Saint Rose Magazine Winter 2012

Saint Rose Magazine

A Message from President R. Mark Sullivan

VOL. 7 NO. 1 WINTER 2012 PRESIDENT: Dr. R. Mark Sullivan PROVOST: Dr. David Szczerbacki MANAGING EDITOR: Lisa Haley Thomson G’94 ASSISTANT EDITOR/WRITER: Jane Gottlieb CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Mark E. Hamilton ’91

“Along with the new programs and amenities, the stories here highlight longstanding practices that make Saint Rose a great neighbor as well as an important center of higher education. ”

ART DIRECTOR: Chris Parody ’99 COPY EDITOR/PROOFREADER: Sue Conroy ’83, G’10 ACADEMIC AFFAIRS EDITORS: Dr. Severin Carlson Dr. Margaret Kirwin Dr. Lorna Shaw Dr. Richard Thompson ADVANCEMENT EDITOR: Karin Carr ALUMNI ASSOCIATION EDITOR: Lisa McKenzie ATHLETICS EDITOR: David Alexander PHOTOGRAPHY: Gregory Cherin Marty Kerins Tom Killips Benjamin Marvin NCAA Photospin Kris Qua ThinkStock Cover Photo: Greg Cherin Photography We encourage letters to the editor.

Please address comments to: Saint Rose Magazine Lisa Haley Thomson, Editor Office of Public Relations and Marketing The College of Saint Rose 432 Western Avenue Albany, NY 12203-1490 (518) 454-5102 thomsonl@strose.edu The College of Saint Rose is sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, Albany Province.

The College of Saint Rose is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104. (267-284-5000) The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation

12/11 — 37M

Saint Rose Magazine, has been honored by the following for outstanding editorial/publication design:

In the whirlwind of yet another academic year — my 16th on this ever-more vibrant campus — there are so many important developments to bring to your attention.

First, I am pleased to announce a new home and new name for the College’s School of Business, the Huether School of Business. The $3.5 million school building was made possible by a gift from our friend and trustee Richard Huether, a longtime General Electric executive and mentor to scores of our students. We cherish Dick and the many other supporters of this campaign who share our vision for strengthening and expanding our distinguished programs in business and accounting under one roof.

Last spring, we celebrated the heritage of those programs when we honored three of our business school founders, Sister Ida DeCastro ’66, Sister Marguerite Donovan ’54 and Sister Rita Haber ’43. From the 1960s to the 1980s, they moved a Saint Rose business education from a study of shorthand and office practices to a major with rigorous required courses in management, accounting and finance. Sister Marguerite and her family also made one of the first significant contributions to the new Huether School. A large graduate classroom will be named in their honor.

Just two weeks before the Huether School groundbreaking, we dedicated our newest academic building the William Randolph Hearst Center for Communications and Interactive Media, the technologically advanced center that houses our communications and music industry programs.

And even with those significant projects, just 10 houses east on the same block of Madison Avenue a new residence hall is rising by the day. With the 96,000-square-

foot Centennial Hall, we meet demand for apartmentstyle housing that blends college life with independence for 224 juniors and seniors.

In recent months, we have taken other steps to clearly and proudly mark our place in the city. Visitors will now see new signage on all our buildings, the Saint Rose logo on Albany street signs and prominent gateway signs at Western and Madison avenues at Partridge Street. We are equally proud of the Margaret Dugan Sandman ’40 Alumni Garden between Moran and Gibbons halls. At a dedication of this treasured space, Margaret and Edgar Sandman’s five children, including Nancy ’70, remarked on the importance of keeping their mother’s memory alive at her beloved college.

Along with the new programs and amenities, the stories here highlight longstanding practices that make Saint Rose a great neighbor as well as an important center of higher education. One story salutes two alumni, Laurie Ellis ’91, G’95 and Steve Costello, G ’01, teachers at a local elementary school who invite Saint Rose computer science and education majors to teach the latest computer literacy to their own students.

Finally, as you have no doubt heard, I have announced that the 2011–12 academic year will be my last as president of this great college. Albany has become home to Kathy and I, and Saint Rose our extended family. I will remain at Saint Rose to teach a few courses, attend events and, with Kathy, continue our community involvement while also spending more time with our four grandsons. Much to my embarrassment, I am sure there will more about this in the next issue of the magazine.

Wishing you a happy and healthy new year.

W I N T E R 2 012 VOLUME 7 NUMBER 1

Inside Saint Rose

18 The Schools School of Arts & Humanities

Peace Opera School of Education

Project ASPIRE

20 Institutional Advancement

2

The Huether School of Business A Transformational Gift

Honoring Veterans Witness the Future, Today A Community of Excellence Honorary Alumnus

22 Trustees

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Dedicating a New Building William Randolph Hearst Center for Communications and Interactive Media

A Message from Matt Mataraso

23 Athletics News & Notes

24 Leading Edge

10 Mastering a Brand in China Hai Ling, Class of ’93

12 SCRATCH Teaching Children Computer Programming

Saint Rose in Review

29 Alumni Message from Denise DiNoto ’95, G’96 Chapter Notes Margaret Dugan Sandman ’40 Alumni Garden Alumni Notes Alumni Spotlight Alumni to Watch Early Graduates Outreach Project Premiere Performances Journalism 221

16 National Champions Golden Knights Women’s Soccer Team Wins It All

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The Huether Sc Richard J. Huether, a Schenectady, N.Y., native and distinguished 34-year executive with the General Electric Co., has always supported institutions that promote the leadership and character development of young people, believing that it was the mentors he had in church, school and college that made him a highly ethical and successful executive. He is highly regarded for his volunteer work in and financial support of educational and cultural organizations. This past June, Huether, a trustee of the College for more than a decade, made

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Imagine a place in which students learn that combining brain power is actually more efficient, that “work” does not have to involve sitting alone in a cubicle and that the ability to organize a team, create an idea and present it quickly will be the difference in landing that first job. That is our vision for the Huether School of Business.

— RICHARD J. HUETHER

hool of Business a transformational gift, his largest gift ever, to jump start the College’s campaign to renovate 994 Madison Avenue into a new home for the School of Business. Huether’s gift brings the total amount raised to $3 million toward the $5 million campaign goal, which includes funds for construction and programming. Huether joins more than 25 donors who have made early leadership gifts so they can be part of this extraordinary opportunity to dramatically alter the way business leaders are trained and inspired.

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First Floor Plan A Entryway ● B Graduate Classroom ● C Seminar Room #2 Larger ● D Seminar Room #1 ● E Center for Internship/Field Study ● F Breakout Area #1 ● G Historic Grand Staircase ● H Reception Desk ● ●I Vestibule J Auxiliary Room ●

Huether has spent most of his time on the board of trustees as chair of the Student Life committee. “My passion for Saint Rose comes from working closely with students, particularly the Student Association (SA) officers. I am inspired by them, watching them grow from young college students into leaders in many different fields. My hope is that with this gift, we will create a highly innovative learning environment and that Saint Rose will become known for business graduates who know how to be entrepreneurial, work in teams and to be the kind of visionaries that will drive this economy forward,” commented Huether.

The Huether School of Business, expected to open in the fall of 2012, will be housed at 994 Madison Avenue. Distinguished by its Queen-Anne style, it will now have a contemporary entryway, while the three-part stained glass and circular towers will be maintained. The former technical school and convent owned by the Church of St. Vincent De Paul will be extensively renovated, with an addition doubling the size by12,500 square feet.

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In its new home, the business school will dramatically enhance the learning environment of students and faculty alike, providing the latest technology, new classrooms, seminar rooms and dedicated areas for internship coordination, entrepreneurship training and leadership development. One of the hallmarks of the new building is its adaptive and flexible design including several spaces available 24/7 with cutting edge technology, designed to foster collaborative learning outside of traditional class time. There will also be a meeting space so that the School of Business faculty and students can provide expert consulting and research services to business clients in the community.

“Dick is thoroughly invested in the important role that first-class facilities play in advancing the mission and quality of our academic programs. What guides Dick’s thinking, however, is the power of welldesigned spaces and technology that enable faculty members to shape the development of our students who learn by doing as much as they learn by lessons and lectures. It is Dick’s hope that his gift will serve as

MAKE A LASTING INVESTMENT As of this printing, $3 million has been raised toward the $5 million campaign for the Huether School of Business. There are many naming opportunities and ways to participate in this campaign.

Visit www.strose.edu/huether to find out more or to give online.

You may also call Susan Warshany at 518-454-5104 for information on specific giving opportunities.

Second Floor Plan K Dean’s Office ● L Dean’s Reception ● M Executive Conference Room ● N Graduate Classroom ● O Executive Outreach Center ● P Presentation Room ● Q Breakout #2 ● R M.S. Accounting Director Office ● S M.B.A. Director Office ● T Alcove ●

a catalyst for others to invest in the education of the next generation of business leaders,” said Saint Rose President Dr. R. Mark Sullivan.

R&D — Development of Rigorous and Relevant Business Curriculum While presently there is no dedicated building for our School of Business on campus, a shortcoming soon to be remedied, there is plenty of action in the development of a rigorous and relevant curriculum building on the School’s core strengths in finance, management, accounting and economics. (A new major in economics was just added in fall 2011.) The first in the area to offer a 150-hour accounting program (required to sit for the CPA exam) that awards students both a bachelor’s and master’s degree, the College is also a regional leader in financial planning, offering a non-credit certificate, an undergraduate degree and graduate advanced certificate in Financial Planning.

From day one, the academic program in business at Saint Rose stretches students to think beyond classroom walls. Fundamentals of Business, a first-year course, puts all undergraduate business majors through the fundamentals of strategic business planning, financing and marketing new small business in a particular Albany neighborhood.

Through this process, students discover quickly the importance of effective group leadership, communication and follow-through. In keeping with the goal of the Huether School of Business of “active learning,” all business majors are also now required to complete an internship or field experience during their undergraduate career.

In 2010, the School of Business initiated the Honors Internship Program, enabling students to compete for full-time summer internship experiences with national or regional companies. The program provides a scholarship for the credit-bearing summer experience and a limited number of stipends to assist with expenses. The School has recruited several Honors Internship company partners who will provide quality professional experiences for student interns. These companies

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“

My passion for Saint Rose comes from working closely with students, particularly the Student Association officers. I am inspired by them, watching them grow from young college students into leaders in many different fields. My hope is that with this gift, we will create a highly innovative learning environment and that Saint Rose will become known for business graduates who know how to be entrepreneurial, work in teams and to be the kind of visionaries that will drive this economy forward.

”

— RICHARD J. HUETHER

include Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, Hugh Johnson Advisors, LLC, Tri-City Rentals and The Albany Agency, LLC. The College also sets and retains high academic standards, further strengthened in recent years by the senior capstone courses and dual degree programs such as the BS/MBA and the JD/MBA program with Albany Law School. Another distinctive feature that has become a signature of the Saint Rose MBA is the MBA Plus option in which students can add specialty extensions to their MBA such as not-for-profit management, computer information systems, financial planning, and organizational leadership and change management. The efforts have paid off: in 2004 to 2009, undergraduate enrollment rose 36 percent and graduate enrollment by 43 percent.

By growing and improving its facilities, the business school will be able to meet demand: its 17 percent enrollment growth for 2010-11 represented the largest enrollment growth of the College’s four schools.

And within four years of completion, the new Huether School of Business is expected to contribute to a 35-percent rise of undergraduate enrollment and 25-percent increase in graduate enrollment.

Branding — Enhancing Visibility and Reputation for the School of Business The Huether School of Business will also complete the “campus within a campus” on Madison Avenue, joining the Massry Center for the Arts and the William Randolph Hearst Center for Communications and Interactive Media, serving as the hub for management training across all disciplines. Students will more fully realize crossover opportunities

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between courses in business, communications, music industry and art.

As the Thelma P. Lally School of Education on the opposite side of Madison cemented the College’s reputation for training high-quality educators at all levels, the new Huether School of Business will greatly enhance the College’s reputation for developing leaders in the private sector, both close to home and around the world, giving the School of Business a brand name all its own.

“We have always done great things, moved our students into important and influential leadership positions in business and finance,” said Dean Severin Carlson. “But the general public and business community might not have realized it because we have never been visible. We lacked an identity as the result of not having a place to call home. Now people will know us as the Huether School of Business.”

In 2008, prominent executives in real estate, finance, global business and technology began lending their expertise, when the 19-member School of Business Advisory Council was established to help shape the future of the College’s business school. Giving the school its own “home,” an idea backed by the College leadership, topped their list of recommendations. In October 2010, the Board of Trustees echoed their wishes, approving an initiative to renovate and expand 994 Madison Avenue.

W

On September 26

The new Center for Communications and Interactive Media was officially named the

W William Randolph Hearst

Center for Communications and Interactive Media

in a ceremony that celebrated the legacy and future of the industry the Hearst family helped shape.

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Opened in 2010, the 20,400 square-foot building houses the College’s communications and music industry programs.

The new name

recognizes the recent $300,000 gift by the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, which brings the organization’s total contribution to $1 million. In a ceremony unveiling the new name, Saint Rose Trustee George Hearst III noted his family’s commitment to cultivating the next generation of journalists.

“As William Randolph Hearst’s great grandson, I cannot be more proud to see his name on the Center for Communications and Interactive Media,” he said, in a gathering that included

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business leaders, journalists and prominent Saint Rose communications and music industry alumni. “It is highly appropriate given William Randolph Hearst’s lifelong dedication to news reporting that his legacy is kept alive in the minds of future journalists, editors and music industry leaders.”

Hearst, who is publisher and CEO of the Times Union, also referred to the close ties between the newspaper and the College.

“I am thrilled every year when I meet the students who are achieving their dreams through a Hearst scholarship, and now some of those same students will be walking through these doors,” he said.

President R. Mark Sullivan credited Hearst with playing a significant

role in designing the center. Specifically, he noted that Hearst had helped the College envision what technology would be required of students entering the music and communications industries.

“George challenged us to think big and bold and try to see into the future,” Sullivan said. “He reminded us the status quo will only achieve the same results.”

Sister Mary Anne Nelson, who launched the music industry program, said the now-named Hearst Center stood out in its emphasis on recording and producing music. She said that first-time visitors remark that the facility does not resemble a traditional academic setting.

“The students who come in here often say ‘this looks like a real recording studio or performance venue,”’ she said.

Mishelle Stapleton, a senior music industry major from Horseheads, Chemung County, agreed. She said the music industry instruction and technology have given her great experience.

“We’ve been given the tools to master all the trades of the music industry,” she said.

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Mastering a Brand in China

★

HAI LING Class of ’93

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In China, MasterCard runs the familiar “Priceless” advertisements to promote the things in life that are worth far more than the money they cost. But in place of a father-son baseball outing that promotes the cards to American consumers, the tone in China is set with something that resonates strongly there: the ability to pay for a child’s overseas education, with plastic.

“I really could have used that when I was in school!” said Hai Ling, a Shanghai native who earned his bachelor’s in business administration from Saint Rose in 1993 and now is General Manager, Greater China, MasterCard Worldwide, in Beijing.

At 41, Ling is a high-level executive of a company synonymous with using plastic to pay for luxuries, meals and vacations. Today, MasterCard China has millions of cardholders in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and Mongolia, and naming rights to a former Olympic stadium. By 2025, the company believes the Chinese will use 1.1 billion credit cards.

But a mere 22 years ago, when Ling said goodbye to his parents to start college in Albany, N.Y., $3,000 U.S. currency was all they had to give him.

The Chinese economy was under-developed; consumer finance and other forms of credit non-existent. Aside from their own savings and what they could borrow from relatives, consumers had few avenues for advancing themselves money.

“Nowadays, people in China can buy multi-million-dollar homes,” Ling noted in an hour-long phone interview from Beijing, 12 hours ahead of New York. “But when I was at Saint Rose, what I made in one hour, $4.25, at the campus computer lab, was what my mother made in one week back in China.”

A well-spoken undergraduate whose questions kept his business professors busy researching their own fields, Ling arrived at Saint Rose on a program established by then-president Louis Vaccaro. He was part of the first wave of students to enroll in American colleges as China’s borders opened in the 1980s.

Today, having spent roughly half of his life in each country, Ling is clearly a product of both — an ethnically Chinese, American citizen, living in China, with a keen western sensibility. “I want to serve as a bridge between both countries,” he said, displaying no shred of an accent. “I see myself as an international citizen.”

What stands out most to Ling are not differences but the warp speed at which the two economic systems have come to resemble one another.

In just his adulthood, China has grown into the world’s second-largest, fastest-growing, major economy, behind only the U.S. Given the emphasis on capitalism, Ling said his ability to promote and market his product is no different than that of his counterparts in the U.S. “Economic prosperity is an important driver of citizens’ sense of freedom and dignity,” he said of China.

Ling’s indoctrination into geopolitics started early. His mother and father, an architect and engineer, respectively, sent him to an international-language boarding school at an early age, and, one summer, to the international Camp Rising Sun, in Rhinebeck, N.Y. He was stunned by the aisles of food filling grocery shelves and the rows of cars out front, a contrast to the tiny markets and bicycle-laden streets at home. An ice cream cone cost a third of what his mother earned in a month.

“In the U.S., there were choices for even the smallest thing, like a sandwich: ‘What kind of bread do you want? Do you want mayonnaise? What kind of meat?’” he recalls. “In China, we did not have choices. Even in academics, you were told what to study.

“At the time, it was very frustrating and unsettling to make all these decisions — but after a while, having choices became very liberating.”

The sandwich analogy sums up Ling’s intellectual development as well.

His contacts at Camp Rising Sun led him to Saint Rose President Vaccaro

and the ticket to the American college education he hoped would yield economic opportunities. Ling, among half a dozen Chinese students, arrived on campus articulate, outgoing, with a sharp intellect — and an entirely foreign concept of academic success.

“What I noticed was that he was smart — and able to produce exactly what he thought I wanted him to produce,” recalls Khalid Mehtabdin, professor of business administration. “But then, Hai Ling was also a good example of using learning to bring about peaceful understanding. As he began to explore another culture, his critical thinking opened up. He learned to look at the world in new ways.”

Along with economics and management, Ling delved into the liberal arts. He took psychology, creative writing and public speaking and explored the many approaches to a single problem. “To this day, the idea that learning is not about knowing the answer but how to find the answer remains very important in my work,” he said. “My professors provided the analytical framework for how I should look at the world and ask the right questions.”

Those professors watched proudly. “He was a very good student, a role model and often times he would stop me after class and ask tough, good questions. He set the bar high,” said Prof. Simona Sung, who taught Ling in two economics classes. “He was going to be a leader.”

Ling made Saint Rose his home, serving as vice president for finance of the student government. (“I was good with money!”) But his taste of American life was limited to what little he could afford. Ling spent as many hours as possible at work study jobs — his visa prohibited employment off campus. He did not travel home, nor see his family again, until his graduation.

After earning his MBA from the University of Chicago, he launched a management consulting career at Booz & Co., helping senior executives in both North America and China launch and market products, enter markets and fine-tune their organizations. It was this training that would prepare him for a larger corporate role. He became a senior executive at MBNA and then Bank of America. A chance encounter at a meeting led to the recruiting effort by MasterCard Worldwide that landed him the top job with the company’s Greater China operation in January 2010.

“China is my birthplace, but the U.S. is now my home country. I am glad that I am able to contribute to the success of a U.S. company while doing so in China,” he said. “I owe my success to the fairness and openness of the U.S. society entity — but my journey really started with The College of Saint Rose.”

Ling manages sales, business development and marketing staff across five different offices. His job involves partnering with banks to issue the card, making innovations in such areas as e-commerce and working with policymakers in each of his markets. Most important, he says, is to secure and align support from MasterCard’s corporate leaders in suburban New York City, to launch initiatives in his local markets half a world away.

And, he proudly notes, these include products to assist Chinese students studying abroad. Among these is a feature that allows parents to place controls on their child’s card use.

For all the change, one thing that has stayed the same — which remains priceless in China — is the American college education. Wealth and heightened business savvy have only made the sort of higher education Ling received more coveted. Chinese students, in fact, now represent the fastest growing group of international students in the U.S. To him, it makes perfect sense.

“The U.S. and China may have many differences, but I feel one thing is always common: in both countries, all parents want a better life for their children,” he said. “I feel that is the one single constant no matter how the world changes around us. Education is what changes life.”

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Sam waS a Slightly awkward boy who didn’t make friendS eaSily.

Programming Teaching Children

Teaching Children Programming

olivia, who haS a learning diSability, waS So Scared of math She refuSed to even open the textbook. a claSSmate, Jenny, loved learning but She froze in groupS.

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thiS iS learning in the 21Sth century. our children are viSually Seeing and manipulating their learning inStead of uS JuSt telling them what they need to learn. Laurie Ellis ’91, G ’95

a

nd then, their school, Albany’s Thomas O’Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST), discovered the computer programming language called Scratch and things changed. Sam zipped through the modules faster than nearly any other fifth grader to create stories and games everyone wanted to see. The most popular kids sought him out for help. Olivia learned to make her characters walk and jump. She brought in sound, text and color. Only then did her teachers show her the math behind her work. She quickly caught up. And Jenny?

“Before we presented our Scratch projects to the school board last year, she was a nervous wreck for days,” said Laurie Ellis, a TOAST fourth grade teacher and active Saint Rose alumna. “Then she got up there and did her part. Her mother sat in the audience and cried.”

Developed four years ago at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Scratch is shaking up the classroom by letting children take charge of their learning. And it is taking off in schools across the state thanks to a network of Saint Rose alumni, faculty and one very gifted secondary math education major.

Collectively, they have taught Scratch at four schools in Albany, one in Schenectady and to seventh graders at the College’s afterschool Help Yourself Academy. They have trained scores of teachers and professors, published a paper on Scratch, made a video

and built a web site. Now, Saint Rose has gone further still, offering its own courses featuring Scratch so that future educators can add it to their curricula.

“This is learning in the 21st century. Our children are visually seeing and manipulating their learning instead of us just telling them what they need to learn,” said Ellis ’91 and G’95, who has taught at TOAST, Albany’s science-themed public elementary school, for 10 years. “For the first time since the Industrial Revolution, children are both consumers and producers; and if we educators are not going to support that, we’ve got a big problem.”

Available for free at http://scratch.mit.edu/, Scratch propels children to move beyond using the computer to play games. With it, children write programs to create games, art and quizzes while learning reading, writing, arithmetic and more. Scratchers collaborate. They post projects online and sample the work of peers from around the world.

“We see our students working together, providing original content to the web and reading what other people say about it,” said Stephen Costello, G’01 a TOAST fifth grade teacher working with Ellis on Scratch. “It changes their world, socially and academically.”

And, among its many lessons is the power of a good idea to take off.

Scratch got off the ground in Albany three years ago when Alice Florance, the TOAST

library media specialist, read about it in a library journal. She showed the article to Ellis and Costello, who frequently invite Saint Rose education students into their classrooms for field work and student teaching. They decided to bring Scratch to TOAST, with help from their alma mater.

Ellis asked her husband, John Ellis G’90, executive director of Information Technology Services at Saint Rose, to find a student to teach kids Scratch. John Ellis approached Helen Albanese, assistant professor of computer science. She instantly recommended Brandon Milonovich ’11, a math and computer whiz known to complete his assignments and then some. Brandon offered to learn Scratch.

“And in a few days, he came back to us with a lesson plan, a full blown Saint Rose lesson plan,” said Laurie Ellis, who sat down alongside Florance and Costello to learn from the college student.

Children as young as seven begin their programming education by logging-on to the site and figuring out how to introduce characters, make them move, change color and make sound. They build projects with virtual Lego blocks that snap together and select a sequence of actions that require math and logic. (“Move _ steps, turn _ degrees, repeat _ times.”)

Basic Scratchers make a fish criss-cross the screen while blowing bubbles and changing color. The more advanced design an animated

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character, making it travel to the Earth’s center while describing the Earth’s layers. A TOAST fifth grader designed an interactive test of Civil War facts. A fourth grader wrote a quiz asking players which property of math — associative, distributive or commutative — is demonstrated. These may be viewed at www.strose.edu/scratch.

“They are definitely using their academic skills. But I don't think the understanding these students gained could have been achieved as deeply out of a book,” said Brandon, ‘Mr. M’ to the scores of students he taught at TOAST and other schools. “Paper and pen would have led to rote memorization, not this level of personal understanding, which is far more useful in building math skills.”

r

esearchers at M.I.T. have examined the relationship between kids and technology since the 1960s, well before schools spent millions of dollars furnishing classrooms with computers. Would the machines simply be used, or would their powers be harnessed to shape learning?

The enthusiasm for teaching programming, common in the 1970s and 1980s, faded as the coding proved too onerous for young learners.

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But now, critics say the pendulum has swung too far the other way. The near abandonment of computer science leaves children ignorant of the technology they rely on for Facebook, texting and games.

“Our kids are zombies in front of computers — I think they are actually over-used in many schools while the science behind them is completely glossed over,” said Associate Professor Ian MacDonald, chair of the Saint Rose computer science department. “In our current economic climate, it is scary to think that we are shipping thousands of technical jobs overseas because students here are not interested in them.”

In May 2007, the M.I.T. Media Lab launched Scratch to promote digital fluency without bogging users down in syntax. Scratch emulates the way children tinker with Legos. It borrows from hip hop, most notably the disc jockeys who “scratch” vinyl records to mix sounds. It rewards users for building on their knowledge. It promotes sharing. Partners on a single project can span several countries, and their results bring thousands of comments from across the globe.

“You see kids connecting with all sorts of interactive media — games, simulations, music, art — that they really love. We want to make it

easier for kids to express their own ideas and interests through the creation of interactive media,” noted Karen Brennan, an M.I.T. Ph.D. candidate who was on the team that developed Scratch. “So much formal learning is divorced from kids’ real passions.”

In all, 1.7 million projects have been posted — going up at a rate of one a minute. Nearly 3,000 teachers have joined a second site, Scratch-ed.org, which helps educators collaborate. Harvard uses Scratch to introduce programming. There is at least one Scratch company that writes games and a Scratch News Network.

Buoyed by the strong response in Albany public school classrooms, Saint Rose has introduced three courses that feature Scratch to teach education majors the vast potential tapped when young learners are introduced to computer literacy.

Brennan credited the College for its openness to new approaches in teacher education.

“These are the early days of Scratch and some institutions are more willing than others to dive into the unknown,” she noted, “because using it necessitates a change in teaching practices.”

S

tephen Costello can see how some teachers might shy away from an approach that hands control to kids.

But he is not among them. And for the past two years, Scratch has only made the job of fifth grade teacher more joyful.

“When we say ‘Let’s Scratch,’ the kids cheer,” he said. “You don’t always get that reaction when you say ‘It’s time for math.’”

From the minute the first student chose the first “sprite” (Scratch-speak for “character”), the project was a hit. The troublemakers, the smart kids, the popular kids, the quiet kids, the ones with everything, the ones without — teachers saw such distinctions disappear during after-school Scratch club. The students didn’t want to log-off. They asked for homework, and they were energized all the more by the presence of a college student. “Brandon goes at 100 miles an hour with it,” said Costello. “He’s a digital native, and he easily achieved rock-star status.”

Soon, they Scratched in the library during lunch and taught younger brothers and sisters.

Word spread. “We had a student from Albany High School who took the bus over to learn,” said Ellis. “She came 15 or 20 minutes late

every time, but she did it anyway because she saw the value.”

The TOAST Scratch team, a tight-knit group that stays in constant touch by text message, saw the value as well. They began attending conferences from Manhattan to Rochester to learn more about it or to present their experience with Scratch. They built the Saint Rose Scratch site and created a video. Brandon, months from his college graduation, was indistinguishable from the experienced educators.

In addition, Professor Albanese conducted two teacher-training workshops funded by the “Connect a Million Minds” Time Warner Cable grant awarded to Saint Rose. “It was a tribute to Saint Rose. We saw a need in the community, and we responded,” said Mary Cosgrove, the College’s problem-based learning coordinator.

Loretta Fantroy, a math coach at four Albany elementary schools, attended the sessions, and she was struck by the potential of Scratch to boost interest in learning and test scores. Albanese taught her Scratch.

Then, thanks to the Time Warner Cable grant, Brandon Milonovich received a stipend to teach Loretta Fantroy’s third graders at Arbor Hill Elementary School. Computer science

major Taylor Pariseau ’11, succeeded Brandon.

Now, Fantroy has stories of student successes to pile on to those coming out of TOAST. She has spoken to colleagues who are bringing Scratch into other Albany schools.

And months ahead of finishing college and moving on to graduate school at Syracuse University, Brandon has several years of professional experience under his belt.

“Mr. M.” has taught third graders, fourth graders, seventh graders, experienced teachers and his own Saint Rose classmates. He has addressed tenured professors and contributed to a published paper “Injecting Comptuer Science into the K-12 Curriculum” co-authored by Profs. MacDonald, David Goldschmidt and Judy O’Rourke.

As much as Jenny, Olivia and Sam, Scratch has transformed the Saint Rose senior.

“Starting off this experience, I was a college kid. But by the end, I was an educator, able and confident to go into the world of teaching,” he said. “Working with the TOAST teachers gave me more confidence, and I modeled the professionalism I’ll need to have as a strong educator. And,” he added. “I will definitely be using Scratch in my own classroom.”

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click

Fore more on this national championship:

www.ncaa.com/sports/soccer-women/d2

Following two goals within 11 minutes by sophomore forward Carmelina Puopolo — the College won its first national team title and the Capital Region gained bragging rights to its first national college championship since 1985. With 90 goals for the season, Saint Rose set a school record — and demonstrated a talent for clearing hurdle after hurdle on the way to the ultimate victory.

“Our girls have worked so hard and it’s the best thing to be rewarded as the national champion!” 16-year Saint Rose head coach Laurie Darling Gutheil said soon after the team bus arrived on campus to a serenade of music, speeches and banners. “It’s such a long run to get to this point. So once you’re here, it just comes down to heart and effort — and that’s why we’re sitting here with this trophy right now.”

Saint Rose women’s soccer now stands atop NCAA Division II, which places equal emphasis on athletics and academics. The Golden Knights were among 255 colleges vying for the trophy, 38 in the East. With a season record of 24-1-1, the team was one of just six in its region selected for the 48-team NCAA national tournament field.

The Golden Knights had already come so close, making it to the semi-finals for the previous three years. And as for their opponents?

The Grand Valley State Lakers had won back to back national titles.

For those Michigan players, losing was unfamiliar territory.

“Those Grand Valley kids lost just twice ever — one game last year and once to Saint Rose this year,” said Bridget Berube, chair of the NCAA Division II Women’s Soccer Committee. “If you were to have taken a straw poll, Grand Valley would have been favored. The Saint Rose team didn’t necessarily dominate the ball but they got after it.

They had that eagerness and all that heart.”

With the victory, Saint Rose upended heartbreak. In the semi-final two years ago, the team took an early 2-0 lead over the Lakers, only to lose 3-2 in overtime. And this time the Lakers got on the board first, with 32:25 elapsed.

But at the start of the second half, Saint Rose returned to the field clearly in charge. At 47:48, Puopolo left-footed a volley into the net to tie the game. Seven minutes later, she displayed some nimble foot work to score her 10th game-winner of the year.

The Lakers persevered, leaving it to the Golden Knights defense and sophomore keeper Jessica Gerski to keep the nation’s top-ranked team off the scoreboard for the final, excruciating 15 to 20 minutes.

On campus, scores of students and faculty members metaphorically held their breath as well, following the harrowing game on the big screen at the Touhey Forum. They were witnessing live the inauguration of a Saint Rose legend from a program that has been just as successful academically as it has been athletically. These Golden Knights have earned 10 consecutive Team Academic Awards from the National Soccer Coaches of America (NSCAA), which recognizes those programs that student-athletes have collectively recorded at least a 3.00 GPA throughout the previous academic year.

“We felt a little bit cursed. We knew we had to get over the hurdle (the semifinal),” said senior midfielder Kimberly Morton, who was part of all four national semifinal runs. “Once we were in the final, we knew in our hearts that we would win it.

The last five minutes felt like 15 and the last minute was the slowest one of my life.”

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“THE RESPONSE WAS WONDERFUL. PEOPLE SAW HOW THIS MUSIC AND OPERA COULD BE RELEVANT TO OUR COMMUNITY. I THINK THERE IS A LOT OF PROMISE FOR FUTURE PERFORMANCES.” Bruce Roter associate professor of music

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While the hall was still empty, the soprano hit a few practice notes and the music director conferred with the composer.

Sound checks were made; stage lighting tweaked.

Soon, seated on the shiny wood floor cross-legged, the audience filled the room. Then the troupe of 21 performers marched through the audience single file, wearing backpacks and sneakers and ready for another day of school, in this case conducted on the stage.

“Why are you singing?” they sang to their soprano/teacher.

“Because this is an opera!” she trilled back. “Wave to your parents!”

The performers, fourth and fifth graders at Albany’s New Scotland Elementary School, sang continuously and without sheet music for an impressive 40 minutes. That they wore yarmukes and hijabs on their heads and stood beneath flags of Palestine and Israel appeared incidental. But demonstrating the harmony between people of different religions and ethnic groups was composer Bruce Roter’s very intent.

With “The Classroom,” perhaps the very first children’s peace opera, he emphasizes the similarities between people who all too often clash around their differences.

“The groups I juxtapose are Israeli and Palestinian, but they could have been any groups that are in conflict,” explained Roter, an associate professor of music at Saint Rose and a New Scotland Elementary parent. “We want to teach them the themes of tolerance and co-existence and civility. The whole nature of peace is complicated, but we wanted to simplify it though the language of music.”

In 2006, his Camp David Overture (Prayer for Peace), informed by the 1978 accords, was performed in Washington, D.C., before an audience that included diplomats from Egypt and Israel.

During a Saint Rose sabbatical last spring, Rotor became moved by his daughters’ school concerts to write something for children. While peace in the Middle East may not be a central theme in upstate New York, Roter noted that Albany is increasingly attuned to such global crises. He also saw that he could get children to pull off an opera if the melodies were attractive to them, and he kept the score within a range they could sing.

With “The Classroom,” Roter communicates the importance of peace by avoiding all reference to discord. “I wanted to make it possible for the opera to be performed anywhere and be as universal as possible,” he explained.

Members of the “class,” including his daughter Naomi, were randomly assigned to be Israeli or Palestinian. From their desks, Yousef, Soha, Shira and Itai, as they are named, sang their multiplication tables and geography test, celebrated the joy of kicking a soccer ball and even groused about the contents of their lunchboxes (“Gee I have this every day.

Can I have your PBJ?”). When a girl has had an argument with a friend, she addresses the rift with a song about what makes the friend unique. When students greet a new classmate, his or her ethnic identity is not specified.

Tying the school day together is their teacher, played

by Sabrina Manna ’07, an accomplished soprano and music education alumna. Debbie Cronin ’95, the art teacher, worked with students to create an on-stage classroom, while Josephine Amore ’81, the opera music director, is a music education alumna.

Amore introduced all fourth and fifth graders to the various works and composers of opera. They learned that by definition an opera holds a meaning beyond the actual songs, touching on such themes as love or death.

Twenty-one students who auditioned for “The Classroom” attended 90-minute practices twice a week and memorized their lines painstakingly by listening to CDs of the music.

They performed at school three times and once at the Massry Center for the Arts, in conjunction with a PTA bake sale that raised money for a charity that promotes peace.

“The response was wonderful. People saw how this music and opera could be relevant to our community,” Roter said.

“I think there is a lot of promise for future performances.”

As for the larger lesson? Elementary, to the young people from so many different ethnic groups and nationalities who come together at New Scotland Elementary each day.

“It doesn’t matter where you are from or what culture you are from. You can still get along with someone if they’re from somewhere else,” summed up Michael Hermance, an American elementary school student, and Israeli for a day.

SAINT ROSE RECEIVED A $1.5 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT THAT WILL ADDRESS THE NEED FOR MORE HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS WITH BOTH THE EXPERTISE IN THEIR DISCIPLINES AND THE SKILLS TO ACCOMMODATE SECONDARY STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.

Every day, skilled high school teachers see students who could learn more and improve their academic performance if they also had some help addressing their special needs.

“Not every science teacher is a special education teacher and not every special education teacher is a science teacher,” said Kathy Lupi ’79, G ’85, who is director of special education at the Schenectady City School District. “We have a lot of fine teachers in their content areas. But are they all prepared to teach a cadre of different learners? Not yet. We have people trying to be a jack of all trades, and it’s very hard.”

As expectations have been raised for students with disabilities and certification requirements altered for their teachers, New York has experienced a dramatic shortage of special education teachers in grades seven through 12. As the state takes steps to meet the demand, The College of Saint Rose continues working with local schools to introduce the newest strategies for educating secondary students with learning disabilities or emotional disturbances.

Now, the College is infusing those same strategies into the training of current and prospective teachers.

Saint Rose received a $1.5 million federal grant that will address the need for more highly qualified teachers with both the expertise in their disciplines and the skills to accommodate secondary students with disabilities.

“More and more special education students at the secondary level are expected to meet the same standards as their peers, but many of them need additional assistance to meet this goal,” said Margaret McLane, associate dean of the Thelma P. Lally School of Education and among the faculty members who wrote the grant. “We know a lot about the methods that work. The purpose of this grant is to help teachers improve their evidence-based practices in the classroom and to help all their students be more successful learners.

Saint Rose is one of just nine institutions in 2010 to receive the U.S. Department of Education ASPIRE (Adolescence Special Education Preparation for Inclusive and Reflective Educators) grants, which are devoted to projects that improve special education personnel preparation.

Through ASPIRE, the College will develop a five-year dual degree resulting in a bachelor of arts and master of

science in education, while also strengthening the current program through extended field work. The focus will be on urban schools that have a large population of students with disabilities.

In 2007, the state education department said close to 15 percent of New York’s seventh through 12th grade teachers lacked appropriate special education certification. And while close to half the students classified as special education are in grades 5 through 12, just 12 percent of teachers a year completed a special education degree geared for these grades.

To attract more candidates, the state will introduce certification that weights special education expertise over the content area. With it, the special education teacher might co-teach with the science or math teacher.

Saint Rose faculty members are confident that the College’s new five-year degree, along with the other dramatic steps, will also help meet the demand.

“There are plenty of talented undergraduates who want to work with older kids,” said Edward Pieper, associate professor of special education and a principal investigator for Project ASPIRE. “Now, rather than waiting until they are graduate students, they can start as freshmen and have many more years of training and a longer program.”

Along with its new degree, the College will use ASPIRE to revise its graduate program in special education. Current teachers will work closely with Saint Rose education students to plan their field work and evaluate their techniques. In addition, Saint Rose professors will work with Schenectady and Albany teachers.

In Schenectady, Lupi, an alumna and Saint Rose adjunct professor, said the College had always been crucial in keeping current teachers on top of the new approaches in special education. ASPIRE will formalize that collaboration as a new generation of teachers is trained.

“ASPIRE is about retooling how things are done. It will help our current teachers while introducing a new wave of certified teachers, which is really important as our standards have changed,” Lupi said. “The student population has changed a lot and now, thanks to Saint Rose teachers, our students will be far better prepared.”

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I N S T I T U T I O N A L A D VA N C E M E N T

Mary Lou Lamb ’55 with her student Bobbi Ludwig ’11

Honoring Veterans The College inaugurated the Dr. Robert B. Lamb Veteran’s Assistance Program established by Mary Lou Grady Lamb ’55 in her husband’s memory to assist veterans in achieving their academic goals.

Major Robert B. Lamb, DVM, graduated from the Cornell University of Veterinary Medicine in 1961. He entered the Air Force in 1963 and was stationed at Minot, North Dakota AFB for two years. He then served in the Medical Reserve Unit at Griffiss AFB in Rome, New York, for 11 years. After his discharge, he operated his own veterinary practice for many years. Throughout his life, Robert also gave generously of his time and resources to those less fortunate.

As part of the Veteran’s Day ceremony, Mary Lou donated her husband’s flag to the College which was flown over the campus

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for the first time that day. It continues to fly over our campus symbolizing courage, strength, and perseverance: qualities exemplified throughout Robert’s life. Mary Lou’s commitment to Saint Rose students, who have faced adversity to protect and serve our nation, is an inspiration to all members of the Saint Rose community and a fitting tribute to her husband, Robert.

This gift further enhances the College’s commitment to serving Veterans. This fall, Saint Rose was named a “military-friendly school” by G.I. Jobs magazine, making Saint Rose one of the top 200 colleges serving military personnel.

Make a difference in a student’s life. Contact Susan Warshany, Director of Gift Planning: 518-454-5104 or zieglers@strose.edu click

Awards may be used for tuition not covered by veteran’s benefits and/or other educational expenses such as room and board, books, fees, and travel expenses. This ceremony was held in the Touhey Forum to honor all veterans in the campus community and the 27 students enrolled on campus that are veterans or currently in the reserves. This year, four students were awarded this support at the ceremony.

Find out more about planned giving.

www.strose.edu/plannedgifts

Witness The Future, Today Cathryn Buckley Arcomano graduated from The College of Saint Rose in 1946 and furthered her education in art at The New School in New York City. She has had solo exhibits in the United States, England, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Hong Kong. Her paintings have been acquired by museums and corporations — including the Brooklyn Museum, the Newark Museum, Everson Museum of Art, Gannett Company, Nordstrom, Pfizer, and Skadden Arps law firm.

Cathryn wanted to share her passion for art with Saint Rose and to do that she and her husband, Nicholas, created the Cathryn Buckley Arcomano Endowed Lectureship Series in Contemporary Art to provide enrichment for all students interested in art. The Endowment is to be financed through their estate, but Art critic, Jerry Saltz until that transpires, the Arcomanos decided to fund the Lectureship with an annual gift. Their passion for art, commitment to education and loyalty to the College are shared with the students, faculty, classmates and friends through this structured gift.

On March 1, 2011, the inaugural lectureship took place featuring Jerry Saltz, art critic for New York Magazine. Jerry spoke to a standing-room-only crowd in St. Joseph Hall auditorium, much to the delight of students and faculty. At the same time, Cathryn was honored by the College with an exhibit of her paintings in the Massry Center for the Arts. Sr. Wendy Beckett, noted art critic and contemplative nun, has described Cathryn’s work as “strong and delicate: mysterious and subtle.” Nick stated, “We were excited to plan for Saint Rose through our will; and with the Cathryn Buckley Arcomano Endowed Lectureship Series in Contemporary Art, we realized that we could enjoy the gift now with the College community through an annual gift. The inaugural Lectureship was a wonderful event!

A COMMUNITY OF EXCELLENCE John C. Egan, Karen and Chester Opalka, and E. Stewart Jones, Jr., were recognized by President R. Mark Sullivan at the June 23 A Community of Excellence luncheon. Egan, the Opalkas and Jones were honored for their contributions to the community at this annual event to benefit The Saint Rose Fund and scholarships for Saint Rose students. Nearly 400 people attended the event, which raised more than $105,000 for the scholarship program.

(l to r): John C. Egan, Karen and Chester Opalka, E. Stewart Jones, Jr., and President R. Mark Sullivan

Benefactor Norman Massry Becomes an Honorary Alumnus Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and generous benefactor, I. Norman Massry received a lifetime honorary membership into The College of Saint Rose Alumni Association during Reunion Weekend 2011.

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TRUSTEES

A Message from Matt Mataraso Former Chair and Current Board of Trustee

The first day I set foot on the campus of The College of Saint Rose was in 1954 during the annual Rose Day pageant. My wife-to-be was then a senior and a participant in the pageant. Now, more than 50 years later, as I walk through the campus, I marvel at the changes that have taken place since then. In 1954, there was no Administration Center, Hubbard Interfaith Sanctuary, Lally School of Education, Massry Center for the Arts, Science Center, Center for Communications and Interactive Media, Picotte Center for Art and Design or Plumeri Sports Complex; nor for that matter any athletic programs to speak of, or any male students. Of course today, this is a very different campus with men and women, undergraduate and graduate students, and students from many different states and countries.

I have been a trustee since 1989, having been recruited by then-President Louis Vaccaro and, thereafter, serving as Chairman of the Board for seven years during the 1990s. I am most proud of having been the chair of the search committee that brought President R. Mark Sullivan to The College of Saint Rose. Dr. Vaccaro started the building program, and Dr. Sullivan continued and expanded it to what “The College of Saint Rose is an integral you see today.

Today, Saint Rose has an art program that is nationally recognized part of the City of Albany. Its presence has and a music program that is second to none, and its intercollegiate stabilized and improved the landscape of teams compete on the highest level of Division II. If you want to be an elementary, secondary or special education teacher, you go to Saint the neighborhood.”

Rose. The College’s business programs prepare students to start their own businesses and our math and science programs are some of the fastest growing programs at the College, training students for careers in medicine, computer science, psychology, social work, criminal justice and forensics. If you saw the academy award movie, “The Kings Speech” and enjoyed it, you should come to the College and witness the program that deals with persons that have speech and/or hearing disorders.

The College of Saint Rose is an integral part of the City of Albany. Its presence has stabilized and improved the landscape of the neighborhood. Its work with elementary, middle, and high school youth with autism in the Friday Knights program that was featured in an earlier issue of this magazine and covered by the Today Show is just one example of living the school’s mission and its founding values.

None of the changes since 1954 would have occurred without the vision and stewardship of the founders of the College, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. Their bold leadership, nearly 95 years ago, set the direction of this amazing College and our current president made sure we steered straight and strong for the last 16 years, never allowing external pressures or circumstances to veer us off course. I was pleased to be asked to join the board in 1989, but today the immense pride I feel at having been associated with this institution cannot be measured in numbers or articulated in words. As we approach the centennial of this College’s founding, I urge the alumni to spread the word of their alma mater’s remarkable success and, if you haven’t been here in a while, come and visit and be engaged in its future.

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AT H L E T I C S

News & Notes Saint Rose Once Again Partners with Pack Network The College of Saint Rose and Pack Network will team up for a second consecutive year to host www.gogoldenknights.tv and stream live broadband approximately 20 Saint Rose intercollegiate home contests throughout the 2011-12 academic year. The site will also host archived video.

Fans may view the contests by visiting www.gogoldenknights.tv or by accessing the link at www.gogoldenknights.com; the official website of Saint Rose athletics. Full-year subscription packages and single-game options are available.

Homecoming/Hall of Fame Induction Four former student-athletes and the 1991 softball team were inducted into the Saint Rose Athletics Hall of Fame during an on-campus ceremony at the Thelma P. Lally School in October. The induction ceremony was held as part of the College’s Golden Knights Homecoming Weekend celebration.

The 2011 class included the following individuals; Chuck Bauer (baseball, 1993-95), Eric LeBlanc (baseball, 1994-96), Nora O’Heaney McGrath (women’s cross country; women’s track & field, 1993-96) and Drea Porteus (women’s soccer, 1999-2000 and 2002-03).

For a complete listing of Inductees, visit www.gogoldenknights.com.

Notes:

Saint Rose recently dedicated a National Coach of the Year Wall in the atrium of the Events and Athletics Center. The wall was made possible by a gift from Saint Rose alumni and longtime Golden Knights supporters Fred Thompson ’85 and Virginia Thompson G ’82.

Sophomore Caitlin Brauer recorded three honorable mention All-America performances at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships in San Antonio: Brauer, who also qualified as a freshman, is the lone female to represent Saint Rose at this meet…Junior Macky Lloyd earned a spot in the field for the mile run at the NCAA Track and Field Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, N.M.…Junior Matt Horton qualified for the NCAA Golf Championships for the third straight year. The East/Atlantic Regional was held in Hershey, Penn.…Matt Jones was named the men’s soccer head coach in February. Jones was a three-year captain and a four-year starter as a central midfielder for the Golden Knights from 1999-02…The Saint Rose men’s basketball team made its 12th NCAA Tournament appearance within the past 20 years, while the women’s squad made its 11th NCAA Tournament appearance during that same span this past season.

The wall symbolizes excellence and currently recognizes four individuals who have been honored as National Coaches of the Year throughout the College’s intercollegiate athletics era. The design also affords flexibility for expansion to include others beyond the inaugural group that is comprised of Brian Beaury ’82, G’90, men’s basketball; Laurie Darling Gutheil, women’s soccer; Dennis Hogan, men’s diving; and Curt Bailey, women’s basketball.

Ceremony presentations were made by Cathy Haker, Director of Athletics and Recreation; and Dennis McDonald, Vice President for Student Affairs; along with both Fred and Virginia Thompson.

twitter.com/gogoldenknights

www.facebook.com/GoGoldenKnights

Listen to the Golden Knights live on Teamline at www.teamline.cc

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Saint Rose Dedicates Coach of the Year Wall

www.gogoldenknights.com

Watch the Golden Knights live on www.gogoldenknights.tv

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SAINT ROSE IN REVIEW

Leading Edge

WE HEAR THE LANDLORD’S REALLY NICE Saint Rose students will soon be able to park their bikes inside, sit down for a burger, buy a quart of milk and then head upstairs to their own apartment in Centennial Hall, the 94,000 square-foot, three-story residence on Madison Avenue slated to open in fall 2012. Expected to house up to 224 juniors and seniors, the $17.5 million building, designed by EYP Architecture and Engineering, will incorporate elements of neighboring craftsman and Dutch colonial architecture. The two-and four-person furnished apartments will each have single bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms. Floors will feature student lounges, and a courtyard in the rear will be used for campus gatherings. Energy efficiencies, such as geothermal heating and cooling, insulation and high-performance windows, will reduce operating costs and the building’s carbon emissions. Named in honor of the College’s 2020 centennial, the new residence hall continues the transformation of the south side of Madison Avenue that began with the new Massry Center for the Arts and the William Randolph Hearst Center for Communications and Interactive Media and will continue with the Huether School of Business on the west end of campus. Like all Saint Rose living spaces, Centennial Hall will emphasize security and supervision, with limited key card access and two resident assistants and a professional staff member living on site. But it is also unique: a ground floor market, featuring groceries and a burger café, will be open to the public. And Centennial Hall residents will have the option of remaining off the College meal plan, giving them a bridge between college life and independence. The new residence hall not only provides students with much-needed amenities, but also gives Saint Rose a great gift: several hundred students who can take part in college life, days, nights and weekends, and cross the street and be home.

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WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT THAT “Thinking back, I will always remember the bonds formed while living communally. As construction of Centennial Hall is under way during my last year here, it will represent the future memories that will be made,” said Ann Leghorn-McCracken ’12, student association president at the August 31 Centennial Hall groundbreaking ceremony.

LEADING EDGE

NOT A REACH

HER NEW PLATFORM

Residents of the Schoharie Valley had at least a small slice of good luck in the fact that REACH OUT SAINT ROSE, the College’s mega community service project, fell on September 17, just two weeks after Tropical Storm Irene decimated their region. Six hundred Saint Rose students mobilized behind 120 projects, which included painting schools close to campus and fanning out to hard-hit Schoharie County. Seeing the buses pull in gave the home and business owners a badly needed emotional lift, and the work the students did — digging, raking and hauling wreckage from the mud — made a visible difference.

Six weeks, 12 construction challenges and 16 eliminations later, ALLISON OROPALLO ’05 moved from the obscurity of middle school technology teacher to nationally recognized fix-it whiz. The Saratoga Springs native, who earned her bachelor of science in applied technology education (K-12), became the first female finalist on HGTV’S “ALL-AMERICAN HANDYMAN.” Getting there required building a garden shed in six hours, constructing an Adirondack chair in 90 minutes and renovating a kitchen in five hours — under camera lights and the glare of two harsh judges. Week after week, Oropallo, who teaches technology at Ottoson Middle School in Arlington, Mass., stood tall, and stood out — ultimately winning Fan Favorite. Her near-victory was a huge victory for her students, and for girls and women everywhere, to see a female excel in a show with “man” in the title.

What they said about it: "I can't believe this is Allison's first kitchen!" “Handyman” judge Scott McGillivray.

What they said about it: “We appreciate so very much your coming to our area to help everyone get a little closer to recovery and normalcy.”

Saint Rose Facebook page comment from Jane Morgan Lacko, on the 20 Saint Rose students who showed up at her family farm in Middleburgh and slogged through mud and debris to help salvage what was left of the season’s corn crop.

SPEAKING OF HOME IMPROVEMENT The College of Saint Rose, Albany Medical Center and the University at Albany have teamed up with the City of Albany to reward home buyers in various neighborhoods, with cash. The Citywide Homebuyer Assistance Loan, announced in September, offers new buyers zero-percent interest loans for up to $15,000 toward down payment and closing. Saint Rose employees are eligible for an additional $7,500 forgivable loan and $2,500 grant for renovations from the College if they purchase a home in the neighborhood. Sweetening the deal, the Capital District Transportation Authority is throwing in a bus pass.

What they said about it: “Choose Albany,’” said Mayor Gerald D. Jennings

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LEADING EDGE

THEY OUGHT TO HAVE THEIR OWN HALL OF FAME

PSI CHI HONORS Psychology majors ADAM ULMEN ’11 and LAUREN MCGLONE ’11 won honors from Psi Chi — The International Honor Society for Psychology — for research they presented to the Eastern Psychological Association. They were among 18 winners from the 200 presenters — undergraduate and graduate students. Lauren, who studies industrial/behavioral psychology, stands out for her interest in research. “Applied psychology students,” says Lauren’s psychology professor, Nancy Dorr, “often prefer their counseling role.”

But Lauren tenaciously analyzed the roots of fear in employee evaluations, finding that people who dread the boss’ appraisal tend to be more interested in job security than the actual work. Adam’s field, neuroscience, is all about research. His winning work has this title: “NMDA Antagonism with MK-801 Disrupts Post-Training and PostReactivation Performance in Adolescent Rats: Evidence for State-Dependent Memory Reconsolidation.” Professor of Psychology Robert Flint translates: Adam’s research showed that amnesia caused by blocking a receptor of the brain was dependent upon the presence of the drug. When it was administered again, memory returned.

There are competitions involving hoops and bats. Then there are face-offs involving Java and C++. On this field, as others, Saint Rose ranked high, taking third place of 36 teams in the programming competition at the Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges Northeastern Conference, at Western New England College. Teammates JAMES HORNER ’11, JONATHON NAUERT ’12 AND PETER BAILIE ’12, COMPUTER SCIENCE STUDENTS selected after winning a campus competition, had three hours to solve six problems. They took turns: Peter taking on “bit parity” — detecting errors in computer data — James working on pattern recognition using bio informatics, and Jonathon delving into a question involving “polite numbers”— the sum of two or more consecutive positive integers. They submitted solutions to judges, who critiqued and returned them until they were correct. The contest moved at a demanding clip, with standings tallied on a big board.

In the end, Team Saint Rose had quickly mastered four questions (no team solved question #6). Joining the celebration were computer science professors Dee Gudmundsen, Ian MacDonald and David Goldschmidt.

WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT IT

“I would definitely do this again.

Of course I have to re-earn my place on the team next year. They’re not going to let me on the team ‘just because,’” said Peter Bailie ’12.

RISING IN THE RANKINGS The College of Saint Rose has been recognized once more in two prominent benchmarks of U.S. colleges. The College jumped to number 39, its highest ranking, in the U.S. News Media Group’s Best Colleges 2012, listing the 183 top institutions.

Among the factors: peer assessment, student retention and alumni giving.

What they said about it:

What they said about it: “If there is one thing I regret about my college career, it’s that I transferred to Saint Rose as a junior and missed out on the first two years of what I could have been doing!” said Adam Ulmen ’11.

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“Yes! Of course, we all know it! Nice to see ‘the word’ is out there about our 'best' college!”

Saint Rose Facebook page comment by Eleanor Fuerst ’89

LEADING EDGE

A GREAT PLACE TO WORK AGAIN THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION for the fourth year in a row, named Saint Rose a “Great College to Work For,” placing Saint Rose on the survey’s Honor Roll for the third straight year as one of the 10 medium-sized colleges and universities to score the highest among the 12 recognition categories.

Saint Rose was the only institution in New York’s Capital Region to be recognized, one of only three colleges and universities in the state to be placed on the Honor Roll, and the only one in the state to be cited in the categories of collaborative governance, teaching environment, and tenure clarity and process.

WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT IT

“Both administrators and faculty are so focused on student learning that that facilitates a collegial resolution to most issues…that common orientation gives rise to a lot of confidence in the senior leadership,” said Dr. Janet Spitz, associate professor of business, in The Chronicle of Higher Education on the survey results.

PRAISE FROM 1600 PENNYSLVANIA AVENUE

FROM SHOESHINE BOY TO SAINT ROSE PRESIDENT

More than three million college students gave 307 million-plus hours to their communities in 2010. That tally includes the 50,000 hours Saint Rose devoted to the Capital Region. They spent Friday nights making a better life for 200 children on the autism spectrum, tutored English and supervised art projects for children who came to Albany as refugees, made meals at homeless shelters and cleaned up neighborhoods.

The institutional focus on community did not go unnoticed.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that leads President Obama’s call to service, has named Saint Rose to The 2010 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Of 851 institutions that applied, the corporation recognized 641. Of those, 511 were named to the Honor Roll. The efforts recognized include the Friday Knights recreation program for children with autism, the after-school program for refugee children at Emmaus United Methodist Church, and the Reach Out Saint Rose service day in which 640 students took part.

When Louis Vaccaro became Saint Rose president in 1983 it was his sixth and final college presidency. Under his leadership, enrollment rose from 2,300 to 4,600, including students from 30 countries.

Vaccaro’s new memoir, “Around the Corner: From Shoeshine Boy to College President,” tells the story of growing up in Los Angeles in an Italian immigrant family during the Depression, later earning his doctorate at Michigan State University and entering higher education. Today, Vaccaro and his wife, Linda, a retired Albany teacher, divide their time between Las Vegas and the Adirondacks. “Around the Corner: From Shoeshine Boy to College President” is available at www.infinitypublishing.com or 1-877-BUY-BOOK. What they said about it: “Lou had an impressive global view of the world long before it was fashionable,” Mary Grondahl, G’92, vice president of enrollment management, as quoted in the memoir.

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LEADING EDGE

HAIR TODAY…

HONORS & ACCOLADES At its annual convention, held in May in Saratoga Springs, The New York State Speech-Language-Hearing Association awarded top statewide honors to the following Saint Rose professors: JACK PICKERING, associate professor of communication sciences and disorders, was nominated for the Louis M. DiCarlo Award for Recent Clinical Achievement.

SISTER CHARLEEN BLOOM, professor of communication sciences and disorders, was nominated for the national Frank R. Kleffner Clinical Career Award. In June, the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce named Sister Char a Woman of Excellence — Excellence in the Professions.

WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT IT

“I didn’t look in the mirror until two hours later, and it was like seeing a different person. It took just 15 minutes. Life can change that quickly,” said Stacy Spindler.

RETIREMENTS

IN MEMORY

The College recognizes four faculty members retiring:

EDWIN FERREIRA, G’09 an advancement analyst with the Office of Institutional Advancement, died May 18 in New York City, after a lengthy battle with leukemia. Mr. Ferreira grew up in New York and earned a Saint Rose MBA in 2009. He was a vital member of the advancement team, who made sure finances were accurately recorded and who frequently assisted at events.

Before beginning work at Saint Rose, he was a finance assistant with The Center for Disability Services in Albany. Messages of condolence to Mr. Ferreira’s family and fiancé, Yalitza Negron, may be sent in care of the Office for Institutional Advancement.

LINDA COOLEY, associate professor of chemistry, joined the faculty in 2001.

GARY MCLOUTH, associate professor of communications, joined the faculty in 1988.

JEANNINE PONDOZZI, associate professor of communications, joined the faculty in 1989.

ANNE SHEEHAN, associate professor of English, joined the faculty in 1985.

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People who know STACY SPINDLER ’14 would say her hair — thick and dropping to the middle of her back — is her most notable feature (“ridiculously gorgeous,” said one friend). Or was.

Stacy is among 40 Saint Rose students who had their heads shaved in April and November for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which funds research to find cures for childhood cancer. The Saint Rose “Baldrick’s,” which packed the student lounge, featured music from The Girls Next Door a cappella group and a great deal of cheering. It raised $7,409 — $220 from those who purchased a braid of Stacy’s hair. And since then?

When she walks around her hometown of Rome, N.Y., people look at the cottony tufts on her head and wonder if it is indeed Stacy, or they say, “What happened?’’ A group of boys screamed “Look at the bald girl!” out a car window. But she also enjoys conversations about the experience of walking in others’ shoes, and she gages her own reaction when she sees someone whom she perceives to be sick. Besides, she has learned something nice about herself: she doesn’t care a whit about her looks and doesn’t even miss all that hair.

SAINT ROSE

What they said about it: “A gentleman, a colleague a friend — this was Edwin. Our community lost a truly wonderful person when the Lord called him home,” Pat Blanchard, coordinator of advancement services.

Denise DiNoto ’95, G’96 Alumni Association President

ALUMNI From the Alumni Association President

A well-known saying recommends that the best way to get something done is to ask busy people to volunteer for the job. As a “busy person,” I am often asked why I volunteered to serve on the Alumni Association Board of Directors. In June, as I watched alumni reconnect with their classmates at Reunion 2011, it was clear to me why I enjoy serving on your Alumni Association.

Simply, whenever I am with Saint Rose alumni, I laugh and have fun! Our shared sense of experiences and community forge a common bond as Saint Rose alumni.

During my first term as President, I enjoyed meeting so many of you and hearing your unique and personal Saint Rose stories. At Reunion 2011, the Alumni Association honored four people whose personal connections to the College are as individual as they are. Judith Enck ’81 received the Distinguished Alumni Award and Dr. Catherine Cavanaugh ’69 received the Thomas A. Manion Distinguished Faculty Award. The Carondelet Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Bernadine Pisano Olbrych ’46. The Alumni Association also awarded Honorary Alumni status to I. Norman Massry, the longest serving member of the College’s Board of Trustees. These four honorees, who also happen to be very busy people, all mentioned how their Saint Rose experiences strengthened their commitment to community service.

In reality, we are all busy people. The challenge faced by the Alumni Association is how we can effectively work to help busy alumni remain connected to each other and to the College.

With social media, it is possible to virtually connect with alumni in almost any location. Are you friends with us on Facebook yet?

Another way to connect is to join us on the Alumni Association Board of Directors. This year is an election year, and our goal is to present you with a slate of candidates as diverse as our alumni membership. We are always excited to hear from alumni who are interested in serving on our Board, and many members who participate use online meeting technology because they live outside of the Albany area. Distance is no longer a barrier to serving your alma mater. If you are interested in proposing yourself or a classmate to our Nominations and Elections Committee, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations.

I am looking forward to a productive year of service to our Alumni community. If there is a way we can better serve your needs as Alumni, please let us know. Or, just find me at an event and introduce yourself. I guarantee we’ll have fun together!

CHAPTER NOTES Capital District Chapter This past May, the Capital District Chapter celebrated our 25th anniversary as a sanctioned alumni chapter of the National Alumni Association Board. This Chapter was created out of the merger of two chapters operating out of Troy and Albany. Initially, the Chapter was named The Greater Capital Area Chapter. Then in 1996, the name was changed to The Capital District Chapter.

Current and past Chapter members were joined by representatives from the College as well as the National Alumni Association Board of Directors. We were lucky enough to have some original members of the Steering Committee along with a few of the first slate of elected officers present for this special occasion. The festivities took place at Wolfert’s Roost Country Club. Many fond memories and humorous stories were shared. Each guest received a unique 25th Anniversary Coin designed specifically to honor our anniversary celebration. It truly was a delightful event! We can’t wait to begin planning for our 50th anniversary.

If you would like to join our merry group or simply learn more about us, please contact Kathy (Turon) Kieffer ’84, Chapter President, kmiddlegrove@aol.com or call (518) 583-1874...We look forward to hearing from you!

Schenectady Chapter The Schenectady Alumni Chapter gathered for a photo opportunity at our 80th anniversary celebration at The Waters Edge Lighthouse in Glenville, N.Y., on December 5, 2010.

On April 2, we continued our tradition of celebrating together at our Annual Laetare Mass and Dinner held at Saint Helen’s Continued on page 31

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ALUMNI

ALUMNI NOTES

Alumni Notes reflects news submitted to the Office of Alumni Relations on or before April 1, 2011.

1957

Margaret Dugan Sandman ’40 Alumni Garden

Sister Agnes M. Joy was presented with the Distinguished Service Award for service to the Southwest Region Association for Clinical Pastoral Education

1967

The space between Moran Hall and Gibbons Hall on Madison Avenue was beautified and restructured into a garden, complete with walking paths, benches and attractive plants, shrubs and flowers. It was a much-needed facelift for a prominent area of campus and has changed the space for the better. At the time of construction, the space was called the Alumni Garden.

Margaret Ahearn Oathout sang with the Florida-based Robert Sharon Chorale for the American Ambassador in both Vienna and Bratislava

1970

Dr. James O. Jackson G’70 was elected to the New York State Board of Regents

On May 14, 2011, the Alumni Garden received a new name; it is now the Margaret Dugan Sandman ’40 Alumni Garden. The Sandman family has generously created an endowment in Margaret’s memory to help preserve and maintain the garden for future generations at the College. A wonderful dedication ceremony was held for family and close friends during which Father Chris DeGiovine, Dean of Spirituality and Campus Chaplain, blessed the garden.

1972

The late Vera Winston Propp G’72 recently published two children’’s books, “When the Soldiers were Gone” and “Candles in the Closet”

1973

Janis Londraville G’73 recently published the biography of Sicilian American John Corbino, “Corbino: From Rubens to Ringling”

1976

Deborah Borie G’76 was a featured speaker at “Do You Like What You See?” How to Engage the Social Impact of Media on Women and Girls, at Clarkstown University

1977

Edward Sisk is owner of Yoga with Ed in Hudson, NY

Margaret maintained a long and lasting relationship with the College since she entered as a freshman.

On June 3, 2005, Margaret received The Carondelet Lifetime Achievement Award because she was the embodiment of the Saint Rose spirit. While a student at the College, she was a member of the Drama Club, participated in the Performing Arts, was in the Rose Queen Court on Rose Day and class Valedictorian. Over the years, Margaret was a devoted member of the Alumni Association, volunteered as a Capital Campaign worker and had returned to her campus time and again. She was a member of the Board of Trustees of the College from 1984-1991 and held the title “Trustee Emeritus.” Margaret’s husband, Edgar, served on the Board of Trustees himself from 1970-1972.

Sister Joan Lescinski, CSJ, received the 2011 ATHENA Award from the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce and The Women’s Connection, honoring women who excel in their business and make a difference in the community

D. Joseph Corr is the new superintendant of the North Colonie CSD 1985

Edgar and Margaret’s five children, Nancy ’70, Jean, John, Paul and James, and grandchildren were all present at the ceremony. They thought the garden was a befitting location to pay tribute to Margaret and to create a legacy in her name as it reflects her grace and beauty.

Carol Palmatier developed a new website www.brandeur.com for online marketing Michelle Tenzyk joined Healthcare Consultancy Group as the new Executive Vice President, Chief HR and Marketing Officer

For more information or to contribute to the Sandman Alumni Garden, contact Colleen Geary, donor relations specialist, at 518-337-2305.

THE SAINT ROSE FUND

click

The Saint Rose Fund allows the College to do so many things for its current students as well as continue to expand the scope and reach of the College’s mission for its alumni, friends, and partners. We ask you to join in our efforts this year as your gift will mean that much more.

Find out more about The Saint Rose Fund.

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www.strose.edu/saintrosefund

Anne Arto Kibbe was named the Director of The Institute for Professional Development at Saint Leo University

1987

Dr. Christine Scrodanus was named the Heart of Catskill Association Catskill Chamber of Commerce Business Woman of the Year

1989

Michael Fondacaro received the Community Service Award from Centro Civico Hispanoamericano of Albany Ellen DeFio Kean, principal and one of five partners at Towne, Ryan & Partners, P.C., was included in the 2010 Hudson Valley edition of Super Lawyers Thomas O’Donnell was named Partner at Wojeski & Company CPAs, P.C.

ALUMNI NOTES

...CHAPTER NOTES Continued

1990

Donna Fitzgerald G’10 was named the new director of special education for the Catskill School District

1991

Mark Hamilton and Chris Parody ’99 from The College of Saint Rose Office of Public Relations & Marketing were honored with five Albany Ad Club Nori Awards. Their work also appears in the New Big Book of Layouts and the online exhibition gallery of Communication Arts magazine. Mark Hamilton was a design judge for the International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA) Communicator Awards and for Creative Outlook magazine.

in Schenectady, followed by a dinner at the Turf Tavern in Scotia. This year, we were fortunate to have two speakers, Barry Loffredo, D.D.S. and Don DeLuke, D.D.S. They shared information about their dental mission in Mexico with Saint Helen's sister church, Church of Saint Augustine.

Our June Brunch was held Sunday, June 12, at the Edison Club in Rexford. New officers and board members were installed for our upcoming 81st year. This year we honored five members from the class of ’61 as our Chapter's newest Golden Roses: Deanna DiFabbio Capovani, Margaret Connoly, Janet O'Rourke Rainey, Barbara Schickle Nowak and Jovina Cesaro O'Brien. Along with the new slate of officers and board members installed, the J. Raymond Quinn Jr. Award was presented to a High School Senior attending Saint Rose this fall.

This year, our Mother Rose of Lima Language Awards were given in honor of our member Gloria Halstead ’54, a long-time chapter member who recently passed away and chaired this committee for 37 years. Gloria was a dedicated and active member of our chapter, and she will be greatly missed by those who knew her.

Our Annual Day at the Races, organized by Mary Lange ’83, was held at the historic Saratoga Race Course on August 3, followed by dinner at a local restaurant. Thirty-five of our members attended this summer event.

In August, we mailed out our 81st Calendar of Events to Schenectady Chapter Alumni. If you are interested in joining our Chapter or attending any of our upcoming special events and you do not receive a flyer, you can always get information about our Chapter at schdycsralumni.tripod.com or contact our co-president Marguerite Pileggi ’72 (518-280-4623).

The American Counseling Association interviewed Robbin Miller G’91 for the Counselor Career Stories section of the September 2010 edition of Counseling Today 1992

Christopher LaFlamme is the new Regional Network Application Engineering Manager for twtelecom.com

1993

Glen Barker has been hired as a new minor league outfield and base running coach for the San Diego Padres Michael Vamosy designed several commercials that aired during Super Bowl XLV

1994

1995

Angela Doyle McNerney is the President and CEO of Tech Valley Connect, an innovative program designed to meet the needs of relocating professionals in the Capital Region Robert C. Knuschke G’95 was named Principal of the Year at Kannapolis Intermediate School in North Carolina Mark Dorr was promoted to Vice President of Operations & Member Relations at the New York State Hospitality & Tourism Association

1998

Aaron Martin was appointed by the Broome County Legislature to a two-year term as Clerk of the County Legislature Ronald Pucherelli, animator for DreamWorks “How to Train Your Dragon,” announced that the animated movie won 3 Visual Effects Society Awards; he also worked on “Megamind”

1999

Chris Parody was featured for his work in TypoShirt One, a book of inspiration on t-shirt typography

2000

Michael Carroll was named Office Manager at Winters Company Plumbing Patrick DiLascia, designer and owner of DiLascia's Bakery, has launched the store's e-commerce web site and opened its first flagship store, PAR-LA in West Hollywood

2002

Patrice Jenkins received her Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Capalla College

New Chapters You can help The College of Saint Rose Alumni Association realize its vision to connect Saint Rose alumni across the nation, but you don’t have to do it alone. The Office of Alumni Relations and the Alumni Association are eager to help you start a local Saint Rose Alumni club in your area. Please contact the Office of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving at 518-454-5196 or e-mail alumni@strose.edu.

Schenectady Chapter (front left to right): Pamela Mennillo Zilka ‘65, Lucille Taylor Martinec ‘41, Rosemary Eckel Mullaney ‘44, Ann LaMontagne Karl ‘44, Lee Cincotta Orsino ‘49, Constance Sewell Galloway ‘52, Nina Sisto Whitney ‘64, Mary Monahan Kirwan ‘48, Margaret Mullady Bonville ‘60. (second left to right): Helen Stewart Pepper ‘51, Joan Roach Amell ‘55, Audrey Brown Hughes ‘53, Midge Bohanski Consler ‘65, Mary Puzztiello McClaine ’82, Carol Seeley ‘76, Noreen Meehan Zido ‘76, Janet O’Rourke Rainey ‘61, and Gloria Ventura Halstead ‘54.

80th Anniversary Celebration The Schenectady Chapter gathered for the 80th anniversary celebration at The Waters Edge Lighthouse in Glenville, N.Y., on December 5, 2010.

All the past presidents of the Schenectady Chapter are seen.

(third left to right): Marguerite Pileggi ‘72, Sharon Vilardo Maneri ‘64, Paulette George ‘88, Mary Lang ‘83, Margaret Connoly ‘61, Shirley Corino Ratajak ‘56, Kelly Lawless-Smith G’99.

Erika Sorgule was promoted to display project manager at Anthropolgie 2003

Leah McDonald was awarded an American Inhouse Graphic Design Award from Graphic Design USA

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ALUMNI

Alumni Spotlight Coleen Murtagh Paratore, Class of 1980 B.A. in English, minor in communications Author of 12 middle grade/young adult books and three picture books; winner of numerous awards, including the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing (2009) and several Bank Street College Best Children’s Books of the Year.

In 2002, six years and 179 rejection letters after writing her first story, Coleen Murtagh Paratore landed a contract with Simon & Schuster for a picture book “How Prudence Proovit Proved the Truth about Fairy Tales,” launching what has become a prolific career. Paratore has published 15 books in her first seven years as an author, including her best-known debut novel “The Wedding Planner’s Daughter” (Scholastic) which sold half a million copies. The book launched a popular “tween series,” which is published around the world and is being made into an ABC Original Family Movie.

Her collection also includes several series, such as the popular stories of Willa Havisham, the daughter of a famous wedding planner on Cape Cod, who takes on such projects as saving her town library and drawing attention to a lack of affordable housing. Lauded for their humor and appeal to both young readers and their parents, Paratore’s work often peppers real-life situations with fantasy. Writing from her homes in Troy, N.Y., and the Cape, Paratore visits schools across the country to help inspire young readers.

Here, she speaks about her hometown, her Saint Rose education and how a mother of three boys first heard the voice of a “spunky little girl” that compelled her to write that first story:

THE BIOGRAPHY ON YOUR WEB SITE STARTS: “I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN TROY, NEW YORK, IN A TWO-STORY WHITE HOUSE WITH GREEN SHUTTERS, BUILT FROM THE HARD WORK, FIERCE PRIDE AND GREAT HOPES OF MY IRISH IMMIGRANT GRANDPARENTS.” YOU DISCUSS WEEKLY VISITS TO THE PUBLIC LIBRARY; THE TROY SCHOOLS, WHERE YOU DISCOVERED A LOVE OF WRITING AND YOUR RECENT DECISION TO RETURN. IS RIVERTON, THE SOMEWHAT RUNDOWN BUT HOPEFUL CITY IN SEVERAL OF YOUR BOOKS, ACTUALLY TROY, OR BASED ON IT? HOW DOES YOUR HOMETOWN FIGURE IN YOUR WRITING, WHICH IS OFTEN SET IN SMALL TOWNS? Riverton is indeed drawn from my love of, and great hopes for, my beloved city of Troy. The actual apartment building where Sunny lives is based on my memories of visiting the Taylor Apartments in Troy where my mother’s dear friends, Jay Murnane and Mary Theresa Streck, ran a wonderful afterschool arts program for resident children called “The Ark.” Next spring I have a new middle-grade novel coming out with Scholastic called “DREAMSLEEVES,” about a girl who believes if you have a dream you should write it on a label, stick it on your sleeve and wear it right out there in the world. The book is set in Troy, circa 1972, and mentions several real places, including Frear Park and the Menands Bridge. I cannot wait for this book to be out. It is my love letter to teachers. I’m beginning exploratory conversations with the Troy school district about going on a Troy tour, visiting

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each school in the district to share the joys of reading and writing and “dreaming big.” When I was growing up in Troy, all I ever wanted to be was a teacher. When I do school visits, which I absolutely LOVE, I get to at last fulfill that dream.

YOUR PROTAGONISTS ARE OFTEN CHILDREN WHO BECOME ENTANGLED IN THEIR PARENTS’ OCCUPATIONS, BE IT INNKEEPER, WEDDING PLANNER OR FUNERAL HOME DIRECTOR. WHAT DO YOU ENJOY ABOUT WRITING FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE? All of my books are “family based.” In that central dynamic triangle of mother-father-child is more powerfully rich material than I could ever imagine writing enough books about. It’s all right there.

AFTER PAROCHIAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL, YOU CAME TO SAINT ROSE, WHICH YOU HAVE DESCRIBED AS “FOUR GLORIOUS YEARS OF SOAKING IN ALL THE BEST BOOKS FROM SOME OF THE FINEST TEACHERS ON THE PLANET.” HOW DID YOUR SAINT ROSE EDUCATION SHAPE YOU AS A WRITER? The teachers, the teachers, the teachers, the teachers. I close my eyes and remember Sister Elizabeth Varley channeling Chaucer’s “the wif of bath,” and Dr. (S.R.) Swaminathan mesmerizing us with Shakespeare like he was on stage at the Globe Theater in London. (“Dr. Swaminathan”

happily showed up as a character in the fifth Willa book, “Wish I Might.”)

I will never forget Sister Pat Kane saying to us never say you “can’t do something” in an interview. Say you will “learn it by next week.” I will never forget Dr. Steve Hirsch looking me straight in the eyes and saying “you’re a writer.”

SHARE SOME FAVORITE SAINT ROSE MEMORIES OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM. Freshman year, I loved sitting up on the roof of Lima Hall with my friend Nancy Davison, sharing stuff we’d written in our “blank books.” I loved the picnics out on the lawn and dancing with my large and lively group of friends. Still today when we gather, if there’s music, we’re dancing!

HOW DOES BEING SUCCESSFUL AFFECT YOUR WRITING? IS THERE EVER A PRESSURE TO MATCH YOUR LAST SUCCESS? Writing is my joy and my passion; it is also how I make my living. Good thing I’m a Libra; I try to keep both perspectives in balance.

AS THE MOTHER OF BOYS, HOW IS IT YOUR FIRST CHARACTER APPEARED TO YOU AS A GIRL? I am one.

YOU DID NOT ALWAYS PICTURE YOURSELF AS A CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHOR. WHAT DID YOU IMAGINE YOU WOULD DO? All I ever wanted to do was be a teacher. To me there is no greater profession.

HOW DO YOUR BOOKS TAP INTO WHAT READERS IN THE MIDDLE GRADE AND YOUNG ADULT GENRES ARE LOOKING FOR? WHAT DO MOST OF US GENERALLY NOT UNDERSTAND OR APPRECIATE ABOUT CHILDREN BETWEEN AGES 9 AND 14?

I get hundreds of fan mail letters each year and daily emails on my website, mostly from girls, and mostly about my Willa books. They tell me they “love Willa,” that they “feel like she does,” that they have similar issues with parents and friends and boys. They “see” themselves in Willa and that makes them feel good and okay with the world. At the heart of it all is a reader “seeing” her or himself in a book.

YOUR BOOKS VISIT A RANGE OF CIRCUMSTANCE AND SETTINGS. WHAT ARE COMMON THEMES OR ASPIRATIONS FOR YOUR AUDIENCE? WHAT IMPACT DO YOU HOPE TO MAKE? My wish as a writer is that a reader will reach “The End” of one of my books and feel happy and hopeful and inspired and want to run right out and find another good book to read.

For a complete list of books visit www.coleenparatore.com

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ALUMNI

Alumni to Watch

ALUMNI NOTES

Beginning with this issue, Saint Rose Magazine will showcase alumni who are achieving exciting things since graduating from The College of Saint Rose:

2003

Kristan Pelletier is the new director of athletics at Hudson Valley Community College

2004

Ryan Sweeney was promoted to the rank of Captain in the U.S. Army

2005

Kelly Post G’05 has been appointed Education & Events Manager for the New York State Hospitality & Tourism Association

2006

Michael Ceonzo was inducted into the Golden Key International Honour Society for his exceptional academic accomplishments

2008

Thomas Ciacco G’08 was named the new principal of Fonda-Fultonville Elementary School

JOHN WITTMANN ’82 Marketing Manager and Manager of Education at Yamaha Corporation John Wittmann is responsible for all Band and Orchestral Educational programs and artist support. His staff administers the Yamaha clinic program, Yamaha Young Performing Artists, Sounds of Summer percussion camps and the Band and Orchestral Internship program. John recently shared his top 10 tips for success with Saint Rose Music Industry students.

Eric Margan and The Red Lions released their debut album, Midnight Book

LAURA HARTMANN ’85 President/Owner of LVanHart Artist Productions Laura Hartmann established LVanHart Artist Productions in 1997— a company devoted to developing the talent of rising jazz artists. This organization encompasses all aspects of its clients’ business from personal management to producing tours and special projects that further enhance their careers.

Darci McManmon G’08 was promoted to Senior Staff Accountant in the Audit Department of Wojeski & Company CPAs, P.C. 2010

The artwork of Anthony Huff was featured in the exhibition “Graphic Design — Get the Message!” at the Albany Institute of History & Art The Parnas/Kohlberg Trio, of which Madalyn Parnas is a member, received a fantastic performance review in the New York Times

Hartmann is a frequent moderator and panelist and has led sessions at the APAP and Chamber Music America conferences. She has also led panels on the business of jazz. On April 29, she led “A Conversation with Ramsey Lewis” prior to the concert “An Evening with Ramsey Lewis — Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Jazz Legend Dr. Billy Taylor” at the Massry Center for the Arts.

SANJAY SHRESTHA ’97 Managing Director and Senior Analyst at Lazard Capital Markets Sanjay Shrestha is a Managing Director and senior analyst at Lazard Capital Markets covering Alternative Energy. Prior to joining LCM in 2007, Shrestha was a managing director and senior research analyst at First Albany Capital, where he built the firm’s alternative energy and industrial research practice.

Mr. Shrestha has been recognized by Forbes/Starmine as the #1 Earnings Estimator for 2006 and the #1 Stock Picker for 2007. He was recently ranked in the top five global stock pickers by Bloomberg magazine. He is often quoted as an industry expert by the media including: The Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, Barron’s, Business Week, Forbes, CNN, CNBC, and CNN Financial Network. On June 8th, he was the speaker at the annual Tully Business Lecture. His topic was Alternative Energy Evolution: Sector Growth Enhances Energy Security and Economic Prosperity.

Fabrizio’s Fable Patricia Brady-Danzig ’53, international soprano, philanthropist and educator, is making her debut as an author with the publication of her first children’s book, Fabrizio’s Fable (La Favola di Fabrizio), published

by Woodpecker Press, LLC. This unique book is in English and Italian, and includes a CD as well.

For more details about this charming story of a brave little Italian mouse who uses his wits to escape danger, visit www.pbdmusic.com/fabrizio.html

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MARRIAGES 1983

Anna Dugan Palmer was married in October 2010

1993

Brian Sheldon married Heather Sheldon

1997

Meaghan Standish-DiGiovanni was married in September 2010

1999 2002 2005 2006

Adam Bogdan married Kristen Purcell Corry Shimer married William Derschang Lisa Hawliczek married Ron Rhoads Ashley Green married Jose Toledo Christy Immel married P.J. Green Adrianne Cisek married Brenden Cetnar Jennifer Rowny G’07 married Jason Rodrigue James Gathen married Christina Valentine Britney Heins married Gerrit Blauvelt

2007

2010

ALUMNI NOTES

EARLY GRADUATES OUTREACH PROJECT Members of The College of Saint Rose Alumni Association National Board of Directors are seeing to it that our earliest living graduates, from the Classes of 1932 through 1945, many of whom may be in assisted living facilities or confined to their homes for health reasons, are not forgotten. The purpose of the Alumni Board Early Graduate Outreach Project is two-fold.

NEW ARRIVALS 1992

Kim Stroebele Tyler and Eric Tyler welcomed son, John Eric

1997

Kathleen Strohmeyer Carroll and Brian Carroll welcomed daughter, Sara

1998

Bryan Cady and Mary Cady '02 welcomed a daughter Jessica Morelli Joyce and John Joyce welcomed son, Finn Patrick

1999

Wendy Carhart-Masterson welcomed daughter, Kiera

2000

Sean Organ and Jessica Organ welcomed son, Shane Patrick Erin Robichaud and Joe Robichaud welcomed daughter, Ellie Grace Christie Kalisz Stanislaw and Jason Stanislaw welcomed daughter, Rebecca Anne Stanislaw

2002

Julie Tesoro Shook and Nathan Shook welcomed daughter, Emilia Julie Tesoro Shook

2003

Marilyn Barton has become a foster parent to her brothers George, 3 and Corey, 12

2005

Secondly, these women make up the history of the College, and the committee has a great interest in hearing what they have to say about their days on campus and the lives they’ve lived since then. Throughout the year, phone calls are made and memories are shared, helping the committee to document the history of the College and its earliest students.

The project is led by Sister Honora Kinney, CSJ ’61, with the help of the Alumni Office, members of the board, local alumni chapters and the Student Alumni Association. For more information on the Alumni Board Early Graduates Outreach Project or if you are interested in serving on the committee, please contact the Alumni Office at 518-454-5105.

Michaela Kochan Brown G'05 and Damon Brown welcomed daughter, Allison Grace

GOING GREEN

Kristen Breckenridge Magyar and Joseph Magyar welcomed daughter, Isabella

As part of the College’s strategic initiative to implement environmentally sustainable practices by reducing our use of paper, this year’s (2010-2011) Donor Report will be posted on-line and will not be printed for distribution. Donors will be notified about how to access the Donor Report securely and electronically. A limited number of print versions will be available by written request only.

Matt Marlow and Erin Marlow welcomed daughter, Abigail Grace Zartasha Samson welcomed daughter, Valentina

2007

First and foremost, the committee wants these women to know that they are special members of our alumni family — they are the pioneers. Simple reminders of this fact are sent to them by way of holiday cards and handwritten notes. Many of the women have responded with their thanks: Claire Ladeau Adamski ’45, wrote the committee to say that her “memories of Saint Rose will always be cherished.”

Leslie Motroni welcomed daughter, Lily

PREMIERE PERFORMANCES SPRING 2012

Please keep in your thoughts and prayers…

1930s

Lucy Palombi DiPace ’37

1940s

Virginia Wheeler Fitzpatrick ’41 Lena Cobb Wright ’42

MARCH 15 The Ravi Coltrane Quartet 7:30 pm, $25

FEBRUARY 11 The Saint Rose Camerata 7:30 pm, Free

MARCH 23 The Saint Rose Camerata 7:30 pm, Free

FEBRUARY 23 “Backstage” with Paula Cole 7:30 pm, $25

APRIL 4 Chick Corea Solo Piano 7:30 pm, $35

APRIL 29 Borromeo String Quartet 3 pm, $35 Order your tickets today!

(518) 337-4871 concerts@strose.edu

click

IN MEMORIAM

JANUARY 27 Charlie Albright Solo Piano 7:30 pm, $20

Purchase your tickets today.

www.strose.edu/concerts

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ALUMNI NOTES IN MEMORIAM Please keep in your thoughts and prayers…

1940s

Phyllis Lonergan Gottung ’45 Marylou Morrison Liddle ’45 Jean B. Longleway ’46 Maguerite Knaus Duffy ’47 Sister Mary Angela Baniak, RSM ’49 Margaret Hickey Link ’49 Sister Joseph Murphy, CSJ ’49 Elvera Civitello Perrino ’49

1950s

Kathryne Moynihan O’Connor ’50 Mary L. Doyle Provost ’50 Sister Mary Theonilla Franklin, CSJ ’51, G’63 Margaret Masterson Phelan ’51 Sister Chrysostom Cerino, CSJ ’52, G’66 Helen O’Dee Doyle ’52 Marilyn T. Hansen ’52 Sister Mauretia Kelly, CSJ ’52, G’56 Janice Bonacker Shangraw ’52 Jacqueline Drabnet Spanfelner ’52 Gloria Venturo Halstead ’54 Gail Wyld ’54 Joan Makowski Gorzynski ’56 Marjorie M. Connors ’57 Sister Mary Luddy, CSJ ’57 Sister Mary Aloise Almond, RMS ’58

1960s

Adelaide B. O’Connor ’60 Gertrude St. Lawrence G’60 Mary Alice Leary G’61 Sister Alva Mayone, RSM ’63 Sister Elizabeth Mary Paciello, CSJ ’63, G’69 Mary-Frances Callanan ’64 Charles Edward Karins ’64 Carol Troendle Marsico G’66 Sister Joseph Mary O’Hagan, CSJ ’66, G’72 Mary Price Roberts ’68

1970s

Vera Winston Propp G’72 Margaret Mahoney ’73, G’87 Richard Adams G’74 Marjorie Cummings ’74 Katrine Pfeiffer Patterson G’74 Jeanette Neisuler ’75 Herbert Shuttleworth II ’78 Donald Willey ’79

1980s

Tricia C. Maksail G’80 Joan Baligian ’81 Mark C. Hammer G’81 Patrick M. Sheehan ’85

1990s

Sister Marie Clotilde Remy, SSJ G’93 Danielle A. Clarino Cotton ’95, G’97 Elizabeth A. Deyoe ’97

2000s

James F. McQuade G’03

Journalism 221 Student-Alumni Interview Project…When Bobbie Met Teresa One of the first assignments in Journalism 221 is the profile assignment. Journalism students conduct comprehensive interviews and research, write stories, contact additional sources and submit their stories for a first grade. During the last academic year, students in Cailin Brown’s journalism classes interviewed alumni from The College of Saint Rose. Brown, an associate professor in the Communications Department, reached out to the Office of Alumni Relations for help. The Office of Alumni Relations embraced the idea and reached out to scores of alumni to ask for their help.

Brown’s idea was to identify Saint Rose alumni, from across generations, who would be willing to tell their story to our current Journalism students. Her thought was not only would this relieve a burden from her students in locating agreeable interviewees, but it would link alumni with current students, allow the students to learn a little more of the vibrant history of those who came before them and have a venue in which to tell these alumni stories, as featured articles in The Chronicle.

The Office of Alumni Relations spent the summer locating and reaching out to a wide variety of alumni from throughout the years to agree to be the subject of these student interviews. Alumni Relations was able to find 83 Saint Rose alumni to agree to be the impending subjects of these student interviews.

These names were submitted to Cailin to pass along to her students to contact.

One of the most inspirational interviews and one of the strongest connections between student and alumna was when Bobbie Ludwig ’11 interviewed Teresa Malone ’45. While more than 65 years separate Bobbie and Teresa’s Saint Rose experience, there was an instant connection. Bobbie commented, “Teresa Malone is an amazing person. She is completely unselfish, putting other people’s needs before her own without a second thought. Her love for her family is amazing, her zest for life is incredible and her dedication to Saint Rose is unparalleled. It was a pleasure to get to know her when writing her alumni profile for The Chronicle last fall.”

One of Bobbie’s favorite quotes from Teresa’s interview was when Teresa commented, “I am very loyal to Saint Rose,” she said. “Everyone has been wonderful, and I feel like I've had a good life with Saint Rose after I graduated.” Bobbie remarked at the power of the Saint Rose connection over so many years since Teresa’s graduation. You can read the entire interview in the October 25, 2010, edition by visiting www.strosechronicle.com and searching for Teresa Malone.

Many of the best interviews, in addition to this one, were published over the course of the past academic year in editions of The Chronicle. You can read many of the interviews, as well as archived editions of The Chronicle, online by visiting www.strosechronicle.com.

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SAINT ROSE

As part of 2011 Heritage Week Celebrations, St. Joseph Hall was rededicated.

With the groundbreaking in 1922, just two years after the start of the College, St. Joseph Hall made a statement that “Saint Rose was here, and here to stay, to serve its students with educational excellence and to serve the community in any way it could.� Since St. Joseph Hall housed the auditorium, chapel, a number of classrooms, a dormitory for students, the dining area and kitchens, it soon became the heart of campus.

By 2007, St. Joseph Hall was transformed into the Student Solution Center and a variety of student-centered offices.

The College of Saint Rose

The College of Saint Rose

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Saint Rose Magazine 432 Western Avenue, Albany, NY 12203-1490 www.strose.edu

Congratulations to our National Champions!

For more on the Women’s Soccer Team’s incredible season, read the story on page 16.