Alan Newsome ’07
Even before he arrived at The Valley, Newsome knew he wanted to study actuarial science—strong job prospects and a solid math emphasis convinced him that the field would be a good fit. He added a second major in economics while at LVC, and as graduation approached, he found himself with several job offers from which to choose. Today, Newsome works with John Hancock Financial Services in Boston, Mass., where he’s involved in hedge operations as an associate actuary. Newsome enjoyed the unique, liberal arts curriculum of LVC’s math-based actuarial science major. “Professors even made us write essays in our math classes.” Hershey native Fisher began his college career as a music performance major at Carnegie Mellon University, where he also started on the tennis team. In his sophomore year however, he transferred to The Valley, alma mater of his parents, Dr. Paul G. Fisher ’47 and Sara Schott Fisher ’47, and changed his major to music education. “I received my draft notice during my senior year, so I ended up in the U.S. Air Force Concert Band after college,” Fisher says. He went on to perform nationally and internationally as a
member of the elite concert band’s French horn section for 24 years. After he left the Air Force in 1995, Fisher took a position as tennis director at the Burke Racquet and Swim Club in Virginia, which led to an extraordinarily successful coaching career at James W. Robinson Jr. Secondary School in Fairfax. Fisher’s boys’ tennis teams have won 19 district titles in 21 years, as well as seven regional titles with 16 trips to the state tournament— culminating in three consecutive state championships. “The winning is just a result of the process,” Fisher stresses. “That’s what I try to impart to my players—first you have to work hard, learn the game, play smart, and then the other things will follow.”
Harbaugh is proud of his LVC background. “When I look at the neurosurgery faculty at Penn State Hershey, I see that they attended schools such as Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, and the University of
Prepare and Persevere Dr. Robert E. Harbaugh ’74 has achieved eminence just a few miles west of The Valley. He is the University Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Harbaugh is also a professor in Penn State’s Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics and director of the university’s
Paul Fisher ’71
Institute of the Neurosciences. He is a director of the American Board of Neurological Surgery and a member of the National Football League’s Injury Surveillance and Head, Neck, and Spine committees.
Dr. Robert E. Harbaugh ’74
Pennsylvania. But the chairman attended Lebanon Valley College.” Harbaugh’s definition of success has changed as he has risen to the top of his field. “As you go on in your career, if you’re successful I think you start to say, ‘I don’t want to do this just for me, I want to do this for my department, or my university, or my organization.’” What hasn’t changed is Harbaugh’s discipline and preparation. “I have three [surgical] cases on the schedule for tomorrow. Tonight, I’m going to review each of those by mentally going through the cases step by step,” he explains. “You want to prepare physically as well. There’s a lot about surgery that’s similar to an athletic event. It can be physically and mentally demanding.” Dr. Sophia Kwon Lunt ’05, a post-doctoral research associate studying cancer metabolism at Michigan State University, offers a different perspective on preparation and perseverance. “I was always
SPRING 2014
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