Summer 2009
geneseo scene
A magazine for alumni, parents and friends of SUNY Geneseo
El Sauce, Nicaragua
Small Steps, Big World The demand for
Geneseo From Welles to the White House
geneseo Summer 2009
scene CONTENTS
FEATURES 8
Small Steps, Big World Students push themselves in Nicaragua to help a struggling community. Culture shock, poverty and the spirit of El Sauce change them forever.
14 The demand for Geneseo As Geneseo ramps up its stature, admissions staff have a tough job choosing a new class from more than 10,700 applications. Why do so many students want to study here and who gets in?
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From Welles to the White House Jackie (Dycke) Norris ’92 discovered her aspirations in political science classrooms. With President Barack Obama’s election, she has worked her way up to be the First Lady’s chief of staff.
DEPARTMENTS 3 27 32
One College Circle Alumni News Class Notes
COLUMNS 2 7 17 20 22 26 40
President’s Message Letter from the Editor Sports Perspective Mission Driven Random Profile: One Cup Memory Lane
Cover and table of contents photography: Kris Dreessen ON THE COVER: Marcelo Gabriel Pastora, age 3, watches the street in a sliver of earlymorning sun from his doorway in El Sauce, Nicaragua. The Geneseo community is being recognized for its innovative efforts working with leaders and residents of the remote community to rebuild a stable economic base in the village. Because of the college’s efforts, Marcelo should have more options when he's ready for a career. AT RIGHT: A mariachi musician waits to play at El Sauce's tourism festival.
Postmaster: Please address changes to the Collins Alumni Center, McClellan House, SUNY Geneseo, 1 College Circle, Geneseo, NY 14454-1484. Third class postage paid at Rochester, NY 14606
geneseo
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
scene
Vol. 34, No. 2; Summer 2009
A bold LEAP forward
The Geneseo Sceneis published by SUNY Geneseo, Division of College Advancement, Office of College Communications.
t only takes a glance at the cover to recognize a bold new design for the Scene— six months in the making. However, a careful look inside reveals what makes Geneseo truly distinctive: our unwavering commitment to liberal and life-enhancing education, 138 years strong. In keeping with our mission, we educate socially responsible citizens by balancing continuity with change. As you will read in these pages, the Geneseo experience combines rigorous instruction with leading-edge undergraduate research. It blends diverse extracurricular activities with competitive intercollegiate athletics. It combines leadership development with professional internships. All of this is anchored in an environment of outstanding teaching by talented faculty and staff committed to educating the whole person. As seen in this issue’s cover story, the Geneseo experience also extends beyond the Genesee Valley to distant — and dramatically different — cultural settings. The El Sauce program in Nicaragua reflects our commitment to service-learning, which has emerged as a critical tool for preparing our graduates to live and work in a global society. Recognized as a high-impact educational practice by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, service-learning is now increasingly seen as a catalyst for active and engaged citizenship. Under the association’s national initiative known as LEAP — Liberal Education and America’s Promise — service-learning is essential to teach students to engage, respect and learn from people with different worldviews. As part of the LEAP coalition, Geneseo is looking outward rather than inward in a complex, multicultural world. moral, ethical, intellectual and academic inquiry. Through the El Sauce program and other initiatives, our students are intent on exploring global problems not to gain prestige, but to make a difference in countries profoundly different from their own. In turn, the college is committed to providing students with opportunities to apply their knowledge in the broader world and reflect on their experiences in a small classroom setting. The end result is an integrated and synergistic program that educates the whole person. As I reflect on my own undergraduate days — tutoring inner-city children in Boston and spending spring break working on community-service projects in North Carolina and Mississippi at the height of the civil rights movement — I am reminded that the strongest education is found at the intersection of moral, ethical, intellectual and academic inquiry. Nothing is more American about that distinctly American institution, the liberal arts college, than service-learning. We embrace that tradition here at Geneseo. Our fundamental identity comes from the fact that we always look at human beings in relationship to our whole world. In these pages and in future issues of the Scene, we aim to bring you both.
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Christopher C. Dahl, President Michael J. Catillaz, Vice President for College Advancement Anthony T. Hoppa, Assistant Vice President for College Communications Kris Dreessen, Editor Carole Volpe ’91, Art Director Contributing writers: Lisa M. Feinstein David Irwin Pamela York Klainer ’71 Jim Leach Alan Shank
Alumni Relations Office Rose G. Anderson, Assistant Vice President for Alumni Relations Michelle Walton Worden ’92, Associate Director of Alumni Relations Tracy Gagnier ’93, Assistant Director of Alumni Relations
The strongest education is found at the intersection of
Alumni Relations Office at Collins Alumni Center McClellan House SUNY Geneseo 1 College Circle Geneseo, NY 14454-1484 Phone: (585) 245-5506 Fax: (585) 245-5505 alumni@geneseo.edu Contact the Sceneat scene@geneseo.edu Visit the Web site at scene.geneseo.edu
Parent Relations Office Tammy Ingram ’88, Director of Parent Relations Erwin 202 Phone: (585) 245-5570
Cordially,
Christopher C. Dahl, President
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SNAPSHOT: Commencement 2009
1,143 6,550 937 8
students participated in Geneseo’s 143rd Commencement
guests cheered them on
graduates hail from New York state
countries or territories were represented by the graduates
98
students graduated with dual majors
64
graduates volunteered to rebuild homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in Biloxi, Miss.
70
volunteers, staff and student ushers made “the big day” run smoothly
41
percent of graduates expect to enter graduate school in the fall (based on a five-year average)
34 6 1
graduate students received their master’s degrees
months were spent preparing for Commencement
chance to seize all of life’s opportunities
One College Circle CAMPUS NEWS
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Solid ground for law Solving mysteries Better than Wall Street Tomorrow’s heroes News in brief Summer 2009
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ONE COLLEGE CIRCLE
CAMPUS NEWS
It’s a tiny translucent earthworm under Abbi Cox’s microscope, but it may help solve some mysteries of human life. “The amazing thing about these little worms is that half of their genes are similar to human genes,” she says. Cox, an assistant professor of biology, focuses on those human-like genes, studying a simple tube that forms in the worm’s intestine to better understand tissue formation on the cellular level in our bodies. Blood vessels, our gastrointestinal tracts and other large tissue systems are also formed with tubes. The National Institutes of Health recently awarded Cox a $212,000 grant to continue
her studies for three years and incorporate undergraduate students such as Vincent Cannataro ’10 as paid researchers. Cox’s funding is one of two grants or fellowships the National Institutes of Health has recently awarded Geneseo faculty members and students. Last summer, Morgan Fay ’09 was the first Geneseo student from the department of communicative disorders and sciences to participate in the NIH Summer Internship Program as an undergraduate research fellow. About 8,000 students apply; just 600 are chosen. “She performed so well that NIH has invited her back for this summer,” says her men-
tor, Professor Dale Metz. Fay, of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., worked with an expert at the NIH Clinical Center on groundbreaking research on Niemann-Pick Disease, Type C, an inherited metabolic disorder that affects the nervous system. Fay saw patients from around the world and reviewed their speech, language and swallowing exams to try to discover ways to slow the disease’s progression. This summer Fay will continue studying patients and write the first formal paper on research results. “I can help preserve someone’s quality of life,” says Fay. “That’s one of the coolest things about research.” — Kris Dreessen
PHOTO BY KRIS DREESSEN
Assistant Professor of Biology Abbi Cox examines a plate that contains thousands of microscopic C. elegansworms to better understand human tissue development. The red color signifies a stain she uses to visualize the worms’ intestines.
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PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CAROLE VOLPE
Faculty and students win elite NIH support
Liberal arts: solid ground for law “Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys … Make ’em be doctors and lawyers and such.” Country music legend Willie Nelson can rest easy. Last year, 41 percent of Geneseo students — nearly twice the national average — pursued full-time graduate study immediately after graduation. The statistic reflects Geneseo’s ongoing commitment to prepare students for professional careers, particularly in the fields of law and medicine. “Many Geneseo students do exceptionally well in gaining admittance to some of the top law schools,” said Jeffrey Koch, professor and chair of political science and international relations. Case in point: Diana Snyder ’08. The recipient of the Outstanding Senior in Legal Studies Award at Geneseo, she just finished her first year of law school at Boston University. “I was a little intimidated at first at BU because there are students here from Harvard, Columbia, UC Berkeley and other big-name schools,” she said. “But I think I was better prepared because of Geneseo and the way the Continued on page 6
No Bull! Geneseo student investors = better than Wall Street
PHOTO BY KRIS DREESSEN
Nathaniel Stevens ’09 hasn’t officially traded on the stock market floor, but those brokers in starched shirts may want to seek his advice. Stevens and his fellow investors who handled the Student Managed Investment Fund (SMIF) at Geneseo outperformed the experts. From February 2007, when the fund was initiated, to March 2009 the Dow Jones and S&P 500 were down almost 50 percent on average amidst America’s recession. The students? They lost much less. Their fund value dropped approximately 20 percent over that period. “We’ve been kind of sitting back during the recent turmoil,” said Stevens. “It feels good.” Stevens led investments and co-managed the fund with class of ’09 graduates Joe Skinner, Kevin Licari and Adam Kelly. Approximately 50 students are actively involved in the fund, researching stocks and making investment recommendations. The fund’s success in the tumultuous market is part smart investment, part good fortune, said Michael Schinski,
Pictured clockwise are Joe Skinner, left, Nathaniel Stevens, Adam Kelly and Kevin Licari.
interim dean of the School of Business. The student team dumped poor-performing stocks in June 2008 and invested in a short-term treasury bill fund. When problems hit last September, students wisely kept the money in Treasury bills, which remained stable. SMIF is part of the college’s Finance Club. The fund currently has $64,000 in assets — $36,000 in the market in equity holdings and bond funds. Each year, an anonymous donor gives $20,000 for investment. SMIF advisory board members also
donate annually. “It really creates a great learning opportunity, that students make decisions that are going to have real consequences,” said Schinski. Managing a successful fund has career benefits, too. Months before they tossed their graduation caps into the air, the fund managers landed prime jobs with top firms. Skinner and Licari are heading to Pricewaterhouse Coopers — the largest accounting firm in the world — to conduct financial audits on banks, hedge
funds and other financial institutions. Kelly will work in commercial lending at M&T Bank. Stevens may pursue a doctorate in economics. Potential employers in Skinner’s interviews singled out his fund experience. “At every point in that interview they drew attention to it,” he said. “They saw it on my resumé and were immediately intrigued by it … It shows them we’re extremely responsible and, I guess, devoted to increasing our knowledge.” — Kris Dreessen
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist addresses Class of ’09 Pre-eminent journalist Linda Greenhouse, who was the U.S. for 30 Supreme Court correspondent at The New York Times years, addressed “Tomorrow’s Heroes” for Geneseo’s 2009 graduating class May 16. Greenhouse received a Pulitzer Prize in journalism in 1998 for her high-court coverage. “Linda Greenhouse is an exceptionally learned and astute observer of the American judicial system as well as an outstanding journalist. It was a great privilege to have her address our graduates this year,” said President Christopher C. Dahl. Greenhouse is the Knight Distinguished Journalist-inResidence and Joseph M. Goldstein Senior Fellow at Yale Law School. Her biography of Justice Harry A. Blackmun, “Becoming Justice Blackmun,” was published in 2005. Receiving an honorary doctor of science degree this year was Esther Conwell, a professor of physics and chemistry at the
University of Rochester. She is renowned for her research that shaped the understanding of semiconductor physics and for transistor design. Both were vital steps in the birth of the computer revolution. “Geneseo is proud to award an honorary doctorate to Professor Conwell because of her extraordinary professional accomplishments and her longtime commitment to reducing barriers for women in science. She is an exemplar of intellectual curiosity in and of itself and as a spur to invention,” said Dahl. Carl T. Hayden, chairman of the State University of New York’s Board of Trustees, assisted Dahl with this year’s commencement ceremonies. The college graduated more than 1,000 students in identical morning and afternoon ceremonies in the Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena on campus.
David Irwin Summer 2009
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ONE COLLEGE CIRCLE
Law ... continued from page 4
NEWS IN BRIEF President is leading higher ed, nationwide President Christopher C. Dahl was appointed last March to the board of directors of the American Council on Education — the nation’s leading association concerned with the quality and public standing of undergraduate liberal education. He will serve on the board until 2012 as the representative for the Association of American College and Universities, whose board he chaired from 2007-08.
Geneseo is top ranked again Excellent academics while keeping in-state and out-ofstate costs at a minimum is one reason why Geneseo was singled out among more than 500 four-year schools in the nation by Kiplinger?s Personal Finance magazine in 2009. Kiplinger?s ranked Geneseo second for best value among the country’s public colleges for out-ofstate students and sixth for New York students. Geneseo ranked first and sixth, respectively, in 2008 rankings. Geneseo was judged for its academic quality including admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios, fourand six-year graduation rates, tuition cost and financial aid. “Our position as one of the top college values in the nation continues to pay dividends in these difficult economic times,” said Bill Caren, associate vice president for enrollment services. “We are definitely seeing students with a stronger academic profile. Rankings like these from Kiplinger?shelp define who we are and attract the kind of student we like to have on campus.” 6
geneseo scene
PHOTO BY PEGGY WIRTH
Laura Caley '11, left, and Liz Riley '11 deconstruct a home damaged by Hurricane Katrina in Biloxi, Miss. in one of the 2008-09 Livingston CARES volunteer trips.
College receives top honor for community service Before receiving her diploma, Emily Froome ’09 picked up a hammer to help rehabilitate houses in Biloxi, Miss., for victims of Hurricane Katrina with the college and Livingston County CARES program. “I’m a ground-up approach person,” says Froome. “I believe in individual and community-based initiatives.” That dedication among students, faculty and staff to help others earned Geneseo the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. The school was named to the Corporation for National and Community Service’s President’s 2008 Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Geneseo has been on the honor roll every year since the award was created in 2006. The honor encompasses all of the school’s volunteer efforts, including the Adopt-a-Family program that helps struggling families in Livingston County, and Geneseo First Response, the only student emergency medical-services team in New York linked to a county 911 system.
Next stop: Ancient Greece One of Geneseo’s newest destinations for study abroad is Athens, Greece. The college partnered with the University of Indianapolis to allow Geneseo students to take upper-level courses at the university’s overseas campus for semester and summer programs. In total, Geneseo offers study and servicelearning opportunities in 22 countries.
Teams are conference champs Three Geneseo athletic teams ended their seasons with a bang. Women’s tennis and the women’s and men’s swim teams clinched the State University of New York Athletic Conference titles in 2008-09. Swim team members and Coach Paul Dotterweich also took home individual honors at the state competition. Dotterweich was the conference’s Mens’ and Women’s Coach of the Year. He has won the Men’s Coach of the Year Award six times and the Women’s Coach of the Year award twice. Michelle Rodriguez ’11 was named Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet, beating school and conference records in five events.
political science professors over-prepared us to handle the demands from law school. I’m in the top of my class here for the Class of 2011.” Discipline is a must to succeed, said Rizwan “Rizzy” Qureshi ’03 (Howard University School of Law), a commercial litigation attorney at Reed Smith LLP in New York. At Geneseo, he learned how to successfully balance studying with nonacademic activities. Qureshi was among more than 50 alumni in the legal profession who reconnected in Manhattan last March at an event hosted by Geneseo Foundation Board Member Bob Avallone ’76 (St. John’s University), a managing partner with Lewis Johs Avallone Aviles LLP in New York. The diverse education of liberal arts has proven to be a good match for budding lawyers in other ways. “While it may seem odd, the courses that most aided me were the philosophy courses I took, and business writing,” said Claudia Hinrichsen ’86 (Hofstra University), a partner with Nixon Peabody LLP in Jericho, N.Y. Geneseo’s small-class instruction also was important, said Geneseo Alumni Association Board of Directors Vice President Tracie Lopardi Brown ’95 (Syracuse University College of Law), an attorney with Harris Beach PLLC in Lancaster, N.Y. That’s because “it makes everyone think and consider other individuals’ points of view, which is what the practice of law requires you to do.”
Tony Hoppa
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
El Sauce, New Scene n assignment for our cover story about our service-learning program in El Sauce, Nicaragua, I waited outside the mayor’s office for Resident Director Kellan Morgan ’06 to finish a meeting. He came out shaking hands and looking very surprised: He had just learned that a U.S. government aid agency was sending him and a group of farmers to observe a successful tourism venture launched by farmers in another Nicaraguan town. The visit would provide insight for the contingent, since Morgan and Geneseo students are helping the El Sauce farmers launch their own tourism venture. In the short time since I’ve returned, a student received a grant to launch a dental hygiene program in El Sauce and two New Jersey men who encountered our reporting blog made a special trip to El Sauce, bearing book donations. Today, as I write this, Morgan announced that a Peace Corps volunteer will develop tourism in El Sauce with him and students. It all assures me that this is an inspiring Geneseo story to share. Reporting on the program is challenging because the good news is always changing, sometimes daily. As a veteran international study participant, overseas volunteer and delighted traveler to remote destinations, I am very familiar with traditional programs in which undergraduates get their feet wet living abroad. El Sauce is completely uncommon. Students design their own programs, work with El Sauce residents and learn how to get along and then thrive in a foreign culture. Alums I talked to who have gone to El Sauce believe it’s one of the best things they’ve ever done — academically and personally. It gave them global awareness, confidence and dreams to make a difference. It was important to go to El Sauce with Adam Davis ’09 and Meredith Cannella ’09 to cover the story because the only way to truly understand what it’s like for them to push out of their comfort zones and become part of a new culture is to build a wall with Adam and to be with Meredith as she experiences living without running water and practices patting a perfect tortilla with new friends. You can’t get that in interviews upon their return, no matter how thoughtful the questions. Digging deeply to portray the Geneseo experience for students past and present is the mission of the new Scene. We reached out to alumni in our ideas and decisions in our process to better serve you. You will find many changes in this and future issues that we hope will inspire compelling discussion of the college and world around us — and connect you with friends and precious memories. Kris Dreessen Visit the On Scene blog for frequent updates at http://geneseoonscene.blogspot.com
O Digging deeply to portray the Geneseo experience is the mission of the new Scene
PHOTOS BY KRIS DREESSEN
At left, Darling Uriarte Mendoza wraps thread around pine needles as she makes a basket in Cerro Colorado, a mountain community near El Sauce, Nicaragua. The basket business that Geneseo is helping establish in Cerro Colorado provides the women an opportunity to support their families, she says. Students in the El Sauce service-learning program work with residents like Mendoza to build tourism and handicraft enterprises and teach skills such as English and computers. Alums say the experience changes their life and worldview.
Summer 2009
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Small Steps,
Big World Geneseo students are making a difference in El Sauce, Nicaragua
Story and Photos by Kris Dreessen
W
ith two shoulder-jarring whacks, Adam Davis ’09 takes down the last of a 15-foot adobe wall from Pepe’s house. The dried mud and manure are so deteriorated, flooding waters of this rainy season would have brought it tumbling. An hour after the first hammer hit, Adam is standing in the living room, looking straight out into the driveway at Pepe, who is dropping clumps of adobe into a rickety wheelbarrow in a swirling cloud of dust. “It’s kind of fun when you get the gist of what they want you to do,” Adam says, wiping dirt and sweat off his forehead. It is his third morning in Nicaragua, his first time outside of the United States and fourth hour in Wall Building 101, working with an El Sauce mason who knows approximately eight words in English. Adam talks in fragments. Pepe dissects the phrases and answers with a few words. When all else fails, they mime. In a few days, Adam will nail the local Nicaraguan slang as he helps Pepe build a sturdy brick and cement wall and a new kitchen roof for his family. They go from “move rocks there” to considering “Just what is democracy?” Adam translates song lyrics into Spanish for Pepe, who also wants to know, “What girls do you like at the fraternity?” And, “What is a fraternity?” They joke about their buddies’ 10-point loss on the basketball court. They become friends. Adam gets used to bucket showers and rice and beans at every meal and even his early-morning commute, where he greets neighbors and farmers rolling past in ox-driven carts with a friendly “hello” as he shuffles past. Ten days in, El Sauce is second nature. “I remember driving in here and seeing the El Sauce sign, I was so worried,” he says. “I didn’t know what to expect. Now it’s home number three.” Geneseo, he says, is his second home.
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Adam Davis ’09 says he lived in the moment in El Sauce, and has adopted the flexibility and openness he learned living in the small town.
Summer 2009
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El Sauce now feels like home for Adam Davis ’09 after he spent two weeks tearing down and building a new wall with Pepe and his family and friends.
“I remember driving in here and seeing the El Sauce sign, I was so worried. I didn’t know what to expect. Now it’s home number three.” — Adam Davis ’09
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A program for reflection Adam and Meredith Cannella ’09 spent their winter break in Geneseo’s El Sauce service-learning program, living with families, teaching English, mastering Spanish and working alongside locals on volunteer projects. The town is nestled in an isolated valley in northern Nicaragua, two hours from a major city. The area is rich in cattle production and farming, but commerce fell off after train service stopped during the country’s devastating civil war in the 1980s. Now the tracks are gone, salvaged and sold for the iron. El Sauce’s 10,000 residents rely on farming, cattle and small business. Many families in the country grow just enough food or make just enough money to eat. As many families in the town center have flush toilets as those who have no indoor plumbing. Water gets turned off each day to conserve, and everyone owns a flashlight for when the electricity goes out, which is often. “I thought, ‘Here we go, this is for real. Life gets serious. We’re going to speak their language, eat their food, live under their roofs,’” says Adam, who added “international” to his career options after seeing how he thrived in El Sauce. “It was definitely the most memorable experience I’ve had, and the most ‘out there’ experience.” Started with seed money through a School of Business grant in 2006, the pro-
gram has been running full time since May 2007. More than 35 students have participated so far — 12 are there now. Most have been School of Business or foreign languages and literatures students, but students from all disciplines are encouraged to apply. While many universities and colleges offer study abroad or volunteer opportunities in developing countries, few make a long-term commitment. El Sauce is unique because it is a true collaboration of the entire Geneseo community — students, faculty, staff and alumni — as well as Geneseo and El Sauce residents, who organized the program and are securing its future. Students create their own projects with guidance from Resident Director Kellan Morgan ’06, a former El Sauce volunteer, and Managua native Yacarely MareinaDávila, a full-time volunteer. Students have led courses on personal finance, business and beginning computer skills, and they have run a summer recreation program. Now they can save homes endangered by walls caving in. Adam was the first student to raise $500 for supplies and work in the 4 Walls Project, a grassroots initiative started by a Peace Corps volunteer to rehab dilapidated houses. Meredith was the first student to work with Yuritza Sequeira, a young nurse. Meredith helped to weigh babies, distribute antibiotics and tend to young children in communities reached only after an hour’s hike. Geneseo’s program is part of a growing trend among colleges to encourage global service-learning — experience-based learning in which students incorporate what they learn in class to address complex problems like poverty, job creation and health care in communities around the world. They have to think critically, pull from all they have learned in school and life, and collaborate with the community members whose lives they touch. The intent is to inspire self-reflection and
self-discovery and develop diverse skills. Two-time volunteer Caitlin Morrison ’07 fondly remembers honing her problemsolving skills during those frequent El Sauce blackouts when she and other volunteers had to make up their own games and lessons that could be taught in the dark. “After living in El Sauce, I can live anywhere. The flexibility that comes from living in El Sauce and actually appreciating it and enjoying it is unmatched,” says Caitlin. “I’ve learned to be more humble and considerate when talking about global development and different cultures … I talk about my experiences in Nicaragua all the time because they are unique and the things I learned are applicable in all sorts of everyday situations.” ••• The projects and the need Few job seekers fresh out of college can brag that they “helped build a successful business venture that is the sole means for women in rural Nicaragua to support their families.” But Chad Salitan ’09 can. In addition to teaching English last summer, Chad trekked three hours up a mountain path to interview and photograph women in Cerro Colorado who weave and sell baskets using fallen pine needles — a free and renewable resource that grows near their homes. Baskets are sold in Nicaraguan tourism markets. Kellan is also working with the School of Business students to research how to import baskets to U.S. markets, where the products can fetch higher prices. “We’re going to be better because we can use that money to buy medicine,” said Feliciana Mendoza, as she wrapped deep red thread around a pinky-thick bundle of pine needles and pulled it tight during a meeting. Often, their families don't have extra money to visit a doctor. The small but highly successful basket enterprise is one of several ongoing projects in El Sauce that focus on sustainable economic development. They all grew from what community members say is most needed and are being recognized by U.S. government and college-level organizations. “We’re unique in El Sauce,” says Kellan. “There’s not another nonprofit organization that promotes business development.” The other Geneseo projects are building a tourism base in El Sauce and teaching English to adults who want to earn more or land better jobs. Every evening, 20 or so residents ages 17 to 55 fill the program’s
tiny, two-room New York School of English. Few people in El Sauce speak English, says Kellan, so knowing the language skyrockets their marketability. Luz Luna, a veterinarian, will nearly double her pay when she can communicate in English with the volunteer doctors from the United States and the Netherlands with whom she works. Teenager Manuel Munguia attends high school on Saturdays because he needs to drive a bike taxi during the week to help support his family. He couldn’t find another job with his limited skills. As the first student to pass English Level One, he’s on his way to achieving his dream of working in the mayor’s office or as an interpreter or tour guide. For the tourism initiative, Kellan and Yacarely spent the winter training El Sauce teens to give personal bike and walking tours of their town. On top of a nearby mountain is Ocotal. There, Mauricio Martinez and his fellow farmers dreamed of sharing their organic coffee crops, simple homes and high vistas with tourists who want an intimate look at rural life. Geneseo helped launch the tourism enterprise with outstanding results: The first successful tour was held while Adam and Meredith were there. Such innovative yet practical enterprises may be the crux of El Sauce revitalization. Similar to the farmers and basket-weavers, 60 percent of El Sauce families are sustainable farmers or workers. With local unemployment averaging 40 percent, people must be creative to make ends meet, according to former Mayor Ervertz Delgadillo, who started the relationship with Geneseo in 2006 when he visited campus to explore economic opportunities by invitation of a nonprofit group in Rochester, N.Y. Successful redevelopment has to focus on El Sauce’s strengths, include the local municipality and be inspired by what residents say they need, says Ervertz. He says Geneseo gets it right: The school did not announce how it would help. It listened. “It’s creating new ideas and concepts,” says Ervertz. “The projects are doing what
Meredith Cannella ’09, center, helps nurse Yuritza Sequeira give a vaccination to a small girl. Cannella devised her own volunteer project that focused on healthcare.
Get involved… Offset program costs for students Send tax-deductible donations by mail to: The Geneseo Foundation Erwin 11 1 College Circle Geneseo, NY 14454 Specify “El Sauce scholarship” on the memo line. Donate online at http://giveto.geneseo.edu. (Choose “other” in the Designated For box and specify El Sauce.) Or call (585) 245-5518.
Visit Take an uncommon vacation to El Sauce that combines volunteering, adventure and a connection to Geneseo. E-mail elsauce@geneseo.edu or call (585) 245-5546.
Help in other ways Make a direct El Sauce contribution, donate dental, medical and computer supplies or share your expertise in Web design, marketing, importing or other fields. E-mail elsauce@geneseo.edu or call (585) 245-5546.
:Explore the exclusive El Sauce photo and profile gallery at http://go.geneseo.edu/elsauce. Summer 2009
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“El Sauce changed my life because it gave me an avenue to actually use my passion and education to make a difference in the world.” — Jayne Ebner ’07
Learning English boosts marketability in the workforce, says Kellan Morgan ’06, back left, and Yacarely Mareina-Dávila, back right, posing with students, and Meredith Cannella ’09 and Adam Davis ’09.
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we wouldn’t be able to do because we don’t have the resources … I think the people feel something growing in themselves to motivate themselves and to make a living at something they tried. Now they know they can change their lives.” The strongest impact will be seen years down the road, say students and Kellan, when an English student like Manuel has traded in his bike taxi for a “tour guide” hat and artisans have taken over the basket enterprise. El Sauce has an opportunity to have a stable business from projects Geneseo helped build. “It’s a foundation,” says Kellan. “By us giving them a little push and helping them out, it’s a jump-start. They are going to run off and go on their own.” It takes time. Kellan cautions all participants to consider the big picture before they come. “There are some people who come here for two weeks and they want to change the world. Some leave unsatisfied that they
‘did not do much,’” he says. “But it really depends on how you see it. Students need to look at the big picture at what Geneseo is doing and they'll see that together, everyone is making a difference.” ••• Gaining recognition As you read this, pre-dental student Allison Kornblatt ’10 is likely skimming the bristles of a toothbrush across her pearly whites, demonstrating proper technique to small children. She won a $1,000 grant from Campus Compact — a consortium of New York college and university presidents — to design a preventive dental-hygiene program for 1,500 children in El Sauce. She is working with the town’s dentist, who extracts up to 20 teeth per day because he doesn’t have resources for fillings or root canals. Allison is ensuring future Geneseo students can continue the project. What set Allison’s proposal apart is Geneseo’s strong partnership with El Sauce and the outstanding learning opportunity it provides, says Jim Heffernan, executive director of New York Campus Compact. Her award is one of the latest recognitions from outside sources that Geneseo’s service-learning program and community efforts have received. Last fall, Yacarely’s business plan for the Ocotal tourism initiative won a $10,000 grant from the Millennium Challenge Corporation. The money helped build a rustic welcome center and restaurant on land Mauricio Martinez donated from his own farm. The Challenge Corporation is a U.S. federal government aid agency that promotes sustainable development in developing countries. Impressed by its first tour last January, the Challenge Corporation also paid for farmers’ training and for an El Sauce-Ocotal contingent to visit another thriving tourism farm. “It has been a dream for a long time,” says Mauricio. It’s a historic time in Ocotal, he says. This fall, tourism in downtown El Sauce will also get a boost. A Peace Corps volunteer will help Kellan, Yacarely and visiting Geneseo students promote bike and walking tours as part of their official duties. ••• Next steps on campus Plans are underway to increase Geneseo faculty presence in El Sauce to strengthen the program’s learning component. The college is interested in expanding course options,
possibly offering humanities and international business on location and a pre-departure course about Nicaraguan culture and history, says faculty program director David Aagesen, associate professor of geography and faculty fellow for international programs. Professors are also exploring ways business majors and other students can expand El Sauce projects, such as marketing the pine-needle baskets in the states. Meredith and Adam also were inspired to start the new Los Saucenos club on campus. Members will raise money for initiatives, recruit volunteers and generally learn from the El Sauce experience, even if they never board a plane. “I think this could be one of the biggest things Geneseo offers,” says Chad, who developed a pen-pal exchange between Spanish classes and the New York School of English. He often visits classrooms to encourage students to go to Nicaragua. ••• Self-discovery, world reflection Those who do journey to El Sauce don’t ever really leave the program. “It’s a life-changing experience,” says Aaron Stephan ’08, who taught personal finance and computer classes in winter 2008. “You get back and you realize it’s still going on,” says Aaron. “It was more a vacation with a purpose then and now I see it as an ongoing need. It made me think about what I want to do with my life.” He’s now deciding whether to study immigration law with a focus on Hispanic communities or earn a master’s degree in Costa Rica in Central American education and volunteering. Alumni of the El Sauce program say the same thing: It was one of the best things they have ever done. Jayne Ebner ’07 is in rural Nicaragua for the fifth time, leading a service-learning program for a California-based nonprofit organization. “El Sauce changed my life because it gave me an avenue to actually use my passion and education to make a difference in the world,” she says. The most profound way El Sauce changed their lives, say alums, is that it taught them flexibility, inspired them to slow down and appreciate friends and family, and gave them the ability to see that other point of view. “Here in the U.S. we so often take for granted the smallest luxuries and feel
that we are entitled to more,” says Jayne. “After hand-washing my own clothing, going without electricity or running water at times and dealing with the day-to-day struggles Nicaraguans face, I not only appreciate what I have more but understand that all that material stuff doesn’t have to be that important. It has enriched my life more than I will ever comprehend.” Reflecting on their own journey, Meredith and Adam agree. They lived in the moment in El Sauce. In a foreign culture, ordering a sandwich can be an adventure or lesson. Everything is new, and up for rumination. “Even if you make a small impact on people’s lives, you improve the community,” says Meredith. “The most important thing I did there was to keep the relationship between El Sauce and Geneseo viable.” During the last English class, students surprised Meredith and Adam with ice cream and a farewell party, with lots of hugging. Meredith thanked them and said: “This is a life-changing experience. I hope to come back.” She says she is just beginning to discover how her experiences in El Sauce will shape her. “I saw my skills were needed,” she says. “You see the individual human impact. You see the gratitude of the health worker, the people you treat and the people of the English class. I loved feeling satisfied knowing that whatever I did there will continue.”
TOP PHOTO: Mauricio Martinez donated his own farm land to start the Ocotal tourism business. BOTTOM PHOTO: Tourists to Ocotal help roast organic coffee with Alfonso Martinez and his family and experience rural life.
“I saw my skills were needed. You see the individual human impact.” — Meredith Cannella ’09
Summer 2009
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demand
The
for
Geneseo As the college’s reputation grows, the best students are applying in record numbers.
By Jim Leach housands of college admission representatives flock to huge fairs each year in civic centers and auditoriums around the nation — ritual events where high- school students and their families confront their higher-education options. In contrast to colleges that find themselves in hard-sell mode at those events, Bill Caren says Geneseo’s reputation has become so strong that his colleagues in the admissions office have had to “practice being modest.” “People stop by our table to tell us how good Geneseo is,” said Caren, associate vice president for enrollment services. He has seen the college’s standing soar during his four decades on campus. Director of Admissions Kristine Shay ’88 credits Caren for conceiving a sophisticated program that communicates Geneseo’s qualities effectively and treats admission visitors as individuals. Through personalized attention, the college’s admissions staff makes a connection that registers with prospective students and their parents. “Geneseo had the look, the feel, and the faculty of a good private college,” said Shay. “Bill knew how to promote that. And when people visit, they find that what they have been reading is true. Value is the concept that brings people to us. Our academic quality and sense of community are why they stay.” The combination has made Geneseo the most selective college in the SUNY system, and competitive among the best liberal arts colleges in the nation — public and private. SUNY measures selectivity by incoming students’ grade point average (GPA) and performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), defining top-tier students as those with SATs above 1200 and GPAs
T
ILLUSTRATION BY KEVIN SERWACKI
above 90. Ninety-seven percent of the firstyear students who entered Geneseo in fall 2008 met those criteria. Among the other comprehensive colleges in SUNY, the nextlargest group of entering students in the top tier was 33 percent. Even the most selective of SUNY’s four doctoral campuses enrolled just 86 percent of its first-year students from the top tier of applicants. Delivering on a promise “It’s our particular niche,” said President Christopher Dahl. “We realize that, as we become more selective, we are competing against a different set of institutions. We don’t really compete for students with
Finding a niche Founded in 1871 to train teachers, Geneseo became a part of SUNY in 1948 and developed its programs in the liberal arts, sciences, teacher preparation and professional studies. It prospered over the next three decades and alumni from that era extended the college’s reputation as they built successful careers and contributed to their communities. When the college-aged population dipped in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Geneseo, like many other colleges, was faced with the prospect of declining enrollments. Many peer institutions responded by increasing the number of graduate pro-
Applications Year
Average GPA*
*admitted students Average SAT*
Applications
Acceptances
1979
84
990
4,378
78%
1995
91.1
1148
8,466
52%
2008
93.3
1325
10,852
36%
other four-year institutions in SUNY. We’re recruiting against private liberal arts colleges as a public liberal arts college. “We have to make sure we deliver on the promise of our selectivity,” Dahl continued. “That’s one of the reasons we don’t buy students through non-need-based aid. That money instead goes into recruiting faculty, reducing class size and improving physical amenities of the college.” In 2004, Geneseo became the only public undergraduate institution in the state — and one of 276 nationwide — to be a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society.
grams they offered or developing new curricula that were more oriented to vocational preparation. In essence, they expanded and changed their missions to attract more students. Geneseo decided not to grow but to become more selective and focus resources on teaching undergraduates. “We hypothesized that there was a niche in the market for a small, selective liberal arts college that might represent a reasonable alternative for the best and brightest kids whose parents didn’t want to spend $20,000 a year,” Caren told The New York Times for the November 1990 article “SUNY Campus in Cornfields Cultivates an Ivy Reputation.” Summer 2009
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Times reporter Lisa Foderaro wrote: “Geneseo succeeded by becoming more exclusive, educating the middle class rather than the working class, in part by offering those students a tuition bargain.” To illustrate the impact of marketing and national publicity, Foderaro cited a 1986 Money Magazine article that included Geneseo among “Ten Colleges With an Ivy Twist.” Money Guide, she noted, had ranked Geneseo the second best public college value in the nation. Selectivity’s other edge Today, nearly 19 years later, the college has continued on the trajectory that attracted the interest of The New York Times and Money. Geneseo’s reputation for quality and value has led to even greater selectivity, along the way attracting the attention of publications such as US News & World Report, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine, Princeton Review and The Fiske Guide. Geneseo shares applicants not only with other SUNY institutions, but with some of the best private colleges and universities in the state. Today’s savvy high school students tend to “self select,” or apply only where they have a chance of being admitted, said Shay. Of 11,000 applications for admission to Geneseo in fall 2008, she said, only 15 percent clearly would not have been admitted. Of the remaining 85 percent, the college could offer admission to fewer than one in three applicants. Competition was even more intense for the class that will enter in fall 2009, in part driven by concerns about the uncertain economy. “People would be stunned by the academic qualifications of applicants we have to turn down,” said Caren. As Geneseo’s reputation grows, the value of a Geneseo degree also increases — a benefit for alumni whose diploma is a credential. The tradeoff is that alumni offspring who apply face a more competitive pool. Geneseo admitted approximately 20 percent of the alumni sons and daughters who applied this year. For context, consider that Geneseo admitted only a small percentage of the high-school valedictorians who applied. The college encourages applications from alumni offspring and considers their Geneseo connection among other personal qualities, but performance on the SAT and in a challenging high school program carry the greatest weight. Alumni sons and daughters who aren’t admitted for the fall term are 16
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often guaranteed admission in the spring after a semester or more of exemplary work at another college, said Caren. Continuity Members of the faculty and administration attribute Geneseo’s success to the college defining its mission, working hard to fulfill that role and fostering its reputation. They trace the college’s strengths and character to earlier days. “Although we are more selective on a statistical basis, there’s a huge continuity between our more free-and-easy days and today,” said Dahl. Central to that continuity, he said, is the quality of Geneseo’s faculty. Alumni and ranking agencies often cite Geneseo faculty for their dedication to students.
“It’s great to have a class you can push. It allows you to do more in the classroom. You can really throw it out there and know that everyone is capable. It creates a climate of higher expectations.” — Michael Schinski, interim dean of the School of Business “On the road I’m always asked about the great faculty from the ’60s and ’70s — people like Walter Harding (English) and Robert “Doc” Isgro (music) and David Martin (economics),” said Dahl. “We have the same kind of faculty winning national awards for teaching today — people who change students’ lives.” Ron Herzman, distinguished teaching professor of English, started teaching at Geneseo in 1969. While on leave a dozen years later to work at the National Endowment for the Humanities in Washington, he taught a Dante course at Georgetown University. When he returned to Geneseo in 1985, he taught a new senior-level seminar on Dante. Halfway through the year, he realized something: “Georgetown students, Geneseo students; I didn’t see the difference.” While he acknowledges the change in Geneseo’s selectivity, he also notes student
caliber, no matter the era. “The good students I’ve had in the past would do perfectly fine today,” Herzman said. The quality and work ethic of Geneseo students was an attraction when Michael Schinski, interim dean of the School of Business, joined the faculty in 1992. “It’s great to have a class you can push,” he said. “It allows you to do more in the classroom. You can really throw it out there and know that everyone is capable. It creates a climate of higher expectations.” His colleagues appear to agree. When the California-based Higher Education Research Institute asked faculty to rate their satisfaction with the quality of their students, 94.6 percent of Geneseo faculty responded that they were “very satisfied” or “satisfied” with the quality of their students, compared with an average of 57.1 percent at all four-year institutions. Community A constant among Geneseo students during the years has been their commitment to service, said Distinguished Teaching Professor Margaret Matlin, a member of the psychology faculty since 1971. While her students today are more diverse, representing a broader world-view, she said, “Geneseo students have always been focused on helping others to make their lives better. They want to make the world a better place.” “Our students are genuinely happy to be part of this community,” said Robert Bonfiglio, vice president for student and campus life. “They readily assume the responsibility that goes along with the privilege of being here. Those seeds were planted by the students and faculty and staff who came before.” Biology major Tim Calnon is studying the cancer-fighting properties of the compound artemisinin for his senior research project. He is overseen by Distinguished Teaching Professor Robert O’Donnell. Calnon recalled, “On the third day of my college career, in freshman biology class, Dr. O’Donnell called me by my first name.” Senior philosophy major Anna Hope, who passed on acceptances at the University of Rochester and Colgate to attend Geneseo, recalled a similar experience from her first year. “My second semester, I took a seminar on infinity. There were seven people in the class, and two professors, Stacy and Bill Edgar. We just sat at the table and talked.”
SPORTS
Shot of a lifetime Senior basketball star Scott Morton made history with a circus-worthy move seen around America. By David Irwin t began as a typical Tuesday last winter for Blue Knights varsity basketball captain Scott Morton ’09. By the end of the day, however, he was in the center of national sports attention thanks to an acrobatic shot executed at the perfect moment. With 10 seconds left in the Dec. 2 thriller against visiting SUNY Oswego, Morton made a 3-pointer to put Geneseo ahead, but Oswego drove back and scored to take a 1-point lead. With a scant 3 seconds on the clock, Geneseo inbounded to fastbreaking guard Mike Baker, who missed his heavily contested layup. The hustling Morton dived for the rebound and — miraculously — lifted the ball over his shoulder and behind his back for the buzzer-beater and an 85-84 win. Whew! Fellow players and spectators swarmed Morton. The Oswego players left the court in shock. Morton got little sleep that night. Friends contacted him into the wee hours after they saw video of the shot, which quickly swept the country via the Internet and broadcast outlets. ESPN declared the move its #1 Play of the Day and interviewed Morton live the next day (see the video at http://tinyurl.com/MortonESPN). “It was very exciting and I’m not sure it has totally sunk in yet,” said Morton. “I tried to take a charge on the Oswego player’s drive, but instead of watching to see if Mike would make his layup for us, I sprinted down the court and ended up in just the right spot to make the play. It was all pretty surreal.” ESPN named Morton’s shot among its “Top Ten Circus Shots” of all time, right behind a gravity-defying scoring move by Michael Jordan. The Morton video, captured by student videographer Joe Haskell ’09, has received more than 98,000 view-
I
ings on YouTube. Among those at the game was Robert Bonfiglio, vice president for student and campus life. “It’s the kind of finish you see maybe once or twice in your life,” he said. “Scott is a human highlight film.” Athletic Director Marilyn PHOTO BY CHRISTINE CUSANO Moore also was there. Scott Morton’s behind-the-back shot saved the game and garnered “I’ve never seen anything like national attention. Here, Morton dribbles in a February game. it,” she said. “It was incredible, Minton. “He is a gifted athlete but is equaland the response has been across the board from alumni involved in all Geneseo sports.” ly focused on his academic excellence and community involvement. I wish I could Many of those alumni bombarded clone the guy.” Morton with congratulatory calls and eMorton’s biggest fans are his parents, mails. “I wasn’t aware of the strong alumni Rick and Sandy Morton, who traveled support,” he said. “It was great.” from Syracuse to all but one of his games since his freshman year. They witnessed his miracle basket. “Scott is very competitive and his lastminute effort fits his nature,” said Rick. — Robert Bonfiglio “Even as a kid, he always waited until the last possible minute to come into the house from playing sports in the neighborhood.” Morton, a business administration major The Mortons may have more opportunifrom Syracuse, is a model scholar-athlete. ties to watch Scott play but it would require His 3.9 grade point average has landed him on the President’s or Dean’s List every an airline ticket. Pro ball is on Scott’s shortlist of post-graduation options. semester. He is the first Geneseo athlete to “I’m going to explore playing overseas, be named an ESPN The Magazine Firstperhaps on a tier-2 team in Western Team Academic All-American in the colEurope,” he said. Tier-2 is a level below the lege division by the College Sports top professional leagues in Europe and Information Directors of America. offers opportunity for promotion. Among numerous other recognitions, In the unlikely event that doesn’t work Morton was one of 10 finalists for the presout, the Harlem Globetrotters undoubtedly tigious Jostens Trophy in 2009, which honwould welcome Scott’s application as trickors the nation’s most outstanding Division shot coordinator. III basketball players of the year. “I have coached many determined playCheck out Morton’s shot at ers but Scott takes it to a level I can’t explain,” said men’s basketball coach Steve http://tinyurl.com/MortonESPN.
“Scott is a human highlight film.”
:
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QA Inside the White House
& First Lady’s An exclusive interview with the
First Lady
Introduction by Alan Shank
When Barack Obama made history as the first African-American president, he and Michelle Obama brought a Geneseo alumna with them to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Jackie (Dycke) Norris ’92 is the first lady’s chief of staff. Retired Professor and Department of Political Science Chair Alan Shank was her favorite professor at Geneseo. Exclusively for the Scene, he reconnected with Jackie to provide a candid look at what it’s like to help lead the country.
Jackie Norris ’92 is Michelle scheduler and advance planner. Obama’s chief of staff, an exemShe made sure that I received an plary achievement for a Geneseo invitation to attend the Clintongraduate, representing the first Gore 1996 inauguration. I even time that an alum has served full received holiday cards personally time in the White House. I knew signed by the Gores. Jackie very well since I placed Jackie was one of many her with an internship with Geneseo students who gained Congresswoman Louise Slaughter valuable experience from the in the Rochester district office in Political Science Internship 1991-92. Jackie received superb Program during my 17 years as evaluations and was recognized intern supervisor and chair of as the Outstanding Public Service political science, from 1984 to Intern by the Political Science 2001. Many went on to graduate Department in 1992. school and law schools and First lady Michelle Obama plans with Jackie (Dycke) Norris ’92, I met with each student after began excellent careers in law her chief of staff. the internship to evaluate and and public administration, like find out their future plans. Jackie told me she was offered a New York Assemblyman Joseph Morelle. staff position in Slaughter’s Washington office. I was stunned. I recently talked to Jackie by phone. She told me that she is She must have really made an impression. Jackie was very working on internships with the first lady. She and Mrs. Obama are ambitious and I knew she would do very well in her chosen dedicated to encouraging young men and women to become career in national public service in Washington. involved in serving others. This is a legacy that Jackie is taking She was always gracious and thoughtful. She sent me a citation from Geneseo to the White House. and a U.S. flag that was flown over the Capitol in my honor, which I hope to see it in person soon. Jackie invited my wife and I proudly displayed in my office. Jackie sent me photos of a trip me to visit her at the White House. We enthusiastically look to Africa when she later served as former Vice President Al Gore’s forward to going in the near future. PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE WHITE HOUSE
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What were your career aspirations while you were studying political science at SUNY Geneseo?
I wanted to learn more about how government works. I was especially interested in how politics works, how coalitions are put together for a common purpose and how local, state and federal governments work together to provide a government for the American people. After working with former Vice President Al Gore and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo, you left Washington and moved to Iowa. Why?
I always tell people I don’t know why I moved to Iowa. I had just had enough of Washington, D.C. I had a great job, a wonderful boyfriend, yet I was burnt out on the city and really longed for reconnection with why I was doing what I was doing. I wanted to go work and be on a campaign that was very connected to people at the local level as opposed to the Washington bubble that I found myself living in. How did you meet the Obamas and come to work as Michelle’s chief of staff?
My job as senior adviser for the Obama Iowa caucus campaign was to think through short- and long-term strategy and maximize the senator’s and Mrs. Obama’s Iowa relationships. I spent a lot of time with them on their numerous visits to Iowa. We all just “clicked.” We shared the same values of moving the country forward. Toward the end, the first lady and I spent a great deal of time in Iowa traveling through the state in a minivan — lots of hours on the road spent together. How long did it take for you to say “Yes?”
Saying yes was not as easy as most people think. I have a wonderful family and husband who are part of the equation. At the end of the day, we decided this was an adventure that we couldn’t walk away from. It took me a week or so to get there. The chief of staff is Michelle Obama's top adviser; she chooses someone whose opinion and advice she trusts. What is your relationship like?
I think it is safe to say we are colleagues and friends. We have similar value systems and goals for success. What is your role as chief of staff?
I am in charge of managing the long-term thinking and short-term implementation of
the Office of the First Lady. Some days it’s policy briefings, other days it’s thinking through events and trips while other days it’s thinking through what a national call to service looks like. All this is done in close coordination with the president’s office. What do you do you on a typical day with the first lady?
The morning starts with regular White House meetings with the president’s senior team. Then we do a daily staff meeting with the first lady’s team. Then, it’s anybody’s guess. There are lots of coordinating meetings. I spend time with the first lady daily — sometimes hours, sometimes 15 minutes. Sometimes there is a luncheon or evening reception. I wish I could give more of a description but every day is different. The most fun day for me so far has been the first time Marine One landed almost right in front of our office. It was so loud. We all just looked at each other and said, “The president’s home!”
bellwether. She wants to get out there and see what is happening in her new hometown and across the country. Our job is to continue to look for opportunities to allow her to connect with what is going on. The election of Barack Obama as the first African-American U.S. president is a historic moment in our national and world history. How did you feel when he won?
I always knew if we all worked our hearts out he would win. I was proud. All I wanted to do is shake my kids and say, “See, sometimes when you put your mind to something and commit yourself completely, good things can come of it!” How do you feel the worldview of America may change with Obama’s election?
People are looking to us for a renewed sense of hope — a sense that we can all work together for the greater good. I think it’s important that all of us serve as ambassadors of hope and hard work.
Are you on call 24-7?
I really am not. One of the benefits of working for our first lady is that she is a mom and sets boundaries just like I do. We have staff able to assist her if she needs help, but I don’t anticipate a 3 a.m. call. Part of what we need to do in our jobs is to support the president and the West Wing team in everything they do. Regardless, if the phone rings at 3 a.m., I will answer it. How many people work for the first lady?
Over 20. How do you feel about playing this key role in such a historic presidency?
I have to pinch myself a lot — the morning meetings with the White House chief of staff, walking past the Oval Office or Rose Garden, are pretty amazing. And I have a part to play in that. It’s not lost on me. A lot of people talk about the “bubble of Washington” and how politicians are out of touch with everyday Americans. What is your role in organizing such events as the Obamas reading to innercity kids or inviting students to tastings in the White House kitchen?
We are all concerned with the bubble. That is why you see the president’s commitment to stay connected — the traveling, the reading of letters from the American public, the events outside the White House. I play a significant role in those conversations with the first lady and our team, but she is a great
The first lady has taken a much more active role than previous first ladies, visiting federal departments and discussing pressing topics with employees. How do you see her role in the presidency, and how do you help strategize and organize these activities as chief of staff?
Our job is to support the president and serve in a value-added capacity. Toward that end, we want to continue to be an advocate and a connector to what is going on in the country. A large part of my job is thinking through just that question each and every day. What advice can you offer to students and alumni who want to get involved with public service?
Intern! Be persistent! Ask questions. Pay attention to the small and big things. Always ask the question, “why?” People want to teach or should be called to teach, but as students we need to have inquisitive minds and not just do something because someone tells us to do it. Ask why and try and find the value and meaning for everything you do. What is one lesson you have learned?
That the words “please” and “thank you” go a long way. That recognizing the janitor who empties your garbage is just as important as patting a colleague on the back when they have done a good job. It goes so far and shows people that you respect the work that they do. It builds a wonderful team culture.
Summer 2009
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PERSPECTIVE
ILLUSTRATION BY STEPHEN AXEL ANDERSON
Bubble, bubble, who’s in trouble?
Could it be the Geneseo finance major hoping to start a high-paying career at an iconic company such as Lehman Brothers? Or, might it be the mid-career person who relied on appreciating real-estate values to build net worth, and whose home equity loans now exceed the market value of the dwelling? Or, might we look at the retiree whose 401(k) has lost a stunning 30 percent or How Americans have more of its value, or whose company now to change their makes retirees pay their own health care premiums? thinking and Clearly, the answer is “all of the above” — and more. Virtually all Americans are affectworldview now ed by the profound economic recession that that the nation’s began in December 2007, its end yet economy has burst. unseen. Young people with stellar college degrees are competing for promising jobs with others two or three years out of college who By Pamela York Klainer MS ?71 have equally stellar academic records, plus actual work experience. Whole job catFinancial expert, author and MSNBC and egories have vanished. People are stuck with CNN commentator homes they can neither afford nor sell. Business loans are very difficult to get. The social safety net — food banks, unemployment benefits, money for job retraining —
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has become severely strained. Throw in a Bernie Madoff, the latest practitioner of the famed Ponzi scheme, which may have cost up to 50 billion dollars in losses, and these feel like dark days indeed. Equally in crisis is our vision of ourselves as Americans, creators of the most recently powerful economy in the world. For several decades following World War II, American industry and ingenuity were the engines driving global economic growth. Going into the future, we are one powerful economy among many. The parallel is a bit like college hoops. At one time we had dominant teams — UConn and Tennesee for the women; Kentucky, UCLA, Duke, Kansas and North Carolina for the men. One was a lock every year to win the national title. These days we have a host of strong, scrappy programs, any one of which can walk away with the prize. That doesn’t mean America has become powerless, futile or is on the downswing. It does mean that we are in a global competition for talent, resources, the best ideas and the most flawless execution. As they say on the basketball court, what we now have is “game on,” and that’s very different from what we’ve been used to. If we’re in trouble as individuals, as families, as a nation, how do we emerge and begin to thrive again? We have to change our thinking and our behavior in two very dramatic ways: • Let go of a belief in American exceptionalism, that we are the strongest, the best, the nation most favored to impose our will and our values on the rest of the world. Intellectually, the peak of American exceptionalism may have come in 1992 with the publication of Francis Fukuyama’s book, “The End of History and the Last Man,” which proposes that our version of secular, free-market democracy is the high point of mankind’s evolution. Then the world saw the emergence of the BRIC nations: Brazil, Russia, India and China. Game on. What does it mean behaviorally to let go of an exceptionalist belief and instead see ourselves as one of many competitive nations? It means taking economic history much more seriously than we do. America has not always been the center of trade and commerce and wealth creation. At one time that might have been the Silk Road in Asia, the Dutch mer-
chant fleet or Britain and her colonies. We need to grasp the cycle of economic history, see which way it is turning now and which way it may turn in the future, so we can position ourselves to be a player — a player, not the player — embracing all the shift in worldview that entails. At the very least, we need to be able to conduct business fluently in at least one language other than English. We need to relish, not just tolerate, being cross-culturally competent. • Understand that cycles of boom and bust — even vicious ones — are a normal part of the free-market business cycle. We always act shocked when a bubble bursts, protest that no one could have seen it coming and promise that we’ve learned from experience and will never let it happen again. During the past two decades we’ve had four major panics: the 1987 stock market crash, the East Asian financial crisis of
1997-98, the collapse of the dot-com bubble in 2000 and the current mortgage meltdown and credit crisis. So much for capitalism’s ability to self-regulate. What this means in practice is developing the understanding that even if everything you touch turns to gold, it won’t always. As a personal and business discipline, make it a habit to take some of the largesse off the table and put it into a more conservative place. Be a smarter risk manager. Crash-proof your financial life, just as you cushion yourself buying insurance, wearing a seat belt and training for strenuous physical competition. A year from now I expect to be writing in a different tone. The economy should have begun its recovery. We will have figured out how to manage with less and will welcome the arrival of more. We will be tempted by old realities and old habits. The prize will go to those among
us who are not, a la Mr. Madoff’s many investors, so thoroughly fooled. Dubbed the “money shrink” by Money magazine, Pamela York Klainer MS ’71 is a financial consultant, author and philanthropist who founded Klainer Consulting, LLC. Since the release of her 2002 book, “How Much is Enough?” she has spoken at business and investment conferences around the world and has been quoted in national and international media such as MSNBC-TV, CNN-TV, and The Wall Street Journal. She established the Klainer Center for Women and Business at SUNY Geneseo to teach aspiring students, especially women, the realworld ways of business.
Crash-Proofing Your Financial Life By Pamela York Klainer MS ’71
As a culture, we do a dismal job educating people about financial realities. Here are five important things to t as you work to manage the fallout of market ups and downs: • Gain control of your use of consumer credit: Credit cards are a convenience, not a free pass to buy things that you can’t afford. A credit card provides you with a succinct end-ofyear summary of what you’ve spent on what kinds of things. Ideally, all balances on credit cards should be paid in full at the end of the month in which they are incurred. You simply can’t pay 18 percent or more on balances and expect to have money left for savings and investment. • Save on a regular basis: Consistency, especially when you begin at a young age, is more important than the absolute amount. Put money aside every month, preferably in taxadvantaged instruments such as 401(k) plans. If you’re not earning much, save a little. If you’re earning a lot, save a lot. Once you’ve maximized your use of tax-advantaged investments, look to moderate-risk, no-load growth mutual funds from recognized companies such as Vanguard and Fidelity. That will constitute your base. As you get more financially sophisticated, branch out to more sophisticated investments. • Get good financial advice: The way to cut to the chase with financial advisers is to ask how they get paid. An adviser who is paid solely on commission is working for the product company, not for you. An adviser who is paid fee and commission has a built-in potential for conflict of interest. Ask the adviser how he or she balances your best interests with the desire to make a good living by selling you products with a high sales commis-
sion. An adviser who is paid solely through fees (usually a percentage of assets under management) has no real skin in the game. Ask that person what he or she knows about how investments really work, not how they should work according to some arcane investment theory. • Make financial independence a priority, and have a plan: Financial independence doesn’t just happen; you have to work at it and maintain focus. Having enough money to live according to your values regardless of twists and turns of the market is a great thing at any stage of life — just don’t expect it to fall from the sky. • Understand the concept of “value” as it plays out in our economic system: Value in our economic system is determined largely by scarcity and difficulty replicating. If you choose a career that almost anyone can do, is easy to learn and has few barriers to entry, you probably won’t make a lot of money. Money creates choice and having choices is closely related to happiness and life satisfaction. If you want to have a wide range of choices, find something to do that not everyone knows how to do and is not that easy to learn. People will pay a lot for your talents.
For more information on these and other important concepts, consult Pamela York Klainer?s 2002 book How Much is Enough? published by Basic Books. Visit http://tinyurl.com/KlainerBook
Summer 2009
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MISSION DRIVEN
A PEACE CORPS CALLING
Colored countries represent destinations where Geneseo students have served in the Peace Corps.
Hundreds of Geneseo graduates have helped communities around the world. By Kris Dreessen hen Hanna Kim’s Peace Corps colleague in Mongolia found out where she was going to spend the next two years, she cried. Then she learned where Kim was assigned and had a fresh outlook; Kim’s assignment seemed much worse. Kim was sent deep into Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, home to dust storms, sweltering heat and a landscape of brown, brown and more brown, to teach English to Sainshand Medical College students. Kim did not cry. “I was ecstatic,” she said. “ … I really just embraced it. It was an adventure like no other.” Kim, a 2006 sociology graduate from Oakland Gardens, N.Y., was so excited about experiencing Mongolian culture that she signed on for a third year of volunteering. She completes her assignment this summer. Her service to others punctuates what has become a tradition of service at Geneseo locally and abroad: The college is one of the top-producers of Peace Corps recruits in western New York. Two hundred and five Geneseo students have joined the Peace Corps since the organization’s creation in 1961, serv-
W
Hanna Kim ’06, left, has found a dream living in Mongolia. She is one of 205 Geneseo alums who have joined the Peace Corps.
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geneseo scene
ing in 69 countries such as Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Haiti, according to Molly Levine, Peace Corps public affairs specialist. Seventeen Geneseo alumni were overseas in the Corps in 2008. Geneseo nearly made the Peace Corps’ top 25 list of colleges nationwide with the most recruits. Syracuse University took the last slot with 19 volunteers. “Geneseo was just two people away,” said Shannon Small, regional recruiter for western and upstate New York. Levine attributes Geneseo students’ interest and acceptance into the Peace Corps in part to the popularity of education and foreign languages majors at Geneseo, as well as students’ personalities and diverse skills.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY HANNA KIM; MAP ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCKPHOTO.COM
“We are looking for people who are openminded, very flexible, who maybe have studied abroad, are interested in different cultures and speak a language,” said Small. Peace Corps volunteers work in 138 countries in many fields including education, youth and community outreach, business development, agriculture, health and information technology. The Peace Corps does most recruiting on college campuses. Small said every time she comes to Geneseo “there’s a huge turnout, which surprises me because it’s not a huge school.” “I just think the college has an obvious sentiment toward community and public service," says Jerald Wrubel, director of career services. Career Services coordinates Peace Corps efforts. “It’s part of our campus ethic.” Dave Murphy ’09 is the latest Geneseo graduate to join the Corps. He left May 31 for Armenia to use his international relations and economics expertise to
help residents with economic development. He learned Russian during two summer study-abroad trips with international relations Professor Robert Goeckel. Murphy declined acceptance to graduate programs at Georgetown University and Johns Hopkins University to have the Eurasian experience first. “I saw the Peace Corps as being able to do things I’m really interested in, in another country, which is what I ultimately want to do anyway,” said Murphy. “Doing this groundwork in Armenia will help me apply real-life experience to the academic experience.” Such diversity also inspired Kim to make the leap. She said that before Geneseo, her relationships were exclusively within the Korean-American community. In school, she adopted a wide circle of friends and an open mind. In Mongolia, she has found her dream — helping others through nonprofit organizations or the United Nations. She also wants to create an organization to help Mongolian immigrants in Korea learn the language and access health care. “I am fortunate and I feel lucky every day that I was able to get out of my own box and explore different possibilities,” says Kim. “People just have to be willing to make that first step, which, often times, is the hardest.”
“People just have to be willing to make that first step, which, often times, is the hardest.” — Hanna Kim ’06
Summer 2009
23
NEW YORK CITY — DAN WARD ’87 EVENT Skyline View NEW YORK CITY
Emily Pazza glini, ’87, left , Damon Paz zaglini
’91
Y NEW YORK CIT
ie Friedson ’06, ltzer ’75, Melan Se ry nt Ga ft, le , ’75 se and Steve Hu Joanne Seltzer Dahl, Ruth Row C. er ph to ris Ch Betsy Kotcher,
BOSTON
BUFFALO
Funk tt ’93, left, Pam se as H r ke ec ted): Holly B First row (sea er Lenz ’95, Rebecca Feltn , Krieger ’84 ft le , tt se as ichard H l Krieger Back row: R n ’95 and Pau w ro B i d ar p Tracie Lo 24
geneseo scene
Tracy Strauss ’96, left, Caitriona Fitzgerald
’02 and Matthew Rose ’03
GENESEO ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
Upcoming
Alumni Events June 13 Hyde Park, N.Y. — Culinary Institute of America July 10-12 Summer Reunion — Geneseo campus July 30 Denver, Colo. — (sponsored by Matt Rush ’89 and Tim Drago ’65) Aug. 13 Saratoga, N.Y. — Day at the Races
LONG ISLAND — CHAMBER SINGERS EVENT
Sept. 17 N.Y.C. — (sponsored by Daniel Sharkey ’92) Sept. 25-26 Homecoming — Geneseo campus
October 2009 Washington, D.C. January 2010 Parkland, Fla. — (sponsored by John ’90 and Jonna Vanwagenen ’88 Shutowick) March 18, 2010 Washington, D.C. — Externship Reception April 30 - May 1, 2010 Spring Weekend and Greekfest — Geneseo campus July 9-10, 2010 Summer Reunion 2010 — Geneseo campus Sept. 24-25, 2010 Homecoming 2010 — Geneseo campus
Visit Events are added continuously. Please check the Web site for updates at http://alumni.geneseo.edu. Back row: Todd and Elizabeth ’00 Hudson Front row: Michael Mo rch ’03, left, Jessie Alois ’03, He rman Diaz, Gerard Popescu ’00 and Christina Norris-Watts
A sincere thanks to our generous alumni and parents who graciously sponsored regional events in their homes or other venues. If you are interested in sponsoring an alumni event, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at (585) 245-5506 or e-mail alumni@geneseo.edu. We would like to have events in Albany, Buffalo, New York City, Rochester and Syracuse this summer or fall but are certainly not limited to these cities. Summer 2009
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RANDOM PROFILE
One Cup with Seanna Rugenstein, Class of 1967 he did her best thinking contributing something to my family.” for her master’s thesis Seanna earned a doctorate at 4 a.m. That’s when in botany from Iowa State and Seanna Rugenstein had uninshared her expertise in conserterrupted time to write vation, seed development, about the intricacies of water quality and mapping grass-like plants called carex wetlands in positions in laxiflora. Arizona, Louisiana and South “My baby didn’t sleep very Dakota. One opportunity much at one time,” rememflowed into another until she bers Seanna, 72, now retired accepted a position with the and living in Brookings, S.D. U.S. Department of Agriculture She was a nontraditional National Resources student in the 1960s when Conservation Service. she started studying at Seanna served as the tribal Geneseo. A mom, she comliaison to the Rosebud Sioux muted 40 minutes to tribe from 1996-2002, openGeneseo, dropping her husing an office on the reservaband off at work and kids at tion to share school, going to knowledge class and then about resource picking them all management. up at the end of “It was a the day. “I was challenge. It determined,” was an advenshe says. — Seanna Rugenstein ’67 ture,” says She pursued a Seanna. “And, career with her I’ve always felt comfortable love of plants and the natuwith people who are close to ral world. “I really enjoyed the earth.” being able to go out into It was a challenge in ways nature and look around and be able to read the story and she hadn’t anticipated. The understand what’s going on,” tribe is very insular; earning their trust took years. She she says. “That has carried had to adapt how she prethrough my whole life … I sented information to the feel a part of it.” Sioux, whose members had At Geneseo, Seanna was successfully cared for their able to marry her passion land for thousands of years. with tradition. She organized “I learned more than I and preserved a collection of taught,” she says. more than 3,000 species of When she retired, Seanna plants — donated to the had the insight to realize that college by her own great the tribe would be more open uncle, Richard E. Hornsey, a with and better served by one respected botanist who had of their own. She successfully a 50-year history in the lobbied for the National Rochester Parks Department. “It was a very warm feeling Resource Conservation Service to replace her with that I got from that,” Seanna an employee who was also says. “This was something a tribal member. I’m carrying on and I was
S
ONE CUP
Up next ... Iowa. Could it be you?
Continued on page 30
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geneseo scene
Name: Seanna Rugenstein Home: Brookings, S.D. Graduation year: 1967 Degrees: bachelor’s of education and a master’s of science. She earned a Ph.D. in botany from Iowa State University. How you describe Geneseo: “You didn’t feel as though you were part of the machine. You felt you were part of a group of people who were all interested in learning.” Favorite campus hangout: the herbarium. Best Geneseo memory: “I have a picture in my mind. I’m standing by the biology building and looking across the campus down to the brick tower: I had this feeling that this was a new beginning.”
Continued on page 30
ILLUSTRATION ISTOCKPHOTO.COM
Inspired by the idea that everyone has a story to share, we’ve introduced the “random profile.” Each issue we don a blindfold and throw a dart at a map of the United States to choose our state, then take aim again to choose a lucky alum. We catch up, relive memories and share life insight, like we are talking over coffee.
PHOTO PROVIDED
“Life is good, because I’ve had fun. I enjoyed it.”
QUICK FACTS
Alumni News ABOUT THE ALUMNI ARTIST: “Blizzard,” from Enid Crow’s “Disaster” series features the artist as the gentleman with the monocle. Crow (Lori Barrett ’89), has photographed herself as hundreds of fictional male and female characters. A dramatic arts major at Geneseo, she was an artistic fellow at A.I.R. Gallery in New York City. Her work has appeared in solo and group gallery shows, newspapers, magazines, album covers and books, and she is included in the Brooklyn Museum of Art's Feminist Art Base. Visit her Web site at http://www.enidcrow.com.
ALUMNI NEWS
4 4 5 6
Rebuilding Ground Zero The Twilight Zone Bringing lost music to life Class Notes Summer 2009
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ALUMNI NEWS
ALUMNI PROFILE
Rebuilding at Ground Zero
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geneseo scene
class of ’06 Kris Frederes The New York City skyline rises behind Kris Frederes ’06 at his Ground Zero rebuilding site.
He says you have to help people understand why a new way is more efficient. You need to build relationships so people come to you before there’s a problem. You have to be assertive, not angry. “You have to communicate to get the job done,” he says. In other words, be a good leader.
Frederes learned much about leadership, he says, in the Geneseo Opportunities for Leadership Development (GOLD) program, an experiential-based program open to all students, faculty, staff and community members. Participants explore leadership styles, reflect on personal experiences and find their best fit.
“There are over 800 known definitions of leadership. Which one is the right one?” says Frederes. “Talk to the scholars who know the definitions and they’ll say every one of them is right. Leadership is more about influence than a specific title or role. After completing the GOLD program, Continued on page 30
PHOTO PROVIDED
When the planes hit on Sept. 11, 2001, Kris Frederes ’06 was in a leadership class. He watched the television news in disbelief as the Twin Towers were engulfed in flames and fell. As a quality engineer on a $3.2 billion mega-project to rebuild part of the Ground Zero site, Frederes helps prevent construction problems for the new transportation center and underground corridors that will link the World Financial Center, Freedom Tower and other buildings. Everything Frederes does with Fluor Corp. and Phoenix Constructors Joint Venture affects all aspects of the hallowed site’s future. It’s difficult to wrap his head around it sometimes, working 9 to 5 on a unique project in America’s history and also one of the largest. “It’s meaningful at the very least, to sit back and think you can walk through this site with your kids or grandkids, and think ‘I was a part of this,’” says Frederes, of Hoboken, N.J., a School of Business graduate. He ensures the right materials are used effectively, using the best methods. He collaborates with project managers, superintendents and contract firms. At times, he has to convince seasoned tradesmen to change their ways. “If you go down to a bunch of angry ironworkers, they aren’t going to listen to an engineer just telling them what to do,” says Frederes.
Going deep into The Twilight Zone Douglas Brode ’65 never missed a high-school party on Friday night or an episode of Rod Serling’s “The Twilight Zone.” At 9:30, he and his buddies pulled the needle off the record player and turned on the TV. He memorized every show. On bus trips, bored classmates called out titles and Brode brought them to life in the backseat. “I’d go through the whole episode — 22 minutes,” he remembers. “I can’t even begin to talk about what it meant to us. Rod Serling seemed to be talking to every single one of us.” An accomplished film critic, writer, book author and professor, Brode has unlocked another dimension of the famed scifi series in a book that he coauthored with creator Rod Serling’s widow, Carol. They collaborated for seven years on “Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone: The 50th Anniversary Tribute.” He has been interviewed by Dennis Miller Radio and on other national media outlets since the book was released last January. Serling was a friend and
mentor, says Brode. He came to know him in 1971 during an interview that felt like a scene from the show. Brode asked Serling for the interview; Serling told him to call in exactly one month. Brode did call, suspecting his sci-fi hero would never remember him. Instead, the first words out of Serling’s mouth were “Doug, is this you?” The young Mr. Brode had just entered The Twilight Zone. Serling was from upstate New York and many of his plots were set in Rochester, Syracuse and other nearby towns. Brode’s book focuses on wellknown “Zone” episodes and autobiographical aspects that Serling wrote into scripts. Characters reflected Serling’s beliefs and personal demons, including his addiction to cigarettes. The book also explores how Serling used the fictional genre to probe civil rights, McCarthyism and political oppression, and other hot-button issues in a time when TV censors barred open discussion of them. Serling grappled with issues that every generation
class
’90
of
Laura Heimes
Bringing lost music to life PHOTO PROVIDED
Continued on page 31
’65
of
Douglas Brodie Doug Brode ’65, right, speaks at an in-store signing of his book “Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone: The 50th Anniversary Tribute.”
PHOTO BY SHANE BRODE
class
In the Middle Ages, musicians filled the air with wispy notes from wooden pan flutes and strummed lutes. Centuries later, Johann Sebastian Bach created masterful cantatas for church services. Such “early music” — categorized as everything from the beginning of the Middle Ages until around 1750 — wasn’t widely recorded of course, and wasn’t often replayed as instruments and style progressed. Aficionados of the genre, like Laura Heimes ’90, resurrect compositions created by old-world masters. Heimes, a soprano, has found great success in this niche, performing all over the world and releasing eight vocal CDs. Her latest disc will be released this fall. She is also a frequent performer of modern and 21st-century music from living composers. “I absolutely love the music,” says Heimes of early music. “I can think of nothing more beautiful.” Heimes and other musicians of early music play “early or period instruments” like the harpsichord and baroque strings — precursors of modern instruments like the grand piano and steel-stringed violins. Performances are in churches and other intimate settings rather than large concert halls. The instruments aren’t made or meant to have the carrying power of their modern counterparts. To prepare for performances, Heimes, of Hamilton Square, N.J., studies facsimiles of the original compositions to interpret any clues left by the composers or copyists. “You can often get a better feel for the piece when you study these beautiful manuscripts,” she says. Heimes feels her singing helps preserve history. She intended to be a conductor. A voice major at Geneseo, she earned a master’s degree in choral conducting and vocal performance from Temple University. It was there that a friend invited her to sing in an early-music recital. It changed her life. “The minute we started singing these duets, I thought, oh my goodness, I’m home,” remembers Heimes. “This music was speaking to me.” A few weeks later, a professor came to her for what she Continued on page 31
Summer 2009
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ALUMNI NEWS
Ground Zero ... continued from page 28
you come up with a personal philosophy of leadership anchored in your core beliefs and perspectives.” There’s a real benefit in exploring leadership philosophy during college, says Frederes. Once you hit the “real world,” it’s about getting it done, he says. No one will pay young graduates to philosophize; companies want results. That’s the idea, agrees Tom Matthews, director of the Leadership, Education, Development & Training Center for Community. More than 1,300 Geneseo students have earned GOLD certificates since 2001. The program has won two national awards and a state award and is one reason why the college has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service National Honor Roll every year since the recognition was created. GOLD is also a role model. Campus representatives from as far away as Korea and Japan have visited Geneseo to find out more. Frederes completed bronze, silver and gold certificates and served as a GOLD mentor. Philosophies and insight he learned rivaled his master’s degree studies in strategic management and leadership at SUNY Binghamton, he says. In fact, sometimes lessons felt like repetition. Years later, he says he uses lessons learned at Geneseo “all the time.” Last fall he met Matthews on campus to replenish his stash of GOLD pamphlets after his box of reports and notes was lost in the mail during a recent move. “It’s one of the most disappointing losses,” he says. “It’s stuff I actually reference today.” — Kris Dreessen
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geneseo scene
PHOTO PROVIDED
Seanna Rugenstein ’67 has worked with her love of nature during her career. Here she preserves species in a plant collection at Geneseo in the 1960s. One Cup ... continued from page 26
Seanna now lives in Brookings, a good five-hour drive from the reservation. It doesn’t seem so far, when you live in such a big state. “I thought nothing of driving 500 miles round trip to go shopping,” says Seanna, laughing. South Dakota never loses its appeal. Late one afternoon, she was driving home after one such shopping trip when a thunderstorm passed over. To the southeast, light from the afternoon sun reflected off the cliffs of the Badlands. Rain fell miles away to make a montage of deep purple clouds and golden cliffs — framed by double rainbows. “I tell ya, it’s like being on
vacation, only it’s every day,” she says. Life is good, says Seanna, “because I’ve had fun. I enjoyed it.” Opportunities came at the right time and she took them. “Things have just come together. It’s not anything I sat down in 1960 and said, ‘this is what I’m going to do.’ This is my life. I’m where I’m supposed to be.”
Quick Facts ... continued from page 26
Most important life lesson you learned at Geneseo: “You can do anything you put your mind to.” What you would tell freshmen or graduating seniors: “Be open to new experiences. You’ve got an opportunity to learn and an opportunity to waste it. Make the right choices.” Favorite saying or motto: “Yesterday is but a dream and tomorrow is only a vision, but today welllived makes yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.”
Twilight Zone ... continued from page 29
faces, says Brode. It’s why “The Twilight Zone” is so popular, 45 years after it ended production, he says. This fall, Brode launches the first course on “The Twilight Zone” at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. It is one of several courses he has taught at Syracuse and Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas, inspired by his passions and personal work. “My life is all about synergy … You pick up a little of this and a little of that but they all begin to mold into each other on the plate and all the tastes begin to interlock,” says Brode. “My life is a buffet in that sense, and that’s how I want it.” Or, as Serling himself might have ended this tale thus far: “Submitted for your consideration: Douglas Brode, a typical 1950s teenager, riding the school bus to a Friday night football game. Retelling stories from his favorite TV show to his friends to kill time. He can’t know that he will someday retell those stories again, in book form. Because, he has a date with destiny. It’s a lesson to be learned in ‘The Twilight Zone.’” — Kris Dreessen
Alma-materitis? The symptoms are obvious: • the taste of Aunt Cookie’s subs on your tongue • brief flashes of sunsets • a little bronze bear in your dreams • an inability to stop thinking about your beanie, the Hub, hockey practice, Greek life, or favorite friends and professors. At one time there was no treatment for alma-materitis.
Until now. After intensive research, SUNY Geneseo has found a cure.
Summer Reunion. A single dose of Summer Reunion, taken every 5 years, is guaranteed to cure alma-materitis. So plan to attend! Summer Reunion is conveniently scheduled during Geneseo’s Summer Fest — a perfect way to share your Geneseo experience with family and friends.
Warning: Side effects of Summer Reunion may include chronic smiling, persistent happiness and the comfort of nostalgia. If any of these side effects occur, contact a friend and tell him or her to come too. Or contact the Alumni Relations Office at (585) 245-5506 or alumni@geneseo.edu.
Music ... continued from page 29
thought was going to be a ‘sorry, you don’t cut it’ conversation. Instead, he invited her to sing with his ensemble, Piffaro — The Renaissance Band, on a U.S. tour. Heimes has been with the group for 14 years. In 2004, she stepped into the spotlight to perform at Carnegie Hall. Her mentor, retired Geneseo music professor Robert “Doc” Isgro, flew down for the performance. “When you have support from people like that, how do you go wrong?” says Heimes, who fondly remembers how Isgro and others in the Geneseo music department gave her so many opportunities to conduct, sing and perform. The 2008-09 season brought Heimes back to Rochester to sing at the Eastman School of Music. “Doc” and several more Geneseo professors attended. That was special, she says. Every performance is in some way. “There’s a ton of music out there people are uncovering and bringing to life,” says Heimes. “It is a thrill to know that you can offer a piece of music to today’s audiences and, in some cases, be the first to perform it in this century.” Kris Dreessen
: Listen to early music by Piffaro at www.tinyurl.com/Renmusic Summer 2009
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ALUMNI NEWS
Class Notes 1950s Laura San Fratello Bohm ’57
was appointed by Gov. David A. Paterson to the Genesee Community College Board of Trustees. John Brill ’52 was honored with the Eastern New York Lumber Dealers Association’s 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award in September 2008.
1960s Robert Dietrich ’69 was
recently awarded the Secretary of Labor’s Exceptional Achievement Award. He is the U.S Department of Labor’s regional director of human resources for Boston and New York City.
1970 Donna R. Williams retired from St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkhill, N.Y. Roger Sadowsky is the president of Sadowsky Guitars in Brooklyn, N.Y.
1971 Richard O’Rourke published
an article in the July/August 2008 issue of the New York State Bar Association Journal about a significant case that he successfully argued before the New York State Court of Appeals. Richard Stein retired from the Gates Chili Central School District in Rochester, N.Y. on Jan. 1, 2009. Kenneth Sniper is the owner of two restaurants in Syracuse, N.Y. called the Brooklyn Pickle.
1972 George Freelove is a broker for Keller Williams World Class Realty in Fort Myers, Fla.
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geneseo scene
Marylou Ponzi Kay is the
director of human resources for Benetton USA in Miami Beach, Fla. Susan Rumsey Strong published her first book, “Thought Knows No Sex: Women’s Rights at Alfred University,” in July 2008. She is a reference librarian at Herrick Memorial Library at Alfred University in Alfred, N.Y. William Greene, Allegany County historian, exhibited his oil paintings at The Anthony Gallery in Moravia, N.Y.
1973 Barbara Smith Lifton, New York’s 125th District Assemblywoman, received the 2008 College-Community Appreciation Award from the SUNY Cortland College Council in October 2008. The award formally recognizes and thanks local residents who have significantly assisted the college. Michael Mangiavellano is a senior financial analyst for the state of Michigan in Lansing. William Bly retired from his pharmaceutical career and is having his first novel, “The Galaxy Game,” published.
1974
egory. The competition highlights home-based businesses that usually go unrecognized but play a vital role in the economy.
1975 Nancy Pickman Archey is a
Web usability analyst, interactive marketing and eCommerce specialist for WorldCom. Claudia McGhee is a technical writer for Datacap Inc. in Tarrytown, N.Y. Mary Ann O’Connell is president and founder of FranWise in Costa Mesa, Calif. Rosemary DiDio Brehm is the president of Turningpoints2results in Clearwater, Fla. Jill Paddock Santopietro was recently named director of the Georgetown County Museum in Georgetown, S.C.
1976 Kimberly Tatarka Thoreson
is the director of emerging technology at GTSI Corp. in South Riding, Va. Keith Walter is the director of Ad Finitem in Dallas, Texas. Judy Deiseroth Williams is the community development director for the Orange County Citizens Foundation in Sugar Loaf, N.Y.
Robert Spoor earned a cer-
tificate of study in history of the English language at Oxford University in July 2008. Thomas Ingrassia, a motivational speaker, life coach and pop-culture lecturer who runs an agency that represents 15 international musicians, received top honors in the 2008 StartupNation Home-Based Best 100 Competition, earning a top 10 placement in the “Boomers Back Business” cat-
1977 In 2008
William Boylin
published his first novel, “Bedlam,” about a young psychologist working in an adolescent psychiatric hospital. John Wight was selected as a member of the board of directors of Oneida Financial Corp., a parent company of The Oneida Savings Bank, in Oneida, N.Y.
1978 William Fitzgerald is president
of FitzDrake Search in Sterling, Va. Clark Houghtling is the director of corporate accounts and senior technical advisor for Microtest, Inc. in Fairport, N.Y. John Sheehan is vice president of marketing promotions for UnitedHealthcare in Edina, Minn. Edward Yankelunas was named partner in Litigation and Banking Practice Groups for Underberg and Kessler. Ann Hanlon Hughes is CEO and head coach of Camel Swim Club, Inc. in Manchester, Conn. Benedict DiLorenzo was named vice president and senior portfolio manager for Key Private Bank in the Western New York District.
1979 Nadia Babiuk Bolalek is a self-
employed public relations and communications consultant in Rochester, N.Y. Keith Bushardt is executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska. Peter Winzig was named Bay Village (Ohio) Citizen of the Year for 2009 for his community involvement. He is the director of marketing and corporate development for Weltman, Weinberg & Reis Co., L.P.A. Thomas Austin is superintendent at the Walton Central School in Walton, N.Y.
1980 Jeffrey Bloomberg is a program manager at the University of Buffalo in Buffalo, N.Y.
1981 John Naclerio was promoted
to senior vice president for
Titleserv National in Woodbury, N.Y. Stuart Strickland is a configuration management analyst at Union Switch & Signal in Pittsburgh, Pa. John O’Brien presented “Protecting Confidential Sources,” a discussion of the importance of confidential sources to a free press, at the Colgate Bookstore in Hamilton, N.Y. He has been a reporter with The Post-Standard newspaper in Syracuse, N.Y. for 20 years.
sion in Atlanta, Ga. Brian Levy is a senior major account executive at Ikon Office Solutions in Fairport, N.Y.
1986 Leanne Naughton Cole is a
network engineer for Frontier Communications in Rochester, N.Y. Carol Bertrand Pallas is the assistant superintendent for Elementary Schools and Professional Development in the Greece Central School District in Rochester, N.Y. Lawrence Rupp is a selfemployed registered nurse in Coram, N.Y. Edward Coyle is the vice president and national director of Human Resources International in New York City.
Robert Dietrich ’69
1982 Michael Flanagan is a sales
manager for Lamar Advertising in Latham, N.Y.
1983 Carrie Morber Bold was promoted to high school principal at Cuba-Rushford Central School in Cuba, N.Y. Artist Vincenzo DelPlato had his painting of jazz great Louis Armstrong featured in an annual calendar produced by the Governor Wentworth Arts Council in Wolfeboro, N.H. Howard Haller Jr. is the owner and financial planner of H. Haller Financial. His business was featured as the “Business of the Week” in the Saugerties Post Star in May 2008. William Kershner was promoted to assistant vice president at Five Star Bank in Warsaw, N.Y. Jon Mellor is the director of external affairs at GS1 US in Lawrenceville, N.J. Heather Mackenzie Wester was appointed western region services leader for Hillside Family of Agencies in Rochester, N.Y. Adrienne Howard Zeigler is a principal and senior consultant at ADZ Management in Fishkill, N.Y. Kevin Beatson is the vice president of sales for Rochester Software Associates in Rochester, N.Y. Joseph Morris is a business solutions
1987 William Boylin ’77
Edward Yankelunas ’78
consultant for Zilliant, Inc. in Austin, Texas.
1984 Timothy Byassee is a senior technology analyst for Wyeth in Pearl River, N.Y. Gary Nelson is the CEO of Applied Concepts in Tully, N.Y. Terri Scalise Roller is an associate director of corporate partnerships at SUNY Albany. Leonard Bauer is vice president for Bank of America Securities in New York City.
1985 David Berkowitz is a market
manager for Colonial Bank in Las Vegas, Nev. Jacqueline Crisman is an assistant professor of biology and coordinator of biotechnology at Jamestown (N.Y.) Community College. Marie Heerkens was featured in the fall 2008 issue of Life in the Finger Lakes. She was recognized for her illustrations of plants and animals and her
Mike Saffran ’85
mushroom art. She is an advertisement designer for Messenger Post Media. Jonathan Kranock is the president of La Torretta Del Lago Resort and Spa in Montgomery, Texas. Kim Monson Leach is an adjunct professor at SUNY Geneseo. William Morris is a contract manager for Xerox Corp. in Rochester, N.Y. Michael Saffran earned a master of science degree in communication and media technologies from Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology in August 2008 and is an associate director/manager of new media for RIT University News Services and an adjunct professor of communication in RIT’s College of Liberal Arts. Dana Wavle was appointed the new vice chancellor for administration and finance at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany, Ind. Jeffrey Ulrich was appointed director of digital sales for Cox televi-
Kristi Sweetman Giles is the
manager of volunteers at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, Md. Timothy Hegarty is a portfolio manager at The Bank of New York Mellon in Pittsburgh, Pa. David Lang is the senior vice president of Fidelity Investments in Marlborough, Mass. Kerrianne Otto Mazanek (veterinarian) owns a small-animal clinic in Camillus, N.Y. Mary Pat Wiedeman-George is a location manager for “The David Dance”/Brave Lad Films. Kerry Fogarty Alexander is an independent college-admissions counselor in Cheshire, Conn. Pamela Hawkes LaGrou is the director of communications and development for Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse.
1988 Michael Chiulli is a biology
teacher at LeRoy (N.Y.) High School. Thomas Madison was appointed by former President George W. Bush as administrator of the Federal Highway
Summer 2009
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ALUMNI NEWS
CLASS NOTES Adminstration. Lisa Neitz Semenza is a speech/language pathologist for High Peaks Rehabilitation and Development Center in Syracuse, N.Y. Kelley Shanley was promoted to president and CEO of the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Cheryl Harrington Wise is a speech therapist for The Wesley Community in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Randall Sawyer is the director of admissions, financial aid and inclusion at The Johnson School at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. Wendelyn Mavity Stoveland is the manager of marketing at Malcom Pirnie, Inc. in White Plains, N.Y.
1989 Matthew Albright is a biolo-
gist at the SUNY Oneonta Biological Field Station on Otsego Lake, N.Y. Christopher Doran is a portfolio sales executive at Unisys Corporation in Rochester, N.Y. Lisa Hamilton was named director of the U.S Virgin Islands Hotel and Tourism Association in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. Shelley Sitzman Mueller is a genetic counselor for the Prenatal Diagnostic and Perinatal Center in Riverside, Calif. Cheryl Burnett Nelan is the vice president of training channel enablement for Element K in Rochester, N.Y. Stephanie Bubel Sacco is a reading specialist at the New York Mills School District. Donald Scime wrote a screenplay for an independent film, “The David Dance,” that will be filmed in the Buffalo area. Megan Sweeney Kalogris is a teacher at the Mildred E. Strang Middle School in Yorktown Heights, N.Y. Michelle Thorne de Pinales is 34
geneseo scene
the assistant vice president and branch manager at Key Bank in Rochester, N.Y. Denise Romano became certified in the adminstration of Emotional Intelligence Assessments, the EQi and EQ360, and certified as a mediator via the New York State Dispute Resolution Association. She is also a certified core strength Vinyasa yoga instructor and works for the production company that will produce an independent film, “The David Dance.”
1990 Annette Girmus-Orford is the
principal and chief risk officer at Phoenix Capital Management in Denver, Colo. Stephen Huebner is the senior vice president at KBACE Technologies in Nashua, N.H. Jennifer Mahran is the president and co-founder of Charity Begins in Crofton, Md. Daeya Tarolli Malboeuf was named director of communications and creative services for Syracuse University’s Division of Enrollment Management in Syracuse, N.Y. George Snyder is an information systems security architect for CIBER, Inc. Patricia Zucker is a teacher at Mazel Tots Preschool in Scarsdale, N.Y. Virginia GeerMentry is the executive director of Auxiliary Services at Finger Lakes Community College (N.Y.) David Lyttle is the chief financial officer for Dixon Schwabl advertising and public relations in Victor, N.Y. Andrew Ponticelli is the vice president, Network OSS at Amdocs.
1991 is the executive Tracy Diina
director for Literacy Volunteers of Buffalo & Erie County in Buffalo, N.Y. Cheryl Risley Hughes is an attorney for Saders, Schnabel & Brandenburg, P.C. in
Washington, D.C. Anthony Midey is a research analyst for Institute of Scientific Research, Boston College, in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Jennifer Fatone Myers is an english teacher at The Wheatley School in Old Westbury, N.Y. Daniel White is superintendent of Monroe County BOCES District No. 1 in Fairport, N.Y. Ted Rowlee is the vice president of Rowlee Construction and co-owner of a local development company, Kidiac LLC. Danielle Dusharm Mahoney is a high school principal at the Cato-Meridian Central School District in Cato, N.Y. Jennifer Cox is the director of sales and marketing for Raz Transportation (Coach America) in Portland, Ore.
1992 The Nassau County Soccer Coaches Association named James Cantley Soccer Coach of the Year. He is a teacher and boy’s varsity soccer coach at Calhoun High School in Merrick, N.Y. Juan Huerta is a pastry chef for the Denver Country Club in Denver. Jonathan Mehl is a lead powertrain calibrator for Ford Motor Company in Allen Park, Mich. James Sherner is the director of Vaccines Global Marketing for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in Collegeville, Pa. Bryan Vought is a research scientist for Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Cambridge, Mass. Laura Wischoff Snyder was recognized as the 2008 Association for Accounting Marketing Volunteer of the Year. Jeffrey Rust was promoted to counsel at Farrell Fritz in Uniondale, N.Y. Patricia Fay-Khanna is a commercial training leader for GE Capital in Danbury, Conn. Donald Russo is an account executive for Time Warner Cable Media Sales in Pittsford, N.Y.
1993 is an enterprise Jeffrey Clark
risk management supervisor for Paychex, Inc. in Henrietta, N.Y. Brian Coyne is an instructor and director of human performance lab at the University of Louisiana at Monroe (La.). Scott Fitch is a boys varsity basketball coach at Fairport (N.Y.) High School. Sheri Kleinhammer Kreher is a self-employed Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapist in Geneseo, N.Y. Harold Legg has been a trustee for the village of Brockport (N.Y.) since 2008. Charles Cornell was named interim director of Fredonia’s Center for Rural Regional Development and Governance in Fredonia, N.Y. Mindy Sears Flanigan is a senior consultant for Inspiring HR in Colonial Heights, Va.
1994 Michele Ball-Wilson is a senior
sales operations analyst for Peopleclick in Raleigh, N.C. Kathryn Drury Wagner published her first book, “The Ultimate Guide to Shopping on Oahu,” and is the executive editor at Honolulu Magazine. Kristin Marchner McAdoo is a reading specialist at Brockport (N.Y.) Central School District. Kelly Moriarty Olczak is a financial advisor for Edward Jones Investments in Victor, N.Y. Christine Gerdon Weaver is a senior project scientist for O’Brien & Gere Engineers, Inc. in Edison, N.J. Mara Goodman Huber is the special assistant to the president for education initiatives at the University at Buffalo. Angel Quintero is a New York state trooper in Rochester, N.Y. Meghan K. Winchell, an associate history professor at Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Neb., published a book on Pearl Harbor Day in 2008 called “Good Girls, Good Food, Good
Fun: the story of USO Hostesses during World War II.”
1995 Shelly Blumenthal is the assis-
tant director at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York City. Matthew Marshak released a historical jazz song, “Brotherhood,” which features the spoken words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The song was released on King’s birthday, Jan. 19. Jennifer Moretti is a market research analyst for imc2, a full-service digital agency, in Dallas. Rebecca Voymas is the deputy district attorney for the 14th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Steamboat Springs, Colo. Karen Pray Heresa, a special education teacher at Wilcox Elementary school in Kauai, Hawaii, was a 2008 Milken Award winner. The award is a national prize that comes with $25,000 and a trip to Los Angeles for a teaching conference. Lea Setegn is a communication specialist for the American Lung Association of the Atlantic Coast in Richmond, Va.
1996 Michele Beauchine is an asso-
ciate of advanced markets advisor for Metlife in Boston. As of September 2008, Dawn Consaul-Pierson is a special education teacher in the Brighton (N.Y.) Central School District. Paul Friend is the principal at the Knickerbocker Elementary School in Watertown, N.Y. James Vergis is an instructor of research at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. Cheryl Wellman is the chief financial officer for Associates & Bruce L. Scheiner, a personal injury law firm in Fort Myers, Fla. Kyle Bower was promoted to district superintendent
for the Hammondsport’s Central School District in Hammondsport, N.Y. Diana Hager is owner and manager of Le Relais Du Lyon D’or, a small hotel-restaurant in France.
1997 Andrew LaManna is the solar business development director for Bell Independent Power Corp. in Pittsford, N.Y. Mary Oleksy is the director of student development and responsibility at Notre Dame Namur University in Belmont, Calif. Amy Pierce Stahl had her math manual, “The New York State Grade 7 Math Test,” published by Barron Educational Books. Kara Thomas is a facilities administrator for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Joseph Schneider completed his master’s degree in business administration from New York University in May 2008 and is a senior consultant with Princeton Brand Econometrics in New York City. Stephanie Crockett was promoted to management supervisor for Eric Mower and Associates in Syracuse, N.Y. Mark Bonner is a senior vice president for Bank of America in Boston.
1998 Joanna DiPasquale is a Web developer for Columbia University Libraries’ Digital Program Division. Jessica Greggo, a family nurse practitioner, joined Bassett Healthcare in Richfield Springs, N.Y. Allyson Lunde Maiolo was named “Teacher of the Year” for the DeSoto County (Fla.) School District in 2009. Paul Nelson is the owner of Orion Taxidermy & Wildlife Art Studio in Attica, N.Y. Dina Perrone earned a doctorate degree in criminal
justice from the Rutgers University, School of Criminal Justice in 2007. She is an assistant professor at Bridgewater State College in Cambridge, Mass. Stephen Purcigliotti is a high school social studies teacher at Hendrick Hudson School District in Montrose, N.Y. Sean Schoenborn is an attorney and sports agent for DeMarie & Schoenborn in Buffalo, N.Y. Sara Shacket was promoted to director of on-air and acquisitions for Showtime Networks in New York City. Teresa Harrington is an information analyst for the University of Rochester’s (N.Y.) Strong Memorial Hospital. Edward Resetar is a story editor for Blowtorch Entertainment in Los Angeles. Anne Packer Smart earned a certificate of advanced study in educational administration from SUNY Brockport in September 2008. Lisa Yantachka Bujak is a state program administrator principal for Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in St. Paul, Minn.
1999 Molly Dinneen is an associate
attorney for Mendes & Mount LLP, in New York City. Emad Fareed is a senior manager at KPMG in New York City. Brian Maier is the director of automotive advertising for the San Francisco Chronicle (Calif.). Melissa Mummery was appointed director of human resources at the Buffalo (N.Y.) Hearing and Speech Center. Jill Steinhauser is the director of digital media pricing and inventory for Discovery Communications in Long Beach, N.Y. Anneliese Vance is a visiting fellow for the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University. Heidi Reukauf is the director of comprehensive community for Health
Initiatives & Programs in the Northern Province of Rwanda, Africa. Erin Crissman is a curator for the Farmer’s Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. Julie Kim is the director of planning for 20th Television in New York City.
2000 is GE West Benjamin Chin
Coast marketing manager for Electric Insurance Company in Redondo Beach, Calif. Heather Gewandter is a stormwater manager for the City of Rockville, Md. Devin Kelly is a member of the Devin Kelly Organ Trio music group, which released its debut album, “First Things First.” Christina Laycock Perrotta is the assistant director for conferences in the Office of Continuing Professional Education at the University of Rochester (N.Y.) Medical Center. James O’Brien is the assistant director of development at Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, N.C. Eli Phillips is a controller for L’Oreal USA in Somerset, N.J. Eamonn Walsh completed a master’s of science degree in secondary education at SUNY Albany in December 2008. Jorge Zavala received a doctorate of audiology from Salus University’s George S. Osborne College of Audiology in Elkins Park, Pa. Todd Goehle is an adjunct professor in the history department at SUNY Geneseo. Kimberly Summers is the assistant director of alumni relations at UNC Wilmington. Molly Metzler is a playscript editor and associate book editor for American Theatre Magazine, Theatre Communications Group in New York City. Jennifer Albaugh is a development associate at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Fla. Pamela Steele is an informaSummer 2009
35
ALUMNI NEWS
CLASS NOTES tion technology engineer for McKinsey & Company in New York City.
2001is a teacher for Kilee Burto
WSWHE BOCES-SAEC in Hudson Falls, N.Y. Richard Colosi was named APPLE Distinguished Educator for 2009. Luke Kelly is a division controller for Corning, Inc. in Corning, N.Y. Ittay Mendelson works in sales for Element K in Rochester, N.Y. Sarah Ridder is an MDP recruiter for M&T Bank in Rochester, N.Y. Trevor Schaper received his M.B.A in Finance from Hofstra Universty in December 2008 and was recently promoted to general manager at Goldfarb Properties in New York City. Karl Thaesler is an accounting research and policies manager for Eastman Kodak Co. in Rochester, N.Y. Mary Brown is a production manager and copywriter for Johnson Smith Company in Bradenton, Fla. Lacey Garrett Teixeira is an analyst for KeyBanc Capital Markets in Boston. Mieko Ozeki is a sustainability projects coordinator for the University of Vermont. Kathryn DeFilippo was promoted to director of accounting for Seevast Corp in Getzville, N.Y. Jill Konopka is a television news reporter for WFSB-TV in Rocky Hill, Conn.
2002 Kristin Darius Anderson is a
staff psychologist at the Savannah Child Study Center in Savannah, Ga. Katie Cutaia Gruschow is the associate director of development at the Simon Graduate School of Business at the University of Rochester (N.Y). Nicholas 36
geneseo scene
Joseph completed his M.B.A
with a concentration in global management from Boston College in May 2008 and works in sales for IBM in Boston. Jacalyn Lee is a public relations manager for The Knot Inc. in New York City. William McMahon is an attorney for Constangy, Brooks & Smith, LLC in Winston-Salem, N.C. Jamie Phillips was appointed business administrator by the Warsaw (N.Y.) Central School Board of Education. Kelley Salter is a graphic artist for InfoMentis in Alpharetta, Ga. Anthony Gallo competed in the U.S Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene, Ore., and finished eighth in the preliminaries of the men’s 5,000-meter run. Ralph Minervino Jr. earned a master’s degree in public adminstration with a certificate in nonprofit managment and health care management from SUNY Brockport. He is a business analyst for the University of Rochester Medical Center Department of Pathology & Lab Medicine.
2003 Brenda Tiede Beardsley was
named credit analysis manager for The Bank of Castile in Perry, N.Y. Shannon O’Brien Beiter is a tax accountant for Lougen, Valenti, Bookbinder & Weintraub, LLP in Amherst, N.Y. Kelly Gray McColl was named senior credit analyst for The Bank of Castile in Perry, N.Y. Kimberly Oliver is a certified diamontologist at Sterling Inc. Gina Ruocchio graduated from Ross University School of Medicine in 2008. Robyn Scrafford is a program financial analyst and program coordinator for the Environmental Defense Fund in Boston. Becky Strathearn completed a master’s degree from ITT Technical Institute in 2008. She is the director of finance
at ITT Technical Institute in Buffalo. Melissa White participated in Utica Boilermaker 15K Road Race in July 2008. Matthew Wojtecki is a medical physicist at the St. Peters Hospital in Albany, N.Y. Jonathan Sternstein is an information security engineer for the Coastal Federal Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C. Ryan Robbins is an account executive for Lamar Outdoor Advertising in Rochester, N.Y. Mark Huntley works for Wells Fargo in Charlotte, N.C. Julie Barber is a counselor for the admission office at Alfred (N.Y.) State College.
2004graduated from Lori Awadalla
Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine in 2008. Stephanie Brown received her Doctor of Chiropractic degree from New York Chiropractic College in Seneca Falls, N.Y. in November 2008. She is now a chiropracter at Chili Chiropractic and Wellness in Rochester, N.Y. Katherine Donnelly works for the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel in Washington, D.C. Peter Hastings is a commercial lines insurance salesman for First Niagara in Pittsford, N.Y. Mark MacAdam was promoted to international project manager for Harris Interactive in New York City. Grant Matla teaches history at Genesee and Monroe Community Colleges in upstate New York. Laura O’Donnell is a high school biology teacher at the Attica (N.Y.) Central School District. Tiffany Olmstead is human resources assistant for AIG in New York City. Kurt Redman is a math teacher at the Galway (N.Y.) Central School. Erin Reilly received her master’s of arts degree in speech pathology and language from Edinboro University of
Pennsylvania (Pa.) Veronica Szalkowski-Lehane earned her doctor of medicine degree from the University of Buffalo (N.Y.) School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in May 2008. Lori Wielinski is a client service manager at Bridge Worldwide in Cincinnati, Ohio. Timothy Nicholson completed a master’s degree in history at Kings College in London. Daniel Schultz received his master’s of arts in religion degree at Yale Divinity School, New Haven, Conn. Ballerstein Proctor works for Paychex in Rochester, N.Y. Christopher Kennedy works for the Erie County Department of Mental Health. Nicole McGowen Dellavecchia is an urban planner and economic analysist for Saratoga Associates in New York City.
2005is a case manageSarah Batson
ment specialist for Genzyme Corporation in Cambridge, Mass. Vicki Beighley earned her law degree from Syracuse University in 2008. Ed McGrogan is the assistant editor for Tennis.com and works for Tennis Magazine in New York City. Lindsey Smith Metzger is a Spanish teacher at Frontier High School in Lakeview, N.Y. Megan Miller is a business development manager for Lee Technologies in Fairfax, Va. Charles Morris is the Web master and distance education coordinator at North Carolina State University’s College of Natural Resources. Jillian Robinson earned a master’s degree in library science at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in December 2007. David Rose is an FI trade support for AllianceBernstein in White Plains, N.Y. Jennifer Keough Sonricker earned her master’s degree in education as a childhood curriculum specialist from SUNY Brockport in
May 2008. Lori Spagnoli was promoted to key account manager at Lord Abbet in Jersey City, N.J. Danielle Wander is a human resources coordinator for Frederic Fekkai in New York City. Laura Miller completed a master’s degree in history with a concentration in public history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Peter Anderson is a history teacher at New Hartford (N.Y.) Senior High School. Benjamin Proctor is a banjo player for The Varnish Cooks, a Rochesterbased old-time string band. The band opened the Music in the Barn 2008 series at the South Bristol Cultural Center in Canandaigua, N.Y. Loretta Charles earned her master’s of art degree from Binghamton University and is an adjunct professor in the history department at SUNY Geneseo. Anastazia Sienty is an assistant manager at HSBC Bank in Blauvelt, N.Y. Amelia Vogel completed training at the U.S. Navy’s Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I.
Scene around the world Are you going on an exotic adventure to Fiji? Gearing up to climb Mt. Everest? Visiting an old friend in Hawaii or relaxing on a Caribbean cruise? Take a photo of yourself with the Scene on vacation, business or other trips and submit them for our new feature. Be sure to include your shirt size. We'll send a Geneseo T-shirt as a thank-you if we use your image. At right, Jennifer Wedow ’00, of Rochester, N.Y., enjoyed the music culture in Austin, Texas. She and her friend Elizabeth Hack, right, posed at the “Sixth String” sculpture on Congress Avenue. Below, Frank Vafier ’74, founder of Prolifics in New York City, reads the Scene beside the bull on Wall Street. Send your images to scene@geneseo.edu with the subject around the world.
2006 Matthew Alessi-Friedlander
earned his master’s degree in secondary social studies from New York University. Jared DePass works in the Legal Division of Bank of America. Gregory Fair is a mandolin player for The Varnish Cooks, a Rochester-based, old-time string band. The band opened the Music in the Barn 2008 series at the South Bristol Cultural Center in Canandaigua, N.Y. Laura Kane-Punyon is a client service manager for OpHedge Investment Services in Rye Brook, N.Y. Jennifer Hagen McNeil is a staff accountant for Sovie & Bowie, CPA PC in Watertown, N.Y. Patrick O'Neill is the high school awards coordinator in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Rochester Summer 2009
37
ALUMNI NEWS
CLASS NOTES (N.Y.). Kristen Phillips is a special-event specialist for Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in Rochester, N.Y. Elizabeth Roby received her master’s degree in sociology from University at Buffalo (N.Y.) in 2008. Jenni Rowe is a speech therapist for the Pioneer School District in Yorkshire, N.Y. Craig Truglia earned his master’s degree in secondary social studies at Columbia University. Benjamin Weinheimer is a tax associate for Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Boston. Colleen Scherer is a customer service representative for TMA List Brokerage and Management in Reston, Va. John Dechant earned his master’s degree at the University of Chicago in 2007. Justin Fritz is a copywriter for the Oxford Club in Delray Beach, Fla. Jennifer Ramsey is a student at Syracuse University College of Law. Alison Mitchell received a master’s degree in forensic psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City in May 2008.
2007is a retirement Emily Casey
plans associate with Sage Rutty in Rochester, N.Y. Riley Fitzgerald is an analyst for Permal Group Inc. in New York City. Christopher Morens is a special education teacher at York Central School District in Retsof, N.Y. Joanna Nackley is a kindergarten teacher at New Hartford (N.Y.) Central Schools. Kenneth Peltzer is a consultant for Prolifics in New York City. Emily Schwytzer is a sixth-grade inclusion teacher for the North Syracuse Central School District in Liverpool, N.Y. Kate Sullivan earned her master’s degree in literacy 38
geneseo scene
from St. Bonaventure University (N.Y.) in December 2008. Laura Woodworth is a staff accountant for Mengel, Metzger, Barr & Co. LLP. Jacquelyn Bubb is a service coordinator for The Arc of Schuyler in Watkins Glen, N.Y. Olayinka Oyake is a student at the Simon Graduate School of Business at the University of Rochester, N.Y. Courtney Smith is an itinerant speech therapist with Bright Stars Pediatric Services in Fairport, N.Y. Kevin Gutman is an associate with Douglas C. Lane & Associates in Astoria, N.Y., an investment advisory firm.
Elmira, N.Y. Elise Arneson is a program coordinator at AmeriCorps VISTA in Rochester, N.Y. Erin Gryniak is an executive assistant for Behan Communications Inc. in Glens Falls, N.Y. Andrea Roether is a finance management associate at Bank Of America in Charlotte, N.C.
Marriages
2008. Tami Root Holihan ’03 & Mike Holihan ’02, March 29,
2008. Catherine Meissner Guglielmo ’04 & Steve Guglielmo ’05, Aug. 9, 2008. Jessica Walsh Kennedy ’04 & Christopher Kennedy ’04,
August 2008. Nicole McGowen Dellavecchia ’04 & Michael Dellavecchia ’03, Oct. 12,
Amy Maruschock Borsay ’92
2008.
& Peter Borsay, June 14, 2008.
Schiller Joseph ’04 &
Kara Gutierrez Sieklucki ’92
Jennifer Fields, Nov. 8, 2008. Lacey Ballard Dowd ’04 & Matthew Dowd ’04, July 26, 2008.
& Troy Sieklucki, July 5, 2007. Cytina Betcher Rosenberg ’96 & Todd Rosenberg, Nov.
17, 2007.
2008
Kevin Burns ’96 & Kristy,
Lindsey Greene Redman ’04 & Kurt Redman ’04, July 5,
Sept. 26, 2008.
2008.
Katherine Biamonte is a
Andrew Ippolito ’97 & Jessica
student coordinator for P.E.A.C.E., Inc. in Syracuse, N.Y. Stephanie Bottomley works in the auditing and accounting department for Lumsden and McCormick in Buffalo, N.Y. Erica Dingeman is a marketing coordinator for Saratoga Sotherby’s International Realty in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Ryan Dusseault works in the audit department for Fust Charles Chambers LLP in DeWitt, N.Y. Emily Hurley won the Brighton 5K women’s race in July 2008. It was her last race before she joined the Peace Corps in Mali, Africa. Kristen Lapenta is an AmeriCorps volunteer for Washington Reading Corps. Kathryn McLean is a public relations account coordinator at Roberts Communications in Rochester, N.Y. Kathleen Quinlan is a VISTA volunteer at AmeriCorps in Rochester, N.Y. Leanne Sisbarro works for AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps. Jessica Derwin is a teacher at Warsaw (N.Y.) Central School. Nathan Lockett won the 5and 10-Mile Trail Races at the Tanglewood Nature Center in
Gold, Aug. 8, 2008.
Melisa Carpenter Kembrey ’03 & Jason Kembrey, April 8,
Anne Packer Smart ’98 &
2008.
Eldridge Smart, July 26, 2008.
Kalee Vales Glavach ’05 &
Kathleen Triggs Kennard ’99
Matt Glavach, July 19, 2008.
& Seth Kennard, April 26, 2008. Melanie Cook Heller ’99 & Max Heller ’99, May 17, 2008.
Catherine Richter Casey ’05 & Christopher Casey ’05,
Jaclyn Bellotti Nepoleon ’99
& Jason Napoleon, June 27, 2008. David Ednie ’99 & Kara Elizabeth ’00, Aug. 16, 2008. Christina Laycock Perrotta ’00 & Tim Perrotta, Oct. 11,
2008. Elizabeth Smith Cassalia ’00
Nov. 29, 2008. Erin Johnson Hodge ’05 & Nathan Hodge, March 15, 2008. Kassandra Padlick Field ’05
& Khristopher Field, Aug. 18, 2007.
Births & Adoptions
& Patrick Cassalia, July 5, 2008. Benjamin Chin ’00 & Renee Linares, May 24, 2008. Kristen Bosch Rushing ’01 & Jason Rushing, Oct. 4, 2008.
Leanne Naughton Cole ’86 &
Elizabeth Greenberg Sussman ’01 & Joshua Sussman ’99, July 13, 2008. Kristen Horeis Lyons ’01 &
Elizabeth, Dec. 3, 2007.
Bret Lyons, Oct. 17, 2008. Erik Walsh ’01 & Dianna Lamb, September 2008. Andrea Castellitto Hayden ’01 & David Hayden, April 18,
2008 Ralph Minervino Jr. ’02 &
Leah Swan, May 27, 2007. Candice Fountain Cosker ’03
& Michael Cosker, May 24,
Jeff, John Thomas, Feb. 17, 2007. Danielle Dusharm Mahoney ’91 & John, Mackenzie Elizabeth Davis Wood ’92 &
Richard, Laura Elizabeth, Aug. 28, 2008. Nicole Beskid Christian ’93 & Vincent, Natalie Leahy, March 2008. Jennifer Scally Ryan ’93 & Michael, Declan Emanuel, June 12, 2008. Bhargavi Shiledar Baxi Ghate ’94 & Shishir, Ajendra S., Aug.
20, 2008. Cytina Betcher Rosenberg
’96 & Todd, Spencer Gibson,
Sept. 12, 2008.
Daniel O’Connor ’00 & Donna ’00, Ryan Joseph,
’52, Aug. 5, 2008. Esther Aldridge ’54, Aug. 2,
Jennifer Cerasoli Cereola ’96
March 25, 2008.
2008.
& Derek, Stella Jaime, Dec. 20, 2007. Amy Oldis Cusumano ’96 & Nicolas, Garett Nicolas, Oct. 22, 2008. Danielle Zebley Krol ’96 & Travis, Sullivan Thomas, March 13, 2008. Emily Smith Van Dusen ’96 & Shawn, Elinor Isabel, Oct. 9, 2008. Melissa Kramer Barnes ’97 & Lee, Ian Anderson, March 28, 2008. Geri Graff Savage ’97 & Jason, Samantha Hailey, May 26, 2008. Andrew Zakrocki ’97 & Florrie, David Benjamin, Feb. 4, 2009.
Katie Cutaia Gruschow ’02 &
Angelo Locurto ’57, Dec. 16,
Mike, Ellis Joelle, Nov. 20, 2007 Nicole Sepe Travis ’02 & Ryan, Olivia, March 20, 2008.
2008.
Bethany Hillman Surman ’03 & Joshua ’02, Noah Timothy,
2008.
April 30, 2008.
9, 2008.
Katharine Mirabito Voss ’03
Gerald Sternin ’60, Dec. 11,
& Brian, Isabelle Angelina, April 17, 2007. Peter Anderson ’05 & and Tracy, Indiana William, October 2008.
Catherine Powell Cleary ’58,
June 25, 2008. Robert Perna ’58, May 6, Mary Selden Short ’59, May
2008. Edward Lavery ’62, Dec. 4,
2008. 31, 2008.
William J. Cotton, professor
Jessica Sikora Cramer ’05 &
B. Palmer Smith ’66, July 23,
Craig, Cali Lynn, May 6, 2008. Carrie Braman Ramos ’07 & Carols, Delaney Marie, Dec. 9, 2007
2008.
emeritus of education, died Dec. 19, 2008. An expert on migrant and international education, he served as Geneseo’s director of education from 1956 to 1970 and professor of education until his retirement in 1989.
Michael Ludwig ’68, July 26,
2008. Ann Riker Stopper ’68, Aug.
10, 2008.
In Memoriam
Janet Woods ’68, July 23,
Aug. 15, 2007.
ALUMNI Leona Westendorf Gelder ’26, Nov. 4, 2008. Beatrice Leaton Greenwald ’30, Oct. 25, 2008. Janet Casson Crist ’33, Sept.
Lynn Williamson ’70, July 28,
Chris, Reyna Nadine, July 20, 2008. Alison Strait Rahman ’98 & Jeff, Madelaine Jane, Oct. 2, 2008. Thea Fuschino Dalfino ’99 & John, J. Bryce, Aug. 26, 2008. Melissa Scotty LeVesque ’99
emeritus of health and physical education, coach and Geneseo Sports Hall of Fame inductee, died Nov. 18, 2008. He was chair of the Department of Health and Physical Education, coached the men’s tennis team and served as sports information director. He founded the women’s soccer team in 1981 and coached the team until his retirement in 1995.
Francis Johnston ’65, March
Michelle Blakemore Faroni ’98 & Alex, Alden Charles, Jason John ’98 & Francine ’98, Marissa Ann, Feb. 7, 2008. Heather Gill Ottnod ’98 &
FACULTY Frederick Bright, professor
28, 2008. Dorothy Guernsey Lake ’34,
May 24, 2008. Joyce Vandenburg Nesbitt ’35, May 10, 2008. Loretta Kruse Feldman ’36,
& Brian, Sara Allison, March 25, 2008. Anneliese Vance ’99 & Gregory ’01, Alastair William, April 7, 2008. Laura Marzuk Barrett ’00 & Brad, Anna Ruth, June 8, 2008.
Aug. 2, 2008.
Jennifer Weldin Deshaies ’00
12, 2008.
& Jason, Chloe Anna, Jan. 8, 2008. Brad Hack ’00 & Donna, Quincey Marie, Aug. 6, 2008. Lauren West Kvam ’00 & Erik, Lucy Kathryn, April 30, 2008.
Ruth Quait Magee ’38, Jan.
Winifred Smith Buckley ’37,
June 8, 2008. Beulah Hayner ’37, July 3,
2008. Genevieve Delebarto Russell ’37, Dec. 23, 2007. Alice Edwards Loss ’38, Dec.
2008. 2008. Ruth Cowden Witter ’70, July
8, 2008. Cheryl Woodard Brand ’71,
Sept. 22, 2007. John May ’72, Sept. 8, 2008. Edward Carter ’73, June 29, 2008. Susan Bussa ’75, Feb. 18, 2009. Robert Nolan ’76, Jan. 21, 2009. Susan Bertrand Becker ’79, June 8, 2008. Michael Weatherbee ’87, July 7, 2008. Kristen Hoodak ’93, Oct. 26, 2008. Ilissa Schoenberg ’02, Nov. 22, 2007. Alexander Reichman ’04, Oct. 27, 2008.
Martin L. Fausold, distinguished service professor of history emeritus, died Oct. 28, 2008. He joined Geneseo in 1958 as chair of the Division of Social Science. He served as chair for 11 years and retired in 1992. Martin Kentner, associate professor emeritus of health and physical education and a coach, died Jan. 31, 2008. He taught at Geneseo from 1966 to 1987 and was inducted into the Geneseo Sports Hall of Fame in 1993. Valentin H. Rabe, professor
emeritus of history, died Nov. 28, 2008. He taught at Geneseo from 1967 to 1991.
22, 2009. Helen Taylor Walker ’44, July
5, 2008.
STUDENTS Jacquelyn Hirsch ’09, Sept. 6,
Virginia Jones ’45, July 5,
2008.
2008.
Meghan Adams ’09, July 26,
Shirley Wager ’45, Oct. 5,
2008.
Amy Binkley Rybczynski ’00
2008.
Lindsay Matthews ’11, Nov. 9,
& Craig, Jacob Julian, June 20, 2008. Aria Camaione-Lind ’01 & Christopher, Frances Faelyn Ann, March 27, 2008.
Patricia Skinner Kirkpatrick ’50, Dec. 1, 2008. Assunta Manti Barron ’52,
Arman Partamian ’11, March
Rosemary Welsh Teres, who taught art history from 1969 to 1988, died Feb. 29, 2009.
2008. 1, 2009.
July 28, 2008. Julie Trombley Woodcock Summer 2009
39
What was your
MEMORY LANE
favorite hangout
at Geneseo?
Secrets under the stairs
Write the Sceneat scene@geneseo.edu and share your stories for an upcoming issue. We promise not to get you in trouble, either.
By Kris Dreessen hirty years ago, John Wadach ’81 and his buddies scoured campus for a bomb shelter and the mysterious “sheltoids” — powder-white ghouls who spent too much time in the underground bunkers. Along the way, they discovered a room under the stairs in Livingston Hall. They popped the screws off a two-foot panel door, crawled in and made it their secret hideout. They moved on after their freshman year but left a time capsule of their lives in 1979 that never saw daylight — until now. Maintenance workers finally found the hideout last July after coeds left the entry panel ajar and spilled the beans. Inside, staff found the capsule and a congratulatory note for whoever found Sheltoid International Company’s headquarters. “Wow! That was a long time ago,” said Wadach, when he learned about the discovery. “Wow, someone else found out!” Actually, he was worried he might be in trouble. He doesn’t remember why he and his friends ventured under the stairs, but said “it sounds like the stupid type of thing we would have done.” Wadach, his wife, Bonnie (Lehrer) Wadach ’80, and son, Brendan, 16, recently poured over capsule contents for a trip down memory lane. Mementos spread on their kitchen table in Lima, N.Y., Wadach found blackand-white photographs, a package of cheese crackers that look surprisingly fresh 30 years later and his $1,190
T
40
geneseo scene
PHOTO BY KRIS DREESSEN
John Wadach '81, center, laughs with his wife, Bonnie (Lehrer) Wadach '80 and their son, Brendan, at the mementos he and his friends left in a secret hideout in Livingston Hall in 1979.
bill for the spring semester. And, there was a single 50cent meal coupon left. “This is fun!” he laughed, as Bonnie nodded, smiling. The “last physics lab” Wadach included in the capsule was, in fact, not his final experiment. He conducted many more to earn a master’s degree in physics from the University of Maine in 1983. He’s now the chair of physics and engineering at Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y. “I have no memory of putting this in here,” said Wadach. “It’s like Christmas!” Wadach and his buddies were sheltoid club members Andy Smith ’81, Don Moretti '80, Tom Brilbeck '81 and George Exley ’85.
“It really was the most fun we had in college,” said Brilbeck, a law clerk for a county court judge in Rochester, N.Y. Turns out, sneaky students have long used the hideout despite its cramped quarters and pesky sheltoids. A student last signed the wall in 2006. Others left capsules in 1995 and 1996. Geneseo was “an idyllic little place,” said Wadach. He had some of his best times there and met Bonnie, with whom he started a new life. “It’s amazing really, but it’s almost going to make me cry,” said Wadach, holding a yellowing, typewritten paper. “I was a different person then. Life was so different. It’s gone and all I’ve got is
this little container.” The Wadachs’ daughter, Rachel, is now a junior at their alma mater. Perhaps she has learned the lesson Wadach hoped to impart in a note he addressed to whoever encountered the time capsule: “I hope you take things less seriously now. The end of your freshman year of college. It will never be here again.” “It’s pretty profound,” said Wadach. “ … It probably took me another 20 years to figure out how to do that. I’m much more content in the present and don’t worry about what’s going to happen. I wish I could have learned that long ago. At least I knew it was something I wanted to attain.”
GIVING BACK
The Kramers shift Geneseo programs into high gear By Lisa M. Feinstein hen Jack Kramer ’76, chairman of The Geneseo Foundation board of directors, talks about driving Porsches, there’s no mistaking the passion in his voice. When you talk to him about Geneseo, the excitement is similar. Who would have guessed that Geneseo could evoke the same emotions as hurtling around a racetrack at 140 mph? Navigating the straightaway really isn’t that challenging, says Jack. “Breaking on the curves is the hard part.” An avid driver, he’s the chief driving instructor for the Philadelphia chapter of the Porsche Club of America. His wife, Carol (Patterson) Kramer ’76, is a past registrar and an active member of the club. Jack and Carol, it seems, share a taste for all things exhilarating, whether they are cycling and hiking through Arches National Park in Utah or preparing a gourmet Southwestern dinner to benefit the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Perhaps the interest closest to their hearts is the place that brought them together — Geneseo. “We met at the beginning of the second semester in our freshman year,” says Jack. “We were good friends from that day, but we did not start dating until our junior year.” Jack says he and Carol realize how much Geneseo meant to them and how valuable their financial and volunteer support is to providing opportunities for new students. Since the early ’80s, they have donated to The Fund for Geneseo through annual gifts. In 2004, the Kramers established The Carol Kramer ’76 Endowed Scholarship for Excellence in Psychology and The Jack Kramer ’76 Endowed Scholarship for Excellence in Physics, merit awards that provide tuition assistance for students who demonstrate financial need and show a strong commitment to their field of study inside and outside of the classroom. Geneseo provides an “incredible student experience that many much-more prestigious institutions can't come close to replicating,” says Jack.
W
PHOTO BY KRIS DREESSEN
At GREAT Day this year, Jack and Carol (Patterson) Kramer ’76 visited with Jill Rabinowitz ’09, the recipient of The Carol Kramer ’76 Endowed Scholarship for Excellence in Psychology. Providing opportunities for Geneseo students is a thrill similar to the feeling Jack gets racing cars.
In April, the first installment of the Jack ’76 and Carol ’76 Kramer Endowed Lecture Series brought Sansei (third generation) actor, director, producer, poet, and author Lane Nishikawa to campus for GREAT Day — Geneseo Recognizing Excellence, Achievement & Talent. The annual event celebrates the creative and scholarly endeavors of students who share artwork, dance and vocal performances, research and problem-solving projects. The lecture series is the anchor for the event, exposing students to innovative cultural, scientific and academic perspectives. The Kramers were inspired to endow the series because of the positive impact GREAT Day has on the campus community. “GREAT Day is pretty phenomenal,” says Jack. “What a great way to recognize students and bring people together.” So, which passion is most exhilarating — racing high-performance Porsches or supporting deserving students? “Obviously, at the particular moment, driving a Porsche is an adrenaline rush,” says Jack after a moment, “but that fades after the driving. Supporting these students — that’s a more sustainable feeling. It lasts a long time.”
How can I make a difference? • Host student interns in your office or business • Speak at GOLD seminars • Serve on departmental discussion panels • Recruit and interview Geneseo grads To find out more or to share your ideas and talents, contact the Alumni Relations Office at (585) 245-5506 or e-mail alumni@geneseo.edu Alumni, parents and friends can support Geneseo through: • Annual gifts to The Fund for Geneseo • Gifts to The Geneseo Parents Fund • Endowed chairs and professorships • Named, endowed scholarships • Athletic endowments and gifts to the Roundtable Athletic Association • Planned giving To make a contribution to The Fund for Geneseo, visit http://giveto.geneseo.edu or send your contribution to The Geneseo Foundation, 1 College Circle, Geneseo, NY 14454. For more information on giving opportunities and ways for alumni to reconnect with the college, call the College Advancement Office at (585) 245-5519.
Come back home to
Geneseo
Homecoming Sept. 25-26, 2009 Find out more at go.geneseo.edu/homecoming PHOTO BY BRIAN BENNETT
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