Carlow University Magazine | Summer 2014 by Carlow University

summer 2014

letter from the president

Carlow University Magazine President Suzanne K. Mellon, PhD

Dear Colleagues and Friends, It’s been nearly one year since I assumed the presidency of Carlow University, and in that time I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and growing to appreciate and admire countless individuals affiliated with this excellent institution. From alumni to students, Sisters of Mercy to faculty and staff, and benefactors, I continue to be impressed by the men and women whose dedication and commitment collectively make Carlow a preeminent Catholic university. I was fortunate to have many of these individuals participate in our inaugural festivities this April. The week-long celebration was an opportunity for those of us on this hilltop to see one another at our finest: Sisters working alongside students to pack bags of food for the hungry in Burkina Faso; faculty and students chatting about poster presentations at the Graduate Colloquium; students laughing and singing their hearts out at the Carlow cabaret; staff perusing photos and more at the student and alumni art show; faculty marching to the inauguration wearing regalia in a sea of colors. These events weren’t just ceremonial photo opportunities—on the contrary, these community gatherings are the bedrock on which we build some of our most important and meaningful connections with one another. The inauguration also served as opportunity for me to reveal for the first time publically Carlow’s new vision statement and new strategic plan for the next five years (pages 8–17). The strategic planning process involved more than 400 participants and builds on Carlow’s innovation and opportunities and challenges us to be risk-takers. I will share more details regarding the strategic plan in my President’s Report this fall. This publication, too, is a piece of that equation. Like the inaugural festivities of April, Carlow University Magazine is community-focused, designed to facilitate a dialogue between and among our constituents. Whether you’re an alum, faculty member, parent, or generous supporter, I hope that you see a piece of yourself in these pages. Furthermore, I hope you get to know one another through these stories so that together we can serve as champions of Carlow University. You’ve heard me talk about the transformational learning experiences that Carlow offers, experiences in which students realize their full potential to become career-ready ethical leaders committed to a just and merciful world. This publication captures just a fraction of those stories, and I look forward to sharing more with you in the months and years to come. Sincerely,

Suzanne K. Mellon, PhD

Executive Editor Amy E. Neil Vice President University Communications and External Relations Editor Alison Juram D’Addieco, MST Assistant Editor Emily E. Martin, MA Art Director Diana C. Hurd Contributors Emily E. Martin, MA Lindsay O’Leary Laura Rihn, MBA Andrew G. Wilson Dalyce Wilson Rose Woolley Awards Golden Triangle Award 2013 • 2011 • 2010 • 2008 • 2007 • 2006 Marcom Award 2010 • 2009 • 2008 • 2006 GD USA American Inhouse Design Award 2014 Cover Image Photo by Brandywyne Dugan ’17, art major with a specialization in photography; photography intern, University Communications and External Relations Carlow University Magazine is published two times a year by Carlow University, 3333 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, 412.578.2091. ©2014 by Carlow University. It is distributed free to University alumni and friends. It is also available on Carlow’s website at carlow.edu. Please send change of address correspondence to the above address. Any other communications regarding the content of Carlow University Magazine are welcomed and may be sent to the above address to the attention of the Vice President for University Communications and Strategic Positioning. Carlow University, as an educational institution and as an employer, values equality of opportunity, human dignity, and racial/ethnic and cultural diversity. Accordingly, the University prohibits and will not engage in discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, gender, age, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, disability, or status as a disabled veteran or a veteran of the Vietnam era. Further, the University will continue to take affirmative steps to support and advance these values consistent with the University’s mission. This policy applies to admissions, employment, and access to and treatment in University programs and activities. This is a commitment made by the University and is in accordance with federal, state, and/or local laws and regulations. For information on University equal opportunity and affirmative action programs and complaint/grievance procedures, please contact Andra Tokarsky, Director of Human Resources and Affirmative Action Officer, Carlow University, 3333 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, 412.578.8897.

features Carlow in the Community

02 It’s innovation time! Carlow’s Unique Relationship with the Children’s Innovation Project

04 THE ART OF HEALING Art Therapy Program Prepares Students to Help Those in Need

Carlow in the World

06 NEVER AGAIN Students Participate in Holocaust Remembrance Tour

07 Carlow graduate Advocates for peace

Melinda Ward ’12 Participates in West Bank Delegation Israelis and palestinians speak with one voice at carlow university

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It’s innovation time!

Alison Juram D’Addieco

Carlow’s Unique Relationship with the Children’s Innovation Project

A group of squirmy kindergarteners settle criss-cross-applesauce style on a soft lavender carpet. “We are all powerful, respectful, and intelligent,” they recite. “We will work in unity to make the world a better place.” It’s morning circle time at Melissa Butler’s kindergarten class at Pittsburgh Allegheny K-5 on the city’s North Side. “Today is Friday, April 4, 2014,” announces the calendar-reader, a braided wisp of a girl. “Today is special, because it’s innovation time.” Clad in chinos and polo shirts and plaid jumpers, the students wriggle with enthusiasm. Excited whispers sneak out. “It’s INNOVATION TIME!” Innovation Time means these kids get to explore. To ask questions. To use precise language. It also means they get to use tools to open up electronic toys while learning the basics about electricity and simple circuits. “Stand up and stretch and face the back!” says Butler. “It’s time to get started!” “We’re going to be using screwdrivers today,” she tells them.

Butler brings an assortment of brightly colored plastic preschool toys—among them a green alphabet-reciting caterpillar; a bright red Elmo See-and-Say; a yellow, red-roofed shoe on plastic wheels. “You’re going to have to see what kind of screw you have and you pick the right screwdriver. Like yesterday, you were using bolts to get things straight. Righty-tighty. Today, you’re doing lefty-loosey.” She teaches kids to use their hands to mime turning a screw. “Repeat after me: ‘Today it’s going to be hard. Today we’re going to struggle. And that’s the truth.’” The kids repeat the words—but they don’t look convinced. Instead, they grin and scurry around the classroom, pairing up near their chosen toys. At one desk, a boy with a crew cut and a bow tie turns the alphabet caterpillar on its back. His determined partner struggles with lefty-loosey. “It’s loosening!” shouts the screw-driver wielding boy. “I can see a red and black wire!”

The kids wrestle with screws, realizing that Miss Melissa was right—this is hard! But they’re not giving up. “I can see the battery!” These students are participants in the Children’s Innovation Project (CIP), an inquirybased learning project that is part of Carnegie Mellon University’s CREATE Lab (Community Robotics, Education, and Technology Empowerment Lab). CIP students learn basic mechanical concepts, but they also master big-word electronic terms like whether a component is a “capacitator” or a “potentiometer.” “But it’s not really about circuits,” says Roberta Schomburg, director of graduate studies in early childhood education at Carlow. “It’s really about how to find things out; how to look carefully to discover things. The children develop habits about thinking, listening, discussing, and being good collaborators. They build circuits, and then they draw what they build, and later write about it. It develops an inquiry approach to science and technology.”

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Children’s Innovation Project was the brainchild of Butler and her colleague Jeremy Boyle, resident artist at CREATE Lab and assistant professor of art at Clarion University. Initially geared to kindergarten, the project has grown and is now offered in classrooms through grade three at Pittsburgh Allegheny. After observing Butler’s work more than a year ago, Schomburg contacted Dror Yaron, outreach coordinator for CREATE Lab, to find out more about getting Carlow involved. Eight Carlow graduate education students began working as co-teachers in CIP classrooms in September 2013. They’ve learned a great deal about how inquiry-based learning really makes a difference in educating young minds. Dawn Goodman, who is completing her master’s in early childhood education at Carlow, is overwhelmed by the difference between the kids who have had several years of CIP and those who have not. “It seems like a class of 10, not a class of 30,” says Goodman. “There is much less chaos, and less of a need for classroom management.” Goodman points to the habits the students have developed. “Across the board, students self-correct,” emphasizes Goodman. “They know to keep trying, regardless of whether they are gifted, no matter what grade they are in. They will ask for extra work—every morning. It’s such a great experience.” Not only is Carlow an important university partner with CIP, but its relationship with CREATE Lab has blossomed. Thanks to a generous grant from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation (see related article page 27), Carlow’s Oakland campus is now a CREATE Lab satellite, a collaborative venture between Carlow’s School of Education and The Campus School of Carlow University. At Pittsburgh Allegheny’s annex—just across the alley from the main school building—a small paper sign taped to a window invites visitors to check out CIP’s headquarters. On the annex’s first floor, a classroom has been transformed into the CIP epicenter, where Schomburg, Carlow graduate students, and partners from Achieving Student Success through Excellence in Teaching (ASSET) gather to discuss plans, participate in professional development, and compare notes about CIP. An independent, nonprofit education reform initiative, ASSET is taking notes on what works and what doesn’t. They’re amazed by what’s going on here.

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“When do teachers get a chance to be this collaborative?” asks ASSET’s Sarah Chesney of the brainstorming that goes on here in the hub. One cursory glance reveals evidence of research, experimentation, and discussion. Plastic bins of switches and circuits are scattered on tables; posters covering the walls pose questions like “How can we help children THINK about their thinking?” and “What is the difference between a rotary switch and a potentiometer?” After all, these students are majoring in education—not electrical engineering. “This is a brand new concept,” notes Goodman. “I knew nothing about circuits—we all had to increase our understanding of electricity. But it’s not really about circuits, ultimately. They’re just a vehicle.” Schomburg is thrilled that Carlow students are having such a positive, interactive experience with this cutting-edge program. “It’s really exciting,” says Schomburg, “to see what the children are capable of doing when expectations are high, when they’re using hands-on materials, and when they’re engaged in inquiry and asked to ponder what they’re doing.” Back in Butler’s classroom, the expectations are high—as is the enthusiasm.

“Friends,” says Butler, wrapping up this week’s Innovation Time. “I wish we could go on and on. But, are we curious?” “Yes!” is the resounding answer. “Are we excited?” “Yes!” “So, next Friday,” concludes Butler, “we’re going to start with this discussion, and we’re going to open more. So, each of you keep wondering about your toys and imagining what you might discover next!” Opposite: Two CIP students at work. Below: Students engage with their materials. Bottom: Carlow graduate student Dawn Goodman leading an innovation session. All photos by Tori Hirsh.

carlow in the community

the art of healing

Alison Juram D’Addieco

Art Therapy Program Prepares Students to Help Those in Need

“Art is a voice and a great form of selfexpression, especially for those who struggle with words.” —Alyssa Roig ’14

Imagine there’s a nasty cut across the palm of your hand. Each time you pick up a pen or reach for your phone, it’s there. The annoyance. The pain. You’re constantly thinking of it. You just want it to go away, so you can be yourself again. Virginia White, a 1990 Carlow alumna, uses this scenario often, as a metaphor for many kinds of deeper, more psychological pain. Now an adjunct art therapy professor at Carlow, White is an art therapist and a child and family therapist at Pittsburgh Action Against Rape (PAAR), where she counsels youth who have experienced sexual violence of some kind. She has a weekly caseload of about five clients per day, ranging in age from 3 to 18 years of age. “You can tell kids that they ‘need to heal,’ but they often don’t understand those words. Art helps them bring things to a concrete level.” She asks her clients to trace their hand on a piece of paper and draw a cut or scrape across it. “Sometimes we just cover up whatever hurts us,” she explains to them, offering them a BandAid to cover their drawings. “But we need to clean that wound out, or it will get infected.” Over time, White carefully guides her young clients through the healing process, helping them to turn their gash into a scar that, instead of constantly interrupting their lives, becomes a fading memory. Research supports the use of art therapy within a professional relationship for individuals who experience illness, trauma, and mental health problems, and those seeking personal growth. Guided by a registered art therapist, individuals use art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore and manage their feelings. Art therapy is widely practiced— in hospitals, psychiatric and rehabilitation facilities, schools, and many other clinical and community settings. Carlow University is one of the few Pittsburgh area schools to offer an undergraduate program

that prepares students for further study in art therapy on a graduate level, required for certification as a registered art therapist. The program is popular because of Carlow’s urban location in the midst of major medical and therapeutic centers, giving unparalleled access to observation and practicum experiences. Take recent Carlow graduate Alyssa Roig, for example. Originally from Chippewa, Pa., Roig graduated in May 2014 after completing her field placement at Western Psychiatric Institute’s Adolescent Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) —within walking distance of Carlow. During her placement, she learned how to run groups with young adults ages 13-18 who suffer from severe anxiety, depression, OCD, eating disorders, and self-harm. Roig will travel to Chicago’s Adler School of Professional Psychology this fall to work toward her master’s degree in art therapy. “When I met other students at my grad school interview, they didn’t possess the knowledge or have the same opportunities as I did here at Carlow,” she says. Roig’s ultimate goal is to earn her PhD and create a safe haven for homeless LGBTQ (Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgendered and Questioning) youth. “Receiving a degree in art therapy gives me the opportunity to help groups less thought about—and less fortunate than the rest of us. Helping the LGBTQ homeless youth will help change a growing epidemic and hopefully help bring light to the issue,” she says. “Art is a voice and a great form of selfexpression, especially for those who struggle with words,” she emphasizes. Debra Bucks ’95 couldn’t agree more. Bucks is currently completing her Master of Art in Art Therapy at St. Mary of the Woods College in Indiana. She is also a family development coordinator at Pittsburgh’s Light

“There’s a real joy in helping people to get back on their feet again.” – Virginia White ’90, adjunct professor of art therapy, Carlow University 4

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carlow in the community

of Life Mission, working with women who have recently come out of addictions. “Art develops its own voice,” says Bucks. “A lot of times we go through our days focusing on what comes next. Art therapy forces you to think about what is going on now.” Bucks facilitates a grief and loss group at Light of Life, helping women to cope with their depression and stress by journaling with art, rather than with written words. “The art has helped them work through their issues,” she says. “It’s out there, they see it, and they have to deal with it.” Bucks feels blessed to have former Carlow art therapy professor Mary Ann HaydenShaughnessy, a 1990 graduate of Carlow’s art therapy program, as mentor and supervisor for her master’s degree. While teaching at Carlow, Hayden-Shaughnessy was also lead art therapist in Western Psychiatric Institute’s Schizophrenia and Treatment Research Center and Comprehensive Recovery Center. “Mary Ann continues to be such an inspiration to me,” says Bucks. “She loves the profession and has the desire to see it grow and be nurtured in in this area. Carlow’s small size

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really allowed me to get to know my professors, and I’m so grateful for that.” Madeline Perdok ’12 also studied under Hayden-Shaughnessy. She says her Carlow experience helped her obtain a position as a child and youth specialist immediately after graduation. She also utilizes much of what she learned at Carlow in her current role as case manager at The Attention Center in Independence, Ohio. About 60 percent of The Attention Center’s clients are children—many of whom have ADHD or Autism Spectrum Disorders. Perdok’s art therapy background is vital as she helps them express themselves. “Sometimes with kids, it’s like pulling teeth. I ask them to tell me about school—are they being bullied? How is lunch? How is recess? Using art therapy instead of words can really help them tell us what they’re dealing with,” says Perdok. Perdok often turns to an activity she learned at Carlow. She calls it house/tree/person. “There are whole studies about house/tree/ person,” says Perdok. “If they draw a house one way, that’s what it means about their home life. Do they include themselves in the picture? How

far away from the house do they put themselves? Are the windows open or closed?” The information she gets from the drawings gives her a better feel for her clients’ feelings and moods. “I love interacting with children,” says Perdok. “I love helping them get the help they need, so that they can move on.” Ultimately, that’s what art therapy is all about. Healing and moving on—or, as Virginia White puts it, “giving people their bounce back.” And art—be it ceramics or painting or a child’s simple drawing of a house/tree/person— can help individuals get to the root of their pain and begin the healing process. For them—and for their compassionate art therapists—a picture truly is worth a thousand words.

Opposite Top: Alyssa Roig Opposite Bottom: Virginia White leads an art therapy class. Above: Students create feeling cards, which will help future clients pinpoint their emotions.

carlow in the world

never again

Alison Juram D’Addieco

Students Participate in Holocaust Remembrance Tour

“There are no words in any book that can describe what I’ve seen,” said Jamie Fair, a junior mathematics major, of “Never Again: A Holocaust Remembrance Tour,” a 10-day trip through Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic. Fair was one of 11 Carlow undergraduate students on the tour, which took place over spring break and was linked to a semesterlong Global Service-Learning course. As part of the program, students also connected to the Pittsburgh Jewish community through various tours and service projects. “The goal of this program was local to global,” said Garrett Margliotti, MEd, director of the Center for Global Learning at Carlow. “The Holocaust is not something that is lost in history, and this trip was to have our students learn about what occurred and remember it, so nothing like it ever happens again.”

Witnessing the scene of the Holocaust left an impact on every student, and left more than one with a new outlook on his or her own life. “I have always been a bystander,” said Angelica Bondy, a senior art/art history major. “I am now going to be more vocal about what I think is right or wrong, even in my own community. You can make a big difference if you get involved.” Photographs of the event, coupled with quotes, were on display at the Eastside Neighborhood Employment Center in Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood, on Friday, May 2, 2014, as part of the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative, Unblurred. They were also displayed in Aquinas Hall on Carlow’s campus during the week leading up to the inauguration of Carlow University President Suzanne Mellon, PhD. Top: Photograph by Teddi Salsgiver. Bottom: Photograph by Karley Pyle.

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carlow in the world

Carlow Graduate Advocates for Peace Melinda Ward ’12 Participates in West Bank Delegation How do you create harmony in the world? How do you advocate for real change, spreading peace as you go? Melinda Ward wants to know. A 2012 Carlow graduate with a BA in sociology and a minor in political science, Ward is antsy, filled with positive energy, and ready to change the world. Now. Ward has sought and embraced every opportunity in her quest to foster peace. In November 2013, she spent two weeks in the wartorn West Bank as part of an Interfaith PeaceBuilders delegation. She had the chance to meet with Palestinian and Israeli activists, leaders, and officials and stayed in Palestinian village homes—including a night in Bil’in with the producers of the Oscarnominated and Emmy award winning 5 Broken Cameras, a documentary chronicling nonviolent resistance to the actions of the Israeli army. “I knew this trip would jump-start anything I would do regarding Middle Eastern affairs,” says Ward. “I want to learn about justice issues on both sides of an ongoing conflict, with an open mind.” She also got to experience life under military occupation—as an unintended recipient of a tear gas attack. While touring Bethlehem’s Lajee Center, which provides educational programming for young refugees, Ward’s delegation was hit with tear gas initially aimed at children playing in the street. It’s a way of life few can comprehend, she says. “A kid can just throw one little rock, and all of a sudden, soldiers fire tear gas.” The children took it in stride and were back out in the street playing 10 minutes later. But Ward was panicking. “Tear gas doesn’t just make you cry. It chokes you up. I freaked out, but those kids on the street, they’re used to it,” she says. What hurt Ward most was the realization that this is everyday life for West Bank residents. This is their normal. “It allowed the reality to set in,” she says. She calls the trip the most emotionally stirring experience she has ever had, and she vows it will

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not be her last. “Somehow, I will go back there,” she says. Ward’s passion for the Israeli/Palestinian conflict was first fueled by a policy course she took with Carlow’s Jessica Friedrichs, assistant professor in the School for Social Change, coordinator of Service-Learning, and co-director of the Honor’s Program. Friedrichs is thrilled by Ward’s recent efforts—and by her never-waning desire to advocate for peace. “Melinda is a great example of a Carlow student who developed her passions here and then took them out into the wider world,” says Friedrichs. “She is truly committed to making a more just world, and I have no doubt she will make an impact.” Today, as a youth counselor with Holy Family Institute, Ward works with at-risk teenagers and Haitian refugees. Her goal? Graduate school to study public policy and international affairs, of course. “I want to work on policy issues,” she says. “I want to educate people. Even if I can just get a few people to change their minds, it will be worth it.” Ward also describes her decision to transfer to Carlow—which she did her junior year— as the best choice she ever made. “It’s a great place to let your voice be heard,” she says. “You can really draw a relationship between what you learn at Carlow and what is actually happening in the world.”

Israelis and Palestinians Speak with One Voice at Carlow University Mattan Peretz and Obada Shtaya are both in their mid-20s, and live only about an hour away from each other, but they have very different childhood memories. When he was seven years old, Peretz, from Jerusalem, recalls his parents taking him to a peace rally that turned out to be anything but peaceful. It was at the rally that an Israeli citizen assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Shtaya, from Nablus, Palestine, dreamed of being a resistance fighter and recalls throwing stones at Israeli tanks that patrolled his West Bank town. Today, both Peretz and Shtaya are part of OneVoice, a youth-driven grassroots movement that works in parallel in Israel and Palestine to mobilize ordinary citizens to advocate for a non-violent end to the occupation and the conflict, and to achieve a two-state solution. On Monday, March 3, 2014, Peretz and Shtaya came to Carlow University to share their experiences and field questions at an event sponsored by Carlow’s Political Science Department and Campus Ministry. Allyson Lowe, chair of Carlow’s Political Science Department, said OneVoice aims to get the word directly to young people because the news media does not delve into the cultural complexity in the conflict.

Melinda Ward and two Samara girls during her overnight stay with a Palestinian family.

“Our speakers demonstrate how connected our decisions are and how we can advocate for changes that affect communities around the globe,” said Lowe.

The Inauguration of Carlow Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tenth President Suzanne K. Mellon, PhD, was installed as the tenth president in Carlow Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history on Saturday morning, April 5, 2014, in the Rosemary Heyl Theatre in Antonian Hall. Andrew G. Wilson

the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president

any a student carrying a full book bag has wished Carlow University’s terrain was a bit more level, but

Saturday morning, April 5, 2014, proved that it’s perfect as-is for

Transforming Lives, Transforming Our World A New Vision and Strategic Plan

a presidential inauguration. That morning, the Mt. Mercy hillside was a thrilling spectacle of sight and sound—thanks for the latter goes to the two bagpipers from the Carnegie Mellon Pipes and Drums—as the inaugural procession for Suzanne Mellon, PhD, the tenth president of Carlow University, snaked down the driveway from Grace Library to the front entrance of Antonian Hall, and the Rosemary Heyl Theatre. Reports in the news media warned of challenging times ahead for higher education in general and specifically for Catholic higher education, but the Reverend Dennis H. Holtschneider, CM, president of DePaul University, who addressed those gathered for the historic celebration, suggested that Catholic universities are uniquely positioned to lead higher education through the challenges ahead.

“Catholic universities at their best, however, offer something more,” said Holtschneider. “Catholicism has a rich history of involvement with the great questions of humanity. It has contributed mightily to those conversations, it has been affected and changed by those conversations, and peoples’ lives are enriched when they enter into those currents of thought, not as blind adherents to a religion, but as active, intellectual, questioning people seeking a truth that will guide them through life’s complexities, and point them towards greatness of heart.” This is the responsibility of a Catholic university, emphasized Holtschneider. “It’s a beautiful task to pass on human knowledge to another generation. It’s a task that Carlow knows well.” In her presidential address, Suzanne Mellon, PhD unveiled the University’s new vision statement: Carlow University will be a preeminent, innovative, Catholic university, renowned for providing transformational learning experiences in which students realize their full potential and become career-ready ethical leaders committed to a just and merciful world. Visit carlow.edu/presidentialaddress to read Mellon’s address in its entirety, or to view video of the inaugural ceremony, recorded live on April 5, 2014. Find out more about the University’s new strategic plan; a continued commitment to Transforming Lives and Transforming our World. “We all have the capacity to transform lives,” said Mellon, “to inspire hope and to keep dreams alive.”

Janice Nash, DNP, associate professor, School of Nursing, and other faculty and staff process down the driveway.

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the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president

Inaugural Poem Honors Carlow’s New President In honor of the inauguration of Suzanne Mellon, PhD, award-winning and nationally renowned poet, Jan Beatty, composed the moving poem, “Sea Change.” She read her work during the April 5, 2014, ceremony—and was met by a rousing standing ovation.

Student speakers Allison Cox, Elena Onofreiciuc, and Nora Suehr chat with Suzanne Mellon, PhD, before the ceremony begins. Mellon, in her presidential address, reminded those in attendance that Carlow’s history is one of meeting challenges—the University was founded in 1929 just a few weeks before the stock market crash that ushered in the Great Depression—and discovering that it has always been up to the task. “The hallmarks of a Mercy education are alive and thriving here: to work to be of service in the world; to transform and empower individuals to have mastery over their lives through a liberal and professional education; to have faculty who are scholars doing work out in the world, with the outcome that our students and alumni change the world for the better,” she said. “So, today, at this pivotal moment as we begin a new chapter in the history of Carlow, I want to talk

to you about transformation and a new path to an inspiring future for this University which has been and will continue to be an integral part of the fabric of Pittsburgh.” Mellon added, “As a Catholic higher education institution, Carlow is in the business, as was called upon by Vatican II of all Catholic universities, of developing ‘great-souled’ individuals who are desperately needed to address social justice and moral issues of our day. This will require innovation, risk-taking, and a creative response to the world with the many challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.” She emphasized the goal is not only careers upon graduation, but careers and opportunities of which we may not, at this point, even be aware.

Director of Carlow’s undergraduate Creative Writing program, Beatty’s poetry has received numerous awards— including the Creative Achievement Award in Literature from the Heinz Foundation and the Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry. She runs the Madwomen in the Attic writing workshops, is managing editor of MadBooks, a small press that publishes books and chapbooks by women writers, and hosts and produces Prosody, a public radio show on NPR affiliate WESA-FM, featuring the work of national writers. An Excerpt from “Sea Change” in honor of Suzanne Mellon: The world-weary details falling like paint chipping from the towbridge— and we can’t wait to see what the rising waters will do. In this one sea we move through together: remember the map, remember the real power point is the power point of the heart. Let us move towards what we crave: the value of a life lived well; the breaking down of the borders of our separateness. We breathe our elemental breath and we make change together inside the thriving: standing where the change is going to be. What firestorm of the heart? What patchwork of lives has gotten us here? It’s the burning past and the bright light

Delegates process down the Carlow driveway along with students, faculty, alumni, and staff.

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of a new leader. It’s a sea change in this difficult time, carrying us with love into the expansive, breathing future. — Jan Beatty April 5, 2014

the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president “Our students will be armed with the ethical and values-based foundation to handle the thorny and difficult situations that will require the type of leadership and foundation to address the community’s and the world’s problems,” noted Mellon. “As we move forward, we are finalizing a strategic plan for the University for the next five years. It is based on our history and our sense of deep urgency that this is a call to action for Carlow to lead and serve the common good.” She outlined her vision for Carlow in the future, which included five touchstones: 1. Accelerate growth throughout all academic programs by offering programs that the community needs and expanding our online footprint. 2. Optimize learning by expanding opportunities for global study, internships, undergraduate research, and servicelearning through partnerships with community organizations. 3. Pursue innovation through progressive projects such as the Women’s Empowerment Institute, which can address the social and health disparities of women and the role that women’s leadership and voice can have for the community and the world. 4. Increase financial sustainability by continuing to be excellent stewards of our resources while fundraising for scholarship assistance to keep Carlow’s education affordable. 5. Transform Carlow’s environment, a goal which includes the physical spaces on campus—such as the University Commons renovation project—and the digital learning environment.

Top: Bagpipers lead the procession, followed closely by Chief Marshal and MFA Program Director Ellie Wymard, PhD. Middle Left: Reverend Dennis H. Holtschneider, CM, president of DePaul University, smiles at the crowd. Middle Right: Local religious leaders in attendance included the Most Reverend David A. Zubik, DD, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, and rabbi Aaron Bisno of the Rodef Shalom Congregation. Bottom: Undergraduate students Deidra Balchak, Angela Hay, Ashley Toomey, Victoria Hannan, Megan Sowinski, Marissa Williams, and Liz Smith smile as the procession draws to a close.

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the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president

“At Carlow University, it is our commitment to our students that we will engage with them in Transforming Lives and Transforming our World,” Mellon said, citing the theme for her presidency. “We all have the capacity to transform lives, to inspire hope, and to keep dreams alive,” she noted. “Let us never forget that education—especially at a Catholic university—is about much more than granting degrees. It’s about moving dreams forward, ours and those around us, and in the process making our world a little better than it was yesterday and a little more compassionate than it would be without us.” Top Left: Anne Martindale Williams, principal cellist of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Top Right: Suzanne Mellon, PhD, listens to a performance by Anne Martindale Williams. Second Row: The presidential platform party. Third Row Left: Jan Beatty, MFA, reads her poem “Sea Change,” crafted in honor of the inauguration. Third Row Right: Suzanne Mellon, PhD, accepts greetings from Cynthia Zane, EdD, president of Hilbert College and board representative of the Conference for Mercy Higher Education. Bottom Left: Suzanne Mellon, PhD, smiles alongside faculty members Sigrid King, PhD, Anne Rashid, PhD, and Kathleen Hogan, PhD. Bottom Right: Suzanne Mellon, PhD, with special guests Maxine Thomas ’05 and Maxine’s daughter and grandson.

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the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president

he week preceding the inauguration of Suzanne Mellon, PhD, featured events and activities showcasing Carlow University’s commitment to excellence–in the classroom and in the community.

High performance learning in action Campus School students presented award-winning science projects and demonstrated the dexterity of the robots they constructed. Monday, March 31, 2014

study abroad and international student art show and presentation Eleven Carlow students traveled to Eastern Europe. Photographs taken on their trip were presented at a special exhibit. Monday, March 31, 2014

Carlow in the Community The Grace Ann Geibel Institute for Justice and Social Responsibility showcased ongoing projects. Monday, March 31, 2014

advances in healthcare practices School of Nursing faculty presented cutting-edge advances in health care practice. Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Carlow Cabaret Brent Alexander, DMA, Carlow’s director of choral activities, and members of the Carlow University Choir performed Broadway numbers as part of an informal cabaret. Tuesday, April 1, 2014

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the inauguration of carlow universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tenth president

Undergraduate Scholarship day Carlow students celebrated learning, research, and undergraduate achievement as they presented special research projects to the University community. Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Graduate colloquium Graduate students presented their research findings during the Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10th annual Graduate Colloquium. Wednesday, April 2, 2014

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the inauguration of carlow university’s tenth president

Honors convocation Undergraduate students were honored for their academic achievements, including the institution’s highest academic honor, the Joseph G. Smith Award. Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Helping hands The entire campus community— including staff, students, faculty, alumni, and Sisters of Mercy—helped package meals for Catholic Relief Services to distribute in West Africa. Thursday, April 3, 2014

carlow university magazine

the inauguration of carlow universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tenth president

inaugural mass A Mass to honor the inauguration of Suzanne Mellon, PhD, took place at St. Paul Cathedral in Oakland, celebrated by The Most Reverend David A. Zubik, DD, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh. Friday, April 4, 2014

all-campus Reception Immediately following the Inaugural Mass, the campus community gathered in the atrium of the A.J. Palumbo Hall of Science and Technology for an allcampus reception. Friday, April 4, 2014

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student Spotlight

Jalina McClarin Receives Big Ten Competitive Research Opportunity ALISON juram D’ADDIECO

“COming to Carlow is the best decision i ever made.” —Jalina McClarin

Jalina McClarin loves to learn. This summer, she will be afforded an opportunity that, as she puts it, is “too big to describe.” McClarin has been selected by the Committee on Institutional Cooperation’s (CIC) highly competitive Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP). She is the first student in Carlow’s 85-year history to receive this honor. A junior psychology major from Bethesda, Ohio, McClarin will travel to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to work in the psycholinguistics lab of Gary Lupyan, PhD, for 10 weeks this summer. Lupyan’s research focuses on the interaction between language and cognitive processes. “I’m really interested in psycholinguistics and how we gain meaning from sounds,” says McClarin. The CIC is a consortium of the Big Ten member universities, plus the University of Chicago. SROP, now in its 28th year, aims to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue graduate study and research careers. McClarin says Carlow—and the close relationships she’s developed with her professors—made the SROP a reality. “The Carlow community is the whole reason I ended up with this opportunity,” she says. “Had it not been for the intimate setting at Carlow, I might have been just another student in a huge

crowd. Coming to Carlow is the best decision I ever made.” Sylvia Rhor, PhD, associate professor of art history and co-director of Carlow’s Honors Program, is a firm believer in the power of mentoring and says the SROP will open many doors for McClarin. “Studies show how challenging and often unfair academic environments have and can be for women and people of color,” says Rhor. “Mentoring helps provide professional training, but also helps build networks of support.” Stephanie Wilsey, PhD, director of Carlow’s undergraduate psychology program, says the experience will enable McClarin to focus her research and professional interests. ”I can’t think of a better way for an undergraduate student to catch the research bug,” she says. It’s the beginning of a new chapter for Carlow, adds Rhor. “Jalina may be the first Carlow student to receive the SROP, but she will not be the last.”

Above: Jalina McClarin, junior psychology major from Bethesda, Ohio.

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Molly Prosser

alumni Spotlight

ModCloth Director Explains How It All Came Together Dalyce Wilson

Molly Prosser is the self-motivated director of visual merchandise at the popular online fashion company ModCloth. Though she’s found her niche, her path wasn’t always clear-cut. A graduate of Carlow University’s MFA program, Prosser traveled the world in search of a professional career suited to her ambitious spirit. “It kind of just happened to me,” says Prosser. “I always loved fashion, especially the vintage aesthetic, but I never thought I would be working in retail. I had always been focused on academia.” After an undergraduate career at Penn State studying writing, Prosser felt overwhelmed by the lack of options for graduates with her background, feeling her only options were teaching or journalism While those were fine careers, she says, “I really didn’t want to do any of that.” After taking various positions in California and the Pittsburgh area, Prosser enrolled in Carlow’s MFA program and focused on poetry. Her coursework, collaboration, and travels to Ireland (a Carlow MFA specialty) brought things into focus. “The MFA encouraged a lot of creative teams, which is what I do now,” says Prosser. “We had to work together while being completely willing to lay it all on the table.” Prosser went on to become a guest speaker and lecturer for the University of Pittsburgh and Point Park University—and also spent time at Carlow as an adjunct professor, advisor, and administrator. She then held positions as a fashion writer, lead editor, and writing team manager at ModCloth—which led to her current position as visual merchandise director. It takes a particular personality to manage creative individuals, she says. “I tend to be very diplomatic. I get better work from my team if I let them come up with

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the ideas, and then I go back and pick what I think will work best,” says Prosser. With a passion for vintage-style clothing and an adventurous spirit, Prosser has managed to conquer the doubts she once had as an undergraduate student. She offers sage advice to others seeking direction in their lives. “Always say ‘yes’ until you know what you want,” she says. “If someone offers you a job that sounds a little crazy— but it would give you the opportunity to move to Barcelona for a while— then just say ‘yes!’”

“Always say ‘yes’ until you know what you want.” —Molly Prosser ’07

Top: Molly Prosser with the always handsome and always tiny, Keith Richards, in the studios at ModCloth. Bottom: Molly Prosser, director of visual merchandise at ModCloth, in the company’s massive warehouse near Pittsburgh.

Enrique Mu MBA Professor and Game-Changer ALISON juram D’ADDIECO

faculty Spotlight

“Look for interesting opportunities... otherwise nothing new will ever happen.” —Enrique Mu, PhD

Above: Carlow MBA program co-chair Enrique Mu, teaching Innovation and Organizational Change Management.

It’s no wonder Enrique Mu, PhD, teaches a course on innovation and change. He thrives on them. “You need to look for interesting opportunities,” he says. “Meet people you might never have met. See a movie that you might not typically go to. Do things you wouldn’t usually do. Otherwise, nothing new will ever happen.” Originally from Lima, Peru, Mu is adept at recognizing new opportunities—and seizing the moment. Before arriving in Pittsburgh to get his MBA and work for Black Box Corporation, Mu was vice president for a multinational firm and was responsible for several multimilliondollar online banking automation projects in Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, and Chile. He later became director of the MBA-MIS program at the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz Graduate School of Business. Today, Mu is co-chair of Carlow’s MBA program. He is also founder and editor-inchief of the International Journal of the Analytic Hierarchy Process and U.S. director for the Latin American Society for Strategy. Mu’s expertise in Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a prioritization and selection methodology, has caught the eye of the international law enforcement community. Two years ago, while teaching a course in scientific inquiry in Carlow’s Master of Science in Fraud and Forensics program, Mu uncovered an alarming fact: eyewitness police lineup identifications have only a 55 percent ratio of success—and a misidentification rate of about 25-35 percent. He soon learned that lineup misidentification is the most common cause of wrongful convictions in the United States—a trend Mu suspected he could reverse. Partnering with former Carlow psychology professor Rachel Chung, PhD, and with seed money from Carlow’s Grace Ann Geibel

Institute for Justice and Social Responsibility, Mu took a new approach to eyewitness identification: examining pairs of suspects instead of the traditional sequential lineup. Pairwise comparison is at the core of the AHP decision methodology. What they discovered, says Mu, may become “a game-changer in eyewitness identification.” The new approach increased the successful identification rate to 88 percent and decreased the false identification rate to 17 percent. Mu and Chung received supplemental Geibel Institute funding and are currently polishing their results. In the meantime, Mu’s work continues to be well-received around the globe—the new approach to eyewitness identification earned him a “best paper” award at the 2013 International Symposium of the Analytic Hierarchy Process in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Mu’s disarming sense of humor keeps his MBA students fully engaged—even during late-night classes after a long workday. A few years back, he surprised the Carlow community by dancing merengue with the Student Government Association during halftime at a Carlow Celtics basketball game. Who knew? “My students, they think of me just as a professor,” he laughs. He often plays Latin music and pulls out dancing or soccer video clips when lecturing about innovation and change. “When I show them my dancing video clips, they are shocked,” he says. You see, he tells his students, you need to seek new experiences, which will lead to unexpected opportunities. Don’t underestimate the potential of surprise and novelty—after all, you never know what might turn out to be a real game-changer.

carlow university magazine

advancement news

MFA Program Celebrates tenth Anniversary 1929 society with reading by Edna O’brien reception On Friday, April 4, 2014, members of The Carlow University 1929 Society enjoyed an exclusive reception in celebration of the inauguration of Suzanne Mellon, PhD as tenth president of Carlow University. The society was created as a way to recognize some of the University’s generous supporters while honoring our institution’s founding date. The reception brought together those who contributed $1,929 or more to the Carlow Fund during the University’s fiscal year (July 1–June 30) for light refreshments, conversation, and connection. To learn more about the 1929 Society, please contact Amy Schnarrenberger at 412.578.6654. Below: 1929 Society members enjoy a special reception celebrating the inauguration of Suzanne Mellon, PhD.

Renowned Irish author, Edna O’Brien, spoke and read excerpts from her memoir, Country Girl, to a crowd of more than 400 in Carlow’s Rosemary Heyl Theatre on Saturday, April 5, 2014. O’Brien joined Carlow’s literary community in celebrating the tenth anniversary of the University’s Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in creative writing program. “Edna O’Brien is an international icon,” said Ellie Wymard, PhD, director of the MFA in Creative Writing program at Carlow. The Country Girls, O’Brien’s first novel, was published in 1960 to much acclaim and controversy. The novel is credited with breaking the silence on sexual matters and social issues during a repressive period in Ireland following World War II, but it also was banned—and even burned—in Ireland, which, for O’Brien still hurts. During the April 5 reading, O’Brien added colorful commentary about her childhood, reflecting on the backlash she faced from her countrymen (and even her family) after the

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publication of her first novel, and discussing her life as a writer. It was O’Brien’s first trip to Pittsburgh, and she opened with a quote about the importance of the landscape in shaping her stories. “When I saw the first glimpse of the river yesterday evening,” she said, “I asked the name of it … and I thought how different that river is to the rivers that I know. I could never write a story in which that river would be a character, because landscape is as much character in a novel as people are.” See highlights of the reading on the Carlow University YouTube channel: youtube.com/carlowuniversity.

Above Left: Edna O’Brien reads to a captivated audience. Above Right: Ellie Wymard, PhD, director of the MFA program, and Edna O’Brien.

advancement news

The First Major Construction on Campus in More than a Decade President Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Announces University Commons Project Carlow University President Suzanne Mellon, PhD, announced plans for the first major construction project on campus in more than a decade. “Recently, Carlow has raised more money than at any other period of time in its history,” said Mellon, during her presidential address at her installation as the tenth president. “Funding is nearly complete for the signature project of this campaign: The University Commons.” The University Commons project involves the complete renovation of the 82,500 square foot Grace Library building on the Oakland campus, turning it into the center of campus life and learning at Carlow University. Construction is scheduled to start in August 2014 and to be completed prior to the start of classes in fall 2015. During construction, all services currently housed in the building will be relocated— temporarily for some services, and permanently for others. The University Commons will integrate an array of faculty and student services that support student and faculty learning and collaboration. Amenities will include three computer labs, a café, a state-of-the-art home for the Center for Digital Learning and Innovation, study spaces, and informal, shared workspaces for students. According to Mellon, the University Commons will play a vital role in educating students, combining elements of teaching, learning, research, health and wellness, collaboration, and technological support.

“The university commons will be a transformation in the learning environment for our students.”

“At Carlow University, it is our commitment to our students that we will engage with them in transforming lives and transforming our world. The University Commons will be a transformation in the learning environment for our students. It will promote optimal student learning and the digital learning environment to deliver the 21st century learning for our students to succeed in today’s world. It will also feature innovative collaborative centers for student learning and academic support.” The University decided to renovate and repurpose the Grace Library space, rather than construct a new building on the site because it is an effective and cost-efficient way to meet the need for a changing learning environment. By transforming an older space to suit modern needs, the University is also being mindful of issues of sustainability and conservation. As part of a comprehensive campaign, Carlow has raised $23.1 million in firm commitments towards a goal of $30 million. The cost of the University Commons project is estimated to be approximately $15.7 million, and about $1 million of that total is yet to be raised. Carlow has hired three premier Pittsburgh firms to lead the renovation of University Commons. The architect for the project is MacLachlan, Cornelius, and Filoni. The construction manager is Massaro Corp., and Kolano Design will be developing the signage and addressing complicated wayfinding challenges. If you are interested in making a contribution to the University Commons project, please visit carlow.edu/give.

The Epicenter of Campus Life and Learning When completed, The University Commons will include space for: Student Affairs • Student Government and Campus Activities Board • Student clubs • Office of Student Affairs Learning Commons • Library, individual and group study areas and classrooms • Mercy Center - Campus Ministry - Mercy Center for Service • Experiential Learning - Global Learning - Career Development • Rita M. McGinley Center for Student Success - Tutoring and academic support • Center for Digital Learning and Innovation - Digital teaching support for faculty •H opkins Communications Lab - Digital learning support for students Social Life and Public Access •C afé •A rt gallery Services •B ookstore •P ost Office Leadership Offices •O ffice of the President •O ffice of the Provost

—Suzanne Mellon, PhD Architect’s renderings of the new University Commons.

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campus news

fall commencement Carlowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commencement ceremonies are a time-honored tradition, highlighting the achievements, hope, and ambition of our students as they move on to the next stage of their success and leadership. This past December 13, 2013, the Carlow community gathered once again in Oaklandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall to honor our newest graduates. Carlow awarded more than 300 degrees, including 16 doctoral degrees and 194 masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degrees. The commencement speaker was Saleem Ghubril, executive director of The Pittsburgh Promise.

carlow university magazine

campus news

spring commencement Nearly 300 degrees were conferred at the Spring 2014 commencement ceremony in May, including 13 doctoral degrees and 96 master’s degrees. Eugene Beard, chairman and CEO of Westport Asset Fund, Inc., founder of Carlow’s Rose Marie Beard Woman of Spirit ® Honors Program, received an honorary degree. Commencement speaker Regina Benjamin, MD, former Surgeon General of the United States Public Health Service and a 2010 Carlow University National Woman of Spirit ®, received an honorary doctorate during the ceremony.

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campus news

Carlow to Establish Women’s Empowerment Institute

During her inaugural address on April 5, 2014, Suzanne Mellon, PhD, president of Carlow University, announced the University’s establishment of a Women’s Empowerment Institute. “There is a strong need to address the social and health disparities of women and the role that women’s leadership and voice can have for our community and the world,” said Mellon. “This Institute will increase the capacity of women to become skilled change agents and social entrepreneurs within communities regional to global.” Mellon said the Institute will help empower women—at all levels—to use their voices to advocate for inclusiveness, justice, and democratized decision-making in their lives and in the lives of others. The Women’s Empowerment Institute is grounded in the belief that the complex nature of most social problems requires more than the efforts of a single program or organization if lasting and sustainable change is to be created. The Institute will go beyond traditional collaborations, networks, and joint efforts to:

• Create a single, focused infrastructure for educational and community initiatives; • Hire and maintain a committed staff dedicated to the Institute; and • Integrate processes that lead towards a common agenda, shared measurements, continuous communications, and mutually reinforcing activities among all participants. In addition, the Institute will be based on the Sisters of Mercy’s mission of social justice, which seeks to give voice to others. By bridging theory to practice, the Institute will seek to create connections and opportunities for applied models in academic work, which will link practitioners to research which will inform their leadership and their communities. The Institute’s programs will provide women with the skills and tools to create change, launch social enterprises, or become social entrepreneurs within their workplaces and communities. This will be accomplished through the following objectives: • Raise awareness of issues and the best practices to impact social change;

• Build skills through curricular and applied educational programs that enable women to become skilled and successful change agents; and • Provide opportunities to convert ideas and goals for social change into deliverable solutions through innovative practices. In each area, the curriculum is supplemented with career development opportunities, internships, and mentoring that involve the direct engagement of women leaders, including those women who have been honored as Carlow Laureates or Women of Spirit®. While an aggressive campaign is underway to fund all aspects of this new initiative, Carlow will commence Institute activities with the start of fall 2014 classes. If you are interested in making a contribution to the Women’s Empowerment Institute, please visit carlow.edu/give.

carlow university magazine

campus news

Carlow University Receives $205,000 Grant from the Benedum Foundation School of Education and The Campus School Collaborate to Develop Innovative Teaching Approaches Carlow University has received a $205,000 grant commitment from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation to establish a satellite on its campus of Carnegie Mellon University’s CREATE Lab. Established collaboratively with Carlow’s School of Education and The Campus School of Carlow University, the satellite will focus on interdisciplinary practices in education and high performance learning. The Campus School will implement two CREATE Lab projects, Arts & Bots and GigaPan. The School of Education will serve as the lead for a third venture, The Children’s Innovation Project (CIP), which it is has already begun implementing at Pittsburgh Allegheny K-5. (See related article, page 2) “Carlow University’s Campus School and teacher preparation program provide the right ingredients for expanding this partnership model into Pennsylvania,” said James Denova, vice president of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation. The CREATE Lab, part of Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Institute, stands for the Community Robotics, Education and Technology Empowerment Lab. Carlow’s CREATE Lab satellite will focus on four main outcomes: • Design curricular approaches and pre-service experiences that align with integrated STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) education practices and high performance learning; • Provide professional development opportunities that build knowledge and skills related to selected CREATE Lab projects, high performance learning, and co-teaching; • Identify a developmentally appropriate scope and sequence for selected CREATE Lab projects; and • Form an Education Innovation Cluster (EIC) to support and guide satellite activities.

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“We believe having a CREATE Lab satellite at The Campus School will benefit The Campus School students and faculty, and also Carlow’s School of Education faculty and students,” said Suzanne Mellon, PhD, president of Carlow University. “We thank the Benedum Foundation for recognizing the potential in this unique opportunity for both students and faculty to learn and excel.” For several years, The Campus School has featured a distinctive curriculum initiative known as STEAM RISES (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics as Rigorous Integration of Student Engagement in School). “The STEAM RISES initiative is a natural opportunity for collaboration and integration with the CREATE Lab,” said Michelle Peduto, executive director and head of school for The Campus School. “It provides our faculty with the chance to enhance their own teaching methods in exciting and innovative ways. Ideally, we would like our teachers eventually to become trainers themselves.” “As the first CREATE Lab satellite in Pennsylvania, the School of Education has an opportunity not only to continue its collaboration with The Campus School but to partner with several universities in West Virginia: Marshall, West Liberty, and WVU,” noted Marilyn Llewellyn, PhD, dean of the School of Education. Collaboration and sustained involvement with the community are significant components of the mission of the CREATE Lab, which is both a technology breeding ground and a community partner. “The CREATE Lab is pleased to partner with Carlow to help future teachers prepare their students to become technologically fluent,” said Dror Yaron, director of outreach for the CREATE Lab. “The next generation of students should look at technology as a raw material—something that can be used to achieve community and/or personal goals.”

Top: Children’s Innovation Project students. Middle: Message from Me enables young children to record experiences through pictures and speech—and send them to their parents. Below: Hands-on electrical components designed for young hands, used in the Children’s Innovation Project.

campus news

the decades of dance

Carlow University Theatre (CUT) Dance Divisionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s spring semester show, The Decades of Dance, featured music and popular dances from the 1920s through today.

Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Joins Pittsburgh Leaders at Community Conference

Suzanne Mellon, PhD, is pictured with Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald (L) and Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto (R). Mellon, a member of the Economy League Board of the Allegheny Conference, Fitzgerald, and Peduto were part of a benchmarking trip to Denver, Colorado to participate in Leader-to-Leader: Pittsburgh to Denver, a community development conference to explore best practices relevant to Allegheny County, such as Denverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s energy leadership, its approach to regional transportation and transit, its inclusiveness, and its quality of life.

carlow university magazine

campus news

Mercy Students Serve Up Advocacy for Justice Three Carlow University Students Attend United Nations Immersion Experience

Above (L-R): Carlow University students Deidra Balchak, Allison Cox, and Rhonda Ekwunoh. Left: Participants in the May 2014 Mercy Global Action immersion, sponsored by the Conference for Mercy Higher Education. The basic ingredients were perfect: a blend of students from five Mercy colleges and universities—including three members of Carlow University’s Student Government Association; high motivation; and a deep passion for justice. Mix well with a three-day Mercy Global Action immersion from May 12 through May 14, 2014, at the United Nations in New York, sponsored by the Conference for Mercy Higher Education (CMHE). The three Carlow students who attended were Allison Cox, a senior biology major/chemistry minor and president of Carlow’s Student Government Association; Deidra Balchak, a sophomore biology major; and Rhonda Ekwunoh, a junior political science major. “The conference was an incredible experience that taught me about issues being raised by the Sisters of Mercy in the United Nations,” says

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Cox. “These global matters need to be worked on to achieve overall wellness.” Cox, Balchak, and Ekwunoh concentrated on issues of sustainable development, human trafficking, and poverty. They also created an advocacy plan to bring back to Carlow, focusing on the right to water and efforts to minimize plastic waste. The mantra of the immersion was the dream of Jesus: “That all may have life—in abundance.” The invitation to enter into a rhythm of action and contemplation served as a reminder that bringing contemplation to action grounds us in the midst of life that can easily become chaotic, and spending time in contemplation renews energy and vitality for returning to action. A Mercy critique of progress on the emerging U.N. Sustainable Development Goals offered practical application of the students’ preparatory reading and provided perspective

on how the proposed goals might affect persons and communities. Social, political, and economic analysis supplied depth to already rich discussions. Students probed beneath the surface to name root causes of injustice in contrast to simply identifying symptoms. The opening of the U.N. Forum on Indigenous People added the unique flavor that only the U.N. experience can provide. After listening to interventions on the floor, the students critiqued what they heard by applying workshop criteria as well as their own insights. A blending of all elements concluded the experience on the final day with a strong call to the vocation of advocacy in the spirit of Mercy, and a practical application of learnings as student teams developed and critiqued action plans to take back to their institutions. – Reprinted with permission from Mercy E-News.

athletics

birth of a team On Monday, March 17, 2014, Carlow University President Suzanne Mellon, PhD, announced that Carlow’s first-ever intercollegiate men’s basketball team would take the court in the fall of 2014. “We did not decide to start this team overnight,” she explained to members of the press gathered for the historic announcement. “This decision was years in the making.” Years in the making, indeed. When Mount Mercy College opened its doors in 1929, the school had no athletic facilities, no gym, less than a dozen buildings on campus, fewer than 100 students, and, of course, no men. But the small hilltop at the edge of Oakland would not remain quiet for long. By the early 1930s there was a modest intramural basketball program and, by 1940, Mount Mercy College had serious basketball fever. The student/faculty game was among

Emily E. Martin

the most beloved events, and the 1943 varsity basketball team went 8-0, putting them on the national map. After World War II, men were welcomed to Mount Mercy—motivated by the G.I. Bill. With a rich basketball tradition already in place, it was only natural that, in 1947, three intramural men’s basketball teams were created, grouped by armed forces affiliation: Army, Navy, and Marines. From the 1950s through the 1980s, intramural and varsity basketball participation fluctuated. Though interest remained high, and in spite of tremendous individual accomplishments, intercollegiate women’s basketball did not experience the success it had found in the 1940s. The program was cancelled in 1988. Just two years later, the team was resurrected and has remained strong ever since. Valerie Phillips, a four-year starter of the revitalized

Lady Celtics, graduated in 1999 and returned in 2012 to coach a men’s club team—destined to become the University’s first-ever intercollegiate men’s basketball team. But how exactly does a team move from club to intercollegiate status? “Carefully and strategically,” laughs Carlow University Athletic Director George Sliman. “There was a lot of planning going on behind the scenes over the last five years or so. It had to be done at the right time.” In 2010, the Carlow University Athletics Task Force—a group of students, faculty, and staff—made several recommendations, including the creation of a cross-country program and a critical partnership with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Highmark Stadium. An intercollegiate men’s basketball program was not high on their list. (Cont’d)

(L-R): Tyler Trombley, Tirrell Harris, Jehosha Wright, Brandon Lioi, Kirk Marshall, and Vincent Bucci. Opposite Page: Practicing in Saint Joseph Hall gymnasium

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athletics

Athletics Stats

Continued from page 31 In fact, the initial plan was to introduce a men’s basketball team in 2017, but a 2012 student-led survey of the undergraduate student body motivated them to reprioritize funding and debut the team ahead of schedule. It seemed there was a campus-wide passion for men’s basketball. But they couldn’t finalize plans without one key ingredient: a coach. Phillips had relinquished her post when she learned she was expecting her first child and the position was vacant. Thanks to the efficient work of a Carlow student, however, the answer came naturally. Junior art therapy and psychology major Jehosha Wright quickly tapped into the network he developed while a playing football at Pittsburgh’s Oliver High School. He reached out to his former coach, Tim Keefer. Keefer’s experience includes 10 seasons as head varsity basketball coach at Oliver High School—where he also served as athletic director from 2009 through 2012. Most recently he served as a volunteer assistant men’s basketball coach at Seton Hill University. And Keefer knows what it means to build a team. As head coach at Penn State Greater Allegheny, he transitioned men’s basketball from a two-year to a four-year program. Wright was thrilled that Keefer considered— and accepted—the coaching position. “I can honestly say that I would not be where I am today without his influence on my life,” says Wright. “I just knew I was supposed to be here,” says Keefer. “It’s like there was a plan for me to be here at Carlow to help make this happen.” Sliman, Keefer, and Wright—who will make his intercollegiate basketball debut as a starting guard this fall—know there’s still more work to be done. “We’ve got to keep recruiting,” notes Sliman, “not necessarily for next year, but for years down the line. We have to let people see the quality of our program, help them understand the kind of quality education that Carlow offers, not just to student-athletes, but to everyone who comes to campus.” Carlow’s first-ever intercollegiate men’s basketball team will make its non-conference debut on November 8 at the Georgetown, (KY) Tournament. The conference opener is January 2, 2015, against Alice Lloyd College and the conference home opener follows a week later on January 9. For more information, visit carlow.edu/athletics.

While Carlow’s Department of Athletics is immensely proud of the many on-thefield accomplishments of its studentathletes, numbers also speak volumes about these individuals who take a great deal of pride in their performance—not just on the field, but also in the classroom and the community. was the average Carlow athlete 3.14 GPA for fall 2013.

community service project— or more—was done by each individual Carlow team.

Coach Tim Keefer.

general service projects were done by the overall Student Athlete Association this year, including Pink the Pavilion for Breast Cancer Awareness, the Congregation Beth Shalom Sport Luncheon for children and adults with special needs, and Sing and Swish, the first fundraiser for Make-A-Wish.

“Champions of Character” training sessions were held by student athletes for the community—the 10th consecutive year that Carlow has qualified as an NAIA “Champions of Character” institution.

student-athletes participate in six sports.

150

athletic contests were held in 2013-2014.

Standing (L-R): Kirk Marshall, Vincent Bucci, and Justin Harshbarger. Kneeling (L-R): Recruits Zach Bryan (Norwin High School) and Zach Talley (Thomas Jefferson High School).

carlow university magazine

athletics

athletics highlights

Senior Alyssa Tlumac was named to the AllKIAC Second Team. Taylor Sirko, an NAIA and USCAA Scholar Athlete for 2013-2014, throws out a runner during KIAC action.

Brianna Trent (#24), a first year player named to the All-KIAC Second Team, battles a LaRoche defender for the ball.

Emily Pritts, a USCAA All-American and All-KIAC First Team, gets the ball back from the catcher.

Marisa Czapor (#21) received the Celtic Award as the Outstanding Student Athlete in 2013-2014.

Nicolette Blake, named to the All-KIAC First Team, was also honored as the KIAC Soccer Defensive Player of the Year.

Amanda Capatola, an NAIA and USCAA Scholar Athlete, returns a volley.

Amanda McKenzie, an AllKIAC First Team selection and an NAIA and USCAA Scholar Athlete, gets ready to serve.

Dana Saunders was named to the All-KIAC First Team in 2013-2014.

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Amber Phillips charges the net.

Senior Mara Gilmartin was an NAIA and USCAA Scholar Athlete in 2013-2014. Erin DiSanti, an USCAA All-American Honorable Mention and an NAIA and USCAA Scholar Athlete, brings the ball upcourt.

alumni activities

Carlow University Names 2014 Carlow Laureates Prestigious Alumni Award Honors Professional Excellence and Leadership Carlow University has named five distinguished alumni as its 2014 Carlow Laureates, the University’s most prestigious alumni award. The Laureates were honored at a special luncheon at Rodef Shalom Congregation on Friday, May 9, 2014. “Carlow Laureates are alumni whose work, thought, and action demonstrate the highest standards of professional accomplishment and leadership, whether it is in their chosen discipline, in academics, or through community service,” said Suzanne Mellon, PhD. “Recipients of this award are lasting tributes to their own professional excellence, the transformational education they received at Carlow, and the dynamic environment which helped to fuel their ambitions and their desire to make a difference in the best ways they can.”

Standing (L-R): Carlow University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Margaret McLaughlin, PhD; Dorothy A. Davis, JD; Juilene Osborne-McKnight; Susan E. Lee; Carlow University President Suzanne Mellon, PhD. Seated: Sister Jane Scully, RSM.

carlow university magazine

alumni activities

2014 Carlow Laureates

Dorothy A. Davis, JD

Dorothy A. Davis, JD, is an attorney with the Pittsburgh law firm Eckert Seamans, where she concentrates on commercial, business, and real estate transactions, and litigation in both individual cases and class actions. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Psychology in 1978. Davis chairs the Women’s Initiative at Eckert (WIE), a firm-wide program designed to foster an energetic and supportive atmosphere for women.

Susan E. Lee

Susan E. Lee is the chief marketing officer for Nederlander Producing Company of America, where she has been a business innovator and industry leader on Broadway for more than 30 years. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Speech, Communication, and Theatre in 1979. Throughout her career, she has forged many innovative marketing partnerships, including Visa’s sponsorship of the Tony® Award-winning musical, Movin’ Out, the largest integrated marketing campaign in theatrical history.

Juilene Osborne-McKnight

Juilene Osborne-McKnight is chair of the department of humanities, chair of the communications program, and an associate professor of humanities at DeSales University in Center Valley, Pa. She was the first graduate of Carlow’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program in 2007. A published writer for 20 years, Osborne-McKnight is the author of four historical novels set in Ireland between the years 500 B.C. and 500 A.D., and her Irish history, The Story We Carry in Our Bones: Irish History for Irish Americans, is forthcoming in 2015.

Nominate a 2015 Laureate Deborah Rice-Johnson

Deborah Rice-Johnson is the division president-health services, and an executive vice president of Highmark, Inc. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management in 2008. RiceJohnson has more than 25 years of experience in the health insurance industry. She has held a variety of management positions at Highmark and its predecessor company in strategic development, operations, information technology, and customer service.

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Sister Jane Scully, RSM

Sister Jane Scully, RSM is president emerita of Carlow University, having served as president from 1967 until 1982. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English in 1939. Her reputation as educator, public speaker, and concerned citizen has won honors for the native Pittsburgher. Since stepping down in 1982 from the presidency of Carlow, she has devoted her energies to lecturing on the issues of corporate social responsibility, business and society, and the values for today and tomorrow.

Created in 2009, the Carlow Laureate Award is an academic institutional honor given to distinguished alumni of Carlow University. All nominees must have an earned undergraduate or graduate degree from Carlow University. All graduates who are not employees of Carlow University are eligible for the award. Nominees must have a minimum of 10 years of professional experience with documented professional successes and achievements. For more information—and to complete a nomination form—visit: carlow.edu/laureate. Nominations will be reviewed by a committee which includes Carlow University faculty and a Carlow Laureate who represents alumni. 35

alumni activities

National alumni council meeting L-R: Cheryl Sorenson ’13, Carey Libertini ’01, Sara Marie Baldi ’77, Dory Dominguez ’67, Barbara Kraft ’83, Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Judith Davies Klingensmith ’63, ’71, Joanne Malenock, PhD ’59, Heidi Hylton Meier, DBA, CPA ’77, Margaret McLaughlin, PhD, Deborah Grimes Talarico ’73, and Michele Atkins ’82.

mba executive-in-residence presentation and networking dinner

Tuition freedom day

L-R: Cathy Doverspike, Lynn Doverspike, Sam Stewart, Mary Ann Miller.

L-R: Sara Marie Baldi ’77 and Lacey Fetcko ’13. Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Wicked Attendees

wicked performance and dinner Left Photo (L-R): Perry ’93 and Diane ’07, ’08 Ankney. Right Photo (L-R): Bernadette Skoczylas ’69 and Donna Henke ’67.

Alumni Scholarship Benefit Left Photo (L-R): Linda Madden-Brenholts ’88, Mary Grace Bente ’80, and Margaret Monahan ’76. Right Photo (L-R): Angela Laubach Slocum ’58 and Suzanne Mellon, PhD.

carlow university magazine

alumni activities

spring Alumni Happy Hour L-R: Michael Balmert, PhD, Barbara Kraft ’83, and Dory Dominguez ’67.

Philadelphia Alumni Reception L-R: Lila Russo ’66, Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Eileen Gratton ’66, and Norma Jean LeClair ’66.

St. Petersburg Florida Alumni reception Back row (L-R): Janice Sudak ’80 and Mary Pat Mulligan ’57. Front row (L-R): Martha Valo ’60 and Pamela Coleman ’68.

Washington, D.C. Alumni Reception Back row (L-R): Meghan Foy ’10, Bruce McCosar, Hannah Hamilton, PhD ’88, Anita Williams ’80, Monica O’Keefe ’69, and Margaret Armen, JD ’69.

Laureate Luncheon L-R: Carol Neyland ’73 and Sister Jane Scully, RSM ’39.

Front row (L-R): Susan Fishburn ’74, Ann Pontiere ’47, Mary Ann Sestili, PhD ’61, Suzanne Mellon, PhD, Patricia Althardt ’75, Suzanne Aquilina, DNP, ’11, and Maraya Lasinsky ’03.

Ireland Trip Left Photo (L-R): Tammy Degregorio, DMD, Susan Tracey, Mary Ann Scheib ’73, Rose Woolley, and Susan Kislak ’10, ’12. Right Photo (L-R): Maralee Lundberg ’72 and David Lundberg.

summer 2014

Alumni activities

save the date

alumni weekend october 3–5, 2014 remember. reunite. reimagine. Join your friends, classmates, Carlow students, faculty, staff, and Sisters of Mercy for a fun-filled weekend packed with social activities designed by classmates for classmates. To help plan the weekend as a member of your class committee or the Reunion Planning Committee, please contact Rose Woolley, director of alumni relations, at 412.578.6274 or alumni@carlow.edu. For hotel information and reservations, please visit carlow.edu/alumni.

Bring your Carlow spirit home!

news 70s Kathy Wiker Lanoy ’79 received her master’s in psychology in 2013 and is finishing her masters in educational psychology in 2014. She is an adjunct professor at Texas State Technical College and has a counselor position at Miller Jordan Middle School.

80s Kim Coughanour Beecher ’88 was promoted to senior professor at Daytona State College School of Nursing, Daytona, Fla.

90s Colleen M. Andrews ’90 earned her PhD in Organization and Management from Capella University. Dr. Elizabeth Czekanski ’97 accepted a position with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as the National Mental Health Clinical Nurse Advisor through the central office in Washington, D.C.

00s

For more alumni events, please visit our website at carlow.edu/alumni. Stay connected! Send your e-mail to alumni@carlow.edu to receive updates on the latest alumni news and events.

Sarah Barrett ’01 earned her MBA in December 2013 from Midway College in Midway, Ky. Paula Price Ziemski ’03 joined Accenture’s healthcare consulting practice in 2012 and is currently working with a client in northern California. Allison Alley ’06 is living in South Korea and working at Seoul National University College of Medicine for a group designed as a World Health Organization Collaborating Center. Karen Hochberg ’07 was named executive director of the Pittsburgh Area Jewish Committee.

Kathleen Fowler ’08 was recognized by the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority and nine other health care workers and facilities for her work on the “I Am Patient Safety” posters. Sarah Racz ’09 graduated from Duquesne University with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree.

condolences 40s Dean Steliotes, husband of Ann Dattilo Steliotes ’49, died November 30, 2013.

50s Gilbert Sniegocki, husband of Marie Kuehn Sniegocki ’57, died February 28, 2014.

60s James D. Wehs, brother of Judy Wehs Gillespie ’64, died February 28, 2014. Michael J. Eacobacci, Jr., husband of Jane Dankmyer Eacobacci ’66, died December 2, 2013. Walter Lasek, husband of Kathleen Treu Lasek ’67, died February 22, 2012. Richard Cosentino, husband of Doreen Donauer Cosentino ’68, died April 19, 2014.

70s Ann Miller, mother-in-law of Mary Ann Reddinger Miller ’71, died December 8, 2013. Thelma Lovette, mother of Thelma Lovette Morris ’70, died May 24, 2014. A 2000 Carlow University Woman of Spirit®, Lovette was committed to social work and to the development of Pittsburgh’s Hill District neighborhood—home to the Thelma Lovette YMCA.

carlow university magazine

alumni activities

friends Frederick N. Egler, Esq., husband of Ruth D. Egler, died February 28, 2014. Susan McCaffrey, wife of Thomas J. McCaffrey, died November 4, 2013. Sister Dorothy Sloan, RSM, died November 14, 2013.

in memoriam

Have you recently moved, gotten married, had a baby, changed jobs, earned an advanced degree, or received a promotion? If so, please send us your news, updated information, or business card, and we will send you a Carlow University luggage tag as our way of saying thanks.

30s

Sister Rebecca Fromme ’57 died February 6, 2013.

Vivian Kaiser Doherty ’38 died January 26, 2013.

Sister Kathleen Garde ’57 died July 10, 2013.

40s

Doloris Bernardi McHugh ’57 died January 28, 2014.

Mary Anne Gearing ’42 died January 26, 2014.

Mary Helen Frye Kennedy ’59 died February 18, 2014.

Mary Logan Kopchak ’42 died February 10, 2014.

60s

Catherine Kitrick Debes ’45 died January 19, 2013.

Sister Francine Nolan ’60 died April 13, 2014.

Frances Wholey Gleason ’46 died March 8, 2014.

Gerry Kaye Ewing ’62 died February 8, 2014.

Clara Tebbets Hurley ’48 died April 15, 2013.

Sister Matthias Wemm ’63 died February 2, 2014.

Mary Dahl Suplee ’49 died February 19, 2014.

Geraldine Pauley Hayward ’64 died February 3, 2014.

50s

Patricia Whalen Dunlay ’65 died January 8, 2014.

Sister Roberta Ann Voytek ’51 died March 3, 2014.

Sister Phyllis Gembarosky ’65 died February 5, 2014.

Joan Peters Brubaker ’52 died July 24, 2012.

Irene Kueshner McGowan ’65 died November 17, 2013.

Sister Mary Grace O’Hara ’55 died March 12, 2012.

Joyce Advent Horgan ’66 died December 3, 2013.

Dorothy Sudaz Ashton ’56 died July 22, 2012.

Marion Schaefer Jilek Petrillo ’67 died December 4, 2013.

Mary Ellen Dolan ’56 died April 3, 2014.

Roseann Lyman Anthos ’69 died February 23, 2012.

summer 2014

70s Sister Mary Edith Nemeth ’72 died January 15, 2013. Mary Jo LaBuda Schultz ’73 died April 16, 2014. Susan Latta Daugherty ’75 died September 5, 2013. Shelly Lane Stewart ’77 died March 31, 2013.

Stephanie Krasinki ’11 married Jonathon Laurena on May 25, 2013.

births/adoptions Ruby Holmes ’00, a grandson, Robert Smiley IV, born October 5, 2013. Judy (Naab) Podlucky ’08, a son, Finn Jude Podlucky, born August 3, 2013. Rebecca Polinko ’10, a daughter, Evangeline Mele, born July 18, 2013.

80s Norma P. Reutzel Steinbruegge ’82 died April 11, 2013. Leon Agnew ’89 died February 19, 2014.

90s Pamela Stevenson Bryker ’93 died January 14, 2014.

00s Lorraine Phillips-Miller ’05 died January 31, 2014.

Evangeline Mele Polinko

Kelley Lynn Rhodes-Hope ’05 died January 13, 2014.

marriages Lisabeth Smolenski ’72 married Stanley Williams on October 26, 2013. Frann Salley Anderson ’82 legalized her union with Susan J. Anderson as a marriage in the State of Delaware on July 1, 2013. Kim Coughenour Beecher ’88 married David Beecher on September 29, 2010. Regan Schreiber Katz ’02 married Christopher Katz on September 13, 2013. Judy Naab ’08 married Ryan Podlucky on February 23, 2013.

noted and quoted

Carlow’s presence is felt in media noted

From local media to social media, Carlow is getting the word out.

PITTSBURGH BUSINESS TIMES New Carlow president Mellon announces construction project, institute April 7, 2014

Keep a finger on the pulse of Carlow’s digital social scene by checking out updates like these at carlow.edu/social.

“Will increase the capacity of women to become skilled change agents and social entrepreneurs within communities regional to global.”

— Suzanne Mellon, PhD

PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE Carlow program for writers includes an Irish flair April 2, 2014 The 10th anniversary of founding its MFA in creative writing program Carlow announces plans for major new construction April 5, 2014 Preparations for the school’s first major construction in more than a decade

Tribune-review Newsmaker: Mary C. Burke December 9, 2013 Noteworthy: Received the Director’s Community Leadership Award from the director of the FBI for her volunteer work to end international human trafficking of adults and children.

Too good to eat?! Earlier this week, students participated in cupcake wars.

Throwback to graduation in the 1960s—the glasses were large and the lapels were narrow but the caps and gowns look the same!

— Mary C. Burke is director of Carlow’s doctoral program in counseling and psychology and founder of the Project to End Human Trafficking.

Carlow to field men’s basketball team in 2014-15 March 17, 2014 “No one will work harder than this team.”

— Tim Keefer, coach of Carlow’s men’s basketball team.

New Carlow University president ready to guide change March 25, 2014 ‘We have a well-respected hidden gem in Oakland that we need to shine a light on.”

— Suzanne Mellon, PhD, in an interview with the editorial board.

O’Brien brings ‘sadness and joy’ to writing program celebration at Carlow April 3, 2014 Edna O’Brien is often lauded as one of the leading figures in the history of Irish literature…O’Brien’s visit is the highlight of 10th anniversary celebrations for the university’s master of fine arts creative-writing program.

carlow university magazine

noted and quoted National Eating Disorder Week Our “Love Your Body Clothesline” on display as part of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week. Winners of the first ever hot chocolate competition. Alternative Spring Break 2014

Bowls in the night Nearly 250 bowls were created during the Art Department’s annual Bowls in the Night event.

congratulations!

Celebration of Life event on campus

A collection of well-wishing duckies have taken up residence in the Carlow pond. Congratulations to all the graduates!

Celebration of life Congrats to the three student organizations—Artful Souls, LGBT and Allies, and Student Leaders in Communication—for putting together this amazing and colorful Celebration of Life event

Commencement Congrats to all of the graduates. Carlow graduates do it in style!

summer 2014

noted and quoted

media Features Students and Faculty quoted

Words and Wisdom from the Carlow Community

Roberta Schomburg Director, Early Childhood Education Program WESA-FM, How Tablets, Smart Phones Have Changed the Learning Landscape for Young Children, October 21, 2013 “There are many, many positive ways that screens can add to our lives…we have to have some caution as well and think about whether it’s appropriate for this particular child...”

Amanda Cotherman ’13 Former Carlow University Celtics Soccer player, upon induction into Carlow’s Athletic Walk of Fame Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, December 17, 2013 “I will cherish my experience on that team for the rest of my life.”

Jason D. Bartolacci Instructor, Master of Fraud and Forensics Program Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, January 19, 2014 “White-collar criminals are rarely jailed.”

carlow university magazine

“The View from My Attic,” ink, watercolor, and marker on paper by Carlow art student Josh “Stretch” Carter.

letters to the editor We want to hear from you! The editors welcome your letters of 300 words or fewer for inclusion in forthcoming issues of Carlow University Magazine. All letters to the editor may be used for publication unless the author explicitly states otherwise. Letters may be edited for style, length, clarity, grammar, and relevance to Carlow University happenings.

The Importance of Philanthropy

To the Editor: Thank you so much for including our Campus School Community in your article, “Cultivating a Culture of Caring at the Campus School” (Winter 2013). The visible acts of charity discussed in the article are just one aspect of the pervasive spirit of giving that exists within our school community. The message of responsibility for the greater society that we seek to instill in our students is one rooted in the heritage and values of our founders, the Sisters of Mercy. We hope to foster in our students an awareness of the needs of the world around them and an understanding of the variety of ways they can respond to the demands of those needs. This permeates every aspect of our educational environment and it begins

with the sense of community we consciously strive to communicate to every member of the Campus School (students, parents, staff members)….The understanding of the impact that our actions have on others and the necessity of using our gifts and talents to benefit our community is at the core of all our interactions. It is our sacred mission to provide students with a spirit of compassion, personal responsibility to others, and merciful understanding that they will carry beyond the walls of this school into the communities in which they live. Based on the legacy of our alumni, we feel confident we are fulfilling this mission. Our school community does raise muchneeded funds for many deserving charities but the spirit of giving is present every moment of everyday in the hallways, in the classrooms and in our hearts. Sincerely, Michelle Peduto Executive Director and Head of School The Campus School of Carlow University

The Life of a Writer

To the Editor: As a current student, I attended An Evening with Edna O’Brien: A Life of Writing, an event celebrating the tenth anniversary of Carlow University’s MFA in Creative Writing Program. Having completed a residency in Dublin, Ireland, where I had the privilege of attending a presentation by the award winning Ms. O’Brien, I entered the Rosemary Heyl Theater excited for her eagerly anticipated appearance in Pittsburgh. To be seated in the audience listening to her read, in my hometown, was a mind-blowing experience. She read from her memoir, Country Girl, with perfect story-telling flair. I listened as this remarkable octogenarian answered questions from the audience with quick wit. I, too, am writing a memoir and she inspired me to find the words to tell my story… Under the direction of Ellie Wymard, [the MFA] program has flourished over the past 10 years. Ellie is supported by an international network of her fellow writers and faculty who generously share their knowledge with students in the program. The gifted mentors chosen by Ellie are published authors in both Pittsburgh and Ireland and have efficaciously guided my manuscript writing. Happy tenth Anniversary Carlow MFA in Creative Writing! May you live a long life, touching the lives of all who aspire to be writers. I am honored to be one of them. Lisa Costa Carlow MFA Class of 2015

Please address submissions to: Carlow University Magazine, 3333 Fifth Avenue, Antonian Hall, 6th Floor, Pittsburgh PA 15213. Letters may also be submitted online by emailing magazine@carlow.edu.

carlow university magazine

You + Carlow Fund = Student Support “Carlow made it easy, they offered so much support—not just loans, but scholarships that I don’t have to pay back. I’m so grateful!”

– Genevieve Szekely BSN ’14

When our dedicated scholarship funds are exhausted, your contribution to the Carlow Fund makes possible seamless support to meet our students’ financial needs.

To make a gift, visit carlow.edu/give, or for additional information, please contact Amy Schnarrenberger at alschnarrenberger@carlow.edu or 412.578.6654.

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