Saint Vincent Magazine Spring 2012 by Saint Vincent College

SAINT VINCENT M A G A Z I N E

Saint Vincent Students Complete Service Project in Guatemala

SPRING/SUMMER 2012

Upcoming Campus

Events

Summer Theatre Gala July 13: 6:30 p.m., Carey Student Center

Get Acquainted Days July 21 and August 4: Registration 8:45 to 9:00 a.m.

VIP reception for “The Chief,” and exhibit of “Art” July 17: 6 p.m., Fred Rogers Center

Freshman Move in Day August 24: 9:30 a.m.

Zara Wallace has been accepted to 7 law schools.

Homecoming 2012 October 5-7: 1 p.m.

Athletic Hall of Fame September 8: 5 p.m.

New Horizons Lecture Series October 25: 7:30 p.m.

Founders’ Day November 15: 4 p.m.

Wimmer Exam, November 17: 9 a.m., Fred Rogers Center

December Commencement December 15: 11 a.m.

From

Saint Vincent to Washington & Lee

has been a lucky number for years: the Chinese consider it lucky and a symbol of “togetherness.” It is also recognized as fortunate in the West. At Saint Vincent it was a good number this spring for Zara Wallace, C’12, who was accepted at seven law schools. He will attend Washington and Lee University School of Law, Lexington, Virginia, joining Ryan Hrobak, C’11, who is also studying law there. A graduate of Pompano Beach High School, Wallace was recruited as a free safety for the football team, where he served as team captain this past season and made the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Academic Honor Roll. The Dean’s List student from Fort Lauderdale has always liked history, so he majored in his favorite subject and minored in sociology. “Dr. Tim Kelly has been a great mentor,” said Wallace. Other influential history depatment faculty members were Dr. Karen Kehoe; advisor, Dr. Tina Johnson; and Dr. Thaddeus Coreno, sociology. Wallace, who maintained a 4.0 grade point average, attributes the Saint Vincent Opportunity Office with “providing me with the resources to be successful, whether it was their book lending program, professional math tutoring, or academic advising via Jeff Mallory. I am eternally grateful for their help and forever indebted to Nancy Rottler for her steadfast assistance, in conjunction with the Archabbot in helping me finance the trip for a legal seminar in July.” “He is one of the finest history majors that we have graduated since I have come here,” Kelly said. “He is bright, inquisitive, insightful, articulate, and affable. He was, and is still to a large degree, a quiet student, and so it was not until I read his first essay that I realized how talented he really is. Zara is one of those rare students who has a tremendous skill set—an insightful critical reader, a fluid essayist, an unusual ability to see context and nuance as well as the big picture—and a friendly, easy going, welcoming manner. He is an accomplished athlete, but seems just as at home in the cerebral world of ideas and study. I wish that we had a dozen Zara Wallaces at Saint Vincent and I know that he will be a great success.” “I knew I wanted to do something after college,” said Wallace. “My family immigrated to the United States when I was eleven, from Jamaica. My professors wanted me to go to graduate school, get my Ph.D. and become a professor. I want to practice immigration law, to give back.” —Kim Metzgar

Saint Vincent College continues to provide a quality liberal arts and sciences education to our students—such as Zara and Ryan—that gives them opportunities, but we can only do that with your help. Scholarship assistance is critical for all of our students. To help, call 724-805-2895.

Departments

President’s Message

Features 5

Guatemala Research; Stepping up for Homeschoolers; Dr. Thomas Greubel, C’49; five earn tenure; Science Center students: where they are now.

SPRING BREAK SERVICE

Sports 28 Baseball in their blood; basketball, tennis, and swimming success.

News Briefs 35

Interning in China; Early Learning apps; McKenna School alumni group forms.

Commencement 2012

Faculty 41 Dr. Susan Summers publishes book; other faculty books, honors, and awards.

Alumni

Arctic Priest

S a in t V inc e n t M a g a z ine ARCHABBOT AND CHANCELLOR Rt. Rev. Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B. PRESIDENT Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B. EDITOR Kim Metzgar svmagazine@email.stvincent.edu

Spring/Summer 2012 Volume 9, Issue 3

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Saint Vincent Quarterly (United States

Liz Cousins

Postal Service Publication Number

Sherrie E. Dunlap

USPS 5144-8000) is published by Saint Vincent College, Latrobe, Pennsylvania,

Kim Metzgar

for alumni, parents and friends.

Jerome Oetgen

Third class postage paid at Latrobe,

Don Orlando

Pennsylvania. Postmaster: Send address

Sports Information Office

changes to the Alumni Office, Saint Vincent College, 300 Fraser Purchase

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Road, Latrobe, PA 15650-2690.

DESIGN

Public Relations Office

Kim Metzgar & Jordan Hainsey

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Saint Vincent College subscribes

Office of Alumni Relations

to a policy of equal opportunity

Jordan Hainsey

and does not discriminate against

Kim Metzgar

any individual on the basis of

Julie Pomerleau

race, color, national origin,

PRINTING Laurel Valley Graphics ALUMNI NEWS COORDINATOR Mary Ann Dunlap

Last of an era; marathoning in 50 states and D.C.; recent alum donating kidney; bicycling for affordable housing; alumni news.

religion, sex, age, veteran status or

Ivy Schoonover

disability in any of its programs, admission or employment

PROOFREADER

decisions.

Carol Riddle

Cover Photo: Saint Vincent student Michelle Mitchell is surrounded by children on the Guatemala spring break service trip. Photo by Ivy Schoonover.

A Message From The President Dear Alumni and Friends,

ervice learning programs and mission trips have become commonplace currently in higher education. The cover story of this Magazine features faculty and student engagement in Guatemala during this past spring break. The experience for our students was not common: it has been life altering. Our commencement speaker, Fr. Rick Frechette, offered a culminating articulation of this religious education among the poor. His story is exceptional and I refer you not only to the article in this magazine but suggest his book, The God of Tough Places, The Lord of Burnt Men, where you will read:

Those who believe in God go through life trying to see how God is present in any moment, and what God’s presence is saying. We look for light, and its message. This is harder to do in times of darkness. When things are especially rough, light can seem altogether absent. It is never totally absent, but it takes an eye trained in God’s school (the school of prayer) to recognize its shape and intensity… Every word of the Bible is written for today, not yesterday. Beneath the most ordinary, or the most difficult, or the most brutish situations of life there is a light of us to see, and it bears a wondrous message of God’s love. It is always there, as a gift, when we pray for the right eyes to see it. Please note the schedule of upcoming events, but in particular, our homecoming, October 5 – 7. Hope to see you then.

Br. Norman President

Tree Planting The Student Government Association planted a weeping cherry tree on the lawn in front of Prep Hall on the Saint Vincent College campus on May 2 in memory of the late Matthew Russo, a junior elementary education major who died on December 7, 2011. Taking part in the ceremony were, from left, Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., president; Mara Greiner, SGA junior class president; Thomas F. Cocchi, Jr., SGA executive board president; and the Rt. Rev. Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., archabbot and chancellor. Plans for a scholarship in Mr. Russo’s memory were also announced. Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Preparing to dig a foundation for a classroom addition are front, from left, the group’s interpreter, Andres; Michael Pater; Ivy Schoonover, Michelle Mitchell; Carolyn Claybrooks; Olivia Sharkey, Ashley Nowicki; back, from left, Dr. Elaine Bennett, Deacon Kevin Fazio, a Saint Vincent seminarian from the Diocese of Pittsburgh; Julie Pomerleau; and Dr. Christopher McMahon. In the wheelbarrow, a local student, Jorge, “supervises.”

Spring Break Service

Gives

HOPE

Children Raised in Guatemalan Squatter Communities

—Liz Cousins

Christopher McMahon, an associate professor of theology, and Elaine Bennett, assistant professor of anthropology, led the students on the eight-day servicelearning trip, working with an organization called International Samaritan. This trip marked McMahon’s third as a member of the Saint Vincent College faculty, although he had worked with International Samaritan previously. This was Bennett’s first trip with International Samaritan, although she is familiar with Guatemala from living there with her family for a year while completing research for her doctoral dissertation (see sidebar).

elping to dig foundations for a school for kids who live in a garbage dump in Guatelmala City, Guatemala, doesn’t fit the sun and sand image that accompanies the words “Spring Break trip,” but for seven Saint Vincent College students, one seminary student, and two faculty members, that is the basis for a spring break to remember.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Buzzards perch in a tree overlooking the dump, populated with foragers, in Guatemala City. Photo by Julie Pomerleau According to McMahon, “They first set up a guarderia, International Samaritan or nursery school, at the entrance hese squatter communities works to establish outreach to the dump so the parents can ministries that are sustainable leave their children instead of live off the garbage that beyond the lifetime of the taking the whole family into sponsoring organization the dump to work,” he said. ends up in the dump in the middle of by working with local The organization also sets up a Guatemala City. They also collect the stakeholders and government nutrition program at the nursery, officials who will continue and then psychological services recyclables and form co-ops that sell to support the programs. with the aid of local government. International Samaritan’s The second phase of International what is collected, in bulk, to recyclers. mission is focused on garbage Samaritan’s operations is to start dump communities, primarily a school. “School is compulsory They earn $3 to $4 a day doing that. in Guatemala, El Salvador, in Guatemala up to sixth grade,” Honduras, Panama, Haiti and McMahon said. “But these are very —Dr. Chris McMahon Egypt. poor people, so often they only go “These squatter communities until second grade.” live off the garbage that ends The Guatemala City school is up in the dump in the middle named for Francisco Coll, founder of Guatemala City,” McMahon of the Dominican order that runs it. said. “They also collect the “A couple of the teachers actually recyclables and form co-ops that sell what is collected, in grew up in the dump,” McMahon said. “They were able to bulk, to recyclers. They earn $3 to $4 a day doing that.” continue going to school, and now they help to supply an McMahon explained that the program, as set up by avenue for kids and families to be in school, stay in school, International Samaritan, is basically triage. and have a means to eventually bring their families out of

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Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Professor’s Research Improves Nutrition for Children in Guatemalan Village

Dr. Elaine Bennett and daughters, Elizabeth, 6, and Helena, 2.

ssistant professor of anthropology Dr. Elaine Bennett spent parts of 2007 and 2008 living in Santa Cruz la Laguna, a small indigenous village located in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. She lived there with her husband and then3-year-old daughter to document rates of childhood malnutrition within the village. The issue of malnutrition of these children from birth to

toward improving nutrition and complementary feeding practices. “In 2011, I was able to confirm that the programs we instituted in 2007 and 2008 caused a change in maternal knowledge about nutrition for children from birth to 36 months,” Bennett said. “There is much more awareness and openness to thinking about the issue of malnutrition in young children.” “The longer I work with the community,” Bennett said. “The better I can understand what is going on.” —Liz Cousins

age five was her focus. As part of her work in 2008, Bennett developed nutritional messages to deliver to mothers when their children were six to eight months old, 10 to 12 months old, and 12 to 18 months old. The doctors and staff members of the local medical clinic, Clinica Medica Maya enlisted Bennett to develop a culturally-based, community-oriented nutrition education program that would encourage complementary feeding practices and growth monitoring in the village. Complementary feeding is the addition of solid foods to the diet of an exclusively breastfed infant. According to research, the ideal timing for introductory feeding is approximately six months of age and the complementary feeding process continues until a child has weaned to a diet entirely dependent on family foods (usually between the ages of 18 and 36 months in this village). Such a program was needed because, based on Bennett’s research, 68 percent of village children between newborn and 36 months showed stunted growth, a sign of chronic undernourishment. The nutrition education program that was developed involved an innovative model and culturally-tailored themes based on extensive ethnographic research. She returned to the village in the summer of 2011 with her husband and daughters and was able to confirm her findings from 2007 and 2008. By summer of 2011, a full cohort of children had been born and grown to the age of 36 months with the benefit of increased community awareness of nutrition issues and targeted messages educating mothers Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Belcourt, North Dakota, on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation. “I remember returning to my dorm room when we got back from Guatemala and being so grateful for the comforts that I’d always taken for granted,” Pomerleau said. “Every time I eat a big meal, I can’t help but think of the kids there who hardly get enough to eat.” The group spends approximately two hours per day in prayer, according to McMahon. They pray both morning and evening office, using a psalter and readings specifically chosen for the trip. They are also required to complete a reflective journaling exercise. Five students on the trip participated for course credit, enrolled in McMahon’s Living Theology in Guatemala class. “The Office of Service Learning is an academic office,” McMahon added, “not part of Campus Ministry. The Saint Vincent College service-learning endeavors are not just spiritual or missionary trips. They must have an educational component.” Following the trip, the students do a debrief, and complete small research projects related to their major. “It’s difficult to describe what an impact this trip had on me and the others,” Pomerleau said. “I feel like every time I do service, the people I think I am going to serve end up serving me and teaching me so much more than I could ever give in return. I am so grateful for this experience and will continue to think of the people we met for years to come.” “The demands of the Gospel require practical wisdom as well as spiritual gifts,” McMahon said. “Fellowship makes hope concrete.”

the dump.” As part of the service on this trip, Saint Vincent College students and Kevin Fazio, a fourth year Saint Vincent seminarian from the Diocese of Pittsburgh, worked side by side with older students and employees of the Francisco Coll school to dig the foundations for two additional classrooms. “Now hope is not an abstraction for these kids,” McMahon said. “Hope is something that’s concrete.” On every trip McMahon leads, the schedule is similar. “We do school work with the kids in the morning, from about 7:30 to 12:15,” he said. “In the afternoon, we work on a building project.” According to McMahon, there are no textbooks, audiovisual equipment, or computers in the school. They use white boards as the main teaching aid. “The classrooms are tiny, tiny spaces. There are 42 kids in a room approximately 12 feet by 20 feet,” he said. “There are two first-grade and two second-grade classrooms with 40 kids each, then a single classroom houses the third- through sixth-grade classes. The 80 that started in first grade has shrunk to 30 kids by sixth grade.” Fazio made his second trip with McMahon this year. The Diocese of Pittsburgh parish where he is spending his deacon internship, Saint Maurice in Forest Hills, helped to fund his trip as did Saint Paul Seminary in Pittsburgh. “We are received with a joy and a love that is beyond description,” Fazio said. “The children clamor with each other to grab your hand, and cling to you for attention. They enjoy giving ‘high-fives’ and they ask how their names translate into English. In the end, they just want to be loved, and to share love as only they know how.” Julie Pomerleau is a senior majoring in theology and psychology. While this was her first trip through the Office of Service Learning, she has made several other service trips through Campus Ministry. She also spent two months in the summer of 2010 at Saint Ann’s Summer Camp in

Saint Vincent Magazine

Below, from left, Olivia Sharkey, Julie Pomerleau, Ashley Nowicki, Carolyn Claybrooks, Ivy Schoonover and Michelle Mitchell get ready to work on the foundation.

Spring/Summer 2012

“D

eep inside of each of you a journey is being traced. The journey is a dance with many partners: You, God, the deep molding life does to you, and the wonderful mystery of goodness, and the insidious presence of evil. The movements of this dance bring choices to you. Your ongoing choices shape your destiny. —Father Richard Frechette, commencement address, May 12, 2012

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Saint Vincent Presents Missionary Priest-Doctor With Honorary Degree By Jerome Oetgen

ne day, not long after the earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people in Port-au-Prince, an American journalist came to Haiti and interviewed Father Rick Frechette at his children’s hospital in the Portau-Prince suburb of Tabarre. The journalist, shocked by the devastation he saw everywhere he looked, remarked that the country was “a disaster.” “You see it as a disaster because of the earthquake,” Father Rick told the journalist. “But it’s always been a disaster.” Indeed disaster is the ordinary condition of Haiti, and has been for as long as anyone can remember. For years

Father Rick Frechette gives the commencement address to the Class of 2012. Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Haiti has been a country plagued by social chaos, political corruption, natural catastrophes, and uncontrolled crime, where the unemployment rate hovers around 80 percent and over half the population survives on less than two dollars a day. Half of Haiti’s children are undersized as a result of malnutrition, and AIDS alone has left more than 200,000 orphans. It’s a country where the apocalyptic scourges of poverty, ignorance, disease, and violence are endemic, and where life expectancy is forty-six years. Women and children are especially vulnerable. Many Haitian mothers believe that finding a place for their young ones in an orphanage—where they will have shelter, protection, and three meals a day— is equivalent to getting them a full scholarship to Harvard. Father Rick, who operates several orphanages in Haiti, says that these mothers will often visit their children on family days, pretending they’re the children’s aunts. They fear that if they’re known to be their mothers, orphanage authorities might make them take the children back to the slums or the tent cities where they came from. Father Rick has spent the past twenty-five years of his life serving the poor of Haiti with selfless, unassuming, joyful devotion. At age 59, he is by Haitian standards an old man. But you’d never think so, looking at him. He is a strong and powerful man, built like a linebacker. His energy is incredible, his compassion all-consuming. Those who labor side-by-side with him say he never flinches from hard, exhausting, back-breaking work—be it giving medical care to the sick, constructing buildings, or burying the dead. They say he is tireless and unremitting in his love for and passion to serve the poor, the suffering, the marginalized. During the particularly violent years of the 1990s, when it was suggested that he and his staff leave Haiti,

Father Rick’s response was, “How could we leave the children? What kind of shepherd would leave when the wolf comes?” The journalist who did the interview after the earthquake wrote a profile of him which appeared in a national U.S. weekly magazine. The headline was “Love Among the Ruins.” Born in 1953, Richard Frechette grew up in Connecticut and went to Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts, where he graduated with degrees in math and philosophy. He then went to St. John’s University in New York and afterwards joined the Congregation of the Passion and spent four years as a student of theology. In 1979, he was ordained a Passionist priest and took up duties in a Baltimore parish. The mission of the Congregation of the Passion is to “remember the cross of Christ” and to “proclaim God’s love for the world through service to those who suffer.” For the Passionists, remembering the cross of Christ means serving those in the world who bear the cross today: the poor, the disabled, the sick, the dying, the grieving, the spiritually bereft, the isolated and the alone—all those who bear the burden of suffering. In order to better serve Christ’s poor, Father Rick went to Mexico to study Spanish so that back in the United States he could work more effectively with poor Spanishspeaking immigrants. But in Mexico he met a priest whose work among the poor became an inspiration for him and changed his life. Father William Wasson was an American missionary working in Mexico among orphaned and abandoned children. In 1954, he began a series of homes for these children under the umbrella of an organization he called Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (“Our Little Brothers and Sisters”). It was to one of these—an old hacienda

From left, Brother Norman Hipps, O.S.B., College President; Father Richard Frechette, who received an honorary doctorate from Saint Vincent College; Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., Chancellor; and J. Christopher Donahue, Chairman, Saint Vincent College Board of Directors.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

The January 2010 converted to a home for nearly 1,000 children—that earthquake and Father Rick came to learn Spanish. He joined Father subsequent cholera Wasson’s mission and remained to work among the poor epidemic significantly of the undeveloped world for the rest of his life. increased the work of From Mexico he went to Honduras, where he helped Father Rick and his establish another orphanage for Nuestros Pequeños Passionist mission Hermanos. Then in 1986, he and Father Wasson traveled in Haiti. But despite to Haiti at the invitation of Mother Teresa’s Sisters of the new burdens, he Charity to see what they could do to help relieve the expanded the work suffering of children in that poor country. of the mission. The sisters were caring for babies born of dying St. Damien’s, mothers, frequently sick with AIDS. Many of the babies which was did not survive, but those who did needed care, love, only minimally and a place to live. Father Wasson and Father Rick visited damaged by the their hospice, saw the great need, and felt called to help. earthquake, served “Being from Connecticut, Mexico was a shock for as a hub for the me,” he later said. “But Haiti was beyond words. The trauma care of dire poverty. The filth, the chaos. Everything. It was a quake victims—all disaster.” the other hospitals He sought and received Father Wasson’s blessing to in the area were remain there, but Father Wasson warned that he would destroyed. The have to undertake the mission alone. There was no one else available to go with him to Haiti. Without knowing a soul, or even he people of Haiti have shown the language—he is now fluent in both Creole and time and time again that when you French, along with six other languages—Father have lost everything but faith, hope and Rick settled into the love, you still have everything. country and established an orphanage for the —Father Richard Frechette, children of AIDS victims on the outskirts of Portcommencement address, May 12, 2012 au-Prince. He never looked back. Quickly discovering that much of the work hospital provided he had to do required medical knowledge, he returned to maternity and the United States in 1994 to earn a medical degree from neonatal care as the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine. Then as a well. More than 50 newly-minted physician, he went back to Haiti to serve babies were born at both the spiritual and physical needs of the poor. One of St. Damien’s in the his first undertakings upon his return was to build the first three months country’s most advanced pediatric medical facility, St. after the quake. Damien’s, a 250-bed hospital, which each year provides Father Rick’s long-term care to critically ill children and outpatient hospital also became services to more than 17,000 children and adults. one of the premier In addition, Father Rick directs the St. Hélène’s orthopedic medical Orphanage, which cares for more than 450 children. He centers in Haiti, provides food and clean drinking water for thousands helping victims of of poor people in the slums each day; organizes “street the earthquake schools” to provide basic education for the children of who had bone these slums; leads teams who recover and bury bodies of and limb injuries. the poor who die alone and abandoned on the streets of In just the first Port-au-Prince, and spends five mornings a week working three weeks after alongside the Sisters of Charity in their centers for the the earthquake, sick and destitute dying.

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Saint Vincent Magazine

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y God’s grace, we can become perfected, rather than destroyed, by suffering. It is the power of the risen Christ, present in any heart that will make room for Him. It is the deep inner faith that bends the floodwaters of tragedy into life-giving rivers of life. It is what can make any ordinary person great, even heroic. It is what can help us get up over and over again, stronger and more determined. It is resurrection, the hidden power of the soul, gift of the Risen Lord.” —Father Richard Frechette, Saint Vincent Magazine Commencement Address, May 12, 2012

medical personnel at the hospital treated more than 10,000 adults and children and performed thousands of surgeries. Responding quickly to unexpected needs, Father Rick also established a campground next to the hospital for children and adults displaced by the earthquake. More than 350 children arrived and were settled in this safe refuge in the first months after the quake. Meanwhile, Father Rick led teams of volunteers into the tent cities that housed hundreds of thousands of earthquake victims, providing food, water, medical care, and basic education for thousands of children. When the cholera epidemic broke out a year after the earthquake and spread like wildfire through the slums and tent cities of the capital, and through remote villages in the countryside, killing thousands, Father Rick set up a field hospital next to St. Damien’s that cared for more than 20,000 victims of the epidemic. They came from near and far, in pickup trucks and wheelbarrows, suffering from a disease that kills in a matter of hours. Half of these people would have died without the help given by Father Rick and his volunteers. As priest and physician, Father Rick continues to serve the spiritual and physical needs of orphans, the sick, and the destitute. He was recently named Medical Director of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH) International, overseeing the medical requirements of children at NPH homes in nine Latin American and Caribbean countries. On Saturday, May 12, 2012, Father Rick was keynote speaker at the Saint Vincent College Commencement ceremonies, during which Brother Norman Hipps, O.S.B., President of Saint Vincent College, conferred on him, in the name of the college faculty, an honorary doctorate of humane letters for his service to humanity as a priest and physician working among the poor, the suffering, and the marginalized in some of the world’s most impoverished places. His humanitarian work has previously been recognized with the Hollywood Humanitarian Award, an honorary doctorate from Marywood University of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Assumption College. Jerome Oetgen, C ‘69, is author of An American Abbot, the biography of Saint Vincent founder Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B., and a retired U.S. diplomat. His last diplomatic assignment (2008-2011) was as Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where he came to know Father Rick Frechette and his work among the poor in Haiti.

For Further Information

Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos® www.nph.org/ For Commencement Address visit: Text: http://www.saintvincentarchabbey.org/news Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/saintvincentcollege Video: http://www.youtube.com/user/saintvincentcollege Book: Haiti: The God of Tough Places, the Lord of Burnt Men, Richard Frechette 12

Spring/Summer 2012

Brother Nathan Cochran, O.S.B., right, in the Gallery with Father Thomas Hart, O.S.B.

Bethany Biesinger teaches a group about journaling.

Education Students —Liz Cousins

“STEP UPTo” Aid Homeschoolers

n Friday afternoons when the STEP-UP Enrichment Program is in session, the area around Alfred Hall is overflowing with kids —and they seem just a little too young to be college students. In 2006, a group of homeschooling parents approached Saint Vincent College with a request. They had outgrown the space where they were holding enrichment classes, and needed a new venue. With an enrollment of approximately 40 students, some of the parents taught the classes themselves. But they also enlisted the help of some Saint Vincent students, who worked with the program to gain field experience for an undergraduate course. The parents met with Dr. Veronica Ent, chairperson of the Education Department, who had been working with the program for two years.

Saint Vincent Magazine

In an attempt to maintain the homeschool connection and keep the program intact, Dr. Ent assumed the management role of the STEP-UP Enrichment Program, which was agreeable to the parents. This provided Saint Vincent College students the opportunity to formally teach in the program by making it a field experience. According to Wanda Reynolds, STEP-UP Enrichment Program Coordinator, education majors began to teach STEP-UP classes by Fall 2006, and the program has grown ever since. By Fall 2011, 150 homeschooled kids were enrolled in the 51 STEP-UP classes offered that semester being taught by 56 instructors—all Saint Vincent College education majors. “ED 206: Field Experience II in the course catalogue, is an intense requirement for students.” Reynolds said. ED 206 is considered a lab course, meant to accompany or follow ED 205, which focuses on basic teaching strategies for prospective educators, including instructional planning, classroom management, models of instruction,

Spring/Summer 2012

Natalie Woodruff teaches “Art Attack” to second and third grade level students.

and organization.” instructional technologies, presentation skills, and Jeff Mansfield, the STEP-UP Program’s co-instructor assessment. The only prerequisite is ED 100, Foundations (with Reynolds) and a retired principal from the of Education, which introduces students to the legal Greensburg Salem School District, observes the principles of teaching as a profession, as well as diversity, instructors as they work, and meets with them in a educational issues, and the role of the school and follow-up conference. He observes 12 instructors each educator as agents of cultural and educational change. week, then meets with them the following week to “Students in ED 206 create two course ideas from discuss how the observed class went. This semester, he scratch,” Reynolds explained. “The courses are based on observed each instructor about three times. interests or major, and run the gamut from dance and As part of their coursework, students submit a lesson guitar to chess and Europe.” plan for each week to Mansfield, Before the first day of ED due 36 hours before they teach. 206, the college students email They also have to complete a Reynolds with their two course reflection on the just-taught lesson ideas and a brief biography of each week, as well as complete themselves. ED 206 then meets a journal for the whole semester. twice before the teaching begins. “The weekly reflection has to talk During the first week of ED 206, about what worked well, what the first week of the semester, didn’t work well, and what they they are assigned one of their would do differently,” Mansfield two proposed courses. For week added. “The goal is to have the two, they are expected to provide student instructor be their own a 10-week syllabus of their critic, so they can assess potential course, an abbreviated version of Jeff Mansfield, of the STEP-UP program problems while they’re writing the the syllabus a teacher would have observes a student instructor. lesson plan, before they even take to provide for a full semester-long the plan into the classroom.” course. And in week three of the “The STEP-UP program really benefits the Saint Vincent semester, they get their feet wet. College students, as well as helping homeschooled “For the first two weeks or so of teaching, which are only weeks three and four of the semester, the instructors students meet state requirements,” Reynolds said. “Pennsylvania has very specific criteria for homeschooled are generally novices,” Reynolds said. “I tell them to students, including required documentation. Our students always bring a bag of tricks—with lots of extra activities— are aware of the state standards and base their classes to their STEP-UP class. Time management and classroom on those criteria. Parents like to connect the STEP-UP management are issues at first, but by the third week of courses to state course requirements, if possible.” the STEP-UP program [the fifth week of the semester], Most of the instructors are sophomores and juniors. most instructors have a good sense of time management Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

And former instructors contact Reynolds, offering to help out with the program on Friday afternoons. While the instructors earn one credit for their experience, the volunteers do it because they enjoy the interaction. Sean Murphy is a chemistry and education major who plans to graduate in May 2013. In the spring semester of 2011 he served as a STEP-UP instructor, teaching a martial arts class to kids in the sixth to eighth grades. His class included training in traditional martial arts, as well as Wing Chun and Kung Fu. In spring 2012 he volunteered as a STEP-UP guide. “It’s very interesting to see,” Murphy said. “They have a sort of focus you don’t see with traditional students.” Lauren Harris, a sophomore early childhood education major who taught a preschool STEP-UP course in Fall 2011, found that the students enrolled in STEP-UP classes are more laid back than traditional students. For Sarah Jara, who was also a STEP-UP teacher in fall 2011, being a STEP-UP teacher was “lots of fun. I wish I could do it every semester.” Jara says she learned the most about classroom management while teaching “Buggin’ Around” to a class of kindergarteners and first graders. “My main problem was with the noise level,” Jara said. “We’re teaching these students not just about the course subject, but about the educational process itself.” Learning about the educational process is just another part of the STEP-UP program. Eric Shearer is a sophomore math and engineering student who was a STEP-UP student for about two years. He chose to attend Saint Vincent for several reasons, including because his brother went here and also because he was familiar with the campus because of the STEP-UP program. As far as the initial transition from homeschooling to college, “socially, it was easy meshing into the Saint Vincent community,” Shearer said. “It was like a slumber party every night. The difficulty in attending college after being homeschooled was the system of learning. Academically, most of us were stressed about the system of learning, but we did pretty well. We could do the math, for example, but we weren’t used to taking exams with other students or with the teacher watching us.” The college students aren’t the only ones who gain from the program. For Suzanne Stratford, a homeschooling

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Sean Murphy taught and now volunteers with STEP-UP. mom with two daughters enrolled in STEP-UP, “STEPUP has been one of our anchors.” The family moved to the Ligonier area four years ago, and within a week of their move, her daughters Isabelle and Carolyn, now 13 and 15, were enrolled in their first classes through the program. In preparation for the move, Stratford researched home schooling information for the region, and found STEP-UP. “Wanda [Reynolds] was one of the first people I met in this area,” Stratford added. “The girls have loved it,” she said. “The day the classes are posted on the website is a big day in our house. It has become something of a ritual for our family. It gives us a real sense of belonging to a community.” “The instructors are close enough to my daughters in age that my girls have been able to look up to them as role models,” she added. As Catholic home schoolers, Stratford said that coming to Saint Vincent College has been integrated into her daughters’ faith formation as well. And since they’re already on campus, they also utilize the Latimer Family Library. “This has been [the girls’] first experience of a college campus and a college community,” Stratford said. “Saint Vincent College will be a model of what we look for in a college when that time comes.” “One of the things that has been so special about Saint Vincent is the way in which homeschooled students and their families are received here,” Stratford said. “True Benedictine hospitality. Homeschooling is a different experience for each family, and that truth has been honored and embraced here.”

STEP UP

Kathrine Clark teaches Horse Sense: A Horse of Course, for students at grade levels Spring/Summer 20126-8. For more information on STEP-UP courses, visit http://svcstepup.weebly.com/.

Dr. Thomas Greubel, C’49, and his wife Marge

Dr. Thomas Greubel, C’49: Proud of Family and SVC By Don Orlando

r. Thomas Greubel, C’49, loves his family and Saint Vincent College. Dr. Greubel, who will celebrate his 85th birthday on August 8, quietly reflects on his life with contentment he continues to enjoy today. “I was lucky,” he modestly suggests as the reason for a 58-year marriage to his lifelong mate, Marge. Seven children and 21 grandchildren now surround him with love and attention. He retired from his regular medical practice in 1982 and volunteered part-time medical service to the poor at the St. Vincent de Paul Village homeless shelter in San Diego for more than two decades where they serve more than 3,000 meals a day to residents and the homeless free of charge. He was also instrumental in establishing the Village’s Joan Kroc Medical Clinic, a modern facility that provides free care to more than 30,000 medically indigent patients each year and also serves as a training ground for the University of San Diego Medical School. Throughout his life, Dr. Greubel has extended a helping hand in appreciation for what was given to him. Born near Saint Vincent in Derry, Pennsylvania, Dr. Greubel is the son of the late Joseph and Florence Greubel. Like his four brothers and one sister, he attended public grade school and high school in Derry where he was a standout athlete in basketball and football. When he was just 14, he began working in his brother’s business, Valley Dairy restaurant and ice cream parlor, where he developed a lifelong love for ice cream (his favorite flavor is chocolate moose tracks). He also worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad, sweeping out the passenger trains that stopped in the small railroad town. Later, he became an “oiler” on the trains. After graduating as class valedictorian in 1945, Saint Vincent offered him a full academic scholarship and he enrolled in the pre-engineering course. But his studies were interrupted when he was drafted by the Army a few months later. He served with the Signal Corps as

Saint Vincent Magazine

photographer, a skill that he enjoyed long after he left the service. In 1947 he returned to Saint Vincent, which honored his previous scholarship. He switched his major to architecture, then chemistry and finally to biology in his junior year as a pre-med student. “It was my brother, Joe, who encouraged me to go into medicine,” he recalled. He commuted from his home and remembers “brownbagging” lunch in the car between classes. “It was the only time I had,” he said of his busy schedule. While at Saint Vincent, he also worked at the Derry Westinghouse plant at night. And, during the summers, he showed his entrepreneurial spirit by building a miniature golf course and driving range. “I once bought 12 goats at an auction to help keep the grass under control,” he laughed. Early Benedictine professors he recalls include Fathers Edmund Cuneo, Edward Wenstrup, Owen Roth, Maximilian Duman, and Bertrand Dunegan. He also enjoyed his classes in physical chemistry with “friendly” Dr. Daniel Nolan, the first lay professor on the Saint Vincent faculty. They helped him gain acceptance to the Stritch School of Medicine at Loyola University in Chicago—“My mother wanted me to go to a Catholic medical school”—where he earned his Doctor of Medicine degree, thanks to his military service which entitled him to GI Bill benefits. He interned at Los Angeles County General Hospital and then headed east to begin a residency in orthopedics at Allegheny General Hospital. After several months, he returned to California to begin a family practice in Garden Grove, one of the fastest growing cities in the country at that time. To accommodate a growing patient population, Dr. Greubel constructed a medical office building in Garden Grove before expanding to nearby Anaheim where he built a multi-office medical building. Dr. Greubel was also a founder of a sister hospital in Mission Viejo where he served on the board for 20 years. He also developed real estate as head of the Greubel Company, a property management and development firm he owns with his son in Rancho Santa Fe. “We are really proud of our family,” he commented. “Four boys and three girls, all of whom still live near us in southern California.” They include Susan, who has a daycare for children; Thomas (“Tag”), who works for the Irvine Company; Jerry, a real estate developer; Philip, who owns a gardening mail order business; Lisa and Paul, who operate five assisted living homes; and Nancy, who with her husband sells surgical instruments and supplies. In their spare time, the Greubels have enjoyed traveling. They also liked boating, fishing, water skiing, horseback riding and tennis when they were more active. They still board a horse that Marge rides and they still enjoy golf. Dr. Greubel has been generous in creating scholarships at Saint Vincent. “My advice to today’s students: Be true to yourself. Think about quality in everything you do. Respect other people. Work hard.” “All these years later, I still feel a sense of belonging at Saint Vincent,” he commented. “The College is part of me and I think I am a part of it.”

Spring/Summer 2012

faculty members

tenure

receive

Dr. Karen Kehoe Degrees and schools: Ph.D., history, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2003; M.A. history, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1994; B.A. history, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 1989; B. Music Education, instrumental—oboe, Milton College, Milton, Wisconsin, 1973. Came here in: 2009. Originally from: Elkhorn, Wisconsin. Courses taught: here at Saint Vincent I teach all U.S. history courses that cover up to the mid-19th century. Those include Topics, my 100-level course, The American Revolution, Colonial America, and The Civil War. Among those is a course I usually offer in the summer called Horses, Hardtack, and Heroes: The Civil War in Film and Literature. I really enjoy the class because we spend a lot of time talking about how the war is remembered. I also teach a couple of courses that consider a broader piece of history—beyond the 19th century. These are American Women’s History and the Introduction to Public History. That course is wide ranging. It explores how academic history is transmitted to the broader public through

about 7 a.m. I drove in to the parking lot in front of the

archives, films, museums and a host of other media.

Basilica. The campus seemed deserted. I met no one in

What I like about Saint Vincent: as a historian the

the halls, found my office and went to work. Sometime

thing I like best is this place. The presence of those who

early in the afternoon I decided to take a break and walk

were here before us is everywhere! Everyday from my

around campus. When I left the building I was completely

desk I can see the beautiful weathered red brick exterior

shocked to see the mass of people wandering around—

of Alfred Hall through my neighbor’s window. It reminds

Steelers’ camp! I don’t know if I missed something in my

me that the past is always part of who we are.

interview or if I was never told but it was a shock to me.

My most memorable moment: this is easy. The first day I came to work. I came in very early in the morning,

Saint Vincent Magazine

What most people don’t know about me: I used to play a cornet that was built in 1857.

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Brother Mark Floreanini, O.S.B. List of degrees & schools: Associate degree in applied art from Sinclair Community College in Dayton, 1986; B.A., studio art, Saint Vincent College, 2001; M.A., monastic studies, Saint Vincent Seminary, 2003; M.F.A., Savannah College of Art and Design, painting, 2005. Came here in: (to) Saint Vincent Archabbey in 1997. Originally from: Alliance, Ohio. Courses taught: Drawing I and II, Painting I and II, Design 2D and 3D, Printmaking I and II, Sculpture, Senior Studio, and began three new courses: Stained Glass, Fiber Arts, and Clay and Pottery. What I like about Saint Vincent: I love the monastery, the monastic life and that I can teach at the college and be around the wonderful students who bring even more joy to my life. Memorable moment: will be when the Dean comes to me and tells me that they have found two more rooms for the Art Department to expand. What most people don’t know about me: people don’t know I enjoy a good game of football, water skiing, golf, and square dancing, or at least watching them on TV.

Dr. Daniele Arcara List of degrees & schools: High School Technical Diploma in Accounting—I.T.C.S. Caio Plinio Secondo, Como, Italy; B.S. Mathematics—Università di Torino, Turin, Italy; Ph.D. Mathematics— University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia. Came here in: 2006 Originally from: Italy Courses taught: Calculus I, Calculus II, Calculus I, Calculus III, Abstract Algebra I, Abstract Algebra II, Mechanics: Statics, Mechanics: Dynamics. What I like about Saint Vincent: everything, from the campus, to the students, colleagues, administrators, staff, and the monastic community. It is a pleasure to come to work! My favorite part is probably that I can take a break and walk to church whenever I want. Memorable moment: meeting Pope John Paul II with my wife at the beginning of Jubilee Year. What most people don’t know about me: I am taking theology classes in the seminary.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Dr. Michael Krom List of degrees & schools: St. Mary’s College of California, B.A., philosophy, minor in chemistry; M.A. in philosophy, Boston College; Ph.D., philosophy, Emory University. Came here in: 2007. Originally from: Beaverton, Oregon. Courses taught: First Philosophy, Ethics, Thomistic Philosophy, Ancient and Medieval Philosophy, Modern Liberalism in England, Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Science. What I like about Saint Vincent: this is a supportive community in which to grow intellectually and spiritually; the students are warm, personable, and generally open to reflecting on the challenging and perennial questions

community (e.g. the students where I had been teaching

that constitute an examined life; the faculty support one

generally avoided interaction with adults, whereas

another and form a genuine intellectual community; the

here I found students opening doors for one another,

monks help to ensure an outlet for spiritual development,

approaching me to ask if I needed directions, etc.). What most people don’t know about me: I did not

and serve to remind us that we are always in the holy presence of God. Memorable moment: when I came to interview

start going to church until my senior year of college, and became a Byzantine Catholic in 1999.

here, I was struck by the peacefulness and opportunities for silence that are so hard to find in the modern world (e.g. on the campus grounds, in the Basilica, in Leander Hall), and, of course, the pervasive hospitality practiced with sincerity and as a matter of habit by the whole

Dr. Tina Johnson

List of degrees & schools: Ph.D., history, University of

Pittsburgh; M.A., history, with certificates in Asian studies and women’s studies, University of Pittsburgh; M.L.A., Johns Hopkins University; B.A., economics, Oklahoma State University. Came here in: 2006. Originally from: Oklahoma. Courses taught: I teach all of the East Asian history courses, covering China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. These include Traditional East Asian History, Modern East Asian History, China and Japan in Fiction and Film, Modern China, Special Topics in China and Japan, and The Rise of

Culture minor and the International Studies minor that

Chinese Civilization. I teach seminar courses for history

foster interest in different cultures and ways of life.

majors and advise them on writing their senior theses. What I like about Saint Vincent: the people who

Memorable moment: camping on the Great Wall, followed by a 10K hike at dawn, with my students in 2010.

work and study here make this place very special. I also

What most people don’t know about me: I was

appreciate the opportunities for intellectual growth through

a state powerlifting champion in high school and held a

interdisciplinary programs like the Chinese Language and

national record for bench press; was even on ESPN.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Medical Assistant Living in Kingston, New York, about an hour and a half north of New York City, Dominic is working for Health Quest Hospital System as a resident medical physicist and will finish up his residency in June.

Where they are now?

n 2007 plans were moving forward to build a new science center at Saint Vincent, but what was to become the Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion was yet unnamed. With the dedication of the Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion, we now have a state-of-the-art laboratory facility and education center. Saint Vincent had just announced the establishment of the Dr. John R. Mazero Science Education Center within the Herbert W. Boyer School of Natural Sciences, Mathematics, and Computing. Since that time the school has added The Evelyn and Batista Madonia, Sr., Environmental Center; the Dr. Frank J. Luparello Lecture Hall; and the Angelo J. Taiani Planetarium and Astronaut Exhibit. Fund raising is nearly complete for the the Science Pavilion, but the last phase of the project—renovation of the former physics building—still needs funded. In taking a look at where Saint Vincent was in 2007, and where Saint Vincent is now, Saint Vincent Magazine has tracked down some of the undergraduates featured in the original promotional materials, Shaping the Future, where they discussed their future plans. Glenn Rapsinski said his dream was “to be a doctor and help as many people as I can.” Dominic DiCostanzo and Brook Chernet wanted “to attain a Ph.D.” Mallory Freeberg wanted to work in the research field, while Katie Zebley majored in math and wanted to inspire others to do the same.

So, where are they now? Saint Vincent Magazine

As physicists, we are responsible for the quality management and treatment planning that goes into each radiation therapy treatment. Saint Vincent gave me an excellent background in physics that allowed me to gain entry into a research experience at Duke University in nuclear physics, then allowed me to succeed in graduate school at Vanderbilt University and now perform my duties as a physicist in a radiation oncology clinic. —Dominic DiCostanzo, C’08

e hope that one day there will be a scientist from Saint Vincent who will cure cancer or Alzheimers or cure something else and it will happen because of the existence of this facility.

-Sis Dupré M.D./Ph.D. Student Currently a M.D./Ph.D. Graduate Student at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia, Glenn has completed his first two years of medical school and is currently in his first year of the Ph.D. part of the program doing research in a lab that looks at the immune response to amyloids produced by bacteria. Saint Vincent played an immense part in my life especially my scientific endeavors. Throughout the entire biology curriculum we were always challenged to understand the greater concepts—not just the minute details. This understanding of broad scientific concepts allowed me to do extremely well in the medical school curriculum at Temple. The willingness of the faculty in the sciences at Saint Vincent to help students understand difficult concepts and really advise about their future plans also helped me when I was struggling with my future career goals. The Senior Research Program at Saint Vincent was indispensable for me. Without it, I wouldn’t have been accepted into the M.D./Ph.D. Dual Degree Program and I wouldn’t have had a strong enough background in research techniques and the thought process needed for research to excel in the Ph.D. part of the program. All these things coupled with the atmosphere of collaboration and learning at Saint Vincent, especially prevalent in the science departments, molded me into a better scientist who is able to excel in both aspects of my current education, medical school, and graduate school. —Glenn Rapsinski, C’09 20

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Ph.D. Student As a third year Ph.D. student in the University of Michigan’s Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, Mallory’s research is focused on the analysis and integration of next-generation sequencing datasets to examine genetic mechanisms in model organisms. Elucidation of these common biological processes is foundational for more complex studies of human health and disease. My studies at Saint Vincent provided me with a strong knowledge foundation in the biological and computational sciences. The flexibility of the Bioinformatics program allowed me to explore my own personal interests while also ensuring that I received adequate training to support my educational and career goals. —Mallory Freeberg, C’09

Math Teacher/Graduate Student Teaching Algebra I at Blue Ridge Middle School in Loudoun County, Virginia, Katie will graduate in May 2013 with a master of science degree in mathematics education from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. She loves teaching math and strives to enlighten her students to recognize the importance of mathematics in their everyday lives. Katie hopes she will inspire many of her students to pursue careers in the fields of math and science. Since graduation from Saint Vincent, I have always felt confident in the skills and knowledge that I acquired from my undergraduate math and science courses. The Saint Vincent community and professors helped to develop a work ethic that encourages me to be a life-long learner. The college has instilled, for me, the motivation to continually strive towards achieving a higher goal. The professors in the math and science departments are the best around and set their expectations very high, in order to motivate and challenge the students to achieve at their best ability. The Mathematics program at Saint Vincent gave me the strong foundation of knowledge that I have applied in graduate courses, like Graph Theory and Number Theory, in my master’s degree program. When I compare the education that I received at Saint Vincent College to my colleagues’ undergraduate programs, there is no doubt that I made the best choice by enrolling at Saint Vincent. —Katie Zebley, C’09

Ph.D. Student A fourth year Ph.D. candidate at the Tufts Center for Regeneration and Developmental biology, Boston, Massachusetts, Brook works in a lab investigating the role of bioelectric signals (membrane voltage, pH and ion flows) during development, organ regeneration, and cancer. His Ph.D. work investigates the role of bioelectric signals in predicting and controlling tumorigenesis in the frog (Xenopus laevis) model system. A majority of this work is completed, and he has started preparing a manuscript for publication in a cancer prominent journal. In addition, Brook has two first-author papers accepted (Chernet and Levin, 2012; and Chernet et al., in press), and one non-first-author paper (Shishkin et al., 2009). The education and opportunities I received at Saint Vincent College have been, and will always be, monumental to my scientific career. The multi-faceted training of biology majors in various branches of biology, math, physics, and chemistry have laid the foundation for collaborative and interdisciplinary research opportunities in my short scientific career. The various research opportunities including: 1) internship in the bioinformatics department; 2) internship at the Immune Tolerance Network—division of the National Institute of Health; and 3) self-designed senior research project (advised by Dr. Koehl), have tremendously helped me to develop as a scientist. Most importantly, the opportunities I had to present the results of my work at two regional conferences and one national conference have helped me to effectively communicate science to a broad audience. I would like express my deepest gratitude to the Herbert W. Boyer School, my wonderful mentors in the Biology and Bioinformatics department, and Saint Vincent College for what I have been able to achieve during my college and post-college years. —Brook Chernet, C’08 Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

the

completing science pavilion the

s both the fund raising and the construction of the Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion nears completion, the new science facilities have already been designated as “a symbol of the school’s commitment to science education” by Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist, and a recent lecturer at Saint Vincent College. Our construction project will be completed in December 2012. To reach our goal, in the coming months, a designated “end-of-the-year” gift with tax deductible benefits or a gift matched by your workplace will help. Opportunities remain for named classrooms and office spaces. Gifts in honor of former teachers or a loved one are a great way to remember someone special. Your financial commitment to the largest building project in the history of the College will assure a world class science program at Saint Vincent for many years to come. To learn more about this important project, please contact us at: Saint Vincent College

Sis and Herman DuprÉ Science Pavilion

Office of Institutional Advancement 300 Fraser Purchase Road Latrobe, PA 15650 Phone: (724) 805-2895 Fax: (724) 532-5020

Saint Vincent College

Fundraising Status Through June 2012 Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

fulfilling the vision for the Future. Looking ahead to completion of the Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion.

2009

Spring 2009 Groundbreaking for the Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion with Sis and Herman Dupré and their family.

August 2009 Announcement of the Dr. John R. Mazero Science Education Center in the former Chemistry building.

2010

Fall 2010 First phase of the project complete with construction of new atrium and center building.

May 2010 Renovation of the former biology building begins, classes are moved to other parts of the science center.

January 2011 Renovation of the former biology building complete.

2011

May 2011 Renovation of the former chemistry building begins, classes are moved to other parts of the science center.

May 2009 Construction Begins

june 2011 Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion dedicated. Sis and Herman and all nine daughters participated in the event along with more than 500 guests. New construction completed, renovation well underway.

OCTOBER 2011 Dedication of the Dr. Frank J. Luparello Lecture Hall.

2012

MAY 2012 Renovation of the former physics building begins.

january 2012 Renovation of the former chemistry building completed.

December 2012 Projected completion of the former physics building and Science Pavilion. Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Father Maximilian George Duman, O.S.B., 1906-1990 By Jerome Oetgen

he eighth president of Saint Vincent College, Father Maximilian Duman, was

a priest, monk, professor, scholar, scientist, outdoorsman, explorer—a true Renaissance man who could justly be called, like St. Thomas More, a man for all seasons. But if you told him so, he would no doubt, in his typically good natured, self-deprecating way, have objected that in fact he wasn’t for all seasons; his preference was for winter.

Saint Vincent Magazine

For Father Max was known in his day as the “Arctic Priest,” a name resulting from his explorations of the polar regions as well as from his highly regarded research and publications on the plants of the Arctic. His renown as an explorer, scientist, and expert on the flora of the Arctic spread far beyond Saint Vincent. Born in Nicktown, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, in 1906, Father Max came to Latrobe at the age of 16, completed high school at Saint Vincent Prep, then continued his studies at Saint Vincent College. In 1929 he entered the Saint Vincent monastic community and made solemn vows as a Benedictine monk four years later. He studied theology at Saint Vincent Seminary, and on June 14, 1936, Bishop Hugh C. Boyle of Pittsburgh ordained him to the priesthood in the Archabbey Basilica. A year later Archabbot Alfred Koch, O.S.B., assigned him to the Saint Vincent College faculty as instructor in biology. Father Max’s distinguished teaching career lasted, with brief interruptions to pursue graduate study and to take on various administrative duties, including a year as Saint Vincent College president, until his retirement 45 years later. Generations of Saint Vincent College students remember Father Max as an inspiring teacher, a brilliant scholar, a generous friend, and a compassionate priest whose kind, humble, charitable nature epitomized the Benedictine ideal. In his lifetime he was recognized internationally as one of the world’s foremost authorities on Arctic flora. 24

Spring/Summer 2012

Altogether he made thirteen expeditions to the Arctic, most of them in a 16-foot collapsible canoe. During these trips he collected thousands of plant specimens, which he brought back to Saint Vincent to study, mount, catalog, and write about. When his invaluable collection, his life’s work, was destroyed in the Saint Vincent fire of 1963, he quickly set about reassembling it, aided by colleagues from earlier expeditions who gave him duplicates from their own collections, as well as by other Arctic botanists and collectors whom he had come to know over the years and with whom he had shared the results of his studies and research. In the 1970s, well into his sixties, when most people would have been thinking about retirement, he undertook new expeditions to the Arctic with his nephew, Father Duane Duman, to collect more samples of the specimens he had lost in the fire as well as new ones he had never collected before. In 1989 he donated his restored collection of 15,000 specimens, gathered from 670 Arctic locations, to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, where it continues to be available for researchers and students and to contribute to the scholarly investigation of Arctic flora. Father Max’s own scholarly contributions included the discovery of new species of Arctic plants, several of which were named in his honor. It was characteristic of him that he received such honors with a grain of salt and a good measure of amusement. He said jokingly of one of these plants—called Plantago major var. Dumanii Lepage— that he wasn’t sure its name was really a tribute to him, since in Pennsylvania a similar plant is known as “pig’s ear.” Father Max’s first expedition to the Arctic was in 1938. At the time he was a doctoral student in the biology department at Catholic University in Washington and was looking for an appropriate topic on which to write his doctoral dissertation. That summer he was invited by one of the members of the graduate faculty, Father Arthème Dutilly, to accompany him on a trip to Arctic Canada. Father Dutilly was a priest of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the Catholic religious order in charge of all the Eskimo missions in Canada. He proposed that Father Max travel with him in August Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

quartz and mica. to the Oblates’ mission stations on the supply boat that That first trip was followed by twelve other summer made the journey every summer. In 1938 the boat was scheduled to travel deeper into the Arctic than ever before expeditions to remote areas of Hudson Bay, James Bay, the Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. Some of these and to spend a few days at each mission. During these expeditions took him hundreds of miles into the Arctic stops Father Dutilly promised that Father Max would have Circle, far beyond the tree line. “I was 200 miles farther an opportunity to do some plant collecting. north than the most northern part of Alaska on many of Father Max had always been an outdoorsman—from these expeditions,” he once said. Even though there were his youth in Cambria County, where he had earned the no trees, there was plenty of vegrank of Eagle Scout, to etation, and this is what Father his summer vacations Max studied. as a student at Saint The adaptation of plant life to Vincent—and he jumped ather Max’s own scholarly contributions the cold and wintery conditions of at the chance to visit the included the discovery of new species of Arctic the Arctic fascinated him from the Arctic. He immediately first moment he experienced the sought and received Arplants, several of which were named in his honor. forbidding landscape. chabbot Alfred’s permisIt was characteristic of him Because of the sion to make the journey. that he received such honors constant wind and On that first expedisnow, some plants in tion, he needed all the with a grain of salt and a good the polar regions grew survival skills he had measure of amusement. He horizontally under the learned as an Eagle snow instead of vertiScout and as an outsaid jokingly of one of these cally, and none grew doorsman in the wintery plants—called Plantago major very tall. The Arctic landscape of Western var. Dumanii Lepage—that he Willow, for example, in Pennsylvania. The misorder to survive in the sion supply boat he travwasn’t sure its name was really rigorous Arctic climate, eled on lost its bearings a tribute to him, since in grew to the height of in the northern stretches only an inch and a half. of Hudson Bay, where Pennsylvania a similar plant But though small, it had only three other ships is known as “pig’s ear.” all the characteristics of had attempted to sail in the willows that grew in the previous 100 years. Pennsylvania. For three days they did Intrigued by this particnot know where they ular plant, whose cousins were, and, surrounded by ice packs that threatened flourished at Saint Vinto crush their boat, they could only move at a snail’s cent, Father Max put the pace when they could move at all. With great difficulty, trunk of an Arctic Willow under a microscope to count its they managed to deliver supplies to the Catholic missions around Hudson Bay and along the northern shore of rings—the traditional way of determining a tree’s age— and discovered that the tiny specimen was 25 years old. Repulse Bay. Father Max studied the important role Arctic plant life In the course of this voyage, Father Max frequently plays in the region’s human economy and in animal surwent ashore, camped out, and gathered the plant specivival. He wrote that Eskimos found all sorts of uses for mens that formed the basis of the Arctic collection he bethe flora of the region. They used the twisted strands of gan to organize back at Saint Vincent when he returned Arctic cotton grass, for example, to make wicks for their to the college at the end of September. The Saint Vincent oil lamps, which were fashioned from hollowed out soft Journal of November 1, 1938, reported that he brought stone and fueled by whale oil. And he described how in back 8000 herbarium sheets of botanical specimens, fifty assorted Arctic animals and birds, Eskimo artifacts includ- winter caribou came down from the northing miniature carvings and harpoons made from whale ern tundra bones, and samples of common Arctic minerals, mainly

Saint Vincent Magazine

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wooded areas to eat the white lichen, which they dug out with their horns and hooves and which was essential for their survival. He visited Eskimo villages and found the folkways of the indigenous people of the Arctic captivating. He noted that the “happy outlook on life” of the Eskimos was something to be admired. The beauty of the Arctic and its vegetation also attracted the priest-scientist. He described the small protected valleys where in the summer months one discovered carpets of colorful wildflowers, like the Arctic poppy with its cream-colored bloom the size of a quarter, and the lovely red flower of the fireweed. For his doctoral dissertation at Catholic University, Father Max studied the Genus Carex, a plant which belongs to the sedge family of grasses. He found more than 40 species, several of which had never been identified. His dissertation, The Genus Carex in Eastern Arctic Canada, was published in 1941 and was followed over the next quarter century by more than more 15 scholarly publications, which elevated him in the eyes of his scientific peers to the rank of an authority on Arctic flora. During his numerous expeditions into the Arctic, Father Max faced challenging, even perilous situations. He canoed hundreds of miles into the wilderness, fought treacherous rapids, and fell into Arctic waters. He crawled around on his hands and knees in deep snow searching for new specimens to bring back to Saint Vincent. He camped out on icy shores, shared living space with polar bears, and dined on raw fish, porcupine meat, and fried flour. Some of his trips were financed by government grants and contributed to the development of survival techniques in the forbidding Arctic landscape. His on-theground research helped in the creation of accurate maps of the region above the tree line, increased the knowledge of eatable Arctic plants, and identified vegetation patterns which, when viewed from the air, could aid pilots in identifying safe landing spots when their planes were in distress. In addition to teaching generations of biology and botany students at Saint Vincent College, during the academic year Father Max was also an instructor of bacteriology at the Latrobe Hospital School of Nursing. In 1956 he was invited to join the faculty of Catholic University, where for five years he was associate professor of biology. In 1961, he returned to Saint Vincent’s biology department, and Saint Vincent Magazine

a year later was named president of Saint Vincent College, a position he held at the time of the disastrous fire of 1963 that destroyed so much of the campus, including the biology department and Father Max’s invaluable collection of Arctic plants. In the years after the fire, Father Max continued in key leadership roles to rebuild and renew the college. He was chair of the Science Center Building Committee, whose work led to the design and construction of the first Science Center at Saint Vincent in 1966, and from 1963 until 1982 he served as chair of the Saint Vincent College biology department. Declining health led to his retirement from teaching in 1982, but even in retirement he continued to do research on Arctic flora, going every day to his lab in the Science Center to study, mount, and catalog thousands of plant specimens he had brought back from the Arctic over the years, and to prepare the collection for donation to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in 1989, a year before his death. In a 1988 article on Father Max for the Saint Vincent magazine, his confrere, Father Donald Raila, O.S.B., captured the spirit of this “man for all seasons” when he wrote movingly and insightfully: By seeking out the goodness in things, events and people around him, Fr. Max has all along been seeking the face of God; and in finding the beautiful mystery of God’s ways and sharing his discoveries with others, he continues to participate in God’s creative work. [Donald Raila, O.S.B., “Fr. Max: Man of Science, Story, and Serenity,” Saint Vincent, Spring 1988, p. 3]

Create Your Own Legacy

he Environmental Science Lab of the new Sis and Herman Dupré Science Pavilion at Saint Vincent College has been named in honor of Father Maximilian. Donors who contribute $1000 or more to the construction of the Father Maximilian Duman Environmental Science Lab will be recognized by a permanent plaque in the lab. To make a gift call 724-805-2895. 27

Spring/Summer 2012

Baseball . it's in their Blood. By Kim Metzgar

Around the time Boniface Wimmer was laying out plans to come to America, the modern-day game of baseball was taking off, getting its start in 1845 in New York City. The soon-to-be American tradition and Benedictine monasticism both spread throughout the country, with the earliest record of a club game at Saint Vincent occurring in 1867, and the first photo of an “official” college team taken in 1888. With that kind of history behind him, it’s no wonder Coach Mick Janosko is a traditional guy. His recruiting pitch hasn’t changed in 15 years and neither have his coaching tenets: commitment, hard work, and focus. Oh, and like many of his players, he lives, eats and breathes baseball.

Infielder Zach Bush dives back to the bag during a double-header win against Penn State Altoona. Saint Vincent Magazine

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met my wife in college at Point Park. One of the first questions I asked her was ‘do you like baseball?’ She said ‘yes.’” Janosko came to Saint Vincent in 1998, after spending two years as an assistant coach at Point Park, his alma mater. As a player there, he played left field, catcher, and designated hitter on a team that won a then-national record 44 consecutive games. He also played in two College World Series, had several professional tryouts, and played semi-pro baseball for a dozen years in a local league. Coming from that winning tradition, he worked hard to continue development of Saint Vincent’s baseball team, a team that in spite of its long tradition here, endured two periods of not having an intercollegiate team (1951-53 and 1966-1980). Four years into his coaching stint (2001) the team set an all-time single season win record (21-23). The team broke that record two seasons later (27-17). Seven of those first nine years featured 20-win seasons. They also featured an AMC North Division Championship, playoff appearances for three consecutive years, coach of the year honors for Janosko in Region IX, and Player of the Year honors for Joe Pichler (2004). He has coached seven All-Americans, one Academic All-American, and over 55 All Conference players. Then came the move of all Saint Vincent athletic teams to Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). In the past five years (2007-2011) the baseball team had a combined 68-118 record. It’s been a tough transition. “It has impacted every sport in the college,” Janosko said, “from the way we recruit to the way we evaluate players to the way we sell the school and the program.” NAIA schools were able to offer the equivalent of 12 full scholarships for baseball. NCAA Division III schools do not permit athletic scholarships, he said. Fall baseball under the NAIA allowed more evaluation time of players than the NCAA, which limits the team to 16 official fall practices. And weight training and conditioning are now the responsibility of the student-athlete. “We are recruiting a different kind of player. Before, when we saw a player who could come in and help right away, the offer was a lot more attractive. With the NCAA, we rely on the athlete and the

Junior Alonzo Vazquez is one of the California recruits.

From left, Jared Haller, Gary Gerhardt, Alonzo Vazquez and Steve Bayko, four athletes from California who grew up playing ball together and are making a difference at Saint Vincent.

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baseball timeline 1867—Some

of the earliest known writings by a Saint Vincent student are from the diary of Francis X. Reuss, a student from 1866-1869. He began his diary on August 31, 1867, and the second entry in his diary discusses playing a game of “base ball” on campus with friends. His journal entry for September 4, 1867 reads “I umpired a game of base ball this morning between the two teams of the ‘Hero Base Ball Club.’ The club was organized Aug. 31, 1867, to play a game with the Scholastics.”

1888—First known photo of an

official “college team,” one that represented the school against outside competitors.

May 17, 1892—Earliest found

record of an official game. A team of students representing the college defeated a team of former students living in Pittsburgh by a score of 17-1. Hearn, pitching for the students, struck out 18 batters.

1908—Saint

Vincent College baseball had its first undefeated organized season, going 120-1 under manager Father Linus, O.S.B. Bernard Berg was the star “twirler,” as noted in the reports, striking out 79 batters for the season.

1913-1915—“Smokey 1918—“Smokey

Joe” Rupprecht, now known as Father Jerome Rupprecht, O.S.B., returned for his first of three stints as coach. During the next five seasons, his team was 57-15-1.

May 5, 1924—The season opener for the Bearcat team was a tough one….against the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League. The Pirates used their regular starters, including such greats as Pie Traynor and Kiki Cuyler, for the first six innings. Only one SVC player reached second base, as the Pirates won 13-0 before an estimated 3,000 spectators. Saint Vincent only managed three hits, and committed five errors. The Pirates recorded 11 hits and just one error.

Joe” Rupprecht set a record that still stands, as the greatest pitcher in Saint Vincent history. During a three-year career, Rupprecht struck out 234 batters and compiled a 16-5 record. On three occasions he struck out 18 batters in one game.

June 1, 1921—The Homestead Grays, an independent team that later became a powerhouse in the Negro League, made the first of many visits to Saint Vincent. The college team defeated the Grays by an 11-3 score.

Saint Vincent Magazine

senior leadership on the team a lot more. The players are expected to do more work on their own because of the limitations,” Janosko said. ”Now we have to work harder to sell the school, to sell the program, and to sell the values the program has. Brothers Andrew, above, But our values have not and Alex Kozusko, right. changed: Commitment, hard work, and focus.” Since the coaching staff cannot supervise the strength and conditioning program, “that’s where we look at the recruit,” Janosko said. “We need mentally tough guys willing to put in the time and effort to get better.” The program is finally moving beyond the tough times. The team finished this season at 24-19, with a 12-12 conference mark, and won its first game in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament. The Bearcats lost in the winners’ bracket of the playoffs; however, the team was just three wins shy of the singleseason school record set in 2003. Recruiting is paying off, both by Janosko and his staff, and from internal sources. “Three years ago Steven Bayko, now a senior, came to me at the end of fall and inquired about transferring here in the spring of 2010 from Irvine Valley Community College,” Janosko said. “I’m originally from Kentucky, but my family is from Pittsburgh.” Bayko picked up the story. “I grew up coming here to training camp and I’m a die-hard Steelers fan. I went to school in California, but decided to come back here. While I was there I met these guys.” He gestured to juniors Jared Haller, Gary Gerhardt, and Alonzo Vazquez, standing next to him on the practice field. “I brought Gary last Christmas—he was the next one in. Alonzo and Jarod came in this (school) year. So I guess I did some very good recruiting.” Haller, a left-handed pitcher, broke two single-season school records in his first year with the program. His 10 wins eclipsed the previous mark of nine and ranked first in the PAC, while his 89.2 innings pitched surpassed the benchmark of 83.0 innings. The junior lefty made 16 appearances with 11 starts, posting a 10-3 record with a 2.91 ERA. He and senior outfielder Zack Galasso earned First Team All-PAC honors. Vazquez, an infielder, has nicely filled a designated hitter role this year, with a .284 average, Janosko said, and right-handed pitcher “Gary was a first-team all conference pitcher for us last year.” Haller, Gerhardt and Vazquez, while not related, act like brothers. “We all grew up together,” Gerhardt said. “We’ve known each other since we were like seven. We all went to (Katella) high school together.” The team also received a boost from two real 30

Spring/Summer 2012

brothers—Alex and Andrew Kozusko of Whitney. Alex, a sophomore right-handed pitcher, and Andrew, a junior right fielder, both tried their hand at Wheeling-Jesuit before transferring to Saint Vincent. If it feels more like home, that’s because it is. Their mother, Michelle, C’08, has worked in the Registrar’s Office since 1984. Their father, Tim, C’77, was an admission counselor for almost a decade, and their sister, Sarah, C’09, also attended Saint Vincent—not to mention their uncle, John, C’72, and cousin Jonathan, C’01. Like the California players who grew up with the game, so did the Kozuskos. “The boys were raised playing baseball,” Michelle Kozusko said. She met her husband when he played on her brother’s baseball team. Tim, a catcher and outfielder, still umpires. “I originally went to Gannon,” Andrew Kozusko said. “I didn’t like it and decided to go back to the Ohio Valley where I went to high school (Linsly), so I went to Wheeling-Jesuit. Then I decided to come back home.” It feels like home, he said. “I like the team a lot. We have a good group of guys. We have a handful of transfers who are really helping us.” “These are good kids, quality kids,” Janosko said. He added that possibly “the toughest transition for them is the understanding that we take academics here very seriously. When we say student-athlete, we mean student-athlete. They have done a nice job in the classroom and I expect that to continue. I expect them all to graduate.” Janosko credits his graduate assistant coach, Adam Dukate and his work with the pitchers as contributing to the success of this year’s team. The commitment and hard work Janosko espouses paid off this year. In addition to conference honors for Haller and Galasso (.360), junior shortstop Brad Burkardt (.378) garnered Second-Team laurels and senior catcher Erik Fichter (.314) was named Honorable Mention. Burkardt is ahead of pace to break the single-season school record of 183 career hits set by two-time All-American Danny Consuegra (2003-06). Galasso was one of the top hitters in the conference, and Andrew Kozusko (.274) led the team with four homers. “My recruiting goals have been the same all along,” Janosko said, “to bring in the most talented ballplayers the school allows me to bring in. We have more balance this year. I like to keep a good, competitive environment. It’s not easy at times. Sometimes you are a father figure, sometimes a tutor. Sometimes they need a shoulder to lean on, and as a coach you have to make them realize that the things they are learning here go beyond the baseball field. This is my fifteenth year here and my values have not changed.” It’s tradition. Saint Vincent Magazine

1938—Under manager Father

Cuthbert Gallick, O.S.B., Saint Vincent posted a record of 11-0, and extended a schoolr e c o r d winning streak to 14 games, including the final three games of the 1937 season. The streak ended in the season opener of 1939.

May 29, 1940—Tony Polink

pitched the best game in school history—a perfect game—against Fairmont State Teacher’s College of West Virginia. He faced the minimum 27 batters, with none reaching first base. Polink struck out 11 in the 7-0 victory.

1963—Tom

Goetz recorded four pitching victories, tossing 33 innings in a nine-day span to end the season. Saint Vincent earned Co-Champion honors in the West Penn Conference under Coach Dodo Canterna. Jim Wasicki was the top hitter and was named MVP in the conference.

March,1991 —Bearcat

manager Frank Newell, a former SVC player, helped to make headlines by calling a pitcher out of the bullpen to relieve starter Tim Murphy in a game in Florida. L e f t handed freshman Jodi Haller became the first female to pitch in the NAIA, throwing 2 2/3 innings against West Virginia Wesleyan. She entered the game with two on, two out, and struck out the first batter she faced to end the inning. In the final game of the Florida trip, Haller made her first appearance of the year as a starting pitcher. (In 1994, the USA Today’s Baseball Weekly printed a feature on Haller).

1942

— Father Jerome Rupprecht, O.S.B., ended his third and final stint as head coach, finishing with an overall record of 165-45-2.

1983—Coach

Dodo Canterna’s squad won 20 games for the first time in school history. Canterna was named NAIA District 18 Coach of the Year.

March 21, 1987—Alan Hipps (nephew of College President Brother Norman Hipps, O.S.B.) tossed a no-hitter for the Bearcats against Pitt-Bradford in the first game of a doubleheader. Saint Vincent won the game 21-0 as Hipps struck out five and walked three. At the end of the 1987 season, Dodo Canterna retired as head coach.

May, 2004—Saint Vincent won the American Mideast Conference North Division title, then finished second in the NAIA Region IX Tournament in Canton, Ohio. Coach Mick Janosko was named Region IX Coach of the Year and third baseman Joe Pichler was named AMC North Player of the Year.

Spring/Summer 2012

women's hoops team IN NCAA TOURNEY

Junior guard Melissa Mansur drives for a shot in the NCAA Tournament game with York College. Head coach Jimmy Petruska is at left.

unior forward Devin McGrath established a new career high with 31 points, but it wasn’t enough as the women’s basketball team fell to York in the first round of the 2012 NCAA Division III Tournament. The Bearcats ended the season 22-7 after posting a 15-3 mark in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference. The Bearcats, who finished second in both the regular season and postseason tournament of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, made their second-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Saint Vincent has now made the NCAA Tournament in both seasons as a full-time member of NCAA Division III. “It’s a great feeling to know that all the hard work that the players and staff have put in has paid off,” said first-year head coach Jimmy Petruska. “It’s great for our program to continue the national recognition that has been paramount in the success of Saint Vincent basketball. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to represent Saint Vincent College in the manner we have all year.” Petruska led the team to the national tournament a season ago as interim head coach. The Bearcats fell to Thomas More, 77-66, in the PAC Championship Game before earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship tournament. Saint Vincent Magazine

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softball team captures PAC After winning the regular season Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship, the Saint Vincent softball team was eliminated from the conference tournament after suffering a pair of setbacks against Geneva, 3-1, and Thiel, 4-1. The Bearcats finished the season with a 24-16 record after posting a 13-5 mark in league games during the regular season. Five players received All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference honors. Freshman Shannon Baczek and sophomore Ally Vrcek each earned First-Team All-PAC laurels while juniors Maria Adams and Emily Lauterbach and sophomore Becky Deane each garnered SecondTeam recognition. Baczek, a native of Beaver Falls, and a graduate of Blackhawk High School, led the Bearcats with a .365 batting average. She finished her inaugural campaign with 42 hits, just two shy of the single-

season school record set by head coach Nicole Hinerman. For the season, she tied for the team lead with 22 RBI while also adding six doubles, one triple and one homer. On the bases, she finished a perfect 5-for-5 in steals to lead the team in the category and also posted a perfect fielding percentage in 321 chances at first base. A native of Murrysville, and a graduate of Franklin Regional High School, Vrcek was tops in the PAC with a 1.30 earned run average and ranked second with a .210 opponents’ batting average. In 81.0 innings, she recorded 112 strikeouts, fifth most in the conference. She finished the year with a 6-4 record and one save in 18 appearances with 11 starts and five complete games. She yielded 62 hits and just 24 runs (15 earned) after transferring from Philadelphia. Adams earned her second all-conference

Junior Maria Adams tags up at third base in a game against Thiel. Saint Vincent Magazine

selection after receiving All-PAC Coaches Honors, the equivalent of AllPAC for NCAA provisional members, her freshman season. A native of Wadsworth, Ohio, and a graduate of Wadsworth High School, Adams posted a .342 batting average while starting all 40 games for the Bearcats. She posted a team-best eight doubles and tied for the team lead with 25 runs scored. She finished second on the team with 40 hits and drove in 14 runs. Behind the plate, she threw out eight of 18 base stealers. Lauterbach earned her first all-conference selection. The graduate of Baldwin High School and native of Pittsburgh, led the team with a 10-4 record and two saves this season while making 22 appearances (11 starts) in the pitching circle. She tossed seven complete games and three shutouts in 87.1 innings with 42 strikeouts and 19 walks. She yielded 28 runs with 19 earned runs to post a 1.52 ERA. She began the season by not allowing an earned run over her first 44.1 innings. A graduate of Ambridge High School, and a native of Economy, Deane earned her second SecondTeam All-PAC honor in as many seasons following a campaign where she batted .342 and finished third with 39 hits. She added five doubles, 15 runs scored and 12 RBI while also drawing 14 walks. At third base, she posted a .944 fielding percentage.

Tennis Takes Second

he Saint Vincent men’s tennis team captured second place at the PAC Championships in Erie, Pennsylvania. The team finished behind only Grove City for the second year in a row, acquiring 34 points to Grove City’s 52. Each of the Bearcats’ six starters earned all-PAC honors. Starting off the action in the second day of the tournament Anthony Nemanic breezed to a win in the second singles third place match. At fifth singles Nathan Walch also turned in a dominant performance to capture third place. Team members include Chris Andrejcik, a freshman from Greensburg; Dan Chirdon, a senior from Verona; Tony Costantino, a freshman from Canonsburg; Nick Latterner, a sophomore from Pittsburgh; Sean Malone, a sophomore from Allison Park; Anthony Nemanic, a sophomore from Greensburg; and Nathan Walch, a sophomore from Scottdale. The coach is Enrico Campi.

Get in the

Game The Saint Vincent College Athletic Department now has its own Twitter feed providing in-game reports and other news: @SVC_Bearcats.

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Swimming Success reshman Joe Woodman claimed the first Presidents’ Athletic Conference title in school history and sophomore Alyssa Taylor became the first Bearcat to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championships as the Bearcats finished fourth at the PAC Championships. Woodman placed first in the 500 freestyle event with a school-record time of 4:44.84 on the event’s first day, becoming the first swimmer in Saint Vincent history to claim an individual title at the league championships. Taylor posted a “B”-cut time to provisionally qualify for the NCAA National Championships in the 100 butterfly with a time of 57.60 to place second in the finals. It marked the first time in school history that a Bearcat swimmer provisionally qualified for the national championships. Dunleavy placed second in the 100 yard breaststroke at the conference meet with a time of 1:06.79 which was a school record and missed provisonally qualifying for the NCAA Championships by .4 seconds. Ten Saint Vincent College swimmers representing both the men’s and women’s programs earned All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference honors. Saint Vincent Magazine

The list is highlighted by three first-team selections, senior Dunleavy, sophomore Taylor, and freshman Woodman. Seven Bearcats were recognized with second-team honors: senior Maggie Dempsey, juniors Katie Custer and Logan Dorminey, sophomore Matt Linebaugh and freshmen Zach Ligus, Sarah Robbins, and Jess Smrekar. The teams are coached by Josh Gurekovich, who notes that “we had our most successful year ever. We broke a total of 33 school records when you combine the men and women together. We have 40 events that we compete in so it was pretty exciting seeing the records fall with almost every event. The other thing that made me very proud was everyone on the team swam lifetime bests during the year with most people achieving multiple lifetime swims throughout the year. We had a great season all around and the team competed and trained very hard all year.” The swimming teams were also honored by the College Swimming Coaches Association as Scholar All America Teams for 2011. The women’s team is one of just 129 teams honored, and ranked 50th in the nation in team grade point average. The men’s team ranked 24th in the nation in grade point average. Only 76 teams qualified for national honors. In order to be named to the list, teams must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher. Above, senior Christine Dunleavy competes in the breast stroke for the Saint Vincent Swim Team. 34

Spring/Summer 2012

Student Completes Internship With Kennametal—In China Courtney Briggs of Latrobe, C’12, a Business Management major, not only studied abroad in China, but she also was the first student from the United States to complete an internship with Kennametal Inc. in Shanghai. “I researched the major corporations in Shanghai and discovered that locallyheadquartered Kennametal had operations there,” she said. “They had never had an intern before from Latrobe or even from the United States.” Her study abroad at the University of Shanghai was arranged by Saint Vincent through the United States Abroad Consortium (USAC) based at the University of Nevada at Reno. Her advisor, Dr. Richard Kunkle had encouraged her to pursue an internship while there. Briggs studied the Chinese language for four semesters at Saint Vincent, and felt well prepared to live in China for an extended period. “When I arrived in Shanghai, Kennametal was completing a major renovation project at its facility,” Briggs said. “I was fortunate enough to attend a grand reopening celebration that included distributors, key customers, government officials, people from the press, and Kennametal employees including Kennametal chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Carlos Cardoso from Latrobe.”

“I learned so much about China’s business operations, culture and work ethic but never did I imagine that I would leave my voice behind in a video that will be shown to visitors at Kennametal plants throughout Asia,” she said. “The video was a safety video that anyone who visits a Kennametal plant is required to watch,” she said. “Because they wanted an English narration with a typical American accent, I was asked to make the recording after I visited the Kennametal/Sintec Plant in FengXian and observed everything they did there. The video will be used throughout Asia.” Her main supervisor, Xiao Liu at Kennametal’s Customer Solution Center in Shanghai, who worked in Operational Excellence, gave her an opportunity to gain experience in other departments including marketing, communications, finance and human resources. Briggs, who helped found the Operational Excellence Club at Saint Vincent, earned a Yellow Belt in Six Sigma—a business management strategy—while interning at PNC Bank. She completed Green Belt training at Kennametal, where she worked with human resources and went through the processes used for new hires and made suggestions for their action plans for the future. She wrote articles for the company’s newsletter,

Saint Vincent Magazine

website, and internal communications. “The most important thing I learned was how different it is working for a major corporation in another country,” she said. “I learned a lot about Chinese people, their culture and how they treat one another. It also expanded my knowledge of the business world globally.” In addition to her internship and travel, she was enrolled in four

courses taught in English by Chinese professors. They included Chinese Business Issues and Practices, Ancient Chinese History, Global Marketing and Government and Politics in China. “I enjoyed the classes because they included field trips to historic locations, and group collaborative work,” she said. “I made friends with students from all over the world. It was the best experience of my life,” she said.

Spring/Summer 2012

Pictured, from left, are Terry Funk, principal; Shelly Pruchnik, a senior chemistry education major; Owen Barton, a junior mathematics education major; Natalie Larson, a junior education/psychology major; Aaron Frech, a junior middle grade education/social studies major; Sarah Dillon, club president, a senior English education major; Chris Morrone, a senior mathematics education major; Heidi Hellmuth, a junior English education major; Dr. Veronica Ent and Christopher Dombrowski, 11, a student at Main Street Elementary.

Education Club Paints School Mural

Pair Performs At Heinz Hall

Two Saint Vincent College vocal performance music majors performed as members of the Pittsburgh Symphony Pops All-Star College Choir at Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts in Pittsburgh in January. Rona Gehring, a freshman from Robinson, and Ashlee Lamar, a freshman from Indiana, were part of the 70-member choir directed by conductor Marvin Hamlisch. Saint Vincent Magazine

Saint Vincent College Education Club travelled to Titusville on February 4 for a service project at Main Street Elementary in the Titusville School District. The school, built in 1912, was “once the high school of the town known to have more millionaires per 1,000 population than anywhere else in the world,” said Terry Funk, principal. “Today, the building is used as one of the three elementary schools and enrolls nearly 53 percent of children eligible for free and reduced lunch.” While the building had been remodeled extensively in the 1960s and has had new gymnasium additions and updates, the one location that seemed lost in time was the old basement 36

high school gymnasium. The space is used for inside recess and physical education exercises. Dr. Veronica I. Ent, associate professor, chair of the Education Department and Education Club advisor, was looking for an older, rural elementary building in need of such a project. The club collected school supplies and Ent designed a wall mural featuring local history, including the Drake Well, the high bridge, area wildlife, foliage, and the timber industry. She drew the image prior to the club’s trip, and delivered the boxes of school supplies. The next school day the school children were shown the mural and told about the historical details in the image. Spring/Summer 2012

New Apps For Early Learning The Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media has launched OutA-Bout™, a new iPhone® application for children ages 3 to 5. The program encourages physical activity, outdoor play, early literacy and parentchild interaction. Parents can use their iPhones to take photos of their children playing outside, and embeds those photos into an adventure story for subsequent viewing and reading. Out-A-Bout features original music and voiceover narration by Jessica Trybus, founder of Etcetera Edutainment, and Anthony Daniels, C-3PO in the Star Wars films. Everyday Grooves, is a new iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch® application for parents, teachers and caregivers of children ages 3 to 5 to encourage routines and

structure through songs and music. The app allows users to set up musical prompts throughout the day to help children transition to new activities. Each prompt is an original song, and lyrically walks families through suggested steps for the routine. Out-A-Bout was developed by the Fred Rogers Center, with contributions to development by Mary Gillis and Julie Polvinen, who were Early Career Fellows for 2009-2010, and by Children’s Hospital Boston through Polvinen, Dr. Michael Rich, and the hospital’s Center on Media and Child Health. Adam Blau, the Early Career Fellow creator of Everyday Grooves, is a music composer and producer based in Los Angeles. For more visit www. fredrogerscenter.org.

‘One’ Initiative Launches A group of Saint Vincent College students interested in building a stronger sense of community on campus launched an initiative they call The One. Working in conjunction with the offices of Student Affairs and Multicultural and International Student Life, the students invited the entire campus to take part in a variety of activities designed to enhance the already strong sense of community. Student spokespersons are Maria Salvatori, left, and Mercedes Guilford. The group’s goal is to create awareness and to discuss issues such as sexual violence, harassment, racism, prejudice and ignorance by training student leader groups as well as sports team leaders and departments that work with the student body.

A Charitable Gift Annuity at Saint Vincent When you make a gift of $10,000 or more, Saint Vincent can offer you or your loved ones fixed income for life. A Charitable Gift Annuity will also generate a tax deduction in the year of your gift. Distribution rates are dependent upon your ages, and current interest rates determine the annuity rate that Saint Vincent can offer. Some sample rates: Your Age:

Annuity:

5.1%

4.4%

6.8%

Annuity rates are subject to change. Once your gift is made, the rate remains fixed.

For more information on life income gifts or other giving opportunities, visit http://www.gftpln.org/Article.do?orgId=6315&articleId=9522

Contact: Saint Vincent College Office of Institutional Advancement 300 Fraser Purchase Road Latrobe, PA 15650 Phone (724) 805-2895 Fax (724) 532-5020 Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Fred Rogers Center Launches Early Learning Website, ELE

Theatre Gala Friday, July 13 The 23rd annual Saint Vincent Summer Theatre Gala is set for 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 13 in the Robert S. Carey Student Center. The Gala, which celebrates the 44th season of professional theatre at Saint Vincent, will feature an evening of gourmet food, entertainment and Larry Shue’s popular comedy, The Foreigner. Pictured are front, from left, Rev. Bonaventure Curtis, O.S.B., theatre producer; MaryAnn and Jack Cherubini, volunteer Gala co-chairpersons; back, from left, Colleen Reilly, theatre director; co-sponsors, John P. Kline of First Commonwealth Bank and Luke A. Latimer of R & L Development Company. Tickets are $125 per person. Proceeds benefit the Saint Vincent Summer Theatre. For more information call 724 805-2901.

Student Receives National Award J. Zachary Noble, a junior English and economics major, received the Isabel Sparks President’s Award at the 2012 national conference of the undergraduate English Honor society, Sigma Tau Delta, in New Orleans, recently. Noble won first place in Critical Essays on American Literature, and was presented with a $500 prize. Noble’s paper, “The Sun Rises in the East: Herman Melville’s Prediction of the Japanese Challenge to American Hegemony in the Pacific,” was originally written for Dr. Sara Lindey’s American Renaissance course. The paper explores Melville’s

critique of American imperialism in Moby Dick. The paper was selected from more than 600 accepted submissions judged by faculty members representing colleges and universities. There were 23 presidential awards given.

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The Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media at Saint Vincent College launched a unique website that provides free high quality digital media resources for early learning teachers, family child care providers, and families of young children up to age five. The Fred Rogers Center Early Learning Environment™— “Ele”—is located at www.yourele. org. The site includes: • Activities—A library of more than 100 ebooks, digital games, videos, music, mobile device applications, and other activities selected as quality resources that support learning and literacy development. Some activities help adults support children’s language and literacy skills; others are designed for use by adults with children. • Let’s Talk—An online community where teachers, families, and others can ask questions, and connect and share with others who care about issues affecting young children. • My Ele—By signing up for a free Ele account, users can organize the site’s resources around their own needs and interests, and then share them by creating Play!Lists. All resources include researchbased suggestions and information on how and

why to use Ele’s activities, under the headings, “Talk About It” and “Why This Is Important.” Visitors meet Ele, an avatar that serves as the site’s friendly “guide.” Activities are easily searchable by age, educational setting, and media type; each activity includes accompanying user tips. Dr. Michael Robb, Director of Education and Research at the Fred Rogers Center, and one of the site’s developers, said “Ele encourages caregivers to treat media like they would treat a book. The videos, songs, games, and other resources on Ele promote adult-child interaction, an essential component of healthy media use and literacy development.” “Just as Fred Rogers pioneered his distinctive approach to tapping the educational potential of television, Ele demonstrates the unique capability of today’s communications and digital media to enhance learning for adults and young children alike,” said Rita Catalano, Executive Director at the Fred Rogers Center.

Spring/Summer 2012

McKenna School Alumni Group Forms

Association Attends NYC Conference

Thirty-four student members of the Women in Business Student Association raised more than $6,000 to cover travel expenses to go to New York City to attend the Columbia Business School—Women in Business conference: http://bit.ly/AshioX. In addition to fundraising to attend this special event, WIB also sponsors executive lectures, alumnae panels and community outreach events.

Receives Award Tara Lynn of Irwin, a graduate student in educational media and technology: library science, was awarded the 2012 Pennsylvania School Librarians Association (PSLA) Outstanding Student Librarian Award at the PSLA 39th annual conference in Hershey. A second grade teacher in the Norwin Area School District, she was selected for the honor because she best exemplifies the qualities of leadership and dedication to the teaching profession.

Study Abroad Details Finalized

Yan Weiyuan, third from left, vice director of continuing education and study abroad programs at Tsinghua University in Beijing, met with Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., second from left, president of Saint Vincent College, to finalize arrangements for three students who plan to enroll as degree-seeking students at Saint Vincent in the fall. Taking part in the meeting were Liang Liang (Leo), left, a Saint Vincent graduate student from China studying management/operational excellence, and Dr. Gary M. Quinlivan, right, dean of the Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics, and Government. Tsingua University is one of the top business schools in China.

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The Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics, and Government has formed an alumni association. In development since the fall, the association will actively provide and promote opportunities for its alumni and current students for intellectual and professional growth. Goals include: career Development; networking with fellow alumni; providing feedback to Saint Vincent regarding the McKenna School’s curriculum. The association has four committees: Membership, Networking, Career Development and Website/ Communications. Dues are $25. Membership is open to individuals who have graduated from any business, economics, and/ or politics program at Saint Vincent College or to those who have minored in business at Saint Vincent. Officers are Ryan Retter, C’08, president; Ryan Dreliszak, C’10, presidentelect; Melissa Basilone, C’09, vice president; David Baker, C’08, treasurer and Michael Arabia, C’10, secretary. The association has established a Facebook group: SVCMBAA at www.facebook.com/ svcmbaa, a LinkedIn group: www.linkedin. com/in/svcmbaa, and a presence on Twitter: @ SVCmbaa.

Spring/Summer 2012

China Studies Center Celebrates Confucius Classroom Saint Vincent College School of Humanities and Fine Arts and The James and Margaret

Tseng Loe China Studies Center celebrated the designation of its University of Pittsburgh Confucius

Classroom by the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban). Dr. Tingting Guo, right,

Saint Vincent College’s Hanban professor and Chinese director of the University of Pittsburgh Confucius Institute, presented a plaque to Brother Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., left, president of Saint Vincent College, and Dr. Tina Philips Johnson, center, assistant professor of history at Saint Vincent College and director of Saint Vincent College’s China Studies Program. Dr. Johnson, who will manage the Confucius Classroom activities, teaches courses on East Asian History, has developed curricula, and planned and led two previous student tours to Asia.

Michael Barkowski Receives 38th Annual President’s Award Michael G. Barkowski, a biology and theology double major from Natrona Heights, was named the 38th annual winner of the President’s Award, Saint Vincent College’s highest student honor, presented to the member of the graduating class who best embodies the values of outstanding academic achievement, student leadership and community service. College President Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., presented the award at the spring Honors Convocation on April 25. At Saint Vincent, Barkowski was a participant in the Life Science Club (vice president), Service Learning Community Meal committee, Respect Life Club (public relations

officer), Equestrian Club, Campus Ministry (altar server, lector and Eucharistic minister), The One community enhancement initiative, Knights of Columbus (founder, trustee, chief squire, youth counselor and associate state director of squires program), and coordinator of Sports Friendship Day. He has been honored as a member of Alpha Lambda Delta honor society for excellent academic achievement (most active member award); Dean’s List; Academic and Leadership Scholarships Awardee; Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities; Theta Alpha Kappa, National Honor Society, in fields of theology and

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religious studies; Highest Level of Engagement as a Prefect and Benedictine Award; Tri-Beta Biological Honor Society; and Senior Benedictine Values Recognition Award.

He will begin medical school at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and pursue a dual degree in public health in Temple University’s master of public health program.

Spring/Summer 2012

Freemasons Topic Of Book, Article By Dr. Susan Sommers Dr. Susan Mitchell Sommers, professor of history, has a book, Thomas Dunckerley and English Freemasonry, that will be published in September by Pickering & Chatto Publishers, United Kingdom. Dunckerley is a late eighteenth century icon of British Freemasonry; his story is a fascinating morality tale of self-invention and self-deception. Climbing to the highest echelons of the order, and long-accepted as something of a hero, the reality of Dunckerley’s life is very different from the version recorded by his nineteenth-century biographers. Sommers reveals Dunckerley’s widely accepted claim to be an illegitimate son of George II to be untrue. But alongside a very real success as a Freemason, his true story includes the Royal Navy, travel, a career in law and the ‘scandalous Worsley affair’. In one of the first books to provide a scholarly study of English Freemasonry, Sommers uses Dunckerley’s case to examine the changeable nature of personal identity in the 18th century and the evolving methodology and expectations of biography. She also has an article forthcoming, “Marranos, Masons, and the Case of the Mislaid Text,” to be featured in Heredom, the Journal of the Scottish Rite Lodge of Research, in 2013, Volume 19. In 1839, Rhode Island antiquarian Nathan Hammett Gould received

a trunk of old papers, including some from the estate of Moses Pacheco, an early Jewish (Marrano) settler in Newport. Amongst the other 17th century documents in the collection, one particularly caught Gould’s attention. For Gould, that document meant Jewish settlers were in Rhode Island several years earlier than had been demonstrated by previous documentation—and they were Freemasons, some 59 years before the founding of the Grand Lodge in London. By the time Masonic and Jewish historians became aware of the document in 1850, Gould was reluctant to produce the document for inspection, citing its very fragile condition and disorganization in his

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library. He instead offered his remembrance of the wording of the document.

Gould subsequently found the text, and allowed it to be transcribed by Rabbi Jacques Judah Lyons, one of the most important early scholars of Jewish American history. Rather than settling the debate, Lyon’s transcription further obscured the text’s meaning, as it differed from Gould’s remembered wording at several key junctures. And then, inevitably, the text again vanished. The article traces the history of the discovery of the Marrano text, and considers the motivations and reactions of various interested groups as they attempt to parse a meaning out of the text they had not read, and were not likely to ever recover. They all agreed it was important and interesting, though beyond that there was little common ground.

Presentation Connects To Visual Art Dr. William Snyder, C’73, professor of English, participated in a panel presentation at the Northeast MLA annual conference, Rochester, New York, entitled “‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ As Modern Art” on March 16. The panel explored ways in which Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s story “The Yellow Wallpaper” connects to modern visual art. Presentation is part of Snyder’s longstanding interest in the relation of visual to verbal art, dating back to his 1984 dissertation, which 41

explored the affinities between the painting and poetry of English Romantic artists. This project was supported by a Saint Vincent College faculty development grant. Spring/Summer 2012

Sara Lindey Wins Honor For Best Article

Robert DePasquale Receives Award Dr. Robert J. DePasquale, professor of accounting in the Saint Vincent College Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics, and Government, received the Boniface Wimmer Award at the Saint Vincent College Spring Honors Convocation for sustained teaching excellence. DePasquale will begin his 35th year as a faculty member in the fall. He has been a consistent leader on the faculty having served as Faculty Council president, chairperson of the rank and tenure committee and chairperson of the Business Administration Department for 15 years. Under his leadership the Department of Business Administration received its first national accreditation by the Accreditation Council of Business Schools and Programs in 1995. He was the first winner of the Thoburn Excellence in Teaching Award in 1997 and was honored with the Pennsylvania Accounting Educator of the Year Award in 2002.

Sara Lindey, Assistant Professor of English, received a second place honorable mention and $1,000 article prize from ProQuest / Research Society for American Periodicals (RSAP) for the best article on American periodicals by a pre-tenure faculty member or independent scholar published in a peer-reviewed academic journal with a publication date during 2011. The award was presented at the American Literature Association conference, San Francisco. The article that won the award was “Boys Write Back: Self-Education and Periodical Authorship in Late-Nineteenth-Century

American Story Papers,” and was published in American Periodicals 21.1. The judges praised her essay’s archival components and especially her deep attention to questions of readers and communities.   The manuscript argues that late-nineteenth-

History Prof’s Presentation Based On Forthcoming Book Dr. Timothy Kelly, professor and chair of history, presented “Building a Better Life: Domestic Architecture in Norvelt, Pennsylvania, 1934-1941,” at the Appalachian Studies Association national conference, hosted by the Center for Northern Appalachian Studies at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. The presentation examined the built environment in Norvelt, Pennsylvania, a subsistence homestead community that the federal government financed to offer dignified life to the unemployed during the Great Depression. Many of Norvelt’s residents came

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from coal patch towns. He compared the life in coal company houses and towns to that in Norvelt. It explored the ways that Norvelt homes shaped their residents’ lives and the ways that the residents negotiated life in a federally constructed community. This presentation was based on a chapter in a book that Penn State University Press will publish. The book has two additional coauthors, Michael Cary from Seton Hill University and Margaret Power from the Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago), and is entitled: Norvelt: Community and Hard Times in Depression Era America.

century boys’ periodicals were powerful places of self-education. In digesting readers’ engagement with 1870s-90s boys’ periodicals Boys of New York and its scion Happy Days, the essay examines boys’ and girls’ letters, submissions, and various contest entries. Their words and exchanges with periodical editors showcase the tension between reading and writing to help elucidate who these nineteenthcentury readers were and how they imagined themselves as writers. Two types of reader/writers emerge: contributors and correspondents. Both sets of readers use the story paper as a technology of the self. Contributors use their poems, stories, and letters to break into literary work and develop themselves as professional writers. On the other hand, correspondents elicit advice about such professions as telegraph operators and clerks that show their labor to standardize themselves.

Paper Accepted Dr. Veronica I. Ent, associate professor, chair of education, and Kathleen H. Beining, instructor in education, had a paper accepted for publication in Selected Readings of the International Visual Literacy Association (IVLA). Entitled “Mister Fred Rogers: A TV TeacherEducation Model for PreService Teachers,” the paper outlines the Fred Rogers Teaching Model as a message delivery technique in pre-service teacher and graduate education.

Spring/Summer 2012

David Safin’s Script Makes Quarterfinals David Safin’s script “The Birthday Present” advanced to the quarterfinals of the Steeltown Film Factory contest, http://www. steeltownfilmfactory. org/. The script was among ten finalists for a chance to win up to $30,000 to produce it. Safin is director

Schaut Faculty Award Winner Dr. Robert Michalow, C’91, of Bentleyville, assistant professor of education in the Saint Vincent College School of Social Sciences, Communication, and Education, was honored with the presentation of the Quentin Schaut Faculty Award at the Saint Vincent College Spring Honors Convocation in Saint Vincent Basilica. The Quentin Schaut Award is named in honor of Father Quentin Schaut, O.S.B., a professor of English and the seventh president of the College, and recognizes the contributions, leadership, and achievements of a junior faculty member to the curriculum and life of the College. Before joining the faculty at Saint Vincent, Dr. Michalow taught chemistry and environmental science at Sewickley Academy. Dr. Michalow teaches a variety of courses both in education and environmental science at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

of multimedia and marketing and teaches in the communication department.

Dawn Turkovich Wins Best Paper

Three Education Department professors presented peer-reviewed papers in January in Orlando. Dr. Dawn (Detruf) Turkovich, C’95, was awarded best paper for her work titled, “Pre-Service Teachers’ Teacher Efficacy Beliefs and the Perceived Relationship with their University Supervisor.” Dr. Kristin Harty and Dr. Dawn Turkovich presented a paper titled, “Exploring Pre-Service Elementary Teachers’ Efficacy Beliefs Associated with a Learning Community Created by Linked Courses,” and Father Philip Kanfush, O.S.B., presented a qualitative study on reading instruction for students with disabilities titled, “Dishing Direct Instruction: Teachers and Parents Tell All!!” The three papers were published in the proceedings of the 2012 Orlando International Academic Conference.

Book On The Gospels Published Dr. Christopher McMahon, associate professor of theology is the author of a new book, Reading the Gospels: Biblical Interpretation in the Catholic Tradition, published by Anselm Academic in Winona, Minnesota. The book is the third textbook Dr. McMahon has written for the Minnesota-based publisher, the others being Jesus Our Salvation: An Introduction to Christology (2007) and Called Together: An Introduction to Ecclesiology (2010). Dr. McMahon’s student research assistant for the book project was Ashley Myers, a junior history and theology major at Saint Vincent College from Allentown.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Program Given On Expert Witnesses

Innocence Project Program Given Saint Vincent College Criminology, Law and Society Program presented a program about the Innocence Project entitled, “Reconciling Truth and Freedom: The Criminal Justice System and the Phenomenon of Wrongful Convictions,” to nearly 200 persons at the Fred M. Rogers Center. Participating were, from left, Dr. Bruce A. Antkowiak, professor of law at Saint Vincent College and director of the criminology program; Kirk Bloodsworth, the first man in America to be exonerated from death row by postconviction analysis; and Dr. John T. Rago, professor of law at Duquesne University School of Law and chairman of the Pennsylvania Innocence Commission. The program focused on the causes of the phenomenon of wrongful convictions in the United States.

Professors Test For New Certification Exam

Rev. Philip M. Kanfush, O.S.B., and Dr. Kristin Harty, Education, were invited to participate in an Item Review Conference for

the Pennsylvania Educator Certification Tests (PECT) in Harrisburg. Father Philip chaired the Content Validation Committee for

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the Pre-K to 4 Special Education Certification Test. The committee reviewed each of approximately 300 potential test items for accuracy, validity, and bias. The new test replaces the Praxis Exam for certification as a Special Education teacher in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Father Philip returned to Harrisburg in January 2012 to serve on the standardization panel to assist in developing cutoff scores for the exam, which was administered for the first time in April 2012.

Dr. Bruce Antkowiak and Dr. Matthew Fisher presented a session on “Expert Witnesses in Pennsylvania: A Legal and Ethical Overview,” as one in a series of courses offered for attorneys in Pennsylvania needing to secure Continuing Legal Education Credits (CLE) throughout the year. The course covered the classic foundations of expert testimony, why expert testimony is screened, elements of expert testimony, new case law in Pennsylvania, particular applications in driving under intoxication cases, narcotics prosecutions, expert and eyewitness identification and other new areas, what a lawyer must know about the limits of science and the ethical perspective of the scientist and the National Academic of Sciences standards. Antkowiak, professor of law and director of the Department of Criminology, Law, and Society, presented an update on recent cases in this area and explored new ideas for offering and objecting to such testimony and the ethical dimensions in this area. Fisher, associate professor and chair of the chemistry department, guided attendees in looking at the ethical demands on the expert witness as well as the lawyer who calls an expert witness to testify, and the norms and standards they must follow, such as scientists called as experts. Spring/Summer 2012

Alumni Friends

End of an

Era

om February 1931 until May 1987, the Benedictine nuns from Saint Walburg Monastery in Eichstätt, Germany, worked in the kitchens and dining rooms at Saint Vincent, where they cooked their famous sauerkraut. The sisters, who later founded Saint Emma Monastery, brought the comfort of German cooking as well as a prayerful influence on countless monks, seminarians, prepsters, and collegians. Sister Gaudentia Kaemmerle, O.S.B., 97, was the last surviving nun from that era. She arrived in 1934 at Saint Vincent at age 19 with ten other sisters, and served in the monastic refectory for nearly 50 years. Because the novices helped in the refectory, many monks affectionately called her their “novice master.” Sister Gaudentia died on January 28, 2012. Her funeral Mass was celebrated two days later by Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., with nine other monks concelebrating, a fitting tribute to her life of selfless service. Above, Sister Gaudentia is pictured with Sister Marguerite O.S.B.

Background picture: Benedictine Nuns at Tree Planting Ceremony, 1987

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300 Fraser Purchase Road Latrobe, PA 15650-2690 724-805-2568 alumni@stvincent.edu Saint Vincent Magazine

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Spring/Summer 2012

On the Road to Fifty and D.C.:

Touring the Country, 26.2

Miles at a Time By Dan Adley, C’77 The byline of John “The Penguin” Bingham, former columnist for Runners’ World magazine, author and voice of the back-of-thepack runners proclaims “The miracle is not that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” Little did I know how true those words would ring when, after completing just my third marathon I set a goal to run a marathon in each of the 50 States and the District of Columbia.

wasn’t always a runner, in fact over most of my life running was a necessary evil required to get in shape for things like Bearcat club football. From an exercise perspective I much preferred weight training than running. But frequent business travel made it difficult to maintain any routine while on the road. Without consistent training my weight began to balloon. In September 1997 I entered Pittsburgh’s annual 10k Great Race. The following May I found myself on a relay team in the Pittsburgh Marathon, and the following September (1998) I entered the Montour Trail Half-Marathon. I traveled to the race with my neighbor, Bob Fargo. On the ride home I made the passing comment that I might want to try a marathon some day. That was all Bob needed to hear. Bob was at my front door before I had time to shower and change. He had with him a registration form for the November 18, 1998 Columbus Marathon. He had gone online to find a reasonably close race that would allow me enough time to bump up my training to go the added distance. Columbus fit the bill, so there I was registering for my first marathon. At the pre-race pasta dinner we noted a table of runners, many of whom had shirts on that said “Completed a Marathon in all 50 States.” Here I was anxious over the thought of finishing one marathon and these people had run one in every state. Were they nuts or what? Little did I know. After successfully, but painfully completing the race I swore that my first marathon would be my last. Of course pain subsides and new challenges arise. I decided that I could break a four-hour marathon. That led Bob and me Dan Adley, C’77, was a chemistry major, played club football, played with the NADs in various intramural sports, and was an early recipient of the Rafferty Award for scholar athlete. Above, he is pictured in Denali Alaska, following the Humpy’s Marathon in Anchorage.

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Spring/Summer 2012

to Erie about 10 months later in September 1999. I missed my goal by 56 seconds! As they say, close, but no cigar. So on January 9, 2000; the day after my 45th birthday, I set out to break 4:00 in the Disney Marathon. This time I was successful, coming in at what would prove to be my best time of 3:55:10. Mission accomplished; so now what? How about running a marathon in each of the 50 States and D.C.? It seemed like a logical next step at the time, and a journey was borne. During the journey I logged over 15,000 miles and went through 31 pairs of running shoes. While I averaged five marathons/year, I did only three a year for the first seven years and ten a year in the last three years. On average, about 350,000 runners completed a marathon in each of those ten years. On March 1, 2009, in Napa, California, I joined an elite group of just 394 runners certified by the 50 State Marathon Club as having completed the circuit. February may have the fewest days in the month, but it seemed to take the longest time to get to our February 27th departure. Six friends rendezvoused at 4:45 a.m. for our 7 a.m. departure. It was early but it wasn’t like I slept a lot that night anyway. We connected through Charlotte, where we were joined by my daughter, Jessica, and son, Justin, for the five-and-a-half-hour flight to San Francisco. We picked up our 12 passenger Ford Econoline van, drove through some of the sites in San Francisco and then stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge. While the group visited the overlooks and visitors center, Bob and I did our last short training run across the GGB. After our pick up at Vista Point, and a nice lunch bayside in Sausalito, we were off for Napa. Saturday started with package pickup and the expo, and the first snag of the trip. I had arranged nearly a year in advance to get bib #50 to mark my 50th state. Standing in line I could see that I was assigned #51. While this was my 51st marathon, when counting

D.C., that was not what I wanted. The race committee went to work and changed me out with the runner who had #50, or so we thought. We all toured the resurgent town of Napa early Saturday before the group headed north to the small towns of Yountville and Oakville. While they visited the shops, wineries, and a restaurant in these sleepy little towns, I stayed back to make final arrangements for the touring bus and celebratory dinner planned for the race day. That evening one of my SVC roommates and close friend, Victor Sofelkanik, C’77, his wife, Olivia, and his mom rolled in to join in the celebration. Vic was representing a group of a dozen or so fellow Bearcats that have supported me throughout this journey. My niece and running mate, Cindy O’Malley, and Alan Schmoyer, a friend I met at the Wichita marathon, joined Bob and me for the (school bus) ride up the valley to the start line in Calistoga. I tried to consciously inventory the thoughts and emotions I was experiencing so I was more in the moment than usual. There was some anxiety and nervousness, but mostly anticipation. There was excitement at the prospects of finishing a significant goal. Mostly, I was thankful to God for the family, friendships, health and career that I’ve been blessed with. It was a cool 48° day. Throughout the run there was a steady, mostly light rain and head wind, but not enough to detract from the beautiful point-to-point course down the Silverado Trail from Calistoga to Napa. Even the grey skies and fruitless vines could not detract from the beauty of the rolling Napa Valley. It also didn’t seem to deter the spirits of the 22 family members and friends who rode in the touring bus I had rented to leap frog along the course to cheer us on. The natural beauty of the surroundings, the inspiration of friends and the emotions of the event sent me out at a pace our Washington, PA winter training had not prepared me for, but

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Dan Adley, C’77, with his former roommate, Victor Sofelkanik, C’77, who, along with Dan’s family, joined Dan for the final race in his quest to run marathons in the 50 states and D.C. reminders from my pace crew kept me within reason. By mile 21 every ache and pain in my body became more pronounced. I was fatigued and my legs just didn’t want to go any further. Mentally I seemed to feel worse than I had in most of the runs leading up to this event. Even the thoughts of the milestone finish didn’t seem to have an uplifting effect. But the energy of my running team did. Bob ran by me step by step, at the slowest pace he had ever run in his life! Cindy and Alan stayed at my heels pushing me on. Together they got me to mile 26 and from there the emotions did take over. I finished, hyperventilating and crying. I was greeted by my wife and kids, family and friends. Vic was there with a Bearcat hat waiting for a photo opportunity. I still can’t put into words how I felt at that moment. Later that day the 26 of us got together at Piccolino’s Italian Café for a family style celebration that included great food and spirits. I led the group in a game of Running Jeopardy, using dates, times, places and people relating to the 50 State and D.C. journey. But none of this matched the unbelievable stories and thoughts offered by those in attendance. When my daughter’s poem and my son’s “toast” were finished there wasn’t a dry eye in the group. I realized more than ever that such goals are only of value when shared with those closest to you. Spring/Summer 2012

Shane Seremet, C’08, Giving Up Kidney To Help Co-Worker

Garcia was on dialysis for a failed kidney. What was a friendly co-worker rapport “It is a true gift when blossomed into a deep and you can help someone in a true friendship. Seremet meaningful way.” These are called Garcia’s doctor to look the poignant words spoken by into donating a kidney. Shane Seremet, C’08, about his He went to the University of newest undertaking; helping Maryland Kidney Transplant a co-worker to get a kidney Center in Baltimore to be transplant—a life-changing tested, but he was not donation that will extend a match. But the men his friend’s life expectancy discovered that they could and enable him to fulfill his be a “paired exchange,” dreams of going to college, meaning when a donor match owning his own home and is found for Garcia, Seremet opening a restaurant. will donate his kidney to a Seremet graduated in Shane Seremet, C’08, and Ambrocio Garcia separate matched recipient. three years with a bachelor Because of this, the two have grown ever closer. of science degree in political science, the third alumnus “He [Garcia] inspires me—usually it takes an immigrant in his family. His sister Shannon (Seremet) Davis graduated family a few generations to make the strides he is in 2000 and eventually married classmate Ian Davis C’00. making,” Seremet said. “He’s not just working for a better The Seremets found comfort in the Benedictine college life of future generations; he’s making it happen now.” located in Latrobe, their father’s hometown, a place they Seremet is tutoring Garcia, so that the head chef can associated with family and a school that reinforced the earn his GED. Seremet is also giving him lessons in values taught at home. Only four years out of college and finance. Seremet’s resume includes being a writer and researcher “People think I’m doing something special,” he said, “but in The Office of the Special Inspector General of Iraq this is really a blessing to me; I’m honored to be able to Reconstruction in Virginia and working on community help him.” development, historic preservation, and acquired funding Seremet plans to pursue the love of political economy he to improve substandard housing in Waldorf, Maryland. found at Saint Vincent in graduate school with the hopes Currently he is a manager, server and bartender at The of entering the think-tank world in Washington, D.C., Federal House Bar and Grill on the harbor in Annapolis, and in the future the academic world—as a professor. He preparing to apply to graduate school. will continue as an informal advocate for organ donation While in Annapolis, he became acquainted with one adding, “You really have the opportunity to change a of the head chefs, Ambrocio Garcia. One day, when his person’s life.” co-worker looked exhausted, Seremet discovered that Sherrie E. Dunlap, C’09

Organ Donation From Co-Worker Helps College Employee

Saint Vincent employees Courtney and Bob Baum with kidney donor Jarod Trunzo, right. Saint Vincent Magazine

After coming to Saint Vincent in 2008, Bob Baum, Director of Residence Life and Student Conduct, learned that his polycystic kidney disease was progressing and his kidney function was deteriorating. “My wife, Courtney, (director of the Career Center) and I decided that live kidney donation was ideal and began talking to close friends and relatives. God blessed us with several persons willing to set up, but none were a match,” Baum said. “Then we expanded our search and began spreading the word to more people. In the spring of 2010 Jarod Trunzo, who worked in the Office of Service Learning, learned of my situation through a colleague and that afternoon told me he wanted to donate his kidney. Five months later on September 8, 2010, the surgery was successful.” Trunzo is now the coordinator of community engagement and sustainability for the City of Latrobe. 48

Spring/Summer 2012

Causes Drive Walt Drennan, C’09, To Cross Country Trek Sherrie E. Dunlap, C’09 Walt Drennan shrugs his shoulders and pushes his dark curly hair out of his face and adjusts his black frame glasses. He doesn’t think that his riding a bike across the country with Bike & Build, working directly for the cause of affordable housing in America is as noteworthy as it is. Walt shrugs because he simply but strongly believes that when you feel passionate about a cause, you get involved. Drennan, a 2009 graduate with a bachelor of arts in philosophy and psychology, completed a masters degree in international development at the University of Pittsburgh in May. His global perspective and

interest in international and community development are not surprising knowing his background. Much of his childhood was spent outside of the United States, the son of a Foreign Service Officer in the U.S. State Department. His parents met in Guatemala, his mother’s homeland, when his father was a Peace Corps volunteer. The focus on the community and public service is a trait handed down from his grandfather, the late Richard “Dick” Drennan, a volunteer firefighter and long-time YMCA coach who organized an annual charity golf outing, raising money for student scholarships. This passion to serve others made Saint Vincent College a perfect match for Drennan.

Walt Drennan, C’09 Saint Vincent Magazine

At Saint Vincent, he served as a Residence Life prefect for three years and was a campus firefighter. He found his love of service work in college during an alternative spring break trip to Louisiana with the United Way and MTV after Hurricane Katrina. The experience of renovating a church on the Gulf Coast prompted Drennan to participate in the Office of Service Learning’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Challenge and the international service trip to Calcutta, India, to work with the Missionaries of Charity. Following graduation, he completed a ten-month term of volunteer service with AmeriCorps (National Civilian Community Corps), where he worked in capacities ranging from invasive plant species removal to tutoring, and building and renovating, all while traveling around the country and living in community with his team. “In the Young Adult Fiction class, Dr. Mary Beth Spore always taught us to go deeper, to not just take things at face value. That’s the same in service,” he said. On May 25, Drennan will be one of 250 young adults beginning the cross country trip on eight different routes. He will be on a team of 30 riders biking from Charleston, South Carolina to Santa Cruz, California, averaging 75 miles a day. He and his team will raise money and awareness for the affordable housing cause, and volunteer at actual affordable housing build sites, one of which

entails completing an entire house in five days in Colorado Springs. “This cause doesn’t get a lot of press,” he said. “I found this cause working in Baton Rouge after Katrina. There were whole communities of Habitat for Humanity homes. It really changed my perspective.” While unique sports always appealed to Drennan, who lettered in crew in high school and belonged to the Pittsburgh Rowing Club while at Saint Vincent, he’s never been a cyclist. He took on the challenge of training to become one for this cause. “Positive change can be brought about by truly motivated individuals,” he said. “Because of how I grew up, opportunities to see more parts of our country appeal to me and I like direct service and seeing the impact pretty immediately. I also like being on a team,” he said. After his Tour de USA, he plans to stay in the United States and work with organizations that deal with womens’ empowerment and gender issues. To participate in the summer trek, each cyclist had to raise $4,500 for the cause by the start of the ride. Drennan raised funds by using social media and local media with the help of his friends. This summer’s bike ride may be more than 4,000 miles, but the journey of his life of service, on which Drennan is eager to embark, will be longer. The trek will be documented via his blog, http:// waltbikesacrossthecountry. blogspot.com/.

Spring/Summer 2012

1940s

Albert F. Pishioneri, C’49, writes “Just celebrated my 90th birthday on January 30. I walk carefully with a cane, but I’m on the computer every day; communicating and emailing. Regards, Al Pish.”

1950s

Thomas M. Kissell’s, C’51, and his wife, Helen’s, brood increased to 21 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren when Mason and Emma recently arrived.

Guido J. Casari, Jr., P’52, C’56, just returned from a cruise on “Allure of the Seas,” the largest cruise ship in the world. He writes: “A great experience, the Caribbean ports were of secondary interest!”

Paul A. Scarlata, D.M.D., P.C., C 57, writes, “Recently four of my children, one grandchild, and I visited Sicily where my

grandparents came from. I visited my distant cousins and it was a joy! Sicily is beautiful! We all stayed in Cefalu (a resort) on the northern coast, halfway between Palermo and Messina.”

Roy J. Knoth, C’59, is now retired, and he and his wife downsized to a small home in Moraga, California. Their daughter, Kimberly, graduated from SVC in 1987 and married Joe Nava, C’88.

1960s

James D. Bendel, C’60, D’85, was honored with the Latrobe Area Chamber of Commerce 2011 Community Service Award.

Thomas J. Froehlich, Ph.D., C’62, was honored by the School of Library and Information Science at Kent State University on November 29 for providing inspiration and leadership in the creation and oversight of the Information Architecture and Knowledge Management Program. An annual award was created in Dr. Froehlich’s

Phil Petrulli, Tour Director for Holiday Travel International; Giovanni Poggi, owner of La Botticella (the Steeler bar just off the Piazza Navona in Rome; and Larry Whatule, C’65, on the Saint Vincent Development Club Mediterranean Cruise trip, which included the presentation of an official Steelers Training Camp 2011 t-shirt to Poggi on September 25. name to recognize an outstanding student in the program. (The first honoree will be named next year.) For more information visit

http://iakm.kent.edu.

Condolences Rev. Demetrius R. Dumm, O.S.B., P’40, C’45, S 48, and Rev. Myron M. Kirsch, O.S.B., C’69, S’73, on the death of their brother and cousin, respectively, Frederick Thomas, P’51, C’59, on March 15. Mario J. Fatigati, P’44, and Brian S. Fatigati, C’82, on the death of, their wife and mother, respectively, Gloria Jean Fatigati on February 11.

Donald E. Henigin, C’51, on the loss of his wife, Doris D. “Cork” Henigin, on February 19. Ralph A. Litzinger, C’53, on the loss of

Cullan J. Herald-Evans, P’64, C’69, on the loss of his mother, Alice Herald, on February 22. Jared J. Baker, P’65, C’70, S’74, and David J. Baker, C’79, and Bridgette A. (Wright) Trunzo, C’06, on the death of their father and grandfather, respectively, John J. Baker, on December 8.

Edmund M. Carney, C’65, on the death of his mother, Margaret I. Carney, on January 10.

Angelo DeMezza, M.D., C’69, on the death of his uncle, Emil J. DiLorenzo, C’54, on December 11.

his wife, Sue (Montgomery) Litzinger, on January 1.

Gregg A. Fiorina, P’70, on the death of his son, Benjamin L. Fiorina, on September 8.

Frederick A. Heupler, Jr., M.D., P’55, C’59, on the death of his wife, Sarah “Sally”

Rev. Msgr. Thomas J. Klinzing, S’71, on the death of his mother, Pearl Klinzing, on November 12.

Heupler, SHU’60, on January 22.

John M. Straub, C 55, Michael G. Straub, C’68, Aaron J. Straub, C 79, Rev. Paul R. Taylor, O.S.B., Ph.D., C’87 S’92, William C. Brock, C’87, Lawrence L. Taylor, C’89, Joshua J. Brock, C’93, John F. Straub, C’95, Ruth Anne F. Straub, C’97, Renee D. Straub, C’03, and Julie L. Pickens, C’05, on the loss of their brother, father, uncle, cousin, and great-uncle, respectively, Jerome P. Straub, P’40, on January 17.

Michael Picarsic, C’71, on the death of his father, Michael Picarsic, Sr., in March.

Robert J. Roth, C’71, on the death of his brother, Thomas Roth, on March 12.

Thomas J. “Tim” Rennie, C’72, Paul R. Rennie, C’78, and James P. “Jake” Rennie, C 14, on the death of their father

Rennie on November 16.

Lt. Col. Charles E. Costanzo, C’76, on the loss of his mother, Martha Lillian Costanzo, 98, on February 9. Dennis M. Seremet, C’77, on the death of his mother, Ann K. Seremet, on January 27.

Very Rev. Kenneth G. Zaccagnini, V.F., C’78, S’82, on the death of his mother, Mrs. Louise Zaccagnini, on July 26.

Celine R. (Haas) Brudnok, C’90, on the loss of her father, Donald J. Haas, on April 18. Rev. Chester J. Pabin, S’92, on the death of his mother, Mary, on December 12 and his father, Chester, on December 16. Lorel A. Eckert, C’96, on the loss of her father, Robert Burns, P’44, in July 2011. Amy (Bowman) Shifko, C’98, on the death of her father- in-law, Ernest Shifko, on December 24 and death of her mother, Barbara Bowman, on December 28.

Andrew D. Jeffers, C’06, on the loss of his grandfather on February 10.

Rev. Paschal A. Morlino, O.S.B. on the death of his mother, Marie Morlino, on August 16.

and grandfather, respectively, Thomas A.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

David W. Molek, C’69, was recently elected Mifflin County District Attorney.

Stephen G. Rodkey, P’63, since his retirement from the Department of Defense, has been involved with Annandale Community College in the Jazz Department, and is a Board Member of the Reunion Music Society. Rodkey also is locally involved with the Saint Vincent Alumni Association in Washington, D.C.

1970s

Frederick W. Lydic III, C’72, is now officially retired from the U.S. Navy; went from Seaman Recruit to Captain in 25 years, 3 months.

Kevin T. Downs, C’65, a financial services

Rev. Daniel A. Valentine, S’74, recently received the Distinguished Service Certificate from the American Legion, Department of Pennsylvania, one of the highest awards given by the organization.

professional in Wyalusing, Pennsylvania has recently been recognized as a Pacesetter by H.D. Vest Financial Services.

Richard A. Stillwagon, P’65, C’69, and his wife, Joanna, H 69, received the Salt and Light Humanitarian Award from the Diocese of Greensburg. Terrence L. Conroy, C’68, has been named president of General Press Corporation. William T. “Jolly” McGee, C’68, announces

Richard and Joanna Stillwagon the birth of his first grandchild, Leo, born August 4 to daughter, Liz, and her husband.

Deaths

George J. Silowash, C’75, has been promoted to the position of Senior Advisor Scientist at the Bechtel Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory in West Mifflin. His work has continued to enhance and improve the performance of Naval Reactor cores in our aircraft carriers and submarines. His (Continued on Page 53)

George T. Doran, Ph.D., C’61, on November 30.

John A. Bernat, C’53, on January 27.

Joseph M. Wells, P’38, on January 4.

Emil J. DiLorenzo, C’54, on December 11.

Louis R. Civitarese, M.D., C’43, on January 12.

Donald T. Racine, C’54, on September 28.

Frank Forys, C’43, on February 21.

Rev. John P. Stack, S’55, on March 21.

Joseph Bator, Ph.D., C’74, S’78, died on February 2.

Norbert G. Frey, P’45, in 2011.

Rev. Charles R. Griffin, S’56, on March 12.

Michael R. Ivan, C’74, on April 20.

Raymond J. Testa, C’45, on January 1.

Richard M. Krill, P’56, on November 30.

James J. Link, C’74, on September 24.

Most Rev. Andrew M. Pataki, D.D., P’45, C 50, on December 8.

Rev. John E. Wilt, S’57, on December 4.

Edwin B. Boltich, Jr., C’77, on March 17.

Ronald J. Harr, P’58, on January 19.

Paul R. Ploskina, C’77, died on March 7.

John D. Tricini, C 58, in December.

Lubomir “Lou” Komarov, C’80, on December 22, 2010.

James R. Reynolds, P’46, on October 23. Daniel M. Vernino, D.D.S., C 47, on March 23, 2010. Glenn E. Johnson, C’48, on May 19, 2011.

Walter J. Myslewski, M.D., C’59, on January 13.

John P. Kelly, Sr., C’72, on September 28, 2010. Michael L. D’Amico, C’73, on June 4.

John B. Mastrangelo, Jr., C’82, on February 4.

William C. Freeman, C’49, on January 14.

George T. Doran, Ph.D., C’61, on November 30.

Donald L. McAtee, P’49, on December 11.

G. Howard Frey, C’61, on January 13.

Mark A. Hixson, C’88, on December 8.

Rev. Edward F. McSweeney, C’49, S’52, on December 28.

James F. Judge, Jr., C’62, in 2011.

Michael P. Fallon, C’08, died on October 8.

Donald L. Leaphart, C’62, on January 24.

Matthew A. Wittman, on October 23, 2011.

Kevin Haney, P’51, on December 6.

Joseph M. Schroeffel, P’63, C 67, on August 9.

He was a a freshman mathematics major during the 2010-2011 academic year and member of the ice hockey team.

James R. Kerrigan, C’51, on March 25.

Richard J. Yarnot, C’63, on November 4.

James L. Kunkle, C’51, in 2011.

Richard D. Caringola, C’65, on November 12.

Joseph F. Emerling, C’51, on May 23.

Frederick D. Thomas, P’51, C’59, on March 15. Joseph J. Kemsey, C 52, on May 17, 2011.

Mary Jo Kelly, C’85, on July 31.

Axel Pena at his home in Florida. He was a biology major who played football with the Saint Vincent Bearcats as a freshman in the fall of 2011.

John P. “Jack” Merlo, C’68, on March 3. Atty. Regis T. Mahady, C’71, on February 14.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Audrey Elaina to Kate

Births

(Christianson), C’04, and her husband, Josh Skopp, C’02. She joins big sister, Sydney Alexandria, 3.

Peter Francis to Walter J. Nalducci, Esq, C’90, and his wife, Meighan, on October 21. He joins older siblings, Walter, IV, 4, and Teresa, 2.

Margaret Elizabeth Engel

Dominic James Greco

parents report that she “is in good health and continues to amaze us every day.”

Dominic James to Christopher J. Greco, C’99, and his wife, Courtney (Fink) Greco, C’99, on

Nora Kay to Ryan M. Silvis, C’05, and his wife, Robbi Joy, on December 6. She joins sister, Liliana Joy, 22 months. Jacob Joel to Holly (Seale) Hawley, C’08, and her husband, Joel Hawley, on June 11.

April 11, 2011. Sadie Marie to David P. Alexander, C’00, and his wife

Laura (Walsh)Alexander, C’02, Lillian Grace Zemba Lillian Grace to Brian J. Zemba, C’94, and his wife, Jackie, on March 28.

on July 13. She joins big brothers, Conner, 6, and Grant, 3. James Karl to Jamie R. (Kunkle) Augenbaugh, C’00, and her husband, Scott, on February 6.

Madelyn Grace Webb Madelyn Grace to Nicole (Franczyk), C’03, and her husband, Matt Webb, on July 22.

Wyatt Zachary Osborn Virginia (Ginnie) Leiner, C’05,

Nino Vincent Pagano

Leonardo James Biskup

Nino Vincent to Colette (Fleming), C’97, and her husband, Gino Pagano, D.M.D., C97, on August 13.

Leonardo James to Cara (Gigliotti), C’00, and her husband, Keith Biskup, C’02, on September 30. Leo joins big brother, Dominick, 5, and big sister, Mia Rose, 2.

Gunner Thomas to Michael R. Porembka, C’97, and his wife, Megan, on January 25. Rece Thomas to Kristine (Cavrak) Gorby, C’98, and her husband, Jason, on August 26, 2010. Rece joins big sister, Tatum, age 4. Max Jamison to Jeannine Tibus Lenart, C’98, and her husband Mark D. Lenart, C’96, on December 19. He joins an older brother, Jacob, and sister, Julia, at home.

Audrey Elaina Skopp with sister Sydney Alexandria, 3.

and her husband, Saint Vincent College professor of philosophy George Leiner, announce the birth of their first grandchild, Wyatt Zachary Osborn born March 23 in Livermore, California. Wyatt’s parents are the Leiners’ daughter, Jamie Lin Osborn and her husband, Jeff Osborn.

Nicholas William to Brad Bachman, C’01, and his wife, Laura, December 7, 2010. Little Maggie couldn’t wait, she came a little more than 8 weeks before her due date. Margaret Elizabeth Engel surprised her parents Paul and

Amy (Westover) C’01, G’03 Engel on March 2, 2012. She

Kaitlyn, Emily, Chuckie and Tommy Ruffing

weighed 4 lbs. 7oz. and was 18 1/2 inches long. After 34 days in the NICU, she is finally home where she belongs. The proud

Saint Vincent Magazine

Emily to Jenny (Striner) Ruffing, C’01, and her husband, Chuck, on October 30. She joins big sister, Kaitlyn, and big brothers, Chuckie and Tommy.

Spring/Summer 2012

(Continued from Page 51) ideas have been incorporated into the design and building of a new “state of the art” manufacturing facility for manufacturing nuclear reactor cores for “Life of the Ship” applications.

1980s

Capt. James J. Palerino, D.M.D., C’87, a commissioned officer with the U.S. Public Health Service, was recognized as Oklahoma Area Clinician of the Year. The award is presented to a health care provider who has demonstrated outstanding contributions to improving health care of Native Americans.

1990s

Michael Gibrall, C’90, won the award of Best Feature Screenplay at the 2012 Spirit Quest Film Festival in Edinboro, Pennsylvania, for his romantic dramedy “Available.” This is the second acknowledgement for the script, which was also a semifinalist at the 2012 Action on Film Festival in Pasadena, California, a Top 25 Film Festival according to MovieMaker Magazine. The script was originally written for the Action on Film Festival’s Writers’ Challenge. The competition at Action on Film rewards the winner with having his or her script produced into a film with a $100,000 budget. Only alumni of Action on Film were permitted to enter the first annual competition. ‘Available’ which he wrote, made the top twenty-five semifinalists. Spirit Quest is in the fourth year of the festival, and receives films and screenplays from around the world. The festival is geared toward uplifting and inspirational works. Gibrail’s science fiction thriller “Positive Variance” has won Best Feature Screenplay at the 2010 Eerie Horror Fest in Erie, and won both Best Sci-Fi Screenplay and Best Overall Screenplay (all genres considered) at the 2011 Indie

Gathering Film Festival near Cleveland.

Gregory F. Pellathy, C’91, represented Saint Vincent College at the inauguration of Bobby Fong, Ph.D. as the fifteenth president of Ursinus College on Saturday, April 21.

Molly M. Creenan, C’93, was presented The Father Camillus Long, O.S.B. Award in recognition of outstanding service to and active participation in alumni affairs of Saint Vincent College.

Thomas A. Harden, C’94, is a teacher at Hempfield Area School District. He and his wife, Heidi, have three children, Victoria, 9, Nathaniel, 7, and Nicholas, 2.

Joseph A. Altier, D.C., C’95,

Edward Crowe III, C’11, during his commissioning ceremony with Father Frank Ziemkiewicz, O.S.B., S’84, left. Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.

Multimedia, company owned by another Communication alumnus, Fred Findley, C’05.

Jason A. Hasson, C’05, was

Jared A. Rigo, C’09, is a science teacher/student disciplinarian at HOPE for Hyndman Charter School. Jared was named an Educator of the Month, Bedford.

named head boys basketball coach at Pope John High School, Sparta, New Jersey.

and his staff will celebrate their 12th year of business in the City of Jeannette on April 8.

Matthew J. Fox, C’06, has joined AmeriServ as a financial consultant in the Somerset branch office.

The Rev. Christopher D. Rodkey, C’99, recently

Matthew R. Sroka, C’06, has

published a book, The Synaptic Gospel: Teaching the Brain to Worship. The book explores the intersections of phenomenological philosophy, affect neuroscience, and ritual theory to re-think religious education for children and youths.

2000s

Alexander J. Kipp, C’02 joined the staff of Roetzel & Andress in March 2012 as an associate attorney, working out of the Cleveland office.

Neil Amina, C’04, accepted a position with Excela Health.

Dacie R. Bridge, C’05, graduated from West Virginia University School of Medicine with a Ph.D. in Immunology and Microbial Pathogenesis on December 2. She is currently working as a postdoctoral fellow for the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Science in the Laboratory of D. Scott Merrell, Ph.D. at the

Saint Vincent Magazine

earned a doctor of dental medicine degree from Temple University School of Dentistry.

2010s Ryan C. Deglau, C’10, recently accepted the position of museum facilitator at Bushy Run’s Museum, Jeannette.

Brian T. Bowers, C 07, is now

Spec. Brian J. Podnar, C’10,

an Associate Director at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital Pharmacy at Oregon State University, College of Veterinary Medicine in Corvallis, Oregon.

graduated from basic infantry training at Fort Benning, Columbus, Georgia.

Shannon N. Ballantyne, C’09,

commissioned a 2LT at a ceremony held at Fort Benning, Georgia, by Father Frank Ziemkiewicz, O.S.B. S’84, CH (COL) Ret. USAR. Father Frank currently serves as Headmaster of the Benedictine Military High School in Savannah. LT Crowe will continue his training at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma before reporting to his first unit.

was named senior accountant with audit and accounting services at Philadelphia-based ParenteBeard.

Jared Bundy, C’08, communication major, was named Coordinator of Social Media/Marketing and Video at Westmoreland County Community College in Youngwood.

Andrew J. Bianco, C’09, has been promoted to senior accountant in the Assurance and Advisory Services Group at Grossman Yanak & Ford LLP.

Kerri Cunkelman, C’09, communication major, recently accepted a position at Fineline 53

Edward “E.J.” Crowe, III, C’11, was recently

Stephanie S. Fitzgerald, C’11, is attending the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond.

Sarah Gower Gilbert, C’11, is a teacher at Queen of Angels School. She earned an M.S. in Curriculum and Instruction at Saint Vincent College.

Spring/Summer 2012

Engagements

Bertsch. The wedding will be held in Phipps Conservatory’s outdoor garden on June 15, 2013.

Jason A. Kocian, C’02, to Lacey Waldroop. The couple is planning a wedding in September at Asheville, North Carolina. They will reside in Eugene, Oregon.

Amanda M. Titler, C’09, to Daniel Gleixner. A May 18, 2013 wedding will be held at Saint Vincent Basilica.

John Paul Scherfel, Jr., C 02, to Melissa Bishop. A fall wedding is planned.

Andrea Hoover, C’10, to Frank J. Wade, Jr.

Jonathan T. Kohut, C’05, to Dr. Lisa Papenbrock. An October wedding is planned.

Ashley E. McKlveen, C’10, to Jeffrey

They are planning a 2012 wedding.

Luttner. The couple’s wedding is set for August.

Kimberly L. Orr, C’05, to Steven P. Genard, C’04. They plan a July wedding in Ligonier. Ashley M. Whipkey, C’05, to Matthew J. Robinson, C’09. The wedding will be held June 22, 2013.

Jamie M. Lute, C’06, to Nicholas A. Penwell. The wedding is scheduled for October 27.

Jillian M. Bush, C’09, and Simon F. Stuchlik, C’12.

Amy L. Kronenwetter, C’07, to Nicholas Mannerino, C’07, G’08. A May 26 wedding

C’12. The wedding will be held at Saint Rose Church on July 28.

was planned at St. Cecilia Catholic Church, Rochester.

Justin R. Davanzo, C’09, to Andrea M. Heinbaugh. The couple will be married

Krystin M. Lowers, C’07, to Matthew June 23 at St. John the Evangelist Church, Hanley, C’07. The couple plans an August 25 Connellsville. wedding.

Eric M. Roberts, C’07, to Amanda Connell, C’08. A September wedding is planned. Bradley J. Sanders, C’07, to Colleen Mary Rengert. An August wedding is scheduled.

Jillian M. Bush, C’09, to Simon F. Stuchlik,

Abby M. Feldbauer, C’09, to Chris Zampogna, C’09. An August 4 wedding is set for Queen of the World Church, St. Marys.

Lindsey M. Johnston, C’09, to Jared M. Haines. A spring wedding was scheduled.

Sadie K. Miller, C’09, to Christopher D.

MARRIAGES Theresa M. Palguta, C’95, and Raymond E. Grant on August 19 at St. Peter’s Catholic Church, Somerset.

J. Eric Deal, C’98, and Janelle Pepe were married on June 25 at St. Joseph Church. The couple honeymooned in Aruba. They are residing in Connellsville. Jamie L. Friguglietti, C’99, and Frank W. Corteal on October 22 at St. Rita’s Roman Catholic Church, Connellsville. The couple is residing in Connellsville.

Benjamin Stoltzfus, C’06, and Christa Jo Phares on September 17 at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church, East Vandergrift.

Casie Ann Poorbaugh, C’10, and Benjamin

Andrea L. Plummer, C11, and Benjamin R. Cleary, C’12. Andrea L. Plummer, C11, to Benjamin R. Cleary, C’12. The couple will marry on June 30, 2012 at the Church of Saint Paul in Greensburg.

Thomas Probst on November 26 at Saint Vincent Basilica with Father Regis M. Farmer, C’68, S’73, as celebrant.

Julie Shannon, C’11, to Zachary Kupec, C’10. The wedding will be held on July 14.

Brittany A. Vignero, C’10, and Frank Furfari, Jr., C’10, on December 10 at Saint Vincent Basilica. Saint Vincent alumni included in the wedding party were Hazel

Murphy, C 10, Nicole Peer, C 11, Meghan Wells, C’10, Joshua Penrose, C 13, and Ernie Oaks, C 13. Jessica A. Zigerelli, C’10, and Adam Mark Tucek, C’11, on October 29 at Saint Vincent Basilica. Father Jean-Luc Zadroga, O.S.B., S’00, was the celebrant. Sarah E. Gower, C’11, and David Gilbert

We Want to Know! Send news and address updates to Mary Ann Dunlap in the Alumni Office: 724-805-2568 or email alumni@stvincent.edu.

on July 9.

Saint Vincent Magazine

Spring/Summer 2012

Saint Vincent on the

Ro a d

Bearcat Family Zoo Day Saturday, June 16

Alumni Council Scholarship Thomas Cocchi, fourth from left, a junior finance and politics major from Pittsburgh, was awarded the Saint Vincent Alumni Council Scholarship at the Father Gilbert J. Burke, O.S.B. Easter Ball at Lexus Club at PNC Park on April 14. Participating in the presentation were, from left, Walter Nalducci, co-chairperson; Edward McCormick, president of Alumni Council; Molly Robb-Shimko, chairperson of the Saint Vincent Alumni Council Endowed Scholarship Committee; Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., president of Saint Vincent College; and Daniel Kunz, co-chairperson. The Saint Vincent Alumni Council Endowed Scholarship, established in 2001, is a $2,500 scholarship that is awarded to a student who demonstrates academic merit and financial need. Active in the Student Government Association for five semesters, Cocchi is president of the Student Government Association’s Executive Board, has been a member of The Company, the college’s student-run theatre group, is a residence hall prefect and Dean’s List student.

The Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium 1 Wild Place Pittsburgh PA 15206

Virginia Beach Monday, June 25 The Yard House 4549 Commerce Street Virginia Beach, VA 23462 RSVP to maryann.dunlap@email. stvincent.edu or 724-805-2568

Bearcat Open Golf Outing Friday, October 3-5 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Laurel Valley Golf Club. For more information contact the Alumni Office.

Upcoming

E ve n t s

Local Alumni Lunches

SVC Homecoming Friday-Sunday, October 5-7 All Day, SVC Campus. Bookmark the website and check for updates!

Latrobe-area alumni meet on a regular basis for lunch on campus. The Latrobe area group meets on the second Friday of every month in the Metten Room at Saint Vincent College, from noon to 1 p.m. For more information contact the Alumni Office. Greensburg-area alumni meet the third Tuesday of every month at Giannilli’s II, Route 30, Greensburg from noon to 1 p.m. Mark your calendars and join us!

Alumni Office 724-805-2568 alumni@stvincent.edu

Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Permint No. 110 Mailed from Zip Code 15650

Saint Vincent College Quality Education in the Benedictine Tradition

300 Fraser Purchase Road Latrobe, PA 15650-2690 www.stvincent.edu

The Chief Rob Zellers Gene Collier and

July 26 - August 19, 2012

8:10 p.m. evenings | 2:10 p.m. Matinees Art Rooney, the legendary founder of the Pittsburgh Steelers, spins a colorful American Sagaâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;full of faith, love, and laughter.

Spend an evening with the Chief!

Tickets:

Saint Vincent Summer Theatre