.
INTRODUCING
INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT College Realignment Merges Fundraising and Alumni Affairs With Additional Strategic Priorities by Rick Stanley
For years the work in the Patricia Bush Tippie Alumni Center at Cochran Hall has involved traditional fundraising activities and outreach to alumni under the auspices of the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs. While that work continues with many of the same faces in the Tippie Center, the department has undergone a transition under President Hilary L. Link and the new Vice President for Institutional Advancement (formerly Development and Alumni Affairs), Matthew Stinson. The office’s mission has expanded to better align with the strategic vision of President Link and Stinson. One component of that vision is to organize the College
around the focus on holistic student support. The other is to provide increased support to all students and expand the College’s partnerships in Meadville and the region. This article highlights the extended nature of Institutional Advancement. In the next Allegheny magazine, a piece will address the expanded opportunities in the College’s approach to holistic student support with inclusive excellence at its core. In an interview with Allegheny magazine, Vice President Stinson, who joined the College in September 2020, explains the larger mission of Institutional Advancement moving forward and shares his vision for the future.
Our vision is that these efforts will result in Allegheny advancing in status as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the nation Matthew Stinson Vice President for Institutional Advancement
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Why has Allegheny changed the name of the office from Development and Alumni Affairs to Institutional Advancement? The name change is intentional, as advancement better reflects the work that we do on behalf of the institution. All of our efforts align with President Link’s vision of advancing the stature of Allegheny. Advancement is a process of building better awareness and garnering support from all of the College’s stakeholders, including alumni, faculty, staff, students, friends, and local and regional community members.
What does the realignment of the department look like?
Matthew Stinson Vice President for Institutional Advancement
The president’s vision puts holistic student support at the center of all we do. Advancement’s role is to provide the necessary resources for students that make Allegheny College’s education a reality. Moving forward, Career Education will be a part of Advancement. It’s exciting to think about the synergies that will occur when we better integrate our alumni into those efforts. We worked on a pilot in the spring semester with our Alumni Council and our Office of Career Education to better utilize technology as an enabler of meaningful alumni-student engagements. Our vision is connecting incoming students with Gator alumni from the time the students select Allegheny, before they even arrive on campus, and then again throughout their four-year campus experience, and finally as they launch into their careers as young alumni.
Why incorporate civic engagement, career education, and industry and innovation into the Institutional Advancement portfolio?
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ALLEGHENY Summer 2021
The Office of Institutional Advancement also will include an increased focus on becoming stronger partners with Meadville, Crawford County, and the entire region. The College has a strong history of local civic engagement. We look to expand on that community
engagement by taking a more active role in economic development and partnering with local entities. Symbiotic benefits occur when Meadville and Allegheny are partnering in this manner. A portion of these efforts will focus on intentional integration with industry and innovation within the region. The College does a great job bringing in students from all over the globe and placing them back into the world as they launch their careers. As a partner with the community, we can’t ignore the region’s current and future employment needs. We’d like to be known as a brain gain for the area and not a brain drain. A liberal arts education provides a strong foundation for the many sectors seeking collaborative and critical thinking employees in western Pennsylvania and the larger region. A quality liberal arts education and vocational discernment, preparation, and placement are not mutually exclusive.
What differences will alumni notice in communications and other outreach from Institutional Advancement? • I hope our alumni will notice our efforts to authentically engage them in meaningful ways that help our students. • We are working hard to make sure they feel included in our planning processes and have opportunities to hear College strategies firsthand. • Transparency is critical to strengthening the trust in the College and our efforts. • Our volunteers need to feel empowered to be an extension of the Office of Institutional Advancement as they interact with other alumni and potential future Gators. True empowerment can’t occur if our alumni don’t feel included and if they don’t feel the College is being transparent in all that we do. • When these communications are appropriately carried out, our alumni should feel that they are collaborating with us to grow alumni participation and support our students. They can’t feel like a piggy bank that we shake anytime we are seeking additional funding.
• Ultimately, I hope there are increased opportunities to celebrate the impact our alumni and friends have on our students with their time, talents, and treasures.
What are some examples of opportunities for engagement? Efforts are already underway to increase the number of opportunities for meaningful engagement. Our Alumni Council is doing tremendous work representing the alumni community. We look forward to providing increased opportunities for our young alumni to stay connected with the College. We’re also launching a Parent and Family Council in 2021 and expanding efforts to connect our athletic alumni with their respective athletic programs through the Golden Gator Club under a new operational model. The class agents and reunion committees will continue to have vital roles in our efforts. The Board of Visitors for the Bruce R. Thompson Center for Business and Economics is a great model for alumni-student engagement that we look to duplicate across campus. In 2021 we’ll be adding two similar opportunities. One will be in Career Education, and the other will be in the technology sector. In the future, a much broader portfolio of sector-specific advisory boards will exist across the entire campus.
Can you tell us briefly about your background? Very few people grow up thinking they want to be a fundraiser. My first career was in the technology startup sector, and I enjoyed it immensely. The pace, challenges, opportunities, and rewards of being a part of a startup team are exhilarating. Initially, I switched careers solely to have a better work/life balance to be a better dad. My son, who is now a junior at Capital University, was going into kindergarten, and I realized at the time that I was not present due to the career I had chosen. I didn’t want to miss out on the rest of his young life. I fell into a fundraising opportunity and became enamored with the work. I look back now and realize my life had moved from having success to having significance. After starting in an organization similar to Wesbury
Retirement Community, I was invited to join my alma mater, Mount Union, to lead their major gifts efforts. I later had the opportunity to become the vice president for advancement at Westminster College. While I wasn’t looking to make a change in 2020, a brief conversation with President Link took me through a door I am glad I was willing to walk through as it opened. Ironically, I was born in Meadville, as my dad was an assistant pastor at Stone United Methodist Church. Funny how things work out as I’ve come full circle decades later.
What is your vision for the Institutional Advancement office? My vision for the Office of Institutional Advancement is transformational yet straightforward. We look to continue and grow the great history of philanthropic support for the College as has been witnessed in recent successful campaign efforts. This will only occur if we focus not just on the number of dollars but also on the number of donors. When successful, we will see a much more substantial percentage of alumni participating in our efforts on an annual basis. I’ve been reminded by Mr. and Mrs. Tippie that their first gift to the College was five dollars. While I know everyone is not in the financial position to make gifts of their magnitude, everyone is in the position to join our efforts each and every year. Our vision is that each and every donor understands the cumulative power of their individual gifts. Our vision is that these efforts will result in Allegheny advancing in status as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the nation, known for its academic rigor, its embracing of inclusive excellence, its immersion in undergraduate research, and its unique combinations of majors and minors in different disciplines that ultimately produce extraordinary outcomes in the form of graduates equipped to think critically and creatively, write clearly, speak persuasively, and meet challenges in a diverse, interconnected world.
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Andy Walker '00 Named First Executive Director for Economic, Civic, and Community Engagement
Andy Walker ’00, a prominent Meadville and regional community leader, has been named as the inaugural executive director for economic, civic, and community engagement at the College.
and leaves behind a talented team in Meadville, and we look forward to all he will do to move forward Meadville and Allegheny College in this new role.”
Reporting to Matthew Stinson, vice president for institutional advancement, Walker will provide leadership and strategy for the College’s renewed investment in Meadville, Crawford County, and the region. Under Allegheny President Hilary L. Link’s direction, the College will be strategically expanding upon its strong history and work in civic engagement by taking a more active role in economic development and having a more intentional community presence. Included in these efforts will be a focus on integration with industry and innovation within the region.
“Over 20 years ago, it was Allegheny College that drew me to Meadville, but it was Meadville that kept me,” said Walker. “This is a community I’ve come to know and love. Meadville accepted a young Allegheny grad and gave me the opportunity to grow and serve. I’m grateful now to Allegheny for giving me the opportunity to serve Meadville in a different capacity and to leverage the resources of the College as an anchor institution in our community.”
As one of the top liberal arts institutions in the country, Allegheny attracts students from all over the globe and supports its students as they launch their careers back into the world. Said Walker: “As a true partner with the community, Allegheny must focus on the current and future workforce needs of the region. A liberal arts education provides a strong foundation for the many sectors seeking collaborative and critical thinking employees in western Pennsylvania. These symbiotic benefits occur when Meadville and Allegheny College are partnering in this manner.” Another key focus of this inaugural position will be to interface and partner with elected officials and key stakeholders, including business leaders and local economic and community development leaders. Walker will work collaboratively in this area to develop effective and focused strategies and programs that generate greater economic development opportunities in the City of Meadville and Crawford County. “As President Link and I researched successful town-gown partnerships that emphasized economic, civic, and community engagement, we heard repeatedly that it was more important to find someone passionate about the community, as opposed to bringing in a specific expertise from somewhere else in the country,” Stinson said. “As we envisioned the ideal candidate, we kept coming back to Andy, as his passion for both Meadville and Allegheny College are well known. We recognize the possible short-term challenges for Meadville city government, but we are confident that the long-term benefits of this new role far outweigh these challenges and provide great opportunities for our local community. As an extraordinary leader, Andy developed
Added Walker: “Allegheny has a longstanding and demonstrated commitment to civic engagement and service learning, built upon a legacy of volunteerism. I’m excited to leverage Allegheny’s strengths and combine them with Meadville’s can-do spirit to also strengthen the economic success of our community.” In Walker's seven-year tenure as Meadville city manager, the city was successful in leveraging several million dollars in state and federal funding for various park, paving, traffic signal, and bridge improvements. In his prior role as executive director of the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Meadville, Walker oversaw the (re)development of key properties in the City of Meadville: the former Junior High School (now Parkside Commons), the former Talon Plant #7 (now corporate headquarters of Vantage Healthcare), and IMPACT Meadville, which represented a multimillion-dollar investment in commercial and residential development and parking infrastructure in downtown Meadville. “Since I arrived in Meadville in July 2019, I have focused on ways the College might better leverage its resources to support economic growth and become a true ‘anchor’ for Meadville,” Link said. “We are extremely excited to welcome Andy back to his alma mater and are equally enthusiastic about the College’s initiative to strengthen Meadville and area partnerships. Andy will be at the helm of this dynamic effort. His energy, knowledge, and demonstrated experience reinforce just how much can be accomplished when campus and community leaders come together to address shared interests.”
Angela Annibale ’03, pictured here with Andy Walker ’00 at the Bessemer Commerce Park in Meadville, will be partnering with the College in economic development efforts. Annibale is the deputy executive director of the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County, where she has worked for 10 years. She received the 2019 Pennsylvania Economic Development Association Young Professional Award.
Allegheny has a longstanding and demonstrated commitment to civic engagement and service learning, built upon a legacy of volunteerism. I’m excited to leverage Allegheny’s strengths and combine them with Meadville’s can-do spirit to also strengthen the economic success of our community.
Andy Walker '00 Executive Director for Economic, Civic, and Community Engagement
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Byron Rich Leads the Innovation and Industry Effort
I’m a believer in the idea that the best thing we can do to increase the economic viability of our region is keep good people and allow them to thrive. By forging these new partnerships, we’re creating pathways toward that vision.
Byron Rich Associate Professor of Art
Director of Art, Science, and Innovation Byron Rich, left, has integrated the manufacturing expertise and mentorship of Acutec Precision Aerospace Inc. President and CEO Elisabeth Smith and engineer Tom Swanberg into internships and coursework in the company’s facilities. A key component of Allegheny College’s economic development push is leveraging the impact of the Allegheny Lab for Innovation & Creativity (ALIC), which was created in 2019 and is under the direction of Associate Professor of Art Byron Rich. The lab has been a hub for student and faculty research from across disciplines. “Last year, we began to work on a model of extending the reach of the lab beyond research activities and traditional classes,” said Rich. “With President Link and Vice President for Institutional Advancement Stinson reimagining the College’s strategic priorities, it seemed like a natural fit to move the lab under the purview of Institutional Advancement to further our mission of being not only a research hub but also a point of engagement for alumni and regional and community partners.”
Rich said the lab is more than just a facility with cutting-edge technology — it is a way of thinking. “It’s morphing into something entirely different with a reach far beyond the walls of the lab as we move to develop long-needed relationships with new kinds of partners that haven’t always been in conversation with the College. Our region has so much opportunity for students, and we want to show them that there are viable opportunities in a number of technology-related sectors in western Pennsylvania,” he said. The mission of ALIC is to help students develop their ideas into tangible outcomes, and now the lab is showing Allegheny students how the methodologies and technologies they learn in the classroom can translate into careers in the Meadville area. “I’m a believer in the idea that the best thing we can do to increase the economic viability of our
region is keep good people here and allow them to thrive. By forging these new partnerships, we’re creating pathways toward that vision,” said Rich. Rich emphasized that vocational education is an integral part of the liberal arts experience. “It’s simple for me,” he said. “It’s better to have Allegheny students and alumni filling crucial leadership roles in any industry driven by their knowledge of history, understanding of context, and appreciation for the humanities, and powered by a fundamental understanding of the tools and technologies that define our world. It’s through this coalescing of the best of the liberal arts and material technological knowledge that we can ensure a more equitable and sustainable future for the communities we serve.”
One such local partnership is with Acutec Precision Aerospace Inc. “Acutec engineer Tom Swanberg has emerged as a wonderful educator and a great resource for our students,” Rich said. “Based on what we’ve learned in two semesters of developing a class model whereby an industry professional leads a short two-credit class on a specific technology, we’re moving forward with greatly expanding this type of programming with new industry partners.” Rich intends to offer more of these courses in coming semesters, providing a pathway for Allegheny students to develop in-demand skills while creating bridges to internships and long-term employment. This model of industry-led classroom experiences that morph into future opportunities is part of a larger vision of economic development led by President Link, he said.
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Community Engagement Network Continues to Build on Strong Tradition
Michael Williams is the director of the College’s new community engagement network, an initiative designed to connect businesses, government agencies, nonprofits, and other entities to Allegheny students, faculty, and staff to jointly tackle pressing community issues while providing integrative learning opportunities for Allegheny students. Williams is part of the Class of 1998 and returned to Allegheny last year to help implement a $1.1 million grant-funded initiative designed to build on and strengthen Allegheny’s ways of partnering with the local community and region. From a source that wishes to remain anonymous, the grant funds Williams’ position, along with an array of programmatic initiatives, including a summer community-engaged research program and a sub-grant program. “I had a profound and transformative experience as a student here,” said Williams. “Allegheny has always encouraged students to take ownership of their educational journeys, and this happens within a highly challenging yet supportive and mentoring environment that is like nothing I have seen elsewhere. To be a part of that culture is why I wanted to come back. The mission of the network has deep roots within the collaborative efforts between the College and community partners, and I want to make it clear that history is informing and driving everything that we are thinking about.” In the fall 2020 semester, 66 students and 11 faculty members were involved in 14 community-based projects throughout Crawford County. The ongoing projects ranged from the Meadville YMCA Early Childhood Well-being Project to a Home Energy Audit Feasibility Study. Projects already
completed include an Energy Utilization and Solar Energy Assessment at the Tamarack Wildlife Center and a Feasibility Study for a Community Museum of Science, Industry, and Culture. The spring 2021 semester showed growing interest in this work, as almost 200 students were engaged in 23 projects. As some of the new alignment around community engagement efforts unfolds, Williams envisions a series of impact teams co-led by members of the community and College. Each impact team will focus on a target area (Health and Well-being, Conservation, Education, Economic Development, and Arts and Culture). This collective impact model’s goal will be to help frame the way the teams relate with the community — much more like an “anchor” or backbone support organization. These impact teams will create an “opt-in” collaborative model built around democratically shared goals and outcomes and invite others into the groups. “We already have great relationships with our community partners, and we want to continue to work together in such a way that reinforces the understanding that we are all on the same team. The specifics of what we will do will unfold based upon the common vision that will become clear through new collaborations,” Williams said. He added: “We already have who we need here, so the question remains — how do we inspire, empower, and support each other to do the things that we collectively agree will make our community the type of place we want it to be? If we succeed — and I’m certain we will — in working with our community leaders to create new ways of collaborating and channeling our passion for our community, good things are going to happen.”
Amber Pouliot ’07, director of the Margaret Shontz Memorial Library in Conneaut Lake, is among the partners working with Michael Williams ’98 and the College’s community engagement network. Pouliot earned her doctorate from Leeds University in England.
We already have great relationships with our community partners, and we want to continue to work together in such a way that reinforces the understanding that we are all on the same team.
Michael Williams '98 Director for Community Engagement Network
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Career Education Opens Doors for Life After Graduation
The Career Education staff works through the new Gator2Gator network and the Handshake platform to help students connect with alumni and find valuable internships and employment opportunities. Pictured from left are Autumn Parker ’16, Kristin Black, Rhonda Hershelman, and Jim Fitch at a Handshake sign-up event in January 2020. Career Education is dedicated to placing Allegheny College students in meaningful internships and finding employment for graduating students, many times through connections with alumni. It is also a place to help students figure out their unique pathways for a life of meaning and purpose after graduation. The academic rigor and unique major-minor combinations that are hallmarks of an Allegheny education prepare Allegheny students to go in many different directions. There are thousands and thousands of successful outcomes told through the stories of Gator alumni. Now affiliated with the Office of Institutional Advancement, Career Education is continuing its mission and further strengthening opportunities to leverage the power of the Allegheny network. “We’ve formalized some of the relationships that support that mission by moving our reporting line to Institutional Advancement,” said Jim Fitch, director of career education.
Career Education is committed to facilitating student success by connecting students and alumni with resources that support career and life planning. The office networks with various partners, both on and off campus, to develop internships and job-shadowing opportunities, educational programs, and employment, and to help students attain their personal and professional goals. “In short, we’re here to help students identify, define, and achieve success beyond the classroom,” said Fitch. “We take a holistic approach to engaging with students to learn about themselves, to identify the skills they hope to nurture through their careers, and to find opportunities to engage with employers and graduate programs that will value the skills they have to offer in an environment where there are shared values.” The core work of the Career Education staff — which also includes Kristin Black, associate director and pre-law advisor; Autumn Parker, career advisor and marketing manager; and Rhonda Hershelman, office manager — is
meeting with students. Its strategic goals also include increasing the office’s marketing impact to maximize its engagement with students, cultivating partnerships across campus with faculty to identify how to collaborate and support their work, and investing in increasing Career Education’s visibility through communicating its success to stakeholders. These strategic goals are not just outcomes driven, but reflective of “the holistic process that is fundamental to understanding career-building,” said Parker, a 2016 Allegheny graduate and former student worker in Career Education. Parker recalls the career-search process from when she was a student. “I remember thinking as a first-year that I had to figure out, right then and there, what I wanted to do for the rest of my life," she said. "And that was daunting, not because I didn’t entirely know, but because there was so much I could see myself doing. And it was Career Education, my professors, and the alumni I connected with throughout my undergraduate years and
We take a holistic approach to engaging with students to learn about themselves, to identify the skills they hope to nurture through their careers, and to find opportunities to engage with employers and graduate programs that will value the skills they have to offer in an environment where there are shared values.
Jim Fitch Director of Career Education
well beyond who encouraged me to explore as many interests as I could, even if I wasn’t entirely confident I’d succeed in them.” Now, as a career advisor, Parker said she understands the office's role is not based on helping students explore careers solely for the sake of securing employment. Rather, Career Education encourages students to consider the bigger picture — preparing for successful, meaningful lives and improving the world around them. "In doing that, we are collectively living out Allegheny’s mission," she said. Much of Career Education’s programming, whether it be bringing in employers for on-campus recruiting or organizing and facilitating panel presentations, involves engaging and staying connected with our alumni, said Fitch. “The reorganization allows us to strengthen those relationships on behalf of our current students, alumni, and prospective students,” he added. For the past 18 months, Career Education has been using Handshake’s online platform to connect students to internships and
jobs. It has recently added another online venue known as Gator2Gator to connect students with alumni for career guidance and networking, said Fitch. Gator2Gator is a place for alumni, students, faculty, and staff to connect with fellow Gators, explore opportunities, and build their Allegheny network. It's a place where the Allegheny community can learn from others’ talents and experiences with a straightforward goal in mind — to help one another. Gator2Gator provides the opportunity to: offer or receive career advice as a mentor or mentee, post job and internship opportunities, expand professional networks, provide advice and guidance to current students, and meet alumni in a particular industry. “Our best information tells us that more than 89 percent of individuals landing jobs and internships today land them through some form of personal contact,” said Fitch. “As we’ve approved over 1,800 employers to post jobs and internships at Allegheny, we’ve identified and tagged 343 as being alumni
connected. Gator2Gator makes it easier for students to identify and connect with alumni. Students have access to these tools 24/7.” Phil Foxman ’90, associate vice president for institutional advancement, said alumni have always generously expressed a willingness to help students in this way, “and today, more than ever, our students will benefit from the experiences, wisdom, and help from Allegheny alumni. Not only will Gator2Gator facilitate these valuable life-changing connections with alumni, but at the same time alumni will demonstrate the power of the Allegheny community and be role-modeling ‘giving back’ and lifelong connection for our students who, hopefully, will turn around and serve as a resource for the students who follow them.”
To log in to Gator2Gator and begin helping students, please go to
gator2gator.allegheny.edu 15
A FEW WORDS WITH…
What was your Allegheny major? I was an English major. I didn’t have a declared minor though if I had, it probably would have been psychology.
Who was your favorite professor and why? My favorite professor was Al Kern. He was a great writer and teacher, and he was the one who encouraged me to write a novella as my senior comp. He was tough but fair in his critiques of my work.
Favorite spot on campus? The game room in the Campus Center was my favorite spot. That was where I went to decompress and I probably spent far too much time in there shooting pool and playing Pac-Man.
Carmen Ramsey Ellington '86 Alumni Council President I want to help ensure that all of our students, especially BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students, have the support systems they need to successfully graduate.
How did you first get involved as a volunteer for the College? In 2006, a friend connected me to her friend who’d graduated from Allegheny in 1974 and was in Pittsburgh for a reunion that included the founders of ABC (Allegheny's Association of Black Collegians, which later became the Association for the Advancement of Black Culture). I was invited to join them and by the end of weekend we decided that we needed to become engaged with the College. We formed the ABC Alumni Association and we’ve been volunteering and supporting the College since then.
What has motivated you to continue to volunteer your time for Allegheny? I have a deep appreciation for the education I received and the friendships I formed. Despite some challenges, I had a positive experience at Allegheny and I’m such a proud Gator. I want to help ensure that all of
16 ALLEGHENY Summer 2021
our students, especially BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students, have the support systems they need to successfully graduate.
As you finish your service as Alumni Council president, what are you most proud of? As a Black woman, I’m proud to be leading the Alumni Council at a time when Allegheny has women leading both the institution and its Board of Trustees. I’m also proud that Council has continued to work and actively support the College during what has been an incredibly trying year.
How can alumni get in touch with the Alumni Council to share their feedback, questions, and ideas? We now have an email address, alumnicouncil@allegheny.edu. Messages go directly to the Council officers and we do encourage alumni to contact us.
Why is alumni engagement so important to Allegheny? Our alumni have navigated the Allegheny experience and gone on to have meaningful lives and successful careers. They’re best positioned to tell the Allegheny story, particularly to our students. Alumni engagement, whether giving time or money, truly makes a difference in the lives of our students.
What was your Allegheny major? I graduated from Allegheny in 1992 with a B.A. in communication arts.
Who was your favorite professor and why? Professor Paul Zolbrod stands out as being my favorite professor. He showed countless other students and me our worth, potential, and ability to think critically, and this is one of the main reasons I exited college more confident and self-assured than when I entered.
Favorite spot on campus? My favorite spot on campus includes any place where I view the blooming rhododendrons.
Tell us about your professional and educational background.
Sally Barrett Hanley '92 Director of Alumni Relations As an alumna, I feel an incredible sense of pride working for my alma mater and am reminded daily about how Allegheny has been one of my greatest blessings.
As a student at Allegheny, I took the opportunity to immerse myself in countless student leadership activities. That experience and my close-knit relationship with Allegheny's administrative role models led to my interest in a career in higher education. My early career included college student judicial affairs, first-year student programs, and residential life at the State University of New York at Buffalo and Washington and Jefferson College. I served as assistant dean of students at Washington and Jefferson before returning to my alma mater in 2000 as a major gifts officer. I have held many different roles within the Office of Institutional Advancement (formerly known as Development and Alumni Affairs) but most recently led the fundraising and planning efforts for landmark reunions. Soon after graduating from Allegheny, I pursued an M.Ed. with a higher education administration concentration from the State University of New York at Buffalo. I completed my Ed.D. from the University of Pittsburgh with my dissertation focusing on the analysis of college student judicial policies.
As you step into the role of director of alumni relations, what are you most excited about? As an alumna, I feel an incredible sense of pride working for my alma mater and am reminded daily about how Allegheny has been one of my greatest blessings. I am excited to be part of a dynamic team that will raise Allegheny's national profile. I am also looking forward to developing new and meaningful opportunities for alumni to reconnect with Allegheny.
Why is alumni engagement so crucial to Allegheny? Over two decades ago, Trustee Emeritus Dave Hoag '60 summarized the importance of alumni engagement with the following quote: "The only owners of Allegheny College are the alumni. There is no city, state, or profession to worry about us. We are all there is. If we don't do it, no one else will.” The importance of alumni involvement is more critical than ever as we navigate the challenges facing private colleges today.
How can an alum get started with becoming more involved with the College? One of the easiest ways to get involved is to stay informed and help us spread the news about all the great things happening at Allegheny. Also, consider reconnecting with classmates and friends by attending virtual and in-person alumni events. Many of our alumni serve as a member of their reunion committee or as a class agent. We also welcome your participation in Gator2Gator, our new Allegheny-focused professional networking and mentorship platform that connects students and alumni. Stay tuned in the coming months as we unveil additional volunteer opportunities, such as regional alumni groups and leadership councils. Lastly, please consider making a financial gift that helps today’s students and ensures Allegheny will continue to make a difference in the lives of generations of students to come. I invite you to call or email me at (814) 332-2996 or sbarrett@allegheny.edu if you have any comments, suggestions, or questions about getting involved.
DONORS UNITE TO SUPPORT ALLEGHENY STUDENTS ON GIVING TUESDAY AND GATOR GIVE DAY APRIL 22, 2021
$1,004,425 HER T T E G TO UPPOR TO S
Scholarship Aid & Access $62,970
Greatest Needs $508,500
Academics $22,121
2,612 DONORS
Career Engagement & Internships $36,884
Student Experience $20,293
Athletics $295,875
Campus & Facilities $14,507
TOP SSES CLA
1983 $46,600
1972 | $35,166 1962 | $30,349
2011 85 DONORS
1991 | 69 DONORS 2012 | 53 DONORS
R DONO MAP
47 STATES 9 COUNTRIES
Supporters have shown incredible generosity to Allegheny and its students throughout the 2020–21 academic year, but two days of giving stand out: Giving Tuesday on Dec. 1 and Gator Give Day on April 22. Members of the College’s Board of Trustees helped inspire the community to give by offering participation challenges during both days. Donors responded by setting College records for these events, both in the total funds raised and the number of gifts.
“Giving Tuesday and Gator Give Day were electrifying, momentum-building days that continue to demonstrate to students that they are a part of a worldwide network that cares deeply about them and Allegheny,” said Vice President for Institutional Advancement Matthew Stinson. “And these giving days show what’s possible when Gator alumni reach out to other Gator alumni asking them to join with them in investing in Allegheny College.”
76% ALUMNI 10% PARENTS 5% EMPLOYEES 5% FRIENDS 4% STUDENTS
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion $33,765
GIVING TUESDAY DECEMBER 1, 2020
$308,524
Student/Faculty Research $9,510
709 TOTAL GIFTS $145,531
OUR TEAM 30 MATCHES A ND CHALLENGES TOTALING $281,500 ALMOST EVERY CLASS 1946–2025
Raised for Gator Success Grants The Gator Success Grant program provides Allegheny students with support ranging from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars to address unanticipated financial needs. Students have received funds for computer replacement, emergency travel home, unexpected medical expenses, internship expenses, and other urgent needs.
Matching Gifts
Alumni Classes
Gift Amounts
$120,000
1944–2020
$5–$20,000
Save the Date REUNION WEEKEND JUNE 2–5, 2022
QUESTIONS
Alumni Office – (814) 332-5384 – alumni@allegheny.edu Reunion and class-specific information will be conveyed by email. If you don’t currently hear from Allegheny by email, please send your email address to alumni@allegheny.edu For the most up-to-date information, visit:
allegheny.edu/reunion
Join Gator2Gator, Allegheny College’s new professional networking and mentorship platform. •Offer or receive career advice as a mentor or mentee •Post job and internship opportunities •Expand your professional network •Provide advice and guidance to current students •Meet other alumni in your industry Gator2Gator is a place for Allegheny alumni, students, faculty, and staff to connect with fellow Gators, explore opportunities, and build your Allegheny network. It's a place where we can learn from the talents and experiences of others with one simple goal in mind — to help one another.
Join at gator2gator.allegheny.edu
A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVES Allegheny College Health Agency Combines Broad Expertise, Strong Support to Unravel Complexity Amid a Global Pandemic
by Patrick Broadwater '93
Allegheny College Trustee Sue Steven ’75 was excited to host an alumni gathering in her Southern California home to help bridge the 2,500 miles between there and the Allegheny campus.
The shutdown occurred during spring break, so the administration’s immediate focus was on how to resume learning remotely for the remainder of the semester and helping students retrieve their belongings from dormant residence hall rooms.
In particular, Steven saw the event as an opportunity for her and her guests to connect pressing environmental issues in their area with Allegheny’s recently announced milestone of achieving carbon neutrality.
By early April, it was becoming increasingly apparent that COVID-19 would be around for the long haul. Link had received a briefing from former trustee Bruce McIndoe ’79, a leader in risk management, technology, and intelligence who had advised major corporations such as Pfizer and Twitter, suggesting that the virus’s trajectory would impact operations well into 2021. In the meantime, decisions would have to be made about the fall semester, set to begin in August.
More than 40 people had committed to attend the event in March 2020. But on the day of the get-together, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency, the strongest signal yet that the country was bracing for widespread impact of the emerging coronavirus. The event went on as scheduled, but only about a dozen guests actually showed up in person. Among the absentees was Allegheny President Hilary Link, who was expected to fly out the day before but instead announced a temporary closing of the Meadville campus to comply with state travel restrictions. Link had made it only as far as New York City before returning to campus. But she and Steven, a retired microbiologist, would come to spend much more time together over the next several months as part of a multidisciplinary team of experts wrestling with the question of how and when the College should reopen.
Could the College reopen to in-person instruction for the fall? Should it even try? Would bringing students, faculty, and staff back to campus put community members at peril? What effect would extended remote learning have on the students’ college experience? Or on their mental health? The College remained on sound financial footing, but how drastically would another six to nine months of an empty campus affect the bottom line? What about a hybrid approach that mixed in-person and virtual experiences? Link went looking for answers. She immediately recognized that no one individual — including herself — would have the expertise or knowledge to navigate the crisis alone. She needed a team of advisors who could provide in-depth analysis of different aspects of such a complex problem. “Early on, I surrounded myself with trusted, accomplished experts, including alumni in public health, local medical experts, CEOs of hospitals, and testing companies. I put out a broad ask to our trustees and our campus and the local community to connect me with anyone willing to share advice, and I spent hundreds of hours talking to everyone I could find,” Link wrote in an essay for Academic Leader, a leadership journal. “I have a doctorate in Italian literature. I needed people who knew what they
Early on, I surrounded myself with trusted, accomplished experts, including alumni in public health, local medical experts, CEOs of hospitals, and testing companies. Hilary Link, Ph.D. Allegheny President
were talking about,” Link explained. “My approach was to get as many smart people from as many areas as I could together to talk things through.” Link initially leaned on McIndoe and Steven, who had dozens of years of experience in the military and private sector working on HIV testing and formerly ran an infectious disease clinical testing lab. In addition, Link consulted with Allegheny Global Health Studies and Biology Professor Becky Smullin Dawson ’00, an epidemiologist. The Allegheny president also kept an open line of communication with Gabrielle Morrow, M.D., a Meadvillebased emergency department attending physician who was on the front lines treating COVID-19 patients. Those discussions were the genesis of the Allegheny College Health Agency (ACHA), an innovative approach to fill the gap in clinical and public health services in Crawford County, which lacked a county-level health agency of its own. The ACHA would add experts in epidemiology, nursing, and mental health and serve as a resource to help guide the College’s reopening plan whenever it might be needed. Meeting biweekly by Zoom, the ACHA offered Link and other College (continued)
23
leaders high-level advice, a wide range of professional expertise, and a critical perspective from beyond the campus borders. “It was a force multiplier for the talent she already had,” said McIndoe. “This diversified thinking and a broad spectrum of perspectives were really valuable. I think the knowledge brought in was the secret sauce that made this an integral part of the decision-making around critical issues of the College.” Added Steven: “Together, we could help Hilary see around the corner a little bit.” From a medical standpoint, the College was in a good position to resume in-person operations in the fall. The College’s geographic location in a rural, low-density county was a big factor in Allegheny’s favor. Only a handful of COVID-19 cases had been reported in Meadville by late spring 2020. A strong partnership with the Meadville Medical Center has provided medical care, nursing staff, on-the-ground experience, and support. “The students wanted to come back, and we wanted to make that happen for them if we could,” Morrow said. “We knew enough from the Centers for Disease Control that we could mitigate the spread based on what we knew and that would allow us to open safely.” The ACHA was not created to formulate policy. Still, it did prove to be a critical sounding board for Link, helping her think through various reopening scenarios and their respective ramifications. The agency’s accumulated knowledge and experience was a crucial factor in helping Link to make an informed, confident decision in a literal life-and-death situation.
By June 1, 2020, Link had decided to reopen for the fall. Students would be brought back to campus in waves before the start of classes on Aug. 31. “This was the hardest decision I’m ever going to have to make as a leader,” Link said. “It took a lot of courage for Hilary to make that decision. We knew that if we opened campus, we were risking students getting sick or a student or faculty member dying,” Steven said. “I wouldn’t say we were unanimous on opening, but once she made the decision, the ACHA was 100 percent behind her. We had to find a way to help make it happen.” Figuring out how to open was nearly as big of a question mark. The logistics of bringing back nearly 1,500 students, creating safe living and learning environments, providing equal access to all students, and continuing to provide athletics, extracurricular activities, and other facets of student life was a major challenge. But the ACHA and College leadership worked hand in hand overseeing 12 working groups dedicated to different aspects of reopening. Plans included instituting frequent testing for students, an aggressive contact tracing system, and strong support for students who needed to be quarantined or isolated. The reopening blueprint also called for revamping the academic calendar to include 12 weeks of on-campus instruction ending in mid-November. Students could then travel home and complete the remainder of the semester online. “If we could create an environment where students felt safer on campus than they are at home, then they would come to campus,” Steven said. “If students were
The Defining Aspect of a Presidency Hilary Link had been Allegheny’s president for all of seven and a half months before COVID-19 crept onto her radar.
immunocompromised, we allowed them to stay home. Or if they had a sick family member, they could stay at home. Individuals could make their own decisions — the majority of our students said they felt it was safer for them to be on campus.” The plan was a success by any measure. Allegheny maintained a very low COVID19 infection rate — less than 1 percent — throughout the semester, with no documented transmission occurring in a classroom setting. “Our classrooms were the safest place to be,” Morrow said. Student and faculty buy-in was essential to the success. Besides adhering to physical distancing recommendations, wearing masks, and washing their hands frequently, students and College employees were asked to pledge support to build a community of mutual care. “The students will tell you it is hard, but they’ve found ways to adapt,” said Gretchen Beck, associate dean of students for wellness education. “They’ve found ways to connect and operate in creative ways.” Added McIndoe: “It was incredibly important for the community to be engaged and cooperative. Students made it successful, and it’s just that simple. If you have non-compliant students, it could have been a disaster. If you have too many students who ignore the rules, those are the cigarette butts that start the forest fire.” Steven likewise gives the faculty a great deal of credit. “We couldn’t have done this if the faculty hadn’t figured out a way to teach whether students are in the room, they’re in the room, students are remote, they’re teaching remotely, or some combination of the four. That was a transformational change,” she said. (continued)
Bits of information about the virus were trickling in from all sorts of places: from her networks of other college leaders, from Allegheny’s international students, from her friends and colleagues in New York City, and from Rome, where she had lived the previous six years and where her son was completing his senior year of high school. “I remember talking to him, and on Monday everything was fine. He said it was all up north. By Thursday, he was on his way home,” Link said. “It changed within three days. By the time he came home, we knew things were getting crazy, but we didn’t fully understand what was going to happen. “It’s remarkable that a year has gone by. I’ve now been a president longer under COVID than I was before. It’s not just the defining aspect of my presidency, but pretty much the only aspect of my presidency.” COVID-19 has affected everyone in myriad ways, but it presented unique challenges to a new college president. Rather than taking an extended period to evaluate programs, learn the nuances of a new environment, and chart a long-range plan for the future, Link instead found herself in wartime mode. She faced an urgent need to act to protect the health and safety of the entire Allegheny community, preserve the College’s financial stability, and provide leadership in the greater Meadville and Crawford County area, which led to the formation of the Allegheny College Health Agency (ACHA). “It’s been indescribable, honestly. I’m used to criticism and people telling me I’m doing the wrong thing, but to hold the responsibility of 1,700 students, 500 faculty and staff, and the
community, and not only that, but the future viability of this College, it has been a heavy burden,” Link said. “Every college president has had to go through this, but none of us had ever done it before.” Bruce McIndoe ’79, an ACHA advisor, said Link’s leadership kept the decision-making process focused on the most important priority. “While there was angst about the economics, 98 percent of the discussion was about the safety of the community, students, and people who work at the College,” McIndoe said. “That was always the conversation and part of having an empathetic leader like Hilary. She was the right president at the right time.” With all that at stake, Link characterized the decision to reopen the College in the fall semester as the most difficult she’ll ever have to make as a leader. “I think it was a very courageous decision to open the campus,” said Sue Steven ’75, an Allegheny trustee and ACHA advisor. “This wasn’t like other decisions you make. This was really a unique situation and the potential consequences were very sobering.” Said Link: “I am someone who believes firmly in doing research and learning as much as I can and making the best decisions I can make. I know why I make those decisions, so I am not someone who wavers on them once I make them, but the unknowns in this particular area were just so completely overwhelming. “But at the end of the in-person fall semester, I felt a tremendous sense of relief and pride. Not just for me, but for the all-in effort of our staff and faculty who made sacrifices and for our students who stepped up and did the right thing. It actually allowed me to see a brighter future ahead. If we can get through that, then we can get through anything.” 25
We couldn’t have done this if the faculty hadn’t figured out a way to teach whether students are in the room, they’re in the room, students are remote, they’re teaching remotely, or some combination of the four. That was a transformational change. Sue Steven ’75, Ph.D. Allegheny College Trustee
care of the entire student body and monitors all students in isolation (COVID-19 positive students) or quarantine (those who had close interaction with a COVID-19 positive student).
“I think we’re coming out of it, but we’re not done with each other yet,” Morrow said. “There’s room to dance and sing and do fun things, but we still have to do it in a controlled way.”
The medical team works closely with the Student Life Office and other campus administrators to make sure that students’ physical and emotional needs are addressed. In addition, students have access to professionals in the College’s Counseling and Personal Development Center and a 24/7 line where they can speak with a counselor at any time.
In late March, Link and her President’s Cabinet announced that all classes will be held on campus and in person during the academic year 2021–2022. Beginning fall 2021, unless unexpected health conditions should mandate otherwise, the College expects that no remote classes will be offered. Plans call for residence halls to return to regular occupancy, administrative offices to be fully staffed in person, and athletic practice and competition to proceed per NCAA and ACHA guidelines.
“We’re all just figuring it out,” Beck said. “When we encounter new circumstances, Dr. Morrow often mentions that we’re building the plane while we’re flying it. I agree with that assessment wholeheartedly.” Based on the success of the fall semester, there was little debate as to whether or not the College would bring back students in the spring, even with a double-digit COVID-19 infection rate in the local community. Mirroring the fall semester, the College adjusted the calendar for spring, keeping students at home throughout January. To begin the spring semester, students completed one course remotely during a three-week module.
It’s hard to overstate the impact that the ACHA had on the reopening process. Not only did the agency bring together a wide range of perspectives and expertise to serve as a critical advisory body, helping Link gather as much information in as many different areas as possible to make an informed decision, but it also helped to carry out the plan.
Students then received at-home COVID-19 tests they had to submit before returning to campus in mid-February. That process allowed the College to start the new semester with a “clean campus,” which would be reinforced by two more rounds of testing after students came to campus and rapid testing of more than 150 students and employees per day.
The ACHA transitioned to be the leading clinical support resource for students. Morrow, with help from a team of nurse practitioners from the Meadville Medical Center, oversees the testing and medical
By early March, many on campus had already received their vaccine, athletic teams were scheduling intercollegiate contests, and life was starting to revert ever so slowly back to pre-pandemic ways.
26 ALLEGHENY Summer 2021
The College will continue to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission on campus with directed strategies following the most current public health recommendations. After extensive consultation with local and national experts, however, Link and her senior leadership team have confidence that all students can be educated in person, safely, beginning in the fall. “For 206 years, Allegheny College has been a residential liberal arts college offering students the opportunity to learn in the classroom from engaged faculty,” a message to the campus community noted. “In fall 2021, we plan fully to return to this mission.” That decision has personal meaning for Steven. Her granddaughter, Claire, has decided to begin her college career at Allegheny this coming fall. “The ACHA efforts not only helped many students this year, but made it possible to enable the College to open next fall 100 percent in person safely, for which this grandmother is grateful,” Steven said.
I think we’re coming out of it, but we’re not done with each other yet. There’s room to dance and sing and do fun things, but we still have to do it in a controlled way. Gabrielle Morrow, M.D. Allegheny College Health Agency
On the Hill
News from Campus
Ellen V. Johnson Joins College as Vice President for Enrollment Management Ellen V. Johnson joined Allegheny College as vice president for enrollment management on March 23, 2021. Johnson serves as the chief enrollment officer and has oversight of institutional marketing and communications for the College. She is responsible for the overall leadership of the Offices of Admissions, Financial Aid, and Marketing & Communications. As a member of the President’s Cabinet, Johnson is an active partner in collegewide planning and policy discussions. Johnson has 20 years of progressively responsible experience in higher education enrollment, financial aid, marketing, and communications. She most recently served as vice president for enrollment
management at The College of St. Scholastica, leading the recruitment of traditional and nontraditional undergraduate and graduate students, setting financial aid strategies and student financial services priorities, and overseeing marketing, branding, and communications. Johnson is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in higher education leadership at Colorado State University. She earned a Master of Education in policy, planning and administration from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts, with a major in elementary education and a minor in music, from The College of St. Scholastica.
Allegheny Designated Voter Friendly Campus Through National Nonpartisan Initiative Allegheny College has been designated as a Voter Friendly Campus through an initiative led by two national nonpartisan organizations — the Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. The initiative held participating institutions accountable for planning and implementing practices that encouraged their students to register and vote.
College established a central clearinghouse, named AC Votes 2020, for the College and community that offered resources, talks, activities, meetings, and programming on three core dimensions: personal and community well-being, civic engagement, and public health and safety.
The mission of the Voter Friendly Campus designation is to bolster efforts that help students overcome barriers to participating in the political process. Allegheny College was evaluated based on a campus plan about how the College would register, educate, and turn out student voters in 2020, how the College facilitated voter engagement efforts on its campus, and a final analysis of its efforts — all in the face of the upheaval caused by a global pandemic. The designation is valid through December 2022.
Along with coordinating dozens of outreach sessions and overall communications efforts, student leaders designed an online form that enabled users to answer a few questions and derive from those answers the applicable state laws and deadlines for their voter registration. Student leaders also set up masked and distanced voter registration stations for new and returning students, and they held virtual voter registration drives and met with classes during the fall semester.
Among many other efforts to encourage voter registration and turnout, Allegheny
Allegheny College and Duquesne University Palumbo-Donahue School of Business Join Forces A new articulation agreement will enhance the admission of Allegheny College students into any of five master’s degree programs at the Palumbo-Donahue School of Business at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh: ∙ Professional Master of Business Administration (PMBA) ∙ MBA Sustainable Business Practices (MBA-SBP) ∙ Master of Science in Supply Chain Management (MS-SCM) ∙ Master of Science in Management (MSM) ∙ Master of Science in Analytics and Information Management (MS-AIM) The partnership agreement guarantees “preferred conditional admission” to eligible Allegheny College students with a 3.0 GPA and a GMAT/GRE waiver with a 3.25 GPA. Students whose GMAT/ GRE test scores are 500/305, respectively, also earn preferred conditional admission. Students who complete courses identified in the agreement as part of their undergraduate degree should be able to complete the graduate degree in as few as three semesters at Duquesne.
Religious Studies Professor Selected for Sacred Writes Public Scholarship Training Cohort Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Adrienne Krone has been selected to participate in the 2021 Sacred Writes Public Scholarship Training Cohort. Sacred Writes: Public Scholarship on Religion is a Henry Luce Foundation-funded project hosted by Northeastern University that trains academics to translate their expertise for a broader audience and partners with established media outlets to facilitate collaborations with scholars. Krone was among the 24 U.S. and international scholars selected for this year’s cohort. They will participate in remote training sessions, covering topics such as pitching and writing op-eds, using social media to build community and amplify scholarship, collaborating with journalists, and preparing for live work. Each scholar commits to submitting two pieces of public scholarship for publication within a year of completing the training. Krone is conducting an ethnographic and historical study of the Jewish community farming movement, and she is working on a book manuscript, “Free Range Religion: Religious Food Justice Movements in North America.” Along with serving on the faculty, Krone is the College’s director of Jewish life, and she advises the Hillel student organization.
GRANTS AND GIFTS $9,400,000
Multiple Sources Allegheny received $9,400,000 in grants from multiple sources in support of COVID-19 relief. Funds were used to help cover many expenses related to the pandemic, including COVID testing for faculty, staff, and students and grants to students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to coronavirus.
$200,000
Addison H. Gibson Foundation Allegheny received $200,000 from the Addison H. Gibson Foundation to provide scholarships to students from western Pennsylvania who demonstrate financial need. These students would not be able to attend Allegheny without scholarship support.
$100,000
Charles E. Kaufman Foundation of The Pittsburgh Foundation Allegheny received $100,000 from the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation of The Pittsburgh Foundation for an Integrated Research-Education Grant to support Associate Professor of Chemistry Mark Ams’ research project, “Toward Creating Alien Life: A Genetic Self-Replicating System using Chalcogen Bonds.” The goal of the proposed research is to construct an alternative blueprint for life, one that is fundamentally different from DNA and represents a distinct departure from terrestrial biology.
$100,000
The Hearst Foundation, Inc. Allegheny received $100,000 from The Hearst Foundation, Inc. to provide scholarship support to academically talented students with financial need. We provided five students with $20,000 scholarships from this funding.
29
INFORMATION ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN REPORT OF GIFTS Due to an unfortunate technical glitch related to the recording of gifts made anonymously, several donors were inadvertently omitted from the Campaign Report of Gifts that was published in the winter/spring 2021 issue of Allegheny magazine. We have included a listing of those donors below, and we thank all of the generous alumni and friends of the College who supported the Our Allegheny: Our Third Century Quest campaign! Those marked with an asterisk are deceased. CAMPAIGN LEADERSHIP GIFTS • Ronald B. Cole and Nancy Ann Frambes 1987/1987 • Judith Thomas Horgan and Steven M. Pavsner 1968/ • Richard K. Naum 1967 • Edward W. Morse and Victoria Morse 1972/ • James H. Mullen, Jr. and Mari Mullen H2012/ • *William P. Steffee and Erica Collins Steffee 1957/P1984 • Harry M. Thomas and Marilyn Taft Thomas 1964/P1992 • Douglas F. Ziegler and Diane K. Ziegler CAMPAIGN SUSTAINING GIFTS • Terrence Gerard Bensel and Concepcion A. Bensel P2012/P2012 • *Evelyn H. Block P1975 • Glenn Hopper Buttermore and Christina McCrea 1979/1979 • Sharon Ann Byers • Linda C. DeMeritt and George L. Byrnes • Gordon Crocker • David Richard Durr and Robin Durr 1981/ • Matthew Joseph Ferrence • *M. John Fox and Pamela McMorran Fox P1995/P1995 • Stephanie Ann Gasior 2011 • Christine Binnie Groff and Jeff Groff 1989/ • Milton Arturo Guevara, Jr. 2018 • Jay M. Hanes and Eleanor F. Weisman P2019/P2019 • Amanda Mangine and John J. Mangine • Megan McCoy • Lloyd Michaels and Mary Ellen Michaels • Suzanne D. Miller • Jon Brandon Pouch 2019 • Ishita Sinha Roy • Robert G. Seddig and Lyta Seddig • *Bruce J. Smith and Regina S. Smith P2007/P2007
30 ALLEGHENY Summer 2020
College is more than four years of study It’s your best friends, teammates, fraternity brothers, and sorority sisters. Your music. Your interests. Your career. Your values. By strengthening Allegheny College in so many ways, alumni bequests helped to shape your life. Please continue that tradition with a gift in your will, or by naming Allegheny a beneficiary of your IRA, life insurance policy, or donor-advised fund.
Call Melissa Mencotti at (814) 332-5912 or visit sites.allegheny.edu/alumni/give for sample language or to learn more about giving options that fit your life.
Notes 1950s ’54
Cynthia Howarth Cantrell and John Cantrell celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary by hosting a Zoom concert for family and friends starring singersongwriter Pat Surface. Pat and his wife, Donna Surface, a performance artist in sign language, and Cindy and John are long-time friends. You can hear Pat’s music at spiritwoodmusic.com.
Notes 1960s ’63
Class Notes
John L. Shafer has been appointed to the board of trustees of the Anacortes (Washington) Public Library for a five-year term. For the past 20 years, John and his wife, Christie, spend about two months a year in Ghana, West Africa, in their home in Kumasi. John was a Peace Corps volunteer in Ghana from 1963 to 1965, one of five Allegheny College graduates that year to join the Peace Corps. “In 2020, we left for Ghana before the COVID-19 virus was much of an issue in the U.S. and no cases were reported in Ghana, but within three weeks Ghana had about 50 cases and closed all of its land, sea, and air borders. The U.S. government advised us to return, cutting short our planned visit to four weeks. The U.S. embassy in Ghana arranged a charter flight to get us and other American citizens stranded in Ghana back to the U.S.,” he says.
News and Events from Alumni
’75
After 18 years of teaching history to first-year students at Carnegie Mellon University, Ruth Kittner is the executive director of Wilkinsburg Community Ministry, where she has worked part-time since 2013. The ministry is a food pantry serving the residents of Wilkinsburg, Homewood, Edgewood, Swissvale, and eastern sections of Pittsburgh. They have been open through the pandemic, serving several hundred families a week. She has enjoyed Zoom “reunions” with several of her classmates from 1974-76, and keeping up with old friends on Facebook.
’77
Since retiring as executive director of the Modern Language Association in 2017, Rosemary Geisdorfer Feal has been living in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2017–18, she was the Cornille Distinguished Visiting Professor at Wellesley College. She was named the Wilbur Marvin Visiting Scholar at the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University in 2018, and is currently a resident scholar at the Afro-Latin American Research Institute at Harvard. Rosemary’s email is rgfeal@gmail.com.
Notes 1980s ’80
’68
Byron A. Bilicki, founder and managing shareholder at the Bilicki Law Firm, was selected to the 2020 New York Super Lawyers list.
Notes 1970s
’82
Terry Kelly has been appointed to a threeyear term on the Diocesan Commission on Ministry by the Episcopal Bishop of San Diego.
’73
The North American Interfraternity Council (NIC) announced in summer 2020 that Keith J. Steiner had been recognized with the Silver Medal. The Silver Medal recognizes exemplary service or leadership in a role or task that has advanced the fraternal movement and is one of the highest honors the conference can bestow.
John Conto received an academic promotion to associate professor of ophthalmology and visual science at the Medical College of Wisconsin on July 1, 2020.
Jonathan Cooper has been selected by his peers for inclusion in the Best Lawyers in America for 2021. His area of practice is Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions – Defendants at Tucker Ellis. Pamela L. Eddy, a scholar of leadership development whose work focuses on how organizational leadership and learning drive effective change in community colleges, received an Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia. She is a professor at the William & Mary School of Education. Since 1987, these awards have recognized faculty at Virginia’s institutions of higher learning who exemplify the highest standards of teaching, scholarship, and service. Scott J.M. Lim, a dermatologist in Erie, Pennsylvania, and immediate past president of the Pennsylvania Academy of Dermatology & Dermatologic Surgery (PAD), was presented the 2020 “Dermatologist of the Year” Award at its annual meeting in November 2020. He was honored to be presented this award by his son, dermatologist and Mohs surgeon Dr. Geoffrey Lim ’10, and his daughterin-law, laser and cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Mona Sadeghpour, both previous active members of the PAD who now live in Colorado. Lim practices with his daughter, Lauren Lim Senita, and their practice is managed by his wife, Jessica Blatt Lim ’83. The National Psoriasis Foundation featured Lim’s practice in its fall 2020 publication, Advance, to highlight the challenges of a small practice delivering health care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
’84
Andra D. RiversJohnson received her Doctor of Social Work (DSW) degree from the University of Southern California in August 2020. Her research topic “Implicit Provider Bias in Cardiovascular Disease of Black Women” addresses systemic racism in health care experienced by
Black women with heart disease. She has created an innovative, three-step change process model that will eliminate implicit provider bias with this population. Her email address is riversja2001@gmail.com.
’85
Susan Crain Lewis reports that she and Jeff are still in Kansas and working. Jeff remains at the Veterans Administration in Topeka, going in daily, converting much of his therapy to video, and covering for coworkers who can’t come in during the pandemic. Sue sent staff to work remotely in March 2020 and has been going in daily to the Mental Health Association of the Heartland to keep the company functioning and staff employed. “Family is well and healthy,” she says.
’86
Antonio “Tony” Dias is leading the State Attorney General Enforcement, Investigations & Litigation Practice at the global law firm Jones Day. It is an area of law in which the firm has been advising clients for decades, and one that continues to grow in importance to companies doing business in the United States. Dias, a member of the Allegheny Board of Trustees, has more than 30 years of experience with significant individual and multistate state attorney general matters and Department of Justice, federal agency, and Congressional matters, and as lead counsel in complex federal and state litigation on behalf of public and nonpublic companies. He previously served as co-leader of Jones Day’s global Financial Institutions Litigation & Regulation Practice for nearly a decade and serves as the partner-in-charge of Jones Day’s Miami Office.
Notes 1990s ’91
Mary Huston Beene is the pastor at Windsor Presbyterian Church in Windsor, California. She made the move crosscountry from Georgia to California in February 2020. The congregation is very active in community service, including its food pantry that serves up to 90 families during the pandemic.
’95
Chad Greevy has returned to his hometown alma mater, Williamsport Area School District, as secondary curriculum and K-12 unified arts supervisor. He spent the last 10 years as a building administrator in the Loyalsock Township School District. He resides in Williamsport with his wife, Alysha Sides Greevy, and their 14-year-old daughter, Charley.
Notes 2000s ’01
Tina Vignale Gibbons has been promoted to chief of staff to the chief human resources officer at MetLife after 12 years in successive learning and development and HR change management roles and transformation roles. She is located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and often travels to New York City for work. She can be reached at tgibbons@metlife.com.
’03
Devon Halley has been admitted as a principal at Deloitte Consulting. He also serves as adjunct faculty at Carnegie Mellon University, having earned a master’s degree from both Carnegie Mellon University and DePaul University. Garen Fedeles was named the recipient of the 2020 “Outstanding Solicitor Award” by the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania. He serves as the solicitor for Beaver County and numerous municipalities. While at Allegheny, he double majored in history and political science. He graduated from the law school at Ohio Northern University in 2006. Besides being a solicitor, he is a partner in his own law firm in Beaver. He became a new father in July, when he and his wife, Katie, had their first child. They named their son Corbin, and the family resides in Beaver.
Submit your news and events for inclusion in Class Notes by emailing items to clnotes@allegheny.edu 33
’07
Jessica Yoos obtained her Master of Philosophy in education degree in quantitative methods from the University of Pennsylvania in May 2020. She also was promoted to the position of director for human research protections at the University of Pennsylvania. In this role, she is responsible for the function of the university’s Institutional Review Boards that conduct ethical reviews of research with human participants. She is also responsible for ensuring the university’s compliance with various statutes and regulations on the protections of human research participants.
Arrivals ’06
Carly Colatch Hill and husband, Jordan, welcomed their son, Isaac Alexander, on November 22, 2019. Isaac joins big sister Ivy. The family lives in Leeds, England.
’08
Steven Frese (Delta Tau Delta) has accepted a new role as an assistant professor of nutrition at the University of Nevada, Reno.
Notes 2010s ’13
Nicholas Diana and fiancée Breana Gallagher ’15 both completed their graduate degrees in the summer of 2020. Nicholas graduated with his Ph.D. in human-computer interaction at Carnegie Mellon University and is now a part of the computer science faculty at Colgate University. Breana graduated with her master’s degree in physician assistant studies at Chatham University and is providing care in dermatology.
Stephanie Kreutter Pritchard and husband, Gary, welcomed their daughter, Gabrielle Joy, on May 16, 2020. The family lives near Buffalo, New York.
’07
Emily Sale joined Amazon Web Services as a customer solutions manager in December 2020. Through this position, she will continue her work with the federal government and assist organizations by enabling their mission through the use of the cloud.
Amanda Ohnmeiss Smith and husband, Brian, welcomed their son, Everett, on August 28, 2019. He joins big brother, Declan, age 3, who could not be more in love with his baby brother. 34 ALLEGHENY Summer 2021
Unions ’03 ’12
Anita Bolla and Heidi Mechtly were married on October 31, 2020, in a backyard ceremony made even more special by the attendance of close family and friends. The event also was streamed online for those who could not be there in person, due to the pandemic and short notice, as the wedding was planned in a few short weeks. The newlyweds live in the home built by Anita’s grandparents in Harborcreek, Pennsylvania. Heidi works as a machinist and Anita as a paramedic.
’09
John Milligan and Michelle Perry Milligan welcomed their first child, Paul Daniel Milligan, on July 16, 2020. They live in Philadelphia.
’12 Megan Hepner Campbell and Bobby Campbell were married on June 3, 2017, in Millersburg, Pennsylvania. Allegheny alumni in attendance were Devin Click ’09, Jesse Beauchamp Click ’09, Daniel Ferry ’09, Melissa Danielson Surendran ’10, Carla Morabito ’09, Elizabeth Straus Sotherland ’08, Peter Sotherland ’09, and Stephen Daly ’09.
’11
Mary Olson and husband, Matt Meyers, welcomed their second child on May 15, 2020. He is August Olson-Meyers. Also pictured is big sister, Josephine Olson-Meyers, 4.
The Rev. Elizabeth Yale married James Ivell II in an outdoor, socially distanced wedding on September 5, 2020. Sara Doan ’11, Shawna Burkett ’11, and Rebecca Beichner ’11 attended.
35
Notices & Obituaries
Find the full listing at allegheny.edu/magazine
These listings include deaths of alumni reported through February 1, 2021.
’40
John A. Krimmel on December 16, 2020.
’44
Alice Flaugh Moon on November 10, 2020. James L. Rhinesmith on November 5, 2020.
’46
Nancy Reed Chatfield on November 30, 2020.
’47
Charles P. Long on October 6, 2020.
’48
Elizabeth Wheeler Brandow on September 21, 2020.
’49
Helen Schmutz Edwards on September 25, 2020. Helen Burns Hanson on January 1, 2021. Marguerite Stone Koons on December 4, 2020. Robert B. Moore on September 6, 2020. Winifred Bowser Snyder on December 30, 2020.
’50
Robert W. Davis on July 19, 2020. Jun Ching Lin on November 19, 2020.
Sally Sauder Anderson on December 28, 2020. Donald P. McArdle on January 10, 2021. Bill N. Waugaman on October 15, 2020. Bertha Samas Wigton on January 4, 2021.
’57
Jean Ridgeway Carpenter on September 17, 2020. Frederick C. Seyfert, Jr. on November 15, 2020.
’58
Mary Castle Altman on November 15, 2020. Jean Goldsborough Clark on August 7, 2020. Thomas C. Jones on August 12, 2020. Donald Santora on January 15, 2021. James D. Sexauer on July 24, 2020. Harold E. Swift on November 29, 2020.
’59
Sam J. Cappellino on December 1, 2020. Joan McDonald Shook on September 29, 2020. Patricia Stotler Swann on November 24, 2020. Matthew P. Wright on January 3, 2021.
’60
Virginia Ricchiuti Gross on October 3, 2020. Rodney C. Grossman on November 8, 2020. Roger C. McPhaden on October 2, 2020.
’61
Tulia Ricchiuti Defoy on December 8, 2020.
’62
J. David Barnes on October 12, 2020. Castella St. Clair Heskamp Burrows on November 8, 2020.
Eugene A. Kline on October 7, 2020. David G. Middleton on October 30, 2020. George W. Mummert on August 14, 2020. Evelynne McCartney Waite on August 26, 2020.
’52
’63
’53
’66
’51
Carol Krier Macdonald on August 11, 2020.
Walden H. Whyman on January 4, 2021.
’54
Marion Shryock Breakwell on November 12, 2020. Alfred E. Denio Jr. on September 8, 2020.
’55
Richard Dickson on August 21, 2020. Phyllis Stewart Fisher on December 17, 2020. Julie Caulkins Helms on November 21, 2020. Sue Ann O’Connor Idleman on October 25, 2020. Gretchen Graff Winans on December 12, 2020.
’56
John R. Fix on November 20, 2020.
Nancy Jamison Bell on December 1, 2020.
Gilbert Gray on February 17, 2020. Eric P. Thiess on October 12, 2020.
’71
Richard E. Boston on August 28, 2020. Susan L. Beyer on October 1, 2020. Patricia L. Dawson on December 13, 2020. Kirk J. Eidenmuller on December 21, 2019. Larry Kolb Grimley on August 4, 2020.
’72
Sandra Boyer Barnes on October 29, 2020.
’73
William R. Saul on December 14, 2020.
The Hon. Jack Kitay Mandel ’58 Trustee Emeritus
The Hon. Jack Kitay Mandel died in his sleep on December 24, 2020, at the age of 84. He leaves behind a deep legacy in the law, and a lifetime of commitment to the betterment of society. Mandel lived his life guided by the Jewish philosophy of Tikkun Olam, which posits that society is inherently broken in places, and when we see it, it becomes our responsibility to do our part to repair it. He embraced this responsibility through the building of a large family, a distinguished career in the law, and in the mentorship of thousands of young people in Santa Ana, California. Mandel had an incredibly big heart, with room for many loves. He was a proud alumnus and long-service trustee of Allegheny College, near his birthplace of Erie, Pennsylvania. He often told the story that, while at Allegheny, he skipped swim practice by attending a seminar on the law and found a second love. He went on to law school at the University of Pennsylvania and then served as a captain in the Air Force as a Judge Advocate General, stationed in the Philippines and Arizona. He received a master’s degree from the University of Arizona while in service there, and later in life also received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Morningside College. Mandel eventually settled in Fullerton, California, and continued his distinguished career as an attorney across all areas, specializing in family law. His recognitions and contributions are too numerous to mention, but include Trial Lawyer of the Year in 1974, recognized by the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association. He was a trusted peer, colleague, and mentor to many in his field. His well-earned respect and contributions eventually led the governor of California to appoint him to the Superior Court as a judge in 1981. During his tenure he served with great personal honor, both in his role as judge and also as a mentor to the ensuing generations of attorneys who appeared before him, and fellow judges with whom he sat. His contributions and legacy are remembered through awards such as the California Judges Association Humanitarian Award, the OCBA Harmon Scoville Award, the Bank of America’s Local Hero Award, the George Washington Award from the Freedom Foundation, the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Los Angeles Times and many others. He also served as a faculty member at the California Judicial Colleges. After his retirement from the bench in 2000, the Orange County Superior Court recognized him as judge emeritus in 2001. It was while a judge in the 1980s that Mandel began mentoring students in the Santa Ana school system with his wife, Judy. The two had started a Stay In School mentoring program to address the high drop-out rates between eighth and ninth grades. Budget cuts in the Santa Ana school district eventually forced the
closure of libraries after school hours, resulting in high school students studying on the concrete sidewalk in front of the school. His sense of “righting a wrong” kicked in, and after asking the school system for permission to keep the library open, he began a decades-long practice of mentoring students to prepare them for college. Word got out in the school among the students that Mandel was there, and soon there were too many students for him to mentor. In classic “Jack Mandel” fashion, additional Superior Court judges and attorney friends were gently strong-armed into coming by to add additional support. These strong-arm tactics continued for many years, with a legacy of hundreds of students attending college where that had prior not seemed an option for them. The youth he helped came to be known as “The Judge’s Kids.” Throughout the 1990s and until his retirement from the bench, Mandel helped uncountable young people believe in themselves. He saw how societal norms and systems could easily miss capable students without means or from different cultures, and refused to let these “diamonds in the rough” get passed over without a chance for them to realize their potential. Through his grassroots efforts, young people have flourished into college graduates and professionals like attorneys, teachers, accountants, and social workers. Through the generous philanthropic efforts of Dr. Henry T. Nicholas, III, Mandel's vision has now become an ongoing reality in the Nicholas Academic Centers (NAC) across three Santa Ana locations. Mandel continued to recruit his “Judge’s Kids” to help him build and run the centers by teaching them of Tikkun Olam, and their opportunity to help repair the world. To date, more than 1,400 students have been helped through the NAC to graduate high school and attend college. In 2008, Mandel was honored with the Alumni Medal, the College’s oldest and most prestigious award. In 2016, Mandel returned to campus to receive the President’s Medallion in recognition of his outstanding achievements and service, and the Mandels were honored at a ceremony dedicating engraved bricks installed outside the Tippie Alumni Center. The bricks display messages of gratitude from many of the Judge’s Kids who attended Allegheny. He is survived by his wife, Judy, his sons, Josh ’90, David ’91, and Jeremy; his daughters-in-law, Lisa, Michelle, Victoria, Christa, and Alicia; his grandchildren, Jacob, Gideon, Nolan, Hayden, Mina, Monte, Max, and Anabelle; and his sister, Nancy. When the pandemic has finally passed, the family will be hosting a larger memorial event to celebrate the life of the Hon. Jack Kitay Mandel. 37
’74
Carol Lamenza Booth on July 28, 2020. James C. Gardner on November 17, 2020.
’75
David Krattenmaker on November 23, 2020.
’76
Todd C. Elliott on December 31, 2020.
’79
Douglas J. DiMento on August 22, 2020.
’80
Kathleen D. Cotterman Duda on November 30, 2020.
’81
Donald E. Sisto on September 7, 2020.
’85
’07
Dejan C. Kosanovic on November 23, 2020.
’18
Arman R. Dashti on September 2, 2020.
’19
Zafirah Kaila Atinuke Abdulrahoof on August 22, 2020.
Friends:
Norma A. Burchard on August 27, 2020. Elizabeth M. Froncillo on November 24, 2020. James E. Gillespie on January 23, 2021. Sarah E. Hodgson on October 9, 2020. Anita Spainhour Keen on October 18, 2020. David D. Kelley on July 20, 2020. Donna M. Nageotte on January 8, 2021. Joseph J. Skalko on January 9, 2021. Emily B. Smith on August 11, 2020. Merle E. Vincent on January 9, 2021.
Thomas M. Randazzo on September 10, 2020.
’88
Edward W. Kirn, III on January 4, 2021.
’91
Faith M. Smith on August 5, 2020.
’96
Submit your news and events for inclusion in Class Notes by emailing items to clnotes@allegheny.edu
Paul A. Bunn on July 15, 2020.
Paul M. Roth ’54 Former Trustee
Paul M. Roth, 87, passed away on July 19, 2020. He received a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard University. He started his career in advertising at Benton & Bowles. In 1958, he was hired by Kenyon & Eckhardt, eventually becoming vice president of media and a member of the board of directors. In 1968, his book, How to Plan Media, was published. After leaving Kenyon & Eckhardt, he produced nationally syndicated television news and entertainment programming, including Norm Crosby’s “Comedy Shop,” before joining IDC Services. He became president and CEO of IDC Services, Inc. a publicly traded company. In 1976, IDC acquired Central Casting from the Motion Picture Association of America, combining it with Production Payments, Inc. and Talent & Residuals, Inc. to create the first full-service payment processing enterprise for the entertainment and advertising industries. In 1991, IDC merged
with Draney Information Services. The new business, called Entertainment Partners, continues to this day for workforce management and automated production and financial services to the entertainment industry. He was a trustee of Allegheny College, where he also received an honorary doctorate, and was a trustee of the Screen Actors Guild Pension Fund. Eventually retiring to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, he dedicated himself to public service in the arts, education, and community planning, serving in many volunteer and elected positions. An avid pilot, he held a general aviation pilot’s license rated for multi-engine and instrument operations. He pursued a passion for architecture by designing and building numerous houses. He is survived by his brother, Richard Roth, four children, and six grandchildren.
James Tomlinson Fort ’50 Trustee Emeritus
James Tomlinson "Tom" Fort, 92, of Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania, passed away on December 31, 2020. He was born in Albany, New York, and at the age of 2 his family moved to Long Island. In 1940, they moved to Pittsburgh, where he graduated from Wilkinsburg High School. He attended Allegheny College, majoring in economics, and then went on to the Yale Law School. He worked as a partner and senior partner for Reed Smith Shaw and McClay in Pittsburgh for more than 50 years. He was awarded the Shaw's
Lion Award for Outstanding Achievements in the Practice of Law. He was a board member of the Pittsburgh Dance Council, Pittsburgh Ballet, Pittsburgh Opera, Carnegie Mellon University, Allegheny College, and the Dreyfus Corporation. He married Judith A. Davis in 1959. She died in 2009. He is survived by his children, Edward Tomlinson Fort, Madeline Marie Fort, and Annabelle Fort, and three grandchildren.
Editor’s Note: Due to a production error in the obituaries section of the winter/spring 2021 issue of Allegheny magazine, a photo of the late Q. Todd Dickinson ’74 was incorrectly identified as Trustee Emeritus John “Jack” Phillips ’56. Mr. Phillips’ obituary and photo are reprinted here, and we sincerely apologize for the error.
John C. Phillips, Jr. ’56 Trustee Emeritus
John C. "Jack" Phillips, Jr., an Allegheny trustee emeritus and a member of the Class of 1956, passed away on April 6, 2020, at the age of 85. He and his wife, the former Joyce Nickmeyer ’56, were high school sweethearts, attending Allegheny College together, and were married in 1957. He then obtained his master’s degree from the Wharton School before serving in the U.S. Army. In 1962, he joined the Rouse Company in the Mortgage Banking Department and worked in Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. He and his family moved to Weston, Massachusetts, in 1975, and he joined the firm of Cabot Cabot and Forbes. In 1982, he moved to and headed the marketing department at Copley Real
Estate Advisors. In 1991, he and Joyce built their dream home in Landgrove, Vermont. There, he started the Phillips Company, which later merged with Koza Partners of San Francisco. In 2012, he finally fully retired. His passion for sports remained, and he enjoyed skiing into his 82nd year. He had a love of education, exhibited by serving on the Board of Trustees at both Allegheny and Burr and Burton Academy for many years. He also served on the boards of several corporations as well as churches that were dear to him. He is survived by his wife, Joyce Nickmeyer Phillips; his daughters, Heather, Hollis and Jennifer; five grandchildren; and his sister, Jill Cervantes. 39
The Last Word
Allegheny Faculty Share Their Fulbright Teaching, Research Plans
CHRISTOPHER BAKKEN, PH.D.
Frederick F. Seely Professor of English ARISTOTLE UNIVERSITY Thessaloniki, Greece Why did you choose to return to Greece for your Fulbright experience? My work as a poet, nonfiction writer, editor, and translator has lured me in the direction of Greece for the past three decades. I served as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Bucharest in 2008 and am still benefiting from the rich experience I had in Romania. Now I am thrilled to serve as a Fulbright Scholar in Greece, a country whose history, culture, cuisine, and landscape has inflected all of my creative and intellectual work.
Tell us about the teaching component of your Fulbright Award. I am grateful for the invitation to teach at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, where I actually began my career as a teacher. After earning my MFA in poetry from Columbia University, I moved to Greece to teach English at a high school in northern Greece. But I was hungry for some college-level teaching experience, so I rode my motorcycle downtown and walked into the English Department at Aristotle University to introduce myself, asking to teach a few classes. Even though I had virtually no experience teaching at that level, they took a risk and hired me. Thus, it was in Greece where I started my teaching career and it was in Greece where I fell in love with teaching. When I return to Aristotle next year, I’ll be teaching both creative writing and literature courses. I am eager to revisit the classrooms at Aristotle University to see how the students have changed — of course, that will also allow me to measure the ways in which I have changed.
What is the focus of your Fulbright research project? My first creative priority will be to begin work on a new collection of poems. Every time I try to predict what shape those poems will take in advance, I wind up being completely wrong — so I look
40 ALLEGHENY Summer 2021
forward to seeing what surprises the local muses have in store for me. While in Greece, I also hope to continue working to translate the work of the Greek poet Titos Patrikios, who at the age of 93 is regarded as one of the great elders of Greek poetry. I am also hoping to get to work on a nonfiction project. Since the publication of my culinary book, Honey, Olives, Octopus: Adventures at the Greek Table, I’ve been contemplating a memoir about my early years in Greece 30 years ago. I have no doubt that living in Thessaloniki would offer me the perfect opportunity to delve into my own storehouse of memories and see what breaks loose. Finally, since those first years in Thessaloniki, I have steadily worked to learn Greek, but mostly by ear. My language skills have remained stalled at a conversational level (I do pretty well if the topics of discussion involve bread-making, spearfishing, or goats). I’d look forward to a year of serious immersion in Greek, not to mention a dose of formal instruction.
Why does the Fulbright Scholar Program’s goal of cultural exchange resonate with you? While growing up as a Norwegian/Swiss kid in Wisconsin, it never occurred to me that I would end up pursuing a creative profession so profoundly inflected with my affection for another country, and I certainly wouldn’t have predicted that that country would be Greece. I believe that this kind of cross-cultural intersection is in line with the aims of the Fulbright Scholar Program, and I appreciate the opportunity to continue finding my way to navigate between these two cultures, while offering students in Greece and at Allegheny what I can as a model of such profitable exchanges.
Allegheny College Professors Christopher Bakken and Stephen Onyeiwu have received 2021–22 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program awards to teach and conduct research in Greece and Nigeria, respectively. Each will return to a country that played a formative role in his development as a scholar and educator. In interviews with Allegheny magazine, Bakken and Onyeiwu provide a look into their Fulbright plans.
STEPHEN ONYEIWU, PH.D.
Andrew Wells Robertson Chair of Economics COVENANT UNIVERSITY Ota, Nigeria Why did you choose to return to Nigeria for your Fulbright experience? I was born and raised in Nigeria and obtained my bachelor’s and master’s degrees from that country before immigrating to the United States for my doctorate. I wish to give back to Nigeria by teaching at Covenant University, one of the leading private universities in Nigeria. My desire to give back to Nigeria has been reinforced by the fact that my B.S. and M.S. degrees were supported by scholarships from the Nigerian government. Nigeria is a good case study for the research component of my project because it is the largest economy in Africa, and has many science and technology institutes and agencies, compared to other African countries. It has also been one of the fastest-growing African countries during the past two decades, though growth in Nigeria has not been inclusive and poverty alleviating. I have undertaken field research in Nigeria on a number of occasions, and thus understand the nuances of doing research in the country. Doing research in Africa requires familiarity and a network of contacts that would provide access to information.
Tell us about the teaching component of your Fulbright Award. I will teach two courses at Covenant University — Development Economics to graduate students and Introduction to Microeconomics to undergraduates. I am used to teaching small classes (about 20–25 students) at Allegheny. The average class size at Covenant is 80. This means I will have to pivot away from my usual small group in-class discussions to a lecture-style of teaching. To facilitate closer interactions with my students, however, I plan to split my classes into four small groups and meet with each group in the evening hours. I love knowing my students individually and getting to understand their perspectives.
What is the focus of your Fulbright research project? Fulbright is a perfect fit for me because its mission aligns very well with my research project. As an agency within the State Department, Fulbright and its sister organizations like the USAID
and the Peace Corps help promote U.S. foreign policy objectives. In Africa, those objectives include growth, prosperity, democracy, and human rights. My research project in Nigeria focuses on how technological innovation can be leveraged for promoting economic growth, social inclusion, and poverty alleviation in the country. As an undergraduate student in Nigeria, I often wondered why Nigeria has not become a high-income country, despite its abundant resources. I found it to be perplexing that resource-poor countries in East Asia have been able to achieve high growth rates and structural transformation, while Nigeria is still grappling with slow economic growth, high poverty rates, and inequality. Could innovation and technology be the keys that unlock Nigeria’s untapped potential as the giant of Africa? I will collaborate on the project with Covenant University Professor Evans Osabuohien. We will gather data on Nigeria’s economic growth, identify factors influencing that growth (including science and technology), and survey researchers,scientists, and officials at Nigeria’s science and technology institutes and agencies to understand the opportunities and constraints that research institutes face. We expect to produce two journal articles from the research.
How do you expect to use the experience upon your return to Allegheny? Upon my return to Allegheny, I plan to introduce a senior seminar on Technology and Economic Development in Africa. I will also organize a campus-wide lecture on how technological innovation, or lack thereof, is shaping Nigeria’s economic growth. I will also meet with our International Education staff to share ideas about areas of collaboration with Covenant. I expect the visit will be the beginning of a mutually beneficial relationship between Allegheny and Covenant in areas such as faculty-student exchanges and study abroad. As a teacher-scholar, I cherish Fulbright’s support for teaching and research and its emphasis on impactful projects that support long-term relationships between the awardee and the host institution.
Allegheny Magazine
Allegheny College 520 North Main Street Meadville, PA 16335
WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD 2021 NCAC OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONS The Allegheny women’s track and field team celebrated after capturing the 2021 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Outdoor Track and Field Championship with an impressive team showing. The Gators edged Ohio Wesleyan by five points for their first conference crown since 2008, and the program’s 14th NCAC outdoor track and field championship. Head Coach Justin Linzy also was named the NCAC Coach of the Year, while senior Sarah Lucas from Charleroi, Pennsylvania, was named the Distance Athlete of the Year.
