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On the Hill
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National Radio Program Spotlights Faculty Research at Allegheny College
Five Allegheny College professors were featured on “The Academic Minute,” a national radio broadcast and podcast that highlights research from colleges and universities throughout the world, during the week of May 25. The five Allegheny professors discussing their research were:
• Brian Harward, the Robert G. Seddig
Chair in Political Science, who addressed “Congressional Responsiveness to Presidential Unilateralism” • Janyl Jumadinova, assistant professor of computer science, who presented “A
Submersible Robot That Tests Water
Quality” • Caryl E. Waggett, associate professor of global health studies, who spoke on “Links between Lead Poisoning and Food
Insecurity” • Eric Pallant, the Christine Scott
Nelson Professor of Environmental
Sustainability and chair of the Sustainability Work The Allegheny student group Green Students of Color Society, students Isabella Petitta and René Benoit, and Kerstin Ams, the garden manager of the on-campus Carr Hall Garden, were recognized by the Pennsylvania Environmental Resource Consortium (PERC) as 2020 Campus Sustainability Champions. The Campus Sustainability Champion title is awarded annually to students, faculty, administrators and staff of Pennsylvania colleges and universities who have made
Department of Environmental Science and Sustainability, who discussed “There is a Lot to Learn from Sourdough Bread” • Shannan Mattiace, professor of political science and international studies, who presented her research on “Drug Wars and Criminal Violence in Mexico”
In addition, Professor Barbara L. Shaw will share her research at a later date on “The Academic Minute.” Shaw, who holds the Brett ’65 and Gwendolyn ’64 Elliott Professorship for Interdisciplinary Studies, will speak on “Transforming Knowledge, Building Reimagined Futures.”
“The Academic Minute” is broadcast by WAMC/Northeast Public Radio in Albany, New York. The show, which is carried on 70 stations around the United States and Canada, is hosted by Dr. Lynn Pasquerella, president of the Association of American Colleges and Universities. The program
Allegheny Students, Garden Manager Honored for
also is streamed at academicminute.org. meaningful contributions benefiting social, economic or environmental sustainability on their campus or in their community. “The award reinforces their credentials as a leader in the transition to a sustainable future,” said Benjamin Culbertson, communication team chair of the statewide group.
There were 11 student group or individual recipients and 11 non-student recipients of the Campus Sustainability Champion honor in Pennsylvania for 2020.
Rising Senior Delaney Lacey Selected for Goldwater Scholarship
Delaney Lacey, a rising senior at Allegheny College, has been selected for a 2020 Goldwater Scholarship. The scholarship program honoring the late Senator Barry Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue research careers in the fields of the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics.
Lacey, a biology major and psychology minor from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, is one of 396 college students from across the United States selected this year for a Goldwater Scholarship. They were selected from a pool of 1,343 natural science, engineering and mathematics students nominated by 461 academic institutions.
Lacey plans to pursue a Ph.D. in microbiology and conduct research into the molecular basis for antimicrobial drug resistance to aid in the early development of antimicrobial compounds.
The Center for Firstgeneration Student Success, an initiative of NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and The Suder Foundation, recently announced their 2020-21 cohort of First-gen Forward Institutions, which include Allegheny College.
The First-gen Forward designation recognizes institutions of higher education who have demonstrated a commitment to improving experiences and advancing outcomes of first-generation college students. Selected institutions receive professional development, community-building experiences and a first look at the Center’s research and resources.
$1,100,000 Anonymous Donor
Allegheny received a grant of $1.1 million from a source that wishes to remain anonymous to test and develop its Gateway Network over three years. The network focuses on three goals: (1) connecting students, faculty and staff with community partners around tangible community-based projects and initiatives; (2) aligning the College’s various community-based efforts by providing a common platform and structure for collaboration, ensuring efficiency and reducing duplication of effort; and (3) accelerating positive change in the Meadville area by ensuring a more sustained focus on areas of critical importance. Terry Bensel, associate provost, director of the Allegheny Gateway and professor of environmental science, serves as project director.
$150,000 George I. Alden Trust
Allegheny received a $150,000 grant from the George I. Alden Trust to create a Center for Innovation and to purchase a related high-definition, full-dome projector for the planetarium. These shared technology spaces will serve as hubs for interdisciplinary learning and innovation. In the Center for Innovation, entrepreneurial, innovative and creative endeavors can move from idea to prototype to product in a state-ofthe-art educational environment. Many of the projects developed in the center will be tested and displayed in the College’s planetarium using the new projector, which contains a special hemispherical mirror system that allows for a full 360-degree projection onto the dome. Assistant Professor of Art Byron Rich and Professor of Physics Jamie Lombardi are overseeing these projects.
$144,252 Mozilla Foundation
Allegheny received a $144,252 grant from the Mozilla Foundation for the Responsible Computer Science Challenge, a partnership of Omidyar Network, Mozilla, Schmidt Futures and Craig Newmark Philanthropies. Assistant Professor of Computer Science Oliver Bonham-Carter is directing the project, which aims to integrate ethics and social responsibility into undergraduate computer science courses. Computer science students will investigate potential ethical and societal challenges while studying fields such as artificial intelligence and data analytics. Lessons will include readings, hands-on activities and talks from experts in the field.
$110,000 Orris C. Hirtzel and Beatrice Dewey Hirtzel Memorial Foundation
Allegheny received a $110,000 grant from the Orris C. Hirtzel and Beatrice Dewey Hirtzel Memorial Foundation in support of a fluorescent/chemiluminescent imaging system and the creation of a Health Informatics Computer Lab, both of which will benefit students interested in the health professions. The imaging system allows imaging of protein and DNA electrophoresis gels, membranes, microplates, petri dishes, tissue sections on glass slides and small biological samples (such as plant leaves or roots). The Health Informatics Computer Lab will allow student and faculty researchers to download and analyze large datasets from national, international, regional and local data sources. Brad Hersh, associate professor of biology and biochemistry, is the project director for the imager, and Becky Dawson, assistant professor of global health studies and biology, and Amelia Finaret, assistant professor of global health studies, are project directors for the lab.
Kathryn and James ’76 Macielak
Students Make the Rounds With Dr. Jim Macielak
by Richard Stanley
photo Richard Sayer
James R. Macielak maintains a bustling orthopedic practice in Meadville, but he always finds time to allow Allegheny College students to shadow him as he makes his daily rounds.
Macielak, a 1976 graduate of Allegheny, has mentored dozens of Allegheny students in orthopedics as part of his volunteer service to the College for the past 20 years.
“I’ve had a blast,” he says. “It allows me to interact with current students and has given me the opportunity to really see how younger people change over time — yet remain the same. Also, it’s critical for young people considering medical school to have some insight into what’s in store for them. I look forward to the program every year and also welcome students outside the formal program.”
“Jim is a long-time friend of the Allegheny pre-medical community,” says Kirsten Peterson, director of pre-professional studies at Allegheny. “Students have been shadowing him for years, and he was among the first physicians to mentor
students through the EL Term in Health Care. Since 2002, he has given generously of his time though the EL program. He has come to campus multiple times to talk to students about the field of medicine. The students are always impressed as much by his bedside manner as by his skill as a surgeon. I am most grateful for his generosity to Allegheny pre-meds.”
Allegheny 2017 graduate Dan Favaro, who is now a student at the Eastern Virginia Medical School, shadowed Macielak in Meadville in 2016 and says it was an in-depth learning experience.
“Dr. Macielak is an avid supporter of pre-medical Allegheny students, selflessly investing his time and energy to foster experience, curiosity and respect for the art and science of medicine,” Favaro says. “Dr. Macielak demonstrates the value of calculated confidence and focus in the operating theater, clarity and openness at the bedside, and dedication as a lifelong student of medicine.”
Robert Bower ’20 joined Macielak on his rounds in 2018 as a sophomore.
“I had the privilege to shadow Dr. Macielak for three weeks, four days a week,” says Bower. “Each week two days were spent in the office and the other two in surgery. During this time, I got to know Dr. Macielak as he taught me not only what being a physician looks like but what it really means. He explained to me the biological side of medicine but spent just as much time talking to me about the human side. When we visited patients, I was able to see how much he cared for his patients and wanted the best for them. Dr. Macielak has had a profound impact on me with his kind professionalism, and I hope to become a physician like him one day.”
Macielak serves Allegheny in other ways as well, including as a Volunteer in Service to Allegheny, a class reunion committee member, and as a supporter of the College’s Annual Fund Grant Program.
“I feel the best way to impact the College is by helping students,” Macielak says. “It’s important to give back. Allegheny was very important to my life trajectory, and I want others to have that same opportunity.”
A native of Buffalo, New York, Macielak played football for four years at Allegheny. After graduation, he initially stayed in Meadville and worked as an orderly at what was then Meadville City Hospital. He then went on to earn his medical degree at the University of Pittsburgh and served his internship and residency at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh. He also served as a fellow at the Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center studying spine deformity and spinal trauma in Los Angeles. He met his wife, Kathryn, during his time in Pittsburgh and they eventually moved to Meadville in 1988 to join Orthopedic Associates. They have called the area home ever since.
Also in 1988, Macielak signed on as the team physician for the Allegheny football program, a post he continued in until 2016. In 2005, Macielak received the Robert Garbark Memorial Alumni Award from the Allegheny Athletic Department for his years working as the team’s physician.
He practices at the Meadville Medical Center and the Shriners Hospital in Erie. His professional activities include memberships in the American College of Surgeons, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Eastern Orthopaedic Association, the Tri-State Orthopaedic Society, the Pennsylvania State Medical Association, the Crawford County Medical Association, the American Back Society-Surgery, the American Medical Association, the North American Spine Society, and the American College of Spine Surgery.
He and Kathryn view philanthropy as an important part of their lives. “Once you reach a certain level of success, we believe you need to share,” Macielak says. “There are hundreds of good causes. I’m familiar with Allegheny and the good work that it does. I want to be part of that. We are happy that the College is committed to excellence and is evolving with the times.”
