Student and alumni award winners

A Year-in- Review

Scholar Kerry Abello, a rising co-captain of the women’s soccer team, received Academic All-America honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and was one of 11 varsity athlete Scholars who were named Big Ten Distinguished Scholars for 2019-20.

Scholar alumnus Joshua Branch was honored with a Youth Justice Leadership Institute Fellowship, a year-long leadership development program for youth justice reform advocates, by the National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN).

Dean Peggy A. Johnson delivered a convocation speech to graduating Scholars as part of a pre-recorded video in May, as the College replaced its usual Medals Ceremony with a virtual Medals Ceremony as a safety precaution due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Dr. Jeanine Staples, an associate professor of literacy and language, African American studies, and women’s, gender and sexuality studies, spoke about social and emotional justice during the Mark Luchinsky Memorial Lecture in January.

An off-Broadway play written, directed, and produced by Scholar alumna Ellis Stump, “The Only Coffee Shop in the City,” made its debut in October as part of the NY Theatre Festival, Summerfest 2019 in New York.

Scholar Daniel Zahn, who graduated with degrees in communication arts and sciences, English, and philosophy, was presented with the 2019 Scholar Involvement Award during the College’s annual Founders Day celebration in September 2019.

Scholar Kylie Weaver competed in the Jeopardy! College Championship with 14 other college students from around the country. The episode aired in April.

Astronaut Scholarship Foundation

Ava Self

Boren Fellowship and Scholarship

Jocelyn Krieger

DAAD Grants for Study and Research in Germany

Maria Badanova

DAAD RISE

(program cancelled) Joshua Forrest Madison Reddie Lasair Ni Chochlain

Erickson Discovery Grants

Brooke Arner Jason Cherry Julia Cipparulo Nina De Luna Emily Eiss Elinor Farber Danny Glickman Samantha Grecco Christopher Hudson Lydia Jordache David Kennedy Xianqing Li Annie Liu Anthony Mannarino Taylor Pust Lauren Rickert Oliver Rose Matthew Schubach Taylor Slusser Kelly Snyder Josephine Soddano Thomas Starr Cristina Valentina Craescu Yuyang Wang Colin Williams

Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies Program

Joel Balzer William Baumgardner Nicholas Shea Amanda Talbot Mikaela Walker

Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship

Panini Pandya Sarah Petri

Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship

Autumn Deitrick Rachel Swope

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Matthew Aronson Anna Brogan Sojung Kim Katelyn Kirchner Ananda Rankin Andrew White

Schre yer Honors College Awards Outstanding Scholar Alumni Award 2019

Joseph Kazprzyk ’07 Eng, ’12g Eng Quinta Nwanosike Warren ’05 Eng

Outstanding Alumni Mentor Award 2019

Maura McLaughlin ’94 Sci

Penn State Awards 2019 Alumni Fellow Award

Robert Edwards ’75 Bus, ’83g Bus

2019 Alumni Achievement Award

Benjamin Ross ’06 Eng, ’07g Eng Aniyia Williams ’07 A&A

Longtime leadership program partners with Deloitte

The Deloitte Foundation Leadership Development Center offers Schreyer Scholars from all majors a personalized, direct-feedback experience and a chance to learn about their leadership skills under the watchful eye of trained professionals.

As of July 1, the Center, which was previously sponsored by PNC Bank, began a partnership with Deloitte that will last through at least the 2024-25 academic term.

“Deloitte has a fantastic network of Penn State alums and friends,” said LDC director and teaching professor of psychology Greg Loviscky. “They have a perspective on leadership that few organizations bring to the table.”

Since 2008, the LDC has hosted more than 500 students over 47 sessions. Typically held in spring and fall, the sessions are limited to 12 students at a time. Students are assigned a simulated business organization and given the chance to show how they would respond to challenges they might face in real-life situations.

“Unlike interviews, where you just say what you would do, you walk the walk,” Loviscky said. “Can you conduct these meetings with a little audience?”

Participants of the program have grown to appreciate the exercises and assessments even more as they enter their various careers.

“They make you think right on the spot,” said Scholar alumna Lan Li. “Regard- less of what field we wind up pursuing, the ability to lead, work, and communicate effectively with different people is crucial. LDC gives students the opportunity to receive feedback in the most honest way possible.”

LDCs are held each fall and spring, with smaller-group virtual possibilities being explored for the Fall 2020 semester. Students receive a customized feedback report and a one-on-one meeting with an assessor within two weeks of the session, helping them go into job interviews with a clearer understanding of their professional selves.

“Students have shared that they aced the infamous ‘What’s your biggest weakness?’ question by describing how the LDC activities and feedback helped them to identify specific strengths as well as an action plans for improvement,” said Lisa Kerchinski, the Honors College’s director of career development.

The LDC has come a long way from its early days, when organizers brought baked goods from home for participants. Loviscky credits the center’s origi- nal founder, professor emeritus of psychology Rick Jacobs, with starting a program that caught the attention of former Schreyer Honors College dean Christian Brady and driving it to what it has become today.

“We all owe a debt of gratitude to Rick Jacobs for the impact that he’s had,” Loviscky said.