Marietta Magazine (Spring 2014)

S PRING 2014

Delicate Balance THE UPS AND DOWNS OF RIVER TOWN LIFE

THE MAGAZINE OF M AR IE T TA COLLE G E

ALSO: Outcomes: A look at 2013 grads one year out All-American hurdler enjoys final year at Marietta

ROBERT CAPLIN

Transitions

I

’m here to help connect our students to the rich history that is Marietta College, and to get them excited about what’s happening on campus and what’s in store for their futures.

Sure, I may not look like the average Marietta denizen — I’m more of a Forever 1835 shopper than a Forever 21er — but I can rally a cheer section for our home team as well as any Long Blue Liner.

Look out OAC, there’s a new Pioneer in town!

— Putnam

M AR IE TTA C OL L E GE B OAR D OF TR U S TE E S

Me ssag e f ro m the Pres ident

Chair Barbara A. Perry Fitzgerald ’73

D R . J O S E P H W. B R U N O

Vice Chair Cynthia A. (Cindy) Reece ’78

A

2 < SPRING 2014

Secretary William H. Donnelly ’70 Treasurer Dan Bryant

ROBERT CAPLIN

fter long spells of cold temperatures and excessive snowfall, which even forced us to close campus or delay the start of classes on a few occasions, I can’t fully explain how excited everyone is to finally be enjoying the spring weather in Marietta.

Also encouraging are the stories we have been hearing from our alumni about their postMarietta achievements. You will see in the pages to follow a piece on the accomplishments of recent Marietta graduates, and the success of Marietta alumni has become a prevailing theme on campus. As we continue to recruit the best students in our always-competitive region, we are finding them and their families much more focused on career success and outcomes than ever before. And after so many years of a sluggish economy and weak employment picture, who can blame them?

In my day, the Career Center was the place you visited in your senior year to start lookPRE SI D E N T BRU N O O N L I N E ing for that first position after college. Now, twitter.com/PresidentBruno the Marietta Career Center is a different place, instagram.com/PresidentBruno and the dedicated staff members reach out to facebook.com/MariettaCollegePresident students very early in their time at the College.

They provide a range of services, including résumé review, searches for internships, mock interviews, and many, many more.

Also in the magazine, you will find a link from our Marietta College Admission web page to an outcomes page titled “The Marietta Effect.” In that space we describe some of the experiences realized by Marietta alumni, and we are sharing more of these success stories on individual department web pages. We are also targeting prospective students with the inspiring “outcomes” stories.

For example, Anna Gill ’12 majored in Education, or recently completed a community service position in Grenada, and is now in Miami. She notes, “I always had a full course load and never got enough sleep. But I had a great living community with the Honors House. Living there, I always had friends around; they were worth losing sleep over. They motivated me to be the best student I could be while also making sure there was never a dull moment.”

You may also read of Harrison Potter ’08, a mathematics and physics major who is completing his Ph.D. in mathematics at Duke University. Even more exciting, he will be returning to Marietta as an Assistant Professor of Mathematics this fall, having been selected from a strong pool of candidates in a national search.

I urge you to read more about Marietta alumni successes in this publication, and also to visit the website for additional stories. Prospective students are making an investment in a college education and I fully understand their desire to learn more about likely outcomes before they choose. Fortunately, Marietta alumni have been extremely successful in their lives after College and we have great stories to tell. I hope you will enjoy learning about some of them, and I urge you to pass them on to strong students looking for an excellent college experience. And don’t forget to stay in touch and tell us about your own successes. We never tire of hearing from and about our wonderful alumni.

Thank you for your loyalty to Marietta College.

Roger D. Anderson ’79 Anna (Ann) Bowser Bailey ’87 Robert M. (Bob) Brucken ’56 Joseph W. Bruno T. Grant Callery ’68 Christopher Cortez ’71 Patricia G. (Pat) Curtin ’69 George W. Fenton Nancy Putnam Hollister John B. Langel ’70 Matthew J. Macatol ’97 C. Brent McCurdy ’68 Michael Moffitt ’91 John R. Murphy ’63 Kathleen Mitchell Murphy ’82 Cathy A. Percival Leonard M. (Randy) Randolph Jr. ’65 Jason C. Rebrook ’96 Ronald E. (Ron) Rinard ’72 Donald G. (Don) Ritter ’81 Toni M. Robinson-Smith Michael J. Salvino ’87 Edgar L. Smith Jr. Charles (Chuck) W. Sulerzyski Elliott Thrasher ’62 James J. Tracy ’79 Dale L. Wartluft ’63 Jo Ellen Diehl Yeary ’76 Patricia (Patti) Kral Zecchi ’71

AL U M N I AS S OC IATION B OAR D OF D IR E C TOR S Chair Paula King Pitasky ’96 Vice Chair Matthew B. Weekley ’81 Alumni Trustees Matthew J. Macatol ’97 John R. Murphy ’63 Kathleen Mitchell Murphy ’82 Elliott Thrasher ’63 James J. Tracy ’79 Timothy J. Bennett ’85 James P. Brady ’92 Andrew D. Ferguson ’95 Frank D. Fleischer ’71 Robert S. Johnson ’05 Tia Knowlton Lane ’98 Jennifer Roach Offenberger ’86 Todd J. Stevens ’80 Jazmyn Barrow Stover ’06 Tracy L. Zuckett ’96

Contents

SP RING 2014 | I SSU E 15

20

24

9 22

6 8 16 Inside this issue

EDITORS Tom Perry and Gi Smith

In the late summer of 2004, back-to-back hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean brought torrential rains to the Mid-Ohio Valley, flooding the city of Marietta and causing campus officials to cancel classes for the week and send most students home.

PHOTOGRAPHERS Robert Caplin, Peter Finger, Tom Perry, Christian Sanders, Gloria Stewart, Tori Taylor, Ryan Turnewitsch, Ryan Zundell

In addition to leaving behind a wake of mud and muck, the flood of 2004 also left an indelible memory with the Marietta College campus community that remains even 10 years later.

CLASS NOTES Cheryl Canaday

4 | M A RIE T TA S C E N E New and notable campus & alumni updates Long Blue Lines by Hub Burton

6 | JOURNA L > Summer at the Museum > Student-to-faculty progression > Local sorority affiliates with Theta Phi Alpha > More than just a friendly face

ART DIRECTOR Ryan Zundell

10 | GREAT EXP EC TATIO N S Class of 2013 outcomes speak volumes about Mariettaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success

20 | P IO N EERS Athletic news

24 | DEVELO P MEN TS News from our Advancement Office

28 | TH E LO N G BLU E LIN E Alumni class notes

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Alison Matas, Chelsey Scott PRESIDENT Dr. Joseph W. Bruno PROVOST Dr. Karyn Sproles VP FOR ADVANCEMENT Dr. Joseph Sandman ASSOCIATE VP FOR ADVANCEMENT Hub Burton M A R I E T TA The Magazine of Marietta College is published twice a year by the Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing. The magazine serves its readers by providing information about the activities of Marietta College alumni, students, faculty and staff through the publication of accurate and balanced content that informs and stimulates intellectual discussion.

Text, photographs, and artwork may not be reprinted without written permission of the Associate Vice President for Advancement at Marietta.

CON TA C T U S Send address changes, letters to the editor and class notes to Marietta Magazine, 215 Fifth St., Marietta, OH 45750.

Fax: 740-376-4509 Phone: 740-376-4709 | 1-800-274-4704 Email: alumni@marietta.edu

COVER PHOTO BY ROBERT CAPLIN

M A R I E T TA > 3

MARIETTA SCENE

N E W A N D N O TA B L E

> SYNC MASTERS

To honor the memory of classmate Caitlin Yager ’16, who died in a car accident during Winter Break, Marietta College students organized a memorial 5K race in Muskingum Park on March 30. Proceeds supported the Caitlin Yager Fund for an International Alternative Winter Break Experience.

Montana Green ’16 hoists the first place trophy among her Sigma Kappa sisters.

The sorority won the Lip Sync contest and were deemed the overall winners of Greek Week 2014, which also featured the annual Canned Food Challenge, Community Service Day, Team Sports competition, and Chalk The Mall.

PHOTOS BY RYAN TURNEWITSCH

> CAITLIN’S RUN

Lo n g Blu e Lines

I

H U B B U R T O N , A S S O C I AT E V I C E P R E S I D E N T F O R A D VA N C E M E N T

t would be so much easier to cave to convention and call Marietta College’s new regional organizations chapters or clubs, but the real purpose and meaning of the institution’s latest alumni relations initiative would be lost in the translation. They are called regional associations because they are not constructed and maintained for the sole enjoyment of members of The Long Blue Line, but are rather more inclusive, inviting participation from alumni, current and prospective students and their families, and friends.

HUB BURTON It is a rather subtle distinction, but an important one in that by reaching out to so many different individuals to volunteer for establishing and sustaining these associations, their longevity is assured.

Last November, the Washington, D.C. group received the first official association charter in this latest round of outreach. Along the way, the ambitious group has planned everything from the standard happy hours to a panda viewing at the National Zoo, baseball with the Washington Nationals, and, most recently, a community service day to coincide with similar events back home on campus.

4 < SPRING 2014

Theirs is a wonderful example of what can happen when like-minded pockets of Pioneers unite in the shared effort to strengthen connections to alma mater. But their claim as the only such organization in the country is in serious jeopardy.

On April 4, dozens of alumni gathered at Smith and Wollensky’s in Boston to visit with Dr. and Mrs. Bruno and learn the latest from Marietta. It was another great event sponsored by MCAA Board member Andrew Ferguson ’97, and its success in attracting so many alumni underscores the tremendous level of interest in New England for establishing a second association.

Volunteers have already stepped forward, and the momentum from the gathering has moved the initiative ahead.

Like Washington, New England has some work ahead to plan a series of events and to generate and maintain momentum around a modest schedule, but the energy, enthusiasm, and just a hint of competitive spirit promise great things in the Northeast.

Future conversations in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Houston, Philadelphia, and the Mid-Ohio Valley are in the offing, and you are most sincerely invited to join in the discussion.

For more information about the regional association initiative, please contact Aleece Dye in the Office of Alumni Relations at aleece.dye@marietta.edu or at (740) 376-4926.

> PROGRAM DISTINCTION Dr. Cathy Mowrer (left) is among the Education Department’s faculty and staff recognized by the Ohio Board of Regents with the Ohio Educator Program Performance Grant. The nearly $175,000 restricted grant — awarded to the department for having one of the top-performing teacher prep programs in the state — will support educator preparation initiatives.

> WINTER BREAK Eileen Walsh ’16 (front) and Emily Drabeck ’17 enjoyed a day of impromptu sledding in early February after classes were canceled due to a snowstorm that walloped the region. Luckily, the students were able to muster up enough real sleds.

RYAN TURNEWITSCH

ROBERT CAPLIN

We need your help!

I

f every living member of The Long Blue donated $100 to The Marietta Fund this year, the College would easily surpass its $1.85 million goal.

It’s not quite that easy, according to Brandee Norris, Director of The Marietta Fund. While thousands donate each year, we need more support than ever this year to reach the increased goal.

“There are many who give a lot more than $100, and those larger gifts are important and appreciated. But every gift matters and makes an impact,” she says. “We have a very ambitious goal this year, and if all Pioneers help, we can achieve the goal that provides opportunities for students through financial aid and supports the overall operation of the college. Pioneer Nation is strong and proud, and I am confident that our

alumni and donors will make sure we deliver the goal for the College and today’s students.”

There is something very special about a Marietta College education. There are numerous ways to learn both inside and outside of the classroom: campus speakers; relationships with faculty; events and activities with your fraternity, sorority or student organization; membership on a team; etc. All are made possible through The Marietta Fund.

The Marietta Fund is ideal for many donors, who want their gifts to directly benefit students.

By demonstrating your generosity and commitment to higher education with a Marietta Fund gift, you are helping to make a Marietta College education more affordable and to continue building wonderful experiences that make a Marietta College education special.

ROBERT CAPLIN

M A R I ET TA F U N D TRY ING TO REA CH $1 . 8 5 M G OA L

Please consider a gift to The Marietta Fund today. Your gift matters — You Are The Marietta Fund.

To donate online: http://www.marietta.edu/Give/ TOM PERRY

M A R I E T TA > 5

Journal

EXPLORING H I S T ORY Katherine Tedesco ’14 is ready for the next step of her education at Seton Hall.

ROBERT CAPLIN

>

ALUM NI & C A MP U S N EWS

> ACADEMICS

Summer at the Museum HISTORY M AJOR RE ADY F OR GRAD PROGR A M

Q

uietly researching in Legacy Library’s Special Collections, Katherine Tedesco ’14 is in a place that has become her second home since arriving on campus in fall 2010.

A familiar face to those who work with the College’s archives, Tedesco has spent many hours in Special Collections, examining historic documents and photographs preserved there.

In recent years she used the materials as part of her Investigative Studies project and her capstone project. While Tedesco earns a Bachelor of Arts in History in May, her days of research are far from over — and she’s ecstatic about it.

Working at a museum has always been part of her long-range plan.

This fall she is headed to Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., to work on a Master of Arts in Museum Professions.

“I have been looking at museum programs in general and I was sort of confused with what you came out of there with. I didn’t see a curriculum that helped you come out with a profession,” she says. “But the program at Seton Hall puts you on track in one of four disciplines in museum work, so I’m very excited about this next step.”

Tedesco’s hard work as an undergraduate in classes with Drs. Matt Young, Andrew Wehrman and Katy McDaniel has prepared her for this next step.

6 < SPRING 2014

“Katherine is one of those Marietta College students who is determined to go after everything possible while she’s here; she seizes opportunities with enthusiasm and ambition,” says McDaniel, McCoy Associate Professor of History. “Katherine knew she wanted to study History and row for crew when she first came here as a freshman, but her larger life interests and goals have really developed and become more sophisticated as she’s explored all that Marietta College has to offer. She’s always asking questions, pursuing topics of interest to her, intentionally building skills and seeking out new experiences, whether in the classroom or outside of it.”

Probably the most transformational experience in Tedesco’s academic career happened in summer 2013 when she completed an internship with the Naval History and Heritage Command — Underwater Archaeology Branch in the Washington, D.C. Navy Yard.

She was predominantly a research intern and the encounter helped her realize her future.

“After working there I learned I really like exhibition development.

I wasn’t able to physically create a display, but I witnessed several displays being formed and presented to the public,” says the Upper Arlington, Ohio native. “I also realized that I want to work in a military museum again. Now if I get the chance to work at the Smithsonian I

“The small environment really does help. The whole History Department has been great.

I also think it helps to be surrounded by a group of students who really want to get involved.” won’t be upset, but there is something special about military museums and how they connect a veteran to a time in their life or how it helps the survivors of a veteran get a perspective that they couldn’t have otherwise.”

Tedesco, who is also a four-year letter winner on the women’s crew, is confident that what she has learned at Marietta will help her succeed in graduate school and in her future career.

“The small environment really does help. The whole History Department has been great. I also think it helps to be surrounded by a group of students who really want to get involved,” says Tedesco, a sister of Chi Omega. “A good example of how far I have come is when I presented my capstone project. I was nervous, but just knowing I was able to do it makes me proud. Four years ago I would have said there was no way I would be good enough to do something like that.”

TOM PERRY

> ALUMNI

Student-to-faculty progression FAM I LI AR FA C ES R ETU R N TO C A MP U S

W

hen Harrison Potter ’08 was a student at Marietta College, it wasn’t unusual for him to visit his professors’ homes and spend time with their families.

“They felt more like an Potter ’08 extended family to me,” he says. “Marietta and the local town are unique.

There’s something about Marietta that you sort of take for granted while you’re here but you definitely miss once you’re gone.”

Potter was on campus in February to present his Morgan ’10 topic, “(Some of) Fluid Dynamics Explained” to students and faculty during one of the scheduled Physics Colloquiums.

He will return to a Marietta classroom again this fall when he joins the Mathematics Department as a member of its faculty, as will Michael Morgan ’10, who will join the Political Science Department as an instructor.

Potter, a McCoy Scholar, earned degrees in Mathematics and Physics from Marietta before attending Duke University to pursue a Ph.D. in Mathematics. His dissertation research is on the fluid dynamics of thin liquid films. The title of his dissertation is “Modeling Temperature Dependence in Marangoni-driven Thin Films.”

“My Ph.D. will be in Mathematics, which is the only doctoral degree that Duke offers in mathematics, but the specific field of my work would be characterized as applied mathematics,” Potter says. “The combination of my undergraduate physics degree and my doctoral work in applied mathematics together should enable me to interact with the Marietta College physics department somewhat more than other mathematicians who lack that applied background.”

Dr. John Tynan, Chair of the Mathematics Department, says Potter is a great addition to the faculty.

“As far as his teaching load, Harrison is going to teach Calculus I and Practical Statistics,” Tynan

says. “This was his choice because he wants to get a good feel for what kind of math background our current students are coming in with. Regarding Harrison’s transition, he was always the brightest student in his courses and I knew that he would be successful in whatever he chose to do. The fact that he chose to teach means that he will be good at it. Harrison does not have the ability to sort of do something. He gives everything he has to whatever he is doing.”

Morgan, who was a McDonough Leadership Scholar, earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and enrolled at the University of Kentucky to earn his doctorate in Political Science. He also met his future wife during graduate student orientation.

“My primary research agenda is in the field of international relations and focuses on international conflict and conflict management strategies,” Morgan says. “Specifically, in my dissertation I investigate factors that influence cooperation and collaboration in United Nations peacekeeping operations. I intend to have my dissertation completed and defended by this September.”

This fall, he will teach Issues in International Relations, Political Behavior in the United States and American Foreign Policy.

“Teaching at Marietta College is a unique opportunity because I am not far removed from being a student myself,” Morgan says. “I remember how much of an interest Marietta faculty took in my undergraduate education, and I hope to pass the same kind of enthusiasm to a new group of students.”

Dr. Mark Schaefer, Chair of the Political Science Department, taught Morgan in a number of classes and also directed his senior research project.

“Having Michael join our faculty next year is one of the proudest moments of my career at Marietta College,” Schaefer says. “He was the first of my students to go on for a Ph.D. in Political Science.”

Schaefer first thought of Morgan when he learned there would be an opening in his department this fall.

“Michael also serves as an example to our students,” Schaefer says. “His Marietta education opened the door to graduate studies and placed him on the path to return to Marietta College as an instructor.”

GI SMITH

M A R I E T TA > 7

ALUM NI & C A MP U S N EWS

ROBERT CAPLIN

Journal

>

FO R EV ER SI STER S Elisa Santiago ’14 (left) and Brittany Truex ’16 are members of Marietta’s newest greek organization.

> GREEK LIFE

Local sorority affiliates with Theta Phi Alpha

O

ne by one, sisters arrived at the Pioneer House — the place where the newest Greek organization calls home — all proudly wearing T-shirts displaying their fraternity letters and excited to talk about their close-knit group.

“Becoming Theta Phi Alpha has been great,” says Elisa Santiago ’14, “especially due to the amount of support we have for our colony.”

Theta Phi Alpha is in the process of establishing a chapter at Marietta College through the affiliation of the local sorority Omicron Chi Theta. It’s the first time since 1962 that a new national women’s fraternity has been added to campus. Marietta alumnae are welcome to join.

For the foreseeable future, the fraternity will share a space in the Pioneer House, and the sisters have added a few special symbols to areas of the house, including penguins — the official mascot — and

white roses — the official flower.

“Our national headquarters, located three hours away, our big sister chapter at Muskingum, and our wonderful adviser, Martha Shea, have helped us every step of the way in the transition process. I am excited to see how our colony will continue to grow next semester,” Santiago says.

Katie Talkington ’16, who is the colony president through November, is also happy with the progress of affiliating the local sorority with the national organization, Theta Phi Alpha, and the guidance that the fraternity has provided the Marietta group.

Liz D’Orsa is a leadership consultant with Theta Phi Alpha. For spring semester, D’Orsa moved to Marietta in order to help the women of Omicron Chi Theta establish a lasting, successful chapter.

“It has been a smooth transition and very exciting,” Talkington says. “We had a lot of helpful people to help us along the way.”

The process of welcoming a national organization to a campus is called an extension, says Jacob Tidwell, Assistant Dean of Students in the Office of Campus Involvement. Governed by the National Panhellenic Conference, the extension provides the burgeoning chapter additional structure, connections to other chapters, alumnae involvement and access to development tools to help them improve and grow.

While the women of Omicron Chi Theta have been active members of the Greek community since the sorority’s beginning, their journey to national affiliation has further strengthened their presence on campus.

“We have encouraged a Panhellenic spirit throughout the community, and members have been very supportive in terms of attendance at founder’s day events and chapter fundraisers,” says Charlee Ottersberg ’15, current president of Panhellenic Council at Marietta.

“Like any chapter on our campus we hope for healthy growth and continued support.”

D’Orsa says the colony has completed the majority of the standards necessary to earn its charter.

“All of Theta Phi Alpha’s colonies participate in a colonization weekend, where they become a colony of Theta Phi Alpha and are educated on the process of becoming a chapter,” D’Orsa says. “Also, all colonies must complete Theta Phi Alpha’s Colony Standards of Achievement to become a chapter.”

Her goal is that the colony at Marietta will complete all the Standards of Achievement — which regard operations, finances, recruitment, etc. — next fall semester.

The extension process could take another six to 12 months for the women to complete, but all involved are optimistic that Theta Phi Alpha will have an official chapter on campus soon, joining Alpha Xi Delta, Chi Omega and Sigma Kappa.

CHELSEY SCOTT

8 < SPRING 2014

Before you set your travel plans for the summer, you may want to check out some of the events the Office of Alumni Relations has in store for members of The Long Blue Line: > Golden Reunion Weekend for the Class of 1964 is set for May 30 on campus. 1964 graduates, graduates of contiguous years and current Golden Pioneers are invited to attend the campus event, which will last through June 1. Register for the Golden Reunion Weekend by calling 1-800-274-4704. > The Houston Area Regional Event is planned for June 4 at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands from 6 to 8 p.m. Register for this event by calling 1-800-274-4704 by May 30. Club attire or business casual attire is appropriate.

PETER FINGER

President Joseph Bruno and Mrs. Diane Bruno, and Jason ’96 and Erin Conroy Rebrook ’99 are hosting the event.

To learn more about alumni events or to register online, please visit www.marietta.edu/alumnievents

> ON CAMPUS

More than just a friendly face

TORI TAYLOR

S

ome employees cherish receiving pats on the back for work well done.

Buddy prefers belly scratches.

The 5-year-old standard poodle is a working therapy dog in the Dr. J. Michael Harding Center for Health and Wellness. He typically works in the office on Thursdays.

“Buddy is an emotional support dog,” says Rinda Gould, Buddy’s owner and a counselor in the center. “He is in sessions to provide emotional support only.”

When Gould was hired in 2013, she noticed the College offered a “De-Stress with Dogs Day” in the days leading up to final exams. As a dog owner and trainer, she knew her Buddy would make a perfect therapy dog, so she began pursuing his certification.

“On a typical day, usually Thursdays, he is in sessions in the mornings,” Gould says. “We go to the dog park for lunch/run time at noon. Then the afternoon he is in my afternoon sessions. We are also flexible with times and days to be able to go to the halls or classes as needed.”

During a recent De-Stress with Dogs Day on campus, Buddy was hard at work mingling with other dogs and chasing after balls thrown by students.

“I would say that the response to him has been positive,” Gould says. “He loves being on campus and spending time with students. Some students make their appointments on days that they know he will be here … Some students have pets at home and miss them, so he fills that spot for a little while.

Others might be thinking about a pet but have not had the opportunity to have that experience.”

Thomas Hinkle ’16 is a staff assistant in the Wellness Center and fan of his fellow part-time coworker.

“Buddy is a very special and amazing dog! He is so smart and well trained,” Hinkle says. “I look forward to his visits to the office. He always runs up to me when he sees me and cuddles up to me.”

When the weather is nice, Hinkle, who is a Sports Management major, says he sometimes takes Buddy on campus to play fetch.

“I know that a lot of the students enjoy Buddy and he never fails to put a smile on their faces,” Hinkle says. “He is a joy and a blessing to the Center and I wish all students could take time out of their days to play with him.”

GI SMITH

M A R I E T TA > 9

GREAT EXPECTATIONS COLLEGE IS A MAJOR COMMITMENT OF TIME, ENERGY AND MONEY. MARIETTA COLLEGE STUDENTS AREN’T DISILLUSIONED ABOUT THE CHALLENGES IN TODAY’S JOB MARKET, AND BEFORE MAKING THEIR CHOICE, THEY ASK IN EARNEST, ‘WHERE WILL MY EDUCATION TAKE ME?’ THE OUTCOMES STORIES, FOR MANY IN THE CLASS OF 2013 SPEAK VOLUMES ABOUT MARIETTA COLLEGE SUCCESS.

10 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

ROBERT CAPLIN

M A R I E T TA > 11

ROBERT CAPLIN

L

TO READ MOR E A B OUT R ECENT A LUM NI: www.marietta.edu/Admission/Outcomes/recent_alumni.html TO READ MOR E A B OUT Y OUNG TR A I LB LA Z E RS: www.marietta.edu/Admission/Outcomes/young_trailblazers.html TO READ MOR E A B OUT P R OG R ES S IVE P I O N E E RS: www.marietta.edu/Admission/Outcomes/progressive_pioneers.html

12 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

ess than a year from being a student in a Marietta College classroom, Donna Kubisiak ’13 was guiding her own class full of students on how to add and subtract fractions with different denominators.

“Whatever you do to the bottom number,” she began. “You have to do to the top number,” her class replied in unison.

“You all will probably get really tired of hearing me say that but, by the time we finish this lesson, you’re going to know this by heart!” the fourth and fifth grade math teacher says.

Higher education is taking a closer look at graduate outcomes — specifically whether a graduate is readily able to find employment or enroll in graduate school shortly after earning a degree.

Colleges and universities are vying to build a student enrollment brimming with talented students committed to earning degrees at their respective institutions. Marietta’s reputation as a quality liberal arts college that encourages and helps develop a lifelong love of learning plays an important role in helping prospective students make their choice to attend — but students and parents are also eyeing another factor: success at the next level.

That next level can either be a promising job or acceptance into a graduate program.

For Kubisiak, who was a non-traditional student and mother of three children, finding her first teaching job was crucial.

She had completed two years of a Music Education major at a public university in Ohio shortly after graduating from high school, but left before earning her degree to enter the workforce, eventually gaining a leadership position at a Marietta corporation.

“When the company closed the local office in 2009, I found myself without a job,” she says. while she struggled to find employment that could support her family, Kubisiak learned she was eligible for scholarships and grants through the federal government and chose to complete her dream of becoming a teacher.

An Education major at Marietta, she had many opportunities to work with children in a variety of settings, including classroom observations of local teachers, working in local classrooms, and preparing and presenting unique afterschool educational opportunities such as Math Night and Family Literacy Night for local children and their families.

“I definitely felt prepared for a career in education with experiences in student teaching, field placements, camps and other hands-on activities with students,” Kubisiak says. “However, it’s difficult to prepare for every scenario and situation. Thankfully, I had a solid foundation of academic information and instruction as well as hands-on experiences to draw from.”

Shortly after earning her degree in Early Childhood Education, Kubisiak was offered a full-time teaching position at Putnam Elementary School, where she was a student teacher during her final year at Marietta.

Kubisiak, like many Marietta College students, came to campus with a clear vision of what professional outcome she needed to obtain with her investment.

“I am doing exactly what I wanted to do after earning my degree,” she says. “I was able to find a position locally in one of my two preferred schools. I know that does not always happen, so I feel blessed that it worked out for me.”

For some students, their immediate career path isn’t as clear-cut.

Brittany Metcalf ’13 earned a degree in English, a minor in Spanish and a Certification in Energy Systems Studies.

Nearly a year after graduating from Marietta, she gained some perspective as to what made her job search successful.

“First, I cannot emphasize enough Brittany Metcalf ’13 to students how important it is to have at least one internship,” Metcalf says.

“This shows an employer, ‘Yes, I do have experience in a professional workplace setting’ and ‘Yes, I have skills that I’ve used professionally.’

You’re competing with college graduates whom have multiple internships listed on their résumé… what’s going to make you stand out?”

Metcalf ’s internship was in human resources, a field that she considered a potential profession. Not only did it provide work experience highlights on her résumé, it also gave her an honest look at what that career would entail.

“It was a good experience for me because I knew by the end of that internship that I was looking for a more flexible work environment rather than an 8 to 5, behind a desk, Monday through Friday job,” Metcalf says.

Another bit of advice Metcalf gives to graduating seniors is to network.

“I spent most of my senior year sending out résumé after résumé,” Metcalf says. “I spent so much time applying for jobs and worrying about finding that first job. I was reluctant for the longest time to reach out to people I knew. What I learned was sometimes finding that job or getting an interview is all about who you know. You can’t be afraid to ask. If you’re willing to help yourself, people will help you get in the door; but it’s up to you after that to conquer your career goals.”

It was one of her networking circles that opened the door for her at Oracle, one of the largest information technology companies in the world.

“I went through an intense interview process. They flew me to Denver. I had no experience in software,” Metcalf says.

On April 3, 2013, she received a call from the company.

“They hired 89 of us with backgrounds in political science, history, math and business. They were looking for people who had communication skills, which I knew I had but they also wanted you to be able to learn the back-end of the software, which I wasn’t afraid to do.”

After 12 weeks of training, Metcalf was ready to take her role as a sales consultant. She studies the needs of interested companies and compiles HR programs specific to those needs.

“I love my job. I get to travel and I get to work from home. I live in Denver and I have the opportunity to move up in the company,” Metcalf says. “I could have settled for a job that didn’t have such an intense interviewing process or one that wasn’t so competitive, but I’m a competitive person and I really enjoy the energy this company has.

You don’t have to settle. I knew that this was my dream job and I was going to have to work hard and really prove myself to land this position. Be diligent and persistent with your job search; you’ll land where you want to be.”

Like Metcalf, Connor Walters ’13 spent a great deal of time putting in applications during his senior year and completing internships that would enhance the appeal of a Journalism degree.

“My senior year, there was a lot of stuff going on for me and I thought I had a job that I was suited for and I wanted, but it didn’t pan out,” says Walters, who was also the Student Senate President, on the College’s Provost search committee and involved in the planning of President Joseph W. Bruno’s Inauguration celebration.

Knowing that the journalism field he desired was highly Connor Walters ’13 competitive, he also applied to graduate programs as a backup plan.

“I was accepted into all three schools that I applied to and eventually decided to enroll at Medill,” he says. The rigorous 12-month graduate program at Northwestern University is one of the top schools in the nation.

Coming from a small, liberal arts college in southeast Ohio and moving to Chicago was not cause for a culture shock to Walters, who had graduated Phi Beta Kappa.

“When I got to Medill, I felt 110 percent that I was where I belonged. Part of it was the way they brought us in and welcomed us as a group and had us go through orientation as a group. And part of it was that I felt well prepared for my courses” he says.

M A R I E T TA > 13

Though Walters had countless friends — both students and faculty alike — at Marietta, at Medill he felt surrounded by people who had the same interest in journalism and the same goals.

“I am surrounded by a great group of people at Medill. They are friends, but not like the friends I had at Marietta. It’s probably because, at Medill, we are colleagues in many ways. At Marietta, a lot of my friendships were based on extracurriculars. At Medill, you’re not involved in extracurricular activities.”

As a graduate student, Walters has covered many hard-hitting news stories, including the unveiling of a plaque recognizing one Chicago firehouse’s fallen firefighters and the decision to cut seven varsity sports from Temple University.

“It’s the first time in my life that I’ve firmly dived into journalism, and now it’s my life,” Walters says. “It’s the most fun thing I could be doing right now, and I know this is where my future lies.”

Unlike Walters, additional schooling was always the plan for Ben Reese ’13, also a Phi Beta Kappa graduate.

“I knew law school was where I needed to be, so I worked toward that goal at Marietta,” says Reese, who earned degrees in Political Science and Economics before entering law school at the University of Michigan last fall.

As an undergraduate, Reese was involved in many activities outside of the traditional classroom. One, in particular, played a tremendous role in his time at Marietta.

“You have so many gen ed classes at Marietta, you really can’t help but be involved in many different activities,” Reese says. “But I really did Ben Reese ’13 not expect to enjoy public speaking.

Actually, I used to visibly shake. But somehow I ended up on the Forensics Team, and then in Moot Court, and that was it — I had grown to like it.”

When he arrived at Michigan in the fall, he knew the coursework would be challenging and hoped to find a similar close-knit, community feel that he found at Marietta.

“It’s a lot of pressure all at once; perhaps it’s a little more than I anticipated,” Reese says. “It’s tough but I enjoy it.”

During his first year, he competed in the first-year Moot Court Competition, which started with 125 law school students. He was among the six finalists in the spring. This summer, he will work in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, researching or writing for the office.

“I eventually want to work for a government office or in public service,” Reese says. “I actually want to be in a courtroom because writing

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contracts is not all that appealing to me.”

While on break from law school, Reese returned to Marietta and spoke with students interested in a legal profession.

“That was the plan for me all along,” he says. “I feel like it’s a way for me to give back and to really try to help students who are interested in law school. It meant a lot to me as a student having those types of interactions.”

For Kristeva “Krissy” Rowe ’13, it was the positive interactions she had with professors and coaches that drew her from a Division II university, where she competed at track & field, to Marietta College, where she excelled as a student, as well as a runner and basketball player.

“I’ve always had an interest in medicine, so in the back of my mind I knew as an undergraduate that I had to plan for the next step in my education, but I didn’t know where that would be,” she says.

In addition to making highlight reels in two varsity sports, the Biology majorstands out even more because of her academic success.

“I developed great relationships with my professors and I felt comfortable here,” she says.

Kristeva Rowe ’13

Jordan Grilliot ’13

As her undergraduate years were quickly coming to an end, Rowe gave serious thought to becoming a physician assistant.

“One of the reasons Marietta was on my list of colleges was because of the PA program,” she says.

Once she was accepted into the 26-month graduate program, it didn’t take long before she enjoyed that same close relationship with faculty and fellow students that she had as an undergraduate. More than partway through the didactic phase of her education, Rowe looks right at home working with the human patient simulators.

“This is different from my undergraduate years because I am focused on learning about becoming a PA; this is a very specific education,” she says. “I’m being challenged here and I enjoy that.”

The student-athlete experiences that Jordan Grilliot had at Marietta were similar to Rowe’s and led him down a similar path: medicine.

“Medical school was my plan probably from my freshman year all the way through to graduation,” he says. “I came in as an undecided major but declared Chemistry within the first two months. Dr. (Kevin) Pate was my advisor and he was a great help when it came to keeping me on a pre-med track.”

As an outfielder on the College’s baseball team, Grilliot was a part of a two-time National Championship winning team — earning back-toback titles in 2011 and 2012. Being a student-athlete instilled in him a tremendous work ethic and taught him to carefully manage his time.

“There were a lot of late nights spent studying but I can honestly say I enjoyed my four years at Marietta,” he says.

As Pate pointed him in the right direction when it came to applying to medical school programs, staying on track with his courses and writing letters of recommendation, Grilliot leaned on fellow students and recent alumni to help him with another important component of reaching the next level of his education.

“Because my goal was medical school, I had to take the MCAT. So I learned how to prepare through word of mouth from other students who had already gone through that process. I ended up taking the Kaplan MCAT prep course, which was suggested by more than one student.”

By June, he was accepted into two medical schools: the Chicago College of Osteopathy and Ohio University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. He chose Ohio University to be closer to his family and to keep his costs down.

“You can’t really be prepared 100 percent for what medical school throws at you because of the sheer amount of information you have to learn in a short period of time,” Grilliot says. “I had a chemistry background and many students here focused on biology, so there were some things that I had to catch up on.”

What he didn’t have to adjust to, however, was having a strong work ethic or being able to be productive with his time.

Grilliot has adjusted to life as a med school student, and offers up some advice to future members of Marietta College’s alumni base.

“This may sound sentimental, especially when we’re talking about college success and finding jobs and using your education… but my advice to students at Marietta and future students at Marietta is to enjoy every day and find a way to spend every day with your closest friends.

I was really blessed in my four years at Marietta. I was busy, I worked hard, surrounded myself with friends, and it went by way too fast.”

GI SMITH M A R I E T TA > 15

A flood of memories

LIFE IN A RIVER TOWN

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58.30 FEET ON MARCH 29, 1913

55.00 FEET ON JAN. 26, 1937

52.90 FEET ON FEB. 7, 1884

50.50 FEET ON MARCH 16, 1907

48.80 FEET ON FEB. 16, 1832

45.20 FEET ON MARCH 12, 1964

45.00 FEET ON S E P T. 3 0 , 1 8 6 1

44.97 FEET ON S E P T. 1 9 , 2 0 0 4

GLORIA STEWART

43.60 FEET ON JAN. 8, 2005

41.40 FEET ON JAN. 24, 1959 *Source: National Weather Service

IT ONLY RAINED SIX DAYS IN MARIETTA THAT SEPTEMBER. But for two of those six days, it never stopped.

In 2004, after Hurricane Frances pummeled the Atlantic Coast, remnants of the Category 4 storm moved inland and, on Sept. 8, dumped a record 3.57 inches of rain on the Mid-Ohio Valley. Still hurricane season in the Atlantic, Frances was the third major storm to hit the United States coast. Because so little rain had fallen prior to that day, surely the ground would absorb it soon and the flowing Ohio and Muskingum rivers would carry it away.

But before the area had the chance to digest the effects of Frances, the fourth major storm hit the Atlantic and swept its way from Florida’s Gulf Coast to the northeast. Hurricane Ivan, a Category 5 storm, had made its way into the Mid-Ohio Valley.

Almost a decade after the worst flood since 1964, memories of that time on campus are still fresh in the minds of the people who lived through it.

On Friday, Sept. 17, 2004, Ivan set a new rainfall record for Marietta — inundating the area with 4.87 inches of rain. With the ground still saturated from Frances and the local waterways struggling to stay in their banks, Ivan’s torrential downpour was the proverbial straw.

Instead of breaking the quaint river town, the flood of 2004 united the city of Marietta, including the Marietta College community, and left a wake of memories that remain to this day.

M A R I E T TA > 17

One of Marietta College’s selling points to potential students and their families is the location of the College itself — in a charming city with brick streets lined with trees at the convergence of two rivers.

The Ohio and Muskingum almost always provide a peaceful backdrop for the community.

Quiet walks along the river with friends, watching the incredible fireworks display during the annual Sternwheel Festival, and rowing events are just a few of the memories that Marietta College students have during their years here.

But for students who were on campus during the 2004-05 academic year, the two rivers brought a flood of memories.

Rain from two hurricanes within 11 days caused the Ohio River to steadily rise from its banks.

“We knew that week the water was expected to reach flood stage and possibly even record levels,” says Elizabeth “Fizzy” Ramsey ’07, who was a sophomore Athletic Training major that fall. “Once the water reached student housing, it didn’t take long for the administration to decide on sending us home.”

Cresting at 44.97 feet on Sept. 19, the Ohio River took center stage for several days as those who remained on campus worked tirelessly to move students’ belongings and classroom equipment to higher, drier ground. Prior to fall 2004, the last time the Ohio posed such a serious threat to the community was in March 1964, when waters rose 45.20 feet.

Once the rain stopped and the Ohio crested, the community got a closer look at what Frances and Ivan had done to the city. Murky brown water invaded the lower-lying areas, encircling Hermann, swallowing Don Drumm Stadium to the crossbars of the goalposts, recreating that long-lost waterfront scene of Parsons Hall replete with students tooling around in small boats.

“Before leaving, I rode in a canoe from the base of The Mall around Hermann and back to McCoy Hall,” Ramsey says. Though she wasn’t expecting to go home until Christmas break because she was on the track and field team and because of her major, Ramsey jumped at the chance to go home to Kentucky for a week.

“My roommate, Rachel Long, had not spent any time in Kentucky so we decided to do a tour of the Bluegrass (State),” Ramsey says.

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Initial flood reports didn’t indicate a serious threat to the community, so Dr. Dave McShaffrey, Professor of Biology, headed to Cleveland for the weekend.

“Since I spend a lot of time working in streams, I have a lot of the stream gauges bookmarked on my web browser, and it was soon apparent that this was going to be a major flood,” he says. He began traveling back to Marietta and found that Interstate 77 had flooded in a few spots. Once he made it to Exit 6, the route home was also flooded.

He headed to campus to survey how it was impacted.

“The water was right up to the edge of Selby and it was obvious that the houses on Fourth Street had water on the lower levels,” he says, adding that Hermann Fine Arts had become an island and cars parked in the neighboring lot were underwater. “There were several canoes and rowboats around. One was being used to ferry people to and from Hermann. I went up on the roof of Bartlett to get a look at the extent of the flood.”

From campus to the Historic Lafayette Hotel on Front Street was underwater, except for a few buildings that were constructed on raised grounds.

As the waters subsided, a new mess emerged: river mud.

With employees and community volunteers, many students from various programs, including Athletics, Leadership and Greek Life, stayed on and near campus to help move classroom and dorm room items to higher ground before the waters rose, and then helped during the massive cleanup process once the waters receded.

Craig Sundstrom ’07 recalls the Office of Student Life asking members of the College’s Greek community to stay as the campus flooded, to help with the cleanup effort that would follow.

“I volunteered along with other members of Delta Tau Delta,” Sundstrom says. “We primarily worked on demolition and cleanup, so we were responsible for removing damaged drywall, recovering furniture, and disinfecting and mopping walls and floors in affected buildings.”

His work crew, like many other student groups at Marietta, extended a hand to the community that week.

“We also spent time at local businesses downtown to help move any salvageable goods,” he says. “The whole week was a trying time for the College and community, but the impact it had on those of us who volunteered was significant.

We experienced the physical and local economic effects of a national disaster and learned firsthand what it means to give back to the community — these are lessons that simply cannot be learned in a classroom.”

Wendy Thieman ’91, Administrative Assistant in the Athletics Department, was one of the many employees who remained on campus to help with the cleanup efforts.

One word comes to mind when she remembers facing a campus filled with mud and debris: “Teamwork! That was it,” Thieman says.

“I worked one day at Don Drumm Stadium cleaning bleachers and railings and disinfecting everything that the floodwaters came in contact with. Most of the athletic staff was either there, at the McCoy Athletic facilities weight room or at the boathouse.”

After the 2003 football season, Marietta College had begun phase one of the Fields Project, starting with the installation of artificial FieldTurf. Just as the 2004 season was underway, the new turf surface was flooded.

Physical Plant crews and volunteers spent days cleaning off the newly surfaced field.

“There were definitely remaining signs of the flood,” Ramsey says. “Football jerseys continued to get muddy during games for years after the flood, despite having a turf field (often confusing our opponents), many businesses were closed for

cleanup and students were still displaced from various dorms.”

Within months after the flood of 2004 hit, the campus community watched as a similar event unfolded in early January. From Jan. 3 to 14, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ gauges recorded area rainfall between 5 and 8 inches — roughly two months’ worth of rain in a two-week period. Exacerbating the situation was the fact that the ground was already saturated and snow that had already fallen was melting. Though flooding wasn’t as severe as what happened in September, the Ohio River crested at 43.6 feet — well above the East and West Side flood stage of 35 feet.

By spring, with the lighter rains, the reddish tinge to the roadways and buildings left behind by the river mud slowly began to wash away.

Some buildings remained uninhabited, but life in the river town began to thrive once again.

Placards began popping up in local businesses indicated how high the waters had risen — and yet the city survived. The flood of 2004 and the subsequent flood of 2005 proved to be just another challenge that was successfully met by a resilient community.

“I fell in love with the town largely because of the rivers,” Ramsey says. “I even stayed in Marietta for three more years after graduation, living on the second floor of a riverside apartment complex. The potential for flooding couldn’t keep me away from such an amazing town.”

“TEAMWORK! THAT WAS IT. I WORKED ONE DAY AT DON DRUMM STADIUM CLEANING BLEACHERS AND RAILINGS AND DISINFECTING EVERYTHING THAT THE FLOOD WATERS CAME IN CONTACT WITH. MOST OF THE ATHLETIC STAFF WAS EITHER THERE, AT THE McCOY ATHLETIC FACILITIES WEIGHT ROOM OR AT THE BOATHOUSE.” —WENDY THIEMAN ’91

PHOTOS BY GLORIA STEWART AND TOM PERRY

GI SMITH

M A R I E T TA > 19

FROM

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COMBAT TO THE CLASSROOM 26-YEAR-OLD VETERAN HOPES TO MAKE AN IMPACT ON FOOTBALL FIELD

S

MIKE FABUS

tanding alone on the field at Don Drumm Stadium, Jarred “Sarge” Malcolm slips on a Marietta College football jersey for the first time. It’s not game day yet, but he feels a sense of pride that’s hard even for Jarred to explain.

Jarred’s path to this day is nothing like the rest of the Marietta football players who are 18 to 23 years old. A 26-year-old Army veteran, Jarred arrived at Marietta in January on the GI Bill ready to fulfill his dream of playing college football.

When Jarred was 18, though, he had given up this dream and joined the U.S. Army. Three years into a seven-year commitment, Jarred reflected on his life and realized he still wanted to play college football. During his deployment to Afghanistan, three of Jarred’s squad mates — Staff Sgt. Daniel Merriweather, Spec.

Geoffrey Whitsitt and Pfc. Brandon Owens — were killed in action.

“Losing my buddies pushed me toward it. You start to realize the whole American dream, and I wanted mine — and it included playing football again,” says Jarred, who served 13 months in Afghanistan during some of the fiercest fighting. “There’s nothing I can do now to get them back to their families, but I want to make them proud of me. I know it would make them happy looking down on me and seeing me go after my goal.”

Still, he was in the Army and thousands of miles away from any college football program. The only thing he could think of to garner some attention was to post videos online of his weight room activities. On the video he asked any coaches who were interested in giving him a shot to contact him. He heard from almost 20 coaches, including some former coaches from Marietta.

“I visited Geneva College, but it didn’t feel like a fit for me,” says the Freeport, Pa., native. “Marietta was the second place I visited, and the moment I set foot on campus it felt right. I’m from a small town and the small town atmosphere here gets to me.”

With 23 tattoos — “every needle prick represents part of the pain that I went through. It’s a reminder to me of everything I’ve been through and where I’m at now” — and many of them visible on his Popeye-sized arms, Jarred’s choice of major may seem odd.

However, the Elementary Education student believes he’ll make a great teacher.

It wasn’t until he returned to the U.S. that he realized how much he liked teaching.

“I helped coach a youth football team and I got to teach what I loved and work with kids,” says Jarred, who is also a volunteer firefighter at Station 36 in Sarver, Pa. “My cousin is the head coach of my high school team, but also a fourth-grade teacher. I could see myself doing something like that. … Despite how I look, I really do have a soft side.”

In addition to his combat tour in Afghanistan, Jarred spent 15 months in Korea and also served as a paratrooper at Fort Bragg, N.C., and with the 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, N.Y. The

perspective his military experiences have given him will prove valuable during tense moments on the field.

“I usually downplay everything, but I can say this, when it’s fourth-and-one and everyone thinks things are getting tough, I’ll just remind myself that I’m not getting shot at,” Jarred says. “Football coaches and players like to refer to playing the game as war. I’ve been to a real war and the stress of football is nothing like that.”

It’s that type of perspective that has impressed Marietta’s coaches, especially defensive coordinator Andy Stillman.

“Jarred does not want to be treated any differently and never talks about where he has been. He only wants to be a part of something special as we build this program,” Stillman says.

“Because of his attitude and his work ethic he will prove to be a great asset to this team in the 2014 season.”

Stuart Malcolm, Jarred’s father, says his son was nervous as it got closer to reporting for the spring semester due to the drastic lifestyle change.

“I told him, ‘After everything you have been through, this is going to be nothing,’ ” Stuart says. “He agreed.”

Stuart is ecstatic for his son, and says he believes going to college has made a real difference in his son’s outlook on life.

“When you look at these guys who have been in combat and until you have someone who has been affected by that, you don’t understand,” Stuart says. “When he got back from Afghanistan, you could just tell he was a different person. … Now that he’s in school and playing football I can see how much more relaxed he is and he can at least put that part of his life aside for a bit. It will never leave him, but he sees a future now.”

It’s a future Jarred always knew he could have.

“When people watch a war movie, there’s always an end. For veterans, the battle truly never ends. You are stuck with it in your head for the rest of your life,” Jarred says. “I’ve done things that people couldn’t imagine doing. I’ve jumped out of planes, I’ve been all over the world, and I made it through some of the hardest training the Army could throw at me. I was just fighting to make a better life for those I love and care about.”

Whether he ever starts a game for the Pioneers or not, getting a degree and the chance to slip on a jersey one more time is true satisfaction for Jarred.

“I like to think what I did and what I will do will make a difference,” he says. “Right now it’s hard to think about the emotions I will feel when I finally put on the Marietta jersey for that first game. It will be for my friends who are no longer here. It will be for my family, who I hope are in the stands watching. This was my driving force during those seven years in the Army. Now I’m focused on earning my degree and walking across the field on Senior Day as a 31-year-old football player.”

TOM PERRY

PHOTO BY ROBERT CAPLIN

M A R I E T T A > 21

Scorebook PIONEER

AT H L E T I C N E W S

Clearing Hurdles

RYA N L O P E Z -J O R D A N IS PROUD OF ACCOMP L IS H M E N T S ON AND OFF TH E TRACK

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“HIS LEGACY WILL BE THAT HE IS THE BEST MARIETTA PIONEER MALE TRACK ATHLETE TO EVER WEAR OUR SINGLET ON A NATIONAL STAGE. … HIS LEGACY WILL BE THAT HE SHINED HIS BRIGHTEST WHEN THE STAGE WAS THE BIGGEST. I CANNOT THINK OF MUCH BETTER TO SAY ABOUT A STUDENT-ATHLETE THAN THAT.” — GEORGE EVANS, TRACK & FIELD COACH

PHOTOS BY ROBERT CAPLIN

O

n a rare sunny day earlier this spring, Ryan Lopez-Jordan ’14 is happy to be outside on the track at Don Drumm Stadium.

If you dig a little deeper, though, you’ll sense a hint of sorrow.

Like any other student-athlete, the end of his intercollegiate career is closing in.

“It is starting to hit me that I won’t be running for Marietta College anymore,” Ryan says. “I hope there might be other opportunities to further my track skills and abilities with a track club in Cleveland.

But the idea of not representing Marietta any longer is sad.”

As future generations of track athletes try to gauge where they rank among Marietta’s best, they will have to start with Ryan.

He earned All-American honors for the second straight year in the 60-meter hurdles after finishing third at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March with a career-best time of 8.02 seconds.

He has been an outdoor All-American in the 110-meter hurdles twice as well. His best time in that event is 14.29 seconds.

“His legacy will be that he is the best Marietta Pioneer male track athlete to ever wear our singlet on a national stage. Four trips to NCAA National Championships, personal best school record setting runs in three of those Championships and four All-American awards so far,” says George Evans, Marietta’s Track & Field coach. “His legacy will be that he shined his brightest when the stage was the biggest. I cannot think of much better to say about a student-athlete than that.”

Ryan still hopes to add to his legacy at NCAA Outdoor Championships in late May, and he says he would like to nab an elusive overall championship.

“I don’t feel I have run a great race yet. I always feel I can run better,” he says.

Soft-spoken and even somewhat shy, Ryan is the opposite on the track.

“There are a few runners I’ve met over the years who want to shake my hand before a race and I don’t want any part of that,” says the Beachwood, Ohio native. “I just want to leave them in the dust.

Sometimes it gets me psyched up and other times I lose my focus.

I’m always working on calming myself down before a race.”

Ryan didn’t always believe he could be this competitive. Not until his senior year of high school did he even realize he might run collegiately. After a recommendation from a high school coach, Ryan chose Marietta for one simple reason.

“My grandfather wanted me close enough that he didn’t have to drive far to see me, but far enough that I wasn’t going to come home all of the time,” Ryan says. “Marietta was perfect for that.”

To instill some confidence in Ryan, Coach Evans made the bold decision to take him to a Division I meet at Columbia University.

“He ended up qualifying for the final and the field consisted of an Olympian, three hurdlers from Syracuse, three hurdlers from Georgetown and Ryan,” Evans says. “Ryan finished sixth, and when he came up to the bleachers after the race, all he could say was he thought he could have beaten a couple more guys in the race.

He wasn’t satisfied. He wasn’t intimidated. He believed in himself in what could have been a pretty intimidating situation for an inexperienced racer. It was clear he was well equipped to handle the biggest of challenges.”

In fact, Ryan had faced a huge challenge just one year earlier.

Quiet and not very outgoing, Ryan’s only friends were on the team and his focus in the classroom was slipping. He says he decided to quit running and even considering leaving Marietta. However, after a few meetings with his advisor, Dr. Bob Van Camp, the All-American runner decided to give his studies the same type of commitment he was starting to make to running.

“He would always ask me about track, and even when I decided to quit, he kept bringing it up,” Ryan says. “He kept reminding me about all of the free time I was going to have and didn’t I think I would get bored. I learned real quick he was right, and I got refocused.”

Van Camp says he always knew Ryan could succeed in the Information Systems program and he was simply encouraging Ryan to reach his potential.

“It is exciting to see all of our students grow intellectually and socially while they are at Marietta College. Ryan is no exception,” Van Camp says. “I saw Ryan grow in confidence academically during his time here. This confidence allowed him to ask more in-depth questions about things we were doing in class. Socially, Ryan interacts very well with the other students in class. We give each other a hard time, in a good way.”

Van Camp says he also appreciates Ryan’s subtle sense of humor.

“Ryan was the master of understatement. He may have set a school record for hurdles during the weekend, but when I would ask him how he did, his reply would be ‘I did OK,’ ” Van Camp says.

Evans says Ryan would be the first person to tell you that his work ethic has positively evolved during his four years at Marietta.

“Not just on the track, but in the classroom as well. His academic improvements and accomplishments have basically mirrored the improvements he has made on the track,” Evans says. “Ryan has become exceptionally good at setting realistic goals for himself, keeping his focus, doing the little things to achieve his goals. Very impressive self-motivation and confidence.”

TOM PERRY M A R I E T T A > 23

Developments

A D VA N C EMEN T N EWS

Rickey professor designs facility to study surface physics R ICKEY SCHOLAR T O COM PLE T E S UM M E R I N T ER N SH I P TO H EL P B U I L D L A B

>

S C HO LARLY RESEARCH Dr. Dennis Kuhl planned and designed many components of the Surface Science Lab, which he’ll construct this summer.

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ROBERT CAPLIN

A

quick glance at your cell phone, tablet or laptop, and you can gain an appreciation for surface physics. “When you look at technology today, the smaller and more condensed, the more appealing it is to consumers,” says Dr. Dennis Kuhl, who is a Rickey Associate Professor of Physics. “So the smaller the device, the more important the surface becomes.”

Deep inside a metal, an atom’s surroundings are symmetric in all directions. At the surface, however, the symmetry is broken in one direction. That broken symmetry leads to important physical effects.

This summer, Kuhl and Rickey Scholar London Bortell ’16 are building a Surface Science Lab on the first floor of the Rickey Science Center in order to study interactions between thin metal surfaces and atoms introduced to those surfaces. When David Rickey ’78 and the J & D Family Foundation donated $10 million to revive the College’s math and science programs, some of that donation provided an endowment to purchase research equipment, and it also funded summer research internships at Marietta for the Physics Department.

During his sabbatical in the fall, Kuhl focused on designing and obtaining components for this lab. Two key components for his lab were the sample mount, which must handle the heating, cooling and positioning of the thin metal film during each experiment, and an ultra-high vacuum chamber.

“If you want to study surface physics, it must be done on a clean surface,” Kuhl says.

The samples, which are gold films that are 150 nanometers thick, will be kept in the vacuum chamber to preserve their surfaces.

“A big part of what I did fall semester was to acquire the equipment for this lab,” Kuhl says. “In addition to the custom-designed pieces, I was able to find secondhand vacuum pumps on eBay and secondhand valves from dealers that were able to rehab them.”

Part of Kuhl’s sabbatical focused on designing the next generation of experiments that could take place in the lab and determined what types of equipment would be needed for the future.

“Down the road, we’re going to need to understand what’s really on the surface,” Kuhl says. “I see the need to eventually add an auger electron spectrometer. That’s going to be one of the ‘big ticket’ add-ons, but that’s what will be able to tell us what’s on the surface.”

Though the space that will eventually become the Surface Science Lab is currently a hodgepodge of cardboard boxes and bubble-wrapped gadgetry, the experience of designing and implementing this research space is exciting work for Kuhl.

“For students, this is one of the great advantages when you attend a small liberal arts college,” Kuhl says. “You can conduct original research one on one with a faculty member that contributes to our ongoing scholarly work.”

GI SMITH

Industry support strengthens academic programs CH EM ISTRY RECEI VE S G I F T F ROM LOCAL COMPA N Y

>

N EW I N STR U MEN T Dr. Bonnie Martinez, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, and Adam Garlow ’17 work with the new Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer that is housed in the Rickey Science Center.

ROBERT CAPLIN

W

hile working at a water filtration and treatment lab last summer, Dr. Jim Jeitler began a dialogue with local company owner Eddy Biehl about the College’s need for a new Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer, an instrument that Adam Garlow ’17 is currently using to research whether certain chemical compounds found in skin products and red wine affect cholesterol levels in melanoma cancer cells.

But before Biehl’s business, Stonebridge Operating Company officially made a $50,000 donation to Marietta College to pay for the instrument, the Chemistry Department collaborated with the Biology, Petroleum Engineering and Geology Departments to ensure that the GC-MS was on campus for the start of the academic year.

“The Chemistry Department owes a deep appreciation for the Biology, Petroleum Engineering and Geology Departments for making this purchase possible,” Jeitler says. “And with the donation from Eddy and the Stonebridge Operating Company, we will be able to purchase other equipment for the Chemistry Department.”

Stonebridge Operating Company is an oil and gas business based in Fleming, Ohio. Jeitler plans to work at its Washington Water Solutions facility again this summer.

“It’s important for faculty to be involved with industry so we can keep our curriculum current,” Jeitler says.

“Not only has Stonebridge enabled us to invest in our lab equipment, the lab has also given me a look into an industry that many of our graduates will be working in: the oil and gas industry.”

The gift marks a step toward one of Jeitler’s main goals, which is to create stronger ties between the Chemistry Department and the petroleum business in southeast Ohio.

“Marietta College is poised to be a large contributor to the growth of the petroleum industry in this area,” he says. “With a liberal arts foundation from Marietta College, our graduates, both in Chemistry and Petroleum Engineering, are well positioned to consider all aspects of the industry.”

Angela Anderson, Director of Advancement, says the partnership between the department and Stonebridge Operating Company made the donation especially meaningful.

“Our science programs have always been and continue to be a vital part of our offerings,” Anderson says.

“This gift is critical so that our students have new and up-to-date equipment.”

Garlow’s work relies on the use of equipment, such as the GC-MS, which separates chemicals and analyzes substances in samples.

“I feel that having access to instrumentation as sophisticated as this gives me a broader understanding of the field of analytical chemistry and chemistry as a whole,” Garlow says.

The new instrument brings Marietta College closer to its peer institutions as far as instrumentation, Jeitler says.

The department hasn’t added any courses because of the new instrument, but faculty are reworking the general chemistry curriculum to focus more heavily on instrumentation-based laboratories.

“The main instrument for this change will be the GC-MS,” Jeitler says.

The GC-MS will also enhance offerings in instrumental analysis, organic chemistry and molecular spectroscopy. For upper-level students, new instrumentation has generated excitement — and a bit of disappointment among those who wish they could have used it in previous classes, Jeitler says.

Garlow says having experience working with the GC-MS is especially beneficial for students who plan to pursue graduate-level education or attend medical school.

The new instrument lets his samples run for hours without supervision, and he’s able to view data and modify his methodology easily.

For him, the instrument has helped refine his technique and enabled him to measure and identify cholesterol and oxidized cholesterol in both qualitative and quantitative ways.

“The GC-MS has been crucial to my research, and my research has been one of the most rewarding intellectual endeavors I have ever undertaken,” Garlow says.

ALISON MATAS

M A R I E T T A > 25

DEFINING MEMORIES OF COLLEGE LIFE

ROBERT CAPLIN

A M ar ie t t a Mo m ent

Chuck Cooper ’89 A LUM NUS DONAT E S T I M E T O PRE S E RVE M A R I ET TA H I ST O RY

B I O GR A PHY Charles “Chuck” Cooper Jr. ’89 attended Marietta College in the 1980s and earned a Microcomputer Systems Specialist Certificate before taking a job in the burgeoning information systems industry.

For alumni like Chuck Cooper ’89, Marietta College is a family legacy.

“I myself, am a great-grandson of a Marietta College instructor, the grandson of a 1923 graduate, and a son of a 1953 graduate,” Chuck says.

“I attended Evening and Day School here during the late 1980s for several years.”

Growing up in Parkersburg, W.Va., Chuck’s ties to Marietta were strong.

When he was a student and his father was transferred out of the area for his job, Chuck lived in longtime Marietta College Registrar and 1923 alumna Lillian Sinclair’s garage apartment. During his time at Marietta, he forged lasting relationships with faculty, particularly Physics Professors Emeriti Drs. Whit Hancock and R. Lester Anderson ’55.

Chuck earned a Microcomputer Systems Specialist Certificate in 1989 and, just as he was about to finish the requirements for a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, he was offered a job out of the area in his field of study.

Like many alumni, Chuck’s affinity for the College remained strong and his hopes for continuing the Marietta legacy were sharply focused on his daughter, Anna.

“So, my dad tried desperately hard to try to get me to come to Marietta College starting in the seventh grade,” Anna says.

Her father knew she wanted to go to college out of her home state of Florida to prepare for veterinary school, which was one of the reasons he often brought up Marietta as a possibility.

“The second (reason) was he had this dream of me fulfilling this lifelong prophecy his father had about me: I would attend school here,” Anna says.

“Ultimately, both did get what they wanted, though I did not make it easy.”

Last fall, Chuck was helping to move his 17-year-old daughter into her freshman housing assignment. Needless to say, he has moved to his family’s farm in Jackson County, W.Va., to be closer to his daughter. Just as he was settling into living at his family’s home place, a package arrived in the mail containing a set of his father’s yearbooks.

“I talked to one of my father’s buddies, Gene Haynes ’53, a local here in the Marietta area, and told him about the yearbooks and he said he’d like to have a copy of one of them,” Cooper says. “So I scanned one in — no big deal — and thought, that was easy; I’ll do all four. Well, then I was hooked.”

Since then, Chuck has given more than 1,000 hours to researching, obtaining and scanning in all of the College’s known yearbooks and other documents — more than 18,000 pages, 100 volumes and 55,000 photographs related to Marietta.

He dedicated his project to two women who contributed to the history of the College: the late Registrar, Lillian Sinclair and the late Dr. Irene Neu Jones ’44.

His reason behind donating his computer expertise?

“Because this is a valuable piece of Marietta College history,” Chuck says.

“It needs preserved and it needs to be accessible.”

GI SMITH

Do you have a defining Marietta Moment you would like to share?

26 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

Send us a description of your experience.

EMAIL: mariettamagazine@marietta.edu

MAIL: Editor, Marietta Magazine, Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing, 215 Fifth Street, Marietta, Ohio 45750

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Support The Pioneer Club today by making your gift at www.marietta.edu/Give. By joining The Pioneer Club, You Are The Marietta Fund!

M A R I E T T A > 27

T H E L O N G BL UE L I N E > ON SHELVES NOW Within months of being inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame, Richard O. Davies ’59 is in the spotlight once again. This time, it’s for the release of his latest book, The Main Event: Boxing in Nevada from the Mining Camps to the Las Vegas Strip.

Published in April this year by the University of Nevada Press and available through Amazon.com, Davies’ book looks at the history of boxing in the state of Nevada. Long before the state was known for high-stakes gambling, an eloping destination and its red-light districts, the sport of boxing drew crowds and moralistic criticism to Nevada.

Davis, who is a preeminent sports historian, earned a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science from Marietta, his master’s degree in History from Ohio University and his Ph.D. in History from the University of Missouri. He was appointed the Distinguished Professor of History, Emeritus in 2011 at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he has taught since 1980. He also taught at Northern Arizona University, the University of Southern California, Memphis State University and the University of Missouri.

In addition to his most recent book, Davies has also written Sports in American Life: A History; Rivals! The Ten Greatest American Sports Rivalries of the 20th Century, Betting the Line: Sports Wagering in American Life (cowritten with Richard G. Abram); Main Street Blues: The Decline of Small-Town America; America’s Obsession: Sports and Society Since 1945; Defender of the Old Guard: John Bricker and American Politics; The Age of Asphalt: The Automobile, the Freeway, and the Condition of Urban America; and Housing Reform During the Truman Administration.

Dianne Wehrs Vezza ’61 recently published Letters Home: George Butler Turner and the 92nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Marietta, Ohio to Missionary Ridge Tennessee, July 1862 to November 1863. Butler was the valedictorian of his 1861 class at

28 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

Marietta College and a member of the Sigma Alpha Phi fraternity. The book, which is available at Amazon.com, is a compilation of 98 letters he wrote to his parents during his journey from Marietta to his death at Missionary Ridge. He is buried in Mound Cemetery in Marietta.

Vezza, who earned a degree in Business Administration from Marietta College and was a member of the Alpha Xi Delta sorority, has also written a book of poetry, In Appalachia Marietta, Ohio — My Hometown and In the Weesome Hours: 1843-1889 (Mary Lackey Williams, The Discovered Journal), a transcriptionof the work of 19th century writer Mary Lackey Williams.

Susan Nisenbaum Becker ’70, who earned a degree in English from Marietta, celebrated the release of her first full-length book of poetry in October 2013. Little Architects of Time and Space was published by Word Poetry. Her book is available through WordPoetryBooks. com/susan_becker.html, Amazon.com, and Barnes and Noble.

Becker’s poetry has also appeared in many literary publications including Avatar Review, Calyx, Comstock Review and Slipstream. In addition to be a poet, she is also a teacher and psychotherapist in the Middleboro, Mass., area.

In addition to being a corporate wellness expert, entrepreneur, fitness presenter, yoga instructor, motivational lecturer and life coach, now Julie Wilkes ’98 can add author to her list of credentials. Her first book, The 7 Life Miracles, was published by Changing Lives Press in February 2014. The book “encourages every person to seek their fullest and happiest life by adopting 7 areas of awareness in their lives.”

Wilkes, a McDonough Leadership Scholar, earned a degree in International Business Management and was a member of the Chi Omega sorority. She also earned a graduate

degree from The Ohio State University in Exercise Physiology. Her book is available at www. changinglivespress.com, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.com.

In his first book, Old Man on Campus, Barry Brownstein PA’06 provides a poignant and humorous look at the circumstances behind his decision to enroll at Marietta College in 2004 and the experiences that the then 58-year-old engineer/ EMT/college student had while on campus.

“The career change from engineering had been gradual, starting when I first blundered into medicine in my late 30s as a hospital volunteer,” Brownstein says. “Later, after a four-month night EMT course, I began volunteering with a local rescue squad. I eventually realized that I enjoyed medicine more than engineering.”

Brownstein set three goals after that realization: he wanted to become a physician assistant; he had to stay connected with his friends and family in Columbus; and he wanted to re-experience college life … “at least to the extent that someone my age could go back in time.”

“From the beginning, I knew that this would be a magical time in my life,” Brownstein says.

“I started keeping notes so that one day I could write a book about my experience, which is how Old Man on Campus got its start.”

In addition to successfully earning his Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Brownstein says he learned many important lessons along the way, which he shares in the book.

“First, you can start something new without abandoning your primary job,” he says. “Second, seeing what it feels like to try something new can help you find your way. And third, having a supportive family means everything.”

The book is available through Amazon.com.

Since his graduation, he’s been a practicing PA at Ohio Heart Group in Columbus, celebrated his 45th wedding anniversary as well as the birth of his sixth grandchild, and he has returned to campus to deliver guest lectures and help select PA program applicants.

“I will never forget Marietta College, the city, and all the wonderful people I met there,” he says. “I hope that my book conveys my appreciation for the gift I was able to experience and also encourages others to follow their own dreams.”

TH E L O N G BL U E L I N E > C L ASS NOTES in nearly a dozen local organizations over a span of more than 61 years.

Additionally Rodger was recognized by the Mayor of Marietta for 16 years of volunteer services to the city as a member and chair of the City Planning Commission. Rodger was the Marietta College rowing coach from 1953-57, and is a retired hospital administrator.

He and Barbara are the proud parents of eight children (one deceased), 15 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren with number 12 on the way.

William E. Hutcheson ’48 (Delta Upsilon) turned 90 on Nov. 22, 2013.

Celebrating with Bill at the Twin Lakes Retirement Center in Montgomery, Ohio, were L. Edward Thomas ’49, Patricia Graham Thomas ’50, Craig E. Gliva ’07, Bill, Emily Mattson Gliva ’10, and Beth Beebe Sullivan ’71 (Sigma Sigma Sigma).

Rodger E. Mendenhall ’52 (Alpha Tau Omega) and his wife, Barbara, were recognized on Dec. 29, 2013 with a congratulatory certificate from the House of Representatives of the 130th General Assembly of Ohio in celebration of their 40th wedding anniversary,

and in appreciation of “giving willingly of their time, energy, and abilities to better the world around them.”

The city of Marietta also recognized Rodger in February with a certificate of appreciation for his outstanding volunteerism, citing extensive involvement

Donald R. Ullmann ’63 has been elected to serve as the 2014 president of the Ohio Retired Teachers Association. His wife, Deloris O. Ullmann (MALL ’88), serves as the association’s webmaster. ORTA has 90 chapters across the state of Ohio.

Christine Fry Burns ’66 (Chi Omega) and George E. Burns ’66 (Delta Upsilon) jointly celebrated turning 70 on Nov. 12, 2013 (although for Chris, the celebration took place a few months early), with a Veterans Day

weekend celebration that included more than 40 family members and friends. The past year has been filled with travels and friends, including joining their Voyage Gastronomique Gang in Provence, France, in September, preceded by hiking in Southern Germany and Switzerland, joining missionary Amy Sticha at the Paris Youth With A Mission (YWAM) conference for 10 days in July, and sailing in the Grenadines in March. Chris retired Jan. 1, 2014, after nearly 44 years of medical practice. She will continue to do some teaching and mission work, and just spend time with George being grandparents to 5-and-a-half-year-old Kailani.

William F. Davis ’66 (Alpha Tau Omega) has retired from his many years of religious service to the Presbytery of Lake Huron. He and his wife, Roxy, have relocated to Port Huron, Mich., on the Black River, which flows into the Great Lakes system. Visitors are always welcome!

> MARTIN “M ARTY” S AG E NDORF ’ 72

Two students stood in front of their class trying to determine why pieces of aluminum of equal weight and size fell at different speeds after being dropped through separate holes in a wooden block. The three physics teachers in the room looked on as young students tried to shake off a serious case of the giggles.

Martin “Marty” Sagendorf ’72 stopped by campus on April 15 to catch up with his former physics professors, Drs. Lester Anderson ’55 and Whit Hancock, who are Marietta College Professors Emeriti. Sagendorf, who spent three decades in a physics-related industry, changed gears at the end of his career and became a high school science teacher.

“It was something I always wanted to do,” he says. He taught at Kaynor Technical High School in Waterbury, Conn., for six years and earned the prestigious distinction of Teacher of the Year for the Connecticut Technical High School System.

During his most recent visit to Marietta, he met with children at the Ely Chapman Education Center to lead an educational and entertaining physics presentation. The children, who ranged from prekindergartners to seventh graders, participated in

experiments that demonstrated physics concepts including energy, mechanics, optics and magnetics.

“Everything is hands on,” says Anderson, who served as his former student’s assistant during the demonstrations.

The engaging and entertaining nature of the physics presentation definitely left the 16 children in the room excited about science, and brought plenty of smiles from the three physics teachers in the room.

Future teacher and McCoy Scholar Tawny Mutchler ’14 was one of the teacher aides at Ely Chapman. She observed the physics teachers engaging the group of young children in various principles of physics. Mutchler was hired by Teach for America to teach special education for two years starting this fall in Chicago and hopes to teach fourth or fifth graders for her career.

“I think this is great,” she says. “The kids love this!”

Sagendorf returned to Connecticut a few days after speaking to the children. He lives in Roxbury with his wife, Kit Dorey Sagendorf ’71.

TORI TAYLOR

Physics alumnus rejoins professors in the classroom

GI SMITH

M A R I E T T A > 29

T H E L O N G BL UE L I N E > CL ASS NOTES Elliott D. Goldberg ’67 (Tau Epsilon Phi) resides in Miami Springs, Fla., but actively practices law between the two law offices of DiGacomo, Goldberg & Levin in both Florida and Pennsylvania.

Elliott is a former assistant district attorney and former special prosecutor in Pennsylvania.

program. She is eagerly looking forward to her June marriage to Charlie Culton.

Helmut E. Reinhardt ’73 heartily lends his support to naming Marietta College’s new mascot “Putnam,” as he was among the several who suggested this name. Helmut’s wife, Dr. Josephine Ruggiero, will be retiring from 41 years of teaching sociology at Providence College in May and has been named Professor Emerita, only the second female at the College to be awarded such status.

Louise Winger Koch ’74 remembers fondly her years at Marietta College with its excellent and unforgettable faculty, the small intimate classes, and the enjoyable three years performing in the College chorus.

Carolanne Griffith Roberts ’69 (Chi Omega) is actively freelancing for corporate, university, and travel publications; she remains a contributing editor for Southern Living magazine after 26 years as Travel, Features and Special Sections editor. She and her husband, Johnny, have traveled to Jordan, Oman, and Qatar respectively for the past three years to facilitate in the Middle East Leadership Academy (MELA) under the auspices of the U.S.-based Society of International Business Fellows. They go next to Tbilisi, Democratic Republic of Georgia, for a related program.

Their son, Fletcher, graduates in August from the University of Alabama.

Philip D. Hopkins ’76 in January 2013 started HelpBags, a company that produces environmentally friendly pet waste bags of recycled plastic and bio material. The company donates a portion of every sale to help an animal in need.

Thomas C. Weber, Jr. ’84 has been named 2013 National Advisor of the Year by Table Bay Financial Network, winning this highly competitive and prestigious award for the second year in a row. Tom is the financial executive of PinnacleSource Financial Solutions in northwest Ohio.

Daniel J. McIntosh ’88 won the 2013 Two Mile Open Water Swimming National Championship last August in Lake Placid, N.Y., in the 45-49 age group. Also, taking first place in the competition for the 70-75 Age Group was Dan’s father, Don McIntosh. It was the first time ever that Dan had posted a faster time than his 70-year-old father in any distance race. Dan did not begin competitive swimming until 2006, but his father has won around a dozen U.S. Masters and expects to be competing in the over 100-year-old age group in 30 years. Dan, owner of Forthn-Goal Sports, a sports shop in Middlebury, Vt., and his father keep in shape enjoying their daily 6 a.m. swims in Lake Dunmore.

Ante Up Poker Cruises, a division of Ante Up Poker Media, which is owned

by Scott Long ’94, was recently named one of the Top 12 Ultimate Guy Getaways by The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ wicked-good-travel-tips/pump-up-thetestosterone-_b_5153121.html

Katharine Squibb Smith ’69 is enjoying writing for a historical society magazine in Maryland, the Glade Star, and teaching contract and duplicate bridge. She finds it particularly fun to share the history with her grandchildren on trips to historical sites.

Janet Miller Foran ’73 has retired after 28 years as a communications specialist with the Michigan Department of Transportation and spokesperson for the train and bus systems and the Adopt-a-Highway 30 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

Matthew W. Hulver ’92 was recently named the head of the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise at Virginia Tech. Matthew has been a member of the faculty of the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences since 2006. At Virginia Tech he has collaborated on studies that explored metabolic changes and their effect on ovarian cancer. He has also, in association with the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge and the Falin Life Science Institute, been involved in research to understand the role of skeletal muscle metabolism in the pathology of chronic metabolic diseases such as Type 2 diabetes.

Matthew has a Ph.D. in exercise physiology from the University of Kansas.

Jeffrey J. Waldman ’81 (Tau Epsilon Phi), TEP Jam Band alumnus emeritus, has been sworn in as a judge of the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey. Assigned to the Family Division, Children in Court section, Jeff lives in Atlantic County with his wife, Maria, daughter, Melanie, and son, Matthew.

Amy Ewart Sibbing ’93 (Alpha Xi Delta), after two and a half years in business, has incorporated her Pet Sitting to the Max in-home pet care service as an LLC and is also opening up a new pet care facility, Camp Max. Amy’s business serves pet owners in the Sunnyvale, Calif. area and donates a portion of the earnings to the Humane Society Silicon Valley.

TH E L O N G BL U E L I N E > C L ASS NOTES

Tara Tuten Owens ’03 (Sigma Kappa) and her husband, Whitney S. Owens, celebrated the birth of their son, Thatcher Thomas, on July 3, 2013. He was welcomed into The Long Blue Line by his late great-grandfather Roger D. Sowers ’57 (Alpha Tau Omega), grandfather Keith E. Tuten ’77 (Alpha Sigma Phi), great-uncle Thomas G. Sowers ’77, and great-aunt Rachel Tuten Klinger ’90 (Chi Omega).

Tara’s parents have handed down to Thatcher the T-shirt that was a gift from Marietta College when Tara was born.

Adrienne Sommers King ’04 was named director of the Idaho State University Office of Marketing and Communication. Adrienne previously served as director of Relations and Communications at West Virginia University Institute of Technology and director of marketing for the University of Charleston (W.Va.). Adrienne earned her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership in Higher Education Administration from West Virginia University.

Robert S. Johnson ’05 was recognized by the Philadelphia Business Journal as one of 2014’s top “40 under 40.” Rob is the vice president of business development for the Philadelphia Flyers and has led the Flyers to the top spot in the NHL for a number of digital media and mobile metrics.

Rob is also competitive outside of the office, rowing for Fairmount Rowing Club and running annually in the Philadelphia Marathon and Broad Street Run.

Sarah Clapp Work ’04 and husband, Ryan, had their third baby girl on Jan. 11, 2014. Theresa Charlotte (Tessa, for short) is doing great, and Maggie and Lyra are wonderful big sisters.

Timothy W. Byers ’06 (Lambda Chi Alpha), Valerie Tharp Byers ’04 and ’06 (Chi Omega) and big brother, William, welcomed Samantha Valerie Byers into their family on Oct. 19, 2013, in The Woodlands, Texas.

Samantha is excited to join her parents, her uncle Chad P. Byers ’10, and her grandfather Paul W. Byers ’08 as a future member of The Long Blue Line.

Erin C. Carlin ’08 (Chi Omega) recently joined Mindful Kreative, Inc. as an account executive. Erin will be managing integrated campaigns that include strategic marketing communications, public relations, advertising, media strategy and buying for a variety of clients. She also volunteers her marketing and communications support to the National Parkinson Foundation of Western Pennsylvania. Erin graduated in April 2014 with of Master of Arts in Mass Communications and Journalism from Point Park University. During her time as a graduate student, she presented a graduate poster titled “Application of Rhetorical Strategies, Semiotics, and Framing on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report” at the 74th annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Communication Association at Gannon University. She remains involved with the Chi Omega Fraternity as an alumna, serving as the President of the Pittsburgh Chi Omega Alumnae Chapter since 2012. Due to her dedication, she was selected as one of 18 sisters invited to the national headquarters to participate in the Flagship Session of the Nancy Walton Laurie Leadership Institute of Chi Omega in February 2012.

Jennifer McVay-Dyche ’99 (Alpha Xi Delta) has been promoted to associate dean of Excelsior College’s Center for Online Education, Learning and Academic Services. She received her doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Dayton in December 2013.

Krista P. Tkacz ’09 received an Associate of Science in Nursing

degree in December 2013 from Harcum College, located in Bryn Mawr, Pa. She was also the recipient of the Harcum College Faculty Award, which is awarded to a student in recognition of his/her superior academic success and embodiment of the “strength of conviction and heart of nursing.” Krista accepted a position as a registered nurse with the AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Pomona, N.J.

M A R I E T TA > 31

T H E L O N G BL UE L I N E > I N MEMORIA M

IN

MEMORIAM

> 1930s Barbara Taylor Doyle ’39 (Chi Omega) of Cincinnati, Ohio (1/3/2014).

Survivors include her daughter Kathleen Doyle ’77.

Merle E. Thrasher ’50 (Alpha Tau Omega) of Alexandria, Ohio (3/5/2014).

William F. Engle ’53 of Belmont, W.Va. (7/27/2013). Survivors include his daughter Edith Engle McAtee ’89.

Olive Jackson Shannon ’39 of Santa Ynez, Calif. (2/22/2014).

Marceline M. Schneider ’53 (Sigma Kappa) of Newport, Ohio (2/18/2014).

> 1950s

Marie Brosch Magee ’54 of Cincinnati, Ohio (1/14/2014). Survivors include her husband Neil F. Magee ’51.

Rolin O. Becker ’50 of Venice, Fla. (1/24/2014). Survivors include his daughter Becky Becker Bishop ’85.

Carroll E. Irvine ’50 of Belpre, Ohio (2/2/2014).

Ralph N. Thayer ’50 of Grand Rapids, Mich. (1/9/2014). Survivors include his wife Els Boekman Thayer ’50.

William W. Ward ’54 (Lambda Chi Alpha) of Winter Haven, Fla. (2/5/2014).

R. Donald Armiger, Jr. ’57 (Alpha Sigma Phi) of Norwalk, Conn.

(2/19/2014).

T. Jane Roth Schreiber ’58 (Chi Omega) of Aurora, Ohio (1/10/2014).

Survivors include her husband Ted D. Schreiber ’58 (Lambda Chi Alpha), her son Howard E. Schreiber ’81, and her daughter Cynthia Schreiber Settles ’79 (Sigma Kappa).

> 1960s Richard T. Kulp ’60 (Alpha Tau Omega) of Rochester, N.H. (2/28/2014).

Clark A. Elliott ’63 (Phi Beta Kappa) of Waltham, Mass. (2/1/2014). Survivors include his wife Priscilla Jordan Elliott ’63.

Russell W. Barrett ’64 of Florence, S.C. (3/10/2014).

Raymond H. Hopp ’65 (Alpha Phi Omega) of Montvale, N.J. (1/14/2014).

Richard R. Foley ’66 (Delta Upsilon) of Douglas, Mass. (2/27/2014).

Patricia Miller Bennett ’67 (Alpha Gamma Delta) of Dacula, Ga. (2/4/2014).

> 1980s Robert L. Clay ’82 (Lambda Chi Alpha) of Columbus, Ohio (1/9/2014).

> 1990s Sepp M. Egger ’93 (Alpha Sigma Phi) of Lee’s Summit, Mo. (1/15/2014).

Nancy Eitel Reeves ’64 (Alpha Xi Delta) of Sturgis, Mich. (2/24/2014).

Licensing program helps College manage ‘our’ brand

GI SMITH

32 < S P R I N G 2 0 1 4

RYAN ZUNDELL

U

ntil recently, anyone could sell products featuring Marietta College’s name without the College’s consent or knowledge.

In fact, Marietta had no legal recourse to prevent how its name was used.

Recognizing this as a serious problem, the College partnered with Strategic Marketing Affiliates (SMA) to institute a trademark and licensing program for Marietta. SMA is an experienced firm that is responsible for processing license applications, coordinating artwork approvals and enforcing trademark infractions. The Office of Strategic Communications & Marketing manages the program on campus and approves all licensees and artwork.

The program has been in place for a little more than a year, and the College has already benefitted from another function that SMA is providing Marietta: a royalty program.

“At this point, the College has received a few thousand dollars of revenue from the program. What you have to consider, though, is for the past 30 years, the College has given this money away. Also, over time, the revenue we see through the program will grow,” says Tom Perry, Executive Director of Strategic Communications & Marketing. “While adding a small revenue source for the College is important, we believe the need to manage the brand and identity of Marietta College was the most pressing reason to partner with SMA. We have already seen an improvement in the quality of products that are being sold, and Marietta College materials are being sold in our local Kmart and Walmart.”

The College currently has 50-60 licensees producing everything from pennants and T-shirts to coffee mugs and diploma frames. While they pay a licensing fee, that fee is waived for products produced internally for Marietta College.

“So far the program has been a big success. We’ve had a few minor hiccups involving logo use, but because of our partners at SMA, they have been resolved quickly,” says Ryan Zundell ’93, Director of Creative Services. “As an alumnus, it’s also nice to know whenever I buy anything with the College’s logo or name on it, I know in some way I am supporting Marietta financially, as a licensing fee has been paid by a vendor and a part of that goes back to the College.”

PHOTOS BY ROBERT CAPLIN

Marietta professors set to retire in May

M

ichael Taylor considers the first class he taught at Marietta College to be when he addressed the faculty during the August convocation in 1977.

He spoke for 15 minutes about how professors could teach religion to undergraduate students.

“It was well received,” Taylor says, “and I felt the faculty was a welcoming one genuinely interested in intellectual issues.”

Taylor and Education Professor Constance Golden will both retire at the end of the year after decades of service to the College. Both say they stayed because of the relationships they formed with their colleagues and students.

“One of the nicest features of Marietta College is its size,” Golden says. “I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know and becoming friends with professors in other disciplines.”

‘I hope students see the world differently’ Taylor’s favorite method of teaching is storytelling.

“Dr. James O’Donnell eventually nicknamed me ‘The Great Hyperbolator,’ which I take as a compliment,” he says.

Taylor taught at the College for 37 years. He began as a professor of religious studies before earning his master’s in business administration so he could lecture in the Business and Economics department. He’s been named a Harness Fellow and McCoy Professor and received a research award for his book Spinning Wheels and Accessories and an advising award.

Greg Delemeester, Professor of Economics, says among faculty members Taylor is routinely sought for advice. “As a colleague, Mike is a strategic thinker — he has an uncanny ability to see the forest for the trees,” Delemeester says.

During his tenure, Taylor helped launch the College’s China program after a yearlong sabbatical. About 100 students from China have enrolled at Marietta College each year for the past 20 years, and Taylor has traveled to China 14 times, teaching there three semesters.

“I hope students see the world differently and with better focus after taking my classes,” Taylor says.

‘A window for them to look through’ When Golden joined the faculty in 1988, professors were using a waxstencil machine to make copies of tests and handouts.

Now, she relies on online research and has her students complete projects that involve technology.

In her 26 years at the College, Golden chaired the Education Department, secured a grant to expand technology and appeared as a regular lecturer at conferences related to the use of technology in teaching.

Dr. Dottie Erb, Professor of Education, has worked with Golden on some of these projects. She says Golden emerged as the leader of the department in that arena.

“She is recognized by everyone in the department as a technology mentor and our own personal technology guru,” Erb says.

While at Marietta, Golden also directed the Women in the Sciences (WITS) program — a summer camp for girls in grades five through eight.

She hired the College’s education students to be teaching assistants and camp counselors.

“I hope my students feel that I opened a window for them to look through and a door for them to pass through into a career of working with young people,” Golden says.

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T H E PRO G RESSIVE PIONEER

Katherine Knight Kimble ’09 ALUMNA REFLECTS ON HER AFFINITY FOR MARIETTA

B I O GRAPHY: After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 2009, Kate

Knight Kimble couldn’t get enough of Marietta College and stayed to finish her Master of Arts in Psychology in 2010. After completing her degrees, Kate moved on to law and graduate school at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she is fortunate enough to be pursuing her J.D. and Ph.D. in Social Psychology in a unique and competitive dual program. While she and her husband, Jeff ’09, enjoy their lives out West and have learned a lot about what it means to be Cornhuskers, they both miss the gorgeous campus, outstanding faculty and unforgettable friends they made at Marietta College.

> “The intersection of law and psychology is a fascinating area to study. Law is saturated with assumptions about human behavior — some accurate, some inaccurate — which create the perfect setting for psychologists to study human behavior. I am extremely fortunate to have received a quality education from such a great place. The skills I learned at Marietta College, both inside and outside the classroom, have prepared me to work in this interdisciplinary field with seasoned veterans and students alike. I often think about how excited, nervous, eager and interested I felt on my first day of class at Marietta. Every time I work with new students, I try to recreate a similar experience for them, hoping they create unforgettable experiences of their own.”