Gannon Magazine July 2015

July 2015

INNOVATION [in-uh-vey-shuh n]

noun: creative use of a new idea, technology or modality to promote change and make a difference.

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from the

president

Gannon University President Keith Taylor, Ph.D., addresses the members of the Gannon University ROTC at the ceremony commissioning cadets from the “Pride of PA” Battalion as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Army.

As we close the 2014-15 Academic Year, we reflect on the success of our students and graduates, and anticipate with excitement what’s to come at Gannon University.

First, the reflection: this year, we celebrated the dedications of exceptional new learning environments and the thrilling announcement of a second Gannon campus in Ruskin, Florida.

We’ve announced compelling new academic programs that respond to the interests of our students and the needs of our society. Our student-athletes have excelled in conference and national tournaments, as well as in the classroom, and student leadership and engagement rose to new levels. As always, we celebrated the outstanding achievements of our students and faculty members, culminating in a May Commencement, where we awarded a record-breaking 906 degrees to a graduating class that will now go forth in their careers, their lives and their roles in a global community to give meaning to the Gannon University Mission.

Such success is not achieved without the hard work, generosity and absolute dedication of thousands of people. That level of commitment came in many forms including a record year of charitable giving unmatched in Gannon’s history. Our University’s admirable growth trajectory rests on and bolsters the mighty foundation that is our Catholic Identity and our Mission.

Now, the anticipation, which is my favorite part, with all its great hope and expectation: innovation is one of the core elements of our Strategic Plan and of any successful organization. By implementing change now, we prepare for a successful tomorrow.

Creative thought and dynamic re-imagination drive us and

Vol. XXVI, No. 1 • July 2015 Gannon University • 109 University Square Erie, Pennsylvania 16541 • (814) 871-7000 www.gannon.edu

our work, and you are seeing the results already. You’ll find signs of the inspired spirit in the creation of multi-disciplinary opportunities within courses and programs, in the use of new technologies and techniques for research and interactive learning, such as what is found in the new Business Information Systems Laboratory in the Center for Business Ingenuity or the wondrous technology throughout the Human Performance Laboratory in the renovated Recreation and Wellness Center as well as in the new Forensic Investigation Center and Center for Communication and the Arts.

The innovation found inside the classroom at Gannon becomes a way for our students, faculty and staff to better encounter the world. It’s what has led us to implement new learning abroad experiences and international university partnerships. It has led us to begin new programs and courses, to eagerly welcome talented visiting scholars and professors and to initiate new clubs, organizations and events on campus.

Our Gannon community is applying its empirical creativity to explore solutions to challenges in today’s society, and is inventively using new ideas and methods to accomplish tasks, create change and make a difference in the community and across the world. Together we continue to innovate, move forward and look to the future, continuously finding new possibilities along the way.

God Bless,

Keith Taylor, Ph.D., President

Keith Taylor, Ph.D. President

Laura Hinsdale Graphic Designer

printing

Melanie Whaley ’95 Director for Marketing and Communications

Andrew Lapiska ’09M Creative Services Director

class notes and address changes

John Chacona Media, Marketing and Communications Writer

Mallory Hedlund ’14

Mallory Hedlund ’14 Marketing and Communications Specialist

Joe Mattis ’69

photography Matt King Andrew Lapiska ’09M Kristen McAuley staff and alumni contributors

Gannon Magazine is published by the Marketing and Communications Office at Gannon University.

We value your input; please direct any comments, questions or feature ideas to magazine@gannon.edu.

Knepper Press Jana Hunt Coordinator of Gifts and Records hunt001@gannon.edu 814-871-7469

features

Gannon Magazine July 2015

09 Athletic Features

Take a retrospective look at some of the all-star athletes who found a home in the Erie area, landed in the record books, and made a name for themselves in Gannon athletics – both on and off the court.

At The Corner of Ninth and 12 State Streets, Where Business and Ingenuity Meet

The new Center for Business Ingenuity at 900 State St. is a learning environment not just for students, but for entrepreneurs and Erie business owners too. See how three business-focused entities on campus have come together under one roof, providing an advanced, one-of-a-kind entrepreneurial experience.

16 The Possibilities

Whether it’s becoming a new member of the Alumni Association, creating new service opportunities in the community, leaving behind your legacy to benefit students, or landing your dream job–before graduation–the possibilities at Gannon are endless when you believe.

contents Strategic Goals 02 innovation 03 community 04 worldview

NewsNotes 05 06 07 08 27

growth legacy faith & service athletics alumnotes

The Possibilities 18 inspire the possibilities 20 believe in the possibilities 22 achieve your possibilities

Focus 24 facultyfocus 25 studentfocus 26 alumnifocus

The sculpture of a Byzantine cross that is a focal point of the lobby area of the Center for Business Ingenuity was created by eminent American sculptor, designer and master craftsman Don Drumm. The materials used, water-jet cut aluminum and brass plate with an as-milled finish, were chosen both to refer to the Dahlkemper School of Business’ connection with the School of Engineering and Computer Science, which together form the College of Engineering and Business, and to honor Erie’s industrial heritage as a center of metalworking. Drumm is the son-in-law of noted Erie artist and teacher Joseph Plavcan whose mural, created for the Erie Press Club, occupies a similar position of prominence in the Palumbo Academic Center.

Drumm’s work can be found in U.S. embassies, galleries and university campuses worldwide.

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innovation

strategic goals

A Near-Space Experience A team of engineering and science students gained a new worldview perspective after successfully designing and building a scientific payload. As part of a NASA-sponsored exploration of near space led by Assistant Professor of Physics Nicholas Conklin, Ph.D. and Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Wookwon Lee, Ph.D., the student team developed the payload to observe characteristics of cosmic rays. Their device soared to a height of 105,000 feet for one hour and 46 minutes aboard a balloon launched by World View Enterprises in March. Conklin was joined by four students, Brandon Lawrence, Ryan Mong, Leslie Moukouro and Codi Wasser, for the integration of the payload in Tucson, Arizona, but weather conditions delayed the launch while they were on location. However, the payload was successfully deployed and recovered after they returned to Gannon, recording over 100,000 cosmic-ray events during the flight.

Gannon University was one of 10 universities in the United States accepted into NASA’s inaugural Undergraduate Student Instrument Program, through which our students developed a balloon-borne cosmic ray detector. After nearly a year of research and testing, the payload was successfully launched in March. (Photo Credit: J. Martin Harris Photography)

Two For the Showcase the central marrow canal of a bone across a fracture site. The device gives structural support and maintains proper alignment while the bone heals, allowing patients to use their extremity much sooner. It also contains timed-release antibiotics to fight infection and promote healing. The device is made of tantalum, a porous metal, which allows new, healthy tissue to grow while keeping the same structural support that a titanium rod would provide for a healing bone.

(L-R) Assistant Professor Davide Piovesan, Ph.D. and students Kristin Bates, Jordan Felice, William Hendrix and Taylor Mahle grand-prize winners at the Erie Collegiate Innovation Showcase in April.

At this time of year, it’s not uncommon to encounter speeches reminding graduating seniors that they will be the innovators of the future. Some students, though, already are the innovators of today.

Two teams of Gannon University students took up that challenge and walked away with two of the top prizes, and seven total prizes, in the second annual Erie Collegiate Innovation Showcase in late April.

The grand-prize winning team presented the Bio-Conduit, a concept for an orthopedic implant designed to be inserted into 2

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july 2015

The second-prize team submitted a proposal for a product they called the Easy Tent, a travel tent that, instead of using fiberglass poles, uses a technology the team called SK-2. This new material allows the tent to be more quickly erected with ease and greater efficiency because the tent poles stay inside the tent and can be rolled when packing the tent in a bag, case or backpack.

The Bio-Conduit team, which won two awards totaling $3,000, included Kristin Bates, Jordan Felice, William Hendrix and Taylor Mahle. Their faculty advisor was Davide Piovesan, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering.

The Easy Tent team was comprised of Denys Fedorchenko, Eyad Ghazzawi and Mollie Sebald, and was advised by Kurt Hersch, instructor in entrepreneurship. Their $1,500 second-prize was one of five won, totaling $4,800.

community

strategic goals Silence Speaks

That sentiment was echoed by Jodi Giacomelli ’93, Ph.D., associate director of student counseling services and adviser to Active Minds.

Gannon University was one of 12 universities in the nation on the 2015 tour of Active Minds’ Send Silence Packing display to raise suicide awareness.

Each year 1,100 college students die by suicide in the U.S. It’s a grim statistic that was made heartbreakingly evident on April 14 when Gannon University’s Active Minds chapter hosted “Send Silence Packing,” an event dedicated to promoting suicide awareness.

On that somber day, nearly 50 student volunteers carefully placed 1,100 backpacks on Friendship Green and A.J.’s Way, each one representing a college student who had taken his or her own life.

Many of the backpacks were accompanied with pictures, stories and testimonials that brought the reality of this issue to life. As

the day wore on, members of the Gannon University and Erie communities silently filed through the display, many of them wiping tears from their eyes.

One was Julia Williams, a senior physician assistant major from Zelienople, Pennsylvania, who, as secretary of Gannon’s Active Minds chapter, brought the event to Erie for the first time.

“We were setting up at 7 a.m. and already there were tears,” she said. “I’ve advised events for years, but the feeling around that day was qualitatively different from any event I had ever done. Students and people were stopping and asking questions. So many people said, ‘I had a friend in high school who died by suicide,’ or ‘My roommate’s sister took her own life.’”

Gannon’s Active Minds chapter donated a backpack that will now be part of the traveling exhibit, which Williams hopes will return to campus someday.

“The intensity of the reaction was more than I could have imagined,” she said. “I feel like we got so caught up in organizing, that I forgot how overwhelming it could be.”

With Honors Beethoven’s “Choral Fantasy” is music of triumph and transcendence, which are also fitting adjectives to describe pianist and educator Martha Summa Chadwick’s weeklong residency on Gannon’s campus and in the community.

Summa came to perform with the Erie Chamber Orchestra at the final recital in a series named for beloved Gannon figure Joe Luckey, but she did a good deal more.

In addition to her active career as a soloist and chamber player, Summa is also the founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization Music Therapy Gateway In Communications, Inc., in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which advocates for music as a treatment modality for persons with disabilities.

At Gannon, Summa delivered a lecture entitled “Biomedical Music Techniques and the Brain” for about 80 rapt listeners,

but the most eloquent demonstration of these techniques came at Erie’s Barber National Institute.

Summa used metronomes to create a rhythm whereby children who had difficulty walking could successfully organize their movements. “Until our visits, they never had music there,” said Steve Weiser, the orchestra’s executive director. “It showed the people at the Institute the potential in music therapy.” #

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worldview

strategic goals

The World is Your Canvas

The Hammermill Center was host to more than 500 Gannon and Erie community members for the 2015 International Night event.

A palette of orange, blue, yellow, red and green flags proudly lined the interior of the Hammermill Center as wafts of delectable aromas danced around the noses of the sold-out crowd. Families and friends were adorned in the traditional dress of their native countries, and a portrait of globalization was drawn at the annual International Night in March.

Hosted by Global Unity at Gannon University (GU²) and the International Student Office (ISO), International Night encapsulated its theme of “The World is Your Canvas.” Thirty countries were represented at an evening of international food, culture and performances, including Brazil, which was newly represented by a handful of learning abroad students attending Gannon for the semester.

“This event has been happening at Gannon for over 25 years,” said Rose McKain, ISO director. “I don’t think there is a better way to celebrate the deeply rooted global diversity that is such a rich part of the University’s tradition.”

The event has grown significantly throughout its existence. This year, the event sold out through a new online ticket sales system, before the doors opened. More than 500 Gannon and Erie community members joined together to celebrate their cultures and diversity.

For senior Sunu Alexander, president of GU², the success of the event was bittersweet. “I’m going to miss being a part of the planning and being a part of International Night,” she said. “If I didn’t hold this position, I wouldn’t have seen myself confidently

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walking up to people, talking to them about their culture and their religious views. I became culturally aware and more of a leader.”

With a unique point of view on culture from being raised in an Indian household, Alexander values her culture and is interested in other cultures because of it. “My parents are immigrants from India, and so is the rest of my family. The way my parents raised me and my brother was in the American culture, but keeping our Indian culture too–seeing Indian movies and speaking our native language.”

Alexander is continuing her education at Ross University’s School of Medicine in the Caribbean, a recent partnership formed by Gannon, where she hopes to adopt her love of experiencing new cultures into her daily medical practice.

“The confidence I gained by being a part of Global Unity and International Night is what’s going to help me be a successful doctor, to communicate to so many different people so I can create a safe zone and patients will feel like they can speak to me.

It connects people better,” she said. “I don’t want to be a ‘touchand-go’ doctor; I want to be a part of their lives.”

From her experience with the rich, international culture at Gannon, Sunu Alexander is painting her canvas with her own distinct worldview.

newsnotes

growth

An Innovative New Academic Program Turn on your television these days and you’re likely to encounter a forensic scientist.

It’s become a glamour occupation for which the demand is exploding, and Gannon University has responded by adding a new Bachelor of Science degree program in the discipline to begin in Fall 2016.

The new program in the University’s Morosky

College of Health Professions and Sciences utilizes Gannon’s

existing curricular strengths and faculty expertise in criminal justice, biology and chemistry to offer a comprehensive training in the forensic sciences.

“To our knowledge, Gannon University is the only university in the region to have this equipment,” said Steven Mauro Ph.D., dean of the Morosky College of Health Professions and Sciences. “Our hope is to obtain the accreditation needed to perform analyses for law enforcement agencies, many of whom have a great backlog of evidence awaiting processing.”

“To our knowledge, Gannon University is the only university in the region to have this equipment.”

A new piece of analytical technology will arrive in July specifically for the program.

The MiSeq FGx Forensic Genomics System is the first fully validated forensic, next-generation sequencing system. It can perform simultaneous analysis of a broader range of genetic markers in a single workflow, at a level unprecedented to what previous technology has allowed. This supports the reliable analysis of both routine and challenging forensic DNA samples.

“Our goal is to build majors in the sciences at Gannon by offering a program that continues the long legacy of producing critically thinking experts who are able to enter the workforce in their field of study,” Mauro said.

Third Technology Business Accelerator Winner Announced Code Kit PRO’s Pedi-PRO platform resuscitation organizer became the winner of Gannon’s third Technology Business Accelerator session.

Tom Tillman, the company’s chief operating officer, and Paul Malaspina, M.D., the inventor and developer of the Pedi-PRO, co-presented their business pitch with John Maloney ’85, the company’s vice president of sales. The team presented to a panel of five judges before being announced as the winners. The Code Kit PRO representatives went home with a $10,000 check, legal assistance from MacDonald Illig Jones & Britton LLP, along with six months of residency, coaching and strategic mentoring from the Erie Technology Incubator (ETI).

Provost Carolynn Masters, Ph.D., RN; Small Business Development Center Director Maggie Horne; Erie Technology Incubator Executive Director Jeff Parnell; and Dean of the College of Engineering and Business W.L. Scheller, II, Ph.D. presented Tom Tillman, chief operating officer of Code Kit PRO, with the $10,000 award in the Technology Business Accelerator program.

Jeff Parnell, executive director of ETI, said, “The judges were not only excited about the Pedi-PRO’s market potential, but also with their team’s ability to execute a very structured sales strategy.

Entrepreneurship is hard work, but the enthusiasm of this group makes it clear that a number of high-potential ideas are being conceived and developed right here in Northwest Pennsylvania.”

Gannon’s Technology Business Accelerator program integrates resources from the College of Engineering and Business, Small Business Development Center and ETI. It was created to give entrepreneurs an opportunity to test a new concept or line of business through the support of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and 5 # POSSIBILITIES Economic Development’s Discovered in PA, Developed in PA (D2PA) program.

legacy

newsnotes

For the Record

A record 906 degrees were awarded at the May 2015 Commencement ceremony at a near-capacity, 9,000-seat Erie Insurance Arena.

Only one word accurately captures the feeling of the University’s May Commencement celebration: Impressive.

By the numbers, it was a record-breaker with 906 degrees awarded, including 45 students earning doctoral degrees, 353 earning master’s degrees, 483 earning bachelor’s degrees and 25 earning associate’s degrees.

Students from 14 nations crossed the stage at the near-capacity Erie Insurance Arena.

Including himself among the Class of 2015 after having received a Doctor of Humane Letters degree, honoris causa, the Rev. Thomas M. Rosica, C.S.B., founder and CEO of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation in Canada, implored the students to strive for excellence in all their endeavors.

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“Fellow classmates, today as you graduate from Gannon, you are not becoming part of that massive globalization of indifference that is out there. You are entering into a globalization of compassion and mercy, of goodness and charity, of encounter and friendship with human beings, especially those who have much less than you do.”

It was a message that rang out with the fervency of Pope Francis, whom Fr. Rosica serves as English language assistant to the Holy See Press Office in Vatican City.

Fittingly, Fr. Rosica’s final words to his fellow members of the record-breaking Class of 2015 were a prayer: “May you employ your power for peace, your experience and wisdom to reconcile, your compassion to heal, your hope to destroy despair, your very weakness to give strength.

Remember your most precious possession is yourself.

Give it away lavishly.

And in doing so you will be blessed with Sanitas, Scientia and Sanctitas: Health, Knowledge and Holiness, all the days of your life.”

newsnotes

faith&service

Bringing Light to the Periphery

The Rev. Timothy Kesicki, S.J., president of the Jesuit Conference and brother of Gannon’s Associate Vice President of Mission and Ministry, the Rev. Michael Kesicki ’83, delivered this year’s annual Thomas J. and Mary H. Loftus Lecture on Catholic Thought and Action.

“A Pope who himself has lived at the periphery places everything in God’s hands. So, what then does that mean for us here and now?” This question posed by the Rev. Timothy Kesicki, S.J., president of Jesuit Conference and this year’s speaker at the annual Thomas J. and Mary H. Loftus Lecture on Catholic Thought and Action, presented the focus of his lecture entitled, “Pope Francis’ Theology of the Periphery.”

Students, faculty, staff and community members gathered in the Yehl Alumni Room to more deeply understand Pope Francis’ vision, particularly his attention to the periphery and what it means to us and to the world.

“Each Christian, and every Christian community, must discern the path that the Lord points out; but all of us are

asked to obey His call to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the peripheries in need of the light of the Gospel,” said Fr. Kesicki.

(left to right) The Rev. Timothy Kesicki, S.J.; the Most Rev. Donald W. Trautman, S.T.D., S.S.L., bishop emeritus of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie; Mary and Thomas Loftus ’56; the Most Reverend Lawrence T. Persico, J.C.L., bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie.

“If there’s a concern that any of us have for the new generation coming into the world, it’s that we are often drawn to the

peripheries. We are drawn to working with the poor. We are drawn to service.

We are drawn to different cultures; and sometimes, frighteningly, we leave our past. We leave our center. We leave our faith; and what are left with?” he questioned.

Fr. Kesicki went on to say, “Francis wants us to go beyond ourselves. He wants us to break free from our comfort zones, but he wants in our encountering of those on the periphery–the poor, the new culture– to come back to the faith, to come back to the learning, to come back to the home that has always been the center of our faith, the center of our identity.”

“The Holy Father gives us the vision.

We have an obligation to understand the vision, but it’s ours to implement,” he said. “We have to be disciples of his.”

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athletics

newsnotes

Gannon sent three wrestlers to the NCAA Division II National Championships in St. Louis, Missouri.

John T. Reilly coached his Gannon Golden Knights to the PSAC men’s basketball championship.

The women’s softball (shown) and basketball teams helped to push the total amount collected for the Erie chapter of Making Strides Against Breast Cancer and for Linked

by Pink beyond $100,000.

The men’s golf program qualified for its third consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament.

Thriller The Hammermill Center has been host to a number of thrilling games, but few had the tension or the consequence of the men’s basketball PSAC Championship-winning defeat of eventual NCAA Division II National Champion runner-up Indiana University of Pa. Girbran Smith’s 3-pointer with two seconds left electrified a state-wide audience on the PCN Network and secured the Knights’ second Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship since joining the league in 2008-09.

Gannon’s wrestling program saw postseason action, sending three student-athletes to the NCAA Division II National Championships in St. Louis, Missouri: redshirt senior Matt Turek, who came into the tournament ranked fifth nationally at 125 pounds; redshirt senior Zack Zelcs (174 pounds) and sophomore Nick Budd (heavyweight). The Golden Knights qualified three wrestlers for the first time since 2012.

The Gannon men’s golf program qualified for its third consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament, the program’s longest streak since making five straight appearances from 1983 to 1987. Freshman Matt Barto finished 70th in a field of 108 golfers at the NCAA Division II National Championships. A PSAC champion as a freshman, Barto qualified for the national tournament by overcoming a five-stroke deficit and jumping 11 golfers during the final round of the NCAA Division II Atlantic/ East Regional.

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Lady Knights softball compiled a 29-16 overall record and 19-7 in the PSAC. The team made its first appearance at the NCAA Division II national tournament since 2007 and the first trip as a PSAC member.

With 12 of its 16 PSAC athletics programs advancing to the postseason, the Gannon athletics department finished eighth out of 18 schools in the final PSAC Dixon Trophy standings.

The Golden Knights finished first among the Erie County schools for the first time since joining the conference in 2008-09.

The Dixon Trophy is awarded annually to the league’s most successful institution based on league playoffs and/or regular-season finishes.

The competitive cheer team returned to the National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) Collegiate National Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida in April. The team, which accepted its first male recruits for the 2015-16 season, returns 21 of 24 student-athletes from the 2014-15 team.

NETTIE BLAKE

CAREER STATS Games played: 126 Rebounds/game: 8.2

Double-doubles: 31 Blocked shots: 88

Points: 1,536 Field goal percentage: 50.9%

An Unforgettable Career Growing up in the shadow of the New York skyline in Jersey City, New Jersey, Nettie Blake ’15 is not easily impressed. And, truth be told, when she arrived in Erie to attend Gannon University in 2010, she experienced a bit of culture shock.

“Everything where I’m from is faster,” she said. “I still joke about how Erie is slower.”

What she doesn’t joke about is the big-time atmosphere in Gannon’s Hammermill Center. “I don’t know too many female Division II athletes who get to play on such a big stage every night.”

Blake certainly rose to the occasion as a landmark in the skyline of some of the most unforgettable of Lady Knights basketball teams, and as Gannon’s female Athlete of the Year.

Enumerating her individual achievements could fill another issue of the Magazine. Still, a few highlights stand out in an exceptional career, the likes of which Lady Knights’ fans may not see for quite some time.

The 6-foot-1 center was a three-time All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) selection, including back-to-back first-team honors as a junior and senior. She was twice an allregion selection and was the Most Valuable Player at the 2013 NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional, from which the Lady Knights advanced to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight.

Hers was a career for the record books. Blake leaves Gannon as the program’s third all-time rebounder (1,029), sixth in scoring, seventh in field goals (582), ninth in blocked shots and 10th in field goal percentage. Blake’s 311 rebounds this season equaled the third-highest single-season total in school history.

Those are unforgettable numbers; but as the newly-minted criminal justice graduate moves on to pursue either a professional career or to law school, she will remember less-quantifiable aspects of her time at Gannon.

“When you get here, you have no idea what’s going on, but so many people embrace you and take you under their wings,” she said. “Fans ask, ‘Have you eaten today?’ People bring cookies to the game or randomly come in during the middle of your workout and ask you how your day is going. It’s a family.”

“Gannon University spoils you as an athlete. You’re loved in the ‘Mill and hated everywhere else, but unless you play here, you have no idea how special it is.”

Nettie Blake should know. She was pretty special, too.

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ADAM BLAZEK

CAREER STATS Steals: 243 Assists: 373

3-Pt. FGs Made: 190 Minutes/game (2014-15): 37:43

Points: 1,550 All-PSAC Selections: 3

Something to Prove Since Adam Blazek ’15 was a journalism communications major, we invited him to write the lead sentence for his own profile.

leader, Blazek ranks fourth all-time at Gannon in 3-pointers, seventh in assists and seventh in points.

“I don’t see myself as other people do. I was hungrier, and the more people told me, the more I felt I had to prove. My story is a battle for success.”

After playing his final game for the Knights in the NCAA Division II basketball Tournament, Blazek still had something to prove, recording a near-double-double at the 2015 Reese’s Division II College All-Star Game in Evansville, Indiana.

Ignore the pugnacity implied in that statement; Blazek, who graduated in May, is soft-spoken, funny and by his own admission, an introvert. He is also as competitive a young man as you will ever encounter.

Yet for all his success on and off the court (he recorded a 4.0 GPA in the Fall 2014 Semester), Blazek insisted that nothing had come easy for him.

He had to be. “When you have three older brothers and a younger brother, you’re always trying to outdo somebody, prove yourself and find your niche,” he said.

He received no scholarship offers coming out of Erie’s Cathedral Preparatory School. He came to Gannon as a walk-on player, and received an emphatic lesson in a summer preseason game.

Blazek’s niche turned out to be a lofty one, indeed.

“I was awful. I thought, ‘What did I get myself into?’ But I worked on my game a lot and figured it out. I was big into goalsetting, and I put a piece of paper above my bed in North Hall that said Freshman of the Year.”

The three-time All-American was named to the Division II Bulletin honorable-mention team the last two seasons and the NABC first team as a junior. He earned All-PSAC honors three times in his career, including back-to-back first-team selections.

His resume also includes an All-ECAC second-team honor.

The four-year starter was named PSAC Western Division Player of the Year as a junior and PSAC Western Division Freshman of the Year in 2012. In addition to being Gannon’s all-time steals

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That was quite a goal for a walk-on, but Blazek achieved it, and was one of the two male Athletes of the Year at Gannon. Now his goal is to play professional basketball. He has several tryouts this summer.

Don’t bet against him.

MATT TUREK

CAREER STATS

Weight: 125 NCAA Division II National Championship appearances: 3

Career victories: 98 Rank: 6th

Career winning percentage: 69% Rank: 11th

Never Satisfied Matt Turek ’15 came to Gannon to wrestle, made his mark on the mat and fell in love with Erie.

Turek, who concluded his career with an NCAA Division II National Championship appearance in March, holds sixth place on the all-time victories list at Gannon with 98. His career winning percentage of .690 (98-44) ranks 11th all-time.

It’s an enviable career. Yet Turek is never satisfied. It’s a quality that propelled him in his academic and athletic endeavors during his five years at Gannon.

Redshirted his freshman year, Turek had to compete at open tournaments as an unaffiliated wrestler. “I did pretty well,” he said with the kind of humility that is a hallmark of his Hall-ofFame coach Don Henry’s style.

During his first year wrestling for Gannon at 125 pounds, he finished fifth at the regional tournament, but only the top four finishers advanced. “It was heartbreaking, but it showed me that I had to put in more time, work and effort,” Turek said.

It paid off as he finished second the following year and eighth at Nationals. His junior year might have been his best.

Turek finished second at the regional tournament and fourth at nationals. There he beat the top-ranked wrestler by four points and lost to the eventual national champion.

He came into his final year ranked second in Division II at 125 pounds, but Turek broke his hand in the final match of the season’s first tournament. He recovered to have a dominating duals season, losing only his last match of the year before advancing to nationals.

Turek’s wrestling career at Gannon hasn’t ended. The accounting graduate will be lacing up wingtips at AXA Advisors, and he will also serve as a volunteer coach with the Golden Knights.

Although Turek doesn’t have to make weight anymore, he won’t stop training. “I’m not going to work out three times a day,” he said, “but I think I’ll start training for triathlons. Some of my teammates did that and they had a lot of fun.”

“I always had this image as a guy with a chip on his shoulder, but when I first started, I didn’t have anything to back that up.

Our coaches pushed us to get better. That’s just what they do at Gannon.”

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At the Corner of Ninth and State Streets,

Where Business and Ingenuity Meet When the landmark building at 900 State St., in the heart of Erie’s central business district, was clad in sleek mirrorfinish glass, it seemed to promise a new era of prosperity and innovation for the Erie region.

In March, that promise was fulfilled with the opening of the Center for Business Ingenuity (CBI) - but not before a lot of questions were answered, most of which started with the words, “What if?”

What if, under one roof, we located the Dahlkemper School of Business with the Erie Technology Incubator and the Small Business Development Center? What if students could work side-by-side with entrepreneurs, consultants and business faculty every day? What kind of opportunities might they create? How might the community benefit?”

The “what-if” questions pointed to a large synergistic effect of having the three business-related entities operating together, but where?

Enter Chautauqua County, N.Y. businessman, William C. Schettine, who made the gift of the 900 State St. building.

About a year of construction and renovations later, the Center for Business Ingenuity, home to ETI, SBDC and the Dahlkemper School of Business, was blessed and dedicated before a packed house of business, civic and religious leaders.

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At the ceremony, President Keith Taylor, Ph.D., reflected on how the idea to colocate these three entities came to be and mused on what the CBI would mean to the campus and Erie community.

“This newest addition to Gannon’s campus is a tribute to the university’s unwavering belief in the power of ingenuity. By opening this presence in Erie’s business district, we are sealing our commitment to the people and economy of this community and of the region at large,” said Taylor.

On that mid-April morning, students, faculty, staff, alumni, Board of Trustees members, ETI tenants, elected officials, community and business partners alike entered the $8.5 million expansion of campus. A buzz of anticipation filled conversations around the room, accompanied by musical undertones being performed by members of the Erie Chamber Orchestra as speakers and readers took their place to begin the ceremony.

the needs of the human family,’” said the bishop. “And so we gather today to bless a facility dedicated to harnessing creativity and innovation - both gifts of God - so that we may improve our world and better our community.”

Holy water and blessings were spread throughout the brick and mortar of the facility as the Erie Chamber Orchestra quartet performed “Now Thank We All Our God.” It was truly a moment of complete thankfulness for the entire Gannon community. As the ribbon was cut and the audience applauded, the previous buzz of anticipation quickly shifted to excitement as tours of the newly dedicated space–and the anticipation of future “what-ifs”–began.

Dean of the College of Engineering and Business, W.L. Scheller, II, Ph.D. opened the event. “Today we gather in a spirit of thankfulness as we seek God’s blessings upon this building,” he said. “We are thankful to God that our community and commonwealth are supportive of Gannon University’s efforts to reinvigorate spaces in the downtown area. We are thankful to God for our faculty, students and staff who together make the Center for Business Ingenuity what it is and what it will become.”

The Most Rev. Lawrence T. Persico J.C.L., bishop of the Diocese of Erie, brought the audience together with a prayer and scripture reading before also blessing the new innovative learning environment.

“The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World reminds us that, ‘Progress in the means of production and in the exchange of goods and services makes the business economy an effective means of more perfectly providing for

The blessing and dedication ceremony of the Center for Business Ingenuity took place on April 17 and was filled to near capacity by Gannon and Erie community members. #

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Tour the Center for Business Ingenuity 1

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Designed to resemble a modern corporate headquarters, the Center for Business Ingenuity not only co-locates Erie Technology Incubator (ETI), Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the Dahlkemper School of Business, but also intentionally integrates these entities throughout the four-level facility with shared meeting and lounge areas.

In the lower level of the building you will find several classrooms with easyto-configure chairs and tables, along with dry-erase walls for a unique classroom experience. Also on this level is a café and seating area that will open at the start of the Fall 2015 semester.

The main offices of ETI and SBDC are located on the first floor to be easily accessed by community members and patrons. The lobby area also includes a “tradeshow” or exhibition space for future events.

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Overlooking the main floor is a large gold and silver cross designed by nationally known artist Don Drumm to be the centerpiece of the lobby.

Drumm has created sculptures for Bowling Green State University and Kent State University, among others.

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The heart of the building, and the place that best illustrates the connectivity and integration behind the entire CBI concept, is the Business Information Systems Laboratory (BISL) located on the second floor.

Here, six 70-inch display panels reside, two of which are interactive.

The BISL is where undergraduate and graduate students will study data analysis and integration, and take part in business simulations both domestic and international.

The BISL is equipped with SAP® software applications available through Gannon’s participation in the SAP University Alliances program. Beginning this fall, student groups will use this software in simulations that will include students

at partnering universities in Poland and Germany. With this simulation technology, students will learn how the functions of companies integrate, including marketing, supply chain and finance, and will also practice making decisions in a live market to analyze implementation and outcomes.

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In the midst of the academic spaces on the second and third levels— faculty offices, lounge areas and shared conference rooms—are the offices of 14 local businesses and company occupancy spaces for resident ETI clients.

“We now have the opportunity to provide a broad range of services to entrepreneurs and existing businesses by drawing on the talents within the Dahlkemper School of Business, while providing faculty and students the opportunity to develop their own businesses,” said W.L. Scheller, II, Ph.D., dean of the College of Engineering and Business.

Fostering Ingenuity Through Integration

The main floor of the Center for Business Ingenuity is adorned with an almost floor-to-ceiling mirrored wall that reaches a stretch of skylights and is adjacent to a glass elevator, providing a breathtaking view of the new facility.

The Erie Technology Incubator (ETI) and Gannon’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) play a significant role in what makes the Center for Business Ingenuity a driver for economic progress and advancement in the region. Combined with the budding entrepreneurs and faculty expertise within the Dahlkemper School of Business, the new facility truly is a hub for innovation on campus and in the community.

The Center for Business Ingenuity promotes a synergistic culture as businesses, faculty and students mix and share ideas in an ecosystem where faculty- and student-led businesses can flourish and expand. Each entity plays an important role in enhancing business and the economy in the area.

Faculty experts with a wealth of experience in the field engage those around them in research and servicelearning in economics, finance, sports management, marketing and more, while also leading various business clubs and organizations such as Alpha

Kappa Psi, the business fraternity, and the Entrepreneurship Club. Both ETI and SBDC then help students, faculty and Erie business owners by providing training, mentoring, classes and intellectual capital to advance new and existing companies.

An example of this integrated community resource is seen through the Integrated Business Transformation Project, through which Gannon administers the Technology Business Accelerator with grant support from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. This eightweek program for entrepreneurs with technology-enabled businesses combines market research by faculty and students with the mentoring and leadership of ETI and SBDC. Through the Accelerator, 40

entrepreneurial companies have received guidance to take their businesses to the next level.

“The decision to host the SBDC almost 35 years ago is a reflection of the University’s long-standing commitment to its community,” said SBDC Director Maggie Horne. “This commitment to the SBDC and the small business community is solidified with the inclusion of the SBDC in the Center for Business Ingenuity.

We look forward to working with the Dahlkemper School of Business to match small businesses with students who offer consulting and research skills and who can work as interns.”

W.L. Scheller, II, Ph.D., dean, College of Engineering and Business; Maggie Horne, director, Gannon’s Small Business Development Center; and Jeff Parnell, executive director, Erie Technology Incubator, bring nearly a century of combined experience to the Center for Business Ingenuity. #

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celebrate gannon:

scholars, success and spirit Gannon University undergraduate and graduate students showcased their scholarly and creative work during the University’s Celebrate Gannon event.

The annual event was the culmination of a year’s worth of scholarship and research, and a day for the University to celebrate students’ hard work, excellence and accomplishments. At Celebrate Gannon, approximately 300 students completed platform or poster presentations to demonstrate their work in four categories: undergraduate research and graduate research, undergraduate scholarship, creativity and engagement.

The creativity category included performance, visual arts and creative writing. Engagement included experiential projects, demonstrating learning outside the classroom, including service, volunteerism and mission programs.

The event included representation from all areas across campus, including the history, biology and electrical engineering programs, among others. Topics of presentations ranged from “Tracking Invasive Species Using Environmental DNA (eDNA)” to “Cryptography, Digital Cash and the Future of the World Economy.”

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STUDENTS HONORED FOR THEIR WORK WERE: Creativity Visual: Kyle Martin, “Transition” Performance: Cassie Bielecki, “Cry Me a River” Graduate Research Platform Presentation, first place: Liz Miller, “The Effect of Carbon Composite Dynamic Response Ankle Foot Orthothics On Collegiate Athlete Spring Performance” Platform Presentation, second place: Brianna Kingston, Hannah Carlson, Mallory Deuink, Erika Fain and Breanna Currie, “Benefits of Visual Skills Resulting from the Implementation of the Sanet Visual Integrator with Traditional Treatment Methods vs. Stand Alone Conventional Treatment Methods.”

Poster Presentation (tie): Elizabeth Gormont, Jamie Markwell, Nicole Pack and Brittany Potensky, “What Qualities and Characteristics are Specific to Adolescent Females Who SelfSelect into an After-School Fitness and Nutrition Intervention?”

Jacob Katz “Residential Life Challenge”

Undergraduate Research Platform Presentation, first place: Haley Hallowell, “Factors affecting the sex-determination mechanism of the soil bacteria Lysinibacillus xylanilyticus on the homosporous fern Ceratopteris richardii” Poster Presentation (tie): Miranda Thompson, “The Role of SCAMP3 in trans-Golgi Network (TGN) to Lysosomal Trafficking” Alexander MacFarlane, Robert Ramirez, “Examination of the role of the transGolgi Network in cell survival during acute cellular stress”

Undergraduate Scholarship Platform Presentation: Alyssa Wowk-Kennedy, “Disability Humor: Sustaining or Stigmatizing” Poster Presentation: Baker Jabir, “A Survey of Undergraduate Anatomy Education in Pennsylvania” Engagement Platform Presentation: Meredith Gursky, “Enacting Social Change: My Journey with the 7 C’s” Poster Presentation: Cory Lee Pius, “Improving Commuter Engagement”

Jason N. Brandl, Stephen E. Hart, “The Relationship Between Spatial Memory and Cholinergic Signaling in the Rat Striatum” L. Moukoro, B. Lawrence, C. Wasser, D. Winge, R. Mong, L. Saunders, D. Starks, K. Babiarz, J. Hu, “Gannon University’s Cosmic-Ray Calorimeter (GU-CRC) Project” WERG’s Bianca Morris participated in Celebrate Gannon, and had lots to celebrate as the station was the recipient of seven Annual Intercollegiate Broadcasting System awards, including Best College Station at a university with an enrollment of fewer than 10,000 students.

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inspire the possibilities 68

A LASTING CONNECTION

In his acceptance speech upon receiving the 2014 Bishop Persico “Veritas in Caritate” Award, Distinguished Professor of Biology David Gustafson ’68 said, “If you want to know the truth about Gannon University, talk to students.”

It was a characteristically humble statement by this beloved, longtime member of the Gannon community, but it was also a sincere reflection of the student-centered approach that has been a hallmark of Gustafson’s connection of over 50 years to the University.

To carry that approach into the future, Gustafson made a $1 million donation that will be used to establish the David J. Gustafson Biology Scholarship Endowment Fund, the David J. Gustafson Undergraduate Biology Student Research Endowment Fund and the Carolyn A. Gustafson Endowed Scholarship in Nursing.

Gustafson taught biology at Villa Maria and in 1989 began his career teaching microbiology, medical microbiology, principles of ecology and Yellowstone biology at Gannon University. In 1999, he was given the Distinguished Faculty Award.

“Coming to Gannon University as a result of the merger was, in effect, coming home,” he said.

Gustafson and his family have a long and deep connection to the University. His late sister, Carolyn ’70VMC, was a recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award.

When he arrived at Gannon as a professor and also the director of the undergraduate pre-physical therapy, pre-pharmacy and sport and exercise science departments, the biology faculty numbered seven. Today, it is three times that, a fact in which Gustafson takes great pride. “The ability to build a department is a large part of my life,” he said.

That connection deepened when Gustafson began his teaching career at Villa Maria College in 1971.

“My starting salary was $4,100. I got a $100 signing bonus, went out and bought a Chevy Vega and I was the king of State Street,” he recalled with a laugh. “What a wonderful academic experience I had at Villa Maria College!”

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So is the ability to build a legacy. Jack Sims, vice president for university advancement, said, “This generous gift represents the largest such donation made by a faculty-staff member in the history of the University.”

Longtime Gannon biology professor David Gustafson ’68, whose $1 million gift to the University will establish the David J. Gustafson Biology Scholarship Endowment Fund, the David J. Gustafson Undergraduate Biology Student Research Endowment Fund and the Carolyn A. Gustafson Endowed Scholarship in Nursing.

For his part, Gustafson says the decision was easy. “I’m fortunate enough to have the kind of resources to give back to the university that has given so much to our lives.”

To illustrate his point, Gustafson relayed a story from his student days.

“When I was a sophomore at Gannon, I was involved in a very bad automobile accident as a passenger in a car driven by a fraternity brother. It took almost two years to recover. I couldn’t function and go to classes, but during that time, Gannon took care of my mom and dad. So the decision to make this gift was growing; it was not one of my five-minute decisions, and it is a family connection.”

A graduate of both St. Joseph’s and Cathedral Preparatory Schools in Erie, Gustafson said, “I probably could have gone anywhere after Prep, but I chose Gannon because of the Catholic nature of this community.”

“Gannon University had this wonderful reputation of being a family and I discovered that connection with my professors,” Gustafson said. “I’ll never forget what they did for me and for my family.”

“I told Dr. Taylor that one of the things I’d like to do is to write about the history of Gannon, because I’ve worked with a lot of giants,” Gustafson said. “When you know what these people did outside of the classroom, that’s what makes you want to give back to Gannon. Call me one of those romantic Knights.”

“Gannon University had this wonderful reputation of being a family and I discovered that connection with my professors,” Gustafson said. “I’ll never forget what they did for me and for my family.”

Thanks to his generosity, generations of Gannon families, current and future, will never forget David Gustafson.

His decision was ratified by the receipt of the “Veritas in Caritate” Award for exemplifying faith, hope and love, both inside and out of the Gannon community. #

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believe in the possibilities 101

EDUCATING THROUGH OUTREACH Growing service. Growing literacy. Growing readers. Throughout her experience at Gannon, Rosa Fatica has also seen herself growing in her dedication to service within the Erie community to enhance existing educational initiatives and implement new ones.

The early childhood and special education major spent a large portion of her junior year in various elementary schools in the Erie area for leadership courses and enrichment programs. Two of the most impactful service programs however, were forming the Growing Readers and Bundles from the Heart initiatives with help from fellow Phi Zeta members, Gannon’s chapter of Kappa Delta Pi, an international education honorary society.

“Because of my professors and the community work that Gannon does, I’m given the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children,” she said.

Fatica also helped create an additional outreach initiative called Bundles From the Heart to support the American Red Cross of Greater Erie County by making and bundling blankets accompanied by books for children of all reading levels. These bundles were then donated to the Red Cross for children of families who are victims of house fires in the Erie area.

“Because of my professors and the community work that Gannon does, I’m given the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children.”

Growing Readers is an outreach program designed to promote early language and literacy to the children of teenage parents by holding workshops at various Erie high schools. The workshops were led by Gannon education students, one of whom was Fatica, who found the experience was not only beneficial for the children and their parents, but also for her own preparation as a future teacher.

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“We wanted to do something comforting to bring families together during that time,” said Fatica. The students received a $1,000 grant from Gannon’s Activities Programming Board for the project, and

Senior early childhood and special education major Rosa Fatica is actively involved in the community with placements in local elementary schools through Gannon’s education department and the many outreach projects that she is involved in.

invited the University to join them in making the blankets and, in turn, were able to donate 20 bundles to families in need.

“Service is a really big part of Gannon. I feel like what I’m doing is connected to that,” she said. “The service projects that I’ve done this semester allowed me to be more involved with the entire Gannon community.”

Fatica hopes to integrate what she is learning in her Gannon classrooms with what she is learning through service in the Erie community, and incorporate this into her own classroom in the future.

“When I’m a teacher in the classroom I want to implement ways to help the community. I can implement my Catholic

background. A lot of my values and morals are based off my faith, and I can carry that through the service aspect, treating everyone with love, kindness and respect, and accepting all children and parents for who they are,” said Fatica.

“Since coming to Gannon, I know who I am and what I want to do. I would like to be able to help a child realize who they are and what they want to become.”

Rosa Fatica, Jennifer Snopko and Leah Roscoe were key members of the “Bundles from the Heart” team.

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achieve your possibilities 115

INVESTING IN MY DREAMS When Taylor Shaffer ’15 was interviewed for this article, she already had her post-graduation job. That’s not unusual. What is unusual was the date of the interview: January.

By the time you read this Shaffer will be a newly minted accountant sitting in her office at Ernst & Young, an international business consulting firm at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, and preparing to take the exam to become a Certified Public Accountant.

“I got my dream job,” she said.

That dream might have seemed out of reach for the West Sunbury, Pennsylvania native. Her graduating class at Moniteau High School numbered just 125.

For her, Gannon’s urban campus was an attraction. “I never had the experience of living in a city,” she said, but because her older siblings, Tiffany Yoder ’09 and Travis Shaffer ’11 attended the University, Shaffer said, “I was coming up here for many years before I made my decision.”

Once here, she didn’t hesitate to get involved with the richness of campus life.

It culminated in her election as Student Government Association (SGA) president for the 2014-15 Academic Year.

Because the SGA president has a seat on the Gannon University Board of Trustees, Shaffer got a glimpse of organizational governance at the highest level, which is extremely rare for someone of her age.

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“My first Board of Trustees meeting was nerve-wracking,” she admitted. At that meeting, Shaffer was asked to make a presentation, a daunting task. “But I had been doing presentations with SGA, so I knew what to do. How many students present before presidents of companies, CFOs and CEOs? That’s prepared me for my future because I have to make professional, personalized presentations and be prepared to address questions, and it’s fascinating to see what Board members’ experience or knowledge brings to these questions. It’s certainly increased my critical thinking skills.”

Shaffer has been polishing her accounting skills, too, and not just in the classroom.

While still a student balancing the duties of her SGA office and a full course load (21 credits in her final semester), Shaffer held two part-time positions.

The first was with the Erie Community Foundation, where she began after her

Taylor Shaffer ’15 was hired by accounting giant Ernst & Young before her graduation in May.

sophomore year processing payables and working on financial statements and investments. When the foundation’s controller was on maternity leave, Shaffer stepped in to become fully responsible for adjusting entries and bank reconciliations. “I’d been doing them for my entire tenure there, but with the controller out, it was my responsibility. I learned a lot.” She learned so much that she was asked to train an incoming foundation employee.”

learning on my part, but knowing Marcia and working with her helped a lot.”

Given all these commitments, Shaffer’s leisure time is limited, though she makes the most of it.

Then it’s on to the CPA exam, her first post-graduation job and a future in either public accounting or as a CFO. Or maybe her road will lead her back to Gannon.

“They had never had an intern before, and when I got there, I had to use my critical thinking to figure out what I needed to do. It was a lot of learning on my part, but knowing Marcia and working with her helped a lot.”

Shaffer’s other position was at Erie’s St. Peter Cathedral School, where she started last June. Marcia Dall, executive vice president and CFO of Erie Insurance Group, a member of the Gannon Board of Trustees and the St. Peter finance committee, recommended her for the position. “They had never had an intern before, and when I got there, I had to use my critical thinking to figure out what I needed to do. It was a lot of

Her mother recently completed her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree and her father, who retired from his position at the Butler County Prison, just finished his master’s degree work. “They’re older but still learning, and I want to do that too. I’d love to get my doctorate, and I think I’d love teaching.”

Add another goal to the list.

“I relax by reading and cooking. I’m a baker, and sugar cookies are my favorite,” Shaffer said. Exercise is also part of her plan. “My friend and I will run a halfmarathon this summer. Whenever I work out I feel better,” she said. #

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Adjunct Instructor, Psychology

Danielle Clark

facultyfocus From the Horse’s Mouth The Greek word for horse, “alogos,” literally translates as “without reasoning” or “without words.” So using horses to teach communication skills might seem an odd notion.

But that’s just what a new Gannon University psychology course is doing, and with great success.

The course, called Horses for Interpersonal Skills, teaches communication using horses, animals that may be without words, but are attuned to non-verbal cues, such as eye contact, posture, facial expression, gestures, personal space and more.

Gannon University is one of only five universities known to offer such a course according to Danielle Clark, who teaches the course.

Certification through the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship, and taught classes at TREC. “I didn’t consider myself a real equestrienne until I started studying and appreciating the horses’ true nature by working with them from the ground,” Clark said.

An idea for a class was born.

Danielle Clark, creator of the Horses for Interpersonal Skills It was first offered last fall course, with Niño. and was quickly filled. The to treat a wide range of emotional and horses serve as stand-ins for human-tomental illnesses. Hamilton also created human interactions. A lot can be said to an innovative class for medical students a horse without actually saying anything, to expand their use of non-verbal and this is an extremely communication to improve diagnostic useful understanding for skills and bedside manner. psychology students to master.

Though several of Clark’s students had equestrian experience, they told her that “Horses have evolved they had never considered doing anything to become experts in with the horses beyond riding, and were the effective display surprised by what and how much the and interpretation of horses taught them. non-verbal cues and perception of sensory “The biggest change I saw was the information from their students’ level of self-confidence from environment,” said the beginning to the end of the semester.

Clark. “Their nature I was delighted, touched and amazed at is to reflect intentions how well they did,” Clark said. and signals we–often unintentionally– She wouldn’t take credit for the present, providing opportunities to transformation, though. As she states in develop and improve the self-awareness her course description, “The real teachers and emotional intelligence necessary for are the horses.” personal and professional competence.”

“Horses have evolved to become experts in the effective display and interpretation of non-verbal cues and perception of sensory information from their environment.”

Clark had a history of riding for pleasure for the better part of 30 years, taking some time off to raise her children. Her pastime turned into something more when she became a volunteer at Erie’s Therapeutic Riding Equestrian Center (TREC).

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The concept was pioneered by Allan Hamilton, M.D., professor of neurosurgery at the University of Arizona School of Medicine, who uses horses

studentfocus Junior, Software Engineering

Nate Carlin

A New Perspective In today’s ever-changing, technologydriven economy with massive online consumerism, issues with network security have arisen for everyone from the everyday citizen to huge corporations.

For junior software engineering major, Nate Carlin, this new-age challenge is all too intriguing. Carlin was able to put his interest into practice in a network security course at the University last semester, where he studied current events focused on hacking and tested companies’ security to protect them from these types of hackers. “A big focus was on properly implementing what you learned,” said Carlin. “Teachers stressed using this knowledge to help others test for potential hackers, not actual hacking.”

Carlin is currently using this knowledge in an internship with Professional Communications Messaging Service, Inc. in Erie. “I feel like I’m doing my dream job now,” he said.

“Network security is why I got into software engineering. My main focus is protecting other people’s data.

Eventually, I hope to move into larger networking security.”

Junior software engineering student, Nate Carlin utilizes a combination of his passion for cyber security and software development for the creation of multifunctioning drones for GUBotDev, an on-campus robotics organization.

GUBotDev, a robotics-focused student group. Together the group has constructed about nine drones, most of which are built from parts designed

by Gannon mechanical engineering students and made by on-campus 3D printers.

“The group’s goal is to make the drones autonomous so that they can help in emergencies; we are making these for the use of good and to help people.”

With a unique skillset in robotics, Carlin may be a standout candidate to do just that. He is one of more than 30 students in various engineering and science programs involved with

“We have drones that are on the ground, in the air and in the water.

The group’s goal is to make the drones

autonomous so that they can help in emergencies; we are making these for the use of good and to help people,” said Carlin. “Now people are working on radios, servers and some are even equipped with first-person-view video.

My role is bringing network security to the drones.”

Just as he spends his time at his internship reducing threats and enhancing cyber security for various companies, he is also exploring the world of robotics to eliminate human threats as well, alluding to the notion that the true benefits of network security have yet to be tapped.

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India Henderson ’14

alumnifocus A Different Reality India Henderson ’14 was not the usual first-time-inany-college student. She was older than the usual high-school graduate, had owned two businesses and had two children by the time she enrolled at Gannon University. Those children and businesses are what brought her here.

“Neither one of them completely failed,” Henderson said about the businesses, “but I didn’t make the kind of money I could have made,” she said, her voice rich with hard-earned wisdom. “After the second one, I said, Forget it! I need to learn how to run a business, so I’m going to school.”

And she did. That’s when Henderson met Kurt Hersch from the Dahlkemper School of Business. Hersch’s specialty is entrepreneurship, a path that Henderson may not have considered, but one that fit her needs perfectly.

“I’ve had lots of jobs, and some of them I really liked,” she admitted. “Once I heard about the entrepreneurship program, I jumped right in. This was exactly what I needed.”

But it wasn’t all she needed. Having business experience gave Henderson an insider’s understanding of the business concepts she was mastering. Still, there were hurdles. “But I had so much help. I had professors willing to help me. I had my advisor who was willing to help me, tutors who were willing to help and classmates.”

India Henderson, the non-traditional student who turned a talent for entrepreneurship and music into a rewarding career.

It was an opportunity she seized as an adult, to the great satisfaction of LifeThruMusic founder and executive director Corey Cook. “India is knowledgeable, passionate and talented.” He called her, “a standout employee because of her versatility.”

“Once I heard about the entrepreneurship program, I jumped right in. This was It was a perfect fit for the highly exactly what I musical Henderson. “When I got my internship, I was thrilled,” she said. “I’d needed.”

“It meant everything, because being a new mother, I was going to a place where I could actually make a difference,” she said. That place was LifeThruMusic, an innovative organization that teaches music and life skills to Erie children.

been working with kids in church on singing and songwriting, but this gave us a chance to work with the community. LifeThruMusic was the opportunity that I needed as a child.”

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That versatility extends beyond music and into entrepreneurism. “Being in music means doing your own marketing and advertising,” Cook, himself a professional musician, pointed out. “To get the gigs, you have to know who to talk to and how to talk to them, so India’s background in entrepreneurship is vital to being a musician.”

Music is designed to be a transformative experience, something India Henderson knows well. “I remember talking to Professor Hersch, telling him that I was never taught the sort of concepts he was teaching, and he said, ‘Don’t worry, India. People aren’t taught this until they go to college.’ So, it changed my reality,” she said.

“That is what I needed to know. This is what I need to do, and I take what I’ve learned at Gannon, bring it to these kids and change their reality, too.”

alumnotes 1961

ROBERT D. KELLEY a decorated Vietnam War veteran, is the latest addition to Erie International Airport’s Aviation Wall of Fame. Kelley served two tours of duty as an Army aviator in Vietnam and earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for safely landing a helicopter badly damaged by enemy fire in Vietnam’s Tay Ninh province in 1967. He was severely injured by shrapnel while he battled to save the craft. During his second tour of duty in Vietnam, Kelley commanded the 128th Assault Helicopter Company, including 450 officers and troops, 30 helicopters and eight gunships. Kelley also earned the Senior Army Aviator Badge, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Purple Heart and a number of medals and commendations for his service. After he retired from the Army, Kelley worked as a contractor for the CIA and National Reconnaissance Office on the design of optics and target signatures for future aircraft and space platforms.

1969

MICHAEL A. FETZNER, ESQ. received the 2015 Chancellor of the Bar Award from the Erie County Bar Association (ECBA) at its annual Law Day celebration on Friday, April 24, 2015. The award honors the ethics and integrity of attorneys who have been in good standing with the bar association for more than 30 years. Fetzner is an attorney with the Knox McLaughlin Gornall & Sennett law firm.

WILLIAM L. COOPER, III is running for reelection to the Mt. Lebanon school board.

He taught in Pittsburgh public schools for 35 years and at California University of Pennsylvania for 12 years. He has been a member of the school board since 2011.

1966

DENNIS E. AGOSTINI, D.O. was a presenter at the Rowan County Chamber of Commerce’s Power in Partnership breakfast. The topic of discussion was the Novant Health Rowan Medical Center’s new teaching hospital agreement with Campbell University, where Agostini is the regional associate dean and professor of biochemistry and emergency medicine.

1967

RONALD J. VOLPE, PH.D. was honored by Hood College by naming their new athletic center complex in his honor. After 14 years of service, Volpe stepped down as Hood College President on June 30, 2015, marking the end of nearly 50 years in higher education.

1970

JOSEPH P. KELLY and his wife, Nancy, celebrated their golden wedding anniversary on Dec. 12, 2014.

JOSEPH A. VATER, JR., ESQ. was elected president of the Animal Rescue League Shelter & Wildlife Center. The ARL provides temporary shelter, food and medical attention to 13,000 animals annually. At the Wildlife Center, the ARL rehabilitates wild animals native to Pennsylvania that have been harmed or displaced by human encounters. Vater is an attorney at Meyer, Unkovic & Scott in Cranberry Township, Pa. and part of the firm's employment law & employee benefits

births

1965

1971

SALLY (CARLOW) KOHLER ’71M was honored

by Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa. for her selfless contributions within the community. Kohler is a lifelong resident of Erie County and worked for the Erie School District as a classroom teacher and guidance counselor for 30 years. Kohler has actively participated in over 30 civic organizations, proudly making community service a central part of her life. In addition to her loyalty to education, Kohler is also a dedicated advocate for safety. She enthusiastically participates in 13 organizations, humbly remaining a fully engaged community volunteer.

1972

1964

THOMAS M. AIELLO is ending his long career as a Pennsylvania state-certified firefighter instructor, after 46 years of service. Aiello has also been a volunteer firefighter for 63 years, joining the Johnsonburg Fire Department in 1952 as “junior fireman.”

group. He focuses his practice on labor and employee benefits litigation. Prior to his election as president, Vater served as chair of the ARL’s audit & program committees and was treasurer of the board of directors.

GARY L. MILLER and his wife, Barbara, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Miller is the owner of Contemporary Mercedes, Miller ChryslerDodge-Jeep-Mazda-Erie, Roth Cadillac, Gator Chrysler-Fiat-Alfa Romeo of Melbourne, Fla., and Flagler Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep of Flagler Beach, Fla.

1974

MICHAEL ZAK a recently retired mechanical engineer at Occidental Chemical Corporation in Niagara Falls, N.Y., moved to Aiken, S.C. with his wife Leona Baniszewski Zak, CIH, CSP ’75. She retired from the University at Buffalo as an industrial hygienist. They have one grandchild (Katie) and are anxiously awaiting the arrival of their second in September.

a son, Lincoln John Andrews (born on March 27, 2015) to Amy L. Wolff ’99 and her husband, Eric Andrews. a daughter, Rayna Marie (born Aug. 11, 2014) to Ryan Antrilli (Morris) ’03 and Matt Antrilli ’03. She joins older sisters Raegan Lynn (6), Riley Jane (2) and big brother Matthew Dennis (4). a son, Shane Lewis (born March 20, 2015) to Kimberly Anne Shultz Lewis ’01 and her husband, Samuel.

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1980

GARY J. BROZEK is running for a seat on the Norwin School District school board. Brozek is the director of global supply chain for Nordson Corporation.

JEAN (SIMMONS) LAFURIA has completed the requirements and passed the exam to qualify as a nursing home administrator in Pennsylvania. Lafuria is vice president of residential services at Brevillier Village Housing and Health Care.

JAMES L. MARTIN, ESQ. has announced his candidacy for the office of magisterial district judge in Elk County. He began his career as an associate with the law office of Paul J. Quattrone. In 1987, he was appointed to serve as Elk County public defender and has also served as public defender of Cameron County for the past 25 years. He established his private practice in 1995.

Brian Kurtz ’08 addresses the 2015 Founders Day gathering as R. Brian Nichols, vice president, student development and engagement, looks on.

A Message from Gannon University Alumni Association President, Brian M. Kurtz ’08 I recently had the honor of speaking to graduating students and their families at the annual Senior Awards Founders’ Day celebration about the important role of relationships in our daily lives.

At the Founders’ Day celebration, the Alumni Association presented the Inspiration for the Next Generation Award to Elizabeth Cochran, a biology/secondary education graduate, who will be teaching full-time in the fall. We believe that she will be an example to her fellow classmates of the importance of establishing relationships with alumni around the world, and we welcome her and all 906 spring 2015 graduates to our global alumni community.

As former Gannon University and Villa Maria College students, our time was spent cultivating relationships with our peers, professors and the larger community.

Although we are just beginning to experience the joys of summer in our respective homes, it’s already time to make your plans for two fall events with the Alumni Association: GIVE Day 2015 on Sept. 19 in cities around the country and Alumni Homecoming Reunion Weekend set for Oct. 2-4, 2015, on Gannon’s campus.

These two events give us the opportunity to rediscover the relationships we formed at our alma mater.

During Homecoming weekend, the Alumni Association will host the annual Distinguished Alumni Dinner honoring the personal and professional accomplishments of five Gannon University and Villa Maria College alumni. It’s one of my favorite events of the weekend and I hope that you will join us as we celebrate our fellow classmates.

It’s time to see how campus has evolved with innovative projects, places and people, and to rekindle your relationship with Gannon University. Be sure to check your inboxes and mailboxes for more details on each of these events. I can’t wait to celebrate with you in October!

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july 2015

JOSEPH R. MCCABE, III has joined Korn Ferry’s Global Human Resources Center of Expertise based in the firm’s Boston office.

McCabe has previously held senior human resources positions with Fidelity Investments and Coca-Cola Enterprises. Korn Ferry is the preeminent authority on leadership and talent.

1981

JOSEPH G. O’BRIEN has joined Oberg Industries, in Freeport, Pa., as director of Human Resources.

1989

ATTY JO ANN PALCHAK was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL).

Palchak is a white collar, criminal defense attorney in the Tampa, Fla. area.

DANIEL A. ZARECKY has accepted the position of CEO at Peak View Behavioral Health in Colorado Springs. Zarecky has 25 years experience in the residential treatment, corrections and behavioral health fields and has managed behavioral health facilities and served on numerous nonprofit and government boards.

1990

FREDERIC J. AMENDOLA was awarded the National Sales Excellence Award, and the Best of the Best Award for his 2014 sales performance as a realtor with Howard Hanna Real Estate Services in Erie.

LAURIE (DUFFIN) MANCUSO has joined the Quinn Law Firm in Erie as office administrator. In that role, she is responsible for managing the overall operation of the firm, including financial, facilities, human resources, information technology and systems management. Mancuso spent the past 24 years in Baltimore, Md. where she was office administrator for a 45-lawyer firm and branch office administrator for a 130-lawyer firm.

1992

STEPHEN L. CANFIELD, PH.D. received the T.S. McCord Faculty Fellow in Innovation and Techno-Entrepreneurship Award from the Tennessee Tech University’s College of Engineering, where he is a mechanical engineering professor. Canfield is also the founder of Robotic Technologies of Tennessee, a startup company that develops industrial robots for specialized tasks and applications.

He holds the patent on the “Canfield joint,” a design used by NASA and private spacecraft companies.

MICHAEL C. HAYES was honored, along with his North Fayette, Pa. police department,

by Allegheny County Council for earning national awards from the National Rifle Association’s “Refuse To Be A Victim” program. Hayes, who put on four safety seminars last year and teaches other officers in the area about the program, was named the top law enforcement instructor of 2014.

The department was named the top law enforcement agency of 2014.

1993

MICHAEL D. LAZZARA, ESQ. is a new partner with the law firm of Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti, LLP. Lazzara is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group at their Pittsburgh, Pa. office.

1994

KAREN R. RZEPECKI ’92 is one of the recipients of the 2015 Athena PowerLink program’s awards for a free year of services from a panel of business experts. Rzepecki is the owner of ReCap Mason Jars Company in Erie.

ROBERT J. ZONNA ’94M has joined the Department of the Auditor General for the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Zonna is working as an auditor in county audits in the liquid fuels tax section. He will be based out of the Erie office.

1995

SHERYL WRIGHT-BROWN has been hired as the new high school principal at Avella Area School District near Pittsburgh. Wright-Brown has been with the school district for 12 years, most recently as a high school history teacher.

She will begin her new role on July 1, 2015.

1996

SHAWN J. LEAHEY is a probation and parole officer with the Cambria County Adult Probation Office in Ebensburg, Pa.

marriages

KENNETH M. OGOREK ’90M has joined the Evangelium Consulting Group (ECG) in Indianapolis on a part-time basis while retaining his post as an archdiocesan catechetical director. ECG works with Catholic leadership teams in various settings.

More information is available at: http:// evangeliumconsulting.com/consultants/kenogorek

31, 2014.

Megan Lynn Fisher ’08 married Jason Earl Maher on Oct. 11, 2014.

Darcie Renee Hanitz ’09, ’10M married Richard Bittner on Dec. 31, 2014.

Ellen Margaret Krol ’11 married Ryan Joseph Monti on Nov. 8, 2014.

Ian W. Pifer ’10 married Rachael Sova on June 28, 2014.

Amanda L. Shannon ’11 married Andrew M. Milanak, Jr. ’11 on Nov. 1, 2014.

Rebecca Ann Styn ’02M married Robert Michael Mahrt on Dec.

Juliann Marie Zawadzki ’08 married Paul Timothy Worden on Aug. 31, 2014.

1997

CLIFF R. DENNETT has been promoted to executive vice president, senior loan officer with Pinnacle Bank in Morgan Hill, Calif.

MARK A. RAYMAN is a patrol officer with the Little Elm Police Department in Texas. View his blog regarding his career as a “maverick” policeman: https://cheranratnam.wordpress. com/.

1998

JONATHAN A. MILLER has been hired as the head football coach for Trinity High School in Washington, Pa. SUNIL A. SAMUEL ’03M has been promoted to assistant vice president of enrollment management at Hofstra University. He has been with the University for the past 11 years in the office of admissions.

2000

MAJ. BROCK A. BENEDICT, D.O. MAJ. CHAD M. FLICK, MPT ’02M MAJ. ANDREW D. CONTRERAS, PT ’96, ’98M Maj. Brock A. Benedict and Maj. Chad M. Flick were awarded the prestigious “Iron Major” award given to the most promising leaders in the Army Medical Department.

They participated in a weeklong training and development session in Washington, D.C. They were joined by fellow alum Maj. Drew D. Contrereas, who received the “Iron Major” in 2010. While in D.C., they toured the White House and had a photo taken outside the West Wing.

ELAINE A. MARTYN has been appointed vice president of the private donor group for Fidelity Charitable. From Cary, N.C. she will lead a group of relationship managers who assist major donors nationwide in developing strategies to achieve their philanthropic goals.

1999

TRACEY MCCANTS-LEWIS, ESQ. was recently honored by the Duquesne University School of Law as the “Woman of the Year.”

McCants-Lewis works at Duquesne University, where she serves the assistant director of clinical legal education. She supervises a handful of students that take on cases involving different types of discrimination.

She is also an assistant professor at the university.

SCOTT R. JABLONSKI, ESQ. aka SJ, is an American singer-songwriter, performing artist and attorney from South Florida. He is best known for his acoustic music and for being one of the few American performers to successfully transition from an international law career into the music industry. SJ has released two studio albums and one live album on the independent label Acoustic Soul Records. In 2011, the singer was nominated by Sirius XM’s The Coffeehouse as “Discovery of the Year,” and in 2012, SJ’s song “I Like You” appeared on US top-ten charts.

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ELAINE M. OBIDOWSKI ’00M retired as the principal of Highcliff Elementary in Ross, Pa., effective July 1, 2015.

she works closely with educators to integrate all forms of technology into their classroom instruction.

2001

CORY K. JOHNSTON has been promoted to assistant vice president of credit administration of CNB Bank. In this position, Johnston manages the credit administration department at the bank’s main office in downtown Clearfield, Pa., supporting lenders from 39 branch offices of CNB Bank, ERIEBANK and FCBank.

FRANK J. FABIAN will have a unique challenge during this upcoming high school football season. He is the new head football coach of the Armstrong Riverhawks, which will be the combined high schools of Kittanning and Ford City, Pa. who were previously bitter local rivals.

DALE D. WHITE has been named as the Gannon University's head men's soccer coach.

White returns to Gannon after a stellar fiveyear run as the head coach at Mercyhurst University. White was a three-year starter for the Golden Knights from 1999-2001. He was named NCAA Atlantic Region Coach of the Year in 2012 and most recently selected as the 2014 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Coach of the Year after a season that included 15 consecutive victories.

2003

2004

KENNETH M. SIEGEL has been promoted to partner at Reed Smith LLP in the firm’s Pittsburgh office. He was previously an associate. Siegel is a member of the firm’s corporate & securities group. He represents clients in mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, private equity transactions, financing transactions and general corporate law issues. Siegel earned his J.D. from Pennsylvania State University, The Dickinson School of Law.

2005

LAUREN B. GROMLOWICZ ’05M had an essay about PPD after miscarriage published in an anthology “Surviving Mental Illness Through Humor” (April 7). She also has essays being published in two upcoming anthologies “Motherhood May Cause Drowsiness” (Monkey Star Press, May 2015) and “Martinis & Motherhood” (Tipsy Squirrel Press, June 2015). Gromlowicz is a freelance writer and can be found on The Huffington Post, Scary Mommy, Mamapedia, Care.com and Red Tricycle.

MICHAEL (PETSCH) MUNGER ’05M was recently chosen as one of the “Best Nurses in Dallas” by D Magazine. He is a certified registered nurse anesthetist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.

in memoriam

ANN (CONDON) CLARK ’03M, ’03C received the 2015 Extra Mile Award presented by the Northwestern Pennsylvania Association for Educational Communications & Technology (NWPAECT). Clark, along with nine other regional educators, was recognized for going above and beyond to encourage and support technology for teaching and learning. Clark currently instructs students at Corry (Pa.) Area Intermediate School in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) course, which is offered to all students in grades three through five. Clark also serves as the building’s gifted resource teacher and instructional technology specialist, where

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Alumni

Albert S. Heberlein ’50 Kevin M. Heuser ’85 Glendora Hawk Adsit ’67VMC Valerie Howles Houk ’94 John G. Ashby ’66 Sister Mary D. Jablonski, R.S.M. Larry A. Bensink ’84 ’70VMC, ’86 Richard M. Custer ’58 Frank R. Jordan, USA (Ret.) ’72 James R. Doyle, M.D. ’55 Sandra Kistner Kabureck ’83 Daniel M. Driscoll ’73 Patricia Brolinski Kerner ’67VMC Sister Mary T. Eichenlaub, O.S.B. ’62VMC Marcia Fisher Koziarski ’93 Donald R. Ester ’76 Grace Madonia ’53VMC Rose Hosbach Faber ’88VMC Nicholas J. Mangus, Jr. ’52 Alfred R. Fugini ’60 Martha Wolf McBride ’41VMC Michael W. Gallagher ’70 Sister Rita M. McNulty, S.S.J. ’60VMC Lydia Head Gambill ’81VMC Patricia Stiller Miller ’66VMC Edward M. Gangemi ’91 Joseph L. Mullen ’76M Gordon A. Golder, Ph.D. ’56 Robert S. Oats ’76 Scott J. Grack ’80 Alan L. Peters ’57, ’75M Evelyn Peterson Hayes ’72

gannon magazine

july 2015

William A. Pysh ’72M Joanne Rupp Rose ’78M Kurt L. Sahlmann ’92M Anne Pekelnicky Sayers ’78 Yvonne Ciarlo Selke ’79 Judith Schnurpfeil Simon ’62VMC Sister Mary C. Skeabeck, S.S.J. ’53VMC Philip D. Spurlock ’75M Elizabeth Timmons Stoner ’63VMC George R. Strohl, Jr. ’66 Rona Brestensky Strubel ’85 Henry J. Suroviec ’58 Rhea Nieder Watkins ’99, ’97 Pamela Strokes Weber ’81VMC Charles W. Weis ’61 Nancianne Galardo Williams ’63VMC John P. Winston ’48

2006

NEIL DONOVAN ’06C retired as the Vocational Director of the Crawford County Career and Technical Center (CCCTC) on June 30, 2015, after dedicating 30 years to education, half on the academic side and half on the vocational side. Donovan has spent 10 years at the helm of the CCCTC. While he may be retiring from one job, Donovan will be changing careers to do woodwork and design full-time.

APRIL D. PREISACH ’06M was appointed acting principal of Stewartsville Elementary School in the Norwin School District in Irwin, Pa. She had previously taught third grade at Sunset Valley Elementary.

2007

ELLIE L. BURTNER is a legal compliance administrator at The Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, Pa. DR. KASEY R. LANG ’07M has joined the staff of Access Physical Therapy as a physical therapist. She is currently based at the Knightdale, N.C. location.

2008

MEGAN L. FISHER is a registered nurse at UPMC Northwest in the Family Birthing Center.

JEREMY A. STILLWAGON ’08M was a Democratic candidate for Allegheny County (Pa.) constable. He has been involved for 16 years as a volunteer firefighter and is an assistant chief. He has served as a deputy constable and as the current elected constable for over the past five years.

2009

DAVID R. HUGAR has been promoted to local sales manager by Connoisseur Media. He will oversee the local sales initiatives for the sixstations in the Erie area.

DANIEL J. HOWELL has taken over as the new head coach for the National Premier Soccer League's Erie Commodores F.C., formerly known as Erie Admirals S.C.

2010

DANIEL P. SWOGER ’10M, ’11C, ’12C was appointed principal at Marshall Middle School in the North Allegheny School District in Wexford, Pa. Swoger was most recently the assistant principal in the district’s Ingomar Middle School. He joined North Allegheny in September 2013. Previously he was an assistant high school principal and director of education in the Allegheny Valley School District, where he was also a teacher and coach.

IAN W. PIFER is a special education teacher with Spring Run Elementary School in Midlothian, Va., where he was named this year’s “Teacher of Year.”

ELLEN M. KROL is an occupational therapist at Metro Hospital in Cleveland, Oh. ANDREW M. MILANAK is vice president of finance with Early Connections, Inc. in Erie.

AMANDA L. SHANNON is a physical therapist at UPMC Hamot in Erie.

2013

BRIANNE LEMOCK has joined the staff of the occupational medicine department at Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin as a physician assistant. Occupational medicine helps businesses maintain the health, wellness and safety of employees through prevention and management of work-related injury, illness and disability. Lemock will work alongside physicians, rehabilitation therapists and clinical psychologists.

2014

BALDEMAR GONZALEZ was the 2014 Gannon University Founder’s Day Inspiration for the Next Generation award recipient. He is currently working in the legal department of the U.S. Capitol Police as a legal assistant.

ANDREA J. WINGARD is engaged to marry Whitney Douglas Stewart. Andrea is an accountant at Edward D. Gompers & Company, AC in Wheeling, W.Va. The couple’s wedding is scheduled for Oct. 3, 2015.

2011

MEGAN N. HAINES is a radiography and mammography technologist at Jefferson Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pa. DANIELLE R. KROL is currently employed as a social worker at UPMC Hamot in Erie.

John A. Zakutney ’58 Eugene R. Zappitelli ’55

Parents and Friends Mohammed Albogami Doris McKrell Carniewski Rev. Msgr. John T. Carter Richard M. Custer Florian C. Demny Chester F. Giermak Beatrice Grimm Bruce Hemme Robert L. Lasher, M.D. Rev. Edward S. Matuszak John C. Little

Edward M. Mead Amelia P. Orlando Donna L. Phillips Louis J. Porreco Elizabeth G. Reid Joseph A. Ropski, D.D.S. Frank N. Scalise Mary Ann Scholl Joseph G. Seggi Charles K. Watters William L. Webb Mark A. Wilcox

Tell your fellow alumni what you’ve been up to!

Share your success, marriage, awards or an addition to your family in Gannon Magazine and GU eNEWS Visit gannonalumni.org/ classnotes to submit your Class Notes. We want to hear from you!

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A CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY WITH A

90-YEAR SUCCESS RECORD

SAVE THE DATE GANNON UNIVERSITY RUSKIN, FLORIDA

DEDICATION AND BLESSING CEREMONY August 19, 2015 \ 1:30 p.m.

WATCH LIVE florida.gannon.edu

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gannon magazine

july 2015

Arnie Bergquist:

Gannon was a much different place when Arnie Bergquist was a student in the 1950s.

1958 Arnie Bergquist,

“Gannon has grown quite a bit with new academic programs and expanded physical facilities. The University has done very well over the years and I believe it’s headed in the right direction.”

One thing that hasn’t changed over the years is the values-centered Catholic college education that students benefit from each day. It’s what sets Gannon aside from other universities and the reason why Arnie Bergquist and many other alumni are investing in their alma mater’s future by including Gannon in their estate plans. In 2014, Arnie established

the Arnold E. and Marilyn R. Bergquist Endowed “Power” Scholarship in Accounting.

“I was able to get an accounting job during my sophomore year and it opened my eyes to what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I am thankful for the fine Gannon education and an estate gift is an easy way to show my appreciation.”

Join Arnie and other Gannon and Villa Maria alumni who are members of Archbishop Gannon Founder’s Society.

Did You Know?

There are many different ways to include Gannon in your estate plan. Some of the easiest include making Gannon the beneficiary of your 401K retirement plan.

For more information please call the Gannon University Advancement Office.

Contact: Tony Fulgenzio, Executive Director of Philanthropy and Communications at (814) 871-7786. Or visit our website at gannonalumni.org/estateplan.

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JOIN IN THE EXCITEMENT OF THE 2015 ALUMNI HOMECOMING REUNION WEEKEND

OCTOBER 2-4, 2015!

Highlights: • Class of 1965 50th Reunion

• School of Business and MBA Celebration

• Alumni Association Distinguished Alumni Dinner

• Tours of the Center for Business Ingenuity

• Heritage Society Luncheon

• African-American Alumni Party

• Homecoming Football Game and Tailgate Party

• AND MUCH MORE!

• Villa Maria College Alumnae Tea

• Homecoming Parade

gannonalumni.org/homecoming2015

FREE T-SHIRT non red Gan For All Registe a Alumni and Villa Mari REE BONUS F KS C SPIRIT SO ird For Early B t. 4 y Sep Registration b