YSU Magazine Spring 2017 by Youngstown State University

SPRING 2017

A MAGAZINE FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS

YO U N G S T O W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

SPRING cover:

YSU alumnus, entrepreneur and CEO Mitchell Joseph is shown with a rendering of the Chill-Can Beverage Complex and Technology Center his company will build on Youngstown’s East Side. MS Consultants, engineers and architects, is designing the project. Some changes have been added since this preliminary drawing was made.

YSU President

2017

YSU Board of Trustees Chair Vice Chair Secretary Student Trustees

James P. Tressel Carole S. Weimer, ’89 Leonard Schiavone Charles R. Bush, ’71 Delores Crawford, ’68 David C. Deibel, ’75 Samuel W. Grooms, ‘81 Anita Hackstedde, ’90 John R. Jakubek, ’79 James Roberts, ’70 Franklin S. Bennett Jr. Samantha Anderson Allan Metz

ssociate Vice President, A Shannon Tirone, ’94 University Relations Director, Office of Catherine Cala Alumni Engagement

——————————— Public Information Officer

Magazine Editor

Photographer

Sports Contributor

Layout Design

Ron Cole Cynthia Vinarsky Hixenbaugh Joel Lewis, ’82, ’92 Trevor Parks Mary Ann Bodnark, ’80 Renée Cannon, ’90 Rachell Joy Renée Vivacqua, ’98 Maureen Wilson, ’00

Youngstown State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association. Youngstown State University – a Magazine for Alumni and Friends (ISSN 2152-3746) Issue 25, Spring 2017, is published twice annually for YSU alumni, faculty and staff by the YSU Office of Marketing & Communications. For address changes, letters to the editor, ideas and comments: Call .......................... 330-941-3519 Email ...................... universitymagazine@ysu.edu Or mail to ............. Youngstown State University Office of Marketing & Communications One University Plaza Youngstown, OH 44555 Youngstown State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/ or expression, disability, age, religion or veteran/military status in its programs or activities. Please visit www.ysu.edu/ada-accessibility for contact information for persons designated to handle questions about this policy. 8-001

Big on Penguin Pride!

YSU's Ethics Bowl Team and the Penguin Football Team both made the national spotlight this winter. For the second year in a row, the Ethics Bowl team placed second in the nation at the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl Finals in Dallas. Team members pictured at right, from left: Rachael Jenkins, Jacob Schriner-Briggs, Tyler Miller-Gordon and Lindsay Heldreth. Meanwhile, in photo above, YSU football fans packed Youngstown's Covelli Centre on Jan. 7 to celebrate the Penguins' success and to cheer them on as they played James Madison University for the National Championship trophy in Frisco, Texas. For more photos, check out our special Sports News and Alumni News sections in this issue, starting on Page 4.

Subscribe to YSU News Would you like to receive regular YSU news updates in your email? Visit www.ysunews.com and complete the subscription box on the top of the page. You’ll be one of the first to learn what’s happening at YSU.

3 6

issue

Alumni News – We’ve got Penguins in every state – find out where they live – and see photos from alumni-sponsored championship watch parties across the country. Sports News: A Championship Effort – Photos capture the Penguins’ exciting trek to the FCS National Championship contest.

COVER STORY – Chill-Can Entrepreneur Comes to Ytown – Read about Mitchell Joseph, a YSU grad that holds a patent on the world’s first self-chilling beverage can. He’s building a $20 million manufacturing plant in Youngstown.

11 14 16 18

Eating Disorders – a Closer Look – Moved by the bulimiarelated death of a student, six Human Ecology faculty research the causes and ways to prevent eating disorders. Celebrating Endowed Chairs – Examining the importance of endowed chairs and profiling two: David Stout, Accounting, who is retiring, and newly-arrived Eric MacDonald, Electrical and Computer Engineering. Nursing Department Marks 50 Years – So much has changed since YSU created its Department of Nursing in 1967. We track the changes in photos – and in numbers. Faculty/Staff Bookshelf and Art – Proudly celebrating the achievements of faculty and staff who published books or had their work featured in photo and art exhibitions and in musical recordings.

21 22 26

40 YSU Magazine, a Two-Time National Collegiate Advertising Award Winner

www.ysumagazine.org & fill out the email notification form.

Major Grant to Fund Eye-Tracking Research – Computer Science professor Bonita Sharif is the first in YSU history to be awarded a prestigious National Science Foundation grant. Around Campus – Keeping readers informed on the latest YSU campus news and events.

Alumni Spotlight – Read about three exceptional grads: Bill Barta, ‘05 BSAS, a police officer who has created a classroom security device for schools; Mirta Reyes-Chapman, ‘92 BE in Civil Engineering, named a Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan; and Racquel Wright, ‘16 MSEd in School Counseling, starting off her career in a remote village in Alaska. Golden Year – YSU’s Ward Beecher Planetarium marks its 50th anniversary.

Departments 2 25 30 32 34

President’s Message Letters to the Editor Philanthropy Student Success Stories Class Notes

S P R I N G 2017

Dynamic, Determined and Discerning, at Work, at Home and in the Community We don’t need a map to tell us that Penguin Country is vast and wide. Those of us who wear our Penguin pride on our sleeves and travel around the country a bit can attest that there are YSU graduates, parents and supporters everywhere. There’s hardly a place we go where we don’t run into someone who went to YSU or knows someone who attended YSU. James P. Tressel President

The map on the opposite page surely bears that to be true. From Hawaii (49) and Alaska (38) to California (1,455) and Florida (3,297), Youngstown State University graduates are in communities across the nation – nurses, engineers, teachers, police officers, artists, bankers, attorneys, entrepreneurs, authors . . . you name it. Earlier this year, during our Penguin football run to the national championship game, we came to understand and appreciate again the passion our alums have for their alma mater. From Tampa, Las Vegas and Charlotte to Washington D.C., New York and Columbus, thousands of YSU supporters turned out for nearly a dozen alumni-sponsored game day watch parties. The Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown hosted 4,000 fans alone. But it’s not just at championship time that our alums turn out. Hundreds of our graduates come back to campus every year to share their expertise in the classroom and help counsel students on their futures. Thousands of others provide support through philanthropic gifts. And the presence of proud Penguins doesn’t stop at our borders. In fact, we have alumni living in 80 countries in every continent across the world. For instance, earlier this year, a delegation from YSU, the Youngstown Business Incubator and the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation visited Israel for several meetings with university, business and government officials. During the trip, we had the privilege of meeting up with YSU alum Nadav Batsha of the Israel Electric Corp. A recent trip to China by another YSU delegation also included meetings with alumni. And earlier this year, a representative from our International Programs Office travelled to Ghana to meet alumni in that region. So, as we near the end of another successful academic year, it’s important to remember that what we do here on campus day-in and day-out culminates in smart, motivated and forward-thinking men and women who go out and make their marks on the world – not only as successful professionals, but also as community leaders, volunteers, parents and grandparents. Therein lies YSU’s true legacy. Yes, our central mission remains to provide a quality, broad-based higher education in a variety of disciplines. But we also work to help students evolve into discerning, dynamic and determined individuals at work, at home and in their communities. You will read about many of those individuals in this issue of our magazine. Enjoy and . . . Go Penguins,

James P. Tressel, President YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Y O U N G S T O W N

WYOMING 21

UTAH 57

SOUTH 14 DAKOTA

NEBRASKA 44

COLORADO 437

KANSAS

179

ILLINOIS 618

MISSOURI

511

MAINE

IN IRG

V 246

MASS.

238

MASS.

CONN.

125

NJ DE

MA INE

342

1,030

DELAWARE

VIRGINIA

MARYLAND

NORTH 1,367 CAROLINA

698

SOUTH A CAROLIN

707

RGI A

BAM

164

56,579

278 KENTUCKY 437 TENNESSEE

7,687

OHIO

GEO

ARKANSAS 54 62

836

A RID

FLO

A AN ISI LOU

1,256

NEW YORK

PENNSYLVANIA

SIP

TEXAS

IOWA

SIS

101

Indicates states with largest number of YSU grads.

668

MICHIGAN

MIS

770

926

ALA

OKLAHOMA 79

WISCONSIN 176

T VERMON

165

MPSHIRE NEW HA

IDAHO

NORTH DAKOTA10

ANA

1,455

313

MONTANA

INDI

NEVAD A

0 0 0 , 5 Over 10 St rong!

TA NESO MIN

139

U N I V E R S I T Y

ON WASHINGT 237

OREGON

S T A T E

3,297 38

ALASKA

INTERNATIONAL ALUMNI TOP 10 1. Thailand ................................................. 94 2. Ghana ..................................................... 81 3. India ......................................................... 79 4. Canada ................................................... 32 5. Saudi Arabia ......................................... 30 6. Taiwan...................................................... 19 7. Greece ..................................................... 18 8. Nepal ....................................................... 14 9. China, Kenya and Kuwait (tied) ....... 9 10. Bahamas ...................................................8

HAWAII

From coast to coast, Youngstown State University’s 105,000+ graduates reside in every state in

Other countries: Anguilla, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Brazil, Cameroon, Croatia, Cyprus, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Liberia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam and Zambia.

the nation and in 78 countries worldwide. Ohio residents make up 60 percent of the total, followed by Pennsylvania, Florida, California, North Carolina and Texas, in that order. Our alumni serve as ambassadors for YSU – living, working, learning and leading in the communities in which they live. YSU’s Office of Alumni Engagement is launching a new program for recent graduates and alumni who are relocating for career reasons. “Alumni Connect” will link YSU alumni moving to a new area with a YSU liaison in or near their new city of residence. For more information, call the Office of Alumni Engagement, 330-941-3119, or visit ysu.edu/alumni, “Update Your Information,” and check the Alumni Connect box. We’ll be in touch with you!

S P R I N G 2017

alumni NEWS

Penguin Parties Across the Nation Celebrating

YSU’s

Run for the National Championship

From Vegas to New York and in a host of other cities, YSU alumni dressed in red Jan. 1-7 for a weeklong celebration of support as their Penguins competed for their fifth National Championship in Frisco, Texas. Exhibitions of Penguin Pride included: •

More than 250 alumni, students, faculty and staff who braved frigid temperatures for a send-off rally Jan. 4 on the YSU campus.

•

Eleven alumni-sponsored game day watch parties in: Charlotte, N.C.; Cincinnati; Cleveland; Columbus; Las Vegas; Massillon; Naples, Fla.; New York; Pittsburgh; Tampa Bay, Fla.; and Washington, D.C.

•

A community watch party at the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown attended by more than 4,000 fans.

•

About 4,000 Penguin fans traveled to Frisco for the game Jan.7; YSU lost to James Madison University 28-14.

Henry Hecker, at right, son of Brian and Jill Hecker, both '97 alums, was the youngest attendee at the New York watch party; below, alumni gather for watch parties in Cincinnati (left and right) and Tampa Bay, Fla. (center).

Pete the Penguin made it to Slovakia and visited vacation spots around the United States as YSU alumni continued YSU Magazine’s “Take Pete Along …” tradition. 1 4

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

1. Eight YSU alumni included our well-traveled mascot as they took part in a two-week tour of Slovakia last summer. The YSU grads included, pictured from left: front row, Robert Kopac, ’75, and Lynne Arcari Kopac, ’75; second row, Lisa Ann Deley, ’90, Janet Zumrick, ’82, Joan DeLucia, ’59, Peggy Opsitnik Potts, ’61, ’72, Dorothy Palguta Tesner, ’62, Janet Sanders, ’62, and the group’s bus driver. 2. Kelly Mehalco, ’12, Donna Mehalco, ’80 and ’15, Mark Mehalco, ’09 (holding baby Bella Mehalco, future YSU student) and Andrea Bovo Mehalco, ’08, brought Pete along to help cheer

alumni NEWS Sunday, April 2, 2 p.m. – YSU Alumni Society Life Members Reception, featuring star show at Ward Beecher Planetarium, followed by hors d’oeuvres and dessert at Maag Library. For reservations, contact Ed Goist, 330-941-2753 or emgoist@ysu.edu. Saturday, April 8, 4:30 - 6 p.m. – Greek Sing Alumni Reception at Christman Memorial Hall, followed by Greek Sing in Stambaugh Auditorium. For reception reservations, visit www.ysu.edu/ alumni/greeksing or call 330-941-3221.

bove, end-Off, a pionship S ’80, show off a m a h C in p the Pengu ld Wilson, Attending Rulli, '93, and Haro uin football team; to g e n Jo e , ff P a ft 7 from le e 2016-1 m right, st gned by th SU flag; and botto banner si Y ya Hixon a h To is La d t n n s bra and stude k a right, fan n h rc o indy K event. member C e outdoor cold for th e th ve ra b

Wednesday, April 12, 6 p.m.– 25th Anniversary Geography Awards Dinner, Ohio Room, Kilcawley Center. Invitations will be sent. Contact Marilyn Handel, mkhandel@ysu.edu or 330-941-3317. Thursday, May 11, 6 p.m. – Beeghly College of Education Alumni Dinner at McKay Auditorium. Invitations will be sent, reservations required. Contact Cindy Korchnak, 330-941-3269. Saturday, May 27 – Honors College Golf Outing, at Riverview Golf Course, Newton Falls, Ohio. Contact Andrea Tharp, amtharp@ysu.edu or 330-941-2162. Saturday, July 8 – YSU Honors College Annual Alumni Reunion at Fok Hall, for University Scholars and Honors alumni. Contact Andrea Tharp, amtharp@ysu.edu or 330-941-2162. Saturday, Sept. 16 – YSU Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Kilcawley Center. Contact Emily Wollet, eewollet@ysu.edu or 330-941-7208.

Photo courtesy of brianfoox.com

At the Pittsburgh watch party, above left, fans focus on the televised game, while groups at the Washington, D.C. party, above right, and Cleveland party, center, posed for photos.

for Bill Mehalco, ‘05, and Hayley Ramunno Mehalco, ‘09, (not pictured) as they ran in the New York City Marathon on November 9. 3. Gary Reel of Austintown, ’69, ’73, and his wife, Sandie, introduced Pete to Bryce Canyon in Utah last September, along with touring Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, Zion Canyon and Salt Lake City. Reel retired as an Austintown teacher, then spent 15 years as a student teaching supervisor for YSU’s Beeghly College of Education. 4. Finally, John Sostaric, ’91, of Austintown, and his wife, Christy, included our mascot on a family trip last August to the Grand Canyon. Sostaric, an accountant for the Cadle Company in Newton Falls, Ohio, said the trip also included stops in Las Vegas, Monument Valley and Zion National Park.

Saturday, Sunday, Oct. 28-29 – Celebrating two 50th anniversaries: Class of 1967 is inducted into the Half Century Club and YSU’s 50th year as a state university – on Homecoming Weekend. Tailgates, Homecoming Parade and game, campus tour. Invitations will be sent. Contact Catherine Cala, cacala@ysu.edu or 330-941-2752.

(Email your “Take Pete Along” photos, with your name, graduation year, city of residence and information about your trip, to universitymagazine@ysu.edu.)

S P R I N G 2017

A Season to Remember

penguin sports news

Spectacular. Incredible. H

The Catch

eadline writers from around the nation used a wide range of adjectives to describe the last-second touchdown catch that gave the YSU Penguins a 40-38 win over Eastern Washington in a frigid FSC Championship semifinal game in Cheney, Wash. SB Nation was even more direct: "One of the greatest catches of all time." The grab by tight end Kevin Rader, made as he wrapped his arms around a defender, sent the Penguins to Frisco, Texas, and a chance to win the university's fifth FCS National Championship game. While the 'Guins fell to James Madison in the title match up, Head Coach Bo Pelini's second season at YSU was certainly one to remember, launching YSU into the national football picture for the first time in more than a decade. The Penguins, unranked at the beginning of the season and not expected to make much noise in the playoffs, surged to a 12-4 overall record, including playoff wins against Samford, Jacksonville State, Wofford and EWU, sparking enthusiasm and support that spread like wildfire across the Mahoning Valley and among YSU fans nationwide.

Photo courtesy

of the Spokane

d ns a last-secon give the Pengui to h tc ca tic n. as fant hingto Rader makes a nst Eastern Was Tight end Kevin nal game agai ifi m Se l na tio S Na victory in the FC

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view.

Spokesman Re

Hundreds of fans braved the cold for a sendoff rally on campus, where the team boarded buses to head to the airport for the trip to Texas. In center photo, wide receiver Donovan McWilson gets a proud hug at the rally from his father, Marvin McWilson, and grandmother, Bertha Clinkscale; and right, George and Debbie Roman cheer on their Penguins at the big game in Texas.

YSU President Jim Tressel, top of Page 6, shows his Penguin pride at a send-off rally on campus; at right, fans brandish signs and banners to cheer the team before the FCS National Championship game.

Amazing. Insane.

Cheerleader Christchianna Goldner of Brookfield, left, shouts out a cheer at the Championship game; in center photo, tight end Shane Kuhn and Head Coach Bo Pelini lead the Penguins onto the field at the FCS National Championship in Frisco, Texas.; and at right, Jody Webb runs the ball in the Penguinsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; FCS semifinal game at Eastern Washington.â&#x20AC;&#x2039;

S P R I N G 2017

Coming Home Alumnus Entrepreneur Will Bring Jobs, Revive a Neighborhood By Cynthia Hixenbaugh Mitchell Joseph

“This is going to revolutionize the beverage industry. There will be no other facility like it in the world.” — Mitchell Joseph

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

magine a world where ice buckets and picnic coolers are obsolete. Picture a soldier on a desert assignment, able to turn water ice-cold in less than a minute. Or an astronaut, chilling beverages in space without a power source. YSU alumnus Mitchell Joseph has the technology to make it all possible – the patented “Chill-Can,” the world’s first selfchilling beverage container. Now the California business owner and entrepreneur is bringing his company’s invention home, back to the East Side Youngstown neighborhood where he was born, to build a $20 million Chill-Can Beverage and Technology Center. “This is going to revolutionize the beverage industry,” said Joseph, chairman and CEO of Joseph Company International. “There will be no other facility like it in the world.” The plant is set for completion by fall 2018 on the very spot where Joseph’s great-grandfather operated the familyowned Star Bottling Co. from 1921 to 1970. Youngstown Mayor John McNally joined Joseph, his wife Sue, and YSU President Jim Tressel in November for a groundbreaking on the Lane Avenue site.

One Billion Cans a Year Eventually, Joseph said, the Youngstown plant will have the capacity to manufacture and fill 1 billion Chill-Cans a year. “Coca Cola is going to come here, Pepsi is going to come here. Heineken, Budweiser, Miller and Coors – this is a Youngstown product, and they all want in.” He plans to begin hiring security people for the plant this spring and expects to create 235 jobs within three years, with more to come. “Eventually, when we’re producing and filling 1 billion cans a year, operating 24/7, we’ll have 1,000 people on that property,” he said. Construction of the first two production buildings on the 21-acre site could be finished as early as this fall; two more production buildings are set for completion by the summer of 2018, with a research and development facility to follow. Originally, Joseph planned to build the Chill-Can plant in Columbus, but a pivotal conversation with a friend – YSU President Tressel – helped change his mind. They had formed a friendship years before, when Tressel was coaching the Ohio State Buckeyes, and Joseph was

among the special guests Tressel invited to YSU for his installation as president in 2014. During that visit, Joseph talked about the Chill-Can, the pride he feels as the fourth generation in his family to work in the beverage industry –with a son, Matteo, now joining him in the business – and his desire to return to Ohio. “Hearing that story, it just seemed right to bring it here, back to his roots, and that’s what I told him,” Tressel said. “You have to come back to where the story began.”

Back to His Roots The old, lower East Side neighborhood was hardly recognizable when Joseph returned the weekend of Tressel’s installation. All but a few of the homes were boarded and abandoned and there was nothing left of his great-grandfather’s bottling plant, but Joseph mapped out the site and soon after began quietly buying property. Mayor McNally said East Side residents, mom-and-pop business owners and city officials alike are thrilled about the ChillCan project. “We’ve been trying to bring a new industrial park to the East Side for a number of years, and we’re especially excited about the jobs – from basic labor and office staff to engineers and technical people – and the potential for tax income for the city.” Youngstown and Mahoning County have worked together to move the project along, McNally said, including a 10-year, 75 percent property tax abatement, a zone change from residential to green industrial and help with purchasing and demolition of properties. The city will also reimburse Joseph Company International up to $1.5 million for water and sewer improvements. “We’re so glad that Mitchell is bringing the project to Youngstown,” the mayor said, “and we’re doing everything we can to help make it happen.” Growing up in Columbus, where his parents moved from Youngstown when he was 6 years old, Joseph had always planned a career in the family business. He was awarded a baseball scholarship to Ohio State but transferred to YSU his sophomore year – the Star Bottling plant was still operating in Youngstown, and his grandfather wanted him to learn the business. He earned his YSU bachelor’s degree in 1969, started law school at OSU and was drafted into the Army just a few weeks

In 1998, success was in sight. Joseph’s company had perfected the self-chilling can, Pepsi and Heineken had each paid millions of dollars as the first companies licensed to sell it, and Pepsi was ready for a 6 million "blue can" launch in Puerto Rico. Another hiccup. An environmental group tipped off the Financial Times of London about the launch, and the fact that the cans were cooled by hydro fluorocarbons, a Freon replacement compound. Hydro fluorocarbons were legal at the time and not known to be harmful, but Pepsi didn’t want controversy or boycotts. The story became international news, the launch was postponed, and Joseph’s engineers went back to the drawing board for a redesign process that lasted nine years.

later. That’s when he encountered what he calls a “hiccup.” His family sold the Youngstown bottling plant to Coca Cola while he was in the service, so his plans to join the family business were dashed.

Overcoming a ‘Hiccup’

Joseph decided to continue in the beverage industry, starting off by importing a German beer to the United States. In 1982, he launched Joseph Company International in Irvine, Calif., and found a lucrative niche by creating a private label to bottle distilled spirits for Disney – it was the world’s first private label. The company now has operations in California, Florida and London and employs about 340. In the late 1980s, Joseph was asked to partner with California Polytechnic State University to create a self-chilling Testing the Waters beverage can – something the beverage industry had been trying to do for The new and improved Chill-Can that decades. “Over 10,000 patents had been Joseph's team created uses a cooling filed, but none of them worked,” Joseph mechanism powered by carbon dioxide explained. that is reclaimed from the environment When the university’s plan fell apart, and environmentally safe. In fact, Joseph Joseph took on the project himself. He was awarded the U.S. EPA Stratospheric went to his father, then retired from Ozone Protection Award in 2012 for his the beverage business, and asked to company’s Chill-Can redesign. be introduced to top-level industry executives. His father agreed to help him to make the necessary contacts, but he was not enthusiastic. “He asked me why I thought I could do what Coke and Pepsi and Budweiser and all the others couldn’t do,” he recalled. “He Joseph Company International engi neers spent called it a black hole.” 22 years developing the Chill-Can, prot Joseph put his ecting the technology wi th dozens of world engineers to work pa te nts and trademarks. on the self-chilling yy Each can has a built-in heat exch can project while ange unit that uses environmen tally safe, reclaim he focused on ed carbon dioxide to chill th marketing strategy e beverage inside. yy The unit is activ and protecting their ated by pressing a button on the bottom of the can work, investing tens – newer models wi ll be twist– activated. of millions of dollars to secure a total of yy Once activated , the unit will cool the contents by 31 U.S. patents, more at least 30 degree s in less than one minute. than 400 global yy Contents stay cold up to 45 min patents and numerous utes longer than a refri gerated beverage trademarks and . yy Initial cost, $2 .25 per can; copyrights. expected to decr ease as sales grow.

How the

Works

S P R I N G 2017

The redesigned Chill-Can made its commercial debut in 2014 with an energy drink Joseph Company International created for that purpose. The beverage, called West Coast Chill, contains vitamins, minerals and herbs, no sugar or caffeine, and is the only energy drink approved for sale in schools. “We launched in Southern California and they couldn’t keep them on the shelf,” he said. “We knew we had a winner.” Now Joseph is in meetings with Pepsi, Coke, Heineken and all the other major beer companies – he included a helicopter pad in the plans for the Youngstown ChillCan facility because he knows beverage executives from around the country will be visiting there often. And he’s discovering that there are many more uses for the patented selfchilling technology. He’s been meeting with cosmetic companies, such as Estée Lauder, and with sports medicine suppliers who want to use the instant cooling technology for injury braces. “All of it, everything, will come out of Youngstown. It will be made here,” he said. The Chill-Can site is close to YSU, about a mile and a half from campus, and Joseph said he looks forward to strengthening his connections with the university by creating engineering, marketing and other student internship opportunities, starting as early as the summer of 2018. Joseph's success as an entrepreneur

Photo courtesy of The Vindicator

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

has brought the YSU alumnus national recognition, opportunities to speak and to serve. He has been featured on the covers of seven industry magazines and journals worldwide, was featured in a Harvard University entrepreneurship case study and then invited to address MBA students at Harvard. NASA contacted him to ask for help creating a device that could cool desserts and beverages in space without electricity. He succeeded, using Chill-Can technology, and received an award and a personal meeting in Washington, D.C., with the late U.S. Sen. John Glenn. The Army contacted the Joseph Company, as well, and asked if its engineers could to find a way to cool canteens in a desert environment. When their work was complete, his engineers tested 1,000 canteens in the 105 degree temperatures of Palm Springs, Calif. "We chilled water in those canteens from 105 degrees to 65 degrees in two minutes," he said. "They couldn't drink it any colder." Joseph was awarded the Army's Rookie of the Year Award for the canteen cooling method, beating out night goggles and ballistic missiles for the honor. “As great as those technologies are, unless you give those guys cold water, they can’t function," he said. "That's why I say, this is big. This is going to change things. If you have grandchildren, they're not going to grow up with ice.”

“We launched

in Southern California and they couldn’t keep them on the shelf. We knew we had a winner.” — Mitchell Joseph

Participating in a November, 2016, groundbreaking event on the future site of the Chill-Can Beverage Complex & Technology Center are, from left: YSU President James Tressel; Matteo Joseph, Mitchell Joseph and Sue Joseph, all representing Joseph Company International; and Youngstown Mayor John McNally. The first two buildings on the site are scheduled for completion by fall.

About the Study

Professors from YSU’s Department of Human Ecology are researching the attitudes that can lead to deadly eating disorders. Details on their study and what it has revealed so far: Participants: 550 male and female volunteer undergraduate YSU students, ages 18 to 66.

Researchers call for less emphasis on looks

550

Method: Six-page questionnaire focused on body dissatisfaction, body mass index, disordered eating, appearance anxiety, social cultural attitudes toward appearance and depression.

Risk factors: Females at risk experienced more body dissatisfaction, appearance anxiety and depression.

% 19% 11 % 68% At risk for an eating disorder: 19 percent of female participants, 11 percent of males.

YSU Human Ecology faculty members studying eating disorders in college students include, from left, associate professors Jeanine Mincher, Taci Turel and Priscilla Gitimu.

“You look great … Have you lost weight?” It’s a greeting most people enjoy hearing, but a group of YSU professors have a problem with it. They say compliments focused on looks alone just reinforce our culture’s unhealthy preoccupation with physical appearance. “Let’s talk about other things, like kindness and thoughtfulness, not what someone looks like,” said Priscilla Gitimu, one of six Human Ecology faculty researching deadly eating disorders and the behaviors that lead to them. The research team’s primary goal, after its study revealed that more than 65 percent of their student survey respondents are unhappy with their body size, is to change prevailing negative attitudes about appearance. “It is considered normal to beat ourselves up, to be critical of our shape and size,” said Gitimu. “It should not be normal.”

Unhappy with body size: 68 percent of females, 65 percent of males.

A campus tragedy – the bulimiarelated death of a YSU freshman in 2012 – inspired the faculty group to study eating disorders in college students. The student, Danielle Peters of Austintown, was new on campus and enrolled in one of Gitimu’s summer classes at the time. “When we learned that she had lost her life because of complications from bulimia, we came together as a faculty,” Gitimu said. “It was more than just research to us. It was a topic that touched each one of us deeply.” The researchers, representing a range of academic disciplines, include: associate professors Gitimu and Taci Turel, Fashion and Interior Merchandising; Rachael Pohle-Krauza and Jeannine Mincher, Dietetics; and Zara Rowlands, Dietetics and department chair. Also part of the team are Janice Elias, retired professor and chair, and Molly Jameson Cox, a former YSU Psychology professor who is now at the University of Northern Colorado.

65 % 68% 48 % 17.5 Want to be thinner: 68 percent of females, 48 percent of males.

Want to be larger: 17.5 percent of males. Source: YSU Department of Human Ecology

S P R I N G 2017

“We all came to the study with different skills and strengths, and it created a wonderful synergy,” Gitimu said. The research team recently published results of the first phase of the study in the journal Cojent Psychology and plan to publish results of the second phase soon.

Prevention is Goal Equipped with their study results, the team members are focused now on reversing some of the unhealthy attitudes that lead to disordered eating and getting students to seek help when they’re struggling. Prevention is so crucial, co-author Mincher said, because when an eating disorder is diagnosed, it can be too late. Danielle Peters’ mother, Mary Ann Peters, has said that her daughter struggled secretly with bulimia for years before being diagnosed shortly before her death. Some Human Ecology professors now add a section to all their class syllabi, encouraging students to contact YSU Counseling Services if they need help managing personal challenges – a similar invitation was included as part of their research survey. They talk in class about beauty misconceptions and make students aware of the unrealistic, photoshopped beauty standards presented in print and electronic media. They encourage eating meals with family, or with friends or roommates.

Faculty researchers used this chart to help gauge how student participants view their current body shape and the body type they desire.

“We’re drifting away from that because kids are so over-scheduled these days, but it’s important,” Mincher said. “Family meals can be a way to model normal eating habits, they encourage communication and social support, and family members may notice if there’s a problem.” The department also sponsors an annual EveryBODY Fashion Show to increase awareness of eating disorders – scheduled this year at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 29 in Kilcawley Center – featuring student models representing every body type. The show, a tradition since Peters’ passing in 2012, is organized and presented by students and funded by an educational program endowment created by Peters’ family in her memory.

First Phase: Female Students The first phase of the faculty group’s research study focused on female participants. They found that collegeage women who experience body dissatisfaction and appearance-related anxiety are more at risk for disordered eating habits, such as chronic yo-yo dieting, extremely rigid and unhealthy diet and exercise patterns and compulsive eating. The researchers were surprised to learn that Body Mass Index, a height-toweight ratio used to determine healthy body proportions, did not appear to be a risk factor. Those with healthy BMIs were just as likely to be unhappy with their physiques as those who are overweight.

‘I want my daughter’s life to have meaning.’

– Mary Ann Peters

YSU student Danielle Peters’ bulimia-related death has inspired a new awareness of eating disorders at YSU – now her mother shares her story. By Mary Ann Peters

Danielle Peters, the YSU freshman whose bulimia death inspired the faculty research on eating disorders.

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Our lives were changed forever on July 21, 2012, the day our daughter, Danielle, died from complications of bulimia. She was just 21, a freshman at YSU. It was, and still is, the most heartwrenching nightmare any parent can go through. Growing up on Youngstown’s West Side, she was a normal child who loved playing soccer, basketball, drawing, writing, camping and animals. I started noticing Danielle having problems around the time her Dad

went to Iraq to serve with the Army after 9/11. She had also reached the age when girls start having their little groups of friends and become aware of body images they see portrayed in movies and magazines. My baby girl was changing and starting on a path that would lead to her death. I knew Danielle was losing weight, and I started looking for help. We went to the family doctor, then to counselors, psychiatrists, stomach doctors, kidney doctors – even a brain doctor. Danielle was

“That shows us that, whether you have an ideal weight or not, you can still be anxiety ridden about your appearance and your weight,” Mincher explained. Their study concluded that body dissatisfaction and appearance related anxiety, when combined with clinical depression, become risk factors for deadly eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia. The first phase of their research indicates that 19 percent of the female YSU survey takers are at risk for a life-threatening eating disorder.

Second Phase: Male Students The second phase of the study focused on male students, and the professors say some aspects of the results were unexpected. Other studies that focused only on males who want to be thinner have generally shown men to be at lowrisk for eating disorders compared to women, said Taci Turel, who authored Phase 2. “Our survey asked students if they want to be bigger or smaller – 48 percent of males wanted to be smaller and 17.5 percent said they would like to be larger,” said Turel. Based on those totals, the researchers concluded that close to 66 percent of the male participants were unhappy with their body size, compared to 68 percent of women.

good at hiding her disease. I think, at that time, that it was her way of controlling things. After years of trying to get help and a diagnosis, we finally thought we had found an answer. Danielle had admitted to having an eating disorder, and she was seeing a counselor who understood the problem. After meals, she would sit and talk to me for an hour or more to keep herself from throwing up. She was working, going to college and loving it. What we didn’t realize was that her body had already begun to shut down. It was too late. One summer day, Danielle collapsed. Her heart stopped beating because her potassium level had dropped so low. Shortly after Danielle’s death, I saw an article in the local newspaper about an EVERYbody fashion show at YSU, and I knew I had to attend. There, I met

for men to be large and muscular. They want the ripped body look, the washboard stomach,” she said. “One study showed that men’s dissatisfaction with their body image has tripled in the last 30 years.” Men who become overly concerned about building muscle mass are more likely to use steroids, she said, or may turn to overly restricted eating or excessive exercise to reach their goals. The six-member team is making plans to continue its research, increasing the number of survey participants and possibly looking at specific student groups, such as student athletes. By publicizing their work they also hope to heighten healthcare professionals’ awareness so that they can spot the early signs of disordered eating.

Phase 2 of the survey concluded that, when depression and other variables were factored in, about 11 percent of the males surveyed are at risk for a life-threatening eating disorders. Turel said media influence is changing the ideal for male bodies just as it has for females. “There’s more and more pressure

YSU students participating in a recent EveryBODY Fashion Show, a yearly event sponsored by the Department of Human Ecology.

Danielle’s wonderful professor, Dr. Priscilla Gitimu, and learned that she was inspired to put together the fashion show for all figure types because of Danielle. That got me thinking. Danielle’s father, Malin Peters, and I decided to create an endowment fund in Danielle’s name. It will fund annual programs at YSU to make students aware of the dangers of eating disorders – misdiagnosed, pushed aside diseases that need to be brought out into the open so that people are not ashamed to talk about them. This fund sponsors the annual EveryBODY Fashion Show, a project that improves awareness of eating

disorders. This year, it's at 6 p.m. March 29 at Kilcawley Center. My hope, in sharing our story and through the endowment, is to spread the news that eating disorders must be taken seriously. I want my daughter's life to have meaning. Maybe her story can save someone else’s life. Editor’s Note: To contribute to the Danielle L. Peters Program Endowment to Promote Awareness of Eating Disorders, contact the YSU Foundation, 330-941-3211.

S P R I N G 2017

A Seat At The Table

Endowed Faculty Positions Boost YSU’s National Reputation By Ron Cole

David Stout clearly recalls the time he attended his first meeting of the Board of Directors of the American Accounting Association, the largest community of accountants in academia. “We went around the table and one by one introduced ourselves,” Stout says. “There was someone from Michigan State, from North Carolina, from Northwestern, from the University of David Stout addressing the American Accounting Association. Pittsburgh and Arkansas and goal is to become a national model for student-centered, Brigham Young and so on and so on.” comprehensive urban universities. That means putting the And there was David Stout from Youngstown State University. spotlight on excellence in teaching and research, and advancing “To have a seat at that table with representatives from all of this excellence begins with an investment in faculty.” those other prestigious schools is certainly a feather in YSU’s cap,” Endowed chairs or professorships are faculty positions that he says. combine a traditional faculty post with enhancements funded Stout, the John S. and Doris M. Andrews Chair of Accounting from the interest on the principal of the gift to the university. at the Williamson College of Business Administration, says the Being named an endowed chair is a prestigious award, and in presence of YSU in those types of national academic settings many cases is a lifetime appointment. is vital as the university continues to emerge as a research YSU established its first endowed chair in 2001 – the Andrews institution of national importance. Chair in Accounting – in honor of a $1 million gift from the John That’s the reason why the YSU Foundation, the philanthropic S. and Doris M. Andrews Trust. Stout, a nationally-recognized arm of the university, has made endowed chairs, such as the professor at Villanova University, was hired to fill the position in Andrews Chair, and endowed professorships a priority in its 2003. He retires at the end of this academic year. The college is capital fundraising campaign, which is expected to go public this conducting a national search for a replacement. fall. In a feasibility study prior to the campaign, donors ranked In addition to the Andrews chair, YSU has established the endowed chairs and professorships as the second highest priority Lariccia Family Chair in Accounting and Finance and the Clayman for funding. Professorship in Judaic and Holocaust Studies. Both of those “We were a little surprised, but very pleased, that endowed positions are currently vacant. chairs and professorships resonated so much with our donors,” As a part of the current fund-raising campaign, the university said Paul McFadden, Foundation president. has established the Friedman Chair in Engineering, thanks “But, when you think about it, the university’s overarching 14

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

to a $2.5 million gift from Morris and Phyllis Friedman. That position was filled last year by Eric MacDonald, a world leader and respected researcher in 3D printing and additive manufacturing. “We are thrilled to have someone of Eric’s stature join the YSU team and to serve as a resource for our students, our faculty and the community,” said Wim Steelant, dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.” The fund-raising campaign also received a $1 million gift from the estate of David and Helga Ives to establish a Distinguished Visiting Humanities Scholar, providing funding for a Eric MacDonald stands in front of a 3D printer in YSU's Additive Manufacturing Lab. scholar to come to YSU to teach, present seminars and conduct research. “These positions provide YSU the opportunity to bring in Award in 2016. In addition, he has served as editor of two nationally and internationally recognized leaders in their field,” national accounting journals and has published more than 100 Provost Martin Abraham said. “They elevate the stature of our articles in various professional and academic journals. programs in many ways, benefiting our students and faculty, and “David has been instrumental in increasing our visibility at the providing a stronger reputation that allows us to recruit a more national level, mentoring our students including publishing with diverse and more highly qualified student population.” MBA students, and playing an integral role in the development Ultimately, Abraham said, recruiting students depends in large of our new Master of Accountancy Program,” said Betty Jo Licata, part on the perceived value that the student will receive from dean of the Williamson College of Business Administration. “We attending a particular university. will miss his intellect, expertise and insight. He has set the bar “Value is based on how much very high for how endowed chairs operate and is gained relative to how much is how they impact the quality of education at paid,” he said. “The endowed chair YSU.” contributes to the amount gained. A YSU has lofty hopes for MacDonald, as well. student will select YSU because they He came to YSU in September from the will have an opportunity to work with University of Texas at El Paso, where he was professors who are among the leaders the Texas Instruments Endowed Professor, in their field.” associate director of the W.M. Keck Center for The same goes for recruiting 3D Innovation and the director of the ASICs faculty, Stout says. “Having an Laboratory. He has served faculty fellowships endowed position certainly sends at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the a signal to young, aspiring faculty Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, regarding the attractiveness and and he was a Fulbright Scholar for the State potential value of a YSU faculty Department in Chile. — Provost Martin Abraham appointment,” he said. MacDonald has received more than $3.8 Since Stout’s appointment 13 years million in research funding as principal ago, YSU ranks seventh in the nation investigator, and an additional $12 million for accounting education research, according to Accounting as co-principal investigator, from funders such as Lockheed Research Rankings developed by two professors at Brigham Martin Corp., the Department of Defense, NASA and the National Young University. YSU’s ranking is above that of many nationally Science Foundation. recognized research universities. In addition, he has three patents, one that was licensed by Individually, Stout has also achieved significant national Sony and Toshiba. Last fall, he co-authored a peer-reviewed recognition, including the American Accounting Association’s article on 3D printing in Science, one of the world’s most Outstanding Educator Award in 2015 and the Lifetime Service prestigious scientific journals.

“These positions

provide YSU the opportunity to bring in nationally and internationally recognized leaders in their field.”

S P R I N G 2017

YSU Nursing: C C elebrating

50 YEARS of

aring

ith advanced degrees, online programs and more gender diversity, YSU’s

Department of Nursing has made some radical changes since it began as an associate degree program in 1967. This year, as the department celebrates its Golden Anniversary, Nursing ranks as YSU’s sixth largest program, with 405 undergraduate and graduate students and 4,556 alumni. Nursing was considered mostly a female profession for many years, but no more – Nancy Wagner, professor and chair of Nursing, said 20 percent of YSU’s nursing students are men, among the highest percentages in the state. The Nursing program offers two undergraduate degree options: the entry-level BSN and the new online RN-BSN, a degree completion program for registered nurses. Enrollment for that program grew 300 percent last fall with the switch to an all-online format. Four graduate degree programs are offered: Family Nurse Practitioner, Nurse Anesthesia, Nursing Education and School Nurse, along with certificate options, including a new Adult– Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Program. Nursing graduates are in demand. Wagner said 95 percent of BSN alumni find work in their field within six months of graduation due to demand from local hospitals. Plans are being made for a 50th anniversary celebration for YSU's Department of Nursing, Saturday, October 21, in the Chestnut Room, Kilcawley Center. For more information, call 330-941-3293.

YSU Nursing medallions, top of page, are traditionally presented to Nursing seniors and worn for commencement; in the second photo, Nursing graduates Steven Gatte, left, and Thomas Merva display their senior medallions; in bottom photo, students Alexa Shaffer, left, and Emily Shields, show off the white coats that Nursing students receive in a ceremony their sophomore year.

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Nursing students like those pictured in this 1954 photo, at left, took courses at Youngstown College but earned their Nursing diplomas from local hospitals until YSU’s Nursing program was established in 1967; In the center 1985 photo, the late Dorothy Kennedy, a professor emeritus and a generous donor to the Nursing program, left, instructs students on patient care; and in 2000 photo at right, faculty member Madalyn Janosik, right, now retired, instructs a student on the use of intravenous equipment.

Nursing by the

NUMBERS

50years

In top photo, Carly Greenwood, center, practices patient shaving techniques on Bill Drabenstadt while Olivia Engle looks on. All three are student nurses.

since YSU created its Nursing program in 1967.

In second photo, students pose with “Windsor,” a high-fidelity adult manikin teaching tool that is part of the John and Dorothy Masternick Nursing Simulation Laboratory, created through a generous gift from Masternicks. The students are, from left, Blake Veglia, Molly Stitt, Arica Hardgrove and Ariel Gilchrist.

of BSN grads employed in their field within

months of graduation.

94,960

CLINICAL SERVICE HOURS BSN students provide to the community each academic year.

In third photo, Ashley Milligan visits with residents of San Quintin, Mexico, where nursing students have served on several medical mission trips.

100%

PASS RATE

At left below, students working toward an Adult– Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Certificate, YSU’s newest nursing program are, from left, Laurie Flowers, Lisa Elliott, William Lileas, Mary Beth Penkala and Theresa Murphy.

for graduates of YSU’s Family Nurse Practitioner program taking the national certification exam.

405

TOTA L

At right below, Aliyah Tullis participates in the White Coat Ceremony for sophomore nursing students.

16 10

undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in YSU nursing program.

YEARS

since YSU Nursing began a

PARTNERSHIP with St. Elizabeth School of Nurse Anesthetists.

YEARS of nursing student and faculty

mission trips to Mexico.

4,556 living in

NURSING ALUMNI

42 states. S P R I N G 2017

F A C U LT Y - S T A F F

Reasons to Celebrate: Faculty Books, Music and Art Every spring, YSU Magazine celebrates our university faculty and staff who have recently published books, computer applications, or had their work showcased in musical recordings, art and photo exhibitions. Read on, and find out why our exceptional YSU faculty and staff make us so “Y and proud!”

Finding Grit: The No Nonsense Guide for Raising Your Daughter to be Successful in Athletics, School and Life, by Don Martin, professor, Counseling. Drawing from his own experience as the father of two successful adult daughters, Martin’s newest parenting book promotes school sports as a way to build leadership qualities in youth. The author said he observed the connection as a parent and professional counselor – and studies seem to confirm it. “Sports teach teamwork and develop self esteem. You learn from failure. You develop grit and resilience,” he said. “A lot of parents struggle with developing a child who stays on task, who’s motivated, who wants to succeed. Athletics will help to make that happen.” Martin and his wife, Magy, co-author of the book and a professional youth and family counselor, saw their daughters succeed academically while playing competitive basketball in high school and college. Both daughters earned doctoral degrees and are now happily employed as college professors. He cited an Ernst & Young study showing that 94 percent of top women executives played sports and more than half were college athletes. “It kind of proves my theory, that athletics plus academics creates an environment of leadership,” he said. Finding Grit, published by ArcheBooks Publishing Inc., is Martin’s ninth book. A resident of Beaver, Pa., he joined the YSU faculty in 1999 and serves as coordinator of the School Counseling Program.

The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism, edited by Michael Jerryson, associate professor, Philosophy and Religious Studies. Published by Oxford University Press, November 2016, 760 pages. The text offers a collection of work by leading scholars tracking the changes in Buddhism as a diverse religious system. Taken together, the book provides a blueprint to understanding Buddhism's past and uses it to explore the ways in which Buddhism has transformed in the 20th and 21st centuries. Jerryson joined the YSU faculty in 2013. He has authored or co-edited several books and coedits the Journal of Religion and Violence. 1188

YOUUNNGGSSTO TOW WNN SSTAT TATEE UUNNIIVVEERRSSIITTYY YO

Understanding Sharon Olds by Russell Brickey, adjunct instructor, English. Published by University of South Carolina Press, November 2016, 149 pages. The book explores the career of Pulitzer Prize winning writer Sharon Olds, the controversies and successes of her intimate "confessional" poetry about often taboo subjects including sexuality, gender, married life and alcoholism in America. Teen Pregnancy and Parenting: Rethinking the Myths and Misperceptions, by Jaelyn R. Farris, assistant professor, Psychology, with Keri Weed and Jody S. Nicholson. Published by Routledge 2015, 220 pages. This book identifies core controversies surrounding teen pregnancy and parenting, and resolves prevalent myths and misperceptions using findings from large-scale empirical research. This is the author’s second book. She joined the YSU faculty in August 2016. Violence and the World's Religious Traditions, co-edited by Michael Jerryson, associate professor, Philosophy and Religious Studies, with Margo Kitts and Mark Juergensmeyer. Published by Oxford University Press, December 2016, 256 pages. The book contains a collection of essays that examine the relationship between violence and the world's most prominent religious traditions, with an introduction written by Jerryson. NCLEX-RN Questions & Answers Made Incredibly Easy!, 7th Edition, by Susan A. Lisko, associate professor, Nursing. Published by LLW, 2016, 921 pages. The text and its companion electronic resources are designed to help pre-licensure nursing students prepare for the licensing examination, with thousands of questions at the application level or above to prompt active learning and higher-order thinking. A Canfield resident, Lisko joined the YSU Nursing faculty in 1995. Public Speaking in the Age of Technology, by Daniel J. O'Neill, professor, Communication, and Adam C. Earnheardt, associate professor and chair, Communication. The e-text is published by Great River Learning Publishing Co., 2016. A web text, it is easily accessed online by teachers and students alike for the teaching of public speaking. Both authors have published several textbooks, and this one emerged from an earlier collaboration with the same publisher.

Mus i C F A C U L T Y

Introduction to Geospatial Technologies, Third edition, by Bradley Shellito, professor, Geography. Published by Macmillan Education, Dec. 2015, 558 pages. The book serves as an introduction to the concepts of geospatial technologies, including Geographic Information Science (computer mapping and analysis), remote sensing (taking imagery from a plane, drone, or satellite), and the Global Positioning System (GPS). The text is used in YSU’s Geospatial Foundations class and has been adopted by more than 100 schools across the United States and Canada. A Youngstown native, Shellito joined the YSU faculty in 2004 and also serves as the university’s principal investigator in OhioView, a statewide geospatial consortium. Discovering GIS and ArcGIS, Second edition, by Bradley Shellito, professor, Geography. Published by Macmillan Education, Dec. 2016, 592 pages. This text examines the theory and application of Geographic Information Systems, or GIS, and includes hands-on use of the ArcGIS software package, the industry standard for GIS. Shellito’s book is used for two YSU GIS classes and in many other schools across the U.S. Beliefs and Practices: Taking a Fresh Look, by Tom Shipka, professor emeritus, Philosophy and Religious Studies. Published by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, May 2014, 240 pages. The book promotes critical thinking and skepticism by challenging readers to evaluate their long-held beliefs and practices. Shipka, of Austintown, joined YSU in 1969. He served as chair of Philosophy and Religious Studies from 19862006, when he retired, but he continued to teach part-time until 2015. Producer Consciousness, co-authored by Homer Warren, professor emeritus, Marketing, and Linette Stratford, an attorney and adjunct faculty, Philosophy and Religion Studies. Published by Blurb, Inc., 2016, 320 pages. The book discusses why the social, political, economic and business problems the nation faces require a different consciousness. Warren taught for 35 years for YSU. A Youngstown resident, Warren joined the university in 1978. Stratford lives in Austintown and has been teaching at YSU since 2012.

Concert pianist Caroline Oltmanns, professor of Piano in the Dana School of Music, released her sixth solo recording, a concept album titled Ghosts. The recording, on the Filia Mundi label, features works by Schumann, Brahms, Chopin and Wilding. Oltmanns, a native of Germany who came to YSU in 1994, recently established an endowment, “88 Hearts for Youngstown,” a fund to support scholarships for piano students at YSU.

Cicilia Yudha, assistant professor of Piano, in the Dana School of Music, has released her first solo recording, titled Selected Piano Works by Robert Casadesus and Henri Dutilleux. The CD, released by Navona Records, features piano pieces that date back to the post World War II period, from 1945 to 1951. Yudha joined the YSU faculty four years ago.

Fair Trade, by Katie McGinley, instructor, English. Published by Crimson Romance, a Simon and Schuster company, December 2015, 188 pages; and What Happens in Vegas, self-published, 2016, 151 pages. McGinley has been writing contemporary hockey romances under her maiden name, Katie Kenyhercz, for the past three years. Vegas is part of her Las Vegas Sinners series that contains five full-length books and two novellas.

Introduction to Human Gross Anatomy, Second Edition, by Mark D. Womble, professor of Biological Sciences and Graduate Program director. Published by Van-Griner Publishing, 2016, 476 pages, 349 figures. The text provides in-depth coverage of human anatomy for pre-medical and other pre-professional undergraduate students and is the textbook used in the YSU course Introduction to Human Gross Anatomy. A Liberty Township resident, Womble joined the YSU faculty in 1995.

S P R I N G 2017

Arts V I S U A L

D I S P L AY

Boundless, a two-person exhibit and gallery debut held Oct. 7 – Nov. 4, 2016, at Visions West Gallery in Denver, featured the watercolor works of JenMarie Zeleznak, part-time Art faculty, and the work of sculptor Crystal Morey. The exhibition was featured in the October 2016 edition of American Art Collector magazine. Zeleznak’s work will also be on display in September at the National Museum of Wildlife Art as part of its Western Visions Exhibition. Zeleznak began teaching at YSU this fall. She lives in Cleveland.

“Hagia Sophia 2” by Claudia Berlinski. Claudia Berlinski: Regional Photography Exhibition, an exhibit of photographs by Claudia Berlinski, assistant professor, Art Foundations, was on display from Sept. 2016, through Feb. 5 at the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown. The exhibition included 21 iPhone photographs printed on aluminum panels. One series of photos, titled Jamal, meaning “beauty,” featured images shot in Turkey and were funded by a University Research Council Grant from YSU. A Cortland resident, Berlinski started teaching at YSU in 2000 as adjunct faculty and was hired as a full-time assistant professor in 2012. “Just a Little Longer,” watercolor pencil by JenMarie Zeleznak.

Tacit Aligning, a one-person art exhibit featuring the work of Dragana Crnjak, associate professor, Art, was on display Nov. 4 -Dec. 3 at Page Bond gallery in Richmond, Va. The exhibition, which included 12 large scale acrylic-on-canvas paintings, was Crnjak’s 16th one-person exhibit since joining YSU in 2006.

“Silent Count,” acrylic on canvas, by Dragana Crnjak

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Richard Mitchell’s photos on the brochure promoting a Dayton photography exhibit. Richard C. Mitchell, professor emeritus, Art, curated “The Vaudeville Team of Jesse Block & Eva Sully,” an exhibition of family album photographs, that was on display Oct. 25 – Dec. 7, 2016, at Thiel College in Greenville, Pa. Three of his photos were also included in the Fotofocus Biennial Photography Exhibition, an invitational exhibit at Sinclair College in Dayton. Mitchell joined the YSU faculty in 1966, retired in 2006 and continued teaching part-time until 2011.

NSF Funds Prof’s Eye-Tracking Research

GRANT FUNDING Hits Five-Year High

YSU faculty and staff were awarded $7.5 million in grants this past fiscal year, the largest amount in five years. “We certainly had a banner year thanks to the hard work and dedication of so many talented faculty and staff on campus,” said Mike Hripko, associate vice president for Research. “We hope to build on this momentum as we continue to raise the research profile of the university.” Hripko’s office celebrated the accomplishments in the Fall with nearly 100 faculty and staff at the university’s annual Research Recognition Luncheon on campus. YSU received 83 grant awards worth $7.5 million in fiscal year 2016, up from 67 awards and $4.6 million the previous year. The dollar amount is the highest since 2011. Awards came from a variety of agencies ranging from the National Science Foundation to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Among the grants was a $4 million award from the Air Force Research Laboratory to advance research and development of advanced manufacturing, the largest grant in YSU history. Also noteworthy was the university’s first-ever grant from the National Endowment for the Arts – a $100,000 award to launch a public arts project in Youngstown. “Receiving a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts is like winning the top prize in a funding contest,” said Mike Crist, retired interim dean of the YSU College of Creative Arts and Communications and one of the authors of the grant application. “The fact that this proposal was funded at the level that it was, is a stamp of approval for the goals we have set for arts engagement in our community.”

Computer Science Professor Bonita Sharif is the first faculty member in YSU history to win the National Science Foundation’s highly competitive CAREER Award for Early Career Development. Sharif, an associate professor of Computer Science and Bonita Sharif Information Systems who joined YSU’s College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in 2011, was awarded a five-year, $416,000 federal research grant. The grant is considered the NSF’s most prestigious honor for junior faculty nationwide. "This national recognition speaks to Dr. Sharif’s expertise and her growing prominence in her field," Provost Martin Abraham said. "It's also another indicator of YSU's rising reputation as an emerging research institution.” "This national recognition speaks to Dr. Sharif’s expertise and her growing prominence in her field," Provost Martin Abraham said. "It's also another indicator of YSU's rising reputation as an emerging research institution with vibrant, talented faculty who benefit our students, their disciplines and our community." Kriss Schueller, professor and chair of CSIS, said Sharif’s accomplishment reflects positively on the department and the university as a whole. “I am extremely proud of Bonita’s work,” he said. “She is building an excellent reputation in the community, and this award is a clear, national verification that valuable research is going on in CSIS.” Eye tracking has Sharif’s research is focused on the use been around a long of eye-tracking technology to understand software development that could help build time ... but we’re better tools for developers. Grant dollars using it in new ways will purchase the latest in eye-tracking to help software equipment, will pay students assisting with the project and will fund a K-12 school engineers solve outreach program. problems. “Eye tracking has been around a long – Bonita Sharif time,” she said, explaining how the technology assists people with disabilities in reading and communications. “But we’re using it in new ways to help software engineers solve problems. Only a handful of people in the world are doing this, but we’re hoping to change that.” Sharif believes the NSF liked her application because she provided plenty of research evidence to show that eye tracking can help improve the software development process. “We did a lot of groundwork to demonstrate that our ideas are feasible,” she said. A native of India, Sharif earned an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from Cyprus College on the island of Cyprus, where she also met her husband, a native of Bangladesh. Together, they came to Ohio to study at Kent State University, where she earned a master’s and PhD, also in Computer Science. She taught as a graduate assistant at KSU and spent a year as an adjunct faculty member at Ohio University before coming to YSU.

S P R I N G 2017

Around C

YSU’s Bond Rating Gets

Hospital Executive Appointed to YSU Board of Trustees Anita Hackstedde, president and chief executive officer of Salem Regional Medical Center, is the newest member of the YSU Board of Trustees. A resident of Columbiana, Ohio, Hackstedde earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from YSU in 1990 and a medical degree from Ohio State University Anita Hackstedde College of Medicine in 1994. She served as director of Student Health at YSU from 1998 to 2006. Gov. John Kasich appointed Hackstedde to the board to fill the unexpired term of James B. Greene, who died last year. Hackstedde’s term runs through April 30, 2021.

Covelli Keynote Speaker for Commencement Sam Covelli, whose company is the world’s single largest franchisee of Panera Bread restaurants and employs more than 35,000 people, was keynote speaker for YSU’s Fall Commencement on Dec. 18 and received an honorary degree. Sam Covelli Covelli was also honored by the Williamson College of Business Administration as a recipient of the 2016 Medallion for Entrepreneurship from the Beta Gamma Sigma International Business Honor Society. He is one of four recipients nationwide selected for the Beta Gamma Sigma award. A Warren resident, Covelli is owner/operator of Covelli Enterprises in Warren, which operates more than 275 Panera bread bakerycafés in five states and Canada. He also operates five O’Charley’s Restaurants and nine Dairy Queen stores.

A+

Standard & Poor’s, one of the nation’s top credit-rating agencies, has upgraded YSU’s bond rating to A+, citing increased enrollment, a strong financial profile and solid management policies. In addition, Moody’s Investors Services has reaffirmed YSU’s A2 rating, and both agencies have assigned the university a “stable outlook.” “These ratings signify to investors that YSU represents a high quality investment with only moderate risk,” said Neal McNally, vice president for Finance and Business Operations. “But, just as important, the ratings reflect the hard work of many people on campus to begin to eliminate the university’s structural budgetary challenges and to establish long-term enrollment strategies.”

YSUpdate, YSU Magazine Win National Recognition YSUpdate, YSU’s campus newsletter, won a Gold Award in the national Collegiate Advertising Awards program and a Silver Award from the Educational Advertising Awards, sponsored by the Higher Education Marketing Report. Meanwhile, YSU Magazine received a Merit Award in the Educational Advertising Awards contest, as well as a Merit Award in the Service Industry Advertising Awards competition. Both publications were in competition with schools having enrollments of 10,000 to 20,000. The Collegiate Advertising Awards is an elite program recognizing universities for excellence in communications, marketing, advertising and promotions. YSUpdate was selected from among 900 entries from the United States and Canada. The Gold Award designation recognizes newsletters in the top 5 percent nationally.

Student Marshals Selected in New Commencement Tradition Seven graduates were chosen to represent each of the university’s seven colleges as Honorary Student Marshals at Fall Commencement, launching a new graduation tradition at YSU. The Marshalls were selected based on high academic standing, campus leadership, involvement and overall good citizenship. These are the first Honorary Student Marshals, listed with the college they represent: • College of Graduate Studies – Daniel Cesene of Hubbard, Ohio, doctorate in Education. • Williamson College of Business Administration – Corey J. Patrick Fall graduates chosen to serve as YSU’s first Honorary Student Marshals were, from left, Corey Patrick, Allison English, Amanda Dradt, of Struthers, Ohio, Financial Management major. Aislinn Janek, Dan Cesene, Wendell Parrish Jr. and Kayla Lucente. • Beeghly College of Education – Allison English of East Liverpool, Ohio, Middle Childhood Education major. • College of Creative Arts and Communication – Aislinn Janek of Campbell, Ohio, Communications major. • Bitonte College of Health and Human Services – Wendell Parrish Jr. of Columbus, Ohio, a Nursing major. • College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences – Kayla Lucente of Struthers, Ohio, Political Science major. • College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics – Amanda Dradt of London, Ohio, Biology major. 22

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Board Awards President Tressel Contract Extension Through 2018

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New on YSU Skyline: A Third Wind Turbine

President Jim Tressel will continue at YSU through June 2018 under a contract extension approved recently by the YSU Board of Trustees. Carole Weimer, trustee chair, called Tressel “a tireless recruiter, advocate and cheerleader for the Mahoning Valley, for YSU and for our students.” Jim Tressel Tressel was named YSU’s ninth president in 2014 and his original contract would have run out this June. The new agreement also includes three separate additional one-year extension options that could extend the contract through June 2021. The pact includes no pay increase – his annual salary will remain at $300,000. Under Tressel’s leadership, YSU’s enrollment is up for the first time in six years, and incoming freshmen have the highest standardized test scores and grade point averages in the university’s history. Residence halls are at capacity, and the university spearheaded a private development plan for the construction of a 382-bed apartment complex and a new Barnes & Noble student bookstore on the West Side of campus. In addition, YSU approved its first operating budget in five years without a structural deficit, froze tuition to maintain its position as the most affordable public university in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania, and raised a record $20.5 million in private gifts in fiscal year 2016, including a $1 million donation from Jim and Ellen Tressel.

There’s a new landmark on campus, and it’s hard to miss. A third wind turbine – this one more than 100feet high with a large, hooded blade windmill – was installed last fall next to Melnick Hall at the corner of Wick Avenue and the Madison Avenue Expressway service road. Two smaller turbines were installed a year before at the same location as part of a federal research grant aimed at developing alternative energy resources. The YSU research, funded with grants totaling more than $2 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, focuses on the extraction of wind power in areas of low wind speed.

Expanding partnerships in Asia, Exploring Opportunities in Israel In two separate international ventures, YSU signed new partnership agreements with nearly a dozen Asian universities and explored a range of international Exploring educational and opportunities in Israel. business opportunities in The first YSU team visited China, South Korea, Japan and Israel are, from left: YSU Taiwan last fall, meeting with officials from 23 universities alum Dan Carnevale; Brett to discuss future academic collaborations, including Conner, YSU associate professor of Mechanical student study abroad and faculty exchange agreements. and Industrial Engineering; “It was a busy and successful trip,” said Nathan Myers, YSU Youngstown Business associate provost for International and Global Initiatives. Incubator CEO Barb Ewing; It was the second trip to China in 12 months for YSU YSU President Jim Tressel representatives – the previous visit, in fall 2015, resulted in and Ellen Tressel; and signed partnerships with five universities in China. Bonnie Deutsch Burdman, Youngstown Area Jewish In January, a second delegation from YSU and the Federation. Youngstown Business Incubator spent seven days in Israel, exploring opportunities for student internships, faculty exchanges, research, industry partnerships and business connections. Both trips were part of YSU’s effort to expand its international footprint and educational initiatives. YSU currently has 315 international students from more than 50 countries.

Wick Avenue Gets a Facelift Construction crews continue work on a major reconstruction project on Wick Avenue, a main campus thoroughfare. The $4.9 million facelift is financed mostly by the city of Youngstown, with YSU and Youngstown CityScape both paying a portion of the cost. Besides aesthetic improvements such as new pavement, sidewalks and lighting, the project includes new water and sewer lines and underground electric lines that will eliminate unsightly utility poles. Lincoln Avenue improvements, including new pavement, sidewalks, crosswalks, curbs and parking meters, were completed in January. The Wick project will continue through fall.

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Alumnus Honors Vietnam Hero with Room Naming Nearly a half-century after his YSU classmate Kenneth Nervie was killed in action in the Vietnam War, a retired business executive and alumnus has found a way to honor the memory of his friend. YSU alum Gary Wuslich of South Bend, Ind., gave $25,000 to the YSU Veterans Resource Center and had a room named the Kenneth Nervie Student Office in memory of his classmate. “I thought Ken was an extraordinary person and that something should be done to remember him at Showing a photo of Vietnam hero and YSU YSU,” Wuslich said. alumnus Kenneth Nervie are Gary Wuslich, left, and Nervie’s sister, Mary Ellen Nervie Avritt. Nervie, who grew up in Youngstown and earned a YSU bachelor’s degree in 1967, was killed in action in Binh Duong, South Vietnam, a member of the Army’s 25th infantry division. He is one of four YSU alumni listed on the Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C. In other veteran-related news, YSU was designated a Military Friendly university by GI Jobs magazine and named a “Best for Vets College 2017” by Military Times magazine. It is the ninth consecutive year that YSU has been awarded the Military Friendly designation. The Best for Vets ranking is based on the magazine’s school-by-school survey of veteran and military student offerings and rates of academic achievement.

In Memoriam: William J. Lyden William “Bill” J. Lyden, a member of the YSU Board of Trustees from 1975-89 who served as chair in 197778, died August 17, 2016, in Salem, Ohio, at the age of 86. He was an avid Penguin fan and supporter of the university. An electrician, he served as business manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 64 for more than 20 years and served as president of the Western Reserve Building Council from 1972 until his retirement in 1992. 24

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Skeggs Lecture Series Speakers Scheduled YSU’s Skeggs Lecture Series will bring four exceptional speakers to Stambaugh Auditorium, Youngstown, in the coming months. All the lectures are free and open to the public, but tickets are required. Author Margaret Atwood, best known for her novels but also a poet and a writer of children’s literature and nonfiction, speaks at 7 p.m. Friday, April 21. Her most recent collection of short stories is titled Stone Mattress, and her latest novel is The Heart Goes Last. Skeggs speakers scheduled for the 2017-18 season are: Jeff Corwin, host of the Emmy Award-winning wildlife Margaret Atwood adventure series “Ocean Mysteries with Jeff Corwin,” will speak at 7 p.m. Wed., Oct. 4. A leading environmental journalist, Corwin is a special science and environmental correspondent for NBC News. Gabby Giffords, a former United States Congresswoman, and her husband, Mark Kelly, will share their story of hope and courage in the wake of tragedy Jeff Corwin at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. Giffords was severely injured in a 2011 assassination attempt; Kelly is a retired astronaut and U.S. Navy captain. Ben Stein, an actor, author, economist and pop culture icon, will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, 2018. Known for his acting role in the film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” he has written or co-written 30 books, writes a column for the New York Times and is a commentator Mark & Gabby Giffords for CBS Sunday Morning and FOX News. The Skeggs Lecture Series was established in 1966 in memory of the late Leonard T. Skeggs Sr., who served as general secretary of the Youngstown YMCA until his death in 1933. It was Skeggs who encouraged Howard W. Jones to become the first president of the university. Tickets to all four lectures are Ben Stein free and can be ordered online at www.stambaughauditorium.com.

your Letters.

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YSU Magazine wants to hear from you!

Editor, In reference to your article “Penguin Football Traditions throughout the Years” in the Fall 2016 issue of the alumni magazine, I’d like to add one that brought some real gravel to the football program in the 60s and 70s. Youngstown Building Materials (YBM) had one of its cement mixers painted to look like a football and would park it just beyond the end zone, usually in Rayen Stadium. After a touchdown, the air horn would sound and the cylinder would roll. Cement mixers have a tendency to tip over if the concrete sticks to the drum while the mixer is taking a corner. This one tipped so often that the YBM folks referred to it as “The Fumble.” YBM has been out of business for quite some time, but the management team, mostly Youngstown College grads, showed their support with a very unique display. I also remember seeing Pete the Penguin on campus in a little pen just outside the old library. He would be brought to football and basketball games wearing a small harness. I realize that being a live mascot is not exactly an animal’s best career, however Pete was a pet for the entire student body.

Ken Novotny, ’74 Columbus, Ohio

Editor, The Fall 2016 edition of the YSU Magazine was super! I read the edition in one sitting. Exciting, insightful and interesting! My compliments to you and your staff!

Rev. Edward P. Noga, Pastor St. Patrick Parish, Youngstown

Editor: I just wanted to pass on my praise for the beautiful fall 2016 YSU Magazine. I spent a few minutes thumbing through it yesterday and was thoroughly impressed with the design, articles, etc. Very well done! I look forward to taking it home this week for closer inspection.

Patrick “Rick” Williams, MAJ, USA Retired Coordinator, YSU Veterans Resource Center

Editor: I enjoyed reading the fall 2016 edition of YSU’s alumni magazine that arrived in my mailbox here in New York today. May I point out a small error in your profile of Rochelle Robinson? It says that she had traveled to Helsinki, Sweden. I’m sure you know that Helsinki is in Finland, not Sweden. Thanks very much for putting together a fine alumni magazine. It is really a pleasure to read.

Nancy Simon, MD, ’84 MM New York, N.Y. Editor’s note: We’re embarrassed, but thanks for the correction!

Our Maag Library archivists found this photo of the YBM cement mixer Ken Novotny describes in his letter.

Editor: Received the Fall issue of YSU Magazine yesterday and was very impressed with the content and layout. I was editor of both The Jambar (1966) and The Neon (1967) at YSU, earned a BSBA in Advertising and went on to head corporate communication/public relations at Rite Aid, Burger King, and Hardee’s, receiving many awards in the process. Your entire staff has put together an informative and interesting publication. Kudos to all involved.

Jerry Singer, ’67 Pittsburgh, Pa.

Editor: As an employee of YSU and long time hop and beer lover, I found your YSU Magazine article titled “Success is Brewing” (Spring IS BREWIN 2016) about YSU’s link to the brewing G industry serendipitously ironic. Not being a YSU alum may disqualify me, but while earning a BS in Agronomy at OSU (‘82), I began fermenting fruit wines. After graduating, I took a job in Upstate N.Y. where I switched to fermenting beer and within a year ended up finding some wild hops growing along a country road. My hoppy obsession was on! Currently, my humble hop-breeding program is a yearly labor of love. My goal is to develop a variety suited to the local climate that newly established local hop growing operations can grow. I’m also founder of B-Hoppy, the original hop candy company.

Bob Bero Lowellville, Ohio YSU groundskeeper

Send your letters to: universitymagazine@ysu.edu or YSU Office of Marketing & Communications, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.

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alumni

SPOTLIGHT

C E L E B R AT I N G A C C O M P L I S H E D G R A D U AT E S

Introducing Three Exceptional Alumni Featured in this issue: Racquel Wright, ’16, working in a remote Alaskan village as a school counselor; Bill Barna, ’05, inventor of a school security device that could save lives; and Mirta Reyes-Chapman, ’92, an engineer honored as a Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan.

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

alumni SPOTLIGHT

Alaskan Village is Home for

New Counseling Grad

Racquel Wright, ’16 MSEd

oose nose soup and boiled fish heads. Winter nights that last 19 hours or more – and endless summer days. That’s life in Alaska, and recent YSU grad Racquel Wright has been learning to adapt since she moved to the remote Southern Alaska village of Newhalen to accept a school counseling position last year. Born and raised in New Castle, Pa., Wright earned an undergraduate degree from Penn State Behrend in Erie, Pa., then enrolled in YSU’s graduate Mental Health Counseling program. Serendipitously, she signed up for School Counseling Ethics class by mistake, loved it, and switched to the School Counseling track. The Alaskan assignment was also an about-face from her original plans. After completing her YSU master's degree, Wright attended a career fair near Pittsburgh seeking a job close to home. A representative from the Alaskan school district approached, told her about the program and suggested she interview “just to gain experience.” Within a week she had signed a oneyear contract and was making plans to move north. “I figured, what’s 10 months out of my whole life,” she said. “But now I love it here so much, I’ll stay a few years if I can.” She relocated to Newhalen last August and lives in a tiny apartment next door to the school. She provides weekly group counseling sessions, using a preventative violence curriculum that

Racquel Wright shows off a salmon she caught at an Alaskan lodge where she and other counselors and teachers attended a staff in-service last summer. She caught several fish, ranging in size from 9 to 15 pounds. Wright is wearing a net over her face to ward off mosquitos.

emphasizes kindness, empathy and The prevalence of air travel on small anger management. One-on-one student planes resulted in the first major crisis counseling sessions are often done via she faced in her new school counseling Skype. position. A pilot, a coach and his two When Wright says the village is teenaged children were tragically killed in “in the middle of nowhere,” she’s not December when their single-engine plane exaggerating. crashed over a lake on the way to a state Newhalen is in a mountainous area volleyball championship in Anchorage. 320 miles southwest of Anchorage, with Wright flew to Port Alsworth, their a single paved road that runs from the home village, to offer counseling to the airport to the school. The school district grieving students and school staff. “It was is about the size of West Virginia, with 12 baptism by fire. It was my first experience schools and 300 students in grades K-12 dealing with school grief, and I had no spread across hundreds of miles. “There idea what to do or say,” she said. “I emailed are no roads to get from village to village,” one of my Counseling professors at YSU, she said. “You take a plane or a boat Dr. Don Martin, and he helped me out. He wherever you go.” gave me some encouraging words. I was Winter temperatures have been similar so grateful!” to what she experienced in Pennsylvania, Profile by Cynthia Hixenbaugh but the short winter days and long nights took some getting used to. Wright found it even tougher to cope with Alaskan summers, when daylight can stretch 21 hours or more. “It’s 11 p.m., but it’s bright as day, so you just keep going,” she said. “It’s hard to realize that it’s time to sleep.” Wright is learning to understand the culture, language and dialects of the Alaskan natives she works with – about 91 percent of Newhalen’s population are Eskimo or part Eskimo and speak both Yupik and English. Food choices can be an adventure. So far, she has refused to try moose nose soup or boiled fish heads, both menu favorites in the region she now calls home. “The people here eat every part of the animal that you can imagine. They don’t waste anything,” she explained. “It’s part Racquel Wright of their history and culture.”

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alumni SPOTLIGHT

Protecting schools:

“It’s just too simple not to use” Bill Barna, ’03 AAS, ’05 BSAS

our years ago, Bill Barna was at Howland Middle School in Trumbull County, leading a full-fledged active shooter training scenario for local police, teachers, principals and students. There were guns firing blanks. Students running the halls. Victims. And even fake blood. That’s when Barna, a 30-year veteran officer of the Howland Police Department, noticed something alarming: the doors. Doors leading into classrooms could be locked, but the locked doors could be easily broken into, leaving children and teachers vulnerable. “We needed to do something more to shore-up the doors and keep the bad guys from getting in,” said Barna, who earned an associate’s degree in Community Health in 2003 and a bachelor’s degree in Public Health from YSU in 2005. After a few months of brainstorming, drafting, re-engineering and testing, Barna came up with a device he believes could revolutionize door safety in schools nationwide. Four years later, the Bolo Stick has been installed in 23 school districts across Ohio, as well as one church and on the doors at the Ohio Department of Taxation in Columbus. And the word is getting out. Now, school districts as far away as Montana are considering installing the device on their classroom doors. “The greatest feature about this device – it’s simple,” Barna said. “It’s just too simple not to use.” The patented device, which meets all Ohio building standards, includes a 5 1/4-inch steel pin that slips through a steel mount attached to the bottom of

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

the door and then into a steel anchor drilled into the floor surface. Made of construction-grade, 1045 steel, the device is engineered to resist forces in excess of 4,200 pounds to deny unwanted entry. “I’ve kicked in a lot of doors in my years as a police officer; no one is going to kick in this door,” he said. When an emergency arises and a lockdown is ordered, all the teacher needs to do is shut the Bill Barna door and shove the pin through the anchor and into the ground. “In a high stress situation, people get myopic, adrenaline surges and sometimes fine motor skills are not as sharp as they otherwise would be,” he said. “That’s why it’s important to have a system that does not require multiple, complex steps. The simpler, the better.” Barna, who credits the Ohio Small Business Development Center at YSU for helping him develop the product for market, said his next steps are to better advertise the device. He plans to retire from police work within a year and devote more time and energy to getting the word out, and maybe even acquire a couple employees to help expand sales. He is already planning to hire a YSU student as an intern this summer. “But, you know, I don’t need to make a million dollars; that’s not why I’m into this,” said Barna, who also has been an

instructor at the YSU Police Academy for 15 years and is a certified substitute teacher. “I saw a need. I just want schools to have every tool available to them to make sure our children are as safe as they can be.” Barna’s wife, Debbie, earned a bachelor’s degree in Public Health from YSU in 2010 and is currently housing services administrator at the Trumbull Metropolitan Housing Authority. Their youngest son is a freshman in the Honors College on campus. For more information on the Bolo Stick, visit www.bolostick.com; for more information on the SBDC at YSU, contact Pat Veisz, pkveisz@ysu.edu. (Editor’s note: Wondering why Barna named his invention Bolo? It’s a law enforcement term for “Be on the lookout.”) Profile by Ron Cole

alumni SPOTLIGHT

Blazing Trails for

Women and Latinos

Mirta Reyes-Chapman, ’92 BSAS

hen Mirta Reyes-Chapman landed her first engineering job in the 1980s, manufacturers didn’t make steel-toed work boots in women’s sizes – and her presence on construction sites raised plenty of eyebrows among her male counterparts. “People never saw women in the field at that time. When I said I was the construction inspector, they didn’t believe me,” she remembers with a smile. “It was new, unheard of, but I was just a person trying to do my job.” Then a single mother and nontraditional student, Reyes-Chapman was determined to make a good living for herself and her son. She completed her BSAS degree in Civil Engineering in 1992 and has continued to blaze trails for women and Latinos over her successful, 28-year career. Starting off as the first Hispanic female to major in Civil Engineering and minor in Mathematics at YSU, she was still a student when she became the first Hispanic female hired by the Trumbull County Sanitary Engineer’s Office in 1986. Later, she was the first Hispanic female hired by her current employer, the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments in Youngstown, and the first Hispanic female in the Northeastern states appointed an associate staff member of the Transportation Safety Institute. Occasionally, she has encountered prejudice or bias related to her gender or ethnic background, but Reyes-Chapman has her own way of handling it. “I might be very nice to people, and sometimes kindness is seen as a sign of weakness,” she said. “But I speak up when I need to. I don’t let people step on me.”

Now, as Transit Program Manager for Eastgate, a planning agency for local governments in Mahoning, Trumbull and Ashtabula counties, she plays an essential role in improving transportation services and accessibility across the region. “Mobility is a big issue, especially for seniors and people with disabilities,” she said. “I have a passion to see that they have dependable transportation.” Her work has even touched her alma mater – the YSU Penguin Shuttle, a campus bus Mirta Reyes-Chapman service, was a project she was involved in. Reyes-Chapman remembers growing Last October, Gov. up with Italian, Hungarian and Polish John Kasich named Reyes-Chapman friends, and she learned to appreciate a Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan, their foods and cultures. “I loved to watch recognizing her life of community service on behalf of women, Hispanics and people my friends’ grandmas in the kitchen, and I learned to cook goulash, pierogies, with disabilities. The YSU alumna was pizzelles and pasta sauce from scratch,” selected for the award by the Ohio Latino she remembers. “It was an exciting time, Affairs Commission and the Ohio State University Office of Diversity and Inclusion. growing up in our neighborhood, and I have so many happy memories. If you Winning such a prestigious, statewide went to visit a neighbor, there was always honor was a crowning achievement for something delicious on the stove, and you Reyes-Chapman, a daughter of Puerto never left hungry.” Rican parents who settled and raised their Reyes-Chapman lives in Youngstown family in Youngstown’s ethnic Briar Hill with her husband, Ronald, also a YSU neighborhood. She and her three siblings graduate, and their daughter Sierra, a met daily in the kitchen to learn English student at Ursuline High School. Her son, from their steelworker father, a man who Angelo, is a pharmacist living in Columbus. valued the importance of education. “He used to tell me, ‘Open your eyes, girl, Profile by Cynthia Hixenbaugh there’s a whole big world out there,’ ” she said.

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hilanthropy

Y O U N G S T O W N S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y

Legacy

One Great Way to Leave a

By Paul McFadden, president, ysu foundation

Doesn't everybody like the idea of leaving a legacy, something positive for which we can be remembered? The desire often becomes stronger as we see our birthday candles increasing in number. At YSU, hundreds of alumni and friends have discovered an amazing way to create a forever legacy – they’ve established scholarship endowments that literally go on giving in perpetuity. An endowed scholarship at the YSU Foundation can be used to memorialize the donor, or the donor’s friend or loved one. Because they continue indefinitely, endowed scholarships can provide many generations of YSU students with opportunities to receive a quality education while reducing their college debt. Scholarships benefit the university, as well, by helping to attract more exceptional students, thus building on the university's excellence.

How It Works

At the YSU Foundation, an endowed scholarship can be established with an investment of $10,000 or more. Many donors fund their scholarships by making a pledge over a period of three to five years; others give appreciated assets, such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds. All gifts are tax-deductible, as provided by law.

Once an endowment is created, 4 percent of the total is awarded to one or more student scholarship recipients each year – meanwhile, the remainder continues to grow, becoming more substantial in perpetuity.

Donor Sets Criteria

Each donor determines the criteria for the unique scholarship he or she creates. They may decide to reward academic or athletic achievements, or to target applicants in a specific geographic area, ethnic background or academic course of study. The variety of criteria established by different donors allows students with diverse goals, backgrounds, needs and merits to be eligible for scholarships. If you would like to know more about establishing an endowed scholarship or to discuss planned giving, please contact us at the YSU Foundation: 330-941-3211 or pmcfadden@ysufoundation.org.

The Original 14 -

Still Growing, Still Giving Fourteen endowed scholarships were already in place when the YSU Foundation was chartered with the State of Ohio on Oct. 13, 1966 – and those 14 continue to grow and to provide scholarship assistance to YSU students every year. The endowments, known as “The Original 14, ” have increased to five times their original value. In the 2016-17 academic year, The Original 14 are providing scholarship support for 26 YSU students. As endowments, they will continue to

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grow and will continue to carry on the legacy of the donors. Here are the YSU Foundation’s Original 14 and the years they were established: • Haig Ramage Scholarship, 1955 • Tom Pemberton Scholarship, 1956 • Herman Ritter Scholarship, 1957 • Sarah Rowland Scholarship, 1957 • Clarence Strouss Scholarship, 1958 • Katherine McDowell Wilson Scholarship, 1958

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION The Youngstown State University Foundation is the designated philanthropic entity of Youngstown State University

• William Maag Scholarship, 1962 • Colonel Boals Scholarship, 1963 • Clara Hincy Scholarship, 1963 • Joseph Potochny Scholarship, 1963 • Hilda Hanna Scholarship, 1964 • Helene & Harry Myer Scholarship, 1964 • Lloyd Booth Scholarship, 1965 • William Jenkins Scholarship, 1966

Philanthropy

Increasing Excellence: Scholarships Reward Student Talents, Skills and Interests

Alumni and friends of YSU established close to 120 new scholarships at the YSU Foundation in 2016– honoring friends, memorializing loved ones, and creating new opportunities for students with a range of skills, strengths and special interests. With assets topping $210 million, the Foundation holds more than 750 endowed scholarships, including 45 that are available only to qualifying minority students. Here’s a sampling of three scholarships created recently:

Penny Laakso Pavelko Math Education Scholarship

A 1970 YSU alumna who retired after a 30-year career as a mathematics teacher, Penny Laakso Pavelko was the proud recipient of scholarships when she was a college student. “The scholarships assisted with my tuition, and I was honored to know someone trusted me with that award,” she said. Penny Laakso Pavelko “I made a personal commitment to establish a scholarship for students studying to become mathematics teachers.” Pavelko taught mathematics in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana county schools and spent seven years as an adjunct math instructor at YSU. She continues her involvement with YSU as an adjunct member of the YSU Alumni Society Board. The scholarship she created will be awarded to a student of sophomore status or higher, enrolled in the Beeghly College of Education.

1991 National Championship Scholarship

David Burch, 1991

Among the Foundation’s newest endowments is the 1991 National Championship Scholarship, established in 2016 in conjunction with the 25th anniversary

celebration honoring the 1991 National Championship team, the first in school history to win a national championship. Ken Conatser, a YSU football coach for 15 years who served as assistant to former Head Coach Jim Tressel, created the endowment. The scholarship will be awarded annually to a member of the Penguin football team, and the recipient will wear jersey Number 91 in recognition of YSU's first championship. Nearly 50 members of the 1991 team were on campus for the anniversary celebration Oct. 15. Tragically, one team member died two weeks later. David Burch, who served as a defensive lineman for the Penguins from 1989 to 1993 – including two of the National Championship years – was 46 when he passed away Oct. 31.

Joseph Edwards Memorial Scholarship

Friends and family of Joseph Edwards, a beloved faculty member in the Dana School of Music, established this endowment in his memory. Edwards was 73 when he died last April. A YSU alumnus, Edwards earned a BM in Music Education in 1965 and an MM as a woodwind specialist Joseph Edwards from Michigan State University. He joined the YSU faculty in 1969, later served as director of the Dana School of Music, as interim dean of the Beeghly College of Education, as acting chair of Education, Foundations, Research, Technology and Leadership, and finally as dean of the College of Fine and Performing Arts, now the College of Creative Arts and Communication. The scholarship created in Edwards’ memory will be awarded annually to a full-time student enrolled in the Dana School of Music.

YSU President Jim Tressel, at center in white, congratulates members of the 1991 National Championship team at the 25th anniversary celebration in 2016. A football scholarship was created to mark the anniversary.

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student

success S T O R I E S

YSU Ethics Bowl Team Places Second in Nation

For the second consecutive year, YSU's Ethics Bowl team from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point bested the Penguins. placed second in the nation in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl At the competition, teams argue and defend their moral competition in Dallas. assessment of complex ethical The YSU team includes: issues facing society today. Lindsay Heldreth of Canfield, Questions address a wide a Philosophy and Religious array of topics in business and Studies major; Rachael Jenkins professional ethics, in personal of Youngstown, a Philosophy relationships, and in social and Communications Studies and political affairs. The cases major; Tyler Miller-Gordon discussed in the final round on of Hubbard, a Philosophy the national competition dealt and French major; and Jacob with the United States’ usage Schriner-Briggs of Youngstown, of drones and government a Philosophy and Political whistleblowing. Science major. The team is Tomhave said the Ethics Bowl coached by Alan Tomhave, team practices twice a week. associate professor and chair Practices are also attended by of Philosophy and Religious faculty from across campus, Members of YSU’s Ethics Bowl team, showing off their trophy at the national Studies. including three colleges. Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl competition in Dallas, from left: team coach Alan The team qualified for the “I want to thank all the faculty Tomhave, associate professor of Philosophy, Tyler Miller-Gordon, Lindsay Heldreth, Jacob Schriner-Briggs and Rachael Jenkins. national contest, hosted by who helped prepare the team for the Association for Practical the competition,” he said. “You all and Professional Ethics, after placing first at the Central States put in many hours helping the team out and that help was crucial Regional Ethics Bowl competition at Marian University in in the team’s achievement.” Indianapolis last fall. About 200 teams compete in the regional He also thanked Samantha Fritz and Jake Tomory, students tourneys. who showed up every week to play the opposing team in The national competition in Dallas brought together 37 teams practices. “They are amazing, and I am looking forward to working from across the nation, including Tufts, Northwestern, Clemson, with them in the future, both in classes and with the Ethics Bowl,” Cal Poly and Villanova. In the quarterfinal round, the YSU team he said. beat Whitworth University, last year’s winners. In the finals, a team

Freshmen Students Named

Navarro Executive Fellows

Seventeen Youngstown State University freshmen were chosen in the fall to mentor with campus leaders and gain work experience as members of the inaugural class of Navarro Executive Fellows. Offered for the first time this year, the program is for incoming ALANA (African American/Black, Latino/Latina/Hispanic, Asian/ Pacific Islander and Native American/Indian) students. Students named to the inaugural group of Fellows are, from left: top row – Vincent Trevino, Sebring; E'Dazjia Solomon-Green, McKeesport, Pa.; Kathryn Biller, Mt. Pleasant, Pa.; Ashley R. Bennett, East Liverpool; Myia Wade, Warren, Ohio; Krislynn Jones, Clairton, Pa.; and Melik Hampton of Toledo, Ohio; middle row – Sha'Kayla Poole, Youngstown; Ciara Rosario, Youngstown; Elijah Foose, Youngstown; Antwanaijah Burgess, Campbell; Jasmine Smyles, Chicago; Shantia Cox, Warrensville Heights; Sabrea Sales, Akron; Jasmine Harper, Youngstown; Mylantey Wyatt, Cleveland. (Not pictured, Clinton Nwabuogu of Jefferson Hills, Pa.) Seated in the front row are, from left, YSU President James Tressel, Shorty and Elba Navarro, the philanthropists for whom the fellowship program is named, and Sylvia Imler, associate vice president of Multicultural Affairs.

student SUCCESS

Student Earns Scholarships to Study Arabic in Jordan

Five Participate in Norway Conference Five students in YSU’s Musical Theater program traveled to Oslo, Norway, with a select group of students from around the world to participate in the Musical Theatre Educators’ Alliance Conference. The student participants and two recent graduates who traveled with them are: Mia Colon, sophomore, Youngstown; alumna Emily Shipley of Struthers; Angelique Tanner, junior, Waverly, Ohio; Stefon Funderburke, junior, Farrell, Pa.; Daniel Navabi, sophomore, Columbus, Ohio; Makenzie Moorman, sophomore, Piketon, Ohio; and alumna Connor Bezeredi of Salem, Ohio. YSU students competed for positions through an audition process and were awarded five of the 18 open slots – others came from Singapore, Italy, Denmark, Norway and Australia.

Preparing for their national conference presentation are grad students, from left, Rachel Soroka, Emily Jumper, Jerrilyn Guy and Kelsey Cirkvencic.

Grad Students to Present at National Conference Four graduate students in YSU’s Counseling Program will present this spring at the American Counseling Association’s 2017 Conference and Expo in San Francisco. The students invited to speak are: Jerrilyn Guy, a Psychology major from New Castle, Pa.; Kelsey Cirkvencic of Lakewood, Ohio, and Emily Jumper of Boardman, both Counseling majors; and Rachel Soroka, a Social Work major from Poland, Ohio. Counseling faculty Jake Protivnak and Matthew Paylo will also share in the presentation. The group’s study is titled “Mental Health Advocacy: Wellness Training for University Administrators, Faculty, and Staff.” The 2017 conference is expected to attract more than 4,000 counseling students, licensed professional counselors and counselor educators.

Jordan

Heading for a conference in Oslo, Norway are, from left: Mia Colon, alumna Emily Shipley, Angelique Tanner, Stefon Funderburke, Daniel Navabi, Makenzie Moorman and alumna Connor Bezeredi.

Bryce Saunders of Boardman, a junior Political Science major, was awarded $13,000 in scholarships to study abroad in Jordan. Saunders, who is minoring in Geography at YSU, received an $8,000 Benjamin A. Gilman International Bryce Saunders Scholarship Critical Need Language Award, plus $4,000 from the Council on International Educational Exchange and $1,000 from YSU’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. The Gilman scholarship is awarded to students studying a language that is deemed critical for U.S. national security and economic opportunity. Saunders will study Arabic while in Jordan. Saunders’ award is the latest in a series of Gilman Scholarships awarded to YSU students.

Student Wins National Figure Skating Medal

YSU sophomore Corey Carbone of Boardman took home a gold medal from the 2016 National Showcase Figure Skating Competition. One of 538 skaters competing in 93 events, he won the top prize in the Novice Dramatic category. Carbone, a Drafting and Design Technology major, returned to YSU in the fall after taking off a year to train and completed his freshman year with a 3.2 grade point average. Originally from Erie, Pa., he has been skating for 11 years and skating competitively for nine. Now he balances classwork, daily practice on the ice and coaching other skaters. “It can be difficult,” he said. “My Corey Carbone days are pretty packed.”

S P R I N G 2017

CLASS notes

’60s

Don Bartelmay of Aiken, S.C., ’64 BA in History and Political Science, is now serving as national president of Sertoma (Service to Mankind), an international service club with 13,000 members. The club sponsors Camp Don Bartelmay Sertomas across the country for children with hearing disorders, provides hearing aids to economically disadvantaged people and awards many scholarships to college students studying Audiology and Speech Pathology. Bartelmay also sits on the board of directors of Hearing Charities of America. He is retired after an award-winning 35-year career with JC Penney, where he worked in store, district and market management.

’70s Donna M. DeBlasio, ’71 BA and ’76 MA in History, has joined the editorial team of Ohio History. A professor of History at YSU, she worked with journal editor and YSU colleague L. Diane Barnes, also a History Donna M. DeBlasio professor, as coeditor of the Fall 2016 edition of the Ohio History journal, a publication of Kent State

University Press. DeBlasio assumed full editorship this year. She holds a PhD in History from Kent State. Elizabeth Nocera Davis of Medina, ’75 BS, a partner in the Roetzel law firm and based in its Akron headquarters, has been named to the “Best Lawyers in America” 2017 in the field of Medical Malpractice Defense. The “Best Lawyers” recognition is based on a peer-review evaluation. Davis earned her law degree from the University of Akron School of Law. Joseph Martuccio of Canton, Ohio, ’76 BA, was recently named to a one-year term as the 99th president of the Stark County Bar Association. He has served as law director for the City of Canton since 2000 and previously was employed as the Stark County Public Defender, then as assistant city law director. He has served in several leadership positions in the bar association. Dan Linebaugh of Baytown, Texas, ’78 BA in Speech Communication, has received the Diplomates of Trial Advocacy from the American Association for Justice, an award recognizing attorneys who have developed their professional and Dan Linebaugh practical knowledge of trial skills and substantive law. He is one of only seven attorneys in Texas to be named an AAJ Diplomate. The founder of the Linebaugh Law Firm in Baytown, he earned his law degree from South Texas College of Law and is a graduate of the prestigious Trial Lawyers College in Dubois, Wyo. He serves on the board of governors for the American Association of Justice Bus Litigation Group.

’80s

Look-Alike Twins Compete in Twinsburg Event Can you tell them apart? Identical twin sisters and YSU alumni Charlotte Italiano of Canfield, ’54 BSEd, left, and Rose Italiano Pacalo of North Lima, ’55 BS in Medical Technology, enjoy dressing alike to compete at the annual Twins Day Festival in Twinsburg, Ohio. Held every August, the event is billed as the world’s largest gathering of twins. Charlotte is an Ursuline sister and director of Classroom Management at St. Joseph the Provider School in Youngstown; Rose is a retired teacher.

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Steven Bondor of Clayton, N.C., ’80 BE in Civil Engineering, has joined the Raleigh, N.C., office of Dewberry, a Steven Bondor privately held professional service firm, where he will support the water resources division for transportation and design-build projects. Bondor has nearly 20 years experience in hydraulic highway design. Michael J. Hudak of Canfield, ’80 BSAS, and Terrence S. Finn of Akron, ’84 BE, both partners and attorneys with Roetxel & Andress LPA in Akron, were named to the 2017 edition of the “Best Lawyers in America” list. Hudak was recognized in the field of Medical Malpractice Defense; Finn, in the field of Environmental Law and Litigation. “Best Lawyers” honorees

are chosen on the basis of peer-review evaluations. Hudak earned his law degree from the University of Akron School of Law; Finn earned his law degree from the University of Toledo College of Law. John S. Arditi of Spring, Texas, ’82 BSBA in Accounting, has joined Empire Continental Land, a leading Canadian land developer and homebuilder launching a homebuilding division in the Texas market. Arditi has more than 25 years experience in the homebuilding industry, most recently with Meritage Homes Corporation in Houston. Chuck Caputo of Novi, Mich., ’82 BSBA in Marketing, has been promoted to vice president of real estate for Detroit Medical Centers by the Farbman Group, a real estate firm based in Southfield, Mich. Caputo joined the firm in 2009. In his new position, he will oversee the medical center’s long range strategic planning. Mary Pat Salomone of Charlotte, N.C., ’82 BE in Civil Engineering, was named to the board of directors for Herc Holdings Inc., the equipment rental company formerly named Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and the continuing parent of Herc Rentals. Formerly the senior vice president and chief operating officer of The Babcock and Wilcox Company, she also serves on boards for the YSU Foundation, TransCanada Corp. and Intertape Polymer Group. Patricia Veisz of Youngstown, ’83 MBA, was presented a “State Star” award at the 36th Annual America’s SBDC conference in Orlando, Fla. Veisz is director of the Ohio Small Business Development Center at YSU. Under her leadership, the program Patricia Veisz has expanded to offer international trade consulting services, has earned several regional awards for excellence and innovation and has had a significant impact on economic development in the region. Louis V. Colella of Hudson, Ohio, ’85 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to managing principal by JFS Wealth Advisors, an independent wealth management firm. A CPA and a Certified Financial Planner, he will continue to lead the firm’s Hermitage, Pa., and Northeast Ohio teams. Previously, before joining JFS, he was director of Finance and Operations for Walnut Ridge Strategic Management in Akron. Anthony J. Buzzacco of Manteo, N.C., ’85 AAS, ’92 BSN, is nursing director of Emergency Services at the Outer Banks Hospital in Nags Head, N.C. He began his nursing career at Northside Medical Center in Youngstown and also worked at Beeghly Anthony J. Buzzacco Emergency Department and Akron Children's Hospital’s Beeghly Campus. He holds an MSN from Walden University.

Class Notes

Arthur Byrd of Boardman, ’85 BS in Telecommunications, ’92 AAS in Business Management, received the Distinguished Toastmaster award in 2016, the highest honor available in the international Toastmaster program. A Toastmaster since 2009, Arthur Byrd Byrd is president of the Youngstown Chapter of Toastmasters Executive 408. He and another member, Mike Gerrick of Howland, were the first in the local club’s 50-year history to achieve the honor. Andrea Wasko of San Luis Obispo, Calif., ’86 BS in Psychology, presented at a seminar titled “Financial Wellbeing for Women: Learn to Build Wealth at Any Age,” in Los Osos, Calif., and is president of Economics of Being a Woman, a nonprofit that Andrea Wasko has empowered more than 22,000 women through financial education. A business strategist and executive coach, she holds an MBA from Golden Gate University and has been the recipient of many other awards for her efforts to improve the lives of women and girls in California.

LaNard Stradford

LaNard Stradford of Avon, Ind., ’87 BFA in Graphic Design, was recently named plant manager for Mspark Indianapolis, a mail inserting facility. Previously he held leadership roles at Cargill Dry Corn Ingredients, Pepsico-Gatorade, The Indianapolis Star and The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Stradford holds a master's

degree in applied management from Indiana Wesleyan University.

Leadership from Concordia University in Chicago and expects to complete it by 2018. She is also a licensed social worker and holds an MS in Education and an Educational Specialist in School Psychology credential, both from Kent State.

Edward Leonard of Columbus, Ohio, ’87 BSBA in Management, was named director of the Franklin County Board of Elections. As a student, he completed YSU’s ROTC program, then earned a law degree from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and began his legal career as Captain in the Army's Judge Advocate General's Corp. Leonard was in private practice for years and served in several administrative positions in county government until 2008, when he was elected to the first of his two four-year terms as Franklin County Treasurer.

’90s Rich Retort of Edinburg, Pa., ’93 BA in Economics, ’96 BE in Mechanical Engineering, has been promoted to chief executive officer of SES LLC, an automation services and material handling equipment maker, succeeding its retiring CEO. Formerly chief operating officer, Retort has served in a succession of engineering, sales and leadership positions in his 20 years with the company.

Kathy Mock of Austintown, ’88 MSEd, was honored by the Ohio School Board Association as an Outstanding School Board Member for the Northeast Ohio region. Now serving as president of the Austintown Board of Education, Mock has been a member of the board for six years, five as president. She also serves as director of Education and Initiatives for the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, supervises its Success By 6 and Success After Six programs and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, and is an instructor in YSU’s Beeghly College of Education.

Maraline Kubik of Canfield, ’94 AB in Professional Writing and Editing, was named director of Sister Jerome’s Mission, a ministry of the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown, succeeding the ministry’s founder, Sister Jerome Corcoran. The ministry’s Maraline Kubik work includes helping working poor urban families with emergency expenses and helping young adults from those families to break the cycle of poverty by pursuing a college degree. Previously, Kubik was employed in the marketing department at Mercy Health Youngstown, and before that she was a writer and reporter for The Business Journal and The Vindicator, both in Youngstown.

Dori Gatta MacMillan of Niles, Ohio, ’89 BA in Psychology, is a psychologist for the Niles City Schools, where she provides services for children of all ages, from preschool through high school. Last summer she worked with YSU associate Dori Gatta MacMillan professor Richard Van Voorhis to teach a preinternship cohort of School Psychology students. She is pursuing a doctorate in Educational

Dr. Babur Lateef of Manassas, Va., ’94 BS in Combined Science, has been appointed to the University of Virginia Board of Trustees by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Lateef is a board-certified physician and surgeon, and the president of Advanced

Williamson College Alumni Kudos Five YSU business graduates were singled out in 2016 to be recognized for their professional achievements by the Williamson College of Business Administration. The honorees, pictured from left: Walter Avdey, ’85 BSBA in Accounting, Outstanding Business Alumnus – A partner with Ernst & Young, Avdey has more than 31 years of experience with the company and serves as Global Client Service Partner for a large SEC registrant. He is a certified public accountant, has traveled to many foreign client locations and coordinated audit procedures in 19 countries. He lives in Rocky River, Ohio. James M. Gasior, ’82 BSBA in Accounting, Outstanding Business Alumnus Award – President and chief executive officer at Cortland Bancorp since 2009, he is also a director of Cortland Bancorp and its subsidiary, Cortland Bank. Gasior has served in a succession of executive positions since joining the company in 1991. A certified public accountant, he has served on the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance Advisory Council at YSU and YSU’s University Outreach Advisory Committee. He lives in Canfield. Sonia Salvino, ’85 BSBA, ’92 MBA, Outstanding MBA Alumna Award – Salvino is vice president of Finance at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, and she holds the same title for University Hospitals Medical Group. A certified public accountant, Salvino joined University Hospitals in 1998, and has held several leadership roles in Finance and Operations prior to being named to her current position in 2008.

Robert Bole, ‘08 BSBA in Marketing Management and Advertising/Public Relations, Outstanding Recent Alumnus Award – Bole is vice president of Global Markets at Deutsche Bank and is based in New York. He started with the bank as a graduate student through the Mountbatten Institute in London, England, working in its Global Markets Division. In 2010 he moved to Florida where he played a key role in the launch of a new regional location for Deutsche Bank Global, and in 2015 he relocated to Deutsche Bank’s Wall Street office in New York to help with U.S. Regulatory Strategy & Implementation for the Global Markets Division. Nayef Zarrour, ’09 BSBA in Accounting, Outstanding Recent Alumnus Award – Zarrour is chief operating officer of High Tide Capital Management, LP, a global macroeconomic hedge fund based in New York. A certified public accountant, Zarrour co-founded Azork, Ltd., a technology company, and later joined KPMG’s Financial Management practice. He lives in New York.

S P R I N G 2017

Class Notes

Nick Odille of Warren, ’04 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to partner at HBK CPAs and Consultants. Odille belongs to the Builders Association of Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania and the American Institute and Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a member of YSU’s Penguin Club and a member and past Nick Odille president of Warren Rotary.

Canfield Honors Couple as July 4 Parade Co-Marshals Joyce Brooks, ’61 BSEd, ’70 MSEd, and Loran Brooks, her husband of 58 years, were named co-grand marshals of the 2016 Canfield 4th of July Parade and Celebration, honoring them for their decades of service to Canfield and Mahoning County. Both attended YSU, and they are lifetime members of the YSU Alumni Society and Pete’s Pride. She is a retired educator, he is a retired steelworker and farmer and chair of the Canfield Township Board of Zoning Appeals.

Ophthalmology Inc. He earned his medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University, and then completed an internal medicine internship at the Western Reserve Healthcare System and an ophthalmology residency at the University of Rochester Strong Memorial Hospital. Michael Beverly of Youngstown, ’95 BA and ’02 MA, both in History, was one of four featured speakers in October for the Youngstown Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 98th annual fundraiser banquet. He is a Michael Beverly senior coordinator for YSU’s Marion G. Resch Center for Student Progress and joined the university in 2003. Previously, he was an attendance and student support coordinator at Eagle Heights Academy in Youngstown.

James Ford

James Ford of Youngstown, ’96 AAS in Criminal Justice, has been employed for 20 years as a paralegal for Community Legal Services in Youngstown. He is also co-owner of Cinemanix, a film production company based in the city, where he has worked on a variety of major films and local film projects.

Brett Miller of Silver Spring, Md., ’99 BM, performed for a hometown audience this fall as the principal French hornist in the U.S. Air Force Concert Band and Singing Sergeants concert tour. The band performed in Youngstown as part of a 10-day tour. A Master Sgt., Brett Miller he joined the Air Force Band in 2002. Miller, who holds a master’s degree from Indiana University and a doctorate from the University of Maryland, is a prolific composer. He has published more than 30 works for various brass solo instruments and chamber ensembles. 36

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

’00s Scot Pflug of Austintown, ’00 BS in Criminal Justice, has been named chief information security officer for F.N.B. Corp. and will provide primary oversight for the company’s information security and risk management strategy. Pflug has more than 20 years of diverse information technology experience, most recently as chief information security officer for FirstMerit Bank. Todd Bryarly of New Middletown, ’02 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to partner at HBK CPAs and Consultants. He joined the company in 2012 and serves as president of the Mahoning Shenango Valley Estate Planning Council. David Tesniarz of Naples, Fla., ’02 BSBA in Accounting, is controller for the NCH Physician Group, part of the NCH Healthcare System in Naples. He holds a master’s degree in Accounting and Taxation from Florida Gulf Coast University. David Tesniarz Previously, he was a senior associate for Hill, Barth and King CPAs in Naples. He is a member of Pete’s Pride, YSU’s Football Alumni Club and the Penguin Scholarship Club. Bruce Warrender of Greenville, N.C., ’03 BS in Respiratory Care, was recently promoted to program director of Polysomnography at Pitt Community College in Greenville, where he previously served as clinical coordinator of the sleep program. He worked as a respiratory therapist in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania after completing his degree and then got involved in sleep studies as a sleep technologist while working at Northside Medical Center. Warrender was an instructor in YSU's Polysomnography Certificate program before he relocated.

Aaron D. Scott of Burke, Va., ‘04 BS in Clarinet Performance, an Army Staff Sgt., is a clarinetist and member of the Army Woodwind Quintet, which is part of the renowned Army Band “Pershing’s Own.” After earning his YSU degree, he earned master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Cincinnati, Aaron D. Scott and he has performed around the country at concerts, ceremonies and master classes in venues such as the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center. Chelsea Kusky of Poland, Ohio, ’05 BFA in Fine Art Photography, owner, creative director and designer of the Poland design firm Doodlebug & Peep, was recognized by Continental Who’s Who as a Pinnacle Professional in the field of Graphic Design. Doodlebug & Peep is a designer of custom special event invitations and coordinating event décor items. Dominic Lippillo of Starkville, Miss., ’05 BFA in Photography, has been awarded a $4,500 visual arts grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission. An assistant professor of Photography in Mississippi State University’s Department of Art, Lippillo’s new solo project is titled “Stories We Tell Ourselves” and features photographs of Dominic Lippillo non-specific American landscapes and depictions of mundane daily happenings. An MSU faculty member since 2010, he also holds an MFA from Ohio University. His work is featured in the permanent collections of the Museum of Photographic Art in San Diego, Calif., the Museum of Fine Art in Houston, Texas, and the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Dr. Michael P. Miladore of Canfield, ’06 BS in Combined Science, has joined the Youngstown Orthopaedic Associates surgical practice in Canfield. Miladore completed medical school at Northeast Ohio Medical University and spent a year in a hand and upper extremity fellowship at the State University of New York in Buffalo, N.Y., where he also completed his residency in orthopaedic surgery.

Class Notes

Rebecca Tuttle Bayley of Youngstown, ’09 MBA, has joined Cardinal Mooney High School as director of Admissions and Marketing. Previously, she was employed by the Archdiocese of New York Department of Education where she was Regional Marketing Specialist in the Northwest/South Bronx Catholic Schools and Director of Enrollment. She earned undergraduate degrees in International Studies and Italian from Ohio State University and an MA in Modern European Studies from Columbia University. Roxanne Hauldren of New York, N.Y., ’09 BFA in Musical Theater, was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by TripAdvisor for the shopping tour business she founded, called Shop with Rox. TripAdvisor uses the certificate program to Roxanne Hauldren recognize businesses that consistently receive outstanding traveler reviews. Hauldren was among the alumni entrepreneurs featured in the Fall 2015 edition of YSU Magazine. Hannah Wine of Youngstown, ’09 BSEd in Early Childhood Education, ’11 MSEd in Literacy, was chosen from a field of 14 nominees to be the Youngstown City School District Teacher of the Year. A first grade teacher at William Holmes McGuffey Elementary Hannah Wine School, Wine joined the district six years ago and has also served as a kindergarten teacher and a literacy coach.

Alumni Student-Athletes Named to Hall of Fame Seven former YSU student-athletes representing five sport categories were inducted to the 2016 Class of the YSU Athletics Hall of Fame at a breakfast ceremony last fall. The inductees include: Justin Banks of Steubenville, Ohio, ’09 BSEd in Health and Physical Education, a four-year starter in Penguin baseball and two-time All-Horizon League honoree. He is now employed as an elementary physical education teacher and high school baseball and football coach for Steubenville City Schools.

Justin Banks

Jarrod Davis of Bluffton, S.C., ’05 BS and ’09 MCI, both in Computer and Information Systems, excelled as part of the Penguin track and field team, both indoors in weight Jeanna Cunningham throw and shot put events, and outdoors in the hammer throw, discus and javelin events. He is employed as a software developer for Barrett Values Centre.

Jarrod Davis

Kalyn Leveto of Delaware, Ohio, ’05 BSBA in Finance, was part of YSU’s swimming and diving team and one of the most decorated divers in university history. She was named YSU’s Female/Vindicator Athlete of the Year in 2004-05 and still holds the school record for the one-meter dive. Leveto is employed as an admissions representative for the Bradford School in Columbus. Marcus Mason of Atlanta, who played two years of Penguin football, recorded the best performance in 2006 by any tailback in YSU’s history and had a school record of 10 100-yard rushing performances in six straight games. Mason left YSU for the NFL, starting with the Washington Redskins. He finished his NFL career with the San Diego Chargers in 2010.

’10s Kellie Brautigam of Denver, Colo., ’10 BSEd, participated in a global field course in India last summer as part of her studies toward a master’s degree from Miami University of Ohio. During the trip, she studied the ecological, cultural and

Jeanna Cunningham of Columbus, Ohio, ’04 BSA in Civil Engineering Technology, a track and field standout, still holds the record as the top 400-meter dash runner in YSU history and one of the university’s best sprinters. She also earned an MS from Capitol University and is employed as a construction/inspection division manager for Dynotec, Inc.

Marcus Mason

Kalyn Leveto

Jamie Palumbo of Howland, ’99 BSA in Criminal Justice, earned two first-team all conference honors for his performance in Penguin baseball. He is employed as a pharmaceutical representative and territory manager for ARBOR Pharmaceuticals.

Tiffany Patteson of Orlando, Fla., ’07 BSA in Exercise Science, had a successful career as a shortstop for the Penguins softball team and in 2006 was named YSU’s Female Scholar Athlete of the Year. She later earned an MBA from Tiffin University and is employed as an assistant coach at the University of Central Florida after six years as an assistant coach at YSU.

Jamie Palumbo

Also name to the YSU Athletics Hall of Fame as contributors were Dennis and Janet Haines. He is an attorney, managing partner of the law firm of Green Haines Sgambati Co., she is an educator. Faithful YSU sports fans, they have endowed a YSU athletic scholarship and are frequent contributors to YSU Athletics projects. In 2012 they were named Penguins of the Year. Tiffany Patteson

Recent Grad Plays Hoops in Switzerland Robert Hain IV, a 2016 YSU graduate and standout on the Penguin men’s basketball team, has signed to play professional basketball with a team in Switzerland. A forward on the YSU team for four years, Hain had several offers from overseas teams but decided to join the Villars Basket team. While at YSU, he played 110 games and averaged 10.8 points per game. His 679 career rebound total ranks him fourth in YSU history. Robert Hain IV

S P R I N G 2017

Class Notes

spiritual landscapes of the Western Ghats. Last year, she traveled to the Central American country of Belize under the same program. Formerly an English teacher at Canfield High School, she is now teaching at Highlands Ranch High School in Denver. Jim Shaw of Austintown, Ohio, ’10 BA in Political Science, is employed as the fiscal officer for the Mahoning County Board of Elections and is also active in Ohio politics. In 2016 he received the John Ashbrook Award for Conservatism from the Ohio Young Republican Organization and in 2013 he was presented the John Kasich Republican Man of the Year Award. Shaw, who also holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Akron, is a freelance writer for several online political news outlets. Before joining Mahoning County he worked for Nationwide Insurance.

Jim Shaw

Christina Humble of Bowling Green, Ohio, ’11 BFA in Painting and Printmaking and BSEd, performed demonstrations at the Mid American Print Conference last fall, an event hosted by the University of Louisville and Indiana University SouthEast. An interdisciplinary artist who has worked and shown her work nationally and Christina Humble internationally, Humble earned an MFA in Studio Art from American University in Washington, D.C. She teaches part-time for the Bowling Green City Schools, had her work displayed in Lithuania in an international exhibit in 2015 and remains active in her local art community. Ashley McCabe

Ashley McCabe of Dublin, Ohio, ’11 MSEd in Counseling, is director of Student Success and an adjunct professor at Capital University in Columbus. Married last December to fellow YSU alumnus Bobby McCabe,'15, BA History, she is pursuing her juris doctor degree at Capital University Law School. Ross Mazzupappa of Bowling Green, Ohio, ’12 BFA in Studio Art Printmaking and Painting, is instructor of Printmaking and Photography at Bowling Green State

University and an artist specializing in Printmaking and Photographic techniques and processes. Mazzupappa performed demonstrations at the Mid American Print Conference last fall, an event hosted by the University of Louisville and Indiana University SouthEast. He holds MA and MFA degrees in Printmaking, both from the University of Iowa. His work has been shown nationally and internationally in various juried exhibitions and portfolio exchanges. Chelsey A. Zoldan of Canfield, ’12 BA in Psychology, ’14 MSEd in Counseling, is employed as a medication assisted treatment counselor at Meridian HealthCare in Youngstown while pursuing a doctoral degree in Counselor Education and Supervision at the University of Akron. She was named a 25 Under 35 Award recipient for 2017 by the Mahoning Valley Young Professionals and also co-authored a book chapter in a recentlypublished book titled A Guide to Graduate Programs Chelsey A. Zoldan in Counseling. Julianna Marsco of Niles, ’14 BA in Communication Studies, was hired as marketing coordinator in the Marketing Office of Cortland Bank, based in the Cortland office. Previously, she was resource development and marketing manager for the United Way of Trumbull County. Cameron Carter of Grandview Heights, Ohio, ‘15 BS in Early Julianna Marsco Childhood Education, is a second grade teacher at Slate Hill Elementary in his second year of teaching in the Worthington City Schools. He was awarded the 2016 Affiliate Leadership Development Award by the Ohio Council of Teachers of English and recognized in November at the National Council of Teachers of English Convention in Atlanta. The Cameron Carter award is given annually to one teacher in each state, all in their first through fifth years of teaching. Carter was recognized for having presented on literacy topics, written in a scholarly English journal and helping to host the affiliate state conference.

Ross Mazzupappa

How We Met…

Since 2013, YSU Magazine has been inviting married YSU couples to share their love stories in our popular “Penguin Mates” column, and we're introducing four alumni couples in this issue. Visit the magazine website, ysumagazine.org, to learn how they met and see more photos.

Bill Mehalco, ’05 BS in Hospitality Management, and Hayley Ramunno Mehalco, ’09, also BS in Hospitality Management, were married June 11, 2016, at Jane’s Carousel in New York City. They live in Midtown Manhattan with their English bulldog. She is the founder and owner of Puppy Parties NYC, and he is hotel manager for Kimpton Hotel Eventi.

Jane's Carousel in New York City, which features the refurbished historic carousel from Youngstown's iconic Idora Park, was the setting for the June 2016 wedding of Bill and Hayley Mehalco, both Mahoning Valley natives who now live and work in New York. "After we wed, all our guests got to take a few rides on the carousel," Bill Mehalco wrote. "It was a nice tie-in to our roots in Y-Town."

ALUMNI authors

Class Notes

Dr. Larry Florman holds a Haitian child while working as a volunteer after a devastating hurricane hit the island nation in 2016.

Dr. Larry D. Florman of Louisville, Ky., ’63 AB in Biology, is a retired plastic surgeon that has authored two books for medical students, both published by Springer Publications. The books are titled: The Portable Medical Mentor – Training Success and Portable Surgical Mentor: A Handbook of Protocol for Interns and Residents in Surgery. Florman retired from his private practice in 2005 and is employed by the University of Louisville School of Medicine teaching surgical residents and medical students. He earned his medical degree from the University of Louvain in Belgium, studied Otolaryngology at the Manhattan Eye Ear and Throat Hospital in New York and studied plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of Louisville. Dave Ammons of Marina del Ray, Calif., ’71 BSBA in Advertising, has written a novel, titled Once Upon a Time in the 60s, based on his years as a US Army helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War. “My days at YSU are fondly remembered, and while my novel is fiction, there are parts that are autobiographical,” he said. “For example, when you read about Robby the Ram, think Pete the Penguin." Retired from a career in marketing and advertising, Ammons is working on a screenplay of this first book and writing a second novel. The book is published by Infinity Publishing and available through Amazon and other booksellers.

Melissa Jozwiak of San Antonio, Texas, ’94 BSEd in Home Economics, co-authored a book titled Continuity in Children's Worlds: Choices and Consequences for Early Childhood Settings, published by Teachers College Press. Jozwiak, an assistant professor of Early Childhood at Texas A & M University, said the book brings together stories from parents, teachers and early childhood professionals to explore notions of continuity and discontinuity in early childhood. The author earned her MA and PhD degrees from New Mexico State University.

Marlene (Shasho) Veltre of Los Angeles, ’84 BS in Mathematics and Computer Science, has authored her first book, titled 7 Basics for Simple Health. The author is a health educator and practitioner of “The Method.” She said her book provides a foundation for understanding health and how it can be simple, all backed by scientific factfinding and common sense. It is available at her website, 7basicsforsimplehealth.com, or through Amazon and other booksellers. Previously, Veltre taught computer science classes as a part-time instructor at YSU, worked in CAT scan software engineering and in product development for a New York City dot-com.

Charles Vaughn Dorsey of Boardman, ’96 BA in Social Work, has published an autobiographical book titled I Met Jesus at the Greasy Spoon. An ordained minister, he is a classically trained pianist and his music ministry has been featured at many churches and on several faith-based television programs. Dorsey is also employed as a substitute teacher in the Youngstown City Schools.

Timothy Licata, ’06 BE in Civil Engineering, and Jessica Wagner Licata, ’05 BS in Environmental Studies, were married August 4, 2007, in Cortland, Ohio. He is a manager at TRAC - The Railroad Associates Corp., and she is a project manager with Affinity Consultants, Inc. and a stay-at-home mother. They live in Cortland with their two sons. Brian Newell, ’03 BS in Criminal Justice, and Caitlin Tarcy Newell, ’06 BS in Biology, ’13 DPT, were married May 16, 2015, at Butler North Church, Youngstown, followed by a reception at the Butler Institute of American Art . They live in Hubbard, Ohio. He is employed at the Federal Correctional Institute in Elkton, and she is employed as a physical therapist in New Castle, Pa. DJ O'Hara, ’14 BSBA in Management Information Systems, BSAS in Information Technology, and Erin Griehs O'Hara, ’12 BSBA in Accounting, were married July 2, 2016, on Princess Beach in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. He is a software developer and project manager at Vogelsang USA in Ravenna, Ohio; she is a CPA at Packer Thomas in Canfield. They live in Canfield. “Penguin Mates” is a continuing feature in YSU’s alumni magazine. If you and your spouse are both YSU graduates, let us share your story. Tell us how you met, and a little about your life today, in 300 words or less, and send it with one or more current photographs and/or wedding photos. Be sure to include your degrees, graduation years, city of residence, email address and phone number so that we can contact you. Send to: universitymagazine@ysu.edu or: YSU Magazine, Youngstown State University, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.

The YSU Magazine staff wants to share your career news in Class Notes. Visit ysumagazine.org, the magazine website, click on the “Tell Us Your Story” icon and complete the form online. Or, mail your news to: YSU Magazine, Marketing and Communications, Youngstown State University, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555. Please include your degree, graduation year, and an email address or telephone number.

S P R I N G 2017

A Golden Year

at Youngstown State University

Ward Beecher Planetarium: 50 Years of Sharing the Stars From the day its doors opened in March 1967, YSU’s Ward Beecher Planetarium has been sharing the stars – hosting field trips for tens of thousands of school children, years offering classroom activities for YSU Astronomy students and presenting regular weekend shows for the public. Ward Beecher Located in Ward Beecher Hall on the YSU campus, the planetarium is celebrating 1967 – 2017 its 50-year milestone with several special events this year. An historical display located in the David C. Sweet Exhibition Gallery on the fifth floor of Maag Library traces the planetarium’s history and includes photographs, special effects equipment and video footage. The exhibit will continue through December. The planetarium has also partnered with the YSU Center for Innovation in Additive Manufacturing for a second exhibit, titled “NASA Missions to the Solar System.” Located outside the planetarium in Ward Beecher Hall, it features eight 3D-printed models of spacecraft that have visited nearly every major body in the solar system over the past 60 years. Jay Wargacki, CIAM manager, and Mechanical Engineering students Ryan Betts, Mike Manginelli and Dean Jaric, created the 3D-printed models using CAD model plans provided by NASA.

Lecture Series Also in recognition of the 50th anniversary, the planetarium launched a lecture series. The first two presentations were in February and March, and two more are scheduled: · Friday, April 21, 8 p.m. – Sarah Gallagher of Western University in London, Canada, “Gasbags and Blowhards: Supermassive Black Holes in the Universe.” · Friday, May 5, 8 p.m. – Robin Ciardullo of Penn State University, “The Dark Side of the Universe.” A dinner event celebrating the Golden anniversary and featuring a presentation by Warren Young, faculty emeritus in the Physics and Astronomy Department and retired director of the planetarium, was in mid-March.

Generous Gift

YSU Students in the Ward Beecher Planetarium in the late 1960s, shortly after its 1967 opening.

YO U N G S TO W N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

The Ward Beecher Planetarium was originally funded through a $1.6 million gift by Youngstown industrialist and philanthropist Ward Beecher. In 2006, a major upgrade of the planetarium was funded by the Ward and Florence Beecher Foundations through their daughter, Eleanor Beecher Flad. In 2015, family members of the late William T. Papagna, a Youngstown native and Las Vegas businessman, were on campus to celebrate Papagna’s $200,000 gift to benefit the planetarium. Then, in 2016, the planetarium received $650,000 in funding via a NASA cooperative agreement to support the development of full dome video and 3D animation materials that will be distributed free of charge to planetaria across the globe.

YSU Marks Half Century as State University

Fifty years ago in May, Ohio lawmakers approved House Bill 134 to establish YSU as a state university under Gov. James Rhodes. In these November 1967 photos from the Maag Library Archives, YSU President Albert L. Pugsley and members of the Circle K student service organization dedicate a stainless steel plaque that was fastened to the iconic granite boulder outside the entrance of Jones Hall in honor of YSU’s new status as a state institution. The plaque, a gift to the university from Circle K, is engraved with the words: “Youngstown State University –1967, The Youngstown University – 1955, Youngstown College – 1908.” YSU will celebrate its 50th anniversary as a state university on Homecoming Weekend, set for Oct. 28 – 29.

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YSU NURSING

Celebrates

50 years on Page 16.

Pete’s Pride Members Give Back 4,000+ volunteer hours by assisting with student recruitment, career development and community outreach.

ESTABLISHED IN

THE FACTS ADD UP

JULY

2014

1,287

PETE’S PRIDE MEMBERS

4,176 VOLUNTEER H O U R S

112 EVENTS in 2016

Pete’s Pride members at Streetscape 2016, beautifying downtown Youngstown.

Y O U N G S T O W N

S T A T E

U N I V E R S I T Y

ACTIVE VOLUNTEERS

It’s FREE to join and easy to sign up at petespride.ysu.edu. Here are just a few ways you can contribute, whether you live nearby or have taken your talents far from Kilcawley Center: Make personal connections with potential students at on-campus events, like Crash Day and Orientation.

Participate in community service projects with fellow members.

Join the ongoing letter writing campaign from the comfort of your home.

Welcome students, alumni and visitors at a host of campus events and activities.

petespride@ysu.edu 330-941-1591

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY OFFICE OF ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT

Office of Marketing & Communications One University Plaza, Youngstown, Ohio 44555 ELECTRONIC SERVICE REQUESTED

Celebrating Spring,

May Day 1954

WE WANT TO

RS!

FROM

YO U R L E

May Day was a cherished spring tradition at Youngstown College from 1928 through 1963, except for a four-year hiatus during World War II. In this archive photo, taken May 25, 1954, May Day queen Ruth Lanz is framed by members of the Pershing Rifles ROTC honor guard. The guard includes: left, from front to back, William Young, Robert Frantz, Joe Cugini and James Donnelly; and right, front to back, Gerald Janosik, sergeant of the guard, Robert Hixenbaugh, James Driscoll, Bernard Voitko and John Ryan. The photo was taken on the lawn outside the collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newly constructed library, now known as Tod Hall. Other May Day activities included theater and musical performances, a coronation ceremony and a formal dance. (Source: Maag Library Archives)

you.

Send your letters to: universitymagazine@ysu.edu or YSU Office of Marketing and Communications, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.